MAASIN CITY – The Department of Public Works and Highways Southern Leyte district engineering office (DPWH-SLDEO) is seeking a P2.2 billion funds to finance infrastructure projects in the province next year.
The proposal is up than the P1.7 billion outlay for 2017 as the central government steps up roads and bridges widening activities and construct new bridges.
“Since most of our road sections have been widened, the next step is to widen the bridges to complement road expansion projects,” said District Engineer Ma. Margarita Junia.
The proposed budget will also fund the improvement of roads leading to major ports and other production areas as well as for building and upgrading of access roads to various economic zones and tourist destinations.
Pending the final approval of the 2018 projects, the district office has been conducting pre-detailed engineering activities to ensure that projects will be implemented soon after Congress gives a thumbs up to the proposal.
“We have to be ahead of our preliminary engineering works so that we can bid out our identified projects for next year as soon as the 2018 General Appropriations Act is enacted proved,” Junia said.
Bidding is scheduled in October and notice of award will be issued after the budget approval.
Pre-implementation activities include surveying, preparation of design plan, preparation of technical specifications, and road right of way acquisition plans, among others.
“We have formed survey teams to speed up the surveying works in different categories such as buildings, roads, bridges, and flood control. The newly procured modern equipment helped hasten our job in surveying and coming up with project designs and layouts,” Junia said.
The DPWH-SLDEO is tasked to maintain and upgrade 299 kilometers of national roads and 155 bridges, built in 18 towns and Maasin City, the provincial capital.
As of August 2017, the DPWH field office here posted a 60.12 percent accomplishment, ahead by 11.33 percent than the 48.79 percent target for the month. (PR)
DPWH So. Leyte eyes P2.2-B budget for 2018
DA encourages farmers to use hybrid rice varieties for bounty harvest
(Photo by: Restituto A. Cayubit)
BASEY, Samar – The Department of Agriculture here in the region is pushing for farmers to fully use hybrid varieties of rice for them to have increased harvests.
The department, speaking through its regional executive director U-Nichols Manalo, said that by resorting to hybrid varieties, the farmers could expect more than double from their current yields.
The DA-8 staged a three-day national rice technology forum in this town which ended on September 22 and attended by more than 3,000 farmers and other stakeholders in the agriculture sector coming from different parts of the country.
“Our message is clear: Let us look at hybrid rice anew and convince more enterprising farmers, crop experts, and other key players to push and rally behind rice hybridization in Region 8,” Manalo said, referencing the purpose of the gathering.
The participants visited Barangay Old San Agustin, this town, to see a rice farm of 12.6 hectares planted solely of hybrid rice varieties.
Manalo disclosed that last year, the province of Samar posted a total rice production of 149,307 metric tons covering 54,216 hectares representing around 15.6 percent of the region’s total output of 954,844 metric tons.
“Its yield level was seen as the lowest level among the provinces in the region at 2.75 metric tons per hectare,” he said.
Manalo explained that farmers need to be more competitive to cater to the ever-increasing demand for rice.
“As we all know increasing rice output is central to being competitive. And this is precisely where hybrid rice technology could help. Thus we are excited and optimistic about the future of hybrid rice in the region,” he said.
(RESTITUTO A. CAYUBIT)
EVRMC is in need of 170 new doctors to meet its growing number of patients
TACLOBAN CITY- The region’s biggest public hospital, the Eastern Visayas Regional Medical Center (EVRMC), is in need of hundreds of doctors as it continues to grapple the increasing number of patients.
Dr. John Edward Coloma, officer-in-charge of the EVRMC, said that with their growing number of patients and as they are set to transfer to their new buildings in Barangay Cabalawan, they will be needing more doctors.
EVRMC is a 500-bed capacity level III hospital and serves more than 700 patients, Coloma said.
For them to address the health needs of their patients, EVRMC is in need of 170 new doctors.
Coloma added that they also recruited specialists from other cities like Manila and Davao to help in enhancing training program for doctor residency.
“They are not the government type of specialists but private specialists who will help us enhance our training program. We need to really stabilize the training program of EVRMC,” Coloma said.
The training program will include not only doctors who are working in government-run hospitals but also those who are working in private hospitals to ensure that specialists will work at the EVRMC to improve their residency program.
(ROEL T. AMAZONA)
PDEA arrests drug personality in a buy-bust operation in Calbayog City
TACLOBAN CITY- Anti-drug elements of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Samar Provincial Office and PDEA RO8 Northern Samar Provincial Office, Calbayog City Police Station and 2nd Platoon 3rd Company of the Regional Public Safety Battalion arrested a notorious drug personality during the conduct of a buy-bust operation on September 23, 2017 at around 7:30 am.
In a report submitted to PDEA Director General Aaron N. Aquino, elements of PDEA Regional Office 8 under Director Edgar T. Jubay and Calbayog City Police Station and 2nd Platoon 3rd Company RPSB-8, arrested was Mark Magbutay, 36, married and a resident of P-7, Barangay Hamorawon, Calbayog City.
Purchased and seized during the buy-bust operation from the suspect was one piece heat-sealed plastic transparent sachet containing shabu weighing 0.04 gram with an estimated market value of P1,000.
Alsos seized from the suspect during the execution of the search warrant were two sachets of suspected shabu weighing 0.04 gram. Various drug paraphernalia were also seized from Magbutay.
Magbutay will be charged for violations of Section 5 (Sale of Dangerous Drugs), Section 11 (Possession of Dangerous Drugs), and Section 12 (Possession of Drug Paraphernalia), Article II of RA 9165.
The suspect is now temporarily detained at the Calbayog City Police Station Detention Facility while waiting for his commitment order.(PR)
Sec. Dureza reaches out to EV officials, public to join call for country’s peace and stability
CATBALOGAN CITY – Secretary Jesus “Jess” Dureza of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) urged the public, to include in the business sector and officials in the region, to join and help the campaign of the administration to achieve a long-lasting peace in the country.
Dureza made this appeal during his visit to this city on Monday (Sept.25) as he was the guest speaker on the culmination program on the national peace consciousness month celebration of the province.
“We want peace for everyone.I am urging businessmen to invest in peace. Investing is a risk but when a place progresses, you the first to prosper,” Dureza said.
Dureza has been going around the country as part of the so-called peace caravan which is to end on October 3 at the war-torn Marawi City.
But the OPAPP secretary said that he wants to end the peace caravan in Iligan City to “highlight the humanitarian side of peace.”
The gathering was held at the headquarters of the 8th Infantry Division and attended by Governors Leopoldo Dominico Petilla of Leyte; Jose Ong of Northern Samar; Marcelo Ferdinand Picardal of Eastern Samar and Sharee Ann Tan of Samar who is also the regional chair of the Regional Peace and Order Council (RPOC).
Also in attendance were Major General Raul Farnacio, commanding general of the 8th ID; Chief Supt. Gilberto Cruz, police regional director; and Calbayog Bishop Isabelo Abarquez.
During the gathering, Gov. Tan presented the peace road map of her province.
Under the peace road map, the provincial government will promote the tourism sites in conflict areas that would lead not only tourism promotion but provide livelihood opportunities and stop them from joining the outlawed movement.
“With jobs available, I am sure they would no longer be convinced to join (the insurgency movement) because we are offering jobs,” Tan said. (VICKY C. ARNAIZ)
1,306 job openings available at city gov’t job fair
TACLOBAN CITY – Around 1,306 local job orders and overseas job openings will be made available to job seekers, Friday, September 29 at the Mayor’s Employment Generation Activity (MEGA) Jobs Fair which will be held at the Tacloban Convention Center (Astrodome) from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm.
The job fair, which is part of the jobs generation initiative of the city government of Tacloban under the leadership of Mayor Cristina G. Romualdez, is in partnership with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency (POEA), Maritime Industry Authority, PLAN International – Philippines and Save the Children.
According to Tacloban Public Employment Service Office (PESO) Manager Emilia Cruz, around 31 local employment agencies, and six overseas recruitment agencies have already confirmed their participation on Friday’s MEGA Jobs Fair– the sixth conducted by the PESO this year.
Cruz said that among the local establishments which will be conducting their recruitment are Robinson Supermarket, Taytay Sa Kauswagan Incorporated, Canon, Dranix Distributors, Inc., Italian Market Deli, Sanford Marketing/Savemore Market, Cebu Mitsumi and Fast Distribution Corporation.
Recruitment agencies: MSL Stars Human Resources Corporation, MMML, Pacific Venture, Starworld, The Fair Hiring and UNIJOBS will also be hiring skilled workers for overseas employment.
Meantime, prior to the job fair on Friday, the PESO will be conducting a free employment coaching and pre-job fair registration activity for job seekers at the Tacloban City Livelihood Training Center on Tuesday, September 26.
Among the job vacancies available for overseas employment are household workers, dentist, nurses, machinist, and engineers.
Local job openings include 15 field coordinators, 30 cashiers, 100 production operators/assemblers, 8 management trainees, 100 store crews, 25 baggers, 30 company delivery drivers, management trainee for sales and 10 stock clerks. (Henry James G. Roca/CIO)