TACLOBAN CITY — The local government of Matag-ob, Leyte has officially rolled out its smoke-free, vape-free campaign, reinforcing a total ban on smoking and vaping in the municipality under Municipal Ordinance No. 257-225. The launch took place on Wednesday, February 11, 2026.
Authored by Sangguniang Bayan Member Luz Boldero and unanimously approved by the council, the ordinance aims to safeguard public health and comply with national regulations on tobacco and vape products.
Under the law, violators face fines ranging from P1,000 to P2,500, with confiscation of tobacco and vape products. Repeat offenders may also face 15 days of imprisonment or additional fines. All public offices, establishments, and public transport must display “No Smoking” signs in visible areas, with failure to comply considered a violation. Businesses found breaching the ordinance may risk revocation of their permits.
The Municipal Health Office, together with the Municipal Anti-Smoking Task Force, the Matag-ob Municipal Police Station, and barangay officials, will lead enforcement. Citizens can report violations anonymously, and collected fines will fund health programs and anti-smoking initiatives.
Mayor Bernardino Tacoy urged residents to support the campaign, stressing that the municipality prioritizes public health over potential revenue from tobacco and vape sales.
“Because we care deeply about the future of our municipality, we have chosen to forgo potential income from the trade of cigarettes and vapes, prioritizing instead the health and well-being of our people,” Tacoy said.
DESTRUCTIVE. The planned resumption of mining activity in MacArthur, Leyte could result to damage rice farms, so says an executive of the Department of Agriculture in the region. Photo shows the huge dredger that is to be used for the mining operations.( KAWANDER)
DESTRUCTIVE. The planned resumption of mining activity in MacArthur, Leyte could result to damage rice farms, so says an executive of the Department of Agriculture in the region. Photo shows the huge dredger that is to be used for the mining operations.( KAWANDER)
TACLOBAN CITY — As opposition mounts against proposed black sand mining operations in MacArthur, Leyte, the Department of Agriculture in Eastern Visayas (DA-8) has warned that mining activities could cause long-term damage to agricultural lands and threaten the livelihood of farmers in the area.
During a press conference organized by the MacArthur local government, DA-8 officials outlined the potential environmental and economic consequences of mining, particularly in farming communities where rice production is a primary source of income.
Jenny Lyn Almeria, officer-in-charge regional technical director for operations and extension of the DA-8, said mining operations may result in land degradation due to the loss of topsoil, rendering farmlands unusable for decades.
“Among the significant effects are land degradation due to loss of topsoil, water contamination and scarcity, increased coastal erosion and flooding, destruction of irrigation facilities, and deterioration of soil quality,” she said.
Almeria added that mining could also trigger socio-economic displacement among farming communities, land conversion, loss of biodiversity, and long-term devaluation of agricultural areas, ultimately affecting farmers’ productivity and income.
Almeria emphasized the need for a harmonized and sustained rehabilitation plan should mining activities proceed, stressing transparency and community participation to ensure that all stakeholders are properly informed.
The controversy stems from the planned resumption of magnetite or “black sand” extraction in the town. However, Romulo Babatugun, division chief of the Mines and Geosciences Bureau Region 8 (MGB-8), clarified that MacArthur Iron Projects Corporation (MIPC) has yet to secure approval of its required three-year work program from the agency’s central office.
Babatugun said the company must also comply with other local requirements before it can resume operations.
Residents from several barangays, particularly farmers, have staged picket protests opposing the mining project. They claim previous activities have already affected farmlands and rice production. Protesters are also blocking the transport of a dredging equipment to the mining site, fearing it signals the resumption of operations.
The groups have sought intervention from Malacañang, Leyte Governor Carlos Jericho Petilla, and members of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, urging authorities to halt the mining project.
For its part, MIPC, through its Human Resource and Administration representative Lorenz Medua, maintained that the company has not resumed operations. He said the dredger being transported is part of preparatory measures pending regulatory approval and is intended to upgrade operational efficiency.
MacArthur Mayor Rudin Babante also clarified that the local government has not issued any permit allowing the company to operate.
In 2022, the municipal government ordered the suspension of mining activities following reported damage to an irrigation canal of the National Irrigation Administration within the project site.
The dispute continues to stir tension in the town as residents press for the protection of agricultural lands and food security.
TACLOBAN CITY — The municipal government of MacArthur in Leyte has appealed for calm and lawful dialogue following public concerns over reported mining activities within the town.
In an official statement issued on Sunday, Feb.15, Mayor Rudin Babante said the local government, together with the Sangguniang Bayan, conducted a careful and thorough assessment of the situation involving a mining company that had been operating in the area.
The mayor clarified that while there are grounds to question certain aspects of the firm’s activities, it was confirmed that the company had already withdrawn and removed its cutter suction dredger equipment from the identified site.
The firm has also reportedly ceased deploying the equipment and expressed willingness to comply with legal requirements should it seek to resume operations in the future.
MacArthur, a coastal municipality in Leyte, has communities whose livelihoods depend largely on fishing and farming.
In recent years, resource extraction activities in various parts of Eastern Visayas have drawn scrutiny from residents and environmental advocates due to concerns over potential impacts on marine ecosystems, river systems, and agricultural lands.
Although details of the specific mining application or permit were not disclosed, local officials acknowledged that the issue had sparked apprehension among residents, prompting calls for transparency and safeguards to protect the environment and community welfare.
“At this time, due to the sensitive nature of the issue, the municipality is carefully studying the situation to arrive at a just and humane resolution that will not cause division or harm to our community,” the statement read.
Babante emphasized that the municipal government remains committed to upholding the law while protecting the interests of its constituents. He also appealed to groups planning protests or actions that could disrupt public order to instead engage in constructive dialogue with the local government.
The mayor underscored the importance of unity and responsible decision-making, assuring residents that consultations and coordination with concerned agencies will continue as the matter undergoes legal and technical review.
Local officials said they will provide further updates once the evaluation is completed, reiterating that any decision will prioritize environmental protection, lawful processes, and the long-term welfare of the people of MacArthur.
TACLOBAN CITY — Borongan City has inaugurated its new Animal Bite Treatment Center (ABTC) in Barangay Songco, providing residents with easier access to timely medical care for animal bites.
Dr. Patricia Bernadette Apita, officer-in-charge City Health Officer, said the center was established through the joint efforts of the Department of Health, the Provincial Health Office, and PhilHealth. The facility aims to ensure prompt treatment and reduce complications from animal bites within the city.
Acting City Mayor Emmanuel Tiu Sonco lauded the initiative, highlighting the center’s role in enhancing local health services and safeguarding residents’ welfare.
City Councilor Katrina Anacta-Sadac, committee on health chairperson, also expressed support, emphasizing the need for continued collaboration and proactive measures to meet Borongan’s public health needs.
Officials said the ABTC will improve access to medical care for animal bite victims and strengthen the city’s overall health services.
A reported 200-billion-peso budget shortage now confronts the current administration. This fiscal gap is alarming, but it should never have reached this scale in a government long plagued by corruption. Public funds do not vanish on their own; they are lost through systems that allow them to be stolen.
For decades, corruption has drained the national treasury through padded contracts, ghost projects, rigged procurements, and discretionary funds shielded from scrutiny. Every overpriced bridge, every unfinished flood-control system, and every anomalous supply deal has quietly carved away at the nation’s finances. When billions are siphoned off annually, a 200-billion-peso shortfall is not surprising—it is the cumulative result of tolerated malpractice. Budget deficits are often blamed on global conditions or revenue shortfalls, yet the deeper hemorrhage lies within.
The scale of public spending in a country like the Philippines runs into trillions of pesos each year. Even a small percentage lost to corruption translates into staggering amounts. If ten percent of major infrastructure allocations are misused or stolen, that alone could equal or exceed the reported shortage. The issue is not merely inefficiency but impunity. Without credible consequences, corrupt practices become routine, embedded in procurement systems, local government transactions, and even national agencies.
This shortage also exposes a moral failure in governance. Taxes are collected from workers, entrepreneurs, and overseas laborers in exchange for the promise that the state will deliver services—education, health care, infrastructure, and security. When funds are stolen, the burden is shifted back to the public through higher borrowing, new taxes, or reduced services. It is unjust to ask citizens to tighten their belts while corrupt officials enrich themselves. Fiscal crises should not be used to justify austerity when the real problem is leakage at the source.
The government must pursue a decisive recovery of stolen assets, aggressively prosecute corruption cases, ensure strict transparency in procurement, and implement an empowered auditing system insulated from political pressure. Asset forfeiture laws must be enforced without exception, and lifestyle checks must become standard practice. Digital tracking of public expenditures, open contracting data, and citizen oversight mechanisms should be institutionalized. When public funds are protected with seriousness and discipline, budget gaps shrink—not because of new taxes or loans, but because the nation finally keeps what rightfully belongs to it.
When a senator or congressman, who has been elected as a lawmaker, makes a stupid blunder relative to legal matters, I feel a chill. It’s not just a slip of the tongue. It’s a glimpse of what happens when lawmaking is handled by those who do not understand the law. I have never been comfortable with ignorance sitting where expertise should be.
I believe legislation is not a stage performance; it is architecture. A poorly delivered speech can be forgiven, but a poorly crafted statute can haunt a nation for decades. Laws are not slogans. They are intricate instruments that regulate liberty, property, contracts, crime, and the limits of state power. When those entrusted to write them do not grasp constitutional boundaries, statutory construction, or the consequences of a misplaced clause, the damage is not theoretical—it is lived.
Some argue that lawmakers need not be lawyers because they can hire competent legal staff. That sounds practical on paper. But I have seen how fragile that arrangement becomes when cameras are turned on, and urgent issues erupt. When pressed about constitutional limits, jurisdiction, or due process, some non-lawyer legislators falter, oversimplify, or deflect. The problem is not embarrassment; it is influence. Public statements shape public opinion, and careless words from powerful offices can legitimize dangerous ideas.
The law is a jealous discipline. It demands precision. A single word—“shall” instead of “may”—can alter rights and obligations. In debates on emergency powers, anti-terror measures, or cybercrime regulations, misunderstanding the scope of executive authority or the protection of civil liberties is not a minor lapse. It risks expanding the state beyond what the Constitution permits. I find it unsettling when complex constitutional questions are reduced to emotional appeals or applause lines.
History has shown that poorly drafted laws invite litigation and confusion. Courts are forced to interpret vague or contradictory provisions, sometimes striking them down altogether. That wastes public funds and delays justice. It also exposes a deeper weakness: legislation built on a shaky understanding. A legislature should not operate like a workshop, releasing prototypes to the public and fixing them only after damage is done.
There is also a symbolic weight to the title “lawmaker.” The word itself implies mastery. I cannot escape the intuition that those who craft laws should have studied them with rigor—understood their philosophy, their history, their limits. Medicine requires training; engineering requires licensure. Yet in crafting statutes that govern millions, expertise is treated as optional. I struggle with that double standard.
To be fair, not all lawyers make good legislators, and not all non-lawyers are incapable of learning. Some legislators without formal legal education study diligently and surround themselves with competent advisers. Still, I notice that when legal literacy is absent at the core, dependence on advisers becomes absolute. The elected official risks becoming a spokesperson rather than an author of the law. That weakens accountability, because authorship is blurred.
If the country is serious about raising the quality of legislation, then voters must demand higher standards. Political parties can prioritize candidates with legal training or proven mastery of constitutional principles. Civic education should help the public understand why legal competence matters in lawmaking. I remain convinced that a nation that entrusts its laws to those who truly understand them stands on firmer ground—less prone to reckless pronouncements, less vulnerable to sloppy statutes, and far more respectful of the rule of law.
