One Mindanao - November 22, 2011

Western Mindanao (Zamboanga Peninsula)

P. Urro Street, San Francisco DistrictPagadian City, Zamboanga del Sur 7016Telephone no. (062) 215-1480 / 925-0038Cellphone no. 0908-8843404E-mail: [email protected] [email protected]: www.piazampen.blogspot.com Facebook: PIA Region-IX

Northern Mindanao

Graces’ Building, Antonio Luna StreetCagayan de Oro City 9000Telefax No. (08822) 72-66-83Telephone no. (088) 856-8178 / 729-594Cellphone no. 0928-5204305 0917-3084969E-mail: [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]: www.pia-10.blogspot.com

Southern Mindanao (Davao Region)

2/F Kanto Motors Bldg.,Quimpo Blvd., New MatinaDavao City 8000Telephone no. (082) 297-0991 / 301-8580Telefax no. (082) 297-0992 / 304-2044Cellphone no. 0917-7053606 / 0918-9202950E-mail: [email protected]

Central Mindanao (SOCCSKSARGEN)

Provincial Capitol Compound Bautista Bldg., Zulueta St.Koronadal City, South Cotabato 9506Telephone no. (083) 520-0249Telefax no. (083) 228-9736 / 228-9739 / 520-0100Cellphone no. 0921-6873373 / 0928-5204307E-mail: [email protected], [email protected]

Northeastern Mindanao (Caraga)

Vice Mayors’ League of the Philippines Bldg.,J. Rosales Avenue, Butuan CityTelephone no. (085) 341-5285 / 360-1239Telefax no. (085) 341-2370Cellphone no. 0917-7188834Email: [email protected] , [email protected],phBlogspot: www.piacaraga.blogspot.comFacebook: PIA Caraga Updates, PIA Agusan del Norte, Pia Agusan del Sur, Pia Surigao del Norte, Pia Surigao del Sur

PIA REGIONAL OFFICESIN MINDANAO

OUR COVER

featuresthe 100th issue of

One Mindanao

Executive Editor ……......... EFREN F. ELBANBUENA Cluster Head, Southern, Western and Central Mindanao Regional Director, PIA Region XI

Managing Editor ……......... ABNER M. CAGA Cluster Head, Northern and Northeastern Mindanao Regional Director, PIA Caraga Region Officer-in-charge,PIARegionX

Associate Editors ……....... NOEMI B. EDAGA Regional Director, PIA Region IX

OLIVIA T. SUDARIA Regional Director, PIA Region XII

Regional Desk Editors …... Jocelyn P. Alvarez, PIA Region IX Elaine O. Ratunil, PIA Region X Rudolph Ian G. Alama, PIA Region XI Danny E. Doguiles, PIA Region XII Robert E. Roperos, PIA Caraga Region

Copy Editors ……………….. Robert E. Roperos, PIA Caraga Region Nora CL Molde, PIA Caraga Region

Layout Artists ……………... Gerie Mae G. Coco, PIA Caraga Region Richard D. Atillo, PIA Caraga Region

Editorial Advisers ……….... ATTY. JOSE A. FABIA Director-General Philippine Information Agency

SEC. HERMINIO “Sonny” B. COLOMA PresidentialCommunicationsOperationsOffice

An Electronic News Magazineof the Phliippine Information Agency

Mindanao Clusters

EDITORIAL BOARD

In ThisIssue...

Tuesday, Vol. 1 No. 100

Cover Story“One Mindanao”: News and Information delivery at its best

22 Bombo Radyo, PRC Blood-letting activity generates 205 bags

WESTERN MINDANAO

NORTHERN MINDANAO

SOUTHERN MINDANAO

CENTRAL MINDANAO

CARAGA REGION

MinDA firms up preparations for MindaNOW program launch

Dengue cases in Mis. Occ., up by 10.05 percent

PDEA assures no recycling of confiscated drugs

Inventors to seek protection of works from City Council

DSWD addresses 4Ps issues and concerns

SOCOTECO 1 planong kumuha ng kuryente sa coal-powered plant sa Sarangani

Turn-over of new PNP station at San Agustin, SurSur conducted

Carina Cayon, Region XI

Olivia Sudaria, Region XII

DEDoguiles, Region XII

PSupt Martin M Gamba , Caraga Region

Region IX

Region X

Rutchie Cabahug-Aguhob, Region X

Noel Baguio, Region XI

29

30

33

35

3839

44

page 20

page 25

page 32

page 36

page 40

David M. Suyao

Nat

iona

l

Aquino says PHL remains committed to advance relations with South Korea .........................................................

16

page 7

Barya ng mga Bayani, makakapagpatayo ng mga paaralan ........................................ 1823 Interfaith Forum to spearhead Mindanao

Week of Peace celebration in ZamboSurClaro A. Lanipa, Region IX

SDSSU stude wins stat quiz reg’l championship

Ruel L. Dres , Caraga Region42

Presidential Communications Operations OfficeMalacañang, Manila

M E S S A G E

It is heartening to note that our electronic news magazine One Mindanao will already be coming out with its 100th issue on 22 November 2011.

I am glad to know that it is now considered one of the high impact projects of government which features developmental news and information of the five regions in Mindanao.

That it has already gone this far since its launching in August 15 this year only shows the effec-tiveness and reliability of such system in delivering information vital to the growth of our people. This early, we already foresee it is one important instrument in effectively forging peace, progress and unity in the Southern Philippines.

To all the men and women from the PCOO-PIA and others who have in one way or another helped in realizing this project, our heartfelt congratulation.

Keep up the good work!

SONNY COLOMASecretary

Philippine Information AgencyPIA Bldg, Visayas Ave., Diliman, Quezon City, Philippines

M E S S A G E

I congratulate you for coming out with the 100th edition of One Mindanao. At the beginning, the PIA Inbox News was only an idea in my mind. I had been trying to sell the idea to our regional directors and information officers. Caraga and Basulta took up the challenge and started the germinal seeds that led to One Mindanao.

Why One Mindanao?

Mindanao has always been a land of promise. It is a dream waiting to be fulfilled. It is rich in natural resources that is the envy of many countries.It has people with rich history, culture and tradition. Trade and commerce existed between Mindanao and the rest of Asia even before the Europeans and the Americans came.

Ironically, Mindanao is also the center of decades of conflict and war. People, especially the poor and the marginalized continue to suffer. But, everything is not lost. There is hope for Mindanao. With one mind, one spirit and one dream of a progressive and peaceful Mindanao, people of Mindanao can rise up to the challenge of development.

It is my aspiration that One Mindanao will bring the good news about Mindanao, provide infor-mation on the rich natural resources of the area which good for tourism and adventure. It will inform the public on the rich culture, tradition and history of the different places and peoples in the island. It will showcase the best business practices in the area and finally inform the rest of the world that Min-danao is a promise waiting to be fulfilled and the people there are working so hard to make it peace-ful.

One Mindanao can be a catalyst for change. Through its pages, Mindanaoans will one day real-ize that they live in a beautiful and bountiful place. They will learn to forgive and resolve to start anew. They will learn and practice a culture of peace. They will learn that the way to peace is socio-economic progress. Finally, One Mindanao will be able to arouse the consciousness of the people of Mindanao that they are of One Mind, One Spirit...One Mindanao.

ATTY. JOSE A. FABIADirector-General

Cover StoryRecipients’ Feedbacks

7 Tuesday, November 22, 2011 ONE MINDANAO

One Mindanao: News and Information delivery at its best

Cover Story

by David M. Suyao

News and information delivery is very expensive, but it is more expensive to deal with the day-to-day challenges of life to tune up with other people’s mindset and to cope up with the

trend and the needs of a person or an organization, without information.

This is the principle be-hind the efforts of PIA Car-aga Regional Director Abner Caga when he suggests to the PIA Caraga regional of-

fice workforce to maximize the delivery of information using the modern facilities with the least costs but of wider scope using the elec-

8 Tuesday, November 22, 2011ONE MINDANAO

tronics technology. Thus, the Caraga e-News Service was born. The principle of Dir. Caga has been very effec-tive in reaching the middle class. PIA Caraga recipients of the Short Messaging Ser-vices (SMS) became hungry of news and information that Caraga e-News Service deliv-ers right at their finger tips, without cost. But the information was so limited that only important events and government pro-grams in Caraga Region were circulating around the globe, while PIA is considered the information arm of the gov-ernment and is suppose to deliver the widest informa-tion that the world need. This situation prompted the high-

est PIA management headed by Director-General Jose Fa-bia himself, to conceptualize the system with the sense of unity, thus “One Mindanao” was born. While the PIA News Ser-vice was presented in a very simple, yet clear to read style by its clients, RD Caga did not stop searching for a pre-sentable computer software to make the “One Mindanao” more attractive and interest-ing to read. With the techni-cal capabilities of PIA Caraga workforce, the use of ISSUU web hosting was studied and employed, where the read-ing of the “One Mindanao”


became easy and exciting. With a very limited facili-ties and resources, PIA Cara-ga regional office was able to publish the maiden issue of “One Mindanao” on August 15 of this year, featuring the stories of government pro-grams and efforts, from all corners of Mindanao.

The presentation of the maiden issue was so simple with less colourful pictures, yet very clear and precise that made the eyebrows of the readers rise with amuse-ment. The maiden issue is also a gift of Director-Gen-eral Jose Fabia to its read-ers as he celebrates his first year anniversary with PIA. “The two clusters from Mindanao agreed to make the electronic newsletters of the five regions into one to bridge the communication and exercise information ex-change of the island, as DG Jose Fabia wanted. It was conceptualized not only to bring the good news of the government to the general public but also to show that all the regional offices in the island are united, thus, aim-


ing for one common vision – to be of efficient service to the Mindanaoans through timely, accurate and reliable delivery of information,” RD Caga said. The Northeastern Mind-anao cluster head and con-current Caraga regional

director noted that the elec-tronic news magazine has the advantage of delivering the material to the personal e-mail addresses of the re-cipients, thus, disseminating the information personally through the use of cyber-space technology (e-mail), is like delivering the e-news-letter to the recipients with a sense of personal touch. Also, with the five Re-gional Offices having signif-icant number of recipients, RD Caga said the informa-tion of the government’s thrusts and programs are widely disseminated com-pared to dailies, as copies of it are only limited. “For


the reader’s part, the e-news magazine is free of charge,” RD Caga added. Caga stressed the e-news magazine is also supported by the concept that the government’s news and information on a specific day, will only be read in daily papers on the following day. “With One Mindanao, news and information from the national government and all regions in the island can be read on the evening of that same day that the event happened,” RD Caga said. But why use a host web-site? Dir. Caga explained that the use of a host web-site (http://issuu.com) is to advance the e-news maga-zine to a higher level as it can flip pages one after the other, rather than using the traditional one where a .pdf file will be browsed vertical-ly. In this way, Caga said, it gives justice to the name “e-news,” an automated news magazine for which pages can be flipped right at the screen of the com-puter. The host website is free of charge.

Caga stressed the con-cept of the news magazine is still present, complied and fulfilled. “But we must not be contented. Instead, we must continue discovering tech-niques using modern tech-nologies to maintain the niche that PIA have at present. And for all we know, no less than the people in the White House of the United States of America is reading the “One Mindanao,” RD Caga added. (with Robert E. Roperos, PIA-Caraga)


South Korean President lauds Aquino for ‘outstanding leadership’

South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak lauded President Benigno S. Aquino III for his “outstanding leadership,” and assured that the Republic of Korea will remain the partner and friend of the Philippines.


. President Benigno S. Aquino III hosted a State Dinner in honor of the South Korean leader and his delegation at the Malacanang’s Rizal Hall on Mon-day evening. During his speech President Lee expressed his “deepest admiration” to the “out-

s tand ing l e ade r -

ship” of Pres-

ident Aquino. “I know that since assuming office, he has strenuously car-ried out steadfast re-form both political and social, which has yield-ed substantial results,” the South Korean lead-er said. “We believe that due to that outstand-ing leadership, the Philippine economy as well as the country as a whole has been able to achieve much despite the global economic difficulties,” he added. President Lee was

in the country for a three-day state visit upon the invitation of President Aquino. The two leaders had a bi-lateral meeting Mon-day morning in Mala-canan Palace. He said that dur-ing his bilateral meet-ing with President Aquino, he reaffirmed the close partnership between the Republic of Korea and the Phil-ippines. “It has been more than 60 years since the two countries first established diplomatic


relationship and it has been 60 years since the Philippines came to our aid during the Korean War,” President Lee said. President Lee also took the opportunity to thank the Korean War veterans here in the Philippines for their “service” during the Korean war. “It may have been several decades since the brave soldiers from the Philippines came to help my country and my people, but as time goes by our appre-ciation and gratitude only grow stronger,” he said.

President Lee said that the people of Ko-rea would always re-member the “sacrifice, dedication and the ser-vice that the people of the Philippines gave to Korea during times of darkness.” He also as-sured that the Aquino administration that his country will remain the Philippines’ clos-est partner and friend adding that his visit to the Philippines will el-evate the partnership between the two coun-tries. “We will continue to strengthen not only our economic and com-

merce and trade relationship but also on the interna-tional stage, as we have always done for the last several decades,” Presi-dent Lee said. “Our two countries will re-main steadfast partners and friends as we face the global challenges of today,” the South Ko-rean lead-er said. (CO)


Aquino says PHL remains committed to advance relations with South Korea

The Philippines remains committed to advance its relationship with South Korea, President Benigno S. Aquino III said on Monday.

“The govern-ment and people of the Philippines are committed to the advancement of relations be-tween our two

nations,” the Chief Ex-

ecut ive said as

he proposed a toast during a State Din-ner in honor of vis-iting South Kore-an President Lee Myung-Bak at Mala-canang’s Rizal Hall. “We will build on six decades of shared sacrifice and idealism by working

with you whether in bilateral meetings or multilateral fora to ensure peace, de-velopment and co-operation in our re-gion and throughout the world,” the Pres-ident said. The President also expressed ad-


miration to the peo-ple of South Korea for their fast-recov-ery despite the chal-lenges that they had to go through during the previous several years. “I remember dur-ing our own Martial Law years, when I was but a mere child, my father (the late Sena-tor Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr.), who also first introduced us to Korean cuisine, would relate to the family his stories about the de-privations that your

country had to go through,” he stressed. “He was very impressed with your people’s strength of character, your per-severance, your drive to strengthen your institutions in a sin-gle-minded focus to achieve the vision that your leaders have laid out,” he added. “His Excellency, your people have done so much with so little to begin with, and it is my fervent hope that increased people-to-people engagements

can bring about a cross pollination of mindsets so that my people can also recover from the traumas we have experienced, and with strength and pride join the commu-nity of nations in building a better world for human-ity,” he said. (CO)


Barya ng mga Bayani, makakapagpatayo ng mga paaralan

Napakalaki ng maitutulong ng ating beinte singkong barya sa pagpapatayo ng mga paaralan dahil sa proyektong “Barya ng mga Bayani” na isinasagawa ngayon ng Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) at ng

Kabayanihan Foundation. Layunin ng proyek-to na mangolekta ng pinakamaraming barya na siyang ilalatag sa Quirino Grand Stand sa darating na ika-30 ng Nobyembre upang

maisali sa Guinness Book of World records. Ang Estados Unidos ang may hawak ng kasalu-kuyang titulo ng may pinakamahabang bary-ang nilataga na may

habang 68.5 km. Nais ng Pilipinas na makalikom ng barya upang mapaabot ito sa habang 70 kilometro. Ito ay magdadala ng napakalaking karan-

by Alice V. Sicat


galan sa ating bansa dahil sa muling pag-kakaisa ng mga mama-mayan, ayon kay Ralph Morales, ang Executive Director ng Kabayani-han Foundation Inc. Sa proyektong ito nais ring ipaalala ang tunay na kahalagahan ng barya kaya’t dapat itong gamitin at paikutin sa mga transaksyon sa buong bansa at huwag itong itago at ibalewala lamang, dagdag pa ni Morales. “Kapag pumunta tayo sa mga pasyalan, kapag humingi tayo ng sukli, kadalasan kulang yung sukli; kundi na-man, bubble gum po yung sukli sa atin. Nag-kakaroon po tayo ng impresyon na, nasan na ang barya?” ayon kay Dr. Greg Suarez, ang pangulo ng Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Of-ficers Club (BSPOC). Ayon sa Banko Sentral mayroong 16.9 bilyong barya na dapat umiikot sa bansa. Ibig sabihin, ang bawat Pilipi-no ay dapat may hawak na nagpapaikot ng P200, ayon sa ating kasaluku-yang populasyon. Ang mga ma-kokolektang barya sa nasabing proyekto ay gagamitin sa pagpapa-

tayo ng tatlong paaralan sa tatlong iba’t-ibang rehiyon sa ating bansa. Ito ay bahagi rin ng “10 Moves campaign” na ini-lunsad nito lamang Ok-tubre. “Hindi naman sig-uro mahirap para sa ating mga kababayan na ibigay yung kanil-ang beinte-singko,” sabi ni Grace Padaca, dating gobernador ng Isabela, na isa din sa mga na-kikiisa sa pagtataguyod ng programang ito. Ayon pa kay Mo-rales, tinawag na “Barya ng mga Bayani” ang nas-abing proyekto dahil ang bawat Pilipino ay maaar-ing maging bayani sa pagtataguyod ng ating bayan. “At mangyayari ito sa pamamagitan ng mga maliliit na pwede nating gawin tulad ng pagbabahagi mga nai-pong barya.” Ang BSP at Ka-bayanihan Foundation ay nakikipagtulungan din sa iba’t-ibang mala-laking kumpanya at or-ganisasyon tulad ng Federation of Jeepney Operators and Drivers Association of the Phil-ippines (FEJODAP) dahil madami ang umiikot na barya sa pamamasada.

Ang nasabing proyekto ay gaganapin sa ika-30 ng Nobyembre na espe-syal na araw din sa pag-gunita sa buhay ni Gat. Andres Bonifacio. Napili ang araw na ito dahil nais bigyang kahalagahan ang pagiging simpleng mamamayan ni Bonifa-cio ngunit hindi naging hadlang ito upang siya aymaging isang bayani. Ang pagganap nito sa Quirino Grand Stand ay isa ding pagbibig-ay pugay sa nasabing pook dahil sa iba’t-ibang makasaysayang pang-yayari dito. Ang mga nais lu-mahok at magbahagi ng kanilang naipong mga barya ay maaaring mak-ipag-ugnayan sa lahat ng 21 sangay ng Bangko Sentral sa buong bansa. Si Dr. Suarez, Gov. Padaca, at G. Morales ay mga panauhin sa programang “Commu-nication and News Ex-change” Forum (CNEX) na itinanghal sa Peo-ple’s Televison Network (PTV4), at handog ng Presidential Communi-cations and Operations Office at Philippine In-formation Agency.


Pag-Ibig Fund gives free LBP cash cards to 12,190 MPL applicants by Gideon C. Corgue

In line with its vision of providing an efficient and better service to its members, the Home Development Mutual Fund or Pag-IBIG Fund Office in partnership with the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) has launched its new electronic program nationwide dubbed

“LandBank Instant Cash Card” (LCC) on November 14.


Pag-Ibig Fund gives free LBP cash cards to 12,190 MPL applicants Pag-IBIG Fund

housing loan and mar-keting division head Gre-gorio M. Luba Jr. said the program was designed to give convenience to its members by minimizing their long wait times in claiming their Multi-Pur-pose Loan at their office and also at the LBP. Luba said the cash card is a debit card and also functions as ATM card and is accessible to any ATM nationwide af-filiated with Expressnet, Megalink, and Bancnet member banks and POS accredited merchants. The card has the fol-lowing salient features: No opening deposit re-quirement; no maintain-ing balance; no specimen signature card; no inter-est; no dormancy pe-riod, aggregate monthly

credits allowed is P100,000; card validity is active to 3 years; ATM limit of P50,000/a day; Point of Sale Limit of P20,000/ a day; no replace-ment fee; and re-activation fee is not required. “It’s hassle

free. Pag-IBIG members will no longer be anx-ious from waiting in the long queue at the time of their application and in withdrawing the loan proceeds at the bank,” Luba said saying that before, members had to wait for a couple of hours in applying loan and will experience the same in-convenience while en-cashing their checks. Lubao said with the program, a member will only wait for 3-5 min-utes in submitting the MPL application forms and subsequently, he will be issued cash card after his application will be approved. He will no longer go to the bank because the proceeds of his loan will be automat-ically deposited in his cash card.

Luba said, 12,190 ICCs allocated for its members in the prov-inces of Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga Sibugay and Misamis Occidental, the area of coverage of the Pagadian branch of-fice. Luba said the ICCs were offered free to its members as part of Pag-IBIG fund’s special promo. “The issuance will be done on a first-come, first-served basis because the registered total number of Pag-IBIG members is almost 70,000, Lubao report-ed.” Luba said the cash card is just part of the 1 million generated by the LBP. “The distribu-tion of cash cards is a dry run to measure the effectiveness of the pro-gram,” Lubao said. Meanwhile, assis-tant branch manager Beder F. Morandarte, Jr. said the LCC is one of the agency’s programs implemented this year which aimed to provide better customer service and promote cost sav-ings. “We are now


Bombo Radyo, PRC Bloodletting activity generates 205 bags

The donated blood were type “O”, 91 units; type “A”, 43 units; type “B”, 65 units; and type “AB”, 7 units.

The blood-letting activity conducted at the Zamboanga del Norte Convention and Exhibition Center was

participated in by 25 donors coming from various government agencies and individu-als.

moving towards pa-perless transac-tions,” Morandarte announced. Morandarte en-couraged Pag-IBIG Fund members to register now as the first 12,190 LCCs to be distributed to members here shall be free of charge. Interested mem-

bers must bring an origi-nal and photocopy of two

(2) valid identification (ID) cards with photo to avoid delay in the card distribution. Morandarte said Pag-IBIG Fund’s Mar-keting and Enforcement Division can be reached at telephone numbers (062) 2141695 or at mobile phone num-bers 09086477451 and 09152265163.

covertoperations78.blogspot.com

The annual blood-letting activity of Bombo Radyo dubbed as “Dugong Bombo” recently conducted in cooperation with the Philippine Red Cross has generated 205 units of various blood type.


Interfaith Forum to spearhead Mindanao Week of Peace celebration in ZamboSurAs in the previous years, the Interfaith Forum for Solidarity and Peace along with the support of all partners in peace building in the city and the prov-ince of Zamboanga del Sur will spearhead this year’s celebration of the Mind-anao Week of Peace which falls on November 24-30, 2011 and to culminate on December 10 during the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) Day.

This year’s celebra-tion bears the theme: “Common word between us and you, love of God and love of neighbor.” The celebration is a joint undertaking of the gov-ernment and civil society

supported by Presiden-tial Proclamation 127. The objectives for this year’s celebra-tion are as follows: (1) Right Path: Advancing Human Rights and Eco-logical Rights; (2) Con-

sciousness-raising to all stakeholders on hu-man rights, ecological and Indigenous People’s (IP) Rights towards the attainment of the right to self-determination of all people in Mindanao;

Mr. Nidoh Regen-cia, PRC-Zamboanga del Norte Service Rep-resentative said the donors were Red Cross Staff and Volunteers; Blood Gallooneers Club of Zamboanga del Norte; Philippine Na-tional Police; Security Agencies; Bureau of Jail Management and Penol-ogy; Provincial and City Government Employ-ees; Phil-Am Life; ROTC Units in Dipolog City and Dapitan City.

The extracted blood are now deposited at the PRC Blood bank in the city. Regencia stressed that PRC-Zamboanga del Norte is only a blood collecting agent. All blood samples gener-ated during the blood-letting are sent to its regional office in Zam-boanga City for valida-tion. Once cleared by its regional office, generat-ed blood will be distrib-uted to the public.

However, Regencia, clarified that P1,500.00 is assessed to non-do-nors as processing fee for every bag of blood they’ll get from PRC. Meanwhile, as part of its effort to maintain substantial supply of blood in its blood bank facility, PRC-Zamboanga del Norte is conducting a twice-a-month blood-letting activity through-out the province. (ALT/ATR/PIA9-Zambo Norte)

by Claro A. Lanipa


(3) Bridging under-standing and forging closer relationship of the tri-people and other stakeholders of peace; and (4) A way of cel-ebration of our gains in peace building. Sultan Maguid Maruhom, chairperson, MWP 2011 steering committee said series of activities are set for the week-long celebra-tion which will kick-off on November 24 with the bike for peace, a press conference at the UCCP Western Mindanao Confer-ence Hall and a prayer

for peace at the Dioc-esan Pastoral Center, Balangasan District, this city, among oth-ers. It can be recalled that, the Mindanao Week of Peace is a comprehensive pro-motional activity that involves various GO’s, NGO’s and PO’s in ad-vocating the culture of peace in the Southern Philippines. It is a celebra-tion of peace which was initiated ina Zam-boanga City by Peace Advocates Zamboanga Foundation, Inc. (PAZ)

and SALAM Foundation in 1997. It has snowballed into a Mindanao-wide event as adopted by the Bishop-Ulama Conference and per-petrated as an annual observance through Presidential Procla-mation 127, series of 2001. (ALT/CAL/PIA9/ZamboSur)


Famous for its captivating islands, enchanting falls and caves, exotic parks and rivers, and lush greeneries of mountains, Northern Mindanao is one of the well-sought eco-tourism sites

in the country.

by Apipa Bagumbaran

DoT-10 bares eco-tourism destinations in Northern Mindanao

Decius Esmedalla, Regional Marketing and Promotions Officer of the Department of Tourism (DOT), in region 10, said both local and foreign visitors can enjoy a wide range

of experiences in the identified adventure and eco-tourism destinations in the region. Among the identified sites is the 25-hectare lake located at Guinoroyan


in Valencia City of the Bukidnon province which is surrounded with lush greeneries of hills and mountains, huge ferns and endemic plants, as well as orchids and other flower plants. Esmedalla said Lake Apo is one of the emerging attractions in the region where tourists can cruise around the lake in bamboo rafts. Also, right at the heart of Malaybalay City is the Kaamulan Park, a theme park encompassing vast natural surroundings of pine trees, hilly area, endemic plants and landscape for leisurely walks, horseback riding, and off-the-track races. The Canopy Walk situated within the rainforest of Barangay Mag-Bais in Claveria town in Misamis Oriental is a well sought destination in the region being one of the earliest canopy walk in the country, he cited. According to him, its best features are the varied sceneries of the site as one manages to transport himself to the seven decks all atop some 150 feet from the ground where

tourists are greeted with the scent of forest and brilliant display of flora and fauna. Other sites cited by Esmedalla are the Agutayan Island in Jasaan town which is a marine sanctuary and nursery of five species of giant clams; the century-old catholic church of Immaculate Concepcion which is situated also in Jasaan and identified by the National Historical Institute as a historical spot and one of the well-preserved churches still operational in the country. In Sugbongcogon, he said one can also experience nature tripping in the Mantianak Zoological Park which features flora and fauna, tigers, and various bird species. The Lasang Boardwalk and Treetops or the Initao-Libertad National Park Seascape and Landscape also offer an adventurous experience and marvellous sight of the woodland. Developed as a theme park, its

seascape is home to centennial-old trees, endemic flora and fauna, tarsiers, rare ferns and wild orchids, as well as a cave h a b i t u a t e d by nose-clip bats. T h e Gardens o f Malasag E c o -

t o u r i s m Village is also a

must see. Nestled in


the 7.5 hectare hilly reforestation of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in Barangay Cugman, this city, the garden features tribal houses, souvenir shop, open air coffee shop, swimming pool, multi-purpose air-conditioned building, guest cottages, dormitories, orchidarium, wide camping ground, picnic area, jogging lane, and open amphitheatre, he said. Just ten minutes from the Gardens of Malasag is the Mapawa Nature Park which also offers facilities for adventure like trekking, horseback riding, waterfalls hopping, and zip line, he added. For those who want to experience the limitless aqua adventure, Esmedalla identified the Mantangale Alibuag Dive Resort in Balingoan and the Duka Bay Resort in Medina which offer wide range of facilities like scuba diving spots, fish watching/feeding, cavern diving, wreck diving, night

diving, and underwater photography.Tourists can also enjoy cool respite in Tiklas Falls in Gingoog City, Maria Cristina Falls and Hindang Falls in Iligan City, as well as Tinago Falls and Cathedral Falls in Lanao del Norte province. Northern Mindanao is also famous because of the Cagayan de Oro River White Water Rafting. He said the rafting stretch provides striking panoramic view of the rocky walls, lush vegetation, and breath-taking challenging varied rapids of less than 10 minutes intervals. The river is also best to do tubing (an indigenous pinoy version of wild water adventure) as well as kayaking. Other features if this site is the exciting walk in a 120m long skybridge suspended 120ft from the ground.Also, few yards away is the historical Macahambus Cave, where cavern leads to a natural veranda overlooking


the river. Zip line and rappelling in the Macahambus (gorge) Adventure Park. Both gorge and cave are right on the sides of the national highway where private and public utilities take their routes. Another must-see destination is the Misamis Occidental Aquamarine Park which is famous for its dolphins viewing area. The 200-hectare aquaculture production center, mangroves, and wildlife sanctuary is located in Sinacaban town, about 20 minutes by land from the Ozamiz Port. Likewise, the Misamis Occidental Economic Research in Barangay Pinef in Oroquieta City, serves as a research and farmers training center for marine

and agriculture. It houses facilities for researches, laboratories, agricultural/marine exhibits and gardens of various plant species and fruit trees. A popular destination in Tangub City is the Highland Gardens in Barangay Hoyohoy which is considered both a botanical garden and a museum of living plants as well as site of the upcoming popular grass skiing. Meanwhile, Esmedalla said the entire province of Camiguin is considered an eco-tourism destination due to its rich natural attractions found in waterfalls, hot and cold springs, marine life, islets of fine white sand, diving areas, caves, old church ruins, and centennial-old houses.


MinDA firms up preparations for MindaNOW program launchMALAYBALAY CITY, Bukidnon – Final preparations for the upcoming island-wide launching of the MindaNOW! or Mindanao Nurturing Our Waters Program are being firmed up by the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) and its partner agencies in various regions in Mindanao.

Acoordination meeting was held recently at the Provincial Governor’s Office, here, to finalize the details of the program launch scheduled later this month in the Municipality of

Maramag, this province. No less than President Benigno S. Aquino III is expected to lead the launching of a major Mindanao-wide undertaking that shall focus on ensuring integration of Mindanao’s economy and environment to achieve sustainable development. A flagship program of MinDA, MindaNOW! is the designed to integrate, harmonize, and rationalize plans, programs, policies, and processes for the protection and rehabilitation of the 13 river basins and 262 watersheds found in Mindanao. “This program seeks to strike a balance between economy and environment in Mindanao by pursuing programs and projects through ecosystems integration approach,” said Cecilia Trino, MinDA technical staff. She stressed that the program would look into the condition of Mindanao’s forests, river basins and watersheds as Mindanao’s major production areas have now also become high risk or prone to flooding problems and related environmental threats. A study made by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources


(DENR) has cited that as of 2010, Mindanao has only about 6% forest cover or trees and vegetation. “This considerable drop in our forested areas amplifies the threats that we face today. Through the MindaNOW program, we hope to pursue integrated efforts involving all sectors in addressing this major concern,” Trino adds. Among the agencies that are tapped for this inter-agency program are: the DENR-River Basin Control Office and the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG). Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Department of Agriculture (DA) and Department

of Agrarian Reform (DAR), Department of Tourism (DOT), Department of Education (DepEd), National Irrigation Administration (NIA), Climate Change Commission (CCC), Office of Civil Defense (OCD), National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) , Philippine Information Agency (PIA) and National Water Resources Board (NWRB). Environmental Science for Social Change (ESSC), Philippine Watershed Management Coalition (PWMC) and the Regional Government of the Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). (MinDA/PIA-10)

Dengue cases in Mis. Occ., up by 10.05 percent by Rutchie Cabahug-Aguhob

OROQUIETA CITY, Misamis Occidental – A total of 405 dengue cases have been reported in the province from January 1- Nov. 18, this year.

“This figure is actually 10.05 percent higher compared to 368 dengue cases in the same period, last year, “ said Dr. David Mendoza, Head of the Regional Epidemiology, Surveillance and Disaster Response Unit, Department of Health-Center for Health Development (DOH-CHD), region 10. Mendoza said Mis. Occ. is the only province in the region with an increasing number of dengue cases, while the other four (4) provinces


reported the following down trend:Bukidnon, from 2,099 to 89 cases or down by 95.57 percent, Camiguin, from 156 to 89 cases or down by 89.74 percent, Lanao del Norte, from 1,386 to 254 cases or down by 81.63 percent and Misamis Oriental, from 3,407 to 902 cases or down by 73.53 percent. The Disease Surveillance Report also show the following increase/downtrend, as far as the nine (9) cities of the region are concerned: Ozamiz City in Mis. Occ., the highest increase from 59 to 168 cases or up by 184.75 percent, Malaybalay City, from 302 to 12 cases or down by 96 percent, and Valencia City, from 192 to eight (8) cases or down by 95.83 percent. Gingoog City, from 152 to 19 cases or down by 87.50 percent, Iligan City, from 992 to 132 cases or

down by 86.69 percent, El Salavador City, from 78 to 18 cases or down by 76.92 percent and Cagayan de Oro City, from 2,200 to 642 cases or down by 71.82 percent. Oroquieta City, from 64 to 39 cases or down by 39.06 percent and Tangub City, from 84 to 71 cases or down by 15.47 percent. Meanwhile, Mendoza said a total of nine (9) deaths due to dengue cases were reported in the region, during the period, lower by 88.88 percent, compared to 57 cases, in the same period, last year. Meanwhile, Mendoza said a total of nine (9) deaths due to dengue cases were reported in the region, during the period, lower by 88.88 percent, compared to 57 cases, last year. The reported deaths in 2011 were in the provinces of Lanao del Norte and Mis. Occ., two (2) deaths, each, and Misamis Oriental, nine (9) deaths. Those in 2010 were in Camiguin and Mis. Occ., two (2) each, Lanao del Norte, 12, Bukidnon, 19, and Misamis Oriental, 22 deaths. He also said a total of 1,666 dengue cases were admitted to different sentinel hospitals, region wide, lower by 77.26 percent compared to 7,326 during the same period, in 2010.


Davao businesses urged to utilize FTA with China

Filipinos are urged to take advantage of the existing

Free Trade Agreement between China and the ASEAN which in-cludes the Philippines. Commercial Attache of the For-eign Trade Service Corps (FTSC) Em-manuel W. Ang told Davao exporters and customs brokers recent updates on China’s economy and potentials to welcome foreign products. “ There’s an increasing income

of Chinese people, RMB currency appreciation, inflation, and govern-ment policy to encourage further do-mestic consumption. All these make the Chinese afford to buy more im-ported products”, he said. Ang was one of the resource speakers invited to encourage Fili-pino exporters in yesterday’s Infor-mation Session: Doing Business in Free Trade Areas held at Grand Men Seng, this city. The information session is an ini-

tiative of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) in educating Filipinos to make use of the existing trade agree-ments with other countries in which the Philippines had participated in. Ang explained that contrary to what many Filipinos think that Philip-pines import more China products, it is actually the other way around. “ In 2010, Philippines and China has a positive bilateral balance trade

by Mai Gevera Macapagat


which shows that the China actually im-port more Philippine goods rather ex-porting their products here”, he said. A balance trade of negative 873.50 in 2009 was turned into 1,096.91 in 2010. Ang also stressed the increas-ing salaries of Chinese people as their government allowed for a growth rate of more than 20 percent per year on the workers with minimum wage. This according to him pushed employers to pay their workers above minimum wage. This, according to him, opens more windows for foreign products to be consumed by the Chinese market. DTI sees new opportunities aris-ing in the furniture sector as China puts more focus on products utilizing indigenous design and materials. An-

other potential sector that exporters could take advantage is the marine business. One example is the ship-ment of live fish to Zhuhai from the Philippines. Filipinos are also seen potential partners as China pushes to develop its own IT and IT enabled services in-dustry. Ang cited the presence of Pinoy call center workers in Guangdong. Ang stressed that the China market is so vast that it can actually buy everything that Filipinos can of-fer; however, the only challenge is the readiness of the Filipinos to do busi-ness in China. “ We should remember that Chi-na is a hungry market that’s why we must have the volume and the quality that China demands”, he said.

PDEA assures no recycling of confiscated drugsTAGUM CITY- The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) made certain dangerous drugs that were seized and confiscated by law en-forcement agencies in the Davao region are all accounted for and are never recycled. PDEA-XI Regional Director Em-erson Rosales reassured the public that evidences in successful anti-drug operations are not being recycled, as they are immediately destroyed after the issuance of court orders, pursuant to R.A. 9165, otherwise known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act

of 2002. “Lahat ng na-coconfiscate natin during operations ay sinisira rin natin (all confiscated drugs are also being destroyed),” Rosales bared, after the burning of seized illegal drugs in front of the Provincial Capitol of Davao del Norte. The disposal-of-evidence cere-mony, where a total of 32.9081 grams of methamphetamine or shabu worth P296,000 and 2,251.761 grams of marijuana amounting to P80,000 were destroyed, capped the recent anti-drug abuse prevention and con


trol week celebration in the province. The illegal drugs were kept as ev-idence from 34 drug cases that have been resolved by the Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 30 in the sala of Executive Judge Rowena Adlawan. Vice Governor Victorio Suayba-guio Jr. led the burning of the con-fiscated drugs, together with Board Member Shirley Belen Aala, Judge Adlawan, Dir. Rosales, DNPPO Direc-tor PSSupt. Edgardo Wycoco, RTC Judge Dorothy Gonzaga of Panabo City, Provincial PDEA Officer Clodito Cañada, LPRRC Dir. Gabriel Logronio and Dr. James Paul Dumdum of the DRH. “The aim of burning or destroying these confiscated dangerous drugs is to erase the notion and doubts from the public that there is recycling of

dangerous drugs,” Cañada reiterat-ed. Dir. Rosales further revealed that the fight against illegal drugs is gaining ground in the region, as the communities are now active in pro-viding information to PDEA agents. “Marami na silang binibigay na information sa ating opisina na agad naman nating inaaksyonan (the peo-ple are now giving us enough infor-mation which we immediately look into),” he said. The PDEA official also lauded the good collaboration of other law-enforcement agencies, together with the local government units, that re-sulted in the arrest of noted drug dealers in the region.

(Noel BaguioDAVNOR PIO)

Regional GalleryDOST Regional Dir. Anthony Sales (second from left) and PAGASA Davao Weather Sta-tion head Gerry Pedrico (right) launch Juan Time during the Regional Regional Invention Contest and Exhibits (RICE) held in Davao City.

Juan Time aims to promote the synchronization of time pieces to Philippine Standard Time.


Inventors to seek protection of works from City Councilby Carina Cayon

DAVAO CITY-The Davao Inventors Association has mulled over lobby-ing at the City Council for an ordi-nance seeking for the protection of the works and researches of inventors and students in the city. DIA president Dr. Randell Espina underscored the need of a regulation to safeguard the inventions and sci-ence researches against piracy and from acquisition of other countries. Espina also emphasized that the city should be the one to benefit from and utilize the science and technol-ogy innovations and researches of the Davao-based inventors and research-ers. He told the Philippine Informa-tion Agency that there were many good inventions and researches in the city that were pirated or only went to the benefit of other areas in the coun-try or other to countries. He said researches and innova-tions were usually prone to piracy dur-ing invention exhibits like the recently concluded Regional Invention Contest and Exhibits (RICE) spearheaded by the Department of Science and Tech-nology. Espina stated that with a City Ordinance to be in place, the inven-tors’ works especially the students’

researches would have protection before presenting them in exposition events. “With the protection, the works and researches would not just easily be copied or be bought,” he empha-sized. Further, he said that the local regulation would strengthen and sup-port the country’s laws on patent. He said that DIA planned to pres-ent this proposal to the Council with the support from the Mindanao Inventors Federation and the Filipino Inventors Federation. Meanwhile, DOST region-al director Anthony C. Sales disclosed that the region is in the process of set-ting up its Information and Communi-cation Technology Office which is pro-posed to be housed at the University of Southeastern Philippines (USEP). Sales said the ICTO would in-clude data-base information on pat-ents from the Intellectual Property Of-fice where inventors and researchers could easily check similar inventions. ICTO was formerly the Commis-sion on Information and Communica-tions Technology (CICT) under the Of-fice of the President. In June this year, President Benigno Aquino III placed the ICTO under DOST by virtue of Ex-ecutive Order 47.


Tribal council leads watershed projectby Cocoy Sexcion

MAASIM, Sarangani - Governor Migs Dominguez, Mayor Jose Zamorro and Joel Aton of Sarangani Energy Corporation had a turnover of seedlings to the Municipal Tribal Council here for distribution to indigenous people (IP) families living in the upland barangays of Nomoh, Kablacan and Amsipit.


The seedlings would be planted to boost the watershed development program of the munici-pality.

In a turnover rites Monday (November 21) at the municipal grounds during the flag raising ceremony, officials said thousands of seedlings were set for planting this year.

“For the remaining months of this year, we will be distributing a to-tal of 17,500 seedlings of rubber, coconut, jackfruit and coffee to 50 families from Barangays Nomoh, Amsipit and Kablacan,” said Joel Aton, project assurance manager of Sarangani Energy Corpo-ration (SEC).

“This is part of the com-mitment of Sarangani En-

ergy Corporation to reha-bilitate watersheds and to provide livelihood sup-port to Maasim highland-ers and tribal communi-ties and each family will receive seedlings good for one hectare which can provide an added in-come of around P3,000 to P5,000 pesos a month upon reaching its produc-tive stage,” Aton added.

The project was sup-ported by the provincial and municipal govern-ment, Department of En-vironment and Natural Resources, Philippine Na-tional Police, 73rd Infan-try Battalion and Alcan-tara Foundation.

“I know this project will change the life of our people. The tribal people will cooperate and sup-port this project because

we know that this project will give us some liveli-hood and at the same time will help us restore all the forests that are gone in the mountain,” Municipal Tribal Council chief Benjamin Donato said.

Mayor Jose Zamorro also urged his constitu-ents to plant trees.

“Supposed to be, we Maasimians are the ones who should initiate this reforestation project. This is everybody’s concern. For me, the only solution to the problem of global warming is plant more trees. So I thank SEC for this project,” the mayor said.

On the other hand, Vice Mayor Utto Salem Cutan appealed to those who are against the construc-tion of the 200-megawatt coal-fired power plant of Sarangani Energy

Corporation in Maasim set for its groundbreak-ing this November 25, to just give them a chance to welcome and embrace investments and devel-opment for their munici-pality.


DSWD addresses 4Ps issues and concerns

KORONADAL CITY -- The government particularly the Department of Social Welfare and Development has continued and continues to address the barri-ers in the implementation of the conditional cash transfers (CCT) or the Pan-tawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).

by Olivia Sudaria

DSWD assistant sec-retary Camilo Gudmalin said the issue of target-ing is already being ad-dressed fairly proactive-ly. Gudmalin regretted that the National House-hold Targeting System for Poverty Reduction (NHTS-PR) used in iden-tifying the beneficiaries had unavoidable leakag-es and exclusions which had also been observed in many countries with existing CCT programs.

“But a Grievance Re-dress System to address

the problems of inclu-sion, error, fraud, cor-ruption, duplication and non-compliance has al-ready been established to address these issues,” Gudmalin said.

The DSWD assistant secretary also cited that there is likewise an “on demand” application for families who feel they are eligible but who have not been included in the NHTS-PR list.

On the issue of men-dicancy, Gudmalin em-phasized that the recipi-

ents generally receive help for no more than five years.

“So the notion of a temporary bridge is precisely to discourage parasitism and encour-age long-term behav-ioral change. After all, at P1,400 a month per fam-ily, CCTs can only sup-plement the household income of beneficiaries by increasing their pur-chasing power for food and other necessities,” continued Gudmalin.

Gudmalin cited that the close monitoring of the program has indi-cated that compliance rates have been particu-larly high: children’s at-tendance in school was a decent 88%, while enrollment rates for children from the ages of 6-14 was as high as 96%.


DSWD addresses 4Ps issues and concerns SOCOTECO 1 planong kumuha ng kuryente sa coal-powered plant sa Sarangani

KORONADAL CITY -- Kinumpirma ni South Cotabato 1 Electric Coopera-tive (SOCOTECO 1) General Manager Santiago Tudio na pinag-aaralan nila ngayon ang pagkuha ng suplay ng kuryente mula sa coal-powered plant sa lalawigan ng Sarangani sa panahong tuluyan na itong mag-ooperate.

Sa isang panayam, sinabi ni GM Tudio na nakikipag-nego-tiate na sila hinggil sa presyo ng kury-enteng kukunin ng kooperatiba was coal-powered plant.

Siniguro naman ni GM Tudio na kung matutuloy ang pla-no at makakakuha ng suplay ang SO-COTECO 1, maso-

solusyunan ang problema ng pow-er curtailment sa buong South Cota-bato sakaling mag-kakaroon ng kaku-langan ng suplay mula sa hydro-elec-tric plants mula sa Lanao Lake at Pu-langi River.

Bentahi umano ito para sa sa mga konsumidor at mga negosyante sa na-sasakupan ng SO-

COTECO 1Inihayag ni Jo-

seph Nocos, bise-presidente ng Con-al Holdings Corp. na gaganapin ang groundbreak-ing ceremony para sa 200-megawatts coal-fired power plant sa Maasim , Sarangani sa Bi-yernes, Nobyembre 25. (DEDoguiles/PIA 12)


GSIS, HDMF ink home lending pact for GSIS members and pensioners

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The Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) and the Home Development Mutual Fund more popularly known as Pag-IBIG Fund) today signed a credit facility agreement providing an initial GSIS

allocation of Php5 billion to finance the housing loans of its members and pensioners through the Pag-IBIG Fund.

HOME LENDING PACT. Vice President and concurrent Chairman of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Coun-cil Jejomar C. Binay, Sr. (middle) witnesses the signing of a credit facility agreement between the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) and the Home Development Mutual Fund (Pag-IBIG Fund). Under the agreement, the GSIS will provide an initial allocation of P5 billion to finance the housing loans of its members and pensioners through the Pag-IBIG Fund. Present during the signing ceremony were GSIS President and General Manager Robert G. Vergara and HDMF President and Chief Executive Officer Darlene Marie B. Berberabe.


The credit facil-ity, signed by GSIS President and Gen-eral Manager Robert Vergara and HDMF Chief Executive Of-ficer Darlene Berber-abe, is made avail-able in line with the GSIS’s decision to wind down its direct lending program last April in favor of forg-ing partnerships with key shelter agencies (KSAs) which has the proven expertise on home lending. “We want to syn-chronize our efforts in the implementation of the government housing program and to avoid duplication with the KSAs’ func-tions,” said PGM Ver-gara. “More impor-tantly, this agree-ment proves that the pension fund contin-ues to be a vehicle for realizing the ho-meownership dream of our stakeholders in our role as a partner of Pag-IBIG.”

The lackluster housing performance of the pension fund, which has been im-plemented since the mid-50s, prompt-ed the current GSIS leadership to find ways to rationalize its home lending pro-gram. In 2010, the GSIS extended only Php600 million in housing loans to its more than 500 mem-bers against Pag-IBIG Fund’s Php5.5 billion to over 11,000 gov-ernment employees, 10 times more what GSIS lent for housing and 20 times more than the number of government employ-ees. The pension fund chief added that half of the housing loan portfolio of the GSIS or more than 16,000 housing units have ei-ther been foreclosed or cancelled. “It has been a dif-ficult decision for us to stop direct home lend-

ing for our members but we are, above all, obligated to them to ensure that their con-tributions are man-aged prudently for their greater benefit,” said PGM Vergara. He added that that he has request-ed Pag-IBIG to put up a special lane for GSIS members and pensioners to facili-tate the processing of their housing loans. The agreement was signed in the presence of Vice President and con-current Chairman of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Coun-cil Jejomar Binay. GSIS Executive Vice President for Fi-nance Sector Bene-dicto Jose Arcinas and HDMF Deputy Chief Executive Of-ficer for Support Services Cluster Emma Linda B. Faria stood as witnesses to the agreement. (GSIS)


SDSSU stude wins stat quiz reg’l championship by Ruel L. Dres

SURIGAO DEL SUR -- Fredierick Remonde of the Surigao del Sur State University won the Championship title in the 20th Philippine Statistics Quiz (PSQ) Regional Championship held at the Almont Hotel Inland Resort, Butuan City on November 17, 2011.

Prior to his winning in the re-gional level, Re-monde outsmarted his fellow contend-er from SDSSU – Ella Mae Pasuhil who won runner-up and Mae Rose Suniel from Saint

Michael College, third place winner. All the top three provincial winners participated in the regional champi-onship. Remonde is the son of Fred and Telly Remonde. He

finished his sec-ondary education at Unidad Nation-al High School as Class Valedicto-rian. Presently, he is taking up Bach-elor of Secondary Education Major in Mathematics in

RD Rosalinda C. Celeste with the PSQ Regional Champion and Coach. (NSO SdS/PIA-Surigao del Sur)


the province’s only state university. A c c o r d i n g l y, this is the first time that the province of Surigao del Sur won the competi-tion since the cre-ation of NSO Car-aga in 2000 and since the conduct of PSQ in the prov-ince. On the other hand, Nor Jhon M. Jala from Philippine Normal University-Agusan Campus and Ramione Clint A. Lazaga from Su-rigao State College of Technology com-pleted the top three spots and were awarded cash priz-es in the amount of PhP4,000, Php3,000 and PhP2,000 for the champion, second and third place winners, respec-tively. They were

also given medals and certificates. M e a n w h i l e , SDSSU coach Luz-minda S. Bacquial was also awarded and acknowledged during the compe-tition. The PSQ is an annual contest designed to test freshman college students’ knowl-edge of statistics. The NSO and the Philippine Statis-tical Association (PSA) have con-ducted the PSQ since 1992. The PSQ, as held nationwide, involves students enrolled in colleg-es and universities in the 17 regions of the country. The 2011 PSQ is the 20th in the series. The objectives of the PSQ are to assess the com-

petency and skills of students in sta-tistics as acquired from the secondary education curricu-lum; to promote, enhance, and in-still awareness and appreciation of the importance and value of sci-ence, statistics in particular, among the students; and to generate pub-lic awareness on the importance of statistics in all de-ve lopment-p lan-ning activities and win overallsupport for all government statistical activi-ties. The national fi-nals will be held on December 6, 2011 in Metro Manila. The top five win-ners in the nation-al finals shall be given a PSQ trophy and cash prizes.


Turn-over of new PNP station at San Agustin, SurSur conducted by PSupt Martin M Gamba

Butuan City -– The Police Regional Office XIII is again upgrading its physical facilities and equipment in support to field operations.

Caraga Police Di-rector PCSUPT Reynaldo Serrano Rafal said the Philippine National Po-lice has risen from to the various challenges in the organization and have initiated reforms and improved capabili-ties to better respond to the concerns of the com-munity. The new modern two-storey station build-ing in San Agustin, Su-rigao del Sur is in accor-dance with the Integrated Transformation Program (ITP), particularly giving emphasis on the “Quick Response” in providing the PNP of a modern Po-lice Station. The blessing, turn-

over and acceptance of the new San Agustin Municipal Police Station (MPS) in Surigao del Sur was personally graced by PCSUPT Isagani F Gen-abe Jr, Deputy Regional Director for Administra-tion, together with Hon. Johnny T. Pimentel, Pro-vincial Governor of Su-rigao del Sur; Hon. Manu-el O. Alameda, Provincial Vice-Governor; Hon. Ho-nolulu C. Go, Municipal Mayor; and other Police Commissioned Officers from Police Regional Of-fice 13 and Heads of Of-fices of said municipality, held recently. The construction of San Agustin MPS was fi-nanced under the PNP

Engineering Service, PRO-13 with counterpart from LGU-San Agustin. PRO-13 wants to focus on addressing the current demands of the various places particular-ly in far-flung areas. Ra-fal also aimed that every police officer commits himself completely to the Filipino people through maintaining peace in their area of responsibil-ity. Meanwhile, accord-ing to census on 2000, San Agustin is a 4th class municipality of Surigao del Sur with one pobla-cion and 13 rural baran-gays with a total popula-tion of 14,845 people in 2,751 households.

One Mindanao - November 22, 2011

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