Issue No. 2, Vol. No. 4 JANUARY 26, 2006

NegOr, Dgte to host biggest regional football tournament
Football teams from Cebu and Negros Occidental will be coming to Dumaguete City as Negros Oriental hosts the 2006 Philippine Football Federation (PFF) Men's Senior Championship-Qualifying Rounds.

Teams from Cebu Football Association and Negros Occidental Football Association will compete at the Silliman University Ballfield, this city, from January 27 to 29, 2006.

NORFA President Pastor Merced in a letter said the activity is touted to be the biggest regional football tournament in this category.
------------------------------------------

TESDA awaits results of youth career profiling exams
The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) in Manila is currently evaluating the results of the career profiling examination conducted on graduating high school students from various public schools in Negros Oriental last year.

More than 600 graduating high school students from selected public schools in the province underwent a career assessment test conducted by TESDA and the Department of Education last year, reveals Beth Tubog, administrative officer V of TESDA here.

The examination is in line TESDA's YP4SC or the Youth Profile for Starring Careers program that aims to equip high school students and out-of-school youth, as future job seekers, with technical skills and competencies thereby increasing their chances for speedy employment.

Tubog explains said the exam was assessment was developed for career guidance and will provide the students with information on the careers that they are most suited with. "They are not academic tests, only for career matching," she said.

The assessment focused on the students' verbal ability, arithmetic reasoning, spatial ability, computation ability, clerical and form perception.

The students who took the exam came from identified schools in the three districts in the province.
The administrative officer said they are currently waiting for the examination results, which have been submitted to TESDA central office in Manila for assessment and evaluation.

YP4SC is a strategy implemented by TESDA to carry out TVET career guidance interventions, including the profiling of identified target groups in collaboration with collaboration with DepEd, CHED, SUCs, DOST and NSO, and afterwards, conduct career awareness, career exploration and counseling services.

Under the program, students will be provided with support services from TESDA to assist them in making occupational choices and career decisions. Appropriate trainings will be held to make them best fit the specific skills requirements in the employment market, either in wage or self-employment.

YP4SC is TESDA's response in support to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's goal of creating 6 to 10 million jobs in the next six years.
------------------------------------------------------------

TESDA to seek Congressmen's support for ICARE program
In the hopes of bridging labor market gaps, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) in Negros Oriental is set to seek the support of the local Congressmen of the three districts in the province to TESDA's ICARE program.

ICARE or the Invigorating Constituent Assistance in Reinforcing Employment program is a financial sharing scheme initiated by TESDA in which the Congressmen will finance a chosen program that is matched with TESDA counterpart assistance.

According to Beth Tubog, administrative officer V of TESDA here, they tried to negotiate with the local congressmen last year, but it was already impossible for the government officials to include ICARE in their budget, as it was almost year-end when TESDA met with them.

However, we will meet with them again this year to try to get their commitment for financial support, says Tubog.

ICARE is designed as an anti-poverty program in response to the President's thrust of creating more jobs through strategic partnerships with legislators, local government units and other TVET stakeholders.

So far, the program has been met with ardent support from some officials across the nation. Congressman Del De Guzman of the lone district of Marikina City, according to the TESDA website, has extended P17M from his Priority Development Assistance Fund to finance the ICARE program in his district.

The Congressmen from Region IV-B have also pledged their support to the program, after seeing the need for resource augmentation in meeting the skills requirements in their region.
-------------------------------------------------

No known link among NegOr troops with Oakwood mutineers
With the Philippine National Police (PNP) on a nationwide manhunt to capture the five escaped Oakwood mutineers, a high-ranking intelligence officer in the provincial police office here assured that there is no known linkage among troops of the PNP and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) with the Magdalo group that staged a short-lived mutiny in 2003.

SPO4 Hilbert Arinaza, chief intelligence police non-commissioned officer at the Negros Oriental Provincial Police Office, said that there are no reported links among PNP and AFP ranks with the Oakwood mutineers.

President Arroyo has earlier tapped PNP in hunting down and recapturing the five escapees who broke out of a high-security detention center in Fort Bonifacio.

The breakout set off rumblings of another coup de etat but Malacañang expressed confidence that the military was solidly behind President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye in a statement discounts the possibility of another people power as he believes the people has already dismissed this as a way to initiate reforms.

The military in Negros island have earlier expressed their loyalty to the Arroyo administration.

Arinaza assured that the PNP here would not follow any move to overthrow the current administration nor obey any unlawful orders. "We are for the preservation of democratic order. We don't favor the use of force in attaining reforms," he said.
-------------------------------------------------

Poultry raisers, public urged to observe anti-bird flu
In the midst of the avian flu crisis that continue to strike several Asian countries, the public, particularly the poultry raisers in the province, are urged to observe the necessary mitigating measures to protect local poultry farms from the deadly avian flu.

City Veterinarian Dr. Lourdes Socorro in a recent forum, urged poultry raisers and handlers of chicken and other birds here to keep their poultry caged. Filipinos like to raise chickens and let them roam around free and this increases the chances of their getting in contact with any infected bird, she said.

Poultry caretakers are also warned not to raise poultry and pigs together. "We are educating poultry raisers to separate poultry like ducks and chickens from pigs. It is not advisable to raise them together," says Socorro.

Socorro was speaking as one of the guest speakers composed of members of the Provincial Avian Flu Task Force during the forum conducted by the Philippine Information Agency here.

She also discouraged the selling of live chickens and other birds in the market while there is a bird flu threat.

The provincial task force- like its counterpart in the national level, the National Avian Flu Task Force- is girding up the country's defense system by intensifying public information drive on avian flu.

The provincial government here is not letting its guard down that easily although Philippines have so far been spared from the highly pathogenic and fatal avian influenza that had caused a number of deaths in several Asian countries.

According to Dr. Socrates Villamor, who heads the Department of Health (DOH) here, a national priority watch list has been generated to pinpoint provinces that host migratory birds.

The most popular areas in the watch list include Olango Island Wetland Sanctuary in Cebu, Candaba Swamp in Pampanga and the Liguasan Marsh in Mindanao.

In Negros Oriental, the identified areas where migratory birds have been observed to converge are Tanjay City, Bais City, parts of Amlan and Manjuyod town.

But the only area from Negros Island that made it to the watch list is Himamaylan in Negros Occidental.
Dr. Rodney Pangilinan of the Provincial Veterinary Office however assured that their office here is prioritizing these areas, adding that blood samplings have already been collected from some of these areas as well as information drive. This is one way of getting data on these birds, by way of surveillance and monitoring, he said.

On the other hand, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) here is initiating a census of migratory birds in the province starting the first quarter of this year.

Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officer Antonio Cabrido said they hope to submit the results of the census at the end of the February.

He explains that they will be looking at the leg bandings of the migratory birds in the province. "In every bird, there is a leg banding that indicates what country they come from," Cabrido said.

He explains that birds migrate during winter and fly to other countries in search for food.
To date, the World Health Organization confirms 82 people have died since the avian, or bird, flu emerged in late 2003.
----------------------------------------------

Ceres to reduce bus fare in February
Despite the scheduled hike on the Expanded Value Added Tax in February, passengers of Ceres buses in the province would surprisingly find, not an increased fare but instead a lesser rate on their bus ticket.

Samson C. Gargaritano, manager of the Vallacar Transit-owned Ceres bus liner here, said they are cutting down their current fare by 10 centavos per kilometer effective February 1.

The 10-centavo per kilometer reduction is for the benefit of the riding public here in view of repeated price increases last year and now, the impending hike on EVAT. "We want to lessen the burden of the local passengers," says Gargaritano.

The rate reduction is also geared at boosting the local transportation industry, which Gargaritano admits, has not been doing well recently. Traveling activities in Negros Oriental have reduced as a result of increasing gasoline prices, which led to inflation and resulted to the reduced purchasing power of the peso, says Gargaritano.

For how long the reduced fare will last will depend on the behavior of the price of diesel fuel in the world market, the bus manager said.

Gargaritano also disclosed that he is studying the possibility of trimming down the number of trips and bus units they have in the province.

To date, the Ceres bus liner here operates 110 buses from what used to be a total of 120. "But I plan to return six units back to our central office in Bacolod by next week because I can't afford the amortization anymore," says Gargaritano.

He added that some trips might also be cancelled.

The liner currently maintains 160 trips a day to all destinations in Negros, including Cebu.

Transport and labor groups across the country have earlier announced that they have no plan to ask for a new fare and wage hike so as not to give additional burden to average wage earners and their families.

The expected full implementation of EVAT next month is seen to further program the government's fiscal stabilization in 2006.

The initial implementation of the enhanced VAT last year resulted to many beneficial effects for theeconomy, including the strengthening of the peso, reduction of the fiscal deficit and grater investor confidence in the country.

Finance Secretary Margarito Teves has been spearheading an information campaign to prepare consumers for the implementation of a two-percentage-point increase (from 10% to 12%) in VAT by next month.
--------------------------------------------------------------

SMEDC to focus on OTOP, tourism
Bristling with renewed enthusiasm, the Siquijor Provincial Small and Medium Enterprises Development Council (SMEDC), in its effort to help keep the local economy afloat, is taking its steps to revitalize the province's small and medium enterprises.

In a meeting earlier, Siquijor SMEDC discussed this year's plans and programs to position the province into its rightful place in the business industry.

"We have to focus more on OTOP development", chairperson Judy U. Booc said, and give our local manufacturers foresight in shaping trends that provide them the means to optimize their products and resources.

The SMEDC's major undertaking this first quarter of the year is the submission of training proposals and recommendations that set criteria for monitoring and evaluation of our thriving SMEs.

A local study mission geared towards capability training and OTOP development is set this first week of February in Cebu City. Local participants for this three-day seminar are the CPJ and Pajermo's Furnitures, Duran's Banana Chips, Kababayehan Alang sa pagpalambo sa Nasudnong Industriya sa Gatas (KAPINIG), and the Licoan Women's Cooperative (LIWOMCO), among others.

DTI Provincial Director Nimfa Virtucio said this focus on OTOPs will put Siquijor on the map of the country's top tourist destinations.

-------------------------------------------------------

Siquijor draws defense plan vs. bird flu

"The danger is imminent! In the immediate term, the province of Siquijor must create a task force to prepare itself for possible entry of the pandemic Avian influenza, better known as bird flu."

This was the statement made by the Provincial Veterinary Office (PVO)-Siquijor Province during a contingency planning session held this week at the Provincial Capitol.

"Let us equip ourselves with a defense plan through a multi-sectoral response to the threat of this emerging disease", Provincial Veterinarian Bernardita Tabada said. "The only way to keep the province free from the bird flu virus is strictly enforcing quarantine rules and safeguards conducted in ports and wetlands where migratory bids believed to be carriers of the deadly virus flock during the months of November to March", she said.

The PVO, along with the DA7 highlighted the key points of the bird flu virus, its transmission and the government's present protection program, among others.

To date, the Philippines and Singapore are the only countries in Southeast Asia not affected by the H5N1 virus that causes bird flu. Today there's no cure seen yet and that it has suffered a setback because the virus already mutated into a stronger strain (it was reported to have infected swine).

"If one fowl here is infected with this disease, it is already considered a calamity or disaster. That's why this early we have to formulate prevention strategies through control measures that work - public awareness and preparedness", Dra. Tabada said.

In support to the plan, Governor Orlando B. Fua of Siquijor requested the Provincial Planning Development Office (PPDO) to allocate a budget for it and asked the different local government units to make a thorough review on when and how to use their calamity funds. He said everybody shares responsibility to fight the spread of the disease and put human and financial resources behind the effort.

With the Provincial Governor as the overall coordinator, the Provincial Bird Flu Task Force is composed both by the government and private sectors. On the other hand, a municipal task force in every municipality will also be organized to help launch public awareness program and strengthen outbreak detection and response.

In the national level, health officials at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport were placed on 24-hour monitoring of incoming passengers following reports of more deaths caused by the deadly bird flu virus in Europe and some parts of Asia.

------------------------------------------

MySiquijor.com brings more medical supplies to Siquijor
A year after MySiquijor.com's phase I of its medical mission to Siquijor province, another sets of medical equipments, under Phase II were donated last January 18, 2005. They were presented to the Integrated Provincial Health Office (IPHO) by Gary Harrison, administrator of the website, MySiquijor.com with one of the biggest donor, Des Quinn from Australia and his wife Ester.

Donated medical supplies consist of assorted forceps, scissors, vaginal speculums, percussion hammer and medical books.

Held at the IPHO conference hall, the turned-over ceremony was attended by Provincial Governor Orlando B. Fua, Provincial Health Officer, Dr. Nell A. Alcoran and a few of her staff with some representatives of the Provincial Tourism Office and the Philippine Information Agency.

"Great Gary" - Fua
That's how Siquijor Provincial Governor Orlando B. Fua describes Gary whose sympathy for Siquijodnons is "beyond compare."

"Gary Harison has all the sympathies for Siquijodnons," Gov. Fua said in his speech during the turn-over ceremony.

"From the moment he got to my office, I knew Gary's heart has been for the province," Fua said recalling that on several occasions he has met a number of well-meaning individuals who talked good of Siquijor and yet never has been anything done for the island," he said.

"While others professed to love Siquijor, talks about insufficiencies, - poverty, unemployment, poor infra, and the like abound. These same people find fault in government officials without offering help on how to run the province in an insufficient funds," he said.

"Gary is quite different. He followed out his words with deeds," he added.

The governor said that when the assistance was confirmed to him personally by Gary, he couldn't hide his excitement for Siquijodnons. "Our gratitude to you especially the subscribers/generous people for all we have been able to accomplish for the people," he said.

Likewise, Dra. Alcoran said she is extremely grateful for all the help. "I say this on behalf of everyone in Siquijor," she said

"It's your smile!"
When asked what inspires him to help Siquijodnons, Gary quickly said "it's your smile that moves me!" "It takes a lot to make some people smile but for Siquijodnons, simple things, simple gifts make them smile!" Gary said.

Through his website, Gary brought in enormous amount of goodwill- from promotions to donations - for the people of Siquijor.

"In 2002, I searched for a way to help the provincial and I thought the best way is to open up a website,"Gary confided. Initially, he said, MySiquijor.com was primarily a tourist site but in an effort to be of better service, he expanded the focus to not only appeal to international and domestic tourists, but also to include Siquijodnons that are living in foreign countries. Along with it is the idea of soliciting donations from visitors, thus the launching of MySiquijor.com Medical Campaign in 2004. Since then Gary was concerned about raising money for medical equipment that somehow improves the level of health care available to Siquijor folks. He searched out for resources from generous visitors and once he has collected a considerable figure, he begun his work.

"I hope these help the hospital and our patients," Gary Harison said.

MySiquijor.com also supports the St. Francis of Assisi Church Restoration Project in Siquijor parish. With P25,000 generated from the website, Gary is set to meet Siquijor Parish Priest, Rev. Fr. Casiano Salac for the turn-over this Sunday, January 22, 2005.
----------------------------------

SOUNDBYTES:

Balanced budget for 2009
The Arroyo government's vision of a balanced budget for 2009 is not far behind. This, as the 1-2 punch of tight fiscal controls and aggressive measures continue to reap economic gains for the country. Pres. Arroyo's economic plan is rolling forward over the hump of political turmoil, riding on board the sacrifices and enterprising spirit of the people.

There is no anomalous spending from recovered Marcos wealth
Malacañang stressed that every centavo spent from the recovered Marcos wealth was in accordance with its intended purpose as defined by law. Hence, tagging allegations of anomalous spending of this fund is baseless. The government also assured all martial law victims who have rightful claims to the fund that their interest will be fully protected as the Palace calls on Congress to expedite the legislation needed for the release of their share.

Pacquiao KOs opponent- and Metro cime rate
Metro Manila enjoyed a crime-free day Sunday as neighborhood thugs, snatchers and other assorted felons stayed home to watch the big fight on TV between Filipino boxing hero Manny Pacquiao and Mexican foe Erik Morales, police said.

Business process outsourcing companies check out Bacolod
Two business process-outsourcing companies recently sent separate teams to evaluate the capability of this city to host their operations.

PGMA nipasar na isip dinaliang lakang ang paghatag umento sa suhulan sa emplayado sa gobyerno
Gipasar na ni Presidente Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo isip gikinahanglan og dinaliang lakang ang tresen bilyones ka pesos nga budget alang sa omento sa suhulan sa mga trabahante sa gobyerno. Giawhag sa Presidente ang Kongreso sa pag-aprobar gilayon ang panukala aron mahatag ang maong omento sa suhulan agig gasa sa mga namunuan ngadto sa mga trabahante sa dili pa moabot ang Valentine's Day.