METROPOST


NegOr farmers send hogs to NCR


Hog farmers in Negros Oriental are now bouncing back from the effects of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic as they now supply around 25,000 live pigs per month to the National Capital Region and other areas at competitive prices.


Dr. Alfonso Tundag, quarantine officer and head of the Bureau of Animal Industry here, in an interview Monday, said the continuing threat posed by the African swine fever that has affected many provinces, allowed local hog raisers to expand their markets in the past few months.


25,000 pigs to areas outside of the Province each month. “The prices of live weight hogs are pegged between P140 to P145 per kilo, and this is just the buying price,” he said in mixed English and Cebuano. Last year, at the height


In a recent meeting with the local association of hog farmers and traders, Tundag said they now supply between 24,000 to


franchises


granting a one-time and conditional amnesty to all operators of Motorcabs- for-Hire using expired or illegally transferred franchises will be presented for deliberation in the City Council as a means to correct the malpractice. The Committee on Transportation & Traffic, chaired by Liga ng mga Barangay President Dionie Amores, convened a meeting Friday to listen to the inputs of MCH operators, drivers, the Traffic Management Office and the Philippine National Police to strengthen the proposed measure.


Councilor Karissa Maxino said a mere moratorium for those operating under franchises, TO PAGE 6


A proposed ordinance


Amnesty eyed for illegal MCH


of the pandemic and due to strict quarantine restrictions, pork was being sold in Negros Oriental at a low price of P99 per kilo, as these could not be transported outside of the province. Trading is now brisk between Negros Oriental suppliers and buyers from Cebu, Manila, and other places because pork meat prices in these areas have spiraled due to the ASF scare, Tundag said.


meat for local consumption despite the upward supply trend for other provinces. Meanwhile, Negros


Nat’l ID system downed by CoViD


MAY 2 - MAY 8, 2021


NEWS and UPDATES 3 CAMPUS NEWS SU to give aid to


Oriental continues to keep a tight watch against ASF by restricting the entry of pork products via the airport and sea ports, Tundag said. The Bulado Port in Guihulngan City and the wharf in Sibulan town, which have reopened in recent months after being closed at the height of the pandemic last year, are now being closely monitored by BAI teams, he added. Tundag said local


He assured, though, that there is still enough pork


government units have been alerted to keep an eye on the possible illegal entry of banned pork by- products, such as chorizo, from areas where ASF cases have been reported. (Judy F. Partlow/PNA)


Valencia Mayor urges seniors to get free jabs


of Valencia, Negros Oriental on Wednesday urged his constituents, particularly the elderly, to avail of the government’s free inoculation against coronavirus disease 2019. Teves, a senior citizen


himself at 75, received his first Covid-19 vax jab on Wednesday as the town moved on to the next priority group after health workers and front-liners in the vaccination program. Des Tilos Jr., Valencia


public information officer, said Teves was inoculated with the China-made Coronavac.


Mayor Edgar Teves health of fice,


administering the vaccines to senior citizens at the town’s gymnasium.


started


The Mayor encouraged qualified Valencianons included in the priority groups to get inoculated so they can be protected against Covid-19.


Tilos said the Valencia local government unit, through its municipal


accounts to enjoy no-disconnection


35T electric


With still no end in sight for the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, some 35,308 accounts with the Negros Oriental Electric Cooperative II are qualified for the No- Disconnection Policy.


In a statement Thursday, NORECO II information officer Sharon Desquitado-Araula said the electric cooperative continues to implement such policy for non- payment of electricity bills for lifeline consumers. Lifeline consumers are those accounts with a power consumption of 20-kilowatt hours per month and below, she said. The policy is based on the advisory of the Department of Energy dated Feb. 5, she added. Last year, at the height of strict quarantine restrictions,


Based on observation of administering health authorities, Ti los said vaccine acceptance and interest rose after residents saw the mayor and municipal health officer Dr. Cheryl Eullaran getting their vaccine shots. Ea r l ie r, As s i s tant Provincial Health Officer Dr. Liland Estacion, the Province’s health committee chair of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, said they were advised to start inoculation of senior citizens and people with comorbidities even though not all health workers and frontliners in Negros Oriental have been vaccinated due to various personal reasons. (Judy F. Partlow/PNA)


Lockdowns in some towns of Negros Oriental due to rising coronavirus d is ease 2019 cas es have slowed down the government’s ongoing Philippine Identification System registration being carried out by the Philippine Statistics Authority. Engr. Ariel Fortuito, PSA-Negros Oriental chief, in a telephone interview with the Philippine News Agency here Monday, said the towns of Mabinay and Siaton imposed a temporary lockdown in mid-April to prevent further spread of the disease while conducting contact tracing. The local Inter- Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases in these towns has issued advisories on the total lockdowns, which, he said, affected many offices, and “we had to adhere to their advice to ensure the safety of our clients”.


The lockdowns have already been lifted recently and PSA’s Step 2 Registration for the national identification card is now ongoing in both towns, he added. Meanwhile, Fortuito


personnel of Silliman University here will receive food packs from April to June this year.


The supply will come from the Outstanding Sillimanian 2018 awardee Dr. Mariano Lao who made a donation recently. The first distribution was held on April 29 at the Dr. Mariano and Lina Lao Activity Center and Technology Laboratory at the SU Junior High School campus, a media release from the university said Monday. The donation of P164,400 from Lao has funded the SU and Dr. Mariano Lao ICI Laboratory Emergency Assistance Program, which includes the food pack distribution, the statement added. The Office of Student Services will identify the student- beneficiaries while Silliman Church will help in the identification of the senior citizen recipients. The SU Cafeteria will prepare the food packs containing


five kilos of rice, two cans of sardines, and two packs of instant noodles.


Last year, Lao donated P30,000 to provide food and cash assistance to students who were stranded when the Province was placed under enhanced community quarantine, and another P30,000 for Silliman’s outsourced personnel who had to stop working because of the restrictions imposed to prevent spread of the coronavirus disease 2019. (Judy F. Partlow/PNA)


Local youth undergo theater arts workshop


Twenty promising youth artists from the different barangays completed a three-day Basic Theater Arts Workshop. Local Youth Development Officer Tigie James Tanilon,


said that on Sunday, he was informed that Ayungon town has also announced a temporary lockdown from April 26-28 to allow the conduct of contact tracing for people who have been exposed to Covid-19 patients.


challenges that we are facing in the ongoing registration for the national ID system,” he said in a mix of Cebuano and English.


“This is one of the


workshop organizer, said their goal was to produce a core group of young theater artists who will assist in the different programs and advocacies of the City government. SK Federation President Renz Macion congratulated the organizers and participants for their passion in expressing and enhancing their talents, which is consistent with the mandate of the Constitution to recognize the vital role of the youth in nation-building by inculcating the values of patriotism and active involvement in public and civic affairs through the arts. Art coaches/teachers Aiza Aranas from Calindagan Elementary School, and Lord Kent Mariño from Junob National High School conducted the workshop and provided insightful exercises to develop the skills of the youth. (PIO)


“We are running after time because by the end of May, we will have to deploy some of the registration kits to other provinces as there are only 32 provinces that are currently undertaking the Step 2 Registration,” he said.


SANE to offer expertise to faculty, students


Fortuito said whether they meet the target or not, they will have to deploy some of the registration kits to other provinces in June for their Step 2 rollout. For Negros Oriental,


the priority targets for registration are the “no-


TO PAGE 7


Alumni who are members of the Silliman Association of New England (SANE) have proposed to their Alma Mater a Professional Engagement Program, a virtual platform where talent and expertise can be shared and collaborated among the University constituents. The program, which has been endorsed by the SU administration in Dumaguete, will be implemented online in collaboration with the SU Alumni Council of North America (SUACONA). Alumnus Jojo Antonio, SANE president based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, said the professional engagement program was conceptualized last year to maximize the educational training and leadership of Silliman alumni through online engagements even during the pandemic. The New England area in the northeastern region of the


US is composed of the Atlantic states of Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode


TO PAGE 9


outsourced personnel Some 140 students, senior citizens, and outsourced


power firms in Negros Oriental implemented the same, as mandated under the “We Heal as One” Bayanihan Act. Araula said there is no timeline as to when the no- disconnection policy for lifeline consumers will end. Meanwhile, she said the cooperative is urging member- consumer-owners to “promptly pay the monthly electricity bills as we will carry our disconnection of electric service for those with two unpaid bills starting this April.” The coverage of NORECO II is from Tanjay City in central Negros Oriental down to Basay in the south, while NORECO I covers the towns and cities in the north of the province. (Judy F. Partlow/PNA)


Jojo Antonio (rightmost) meets with some members of the Silliman Association of New England (from left) in Boston: Dr. Fred Abraham, Stan & Ellen Paray-Macasieb, Joy Contado-Miller, Rev. Bart & Dr. Priscilla Lasmarias-Kelso, Prof. Priscilla Magdamo-Abraham, Myrish Cadapan-Antonio, and Nellie Viernes-Nambu to discuss their new project. (Contributed photo)


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12