theregions A The Manila Times SATURDAY


NEDA cites ARMM’s handling of foreign- funded projects


BY JULMUNIR I. JANNARAL CORRESPONDENT


praised the present administration of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) citing its efficient implementation of foreign-funded projects, officials announced on Friday.


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“This good news [from the NEDA main office] is the latest among a string of citations for ARMM under the leadership of Acting Regional Gov. Ansaruddin Alonto-Adiong,” ARMM Social Fund Project (ASFP) Project Manager Nasser Sinarimbo told newsmen covering the Muslim autonomous regional beat. Sinarimbo said the ASFP, a con- duit of foreign-funded poverty-alle- viating and peace-building projects in conflict-laden areas of ARMM, is one of 26 foreign-assisted Imple- menting Agencies (IAs) in the coun- try cited by the NEDA for “imple- menting projects on time.” He said the “good news” was relayed


to him by ASFP Finance and Adminis- tration Director Alejandro Coscos, who represented him in the 35th Project Implementation Officers’ meeting presided over by NEDA Deputy Director General Rolando Tungpalan in Manila on September 7.


One of top performers The meeting reviewed the perform-


ance of IAs on Official Development Assistance (ODAs) and identified the ASFP as one of the top perform- ers in the country, Coscos told Sinarimbo in a report. “Modesty aside, we take elation from the NEDA assessment report and the credit goes to the people manning the ASFP and to ARMM Acting Regional Governor Adiong, who directly supervises the project,” Sinarimbo said.


“Despite the negative perception of some people on the ARMM’s ca-


pacity to manage projects and issues on corruption and accountability, the ASFP under the new leadership has intensified its efforts by mobi- lizing its human and financial re- sources to meet its objectives,” Sinarimbo pointed out.


The Armed Forces project man- ager added that “because of the ef- ficient and effective performance of the Project Management Office and its partners in implementing projects,” the seven-month-old Adiong administration has earlier received “satisfactory” rating from the Japan International Coordi- nating Agency (JICA) and the World Bank, the two major for- eign institutions funding various socio-economic and infrastruc- ture projects in ARMM. He said “the good news came at a time when reports on ODA-as- sisted projects were marred by con- troversies on delays, cost overruns and violations of procurement laws and auditing guidelines,” and that “we take pride for the ASFP’s pru- dent observance of standards set by the government and its donors, par- ticularly the World Bank and JICA. The NEDA report also cited the ASFP as one of the five IAs, in which loan disbursements rate increased to 67.42 percent for the semester of 2010 compared to the same period of 2009, which is 56.29 percent.


Continued support Masafumi Nagaishi, JICA senior


deputy representative in the Phil- ippines, a nationwide television


OTABATO CITY: The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) hierarchy has


newscast this week announced that his agency has been “happy and satisfied” with the present ASFP performance, even as he vowed their continued support to help the people in the Muslim au- tonomous region. In record time, a total of 236


JICA-funded projects have been implemented and completed well in seven months, according to Nagaishi, who pronounced his agency’s “growing confidence” in the ARMM leadership. Mary Judd, World Bank Task team leader in Asia and Pacific, upon learning about the NEDA report, sent this week a letter congratulat- ing the ASFP workforce headed by engineer Sinarimbo.


In a meeting of ASFP officials and their partner agencies last month in Davao City, Judd said she was “satisfied” with the effi- cient implementation of World Bank-funded projects through the ASFP in ARMM, citing as well the Adiong administration’s observ- ance of policy on “transparency and good governance.”


The ASFP participated in the re- cent Good Practice Award spon- sored by NEDA and awarding of winners will be on December 2010. It has submitted entries in two categories: the Strategies in Achieving Desired Outcome and in Resolving Recurrent Issues in Project Implementation. As of June 2010, ASFP has already


covered 990 barangays out of the 2,490 barangays and have imple- mented 2,184 small-scale infrastruc- ture subprojects through its Com- munity Development Assistance as- sisted by both the World Bank and JICA in the ARMM. Also under World Bank, 13 strategic regional infrastructures were completed and 11 subprojects plus two local gov- ernment centers were completed under JICA fund. Other subprojects are in the process of advertise- ment for bidding and on-going preparation/ completion and evalua- tion of documents.


Comelec ousts Dapitan mayor


THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) ousted Mayor Dominador Jalosjos Jr. of Dapitan City, Zamboanga del Norte—the brother of convicted rapist, former Zamboanga del Norte congressman Romeo Jalosjos. In an eight-page Resolution of the Comelec en banc, it junked the motion for reconsidera- tion of Dominador and affirmed the findings of the Comelec First Division because of the conviction of his criminal case. Voting unanimously, the election court or- dered the Dominador should cease and desist from occupying his position as Mayor. “Wherefore, in view of the foregoing, the mo- tion for reconsideration is denied for utter lack of merit. Respondent is hereby ousted from of- fice and ordered to cease and desist from oc- cupying and discharging the functions of the Office of the Mayor of Dapitan City, Zam- boanga,” the ruling states.


His opponent Agapito Cardino filed the pe- tition to deny due course and to cancel cer- tificate of candidacy of respondent Domi- nador on December 6, 2009, alleging that he committed material misrepresentation in his certificate of candidacy when he stated under oath that he is eligible for the position he seeks in connection with the May 10 elections when in fact he is not.


Dominador won against Mr. Cardino by more than 150 votes. Respondent Jalosjos has been convicted by fi- nal judgment by the Regional Trial Court of Cebu City for the crime of robbery and sentenced to


suffer the penalty of prision correccional mini- mum to prision mayor maximum. However, Dominador countered that when probation was granted to him, all his civil and political rights were restored. He even cited a decision of the Comelec in 2004, which dis- missed the disqualification case against him on the same grounds.


In the present Comelec’s view, it opined, “there is no question that respondent was con- victed and sentenced in April 1970 for robbery, a crime involving moral turpitude. Mr. [Su- preme Court] Arturo Brion in his concurring opinion in the case of Teves vs. Comelec, re- emphasized that the crime of robbery is among those categorized in this jurisdiction as involv- ing moral turpitude.”


“Contrary to the claim of the respondent, his probation was already revoked by the court way back on March 19, 1987. Interestingly, he filed a petition for probation only on June 17, 1985 or after 15 days from his conviction of robbery in 1970 and after the Court of Appeals had al- ready dismissed his appeal. This is highly irregu- lar and contrary to law,” the ruling says. It pointed out that Dominador “is merely re- lying on the Certification issued by former Board of Pardons and Parole Administrator [Gregorio] Bacolod which was already ruled upon by the Sandiganbayan to be falsified . . . to compound matters, he utilized this. Certifi- cation to secure the dismissal of the disqualifi- cation case filed by James Adasa against him.” JOMAR CANLAS


La Union declares state of calamity


SAN FERNANDO CITY, La Union: The Provin- cial Government of La Union, through its board members led by Vice Governor Augusto “Aureo” Nisce, has declared the province under a State of Calamity because of dengue hemorrhagic fever that has reached to an epidemic threshold-level, according to a resolution passed on Friday. From January to September this year, La Union has a total of 1,152 dengue cases recorded with five fatalities, out of 19 municipalities and this city, which has the


most number of cases. The approval of the said resolution was based from the recom- mendation of the Provincial Health Office, under officer in charge Hector Beñas, which is considered “alarming.” It is expected that the calamity fund


intended will be used to buy more gadgets, equipment and facilities; continuous blood supply as replenishment for patients; and also for environmental sanitation, beginning at community level, as mitigating measures against the disease.


WILLIAM JUN GARCIA


Rotary Club of Makati North


PUNONG BRGY. CESAR P. MARQUEZ For more information, please call BEL/CHERRY at 524-5664


■ The Porta Mariae, classified as a triumphal arch was built by 28-year-old architect Gian Paolo Priela. PHOTO BY RHAYDZ BARCIA


»feature 300-year-old devotion to Ina celebrated BY RHAYDZ BARCIA CORRESPONDENT


NAGA CITY: All roads are heading to this place as devotees of the Nuestra Señora de Peñafrancia commemorate the 300-year devotion to Ina—the longest and strongest devotion so far in the country. The domestic airports in Legazpi City and Pili, Camarines Sur were jam-packed with passengers. Balikbayans from around the world including tourists, passenger buses and private cars are all heading to Naga to be with Ina’s tercentenary celebration tomorrow. Maria Nini Ong Ravanilla, regional


director of the Department of Tourism in Bicol met with hundreds of tourists and balikbayans who came in through the Legazpi City Domestic Airport. The seven flights regularly


catered by airlines could no longer accommodate the big influx of visitors in Naga City. Ravanilla said that numerous


balikbayans opted to take buses or avail any land transportation utility to catch up with the pinnacle of Nuestra Señora de Peñafrancia grand celebration here. The strong devotion to Ina was


introduced here by Spanish priest Father Miguel Robles de Cobarrubias in 1710.


The 300-year celebration and


devotion to Ina is quite unique today as devotees around the world will be passing through for the first time at 18 meters long, 4-m wide and 11-m high commemorative arch dedicated to Our Lady of Peñafrancia which mark the people’s strong religious fervor. The symbolic gate—the Porta Mariae is where the relic of Ina was placed. It imbues the journey of Marian devotion, which is built on testimonies of miracles and witnessed by native devotees locally known here as the cimarrones. The Porta Mariae, classified as a triumphal arch—a structural design rarely done in the present time—was built by 28-year-old architect Gian Paolo Priela. He said that he patterned the


design to the ancient times to commemorate the victories and triumphs of kings and emperors and the Porta Mariae is one of the two of its kind built in the country. According to Priela, the first triumphal arch built in the country was the Arch of the Centuries of the University of Santo Tomas in Manila where the students, including national hero Jose Rizal, enter when they start studying in that Catholic university, and


exit when they graduated. He said that the Porta Mariae is an


icon to commemorate the three centuries of devotion here wherein he drew the inspiration of the design from the facade of the Naga Metropolitan Cathedral, replicating its column design. The triumphal arch is made of


reinforced concrete. It is hollow inside and with a height equivalent of a three-storey building. Devotees can ascend to staircases built on the left and right wings to visit souvenir shops on the second floor, the gallery on the third floor and a viewing deck on top. At the center of the arch is the relic of Ina. The Porta Mariae is built through the


concerted efforts of the Peñafrancia Association of Bikolanos in Metro Manila, the Archdiocese of Caceres and anonymous donors. The arch ushers devotees and the journey of the devotion to the future when the 300-year-old image of Ina enters the symbolic door on Friday during the Traslacion—when the image is brought to the Naga Metropolitan Cathedral from the Peñafrancia Shrine—for the nine-day novena, before the pinnacle and grand fluvial procession on the Naga River tomorrow.


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