LOPE DE VEGA, Northern Samar- Students who are studying out of the scholarship programs of the municipal government can be assured of their continued studies. This after Mayor Ana Tan Palloc said that providing free education to students coming from poor families but are showing interests to study and finish school would remain among her top priorities. She said that the scholarship program is just a continuation program initiated by former mayor and sister, Linda Palloc Cinco. Cinco is now serving as an ex-officio member of the town council being the president of the association of barangay chairman. The same post was occupied by Mayor Palloc before she became the town chief executive.

“Definitely yes, igpapadayon ko an mga programa komo sunod nga gin tapuran kahuman nga mag serbe ka-mayor an ak bugto nga si Linda Palloc-Cinco, ngamao an ABC President yana,” the lady mayor, serving on her first term told Leyte Samar Daily Express in an interview. At present, there are 750 high school students and another 100 college students who are enjoying the scholarship program of the municipal government. Considering that Northern Samar particularly, her town as famous for its vast lands of coconut plantation, Palloc said that she hope that scholars would take agriculture-related courses and help provide valuable contributions to the town’s agricultural programs.

Mayor Palloc said that she is also providing livelihood employment opportunities to the women of the town like soap-making, coconut oil processing, among others. She said women organizations were armed of their needed technical know-how trained by the Department of Trade and Industry in collaboration with other concerned government agencies. Several school buildings, day care and health centers were recently inaugurated the construction of which were funded under the KALAHI-CIDSS(Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan-Comprehensive Integrated Delivery of Social Services) of the Department of Social Welfare and Development.

The mayor said that of the P17 million worth of various infrastructure projects, her government funded around 15 percent of these projects expected to be finished by December of this year. On top of this, Mayor Palloc added, she is also bent at improving the health services programs. To date, their rural health unit building has now a lying-in unit manned by a hired municipal health officer and other medical experts along with the assistance of the national government’s Nurses Deployment Program. They have a readily-available stand-by ambulance for use in cases of emergency and referral to the Northern Samar Provincial Hospital in Catarman and even in Manila for further medical treatment. (PETER PAREDES)

ORMOC CITY- A solar power plant is soon to operate giving an alternative power source to consumers of this city which is home to the world’s biggest geothermal power plant. Last October 8, the solar power plant located in Barangay Dolores had its ground breaking which could provide 30 megawatt of power. The solar plant is managed by the Philippine Solar, an associate of SOLEQ, China company which is expected to go in full operations in seven months time. The plant will occupy a 44-hectare lot in the village, said Pedro Pepito, chairman of Dolores, 10 kilometers away from the city proper. Pepito added he assisted the company in processing the necessary documents and guided to obtain the lot/property leases. He was glad that after two years, everything is in place as he expressed that the operation would alleviate his constituents’ economic status considering the plant construction itself needs around 700 skilled workers.

The village people are the priority during the construction of the solar plant. Ormoc hosts the Leyte Geothermal Production Field (LGPF), the world’s second geothermal power plant which produces 700 megawatts supplying electricity in the country. Ormoc receives royalty from the Energy Development Corporation (EDC) which runs the LGPF. (ELVIE ROMAN ROA)

ORMOC CITY- Thousands residents of Barangay Maticaa, this city, availed of free medical services conducted by the Ormoc City Host Lions Club who count among its official a well-known basketball player.
The medical mission conducted by the civic group at Maticaa was initiated by Rey Evangelista, among the most popular player now playing at the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). According to Evangelista, the group’s vice president, he chose to conduct the medical mission in Maticaa considering that he came from the said village wherein his family had distributed farm lots to farmers there. Old people were among those who availed the free medical mission to have blood sugar testing and blood pressure monitoring.

Club member-doctors held checkups of the patients assisted by volunteer nurses from city government-run Ormoc Doctor Hospital (ODH) where medicines were given free. Club president Natividad Calabia said the officers committed to sponsor activity extending help to the community through its “Lions pang-MASA Monthly Activity Schedule Assignment program. Calabia herself fed 600 children with vitamins provided to malnourished children in Bagong Buhay and planted ornamental plants in school of same village. (ELVIE ROMAN ROA)

TACLOBAN CITY – Nearly 11 months after supertyphoon Yolanda (international name Haiyan) devastated across the Philippines, the U.S. government continues to partner with the Philippines on recovery and rebuilding efforts. Last October 3, U.S. Embassy Manila’s United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission Director Gloria D. Steele led the turnover of two school buildings at the Tacloban National Agricultural School (TNAS). The schools—containing ten of the more than 165 classrooms to be built by the U.S. government in the Philippines—are designed to withstand winds up to 360 kilometers per hour and an 8.5 earthquake. Tacloban City Mayor Alfred Romualdez joined the ceremonies and thanked the American people for their on-going support. Angelica Dupa, an 8th grade student at TNAS, also expressed gratitude: “We will no longer be scared of typhoons and other calamities because the new classrooms are stronger than the ones we occupied.”

All of these continued reconstruction and recovery efforts are part of the USAID Rebuild project. Under the Rebuild project, the U.S. government is also working with Coca Cola and Procter & Gamble to reconstruct and restock 1,000 sari-sari stores. Store owners will be trained in basic store management and micro-credit. Director Steele also gave assistance to the Barangay Basper Farmers Association, the TNAS General Parent-Teacher Association, the Tagpuro Women’s Seaweed Association, and the Old Kawayan Fisherfolks Association. Overall, the U.S. government’s support to the Philippines for Typhoon Yolanda recovery is estimated at $142.5 million.

“The projects we see today are born from the strong partnership between the U.S. and Philippine governments. As we work together in planting the seeds of recovery, we also direct our efforts toward ensuring that you will be stronger and better equipped to face future disasters,” Director Steele said. Director Steele concluded her visit to the city by inspecting the ongoing construction of a USAID-funded school building with eight classrooms at the San Fernando Central School, and a tuberculosis clinic at the City Health Office. She also went to Ormoc, Leyte to launch the U.S. government’s “Preventing Trafficking in Persons through Sustainable Livelihood Recovery for Typhoon Affected People” project. The project aims to reduce the vulnerability of typhoon-affected populations to trafficking-in-persons. (PR)

TACLOBAN CITY- Farmers coming from different towns in Leyte are demanding for them be issued the certificate of land ownership (Cloa) saying without the said document, their security are also threatens.
“The absence of tenurial security has, unfortunately, excluded farmers and fisher folk from services for Yolanda survivors, thereby making the normalization process of affected survivors more difficult,” said Ruelie Rapsing, communications and development officer of Rights Network, a non-government organization that concerns on helping farmers and fishermen hit by Yolanda.

The group has pushed for land and shelter security for the landless victims, to include the full implementation of the government’s agrarian reform program. “My call is for the government to give me security on land ownership. I am afraid that one day soon I will be kicked out from the farm I’ve been tilling for years if they don’t give me the proof of ownership of the land they had longed awarded to me,” said Manuel Cayubit, 46, farmer and village leader in Sta. Rosa, Barugo, Leyte. Cayubit expressed anxiousness of losing his land and not getting long-term recovery support from the government if the Department of Agrarian Reform will not hand him his certificate of land ownership (Cloa) which, according to him, should have been given to him many years ago. Another farmer, Villamor Urena, 58, of Alangalang, also in Leyte, said that government should fast-track the distribution of their certificates, “so we can finally own our land and receive government support services.”

“Yet agrarian officials from municipality to provincial and up to regional office are just giving us the runaround of our request. They said our papers were washed out by Yolanda. Others just told us they cannot answer our inquiry because they are new to the job while others have already retired. All of them cannot give us concrete answer. This problem has to end,” added Urena. Proof of ownership is important so we can also pass this land to our children and to their children, Urena added. Last week, farmers staged a protest to demand for the release of the Cloas that they have been seeking for more than two decades now.
As of press time, Leyte Samar Daily Express tried but failed to get comment from DAR Regional Director Shiela Enciso on this issue. (RONALD O.REYES)