August 31, 2006
Villagers told: Don’t give ‘butanding’ stress
LEGAZPI CITY—THE MAYOR OF this city asked residents of a village here to keep whale sharks coming by “not giving them stress.”
“You may enjoy the sightings of ‘butanding’ or whale sharks but avoid giving them stress,” Mayor Noel Rosal told villagers of Barangay Bigaa, which has been frequented by the gentle creatures for more than a week now.
To orient villagers on how to deal with the whale sharks, Rosal invited Jo Roco, a science research specialist of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, and Allan Amanse, 38, a butanding interaction officer (BIO) from Donsol, Sorsogon.
In an assembly Tuesday at the Bantay Dagat Hall that faces the shore, Roco talked to about 50 villagers, mostly fishermen, about the nature of the butanding.
“I need your cooperation in taking care of this creature so it would stay in our seas,” Roco said.
Butandings come closer to shore in Bigaa, than in Donsol where tourists have to hire boats to get closer looks at the whale sharks.
Rosal asked villagers to keep their surroundings clean and avoid throwing garbage into the sea.
He said rivers should also be kept clean because this was where planktons, the butandings’ food, come from.
Roco said butandings come when the waters are calm.
Vicente Alpajero, 64, a village councilor, said the butandings stay on the shore because of the food.
“Only when these creatures saunter or wander in the seas do neighboring barangays get to see them,” he said.
Omar Nepumoceno, 35, a pioneer BIO in Donsol, is enthusiastic about the prospect of the butandings making their presence felt in Bicol’s coastal waters on a year-round basis. Joanna Los Baños, Inquirer Southern Luzon
August 29, 2006
Many Mayon evacuees told to go back home
By Joanna Los Baños
Inquirer Southern Luzon
LEGAZPI CITY—SOME EVACUAtion centers here have been decamped, reducing the number of evacuees to less than 40,000, even as volcanologists maintained alert level 4 around Mayon due to its continued unrest.
The Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council reported that evacuees from three barangays in Sto. Domingo and Camalig towns in Albay were asked to go back to their homes earlier while evacuees from two barangays in Daraga were preparing to return to their houses.
Jukes Nuñez, provincial disaster officer, said the evacuees who were asked to decamp live beyond the 8-km extended danger zone.
In Sto. Domingo, the barangay residents who were housed at the San Andres resettlement site and who were asked to return to their homes were from San Isidro, 9.25 km from the crater, and San Fernando, 8.25 km.
In Camalig town, evacuees from Barangay Quirangay who were housed at the Bariw Elementary School were also asked to go home.
The PDCC officers also met with the evacuees from Barangays Salvacion and Miisi in Daraga to prepare them for departure.
As of yesterday, the Office of Civil Defense reported that there were still 8,020 families, or 37,580 persons, in the 29 evacuation centers in the province.
Romeo Cabria, chair of the Sto. Domingo Municipal Disaster Coordinating Council, said the OCD put up prefabricated shelters for the evacuees at the San Andres resettlement site.
He said the OCD had constructed four shelters initially, which could ideally accommodate two to three families per shelter.
He said children and elderly people would be given priority in the shelters.
Lava continued to flow out of the summit of Mayon and the seismic network recorded 275 tremors during the past 24 hours, said the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) yesterday morning.
Some 30 volcanic earthquakes occurred while the sulfur dioxide emission rate was at 4,640 tons per day, which indicated the volcano’s high level of unrest and the possibility of a violent eruption, Phivolcs said.
Rumblings from the volcano were reported Sunday at around 8:47 p.m. by residents of Barangays Matanag in Legazpi and Basud in Sto. Domingo; and at the Ligñon Hill Observatory.
An ash puff about 100 meters high occurred from the summit crater at around 6:25 a.m. on Monday.
August 28, 2006
Entry of ‘butanding’in Mayon communitiesseen good luck sign
By Joanna Los Baños
Inquirer Southern Luzon
LEGAZPI CITY—THE PRESENCE of whale sharks (Rhicodon typus) in Barangay Bigaa here in these creatures is a sign of good luck for the coastal community, according to residents.
Jesus Bolactia, 69, who has been fishing since he was 12 years old, said it was almost 50 years ago when he had sightings of the whale sharks, locally named butanding, off the village.
He said he could not forget what happened that night in 1960 when he and the other fishermen caught so many fish, which he believed accompanied the butanding to the area.
That was the only time they ever had a big catch, said Bolactia, who now has three fishermen sons. “All of our nets were full of fish. We spent the whole night until morning fishing,” he said, sitting on the bamboo floor of his small hut overlooking the sea.
The catch was big enough to load on two trucks, he said.
Asked why there was an abundance of fish, Anghel Cordovilla, 76, also of Bigaa, said: “This is probably the blessing of the Almighty God.”
Ed Abiera, 49, a fisherman for the past 29 years, confirmed the presence of a number of whale sharks in the village. He said there had been previous sightings, but these were not given much attention because the gentle creatures did not stay long.
Abiera said the people used to fear the world’s largest fish because they had a mistaken idea that all sharks eat people.
“It’s really amazing and we saw a lot of them,” said Jesus’ daughter, Josephine, 23. Her father added that young people were now more aware of the friendly whale sharks.
Jo Roco, a science research specialist of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, said that as of 3:56 p.m. on Thursday, nine sightings and five encounters with the butanding had been recorded. As of 5 p.m., there were already 16 sightings.
The biggest butanding seen measured 7 meters long and was spotted 50-100 meters from the shore, he said.
According to Abiera, the whale shark has similar behavior as humans. “If the butanding sees that it is being watched by the people, mas lalo dumadami (more surface),” he said.
Bolactia and Cordovilla said they were happy with the presence of the butanding, who usually show up at low tide when the water is calm and the sun is not so hot.
Although fish is not abundant now, Abiera said that if the whale sharks meant good luck before, “it may still be a sign of good luck today for our village.”
“If ever, this would really help increase our villagers’ income and Legazpi would become prominent because of it,” he said.
Roco told Bigaa residents and other watchers that “if we want the butanding to stay, we have to leave them alone. Don’t harm them and don’t touch them. Just watch and swim with them.”
He also warned them not to touch the butanding with bare hands as this could cause itchiness from the algae, moss and other bacteria on its skin.
July 30, 2006
New storm ‘Henry’ enters RP
By Blanche S. Rivera
ANOTHER STORM—THE FOURTH THIS month—entered the Philippine area of responsibility yesterday but has not caused any casualties.
The slow-moving tropical depression “Henry” hit the Bicol region with maximum sustained winds of 55 kph near the center, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said in its 5 p.m. bulletin yesterday.
Satellite images showed Henry to be 360 km east of Legaspi City in Albay and moving west-northwest at 7 kph.
Some 170 passengers were stranded in two sea ports in Bicol following the cancellation of trips because of Henry, the regional Office of Civil Defense (OCD) said.
The OCD said 40 passengers going to Catanduanes and nearby island villages were stranded at the Tabaco port.
Trips to the Matnog port in Sorsogon were not canceled, but the storm caused a slowdown in commuter service, stranding 130 persons, four passenger buses, six cargo trucks and eight small vehicles.
“It will not yet cause the kind of heavy rains in Metro Manila that the storm of last week did. Eastern Visayas and Bicol will suffer the rains first,” Pagasa weather branch chief Nathaniel Cruz said.
Henry prompted the weather bureau to raise Signal No.1 in Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Albay, Sorsogon and Catanduanes.
It could raise the risk of lahar flows in Albay as Mayon Volcano continues to be restive, causing lava flows up to 5.4 aerial kilometers from the crater.
The other restive volcano in Bicol, Mt. Bulusan in Sorsogon, which sent ash upward in nine explosions in the last four months, has quieted down. Still, Alert Level 1 was hoisted over the area.
Henry is expected to close in on Legaspi this afternoon before moving 60 km northeast of Virac tomorrow and 180 km east-southeast of Casiguran, Aurora, on Tuesday afternoon.
Henry came in the wake of three typhoons —“Ester,” “Florita” and “Glenda”—that hit the Philippines in the last four weeks, enhancing monsoon winds and causing heavy rains even in areas where no storm signals were raised. With Joanna P. Los Baños, PDI Southern Luzon Bureau
February 22, 2006
Phivolcs raises alert level in Mayon
LEGAZPI CITY—AUTHORITIES RAISED THE ALERT level around Mayon to 2 after the volcano emitted ash that was preceded by a series of weak earthquakes.
Ed Laguerta, Bicol director of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), said the volcano spewed ash 500 meters high from its crater.
The Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council said the alert level meant that no one should stray into a 6-km radius around the volcano that was delineated as a permanent danger zone.
The small explosion deposited ash in the upper slopes of the volcano, a Phivolcs bulletin said.
It said more explosions could occur in the next few days as magma rises and releases gas inside the volcano.
Laguerta said a team from Manila would arrive today to fix the seismic sensors installed at the foot of the volcano.
“What happened today was just a minor explosion,” he said.
Laguerta said the Phivolcs is watching out for these other signs of a possible eruption—swelling of the volcano’s dome, intense crater glow and increase in the emission of ash.
The Phivolcs, he said, requested for a helicopter from the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) to be used by a Phivolcs team to take a closer look at Mayon in an aerial survey.
The OCD said it was closely coordinating with Phivolcs to monitor the volcano’s condition and alert people as soon as it shows signs of erupting.
It said village councils were told to prepare for a possible eruption and put their disaster preparedness plans in place.
“But there is no reason for the people to panic at this point in time,” Laguerta said.
The OCD said should Mayon erupt, or continue showing signs of erupting, it was prepared to evacuate people and bring them to safety. Joanna Los Baños, with a report from Gil Francis Arevalo, PDI S. Luzon Bureau
February 2, 2006
Report says it was whale, not dugong
LEGAZPI CITY—THE CARCASS found on the shore of a village in a controversial mining site in Albay belonged to a sperm whale, not a dugong (sea cow), as thought earlier, officials said on Tuesday.
Rey Juan, Bicol regional director of the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB), quoted two other officials as saying the carcass, earlier thought to be that of a dugong, was actually that of a sperm whale.
A report by the MGB regional office said the carcass was brought to the municipal cemetery to be buried since it was emitting foul odor.
“Foul odor also emanated from the burial site (which then had to be deodorized) with chlorine and Lysol,” the report added.
A press statement from Lafayette Philippines Inc. said that a picture of the whale’s carcass was attached to the MGB report and showed a fin on its top side, indicating it was not a dugong. The whale was pregnant.
It said that, according to the MGB report, the whale most likely died from its wounds.
Wounds
It (whale) “bore contusions, lacerations and wounds all over its body.”
According to Lafayette, “the (MGB) report did not say if the wounds were man-inflicted or not. The report in effect rejected allegations by antimining activists blaming Lafayette’s mining activities for the whale’s death. It was also the activists who claimed it was a dugong.”
In a statement, Lafayette said its mining operations in Rapu-Rapu, Albay was highly unlikely to be the cause of the whale’s death since smaller fishes would have died, too, before the whale did if the waters of Rapu Rapu were indeed contaminated.
In an earlier interview, Jose Belando, 56, the fisherman who first saw the carcass, said “I saw it (dugong) yesterday morning (Jan. 26) in the shore near a tree in my house, with its stomach’s side up.”
“At first I did not notice it since I thought that it was just an ordinary fish and I would not benefit from it,” he said.
His neighbors milled around the big bloodied carcass and thought at first that it was a dolphin.
He could not tell the cause of its death. “I just saw it there. I could not tell how it died.”
The MGB report was prepared by Christian Oropesa, senior science research specialist, and engineer Roy Collamar.
The mining firm said official findings released only last week showed that the island’s waters sampled on Jan. 6 and 19 were well within the government’s strict cyanide standards. Joanna P. Los Baños, PDI Southern Luzon Bureau
January 24, 2006
Daet lotto winner richer than Pacquiao
By Joanna P. Los Baños PDI Southern Luzon Bureauand DJ Yap
in Manila
A POOR BICOLANO DID NOT HAVE TO travel miles to Las Vegas and trade punches with a tough Mexican to win more than P100 million—tax-free.
In fact, Filipino boxing hero Manny Pacquiao’s earnings of P105 million, minus taxes and other fees, may seem small compared to the winnings of this bettor from Camarines Norte who emerged as the lone jackpot winner of the Superlotto 6/49 on Sunday.
His total winnings: P150,478,099.20.
It was the biggest pot ever won by a single bettor since the beginning of the lotto draw in 1995, according to the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).
The unnamed ticket buyer from Daet bet on the winning combination 18-11-41-43-6-47, the PCSO said.
A man and his wife in Barangay Pamorangon in Daet reportedly won the jackpot prize, according to a businessman in the capital town.
The businessman quoted a police officer from Daet—who was assigned to nearby Basud town—as saying that the husband, about 50 years old, went hysterical and was screaming as he waved the winning ticket.
Just keep quiet
The wife, about 35 years old, however, immediately calmed him down and told him to keep quiet.
Later, the husband denied that he won the lotto jackpot prize.
The couple bought the winning ticket at Botica Immaculada Concepcion, one of the two PCSO lotto outlets in Camarines Norte. It is located in the town’s public market.
The outlet is owned by Sonia Leaño, station manager of local radio station dzSL, who will be entitled to up to about P500,000, depending on the computations of the PCSO main office, according to Estrella Abasolo, PCSO Daet accountant.
Abasolo said she had no idea who the winner was. She said she only learned that there was a winner from Daet.
It was the first time that someone in Daet won the jackpot, according to the PCSO accountant.
Like their counterparts in Camarines Norte, personnel in the PCSO national office still did not know who the winner was.
Where bet was placed
“So far, no one has come forward to claim the prize (as of 3 p.m. yesterday),” said Susana Alcala of the PCSO internal audit division.
The PCSO could only identify where the bet was placed—Christine Leaño lotto outlet at Dolor Building on J. Lukban Street, a staff member at the PCSO central operations office said.
“The winner has already gotten in touch with the PCSO provincial district in Bicol, but we don’t know when [the winner] will claim the check,” said the staff member, who asked not to be named.
Even information about the winner’s gender was not available, she added. “We really don’t go out of our way to ask for details about them to protect their identity,” the staff member said.
“They simply have to present their winning ticket for verification, then they will be given the check. It’s up to them whether to deposit the money in the bank or withdraw everything,” Alcala said.
The PCSO chair advised the still unidentified winner to keep the money in a bank.
“He or she should immediately put it in a bank while he or she is thinking about what to do with the money,” PCSO Chair Rosario Uriarte said. “That way, it is already earning [interest] even as he or she is thinking how to use it.”
The lone winner of the biggest lotto pot has a whole year to claim his or her prize, she said.
The second biggest pot was the P147 million in the Megalotto draw of March 31, 1999, while the third biggest was the P145 million in the Superlotto draw of July 25, 2002, according to the PCSO.
The biggest jackpot ever was the P202 million three years ago, but it was won by six people who shared the prize.
In Superlotto 6/49, one picks six numbers from 1 to 49 on a ticket worth P10. One wins if he or she matches all six, or any three, four, or five numbers of the winning six-number combination.
Super-queue at lotto stalls
The win dashed the hopes of thousands of other Filipinos, young and old, who queued at lottery outlets around the country on Sunday, clutching what they hoped to be their ticket to fortune.
Backpack-toting students, mothers with toddlers, and even mall security guards lined up for hours at the lottery stall inside SM North Edsa in Quezon City to pay for their tickets.
Students in nursing uniforms, bespectacled businessmen, teenagers in street clothes, and couples holding hands also lined up.
A ticket seller said the queue most likely reached 10,000, as of 7:30 p.m., at which time the crowd had not yet thinned. (The lotto closed at 8 p.m., in time for the 9 p.m. draw.)
Many bought only a handful of tickets, but some spent as much as P10,000 just to increase their chances of winning, said Sherrylyn Dillena of Lucky Circle Corp.
The lines had been long for the past three weeks, but Sunday’s was the longest yet, she said. With a report from Luige A. del Puerto
December 15, 2005
Artist makes furniture from old wood
By Joanna Teressa P. Los Baños
PDI Southern Luzon Bureau
Photos by Bunny LB Listana
UNLIKE other furniture makers, he does not want to cut trees as much as possible.
“In making furniture, I use wood pieces from old houses and drift woods. I also plant trees,” furniture maker and artist Jun Listana, 40, said.
He also uses different materials like abaca, rattan, wrought iron, molave and iron wood (black wood).
Listana does not use regular nails in most of his wood furniture. “I use wooden nails or dowels. It is long-lasting. Nails rust.”
He said antique furniture also used dowels and this is why it lasts long.
Listana turned the gallery of the provincial capitol of Albay into a living room when he showcased furniture and paintings in the opening of a one-man show titled Muebles en Artes I (Furnitures and Art) on Dec. 2.
Dressed in white long-sleeved polo and maong pants, the long-haired artist welcomed with much enthusiasm his almost 100 visitors in his first show.
The gallery, which is located at the left and right side of the main entrance of the capitol, was furnished with two dining tables on each side (one set was made of abaca and yakal and another made of molave), a sala set, divider, lamp, rocking chairs, chairs made of rattan, and many others, including 12 paintings that hang on the walls.
Arts
Although he is a graduate of Zoology at the Aquinas University of Legazpi, Listana felt he was really into arts since he was young.
“Every time I go to a place, I always think of how I can improve it and make it more beautiful. From dissecting cats, I’m now dissecting wood,” he said laughing.
Before venturing into the furniture business in 1991, Listana started making trophies made of indigenous materials, which he does until now.
A sample of this is the invitation he gave to the Inquirer for the opening of his show, whose text is etched on 2” x 4” metal plate glued to a piece of bottle bamboo.
“My family was also into the handicraft business. We used to supply handicrafts to an exporter in Daraga,” Listana recalled.
From 1989 to 1995, his family also had a lumber business. He said he used to deliver materials to their clients and every time he went to their shops, he always saw how the raw materials were transformed into unique pieces of furniture.
That started him thinking of venturing into the business, until he attended seminars and trainings.
Listana said he maintains 12 workers in his shop in Barangay Anislag in Daraga and hires more help, if needed.
“If the materials are available, we can finish a set of furniture in two weeks,” he said.
Clients
Most of his clients are foreigners and resort owners. His furniture items can be seen in some resorts in Albay, Sorsogon, Tagaytay City in Cavite and Laguna.
For almost two years, Listana has also been supplying some of his work to Kish, a furniture store in Greenbelt.
The price of his furniture depends on the kind and materials used.
“But it is cheaper than the others,” he assured.
He does not usually make paintings but those 12 artworks displayed at the gallery were his first.
“Once, I finished 10 paintings in a day. The ideas just flooded in my head,” he said.
Because he uses mixed-media in his paintings, there are materials in his artworks used in his furniture.
“Every painting has a connection with the furniture that I make. There’s always a material in my paintings that I use in my furniture.”
Other activities
Aside from keeping himself busy making furniture and paintings, Listana is also a member of the Center for Bikol Arts Foundation Inc., a group of visual artists, sculptors, performing artists and musicians.
He is also the drummer of a local ethnic band called “Santiguar” that uses native materials for their musical instruments.
Listana said he planned to have an exhibit in Manila next year.
He said he had really wanted his first exhibit here because he is a Bicolano. “But someday, I would also want to have an exhibit abroad.”
Listana confessed that he does not earn that much in his business.
“Somehow it’s okay because I am also able to give livelihood to a few people,” he said.
Although his business is not that profitable, he is convinced that, “This is really what I want and this is what I want to do. I want to continue this business and maybe, pass it on to the next generation.”
“I don’t dream of being really rich. I just want to do what I want.”
___
Jun Listana’s exhibit at the Albay Capitol will run until Jan. 1, 2006. For inquiries, call (0910)6445027.
December 8, 2005
Flooded Calapan cries for help
CALAPAN CITY—OFFICIALS SENT OUT CALLS for help following floods that isolated most of the city, soaking at least 85,000 residents and their homes in floodwater.
In a report, the Office of Civil Defense said at least 13,000 persons have been displaced by heavy rains and floods in three other provinces.
Doy Leachon, Calapan City administrator, said rains brought flooding to almost the entire city “and there is still no help coming.”
Officials said a dike that kept water in the Bucayao River from flooding Calapan City was breached.
Leachon said the water is now chest-deep and the city only has three rubber boats. “We could not reach most of our rural barangays,” he said.
Floods prevented vehicles from reaching Caticlan and southern parts of Mindoro.
At least 200 families were moved to the Jose Leido Memorial School gym.
Gov. Arnan Panaligan said the Sangguniang Panlalawigan declared the province under a state of calamity.
Bad weather prevented Air Force helicopters on search and rescue missions from taking off.
“We’re still waiting for the weather to cooperate,” said Maj. Jose Broso, spokesperson of the Southern Luzon Command.
The OCD said Lucena City was worst hit by floods in Quezon, forcing at least 12,655 persons to evacuate.
Jay Lim, program officer for Mt. Banahaw of the environmental group Tanggol Kalikasan, said the Lucena floods were caused by logging, slash-and-burn farming, quarrying on Mt. Banahaw.
Malou Maralit, Lucena social welfare and development officer, said the evacuees returned home starting yesterday.
Three teenagers—Nonoy Geneblazo, Allan Calleja and Allan Minorca—were honored for saving three children and their grandmother from drowning in a Lucena village.
The OCD also reported a landslide in Capalonga, Camarines Norte. There was no casualty.
The Department of Public Works and Highways started clearing operations yesterday. Dona Pazzibugan in Manila and Delfin T. Mallari Jr., Marciano Virola and Joanna Los Baños, PDI Southern Luzon Bureau
October 28, 2005
Sorsogon execs seekhelp after cyanideleak from mining site
SORSOGON CITY—THE PROVINcial Agriculture Office here has sought the help of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources in investigating the reported leakage of cyanide from the mining site of Lafayette Mining Corp. in Barangay Pagcolbon in the island town of Rapu-Rapu, Albay.
Serafin Lacdang, head of the Provincial Fishery Division, said he was informed by residents through text messages quoting the mining company as saying they were told not to use water in the area for fear of contamination.
The leakage occurred on Oct. 11 and it was apparently kept under wraps until Oct. 24, he added.
Officials expressed fears cyanide would contaminate bodies of water around the mining area and would reach the Pacific Ocean, which narrowly separates Rapu-Rapu island from this city.
Lacdang said they sought the help of the Environmental Management Bureau of the DENR that sent an investigating team to the area earlier.
The provincial government is awaiting word from DENR and BFAR on the result of the investigation, Lacdang added.
Rey Juan, Mines and Geosciences Bureau Bicol regional technical director, said in a report faxed to the Inquirer that there was indeed a tailings spill on Oct. 11 after the tailings pump of the Rapu-Rapu mining project malfunctioned.
Mine tailings containing cyanide overflowed from the emergency pond of the mill.
Juan said the spill was reported to his office and he sent men to check on it. He said his office suspended the operations of a machinery in the mill until the tailings pump was repaired.
He said the spill was confined in the mining site and tests of samples, taken from the mouth of the mill’s drainage, were conducted Oct. 22. Test results showed the cyanide level was within tolerable limits, said Juan.
Juan said his office continues to monitor repairs being done on the tailings pump and the mill’s drainage system. Bobby Q. Labalan and Joanna Los Baños, PDI Southern Luzon Bureau
October 2, 2005
Death toll in diarrheaoutbreak in Catanduanesrises to 13; cases increase
By Joanna Los Baños
PDI Southern Luzon Bureau
LEGAZPI CITY—THIRTEEN PERsons have died from diarrhea in four towns of Catanduanes, according to the Department of Health’s Center for Health and Development in Bicol.
In a report faxed to the Inquirer yesterday, six have died in San Andres town, four in Virac, two in Baras and one in Caramoran.
It said that 388 cases of diarrhea were reported in San Andres (210), Virac (141), Baras (13), Pandan (12), Bato (5), Viga (4) and Caramoran (3).
At least 34 new diarrhea cases were reported from Sept. 29 noon to Sept. 30 noon, the report added.
The Eastern Bicol Medical Center has new 16 diarrhea cases; Juan M. Alberto District Hospital, six cases; Baras Medicare Hospital, five cases; Caramoran Municipal Hospital and Pandan District Hospital both with three cases, and Bato Maternity and Children Hospital, one case.
Dr. Virgilio S. Ludovice Jr., chief of Health Operations Division of the Center for Health and Development in Bicol said that the DOH Regional Laboratory found two of the four specimens it tested from diarrhea patients in Barangay Cabcab, San Andres positive of vibrio cholera, a bacterial infection.
San Andres was declared with cholera outbreak, Ludovice said.
Tests have to be made in areas where cases of diarrhea were reported and were suspected caused by cholera.
But laboratory tests were ongoing, he said.
In Naga City, Catanduanes Gov. Leandro Verceles said he was pushing for the declaration of a state of calamity in his province.
He said the diarrhea outbreak could be better controlled and managed if a state of calamity was declared throughout Catanduanes.
He said the DOH in Bicol has recommended the declaration of a state of calamity to the provincial government to effectively manage the health situation. But he said the provincial board has rejected the request.
Reached by phone, Vice Gov. Vincent Villaluna said the board was not opposed to the request but that they should first explore all means.
“It is not yet that urgent to declare the province under a state of calamity,” he said. Only San Andres town was declared in a state of calamity, he added.
But San Andres Mayor Aly Romano said in an interview with the Inquirer that Caramoran, San Miguel and Baras have also been declared under state of calamity.
The provincial government has released P1 million to buy medicines and medical supplies, Verceles said.
Verceles said the diarrhea outbreak has been reported to the media earlier than the provincial government.
The provincial government started acting on Sept. 12 because no official communication was relayed to them by the Juan M. Alberto Memorial Hospital where the patients were confined. With a report from Juan Escandor Jr., PDI Southern Luzon Bureau
February 7, 2005
‘All Filipinos were victims’
FOR THE many who were detained or tortured during the Marcos dictatorship, it was like being brutalized all over again.
That much could be gleaned from the reactions of victims of human rights abuses after a US appeals court decision put beyond their reach the $683 million of Marcos-linked assets recovered by the Philippine government from secret bank accounts in Switzerland.
Lorenzo Listana, 44, of Daraga, Albay, jailed for 6 months in 1983, tortured. Now a businessman: “Our rights as humans were really violated so we should really be compensated. I did not only suffer from my imprisonment. I was also forced to stop going to school.
“My brother, Clemente, who was trying to help some people, was also abducted in 1979 because he was mistakenly identified as an NPA (New People’s Army rebel). We haven’t seen him since.”
Marie Hilao-Enriquez, 52, imprisoned from 1974 (when she was 21) and held until 1976. Now leader of the human rights group Selda: “The Philippine government must make an accounting of the money for the victims if it is still intact. They deserve to receive their compensation. We demand that the government pay the victims the amount that belongs to them.”
Enriquez’s sister, Liliosa Hilao, associate editor of Hasik newsletter, was abducted by the military in April 1973 and killed.
Ernie Alcala, 54, a senior reporter of dwRM Radyo ng Bayan in Palawan, arrested in 1972 when he was a student, and tortured. He was 22 then: “All Filipinos were victims. If the victims won’t get compensation and if the money will go to the government, that’s OK, because … all Filipinos were victims.”
A ‘terrorist’ decision
Mariano Gadiano, one of the student activists arrested with Alcala, was also tortured and died after he was released.
Farmer Nestor T. Mendoza, 65, of Silang, Cavite, held in various Philippine Constabulary camps as an alleged NPA: He said the US court decision showed how callous the US government was.
Farmer Cornelio Endoso, 58, also of Silang, detained for four months and tortured: He said the court decision was an insult to him and the Filipino people.
Fr. Joe Dizon, an activist priest, detained and tortured: “The decision was stupid, ridiculous, terrorist and unjust.”
Justice denied
Reynaldo Jamoralin, 53, of Sorsogon City, imprisoned and tortured in 1972. Now the secretary of the provincial tourism council: “The ruling was grossly unfair. There was already a prior court ruling and it should be carried out.”
Melchor Genavea arrested in 1972. Now an official of the Government Service Insurance System in Sorsogon: “The ruling denied the victims the justice they deserve.”
Not end of world
Lawyer Democrito Barcenas, jailed for three months in 1972 and his movements restricted for five years. Now president of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines-Cebu City chapter: “It does not mean that this is the end of the world for human rights claimants. We hope that the leadership in Congress will take serious efforts in having this (compensation bill) passed because [this] is a matter of justice.”
The compensation could serve as a lesson for “budding tyrants,” he said.
Lawyer Kit Enriquez, detained for three years as a member of the Samahan Demokratikong Kabataan: He said “suffering can never be quantified.” The Marcoses “sucked the economy dry, they should be made to return it” by compensating the victims and the country.
Lawyer Elias Guiloreza, detained for a year and 7 months: “[This is] very painful to the victims who have suffered torture and detention.” Reports from Jofelle P. Tesorio, Marlon Ramos, Romulo O. Ponte, Joanna Teressa Los Baños and Bobby Labalan, PDI Southern Luzon Bureau; Connie E. Fernandez and Nestor P. Burgos Jr., PDI Visayas Bureau
January 31, 2005
Wind, hydro power: Energy of the future
By Vincent Cabreza, Cristina Arzadonand Juliet Cataluña
PDI Northern Luzon Bureau
IT WILL take more time, but the future may well be in alternative sources of energy.
The Cordilleras, for instance, have the potential to generate up to 500 megawatts of “clean energy.” The abundance of rivers in the area can power up a chain of mini-hydroelectric power plants for half of each year. And a wind resource analysis and mapping study conducted for the Philippines by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory has already identified several areas which could benefit from wind power installations.
Last August, the country’s first commercial wind diesel hybrid farm, in Mahatao town in Batanes, started operations. The P56-million facility is powered by three wind turbines (sourced from France) designed to last between 25 and 50 years.
Officials of the First Philippine Energy Corp., the project designer, said a similar hybrid power facility supplies the power requirements of a hospital and community facilities in Fiji.
At the launch, Energy Secretary Vince Perez said the wind diesel project could be used as a “living laboratory” for students and could be tapped as one of the province’s tourist attractions. If President Macapagal-Arroyo’s goal of putting up as much as 345 MW of wind power could be realized by the end of her term in 2010, he said, “the Philippines will be the largest producer of wind power in Asia and the leader [in that aspect] is Batanes.”
Wind power is among the most cost-effective renewable technologies available today. According to an online website on wind power, more than 13,000 MW of wind power have already been installed worldwide.
A 25.5 MW wind power plant in Bangui, Ilocos Norte, developed by Northwind Power Development Corp., started operating recently. And the state-run Philippine National Oil Co. is developing a separate 42-MW wind farm in nearby Burgos town; it is expected to be operational by March.
“Interest in wind power is mounting as there is no showing that high oil prices will slip. In this oil-dependent generation where energy policies are being made to adapt to prevailing oil prices, the Philippine wind farm is our modest contribution to reducing our dependence on oil,” said Ferdinand Dumlao, Northwind chair.
US-funded study
The other areas identified as wind-rich include the Babuyan Islands, also north of Luzon; and the higher interior terrain of Mindoro, Samar, Leyte, Panay, Negros, Cebu, Palawan and eastern Mindanao. (The US Department of Energy sponsored the study for the National Power Corp.), the Philippine Council for Industry and Energy Research and Development, and PNOC.
Unlike PNOC, which can sell electricity generated from the Burgos facility to users outside Ilocos Norte, power from the Northwind plant will be fed exclusively to the Ilocos Norte Electric Cooperative or Inec, a local electric utility.
An energy sales agreement between Northwind and Inec binds the wind plant developer to operate and maintain the facility and deliver 7 MW to Inec every year for 20 years. This is about a fourth of Ilocos Norte’s total power requirement of 26 MW. (A study shows that Ilocos Norte’s total power needs is equivalent to the power requirement of SM Megamall in Mandaluyong City.)
The cheaper electricity means a 7-percent reduction in power costs from prevailing Napocor rates.
Unlike major hydroelectric plants, which require the controversial construction of dams, mini-hydros can generate from 101 kW to 10 MW by relying on natural river flow. Best of all, the technology does not alter the water’s quality, the river’s local habitat or the surrounding air.
Harnessing all of the Cordillera’s rivers will generate power bigger than the current output of the San Roque Multipurpose Dam project on the Pangasinan-Benguet border or the Casecnan Multipurpose Irrigation and Power project in Nueva Vizcaya, said Rene Ronquillo, chief operating officer of the Aboitiz-owned Hydroelectric Development Corp. (Hedcor).
But the few investors in micro-hydro may soon be moving out of the Cordillera, Ronquillo lamented.
Hedcor is a Davao-based power firm that relocated to Benguet before the 1990s power crisis struck. Despite a history of strong local opposition to new water projects, because of the government’s construction of massive hydroelectric dams in the 1950s and 1960s, Hedcor stuck it out with micro-hydro.
Ronquillo recalled being chased out of Benguet towns when Hedcor first offered to build mini-hydro systems in 1989, after being told that Ibalois were displaced by the 75-MW Ambuclao Dam (which was built in 1954) and the 100-MW Binga Dam (which was built some 10 years after Ambuclao).
It took a decade for Benguet residents to warm up to the firm’s concept of “clean energy.”
Since 1986, Hedcor has rehabilitated 14 mini-hydro plants in Benguet. The company generates 39.55 MW of electricity a year; the towns that host these plants have also grown economically.
Bakun hosts the 64-MW Ferdinand L. Singit plant, the 2.4-MW Lower Labay plant, and the 3.6-MW Lon-oy plant.
Sablan, Tuba and La Trinidad towns host the Baguio government’s 4-MW Asin plants, the 10.75-MW Bineng plants and the 8-MW Ampohaw plant.
Kalinga, whose river sources are some of the most pristine in the country, has outgrown most of its misgivings about power facilities on account of the Benguet example, and has invited Hedcor to put up plants there, Ronquillo said.
But most of Hedcor’s future expansions are being relocated back to Davao, Ronquillo said.
Unclear support
He lamented that the government’s unclear support for clean energy is driving away power from the countryside, where electricity is much needed.
Malacañang is a signatory to the Kyoto Protocol, which seeks a global reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, but it set aside such provisions when it proceeded to reform the power sector, he said.
Ronquillo said the government would still need to increase the value of clean energy or new and renewable power projects like hydros and geothermal plants.
“It is still cheaper to operate a 100-MW coal plant than a bunch of mini-hydros,” Ronquillo said.
“[But] if the government will consider all the cost that goes into a coal-fired plant—pollution, the introduction of greenhouse gases—then mini-hydros become competitive,” he said.
Most of the mini-hydro facilities in the Philippines are based in rural areas, Ronquillo said. Their combined output accounts for no more than 2 percent of the total electricity produced today.
“If the government mandates [the National Transmission Corp. or Meralco] to buy that 2 percent, you can more than double [the renewable energy] that is produced today,” he said.
The law does not exempt new and renewable energy plants from additional fees covering the distribution of hydro-produced or geothermal energy, he added.
Also, Napocor “has made it difficult” for distributors to buy power from mini-hydros, he said, because the state-run firm needs to retain and develop high-profile purchase contracts to make itself attractive to investors.
“What we could do is run the [mini-hydros] during the rainy season, and come in with geothermal plants during summer. It works because geothermal facilities can store power. If you don’t use it today, it’s there tomorrow. The run-off river [system of all mini-hydros is different]. If you don’t use it today, it is gone tomorrow,” he said.
Natural gas
The alternative source of energy most often cited is non-renewable, however.
The $4.5-billion Malampaya Deep Water Gas-to-Power has added “clean” natural gas to the country’s power mix since 2002.
Methane, the major component of natural gas, has been dubbed the “fuel of the future” or the “green” fuel because of its clean qualities. According to a Department of Energy study, the use of natural gas would also help lessen carbon dioxide emission in the country by at least five million tons annually. With a report from Joanna Teressa P. Los Baños and Madonna T. Virola, PDI Southern Luzon Bureau
September 13, 2004
Peñafrancia exhibit
BICOLANO stained glass and mural artist Pancho Piano opened a solo exhibit at the Basilica Pavilion in Naga City on Wednesday. Piano showcases more than 20 of his paintings of the Our Lady of Peñafrancia to pay his homage and devotion to the patron saint. The exhibit, titled “Handog,” will run until Sept. 30. Joanna Teressa Los Baños, PDI Southern Luzon Bureau
August 26, 2004
A dangerous region for journalists
By Delfin T. Mallari Jr., Ronnie Lorejo, Romulo Ponte and Joanna Los Baños
ONE OF five Filipino journalists murdered since 1986 was from Southern Luzon, the second most dangerous area for journalists to be in after Mindanao, which has 36 cases.
As of last count, 18 of the 79 slain journalists listed by the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) and the Inquirer’s Research Department were from Southern Tagalog and Bicol. Except for one case, most of the Southern Luzon cases in the Inquirer list have remained unsolved.
The policeman, who shot and killed radioman Enrique Lingan of Lucena City, has been in jail, according to the victim’s mother.
In the case of another slain Lucena broadcaster Polly Pobeda, his colleagues had organized indignation marches and rallies, but his family members couldn’t help but feel being left alone in their quest for justice.
On trial
“After the burial of my brother, with all the media in attendance, either in sympathy or plain coverage of the event, there’s no one left. There is no more media around us,” the victim’s eldest brother Pio said in an interview last week in Barangay Kinagonan Ibaba, Agdangan, Quezon.
Pio also expressed disappointment in losing the services of their lawyers, who belonged to a private legal defense center based in Manila, and a Lucena politician-lawyer who later handled the case. They could not afford the prosecution’s services, he said.
A week after the murder, police arrested two suspects—brothers Eulogio and Eric Patulay, both bodyguards of Councilor Romano Talaga, a son of Lucena Mayor Ramon Talaga Jr. The Talagas have strongly denied involvement in the killing.
The suspects have since been detained at the provincial jail.
During every hearing at the regional trial court, Pio said he could not help but envy the Patulay brothers and their lawyers, who were always prepared for trial.
“Their lawyers just [kept] on beating our witness to pieces because of his [Pobeda’s witnesses] educational handicap,” he added.
With the recent rash of killings of journalists, Pio urged media groups to focus their efforts on how to protect his late brother’s former associates.
Suspects identified
In the case of Arnel Manalo, police announced last week that his murder had been “practically solved” with the identification of the suspected lone gunman.
Senior Supt. Nicasio Radovan, head of Task Force Newsmen, said Manalo’s younger brother Apollo positively tagged the suspect as Michael Garcia, believed to be a hired killer.
Lawmen have been hunting down Garcia, who also has a warrant of arrest for another murder, Radovan said.
Police working on the case of John Villanueva, 53, a veteran broadcaster from Legazpi City who was killed in 2002, said witnesses saw the motorcycle-riding gunman, who wore a bonnet, and his companion, who had on a crash helmet. But up to now, probers had yet to establish if the assassination was politically motivated or insurgency-related.
Police said the killing of Villanueva, a former vice mayor of Camalig town in Albay, was well-planned and patterned after similar attacks on barangay officials in the province. They mentioned the deaths of the barangay chiefs of Homapon in 1999 and of Taysan in February, and of a councilor in Ligao City, and the foiled killing of a barangay chair in Daraga town.
Barely two months after Villanueva was mowed down, an Army officer based in Daraga identified two NPA recruits as the suspected killers.
Brig. Gen. Pedrito Magsino, who was then commander of 901st Army Brigade based in Barangay Villahermosa, Daraga, named the suspects as Segundo Bongcay, alias “Ka Santi,” and Jerry Abache, alias “Ka Josam.” Both were linked to a series of killings and ambuscades of policemen in Camalig and its neighboring towns.
Magsino said the hit men were identified by his neighbor, who was harassed right after the killing. Because of the threats, he had recommended that the witness be placed under the government’s Witness Protection Program.
The Army was leaving the investigation to the Philippine National Police, he said, as Villanueva’s killing was civilian in nature. But the alleged witness later refused to testify and no longer wanted to be involved, according to the police.
Still looking
In the case of Nelson Nadura of dyME radio in Masbate, who was ambushed and killed on Dec. 2, 2003, police quoted witnesses as saying that the gunmen were young and spoke Tagalog.
Nadura, 42, was the president of the Union of Print and Broadcast Journalists of Masbate and had been an NPA leader in Masbate for three years.
Senior Supt. Romeo Mapalo, a former provincial police director, said Nadura’s former comrades in the communist movement could be behind the killing. But he said he was more inclined to believe that Nadura’s job as a commentator had something to do with it.
No suspects have been arrested.
“If he didn’t have a radio program, it is likely that he would still be alive today,” Nadura’s widow Vilma said.
Eyewitness in custody
Task Force Guwapo was created by regional police authorities to focus on solving the murder of Legazpi broadcaster Ruel Endrinal on Feb. 11. The unit claimed to have witnesses in custody.
The only clues probers have gathered so far were the text messages of death threats which Endrinal’s widow Mina said her husband had been receiving a few days earlier. He ignored the warnings, saying these were part of his job, according to Mina.
The task force has yet to issue an update of the case.
Killers at large
The killers of Laguna journalists, Sonny Alcantara and Noel Villarante, are still at large.
Fernando Consignado, 50, a Radio Veritas correspondent who was shot and killed on Aug. 12 in Nagcarlan, Laguina, was buried five days later. His grieving relatives wondered whether they and the families of other slain colleagues could find justice.
Media and press freedom organizations, both local and national, condemned the journalists’ gruesome deaths and urged authorities to act immediately on the cases.
The International Federation of Journalists, as well as other media groups, have expressed concern and even sent a letter to President Macapagal-Arroyo, appealing for speedy investigation.
August 5, 2004
Crown of thorns: Calvary for corals
By Joanna Teressa P. Los Baños
Malinao, Albay
UNDER water, they are a beautiful sight. And a lot of varieties of them are actually harmless.
But among the sea stars (also known as starfish), the crown of thorns or cot sea star is a scourge of sea divers and corals. They inflict wounds on humans and destroy corals.
Like any other sea star, a cot (Acanthaster rancii), locally called the lapa-lapa , has a star-shaped body. It also has tentacles connected to the center called disk.
A study of the Australian Institute of Marine Science says the cot starfish looks somewhat sinister as it is covered by many very sharp spines four to five centimeters long, which can inflict painful wounds.
The institute’s website, www.aims.gov.au, says the cot starfish contains toxic compounds called saponins, which are believed to prevent them from being eaten by certain animals.
A cot’s sting could also cause nausea and vomiting. The area around the puncture turns dark blue and swells for days. If the victim has multiple wounds, the whole limb may stiffen and swell and numbness and itchiness around the wounds set in.
Coral destroyer
The cots eat the tiny coral polyps then leave the coral’s skeletons susceptible to invasion by algae, worms, boring mollusks or reef-settling organisms.
“These skeletons, however, have small holes called coral cups. And these coral cups have tiny animals in them called polyps,” said Jo Roco, secretary of the Bicol Scuba Divers Foundation and science research specialist of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
The giant triton shells (Charonia tritonis), locally known as the budyong, are supposed to eat the cots. But in the reefs of Barangays Jonop and Baybay, fronting the Curangon Shoal, a fish sanctuary and marine reserve in Lagonoy Gulf in Malinao, Albay, 31 km north of Legazpi City, there are no more triton shells to eat the cots, thus causing an outbreak.
“It can already be considered an outbreak because of the large population of crown of thorns sea stars here,” Norberto Resontoc, municipal agriculture officer, said.
This is the cause of the high coral mortality in the reefs, Resontoc said. Corals are where most of the fish and other sea creatures live.
Roco advised that even if a coral is dead, people should not get it because there is a chance for polyps to grow again, thereby reviving the corals.
“The crown of thorns keeps on multiplying because there is food,” said Beata Borbon, agricultural technologist in the fisheries department of the Municipal Agriculture Office and community organizer of the community-based resource management project in Malinao. The cot eats planktons.
“When I was still studying, I never encountered the specie because I didn’t think there were a lot of it in the sea,” he said. Most of them learned of the cot’s existence only after an assessment made by Roco’s group in 2002.
“If the crown of thorns [continue to] eat the coral polyps, the fish would be forced to look for other places to live, thus making it hard for the fishermen here to catch fish,” she said.
Predator
Cots, which can be found on coral reefs, eat 60 square centimeters of coral cover a day, Roco said.
In 2002, Jonop and Baybay had 90 hectares of live coral cover, which still fell under the “good” category. This could decrease, however, because of the increasing number of cots.
“But the giant tritons do not exist here anymore. I believe we had those creatures here before but then, there were a lot of compressor divers who got the shells and sold them,” he said.
Collecting giant tritons is banned under the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species, Fisheries Administrative Order, said Tristan Paylado of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources.
Section 97 of Republic Act 8550 or the Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998 also bans the catching or possessing of endangered species, Paylado added.
Other sea creatures, that have been observed to eat the young cots are the puffer fish, two species of trigger fish, a shrimp and a worm, Moran said.
Whether these predators can help cut down the population of cot sea stars had not been proven yet.
Mission
On July 8 and 9, Roco and local divers had a reassessment. After finding that the reefs had been infested with cots, Roco suggested to Resontoc and Mayor Emily Kare, both divers, to conduct a coastal cleanup, that included gathering of cots.
With Project SOS (Save Our Seas), 30 divers gathered on July 25 to help Malinao folk, especially those from Jonop and Baybay, remove the cots from the reefs.
At least 23 members of the Bicol Scuba Divers Foundation, three from the Philippine Navy Special Warfare Group, three volunteer divers and another divers’ organization, all from Legazpi, went to Jonop to gather as much cot sea stars as they could.
Barangay residents and Malinao officials were thankful of the activity, having learned of the destruction these cots could do to their reefs.
Jonop is situated between the sea and rice fields, so most of the male villagers are farmers or fishermen, or both. The women weave abaca.
If the reefs are destroyed, the residents would have nothing but their rice fields to rely on for their livelihood.
“Malinao is a fourth-class municipality so we do not have enough resources for this kind of problem,” Kare said.
For the divers to enjoy their delicate mission, the organizers made the gathering of the cots a contest.
Damage
The winning group collected 370 cots and was awarded a trophy and a small amount of money. In all, the divers gathered 1,302 cots in more than an hour’s dive.
Four divers also collected 389 cots. When added to the number collected on July 25, the total reached 1,696, enough to save 37 hectares a year, in Roco’s computation.
But many of the divers agreed that there were still many cots left in the reefs. One said the situation was no longer a joke.
There were still illegal fishers and compressor divers who also damage the seas, Roco added.
He instructed the divers not to touch the cot sea star since its thorns emit a poisonous liquid that causes pain, which lasts for hours, and skin lesions that don’t heal for months.
He asked them to be really careful not to cut the tentacles because if a tentacle was cut, it would develop and become another cot.
He also asked them not to stab it because the eggs might stay in the sea.
To gather the creatures, each diver was given a 15-inch long bamboo stick and a sack where they placed the cots. The bamboo was used to get the cots.
Divers were instructed to slide the bamboo in between the cot and the coral, then gently lift the stick so the cot would automatically hold on it.
Solution
Kare admitted that the town administration had little resources to arrest the cot outbreak. For now, they are educating the people and apprehending the illegal fishers.
“Because our budget is not enough and we still lack skills, I suggest that research institutions, especially the Marine Science Institute at the University of the Philippines, conduct a study on how to culture giant tritons,” Roco said.
“If our coral reefs are destroyed, definitely, the supply of fish will decrease. Based on a study, a good coral cover will give us 20 tons of fish per year, while a poor one will give five tons of fish a year.
August 1, 2004
800 bags of sugar seized
LEGAZPI CITY—Four container vans aboard M/V Cebu Sulpicio Lines, allegedly containing 800 bags of raw sugar from Cebu City, were seized by the Philippine Coast Guard in the Masbate City port on Friday last week, a PCG report said. The P800,000-worth of sugar had no permit issued by the Sugar Regulatory Administration office in Cebu City, the report added. A certain Lita Bocboc, said to be the consignee, did not appear to claim the sugar. The SRA Cebu City office said Bocboc was not a registered sugar trader and not authorized to ship sugar, the PCG said. Joanna Teressa P. Los Baños, PDI Southern Luzon Bureau
October 14, 2003
Anti-drug campaign
LEGAZPI CITY—Police have cleared 132 Bicol barangays of drug syndicates from June to September, according to Bicol police director Chief Supt. Jaime Lasar. This is 73 percent of 181 drug-affected barangays in the region. The Albay, Camarines Sur and Sorsogon police offices seized a combined total of P512,200 worth of shabu during the period. “We will never allow drug syndicates to prosper in this region,” Lasar said. Joanna Los Baños, PDI Southern Luzon Bureau
