ABUYOG, Leyte-The economy of this town located in the eastern part of the province is expected to boom with the opening of the Prince Hypermart, one of the country’s fastest growing retail facilities.
The Prince Hypermart formally open for business on April 25 this year located right at the heart of the town proper occupying 3,000 square meters.
The one-storey Prince Hypermart in this town of about 60,000 people is the fourth in the region and the 13th overall under the management of Robert Go.
It first opened its branch in the region in Baybay City and soon after put up branches in Naval, Biliran and Maasin City in Southern Leyte.
Aside from its grocery, which offers much lower prices compare to other retail facilities, the Prince Hypermart has other tenants that sells medicines and medical equipment; mobile phones; and bread and pastries, among others.
Go said that he is confident that their Abuyog branch will also turn out to be a successful venture just like their other existing branches in the region.
“I am confident enough on this latest venture. I know the people of this town and nearby areas have the financial capacity to patronize our company,” Go said.
He said that their target clientele are those in the so-called CDE market as they offer lower prices compare to other hypermarts.
In fact, Go said, variety store owners comprises the main bulk of their patrons due to their low prices.
And as a sign of their gratitude, they are offering promo campaigns like providing them a discount or rebate.
And every Monday, the Prince Hypermart offers a buy one take one promo.
Go also said that they are also conscious of their social responsibility as they provide feeding to children in the depressed barangays and gives medals to students who topped their classes during graduations.
Meanwhile, Mayor Octavio Traya said that he was happy with the opening of the Prince Hypermart in their town.
He said that aside from helping their town’s economy, the opening of the Prince Hypermart in their town would also create additional employment to his people.
Initially, about 200 persons find jobs with the opening of the Prince Hypermart in Abuyog. (LITO A. BAGUNAS)

BACOLOD CITY- Courts should be child sensitive but not at all child-friendly and know the needs of the child witness.
This was stressed by Doris Alejo, senior state prosecutor of the Department of Justice in a lecture before court interpreters across the country held at the Bacolod Pavillon Resort Hotel, this city.
She cautioned that being child-friendly might cast aspersion in the mind of the defense counsel that the court is bias, which should not be the case.
Alejo, one of the lecturers in the 8th Philippine Association of Court Interpreters Inc held in Bacolod City early this week, underscored the need for the court interpreters to have extra admirable patience in handling a child witnesses.
She added that the law presumes child witnesses as qualified witnesses, whose competency could be ascertained in same proceedings. She, however, emphasized the need to employ such skill necessary to elicit the truth from the child, such as talking to them in their level and not the level of an adult.
Citing hypothetical scenarios of case hearings involving child witnesses, the Philja lecturer emphasized on the need for court interpreters to devise a method to correctly express the crime perpetrated with the use of testimonial aids especially if the case is elevated to the appellate court.
A classic situation is the hearing of rape case where anatomically correct drawings or dolls will be very helpful in gathering the significant facts from the child witness, especially the rape victims.
Under the Child Witness Rule promulgated years back by the Supreme Court, the courts are supposed to have waiting rooms for child-witnesses and live-link interview facilities in order to keep the child witness’ comfort while inside the court.
However due to the high cost of installation of live-link equipment very few courts have this facility.
Other courts also had the staff room as waiting room in the dearth for waiting room for child witnesses.
Handling child witnesses is the sole concern that the vital role of court interpreters is underlined. They are generally considered integral part of the justice system, especially that their interpretation or translation of testimonies in open court may “make or unmake a witness,” according to Justice Delilah Vidallon Magtolis, chief of office of the Academic Affairs of Philippine Judicial Academy.
Magtolis, who was also among the lecturers on the PhilACI convention, said the “proficiency in the discharge of their duties helps elicit the truth in a case (being tried in court).”
However, she reminded the court interpreters to be equipped with the weapons they need to be proficient.
Among these are keen perception, deep concentration, rich vocabulary, fluency both in English and the local dialect, quick thinking, good memory and mastery in the use of grammar. She likewise emphasized the need for them to exercise proper decorum and conduct while in court.
She said an erroneous interpretation could produce a litany of negative effects such as confusion and misunderstanding and waste of time, money and resources. “Truth being evasive, if the erroneous translation is not corrected, this may lead to wrong conclusion,” Magtolis said.
While others have easy time carrying out their tasks as interpreters in open court, others do not. Coping with stress is an imperative among court interpreters.
Fr. Rafael Cruz, a professor at PhilJA and a clinical psychologist who also is a guest priest in the Diocese of Pangasinan, stress could be overcome equally with the acronym STRESS, namely to spiritualize and pray, travel, relive the inspiring moments, exercise to produce the feel good hormone, east substantial food and have good sense of humor.
Besides court work, court intepreters, through the PhilACI, are working on their welfare as collective lobbying group. They are slated to ratify the organization’s constitution and by-laws and elect their new set of officers. (EILEEN NAZARENO BALLESTEROS)

TACLOBAN CITY – The regional office of the Department of Agriculture (DA) is eyeing a modest growth of 3.4 percent in rice output this year which it achieved six years ago.
DA Regional Executive Director Bernadette San Juan expects that production will pick up at the post-Yolanda months as their national government stepped up the distribution of high-yielding certified seeds.
“The prospect is very good because we flooded farms with certified seeds. We don’t have to expand our area, we just need to improve our yield,” San Juan said in a press briefing.
San Juan said that they project an output of 1.03 million metric tons (mt) this year which is slightly higher than the actual 996,000 mt yield last year.
The region has maintained the 990,000 mt level of production after it breached the one million mt output 2008.
San Juan said there has been an increase in the utilization of high yielding variety in Eastern Visayas following the free distribution of 63,000 bags of certified seeds to storm-hit farmers.
“After Yolanda, we just doubled the area planted with certified seeds through massive distribution,” she told reporters. Along with the seeds, the farm department also gave free fertilizers.
The seeds variety yields up to 3.5 mt of unhusked rice per hectare, nearly doubled than the 1.9 mt output for traditional seeds. A bag of seeds can be planted in one hectare.
Aside from certified seeds, the DA and private donors also distributed 5,000 bags of hybrid seeds. A hectare of farm planted with hybrid seeds yields up to 6.5 metric tons of unhusked rice.
The region has 185,961 hectares of land devoted to rice farming or 19 percent of the 976,385 hectares of farming area. (SARWELL Q.MENIANO)

PALO, Leyte- The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) here in the region provided financial assistance to 34 students who comes from areas hit by supertyphoon Yolanda.
Each of the students, who were all scholars of the department, received P8,000 each, said Engr. Ramil Uy, senior science research specialist of the DOST-8 said during a press conference on April 21.
The beneficiaries were identified by their central office and residents of Sta. Fe, Alangalang and Ormoc City, all in Leyte and Basey in Samar.
The beneficiaries of the financial assistance are studying under the scholarship program of the DOST currently enrolled at the Eastern Visayas State University –Ormoc Campus ,University of the Philippines in the Visayas Tacloban College and Samar State University.
Uy said that the financial assistance extended to the students could be used by them to help repair their houses damaged during the November 8, 2013 massive typhoon.
Uy informed that they have submitted a request for an additional number of students who could be given similar assistance. (LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA)

TACLOBAN CITY- Leyte Vice Governor Carlo Loreto said that they have passed several measures that would help in the preservation of the already fragile condition of the environment of the province which was severely hit by supertyphoon Yolanda more than six months ago.
The United Nations had earlier acknowledged that Yolanda, considered to be the worst typhoon to make a landfall in the world’s recorded history, was due to climate change.
Last April 22, government agencies and other stakeholders observed the Mother Earth Day to serve as a reminder to the people to take good care of the environment.
Among the landmark environmental legislations passed by the Leyte provincial board were ordinance on anti-illegal logging and timber poaching; the provincial environmental code; the amendatory ordinance on sand and gravel; Clean Air Code; the ordinance declaring all schools in Leyte as pollution-free and the ordinance preventing the burning of rice straws.
Loreto said described these measures as “important legislative contributions” the provincial board has enacted to preserve the environment.
He said that political machineries are not only means for winning elections, but could be an effective tool for effecting reforms in the government.
“It is imperative that we reconcile the urgent need for prosperity with the shared duty to protect and advance the right of the people to a balanced ecology, in accordance with the rhythm and harmony of nature,” Loreto said. (AHLETTE C. REYES)