MANILA-Forty-eight new U.S. Peace Corps Volunteers arrived in Manila on July 8 to begin their two-year service to support local programs in education, youth development, and environmental protection in communities across the Philippines.

Starting in September, the Peace Corps Volunteers will be assigned to fulfill a range of roles requested by host communities in Aklan, Antique, Batangas, Benguet, Bohol, Capiz, Cebu, Iloilo, La Union, Nueva Ecija, Oriental Mindoro, Pampanga, Pangasinan, and Tarlac. These roles include co-teaching English in public elementary and secondary schools, serving as youth development facilitators in Philippine Department of Welfare and Social Development-accredited organizations and residential shelters, and supporting local governments in establishing marine protected areas and implementing coastal resource management plans.

“U.S. Peace Corps Volunteers come from all over the United States and represent the diversity of the American people. They come with a variety of skills and experience to contribute during their service in the Philippines,” U.S. Ambassador MaryKay Carlson said. “The Peace Corps’ goal is to promote world peace and friendship, and what better way to do this than to serve with cultural humility and mutual respect to our Filipino friends and partners.”

The 48 new Volunteers represent the 281st batch of U.S. Peace Corps Volunteers deployed to the Philippines, bringing the total number of American volunteers currently serving in the country to 126 and surpassing the number of Volunteers assigned to the Philippines prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“The Philippine National Volunteer Service Coordinating Agency (PNVSCA) warmly welcomes this 281st batch of U.S. Peace Corps Volunteers,” PNVSCA Executive Director Donald James Gawe said as he expressed hope that the new American Volunteers will “continue to serve as builders of hope and catalysts of change.” “Together, let us sustain the spirit of cooperation and mutual understanding and create a sustainable future for the generations to come,” he added.

Before their local deployment, the Peace Corps Volunteers will undergo an intensive 11-week pre-service training that includes technical, language, and cultural studies to prepare them for their service. The newly arrived Volunteers, aged between 22 to 67, bring diverse experience, technical skills, and spirited enthusiasm to learn about the Philippines and work alongside community members on locally prioritized projects that build relationships, promote knowledge exchange, and make a lasting and measurable impact.

The Philippines is the second oldest U.S. Peace Corps program. More than 9,400 Americans have served alongside Filipino community members in support of government and community development priorities since 1961.(PR)

ORMOC CITY– A public school teacher, identified as the rank number 3 most wanted person in Southern Leyte, was arrested at about 1:52 pm July 10, in Barangay Poblacion District 2, Silago, Southern Leyte.

The accused, known by the alias “Leno,” 34, married, and a resident of Silago was apprehended by virtue of a warrant of arrest issued by acting presiding judge Jacinto Blanco Elle of the Regional Trial Court, 8th Judicial Region, Branch 26, San Juan, Southern Leyte.

The warrant, dated July 9, 2024, charges the accused with five counts of acts of lasciviousness and sexual assault.

The recommended bail is P900,000 for the five counts of acts of lasciviousness and P200,000 for sexual assault.

The accused is currently under the custody of Silago Municipal Police Station for documentation and proper disposition before being returned to the court that issued the warrant of arrest.
(ROBERT DEJON)

PALO, Leyte — The Regional Development Council VIII (RDC VIII) backed the establishment of a Doctor of Medicine Program at the Eastern Samar State University (ESSU) during its 2nd Quarter Meeting on June 26.

Once opened, the program will help address the critical shortage of medical professionals in Eastern Visayas.

Based on the Department of Health (DOH), only 74 percent of local government units in Eastern Samar comply with the DOH standard for doctor-to-population ratio of 1:20,000.
In addition, 50 percent of doctors occupying Municipal Health Officer positions in the province are expected to retire within the next three years.

The RDC VIII’s support complements House Bill No. 9872, entitled “An Act Establishing a College of Medicine in the Eastern Samar State University in the City of Borongan, Province of Eastern Samar, to be Known as the ‘Eastern Samar State University College of Medicine,’ and Appropriating Funds Therefor.”

The bill, filed by House Minority Leader Rep. Marcelino Libanan, is already at the committee level in the 19th Congress.

The proposed Doctor of Medicine Program aligns with the Eastern Visayas Regional Development Plan 2023-2028’s strategy to strengthen healthcare systems by increasing the number of medical professionals.

If realized, the program will significantly help improve access to healthcare and bolster the regional medical workforce for years to come.
(KACO/KDA, NEDA/PIA VIII)

TACLOBAN CITY – Plans have been laid for the construction of the PHP5.05 billion bridge in Liloan, Southern Leyte to replace a 47-year-old existing bridge within the nautical highway that links Luzon to Mindanao.

The proposed bridge traversing Panaon Strait connects Panaon Island to Leyte Island and involves the construction of a 230-meter cable-stayed main bridge, a 146-meter approach bridge, and a 345-meter approach road, which will replace the dilapidated Liloan Bridge.
Financed by the Export-Import Bank of Korea (Eximbank) and the Philippine government, the whole project is up for completion in six years.

“There is a need for a new bridge construction as the existing Liloan Bridge connecting the two islands, which was opened in 1977, has been experiencing rapid deterioration over the course of decades of usage and losing its capacity to accommodate the current traffic volume,” the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said in its project briefer sent to the Regional Development Council (RDC).

The RDC reported that Korean experts held a feasibility study from July 29, 2022, to September 27, 2023, also funded by Eximbank.

The bridge forms part of the nautical highway that connects the islands of Luzon, Samar, Leyte, and Mindanao. By 2030, it is expected that the bridge will have an annual daily traffic of 5,711.

The bridge leads to Liloan and Benit ports, which host regular Southern Leyte-Surigao trips.(SARWELL Q. MENIANO/PNA)

TACLOBAN CITY – Developing the Babatngon port into a regional transshipment hub will soon proceed with the favorable outcome of technical and economic studies, the Regional Development Council (RDC) reported on Wednesday, July 10.

Citing the results of a feasibility study, the RDC said the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) will finally begin constructing the PHP934.206 million port in Babatngon, Leyte, a town next to this city.

In a statement, the RDC said the project was found to be technically feasible and economically viable based on the feasibility study conducted by the Gammacon Builders, Inc., as presented by the PPA to the region’s highest policy-making body.

Study results showed that the proposed port has an economic internal rate of return of 60.52 percent, surpassing the 10 percent threshold prescribed by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA).

“It also revealed that among three options, there were limitations observed in the Tacloban port site and the existing Babatngon port in the town center. The study recommended the construction of the New Babatngon Port in a new location since it is located in Carigara Bay,” the RDC said.

The proposed port in Bacong village and District 1 of Babatngon has a wide available backup area for the development of the seaport. It has a deep harbor and no marine sanctuary area nearby. There are also no informal settlers in the area.

The site is directly adjacent to the existing national road, which is proposed for development into a six-lane national road, according to RDC.

“This new development in the sea transport sector of the region will ensure that inter-island shipping remains a viable option for transporting people and cargo, thereby contributing to the attainment of an expanded and upgraded infrastructure as espoused in the Eastern Visayas Regional Development Plan 2023-2028,” the council added.

Once completed, vessel operation costs will be reduced because vessel calls from the existing constrained Tacloban Port will be diverted to the new Babatngon Port, which has a shorter travel distance from points of origin.

Passengers on board originating from Cebu en route to Samar will also save on transport costs. The Cebu-Babatngon-Samar route is also found to be more economical compared to the present Cebu-Ormoc-Samar route.

The Babatngon Port has long been eyed as the Eastern Visayas Regional Transshipment Hub, but it was only in 2023 that the said port earned the nod for the conduct of a feasibility study and the formulation of master plans.

The study evaluated the technical viability of proposed short-term developments and determined the long- and short-term direction of the development of the ports.
Endorsed by the RDC in 2017, the study started in July 2023 and was completed in May 2024.

The contract to build the port was already awarded to Ormoc-based MAC Builders Corporation last May 29.

The RDC, through the Regional Project Monitoring Committee, vowed to regularly monitor the progress of the project to ensure its timely completion.

The RDC has endorsed the feasibility study and formulation of the master plan in 2017.
The Babatngon Port is a complementary project to the proposed second San Juanico Bridge that would link Babatngon town to Sta. Rita, Samar.

Babatngon town is located in the northern part of Leyte and is just 22 kilometers north of this city.

For decades, the town’s port has been eyed by experts as a regional hub, considering the difficulty of big ships reaching the regional capital.

Large Tacloban-bound vessels must traverse the narrow San Juanico Strait separating Samar and Leyte Islands to reach Tacloban.
(SARWELL Q. MENIANO/PNA)