BY: ARNEL C. BALLON

While watching a famous TV program, I came to watch a contestant who told the audience and the judges that he was bullied as a kid.
He then turned himself to singing instead while he skipped school without his parent’s knowledge about the whole sad scenario.
He said that bullies in school are bigger, louder and scarier. They are usually in groups or in teams. They know all the exits and the darkest corridors to do the bullying acts.
If one can avoid it, he or she can last a day without being in an embarrassing confrontation. Another was what I had come across in a social media post where an author of a book sold a million of copies.
Before that, a teacher told him how he can even make that book published with his writing style.
Bullying then happened even then bullying becomes “bullying”.
Research into bullying didn’t start until the 1970’s. Since then, decades of researches have shown that the power differential between bullies and victims is a crucial component of interaction.
“Bullies go for admiration, for status, for dominance. Unlike friendly teasing, bullying is long- term, unwanted and doesn’t occur between social equals.
Despite the aggressive behavior, bullies also want affection.
Bullies care about the approval of their own in-group, so they strategically pick victims they know few other classmates will defend.
Bullying might have been a “defense mechanism” for bullies themselves. The idea to fit in the society is also a crucial stage for teenagers who seek for approval of the group or peer they want to get into.
Bullying- ‘drama ‘or ‘intimidation’- can make kids or teens more susceptible to mental illness. The feeling of being an outsider, that feeling of not being in a group or accepted or being left out in one is very hard for them. Teenage years are considered to be the most critical stage of being an adult. It’s the stage where one is easily confused but refuses to easily accept changes readily.
Bullying can leave lasting scars, but peer pressure can help reduce this social conflict as schools now introduce more and more students to socialize and open the communication lines freely among themselves.
With the acceptance of the peer, so as equality to gender, age, hobbies and social leisure, teenagers become confident and trusting. When there is no threat in the environment, personal growth and development flourish. Young adults become open to criticism, accepting of weakness and differences and adaptable to change within the society they feel of belonging.
So, are we still entrusting the fault to the bullies?
Or is it time now for us to look at the other side of the story and help the bullies stop bullying instead by getting into the deepest recesses of their minds and taking steps to understand where they are coming from?
Let’s decide. YOU decide. (Note: The author is a teacher of the Tanauan School of Craftsmanship and Home Industries in Tanauan, Leyte)

TACLOBAN CITY – Alleged militarization continue to persist in the country, to include in the region, displacing affected families.
Thus concluded a fact-finding mission participated by the members of the Ecumenical Voice for Peace and Human Rights in the Philippines.
The group disclosed their results on Sunday, a day before President Rodrigo Duterte delivered his third State of the Nation Address (Sona) before the Filipino people.
According to the group, based on their visits to different areas in the region, ‘atrocities’ are continued to be committed against civilians by members of the government forces.
The fact-finding mission was held in the towns of Las Navas, Catubig and Lope de Vega and in Northern Samar province, Paranas in Samar province and Carigara in Leyte.
They claimed that the atrocities allegedly committed against civilians in remote villages include illegal arrests, abuses against farmers and even killings.
This so-called militarization also displaced communities who are evading to be caught in between firefight between government forces and members of the communist armed group, New People’s Army.
The group said that they are not expecting that government agencies to act upon the result of their fact-finding mission considering their previous experience on complaints they filed was just ignored by the government.
Samahan han Gudti nga Parag-uma ha Sinirangan Bisayas (SAGUPA-SB) secretary general Jun Berino said that despite the lack of trust, they are still hoping that human rights violation in the Philippines under the present administration is going to be solve.
“The importance of filling charges is that we are able to inform the people through the media the atrocities that farmers are suffering from the hands of government through the military and other uniformed personnel. This gives us more strength and encouragement to fight for what is right,” Berino said.
Some members of the ISM are United States citizens who went to the ground during the five-day fact-finding mission who talked with affected residents in the region.
“The government is using the armed forces to extract resources with little regards on people on the grounds. This incident is the same to what is happening in the United States that is why I was interested to join this particular ISM,” Copeland Downs said.
The group added that information they gathered will be presented to legislators in the United States so that they can urge their government not to provide aide to the Philippine government programs that are violating human rights.
“Instead of giving it to the Philippines it should be taken back to the United States, because our access to health and education is deteriorating, that is why we are here so that we can bring this information back there and tell our legislators to stop funding all this human rights violation instead bring that money back home and support the Americans there,” the group said.
(ROEL T. AMAZONA)

PALO, Leyte — At least two major projects meant for the recovery of the region’s coconut industry, which was badly damaged by super typhoon ‘Yolanda’, will no longer be completed with the absence of funds, said an official of the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) Thursday.
PCA Eastern Visayas Regional Manager Joel Pilapil said that since 2013, there has been no post-disaster fund releases for the rehabilitation of the industry, rendering the fertilization and intercropping projects incomplete.
In December 2013, the central government disbursed P2.8 billion to the coconut sector in the three Visayas regions out of the P7 billion proposed funds for four major recovery projects, said Pilapil.
“After that, there had been no releases for coconut. We’re able to complete coconut replanting and debris management, but not the fertilization and intercropping,” Pilapil said.
The official made the statement after the Regional Project Monitoring Committee recently listed coconut fertilization as the most delayed project in Eastern Visayas.
The P238.32 million fertilization program only covered 31,214 hectares of the 233,784 hectares original target.
Another major setback in the fertilizer project is the outsourcing of procurement of 74,485 bags to the Philippine International Trading Corporation, as decided by the Office of the Presidential Assistant for Food Security and Agricultural Modernization created by the previous administration.
“Until now, the process of procurement is still not complete,” Pilapil said.
For the P334.05-million intercropping project, only 64,460 hectares have been covered out of the 229,490 hectares of target area.
Intercropping was included as a post-disaster activity to create livelihood opportunities while farmers wait for the full recovery of their coconuts.
Overall, the region received P1.56 billion for the coconut industry in 2013, including the P468.42 million for replanting, and P525.74 million for debris clearing.
Super typhoon Yolanda affected 33 million trees — nearly half of which were totally damaged, according to PCA.
The “fragile” coconut industry after Yolanda was aggravated by another natural threat as Typhoon Ruby damaged at least 200,000 coconut trees by the end of 2014.
The number of fruit-bearing coconut trees decreased by a quarter after the two typhoons.
The highest percentage of reduction was recorded in the provinces of Leyte and Eastern Samar. In 2015, nut-bearing trees stood at 34.48 million, the lowest in decades.
According to a report by the National Economic and Development Authority, Region 8 had been one the country’s consistent top producer of coconuts, next to Davao Region from 1997 to 2011.
However, it eventually slipped into the third rank in 2012, fourth in 2013, and sixth in the last two years. Despite this, coconut remains a primary commodity in the region, comprising around 40 percent of its crop production.
(SARWELL Q. MENIANO/PNA)

TACLOBAN CITY-The stranded baby dolphin injured by blast fishing died early Wednesday morning while being treated by local fishery officials in Ormoc City, said the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR).
BFAR Regional Director Juan Albaladejo said the dolphin calf died two days after it was rescued.
“The male dolphin had abrasions on his body. The stranding was due to acoustic trauma caused by blast fishing since the inner ear drum was damaged,” Albaladejo said in a mobile phone interview.
Acoustic trauma is an injury to the inner ear that’s often caused by exposure to a very loud noise such as explosives.
“Since its rescue last Monday, there has been a clear manifestation that the baby dolphin is unstable and not due for release anytime soon,” the BFAR official said.
A fishermen rescued the 131-centimeter baby dolphin on the shallow part of the sea Monday afternoon in Macabug village.
Experts administered antibiotics and use plastic containers as floating device to help the dolphin regain its buoyancy.
Albaladejo said they expected more sightings of marine mammals, especially in Leyte Gulf and Sogod Bay in Southern Leyte due to climate change. The mammals are sighted in Eastern Visayas region, which faces the Pacific Ocean.
A stranded marine mammal refers to one that has beached or run aground and is helpless or has lost the capability to return to its natural habitat.
(SARWELL Q. MENIANO/PNA)