TACLOBAN CITY – Air passengers using the Daniel Z. Romualdez (DZR) Airport could now sigh of relief.
The controversial and much opposed plan to reroute the Tacloban-Manila flights to Clark International Airport in Pampanga has been scrapped.
The decision to cancel the plan was made known by Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) Executive Director Carmelo Arcilla in a letter on August 30 to the Regional Development Council (RDC).
Part of the communication said that “Tacloban was no longer the prime candidate for reduction of capacity to Manila.”
“The Cebu Pacific group mentioned that it would instead start complying with the President’s directive by doubling its Clark-Cebu operations while the Philippine Airlines and Air Asia groups committed to study their network further and make announcement of outstations to be rerouted,” Arcilla said.
Arcilla, whose office approves the air routes of the carriers, admitted that concerns raised by the businessmen in the region prompted them to consider the consequences of this “drastic move.”
The rerouting scheme was met with strong opposition from business sector in the region as its congressmen threatened to call a congressional inquiry on the matter branding it as “anti-poor.”
“While the suggestion of Tacloban is a move forward, the government must not actually dictate where the airlines reduce capacity of transfer the same to Clark. What’s more, there should be other routes in the suggestion box, to prevent singling out of any provincial airport,” the CAB said, citing the earlier statement of Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade.
President Rodrigo Duterte earlier directed the Department of Transportation to decongest the Ninoy Aquino International Airport and increase flights at Clark International Airport in Pampanga.
Arcilla vowed to consider the RDC’s position would there be any changes to the Tacloban – Manila route.
In its meeting on Aug. 31, the RDC approved a resolution of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry Eastern Visayas chapter urging the transportation department to reconsider the rerouting of all Tacloban-Manila flights to Clark.
The group argued that rerouting will hurt the tourism industry, adjustment in airfares, increase land transportation cost, adjustment of airfreight cost, longer travel time, and inconvenience to passengers.
Tourism stakeholders questioned why the transportation department picked Tacloban for the pilot rerouting when disaster-stricken communities are “still picking up the pieces” after the 2013 supertyphoon “Yolanda” left a trail of destruction.
Various groups in the region aired their concerns after Tugade announced in a Senate hearing on Aug. 10 that the three airlines – Cebu Pacific, Philippine Airlines, and Air Asia – agreed to transfer all Tacloban-Manila flights to Clark.
The Tacloban’s Daniel Z. Romualdez Airport, one of country’s busiest airports, is a gateway to Leyte, Biliran, Southern Leyte, Samar, Eastern Samar, and Northern Samar provinces.
In the first quarter of 2016, NEDA reported some 311,944 inbound and outbound passengers at the airport. Last year, there were 1.14 million passengers who used the facility. – by: Sarwell Q. Minaiano

With Leyte Gov. Petilla and Samar Gov. Tan Mayors

GOVERNMENT CENTER, PALO, Leyte- Actors-turned politicians Richard Gomez and Cristina Gonzales Romualdez are among the contenders for the chairmanship of the Regional Development Council (RDC) for Eastern Visayas.
Aside from the two first-termer mayors, also contesting the RDC chairmanship are Samar Governor Sharee Ann Tan and Leyte Gov. Leopoldo Dominico Petilla, the current chair of the regional policy-making body.
The four were nominated during their first regular meeting for the year on Wednesday (August 31) held at the regional office of the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA), this town.
While the RDC, composed of major government line agencies, various private sectors, city mayors, governors and head of the mayors leagues of the provinces, nominates who could be its chair for the next three years, President Rodrigo Duterte still appoints the chairman of the regional planning body.
Of the four nominees, only Gomez and Romualdez, who partnered in several movies during the early 1990s, are considered as political allies of Mr. Duterte in the region.
Petilla and Tan, during the presidential elections last May 9, supported defeated presidential candidate Mar Roxas.
However, this early, Tan is not optimistic that she would get the chair.
“I was actually surprised on my nomination. I’m just here to push programs for my province,” the third-termer governor said.
Gomez, for his part, said that while he was honored to be nominated as RDC chair, he would leave it to the President to decide.
“It will only happen upon the signature of the President. Nakakahiya naman if I will lobby. But if he find me to be the appropriate to chair the RDC, then will and good,” the Ormoc City mayor said.
The RDC secretariat is expected to submit the list of nominees to Malacañang next week with the announcement expected within the month.
All four nominees said that if elected, they would give focus on lobbying government agencies to improve the economic conditions of the region still reeling from the aftermath of Super typhoon “Yolanda” in 2013.
For one, Mayor Romualdez said she is pushing for water connections for families that were transferred at the northern part of the city who lost their houses due to Yolanda.
(JOEY A. GABIETA)

PALO, Leyte- For derring-do campaign against illegal drugs in his area, Chief Inspector Jovie Espenido, police chief of Albuera, Leyte, received a commendation from the members of the Regional Development Council. Espenido, who just assumed the post last July of this year, conducted series of anti-drug campaign particularly against Mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr. and his son Kerwin, tagged as the biggest drug lord in the region.

In one of the operations, 11 kilograms of suspected shabu valued at P88 million were recovered from the house of Mayor Espinosa. The recovery was considered as the biggest haul in so far as confiscation of shabu in the region.  Espenido had been successful in the anti-illegal drug campaign in the town of Albuera since his assignment to the town last month of July. The embattled mayor had sought for police protective custody and now lives and works at the town police station. Mayor Espinosa had executed an affidavit at the Provincial Prosecutors Office naming personalities and government officials he claimed as their protectors as they carried out their illegal activity.

But Ormoc City Mayor Richard Gomez raises some points before they could approve the resolution. Gomez said that the alleged 11 kgs of shabu seized from the house of the mayor should first be validated whether these were original or fake. He also asked where the police authorities kept the confiscated shabu. “I think we need to check the authenticity of the drugs seized; who checked its validity; where it is kept right now. It’s easy to commend but we need to be very careful,” Gomez said.

Gomez, however, stressed that he supports and commends the effort of law enforcers in their campaign against illegal drugs. “I support all fights against illegal drugs especially in Ormoc,” Gomez added. In Ormoc alone, more than 2,000 individuals have surrendered to law enforcement operatives under its “OplanTokhang.”
(ROEL T. AMAZONA)

TACLOBAN CITY – At least 25 people were killed for resisting arrests conducted by police authorities during anti-drug operations across the region from July 1 to Aug. 29, 2016. Of the 25 so-called drug personalities killed covering 215 anti-drug operations, seven of them were in Leyte; four each in Samar, Southern Leyte and Ormoc City and three each in Northern Samar and Tacloban City. In a report to the Regional Development Council’s Development Administration Committee, PNP acting regional director Chief Supt. Elmer Beltejar said 261 drug personalities have been arrested in these drug operations. At least 12,526.77 grams of shabu and 42.78 grams of marijuana have been recovered by authorities with total worth of P100.19 million. The police also confiscated 57 long and short firearms. Drug buy-bust, raids, and search led to the filing of 199 cases in courts, Beltejar said. Since President Rodrigo Duterte assumed the presidency, 8,483 houses have been visited by the local police under its “Oplan Tokhang”, which resulted for 16,766 users and 2,122 pushers to surrender or a total of 18,888 surrenderees. Leyte has the most number of self-confessed drug personalities at 5,618; Southern Leyte, 4,490; Eastern Samar, 2,793; Ormoc City, 2,089; Northern Samar, 1,237; Samar, 1,129; Tacloban City, 985; and Biliran, 547.  “The sustained anti-illegal drugs under Project: Double Barrel by anti-illegal drugs units had paved way for a more responsive community in combating the drug menace and defacing crime-breeding areas,” Beltejar said. He assured that the PNP in the region will continue their efforts to eradicate illegal drugs. As a result of the increasing number of self-confessed drug personalities, the Department of Health embarks on training local health workers to assist in the rehabilitation process through community-based approach. (SARWELL Q. MENIANO)

ORMOC CITY-Embattled Albuera Mayor Rolando Espinosa Sr. reiterated his appeal for his son Kerwin to surrender to the government authorities. Espinosa made this tearful appeal during a press conference held at the town police station, where he sought custody since August 27. The beleaguered mayor also asked his son’s associates to surrender as well saying they would be in safe hands with the local police, Chief Inspector Jovie Espenido.  “I call for my son Roland ‘Kerwin’ Espinosa, to surrender. Dong Kerwin look at your father, you know very well that I am innocent of all these. I am the one suffering now for what happened”, the elder Espinosa emotionally said in a press conference on August 30. Espinosa had earlier asked his son, whose whereabouts remain unknown, to surrender. The town mayor had surrendered before PNP Director General Ronald “Bato” de la Rosa on August 2 after he was named by President Rodrigo Duterte to be in the illegal drug trade.

Aside from his son, Espinosa also named four personalities whom he said were his son’s friends namely Max Miro, Galo Bobares, Tonipet Saldivar and Ferdinand Rondina.
Rondina is number two in this city’s drug watch list who had surrendered to the police last July. “As mayor of Albuera, I call all of you to surrender to Chief Insp. Espenido and no harm will be done to you,” Espinosa said. The mayor sought police custody on August 27 after receiving threats to his life.  He applied for the Witness Protection Program (WPP) after revealing in an affidavit the names allegedly connected to his son, the suspected top drug lord in Eastern Visayas.

He initially divulged members of PNP, government officials, members of Congress and a senator as their protectors to their alleged illegal drug activity. “The truth is, I do not have any involvement of his activities,” Mayor Espinosa said. The father and son were tagged by Pres. Duterte as behind the illegal drug operations in the region. “He is now working as a mayor. Ours is only for protective custody to secure his life according to his request. He is trying now to help the government in identifying the men in uniform and government officials who enjoyed drug money”, Espenido said.
(ELVIE ROMAN ROA)

CALBAYOG CITY-Another group of soldiers from the region were deployed to Jolo, Sulu to help fight against the terrorist Abu Sayyaf Group. On Wednesday (August 31), soldiers of the 63rd Infantry Battalion left for their new assignment augmenting further the number of soldiers who are already deployed in Sulu. The deployment of the 63rd IB, which is under the command of Lt. Col.Carmelito Pangatungan and based in Las Navas, Northern Samar, was the second group of soldiers from the region to be reassign to fight against the Abu Sayyaf Group. Last May 29, soldiers belonging to the 19th IB, based in Kananga, Leyte, were also deployed to Sulu to help fight against the Abu Sayyaf Group. Pres. Rodrigo Duterte had issued an order to end the terrorism activities of the Abu Sayyaf Group in Mindanao which include abduction of foreigners and seek ransom in the millions of dollars.

Since the heighten campaign against the terrorist group, 15 soldiers have already died with the almost the same number of Abu Sayyaf members also killed. The 63rd IB left for their new assignment on Wednesday with a send-off ceremony held at the Calbayog Airport attended by top officials of the 8th Infantry Division and the 803rd Infantry Brigade. The 300 soldiers left for Sulu via a C-130 military plane.  “Even before we were informed of this assignment I already told my troop of the possibility that we will be assigned there (Sulu),” Pangatungan said. Col. Mario Lacurom, commanding officer of the 803rd IB, assured the public that the peace and order of Northern Samar and part of Samar would not be affected due to the reassignment of the 63rd IB.

“We have enough soldiers to man our peace and order here. Anyway, there is nothing much to worry in so far as our peace and order situation in Northern Samar and parts of Samar,” Lacurom said. The 803rd IB, of which the 63rd IB belongs, has a jurisdiction covering the entire Northern Samar and parts of Calbayog City.  The other battalion under its command is the 20th IB which is based in Catubig, Northern Samar.  Lacurom said that the deployment of the soldiers to Mindanao is their “contribution in attaining peace not only in Mindanao but for the entire country as well.” He also said that the headquarters of the 63rd IB will temporarily be occupied by the members of the 43rd IB which is based in San Jorge, Samar. Meanwhile, Brig. Gen. Cesar Idio, assistant 8ID commander, reminded the soldiers to be careful and enhance commandership, leadership and continue with the needed training.  (JENNIFER SUMAGANG ALLEGADO/ROEL T. AMAZONA)