July | 2009 | Northern Dispatch (nordis) Weekly

Public question proposed Baguio City Charter

July 26, 2009 in Baguio City, land rights

By WENDY ATUBAN
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY — The proposed city charter of Baguio which is pending in the senate earned criticism as well as disapproval from individuals and different organizations here.

House Bill 6374, an Act revising the charter of the city of Baguio, authored by Representative Mauricio Domogan is looked on as problematic due to questionable land distribution and anti-poor provisions. Read the rest of this entry →

CBAO keeps 7,000 houses unenergized — Beneco

July 26, 2009 in Cordillera, energy

By MANNY LOSTE
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY — Beneco’s General Manager Gerardo Verzosa, in last Wednesday’s edition of Kapihan sa Baguio, lambasted the City Building and Architectural Office (CBAO) of this city for holding back the electrification of some 7,000 households.

Versoza expressed hope that the proposed city ordinance will soon be passed and respected by all parties concerned especially by the CBAO. Photo by Marv Boac Terceño/nordis.net

All that Beneco needs is a certificate of final electrical inspection (CFEI) to provide electricity to these residents of the city. CBAO is refusing to issue a CFEI on the ground that the houses have no building permits. Read the rest of this entry →

Army grill villagers on socio-econ projects

July 26, 2009 in Cordillera, human rights

By ALDWIN QUITASOL
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY — In a recent interview, Cordillera Human Rights Alliance (CHRA) Secretary General Jude Baggo expressed grave concern over the increasing army presence and their so-called “soft approach” activities in the communities of the Cordillera.

Baggo said it is very alarming that after the so-called “soft approach” of the AFP troopers used in the communities they believe to be influenced by the NPA guerillas to “win the hearts and minds of the people,” the AFP are now resorting to intimidation and “indirect” interrogations to gather information on civil society projects or civilian self-help activities. Read the rest of this entry →

Teenager found dead in Sagada

July 26, 2009 in Cordillera, criminality

By ARTHUR L. ALLAD-IW
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY — A female teenager was found dead on July 25 by local officials and community rescuers below the baseball ground of the Saint Mary’s School (SMS) in Sagada, Mountain Province.

Sources from the rescuers said that the unidentified victim is a female, at least 19 years old believed to be from the nearby town of Mainit. Read the rest of this entry →

More space for displaced vendors

July 26, 2009 in Baguio City

By IRENE CEBA
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY — In consonance with the 45-day restoration work at the burnt sections of the Baguio City Public Market, displaced vendors who built temporay stalls in the area are dismantling their structures and transferring to the tent-stalls set-up by the city government.

The tarpaulin stalls are set-up in a perimeter immediately outside the old market buildings, in front of the Marharlika center and in the market place center. The restoration work is in “full swing,” said Baguio City Market Superintendent Policarpio Tamayo. 16.5 million pesos is allocated to cover the restoration of the roof and walls of the market. Read the rest of this entry →

Busol residents battle against the scheduled demolition

July 26, 2009 in Baguio City, land rights

By ALDWIN G. QUITASOL
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY — Residents in the government declared Busol watershed and Forest reservation race against time looking for other legal remedies to thwart the scheduled demolition of their houses on July 28 to 30.

In a pre-demolition meeting with Baguio City administrator Peter Fianza, the residents presented a letter from the office of the National Commission of Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) regional director Amador Batay-an. Read the rest of this entry →

Garbage still haunts Baguio City

July 26, 2009 in Baguio City, environment, health

By LYN V. RAMO
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY – One year after the city saw stinking garbage piles even in the central business district, city councilors are yet to come up with a permanent solution, prompting a heated discussion that ate up their time during the city council session Monday.

In July 2008, the community adjacent to the dump site in Irisan here barricaded the area preventing dump trucks from emptying garbage until the city held a dialogue with them. As a result the dump site use was extended until end December 2008. Read the rest of this entry →

Beneco street-lighting maintenance project 80% complete

July 26, 2009 in Baguio City, energy

By MANNY LOSTE
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY — As of end June, Beneco reported an 80% accomplishment of the experimental street-lighting maintenance project under an agreement between city hall and Beneco for the latter’s takeover of the city’s street lighting maintenance which is to last from March to September this year. Read the rest of this entry →

CARP extended bill soon to be signed into a law

July 26, 2009 in agriculture, land rights, national

By WENDY ATUBAN
www.nordis.net

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet — With the passage of Senate Bill 2666 or the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) Extension Bill, the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR-CAR) is expecting a five billion peso annual budget for its programs in five years until June 2014. President Gloria Arroyo is expected to sign said bill on August 8 this year.

Some 8,175 farmers are also potential beneficiaries of the 26% remaining land from the 87.45% alloted for CARP. This, including the 74% already distributed before the ten years of CARP expired. Read the rest of this entry →

Resumption of peace talks welcomed

July 26, 2009 in insurgency, national

By ARTHUR L. ALLAD-IW
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY – The resumption of the stalled peace talks between the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) and the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) is welcomed by peace advocates here as a giant leap to achieving just and lasting peace.

Rev. Rex Reyes said it is about time both parties sat down and resumed the peace talks. Read the rest of this entry →

Govt’s anti-insurgency war a failure

July 26, 2009 in Cordillera, insurgency

By ALDWIN G. QUITASOL
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY — The Chadli Molintas Command (CMC) of the New Peoples Army (NPA) of the Ilocos-Cordillera Region described the anti-insurgency campaign of the President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’sadministration as dirty and unwinnable war.

In an e-mailed statement sent to Nordis, CMC spokesperson Martin Montana stated that the Oplan Bantay Laya 2 (OBL 2) of the Arroyo administration is a wicked design to quell the widespread dissent against her unpopular political and economic programs and help her to stay longer in power.

Montana said that the OBL 2 involves dirty political tactics, heavy militarization of urban and countryside areas, harassments, abductions, torture and killings of political activists and relatives of NPA fighters and many other reprehensible acts. Read the rest of this entry →

NO FPIC yet for Hedcor’s mini-hydro plan

July 26, 2009 in Cordillera, energy, land rights

By ARTHUR L. ALLAD-IW
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY — The regional office of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP-CAR) said that the planned mini-hydro project by the power firm Hedcor along the Amburayan River in Kapangan, Benguet has no free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) as no application has been filed in their office yet.

Nordis learned from NCIP Regional Director Amador Batay-an there is no FPIC granted yet by their office for the proposed project. Read the rest of this entry →

Cordillera economy declines

July 26, 2009 in Cordillera, economy

By LYN V. RAMO
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY — Cordillera planners noted a decelerated regional growth, with only about 1.8% in 2008 overall increase compared to a 7.1% growth in 2007, following a national downtrend.

The National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) report as of July 2009 showed a national slowing down of economic growth from 7.1% in 2006-2007 to 3.5% in 2007-2008. Read the rest of this entry →

Drug company retrieves waste in Benguet

July 26, 2009 in Cordillera, environment, general

By LYN V. RAMO
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY — A group of multinational companies (MNCs) producing petrochemical farm supply is now embarking on retrieving pesticide containers buying back empty bottles, plastic containers and sachets from farmers in a Benguet pilot area.

Farmers in the Loo Valley in Buguias, Benguet started collecting their refuse since April, according to Bayer-Philippines Technical Services Manager Florence Vasquez. Bayer is among six MNCs allied with the CropLife, which is spearheading the retrieval project, as part of their respective community social responsibility (CSR) agenda. Read the rest of this entry →

Editorial Cartoon: 26 July 2009

July 26, 2009 in editorials, opinion

Editorial: Courageous woman

July 26, 2009 in editorials, general, opinion

www.nordis.net

Melissa Roxas, the Fil-American activist who and two male companions were abducted by suspected military agents together with her two male companions, has returned to the Philippines to confront the perpetrators of this crime.

Leaving the relative safety and comfort of her home in the United States, she took a courageous step of retelling in detail the circumstances of her abduction and eventual release which has convinced Chairperson Leila de Lima of the Commission of Human Rights of the veracity of her testimony. Read the rest of this entry →

Labor Watch: Making the lives of workers more miserable

July 26, 2009 in general

By ALDWIN G. QUITASOL
www.nordis.net

An ungrateful man is like a hog under a tree eating acorns, but never looking up to see where they come from. — Timothy Dexter

Last week, the mineworkers of Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company (LCMC) received partial payment of their 10-day salary. The company gave each of them P1,000.00. The mineworkers but accept the pegged amount as they have their stomachs and their families to feed. Most of them have children who are studying in the colleges and universities in Baguio City. And many of them have to pay tuition now as preliminary examinations are approaching.

One mineworker whose child who is sick. He was thinking of bringing his child to a specialist aside from those in the company hospital once he gets his wages from the company he served many long years. Then will give the rest of his money to his wife to budget for their food, fare of the kids in school and other household needs. Read the rest of this entry →

Mentor's Corner: Balaku sa mo? (I thought)

July 26, 2009 in general

By GEMMA LOMBOY
www.nordis.net

“Taning” (defined life expectancy) is the most dreaded word one would to be commended for. Even during submission of reports, deadlines makes one crazy when one is unprepared.

Well, I am not a practicing doctor nor one who administers ‘euthanasia’ when requested but I gave myself a five-year chance to prove myself worthy and get married or else I shall bid goodbye to the land of the mountains (that was a decade ago). “Balaku sa mo… a Kapampangan term which means ‘akala ko’ I could never have what I wanted, a good and stable job, love life and offspring. Thank God my foster land accepted me without hesitation. I even got a bonus lately of having a position every mentor will ever dream of. Read the rest of this entry →

Pokus: City’s extravagant garbage disposal

July 26, 2009 in general

By IRENE CEBA
www.nordis.net

The Irisan dumpsite cannot contain the City’s garbage anymore. The only resort as of now is to haul the garbage to a Tarlac landfill area. Councilor Rocky Thomas Balisong said that the best solution is for the city to come up with its own sanitary landfill. He said, in an interview, that the council is still in a long process of negotiating and conducting surveys, however, he also said that this garbage crisis needs an immediate action.

The city government allocated 70 million pesos for the maintenance of the city’s garbage hauling. And is spending 48,000 pesos per trip. Six trips are needed every day to bring the garbage to Tarlac. That is 288,000pesos a day and a total of 1,561,000 per week. This bothers not only the government officials but especially the people for the fund is extracted from the public taxes and that may be spent on other important concerns of the public if only the garbage maintenane did not cost that much. Read the rest of this entry →

Statements: Under siege and fighting back

July 26, 2009 in general

An assessment of the state of the Philippine media

By University of the Philippines College of Mass Communication (UP CMC) led by Dean Roland B. Tolentino, 24 faculty members, 5 staff, 11 student organizations and the UP CMC Student Council
www.nordis.net

24 July 2009

Philippine media have been under siege since Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo came to power. The hostile environment her watch has created, unprecedented since the Marcos period, has undermined the constitutionally protected freedom of expression in general and press freedom in particular.

The killing of journalists persists. More than half of the journalists killed during the post-Marcos period were killed during the Macapagal-Arroyo administration. Only in three cases – the murder of Edgar Damalerio, Marlene Esperat and Armando Pace – have the killers been convicted. However, no mastermind has been prosecuted. Read the rest of this entry →