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VOL. XXV NO. 024 MONDAY JANUARY 14, 2013 P10.00 IN TACLOBAN

DAILY EXPRESSPOSITIVE FAIR FREE

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news page 2

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to page 2

told Leyte Samar Daily Ex-press in a text message.

He added the Church willcontinue to air its oppositionon the use o various contra-ceptives but on the elections,it will remain non-partisan.

It will remain neutralduring elections in the sense

that we will not give our en-dorsement o candidates, Fr.Alvero said.

We want to instil theminds o the voters that they are ree whom to vote on theelections but they have tobear in their minds that theleaders they will choose willbe leaders o good will, meno integrity, God- earing,God-loving leaders who tru-ly love God and the peoplethey will serve, he added.

Majority members o theHouse o Representative andSenate voted or the contro- versial measure. It was laterenacted into law by President

ACLOBAN CI Y An estimated P200 mil-lion was not receivedby patients with healthinsurance last year or

ailure o governmenthospitals to ile claims

House Assistant Minority Leader and Leyte (1st dist) Rep. Ferdinand Martin FM Romualdez (3rd left) looks on to the patientas volunteer doctors from Eastern Visayas Regional Medical Center (EVRMC) operates and removes the sebaceous cyst onpatients neck during a three- day medical and surgical mission 2013 held at Holy Infant College covered court in Tacloban City.The free medical,dental and surgical mission was sponsored by the US Medical Teams ABCs Global Health, Corporal Works of Mercy,and Rep.Romualdez. photo by Ver S. Noveno

Church still to fACLOBAN CI YTe Archdiocese o Palo has not is-

sued any statement o not voting in the elections those whohave voted the Reproductive Health Law, according to aChurch o cial.

By REYAN ARINTO, Staff Writer

Fr. AmadeoAlvero, spokesperson o the archdiocese,said that although the Church was sadden by the approvalo the measure, the Church is not surrendering its ghtagainst it.

It doesnt mean we are condoning their acts, Alvero

to page 2

PhilHealth denies1,131 claims in 2012

within the two-monthstatutory period.

Philippine HealthInsurance CorporationRegional Vice PresidentWalter Bacareza said

Public told: Ques-tion legality

of sharing savingsto high o cials

Leyte guv saysshes not using her

position toadvance her candidacy

SDC recommends activationof nutrition committees in EV

ACLOBAN CI Y Lack o sustainability o nutrition pro-grams was tagged as the majorchallenge in curbing the menaceo malnutrition in Eastern Visayas,

the Social Development Committee(SDC) said in a statement.

SDC, one o the committees underthe Regional Development Council,

Parade kickso Sinulog

2013

Smart closed 2012with strong

disaster responserecord

DENR pushes for integration

of FLUP of 4 S. Leyte towns

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2 Leyte Samar Daily Express NATIONAL NEWS Monday, 14 January 2013

said.Santiago, meanwhile,

distanced hersel on re-ported attempts to unseatEnrile.

Well that depends onthe senators. Nobody canpredict how the senatorswill act. We dont evenknow what the basis o their actions will be -- i they have any moral scru-ples, i they are bound by their political allegiances,she said.

She added that a job iswaiting or her at the ICC,which is higher be ore theeyes o the international

community than the merepost o a Senate presidentin a developing country.(Virgil Lopez/Sunnex)

eyes o the interna-tional community thanthe mere post o a Senatepresident in a developingcountry. (SUNNEX)

the expense o lling up va-cancies and buying neededo ce supplies or servicesor capital equipment.

Tis practice contin-ues to this day, she said,because COA auditors areeither a raid o politiciansor maybe they have becomerecipients o these savings.

She also challengedthe Commission on Audit(COA) to investigate En-riles action and upload onits website the total annualincome o each senator andrepresentative.

When January beginsand the Senate gives mon-ey to the senators, theresmoney or their MOOE, sowhy would you give themadditional MOOE at theend o the year? Tat is very clear. It is evident proo thatthis is simply a guise -- adisguise in act -- or givingmoney to the senators, she

senator last month exceptto our senators Santiago,siblings Alan Peter and PiaCayetano, and Senator An-tonio rillanes IV.

Te our senators haddisagreements with Enrileon a host o issues, includ-ing the controversial repro-ductive health law.

rillanes even advo-cated or Enriles ouster asSenate President, a post hehas been holding since No- vember 2008.

Enrile has denied us-ing Senate savings to clingto his position as he main-tained that the money willbe used or maintenanceand other operating ex-penses (MOOE) o eachsenator. Te use o undswill also undergo liquida-tion.

Santiago had said thesesavings are distributedamong high o cials but at

SENA OR MiriamDe ensor Santiago askedthe public on Friday to

le a petition with the Su-preme Court questioningthe constitutionality o thedistribution o huge sumo money to high o cialsat yearend using agency savings.

Santiago said shewould love to argue hercase be ore the magis-trates but she might becalled anytime or duty atthe International Crimi-nal Court based in TeNetherlands.

I hope that a lawyersgroup would le such apetition under the prin-ciple o transparency, shetold reporters.

Te senator has beenengaged in a verbal tus-sle with Senate PresidentJuan Ponce Enrile a erhe gave P1.6 million per

Public told: Question legality o sharing savings to high o cials

Eastern Visayas are un-dersized, according toFNRI.

Te SDC said thatthere were no su cientsupport systems de-

signed or children un-der the age bracket o sixmonths to 35 months acritical stage where chil-dren are most prone toirreversible consequenc-es o under nutrition.

Te committeestrongly recommend-ed activating nutritioncommittees down to thebarangay level and im-plementing nutritionaction plans. (SARWELL Q.MENIANO)

perancilla.Among these initia-

tives are the promotionso exclusive breast eed-ing, awareness on com-plementary eeding,

vegetable gardening andmonitor pregnant wom-en,

Citing reports o the Food and Nutri-tion Research Institute(FNRI), the o icial saidthat constant increaseo prevalence o stunt-ed children have beenalarming based on the2011 National NutritionSurvey.

Nearly hal or 42% o childrens population in

said that all the neces-sary programs havebeen in introduced but

the region still strugglesto keep it going.Despite our con-

certed and sincere e -orts, malnutrition is

still one o our prob-lems here in Region 8.It is or this reason thatwe need to re ne andsustain our interven-tion strategies, saidSDC chair and Depart-ment o Science and

echnology RegionalDirector Edgardo Es-

that patients are get-ting health insurancebene its especially thatpremiums o many poor

amilies were subsidizedby LGUs.

We will be send-ing letters to governors,mayors, and chie o hospitals so they can or-der their sta to processclaims on time, he saidadding that more per-

sonnel will be deployedby PhilHealth to hospi-tals to assist processing.

PhilHealth reportedthat their o ice has paidP1.08 billion claims in2012 but it could be ashigh as P1.2 billion i all applications were ac-cepted. For 2013, thestate irm is eyeing torelease P2 billion claims.(SARWELL Q. MENIANO)

Express.Bacareza said that

they were able to projectpotential claims romapplications but thereare actually more unac-counted since hospitalsdid not make any moveto acilitate insuranceclaims releases.

O the 1,131 deniedapplications last year,418 were in Leyte, 101

in Eastern Samar, 292 inSamar, 274 in SouthernLeyte, and 46 in North-ern Samar.

he problem is very common in government

acilities because o themindset o that healthworkers wont get incen-tives, he added.

Bacareza said thatlocal government units(LGUs) should take thelead role in ensuring

that 1,131 applicationsor claims were denied

by their o ice in 2012since iling was done be-yond 60-days period a -ter hospitalization.

We have been map-ping out strategies toaddress this bottleneck.Not all o the hospital-ized PhilHealth membersare bene itting healthinsurance or ailure o government hospitals to

ile claims on time, hetold Leyte Samar Daily

PhilHealth ...from page 1

SDC ...from page 1

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3Leyte Samar Daily ExpressMonday, 14 January 2013 NEWS

Happy Birthday!!

Mayor Alfred RomualdeGreetings from:

Management & Staff of Leyte Samar Daily Express

ACLOBAN CI Y- Leyte Governor Mi-mietta Bagulaya saidthat she is not using herposition just to advanceher candidacy or boardmember.

Bagulaya, who wasserving out her termas vice governor be oreshe was elevated to hercurrent position, is run-ning or board memberin Leytes third district.

No, no. I am not us-ing my position as gov-ernor o the provincealthough I do visit thedistrict. But all my vis-its were o icial and onmy capacity as a gover-nor, Bagulaya said dur-ing the weekly media

orum Express it at thePark held at the LeytePark Resort.

She, however, admit-ted that she has been vis iti ng the dis tr ic t o late but on o icial ca-pacity as governor o the province.

According to her, sheis to visit on Monday the town o Calubian todistribute inancial as-sistance and ood itemsto the victims o a ireincident that recently hit the said town.

Aside rom Calubi-an, the third district o Leyte covers the townso San Isidro, abango,Villaba and Leyte-Leytewhere the governor is aregistered voter.

Bagulaya was thrust

to her position as gover-nor when then GovernorJericho Icot Petilla wasnamed as secretary o the Department o Ener-gy by President Aquino.

As the new governoro the province, Bagu-laya would enjoy all theperks and privileges o such position until a era new governor assumedthe post.

he incoming gover-nor, Le opoldo DominicoPetilla, is running unop-posed and is the youngerbrother o the ormergovernor.

Meantime, Bagulayasaid that while the peri-od o her tenure as gov-ernor is only about eightmonths, she would liketo leave a mark amongthe people o Leyte.

For one, she said sheis doing her best to en-hance the culture andheritage o Leyte by com-ing up some programs.

She also said that shehas initiated or the re-habilitation o the Cru-ci ied Image o JesusChrist along Magsaysay Boulevard, this city.

According to the gov-ernor, the area could notonly be a tourist attrac-tion but could even be apilgrimage site.

he Cruci ied Imageo Jesus Christ was com-missioned during thetime o ormer governorand now Palo Mayor Re-medios Matin Petilla.

he image also signi iesthe map o Leyte.(JOEYA. GABIETA)

Leyte guv says shes notusing her position to

advance her candidacy

Church ...from page 1

Benigno Aquino III.In Eastern Visayas

, among the congress-men who said yes orthe measure were Bil-iran Rep. Rogelio Es-pina and Samar second

district Rep. Mel SenenSarmiento.Tose who voted no

were An Waray party-list Reps. Neil BenedictMontejo and FlorencioNoel, Leyte h districtRep. Jose Carlos Cari;Leyte ourth district Rep.

Lucy orres-Gomez;Northern Samar seconddistrict Rep. Emil Ongand Leyte Rep.FerdinandMartin Romualdez.

Other solons romthe region like Leytesecond district Rep. Ser-gio Apostol and EasternSamar lone district Rep.Ben Evardone, both ad-ministration solons,were not around duringthe deliberation.

Te Church willcontinue to educate peo-ple on this election thatwould never be persuad-ed by money or by otherthreats but by in ormedconscience, Fr. Alverosaid.

usual route in downtownarea.

Passenger jeepneys withroutes 12L and 06H shallturn right or go straight toV. Rama Ave., le turn to N.Bacalso Ave., le turn to Os-mea Blvd. and right turn toN. Escario St.

From the north area,routes 12L shall turn le toGorordo Ave., right to Gen.Maxilom Ave., le to F. Ra-mos St., right to JunqueraSt., right to P. del Rosario St.,then to their point o origin.

Route 06H shall go

straight to Gen. MaxilomAve., le turn to F. RamosSt., right turn to JunqueraSt., right turn to P. del Rosa-rio St., proceed to N. Bacal-so Ave., then to their pointo origin.

Te parade was led by the 12 Miss Cebu 2013 can-didates riding on a Volkswa-gen Beetle courtesy o theVolkswagen Club o Cebu.

Te parade stopped nearFuente Osmea a er one o the six cars broke down. Tethree aspiring beauty titliston it was orced to walk toCCSC.

Te parade was also par-ticipated in by 15 universi-ties and colleges who servedas opening salvo contin-gents and giving a glimpseo what the Sinulog grandparade on January 20 willbe.

(SUNNNEX)

Parade kicks off Sinulog 2013bataan sa Dakbayan tomor-row (Sunday).

Vehicular tra c romCapitol Site to Cebu City Sports Center will be a -

ected. Rerouting will startat 12 noon until the activity is nished.

Passenger jeepneys romMabalo shall turn le to F.Ramos St., turn right turnto Junquera St., right to San-ciangko St., then proceed toOsmea Blvd.

Passenger jeepneys com-ing rom Lahug, Ayala, andApas shall go straight to

Gorordo Ave., then turnright to Gen. Maxilom Ave.,turn le to F. Ramos St.,right to Junquera St., right toSanciangko St, and proceedto their destination.

Jeepneys coming romAyala shall turn le to ColonSt., right to Mabini St. andright to V. Gullas St. be oregoing to their usual route.

Passenger jeepneys com-ing rom Carbon and Oprashall turn le to Gov. RoaSt., le to Maria Cristina St.,right to Juana Osmea St.,right to Gen Maxilom Ave.,le to F. Ramos St., right toJunquera St. and right toSanciangko St. to their pointo destination.

Passenger jeepneys romGuadalupe and Banawa shallgo straight or turn right to V.Rama Ave., le to N. BacalsoAve., right to Osmea Blvd.,be ore proceeding to their

CEBU CI Y -- Tisyears Fiesta Seor and Si-nulog estivities o cially opened Friday, with churcho cials challenging devo-tees to grow in their aith inSto. Nio.

Msgr. Roberto BoyAlesna, who was the maincelebrant in the solemn massduring the opening salvo atthe Basilica del Sto. Nio,said the devotees should de- velop a aith that is sincereand authentic.

Faith is a gi o God. Itis not enough to just keep

it but it has to grow. A aiththat is so real where changes(in yoursel ) happen and

ollow, he said.A er the 2:30 p.m. mass,

Cebu City Mayor MichaelRama ormally declared thisyears Sinulog celebrationopen.

Te Sinulog FoundationInc. (SFI) then gave a smalltreat to the estimated 100candle vendors at the Ba-silica by giving each o themP100.

A parade ollowed, start-ing at the basilica, passingFuente Osmea and end-ing at the Cebu City SportsCenter (CCSC).

Tis, as the Cebu City ra c Operations Manage-

ment (Citom) advised mo-torists about the rerouting

or the Sinulog sa Kabataansa Lalawigan today (Sat-urday) and Sinulog sa Ka-

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DAILY EXPRESSPOSITIVE * FAIR * FREE

Dalmacio C. Gral

Publisher

Ven S. LabroEditor-in-Chief

Joey A. Gabieta

Copy Editor

Alma M. Gral

Business Manager

The Leyte Samar Daily Express is published daily with editorial and businessofces at G/F Knights of Columbus Bldg.,

187 P. Zamora St. Tacloban City

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Express may be re-produced or distributedin any form or by any means stored in adatabase or retrieval system without its

prior written permission from the publisher.

Commentaries from readers whoseidentities they prefer to remain anonymouscan be accommodated as blind items. It

will be our editorial prerogative, however,to verify the veracity of such commentariesbefore publication.

Letters should be as brief as possible,and sent with the writers name,signatureaddress and phone numbers (if any) to:

Letters to the Editor, Leyte Samar DailyExpress, They may be edited for length

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PPIPHILIPPINE PRESSINSTITUTEThe National Association of Philippine Newspapers

Leyte Samar Daily Express OPINION Monday, 14 January 2013

I

EDITORIALBe a senator and enjoy

heaven on earth!

4

Leyte Samar

Seminar-workshop onheroic leadership

Public Private Partnership

to page 5

to page 5

It was a fruitfully managedtwo-day seminar-workshophosted by Palo local govern-ment unit with its towns Mayor Remedios Matin L. Petilla atthe helm. It was a gathering of municipal mayors of Region 8

Leyte, Southern Leyte, Bil-iran, Samar, Eastern Samar and

Northern Samar.-oOo-

Topics taken up ranged fromSeal of Good Housekeeping, aDILG approach at imbedding inthe consciousness of local gov-ernment executives the clarioncall of the national leadershipto rally behind PNoys policyof going thru a straight patch

governance or matuwid na

Observer

ALVIN GZ. ARPON

n a poor country like ours, exposes like thealleged waste ul spending o millions o pe-sos annually by a once upon-a-time credible

legislative body, the Upper House or the Senatedeadens our nerve, boogles our mind and wreckshavoc over the trust and con dence we have builtand maintain lately about governance under thisadministration o President Benigno C. AquinoIII.

o be speci c people still trust the nationalleadership o President Noynoy Aquino III. Whathas happened to the Senate o the Philippines?What Senator Miriam Santiago has exposed isthievery in any language rom the Senate coffers.

Just to retell the news that rocked the nation:

Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, likeplaying God, albeit with peoples taxes, has

reely given P1.6 million to 18 senators butP250,0000 only to our others. Te reasonwhy this disparity have been revealed in thenews. Tese releases which by all standardso perception is a gif but has been clothedwith legal -sounding cover that o main-tenance and other operating expenses orMOOE is still nauseating. And this was re-leased still during the Christmas season.

What to maintain and how much andwhat to operate, only the honorable senatorsknow.

daan; towards realizing the principle of performance,accountability, transparencyand participation. After all,these are the working princi-

ples very necessary in build-ing up a strong foundation

for a responsive local gov-ernment system in the coun-try today.

-oOo-Other inputs included val-

ue formation and other lead-ership topics which could

have probably been embed-ded traits already beforethey became local execu-tives; social entrepreneur-ship, an inspirational topicfrom Kaya Natin movement.

-oOo-Former Leyte governor

now Department of En-ergy Secretary Carlos Jeri-cho Icot L. Petilla, guestspeaker of the affair, spenta long discourse on variedimportant issues and topics,and the audience positionedthemselves riveted-like totheir seats as they were try-ing to catch every word andsentence the DOE secretary

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Leyte Samar Daily ExpressOPINIONMonday, 14 January 2013

Prayer for the Nation andfor Those who Serve in

Public Ofce

God, our Father, you guide everythingin wisdom and love. Accept the prayers weoffer for our nation; by the wisdom of our leaders and integrity of our citizens, mayharmony and justice be secured and maythere be lasting prosperity and peace.

Almighty and eternal God, You know thelongings of our hearts and You protect our rights. In your goodness, watch over thosein authority, so that people everywhere mayenjoy freedom, security and peace.

We ask this through our Lord JesusChrist, your Son, who lives and reigns withyou and the HolySpirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen. (Courtesy of Daughtersof St.Paul)

Pray the Holy Rosary daily for world peace and conversion of sinners

(The family that prays together stays together)

Monday of the First Week in Ordinary TimeHeb 1:1-6; Ps 97; Mk 1:14-20

THE CALL OF THE FIRST DISCIPLES

After John had been arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaim-ing the gospel of God: This is the time of fulllment. The kingdomof God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel. As he passed

by the Se a of Ga lilee, he saw Simon a nd his brothe r Andrew cast-ing their nets into the sea; they were shermen. Jesus said to them,Come after me, and I will make you shers of men . Then they lefttheir nets and followed him. He walked along a little farther and sawJames, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They too were in a

boat mending their nets. Then he called them. So they left their fa-ther Zebedee in the boat along with the hired men and followed him.

THE TWO KINGDOMS

I like the oldies, and Did You Ever Have to Make Up Your Mind by the Lovin Spoonful is one of my favorites. It speaks wellof the dilemma faced by potential followers of Christ. The goodnews of Jesus is that the kingdom of God is at hand. The bad news,if you want to call it that, is that in order to enter the kingdom, youhave to reject the world and vice versa. You cant have both. Es-sentially, Jesus tells people they must choose. The word repentsimply means to: turn around, make a fundamental change. Thisis necessary because the kingdom is paradoxically opposed to theworld. In the kingdom the last are rst, the poor are blessed, the vir-gin is a mother, and to die is to live; the kingdom is coming but theworld is passing away. One will end and the other will endure for-

ever. So youd better go home, son, and make up your mind. (Be-tween Sundays by Paul Boudreau, published by Paulines. Visit usat www.paulines.ph or at Paulines Media Center, Real St., TaclobanCity. Tel. #321-3195)

Sowers Seeds: Created for heaven, human beings lost their way. Jesus Christ became Truth, Way and Life for them, pointingout once more the way to heaven, teaching them how to transit itand meriting the grace that renders them capable of reaching eternalglory. Blessed James Alberione, founder of the Pauline Family

5

The Sower

PCGG after 30 years Be a ...from page 4

Senses andSensibilities

deeday a. cairo

Allegations of massivecorruption have not beenproven well, the prob-able reason why no Marcosfamily member or cronyhas been incarcerated. Theallegations are just pureand simple accusations thathave lost credibility after thirty years of far-reachingsearch of evidences andhidden wealth that havebafed or mystied peopleall over the world. Even thealleged four billion dollarsthat have been recoveredby the government cannotbe safely claimed as stolenmoney from the Philippinecoffers, with proper invest-

ments of a few thousandsof dollars, it could indeedmultiply after two decadesof high-end investments.

In the country today, wecan be sure that those occu-pying high positions haveall the powers and inu-ences to invest around theworld. Who could counter the claim that they are notgaining millions even bil-lions on interests alone?How could they not getrich with the interests beingre-invested over and over again? Former Presidents,senators, congressmen,Justices, plain managersand businessmen have op-portunities and inuencesthat are not open to plaincitizens. When one has

From ADistance

joey e. clarin

the clout, it is impossiblenot to be tempted to takeadvantage of the chance toget lthy rich. It is even sil-lier if one will not grab thechance.

It is therefore unfair for

anyone to claim that hid-den wealth comes fromstolen money or from thegovernment. If JusticeCoruna was able to multi-

ply his million into severalfolds and stashed these intodollar accounts in so shorta time, how could a long-running president not beable to do the same in 20 or more years?

The slander and malign-ing of the Marcos familyhas long been stretched and

presidents have wasted so

much time prolonging thecases, spending millions of dollars in country-hopping,allegedly looking for theMarcos investments all over the globe, real estate, secretunnumbered bank accounts

and wealth without muchsuccess. What is worse isthat the government hasdone little to preserve thesequestered properties thatcould have been turned intomuseums. Even other peo-

ple attached to the Marcosfamily such as the Romual-dezes and other friends andfamily members are taggedin the hate campaign. Eventhe innocent could see howthe Filipino spirit and pridehas been shattered with thisfalse crusade.

How many Presidentshave followed Marcos after his ouster in 1986, yet whathave they gained? EvenFormer President CorazonC. Aquino was not able to

prosecute the Marcoses

with the support of the people after the 1986 revo-lution. Isnt this an indica-tion that there was really nohard evidence at all?

One thing that cameout of the scenario is the re-

What really happenedin the deaths of 13 men inwhat was described as ashootout at a checkpoint inAtimonan, Quezon?

Many questions wereraised about the encounter.The dead included 3 police-men including a Police Su-perintendent, an Air Forcesoldier and 2 military in-telligence personnel. Alsoamong the dead was theowner of 2 Montero SportsSUV used by the 13,in-cluding Victorino Simon,Jr. whom military and po-lice ofcers tagged as a topgambling lord in Bicol andSouthern Tagalog.

The widow of the slainpolice superintendentraised even more questionsafter openly declaring thather husband supposed to beescorting a large amount of cash P100 million collectedfrom small town lottery

Shootout or rubout?

operations in Bicol. Thewidow said, she and the rel-atives of the other killed inthe shootout would seek aseparate probe from the De-

partment of Justice (DOJ).The joint military and

police contingent at thecheckpoint in Atimonantown did not report ndingany cash in the 2 MitsubishiMontero SUVs. Instead,they reported that 8 caliber,45 pistols, an M14 rife anda baby armalite were foundin the vehicles which were

riddled with bullets thatattened the tires of the ve-hicles.

With PNP membersinvolved in both sides, a

probe by a neutral agencylike the NBI should bemade to reveal informationabout military and policeactivities which would pavethe way for reforms in the

police and military opera-tions.

Why would a policeofcer escort a gamblinglord?

alization that Human Rightsstill exist in the country.After 30 years of lookingfor the alleged 10B loot,the PCGG has given up itsmandate. With the respite,the national governmentmust evaluate how much of the 4B still exist after the

globe-trotting ofcials havespent looking for the myth?How much of it has beenspent on the high-prolecases that were lost? Mostimportantly, what have theFilipino people gained fromthe espousal of collectiveanger and hate against afamily that has made thecountry great once?

Senators are entitleda P200 million priorty development assistance

und (PDAF), a politename or that obnoxious

term in the past calledpork barrel; P2.2 milliona month or staff sala-ries and o ce supplies;P500,000 annual travelexpenses and honorari-um o P30,000 to P60,000monthly as chair o acommittee. Te P500,000travel allowance andhonoraria remains un-der their control whetherthey use them or not. Tehonoraria is granted tothem whether they at-tend committee hearingsor not.

It is disheartening tonote the reaction o thePalace when it said it is inno mood to act as re ereebetween the warring ac-tions in the Senate overits operations budget.Its not just being re erreebut o being responsiblehow the taxes are being spent in all branches o government.

We maintain that theChie Executive is thehead o government. Hehas in his hand the powerto steer clear and main-tain good and crediblegovernment operationsin general to be alwaysat hand, and especially be concerned when ap-propriations and otherresources o governmentare abused and are ille-gally disbursed.was articulating.

No doubt, Secretary Icotis a credible speaker and re-source person on issues of lo-cal governance. His 3-termsas governor of the provinceof Leyte saw a lot of inno-vations for effective govern-ance, and these are alreadysets of legacies as tool andguidance to future provincialexecutives. He clearly articu-lated and strongly endorsedPublic Private Partnership inlocal governance, stressingthe vital contribution of the

private sector in his 9-year stint as Leytes chief execu-tive.

Meaning, he knew where-of he spoke. Easily right thenand there indeed, before themayors of Region 8, Secre-tary Icot Petilla is seen as arole model of local gover-ments on performance, ac-countability, of transparencyand participation.

-oOo-The Capacity Building

and KM Service (CBKMS)shared inputs on identica-

tion, selection and prioritiza-tion of LGU-PPP projects;institutional arrangements,and many other relevant top-ics much needed by the localexecutives.

-oOo-Once more the now

recognized and popularlyknown MATIN imprint or the MATIN touch in takingcharge of an activity showedthe kind of leadership quali-ties Mayor Remedios Ma-tin L. Petilla has. This wasshown by the success of thataffair like she has done inall other activities she hasspearheaded in the past. Bythe way she is the presidentof the League of Municipali-ties in the province of Leyte,a proud Mom of DOE Sec-retary Icot and governor-in-waiting Dominic L. Petilla.

Seminar ...from page 4

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Republic of the PhilippinesMUNICIPALITY OF CATARMAN

Province of Northern Samar -ooOoo-

BIDS AND AWARDS COMMITTEE

INVITATION TO APPLY FOR ELIGIBILITY AND TO BID

The Local Government Unit of Catarman, Northern Samar, invites interestedparties/suppliers to Apply for Eligibility and to Bid for the Supply and Deliveryof 700 pcs. Tricycle Plates w/ Picture and 1,500 pcs. Business Plates w/Picture with an Approved Budget for the Contract of P500,000.00 (Sourceof Fund: 2011 Gen. Fund Budget).

Eligibility/Prequalication Forms and Bid Documents shall be available for issuance on the dates shown below and upon payment of non-refundable

amount of P1,000.00.

* Submission of LOI and Issuance of Eligibility/Prequalication Forms January 14, 2013

* Deadline of Submission of duly accomplishedEligibility/Prequalication Forms January 15, 2013

* Issuance of Bid Documents Janauary 16, 2013* Pre-Bid Conference January 17, 2013* Dropping/Opening of Bids January 25, 2013

All particulars relative to Eligibility, Bid Bond, Performance Bond, Pre-bidConference, Bid Evaluation and Award of Contracts shall be governed by theProvisions of the IRR of RA 9184.

The Local Government Unit of Catarman, Northern Samar, reserves theright to reject any or all bids, waive any minor defect therein, and accept the

offer most advantageous to the Local Government Unit.

The Local Government Unit of Catarman, Northern Samar assumes no re-sponsibility whatsoever to compensate or indemnify the bidders for any ex-penses incurred in the preparation of the bid.

(Sgd.) MR. SANDY C. BALITELGU-BAC Chairman

LSDE: January 7 & 14, 2013

6 Leyte Samar Daily Express NEWS/NOTICES Monday, 14 January 2013

EXTRAJUDICIAL SETTLEMENTWITH PARTITION

NOTICE is he reby given thatheirs of late Cornelio Daylo extra-

judicially settled, partitioned andadjudicated over 2 parcels of land,

both situated at Brgy. Salvacion,Alangalang, Leyte, described as:1) Parcel 1, Cad Lot No. 2554,containing an area of 13.3362

has. more or less, and covered byTax Dec. No. 08-02-042-00045;Parcel 2, Cad. Lot No. 2711 con-taining an area of 2.4479 has.,more or less and covered by TaxDec. No. 08-02-042-00046; per Doc. No. 569, Page No. 56, Book

No. VII, Series of 2010 of NotaryPublic Atty. Leodegario Aliman-guhan.

LSDE: January 7, 14 & 21, 2013

EXTRAJUDICIAL SETTLEMENT WITH PARTITION NOTICE is hereby given that Lelibeth B. Baltar heir of late Catalino

J. Butlig executed an afdavit of Self-Adjudication over a motor vehi-cle described as: Make/Type: Fuso-JITNEY; Motor No.: 4DR-384213;Chassis No.: LTO-RO8-2002-1146-0844C; Plate No.: HVR-192; C.R.No.: 73995996 02-10-03; O.R. No.: 7334 99255 (02-26-10). A Deedof Sale was executed in favor of Johnny C. Brosas as vendee for theabove-described motor-vehicle; per Doc. No. 485, Page No. 97, Book No. VXII; Series of 2011 of Notary Public Atty. Romulo A. Tiu.LSDE: January 14, 21 & 28, 2013

EXTRAJUDICIAL SETTLEMENT WITH SALE NOTICE is hereby given that heirs of the late Catalino J. Butlig

extrajudicially settled, partitioned and adjudicated over a motor vehicledescribed as: Make: Fuso; Type of Body: Jitney; Motor No.: 4DR5-384013; Plate No.: HVR-192; Se rial No.: LTO-RO8-2002-1146-0844C.A Deed of Sale was executed in favor of co-heir Lelibeth B. Baltar asvendee for the above-described motor vehicle; per Doc. No. 117, PageNo. 24, Book No. 5, Series of 2009 of Notary Public Atty. Samuel C.Lagunzad. LSDE: January 14, 21 & 28, 2013

Natural disasters,which have long beenputting the Philippinesin world news, have in-creased in requency and

intensity o late, posingeven greater danger.Te situation today

is such that disaster re-sponse is no longer thesole responsibility o gov-ernment. Private corpora-tions have also taken theinitiative to help mitigatedamage and supplementrelie , rescue, and rehabili-tation efforts.

Dominant wirelesscommunications servicesprovider Smart Commu-nications, Inc. (Smart) hasestablished its leadershipas well in disaster prepar-edness and response, oneo the pillars o its corpo-rate social responsibility program.

In the past year Smartnot only offered ree callsand Internet services todisaster-stricken commu-nities and relie agencies,it was also involved in re-lie operations. It helpedprovide basic needs suchas ood and potable water,through its employee vol-unteers, who are trainedin disaster response andemergency preparedness.

Te telco supportedthe nationwide food-mapping project o theDepartment o Scienceand echnology (DOS )and PAGASA, with the co-location o the agenciesautomated rain gaugesin its cell sites. Some o the rain gauges and waterlevel sensors were undedby Smart and have beenturned over to DOS lastyear.

In January last year,less than a month a er ty-phoon Sendong struck Northern Mindanao,Smart employees based inCagayan de Oro and Cebutrained in emergency pre-paredness; more trainingprograms were held orthose in Davao and Cebuin March and June, respec-tively.

Te principle is thatemployees must rst know how to keep themselvesand their amilies sa e tobe able to unction prop-

Smart beefs up support to Red Cross. Smart Communications, Inc. recently donateda number of handsets to the Philippine Red Cross to support its relief operations inBaganga, Davao Oriental. The Red Cross relief operations were in the same locationas the free call services offered by Smart in partnership with the Vodafone Foundation,which is afliated with one of the worlds largest mobile communications companies, andTelecoms Sans Frontieres, an NGO that specializes in disaster response communica-tions. Red Cross and Smart engineers are joined by Clifford Robertson (third from left) of Vodafone New Zealand.

erly at work, that is, in en-suring that communicationlines are working or re-stored immediately duringdisasters.

o drum up this cause,a campaign was launchedin July, coinciding with thecelebration o the Disas-ter Preparedness Month.Dubbed Act Now: SmartDisaster and Emergency Preparedness Week, thecampaign included vari-ous trainings on emergency preparedness, a photo ex-hibit and a bazaar showcas-ing disaster preparednesskits and equipment at thelobby o Smart ower.

Te ollowing month,a Community Flood andEvacuation Drill or NoahsArk was organized in Ba-rangay Macasandig in Ca-gayan de Oro, culminatingsix months o trainings inone o the communities thatwere hardest hit by Sen-dong. Noahs Ark is a com-munity preparedness pro-gram that aims to increasethe capacity o local govern-ment units and high-risk communities to cope withthe hazards o fooding.

In an emergency drill,barangay o cials workedwith residents to achievezero-casualty during foods.(Sendong claimed hun-dreds o lives and destroyedbillions o pesos in in ra-structure and property dueto severe fooding in Ca-gayan de Oro and outlyingareas in 2011.) A drill wasalso conducted in Barangay Banago in Bacolod, anotherNoahs Ark community.

In partnership with GetReady Pinas, an alliance o over 105,000 members ad- vocating disaster prepar-edness, Smart launched inSeptember the S@FEPHcampaign, a series o eventspromoting the use o theInternet to prepare or andrespond to disasters. Tecampaign kicked off with asocial media night or blog-gers and other Filipino neti-zens. DOS s weather in-

ormation website, ProjectNOAH, took the spotlightas an example o utilizingthe Internet to empowerpeople with the right in-

ormation on disaster situ-ations.

Says Darwin Flores,Smart head or community partnerships: Social con-nections play a vital rolewhen it comes to commu-

nicating in times o emer-gencies, as witter and textmessaging show. He con-cedes, though, that warn-ing communities via text-blasting has its downside, aspeople tend to believe only messages coming rom peo-ple they know and trust.

Also last year, Smartsupported the develop-ment o the mobile version

or Android phones o theDOS s Project NOAHweather in ormation web-site by Davao-based devel-oper Rolly Rulete. Inspiredby his sherman ather, Ru-lete developed the mobileapplication or DOS or

ree. Project NOAH Mobilewas o cially launched by DOS and Smart in Octo-ber. Now, anyone who hasan Android mobile phonewith Internet connectivity can download the weatherapp or ree via Google Play Store.

In November, Smarttapped the Philippine RedCross to train the Hotline117 dispatchers o the De-partment o Interior andLocal Government (DILG)on emergency prepared-ness. Participants weretrained in basic rst aid andemergency response. As callresponders, DILG person-nel should know the rightquestions to ask in order tobe more effective in relayingthe needs o victims to theconcerned agencies.

Also launched the samemonth was INGOG 2015,an innovative SMS-basedcitizen eedback servicesupported by Smart andother telcos. ingogmeans voice in Bicolanoand Cebuano.

Piloted in abaco, Al-bay, the service gave ordi-nary citizens a voice in thedevelopment process, par-ticularly in promoting theeffective delivery o basicservices towards realizingthe United Nations Millen-nium Development Goals(MDGs) by 2015.

abaco residents cannow report on, monitor and

provide eedback via SMS onthe delivery o public healthservices. Tey can simply text INGOG AB NAME OF BA-RANGAY HEIR COMMEN to 2015. Teirreports are elded to the con-cerned government agencies

or urgent action. Smart hasreduced the rate to P1 perSMS report rom the stand-ard P2.50.

Be ore 2012 ended,

Mindanao once more borethe brunt o another typhoon,when Pablo wreaked havocin the coastal towns o DavaoOriental, Compostela Valley and Surigao del Sur.

As its engineers workedeverishly to restore com-

munications in the affectedareas, Smart coordinatedrelie efforts and marshaledthe resources o the PLDGroup and Metro Paci c In- vestments Corp. (MPIC) toaddress the urgent need o

typhoon victims or ood andclean drinking water.

Te company orged aground-breaking partner-ship with global players el-ecoms Sans Frontieres o France, an NGO ocused ondisaster communications,and Voda one Foundation,which is a liated with oneo the largest telcos in theworld. Tis enabled Smartto offer voice and Internet

Smart closed 2012 with strong disaster response record

7/30/2019 LSDE January 14, 2013

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from page 6

signed, developed and abri-cated by students and aculty o the University o South-eastern Philippines, a part-ner-school under the SmartWireless Engineering Educa-tion Program (SWEEP) since2004.

o commemorate theanniversary o typhoon On-doy, which caused massivefooding in Metro Manilaand nearby provinces, thePhilippine Disaster Recov-ery Foundation (PDRF) andSmart launched the mobileapp SnapPlot developed by WideOut Work orces Inc.

Users o the photo-shar-ing plat orm snap photoswith location data, add rel-evant in ormation like cap-tions, and upload them tothe SnapPlot website. Teimages can be used or wa-tershed management and theNational Greening Program,which aims to plant some 1.5billion trees in about 1.5 mil-lion hectares o land in publicdomain rom 2011 to 2016.With SnapPlot, the Depart-ment o Environment andNatural Resources can moni-tor the progress o the pro-gram, step up en orcement,and collect data.

SnapPlot is just an ex-ample o how technology can be tapped in solving thecountrys environmentalproblems. With the use o themobile phone, governmentand other stakeholders canmanage the countrys green-ing program more e cient-ly, says Ramon R. Isberto,Smart public affairs head.

In recognition o its envi-ronment- riendly initiatives,Smart received the Environ-

satellite communication ser-vices to the government andhumanitarian agencies thatwere coordinating relie andrehabilitation efforts in theaffected areas.

Te Voda one Founda-tions Instant Network port-able cellular network wasdeployed or the rst timein an emergency situation inBaganga, Davao Oriental, toaugment communicationsservices.

In May, the telco support-ed Saranganis biggest estivalthrough the SarBay un run,aimed at promoting the pres-ervation o marine li e in Sa-rangani Bay and Davao Gul .Funds raised were donatedto the World Wide Fund orNature (WWF) Philippines,which has partnered withSmart in programs to reha-bilitate the gul , home to theendangered dugong and seaturtles. A portion o the pro-ceeds was also donated to theSarangani Bay Fund or theEnvironment.

In June, Smart turnedover to Barangay Buhang-in in Davao City, a wasteshredding and decomposingmachine, part o a Materi-als Recovery Facility that ithelped establish. Te wastedecomposter or biodigesterturns biodegradable wasteinto ertilizer aster, process-ing one ton o garbage in twodays or less, at less cost thanthe biodigesters available inthe market.

Te machine is a home-grown innovationde-

mental LeadershipAward rom WWF,the worlds largestindependent envi-ronment conserva-tion organization,last November.

Smart is one o the proponents o the Marikina Wa-tershed Initiative,which is dedicatedto the rehabilitationand re orestationo the river basin.Te watershed, onthe northeasternpart o Rizal, hadbeen severely de-nuded, thus ailingto stem fooding inMetro Manila andother low-lying ar-eas during typhoonOndoy.

o urther raisepublic awarenesson the watershed,the telco held the Bike orthe Environment 2 last De-cember 16 in Pintong Bu-kawe, San Mateo Rizal. Bik-ers braved the challenging20-kilometer loop on the

ringes o the watershed.Raising public awareness

is an important rst step inpromoting disaster prepar-edness and environment pro-tection and sustainability.

Smart is promoting theuse o technology in gettingtimely and relevant in orma-tion and promoting a cultureo preparedness so commu-nities are more prepared andeffective in dealing with dis-asters. Tis includes dealingwith the pain and misery re-sulting rom the loss o livesand property each time a dis-aster hits the country, saysIsberto. (PR)

Chamber ...from page 8

does not think it willdiscourage developers

rom building more I

buildings, saying thedemand is high enoughor them to want to con-

tinue building and de- veloping.

However, the CCCIstill wants the Peza torethink its decision.

We strongly suggestthat this be given urtherstudy and reconsidera-tion, as this will not only affect one sector o thebusiness community, butthe whole economy o Metro Cebu, the letter

read.We look orward that

the Peza board will givepre erential attention tothis matter in urther-ance o our common e -

orts to enhance public-private partnership.

In an interview, Ges-ta explained that major-ity o the BPO buildingsand I parks are con-

centrated in Cebu City.It would not be air toremove the incentive in

Metro Cebu because itwould mean no incen-tives or similar struc-tures in the cities o Mandaue, Lapu-Lapuand alisay.

He hopes the boardwithdraws its earlierdecision to allow otherareas o Metro Cebu todevelop their own BPOmarket.

hough he is yet toget eedback rom Peza,Gesta is optimistic they will pay

attention to it, say-ing they, too, want toencourage more invest-ments.

I believe they willconsider (our request)because our justi ica-tion is very clear.

Metro Cebu is not yetlooded with in rastruc-

ture or BPO and IC .(SUNNEX)

ers o special economiczones.

In a board meetinglast July, the Peza boardapproved the recom-mendation o Peza man-agement to amend thePeza policies grantingincentives to developersand operators o specialeconomic zones.

hey cited the needto level the playing

ield among develop-ers and operators o Ibuildings in Manila andCebu with other areas.

here is need tohave a uni orm areacoverage eligible or

iscal incentives to de- velopers/operators o special economic zonessuch as but not limitedto manu acturing, agro-industrial and tourismeconomic zone, thePeza resolution stated.

It urther sought theneed to have a uni ormset o incentives to de- velopers/operators o I parks and buildings,including I acilitiesproviders, regardless o location.

Earlier, Cebu In- vestment PromotionsCenter managing direc-tor Joel Mari Yu said he

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DENR pushes for integrationof FLUP of 4 S. Leyte towns

Mt. Nacolod is a mu-nicipal watershed sup-plying water to the sur-rounding towns. he twosigni icant orests on themountain are the BuacWatershed Forest Re-serve and the Hinabian-Lawigan Watershed Res-ervation.

Rising, 1,007 me-ters above sea level, themountain range originally covered 18,688hectares o

orestland. It was declareda Forest Reserve on 25November 1966 by Proc-lamation No. 121.

Both the Hinabian-Lawigan Watershed Res-ervation together with theBuac Watershed ForestReserve with a combinedarea o 10,470 hectaresare proposed as protectedareas under the ProtectedLandscape category o Republic Act 7586 or theNational Integrated Pro-tected Areas System.

According to DENR,several threatened and re-stricted-range species o the Mindanao and East-ern Visayas Endemic BirdAreas have been recordedin Southern Leyte, andare likely to occur in theremaining orests o Mt.Nacolod.

hese include the crit-ically endangered Philip-pine Eagle Pithecophaga je ery i, Mindanao Bleed-ing-heart Gallicolumbacrinigera, PhilippineEagle-owl Bubo philip-pensis, Silvery King isherAlcedo argentata, Samarhornbill Penelopides sa-marensis, among others.(SARWELL Q. MENIANO)

determine the extent o plant and animal speciesin the area or conserva-tion and protection. he

lora and auna survey isbeing done by the FFI.

Assessment o theSouthern Leyte orest isa component o the Re-ducing Emissions romDe orestation and orestDegradation (REDD) pro-gram in the Philippines

unded by the Germangovernment, which aimsto rehabilitate and protectthe current green cover toreduce carbon emissions.

Javier said that the as-sessment is already com-plete but they are stillconsolidating results o study early this year.

Mt. Nacolod is a key biodiversity area. Initialstudy con irms that it isa home to critically en-dangered species. Amongthese is the two new rogspecies ound hopping inthe orest. Results o thestudy would help local o -

icials appreciate the im-portance orest manage-ment, he added.

Series o gatheringshave been held to preparethe LGUs to undertaketheir shared responsi-bilities in the sustainablemanagement o orest landresources o Mt. Nacolod.

As the LGUs capac-ity in Mt. Nacolod orestis enhanced, the primary tasks in the managemento devolved unctionswill be per ormed by theLGUs and the role o theDENR becomes assistiveand coordinative, Javierexplained.

ACLOBAN CI Y he Department o Environment and Nat-ural Resources is push-ing or the integrationo orest land use plan(FLUP) o our South-ern Leyte municipali-ties in conserving theMt. Nacolod, a 14,000hectares richly orestedterrain, believed to behomes o several en-dangered birds.

DENR Regionalechnical Director Da-

nilo Javier said thatthere is an ongoing ca-pacity building amonglocal o icials o themunicipalities o Si-lago, Saint Bernard, Li-bagon and Hinunanganto ensure that Mt. Na-colods protection willbe included in the localFLUP by the middle o the year.

Once orest landuse plan is integrated tothe local governmentsland use planning, abudget rom the annualinvestment will be setaside or orest man-agement, Javier s aid.

In 2011, the DENR in partnership with theFauna and Flora In-ternational (FFI), andGerman Agency orInternational Coopera-tion launched a study inthe area to ind out thebiological and physicalcharacteristics o wild-li e as well as areas inthe terrain occupied by people.

Basic activity underthe project is the biodi- versi ty assessment , to to page 7

HE Cebu Cham-ber o Commerce andIndustry (CCCI) is re-questing the PhilippineEconomic Zone Au-thority (Peza) to keepa ive percent incen-tive given to develop-ers o economic zonesin Metro Cebu, sayingnows not the time tostop it.

In a letter sent toPeza Director GeneralLilia de Lima, CCCIpresident PrudencioGesta said he hopes theboard will reconsidertheir decision and taketime to study the im-pact o the removal o

the incentive.Apart rom other in-

dustries, Metro Cebusgrowing BPO industry alone still needs theincentives, as we havenot ully saturated thein rastructure, Gestasletter stated.

he letter was datedDec. 17.

he CCCIs board o trustees approved Reso-lution 175-2012, whichstands against the Pezaboard resolution. hePeza resolution hadamended the rules onincentives granted tooperators and develop-

Chamber endorses incentive