TACLOBAN CITY- It could be the start of their quest for justice.
That’s how Kristine Clemencio summed up the decision of the Ombudsman to charge former President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino over the killing of 44 Special Action Force (SAF) members of the Philippine National Police.
Clemencio’s husband, PO1 Mark Lory Clemencio from Carigara, Leyte, was among those SAF members killed in what is known as Mamasapano massacre.
“I am happy with this development. Hope this will be the first step for us to achieve justice that we have been seeking for all this time,” Clemencio, reached on her mobile phone, said.
She, however, remain apprehensive that considering that Aquino was a former president and remain influential, the case filed against him may not end as they want it.
“He is a (former) president. The case might just be white washed. I am only pinning my hope to President Duterte who personally gave his assurance to us that justice will be served to us and our loved ones(who died due to the encounter),” Clemencio said.
Aquino was charged by the Ombudsman not for reckless imprudence resulting in multiple homicide and physical injuries but only for usurpation of authority and graft over the controversial incident.
Aside from Clemencio, SAF members who were from the region who were killed during the botched operations were PO3 John Lloyd Sumbilla from Sulat, Eastern Samar; PO2 Glenn Bedua from Dulag, Leyte; PO2 Noel Balaca from Oras, Eastern Samar;PO2 Rodel Ramacula from Rosario, Northern Samar and PO1 Joseph Sagonoy from Silvino Lubos, Northern Samar. (JOEY A. GABIETA)

NGCP continues its Visayas restoration efforts for facilities affected by the July 6 earthquake.
As of July 17, 3 out of 6 transformers (two 138/69kV and one 230/138kV transformers) are now energized, with Transformer 4 online at 849AM today. The remaining three 230/138kV transformers are still under observation.
In light of information from test results of Ormoc transformer 6 and additional need for testing and corrective repair, technical experts do not recommend energization on July 19. The new target is set to July 23, still subject to satisfactory test results.
The islands of Leyte, Samar, Bohol, and Biliran will still continue to experience rotating power interruptions, particularly during peak hours, due to Ormoc Substation transformer limitations.
NGCP’s Ormoc-Tongonan 138kV line has been ready since July 8 to transmit as much as 112MW from Greencore. Greencore committed to supply 40MW out of its 70MW pre-earthquake capacity by July 19.
Power situation in Cebu, Negros, and Panay will also improve with the synchronization of KSPC after its scheduled maintenance and the increasing generation output of EDC geothermal plants.
All other parallel strategies, particularly the hauling of transformers from Cebu and reconfiguration of 230kV to 138kV lines, are ongoing and ready for implementation, respectively.

TACLOBAN CITY- National Housing Authority (NHA) is dismissing claims that houses located at the resettlement sites here sustained damages after the city was hit by a 6.5 magnitude earthquake.
Rizalde Mediavillo, NHA regional manager, said that they have inspected these houses right after the quake and based on their inspection, they did not notice any damage to these houses.
This assertion of the NHA official is in contrary to the claims of city engineer Dionisio de Paz.
de Paz said that several housing units located in Ridge View in Barangay Cabalawan and Guadalupe Heights in Brgy. Suhi were seen to have developed cracks after the jolt.
With the damaged sustain by these housing units, the city official alleged that the building of these units could be substandard, a claim that has been previously made.
“On the inspection that we conducted after the earthquake, there were no reported housing units that were damaged,” Mediavillo said.
“What was observed was the fiber cement board that was used was not integrated with the concrete cement. If it is not integrated, there is a tendency that it will not stick with the cement because it is only a form work. But that doesn’t mean that it is substandard because if you say that it is substandard, the materials you use is not within the standard,” the NHA official added.
Ridge View and Guadalupe Heights are among the 11 resettlement sites constructed by the NHA for families who totally lost their houses after Tacloban was pummeled by super typhoon ‘Yolanda’ in 2013.
NHA is tasked to construct more than 14,400 housing units but has only so far built more than 8,000 units.
Cracks on walls or what they call hairline cracks are natural to appear in any concrete structure and are not dangerous, added Mediavillo.
“All housing projects are safe because before it is implemented by the NHA, it must be approved first by the Department of Public Works and Highways for resiliency approval,” Mediavillo stressed.
(ROEL T. AMAZONA)

MATUGUINAO, Samar- This interior town has only 43 individuals, four of them were women, who voluntarily surrendered for using methamphetamine hydrochloride or popularly known as shabu.
And almost all of them are ‘habal-habal’ drivers who have access to the illegal drugs, town Mayor Melissa de la Cruz said in an interview.
Habal-Habal is a motorcycle modified to accommodate more than two passengers and is considered as the most common public transport in provinces as it can stand the rough, steep terrain and narrow roads, such as the mountains.
“The drivers have the access to illegal drug traders that is why they are the most vulnerable to that vice,” the town mayor said.
It was learned from de la Cruz that the existence of shabu on the town’s interior barangays are not heard of as drug users are mostly living at the town center.
Of the 20 barangays of the town (population: 7,288), only two are located at its center, Maduroto and Mabuligon.
Senior Inspector Anthony Angcay, town police chief, said that interior barangays are not affected by the illegal drug trade because members of communist group New People’s Army will hunt illegal drug users.
“The town is now drug-free because the one whom illegal drug users buy the illegal drugs was already arrested by the police,” he said.
Mayor de la Cruz said that she is thankful that President Rodrigo Duterte launched this anti-illegal drug campaign.
She added that with the elimination of shabu in her town, commission of crimes related to the illegal drugs could be avoided.
The mayor added that her administration is working closely with the local police to help the drug surrenderees recover from the illegal drug abuse and turn them again as productive residents of the town. (ROEL T. AMAZONA)

In the aftermath of 6.5 quake and its aftershocks

TACLOBAN CITY- The 6.5 magnitude earthquake and the more than 300 aftershocks that followed, the strongest was a 5.4 magnitude, that hit Leyte has resulted for Churches within the Archdiocese of Palo to offer ‘oratio imperata.’
At the Sto. Niño Parish, churchgoers prayed the oratio after the post-communion prayer during last Sunday (July 16) mass.
Oratio imperata is a prayer for special intention like deliverance from a natural calamity like typhoon or earthquake.
The Palo archdiocese had earlier offered the same after the Leyte and other parts of the region were hit by almost successive calamities.
The last one was when Leyte was threatened by a typhoon at a time that Pope Francis was to visit Tacloban last January 17, 2015.
The oratio, which was prayed this July in the parish before the start of the weekday and Sunday masses, was prayed this Sunday within the mass, following a short film -showing on the destruction of the environment and how the parishioners can help heal Mother Earth.
This July, the SNP is observing the Environment Month, like it did last year, spearheaded by the Parish Commission on Social Action.
Besides the continued recitation of the oratio, the parishioners, particularly the parish church volunteers, will be doing civic activities.
This week, the parishioners will join mangrove-planting and clean-up drive in two coastal barangays in the parish.
These activities in observance of the Parish Environment Month are a carryover of last year’s parish pastoral plan, according to SNP vicar Eugene Almamento.
“We parishioners have the responsibility to one another but much more also to the environment entrusted to us by God,” he said.
He stressed that the parishioners should be the one to take the initiative to take care of Mother Earth, not to pollute it.
According to Almamento, the parish is also planning to organize a forum within the church compound on Laudato Si, particularly on Pope Francis’ encyclical on care for the environment.
Almamento also emphasized the need for the people to take on the challenge of caring for and rehabilitating the environment not just on special occasion like this but all-year-round.
This advocacy, he said, “must create in us the consciousness that we should continue this cause and make preservation of Mother Nature a part of our system for the future of our next generation.”
“We need to protect and develop what God has entrusted to us and thank him for his creation,” Almamento said.
Meantime, the SNP joins the Archdiocese of Palo Rescue and Rehabilitation Unit (Caritas Palo) in raising funds to help the victims of the July 6 and July 10 quakes in Leyte with epicenter in Jaro and Ormoc City, respectively.
About 579 families in Barangay Tongonan whose houses were totally damaged, need the assistance; another 232 families in Lake Danao; 25 in Brgy. Milagro; 6 in Brgy. Cabintan; and 2 in Brgy. Baging.
Meanwhile, 121 families in Lake Danao whose dwellings were partially damaged also need help; 135 in Brgy. Cabintan; and 42 in Brgy. Baging.
Donors are encouraged to deposit their fund assistance to the Metrobank account of the Archdiocese of Palo Sto. Niño Parish. (EILEEN N.BALLESTEROS)