Cebu local news (daily update)

[cobraKing]

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------------------------------------Aug. 20,2010----------------------------------------

Winds, floods wreak havoc on homes: Nature unleashes fury around Cebu

CEBU, Philippines – Two houses were literally blown away and several others were damaged when winds wrought havoc in several areas around Cebu Province yesterday.
Two houses were totally destroyed and seven others were also affected when a whirlwind hit the shoreline of sitio Baybayon, barangay Talaga, Argao town lo-cated about 66 kilometers south of Cebu City.
In the island of Bantayan, 22 houses were reported to have been damaged Tuesday night when a tornado hit sitio Macabayao, barangay Lipayran, Bantayan town in the northern end of the province.
One child was also reported injured when he was hit by a flying galvanized iron sheet.
Meanwhile, in barangay Pasil, Santander town, flashfloods brought about by the rains hit at least 21 houses also at dawn yesterday.
The two houses that were totally destroyed in Argao were owned by Elizabeth Alonzo, a barangay health worker, and Danilo Ramos.
Alonzo also sustained an injury on her upper lip after she was hit by a hard object while trying to swim to shore after she and her house fell into the waters.
Alonzo and her family were already outside of their house before it collapsed, but she got back inside to get her money.
While she was inside the structure made of light materials, the wind ravaged it causing the floor to collapse into the water taking Alonzo.
Ramos and his family were already outside of their residence when it was blown away. Only a wall remains from where it once stood.
Florentino Ortega, the barangay captain of Talaga, said he was awakened around 2 a.m. due to the noise brought about by the heavy rains and strong winds.
He said that his house was also partially damaged when the winds almost blew off the roof.


The same happened to the house of the barangay chief's daughter, Elvira Ortega-Buntado, the first councilwoman of the barangay.
Parts of the roof of Buntado's house also were almost blown off.
Jose de la Peña, a barangay tanod who was at a post beside the house of Buntado, claimed that he was carried about two feet off the ground, but was lucky that there was a concrete post, which he used to cling to for dear life. Ortega said four families have moved to the safety of the houses of their relatives.
He also said that construction materials will be given to Alonzo and Ramos as well as five other families today. These will come from the municipal govern-ment.
The whirlwind also felled an acacia tree and policemen had to help clear the area as it blocked the road.
A truck, owned by Buntado, also reportedly was moved about 30 meters from where it was originally parked.
Ortega said Argao Mayor Edsel Galeos might declare a state of calamity in the affected area today.
Damage to property was pegged at P600,000.
The municipal government was however quick to extend food provisions to the displaced families.
In Santander, the families were awakened around 1 am when waters from the mountain entered their houses. Residents claimed that the lack of drainage was the cause of the incident.
They said that they have already requested the barangay last February to address this problem, but it has not been acted upon.
Four houses in Bantayan lost their roofs while the rest of the damaged houses almost lost their roofs.

Alimpus

The phenomenon is locally called as alimpus.
Oscar Tabada, the chief weather specialist based in Mactan, said that the speed of the whirlwind sometimes range from 200 to 300 kilometers per hour.
Tabada said tornado is just a pure rotating column of wind sometimes with a speed up to 300 kilometers per hour, while the waterspout, locally known as "bu-hawi," is accompanied by water. Severe thunderstorms, which produce tornadoes can create flooding rains and strong winds.
Tabada added that the intense heat from the land that will go up in the air will create a body of clouds called "cumulonimbus."
Once the cumulonimbus clouds will meet the cold temperature in the atmosphere, it will trigger friction.
Warm and cold air mixing together is from a thunderstorm. Thunderstorms may also develop a tornado. A tornado is very violent and may cause severe destruc-tion, he said.
The chief weather specialist explained that tornado's diameter is only less than a kilometer, while the windstorm or cyclone will reach up to 1,000 kilometers.
Before a tornado strikes there are some signs that you should watch out for. The first sign of a tornado is a thunderstorm and there would probably be lightning, rain, and hail.
There would be some color changes in the sky that will become a greenish color.

Aid From Capitol

Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia immediately ordered the giving of assistance to those affected by the weather disturbance in the southern part of the prov-ince.
While the houses in Argao were devastated by the whirlwind, more families were affected by the flashfloods in Santander.
"We are already giving them assistance such as foodstuff, habol, banig, and used-clothing. Those are basic things," said Garcia.
She also said that there are plans to look for a relocation site for the victims.
"Pangitaan unya na sila og laing luna if they were along the coast," said Garcia.
Meanwhile, based on the geohazard mapping of DENR-Mines and Geosciences Bureau 7, Santander and Argao have not been included in list of six municipali-ties and three cities in Cebu which were considered to be most hazardous areas.
MGB-7 has identified Cebu City, Balamban, Toledo City, Pinamungahan, Dumanjug, Ronda, Asturias, Catmon, and Talisay City as most susceptible to land-slides.
According to DENR-MGB 7 Regional Director Loreto B. Alburo there should be an early warning device, identify evacuation site and monitor for saturated ground or seeps in areas that are not normally wet.

[cobraKing]

One-side vending still unimplemented

CEBU, Philippines – It has been one month since Mayor Michael Rama ordered the implementation of the one-side vending scheme at the down town area, but the order remains un-implemented until now.
This prompted Rama to call for a meeting with the people he tasked to implement it. The mayor is scheduled to meet Noel Artes, head of the City Hall's Squat-ters Prevention Encroachment Elimination Division; Gerry Marquez, urban poor consultant; and Dennis Jabonero.
Rama said he wanted to know from the three key persons he tasked to implement why the one-side vending has not been implemented.
He also wanted the three to have a uniform stand in implementing his order.
"Silang tulo akong pahinumdoman nga dili mahimo nga ang mga sidewalk vendors ang magbuot. Dili usab sila maglainlain og paagi pagpatuman sa order," Rama said.
"Maayo nila nga tan-awon kon kinsa man g'yud ang dunay katungod nga mogamit sa aseras, dili magbuot ang anaa sa sidewalk, kon pasagdan nato sila diha asa na man lang kita moagi paglakaw?" Rama added.
Artes told The FREEMAN that the reason why the mayor's order has not been implemented until now because Marquez and Jabonero requested to wait for the uniform stalls to be used by the vendors before implementing the one side vending.
It's already one month since Rama issued the order to implement a one-side vending along Colon Street and other downtown streets to make it easier for the pedestrians to pass the sidewalks, but his order remains unimplemented by SPEED.


Artes yesterday admitted that he failed to fully implement the one-side vending policy because he has decided to give the vendors more time to adjust.
He only reduced the height of the vendors' stalls so these will not obstruct the view of the establishments at the back.
Rama has agreed that not all the vendors will be allowed to stay beside the walls of the establishment because there are some establishment owners that may not allow vendors to stay in front of them.
The mayor also wants to clear the sidewalks of any obstacle during night time. Artes said that effective August 23 the vendors are no longer allowed to leave their stalls, pushcarts and benches at the sidewalks.
"Inig-abut sa alas 11 sa gabii suroyon namo ang aseras ug ipangkarga ang mga makit-an namo nga gipangbilin sa mga tindera," Artes said.

[cobraKing]

Unit 2 Carbon Market rebuilding underway


CEBU, Philippines – The Cebu City Market Authority is reviving the plan to reconstruct the building at the Unit 2 Carbon Market that was razed by fire in 1998.
Market administrator Raquel Arce said that this shall be one of the priorities of the Market Authority within the three years of Mayor Michael Rama's first term in office.
Arce said that the building will be operation within one to two years. Initial works have already started including the retrieval of the previous building plan from the city engineering office and the preparation of the new program of works and estimates that attunes to the prevailing market price of building materials and other resources necessary for the reconstruction.
Arce said that what is important is to be able to start the preparation this year before the bidding process to put an end to the long wait on when the city gov-ernment will rebuild the market.
It was first proposed and budgeted during the administration of former mayor Alvin Garcia. Garcia awarded the P144.9-million contract to Young Builders Corp. to rehabilitate the market but the contract was rescinded later by then mayor Tomas Osmeña.
Osmeña reportedly did not approve the design of the building so he opted to build a ramp from F. Escaño Street to F. Gonzales Street with a contract price of P135 million to decongest the traffic in Carbon area.
But the ramp project also did not push through because the contractor, this time WT Construction, asked for the adjustment of the contract price since they were deemed to incur losses due to the increase in the price of building materials.
The construction by WT was delayed several times because Young Builders Corp refused to vacate the area unless the city pays them P6 million as additional to the down payment which covers the initial work done by the company.


Illegal settlers also started occupying the area. The case of Young Builders versus the city government is still pending in court.
Arce said that during their strategic planning recently, they only agreed to the revival of the plan to rebuild the unit 2 of Carbon Market but as to the ramp, it remains to be seen.
"It will also depend later on the available budget," she said.
Other than the rehabilitation of Carbon, City Administrator Jose Mari Poblete, who heads the Market Authority, said that they will also revisit the city's market policies since they have policies that do not address current real problems at the market like in Carbon.
"Ang ato man gud policies are generic, so kung naa'y specific problem sa market, ang solusyon, analogous cases. We will conduct benchmarking activities sa other markets or we can learn from the policies in other countries to ensure the smooth management of our markets here in Cebu City," Poblete said.
Arce said that Rama ordered for zero growth of ambulant vendors especially in the Carbon Market. They are currently conducting an inventory of all ambulant vendors not just in Carbon but also in other markets within the city.
They will also strictly implement the 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. and vice versa policy for vendors so there will be no overlapping. This policy allows day vendors to open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. while night shift vendors may only open from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.

[cobraKing]

PhilHealth claims rise with increase in dengue cases

CEBU, Philippines – An increase of PhilHealth claims filed was noted with the rise of the number of dengue cases in the country.
Over P35 million of total benefits payment was expected to be released with 9,109 claims filed, compared to last year's amount of more than P25 million in benefit payments with 7,056 claims filed.
Philhealth offers hospitalization benefits for members and their dependents confined in accredited hospitals due to dengue and its complications. Dengue cases may be classified under PhilHealth's unified benefit schedule as Case Type A,B or C depending on the severity of the condition.
The Department of Health earlier warned the public to be wary of clean water indoors such as dish strains and flower vases, as these are the breeding places of mosquitoes.
Outside the houses, rainwater caught by old tires or by open containers like empty cans and bottles must also be checked.
Classical dengue is generally classified as case type A with fever, joint pains, headache and abdominal pains as general symptoms, said Dr. Avril Tiu, Phil-Health 7 Benefits Administration Section medical officer.
Narrowing of the pulse pressure, cold extremities, and mental confusion characterize the case type C classification, according to PhilHealth 7 medical specialist Dr. Vita Chan.
"Dengue is a disease caused by any one of four closely related dengue viruses which are transmitted to humans by the bite of an infected female Aedes Aegypti mosquito. This is one of the major health problems during the rainy season," read a press statement from PhilHealth.


They added that the signs of dengue are high continuous fever lasting two to seven days, nausea or vomiting, abdominal pain, body weakness, bleeding tenden-cies from the nose and gums, and persistent red spots on the face, extremities and trunk.
Danger signs of dengue include spontaneous bleeding, persistent vomiting, cold and clammy skin, listlessness, weak rapid pulse and difficulty breathing.

[cobraKing]

Student alleges teachers "mauled" him

CEBU, Philippines – A second year Criminology [COLOR=blue ! important][COLOR=blue ! important]student[/COLOR][/COLOR] of the University of Cebu-Main Campus who was earlier detained for allegedly assaulting a college instructor yesterday went to the office of the Investigation and Detective Management Branch of the Cebu City Police Office to deny the latter's accusations and have the "real" story recorded in the police blotter.
Edgardo Martinez, 20, told police that if something happens to him, there's only one person to blame and that is David Mark Maramba, who serves as com-mandant among Criminology interns of the [COLOR=blue ! important][COLOR=blue ! important]school[/COLOR][/COLOR] and happened to be an agent of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.
Martinez, a native of Misamis Occidental, was released from the Cebu City Jail last August 11 after he was arrested last August 4 for allegedly assaulting Maramba while inside the school.
Still weak from fever, the student appeared before the media yesterday and said he wanted Maramba, if possible, terminated from the PDEA-7 and be held re-sponsible for anything that may threaten his life.
The reporters tried to get the side of Maramba but he was not available as he was allegedly out of town, according to his co-workers at the PDEA-7 office.
He, however, sent text messages to one of the reporters saying he was attending a hearing.
"What assurance imong mahatag nga dili mo biased? Kay mura'g lingaw kaayo mo sige'g duot nako. Inamigo ni nga hangyo kay dugay man kaha ta kuyog simbahan. Ambot ngano na inyong gidaginot," his text message reads.
Martinez narrated that around 4 p.m. last August 4, he was on his way to the comfort room after attending his class when a Criminology intern confronted him and told him to take his earring off. Martinez said he took off his earring and was about to proceed to the CR when the intern demanded for his identification card to which he refused.


The intern, who was largely-built, suddenly choked him and dragged him towards the nearby Criminology intern office. The intern then called up Maramba, who is their commandant.
"Miabot si Maramba 'nya gisumbag ko dayon. Gisumbag sad ko sa intern ug ni Dennis Chiong. Si Maramba iyang gibira ang duha nako ka kamot dayon gi-yatak-yatakan akong ulo. Gi-tunob-tunoban akong likod, hasta akong paa gitamakan," Martinez disclosed.
Martinez said the intern, including Dennis Chiong, also a Criminology instructor, punched him but claimed most of the attacks came from Maramba. Chiong is allegedly the son of Crusade Against Violence chairperson Thelma Chiong and a personnel of the National Bureau of Investigation.
"Ingon pa g'yud siya (Maramba), 'Wa ka kaila nako? Taga-PDEA ko. Commandant ko sa UC 'nya nag-cock-cock pa g'yud siya sa iyang armas. Gusto nako ma-tangtang siya. Dili lalim iyang gibuhat nako. Gipakaulawan ko niya," Martinez added.
Two policemen from the Carbon Police Station then came, handcuffed him and brought him to the police station for detention. He was committed to the city jail on August 7 and was temporarily released four days later.
Martinez said he never did fight back at Maramba, Chiong and even at the intern who took turns in attacking him.
Maramba was also accused of leading a team of PDEA agents who reportedly harassed sharpshooters of the Cebu City Police Office who were partying at a beach resort in Pinamungajan September last year.
PDEA-7 Deputy Regional Director, lawyer Mauro Licen, said he still has to hear the side of Maramba and if the evidence warrants, they will conduct an inves-tigation against him.
"We will look into that in what context he used or if ever he uttered the word PDEA in the course of the incident. That will be part of the investigation. We want to assure the public, the complainants that we will not tolerate such kind of behavior in our organization," Licen said.
Licen said they will forward the case to the agency's Internal Affairs Office then to the national office if proven that there is probable cause on the incident. He said this is the first time they received a complaint lodged against an operative for maltreatment or physical injury.

[cobraKing]

Fetus found

CEBU, Philippines – A fetus, believed to be male, was found in a stream in barangay Tungkil, Minglanilla yesterday morning.
The Minglanilla Police Station learned about it after receiving a phone call at around 8 a.m. from a concerned citizen.
"Ang bata kay mga 9 months na. Mao pa lang ang pag-anak. Gisulod ug plastic bag ug nanimaho na. Posible na duha o tulo na kaadlaw gilabay ang maong puya ngadtong dapita," desk officer PO2 Jade Abrica said.
Residents near the place said they had not noticed anyone throwing the plastic bag.
"Hangtud karon wala gihapoy tagtungod nga me kuha sa maong puya ngadto sa funeraria mao nga ilubong nalang ang maong patayng fetus kay nanimaho na kini,"Abrica added.
The fetus was taken to Telly's Funeral Services.
The police are still investigating.

[cobraKing]

Cebuano environmentalist bats for abolition of DENR

CEBU, Philippines – A Cebuano lawyer who is known for his causes to protect the environment has proposed for the abolition of the Department of Environment and Natural Re-sources.
Antonio Oposa, a Ramon Magsaysay Awardee in 2009, said that the DENR should be replaced with two agencies for environmental conservation and devel-opment.
The two agencies, according to Oposa, will be the National Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Natural Resources.
DENR is established by virtue of Executive Order No. 192 issued by then President Corazon C. Aquino on June 10, 1987.
Its sectoral functions include the environmental protection as well as allocating, regulating and monitoring the use and exploitation of water resources.
The department also ensures proper management of solid waste through an Integrated Solid Waste Management Program, monitors and regulates the importation, manufacture, processing, handling, storage, transportation, sale, and distribution of hazardous waste.
Meanwhile, the Climate Change Commission yesterday appealed for greater cooperation to advance its information and education advocacy on climate change and its impacts in the Philippines, as it aims for 100% awareness of Filipinos on the issue, which has been deemed as among the worst problems facing the world today.
The climate change body made this call on the heels of a latest survey released by Pulse Asia, indicating that seven of every 10 Filipinos acknowledge the dan-gers posed by climate change to the environment.


While it welcomed the finding that the percentage of Filipinos who are worried about the dangers of climate change has gone up to 71 percent from 61 percent two years ago, the CCC said attaining a 100%-awareness on climate change and its impacts among Filipinos would be more laudable since better understanding of the matter would help better prepare the people and further encourage people to take action.
"Filipinos should contribute and actively participate in the collective effort of mankind to tackle this destruction, to fight for the survival of mankind against global warming and climate change especially since the impacts of climate change is seen to continuously intensify with a business as usual attitude," pointed out CCC vice chairman Secretary Heherson Alvarez.
"Globally we have to negotiate for deep and early cut. Developed countries must substantially reduce their carbon dioxide emissions. Meanwhile, here in our country, we have to build adaptation system and take on mitigation measures to minimize the destruction of climate change in our economy and lives," he also said.
The CCC particularly appealed to media organizations to become partners of the climate change body in disseminating information and, at the same time, edu-cating Filipinos about climate change and its adverse influence to the country and its people.
The CCC, which is chaired by President Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III, expressed regret over the tendency of most Filipinos to realize climate change only when they were already victims of typhoons, floods and droughts even when the Philippines has been globally recognized as among the most vulnerable to climate change.
The same Pulse Asia survey on climate change showed that only 52% of Filipinos know what the term "climate change" actually means while 48% has little or almost no knowledge at all about the issue.

[cobraKing]

Plastic bags about to disappear in Mandaue

CEBU, Philippines – The use of plastic bags will soon be a thing of the past in Mandaue City.
The city council has approved a proposed ordinance on second reading requiring retail establishments to provide only paper bags or reusable bags and prohibit the distribution of disposable plastic bags.
Councilor Nenita Layese, the chairman of the committee on laws and ordinances, said the ordinancewas introduced by Councilor Demetrio Cortes, Jr., chairman of the committee on environment and natural resources.
The proposed ordinance cited that the production and use of plastic bags and styrofoam have been found to significantly contribute to litter and have other negative impacts on marine wildlife and the environment.
It also said the use of plastic bags and styrofoam, like indiscriminate littering, throwing, dumping of non-biodegrable materials in public places such as roads, side-walks, canals, esteros, parks have largely contributed to the present condition of poor drainage system causing canals to clogged up resulting to flooding.
Under Republic Act No. 9003 otherwise known as the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 states the protection of the public health and environment.
Councilor Layese in her report said that with the law, there is a need for them to utilize environmentally sound methods that maximize the utilization of valuable re-sources and encourage resource conservation and prohibits the manufacturing, distribution or use of non-environmentally acceptable materials.
The volume of non-biodegradable materials at the landfills particularly in the Umapad dumpsite is increasing thus the use of plastic bags, styrofoam or any plastic material is strongly discouraged.


Using paper bags in lieu of plastic bags and styrofoam is a program that reduces waste, thus strengthens the integration of ecological solid waste management and re-sources conservation and recovery.
Once the proposal is approved, violators will be fined not more than P500 or an imprisonment of not more than five days.

[cobraKing]

Another fiscal inhibits from libel case Osmeña filed vs. Guardo

CEBU, Philippines – City Prosecutor Nicolas C. Sellon yesterday approved the inhibition of 2nd Assistant City Prosecutor and Reviewing Officer Liceria S. Lofranco-Rabillas from the libel case filed by former Cebu City mayor now south district Rep. Tomas Osmeña against his political opponent Jonathan Gurado.
In an order, Sellon stated that he himself will resolve the motion for reconsideration filed by Guardo asking Rabillas to inhibit from the case.
Sellon then ordered both Osmeña and Guardo, through their respective counsels, to submit simultaneous memoranda within 15 days from receipt of the order after which the motion for reconsideration shall be deemed submitted for resolution with or without the said memoranda.
"In view of the fact that the resolution sought to be reconsidered or reviewed was issued by no less than a reviewing officer of this office, it would certainly ap-pear inappropriate, if not awkward, if this case will be assigned to another assistant prosecutor for the resolution of the motion," Sellon said in his order.

[randymunz]

Plastic bags about to disappear in Mandaue

CEBU, Philippines – The use of plastic bags will soon be a thing of the past in Mandaue City.
The city council has approved a proposed ordinance on second reading requiring retail establishments to provide only paper bags or reusable bags and prohibit the distribution of disposable plastic bags.
Councilor Nenita Layese, the chairman of the committee on laws and ordinances, said the ordinancewas introduced by Councilor Demetrio Cortes, Jr., chairman of the committee on environment and natural resources.
The proposed ordinance cited that the production and use of plastic bags and styrofoam have been found to significantly contribute to litter and have other negative impacts on marine wildlife and the environment.
It also said the use of plastic bags and styrofoam, like indiscriminate littering, throwing, dumping of non-biodegrable materials in public places such as roads, side-walks, canals, esteros, parks have largely contributed to the present condition of poor drainage system causing canals to clogged up resulting to flooding.
Under Republic Act No. 9003 otherwise known as the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 states the protection of the public health and environment.
Councilor Layese in her report said that with the law, there is a need for them to utilize environmentally sound methods that maximize the utilization of valuable re-sources and encourage resource conservation and prohibits the manufacturing, distribution or use of non-environmentally acceptable materials.
The volume of non-biodegradable materials at the landfills particularly in the Umapad dumpsite is increasing thus the use of plastic bags, styrofoam or any plastic material is strongly discouraged.


Using paper bags in lieu of plastic bags and styrofoam is a program that reduces waste, thus strengthens the integration of ecological solid waste management and re-sources conservation and recovery.
Once the proposal is approved, violators will be fined not more than P500 or an imprisonment of not more than five days.

nindot ni para molimpyo na mandaue kay wala na unya mga plastic magkatag sa kadalanan.