ARMM exec calls for unity after polls, vows support for Duterte's economic agenda

ARMM exec calls for unity after polls, vows support for Duterte's economic agenda

By Edwin O. Fernandez

COTABATO CITY, June 11 (PNA) -- "Its now time to heal, its time to mend fences of political divide in the region and in the country."

This was the gist of re-elected Regional Governor Mujiv Hataman of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) who was interviewed by ARMM weekend radio program, entitled "Aksyon ARMM" Saturday.

Hataman admitted the recent polls have divided the region and its people who are all Bangsamoro.

He said the May 9 national and local elections had been past divisive politics of mudslinging.

"The election is over, its time to move on and forget the sad issues that emerged during the election," he said.

The regional governor said majority of ARMM inhabitants wanted genuine delivery of government basic services which had been denied to them in the past.

He said the reforms he introduced to the regional bureaucracy since assuming office in 2013 was not enough. "Much has to be done," he said.

"This is now the time to move forward for sustainable reforms, and we need to deliver the government services to every ARMM constituent, Hataman said.

Hataman vowed to push with his incoming President Duterte's economic agenda.

These include Tax and Revenue Reforms; Accelerated spending on infrastructure program taking into consideration certain priorities; Enhanced investment and economic competitiveness of doing business in the country; Support services to small farmers for increased productivity and improved market access;

Strengthened irrigation and better support services to farmers; Promotion of ecotourism in the rural areas; Address bottlenecks in land administration and management system; Strengthened basic education system, and provide scholarships for tertiary education, which are relevant to private employers' needs; Improved tax system by indexing tax collection to inflation rate, "to enable those who earn a little to have more in their pockets"; and Expand and improve implementation of the conditional cash transfer (CCT) program.

Hataman, a Liberal Party stalwart, has vowed to support President elect Duterte especially on his programs for the Bangsamoro people. (PNA)

Claudio Zobel or Thelma Maloloy-on Dies on February 10, 2011

NPA Ambush in Kalinga, Apayao

Two soldiers from the 17th Infantry Battalion were killed and three others wounded after an undetermined number of New People's Army (NPA) rebels staged an ambush in Sitio Tumiangan, Barangay Dupag, Tabuk City, Kalinga Friday afternoon.

1st Lt. Rowena Abayon, 5th Infantry Division spokesperson, said the incident took place around 1:40 p.m. as the soldiers were responding to reports that the rebels were extorting and harassing residents of the said barangay.

At this point, the NPAs fired on the soldiers, killing two and wounding three others before retreating to the mountainous area.

The slain soldiers were identified as Cpl. Dominador A. Concordia and Pfc. Rey B. Raagas.

The wounded and now undergoing treatment in a hospital in the city were identified as 2nd Lt. Czar N. Carsido, Pfc. Marnel Langnga and Pfc. Kennedy D. Sallaya.

Reorientation training for farmer-groups

To ensure government projects are properly used according to its purpose, the Department of Agriculture (DA) in Central Mindanao have provided reorientation training for farmer-groups identified to receive multi-purpose drying pavements (MPDPs) on the mechanics of project implementation.

Provision of MPDPs or solar dryers is under the Agri-Pinoy Rice Program's, Post-harvest Facility Component.

The MPDP, which measures 15 m x 28 m x 0.10 m (4 inches thick) are implemented among rice areas in the region with their registered irrigators or farmers' associations.

DA is allocating P160,000 per unit of MPDP.

Multi-Purpose Drying Pavement is a solar dryer where farmers can dry various agricultural crops such as rice and corn.

Ray Embajador, DA 12 Agri-Pinoy Rice Program focal person, reminded the recipients to complete all the necessary documents required for the project.

As recipients, they should guarantee a total area of 420 square meters where the pavement will be constructed shall be owned by the farmers/irrigators' association.

The recipients should also shoulder the site development expenses like land filling, clearing, leveling, compacting and fencing of the area.

Emabajador said recipients are discouraged from introducing modifications of any structure on the pavement to serve its purpose of boosting rice production of IAs.

Before the start of the construction of the project, the recipients are urged to take photos of the area, its ongoing construction and even completion of the project for comprehensive documentation.

Since the project is under reimbursement basis, the recipients will temporarily utilize their own funds and will later be refunded by the regional field office after liquidation process has been done.

Nueva Ecija Police Provincial Office (NEPPO)

At least 1,000 individuals were enlisted as force multipliers of the Nueva Ecija Police Provincial Office (NEPPO) as 10 non-government organizations (NGOs) were tapped to beef up local peace initiatives, a ranking police officer said on Monday.

Senior Supt. Crizaldo Nieves, Nueva Ecija police director, said that a memorandum of agreement (MOA) between the PNP and the NGOs was recently signed at the NEPPO conference hall.

The recent signing was graced by PNP deputy director general for administration Rommel Heredia, who also makes assessments of provinces under the so-called areas of concern, Nieves said.

"We thank those people who willingly support our efforts to keep peace and order in our province," Nieves said, adding that the police makes sure such force multipliers will not be used to advance interest of any individual.

Heredia said the PNP hierarchy continues to make steps to upgrade peace initiatives in areas of concern.

New People’s Army (NPA) of illegal drugs activities

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) in Eastern Visayas and the Philippine Army (PA) will collaborate to contain the reported protection of the communist New People's Army (NPA) of illegal drugs activities aimed at beefing up their logistical resources.

Liza F. Baoy, PDEA-8 regional information officer said the agency and the Department of National Defense (DND) have received reports that the NPA is turning to the illegal drugs trade as a major source of funds to procure weapons and sustain their more than three-decade old uprising against the government.

"There were confirmed reports that leaders of some local drug syndicates have forged 'unholy alliances' with rebel groups for protection and self-preservation," Baoy said.

Alleged involvement of NPA rebels in the maintenance and cultivation of marijuana plantation sites in the countryside, particularly in Cordillera region, had been exposed since the early 1980s. In some cases, government troops raiding secret cannabis plantation have come under heavy fire from suspected NPA guerrillas guarding these sites.

"Illicit production, trafficking, sale, distribution and use of illegal drugs are potential dangers enough to unsettle our domestic stability and tranquility. There were several heinous crimes committed by perpetrators who are under the influence of illicit substances," Baoy added.

The findings, according to Baoy, are reasons enough for the PDEA and DND to launch a massive campaign against illegal drug trafficking and abuse. This is by way of providing PDEA with much-needed intelligence and manpower and logistical resources.

"The two bastions of law enforcement and peace likewise vowed to combine their forces and resources in order to keep the citizenry safe and free from drug-related harms," Baoy said.

May 1 Job Fair in Manila

A strategy to prevent jostling and elbowing by job seekers standing in long queues during the May 1 Job Fair which is under the auspices of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE-6) has been adopted to shun a repeat of past tumultuous job fairs, and thus create a more pleasant atmosphere for both applicants and company representatives.

Labor Information Officer Amy Judicpa said a pre-registration process is now in full swing at the 2nd floor of Marymart Mall here, and applicants are advised to take advantage of the scheme and avoid inconveniences of late registration.

"Pre-registration is going on, and will culminate on April 25 to 27. And we're happy to announce that STI is providing 10 computer sets on the final pre-registration days to receive online pre-registration entries," she said.

The Labor executive also gave specific instructions to job seekers not to forget important documents such as dossiers and transcript of re

Santiago City Police Office (SCPO)

The Santiago City Police Office (SCPO) arrested recently two drug users while in pot session at the Barangay Malvar, Santiago City

Police Regional Office 2 (PRO2) regional director Chief Supt. Rodrigo Purisima De Gracia identified the suspect as Virgilio Quejano, 36, and Harvel Pobre, 31, both residents of Mataas na Kahoy, Alicia, Isabela.

De Gracia said the joint anti-illegal drug operation of Intelligence Operatives and Police Station 1 in Barangay Malvar, Santiago City led to the arrest of Quejano and Pobre.

Confiscated from the suspects were one piece small heat sealed transparent sachet containing white crystalline substance believed to be metamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu; two pieces color blue lighter; one piece surgical scissor and four used strip of aluminum foil.

Davao City Police Office (DCPO)

The three district offices of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) in the city in cooperation with the Davao City Police Office (DCPO) and the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP)mounted on Monday the "Operation Baklas", a clean-up drive aimed at ridding political propaganda materials off the non-designated poster areas.

Lawyer Aimee Ampoloquio, election officer of the District 1 of Davao City, said their operation yielded plenty of political propaganda both from the incumbent officials and aspiring candidates gunning for the local elections.

She observed even political materials bearing the names of candidates of the ruling coalition headed by the Liberal Party (LP)and the opposing United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) were forcibly taken away from the posts, trees, walls and even at the facade of commercial establishments, whose owners claimed they were not consulted when these materials were posted.

"These propaganda materials will be used as pieces of evidence by the law department of the Commission on Elections in filing election law-violations against the candidates who violated the rule on posting campaign materials," Ampoloquio said.

Section 3 of the Comelec Resolution No. 7767 bars political candidates and their supporters from nailing or stapling campaign materials on trees and bans posting on bridges, power and telephone lines, schools, islands and monuments.

Comelec Resolution 9615 requires candidates to post propaganda materials only on authorized designated common poster areas or private property with the consent of the owner.

The policy states that violators can be imprisoned from one to six years with the right to vote forfeited and would no longer be allowed to run for public office.

Ampoloquio said that with the resolve of Comelec-Manila to sue violators, it is certain that formal charges will be filed against them with the many pieces of evidence gathered as proof of defying election laws.

"There are violations even from candidates of contending parties. We have all the pieces of evidence like photos and materials taken from the non-designated poster areas," she said.

Senior Superintendent Ronald de la Rosa, director of the Davao City Police Office, who assisted the poll body said his members are also deployed in the two other districts of the city to assist the clean-up drive.

He said simultaneous clean-up drive is also done in Toril, Calinan, Sasa, Bunawan and Buhangin.

Lawyer Joseph Dominic Felizarta, chief of the City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) said they are still awaiting the order to participate in the clean-up drive from the poll body.

Safe and Secure in Boracay

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said they had tightened the security in this resort island to secure both foreign and local tourists coming amidst bombing cases around the world.

Coast Guard Caticlan Assistant Senior Chief Petty Officer Ronie Hiponia said Monday that aside from the tourists coming, passengers using the roro (roll on roll off) vessels will also be undergoing strict security measures.

"Aside from safety concerns, we also received reports on the existence of illegal drugs trade and other outside world syndicates in the roro vessel," Hiponia said.

Recently, the Highway Patrol Group of the Philippine National Police (PNP) had seized three sports utility vehicles which are suspected to be hot cars.