TACLOBAN CITY – Following a devastating fire that engulfed several houses in the upland village of Himalandrog on February 19, the provincial government of Samar and the city government of Calbayog promptly extended assistance to the affected families.

About 72 families received P30,000 cash assistance, with P20,000 provided by the provincial government and P10,000 as a counterpart from the city.

According to the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO), the fire in Himalandrog completely destroyed 69 houses and partially damaged three others.

The distribution of aid was led by Rep.Stephen James Tan (1st district), Mayor Raymund Uy, and Vice Mayor Rex Daguman, along with representatives from various government agencies.

Apart from cash assistance, the fire victims also received support from the Department of Social Welfare and Development in the form of food and non-food items, including family food packs, kitchen kits, family kits, and distilled water.

The fire not only ravaged homes but also impacted several school buildings in the area.
Chief Fire Inspector Leo Joshua Dangatan of the Calbayog City Bureau of Fire Protection explained that the remote location of Himalandrog posed challenges for firefighters, as there is no nearby fire substation and access to the village is difficult.

Dangatan further noted that the nearest accessible village to Himalandrog with vehicular access is in Barangay Tanval, requiring a trek of over an hour.
(ROEL T. AMAZONA)

ORMOC CITY—A village chairman together with one of his councilors and a barangay tanod member were killed in a gun attack on Saturday (Feb. 24) night in Barangay Daja Diot, San Isidro, Leyte.

Town police chief, Major Reymund Quinagutan, identified the casualties as Elizalde Tabon, 55, barangay chairman; Paul Al Mandero, 52, village councilor; and Rusty Salazar, barangay tanod member.

All three were inside their barangay hall when the armed perpetrators barged in and shot them repeatedly, the police officer said.

Another village watchman, Alex Bacor, who was at the gate of the barangay hall, was also hit but managed to survive.

Major Quinagutan, in a telephone interview, said that the incident occurred at about 9:30 pm while the victims were inside the barangay hall for a meeting.

He said that Tabon and Mandero were hit on their heads while Bacor sustained a bullet wound on his right shoulder and is now recuperating in a hospital in the nearby town of Calubian.

The four armed suspects, who were separately on board a motorcycle, immediately fled after the shooting incident.

Quinagutan also said that they have yet to determine the identities of the suspects and their motive.
(ROBERT DEJON)

TACLOBAN CITY – The municipal government of Matag-ob in Leyte and the National Food Authority (NFA) have formalized their partnership through the signing of a memorandum of agreement (MOA) to implement the Palay Marketing Assistance for Legislators and Local Government Units (PALLGU) Program.

Mayor Bernandino Tacoy and Engr. Charles Alingod, acting regional manager, signed the agreement on Feb.19.

PALLGU, a program initiated by the NFA, involves the local government unit providing subsidies to farmers by adding at least P2 per kilogram to the agency’s procurement price, ensuring rice farmers receive a fair or higher price for their produce.

The Matag-ob LGU has allocated P500,000 as a counterpart to the PALLGU program of the NFA.

Under this program, the palay sold to the agency by rice farmers must meet quality standards set by the NFA.

As part of the implementation of PALLGU in the municipality, farmers participating in the program are required to allocate 10 sacks of unhusked palay to sell to the agency.

The current buying price set by the NFA at the time of the press release stands at P23 per kilogram.
(ROEL T. AMAZONA)

ORMOC CITY– A high-value individual identified in the drug watchlist of the Philippine National Police (PNP) at the regional level was apprehended in a buy-bust operation conducted by operatives of the PNP Drug Enforcement Group around 12:28 am on Sunday (Feb. 25) in Barangay Bagong Buhay of this city.

PNP Drug Enforcement Group Regional Chief PLt. Col. Arturo Fullero identified the suspect as Aristarco Suganob, also known as “Kedong,” 39, and a resident of Purok 7 of the same village was apprehended.

During the operation, operatives recovered six medium-sized sachets containing white crystalline substances suspected to be shabu, with an estimated weight of 55 grams and a street value of approximately P374,000.

The apprehended suspect had one sachet containing white crystalline substance, allegedly procured by an operative, amounting to P1000.

Additionally, upon conducting a body search witnessed by Bagong Buhay chairman Victorino Cuizon and a local media representative, operatives discovered a black coin purse containing the aforementioned sachets in the suspect’s possession.

The suspect declined to provide any statement to the media personnel present during the operation.

Charges for violations of sections 5 (selling illegal drugs) and 11 (possession of illegal drugs) of RA 9165, the Comprehensive Law against Illegal Drugs of 2002, were filed against the suspect who is now detained at the lock-up cell of the Police Station 4 of OCPO in Brgy. Linao. (ROBERT DEJON)

TACLOBAN CITY – A new substation of the Eastern Samar Electric Cooperative (Esamelco) was inaugurated on Feb.20 with no less than Antonio Mariano Almeda, the administrator of the National Electrification Administration (NEA) gracing the event.

The substation, located in Barangay Cabong, Borongan City, has a capacity of 20/25 megavolt-amperes (MVA).

In his address during the brief program, Almeda commended the management of Esamelco for the advancements made in their services to its member consumer-owners (MCOs).
He encouraged them to sustain their efforts and commitment to public service by promoting good governance and empowering the MCOs.

The event was also graced by House Minority Floor Leader and 4PS party-list Rep. Marcelino Libanan, alongside Board Member Atty. PJ Evardone, representing Governor Ben Evardone, and Atty. Celestino Cabato, representing City Mayor Jose Ivan Dayan Agda.

Esamelco officials and personnel, as well as Rev. Fr. Michael Vincent Bormate, were also in attendance.
(LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA)

TACLOBAN CITY– An official of the Caritas Philippines, the social and development arm of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), has expressed doubt that the national government’s land reform program will be fully implemented for the benefit of landless farmers in the country.

“Nothing is happening. Just promises,” said Jing Rey Henderson, Caritas Philippines’ head of communications and partnership development said in an interview with Leyte Samar Daily Express.

“When did the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program start (CARP)? It has become a Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program Extension with Reforms (CARPER). The World Bank also helped infuse millions of funds for its implementation. But until now, it is still the same. Farmers continue to till their lands as tenants, not as owners,” he added.

Since February 19, 2024, hundreds of landless farmers from Negros Occidental in the western Visayas region and Batangas in the southwestern part of the Luzon staged a campout and rally at the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) headquarters in Quezon City to demand the immediate distribution of private agricultural lands (PALs) as promised in 2023 by President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.

“The marchers from Negros Occidental want Marcos all 12 haciendas covering 4,654 hectares controlled by the late business tycoon Eduardo Cojuangco distributed to thousands of landless farmers,” said Lanie Factor, national deputy coordinator of Task Force Mapalad (TFM), a national federation of farmers, farm workers and individual advocates working for agrarian reform and rural development in the Philippines.

In a statement, Factor said the farmers “want Marcos to fulfill his promise to distribute all lands covered by CARP quickly and not wait for 2028,” which is the President’s end-of-term in office.

Over 500,000 hectares of PALs have remained to be distributed to the landless farmers, the group said.

Meanwhile, Danny Carranza, secretary-general of the Kilusan Para sa Repormang Agraryo at Katarungan Panlipunan (Katarungan), reiterated their support for the “aspirations” of Marcos Jr. to seek permanent solutions to agrarian issues and uphold the genuine land reforms initiated by his late father, former President Ferdinand Marcos, Sr.

“We laud President Marcos’ vow to find a permanent solution to the real problems confronting agrarian reform. We urge President Marcos to heed our call and take concrete steps toward realizing the true essence of agrarian reform in the Philippines,” Carranza said in a statement.

Given the complexity of the situation, Carranza believed the current state of agrarian reform “can only be resolved if the government will make it a priority program and will exercise political will to implement it.”

Carranza proposed some permanent solutions to the current situation of agrarian reform in the country.

These include the government under Marcos Jr. to end all forms of violence and human rights violations against farmers and potential agrarian reform beneficiaries; and look into the situation of farmers under Joint Venture Agreements, such as in the case of the Cojuangco lands in Negros where farmers are calling for the non-renewal of the scheme that only deepened their poverty and insecurity as the majority of them are now being disqualified. (RONALD O. REYES)