MILAGROSONG KALABAW

'Miracle' town's claim to fame is carabao's milk in caramel 

By Jonas Cabiles Soltes 

TERESITA Cervantes and her caramelado

JOEY CO 

MILAGROS, Masbate--Legend has it that Saint Peter walks on the beach of this quaint town 22 kilometers west of Masbate City and can be seen doing so on a clear day. This is why the place was named “Milagros,” the Spanish word for miracles.

But the creature that brought so much wonders here is not Saint Peter’s supposed favored animal—the rooster—but the carabao.

The carabao is the beast of burden for many of the town’s 44, 575 residents, many of whom are farmers although townsfolk subsist primarily on fishing in the Asid Gulf.

Aside from being work animals, carabaos here also provide fresh milk that has been the main ingredient of the town’s most famous fare: caramelado, milk curd in caramel.

Claim to fame

Caramelado has not only made the town famous. It has also provided livelihoods to poor residents for years.

How the native fare alleviated the plight of residents is evident in Barangay Bacolod, which lies in the junction of the paved roads that lead to the town proper of Milagros and to the neighboring towns of Mandaon and Balud.

In this village, many of the residents earn a living by cooking caramelado, which are sold in the crossroad to commuters and tourists, most of whom would intentionally go to the road intersection just to avail of the sweet-tasting native delicacy.

One of those who have earned a living by cooking caramelado is Teresita Cervantes, 67, who learned the trade from her late grandmother.

“Cooking [caramelado] takes hard work. You are exposed to fire. And it’s tiring to the arms since you would have to endure hours of stirring so the milk curd will not be burnt. And while stirring, you cannot leave or the curd will be toasted,” said Cervantes.

The enterprising Cervantes, who moonlights as laundrywoman, has been cooking caramelado for the last 20 years in her house beside rice fields and rolling hills and pastures here.

Through cooking the milky white concoction, she has helped her husband—who passed away in 1995—raise their 10 children, all grownups now.

Preparation

The first step in preparing caramelado is milking a carabao. The right time to milk a carabao is when the calf starts to eat grass. Or fresh milk could just be bought from carabao owners at P20 per bottle.

Carabao’s not cow’s milk is used because it is thinner and does not easily curdle.

Eight bottles of milk has to be mixed with one-half kilogram of refined (white) sugar. Then the mixture is boiled until it curdles.

While the milk with sugar is boiling, there is a need to constantly stir the mixture.

The resulting curd becomes the caramelado—ready to be rolled over by a bottle and cut into small thin bars and wrapped with cellophane and white wax paper.

“I mix only a small amount of sugar so the caramelado would retain its milky flavor. Yes, less sweet caramelado does not sell much but I prefer to stick to the original way of cooking it,” said Cervantes.

Packaging

If there’s one thing that she has learned from the changing times, it’s that she should package the caramelado in such a way that it would be appealing to customers.

So despite her resolve to stick to the olden ways of cooking caramelado, Cervantes has started to sell caramelado bars, delicately wrapped in white wax paper, in translucent plastic containers, as what the others in the village have been doing.Each plastic container with 30 bars inside sells at P100.

(Shelf life of caramelado bars is about one week. The milk curd needs to be toasted a little so the shelf life of caramelado bars will be one month.)

Peak season

During the peak season for selling caramelados — the summer and Christmas season—Cervantes would have sales of P3,000 to P10, 000 a day..

Like her, many of the residents that sell caramelado in the road intersection here earn good money only when tourists arrive during the holidays.

INSTALLATION

Pope installs new Bishop of Masbate
By Jonas Cabiles Soltes

MASBATE CITY --- The Holy See through Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines Giuseppe Pinto, representative of Pope Benedict XVI, formally appointed the new Bishop of Masbate on Tuesday (September 6).

In a gathering of Church and political leaders that included Caceres Archbishop Leonardo Z. Legaspi, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma and Masbate Governor Rizalina Seachon-Lanete, Monsignor Jose B. Bantolo, formerly vicar general of the Diocese of San Jose in Antique province, was formally appointed to head the island province’s 704, 000 Catholics.

Bantolo succeeded Bishop Joel Z. Baylon, who was installed as Bishop of Legazpi in 2009. Baylon was also present in the ceremonies.

He becomes the third Bishop of Masbate, following in the footsteps of the late Bishop Porfirio R. Ilagan, and Baylon.

The Diocese of Masbate, which is coextensive with Masbate province, has not had a bishop since Baylon took over the leadership of the Diocese of Legazpi, which is coextensive with Albay province.

Bartolo was born in Guisijan village in Laua-an, Antique and was ordained priest in 1986.

He became the rector of St. Peter’s Seminary in 1988 and the president of St. Anthony’s College in 2007. Both schools are in Antique province.

Fr. Leo Casas, executive director of the Social Action Center of the Diocese of Masbate, said Bishop Bantolo did not give lengthy message but just thanked all the persons who had been instrumental in his vocation including his family and his former parishioners in Antique province.

OVERRATED. ^^

Peñafrancia fever is here! 

By Shiena M. Barrameda and Juan Escandor Jr. 

NAGA CATHEDRAL AND PORTA MARIAE. Home of Ina for the 9-day vigil. 

NAGA CITY ---Religious fervor heats up for the Bicol Patroness, Our Lady of Peñafrancia or Ina, with the traslacion procession kicking off this Friday to start the religious activities and culminate in a fluvial procession on the eve of the 9th day of the novenario that will officially close the tercentenary celebration of the devotion introduced here in 1710.

Unique to the homegrown devotion to Ina, the traslacion evolved with the growth of devotees over the years which required the transfer of the image of Ina to bigger venue, from Peñafrancia Shrine to the Metropolitan Cathedral.

The transfer of the image of Ina and Divino Rostro, from the shrine to the cathedral, is penitential in character with barefoot all-male devotees participating.

Believed started during the colonial period at the incumbency of Bishop Francisco Gainza, the traslacion was said to end self-

interests by both the cimmarones, the natives of the old Naga City, and the Spaniards and friars.

According to historical accounts the cimmarones were named as such by the Spaniards and friars because they fled from the colonizers to settle at the foot of Mt. Isarog until Fr. Miguel Robles de Covarrubias convinced them back to the Catholic faith through the devotion to Our Lady of Peñafrancia.

With Our Lady of Peñafrancia originally the patroness of cimmarones, testimonies of miracles started when the sacrificed dog, whose blood was used to darken the image, resurrected after being thrown into the river.

Over the years, the devotion spread throughout the region, then brought to other places inside and outside the country by its growing devotees who converge here for the only regional religious fiesta in the country.

In line with this year’s theme, the Archdiocese of Caceres in a Pastoral Letter issued last August 22 by Archbishop Leonardo Z. Legazpi called out to all devotees, pilgrims and members of the Church to turn their attention inward and start incorporating the spirit of the devotion to Ina into their lives.

The theme Monstra te Esse Filium (Show Yourself To Be a Child of Ina) should be deemed as a challenge to all devotees of Our Lady to live with the devotion to Ina in their everyday lives, Father Louie Occiano, head of Caceres Commission on Communications under the Archdiocese, confirmed.

He said that after all the fanfare and expense of the 300th Peñafrancia Fiesta, celebrations this year would be less grand and more solemn after the administration of the Archdiocese gave emphasis on inspiring devotees to give a response to the gift of devotion that was passed by Spanish priest Miguel Robles de Cobarrubias to the Cimarrones of Isarog.

The Tercentenary theme Balaog Inako, Balaog Itao (A Gift Received, A Gift to Share) called out to all devotees and pilgrims to accept the gift of devotion to Ina and share it to the world.

Occiano explained that this time, the ‘gift’ must be incorporated into the lives of devotees in order to sustain the faith beyond Fiesta celebrations.

He called out to devotees to sustain the discernment and realization of their devotion to the Virgin for the tradition to live past the 300-year mark.

Unlike last year, the Papal Nuncio to the Philippines Most Rev. Edward Adams will not be present for the 301st Peñafrancia Fiesta due to time constraints on his part, according to Occiano.

Peñafrancia Fiesta 2010 was marked by the declaration of Camarines Sur and Naga City as Pilgrimage Capitals of the Philippines by virtue of Presidential Proclamation No. 33 issued by President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III. Before the opening of the celebrations, the Porta Mariae at the Metropolitan Cathedral was unveiled to commemorate the presence of Ina in the lives of Bicolanos.

PLANTING B4 WEDDING

Soon-to-be-married couples required to plant fruit trees before issuance of marriage license
By Ramil D Soliveres

VIRAC, Catanduanes --- This province’s capital town recently approved an ordinance requiring soon-to-be-married couples to plant at least five fruit-bearing trees before a marriage license can be issued.

According to its proponents, Councilors Hermin Zafe and Virgilio Candelaria, in order to heed the global call to involve everyone in saving forest resources, there is a need to engage the citizens to plant trees especially in low-lying and typhoon-prone areas to control flooding. “Since the devastations caused by floods all over the world continue to scare people of all races, damage properties and claim lives, planting trees before marriage is a couple’s commitment to save Mother Earth from further devastation,” the authors of the ordinance said.

Municipal Ordinance No. 2011-07 of this capital town requires couples who are applying for a marriage license to plant said five fruit-bearing trees in their barangay. This ordinance does not exclude couples participating in mass wedding ceremonies. The concerned punong barangay shall issue a certification as to compliance with the said requirement.

Section 2 of the Ordinance provides that the Municipal Nursery, through the Municipal Agriculture Office, shall distribute the couples with the fruit-bearing tree seedlings. However, in case of non-availability of seedlings, a certification shall be issued by the Municipal Agriculturist, so that the couple may opt to plant any fruit-bearing tree available in their barangay. The barangay council, on the other hand, must designate the areas where the trees will be planted. In case there are no available private lots, government lots shall be utilized as tree planting areas.

If for any reason a soon-to-be married couple was not able to plant trees, the ordinance says solemnization of marriage may proceed provided that the marriage license will not be released until such time that they have complied with the ordinance.

The barangay council is responsible in monitoring and nurturing of the planted fruit-bearing trees. An inventory and report of progress will be submitted to the Sangguniang Bayan on a quarterly basis.

Among other penalties, the ordinance provides administrative charges against any punong barangay who falsely issues certification to non-complying couples. In like manner, a punong barangay who refuses to issue a certification despite compliance by the soon-to-be-married couple will likewise be charged administratively.

The Committee on Justice and Human Rights of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of this province has reported the ordinance’s approval during its 34th Regular Session last August 22, 2011. 

YUCKIE UNCLE!

Uncle jailed for lasciviousness
By Ramil D. Soliveres

VIRAC, Catanduanes – Applying the Indeterminate Sentence Law, the Regional Trial Court here on August 15 has ordered the incarceration of a man for a period of two months to four years after the sexual assault charge filed against him was downgraded to the offense of acts of lasciviousness, a violation of Art. 336 of the Revised Penal Code.

Records of the RTC Branch 43 here show that Romeo B. Tapanan of Barangay Balatohan, San Miguel, Catanduanes has been accused of sexually assaulting his own niece last October 2, 2007. The suspect allegedly inserted by intimidation and force his finger into the victim’s private part to consummate the sexual assault.

The case, while pending, was archived in July 2008 when the accused could not be brought to court. It was only on August 2, this year that suspect Tapanan was finally arrested.

When arraigned, the accused entered a plea of not guilty. During the joint preliminary and pre-trial conference, a settlement was reached between the parties considering that the accused and the victim’s mother are siblings. However, the family of the victim wished to impose conditions in order to reform Tapanan. Thus, the court suggested that the accused enter a plea of guilty to qualify him for probation even as the prosecution agreed to downgrade the offense to acts of lasciviousness.

The Revised Penal Code says that any person who shall commit any act of lasciviousness upon other persons of either sex shall be punished by prision correccional.

HEALER? AH... OK.

Healing priest to visit UNEP

The University of Northeastern Philippines (UNEP) known for its deep-seated religiosity, will be holding another noteworthy celebration of faith this coming September. This will be graced by no less than Fr. Fernando Suarez, popularly dubbed as the healing priest.

Fr. Suarez will personally say a healing mass at the University’s gymnasium on September 22 at around 9:00 am. This is part of the series of healing masses that Fr. Suarez has lined up as part of his religious undertakings in the Bicol Region while sharing the gift of healing that the Almighty has blessed him with.

On the forefront of the preparation is UNEP’s energetic Executive Vice President, Ms. Deli Alfelor-Tibi, also concurrently holding the post as UNEP’s Vice President for Finance.

“We were overwhelmed with joy when Fr. Suarez granted our request to say a healing mass here at UNEP. Whatever pieces of good fortunes that we have now are blessings that we have to be grateful. We also would want to be healed with whatever shortcomings and afflictions that might be holding us back from giving the best of what we have, and this healing mass schedule came just on the conspicuous time that we will also be celebrating the feast of our beloved Ina,” Miss Deli said in an interview.

Miss Deli’s profound religious conviction, just like the rest of the members of the Alfelor family were taken from UNEP’s matriarch own rich spiritual upbringing. Dr.Remedios Rigoroso-Alfelor, fondly called Wawa by her family and friends, was able to share that unfathomable devotion, especially to the Blessed Virgen Mary.

Aside from saying his healing mass at UNEP, Fr. Suarez is also tentatively scheduled to visit Saints Philip and James Parish in San Felipe, Minalabac, Camarines Sur and the Diocese of Libmanan on September 21. On September 23, he is expected to visit and say a holy mass at the Divine World High School Gym in Legazpi City .

Fr. Suarez’ healing words have already opened various doors for the faithfuls and have enriched the lives of many. The numerous stories of his preaching miraculous, have not only influenced Filipinos but also other devotees from various parts of the world.

Before being assigned as priest of the Apostolic Vicariate of San Jose, in Occidental Mindoro, Philippines, Fr. Suarez was first ordained to the priesthood in Ottawa , Ontario , Canada in 2002.

With his heart full of overwhelming love for the poor, Fr. Suarez pursued the foundation that he has started way back his seminary years – the Mary Mother of the Poor (MMP) with a vision that it would serve the needs of the less fortunate.

With all the accolades attached to his healing words, the whole UNEP community is looking forward to this religious event with great anticipation while fervently hoping that the gift of healing will reach the hearts of every UNEPian.

HUNTED

Treasure hunters now being hunted
By Ramil D. Soliveres

GIGMOTO, Catanduanes --- After more than one month of suspicious operation, Mayor Edgar U. Tayam of this town invited personnel from the Treasure Hunters Association of the Philippines Inc., Catanduanes-Albay (THAPI CATALBAY) Chapter to his office for questioning, following verified reports that the group had been engaging in illegal excavation activities in at least three barangays of his town.

In an interview, Mayor Tayam told this paper that on July 5, 2011 he was furnished with a copy of a letter from THAPI President Dr. Al Umali informing THAPI CATALBAY Chapter about the so-called Hold-Over-Capacity-Authority (HOCA) to pursue treasure hunting operations as allegedly approved by the Director of the National Museum, pending application for a treasure hunting permit.

The Gigmoto municipal government, meanwhile, forwarded a query to the National Museum Office regarding the legitimacy of the group to excavate in the town.

Tayam said the next thing he heard was the presence of more or less ten men that compose the combined treasure hunting personnel Catanduanes, Albay and Manila, employing locals as guides and laborers.

“And then I got reports the group began excavation activities, mobilizing locals who were paid P500 pesos a week with a promise that they will get their share from the treasures once found,” the mayor said.

Assuming the authenticity of a provision in the HOCA of expiration date of the treasure hunt unless a permit has been presented after thirty days, Mayor Tayam waited for the men from THAPI to show him the treasure hunting permit, but to no avail.

On August 12, 2011, Edwin de la Rosa, Senior Researcher of the National Museum Cultural Properties Division, arrived in this town to conduct investigation. Along with the PNP and other lined agencies, the group went up the mountains and discovered the excavated sites.

Dela Rosa said the Office of the National Museum has not issued any permit for the group to perform such activities. Mayor Tayam had wanted THAPI-CATALBAY to fill up the huge holes caused by the excavations, but not a soul from THAPI-CATALBAY could now be found.

STOP KILLING JOURNALISTS!

Politics behind media killings in CamSur? 

By Bobby Labalan 

FIGHTING FOR JUSTICE. Mediaman Romy Olea left behind his wife Raquel (right, in black and carrying his portrait) and sons Janry (left, in white shirt) and Jester Angelo (not in picture) to seek justice for his killing. 

BOBBY LABALAN

IRIGA CITY--- Authorities are hopeful that they will be able to solve the killing of yet another media man in Camarines Sur -- the second in less than a year.

Senior Supt. Procopio Lipana, Camarines Sur police director and head of Special Investigation Task Group Olea told Target EJK they are pursuing some leads which might eventually result in the arrest of the suspects. He refused to name names but admitted the slaying of Romeo Olea, an anchor-reporter of dwEB-FM based in Nabua town, was most likely work-related.

Facts of the case

Olea, 49, was shot dead at about 5:52 a.m. on June 13 in front of the Holy Child Learning Center along Highway 1 at Zone 1, Barangay San Jose, Iriga City. He was about to report to work at nearby Nabua town.

He was the host of “Anything Goes,” a public affairs commentary program which airs daily from 6:30 to 7:00 a.m. over dwEB-FM also based in Nabua town.

Olea suffered multiple gunshot wounds and was rushed to the nearby Rinconada District Hospital by three motorists who saw the victim slumped on the highway. He was pronounced dead on arrival by the attending physician.

Though there were three supposed witnesses, two of them could not identify the suspects who were riding in tandem on a motorcycle as they were wearing helmets, according to Supt. Ronald Briones, head of Iriga City Police. The third witness who identified himself as Wilson Mendez mysteriously disappeared and could no longer be located, Briones added.

First victim

On July 9 last year another media man from this city and radio station was also gunned down by motorcycle-riding assassins.

Mike Belen, a reporter of dwEB-FM and a resident of Barangay Francia, Iriga City, was on his way home at around 8:30 p.m. when waylaid by two suspects in Barangay San Jose Pangaraon.

Though he sustained eight gunshot wounds in different parts of his body, Belen initially survived – though he finally succumbed 22 days later at the Sta. Maria Josefa Hospital.

During his confinement he was able to identify his assassins through the police rogue gallery, one of whom is now detained at the Iriga District Jail. The other remains at large.

Belen positively identified Eric Vargas, a resident of Zone 4, Barangay San Nicolas, Iriga City, as the driver of the motorcycle and Gina Bagacina alias Ka Liezel, allegedly a former New People’s Army (NPA) member and a resident of Barangay Antipolo of the same city.

According to Chief Inspector Noel Abay, Nabua chief of police, Vargas had voluntarily placed himself under police custody after Belen pointed at him as being involved in the crime.

He was turned over to the district jail after the court issued a warrant.

Widows and orphans

Olea left behind his wife, Raquel, a civil worker at the Iriga City Police Office, and two sons, Jester Angelo, 20, a senior student at University of Sta. Isabel in Naga City taking up Food Service Management, and Janry, 13, a high school freshman at the University of Saint Anthony in Iriga City .

Raquel said her husband and children were so close with each other and that they usually hung around together. “They were the ones most affected by his sudden death,” she said.

Belen left a daughter, Karren, and wife, Sara Jane.

Media under attack

The Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP) Camarines Sur chapter immediately issued a statement condemning the attack on the media and called on the authorities to urgently bring the perpetrators to justice.

Emman Llagas, KBP chapter president, said the Olea killing was not a simple act of violence but an attack on press freedom which was doubly alarming as it was the second case of media killing in the province in less than a year.

Llagas aid the whole media community in Camarines Sur was shocked by the incident and is keen on keeping an eye on the investigation to ensure that authorities exert all effort in giving justice to their colleagues.

Local media community in the province was set to hold an indignation rally on Wednesday, July 13, to commemorate the first month of the slaying, Llagas said.

“We hope that by then, authorities could already give us a good result of their investigation particularly on the identity of the suspects and the mastermind,” he added.

Political undertones

Llagas hinted that the killings were work-related and might have political undertones. He refused to elaborate.

Llagas’ view was shared by Olea’s boss, Jing Florece who was emphatic in saying that the killing was politically motivated.

Some sources said the station is loyal to Gov. El-Ray VIllafuerte and Cong. Sal Fortuno.

Villafuerte put up a PhP 500,000 (USD 11,904) reward for any information that would lead to the resolution of the Olea case and the arrest of the suspects.

Supporters of the two slain journalists also noted that no supporters from a rival political faction showed up at the wake nor offered any word of condolences.

Task Force “Olea”

The Bicol Regional Police Command immediately created a task force composed of different police agencies to handle the case.

Senior Supt. Edwin Diocos, regional officer of the Criminal Investigation and Detection group (CIDG) which handles the investigation, said they were pursuing some leads which might help solve the case.

Diocos revealed that they are looking at a group of suspects with shady characters that is being tagged by some informants as possibly behind the killing.

The problem, however, he said, is how to get these

informants to stand as witnesses as they are afraid to come out in the open.

“This group is armed and dangerous and its leader is being linked to some local politicians,” Diocos pointed out. He refused to give more information so as not to jeopardize the operation.

Meanwhile, Camarines Sur police director Lipana said they are looking into the personality of witness Mendez who might be able to provide vital information about the case as he was the first person at the crime scene.

Lipana said Mendez suddenly dropped out of sight after the victim was brought to the hospital.

Body of evidence

Police probers who inspected the crime scene recovered three empty shells from a 9mm caliber hand gun while a slug was recovered from the victim’s body.

Lipana said they are in possession of the victim’s two cellular phones and voice recorder as well as his black Honda motorcycle with plate number 1354-EN.

The gadgets will be subjected to examination and determine what information they contained which might be of help in the investigation, the police director added.

He said the attackers used a black Honda TMX motorcycle marked only with “For Registration” and both were wearing full-face helmets.

SHAKE YOUR BOM-BOMBS

Bomb found in police station a day after NPA attacks
By Jonas Cabiles Soltes

MASBATE CITY --- A bomb was found installed at the municipal police station of San Fernando, Masbate early on Monday, a day after the communist rebel group New People’s Army launched a series of attacks in the island province, an Army official said Tuesday.

The attacks on Sunday killed an Army soldier. It also wounded four other soldiers and at least seven police personnel.

San Fenando lies in Ticao Island and is just about 30 minutes boat ride from Masbate City.

Major Angelo Guzman, public information officer of the Army’s 9th Infantry Division based in Camp Elias Angeles in Pili, Camarines Sur, said a police team discovered the presence of the bomb.

“While on foot patrol and at the same time on security inspection at the municipal hall compound, the team of PO3 Neil Recto recovered an improvised explosive device at the right side portion of the municipal police station at about 4:30 in the morning,” Guzman said.

He said a 200-meter wire, which would be used to detonate the bomb, was laid at Rivas Steet corner Honorato Alindungan Street in Barangay (village) Magsasaka Poblacion.

The recovery of the improvised explosive device followed the firefight that broke out at 5 in the afternoon of Sunday after Army soldiers encountered more or less five communist rebels in Barangay Cagay in Masbate City.

The firefight broke out just after the series of attacks in the morning.

The rebels were believed to be among those responsible for the attack of the municipal police station of Mobo town and the exploding of landmines aimed at responding police and military troops.

Recovered in the firefight scene were and M16 rifle, ammunitions, and 10 pieces of improvised explosive device.

On Monday, NPA, through National Democratic Front (NDF) spokesperson Greg Bañares, took responsibility for the series of attacks against government troops on Sunday.

Bañares said the attacks were carried out “to hold Mobo Mayor Percival Castillo accountable for his all-out support to the government’s anti-insurgency campaign in Masbate.”

MUTYA?

'Mermaid' baby born in CamNorte town dies 

By Shiena M. Barrameda 

MUTYA. Mutya Gonzales lies peacefully after she was declared dead by local doctors five days after she was born with fused legs and no anus. 

The baby, who died five days later after birth, was named Mutya Gonzales by parents Jane and Fortunato Gonzales, the name apparently inspired by a ‘telenovela’ about a child mermaid of the same name.

Camarines Norte Gov. Edgar ‘Egay’ Tallado confirmed to media that the baby was born with her legs fused together that made her appear like the mythical aqua-human creature. He, however, disclosed that the child had no scales on her legs but was, nonetheless, dubbed a ‘sirena’ by amused neighbors in Barangay Matoogtoog in the coastal town of Mercedes, Camarines Norte where her parents live.

Tallado confirmed that the child was immediately buried after it was declared dead by the municipal health officer who claimed that toxins had poisoned the baby’s frail body. Medical findings declare that the child also had no anus which means her body was not capable of expelling toxins through bowel movement.

Meanwhile, the child’s mother Jane admitted she was very fond of watching the teleserye about a young mermaid called Mutya when she was still pregnant. Apparently, she and some of her neighbors associated her fondness for the mermaid to be the reason behind her child’s deformity.

The child’s condition, which is medically known as Sirenomelia or “mermaid syndrome,” is a rare congenital disorder which affects one out of 100,000 live births all over the world, according to studies. 

FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE

LRay asks Senate to junk House bill splitting CamSur 

By Juan Escandor Jr. 

thephilippines.ph

NAGA CITY---With an overwhelming vote of 229-1 over a bill that seeks to split Camarines Sur into two provinces breezing through the House Thursday, Camarines Sur Gov. Luis Raymund “LRay” Villafuerte Jr. immediately raised an appeal to the Senate Friday to junk the bill.

In a statement, Villafuerte Jr. said: “We are thus appealing to our progressive-minded senators to junk this measure so they can help sustain CamSur’s rapid growth momentum.”

Villafuerte Jr.’s father, Camarines Sur third district Rep. Luis R. Villafuerte, is among the four congressmen in the province pushing for the passage of HB 4820, which is the amended HB 4728 originally filed by fourth district Rep. Arnulfo Fuentebella. Representatives Rolando Andaya Jr. and Diosdado Arroyo, of first and second district, respectively, co-sponsored the amended bill.

Camarines Sur fifth district Rep. Salvio Fortuno stood alone to vote against it.

“The vote was not the true sentiment of all House members, because under House rules, those who attended the session but did not vote no will be registered to have voted yes to the bill, even if they were no longer in the session hall, when voting took place,” the governor commented.

“More importantly, the vote does not reflect the true sentiment of CamSur folk, an overwhelming majority of whom oppose the bill. Bill proponents are saying they held two public hearings, but these were held at the Batasan in Quezon City and not in CamSur,” he added.

Villafuerte Jr. lamented that there was no single congressional hearing held in Camarines Sur before the approval of HB 4820.

“They did not hold any congressional hearing anywhere in CamSur because they know deep in their hearts that our people do not want to split CamSur into two. They opted to hold two hearings only in Quezon City when it is not Quezon City that is up for partition,” he said.

Fuentebella claimed that aside from four congressmen pushing for the passage of HB 4820, 24 of the 35 mayors in Camarines Sur have expressed their support to create a new province to be called “Nueva Camarines.”

The solon said Nueva Camarines could easily be a first-class province since the towns it would comprise generated close to P600 million in average income in the last four years, not far behind the P733 million the towns that would comprise what would be left of Camarines Sur would generate.

“Ninety percent of the barangay captains openly support this measure, including those in coastal areas that have long been neglected by the provincial government such as in the municipalities of Caramoan, Siruma, Presentacion and North Lagonoy,” he said.

The Nueva Camarines will comprise the towns of Caramoan, Garchitorena, Lagonoy, Presentacion, San Jose, Siruma, Tinambac, Goa, Tigaon and Sagñay of the fourth district and the towns of Baao, Balatan, Bato, Bula, Buhi, Nabua and Iriga City of the fifth district.

The Fuentebellas, one of the three political clans in Camarines Sur, have been reigning over the fourth district of the province for over 100 years now. The other two are the Villafuertes and the Alfelors, who like the Fuentebellas, have their own time claiming the gubernatorial seat of the province.

Opposing the creation of a new province out of 17 contiguous towns out of the 35 towns and one component city, Villafuerte Jr. sees the move to split Camarines Sur into two provinces highly unpopular, divisive and counterproductive

Citing a 2005 study by the Local Government Development Foundation and the German foundation Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, Villafuerte said the creation of a new province was estimated to cost P1.4 billion in start-up funds.

“The study said in a 2005 study that consolidation, rather than fragmentation, of local government units (LGUs) is the way to go as it would cost almost P800 million to put up a new province. Considering inflation, it translates to P1.4 billion at 2011 prices,” the governor declared.

He said the creation of a new province will also put an additional financial burden to the national government for the establishment of new provincial offices and at least 16 national line agencies in addition to setting up a new provincial police office and judicial courts.

“All other provinces will be affected by the creation of the proposed Nueva Camarines because it will mean that one more province will have to get a slice of the Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) pie that all provinces are supposed to share among themselves under the equal-sharing formula,” he explained.

Villafuerte said the new province will mean that there will be P160 million less from the annual IRA allocation for provincial LGUs.

“In our province, an overwhelming majority frets that this congressional plan will derail the growth momentum of CamSur, which has been on an upward trajectory as a result of its international reputation as an extreme sports and ecotourism haven,” he commented.

Villafuerte harped on the achievements of his administration that made the province the country’s No. 1 tourist destination in the country.

He said that according to the Department of Tourism’s Research and Statistics Division, the combined efforts of all sectors here to promote the CamSur Watersports Center (CWC) and the Caramoan Islands as a must-see package for foreign and domestic tourists alike have brought CamSur’s success as a vibrant and economically-promising province.

“This marketing strategy will be put in jeopardy by the split-CamSur plan as the Caramoan Islands are in the district that the bill’s proponents want to form part of their proposed Nueva Camarines,” Villafuerte warned.

“It is unfortunate that some quarters pushing this divisive, counterproductive and costly move to balkanize our province have even resorted to peddling lies and waging a smear campaign against me and the provincial government in a desperate bid to advance their nefarious agenda,” he said.

WHERE ART THOU PROFESSIONALS?

Only 67 professionals in Sorsogon?
By Bobby Q. Labalan

Sorsogon City --- That was the question raised by the head of the Bureau of Internal Revenue after checking the records of the agency relative to professional tax payers.

Maria Thelma Fulhin, the revenue district officer, revealed that only 67 professionals in the province, out of the estimated more than a thousand, have registered with the Bureau of Internal Revenue for purposes of taxation as she conducted a review of the agency’s database of tax payers as part of the efforts to raise more revenues.

Fulhin said she would also review who among those registered with the BIR are active in the practice of their profession and who are paying correct taxes.

She warned that those practicing professionals who did not register with the agency as well as those who did not pay the correct taxes will be meted the necessary penalties or even charged in court under the Run After Tax Evaders (RATE) program.

Those that are mandated to register with the BIR are doctors, dentists, lawyers, accountants, engineers among others.

Aside from the regular income tax and business tax, these professionals are now required to issue official receipts as they are already subject to the 12 per cent value added tax based on their gross income, Fulhin said.

She urged unregistered professionals to visit her office so they could be assisted in complying with their tax obligations.

The BIR chief said they are also continuously conducting tax mapping operation to determine who among the business establishments are violating the revenue code.

She revealed that there are a number of local businessmen who are deliberately not complying with revenue rules and regulations especially on the issuance of official receipts and payment of correct taxes.

Fulhin said she was dismayed after finding out that some big businessmen paid a measly amount for their taxes which is even smaller than the tax being paid by ordinary employees.

She warned that if they continue to renege on their obligations she would not hesitate to implement “Oplan Kandado,” BIR’s campaign which padlocks business establishments that are delinquent in their tax payments.

She said that as of now they are still conducting tax information dissemination to fully inform the business sector of the various taxes they are supposed to pay to the government.

Aside from this, Fulhin said they will also conduct audit and surveillance operations on some businessmen to check their actual income and determine if they are paying correct taxes.

“But these are also difficult to implement especially because many businessmen play hide-and-seek with us whenever they learn that BIR is going to conduct inspection," she stressed.

She revealed that some businessmen are tipped off by insiders, thus making it difficult for them to catch them by surprise.

Fulhin also revealed that reports had reached her office that some revenue personnel conduct tax mapping operation even if they were not covered with a mission order which gives them authority to do tax mapping.

She advised businessmen to ask BIR personnel for their ID and mission order whenever they visit their establishment and immediately report to her those that violate the rule.

She stressed that they are exerting utmost effort to meet their tax goals and she would not tolerate abuses or violations to be committed by her subordinates.

Fulhin said that for the first half of 2011 her office had already collected P186.6 million, which was bigger than the collection for the same period last year which was P180 million, but way too short for the tax goal of P207.1 million.

SALUTE!

Girl commended for saving flag from floods; UNCean cited among this year's top students

LEGAZPI CITY --- The Ako Bicol Party List filed Resolution No. 1560 commending Janella Lelis for her brave, selfless act of saving the Philippine flag from the floodwaters spawned by Typhoon Juaning last August 2, 2011.

When the typhoon ravaged Bicol with strong winds and floodwaters, resulting to damage to life and property, Janella, a 12-year-old Grade 6 pupil from Malinao, Albay, saw the Philippine flag in her school being washed away by the winds. She braved the floodwaters and rain to bring the Philippine flag to safety, unmindful of the risk that the hostile weather might befall her.

“Her devotion to the flag is exemplary because the flag is a symbol of our country and our people,” Rep. Rodel Batocabe of AKB said. “Her action needs to be known by each and every Filipino so that they can emulate her brave and selfless act.”

Meanwhile, a student of the University of Nueva Caceres in Naga City who had graduated cum laude this year has been chosen one of Ten Outstanding Students of the Philippines for 2011.

Earlier awarded as one of the Ten Outstanding Students of Bicol (TOSP), a search sponsored by Ako Bikol Party list during the same year, Arleen Delos Reyes, 20, now works as a classroom teacher at La Porteria Academy after finishing her Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education, major in Physical Science.

"Arleen has been a standout in the selection process of the TOSB ever since," said Rep. Rodel Batocabe of AKB. "Now, we are proud that out of all the great Filipino students, a Bicolana has secured a spot in the Top Ten."

KILLING AS A WAY OF LIVING

Series of killings alarm Legazpi folk
By Manny T. Ugalde

LEGAZPI CITY --- A series of killings has alarmed local officials here and sent fear among the disturbed residents.

Mayor Geraldine Rosal immediately sought to double the city’s present police force to curb the rising criminality in the city.

Legazpi police chief Col. Oscar Regala said an additional 150 police personnel from the present 150 forces will certainly help the maintenance of peace and order in the city whose population has risen to 200,000, perhaps the biggest among the 7 cities in Bicol.

Bicol police regional commander Chief Supt. Cecilio Calleja said they are studying the proposal to beef up the city’s police force which seemed undermanned because of the rising population.

Former mayor and now city administrator Noel Rosal claimed that most of the killings were premeditated, making it hard for the police to prevent.

Nevertheless, he warned Regala that failing to solve the city’s crime problem could cost his post.

Regala, meanwhile, said that if the proposed additional 150 police could not be met, adding 100 or at least 50 more would make a difference in fighting crime in the city.

Killed recently were two womenAmelita Nebres and Suzana Nayve. They were shot down while walking along Washington Drive in front of the Alicia Hotel when two unidentified persons riding in tandem on motorcycle fired and killed them on the spot.

Among the celebrated murder cases only a few years back involved the son-in-law of the late Senator Blas Ople who was killed inside a hotel, the murder of an old couple who were found dead lying in a pool of blood inside their residence in Barangay Bonot within the city poblacion, and a fresh graduate who was gunned down and set on fire along a road within the city poblacion.

Last week, a navy officer identified as Ensign William Dalupe Jr. was also murdered in Barangay Estanza, 500 meters away from city hall.

Last month, a well-known lechon trader, Delfin Celedono, was killed inside his residence in a subdivision within the city proper while another bank lady employee and a car dealer companion were riddled with bullets inside a car in front of a mall.

Three minors, who were siblings, were also found dead inside their pushcart one morning.

Last Saturday morning, a retired military man, Rolando Abion survived an ambush while jogging in busy Barangay Buragwis. Police recovered three empty shells from 9-mm pistol.

The rising crime incidents in this city has forced the local executives to replace the city’s chief of police from one to another as in that case of former city police chief Col. Remegio Gregorio being replaced by Maj. Abelardo Borromeo, and then by the incumbent city police director, P/Supt Regala.

Killing itself is harsh. What more if you put art on it? Like what happened to the three little kids that were placed on a pushcart after killing them. I think the killers played tinda-tindahan after doing the crime. Evil minded people easily kill people just for fun, just for the sake of revenge and worst, some people do it as a job. But can you consider killing as a way of living? It’s ridiculous. People are really selfish.

GOING AGAINST THE WAVES

Kayak surfing finds home in CamNorte
By Jonas Cabiles Soltes

MERCEDES, Camarines Norte --- For two days, the lowly “paraw” in this town has to give way to the kayak.

“Paraw” is a non-motorized small wooden boat, about 4 meters long and equipped with paddle and sail, which is used commonly by small-scale and marginal fishers in the coastal towns of Camarines Norte.

Kayak is similar to the paraw in overall structure but has a covered deck and is commonly made of reinforced plastic. The boat only has a dent or a “cockpit” for the paddler. Having a closed deck makes it possible for this kind of boat to roll over the waves as a surfboard does.

On Sunday, August 7, 14 two-man teams paddled all the way to Baybay Beach on the coast of this bustling fishing town from the fine-sand beach of Caringo Island, an island barangay that also forms part of the municipality.

Fifteen kilometers were spanned by the race, which became a test of strength and stamina for the kayakers, some of whom had travelled all the way from Batangas province to be part of the competition--one of the main events of the weeklong Kadagatan (ocean) Festival in Mercedes.

The festival pays tribute to the fishing industry in this municipality, which is the main source of livelihood of most of this town’s 41, 713 residents.

The race was also the second leg of the Philippine Kayaking Series this year. In addition, it was the first-ever installment of the kayaking series that was held on the Pacific coast of the Philippines.

One of the objectives of the race, aside from promoting kayak-surfing (or surf kayaking), was the promotion of ecotourism and environmental conservation.

“Kayaking is a non-invasive and therefore environment-friendly form of sea transport,” said Andrea Camara, one of the organizers of the kayaking series, “We also want to prop up Mercedes as a kayak-surfing destination.”

She said the Mercedes group of islands, which straddles the mouth of the San Miguel Bay, is comparable to the Hundred Islands in Pangasinan, another famous kayaking location in the Ilocos Region, in terms of being a suitable site for the watersport.

“It is also a way of advocating physical and mental fitness. Being out in the sea develops one’s sense of independence. Physically, it cultivates endurance.”

She said they would also explore the town’s rivers as possible sites for kayaking.

From the starting point on the shore of Caringo Island, the race was mainly a sea kayaking event. It only turns to surf kayaking upon approach to the Baybay Beach in the the town proper, where the shallow seabed, strong sea currents, and winds produce crushing high waves.

The paddlers had to glide through the crests and troughs of rushing waves before reaching the shore. Some participants were able to make it to the beach without their kayaks being tossed by the sea or them falling into the waters.

The race was safe for all participants because each of them had been required to wear protective gear including life vests. They were also accompanied by six marshals and a rescue team.

After almost two hours the team led by Reneric Moreno, 30, emerged as the winner of the competition. It only took him and his buddy one hour, 49 minutes and 45 seconds to reach the shore.

“The most important thing in kayaking is stamina. You should also have a very strong and agile upper body to endure hours of paddling and going against the waves,” said Moreno.

Those who want to try the sport must know that it is more fun than scary, he said.

The 15-kilometer race started in Caringo Island then past the channel between Quinapaguian and Mambungalon Islands and then past Canimog Island. From Canimog Island, the participants had to paddle toward Baybay Beach.

The four islands—Caringo, Quinapaguian, Mambungalon, and Canimog—together with Apuao Islands are collectively known as the Mercedes group of islands, which are offshore islands of Mercedes,Camarines Norte.

“To cut through the sea smoothly, we needed to move in accordance with the waves. There should be timing,” said Julio Casalo, 49, one of the paraw fishers who competed in the race.

Eighteen other locals, most of whom were paraw fishers, joined the competition, and had to joust with professional kayakers who were also in the competition.

The weather was good and had cooperated with the racing event but the blue green waters of the bay had not been without rolling waves, which became additional hurdles for the paddlers.

Among those who provided crash training to local paddlers was German Paz, a Southeast Asian Games Gold Medalist in 2005 for windsurfing.

“Discipline is essential in all watersports, including kayaking and surf kayaking,” Paz said, “One needs to have focus.”

Paz is a watersports veteran who knows surfing, kayaking, and kiteboarding, all of which can be done in the seas off Camarines Norte, especially in this town and in Bagasbas Beach in neighboring Daet, the capital town of Camarines Norte.

Bernard Ibasco, village councilor of Caringo, said they welcome the event and expressed hope that the kayak race would boost the tourism potentials of their island village, which is also the location of a fish sanctuary.

“Our people earn from fishing industry, which is affected by the seasons. Tourism can give a stable source of income for us here,” said Ibasco.

The 500-hectare island village of 1,700 receives an internal revenue allotment from the national government amounting to 890, 000.

“This kind of event will help promote our place,” he added.

The provincial government is doing just that.

Atty. Debbie Francisco, provincial tourism officer, said the Mercedes group of islands would form a triad with Calaguas in Vinzons town and Bagasbas Beach in Daet.

Calaguas is home to powdery, white-sand beaches while Bagasbas Beach is a venue for kiteboarding and surfing.

Francisco also said that the municipal government of this town would make surf kayaking a livelihood program.

Eight kayaks were bought by the municipal government. The equipment would be rented to tourists. They also train tour guides.

Most importantly, Francisco said, the surf kayaking industry would encourage the people of Mercedes, especially those living in coastal villages not to throw garbage into the sea.

“When they see that tourists are making use of the sea for surf kayaking and that the tourism industry is helping them, they would realize that they should protect the sea and keep it free from pollution,” said Francisco.

THE ZOMBIES ARE COMING...

12 bodies recovered at sea in Masbate; 7 feared dead
By Jonas Cabiles Soltes

MASBATE CITY --- The bodies of 12 fishermen were recovered by the Philippine Coast Guard in Bicol in the waters of Sibuyan Sea off the main island of Masbate province early this week.

Captain Tranquilino Paiton, commander of the Coast Guard in the region, said they would continue scouring the sea although it was becoming unlikely that the seven other missing fishermen were still alive.

The missing fishermen were among the crew members of the ill-fated F/B (fishing boat) Hope Christy, which had sunk in Sibuyan Sea near Masbate after being battered by strong waves and high winds spawned by Tropical Storm Juaning last Wednesday, July 27.

It had 32 crew members.

On Tuesday afternoon, the body of one fisherman was recovered by a passing fishing boat in Barangay Ubo in Balud, Masbate.

The bodies of 11 other fishermen were found off the western coast of Masbate over the weekend and early this week.

“They (bodies) were in advanced stage of decomposition that identification was difficult,” said Paiton.

He said relatives of the dead fishermen were asked to come over to identify the bodies, which were brought to Villafuerte Funeral Homes in Balud for embalming.

Thirteen crew members survived the ordeal at sea and were rescued on Wednesday (July 27).

They have since returned to Roxas City in Capiz, where they left on Sunday for a fishing expedition in the portion of Sibuyan Sea between the provinces of Romblon and Masbate.

JING WEPT

IN THE AFTERMATH OF TYPHOON JUANING
No more subsidy for destroyed farms
By Juan Escandor Jr. and Shiena M. Barrameda 

WET AND SERENE. Like a placid lake, the rice farms in Minalabac, Camarines Sur remain under water nine days after Typhoon Juaning dumped rains in Bicol.                                                 Juan Escandor Jr.

PILI, Camarines Sur---The Department of Agriculture (DA) has no more production subsidy to give to farmers and cannot extend anything but rehabilitation assistance in the form of rice seeds to those whose farms were totally damaged by the typhoon, an agriculture official revealed Tuesday.

Regional Executive Director Jose Dayao, of the DA regional office here, told Bicol Mail that the Aquino administration has removed the subsidy to farmers and is now more focused on infrastructures like farm-to-market-road (FMR), where the amount of P2.4B from DA’s total budget this year has been appropriated.

But Dayao said the agency can still help through rice seeds distribution to farmers whose farms were totally destroyed by the flooding brought about by Typhoon Juaning.

He said the assistance to be given at present is the balance of previous program called Rapid Seeds Supply Program and subsidy to rice production provided by International Fund for Agriculture Development which enabled the DA to provide rice seeds to farmers affected by the Typhoons Bebeng and Juaning.

Elena B. De Los Santos, director for operations and extension, said when Typhoon Bebeng passed by, out of the affected 31,783 ha of rice farms with standing crops throughout the region, 22,963 ha were totally destroyed, with losses estimated at P221,543,407.

De Los Santos said at least 19,470 farmers totally lost their rice crop due to flooding when Typhoon Bebeng unleashed torrential rains in the region.

Dayao expects Typhoon Juaning to wreak more damages to rice farms with 43,750 ha already reported affected as of Aug 1 in the two Camarines provinces and the provinces of Albay, Catanduanes, Masbate and Sorsogon.

P540M agricultural losses

He said the estimated worth of damage to rice farms as of Tuesday already reached P209,729,604 while the overall damage to regional agriculture including corn, high-value crops, livestock and infrastructure (irrigation systems) was P539,827,261.

Dayao said the DA on its own has distributed under these programs at least 4,000 bags of rice seeds to farmers when Typhoon Bebeng hit the region in May.

He said in Albay the provincial government has entered into partnership with DA by sharing half of the cost of rice seeds which resulted in the distribution of 3,000 bags of rice seeds to farmers in the province.

Dayao disclosed that for rehabilitation assistance to victims of Typhoon Juaning, the DA has a balance of 9,000 bags of rice seeds for distribution from the Rapid Seeds Supply Program.

He said the Aquino administration has already scrapped last year the subsidy to farm inputs which he said was a scheme where the DA paid half of the production expenses of rice farmers comprising fertilizers and rice seeds.

No one to turn to

With no government subsidy for agriculture, farmers here have no one to turn to as they face uncertainties in the coming months.

Adelina Brosula, 54, a farmer from Minalabac, Camarines Sur wondered how her family could survive without subsidy from the government after Typhoons Bebeng and Juaning destroyed their farm.

Brosula, whose family tends a one-hectare farm in Barangay Del Carmen, Del Rosario, related the rice plants already in the flowering stage literally went down the drain when their farm was flooded by Typhoon Bebeng last May 8.

“We loaned at least P10,000 from a rice trader last May and then asked again for another loan in June hoping we could at least recoup and partly pay but our rice farm was again destroyed by the flood last Tuesday,” she narrated.

Brosula and her family are still temporarily sheltered at Minalabac Municipal Building on Sunday together with some 500 families whose houses are still under waist-deep water.

She recalled that years ago when typhoons destroy their farms the government could at least lend assistance by distributing rice seeds to them, but now she said the subsidy once provided to farmers to help them recover was all gone.

Brosula said she was not a recipient of the free seeds program of the DA, which according to Dayao the beneficiaries were listed down by municipal agriculture officers.

Edita Barcimilla, 60, another farmer whose farm was destroyed twice, related almost the same story of double-whammy after Typhoons Bebeng and Juaning washed away their rice more than a month after it was planted.

Barcimilla said they are now deeply indebted to the rice trader but does not know how their family could recover without any help from the government.

“I am now looking for someone who could employ my daughter as house helper but it is also hard to find employer these days. If only the government could at least help us replant our farm when floodwaters recede,” she said.

Barcimilla said they have no other means of livelihood but planting rice and vegetables in their farm.

Local loan

Arnold Lipa, a local rice trader in Barangay Irayang Sulong, said he loaned to farmers P800,000 and P300,000 for the two typhoons that visited Bicol in May and July, respectively.

Lipa said he is not expecting he could recover any time soon the P1.1 million he loaned to farmers.

He said that portions of his capital that he lent to farmers were also loaned to him by big rice traders in Camarines Sur.

Lipa said they have to give loan again and again to farmers for them to repay but he said he could not extend anymore loans because his capital is all gone.

Minalabac Mayor Gil Basmayor said that some 5,000 hectares of rice farms in 11 villages in his town are still under floodwaters.

“It’s a very difficult situation for the local government because we cannot lend the farmers so that they can replant. I foresee that after the floodwaters recede, the bigger problem comes. Where will these farmers get their food?” Basmayor said.

He said he hopes the national government could reconsider giving farmers subsidy in times of calamity if it wanted to alleviate their situation and achieve rice sufficiency.

Minalabac, apparently, was the town that suffered most since floodwater remained stagnant there until Wednesday this week according to Environment Disaster Management & Emergency Response Office (EDMERO).

Amy Gagalac of EDMERO said that there were more or less 8,000 families affected in the flooded areas who took refuge in nearby public schools and municipal halls when rains caused floodwater to rise.

She said relief goods and potable water were being regularly supplied to the victims by EDMERO and other government offices.

CamSur Vice Gov. Fortunato ‘Ato’ Peña said that most of the rice paddies and low-lying areas in Minalabac and Milaor were still flooded when he and Gov. Luis Raymund ‘LRay’ Villafuerte made their first round of relief operations last July 30, Saturday.

According to Peña, provincial officials took note that the province of CamSur has now become a sort of basin for floodwater coming from its neighboring provinces, particularly Albay.

He explained that this maybe because CamSur has a lower land elevation compared to the province of Albay.

Lt. Col. Neneveigh Alcovindas, commanding officer of the 9th Civil Military Operations Battalion under the 9th Infantry Division (ID), Philippine Army, told Bicol Mail in a phone interview that the Army and other non-government organizations have already started giving out donations of clothes and food they gathered from private donors.

Here in Naga City, the barangays of Igualdad, Mabolo, Sabang, Triangulo and Tabuco were declared under the state of calamity by the local government based on recommendations by the City Risk Reduction and Management Council.

Many portions of the barangays are still flooded after the Naga River swelled to its full bank capacity and spilled over the villages, causing water to remain almost stagnant.

MAKIALAM

Landslide-prone areas identified
By FLORENCIO P. NARITO

LEGAZPI CITY ---- The Office of Civil Defense has released the list of flood-prone municipalities and cities in Bicol with high, moderate and low degree of landslide hazards.

The Province of Camarines Sur tops the list with 16 towns with high degree of landslide hazards, seven moderate and 14 low degree of landslide hazards.

The OCD identified the 16 Camarines Sur towns with high degree of landslide hazards: Baao, Bato, Bombon, Buhi, Bula, Cabusao, Calabanga, Camaligan, Canaman, Gainza, Libmanan, Magarao, Milaor, Minalabac, Nabua, and San Fernando.

The province of Albay has only three municipalities with high degree of landslide hazards. They are Libon, Oas, and Polangui, all in the third district of Albay.

The cities of Legazpi and Tabaco and towns of Malilipot and Malinao, belong to the moderate degree of landslide hazards.

Ten municipalities and one city in Albay have been classified under low degree of landslide hazards. They are Bacacay, Camalig, Daraga, Guinobatan, Jovellar, Manito, Pioduran, Rapu-Rapu, Sto. Domingo, Tiwi and Ligao City.

The Province of Camarines Norte has three towns with high degree of landslide hazards, five moderate and four low degree of landslide hazards. The municipalities of Mercedes, Talisay and Vinzons have high degree of landslide hazards.

In Catanduanes, two towns -- Bato and Viga -- are listed under high degree of landslide hazards, three moderate and six low.

The province of Sorsogon has one town –Juban -- with high degree of landslide hazards, eight with moderate and six with low landslide hazards.

The island province of Masbate has no town with high degree of landslide hazard, one moderate and 20 low degree of landslide hazards.

Incidentally, July is celebrated as Disaster Prevention Month with “Makialam, Makiisa sa Pagsugpo ng Panganib, May Maitutulong Ka “ as slogan.

END OF THE WORLD?

TYPHOON JUANING
Death toll rises to 21
By Mar S. Arguelles

LEGAZPI CITY --- The death toll rises to 21, while five people are still missing as Tropical Storm Juaning left the Bicol peninsula, the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (RDRRMC) reported yesterday, July 27.

Director Bernardo Alejandro of the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) and chairperson of the RDRRMC said that the fatalities were buried by landslides, electrocuted, drowned, or hit by fallen trees and electric posts.

He said Albay recorded the biggest casualties with nine deaths, followed by Camarines Norte with five, five from Catanduanes and two from Camarines Sur.

The victims were identified as Noel Angeles, 49 of Viga town; Rolando Angulo,45, Bagamanoc; Sanito Diones Timato,49, of Viga; and Rey Vergara, 39, of Virac, and Rickson Isla, 30, of Panganiban, all in Catanduanes;

Josh, 4, Nichole and Bernard all surnamed Corteza from Polangui, Felix Berta Dacuba Clet, 74, Tiwi, Roque Sapico, 23, Tabaco City,Estring Leonisa, 76 of Libon, Rico Llamera, 33 of Daraga, Demetrio and Jr. Warde surnamed Nace from Pioduran, all in Albay.

Armando Molto, 28 of Tinambac, Camarines Sur and Nino Mora, 29, of Bato, Camarines Sur,

Edgar Ineta, one year and 6 months old, and Mariane, 18, Richard, 25, Ofelia, 56, and Alfredo, 63, all surnamed Casero, all of Jose Panganiban, Camarines Norte.

Reported missing were Romeo Robles, 39, and Romeo Balanban, 37, both fishermen from Baras, Catanduanes; Salvador Dungaran Jr. 23, Emer Abas,27, and Elmer Balmaceda, 34, all fishermen from Rapu-Rapu, Albay.

Floodings in various parts of Albay and Camarines Sur have subsided as of Wednesday, Bernardo said.

Landslides were reported in the towns of Jose Panganiban in Camarines Norte, Buhi and Balatan in Camarines Sur, Polangui, Albay and Caramoran, Catanduanes.

The Albay Provincial Risk Reduction and Management Council (PDRRMC) said that 107,938 families were affected by the latest tropical storm which brought about heavy rains and strong winds that triggered landslides, floods, and lahar flow.

As the weather normalizes the PDRRMC began Wednesday the decampment of 27,018 families or 104,013 people housed in various evacuation camps across Albay province.

The Philippine Coast Guard said the no sailing order which remains in effect stranded 800 passengers, 14 trucks, 4 cars, 5 passenger buses, 18 sea vessels and 18 motor bancas in various major ports in Bicol.

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), meanwhile, said all major highways going to Metro Manila are now passable to both heavy and light vehicles.

Air travel from Manila to Legazpi and vice versa resumed Wednesday morning.

All classes in private and public elementary and high schools in Albay remain suspended until further notice.

TOO MUCH LOVE WILL KILL YOU

‘Love triangle’ eyed in janitor’s slay of his boss
By Shiena M. Barrameda

NAGA CITY --- A budding ‘love triangle’ is being looked into as one likely reason why a janitor shot his employer’s assistant at high noon of July 14, inside a mall in this city’s downtown district.

The victim, Manuel Polin, 68, an assistant of businessmanVictor Bichara who owns the Bichara Divisoria Mall located along General Luna St. at the city’s old business district, died a few hours after he was rushed to the hospital with bullet wound on the lower part of his body.

Naga City Police Office spokesman PO3 Tobias Bongon said that their investigation showed that Quirino Gonzales, 69, janitor, shot Polin with a caliber .45 handgun inside the latter’s office at around 12:10 p.m.

Gonzales was collared after the police chased him to the rooftop of the mall where he was found hiding near a water tank shortly after the incident.

A statement from Amelia Froyalde, another employee of the mall, revealed that the bleeding Polin ran out of his office towards the Apparatus Room where other employees were having their lunch. The bloodied Polin was reportedly shouting that Gonzales shot him before fainting on the floor.

Bongon said initial interviews of witnesses and other co-workers revealed that Gonzales was already harboring hatred against Polin due to the latter’s alleged ‘bossy” or arrogant ways, aside from the fact that the two were allegedly wooing the same woman who is their co-employee.

The police spokesman, however, refused to disclose the name of the woman for the sake of propriety.

Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) found the smoking gun later in the afternoon inside the elevated water tank of Bichara Mall.

Bongon surmised that the suspect might have already been planning to harm the victim until he got his chance last Thursday.

Gonzales, probers said, was able to hide the gun in his sleeping quarters inside the mall because he was one of the most trusted employees of the establishment.

A balisong (fan knife) was also recovered from Gonzales when he was taken for custody by the police.

MALNUTRITION

CamSur tops malnutrition cases in Bicol
By RHAYDZ B. BARCIA


MALNUTRITION. Dr. Aurora Balaoro of DOH Bicol in Siruma, Camarines Sur during an outbreak of diarrhea in the coastal town. Siruma has been identified by the regional office of the National Nutrition Council as one of the towns in Bicol that has high prevalence of malnutrition among its preschoolers.

RHAYDZ B. BARCIA

LEGAZPI CITY --- The province of Camarines Sur registered the highest cases of malnutrition among pre-school children in Bicol despite its much-vaunted gains in tourism and economic development.

Based on consolidated report on the nutritional status of pre-school children, under the program “Operation Timbang 2010” as submitted by the different provincial and city health offices of the six provinces of the Bicol Region, Camarines Sur ranked first with serious malnutrition problem.

Arlene R. Reario, NNC nutrition program coordinator, explained to Bicol Mail that the prevalence rate of malnutrition is based on the number of underweight and severely underweight pre-school children aged 0-17 months old.

The nutritional status of preschool children, on the other hand, is measured according to the WHO-Child Growth Standard using the weigh-for-age indicator.

The province of Camarines Sur which is composed of some 1,063 barangays spread in 35 towns and one component city, has been consistently rated as topnotcher in malnutrition cases since the incumbency of then Governor now Rep. Luis Villafuerte Sr. and up to this time that his son, Luis Raymund “LRay” Villafuerte is now on his third term as provincial governor.

The NNC data show that malnutrition is a public health issue that is hounding Camarines Sur for over a decade now.

Ranked next to Camarines Sur is the island province of Catanduanes, followed by Masbate, Albay and Sorsogon, in that descending order. Quite surprisingly, Camarines Norte, considered as one of the impoverished provinces in Bicol, has been noted to have the least cases of malnourished pre-schoolers.

Among the seven cities in Bicol, Masbate City has the highest reported incidences of malnutrition, followed by Ligao, Tabaco, Legazpi, Iriga and Sorsogon, in that order. Naga City, a Hall of Famer according to standards set by the Nutrition Council of the Philippines, was again evaluated to have the lowest cases of malnourished and undernourished preschool children.

The towns in Bicol with high incidence of poor nutrition among preschoolers were identified as: Rapu-Rapu in Albay, Mercedes in Camarines Norte, Presentacion in Camarines Sur, Viga in Catanduanes, Placer in Masbate and Matnog in Sorsogon.

As shown by the 2010 nutritional status of pre-school children in Camarines Sur, there were 37,229 or 17.16 percent categorized as underweight; 9,036 or 4.16 percent as severely underweight, and; 3,212 or 1.48 percent as overweight. This means that there were a total of 49,477 or 21.32 percent of undernourished children out of 216,972 pre-school children weighed during that year.

Meanwhile, in Albay, Gov. Joey Salceda, in addressing the malnutrition problem in the province, has been reported to have infused some P38 million to be expended for supplemental feeding of 26,000 children enrolled in day-care centers for six months, five days a week.

The Philippine government is one of the signatories among the 189 countries that committed to meet the Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations, particularly the eradication or minimization of extreme poverty and hunger by 2015.

It seems, however, that the goal is a difficult one to achieve for most of the local government units in Bicol as recent reports would show.

JUST LIKE ANTS

As American dream fades
Pinoy nurses seeking US jobs fell by 46%

QUEZON CITY --- Only 2,984 Filipino nurses sought employment in the United States in the first semester of this year, down 46 percent from 5,553 in the same six-month period in 2010, Rep. Arnel Ty reported Wednesday.

Citing statistics from America’s National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Ty said only 1,530 Filipino nurses took the NCLEX for the first time from April to June this year -- 999 fewer than the 2,529 in the same quarter in 2010.

From January to March, Ty said only 1,454 Filipino nurses took the NCLEX for the first time, down 1,570 from 3,024 in the same three-month period last year.

The number of Filipino nurses taking the US licensure exam for the first time, excluding repeaters, is considered a good indicator as to how many of them are trying to practice their profession in America.

Without counting repeaters, Ty said a total of 142,435 Filipino nurses have taken the NCLEX since 1995, in the hopes of pursuing careers in America.

“At least 60 percent of Filipino nurses taking the NCLEX eventually pass, if not on their first attempt, on their second take of the exam,” Ty said.

Ty has been pushing for new legislation that would establish a special local jobs plan for the growing number of unemployed Filipino nurses, estimated at more than 200,000 by the Department of Health as of March 31.

As proposed by Ty in House Bill 4582, the jobs plan would be an expanded version of the Nurses Assigned in Rural Service, the short-lived Philippine government project that enlisted nurses to improve healthcare in the 1,000 poorest towns in 2009.

The bill seeks to install a Special Program for the Employment of Nurses in Urban and Rural Services (NURSE), which hopes to mobilize a total of 10,000 practitioners every year.

They would each serve a six-month tour of duty, and get a monthly stipend not lower than the amount commensurate to Salary Grade 15, the higher starting pay for public nurses mandated by a 2002 law.

To qualify, nurses must not be over 35 years old, and must have a valid license.

Meanwhile, Ty cited the need for the Philippine government to push for the opening of new foreign labor markets for Filipino nurses.

“We can no longer count on the US labor market for jobs. On the supply side, America has been internally generating a large number of nurses. In 2010 alone, US colleges produced a total of 167,597 nursing graduates,” he pointed out.

“As to the demand side, American hospitals and nursing homes continue to reel from subsidy cutbacks at the federal, state and municipal levels,” Ty added.

CRIMINALS ON VACATION

CRIME INCIDENCE HIGHEST IN MASBATE
CamNorte posts biggest decline in crime volume among provinces
By Jonas Cabiles Soltes

DAET, Camarines Norte --- The police office in this province has posted the highest decline in reported crime volume among the seven police offices in Bicol.

Crime volume is the aggregate number of reported crimes.

There is one police office in each of the six provinces of Bicol Region. Naga, an independent component city of Camarines Sur, has its own police office.

In a comparative report submitted by the Camarines Norte Police Office (CNPO) to Gov. Edgardo Tallado, it is shown that CNPO posted only 600 crime incidents from January to June 2011, or 39.69 percent down from the 995 incidents reported in the same period last year.

The police office in the island province of Catanduanes also posted a sharp decrease in crime volume, with 305 crime incidents by midyear compared to the 561 incidents in the same period last year or a decrease by 45.63 percent.

It was followed by the police office in Camarines Sur which posted 683 crime incidents by June 2011, 24.44 percent less than the figures in the same period in 2010.

Naga City Police Office, meanwhile, posted 18.03 percent drop in crime volume, from 876 from January to June last year to 718 crime incidents during the same period this year.

Sorsogon Police Office also posted a decrease in the number of crime incidents. From 546 incidents from January to June 2010, the figures are down to 458 in the same period this year or a decrease of 16.11 percent.

Masbate, on the other hand, posted the highest increase in crime volume by midyear with 1,154 crime incidents, up by 23. 68 percent from 933 incidents reported in the first half of last year.

It was followed by Albay with 1,609 crime incidents by midyear, also up by 9.30 percent from 1,472 incidents reported in the same period last year.

Camarines Norte Governor Edgardo Tallado attributed the decrease in the crime volume of the province to the presence of an anti-crime task force that goes after illegal operations including drug trade.

“Drug-use is related to crime so curbing illegal drug trade sharply reduces crime incidents,” said Tallado, who is also the chairman of the regional peace and order council in Bicol.

He said he would talk with other governors of the Bicol Region to encourage them to establish anti-crime task force in their respective local government units.

“Each task force will be composed of joint elements of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, Philippine Army, Department of the Environment and Natural Resources and the Philippine National Police,” he said.

Meanwhile, the municipal government of Daet, the capital town of Camarines Norte, also reported a 96.11 percent crime solution efficiency rate.

Out of the 257 crime incidents reported from July 2010 to June 2011, 79 crime incidents were solved, 60 were cleared, 55 were amicably settled, 25 were referred to other government agencies, 25 were closed, while 10 were still under investigation, said a report from the Daet Police Station.

BLOODY DISPUTE

Guard dies in bloody mining dispute
By Jonas Cabiles Soltes

DAET, Camarines Norte—Investigators on Tuesday said that the shooting incident on Saturday in a Dawahan mining site in Barangay Nakalaya in Jose Panganiban town could have been the result of an existing dispute between the owner of the iron and copper mining site and a mining corporation.

But they are yet to establish that the 27 armed men who barged into the premises of the mining site operated by Investwell Group of Companies (IGC) have connections with the owners of the mining site, the heirs of Isabelo F. Fonacier.

Very early on Saturday, at about 3 a.m., the 27 men armed both with long and short firearms, who claim to be members of Junmar Security Agency, barged into the mining site located in the same village, said a report from the Camarines Norte Police Office (CNPO).

“The men rushed up three security posts of the mining site,” said Senior Inspector Jason Colico, chief of Jose Panganiban police.

The eight security guards manning three posts were disarmed, robbed, and hogtied by the assailants, said Colico.

Some of the attackers, Colico said, fired upon post number 2, killing security guard Ranel Evangelista, 26, of Barangay Tawig in Paracale, this province. Evangelista sustained gunshot wound in the hip.

Colico said that some of the guards of the mining site were able to escape but two others were disarmed of their caliber .38 and also hogtied.

Responding teams from the CNPO were able to apprehend 24 of the suspects and recovered from them seven shotguns, a KG9 assault pistol, and four caliber. 38 revolvers.

The apprehended suspects are now under the custody of CNPO, which is readying charges against them. They would undergo paraffin test.

Checkpoints were set up in all exit points of Jose Panganiban to pursue other suspects who remain at large.

Gov. Edgardo Tallado said there had been an existing conflict between the Fonacier heirs, who are the owners of mineral production sharing agreement (MPSA) that covers 196-hectare mining site in Sitio Dawahan, and IGC, a Philippine mining corporation.

The MPSA is registered with the Mines and Geosciences Bureau.

Records show that the two parties forged a mine operating agreement (MOA) in 2010, in which the IGC was allowed to operate in the mining site by the Fonacier heirs, who are the registered “developers” of the said mine site.

“But now, the Fonacier heirs want to unilaterally terminate the MOA. The IGC is crying foul because it claims that the heirs have breached the agreement,” Tallado said.

The MOA says that “neither party can withdraw from the agreement without the prior and written consent of both parties.”

Tallado said that the dispute reached his office because the mining in the Dawahan site was considered a small-scale operation that needed the approval of the provincial government.

“I have advised them to bring their contentions to the Court,” said Tallado, referring to the two parties.

SHE SHOT THE SHERIFF!

‘I shot the sheriff’
By Jun Papa

AS Deputy Sheriff of the Regional Trial Court here in Naga City, I felt the blows that hit Sheriff Abe Andres of RTC Davao. So treacherous that they stunned the defenseless Abe who looked like he was shot with a hail of bullets. Davao Mayor Sara Duterte was still smiling when he summoned Abe to come nearer and while at a striking distance the lowly sheriff was suddenly pummeled by the lady mayor’s fist blows. The incident was witnessed through cameras and TV screens worldwide.

Various segments of society reacted. Some say it was the right thing to do for the mayor. “Buti nga sa kanya (Abe) at di siya pinatay.’” Social networking favors the mayor. She is the new idol of the masses. Human rights advocates, however, protested that Duterte went beyond what is civil. Prosecutors warned her position in government is at stake.

Avid fans of Mayor Duterte should better consider the facts: On the day of incident, there was no demolition yet that happened. Sheriff Andres gave in to her request to defer demolition. The engineers/surveyors conducted a survey of the area that morning. After the survey, the settlers insisted to suspend the demolition because they want their own surveyor. When the sheriff explained that a court order is needed for that purpose, the settlers started throwing homemade arrows, stones, and human excretes to the police and demolition team. When a policeman was hit by a homemade arrow, commotion started. That was the time the mayor arrived and (as we have seen in TV) started boxing the sheriff without hearing explanation from him.

The Sheriffs’ Confederation of the Philippines (SCOPHIL), Camarines Sur Chapter, which I am the president, strongly condemns the arrogant, criminal and contemptuous acts of Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte by treacherously assaulting Sheriff Abe Andres of RTC Davao in front of the media, police officers, and the general public WHOSE ONLY FAULT WAS TO FOLLOW THE LAWFUL ORDER OF THE COURT. It created a notion to all that mayors have the power to disregard and trample upon lawful order of the court being implemented by sheriffs. As a result, her acts have caused humiliation and public ridicule to the sheriffs’ profession and blatant disrespect of the Court considering that she is a lawyer and public officer.

Mayor Duterte’s action revealed that our justice system is as weak as she can openly assault an officer of the court and defy its processes in the end. There is a lacuna in our penology system where the assailant (Mayor Duterte) cannot be prosecuted because the victim (sheriff Abe) had lost interest to prosecute possibly due to danger and fear for his life and his family from the awesome powers of the political kings and queens of Davao.

Jurisprudence shows that the Supreme Court is strict against sheriffs who do not do their job well. Sheriff Andres was just doing his job when his person and dignity were humiliated in front of the camera and the whole world. The Supreme Court should also castigate the mayor and order the judges to refrain from receiving allowances from the mayors so that Mayor Duterte would stop bragging about it. “Sana makuntento naman kayo sa malaking parte ng JDF at SAJ.” Otherwise, Mayor Duterte would, indeed, be proud to say: “I shot the sheriff!”

WHY, OH WHY?

Why Brigada Eskwela
By Rogelio Z. Pitallano

In the previous years wherein Brigada Eskwela has not yet been implemented by the DepEd, some pupils/students both elementary and secondary levels were hesitant to go to school on the first day of classes because of some schools wherein its facilities are not yet ready. Dilapidated classrooms, broken chairs, tables and desks, non-functional comfort rooms, dirty/grassy school grounds and many others that is still unprepared prior to opening of classes. These were only given preference to be accomplished during the time that the students were going to attend their respective classes. To some extent, it is the students who utilizes themselves in order to prepare those things.

Since the time that Brigada Eskwela has been implemented, there was a sudden change on the part of schools and on the students as well. School Personnel’s, Teachers Dep-Ed officials Parents, NGO’s, LGU and other School stakeholders have their collaborative efforts both materials and physical support to perform the specified task such as repair of classroom buildings, comfort rooms, broken chairs, tables, desk repainting, landscaping , cleaning of school grounds, etc. A one week activity for National Schools Maintenance week (Brigada Eskwela), annually makes schools’ appearance more attractive to learners. Their eagerness to go to school was enhanced as they notice and see that their school is very much ready to welcome them. 

CHOKEPOINTS

Police score in anti-crime drive
By Jason B. Neola

NAGA CITY --- The Naga City Police Office here scored favorable results in its anti-crime campaign for the months of May and June, this year, “due to the active operationalization of Police Integrated Patrol System (PIPS) and the Motorcycle Cops Against Criminals (MOCACS).”

In his briefer before the members of the Peace and Order Council here, PSSupt. Vert T. Chavez, director of the Naga City Police Office, also attributed the significant accomplishment to the Barangay Information Network and the city government for coming up with several approaches that helped strengthen the city’s crime prevention campaign.

Naga City Mayor John G. Bongat’s issuance of executive order mandating the conduct of daily simultaneous checkpoints/chokepoints within the city’s 27 barangays contributes much in deterring criminal elements from plying their nefarious activities.

The installation of checkpoints and chokepoints, in collaboration with the City Public Safety Office (PSO) and barangay officials is a part of community-based anti-crime campaign of the new city administration.

Checkpoints and chokepoints are being put up unannounced especially during nighttime in strategic points of barangays, including those located in the upper portion of the city like Pacol, Cararayan, San Isidro, Carolina and Panicuason.

City crime clock

For the month of May this year, there were only 52 cases of crime against properties as compared to 109 cases during the same month last year. For crimes against persons, there were only 16 cases reported in May this year while there were 68 cases reported during the same month last year.

Also in May this year, crime volume for both index and non-index crimes were posted at a total of 88 cases compared to 288 cases during the same month of May last year.

It was also indicated in the same report that the crime solution efficiency for May 2011 has improved by 338% compared to the same period last year while the average monthly crime rate for the same period this year went down by 42% compared to last year’s.

For the month of June, the police posted a crime solution efficiency of 35.85 percent, or a variance of 89% over last year’s 18.61 percent.

Incidences of all types of crimes also decreased last month.

The police recorded 9 crimes against persons last June compared to 44 recorded during the same month in 2010; 26 for crimes against property compared to 68 in 2010.

In crimes against property, two persons were reported two victims of hold-up, 9 incidences of Akyat Bahay, and 14 incidences of snatching, shoplifting, pickpocket, and salisi. During the same period last year the police registered two cases of hold up, 11 Akyat Bahay, two highway robberies, and 55 cases of snatching, shoplifting, pickpocket and salisi.

Crimes against property, robbery and theft in particular, have the greatest number of unsolved cases.

In previous interview, PCI Nick Garcia of Naga City Police Station 1 disclosed that behind the police’s not so impressive performance in solving crimes are the emergence of new faces of rogues that have come out as fresh perpetrators of theft and robberies in the city.

He admitted that “these new elements have given the police a hard time to trace them, making a dent on its crime solution efficiency.”

The briefer also said that of the city’s 27 barangays, Dinaga and Concepcion Pequeña registered the highest number of crime incidents during the month of May 2011 with 10 each, followed by Triangulo, 7; Igualdad, 4 and Peñafrancia, 4.

From June 1 to 25, 2011, Triangulo registered 11 index crimes followed by Concepcion Pequeña with 4. Sta. Cruz and Concepcion Grande had 3 incidents each.

Insurgency

The same police report also said that there’s no crime incident that could be attributed to communist-insurgents in low-lying or in the upper portion of the city.

Nonetheless, Police Station 3 personnel manning the Barangay Carolina sub-station along with PSO personnel are continuously “monitoring their movements thru the assistance of the intelligence operatives in the community.”

The city police said the frequent conduct of patrolling had neutralized the operations of the armed group.

MAN POWER

Crime incidence in Bicol drops by 12%
By Mar S. Arguelles

LEGAZPI CITY --- Heightened campaign on crime prevention and police visibility may have been the major factors that saw a drop in crime incidence in Bicol by 12.09 percent during the first six months of this year, the Philippine National Police (PNP) reported during the meeting of the Bicol Regional Peace and Order Council (BPROC) held here recently.

At the meeting, Police Supt. Adelio B. Castillo, Regional Operations Division chief, disclosed that a total of 5,527 crime incidences in Bicol were recorded in the first half of this year.

This is 760 incidences lower compared to the same period last year which stood at 6,287 cases of various crimes, the PNP said.

Of the total crime incidence for the first semester this year 3,051 were index crimes while 2,476 were non-index crimes. Index crimes are those in violation of the revised penal code while non-index crimes are those in violation of special laws and local ordinances.

The figures were collated from reports by the region’s six police provincial commands, 107 municipal police stations, and seven city police stations, Castillo said.

Most prevalent among the index crimes committed, according Castillo’s report were for physical injury with 1,320 cases or 43.26 percent, followed by theft with 856 cases or 28.06 percent, robbery with 389 cases or 12.75 percent, murder with 197 cases or 6.46 percent, rape with 133 cases or 4.36 percent, homicide with 89 or 2.92 percent , carnapping with 55 cases or 1.8 percent, and cattle rustling with 12 cases or .39 percent.

Castillo said Albay had the highest crime incidences with 1,609, followed by Masbate with 1,154 cases. Catanduanes, on the other hand, registered the lowest with 305 cases.

Crime solution efficiency was reported at 24.63 percent, which means that of the total 5,527 cases, only 1,342 ended as solved during the reporting period, although this may be 15.95 percent higher than the 8.33 percent crime solution efficiency reported during the same period last year.

Castillo said some 388 additional new policemen were recruited last year which contributed to better police visibility, especially in identified crime-prone areas where they were mostly assigned.

This year, he disclosed, a total of 327 new policemen will be recruited to further boost the manpower strength of the PNP in Bicol.