NAVAL, Biliran-The chief of the provincial Comelec (Commission on Elections) office in Biliran on Sunday, Jan. 13, told local candidates, who attended the Unity Walk, Ecumenical Prayer Rally, and Covenant Signing, to follow election laws.
Lawyer Antonio Gulay, Jr., provincial election supervisor, said this reminder in his short message during the said activity held at the Naval Gymnasium.
Gulay emphasized to the candidates the P3.00 allowable expense per voter as provided for by law.
He further reminded the candidates not to engage in vote-buying and follow the proper sizes and installation of campaign posters during the campaign period.
The provincial election chief reminded the candidates to follow what the integrity pledge they signed to achieve a clean, orderly, and peaceful elections in the province.
The unity walk, initiated by the Biliran Police Provincial Office, was also attended by the municipal level candidates of Naval and the provincial level candidates of Biliran.
Gulay also reminded the public during the PIA-Biliran’s Kapihan Forum (Panginsayod) on Monday to be aware of the prohibited acts during election period which runs from January 13 to June 12, 2019.
He stressed the imposition of gun ban, the prohibition of betting as to which candidates are to win, proper hanging of candidates’ campaign posters and not to engage in vote-buying.
Gulay, who just assumed as the provincial election supervisor in Biliran last December 28, 2018, is hopeful for an orderly and peaceful elections in the province on May 13, 2019.
(LDL/MLT/PIA-8 Biliran)
Follow election laws, says Biliran Comelec chief to candidates
Eastern Samar Rep. Evardone faces graft charges before the Ombudsman
Questioned incident happened in 2009
TACLOBAN CITY- For an act that happened about 10 years ago, Eastern Samar Rep. Ben Evardone is now facing a graft complaint before the Office of the Ombudsman.
Evardone, who was governor at that time, was accused by Edilberto Grata, Jr., for violation of section 3(e) of Republic Act 3019, otherwise known as the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act as his questioned acts allegedly resulted to ‘undue injury’ to the provincial government of Eastern Samar.
Grata, who is a resident of Can-avid, also in Eastern Samar, in his complaint he filed before the anti-graft court on Jan.14, stated that Evardone committed graft involving P5.37 million by extending financial assistance to the Liga ng mga Barangay- Eastern Samar which was used for a Lakbay Aral involving barangay leaders of the province for a seminar on good governance in Baguio City on February,2009.
He also said that during the seminar, Evardone, who was on his last term as governor at that time and had expressed his desire to run for congressman during the 2010 elections, also handed P1,000 each to the barangay leaders who attended the seminar.
The provincial government, under Evardone, also entered an agreement with SEAIR to transport the participants, Grata said on his complaint.
Grata said that part of the ‘overall design of the seminar workshop was a commitment made by the governor and the participants.
“In this situation, each barangay chairperson would be made to express his/her commitment of support to then Governor Evardone who made known his intentions to run for Congress in 2010 elections,” he said.
And by giving their support on his congressional bid, Evardone then gave P1,000 each to them, Grata added.
But Evardone, who is now on his last term as congressman of the lone district of Eastern Samar and is seeking for the gubernatorial post in this year’s elections, dismissed the complaint as nothing but ‘purely politically motivated.’
“The fund in questions were aid to barangays transferred to the Liga ng mga Barangays through a memorandum of understanding. It was the liga that disbursed the funds, which were fully liquidated and supported by official receipts and airline tickets. So not a single centavo passed through me,” Evardone, in a press statement, said.
“This happened a decade ago and the timing is suspect. Why only now? There is no doubt that the filing of the case is purely politically motivated,” the congressman said.
(JOEY A. GABIETA)
PRO 8 confers awards to 9 police units in EV
CAMP RUPERTO KANGLEON, PALO, Leyte – Nine police units of the Police Regional Office 8 (PRO 8) received various awards for the 3rd Stage (Proficiency) of the Performance Governance System popularly known as PNP P.A.T.R.O.L. Plan 2030 during the conferment and awarding ceremony on January 16, 2019 at the PRO 8 Matapat Hall.
Eastern Visayas Police Director Chief Supt Dionardo Carlos told reporters in a press conference here that the awardees were as follows: Leyte Police Provincial Office and Tacloban City Police Office for Gold Eagle Award; Ormoc City Police Office; Eastern Samar Police Provincial Office; Biliran Police Provincial Office; Northern Samar Police Provincial Office; Samar Police Provincial Office; Regional Mobile Force Battalion; and Southern Leyte Police Provincial Office for Silver Eagle Award.
C/Supt Carlos also told reporters that said awards were the result of exemplary performances of all the Provincial and City Police Offices and the Regional Mobile Force Battalion contributing to PRO8 Headquarters’ conferment with Gold Medal Award last January 15, 2018 at PNP national headquarters in Quezon City.
Carlos explained that PNP P.A.T.R.O.L. Plan 2030 is the Philippine National Police strategy towards real and lasting transformation.
Its journey began in 2009 when it was selected by the Office of the President to be one of the six national agencies to participate in a landmark Millennium Challenge Corporation Compact Eligibility agreement for adopting the said Performance Governance System.
“With great appreciation, I commend the men and women of PRO8 with their zealous efforts for such a remarkable achievement,” Carlos said.
Currently, this PRO is doing its best foot forward heading its way to the last stage, the Institutionalization Stage, Carlos said.
(RESTITUTO A. CAYUBIT)
Chief Supt. Carlos reassigns 3 police provincial officials
To ensure PNP will remain nonpartisan
CAMP RUPERTO KANGLEON, PALO, Leyte- At least three police provincial directors here in the region were reassigned from their posts as part of the police organization’s policy to remain neutral as the country is set to hold elections this May 13.
Chief Supt. Dionardo Carlos, police regional director, said that the three affected officials have been in their posts of at least a year, a period which he said could have made them established ‘familiarity’ among the candidates running in the elections.
“Election period kasi. We rotate our field commanders, especially those in position of at least one year. We want to avoid familiarity with the incumbents who are running in the elections. This way, we cannot be accused of being partisan. This is also for the benefit of the organization,” Carlos said on Wednesday.
Affected by the orders were S/Supt. Dante Novicio of Leyte who was reassigned to Samar province; S/Supt. Nicholas Torre III,Samar police director who was assigned as chief of the regional operations division; and S/Supt. Felix Diloy of Eastern Samar who was replaced by S/Supt. Lito Bigoy.
The new police provincial director for Leyte is S/Supt. Rolando Bade whose previous post is now occupied by Torre.
Diloy, meantime, was temporarily assigned at the Regional Personnel Holding and Accounting Unit.
Of the three affected police provincial directors, the most controversial was Torre who engaged Calbayog City Mayor Ronald Aquino of verbal tussle, accusing him of favoring Samar Governor Sharee Ann Tan.
Torre, however, denied the allegations saying he was only doing his functions as a police provincial director.
Not affected by the movements were the police provincial director of Biliran, S/Supt.Julius Coyme, Northern Samar, S/Supt. Reynaldo de la Cruz; and Southern Leyte, S/Supt. Nelson Eucogco.
The three police provincial directors are only at their present assignments of less than a year reason why they were not affected by the movement, C/Supt. Carlos said.
Carlos, however, said that the affected police officials should not considered their transfer as they were relieved.
“It’s not they are being relieved. After the elections, the possibility of putting them back is still there,” he said, adding that all were designated in acting capacities.
Meantime, Carlos said that he issued a directive to all police provincial officials to ensure that that conduct of the elections at their respective areas would be peaceful.
“They should follow the instructions of the leadership. Make sure that they will be nonpartisan and keep (the elections) peaceful,” the regional police director said.
BY: JOEY A. GABIETA/ROEL T. AMAZONA
On damaged roads
Damages to infrastructures to include roads and highways are common reports produced by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). Such reports should have been just normal had the causes been expected, like worn out roads due to extended periods of time.
But most of these causes are unnatural, albeit caused by natural calamities. Look at how infrastructures get damaged by frequent typhoons that enter the country’s area of responsibility twenty times per year on average. This entails endless damages. Somehow, that’s what the country gets for being situated in front of the Pacific Ocean where typhoons are born year-round.
From the recent Tropical Depression ‘Usman” alone, road impairments amounted to P54.5 million according to DPWH. These are damages in Samar Island where the storm had landed. It’s just the beginning of the year, yet we already incurred such losses. How much more are we going to lose should the rest of the storms hit us in the course of 2019, then? Is there anything we can do to prevent the onslaught of these catastrophes?
Nothing. All we can do is to restore and rehabilitate the damaged portions, then expect for similar damages come those forthcoming calamities. Perhaps what the DPWH can do is to ensure they build tougher and stronger infrastructures that could resist disasters, not ones that do not follow specifications; not those that are drained of strength due to construction anomalies and irregularities.
We just hope that these damages are not due to inferior quality and workmanship of those damaged projects. We expect that those damages are due to the intensity of the calamities, not because of easily-damaged road quality.
Tacloban city gov’t opens its first ever OTOP Store
(D. Abarquez/CIO)
TACLOBAN CITY- the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), in partnership with the city government through Mayor Cristina G. Romualdez, launched the first OTOP (One Town, One Product) Store in Tacloban City on Thursday (January 10).
On behalf of Mayor Romualdez, OIC Tourism Officer Ma. Lumen Tabao graced the launching at the lobby of the Kanhuraw Business Center along with DTI Leyte Provincial Director Desiderio Belas.
The OTOP Store sells an array of local goods from Team Coop Producers – a Tacloban-based Cooperative being supported by the local government unit of Tacloban and the DTI Negosyo Center.
The program provides the platform for Micro Small Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) to develop their branding, Packaging & labeling skills and effectively market their products. (CIO)