August 25, 2014 1

VOL 1 ISSUE 5 Weekly E-Newsletter of Philippine Information Agency - 8 August 25, 2014

INSIDE

Full-blown rehab to begin in 6 Yolanda affected areas

T he full-blown implementation of the rehabilitation in six (6) areas

affected by typhoon Yolanda will start anytime as soon as the budget will be released by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM). Undersecretary Lesley Cordero of the Office of the Presidential Assistant for Rehabilitation and Recovery (OPARR) said during her visit in this city recently, that once the budget will be downloaded to the national government agencies who will implement the priority projects, the rehabilitation will begin

immediately in six (6) areas such as Leyte, Western Samar, Eastern Samar, I loilo, Cebu and Tacloban City. However, Secretary Panfilo Lacson is pushing for a bottom-up approach so that certain funds will be downloaded to the local government units (LGUs). OPARR assured the public that all funds will be accounted for. Aside from the Commission on Audit (COA) which has the primary function to examine, audit and settle all accounts and

“in pursuit of PIA’s commitment to provide a national mechanism for the free flow of timely, accurate and relevant information… “

8 ARB organizations receive tools from FAO

News Feature: Naval Fiesta Execom offers hope to Navalenos

73 jobseekers hired on the spot during the 2-day recruitment activity in Tacloban

SLDEO seeks funds to repair scoured grounds below Agas-Agas Bridge

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DOLE allots P59-M to assist workers in Eastern Samar

I n an effort to assist in the rehabilitation and reconstruction

of the l ives and livelihood of the victims of “ Typhoon Yolanda”, the Department of Labor and Employment DOLE), Eastern Samar Provincial Field Office launched “Yolanda Rehabilitation and Recovery Program” ( YRRP) which is now accepting project proposals. The program provides emergency and employment l ivelihood assistance through its DOLE Integrated Livelihood and Emergency and Employment Program (DILEEP). The program aims to contribute to the reduction of poverty and vulnerability to r isks of the poor, vulnerable and marginalized workers either

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BY: SAMUEL CANDIDOBY: CONSUELO B. ALARCON

Leyte governor Dominico Petilla (left) praises the students/athletes of the Leyte Sports Academy for bringing honors to the province as he vows to continue supporting the academy on its 4th Founding Anniversary on August 19 at the Leyte Sports Development Center in Tacloban City. (Vino R. Cuayzon)

August 25, 2014 August 25, 20142

In this highly digitized and technology-driven days, employees can monitor if

their contributions – and the share of their employers -- were duly remitted to the Social Security System (SSS) by a click of the mouse in a computer hooked to the internet. According to SSS-Southern Leyte Branch Manager Gregorio Baroza, SSS members can visit their website www.sss.gov.ph to see the status of their remittances, especially if these

were regularly updated. Baroza aired the advice during an interview at the Action Center Kapihan sa PIA TV program last week. “Employees may no longer directly ask their employers tough questions on their contributions and remittances for they can resort to online inquiry,” Baroza said. He added that concerned workers should not wait until their retirement to check on their SSS

Check contributions through website, SSS-South Leyte tells employees

contributions but update it regularly using the web. Benefits on sickness and loan availment, including maternity privileges for pregnant female employees, are affected by the regularity of contributions and remittances, hence the need for a periodic check to ensure these were in order, Baroza said. (PIA-Southern Leyte)

BY: MARCELO PEDALINO

Members of the Association of Government Information Officers (AGIO) 8 share their agency’s concerns during its first meeting after typhoon Yolanda struck Eastern Visayas at the Philippine Information Agency office in Marasbaras, Tacloban City. (Vino R. Cuayzon)

North Samar conducts prioritization workshop on the 2015 annual investment planBY: TERESITA B. CARDENAS

The provincial government of Northern Samar has conducted a prioritization

workshop on the 2015 Annual Investment

Plan (AIP) at Ibabao Hall, New Capitol Building, Catarman in August 19. Provincial Planning and

Development Coordinator Engr. Romeo Cardenas said that the rationale of the workshop was to identify priority projects for funding in the 2015 economic development fund and come up with a draft of the annual investment plan. He said prioritization criteria has been enhanced or improved based on the provincial governments’ thrust, CHANGE, which means community based ecotourism; health and nutrition; agri industry and livelihood development; natural resource protection and management; good governance and education and welfare. Cardenas informed that AIP is a summary of programs, projects and activities to be implemented for fiscal year 2015 and will serve as an exclusive basis of priority programs/projects to be funded by the economic development fund of their 2015 executive budget. The draft AIP is scheduled to be considered by the Provincial Development Council on September 3 on its council meeting, he added. (PIA-Northern Samar)

August 25, 2014 3Road injury prevention given prime importance by the government

T he increas ing road injur y or death by the motor

vehic le dr iver, passenger and pedestr ians has prompted the nat ional government to provide inter vent ion measures to address the problems. The Road Traf f ic I n jur y Prevent ion Program of Eastern Visayas (R TIPP-E V ) composed of d i f ferent agencies of the nat ional government and other stakeholders was created to address the press ing problems of road injur ies or death. According to Dr. Freder ic Joseph P. Asanza, O ff icer- I n-Charge Depar tment of Emergenc y Medical Ser vices, Eastern Visayas Medical Center (E VRMC ) , in jur ies susta ined are “not accidents” they are preventable and predic table, l ikewise vehicular accidents are considered “vehicular crash” not of random events but occur in

predic table patterns. I f the dr iver wi l l only do the r ight thing injur ies and death may be predic ted through adopting measures of prevent ion. The wear ing of helmet was made mandator y to a l l dr ivers of motorc ycles in order to prevent head injur y which sometimes results to death. Meanwhi le, the Depar tment of Trade and I ndustr y (DTI ) informed that only helmet that pass the Phi l ippine Standard and with PS mark or ICC mark are a l lowed for sa le in the local market .

Based on the Wor ld Health Organizat ion ( WHO) i t was recorded that 1 .3B are k i l led on the road annual ly and t wo -thirds of th is i s accounted to pedestr ians. The Phi l ippine Road S i tuat ion (PRS) d isc losed that chi ldren are the most vulnerable to such death or in jur y and that e leven Fi l ip ino chi ldren die ever y hour, with 263 deaths each day and ever y year 96,000 Fi l ip ino chi ldren succumbed to such death or in jur y thru road accident . (P IA-8)

Provincial Agrarian Reform Program Officer-1 (PARPO-1) Jose Paña (extreme right) and Municipal Agrarian Reform Program Officer (MARPO) Brenda Boller assist Fidel Rodriguez (center) of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in the distribution of farm tools to members of agrarian reform beneficiary organizations (ARBOs ) affected by typhoon “Yolanda in Sta. Rita, Samar. (JOSE ALSMITH L. SORIA)

BY: JONNIE H. BUENAVENTURA

August 25, 2014 August 25, 201448 ARB organizations receive tools from FAOE ight agrarian reform beneficiary

organizations (ARBOs) from five Samar and Leyte towns received farm tools from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) on separate occasions since July 31 to August 4 as part of the rehabilitation process in typhoon “Yolanda” affected areas. A total of 188 sets of farm tools comprised of a shovel, a bolo and a hoe were distributed by Fidel Rodriguez, FAO Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, to the Caticugan Farmers Association, San Juan Farmers and Fishermen Association and the Pagsulhugon Irr igators Association, all within the San Juanico agrarian reform community (ARC) in the municipality of Sta. Rita in the morning of July 31, and the Legaspi Farmers and Fishermen Association and the Kauswagan han Canyoyo Consumers Cooperative, both within the Marabut ARC in Marabut town in the afternoon of the same day. On August 1 Rodriquez handed the tools to the Tulusahay Farmers Multi-Purpose Cooperative in Julita, Leyte; while on August 4 the same tools were distributed to the St. Benedict Association for Sustainable Farming and the Jaro Agrarian Reform Cooperative of Tunga and Jaro, Leyte, respectively Sixty-eight sets of tools were distributed in Sta. Rita, 33 sets were distributed to the two ARBOs in Marabut, 12 sets were distributed in Julita, while 75 sets were distributed to the Tunga ang Jaro ARBOs. FAO, according to Rodriguez, tied up with the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) to prioritize the ARBOs

because the latter are more organized and active compared to other farmer organizations. He emphasized that each set of tools is given to a group of f ive members who are going to share these farm inputs donated by the governments of I reland and Belgium thru the United Nations. Rodriguez was assisted by Municipal Agrarian Reform Program Officers (MARPOs) Brenda Boller, Chito de la Torre and Norman Diaz during the distribution in Sta. Rita, Marabut and in the Leyte Municipalities, respectively. Benderito Dacuno, 62, chairman of the Legaspi Farmers and Fishermen Association in thanking the donors said that these are what they need now because

all their tools were swept away by “Yolanda”. At the moment, they are just borrowing tools from other vil lages, he added. Earlier, FAO also distributed 2,486 bags (40 k ilogram per bag) of certif ied rice seeds and equal number of urea (50 k ilogram per bag) to r ice farmers. Meanwhile, Regional Director Sheila Enciso explained that FAO is among the foreign and local organizations who responded to DAR’s call to assist the agency in the rehabilitation of the ARCs particularly those in Leyte, Samar and Eastern Samar ’s hardest hit areas. ( Jose Alsmith Soria/DAR-8)

Members of agrarian reform beneficiary organizations (ARBOs) in Sta. Rita, Samar who are recipient of farm tools donated by the United Nations thru the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) for the typhoon “Yolanda” affected areas pose with FAO representative Fidel Rodriguez (standing, 5th from right) and DAR officials. (JOSE ALSMITH L. SORIA)

August 25, 2014 5

Palace official allays public fears, says health officials trained enough to fend off Ebola virus

Health authorities in the Philippines have enough

capability to fend off the entry of Ebola virus as the disease spreads in African countries. The Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed recently that there is a Filipino worker being tested for Ebola virus infection. Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte told dzRB Radyo ng Bayan that the Department of Health (DOH) screens people who manifest symptoms and also those who travelled to countries with cases of Ebola infections. This screening process is a measure being carried out as an extra layer of precaution, she said. Based on the advisory issued by the World Health Organization last month, people in countries with reported infections are barred from traveling abroad, Valte said. “Nasasalo na po sila doon sa point of departure at may extra stringent measures naman po tayo dito pagdating po sa ating bansa,” she added. The DOH implements a very stringent testing process on people with suspected infection, she said. Following arrival in the country, the DOH monitors them for 30 days. Health official would call them daily to check if they have developed symptoms of the Ebola virus, she said. Valte allayed public fears saying the country’s health personnel are trained enough to handle such emergencies. “Katulad nang 15 na katao na umuwi noong nakaraang buwan na galing sa mga lugar na merong Ebola, negative naman silang lahat ayon sa naging resulta after the 30-day monitoring period,” she said. Filipino health authorities were also able to protect the country from MERS-CoV, a virus that originated in the Middle East. The Ebola virus causes viral hemorrhagic fever that affects

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President Benigno S. Aquino III delivers his speech during the commemoration of the National Heroes Day at the Libingan ng mga Bayani in Fort Bonofacio, Taguig City on Monday (August 25, 2014). With theme: “Bayaning Pilipino: Lumalaban para sa Makatwiran at Makabuluhang Pagbabago.” (Photo by Rey Baniquet /NIB)

August 25, 2014 August 25, 20146

FEATURENaval Fiesta Execom offers hope to NavalenosBY: MARY LAILANI P. TUPAZ

M embers of the Naval Fiesta Execut ive Committee

recent ly e lec ted i ts new chairman and other new off icers to ef fec t planned ac t iv i t ies for the coming town f iesta on Oc tober 3-4 , 2014, in honor of Our Lady of the Holy Rosar y. The new set of off icers of the Naval Town Execut ive Committe 2014 are Engr. Ferdinand Mor i l lo - Chairman; Mar i lou Lucente - Vice Chairman ( I nternal ) and Att y. Edna Pitao -Honor (Ex ternal ) ; Dr. Jose M ondido - Secretar y ; Shir ley Jadulco - Treasurer ; Al ton Durano - Auditor ; Flordel is Jackson - P IO; and Naval Chief of Pol ice, Naval BFP Chief, Naval Coast Guard Chief for Sgt . At Arms. Major i t y of the members unanimously chose Engr. Ferdinand Mor i l lo, former OFW and owner of D ’Mei Res idence I nn, for h is abi l i t y in management and v isual is ing things as prac t ica l ly seen in his success at a ver y young age. True to ever yone’s expec tat ions, Engr. M or i l lo, who for the f i rst t ime jo ined in planning the town’s f iesta af fa i rs , gave guidel ines on choosing f iesta ac t iv i t ies. H is guidel ines require ac t iv i t ies that people can enjoy, people can par t ic ipate, people can earn, people can share, ac t iv i t ies that are not so cost ly, and ac t iv i t ies that the execom can do in so shor t a t ime not ing that the af fa i r i s less than t wo months away.

Most of the ac t iv i t ies were a l ready ident i f ied and ass igned to persons and agencies concerned. I n i t ia l suggested ac t iv i t ies inc lude the night ly Pasundayag and musical ex travaganza at the LGU-Naval compound. The night ly presentat ions a im to enter ta in Navalenos f rom al l walks of l i fe to include those who were badly af fec ted by super t yphoon Yolanda for them to forget their t raumatic exper ience when the disaster h i t B i l i ran province and the rest of the provinces in the Visayas area . L ikewise, s ince people converge night ly at the Naval munic ipal grounds for the presentat ions, the ac t iv i t y wi l l provide an oppor tunit y to the low income groups in the area l ike the balut vendors, those who are engaged in se l l ing barbeque and other smal l t rade af fec ted by the disaster to earn a l iv ing af ter their smal l businesses were disturbed for several months af ter the super t yphoon. A 65-year v ic t im of super t yphoon Yolanda in Naval who requested not to be named said “my hear t b leeds when I recal l how Yolanda torn to pieces our house made of l ight mater ia ls and I bel ieve, witness ing the week long ac t iv i t ies of the f iesta wi l l ease my sad exper iences”. The f iesta celebrat ion wi l l a lso give me the oppor tunit y to thank the Lord once again for the new l i fe my fami ly and I have af ter the

t yphoon, she added. O ther ac t iv i t ies inc lude street beaut i f icat ion contest ; b ic ycle and s ik ad-s ik ad race; senior c i t izens night ; bal ik bayan night ; a lumni homecoming; marching band competit ion; p layground demonstrat ion; the Hudyak a or halad sa bi rhen; f luvia l parade; foot process ion and the one of i ts k ind Ts inelas par t y where people f rom al l walks of l i fe enjoy dancing in the streets to the tune of modern and bal l room dancing music and no one is d iscr iminated. Real iz ing the recent devastat ion of Typhoon Yolanda in the town of Naval and the desi re to ease the t rauma of people in the communit y, Att y. Edna Pitao -Honor suggested to minimize so much sol ic i tat ion and instead use par t of the munic ipal i t y ’s cultural fund as ac t iv i t ies star t f rom the 154th Pueblo Day celebrat ion of Naval in September 26 unt i l the feast day. Engr. Mor i l lo expressed hopes for the cooperat ion and suppor t of the members of the execom, agencies and persons concerned, as wel l as the communit y for a successful f iesta celebrat ion. He requested the execom to heed to his ca l ls ever yt ime he needs them. A regular execom meeting is set ever y Thursday at 3 :00 o’c lock in the af ternoon. (P IA-Bi l i ran)

August 25, 2014 7

BY: CONSUELO ALARCON

Climate Change Commission launches RAPID Programme in 12 Yolanda affected areas in EV

The Climate Change Commission officially launched here on

Monday the Resilience and Preparedness for Inclusive Development (RAPID) Programme, which is an expansion of Project Climate Twin Phoenix in Yolanda-affected areas. The programme aims to strengthen the institutional capacities of local governments and to mainstream climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction and management in local development and land use plans in twelve (12) coastal communities in the region considered as badly hit by super typhoon Yolanda. These coastal communities include those in Tacloban City, seven municipalities in the province of Leyte and four municipalities in the provinces of Western and Eastern Samar as partner LGU’s. Secretary Mary Anne Lucille L. Sering, Vice-Chairperson of the Climate Change Commission who leads the launching of the project stressed the need to mainstream climate change into local planning. “Through RAPID, it is our goal for our partner communities along the coast who are vulnerable to disasters and those who suffer at the hands of the disaster will be empowered to make decisions and act upon their vulnerabilities in order to secure their families and livelihoods during a disaster,” Sering said. The project which is to be implemented for two (2) years

involve various activities such as the conduct of climate disaster risk and vulnerability assessments, priority preparedness and mitigation actions, awareness raising and capacity building, mainstreaming climate disaster risks in land use and development plans, formulation and testing of local contingency plans and early warning systems and the use of technologies in multi-hazard mapping to integrate climate change and disaster risks into planning. Along with the launching was the signing of the Memorandum of

Understanding between the Climate Change Commission and the 12 local government executives in the region to signify their support and cooperation in the implementation of the project. The project will be implemented by the Climate Change Commission with the support of Mr. Geoffrey King, Counselor of the Australian Aid Programme and Mr. Maurice Dewulf, Country Director of UNDP Philippines. (PIA-8)

Climate Change Commission secretary and vice chairperson Mary Ann Lucille Sering (seated center) with Balangiga mayor Viscuso Lira, Lawa-an mayor Candida Gabornes, Tacloban City mayor Alfred Romualdez and Abuyog mayor Octavio Traya showed the signed Memorandum of Understanding on the Resilience and Preparedness Towards Inclusive Development (RAPID) programme held at Hotel Alejandro, Tacloban City, August 18. UNDP Philippines country director Maurice Dewulf and Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade ? Australian Aid Programme counselor Geoffrey King witnessed the affair. (Vino R. Cuayzon)

August 25, 2014 August 25, 2014873 jobseekers hired on the spot during the 2-day recruitment activity in Tacloban S event y three (73) appl icants

were hired on the spot dur ing the t wo - day recruitment ac t iv i t y conduc ted by Stanford Market ing Corporat ion (Savemore M arket) in coordinat ion with the Depar tment of Labor and Employment (DOLE) through the Publ ic Employment Ser vice O ff ice (PESO) at the Tacloban Cit y Hal l . I n a press re lease sent to the regional Phi l ippine I nformation Agenc y (P IA) by the Depar tment of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Regional O ff ice 8 , Ms. L iez l But ihen, Ass istant Human Resource Manager of Stanford Market ing Corporat ion disc losed

that 77% out of more than 90 job vacancies were f i l led dur ing the hir ing. “ We are happy with our accompl ishment. We were able to hi re 37 and 36 appl icants for our August 12 -13 ac t iv i t y respec t ively,” sa id Ms. But ihen. Along this development, DOLE -8 OIC Regional Direc tor Exequiel Sarcauga was ver y pleased with the ef for ts made by Savemore and Tacloban PESO for this would mean more oppor tunit ies for jobseekers in the region par t icular ly in the c i t y. “ We welcome ac t iv i t ies l ike what Savemore just d id i t as

South Korean soldiers continue to help in Leyte’s rehabilitation

T h e R e p u b l i c o f K o r e a A r m e d F o r c e s ( R O K A F ) J o i n t S u p p o r t

G r o u p i s c o n t i n u o u s l y p r o v i d i n g s u p p o r t t o t h e r e h a b i l i t a t i o n e f f o r t s i n t h e P r o v i n c e o f L e y t e e v e n i f n i n e ( 9 ) m o n t h s h a v e p a s s e d s i n c e t y p h o o n Yo l a n d a c a u s e d h a v o c i n m a n y a r e a s i n E a s t e r n V i s a y a s . I n a n i n t e r v i e w w i t h C o l . L e e C h u l w o n , C o m m a n d e r, R e p u b l i c o f K o r e a A r m e d F o r c e s ( R O K A F ) J o i n t S u p p o r t G r o u p a t t h e i r b a s e c a m p i n B r g y. C a n d a h u g , P a l o L e y t e , t h e o f f i c i a l s a i d o u t o f t h e s i x t y ( 6 0 ) p u b l i c f a c i l i t i e s t a r g e t e d f o r c o m p l e t i o n o n D e c e m b e r t h i s y e a r, f o r t y ( 4 0 ) f a c i l i t i e s w e r e a l r e a d y r e p a i r e d .

A m o n g t h e s e a r e p u b l i c s c h o o l s , g o v e r n m e n t h o s p i t a l s , f i r e s t a t i o n s , p o l i c e s t a t i o n s , K o r e a n W a r v e t e r a n h o m e s a n d o t h e r l o c a l i n f r a s t r u c t u r e s . R e c e n t l y , R O K A F h a s t u r n e d - o v e r a n e w l y r e h a b i l i t a t e d M a n l u r i p E l e m e n t a r y S c h o o l l o c a t e d i n M a n l u r i p , S a n J o s e D i s t r i c t i n Ta c l o b a n C i t y w h e r e 3 7 2 p u p i l s a n d 1 1 t e a c h e r s w i l l b e n e f i t . S a i d p r o j e c t w a s j o i n t l y d o n e b y R e p u b l i c o f K o r e a A r m e d F o r c e s ( R O K A F ) J o i n t S u p p o r t G r o u p , t h e 5 4 6 a n d 5 4 3 E n g i n e e r C o n s t r u c t i o n B a t t a l i o n ( E C B ) o f t h e 5 3 r d E n g i n e e r i n g B r i g a d e , P h i l i p p i n e A r m y. R O K A F a l s o e x t e n d s

a s s i s t a n c e b y o f f e r i n g t r a i n i n g a n d f r e e u s e o f t h e i r h e a v y e q u i p m e n t s t o T E S D A s c h o l a r s c o m i n g f r o m v a r i o u s m u n i c i p a l i t i e s i n L e y t e i n c l u d i n g Ta c l o b a n C i t y . I t c a n b e r e c a l l e d t h a t a f t e r Yo l a n d a h i t t h e r e g i o n i n N o v e m b e r l a s t y e a r, t h e R O K A F w a s t h e f i r s t o f t h e g r o u p s w h o r e n d e r e d i m m e d i a t e h u m a n i t a r i a n a s s i s t a n c e a n d d i s a s t e r r e l i e f ( H A D R ) a n d c l e a r i n g o p e r a t i o n s o n p l a c e s h e a v i l y a f f e c t e d b y t h e t y p h o o n a s w e l l a s r e n d e r i n g m e d i c a l s e r v i c e s t o t y p h o o n v i c t i m s . ( A J C / C B A / P I A - 8 )

these help our jobseekers acquire gainful employment. More jobs a lso mean a thr iv ing business environment, greater oppor tunit y for savings, and better food on the table. Jobs fa i rs and hir ing ac t iv i t ies remind people that exer t ing ef for t in apply ing for a job could be to their advantage rather than t widdl ing one’s thumbs,” Sarcauga sa id. The supermarket is set to open in November this year. (P IA-8)

August 25, 2014 9

Gov’t workers in Salcedo undergo visioning workshop

N e w b e g i n n i n g s a r e o n t h e h o r i z o n f o r S a l c e d o a s t h e y

b e g i n t h e C o m p r e h e n s i v e L a n d U s e P l a n ( C LU P ) t h r o u g h a v i s i o n i n g w o r k s h o p o n J u l y 2 8 , 2 0 1 4 a t t h e Fa r m e r ’s Tr a i n i n g C e n t e r ( F TC ) , E a s t e r n S a m a r S t a t e C o l l e g e ( E S S U ) c o m p o u n d , S a l c e d o, E a s t e r n S a m a r. T h e C LU P i s a d o c u m e n t w h i c h l a y s o u t a l l s e c t o r a l e x i s t i n g c o n d i t i o n s , a p r o p o s a l f o r t h e g o a l s , o b j e c t i v e s a n d t h e g e n e r a l d i r e c t i o n o f m u n i c i p a l i t y d e v e l o p m e n t i n t e n y e a r s ’ t i m e . S o m e 2 3 s t a k e h o l d e r s a t t e n d e d t h e w o r k s h o p l e d b y t h e C o r e P l a n n i n g t e a m f r o m M u n i c i p a l P l a n n i n g

D e v e l o p m e n t a n d C o o r d i n a t i o n O f f i c e ( M P D CO ) . To w n m a y o r M e l c h o r L . M e r g a l s a i d t h e p u r p o s e o f t h e w o r k s h o p i s t o v i s u a l i z e t h e c u r r e n t r e a l i t y o f S a l c e d o a n d i t s p r e f e r r e d r e a l i t y f o r t e n y e a r s a f t e r. A c c o r d i n g t o m u n i c i p a l p l a n n i n g d e v e l o p m e n t a n d c o o r d i n a t i o n o f f i c e r I s a b e l A b e l l a , t h e C LU P i s v e r y i m p o r t a n t e s p e c i a l l y t o t h e d e c i s i o n m a k e r s a n d f o r t h e s t a k e h o l d e r s . I t ’s v a l u a b l e f o r t h e m t o k n o w t h e u s e s o f t h e i r l a n d . T h r o u g h t h i s p r o c e s s , t h e y w i l l b e g u i d e d w h e r e t o i n v e s t r e s o u r c e s , w h e r e t o b u i l d m o r e

s t r u c t u r e s a n d w h e r e t o f o c u s t h e i r d e v e l o p m e n t e f f o r t s . “ U l t i m a t e l y, w e w i l l i d e n t i f y a n d d e t e r m i n e t h e s e i n t e r r e l a t i o n s h i p s f o r t h e f u t u r e d e v e l o p m e n t o f S a l c e d o” A b e l l a a d d e d . O n e o f t h e p a r t i c i p a n t s , U z h m a r Pa d i t , E m e r g e n c y R e l i e f C o o r d i n a t o r / M u n i c i p a l D i s a s t e r R i s k R e d u c t i o n a n d M a n a g e m e n t O f f i c e r ( M D R R M O ) , s a i d t h a t t h e p r o c e s s c o n s i s t e d o f i n t e r a c t i v e s m a l l g r o u p s w h i c h e v a l u a t e d s i x e s s e n t i a l e l e m e n t s i n c l u d i n g p e o p l e a s i n d i v i d u a l s , p e o p l e a s a c o m m u n i t y, l o c a l c o m m u n i t y, n a t u r a l e n v i r o n m e n t , b u i l t e n v i r o n m e n t a n d l o c a l i n s t i t u t i o n s . H e f u r t h e r s a i d t h e v i s i o n w i l l g u i d e t h e f u t u r e g o a l s a n d o b j e c t i v e s f o r m u n i c i p a l d e v e l o p m e n t a n d p l a n n i n g. T h e C LU P s l o g a n i s “ Pa g p a h i m u t a n g h a n d a l a n n g a d t o h i n m a u p a y n g a k i n a b u h i ”. ( P I A - E a s t e r n S a m a r )

Sports envoys and former NBA and WNBA players Derrick Alston and Allison Feaster looked at the life size monument of Gen. Douglas MacArthur in a memorial park named in his honor in Palo, Leyte. (Vino R. Cuayzon)

BY: SAMUEL CANDIDO

August 25, 2014 August 25, 201410SLDEO seeks funds to repair scoured grounds below Agas-Agas BridgeT h e S o u t h e r n Le y t e D i s t r i c t

E n g i n e e r i n g O f f i c e ( S L D E O ) h a s e xe r t e d e f f o r t s t o p r e v e n t f u r t h e r e r o s i o n j u s t t e n m e t e r s a w a y f r o m t h e b o t t o m o f t w o g i a n t c o l u m n s o f t h e m i g h t y A g a s - A g a s B r i d g e h e r e , a m i g h t y a n d i m p o s i n g s u p e r s t r u c t u r e t h a t i s a t o u r i s t a t t r a c t i o n b y i t s e l f . A c c o r d i n g t o a n e w s r e l e a s e w r i t t e n b y S L D E O I n f o r m a t i o n O f f i c e r R o u e l l a A l t a r s e n t b y e m a i l t o P I A , D i s t r i c t E n g r. M a . M a r g a r i t a J u n i a r e f e r r e d t h e m a t t e r a n d c o n s u l t e d w i t h D e p a r t m e n t o f Pu b l i c Wo r k s a n d H i g h w a y s ( D P W H ) R e g i o n a l D i r e c t o r E n g r. R o l a n d o A s i s i n o r d e r t o s e e k f u n d i n g o n t h e r e s t o r a t i o n a n d r e h a b i l i t a t i o n p r o j e c t f o r t h e d a m a g e d p o r t i o n

n e a r t h e p i e r s , w h i c h c a n c o s t m i l l i o n s o f p e s o s . T h e i n e v i t a b l e m o v e c a m e a f t e r a n S L D E O i n s p e c t i o n t e a m , h e a d e d b y D E J u n i a w i t h E n g r. E r l i n d a C r u z o f t h e M a i n t e n a n c e S e c t i o n a n d E n g r. V i n c e n t S y, C h i e f f o r P l a n n i n g a n d D e s i g n , v i s i t e d t h e b r i d g e i n A u g u s t 7 . I t w a s f o u n d o u t t h a t t h e g r o u n d s n e a r b y w h e r e b o t h B r i d g e P i e r s I a n d I I , t h e b r i d g e’s f o u n d a t i o n , w e r e s i t u a t e d h a v e b e e n s c o u r e d , a n d t h a t t h e a c c e s s r o a d b e n e a t h t h e s t r u c t u r e h a s c o l l a p s e d , t h e S L D E O r e p o r t s a i d . “ Pr e v e n t i v e m e a s u r e s s u c h a s d r a i n a g e c a n a l s a n d g a b i o n f l o o d c o n t r o l s , p r e v i o u s l y a p p l i e d b y t h e S L D E O, w e r e a l l w a s h e d o u t ,” t h e r e p o r t s t a t e d , a d d i n g t h a t i f n e g l e c t e d

t h e s c o u r i n g w o u l d s e r i o u s l y d a m a g e t h e f o u n d a t i o n o f t h e h u g e i n f r a s t r u c t u r e . C o n s i d e r e d o n e o f t h e e n g i n e e r i n g f e a t s i n t h e P h i l i p p i n e s , A g a s - A g a s B r i d g e w a s o p e n e d t o t r a f f i c i n 2 0 0 9 f o l l o w i n g a d r i v e - t h r o u g h i n a u g u r a t i o n b y f o r m e r Pr e s i d e n t G l o r i a M a c a p a g a l A r r o y o. I t s t a n d s 8 4 m e t e r s h i g h , s p a n s 3 5 0 m e t e r s l o n g c o n c r e t e , a n d t r a v e r s e s t h e N o r t h - S o u t h M a h a r l i k a N a t i o n a l H i g h w a y t h a t l i n k s t h e c o u n t r y, h e n c e i t h a s e n o r m o u s e c o n o m i c s i g n i f i c a n c e f o r t h e p r o v i n c e , a s t r a v e l e r s u s e i t f o r t h e i r l o n g l a n d t r i p s i n g o i n g t o M i n d a n a o o r Lu z o n . ( P I A - S o u t h e r n Le y t e )

Leyte Schools Division superintendent Ronelo Firmo (left) congratulates the newly inducted officers of the Supreme Student Government of the Leyte Sports Academy (LSA) on its 4th Founding Anniversary on August 19 at the Leyte Sports Development Center in Tacloban City. (Vino R. Cuayzon)

August 25, 2014 11

expenditures of the funds and properties of the government, the Office of Secretary Lacson is preparing a monitoring and validation team to make sure that everything is accounted for. Cordero said Secretary Lacson is hoping to achieve an 80% completion of the rehabilitation projects under the Comprehensive Rehabilitation and Recovery Plan (CRRP) before the end of President Aquino’s term in 2016. She further stressed that the national government ’s goal is not just to build back better but to

through transitional emergency employment and promotion of entrepreneurship and community enterprise. In an interview with PIA, Fe A. Estrella, Chief-Labor and Employment Officer, DOLE- Provincial Field Office said that for Eastern Samar, the department has allotted P59.06M of which P11.61M is for Emergency Employment. This targets to benefit 2,322 worker-victims in six municipalities: Lawaan, Salcedo, Mercedes, Giporlos, Quinapondan and Maydolong Also, P47.45M is allotted for Livelihood Assistance which targets to benefit 3,469 worker-victims in ten municipalities: Maydolong, Balangkayan, Hernani, Mac-Arthur, Quinapondan, Giporlos, Lawaan, Salcedo, Mercedes and Guiuan. Estrella also said that a P4M-assistance has already been released to the municipalities of Hernani, Balangkayan and Guiuan. “ This micro financing mechanism allows members of cooperatives, entrepreneur groups and or individuals wider access to capital that they can use to improve their l ivelihood and increase their income”, Estrella added. She further said that as of this writing, there are about

DOLE allots...from page 1 Palace official..from page 5

Full-blown rehab..from page 1

multiple organ systems in the body and is often accompanied by bleeding. Early symptoms include sudden onset of fever, weakness, muscle pain, headaches and a sore throat. Patients eventually experience vomiting, diarrhea, impaired kidney and liver functions -- and sometimes internal and external bleeding. Ebola spreads through contact with bodily fluids such as blood, saliva, urine and other secretions of infected people. It has no known cure and the virus posts more than 50 percent death rate. Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria are the leading African countries with a high number of reported infections. PND (as)

P30M worth of project proposals submitted to their office for evaluation and endorsed by the Provincial Project Management Team (PPMT ). After the evaluation, the DOLE Eastern Samar endorses the proposals to the DOLE-Regional Office which are again evaluated and discussed by the Regional Project Management Team (RPMT ) for recommendation of the said project proposals. When the requirements are complete and the proposals are passed, the RPMT based on the DOLE Integrated Livelihood Program and the DOLE-Regional Director, being the Chairman of RPMT will grant and approve the project proposals for funding. The submitted proposals to the DOLE, E. Samar Field Office for cooperatives and entrepreneur groups are: f ishing paraphernalia, motor boat, farming implements and equipment while for individual projects are: vulcanizing, electronics, cosmetology, cellphone repair shop, electrical services, welding, car wash, massage, plumbing, appliance and upholstery repair. The program will last until December 2014 only. (PIA-Eastern Samar)

do it faster and safer. Under the CRRP, rehabilitation in the six (6) mentioned Yolanda devastated areas was already approved as announced by President Aquino in his State of the Nation Address (SONA) last July 28. According to Cordero, the approved rehabilitation plan for the province of Leyte was estimated at P39 Bil l ion; Samar -P8.8 Bil l ion; Eastern Samar-P11.3 Bil l ion while Tacloban City has P15.7 bil l ion budget rehab plan.(PIA-8)

E a s t e r n S a m a r h a s r e c o r d e d o n M o n d a y, A u g u s t 1 8 , t e n d o g b i t e s b u t t h e y w e r e a l l g i v e n f r e e i n j e c t i o n o f A n t i - R a b i e s d r u g. P H I L H E A LT H p r o g r a m s a r e s t i l l u n d e r t h e g o v e r n m e n t m a n d a t e t o d e l i v e r h e a l t h c a r e b e n e f i t s t o m e m b e r s a n d n o n -m e m b e r s p a r t i c u l a r l y t h i s t i m e w h e n “ Yo l a n d a” i s s t i l l f r e s h i n t h e p e o p l e s h e a r t s a n d m i n d s a n d p a r t i c u l a r l y t h i s t i m e w h e n R e g i o n 8 i s s t i l l u n d e r t h e s t a t e o f c a l a m i t y. At p re s e n t t h e g ove r n m e n t h e a l t h i n s u r a n c e c o m p a n y h a s l i s t e d s o m e 1 1 5 - t h o u s a n d i n d i g e n t s c o m p a r e d t o 2 0 1 3 ’s 7 7 - t h o u s a n d . D e s p i t e t h e i n c r e a s i n g n u m b e r o f c l a i m s , t h e g o v e r n m e n t t h r o u g h P h i l H e a l t h i s e n s u r i n g t h a t b i l l s i n b o t h p r i v a t e a n d g o v e r n m e n t h o s p i t a l s a r e p a i d u p, A q u i n o c o n c l u d e d . ( w i t h r e p o r t s o f Pe n Po m i d a / P I A - E a s t e r n S a m a r )

PhilHealth...from page 12

August 25, 2014 August 25, 201412DILG holds Trainers’ Training on Disaster Mitigation

D epartment of Interior and Local Government Unit (DILG) Eastern

Samar will be soon conducting a Trainers’ Training on Community Based Disaster Risk Reduction Management. This is aimed primarily on empowering people in the barangays, in order for them to be able to mitigate the effects of natural disasters, now that climate change has shown its effects on humans and its environment. Ms. Jennah Mae Lassiter, DILG Focal Officer on Climate Change and Disaster Mitigation said this through Radyo ng Bayan DYES. According to Lassiter, what used to be an abnormal occurrence in our climate before, is now getting to be a normal happening. “I t is the new normal”, she said.” That is why, communities have to support all government programs and projects which are

geared at protecting people and their surroundings”, she added. Funded by the United Nations Development Program(UNDP), the first batch of the TOT will be held on September 9-12 at the Marian Hotel here, while the second batch will follow soon within the month, with funds support from the Office of Civil Defense(OCD), the report said. DILG province is l ikewise supported by the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office(PDRRMO) under its designated officer, Mr. Levi Nicart. About eight southern municipalities of the province were severely hit by super typhoon “Yolanda” which resulting to some 254 deaths and caused mill ions-worth of damage to properties and government structures.( With reports of Penpen Pomida/PIA-Eastern Samar)

USWAG, which means to move forward or towards progress, is the weekly E-Newsletter of the Philippine Information Agency in Eastern Visayas. It aims to document current efforts to build-back-better communities devastated by super typhoon Yolanda as well as deliver timely, useful and relevant information as we move forward together in realizing inclusive growth not only in the region but also the rest of the country.

PHILHEALTH continues to help the poor patients

N i n e m o n t h s a f t e r “ Yo l a n d a”, t h e P h i l i p p i n e H e a l t h

I n s u r a n c e ( P H I L H E A LT H ) i s s t i l l d e l i v e r i n g h e a l t h a s s i s t a n c e t o b o t h m e m b e r s a n d n o n -m e m b e r s . M r. S h e r w i n A q u i n o, P H I L H E A LT H o f f i c e r h e r e i n f o r m e d m e d i a t h a t a t p r e s e n t t h e y a r e i m p l e m e n t i n g t h e “Av a i l A l l Po l i c y ” w h i c h b e n e f i t s i n d i g e n t p a t i e n t s i n a c c r e d i t e d h e a l t h f a c i l i t i e s b y t h e D e p a r t m e n t o f H e a l t h ( D O H ) . S i m i l a r l y, u n d e r t h e A n i m a l V i t a Pa c k a g e , p a t i e n t s b i t t e n b y r a b i d a n i m a l s c a n b e r e i m b u r s e d o f u p t o T h r e e T h o u s a n d p e s o s ( P 3 , 0 0 0 . 0 0 ) f o r m e d i c i n e s b r o u g h t o u t s i d e t h e h o s p i t a l , h o w e v e r w i t h r e c e i p t s .

continued on page 11