TACLOBAN CITY- Despite of the massive destruction wrought by supertyphoon Yolanda to this city and large part of Leyte, the Pintados-Kasadyaan Festival of Festivals will still be stage on June 28.

The festivals served as one of the highlights of Tacloban’s annual fiesta. The launching of the twin-bill festival was announced in a press conference last June 20 held at the RTR Plaza by Leyte Governor Leopoldo Dominico Petilla and Palo Mayor Remedios “Matin” Petilla, honorary chair and founder of the Kasadyaan Festival respectively and Eugene Tan, president of the Pintados Festival.

According to them, despite of what happened to Tacloban and parts of the province, the staging of the Pintados-Kasadyaan Festival of Festivals has to continue. “The holding of the Pintados-Kasadyaan Festival of Festivals has to go on despite of what we have experienced due to Yolanda. This will serve as our thanksgiving to our patron saint that we survived Yolanda,” Mayor Petilla said.

Tan, however, said that contrary to years’ past, this year’s celebration of the festivals will be low key. For this year, the participating contingents will come from outside Leyte save for the Buyugan Festival of Abuyog, Leyte. The participating contingents are the Kawayan-Banigan Festival of Basey, Samar; Masskara Festival of Bacolod City; Uway Festival of Talalora, Samar; Tribu Lumad Basakanon of Cebu.

Gov. Petilla said that the provincial government has allocated P300,000 for each contingent covering their transportation and accommodation. The contingents are to stay at the Leyte State University and the Eastern Visayas State University. While there are five contingents participating the Pintados Festival. And unlike before, there will be no competition among the participating contingents, the organizers said. (DESSA MAE CASTRO/KAYE ANNE ORALLER, LNU-Intern)

TACLOBAN CITY – The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) has enforced precautionary measures in Samar coastal waters after laboratory test results show that red tide presence has intensified in Irong-Irong Bay. The government strictly imposed shellfish ban in Irong-Irong Bay in Catbalogan City, Samar last week after both water and shellfish meat were tested positive of red tide toxins.

“We are worried that red tide toxins will spread to nearby Cambatutay Bay, Maqueda Bay, and Calbayog City waters. These areas have histories of red tide presence in the past,” said BFAR Regional Director Juan Albaladejo. Irong-Irong Bay, one of the collecting areas for mussel in Samar, drains its water to Cambatutay, a bay hit by red tide phenomenon last year. Cambatutay, which has been showing signs of red tide recurrence, in turn, drains to Calbayog Waters. BFAR detected cyst formation in nearby Maqueda Bay, an area known for commercial mussel production. “The presence of cyst indicates that red tide organisms may bloom anytime,” Albaladejo added.

“There’s a big possibility that we will issue a shellfish ban for Cambatutay Bay this week. Since last week, mussel traders in Maqueda Bay have been asked to secure health certificate from BFAR before shipping mussels to Davao and Mania as a precautionary measure,” Albaladejo said. Fishes caught in affected areas are safe for human consumption provided that they are fresh, washed and cooked thoroughly, the BFAR regional director said. From 1,120 cells per liter of toxins in water last week, the reading in Irong-Irong Bay rose to up to 2,074 cells per liter, way high than the 10 cells per liter of toxins in a normal situation.

Red tide was found in 117 micro grams of every 100 grams of shellfish meat, or nearly double than the 60 micro grams per 100 grams in normal level. “This is very alarming because when two persons in Cambatutay Bay died of toxins last year, the reading was only 20 micro grams per 100 grams of meat,” the BFAR official recalled.

Authorities test coastal waters in Samar twice a week to monitor the possible presence of red tide. “The prolong sunny weather since May followed by heavy downpour in the past few days may trigger red tide bloom due to discharge of waste water from mountains and residential areas,” he added.

Red tide is a term used to describe all phenomena which the water is discolored by high algal biomass or concentration of algae. The discoloration may not necessarily be red in color, but it may also appear yellow, brown, green, blue or milky, depending on the organisms involved. (SARWELL Q.MENIANO)

TACLOBAN CITY-To empower the marginalized farmers with updated agricultural farm technology on high value crops so that they can produce a bountiful harvest even on a limited space, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) commits to continue the Kabalikat sa Kabuhayan Farmers Training (KSK-FT) that the SM Foundation has implemented in Tanauan, Leyte. The DSWD committed that they will continue what they have started in Tanauan using their own module under their livelihood program, Neny Regino of the SM Foundation said.

She also said that the livelihood program of the DSWD has a module on social preparation which includes teaching the farmers on how to sell their products and handle their money. The DSWD has helped the SM Foundation to enhance their livelihood programs such as the social preparation in the farmers training. Before, The SM Foundation does not have any partnership with the DSWD but now that they joined the foundation in this endeavor. “We have realized that the social preparation is a big help to the program” Regino said.

She emphasized that without the DSWD, the social preparation will not be included in their program. “The farmers must know not just the proper way of planting but also the right way of selling their production and handling their money,” Regino said. With the module on social preparation of the DSWD, Regino said that their farmer- beneficiaries under the KSK-TF has become more interested for they will know many things not just planting and harvesting. On the other hand, the SM Foundation has coordinated with the local government unit of Tanauan to help the 108 farmer-beneficiaries under the program in finding business establishment that will buy their agricultural products that they will produce. The KSK-FT is a program the will provides farmers with more effective ways of producing high yielding fruits and vegetables. The program is much like backyard farming, only it is enhanced by new technology to produce better results. It is a 12-step program that teaches farmers seed culture and propagation, irrigation and fertilizer application, among other skills. The KSK-FT is a joint undertaking of SM Foundation with the private sector and government agencies. (RYAN GABRIEL LLOSA ARCENAS)

PALO, Leyte-Janelle Bonse, 9 and a Grade IV student expressed her gladness that she and her classmates at the San Joaquin Elementary School would now occupy a new classroom. “It is nice to study inside a classroom and inside a tent,” Bonse said.

The new classroom to be occupied by Bonse and her classmates was part of the 11-classrooms building donated by Senator Cynthia Villar and Frances Ann Petilla, wife of Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho Petilla. The two donors raised P3.9 million to construct the classrooms at the San Joaquin Elementary School, among the public schools of Palo that sustained severe damages due to supertyphoon Yolanda. Bonse lost her mother, Lilia, 43, due to the storm surge that destroyed one of the classrooms of said school where they evacuated. Her mother’s body was found hours after the typhoon stopped and is now one of the hundreds of those who perished the typhoon buried at the grounds of the nearby San Joaquin Church on Barangay San Joaquin. “I will make good of my studies as I promised to my late mother,” Bonse said. She finished on the top of her class during her Grade III. Sen. Villar said that it is imperative to repair the school buildings damaged or destroyed by Yolanda to ensure that school children would have a better and conducive environment. “It is very important that the students go back to the return to their classrooms,” the senator said.

She said that the money that she used in donating for the construction of the classrooms came from her personal funds as a senator, she no longer has her share on pork barrel or priority development assistance fund (PDAF). School principal Liberato Cobacha said that he could not contain his happiness that Sen. Villar and Petilla donated classrooms to their school. At present, the school has 390 enrollment with 17 classrooms. (JOEY A. GABIETA)

TACLOBAN CITY – The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) has enforced precautionary measures in Samar coastal waters after laboratory test results show that red tide presence has intensified in Irong-Irong Bay. The government strictly imposed shellfish ban in Irong-Irong Bay in Catbalogan City, Samar last week after both water and shellfish meat were tested positive of red tide toxins. “We are worried that red tide toxins will spread to nearby Cambatutay Bay, Maqueda Bay, and Calbayog City waters. These areas have histories of red tide presence in the past,” said BFAR Regional Director Juan Albaladejo. Irong-Irong Bay, one of the collecting areas for mussel in Samar, drains its water to Cambatutay, a bay hit by red tide phenomenon last year. Cambatutay, which has been showing signs of red tide recurrence, in turn, drains to Calbayog Waters. BFAR detected cyst formation in nearby Maqueda Bay, an area known for commercial mussel production. “The presence of cyst indicates that red tide organisms may bloom anytime,” Albaladejo added. “There’s a big possibility that we will issue a shellfish ban for Cambatutay Bay this week. Since last week, mussel traders in Maqueda Bay have been asked to secure health certificate from BFAR before shipping mussels to Davao and Mania as a precautionary measure,” Albaladejo said.

Fish caught in affected areas are safe for human consumption provided that they are fresh, washed and cooked thoroughly, the BFAR regional director said.
From 1,120 cells per liter of toxins in water last week, the reading in Irong-Irong Bay rose to up to 2,074 cells per liter, way high than the 10 cells per liter of toxins in a normal situation. Red tide was found in 117 micro grams of every 100 grams of shellfish meat, or nearly double than the 60 micro grams per 100 grams in normal level. “This is very alarming because when two persons in Cambatutay Bay died of toxins last year, the reading was only 20 micro grams per 100 grams of meat,” the BFAR official recalled. Authorities test coastal waters in Samar twice a week to monitor the possible presence of red tide. “The prolong sunny weather since May followed by heavy downpour in the past few days may trigger red tide bloom due to discharge of waste water from mountains and residential areas,” he added. Red tide is a term used to describe all phenomena which the water is discolored by high algal biomass or concentration of algae. The discoloration may not necessarily be red in color, but it may also appear yellow, brown, green, blue or milky, depending on the organisms involved. (SARWELL Q.MENIANO)