TACLOBAN CITY- Several local government units and schools here in the region suspended their works and classes in view of the observance of the family week celebration on Monday afternoon.
Among the local government units that suspended their works were the cities of Tacloban and Ormoc and in the municipality of Tanauan, all in Leyte; the towns of Pinabacdao and Zumarraga and in the cities of Catbalogan and Calbayog, all in Samar province; Borongan City in Eastern Samar; and in all eight towns in Biliran province as directed by Gov.Roger Espina.
Works at the provincial government in Northern Samar were also suspended upon the directive of Governor Edwin Ongchuan.
Effective 3 pm, several classes across the region, to include state colleges and universities like the Biliran Province State University in Naval, Biliran and at Leyte National High School, the biggest secondary school in the region, were also suspended.
The suspension of works and classes were in view of an order by the Civil Service Commission directing all heads of local government units, and public schools, to include colleges and universities to suspend their works and classes effective 2 pm to allow their employees and workers to spend mealtime with their families.
(JOEY A. GABIETA)
Classes, works suspended in EV Monday in observance of family week celebration
Vanished World War II heritage house saddens owner
TACLOBAN CITY – For 90-year-old Cristina Redoña-Pablo, celebrating the 75th Leyte Gulf Landings on Oct. 20 is less meaningful now that their house once resided by President Sergio Osmeña is now gone.
Pablo, whose family owns the historic Redoña Residence demolished in March last year, is saddened that the city has lost a historical structure 75 years after Leyte was liberated from Japanese invasion by allied forces led by American General Douglas MacArthur.
“I am disappointed that the house was not officially declared by the National Historical Institute (NHI) as a heritage site despite of the many proofs that it was the residence of Commonwealth President Osmeña after the Liberation of Leyte,” said Pablo, one of the daughters of Margarito Redoña.
Her family decided late last year to tear down the old wooden house on T. Claudio St. due to failure of both the local government and national government to preserve the structure, according to Pablo.
In 2007, Pablo formally asked then NHI Chairman Ambeth Ocampo to declare the house as heritage site. Responding to Pablo’s letter, Ocampo asked for more proofs such as documents and photos.
“We sent a lot of proofs to NHI, but they keep on asking for more and it was not approved. It’s embarrassing to us since there’s no maintenance of that wooden structure. Last year, we decided to tear it down because it’s already dangerous to tourists and by passers. We don’t have enough money to maintain the property,” Pablo told the Philippine News Agency on Thursday.
“It’s a sad thing. The residence played an important role when we were freed from Japanese invasion. It should be given importance,” she added.
The house was the official residence President Osmeña and key Cabinet officials when they stayed in Leyte from October 23, 1944 to February 27, 1945, shortly after Liberation of Leyte.
“I think the President accepted my father’s offer because our house was just few meters away from the capitol. He just walked from the capitol to our residence,” recalled Pablo, who was just 15 years old after the Battle of Leyte.
The capitol building became the seat of the Philippine Commonwealth as the Allied Forces liberated the Philippine Islands from Japanese control.
Osmeña was sworn in as President by MacArthur inside the building, which is now being used as office space by the Leyte provincial government.
Pablo has been keeping documents and photographs of the structure before it was demolished. The most treasured was the photo taken 15 years after the Liberation with President Carlos Garcia and key officials of Leyte province visiting the property.
During the 50th Leyte Gulf Landings Anniversary on Oct. 20, 1944, the residence has been acknowledged as one the “must see” historical sites printed in the commemorative program. Other sites are the Leyte Provincial Capitol, Price Mansion, MacArthur Landing Memorial and Hill 522, both in Palo town.
All sites have been preserved until this year except the Redoña Residence.
On Oct. 20, 1944, MacArthur, at the head of the largest US fleet of transport and warships, and accompanied by Osmeña and Gen. Carlos P. Romulo, landed at Red Beach of nearby Palo town to reclaim the Philippines from the Japanese invaders.
Upon establishing the beachhead, MacArthur immediately transferred authority to Osmeña, the successor of Manuel Quezon, as Philippine Commonwealth president.
The Battle of Leyte Gulf is remembered as the largest naval battle ever fought in modern history. It was fought in four separate engagements near the islands of Leyte, Samar and Luzon from Oct. 23 to 26 in 1944. (SARWELL Q. MENIANO/PNA)
Leyte gov’t bares activities for this year’s 75th Leyte Gulf Landings
Pres. Duterte invited to the commemorative program
By: ROEL T.AMAZONA
PALO, Leyte – Activities for the 75th Leyte Landings Commemoration this October 20 are now set.
This was disclosed by the organizing committee lead by Governor Leopoldo Dominico Petilla and former Palo town mayor Remedios Petilla who chairs different committees tasked in this year’s 75th year anniversary which is considered a milestone event.
Activities for the 75th Leyte Landings Commemoration will run from October 10 to 27.
Lined-up activities includes the exhibit of the national costume used by Miss Universe 2018 Catriona Gray during the said international beauty pageant at Oriental Hotel from October 10-24 and the first Leyte Landings 4×4 off road challenge at Boy Scout Circle, Government Center on October 12-13.
On October 13, the provincial government will lead in the inauguration and lighting of newly-rehabilitated McArthur Land Memorial National Park at Barangay Candahug, this town.
Also happening on October 13 is the Vintage Car World War II vehicle show and exhibit at the Boy Scout Circle, Government Center that will run until October 25.
On October 15, the 75th Leyte Landing Choral Competition along with the “Pagbabalik” Hiphop Competition will be held at the Boy Scout Circle, Government Center.
On October 16 to 22 is the opening and exhibit showcasing the 75th Leyte Landing Agri, Aqua Trade, Science and Technology Fair at the Boy Scout Circle, Government Center.
A dance sport competition and the 75th Leyte Landing Speech Choir Competition is going to be held on the same day at the same venue.
On October 17, the Sentimental Journey will be commemorated in Guiuan, Eastern Samar which will be participated by World War II veterans, personnel from the Armed Force of the Philippines, Philippine National Police and the local government unit of Guiuan.
The Sentimental Journey is to be held at the Navy 3149 Base in Barangay Ngolos which remembers the Battle of Suluan, an island barangay in Guiuan, as a prelude to the Leyte Gulf Landings.
On October 17, the search for Miss Liberation Diamond is to be held also at the Boy Scout Circle, Government Center.
Also happening on same day is the National Conference on the 75th Anniversary of Leyte Gulf Landings at the Leyte Normal University that will last until October 19.
On October 18 is the Tolosa Signal Day Commemorative Event which commemorates the heroic acts of scouts Valeriano Abello, Antero Junia Sr. and Vicente Tiston who signals the Allied Forces from the hilltops of Barangay Telegrafo using the semaphore signs not to bomb the shorelines because thousands of local residents inhabited the area.
Also happening on that day is the 11th Oktubafest Competition organized by the An Waray party-list at the Leyte Academic Center.
At the Boy Scout Circle, activities are the Executive Band Boy show, a Fashion show and the War of Our Fathers” a tribute to Filipino Freedom Exhibit which will run until October 27.
On October 19, the province will celebrate the Hill 120 Commemorative Event in Dulag town which remembers the first hoisting of American Flag in Philippine soil after it was lowered in Bataan in 1942.
On October 19, various activities were lined-up by the provincial government starting with Live Free Festival at the Leyte Academic Center, Palo Commemorative Event Barrio Fiesta at the Palo Municipal Hall and the grand finals for the Pagbabalik Hiphop Competition at the Boy Scout Circle.
On October 20, program for the Leyte Gulf Landings commemoration will start with the “Sunrise Ceremony of the Filipino WWII Veterans at the Unknown Soldier Monument at 4 am and will be followed by the 75th National Commemoration Ceremonies at the McArthur Land Memorial National Park at 8 am.
Other activities on the 20th are the Subiran Regatta which will start at the Oriental Hotel, the reunion of the Veterans at the Department of Education-Leyte Gymnasium, the commemorative luncheon and awarding and recognition of the 10 oldest living Filipino veterans.
A fireworks display at the McArthur Land Memorial National Park in the evening will serve as the culmination of the day’s activities.
Governor Petilla said that President Rodrigo Duterte was invited by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP), the lead agency for this year celebration, but his presence at the celebration is not yet confirmed.
Also invited to the 75th Leyte Landings Commemoration are NHCP chairman Rene Escalante, United States Ambassador Sung Yong Kim, Australian Ambassador Steven James Robinson, Ambassador of United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Daniel Robert Pruce, New Zealand Ambassador David John Strachan, Ambassador of Japan Koji Haneda, and Ambassador of Canada John Thomas Holmes.
“Just to remind everyone, this is not that just the provincial government commemoration of World War II but for everybody. This is ours commemoration, this is every body’s activity. Your participation in all activities or by watching our activities is already a big contribution,” Gov. Petilla said.
“This is not just simple commemoration or ceremony, but we are here to learn a lesson from the valor of our heroes, the example that our heroes are very important. As we face more challenges, we need to learn the lesson for us to overcome all this challenges,” Gov Petilla added.
“I hope this celebration will be fruitful, educational and memorable especially for our veterans and their families who will join in the activities,” the governor said. (ROEL T. AMAZONA)
Rotary Club of Central Tacloban City, DENR-8 hosts free public screenings of the “Bird of Prey”
TACLOBAN CITY – Recognizing that the protection of the country’s natural resources and biodiversity conservation are shared advocacies of the government and the private sector, the Rotary Club of Central Tacloban City (RCCTC) and the Department of Natural Resources – Regional Office VIII (DENR-RO8) embarked on an exceptional joint project of hosting and organizing free public screenings of Cornell University’s award-winning documentary “Bird of Prey” as proposed by the Davao-based Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF), the country’s premier non-governmental organization dedicated solely to the protection and conservation of the world’s rarest, largest and most endangered raptor.
“We believe that helping foster public awareness on the need to protect and conserve our natural resources through film is a distinctive fulfillment of one of Rotary’s areas of focus which is education,” said Pinky H. Brosas, the Director for Community Service of RCCTC. “Although this undertaking is open to the general public, we expressly encourage the academic community- the senior high school students in particular to watch this remarkable documentary film given the depth and profundity of the story that is perfectly woven into the concrete realities of Eastern Visayas,” she added.
In a remark during one of the joint organizational meetings of DENR-RO8 and RCCTC, Eugenia N. Bautista, Chief of the Conservation and Development Division of DENR-RO8 said, “As the vanguard of environmental protection and sustainable utilization of our natural resources in this part of the country, we can only fulfill our mandate and be more effective in what we are expected to accomplish through the support of the private sector.” “This partnership with RCCTC and the PEF ensures us at the DENR-RO8 for a broader reach to all stakeholders through a thoroughly crafted medium of environmental education and advocacy,” she concluded.
“Bird of Prey” will have two runs- at 5:30 PM on 11 October 2019 at Cinema 7 of Robinsons Place-Marasbaras and at 2:00 PM on 12 October 2019 at the Activity Center of Robinsons North-Abucay. Due to the limited cinema seats available, reservations are required for those who intend to watch the film at Robinsons Place-Marasbaras through: RCCTC +63.945.118.2658/+63.905.859.3937/email: rc.central.tacloban@gmail.com and DENR-RO8 +63.917.397.2485, 053.832.0032, email: cdd_denr8@yahoo.com.
The project is supported by McDonald’s-Tacloban, Avenue Hotel, Bryan Lights & Sounds, Robinsons North-Tacloban, Robinsons Movieworld, Baiprints Hub Graphics & Advertising, MJCG Construction, Inc., RIWAY, JAC Motors-Tacloban and Hyundai Motors-Tacloban. (PR)
All ‘Yolanda’ housing projects to be completed by next year, says Cabinet Sec. Nograles
CARIGARA, Leyte- The national government will make sure that the housing units intended for families who lost their houses due to super typhoon ‘Yolanda’ will be completed by next year.
This was stressed by Cabinet Secretary Karlo Alexei Nograles who visited Leyte on Thursday (Sept.19) for the signing of a memorandum of agreement (MOA) and a deed of donation and acceptance (DODA) for 13 Yolanda housing projects in Leyte, Samar and Biliran provinces.
“Our target is by the end of 2019, all Yolanda housing(projects) must be completed but realistically we cannot do that because 2019 is about to end. So our target now is to complete all housing projects by 2020 not only in Region 8 but also in Regions 5, 6, 7 and 4-B,” Nograles said who visited one of the housing projects located in this town.
The national government through the National Housing Authority (NHA) aims to construct a total of 205,128 housing units along the Yolanda corridor.
A total of 56, 140 of these housing units are for Yolanda victims in Eastern Visayas.
“I am happy that based on the data of NHA, in Region 8 housing project completion is now at almost 80 percent,” Nograles said.
The official said that the NHA is now keeping up its pace and fast tracking the construction of all housing projects for Yolanda survivors in four provinces of the region that were devastated by the super typhoon in November 8, 2013.
Nograles added that finishing the projects by 2020 is not only their target but also to make sure that the order of President Rodrigo Duterte will be followed of building a township and not just housing structures.
“Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA) must fast track the water system project, National Electrification Administration must also fast track the energization of Yolanda housing communities and we will also ensure that there are schools from the Department of Education, health centers from the Department of Health and day care centers from the Department of Social Welfare and Development in every housing site,” Nograles said.
Nograles added that they are imposing strict compliance on the specification for the contractors who are building the Yolanda housing projects to avoid that they are using substandard materials.
He added that aside from ensuring that contractors are following the construction materials specification, their office is also determine to award all housing projects that are finished.
“We want to avoid cases of having a damaged house from a finished housing project because there are no occupants. That is unfair to the contractors who turn over the units to the NHA in good quality,” Nograles said.
During the signing of MOA and DODA, mayors and representative from the local government unit of this town and Baybay City, Almeria, Naval, Cabucgayan and Biliran, all in Biliran province, were present.
A ceremonial turn-over for the beneficiaries of housing projects in Carigara for Yolanda victims and Almeria for typhoon ‘Urduja’ victims was also held.
The beneficiaries of housing units in Carigara are living in the 5.62 hectares Ecoville 1 that has 640 housing units occupied by all beneficiaries and the 4.91 hectares Ecoville 2 that has 680 housing units with 489 units are now occupied.
Couple Antonietta and Mariano Jabines Jr. said that they are thankful that after four years of waiting for assistance from the government, they can now transfer to a more comfortable house.
The couple said that they have applied for a housing unit built by different non-government organizations after Yolanda destroyed their two-storey house in Barangay Bislig but to no avail.
“Maybe we are really intended to live here,” said Antonietta, 49, who plans to immediately transfer to their new house once it was awarded to them by the government.
“It’s more comfortable here.We already have electricity and water connection, unlike in Bislig where we still have to travel to the town proper to buy water,” she added.
Urduja victim Nilda Ybañez of Almeria represented the 27 families who are beneficiaries of housing project from the NHA.
“In behalf of the housing beneficiaries from Almeria, we are very happy to the assistance of free housing that government thru the NHA and Pres. Duterte gave us,” Ybañez.
“We assure you that we will follow all rules and regulation and to maintain peace and order for a harmonious relationship within the community once these units are awarded to us,” she added.
Ybañez also appealed for the government to also fast track the water connection in all housing projects aside from making sure that their houses will be completed on time.
Aside from housing units for typhoon Urduja victims the NHA had also constructed housing project for typhoon Yolanda victims in the towns of Cabucgayan (258 housing units), Naval (800 units) and Biliran (392 units).
(ROEL T.AMAZONA)
RTR Zumba Jammers celebrates 2nd year
The RTR Zumba Jammers celebrated it’s second anniversary with a grand event called, “SAYAW HATAW” at the Gaisano Capital Real parking lot last September 14, 2019 at 5pm. Before the start of the event free face and body painting was made available to interested participants for free. The event started with the zumba dance moves by the group’s resident Zin Aldin Dapuran and Kjan de Guzman Udtuhan followed by the 10 invited guest Zins comming from the whole Region 8.
The RTR Zumba Jammers is spearheaded by Leovilla Tan Cortez, Mary Ann B. Indic, Peachy Mendoza and Pia Tan. The group aims to give venue to zumba enthusiasts in the city for a healthier lifestyle. The group’s adviser is Mr. & Mrs. Lino and Lolet Osit.
With the support of the Province of Leyte thru Mr. Tony Chan, the group holds zumba sessions every morning, Monday to Sunday at 5am till 6am at the RTR Plaza Stage, J. Romualdez St., Tacloban City. Everyone is welcome.