Part of N. Samar’s 58th founding anniversary

CATARMAN, Northern Samar– The ‘Kadayaw Festival’ of Pambujan town bagged the grand champion award at the first-ever Ibabao Festivals of Festival held last Sunday (June 18).

The Kadayaw Festival is a ritual presentation performed by the locals every first full moon of the year – a gesture of prayer to the Almighty for bountiful farm and sea produce the whole year round.

The contingent won P300,000 cash prize for winning the festival competition.
The ‘Lobika Festival of Lope de Vega won P200,000 as first runner-up and the Parayan Festival of San Roque which bagged 2nd runner-up with a cash prize of P100,000.

Sixteen festival contingents from 16 of the 24 municipalities in Northern Samar province competed in the first Ibabao Festival of Festivals held in celebration of the province’s 58th founding anniversary held every June 19.

It is one of the highlights of the two-week Ibàbao Festival activities that started on June 4 with the theme”Proudly Ibàbaonon: Promoting tourism, preserving history, sustaining progress.”

Ibabao was used to name the festival, deriving from the ancient name of Northern Samar based on historical accounts.
The Ibabao Festival was launched to entice tourists to visit Northern Samar known for its rock formations, white and pristine beaches, among others. (ROEL T. AMAZONA)

TACLOBAN CITY – Bishop Crispin Varquez of the diocese of Borongan has called the government to hire more forest guards to protect the forest covers of Samar Island from illegal poachers.

Varquez, who made the appeal during the recent meeting of the Samar Island Partnership for Peace and Development (SIPPAD) in Borongan City on June 9, also said that these forest guards should be made permanent employees.

“I suggest to our government officials especially to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to hire more forest rangers and make them regular employees so that they will take the responsibility of their task as forest guards,” the prelate said.

He disclosed that with a vast forest to be guarded and protected from illegal loggers, there are only ‘few’ forest guards in Eastern Samar alone and most of them are contractual workers.

Samar Island is the third largest island in the Philippines next to Luzon and Mindanao with a total land area of 13, 438.8 kilometers.

Found on the island is the Samar Island Natural Park (SINP), the largest contiguous tract of old-growth forest in the country and the largest protected area with a total of 333,300 hectares with its buffer spreading to a total of 458, 700 hectares of about a third of the entire island.

Inside the SINP are plants and animals many of which are considered to be threatened species and endemic to the region.

“To mitigate the effect of climate change and protect the balance of economy, this island should be protected and preserved from further destructions like mining, kaingin, and alike,” Varquez added.

Prior to this call from the Borongan bishop, the DENR and the Philippine National Police in the region had conducted a training involving 286 policemen for their deputation duties in protecting the region’s forest cover and in the enforcement of laws relative to the protection of the environment and natural resources.

Meanwhile, Northern Samar Governor Edwin Ongchuan said that the provincial government is planning to create a task force against illegal mining and logging.
The composite team will be composed of personnel from the Philippine Coast Guard, Philippine Army, and the PNP.

“Most of the illegal loggers in the province are protected by members of the communist group,” he said.

As part of the provincial government’s effort to go after illegal loggers, Ongchuan disclosed that they bought two high-speed bancas to go after illegal loggers who usually run towards the Bicol region.

“Some illegal loggers transport lumbers by hiding them under sacks of copra. So I instructed the Coast Guard to take a second look at trucks that are exiting our ports to make sure that they are not transporting illegally cut lumbers,” Ongchuan added.
(ROEL T. AMAZONA)

TACLOBAN CITY– With a week left before the end of the measles-rubella mass vaccination drive, at least 99,015 preschool children in Eastern Visayas have yet to receive the vaccine, the Department of Health (DOH) reported.

In its latest update, the DOH regional office here revealed that vaccination activities from May 1 to June 7 have covered at least 318,442 children, representing 76.28 percent of the 417,478 target population five years old and below.

Jelyn Lopez-Malibago, DOH Eastern Visayas information officer, said in a phone interview on Thursday the campaign needs to reach out to more households in the last week of the extended vaccination days.

“We are confident that by June 15, we will be able to reach or even surpass the 80 percent of the target children population,” Malibago told the Philippine News Agency (PNA).

The five areas with lower vaccination coverage are Tacloban City (60.10 percent), Southern Leyte (68.97 percent), Northern Samar (69.97 percent), Leyte (74.80 percent), and Ormoc City (76.44 percent).

The campaign also provides oral polio vaccines among children in cities and capital towns in Eastern Visayas.

As of June 7, about 95,293 children received anti-polio vaccines, attaining 78.15 percent of the target.

“We appreciate the commitment of all healthcare professionals and our collaborators and stakeholders for the success of the Chikiting Ligtas Campaign,” Malibago added.
On May 31, the DOH announced the extension of the vaccination drive for two weeks or until June 15 to reach out to more children.

The official reiterated that there is no treatment for polio, rubella, and measles, with vaccination as the only effective way to prevent the possibility of an outbreak.
Measles, one of the most contagious diseases worldwide, is characterized by high-grade fever, rashes, cough, sore eyes, and runny nose with complications that could lead to pneumonia, blindness, severe diarrhea, swelling of the brain, and even death.

Polio, on the other hand, is a potentially debilitating disease that causes fever, neck stiffness, and muscle weakness, and can eventually result in lifelong paralysis.
(SARWELL Q. MENIANO/PNA)

ORMOC CITY-A person deprived of liberty (PDL) escaped from a jail facility in Laoang, Northern Samar on June 9.

The escapee, Ricky Mercado and a resident of Barangay san Jose, Catubig town and is facing a murder charge, managed to bolt from the Laoang sub-provincial jail in Brgy. Onay, Laoang town at about 5:45 am.

The Laoang police said at about 12:40 noon of that day, Jail Guard Jojie Mendoza reported to their office on the escape of the inmate.

His escape from the jail facility was discovered as jail guards were conducting their regular head counts of the inmates.

Immediately, personnel of Laoang sub-provincial jail conducted a search of the entire facility but to no avail, prompting them to report the incident to the police.

Mendoza, however, did not provide details to the police how Mercado was able to escape from the facility.

Pursuit operations are now being undertaken by the police and the jail guards.
(ROBERT DEJON)