PALO, Leyte – In line with the observation of the National Disaster Resilience Month, Plan Philippines presented some invetions that could prove helpful during a disaster.
Five of the 10 innovations from the Visayan regions were from Eastern Visayas which were presented at the ‘Tuklas’ Innovation Labs held at the Oriental Hotel de Leyte, this town, on July 24.
A total of 40 original devices throughout the country were accepted in the Tuklas Innovation Labs which are now under trial stages.
Among them was the “Bakwit Kit”, a flat-packed evacuation kit made from PVC pipes for easy transportation and set-up, designed by DesignNovators from the Philippine Institute of Interior Designers – Eastern Visayas Chapter.
Heidrun Milan, one of the designers of the Bakwit Kit, said that their innovation prototype is being tested in Barangay 77, Tacloban City where residents are helping to enhance their design.
Milan said that they came up with the design as their group’s contribution during a disaster response.
The Bakwit Kit could also fits all the evacuation essentials like soft partition, sleeping mattress, dining set and storage shelving.
It was also design in a way that children, women or even persons with disabilities can easily assemble it.
The Bakwit Kit can fit a family of four, but could still be extended.
“We also would like to promote dignity, convenience and privacy for the families. What we have in the evacuation centers are camp spaces already, so we like to have comfort and convenience for the family because that is very important. Previously we already have issues on privacy and there was no demarcation between one families to another,” Milan said.
Another innovation presented was the Intelligent Flood Warning Monitoring System developed by TECH4DRRM from Cebu City.
The innovation is a flood warning system that uses sensors to send real time alert.
The warning device works when the river water reaches critical level, which the SOLVEX38 will broadcast in the local dialect to inform the community of the time of the possible flooding in the area.
This will allow the residents to set priorities of securing their properties and livestock and evacuate their family to safer place.
The developer of the software said that although they had received assistance from Tuklas, the government should also provide the same to encourage more innovators to create designs that could help communities in disaster preparedness and response.
“Developing this kind of software needs support. We are thankful that Tuklas is here to help us. I hope that the government will come up with a program that will support innovators and inventors to showcase their talents, although there is the Department of Science and Technology but the more government agencies providing fund for the development of innovations and invention which will have a better result because they have good resources,” Jonathan Cartilla, SOLVEX38 developer, said.
Tuklas, which is short for Tungo sa Kahandaan ng Pilipinas, is a community-centered innovation project that aims to support local solutions on disaster risk reduction and management which was launched last year and winners were selected from the 260 proposals from 17 regions in the country.
The selected innovation will be provided with up to P1 million in seed capital, training, and mentorship to test their disaster preparedness innovations from March to November 2018.
“The selected proposals revolve in the four themes of disaster risk reduction and mitigation which are preparedness, mitigation, response and rehabilitation. So, in the innovations that were selected you can see food security, the water, shelter, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) and self-protection,” Michael Anthony Crus, Tuklas project manager, said.
The project is a partnership between Plan International, Action Against Hunger, CARE Philippines, and the Citizen’s Disaster Response Center with support and funding from the Disaster and Emergency Preparedness Program (DEPP) Innovation Labs, a global network of labs funded by United Kingdom aid, and co-managed by Start and Communicating with Disaster Affected Communities (CDAC) Network.
(ROEL T. AMAZONA)

Groups claim a failed gov’t

BY: JOEY A. GABIETA/ROEL T.AMAZONA

TACLOBAN CITY- Lies and unfulfilled promises.
Thus claimed members of the different progressive groups in the city as they held their protest rally in time of the third State of the Nation Address (Sona) by President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday who boasted his administration’s accomplishments.
The rallyists, which started their rally inside the premises of the Santo Niño Shrine along Real Street and ended at Rizal Avenue where they held a short program, claimed that despite of the report of Mr. Duterte, Eastern Visayas, in particular, remain to be undeveloped with much of its people remain to be living below poverty line.
And their misery was compounded further with the implementation of the TRAIN (Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion) Law which they claimed resulted only in the soaring of basic prices.
Joshua Sagdullas, spokesperson of the Bayan Muna, said that under the administration of Pres. Duterte, killings have become common and ordinary.
He was referring to the controversial campaign of the President on illegal drugs which resulted in the deaths of more than 3,000 people.
Sagdullas also said that the campaign has also resulted in the arrest of even innocent civilians.
In his Sona, Pres. Duterte said that, among others, his campaign against illegal drugs would continue be it may be ‘chilling.’
The campaign is being strongly criticized by human rights groups, to include some foreign countries.
The President also boasted his campaign to end contractualization being practice by several business establishments.
Mr. Duterte also asked government agencies to stop red tape which has been seen as a cause of corruption among government leaders and personnel.
The President also vows to connect all islands of the country, to include Eastern Visayas, by constructing needed facilities like bridges and seaports.
The 100 rallyists said that they would continue to dramatize their opposition to the administration of Pres. Duterte which they have earlier pinned their hopes in addressing the country’s basic woes like its poverty situation.
Joshua Sagdullas, spokesperson of the Bayan Muna, said that the implementation of the TRAIN Law also resulted for a higher inflation rate, or the rising of prices of goods and services, in the region.
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the inflation rate of the region stood at 6.3 percent as of June, which was higher compare to the national level of 5.2 percent.
Jun Berino, secretary general of Sagupa (Samahan han mga Gugti na Parag-uma ha Sinirangan Bisayas), said that farmers in the region, for one, remains to be poor with majority of them still without their own lands to till.
“He had promised to give free lands to our farmers but this remains to be an unfulfilled promise,” Berino said.
He also said that proving another burden to the poor Filipino people was the implementation of the TRAIN (Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion) Law which he said resulted to higher prices of basic commodities.
“This TRAIN only resulted for the lives of the poor to become more miserable as it resulted to higher prices of commodities,” Berino said.
The President said that he would continue to implement the TRAIN Law saying it benefitted the poor through financial assistance.

With only few takers

MAASIN CITY – Officials of Southern Leyte are calling those who are qualified to take advantage of a scholarship program it is offering for those who want to become doctors.
For some reasons, only few are taking advantage of the medical scholarship program which was introduced by former governor and now congressman, Roger Mercado.
“We need more applicants for this program to address the lack of doctors in our hospitals,” Mercado said.
At present, only 20 students have availed of the program of the provincial government, Governor Christopherson Yap said in a separate interview.
“Having enough doctors in the province would allow our poor constituents to have better access to medical and hospital services. Like education, taking care of the health aspect our constituents is very important for our province to grown,” the governor said.
Aside from tuition, matriculation and laboratory fees, those who will be accepted of the scholarship grant also receives free board and lodging, books, uniform, and transportation allowance.
The program was conceptualized by the provincial government under then governor Mercado after the province faced a problem on lack of doctors serving the provincial run-hospitals spread on its seven towns and in Maasin City.
Since it was implemented in 2014, the program had produced two doctors who are now serving at the Southern Leyte Provincial Hospital.
“The only requirements needed for them to be accepted in the program is to finish the pre-medical school course and be accepted in a medical school,” Rep. Mercado said.
The applicants must also send their letter of intent to the Southern Leyte Board of Medical Scholarship Program.
Mercado added that those who will become doctors after the program will have to serve five years to any of the hospitals under the provincial government. (ROEL T. AMAZONA)

By: ROGER C.MELO

Amandangay Elementary School was one of the three schools in Tabontabon District, Tabontabon, Leyte that was chosen by DepEd to become a recipient of Gulayan sa Paaralan Program . We were thankful then of this big opportunity and privilege for this would be of big help to the families of our school children since most of them are low income earners and besides most of them are 4Ps members.
In this connection, our school were given by DepEd P10, 000 to start the program. We bought different garden tools, seeds and other materials to be used in the implementation of the Gulayan sa Paaralan Program.
After that, I, together with the teaching force of our school called for a Parent’s Meeting at once to inform them of the said program and amount given by our department.
During the meeting, it was decided that we will have our gulayan at the back of our school buildings since we have a wider space there. Immediately the day after, the parents came to our school to help in the Pintakasi.
Many of our parents, barangay officials and even the LGU of the municipality of Tabontabon were so supportive of our program.
The Municipal agriculturist Arturo Juanico, together with his staff visited our school. They gave us an orientation on the different strategies in raising different vegetable products. They also gave us some seeds and organic fertilizers.
As of now, we already started the program. The parents already planted different seeds like ampalaya, okra, tomatoes, pechay, string beans, patola, kangkong and eggplant. They will still plant other vegetable plants like squash, pipino and watermelon.
We are hoping that our Gulayan sa Paaralan Program would prosper. This would be of big help in our school to support and sustain our other program which is the School Based Feeding Program. Also, since most of the families of our pupils are low income earners this would help them in their day to day living .
All of these would help banish malnutrition in our school and alleviate poverty in our beloved barangay – Barangay Amandangay, Tabontabon, Leyte. (Note: the author is a teacher of the Amandangay Elementary School, Tabontabon, Leyte)

TACLOBAN CITY – The province of Leyte has extended financial assistance to the six policemen who died during a misencounter in Sta.Rita, Samar.
Leyte Governor Leopoldo Dominico Petilla told Leyte Samar Daily Express in an interview over the weekend that his office has extended a total of P120,000 to the six victims of the misencounter with the government troops on June 25.
Gov.Petilla said that each victim was given P20,000.
He added that the financial assistance was given by the provincial administrator Atty. Edgardo Cordeño to the relatives of the slain policemen.
The six police men who died and were recipients of the financial assistance were: PO1 Wyndell Noromor of Matag-ob town; PO1 Edwin Ebrado of Matalom; PO1 Phil Rey Mendigo of Tanauan; PO1 Julius Suarez of Carigara; PO1 Rowell Reyes of San Isidro Northern Samar; and PO1 Julie Escalo of Basey, Samar.
The killed policemen who were on patrol duties engaged in firefight with members of the 87th Infantry Battalion.
(RESTITUTO A. CAYUBIT)