PALO, Leyte- The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Bureau of Maintenance from the central office in Manila, represented by Engr. Diana Maria P. Balani, conducted a walk the line inspection and validation of the district’s road conditions and other maintenance activities.
Rectification of road defects was done in some areas of the first district of Leyte such as Palo-Carigara-Ormoc Road, Daang Maharlika Road, Government Center Road, Bagahupi-Babatngon-Sta.Cruz-Barugo Carigara Road, Leyte Samar Interprovincial Roads, Tacloban-Baybay South Road, Pawing-Campetic Road and Tigbao-Pulak Sta. Fe Road.
Engr. Balani pointed out some tips in order for the district to obtain a perfect rating as far as road maintenance is concerned.
She elaborated the importance of well-maintained roadways as it crucially contributes to economic development and growth and brings important social benefits. Unwanted road accidents will also be prevented.
Engr. Balani also explained that if insufficient maintenance is carried out, roads can need replacing or major repairs after just a few years which may result in another soaring costs and a major financial impact on the department.
Lesser potholes were observed in this semester compared to the previous one. However, it is advised to aim for a zero pothole roads. Repainting of guardrails is also necessary to make it more visible to the riding public as it is designed to keep people or vehicles from straying into dangerous or off-limits areas.
Engr. Balani also addressed the districts commendable road widening projects and its clean and visible road safety signage. Roads open up more areas and stimulate economic and social development which makes them the most important of all public assets, thus, maintaining it is strongly necessary. (DESSA T. MALIBAN, PIO-Alternate/PR)

TACLOBAN CITY — The National Electrification Administration (NEA) is upbeat on the expansion of broadband access in the country, providing all power consumers a chance to access the internet.
Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) acting Secretary Eliseo Rio, Jr. will present the government’s National Broadband Plan in a gathering of all key officials of electric cooperatives (ECs) nationwide in Manila on August 7.
This will be the second big step on broadband access expansion initiatives after initial discussions between NEA and DICT officials early this month, said NEA Administrator Edgardo Masongsong in a press briefing here late Thursday afternoon.
“After the gathering we will form a technical group to study the details of the project and come up with a timeline,” he said.
The group will draft the framework agreement, which will include the financial arrangement with the ECs that have existing fiber optic cables in their distribution lines and possible funding for power utilities.
“This is very important because NEA has already access to 95 percent of households, especially in rural areas,” Rio said in a statement. ECs supervised by the NEA can be internet service providers in their respective coverage areas.
“We’ll give you the internet access and you can bring it to your client. Then, they can now enjoy their electricity and they have internet access. This is also an added income,” the DICT official added.
The NEA chief said some ECs, particularly those in Mindanao, already have fiber-optic infrastructure in place so it would be easier for them to provide internet services to communities they serve.
Last June 8, DICT signed a tripartite agreement with the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) and the National Transmission Corp. (TransCo) for the utilization of spare optical fiber to accelerate the implementation of the National Broadband Plan.
Under the agreement, the DICT is given the right to use and access certain spare fiber optic cores, vacant lots, tower spaces and related facilities of the NGCP, the current concessionaire of the TransCo-owned grid.
(SARWELL Q. MENIANO/PNA)

Amandangay Elementary School is one of the barrio schools of Tabontabon District, Tabontabon, Leyte. Before it has only one teacher with 2 grade levels.
Due to the rapid increase of enrolment in these two grade, which were the Grade 1 and Grade 2 and because of the opening of the Kindergarten class, the two grade levels became a mono-grade. Hence new teachers were hired.
Later on, the school heads of Tabontabon district decided to open Grades 3 and 4 classes and later Grades 5 and 6 due to rapid increase of enrolment, completing the elementary levels in the process in 2016.
Now, it has already a population of 132 school children, mostly 4Ps (Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program) members. There are 5 teachers with one school head.
Since the stakeholders are supportive in whatever plans, projects and programs of our school, we, the teachers and school head are inspired to do more for the good of our school children and the entire school.
So, last year we decided to organize our own school band. We informed the parents immediately and many of them were excited with the idea and many of them signify that they will let their kids join.
But then there were a lot of problems that we encountered along the way, mostly on financial aspect.
For one, we need to hire a trainer to teach our band members at a cost of P10,000. But due to our efforts, we were able to raise the said amount.
Then we lack instruments for the band. Of course, the band uniforms. Some of the parents who were willing to let their children join have no enough budget to buy the instrument/s and uniforms for their kids.
But then all these did not stop all of us for really making our dream in organizing our own school band. We continued our practices even if others have no band instrument yet. Those who have no instrument yet used the desks and empty water containers as their drums.
Until such time when our trainer decided to get a video of them and posted it in social media. Many shared his post. Then one of his friends saw the video and got pity with these school children. She is Cora – Corpin Dadison from Palo, Leyte. Then she has also a friend who is from Villaba, Leyte and is now based in America, Mercy Grace Veloso Sendras. She too felt pity with these children.
She invited me to see her last June 17, 2018.We met at Robinsons Mall. I told her more about our school and discussed further about our school band. She promised to donate band instruments for our school. Now, we are still waiting and hoping that this person with a good heart will fulfill her promise.
(The author is teacher of the Amandangay Elementary School in Tabontabon, Leyte).

TACLOBAN CITY-acloban City – Hundreds of Taclobanons who are now living abroad attended the recently-held ‘Balik-Tacloban Night,’ one of the highlights of the annual fiesta of Tacloban.
The balikbayans enjoyed not just mingled with their friends but more so enjoyed the taste of native food delicacies, old songs played by the Tacloban City Band and ball room dances held at Patio Victoria in San Jose, this city.
Mayor Cristina G. Romualdez, in her short message during the event, welcome the balikbayans to Tacloban, home to the happiest people in the world lives.
“Those old familiar faces are most welcome yearly in this special occasion intended for you. I know you missed the camaraderie of old friends enjoy the night, this is for you!” she said.
The lady chief executive together with the officers of the Sangyaw Foundation Inc. headed by President Girlie Anido entertained the visitors with stories, hopped from one table to the other for posterity sake.
Former mayor Alfredo “Bejo” Romualdez came also to see friends from California. “I see old familiar faces who have been away out of Tacloban for quite some time,” the former mayor said.
The balikbayans who attended the occasion are now mostly residing in the United States, Canada, Middle East, and Australia. (GAY GASPAY, TISAT)

TACLOBAN CITY – One of the country’s leading coffee shop chains is planning to open more outlets here in Leyte, notably here in the city.
Their planned expansion is a testament that the economy of Tacloban, in particular, is booming, Steve Benitez, founder and president of Bo’s Coffee, said.
Benitez was in the city on July 13 to lead in the opening of the new Bo’s Coffee outlet located along Avenida Veterenos.
The said outlet is considered to be Bo’s Coffee biggest in terms of capacity among its branches in the country. The two-level outlet could accommodate 120 people.
Benitez also said that he welcome the reported coming in of new players in the industry in Tacloban.
“I think that shows that Tacloban is really growing and that’s a positive side of it. If the city grows bigger there is always a room for more players,” he said.
It was learned from Eddie Uy and his brother Wilson Uy, franchise holders of Bo’s Coffee in the city, that new outlets will be put up at the Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport and near the Government Center in Palo, Leyte.
At present, there are two Bo’s Coffee outlets in the city with one outlet each in the cities of Ormoc and Calbayog.
Bo’s Coffee sources their coffee beans from farmers in the Philippines, from highlands of Sagada and in Bukidnon and Benguet, Mt Apo, Mt. Kitanglad and Mt. Matutum in South Cotabato.
(ROEL T. AMAZONA)

NAVAL, Biliran-It’s like exploring an old world by bringing along with new method of farming to the only group of indigenous people in the province of Biliran – the Mamanwa.
The Mamanwa first settled in Sitio Palayan in 2004, an upland community found at the foot of Mount Panamao in Barangay Caucab in Almeria town, a place abundant with abaca and palay.
“Ang gihatag nga training sa TESDA, dako kaayo ug ikatabang sa among komunidad sa Mamanwa” (the training provided by TESDA is a big help in our Mamanwa community), the Cebuano speaking JR Calinawan, a Mamanwa leader, said in an interview during the launching of the training.
In almost six decades, the Mamanwa never thought that government, with its battle cry of not leaving behind anybody in the mainstream of development, will set foot at their place with the people from the provincial office of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) in Biliran province, taking the initiative to introduce a life changing skills-organic farming.
Priority sector
“The indigenous people (IP) is a priority sector of TESDA under the leadership of Director-General Guiling Mamondiong,” Elizabeth P. Garcia, provincial director of TESDA-Biliran, said during the launching of the free 8-day training on Produce Organic Vegetables and another 8-day training on Produce Organic Concoction and Extract (Leading to Organic Agriculture Production NCII) at the Palayan Elementary School on June 27.
The 43 members of the Mamanwa tribe will receive P100 each within the duration of the training plus a toolkit each after the completion of the training, Garcia added to ensure sustainability of the free training program.
The 16-day training is facilitated by the Espinazo brothers, Jeffrey, the farm manager and Sandro, instructor of Canaan Hill Farms of Caibiran, Biliran.
Canaan Hill Farm is the first accredited farm school of TESDA in Eastern Visayas and the only farm school of TESDA in Biliran province.
Prior to the training on organic farming, TESDA-Cabucgayan National School of Arts and Trades (CNSAT), a TESDA accredited vocational-technical training school in Biliran province, also provided the Mamanwa with a month training on cook hot meals.
Garcia assured the Mamanwas that there will be a portion of lot near their community where they can use for organic farming after the completion of their training on organic farming.
“You will have an organic produce of your own where you can sold to establishments and people who utilized organic farm produce,” Garcia told the Mamanwas who just depend on crude farming as primary means of livelihood.
Likewise, Hazel Torrefiel, administrative officer V of the National Commission on Indigenous People (NCIP)-Visayas Cluster who was present during the launching of the training program, vowed to bestow to the Mamanwa community the community based-forest management (CBFM) with the DENR provincial office so they can have a permanent land of their own to cultivate and develop in their agriculture farming
Good Samaritans are also helping the members of the Mamanwa community who are undergoing the organic farming training as the local government unit of Almeria through Mayor Richard Jaguros and the town council notably Councilor Lloyd Labagala, who chairs the committee on agriculture and tourism, provided three sacks of rice and one box sardines to the family of the Mamanwa trainees.
Biliran Governor Gerardo J. Espina Jr. also gave five sacks of rice and one box of biscuits. Rep. Rogelio J. Espina will send his help to the Mamanwa community who are undergoing training before the organic farming training will end on July 20.
(RODRIGO VICTORIA, PIA-Biliran)