Retired CPPO Felipe “Esp.” Irinco was unanimously reelected as national director of the Association of Professional Detectives and Investigators, Inc. during its annual election for the year 2014 held at the Executive Dining Hall, United Laboratories, Mandaluyong City last December 7, 2013.
The association was founded by Dr. Conrado Dumlao in the 2002. Dr. Dumlao is the chairman and President of Truth Verifier System, Inc., the number one Lie Detection and Private Detective Company in the country.
The same has a branch in New Jersey, U.S.A. and adopts the investigative technique and technology being utilized by the US CIA, FBI NSA, DIA, Secret Service, DEA, Treasury and other investigative arms of the US government. CPPO Irinco is the only registered criminologist and seasoned correctional investigator in Region VIII that was reelected to the national directorship of this prestigious association. (PR)
TACLOBAN CITY – About 300 students took the Nationwide Competitive Examination for Fisheries Scholarship Program – Fisherfolk Children Educational Grant (FCEG) offered by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR).
The competitive examination, held at the Leyte Normal University on March 22, 2014, offers free college education to children of small-scale fishermen who are interested to pursue a four-year BS Fisheries course.
The top ten passers will be granted the scholarship but during his recent visit to the region, BFAR Director Asis Perez said that more slots would be made available for interested students who were affected by supertyphoon Yolanda.
Examinees who applied for the scholarship program were assessed according to qualifications that includes, among others: a high school graduate or 4th year graduating students(SY 2013-2014) who is a son or daughter of bonafide of small-scale fisherman; not more than 20 years old; not presently enrolled in any course with a general weighted average (GWA) not lower than 80 or its equivalent; with not more than P 25,000 annual family income and parents must be a member of a fishing association, a cooperative duly attested by the chairman and secretary of the association or a registered fisherfolk with BFAR.
The full scholarship grant would provide free matriculation and other fees, monthly stipend of P2, 500; semestral book allowance of P2, 000; thesis support of P3, 000 and graduation support of P500.
The program aims to help children from marginalized fisher folk families to earn a degree that is in demand.
According to BFAR-8 Regional Director Juan Albaladejo, the region currently has 20 scholars under the program pursuing BS Fisheries courses.
They are enrolled at the Visayas State University- Tolosa Campus in Leyte, Samar State University in Catbalogan City, Cebu Technological University in Carmen, Cebu and Southern Leyte State University in Bontoc, Southern Leyte. (AHLETTE C. REYES)
Volunteers cleans up the Cancabato Bay which was cluttered with debris during supertphoon Yolanda. (Photo courtesy of SAVE THE CHILDREN)
Volunteers cleans up the Cancabato Bay which was cluttered with debris during supertphoon Yolanda. (Photo courtesy of SAVE THE CHILDREN)
In celebration of World Water Day, Save the Children, together with local government units and humanitarian organizations, urges the public to act upon urgent water and sanitation issues in ‘Yolanda’-hit areas. Despite achievements in providing safe water, interventions aimed at improving access to toilets continues to lag behind, the water, sanitation and hygiene or ‘WASH’ cluster warns. This is the coordinating body responsible for addressing water and sanitation in typhoon-affected communities.
“Simply tackling the water system issue is like dressing a wound without removing the bullet; water systems are only part of the equation, the other part is sanitation.”, says Wayne Chang, Save the Children’s Infrastructure Consultant for the agency’s ‘Typhoon Yolanda’ response.
“Save the Children has done rapid assessments in over 100 barangays across seven municipalities in Leyte, and found that many communities are dependent on community-level water supply systems. In a place where more than 60 percent of the population do not have access to proper toilets, open defecation is common practice. As water pipelines are usually running downhill, they are very susceptible to contamination due to damaged pipe connections,” he added.
Improved access to toilets, along with solid waste and water resource management, is important to protect water sources, eliminate open defecation, and prevent the spread of diarrheal diseases and to protect the dignity of families. Save the Children recognizes, however, that repairing damaged pipelines and building toilets alone may not fully address water and sanitation problems. Without proper consultation with and full involvement of the community, these projects may not succeed in the long-term.
Save the Children is working closely with the local government, the Department of Health and humanitarian organizations in restoring water supply systems to provide clean water; engaging schools in hygiene promotion sessions and training communities in reconstructing their toilets.
As part of the World Water Day celebration and to raise awareness of these issues, Save the Children took part in the ‘Walk for Water’ Torch Parade and ‘Coastal Clean-Up’ in Tacloban. Some 500 volunteers joined the coastal clean-up near Tacloban City Astrodome.
Lorencio Lagarto, 50, one of the volunteers explained why he joined the activity: “I believe that it is crucial that everybody—all residents from different parts of the province along with the concerned organizations working here—work together to ensure the fast recovery of our typhoon-hit province.” (PR)
PALO, Leyte- To hasten clearing of typhoon debris, this town is to launch a competition on the cleanest barangay.
In a press conference on March 28, town Mayor Remedios “Matin “Petilla said that competition would help encourage the people in the barangays to be motivated to clean their respective barangays and the same time, find earn the cash price of P100,000.
Aside from this, the clean-up competition would help pave the way for immediate implementation of projects that would be initiated by the GIZ which is set to introduce backyard high value vegetable production.
This plan has been submitted to the Department of Interior and Local Government for review or approval and could start on May, Petilla said.
All the 33 barangays of the town are eligible to join the clean-up competition.
The barangays can also take advantage of the cash- for- work program in the municipality being implemented by the United Nations Development Programme, Department of Labor and Employment and the Department of Social Welfare and Development, Petilla said. (LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA)
ORMOC CITY- A female job order worker of the city government and three others were arrested by police operatives for using illegal substance, methamphetamine hydrochloride or “shabu.”
Arrested by the members of the Intelligence-Anti Illegal Drugs and Special Operatives Task Force(Intel-AIDSOTF) on March 16 at this city’s District I were Anita Sarabia, 59, job order employee of the City Hall; Julieta Salvame, 39, native product vendor; Glenn Arroyo, 41, fish vendor and Rodel Toroctocon, a lender collector.
Seized from them were several plastic sachets with powder residue believed to be shabu and several drug paraphernalia.
The suspects, who were playing cards during their arrest, denied that they were involved in illegal drug peddling or using shabu.
SPO1 Dexter Capuyan, leader of the arresting team, said the warrant issued by Judge Clinton Nuevo, presiding judge of Regional Trial Court Branch 12,had one “Ugis” as the subject.
Ugis was later identified as Remegio Sarabia, Anita’s husband, a carpenter who was out during the search.
Salvame and Arroyo admitted being drug “users” but denied they “used” prior the raid.
The search was witnessed by the representative from the Department of Justice, village officials and members of the media.
Sarabia was charged for violation of sections 6 and 12 of Article 2 of Republic Act 9165 otherwise known as Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 while Salvame, Arroyo and Toroctocon were charged for visiting a drug den. (ELVIE ROMAN ROA)
TACLOBAN CITY- Leyte Rep. Ferdinand Martin Romualdez said that he is now “open” on the possibility of running for a Senate seat in the 2016 national elections.
Romualdez, serving Leyte’s first congressional district which counts seven towns and Tacloban City, is now on his third and last term.
“Well, we are open to it. We want to be a positive factor; we want to be a positive force. Anything for the city and the district and entire Eastern Visayas region, we want to be a part of,” Romualdez said.
The solon, who is the national president of the Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrat, said that the current composition of the Senate appears not to be favorable to Eastern Visayas, the poorest region of the three Visayas regions.
In contrast, Western and Central Visayas are enjoying relative economic developments and have their own representatives at the Senate, Romualdez added.
He expressed his lament that Eastern Visayas, home to more than 4 million people and still reeling with the aftermath of the Supertyphoon Yolanda, does not get funding from the national government.
“The budget allocation for the entire country is that the Visayas gets 14 percent, 24 percent goes to Mindanao and the balance goes to Luzon. And when we look at the composition of the Senate, there seems to be a correlation between the representation and the allocation, if not development,” Romualdez said.
“We want to correct this seeming imbalance. Obviously, we want to be in the position that one day, we can help out and bring more… (development) to Region 8,” he added.
At present, the Visayas region is represented at the Senate by Senators Miriam Defensor-Santiago, Serge Osmeña and Franklin Drilon, the Senate president.
Drilon and Santiago are from Iloilo (Western Visayas) while Osmeña is from Cebu.
The closest representative of Eastern Visayas to the Senate is Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, cousin of Romualdez.
Romualdez is a nephew of former first lady and now Ilocos Norte Rep. Imelda Romualdez Marcos.
Eastern Visayas had its only senator in Jose Avelino who even became the president of the Senate. During the 2007 national elections, former Leyte governor and now Energy Sec. Jericho Petilla was drafted to run for senator under Lakas-CMD only to withdraw to seek for a third term as a governor. (JOEY A. GABIETA)
