Cebu local news (daily update)

[marqi_20]

Mariñas moves to LP; One Cebu not surprised

CEBU, Philippines - It was no longer a surprise for One Cebu Party that Barili Mayor Teresito Mariñas jumped ship to Liberal Party.

Mariñas took his oath as member of LP before the party’s provincial chairman Hilario Davide III yesterday. Former Senator John “Sonny” Osmeña and former third district Rep. Antonio Yapha, Jr. were also present at the oathtaking at the St. Anne Academy in Poblacion, Barili.

“This comes as no surprise to One Cebu, and is merely the culmination of a long-standing attempt on his part to wiggle out of a commitment he made before the 2010 elections regarding the upcoming elections in 2013,” said Third District Rep. Pablo John Garcia, the secretary-general of One Cebu.

In 2010, Garcia’s brother, now Barili Vice Mayor Marlon Garcia, was set to run against Mariñas.

To prevent a possible collision, Mariñas struck a deal with Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, the chairperson of One Cebu, “to let him run unopposed in 2010 and, after one term, for Marlon to run for mayor in 2013, unopposed by him.”

Pablo John said that to preserve party unity, Marlon and One Cebu leaders agreed to the deal and Marlon made the ultimate sacrifice and slid down to vice mayor.

“With his oath-taking, Mayor Mariñas is merely manifesting that he does not and probably never had any intention of fulfilling his end of the bargain,” Pablo John said.

“All 10 councilors of Barili, and 40 out of 42 barangay captains — all members of One Cebu - wish Mayor Mariñas all the luck as he takes his oath before leaders of the LP who, perhaps by coincidence, all lost in the last elections,” he added.

Early this year, Davide, who lost in last year’s gubernatorial race, said LP will be recruiting more members to strengthen the party in Cebu. He said all cities and provinces are represented in the LP’s national directorate.

After the May 2010 elections, Davide’s runningmate, the late vice governor Gregorio Sanchez, also said that many mayors of One Cebu party and other elected provincial officials have signified their intention to transfer to the LP. (FREEMAN)

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Garcia wants province rabies free by 2013

CEBU, Philippines - Following the recent declaration of the Camotes Group of Islands and Malapascua Island as rabies free zones, Governor Gwendolyn Garcia said she would want the entire province to be rabies free by 2013, eight years ahead of the national target in 2020.

The formal declaration of Camotes Group of Islands and Malapascua Island as “Rabies Free Zone” highlighted the celebration of World Rabies Day last September 29, 2011. The celebration was held at the Mall of Asia in Pasay City in collaboration with the Animal Welfare Coalition, and Merial, Novartis, Sanofi and Nestle Philippines, Inc.

The declaration was spearheaded by the National Rabies Committee, an inter-agency committee composed of Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Animal Industry (DA-BAI), Department of Health (DOH), Department of Education (DepEd), Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), private sector and non-government organizations.

Since 2008, the NRC has issued the declaration to a province or municipality that has no positive cases of both human and dog rabies.

Provincial Agriculturist Dr. Mary Rose Vincoy said it was the first time that more than one island was declared.

Although Malapascua technically is a part of the Municipality of Daanbantayan, it is under the administrative supervision of the Province of Cebu.

Responding to the challenge of Garcia, Vincoy said they are now initiating simultaneous vaccination in all local government units across the province.

“We are hoping that by the end of December, we will reach an 80 percent vaccination coverage based on the total dog population in the whole province,” Vincoy told The FREEMAN.

To date, she said that around 15 LGUs already have achieved 100 percent vaccination coverage based on their total dog population.

To sustain the areas that were already declared rabies free zone, Vincoy said that they are now “technically very strict with the entry and exit of dogs.”

Vincoy said they are already identifying quarantine officers to check vaccination cards for dogs and cats at the entry points like Danao City for Camotes Island and Maya wharf in Daanbantayan for Malapascua Island.

“We will deploy personnel to check boats if dogs have vaccination card before given shipping permit,” Vincoy added. (FREEMAN)

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Unearthed skeleton leads to driver's arrest

CEBU, Philippines - A tricycle driver was arrested for killing his gay lover, whose skeleton was found in an abandoned building in Lipata, Minglanilla town last Friday afternoon.

Police said it was the tactlessness of Richard Mandal, 34, that led to his arrest for killing and then burying 54-year-old Albert Navarro last May.

PO2 Roy Sarsaba of Talisay City Police Station who was one of the arresting officers, said they arrested the suspect at 5:45 pm last Friday, almost two hours after they exhumed the victim’s body.

The suspect, who admitted to the crime, did not resist arrest.

Talisay police officers led by SPO4 Daniel Tarucan arrested Mandal at his grandmother’s house in Mohon, Talisay City.

Sarsaba said the suspect confessed that he killed the victim around 1 pm last May 17 allegedly out of rage because the victim, who was his lover, kept on touching his body.

“Nasuko siya kay sige daw og hikap-hikap, magparayg ba,” Sarsaba said.

The suspect was allegedly in a bad mood at that time because he earlier had a fight with his wife over some personal matters.

The couple, who has a daughter, lived in sitio Lower Mohon, Barangay Mohon, just near the abandoned building. After the fight, the suspect slept in the building which later became the scene of the crime.

Sarsaba said the victim admitted that in his rage, he got a piece of wood and whipped the victim’s neck. The victim, still conscious, attempted to stand, but the suspect whipped him again on the same spot which later led to his death.

Mandal revealed to the authorities that he dug a hole, about one to two feet deep, and buried the victim.

After killing Navarro, Mandal said he still slept inside the building until some few days ago.

His secret was discovered when a fellow tricycle driver in Minglanilla asked him last week why he no longer plied his route.

“Unya kay pagtubag niya nasipyat man siya. Nakapagawas siya ug storya nga nakapatay siya ug tawo,” Sarsaba said.

Last Friday, Sarsaba said the information reached the ears of Galy Navarro, the victim’s younger brother.

Galy, suspecting that his brother was the one killed by the suspect, went to the police station and sought the help of the police.

Tarucan and his fellow policemen proceeded to the crime scene, where neighbors say Mandal and Navarro were last seen together in May.

The police were about to dig a soft portion of the soil when one of the residents suggested that the police try the area near the ladder where they saw the suspect digging last May.

It was in the said spot where the police found a human skeleton with its remaining internal organs already decomposing.

Galy identified the skeleton as his brother through the necklace found near the neck.

After discovering the victim’s skeleton, the police looked for the suspect and arrested him. Mandal admitted the crime and is now detained while awaiting murder charges which will be filed against him tomorrow. (FREEMAN)

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School, houses damaged in fire incidents

CEBU, Philippines - School property pegged to be worth P75,000 was damaged when Cebu Eastern College at Leon Kilat corner Dimasalang Streets in Cebu City caught fire last Friday night.

CEC’s audio-visual room (AVR) which is located at the fourth floor of the four-storey building caught fire at 6:30 pm prompting the nearby fire departments to respond to the scene and control the fire in ten minutes.

Firemen traced the origin of the fire to electrical misuse. Different fire stations in the city inlcuding the Cebu Filipino-Chinese Volunteer Fire Brigade, Emergency Rescue Unit Foundation, and barangay fire brigades also assisted in putting out the fire.

The FREEMAN tried to get the side of the school management but nobody faced reporters yesterday.

Some first year college students, who refused to reveal their names, said they initially felt afraid after learning that a fire razed their school.

In a separate incident, a house was totally burned while another was partially destroyed when another fire broke out in Unit 5, Oppra, Barangay Kalunasan at 1:30 am yesterday.

The house where the blaze started was owned by Alfonso Roldan who was out of town when the fire broke out.

The fire spread to the two-storey house of Jonnie Saberon and damaged the second floor.

According to the fire department, the fire was controlled in five minutes but managed to leave behind damages worth P85,000.

Luckily, no one died or was injured in both incidents. (FREEMAN)

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LTO enforces emission testing by areas

CEBU, Philippines - The Land Transportation Office-7 has designated areas in the region where vehicles can undergo emission testing, or the so-called Geographical Area of Responsibility (GAOR) of Private Emission Testing Centers (PETC).

In a memorandum dated August 3, LTO Assistant Secretary Virginia Torres called for the strict observance of the rule on Geographical Area of Responsibility effective last September 1.

“The rule means that the district office shall only accept for registration purposes vehicles which have undergone emission testing by, and/or obtained certificates of emission compliance from private emission testing centers located within the same LTO district service area where these were authorized,” the memorandum read.

The LTO exempts “fleet vehicles” or those vehicles owned by companies or entities which are being utilized in different parts of the country.

The authorized PETC within the GAOR of Cebu City District Office includes JPV V. Rama, JPV Lahug, Maintek Tres de Abril, Maintek E-mall, and Mc. Anderson V. Rama.

In Mandaue City, the authorized emission testing centers are Nikkei Soriano St., TOL-CEB-TA Soriano St., Nikkei Subangdaku, Nikkei Basak, and VGL Soriano. In Lapu-Lapu City, these include JPV and LLYLE.

In Talisay City, the authorized PETC is in TOLC-CEB-TA, D & H, Joshin, and Garnet while in Toledo City, the areas are TJL, TOL-CEB-TA, and Amie Trading.

RAC Liloan, JPV Danao City, San Roque Bantayan Island, and RAC Puro, Camotes Island are the authorized PETC within the GAOR of Danao City District Office.

The Medellin Extension Office may only process the registration papers of vehicles which have undergone emission testing from Comval Bogo City and San Roque Medellin while in Carcar City, the authorized centers are JPV and Galaxy.

LTO-7 has also identified the authorized PETC within the area of responsibility of Jagna, Talibon, and Tagbilaran City in Bohol; Dumaguete City, Bais City, and Bayawan City in Negros Oriental, and in Siquijor. (FREEMAN)

[marqi_20]

Talisay City stages a moveable feast

With Angelique Ann L. Rufin, PIT AB Comm Intern

DESPITE the scorching heat, this year’s staging of the Halad Inasal Festival in Talisay City drew a larger crowd compared to the previous years, said Vice Mayor Alan Bucao. Officials are looking for a more spacious venue next year.

In contrast to previous festivals, however, no real crispy lechons were showcased. Instead, performers used props made from plastic or paper, which were shaped and painted to look like the lechon Talisay City is known for.

Mayor Socrates Fernandez was a no-show, because of another engagement.

Rep. Eduardo Gullas (Cebu Province, 1st district), who started the festival in 2002, said Talisaynons have a rich tradition that includes making regular offerings to its patron saint, Sta. Teresa de Avila.

Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale, who represented Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, said Talisay’s festival was one of the first in the province. She described it as lively and said it reflected the prayers and offerings of residents.

Festival Queen Shiela Cabigon, 14, a third-year high school student of the Sisters of Mary School, appealed to parents to steer their children away from cyber pornography.

Catechism class taught them how to live decently and in accordance with the values of Christianity and Talisay’s patron saint, Cabigon said.

Eight contingents from different schools competed in the Halad-Inasal Ritual Dance Competition, and wowed the audience with their grace.

The Sisters of Mary School held on to its position as grand champion in street dancing, ritual showdown and best in audio van. They bagged the same awards last year. For this year, they also received the Best in Andas category.

“Being a part of the festival itself is a great honor and privilege, and it serves as a contribution for my school. The festival was meant to be the ‘panaad sa katawhan’ (the people’s offering),” said Glory Fe Bersales, a dancer from Lawaan National High School.

Mars Aragon, dance master for Pundok Kandulawanun, said he was impressed that all the students he trained were cooperative, even if they had only one month to prepare.

Just like in the previous years, the festival kicked off at the Cebu South Coastal Road (CSCR) across the Talisay City Hall. Traffic was disrupted and police operatives were stationed along the parade route.

The ritual showdown took place on the grounds of the Talisay City Central School.

Victor Cuenco, artistic director of the festival since it was first held in 2002, said the number of contingents was the biggest so far.

Vice Mayor Bucao said he hopes they can stage a grander festival next year because it has given their tourism industry a boost. The number of balikbayans has increased. He hopea local leaders like Governor Garcia, Mayor Fernandez and Congressman Gullas will continue to support the festival.

Talisay City Budget Officer Edgar Mabunay said the City Government allocated almost P1.5 million, not just for the festival but for the entire cultural celebration like the nightly programs and festival production.

Bucao said they also received financial assistance from the governor and Gullas. The festival capped the City’s annual fiesta celebrations.

Published in the Sun.Star Cebu newspaper on October 16, 2011.

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Bulk of Cebu City’s AIP for 2012, or P430M, goes to economic development

CEBU City’s Annual Investment Plan (AIP) for 2012 has earmarked P430 million for economic development. This is almost half the total amount of P880 million.

The difference will be divided between social development projects (P228 million) and environmental management (P221.9 million).While the City contemplates the total closure of the Inayawan Sanitary Landfill, it intends to balance it with several infrastructure projects under environmental management.

A total of P11.5 million will be spent to build material recovery facilities (MRFs) and establish composting facilities, as well as implement composting, recycling and environmental sustainability programs in the city’s barangays.

Going greener

Another P2 million will be spent to build MRFs in 20 urban barangays.

The proposed AIP also earmarked P1 million to rehabilitated the drainage canal of the landfill.

The Department of Public Services also intends to reconstruct the sewage treatment plant at the North Reclamation Area.

The plant will process septic wastes that have also been banned from being dumped at the landfill, complementing the first closure of the landfill for unsegregated waste last April.

Over P5 million will be spent on waste-to-energy facilities to be installed in the MRFs of Barangays Luz, Talamban and Quiot as some related projects in pilot barangays in Cebu City.

Also under environmental management is financial assistance to the 10 largest barangays in the north and south districts, at P3 million each.

This is also complemented with P2 million each for the 20 barangays under economic development.

The remaining 60 barangays will also receive P3 million each as financial assistance.

Scrapped park

Among the listed projects under economic development is the construction of local roads, road concreting and asphalting in over 20 barangays.

The City Government will also help Barangays Punta Princesa, Inayawan and Pasil build markets.

Under the social development projects, the proposed AIP funded the construction of Pasil Park (P25 million) under rehabilitation of cultural and historical sites.

But when the City Council defunded the infrastructure projects under the second supplemental budget, the park was left with funding of just P1.

It was better news for the Cebu City Medical Center. Its dream of having a CT (computerized tomography) scan to improve services will finally be realized, as the Cebu Development Council appropriated P30 million for the machine under the AIP.

The AIP will be partly funded by the Local Development Fund, which represents 20 percent of the City’s internal revenue allotment (IRA).

Cebu City’s IRA this year is over a billion.

Published in the Sun.Star Cebu newspaper on October 16, 2011.

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Law ‘bars’ banks from garnishing LGU funds

THE court is barred from taking Cebu City Hall funds to pay the Rallos heirs, unless the City itself appropriates the money to make payment.

Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) vice president Rosemarie Osoteo conveyed this in a letter sent to the court, in response to the earlier notice of garnishment the bank received from court sheriff Antonio Bellones for P133 million. “Kindly understand that under the General Banking Law of 2000, banks are mandated to treat the accounts of its depositors with meticulous care, always having in mind the fiduciary nature of their relationship,” she said.

Osoteo, a lawyer, is with LBP’s litigation department in Manila.

She cited Supreme Court (SC) Administrative Circular 10-2000 of Oct. 25, 2000, as adopted by Commission on Audit (COA) circular 2001-002.

Procedure

“Absent a showing that the municipal council… has passed an ordinance appropriating its public funds an amount corresponding to the balance due… no levy under execution may be validly effected.”

She also said garnishments should pass through the COA.

“All money claims against the government must first be filed with the COA, which must act on it within 60 days. Rejection of the claim will authorize the claimant to elevate the matter to the SC on certiorari,” she said.

The Office of the Clerk of Court has assigned a new sheriff to “serve, implement, execute and/or enforce without unnecessary delay” the garnishment.

Clerk of Court Jeoffrey Joaquino issued the order assigning Eugenio Fuentes Jr. to the case yesterday.

Fuentes will replace Bellones, who retires next week with a pending complaint before the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas.

Fuentes’s assignment comes with a caveat from Joaquino to act “strictly in accordance with (the court’s) command and/or direction and in the manner provided by law and the Rules of Court.”

The notice of garnishment intends to take from the City P133,469,962.55 as “just compensation” for a 4,654-square meter lot the City took from the Rallos family to make a road.

With interest

Temporarily stalled by a pending motion to quash, the garnishment comes following years of litigation and the previous garnishment of P51 million during previous city administrations.

The P133.4 million represents the 12 percent interest per annum of the principal balance, incurred when the court increased from P7,500 to P9,500 the per-square-meter value of the lot and “12 percent per annum interest upon said interest due.”

The SC, in circular 10-2000, directs that judges in all lower courts must exercise “utmost caution, prudence and judiciousness” in issuing writs to satisfy money claims against local government units and government agencies.

Published in the Sun.Star Cebu newspaper on October 16, 2011.

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Passing the buck at each other

NEITHER the Cebu City Division for the Welfare of the Urban Poor (DWUP) nor the Department of Engineering and Public Works (DEPW) wants to be responsible for releasing construction materials worth P3.6 million to Dakay Construction.

The firm has been asking DWUP to replenish its construction materials, which were used in self-help projects of the City Government.It built multi-purpose buildings, using its own materials and work force, from December 2009 to April 2010.

Dakay Construction did not charge for labor as part of its corporate social responsibility, but it wants to recover materials used in the projects, including bags of cement.

Discovery

However, DWUP Chief Collin Rosell said he learned the projects involved the construction of several chapels instead of multi-purpose buildings, prompting him to ask the Commission on Audit (COA) for advice if it is legal to release the construction materials, which are in the DEPW warehouse.

While waiting for the COA’s reply, Rosell also sent a letter to the engineering department expressing his intention to turn over the control and use of the materials to the latter because these were originally under the DEPW’s account.

In her reply to Rosell’s letter, City Engineer Kenneth Carmelita Enriquez said her office doesn’t want to be responsible for the materials because the projects involved were implemented under the DWUP’s supervision.

“It is your office who received the delivery of the materials hence, it is but proper for your office to exercise its control and utilization of subject materials initially allotted for self-help projects,” Enriquez said in her letter.

The DEPW head added, though, they are agreeable to accept the responsibility for the next budget allocation of the City’s self-help projects.
Meanwhile, COA opted not to render any comment on Rosell’s request because it would then have to determine whether the expenditure complied with laws and regulations.
Section 335, RA 7160
In her reply to Rosell’s letter, COA Cebu City audit team leader Eva Cabrera clarified that an opinion for that matter will amount to a pre-audit, which was already lifted under COA Circular 2011-002, dated July 22, 2011.

But Cabrera said they already inspected the deliveries when they received the papers and they conducted another inspection to confirm the existence of the multi-purpose buildings.

However, the state auditor clarified that the results of their inspections will be strictly restricted for their post-audit use only.

Cabrera reminded Enriquez about Section 335 of Republic Act 7160, also known as the Local Government Code.

According to it, “no public money or property shall be appropriated or applied for religious or private purposes.”

But since the DEPW won’t accept the responsibility of releasing the construction materials to Dakay Construction, Rosell said he will instruct his staff to make a liquidation report, so he can submit it to the DEPW.

Published in the Sun.Star Cebu newspaper on October 16, 2011.

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Gabriela calls for total ban on pageants

THE Cebu City Anti-Indecency Board (Caib) wants to ban the wearing of two-piece swimwear in beauty pageants, but for a women’s party-list, beauty pageants should be banned altogether.

Leny Ocasiones, Cebu chapter president of the Gabriela Women’s Party-list, said beauty pageants exploit women.“Gabriela’s position on beauty pageants has always been the banning of it as it exploits women and puts too much emphasis on physical beauty,” she told Sun.Star Cebu yesterday.

Caib’s resolution

The Caib last Wednesday approved a resolution banning two-piece swimwear in beauty pageants, Miss Gay competitions, and similar events.

“The board finds it inappropriate for contestants to wear two-piece swimwear on stage and in front of a live audience,” the Caib said in a resolution.

Instead of candidates wearing swimwear, Caib wants event organizers to allow only sportswear in beauty pageants, the same policy being applied in the annual Miss Cebu, which is held during the Sinulog celebration.

“Caib is inclined to concur (with the policy of Miss Cebu) and implement this citywide, and further prohibit the use of skimpy swimwear for male and female contestants,” the board said.

The resolution is awaiting the approval of Mayor Michael Rama.

Ocasiones said, however, that making legal actions to ban beauty pageants is not a priority for the party-list at present.

Priority

She said they focus on educating the community about the rights of women.

“This is something cultural so we focus more on awareness-raising of women and children that physical beauty is not something that defines a person, that pageants are business ventures done at the expense of women,” she said.

For Caib, the proper garments during beauty competitions “must not be see-through, wet look nor silhouetted.”

However, the board said leniency will be extended “in a case to case basis,” particularly if the location of the beauty competition is near a swimming pool or on the beach.

The board wants the 80 barangays of Cebu City to “help curb indecency” by monitoring all beauty pageants in their villages, once the mayor approves the new policy.

Published in the Sun.Star Cebu newspaper on October 16, 2011.