TACLOBAN CITY—With the economy of the region, as measured by the Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) slowed down from 12.4 percent in 2016 to 1.8 percent in 2017, regional economic officials remain “optimistic” that it will attain its goals of a robust economy and less poverty this year and onward.
“This growth is way below the target of 5.2 to 5.7 percent as indicated in the Eastern Visayas Regional Development Plan 2017-2022, and the lowest among 17 regions in the country,” said Bonifacio Uy, the regional director of National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA), in a prepared speech delivered by his assistant director Meylene Rosales on Thursday (April 26) over a news conference on the 2017 Performance of the Eastern Visayas Regional Economy.
The overall growth rates are taken from three major sectors, namely, agriculture, and fishing; industry, and services.
“Growth was hampered by the contraction of the industry sector at negative 1.7 percent,” the NEDA director said in his statement.
In the previous year, the industry sector posted a 19.5 percent growth.
Wilma Perante, the regional director of Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), disclosed that the contraction in the industry sector was attributed to decline of the three subsectors: electricity, gas and water supply (EGWS) by 31 percent; construction by 21.0 percent, and mining and quarrying by 12.3 percent.
With the sluggish economic growth in the region in 2017, Daniel Ariaso Sr., deputy national statistician of the Civil Registration and Central Support Office of PSA, urged the public not to be dismayed, saying the region just need to “work harder” for its future economic growth goals.
While noting that the region’s growth depends mostly on the manufacturing subsector brought by heavy industries located at the Leyte Industrial Development Estate (LIDE)in Isabel town, the economic officials have urged for the promotion of “rural industrialization that will adopt and intensify industry clustering, and competitive and resilient industries, with more and stronger micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs)”, along with continued development of Public-Private Partnership projects.
According to NEDA, the proposed establishment of the Leyte Ecological Industrial Zone (LIEZ), which is in its pre-feasibility study stage, could be a start towards this goal.
Also, they urged for more tourism and investment promotion through a business-friendly environment to “attract, expand, and sustain investments.”
NEDA also hoped for the reversal of the region’s economic growth in 2017 through the “Build, Build, Build” program of President Rodrigo Duterte administration.
NEDA reported that the region has identified over 2,000 proposed priority programs and projects which will address the pressing issues in the region. (RONALD O.REYES)

TACLOBAN CITY- The regional Commission on Elections (Comelec) reported that more than 114,600 have filed their candidacies for both barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections.
The poll body, however, has yet to come up with a data as to how many of these candidates are sure winners for having no opponents.
Lawyer Jose Nick Mendros, Comelec regional director, said that based on their data, a total of 114,665 candidates are in the running for the barangay and SK elections scheduled on May 14 in the region.
For village chairpersons, 8,578 have filed their certificates of candidacy (CoCs) for the 4,390 posts up for grabs while 61,473 have filed their CoCs for the 30,730 positions needed for the barangay councilors.
Meantime, 8,168 youths have filed their certificates of candidacy for SK chairs while 36,446 are seeking for the SK council seats.
The filing of the certificates of candidacy started on April 14 and ended on April 21.
Of the six provinces of the region, Leyte which has 1,641 barangays, has the biggest number of candidates-3,301 filed for village chairmen and 23,528 for councilors while 3,180 for SK chairmen and 13,634 for youth council.
Biliran, which has only 132 barangays, has the least number of candidates-265 for village chairs and 2,084 for councilors and 272 for SK chairmen and 1,387 for councilors.
Southern Leyte has 926 candidates for barangay chairmen and 6,819 for councilors while 884 are in the running for SK chairmen and 3,756 as councilors.
In Samar, 1,749 have filed their CoCs for chairmen and 12,580 for councilors while about 1,658 are running for SK chairmen and 7,786 for councilors.
In Eastern Samar, 1,241 have filed their CoCs for barangay chairmen and 8,464 for councilors. Meantime, 1,144 have their CoCs for SK chairmen and 4,402 for SK chairmen and in Northern Samar, 1,096 are in contention for village chairs and 7,998 for councilors and about 1,030 for SK chairmen and 5,481 for youth councilors.
Meantime, Mendros said that they could not say yet as to how many of these candidates are sure to win for lack of rivals.
“We have not yet analyze our data as to who among these candidates are sure to win because they don’t have rivals,” he said.
He, however, said that all positions that are for grab in the village and SK elections have been filled up.
“Though there instances that not all slate have been filled up,” Mendros said.
For these elections, voters for both barangay and SK elections are to elect a chairman and seven councilors. (JOEY A. GABIETA)

TACLOBAN CITY-A P12-million worth of concrete farm-to-market road (FMR) was inaugurated in Alangalang by Leyte Governor Leopoldo Dominico Petilla.
Gov. Petilla, who led the inauguration and the cutting of the ceremonial ribbon, told Leyte Samar Daily Express that the 812 linear meters FMR in Barangay Borseth, will connect the barangay to the town proper and to the national highway.
The project will benefit the farmers in the area and will make the transportation of farm products to the market easier and faster.
Petilla claims that the FMR is of great help to his “More Income in the Countryside” program considering that Alangalang is one of the rice farming municipalities in the province. (RESTITUTO A. CAYUBIT)

PALO, Leyte- The national government opened its Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Knowledge Center in Eastern Visayas in a bid to promote PPP program in the poverty-stricken region.
The information hub, housed at the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) regional office here, will answer all PPP-related questions from local government units, state universities and colleges, government-owned and controlled corporations, and private investors.
PPP Center Deputy Executive Director Eleazar Ricote said the growing interest of Manila-based and international companies to invest outside Metro Manila prompted them to set up the knowledge center in the regions.
“You don’t have to go to Manila to strengthen your capabilities to undertake PPPs for your infrastructure and development requirements. This is like your PPP consultation room, answering all your queries related to PPPs,” Ricote said during the center’s opening Tuesday (April 24).
The official clarified that not all PPP ventures are hard infrastructure projects. Some existing PPPs include the construction and operation of public markets, terminals, slaughterhouses, and information technology systems.
The new facility will not only answer queries of government agencies and local government units but private investors as well.
There are also available templates for local government units to come up with PPP Code, feasibility studies, contracts, and other documentary requirements for PPP projects.
NEDA Regional Director Bonifacio Uy welcomed the opening of the PPP Knowledge Center here, the fifth of its kind in the country.
Knowledge corners have been set up in NEDA offices in Davao City, Cagayan de Oro City, Pampanga, and Butuan City.
“I see the significance of providing PPP technical assistance in every region to sustain economic growth through improved private investments,” Uy said.
The NEDA regional office here is eyeing PPP ventures in agriculture and fisheries, manufacturing, and tourism, the three priority areas under the 2017-2022 Regional Development Plan.
The knowledge center initiative is a partnership between the NEDA and PPP Center as part of the government’s strategy to engage more local implementing agencies to rollout more bankable and viable PPP projects in the countryside.
Among the benefits cited for PPPs are proper alignment of incentives, allocation of risk to party who can best manage that risk, tapping private partner’s innovation and expertise, revenue sharing, and addressing implementing agencies’ limited absorptive capacity and government’s limited fiscal space.
PPP Center, which was created through an Executive Order in 2010, serves as the central coordinating and monitoring agency for all PPP projects in the country.
The Center manages a USD102-million revolving fund that gives implementing agencies access to a panel of consulting firms tasked to provide advisory support and multi-disciplinary expertise.
(SARWELL Q. MENIANO/PNA)

Reason why illegal drugs continue to proliferate

TACLOBAN CITY- The continued proliferation of illegal drugs in he region ‘mirrors’ the non-function of anti-drug council in the barangay level.
Thus said Kenneth Joey Balase, regional focal person of the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG)’s barangay anti-drug abuse council (Badac) program.
Balase said that while they don’t have a solid figure to back up on their claim, majority of the region’s 4,390 Badacs are ‘organized but are not functioning’ according to their mandate.
“Based in our observation, we can say that Badacs are not functioning according to the purpose for which they were created as illegal drugs continue to proliferate in the barangay (level). It is in the barangays where these illegal drugs are being sold,” Balase said.
“The non-function of our Badacs serves as a mirror why there still illegal drugs proliferating,” he added.
He, however, cited the case of Barangays 44 and 77, both in Tacloban City, which have a functioning anti- illegal drug council which was mainly credited why these villages were among the first barangays in the country to be declared as drug-cleared.
The anti-drug council in the barangays is a mandatory-created council under the Local Government Code which is supposed to serve as the first line of defense in the fight against illegal drugs in the country.
Balase, however, said that they are dismayed that while all the 4,390 barangays in the region have existing Badacs, they were just organized for compliance purposes.
“This is the region why we are strengthening our information dissemination campaign on Badacs. That a Badac should be organized not only for the sake of compliance purposes but to help in the campaign against illegal drugs,” he said.
Balase said that sanctions are to be meted to a barangay which has its Badac but is not functioning.
“The members could either be charged for negligence or withdrawal of the internal revenue allotment (IRA) share of the said barangay,” he said.
He, however, said that not a single barangay has been meted either of the sanction mentioned.
The barangay chairman serves as the chair of the Badac with a village councilor as the vice chair with four members. The town or city police chief serves as the council’s adviser.
The government under the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte is currently pursuing a massive anti-drug operations never seen in previous administrations of the country.
Balase said that because of this heightened anti-illegal drug campaign of the Duterte administration, the function of a Badacs plays a significant role to eliminate the proliferation of the illegal drugs.

By: Joey Gabieta

TACLOBAN CITY- Aside from poor health, the other reason why former first lady and now Ilocos Norte Rep. Imelda Marcos appears not liking to visit her home province of Leyte is due to her ‘depression’ on what happened to Olot Mansion located in Tolosa town.
This was revealed by her elder daughter, Ilocos Norte Governor Imee Marcos who was in the city Tuesday(April 17) for an speaking engagement.
The young Marcos said that to help their mother somehow overcome her sadness, they will do something about the 42-hectare beach front property.
“She is not happy to travel these days because her left knee is really bothering her and she does not like to use a wheelchair. I think, she’s also a little bit depressed kasi yung Olot, there has nothing left. So we have to do something for her para mawala ang kanyang lungkot sa Olot,” The Ilocos Norte governor told members of the media during a press conference held at the VIP Lounge of the Daniel Z. Romualdez (DZR) Airport, here.
The structures inside the sprawling property located in Barangay Olot, Tolosa town, were totally destroyed when super typhoon ‘Yolanda’ hit Leyte on November 8, 2013.
The property consisted of a seven-room residential mansion;14-room guest mansion; a pavilion which could accommodate 1,000 people and a nine-hole golf course designed by legendary Jack Nicklaus.
Also washed out by Yolanda were several fabulous gowns and signature shoes of the former first lady and silver wares and some paintings.
The last time the Marcos widow visited Leyte was on November 8, 2014, the first year anniversary of Yolanda’s onslaught.
She did not visit the property though her children, Bongbong and Imee, went there.
Asked what exactly the plan of the family about the destroyed property, Gov. Marcos declined to say.
“We’ll talk about it but we’re not quite certain (on what to do). So we’ll not reveal,” she said.
The property was among the sequestered properties of the Marcoses in Leyte.
But sometimes in 2008, the Supreme Court issued an order allowing Marcos to retake the property.
The Romualdezes traces their roots at Tolosa, a sleepy town more than 20 kms away from Tacloban City, where the family continue to yield political clout. (JOEY A. GABIETA)