PALO, Leyte-Fidelino Josol, a public high school teacher in this town, feels uninterested anymore when the topic about the full releases of their long-awaited financial aid after super typhoon “Yolanda” pummeled Leyte on November 8, 2013.
“It is unlikely that it will be released,” said Josol, apparently frustrated about the issue.
Bobby Seno, a colleague of Josol, also said he is losing hope that he would receive the said financial assistance anymore due to its years of delay.
“I move on for many years now.(I) forget about it,” Seno said, referring to the President’s Social Fund granting financial assistance to government employees who were hit by 7.2-magnitude Bohol earthquake and Yolanda in 2013 during then Pres. Benigno Aquino administration.
Former Presidential Management Staff secretary Julia Andrea Abad issued a guideline for the fund release on January 7, 2014.
However, teachers like Josol have only received half of their aid in late 2015 while others have yet to receive their share.
Per guideline, government employees whose houses were totally damaged are entitled to receive P100,000 each while those with partially damaged will receive P30,000.
“It remains an uphill fight. In essence, the ‘emergency’ factor is no longer present in the giving of this emergency fund. If we don’t have any initiative, nothing will happen on this. Unified support from teachers is urgent to solve this issue,” Mer Inisa Ogario, Eastern Visayas regional coordinator of Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT), whose organization has been pushing for the full release of the funding, admitted earlier.
Ogario disclosed that aside from closely monitoring the issue, they also sought help from Social Welfare and Development Sec. Judy Taguiwalo to express their appeal to Pres. Rodrigo Duterte to speed up the fund distribution.
She also called division heads from concerned division offices who have not yet complied in their liquidation reports.
(RONALD O. REYES)

CARIGARA, Leyte- Mayor Eduardo Ong of this town is pushing for the revision of its revenue code with the aim of shoring up its income.
Ong said that their current tax code is no longer applicable with the current situation, thus, there is an urgent need to revise it.
The town mayor also said that a bigger income for the town could mean more projects and programs that are to benefit the people.
He added that he is also seeking help from the Department of Public Works and Highways to allocate P200 million that he would need to construct the expanded commercial center where new investors could be located.
“We have to accept that the value of peso now is not anymore the same than during the time our revenue code was enacted. It has to be revised to suit present times,” Ong said.
It was learned from Ong that the municipal government earned P22.17 million last year from its local sources, namely, P 1.13 million from real property tax collection; P 3.12 million from tax on businesses; P 1.91 million from regulatory fees, P 8.51 million from economic enterprises and P5 million in taxes.
Meanwhile, its non-tax revenue such as certification/secretarial fees, rentals on provincial government facilities buildings/hall/equipment), permit fees, miscellaneous income amounted to P12.59 million of the same fiscal year.
“The collection is already good but we can do better if we enforce tax reform policies that would improve local tax sources,” Ong stressed.
Increased revenue collected could also mean, more projects and programs for the towns, the mayor added.
Meantime, Mayor Ong said that more investors are expected to do business in Carigara.
He mentioned that the opening of Puregold, one of the country’s leading supermarket chains, in Carigara that is expected to provide employment and not just income for the local government.
He also said that Metro Bank will also open its branch in the town.
At present, there are 520 business establishments operating in Carigara.
(LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA/AHLETTE C. REYES)

CATBALOGAN CITY- Major General Raul Farnacio denied reports that members of the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) have been sighted in several parts in the region.
Farnacio, commanding general of the 8th Infantry Division based in Catbalogan City, said that the reports being circulated by certain groups are not true at all.
Earlier, there were reports that alleged ASG members were seen in Dolores, Eastern Samar and Santa Fe, Leyte.
But Farnacio said that Muslims who are members of the Balik Islam group were the ones seen in these places and certainly, they are not members of the terror group.
“A lot of information are coming out but none of them are airtight though it really means that there’s a lot of work to be done in terms of monitoring activities of the group,” the Army official said.
Farnacio said Muslim communities are assisting the government in hunting down members of the terror groups like the Abu Sayyaf.
The Army general assured the public that they are closely monitoring the developments in Bohol to preempt any possible moves from the ASG to come to the region and spread their terroristic activities.
A joint effort and deployments were conducted both by the Army and police to ensure the security and safety of the public, including tourists who come to the region, Farnacio said.
Meanwhile, in a separate interview with Eastern Visayas Police Director Elmer Beltejar, he warned the public to be vigilant and to be extra careful in going to possible target areas like shopping malls, car parks, and tourist attraction areas.
He urged the public to remain calm despite the warning though he insisted that the region remains to be peaceful.

Beltejar advises also those who are spreading false reports so as not to instill fear to the public but rather consult the police first.
(JAZMIN BONIFACIO)