ORMOC CITY-Residents of an upland barangay in Las Navas, Northern Samar were stunned following the death of a farmer with a bullet shot on his head.
The victim was identified as Rammel Toling, 52 of Barangay Victory in the said town.
Based on the report of the local police, Toling was last seen on May 31 by his wife, Egly, who told her that he will gather some bamboos at their farm in sitio Malapoy.
But on the following day (June 1)at about 8:45 am, the villagers discovered the dead body of Toling with a gunshot wound to his head, the report added.
The local police have yet to determine who was behind the killing of Toling.
The energization of a 100 Megavolt Ampere (MVA) power transformer in NGCP’s Toril Substation marks the first milestone in the second phase of NGCP’s efforts to upgrade substations in Mindanao. The Toril substation serves the franchise area of Davao Light and Power Company, which provides the electricity needs of Davao City.
The 100MVA power transformer is the first energization under NGCP’s Mindanao Substation Upgrading Project 2 (MSUP2). Under the project, ten (10) substations in Lanao del Norte, Misamis Oriental, Bukidnon, Agusan del Norte, Davao del Sur, North Cotabato, and South Cotabato will be equipped with new power transformers to ensure continuous operations in the case of outages.
The project will also address the N-1 compliance for the Mindanao grid. A requirement of the Philippine Grid Code, an N-1 contingency is the ability of the grid to withstand a major system disturbance with minimal or no impact to the system.
For the first stage of the Mindanao Substation Upgrading Project, power transformers with a 100MVA rating were energized in NGCP’s Agus 6, Pitogo, Placer, NagaMin, and General Santos Substations. Power transformers with a 75MVA rating were also energized in Polanco, Opol, and Maramag Substations, and 50MVA power transformers in San Francisco, Bislig, and Kidapawan Substations. Capacitor banks were also installed in NGCP’s Butuan, Tacurong, Pitogo, General Santos, San Francisco, and Placer Substations.
“The energization of the transformer in Toril, as well as the energization of high voltage equipment and facilities all over Mindanao, will boost the grid’s overall reliability,” NGCP said. “These upgrading efforts are ultimately geared towards readying the grid for the influx of businesses, industries, and investments in the region,” added NGCP.
The second phase of the MSUP was filed with a cost of PhP5.56 Billion. The first phase of MSUP has an ERC-approved project cost of PhP5 Billion. “The MSUP2 is again testament to our commitment to expand and improve the country’s transmission grid, and to provide better services at a lower cost to the consumer,” the company said. (PR)
REO Brothers of Tacloban in a photo op availed by this writer and her hubby Yul bought after the concert.
Sacramento, CA – Resounding applause, phone cams recording, and young and young-once spectators coming to the front of the centerstage to altogether dance to the fast beat music rendered by the so-called “The Beatles of Tacloban”, the sensational REO Brothers.
Such could be the simplest way to describe a night of performance of this phenomenal 5-sibling male rock band, which took a leap to fame in the live gig industry following the onslaught of Super Typhoon ‘Yolanda’ that pummeled Eastern Visayas on November 8, 2013.
REO Brothers of Tacloban in a photo op availed by this writer and her hubby Yul bought after the concert.
REO, which stands for the initials of their first names, their middle name Evasco and last name Otic, has etched a mark of world-class performance on stage in the Philippines and abroad. Their first names, Reno, Ronjoseph, Raymart, Ralph, and Roy Mark.
The audience couldn’t help dancing to the upbeat rhythm of the hit 70’s songs played by the REO Brothers.
More on the Beatles billboard top hits, the REO Brothers are also covering songs of the Bee Gees, the Beach Boys, and Earth, Wind & Fire, among other rock stars.
At the concert on June 4th in this Central Valley town Elk Grove, the REO Brothers did a medley of hit songs of the Beatles, Bee Gees, Queen, and Beach Boys with “My Sharona” hit in the finale.
Front Act
Karoline Ongjoco wowed the spectators with her remarkable performance onstage.
But before they did their non-stop medley from soft rock to pop rock to disco songs, artists who are either Filipinos residing now in the US or of Filipino descent, set the mood.
One last to do an opening act was the 10-year old Karoline Ongjoco, born to Fil-Am parents from Luzon. Prior to introducing the REO Brothers, she captured the admiration of the spectators with her songs, among them ‘Both Sides Now’ and ‘Paraiso.’
Theater performer Karoline Ongjoco with her family.
Her remarkable performance and impressive stage presence wowed all of those in the concert hall of Consumnes Oaks High School Performing Arts Center.
Karoline’s grandfather, Johnnie Cayanan, informed that the young theater star had performed in a concert in New York as well.
She starred in a musical play in Guys and Dolls Junior of the Musical Mayhem Production based in Elk Grove, California.
Delighted spectators
Karoline’s rendition has effectively set the mood for a night of total satisfaction in music.
Hmong-American Nick Yang, an 18-year old sophomore student at California State University – Sacramento, did not hesitate to watch the REO Brothers concert out of curiosity. He said eventually, though, that he enjoyed the show.
“Overall, it was very nice. At the beginning, because I didn’t know the REO Brothers, I didn’t really find interest in the concert. Most of the songs they played I didn’t know until near the middle-ish,” he said.
He added, “Even though I didn’t know most of it, it was nice to see the audience go up and dance because the community seemed really united.”
Rise from the ravages of ST Yolanda.
Raymart, in vocals and guitar and third among the REO siblings, said in a brief talk with this writer, admitted that having arisen from the travails their family went through when Yolanda struck Tacloban City and the rest of the Eastern Visayas region 10 years ago.
With the help from persons who have connections with venues they can play their genre of 50’s to 70’s music, the REO Brothers started getting encore in their performances in Metro Manila.
Later they were featured in talk shows and ABS CBN’s Christmas special entitled “Kwento ng Pasko – Pag-asa at Pagbangon” (Story of Christmas – Hope and Resurrection) on December 10, 2013 at Araneta Coliseum, but which was aired on December 14–15 and the Pamilyang May K Ok of TV Maria.
Raymart added that they are happy seeing the audience enjoy their performances on stage.
From their Sacramento County appearance, the REO Brothers will fly to other states and to Canada for their next shows, according to the producer of the US-Canada Tour of Tacloban Beatles.
CAUSEWAY PROJECT IN DISARRY? The Department of Public Works and Highways in the region is ready to meet and discuss with the members of the Tacloban city council after they approved a resolution calling to defer the causeway project, saying it could harm the Cancabato Bay where it will treverse.
(PHOTO COURTESY DPWH-8)
“Project held in abeyance”
CAUSEWAY PROJECT IN DISARRY? The Department of Public Works and Highways in the region is ready to meet and discuss with the members of the Tacloban city council after they approved a resolution calling to defer the causeway project, saying it could harm the Cancabato Bay where it will treverse. (PHOTO COURTESY DPWH-8)
TACLOBAN CITY– The P3.46 billion causeway project in this city is in danger of being cancelled.
This after the city council approved a resolution calling the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPHW) to ‘hold in abeyance’ the said project unless all issues surrounding it would be cleared and threshed out.
The proposed 2.566-kilometer causeway project is envisioned to serve as an alternative route going to the Daniel Z. Romualdez (DZR) Airport, located in San Jose district, from the city proper.
To recall, the Sangguniang Panlungsod, in a resolution authored mainly by Councilor Aurora Aimee Grafil, directed the DPWH in the region to address first several issues before they could be allowed to proceed the project.
Based on Resolution 15-88 issued on May 25 this year, the council members said that they have learned that the DPWH has failed to include an environmental study on the Cancabato Bay, where the proposed causeway will traverse.
It said that Cancabato Bay was declared as a marine protected area in Ordinance No.2003-8-138 which prohibits against industrial wastes and pollutants.
It also said that under its zoning ordinance, Cancabato Bay was identified as a ‘not a stand-alone bay.’
“Moreover the causeway project would greatly affect the environment, impacting the fisherfolks in Tacloban City,” the resolution added.
But despite of the opposition of the city council, the DPWH region headed by Engr. Edgar Tabacon said that he is willing to meet and discuss with the council members and come up with a ‘win-win solution.’
Tabacon said that the project is not only huge in terms of budget allocation but its purpose which is to cut the travel time going to the DZR Airport.
“This is for us. This is for Tacloban. It will help our people going to the airport. We have also secured an ECC (environmental clearance certificate) from DENR as early as 2019,” he said on Friday.
It was learned from Tabacon that the causeway project has been in the pipeline since 2018.
Tabacon also explained that the causeway project will not hinder the flow of water flow at the Cancabato that may cause the death of marine life there.
“The causeway project is not just the ordinary causeway as it also includes a bridge and box of culverts…which will not block the water and even affect the marine life there,” he said.
According to him, the causeway will just measure 300 meters each from the city proper and the airport sides. Its bridge has an elevation of five meters from the sea level.
Tabacon said that under the plan, the causeway project should be completed within the year. Otherwise, the fund will be reverted back to the national coffers.
NO MORE LOAN.Tacloban City Mayor Alfred Romualdez stated that his administration will no longer secure a loan to rehabilitate the Imelda Marcos-built Leyte Park Hotel as originally planned saying the city government has enough funds for the purpose.
Leyte Park was built by Imelda Marcos
NO MORE LOAN.Tacloban City Mayor Alfred Romualdez stated that his administration will no longer secure a loan to rehabilitate the Imelda Marcos-built Leyte Park Hotel as originally planned saying the city government has enough funds for the purpose.
TACLOBAN CITY-Mayor Alfred Romualdez of this city has said that the city government would no longer borrow money from the bank to rehabilitate the Leyte Park Hotel (LPH).
This is in contrary to an earlier plan of the city government to secure a P500 million from the Land Bank of the Philippines for such purpose.
The city government was able to get the go signal from the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA), an attached agency of the Department of Tourism which has a stake of the 6.1-hectare property constructed in 1979 by former first lady Imelda Romualdez Marcos, aunt of the city mayor.
Aside from the TIEZA, the property is also owned by the provincial government of Leyte and the Privatization Management Office.
The property, located along Magsaysay Boulevard, was part of the Marcos properties sequestered by the government suspected to be part of the ill-gotten wealth.
“I went to the Land Bank two weeks ago to tell them that we don’t need the loan because we have we enough money,” he said on Thursday (June 1).
On that day, Romualdez led a kick-off program opening the facility for various activities related to the June 30 city fiesta.
A portion of the hotel has been used for carnival and barbeque stalls and other city government-sponsored events in connection to the city fiesta.
Mayor Romualdez also disclosed that the design of a master plan for a rehabilitated hotel is now on the ‘final stages.’
The city mayor disclosed that aside from the hotel itself, the property will also have a convention center, an IT park and for other commercial purposes.
The property has been operated by a private corporation in 1994 and been abandoned in 2021 after it did not renew its lease contract.
Last year, Mayor Romualdez signified his intention for the city government to take over and manage the facility.
The hotel, located on a hill overlooking the San Juanico Bridge that links the islands of Samar and Leyte, had 110 rooms, with our pool villas, infinity pools, spa center, several restaurants, and a convention center that could accommodate 2,000 people.
ORMOC CITY-The local police served a warrant of arrest to 17-year old boy in conflict with the law (CICL) at the Bahay Pag-asa located in Barangay Larrazabal, Naval town, Biliran on May 24 at about 5 pm.
The accused, identified as alias “Mac-Mac”, 17,and from Cabucgayan, Biliran, was arrested by virtue of a warrant dated May 16, 2023, issued by Judge Constantino F. Esber, executive judge of the Regional Trial Court-Branch 37, Naval for the crime of rape.
The accused was informed of his constitutional rights in the dialect/language understood by him under the Miranda Doctrine and remained under the custody of the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office (PSWDO) at said facility. (ROBERT DEJON)
