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2/7/2012
6.9 QUAKE

  52 killed in Negros; tsunami alert triggers panic in Cebu     Except for overcast skies and slight rain, Cebuanos had no inkling nature had a shock in store yesterday. At 11:49 a.m. the ground trembled under their feet, shaking buildings and sending people out on the streets. The earthquake lasted about 30 seconds and registered 6.9 on the Richter scale with several mild aftershocks. At least 52 people were killed ...
2/7/2012
Phivolcs Earthquake caused by stress buildup in faultline

      Yesterday's earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in Cebu, said analyst Robinson Jorgio of the Philippine Institue of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) in Central Visayas. He said Cebu is not prone to earthquakes since the faultlines that run along the province are inactive. “There's no significant earthquake data in Cebu. Most of our earthquakes have low magnitude,” Jorgio said. The quake that struck p...
2/7/2012
Negros takes brunt of earthquake

      DUMAGUETE CITY,—At least 52 people were killed when a 6.9-magnitude earthquake hit Negros and Cebu shortly before noon, causing landslides and huge cracks on highways, and violently shaking buildings, officials said. A three-story building collapsed, while seven bridges were rendered impassable, they said. In Guihulngan City in Negros Oriental, at least 29 people were feared dead following a landslide in Barangay P...
2/7/2012
Better alert system, communication needed for quakes

    CEBU officials said much work was needed to better prepare for emergencies such as yesterday's earthquake, especially in communicating with the public. “I consider (this) a lesson. There should be an assessment when it comes to dealing with this type of alert, ” said Alvin Santillana, head of the Cebu City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council. Santillana said the Phivolcs tsunami alert level 2 only means that r...
2/7/2012
Southwest towns incur damages

      Several towns in southwest Cebu took the brunt of yesterday’s earthquake in the island. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said at least six towns were affected and reported damage still to be fully assessed. In Badian town, the church's bell tower was partly damaged. Stones were also seen rolling and falling from the Kawasan Falls. In Ronda town, the mainline of the water system placed in front of Botika Henry in bara...
2/7/2012
Cloudy weather delays demolition

      Yesterday’s court-ordered demolition of houses in Lawaan II, Talisay City was postponed due to dark clouds that signaled the onset of rain. In a phone interview, Sheriff Constancio Alimurong said the demolition will push through today when the weather improves. “I don't want my men to get soaked in the rain and I don't want residents in Lawaan II to get soaked also,” Alimuring told Cebu Daily News in Cebuano. The...
2/7/2012
Suspect in hotel thefts shot dead in Lorega

        The son of a businessman, who was arrested last month for stealing the TV set of a Mandaue City hotel, was shot dead yesterday afternoon in barangay Lorega, Cebu City. Michael Reyes, 29, died after a motorcycle-riding gunman shot him as he was inside a taxicab. Reyes, who was facing theft charges and was out on bail, sustained several gunshot wounds in the body and head. The shooting happened just two corn...
2/7/2012
Murder raps to be filed against cop who killed neighbor

    MANDAUE City Police will file murder charges against a policeman who shot and killed his neighbor last Sunday. Police said they would file the murder complaint today against PO2 Rosendo Cabrera at the Mandaue Prosecutor's Office. Cabrera shot dead his neighbor Remegio Iran, 42, after Iran called Cabrera a useless cop during a drinking session. “It’s up to the fiscal to determine if it is really murder or if it can be dow...
2/7/2012
Capitol inks deal with private firm for Kepco’s coal ash

    THE Capitol yesterday signed an agreement with FDRCON Co. Inc. to accept the disposal of coal ash from the Kepco SPC Power Corp. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia's move came after the court ruling dismissing Capitol's motion to allow the use of the province-owned Balili property as a coal-ash disposal area. FDRCON, which has a landfill facility in barangay Pangdan, Naga City, has offered to receive the ash from Kepco for proper...
2/7/2012
Rama unfazed over Tomas’ bid

      There's no turning back for Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama as far as running for reelection is concerned. He said he will run for mayor even if it means going up against his predecessor, Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district. But for now, Rama said he only wanted to focus on work. “I’d like to be more focused and encourage all to be working in that direction,” he said in a press conference yesterday, his f...
2/7/2012
NEWS BRIEFS

      Sinulog Burglary Case CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama yesterday said he supported Councilor Edgar Labella’s call to tap the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas to investigate the Sinulog office robbery, which resulted to the loss of over P1.6 million worth of funds. Rama asked for the reports and other paperwork on the case after the prosecutor’s office dismissed the case of the police’s suspect the...
2/6/2012
DEADLY INSULT

  Off-duty cop shoots down pal, wounds kid     He was considered an “efficient policeman” whose 22 years of service were devoid of any cases of abuse or violence. Yet, PO2 Rosendo Cabrera is now detained at the Mandaue City Police Office (MCPO) headquarters for shooting down a friend and wounding a four-year-old girl during a drinking session in sitio San Vicente Ferrer, barangay Tabok, Mandaue City yesterday. The vi...
2/6/2012
Sesbreño family to ensure demolition despite threats

      Despite their mourning over the murders of loved ones and friends, the Sesbreño family will continue with the court-ordered demolition of houses in barangay Lawaan II, Talisay City at 9 a.m. today. In a phone interview Peter Sesbreño, the youngest son of lawyer Raul Sesbreño said 40 houses will be covered by the demolition. The houses stand on a lot which the lawyer claimed was given to him as payment by his cli...
2/6/2012
Rama Focus on work first, not 2013 politics

    THE election season is well over a year away, but this early Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama has to fend off questions about his impending showdown with his predecessor, Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district. Rama, who said he may answer questions about his political plans in today's press conference, brushed aside statements by Rep. Rachel del Mar of Cebu City's north district that the Liberal Party should support O...
2/6/2012
Demolition stay on lot

        A temporary restraining order was issued last week against the demolition of four houses located in a lot marked for an urban poor project of the city government in barangay Duljo-Fatima, Cebu City. Judge Soliver Peras, first vice executive judge of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) in Cebu City, issued the order after hearing the complaint filed by four occupants of the lot. The occupants filed a civil suit a...
2/6/2012
Ordinance to grant tax incentives for organic farming

    A PROPOSED ordinance granting five to 10 percent discount in real property taxes for farmers practicing organic farming in Cebu will be deliberated today in the Provincial Board (PB). PB member Arleigh Sitoy said his ordinance granting incentives to organic farms is now up for second reading in today's PB session. Once approved, the measure will be elevated to third and final reading prior to approval. The draft ordinanc...
2/6/2012
Street renamed Pope John Paul II Ave.

    Juan Luna Avenue (formerly known as San Jose dela Montana Avenue) is now Pope John Paul II Avenue. This developed after the Cebu City Council approved the resolution to rename the street during last Wednesday's session. A grateful Fr. Dan Delos Angeles said Pope John Paul II Avenue would close the loop of roads bearing the names of sacred personalities such as the Gorordo Avenue and the Archbishop Reyes Avenue. The Gorord...
2/6/2012
Truck ban eyed for Talisay

    A truck ban to be enforced during weekdays is being considered for implementation by Talisay City officials. Talisay City Vice Mayor Alan Bucao said an ordinance on a truck ban would be deliberated on in tomorrow's session. Bucao said traffic had been a problem especially during peak hours on the city's major thoroughfares. He specifically cited the congestion at the city’s flyover near the old Tabunok public market. ...
2/6/2012
Teacher faces jail for hitting student

      A TEACHER was sentenced to four to six years imprisonment for hitting a student who failed to answer a question in class over seven years ago. Judge Maximo Perez of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 26 in Argao City sentenced Juanita Albiso for violating Republic Act 7610 or the Anti-Child Abuse Law. Albiso's then 12-year-old student complained that he was punched on the forehead by Albiso for failing to answe...
2/6/2012
Energy dept pushes e-trike program

      A NATIONWIDE contest to draft a design for an electric tricycle is being pushed by the Department of Energy (DOE). During a Kapihan forum by the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) in Cebu, Energy officials said the contest dubbed as “Bright Now! Do Right. Be Bright. Go E-trike!” is aimed at creating the Philippine version of the so-called “green vehicle.” “The E-Trike contest is for the adoption of the national d...
2/6/2012
Talisay City barangays under calamity status

    FIVE barangays in Talisay City, southern Cebu will be placed under calamity status to facilitate the allocation of financial assistance to families affected by floods last Dec. 27. Barangays Dumlog, Poblacion, San Roque, Cansojong and Lawaan I were hit by floods caused by the southeast monsoon. At least 1,000 families were displaced during the incident after the water level rose in Mananga River. Based on records of the...
2/5/2012
CUTIE TOM OVER MIKE

  LP should back former mayor for delivering 2010 votes, says del Mar     The Liberal Party (LP) will have to decide who to support for mayor of Cebu City in the 2013 polls—the incumbent Mayor Michael Rama or Rep. Tomas Osmeña. If the “equity of the incumbent” rule is followed, it would be an awkward choice between two leaders. According to Rep. Rachel del Mar of Cebu City’s north district, the man who can deliver th...
2/5/2012
Vintage bombs detonated, create craters in Toledo pit

        Three deafening explosions were followed by thick black smoke that covered a portion of the Biga Pit inside the Carmen Copper Corp. (CCC) compound in Toledo City at noontime yesterday. When the smoke cleared, all that remained were 15-meter-wide craters and the debris of 29 World War II bombs that were detonated underground. Using a boom truck, an Explosives Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team of the military's C...
2/5/2012
Photos, not tags, to identify Oslob whale sharks

        NO physical tags but only photos will be taken of the whale sharks that swim in the waters off Oslob town in south Cebu, said Oslob Mayor Ronald Guaren yesterday. Guaren told Cebu Daily News that copies of nine photos of whale sharks were given to him by Elson Aca, a Filipino whale shark researcher who visited Oslob last year with the TV crew of GMA-7's program “Born to Be Wild.” He said the photos will hel...
2/5/2012
M’daue moves to save century-old trees

        The Mandaue city government is trying to identify and preserve century-old and heritage trees especially in urban areas amid the city's rapid industrialization. “The trees will always complement the city, no matter how big or how progressive the city becomes,” said City Councilor Jimmy Lumapas. Lumapas started the campaign rolling when he sponsored the Century and Heritage Trees Ordinance of 2011, which was...
2/5/2012
Lawyer’s slain wife laid to rest in Carreta

  Son blames Talisay police for not giving escorts earlier     Virginia Sesbreño, wife of lawyer Raul Sesbreño and one of three people killed in Wednesday’s car ambush in Talisay City, was buried in simple rites yesterday at the Carreta Cemetery in Cebu City. Almost 100 relatives and friends of Virginia, 64, attended the funeral at 1 p.m. “Justice must be served for my slain mother,” said Peter, 30, the Sesbreño coup...
2/5/2012
Calamba chief to stop rival from taking post

        CALAMBA barangay captain Victor Quijano yesterday said he would exhaust all legal remedies to stop his political rival Ester Concha from unseating him as the duly elected captain in the last October 2010 elections. Quijano's reaction came after the Municipal Trial Court in cities Branch1 Judge Monalila Tecson declared Concha as the winner in last year's barangay captain race. This was in contrast to last ye...
2/5/2012
Five eco wardens sent to new public market

        MANDAUE City's eco wardens will be assigned to implement and educate vendors of the proper way to segregate garbage at the new Mandaue City Public market. Placido Jerusalem, head of the Mandaue City environmental enforcement team, said he assigned the five eco wardens there after a vendor was caught indiscriminately throwing unsegregated garbage in the new market. The Ecological and Solid Waste Management O...
2/5/2012
NEWS BRIEFS

        STATE OF CALAMITY A declaration of a state of calamity is being recommended after Thursday’s fire in sitio Laray, barangay San Roque, Talisay City. City Councilor Celiapo Cabuenas sponsored the move which will be discussed during Talisay City Council's session on Tuesday. Based on a post-fire report, 14 houses were destroyed and one house was partially burned. A total of 17 families or 96 individuals w...
2/5/2012
Don’t circumvent adoption, couples told

        For a process as delicate as adoption, couples should be prepared. A social worker said that children who end up with foster parents without the legal process of adoption are prone to physical abuse. “This is because parents who don’t go through our process are not trained or briefed well,” said social worker Emma Patalinghug of the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Central Visayas (DSWD-7. T...
2/5/2012
Cebu, C. Visayas forest areas to be divided into zones

        A DE-ZONING of Cebu's protected forest landscape to divide protected zones from production zones will be completed within the year, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Central Visayas (DENR-7) said yesterday. DENR-7 spokesman Eddie Llamedo said they completed the assessment and delineation of boundaries between forestlands, national parks and agricultural lands in Central Visayas early thi...
2/4/2012
NBI STEPS IN

  Police investigate ambush; Sesbreño pushes ahead with demolition in Talisay; neighbors fear trouble     More heads are better than one. The National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) has stepped in to conduct its own probe into the ambush-slay of lawyer Raul Sesbreño’s wife and two companions in Talisay City. At Sesbreño’s request, the agency will make a “parallel investigation” alongside the police...
2/4/2012
Talisay lot occupant gets court reprieve on demolition of house

        AN occupant of one of the lots claimed by lawyer Raul Sesbreño got a court reprieve yesterday. Regional Trial Court Judge Gilbert Moises of Branch 18 ordered the suspension of the demolition of the house of Jordan Aznar in barangay Lawaan, Talisay City. The judge has yet to resolve the pleading filed by settlers who want him to set aside the writ of demolition issued against them. Sesbreño's wife and two c...
2/4/2012
Demolition to resume Monday Why settlers don’t like Sesbreño

        The demolition of settlers’ houses will resume on Monday in barangay Lawaan II, Talisay City, amid tension over Wednesday’s killing of three persons closely related to lawyer Raul Sesbreño. “Mosukol jud mi. Kami baya ang tag-iya,” said Peter Sesbreño, youngest son of lawyer Raul Sesbreño. (We will fight for it because we are the owners of the land) “Di nalang sila mosukol. Sundon nalang nila.” (The resident...
2/4/2012
Woman accused of killing elderly partner

        HE was advised by his children to leave her, but 79-year-old farmer Abundio Hernandez woudn’t ’t let her go. Instead of living happily ever after, Hernandez, a widow, was found dead near his home in sitio Walug, barangay Poblacion in Badian town at past 6 a.m. yesterday. His 29-year-old live-in partner Lydia Yunting was arrested by Badian police as she walked along a road leading to neighboring Alegria town...
2/4/2012
Detonation of 29 vintage bombs set today in Toledo City open mining pit

        THE detonation of 28 World War II bombs and one 1,000-pound bomb excavated at the Asiatown IT Park in barangay Lahug, Cebu City, back in 2010 will be held today in an open mining pit in Toledo City. The military's Central Command (Centcom) said it already received clearance from Camp Aguinaldo to use 125 units of C4 to detonate the bombs, which will be set off in three holes each measuring six feet deep. C...
2/4/2012
Demolition team goes after ambulant vendors in Centro

        Mandaue City's demolition team yesterday started clearing sidewalks of ambulant vendors and makeshift stalls in barangay Centro near the old market. The cleanup is part of preparations for the city's “My Mandaue Program,” which aims to make the city center a showcase of culture, history and heritage. The program will be launched next week with barangays Centro and Mantuyong as pilot areas. Lawyer Jamaal Ca...
2/4/2012
‘Delays in tax mapping to affect revenue targets’

        THE Cebu city government may not be able to meet its revenue projections this year due to delays in tax mapping activities, said City Assessor Eustaquio Cesa. His office needs to hire 90 job-order employees, mostly engineering and geodetic graduates to help in the tax mapping. Hiring these employees as well as training and acquisition of vehicles and equipment for their office would required a budget of P25...
2/4/2012
SPEED takes down portion of resto bar extending on sidewalk

        THE Cebu City demolition team demolished part of a resto bar that intruded on a government lot. But Alejandro Yap, owner of Alejandro’s Filipino Resto, said he was surprised with the action of personnel of the Cebu City Squatters Prevention, Elimination and Encroachment Division (SPEED) yesterday, who failed to show a court order for the demolition. Lawyer Glen Villariza, counsel of Yap, said his client was...
2/4/2012
NBI asked to probe Sinulog fund burglary

        THE lawyer of security guard Joselyndo Jabagat requested the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) to investigate the Sinulog Foundation Inc.’s P1.6-million fund burglary. Lawyer Gloria Lastimosa-Dalawampu said she already forwarded to the NBI-7 the findings of the Cebu City Prosecutor's Office, which dismissed the complaint filed against Jabagat. Police earlier filed a complaint for q...
2/4/2012
New chief for M’daue college sought

        The Mandaue city government is looking for a permanent administrator for the Mandaue City College to replace acting administrator Dr. Susana Cabahug. The Civil Service Commission (CSC) denied the motion for reconsideration filed by the Mandaue city government for Cabahug to stay as the administrator of the city-owned college. With the decision handed down on Jan. 17, CSC-7 Regional Director Judith Chicano s...
2/4/2012
Billiards hall, net cafe closed in Lapu

        FOR accomodating students during school hours, an Internet cafe and a billiard hall were closed down by the City’s Advocacy for Responsible Enterprise (CARE) of Lapu-lapu City yesterday morning. It was also found that both establishments do not have business permits. Students were caught playing in the billiards hall owned by Julian Misa Jr. in barangay Bankal, Lapu-Lapu City. Misa's billiard hall is locat...
2/4/2012
Fire hits sitio Sto. Niño houses near IT Park

        A LATE-night fire hit houses in the interior of sitio Sto. Niño, barangay Banilad, Cebu City. The fire-hit area is situated behind the National Food Authority in Central Visayas office at Gov. Cuenco Avenue, Banilad, Cebu City, and at the back of the I2 building of Asiatown IT Park. However, no building at the IT Park was affected by the fire. Investigators were still determining the cause of the fire and ...
2/3/2012
‘WE KNOW THE MASTERMINDS’

  Lawyer and son link ambush to Talisay lot demolition     Lawyer Raul Sesbreño asked for police security while his youngest son Peter showed up in a bulletproof vest in the wake of Wednesday’s road ambush in Talisay City where the lawyer’s wife and two companions were killed. Father and son said they knew who the “masterminds” are and names of specific suspects. They said the violence definitely stemmed from a demolit...
2/3/2012
Bachelor killed in car ambush

        MARLON Joshua Young was a 31-year-old bachelor, who dreamed of becoming a harbor pilot, getting married and starting his own family. He was driving the Isuzu pickup when a gunman on a motorbike fired at the vehicle, killing all three on board, including the wife of lawyer Raul Sesbreño last Thursday. Police found a .9mm pistol in the car, a weapon believed owned by Young. But he wasn’t able to fire back at ...
2/3/2012
Sesbreño owns 15 percent

        For his “hard work” in a court case over property rights, lawyer Raul Sesbreño was awarded “15 percent” of the Borromeo Estate in Talisay City, according to court records. Since then, he’s fought for the parcels of land that his deceased clients left him as payment for his services. A writ of demolition for about 40 houses on the land was issued by Regional Trial Court Judge Gilbert Moises of Branch 18. St...
2/3/2012
I’ll back Gwen if she runs for Senate in 2013 — Gullas

        REP. Eduardo “Eddie” Gullas (Cebu 1st district) yesterday said he would support Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia if she runs for senator next year. In a press conference, Gullas, who heads the local Alayon party, said he promised not only to support Garcia but also any Cebuano who would run for senator regardless of party affiliation. He’s done the same before for three other Cebuano senatorial candidates from differe...
2/3/2012
Crowbar, bolt cutters ‘unpresented evidence’ of police in Sinulog burglary

        THERE were several pieces of “unpresented evidence” in the theft of P1.6-million in funds of the Sinulog Foundation Inc. (SFI). An iron crowbar, the vault cover with combination lock and two bolt cutters were not yet shown to prosecutors, said Insp. Rolando Pinili, Cebu City Police Office's Theft and Robbery Section chief, on Wednesday. Pinili said these items were submitted to the Crime Scene Investigation...
2/3/2012
‘No coal ash dumping outside assigned areas’

        Coal-fired power plants in the cities of Naga and Toledo are not allowed to dump coal ash outside the court-designated area in barangay Landahan, Toledo City. Neither can they use the Balili property to store their coal ash waste. The decision was made by Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge Marilyn Ligura-Yap of Branch 28 in Mandaue City who denied the motion of power plant owners covered by a Temporary Enviro...
2/3/2012
1,000-lb bomb, 28 vintage bombs ready for disposal

        A 1,000-POUND vintage bomb uncovered in Asiatown IT Park in 2010 will be included in the disposal of the 28 vintage bombs found in Kawit Island once the C4 will be available in Cebu. “Based on the recommendation of Maj. Carlito Lachica (Explosives and Ordnance Division chief), we will include this in the disposal. This will help in detonating the 28 other vintage bombs,” said Lt. Col. Christopher Tampus, Arm...
2/3/2012
DENR investigator faces graft charges

        Graft charges were filed against an investigator of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in Cebu City for allegedly demanding and receiving P8,000. Edwin Atentar, special land investigator of the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO)-DENR, will be facing trial on charges of violating Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. Bail was recommende...
2/3/2012
Sex education harmful to family, says US author

        Sex education can degrade the Filipino family according to an American author. Dr. Judith Reisman in a press conference said that sex education, especially in an academic environment, is harmful and morally degrading. “The human brain is not designed for these kinds of stimuli, perhaps until age 21. Beyond that, it can still cause complications,” she said. Reisman is in the country for a series of lectures...
2/3/2012
NEWS BRIEFS

        CITY INFO OFFICE THE Cebu City Council is calling the city's Information Officer to appear in its regular session on Wednesday to explain suspicions that his office is being used in the black propaganda of Mayor Michael Rama. Councilor Alvin Dizon said that the Public Information Office may no longer be a good source of information if it is true that it is being used by the mayor for his propaganda agains...
2/2/2012
DEATH THREATS END IN AMBUSH

  Lawyer’s wife, 2 companions shot dead in car after Talisay lot demolition     A lawyer’s wife and two companions were shot dead yesterday when their Isuzu pickup stopped for a red light in a junction of the South Coastal Road in Talisay Cebu. Two men on a red motorcycle sprayed bullets on the vehicle at 3:25 p.m. then fled. Police said the real target of the ambush appeared to be lawyer Raul Sesbreño. The Sesbreño ...
2/2/2012
Lot occupants angry over demolitions

        The Talisay lot that the Sesbreños were trying to clear of houses was the land the lawyer took over as payment of litigation fees from the Borromeo family, who owed him P1 million for his services. But residents question the lawyer’s land claim of ownership. They said he couldn’t present documents to support it. Occupants complained of a court-ordered demolition of their houses in Lawaan II, Talisay. The d...
2/2/2012
Tom O gripes Cebu lacks support from Liberal Party

        All is not well in the Liberal Party’s forces in Cebu. Rep. Tomas Osmeña said he hosted Monday’s dinner meeting with LP national president Mar Roxas to discuss “LP’s lack of support for Cebu.” “They have nothing to offer Cebu, especially the province,” he told Cebu Daily News. Osmeña was tight-lipped about reports of a heated disagreement with Roxas during the meeting at Tinderbox in Banilad, Cebu City. “...
2/2/2012
Davide III to run, calls Sonny’s move ‘a minor setback’

        HILARIO “Junjun” Davide III said there’s no turning back in his second gubernatorial bid and that former Sen. John Henry Osmeña’s withdrawal of support was a “very minor setback.” “I am running for governor on 2013 under the Liberal Party. And I’ve asked Mrs. Davide already,” he said in a press conference. Transportation secretary Mar Roxas, who is LP national president, described Davide as the “soon-to be ...
2/2/2012
Policemen bring arrested Legacy exec to Ormoc

        CEBU police brought to Ormoc City a former Legacy group official who was arrested in Tagbilaran City, Bohol, on Monday evening. Alexis Petralba, 46, of Mambaling, Cebu City, was escorted by policemen aboard a fastcraft past 9 a.m. Wednesday for Ormoc City. Petralba was described as the liaison officer and a chief implementor of high-investment schemes designed by Legacy owner Celso de los Angeles. The Ba...
2/2/2012
Young wants age limit for Sinulog dancers

        Cebu City Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young is studying the possibility of proposing an ordinance that will put an age limit on Sinulog dance contest participants. He said he doesn’t want elementary and high school students joining the Sinulog sa Kabataan annual contest anymore because the lengthy dance practices interfere with their academic studies. Young said partticipation in the Sinulog competition for pub...
2/2/2012
Health officer asked how medical supplies are distributed

        THE Cebu City Council asked yesterday Cebu City Health Officer Stella Ygonia to explain how her office disposed of its medicines and other supplies in 2011. The councilors asked for an inventory and report of how these supplies and medicine were distributed. Ygonia was asked to explain the distribution of P3 million worth of OB (obstetrical) kits following complaints from barangay officials on the lack of i...
2/2/2012
Task force formed to dispose of vintage bombs

        A BOMB disposal task force was formed yesterday to properly dispose off the 29 vintage bombs found at the South Road Properties. Senior Supt. Melvin Ramon Buenafe, Cebu City Police Office chief, was made executive officer of the new task force. He said the Police Advisory and Coordinating Council (PCAC) would lead the task force made up of several government agencies. At this stage, members are focused on ...
2/2/2012
Three men face charges for whistle-blower’s death

        Charges of robbery with homicide were filed in court yesterday against three young men for the gruesome killing last September 2011 of drug case whistle-blower Bernard Liu. Rhem Balquin, 18; Bernie Balquin, 21; and Pepo Pateño, 19 were indicted by the Talisay City Prosecutors' Office after witnesses identified them as the perpetrators. No bail was recommended. Only Rhem has been arrested. The two other acc...
2/2/2012
Couple asks DepEd to close school for having no permit

        A COUPLE is asking the Department of Education in Central Visayas (DepEd-7) to close a private school in Lapu-Lapu City for allegedly failing to secure a permit to operate for the current school year. Leslie and Kristine Wolf said they wrote DepEd-7 Regional Director Recaredo Borgonia asking him to close Santo Niño Mactan Montessori School (SNMMS) in sitio Soong 1, barangay Mactan, Lapu-Lapu City, because of...
2/2/2012
‘Probe nat’l execs in Asean lamppost controversy’

        Barangay captains in Lapu-Lapu City are asking the Office of the Visayas Ombudsman to investigate national officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways who may be involved in the 2007 Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit lamppost controversy. The Association of Barangay Councils (ABC) of Lapu-Lapu City in a resolution last Jan. 24 called on the anti-graft office to pursue, conduc...
2/1/2012
FREE AT LAST

    Guard comes home from jail Back to square one for police probers Fiscal asks: Did real thief know vault’s combination?     With theft charges against him dropped, security guard Joselyndo Jabagat went home to a quiet celebration. He spent his first day out of jail with his family in barangay Carreta, Cebu City. He and 28-year-old wife Marilyn went straight to the Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño on Monday afte...
2/1/2012
Guard quits job I’ve had enough

        JOSELYNDO Jabagat was relaxing at home with his wife and two daughters yesterday when Cebu Daily News visited his rented house in barangay Carreta, an urban poor neighborhood. His daughters, Jiah Mae, 8, and Jomelyn, 4, embraced and kissed their father with delight. Jiah Mae, a grade 2 pupil, said she was absent from school because she was excited to be with her father. Wife Marilyn recalled how she almost...
2/1/2012
Roxas backs Davide for gov Sonny O wants another bet

        While he was being introduced as the Liberal Party’s (LP) candidate for the Cebu governorship, Hilario “Junjun” Davide III didn’t have support from an old guard of the Osmeña clan. During yesterday’s assembly of Provincial Board (PB) members, Transportation and Communications Secretary Mar Roxas who is the party’s national president introduced Davide as “the soon-to-be governor of Cebu.” In a separate pres...
2/1/2012
‘Impeach trial to restore impartial judiciary’

        AN impartial and stable judicial system will create confidence among investors in the country, Transportation and Communications Secretary Mar Roxas told an assembly of local legislators yesterday. Speaking before a gathering of Provincial Board (PB) members from various parts of the country, Roxas said the ongoing impeachment trial on Chief Justice Renato Corona is part of the Aquino administration's pursui...
2/1/2012
Rebel detainee in miltary stockade

        Suspected rebel leader Ramon Patriarca was finally moved to a stockade in the military’s Central Command (Centcom) in Lapu-Lapu City yesterday morning. Before the transfer, Patriarca underwent a medical examination where his blood sugar level was found to be low, possibly the effect of a hunger strike he started to protest his surprise transfer last week from the Danao city jail. Patriarca, who is facing r...
2/1/2012
‘Fishermen brought vintage bombs to SRP site’

        Last Jan. 23, laborers working on a beach resort were shocked to find close to 30 vintage bombs in the former Kawit Island at the South Road Properties (SRP). So how did those bombs end up in the SRP? A Cebuano painter, who asked not to be named, said the bombs were brought by fishermen from barangay Carreta to the SRP. The painter, a resident in Cebu City, said it was their late parents who told them abou...
2/1/2012
Security beefed up in Danao Comelec office

        Extra guards were posted yesterday at the partly burned election office in Danao City a day after a mysterious fire broke out at dawn. Comelec Provincial Supervisor Lionel Marco Castillano said work will continue in the verification of signatures of voters for the recall petition filed against Danao Mayor Ramon “Boy” Durano Jr. He asked for more security personnel from Sr. Supt. Patrocinio Comendador Jr., p...
2/1/2012
NEWS BRIEFS

          REVIEW SOUGHT ON MCWD LOAN CEBU City Councilor Alvin Dizon asked the council's energy and utilities committee to review a multimillion-dollar transaction between the Metro Cebu Water District (MCWD) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Dizon said he wants the utilities committee to make recommendations on the proposed deal. Dizon said his call for review is in support of "the appeal by various ...
1/31/2012
BELLA’S SMILE LINGERS

      The witness said he remembered her smile. “I saw her,” said tricycle driver Nemensio Sedenio in Cebuano. “Our eyes met. I smiled at her and she smiled back.” Sedenio yesterday testified in court that he saw the accused Bella Ruby Santos with a foreign male in a blue Pajero parked outside the elementary school in Minglanilla town on the afternoon 6-year-old Ellah Joy Pique was kidnapped a year ago. Then he pointe...
1/31/2012
Kenyan meted life term for transporting shabu

      Kenyan national Asha Atieno Ogutu collapsed in tears yesterday when her verdict was read in court. The mother of two was sentenced to life imprisonment for transporting three kilos of shabu found in her luggage upon arrival at the Mactan Cebu International Airport last Sept. 29, 2011. She was also ordered to pay P3 million. Ogutu fell into the arms of security escorts after the verdict of Judge Toribio Quiwag of ...
1/31/2012
Rallos family wants SRP lot auction

    THE Rallos family called on the Cebu city government anew to settle the P133 million they said was owed to them for a family lot in barangay Sambag II that was expropriated for a road in 1963. “We are very happy. Everything that the city did in order not to pay us was denied by court,” said Roy Rallos in response to a Jan. 26 ruling by Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge James Himalaloan. The judge denied the city’s motion fo...
1/31/2012
Fire eats equipment, voters list in Danao

      A FIRE broke out at the Commission On Elections (Comelec) office in barangay Poblacion, Danao City, at 4 a.m. yesterday, destroying some furniture and a computer list of newly registered voters. The fire occurred just as local poll officials were about to start the verification of signatures of the recall petition against Mayor Ramon “Boy” Durano Jr. this week. But election officials said the data loss was tempora...
1/31/2012
Centcom opposes proposal to preserve vintage bombs

      The military rejected a request to display in Fort San Pedro two of the 25 recently discovered World War II bombs for public viewing. Lt. Col. Christopher Tampus, spokesman of the Central Command, said displaying the bombs was too risky. He said their immediate goal is to detonate and dispose of all bombs. He cited as an example the accidental explosion in Taugig, Metro Manila that killed some policemen who trie...
1/31/2012
Security guard cleared in Sinulog robbery case

    A 40-year-old security guard was cleared yesterday of theft charges in the loss of P1.6 million in Sinulog Foundation funds . Asst. City Prosecutor Gandhi Truya said the charges were “mere insinuations and suspicions” and that the guard's perceived negligence during the burglary couldn't be used as evidence of theft. “Other people had access to the administrative office or to the vault itself at the time. Hence, the case a...
1/31/2012
Gwen admits plans for 2013, visits outside Cebu

    CEBU Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia admitted that she discussed her election plans for 2013 with six Cebuano legislators last week. In a press conference yesterday, she said she values the “wise counsel” of the Cebuano congressmen and that they are aware of her options for 2013. These options include running for vice governor, Congress, the Senate or a return to private life. “As president of One Cebu party, my decision would re...
1/31/2012
300 GIs in Cebu for rest, recreation

    Around 300 US Navy personnel from the US warship anchored off the seawaters of Talisay City will be in Cebu for some rest and recreation. Lt. Col. Christopher Tampus, Armed Forces of the Philippines Central Command (Centcom) spokesman, reiterated earlier assurances of Naval Forces Central Visayas (Navfocen) that the USS Chafee (DDG-90) was only here for a routine ship replenishment and refueling. Tampus also said that the ...
1/30/2012
STILL NO BREAK

  Court denies Cebu City bid to drop P133 M Rallos payment     Even with a convenio or an old compromise agreement, Cebu City still couldn’t secure a favorable ruling in its lot dispute case with the Rallos heirs. In a ruling dated last Jan. 26, Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge James Himalaloan said he found “no meritorious ground” to rescind the ruling mandating the city to pay P133 million to the Rallos family for th...
1/30/2012
Two vintage bombs sought for display in Fort San Pedro

    The Fort San Pedro in Cebu City already has a World War II cannon, so why not two World War II vintage bombs? Philip Zafra, chief of staff of Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, said a group of WW II veterans and others have texted him to express their support to have two of the 24 vintage bombs on display at the Fort's grounds. They said it would be nice if the bombs were displayed beside a World War II cannon that stands at t...
1/30/2012
US warship docks in Cebu for refueling, R and R

    A US Navy warship is in Cebu for routine ship replenishment and refueling, the Naval Forces Central (Navforcen) confirmed yesterday. The USS Chafee (DDG-90) arrived in Cebu last Saturday and is currently docked near the seas of Talisay City. Navforcen spokesman Joseph Ison told Cebu Daily News that the warship will be in Cebu until February 1. Aside from replenishment and refueling, Ison said the ship will also conduc...
1/30/2012
Estafa raps against lawyer for fake annulment papers

    Charges of estafa were filed in court against a Cebuano lawyer accused of preparing a bogus court decision for an annulment of marriage. The Cebu City Prosecutors' Office said it found probable cause to indict lawyer Luis Diores Jr. based on the complaint filed by the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7). Bail was recommended at P24,000. In his resolution, Asst. City Prosecutor Rodulf Joseph Val Car...
1/30/2012
Court to decide on Kenyan’s fate today

    THREE months after she underwent trial, the fate of the Kenyan national caught with three kilos of shabu in her baggage at the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) will be known today. Regional Trial Court Judge Toribio Quiwag of Branch 27 will announce his ruling on Aska Atieno Ogutu at the 2:00 pm. hearing. Ogutu's lawyer Ricardo Amores said believes his client will be cleared by the court. “Our evidence is okay....
1/30/2012
Occupants of 93-1 lots told to verify master list

  OCCUPANTS of the province-owned 93-1 lots in barangays Busay, Capitol Site, Camputhaw and Kalunasan were given until tomorrow to validate the census master list posted in their different barangay halls. The census formed the basis for the socio-economic survey of the 93-1 lot occupants of the Office of the Vice President. Last Jan. 12 Chito Borromeo, consultant to the vice president on housing presented the survey results to the...
1/30/2012
Local legislators to attend Cebu meet

    At least 200 legislators from all over the country are scheduled to arrive in Cebu this afternoon for their regional assembly. The legislators are members of the Provincial Board Members League of the Philippines (PBMLP), which is holding its general assembly with Cebu as its host province. Provincial Board Member Ian Zambo (Cebu 3rd district), who's in charge of the event, told Cebu Daily News that this would be an inter...
1/30/2012
Barili town council asked Probe worker claiming to be mayor’s secretary

      A DEPARTMENT of Public Works and Highways district engineer has asked the town council of Barili town in western Cebu to investigate a job order employee who claimed to be a secretary of Barili Mayor Teresito Marinas. District Engineer James Dellosa wrote Barili Vice Mayor Marlon Garcia requesting for an investigation on Vicente “Bebot” Villarin. In his letter to Garcia, Dellosa said that Villarin called up his as...
1/30/2012
500,000 MT of rice to be bid out – NFA

    MANILA — The government will hold a bidding next month for 500,000 metric tons of rice, its total import of the grain for 2012, according to Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala. Alcala told reporters the National Food Authority (NFA) will hold a tender for farmers' cooperatives and traders interested in buying rice overseas via the grains agency. Unlike past years, the country will not exercise its privilege to buy ric...
1/30/2012
Photojournalists’ entry bags video docu awards

    Photo journalists, Aldo Nelbert Banaynal and Reynan Villena of The Freeman, swept the five major awards in the Sinulog 2012 video documentary category. Their entry entitled, “f-Stops”, which depicts the life of photojournalists working at field, earned them trophies and cash. The Best Picture cash prize is P50,000. Banaynal said he was inspired to make the documentary after he witnessed a fire in barangay Carreta in Ceb...
1/30/2012
Girl, 15, is nat’l Sudoku champ

  MANILA — Girls ruled the just-concluded 2012 Philippine Sudoku Super Challenge (PSSC) championships, where a total of 6,412 elementary and high school students, as well as some professionals, competed in the sixth edition of the annual contest. Ma. Czarina Angela Lao, a sophomore student of St. Jude Catholic School in Manila, is the country's new Sudoku champion. Lao, 15, and a mainstay of the national Mathematics team, topped th...
1/29/2012
‘I’LL FINISH IT’

  88-year-old Enrile confident about steering impeachment trial     As as one of the longest-serving public officials in the country, 88-year-old Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile said he was confident of steering the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona to its conclusion. “It’s not difficult for me (to preside). It is not unfamiliar to me,” said the lawyer who was in Cebu yesterday for a leadership lectu...
1/29/2012
‘Senators should beware of election impact’

        REP. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district said the impeachment trial could be a public barometer for the senators. “It is the people who will judge. If Corona is guilty and is acquitted due to technicalities, some senators will lose in the election,” he said. Even President Benigno Aquino III should be careful, he said. “Because the president has a high popularity rate, he can do whatever it is that ...
1/29/2012
More C-4 needed to blow up vintage bombs in Toledo pit

        Can the military spare more C4? A rush request was made to the military for more C4 explosives after only one of 25 World War II bombs was successfully detonated yesterday morning. A limited amount of the plastic explosive was used for testing in the abandoned Biga mining pit in Toledo City past 11 a.m. Cebu City officials were forced to make a sudden change of plans after finding out that a “booster” cha...
1/29/2012
More investors eyeing Mactan int’l airport site

        FOUR more investors expressed interest in the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) property after SM magnate Henry Sy proposed to acquire the 300-hectare lot. Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district said businessman Manny Pangilinan of PLDT, Filinvest, Ayala, and Gokongwei reiterated their interest in the airport property. “If they are really interested, they will have to challenge the proposal...
1/29/2012
‘Look into overpriced truck parts, not just budget cuts’

        Before complaining about getting a “small” budget, first address the “overpricing” of spare parts of Cebu City garbage trucks. This was Councilor Ritchie Osmeña's advice yesterday to Dionisio Gualiza, Department of Public Services head. Osmeña said an owner of a vehicle parts supply store was his source for saying garbage truck parts were overpriced. He refused to give more details and instead urged Guali...
1/29/2012
Rebel detainee’s brod not allowed to enter CPDRC

        THE brother of a rebel detainee was prevented yesterday from visiting him in the Cebu provincial jail for lack of a permit from the governor’s office. The restriction was denounced by family and colleagues of detainee Ramon Patriarca as a violation of his visitation rights. Patriarca’s brother, Jesus, a retired policeman, tried to see his sibling in the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (C...
1/29/2012
Cebu City trucks will continue to use M’daue streets — official

        PENDING the repair of the Talamban–Pit-os Road, trucks from Cebu City have no choice but to pass Mandaue City roads in transporting garbage to a private landfill in Pulog in Consolacion town, said an official. From Banilad, trucks have to pass part of the Talamban road in the north before turning to the road in barangay Canduman in Mandaue City on their way to Consolacion. To avoid being apprehended for vio...
1/29/2012
New cyberlab to go full blast in Feb.

        Law enforcers in Central Visayas will get a boost in their fight against cybercrimes when the new digital forensics laboratory of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Central Visayas (CIDG-7) will become fully operational next month. Senior Supt. Jose Pante, CIDG-7 Chief, said the laboratory wasn't the first of its kind in the country but it would be a big help to law enforcement agencies especi...
1/29/2012
‘No to coal ash dumping in Balili lot’

        AN ENVIRONMENTALISTS’ group yesterday reiterated its opposition on coal ash dumping at the Balili beach property in Naga City, south Cebu. Mark Dia, country representative of Greenpeace Philippines, said coal-ash endangers the environment and the people. “Coal ash is a highly toxic material. That is a given. No one would refute that,” Dia said. He requested the Cebu provincial government, which owns the ...
1/29/2012
Free civil registry services in Feb.

        THE Cebu City Civil Registry Office is extending free services to city residents during the month of February as part of their celebration of the Civil Registration Month mandated by presidential proclamation no. 682 signed by the late president Corazon Aquino. Councilor Leah Japson said in a resolution which the council approved during their Jan. 25 session, the free service would include the late birth reg...
1/28/2012
WHO’S NEXT?

  Gwen, 6 congressmen mum about dinner talk and 2013 candidate for governor, vice gov     Six of Cebu province's congressmen sat down for a private dinner with Gov. Gwen Garcia to discuss, among other things, the state of their alliance. “We talked about a lot of things, but we agreed on the most important thing—that we are still here,” said Cebu 3rd District Rep. Pablo John Garcia, the governor's brother. “We've alw...
1/28/2012
Dry run detonation made for World War II bombs

        A dry run was done yesterday for the detonation of World War II vintage bombs found in Kawit Island. A booster charge was exploded at an abandoned mining pit in Toledo City where 25 war vintage bombs will be blasted and buried today. “The booster didn’t make a hole in a one-inch-thick steel plate but the military said it would suffice,” said Philip Zafra, chief of staff of Cebu CIty Mayor Michael Rama. Lt....
1/28/2012
Lawyers, judges mixed on new court rules

        CEBU-BASED trial lawyers, judges and lawmakers were mixed yesterday in their reception of the proposed changes in the conduct of court trials made by the Supreme Court. The changes will be implemented in Cebu, reportedly one of the pilot areas for the new court rules. Lawyer Gloria Lastimosa-Dalawampu said justice should not be compromised to expedite the resolution of cases. “A short trial period is most...
1/28/2012
Tom wants new faces for BO-PK’s 2013 lineup

      Next year's lineup for the Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan (BO-PK) in Cebu City will have new faces, said Rep. Tomas Osmeña of the city’s south district yesterday. In confirming his run against Mayor Michael Rama, Osmeña said he wants to ensure victory for his candidates. He said the new lineup will replace third term councilors like Jose Daluz and Edgar Labella. “I am actually doing this for the slate. I don't need...
1/28/2012
Cordova ro-ro port to open in June, says Mayor Sitoy

        At noon today, Cordova town officials will sail to Getafe, Bohol and back to Cordova to signal that its new roll-on roll-off (ro-ro) port is ready to serve the public soon. But the port is not yet fully operational as it still lacks support services like terminals for passengers and cargoes. Mayor Adelino Sitoy said they target to start serving the public by June with VG Shipping. The ro-ro port in sitio C...
1/28/2012
Radaza cleared of poll charges

        THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) cleared Lapu-Lapu City Rep. Arturo Radaza of election offenses he allegedly committed during the 2010 elections. In return, the poll body will conduct a preliminary probe on the one who complained. The en banc resolution dated January 4 cited “technicality” as among the factors that led to the dismissal of the case filed by former Interior and Local Government undersecre...
1/28/2012
Capitol’s tresspassing raps against 3 activists junked

        A TRIAL court yesterday cleared three activists who were accused of unlawfully entering the Balili beach property in Naga City, southern Cebu. Judge Gerardo Gestopa Jr. of the Municipal Trial Court in Cities in Naga City found no sufficient evidence against Greenpeace activists Norineal Tolibas and Christine Garnace, and private individual Amalie Obusan. Tolibas, Garnace and Obusan were earlier charged with...
1/28/2012
Guard told Answer raps on Monday

        The security guard who was charged with qualified theft for the loss of over P1.6 million from the office vault of the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC) asked for more time to answer the allegations against him. Joselyndo Jabagat has yet to finish his counter-affidavit refuting the accusations hurled against him. Assistant City Prosecutor Gandhi Truya gave Jabagat until Monday to submit his answer. In an inte...
1/28/2012
Mandaue traders want truck ban moved to 6 p.m

        Mandaue City's business community voiced complaints over the two-month truck ban imposed by the city government that started last Monday. Eric Mendoza, president of the Mandaue City Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCCI), said business owners told him that the 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. truck ban may cause problems for their cargo trucks coming from outside the city. He said their trucks may be caught by the heavy ...
1/28/2012
NEWS BRIEFS

        COOP FOR TRIKE DRIVERS PUSHED MANDAUE City Hall wants the city's tricycle operators and drivers to form their own cooperative so they can immediately pursue an alternative livelihood. Mayor Jonas Cortes said it is high time for tricycle operators and drivers to drive their own jeepneys and multicabs in order to hasten the phasing out of tricycle units in the city. He said while the phaseout isn't immedia...
1/27/2012
SPEEDY TRIALS

  Cebu is pilot area for new court rules     Cebu will be a pilot area for new court rules that aim to reduce lengthy trials to as short as two days, instead of three to five years or longer. Associate Justice Roberto Abad of the Supreme Court was in Cebu City yesterday to discuss the proposed changes with judges and lawyers. The Supreme Court (SC) recently released its New Rules of Procedure for Civil and Criminal Ca...
1/27/2012
Kawit bombs to be exploded in Toledo’s Biga Pit — city exec

        An old mining pit in Toledo City in midwest Cebu may be the “perfect” place to detonate and bury 25 war vintage bombs recovered from Kawit Island in Cebu City. Permission to use the Biga Pit in the compound of the Carmen Copper Corp. was secured and a tentative schedule was set for Saturday. Supt. Arnel Banzon, deputy for operations of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO), said they only have to dig holes in ...
1/27/2012
Flyover work still awaits DPWH chief’s approval

        IT’S up to Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson whether the government will proceed to build flyovers in Cebu City. Asst. Regional Director Juby Cordon of the Department of Public Works and Highways in Central Visayas (DPWH-7) said there was no definite timeframe for the projects and that the final decision rests with Singson, who issued a November 2011 suspension on all flyover construction. Cordon deni...
1/27/2012
How bombs will be transported, blown up

      ON SATURDAY, the WWII bombs will be loaded on four trucks of Dakay Construction to be transported to Toledo City. Each truck will have at least three inches of sand to secure the position of the bombs during the more than hour-long ride. The bombs will be covered with soil deep in the ground before the fuse of a booster explosive is lighted. One bomb will be exploded first as a test to check the impact of the expl...
1/27/2012
Mayor in India to observe BRT system

        MAYOR Michael Rama is in India today to attend the Cities Development Initiative for Asia (CDIA), a program aimed to provide assistance to medium-sized Asian cities in terms of development plans and infrastructure investments. City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete said Rama was invited to attend the CDIA because of the planned Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) System project of the Department of Transportation of Co...
1/27/2012
‘Don’t move brgy polls, check execs’ term limit’

        Local officials expressed different opinions on the proposal to postpone the synchronized Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) and barangay elections from 2013 to 2014. Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes said that instead of amending the law providing for the holding of the SK and barangay elections in October 2013, lawmakers should look into the three-year term limit of government officials. He said three years are not ...
1/27/2012
Rebel detainee moved to CPDRC

        RAMON Patriarca, who is facing rebellion charges, will stay in the isolation cell of the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) until Monday. This will give time for the military to find a suitable stockade for him. Capitol consultant on security Cesar Veloso said Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia gave the go signal to temporarily keep Patriarca at the provincial jail after the Central Command said...
1/27/2012
Man, 2 pals acquitted of drug charges

        A MAN, whom police tagged as a drug pusher, and two of his companions were acquitted yesterday of drug charges after the police mishandled the physical evidence by failing to make an inventory or taking photos. Regional Trial Court Judge Samuel Malazarte of Branch 15 cleared Roberto Hegremosa, Bimbo Yap and Moses Reyes of the charge of violation of Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act ...
1/27/2012
NEWS BRIEFS

      GARBAGE CRISIS CEBU City may face a garbage crisis if the Department of Public Services (DPS) does not get additional funds. This is because the city council only approved P199.7 million of the department's proposed P321.7-million budget for 2012. Engineer Dionisio Gualiza, DPS head, said the slashing of their budget would mean that they could not push through with the plan to purchase 20 six-wheeler garbage tru...
1/26/2012
OFF TO BALAMBAN

  But Centcom still waiting on City Hall to allocate budget for bomb disposal     The detonation and disposal of 23 World War II vintage bombs that were unearthed from Kawit Island in the South Road Properties (SRP) may take a little while longer. This after the military's Central Command said they reconsidered detonating and disposing of the bombs in a hilly portion of barangay Pwente, Carmen town, in northern Cebu af...
1/26/2012
Court affirms measure on Mandaue PUJ ban

        Mandaue City-based passenger jeepneys passing by Osmeña Boulevard will have something to worry about. This after a court upheld a Cebu City ordinance regulating the unloading and loading of passengers in designated terminals. Judge Ramon Daomilas Jr. of the Regional Trial Court Branch 11 upheld the Cebu City government’s position limiting the entry of Mandaue and Talisay City passenger jeepneys in designate...
1/26/2012
More jewelry, papers in Umapad dumpsite, police say

        OTHER jewelry pieces that reportedly belonged to a Chinese businessman may still be found in the Umapad dumpsite, scavengers told Mandaue City police yesterday. Scavengers Rodrigo Corta and Antonio Cuizon made the admission to Chief Insp. Anthony Bastes, chief of the Investigation and Detection Management Branch (IDMB) of the Mandaue City police. Bastes said Corta told them that a backhoe dug out the blue s...
1/26/2012
Worker grilled on foiled Lahug pawnshop robbery

        A WORKER of a Balamban town-based company was invited for questioning by the Cebu City police in relation to the botched robbery attempt of a pawnshop in barangay Lahug, Cebu City, last week. The 40-year-old employee identified only as a certain “Baby” Toring denied involvement in the failed robbery of the Gemmary Pawnshop in Lahug. He said he was at home in barangay Buanoy, Balamban town when the incident...
1/26/2012
Anti-discrimination measure gains wide sectoral support

        An anti-discrimination ordinance being deliberated by the Cebu City Council secured support from various sectors yesterday. Eight speakers from the academe, the lesbian, gays, bisexuals and trans-gender (LGBT) community and the differently-abled groups spoke out on the ordinance in yesterday’s Cebu City Council morning session. They said the ordinance will help ensure equal treatment and respect for their r...
1/26/2012
Six Lapu Internet cafes closed for three months for violating ordinance

        AT least six Internet cafes in Lapu-Lapu City were closed down for three months for violating a city ordinance that regulates the admission of students during schooldays. Rolando Duero, secretary to the mayor, said the Internet cafes had their business licenses suspended for three months after allowing students inside their premises during class hours. The ordinance bars students from being inside Internet ...
1/26/2012
Polygraph tests to be sent to fiscals

        RESULTS of the polygraph or lie detector tests done on the security guards, maintenance personnel and staffers and officials of the Sinulog Foundation Inc. will be sent directly to the Cebu City Prosecutor's Office. Senior Supt. Meolvin Ramon Buenafe, Cebu City police chief, said since the case has been forwarded to that office, they will transmit the test results there and not disclose it to local media. A...
1/26/2012
DENR supports pruning of Carcar heritage trees

    Environment officials recommended the trimming and pruning of the heritage trees along Carcar road whose wide branches form a green canopy for the travellers down south. But the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Central Visayas (DENR-7) is still waiting for clearance from their Central Office before taking actions on the heritage trees. “We only recommended for the pruning and trimming of the heritage tree...
1/26/2012
Tomas confirms run against Rama

        MORE than a year away from the next elections, Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district listed names in his lineup and reiterated that he will run against Mayor Michael Rama. "I’m going to win the election anyway, I think, so I will be running for mayor," Osmeña said. He also said that most likely, Vice Mayor Augustus Young will be his running mate and the complete slate of the Bando-Osmeña-Pundok K...
1/26/2012
NEWS BRIEFS

        More Health Workers In Hinterlands Over a hundred health workers will be hired by the Cebu city government to expand its delivery of health services to the hinterland sitios. Cebu City Health Officer Stella Ygonia said the city will hire 119 health workers to beef up their 381 health personnel. They will be receiving P4,000 honorarium per month. "The city council has already approved the hiring of additi...
1/26/2012
Filinvest assures projects to go on

        THE discovery of 23 World War II vintage bombs in Kawit Island, South Road Properties (SRP), won’t affect ongoing projects by developer Filinvest Land Inc. there, a company official said yesterday. In a text message sent to Cebu Daily News yesterday, Filinvest Land Inc. vice president Tristan Las Marias said their projects in the SRP, including a white-sand beach resort in Kawit Island, will go on as schedul...
1/25/2012
23 BOMBS

  Carmen town eyed as site to detonate WWII vintage bombs     Military and police authorities will inspect Carmen town in north Cebu today as a possible site to detonate not just ten but at least 23 World War II bombs recently dug up in reclaimed land in Cebu City. Finding a vacant area large and deep enough for the explosion and far away from inhabitants is key. “The area should be minimum of 300 radius diameter and ...
1/25/2012
Girl killed, sister burned in fire 7 houses razed

        A 1-year-old girl was killed while her 3-year-old sister suffered burns after a fire broke out in their house in Cabancalan 1, barangay Bulacao, Cebu City, shortly before 6 p.m. It was the second of two fires to hit the city yesterday. Cebu City Fire Marshal Senior Supt. Aderson Comar identified the fatality as Jamaica Jintapan, who was left at home with her elder sister. Their parents Albert and Elinita...
1/25/2012
Magpale LP-Bakud talks are ongoing

        ANY alliance between the Cebu chapter of the Liberal Party and her party will be subject to negotiation, Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale said yesterday. Magpale said she thought Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district was just be kidding when he said he wanted her to join the LP. “The good congressman (Tomas) also knows that my party and his party are in talking terms ... As he said, I am here as prox...
1/25/2012
Prove money was stolen, Sinulog officials told

        THERE was no evidence that money was stolen from the vault of the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC) during the Sinulog, said the lawyer of the security guard accused of taking P1.6 million. So said Gloria Lastimosa-Dalawampu, counsel of security guard Joselyndo Jabagat who was accused of stealing cash and a camera from the vault of the CCSC administration office two Sundays ago. Meanwhile, Sinulog Foundation w...
1/25/2012
Two club dancers get life for human trafficking

        A trial court yesterday convicted two female club dancers who recruited six girls, a boy, and a woman for sexual exploitation in Cebu City. Dhayme “Nikki” Jamuad and Jillian “Candy” Ferrer were found guilty of violating Republic Act 9208 or the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003 and were each meted a penalty of life imprisonment. P2 million Each of them were also mandated to pay P2 million by the cour...
1/25/2012
30-minute limit proposed for whale shark watching

        A 1 p.m. curfew and a 30-minute time limit on whale shark watching in Oslob town, Cebu, are among several guidelines proposed by a technical working group (TWG) led by the Provincial Capitol. The time limit will prevent stressing the marine animals, who have been getting intense public attention from tourists and local visitors since August last year. The group headed by Provincial Board (PB) member Peter J...
1/25/2012
DPWH asked Enforce flyover suspension

        ANTI-FLYOVER groups called on the Department of Public Works and Highways in Central Visayas (DPWH-7) to require the proponents of Cebu City's flyover projects to meet requirements set by their national office last year. “It seems that DPWH-7 continues to be convinced that the valid objections of stakeholders who have openly objected to the proposed flyovers do not matter,” said Joel Lee, a convenor of the M...
1/25/2012
Mayor sued to stop street demolition

        A CIVIL suit was filed against Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama and four other government officials in relation to the proposed restoration of Don Jose Avila Street in uptown Cebu City. The plaintiffs Catherine Figuracion, Alexis Yap, and Stephen Dignos asked the Regional Trial Court to issue a Temporary Restraining Order to stop the demolition of their structures along the sidewalk. They are also seeking payme...
1/25/2012
Cebu City Health laments small P20-M budget this year

        The Cebu City Health Office said it foresees a hard year ahead of them after the City Council only approved P20 million of its proposed P133 million budget for drugs and medicines. Cebu City Health Officer Stella Ygonia said she will prioritize the purchase of drugs and medicines for dengue and diarrhea, two of the highest numbers of cases recorded last year. City Health records show that a total of 4,371 c...
1/25/2012
SK, brgy polls delay backed

        THE Liga ng mga Barangay in Cebu supports the proposal to postpone the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) and barangay election from 2013 to 2014. In a press conference yesterday, Provincial Board (PB) Member Rimobapil Holganza, league president, announced their support to the plan of Rep. Rachel “Cutie” del Mar of Cebu City's north district to postpone the synchronized SK and barangay elections to 2014. Holganza sa...
1/25/2012
Anti-discrimination ordinance in Cebu City public hearing today

        A PUBLIC hearing on a proposed anti-discrimination ordinance will be held by the Cebu City Council in its 9 a.m. session today. The draft ordinance authored by Councilor Alvin Dizon declares as unlawful the refusal to provide access to any public program and services on the basis of gender, disability, sexual orientation, age, ethnicity and religion. Dizon's draft ordinance said this ordinance was needed t...
1/25/2012
Sinanduloy returns to old Cebu

        Defending champion of the Sinulog-based category Tribu Sinanduloy of Tangub, Misamis Occidental, had Cebuano history and faith as its theme for this year's Sinulog Grand Parade. It was a return to what the group is known for, the portrayal of historical Cebu. Props transformed the stage into pre-war downtown Cebu and featured a large ship named SS Corregidor. The group's performance paid tribute to hardworki...
1/24/2012
‘I’M READY TO SERVE’

  Magpale at 70th birthday vows to ‘give my best in whatever position’ It was supposed to be a quiet family gathering. But plans to celebrate her 70th birthday grew into a ballroom crowd of over 150 kinsmen, friends and top Cebu political leaders at the Radisson Blu last Saturday evening. They wished her well and waited for any inkling of her political plans for 2013. By the end of the evening, after tributes from her children ...
1/24/2012
World War II bombs discovered in SRP site

    Workers of a private firm yesterday found 10 World War II vintage bombs during an excavation in the shores of Kawit Island in the South Road Properties (SRP) in Cebu City. A Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) police team accompanied by military personnel arrived at the scene at 2 p.m. and ordered the area sealed off. There’s a risk the unexploded bombs could still go off, said Staff Sgt. Sergio Dominguez of the Central Co...
1/24/2012
Enrile, Pacquiao lined up for UV leadership program

    SENATE President Juan Ponce Enrile. Vice President Jejomar Binay. Even Saranggani Rep. and People’s Champ Manny Pacquiao. They are some of the political heavyweights scheduled to give lectures to 25 to 30 undergraduate students of the University of the Visayas (UV) on how to become future leaders and servants of Cebu province. In a press statement, UV founder and Rep. Eduardo Gullas of Cebu's 1st district said he wants to ...
1/24/2012
Police Torch gang still here in Cebu City

    CEBU City police said the so-called “acetylene cutter” gang that tried to rob a pawnshop in barangay Lahug last Sunday are still around looking for their next target. Chief Insp. Bonifacio Garcianio, chief of the Cebu City police’s Investigation and Detective Management Branch (IDMB) advised banks, pawnshops and money changer outlets to beef up their security. Garciano said the group may belong to the same group of suspect...
1/24/2012
DPWH 7 Cebu city flyovers to be built this year

    A PUBLIC works official in Cebu said the controversial flyovers planned for Cebu City will “definitely” push thorugh within the year. Assistant Regional Director Juby Cordon of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said their office has completed the traffic study which President Aquino ordered for M.J. Cuenco and Gorordo Avenues, where the two flyovers worth P800 million are set to be constructed. Cordon sai...
1/24/2012
Scavengers urged Return Tan’s other jewelry pieces

    The family of businessman Vicente Tan, whose gold class ring was found by scavengers at the Umapad dumpsite, said they discovered they had lost more than what was reported to the police. Inocencio dela Cerna, Tan's lawyer, yesterday appealed to scavengers to return the rest of the jewelry. He assured that the family would not file charges against them and would even given them a cash reward for returning the missing piece...
1/24/2012
‘Extend brgy execs’ term’

    REP. Eduardo Gullas (Cebu 1st district) said he does not object to the proposal of extending the terms of barangay officials to four years. However, he refused to give further comments saying he stil has to read the bill of Rep. Cutie del Mar (Cebu City north district). “I’m sure her rationale would be noble but it could easily be used by other politicians who will use the argument to extend their terms to four years,” he ...
1/24/2012
Regulate use of Plaza Sugbu parking area – City Council

    THE City Council is urging Cebu City government to regulate the use of the the parking area of Plaza Sugbu to leave enough spaces for guests and visiting tourists. Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young said the city should either charge the use of the parking spaces or cordon off the area to prevent unauthorized parking. "There is no one supervising the parking bays in Plaza Sugbu," he said. However, Young said that since Plaz...
1/24/2012
Be resilent, courageous like a dragon, Pinoys told

    The fortitude and perseverance of the water dragon in the Chinese lunar calendar are qualities that should inspire the Catholic faithful in dealing with problems, a Jesuit priest said yesterday. Fr. Edwin Castillo, SJ, led an “inculturated Chinese Mass“ last night at the Sacred Heart Parish church to celebrate the start of a new lunar year. The celebration of the Chinese New Year featured a traditional Chinese dance as th...
1/24/2012
Crips gang members killed in victim’s home

    TWO Crips gang members were shot dead after they entered a neighbor’s house and attacked him with a knife in barangay Marigondon, Lapu-Lapu City, Sunday night. Ceslie Jade Cases, 18, and Denmark Espinosa, 20, of barangay Marigondon were found dead by responding police. Cases was shot in the chest while Espinosa was shot in the head. Both young men were earlier spotted attacking 24-year-old Warren Espinosa, also a Marigon...
1/24/2012
NEWS BRIEFS

    Fire victims want to stay put FIRE victims of sitio San Lorenzo Ruiz, barangay Jagobiao in Mandaue City chose to rebuild their houses instead of staying in vacant cottages and gym of Eversley Child Sanitarium. Manuel Villaflor, barangay Jagobiao secretary, said the barangay captain allowed the victims to rebuild their houses for humanitarian reasons. Villaflor said the victims refused to stay at Eversley for fear that the...
1/23/2012
BOTCHED HEIST

  Burglars dig tunnel, forced to break in after missing target     For two weeks, they dug underground from their place towards a nearby pawnshop and almost nobody noticed, not even their landlord. Yet a so-called “acetylene cutter” gang still fell short of their goal to rob a pawnshop in barangay Lahug, Cebu City, yesterday. Cebu City police found a three-foot- wide hole in the wall of the Gemmary Pawnshop right at ...
1/23/2012
Cargo ships sink off Antique, Catanduanes crews rescued

       Iloilo City— A cargo vessel carrying 35,000 bags of cement sank off the coast of Antique early yesterday morning, hours after another cargo vessel carrying iron sand sank off the waters of Catanduanes province. San Jose, Antique police office reported that the MV Sea Ford sank 200 meters off barangay San Pedro in the capital town of San Jose at 2 a.m yesterday. All 18 crew members were rescued by fishermen a...
1/23/2012
Garbage volume in Sinulog revelry goes down this year

      ABOUT 113 tons of garbage were collected from this year's Sinulog celebration, which is slightly lower than last year's nearly 100 tons of trash. Dionisio Gualiza, of the Department of Public Services said the lower garbage volume meant that the city residents learned to segregate their garbage. This year's garbage volume consisted mostly of plastic like Styrofoam, he said. Gualiza said the volume of garbage was...
1/23/2012
Six families relocated following Buhisan landslide

      ABOUT six families affected by last week's landslide in barangay Buhisan, Cebu City, were permanently evacuated from their homes last Saturday. Alvin Santillana, head of Cebu City's Disaster Risk Reduction Management, said the families are temporarily living in the third floor of their barangay hall in sitio Puti, Buhisan. Santillana said the families will be relocated in either in barangay Tisa or Kiyot. He said ...
1/23/2012
Ecology groups to push Danajon reef protection

    Efforts to preserve and eventually “nurse Danajon reef back to health” should begin “as soon as possible,” a marine conservationist said. Rose Liza Eisma Osorio, executive director of the Coastal Conservation and Education Foundation (CCEF), said about 77 percent of the Danajon reef is already damaged. “Many people are depending on Danajon reef for their livelihood. We want to incorporate livelihood and preservation of the...
1/23/2012
Radaza hits back at trader, Ombud exec

      AFTER nearly a year of being under the radar, former mayor-turned Lapu-Lapu City Rep. Arturo Radaza fired back at his perceived critics for filing a string of graft cases against him. In an interview with local media, Radaza accused businessman Ephraim “Jun” Pelaez and Asst. Deputy Ombudsman Virginia Palanca-Santiago of political harassment by filing the graft charges against him. Radaza's recent outburst stemmed ...
1/23/2012
Geomancers, economists take on the year of the dragon

    Manila — Among the many predictions geomancers dish out during the Chinese Lunar New Year, the most common is that the Year of the Dragon will be a volatile one for businesses and for the economy, in general. One such person is Binondo-based feng shui practitioner Maxima "Maxie" Tiu who believes that 2012 will be a trying time for wealth creation and wealth preservation, notwithstanding the traditional belief that the drag...
1/23/2012
NEWS BRIEFS

      Charges against trafficking suspects HUMAN trafficking charges were filed against five persons accused of recruiting 35 women and eight girls for a karaoke TV bar in Lapu-Lapu City. The complaint was lodged before the Lapu-Lapu Prosecutors' Office last Friday. The special law's confidentiality provisions prohibit the identification of both the victims and the accused in the media. Three alleged pimps, a cashie...
1/22/2012
‘ENSURE SUPPLY FIRST’

  Traders back ADB water project     Higher water rates or no water at all? That’s the question posed by Cebu business leaders to opponents of an Asian Development Bank-led water project that would reportedly result in a $400-million loan to be contracted by the Mactan Cebu Water District (MCWD). In text messages sent to Cebu Daily News, Cebu Business Club president Gordon Alan Joseph and Mandaue Chamber of Commerce ...
1/22/2012
Pray for truth to come out, Vidal asks public

        The Catholic faithful in Cebu were asked to pray for truth to come out of the impeachment proceedings on Chief Justice Renato Corona to ensure the survival of the country's democracy. “We have to pray because this is a delicate matter that affects the three branches of government,” Cebu Archbishop Emeritus Ricardo Cardinal Vidal told reporters yesterday. He said the public should also trust the Senate in “e...
1/22/2012
Ombud restricts info access on cases

        SEEKING updates of cases filed with the Ombudsman became more restrictive thanks to a memorandum issued this month. In a memorandum dated last Jan. 5, Tanodbayan Conchita Carpio-Morales said only parties to a case, their lawyers and their authorized representatives can ask for updates on their cases by filling up the prescribed verification slips. The verification slip contains information to be filed by th...
1/22/2012
Labella wants SC to revoke resolution on SALN

        AMID the ongoing impeachment trial, the Supreme Court was asked to repeal an en banc resolution prohibiting the public disclosure of the statement of assets and liabilities of the judiciary. Cebu City Councilor Edgar Labella said he will present a draft resolution to the council in its session this Wednesday for this purpose. He said the SC's en banc resolution is contrary to public accountability. Labell...
1/22/2012
‘Work for success in Dragon Year’

        Like the Chinese symbol for danger, the color black represents opportunities for success for adventurous spirits in the Year of the Water Dragon, a Cebu-based feng shui hobbyist said recently. Aldric Dalumpines said black is the color of the deepest part of the ocean and this means those who wish to have material and spiritual success must dig deep and work hard to earn it. Black and red are the lucky color...
1/22/2012
City to wait 3 more months for Naga waste facility

        Cebu City will have an option where to dump its garbage when a privately run materials recovery facility in Naga City becomes fully operational in the next three months, said lawyer Jade Ponce, chairman of the city's Solid Waste Management Board (SWMB). Ponce said the Naga City facility was closer to the old Inayawan landfill and had better roads compared to the garbage facility in Pulog, Consolaction town, ...
1/22/2012
‘Tans to go through tough process to recover jewelry’

        THE Tan family will have to pass a tough challenge before they will be able to recover the gold and diamond jewelry found by scavengers in the Umapad dumpsite in Mandaue City. Mandaue City Legal Officer Giovani Tianero said that the police wouldn't just accept a mere affidavit signed by the claimant. Tianero said they should show proof such as receipts or a picture of the claimant wearing the subject items....
1/22/2012
DFA closed Monday

        MANILA—The Department of Foreign Affairs-Office of Consular Affairs (DFA-OCA) will be closed tomorrow, Monday. Malacañang has declared Monday, Chinese New Year, a special nonworking holiday. The DFA-OCA in a statement said it would be closed for passport processing and documents authentication. It will resume passport and consular services on Jan. 24, Tuesday. Meanwhile, although the United Nations expres...
1/22/2012
Teacher chooses to teach, serve scavengers’ children

        It's rare to find a teacher who chose to become a shepherd of education to indigent children and ignore the temptation of moving on to greener pasture. Rosita Aroma, 62, has stayed on as a full-time stay-in teacher of Bethlehem Day Care Center Foundation, Inc. (BDCCFI) for 20 years now. She continues to serve and teach children of scavengers, who are mostly her students, at the nearby Inayawan landfill. Th...
1/22/2012
Placer’s Cuenco waiting for Sinulog Foundation refund

        CHOREOGRAPHER Victor Cuenco would have wanted to pay performers in the Sinulog grand finale immediately after their performance like he would usually do during the last seven years. But “overwhelmed” by media interviews, Cuenco told his performers to instead see him after the Sinulog awarding ceremonies scheduled the next day, to collect their talent fee. “Wala ko mag too nga ma apil di ay sa kawat ang amon...
1/21/2012
GUARD WAS NOT ALONE

  Police looking for ‘cohort’ in robbery of Sinulog office funds     The actions of security guard Joselyndo Jabagat looked suspicious. But police investigators are also looking for a “John Doe,” jargon for an unidentified perpetrator, in the P1.6-million robbery of the Sinulog Foundation funds taken from a locked vault. Tell-tale signs of someone's well-informed and well-planned moves in the burglary in the administr...
1/21/2012
Tan has to wait for 2 weeks Jewelry turned over to mayor

        Two weeks. That's how long the Tan family will have to wait before a decision is made about the gold and diamond jewelry found by scavengers in the Umapad dumpsite in Mandaue City. The jewelry pieces were turned over for safekeeping to Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes yesterday by the Investigation and Detection Management Branch (IDMB) of the Mandaue City police. An hour later, the Tan family's lawyer Inoce...
1/21/2012
MCWD employees union worries that ADB study will hike rates

        THE employees union of the Metro Cebu Water District (MCWD) voiced concern that a proposed project by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) may result in higher water rates for Cebu. The MCWD Employees Union (MEU) held a press conference yesterday to oppose the ADB's Urban Water Supply and Sanitation Project saying that a $400-million loan would be contracted. In response, Armando Paredes, MCWD general manager, ...
1/21/2012
Church gears up for activities of Calungsod’s canonization

        There will be novenas, parish visits and a public information campaign as part of the pre-celebration activities for the upcoming canonization of Blessed Pedro Calungsod. Cebu Archbishop Emeritus Ricardo Cardinal Vidal said the church will focus on preparing the Catholic flock to understand the significance of the event and its impact on their lives. “We need to prepare the people. They need to understand w...
1/21/2012
Mandaue City set to enforce truck ban next Monday

      Next Monday, the Traffic Enforcement Agency of Mandaue (Team) will start implementing the 60-day dry run of a truck ban on all main streets of Mandaue City. The ban will cover trucks, vans, trailers, mixers, tankers and other large vehicles. Vehicles weighing 4,500 kilograms and above are covered except those carrying perishable goods like meat and fruits. The ban is enforced from 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. and from 5 a.m. ...
1/21/2012
Cebu LP celebrates anniversary, strengthens local ties

        THE political pot in Cebu is starting to heat up more than a year before the next elections. During the 66th anniversary of the Liberal Party (LP), local politicians in Cebu gathered and started recruiting new members to strengthen LP's presence in Cebu. Former Cebu City Councilor Hilario “Junjun” Davide III, LP provincial chapter president, called on their members to “strengthen the party in Cebu, and prep...
1/21/2012
Ex-Lapu employee indicted by Ombud

        A FORMER employee of the Lapu-lapu City Engineering Office was found guilty of serious dishonesty and was ordered dismissed from service by the Visayas Ombudsman. Alipio Augusto Jr. is also perpertually disqualified from holding public office. However, since he is no longer in government service, the anti-graft office's order is deemed implement and accordingly reflected in his record of publid service. Th...
1/21/2012
Inayawan landfill ‘reopened’ as garbage transfer station

        THE Cebu city government has once again opened a portion of the Inayawan sanitary landfill. The opened area will be used as a transfer station for garbage coming from the barangays. Jade Ponce, chaiperson of the Solid Waste Management Board (SWMB), said yesterday that the landfill’s service area would be used until after the improvement would be completed of the designated transfer station on a leased lot ou...
1/21/2012
Ecleo still in country —lawyer

        CULT leader Ruben Ecleo Jr. is still in the Philippines. Ecleo's lawyer, Orlando Salatandre, assured Regional Trial Court Judge Solivera Peras of Branch 10 that his client was still in the country. “If he has any intention to leave the country, he should have done it a long time ago,” Salatandre said during yesterday's hearing. He, however, said he didn't know where Ecleo was in the country. He said he co...
1/21/2012
Rama to push for dredging of city’s rivers, creeks

        THE devastation left by Typhoon Sendong in Cagayan de Oro and Iligan City has challenged Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama to pursue the dredging of water bodies in the city. "We have to face the problem of constricted, silted and the loss of water bodies so that we will be spared (from a similar tragedy)," he said. Rama was in Cagayan de Oro and Iligan on Thursday to hand to their elected officials financial a...
1/21/2012
City to build new Carbon Market Unit II

        A new structure will rise anytime this year to replace Carbon Market Unit II which was burned in a fire about 13 years ago. Engineer Joel Reston of the Department of Engineering and Public Works (DEPW) said they are about to complete the program of works for the project's pile driving or foundation which is estimated at P65 million. Once completed, the work would be bid out to a contractor. Reston said t...
1/21/2012
‘Hubo shows Sto. Niño’s humility’

      The traditional Hubo is the Señor Sto. Niño's message of humility to the Cebuanos. The ceremony, which marks the end of the Sinulog festivities, was held yesterday dawn in the Pilgrim Center of the centuries-old Basilica del Sto. Niño. More than 5,000 devotees gathered to witness the undressing of the image from his royal wardrobe to his ordinary garb that he will be wearing for the rest of the year. “Jesus Christ...
1/21/2012
Fire hits Pier 1

        A FIRE broke out in a restaurant at the Park Mall in the North Reclamation Area, Mandaue City, that drove out nearly a hundred customers outside in a panic at past 7 p.m. yesterday. Mandaue City Fire Marshall Rogelio Bongabong said the fire originated in the exhaust panel of the Pier One Bar and Grill's frying area. He said the oil deposits that accumulated in the exhaust panel may have ignited the fire fr...
1/20/2012
RING OWNER IT’S MINE

  Police trace jewelry to 83-year-old businessman     The jewelry pieces found by scavengers in the Umapad dumpsite in Mandaue City appear to be owned by a well-to-do elderly Chinese-Cebuano businessman. The family of Vicente Tan, 83, who owns Chikito Bazaar in downtown Cebu City, told police yesterday the valuables were accidentally thrown out with the trash when they disposed of Tan’s termite-ridden belongings, inclu...
1/20/2012
Cops raid Mactan KTV bar 8 girls, 35 women rescued

        Police rescued 35 women and eight girls working in a KTV bar in Lapu-Lapu City last Wednesday. Three suspected pimps, a cashier and a Korean manager were arrested after law enforcers barged into White Castle KTV past 10 a.m. Charges for violating Republic Act 9208 or the Anti- trafficking in Persons Act of 2003 will be filed against them today. An undercover policeman was used to act as a client. Some for...
1/20/2012
Polygraph tests start for Ballesteros, center staff

        POLYGRAPH tests began yesterday for seven sports center workers, including a private security guard charged for the robbery of P1.6-million cash of the Sinulog Foundation from an office vault. Ronilo Rocal, the chief NBI-7 polygraph examiner, said they will have foundation executive director Ricky Ballesteros undergo the test ahead of the others. Lie detector results are not admissible as evidence in court....
1/20/2012
Landslide hits Buhisan 14 families evacuated

        At least 14 were evacuated yesterday after a landslide hit sitio Puti, barangay Buhisan, Cebu City. Romulo Guarin of the City Risk Reduction Management Council said the landslide did not damage properties but barangay officials fear that continuous landslides would eventually reach the nearby houses. CCRRMC has declared the area a danger zone. Since December last year, four landslides occurred in the area...
1/20/2012
Truck driver I’m not aware of ban to transport people

        THE driver of the Badian town mini-dumptruck that figured in an accident last Wednesday said he didn't know of the order not to transport people using the truck. “I don’t know about the ban. I have not heard of any directive,” said municipal driver Jose Jimbo Dianon, who remains detained at the Badian town police station jail. Dianon, a municipal driver for 11 years, said he didn't receive any order not to ...
1/20/2012
Jagobiao fire victims to be moved from school to Eversly gym

        VICTIMS of the fire that hit sitio San Lorenzo, barangay Jagobiao, Mandaue City, have until Sunday to stay at the Jagobiao National High School. Barangay captain Maria Edita Montesa said the victims will be transferred to the vacant cottages and gymnasium of Eversly Child Sanitarium. The head of the facility will allow them to stay for a month. Montesa said the victims have to move out of the school as the ...
1/20/2012
No whale sharks but food, sites enough for tourists

        Guests of the Suroy-Suroy Sugbo dropped by Oslob town yesterday but had no time to experience the town’s newest tourist attraction, whale shark watching. It wasn’t on the itinerary but tourists still had their fill visiting historical churches and tasting merienda delicacies like budbud, bananacue, hot chocolate and tostado in the southern Cebu tour. In barangay Tan-awan, Oslob, a private beach resort was a...
1/20/2012
Magistrates’ SALNs should be made public — Cebu judge

        THE Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Networth (SALN) of magistrates should be made public. This was the opinion of Cebu Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge Meinrado Paredes as the country’s attention continues to focus on the impeachment trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona, whose property holdings have prompted questions about the propriety of releasing his SALN. In an interview, Paredes said there's no ...
1/20/2012
Placer dancers build on family, faith

        Out-of-town performers traveled 12 hours by ferry from Placer, Masbate province to Cebu City but it was worth the effort. Culturang Placereño with the Masbate dance company took the grand prize in the Sinulog-based category last Sunday. They portrayed a family's story of faith in the Child Jesus in a stand out performance. A bright neon sun and blue clouds formed the back drop of a rural scene of brown car...
1/20/2012
Pa looks for missing son

        A 5-YEAR-old boy who went missing during the Sinulog Grand Parade last Sunday has not yet returned home. His parents Allan and Agnes Roble have gone to different barangay halls hoping to find John Carl. Yesterday, Allan, a 43-year-old construction worker, went to the Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) to ask the police to help in the search. He brought a photo of his missing son and also aired his appea...
1/19/2012
GOLD IN GARBAGE

  Scavengers find, pawn jewelry found in Mandaue dumpsite     Friday the 13th proved to be a lucky day for 55-year-old Rodrigo Corta and his fellow scavengers of the landfill site in barangay Umapad, Mandaue City. On that day, they went up the landfill to gather whatever useful items they can sell cheap and instead ended up with gold and diamond jewelry estimated by police to be worth P2 million. But their celebratory...
1/19/2012
Sinulog group to cover stolen P700-T funds

        The Sinulog Foundation Inc. will refund the P757,000 stolen from the vault in last Monday dawn’s burglary at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC). Sinulog Foundation Inc. (SFI) executive director Ricky Ballesteros said the decision came after yesterday's meeting with Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, the foundation's board of trustees and the city police. If the money is not recovered by the police, Ballesteros s...
1/19/2012
Dump truck accident injures 10 in Badian

        TEN persons, including two infants, were injured after they fell off the left side of the dump truck they rode on after they reached an intersection in barangays Tubod and Banhigan, Badian town, in Cebu last Tuesday afternoon. The dump truck, which carried 40 persons, came from a funeral in the Badian Public Cemetery and was headed to barangay Candees past 5 p.m. when the incident occurred. The incident occ...
1/19/2012
‘Senate did right to obtain SALN’

        THERE was nothing forced nor improper in the impeachment court's insistence on procuring the statement of assets and liabilities of Chief Justice Renato Corona, some of Cebu’s legal analysts said yesterday. Earl Bonachita, president of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines-Cebu chapter, said Supreme Court (SC) clerk Enriquetta Esguerra-Vidal won’t be held liable for delivering Corona's statement to the Senat...
1/19/2012
Byron, homeowners file raps on developer

        Former Capitol consultant Byron Garcia is on the warpath again. This time Byron was with 12 homeowners when he filed charges against Filinvest Land Inc., the Home Land Use and Regulatory Board (HLURB), the Metropolitan Cebu Water District (MCWD), three employees of a manpower provider and three security guards. His complaint stemmed from the alleged overpriced water rates that Filinvest imposed on residents...
1/19/2012
PhilHealth to hire 600 nurses for top hospitals

        THE Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) will hire 600 nurses nationwide to provide customer care to members and dependents who seek treatment in accredited hospitals. In a press conference yesterday, Dr. Eduardo Banzon, chief executive and president of PhilHealth, said the plan will still be finalized and approved by the board of directors in a couple of months. “We make sure that the members wi...
1/19/2012
‘It’s good to dance for the Sto. Niño’

        Eight-year-old Pia Nueva proved that size doesn’t matter in reaping victory. The smallest and youngest dancer of this year’s grand champion Tribu Lingganay, Nueva’s smile and quirky personality stood out in their performance in the Free Interpretation (FI) category of the Sinulog Grand Parade. “It’s really fun, and I look forward to dancing for Sinulog again next year,” a smiling Nueva told Cebu Daily News,...
1/19/2012
NEWS BRIEFS

        RADAZA CASE DISMISSED THE Sandiganbayan dismissed a graft case filed by businessman Efrain Pelaez Jr. against former Lapu-Lapu City Mayor and now Rep. Arturo Radaza. The case stemmed from the alleged illegal demolition of the causeway on Agus Cove that Pelaez owned. In Dec. 2003, the Lapu-Lapu City Council passed a resolution that construction of structures must comply with related laws and ordinances,...
1/18/2012
GUARD ARRESTED

  Lie detector tests sought on employees in light of P1.6 M burglary     Charges of qualified theft were filed against a security guard detailed at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC) for the past 12 years in relation to the P1.6-million burglary there last Monday dawn. But Cebu City police officials and Sinulog Foundation Inc. officials believed that the robbery wasn’t done by just one man. They want the National Bure...
1/18/2012
Guard admits sleeping, drinking on the job

      HE admitted to falling asleep at the time the burglary at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC) administration's office occurred last Monday dawn. But 40-year-old security guard Joselyndo Jabagat denied he and another person robbed the over P1.6 million in cash and valuables at the office. He faced qualified theft charges before the Cebu City Prosecutors' Office yesterday afternoon. Accompanied by his wife Marilyn ...
1/18/2012
Cebu courts ventilate support for CJ Corona

        Tarpaulins and posters expressing support for embattled Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona were posted at the doors of local courts in Cebu City at the start of the impeachment proceedings in the Senate yesterday. “Uphold Judicial Independence. Stand By Chief Justice Renato Corona” read some of the tarpaulins, some of which show Corona waving to the crowd with his wife beside him clapping her hands. ...
1/18/2012
Analyst Senate should finish trial

        MANILA,— The outcome of Chief Justice Renato Corona's impeachment trial can be a "slippery slope" that the country "may never recover from." But the Senate must ensure completion of the process so that lessons may be learned and mistakes could be corrected, said a political analyst. In a church forum in Manila yesterday, Prof. Prospero De Vera III, vice president for public affairs of the University of th...
1/18/2012
Robbery suspects nabbed after Sinulog

        FIVE robbery suspects, including one tagged in the shooting death of a balikbayan on Sinulog eve, were arrested by police from Jan. 15 to Jan. 17. Four of the suspects were presented by police to local media. But James Harold Barbero, the suspect in the robbery and murder of Juan Carlos Villordon, was in the hospital for gunshot wounds sustained in a hot-pursuit operation by police. Barbero was arrested in ...
1/18/2012
Sitio hit by fire placed under calamity status

        The Mandaue City Council will declare today sitio San Lorenzo of barangay Jagobiao under state of calamity after a fire hit the area last Monday noon. This way, the city government can release its calamity funds in extending help to the victims. City Social Welfare Services (CSWS) Chief Violeta Cavada said they have listed a total of 271 victims—132 are house owners while 139 are either renters or sharers. ...
1/18/2012
Sheriff in Rallos case submits report to court

        THE sheriff assigned to enforce court orders in relation to the P133-million claim of the Rallos family against the Cebu city government yesterday clarified that he was not remiss in performing his job. Sheriff Eugenio Fuentes submitted to the court a monthly report on the actions he has taken to enforce the orders of the court. Regional Trial Court Judge James Himalaoan on Monday voiced disgust over the sh...
1/18/2012
Priest found dead in river

        A 69-year-old Australian priest was found dead floating in a river last Monday morning in sitio Ilaya, barangay Can-asujan, Carcar City, southern Cebu. Fr. Douglas Leslie Rowe, S.F.P., of Midland, Western Australia, was the founder of the Patrist Society of the Sons and Daughters of God the Father. The Patrist Society has a house in St. Jude Acres, Bulacao, Cebu City. Investigation showed that Rowe toget...
1/18/2012
COA ruling bars set up of Mandaue materials facilities

        ONLY seven of 27 barangays in Mandaue City still don't have a materials recovery facility (MRF) in their areas, city officials said over the weekend. Engr. Ricardo Mendoza, officer-in-charge of the Barangay Solid Waste program, said these barangays failed to put their own MRFs due to a Commission on Audit (COA) ruling. The COA prohibited the spending of public funds for the purchase of private lots. Mendoz...
1/18/2012
Wounded Italian I’ll return to watch Sinulog

        THE 67-year-old Italian national, Michele Loungo, said he would return to Cebu to watch the Sinulog Grand Parade, despite being shot and wounded by robbers last Thursday morning. Loungo said he was still happy to watch the Sinulog on television inside the hospital. He said he hoped he would experience it the next time on the streets, but he would be more vigilant. He said he was here in Cebu to visit his f...
1/18/2012
NEWS BRIEFS

        NEW LAPU LEGAL OFFICER A NEW city legal officer was appointed more than a year after the post became vacant in Lapu-Lapu City. Yuri Benluan, a 32-year-old resident of barangay Basak, Lapu-Lapu City, practiced law for five years. On assuming office last Monday, Benluan admitted that he had minimal experience handling the position. He said he will study the pending cases in his office and wait for instruc...
1/17/2012
P1.58-M SINULOG FUND GONE

  Robber took vault and cash   Was the robbery an “inside job”? Police are investigating the loss of P1.6 million cash taken from the office vault of the Cebu City Sports Center, a robbery discovered early morning yesterday, barely six hours after the Sinulog grand finale was held in the stadium. The vault itself was ripped out of the metal filing cabinet in the administration office. “The perpetrator knew where we kept t...
1/17/2012
Mandaue fire displaces 500

    About 100 families or about 500 persons lost their homes in a fire that broke out in sitio San Lorenzo Ruiz, Jagobiao, Mandaue City before noon yesterday. The fire alarm was tapped at 11:37 a.m. was placed under control at 12:35 p.m. It was totally put out after two hours. The fire started in the house of Laurencia Dumalagan, whose daughter-in-law Cecil noticed smoke coming from the upper floor. “She smelled something ...
1/17/2012
Corona confident of Senate acquittal in impeach trial

    SAYING “there’s no turning back," embattled Chief Justice Renato Corona dismissed anew the charges filed against him by the House of Representatives as "fake" and a "big lie." Corona told an enthusiastic crowd of supporters gathered at the Supreme Court building in Manila that he expected the Senate, sitting as an impeachment court, to acquit him. While Cebu's legal community called on Corona to take a leave of absence ...
1/17/2012
‘Fresh moves’, environment theme for Leyte winner

  Smooth, fluid choreography nailed the grand prize for Leyte dancers who were newcomers in Cebu's Sinulog Festival. They repeated their moves in a command performance yesterday with other winners of the Sinulog dance competition at the Cebu City Sports Center, where trophies and cash prizes were handed out by Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama. With a cast of 400, their dance portrayed a community rising from a flash flood. The environ...
1/17/2012
Judge in Rallos case peeved by sheriff

  THE judge handling the case of the P133 million claim of the Rallos family against the Cebu City government expressed his disgust in open court over the sheriff's failure to update him on the enforcement of his order. “I have not received any report from the sheriff on actions he has taken. I haven't even seen him in court,” said Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge James Stewart Ramon Himalaloan, acting presiding judge of Branch 9 in ...
1/17/2012
2012 Sinulog a ‘big success’

  CEBU Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said the 2012 Sinulog was “hugely” successful due to the unity of leaders of Cebu city and Cebu province. Garcia said cooperation between both local governments was in response to Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma's appeal for unity made during a Mass he officiated in the Sinulog grandstand. "He pointed out that ‘the city needs the province and the province needs the city.’ We must work together. I think the S...
1/16/2012
SINULOG CHAMPS

  Leyte, Masbate win top prizes; 3.8 M watch parade   A newcomer and a multi-awarded Sinulog champion from outside Cebu were adjudged the best dance contingents in the 2012 Sinulog Festival yesterday. The top prize of P1 million goes to Leyte province's Tribu Lingganay from the municipality of Alang-Alang, which joined Cebu City's biggest festival for the first time and aced the Free Interpretation category. A barrio-inspire...
1/16/2012
Palma We need unity

    Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma called for unity in Cebu and among all Filipinos in a mass celebrating the feast of the Sto. Niño yesterday. His homily in the 6 a.m. pontifical mass at the Pilgrim Center of the Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño also touched on the need to preserve the family and protect the environment. “Thanks to the image of the Sto. Niño. Among several places, Cebu was the first to accept it. Through the years...
1/16/2012
‘It’s more fun in Cebu‘s Sinulog’

    HALF the fun of the Sinulog is experiencing the revelry in the streets, where people are dancing and having a good time. On F. Ramos Street, a group of foreigners and some Filipino friends ran around asking locals at random to take a sip from the beer bottles they were drinking. Two companions followed their antics with a video camera. Crazy fun? Making fun of Cebuano hosts? No offense meant, said Kristin Kidd, a Canadi...
1/16/2012
Street boys earn money from Sinulog parade crowd

    Many people spend money during the Sinulog celebrations. But for some street people, it's a perfect day of the year to earn money. For nine-year-old Joshua Cupta, the crowd enjoying the Sinulog Grand Parade means more empty plastic bottles to collect and sell to junk shops. Cebu Daily News saw Cupta, a third grade student from Barrio Luz Elementary School, carrying two plastic sacks filled with empty plastic bottles near ...
1/16/2012
Snake attacks man in Imus Rd.

  IT was a painful snake show for a 29-year-old man when the snake turned on him as he tried to entertain passersby watching the Sinulog Grand Parade yesterday afternoon. Jerome Camota of sitio Tender heart, barangay T. Padilla, Cebu City sustained a two inch cut in his right arm after his neighbor's pet snake a “sawa” (python) bit him as he played with it along Imus Road. "Nasakitan siguro tong bitin kay morag nabunal man to sa tan...
1/16/2012
Siloy Spotting

    CELEBS DAZZLE, POLS HOBNOB POLITICIANS and celebrities were in Cebu City to hobnob with the public for the Sinulog festivities yesterday. Former senator Miguel Zubiri, Sen. Jinggoy Estrada and Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casiño mingled with the crowd in General Maxilom Avenue. But it was the Manila showbiz celebrities on floats who made the crowd go wild. Spectators shrieked when singer Ogie Alcasid (ML Kwarta Padala), act...
1/16/2012
Honest Cebuana returns American mom’s lost phone

    American national MJ Gregory will never forget Cebu. On her first visit to the Queen City of the South, she lost her HTC cellphone while watching the Sinulog Festival Queen competition in the grandstand of the Cebu City Sports Center last Friday. Her sorrow turned into joy when a 20-year-old Cebuana returned her cellphone less than an hour later. The young woman whom she knew as “Ruth” had earlier texted Gregory’s husban...
1/15/2012
PRAYER WALK

  Clear skies for Sto. Niño procession favor 1.6 million turnout     Not a drop of rain fell in yesterday's traditional foot procession of the Sto. Niño de Cebu, defying weather forecasts of a drenched walk through major roads of Cebu City. Police said 1.6 million turned up for the religious activity, a bigger crowd than last year’s. The procession lasted about five hours, with the head contingent returning to the Basi...
1/15/2012
No rain, grand numbers today

        The public can expect generally fair weather and bigger production numbers in today's Sinulog Grand Parade and competition to be held at the Cebu City Sports Center. The weather forecast from the Pagaasa Mactan office is sunshine in the morning and possible rainfall later in the day. “Since we really can't predict the weather, let's just be ready for it,” said Al Alcazar, weather analyst. A total of 135 co...
1/15/2012
First baptism reenacted by Sto. Niño devotees in Basilica

        BELLS pealed as images of the Señor Sto. Niño or Child Jesus and the Our Lady of Guadalupe were brought inside the Basilica del Sto. Niño after yesterday's fluvial procession. In the outdoor Pilgrim Center, devotees reenacted the first baptism in the Philippines in 1521. The image of the Virgin Marry was received by bare-chested “natives” in slippers. The Sto. Niño was carried by men dressed as Spanish so...
1/15/2012
Fluvial parade kicks off feast of Sto. Niño

        Devotees kicked off celebrations of the feast of the Señor Sto. Niño de Cebu on its eve yesterday with a colorful, albeit shortened and somewhat unruly, fluvial parade on Mactan Channel. Dozens of bancas (outrigger boats), barges and cruise ships packed with devotees escorted the MV Santo Niño de Cebu, a galleon replica, bearing an image of the Child Jesus that was blessed by Blessed John Paul II. Also on...
1/15/2012
‘Our dance is a prayer’

        A “joyous, light fun” celebration of Cebuano history and faith is the theme of the returning champions Tribu Sinanduloy's performance in today's Sinulog Grand Parade. Jonji Pascual, one of the group's choreographers and a history professor of the University of San Carlos, said the contingent from Tangub City, Misamis Occidental, will “go back” to what Sinanduloy is known for, namely the portrayal of historic...
1/15/2012
‘Ulan’ is top song of Cebu Popular Music Festival

        A POSITIVE message abut caring for the environment was the theme of Eugene Tan's award-winning Visayan song entry “Ulan”. Tan's song bagged two major prizes in last Friday's 32nd Cebu Popular Music Festival. It was voted the top song while its group of singers, the Huni Sugbo, was picked Best Interpreter. Benjie Layos, one of the members, told Cebu Daily News that Tan was unable to attend the event afte...
1/15/2012
Sto. Niño visits jail, inspires 2,000 inmates

        At 82 years old, David Salonoy is the oldest inmate in the male dormitory of the Cebu City Jail. He waited under the sun for about an hour last Wednesday outside the jail's chapel, where a Mass was said in honor of the Sto. Niño, whose image stayed with the detainees overnight. “Makagawas na unta ko aron makauli ko sa among bukid (I hope I will be freed so I can go home),” said Salonoy. He said he he’s been...
1/14/2012
REROUTING FOR SEA, STREETS

  Peak crowds today for Sto. Niño fluvial and foot processions     The Mactan Channel will be closed for three hours starting 6 a.m. today for the annual fluvial procession for the Feast of the Sto. Niño. Then at 1 p.m., all vehicular traffic will be rerouted away from the solemn foot procession of the Sto. Niño, which starts and ends at the Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño in downtown Cebu City. Be prepared to walk and...
1/14/2012
Sto. Niño ‘transfers’ to Mandaue for the night

        Amelia Ramirez, 49, sat in a wheelchair not bothering to get closer to the image of the Sto. Niño to touch it, but still believing that she would be healed. Amelia can’t walk and has difficulty talking after she suffered a stroke last month. Slowly, she told Cebu Daily News that she asked her daughter Kaye and her husband to bring her to the Shrine of St. Joseph in Mandaue City where icons of the Sto. Niño ...
1/14/2012
Lumad Basakanon dancer is Sinulog Festival Queen

        IT’S two in a row for Cebu City's Lumad Basakanon of barangay Basak San Nicolas. For possessing dancing skills and beauty that place her above her peers, their lead dancer Apriel Smith was crowned the Sinulog Festival Queen 2011 last night at the Cebu City Sports Center. Last year, it was Steffi Rose Aberasturi of Lumad Basakanon who won the title. Smith bested 13 other lead dancers of various Sinulog con...
1/14/2012
Archbishop marks anniversary on Friday the 13th

        FRIDAY the 13th was a triple celebration for Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma. Yesterday, the 61-year old prelate marked his first anniversary as archbishop of Cebu, 13th year after his installation as bishop of Calbayog, Leyte and 14th year since he was ordained Titular Bishop of Vazari-Didda. In a Mass at the Archbishop’s Palace, he thanked Cebuanos for welcoming him to the province and contributing to the grow...
1/14/2012
911 hero returns for Sinulog festival

        A Cebuana nurse, who was recognized as one of the heroes in the 2001 World Trade Center attack, is taking a break from work in the United States to watch the Sinulog tomorrow. It will be her first time to experience it. Rebecca Canalija, who has been in the US for nearly 18 years, said she was excited and didn't know what to expect. “Dugay na kaayo ko ganahan mo tan aw ug Sinulog because friends who watche...
1/14/2012
Have more fun watching Sinulog parade on streets

        NEVER mind if tickets for the grandstand in the Cebu City Sports Center are all sold out. Spectators can have “more fun” watching the Sinulog parade for free from the street where dance contingents are up close. Revelry by the roadside is a genuine Sinulog experience. It includes spontaneous street dancing, hanging out with friends, feasting, getting one's face painted, gawking at floats and higantes, str...
1/14/2012
Masbate performers share quarters, meals like ‘one big family’

        Since Monday, the grounds of City Central School have been turned into a dormitory for the visiting Sinulog contingent of almost 900 performers from Placer, Masbate province. At the back of one classroom, teenager Mario Santisima lined up with a pail to wash his clothes in an outdoor faucet used by fellow performers to wash dishes and take a bath. It's his first time to visit Cebu. “I’m excited and tense a...
1/13/2012
‘A SUNNY SINULOG’

  Rama eyes transfer if rains come; but exec says venue change ‘impractical’     Just like last year, Sinulog organizers send a tray of eggs to the Carmelites Church daily since last month to pray for good weather for this Sunday's Sinulog Grand Parade. With the state weather bureau Pagasa's advisory on rainfall for Cebu this coming week, Cebu City officials are entertaining options. But unless there's a typhoon, “t...
1/13/2012
Cebu pols talk 2013 politics amid Sinulog

        AMID the festive atmosphere in the run-up to this Sunday's Sinulog Grand Parade, Cebu's top political figures are already talking about the 2013 elections. Former senator John Henry “Sonny” Osmeña was all fired up in his 77th birthday celebration as he complained over the Liberal Party's seeming neglect of its allies in Cebu. Cebu officials like Tuburan Mayor Aljun Diamante, Pinamungahan Mayor Geraldine Yap...
1/13/2012
Slain ensign’s family grateful for case ruling

        It took 16 years but the Cebu-based family of Navy ensign Philip Pestaño remained grateful that the Ombudsman recently filed murder charges against 10 Navy officers accused of being responsible for his death. Pestaño's aunt Rebecca Pestaño-Smith said their quest for justice has been a arduous journey. “It’s an indictment on our legal process, but we are grateful to know that our case was given attention,” ...
1/13/2012
Italians robbed, one shot at home

        THREE Italian nationals were robbed while one of them had both legs shot by motorcycle-riding robbers in Maria Christina Extension, barangay Capitol Site, Cebu City, at past 6 a.m. yesterday. The incident, which occurred a few days before the culmination of the Sinulog festivities, was dismissed by Cebu City police as an isolated incident. Two of the victims arrived in the city to watch the Sinulog festiva...
1/13/2012
Balikabayans sacrifice time, ailments to be with Sto. Niño

        Not all sacrifices for the Sto. Niño come in the form of money or material things. Some balikbayans who come to Cebu for the Sinulog celebrations sacrificed their time to be with their families and loved ones or even endure their ailment just to be with the Child Jesus. Fr. Tony Gomez, a 58-year-old priest from St. Linus Parish in Los Angeles, California, said he came here despite knowing he would miss his ...
1/13/2012
Bleachers added at Sports Center

        EXTRA bleachers are being added below the grandstand in the Cebu City Sports Center to allow more room for spectators. All is set for the Sinulog grand parade except for the main stage in the Cebu City Sports Center where finishing touches and the bleachers. By Friday, all stadium tickets will be sold out, earning P2 million for the Sinulog Foundation. “Well, I can say they're selling like hot cakes,” said...
1/13/2012
‘PH counter’ launched

        THE Department of Tourism (DOT) 7 has launched a homecoming “hospitality” counter for balikbayans yesterday at the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA). Dubbed Pinoy Homecoming (PH) Counter, it will provide a VIP welcome treatment to the balibayans in Cebu. Around 140 balikbayans from the US arrived at the Mactan Cebu International Airport as the PH counter was launched and were given a warm welcome. A...
1/13/2012
Ilis of the Sto. Nino and the camareras

        The original image of the Sto. Nino hasn't been used during the yearly grand procession before the feast of the Child Jesus. “The original image is fragile. We do not want an untoward incident so to speak. If you will put it simply, a great ocassion, a visit of a Pope might trigger the bringing of the Sto. Nino outside of the shrine,” said Fr. Tito Soquiño. Soquino belongs to the Order of Saint Augustine (O...
1/13/2012
Gwen to dance as Spanish señorita during Sinulog parade

        CEBU Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia will once again perform during the Sinulog Grand Parade on Sunday and this time, as a Spanish señorita with the La Torta Festival of Argao town. This will be Garcia's eighth year to perform in the Grand Parade, and this year, she will be dancing in a Cary Santiago gown. Santiago, one of Cebu's top designers, said the gown will be more “feminine” compared to the gowns she had worn ...
1/13/2012
SINULOG UPDATES

        PALMA'S FIRST STO. NIÑO PROCESSION FOR the first time, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma will be joining the solemn procession of the Sto. Niño since he assumed as Cebu’s archbishop a year ago. He will carry the image of the Sto. Niño de Cebu from its altar to the carroza and return it inside the basilica after the 6.8-kilometer solemn walk tomorrow afternoon. Palma, 61, is also expected to join the fluvial pro...
1/13/2012
VP says Pag-Ibig to finance purchase of Capitol 93-1 lots

        With the completion of the socioeconomic survey of the 93-1 occupants, the Office of the Vice President finally came up with an agreement with the Capitol. Chito Borromeo, consultant of the vice president on housing, told reporters that it has been agreed that Pag-Ibig Fund and the Community Mortgage Program (CMP) will finance the acquisition of the lot. Borromeo said the survey showed that not everyone can...
1/13/2012
Court orders mediation to resolve coal landfill case

        A MEDIATION will be held to resolve the cases filed by ecology groups against a Korean power firm, the Capitol and the city governments of Toledo and Naga in relation to the operation of a coal ash landfill in Naga City. The mediation proceedings set on Feb. 2 will be led by mediator Jose Ramon Carpio in Mandaue City, as agreed by the parties concerned. The agreement was made during yesterday afternoon's h...
1/13/2012
NEWS BRIEFS

        FLOOD-PRONE AREAS IN CEBU MARKED ABOUT 10 towns each were identified as flood-prone and landslide prone areas in Cebu, according to a geohazard map that will soon be released by the Provincial Planning Development Office (PPDO). PPDO Coordinator engineer Adolfo Quiroga said the map done in coordination with the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) will be distributed to each of the affected towns. Among th...
1/12/2012
‘STO. NIÑO FOR REAL’

  How to tell the icon in the basilica is original 4-century-old gift of Magellan     From peasants to Presidents, those who have faith come to venerate it. Encased in glass in a side chapel, the four-century-old wooden image of the Sto. Niño de Cebu draws the most number of visitors in the days leading to its feast day, which falls this year on Sunday, Jan. 15. A question that recurs has to do with authenticity. Is ...
1/12/2012
Binay, envoys confirm Sinulog attendance

        Vice President Jejomar Binay is coming for the Sinulog, but there’s no word yet whether President Benigno Aquino III will attend. Most of the requests for VIP section seats in the grandstand of the Cebu City Sports Center came from consulate offices, said Belinda Navasquez, secretary of Mayor Michael Rama. “I personally called the President on the phone and invited him,” said Mayor Rama last Friday. “He to...
1/12/2012
‘Cebu slogan should follow DOT theme’

        SOME travel operators agreed with the Department of Tourism's (DOT) call for Cebu to base its own slogan with the agency's theme “It's more fun in the Philippines.” “We won't have a different brand, but it should be something that is applicable for Cebu. We can do some variation with the DOT slogan,” said Jenny Franco of the National Association of Independent Travel Agencies (Naitas) of Cebu. Franco said ...
1/12/2012
Cebuana among crew of floating bookstore

        TWO and a half years of traveling all over the world have exposed Faith Asher Mandalupe to different people and helped her develop a wider understanding of their cultures. At 28, she’s the lone Cebuana in the 400-member crew working for the MV Logos Hope, a floating bookstore which docked in the Cebu City port yesterday and will stay till Feb. 12. Her stint is a “humbling” experience and a form of service...
1/12/2012
Capitol gives P3-M aid

        Layers of ruffles are part of a Spanish-inspired gown for Gov. Gwen Garcia when she dances the Sinulog again in Sunday's parade. She showed a sketch of the costume by Cebuano couture designer Carie Santiago yesterday after handing over a P3-million check as financial assistance of the provincial government to the Sinulog Foundation. Foundation Executive Director, Ricky Ballesteros, who received the check, s...
1/12/2012
Cebu’s top designers, artists in Sinulog finale

        ON STAGE in the Sinulog finale this Sunday, expect to see accolades to Cebu's top designers in fashion, furniture and visual art. This year's theme takes off from Cebu's latest title as “Asean City of Culture”. In the 25-minute finale, Rep. Rachel del Mar will also dance as the Sinulog queen, her second time to perform the role. She will appear in the final segment in a modern Filipiniana gown with a Sto...
1/12/2012
Fun run ordinance to impose fees in Cebu City

        FUN runs in Cebu City will only be allowed during weekends and on holidays based on a proposed ordinance reviewed by the City Council yesterday. Councilor Edgar Labella said fees will also be collected from organizers to include overtime pay for traffic enforcers and PNP personnel to be deployed to secure the conduct of fun runs held before 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. “Overtime will be computed based on the salary t...
1/12/2012
Cortes backs reprieve for trike drivers

        A one-year moratorium on payments for mayor's permits will be given to Mandaue City's tricycle drivers to allow them to purchase other public utility vehicles (PUV), city officials said yesterday. City Treasurer Regal Oliva said Mayor Jonas Cortes wants the one-year moratorium to take effect this year, so the tricycle drivers can form a cooperative that will enable them to buy PUVs for their livelihood. Oli...
1/12/2012
NEWS BRIEFS

        INMATE ESCAPES GUARD AN inmate of the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) charged with murder escaped after a court hearing in Bogo City, northern Cebu, before noon yesterday. Medellin police said inmate Kim Invento managed to convince jail escort Felix Betasalo to allow him to go home in barangay Lamintak, Medellin town, also in northern Cebu. The police said Betasalo agreed to ...
1/11/2012
CEBU’S BRAND

  Promote Cebu with more than ‘fun Philippines’ tag     While local tourism stakeholders welcome the new Department of Tourism (DOT) slogan, some said Cebu should have its own brand especially for foreign travelers. Travel executive Bobby Joseph said Cebu has its own unique identity to promote as an island destination and that not all foreign tourists can understand the DOT’s marketing slogan “It's More Fun in the Phil...
1/11/2012
‘Don’t domesticate Oslob whale sharks’

        Even with a municipal ordinance in place, a veterinarian and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) said more needs to be done to ensure the well-being of whale sharks in Oslob town, southern Cebu. Dr. Jo Marie Acebes, a biologist and a doctor of veterinary medicine who worked with World Wildlife Fund-Philippines for four years, said the whale shark watching activities that have stepped up sinc...
1/11/2012
Missing whale shark safe, say experts

        “BERTO,” a whale shark that went missing after being speared on the back in the shores of barangay Tan-awan, Oslob town, is safe and sound, scuba divers said yesterday. Gary Cases of the Philippine Commission on Sports Scuba Diving (PCSSD) said they found him yesterday morning along Oslob's coastal area away from the site that other whale sharks frequent. “We found Berto but he is still weak. But he already...
1/11/2012
Only one DPWH official told to resign in wake of lamppost case

        ONLY one official of the Department of Public Works and Highways in Central Visayas (DPWH-7) was ordered to resign after being implicated in the 2007 overpriced purchase of lampposts in Metro Cebu. In a letter to the Ombudsman-Visayas, Public Works and Highways Secretary Rogelio Singson said the other eight officials already retired. They included former DPWH-7 regional chief Robert Lala. Only regional lega...
1/11/2012
Out-of-town champions return to perform

        50 - Sinulog dancing contingents 27 – Free interpretation 23 - Sinulog based 31 floats 24 higantes 27 puppeteers What veteran spectators in the crowd look forward to in the Sinulog competition are non-Cebu dance troupes, who often provide the surprise element and elaborate performances. Tribu Sinanduloy of Tangub City, Misamis Occidental is aiming for its third straight win as grand champion in the ...
1/11/2012
Balikbayans arrive for Sinulog fest

        They’re back again for the Sinulog. About 70 balikbayans who arrived yesterday from Seattle and Las Vegas in the United States were greeted at the Mactan airport by the beat of Sinulog dancers organized by the Cebu City Tourism Council. Welcome greetings from friends and relatives filled the lobby of the international arrival area. Some of the passengers joined the dancers on spot. One of them was Eric C...
1/11/2012
Be ready for Sinulog parade rain or shine stay healthy

        With the cold spell and rainshowers in recent days, health officials said Sinulog revelers should be extra mindful of their health. Stay home if you’re feeling under the weather instead of forcing yourself to join activities, said Dr. Expedito Medalla, chief of the emergency management staff of the Department of Health in Central Visayas. Bring an umbrella, sunglasses or rain coats and jackets to protect on...
1/11/2012
Free Wi-Fi connection along route

        SPECTATORS can enjoy free unlimited Internet access along 18 points of the Sinulog parade route on Sunday. Mobile phone users and gadget geeks can find the points in General Maxilom Ave. Gorordo Ave., Fuente Osmeña, Osmeña Boulevard, N. Bacalso Ave. and P. Del Rosario Street said John Yañez, PLDT myDSL’s product manager. This includes Magellan’s Cross and the Cebu City Sports Center. New Imus Road will not...
1/11/2012
Traders, officials urge gov’t action on BPO bill

        Business leaders and local officials sought action from the national government on the US bill prohibiting American call centers from outsourcing their services overseas. While Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Eric Ng Mendoza is optimistic that the bill will not be passed into law, he said its approval may cause a temporary slowdown in the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sector. “It's a...
1/11/2012
NEWS BRIEFS

        CLEANUP CREW FOR SINULOG ABOUT 600 street cleaners and garbage collectors will be fielded to clear Cebu City's streets of garbage following the Sinulog Grand Parade this Sunday. Dionisio Gualiza, head of Cebu City Hall's Department of Public Services (DPS), said they also borrowed trucks from the City Engineering Office to help transport garbage to the landfill in Pulog, Consolacion town. "We expect mos...
1/10/2012
WOUNDED BEASTS

  2 whale sharks injured by spear, motor banca   It was an accident—or attack—waiting to happen. Two whale sharks that frequent Oslob town, south Cebu, were confirmed to be seriously injured, one of them by a spear and the other by the propeller of a motorized banca bringing tourists. “Berto,” one whale shark identified by local fishermen, has been missing for three days after it was seen swimming with a spear thrust in it...
1/10/2012
US bill on BPOs won’t prosper, say biz leaders

    There should be one group not tied to the national government that should lobby against the passage of House Bill 3596 or “Call Center and Consumers Protection Bill” in the US Congress. Joel Mari Yu, Cebu Investments and Promotions Center managing director and outsourcing specialist of Cebu, said this amid a call from Congress to the Aquino administration to lobby against the bill pushed by US President Barack Obama. Yu m...
1/10/2012
Duranos exploring ties with Liberals for 2013

    A possible tactical alliance for the 2013 local elections is being discussed by the Durano clan and the Cebu chapter of the Liberal Party (LP), a family member confirmed yesterday. “I don't deny that negotiations are ongoing,” Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale said. Magpale belongs to the Barug Alang sa Kauswagan Ug Demokrasya (Bakud) party of the Durano clan, which is chaired by her cousin Danao City Vice Mayor Ramon “Nito” D...
1/10/2012
‘Criminal elements, not terrorists, are main threat to Sinulog’

    Watch out for new faces in your neighborhood. And make sure that someone is left at home to guard the premises before stepping out to attend various Sinulog activities. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said chances of a terror attack are remote during Sinulog week but it pays to be “overvigilant.” “Eternal vigilance is what we need for democracy to continue. Let's pray that nothing untoward will happen during the Sinulog,”...
1/10/2012
Treat for Balikbayan

    The Balik Cebu booth opened Friday at the Ayala Center Cebu, a help desk for balikbayans looking for special treats for the Sinulog. Now on its 12th year, the welcome program for balikbayans includes a barrio fiesta welcome dinner with music and entertainment on Thursday, Jan. 12, where newly crowned Miss Cebu pageant winners make their first official appearance. At least 300 guests are expected in the dinner, including b...
1/10/2012
New route for Sto. Niño journey

  Instead of a direct route to Mandaue City, the motorcade of the annual traslacion or ritual transfer of the image of the Sto. Niño will pass by more Cebu City streets. The change will allow more city residents to witness the passage of the images of the Child Jesus and his mother Mary, Our Lady of Guadalupe de Cebu, as they travel to the St. Joseph's Shrine in Mandaue City on Friday, Jan. 13. Devotees usually wait by the roadside,...
1/10/2012
Watching from the grandstand

  If you want a seat in the grandstand to watch the Sinulog parade, less than 1,000 tickets are left. As of 2 p.m. yesterday, only pink and green tickets for bleacher seats in both ends of the stadium in the Cebu City Sports Center were going for P500 each. “Tickets are selling fast as we near the grand parade day. We promise ticket holders that they will enjoy what they paid for,” said Ricky Ballesteros, Sinulog executive committee...
1/10/2012
City Hall needs employees to fill 1-T plantilla posts

    CEBU City Hall has about 1,000 plantilla positions that Mayor Michael Rama wanted filled before his term ends in June 2013. But Juvy Morellos, head of the city's Human Resource Development Office, said her office wasn’t certain if it could accomplish the mayor’s orders because of the employment ban, which the Commission on Elections would soon impose as part of its preparations for next year’s local elections. Hiring of r...
1/10/2012
Cebuanos join Black Nazarene feast

  While thousands of rowdy devotees scrambled in Quiapo yesterday, devotees in Cebu celebrated the feast day of the Black Nazarene in a calm and prayerful setting. About 200 people gathered at the Archdiocesan Shrine of Hesus Nazareno in barangay Cansojong, Talisay City, where they touched and prayed before a replica of the life-sized dark-skinned figure of a suffering Jesus Christ. “The celebration is very peaceful over here. Than...
1/9/2012
BPO SUNSET?

  P-Noy urged to lobby against US bill pushed by Obama   Congress called on the Aquino administration to create a lobby group that will block passage of a bill that could spell the end of the country's booming Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry. House Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales II said the administration should closely monitor US House Bill 3596 entitled "Call Center and Consumers Protection Bill," which will...
1/9/2012
Two fires hit Cebu City ahead of Sinulog

    TWO fire outbreaks greeted Cebu City in 2012, ahead of the annual Sinulog celebrations this week. A fire swept through the second floor of a two-storey commercial building in V. Gullas Street, barangay Manalili in Cebu City yesterday afternoon. A smaller fire hit a home in Osmeña Drive, Tres de Abril, barangay Labangon 16 minutes later. Fire swept through the entire second floor of the 64-year-old Regino Building owned ...
1/9/2012
Rama says Cebu can adopt ‘more fun’ slogan

    Cebu City can take a page from the national government's new tourism slogan by promoting itself as a fun place to be especially during the Sinulog. Mayor Michael Rama said this amid reports that Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez Jr. will come to Cebu City to attend the Sinulog festivities. The Department of Tourism (DOT) recently adopted the slogan “ It's more fun in the Philippines.” "Cebu City and the province can adopt...
1/9/2012
Staffer tagged in slay seen in Iligan

      TWO security agencies whose personnel were assigned at a subdivision on the night a woman resident was shot dead failed to produce the licenses of the guards to the police. PO3 Winston Ybanez of the Lapu-Lapu City police said the agencies are still processing the papers of security guard Rodulfo Cavalida, who was at the guard post of the Grand Pacific Villa subdivision when last Friday's shooting occurred. He said ...
1/9/2012
Vendors, officials welcome Mandaue market opening

  ASIDE from the distance, there was little to complain about the new Mandaue City public market for Linilda Arminion. The 43-year-old Arminion, an eatery owner and resident of barangay Cabancalan, Mandaue City, said the new market is spacious and clean. But it's located at the reclamation area which is quite a distance from her home. Even if her husband can't drive her to the market, Arminion said she better get used to it. “Th...
1/9/2012
Family is ‘mini-church’ for children, says priest

  The Catholic devotion should begin with the family and center on the children. Fr Antolin Asor, OSA, who celebrated the Children's Mass yesterday at the Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño, gave this reminder and emphasized the importance of the family as the “mini-church” where teaching devotion to children begins. This reminder wasn't lost to couple Guillermo Purca, 30 and wife Gerlie, 21, who carried their seven-month old first born...
1/9/2012
Pagasa warns Rains in Sinulog weekend

    SINULOG revelers are advised to bring umbrellas and rain coats as rains are expected to hit Cebu City and the rest of the province this coming weekend, the Mactan office of the state weather bureau Pagasa said yesterday. Pagasa Mactan weather observer Ponce Garcia said they detected the tail-end of a cold front in Eastern Visayas and Mindanao. He said residents of flood-prone and landslide areas should evacuate in case o...
1/9/2012
Sinulog sa kabataan sa dakbayan Abellana, Bulacao schools are champs

  Despite the lack of resources, the Abellana National High School made it three in a row after they were chosen as this year's Sinulog sa Kabataan-Dakbayan secondary division champion. “I was shaking and I still am. We made it and I can’t be more thankful to the team and their parents. We had been practicing since Christmas break and I would like to thank the parents for letting their children be with us in those times which was sup...
1/9/2012
Fil-Am group to join Suroy Heritage trail

  A FIL-AMERICAN contingent from Las Vegas, Nevada is scheduled to join the Capitol's Suroy-Suroy sa Sugbo Southern Heritage Trail on Jan. 18 to 20. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said the Las Vegas contingent which had joined them after Cebu City's Sinulog festivity has grown bigger every year. She said reservations have already reached 150. Last year, these balikbayans were taken to Cebu's northern part. An added attraction is the wha...
1/8/2012
KILLED OVER CAR STICKER

  Woman shot near guard house     Is a car pass for entry in one’s own neighborhood worth losing a life? A 39-year-old woman was killed after an argument with subdivision security guards in Lapu-Lapu City who refused to open the gate to let her car enter because it didn't have a homeowner’s sticker. Rose Ann La Paz, a resident of Grand Pacific Villa Subdivision, was fatally shot in the chest with the guard's shotgun, ...
1/8/2012
‘Sto. Niño also looks out for street children’

        Ten-year-old Paul isn't sure there's food when he goes home to barangay Lorega, Cebu City, so he wanders the streets. Instead of going to school, he roams about and begs for money by singing carols. “Mangayo ko nga makakaon ming tanan (I'm asking the Lord that my family will all be able to eat),” he told Cebu Daily News, when asked what he prays for. Rionel, whose parents are jobless, was one of about 70...
1/8/2012
No whale sharks yet for Gwen, tourists

        ON board a motor banca with a group of divers in barangay Tan-awan, Oslob town, Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia waited for hours but didn’t get to proceed with her dive to see the town’s whale sharks. Some fisherfolk on a paddle boat fed a solitary whale shark with uyap" or baby shrimps and waved from afar. But when one motor banca sped to their location, the whale shark swam underwater and didn't surface, to th...
1/8/2012
Don’t litter the city or use confetti, Sinulog revelers told

        CEBU residents and visitors should dispose of garbage properly and avoid littering in the runup to the annual Sinulog Grand Parade next Sunday. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Central Visayas (DENR-7) issued these reminder amid ongoing parades and other festival activities. “You can just imagine how much more of the garbage we will be generating for this occasion, said DENR-7 Regional...
1/8/2012
Nursing student wins two awards

        A 19-YEAR-OLD nursing student of Velez College won two awards in the Miss Cebu 2012 Pre-Pageant event held at the Fuente Osmeña Rotunda Friday night. Jonnie Rose Louise Wee, a Miss Velez pageant winner in 2010, went home with the Best in Funwear and Miss Mosbeau awards. Contestant No. 10 emerged as frontrunner for the grand coronation night scheduled on Jan. 11 at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel Pacific Gra...
1/8/2012
Devotee City to open on January 13

        A Devotee City for out-of-town pilgrims will once again rise at the Compania Maritima in the Cebu International Port for the Sinulog. One hundred ten empty 20-foot cargo vans were set up starting last Jan. 5 in a 2,000-sqm lot near the South Road Properties (SRP) exit. The temporary quarters will be opened on Jan. 13, Friday. However, devotees who’ll be coming to the city early will be allowed to stay. A h...
1/8/2012
Danao, Carcar groups bag major awards

        It was a grand-slam win for the student contingents of Danao and Carcar cities, which bagged yesterday's major awards in the Sinulog sa Kabataan sa Lalawigan dance competition.. Danao City East District- Danao City Central School and Carcar City Division won Best in Musicality, Best in Costume and were hailed champions for the elementary and secondary division respectively. Catherine Estenzo, Carcar’s cho...
1/7/2012
SINULOG TAKES OFF

  Keep politics out of festival, keep it decent - priest     Twelve beauty contestants on snazzy sports cars led the parade down Osmeña Boulevard for yesterday's kick-off of Cebu's Sinulog festival. To the beat of drums and a bouncy Sinulog jingle, hundreds of students danced in costumes of Southeast Asian neighbors as part of this year's showcase of Cebu as an ASEAN “city of culture”. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama fo...
1/7/2012
‘Seaweed king’ Benson Dakay succumbs to kidney cancer

        Cebu businessman Benson Dakay passed away at the St. Jude Medical Center in Los Angeles, where he had been confined since October last year. His daughter Rere Dakay said the her father, 56, succumbed to complications of kidney cancer. Dakay, who was known as the “seaweed king” who made a fortune in the export of carageenan or processed seaweed, was in a coma since October 25. He had undergone two operati...
1/7/2012
MCWD, Maynilad ink deal to study Cebu water sources

        THE Metropolitan Cebu Water District (MCWD) is tapping the Maynilad Water Services, Inc. (Maynilad) to study how to develop and enhance the surface water sources in Cebu. Armando H. Paredes, general manager of MCWD, said yesterday that the local water firm had signed an agreement or a memorandum of understanding with Maynilad to address the increasing demand for potable water among the residents of Cebu. Pa...
1/7/2012
Stop feeding whale sharks in Oslob – expert

        WHILE a divers organization said it was all right - and even beneficial - for fishermen to feed whale sharks in Oslob town, an environmentalist has called for a stop to the feeding. Elson Aca, a Filipino whale shark researcher of the World Wildlife Fund for Nature Philippines (WWF-Phils.), made his appeal after he and the crew of the television program, "Born to be Wild," observed the activity during a visit...
1/7/2012
Icons of faith

        Apart from shopping and strolling, mall goers can view icons of the Sto. Niño and contemplate the childhood of Jesus. About 50 images, many of them antiques and family heirlooms, are on display at the Ayala Center Cebu, which hosts the annual exhibit every Sinulog. The exhibit “Sto. Niño in the Home of Faith”, curated by Lourdes Jereza, opened yesterday to the public. Mall goers are quickly drawn to a six-...
1/7/2012
For Sto. Niño – new clothes, repair work and a makeover

        When Sto. Niño images need repaire a new set of clothes, devotees bring them to stalls outside the Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño along D. Jakosalem Street in Cebu City. Stall holders like Dan and his wife of Lapu-Lapu City can can give a family’s cherished icon a makeover. Their services include repainting, applying varnish, restoring broken parts and dressing up the image of the Child Jesus. A repair job ...
1/7/2012
Rama slashes 150 BIN jobs, blames move on budget cuts

        Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama blamed the City Council for the non-renewal of work contracts of around 150 members of the Barangay Intelligence Network (BIN). The anti-crime volunteeers used to assist the police force and help secure government offices. Their honoraria, however, was affected when a P30 million outlay in the mayor’s proposed 2012 budget for the city was reduced to P10 million by the council. ...
1/7/2012
Binay, Gwen trying to hasten 93-1 solutions

        BENEFICIARIES of Ordinance 93-1 have something to hope for in the coming days. Vice President Jejomar Binay said there are developments in the efforts to settle the issue of 93-1 residents occupying province-owned lots in Cebu City. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said they have come up with a 'multi-faceted' solution although she gave few details. Binay, who chairs the Housing and Urban Development Coordinatin...
1/7/2012
NEWS BRIEFS

        POLICE REVAMP THE Mandaue City Police Office will undergo a major revamp which will affect 15 police officials. Mandaue City Police Chief, Senior Supt. Noel Gillamac said the reshuffling would take effect on Jan. 16. Gillamac said the revamp was done to make the MCPO operations more effective in fighting crimes in the city. The revamp was also made to enhance the skills and abilities of the police offic...
1/6/2012
ONE FAMILY

  80,000 join first Sto. Niño procession despite rain     A cold drizzle at dawn didn't deter 25-year-old Mark Jason Saraw and his 83-year-old wheelchair-bound grandmother from joining yesterday's novena procession. “This is an annual tradition that Lola Rose handed down to us,” Saraw said. The foot procession stretched 2.5 kilometers from Fuente Osmeña to the Basilica del Sto. Niño. Lola Rose, a retired public scho...
1/6/2012
25 killed, scores lost in ComVal landslide

      Tagum City—About 25 people were reported killed and dozens of others were listed missing in the wake of a series of landslides that struck a mining area in Pantukan, Compostela Valley, early Thursday, the authorities said. At least 15 other persons were injured in the landslides that occurred in Barangay Napnapan, according to Pantukan municipal health officer Arnulfo Lantaya. Lantaya could not say how many women...
1/6/2012
Board drops Byron as subdivision president

        THE Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board in Central Visayas nullified the election of Byron Garcia and other officers of the Corona Del Mar Homeowners Association, Inc. (CDMHAI). In its Dec. 23, 2011 ruling, the board ordered Byron, brother of Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, and nine others to cease and desist from conducting any action or claims as officers and directors of the association. The case stemmed ...
1/6/2012
Feeding whale sharks is okay, says dive group chief

        AN official of the Philippine Commission on Sports Scuba Diving (PCSSD) said there's nothing wrong with hand feeding whale sharks that frequent the waters of Oslob town, southwestern Cebu. “We can't determine if feeding is bad because there are no studies we can refer to. What we know is that it tamed the whale sharks,” PCSSD official Gary Cases told Cebu Daily News. In recent months, more tourists have bee...
1/6/2012
Deputy Director General Sto. Niño

        The Sto. Niño de Cebu is going to jail. The Augustinian fathers will bring an image of the Child Jesus to the Cebu City Jail in barangay Kalunasan, Cebu City on Tuesday, Jan. 10, to give prisoners a chance to pay homage to the Sto. Niño. The “Duaw Señor Santo Niño sa Mga Preso sa Sugbu” is part of the religious activities for the 446th Fiesta Señor celebration which started yesterday. Jail detainees will h...
1/6/2012
Organizers need P7M more for Sinulog festival

        WITH nine days to go before the Sinulog grand parade, organizers are still trying to raise about P7 million for various activities. Ricky Ballesteros said that so far, they have raised 60 to 70 percent of their projected budget of P40 million. “But we are hopeful we’ll raise the rest because we still have one more week to entertain sponsors and we also have revenues to be collected from the street fair (alo...
1/6/2012
Devotees walk to thank Sto. Niño

        Twelve years ago, his grandmother nearly died from a heart attack. When she recovered, Lola Rose made it a point to join the first novena procession for the Sto. Niño. Although another heart ailment keeps her in a wheelchair, her faith has never faltered. “Eventually, I've learned to seek him too,” said her grandson, Mark Jason Saraw, an engineering graduate yesterday. Even after his grandmother passes o...
1/6/2012
Rob suspect faced theft case in US

        ONE of the two scions of businessmen arrested for theft last Tuesday faces the same case in the US. The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) said it coordinated with the Homeland Security and confirmed that Michael Reyes was facing a theft case in the US. They said the 29-year-old Reyes failed to attend his hearings so the court issued an arrest warrant against him. Chief Insp. Romeo Santander, head of ...
1/6/2012
Mdaue’s Panagtagbo Festival to complement Sinulog

        MANDAUE City will hold a festival that will complement the Sinulog in Cebu City. Called the Panagtagbo festival, it will be launched on Thursday next week, a day before the Traslacion, the traditional transfer of images of the Sto. Nino and the Virgin Mary from the Basilica del Sto. Niño to Mandaue City for an overnight stay at the National Shrine of St. Joseph. There will be street dancing and a Heritage E...
1/5/2012
GIANTS AT RISK

  Oslob’s friendly whale sharks can be harmed by unregulated tourism     Friendly whale sharks swim up to bancas in Oslob town while fishermen hand-feed them baby shrimps. Since August, the phenomenon has been drawing a steadily growing number of tourists, both local and foreign, to Oslob, 117 kilometers south of Cebu City. “We earn more acting as tourist guides than catching fish,” said 34-year-old fisherman Jeffrey ...
1/5/2012
‘We earn more as shark guides’

        For 34-year-old fisherman Jeffrey Cuerda, the whale sharks have provided him a “more abundant” life for his wife and two high school-age children. Yesterday, he led a CDN team 40 meters away from the seashore to “Fermin,” a male whale shark at least eight feet long. The whale shark, with faded yellow spots on its back, was being fed small shrimps by fishermen so it would not swim away. Two other whale shar...
1/5/2012
More robbery victims show up, claim items

        A day after the arrest of Eduard Teves and Michael “Eric” Reyes, several victims of theft and robbery came forward to claim items recovered by police from the men’s possession. Reyes, 29, and Teves, 28, sons of well-to-do businessmen, signed a waiver of detention yesterday and remained behind bars in the Cebu City Police Office. The suspects were given 10 days to issue a counter-affidavit on the charges of ...
1/5/2012
Visit me for Sinulog aid, Gwen tells city officials

        ASK personally and it shall be given unto them. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia issued this statement in response to a written letter from Cebu City's Sinulog Foundation asking for a P3-million financial assistance to fund the city's annual event. A letter signed by Sinulog Foundation Inc. (SFI) executive director Ricky Ballesteros stated that the amount will be used to fund the activities lined up for the 10-da...
1/5/2012
Council overrides Rama’s budget veto

        AS expected, the Cebu City Council yesterday voted 17 to 1 to override the partial veto of Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama on the city's 2012 budget worth P5.2 billion. The council’s vote means that the P5.2-billion budget for the city will be operational for this year, said Councilor Jose Daluz III. “Overriding the mayor's partial veto means that we are confirming what we have passed .... the budget is now op...
1/5/2012
Journey at dawn today

        Before drumbeats and merrymaking of the Sinulog start, a solemn prayer walk by devotees of the Sto. Niño opens the celebration for Cebu. Thousands of devotees start a novena or nine-day series of prayers with the traditional “Walk with Jesus” at 4 a.m. today. The religious procession will start at Fuente Osmeña to the Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño. “Every annual Fiesta Señor begins with a penitential walk ...
1/5/2012
Gwen to dance as thanksgiving

        Since Cebu was spared from two typhoons last year, Cebu Gov. Gwen Garcia said she is dancing again in the Sinulog to thank the Sto. Niño. “Twice Cebu was in the path of typhoons that suddenly changed course. We are very thankful for that,” she said yesterday. The governor will be dancing with Argao town’s contingent from the La Torta Festival for her eighth year of joining the Sinulog grand parade. Couture...
1/5/2012
Sinulog prizes hiked to P1 million, bleachers on parade route

        The grand prize for the Sinulog dance competition this year has been doubled from P500,000 to P1 million The top cash prize will go to winners of the Sinulog-based category and Free Interpretation category. The subsidy for out-of-town contingents who come to Cebu City to participate in the parade and contest was also increased from P100,000 to P150, 000. The bigger prize money and subsidy aims to encourage...
1/5/2012
Lapu, San Fernando fires displace families

        Kids playing with matches caused two fires that hit Lapu-Lapu City and San Fernando town in Cebu in the past two days. About 20 families were rendered homeless after a fire razed 10 houses and partially damaged four others in sitio Sangi, barangay Pajo, Lapu-Lapu City, yesterday morning. Fire investigator SFO2 Diomet Alburo said the fire broke out after two girls played with matches inside the house of a co...
1/5/2012
Magpale upbeat on Cabinet post for Almendras

        EVEN with his energy department portfolio, Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale yesterday said she believes her brother can still move up the Palace's hierarchy. Magpale made the comment amid reports that Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras is being considered among the candidates for the post of Cabinet secretary by President Benigno Aquino III. “P-Noy must be happy with how he is handling the energy department ....
1/5/2012
‘Authorize Tomas, Cutie on SRP tax case’

        HELP is available to Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama in the city's efforts to seek tax exemption in the disposal of lots for the South Road Properties (SRP). But he must authorize Representatives Tomas Osmeña and and Rachel del Mar of Cebu City's south and north districts, respectively, to speak with President Benigno Aquino III and finance secretary Cesar Purisima on the matter. “Osmeña already had solutions ...
1/4/2012
ROBBERY SUSPECTS FALL

  Well-off young men targetted hotel, said Cebu city police     Being sons of well-off families, they could afford to check in hotels without anyone raising an eyebrow. Police yesterday arrested two scions in connection with a series of thefts in hotels and pension houses in Cebu City believed pulled off by car-riding guests, who would pilfer valuables without being noticed. Eduard Teves, a 28-year-old resident of San...
1/4/2012
Rainfall seen in Cebu, PH for Jan. to March

        Cebu and the rest of the country will experience rainfall at least for the first three months of the year. “The La Niña phenomenon will bring in more rains, and we already gave evacuation warnings to all stakeholders,” said engrineer Oscar Tabada, Mactan chief of the state weather bureau Pagasa. This meant that Cebu residents can expect the onset of the Sinulog revelry starting this week to be rainy. Taba...
1/4/2012
Indigent families lose homes in Lapu demolition

        ABOUT 50 indigent families lost their homes following a court-ordered demolition in sitio Kitchen, barangay Pajo in Lapu-Lapu City at past 9 a.m yesterday. At least 50 police personnel accompanied by 65 members of a demolition crew carried out the demolition order issued by Judge Manuel Sabello of the Lapu-Lapu City Municipal Trial Courts (MTC) last Oct. 26. Most of the families who refused to vacate their ...
1/4/2012
Rama wants two more consultants amid cutdown on casuals

        WHILE cutting down on casual employees, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama wants two more consultants to help him run City Hall operations. One of them was former councilor Edwin Jagmoc whom Rama wanted to be his consultant on public services and barangay affairs. Jagmoc used to be a member of the administration Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan (BO-PK). Rama left the BO-PK after a falling out with the party's foun...
1/4/2012
‘Sto. Niño is magnet of love for devotees’

  Basilica discourages practice of releasing ‘prayer baloons’ By Ador Vincent S. Mayol, Reporter What draws millions of devotees to the Sto. Niño? Fr. Tito Soquiño, OSA, said it's because each devotee has a story to tell about how the Child Jesus touched and changed their lives. “The attractiveness to the Sto. Niño grows over time. You have to talk about millions to be able to get a real picture. If we will summarize it, the S...
1/4/2012
12 groups from out of town to compete in this year’s Sinulog

        Twelve out-of-town contingents will compete in this year's Sinulog Grand Parade on Jan. 15 in Cebu City. Placer, Masbate province, the defending champion of the Free Interpretation (FI) category, will be back with a second contingent to compete in the Sinulog Based (SB) category. Ricky Ballesteros, executive director of the Sinulog Foundation Inc., said other out of-town dance troupes withdrew plans to part...
1/4/2012
Magpale Greg’s bills being settled

        The Vice Governor's Office is now working to settle the unpaid bills amounting to P865,000 of the late vice governor Gregorio Sanchez Jr. Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale said they are now preparing the checks to pay for the bills incurred during the oath-taking ceremony of her predecessor and in the study of his transaxial highway project. “It was not settled immediately because the Commission on Audit has certain ...
1/4/2012
NRA declared off-limits for city garbage transfer

        Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama ordered the suspension of the use of Block 27 of the North Reclamation as transfer station of Cebu City's collected garbage because of the foul smell experienced by the establishments nearby. Rama said he will meet with Councilor Edu Rama Jr., Public Services Committee chairperson and DPS head Dionisio Gualiza to discuss the city's garbage disposal problems. "Our garbage manage...
1/4/2012
DOH, police differ on New Year victim numbers

        THE discrepancy in the number of stray bullet victims recorded by the PNP and the Department of Health during the Christmas and New Year celebrations calls for a closer coordination between the two agencies. DOH-7 Director Susanna Madarieta said they need to work closer together with police authorities because the data that they have are based on the reports from their sentinel sites. In Cebu City, the desi...
1/4/2012
NEWS BRIEFS

        SALARY HIKE FOR CAPITOL WORKERS A 10 to 14 percent salary increase starting this month and an assurance of promotion greeted Capitol employees in yesterday's first General Assembly held at the Capitol Social Hall. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said she hopes the salary increase and promotion will help spur the employees to work harder and “raise the bar and strive for excellence.” "Over here in Cebu, govern...
1/3/2012
MAYOR’S VETO TO FALL?

  City Council sets special session   Unfazed by the mayor's objections to deep budget cuts, the Cebu City Council will convene tomorrow for a special session to discuss his “partial veto.” A two-thirds vote to override Mayor Michael Rama's veto is easily achieved since the council is dominated by his critics. “How do you veto items that no longer exist in the 2012 budget?” asked Councilor Jose Daluz III in an interview....
1/3/2012
More stray bullet victims in Cebu this year 8 cases

      Eight persons were wounded by stray bullets in Cebu during the Christmas and New Year revelry, a sharp rise from last year's two cases, said health officials. The number includes a 50-year-old woman from barangay Tisa, Cebu City, who was walking on the road to her house before midnight of Christmas Day. About the same number of victims from firecrackers were noticed at 45 this year. No arrests were made by police...
1/3/2012
Pagasa testing new rain alert system

        MANILA — Weather officials have begun testing new equipment that can forecast the amount of rainfall brought by weather disturbances and issue more reliable flood warnings in various areas. Dr. Flaviana Hilario, head of the research and development division of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said the rainfall warning system will initially be tested in Metro M...
1/3/2012
Ask Tomas, Cutie’s help in securing SRP tax exemption, mayor urged

    HOW can the Cebu city government do away with paying capital gains tax for selling reclaimed land to SM in 2010? Ask the city’s congressmen to secure a tax exemption. The City Council gave this advice to Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, saying he failed to ask President Benigno Aquino III and Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima for the exemption. “It seems that our mayor has been a failure in saving the city in savings of about...
1/3/2012
Keane, 15 others born on New Year

      An hour and eleven minutes after midnight of Jan. 1, a healthy baby boy was born at the Cebu Puericulture Maternity House Inc. in Cebu City. Baby Keanne Daven is one of the 16 New Year babies born in the maternity house. Weighing 3.3 kilograms, baby Keanne was born via caesarian section to couple Rex and Alicia Gimena. He is the first child of the couple. Rex, 36, admitted he was very worried while Alicia was in...
1/3/2012
Fiesta Señor 2012 set to focus on family values

    This year's Fiesta Señor, the religious roots of the Sinulog festival will center on the family and the Sto. Niño's role as preserver of society's basic social unit. “The call here is to strengthen the family. The family is the very core and center of our society. If it is dismantled, the whole society will also be destroyed,” said Fr. Tito Soquino, OSA. This year’s theme is “Sto. Niño: Refuge of the Filipino Christian fam...
1/3/2012
Council questions nonrenewal of 100 casuals

    WHAT barangay are you from and how long have you been living there? These were just the questions asked from over 100 casual workers of Cebu City Hall who now risk the nonrenewal of their contracts. “It's just the mayor politicking. I don't understand why this is being asked of us,” said one casual worker who requested anonymity after being scheduled for interview yesterday morning. Mayor Michael Rama issued a memorandu...
1/3/2012
Shorter, wider procession route for Sto. Niño

    A SHORTER route with more room to move is planned for the annual religious procession of the Sto. Niño de Cebu on the vesperas of the feast day on Saturday, Jan. 14. “The devotees are disciplined. There is no need to tell people what to do,” said Rev. Fr. Tito Soquino. He said the 5.8-kilometer route for the solemn procession was a shortened a little compared to last year. “We want the procession to pass through the (maj...
1/3/2012
Ombud to probe land tax scam in Balamban town

    The Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas will continue its investigation on the Balamban land tax scam. The Ombudsman’s move came after six months since Cebu Daily News broke the story about the scam. It was published on June 30, 2011. “After a careful reading of the entire letter complaint, the graft investigator found reasonable basis to have this complaint subjected to a fact-finding investigation by this office,” sa...
1/3/2012
Police seize firecrackers in Mandaue, Talisay

      Mandaue City police seized 139 boxes of firecrackers while the Talisay City police confiscated at least P12,000 worth of firecrackers before the New Year’s Eve celebrations last Saturday. Mandaue police confiscated 102 boxes of piccolo, 9 boxes of ciccolo, 27 boxes of tweetis and 2 boxes of assorted firecrackers in A. Del Rosario Street and near the Mandaue public market in barangay Centro. In Talisay City, polic...
1/1/2012
WELCOME THE DRAGON

  2012 lunar year: ‘Fortune, turbulence’     Make sure you have plenty of food on the table and the family is complete when the New Year starts. This is traditional wisdom for Cebuano-Chinese families to start 2012 on the right foot. “At home we make sure to serve many dishes on the table to be shared and enjoyed by everyone in the house,” said Melanie Ng, president of the Philippine Retailers Association Cebu chapter...
1/1/2012
Feng Shui expert sees turbulent year for gov't

        A FENG Shui consultant and expert on Chinese charms warned that the Year of the Water Dragon may usher in a turbulent period for the government. They said the last half of 2012 may be wrought with accusations of and retribution for widespread corruption. Since the dragon symbolizes luck for the Chinese, local fortunetellers agree that the new year would be generally trouble-free for the country, which has ...
1/1/2012
Vice governor vows to push anti-obscenity ordinance

        It will be a busy 2012 for the Provincial Women's Commission (PWC) which will intensify its campaign against perpetrators of violence against women and children. Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale, who co-chairs PWC, said that she would focus on the passage of her sponsored Anti-Obscenity Ordinance and go after those who exploit children in cyberpornography. She cited a recent police report about three boys who ...
1/1/2012
Firecrackers, revelry gunfire injure 200 people

        MANILA — More than 200 people have been injured by illegal firecrackers and celebratory gunfire in the country despite a government scare campaign against reckless New Year revelries, officials said yesterday. Stray bullets wounded eight people and 197 were injured by powerful firecrackers from Dec. 21 to 30, Health Assistant Secretary Enrique Tayag said, adding that more than half of the victims were childr...
1/1/2012
Come, see a baby born

        His fascination for the belen started at age 5 with a gift from his grandfather. Today the collection of Msgr. Cristobal Garcia counts over a hundred sets of the belen or nativity scene from around the world—Germany, England, Pakistan, Spain, France, Poland, Africa, Mexico, the Untied States, Latin America, and Peru, among others. Figurines of the classic stable scene of the baby Jesus with his parents Mary...
1/1/2012
‘NHA policy flip-flop may delay housing project’

        CHANGES in fund release policies of the National Housing Authority will delay implementation of the Cebu City urban poor housing project. Collin Rosell, head of the Department for the Welfare of the Urban Poor (DWUP), said the change in policy in the NHA's P12-million outlay for the development of the city's resettlement site in a mountain barangay expected to accommodate 300 families would cause the delay i...
12/31/2011
‘START 2012 ON TIME’

  Clocks and countdowns set for ‘Juan Time’     Does the New Year come to your neighbor a few minutes ahead or late? How about welcoming 2012 at the exact same time? The Department of Science and Technology is calling on the nation anew to synchronize watches and clocks with Philippine Standard Time (PST) so everybody greets 2012 at the same time. Science Secretary Mario Montejo also appealed to organizers of public...
12/31/2011
Mayor rejects cuts in city budget makes ‘partial veto’ for 2012

        Cebu City enters the new year with a disputed 2012 budget that was approved with a “partial veto” by Mayor Michael Rama. It's the first time a city mayor has resorted to this action. In his note to the City Council on Thursday, the mayor beat a Dec. 31 deadline to approve the P5.2- billion budget but said he was rejecting items that were either reduced or deleted by the legislature. This includes a propose...
12/31/2011
Tom cuts off aid to Cebu City Medical Center

        REP. Tomas Osmeña yesterday announced that he was cutting off aid from his congressional fund to the Cebu City Medical Center (CCMC). His estimated P1-million monthly release to the city hospital will instead go to the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center run by the Department of Health. "Starting today I will no longer give assistance to CCMC and will transfer the funds to Vicente Sotto Hospital. I will ...
12/31/2011
Some rain, some sun for New Year's weekend

        CEBU and Bohol will be overcast with sunny intervals and light rain till Monday, Jan. 2. Then it's sunny periods up to Wednesday, according to the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) in the Visayas. The dominant weather system affecting the country is the northeast monsoon, the tail-end of a cold front and wind convergence. Negros Oriental and Occidental, and...
12/31/2011
‘We need more personnel, equipment’

        The Cebu City Fire Department lacks personnel and equipment, a request made repeatedly to the Cebu City Government. Fire Marshall Aderson Comar said he hopes City Hall will grant his one-year-old request for assistance. An aging fleet of ten firetrucks, most of them 30 years old, was further diminished when four units broke down after intensive firefighting operations for the Dec. 23 inferno in the Gaisano ...
12/31/2011
Two fires damage building, moving car on Osmeña Blvd.

        FIRE last night struck part of a two-story commercial building and destroyed a car in separate incidents in Cebu City within less than an hour. The first fire hit the DOY building along Osmena Boulevard at 8:05 p.m. Smoke billowed from the second floor of the building which housed a water refilling station, a travel agency office and a beauty salon. Senior Supt. Aderson Comar, Cebu City Fire Marshal, in a ...
12/31/2011
Seven people hurt after bus falls into canal in Oslob town

        A sleepy bus driver and six others were injured after he drove a Ceres Bus into a six-foot-deep canal in Oslob town, southern Cebu, yesterday. Driver Nelson Georfo, 38, of Aloguinsan town was negotiating a road curve in sitio Flaminia, barangay Mainit when the accident happened. The bus, with body number 8955 and plate number GXB 727, came from Bato, Samboan town in the southern tip of Cebu and was heading ...
12/31/2011
Terminals checked as people go home for holidays

        WITH the influx of passengers because of the holidays, the Land Transportation Franchising Regulatory Board (LTFRB) 7 inspected different terminals in Cebu City yesterday. At the South Bus Terminal, Ariel Yburan, head of the inspection team, observed that the flow of passengers was orderly. But at the North Bus Terminal in Mandaue City, they arrested drivers of some colorum vehicles. LTFRB also sent teams ...
12/31/2011
Couple continues search for their kids lost in Iligan flood

        TYPHOON victims of Iligan City would have to welcome the New Year looking for their missing loved ones. Among of them are the Morales couple who lost three young children when their house was hit by a big log at the height of Typhoon Sendong. Still hoping to find them alive, spouses Aniano and Chona Morales posted photos of their children—Jasper, 5; Jan Obed, 8; and Joan Eve, 13—on a plywood sheet in the Mi...
12/31/2011
Linggam massage ‘neutralized’

        Cebu city’s anti-indecency campaign had several gains in the past year. “We were quite successful,” said Dr. Lucelle Mercado, chairperson of the Cebu City Anti-Indecency Board (CCAIB). She said the board and its partners were able to “neutralize” the sale of pornographic DVDs, the proliferation of linggam massage spas and the exploitation of minors in various bars. Raids were conducted with law enforcemen...
12/31/2011
Brgy dad admonished for scolding tanod

        THE Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas admonished a barangay councilor who scolded a barangay tanod. Alex Fernandez of barangay San Nicolas, Cebu City, wasn't held liable for misconduct. But he was warned that “the same act may subject him to serious sanctions and with a reminder that he should conduct himself in a manner worthy of a public official even in his private dealings with others.” The case s...
12/30/2011
NO FIRE POWER

  Osmeña asks DILG for help, defends P50-M budget cut for Cebu City fire dep’t     Cebu City fire fighters make do with torn coats and incomplete gear when they respond to fire alarms. “I don't have boots. I just wear rubber shoes,” said FO2 Romeo Birao, 43. Birao said he knows this puts him at risk of getting burned or wounded by broken glass, but that didn't stop him from joining the team that worked for five days t...
12/30/2011
Young to mayor You can veto budget, approve it or let it be

        The Cebu City Council yesterday stood firmly behind the 2012 budget ordinance that was returned by the mayor. This leaves Mayor Michael Rama three options—veto the reduced P5.2-billion budget, approve it or don’t take action. Vice Mayor Augustus Young said the mayor’s request to hold a special session to reconsider the budget was “highly irregular” but that the council convened anyway to discuss it yesterda...
12/30/2011
35 Cebu City barangays under state of calamity

        THE Cebu City Council placed 31 mountain barangays under a state of calamity to speed up the release of aid for the rehabilitation of roads. A state of calamity was also declared in the city's fire-affected barangays of Kalubihan, Tinago, Tejero and Tisa to release relief aid. The city government still has P25 million of its P176-million calamity fund to spend for disaster response, said Alvin Santillana, e...
12/30/2011
New prosecutor to handle plaint against Cebuano tabloids

        A NEW prosecutor will handle the obscenity complaints filed against two Cebuano tabloids. Assistant Provincial Prosecutor Ferdinand Collantes inhibited himself from handling the case filed by the Cebu City Anti-Indecency Board (CCAIB). In his place, Regional State Prosecutor Fernando Gubalane appointed Assistant Provincial Prosecutor Nelia Sistoso. Collantes earlier dismissed the CCAIB's complaint for insu...
12/30/2011
No one saved us, we swam to survive — Pitogo residents

        In the middle of a cold downpour, a couple and their young grandchildren had to swim through gushing six-foot-deep floodwater. “We had no choice but to swim because no one came to rescue us. We didn’t even have rope,” said Rodolfo Papeliero, 58. He was one among 500 families who were affected by Tuesday’s flooding in Consolacion town, north Cebu. He said he was thankful his wife Gloria, 61, and grandchildr...
12/30/2011
Weather analyst Plant trees to address climate change

        PLANT trees. Stop burning rubber and plastic. Alex Padin, weather analyst of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa), gave this advice to address Climate Change. Padin said Monday's downpour was a manifestation of this global phenomenon. “The volume of rainfall has something to do with climate change. The atmosphere has been severely damaged,” said Padin, w...
12/30/2011
Give workers separation pay — SC

        THE Supreme Court (SC) has ordered the Metro Cebu Community Hospital, Inc. (MCCHI) to grant separation pay to 85 laborers who were terminated from their work 15 years ago. But they can’t claim back wages. Although the workers belonged to a group that was not registered with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), the High Court said the private hospital should give what is due to its former employees...
12/30/2011
Permit needed for pyro display

        HOTELS and other business establishments that celebrate the Year's Eve with a fireworks display have to get a permit from the PNP Firearms and Explosives Security Service and Guards (FESSAGS). This reminder was issued yesterday by Sr. Supt. Louie Oppus, deputy regional director for operation of the Police Regional Office. The requirement, which applies to the public, has been overlooked in previous years bu...
12/29/2011
WHY CUT BUDGET?

  Mayor laments loss of P50-M outlay for new fire gear, trucks     With aging fire trucks battling several fire outbreaks in Cebu City, Mayor Michael Rama said he was frustrated with budget cuts. A P20-million outlay to buy firefighting gear and P30 million to improve fire stations was scrapped by the City Council from the city's 2012 budget, which the mayor has returned for a review. “There is a need to set aside a b...
12/29/2011
FLOOD SOLUTIONS

  Consolacion gov’t to dredge river; gov to relocate families   The Cansaga River will be dredged, and Consolacion’s drainage system needs improvement. More than 200 families displaced by flooding will be relocated. These solutions were pledged by Consolacion town and Cebu provincial government officials to prevent a repeat of the flooding that hit the town last Tuesday. More than 200 families were affected in at least th...
12/29/2011
Drowned boy found in Mandaue

    THE body of the boy who was carried away by the strong current of the Butuanon River in Mandaue City during Tuesday’s downpour was found yesterday in Pier 8 of the North Reclamation Area in Mandaue City. A crewman from one of the boats docked in the area saw the floating body of 7-year-old John Lloyd Canete, at 6 a.m. and retrieved it. John Lloyd’s body was turned over to relatives. The boy went for a swim in the Butuanon...
12/29/2011
Pagasa Expect rainy weather on New Year’s Eve

    MANILA — The country can expect rainy weather on the eve of the New Year’s celebration, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said in its Special Weather Outlook report released yesterday. The northeast monsoon, which is bringing cold air from up north in Siberia and China into the country, is likely to bring rains to the eastern parts of the entire country, weather foreca...
12/29/2011
Second fire in barangay Tinago destroys 8 houses

      In a span of 20 minutes, two fires hit Cebu City yesterday afternoon. Eight houses were gutted by the blaze that broke out at 4:48 p.m. in sitio Silangan Dos, barangay Tinago, near the area hit by a big fire just last Tuesday. After 20 minutes, a sari-sari store in barangay Tisa was in flames. It was put under control by fire fighters who went straight from Tinago to Tisa. The Bureau of Fire Protection is invest...
12/29/2011
Firemen spend Christmas battling mall fire ‘Grabe ka kapoy’

      WHILE people celebrated Christmas Day with their families, firefighters of the Bureau of Fire Protection spent it with smoke, soot, and water hoses at the Gasiano Capital South mall fire that took five days to put out. The fire broke out after midnight, two days before Christmas. He said it was his “worst Christmas,” but 27-year-old FOI Phylvenn Elumir said he was still happy to be able to help. “Nindot ug linga...
12/29/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      MIMS replaced THE Cebu provincial government yesterday signed contracts with the agencies that will provide manpower for janitorial, clerical and paramedical services to Capitol. Perfect Clean General Services and LBP Service Corp. and Best Source Professionals Inc. will replace the Mandaue Integrated Manpower Services (MIMS). MIMS contract with Capitol is only up to Dec. 31. Inefficiency and failure to deliver w...
12/29/2011
‘Sendong’ logs rebuild houses of the homeless

      Iligan City — Illegally cut logs that tumbled down the mountains with the flashfloods that killed hundreds of people at the height of Tropical Storm Sendong are now being cut into lumber for the construction of houses for thousands of people displaced by the calamity. The effort is being spearheaded by the city government and the nongovernmental organization Ecosystems Work for Essential Benefits (Ecoweb). Vo...
12/29/2011
5 days, 4 ‘attacks’ to fight Gaisano fire

      It took five days to completely douse the fire that ate up the Gaisano Capital South mall in downtown Cebu City. Cebu City Fire Marshal Aderson Comar declared a “total fire out” at 5:03 a.m. yesterday as his men pulled out of the area. He described step by step how his men attacked the Dec. 23 blaze and the difficulties they faced, including an almost four-hour delay to enter the building because security guards w...
12/28/2011
TOO MUCH RAIN

  Floodwaters surprise Consolacion town and Metro Cebu   Water rose chest-high and partly submerged houses in the northern town of Consolacion, the worst-hit area in reports of flooding in Metro Cebu after a night of continuous rain. The Cansaga River overflowed, displacing five barangays and forcing 500 families to evacuate, said Consolacion Mayor Teresita Alegado. Severe flooding was also reported in parts of cities of C...
12/28/2011
Boulder hits house, 2 kids hurt

    TWO children were injured when a boulder fell from a cliff and hit their bunkhouse in Toledo City yesterday during a heavy downpour. Marvin Pañares, 7 , and his sister Day-day, 8, were sleeping with their parents and other siblings when the incident occurred past 12 midnight in sitio Hayunan, barangay Medya Onse. Marvin broke his left leg and had deep cuts in his other leg. His sister suffered minor head injuries. The hea...
12/28/2011
Wakeup call for Cebu City’s drainage projects

    SEVERE flooding in parts of Cebu City barangays yesterday was a stark reminder of the need to improve the city’s inadequate drainage system, said Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama. "The more reason that we must look for money. We should not say that we do not have money," he said. Rama had proposed a P500-million outlay for drainage projects in the 2012 annual budget , which the City Council reduced to P200 million. Vice Mayo...
12/28/2011
Gaisano Capital South to let go of 800 workers

    Some 800 employees of the burned Gaisano Capital South Mall will begin the year without a job. Eric Labrada, liason officer of the Gaisano Capital Group, said that they will let go of the contractual employees after Dec. 30. “Their contracts will be terminated effective Dec. 30,” Labrada told Cebu Daily News. He said 800 employees are mostly sales assistants and promodisers assigned at the storage department who assist in...
12/28/2011
Sky dumps 4x average rainfall in Cebu

    THE rainfall during Monday’s downpour was four times the average daily volume of rainfall for Cebu. The weather bureau recorded 185.4 millimeters of rain within 24 hours from Dec. 26 to Dec. 27. “The volume of rainfall is above normal. It usually does not exceed 180 millimeters,” said Alice Canasa, weather specialist of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pag-asa). Canasa said ...
12/28/2011
Probe starts after mall fire declared ‘under control’

    AFTER nearly four days, Cebu City firefighters declared the Gaisano Capital South Mall fire “under control” yesterday. This means the fire within the mall's premises was already confined and the fire department can start its assessment, said Cebu City Fire Investigator FO3 Fortunato Bucia. “There is still a smoke underneath the building. It's still too hot to go inside. We still can't penetrate,” said Bucia. The initial d...
12/28/2011
Psychiatrists sent to Negros to help debrief flood victims

    The Department of Health (DOH) 7 sent a team of psychiatrists and psychologists to Negros Oriental to provide psychosocial debriefing for survivors of Typhoon Sendong. “Many people were traumatized by the incident. They need someone to talk to who will also listen to them,” DOH-7 Director Susana Madarieta said. The team left last Monday. DOH will also be taking water samples from affected communities in Negros Oriental t...
12/28/2011
Fire destroys 39 houses in Tinago

    Yesterday's heavy rains didn't stop a fire from razing at least 39 houses, injuring a 35-year-old woman in barangays Tinago and Tejero in Cebu City. The fire started at 2:50 a.m. in the house of 60-year-old Nene Silva. Some residents suspected that Christmas lights in the house were defective, but Silva said she unplugged the lights earlier because of the rains. She said the water may have caused an electrical short in the...
12/28/2011
Electrical misuse is No. 1 cause of fires in Cebu City

      BEWARE of “octopus” connections, substandard Christmas lights and cooking fires that go untended. These are some of the reminders of the Bureau of Fire Penology (BFP) in Cebu City in its daily visits to barangays. In mid-October, Cebu City Fire Marshall Aderson Comar and the Visayan Electric Co. (Veco) launched the fire safety inspectors' barangay visitation program. Handouts remind residents about common causes ...
12/28/2011
Rama to Council Hold special session

      CEBU City Mayor Michael is calling for a special session of the council so barangays affected by flooding can be declared under a state of calamity. Continuous rains last Monday until yesterday were a result of the tail end of a cold front and a low-pressure area in northern Mindanao. Mayor Rama said he also wants the council to again discuss the 2012 budget. Rama said he will return to the City Council the P5.2-...
12/27/2011
CLOSER LOOK

  Fire department sends evidence to Manila arson lab   The remnants of what used to be the receiving area of Gaisano Capitol South mall will be sent to Manila for examination to verify the cause of the fire that struck down the seven-story department store since last Friday. Cebu City Fire Marshall Aderson Comar said they still don't know what caused the fire that broke out inside the mall at past 12 midnight and raged for...
12/27/2011
Cebu steps up aid drive for Sendong survivors

    Don't stop giving or caring for survivors of tropical storm Sendong, Cebu’s chief shepherd urged the Cebuano faithful over the Christmas holiday last week. Palma’s appeal came after Christmas Eve saw private donation drives revved up for survivors of tropical storm Sendong, with more relief aid and equipment on its way today to northern Mindanao from Cebu. “I exhort people to be more caring and sharing,” said Palma in an i...
12/27/2011
Slight rains for Cebu

       IT’S a rainy post-Christmas for Cebu and other areas in Visayas and Mindanao. The Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical Services and Administration (Pagasa) recorded 14.2- millimeters of rain between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. today. But weather observer Mae Kasilagan of Pagasa-Mactan, Cebu said that while the amount of rainfall is still considered moderate, it can still trigger flooding in low-lying areas and a possibl...
12/27/2011
Boy hostage survivor loses right arm

    THE 3-year-old boy held hostage in Toledo City last Thursday has a permanent reminder of what he lost on that fateful day. Doctors who operated on the child had to amputate his arm due to severe cut and blood loss. The boy also sustained a slash in his right arm and right wrist. He spent Christmas confined in the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center and was discharged yesterday. When Cebu Daily News him yesterday, the...
12/27/2011
Delayed allowances for Cebu City scholars

      FOR a week now, Cebu City scholars were visiting Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young's office to claim the P1,000 additional allowance that Mayor Michael Rama promised them. However, only the allowances for students enrolled in four schools—Cebu Technological University, University of Cebu, J. Palma Professional Institute and CBD College—were made available. Young said he pitied the students especially those from the mo...
12/27/2011
Preparations underway for Calungsod sainthood

      After a decade of researching the life of Blessed Pedro Calungsod, Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal is preparing to fly to Rome for the canonization of the first Visayan martyr. “We now look forward to next year, 2012, when the Pope will call all cardinals to a consistory to gather their explicit assent to the canonization of Blessed Pedro. After that, the day we all are waiting for will be announced,” said C...
12/27/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      Simple misconduct A barangay chief of Alegria town in Cebu was found guilty of simple misconduct for mauling a physically challenged woman last year. The Ombudsman-Visayas imposed a one-month and one-day suspension against Maria Theresa Zamora, barangay captain of Legaspi, Alegria, Cebu. However, the suspension was deemed moot due to her reelection. Under the Aguinaldo doctrine, reelection of a public official ...
12/27/2011
DOH WARNS PUBLIC ANEW

    ‘No guns, firecrackers this New Year’ Don't fire guns. Don't use firecrackers to celebrate the New Year. This again is the Department of Health's plea to the public after nine persons were injured by firecracker blasts last Christmas Day while two others were hit by stray bullets in Cebu. Of the nine victims of the firecracker blasts, one has to have a part of his body amputated, said Dr. Susana Madarieta, regional direc...
12/24/2011
MALL FIRE

  1,800 employees worry about jobs     Around 1,800 workers face a bleak Christmas as the shopping mall where they worked in downtown Cebu City was gutted by fire past midnight. A four-hour delay frustrated firemen who were stopped from entering the Gaisano Capital South. The origin of the fire remains unclear. It broke out at 12:42 a.m. when the building was empty. Past 7 p.m., it was still emitting heavy smoke and ...
12/24/2011
Heavy smoke, limited gear and ladders for exhausted firefighters

        IT took firefighters over 12 hours to contain the mall fire . Several skipped breakfast to respond to the early morning alarm. Aside from a delayed start in entering the Gaisano Capital South, they had limited breathing gear for prolonged work in the smoke-filled building and inadequate ladders. “Aso jud among kontra sa sulod. (Our main enemy inside is the smoke),” said FO1 Roger Abalos, who was bathed wit...
12/24/2011
Sendong’s flash floods like an inland tsunami

    Iligan — A part of northern Mindanao devastated by flash floods that killed more than 1,000 people looks like it was hit by a tsunami, a U.N. official said Thursday as he appealed for $28 million in aid for the region. U.N. humanitarian coordinator Soe Nyunt-U voiced concern about possible outbreaks of disease among the thousands living in evacuation centers after their houses were washed away when Dec. 16's typhoon Sendon...
12/24/2011
Capitol scribes dance for flood victims

        INSTEAD of canceling the Christmas party, they celebrated in an unusual way. Reporters and photographers covering the Cebu provincial government held a “money dance”, a ritual usually seen in weddings where guests “pay” for the honor to dance with the bride and groom. A total of P14,080 was raised by guests for victims of typhoon Sendong in the cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garc...
12/24/2011
Last-minute gifts for Cebu’s kids, seniors

        CHILDREN, senior citizens and barangay officials were the recipients of last-minute generosity from Metro Cebu local governments ahead of today's annual Christmas celebration. In Mandaue City, a Mandaue I-Kids Party and Summit Year V was held for indigent children by the Mandaue City Council for the Protection of Children (MCCPC) at the Mandaue City Sports Center. Among the recipients was 10-year-old Anthon...
12/24/2011
For driver, complete family enough to celebrate X’mas

        A chiffon cake to be enjoyed together with his family is more than enough to celebrate Christmas for tricycle driver Emerito Noble, 42. Noble and his family were left homeless by last Sunday's fire in sitio Vito, barangay Banilad, Mandaue City. The fire destroyed at least 39 houses and left 254 families homeless. Noble, who has a wife and three children, said the most important thing is that they will celeb...
12/24/2011
Aussie firm gives noche buena packs to 110 Lapu families

        THE Berdon family shared a pack of sliced bread and soft drinks for “noche buena” last Christmas. Agapito Berdon, 48, said he had no money to buy spaghetti or hotdogs for his five children aged 10 to 25 because he was jobless and paralyzed. A stroke last year left his unable to move his right arm. He could no longer drive a tricycle. “Nalipay ko karon maka kaon na mig lami kay naay ni hatag namo (But I am ...
12/24/2011
Baby Niño to spend X’mas with kid orphans

        He won't remember it years from now but Baby Niño can take comfort in spending Christmas with other child orphans like himself. He was only four days old when he made local headlines last month. His mother, a laundrywoman, pretended she found the baby abandoned in a bus and then handed him over to barangay officials in Sto. Niño, Cebu City, from where he got his name. “It’s very lonely here at Christmas. B...
12/24/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        GARCIA VS OSMEÑA REP. Pablo John Garcia of Cebu's 3rd district said he was being charitable when he welcomed the announcement of former senator John Henry “Sonny” Osmeña that he will run against him in 2013. “When he tried to defeat a Garcia for the past six elections, the first four elections he was at the height of his power as senator so being Christmas, I would like to be charitable and say I welcome...
12/23/2011
KIDS RESCUED FROM CAPTOR

    Jilted carpenter shot down by police; one child injured     A misunderstanding with his live-in partner led a 30-year-old man to seize three children hostage in sitio Danawan, barangay Biga, Lutopan, Toledo City, in Cebu yesterday morning. Allan Bolo was shot dead by a police officer after he grabbed and hacked a 3-year-old boy inside his shanty at 5:30 a.m. He also tied two boys aged 5 years old and 2 years ...
12/23/2011
‘Sendong aftermath can spur relocation’

        The flash floods that ravaged the cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan in northern Mindanao as well as Tanjay and Dumaguete cities in Central Visayas should not result in dislocation of families living in creeks and rivers, a councilor said. Councilor Alvin Dizon said while these occupants should move out of the creeks and rivers, they should be provided relocation sites. "The city has to follow the mandato...
12/23/2011
Slight rains, no typhoon seen this Christmas

        SLIGHT rains will be experienced but it would otherwise be a typhoon-free Christmas, the Mactan office of the state weather bureau Pagasa said yesterday. Pagasa Mactan analyst Boy Artiaga said the country is experiencing wind convergence due to the presence of the northeast monsoon, which remains until February. Artiaga said rainy days in December is normal and expected to be heavier by January. He said t...
12/23/2011
Volunteers ask for coins for Sendong victims

        TUGGING a large water bottle, 22-year-old volunteer Jazel Brigoli diligently asked for coins from random passersby along Fuente Osmeña Circle for victims of Tropical Storm Sendong in the Visayas and Mindanao. “I would just waste my time on Facebook if I stay in our house. I decided to come here instead,” Brigoli told Cebu Daily News. Brigoli is a volunteer of the Federation of Visayas Radio Clubs (FVRC) wh...
12/23/2011
Execs give public tips to stay healthy, safe this Christmas

        Government officials are reminding the public to put their health and safety first as they celebrate the holidays. Dr. Susana Madarieta, regional director of the Department of Health in Central Visayas (DOH-7), said exposure to the cold front with the expected rainy season could lower one’s immune system, especially children. “A low immune system can cause influenza, cough and colds and pneumonia,” Madariet...
12/23/2011
Lapu okays P5.5-M aid for Cagayan de Oro, Iligan

        FINANCIAL assistance for Cagayan de Oro and Iligan City continue to pour in. Yesterday, the Lapu-Lapu City Council approved in a special session the release of P5 million for Cagayan de Oro City and P500,000 for Iligan City. The Cebu provincial government has earlier pledged P5 million each for Cagayan and Iligan cities and P1 million each for Dumaguete City and Tanjay City. The Cebu city government on the...
12/23/2011
Pinoy flight attendants dance again

        MANILA — Who says plane travel can’t be fun? Flight attendants for a low-cost Philippine airline who gained fame by dancing through safety demonstrations are back swaying through the aisles. They’ve swapped the Lady Gaga tunes that made them popular last year for Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You.” Manila-based Cebu Pacific airline says the choreographed dance helps passengers pay more attent...
12/23/2011
Judge recalls order to put on hold SRP sale

        The public auction of the 9.7 hectares of the South Road Properties (SRP) may push through. Regional Trial Court Judge James Stewart Ramon Himalaloan recalled an order that put on hold the sale of the SRP properties. “Considering that (the) pending incidents do not (state) the execution of a final and executory judgement, it being immutable, the order of the court in its omnibus order dated Dec. 9, 2011, is...
12/23/2011
14 nurses hurt in Bakilid road accident

        FOURTEEN nursing graduates who recently took the licensure examinations were injured after the multicab they were riding on flipped when the driver tried to evade a road barrier yesterday dawn. The graduates came from a party to celebrate the success of their board examinations. While traveling along AS Fortuna Street, barangay Bakilid, Mandaue City, the driver, Kristoffer Bryne Paculaba, evaded a plastic ba...
12/23/2011
Sinulog e-book ready for free download online

        Everything about one of the Philippines' grandest festival, Sinulog, will be at the tip of one's finger with “A Guide to Sinulog 2012,” an electronic guidebook launched last week in barangay Pari-an. Smart Communications Inc. and Cebu-based website MyCebu.ph came up with the Sinulog e- guidebook for use in the iPad, iPhone, Kindle, Android phones and tablets and other tablets, e-readers and smartphones. “Th...
12/22/2011
CEBU REACHES OUT

    Local gov’t aid, coffins, water sent to typhoon victims The Cebu City Council yesterday approved the release of P6 million as aid to victims of typhoon Sendong and sent 100 coffins to Cagayan de Oro, along with deodorizers to help bury the dead. The official death toll in the massive flooding topped 1,000 while authorities said they lost count of how many more were missing in one of the worst calamities to hit Mindanao...
12/22/2011
Dad wants to bring home dead wife, son

        A Danao City resident who lost his wife and son in a flash flood in Iligan City hopes that he can transport their remains back home this Christmas. Ricson Mangas is asking for help to transport the remains of his wife Jean and his four-year-old son Kent who visited relatives in Iligan City when tropical storm “Sendong” arrived there. This came amid reports that the death toll rose to 1,200 six days after Tr...
12/22/2011
‘Seek Pedro’s intercession for Sendong victims’

        FILIPINOS are being urged to seek the intercession of soon-to-be saint Pedro Calungsod amid efforts to help the victims of Tropical Storm “Sendong.” “Pray for his intercession, that we may be strengthened at this time of crisis. May his martyrdom for the faith inspire us Filipinos to serve others unconditionally,” said Msgr. Pedro Quitorio, media office director of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Phi...
12/22/2011
More rain seen on Christmas

      MANILA—Even as they reel from the aftermath of Storm Sendong, residents of Mindanao and the Visayas should brace for widespread rain that could trigger flash floods and landslides on Christmas Day, weather forecasters warned yesterday. Luzon would also experience monsoon rains that could endanger Bicol Region on or before Christmas, said the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administrati...
12/22/2011
Gun used in shooting, suicide not licensed

        POLICE said the firearm used by a Maltese national in shooting dead Cebu fashion designer Joy Bernaldez and himself last Dec. 17 was unlicensed. Supt. Rex Derilo, chief of the Firearms and Explosives, Security Agencies and Guards Supervisory Section (FESAGSS), said Joseph Cardona is not on the list of licensed/registered firearm holders. He said the serial number on the .32 caliber revolver (not .22 as earl...
12/22/2011
Pawnshop Tellers rode in car prior to robbery

        Security escorts accompanied three pawnshop employees when they withdrew cash from a nearby bank prior to the Dec. 9 robbery in Toledo City. Manolatte Dinsay, legal counsel of M. Lhuiller’s Visayas and Mindanao operations, said the three employees rode a company vehicle after leaving the bank. “They always ride on a company vehicle,” he said. Dinsay said their security policies were in place and the compa...
12/22/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        AUSTRALIAN FALLS IN MANHOLE An Australian national yesterday went to the mayor's office in Cebu City to complain after falling into a manhole in downtown Manilili Street and injuring his leg. George Sydney Carlsen showed up at City Hall and showed reporters his injured leg. “The Filipino government should be ashamed of themselves ... People from foreign countries come here only to meet this kind of an a...
12/21/2011
‘WE CAN DO MORE’

    P-Noy declares state of national calamity     Cagayan de Oro City— President Aquino yesterday declared a state of national calamity and vowed to mobilize assistance for victims of the worst storm to hit his presidency. "I need to ask myself—Did the government do enough to prevent this kind of a tragedy? I don't think I can accept that we have done everything," Mr. Aquino told evacuees. "I know we could have don...
12/21/2011
Price freeze, no-interest loans

        The state of national calamity has various legal effects. These include imposition of an automatic price freeze in affected areas and "no interest'' loans in government lending agencies. Additional funds will be granted for unforeseen expenditures. Hazard allowances will be released for public health workers. Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said these effects were spelled out in Rep. Act No....
12/21/2011
Pope confirms Pedro Calungsod as 2nd saint

        The Philippines will have its second saint in Blessed Pedro Calungsod. Pope Benedict XVI recently approved the promulgation of decrees for the canonization of Calungsod, a young native of the Visayas region who was killed in the 16th century. No date was announced yet by the Vatican for the canonization rites, which are traditionally held in St. Peter’s Square. The Vatican’s website announced that Calungs...
12/21/2011
Pawnshop robbery suspect dies in shooting

        Police yesterday shot dead one of the suspects tagged in the robbery and murder of an M. Lhuillier pawnshop teller in Toledo City, western Cebu. Noel Anscar Zamora was shot in the right leg before he could aim his .45 pistol at a police agent during a buy-bust operation. Zamora was linked to the P2.5-million daylight robbery of an M. Lhuillier pawnshop teller last Dec. 9. The arrest of two suspects Pable...
12/21/2011
Mandaue fire victims number 254 aid sent

        AT least 254 persons or 49 families and 10 renters were affected by the fire that razed 39 houses in sitio Vito, P. Remedio Street in barangay Banilad, Mandaue City, last Sunday evening. They were given bed mats, tarpaulins, used clothing, towels and kitchen utensils but will need more help to rebuild their lives, said social welfare officer Jeffrey Mirafuentes. City Social Welfare Services (CSWS) chief Vio...
12/21/2011
Airport study for Bogo, Medellin towns pushed

        The Cebu Provincial Board is asking the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) to conduct a feasibility study for an airport in Bogo City or Medellin town in northern Cebu. The proposal of PB Member Joven Mondigo was approved in last Monday's out-of-town PB session in Medellin. Mondigo said it was Jose Ma. Lorenzo Tan, president and CEO of World Wildlife Fund (WWF)-Philippines, who suggested bu...
12/21/2011
‘Threat to have boyfriend deported could have triggered attack’

        CEBU fashion designer Joy Bernaldez had threatened to file charges against her partner Joseph Cardona and to have him deported for injuring her a few weeks ago. Police said that Bernaldez’s threats must have angered Cardona, whom police confirmed was a Maltese national and not an Australian as earlier reported. The threat to deport him could have led to the Dec. 17 fatal attack on the fashion designer, said...
12/21/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        NO LEAVING PH FOR OUANO FORMER barangay captain Jovita “Joy”Ouano of Opao, Mandaue City, could no longer leave the country without seeking the court's permission. Regional Trial Court Judge Gilbert Moises of Branch 18 issued a hold-departure order against Ouano who is facing eight counts of estafa. Ouano, the younger sister of former Mandaue City mayor and now Provincial Board (PB) member Thadeo Ouano, ...
12/20/2011
SITIO ON FIRE

  38 houses gutted in Mandaue city; Sparks came from electric post   At least 38 houses were burned down shortly before midnight in sitio Vito, barangay Banilad, Mandaue City on Monday. “We were only able to save some of our clothes. The rest of our things were lost in the fire. This is probably the saddest Christmas for us,” said resident Dyan Delda. Some residents pointed to sparks in a wooden electric post as the possi...
12/20/2011
Student gets 10 years for mother’s murder

      I know she’s forgiven me.” That’s what 23-year-old nursing student Christian Lucky Dalanguin told reporters after a judge sentenced him yesterday to 10 to 17 years in prison for killing his mother and burying her remains at home in barangay Mambaling, Cebu City, four months ago. Regional Trial Court Judge Gilbert Moises of Branch 18 granted a motion to plea bargain filed by Dalangin’s lawyer. This reduced his off...
12/20/2011
Designer’s death a ‘crime of passion’, says police

    THE Mandaue City police chief said the murder of Cebu designer Joy Bernaldez and the suicide of the boyfriend who shot her was a “crime of passion.” Senior Supt. Noel Gillamac said the case is considered closed as far as identifying the parties responsible. However, Mandaue police are verifying the nationality of Joseph Cardona, the man who shot dead Bernaldez over a relationship gone sour, in her home in Mandaue City Satu...
12/20/2011
Stray bullet victim still in hospital

    THE seminarian who was hit by a stray bullet during a car ambush in Consolacion town remains under observation in a Cebu City hospital a week following the failed attack. Regenald, a sophomore high school student in the Blessed Pope John XXIII Seminary in Mabolo, Cebu City, remains in intensive care after doctors operated on him to remove a bullet in his skull. The bullet entered his forehead and exited his nape. Cebu Dai...
12/20/2011
Cebu officials sending mobile morgue, aid for flood victims

      Material and cash assistance are being sent by Cebu City Hall, the Capitol and the Police Regional Office for the cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan, which were struck hardest by Tropical Storm Sendong over the weekend. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said they will send a mobile morgue via Philippine Span Asia Carrier Corp. to help identify the unclaimed remains of the flooding victims fished from the seawaters of n...
12/20/2011
Death toll at 37 P357-M damages in NegOr

      THE death toll climbed to 37 while damage to infrastructure was pegged at P357 million in Negros Oriental in the wake of Tropical Storm Sendong. Negros Oriental Gov. Roel Degamo appealed for help from neighboring provinces in Central Visayas for hundreds of displaced families. “I am asking Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia and Bohol Gov. Edgar Chatto and the people of Cebu to extend their assistance through the Departmen...
12/20/2011
Gwen miffed No e-Gwen Highway in Medellin

    WHERE are the beautiful highways? Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia voiced displeasure in finding that Medellin town wasn’t implementing the e-Gwen Highway program. Garcia, who visited the town yesterday for a public consultation, got irked when she learned that barangay captains made no effort to beautify the roads. The e-Gwen Highway program aims to promote cleanliness, creativity, and an appreciation of culture and heritage ...
12/20/2011
Family of boy killed by tree receives aid

      THE family of the 10-year-old boy who died after he was pinned down by a buli or palm tree Friday night received financial assistance from Profoods Inc., the owner of the lot where the tree stood. The Mandaue city government will also be giving financial assistance to the family of Antonio Cortes Jr. of barangay Cubacub. Cubacub barangay captain Edgar Bihag said he already submitted a report to the Social Welfare ...
12/20/2011
Barbed-wire fence saves bus passengers

      A barbed-wire perimeter fence saved the lives of nine people on board a minibus at past 2p.m. yesterday in barangay Bawo, Sogod town, north of Cebu. The minibus was bound for Cebu City. The driver, Ondoy Rebuta, lost control when the bus' leaf spring suspension system malfunctioned. The bus swerved to the left side of the road but the barbed-wire fence prevented it from falling into a cliff about 15 feet high. No...
12/20/2011
Lady of Fort’s existence affirmed by UST paper

    A document has validated the historical journey of an image of the Virgin Mary called Our Lady of the Fort in Cebu. The wooden image used to be enshrined in Fort San Pedro in the 16th century. The Spanish document from the University of Santo Tomas titled “La Virgen Maria Denerada en sus Emagenes Filipinas” was written by Fr. Lorenzo Perez O.M. dating back to Dec. 8, 1904. Translated by Azucena Pace into English, the docu...
12/20/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      COMPOSTELA waits for decision COMPOSTELA residents would have to wait a little longer for the Commission on Election (Comelec) to decide on a 2010 election protest that left the town with no mayor and a municipal council. This developed despite Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo's move to ask the Comelec to hasten the decision of the election protest. Interior Regional Director Ananias Villacorta said that Robredo ...
12/19/2011
MURDER AT HOME

  Fashion designer shot dead by Aussie partner     In the morning, she had clothes and personal belongings of her estranged live-in partner taken out of the house in Mandaue City. By evening, Cebu fashion designer Joy Bernaldez, 52, was dead from a gunshot wound in the head fired by Australian national Joseph Cardona, who was waiting for her at home. Cardona, 53, later used the .22 caliber pistol to shoot himself in t...
12/19/2011
How it happened

    THERE were 10 people in the household Saturday night, including Joy Bernaldez's son and two young grandchildren, said police. Bernaldez came home about 6 p.m. Saturday with her driver from her boutique. Joseph Cardona, her Australian partner, was already there waiting for her, said police. The couple argued, but no voices were raised. The Australian went upstairs to the middle guest room, where he turned off the lights a...
12/19/2011
Peers remember designer’s style, passion, inspiration

  Cebu's fashion industry is grieving over the loss of one of its respected designers. But instead of dwelling on how she died, colleagues , friends and patrons of slain designer Joy Bernaldez said they will celebrate her life as a fashion designer and a philanthropist, who inspired fellow designers and colleagues. In the late 1990s Bernaldez founded Clothes for Life, a charitable foundation of designers, stylists, models and make-u...
12/19/2011
Binay gives aid, Aquino to visit storm-hit CDO, Iligan

    MANILA— While Vice President Jejomar Binay flew to Cagayan de Oro City early yesterday morning and handed out relief goods, President Aquino will schedule a visit to the City of Golden Friendship and flood-battered Iligan City this week. Deputy spokesperson Abigail Valtes said the Palace has decided to not yet announce the schedule of the President's "forthcoming" visit since Mr. Aquino wanted national government agencies ...
12/19/2011
Teacher suspended for immoral conduct

   A PUBLIC school teacher was meted an eight-month suspension for living with another woman aside from his wife. The Ombudsman-Visayas said it found sufficient basis to hold Rogelio Tines guilty of “disgraceful and immoral conduct.” Regional Director Recaredo Borgonia of the Department of Education in Central Visayas (DepEd-7) was ordered to enforce the suspension against Tines who works in the Lawa-an Elementary School in Dum...
12/19/2011
Ecleo lawyers win reprieve, ask court to drop charges

    With a promulgation still two months away, the lawyers of cult leader Ruben Ecleo Jr. asked the court last week to clear their client of parricide charges in relation to the death of his wife Alona Bacolod. In a memorandum submitted to the court, defense lawyers Orlando Salatandre and Giovanni Mata believed that the evidence presented against Ecleo is insufficient to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt. Regional Trial Cou...
12/19/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

  Free publication INSTEAD of newspapers, the Medellin municipal government wanted to publish its tax revenue code in the Capitol's official newsletter free of charge. In an interview, Mayor Ricky Ramirez said he wants the Provincial Board (PB) to amend a provision that requires the publication of the revenue code in local dailies of general circulation for three weeks. Ramirez told Cebu Daily News that there are hardly newspapers ...
12/19/2011
Two Paknaan beneficiaries get their dream houses

  The model houses of the first two beneficiaries of the 6.5 hectare relocation site in barangay Pakna-an, Mandaue City were formally turned over to them last Wednesday. Virginia Martel and Danilo Marangga of the Bantayan sa Hari Homeowners Association were given the keys of their housing units. “Dili gyud ko makatuo nga naa ko'y ingon niini ka nindot nga balay og gamay ra og gasto. Dili man ni pang urban poor nga balay, pang urba...
12/19/2011
Drive aims to reduce kids hurt by firecrackers

  With most cases of firecracker related injuries last year coming from the 1-10 age group, the Health Department is intensifying its campaign and partnering with local government units to prevent these injuries from happening this year. Health authorities said there were 330 cases of children injured by fireworks or firecrackers, which made up 34 percent of these kinds of injuries nationwide. Dr. Expedito Medalla, head of the Regio...
12/19/2011
Shop offers green Christmas presents

    THIS modest “mom and pop” store in Cebu City is the perfect place to find green presents for one's loved ones this Christmas. The pink façade of Presents and Such is hard to miss for passersby along Gorordo Avenue in Lahug, Cebu City where owners Rudy and Louella Alix sell various giveaways made from recycled marble powder. “It’s everyone’s duty to care for the environment. With the marble powder, we can design any effect...
12/18/2011
‘WORST STORM’

      Over 250 killed in Mindanao Aquino: Review crisis manual; 22,000 families in evac centers in Cagayan de Oro, Iligan Rescue and relief efforts continued after tropical storm Sendong tore through northern Mindanao, killing at least 256, many of them women and children in Cagayan de Oro and Iligan cities. Officials said it was one of the most destructive calamities in southern Philippines in recent years and struc...
12/18/2011
Fire traps Danao couple at home

        A 30th wedding anniversary celebration of a police officer and his wife turned tragic when they died in a fire that razed their house in Danao City yesterday. SPO2 Felix Banzon Matbagon and his wife Elisa were both trapped in the second floor of their wood and concrete house in Mabini Street. Two others were injured, their daughter Liezel Matbagon Herminanda, who is a public school teacher and husband Anto...
12/18/2011
Boy dies after tree falls on his home

        A 10-YEAR-OLD boy died after he got pinned down by a buli or palm tree that crushed his house in barangay Cubacub, Mandaue City shortly during before 6 p.m. Friday. The 40-foot tree fell as heavy rains and strong winds of Sendong lashed Metro Cebu. Antonio Cortes Jr., died of injuries in his stomach and back. Neighbors rushed him to the Mandaue City Hospital but it was too late. The boy was cleaning their...
12/18/2011
Pray for families, country, Cebuano faithful urged

        CEBUANO families were reminded to pray for happiness and peace in their homes and the rest of the country for the Christmas season. In his homily for the second day of Misa de Gallo, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma said the county is currently “under a dark cloud” of a brewing political crisis in Manila. But he said this should not stop the flock from celebrating Christmas. “Despite our faults, concerns and t...
12/18/2011
‘Let fun runs in Cebu City pay for overtime services’

        Organizers of fun runs and races should be required to pay for the overtime of traffic enforcers who keep traffic at bay to ensure the safety and success of their event, some Cebu City councilors said. Councilor Edgar Labella said organizers should also be required to secure permit from the Cebu City Sports Commission and City Traffic Operations Management (Citom). They should also pay regulatory fees rangi...
12/18/2011
Anti-RH bill opponents cheer delay in passage

        WITH 2011 coming to an end, pro-life advocates have something to cheer about. Dr. Rene Josef Bullecer, Human Life International director, said they are happy that at least the Reproductie Health bill remains pending in Congress. “It is a big celebration,” Bullecer told Cebu Daily News. He admitted that there is a huge chance that the RH bill will be approved next year. “Malacañang has the numbers, the m...
12/18/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        FORTUNA DROPS CONSULTANCY CONTRACT A CONSULTANCY contract was already approved by the Mandaue City Council but former vice mayor Carlo Fortuna is not keen on signing it. The contract for the Mandaue City government's Assets and Properties that was recommended by the Bids and Awards committee (BAC) will run up to one month. The contract was to start on Dec. 1 and end on the 31st for an P18,000 consultanc...
12/18/2011
Cebu City okays yearlong ban on street caroling

        “Mga ate, kuya, magpa music lang mi kadiyot. Ayaw lang mo kahadlok kay dili mi mga kawatan. (Aunties and Uncles, we'll just give you a little music for awhile. Don't be afraid because we're not thieves.)” After their introduction, Jeffrey Purisima, 11, and his 9-year-old friend Guam Heyrosa start singing Christmas carols to passengers of the PUJ they board with hopes of getting coins for a Christmas gift. S...
12/18/2011
Rama vows to complete novena for market funds

        Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said he will complete the nine-day series of dawn masses of the Misa de Gallo and pray for divine aid to finish renovation work on the Carbon market. Rama said he asked President Benigno Aquino III for funding aid to complete the Carbon Market renovation at a cost of P30 million but his request was turned down. "The President said I should apply for a loan,” he said. The Cebu ...
12/17/2011
2T STRANDED BY STORM SENDONG

  Signal number 2 in southern Cebu; storm to exit Sunday     As storm signal number 2 was declared in southern Cebu, nearly 3,000 ship passengers were grounded due to Tropical Storm Sendong yesterday. The storm will exit the country by tomorrow morning. The Cebu Coast Guard yesterday prevented all vessels from leaving to different destinations, including Manila, due to rough seas. Moderate to heavy rains fell in Cebu...
12/17/2011
Cebuanos come in droves for Simbang Gabi

        THOUSANDS of Catholics flocked to various churches in Cebu in yesterday's opening of the nine-day Misa de Gallo, an annual tradition in the runup to Christmas. At the National Shrine of St. Joseph in Mandaue City, parish priest Msgr. Adelito Abella said the celebration honors Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ. He urged the faithful to intensify their devotion to the rosary. Abella said praying the rosary hel...
12/17/2011
Mall project suspended due to abuse

        WORK on a mall project in barangay Basak San Nicolas, Cebu City, was suspended due to “blatant abuse” in its implementation, Mayor Michael Rama said yesterday. Rama said he personally saw how the contractor, Paravisible Construction Co., used part of the sidewalk as stock area for filling materials that obstructed traffic flow. “People now walk using the road. I've asked them to stop construction of their f...
12/17/2011
Car owner admits he’s ambush target

        The car owner whose daughter survived Thursday morning’s ambush in barangay Tayud, Consolacion town, northern Cebu, told police he was the apparent target of two unidentified motorcycle-riding assailants. Chief Insp. Wilbert Parilla, Consolacion police chief, said a personal grudge may be behind the attack, which left the family driver dead. Police said the car owner, 43-year-old Leden Tubongbanua told them...
12/17/2011
Ombud told Probe Cortes

        After filing charges in court against Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes last week, the settlers of Mahiga Creek yesterday lodged an administrative and criminal complaint against him at the Office of the Visayas Ombudsman. Roberto Litaba, president of Philcadan, requested the Ombudsman to investigate Cortes for wasting government funds in buying a lot that is submerged in water. Litaba was referring to the rel...
12/17/2011
Two Poro officials suspended for dishonesty

        TWO local government officials were meted an eight-month suspension without pay for falsifying a public document. The Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas found sufficient basis against barangay captain William Surbano and secretary Consolacion Oteda, both of barangay Altavista, Poro town of Camotes Islands. They were found guilty of less serious dishonesty for stating erroneous statements in the Certific...
12/17/2011
P-Noy gets Cebu group’s backing

        A CEBU group is backing President Benigno Aquino III in his fight against Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona. The Cebu Coalition for People Power Volunteers for Reform yesterday convened to back up Aquino in his row against Corona. Lawyer Democrito Barcenas, the interim chairperson of the group, said they would want to emphasize that they were not entirely against the High Court. “The impeachment (c...
12/17/2011
Corona won’t quit says he won’t make it easy for gov’t

        MANILA — Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona admitted on Thursday that he considered giving up his post to put an end to the criticisms leveled at him by President Aquino and avoid what he said could be a difficult impeachment trial. Addressing the gathering of government lawyers in Manila Hotel, the embattled Corona also disclosed that he thought of inhibiting himself from the cases involving former ...
12/17/2011
Santas find new home in Mandaue

        Tradition has it that Santa Claus lives in the North Pole, but it seems barangay Subangdaku in Mandaue City is also the home of not just one but three Santas. Along Logarta Avenue, Santa Claus is sitting comfortably on a sleigh of painted carton boards pulled by reindeer made of burlap bags. Sheltered under a tree, he holds on to gift-wrapped packages as if ready to give them to passersby. Sitio Upper Malib...
12/16/2011
1 DEAD IN CAR AMBUSH

  Teenage girl in backseat survives     A 40-year-old family driver was killed but the teenage girl in the backseat who was being brought to school was unharmed in yesterday's car ambush in barangay Tayud, Consolacion town, north Cebu. Police have no clear idea yet about the motive behind the roadside attack, which took place past 6 a.m. The driver, Joel Hallazgo, died of several gunshot wounds in the body after two u...
12/16/2011
9-day countdown begins Palma chooses Bantayan

        Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma will celebrate his first Misa de Gallo as Cebu's shepherd in far-flung parishes in Bantayan Island in north Cebu. “He wants to get closer to the people and know all the parishes in Cebu. He will start with the farthest area and eventually go to the closer parishes,” said Msgr. Ildebrando Leyson, the archbishop's secretary. The series of nine dawn Masses that lead up to Christmas ...
12/16/2011
Abandoned baby is a blessing for childless couple

        JOGGERS found her wrapped in three large T-shirts. The newborn baby girl was abandoned in an empty police outpost in Argao town, southern Cebu, Argao, at dawn. Jacqueline Gil told police that she was out jogging with her friend Arlene Sardalla about 5:30 a.m. for their daily exercise when she saw a young woman sitting inside the vacant police outpost in barangay Poblacion near the national highway and Don G...
12/16/2011
De Lima calls Chief Justice a ‘usurper to a public office’

        MANILA — President Aquino's most outspoken Cabinet secretary has come out yet again to shield him from Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona's verbal assault. Unleashing what could be her harshest tirades yet against the chief magistrate yesterday, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima called Corona a "walking constitutional violation" who should be impeached from office since he was "nothing more than a usurp...
12/16/2011
Pilar seeks text votes to win NatGeo contest

        The municipality of Pilar in Camotes Island needs your help in winning an environment-themed contest that will showcase their ecology projects to the world. During yesterday's Weekly Kapihan forum, Pilar Mayor Jesus Fernandez Jr. asked Cebuanos to vote for Pilar town in the Global Solution Search, a contest spearheaded by Rare.org and National Geographic's Solution Search. The winner of the search will rece...
12/16/2011
Court asked Reconsider ruling on tabloids case

        THE Cebu City Anti-Decency Board (CCAIB) won't give up on pursuing its charges against two Cebuano- language tabloids. Its chairman Lucelle Mercado yesterday filed a motion for reconsideration on charges against Sun.Star Superbalita and Banat News whose columns they deemed “obscene.” CCAIB requested Assistant City Prosecutor Ferdinand Collantes to inhibit himself from handling the case. The group is also ...
12/16/2011
Tomas O says he’s free of cancer

        REP. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district can now look forward to a cancer-free Christmas next week. In text messages sent to Cebu Daily News, Osmeña said Dr. Ashish Kamat of the M. D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas declared him “cancer free” after his biannual medical checkup last Wednesday. “It's all good news,” Osmeña quoted Kamat as telling him and wife, Margot, after reading results of...
12/16/2011
Mandaue PUJs, trikes to take new routes starting Sunday

        The Traffic Enforcement Agency of Mandaue (Team) will be conducting a dry run for the new route of public utility jeepneys (PUJs) and tricycles in Mandaue City this Sunday in time for the opening of the new Mandaue City Public Market. Team Director Maj. Edwin Ermac earlier proposed to the City Council a 30-day dry run for the rerouting of PUJs and tricycles that will bring passengers to the new market locate...
12/16/2011
Mahiga settlers seek transfer to upland barangay

        FAMILIES who continue to occupy shanties along the Mahiga Creek in barangay Mabolo asked the Cebu city government to acquire lots in the mountain barangay of Binaliw for a relocation site through the city's specialized housing program. “We already visited all the vacant home lots of the old relocation sites of Cebu City but we all find them more dangerous than our present dwellings along the riverbank easeme...
12/16/2011
Gov’t-owned van figures in dawn road mishap

        An engineer assigned at the Cebu City Engineering Office has a lot of explaining to do after the government-issued vehicle he drove figured in an accident in barangay Lahug, Cebu City, at dawn yesterday. Joel Reston said he came from “roving” activities when the accident occurred. Reston drove a white Mitsubishi van with his wife as passenger. The van bears the official seal of Cebu City. Reston was drivi...
12/16/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        MALABUYOC TOWN COUNCILOR CHARGED WITH BIGAMY   THE OFFICE of the Ombudsman in the Visayas has charged a former municipal councilor with bigamy. Elizabeth Almeida of Malabuyoc, southern Cebu, was accused of contracting a second marriage in 1994 while she was Malabuyoc's municipal councilor although her first marriage wasn't dissolved yet. The anti-graft office found probable cause to elevate the cha...
12/15/2011
CORONA HITS BACK

  Corona: Aquino destroying judiciary with impeach trial     With an impeachment trial looming over his head, Chief Justice Renato Corona came out swinging and accused President Benigno Aquino III of trying to undermine the Supreme Court and the country's judiciary yesterday. With his wife at this side surrounded by a 15-member bench and black-clad court employees and hundreds of supporters, Corona warned that Aquino'...
12/15/2011
Cebu judges divided over Corona impeachment

        Court hearings went on normally in Cebu City and Mandaue City yesterday, a lukewarm response to the travails of Chief Justice Renato Corona in Manila, where court employees showed up in black shirts and staged a “work holiday.” A straw vote conducted on Tuesday showed that Cebu judges were divided, almost down the middle, over the impeachment trial of Corona. The informal survey, held by judges gathered at ...
12/15/2011
Flyover foes ready to go to court if needed

        FLYOVERS are Third World structures that will only create walls within communities and deprive Cebu City of its “charm” as a small community. “That is something worth fighting. That’s what we appeal to the communities,” said urban planner and architect Omar Maxwell Espina during a forum at the St. Theresa's College auditorium yesterday. The forum presented key findings of the Technical Working Group (TWG) o...
12/15/2011
Watch out for ‘camels’ in bry Tinago’s Simbang Gabi

        JULIUS Baraca worked overtime last Tuesday to have his life-size camels ready. With three days to go before dawn Masses start for Simbang Gabi, the animal replicas have to be ready “or else the Three Kings will have to find another way to get to the Cathedral,” Baraca joked. Barangay Tinago is reviving its procession of the Three Kings, a community tradition that originated in the 1960s. Locals fondly call ...
12/15/2011
Bridge parking ordinance, banca ban near posts eyed

        The Metro Cebu Bridge Management Board (MCBMB) asked the Mandaue City Council to pass an ordinance regulating the parking of vehicles under the Marcelo Fernan Bridge. The call came after Regional Maritime Unit (RMU) 7 Chief Police Senior Supt. Eduardo Garado showed a photo of vehicles and vans that parked in the vacant lot under the bridge during a board presentation. Garado said the parking is considered i...
12/15/2011
Council okays cash gift, Rama radio program contract

        ON its last day of session for this year, the Cebu City Council brought some Christmas cheer by approving the P10,000 extra cash gift for City Hall's 4,610 regular and casual employees yesterday. The council approved on first and final reading of Supplemental Budget P46.5 million as requested by Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama. “The amount should be released directly to the employees and not through their ATM ...
12/15/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      DRAINAGE BUDGET APPROVED ABOUT P45 million was set aside by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to repair the drainage facilities along A.S. Fortuna and Hernan Cortes streets in barangay Banilad, Mandaue City. In a press statement, Rep. Gabriel Luis Quisumbing of Cebu's 6th district said he asked the DPWH to repair the drainage system in the flood-prone area as identified by the Mines and Geo Scien...
12/14/2011
CONSCIENCE VOTE

  Majority of Cebuano lawmakers in favor of impeachment     Four Cebuano lawmakers signed the impeachment complaint against Chief Justice Renato Corona, while three chose not to sign and two were on leave. Representatives Rachel Marguerite “Cutie” del Mar of Cebu City's north district, Benhur Salimbangon of Cebu's 4th district, Ramon Red Durano VI of Cebu's 5th district and Gabriel Luis “Luigi” Quisumbing of Cebu’s 6th...
12/14/2011
Church, Cebu officials voice concern over impeachment

        With the wheels of the impeachment process on the grind, the Cebu archdiocese voiced hope that the trial of Chief Justice Renato Corona won't destabilize the country's democracy. Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma said the public should trust the Senate in handling Corona's impeachment trial. “I trust that the Senate would evaluate the merits of the case,” he said. The Senate yesterday received the articles of im...
12/14/2011
Man arrested, charged for illegal recruitment

        CORDOVA police yesterday arrested a former overseas contract worker accused by illegal recruitment in his home in barangay Tagtoy, Naga town, south Cebu. At least 15 people accused 55-year-old Luciano Aliganga of promising them jobs in the US that never materialized in exchange for P15,000 processing payment. Charges of illegal recruitment and estafa were being prepared against him. Police said Aliganga, ...
12/14/2011
Gullas wants son, grandson in House

        After he steps down in 2013, Rep. Eduardo Gullas of Cebu's 1st district said he wants family to replace him in office. In a radio interview, Gullas said he won't support Mimo Osmeña's bid for a congressional seat in the first district despite supporting his father, former Cebu governor Lito Osmeña in the past. “No, I cannot… because I am fielding either my son Didi who incidentally have always demurred (in ...
12/14/2011
Palma Church not covering up for errant parish priest

        CEBU Archbishop Jose Palma said the Church was silent on reports about a Minglanilla parish priest involved in a scandal because it wanted to resolve the case on its terms. He said this doesn't mean that they aren't doing anything to solve the concerns of the parishioners and the acolytes. “I will not tell the world what I'm doing because this is also partly the way things are. It’s not to cover,” Palma sai...
12/14/2011
Cebu City convenes firecracker task force

        The Cebu city government convened on Monday its Task Force “Pabuto” to make sure that firecrackers would only be sold at the designated area, which is a portion of the South Road Properties (SRP) near the Sugbu building. Raquel Arce, market administrator, said that task force members, who include personnel from the city police office, fire department, market, city treasurers office, anti-squatting team and l...
12/14/2011
CA Cebu to tackle SRP ownership case

        THE case involving the sale of the South Road Properties (SRP) is back in Cebu City. The Court of Appeals (CA) in Manila won't handle the case filed by barangay Tinago councilor Joel Garganera that questioned Cebu City's ownership of the SRP. The appellate court in Manila claimed that the case couldn't just be transferred without an order from the Supreme Court, said Associate Justice Gabriel Ingles of Cebu...
12/14/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        CHURCH CHARGED FOR RIGHT OF WAY A COUPLE filed a civil suit against the Cebu archdiocese after one of its priests built a concrete wall along a road that blocked the entrance to their house in barangay Basak Pardo, Cebu City. Named respondents in the civil suit filed by couple Michael and Adora Casey were Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma and Fr. Henry Visitacion of the Holy Cross Parish. The couple filed for in...
12/13/2011
1 Hour Decision

  Cebu solons: Impeach bid too quick   The temporary restraining order (TRO) issued by the Supreme Court on the travel ban against former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo fueled yesterday afternoon's fast-tracked impeachment complaint against Chief Justice Renato Corona. "(President Aquino) was infuriated after the SC issued the TRO. He called me up and told me how he felt bad that the SC was intervening in behalf of Arroy...
12/13/2011
Priest accused of misconduct in retreat, set to face Palma

    The priest accused of engaging in sexual trysts with several women in a Minglanilla parish is on spiritual retreat for more than a month, a church official said yesterday. “He has crossed boundaries. He shouldn't have been there with their company. The people who saw them would really wonder what they were doing,” Fr. Scipio Deligero, moderator of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish, said. When asked if the priest admitted...
12/13/2011
No SRP lot auction, but judge to handle case

      THERE won't be any public auction of the 9.7 hectares of South Road Properties (SRP) lot being developed by Filinvest Land Inc. within the month. This after the heirs of Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos declined to pay the P1.2-billion indemnity bond sought by the developer. As this developed, Regional Trial Court 9RTC) Judge James Stewart Ramon Himalaloan decided to recall his inhibition in relation to cases involving Ceb...
12/13/2011
Charges filed against pawnshop rob suspects

      CHARGES of illegal possession of firearms and drugs were filed against the two men accused of robbing and shooting down an M.Lhuillier pawnshop teller in Toledo City last Friday. Pableto “Pabling” Napoles was charged with robbery with homicide while Tristan Purisima was charged with robbery and illegal drug possession before the Toledo City Prosecutor's Office yesterday. Insp. Bonifacio U. Lucerna, acting Toledo C...
12/13/2011
New CNN Hero ‘very Filipino’

    MANILA—The website described her as "an American woman who has helped thousands of poor Indonesian women have a healthy pregnancy and birth." But to relatives in Baguio City, Robin Lim, the CNN Hero of the Year for 2011, is “very Filipino.” The 54-year-old Filipino-American midwife, fondly called Mother Robin or Ibu Robin, drew applause for her work in the Yayasan Bumi Sehat (Healthy Mother Earth Foundation) health cli...
12/13/2011
CDN’s Mayol bags Justice award

    Cebu Daily News reporter Ador Mayol yesterday won first place in the first ever Justice Award for his reporting on the rescue of children in Cordova town who were victims of online pornography in their own home. Mayol was the winner for the hard news category for his June 2, 2011 front page story “ NBI nabs Cordova couple who ran online porn service at home.” Bernadette Parco of Sun.Star Cebu won in the feature category fo...
12/13/2011
Radaza hits critic, says computers not overpriced

    DESPITE being in crutches, Lapu-Lapu City Rep. Arturo Radaza was in fighting form as he accused a businessman critic of politicking in relation to charges of overpricing computer units during his tenure as mayor. During the Christmas party held for barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) officials at the Hoops Dome yesterday, Radaza reiterated that the computer units allocated for the city's high schools were bought at 2005 ...
12/13/2011
Rama complains on cuts, says ‘it’s not his budget’

      He has yet to receive his official copy of next year’s budget. But Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama already questioned the City Council's decision to slice by more than half his proposed P10.8-billion budget for the city. "Dili man na akong (That's not my) budget," Rama said, referring to the P5.2-billion budget that the council passed last Wednesday. The mayor declined to comment on whether or not he will veto the...
12/13/2011
Mayor wants council to okay cash gifts

    TOMORROW is the Cebu City Council's last session day for the year, but Mayor Michael Rama wants them to approve a supplemental budget for the P10,000 cash gift for each City Hall employee. In yesterday's flag-raising ceremony, Rama said he will give a P10,000 cash gift to the city's 5,000 regular and casual employees in compliance with a directive issued by President Benigno Aquino III. But Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young s...
12/13/2011
Gwen to town officials Monitor coal operators

      Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia has asked the town mayors to closely monitor coal operators in their town. This developed after only five out of 23 coal operators in Cebu province attended and signed an agreement with the Capitol on the implementation of the load limit on the loading and hauling of coal. Garcia got irked by the noncooperation of the 18 other operators. “I thought that we would meet here. We are person...
12/13/2011
Sugbo TV to go national

    SUGBO TV, Cebu province's cable television channel, will now be carried in several cable operating stations in the country. This developed after 12 cable operators signed an agreement yesterday for the national airing of Sugbo TV. Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale said that Cebu, being a premiere province in the country, needs extensive exposure. “I personally feel this partnership is a ‘quantum leap’… better exposure… and be...
12/13/2011
Cops to set up outposts near city churches

    A POLICE outpost near each church in Cebu City and roving motorcycle-riding policemen are among the measures to secure churchgoers, attending the nine-day dawn Masses, which starts this Dec. 16. Chief Insp. Romeo Santander said the members of the Motor-riding Cops Response Unit (MCRU) and the Mobile Patrol Group would patrol city streets and make sure that members of rival gangs in the area wouldn't create trouble. At leas...
12/13/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

  Robbed A 22-YEAR-OLD man suffered a bruised rib and lost his mobile phone worth P2,000 to four robbers inside a passenger jeepney traversing McArthur Boulevard, North Reclamation Area in Cebu City last Sunday night. Alvin Patrick Palaganas, 22, of barangay Lutopan, Toledo City, was riding a jeepney with four other men who later turned out to be robbers. One of the robbers was armed with a gun. Palaganas told police that he tried ...
12/12/2011
Captured

  No P2.5 M cash found from pawnshop robbery suspects   by Rhea Ruth V. Rosell and Norman V. Mendoza, Correspondents Two men suspected of robbing and shooting down a pawnshop teller in Toledo City last week were arrested outside their respective homes last Saturday afternoon. But there was no trace of the P2.5 million the men supposedly robbed from teller Domingo del Pilar, who reportedly withdrew the money from the T...
12/12/2011
Rallos heirs won’t pay bond, unfazed if auction cancelled

  Our case is with City Hall, not Filinvest, say one of the heirs   Barring last minute interventions, the likelihood of a public auction of a 9.7 hectare lot in the South Road Properties (SRP) tomorrow appears dim for the heirs of the Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos. The heirs decided not to pay the P1.2-billion indemnity bond sought by Filinvest Land Inc. Roy Rallos said their counsel found out it inappropriate to yield to the ...
12/12/2011
Minglanilla faithful buck reports of erring parish priest

      LAY ministers and churchgoers in a Minglanilla parish were demoralized over reports that one of their priests was allegedly involved in sexual relations with two young women in their town. They voiced their sentiments even as Msgr Esteban Binghay, episcopal vicar of the Cebu Archdiocese, said the parishioners who made the complaint should have addressed it to the Church and not through media. “They should have dir...
12/12/2011
Cebu mission builds trade ties with Latin America

      An exchange of Sto. Niño images paved the way for what Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia called a fruitful trade mission that she recently led in three Latin American countries. The governor exchanged an image of the Sto. Niño de Cebu with the Niño de Dios de Malloco, the miraculous image of Chile's Malloco region brought by that country's top local officials. “There were no mishaps, nothing untoward happened. When we b...
12/12/2011
Settlers claims invalid, say Mandaue officials

    MANDAUE City Hall dismissed the complaints filed by the Philcadan settlers in relation to the 6.5 relocation site in barangay Paknaan, saying they're not native residents in the area. Cynthia Suico, community affairs officer of the Housing and Urban Development Office (HUDO), said 15 of these settlers in Philcadan, sitio Rosal, Orel Street, barangay Banilad, were already beneficiaries of another relocation site in sitio Pin...
12/12/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      Charges dismissed ADMINISTRATIVE and criminal charges were dismissed against the former regional director of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board in Central Visayas (LTFRB-7) accused of falsifying a public document. In its ruling, the anti-graft office found no sufficient evidence to convict Romulo Bernaldez and records officer Reynaldo Elnar. The complaint was filed by Mayo Perez, the manage...
12/12/2011
Ex-GSIS chief’s case against auditors junked

      The Cebu City trial court dismissed the charges filed by former Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) president and general manager Winston Garcia against four auditors of the Commission on Audit (COA). Both parties agreed to settle the issues. “Plaintiff and defendants, by and through their respective counsel, to this honorable court, jointly and respectfully move to dismiss the complaint and countercalim ...
12/12/2011
Why the belen is better symbol of Christmas

      There is no better symbol of Christmas than the “belen.” Depicting the nativity scene of Jesus Christ in Bethlehem, the belen would remind everyone, especially the poor and the less fortunate, about God's begotten son who took the form of a slave to redeem humanity, said renowned iconographer Louie Nacorda. Nacorda lent a set of his belen collections which he displayed at the Cathedral Museum of Cebu in downtown C...
12/12/2011
Navy men’s lights on Xmas tree bring joy to kids

    IT wasn’t just a usual light-a-tree program that usually happens in hotels and malls. But the sailors and Marines of the Naval Forces Central (Navforcen) had to uproot a live pine tree at the Mactan Benito Ebuen Air Base and replanted it at their headquarters in barangay Looc, Lapu-Lapu City to serve as their Christmas tree for their own light-a-tree program. This was the first time in the Navforcen's 34-year history that...
12/11/2011
CRASH AND BURN

  Plane crash in Parañaque slum kills 14, injures eight people     Manila—What was supposed to be a quiet afternoon in a Parañaque City neighborhood turned into a deadly conflagration. A light cargo plane that had just taken off from the Ninoy Aquino International Airport crashed into a densely populated area and burst into flames. The fire razed over a hundred shanties and killed at least 14 people, including the pilo...
12/11/2011
Inmate’s jail escape caught on camera

        An inmate facing frustrated murder charges escaped from the Cebu City jail in barangay Kalunasan at past 3 a.m. yesterday. The 24-year-old inmate named Arnel Beralde escaped by climbing the second perimeter fence of the facility, said Insp. Manuel dela Peña, deputy warden. The escape was recorded by security cameras. Dela Peña admitted that he noticed a loud thud on the roof at dawn yesterday and later conc...
12/11/2011
Probe sought on erring priest

        THE Cebu Archdiocese ordered an investigation into allegations that a Cebuano priest had sexual relations with a couple of women within the Church compound of a southern Cebu town. Msgr. Esteban Binghay, the episcopal vicar of Cebu's archdiocese, said he received reports about the priest from some of the parishioners. The complaints were raised during a local radio program yesterday morning. Binghay instr...
12/11/2011
Inayawan landfill closed amid start of garbage run

        CEBU City's Inayawan landfill site was closed for dumping as early as 7 a.m. yesterday, signaling the start of garbage delivery runs to the landfill site in Consolacion town. Randy Navarro, head of landfill operations, said the collected garbage from the city's northern and southern barangays were delivered to the landfill facility operated by the Asian Energy Systems Corp. “The landfill is totally closed a...
12/11/2011
Cebuano OFW awardees toil abroad for kids, community

        The dream to provide a good education for his five children pushed 72-year-old Dr. Carlito Astillero to seek greener pastures abroad. “We have to sacrifice, it’s all for the best so we can survive,” said a beaming Astillero, who worked in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, for 31 years. Astillero's family was a recipient of the Model OFW Family of the Year Awards (MOFYA) for the land-based category in Central Visayas in...
12/11/2011
Ordinance to ban caroling in jeepneys pushed

        THE committee on laws of the Cebu City Council approved on first reading a proposed ordinance that prohibits caroling in passenger jeepneys. Councilor Edgar Labella said in a committee report that the ordinance was “legal and valid” under section 16 on the general welfare provision of the Local Government Code. He said it mandates local government units to promote the safety of constituents. Councilor Augu...
12/11/2011
Cops recover bike in pawnshop robbery

        A BLACK motorcycle allegedly used by the suspects who robbed P2.5 million in cash and valuables from an M.Lhuillier pawnshop in Toledo City was recovered by police in barangay Subayon, Toledo City, yesterday. Acting Toledo City police chief Insp. Bonifacio Lucerna said they are coordinating with the Provincial Intelligence Branch (PIB) to locate the suspects of last Friday's robbery that resulted in the deat...
12/11/2011
Tabuelan girls escape from being abducted by woman

        Two girls from Tabuelan town narrowly escaped from a woman who enticed them with money and food to accompany her to Cebu City last Dec.1. The girls, who are sisters, aged 11 and 7, were returned to their parents in Tabuelan town in northwestern Cebu yesterday morning. The sisters had been staying with their relatives in barangay Labangon, Cebu City, since their escape from the woman. Tabuelan police said th...
12/11/2011
‘15 Philcadan settlers beneficiaries of another relocation site’

        THE 15 Philcadan settlers were beneficiaries of another relocation site in Mandaue City and could no longer avail of another 6.5-hectare relocation site in barangay Paknaan. Cynthia Suico, community affairs officer of the Housing and Urban Development Office (HUDO), said these settlers in Philcadan, sitio Rosal, Orel Street, barangay Banilad, Mandaue City, were already beneficiaries of the sitio Pine Tree, b...
12/11/2011
Schools, roads top list of M’daue mayor

        MAYOR Jonas Cortes of Mandaue City vowed to build more schools and prioritize road and drainage rehabilitation next year after the city council approved his P1.6-billion budget uncut last Wednesday. “We have to spend within our means. What is important is our priorities in 2012. Expect more classrooms to be constructed on the lots that we have purchased this year,” Mayor Cortes said, expressing his gratitude...
12/11/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      P300-T BRGY AID AT LEAST 17 barangays of Naga City received a P300,000 check from Capitol yesterday. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia handed over P3.4-million worth of checks to the barangay captains as financial assistance to these barangays. The village chiefs, through their respective resolutions requested to the provincial government financial assistance for the rehabilitation and renovation of their barangay hal...
12/10/2011
NEW AIRPORT + SEA TUNNEL

  Big ideas for Mactan infrastructure pushed by Del Mar, Osmeña     A proposal to relocate the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) to Cordova town is not the only big idea being considered for Mactan island. It would “complement” a proposal by Rep. Rachel Marguerite “Cutie” del Mar and her father Raul to build an underwater tunnel connecting Mactan to mainland Cebu to shorten travel time to the airport. The under...
12/10/2011
Mahiga dwellers to be moved by December

        Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes is bent on moving out families living in danger zones beside the Mahiga Creek before the year ends as the risk of flash floods rises during rainy days. The transfers have been gradually implemented since November, but he admitted that not all 1,200 families can be moved out in December. “It would be a wishful thinking to say we can relocate them all by this month. We did it ...
12/10/2011
Philcadan settlers ask court to stop M’daue demolition

        AN urban poor group opposing the demolition of their houses along the Mahiga Creek is taking various legal actions to stop it. Roberto Letaba, leader of the Philcadan settlers, filed a request with the Office of the Ombudsman to conduct a lifestyle check of Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes. Letaba also applied for a temporary restraining order and injunction with the Regional Trial Court in Mandaue City to s...
12/10/2011
Cebu consortium tops water supply bid

        CEBU Bulk Water Consortium emerged the top bidder during yesterday’s bidding for Cebu province's bulk water supply project. This means the Manila Water Consortium, the original project proponent, has 30 days to match the offer of Cebu Bulk Water Consortium, which was represented yesterday by its vice president Melanchthon Bernil. Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia set Jan. 15 as the deadline for this. Three bidders a...
12/10/2011
Byron’s group, Filinvest reps agree on water conflict terms

        With the intervention of Talisay City Mayor Socrates Fernandez, Filinvest Land Inc. and the Corona del Mar Subdivision (CDMS) homeowners association agreed to turn off water supply for three hours starting today until Dec. 15 to give way to the treatment and maintenance of the water system. Fernandez yesterday mediated between the two warring parties after several tense encounters in the subdivision. The pl...
12/10/2011
‘Law is not just for lawyers’ says book authors

        UNDERSTANDING the essence of the law isn’t a role confined to legal circles. Supreme Court cases involve stories of people, which everyonecan learn from and appreciate. Giving life to these stories in layman’s language, and adding depth by interviewing some of the actors was the challenge of veteran journalists Marites Vitug and Criselda Yabes. “The law is not just for lawyers. It is for everyone,” said Vi...
12/10/2011
Brgy projects to top 2012 LDF

        AID to barangays, road and drainage improvement projects and the development of urban poor housing sites would be given priority in next year's Local Development Fund (LDF) of P870.85 million, which is part of the P5.2-billion 2012 budget. “We cannot prioritize these items because these have long been identified and are needed by the barangays,” said Councilor Margot Osmeña, the council's budget committee ch...
12/9/2011
‘PROTECT UNBORN LIFE’

  Vidal says mothers are entrusted with a divine ‘gift’     All human life must be protected, including the unborn, said Archbishop Emeritus of Cebu Ricardo Cardinal Vidal. He urged the faithful to spare the lives of unborn children from various threats that include abortion and contraception. “Let us always respect the unborn life (which) is the greatest gift that the Lord has given us,” Vidal told reporters after he...
12/9/2011
Palma willing, Vidal reluctant to mediate P-Noy, Corona rift

        Two Cebu-based prelates yesterday were mixed in their response toward calls to mediate between President Benigno Aquino III and Chief Justice Renato Corona if the two leaders request them to. “From my personal point of view, if they will request for mediation, we are willing to do it,” said Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma, chairman of the Catholic Bishop’s Conference of the Philippines (CBCP). For his part, Cebu...
12/9/2011
Tomas says council did well with budget

        IT wasn't what he had in mind, but former mayor and now Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district said the P5.2-billion budget approved by the City Council is better than the P11.8-billion proposed by his predecessor, Mayor Michael Rama. “Rama presented an P11.8-billion budget and the council had to sort out the garbage because (Rama's financial adviser) Ofelia Oliva is a nasty but smart treasurer. So ...
12/9/2011
Gwen ranks 45th in senatorial survey

        CEBU Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia voiced surprise over a Pulse Asia Survey that ranked her ahead of former tourism secretary Joseph “Ace” Durano in the list of senatorial candidates in the 2013 elections. The survey dated last Dec. 7 ranked Garcia no. 45 among 70 personalities seen as potential senatorial candidates. In its website, Pulse Asia ranked Durano on 47th place ahead of Interior and Local Governments Se...
12/9/2011
Three firms eye airport lot

        THREE more real estate developers showed interest in purchasing the 300-hectare lot occupied by the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) in Lapu-Lapu City. MCIA General Manager Nigel Paul Villarete told reporters yesterday that Robinson's Land Corp. faxed him a letter expressing the company's interest in buying the property. He said Ayala Land and Filinvest Land Inc. also sent him e-mails expressing the...
12/9/2011
Cebu City-based gold trader faces tax evasion charges

        A gold trader based in Guadalupe, Cebu City, was charged yesterday in the Department of Justice with evading taxes worth P2.69 billion. The Bureau of Internal Revenue said Junrie Tenorio, who was on the list of traders who have been selling gold to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, was accused by the central bank of selling P3.95-billion worth of gold from 2005 to 2009 without filing any income tax. Tenori...
12/9/2011
Cebu City seniors receive P3,000 cash gift

        ON receiving her P3,000 cash gift, Timothea Mijares immediately shopped for plastic kitchen ware and redeemed a ring from a pawnshop early yesterday morning. Mijares, a resident of barangay Mabolo, also gave P150 to her younger sister Milagros Fernandez. A senior citizen herself, Fernandez had yet to receive the cash gift distributed by the Cebu City government to residents at least 60 years old. Senior ...
12/9/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Rainy week for Cebu CEBU wraps up its week with more rains ahead, the Mactan office of the state weather bureau Pag-asa said yesterday. Pagasa Mactan weather analyst Boy Artiaga said a low pressure area (LPA) in Palawan is affecting the climate in Cebu. “This will last until Sunday," Artiaga said in Visayan. /Correspondent Carmel Loise Matus Mandaue City budget passed THE Mandaue City Council p...
12/9/2011
Drivers urged Report PUJ children carolers

        To stop children from hopping into jeepneys to go caroling this Christmas season, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board in Region 7 issued a memorandum for drivers to report these carolers to authorities. LTFRB-7 Regional Director Ahmed Cuizon said the memorandum aims to ensure that the commuters are safe and not inconvenienced by these carolers. Carolers, mostly children, board jeepneys ...
12/9/2011
Lapu-Lapu budget chief, local registrar to be suspended on Dec. 16 — mayor

        BECAUSE she was needed for the preparation of the budget for next year, Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Paz Radaza did not immediately implement the suspension of Budget Officer Victoria Andoy. Andoy is one of the three personnel who are yet to serve the Ombudsman's suspension order in relation to the overpriced purchase of 470 personal computers in 2005. She and Dr. Cipriano Flores of the Local Civil Registrar will a...
12/9/2011
Jadewell men towed my taxicab, took my earnings, says driver

        AFTER the Mandaue city government rescinded its contract with Jadewell Parking System, more complaints against the towing firm came in. A taxi driver and a former law professor reported to Mandaue City Police Office that Jadewell personnel forcibly towed his taxi and took his earnings last Dec. 1. Antonio Estrella, 66, of Ouano Street, barangay Centro, Mandaue City, told police that at around 11 a.m. on Dec...
12/9/2011
Rep. Garcia says he can prove US lobby claims

        AFTER claiming that some United States firms are lobbying for the passage of the controversial Reproductive Health (RH) bill in Congress, Rep. Pablo Garcia (Cebu 2nd district) said he could prove his claims. He cited the National Security Study Memorandum-200 as his basis. Garcia said that under that study, it was the interest- strategic and economic factors that the population growth of certain countries ...
12/8/2011
SLASHED

  Cebu City Council passes P5.2 billion budget for 2012, less than half the mayor’s request     The Cebu City Council yesterday approved a P5.2-billion budget for the city next year, cutting away more than half of the original wish list of Mayor Michael Rama. Vital outlays were retained for drainage improvement and college scholarships as well as direct financial aid for senior citizens and 80 barangays. Thrown out of...
12/8/2011
Osmeña We can make this budget work

        Councilor Margot Osmeña said the City Council heavily reduced the executive budget because they were uncertain the administration could raise enough money to support it. Mayor Michael Rama submitted his P11.8-billion draft budget on Oct. 14. The council held 10 budget hearings and six settings for city council deliberations to scrutinize it. A P2-billion amount proposed as revenue by the mayor was found “n...
12/8/2011
Ecology group warns against airport transfer

        An international environment watchdog voiced concern over reports on the proposed transfer of the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) to Cordova town, saying the large reclamation needed for this would damage coastal areas. “I don't think it's a good idea. It's more expensive to build because you have to reclaim the land,” said Jose Ma. Lorenzo Tan, vice chairman and CEO of World Wide Fund for Nature-Ph...
12/8/2011
‘Judiciary should deal with criticism’

        THE judiciary should be prepared to deal with criticism of its decisions from the public and counterparts in the executive department. Associate Justice Gabriel Ingles of the Court of Appeals-Cebu City station said this in light of President Benigno Aquino III's recent tirades against Chief Justice Renato Corona in a speech at a criminal justice summit last Monday. “We in the judiciary should always be open...
12/8/2011
Byron ‘arrests’ Filinvest plumber conflict revived

        The “citizen's arrest” of a plumber yesterday revived attention to complaints of homeowners of Corona del Mar Subdivision in Talisay City, where Byron Garcia said the developer was switching off water supply from 12 midnight to 4 a.m. The younger brother of Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said he performed a “citizen's arrest” and turned over 28-year-old Michael Almanzor to the police after the plumber was caught...
12/8/2011
Kenyan to testify on drug charges

        A COURT denied a Kenyan national's request to dismiss the illegal drug charges filed against her yesterday. Regional Trial Court Judge Toribio Quiwag of Branch 27 in Lapu-Lapu City said he wants to hear the side of Asha Atieno Ogutu, who got arrested at the Mactan Cebu International Airport for purportedly transporting drugs last Sept. 29. Ogutu will testify in court on Dec. 14. During yesterday's court pro...
12/8/2011
Overpriced PCs deemed useful by Lapu schools

        THEIR purchase may have been questionable but the computer sets delivered by the Lapu-Lapu City government to its public high schools in 2005 were deemed beneficial by students and teachers alike. Archimedes Dampor, school principal of the Mactan National High School, said about 30 units of computers are being used during classes for third and fourth year students. Teachers also use the computers in computi...
12/8/2011
DepEd K+12 next year

        Despite the lack of classrooms, teachers and textbooks, the Department of Education is determined to implement the K+12 program next year. Education Secretary Armin Luistro said that they are prepared to push through with the program and are finalizing the needed textbooks and classrooms. “That’s why we gradually implement it so we can prepare and provide the needs of the students,” he told reporters in an ...
12/8/2011
Rallos claims ‘unfounded’ say Cebu City Hall

        CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama is seeking the dismissal of the indirect contempt and violation of the subjudice rule charges filed by one of the heirs of Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos. In its pleading, the mayor claimed that the allegations of Lucina Rallos are “unfounded and misplaced.” Also included in the petition as respondents were Cebu Daily News publisher Eileen Mangubat and chief of reporters Doris Bongcac....
12/8/2011
28 fishermen arrested

        TWENTY-EIGHT fishermen, including the crew of a commercial fishing vessel, were arrested for illegal fishing off Tañon Strait in San Remegio town, northern Cebu. Police said members of the Bantay Dagat team spotted FB Rodjard’s crew engaged in purse seine fishing in municipal waters within 15 kilometers from the shoreline about midnight yesterday. The crew members were casting large fishnets in the sea whe...
12/8/2011
Traffic study done, flyover road widening under way

        A TRAFFIC volume study was already completed and preparations are under way for the road widening of MJ Cuenco and Gorordo Avenue, where two flyovers are proposed, said the Department of Public Works and Highways in Central Visayas (DPWH-7). Marie Nellama, DPWH- 7 spokesperson, said traffic management personnel from Manila conducted a 16-hour traffic volume count, intersection analysis and cost benefit ratio...
12/8/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        LANDFILL CLOSURE EFFECTIVE Dec. 10, dumping of garbage at the Inayawan Sanitary Landfill will be prohibited. Mayor Michael Rama yesterday signed the cessation order that signals the stoppage of the operation of the landfill. Disposal of the city's garbage will be in a private facility in barangay Pulog of Consolacion town. “Following the order, the Department of Public Services (DPS) and all entities in...
12/7/2011
‘SPARE P-NOY LOCAL WOES’

  Flyover issue needs ‘objective’ decision - DILG Secretary     When suspended flyovers in Cebu draw the attention of a busy President, a “local” conflict becomes a state concern. But the choice of whether to build more flyovers in Cebu City should be based on an “objective” decision that is resolved by parties on the ground, said Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo yesterday. In a talk with reporters in Cebu, he...
12/7/2011
Church willing to mediate between Noynoy, Corona

        Catholic bishops yesterday said the Church was willing to mediate between President Aquino III and the Supreme Court led by Chief Justice Renato Corona in the wake of last Monday's tirade at a national criminal justice summit. "The bishops are capable of doing that especially those bishops who have more ascendancy," said Sorsogon Bishop Arturo Bastes over the Church-run Radio Veritas. Bastes said the bish...
12/7/2011
2012 Sinulog to show Cebu’s creative goods

        PREPARATIONS for next year's Sinulog are underway, this time highlighting Cebu City’s two-year status as an “Asean city of culture”. Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez Jr. sent word he would be attending the Cebu festival. Sinulog Foundation executive director Ricky Ballesteros said they will operate on the same P2.5 million budget. “The dancers will perform around the featured furniture and other creative pr...
12/7/2011
Judge inspects creek site settlers ask demolition stay

        A judge handling a demolition case involving 16 settlers of Magtalisay Creek inspected the site yesterday. Regional Trial Court Judge Soliver Peras yesterday visited sitio Magtalisay in barangay Mabolo, Cebu City where settlers filed a lawsuit against Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama and another official who ordered the demolition of their shanties. The settlers sought a temporary restraining order on the demo...
12/7/2011
LGUs with housekeeping seal to earn support fund

        ONLY local government units who received a seal of “good housekeeping” can avail of the government's P6.5 billion support fund to augment their reduced Internal Revenue Allotments (IRA). In an interview, Interior and Local Governments Secretary Jesse Robredo said their agency and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) agreed that the support fund will be based on merit, not entitlement. “The seal req...
12/7/2011
No cash gift, only raffle for brgy execs

        AS a parting shot, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said each barangay councilor will receive a P20,000 cash gift before Christmas during last Saturday's general assembly of the Barangay Councilors League of the Philippines. Holding him to his word, the city's barangay councilors visited Rama's office to claim their cash gift only to be disappointed. Philip Zafra, the mayor's chief of staff, told the councilo...
12/7/2011
DILG assures resolution of Gwen-Greg case

        SECRETARY Jesse Robredo of the Department of Interior and Local Government assured this office would resolve the usurpation of authority case against Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia soon. However, he could not give a definite answer when reporters asked if the case would be resolved before the year ends. Robredo was in Cebu to attend the general assembly of the League of the Municipalities in the Philippines (LM...
12/7/2011
Powers of anti-obscenity board ‘violate the law’

        Even with the makeover of the proposed Anti-Tabloid Ordinance into an “Anti-Obscenity” measure, it still did not get the nod of the multi-sector Cebu Citizen's Press Council (CCPC). The CCPC yesterday said two provisions on the powers of a proposed Anti-Obscenity Board of Cebu prvoince violate Constitutional mandates on press freedom and property rights. During its quarterly en banc meeting, the CCPC passe...
12/7/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        POLICE ASSIST PROBE ON GUN PARTS THE Firearms Explosives Security Agency and Guards Supervisory Section (FESAGSS) of the Police Regional Office (PRO) in Central Visayas is helping to track down the real owner of the gun shipment from California. FESAGSS chief Supt. Rex Derilo said his office is closely coordinating with the Bureau of Customs on the matter. “We are closely monitoring and coordinating with...
12/6/2011
WAS PENALTY CARRIED OUT?

    Lapu mayor, DepEd told to account for suspended workers     The Ombudsman-Visayas is checking whether its order to suspend 18 Lapu-Lapu City officials for six months for their involvement in the 2005 overpriced purchase of 470 personal computers has been carried out. The anti-graft office has yet to receive written confirmation from the Lapu-Lapu City government about its compliance with the order issued last Jul...
12/6/2011
Lagman, RH bill proponents dismiss Garcia funding claim

  House Minority Leader Edcel Lagman dismissed as an "old yarn" a claim by Rep. Pablo Garcia of Cebu’s 2nd district that the Reproductive Health (RH) bill is being bankrolled by a P20 million to P50 million lobby from Washington. Lagman said the move was meant to "bait RH advocates to protracted and repetitive debates in order to further delay the passage of the RH bill.” He said there were no takers because Garcia's ploy “was too...
12/6/2011
Municipal mayors keep mum on Arroyo detention

    MOST municipal mayors kept their opinions to themselves about the troubles of former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. During the assembly of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP) National Chapter at the Cebu International Convention Center, top officials said Arroyo's fate is best resolved in the courts. Their silence came amid reports that a Pasay City court allowed Arroyo, now Pampanga legislator, to r...
12/6/2011
Cebuano buyers wary on toxic toys

  With the onset of the holiday season, most Cebuanos remain unaware about the presence of toxic toys in the market. “I won’t buy toys anymore because I don’t know where they came from,” said 28-year-old Leonila Baco. Baco said this after hearing a Department of Health (DOH) advisory on toxic toys. Judith Margallo, a 35-year-old mother of three had become wary after hearing about the advisory, particularly toys made in Taiwan. She...
12/6/2011
City allots P25M to provide shelter to homeless people

  The Cebu City government will be working on giving its homeless people a decent shelter above their heads in the next five years. Councilor Alvin Dizon, housing committee chairman, said yesterday the city government would start this vision by appropriating P25 million in the 2012 budget for the improvement of urban poor housing sites. Another P10 million will be allocated for the establishment of shelter sheds especially for the v...
12/6/2011
Downtown food stalls set to be destroyed, transferred

    SOME food stalls or parts of these stalls along Zamora, Legaspi and D. Jakosalem Streets in Cebu City will be demolished so that the stall vendors will follow the imposed stall dimensions. Cebu City's Squatters Prevention, Elimination and Encroachment Division (Speed) yesterday, however, only managed to demolish some structures which encroached on the sidewalk along Legaspi Street. The Garbo Asenso Sumbanan Alyansa (GASA)...
12/6/2011
‘City’s urban poor groups oppose Ciudad’

    OFFICIALS of the different urban poor groups in Cebu City yesterday corrected reports that they supported the Ciudad project proposed in barangay Apas. The group, which consists of the umbrella organization, Urban Poor Alliance - Cebu, passed a manifesto against the project. "We espouse that government should solve our land tenurial issues first before this development is allowed to sprout," said their one-page manifesto...
12/6/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

  Towing deal DESPITE rescinding the contract of Jadewell Parking Systems Services, the Mandaue City Government still allowed the towing firm to continue its operation. Lawyer James Jamaal Calipayan, executive secretary of Mayor Jonas Cortes said the traffic situation of the city will suffer if they don't allow Jadewell to continue its operation. Calipayan said the city has not issued the actual rescission yet which means Jadewell ...
12/6/2011
Firm claims being used to ship out gun parts

  The owner of the firm that was named consignee of the mis-declared shipment from California came out last Friday to clear his name and his company. Nazario R. Canono, owner of D' Golden House Trading Co., visited the Bureau of Customs and told BOC District Collector Ronnie Silvestre that his company was just used as the consignee of the shipment. D' Golden House Trading Co. at Bacalla Compound, Holy Name Street in barangay Mabolo ...
12/6/2011
PB en banc to handle case against Loot

  THERE will be no special committee of the Cebu Provincial Board that will handle the administrative complaint against Daanbantayan Mayor Ma. Luisa Loot. During yesterday's session, PB Member Joven Mondigo, who chairs the committee on complaints and investigations, recommended that the complaint be tackled by the PB board. Mondigo said there are issues such as health and sanitation that is intertwined in the complaint. Mondigo's...
12/5/2011
‘LIKE DAD, I’LL MOVE AIRPORT’

  Tom upbeat on gaining transfer support   The 95th birth anniversary of his father Don Sergio Osmeña Jr. yesterday served as the platform for Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district to reaffirm his commitment to transfer the Mactan Cebu International Airport to Cordova town. The congressman reiterated this in response to a speech by City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete about his father's contributions to Cebu City...
12/5/2011
Cebu, Central Visayas to lead tourism push in PH–Jimenez

  Tourism stakeholders push for Buhisan Dam eco-tourism project Cebu will be one of the “areas of inspiration” for development in the country next year, Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez Jr. said over the weekend. “Central Visayas is a great area of inspiration. It is a primary example of what we can do and what more can be done for other regions,” Jimenez said in last week's awarding of the 1st Asian Underwater Federation Photogr...
12/5/2011
Garcia claims US lobby for RH bill

      THE oldest lawmaker in Congress has accused his colleagues of being bankrolled by a huge US lobby in pushing for the adoption of a population control measure in Congress. The privilege speech of 86-year-old Cebu Rep. Pablo Garcia, in which he claimed the existence of a P20 million to P50 million lobby fund for the passage of the reproductive health (RH) bill had prompted one of its proponents, Bayan Muna party-list...
12/5/2011
Work first before politics, Rama asks barangay execs

  Despite breaking away from them, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama called on officials affiliated with the administration Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan (BO-PK) to support his programs. Their political differences, he said, can wait until the 2013 election. “Whatever is going to happen, thy will be done. Nobody of us knows what will transpire (in the election),” Rama said. Rama met Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district and t...
12/5/2011
Barangay officials to receive allowances

  CEBU City barangay captains and councilors will start receiving their P5,000 and P3,000 financial aid from the city starting this week. But Mayor Michael Rama said the city can only release the funds computed starting September when the City Council passed the P28 million appropriation for the allowances as part of Supplemental Budget 2. Rama said he was still uncertain if the release of retroacted allowances computed starting la...
12/5/2011
DOH urges public to monitor presence of toxic toys

  HEALTH authorities yesterday warned parents not to buy cheap toys that contain high levels of toxic paints and chemicals. “We can't check all the toys in the market since we lack personnel. The public should be vigilant in looking out against it,” said Regional Director Dr. Susana Madarieta of the Department of Health in Central Visayas (DOH-7). Madarieta said they only have one staffer assigned in their health devices and techno...
12/5/2011
‘New Mass translation to be used in PH in 2012 yet’

    Even if some countries had already started using it, the new translation of the Mass will still be implemented in the country on Dec. 2, 2012 yet. Msgr. Cristobal Garcia, chairman on Worship of the Archdiocese of Cebu, said the clergy of the Roman Catholic Church here would need at least a year to come up with cheaper reproductions of the new translation as well as to insert local liturgical celebrations like the Mass of t...
12/5/2011
CA affirms Carcar water case ruling

    THE Court of Appeals (CA) has affirmed a ruling which dismissed the case filed by Barili Vice Mayor Marlon Garcia against the Carcar Water District. In his ruling, Associate Justice Edgardo delos Santos found no sufficient reasons to reverse the ruling of the Regional Trial Court in junking Garcia's case. “After a painstaking review of the record of the case, the Court finds the appeal to be bereft of merit,” said Delos S...
12/5/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

  Urban Poor Week CEBU City's marginalized sector should not be overlooked in creating public policies, a city councilor said yesterday. Cebu City councilor Alvin Dizon, chairman on the Committee on Housing, gave this statement as he led the celebration of the Urban Poor Solidarity Week yesterday at the Plaza Sugbo. The celebration was organized by the Division for Welfare of the Urban Poor which is under the Cebu City Mayor's Offi...
12/4/2011
SY CAN I BUY AIR BASE?

  SM tycoon keen to buy military air base as well as Mactan airport lot     Businessman Henry Sy has bigger plans for Lapu-Lapu City. Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district said the Sy family not only wants to acquire the property of Mactan Cebu Internal Airport (MCIA) lot but also that of the nearby Benito Ebuen Air Base lot. He said the SM tycoon already had the airport lot appraised before he wrote airport...
12/4/2011
Mayor Rama calls for lineup for 2013 reelection bid

        It’s still a year and a half away to election season but this early, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama is asking barangay officials to endorse candidates for his lineup. During yesterday's barangay assembly held at the Waterfront Hotel and Casino barangay Lahug, Cebu City, Rama told barangay officials to each pick one candidate from the north and south for his lineup. "When political complexities set in, I will ...
12/4/2011
Insurance firm says Ralloses need P12-M bond

        THE heirs of Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos need not pay the P1.2-billion indemnity bond to facilitate the auction of the 9.7-hectare lot being developed by Filinvest Land Inc. in the South Road Properties (SRP). Pat Navarro of the United Coconut Planters Bank (UCPB) General Insurance said the Ralloses need “only pay” P12 million as premium and tax expenses amounting to P3 million for a surety bond. The amount rep...
12/4/2011
Fuente O tree cheers city folks

        Setting up the 120-foot Christmas tree in the middle of the Fuente Osmeña circle has become a tradition that Cebuanos look forward to in the 16 years that the Pasko sa Sugbo has been celebrated in Cebu City. The ritual of lighting up the giant tree, sponsored by the M. Lhuilier pawnshop chain, takes place every Dec. 1. A fireworks display capped the kickoff and opened a series of nightly cultural shows at t...
12/4/2011
Group Cebu green code should push clean energy

        Cebu's Environment Code proposed a lot of work specifically in the area of energy use and development, an ecology group said yesterday. Vince Cinches, Cebu coordinator of 350.org, said the code needs an “intensive mechanism” that encourages renewable energy use, promotion and development in recognition of international environment agreements. “We asked Provincial Board member Thadeo Ouano to give us time. W...
12/4/2011
Ciudad developer told to resubmit ECC papers

        THE developer of the Capitol's Ciudad project in Cebu City was cleared to proceed but was told to modify its application for an environmental compliance certificate (ECC). The Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Central Visayas (DENR-7) said the documents submitted by Fifth Avenue Property Development Corp. were intended only for an Initial Environment Examination (IEE). DENR Regional Directo...
12/4/2011
Rafi helps poor housewives earn

        Eleven years ago, some of them lived in huts. Today, they have their own modest dream homes. Fifty-two-year-old Susana Tangle from barangay Mainit, Naga City, said her her small business as a vegetable dealer was the key to her financial stability. Tangle is one of the 15,000 member-clients of the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. (Rafi) Micro Finance Program who have benefited from their financial services for...
12/4/2011
Pay taxes, cut red tape, says mayor

        Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama last night asked businesses to pay the correct taxes and be ready to "pay more.” In turn, he promised that his administration would spend tax collection on services, reduce red tape, and reduce processing time for the renewal and application of business permits to 30 minutes. "Can we do this Ofelia (Oliva)? Emma (Villarete)?" Rama directed his challenge to cut red tape in bus...
12/4/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Luigi warns on toxic toys A HOUSE resolution filed by Rep. Luis Gabriel Quisumbing of Cebu's 6th district called for an inquiry into the presence of cheap toys and accessories in the market that contain toxic amounts of lead and cadmium. In his resolution, Quisumbing called on the congressional health committee to lead the investigation and the Department of Health to issue a health advisory to educate co...
12/3/2011
PACQUIAO GAME FOR SRP AUCTION

  But Cebu City Hall says People’s Champ can face charges     Saranggani Rep. and People's Champ Manny Pacquiao will join a public auction of the 9.7-hectare lot in the South Road Properties (SRP) if it pushes through on Dec. 13, a Cebu confidant of the champion said yesterday. Rex “Wakee” Salud, a boxing promoter, said the world's pound-for-pound king will “surely love to join the auction” if the court-ordered auction...
12/3/2011
‘Airport lot offer needs review’

        The costs of building a new airport and the revenue from selling the existing airport lot in Lapu-Lapu City should be studied in relation to SM's proposal. General manager Nigel Paul Villarete of the Mactan Cebu International Airport Authority (MCIAA) said the airport lot and its infrastructure have an assessed value of at least P6 billion. But its market value could reach P30 billion or five times its ass...
12/3/2011
Rama’s former advisor nabbed by police at home

    A FORMER consultant of Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama was arrested by Cebu City police at his home in barangay Punta Princesa at past noon yesterday. A seemingly relaxed Romeo Cordova posted a P10,000 bail after being brought to the Palace of Justice at past 4 p.m. on charges of usurpation of authority filed against him by Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district. Clad in a striped long sleeve polo, Cordova declined...
12/3/2011
Lito O’s son mulls 2013 run

        THE eldest son of former Cebu governor Emilio “Lito” Osmeña signified his intention to run in the 2013 elections. But Lito himself hinted a possible comeback in Talisay City if his son goes up against the Gullases in Cebu's 1st district. Mariano Antonio “Mimo” Osmeña has at least four options on what position he will be seeking, his father said: for mayor in Cebu City, governor in Cebu, congressional seat...
12/3/2011
Bullet in the chest ends life of kid, his dream to be a cop

        Who knows? He could have grown up to become a policeman. But 9-year-old Jasper Ceniza will never grow up to fulfill his dream after he was killed last Wednesday night when a neighbor strafed their house in barangay Guba, Cebu City. “Ganahan siya mag pulis, pero ako siya gi-ingnan nga ayaw lang pag pulis kay kuyaw na (Jasper wanted to be a cop, but I told him that it's a risky job),” said Cristina Ceniza, Jas...
12/3/2011
Tom tells public Check developer’s background

        REP. Tomas Osmeña (Cebu City south district) yesterday urged the public to look at the background of the real property developer of the Ciudad project. Osmeña gave this advice during the open forum of yesterday's public hearing on the Ciudad project in barangay Apas, Cebu City. Osmeña warned the public about the sincerity of the Dino family, who owns Fifth Avenue Development Corp., the Ciudad project develo...
12/3/2011
Mandaue truck ban ordinance to be amended

        TRUCKS weighing from 4,500 tons up won't be allowed to pass major thoroughfares in Mandaue City during traffic peak hours once the old truck ban ordinance will be amended. The Mandaue City Council is set to amend some of the provisions of the truck ban ordinance that was approved in 1986. Traffic Enforcement Agency of Mandaue director Edwin Ermac said the proposed amendment would increase the scope of the t...
12/3/2011
VP Binay’s wife’s trip okayed despite raps

        The wife of vice president Jejomar Binay has something to cheer about as she visited Cebu City yesterday. The Sandiganbayan granted the motion to travel abroad filed by Elenita Binay although she was still facing charges in relation to the controversial purchase of overpriced furniture and other office fixtures. Elenita's pleading was heard at the Palace of Justice here where a division of the anti-graft c...
12/3/2011
Assistance for scholars, senior citizens won’t be cut — City Council

        COUNCILOR Margot Osmeña yesterday assured senior citizens, city scholars and barangay workers that the outlay for their assistance would continue and wouldn't be included in the cuts in the proposed P11.8-billion executive budget. Osmeña, the council's budget committee chairperson, said the council would only slash the “not so important” appropriations, like the proposed purchase of about 200 brand-new vehic...
12/3/2011
Loot files plaints vs 2 Capitol lawyers

        Daanbantayan Mayor Ma. Luisa Loot filed a complaint against two lawyers of the Cebu provincial government for giving “unwarranted benefits, advantage, or preference” to cemeteries that were allegedly operating illegally. Loot requested the Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas to hold Provincial attorney Marino Martinquilla and legal officer Ritchie Capahi liable for violating Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-...
12/2/2011
‘NOT THIS TIME, TOM’

  Rama says selling airport lot is ‘like auctioning SRP’     As if flyover projects weren't enough, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama had another issue to pick with his erstwhile political benefactor, Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district yesterday. Rama said the congressman's announcement about SM's offer to buy the 300-hectare lot occupied by the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) is “unpalatable” to busin...
12/2/2011
Palma, Vidal backing GMA hospital arrest

        He had barely warmed his seat as president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines and already Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma had to speak out on the ongoing sociopolitical saga that is former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. Palma and his predecessor Ricardo Cardinal Vidal welcomed the reported transfer of Arroyo to Veterans Memorial Medical Center, a government-owned hospital. Palma called on...
12/2/2011
Vidal asked to head CBCP groups

        IN assuming his new role as president of the influential Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma again paid homage to his predecessor. After a formal turnover ceremony at the CBCP headquarters in Intramuros, Manila, last Wednesday, Palma immediately flew back to Cebu City to attend the 40th episcopal anniversary of Cardinal Vidal. During the pontifical Mass held at ...
12/2/2011
Neighbor strafes house, kills boy, wounds parents

        A GRADE 3 pupil died while his parents were wounded after a neighbor strafed their house in barangay Guba, Cebu City, last Wednesday evening. The victim identified as Jasper Ceniza sustained a gunshot wound on his chest while his parents Reynaldo Ybañez and Cristina Ceniza were rushed to the Guba Emergency Hospital for treatment. The suspect, a 31-year-old neighbor identified as Junrey Borres Andrecoso, was...
12/2/2011
Ralloses told Pay Filinvest P1.2B or no SRP lot auction

        The heirs of Fr. Vicente Rallos will have to raise P1.2 billion to pay Filinvest Land Inc. by Dec. 12 or the Dec. 13 auction of the 9.7 hectares of South Road Properties lot won't push through. Sheriff Eugenio Fuentes said the P1.2 billion would serve as the indemnity bond to Filinvest, which would represent the firm's expenses in developing the 9.7 hectares of the SRP, which had been subjected to auction. ...
12/2/2011
Joint team formed to probe gun shipment case

        THE Bureau of Customs is tapping at least three other police agencies to help track down the real shipper and consignee of the illegal shipment inside the 45-foot van confiscated last Tuesday. Ronnie Silvestre, Cebu Customs district collector, said yesterday that the Customs would work together with the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7), the Criminal Investigation and Detection Grou...
12/2/2011
‘DENR should resolve relocation site issue’

        THE issue on whether the titled relocation site in barangay Paknaan is a timberland or not should first be resolved with the Department of Environment or the Bureau of Lands. Deputy Ombudsman for the Visayas Virginia Palanca-Santiago gave this recommendation after she visited yesterday the 6.5-hectare relocation site in barangay Paknaan, Mandaue City. Santiago was accompanied by both opposing parties: the M...
12/2/2011
‘Evidence vs Kenyan woman is weak’

        The lawyer of the Kenyan national charged with drug trafficking will be filing a motion for leave of court owing to “weak evidence.” “The prosecution’s evidence are weak,” lawyer Ricardo Amores said after the hearing yesterday in the sala of Judge Turibio Quiwag of Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 27. Amores cited the Customs Declaration form that Asha Atieno Ogutu filled without understanding the informat...
12/2/2011
Fireworks, tree lighting opens Pasko sa Sugbo

        A fireworks display yesterday capped the ceremonial light-up of the giant Christmas tree at the Fuente Osmeña and marked the opening of the Pasko sa Sugbo, a nightly cultural show inside the rotunda. It has become a tradition of the M. Lhullier Group of Companies to put up a giant Christmas tree inside the rotunda for nine years now. The tree will stay in the Fuente Osmeña circle until the Sinulog celebrati...
12/2/2011
‘Watch out for thieves’

        IN this Christmas season, be wary of thieves. Police issued this warning to the public as lawless elements might take advantage as most private and government employees will be receiving their 13th-month salaries. Insp. Ramil Morpos, chief of the Theft and Robbery Section (TRS) of the Mandaue City Police Office (MCPO), said policemen have been deployed in crowded areas such as waiting sheds and terminals. ...
12/2/2011
Mandaue fire dep’t pushes firecrackers ban

        FOR safety reasons, the Mandaue City Fire Department recommended to ban the sale of firecrackers within the city. Mandaue City Fire Marshall Chief Insp. Rogelio Bongabong wrote to Councilor Demetrio Cortes stating that there is no area in Mandaue City that is suitable for selling firecrackers. Cortes chairs the council committee on police, fire and penology, His recommendation is based on a city ordinance...
12/1/2011
AIRPORT LOT FOR SALE

  Not so, but airport board considers SM’s offer   Aretail giant offered to buy the 300-hectare lot occupied by the Mactan Cebu International Airport, Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district confirmed yesterday. In a press conference at his Guadalupe home, the congressman said Hans Sy, president of SM Prime Holdings, wrote MCIA general manager Nigel Paul Villarete to express the company's interest in buying the airpor...
12/1/2011
Cebu consignee claims cargo, but not firearms

    The consignee of the 45-foot van seized by Customs personnel last Tuesday claimed ownership of the shipment and sought a meeting with officials over the case. In a phone interview, Bureau of Customs (BOC) District Collector Ronnie Silvestre said the consignee, D' Golden House Trading Co., holds office in Bacalla compound, Holy Name Street in barangay Mabolo, Cebu City. Silvestre said the company owner, whose name was kept...
12/1/2011
More cases dropped against former Sulpicio company

  FOUR more civil suits filed against the former Sulpicio Lines Inc. in relation to the 2008 sinking of the MV Princess of the Stars were dismissed by the court yesterday. In separate resolutions, Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judges Simeon Dumdum Jr. and Douglas Marigomen took into consideration the Release and Quitclaim signed by the victims' families as basis for dismissal. In signing the release and quitclaim, the families received...
12/1/2011
Palma assumes as CBCP chief today

  CEBU Archbishop Jose Palma fills in a new role as president of the influential Catholic Bishop's Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) starting today. The 61-year-old Palma, who will replace Tandag Bishop Nereo Odchimar as CBCP's president, will have a two-year mandate. A formal turnover ceremony was reportedly conducted yesterday at the CBCP Headquarters in Intramuros, Manila. Cebuano priest Rev. Fr. Marvin Mejia will also assum...
12/1/2011
‘Why not transfer airport to Caubian?’

  While not dismissing the reported SM offer to buy the 300-hectare lot of the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA), Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Paz Radaza said she preferred that the airport be transferred to Caubian Island. Radaza told Cebu Daily News that transferring the airport to Caubian Island will develop neighboring areas like Bohol province, transforming it and Cebu into a so-called “aerotropolis.” She said an aerotropolis is...
12/1/2011
Driver begs cops to file cases Friday

  Please don't file charges against me because it was an accident.” This was the plea of the driver of the truck trailer who caused the eight-vehicle smashup in barangay Canduman, Mandaue City, killing a lawyer and injuring four others last Tuesday. “Kinasing-kasing jud nako pag-hangyo nga dili ko nila pasakaan ug kaso kay dili gyud na tinoyo gyud. Pamilyado intawon ko, unsaon nalang akong pamilya kung wala na ko (I heartily beg the...
12/1/2011
Blaze hits Capitol dep’t

    A fire nearly destroyed the Provincial Assessor's Office in the Provincial Capitol building at 2 p.m. yesterday. Cebu City Fire Marshal Aderson Comar said they received the fire alarm at 2:05 p.m. and it was put out in 10 minutes. Servillano Angcay Jr., head of the security guards, said they had to break the glass windows of the office to put out the fire. Angcay and the security guards on duty put out the fire with th...
12/1/2011
Rama to outline budget cuts to city residents

  If the Cebu City Council makes good on its plan to cut his budget by more than half, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said he will display in tarpaulins the items that the council didn't approve to inform the public. Rama warned the council against slashing his proposed P11.8-billion budget for next year, saying the city residents needed projects and programs listed in his 2012 budget. He reiterated yesterday that the city government ...
12/1/2011
City scholarship grants face delayed payments

  THE release of payments to Cebu City's partner schools and universities for its scholarship program may be delayed due to shortage of funds. Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young said the city needed P130 million for its scholarship program but only P100 million is available. He said Ester Cubero, the city's education consultant, already requested Mayor Michael Rama for an additional P30 million appropriation. But Cubero's request was no...
12/1/2011
Trader says Mega Cebu master plan shouldn’t be cast aside by council

  STUDIES on the traffic and transport master plan for Cebu should not be undermined, a businessman said yesterday. Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. (RAFI) president Roberto Aboitiz said research studies on traffic and other data should be given consideration by concerned government agencies. Aboitiz referred to the findings and recommendations of the Technical Working Group (TWG) of the Regional Development Council-Infrastructure Deve...
12/1/2011
‘Cebu dancing inmates a tourist attraction’

  Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez Jr. lauded the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) dancing inmates saying it is one of the unique tourist attractions in the world. Jimenez, who visited the jail facility yesterday morning, witnessed a live performance of the world-renowned dancing inmates. In his message after the performances of the inmates, he said the dancing inmates is something that the country could ...
12/1/2011
Shoot-to-kill order out against Cebu provincial jail escapee

    A SHOOT-to-kill order has been issued against a Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) inmate, who escaped last Monday after attending a court hearing in Argao town, southern Cebu. CPDRC Warden Algier Commendador said the order was issued against inmate Jojo Gañolon, whom the jail warden described as a noted criminal facing four charges in some of the southern towns of Cebu. Gañolon was arrested last ...
12/1/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

  New police barracks ROOKIE policemen assigned at the Regional Public Safety Batallion (RPSB) in Sibonga town, south of Cebu, will soon have new buildings and facilities. Yesterday, Police Regional Office (PRO) 7 director Chief Supt. Marcelo Garbo led the ground breaking for the construction of four barracks, a grandstand and tennis that will cost more than a million of pesos. But Garbo said they have P520,000 as of now from the d...
11/30/2011
CONCEALED WEAPONS

  Second shipment part of four cargoes seized in Cebu, Manila     Two weeks after they seized a shipment filled with gun parts and chop-chop motorbike parts, Customs personnel confiscated anew another shipment filled with parts of high-powered firearms, accessories and ammunition at the Cebu International Port yesterday. A 40-foot container van bearing number IRNU 9004994 was opened before local media at the port area ...
11/30/2011
Cebu flyover opponents lament Aquino decision

      Anti-flyover opponents admitted to being disappointed with President Benigno Aquino III's decision yesterday to conduct a traffic study first to determine the viability of flared intersections or flyovers in Cebu City. “We are not contented. The whole matter was minimized. The issue was lack of comprehensive planning, and he just rode between political sides,” said Joel Lee, convenor of the Movement for a Liveable C...
11/30/2011
Shipping operators decry Marina stance on fleets

        SHIPPING companies in Cebu yesterday called on the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) in Central Visayas to give due process to them before suspending their fleets following accidents at sea. In yesterday's 888 News Forum, Chester Cokaliong, president of the Visayan Association of Ferry Boat and Coastwise Shipowners Operators (VAFCSO), said the suspension of the fleet of any shipping firm affects the shipp...
11/30/2011
Fiscal to review Veco case against Waterfront hotel

        The criminal complaint filed by the Visayan Electric Co. (Veco) against a five-star hotel in Cebu City accused of tampering its electrical connection was raffled off yesterday. Assistant City Prosecutor Rogelio del Prado will conduct the preliminary investigation on the complaint. The respondents will be given a chance to submit their counter-affidavits to refute the allegations. If Del Prado finds probabl...
11/30/2011
Cuenco considers running for Congress anew

        MORE than a year before the next elections, former congressman and now Asean Secretary General Antonio Cuenco already expressed his plans of running for Congress again. "I have a great desire to again continue serving my constituents," Cuenco told Cebu Daily News. Cuenco has served for three terms until 2007 as congressman of Cebu City's south now being served by Rep. Tomas Osmeña. He, however, said that ...
11/30/2011
‘Only AFP can approve road request’

        THE Capitol’s request to open the Central Command (Centcom) road to private vehicles to decongest traffic along the Banilad-Talamban area will have to be reviewed by the Armed Forces. Centcom chief Lt. Gen. Ralph Villanueva said only their headquarters can decide on the matter since their camp rules and regulations governing the entry of vehicles is under the AFP Integrated Camp Security System. Under the r...
11/30/2011
Puno backs Charter review

        Former Supreme Court chief justice Reynato Puno pushes for the review of the 30-year-old 1987 Philippine Constitution. Puno was in Cebu yesterday to speak about the need of reforms in the Philippine political system before students from colleges and universities in Cebu City. "More than 30 years is a long time. We have seen developments not only within the Philippines but also outside the Philippines affe...
11/30/2011
Council mulls cutting P10.8-B budget by half

        The Cebu City Council may cut by half the P11.8-billion proposed budget for next year after it found out that the city has no enough source of funds for it. Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young said the council has so far identified P2.5 billion to fund next year's budget, including the P870.8-milion Internal Revenue Allotment share, which is less by at least P200 million from this year's IRA share of P1.1 billion....
11/30/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Resolve plea, Cebu City Hall asks court CEBU City Hall is asking the court to resolve its plea to set aside a ruling that mandated them to pay its dues to the heirs of Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos. City attorney Joseph Bernaldez said the court should rule on their motions. Otherwise, the city will be “greatly prejudiced” by any delay after Regional Trial Court Judge James Himalaloan inhibited himself from hand...
11/29/2011
POWER PLAY

  Pro and anti forces meet in Malacañang: Are Cebu City flyovers needed? P-Noy orders DPWH to finish traffic study by December to guide a decision.   Road widening work will go on as scheduled in Cebu City. However, no quick answer was given yesterday by President Aquino on the fate of suspended flyover projects here. He ordered the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to conduct a new traffic study and finish it ...
11/29/2011
Veco files P168-M pilferage case vs Waterfront Hotel

    The Visayan Electric Co. yesterday filed a criminal complaint against the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino for pilferage of electricity worth millions of pesos. The complaint filed with the Cebu City Prosecutors’ Office was based on an inspection conducted by Veco personnel on Feb. 7-17, 2011. Veco said the five-star hotel deliberately cut and damaged two #10 AWG current wires leading to the hotel’s electric billing...
11/29/2011
PAO asks court to speed up arrest of forensic official

    THE Public Attorney's Office (PAO) said it will seek court intervention to ask the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) why it failed to arrest its forensic officer who processed the remains of the victims of the MV Princess of the Stars sinking. PAO chief Persida Rueda-Acosta said they will ask Regional Trial Court Judge Soliver Peras of Branch 10 to order NBI Director Magtanggol Gatdula to explain why the agency didn't...
11/29/2011
Loot meets Palma, gives cemetery lot proposal

    Daanbantayan Mayor Ma. Luisa Loot offered to help purchase a two-hectare lot to replace the church cemeteries in four barangays, which she ordered closed last month. The offer is one of the proposals that Loot submitted to Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma during their meeting last Sunday. Loot visited Palma at the Achbishop's Palace to discuss the closure of 25 cemeteries that violated a municipal ordinance in maintaining a cem...
11/29/2011
Auditor testifies, says lampposts are overpriced

  “BLOATED!” This was how state auditor Alfredo Torrequemada described the prices of the 1,800 decorative lampposts installed in Metro Cebu for the 2007 Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Summit. Torrequemada yesterday took the witness stand as the Sandiganbayan's fourth division conducted the trial at the Palace of Justice in Cebu City. He said a competitive bidding for the purchase of the lampposts was shortened so th...
11/29/2011
Dynamite blows up Ibo fisherman’s arm

    THE perennial dynamite fishing problem in Lapu-Lapu City claimed another casualty. Yesterday morning, a 34-year-old fisherman suffered severe injuries after the improvised dynamite he used for fishing off the waters of barangay Mactan went off before he could throw it to the sea. Eugene Salbana of barangay Ibo remains in critical condition in a Cebu City hospital as of press time. He sustained severe wounds in his body an...
11/29/2011
PB reviewing ordinance on skydiving, air shows

    More than a month after a Cebuano medical student died in a parachute accident, the Provincial Board (PB) introduced an ordinance to regulate parachute and skydiving activities in the province. PB Member Arleigh Sitoy’s “Parachuting or Skydiving Ordinance of 2011” was approved on first reading yesterday. Sitoy said the proposed ordinance will allow the Capitol, Cebu's component cities and towns to monitor operators to en...
11/29/2011
Public works dept. fails to convince council to approve P3.6-B budget

    THEY lined up their figures and presented their projects in yesterday’s City Council budget hearing. But the Cebu City Hall's Department of Engineering and Public Works (DEPW) failed to convince the council to approve their P3.6-billion budget for next year. Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young said DEPW Chief Kenneth Enriquez was unable to answer their questions on why the programs of works and estimates for other projects rema...
11/29/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    Smuggled items for auction THE rifle parts and accessories along with hundreds of bullets that the Bureau of Customs seized early this month from a 40-foot container van from California will be auctioned off in the second week of December. Ronnie Silvestre, Bureau of Customs-7 district collector, signed the warrant of seizure and detention for the cargo on Nov. 17 after nobody came forward to claim the items. The consign...
11/29/2011
RDC to tackle flyovers later

    THERE was no stormy floor debate after all. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama yesterday used his welcome remarks to the Regional Development Council (RDC) in Centraly Visayas to introduce the controversial report of a Technical Working Group (TWG), which seeks a moratorium on flyovers in Metro Cebu. After reading aloud its recommendations, Rama had the report calendared for discussion in the next RDC meeting in March 2012. A ...
11/28/2011
CASE DISMISSED

  Judge: Quit claim clears former Sulpicio firm from liability     Three years after the MV Princess of the Stars sank off the coast of Romblon province during a typhoon, a court dismissed one of the civil suits filed by a relative of one of the victims against the ship owner. In his ruling, Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge Simeon Dumdum of branch 7 said the quitclaim voluntarily signed by Elina Edisan released official...
11/28/2011
Vidal says Arroyo not faking illness to avail of treatment

  Former president’s plight said to be part of ‘purification period’   As far as Cebu Archbishop emeritus Ricardo Cardinal Vidal is concerned, former president and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo isn't faking her medical condition. Vidal, who said he visited the former president in St. Luke's Medical Center in Makati City, also called on Cebuanos to pray for her recovery. “I supposed she is not pretending. I was...
11/28/2011
Photog enthusiasts survive dynamite blast

  PARTICIPANTS in the 1st Asian Underwater Federation Photography Championships had a harrowing encounter with dynamite fishers near the coast of barangay Punta Engaño, Lapu-Lapu City last Saturday. A group of Chinese participants reported to the organizers that dynamite fishers passed by their area while some of their fellow photography enthusiasts were underwater. Benedict Reyes, the federation's secretary general, said one of the...
11/28/2011
Mactan reclamation project to kick off next year

  THREE years after it was unveiled, the Mactan North Reclamation Development Project (MNRDP) will push through next year. Michael Dignos, executive secretary of Lapu-Lapu City Rep. Arturo Radaza told Cebu Daily News they are finalizing the documents for the projects. “There are a lot of investors asking about the project,” he said. About 400 hectares will be reclaimed from barangays Ibo, Buaya and Mactan. “These barangays will ...
11/28/2011
Ombud Dismiss from service former Marina 7 director

  The former regional director of the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) in Central Visayas was ordered dismissed from service for acquiring unexplained wealth. The Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas found Glenn Cabañez guilty of serious dishonesty and grave misconduct. The anti-graft office also ordered the forfeiture of Cabañez' retirement benefits, cancellation of his eligibility, and perpetual disqualification from re-em...
11/28/2011
Opposing groups in flyover issue to be at RDC meeting

  TWO groups on opposite sides of the flyover issue will attend the Regional Development Council (RDC) full committee meeting in Tagbilaran, Bohol today. The Movement for Liveable Cebu (MLC), staunch anti-flyover advocates, led by its convenor Joel Lee promised to attend today’s RDC meeting. Lee said 15 of their members would be there. Lee said even if they weren’t invited by the RDC, they were there to make their presence felt and...
11/28/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

  Traffic meet TRAFFIC boards from the highly urbanized cities of Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu including Consolacion town will meet this week to address the problem of traffic. Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes said that the Mandaue city government would need the help of neighboring cities and towns to address the traffic problem. “There should be a concerted effort (to address the problem) and so that we can coordinate in making and implem...
11/27/2011
2 DEL MARS READY

  Congresswoman, father seek return of city flyovers     Tomorrow, the Del Mars—father and daughter—will stage a two-pronged campaign in Malacañang and the Regional Development Council (RDC) to secure approval of their derailed flyover projects in Cebu City. In an interview, Rep. Rachel “Cutie” del Mar said she will meet with President Benigno Aquino III to discuss her flyover projects in the afternoon. Her father, f...
11/27/2011
‘P2.15M needed to repair fountain, Parian monument’

        Cebu City Councilor Margot Osmeña is seeking a P2.15-million outlay for the immediate repair of cracks in the Fuente Osmeña fountain and the Parian Heritage Monument. Osmeña said the repair of the century-old fountain should be done this year. She identified unspent funds of P150,000 from the Cebu City Tourism Commission's maintenance and other operating expenses that could be used for the repair of the fou...
11/27/2011
Cebu church bells were ‘witnesses of history’

        FIVE century-old church bells from three Cebu towns were mounted as part of the Cebu Archdiocese's celebration of the fifth-year anniversary of the Cebu Cathedral Museum on P. Burgos Street. “The bells are witnesses to wars and natural calamities. They are considered historical artifacts because they are the witnesses of Cebu's history,” said Prof. Regalado Trota Jose, an author and authority on colonial ch...
11/27/2011
Cebu province to have own ‘Green Code’

        NINE months after it was first proposed, the Provincial Board (PB) crafted Cebu's own environment code. A public hearing was conducted last Friday on the code that was attended by stakeholders from national government agencies, the private sector and ecology groups. Among its features are the creation of so-called “green belts” in towns and cities in the province where development is regulated to provide a...
11/27/2011
Council questions ‘bloated’ garbage disposal budget

        Questions arose over the P70 million proposed by Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama for the city's garbage disposal program. The city council questioned why the city government has to pay P63 million for tipping fees to a private landfill in Pulog, Consolacion town, once the Inayawan landfill site is closed. Councilor Nida Cabrera, chairperson of the council's environment committee, said the P63 million asked for...
11/27/2011
Ouano to let daughter decide on mayoralty run

        PROVINCIAL Board (PB) member Thadeo Ouano said he will let his daughter Councilor Emmarie Ouano-Dizon decide if she will run for mayor of Mandaue City in 2013. “She’s already more than 21. She's already married. She can decide for herself. But I will only advise, I won't dictate. My advice is to pray to God,” he said. The former Mandaue City mayor said this amid reports that the Ouanos are building a polit...
11/27/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        AUSTRALIAN SUSPECT WANTS TO POST BAIL THE Australian national who was arrested for keeping four girls at his home in barangay Inayagan, Naga City, wants to get out of jail pending resolution of the charges against him in court. His lawyers Jarred and Cherry Cabilte believed the prosecution has weak evidence against their client. Regional Trial Court Judge Manuel Patalinghug of Branch 22 has yet to rule ...
11/27/2011
City gov’t losing parts of Guba lot

        The Cebu city government may be losing its grip on a 29-hectare lot in the mountain barangay of Guba where farmer-tenants are laying claim to the property. The land was bought in 1997 for P11.5 million by the city, which is using part of the area as a cemetery for Muslims and a new communal forest project. “The Guba property is almost all gone because it’s not titled in the name of Cebu City,” Councilor Ni...
11/26/2011
FLARED ROADS VS FLYOVER

  Which solution will P-Noy, RDC-7 support?     One group, led by private citizens and Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, believes a “better way” to ease traffic flow is to build flared intersections and widen roads. Another camp, led by former congressman Raul del Mar and Rep. Tomas Osmeña, insists the answer is two more flyovers in Cebu City. On Monday, a showdown will test the choices. The conflict over which transport...
11/26/2011
Fiscal asked Would tabloid columns be okay for kids?

        Would you let your child read sexually suggestive columns of two Cebuano tabloids? That was the question posed by Asst. City Prosecutor Aida Sanchez to Asst. Provincial Prosecutor Ferdinand Collantes who dismissed the complaints filed by the Cebu City Anti-Decency Board (CCAIB) against two Cebuano tabloids. “If he (Collantes) thinks the columns are not obscene, would he recommend it as reading material to h...
11/26/2011
Tomas Rama using 2012 budget as campaign tool for barangays

        WHAT the 2012 budget boils down to is Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama's political maneuvering for the 2013 elections, said his main critic. “This impossible budget is Mike Rama's shenanigan, a shameless political ploy to get the barangay captains and barangay councilors to have a transfer of affection for the 2013 elections,” said Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district. In a statement sent to Cebu Da...
11/26/2011
Mandaue mayor taps Fortuna

        Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes is recruiting a political rival as one of his consultants. He confirmed that he is retaining the services of former vice mayor Carlo Fortuna, who is a lawyer. Cebu Daiy News earlier obtained a copy of Fortuna’s still-unsigned one-year consultancy contract. Fortuna, in a separate interview, said the mayor invited him to join his administration as a consultant for assets and ...
11/26/2011
Capitol to file admin raps against Loot for closing cemeteries

        DAANBANTAYAN Mayor Ma. Luisa Loot may face administrative charges for allegedly ordering the closure of at least 25 cemeteries in the town. Cebu Provincial Legal Officer Marino Martinquilla said yesterday that the Capitol would file the charges against Loot before the Provincial Board. The move came after the Nov. 21 meeting with Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, officials of the Daanbanytayan Roman Catholic Chur...
11/26/2011
P433-M hospital budget slammed

        Cebu City councilors criticized the Cebu City Medical Center (CCMC) for requesting a big budget for next year when it had not maximized its P218-million appropriation for this year. CCMC is requesting a P433-million appropriation for 2012 and another P160 million for hospital expansion and parking lot development. Councilor Margot Osmeña, chairperson of the budget committee, pointed out that the perceived s...
11/26/2011
Former solon hits SC ruling on GMA

        FORMER Akbayan party-list representative Risa Hontiveros-Baraquel criticized the Supreme Court for ruling in favor of former President Gloria Arroyo and allowing her to travel. “They are biased—those eight justices led by (Justice Renato) Corona who voted in favor of GMA and against the government,” said Baraquel, who visited Cebu yesterday. She said there would be a Truth Forum on Monday in preparation for...
11/26/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        JEEPNEY BAN MANDAUE City Mayor Jonas Cortes yesterday said he hoped that there would be an amendment of the city terminal ordinance allowing Mandaue City jeepneys to ply Cebu City routes. Cortes said he wanted the amendment because it could help the riding public. He said he was grateful of the recent development where the Cebu City Traffic Operations Management lifted the ban on jeepneys plying the Ma...
11/25/2011
TABLOIDS WIN

  Fiscal dismisses obscenity cases vs SuperBalita, Banat Two Cebuano-language tabloids were cleared yesterday of accusations that two of their columns were obscene. The criminal complaints filed by the Cebu City Anti-Indecency Board (CCAIB) were dismissed for “insufficiency of evidence.” The column “From Junquera with love” published by Sun.Star SuperBalita and “Wildflower” published by Banat News were “not pornographic, indecent...
11/25/2011
Obscenity depends on the reader

    “THERE is no perfect definition of obscenity,” said the prosecutor who threw out complaints filed against Cebu tabloids Superbalita and Banat. But he cited basic guidelines set down in the US landmark case of Miller v. California. The test of obscenity is whether an “average person applying contemporary standards would find the work, taken as a whole, appeals to the prurient interest”. Also, it depends whether the wor...
11/25/2011
Ombud to probe GMA link in lamppost case if …

      WAS former president Gloria Macagapal-Arroyo involved in the anomalous purchase and installation of the lampposts in Metro Cebu? The Office of the Ombudsman is willing to look into this angle. However, Visayas Deputy Ombudsman Pelagio Apostol said they would need evidence to prove her involvement in the case. “If there is evidence, we will take cognizance of the case,” Apostol said. He said the anti-graft office...
11/25/2011
Cebu archer strikes gold in SEA games

     Lost in the hullabaloo about the country’s weak performance in the Southeast Asian Games in Indonesia is a story of perseverance and eventual triumph. One such story belongs to 51-year-old Cebuano Dondon Sombrio and how archery took him on a journey from his hometown of Cagayan de Oro to Cebu City, to the RP team and onwards to the gold medal in the men’s compound category in the archery event. He and teammates Dean...
11/25/2011
My lawyers will handle it, says Rama on Ombud complaint

    CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama said he would leave it to his lawyers to handle the complaint filed against him in the Ombudsman Visayas by Rep. Tomas Osmeña. “It has to be handled legally but rest assured it will be answered,” he said. The mayor said he didn't want the complaint to affect his functions as chief executive. Congressman Osmeña accused the mayor of abuse of power and preventing the City Council from passing a b...
11/25/2011
Inmates’ parol light V. Rama

      As Pasko sa V. Rama celebrates its 16th year, not only will the streets of barangays San Nicolas, Calamba and Guadalupe come alive with lights and décor. The annual activity would also help at least 27 Cebu City jail inmates and their families have a merry Christmas. About 100 Christmas lanterns or parol are being ordered from the inmates as street décor to be put up in the first week of December alo...
11/25/2011
CA upholds Ombud ruling firing BI officer

      THE Court of Appeals (CA) has affirmed the dismissal from service of an officer of the Bureau of Immigration (BI) who tried to extort P500,000 from a Korean national in 2007. In its ruling, the appellate court's 19th division said Deputy Ombudsman Pelagio Apostol did not commit abuse of discretion, which would warrant reversal of the anti-graft office's ruling. The Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas earlier fo...
11/25/2011
Citom Mandaue PUJs can enter Manalili

      AFTER being banned for almost two months, Mandaue PUJs are again allowed to ply downtown streets of Cebu City. The Cebu City Traffic Operations Management (Citom) board has allowed PUJs plying the Mandaue-Manalili routes to resume their regular routes starting Monday. Citom board chairman Sylvan Jakosalem said they arrived at the decision after a meeting with Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes last Monday and with a...
11/25/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      Rugby regulated CHILDREN can no longer buy volatile substances like rugby and sealants from Mandaue City establishments. The Mandaue City Council passed on third and final reading an ordinance penalizing unauthorized distribution of these substances especially to minors. Councilor Jimmy Lumapas, who sponsored the ordinance, said parents would have to issue a certification if they would let their children buy rugb...
11/24/2011
‘MAYOR IS A BULLY’

  Osmeña asks Ombudsman to suspend Mayor Rama     Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama was accused by his arch critic of “harassing” department heads and preventing the City Council from passing a balanced budget for 2012. A complaint was filed yesterday by Rep. Tomas Osmeña, who asked the Ombudsman Visayas to stop the mayor and immediately place him on preventive suspension. “He has unilaterally created a looming crisis in...
11/24/2011
Rama to seek P-Noy audience on flyovers, treasurer woes

        Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama may not be attending next Monday's Regional Development Council (RDC) meeting in Tagbilaran City, Bohol, after all. He said an invitation from President Benigno Aquino III to Malacañang on the same day was hard to pass up. “I’m still torn between two angles and I can’t figure out which gathering to attend,” he said in yesterday’s press conference. Rama was earlier bent on bring...
11/24/2011
Capitol wants court to ensure properties of Balilis for payment

        THE Capitol is determined to collect P37.8 million owed by the heirs of the Balili estate to the province that was paid for the family's property in barangay Tinan-an, Naga City. Provincial attorney Marino Martinquilla said they are asking the court's intervention to ensure that the heirs of engineer Romeo Balili will have enough properties to cover the amount sought as refund from them. A survey by environ...
11/24/2011
P18-M shabu flushed down toilet

        Law enforcers yesterday dumped almost three kilos of shabu in a pail of water then flushed the drugs down the toilet. Only 110 grams were retained as evidence for the ongoing trial of a Kenyan woman on drug trafficking charges. Kenyan national Asha Atieno Ogutu quickly wiped tears from her eyes with her handcuffed hands as she watched the shabu swirling in the pail of water. Then she turned her back from t...
11/24/2011
Cebu media join commemoration of Ampatuan massacre

        CEBU media joined their counterparts across the country in commemorating the second anniversary of the Ampatuan massacre with a mass held at the Sto. Rosario Church in P. Del Rosario Street, Cebu City yesterday afternoon. The Cebu Federation of Beat Journalists (CFBJ) offered a Mass for the repose of the souls of the 32 journalists who died in the massacre. “We hope that justice will be served no matter how ...
11/24/2011
Ombud admits ex-DPWH chief not included in lamppost probe

        THE Ombudsman-Visayas and even local officials implicated in the overpriced purchase of decorative lampposts in Cebu are wondering why former Public Works and Highways secretary Hermogenes Ebdane wasn't included in the Manila inquiry. Deputy Ombudsman Pelagio Apostol yesterday said their office recommended that Ebdane be investigated since the project passed through him. “I don't know what happened,” Apostol...
11/24/2011
Council questions funds under mayor

        The Cebu City Council questions the appropriations for capital outlay of the different departments and special bodies under the mayor’s office Councilor Margot Osmeña, chairman of the budget committee, said she is certain this was not practiced before. She recounted that when she chaired the Commission for the Protection and Welfare of Children her husband, former mayor Tomas Osmeña, didn’t place the commi...
11/24/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        CPA WORKERS ALREADY RECEIVED BONUSES EVEN with a Commission on Audit (COA) refund order, workers of the Cebu Ports Authority (CPA) each received their P10,000 cash gifts and year-end two-month basic-salary bonus this month. “I already got my share,” CPA deputy general manager Yusop Uckung said. He said the midyear one-month basic salary bonus was released last June while the remaining P40,000 of the tot...
11/23/2011
GAME NOT OVER

  Flyover critics outvoted 6-16; Mayor Rama to seek RDC forum     Flyover critics and advocates of a “liveable Cebu” suffered a setback yesterday when a committee voted to shelve a report that recommends a “moratorium” on flyovers in Metro Cebu. But Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, who attended the meeting, said this won't stop him from bringing up the report again in the Nov. 28 meeting of the Regional Development Counci...
11/23/2011
Prosecutors, Bella’s lawyers ordered to keep mum on case

        Both the prosecution and defense lawyers for homicide suspect Bella Ruby Santos were told by the court yesterday not to discuss the Ellah Joy murder case with the news media. Lawyer Noemi Truya-Abarientos of the Cildren’s Legal Bureau (CLB) said the order from the judge was meant to protect two minor-age girls testifying in the case. “This is done for the best interest of the child witnesses,” she said. T...
11/23/2011
Mayor Cortes to enforce dismissal of engineers

        THE Mandaue city government will enforce the dismissal order issued by the Ombudsman-Visayas against three engineering officials implicated in the overpriced purchase of decorative lampposts in 2007. Mayor Jonas Cortes said he will enforce the order as soon as his office receives a copy of the Court of Appeals ruling affirming the Ombudsman order. Provincial Board (PB) member Thadeo Ouano decried the order...
11/23/2011
Updated tax mapping to hike real property taxes

        Some property owners in Cebu City may have to pay more next year as a result of tax mapping and revalidation of real properties to be implemented by the City Treasurer's Office. “We are not increasing the rates. We are just updating the use of the property,” said City Treasurer Tessie Camarillo in yesterday’s budget hearing. The process will correct any misclassification of property based on actual use. Ca...
11/23/2011
Aloguinsan row 34 people plead not guilty

        THE 34 protestors who clashed with the police last Aug. 29 to stop the fencing of the disputed Hacienda Gantuangco in Aloguinsan town, midwest Cebu, pleaded “not guilty” yesterday. They were arraigned on charges of resisting arrest and direct assault before Regional Trial Court Judge Hermes Montero of Branch 59 in Toledo City. The protestors were assisted by lawyers Ian Manticajon, Kim Mendoza and Alfonso C...
11/23/2011
P20-M intel fund legal — Rama

        MAYOR Michael Rama yesterday defended his proposed P20-million intelligence fund for 2012 saying it was accordance with the law. A Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) circular allows mayors to use a maximum of 3 percent of their budget as intelligence funds. Rama said he needed more funds to fully implement programs and projects for the maintenance of the city's peace and order. Rama was rea...
11/23/2011
Capitol allows Tejero families to rebuild homes in 93-1 lots

        The families of barangay Tejero whose homes were razed by a fire last Aug. 23 were allowed to rebuild their houses on province-owned lots by the Capitol. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said he met with Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia in her office last Monday and she agreed to let the families stay temporarily on the lots. “The governor will discuss their fate after returning from her Latin America trip,” he said...
11/23/2011
Mandaue City market to set up security cameras

        THE revamped Mandaue City market will feature closed-circuit TV cameras worth P2.5 million placed on strategic areas to help guards and police secure the area, market administrator Musoline Suliva said yesterday. Suliva said security personnel will monitor the market through 16 closed-circuit TV cameras. He said they will seek police augmentation when the market opens on Dec. 18. A proposed city ordinance...
11/23/2011
P18M for Charter Day OK’d

      THE Cebu City Council approved the proposed P18-million budget for the 75th Charter Day Celebration next year. One of the highlights of the celebration is the awarding of 75 families who have made significant contributions to the city's growth and development. Cebu City will turn 75 on Feb. 24, 2012. In a press conference, Cebu City at 75 search committee vice chairperson Alice Queblatin said the Charter Day activ...
11/23/2011
Survey Talisay market on private lot

        The recently opened public market in barangay Lagtang, Talisay City, may be sitting on private property. “We are still looking for the land title to prove that it is owned by Talisay City,” said Anastacio Cabalejo, Community Environment and Natural Resources Officer (CENRO) for Cebu City. He said the lot title of the Macapagal-Gullas Public Market is covered by a land patent issued to a certain Otillo Laraw...
11/22/2011
‘I PRAY FOR GMA’

  Archbishop seeks Arroyo’s ‘healing’ and ‘respect’ for Supreme Court decision   While her political fortune is going downhill, like her health, there were kind words for former president Gloria Macapgal-Arroyo from Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma. "I pray there would be healing,” Palma told reporters yesterday. “And that the doctors will grant her the healing she desires and that she continues to serve her people as representat...
11/22/2011
‘Aguinaldo doctrine spares Ouano from disqualification’

    With one criminal case dismised, and one left to answer for the 2007 lamppost scandal, former Mandaue City Mayor Thadeo Ouano faces a lingering question about his status to occupy public office. What happens to the penalty of perpetual disqualification from public office after the Ombudsman found him guilty of grave misconduct for the deal in its Oct. 1, 2010 decision? “That’s the issue we will look into,” said Assistant ...
11/22/2011
Niño’s mother unsure whether to keep him

    THE mother of baby Niño is unsure if she is ready to get him back after leaving her newborn son in the care of strangers in Cebu City last week. The mother, a 38-year-old laundrywoman, suddenly showed up yesterday, filled with longing for her child but confused. “Gimingaw ko'g insakto niya. Ambi nako'g ma-agwanta ra kung ako siya'ng biyaan (I miss him very much. I thought I could endure it if I would let him go),” the mo...
11/22/2011
Tom says LP urged to back Arroyo arrest

    A RESOLUTION will reportedly be circulated to the Liberal Party (LP) asking them to support the Department of Justice's (DOJ) handling of the charges against former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. But Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district wants to read the resolution first before signing it. "I have not read the resolution that I have been asked to sign. I would certainly love to read it, I'm not a rubber st...
11/22/2011
Unitop pays P50M to stop BIR from closing its stores

  Retailer only declared 70% of actual sales; owes gov’t P97M in taxes   A retail store with 40 outlets nationwide including Cebu and Bohol narrowly escaped having all its outlets locked up yesterday by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR). Owners made a swift P50-million partial payment in the BIR main office in Manila to cover a P97-million tax obligation. The BIR ordered the closure of Unitop General Merchanise Inc. outle...
11/22/2011
Council slams Rama’s P20-M intel fund

    AT least P203-million assistance fund to the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) is being proposed in Mayor Michael Rama's 2012 budget. The mayor is also asking about P20 million in intelligence funds, which is more than triple last year's P6-million appropriation. But what will the city need the allocation for? “This is such a huge amount,” said Councilor Margot Osmeña, the council's budget committee chairperson. Osmeña sai...
11/22/2011
Auditors question cash perks of Cebu Ports Authority staff

  Agency says court ruling mandates them to give benefits to workers   The Commission on Audit may sound like a Scrooge for contesting and seeking the refund of P31.79 million in Christmas and midyear benefits that the Cebu Ports Authority granted its employees in the past two years. But the COA said it had a good reason for seeking the return of the perks and stopping the release of any additional benefits. The ports ...
11/22/2011
Slay suspect not coerced, NBI says

    THE young man accused of murdering his mother wasn't coerced or manipulated into making his extra-judicial confession where he committed the crime, the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) said yesterday. NBI-7 agent Bernard dela Cruz said they have photos to prove that 25-year-old Christian “Lucky” Dalangin wasn't coerced in admitting to the murder. “It was voluntary. Everything was legal,” Dela C...
11/22/2011
Cordova cybersex victims ‘doing well’

    THE children who were allegedly exploited by their parents in a cybersex racket are doing well, Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale said yesterday. Magpale, who visited the children last Saturday, told Cebu Daily News that she wanted the couple to know about their situation. "They look very healthy. I am assuring the parents that they are okay," she said. The youngest among them, a 4-year-old, is in preschool. Magpale said the...
11/22/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    Cyber lab SEEING the need to intensify the fight against cybercrimes, the Cebu provincial government is building a cyber laboratory for the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Region 7 (CIDG-7). Yesterday, Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia and CIDG-7 Director Samuel Pagdilao Jr. led the groundbreaking ceremony at the Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) in Sudlon for the construction a a building that will serve as a l...
11/21/2011
VERDICT OUT

  CA upholds dismissal of DPWH officials in lamppost case     It won’t be a merry Christmas nor a Happy New Year for the 14 public officials charged in the anomalous purchase of P365 million worth of lampposts in Metro Cebu. In a ruling dated last Aug. 17, the Court of Appeals (CA) upheld the dismissal of the 14 public officials of the Department of Public Works and Highways that were found guilty for the purchase of 1...
11/21/2011
Comelec official voices fears of Arroyo release this week

        Manila— Former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo might still escape prison if the Supreme Court ruled that the joint panel created to investigate the alleged poll fraud in 2007 was unconstitutional, an official of the Commission on Elections. Election Commissioner Rene Sarmiento was vocal about his worries that might override what appeared to be the government's successful move to prevent Arroyo from leavin...
11/21/2011
Professor, ailing man commit suicide at home

        DUE to unrequited love and depression, two men took their own lives in separate instances over the weekend. A university professor shot down the suitor of his ex-girlfriend in front of her boarding house in Nasipit, barangay Talamban, Cebu City and later shot himself on the head in his home in barangay Gabi, Cordova town last Saturday evening. In barangay Mambaling, Cebu City, a man suffering from heart an...
11/21/2011
Baby Niño’s ma identified

        After nearly a week since he was left in the bus in Bogo and now in the care of the Department of Social Welfare and Development personnel, Baby Niño's mother was finally identified. The staff of the district hospital of Daanbantayan and the Municipal social welfare officer confirmed on Saturday (Nov. 19) that the mother of Baby Niño was Cristina Batiancila. They were sure that Baby Niño was the baby Batian...
11/21/2011
Carcar Nat’l High School wins Kabkaban Festival’s top plum

        THE uniqueness of their presentation made Carcar Central National High School-Liboron Extension stand out in yesterday's Kabkaban Festival. They were chosen as this year's champion of the 10th year anniversary celebration of Carcar city. Glen Albutra, cultural director of the University of Southern Philippines Foundation (USPF) and the chair of the board of judges, chose them as the winner because of the ...
11/21/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      MONITOR ESTABLISHMENTS THE Cebu City Council called on the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to monitor the compliance of public institutions and private business entities of the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2003 in relation to their treatment of senior customers. Councilor Edgar Labella, who authored a resolution for this purpose, said some commercial establishments including drug stores in the city sti...
11/20/2011
‘GIVE ARROYO SOME DIGNITY’

        Manila—A frail-looking former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was formally booked in a police registry on charges of electoral fraud yesterday. Previously honored in state banquets and military salutes, she became the second Philippine President to be detained on criminal allegations. Throughout the two-hour proceedings, her lawyer Ferdinand Topacio appealed to the authorities and the media to keep the P...
11/20/2011
Spokesman GMA hit by ‘P-Noy express’

        MANILA—The lawyers of former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo denounced the haste with which the arrest warrant was issued against her, saying that she was a victim of the “P-Noy express.” "What's happening to Mrs. Arroyo is not an ordinary railroad act but a P-Noy express, which violates all laws and rules, even the Supreme Court, and this is very alarming," said Arroyo's counsel and legal spokesman Raul L...
11/20/2011
‘Karma’, tough lesson for GMA

        The arrest of former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo sends a strong message that officials accused of corruption must face the music, according to four of Cebu’s leading legal minds. “It is part of the accountability of public officials. If you are a public servant, you should always be faithful to public trust and responsible for what you do,” said Associate Justice Gabriel Ingles of the Court of Appeals...
11/20/2011
Secretary De Lima ‘tough, devoted to her job’

        MANILA—Justice Secretary Leila de Lima's passion for her work cost her her marriage years ago. Today, a college friend isn't surprised that De Lima is once again risking everything for the job that she vowed to do. "She believes in what is right and she speaks from the heart and what she believes in. And she will die for it," Judge Marilou Runes-Tamang, who has known De Lima for over two decades now, told...
11/20/2011
Let judge waive city stipend, says justice City Hall lawyer disagrees

        Associate Justice Gabriel Ingles of the Court of Appeals in Cebu suggested that the judge who backed off from handling the Rallos land dispute should waive his allowance from City Hall if he felt it was affecting his duties. Ingles said that it was important that judicial independence exists in “fact and in public perception.” This advice for Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge James Himalaloan was given by th...
11/20/2011
Fire victims’ kids given new uniforms, school supplies

        WENIELOU Cale, 8, was playing in a neighbor's house when she heard that their house was on fire. She ran towards the burning house near the Butuanon River. “I got scared when I saw our house on fire because my books, uniforms and siblings were inside,” she recalled. Cale, a Grade 2 pupil at the Umapad Elementary School, said she was happy that her six siblings were safe but the family lost all their belong...
11/20/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      NO LP ALLIANCE CEBU Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale said on Wednesday she wasn't establishing any alliances with the Liberal Party (LP). Magpale gave this clarification to quell talks of an LP alliance after she was seen attending the silver wedding anniversary of Tuburan Mayor Democrito Diamante at the Chateau de Busay last week. Diamante is an LP member. Magpale said she attended the event because Diamante was her ...
11/20/2011
‘Rename street after John Paul II’

        A name change for Juan Luna Avenue in Cebu City is being proposed to honor the late Pope John Paul II. In last Wednesday's session of the City Council, Councilor Edgardo Labella proposed an ordinance renaming the tree-lined street, formerly known as San Jose dela Montaña, to give recognition to the late pope's historical presence in the area. He said the road is now home to important “spiritual shelters,” w...
11/20/2011
Jail asks city aid to clean tanks

        THE Cebu City Jail sought help from the city government to clean up the septic tank in their premises, saying it was filled well over capacity. Jail Supt. Ma. Victoria Jimenez said their city jail is reeking and its foul odor is due to the overflowing septic tank, which services 2,044 inmates. “This problem always recurs because the inmates’ population is getting bigger and bigger,” said Jimenez in a letter...
11/19/2011
UNDER ARREST

  Election sabotage case bars Gloria Arroyo from leaving country     A warrant of arrest was served against former president and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo at the St. Luke’s Medical Center in Taguig City past 4 p.m. yesterday. The arrest order served by National Capital Region Police Office Director Alan Purisima was signed by Judge Jesus Mupas of Branch 112 of the Pasay Regional Trial Court. Arroyo has ...
11/19/2011
Cebu leaders voice surprise on arrest

        CEBU's legal community and the Church voiced surprise over the immediate issuance of the arrest warrant on former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo yesterday. Regional Trial Court Judge Meinrado Paredes said the debate on whether or not to allow Arroyo to leave the country was rendered “moot and academic” after the arrest warrant was issued on Arroyo due to election charges by the court. Paredes said any pe...
11/19/2011
‘Woman who delivered baby may be real ma’

        Where's the mother of “Baby Niño”? She may be the same woman who turned over the newborn boy to barangay Sto. Niño officials in Cebu City, said social workers. There's more than meets the eye in the initial account of a certain Arlene Ortega who said the baby was left to her care by a nameless young woman she just met on a Ceres bus in north Cebu last Tuesday. Suchiella Arong, head of the Reception and Stu...
11/19/2011
Mother in cyberporn case to give birth in jail

        THE mother accused of exploiting her children in a cyberpornography racket with her husband will give birth to her sixth child this month. Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale said the woman's children are doing well in school and remain under the custody of the Provincial Women’s Commission. The youngest in the brood of five is scheduled to be born this month. The baby will be cared for by the mother who is det...
11/19/2011
Allowances a non-issue, City Hall adviser says

        THE monthly allowances given to judges won't be withheld by Cebu City Hall even if they rule against the city, a legal consultant of Mayor Michael Rama said yesterday. Jade Ponce said they were surprised by the decision of Regional Trial Court Judge James Stewart Himalaloan to inhibit from handling the case filed by the heirs of the Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos against the city. “It (allowances given by the city...
11/19/2011
Customs exec to probe broker, notary public

        The Bureau of Customs in Central Visayas will investigate the Customs broker and the notary public, who subscribed the affidavit of the fictitious consignee of the seized 40-foot container van from the United States. “By Monday we will call the broker and the notary public who subscribed the affidavit,” Bureau of Customs-7 District Collector lawyer Ronnie C. Silvestre said. Silvestre was referring to lawye...
11/19/2011
Sun Star editor testifies in Lastimosa libel case

        WHO was the “Doleng” referred to by veteran broadcaster-columnist Leo Lastimosa in his Freeman column published on June 29, 2007? After reading the controversial column, nine out of 15 UP Cebu College students in a class supervised by Sun Star Cebu's Pachico Seares identified “Doleng” as Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia. But Seares said the nine students learned about “Doleng's” identity through media commentator...
11/19/2011
Council Daily budget hearings next week

        THE City Council will hold budget hearings daily except on Wednesday to hasten the review of Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama's proposed budget of P11.8 billion. On Monday, the City Council will proceed with discussing expenditures in the proposed executive budget. Councilor Margot Osmeña, head of the Committee on Finance, said that as much as possible the council wanted to complete budget discussions on Friday...
11/19/2011
Fluids, vitamins help keep meningo away

        STAY away from crowded places. Regularly take liquid and vitamins to keep your body resistance strong. Dr. Susanna Madarieta, Department of Health in Central Visayas regional director, gave these tips to prevent from having meningococcemia. “The bacteria can be inhaled anywhere, mostly in crowded areas,” Madarieta said. She said that people with low resistance especially children are the most vulnerable to...
11/19/2011
5,000 watch Lapu’s Garbo

        STREET dancing, a parade of decorated floats and dancing festival queens competed in the 11th Garbo sa Lapu-Lapu yesterday. The Garbo was part of the activities leading to Monday's Lapu-Lapu City Fiesta. Lapu-Lapu City Police Chief Anthony Obenza estimated the crowd who watched and enjoyed the competition to be at 5,000. The barangay Maribago contingent grabbed first place and P50,000 in the street dancing...
11/19/2011
Barangay bishop Palma visits Inayawan landfill, scavengers

        Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma surprised scavengers of the Inayawan landfill when he visited them yesterday, shook their hands and spoke to them. “Visits like these make me aware of these kind of realities and its implications in our life. Life is not just about flowers and decorations. There is also other dimensions like the garbage and the dumpsite, which reminds us of the complexities of life,” Palma told rep...
11/19/2011
Capitol to sue DPWH execs for cutting trees

      THE Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) is in hot water for cutting down several trees along the highway in the southern towns of Cebu. The Cebu provincial government will be filing administrative and criminal charges next week against DPWH's 4th Engineering District head, engineer Fernando Cruz, and his personnel. Provincial Legal Officer Marino Martinquilla, in a press conference, said Cruz and his dep...
11/19/2011
City eyes Kamagayan as housing project site

      THE Cebu City government is considering to put up a socialized housing project on a prime lot in barangay Kamagayan. Department for the Welfare of the Urban Poor (DWUP) head Collin Rosell revealed that the City Center is fit for a low- cost housing and could accommodate about 1,000 beneficiaries. But he clarified that the beneficiaries of the housing project will pay the city government through Pag-Ibig. Rama has allott...
11/18/2011
JUDGE BACKS OUT

  City Hall stipend ties his hands in Rallos land case     Eventually, it's difficult to bite the hand that feeds. A judge has decided to let go of handling the long-running land dispute between the Rallos heirs and the Cebu City government over a P133-million money claim that City Hall refuses to pay. In a one-page order, Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge James Stewart Ramon Himalaloan said he is inhibiting from furth...
11/18/2011
Case revives issue of ‘judicial independence’

        THREE years ago, a handful of Cebu judges said “no more” to allowances given by the Cebu provincial government. The controversy over the stipend—with its potential for raising doubt about a judge's impartiality in cases involving the host local government—was raised in 2008. It became a controversy after the allowance of RTC Judge Bienvenido Saniel was withheld by Gov. Gwen Garcia after the judge ruled agai...
11/18/2011
DSWD waits for Baby Niño’s mother

      WITH his thick black hair, rosy cheeks and chinky eyes, it's hard to believe a mother would abandon a baby this appealing. “Baby Niño” was given a medical checkup and turned over yesterday to social workers after the week-old infant was left by his teenage mother, still unidentified, to a stranger she shared a bus ride with in Bogo City last Tuesday. “Whoever the mother is, we appeal to her to come back for her chi...
11/18/2011
‘City can only raise P601 M from projected P4-B revenues’

        The Cebu City government may have to accept a “skin-and-bones” budget next year after executives failed to convince the City Council there would be enough funds to support Mayor Michael Rama’s proposed budget of P11.8 billion. “Most of our income sources have been going down during the last four years. How will you justify an increase in the city’s expenses?” Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young asked. City Treasu...
11/18/2011
Customs Consignee of seized van used fake name, address

        WHERE is “Renato R. Ramos”? Customs officials said a fake name and address were used by the consignee of the seized 40-foot container van from California, whose contents, which included rifle accessories, bullets and big bikes, were misdeclared as “personal effects.” The barangay captain of Banilad certified that no Renato Ramos lives in the area and that the address “1513 J. Rizal Street, Banilad, Cebu Cit...
11/18/2011
Dumanjug toddler is 2nd meningo death in Cebu—DOH

        THE Department of Health yesterday confirmed another death caused by meningococcemia. The victim, a 2-year-old child from Dumanjug town in southwestern Cebu, died last Nov. 7. DOH Regional Director Susanna Madarieta confirmed the cause of the child's death after laboratory results showed the presence of the bacteria in the cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) of the test taken from the child. “There's no need to p...
11/18/2011
‘PH doesn’t regulate jet skis, seacraft operators’

        The Philippines is the only country in the world that doesn’t issue licenses to operators of seacraft like jet skis and banana boats, a veteran Cebu dive operator said the other day. “There is no law against it. There is no law regulating it. Boat operators should be trained and licensed. You ride at your own risk. Jet skis can be deadly. People think it's just another seacraft but it doesn't have a brake,” ...
11/18/2011
Airshed board to get data on smoke-belching vehicles

        THE Metro Cebu Airshed Governing Board will ask the Land Transportation Office and the Land Transportation Franchising Regulatory Board on the status of smoke-belching vehicles in Metro Cebu. Vince Cinches, a private sector representative of the airshed board, said the request was made because the board would focus on producing baseline data on air quality for the local government units and the government ag...
11/18/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        P4.2-M TAX ERROR THE Cebu City government will have to return P4.2 million in business tax, which was erroneously paid by an insurance company. The city government agreed to return the amount to the Philippine AXA Life Insurance Corp., a domestic corporation in Cebu City. With this development, AXA Life also agreed to set aside the case it filed against the City Treasurer of Cebu City. Regional Trial Co...
11/17/2011
MYSTERY OWNER

  Customs men seize van loaded with gun parts, big bikes worth P3.5M     Whoever shipped home to Cebu the van load of “personal effects” from California didn't expect it to be inspected. The Bureau of Customs yesterday opened the 40-foot container van and found gun components, ammunition and chop-chop parts of big motorbikes smuggled among household items. “Overall, the estimated amount of the seized items is P3.5 mi...
11/17/2011
Arroyo reschedules trip today amid DOJ watch

        Manila — Former President Arroyo decided to postpone her trip to Singapore until today after her blood pressure shot up due to the stress brought about by the Department of Justice’s refusal on Tuesday to allow her and her party to leave abroad for a medical check up, her spokesperson Elena Bautista-Horn said. “She has decided to rest since her blood pressure elevated and has not normalized yet up to this ti...
11/17/2011
‘GMA should make trip’

        BOTH the legal community and the religious sector in Cebu agreed that there is no legal impediment to allow former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to leave the country. Regional Trial Court Judge Meinrado Paredes said one's right to travel should be upheld at all times except on instances that pose threats on national security, public order and public safety. Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma was more emphatic, ...
11/17/2011
Cebu City to lose taxes with Aboitiz transfer

        CEBU City Hall voiced concern over the planned transfer of the headquarters of two Aboitiz companies to Luzon. Acting City Treasurer Tessie Camarillo said the city may lose P5.4 million in business taxes and other taxes the company pays to Cebu City. “Exactly how much the city would actually lose in terms of taxes would be known when they file their application for retirement. By then we will know what bus...
11/17/2011
‘COA order won’t affect auction’

        The public auction of a 9.7-hectare lot in the South Road Projects (SRP) of Cebu City will push through on Dec. 13 despite the pronouncement of the Commission on Audit that money claims against the government are beyond the jurisdiction of the court. Sheriff Eugenio Fuentes said no one can stop him from conducting the public auction unless the Cebu City government secures a temporary restraining order (TRO) ...
11/17/2011
Mother leaves behind infant to bus passenger

        Already a mother of five, Arlene Ortega was unprepared to take another child under her wing. But that's what happened to her when a fellow bus passenger left a newborn infant to her care on the way to Cebu City then disappeared. At a stopover in Bogo City, north Cebu, the baby’s mother, who was breastfeeding, stood up to go to the toilet. “She said she was just going to the bathroom,” said 38-year-old Orte...
11/17/2011
Teacher facing abuse raps seeks court help

        A PUBLIC school teacher accused of molesting a 13-year-old student is seeking court intervention after being suspended by the Ombudsman-Visayas. Raul Bayotlang asked the Regional Trial Court (RTC) in Cebu City to issue a 72-hour temporary restraining order (TRO) to stop the suspension order issued by the anti-graft office. Named respondents were Deputy Ombudsman for the Visayas Pelagio Apostol and Departmen...
11/17/2011
Mandaue boosts drive against cervical cancer

        Fighting cervical cancer was given focus during the 4th Women's Summit of Mandaue City yesterday. The city's first lady, Sarah Walker-Cortes, the honorary chairman of Gender and Development, also plans to bring the campaign of preventing cervical cancer to the sitios and barangays of Mandaue City. She intends to start visiting the barangays this month and inform the public that anti-cervical vaccines are av...
11/17/2011
Israeli envoy seeks to build ties with Cebu

        THE Israeli government wants to share their knowledge on agriculture and education through scholarships for Cebuano students. Menashe Bar-on, the newly installed Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the State of Israel to the Philippines, paid a courtesy call to Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia yesterday. He told reporters that they always want to share their knowledge to other countries especially on agric...
11/17/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        RAMA INSISTS ON NEW TREASURY CHIEF STAY out of the way or face sanctions. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama issued this warning to Acting City Treasurer Tessie Camarillo, saying she will face sanctions if she continue to disregard his memorandum designating assistant treasurer Emma Villarete as her replacement. “I will have the matter looked into by the legal office,” he said of her defiance. The mayor said...
11/16/2011
‘IT WAS BELLA’

  12-year-old witness tags suspect in Ellah Joy kidnapping     A 12-year-old girl, whose name will not appear in media reports, yesterday pointed to Bella Ruby Santos in a closed-door hearing with a judge in Cebu City. She pointed twice to the woman in a yellow prison T-shirt as the one who ushered her friend, 6-year-old Ellah Joy Pique, into a vehicle along a road in Minglanilla town nine months ago before the schoolg...
11/16/2011
Dive shop hired by Koreans had ‘no business permit’

        The shop that a female Korean tourist contracted for an ill-fated banana boat ride in Lapu-Lapu City has no business permit based on a check with the Lapu-Lapu City Treasurer's Office yesterday. Herminia Tumulak, officer-in-charge of the City Treasurer's one-stop-shop processing division, said Manta Aqua Sports Inc. has an account number in their record system but no transactions or payments were recorded. ...
11/16/2011
Wagas to file charges against guards

        FORMER Compostela mayor Gilbert Wagas filed contempt charges against four prison guards who refused to follow a court order allowing him to be confined in a Cebu City hospital. In his complaint, Wagas said the four guards refused to heed an order from Regional Trial Court Judge Teresita Galanida allowing him confinement in the Metro Cebu Community Hospital last Nov. 10. Contempt charges were filed by Wagas ...
11/16/2011
Build outside 3-meter zone, fire victims told

        Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes will allow fire victims of Pulang Bukid, barangay Alang-alang to rebuild their homes as long as they stay out of the three-meter easement zone of the Butuanon River. He said house owners must follow this rule to avoid demolition in the future. The Mandaue City Council held a special session yesterday to declare sitio Pulang Bukid under a state of calamity. With the declarati...
11/16/2011
Nightly shows leading to Lapu-Lapu fiesta

        AS DEVOTEES continue to line up in church to pay homage to the Lady of the Rule, who will celebrate her feast day on Nov. 21, the Lapu-Lapu City government has scheduled nightly entertainment shows as part of the preparations for the city’s annual fiesta celebration. Tonight has a variety show to be performed by talents of a local radio station and tomorrow is DepEd Night. The most anticipated event is the ...
11/16/2011
Treasury chief to stay on

        OIC Cebu City Treasurer Tessie Camarillo will stay in her post until the Bureau of Local Government Finance (BLGF) names her replacement, said BLGF Central Visayas director Carmelane Tugas. “I will continue to function as city treasurer until such time that there's a replacement,” Camarillo told Cebu Daily News yesterday. A faxed copy of Tugas' directive was received at Camarillo's office yesterday. The ...
11/16/2011
‘Why realign funds to buy ball pens?’

        THE Cebu City Medical Center (CCMC) may need more than accountants to sift through its proposed P426.6-million budget for next year. The City Council noted that the hospital realigned P1.2 million from its budget for drugs and medicine this year to purchase ball pens and other office supplies. CCMC chief Dr. Gloria Duterte first told the council that her office didn't realign their funds to pay for office s...
11/16/2011
Rama wants RDC to recall flyover endorsements

        AFTER securing a suspension on flyover projects in Cebu City, Mayor Michael Rama wants to lobby for road-widening and a master plan for Metro Cebu. Rama, who chairs the Regional Development Council in Central Visayas (RDC 7), said he will try to convince members to recall their past endorsements of flyover projects. The last RDC quarterly meeting for the year is set in December. Meanwhile, the Movement f...
11/16/2011
Doctor , wife sue Talisay’s Mayor Soc

        The transfer of Talisay’s public market to its new location near the Mananga Bridge is still causing ripples. A physician and his wife filed a civil case against Talisay City Mayor Socrates Fernandez and several other officials for closing their establishment that caters to former occupants of the old Talisay City public market. Dr. Jesus Nacario and his wife Nieves asked the Regional Trial Court in Cebu Ci...
11/15/2011
WHY WAS FUN RIDE FATAL?

    Banana boat mid-sea collision probed   A day after a female Korean tourist was killed at sea while taking a fun ride on an inflated “banana boat,” a closer look is being taken at safety issues in aqua sports in the Mactan Channel. “I can say everybody has to be more careful,” said Charlie Shin, vice president of the Cebu Korean Association. “I hope this will not affect tourist arrivals in Cebu.” Police said charge...
11/15/2011
Mandaue council to declare sitio under calamity status

  But residents want to rebuild homes near Butuanon River   Help is on the way for displaced fire victims of sitio Pulang Bukid, barangay Alang-Alang in Mandaue City. The Mandaue City Council will meet today ahead of their usual Wednesday session to declare the area under a state of calamity. Mayor Jonas Cortes asked the council to convene and pass the resolution to hasten release of financial aid. Some families insist they...
11/15/2011
City mayor names new treasury chief

    There’s a new treasurer in City Hall as far as Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama is concerned. He designated assistant treasurer Emma Villarete to fill the post pending action on his request for a new treasurer from the Bureau of Local Government Finance. "I will be left without anyone and I will have to exercise whatever I believe is my implied power as mayor,' he said in yesterday's press conference. He asked for a replace...
11/15/2011
Rainy days for Cebu

  CEBU will experience some rains this week due to the presence of an intertropical convergence zone and a low pressure area located 600 km off Eastern Samar. Mactan analyst Al Quiblat of the state weather bureau Pagasa said based on their projections, the low pressure area can develop into a typhoon that they will name “Sendong.” Quiblat said the abnormal cooling at the Eastern and Central Pacific Ocean since August this month may...
11/15/2011
Rama says Fuente plan is a work in progress

    Plans will be drawn up and consultations will be made concerning Fuente Rotunda’s development, Mayor Michael Rama said. In an interview, the mayor said he will meet with drivers and operators as well as businessmen affected by the changes that he wants to implement. He will also conduct a public hearing. "Rest assured its implementation is not going to be tomorrow," he said. Rama said he only wants to widen the Fuente ...
11/15/2011
Bar operators charged for exploiting minors

  SHE was hired as a bar girl to entertain customers of a KTV bar in Ubay town, northeastern Bohol. But 16-year-old Mia (not her real name) was also good for “take out” by customers who pay her P1,500 for sex. Mia, a native of Bohol, and seven young Cebuanas were rescued by operatives of the Regional Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force (RATF) last Oct. 21. Four persons were arrested for allegedly exploiting the minors aged 15 to 17....
11/15/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

  Best practices for LGUs DISSEMINATNG information and maximizing community involvement are crucial factors that lead to the success and sustainability of projects in local government units (LGUs). Vice Mayor Alfredo Arquillano Jr. of San Francisco town said bringing the projects to the barangay level resulted to success to the projects he initiated. Arquillano was among the speakers during yesterday's forum dubbed "Kisaw na! Harin...
11/15/2011
COA ruling slows down Ralloses’ claims

  The Ralloses may have to wait longer before they can claim the P133 million that the Cebu City government is supposed to pay them for a lot they owned that was expropriated for a road in 1963. The Commission on Audit (COA) ruled that money claims against the government was something that was beyond the jurisdiction of the court. COA Regional Director Delfin Aguilar in a letter to Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said money claims sho...
11/15/2011
Archdiocese inaugurates Youth Center

  It is the place Cebuano youths can call their own. This was how Msgr. Arthur Navales, chairman of the Commission on Youth, said of the youth center near the Metropolitan Cebu Cathedral. “It’s the home of the young people. Their sanctuary,” said Navales during the inauguration of the two-story youth center last Saturday. Navales said the center would be a venue for the young people in rekindkling or maintaining their Catholi...
11/15/2011
Thousands join Lapu’s fluvial parade

    SOME 70 sea craft, including 40 boats with decorations, dancers and drum and bugle corps, joined the fluvial procession of Lapu-Lapu City's patroness, the Virgin of the Rule, last Saturday. Organizers estimated at least 5,000 joined and watched the procession. The yacht Ang Mandaragat with the image of the Virigin of the Rule led the procession starting from the Pacific Cebu Resort in barangay Suba-Basbas following the Ma...
11/14/2011
UNRESOLVED

Pacquiao’s victory; draws jeers; Mexican fans cry robbery   Las Vegas—Manny Pacquiao knew that to finally silence doubters, he would have to forge a definitive victory over an opponent who troubled him the most. And once again, Juan Manuel Marquez made life difficult for him. The eight-division champion defeated his greatest nemesis yet again Saturday night (Sunday morning in Manila) at the MGM Grand’s Garden Arena. But—as it...
11/14/2011
Cebuanos caught up, mixed in Pacman bout

  Except for a minor feud that involved former Capitol consultant Byron Garcia, Cebu was generally peaceful for the duration of the Pacquiao-Marquez title bout telecast yesterday. Officials of Metro Cebu were left shaking their heads over the bout's outcome, saying they believed Juan Manuel Marquez could have won over Manny Pacquiao, the Saranggani legislator dubbed the “People's Champ.” "I was alarmed by Marquez's pacing. He...
11/14/2011
Doctor faces P2.4 M suit for child’s death

  A DOCTOR assigned in a government hospital faces a P2.4 million damage suit filed by a Talisay City resident whose three-year-old son died following an operation last Sept. 12. In his complaint, Davin Sedeño accused the doctor of negligence that led to the death of his son Raven. The identities of the doctor and the hospital she worked for were withheld until their sides are heard on the incident. In his complaint, Sedeño...
11/14/2011
Police official, Cebu Daily News scribes, publisher cleared of libel

      A POLICE official and three journalists, including two from Cebu Daily News, were cleared of libel charges filed by an anti-crime volunteer over the weekend. In a resolution, Asst. City Prosecutor Mario Ley Gidayawan said there was no probable cause to indict Chief Insp. Bonifacio Garciano, news correspondents Chito Aragon and Patricia Andrea Pateña and Cebu Daily News publisher Eileen Mangubat on libel charges. T...
11/14/2011
DSWD Limited success in anti-poverty drive

    Poverty alleviation programs and household interventions generally had minimal to no “concrete impact” on the communities in Central Visayas, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) admitted yesterday. “The situation of most of the households needs more than one intervention and it has to be sustainable,” Daisy Lor, regional program coordinator for the agency's poverty reduction program, said. Despite ...
11/14/2011
Judge wins poetry award for book on birds

    A PROMINENT Cebuano literature icon's book on birds earned him another award to add to his collection over the weekend. Judge Simeon Dumdum of the Regional Trial Court branch 7 in Cebu City was awarded the Best Book in the poetry category of the 30th National Book Awards held at the National Museum in Manila last Saturday. “I’m honored by the award. I owe it to the birds of the Philippines,” said Dumdum of his book “If ...
11/14/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    Reward money for Ecleo arrest AFTER being denied by the Capitol, the lawyers of the Bacolod family sought the help of Cebu City Hall to raise reward money for informants who can help the police arrest Dinagat Island Rep. Ruben Ecleo Jr. Prosecution lawyer Fritz Quiñanola said he and his colleagues are also asking the PNP to allocate some of their budget for the reward money. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia earlier denied ...
11/14/2011
‘Metro Cebu has oversupply of PUJs’

  The overpopulation of passenger jeepneys in the streets of Metro Cebu has caused more traffic violations because of strict competition for passengers. Engr. Nabor Gaviola of the Department of Transportation and Communication gave this assessment after a study to address the transport problem in Metro Cebu was done by the agency. He said there's a need to standardize mass transportation in Metro Cebu to provide convenience for th...
11/13/2011
LAST STAND IN VEGAS

  Pacquiao vs Marquez trilogy comes full circle     Las Vegas—The pronouncements he keeps hearing in his head. The newspaper clipping pasted on the wall he faces when pounding the speedball. The face he sees when crushing sparring partners in training. All that becomes flesh Saturday night for Manny Pacquiao. And it will stand before him on a ring at the MGM Grand’s Garden Arena, all 143 pounds—and maybe more—of ...
11/13/2011
Pay-per-view, free screenings

        EXPECTATIONS are high among Cebuanos for a Manny Pacquiao victory as they join the rest of the country in watching the 12-round title bout billed as the last of the fabled trilogy between the People's Champ and bitter rival Juan Manuel Marquez. In Cebu City, pay-per-view at the Cebu Coliseum is at P250 with a hot dog for the ringside, P200 for the lower box, P150 for the upper box and P50 for general admissi...
11/13/2011
Rama Money claims won’t disrupt Filinvest joint venture

        Cebu City’s joint venture with Filinvest in the South Road Properties (SRP) “won’t be held hostage” by the Rallos heirs. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama made the assurance after yesterday’s joint inspection of ongoing construction of high-end housing units in Citta di Mare, Filinvest’s Mediterranean-inspired “city by the sea” in the SRP. He was accompanied by Filinvest vice chairman Andrew “Bibot” Gotianun. I...
11/13/2011
Fire victims can’t rebuild homes near Butuanon River

        A DAY after fire razed their homes in sitio Pulang Bukid, barangay Alang-Alang in Mandaue City, victims were told the nearby Butuanon River will be closed off to settlers. In a meeting with social welfare and housing officials yesterday, fire victims were told about the Mandaue City government's plans to move them to a relocation site in barangay Pakna-an. Fire victims can’t rebuild their houses in their ...
11/13/2011
Osmeña supporters attend widow’s funeral

        About 1,000 people from all walks of life, including urban poor residents and the Vice President, attended the funeral of the widow of the late senator Sergio Osmeña Jr. yesterday. Lourdes dela Rama-Osmeña, 98, was accompanied to her final resting place by hundreds of Cebuanos, most of whom had scant memories of the Ilongga hacienda owner, who made Bacolod City her home since the 1970s. Before noon, she wa...
11/13/2011
Inday Osmeña A lady of discipline, elegance

        MEMORIES of growing up under the watchful eyes of a woman who led a privileged but “very private” life were shared by Osmeña children yesterday in their eulogies. Georgia, the youngest of five siblings, said their mother, Lourdes dela Rama-Osmeña, was an elegant woman who taught her proper manners and was fondly called “Inday.” The late matriarch who was born in Iloilo was the daughter of Sen. Eusebio dela ...
11/13/2011
‘Capitol, beneficiaries agree to sell lots’

        Vice President Jejomar Binay said yesterday that the Capitol and 93-1 lot beneficiaries agreed that the contested lots would be sold. “We will be doing our best to address the matter. But at least, for the first time, there is already a consensus on the part of the provincial government and the residents to sell it,” he said. Binay said it was possible that lot occupants would be asked to pay for their assi...
11/13/2011
Osmeña I’ll make sure Rama loses

        “I WANT him out (of City Hall) even if I have to do it myself.” An openly peeved Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district made the threat in reference to Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, the man he endorsed as his successor in last year's elections. While confident that Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young is capable of defeating Rama, Osmeña said he's prepared to challenge the mayor himself to make sure Rama ...
11/13/2011
Cameras in CV ports pushed

        “PUT up cameras in all the major ports in Central Visayas.” Senior Supt. Louie Oppus, deputy director for operations of the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas, presented this proposal to the Regional Peace and Order Council in Central Visayas (PROC-7) last Friday. Oppus made a motion before the RPOC-7 officials to make a study on this matter. Oppus told RPOC-7 officials that aim of putting up these ...
11/12/2011
11-11-11 Fire

  At least 200 families lose homes In Alang-Alang, Mandaue City     The fire was so huge that I felt like it ran after me.” So said 66-year-old ex-policeman Crisenciano Lovebrado as he cuddled a 17-inch image of the Sto. Niño, one of few items that he managed to salvage from a fire that razed nearly 100 homes and displaced just as many families. The fire broke out in sitio Pulangbukid in barangay Alang-Alang, Mandaue...
11/12/2011
Officials, friends set to pay respects to Osmeña matriarch

        Her children would have wanted it private, but Lourdes dela Rama-Osmeña's burial this afternoon would be anything but low key. Roses and flowers surround the Osmeña matriarch's coffin inside the Sacred Heart Church in D. Jakosalem Street. At the foot of the coffin stood a life-size portrait of Lourdes dela Rama-Osmeña dancing in a yellow Filipiniana dress that was done by National Artist Fernando Amorsolo....
11/12/2011
Drug suspect cleared, jailed anew

        SHE was barely out of prison before she was arrested anew on new drug charges. Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge Macaundas Hadjirasul of Branch 8 cleared Chuebe Lim and Edna Flores of drug charges after noting the failure of arresting officers to conduct an inventory of drug items in front of witnesses. But Lim was back in jail after police served another arrest warrant on her. Hadjirasul also ruled that the...
11/12/2011
Mandaue City College should pay taxes — Oliva

        The Mandaue City Treasurer's Office has recommended the closure of the Mandaue City College headed by Dr. Paulus Cañete for failing to pay business taxes and regulatory fees. Regal Oliva, Mandaue City treasurer, said he already endorsed his recommendation to close the school to the City Legal Office headed by lawyer Giovanni Tianero. Oliva said a city college under a local government must give monthly repor...
11/12/2011
Margot O to Rama Where’s your Fuente O master plan?

        Cebu City Councilor Margot Osmeña is challenging Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama to produce his master plan for his new design for the Fuente Osmeña Circle. Osmeña made her dare after Rama announced his plan to redesign Fuente Osmeña and make it look like the Arc de Triomphe and the Champs Elysees in Paris, France. “Where did he get that idea to make it look like Paris? Fuente Osmeña circle is an important lan...
11/12/2011
SRP to gain from no flyover action — Tom

        THE South Road Property (SRP) will benefit from preventing the construction of flyovers in the city. Rep. Tomas Osmeña (Cebu City south district) said preventing flyover construction would be like allowing city streets to choke in traffic. Osmeña said the anti-flyover movers didn't realize that congestion would discourage new investments in the city. Osmeña, however, is looking at the brighter side of thin...
11/12/2011
Filinvest 2 condo projects at SRP still a go

        THE two condominium projects of Filinvest Land Inc. at the South Road Property (SRP) will continue. Filinvest in a statement yesterday assured that Amalfi Oasis and Sanremo Oasis weren't covered by the lots which were being auctioned off for payment to tthe heirs of Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos whose lot was expropriated by the Cebu City government for a road in 1963. “Filinvest further assured its stakeholders ...
11/12/2011
No medical certificate for port security guard

        The security guard who accused a top police official of physical abuse has not undergone a medical checkup due to financial constraints. Ferlito Ompad, the 31-year-old security guard of GDS Security Agency, said he was unable to report last Thursday and yesterday because he is looking after his child who's confined in a hospital. “(Senior Supt. Rex Derilo) saw that I was punched in the stomach but I don't...
11/12/2011
Prosecutors won’t insist on live TV link

        DUE to time constraints, prosecution lawyers won't insist on using live TV links for their child witnesses in the homicide trial of Bella Ruby Santos and British national Ian Charles Griffiths. In an interview, Assistant Provincial Prosecutor Petronio Elesterio said the trial starts on Tuesday next week. Regional Trial Court Judge Ester Veloso of Branch 6 earlier denied their request to allow the use of TV...
11/12/2011
Funding for drainage, slaughterhouse sought

        To address the city's flooding problem, the Cebu City Council has to approve the P500-million appropriation for the improvement of the drainage system. City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete said they will start with the drainage projects next year even if the amount is inadequate to totally solve the problem. The P500-million appropriation for the improvement of the drainage system is part of Mayor Michael ...
11/12/2011
IRC to find solution to dengue problem

        ADDRESSING the dengue problem in the country is among the priorities of the International Regional Committee for Asia and the Pacific. “We focus in developing programs for the health of infants, transportation systems and pollution, etc. We have to develop detailed plans to address the dengue problem in the Philippines,” (ICS) Regional Committee for Asia and Pacific Chair Professor Bruce H.J. Mckellar told C...
11/11/2011
DEL MAR DIGS IN

  Will RDC-7 withdraw support for his flyovers?     The battle isn't over for the main champion of flyovers in Cebu City. Raul del Mar showed up unannounced in yesterday's meeting of a committee that is set to recommend a “moratorium” on flyovers in Metro Cebu “What are you trying to withdraw really? I think this is a very dangerous direction,” said the former congressman. “The Regional Development Council has never ...
11/11/2011
Pacquiao interested in buying SRP lot, says sheriff Fuentes

        He showed interest before in buying a lot in the South Road Projects (SRP). Boxing champion Manny Pacquiao is reportedly interested again to make a purchase if the auction of 9.7 hectares of the government land pushes through in December. Sheriff Eugenio Fuentes said he considers Pacquiao a “prospective buyer” after a representative approached him and verbally expressed interest in the auction. “He (Pacqui...
11/11/2011
Rama to tap P-Noy’s help to clear Mandaue side of Mahiga Creek

        CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama is seeking the national government's intervention to implement the planned dredging of the Mahiga Creek. Rama said he would write President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III and Public Works Secretary Ronaldo Singson to ask for their help to let the Cebu Ports Authority (CPA) officials to dredge the mouth of the Mahiga Creek near the CPA area. Rama was referring to the portion of the ...
11/11/2011
Movement for Liveable Cebu, Cabrido awarded

        Two environmental advocates in Cebu were recognized by peers for their outstanding and continuous work to protect the environment. Lawyer Ben Cabrido and the Movement for Liveable Cebu (MLC) were given token awards of seedlings of lumboy, a native tree species. Nov. 10 was the International Day for the Remembrance of Envrionmental Heroes and Martyrs. Cabrido was recognized for his campaign against illegal...
11/11/2011
Councilors find discrepancies in proposed budget

        A TENSION-filled budget hearing of the Cebu City Council had to adjourn without finishing discussions on the proposed 2012 budget after department heads failed to explain some discrepancies noticed by the councilors. Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young blew his top in yesterday's budget hearing as Collin Rosell, head of the Department for the Welfare of the Urban Poor (DWUP), could not explain three different figu...
11/11/2011
P-Noy atttends Osmeña matriarch’s wake

        PRESIDENT Benigno Aquino III yesterday paid his last respects to the matriarch of the Osmeña family yesteday during a short visit in Bacolod City. Aquino stayed for almost an hour with Transportation and Communication (DOTC) Secretary Manuel ‘Mar’ Roxas III and Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras at the Redemptorist Church where the remains of Lourdes dela Rama-Osmeña lie in state. Her remains are expected...
11/10/2011
FOR AUCTION

  Lot contracted to Filinvest covered by auction notice     The South Road Properties (SRP) lot chosen by the Rallos heirs to be auctioned off for payment to them is contracted to developer Filinvest, a court sheriff confirmed yesterday. The 9.7 hectare lot forms part of the P25 billion joint venture (JV) agreement between Cebu City and Filinvest Land Inc. Court sheriff Eugenio Fuentes told Cebu Daily News that a rep...
11/10/2011
Guard was tapped, not punched, officials say

        The security guard who met a top police official inside the Firearms Explosives Security Agencies and Guard Supervisory Section (FESAGGS) was tapped, not punched on the stomach, the officer-in-charge said yesterday. Supt. Rex Derilo, FESAGGS chief, said he only noticed Senior Supt. Orlando Ualat tapped security guard Ferlito Ompad's stomach in a mediation held inside his office last Oct. 25. He claimed that...
11/10/2011
Still no revised budget for City Council

        THE Local Finance Committee (LFC) of the Cebu City government was unable to submit the revised P10.8 billion budget for next year in time for today's resumption of the budget hearings of the City Council. City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete said the local finance committee were still trying to finalize the second version of the executive budget. “The mayor was unable to sign the documents since he is in ...
11/10/2011
Capitol ends contract with Soco company

        THE province terminated its contract for janitorial services with a labor company owned by businessman and former vice gubernatorial candidate Glenn Soco last month, the Capitol confirmed yesterday. Capitol spokesman Rory Jon Sepulveda said they ended the contract for janitorial services with Mandaue Integrated Manpower Services (MIMS) owned by Soco which received the notice last Sept. 28. The contract was ...
11/10/2011
Cebuanos urged to extend vote support

        CEBUANOS were urged to vote online for the inclusion of Puerto Princessa’s underground river as one of the new Seven Wonders of Nature. The Cebu City Council passed a resolution in its session yesterday asking Cebuanos to vote as the deadline ends today. Councilor Alvin Dizon said this is part of the local city government’s contribution in the global campaign. “This will boost the county’s tourism,” said ...
11/10/2011
Court rules out live TV link for Ellah Joy case

        There will be no live-link television for minors who are set to testify against Bella Ruby Santos and British national Ian Charles Griffiths. In his order, Regional Trial Court Judge Ester Veloso of Branch 6 denied the request of prosecution lawyers to allow the use of live-link television to separate the minors from the accused and the lawyers during trial. The judge said the prosecution failed to prove th...
11/10/2011
Tree-planting seminar for couples gain support

        MAKING tree-planting a requisite for couples who want to get married will reduce the applicants for marriage licenses in the city. Cebu City civil registrar Evangeline Abatayo gave this observation during the public hearing on the draft ordinance of Councilor Nida Cabrera. The proposed ordinance requires couples applying for marriage license to plant five seedlings before granting them the document. Abatay...
11/10/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        DISSATISFIED OVER OBENZA LAPU-LAPU City Mayor Paz Radaza openly expressed her dissatisfaction over the performance of Lapu-Lapu City Police Office Chief Senior Supt. Anthony Obenza but said she won’t ask for the officer's relief. About six months ago, Radaza told the police to exert more effort to arrest persons involved in cyber-pornography and to lower the occurrence of petty crimes. Radaza earlier ga...
11/9/2011
‘POLICE BRUTALITY’

  Port security says he was punched by police official; Ualat says guard ‘is lying’     Who’s being abusive? A security guard claimed he was mauled twice by a police official while he was on duty at a Cebu City port terminal last Oct. 24. Ferlito Ompad of the GDS Security Agency then alleged that Senior Supt. Orlando Ualat punched him in a police office office the following day. Ualat denied Ompad's allegations, as h...
11/9/2011
Joavan in second feud in 2 days

        A DAY after he allegedly threatened a traffic enforcer, controversial adopted son Joavan Fernandez is caught in yet another tussle this time in a fast-food outlet in barangay Tabunok, Talisay City, yesterday dawn. Regie Aranas, a 24-year-old resident of barangay Bulacao, Pardo, Cebu City, was admitted to the Talisay City District Hospital minutes after Joavan allegedly struck him with a bottle at the Andok's...
11/9/2011
Rama scales down budget to P10.8 billion

        About P1 billion will be cut from next year's proposed budget for Cebu City. This after Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama admitted there were discrepancies in the figures recorded by finance officials. In yesterday's budget hearing, City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete told the City Council that he will furnish them the amended budget of P10.8 billion this afternoon. Among the changes are the revenue projecti...
11/9/2011
Rama asking for Tessie exit

        IT'S official: Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama wanted Acting City Treasurer Tessie Camarillo replaced immediately. In a letter sent last Nov. 4, Rama asked the Bureau of Local Government Finance (BLGF) to replace Camarillo. He also designated Asst. City Treasurer Emma Villarete to explain the revenue sources of the 2012 budget to the City Council. But Councilor Edgar Labella said until Finance Secretary Cesa...
11/9/2011
Del Mar wants flyovers in Mega Cebu master plan

        SOME movers of the “Mega Cebu” master plan were known opponents of Cebu City’s flyover projects. But this didn’t deter former congressman Raul del Mar from pushing his proposed network of flyovers into the master plan. “We are in the same wavelength, we have the same objective to update the master plan. The network of flyovers we have in mind, we will propose it to be part of the plan,” the elder Del Mar to...
11/9/2011
Declare Ecleo most wanted, Capitol urged

        POLICE authorities asked the Cebu provincial government to declare cult leader Ruben Ecleo Jr. as the most wanted person in the province to place a cash bounty on his head. Senior Supt. Jose Pante, chief of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Central Visayas (CIDG-7), said a cash bounty on Ecleo will encourage people to provide information on his whereabouts. He said the Department of Interio...
11/9/2011
City asks reconsideration on Rallos lot case ruling

        The Cebu City government won't simply yield in its court dispute with the Rallos heirs. The city is seeking the annulment of the court decision that mandated them to pay at least P133 million to the heirs of Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos whose lot the city purportedly expropriated for a road in 1963. Lawyer Jade Ponce, a consultant of Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, said decades-old court documents would prove that...
11/9/2011
Relocate Mahiga folks first, Jonas tells Mike

        MAYOR Jonas Cortes is asking for a little time before Mayor Michael Rama implements the clearing of informal settlers on the Mandaue side of the Mahiga Creek. Cortes said the informal settlers could not just be evicted without providing a relocation site for them. “We should be given more time because we cannot just demolish their houses without giving assistance. We are also doing this for humanitarian rea...
11/9/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        CYBERPORN CASE NEEDS ‘TRANSLATION’ THE hearing on the cyberpornography case in Cordova has been reset to Dec. 9 because the court wants the full transcript of the interview of the victims translated to English. During the hearing yesterday, the prosecution presented Dr. Noemi Poca of Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC). Poca handled the forensic interview of the children involved in the case co...
11/9/2011
Italian biker to start pedaling in Cebu for Philippine visit

        He has been kidnapped 38 times in Mexico and Russia and nearly died after he was bitten by a snake in India. And yet these incidents failed to unfaze this 75-year-old Italian retiree from achieving his quest to bike around the world in 16 years or when he reaches 80 years old. After visiting 140 countries since he started his biking quest 11 years ago, Janusz River is set to hit the roads of Cebu, where he p...
11/9/2011
OBO told Check if mall work affects Basak road widening

        CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama wanted to know if the mall construction project near a Muslim mosque in Basak San Nicolas would not interfere with a plan to widen the road in the area. He also wanted to be certain that their traffic plan is enough to accommodate vehicle and human traffic that is expected to crowd the area when the construction project is completed. Rama has directed the Office of the Building ...
11/8/2011
PALMA BACKS MEGA CEBU

  ‘Flyover debate launched campaign for master plan’   The movers behind a Mega Cebu master plan yesterday gained a new ally in the Church. In lending his support for the master plan, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma said the clamor for a comprehensive master plan through community involvement is a “good sign” for development. “We are in this movement. We want to contribute on our own share to make people aware of this effort,” ...
11/8/2011
Osmeña matriarch to be buried in family mausoleum

        Three of the five children of the late Lourdes dela Rama Osmeña agreed to have her burial in Cebu City after attending her wake at the Redemptorist Church social hall in Bacolod City yesterday. Her remains will be brought to Cebu by Thursday afternoon. Georgia Osmeña, the youngest, said she talked with her brothers Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district and Sen. Sergio Osmeña III and they agreed t...
11/8/2011
Text messages signaled murder victim’s death

    BEFORE she died, murder victim Jenelyn Premacio sent a text message to her mother talking about her affair with another man. “Ma, I miss you, I wanted to live long, I can't avoid to go with him,” Jenelyn's mother Gina recalled, saying that she deleted the message from her phone since she didn't understand it. The 19-year-old Jenelyn reportedly went out with 17-year-old Leonard “Junard” Balario. A threatening text message...
11/8/2011
City Council next to face Rallos suit

    IT’S now the Cebu City Council that’s being targeted for court action by the Rallos heirs. Roy Rallos, one of the claimants, said they sent letters to the councilors to demand the payment of the P133 million the city owed them. “It seems that they (city council) are not doing something (to release the amount to us),” Roy told Cebu Daily News over the phone. He said the city’s debt to their family increases by P1 million e...
11/8/2011
Cebu Muslims to bring case to DPWH

      The Muslim community in Cebu will be filing complaints against a private developer that allegedly damaged their mosque in Basak San Nicolas, Cebu City because of its mall project nearby. Director Melo Manonggiring, regional director of the National Commission on Muslim Philippines in Central Visayas, said they would also ask the Department of Public Works and Highways in Central Visayas to assess the damage sustain...
11/8/2011
Match my record first, Osmeña dares Rama

    Produce first before you demand. Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's South District said Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama should match his performance in raising revenues for Cebu City to convince the council to approve his P11.8 billion budget next year. “In my first term as mayor of Cebu City in 1988, our budget was only P140 million but I produced more than a billion pesos in my first year,” Osmeña said. In his first term, O...
11/8/2011
Liloan mayor faces contempt charges

    LILOAN Mayor Vincent Franco “Duke” Frasco is facing charges of indirect contempt for allegedly defying a court order to issue a Mayor's Permit to a slipway firm operating in his town. The Regional Trial Court Branch 16 in Cebu City issued an injunction order mandating Frasco to issue a Mayor's Permit to Michael Slipways Inc. and allow the company to continue operating the slipway business. However, Frasco allegedly decline...
11/8/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    Mahiga Creek problem CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama may face charges for violation of the Urban Development and Housing Act (UDHA) if he pushes through with the demolition of houses on Mandaue's side of the Mahiga Creek. Federation of Visayan Housing Action Group Inc. president Leopoldo "Nonoy" Chavez said in a press conference yesterday that Rama doesn’t have jurisdiction over Mandaue City and should coordinate with Mayor J...
11/8/2011
RAFI YOUNG MINDS ACADEMY

      16-year-old scholar shines in youth leadership camp Just keep dreaming. Never let fear keep you from the game. Always keep your feet on the ground and remain humble.” Shari Julla Gonzalez, 16, shared her thoughts on how to become leader during the graduation and awarding ceremony of the Ramon Aboitiz Aboitiz Foundation Inc. (RAFI) Young Minds Academy (YMA) on Oct. 28 at the Casino Espanol. Gonzalez, a YMA scholar...
11/8/2011
Landfill closure briefing today

    A FINAL briefing will be held today to properly guide barangay officials and garbage collectors on the Nov. 10 landfill closure. Dionisio Gualiza, head of the Department of Public Services, gave the briefing schedule yesterday. Mayor Michael Rama first wanted the landfill closed on October 1. The planned closure was moved to Nov. 7 and now Nov. 10. Gualiza said a meeting would be held at the mayor's residence in Basak San...
11/8/2011
Philippines’ Ruais is 1st runner up in Ms World pageant

    MANILA — Following Shamcey Supsup's fourth place finish in the Miss Universe pageant last September, the Philippines further cemented its place in the international beauty pageant scene after two more Filipino women earned distinctions in the Miss World and Miss International pageants Sunday night. Miss World Philippines Gwendoline Ruais placed second in the Miss World pageant held at the Earls Court in London on Nov. 6 (No...
11/7/2011
OSMEÑA FAMILY MOURNS

  98-year-old matriarch passes away in Bacolod City   The matriarch of the Osmeña clan, Lourdes dela Rama Osmeña, passed away yesterday at the age of 98 in Bacolod City. She was in a private hospital there for the past four years, after suffering pneumonia. The widow of former senator and Cebu City mayor Sergio “Serging” Osmena Jr. was known by her pet name “Inday” in Negros and Cebu. Her five children – Sen. Serge Osmeña...
11/7/2011
Fire ravages 10 homes at back of UP campus

      Germana Pizon played card games with friends outside when she saw a huge fire break out of the second floor of her house in sitio Sunset Drive Extension, barangay Lahug, Cebu City at past 5 p.m yesterday. “We ate tempura and played some card games and when I saw the huge fire at the second floor of our house, I immediately ran,” said the 64-year-old Pizon, whose home is located at the back of the University of the...
11/7/2011
Muslim leaders told to address mosque concerns

      CEBU City Hall's Office of the Building Official told Muslim community leaders to send their engineers to a meeting they will hold with the engineers of a developer to discuss the damage supposedly wrought in their mosque. “It’s hard to see lawyers and engineers exchange ideas and it would be better that our Muslim brothers also send structural engineers in our meeting this Tuesday,” said OBO chief Engr. Josefa Yla...
11/7/2011
Cebu’s Muslims join global observance of Eid Al Adha

      CALLS for peace and reconciliation were made to Cebu's Muslim community as they joined the rest of the Islamic world in observing the “Feast of Sacrifice” yesterday. Imam Aladdin Ubpon led the prayer of 2,000 Muslims of the Al Khaitiah Mosque in Basak San Nicolas, Cebu City as they celebrated Eid Al Adha. “ We should all pray for peace and understanding with our brothers and sisters. If we talk peacefully and und...
11/7/2011
Ouano-Quisumbing tandem eyed for 2013 mayoralty race

      THE elections are still two years away but this early, the allies of the Ouano and Quisumbing families are floating their own tandem for Mandaue City's top posts. Sources close to the families said Councilor Emmarie Ouano-Dizon and Elizabeth “Betsy” Quisumbing, mother of Rep. Luigi Quisumbing of Cebu's 6th district, are being persuaded to run for mayor and vice mayor respectively in 2013. “They don't see anything ...
11/7/2011
‘Businessmen willing to fund master plan’

    Local business stakeholders in Cebu are willing to raise funds for a comprehensive master plan. Bunny Pages, one of the movers for a master plan, said Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, who is the Metro Cebu Development Coordinating Board agreed on the importance of having a master plan for Cebu. “She (Garcia) said that they could also provide the funding for it but her concern is that the local government units might not agree on the...
11/7/2011
Capitol exec We’ll check DILG memo on name ban

      THE Capitol will review the memorandum issued by the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) on the banning of names, nicknames and faces from public property. The move came after Cebu Daily News published in its Siloy Section last Friday, a photo of a signage in barangay Sagay, Borbon with a sign “eGwen Highway.” When asked if violations were committed by the provincial government on putting up the si...
11/7/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    Budget issue Don't drive us to bankruptcy. Rep. Tomas Osmena (Cebu City south district) is asking Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama not to drive the city to bankruptcy. Osmena's reaction came after Rama ordered his department heads to walkout of the budget hearing last Friday. He claimed that Rama violated the law when he ordered the walkout. “This is unheard of. This is the first time in the history of the Cebu politics th...
11/7/2011
Judge Bar exam format tougher

      The new multiple choice question (MCQ) format in the Bar Exams can be difficult, said Judge Meinrado Paredes, who also teaches law at the University of San Carlos and the University of Cebu. He said law graduates who took mock bar exams in both schools got low scores in MCQ, which requires precision in the knowledge of law. “There are answers that are closely related,” he said. Paredes gave these tips to bar exam...
11/6/2011
TIFF OVER CRACKS IN MOSQUE

  Mall developer offers to correct damage     Cracks fround in the wall of the Al Khaitiah Mosque in Basak San Nicolas, Cebu City, are causing friction between some Muslim members and the developer of an ongoing mall construction beside it. Imam Aladdin Ubpon, a mosque leader, is demanding that the developer pay for the damage and reconstruct the mosque, which will be the venue of prayer of some 1,000 Muslims on Monday...
11/6/2011
City Hall heads told to show up Tuesday, defend budgets

        Will another walkout mar the next budget hearing scheduled by the Cebu City Council on Tuesday after the disruption in Friday's session? It depends on who the council presses to talk. Mayor Michael Rama told department heads that they will show up only to explain the appropriations proposed for their offices. He insisted that only Asst. City Treasurer Emma Villarete would be allowed to speak about revenu...
11/6/2011
Two storms to visit PH this month monsoon ushers cool weather

        At least two storms are expected to come this month from the Pacific Ocean. But they won't be as strong as the previous tropical storms that struck the Philippines in the past months, the state weather bureau Pagasa said yesterday. Mactan weather analyst Boy Artiaga said the cool weather indicates the presence of the northeast monsoon affecting the Visayas and Mindanao areas. The amihan is prevalent duri...
11/6/2011
New format, tight security for today’s bar exams

        ASPIRING lawyers are up for a challenge as the annual Bar Examinations start today in Manila amid tight security. For the first time, a new format of multiple choice questions (MCQ) will be used, making up 60 percent of the total score. Essay-type items, which used to be the sole format, will make up 40 percent. A total of 6,200 law graduates from over a hundred law schools nationwide will take the exams, ...
11/6/2011
Sepulveda says he’s still Capitol spokesman

        He hasn’t been seen lately at the Capitol but it doesn’t mean he’s quit the job, said Capitol consultant Rory Jon Sepulveda. In a text message, Sepulveda denied insinuations that he resigned as spokesman and Capitol consultant on information and revenue generation. “I have not resigned as a consultant, much more for the reasons he cited. Never have I done any work (as a Capitol consultant and as Gov. Gwen ...
11/6/2011
Gwen prepares to visit Chile, Argentina, Brazil this month

        Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia is set to head a trade mission to three Latin American countries this month. The governor will be leaving for a working visit for two weeks on Nov. 22. She has been invited by Chilean Ambassador to the Philippines Roberto Mayorga to head the mission to Chile, Argentina and Brazil. This trip is organized by Philippines-Chile Business Council together with Gov. Garcia and the Ceb...
11/6/2011
‘Teaching kids about road safety can lessen accidents’

        STARTING them young. This is one of Pilipinas Shell's goal in holding its road safety camp in Cebu City for children. It's ultimate goal is to lessen road accidents by educating children about road safety. Ronald Pacio, road safety manager for Downstream Pilipinas Shell, said they also had programs with adults but they focused on the road safety program with kids. “At their age, they will start to learn a...
11/6/2011
Ladlad slams attacks against gays

        BE open minded towards the transgender community in Cebu. Professor Danton Remoto, founder and chairperson emeritus of Ladlad party-list, made this call to Cebuanos after last month's drive-by pellet shooting attacks in Cebu City leaving two homosexual men injured in Cebu City. Remoto said that most Filipinos including Cebuanos were considered “conservative” in their attitude towards the lesbian, gay, bisex...
11/5/2011
BUDGET MEET WALKOUT

  Disagreement over speaker ends session     Yesterday’s opening of Cebu City Hall's series of budget hearings ended on a sour note after 20 department heads walked out of the City Council’s session hall. The walkout ensued while City Treasurer Tessie Camarillo elaborated on the P11.8-billion budget proposed by Mayor Michael Rama. The department heads received a text message from Rama to leave the session hall duri...
11/5/2011
‘I don’t trust Tessie’

        IN picking Asst. City Treasurer Emma Villarete to present the revenue sources of his 2012 budget, Mayor Michael Rama said he doesn't trust City Treasurer Tessie Camarillo. “She's not my treasurer anyway,” Rama said. The mayor was dismayed that Camarillio continued to present the budget to the council despite the walkout of the 20 department heads. “Unfortunately, someone went to the budget hearing without ...
11/5/2011
City can reclassify SRP lots, VM says

        There is a way out for Cebu City Hall as far as sparing the South Road Properties (SRP) from the payment claims of the Rallos heirs is concerned. Cebu City Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young said the City Council could reclassify the parcels of land at the SRP into a public lot or park. The vice mayor issued the comment amid charges filed by one of the Rallos heirs to one of the city’s depository banks. Young ...
11/5/2011
Boat sinks off Cordova town 75 rescued

        At least 70 passengers and five crewmen of a motor boat were rescued after the seacraft sank off Hilutungan waters in Cordova town at past 2 a.m. yesterday, a Coast Guard official said. Rolando Punzalan, Coast Guard station commander, said the owner of the MB Ardie Express will be investigated since the boat had a license to carry only cargo, not passengers. Punzalan said the Coast Guard would also invest...
11/5/2011
Bella trial set this month

        HOMICIDE suspect Bella Ruby Santos will have to face trial this month. The court affirmed last Thursday its denial of the request of Bella’s lawyers to determine whether there is probable cause against her. Her trial reportedly starts on Nov. 15. In her ruling, Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge Ester Veloso of Branch 6 also denied Bella’s petition to recall the arrest warrant issued against her. “With the ...
11/5/2011
Three road projects lined for Cebu

        Three major road-widening projects worth P600 million were lined up by the Department of Public Ways and Highways (DPWH) for Cebu next year. Rebecca Garsuta, DPWH director for project management, told participants of yesterday’s economic briefing that they are looking for investors to help finance other projects in Cebu and the rest of the country. During the briefing, Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry...
11/5/2011
Four city barangays found violating 93-1 law

        Violations on the provisions of Ordinance 93-1 were observed in a survey that the National Housing Authority conducted on 93-1 lots in four Cebu City barangays. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said the survey report showed lucrative commercial establishments on certain areas that were supposed to be occupied by the urban poor. Garcia met with NHA representatives to see their complete report on the socio-economic...
11/5/2011
Luigi launches projects, lends support to Mega Cebu

        SUPPORT for a master plan to develop Cebu as “Mega Cebu” came from another Cebuano legislator. "Keeping lines of communication is always beneficial. Whether it's formal or informal, it's always good for LGUs to communicate," said Rep. Luigi Quisumbing of Cebu’s 6th district. Cebu business groups earlier pushed for an inter-local government unit coordination within Metro Cebu to address common concerns such ...
11/5/2011
‘Capitol can’t help’

        Since the crime happened outside the province’s jurisdiction, the Capitol asid it cannot offer reward money for the arrest of parricide suspect Ruben Ecleo Jr. . “I cannot accede to (lawyer Kit Enriquez’s) request because of the circumstances prevailing upon this case,” Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said in a press conference. Enriquez earlier requested the governor to put up reward money to hasten Ecleo’s his...
11/5/2011
A spectacle of Cebuano heritage

        Church visits, cultural dances, song presentations, a feast of Cebuano delicacies, and souvenir items topped the 24th three-day “Suroy-Suroy sa Sugbo Southern Heritage Trail” last Oct. 21 to 23. Foreign and local tourists who visited 22 places in southern Cebu took a glimpse of heritage sites like the old military barracks in Oslob. Korean national See Wook Hur, first-time participant of the Suroy-Suroy, ...
11/5/2011
Daughter picks up pa’s work as cemetery caretaker

        WHEN her husband passed away, a woman who lived near the cemetery all her life augmented her meager income by picking up on his work. As a teenager, Josephine Rosal-Laurente of barangay Guizo, Mandaue City, used to accompany her father Felomino Rosal, a cemetery caretaker, when a body has to be exhumed in the Mandaue City cemetery. Laurente, 51, was the only sibling among eight who showed interest in her f...
11/5/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        CARRETA CHAPEL CONSTRUCTION CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama ordered a halt on the construction of a chapel in barangay Carreta after builders failed to secure permits from the Office of the Building Officials. Barangay captain Eduardo Lauron said he was informed by the contractor that personnel of the Squatters Prevention Elimination and Encroachment Division (Speed) told them to stop the construction upon t...
11/4/2011
TWO SRP LOTS FACE AUCTION

  Sheriff serves notice of levy in case city fails to pay Rallos heirs     The pressure is on for Cebu City Hall to pay the Rallos heirs. This after a notice of levy was submitted by court sheriff Eugenio Fuentes before the Register of Deeds covering two sizable lots of the South Road Properties (SRP) last Wednesday. Unless the city pays the heirs of Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos P133 million for their lot the city governme...
11/4/2011
Rama says Palace, DPWH heeded city on flyover feud

        There were no victors or losers in the flyover debate as far as Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama is concerned. “It’s not winning. It only means that the President is listening to the people. It only means this current administration has the ear to listen to the cry of the people,” Rama said. His predecessor, Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City’s south district, disagreed. “In my point of view, it’s a loss for Cebu ...
11/4/2011
Mandaue calls for law on Mega Cebu

        ANY moves to pursue a “Mega Cebu” plan should be supported by a national law to give it more permanence, a Mandaue City official said yesterday. “It should not be prejudiced by politics because it would be a waste if it was neglected. National legislation from Congress is necessary to have a sense of permanence,” Mandaue City Administrator James Abadia told Cebu Daily News. He said Mandaue City welcomes any...
11/4/2011
Tejero folks calm amid fire outbreak five houses damaged

        NOT a few residents of barangay Tejero were surprisingly calm when a fire broke out inside the Cantillas compound in their area at 1 p.m. yesterday. After all, they reasoned, it was the third fire that hit their area this year and there were no casualties. That wasn’t the case with 18-year-old Jeanette Cantillas, a hotel and restaurant management student of Cebu Technological University (CTU). She sobbed a...
11/4/2011
Rama builds budget case before traders

        A DAY before the Cebu City Council scrutinizes his proposed P11.8-billion budget, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama met with Cebu's businessmen to ask for their support. His presentation titled “So the people may know... this is where your taxes go” included a list of 65 important expenses in his draft budget amounting to a total of P3.7 billion. “We are here to let you know that you are part of governance. In...
11/4/2011
Griffiths to take legal action on charges

        THOUGH he is out of the country, British national Ian Charles Griffiths isn't taking the homicide charges filed against him by Cebu prosecutors sitting down. Rameses Villagonzalo, the lawyer of Griffiths's Cebuana partner Bella Ruby Santos, said a firm of lawyers in London is processing the International Writs at the Queen's Bench Division of the High Court of Justice in England. He said the writs will be s...
11/4/2011
Bacolod lawyers seek Capitol assistance for Ecleo arrest

        Prosecution lawyers are seeking the assistance of Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia for the arrest of cult leader Ruben Ecleo Jr. Lawyer Kit Enriquez said they are hoping the governor will also allocate funds as reward money to anyone who can give information that will lead to the arrest of Ecleo, who faces parricide charges for allegedly killing his wife, Alona, in 2002. The Cebu provincial government earlier put...
11/4/2011
Female traffic enforcer slaps jeepney driver

        BARELY two weeks after the opening of the Capitol compound as diversion route for lightweight public vehicles, a driver complained that she was slapped by a female traffic enforcer in a traffic altercation yesterday morning. Rogel Dinaguit, driver of a 07B jeepney, alleged that Cebu Traffic Operations Management (Citom) Officer Imelda Sabellano slapped him during an argument after he was apprehended for viol...
11/4/2011
Opao police station to transfer amid flooding

        THE Mandaue City police wants to transfer the Opao police precinct to safer ground due to its vulnerability to flooding during downpours. Senior Supt. Noel Gillamac, Mandaue City police chief, said city residents also think that the police precinct contributed to the flooding since it is built on a creek. The precinct, which was built during the time of former mayor and now Provincial Board (PB) member Tha...
11/4/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        PALEA PROTEST TWO wooden coffins were placed on display at the airport road by members of the Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA) Cebu chapter to dramatize their solidarity with their counterparts who were dispersed during their picket in Manila. The said the coffins symbolize the death of the workers' rights, the death of unionism, and the death of job security. The Kahugpungan sa Nagkahiu...
11/3/2011
CUTIE BUCKS SUSPENSION

  Del Mar: Master plan will show in the end that flyovers are still needed     After seeing her priority projects stopped in its tracks, Rep. Rachel “Cutie” del Mar said she “strongly objects” to the suspension of two proposed flyovers in Cebu City. But she said she is confident that in the end, a transportation master plan, which flyover critics insist should come first, will prove her right. “Anyway, they will find ...
11/3/2011
Cebu clergy want a plan before more flyovers - Palma

        Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma yesterday said most of the Cebu clergy favor having a transport master plan in place before building more flyovers. “There should first be an overall plan for the city before more flyovers are made,” Palma told reporters after his mass in the mausoleum of Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral. “We are not completely against flyovers. Perhaps in certain cases, they can be solutions,” Palma s...
11/3/2011
City Hall given until Dec. to pay Rallos heirs

        A court sheriff is preparing to hold a public auction on Dec. 13 to sell properties of the Cebu city government unless P133 million is immediately paid to Rallos family heirs. This developed after the Regional Trial Court (RTC) denied the city’s request to quash a writ of execution and to set aside the notice of garnishment issued to four banks and SM companies. RTC Judge Ramon Hamalaloan said the orders “s...
11/3/2011
City Hall dept heads to show up for budget hearing

        CEBU City Hall's department heads will appear in today's City Council budget hearing to justify their allocation in the proposed P11.8-billion budget for next year. Mayor Michael Rama said he is confident that the department heads can justify the budget even as he took potshots at the City Council for tapping a budget expert to help prepare for their review of the city's proposed budget. "I thought the budg...
11/3/2011
Vidal discovers loss of sister’s gravestone

        IT happens even to cardinals. At the Carreta cemetery, Cebu Archbishop Emeritus Ricardo Cardinal Vidal yesterday visited the grave of his sister for all All Souls’ Day. He discovered that the tombstone was gone. Looting is a fairly common occurrence in Carreta, one of Cebu city’s biggest public cemeteries which is owned by the Cebu Archdiocese. “I'm happy to visit them. But when I looked for my sister's ...
11/3/2011
Pray for departed kin, Palma asks Cebuanos

        CEBU Archbishop Jose Palma reminded Cebuanos to remember their departed loved ones through prayers even if they cannot visit their graves. “Our prayers will certainly reach them. Even if they are physically no longer with us, our relationship with them will not end but is raised to a higher level,” Palma said during Mass on All Souls’ Day at at the mausoleum of the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral. Prominent chu...
11/3/2011
Fiscals seeking live TV link for Ellah Joy witnesses

        Prosecutors in the Ellah Joy homicide case sought the court’s permission to use live-link TV during the questioning of their two female minor witnesses. “Given their age and level of development, there is that likelihood that they can be subjected to trauma and fear during intense questioning from either counsels,” said the public prosecutors in their pleading. If their petition is approved, the two minors ...
11/3/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

          LANDFILL CLOSURE PLANS HANGING BARELY a week before the target date, the Cebu City government has not finalized its plans to close the Inayawan Sanitary Landfill. Councilor Edu Rama Jr., vice chairman of the City Council's public services committee, said City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete is still reviewing the contract with the landfill operator in Consolacion town. Councilor Rama said the ga...
11/2/2011
REVILLA FAMILY TORN BY CHARGES

  Murder linked to P1-M allowance Manila — Disagreement over a P1-million monthly allowance from their father, former Senator Ramon Revilla Sr., is being eyed by police as a possible motive in the murder of actor Ramgen Jose Bautista. Police yesterday arrested the victim's younger brother, 18-year-old Ramon Joseph “RJ” Bautista in Bacoor, Cavite province, after he attended the wake of his slain sibling. Authorities said they we...
11/2/2011
DPWH Flyovers on hold until master plan is set

    Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson has put on hold the construction of two flyovers in Cebu City pending the completion of a master plan for the city. Singson said he decided to order the suspension of the projects after meeting with leaders of civil society groups from Cebu. However, he said the Department of Public Works and Highways would proceed with widening the intersections on streets where the flyovers were ...
11/2/2011
BuCor to mull probe on Wagas escorts

    SIX jail guards who were assigned as security escorts for former Compostela mayor Gilbert Wagas during his court hearings in Cebu may face investigation. According to the initial inquiry of the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor), there were inconsistencies in the claims of the jail guards on the whereabouts of Wagas who was scheduled to attend court hearings from April 5 to May 13 in Cebu. There were two sets of jail guards who...
11/2/2011
Ready umbrellas for All Souls’ Day, Cebuanos told

    After drizzles and overcast skies in Cebu yesterday, expect some rain when visiting cemeteries today for All Souls’ Day. “People are advised to bring umbrellas. The rain may last throughout the day,” Al Alcazar of Pag-asa Mactan said. Cebu will experience scattered rainfall due to an Intertropical Convergence Zone in the Visayas and Mindanao, according to the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Service Admi...
11/2/2011
Father offers food, prayers for Ellah

    It was a steep climb down the ravine for Renante Pique past 6 a.m. in barangay Sayaw, Barili town, southwest Cebu. At the bottom, he lay down cooked rice, adobong baboy (pork stew), ensaymada, bananas and lollipops, the favorite food of his slain 6-year-old daughter Ellah Joy. He lighted candles and offered flowers. “I hope the culprits will be confronted by their conscience. May the Lord forgive them for what they did t...
11/2/2011
Priest Making ‘bottled memories’ is art, act of love

    Believing in a person's natural creativity, a parish priest introduced a unique way of remembering departed loved ones. Fr. Jason Dy of Sacred Heart Parish channeled his passion for art and role as pastor in a project that uses recycled bottles as personalized memorabilia. “Memories are intangibles, but those memories can be related to a particular object, and that object would have sentimental value,” Dy said pointing to ...
11/2/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    Leaflets for Mandaue THE Mandaue City police printed leaflets to remind the public about do's and dont's while staying in the cemetery during All Souls’ and All Saints' Days Nevertheless, police still confiscated 20 knives including sharp objects used by painters to scrape off paint and a bottle of liquor yesterday. Mandaue City Police Chief Noel Gillamac said the leaflets were easier to read than posting reminders on t...
11/2/2011
Cashing in on ‘Kalag Kalag’ days

    Celebrating All Souls' and All Saints' Days gives enterprising individuals a chance to earn extra money. In Carreta Cemetery, children go around offering to repaint tombstones. John Ropel Ybañez, 12, has been busy there since Saturday, earn P50 for each “lapida” he repaints. The first year student of Gothong National High School took advantage of the holiday to help his family earn a living. “On busy days, I earn as muc...
11/2/2011
Council seeks expert aid in reviewing budget

    In reviewing Mayor Michael Rama’s proposed P11.8-billion budget, the Cebu City Council sought outside expert help. Councilor Margot Osmeña, chairperson of the council’s budget committee, said they tapped a financial expert who orients legislators in Congress on the national budget process. The expert serves as consultant to her husband, Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City’s south district. Councilor Osmeña said their lessons ...
11/2/2011
Rallos files contempt raps against Rama anew

    ANOTHER contempt charge was filed against Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama by one of the heirs of the Rallos family. Lucina Rallos said the mayor asked the Philippine Veterans Bank (PVB) not to pay the Rallos any amount despite a notice of garnishment issued to them by the court. She said the mayor asked the bank to wait for the court’s decision to resolve the city's motion to quash the Writ of Execution and Notice of Garnishm...
11/2/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    Pag-Ibig coverage for workers CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama sought the City Council’s support to approve an agreement that would enroll 500 job-order workers (JOs) for Pag-Ibig coverage. Pag-Ibig or the Home Development Mutual Fund requires membership of all self-employed individuals including the city's JOs earning at least P1,000 per month. But the council wanted to be clarified on the city government’s source of count...
11/1/2011
LOBBYING FOR ‘MEGA CEBU’

  Bizmen look beyond flyover debate, want integrated metropolis   Some prominent Cebu businessmen are looking beyond flyovers and taking steps to develop a master plan for a “Mega Cebu”. A group met last Friday with Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma to discuss their commitment to drafting an integrated plan that views Cebu's growth across the borders of 13 cities and towns from Carcar in the south to Danao city in the north. “We ...
11/1/2011
Mike needs Council’s nod on moves in Rallos case

      CEBU City's legal strategy in the Rallos land dispute case may be affected by new guidelines. Mayor Michael Rama will have to seek “prior authorization” from the City Council before filing or signing any pleadings, motions, or other papers arising from the case. This was the gist of a resolution approved last Oct. 26 by the city legislature. In the floor discussion, the main sponsor Councilor Edgar Labella cited ...
11/1/2011
Safety issue needs closer look – Citom

    A REFLECTORIZED sticker, the kind that alerts motorists from a distance with its neon colors, cost P600 per strip. A bright orange sticker could warn drivers to avoid obstacles such as unlighted parts of concrete flyovers like the one in Banilad-Talamban, where a Sports Utility Vehicle crashed Saturday evening. The lack of warning signs was raised as a public safety risk that should be corrected by the Department of Public...
11/1/2011
Daanbantayan’s Mayor Loot may be probed for cutting trees

      DAANBANTAYAN Mayor Ma. Luisa Loot may face investigation for the cutting of palm trees planted in front of the residence of a lawyer in her town. Lawyer Estrella Martinez wrote the Department of Interior and Local Government about the tree cutting by municipal personnel which was done without her consent. “As a lawyer, I never encountered a law which mandates municipal and local officials to cut mercilessly plant...
11/1/2011
Nothing surpasses prayers as offering for dead – Binghay

      Beyond candles, flowers and food offering, one should offer prayers for the dead. Msgr. Esteban Binghay, episcopal vicar of the Archdiocese of Cebu, said lighting of candles, laying of flowers, and offering foods on graves are mere “symbols of hope.” He said nothing can surpass prayers. The Catholic Church urged the faithful to intercede for those who have gone to their rest and contemplate upon death—an inevitab...
11/1/2011
‘Expect strict security measures at cemeteries’

      THOSE who will visit the city cemeteries today can expect a strict scrutiny on their belongings by the police and the army at the gate before they can proceed to the grave of their love ones. This is because the law enforcers are making sure that no intoxicating drinks, sharp or bladed instruments, loud sound systems and even pets are brought inside the cemeteries. These will be confiscated if caught by the police...
11/1/2011
Capitol to switch to LED lights

      THE Capitol is also adopting the use of LED (light emitting diodes) bulbs in all its offices to save on energy costs. Provincial Engineer Eulogio Pelayre said that the Capitol was aiming to replace all ceiling lights with energy efficient lights. However, Pelayre said they had yet to find the best quality producer of LED lights. “The investment cost is high. The purchase price is also high, P200 for flourescent c...
11/1/2011
Harvest in flower farms meets ‘kalag’ demand

      All Souls' Day is a peak season for flower growers in the mountain barangay of Babag, Cebu City. Delicate white asters sell for P20 per bundle to direct buyers. When it reaches Carbon market, a bundle is sold for P50 or more. Chrysanthemums at P70 per dozen costs over P100 by the time customers get them in local markets. “Flowers are almost always in demand so the return of our investment is faster,” said Ellen B...
11/1/2011
Mountain hospital Services still limited after P14-M repair

      CEBU City's 10-bed satellite hospital in the mountain barangay of Guba was renovated at a cost of P14 million this year. But it still can't take in patients for lack of equipment and a permit from the Department of Health (DOH). A proposal to make the hospital operate with its own budget is being discussed by the City Council. “In the absence of a license, we are only able to attend to the needs of outpatients,” ...
10/31/2011
‘NO SIGNAGES FOR FLYOVERS’

Accident injures four in Banilad   Yet another case was built by officials opposed to the pending flyover projects in Cebu City yesterday. Sylvan Jakosalem, executive chairman of the Cebu City Traffic Operations Management (Citom), said a sports utility vehicle hit a flyover lane divider in barangay Banilad last Saturday night. “The accident only goes to show the danger of flyovers without the necessary warning signs or even jus...
10/31/2011
Court rules local actor, wife liable for 2007 fire

    A Cebu City court found a local actor and his wife liable for negligence in relation to a fire that burned down eight houses in barangay Quiot, Cebu City in 2007. Alejandro “Goliat” Nacorda and wife Liza were ordered to pay damages amounting to P100,000 and P50,000 in attorney's fees to spouses Medardo and Jocelyn Delfino. Regional Trial Court Judge Simeon Dumdum of Branch 7, however, found no sufficient basis to award mo...
10/31/2011
Hotel apologizes to Lapu SK for report

    THE management of a hotel in Dumaguete City apologized to Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) officials of Lapu-Lapu City in the wake of allegations that they misbehaved during their three-day stay in their establishment. Charles Baylosis, consultant to Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Paz Radaza said the manager of Bethel Guest House in Dumaguete City apologized to him and the city government over the report that came out in a local paper. T...
10/31/2011
Ma saves dead child from fire

    SHE lost him last week, but Elsa Besal is determined not to lose her child to a fire that ravaged her home in sitio Tabucanal, barangay Pardo in Cebu City at 8 a.m yesterday. On the day he was scheduled to be buried, a fire hit the home of Elsa's neighbor. Already drained from weeping for her five-month-old son's death, Elsa called on her 10 children to save her dead child. While everyone was busy taking everything they...
10/31/2011
Mandaue police gear up for All Saints holiday

    MANDAUE City police yesterday finalized security preparations for the annual All Saints and All Souls Day observance in the city. Senior Supt. Noel Gillamac, Mandaue City police chief, said K-9 dogs and Special Weapons and Tactics Team (SWAT) personnel inspected bus terminals and public and private cemeteries to secure the populace visiting their departed loved ones. He said the police will monitor the presence of thieves...
10/31/2011
Lorega folk adjust to life with ghosts

    He lives, eats and sleeps with the dead inside the Lorega San Miguel municipal cemetery since he was a boy. Now employed as a cemetery caretaker at P1,000 a month, the 50-year-old Arsenio Puentenegra said he has gotten used to encountering spirits during his nightly patrols. “Sa una mo dagan ko sa kakuyaw pero ma immune ra man ka ma dugay (At first, I used to run from fear but I have gotten used to it),” he told Cebu Dail...
10/31/2011
Guba residents earn living amid presence of cemetery

     The presence of a Muslim cemetery in sitio Ka Teves, barangay Guba in Cebu City left residents there with few livelihood options. “We were no longer allowed to plant vegetables in the area because this was already donated to the Muslims,” said farmer Benny Alcantara of the two-hectare lot filled with Muslim graves. He said some neighbors chose to work as grave diggers for P100 to P200 per day. Alcantara said he sh...
10/31/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    Rains on All Saints Day? AN inter-tropical convergence zone (ITCZ) in the Mindanao area is seen to bring in rains in Cebu and the rest of the Visayas in the next two days, state weather analysts said yesterday. Weather analyst Boy Artiaga of the Mactan office of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said Cebu's temperature will run from 31 to 33 degrees Celsius. “It may rai...
10/31/2011
Secrets to long life sought in elderly’s DNA

    New York — George Eberhardt turned 107 last month, and scientists would love to know how he and other older folks like him made it that far. So he’s going to hand over some of his DNA. He’s one of 100 centenarians taking part in a project announced last Wednesday that will examine some of the oldest citizens with one of the newest scientific tools: whole-genome sequencing, the deciphering of a person’s complete collection...
10/31/2011
Native doctor cites faith in God in dealing with spirits

    EVEN if the country is caught up with the rest of the world in the swirl of scientific and technological advances in the early part of this 21st century, not a few Filipinos still hold faith in the supernatural. One such keeper of the faith is 61-year-old faith healer Beatrice Salac, a native of Siquijor, who makes her home in barangay Jagobiao, Mandaue City. Dubbed “Betty the Mananambal (healer)” by residents of nearby ...
10/30/2011
‘FLYOVER WILL BLOCK SHRINE’

  Architect says loss of ‘heritage value’ can merit legal action     If the Gorordo Avenue flyover comes up, something precious will be lost—a clear view of the 70-year-old Asilo dela Milagrosa compound and its Shrine of the Miraculous Medal. “Even if Cutie said the flyover would be adjusted, it would not make any difference. It still obstructs the heritage value of the building,” said Cebu architect Melva Java, referr...
10/30/2011
Will path of flyover hit Asilo compound?

        WILL the flyover for Gorordo Avenue be diverted from the Asilo dela Milagrosa or is the design still a threat to the compound? Conflicting statements have been a source of confusion. Rep. Rachel “Cutie” del Mar yesterday said she still has to meet with engineers of the Dept. of Public Works and Highways DPWH-7 to clarify their construction plan for Gorordo. “What they assured me before was that no part of ...
10/30/2011
British Embassy offers aid for Ellah Joy case

        The British Embassy in Manila assured its support in the ongoing investigation into the Ellah Joy kidnap-murder case. The embassy's deputy head of mission, Trevor Lewis told local media that his government will cooperate with the Capitol in the arrest of British national Ian Charles Griffiths, a suspect in the case. “That's why I came down here to express to (Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia) that we will work ...
10/30/2011
Talisay to use 10T to repair reefs

        RATHER than let it go unused, the Talisay City government chose to use the US $10,000 donation given by the captain of the Chinese cargo ship that ran aground in Lagundi Reef in 2009. The council approved a resolution to use the money for the rehabilitation projects of the reef and two other marine protected areas in the city. The money was saved in the city’s trust fund since March 2009. Despite the ci...
10/30/2011
Police deployment, honoraria top DILG concerns in Compostela

        THE additional cost of augmenting the town’s police force and additional honoraria for day care workers were among the first problems faced by newly installed caretaker mayor Ananias Villacorta in Compostela town. Villacorta, who succeeded Pedro Noval as regional director of the Department of Interior and Local Governments in Central Visayas (DILG-7), met with barangay officials last Friday to listen to thei...
10/30/2011
Security cameras to be set up in two Cebu City cemeteries

        Security cameras will be installed in the two biggest cemeteries in Cebu City—the Calamba and Carreta cemeteries. The Closed-circuit television cameras installed in strategic places in these cemeteries are part of the security measures authorities are implementing for the All Souls' and All Saints' Days celebration next week. Senior Supt. Buenafe, Cebu City Police Office director, said they saw no major pro...
10/30/2011
7 drivers positive of using shabu

        AT LEAST seven public utility drivers were found positive for using illegal drugs after the Land Transportation Office in Central Visayas (LTO-7) conducted a surprise roadside drug test on Friday in Talisay City. LTO-7 Director Raul Aguilos said the conducted the roadside drug test on 53 PUV drivers along the national road of Linao, Talisay City. The roadside drug test is part of the LTO-7's effort to ensur...
10/30/2011
Gold-plated farewell

        For a privileged few, only the finest in funeral arrangements will do. Pop icon Michael Jackson had one. And so did the late Cebu vice governor Greg Sanchez Jr. They were each laid to rest in solid bronze, 24-karat gold-plated Promethean caskets manufactured by the Batesvill Casket Co. of the United States. When Sanchez passed away April 29 after losing his battle with lung cancer, he was given the best ca...
10/29/2011
WINDS OF CHANGE IN CUSTOMS?

  Cebu businessmen raise plaints to Biazon     Cebu exporters yesterday expressed alarm over the large-scale export of raw seashells to China and Korea. They asked newly appointed Customs Commissioner Rozzano Rufino Biazon to curb what they said was a threat to local companies that use seashells to make into accessories, gifts and houseware. Businessmen also complained about the presence of many law enforcement groups...
10/29/2011
DENR gives permits for 9 Metro Cebu flyovers

        At least nine flyover projects in Metro Cebu were issued Environmental Compliance Certificates (ECCs) by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Central Visayas (DENR-7). They include the two proposed flyovers in Gorordo Avenue and M.J. Cuenco Avenue, which were put on hold last week by the Department of Public Works and Highways amid objections from private stakeholders in Cebu about the lack...
10/29/2011
Talisay pawnshop loses brooch worth P60,000 to senior couple

        A DIAMOND-studded brooch worth P60,000 disappeared from a pawnshop display case in Talisay City yesterday. Could it have been taken by a middle-aged couple who were admiring the piece? Police are looking for the customers, whose features were captured by the store’s security camera. According to sales clerk Juvilyn Geromo, the brooch was examined by a man and woman in their 50s who dropped by the Pag-asa...
10/29/2011
‘We’ll defend proposed budget on Nov. 4 hearing’

        DISCUSSIONS on the proposed 2012 budget can wait until the Nov. 4 budget hearing. This was Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama's answer to questions about his decision not to send department heads to attend last Thursday's preliminary meeting called by the council's budget committee. “All the questions that they will ask during the pre-budget hearing, they can ask during the regular budget hearing,” said Rama. Th...
10/29/2011
5,000 business owners told to pay taxes or else ...

        The Mandaue City government is encouraging at least 5,000 tax delinquent business establishments to pay their taxes before the Dec. 31 deadline or face having their businesses closed and being blacklisted in Mandaue, Cebu and Lapu-Lapu cities. Regal Oliva, head of the City Treasurer's Office, also called on delinquent taxpayers of real property taxes to pay their obligations before Feb. 15, 2012, or face auc...
10/29/2011
Search on for families who contributed to Cebu City’s growth

        THE Cebu City government and its private sector partners are looking for 75 Cebuano families who have made significant contributions to the city's growth and development. Wanted are families who excelled in the field of governance and community service, business and industry, profession, sports, media and arts, religion and apostolic works, and environment, science and technology. “The search will go to the...
10/29/2011
Horror booth to benefit poor kids opens

        MANDAUE City’s annual Halloween horror booth opened yesterday at the Mandaue City Sports Complex, drawing a large crowd of thrill seekers. Proceeds will support a Christmas party in December for indigent children in the city’s 27 barangays. Sarah Walker Cortes, the mayor’s wife, showed up in costume as a corpse bride for the event, which has the theme “Kahadlok mo, pinaskuhan ko.” She said last year’s acti...
10/29/2011
‘Only DOE inspectors can check gas pumps’

        ONLY Department of Energy inspectors are allowed to check the calibration of gas pumps on gasoline stations. Regional Director Antonio Labios of DOE Central Visayas (DOE 7) reminded the consumers group who claimed that some of the pumping machines of gasoline stations were set to “underdeliver” the volume paid by consumers. Labios said that he appreciated the effort of the Consumers Right and Economic Welfa...
10/29/2011
Kenyan asks court Where’s my P181T?

        The Kenyan woman arrested at the Mactan airport as a suspected drug courier wants her money back. The lawyer of Asha Atieno Ogutu is seeking the release of the equivalent of P181,379, which was confiscated by the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) during last month’s arrest. Ricardo Amores said his client was “not only innocent but a victim of the case she is facing. More so, the ac...
10/29/2011
Durano pushes ecozones bill

        REP. RAMON “Red” Durano of Cebu's 5th district Durano is again pushing a bill in Congress that would establish more economic zones in the province. Durano, who chairs the House committee on economic affairs, said he would refile House Bill No. 1319, which seeks to create the Cebu Economic Development Zone (CEDZ). In a press conference in Danao City, Durano said the bill would ensure more foreign investment...
10/28/2011
‘NO-SHOW’ IN BUDGET TALKS

  Mayor Rama holds back staff; Osmeña asks, ‘Who’s he afraid of?’     The strain deepened yesterday between the mayor's office and the Cebu City Council when seven department heads didn't show up for a preliminary discussion of the 2012 budget. They didn't attend because Mayor Michael Rama instructed his staff to wait instead for the formal budget review hearing, which the council later set for Nov. 4. “How can you di...
10/28/2011
DPWH sticks to original Gorordo flyover design

        Despite assurances to the contrary, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) will stick to its original design in building a two-lane flyover along Gorordo Avenue. Engineer Nonato Paylado, assistant DPWH-7 chief for planning and design division, said diverting from the original plan would compromise the quality of the project. This means that construction of the flyover will damage a portion of th...
10/28/2011
Five Cebu projects lobbied for 2012 budget

        FIVE major infrastructure projects for Cebu were submitted to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) central office for inclusion in next year’s 2012 national budget. The projects were part of the 10 high impact projects identified by the Partnership for Better Infrastructure (PBI) Project of the Cebu Business Club. The presentation was made during the 2nd Cebu Local Governance & Development...
10/28/2011
Ellah’s pa wants CIDG help in homicide case

        THE father of kidnap murder victim Ellah Joy Pique sought out the Criminal Investigation Detection Group (CIDG) to provide assistance to the prosecutors handling their case. Renante Pique met with CIDG-7 lawyer Inocencio dela Cerna to ask for assistance yesterday. “We will see it through. We will help him as much as we helped him the first time around,” said dela Cerna, also legal counsel of Task Force Ell...
10/28/2011
Extort plaint filed against 3 airport policemen

        Three airport policemen were accused of extortion for allegedly collecting money from taxi drivers in exchange for allowing them to pickup and drop off airport passengers. Complainants Tisha “Inday Tikay” Ylaya, Marc Ian Almeres and Armenio Lopez escorted by radio dyAB station manager Leo Lastimosa met with Mactan Cebu Intenational Airport (MCIA) officials yesterday. Ylaya, a dyAB radio anchor, said she saw...
10/28/2011
Jailed Kenyan I miss my children

        KENYAN national Asha Atieno Ogutu broke out in tears as she was presented in court yesterday morning. “I'm stressed. I miss my kids. My children are too young. I want to go home to Kenya,” Ogutu told Cebu Daily News before the proceedings in the sala of Judge Toribio Quiwag of the Regional Trial Court Branch 27 in Lapu-Lapu City. Ogutu, a mother of two boys, said she believes she will be cleared of the char...
10/28/2011
Rama’s wish list under close review

        Mayor Michael Rama’s plan to buy P100 million worth of heavy equipment for flood control and road repair in Cebu City is under scrutiny by the City Council. So is the use of a P100-million outlay for improving roads in the North Reclamation Area (NRA). His request to open a letter of credit with the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) to import the units and apply for tax exemption from the Department of Fin...
10/28/2011
Comelec Manila to hear recall petition next week

        The feud of the Durano brothers in Danao City will be brought to another level as they face each other next Thursday before the Commission on Elections (Comelec) en banc in Manila. A notice of hearing was sent last week to the camps of Mayor Ramon “Boy” Durano Jr. and Vice Mayor Ramon “Nito” Durano III for them to attend the scheduled hearing on Nov. 3 at the Comelec Session Hall in Manila. In a press conf...
10/28/2011
Mandaue City treasurer checks schools’ books

        THE Mandaue City Treasurer's Office is checking the books of at least six schools in Mandaue City to verify if they are really nonstock and nonprofit organizations and see if the city government can tax them. These schools are the University of the Visayas, University of Cebu Lapu-Lapu, Cebu Doctors’ University, St. Louis School of Mandaue, Sacred Heart and Saint Joseph Academy. City Treasurer Regal Oliva s...
10/28/2011
Mandaue execs say Cebu City trucks can enter but . . .

        THE Mandaue City government may allow Cebu City's garbage truck to pass through its streets in going to a dump site in Consolacion but not during peak hours. This was agreed during the board meeting of the Traffic Enforcement Agency of Mandaue (Team) according to its head, Edwin Ermac. Ermac revealed they will soon be implementing the truck ban ordinance, which is between 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. to 8 p....
10/28/2011
Durano to make jail into heritage site

        VICE Mayor Ramon “Nito” Durano III plans to convert Danao City’s old jail into a heritage site once the inmates will be transferred to a new jail, to be built sometime soon. Durano said the old jail was situated in the old municipal building of Danao City, which was built before World War II. Durano announced his plan for the old jail after he donated a one-hectare lot that he owned in barangay Dungguan to ...
10/28/2011
Gwen turns over P3.1M to Liloan

        Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia gave Liloan town in northern Cebu a budget of P3.1 million for projects in time of its mayor's birthday yesterday. Mayor Duke Frasco, who turned 31, inaugurated several infrastructure projects with Garcia, his mother-in-law, who announced the province's gift to the town. Frasco said he will use the P3.1 million to improve the town’s website. Both officials inauguarated a three-cl...
10/27/2011
DPWH BOSS ‘SHOCKED’

  Singson meets flyover critics; will visit Cebu in November     Public Works and Highways Secretary Rogelio Singson said he would visit Cebu City next month to hear for himself the concerns of civic and business sectors who oppose new flyover projects here. He met yesterday in his Manila office with a Cebu delegation of anti-flyover advocates led by businessman Joel Lee, convenor of the Movement for a Liveable Cebu. ...
10/27/2011
Tom says Mike circling wagons for 2013 bid

        In centralizing all commissions and committees under his office, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama wants to build his own political machinery for his reelection bid in 2013. Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district made the claim as he accused the mayor of “laying siege” on the commissions and committees that used to be chaired by councilors. During yesterday’s off-site City Council session in the hinter...
10/27/2011
‘Convenio’ shows Rallos kin donated road to Cebu City

        CEBU City Hall lawyers claimed that old documents they recently procured showed that the city doesn’t owe one centavo to the heirs of Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos. They said a “convenio” or a compromise agreement was made between feuding descendants of the Rallos family in the 1940s. The compromise involved donating the road in Sambag II to the Cebu City government. The lawyers produced the documents in court ye...
10/27/2011
Witnesses for Ellah Joy decline special protection

        THE prospect of being isolated from friends and loved ones was too much for four witnesses of Task Force Ellah Joy. Asst. Regional Prosecutor Llena Ipong-Avila, program implementor of the Department of Justice (DOJ) witness protection program, said the four witnesses withdrew their application for coverage. Avila earlier accepted the application of six witnesses for the program. “The witnesses said they ca...
10/27/2011
Compostela town faces budget, caretaker woes

        Compostela town will start 2012 with the same P56-million budget it had since 2009. In a phone interview, outgoing director Pedro Noval of the Department of Interior and Local Governments in Central Visayas (DILG-7) said he met with all department heads last month to consolidate the re-enacted budget for the town. The deadline for the 2012 budget submission of local government units (LGUs) ended last Oct. 1...
10/27/2011
Infra, security concerns raised in off-site session

        CRACKED roads, inadequate hospital access, lack of police visibility and bookkeeping problems were among the concerns raised by north district barangay officials in yesterday’s on-site consultation with the Cebu City Council. Residents and barangay officials spoke up during the council’s off-site session at the Guba sports center, the second such forum of the council. Cambinocot barangay captain Cesario Don...
10/27/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        VIADUCTS FOR MANDAUE A RESOLUTION calling for the construction of viaducts in low-lying areas in Mandaue City was approved in yesterday’s City Council session. City Councilor Diosdado Suico said this could be a long-term solution for flooding in the city even without a drainage master plan. He said unlike flyovers, viaducts won’t ruin the aesthetic appearance of a road or structure and won’t cause traff...
10/26/2011
‘LOOK AT MY DRAFT BUDGET’

  Mayor plans to hang tarp banners of 2012 budget around Cebu City     Let it be known by all,” said Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama. He ordered staff to prepare tarpaulin banners explaining highlights of the draft 2012 budget that he submitted for approval to a critical City Council. The banners will be posted in strategic sites like Fuente Osmeña circle. The mayor is betting on full dissemination “so that the people w...
10/26/2011
Commission’s budget moved Margot miffed

        Councilor Margot Osmeña had an unpleasant surprise after reviewing the 2012 budget plan of the mayor's office yesterday. The Cebu City Commission for the Welfare and Protection of Children (CCWPC) that she headed for the past few years has no direct budget. Instead, the P6 million outlay was transferred to the mayor’s special projects and programs. “CCWPC is not a special project of the mayor. It is a co...
10/26/2011
NBI-7 gets praise, building from Capitol

        A COMMENDATION and a new building were received by the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) from the Capitol in separate instances yesterday. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia praised the NBI-7 for the Oct. 7 arrest of homicide suspect Bella Ruby Santos in a mall in Mandaluyong City, Manila. She later signed an agreement with NBI-7 director Edward Villarata for the construction of the agency...
10/26/2011
Capitol secures terminal for holidays

        BOTH Cebu City and the Capitol are finalizing their own security preparations for the All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day this week. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said commuters will be assured of a secure Cebu South Bus Terminal (CSBT) once they reserve tickets for their annual trips for the holidays to the province. In yesterday’s press conference, Garcia said she ordered Capitol security consultant Cesar ...
10/26/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        ’Tougher stance against MILF’ THE government should impose a timetable in its peace talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), San Juan City Rep. Joseph Victor Ejercito said. In yesterday’s 888 forum, Ejercito said while he favors an all-out war against the MILF, he agrees that President Benigno Aquino III should be given time to pursue peace talks with the rebel group. “He may be right or wron...
10/26/2011
Rama, Citom to tackle BRT, traffic, new city terminals

        To prepare for his proposed transport master plan, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama will be meeting with the City Traffic Operations Management (Citom) board to get an update of the city's traffic situation. Rama said he will discuss with the board the proposed implementation of the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) in 2013 and the construction of new terminals in the city. “I want to check many items with them among oth...
10/26/2011
Schools urged to let students clean streets

        AS part of its effort to keep Mandaue City clean, Mayor Jonas Cortes will be asking the private and public high schools for their students to clean the streets. “The cleanup drive of students in the city will help them grow up with community involvement,” Cortes said. The students will be asked to clean the sidewalks and gutters on Saturdays with their teachers. Traffic personnel will also be deployed durin...
10/26/2011
Exec There’s budget, POWE for flooded Umapad St.

        THE Mandaue City government will address the flooding problem on C.P. Batiller Street, barangay Umapad, and there is already a program of works and estimate for (POWE) the project. City Administrator lawyer James Abadia told Cebu Daily News that the City Engineer's Office and the City Planning Office are working together to address this problem. Abadia’s reaction came after a contributed photo from a concer...
10/26/2011
Cebu City 30 ready for closure

        The Cebu City government has barely two weeks to prepare for the total closure of the Inayawan Sanitary landfill but Mayor Michael Rama admitted they aren’t halfway ready. The city has implemented only 30 percent of the remedial steps identified by the Cebu City Solid Waste Management Board. The plan to truck garbage through Mandaue City roads to an alternative dumpsite in Consolacion town remains uncertai...
10/25/2011
TRIAL FOR GRIFFITHS

Judge refuses to drop Briton from kidnap case   The trial against Bella Ruby Santos will proceed even without her British boyfriend Ian Charles Griffiths. The court yesterday denied the request of defense lawyers to dismiss the charges against Griffiths, who is still abroad. “What kind of motion is that?” said Regional Trial Court Judge Ester Veloso of Branch 6 with surprise. “You mean all cases against the accused who are not...
10/25/2011
Transpo officials ready plans for All Saints’, All Souls’ Days

    Transport officials met with airport, bus and seaport officials yesterday to map preparations for accommodating increased passenger traffic for the upcoming holiday for All Saints’ and All Souls’ Days. Help desks will be set up from Oct. 27 until Nov. 2, to answer concerns of passengers, said engineer Nigel Paul Villarete, general manager of the Mactan Cebu International Airport Authority (MCIAA). Yesterday’s meeting was ...
10/25/2011
Clergy group backs stand against flyovers

    A GROUP of progressive Visayas clergy members yesterday supported the call for a moratorium on flyover construction in Cebu City. The Visayas Clergy Discernment Group – Cebu, in a statement, said the issue is linked to a larger concern for “pro-people development through participatory and good governance.” The statement was signed by head convenor Auxiliary Bishop Gerardo Aliminaza of Iloilo. The Archdiocese of Cebu has ...
10/25/2011
Cortes to ask Rama to reconsider jeepney ban

    MANDAUE City Mayor Jonas Cortes said he will ask Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama this week to reconsider the ban on the entry of Mandaue passenger jeepneys in Cebu City. As this developed, Cebu City officials asked Mayor Cortes in meeting him to let Cebu City garbage trucks pass through Mandaue City after hauling trash in the Consolacion town landfill. Cortes told reporters that the Cebu City ban on Mandaue jeepneys affected...
10/25/2011
Gay group seeks probe on attacks

    A group of homosexuals sought the intervention of a Capitol official in relation to a recent series of drive-by gun pellet attacks on gays in Cebu City. Bisdak Pride Inc. founder and president Roxanne Omega-Doron and member Alvin Truya visited the office of Provincial Board (PB) Member Arleigh Sitoy yesterday on to hand over copies of police blotter reporters of the incidents. “There's still prejudice against gays despite...
10/25/2011
Children summit to map plans against cyberporn

      SIXTEEN-year-old Kimberly Marquez of barangay Tinaan, Naga City, said she is looking forward to sharing what she knows and to learn something new in the second Provincial Children's Summit which opened yesterday. One of the key topics is the problem of human trafficiking, which targets children as victims. “It helps a lot that we will be aware about what we can do to solve the problem of trafficking especially for ...
10/25/2011
Mayor Cortes eyes throw mill for Umapad dumpsite

    A THROW mill will be separating, plastic and soil in the Umapad dumpsite in Mandaue City next year. Mayor Jonas Cortes said he planned to have a throw mill to help segregate wastes in the Mandaue dumpsite next year. The mayor's decision to acquire or fabricate a throw mill for the Umapad dumpsite came about after Cortes' 10-day study tour in Germany, which was sponsored by Center for Research Education and Demonstration i...
10/25/2011
P11.8-b budget BATTLE Rama prepares his people

    Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama reminded his department heads of the need to defend his proposed P11.8-billion budget for 2012. Rama met his department heads yesterday morning and reiterated to them that the city has only one mayor. “Wala pa ni abot nga ang council naa sa ibabaw sa executive. We don't want to be reigning superiority but we do not also want to be taken aback,” he said after the two-hour meeting. Rama is also...
10/25/2011
Capitol compound open to traffic

    THE opening of the Capitol compound as diversion route for vehicles from Escario Street heading to M. Velez Street went on smoothly yesterday. The use of the Capitol compound will be only up to Dec. 15, and it is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. To ensure smooth traffic flow, blue guards and traffic enforcers were deployed and “No Loading, No Unloading” signs were installed. Vehicles travelling along Escario Street going to G...
10/25/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    NEW AIRPORT SECURITY CHIEF A FORMER Cebu City police chief was appointed head of the Mactan Cebu International Airport Authority (MCIAA) Airport Police Division yesterday. Senior Supt. Melvin Gayotin, who retired last Sunday as chief of the investigation branch of the Police Regional Office (PRO-6) in Western Visayas, took his oath yesterday noon before MCIAA general manager Nigel Paul Villarete. “We are confident and ho...
10/25/2011
Beach resort-farm opens in Borbon

    A passion for farming has pushed a Cebuano banker to develop a unique beach resort-cum-farm in Borbon town, 82 kilometers north of Cebu City. “If you love what you do, you will learn to be resilient. If you fall, you should learn to get up,” said 53-year-old Butch Cabatingan, who toured reporters around his farm recently. His day job in the United Coconut Planters Bank keeps him in Cebu City, but after Friday, he's a wee...
10/25/2011
The joys of a UP life

  Prof. Felisa U. Etemadi UP Cebu Third and last part The writer gives a tribute, with affection and gratitude, to the University of the Philippines, where she served for 36 years, most of them in the Cebu campus. She still teaches one class in political science. Her remarks, made on behalf of retired faculty, were given during a “Halad Pasalamat” program. “What am I in love with?” she said. “Three things—the campus, the stude...
10/24/2011
TATTOOS OF ‘MY AGONY’

Bella Santos ready for court trial; explains tattoos     When Bella Ruby Santos appears in court today, she has only two words to say: “Not guilty”. Her arraignment before Judge Ester Veloso of the Cebu Regional Trial Court (RTC) will be closely covered by the media, which has followed her journey as a suspect in the Feb. 8 kidnap and killing of 6-year-old Ellah Joy Pique up till Santos’ arrest last Oct. 7. A separate sto...
10/24/2011
Lanao Norte ambush kills three, injures three others

  Zamboanga City--Suspected Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels yesterday killed three government security forces in an ambush in the Sultan Naga Dimaporo in Lanao del Norte. Three other soldiers under the military's 5th Infantry Battalion were wounded, Lt. Col. Randolph Cabangbang, spokesperson of the military's Western Mindanao Command, told the Philippine Daily Inquirer by phone. The attack occurred amid reports that 15...
10/24/2011
Mandaue cracks down on illegal trike franchises

  MANDAUE City Hall will crack down on tricycle drivers and operators with fake franchises nearly a week after it ended its inventory of tricycle franchises in the city. City Administrator James Abadia said they already extended the verification and renewal of franchises in August and September this year. “No more extension, we have been extending twice and that's enough,” Abadia said. The city ordinance only allows 2,000 tricycle ...
10/24/2011
Tomas, Mike at odds over Osmeña shrine

    FLYOVERS . The stalled P1 billion Ciudad development project. Now Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district has another bone to pick with Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama. Mayor Rama said over the weekend that he wanted the Osmeña Shrine in barangay Kalunasan expanded into a park. Rama earmarked P10 million for the shrine in his proposed 2012 budget and said he wanted the park to “connect to the (nearby) Cebu city zo...
10/24/2011
Students, teachers as ‘heroes’

    It all started with a solicitation to build a school stage. From there, Don Calixto Yongco Elementary School in Mandaue City became the recipient of books and education sessions sponsored by AboitizLand Inc. through its “You Can Be a Hero” outreach program. AboitizLand Inc. Marketing Officer Jamila Liwalug said the program, which started last July and ends sometime this school year, is aimed at encouraging both teacher an...
10/24/2011
Sto. Niño image visits Biliran, Leyte towns

  AS one of the honor guards of the annual “Duaw sa Sto. Niño (Visit of the Sto. Niño), Cpl. Michael Cedeño credits the Holy Child for giving him a second life. When we were in Jolo, there was a landmine attack… At that time, I brought the rosary that my mother gave me,” Cedeño told Cebu Daily News. The 32-year-old Cedeño was one of the eight sailors and Marines that were detailed as honor guards to the Sto. Niño image that was brou...
10/24/2011
1,500 Cebu runners pay tribute to slain marathon champion

  Local personalities and athletes were among nearly 1,500 runners who paid tribute to the late ultrarunner Melinda Ponce in a 5-kilometer run, which started at the Ayala Center Cebu’s The Terraces. Among those who hit the pavement for “Run for Melinda” were Justice Gabriel Ingles, Cebu City Councilor Edgar Labella, Dr. Potenciano “Yong” Larrazabal III and wife Donna, TV news anchor and sports columnist Haidee Acuña, heart surgeon ...
10/23/2011
BELLA WARNED NO FOOD GIFTS

  Homicide suspect offers food to Naga jail inmates anew     Homicide suspect Bella Ruby Santos was again in a generous mood when she offered chicken inasal (roasted chicken), puso (hanging rice), and pancit (Chinese noodles) to 100 inmates of the Naga City Jail yesterday. Unfortunately for the inmates, the Naga City Jail won’t allow it. “Santos used to share food with other inmates. Now, we prohibited her from having...
10/23/2011
Kinfolk, neighbors attend seaman’s burial in Cebu City

        His youngest daughter wasn’t around to bid him farewell. Still, about 500 immediate relatives and neighbors of former seaman Emmanuel Ponce were on hand to attend his funeral at the Queen City Gardens in Cebu City yesterday morning. Embrelaince Therjoy “Ember” Ponce instead went with relatives of her late mother to Sorsogon province yesterday. The 13-year-old Ember is scheduled to attend the burial of her ...
10/23/2011
Deadly turn for domestic violence

        HER friends and neighbors knew her husband would physically harm her, but Melinda Ponce just told them: “Kaya ra ni nako (I can handle this).” The 53-year-old woman would run every day from barangay Tabunok in Talisay City to AsiaTown IT Park in barangay Lahug in Cebu City—a distance of about 10 kilometers— to escape a stressful life at home. On Oct. 16, the domestic violence reached its climax. Melinda ...
10/23/2011
‘Brgy officials’ allowances to be released in Dec.’

        Cebu City barangay officials would finally receive the cash allowance that Mayor Michael Rama promised them on the first week of December. But Rama warned that he was only certain to release four months’ worth of allowances, computed starting September when the City Council passed Supplemental Budget 2, which included the appropriation of P29 million for the purpose. “Daghan ang nangutana ug maka-retroact b...
10/23/2011
Canonization ‘ticket’ for Beato Pedro expected this year

        A CEBUANO church official is hopeful that the canonization rites of Blessed Pedro Calungsod to sainthood will happen within the year. Msgr. Ildebrando Leyson, the vice postulator on the cause of Blessed Pedro Calungsod, said there's a probability that the promulgation of Calungsod’s sainthood will happen by December this year. “Usually, the pope starts promulgating decrees like miracles before Christmas. Th...
10/23/2011
City cuts 50 casual workers, hires 186 more

        DESPITE the nonrenewal of the contracts of 50 casual workers at Cebu City Hall after they failed the performance evaluation ordered by Mayor Michael Rama, the city's roster of casual workers continue to increase with the addition of 186 new ones. Cebu City hall now has about 5,000 workers. This include 1,246 regular employees; 3,222 casual employees; and 532 job-order workers. Most of the city's casual work...
10/23/2011
The joys of a UP life

    By Prof. Felisa U. Etemadi UP Cebu Part 1 I started out as a young instructor at the Institute of Strategic Studies at the Asian Center (then called the Philippine Center for Advanced Studies) at the University of the Philippines in Diliman in 1975. Three years later, I decided to transfer to UP Cebu to join its Undergraduate Program in its early days. I watched the program blossom from its initial course offering of the...
10/22/2011
‘LIKE AN EXPLOSION’

      Cebu student crashes in skydiving mishap     He had never done skydiving before but that didn’t stop Louie Raymond Pestaño from trying it out. Unfortunately for him, his first skydiving attempt turned out to be his last. The 24-year-old Pestaño died after his parachute malfunctioned during a 3,500-foot jump at barangay Airport in Ormoc City, Leyte, last Thursday afternoon. His remains arrived on boar...
10/22/2011
Talisay police nab suspect in whistle-blower’s slay

        THE suspect in the gruesome killing of drug whistle-blower Bernard Liu late last month was arrested in a raid yesterday afternoon. Police found a .38 revolver and two bullets in the house of Rhem Balquin alias Rembat in sitio Rattan, barangay Tangke, Talisay City. Judge Enriquita Belarmino of RTC Branch 57 issued the search warrant for the police. Supt. Eddie Recamara, acting Talisay City police chief, sai...
10/22/2011
Canadian offers cash for missing SUV info

        Yet another reward money was offered in relation to the kidnap-murder case of 6-year-old Ellah Joy Pique. This time it’s not the province, which earlier offered P360,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of homicide suspect Bella Ruby Santos. Santos’ lawyer Rameses Villagonzalo said a Canadian former law teacher offered a P100,000 reward for information leading to the location of a Pajero bearing...
10/22/2011
Officials to file raps against organizers

        THE Caloocan City barangay officials who fell ill after partaking of a dinner buffet in a Cebu City hotel will file a complaint against the organizers of this week’s Lakbay Aral tour that they joined in. Manuel de Leon, a barangay chairman in Caloocan City, told Cebu Daily News that he and other barangay officials will submit their complaints to the Liga ng mga Barangay against the barangay committee that or...
10/22/2011
City Hall to shell out P75M for SRP, traffic master plans

        ABOUT P75 million will be set aside by Cebu City Hall to pay for six new master plans for various projects in the city. City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete said the master plans will cover the South Road Properties (SRP), traffic, coastal management and the beautification of downtown and uptown Cebu City. Each master plan is estimated to cost P10 million. A sixth master plan proposed by Mayor Michael Ram...
10/22/2011
City puts in place plans as landfill set to close

        The Cebu City government is planning to use a lot owned by Inayawan barangay captain Rustom Ignacio for a transfer station once the planned closure of the landfill is implemented on Nov. 7. Even as Mayor Michael Rama plans to send starting next week representatives to discuss with officials of Consolacion town and Naga City, the alternative garbage diversion sites, about the city’s garbage program. Rama sai...
10/22/2011
Priest blesses Ponce house amid ghost haunting reports

        AFTER rumors spread about ghosts haunting the Ponce residence in Talisay City, the house was blessed yesterday and framed pictures and statues displayed in the house were burned. Fr. Roy Cabradilla of Mary's Little Children Community who officiated the blessing said spirits imitate images and hide in statues. Lone survivor Embrelaince Therjoy “Ember” Ponce and her relatives and the police attended the bless...
10/22/2011
Ciudad hearing moved after DENR reps’ no-show

        BECAUSE of the failure of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to send representatives, the scheduled public hearing on the Ciudad project was postponed to Nov. 22. Rep. Tomas Osmeña (Cebu City south district), Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young and members of the Cebu City Council were present for the scheduled hearing at the covered court of barangay Apas. The public hearing is for Fifth Avenue ...
10/22/2011
Danao official faces charges for personal info file

        The Danao City Prosecutor's Office found probable cause to charge Danao City Administrator Jesus “Don” Durano with falsification of documents for allegedly making “untruthful statements” in his Personal Data Sheet (PDS). The case stemmed from the complaint filed by Jesus’ brother and Vice Mayor Ramon “Nito” Durano III and the Danao City Council against him. Jesus allegedly provided false details in his PDS,...
10/22/2011
Suroy south Cebu trail wows 300 tourists

        Around 300 foreign and local tourists were treated to the sights, taste and culture of southern Cebu as this year's “Suroy-Suroy sa Sugbo the Southern Heritage Trail” kicked off yesterday. The 150-year-old Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish Church in Minglanilla town was the tour's first stop where the guests were given the chance to appreciate the antique items displayed at the church such as a palu-palu (a sh...
10/22/2011
Archbishop Palma says mom uniting point of family

        IT was one of the most emotional moment of the prince of the Church of Cebu as he remembered his late mother, who passed away early this month. Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma was teary-eyed as he officiated the Mass for his late mother Esther yesterday morning. Some 200 priests also attended the Mass as part of the closing activity of their annual retreat. “She's beautiful not only in her looks but also in h...
10/22/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        GYM ISSUE CEBU City Councilor Jose Daluz III yesterday said that Cebu City's wellness program was authorized by the Civil Service Commission. Daluz also corrected the misinformation that their enrollment at the Cebu Holiday Gym and Spa was overpriced. He said the P12, 000 monthly rate mentioned in media report was the gym's student rate. “I have gym brochures to show and prove that the rates (we availed...
10/21/2011
50 EXECS FALL ILL DURING TOUR

  Food poisoning eyed; officials decide against confinement     Raquel Castro was haggard when she and some barangay officials of Caloocan City went to the Mactan Doctors’ Hospital for an examination at 5 a.m. yesterday. She told the attending nurse that she threw up several times and experienced stomach pain in her hotel room in the Crown Regency Hotel in Lapu-Lapu City. The night before, she and other barangay offi...
10/21/2011
‘More good news needed in Cebu than bad news’

        MORE good news should come out of Cebu than negative stories, tourism officials said yesterday. “Good stories, photographs and videos should overwhelm the negative stories in Central Visayas,” said Regional Director Rowena Montecillo of the Department of Tourism in Central Visayas (DOT-7). The agency launched its Tourism and Heritage Information Network-7 (THINK-7) program that would create a network of rep...
10/21/2011
Margot Fund sources for budget are ‘bloated’

        Funding sources for the projected P11.8-billion budget by the Rama administration next year appear “very bloated” and need to be verified, the City Council’s budget committee said yesterday. Councilor Margot Osmeña, chairperson of the budget committee, said they will summon City Treasurer Tessie Camarillo to a budget hearing on Oct. 27 to verify if the fund sources can meet the P11.8-billion budget target. ...
10/21/2011
Comelec nixes recall bid on VM Durano

        THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) en banc upheld a previous ruling that dismissed the recall petition filed against Danao City Vice Mayor Ramon “Nito” Durano III. In its Sept. 16 decision received by the Office of the Deputy Executive Director for Operations (ODEDO), the commission en banc said the two memoranda issued by its evaluation committee “were in order.” A copy of the Comelec en banc decision w...
10/21/2011
Cebuanos pray for Calungsod’s canonization

        NEWS of the impending canonization of the Blessed Pedro Calungsod became a source of inspiration for Cebu’s Catholic faithful. Jonah Entera, a 34-year-old caretaker of the Shrine of Biato Pedro Calungsod along D. Jakosalem Street in Cebu City, said the Visayan youth martyr’s life had inspired him in his six years of service in the sanctuary. “I'm hoping young people will strive to be good and avoid evil. M...
10/21/2011
Mass held as police clean up Ponce home

        Four days after the gruesome killing of the Ponce family in Talisay City, the police, city health personnel and barangay tanods cleaned the house where the crime was committed Sunday morning. A Mass was also held inside the house after the cleaning. Former seaman Emmanuel Ponce killed his wife Melinda and children Ellaine Grace, Heather Joy and Emlin Bridge and their housemaid Anastacia Deniega in their hou...
10/21/2011
SM explains side on garnishment case

        SM Development Corp. does not possess any personal properties belonging to the Cebu City government, according to an official of the company. Jose Gabionza, vice president for Business Planning and Special Projects of SM Development Corp., submitted to the court its reply to the notice of garnishment issued by sheriff Antonio Bellones. “Please be informed that as of date of this report, SM Development Corp....
10/21/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Jailbreak AUTHORITIES are still searching for a murder suspect who escaped from the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) last night. Renante “Bolatik” de la Rosa, escaped through the provincial jail's kitchen area. Jail guards discovered he was missing during a head count shortly after 6 p.m. yesterday. The Cebu City Police Office Special Weapon and Tactics (SWAT) team assisted ...
10/21/2011
Capitol road open to motorists Monday

        Starting Monday, the Capitol compound road will be accessible for vehicles plying Escario Street en route to Guadalupe area. The opening is expected to ease congestion along M. Velez and G. Garcia Streets brought about by a road-widening project. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia and City Traffic Operations Management (Citom) executive director Jack Jakosalem sealed an agreement yesterday with engineer Nicomedes ...
10/21/2011
‘Urban poor office needs 40 workers to update records’

        THE head of the Department for the Welfare of the Urban Poor will need 40-job order workers for seven months for an allocation of close to P1 million. Collin Rossell, DWUP head, told the councilors during the Cebu City Council session on Wednesday that these job- order workers would revalidate and update the city's records on the implementation of its urban poor housing programs, which now benefits at least ...
10/21/2011
Plaint filed against secretary linked to ‘secret annulment’ scam

        THE National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) filed on Wednesday a complaint against a secretary of a law firm for purportedly making a bogus court order of annulment. Joahanna Lariosa Padua of barangay San Isidro in Talisay City was found to be behind the “secret annulment” scam that allowed couples to secure annulment documents without having to undergo the court's scrutiny. NBI-7 superv...
10/20/2011
CALUNGSOD NEAR SAINTHOOD

  Cardinals endorse Visayan youth martyr to pope     The country's first Visayan martyr may soon become its second saint after St. Lorenzo Ruiz. This developed after the Vatican’s Congregation for the Causes of Saints “unanimously” decided to endorse Blessed Pedro Calungsod's canonization to Pope Benedict XVI. It's now up to the Pope to evaluate the recommendation of the cardinals, particularly the authenticity of a m...
10/20/2011
‘Flyover funds for drainage, traffic master plan instead’

        Instead of flyovers, Cebu City officials and businessmen opposed to the projects appealed anew to rechannel the funds to other projects instead. Sylvan Jakosalem, chairman of the Cebu City Integrated Traffic Operations Management (Citom), said the government should use the funds to build either a drainage system or a Metro Cebu-wide computerized traffic network. “The mayor and even the council may ask the n...
10/20/2011
Murder victim fetched pal prior to death

        MINUTES before boarding her Manila flight, Alice Cabalan bid goodbye to her friend Melinda Ponce who drove her to the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) at 2 a.m. last Sunday. The 53-year-old Cabalan said she had no idea that it would be her last meeting with her best friend. But even before, Cabalan said Melinda told her about her troubles with her husband Emmanuel Ponce. Melinda, her children Ella...
10/20/2011
Kenyan to have three witnesses testify on drug case

        THREE witnesses, including one from Kenya, will testify in the drug case involving a Kenyan woman who was arrested at the Mactan Cebu International Airport late last month. “We will invite one witness from Kenya to prove my client’s financial capacity,” said Ricardo Amores, lawyer for Asha Atieno Ogutu. During yesterday’s preliminary conference at the sala of Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge Toribio Quiwag,...
10/20/2011
Interpol lists Griffiths, asks police to prepare extradition

        Ian Charles Griffiths, the British national who is one of two suspects in the kidnap-murder of 6-year-old Ellah Joy Pique, is now in the Interpol Red Notice list. The Philippine Center on Transnational Crime (PCTC) directed the Cebu Provincial Police Office director to process the papers for Griffiths' extradition to the Philippines.   “Prepare his extradition papers and request for provisional arrest...
10/20/2011
Rama wants to cancel gym contract

        IN response to what he called unfavorable “public clamor,” Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said he wanted his membership with the Holiday Gym and Spa “withdrawn.” But Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young said the mayor can no longer withdraw his membership because it is part of a package that the gym management offered the city. Young said Rama approved the gym contract when he signed the notice of award to Holiday ...
10/20/2011
City misses P4.6-billion tax target

        Even before the year ends, the Cebu City government admitted that it failed to meet its collection target of P4.6 billion. As of Oct. 15, the City Treasurer's Office raised P3.2 billion, which is P1.4 billion short of the collection target. City Treasurer Tessie Camarillo said they only expect to raise P500 million more in revenues to raise the city's revenue collection to a total of P3.7 billion. The fail...
10/20/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Lapu fluvial procession LAPU-LAPU City will hold its yearly fluvial procession in honor of the Virgin of the Rule on November 12, 2011, the first day of the novena in honor of the patron saint. It will start at 7 a.m. from the Pacific Cebu Resort Wharf at Suba-basbas to Muelle Osmeña. Following the 5:30 a.m. Mass at the Marigondon Parish Church, the icon of the city’s patron saint will be brought to Paci...
10/19/2011
FLYOVER PROJECTS SUSPENDED

  DPWH wants resolution of complaints; hearing on Oct. 28     Opponents of two flyover projects in Cebu City scored a minor victory after the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) ordered to suspend its implementation. In a memorandum signed by DPWH undersecretary for regional operations Romeo Momo, the regional DPWH-7 office was told to suspend the two flyover projects until the concerns of opposition groups ...
10/19/2011
Ember to stay in Ponce home family burial set in Sorsogon

        The family of lone massacre survivor Embrelaince Therjoy “Ember” Ponce will be buried in Sorsogon province, her relatives said yesterday. In an interview, Mikael Billones, Ember’s 27-year-old cousin, said Ember also wanted to stay at the family home in Palm View Village in barangay Tabunok, Talisay City, after her family's burial Aside from Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia and Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale, visitors t...
10/19/2011
Amnesty allowed pa to get pistol

      A GUN amnesty program may have enabled former seaman Emmanuel Ponce to acquire his .45 pistol despite reports that he suffered from a mental illness. Senior Supt. Louie Oppus, deputy regional director for operation of the Police Regional Office-7 (PRO-7), said the 2009 amnesty program exempted applicants from passing a neuro examination to determine their mental fitness. Oppus said the same requirement will also b...
10/19/2011
Prosecutors, lawyers plan for Ellah case

        THE Cebu Provincial Prosecutor’s Office will convene today to map their presentation in the Ellah Joy Pique homicide case. “We will arrange how the evidence will be presented. We also have to anticipate the filing of a petition for bail,” said Provincial Prosecutor Pepita Jane Petralba. The prosecutors will be joined by lawyers of the Children's Legal Bureau (CLB) and the Criminal Investigation and Detectio...
10/19/2011
Rama mulls hiking taxes to raise P11.8-B budget

        Aside from intensifying tax collection and selling lots of the South Road Properties (SRP), Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama is considering to adjust taxes to raise the P11.8-billion budget he targets for next year. “I hope that there will not be (a need to increase taxes), but if there will be, there is a responsibility of the LGU to also do extra delivery of basic services,” Rama said. Former mayor and Rep. T...
10/19/2011
Cop chief to tap private sector help for police

        CHINESE businessmen in Cebu will donate P100,000 for a police barracks in Sibonga town, the newly appointed chief of the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas (PRO-7) said yesterday. “We will look for other alternatives to address the “lack of resources” problem in Cebu,” said Chief Supt. Marcelo Garbo, PRO-7 chief, in yesterday's 888 News Forum. The Chinese businessmen were old friends of his, Garbo s...
10/19/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      Third grader injured in accident A THIRD grade student of the Talisay City Central School was hurt after being hit by the backdrop used in the Halad Inasal Festival last Saturday night. Christian Alfred Carulasan, of Poblacion, Talisay, was brought to the Talisay City District Hospital where he was treated for head and back injuries. Jason de Jesus, a grade 3 pupil, said they were playing inside the classroom w...
10/19/2011
Capitol agrees to route, as Tomas hits Ciudad

        While the Capitol agreed to Cebu City Hall's request to open the Capitol compound for a temporary diversion route, Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district sought to block the Capitol's Ciudad project. Garcia yesterday met with City Traffic Office Management (Citom) head Rafael Yap, Citom chairman Sylvan “Jack” Jakosalem and Capitol consultant on Security Cesar Veloso to discuss the rerouting issue al...
10/19/2011
Spare city funds, execs ask court

        CEBU City Hall asked the court to stop the seizure of its funds as payment to the heirs of Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos because this would cause “irreparable injury” to the city. In a pleading filed in court, City Legal Officer Joseph Bernaldez said the subject of the notice of garnishment are government funds that have long been appropriated for government operations and social services. “The people of the City...
10/19/2011
Army to reassign troops from Cebu to Negros

        THE Central Command (Centcom) will soon withdraw its troops from Cebu after the province is declared insurgency free. Lt. Col. Christopher Tampus, Centcom public information officer, revealed this yesterday during a Philippine Information Agency (PIA) forum. “We will consult the local government units and make a joint task force for Region 7,” Tampus said, adding that the Capitol and other government agenci...
10/18/2011
LONG ROAD FOR GIRL SURVIVOR

13-year-old views 6 coffins, ‘needs strong emotional support’ With her family gone—the victims of a shooting rampage at home —13-year-old Embrelaince Therjoy Ponce turned to relatives for comfort. She spent the night in an aunt's house but is asking when she can go home. Social workers yesterday met with the next of kin to discuss who would watch over the high school student, the lone survivor of Sunday's bloodbath in Talisay Cit...
10/18/2011
Father may have faced ‘psychological issues’

Domestic violence a silent crime, say experts The father in Talisay City who shot dead several family members before turning the gun on himself last Sunday should not be immediately blamed for the killing spree, a psychologist said. “Don't blame the perpetrator right away. He may have needed treatment for a condition that caused his violence,” Dr. Glenda Basubas said. Basubas, who heads the Philippine Mental Health Association ...
10/18/2011
Gwen submits biggest-ever P3.6-billion budget for 2012

ON yesterday's deadline for the submission of next year's budget, Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia submitted the Capitol’s biggest budget in the province's history in the amount of P3.6 billion. This is more than last year's P2.6 billion and exceeds the proposed 2011 budget of P3.01 billion. The bulk will go to the Capitol’s Development Fund and the governor’s office. The budget of the vice governor also went up to P38.3 million, a con...
10/18/2011
Debt payments comprise bulk of Mandaue budget

MANDAUE City Mayor Jonas Cortes proposed an annual budget of P1.6 billion for next year, slightly higher than by P6.6 million from this year's appropriation. Of the total proposed appropriation, P114,763,000 is allotted to debt servicing, P53 million of which will be derived from the general funds. About P56 million will go to fund the public market and P5,763,000 million from the slaughterhouse budget. The city government also...
10/18/2011
Cebu City 2012 budget needs boosters a ‘joke’ says Young

Cebu City Hall needs to raise P4 billion from its economic enterprises, secure a P2-billion credit line and sell P1-billion worth of assets to fund the P11.8-billion annual budget proposed by Mayor Michael Rama for next year. Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young said the mayor's draft 2012 budget, more than double this year's P4.5-billion budget, was a “joke.” So far, City Treasurer Tessie Camarillo identified only P4.728 billion from ...
10/18/2011
Mandaue jeepneys seek help for terminal woes

JEEPNEY drivers plying the Mandaue City-Ayala Mall route were barred from entering the mall's terminal since Saturday for lack of accreditation with the private facility. Romeo Armamento, vice president of the transport group Andar's north district, said several drivers ended up arguing with passengers who refused to pay the P10 fare when the vehicle wouldn’t enter the terminal. The prohibition came a week after Citom prohibited...
10/18/2011
Contempt charges against execs on lot feud

ONE of the heirs of Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos filed contempt charges anew against the Cebu City government and its lawyers for trying to stop the implementation of a court ruling. Cebu City was earlier ordered to pay P133 million to the Rallos family as compensation for a lot expropriated for a road in 1963, an order the city government is contesting. Lucina Rallos said the city's pleading was “impertinent and scandalous.” The ...
10/18/2011
‘Guards are not traffic enforcers’

When a car pulls out of a parking lot, sometimes the building’s security guard helps guide it out by stopping passing cars. Not a good idea, said Cebu City Traffic Operations Management (Citom) chairman Sylvan Jakosalem. He said security guards shouldn’t act as traffic enforcers in these situations since this would cause traffic congestion in the main roads. He sent letters to establishment owners telling them this was a a vi...
10/18/2011
City Hall to create transfer stations, rent 10 trucks

Cebu City Councilor Eduardo Rama said the Cebu City Waste Management Board may create a transfer station with a Material Recovery Facility in Inayawan as a stopover of city-owned garbage trucks before solid waste is brought to the proposed Consolacion dumpsite. “With this plan, the city trucks will only drop their garbage at the transfer station/MRF. They don’t need to go through the hassle of going all the way to Consolacion,” C...
10/18/2011
Ombud starts lamppost inventory

An inventory of the decorative lampposts installed for the Association of Southeast Nations (Asean) Summit in January 2007 was done yesterday as part of the Ombudsman-Visayas investigation. Assistant Ombudsman Virginia Palanca-Santiago said results of the inventory will be sent to the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) in Manila. The OSP, which represents the State in five pending cases on the alleged overpricing of the stre...
10/18/2011
She learned about deaths on the Internet

NOBODY had the heart to tell Embrelaince Therjoy Ponce that her parents and siblings were already dead. She learned about it on the Internet almost eight hours after the shootings. Yolanda Daan, the neighbor who comforted her immediately after the 13-year-old girl ran out of the house as gunshots were fired past 8 a.m., said the girl was not told immediately to keep her calm. They just told her doctors were working to treat the...
10/17/2011
GIRL SPARED IN TALISAY MURDERS

Pa warns child before massacre Gawas didto ‘day. Pagtawag og polis kay ikaw ra’y mabuhi, kaming tanan mamatay (Get out, dear. Call the police, you're the only one who will live. All of us will die).” Those were the last words spoken by a 55-year-old former seaman to his youngest daughter minutes before he gunned down the rest of his family and their maid in their home in Palm View Village, barangay Tabunok in Talisay C...
10/17/2011
Flooded Medellin road cleared after typhoon

The flooded roads in Medellin town were cleared over the weekend but Mayor Ricardo Ramirez said the relief is temporary and more work is needed to ensure that they remain open. The Curba-Panugnawan road which collapsed during the height of typhoon Ramon have been filled with limestone and flattened with a roller. Water subsided in the barangay Lamintak Norte provincial road. But Ramirez said the Curba-Panugnawan road need...
10/17/2011
Capitol credits eGWEN for Cebu tourism honor

  THE Capitol lauded reports of Cebu's return to the list of top island destinations in Asia for this year as compiled by an international travel magazine. In text messages sent to Cebu Daily News yesterday, Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia attributed the province's comeback to her administration's Expanded Green and Wholesome Environment that nurtures (eGWEN) program. “(This honor is) an affirmation that the eGwen progra...
10/17/2011
Cebu City fiscals inhibit from tabloid case

CEBU City fiscals inhibited from handling the obscenity complaint filed against one of two Cebuano tabloids over the weekend. In an order, Cebu City Prosecutor Nicolas Sellon elevated the complaint against Banat News to Regional State Prosecutor Fernando Gubalane. Sellon said they have “no other recourse” than to inhibit, despite the absence of a motion by the respondents in the case. Asst. City Prosecutor Rodulf Joseph...
10/17/2011
Drainage master plan seen to solve Metro Cebu flooding

  An integrated drainage master plan should immediately be undertaken to resolve Metro Cebu's worsening flood problem, a Cebu City-based urban planning organization said yesterday. “It should go beyond expansion of culverts or dredging. It should consider the topographic divide to the receiving end (of water flow),” said Architect Socorro Atega, executive director of Cebu Uniting for Sustainable Water (CUSW). Atega ...
10/17/2011
Ombud questions discrepancies in Radaza SALN

  THE Ombudsman-Visayas questioned last week some discrepancies in Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Paz Radaza's statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN) that she submitted recently. Asst. Ombudsman Virginia Palanca-Santiago said Radaza's entries under the real properties category were erased with liquid paper ink, raising questions on whether or not she owns any buildings or real properties. Radaza didn't mention h...
10/17/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

Byron not off the hook HE may have settled his feud with an American national, but former Capitol consultant Byron Garcia still has some unfinished business with the Talisay City police. Talisay City Prosecutor Marshall Rubia said a subpoena was issued to Garcia requiring him to file a counter-affidavit in the complaint filed against him by the police. Garcia faces charges of illegal possession of firearms at the Talisa...
10/17/2011
Capitol to upgrade two Cebu airports

  Capitol will be rehabilitating the airports of Bantayan and Camotes islands. Provincial Engineer Eulogio Pelayre told Cebu Daily News last week that Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia is pushing for the developments of these two airport facilities because of the continuous influx of tourists in the islands. “Governor Garcia wants to make some improvements. With the influx of foreign tourists, it's high time to upgrade the...
10/17/2011
Call center agent scares people as zombie to help poor children

  A19-YEAR-OLD call center agent is one of the 60 zombies who will try to scare passersby inside their horror booths so that they can help make indigent children in the city happy. Jason Bihag of barangay Mantuyong has been joining Mandaue City's Horror Booth for a Cause since it started five years ago. The fund-raising activity for indigent children is organized by the Kaabag Foundation, a foundation made up Mandaue...
10/17/2011
Six oil firms willing to open books

MANILA — Six oil companies belonging to the Philippine Institute of Petroleum (PIP) said they would "open their respective books," if asked to do so, amid allegations of overpricing and cartel, and calls for greater disclosure from the downstream oil players. In a statement issued yesterday, PIP said its member companies namely Chevron (Philippines) Inc., Liquigaz Philippines Corp., Petron Corp., PTT Philippines Corp., Pi...
10/16/2011
CEBU RETURNS AS 8TH BEST

  Condé Nast Traveler surveys best island destinations in Asia, world     After being excluded last year, Cebu island bounces back at number 8. An international magazine that specializes in luxury travel has ranked Cebu as the 8th best island destinatino in Asia for 2011. The Condé Nast Traveler survey also recognized Shangri-La's Mactan Resort and Spa in Mactan Island, Cebu, in the category ...
10/16/2011
Cebu City, Mandaue folks address flooding

        Without waiting for government aid, some residents of northern barangays in Cebu and Mandaue cities decided to roll up their sleeves and work out flooding problems in their communities. In barangay Talamban, Cebu City, a committee wants to raise P2 million to fund a technical study on the flood situation in their area and barangays Cabancalan and Talamban. For now, they only have P200, said Fr. Pe...
10/16/2011
Ombud to probe Bella’s ‘jail food treat’

        AN inquiry into reports that Bella Ruby Santos’ relatives gave free food to inmates and jail guards in the Naga City jail will be made by the Ombudsman-Visayas. Assistant Ombudsman Virginia Palanca-Santiago docketed the report published in Cebu Daily News last Oct. 13 for fact-finding last Friday. She said the inquiry will be done by the Office of the Ombudsman for the Military and Other Law Enfor...
10/16/2011
Drainage, brgy aid top P1-B Cebu City plan

        MORE than half of the nearly P1-billion budget set for the 2012 Annual Investment Plan (AIP) of Cebu City will go to drainage improvement and cash aid to the city's 80 barangays, City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete said yesterday. About P300 million will go to drainage projects and P220 million will fund assistance to barangays. Poblete said there's a bigger chance that the projects will be imp...
10/16/2011
Barili mayor moves out of One Cebu, joins LP

        Feeling left out of the group, Barili Municipal Mayor Teresito Mariñas yesterday announced his exit from the One Cebu party of Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia and transfer to the Liberal Party (LP). He said he's had “enough” of the treatment of his former partymates especially Barili Vice Mayor Marlon Garcia. One Cebu counts on the support of at least 31 mayors in Cebu province. Mariñas is the first of the...
10/16/2011
Talisaynons mark fiesta with gusto and lechon

        IT was not as grand as last year's Halad Inasal Festival but Talisaynons still showed that the lechon or roasted pig was still the city's fiesta table centerpiece. Nine contingents from the city's public schools and barangays performed with gusto during a grand festival showdown at the Talisay City Central School. Arturo Bas, Talisay City's information officer, said yesterday that the city had to ...
10/16/2011
Cebu City to create water board

        The Cebu City Council is proposing the creation of a water resources regulatory board to manage and regulate extraction of groundwater and surface water for commercial use. A draft ordinance is pending with the committee on laws for review. The sponsors, Councilors Noel Wenceslao and Augustus Pe Jr., also want the board to represent the city in the adjudication of water rights/permit applications ...
10/15/2011
‘TASK FORCE IS LYING’

        If you claim to have identified the bribe sources, then go ahead and charge them.” This challenge was hurled yesterday by defense lawyer Rameses Villagonzalo at Task Force Ellah Joy after a police counsel revealed that four of their witnesses were approached with bribe offers to recant their statements against Bella Ruby Santos and British partner Ian Charles Griffiths. Villagonzalo flatly denied a report t...
10/15/2011
‘Cebu City remains magnet for traffickers’

        With its rising economic status, Cebu remains a magnet for human traffickers and sexual exploitation of women and children. “Cebu is a critical point in the campaign against human trafficking,” said Mark Anthony del Mundo, Cebu director of legal interventions of the International Justice Mission yesterday. He spoke in the regional assembly of the Provincial Board Members of the Philippines held in Cebu Cit...
10/15/2011
Capitol’s P25-M intel fund ‘went to PNP and military’

        WHY did the Capitol release P25 million as “intelligence funds” a month before the May 2010 elections? According to Cebu provincial treasurer Roy Salubre, the money went directly to the police and military for their intelligence operations against criminal and terrorist elements. “It was intended to secure the elections in the province. It's because we received reports of terrorist threats in the province,”...
10/15/2011
Kenyan pleads for help from family, embassy

        ALONE in the Lapu-Lapu City jail, the Kenyan woman arrested on drug possession charges is asking for her family to be strong and to fight for her. A tearful Asha Atieno Ogutu said she talked to her family once over the phone after she was detained in the warden's office. She said her mother and elder brother Victor were crying with her. She asked them to contact the Kenyan embassy to help her. “I need hel...
10/15/2011
Apas residents lined up for Ciudad project jobs

        An agreement was signed between the developer of the multibillion-peso Ciudad project and barangay Apas officials to prioritize the hiring of Apas residents. Lloyd Dino, chief operating officer of Fifth Avenue Property Development Corp., and barangay Apas captain Ramil Ayuman signed the agreement that is expected to generate 2,000 jobs for residents. Dino said their applications for environmental compliance...
10/15/2011
Students urged to return in wake of ‘possession’ case

        EDUCATION officials are persuading parents of students in Sta. Lucia National High School, Asturias town in Cebu to let children return to class after a commotion was stirred by allegations of demon possession affecting 13 students. Tomas Pastor, supervisor of the Department of Education in Central Visayas (DepEd-7), went to the town 71 kilometers northwest of Cebu City to check on the reports. He said they ...
10/15/2011
Proposed guidelines for Bantayan pushed

        Buildings and structures in Bantayan island, a tourist destination in north Cebu, should not be close enough to water sources to endanger the island’s limited potable water supply. Septic tanks should not be less than 40 meters away from the shore. These are some of the proposed guidelines submitted yesterday to the Mandaue Regional Trial Court by government agencies and environmental lawyer Antonio Oposa J...
10/15/2011
Rama to convene assembly for flooding problems

        CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama yesterday said he would convene a multi-sectoral consultative assembly to suggest solutions to the flooding problem of the city. Rama said he would issue an executive order for this soon. The mayor said there was an urgent need to tap the expertise of government and private sectors especially since November's rainfall pattern was uncertain. Heavy rains from tropical depression ...
10/15/2011
City has enough funds to pay Ralloses – bank

        A POSTALBANK official assured the court on Thursday that the Cebu City government had enough funds to pay the heirs of Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos. “Please be advised that the city government of Cebu has sufficient amount of deposit in PostalBank's possession to satisfy and/or to cover partly or wholly the garnishable amount,” said Ricardo Cordova, branch manager of PostalBank. Cordova made the assurance after ...
10/15/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Citom plan withdrawn The Cebu City Traffic Operations Management (Citom) withdrew a proposal that would require all applications for locational clearances to pass through Citom for review. Citom Chairman Sylvan Jakosalem said he withdrew the plan following opposition from Councilor Ritchie Osmeña. The councilor said the requirement would only add another layer of bureaucracy in the processing of trans...
10/14/2011
WITNESSES AT RISK?

  P500T ‘offered’ for witness to recant     We have to be alert,” said a police lawyer. Task Force Ellah Joy Pique is seeking the intervention of the Department of Justice (DOJ) to secure around 15 witnesses who are set to testify against Bella Ruby Santos and British partner Ian Charles Griffiths. According to the police, one witness was offered P500,000 to recant statements earlier made against the primary suspects ...
10/14/2011
Woman, family escape landslides in barangays

        Landslides yesterday almost killed a woman in barangay Kalunasan, Cebu City, and a family in Lawaan III, Talisay City, where heavy rains in the aftermath of storm Ramon further loosened soil in upland villages. Lucia Abellanosa, 35, was sound asleep at home at 9 a.m. resting during her day off from work. She woke up just in time before two boulders smashed into her bamboo house in sitio St. Anthony, barangay...
10/14/2011
Cebu PB to review auditors’ advice

        THE Cebu Provincial Board is reviewing recommendations of auditors who questioned the hiring of 45 consultants without public bidding and approval of the legislature. In the report, the Commission on Audit (COA) said the governor's office has 23 consultants, the vice governor has one consultant and the Provincial Board has 21 consultants who are paid at least P1 to P26,741 monthly. Some of the consultants d...
10/14/2011
Mayor frowns on ‘pulong-pulong’

        CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama yesterday asked councilors to do away with conducting “pulong-pulong” during their off site sessions. The mayor said that under the legislative body's house rules, discussions in their sessions should only be limited to items included in their agenda. “I commend the council for the conduct of their off site session so that people will know what's going on at the city council per...
10/14/2011
One lane open in damaged Borbon road

      ONE lane is open to traffic in the road section that collapsed in Borbon town, north Cebu during Tuesday's downpour. Workers dumped soil there yesterday after half of the road caved in during tropcial depression Ramon, which left the area impassable to traffic until Wednesday afternoon. Municipal administrator Rolando Bucog said more soil still has to be added to stabilize the road in sitio Canlagang, barangay Don ...
10/14/2011
Court orders arrest of NBI expert for delayed records

        A Cebu judge ordered the the arrest of a forensic expert of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) for delaying the release of records for the identification of bodies in the 2008 sinking of the Princess of the Stars. Regional Trial Court Judge Soliver Peras of Branch 10 cited Dr. Renato Bautista in contempt of court and issued the warrant of arrest last Oct. 7. A copy of the arrest order was received b...
10/14/2011
T. Padilla residents start ‘green revolution’

        CEBU City’s potential as an urban gardening site was tested yesterday as residents in barangay T. Padilla planted vegetables on vacant lots. Environment lawyer Antonio Oposa Jr. led the planting as part of a “green revolution.” With bolos and water containers, residents along a 350-meter stretch of T. Villa Sreet planted kangkong, camote (sweet potato) and beans along vacant lots, sidewalks, and along easem...
10/14/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        AWARD FOR COKALIONG BUSINESSMAN Edgar Cokaliong should be given a posthumous award during the city’s Charter Day celebration next year instead of having a street named after him. Cebu City Councilor Margot Osmeña suggested this as she opposed councilor Edgardo Labella’s proposed ordinance to rename the 3rd avenue in General Maxilom Avenue Extension in Cebu City as Edgar Cokaliong Avenue. Osmeña, vice cha...
10/14/2011
Crane overturns in IT Park accident no one injured

        A MINI-CRANE overturned on its side before noon yesterday at the work site of Avida Twin Tower in Asiatown IT Park. Fortunately workers were on lunch break, so none of the 200-man crew were injured. “We heard a commotion about 11:45 a.m.,” said Romy Despeus, construction site manager. The contractor Preseus of Makati Development Corporation (MDC) is building the 26-story condominum project. According to i...
10/13/2011
BORBON ROAD CAVES IN

  Cebu mainland spared from brunt of Storm ‘Ramon’; 2 killed     Storm “Ramon” didn't carry the wallop many Cebuanos expected. It came earlier than forecast at 6 a.m. yesterday and blew quickly over northern Cebu. Two men were killed, a tricycle driver in Cordova town who was electrocuted and a tuba vendor in Toledo City where a footbridge collapsed. The biggest infrastructure damage was in Borbon town, 82 kilometers...
10/13/2011
Classes suspended despite calm weather

        DESPITE the calm weather in Metro Cebu yesterday, classes remained suspended for public elementary and high schools in Cebu City and province. An advisory is expected at 7 a.m. today from the Department of Education, said provincial schools superintendent Arden Monisit. Several private schools also suspended their classes. It's up to the administration to decide the status today. Elementary and high schoo...
10/13/2011
Families in Mahiga Creek moved out ahead of rains

        There was no heavy downpour or strong winds but a pre-emptive evacuation was enforced on residents living on the Mandaue City side of the Mahiga Creek last Tuesday evening. At 8 p.m., patrol cabs fetched residents in barangays Subangdaku and Banilad. At least 73 families were moved out from the two barangays to the San Roquez parish church gym and the Banilad Elementary School. Among those relocated were...
10/13/2011
Floods to bring in skin ailments, dengue

        CEBU residents were warned against wading in floodwaters since the bacteria may cause skin disease and other ailments. Floodwaters especially in urban areas are susceptible to bacteria, which may cause leptospirosis, said director Dr. Susana Madarieta of the Department of Health in Central Visayas (DOH-7). She said those who got sick from wading in floodwaters should immediately seek help in health center...
10/13/2011
Cebu Daily News, NGOs lauded for promoting respect for eco-laws

        CEBU Daily News along with several non-government groups were recognized by the Cebu City Council yesterday in a resolution for their “dedication and active participation” in helping enforce the country's environmental laws in Cebu. The paper was cited along with the Philippine Business of Social Progress (PBSP), Kaabag sa Sugbo Foundation and the Kantipla Ecosystem Enhancement and Protection Foundation duri...
10/13/2011
Food donations, vest hound Bella in Naga jail

        Questions about her bulletproof vest and rumors that she fed inmates and jail guards hounded Bella Ruby Santos on day 1 of her life behind bars. Investigator Arnel Pura of the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) yesterday said they asked Santos to put on an NBI bulletproof vest when she arrived at the airport last Monday after receiving information that there were “sympathizers” who ...
10/13/2011
Gwen gives, receives on her birthday

        ON her 56th birthday, Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia gave to and received gifts from inmates, Capitol employees and officials and youth centers in Minglanilla town and Talisay City yesterday. After prayers, the governor went to the Capitol where department heads rolled out a two-layer white fondant cake. The Provincial Employees Association of Cebu issued her a check for P30,000 to support the Capitol's beauti...
10/13/2011
Bonbon bridge project under way

        The Cebu City Council announced yesterday that the construction of the Bonbon-Buot-Taup Bridge is under way. Although Tomas Osmeña opposed the project when he was mayor, saying it was expensive and would only benefit a few residents, his wife Councilor Margot Osmeña announced during the council’s first off-site session in the mountain barangay of Bonbon that the bridge construction would start next year. “...
10/13/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Access road opening AN access road parallel to M. Velez Avenue and connecting Escario Street with V. Rama Avenue would go a long way to dispersing traffic in the area, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said. Rama said opening a new road parallel to M. Velez Avenue would disperse traffic from the existing road which is being widened by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). Rama directed the city'...
10/12/2011
CEBU BRACES FOR ‘RAMON’

  Storm brings ‘moderate to heavy rain’ today     Storm “Ramon” grew stronger and bigger as it approached southern Philippines and is expected to dump moderate to heavy rains in Cebu as it travels across Central Visayas today. The brunt of the storm is expected 90 kilometers north of Cebu City, near Bogo, by tomorrow morning or earlier. Storm Signal Number 1 was hoisted yesterday over Cebu, Bohol, Leyte and Samar. T...
10/12/2011
P25-M ‘intelligence funds’ released a month before polls

        Auditors questioned a P25- million cash advance made by the Cebu provincial government charged to its intelligence funds. The amount was released in five installments in April 2010 or a month before the May local and national elections. The Commission on Audit in Central Visayas (COA-7) did not ask what the money was used for since this is liquidated directly with the central COA office in Manila. It noted...
10/12/2011
Bella in high spirits, meets Gwen before detention in Naga City jail

        BACK in her native Naga City, homicide suspect Bella Ruby Santos was locked up at 9 a.m. yesterday in a jail cell with three other women to await trial. “Bisan asa, okay ra man ko (Anywhere they put me, I'm all right),” Santos told Cebu Daily News shortly before she stepped into the six-square-meter concrete room. She was still dressed in the pantsuit and heels she wore upon arrival at the airport the day b...
10/12/2011
DENR to count dwellers in Central Cebu watersheds

        Who lives within Cebu’s watersheds and where? Which ones are legitimate occupants? A census and registration will be made in 22 barangays within the Central Cebu Protected Landscape (CCPL) starting this year. This will provide the DENR with basic data as basis for establishing management zones and buffer zones and to prepare programs like alternative livelihood opportunities, said Regional Executive Direc...
10/12/2011
Tomas asks mayor Where’s P78-M loan?

        About P78 million offered by the National Housing Authority (NHA) has not been used yet by Cebu City Hall for displaced urban poor families, Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district said. The former mayor castigated Mayor Michael Rama for failing to fully avail of the NHA offer to help displaced families of Mahiga Creek and others scheduled for eviction along the riverbank. Osmeña said that out of th...
10/12/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Rice and corn deficit CENTRAL Visayas faced a rice and corn deficit of 192,000 metric tons from January to June this year, agriculture officials said yesterday. “The population in the region has a rice and corn consumption of 30 to 35 percent and 60 to 65 percent of rice and corn are imported,” said Bureau of Agriculture Statistics Officer Aurelia Canda. The Department of Agriculture in Central Visayas ...
10/11/2011
BELLA END OF MY PARTY DAYS

  NBI brings home fugitive in bulletproof vest, handcuffs   With a bulletproof vest on top of her pink blouse, a handcuffed Bella Ruby Santos returned to Cebu beaming. The former fugitive arrived at 5:25 p.m. yesterday at the Mactan Cebu International Airport, where over a dozen agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and a Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team surrounded her. Law enforcers said they worri...
10/11/2011
Governor, PB commend NBI for job well done

      THE one who squealed on Bella Ruby Santos stands to receive a P300,000 reward and would be the first to benefit from the Tipster Program announced last year by Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia. Garcia said the bounty will go entirely to the informant, who's name will be kept secret, “but we will find another way to reward the NBI”. The Cebu Provincial Board also passed a resolution commending the “painstaking efforts of...
10/11/2011
Flyovers should be set in SRP, not in urban core, dean says

      Any flyover projects would have to be built outside the urban core or in peripheral areas that would facilitate the entry and exit of vehicles to and from Cebu City. Based on this urban planning principle, Architect Joseph Espina, dean of the College of Architecture and Fine Arts in the University of San Carlos (USC), said a better location for flyovers would be the South Road Properties (SRP) or North Reclamation ...
10/11/2011
Heavy downpour in Cebu tomorrow with ‘Ramon’

    EXPECT “very heavy rains” again in Cebu tomorrow due to tropical depression Ramon, which is heading for northern Mindanao and the Visayas. The downpour will be heavier than last Friday evening's rainfall, which flooded low-lying areas of Mandaue City and Cebu City, said weather observer Kelly Torregoza of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Service Administration (Pag-asa) in Mactan. “This Wednesday's d...
10/11/2011
Byron, American settle feud in barangay hall

      Three weeks after they argued in a gun-toting incident in Corona del Mar, American resident Wayne Morris and Byron Garcia shook hands and settled their differences at the Pooc barangay hall in Talisay City yesterday morning. “It was never my intention to pursue legal action against Byron,” said Morris in a letter to barangay captain Doroteo Emit who read it aloud. “I believe Byron is a good guy deep inside and bel...
10/11/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    Lights off for Cebu METRO Cebu residents are being asked to turn off lights for 30 minutes at 7:30 p.m. today to protest the 40-centavo power rate increase petition by the Napocor. Councilor Michael Rallota, also incumbent president of the Association of Barangay Councils (ABC), asked the barangay officials to support the campaign by turning off lights in their barangay halls for 30 minutes. The City Council passed a reso...
10/11/2011
Barangay execs want landfill transfer station

      BARANGAY officials in Cebu City want a garbage transfer station to be set up in the Inayawan landfill, a proposal that Mayor Michael Rama isn't enthusiastic about. In a resolution, the Association of Barangay Councils (ABC) asked the mayor to allocate three out of 15 hectares of the landfill for the transfer station, where the garbage of the barangays will be collected for delivery to the Consolacion landfill. But...
10/11/2011
Rama seeks P700M to solve city’s flood woes

    Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama is asking for a P700-million share in the 2012 budget to fund major drainage and dredging projects aimed at addressing the city's flooding problems. Rama said P500 million would be used for drainage improvement projects identified in the drainage master plan while the P200 million would be set aside for dredging works. “What I am seeing now (the flooding problems of the city) is no longer a jok...
10/11/2011
Court asked Don’t seize city’s funds to pay Ralloses

    THE Cebu City government yesterday asked the court not to implement the seizure of government funds to settle its dues to the heirs of Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos, whose lot was expropriated in 1963. Cebu City Legal Officer Joseph Bernaldez made a verbal manifestation in court to maintain the status quo or to keep the things the way they presently are. This developed as Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge James Stewart Ramon Hima...
10/11/2011
City to ask Gwen to open Capitol Road

        THE Cebu City government is planning to use the Capitol Road as a diversion road while work continues with the widening of the Don Gil Garcia St beside the Capitol compound. Rafael Yap, head of the City Traffic Office Management (Citom), said he would ask for a meeting with Gov. Gwen Garcia to discuss the city's request. “Temporarily we will need the Capitol property to allow DPWH to finish the road project...
10/11/2011
Palace declares Oct. 31 holiday

      MANILA— Malacañang has declared Oct. 31 a special non-working holiday. Proclamation 265 signed by Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. said this is “to give full opportunity to our people to properly observe [All Saints’ Day] with all its religious fervor which invariably requires them to travel to and from different regions of the country.” All Saints’ Day, Nov. 1, falls on a Tuesday. It is a regular holiday. &n...
10/10/2011
‘CITY OF FLYOVERS’

  Del Mar wants seven to complete network Amid opposition from a religious order and other stakeholders, proponents of two flyover projects in Cebu City aren't done yet. In fact they are looking to build a network of seven flyover projects in the city's northern district, including one near the Carmelites Church in barangay Mabolo. But former congressman Raul del Mar said this flyover will be built along F. Cabahug Street and...
10/10/2011
Bella to arrive today, lawyers ask transfer

  More than two months after being served with an arrest warrant, Bella Ruby Santos is scheduled to arrive at the Mactan Cebu International Airport sometime this afternoon. She will be escorted by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) who will present her in court. Her lawyers are moving to transfer her from the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) to the Naga City jail. T...
10/10/2011
Griffiths won’t be in Cebu for Bella

  THOUGH he professed his love for her, Briton Ian Charles Griffiths won't set foot in Cebu to stand trial with Bella Ruby Santos on kidnap with homicide charges. Santos' lawyer Rameses Villagonzalo said the Briton doesn't trust the Cebu police's investigation into the case that implicated him and Santos on the murder of six-year-old Ellah Joy Pique. “Griffiths assured full support for Santos and that he still loves her”, Villagonz...
10/10/2011
Barangay chief unfazed over medical, burial aid cut

    AT least one barangay official dismissed the warning by the Association of Barangay Councils (ABC) to reduce the medical and burial assistance it extends to barangays who failed to pay their dues. “I am not afraid of that, let them do that and I will meet them at the office of the Ombudsman,” said Basak San Nicholas barangay captain George Rama. Basak San Nicholas is one of four barangays with delinquent accounts to the ...
10/10/2011
Doctor, engineer’s kin receive OFW award

    A ship engineer and a newly retired doctor and their families were recognized as “Model OFW Family of the Year” by the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) during the “7th Search for the Model OFW Family of the Year” in Central Visayas last Oct. 5. Engr. Candido S. Caminero and his family won the “sea-based category” while Dr. Carlito Astillero and his family won the “land-based category.” “We want to promote s...
10/10/2011
Group maps out breast cancer walk

    ALL roads leading to the Cebu Business Park will be re-routed in time for the Moonwalk, an annual even held in observance of Breast Awareness Month this October. Ronald delos Reyes, program coordinator of the Eduardo J. Aboitiz Cancer Center (EJACC) of the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. (RAFI), said they expect 3,000 people to join the event to be held this Wednesday. “Since Oct. 12 is a weekday, we would like to inform th...
10/10/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    Calamity status for Mandaue barangays SOME barangays hardest hit by last Friday's downpour will be placed under calamity status in a resolution scheduled to be passed in today's special session by the Mandaue City Council. Mayor Jonas Cortes met with the Mandaue City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council at 8 p.m last Saturday and endorsed the resolution to the council. The resolution will allow the release of the ...
10/10/2011
M’daue to dump wastes in Lacion

  The Mandaue City government will temporarily close the Umapad dumpsite after heavy rains made the roads inside the dumpsite almost impassable for garbage trucks. Engineer Ricardo Mendoza, head of the Solid Waste Management Board, said yesterday that the Mandaue City government planned to dump its garbage for the next six months in a privately-owned dumpsite in Consolacion town – Asian Energy System Corp. Mendoza said he had negoti...
10/9/2011
BAIL BID FOR BELLA

  NBI tipster’s name ‘can stay a secret’ but recipient of P300,000 reward has to be screened first     Now that she's in the custody of the National Bureau of Investigation, defense lawyers of Bella Ruby Santos said they will try to secure her temporary release on bail. “We are ready for trial. We are confident we have a strong case and that the prosecution cannot prove the guilt of Bella Ruby. That's why we plan to ap...
10/9/2011
Month 8 Hope revives for Ellah Joy's parents

        EXACTLY eight months ago, Ellah Joy Pique was abducted while walking home from the Calaojan Elementary School in Minglanilla town. Her body was found the next day wrapped in a blanket and stuffed in a plastic bag at the bottom of a cliff in Barili town. The cause of death was “blunt force trauma” on the child's head. She was believed killed before her body was tossed down the ravine. But yesterday's memori...
10/9/2011
Heavier rainfall hits Cebu, Mandaue rains to continue

        Heavier than usual rainfall swept through the cities of Cebu and Mandaue, resulting in flooded streets and stranded commuters last Friday evening. The Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Service Administration (Pag-asa) Mactan office said they recorded 64.5 millimeters of rain from 8 p.m until 2 a.m yesterday. This is more than double the average 15 to 25 millimeter rainfall experienced in C...
10/9/2011
Let stakeholders decide on flyovers, Palma says

        CEBU City residents should decide for themselves whether to support the flyover projects planned for the junctions e of General Maxilom and Gorordo Avenue, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma said yesterday. “Let the Cebu people choose and react about it, without thinking so much about personal vested interest. It should be for the good of the community,” Palma told Cebu Daily News. Palma had an hour-long closed doo...
10/9/2011
Council Road widening first before projects

        ANY developments in Cebu City's northern corridor would have to wait until road widening is completed. The City Council last Wednesday passed three resolutions on this matter. One directed the Office of the Building Official (OBO) to deny approval of new applications for building permits and renovation of existing structures within a 20-meter area from an existing road. Another resolution directed the City...
10/9/2011
Ecleo trial ruling in Dec.

        AFTER almost a decade, the trial of cult leader Ruben Ecleo Jr. ended last Wednesday. The court verdict will be promulgated on Dec. 16. Regional Trial Court Judge Soliver Peras of Branch 10 order the defense and prosecution to submit their memoranda on the case. Ecleo, supreme master of the Philippine Benevolent Missionaries Association, was tried for parricide for the death of his wife Alona on Jan. 5, ...
10/9/2011
Delinquent barangays to see less medical aid, ABC warns

        Four delinquent barangays will no longer receive services from the Association of Barangay Councils (ABC) in Cebu City unless they settle their dues which total P651,981. ABC president Michael Rallota said barangays Lahug, Basak San Nicolas, Punta Princesa and Day-as were unable to remit their dues for this year. Services to be suspended include his signing of their Program of Works and Estimates (POWE) fo...
10/9/2011
Globe launches Cebu media awards

        Globe Telecom launched the first Cebu Media Excellence Awards as a means to pay tribute and give recognition to print, broadcast and digital media practitioners who have excelled in the profession and practice of journalism. The awards were launched on Sept. 21 during the celebration of the 17th Cebu Press Freedom Week. “Cebu has a rich history of journalism, which continues to this day,” said Yoly Crisant...
10/8/2011
BELLA NABBED IN MANILA

  NBI agent finds fugitive shopping in SM     With her waist-length hair cut short, she now looks like a “tomboy,” said Bella Ruby Santos. She also sported new tattoos on both legs and the back of the neck. The disguise didn't work. Santos’ capture yesterday in SM Megamall in Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, ended nearly three months of eluding an arrest warrant in Cebu for the kidnap-murder case of 6-year-old Ellah Joy Pi...
10/8/2011
Mystery tipster in Cebu exposed Bella’s shopping trip

        A TIP from Cebu led the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to quickly search for Bella Ruby Santos in SM Megamall in Mandaluyong. The agency received information about her whereabouts at about 3 p.m., said NBI-7 supervising agent Rennan Augustus Oliva. The tipster said Santos was in Forever 21, a fashion store, buying assorted clothes. Special investigator Arnel Pura, who was in Manila on official busi...
10/8/2011
Delay seen in Gorordo flyover DPWH to seek moratorium

        Work on the Gorordo Avenue flyover may be delayed until February next year instead of November, an official said. This is due to last-minute changes being made in the design to avoid damaging the Asilo dela Milagrosa compound, said lawyer Agustinito Hermoso of the Dept. of Public Works and Highways (DPWH). “I will file a formal request for a moratorium addressed to the DPWH central office,” he said at the e...
10/8/2011
Lapu police eye Minda ties in jewelry robbery

        THE robbers who staged last Wednesday's holdup of M. Lhuillier managers could be part of a syndicate operating in Mindanao linked to two previous holdups said police. Senior Supt. Anthony Obenza, Lapu-Lapu City police chief, said some suspects have been identified but he held back details to avoid the investigation. The stolen jewelry valued at P2 million was insured. “As far as I know it was insured, bu...
10/8/2011
Kenyan pleads ‘not guilty’, keeps up brave front

        Kenyan national Asha Atieno Ogutu pleaded “not guilty” yesterday to charges of drug trafficking. Told that the Kenyan Embassy would not provide her a lawyer, she followed the judge’s advice to select from among several lawyers. She chose Ricardo Amores. The woman, who was arrested upon arrival last week at the Mactan International Airport where three kilos of shabu were found concealed in a false bottom of...
10/8/2011
ABS-CBN C. Visayas raises P1M in cash, relief goods

        ABOUT P1,328,973.00 in cash and P976,750 worth of goods that consist of rice, canned goods, noodles, clothing and kitchen utensils were raised in a two-day donation campaign by ABS-CBN for the flood victims of Luzon. The Kapamilya Relief Campaign in Fuente Osmeña, Cebu City, drew donations from elderly citizens to motorists who handed cash and supplies for the victims of typhoons Pedring and Quiel. “We've a...
10/8/2011
Solon says Cebu City can’t afford to keep hospital

        Cebu City Hall doesn’t have the funds or staff to manage the Guba hospital, which is being considered for turnover to the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC). Rep. Rachel “Cutie” del Mar of Cebu City's north district said the turnover of the Guba hospital has long been planned. “They (Cebu City government) do not have enough funds for that ... why not place the hospital under Vicente Sotto?” she ...
10/8/2011
Guidelines mulled for P5-T allowances to brgys

        GUIDELINES will be drawn up for the release of a new P5,000 allowance for barangay officials, City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete said yesterday. “We can’t determine the exact date of the release of the allowances. I think there was a requirement for guidelines, which I believe are necessary also. But the good thing is that we already have the budget for the assistance,” Poblete said. Councilor Noel Wence...
10/8/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Fastcraft returns to port A FASTCRAFT bound for Tagbilaran City in Bohol had to return to Cebu City port after experiencing technical problems five minutes after it left Pier 4. Supercat 26 left Cebu City’s Pier 4 at 8:30 a.m. and was supposed to arrive in Tagbilaran City port at 10:30 a.m. But Cebu City Coast Guard Station chief Rolando Punzalan said the vessel’s exhaust conked out five minutes later. ...
10/8/2011
Five provinces still placed under calamity status

        Manila—Five provinces, eight cities and five municipalities remain under a state of calamity nine days after Typhoon "Pedring" pummeled the country, destroying billions worth of infrastructure and agricultural crops in Central Luzon. Placed under a state of calamity were the provinces of Quirino, Isabela, Nueva Ecija, Nueva Vizcaya and Cavite. The eight cities under a state of calamity are Santiago, Tugue...
10/7/2011
‘LET’S AGREE TO DISAGREE’

  Del Mars rally brgy captains; won’t attend Asilo forum today     Both sides in the flyover debate say they want what’s best for Cebu. Just don't expect to see Rep. Cutie del Mar of Cebu City’s north district and advocates of Stop Cebu Flyovers in the same room talking about it. She was invited to a 3 p.m. forum today at the Asilo dela Milagrosa to discuss the impact of building two more flyovers in Gorordo Avenue an...
10/7/2011
72 barangay chiefs want flyovers

        BEFORE a hall filled with Cebu City barangay captains, father and daughter yesterday thanked officials for supporting plans to build two more flyovers in the city. “More than adequate discussions on the issue of the flyover have been made in the past weeks,” said Raul del Mar. “But what is the truth? Maayo ba ang flyover?” “Maayo,” the crowd replied. His daughter Rep. Cutie del Mar of the north district a...
10/7/2011
Lawyer Jewelry transport was confidential operation

        The company wanted a confidential operation in transporting their jewelry. This was M. Lhuillier lawyer Bayani Atup's explanation why they didn't coordinate with the Lapu-Lapu police when two managers brought in jewelry from Davao City last Wednesday. “The less people know how we move our items, the better it is for our security. This incident has not happened for the past years operations,” Atup said in a ...
10/7/2011
Rama Politics may hurt projects in 2012 budget

        MAYOR Michael Rama said he is worried that some items proposed in his 2012 executive budget may be sacrificed because of his strained political ties with members of the Cebu City Council. Rama said he already identified at least 59 concerns, which include road improvements, purchase of new vehicles for barangay captains, improvement of health centers and purchase of new garbage trucks for funding next year. ...
10/7/2011
Embassy won’t provide lawyer for arrested Kenyan woman

        NO lawyer will be provided by the Kenyan Embassy to the woman arrested in Cebu for transporting illegal drugs, said consulate officials based in Manila. “As per advice from the Kenyan Embassy in Kuala Lumpur, if it's a criminal case, then they will not provide a lawyer ... it is not covered,” said Janet Cuarto, executive secretary of Consul Albert Yuchengco, quoting the conversation she had with the Kenyan E...
10/7/2011
Inayawan landfill stays open — Mayor Rama

        Forget Consolacion town as an alternate site for Cebu City’s garbage. City Hall had to back off plans to use a private landfill in Pulog, Consolacion, after a dry run last Wednesday failed. City residents will have to continue using the Inayawan Sanitary Landfill even though it is operating beyond capacity. Bad roads and lack of a contract were among the reasons the city's garbage diversion plans “failed.”...
10/7/2011
10 SWU maritime studes seek court’s aid to get records

        AT LEAST 10 maritime students who participated in a walkout last month to protest “exorbitant fees” in the Southwestern University (SWU) want to transfer to another school. They went to court yesterday after complaining that school officials withheld their Transcript of Records (TOR) due to non-payment of school liabilities. The students yesterday sought the intervention of the Regional Trial Court to orde...
10/7/2011
Reporters file plaint vs ex-PDEA-7 chief

        THE Cebu Federation of Beat Journalists (CFBJ) filed yesterday a complaint against an official of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) who allegedly threatened a radio reporter. Rey Pasaporte of radio dyDD and a correspondent of Banat News was accompanied by 20 colleagues to the Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas, which will conduct a fact-finding inquiry against former PDEA-7 chief Adrian Alvar...
10/7/2011
MRF for big firms in M’daue — expert

        BIG establishments in Mandaue City may soon be required to have their own Material Recovery Facility (MRF) to sort out garbage especially those that produce 100 kilos of waste a day. Lawyer Benjamin Cabrido, environmental consultant of Mandaue City, said that to make the city livable for the next generations, the city government would require commercial and industrial establishments to put up their own MRF. ...
10/6/2011
HELD UP AGAIN IN LAPU-LAPU

  For 3rd time, Lhuillier jewelry heist pulled off after airport arrival     Four men in black police uniforms stopped their taxi at 10:30 a.m. in Lapu-Lapu City, pretending it was a drug bust. At gunpoint, the driver was told to open the trunk. Two M. Lhuillier pawnshop managers from Davao City watched helplessly as the armed men took their cell phones, a laptop and two backpacks containing jewelry pieces supposed to...
10/6/2011
Slay suspect fears for life, sees boy’s ‘ghost’ in jail cell

        The man accused of murdering 7-year-old Gabriel Morales, son of his live-in partner, is afraid of being sent to the Mandaue City jail. That’s where the boy’s father is detained on drug charges. Mario Abecia, a company driver, said he fears he’ll get killed there. He asked the police to put him in a safer jail. The slain boy was laid to rest yesterday in the Mandaue cemetery, a day after his body was found ...
10/6/2011
‘My grandson was wrapped like bread’

        INSTEAD of his remains, the siblings of 7-year-old Gabriel Morales saw only the white plastic sheet wrapped around around him in a coffin. The boy’s remains were buried in the St. Joseph’s Cemetery following a 3 p.m. Mass. Gabriel was killed by his mother’s live-in partner, whose violence was triggered by a fit of jealousy and anger after the woman decided to end their relationship last month. Gabriel's e...
10/6/2011
American blames spat with Byron for anxiety

        Talisay City Prosecutor Marshall Rubia said a subpoena will be sent to Byron Garcia this week to answer police charges of carrying a gun without a permit. Garcia, brother of Gov. Gwen Garcia, surrendered his AK-47 assault rifle to the police a day after he brandished it in an angry confrontation with his American neighbor in Corona del Mar Subdivision in Talisay City. Wayne Morris, in a joint affidavit with...
10/6/2011
Two Cebu grads top national mechanical engineering exam

        TWO graduates from Cebu, including the son of a candle vendor at the Basilica del Santo Niño, were among of the topnotchers of the September 2011 Mechanical Engineering Licensure Examination. A graduate from Bohol province also made it to the top ten. The Professional Regulations Commission (PRC) announced that 1,686 out of 2,513 passed the Mechanical Engineer Licensure Examinations given by the Board of Me...
10/6/2011
Barangay official links Akrho to failed ambush

        The barangay councilor who survived an ambush at New Imus Road, corner P. Del Rosario Extension, Cebu City, at 8 p.m last Tuesday said he believes the attack was related to the 2007 murder of his son, whose death anniversary his family commemorated that same day. “I have no doubt that this is related to the death of my son. Maybe those responsible want to silence me,” said San Roque barangay councilor Bobby ...
10/6/2011
40 Cebu City households are poor DSWD

        A DATABASE is being set up by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to identify poor families in the country and where they live. It shows that at least 40 percent of households surveyed in Cebu City and the region are classified as poor, said Daisy Lor of the DSWD-7 Planning office. Most of them are “informal settlers.” The National Household Targeting System for Poverty Reduction (NHTS-P...
10/6/2011
Kenyan drug courier awaits legal aid from consulate

        THE court yesterday deferred the arraignment of the Kenyan national who was arrested on illegal drug possession charges at the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) last Thursday. The 24-year-old Kenyan Asha Atieno Ogutu appeared before Judge Toribio Quiwag of the Regional Trial Court Branch 27 in Lapu-Lapu City but the proceedings didn't last long. The judge agreed to provide the woman with a lawyer to ...
10/6/2011
Scavengers seeking aid programs amid dump closure bid

        Scavengers who rely on the Inayawan landfill for their living called on the Cebu City government for aid programs that would support them long after the dump had been closed. Accompanied by Fr. Max Abalos and Aaron Pedrosa of the militant group Sanlakas the affected families went to Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama's office to press their case. “With more than 600 persons affected by the Inayawan landfill closu...
10/6/2011
Man, son face charges for cutting trees in watershed

        A complaint was filed on Tuesday against two men accused of hacking down trees to make charcoal in sitio Kulabtingon, barangay Sudlon II in Cebu City. Richard Ubod and his son Jonard were accused of violating Presidential Decree 705 or the Forestry Reform Code of the Philippines in charges filed with the Cebu City Prosecutors' Office. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Central Visayas (D...
10/6/2011
Evangelize, impart values, teachers urged

        TEACHERs were asked to use their influence to “evangelize” students by imparting positive values that would make them better persons. In a homily to mark World Teachers’ Day at the Ecotech Center yesterday, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma thanked Cebu teachers for their sacrifice and cited their growing role in influencing the character of their students. Palma recounted his experiences as a student who had to w...
10/6/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      Rama faces plaint on lot case ONE of the heirs of Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos filed another complaint against Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama. Lucina Rallos asked the Ombudsman-Visayas to investigate Rama for violation of Republic Act 6713 or the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees. She cited Rama's failure to respond to a two-page letter sent by Rallos last July 23. Under section...
10/5/2011
BOY KILLED BY MOM’S LOVER

  Gabriel, 7, was kidnapped after couple split up     Mandaue police called it a “crime of passion.” The death of 7-year-old Gabriel was a horrific blow to his mother, Christine Morales, who had been looking for him since Saturday. The boy's body turned up yesterday covered with soil and crushed hollow blocks inside the house of her estranged lover in sitio Riverside B. along a creek in barangay Subangdaku Mandaue Cit...
10/5/2011
DPWH Adjustments set to protect church

        Adjustments” will be made to ensure that construction of a P300 million flyover project along Gorordo Avenue won't damage the Asilo dela Milagrosa church, a public works official said. “It's possible to make adjustments. We already discussed it with our engineers,” said Augustinito Hermoso, legal counsel of thehe Department fo Public Works and Highways in Central Visayas (DPWH-7), yesterday. “Only the side...
10/5/2011
Cebu City can pay Rallos kin, bank says

        CEBU City has enough funds in one of its depository banks to pay the P133 million it owed to the heirs of Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos. “Per verification from the bank records, respondent City of Cebu has an account with the bank sufficient to cover the judgement of debt,” said lawyer Roel Costuna and Rydely Valmores of the Philippine Veterans Bank. But it's the city government that decides whether or not to use...
10/5/2011
Cop official surrenders amid rape charges

        A FORMER deputy chief of a police precinct in Mandaue City surrendered to the Criminal and Investigation Division Group (CIDG) after an arrest warrant was issued against him for the rape of a 16-year-old girl last March. Insp. Gerardo Fiel Jr. was picked up by CIDG-7 operatives led by Chief Insp. Fermin Armendarez. He was brought before Judge Teresita Galanida accompanied by his lawyers and his aunt. Armend...
10/5/2011
Garbage route dry run, delivery sked set today

        Starting today, garbage trucks from the Department of Public Services of Cebu City Hall will deliver the city's biodegradable wastes to the Pulog, Consolacion town, waste facility via the Talamban-Pit-os Road. Councilor Edu Rama said the route is still part of a dry run. About 10 DPS garbage trucks will be sent to Consolacion town today. Collection of biodegradable wastes is scheduled on Mondays, Wednesda...
10/5/2011
Courts to decide on lampposts, Ombud says

        THE Ombudsman-Visayas said it is up to the courts to decide whether to allow Cebu City to remove the decorative lampposts in their streets despite the ongoing graft cases involving its purchase. “These (lampposts) are evidence of the court. It depends upon the court (to have the street lights removed). We can't decide on that. That is beyond our authority,” Asst. Ombudsman Virginia Palanca-Santiago told Cebu...
10/5/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Old vehicles for sale TO cut down on maintenance costs, Councilor Jose Daluz III proposed the public auction of government vehicles aged eight years old. Daluz said the General Services Office agreed that maintenance costs for some government vehicles were high owing to their deteriorating condition. A Commission on Audit (COA) circular said a motor vehicle can be in good running condition for seven yea...
10/5/2011
‘One more power plant for Cebu’

        Cebu needs another power plant. Energy Secretary Rene Almendras said this as he warned of a projected power supply shortage in Cebu in 2015. Almendras cited coal as still a major source of power in the country. Almendras said 72 percent of the power industry was still using coal. He said he was also working with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to address the environmental concerns of u...
10/5/2011
Osorio slay suspect recants, claims cops tortured him

        I was tortured.” This was the declaration of 28-year-old Lyndon Horandoy as he retracted his statement on killing Assistant City Prosecutor Patrick Osorio last Jan. 6, 2009. Horandoy was teary-eyed while he narrated his experiences under the hands of the policemen. Horandoy told Cebu Daily News he was forced to sign the extra-judicial confession, which was purportedly made by police to expedite resolution...
10/5/2011
‘No special treatment for Kenyan woman’

        THE Lapu-Lapu City jail warden yesterday assured there would be no special treatment for the Kenyan woman, who was arrested at the Mactan Cebu International airport for bringing in three kilos of shabu. Jail Warden Jennifer Joyce Abar said Asha Atieno Ogutu, 25, received the same treatment as those of the other 81 female inmates at the Lapu-Lapu City jail female dormitory. Abar said Ogutu, who is called “Mi...
10/5/2011
San Roque barangay councilor survives ambush in Imus Road

        MOTORBIKE-RIDING gunmen last night shot and wounded a barangay councilor of San Roque, Cebu City. Bobby Morados, who was driving a Pajero with his wife Emma, was rushed to the hospital with a gunshot wound in the left arm. The assailants, who wore full-faced helmets, were following Morado's convoy on board a black motorcycle. Morados was being escorted by barangay tanods, a security detail he requested aft...
10/4/2011
RAPS FILED VS MAYOR

  Rallos heir says Rama’s remarks show ‘indirect contempt’ Charges of indirect contempt of court and violation of the subjudice rule were filed yesterday by one of the heirs of Fr. Vicente Rallos against Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama. The charge was the latest in the tit-for-tat over a potential P130 million payment the city government is being forced to make after losing a court battle over a lot expropriated for a road in 196...
10/4/2011
New PNP chief fumes over empty SWAT office

  An empty police office, and a messy one at that, is enough to get a chief in trouble. Especially if his new boss drops in unannounced. That's what happened yesterday to the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) office in Mandaue City when the newly installed regional director of the Police Regional Office-7 (PRO), Chief Supt. Marcelo Garbo, made a surprise visit. “This is a disgrace to the police force,” Garbo said, “especial...
10/4/2011
Vidal pushes for flyover dialogue

  Parties in the flyover debate should sit down and thresh out their differences in a dialogue, a semi-retired church leader said yesterday. “There should be a public dialogue between the proponents and the public so that they would listen to each other. That’s what I would wish,” Archbishop Emeritus Ricardo Cardinal Vidal said in a GMA-7 interview. Vidal issued his statement amid assurances by Rep. Rachel del Mar of Cebu City's...
10/4/2011
Mandaue jeepney ban on business district

  PASSENGER jeepneys whose routes cover Manalili will be barred from entering the Central Business District in keeping with an existing city terminal ordinance, the Cebu City Traffic Operations Management (Citom) said yesterday. Citom chief Rafael Yap said the ban stemmed from complaints on the presence of passenger jeepneys near the Cebu Cathedral. “We've already been implementing the ordinance in the last few weeks but we are...
10/4/2011
Mayor Hang plants on lampposts

  After being purchased at over P80,000 each to light up Metro Cebu streets for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit in 2007, the decorative lampposts, many of them idle and vandalized, may be used for hanging plants. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said he wanted the lampposts removed to clear the sidewalks, but if the court won’t allow this, he may have them painted black and used to hang plants. There are o...
10/4/2011
Rama wants city gov’t to keep Guba hospital

  Cebu City won't turn over management of the Guba hospital to the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center, Mayor Michael Rama said yesterday. The mayor said he wants to meet with city and health officials to clarify the issue. “It's like we're surrendering the hospital to the province,” the mayor said. Rama said the Guba hospital should continue to serve the mountain barangays where it is stationed. A draft agreement for the ...
10/4/2011
Bigger budget for education, teachers say

  TO mark World Teachers Day tomorrow, two teachers groups outlined a 10-point demand letter to government to increase the country's education budget to resolve shortages in classrooms, teachers, textbooks and facilities. In a press conference, Prof. Phoebe Sanchez of the Cebu Educators Forum said the P207-billion budget set for the Department of Education (DepEd) is insufficient to meet the requirements of public schools. Sanch...
10/4/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

  Guardo libel suit dismissed A COURT dismissed the libel suits filed by Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district against businessman Jonathan Guardo following a settlement between the two. Last August, Osmeña withdrew the cases he filed against Guardo who then issued a public apology to the congressman and the Cebu City government. The two political rivals arrived at an amicable settlement during the mediation proceedi...
10/4/2011
Coast Guard order leads to queues, ferry delays

  A new Coast Guard order requiring passengers of Metro Ferry to log in their names to the boat manifest before boarding the boat has resulted in long queues and delays in the departure of the boat. Petty Officer 2 Dindo Sabanal, duty officer of the Philippine Coast Guard, yesterday said that they were implementing the order for the safety of everybody. Sabanal's appeal for understanding came after several ferry boat passengers ...
10/4/2011
Rama to KBP Report good things I did, too

  CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama challenged members of the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster sa Pilipinas to report also the positive things he and his administration has done. Rama said it was okay to attack him but report also something good that his administration had done. Rama made the challenge during the KBP Night celebration on Friday at the Metro Cebu Water District auditorium. The mayor also clarified that he didn't gatecrash...
10/4/2011
Capitol to give aid to typhoon victims

  THE Cebu Provincial government will extend assistance to the victims of typhoon “Pedring” in Bulacan and Pampanga. Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale responded to the request for assistance of Vice Governor's League of the Philippines. Magpale, who is acting governor until Oct. 9, said she had called up Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia who is in the United States visiting her youngest daughter who recently gave birth. Magpale said that reque...
10/4/2011
A journey where we share the road

  (An apology and a way forward) By Atty. Antonio Oposa Jr. Co-Convenor of the Road Revolution DRAFT ORDINANCE Thus, we submitted a draft ordinance to the Cebu City Council last June 13, 2011. Under the law, the Council had 30 days from June 13 to take favorable action on the proposal. Otherwise, under the Law, the people can petition the Comelec and submit the question to the people in a referendum. To the eternal credit of...
10/3/2011
‘DROP FLYOVER FOR THE NUNS?’

Tom says projects cannot be sacrificed, says Church can sell property   Opponents of the flyover projects in Cebu City gained some support in their campaign from Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma, something which city officials like Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district dismissed as inconsequential. “I can understand if he (Palma) expresses sympathy for the nuns but that doesn’t mean there will be no flyover. We can...
10/3/2011
Pilapil files raps against solon’s niece

  CEBUANA actress and former beauty queen Pilar Pilapil filed criminal charges against the niece of Rep. Benhur Salimbangon of Cebu's 4th district who reportedly tried to eject her from a contested lot in Malapascua Island, Daanbantayan town in Cebu. Charges of “grave oral defamation, grave coercion, and unjust vexation” were filed by Pilapil against Ulpa Novabos Salimbangon, whom she accused of allegedly calling her a “tr...
10/3/2011
Plan proposes opening of city heritage streets

    A master plan to open “heritage streets” for pedestrians and tourists was presented by architecture students to city officials and other stakeholders of Cebu City last week. Architecture students of the University of San Carlos (USC)-Talamban campus presented the master plan which would cover Colon Street and other heritage sites in the area. Organizers of the presentation entitled “Pedestrianization of Colon St ...
10/3/2011
Balili heirs receive P7 M share Capitol shifts gears

  THE refund sought by the Capitol from the heirs of the controversial Balili estate went down by about P7 million after the amount was issued to the children through a bank check last Sept. 8. The four children of the late Engr. Luis Balili were issued a bank check amounting to P7,413,996.88 after Regional Trial Court (RTC) Judge Ester Veloso of Branch 6 affirmed its release in a ruling issued recently. The amount receiv...
10/3/2011
Profs, students defend dismissal of UP dean

  Professors and students of the University of the Philippines-Cebu College (UP-Cebu College) dismissed criticisms on the dismissal of Dean Enrique Avila as school president, saying they are “better off without him.” In an interview, UP Cebu Professor Phoebe Zoe Maria Sanchez questioned Avila's spokesman Viking Logarta for stating that the former dean's exit may compromise two projects of the UP-Cebu College. “It does not...
10/3/2011
Wage order to affect small businesses, trader warns

  THE P20 minimum wage increase that took effect last month will hit small and medium businesses the hardest, a Cebuano business leader warned yesterday. Samuel Chioson, Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) president, said businesses like single owner or family type businesses like Internet cafes and eateries may be forced to lay off workers in order to cut costs. “Some businesses may choose to automate or buy som...
10/3/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

  Drainage, classrooms a priority–Cortes MANDAUE City Hall will prioritize construction of drainage systems and classrooms in the city to resolve the flooding problems encountered in the city. During last Saturday's “Mandaue Stormwater Management Seminar-Workshop” Mayor Jonas Cortes said drainage and classroom shortage are being prioritized over other projects like a proposed government center. The summit attended by bar...
10/3/2011
Law studes bring fight against red tape online

    Law students of the University of Cebu-Banilad campus are bringing the information campaign about government red tape, elections, and child protection online with the recent launching of three web sites dedicated to tackle these issues. These web sites are “Sugbo Talks Against Red Tape” (START), the “Elections: Cebu Advocates of Reforms and Education” (ECARE), and the Child Protection Online Legal Aid. Lawyer Glo...
10/3/2011
A journey where we share the road

(An apology and a way forward) By Atty. Antonio Oposa Jr. Co-Convenor of the Road Revolution That is precisely why we initiated the Road Revolution Movement (roadrevolution.ph). It is an effort to find a solution to this problem of traffic congestion by changing the mindsets, attitudes and practices (MAP) of our people. The Road Rev Movement seeks to REView the road system to make it more fair by giving everyone their shar...
10/2/2011
MAYOR JOINS NUNS’ APPEAL

  Anti-flyover petition reaches Cebu archbishop     About 50 people, including Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, joined nuns of the Asilo dela Milagrosa in a candle-lit prayer walk at dawn yesterday, the start of a different dimension of the campaign to stop the rise of a flyover on Gorordo Avenue, Cebu City. The group recited the rosary as four men carried the image of the Lady of the Miraculous Medal on their shoulders. ...
10/2/2011
Smuggled coconuts seized

        A ten-wheeler truck loaded with coconuts valued at P200,000 was apprehended yesterday at the Labogon private wharf in Mandaue City. The attempt to smuggle out partially dehusked coconuts was stopped by the Coast Guard and personnel of the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA). The coconuts came from Leyte province, where a pest infestation problem has been reported, said PCA Regional Director Deodiro Ravelo. ...
10/2/2011
Kenyan’s arrest a ‘warning to drug dealers’

        THE arrest of the Kenyan woman caught at the Mactan airport with shabu in her suitcase is a strong signal to drug traffickers who see the province as a transshipment point for their illegal trade. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama commended the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and other law enforcement agencies for the arrest of 24-year-old Asha Atieno Ogutu and the confiscation of three kilos of shabu in h...
10/2/2011
Sheriff serves garnishment notice to SM firms

        Before letting go of the case, court sheriff Antonio Bellones flew to Manila last Thursday to serve notices of garnishment to three SM companies doing business with the Cebu city government. The sheriff of Cebu Regional Trial Court Branch 9, delivered the notices to SM Prime Holding Inc., SM Development Corp. and SM Investments Corp. at their offices in the Mall of Asia Complex in Pasay City, Metro Manila. ...
10/2/2011
Cebu City goes pink in October

        Three landmarks in Cebu City last night “turned pink” with special lights set up to mark the annual observance of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. MeAnne Solomon, Cebu coordinator for C-network, said local officials showed their support by lighting up the Capitol building, the Rizal Memorial Library and the Fuente Osmeña circle with pink flood lamps and exterior lights starting Oct. 1. Pink is the color used...
10/2/2011
Eco theme marks Sto. Niño visit to Leyte town

        Bringing the Sto. Niño closer to the people and spreading the Gospel teachings on respect for the ecology are two themes for this year’s “Duaw sa Sto. Niño” or out-of-town visit of Cebu’s patron. Now on its third year, the “duaw” or visit of the image of the Holy Child Jesus will be brought to Biliran, Leyte province, for the first time. In a press conference yesterday, Fr. Tito Soquiño, chairman of the St...
10/2/2011
Laid-off PAL employees, allies hold protest march

        More than a hundred people held a two-kilometer march from the area near the University of Cebu Mandaue Lapu-Lapu campus to the Airport road in Lapu-Lapu City to protest against the implementation of the Philippine Airlines spin-off/outsourcing program. The rally yesterday, however, didn't affect the Mactan-Cebu International Airport operations. Militant labor groups like the Associated Labor Union-Trade Un...
10/2/2011
Palea members offer to return to posts to stabilize airline ops

        MANILA—Members of the Philippine Airlines Employees Association (Palea) have offered to go back to their posts to avoid further disruptions of the operations of Philippine Airlines, but on condition that management halt its plan to outsource jobs until the Supreme Court has handed down a decision on the matter, according to the union's leader. "We will go back to work while waiting for the Supreme Court to ...
10/2/2011
Pro, anti-RH bill advocates build case before public

        Proponents of the Reproductive Health bill vowed to pass the measure before the year ends while Catholic Church opponents continued to reject it as immoral in a forum on the issue held yesterday. The “RH Bill: Yes or No?” forum held at the University of Cebu-Maritime Education Training Center was attended by college students from Cebu and Dumaguete. Panel speakers represented the Church, Congress and the Nat...
10/2/2011
Guba hospital control eyed for Vicente Sotto center

        CEBU City officials are looking into a proposal to turn over management of a hospital in barangay Guba to the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC). They also agreed last Wednesday to hold two regular sessions “off site” in the mountain barangays of Bonbon on Oct. 12 and Guba on 26. The change of venue will be held on a trial basis, said Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young. The proposal of Councilor Noel ...
10/2/2011
Sto. Niño is ‘original’ Road Revo warrior

        Advocates of the Road Revolution are meeting some public resistance, perhaps because the activities lack a “faith dimension”. This was the opinion of Fr. Tito Soquiño, an Agustinian priest with an advocacy for environment protection. He said the road closures last Sept. 24 in Colon Street and two other downtown streets, which upset many store owners, motorists, commuters and PUJ drivers, involved the same ...
10/2/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Traders open to Road Reform Some Cebu businessmen are willing to sit down with Road Revolution convenors to map out plans to improve its next activity. Samuel Chioson, Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) president, said road closures should be announced in advance to avoid public inconvenience. “The road closures really affect the businesses. Who would want to go there if that is the case?” he sa...
10/1/2011
P18-MILLION ‘DRUG MULE’

  African woman says she was ‘fooled’ by pal     Any sense of calm that 24-year-old Asha Atieno Ogutu first showed after her arrest for possession of three kilos of shabu was lost in a torrent of tears when she was presented to the Lapu-Lapu City Prosecutor's Office yesterday. The Kenyan national, a single mother of two, denied knowing that her suitcase concealed drugs. She said the luggage was given to her by an acqu...
10/1/2011
Liu’s death by strangulation Revenge or robbery ?

        Bernard Liu, who implicated two Cebu businessmen in in a 2001 congressional hearing on illegal drugs, was strangled. The cause of his death was confirmed in autopsy results released by the police yesterday. There were ligature marks around Liu’s neck that indicated he was choked from behind, said Dr. Joe Martin Fuentes, medicolegal officer of the Philippine National Police. Liu’s remains were found outside...
10/1/2011
Airport police officer injured in shootout with superiors

        AN airport policeman was injured in a shootout with his superiors at past 9 p.m. last Thursday inside their office at the Mactan Cebu International Airport Police Division. PO2 Winston Ybañez, homicide investigator of the Lapu-Lapu City police, identified the injured airport policeman as 51-year-old Cpl. Esmeraldo Pongasi Binsi, a resident of Babag 2, Lapu-Lapu City. The two suspects detained at the Lapu-La...
10/1/2011
PDEA official threatens libel on two reporters

    A PHILIPPINE Drug Enforcement Agency threatened to file libel charges against a reporter for a story that linked him to a payoff that reportedly facilitated the release of a drug pusher last week. In a statement the Defense PNP Press Corps said PDEA Director Adrian Alvariño is considering to file charges against Banat News correspondent Rey Pasaporte and GMA-7 Balitang Bisdak reporter Chona Carreon. Alvarino, who was trans...
10/1/2011
Inayawan landfill open until Wed.

        Cebu City will have to make do with their existing landfill until Wednesday next week, when all their garbage will be dumped in Consolacion town. Councilor Edu Rama said the operator of a private garbage facility in Pulog, Consolacion, asked to postpone delivery of the city's garbage to give them more time for preparation. Rama said the postponement would also allow Cebu City officials to discuss with their...
10/1/2011
Banks can’t stop release of funds without court order

        Cebu City Michael Rama’s warning to a government bank not to release deposits of City Hall to satisfy the money claim of the Rallos family isn’t enough. An official of the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) yesterday told the mayor the bank can’t stop the garnishment of the city’s deposits unless there is authorization from the court. Dexter Ruiz, manager of the LBP Plaza Independencia branch, told the may...
10/1/2011
Flyovers won’t affect BRT, Tomas says

        THE flyover projects in Cebu City will not affect implementation of the proposed multibillion-peso Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project, said Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district. Osmeña, a BRT proponent, said he assured World Bank officials who were worried that the flyovers will affect the BRT system. He said this could be solved by expanding certain flyovers to four lanes to allow the buses to pas...
10/1/2011
Call center worker sues firm, guard for shooting

        A CALL center employee filed a P4.1- million damage suit in court against his employer, a security agency and a security guard who accidentally shot him with his service firearm four years ago. Joseph Raymond Carmona, a resident of barangay Guadalupe in Cebu City, is seeking P4 million in damages and P100,000 for litigation expenses and attorney's fees. He asked the Regional Trial Court Branch 7 to order Co...
10/1/2011
‘PAL workers strike hurt businessmen, PH tourism image’

        A Cebu business leader yesterday called on the Philippine Airlines employees union to respect the decision of the court and Malacañang to go ahead with the airline’s spin-off/outsourcing program. Samuel Chioson, president of the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry, made the call as he described the effects of Tuesday’s PAL employees’ strike as a big lost opportunity to businessmen. “I hope nga ang kining ...
10/1/2011
Cash aid measure pushed for City Hall workers

        Financial assistance ranging from P5,000 to P50,000 will be given to government employees working at City Hall in cases of hospitalization or death in the line of duty if a proposed ordinance will be approved by the City Council. City Councilor Emmarie Ouano-Dizon, who sponsored the draft ordinance, said what prompted the proposal was when a supervising employee had an accident while working at the North Rec...
10/1/2011
Pneumonia patients’ increase prompts CCMC request for more oxygen gauges

        THE head of the Cebu City Medical Center (CCMC) has requested for the purchase of additional oxygen gauges following a rise in pneumonia cases since late August. Dr. Gloria Duterte, CCMC chief, said two pneumonia patients were now sharing one oxygen gauge. An oxygen gauge is used when pneumonia patients have difficulty in breathing. Duterte said that as of yesterday they admitted about 90 patients in th...
10/1/2011
Trash bin drive nets 152 PUJs, buses in M’daue

        Members of the Enforcement Environment team apprehended last week 152 public utility jeepneys and buses for failing to put trash bins inside their vehicles that ply within Mandaue City. Placido Jerusalem, head of the Enforcement Environment team, said the drivers were issued citations and would be fined P500. The PUJ's, minibuses and Ceres buses were plying in the major thoroughfares in the city. Mayor Jon...
10/1/2011
Tom turns guns on Mike’s cousin

        AFTER Mayor Michael Rama, Rep. Tomas Osmeña (Cebu City south district) is now training his guns on the mayor's cousin—San Nicolas barangay captain George Rama—who allegedly spread rumors that he was dying. Yesterday, Osmeña tapped one of his allies— Quiot barangay captain Vicente Ramos Jr.—to prove his claim that George told Ramos during the height of the Association of Barangay Councils election last year n...
9/30/2011
SHABU IN HER LUGGAGE

  Kenyan tourist arrested with 3 kilos of drugs at Cebu airport     She spoke halting English but didn’t say much to investigators who asked why she had three kilos of shabu in her suitcase. The 25-year-old Kenyan woman who was arrested yesterday at the Mactan Cebu International Airport had no cash in her wallet but kept a calm demeanor. Asha Atieno Ogutu arrived at about 4 p.m. on a Qatar flight from the Middle East...
9/30/2011
2001 ‘whistleblower’ found dead at home

        A rope around his neck and crude oil poured over his body were the telltale signs of a man whose life ended in violence. Police are investigating the death of Bernard Liu, who was found dead yesterday in his home in Naya Subdivision, barangay Tangke Talisay City, where he lived alone. Liu testified against two Cebu businessmen in a 2001 House committee hearing on illegal drugs where the brothers were linked...
9/30/2011
Ombud to probe ‘spy’ report in Ellah case

        THE Office of the Ombudsman is looking deeper into a report that an agent of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Central Visayas (CIDG-7) was caught receiving “payola” of P20,000 a month from homicide suspect Bella Ruby Santos. Assistant Ombudsman Virginia Palanca-Santiago yesterday docketed the report published in Cebu Daily News for a fact-finding inquiry. She faxed a photocopy of the articl...
9/30/2011
Town mayor’s hubby faces tax raps

        THE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) filed tax evasion charges yesterday against businessman Nilo Alegado, husband of Consolacion Municipal Mayor Teresa Alegado. The BIR said that Alegado failed to provide the correct information in his internal tax return or ITR for 2009, declaring only P4.33-million worth of sales while he actually earned P183.94 million. “[The] total percentage of under-declaration of sa...
9/30/2011
PBSP to continue to replant trees

        DESPITE the destruction of five hectares in barangay Sudlon by illegal tree-cutters, a foundation said it would double efforts to replant the area. “While this illegal logging incident in barangay Sudlon is a setback to our reforestation efforts... such incidents strengthen our resolve to continue environnmental conservation projects in the Cental Cebu Protected Landscape (CCPL) and other critically denuded ...
9/30/2011
Church group seeks ‘moratorium’ on flyovers

        The Seventh Day Adventist Church yesterday called for a moratorium on flyover projects, especially on Gorordo Avenue, Cebu City, where they have an office. “We are not taking sides on the issue. But before they implement the project, it should be well studied,” said Pastor Lemuel Derosil in a statement on behalf of the church’s 147,000 members in the Visayas. “Since these flyovers constitute a significant i...
9/30/2011
Citom No road closures except on Sundays

        THE Cebu City Traffic Operations Management (Citom) will not allow another road closure for the Road Revolution campaign unless it is held on a Sunday and has the approval of Mayor Michael Rama and the City Council. Citom Chairman Sylvan “Jack” Jakosalem said the traffic board yesterday agreed to defer action on the request of organizers to repeat the road experiment. Citom will wait for a recommendation f...
9/30/2011
Rama sues sheriff for grave abuse

        CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama yesterday filed a complaint against the sheriff who enforced a court order for the city government to pay over P133 million as just compensation to heirs of the late Rev. Fr. Vicente Rallos. The mayor asked the Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas to investigate Antonio Bellones, sheriff IV of Regional Trial Court Branch 9, for violation of Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft a...
9/30/2011
Cebu City brings trash to Consolacion

        The Cebu City government yesterday sent empty garbage trucks to Consolacion town in a dry run to determine the time it takes to bring garbage from the city to a private landfill up north. “The dry run is in preparation for Mayor Michael Rama’s plan to close the Inayawan landfill starting Oct. 1,” said Dionisio Gualiza of the Cebu City Department of Public Services. “It will help us become familiar with the ...
9/29/2011
Trees in Sudlon end up black coal

        Five hectares of a reforestation site in barangay Sudlon, Cebu City, was found ravaged by illegal tree cutters. Indigenous trees, some planted since 1994, were cut down, some of them as recently as Sunday, by settlers. “They've caused big damage in our forest. They've been doing this for a long time,” said Ariel Pica, Department of Environment and Natural Resources - Protected Area Supervisor (DENR-7 PASU) ...
9/29/2011
Lucky pleads ‘not guilty’ in ma’s slay plea deal eyed

        Not guilty.” Nursing student Christian Lucky Dalangin, 25, entered his plea of innocence in yesterday’s court arraignment on a charge of parricide. Earlier efforts to strike a plea bargain for a lesser offense of homicide, and consequently a lower penalty, did not prosper. Lawyer Leah Cruz of the Public Attorney’s Office said his family has not reached an agreement yet about it. “We might as well go ...
9/29/2011
Bella had police ‘spy’ on P20T payola

        Where is Bella Ruby Santos? Two months after an arrest warant was issued against the high-profile murder suspect, the former bar girl from Naga City remains at large. If you ask Renante Pique, father of slain kidnap victim 6-year-old Ella Joy, the reason law enforcers can't find her is that Santos had a “mole” in the police force alerting her of their moves. Pique was downhearted yesterday when he told Ceb...
9/29/2011
Tree falls on 2 houses

        STRONG winds caused a 20-foot mayana tree to fall down and destroy two houses in sitio Canumay in barangay Labogon, Mandaue City, at 11 p.m. last Tuesday. The families of Mercy Saladaga, 41, and Leonor Leorab, 36, managed to escape after hearing creaks and seeing the tree about to collapse on their homes. Strong winds caused by Typhoon Pedring may have caused the mayana tree to collapse, said Alfonso Manata...
9/29/2011
Briton, fiancée survive Talisay road mishap

        A British national and his Filipina fiancée were injured after their black Kia Sportage was hit by a 10-wheeler truck at the South Coastal Road in Talisay City around noon yesterday. The couple were on their way to Cebu City to make arrangements for their upcoming wedding. Maria Lourdes Amatril, 38, said she just had minor bruises but her fiancé Michael Terrence Plaice, 68, needed surgery for...
9/29/2011
Oct. 11 power ‘cut-off’ to protest rate hike bid

        A 30-minute power shut-off is being pushed by the Freedom from Debt Coalition (FDC) and a Cebu-based consumer group to protest a petition to hike power rates by 40 centavos per kilowatt hour. The Cebu City Council in a resolution expressed support for the 30-minute power shut-off to commence at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 11, a Tuesday. The power rate petition is pending with the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC). S...
9/29/2011
Tom slips out of hospital, attends wake

        DESPITE doctors' orders, Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district slipped out of Chong Hua Hospital at 11:30 a.m. yesterday and went home. He attended the funeral wake of the father of a close friend then returned to the private hospital, where he’s being treated for an infection. His wife, Councilor Margot Osmeña, said she was surprised to learn about his “escape” from the family driver. The congre...
9/29/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Rama open to join rosaries CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama said he can join the Saturday rosary prayers and “aurora” vigil spearheaded by the nuns of Asillo Dela Milagrosa if he’s invited. “As long as I am here, I am willing to join, but I will need a written invitation since I could just not go there without being invited,” Rama said. Starting Oct. l, the nuns will hold dawn rosaries in the chapel for nin...
9/29/2011
Mayor to banks Don’t release city cash

        Cebu City’s four depository banks were warned against releasing City Hall money to pay for the Rallos lots. In a letter, Rama asked officials of the Land Bank of the Philippines, Development Bank of the Philippines, Philippine Postal Bank and Philippine Veterans Bank to “be extra careful and not to release the city's deposits in case of garnishment.” Rama said City Hall deposits that are earmarked for this...
9/29/2011
‘Teban’ assumes as acting governor sans Garcia memo

        UNLIKE the late Cebu vice governor Greg Sanchez, (PB) Member Julian “Teban” Daan yesterday sat as acting governor without a memorandum issued by Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia who left for South Korea with Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale. Daan, who wished to have his designation put into writing, was assured by Provincial Secretary Anecita Pasaylo that there’s no need for a memorandum from the governor. “Payaslo told me t...
9/29/2011
Rama Next road revolt shouldn’t hassle public

        Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama called for a meeting with organizers of the Road Revolution to discuss with them commuters and motorists’ complaints about the inconvenience that resulted from last Saturday’s event. Rama said he wants to know what organizers will do to ensure the next Road Revolution would not inconvenience the Cebuanos. “I have called this group to a meeting to inform them of our police powers...
9/29/2011
‘No private army in Bogo City’

        BOGO City Mayor Celestino “Junie” Martinez said the City of Bogo’s Anti-Criminality Task Force (CBACTF) is an augmentation force in the city's fight against crime and not a private army. In the 888 News Forum last Tuesday, Martinez said CBACTF reinforced the limited number of policemen that monitors incidents of crime. Martinez said CBACTF members are not “goons.” Last year, administration candidates sa...
9/29/2011
Doctor says menopausal stage a new beginning for women

        AN officer of the Philippine Obstetrical and Gynecological Society (POGS) said the menopausal stage is a new chapter in the life of a woman and not an end. Dr. Virginia Santos-Abalos, vice president of POGS, said women who go through menopause should go to gynecologists for checkup. “They need more understanding, proper management and support from gynecologists,” she said. Abalos was speaking in the runup ...
9/28/2011
‘PEDRING’ LEAVES 16 DEAD

  Floods, power outages in Metro Manila     Cebu had overcast skies and light rain yesterday but Metro Manila residents waded through waist-deep floodwaters and dodged flying debris as Typhoon Pedring struck before dawn, killing at least 16 people. The typhoon sent waves as tall as palm trees crashing over seawalls. Several flights to and from Manila were diverted to the Mactan International Airport due to bad weathe...
9/28/2011
Family rescued at sea passengers stranded

          SEVEN persons were rescued when a pumpboat’s left outrigger was broken by strong waves off Maribojoc Bay in Bohol, while thousands of plane and boat passengers were stranded due to rainy weather caused by the entry of Typhoon “Pedring.” Captain Anelito Gabisan, acting commander of the Cebu Coast Guard station, said two fishermen also remain missing since last Monday noon. The pumpboat passengers we...
9/28/2011
Gorordo flyover work to start November — DPWH

        There’s no stopping the rise of two flyovers in Cebu City, said an official of the Department of Public Works and Highways Augustinito Hermoso, DPWH legal officer in Central Visayas, said work on the P300-million Gorordo Avenue flyover is set to begin in November. The project was awarded to WTG Construction. “Considering that there’s already a notice of award issued, the government guarantees that the pr...
9/28/2011
Notice issued to banks city to contest case

        A NOTICE of garnishment was issued by the court to Cebu City's four depository banks to enforce payment of money claims of the Rallos family. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, who received the garnishment notice at his office yesterday, questioned the haste in the issuance of the notice. He said there were typo errors on the document that bore the date May 29, 2009. “There is bad faith here,” he said. Council...
9/28/2011
Cebu City fiscals back off from tabloid case

        THE Cebu City Prosecutors' Office withdrew from handling the complaint filed against one of two Cebuano-language tabloids accused of publishing “obscene” columns. In a Sept. 26 order, Cebu City Prosecutor Nicolas Sellon granted Sun.Star Superbalita's motion for the office to inhibit from the case. Sellon said that since he is a member of the Cebu City Anti-Indecency Board (CCAIB), which filed the complaint,...
9/28/2011
‘10 years in jail, no less for man who killed mom’

        Cebu City Prosecutor Nicolas Sellon yesterday described as “laughable” the proposal for a plea bargain that would reduce the possible prison term to only eight years for 25-year-old Christian “Lucky” Dalangin, who confessed to killing his mother. “That could not be. The accusations were so grave: a son killed his mother,” Sellon told reporters. Dalangin should be imprisoned “for 10 to 20 years,” Sellon said...
9/28/2011
DILG gives ‘Seal of Good Housekeeping’ to 16 C. Visayas localities

        SIXTEEN local government units from Bohol and Negros Oriental provinces yesterday received the “Seal of Good Housekeeping” from the Department of Interior and Local Government in Central Visayas in rites at the Marco Polo Plaza in Cebu City. DILG-7 Assistant Regional Director Elias Fernandez Jr. witnessed the distribution of the awards, which entitles the localities to the eligibility to access the Performa...
9/28/2011
Tom expects release from hospital today

        After a three-day hospital stay, Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district said he expects to be discharged today and report to work in Congress this Friday. He said doctors agreed to continue oral antibiotics. “They had the antibiotic administered to me intravenously and that’s the only thing that’s keeping me here. I no longer have fever,” he said yesterday. Osmeña was rushed to Chong Hua Hospital ...
9/28/2011
Better Road Rev next time, organizers say

        A BETTER organized Road Revolution event was promised by organizers who apologized to the Cebuano public yesterday for Saturday’s road closures in downtown Cebu City that drew complaints from the passenger jeepney drivers and the riding public. “We will give it more time and it will be more coordinated,” said Vince Cinches of the ecology group 350.org and one of the organizers in a press conference yesterday...
9/28/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        PALEA STRIKE STRANDS PASSENGERS PASSENGERS of Philippine Airlines (PAL) were forced to re-book their flights following yesterday's work stoppage by the company's union. About four flights for Manila and five flights from Manila were canceled at the Mactan Cebu International Airport since 7 a.m. until 6 p.m. yesterday. Passengers bound for Manila were ordered to disembark at the arrival area and took the...
9/27/2011
FATHER SEEKS PLEA BARGAIN

 Shorter prison term sought for ‘Lucky’ in murder of mama After he admitted killing his mother in a blaze of anger last month, 25-year-old Christian “Lucky” Dalangin is hoping to negotiate a lighter prison term. Yesterday's arraignment on parricide charges was reset after his father Virgilio appeared in court to intercede for his youngest son. He asked that the charge be downgraded to homicide in exchange for a plea of guilty. ...
9/27/2011
Pay Rallos P44M, city told

  IT’S final and official. The Cebu City government has to pay at least P44 million to the Rallos family whose lot in Banilad Estate was expropriated in 1963 for a road project. In Sept. 23, 2011, order, Judge James Stewart Ramon Himalaloan of the Regional Trial Court Branch 9 gave the go signal for the sheriff to issue a writ of execution against the city government. The city government owes P44,213,000 as just compensation wi...
9/27/2011
Road Revo 3 moved to Nov.

  The next Road Revolution sequel has been moved from Oct. 23 to November. Environment lawyer Antonio Oposa Jr. said convenors decided to move the date to give more time to prepare for the event. After Saturday’s road closures of Colon Street and two downtown roads set off complaints from the riding public and store owners, who were caught by surprise by sudden route changes, Oposa said advocates would spend more time explaining...
9/27/2011
‘Buses go well with road reform’

  CEBU City’s proposed Bus Rapid System (BRT) jives with the goal of the Road Revolution for road reforms to ensure “fair sharing of public space.” “A bus is a form of collective transportation system. That is the same thing we are advocating,” environment lawyer Antonio Oposa Jr. told Cebu Daily News. Oposa said the BRT, which is the brainchild of Rep. Tomas Osmeña during his term as Cebu City mayor, would fit in well with the ...
9/27/2011
Tom Transfer Road Revo to SRP, less hassle to public

  MOVE the Road Revolution activity to the South Road Properties (SRP) and hold it at night. Rep. Tomas Osmeña (Cebu City south district) gave this suggestion, saying that if organizers cause a major inconvenience to the riding public and motorists this would defeat the purpose the activity. "It's good to try anything but if it does not work, don't do it again," he said. Osmeña said that in Bogota, Columbia, the mayor also had...
9/27/2011
No space for chapel door, parking lot, garden

  Where’s the church door? The construction of the proposed Gorordo flyover will push the boundary wall of the Asilo dela Milagrosa farther inside their compound in Cebu City. The setback would require a new wall rising just outside the main door of the 75-year-old chapel of the Miraculous Medal. It will be so close to the door that parishioners would have to enter through the side doors instead, leaving the main entrance prac...
9/27/2011
DOH Don’t make nurses pay to work in hospitals

  The Department of Health (DOH) ordered an end to the practice of making registered nurses pay to work as trainees in public hospitals. DOH memorandum 2011-2038 dated Aug. 22 and signed by Secretary Enrique Ona orders the termination of nurse training programs in all public hospitals in the country since it is “not consistent with the provisions of the law.” The health secretary lashed out at hospitals who promote “nurse volunte...
9/27/2011
Ombudsman clears officials in Asean security cameras case

  THE Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas dismissed administrative charges against government officials in the installation of security cameras in Metro Cebu during the 12th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Summit in 2007. The anti-graft office said there was nothing anomalous in the cancellation of the contract of Pelican Bay Group/Cebesos Development Corp. and the granting of the project to Triton Communication...
9/27/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

  BARANGAY OFFICIALS AGAINST CIUDAD THE barangay council of Talamban in Cebu City asked Mayor Michael Rama to continue the moratorium on projects in the city’s northern corridor. The implementation of the Cuidad project will worsen traffic congestion in the area and “subsequently result to a reduced general socioeconomic development of eight Cebu City north barangays,” the officials said in their resolution dated Aug. 11. The b...
9/26/2011
CAN PRAYERS HALT WORK?

Nuns in Asilo chapel start dawn rosary; sisters alarmed by Gorordo flyover plan Nuns in the Asilo dela Milgarosa are turning to prayer power to try to head off the construction of a flyover next to their chapel in Gorordo Avenue, Cebu City, which they worry will destroy the “solemnity” of the place. Starting Oct. l, they will hold dawn rosaries in the chapel for nine consecutive Saturdays to pray for “discernment” on what t...
9/26/2011
Osmeña Blvd next Road Revo target

    The next target of Road Revolution is October 23, a Sunday, when organizers plan to experiment with using half of Osmeña Boulevard for pedestrians, while the other half would be used for public vehicles. A request for “partial” closure of the boulevard was made by environment lawyer Antonio Oposa Jr.in a letter yesterday to Cebu City Traffic Operations Management (Citom) chairman Jack Jakosalem. “We say ‘partial’...
9/26/2011
Tom warns UP Finish SRP campus or else...

     REP. Tomas Osmeña warned the University of the Philippines to complete the construction of its campus at the South Road Properties in a year otherwise he may move to cancel the donation of five hectares or reduce the area to 2,000 square meterers. The lot was donated by the Cebu City government to UP during Osmeña’s term as mayor on condition that it would put up a campus for post-graduate studies in three ...
9/26/2011
Downtown playground, tour route for a day

    EIGHT-year-old Jefferson Pacana was all smiles as he rode his bicycle in Colon and Lopez Jaena streets, which were closed to cars till sundown last Saturday. The car-less routes in downtown Cebu City were part of the Road Revolution activity, led by environment lawyer Antonio Oposa Jr. who is lobbying to provide more space on public roads for bike lanes, sidewalks, a mass transit system and gardens. “It's my firs...
9/26/2011
Butuanon river cleaned up

      More than 100 sacks of plastic and other non-biodegradable waste were retrieved from the Butuanon River in Mandaue City during a half-day clean up drive initiated by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) yesterday. “Most of these are domestic waste while some is from industries,” said Engr. Amancio Dongcoy, solid waste management coordinator of the DENR Environmental Management Bureau....
9/26/2011
Barracuda caught in SRP pond

    BIG fish lurk in the ponds of Cebu City’s South Road Properties (SRP). Businessman Vincent Tiu recently caught a 10-kilogram barracuda from SRP Pond A. He caught an 8-kg mullet in the same spot last year. It was not clear how the salt-water predator, whose sharp teeth make the fish a danger to swimmers, turned up in the inland pond. Barracudas are found in tropical oceans. Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City’s south...
9/26/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    ‘EXPLAIN CHOICE OF PREZ’ THE Civil Service Commission gave Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes and Dr. Susana Cabahug five days to explain her appointment. Cabahug is president of the Mandaue City College recognized by the city govenment. The CSC issued the order after after Dr. Paulus Cañete, who is disputing her position as MCC president, questioned Cabahug’s appointment. Canete said Cabahug was appointed Securit...
9/25/2011
DOWNTOWN BACKLASH

  Sudden closure of Colon Street irks stores, commuters     A barrage of complaints followed yesterday's road closure of Colon Street and two other downtown roads for two events – the Road Revolution Part 2 and a walking Heritage Tour for youths in Cebu City. Store owners lamented the trickle of customers. Jeepney drivers cursed the traffic snarls and short notice about route changes. Commuters found themselves walk...
9/25/2011
Rama seeks meeting with P-Noy to stop flyover projects

        Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said he would still seek a meeting with President Aquino about his objections to two new flyovers in the city. He said he was confident the resolution passed on Friday by the Regional Development Council (RDC) - Central Visayas calling for a review of proposed flyover projects in Cebu City would call the attention of the national governmen but said the matter still needs the Pres...
9/25/2011
Fever lands Tom O in hospital

        REP. Tomas Osmeña (Cebu City south district) was admitted yesterday in Chong Hua Hospital after experiencing a high fever and chills. His physician Dr. Pek Eng Lim has ordered laboratory tests. The congressman said he was diagnosed to have an infection and was given antibiotics and IV fluids. In his hospital room, Osmeña sat on a couch and spoke with reporters about his condition. He called a press confe...
9/25/2011
‘Brr weather coming’

      MANILA—It won't be too long before you need to bring out those sweaters from the back of your closet. Nights are now longer in the Philippines, and the coming of the northeast monsoon next month will bring in cooler days, too. The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said that after the autumnal equinox on September 23—when day and night were of equal length—daylight hours ...
9/25/2011
Cebu City deserves good design, not urban decay

      This position paper was submitted by Architect Joseph Espina, dean of the USC College of Architecture, with the hope that decision makers and citizens would be guided in determining the future of Cebu City. Originally written as one piece, with the title “Stop the Cebu Flyovers”, Cebu Daily News is presenting it here as two articles. It is a reality that street crime, visible poverty, deteriorating infrastructure,...
9/25/2011
150 couples say ‘I do’ in church

        A couple who had been married by civil rites for more than two decades was one of the 150 couples who finally took their church wedding vows yesterday at the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral. The mass wedding was organized by the Cebu City government in time for the celebration of Family Week. An open air reception followed at the Plaza Independencia with a lechon or roasted pig for each couple’s guests. Robert...
9/25/2011
Where do flyovers belong?

        THE proposed flyovers are by themselves not objectionable except for the fact that they may be improperly located and misplaced. As espoused by the Stop Cebu Flyovers Movement, the flyovers could benefit from a necessary review through comprehensive planning and urban design. Traditionally, the city can basically be defined by its boundaries which are the downtown area or the inner urban core from the pier ...
9/24/2011
‘ROAD REVOLT’ PART 2

  No cars today in downtown ‘heritage district’; Cebu City environment campaign kicks off     Walk or run. Ride a bike. Try a skateboard. Only pedestrians will be allowed today in part of the Parian district of downtown Cebu City. For one whole day, the entire stretch of Lopez Jaena, P. Burgos and part of Colon Streets will be closed to motor vehicles in a reprise of the June 12 Road Revolution,which shut out traffic ...
9/24/2011
Anti-tabloid ordinance deals with stereotype, needs change

        The ordinance needs a new name, they said. A mixed panel of academe, media and anti-indecency advocates yesterday agreed that the proposed “Anti-Tabloid Ordinance of 2011” of Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale needed correction. The title “generalizes that all tabloids in the province” have lewd content, said Aida Sanchez of the Cebu City Prosecutor's Office. A better title would be “Anti-Pornography Ordinance” or th...
9/24/2011
Filinvest offers to pay P1M in taxes to fix Pooc road

        FILINVEST Land Inc. is offering to pay the Talisay City government P1.1 million as advance taxes to be used to pave a road leading to the firm's Escala Subdivision project. “We are willing to provide the funds for the road. And we hope to finish the construction of the access road before year-end,” said Filinvest in its letter to Talisay City Mayor Socrates Fernandez, Vice Mayor Allan Bucao and Pooc barangay...
9/24/2011
New UP president breaks ground for SRP campus

        A new campus of the University of the Philippines will rise in a five hectare lot of Cebu City’s South Road Properties. Ground breaking rites were held yesterday at the site with the new UP System president Alfredo Pascual calling for support behind “the remaking of UP as a great university”. The UP Cebu Professional Schools will be designed as “green building” that incorporates concepts like efficient day...
9/24/2011
Doctors go on dengue offensive

        Health workers and doctors will visit barangays in Cebu, Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu and Talisay cities tomorrow to eliminate mosquito larvae. Dr. Wyben Briones said over 100 kilos of Abate larvicide were prepared for the one-day campaign. “The best control of (dengue-causing) mosquito is made during its larval stage,” said Briones in a press conference yesterday to announce the group's 2nd Cebu Inter-Larvicide camp...
9/24/2011
Cracks in Fuente Osmeña, Heritage Monument alarming

        THE Cebu City Engineering Office was asked to check on cracks found in two landmarks—the Fuente Osmeña fountain and the Cebu Heritage Monument in barangay Parian. Dr. Librando Macaraya, chairman of the Parks and Playgrounds Commission, and Councilor Nida Cabrera expressed alarmed that the cracks may affect the integrity of the structures. “To prevent any untoward incident from happening in the future, their...
9/24/2011
4 MCC students to take LET tests

      THE Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) will allow four board examinees from the Mandaue City College (MCC) run by Dr. Paulus Mariae Cañete to take the Licensure Examination for Teachers (LET) tomorrow. PRC-7 Director Dan Malayang yesterday said a memorandum from PRC chairperson Teresita Manansala ordered that the four MCC students be allowed to the take the LET exams tomorrow. They are Cheryl Agosto, Precy Ne...
9/24/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        ‘REVIEW FLYOVER PROJECTS’ DUMAGUETE CITY—The Regional Development Council (RDC) in Central Visayas yesterday agreed to form a technical working group to review transportation studies in Cebu including the two flyover projects proposed in Cebu City’s north district. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, RDC 7 chairman, called for the suspension of the P600-million flyover projects. “There are pros and cons and ...
9/23/2011
CEBU TABLOID BAN SLAMMED

  Media lawyers howl; Capitol lawyers defend proposal     Although suggestions are welcome, a clear message was sent: There’s no backing down on the “anti-tabloid ordinance.” Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale and the Provincial Board is determined to see the passage of a Cebu ordinance to prohibit obscene content in tabloids and similar publications, said her chief of staff Basiliso Sungcad yesterday. The proposed ordinance was...
9/23/2011
Tom to build flyover at SRP access road

        Rep. Tomas Osmeña (Cebu City south district) said he plans to support the construction of a flyover next year at the South Road Property (SRP) access road leading to the city's downtown area. “We have the money to finance that flyover and it will be realized next year,” said Osmeña. That would mean another overpass in Cebu City aside from two new flyovers sponsored by Rep. Rachel Marguerite “Cutie” del Mar,...
9/23/2011
Senior citizens get cash with no envelopes

        CASH bills amounting to P2,000 were handed without envelopes to senior citizens yesterday in barangays Kalunasan and Apas, Cebu City. Mayor Michael Rama said he decided to do away with the envelopes all together after being accused of political self-promotion in using envelopes with his photo and name on them, which triggered a graft complaint by Rep. Tomas Osmeña. “That does not necessarily mean an admissi...
9/23/2011
Brgy court to mediate conflict with Byron

        THE conflict between Byron Garcia and an American neighbor in Corona del Mar will first be mediated by the barangay captain of Pooc, Talisay City. This developed after Wayne Morris, the 56-year-old American whom Garcia allegedly threatened with an AK-47 rifle during an argument in their subdivision,said he won’t pursue filing charges against Garcia just yet. Wayne said he decided to undergo a mediation pro...
9/23/2011
7 Internet cafes closed for letting students surf

        The Lapu-Lapu City government temporarily padlocked since last month seven Internet cafes across the city that admitted students during class hours. The move followed a call earlier this year by education officials for the city to intensify the enforcement of a 2006 city ordinance that forbids the cafes to let in students from 7 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on school days. “We have people who constantly monitor the In...
9/23/2011
‘Pagcor aid suspension limited to NGO’

        CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama clarified yesterday that the suspension of the release of financial assistance from the Philippine Gaming Corporation (Pagcor) would not affect the city government. He said Pagcor financial assistance would only be withheld from the Cebu Economic and Business Foundation—the foundation behind the Cebu Investment and Promotions Center (CIPC) headed by Joel Yu. The CIPC is the mar...
9/23/2011
Ombudsman Act on harassment complaint

        THE feud between Regional State Prosecutor Fernando Gubalane and a businesswoman has reached top officials of the anti-graft office. In a Sept. 7 letter, Tanodbayan Conchita Carpio-Morales directed Visayas Deputy Ombudsman Pelagio Apostol to take “appropriate action” on the complaint of Brenda Tan. Tan, a resident of Lapu-Lapu City, earlier filed criminal and administrative charges against Gubalane for rece...
9/23/2011
Passion key to great art, says ‘blind photojournalist’

        Photojournalists can use their passion to come up with moving artwork or news reports by combining photos and videos. Take that from a one-eyed veteran in the field who was tagged “the blind photojournalist” after one of his eyes stopped functioning because of glaucoma. “There is no proof that a picture can change something immediately but at least these photos can evoke change. So just shoot until you die...
9/22/2011
Byron Developer has ‘broken promises’

    It's his turn to complain of harassment. Byron Garcia, brother of Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, said Filinvest sent security personnel to the Corona del Mar in Talisay City to “harass” him and other residents. “They distributed leaflets and said that our association was illegal. It's like a warzone in the subdivision,” Garcia said. “ They are terrorizing us here,” Byron told Cebu Daily News. The night before Garcia parked tw...
9/22/2011
Couple loses P1.3 M in evening burglary

    ABOUT P1.3 million worth of jewelry and gadgets were stolen from a couple's home in Pacific Grand Villa subdivision in barangay Suba-basbas, Lapu-Lapu City, at 7 p.m. last Tuesday. Spouses Emmanuel and Jowee Matalote discovered their house was ransacked an hour later and reported the loss to police. Among the stolen items were jewelry placed inside a drawer in their room worth P1 million, an Apple laptop worth P130,000, ...
9/22/2011
Rama recalls cash envelope Graft case filed at Ombud

    His attention was called on violating his own policy against putting the faces and names of officials on government projects so Mayor Michael Rama yesterday recalled all envelopes printed with his personal features and name. Rama said the envelopes, which are being used to distribute P2,000 cash aid for senior citizens from the city government, will be replaced. “We will just replace it with an envelope that has the Cebu ...
9/22/2011
Cebu City Council backs flyover projects

    They aren’t the best remedy to traffic congestion but the Cebu City Council yesterday supported the two proposed flyover projects of Rep. Rachel Marguerite “Cutie” del Mar. “Although the flyovers are not a complete solution to traffic congestion, the need for flyovers has already been proven by the current flyover, that has greatly lessened problems on traffic,” the council said in a resolution passed on mass motion. The f...
9/22/2011
Pagcor suspends giving P4-M aid to Cebu City

    The Philippine Gaming and Amusement Corp. (Pagcor) has suspended giving its monthly assistance to Cebu City and other local government units pending an audit of how the funds have been used. That’s P4 million a month for Cebu City uses the fund for various items, including the purchase of vehicles for police and barangays. In a letter, Pagcor chairman Cristino Naguiat Jr. said they will resume release of the funds after t...
9/22/2011
Comelec completes verification of signatures

  THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) office in Cebu province yesterday said it finished verifying all 5,129 registered voters who signed the recall petition against two municipal officials of Samboan town. All documents of the case will be sent by the Samboan election office to Cebu City, said Provincial Comelec Supervisor Lionel Marco Castillano. As of Tuesday afternoon, the Samboan Comelec office verified 2,800 signatures, whi...
9/22/2011
Lobbying for SRP tax breaks hits snag

    CEBU City Hall's lobbying to secure a tax exemption for lot sales in the South Road Properties (SRP) hit a snag following a meeting between Mayor Michael Rama and the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR)’s top official. Rama said BIR Commissioner Kim Jacinto-Henares told him that a “lot of things need to be worked on” to resolve the city's appeal. He said Henares remained undecided on the city's appeal to consider the SRP an...
9/22/2011
Wastewater facility set for opening in 3 months

    A Capitol official assured residents living near the Cebu provincial jail in barangay Kalunasan, Cebu City, that the stench caused by the overflow of wastewater from the jail will be resolved in the next few months. Engineer Adolfo Quiroga, Cebu Provincial Planning and Development Office (CPPDO) chief, said a separate wastewater treatment facility was already set up and will be operational in three months. He said the fac...
9/22/2011
Mandaue City inaugurates legislative building

  MANDAUE City officials yesterday inaugurated its newly renovated legislative building. Some old features were retained like its main door of solid wood, floor tiles and metal panels in the windows. These were retained from the old building erected in 1937, said City Administrator James Abadia. In its first session held at the renovated building, the council passed a resolution thanking Mayor Jonas Cortes for allocating funds fo...
9/22/2011
Basilan clash documentary leads to reforms in military

    The power of media to trigger positive change was emphasized in yesterday’s annual general assembly of the Cebu Federation of Beat Journalists (CFBJ). In a lunch forum, GMA-7 news producer Jun Veneracion shared his experience covering the Mindanao conflict in 2007. He showed a video documentary titled “Engkuwentro,” which reported the clash between the military and Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels in Basilan. Venerac...
9/22/2011
New skills needed for mobile journalists

    With more readers turning to the Internet, the demand for mobile journalists is growing. New jobs are there for online writers, web editors, and multimedia assignment editors, said Erwin Oliva, country editor for the Philippines of Yahoo! Southeast Asia. “There are growth opportunities in online journalism but the skills required for an online journalist are different from the skills requirements before,” Oliva told jour...
9/22/2011
‘Photojournalism a responsibility’

  Photography is a lifestyle and photojournalism is a responsibility. This was the message of GMA News TV director of photography Rogelio Luis Liwanag yesterday, the first day of a workshop on “Visual Literacy in Photo Story and Photo Editing” at the Southwestern University. Liwanag said photojournalists should treat each photo shoot as a visual expedition of still or moving subjects. “In taking photos, put your heart and mind in ...
9/22/2011
Cartoonist shares 7th year with CDN

    CARTOONIST Rene Elevera has been Cebu Daily News’ news and opinion illustrator since 2004. Each weekday, he confers with the paper’s assigned editorial writer for material from which he takes inspiration to draw award-winning editorial cartoons. On Sundays, he illustrates the essays of the acclaimed poet and writer Judge Simeon Dumdum Jr. In 2009, Elevera won Best Editorial Cartoon in the 14th Cebu Archdiocesan Mass Medi...
9/22/2011
BYRON TURNS TO MAYOR FOR HELP

2 rival groups in Filinvest subdivision   Byron Garcia and several homeowners of Corona del Mar went to Talisay City Mayor Socrates Fernandez yesterday to seek a “cease-and-desist” order against Filinvest, the developer of their subdivision. Sunday's gun-toting incident, wherein an armed Garcia confronted an angry American resident with an AK-47 assault rifle, wasn't on the agenda. It toook a back seat to complaints about a “dus...
9/21/2011
FACE TIME FOR RAMA

  Osmeña decries ‘illegal’ self-promotion by Cebu City mayor     Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama was accused of doing what he himself once denounced—self-promotion paid by taxpayers’ money. His face, name and words of greeting appear on cash envelopes of government financial aid to senior citizens. “That's illegal,” said his no. 1 critic, Rep. Tomas Osmeña. “That's why I'm filing a complaint. He will have to answer to t...
9/21/2011
Byron turns over rifle, vows to bolster case

        Saying that he “knows the law,” former Capitol consultant Byron Garcia surrendered his AK-47 rifle to police authorities last Monday afternoon, a day after his heated confrontation with an American national in Corona del Mar subdivision in Talisay City. Garcia said he surrendered his rifle to the Firearms, Explosives Security Guards and Agencies Supervisory Section (FESAGSS). “I asked them to revoke my lice...
9/21/2011
Group disproves Byron’s prez claim

        A HOMEOWNERS association yesterday issued a statement clarifying that former Capitol consultant Byron Garcia is not their president. The statement signed by Luis T. Fernandez, president of the Corona Del Mar Homeowners Association Inc. (CDMHAI), criticized Garcia for his “highly immoral, illegal and oppressive takeover of the Corona del Mar subdivision.” Fernandez also said Byron Garcia “destabilized a peac...
9/21/2011
Debate over flyover projects turning personal, Young says

        Cebu City Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young said he wanted to refrain from commenting on plans for two additional flyovers in the city because the opposition to the projects was becoming a personal crusade of some quarters. “This has become an ego thing to some. You can see in their arguments that it’s not making sense. I don't think it's healthy anymore. I know they are hurt and I don't want to add salt to the ...
9/21/2011
Capitol seeks firm to manage center

        The Capitol is looking for a firm to run the Cebu Performing Arts Center, which is now called the Cebu Cultural Center (CCC). The newly refurbished center on Gorordo Avenue is scheduled to have its grand opening in November. The Capitol is outsourcing the management of the center to the private sector based on public bidding. Elizabeth Francia, Cebu Gov. Gwen Garcia's chief of staff, said yesterday that al...
9/21/2011
Stringent guidelines set for scholarship program

        More stringent requirements will be in place to curb dropouts from the Cebu City government’s college scholarship program. In an interview, Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young said even before the Commission on Audit (COA) came out with its audit observation memorandum, the council already came out with guidelines to correct deficiencies in the program. COA said the high rate of dropouts was due to inadequate sc...
9/21/2011
Mandaue City tricycles charge P8 fare

        MORE than a month after it was approved, tricycle drivers in Mandaue City charged P8 for fare, a P1.50 increase from their previous P6.50, starting yesterday. The new fare rate made most drivers happy and disappointed passengers. Fidel Bwante, a tricycle driver from barangay Alang-Alang in Mandaue City, said the fare increase was a big help due to the rise in fuel prices. From P200 a day, Bwante said he e...
9/21/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Breast cancer awareness month MONTHLY breast self-examinations and a healthy lifestyle should be encouraged among Filipina women to help avoid breast cancer, health advocates said in a forum yesterday. In yesterday's 888 forum, breast cancer survivor Lani Osmeña said early detection is key to one's survival from breast cancer. She was diagnosed with stage 1 breast cancer in December last year and she un...
9/21/2011
Veco union head sued for libel

        A libel suit was filed in court yesterday against a labor union president who allegedly damaged the reputation of the Visayan Electric Co. (Veco) and its executive vice president. The Cebu City Prosecutor's Office elevated the case against Casmero Mahilum before the Regional Trial Court. Bail was recommended at P10,000. Mahilum, president of the Veco Employee's Union, was cited for statements in a Labor Da...
9/21/2011
Liloan vice mayor dies of colon cancer

        GOVERNMENT officials and party mates mourned the death of Vice Mayor Merelito Surita of Liloan town, northeastern Cebu, last Monday. Surita, who succumbed to colon cancer at the age of 57, was a “big loss” to Liloan town and the Barug Alang sa Kauswagan ug Demokrasya (Bakud) party, said Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale. The vice governor, a member of Bakud, yesterday went to Liloan to visit Surita’s wake. She...
9/21/2011
‘Media should stick to role as observers, watchdogs’

        Stick to the facts and don’t confuse the role of journalists with that of news sources in government. Columnist Cito Beltran of the Philippine Star gave this advice in his talk yesterday “Government in a World with No Wang-wang,” one of the forums held in celebration of Cebu Press Freedom Week. “You are not the Department of Justice or the Prosecutor’s Office or the Department of Social Welfare and Develop...
9/21/2011
Country ‘not yet free’ from social ills

        WE regained our freedom, but we are never really free. Political scientist Dr. Rhodora Bucoy, one of the activists who was detained after the declaration of Martial Law 39 years ago, said the Philippines has not experienced “substantial change” in the post-Marcos era. “What happened in the past is still in the present,” said Bucoy, chairperson of the Social Sciences Division of the University of the Philipp...
9/20/2011
‘I’LL STAND UP TO THAT BULLY’

American father ready to sue Byron for brandishing assault rifle   The American businessman who faced off an angry brother of Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said he would file charges against the man who brandished an AK-47 assault rifle at him in a flareup over road barriers outside the foreigner’s house in Talisay City. Wayne Morris, 56, said he didnt’ know the armed man who “acted like a bully” was Byron Garcia, a former Capitol securi...
9/20/2011
DENR Balili ash pond unfit for waste disposal

    Newly made ash ponds in the province-owned Balili property in barangay Tina-an, Naga City are unfit for use as a coal ash disposal facility, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR-7) said yesterday. The site lacks a protective layer of bentonite clay to prevent waste from seeping into the ground and polluting water sources. “It may not be technically sufficient to contain leachate within its premises, u...
9/20/2011
Any clues in victim’s phone, laptop?

    THREE cell phones and one laptop will be used by the Mandaue City police to piece together clues to the fatal ambush of a businesswoman in Don Andres Soriano and Plaridel Streets, Mandaue City at past 6 p.m last Friday. Insp. Ramil Morpos, deputy chief of the Investigation and Detection Management Branch (IDMB) of the Mandaue City Police Office (MCPO) said the cell phone of victim Iris Marie Hugo Gonzales will be brought t...
9/20/2011
No transpo strike in Metro Cebu,just a picket

    AT least 24 Kaohsiung buses and several barangay vehicles were on standby in anticipation of a transport strike in Cebu City yesteday but they weren’t needed afterall. “We were preparing all the buses and contacted the barangays to make their vehicles available should the need arise but no strike ever happened,” said Rafael Yap, Cebu City Traffic Operations Management (Citom) head. Yap said drivers were seen gathering in...
9/20/2011
‘Independent reporting is greatest challenge’

    While some experts predict that newspapers in the Philippines will cease to exist in 30 to 35 years as readers turn to the Internet for information, the print media will not disappear, said Javier Vicente “JV” Rufino, director of Inquirer Mobile. “Print media will not go away. It will transform. The audience is moving online,” he said in yesterday’s forum “Where is Journalism in a Digital World.” He presented the mobile p...
9/20/2011
Cebu journalists elect new officers

    THE Cebu Federation of Beat Journalists (CFBJ), an umbrella organization of news reporters, photographers and cameramen, elected a new set of officers on Sunday. Elias Baquero, senior reporter of Sun.Star Cebu, was reelected president, his sixth straight year. The officers will take their oaths in tomorrow’s general assembly at Cafe Laguna and serve until September next year. Baquero, in an interview, said he intends to...
9/20/2011
Recall bid filed vs Samboan vice mayor

    A petition for recall was filed yesterday against the vice mayor and first councilor of Samboan town in southern Cebu over accusations of disloyalty in the One Cebu party of Gov. Gwen Garcia. Seven Samboan municipal councilors who filed the recall petition said they lost confidence in Vice Mayor Rogelio Capa and his son-in-law, Councillor Jeffrey Catipay. They were led by Emerito Calderon, former congressman and current p...
9/20/2011
Pressure on to secure SRP lot tax exemptions

    Cebu City Hall needs to secure tax exemption for companies that acquired lots in the South Road Properties (SRP) lest they remit their quarterly payments to the Bureau of Internal Revenue. Councilor Jose Daluz III issued this warning in response to reports that SM Prime Holdings will remit their payments to the BIR starting next month unless they secure tax exemption. “Tax payment will lessen the city's income by a few mi...
9/20/2011
Show yourselves, pro-flyover backers told

    CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama questioned the timing of a feeding program done in barangay Kinasang-an, southern Cebu City, since it coincided with a signature campaign supporting the city’s two flyover projects. The mayor said Kinasang barangay captain Susan Enriquez informed him that a petition paper supporting the flyover projects was circulated in time for a children's feeding program in sitios Lower Paradise III and Vil...
9/20/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    LTO execs face probe on fake registration THREE officers of the Land Transportation Office (LTO) are in hot water for allegedly issuing a counterfeit vehicle registration certificate to a woman. The Ombudsman-Visayas requested the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to investigate the case. Named respondents were LTO's Gavino Paden, Jose Rizaldo and James Kabuyaw. The case stemmed from the complaint of Jose Nelson Ko,...
9/20/2011
How it happened

    BYRON Garcia and his new American neighbor argued over metal barriers with “Slow Down” signs put up by the foreigner on the street outside his home in Corona del Mar subdivision. “He's bullied us (me and my family) and tried to be a dictator,” said Wayne Morris, who has a construction firm in the United States. Three signs were put up last Friday after being delivered by subdivision manager Filinvest. At 8 a.m last Sunda...
9/19/2011
GOV’S BRO FLASHES HIS RIFLE

Garcia argues with American over road barrier What’s a barricade doing in the middle of a road? A neighborhood dispute in Talisay City over a road barrier put up to caution cars to slow down caused tempers to flare yesterday in a confrontation between an American national and a younger brother of Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia. An angry Byron Garcia said he was offended by the attitude of the American, who put up the barrier in the middl...
9/19/2011
Three suspects eyed in trader’s ambush

    Three persons are being investigated by the Mandaue City police for their involvement in the fatal ambush of a businesswoman in Don Andres Soriano and Plaridel Streets, barangay Looc in Mandaue City last Friday. Insp. Ramil Morpos, deputy chief of the Investigation and Detection Management Branch (IDMB) of the Mandaue City Police Office, said one of the three persons may be the gunman who shot down 37-year-old Irish Marie ...
9/19/2011
IBM execs to work on Cebu plans

    SIX executives from International Business Machines (IBM) are scheduled to arrive in Cebu on Oct. 3 to work on several key projects for the Metro Cebu Development and Coordination Board (MCDCB). The IBM executives will work for three weeks to draft a framework for a Land Use and Transportation and Traffic Management plans for the board. Andrea Escalona, corporate citizenship manager of the IBM Growth Market, said these ex...
9/19/2011
Former councilor uses govt vehicle, escapes sanction

    A FORMER councilor of Toledo City was found guilty for using a government-issued vehicle for personal purpose by the Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas. But Teresito Largo can no longer be suspended on charges of simple misconduct because he is no longer in office. The issue stemmed from an operation conducted by the Oplan Red Plate Task Force last Feb. 21, 2009. The task force chanced upon a government vehicle in f...
9/19/2011
Mandaue cops told Stay abreast of news

  Mandaue City Police chief Senior Supt. Noel Gillamac yesterday issued a memorandum directing all police personnel to brush up on current affairs to better maintain peace and order in the city. “To all station chiefs, encourage your men to read newspapers, listening to radios especially commentaries and primetime news,” Gillamac said in the memorandum. He ordered the chiefs of police precincts to provide desk officers with AM-FM ra...
9/19/2011
Priests to lobby for bishops’ commission on labor

  A GROUP of priests is supporting moves to establish a permanent commission to attend to workers’ concerns in the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP). San Alberto Carmelite Formation Center’s Fr. Paul Medina, convenor of the National Clergy Discernment said a church-worker commission can extend clergy services for workers. Medina, who attended the Church People and Worker’s national conference last week said they...
9/19/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    BRIT NABBED FOR CARNAP A 56-YEAR-OLD British national was arrested by police for alleged carnapping last Saturday morning in barangay Jubay, Lilo-an town, north Cebu. Collin Pulman is detained in Lilo-an police precinct following his arrest by virtue of a warrant issued Aug. 28 by Executive Judge Rustico Parangga of Branch 28 of the Regional Trial Court in Mambajao town, Camiguin province. Pulman peacefully surrendered t...
9/19/2011
Toilets for towns cost P600-T each

  The public toilets to be built in Cebu's 37 towns will cost the province P600,000 each, the Capitol's Provincial Engineering Office said over the weekend. During last Saturday's inauguration of the road network at a Gawad Kalinga (GK) site in Minglanilla town, Provincial Engr. Eulogio Pelayre said the costs include the tiles and a separate restroom for persons with disabilities (PWDs). The PWD toilet has railings and safety handl...
9/19/2011
‘Commit anew to truth,’ Palma urges journalists

    Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma yesterday exhorted Cebu’s media practitioners to exert “renewed efforts at the discipline of verification” amid the ease with which true or false information can be spread in the era of the Internet. “As new technology enables more people to speak up, we move towards a ‘journalism of assertion,’” Palma said, assailing the proliferation in the mass media of “conflicting views with scant regard fo...
9/19/2011
Things get done with a photo by Siloy

    At the 2010 Civic Journalism Community Press Awards handed out by the Philippine Press Institute last July, jurors commended Cebu Daily News for running the “Siloy is watching” corner. The daily section is “a triumph of civic journalism, as it encourages citizens to contribute photos of what they see on the road that needs government or private sector attention,” said the panel of judges in awarding the Best Opinion Page t...
9/19/2011
Mobile journalism forum slated today

    The print media has to evolve to cope with the demand for fast information in this age of the Internet. Newspapers are more interactive, using social networking media like Twitter and Facebook, and making content available online in websites and special digital editions. Cebu Daily News with its partner Cebu Holdings Inc. is sponsoring a forum at 9:30 a.m. today on how community journalism is going digital. The forum is...
9/18/2011
FLYOVER ‘TOO NOISY’ FOR NUNS

  Overpass would ‘disrupt’ ambience in Asilo dela Milagrosa church, say critics     Nuns of a Catholic church-run orphanage aren’t happy about plans to build a flyover near one of Cebu City's landmark chapels in Gorordo Street. “It would be more noisy and would ruin the solemnity and ambience of the place,” said Sister Leticia Deilio, the administrator during a public forum yesterday. She spoke in a forum of the Stop ...
9/18/2011
Mistaken identity, trade eyed as motives in slay

        Business deals that went awry, a love triangle and a case of mistaken identity are some of the theories police are exploring in Friday’s gunslaying of a businesswoman in Mandaue City. Senior Supt. Noel Gillamac, Mandaue City police chief, said the real target of the ambush could have been Crisostomo Alcala, the 39-year-old live-in partner of slain businesswoman Iris Marie Hugo Gonzales (not Hugo as earlier r...
9/18/2011
Garcia’s bill to split 2nd district of Cebu advances

        THE bill proposing to divide Cebu's 2nd district into two will be approved before the year ends, Rep. Pablo Garcia said yesterday. Garcia, who represents the 2nd district, said House Bill 3865 was approved in the Lower House with the House committee on local government set to submit its report to the Senate. The bill filed in 2008 seeks to divide the province’s largest congressional district, which consists...
9/18/2011
Fitness guru trains Shamcey

        MANILA—Call him a modern-day Professor Higgins, but in a way, that’s what kinesiologist John Jay Cuay is. In three months, he transformed Shamcey Supsup from a slim but well-proportioned Bb. Pilipinas-Universe into stunning Ms Universe finalist that everyone thought would bag the crown. She was dazzling in her gown, and stunning in her bikini, showing off wash-board flat abs, a muscled-and-well-toned body...
9/18/2011
U.S. war vessel in Cebu for civic tour

        A US missile destroyer is in Cebu for the next few days with more than 300 crew members, some of them Filipino-Americans. The USS Russell (DDG 59), which is docked off the coast of Talisay City, arrived last Friday to undertake various civic projects. “Our mission is to support the ‘America in 3D’ project of the US Embassy. We've also given some of the crew some ‘liberties’ to experience Filipino culture an...
9/18/2011
Asphalt road network opened for GK families

      A two-kilometer asphalted road network was inauguarated in a Gawad Kalinga (GK) village in a province-owned lot in barangay Tunghaan, Minglanilla town, yesterday. US Ambassador to the Philippines Harry Thomas Jr. and Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia led the inauguration of the P2-million road network. Provincial Engineer Eulogio Pelayre said the two-kilometer asphalted road is part of the road network that Capitol is fu...
9/18/2011
Respond to queries, Talisay mayor told

        TALISAY City Mayor Socrates Fernandez was reminded by the Ombudsman-Visayas to answer inquiries sent to him after he failed to answer the letters they sent concerning a complaint filed by a couple. Still the Ombudsman dismissed the complaint filed by the couple Jesse and Amelita Tan against Fernandez in relation to his inaction on their petition to demolish the illegal structures in front of their property i...
9/18/2011
‘I’ll guard pa from bad people’

        After his father survived a shoot-out with robbers who hit Robinsons Place mall in Fuente Osmeña, Cebu City, 4-year-old Michael Roy Ceniza takes every chance he gets to accompany his policeman-father wherever he goes out. Last Friday, the boy went with PO1 Roy Ceniza to the Cebu CIty Police Office (CCPO) to execute an affidavit on the incident. “I'll guard my father from the bad people,” the boy said. “Dad...
9/18/2011
Council not keen to spend P.49M for ‘disaster suits’

        HIS peers in the Cebu City Council are not keen on spending almost half a million pesos to buy waterproof and heat-resistant “disaster suits” for each of the legislators. This is no longer “a priority,” said Councilor Noel Wenceslao, who sponsored the resolution for the purchase in the council session last Sept. 14. The resolution to spend P490,485 to outfit the vice mayor and 18 councilors with a body suit...
9/18/2011
Parade opens PF Week

        A parade of Cebu media practitioners from newspapers, radio, and television outlets kicks off at 7 a.m. today on historic Osmeña Boulevard. A show of unity and camaraderie is expected in the annual Freedom Walk, whose route from City Hall to the Provincial Capitol will draw over 500 workers of editorial and business departments. The celebration of Cebu Press Freedom Week, the only one of its kind in the cou...
9/18/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        FORMER MAYOR CLEARED ADMINISTRATIVE charges were dismissed against former Consolacion mayor Avelino Gungob and seven municipal government employees who were sued in relation to the reclamation project in Consolacion town, northern Cebu. In its decision, the Ombudsman-Visayas said there is “lack of substantial evidence” against Gungob and the other respondents. The case stemmed from the complaint of Teod...
9/17/2011
TRADER SHOT DEAD IN VAN

  Assailants tried to shoot anew; passenger an ‘LTO fixer’   A businesswoman was shot dead in her van by two motorcycle-riding assailants about 6 p.m. last night in a busy road intersection of Mandaue City. The victim was identified as Iris Hugo, 37, owner of the Mandaue-based Stockland International Furniture. Hugo, who was driving a gray Starex van, took a bullet in the head and died shortly after she was rushed to the ...
9/17/2011
Korean firm admits window closing on use of Balili facility

    With their contract expiring this month, a South Korean power firm said it would “be next to impossible” to use the coal ash facility in the Capitol-owned Balili property in barangay Tina-an, Naga City. Lawyer Guillermo Dabay Jr. of the Korean Electric Power Corp.- Salcon Power Plant (Kepco-SPC) said their contract with the province expires on Sept. 30 and there won't be any chance of renewal. Dabay said they tried to ren...
9/17/2011
Cebu transpo groups to stage pickets on Monday

  WHILE there won't be a transport strike, Cebu's transport groups will hold pickets in Metro Cebu cities in solidarity with fellow drivers and operators nationwide this coming Monday. Edward Geolin, spokesman of the Nagkahiusang Drayber sa Sugbu (Nadsu-Piston), said their pickets will convey their sentiments against the series of fuel price increases that affected their operations despite the government's Pantawid Pasada program...
9/17/2011
Rama to build case against flyovers to P-Noy

  CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama yesterday said he plans to elevate his case against the two flyover projects to the Regional Development Council and President Benigno Aquino III himself. Rama said he wanted the RDC to be aware of opposition from businessmen and other sectors on the two infrastructure projects proposed along the intersections of M.J. Cuenco and General Maxilom Avenue and Gorordo Avenue and Archbishop Reyes Avenue. The...
9/17/2011
Cebu youth inks pact against trafficking

  Sangguniang Kabataan members in Cebu will form watch groups in schools, churches and communities as well as conduct awareness campaigns against human trafficking. This developed after the SK leaders of Cebu province signed a covenant signifying their commitment to combat human trafficking at the Cebu International Convention Center yesterday. Aside from the covenant signing, the SK Movement of Anti-Trafficking Advocates (Mata) in ...
9/17/2011
Raps filed against CPDRC jail guard

  CHARGES were filed in court yesterday against the jail guard, allegedly responsible for the April 25 loss of 35 sacks of rice stored at the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) in barangay Kalunasan, Cebu City. The Cebu City Prosecutors' Office found probable cause to indict Antonieto Babor on charges of qualified theft. Bail was recommended at P60,000. However, Babor is still at large. “Respondent (Babor) h...
9/17/2011
Depositors slam LBC, Central Bank, PDIC new meet set

  THE Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. assured angry depositors of the closed LBC Development Bank that their deposits would be given to them in a day. The assurance, however, failed to satisfy depositors, who called for another meeting next week. The depositors wanted not only the PDIC representatives to be present but also those from the LBC Bank and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas. Lawyer Joneses Ponce, Cebu City consultant, a...
9/17/2011
Juvenile Justice Law will be amended by year’s end — solon

    A CEBUANO congressman is confident that the country's Juvenile Justice Law will be amended by the Lower House before the year ends. Rep. Pablo Garcia (Cebu 2nd district) said yesterday that the technical working group had already finished formulating the consolidated bill. “I suppose before the year ends when they will approve the bill in the House of Representatives there is a similar bill in the Senate so that will exped...
9/17/2011
Cebu mayors urged Convene air shed board

    An environment lawyer is asking Metro Cebu mayors to convene the air shed board to already address pollution problems. Lawyer Gloria Estenzo Ramos said not a single Local Government Unit (LGU) has an equipment that would measure air quality in their respective localities. Ramos said it would only cost about P2 million to purchase the needed equipment. “We demand that the Metro Cebu Air Shed Board will be constituted. I ...
9/17/2011
Cop stabs wife with pair of scissors

    A POLICEMAN allegedly stabbed his wife using a pair of scissors inside their house in barangay Suba Basbas, Lapu-Lapu City, on Thursday evening. Cherry Faith Dunque, 39, who reported the incident to the Lapu-Lapu City Police at 10 p.m., said her husband, SPO4 Fermin Dunque stabbed her in the arm with a pair of scissors after a heated argument. Senior Supt. Anthony Obenza, Lapu-Lapu City Police chief, however, said they co...
9/17/2011
Four persons apprehended on illegal recruitment raps

    About 23 persons were duped into paying P1.2-million worth of fees in exchange for jobs in London by illegal recruiters who happened to be their friends and neighbors. Senior Insp. Bonifacio Arriesgado, Carmen municipal police chief, said the victims were offered jobs ranging from caregivers, nurses, nannies, programmers and encoders. The suspects were 36-year-old Eve Condevillamar of Tuburan town, her 38-year-old sister ...
9/16/2011
BEST TOURISM IS FAIR, GREEN

  Cebu joins East Asia tourism partners in joint declaration     Tourism is more than just flying in the biggest volume of visitors from different countries. Doing business in a way that protects the “ecology,” promotes “fair tourism” and reduces the impact of natural and man-made crises will ensure a “sustainable” industry according to a joint declaration of 12 East Asian countries, which ended its conference in Cebu ...
9/16/2011
‘Edu-tourism’, a new way

        EXPLORING new approaches in tourism like “edu-tourism,” clustering, and swapping packages can help develop the industry in the 12-member East Asia Inter-Regional Tourism Forum (EATOF), a Korean educator said Wednesday. Jae Hee Jung, head of the Department of Tourism and English of Hallym College in Gangmon, Korea, spoke in the EATOF forum at the Cebu International Convention Center. “In edu-tourism, learnin...
9/16/2011
RDC creates body to review ‘viability’ of new flyovers

        A committee of the Regional Development Council (RDC) in Central Visayas yesterday agreed to review the “viability” of two proposed flyover projects in Cebu City and how this would affect two government-funded transportation studies. But the review won’t stop the projects from being implemented, said Emmanuel Rabacal, chairman of the RDC Infrastructure Development Committee. “It's already a done deal,” Raba...
9/16/2011
Citom ready for strike

        THE threat of a nationwide transport strike on Monday has lost steam but the Cebu City government is ready in case it pushes through. Twenty-four Kaoshiung buses will be standing by to ferry stranded passengers, and checkpoints have been identified, said Sylvan Jakosalem, chairman of the Cebu City Traffic Operations Management. While no Cebu transport group announced it would join the protest against rising...
9/16/2011
Fire victims near White Gold restaurant remain

        THE owner of White Gold House Restaurant repeated his appeal to the Cebu City government to remove fire victims of Tejero and Carreta fire victims living in sidewalks near his establishment. Alex Gaisano, who visited City Hall yesterday, said three weeks have passed since he wrote Mayor Michael Rama about the problem, which is driving customers away. Philip Zafra, the mayors chief of staff, assured Gaisano ...
9/16/2011
At what age should kids be held liable for crime?

        With the recent arrest of a teenage boy for the murders of his pregnant mother and sister in Naga City, Cebu lawyers disagree whether an amendment of Republic Act 9344 or the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006 is in order. Lawyer Earl Bonachita, president of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines Cebu City chapter, said the law should be reassessed “since reports point out that minors are now being used...
9/16/2011
18 firms to clean up Butuanon River

        EIGHTEEN companies and businesses along a 23-kilometer stretch of the Butuanon River in Mandaue City yesterday signed an agreement with the city government and schools to clean up the river and report those who dump garbage into it. The signing launched the “Adopt a River or Estero” program with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. Under the program, those who throw garbage into the river wi...
9/16/2011
‘No noon breaks for gov’t offices’

        Government offices across the country are no longer allowed to close at noon. Information Officer Joven Naraja of the Civil Service Commission in Central Visayas said the “no-noon break” policy is mandated by Republic Act 9485 of 2007. “Employees should not take snacks or lunch at the same time,” he said. “Someone should be left to man the office.” The “no-noon break” policy is expected to enhance the del...
9/16/2011
‘SRP body plan, sign of Rama’s incompetence’

        Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama’s plan to create a special body to run the South Road Properties (SRP) is an indication of his lack of management skills. Rep. Tomas Osmeña (Cebu City south district) statement came after Rama’s plan to create a special body for the SRP. Osmeña said he believed Rama had no capability to create his special body. “It's an admission of his incompetence. While City Hall now has 5, ...
9/16/2011
EATOF eyes no-visa policy, 5T aid for host province

        GOVERNORS and representatives of 10 Asian countries agreed to pursue proposals aimed at improving tourism and trade during the 11th East Asia Inter-Regional Tourism Forum (Eatof) at the Cebu International Convention Center. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said Cebu was ready to face the challenges through concrete steps, positive possibilities and definite milestones. “Cebu is proud to host Eatof. We are proud t...
9/16/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        BUHISAN DAM EXHIBIT THE Metropolitan Cebu Water District (MCWD) yesterday opened an exhibit of pictures that tells the history of the Buhisan Dam and the people behind its construction 100 years ago. MCWD general manager Armando Paredes, board member Leo Pacaña, Councilors Margot Osmeña and Nida Cabrera, Architect Melva Java and commissioners of the Cultural and Historical Affairs Commission attended the ...
9/15/2011
COURT ALLOWS COAL ASH SALE

  But court didn’t specify if plant can use Balili landfill site     The Korean company that operates the new power plant in Naga City yesterday got a break from the environment court, which allowed the firm to sell its coal ash waste to two Cebu-based firms. In her order, Regional Trial Court Judge Marilyn Ligura Yap of Branch 28, Mandaue City, granted the motion filed by lawyers of the Korean Electric Power Corp.-Sa...
9/15/2011
Parents ask city police to jail, charge own son

        After hearing about reports of young men killing their parents, a couple asked the Cebu City police yesterday to detain their 16-year-old son who allegedly threatened to kill them last Sunday morning. Charges of illegal possession of deadly weapon were filed by the city police against the teenage suspect last Tuesday at the Mandaue City Prosecutors’ Office. He was transferred to the Operation Second Chance...
9/15/2011
Teen suspect faces court for charges

        WITH rosary in hand and head bowed down, the 16-year-old youth accused of murdering his pregnant mother and 5-year-old half-sister was brought to the Regional Trial Court of Cebu City for the filing of charges against him yesterday. The boy remained silent as he was shortly escorted out of the courtroom by Naga City police to the Operation Second Chance center in barangay Kalunasan, Cebu City, pending the re...
9/15/2011
Lobby for projects, officials urged

        BRAND-new vehicles and more projects were promised by Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama to the 80 barangays next year provided their officials help lobby for funding to the City Council. Rama also promised barangay captains better facilities for public schools now that he is taking over management of the Special Education Fund (SEF) as chairman of the Local School Board (LSB). “Schools should have well-maintaine...
9/15/2011
Reg’l unity urged in tour forum

        Unity amid diversity” was the theme the Capitol played up as it welcomed foreign delegates to yesterday morning’s opening of the East Asia Inter-Regional Tourism Forum (Eatof) at the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC) in Mandaue City. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia and the Provincial Board (PB) were on hand to welcome the delegates who each received a golden key contained in fiber glass that was embosse...
9/15/2011
Engine woes force plane back to airport

        AN engine problem forced an Air Philippines aircraft to return to the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) more than 15 minutes after it took off, airport authorities confirmed yesterday. Mary Ann Dimabayao, officer in charge of the MCIA Public Affairs Office, said all 121 passengers and six crew of Air Philippines 2P 247 flight were safe when the plane landed at the airport’s runway. Dimabayao said th...
9/15/2011
‘Clients may claim cash remittances’

        The LBC Development Bank yesterday posted an announcement outside their Cebu City branch saying that clients may claim all ATM Bilis Padala or Remittance Card balances at any LBC Express branch. Beth Morales of LBC Express in Gorordo Avenue, Cebu City, said owners of the ATM Bilis Padala Card or Remittance Card only need to show the card and any valid ID to claim their money. Morales said they will process...
9/15/2011
Dads mull speed limit for vehicles in tunnel

        AN ordinance that seeks to regulate the use of the South Coastal Road tunnel was temporarily set aside as the Cebu City Council debated the need to set a speed limit for vehicles using the tunnel. The councilors also wanted to clarify who is tasked to implement the provisions of the regulatory ordinance drafted by Councilor Roberto Cabarrubias, chairman of the council’s infrastructure committee. “How will t...
9/15/2011
Fire razes 15 houses in Apas students, mall workers hit

        ABOUT P350,000 in valuables and properties were lost in a fire that razed 15 houses in sitio Baka, barangay Apas, in Cebu City at past 6 p.m. yesterday. Cebu City Fire Marshal Aderson Comar said the area was located a few meters from the Gaisano Country Mall. The fire was put out after 35 minutes while traffic congestion built up along the nearby Gov. Cuenco Avenue as a result of the incident. Initial rep...
9/15/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        RESORTS SUED TWO establishments in Bantayan Island are facing criminal charges for violating environment law. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Central Visayas filed charges for the violation of Presidential Decree No. 1067 or the Philippine Water Code against Eden Abarquez, owner of the St. Bernard Beach Resort, and Flemming Hausted and Bernadeth Yagui of Yoonek Beach Resort. The ch...
9/14/2011
MAYOR EYES SRP LOT SALES

  Rama wants ‘special body’ to manage reclamation zone     So long as Cebu City still has lots to sell, it cannot go bankrupt. A confident Mayor Michael Rama made the assessment yesterday as he announced his desire to form a special body to manage the South Road Properties (SRP) and craft a master plan for the 300-hectare reclamation. His statement is expected to draw the ire of his predecessor, Rep. Tomas Osmeña who ...
9/14/2011
Traders willing to raise funds for transpo plan

        Cebu City's business leaders are willing to raise funds to finance a transportation master plan that would provide long-term solutions to the city's traffic congestion. “If the government will not move, then the private sector will. But I still hope that part of the P600-million budget for flyover projects would be used for the needed master plan,” said businessman Bunny Pages. The recently formed Stop Cebu...
9/14/2011
Depositors remain calm amid LBC bank closure

        DESPITE the closure, some depositors of the LBC Development Bank are confident that they can get their savings back owing to their previous experience with other closed banks. Some depositors went to the lone LBC Bank branch in Gorordo Avenue, Cebu City, a day after operations were suspended. Retired teacher Virginia Kho said the bank holds her savings from three decades of work as a teacher. Kho said she ...
9/14/2011
13-hour fire hits Mandaue factory

        A FIRE struck a warehouse owned by the Philippine Coil Industry, resulting in the loss of P2.5-million worth of property in Hernan Cortes Street, barangay Banilad, Mandaue City, last Monday evening. Mandaue City Fire Marshall Rogelio Bongabong said sacks of combustible materials like crushed coconut shells in sacks, coffee powder and gum powder fueled the blaze, which razed 100 square meters of land. The m...
9/14/2011
Governor defends police, military

        Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia yesterday justified the presence of the military during the recent clash between law enforcers and farmers at the Hacienda Gantuangco in Aloguinsan town, midwest Cebu. “As far as the presence of the military was concerned ... the incident happened precisely where there is a 78th Infantry Battalion outpost. Where else should they stand? Outside of their outpost?” Garcia said during the R...
9/14/2011
Participants arrive for tourism forum

        DANCERS from Mantawi Integrated Dance Company danced to the beat of drums as they greeted delegates of the 11th East Asia Inter-Regional Tourism Forum (Eatof) upon their arrival yesterday at the Mactan Cebu International Airport. Delegates from Sarawak, Malaysia; Yogyogarta, Indonesia; and Totori, Japan arrived at 5p.m. Malaysia had the biggest number of delegates at 28. Officials headed by Vice Gov. Agnes...
9/14/2011
Vice gov Caucus ‘on the record’, new PB setup

        This time, official notes will be taken in the closed-door caucuses of the Cebu Provincial Board. The discussions, which used to be internal only, will be placed on record, Vice Gov. Agnes Magapale announced after Monday's session. She said they have “learned” from the Balili estate controversy, where several board members were accused before the Ombudsman of not discussing the grant of proper authority bef...
9/14/2011
Naga boy killer acted ‘with intent’ but was he alone?

        His aunt insisted the boy was innocent and asked for the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to review the shocking case of a minor killing his pregnant mother and half-sister. But social workers who evaluated the 16-year-old from Naga City said he “acted with discernment” when he committed the offense last week. Chief Insp. Timmar Alam, Naga City police chief, said the finding was based on the evaluatio...
9/14/2011
Clergy-labor talks open

        DIALOGUES to resolve labor conflicts would prosper if they are mediated by the clergy, a top church official said. “If we sit down together, something good can happen. When people are willing to sit down and find out what can be done, the problems will be solved,” Palma told a press conference at the opening of a national conference of “Church People-Workers Solidarity” yesterday. About 250 church delegates...
9/14/2011
Palma gets advice for CBCP post

        “The only advice I can give is ‘do not be afraid,’” said Jaro Archbishop Angel Lagdameo, former president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), to Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma. Lagdameo was asked at a press conference yesterday if he had any advice for Palma, who will succeed Archbishop Nereo P. Odchimar of Tandag, Surigao del Sur, as CBCP president this December. Lagdameo was president...
9/13/2011
BANK CLOSURE SHOCKS CLIENTS

  OFWs affected by LBC Bank shutdown; forum on Friday     A college student in Cebu City went to the ATM yesterday to get cash for his tuition. A married couple arrived to withdraw funds for their daughter, who was hospitalized for a uterus operation. Like thousands of clients of LBC Development Bank around the country, they got a nasty shock on Monday morning when they found the bank shuttered and operations suspende...
9/13/2011
Five Weesam vessels suspended by Marina

        The Maritime Industry Authority in Central Visayas (Marina-7) yesterday suspended five vessels of Weesam Express after one of its vessels ran aground off the coast of Lawis Ledge, Talisay City, at past 10 p.m. last Saturday. Engineer Mardem Martin of Marina-7 said they also started the audit and investigation of Weesam Express 8, the vessel that got stranded off Talisay City’s coast that is now docked at Ceb...
9/13/2011
Rama hits back, says Tom, solons should have backed widening

        IT’S now Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama's turn to blame his predecessor in the ongoing dispute over plans to build two new flyovers in the city. Rama said that while road widening is indeed costly, former mayor and now Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district along with former city lawmakers should have pursued it instead of lobbying for funds to finance more flyovers. The mayor said this amid plans t...
9/13/2011
Mayor’s office to take over education fund

        THE mayor's office will take over the allocation of the Special Education Fund (SEF) for Cebu City's scholarship program. Mayor Michael Rama said he wants to oversee the use of the SEF allocation instead of Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young, who handled the fund during his tenure as education consultant under former mayor Tomas Osmeña. The mayor said he is consulting with educators on how the funds would be spe...
9/13/2011
Cops question 3 slain guards buried

        Police yesterday held for questioning three men who allegedly helped Jujun Cabando also known as Dionisio Cabatingan escape following a robbery and shootout in Robinson’s Place in Cebu City. Marino “Rene” Ochea, a registered pump boat operator, Antonio Balingit, a “pahenante” and Luisito Ochea were questioned by the City Intelligence Branch of the Cebu City Police Office. “We requested the three men to come...
9/13/2011
Workers sue former councilor Archival for illegal dismissal

        FORMER Cebu City Council Nestor Archival will face a labor case for the alleged illegal termination of six employees. The complainants yesterday sought legal advice from the Public Attorney's Office (PAO) at the Cebu City Palace of Justice. They were told to file charges of illegal dismissal against Archival and business administrator Jose Forzado with the National Labor Relations Commission. The complaina...
9/13/2011
‘Absence of parental love damaged murder suspects’

        The absence of either parent in family life can adversely affect the development of a child’s character, exposing him or her to outside influences that will shape his or her behavior for better or worse. A Church official and a psychologist reiterated this point in response to the murders of a 39-year-old mother and her daughter by her son in Naga City last week and a son's murder of his mother in barangay M...
9/13/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Park project to continue: Rama CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama said he will pursue his plans to convert the old Pasil fish market into a park despite the City Council's deferral of P25 million he included in Supplemental Budget no. 2 for it. . The council omitted this item saying the appropriation should be included in the 2012 budget instead due to lack of a fund source. The mayor said a children's park us...
9/13/2011
Xiamen BRT, ‘greening’ wow Rama

        A visit last week to the city of Xiamen in China exposed Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama and local businessmen to best practices in local governance and investment opportunities. Rama said he was interested with Xiamen’s Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system, solid waste management and sewage treatment programs. “I wanted to come back to see their system of garbage collection,” he said. The mayor said he was also in...
9/12/2011
TRANSPO PLAN COSTLY TOMAS

  Former mayor backs flyover projects, says ‘it’s realistic’     Better said than done. That was how Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district described a proposal by Cebu City businessmen and Mayor Michael Rama to draft a transportation master plan and road-widening in place of two flyover projects lined up for bidding in the city this year. The former mayor said road widening requires huge funding and years of...
9/12/2011
Cebu-bound passengers rescued from stranded ship

        All 208 passengers, including patients, regional directors of national government agencies and Korean tourists, of the MV Weesam Express 8 vessel were rescued at sea off the coast of Lawis Ledge, Talisay City at past 10 p.m. last Saturday. The MV Weesam Express 8 owned by SRN Fast Sea Craft was scheduled to arrive at 6:15 p.m. in Pier 4, Cebu City after departing from Tagbilaran City port in Bohol at 3:28 p....
9/12/2011
Mandaue shanties blamed for weekend flood

        KNEE-DEEP water flooded the entire stretch of A. Soriano Street beside the White Gold department store at the North Reclamation Area during last Friday evening's heavy downpour. Alvin Santillana, executive director of Cebu City's Risk Reduction Management Council, said it took two hours for the floodwater to recede, inconveniencing both commuters and motorists alike. He said prolonged flooding could have be...
9/12/2011
Suspect in mom’s slay faces court

        THE 25-year-old man who killed and buried his mother in their home in barangay Mambaling, Cebu City will be arraigned on parricide charges before the court today. Christian Lucky Dalangin is scheduled for arraignment at the sala of Regional Trial Court Judge Gilbert Moises of Branch 18 at 8:30 a.m today. In an extra-judicial confession, Dalangin admitted killing his 53-year-old mother Rubirosa Tenchavez la...
9/12/2011
‘Educate Internet users’

        IDENTITY thefts, cyber-bullying, stalking and pornography are among the biggest threats faced by children and adult users of online social media, police authorities said yesterday. In yesterday's 5th Philippine Society for Industrial Security held at the Waterfront Hotel in Cebu City Senior Supt. Gilbet Sosa, chief of the CIDG's Anti-Transnational Crime Division, said education is the key to preventing thes...
9/12/2011
US, province to sign agreement on battling human trafficking

        UNITED States Ambassador to the Philippines Harry Thomas Jr. is slated to visit Cebu this Thursday to sign an agreement with Cebu province officials on combatting human rafficking. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia made the announcement about Thomas’ visit in her regular press conference last week. Garcia said the agreement will show the US’ support in her campaign against trafficking. The US Department of Homel...
9/12/2011
Talisay dads back no sign, images on billboards order

        Seeing that names and images of government officials still appear on billboards and government properties in Talisay City, two opposition councilors showed their support to the Interior Department's order. Councilor Romeo Villarante sponsored a resolution n during last week's session corroborating and reinforcing the Department of Interior and Local Governement (DILG) Memorandum Circular No. 2010- 101. “It ...
9/12/2011
‘Complete tricycle franchise papers until Oct. 15’

        TRICYCLE franchise holders in Mandaue City are given until Oct. 15 to comply with franchise requirements. City Administrator James Abadia said the Traffic Enforcers Agency of Mandaue (TEAM) had already started operations against tricycles with fake franchises In their operations to check the franchises, Abadia said they had already found out that one franchise owner had 18 units. He said a city ordinance ...
9/12/2011
Loots score in labor row

        THE family of Daanbantayan Mayor Ma. Luisa Loot scored a victory in a legal battle against two laborers who claimed to be illegally dismissed by the couple. The Supreme Court affirmed two separate rulings of the Courts of Appeals and the National Labor Relations Commissions (NLRC) which found no basis to hold Loot and her husband Vicente liable for terminating the services of Marticio Semblante and Dubrick P...
9/12/2011
‘We need to outsmart terrorists’

        Law enforcement agencies should innovate to address the evolving threat of terrorism in the country. Prof. Rommel Banlaoi, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director of the Philippine Institute for Peace, Violence and Terrorism (PIPVTR), said since 9/11 attacks in New York, the terrorist threats in the country had only been diminished but not eliminated. “The bottom line is, we need to outsmart the terror...
9/12/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        GUN OWNERS TO LOSE LICENSES FIVE of the six persons arrested in the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIAA) for carrying firearms without permits last Wednesday will lose their firearms license, airport security said yesterday. Chief Insp. Julius Cabahug, head of the Police Center for Aviation Security (PCAS 7), said they recommended the cancellation of their firearms license to the Firearms Explosives ...
9/11/2011
DAVAO PLANS AHEAD OF CEBU

  Davao transport study done; Will Cebu City plan need flyovers?     While a debate swirls in Cebu City over the wisdom of building two new flyovers and how to plan a “liveable city,” Davao City has wrapped up a wide-ranging study for urban transportation. The study was done by a consultancy firm of Dr. Primitivo Cal, the Cebuano urban planner whom some local businessmen hope to tap to update a transportation master pl...
9/11/2011
Teen admits shabu use girl shot in the forehead

        The 16-year-old youth accused of killing his pregnant mother and 5-year-old half- sister Thursday night admitted he was using drugs at the time of the violence, Naga City police said yesterday. Chief Insp. Timmar Alam, Naga City police chief, said he ordered drug and paraffin tests for the youth and another suspect Bryan Pansoy. Alam said the 16-year-old boy confessed to police that he was using shabu at th...
9/11/2011
Coast Guard probes oil spill off Lapu

        MANILA—The Philippine Coast Guard is investigating an oil spill that occurred in Lapu-Lapu City in Cebu last Friday, a PCG official said yesterday. PCG spokesperson Lt. Cmdr. Algier Ricafrente said Coast Guard personnel collected an estimated 110 liters of an “oily mixture” from waters off the Osmeña Pier in Lapu-Lapu City last Friday morning. The PCG was still trying too determine who was responsible for...
9/11/2011
School accepts ‘prodigal’ maritime students

        THE maritime students who joined the walkout in Southwestern University (SWU) have until today to return to school. Andrew Aznar, Seacrest Maritime president and SWU board member, said they accepted back some protesting students and are giving a second chance to others who joined last Tuesday’s protest. He said the parents sent a written request to have the students admitted in class again. Classes have r...
9/11/2011
Farm boy makes good as mechanic

        Seeing no future as a farmer, Antonio Tolorio decided to leave his native town of Merida, Leyte province, to work as a mechanic in Cebu City. Four decades and four years later, Tolorio is a sought-after mechanic for Volkswagen enthusiasts in Cebu. His expertise in repairing and refurbishing the popular German vehicle draws clients from all over the province. He counts among his clientele Korean nationals ...
9/11/2011
P5M needed for face-lift of Talisay Landing Shrine

        The Talisay City Council is asking Cebu officials for P5-million financial assistance for the renovation of the Landing Shrine in barangay Tanke. Vice Mayor Alan Bucao said that the shrine needed an upgrade. “The council finds and believes that maintaining the cultural heritage of the city is vital to its people’s historical knowledge,” Bucao said. The landing shrine, which was constructed in the 1990s, h...
9/11/2011
Dengue brigades pushed

        TALISAY barangays and schools are encouraged to form “dengue brigades” to help prevent dengue outbreaks in the different parts of the city. This brigade would seek to reinforce the city's intensive drive against dengue, said Talisay City Councilor Richard Francis Aznar, who sponsored a resolution for the creation of the brigade. “The Barangay Dengue Brigade seeks to reinforce the city dengue intensive drive...
9/10/2011
PREGNANT MA, KID MURDERED

  Victim’s son, pals seen as suspects; killings occurred amid fiesta     A lifetime grudge and bad influence from friends supposedly led a teenager to murder his pregnant mother and 5-year-old half-sister inside their home in barangay Naalad, Naga City, late last Thursday evening. Virgindina Bantilan and Geraldine Bantilan sustained stab wounds on their heads and various parts of their bodies. Naga police pointed to ...
9/10/2011
Cebuano topnotchers ‘laid-back’ in review

        No pressure, no problem. This was the approach used by three Cebuano students who ranked in the top 10 of this month's Medical Technologist (Med Tech) licensure examinations. First-placer Isabelle Basubas Baisac of Cebu Doctors’ University (CDU), classmate Janna Barbra dela Cerna and second-placer Sherry Mae Casiño Mondido of Velez College all agreed that taking breaks in between reviews helped them hurdle...
9/10/2011
Citom pushes P600-M flyover funds for road widening

        INSTEAD of spending P600 million for two flyover projects, the amount could be aligned for road-widening projects to decongest existing ones, Cebu City traffic officials said yesterday. Rafael Yap, Cebu City Integrated Traffic Operations (Citom) chief, said the two-lane Hernan Cortes road in Mandaue City could be used as an alternative road in place of Governor Cuenco Avenue once it is widened. Yap said Re...
9/10/2011
Persons bearing arms not tied to military

        POLICE authorities yesterday denied claims by six persons who were arrested at the Mactan Cebu International Airport last Wednesday that they were military reservists. PO2 William Vilvestre, investigator of the Police Center for Aviation Security (PCAS-7), told Cebu Daily News that the military's Central Command confirmed to them that they didn't issue ID cards to the six arrested persons. Vilvestre said th...
9/10/2011
Speech, flowers for Don Sergio Sr.

        “A man is remembered by his good deeds and not by the power or influence he once held.” Msgr. Robert Alesna, who officiated the Mass to commemorate the late president Don Sergio Osmeña Sr.’s 133rd birthday, said Don Sergio was the perfect example of a man who continued to touch the hearts of the Cebuanos because of his deeds. Don Sergio was once a governor of Cebu, a congressman, a senator, a vice president...
9/10/2011
Review security procedures, expert urges Cebuano firms

        Last Monday's foiled robbery attempt at a mall in Fuente Osmeña, Cebu City, should serve as a wake-up call for commercial establishments and businessmen to review and update their security procedures, a foreign security expert said yesterday. “From a business point of view, I would take a look on what I would do differently. Would I be doing the same and put them at risk? What should I do differently?” said ...
9/10/2011
Ozamiz kin recover remains of suspects

        THE Ozamiz City-based relatives of the three suspects shot down in last Monday’s foiled robbery attempt in Robinsons Place mall in Fuente Osmeña, Cebu City, arrived to claim the remains. Since all of them barely managed to make the trip to Cebu City to claim the remains, the Cebu City police said they will extend financial aid to them. “Our sympathy goes to the relatives,” said Senior Supt. Melvin Buenafe,...
9/10/2011
Move to amend Constitution opposed

        There is no need to amend the Constitution to allow foreign investors to have full access to Philippine resources. “Countries who do not allow foreign ownership of the land have growing economies like China, Vietnam, Thailand, Brazil, and Taiwan. In reverse, countries, like Nepal Cambodia, Bhutan, and Mongolia, which allow foreign use of their lands are not rich,” said Rep. Neri Javier Colmenares (Bayan Muna...
9/10/2011
Palma WikiLeaks info hard to assess

        CEBU Archbishop Jose Palma said yesterday that he wouldn't give credence to the information released by anti-secrecy website, WikiLeaks. Palma said this was because the WikiLeaks information was difficult to assess. “My question is how much is true (are the information from WikiLeaks)? How much is make-believe?” he asked. “If we try to give credence to everything that they say, then where would this lead u...
9/10/2011
Firms urged to change mind-set about security

        A security expert yesterday encouraged businesses and organizations to learn from major events in the past and change the mindset on security. Stephen Cutler, Official Global Control Corporation (OGC Corp) President and CEO, said that a lot of lessons could be learned from the series of 9/11 attacks in New York City in 2001. Cutler discussed disaster preparedness and business recovery during yesterday's 5t...
9/10/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Gwen, execs attend Japanese festival CEBU Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia along with top businessmen and diplomats are in Japan to attend the annual “Miroku-no-Sato Festival” of Tsuneishi town. Among those invited in the festival were Jon Ramon Aboitiz, Erramon Aboitiz, Bobby Aboitiz and Philippine Ambassador to Japan Manuel Lopez and his wife. Garcia said the town is one of the biggest employers in Cebu, with Ts...
9/9/2011
CITOM REJECTS 2 FLYOVERS

  ‘Wrong solution’ to Cebu City traffic; poses new hazards     “Extremely inefficient.” An “unwanted appendage” if road widening is pursued. “Hazardous” to pedestrians near the Collegio dela Inmaculada Concepcion. Cebu City’s traffic management authority yesterday opposed national government plans for two new flyovers in the city in a resolution whose strong language left no doubt about the board’s dim view of buildin...
9/9/2011
Airport cops disarm 6 with fake SWAT jackets, ID cards

        Airport police arrested last Wednesday five armed men and a woman who were wearing fake SWAT uniforms and carrying military IDs. Police arrested the group after they failed to present documents allowing them to carry firearms. One of those arrested, Joeribe Comendador, 38, of Lapu-Lapu City, told Cebu Daily News that he and the others belong to the International Police Commission (Interpolcom), a group regi...
9/9/2011
Long weekend as Cebuanos mark Osmeña’s birthday

        CEBUANOS will have a long weekend starting today, which is a special holiday in Cebu City to commemorate the 133rd birthday of Cebu's Great Old Man, Don Sergio Osmeña. Republic Act 06953, which former president Corazon Aquino signed on May 22, 1990, declared every Sept. 9 a special nonworking holiday in Cebu City. Osmeña family members will offer flowers at the late president’s statue behind SM City. Margar...
9/9/2011
Mandaue not keen on Plaridel flyover

        ONE of three proposed flyovers in Mandaue City may not be pursued after all because it would just worsen traffic in barangay Centro and barangay Cambaro, Mandaue City. Architect Florentino Nimor of the Mandaue City Planning and Development office said yesterday that the flyover was too near busy intersections, which could worsen traffic. Nimor was referring to the proposed flyover along Ouano Avenue in bar...
9/9/2011
Osmeña disagrees

        ONE member of the Cebu City Traffic Operations Board (Citom) doesn't agree with its stand on flyovers. Cebu City Councilor Ritchie Osmena was absent in yesterday's board meeting, where the traffic body passed its resolution opposing two new flyovers in busy intersections of the north district. “I am for flyovers. It may not be the solution to the traffic but at least it helps,” Osmena said. He said he didn'...
9/9/2011
‘Stay close to Mary, be holy’

        Hundreds of pilgrims flocked to the Marian shrine in Simala, Sibonga town, southeastern Cebu, yesterday to celebrate the birthday of the Blessed Virgin Mary, whom Catholics and several Christian denominations honor as the mother of Jesus Christ. They lit colored candles to pray for good health, healing, success, good relationships and other intentions in the church under the care of the Marian monks of the E...
9/9/2011
Cebu students top medical technologists’ board exams

        GRADUATES of Cebu Doctors’ University (CDU) and Velez College topped the recent licensure examinations for medical technologists. Isabelle Basubas Baisac of CDU placed first in the examinations with a score of 91.7 percent, the Professional Regulation Commission announced in its website last Wednesday. Sherry Mae Casiño Mondido of Velez placed second (91.3 percent), while Jana Barbra de la Cerna Mayol place...
9/9/2011
City , security agency offer cash aid to slain guards’ kin

        The Cebu City government and a security agency yesterday offered cash assistance to the families of the two guards who died in a shoot-out following last Monday’s heist in Robinsons Place. The Puritan Security Agency provided financial assistance of P10,000 each to the kin of Leofer Etac and Lito Odag. “Before the burial of the two slain guards, we made sure that we have given the financial aid to the famil...
9/9/2011
American support for MILF ‘no secret’

        THE Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) made no attempt to hide the fact that the United States supported their cause of establishing a a Bangsamoro Juridical Entity in Mindanao in 2008. Mohagher Iqbal, MILF chief negotiator for the Mindanao peace process, said Washington’s role in their struggle to create the entity recently exposed by Internet whistle-blower group Wikileaks was no secret. He said the MI...
9/9/2011
Seacrest may close scholarship program

        The Seacrest Maritime Foundation of Southwestern University (SWU)) may close its “study now, pay later” program after more than 100 maritime students staged a walkout Tuesday to protest alleged "exorbitant" fees. “We might stop the program by the end of the year,” Andrew Aznar told Cebu Daily News. Aznar, president of the Seacrest Maritime Foundation of SWU, said they may have to end the program after the ...
9/9/2011
Mixed views on Charter change proposal for foreign investors

        Is there a need to ammend the Constitution so foreign investors would have more access to Philippine resources? Around 200 people from various sectors in the community attended the proposal to expand the role of foreign investors in the development and use of Philippine resources during yesterday's public consultation at the Capitol social hall. The audience, mostly students, opposed the proposal. The hear...
9/8/2011
‘DON’T DELAY MY FLYOVERS’

  Del Mar invites President to inaugurate 2 projects next year     It's now up to President Aquino to decide whether to go ahead or delay two new flyovers in Cebu City which are set to be built this year. Rep. Rachel Marguerite “Cutie” del Mar appealed to President Aquino in a letter not to put off “my projects” which Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, several businessmen and environment groups are trying to sideline in fav...
9/8/2011
Extra budget for drainage, road repair in Cebu City held

        Road and drainage maintenance projects in Cebu City will have to wait for next year’s annual budget. The City Council yesterday approved only P473 million or less than half of the proposed P1.147 billion Supplementary Budget No. 2 proposed by the mayor's office. The council said the mayor failed to identify the fund source for P674-million worth of items. “It's a setback but they promised that it's only a...
9/8/2011
Schoolboy moved out of ICU, but needs therapy

        TEN days after he was hosptialized following his accidental fall from the third floor of his school, 7-year-old Clifford Montana Booc was transferred from the intensive care unit (ICU) of Cebu Doctors’ Hospital to a private room. The transfer was a welcome change for the pupil’s family. However, doctors said Clifford, who suffered major head injuries, would need at least one year of therapy since the fall d...
9/8/2011
Students walk out of maritime school

        More than 100 scholars of the Seacrest Maritime Foundation of Southwestern University (SWU) staged a walkout last Tuesday to protest “exorbitant” fees allegedly imposed on them. The students said they were paying high fees even if they are enrolled under a “study now, pay later” scheme. They showed assessment slips for items like P5,000 for food, P250 for a college fund and a P2,000 surety that they have t...
9/8/2011
Nationwide manhunt for suspect 3 spotted

        All ports in Central Visayas are placed on alert as part of a nationwide manhunt for the wounded robber who escaped after Monday’s foiled holdup of a P1.2-million cash delivery at Robinsons Place in Cebu City. Junjun Cabando, who is suffering a gunshot wound in the buttocks, was last seen leaving his home with his girlfriend in Compostela town, northern Cebu. Three other suspected members of the robbery gan...
9/8/2011
‘Combat-ready’ guards needed, traders say

        STRINGENT security inside malls and “combat-ready” police and security personnel are needed to protect banks and customers in commercial establishments from armed robbers, said some Cebu business leaders. Chito Cabaero, president of the Cebu Bankers Association, told Cebu Daily News that security agencies need to improve the training of their security guards to better deal with armed robbers. Cabaero said ...
9/8/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Capitol backs Korean consulate THE Capitol is supporting the establishment of a Korean consulate to attend to the welfare of the South Korean community in Cebu. “Although we already have an honorary consul, considering the huge influx of Koreans into Cebu, it is just proper that there should be a consulate here,” Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said. She said China and Japan already had consulates in Cebu so...
9/7/2011
COPS HUNT WOUNDED ROBBER

        Police yesterday found bloodied bandages in two hideouts of robbery suspect Junjun Cabando in Mandaue City and Compostela town, but no trace of the Ozamiz gang member. Badly wounded with a gunshot in the buttocks, Cabando, 37, remained at large a day after a foiled armored van heist in Robinsons Place, where three of his cohorts were shot dead. He was seen leaving both residences with his girlfriend Merly L...
9/7/2011
Security agencies have to explain ‘lapses’

        “WE have not found any evidence of an inside job,” said Cebu City Police Chief Ramon Melvin Buenafe about Monday's aborted P1.2-million robbery of an armored van’s cash delivery to a bank client in Robinsons Place. However, he said there may have been lapses in the store's security system because the armed men were able to enter the basement supermarket without being detected. “It's obvious there were lapse...
9/7/2011
Neighbors, family clueless, say rob suspect ‘respectful’

        With her friend asking for assistance, a 21-year-old nursing graduate didn't think twice about helping robbery suspect Junjun Cabando. Anna Marie Magadan, a resident of barangay Subangdaku, Mandaue City, was attending to her child at noon when Cabando's live-in partner Merlyn Laguitao knocked on her door and asked for medicine to help stop Cabando's bleeding. Cabando, one of four suspects in last Monday's f...
9/7/2011
Ozamiz mayor bewails tag with robbery group

        DON'T associate our city's name with criminals. Ozamiz City Mayor Nova Princess Parojinog-Echavez issued this appeal after hearing a report that some of the suspects tagged in the failed P1.2-million heist at the Robinsons Place Mall in Fuente Osmeña, Cebu City, last Monday came from her city. “It is frustrating and degrading on our part to hear news that literally mentioned our city, Ozamiz City as the are...
9/7/2011
Citizens start ‘No to flyover’ movement

        They say it’s a done deal. I disagree,” said architect and urban planner Joy Onozawa yesterday. Her sentiment, shared by a mixed group of students, homeowners, NGO workers, ecology advocates, professors and business proprieters kicked off a multi-sectoral movement to demand “No to flyovers” in Cebu City. The meeting hosted by Permaculture Cebu advocate and hotel owner Joel Lee included atcion plans to invit...
9/7/2011
New floor wage order to take effect Sept. 22

        With the P20 minimum wage increase set to take effect this month, labor groups in Cebu said they plan to file an appeal before the National Wages Productivity Commission (NWPC) for a bigger wage hike. Regional Director Exequiel Sarcauga of the Department of Labor and Employment in Central Visayas (DOLE-7) said the guidelines for the P20 wage increase will be published today. That means it will take effect o...
9/7/2011
Gwen downplays DILG list of best provinces without Cebu ‘Irrelevant’

        CEBU Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia dismissed as “irrelevant” the latest performance report of the Department of Interior and Local Governments (DILG), which didn't rank Cebu among the top 10 “best-governed provinces” in the country. Garcia urged the DILG to be careful in releasing their reports. Bohol topped the ratings with a score of 4.937 followed by La Union, Bulacan, Negros Oriental, Pangasinan and Ilogos Nort...
9/7/2011
Mindanao province to copy Suroy-Suroy

        Sultan Kudarat province in Mindanao may adopt the Cebu province’s Suroy-Suroy sa Sugbo rural tourism program, said Rep. Arnulfo Go. The congressman representing Sultan Kudarat’s 2nd district made this statement after seeing a presentation of the program at the Capitol's new conference room. Go, Sultan Kudarat Vice Gov. Ernesto Matias and other provincial and barangay officials paid a courtesy call to Cebu G...
9/7/2011
‘New tourism secretary should consult industry’

        TOURISM stakeholders in Cebu yesterday called for consultations with new Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez to achieve industry goals for Cebu. Jimenez should meet with tourism players from the private sector if he wants to implement new programs, said Jenny Franco, chairperson of the National Association of Independent Travel Agencies Cebu chapter. “He should consult us and let us know of his plans so we can ...
9/7/2011
Soldiers to help beautify boulevard

        The Central Command (Centcom) of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) yesterday pledged their support for the Beautify Cebu Project of Cebu City and the Beautiful Cebu Movement Inc. Lt. General Ralph Villanueva, Centcom commander and Col. Ronald Albano, chief of staff, joined the ground breaking for sidewalk pavements near the Central Bank of the Philippines and Club Ultima along Osmeña Boulevard. “We ...
9/7/2011
Cañete’s city college students welcome in recognized school

        THE board of trustees of the Mandaue City College (MCC) headed by Mayor Jonas Cortes yesterday approved a resolution to accommodate students from MCC under Dr. Paulus Cañete. Mandaue City Administrator James Abadia said MCC under Dr. Susana Cabahug can accommodate students from Cañete’s MCC enrolled in courses also offered in Cabahug’s MCC. The students have one year to transfer from Aug. 25, 2011, to Aug. ...
9/7/2011
Families bereaved, bravery lauded

        While two Cebu City police officers received awards and were promised incentives for their role in foiling the P1.2-million heist at the Robinsons Place mall last Monday, the families of two security guards who died in the incident received some small consolation. The widows of Lito Odag and Leofer Etac were visited by party-list Rep. Juan Miguel Arroyo of Ang Galing Pinoy, a political party for security gua...
9/7/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        P35 Million for Park or SCHOOLS? CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama and Vice Mayor Joy Young disagree over plans to convert the Pasil fish market. Whlle Rama wants it converted to a public park, Young said the P35-million amount would be better spent to build schools. “When I created the Coastal Management Board (CMB) back in 2002, it was already part of the plan,” Rama said. He said the San Nicolas Paris...
9/6/2011
3 OZAMIZ ROBBERS KILLED

  P1.2-million cash recovered; 2 guards dead    Gunshots rang out as members of an Ozamiz City robbery gang held up a bank teller who was delivering P1.2 million to a money changer outlet in the basement of Robinsons Place, Cebu City past 9 a.m. yesterday. Two guards of the ChinaBank Savings armored van were shot dead. Three gang members were killed in a shoot-out with policemen, who chased the robbers as they sped off...
9/6/2011
How it happened Robbers waited for cash delivery

      AT least three men were waiting in the food court in the Robinson’s mall basement for the armored van to deliver cash to a money changer outlet. The bank teller of ChinaBank, carrying a money bag, entered the basement with an escort security guard past 9 a.m.A second guard was left in the van with the driver. Police said suspect Junjun Cabando was seen sitting at a table near the money changer outlet. When the te...
9/6/2011
Mayor, banker commends fast police action

    CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama and Chito Cabaero, immediate past president of the Cebu Bankers Club, commended the police for their fast action. Cabaero confirmed that police authorities alerted banks to be extra vigilant because of reports that armed robbers from other provinces were spotted in Cebu City. “We’re always kept informed,” Cabaero said. Cabaero said the incident should be a lesson to always be on guard and take...
9/6/2011
Tourism, Cebu officials back local consulate

    Local and tourism officials backed a proposal by the Cebu South Korean community to establish a consulate in the province to help address their concerns, including peace and order. They also reiterated that Koreans will continue to come to the province despite last month's kidnapping of a Korean national by fellow Koreans in Cebu City. Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale said a consulate is needed in Cebu due to the growing Kore...
9/6/2011
‘No attack on freedom of the press’

  Vice Governor Magpale says Anti-Tabloid Ordinance meant to protect children I do believe in freedom of speech, but there are areas in which media have, for us listeners and readers, gone overboard.” This was the statement of Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale, author of the Anti-Tabloid Ordinance pending at the Cebu Provincial Board when sought to comment on the ongoing celebrations of Broadcasters’ Month and the coming 17th Cebu Pr...
9/6/2011
Tejero residents Limit road widening

    RESIDENTS of Alviola Street in fire-ravaged barangay Tejero yesterday asked Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama to limit the width of the road to 7 meters instead of 10 meters to leave space for their homes. Felimon Descallar said if the planned restoration of the road to its original 10-meter width—the standard for barangay roads—is implemented, he would be left without a house but only space for a refrigerator. Descallar and r...
9/6/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    ‘LET STUDENTS TAKE TEACHER’S EXAM’ THE Cebu Provincial Board yesterday passed a resolution asking the Commission on Higher Education (Ched) to allow education graduates of Mandaue City College under Dr. Paulus Cañete to take the Licensure Examinations for Teachers. “The Provincial Board makes this appeal for humanitarian reasons, to give these graduates the chance to fulfill their long-awaited dreams of becoming profession...
9/6/2011
‘Mountain dev’t needs regulation’

    Laws governing upland developments in Cebu City need to be “overhauled,” said Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young. “The city is developing at a much faster rate. Before, we de did not expect developments to reach the mountains,” Young said. Pending resolution of the Monterrazas de Cebu issue, where severe flooding recurred in lowland sitios of Guadalupe and Tisa after heavy rains last month, Rama said he would ask Councilor Noel...
9/6/2011
Capitol open to accepting returnees

    Cebu province was declared “insurgency-free” in March last year but Gov. Gwen Garcia said the Capitol is still willing to help rebel returnees start a new life. Garcia told reporters she is willing to discuss with the 78th Infantry Battalion and the local anti-insurgency task force to draft a policy on accepting rebel returnees outside of the province who want to settle in Cebu. “We are helping provincial inmates in their ...
9/6/2011
Farmers back in contested property

      Three days after their release from jail, more than 50 farmers involved in the agrarian land conflict in Aloguinsan town returned to set up camp in the contested property of Hacienda Gantuangco. Members of militant groups Bayan Muna headed by secretary general Arman Perez, Anakpawis, and Karapatan Central Visayas joined the farmers for a press conference yesterday. Perez said they would organize a fact-finding mis...
9/6/2011
Marina lifts suspension order of Super Island Express 2 vessel

        THE MV Super Island Express II can again ply the Cebu-Tubigon, Bohol route after the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) lifted the suspension order on the five ships of Island Express Corp. Jojo Cabatingan, Marina spokesman, said the suspension order for the Super Island Express II was lifted last Friday and the operation of the cargo passenger vessels resumed last week. “After the favorable recommendat...
9/6/2011
Korean hit by motorbike robbers

    A KOREAN woman is recuperating in a hospital following an assault by one of two motorcycle-riding robbers in the North Reclamation Area in barangay Subangdaku, Mandaue City, last Sunday evening. Hong Joo Yeon, a 22-year-old student, who has the English name “Chloe,” was bludgeoned in the head with a handgun by one of the robbers. Police said the student was waiting for a ride near a mall at the North Reclamation Area when...
9/6/2011
Mandaue officials back flyover projects

    UNLIKE Cebu City officials, the Mandaue City government supports the construction of a new tri-section flyover, saying it can help decongest traffic. City Administrator James Abadia told Cebu Daily News that vehicles headed to the northern and southern parts of Cebu pass through Mandaue and a flyover would ease vehicular flow in the city. Abadia made the statement amid calls by Road Revolution proponents to Cebu officials ...
9/5/2011
‘KOREANS STILL PREFER CEBU’

Korean provincial officials visit Capitol, push closer ties   The kidnapping of a Korean national by fellow Koreans in Cebu City last month won't affect tourist arrivals in Cebu province, an association of Korean nationals said yesterday. In fact, Cebu Korean Association Inc. Vice President Charlie Shin said, they were expecting closer economic and diplomatic ties between South Korea and Cebu with the establishment of sisterhoo...
9/5/2011
Mandaue City flyover to decongest traffic

    While Cebu City officials and businessmen are petitioning President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III to cancel two flyover projects in their city, it's a different story in neighboring Mandaue City. Rep. Gabriel Luis Quisumbing of Cebu's 6th district said the tri-level flyover that will rise in United Nations (UN) Avenue and Plaridel Cansaga Bay Bridge in the middle or end of next year will help decongest traffic in Mandaue Cit...
9/5/2011
Vessel limps to Cebu port on one engine

    THE Cebu Coast Guard will issue a maritime violation to the 830 tonner MV Calbayog of Palacio Shipping Inc. for failure to inform their office about their malfunctioning engine which delayed their arrival at the Cebu port by four hours yesterday. Cebu Coast Guard Chief Commander Rolando Lizor Punzalan said the ship left Calbayog port at 8:30 p.m last Saturday and expected to arrive in Cebu City port at 8 a.m yesterday. Ins...
9/5/2011
Cebu solons spent P260 M for projects

    ABOUT P260 million worth of Priority Development Assistance Funds (PDAF) of nine Cebuano lawmakers were released to fund both infrastructure and basic services to their constituents, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) regional office said. The DBM said a large portion of this amount is allocated to infrastructure projects like school buildings, road concreting and drainage facilities. Appropriation for these p...
9/5/2011
Talisay gov’t exceeded incentives, say auditors

    OFFICIALS and employees of Talisay City Hall received P5.8 million in cash incentives which is well above the ceiling imposed by the Commission on Audit (COA). State auditors said the mayor's office received P825,000 in Productivity Enhancement Incentives (PEI) while the allowable limit is only P285,000. Market personnel received P900,000 or P600,000 more than the allowed P300,000 ceiling. COA also noted the “illegal di...
9/5/2011
93-1 occupants against ownership by mortgage

      Occupants of Cebu province-owned lots covered by Provincial Ordinance 93-1 who partially paid for their lots oppose the proposed implementation of the Community Mortage Program (CMP) to seal ownership of their lots. This developed as the Cebu City Council passed a resolution sponsored by Councilor Nida Cabrera requesting Mayor Michael Rama to include in the proposed Supplemental Budget 2 a P50-million appropriation ...
9/5/2011
Cebu to give P5 million to Ilocos Norte

    THE Cebu provincial government announced that it will extend financial aid to its sister province, the typhoon Mina-ravaged Ilocos Norte. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said she will fly to Ilocos Norte today to turn over a P5-million check to Gov. Imee Marcos. A state-run news agency reported that damage caused by typhoon Mina in Ilocos Norte climbed to P312.9 million in lost crops and destroyed roads, bridges and public bu...
9/5/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    GLOBAL CONTAINER TERMINAL IN CEBU REPRESENTATIVES of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) will meet today with the Cebu Port Authority (CPA) to revisit the stalled study on putting up an International Container Terminal in Cebu. CPA Manager Dennis Villamor met last week with Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia and Rep. Benhur Salimbangon of Cebu's 4th dist...
9/5/2011
‘Make Mary happy, reject the RH bill’

    To oppose the Reproductive Health bill now being debated in the Senate is to give the Blessed Virgin Mary a beautiful birthday present. This was the message of Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma at Mass following yesterday's Walk for Mary, a procession to celebrate in advance the Sept. 8 birthday of Mary. “If we fight against RH bill, we will make Mama Mary happy,” said Palma, incoming president of the Catholic Bishops' Conferenc...
9/5/2011
Palma willing to help settle Aloguinsan feud

    Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma is willing to meet with farmers and landowners in Aloguinsan town in southern Cebu to settle their land dispute. Palma yesterday said that he would welcome any request for assistance to settle the problem in Aloguinsan. “ I'm open for people to come,” Palma said. The farmers, including three college students, were arrested last Monday after they clashed with policemen over ownership of an agric...
9/5/2011
Anti-graft office says cop demanded cash from detainee

  THE anti-graft office affirmed a ruling which found a policeman liable for allegedly demanding P70,000 from a detainee in 2008. The Office of the Military and Other Law Enforcement Office found probable cause to elevate robbery charges against SPO2 Edgar Perea to court. In his resolution, graft investigation and prosecution oficer Conrado Estreller Jr. gave weight to the allegations of the complainants compared to the denial of th...
9/4/2011
CONSULATE IN CEBU EYED

  Kidnappers have local ties; Sokor aid sought     Last month's kidnapping of a Korean tourist by fellow Koreans in Cebu City wasn't an isolated incident as far as the country is concerned, said a top South Korean official yesterday. Cebu Korean Association Inc. Vice President Charlie Shin said the kidnapping of Kwon Young Hoon last Aug. 21 was the second that involved Korean captors in the country this year. The fir...
9/4/2011
COA questions fuel expenses

        Excessive fuel consumption and unregistered phone calls were among the red flags raised by state auditors in their review of Talisay City's expenditures made last year. In its 2010 report, the Commission on Audit (COA) said there's an “excessive consumption” of gasoline and diesel fuel for the vehicles under the Talisay mayor's office. The auditors cited in particular the Toyota Revo with plate number SGH 5...
9/4/2011
Reward for Bella draws calls

        FOLLOWING the Capitol's announcement of a P300,00 reward, the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Central Visayas (CIDG-7) said scores of people gave information on the whereabouts of homicide suspect Bella Ruby Santos. As of yesterday, CIDG-7 lead lawyer Inocencio dela Cerna said they already entertained 10 tipsters, who offered leads to the police to locate Santos, one of two primary suspects in ...
9/4/2011
Farmers, students post bail, mull counter charges

        AFTER the women, it was the turn of the male farmers and three college students to be released from jail at 2 p.m yesterday following their arrest last week. The male farmers stepped out of the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) after posting bail pending the resolution of the charges filed against them in court. Three female minors were committed to the Operation Second Chance in b...
9/4/2011
Banawa fire injures 2, burns 30 homes

        Two persons were injured while 50 families were left homeless when a mid-morning fire burned houses made of light materials in an interior sitio in Banawa in barangay Guadalupe yesterday. Fire victims Vincent Mañigo and Nestor delos Arcos were treated for burns and cuts after they tried to save their belongings from their burning homes. Mañigo sustained third degree burns on his body while Arcos sustained a...
9/4/2011
Rama to P-Noy Stop two flyover projects

        Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama is asking President Benigno Aquino III's help to stop the implementation of flyover projects proposed to be constructed along the intersections of M.J. Cuenco and General Maxilom Avenue and Gorordo and Archbishop Reyes Avenue. In his Sept. 2 letter, Rama brought to Aquino's attention oppositions raised against the two new flyover projects proposed in Cebu City. “Please be inform...
9/4/2011
Tom O I’m ready to bring cemetery fight to court

        REP. Tomas Osmeña (Cebu City south district) is ready to fight the Cebu provincial government in court to make sure that a multi-faith cemetery at the Osmeña Shrine, which he promised when he was still Cebu City mayor, will push through. Unlike Mayor Michael Rama, Osmeña said he was prepared to “plant his feet on the ground” to make sure that the cemetery project for the non-Catholics would be implemented. ...
9/4/2011
Oct. 1 deadline to close landfill may be moved

        With the city having no alternative dump site yet, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama may have to set aside plans to totally close the Inayawan Sanitary landfill on Oct. 1. Rama said while the city had yet to identify an alternative site to dispose its garbage, the city was also still preparing its closure plan for the landfill. “We are still going toward that direction (total closure of the landfill) but there a...
9/4/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        PASIL SCHOOL OR PARK? “A SCHOOL is more important than a park.” Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young gave this statement to justify the City Council's plan to convert the Pasil Fish Market into a school instead of pursuing Mayor Michael Rama's plan to convert it into a public park. Rama is asking P25 million for the project, which is included in the proposed Supplemental Budget 2. “Two years ago, there was alrea...
9/3/2011
P300T REWARD TO CATCH BELLA

        The Capitol has joined the hunt for the elusive Bella Ruby Santos, who is wanted on charges of kidnapping and homicide for the death of 6-year-old pupil Ellah Joy Pique. “We are putting up P300,000 as reward money... This is a special case under the province's Tipster Program,” Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia told reporters yesterday. The cash reward will go to anyone who has information that would lead to the arrest...
9/3/2011
UP Cebu dean, 2 allies ordered dismissed

        A movement to oust the dean in the University of the Philippine Cebu College over internal complaints of mismanagement claimed victory yesterday after his dismissal was ordered by the Office of the UP President. Militant students welcomed the decision of the exit of Dr. Enrique M. Avila by holding a “boodle fiht” or communal meal of rice and viands served on banana leaves in the campus. In a decision dated ...
9/3/2011
Cebu tourism figures hail DOT secretary

        SEVERAL tourism stakeholders in Cebu welcomed the appointment of incoming tourism secretary Ramon Reyes Jimenez Jr. and assured their support. Cebu City Tourism commissioner and former Waterfront hotel manager Marco Protacio said Jimenez's background as an advertising executive will serve him well in his job. “He will take the country's tourism industry to the next level,” Protacio said. Cebu Vice Gov. A...
9/3/2011
Korean captors part of syndicate, say police

        THE four Koreans who held one of their own countrymen hostage for two days when he visited Cebu City last month may be part of a syndicate operating in the country, police said yesterday. Chief Insp. Fermin Armendarez of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG-7), said they are searching for the suspects whom they believe to be in Manila A complaint for kidnapping for ransom was filed against t...
9/3/2011
Cybersex victims to get counseling

        Two girls, aged 11 and 17, who were allegedly enticed by a neighbor to pose nude for a cybersex session in barangay San Miguel, Cordova town will undergo counselling and medical exams. Social worker Edna Ragudo of the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Central Visayas (DSWD-7) said authorities will also assess whether it’s safe to turn over the minors to their mother. The girls are still in the...
9/3/2011
Fire victims near resto moved

        FIRE victims occupying the sidwalks near White GoldHouse Restaurant in the North Reclamation Area were transferred to a vacant lot two blocks away. The sidewalks were cleared after the restaurant owner appealed to City Hall to intervene because the presence of the settlers was driving customers away. Alvin Santillana, head of the city's disaster risk reduction management office, said the “clearing” of fire ...
9/3/2011
Mayor No more vanity photos on city gov’t buses

        NO more faces painted on bus sides, please. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said he ordered the removal of all pictures of Cebu City councilors, his own and that of Rep. Tomas Osmeña from the sides of city-owned Kaoshiung buses. He said this is in keeping with President Aquino’s order not to splash the faces of public officials in government-owned vehicles and signages. Rama said he ordered Engr. Rolly Ardosa...
9/3/2011
Council won’t approve P674M for infra in SB2

        Priority funding for 83 infrastructure projects worth P674 million under Supplemental Budget 2 was deferred after the Cebu City Council decided to include the outlays in next year's budget instead. The projects, which Mayor Michael Rama earlier said were “urgent” needs, would have to wait for the 2012 budget, said Councilor Margot Osmeña, head of Cebu City Council's budget committee. These projects include ...
9/3/2011
Dads unaware of lot contract conditions – Rama

        CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama admitted yesterday that there was “oversight” by the previous city council which he headed when it authorized former mayor and now south district representative Tomas Osmeña to donate the Osmeña Shrine for a multi-faith cemetery. Rama said the previous council was unaware of the conditions made by the provincial government when it donated the 4.2 hectare Osmeña Shrine to the city...
9/3/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      18 FARMERS FREED AT LEAST 18 farmers and two students were released on bail yesterday after Monday’s clash with policemen who dispersed a human barricade of protestors trying to stop the fencing of Hacienda Gantuangco in Aloguinsan, midwest Cebu.. The detainees, all women, stepped out of jail in Pinamungajan town about 6 p.m. College students Remy Jade Manson and Melanie Montanio were also freed after posting ...
9/2/2011
7,000 Dollar RANSOM FOR KOREAN

  Tourist kidnapped, released by fellow Koreans in Cebu City     A Korean tourist visiting Cebu City was kidnapped by four fellow Koreans, who released him after two days, said police. The victim’s friends paid $7,000 in ransom. Police yesterday filed a complaint for kidnapping for ransom in the Cebu City Prosecutor's Office against the captors of 28-year-old Kwon Young Hoon in connection with his Aug. 20 to 23 ordea...
9/2/2011
Flyovers, a threat to historical sites, says Mayor Rama

        Building flyovers will diminish the value of historical sites in the city, like the Asilo dela Milagrosa Church on Gorordo Avenue, and “kill” nearby businesses, said Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama yesterday. “Cebu City is an old city, a compact city. Flyovers will only kill nearby businesses. We don't really need flyovers now. What we really need is road widening,” he said. The mayor repeated his desire for t...
9/2/2011
City dad seeks more labor reps in wage board

        A CEBU City councilor is proposing to have more labor sector representatives in the Regional Tripartite Wage Productivity Board (RTWPB) to make sure that the labor sector is protected. Cebu City Councilor Alvin Dizon said the recently approved P20 increase in the daily minimum wage for Central Visayas was glaring proof that the board's current composition was pro-management. “The P20 wage increase is too sm...
9/2/2011
Advertising executive Jimenez is new tourism secretary

        BEIJING—After weeks of speculation, President Aquino on Wednesday night announced the appointment of advertising executive Ramon Jimenez as tourism secretary. Mr. Aquino made the announcement just as the former Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim's resignation took effect on Aug. 31. "Mon Jimenez has accepted the position. He's a marketing, advertising guy and, you know, tourism, I think is primarily a marketing...
9/2/2011
CDN columnist wins 5th Palanca

        Cebu Daily News’ Sunday essayist won his fifth accolade from the country’s top literary award-giving body. Judge Simeon Dumdum Jr. of the Regional Trial Court Branch 7 won third prize in the 61st Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for his poetry collection, “Maguindanao.” “Maguindanao,” is also the title of one of the suite’s 10 poems, Dumdum said. The poem, which alludes to the Nov. 23, 2009 Maguindanao M...
9/2/2011
Sonny O offers to bail out farmers

        With bail set at P606,000 for 39 protestors, mostly farmers, who were arrested in Monday’s clash with policemen in Hacienda Gantuangco, who can cough up the money for their release? Lawyers yesterday asked the court to reduce the amount of bail for the detainees’ temporary liberty by almost half or P273,000. The 36 farmers and three college students are banking on help from former senator John Henry “Sonny”...
9/2/2011
‘I shot prosecutor,’ says barber

        ARRESTED barber Lyndon Hurandoy yesterday confessed to being the gunman who shot dead Cebu City Prosecutor Patrick Brian Osorio in 2009. But police remained mum on the motive behind the action of the hired gunman. Hurandoy yesterday signed in the presence of news reporters s a statement admitting that he had shot Osorio. Chief Insp. Romeo Santander of the City Intelligence Branch who led the arrest of Hura...
9/2/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        COUNCIL STILL AGAINST CIUDAD THE Cebu City Council continues to oppose the implementation of the provincial government’s Ciudad project in the city’s northern corridor. Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young said councilors will take action against the planning office’s issuance of a locational clearance for the project which they see as a violation of the city’s zoning ordinance. “The council will do something b...
9/2/2011
Gwen to review donation of shrine land

        Gov. Gwen Garcia yesterday said she would review donation papers of the 4.2-hectare lot in barangay Kalunasan, Cebu City where plans for a new cemetery have drawn flak for the city government. She listened to over a thousand residents of Beverly Glenn and Beverly Hills, Kalunasan and Lahug, who gathered at the Capitol Social Hall to air their fears of water contamination, flooding and health hazards posed b...
9/2/2011
‘Send fire victims away bad for the restaurant’

        The owner of White Gold House complained of losses incurred since Carreta fire victims started to occupy sidewalks near the restaurant on July 17. Alex Gaisano, restaurant president and CEO, said he wants Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama to relocate the fire victims to save his business. “The White Gold House Restaurant is a tourist-oriented Chinese cuisine restaurant that caters (to) foreign visitors and busin...
9/2/2011
Mandaue City to cite taxpayers, investors

        THE Mandaue city government will award today its top taxpayers and investors as part of the city's 42nd Charter Day celebration. The awarding rites will be held at the Oak Ridge Pavilion along A.S. Fortuna Street, barangay Banilad at 6 p.m. In a press conference Jimmy Pareja of the city’s treasurer’s operation review unit and Dimmy Ceniza of the realty tax division said they will also give special awards to...
9/2/2011
Margot Pay of City Hall workers should be prioritized in budget

        SHOULD the Cebu City Council approve the implementation of infrastructure projects even in the absence of a fund source? Until the issue is resolved, council members agreed there was no point in continuing their scrutiny of the P1.147-billion supplemental budget 2 proposed by Mayor Michael Rama. “What's the point of continuing the discussion when there are really no fund sources?” said Councilor Margot Osme...
9/2/2011
DILG closes usurpation hearing

        HEARINGS over accusations of usurpation of authority filed against Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia ended yesterday. The camps of former Vice Gov. Gregorio Sanchez daughter Grecylda “Gigi” Zaballero and Garcia had presented their all their witnesses before the Department of Interior and Local Government in Central Visayas. They were given time to submit their formal offer of exhibits and memorandum before the cas...
9/2/2011
Man sued for human trafficking

        CHARGES of human trafficking were filed against a 35-year-old man who allegedly recruited a girl and two women for sexual exploitation. The accused was arrested during an entrapment operation by the Regional Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force in a resto bar along V. Rama Avenue, Cebu City last Aug 26. No bail was recommended. The law prohibits the identification of both the accused and the victims in the med...
9/2/2011
Gov’t urged Adapt to natural disasters

      Manila—If the Philippine government wants to attract more investors, it should make the country resilient to the host of natural disasters that plague it constantly. Tropical cyclones, erupting volcanoes, earthquakes, floods and the Philippines' inability to adapt to these disasters is undermining its economic growth and making it unattractive to big investors, an international risk think tank said. According to t...
9/1/2011
P20 WAGE INCREASE

        Workers in Central Visayas will receive an additional P20 in the minimum daily wage before the end of September. With a vote of 4-2 , the Regional Tripatite Wages and Productivity Board in Central Visayas (RTWPB-7) approved the P20 hike in the daily floor wage for workers in the provinces of Cebu, Bohol, Negros Oriental and Siquijor. The increase means the basic pay for private sector workers in Metro Cebu ...
9/1/2011
Second slay suspect caught inside salon

        A barber was arrested 6 p.m. Tuesday as one of the suspected gunman in the 2009 ambush of Cebu City assistant prosecutor Patrick Brian Osorio. Lyndon Hurandoy, 28, was arrested at at his workplace in a salon in barangay Guba, Cebu City by police and agents of the Criminal Investigation Division Group (CIDG). Hurandoy is a resident of barangay Maghaway, Talisay City. “His looks have changed,” saidChief Insp...
9/1/2011
Council mulls over P165 M deposit

        INSTEAD of a bank loan, the Cebu City government can terminate its P165 million time deposit with the Philippine Veterans Bank (PVB) to help fund the P1.147-billion Supplemental Budget no. 2. Councilor Margot Osmeña suggested this option in yesterday's budget hearing at the City Council that was attended by City Hall department heads. “Wouldn't it be more prudent to pre-terminate the time deposit?,” she as...
9/1/2011
NBI-7 can reopen probe on vigilante killings if...

        No one was arrested or brought to trial for the rash of vigilante killings of suspected hoodlums in Cebu City in 2005. The National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) ceased its investigation over six years ago but an official yesterday said it was willing to reopen its inquiry after the issue of extrajudicial killings resurfaced in a declassified US cable made public through Wikileaks. “Th...
9/1/2011
Farmers, students charged with assault, disobedience

        Police yesterday charged wtith direct assault 36 farmers and three studentd who allegedly clashed with them to stop the fencing of the disputed Hacienda Gantuangco in Aloguinsan town, midwest Cebu. Law enforcers took the handcuffed respondents to the Cebu Provincial Prosecutor’s Office for inquest proceedings yesterday afternoon. Assisted by at least six lawyers, the respondents opted not to sign a waiver...
9/1/2011
Cebu City clears Ciudad project

        The developer of the proposed Ciudad project in a province-owned lot along the Banilad-Talamban corridor already secured a locational clearance from the Cebu City Planning and Development Office (CPDO). City Planning Officer Alipio Bacalso confirmed yesterday that a locational clearance was already issued to project developer Fifth Avenue Development Corp. last Aug. 19. “The project is locationally viable ...
9/1/2011
Socialized housing beneficiaries freed from transfer tax

        AN ordinance that exempts social housing beneficiaries from payment of transfer tax was approved by the Cebu City Council in its session yesterday afternoon. The transfer tax is computed based on one half of one percent of the actual lot cost. “Passage of the ordinance will allow over 1, 000 socialized housing beneficiaries to achieve security of land tenure,” said Councilor Alvin Dizon, who authored the o...
9/1/2011
Ex-tanod nabbed in Lapu drug bust

        A former barangay tanod in Lapu-Lapu City was arrested in a drug buy-bust operation last Tuesday night. Melcon Alisoso, 40, allegedly sold a pack of suspected shabu worth P100 to a poseur buyer when he was arrested at 9 p.m. in sitio Saac, barangay Buaya. Police said four more small packs of suspected shabu were recovered from Alisoso after the arrest. Police said Alisoso was placed under surveillance for ...
9/1/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        ‘REMOVE THOSE FACES’ CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama ordered Engineer Rolly Ardosa of the General Services Office to remove the faces of past and present councilors and Rep. Tomas Osmeña of the city's south district on some Kaohsiung buses. “I asked them to totally remove it pursuant to the request of the President,” he said. President Benigno Aquino III through the Department of Interior and Local Govern...
8/31/2011
WIKILEAKS TARGETS CEBU CITY

  2005 US Embassy report says Cebuanos ‘appear to support’ vigilante killings     Cebu City’s “vigilante killings” of suspected hoodlums didn’t escape the notice of United States officials. A US Embassy cable recently released by the anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks showed that in 2005, the US Ambassador to the Philippines reported that Cebu government officials and the public were perceived to be supporting the killings...
8/31/2011
Vigilante killings

    This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available. 05MANILA1774 2005-04-18 23:09 2011-08-26 00:00 UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY Embassy Manila SUBJECT: LATEST VIGILANTE KILLINGS  IN CEBU - NO END IN SIGHT 1. (U) Summary: Summary executions of suspected criminals by “death squads” in Cebu are continuing at an alarming rate. According to media re...
8/31/2011
Fenced Aloguinsan land for sale—lawyer

     Heirs of Hacienda Gantuangco want to to sell the farm’s 168 hectares of agricultural and coastal land in Aloguinsan town, where farmers have been trying to fight off eviction since the 1990s. “The heirs observed there are a lot of illegal occupants. They decided to fence it to prevent further intrusion,” said the Gantuangco clan’s lawyer Francisco Amit yesterday. A day after police dispersed a human barricade of abou...
8/31/2011
‘Blame the devil,’ says father of confessed killer

    HE may have been separated from his family, but Virgilio Dalangin still cared enough to visit the wake of his murdered ex-wife at St. Peter’s Memorial Chapel in New Imus Road, Cebu City, yesterday. “I try to laugh at it. Kahit ganito ako, biyak ang puso ko (Although I act this way, my heart is broken),” Dalangin told Cebu Daily News. He flew to Cebu City from Manila after learning about last week’s murder. His former wif...
8/31/2011
Feasting, forgiveness cap Muslim Ramadan

    The Muslim community in Cebu called for unity and peace as they began celebrating Eid al-Fitr, the end of their holy month of Ramadan yesterday. The day was marked with the offering of prayers and feasting, said Melo Manonggiring, regional director of the National Commission on Muslim Philippines. Eid al-Fitr or the “Festival of the Purification After Completing the Fasting Month” is celebrated for three days after Ramadan...
8/31/2011
Del Mars remove faces from buses

      Brown plaster has been used to cover the images of north district Rep. Rachel “Cutie” del Mar of Cebu City's north district and that of her father and predecessor, Raul, painted on buses that they earlier distributed to 46 barangays in their district. Rep. Del Mar said the move was in compliance with President Benigno Aquino III's memorandum for the removal of politicians' faces and names on government projects and...
8/31/2011
E-cars for new market

    Four brand-new electric cars (e-cars) will be available for free rides to the new Mandaue City public market, when vendors move to the new facility two months from now. Mandaue Mayor Jonas Cortes, who had the vehicles blessed yesterday, said the route is still up for discussion with traffic authorities but that the e-cars will definitely roam the heart of the city and give free rides to people to and from the modern marke...
8/31/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    Supplemental budget hearing today ALL Cebu City Hall department heads are expected to attend this afternoon's hearing for the Supplemental Budget no. 2 worth P1.147 billion at the City Council session hall. Cebu City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete said a big chunk of the budget goes to infrastructure and drainage projects as well as the renovation of the Carbon public market. He said the city's senior citizens will als...
8/31/2011
Mandaue fetes best employees

      The Mandaue City government celebrated the locality’s 42nd Charter Day by awarding 19 outstanding employees last night in ceremonies at the Mandaue City Cultural and Sports Complex. Awarding rites followed the thanksgiving Mass officiated by Fr. Randy Nebria in the National Shrine of Saint Joseph. Mayor Jonas Cortes commended the awardees (see table) for a job well done. He said they were awarded based on perform...
8/31/2011
‘No one arrested, but supporters still liable’

      NO one ever got arrested for executing suspected hoodlums at the height of “vigilante” killings in Cebu City. Nevertheless, the creation of death squads is illegal, said Associate Justice Gabriel Ingles of the Court of Appeals 19th division yesterday. In a phone interview, Ingles said an investigation should be conducted into the WikiLeaks report to find out whether or not government officials “encouraged” vigilan...
8/30/2011
RIOT OVER FARMLAND

  39 arrested in Aloguinsan over fencing of hacienda   A riot broke out yesterday in Aloguinsan town, midwest Cebu, where policemen clashed with about 250 protestors who were trying to stop the fencing of a disputed 140-hectare tract of agricultural land. At least 39 people were arrested, including local farmers and college students from Cebu City. They were brought to police jails in Pinamungahan town and Toledo City, ...
8/30/2011
3 UP Cebu students arrested

      THREE students from the University of the Philippines-Cebu were arrested in yesterday's dispersal of a human barricade in Aloguinsan town, midwest Cebu. They were Januelle Rontos, 21, a political science major; Jade Manson, 20, a BS math major; and 19-year-old Melanie Montaña, 19, a biology student. Montaña said the students were there for an exposure trip or Basic Masses Integration (BMI) in the area and to suppo...
8/30/2011
Police sent 2 platoons

      TWO platoons of almost 200 policemen were sent to Aloguinsan as early as 4 a.m. to prevent any commotion during the fencing of the Gantuangco property, said Senior Supt. Patrocinio Comendador, provincial director of Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO). Barangay Bon-Bon is about two kilometers away from the Aloguinsan police station. He said two platoons from the Regional Public Safety Management Batallion (RPSMB)...
8/30/2011
‘Widen roads for bicycles, people’

        INSTEAD of adding flyovers, the government should focus on widening roads for pedestrian and bike lanes for Cebu City, said proponents of the Road Revolution project. Architect Joy Martinez-Onozawa and Tara Rama of the Law of Nature Foundation said a public dialogue should be held about the announced construction of two new flyovers in Cebu City worth P600 milion, whose construction will start this year even...
8/30/2011
Tabunok market closed

    After months of resisting a transfer, vendors of the public market in Tabunok, Talisay City, found their old hangout closed yesterday. Despite a human barricade by protesting vendors, police managed to fence the old public market to implement a closure order and arrested one man at 7 a.m. yesterday. Talisay consumers can now find wet and dry goods at the new Gullas-Macapagal public market in Lagtang, where four-month rent-...
8/30/2011
Talisay vendors adjust to life in new market

    MANY Talisay City vendors yesterday resigned themselves to the closure of the old Tabunok public market. In separate interviews, they talked about how their transfer to the Gullas-Macapagal market building in barangay Lagtang would mean less customers and lower profits. They took down plywood sheets from their old stalls in the Tabunok public market after the police fenced the area at 7 a.m. yesterday. Vendor Gregoria Es...
8/30/2011
Barili mishap claims two more

    The Aug. 18 dump truck accident in Barili town, southwestern Cebu, that killed 10 persons claimed two more lives. Sixteen-year-old Jesse Diagbel died at 10:03 p.m. last Thursday in the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center in Cebu City. Seventy-five-year-old Pedro Diagbel also died last week. Jesse was confined for a week before he died. He was the third casualty to die in the hospital. Staff of Sacred Heart Funeral Home...
8/30/2011
Sinug dancer, 16 others honored

    It was a toast to the true, good and beautiful in Cebuano cultural heritage. The fourth anniversary of Hamiling Binilin, the organization of pioneering Cebuano Heritage Studies graduates of the University of San Carlos (USC), was celebrated with a tribute to persons and institutions that promoted Cebuano heritage. Estelita “Inday Titang” Diola, 82, known as the keeper of the traditional Sinug dance steps, was among the 17...
8/30/2011
‘Rescued eagle species can’t be found abroad’

      THE wounded eagle that was rescued in Lapu-Lapu City last week belongs to a species that can be found only in the Philippines. The bird, identified as a Philippine serpent eagle (scientific name Spilornis holospilus) can be found across the Philippines except Palawan island, where a similar species, the crested serpent eagle, is found, said Lisa Paguntalan, field operations director of the Philippine Biodiversity Co...
8/30/2011
Former Marina engineer seeks TRO on dismissal

        A FORMER engineer of the Maritime Industrial Authority (Marina) asked the court to to stop implementation of an Ombudsman ruling that dismissed her from government service. Lilah Rodas, former engineer of the Marina-Central Visayas, said the decision rendered against her is not final. She filed a civil case last week against Marina director Nanette Dinopol and administrator Emerson Lorenzo. Last Aug. 28, ...
8/30/2011
Palma to pursue September dialogue for labor, business

    The Cebu Archdiocese will initiate a dialogue with the business sector and labor as part of its commitment to build understanding between the two sectors. By mid-September, Palma said he will organize a gathering with representatives of both sectors in Cebu. “In the past, we met with business circles and their leaders but we decided to include in the gathering the dimension of workers because these are all related,” Palma...
8/30/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      Fake Auto Parts Five persons were charged in court for allegedly selling counterfeit Bosch automative parts in downtown Cebu City. Johnny Go, Ernesto Ang, Maria Uy and Josephine Go, owners of Kapitan Parts Center Co.; and Felisa Escalona of Cebu Victory Auto were accused of violating Republic Act 8293 or the Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines. Bail was recommended at P10,000 for each of the accused. ...
8/29/2011
KNOW YOUR LIMITS PALMA

  Cebu prelate says Anti-Tabloid Ordinance a reminder on media   While calling on Cebu’s media practitioners to believe in the “nobility of their work,” Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma lauded the provincial government for helping to uphold the good faith and culture of the Cebuanos with their proposed anti-tabloid ordinance. In an interview, Palma said he “appreciates” the province's reminder of the limitations of freedom of e...
8/29/2011
Watershed, river plan sought

      Much work lies ahead for Cebu province if it wants to resolve its flooding and water supply problems. Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma said this as he called on local government officials and stakeholders to draft a comprehensive water management and flooding plan to protect Cebu's river basins and ensure the sustainability of province's water supply. The Central Cebu River Basins Management Council (CCRBMC) which Palma...
8/29/2011
Slay victim’s sons to arrive today, claim remains

    EVEN in death, the children of slain Rubirosa Tenchavez will keep their promise to bring her abroad. A female relative of Rubirosa who requested anonymity told Cebu Daily News that the victim's cremated remains will be brought by her sons, who work as nurses in Singapore and New Zealand. Michael and Mark Tenchavez were scheduled to arrive in Cebu City today. A private funeral wake was held for Rubirosa Tenchavez at the S...
8/29/2011
Vidal urges faithful Protect values of Cebuano youths

      He may be retired, but Cebu archbishop emeritus Ricardo Cardinal Vidal isn't resting on his laurels. In launching his fourth book “I'm Old, You're Still Young” last Saturday evening, Vidal called on the Cebuano Catholic faithful to help educate and instill Christian values among their youth. "The Cebuano youth are the future and the present of the Church. They should be laden with values," Vidal told the 600 guest...
8/29/2011
Ombud clears Garcias of raps in campaign rally

      CRIMINAL and administrative charges were dismissed by the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas against Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, her father Rep. Pablo Garcia of Cebu's 2nd district and other officials in relation to statements they reportedly made in a political rally in 2004. In a statement, graft investigation and prosecution officer Judy Ann Doctor-Escalona said the complainants failed to specify what acts the offi...
8/29/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    Garcia mum on plans CEBU Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said she will keep her options open as far as the 2013 elections are concerned. In last week's tour of 20 students of the Mindanao State University-Iligan Institute of Technology (MSU- IIT), the governor told students that she would run to “either strengthen their political party” One Cebu or quit politics altogether. Garcia received endorsements to run for higher office from...
8/29/2011
‘Captain should have changed course’

      At the height of typhoon Frank in 2008, MV Princess of the Stars took an “extremely dangerous” route from the Manila port to Cebu City. This was the declaration of retired ship captain Amado Romillo, an expert witness presented by the prosecution during the resumption of the trial on a civil suit filed against the ship's management. Instead of passing through the west side of Mindoro, Romillo said the sunken ship ...
8/29/2011
Investigate Gubalane on allowances – fiscals

    Regional State Prosecutor Fernando Gubalane is confronted with yet another complaint regarding the allowances he received from local government units. A group of “concerned” prosecutors requested the Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas to conduct an investigation against Gubalane for receiving allowances, which were allegedly beyond what was allowed under the law. The complainants, who aired their grievances through Ass...
8/29/2011
Solon pushes bill to set up Cordova hospital

    CORDOVA town will soon have a 25-bed public hospital if a bill submitted in Congress will be approved. Rep. Gabriel Luis Quisumbing (Cebu 6th district) submitted the House Bill 5200 recently seeking for a public hospital for the “delivery of effective and affordable medical care and services to the people” which is a primary obligation of the government. Quisumbing said Cordova town might have a Municipal Health Office but...
8/28/2011
VICTIM’S SON USED SHABU

  Confessed killer took drugs and mother’s jewelry     He joked around with law enforcers and kept on smiling. “Murag napungot lang gyud ko ba (I just got pissed off),” said 25-year-old Christian “Lucky” Dalangin as he explained to reporters why he killed his mother by cutting her throat. The young man was brought to the Palace of Justice yesterday where he was charged with parricide. The killing of 53-year-old Rubir...
8/28/2011
Grand Legacy residents plan to hire own experts

        A technical team will be tapped to support complaints of subdivision residents that upland developments in Cebu City were the cause of flooding in their homes. Joe Barba, a resident of Grand Legacy Subdivision, said they are seriously considering hiring technical experts to inspect and report on deficiencies they blame on the Monterrazas de Cebu project. “We will be forced to do it to prove that their deve...
8/28/2011
Holidays on Aug. 29, 30

        THIS month ends in a long weekend for students and most employees today. President Benigno Aquino III declared Aug. 29 to 30, Monday and Tuesday, as national holidays for the commemoration of National Heroes’ Day and the observance of of Eid’l Fitr or the Feast of Ramadan respectively. National Heroes’ Day, which is celebrated every last Monday of August, commemorates the “Cry of Pugad Lawin” by the Filipin...
8/28/2011
Pupil showing signs of recovery after fall

        THE 7-year-old pupil who was seriously injured after falling from the third floor of the Lyceum de Cebu school building has shown some improvement days after the accident. Mercy Guinita, aunt of accident victim Clifford Montana Booc, told Cebu Daily News her nephew responds to questions by nodding or showing gestures of disapproval. He can also move his arms and legs better, Guinita said. Clifford was in...
8/28/2011
Fire victims struggle to get by

        Mary Jane Basoy never knew what hit her. A 36-year-old barbecue vendor who owned a small store in barangay Carreta, Cebu City, Mary Jane was with her 4-year-old girl in a mall when she received a call from her 18-year-old daughter that a fire struck their area at noon last Wednesay, Aug. 17. She rushed to the area only to be greeted by the sight of her house and store reduced to rubble by the fire. Mary ...
8/28/2011
Schools urged to promote awareness on metal toxicity

        EDUCATION officials should raise awareness among parents and their children on chemical and metal toxicity to ensure their health in the long term. In a Children's Health and Chemical Safety Workshop organized by the Ecowaste Coalition, Philippine Earth Justice and the University of Cebu College of Law, Dr. Bessie Antonio said the children and their parents are unaware about this problem even if they are exp...
8/28/2011
‘Flyover may cause accidents’

        City Traffic Office Management (Citom) chief yesterday pointed out a flaw in building a flyover along the M.J. Cuenco and Gen. Maxilom avenues—the flyover is located about 50 meters away from the Imus Road Traffic light. Rafael Yap, City Traffic Operations Management executive director, said this would be impractical and would only create another problem— more accidents in the area. Yap said vehicles that w...
8/28/2011
Ellah Joy’s pa supports launch of Child Protect Movement

        “Don’t forget Ellah Joy.” This is the call of Renato Pique, the father of 6-year-old Ellah Joy Pique who was abducted and killed last Feb. 8. He made his appeal during yesterday’s launching of the Child Protect Movement organized by the Children’s Legal Bureau. Pique said that his greatest fear was that the public would forget about the crime and the culprits would not be brought to justice. “If people fo...
8/28/2011
Bid to hike cockpit taxes hit

        INSTEAD of doubling the taxes and permit fees on the operation of cockpits, the Cebu City government should instead regulate cockpit operations. Agsungot barangay captain Pastor Alcover, a cockfight enthusiast, gave this proposal during last Wednesday's public hearing on the proposed ordinance to increase taxes on cockpit operations sponsored by City Councilor Augustus Pe Jr. Alcover said increasing cockpit...
8/27/2011
SON’S SECRET ‘I KILLED MAMA’

  NBI-7 finds mother’s body buried under stockroom     The remains of a 53-year-old mother were retrieved yesterday from a freshly dug hole in her residence in Cebu City, shocking neighbors who found out that she had been murdered in anger by her son. Agents of the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) said they found Rubirosa Tenchavez buried under the stockroom of the house and that her 25-year-...
8/27/2011
Why build flyovers first before a master plan?

        With most of the funding already released for two new flyover projects in Cebu City, city officials and critics yesterday agreed that a master plan is needed for infrastructure projects in the city. Businessmen still questioned the need and practicality of adding two more massive flyovers at a cost of P600 million. Their sentiments were aired in a public forum held by the Department of Public Works and High...
8/27/2011
Trafficking charges against woman, daughter

        CHARGES of qualified trafficking were filed in court against a 41-year-old Tagalog mother and her 22-year-old daughter who transported 11 girls and a woman from Getafe town, Bohol, to Cebu City port. No bail was recommended for the two women. The special law prohibits the identification of both the accused and the victims in the media. Assistant City Prosecutor Rodulf Joseph Val Carillo found probable caus...
8/27/2011
Mactan diver rescues wounded forest eagle

        It should have been soaring in some forest but a wounded eagle was rescued yesterday by a nature-loving resident of Lapu-Lapu City. Emeterio Bonghanoy, a scuba-diving instructor, said he found the wounded bird near his house in barangay Maribago about 2 p.m. It had bruises on its body and one of the talons on its left foot was missing. Bonghanoy said he believes the bird was struck down by a slingshot. The ...
8/27/2011
Expect stormy weekend—Pagasa

        MANILA—The four-day long weekend is going to be a wet and stormy one, particularly for Northern Luzon, which would feel the wrath of Typhoon “Mina.” Northern Cagayan is feeling the brunt of Mina's force, with storm signal No. 4, indicating winds of more than 185 kilometers per hour for at least 12 hours raised there as of 5 p.m. yesterday. Storm signal No. 3 was raised in Isabela, the rest of Cagayan and ...
8/27/2011
Mahiga settlers seek Mandaue reloc site

        The settlers of the three-meter easement zone in Mahiga Creek on the Mandaue City side secured a two-week reprieve from the city government to look for an alternative housing site for them. The request approved by Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes came during a meeting between the settlers, the mayor and environment officials at the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas last Thursday. Asst. Deputy Ombudsman Virgini...
8/27/2011
Students ‘possessed’? School to investigate

        AUTHORITIES of the University of the Visayas are verifying reports that 10 high school students were suffering from demon possession. Several students who witnessed the unusual phenomenon told Cebu Daily News that they were shocked to see their classmates convulsing. “Kusgan kaayo kalit lang og yawyaw (They shook violently and would suddenly scream),” said one male student who requested anonymity. The biz...
8/27/2011
Luigi bill seeks funding for Consolacion college

        A BILL that would convert Consolacion Public College into a state school was filed by Rep. Luigi Quisumbing of Cebu's 6th district recently. House Bill 5201 which seeks the conversion of the CPC into the Consolacion State College also mandated the national government to provide funds for its operations. Quisumbing said this change would ensure the school’s fiscal autonomy, enhance academic standards and pro...
8/27/2011
DepEd told to address first lack of classrooms, teachers

        Address the shortage of classrooms and teachers first before implementing the K+12 education reform program. This was Cebu City Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young’s advice to the Department of Education during Thursday’s Cebu Educators Forum (CEF) at the University of the Philippines, Cebu conference hall. Young said he was in favor of the program but that it wasn't the right time to implement it. “We're not re...
8/27/2011
Principals told No MCC grads in schools

        THE Mandaue City College (MCC) controversy has continued to hound graduates of the Dr. Paulus Cañete-led school. An official of the Department of Education Mandaue Division reminded anew 47 public school principals in Mandaue City not to accommodate teacher graduates from the Mandaue City College under Cañete, ñwhich is not recognized by the Commission on Higher Education (Ched). The MCC under Dr. Susana Ca...
8/27/2011
Rama eyes museum, tourist site

        Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama does not only plan to convert the Malacañang sa Sugbu building into a museum. He also wants to have the land titled under the Cebu City government to ensure ownership. “The Malacañang sa Sugbu will play a vital role in a heritage area that we are planning,” he said. His plan includes making the post-war building by the harbor the entry point of the city’s heritage and tourism ...
8/27/2011
Gwen to inaugurate park, P600,000 toilet in Dumanjug

        CEBU Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia will inaugurate today the first public toilet in Dumanjug town, western Cebu, and a heritage park named after her grandmother. Mayor Nelson Garcia said the three-hectare park in front of the Dumanjug church was 98 percent complete. The public toilet located in the park has three cubicles each for male and female users, said provincial engineer Eulogio Pelayre and will cost P600,00...
8/26/2011
CAMPUS SAFETY PROBED

  DepEd: School must answer for boy’s fall from 3rd floor     “Why did they repair this only now?” That was the question asked yesterday by an education official who visited the Lyceum de Cebu, where a 7-year-old pupil fell from the third floor after slipping through a gap in broken railings near a ledge. Wilfredo Tano, division supervisor for private schools of DepEd, said he noted that missing bars of the fence wh...
8/26/2011
Mix-up in cash bonuses upsets Capitol workers

        Several Capitol employees were overjoyed to get their cash gifts last week. But errors in the computation of the annual performance evaluation, which was the basis of bonuses amounting to P7,000 to P15,000 each has forced officials to recheck all results. The problem is that some employees had already spent the bonuses or used it to pay existing loans, said Provincial Budget Officer Eme Gingoyon. Some empl...
8/26/2011
3 men survive Lapu plane crash

        THREE persons escaped unhurt Thursday when their small aircraft crashed into the waters off Lapu-Lapu City, Mactan Island, Cebu, the authorities said. The three were unscathed and sought help from a nearby fisherman who then picked them up and took them to Hadsan Cove Beach Resort in Barangay Agus, Lapu-Lapu City. The police identified the three as Capt. Joseph Brent Chong Jr., pilot; Capt. Saturnino dela...
8/26/2011
Genvi shows rainwater diversion plan

        GENVI Development Corp. yesterday presented its rainwater diversion plan to divert half the volume of water running through its mountain subdivision project into the Guadalupe River. Engineer Aristotle Agbisit, vice president for technical and planning, said the plan would only be implemented once the Cease and Desist Order (CDO) is lifted by the Cebu city government. The CDO was issued against Genvi follow...
8/26/2011
Citom braces for construction of two flyover projects

        Building two new flyovers means the Cebu City Traffic Operations Management (Citom) has to field more personnel in the area, which is staff they can’t afford yet. “That means another deployment of Citom personnel in the two areas . We don’t have the luxury of personnel. And when we fail to deploy, all the blame will be on us again,” Citom director Rafael “Raffy” Yap said yesterday. Yap is attending today’s ...
8/26/2011
Girl, mother to reunite after Barili accident

        After six days of hospital confinement following a dump truck accident in Barili town, southwest Cebu, Cecilia Cereño, 29, will see her 2-year-old daughter Ashley again. Cereno was discharged from the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC) yesterday. “I am happy to be out. Thanks be to God. Ashley and I will finally meet again,” she said. Her husband Margarito also rejoiced. Cecilia is planning to...
8/26/2011
Anti-trafficking tipsters rewarded

        THE porters who tipped off police about suspected trafficking yesterday received cash rewards of P3,000 each from the Cebu province’s inter-agency task force against human trafficking. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, task force chairperson, turned over the cash to eight porters whose names were kept confidential for security reasons. Carmelita Rabaya, president of the Universal Integrated Porters Association o...
8/26/2011
Ombud suspends Mandaue bookkeeper

        AN employee of the Mandaue City Treasurer’s Office was meted a one-month suspension without pay for failing to liquidate P180,000 in cash advances on time. The Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas found Jim Balansag, a bookkeeper of the City Treasurer’s Office, guilty of misconduct. In 2004, state auditors discovered that Balansag had outstanding cash advances of P180,000, which he failed to settle despit...
8/26/2011
Construction will continue — Cortes

        Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes said the National Housing Authority has approved their request to continue the construction of a six-story project worth P100 million in sitio Riverside, barangay Looc. The mayor’s office earlier submitted a feasibility study for a low-cost housing project to the agency. In a letter dated Aug. 22, NHA-7 project manager Gavino Figuracion said the proposal, feasibility study a...
8/26/2011
Rama dares Tom Prove you left city with P1-B surplus

        Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama yesterday challenged Rep. Tomas Osmeña (Cebu City south district) to show proof that Osmeña left the city P1 billion in surplus funds when his term as mayor ended in June 2010. Rama also dared Osmeña to report to the Cebuanos his accomplishments as congressman instead of criticizing him. “Don't judge me now. Judge me when my first three years as mayor is over,” said Rama, whom t...
8/26/2011
‘Regulate barangay vehicles’

        WITHOUT having to suspend the release of gasoline allocation for barangay vehicles, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama is seeking to regulate its use. Rama has directed Rolando Ardosa, head of the Government Services Office (GSO), and Rene Plarizan, head of the city's equipment repair and maintenance management section, to make sure that its drivers do not only know how to drive but also knows the proper care of v...
8/26/2011
Mama missing NBI arrests son in Mambaling

        A MAN suspected of killing his mother was taken into custody yesterday by the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7). Christian “Lucky” Dalangin was arrested as NBI agents set to apply for a search warrant to to open his two-storey house in Ma. Gochan Street, barangay Mambaling, Cebu City. The NBI was alerted by the mother of a male friend of Christian, who claimed he saw the lifeless b...
8/25/2011
CHILD CRITICAL AFTER FALL

  Student out of coma; mother mulls charges     A 7-year old boy remains in critical condition after falling down from the third floor of a school building last Tuesday noon. Clifford Montana, a grade 1 student of the Lyceum de Cebu, was reportedly playing near a broken metal fence of the school’s Basic Education Department building when he fell off the railing and landed headfirst, about 20 meters, down on the cemente...
8/25/2011
‘School repaired fence only after accident’

        The metal fence at the third floor of the Lyceum school building where 7-year-old Clifford Montana fell off had not been repaired for over a year, parents and students told Cebu Daily News yesterday. “It’s already there for a year, they just repaired it after the incident,” a parent who requested anonymity told CDN. School officials earlier said they will conduct an investigation into last Tuesday's incide...
8/25/2011
‘Cebu City out of surplus funds’

        ANY surplus funds the Cebu City government had in the past few years is now gone, the City Treasurer's Office admitted yesterday. In yesterday's meeting at the office of Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young, acting City Treasurer Tessie Camarillo said the city's P2 billion in bank deposits have already been “committed” to the general fund. “There is no surplus funds. Whatever we have in the bank now was already co...
8/25/2011
Marina clears two Island Express vessels to sail

        TWO vessels of the Island Express Shipping Corp. were allowed to sail a day after the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) ordered the suspension of the company's entire fleet. The Maritime Industry Authority (Marina-7) said it cleared the Island Express 3 and LTC Express 1 to sail and ply the route to Bantayan island, northern Cebu. A hearing on the show cause order against the company w...
8/25/2011
Rare bird claimed by city resident

      An endangered bird perched on a narra tree for hours near the Capitol building before Cebu City Zoo officers arrived to take it, only to see it fly away. A city resident named Joey Ejercito claimed the rare bird, saying he acquired it from someone in Burias Island, Masbate, two years ago. He said the hawk locally known as banog was kept in a cage. Ejercito said the cage was destroyed last Monday and he had to tie...
8/25/2011
Cebu to face rains ahead as ‘Mina’ intensifies

        THE Mactan office of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pag-asa) warned Cebuanos to brace for more rains amid the growing presence of Tropical Storm “Mina.” Pagasa Mactan weather analyst Ella Kumahig said Mina has intensified and remains stationary in the northern part of the country. “The weather is erratic. We have to be prepared,” she said. She said residents...
8/25/2011
Revise city drainage plan, experts urge local officials

        Cebu City's technical experts called on local officials to revisit the drainage master plan in light of the recent spate of floodings that hit the city. In yesterday's public hearing held by the Cebu City Council, Dean Michael Espina of the University of San Carlos's (USC) architecture department said the drainage plan should identify natural waterways where surface water could traverse on its way to the sea...
8/25/2011
Security guard claims info on Ouano slay

        A DAY after the family of slain businessman Antonio Ouano announced the P1-million reward money, a 32-year-old security guard appeared in the Mandaue City Police Office (MCPO) to claim that he knew the suspects behind the murder. Chief Insp. Rex Lomente, chief of the Investigation and Detection Management Branch (IDMB) of the Mandaue city police, said the guard's name is withheld pending their investigation ...
8/25/2011
Cyber lab for police eyed in Cebu

        Capitol officials will sit in with police officials to draw up plans for a “cyber-laboratory” to deal with the rash of cyberpornography cases in the province. Supt. Gilbert Sosa, Chief of the Anti Trans-National and Cyber Crime Division of Camp Crame, proposed this to Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale in last Tuesday’s opening of the Cyber Crime Investigation Seminar at Camp Sergio Osmeña Sr. Magpale wrote Cebu G...
8/25/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Cash aid program THE Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) said Cebu City beneficiaries of the government's Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program went down after they went above the age requirement. “Beneficiaries should be 14 years old only,” Tears Lim of the city's DSWD office said yesterday. She said they have delisted 130 out of the 4,372 beneficiaries for various reasons. “In Cebu Cit...
8/24/2011
LOAN SOUGHT FOR P1-B CITY BUDGET

  No way, council says; Young says revenue targets ‘bloated’     A bank loan worth more than half a billion pesos may be in the offing for Cebu City should local officials wish to fund most of its identified projects under its P1.147-billion second supplemental budget. Cebu City Treasurer Tessie Camarillo said the city is short of P674 million after their office identified only P473 million in unused funds from previou...
8/24/2011
Marina urged Expedite inspection of vessels

        Bantayan and Capitol officials voiced concern over the suspension of Island Express Shipping Corp. and called on the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) to speed up its investigation in last Sunday’s ferry sinking. The appeal came after the company confirmed that they closed operations after receiving the Marina order yesterday afternoon. “We immediately ordered all vessels to return to port,” company off...
8/24/2011
Traders push benefits in lieu of wage hike

        INSTEAD of a wage increase, Bohol businessmen pushed for benefits like medicines and tax incentives to workers. The Bohol Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) made the proposal during a public hearing on the wage hike petition held by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) in Montebello Hotel, Cebu City. While the Bohol chamber was adamant against the wage increase petition of labor...
8/24/2011
Heroes emerge in ship mishap

        CAUGHT amid a life-and-death situation, a Bohol-based businessman and his two female employees were witness to two acts of heroism and self-sacrifice last Sunday. Engineer Anthony Bautista and his female workers Gina Ahog and Antonette Cabillo were headed to Cebu on board the MV Island Express Fastcraft 1 when the ship caught fire and sank four nautical miles off Lawis Ledge, barangay Tangke, Talisay City...
8/24/2011
‘Driver wasn’t permitted to use ill-fated Barili truck’

        The driver of the dump truck that turned over and killed 10 people in Barili town last week wasn’t authorized to use the truck, said Vice Mayor Marlon Garcia. As a job-order employee, Alwin Bayno was forbidden by a municipal traffic ordinance to drive the dump truck or any Barili government-owned vehicle. Garcia said they learned this when they received a letter from a former municipal councilor who authore...
8/24/2011
Barili boy, 12, needs operation following accident

        HE said he wants to be a policeman when he grows up, but 12-year-old Jenmar Rebuyas, one of the passengers of the dump truck that overturned in Barili town last week, remains in the orthopedic ward of Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center in Cebu City. Jenmar, the eldest in a brood of three and a grade 5 student in barangay Kangdampas elementary school has been absent from school for three days. He sat on ...
8/24/2011
City Court fines 11 tree cutters

        A Cebu City court fined 11 persons for cutting several trees in a 1.5-hectare protected forest in sitio Kantipla, barangay Tabunan, Cebu City. Regional Trial Court Judge Douglas Marigomen of Branch 5 ordered the 11 persons to each pay a lower fine of P5,000 after they pleaded guilty to the charge. They were accused of violating Republic Act 9486 or the act creating the Central Cebu Protected Landscape (CCPL...
8/24/2011
‘Let’s make guidelines’

        The use of red plate government vehicles for unofficial purposes depends on the “judgment call” of the barangay captains who sign the trip ticket, a councilor said. Still, Cebu City Councilor Michael Ralota, Association of Barangay Councils president, said he wanted to meet with barangay captains to discuss the Commission on Audit's findings of “misuse of barangay vehicles.” Ralota, who is also T. Padilla b...
8/24/2011
Doctrine saves councilor from suspension

        THE Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas affirmed a ruling that found Mandaue City Councilor Editha Cabahug and eight others guilty of oppression. The anti-graft office meted a six-month suspension on the respondents, but Editha need not serve the penalty. Under the Aguinaldo Doctrine, a public official can’t be held administratively liable for misconduct done during his prior term since reelection in eff...
8/24/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        HELP FOR RETURNEES FROM LIBYA THE Capitol’s Public Employment Services Office (PESO) yesterday established a help desk for displaced overseas Filipino workers. Cebuanos have been discouraged from applying for work in the Middle East especially Libya and Syria since chaos erupted in those countries, said Dr. Mathea Baguia, provincial consultant on labor market information. Baguia said they will help Cebua...
8/23/2011
FERRY FLEET GROUNDED

  Island Express owner says suspension will ‘ruin’ his business All vessels of Island Express Shipping were ordered grounded yesterday following Sunday's sinking of one of its ferries off the coast of Talisay City, Cebu. Th order came in a statement from Transportation and Communication Secretary Mar Roxas in Manila. The ferry's chief mate and two female passengers died in the sea mishap, which took place during stormy weather ...
8/23/2011
‘Mina’s’ three-day stay means rainy week ahead for Cebu

    CEBU can expect more rainy days ahead as Tropical Depression Mina lingers in the country for three days, the state weather bureau Pagasa said yesterday. “There will be more rains than usual because the rain is unevenly distributed,” Rafael Tapales, Pag-asa Mactan weather analyst, said. He said Cebu will experience scattered rain showers and thunderstorms sufficient to cause landslides and floodings. Typhoon Mina is 400 ...
8/23/2011
Margot questions extra budget of P1 million

  Tomas O hits City Hall delays in salary payments A battle over the city's coffers looms between the mayor's office and the Cebu City Council, which questioned some items in a proposed P1.147-billion supplemental budget no. 2. Councilor Margot Osmeña, chairperson of the council's budget committee, said some items have to be reevaluated such as a P49.3 million allocation for the Cebu City Medical Center. She also questioned an...
8/23/2011
Suspend fuel shares to brgys, execs told

    EXCEPT for garbage trucks, the Commission on Audit (COA) called on Cebu City Hall to suspend fuel allocations to vehicles assigned to the barangays unless they are regulated. In their memorandum, state auditors said some barangay vehicles marked “For Official Use Only” are used in beach outings, pilgrimage, reunions, masses and weddings. They said the city should reevaluate the fuel allowances released to these vehicles....
8/23/2011
Suspend fuel shares to brgys, execs told

    EXCEPT for garbage trucks, the Commission on Audit (COA) called on Cebu City Hall to suspend fuel allocations to vehicles assigned to the barangays unless they are regulated. In their memorandum, state auditors said some barangay vehicles marked “For Official Use Only” are used in beach outings, pilgrimage, reunions, masses and weddings. They said the city should reevaluate the fuel allowances released to these vehicles....
8/23/2011
Osmeñas back Binay’s proposal for 93-1 lots

    THEY may not be on speaking terms these days, but Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district and Mayor Michael Rama are behind Vice President Jejomar Binay's proposal to let urban poor occupants buy province-owned lots through the Community Mortgage Program with the city paying a P50 million down payment. “That’s very good and that’s in fact the best way. Binay is a very reasonable man,” Osmeña said. The former may...
8/23/2011
Ombud to probe Barili accident

    An inquiry into the use of a government dump truck for funeral mourners in Barili town, south Cebu, will be conducted by the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas. Deputy Ombudsman for the Visayas Pelagio Apostol docketed the complaint based on media reports of the Aug. 18 road accident involving a municipal owned dump truck, which overturned, killing 10 passengers. “We will determine whether or not there was negligence on the p...
8/23/2011
Gwen Truck ban a ‘knee jerk’ move

    GOV. Gwendolyn Garcia yesterday criticized the recent order discouraging the use of government dump trucks and open-type vehicles for ferrying passengers. She said the memo of Department of the Interior and Local Governments (DILG) regional director “enjoining” mayors not to allow these vehicles to be used to transport people “whether for free or for a fee” was a “knee-jerk reaction” to last week's road accident in Barili t...
8/23/2011
Patients seek CT scan elsewhere

    WHILE two were discharged, at least six of the estimated 50 persons injured in last week's Barili town dump truck accident remain confined at the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC). Of that number, seven had to undergo a CT scan at a private hospital because the VSMMC's scanner equipment has been out of order since June 18. “We are waiting for the supplier to provide the fuse,” radiologic technologist Dante Ca...
8/23/2011
Focus, prayers ensured success

    Learn to value discipline. Focus, pray and relax. Three Cebu topnotchers of the Nursing Licensure Examination (NLE) said these are their secrets to excelling in the examinations. Patricia Teodoro Pintac, a 21-year-old nursing graduate of Cebu Doctors’ University (CDU), placed 4th in the July 2011 NLE and got the highest score among all those who passed from Cebu schools. She said preparing for the test was not a piece of ...
8/23/2011
‘No fixers needed for senior citizens’

    Senior citizens, beware. Cebu City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete cautioned the public against persons who offer to help process claims of senior citizens for financial assistance from the city government for a fee of P500. Poblete, in a public advisory issued yesterday, said the city government “has not authorized anybody to process the assistance for senior citizens other than the office of the Department of Social Wel...
8/23/2011
Opponents seek province’s help

    Homeowners associations and barangay Lahug officials yesterday sought the help of Cebu province in opposing the conversion of Osmeña Shrine in Cebu City into a cemetery. “We are here because we want to ask her help and support,” said Lahug barangay councilor Mary Ann delos Santos after meeting with Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia in her office. Delos Santos said she hopes the governor will join barangay Lahug, the Beverly Hills Home...
8/23/2011
Ex-police official sues Cebu province over Ciudad lot

    A FORMER police official filed a civil suit against Cebu province after being told to vacate a lot in barangay Lahug, Cebu City, that would be made part of the Ciudad project. Rico Paculto, who used to be the chief of the Regional Security Unit in Central Visayas, sought the intervention of the Regional Trial Court to stop the province from claiming a lot he has occupied since 1976. Paculto said he has the right to acquire...
8/22/2011
THREE DEAD IN FERRY SINKING

  Vessel’s engine catches fire; passengers, crew rescued Avelardo Torrevillas Jr. was at pier 3 of the Cebu City port, waiting for the arrival of his father, a chief mate of the M/V Island Ferry Fastcraft 1 from Bohol province when he received the bad news at past noon yesterday. “I was waiting for him to come so that I could board the ship back to Bohol with him,” the sobbing 20-year-old Avelardo told Cebu Daily News at the Isl...
8/22/2011
Motorists, commuters caught in downpour

    Yesterday's downpour that swept through Cebu and the rest of the country was caused by an inter-tropical convergence zone (ITCZ) in the Visayas and a low pressure area in southeast Samar province. Boy Artiaga, weather analyst of the Mactan office of the state weather bureau, Pagasa, said the twin weather conditions have intensified the southwest monsoon which will bring in more rains until next month. He said their satelli...
8/22/2011
Ouano kin to speak out in presscon

    THE family of slain businessman Antonio Ouano will issue a public statement on his murder nearly a month after it occurred, the Mandaue City Police Office (MCPO) said yesterday. Senior Supt. Noel Gillamac, Mandaue City police chief, said Julito Alvarez, the lawyer of Ouano's son Tonypet called him last Saturday to inform him about a press conference they scheduled at 10:30 a.m today. Gillamac said the family kept their sil...
8/22/2011
Occupants of 93-1 lots wary over Binay proposal

    THOUGH they're willing to pay, occupants of the Capitol-owned 93-1 lots are still cautious about the payment terms. “We want to know how much is the price if it's affordable,” said Boy Guera, spokesman of the 93-1 movement. The group issued the statement in response to Vice President Jejomar Binay's proposal to buy the lots through the Community Mortgage Program. In a letter to Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, Binay mention...
8/22/2011
Survivors share tales company assures aid

    HENRY Dungod was watching TV along with his wife and two young daughters on board the M/V Island Ferry Fastcraft 1 when they saw smoke suddenly waft from below the ferry a little past noon yesterday. Without hesitation, Dungod said he and his wife grabbed lifejackets and then jumped to the sea, each holding one daughter. They were joined by several panicking passengers who jumped out of the vessel even without a life vest...
8/22/2011
Mandaue to search for model brgys

    The Mandaue City government will launch a city-wide search for model barangays enforcing the Solid Waste Management Act on its its 42nd Charter Day anniversary on Aug. 30. The search called “Sulong Mandaue”aims to give these model barangays recognition, reward and support for enforcing the Solid Waste Management Act. Barangay captain Ernie Manatad, who is also the chairman of the Charter Day celebrations, said the search w...
8/22/2011
Crash survivor yet to see daughter, 2

    SHE has not yet seen Ashley, her baby girl since the day of her confinement at the Vicente Sotto MEmorial Medical Center after Thursday’s road accident in Barili town, southwestern Cebu. Cecilia Cereno, 29, laidd down on an extra bed outside the hospital's orthopedic ward. Passersby can look down the hallway. Insects can come in. A fly landed on Cecilia's bandaged forehead. She was still on dextrose and her left hand was...
8/22/2011
Townsfolk bury victims of road mishap in Barili

    The wailing of children filled the public cemetery in Barili town, southwestern Cebu as relatives and friends yesterday laid to rest the 10 casualties of last Thursday’s road accident. The 10 were passengers on a municipal dump truck used as a hearse that lost its brakes, sped downhill and fell on its side. At half past noon yesterday, their coffins were brought out of the town gymnasium to the packed Archdiocesan Shrine ...
8/22/2011
Inventors concoct drugs to treat wounds, bladder

    A fourteen-year-old high school student sought a medical discovery that would solve his family's gallstone woes. John Anthony Normandia, a second year student from Zapatera High School presented a liquid syrup, he said would dissolve stones in the gallbladder. “Many of my family members are suffering from this disease and most would seek an operation to get rid of it,” Normandia told reporters during the 2011 Central Visay...
8/22/2011
NBI sues businessmen for selling fake car parts

    CHARGES were filed in court yesterday against two businessmen who allegedly sold counterfeit automative parts. Alberto Yu, owner of Diamond Auto Supply in downtown Cebu City; and Benjamin Sy, owner of New Dynamic Automotive Supply, will be facing trial on accusations of violating Republic Act 8293 or the Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines. Bail was recommended at P10,000 for each of the accused. The issue stemm...
8/22/2011
DOH-7 issues dengue warning

    THE Department of Health in Central Visayas (DOH-7) warned residents that dengue cases will be prevalent in this rainy season DOH-7 Regional Director Susana Madarieta said dengue carrying mosquitoes thrive because there are more places with stagnant rainwater for them to breed. She reminded the public that empty receptacles that might store water like vases, rubber wheels and stagnant ponds are possible sources of dengue c...
8/21/2011
EIGHT FROM CEBU TOP NURSE EXAM

  Cebu Normal University has 100% passing rate     Eight Cebu examinees made it to the top ten of the Nurse Licensure Examination,whose results were released yesterday. They are Patricia Teodoro Pintac (Cebu Doctor's University) in 4th place; and Jacob Cabrera Reyes (Cebu Normal University) and Florence Jill dela Victoria Polina (STI College Cebu) in 6th place. Lowel Andrew Batomalaque (CNU) and Cherryl Joyce Tan (Velez...
8/21/2011
Funeral on foot for Barili kin

        THIS time, the dead will be accompanied on foot. The ten casualties of Thursday's road accident in Barili town where a dumptruck lost its brakes and crashed with almost 70 passengers on their way to a funeral, will be laid to rest today in the town's pubilc cemetery. A new row of concrete tombs was built for them atop niches in the Sta. Ana Shrine. “There remains a fear of riding vehicles. So as much as p...
8/21/2011
Riprap at orphanage substandard— EMB

        The riprap that collapsed near an orphanage in the mountain barangay of San Jose, Cebu City was “substandard”, according to the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB). In their report, MGB geologists Abraham Lucero Jr. and Engr. Mario Bacus said the materials used for the riprap, which caved in during last Wednesday's rains, were porous and inferior. They said the occupants of My Bonita Home for Girls can only ...
8/21/2011
Truck ban to ‘hurt’ rural folk

        AS expected, mountain folk in Barili town didn't favor the decision to ban the use of government dump trucks to ferry passengers. In the mountain barangays, this is the only means of transportation for large groups to attend fiestas or funerals in the poblacion. While jeeps and multicabs can go up slopes, the dump truck has a bigger capacity. Barili Vice Mayor Marlon Garcia said rural residents, most of th...
8/21/2011
Scavenger, kid saved at bridge again

        BARELY a week after they were rescued from under a bridge in Sangciangko Street, a 46-year-old scavenger and his seven-year-old daughter had to be rescued again by police from another bridge in downtown Colon Street, Cebu City yesterday. Police and passersby helped carry Edwin Saldua and his daughter Christine out from under the Colon bridge in barangay C. Padilla, where the water level rose following yester...
8/21/2011
Mastermind still sought

        Who orchestrated the assassination of senator Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr 28 years ago? While many Filipinos still want to get to the bottom of the crime, lawyer Democrito Barcenas admitted it would be difficult to solve. “I don’t know how to proceed,” said Barcenas, one of the convenors in the Justice for Aquino-Justice for All (JAJA) Movement. He said persons who may help shed light on the issue had alread...
8/21/2011
‘Plant trees to get your marriage license’

      If Cebu City Councilor Nida Cabrera gets her way, a couple who plans to get married in Cebu City must plant a tree and attend a lecture on solid waste management before they are issued a marriage license by the Civil Registrar. Cabrera introduced a draft ordinance for this requirement to promote environmental awareness. “Failure of the couple to attend the solid waste management lecture or seminar and accomplish th...
8/21/2011
Cebu City dancers win in New York

        THE Cebu City Dancesport Team bagged 34 gold medals at the Empire State Dancesport Competition at Crowne Plaza Manhattan Hotel in New York on Aug. 11-14. The team also grabbed 33 gold medals in the Nevada Star Ball Dancesport Championship at the Green Valley Ranch Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada. Cebu City Sports Commission Chairman Edward Hayco, Dancesports Team Cebu co-founder, said the team achieved ...
8/21/2011
‘Ecce Homo’ comes home to Cebu

        Forty six years after it was brought to the San Augustin Church in Intramuros, Manila, the four century-old bust of the suffering Jesus Christ known as the “Ecce Homo” or “Behold the Man” came home to Cebu yesterday. Encased in glass, the ivory sculpture believed to be the one given by Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan to Cebu's Rajah Humabon in the 16th century arrived at the Mactan Cebu International ...
8/21/2011
Regulate, not ban Cebuano tabloids, profs say

        REFORMS and not an outright ban should be made on tabloids that publish lewd photos and stories , two mass communication professors in Cebu said recently. Belinda Espiritu, coordinator of the Mass Comm program of the University of the Philippines Cebu College, said phasing out or banning tabloids that run sensational stories or images isn't the solution. “We need to rethink how we present our news stories....
8/21/2011
Dislocated families told to make way for road

        AT least 58 families occupying Aviola Street in barangay Tejero, Cebu City were reminded to demolish part of their shanties to give way to road restoration. They were given 10 days to comply with the notice issued last Friday. Despite this, Councilor Alvin Dizon asked Mayor Michael Rama to first consult the affected families before starting the road work aimed at providing easier access to public transporta...
8/20/2011
DUMP TRUCKS MISUSED - LTO

        Government dump trucks can no longer be used to ferry people. A memo was issued yesterday by the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) regional office to all mayors in Central Visayas to stop the common practice of fielding dump trucks and other open-type vehicles to transport people “whether for free or for a fee”. The action was taken following Thursday's road accident in Barili town, south C...
8/20/2011
Woman in burial ‘wanted’ mourners to walk

        IT was reportedly the wish of a dying 69-year-old Tranquilina Jagbil that her family and other mourners walk on foot for her funeral, the traditional way. That request was the talk of residents in barangay Cangdampas a day after Thursday's road accident where the dump truck carrying the woman's coffin and almost 70 villlagers crashed, killing 10 on board. Regret and, for some, superstitious fear about the ...
8/20/2011
Mayor seeks P1.2 billion for infrastructure projects

        Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama is seeking an additional P1.2 billion for this year's budget to implement “long delayed” infrastructure projects. His proposal for the passage of Supplemental Budget No. 2 will be deliberated by the City Council next week. The city treasurer is also seeking authority from the council for the mayor to open a Letter of Credit with one of the city’s depository banks. City Administ...
8/20/2011
Baby girl recovering, looks for mama

        SHE wore a baby T-shirt and a bandage wrapped around her head, covering several cuts. Ashley Cedeño, the youngest survivor of the Barili dumptruck tragedy, was in stable condition at ward 6 of the Vicente Sotto Memorial Center yesterday. She turns 3 years old on Sept. 8. “Sige siya ug pangita sa iyang Mama kay gusto na siya mouli. Paraygon man gud kaayo ni,” said her father Margarito, a farmer from Barili ...
8/20/2011
Cordova launches eGwen Avenue, roro port

        A PROPOSED “eGwen Avenue” was one of the P150 million worth of ongoing and completed projects inaugurated yesterday in Cordova town. Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, who led the inauguration of the projects, said the avenue named after her would be the widest highway in Mactan Island when completed. EGwen Avenue, which is 535 meters long and 30 meters wide, will be the access road for Cordova’s new roll-on roll off ...
8/20/2011
Church, Capitol to preserve old Cebu churches

        At least 52 churches all over Cebu province will be declared heritage structures. The Cebu provincial government and the Archdiocese of Cebu signed a memorandum of understanding to protect and preserve these historical churches. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia signed the agreement last week in the presence of Msgr. Carlito Puno on behalf of Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma. “I am happy that we are all on the same pla...
8/20/2011
P101,000 for Ellah’s killers – Brit’s friends

        Friends of British murder suspect Ian Charles Griffiths have raised P101,000 as a cash reward for anyone who can identify the culprits behind the Feb. 8 kidnap and killing of 6-year-old Ella Joy Pique. “We can immediately release the reward money to someone who is not a corrupt source,” said Rameses Villagonzalo, Griffith’s lawyer in Cebu yesterday. He showed the money bills to a GMA 7 television team. The...
8/20/2011
Binay Let 93-1 occupants buy their lots

        LET occupants of 93-1 lots in Cebu City buy the land from the Province of Cebu through the Community Mortgage Program (CMP) with the National Housing Authority as program originator. Vice President Jejomar Binay gave this proposal to the Cebu City government to address the long-running conflict over lots in Provincial Ordinance 93-1. Binay said in a letter to Mayor Michael Rama that the scheme was better th...
8/20/2011
Cordova owners register computers to barangays, town

      HOUSEHOLD owners of Cordova town have voluntarily registered their computer units and Internet connections to the municipality and their respective barangays. “Nagpa-enroll sila sa barangay ug munisipyo. Ang way tinaguan dinha pagpa-register mo. Maayo ug response (They were the ones who enrolled in their respective barangays and with the municipality. I told them if they’ve got nothing to hide, register your units a...
8/20/2011
No solid waste board revamp, says Cabrera

        THERE are no changes in the members of the Cebu City Solid Waste Management Board. Councilor Nida Cabrera, who heads the City Council's environment committee, said yesterday that Mayor Michael Rama agreed to a status quo after she complained about the replacement of the board's NGO and private sector representatives. “The mayor listened. It will be status quo for the solid waste board. We'll continue with o...
8/20/2011
Not yet safe to return to orphanage

        The children and nuns have vacated the orphanage in the mountain barangay of San Jose, Cebu City where a wall riprap below the building caved in during a heavy rain Wednesday night. But the My Bonita Home for Girls would have to remain vacant until a thorough inspection is made of its foundation, said Cebu City Building Office Josefa Ylanan. Another downpour could worsen soil erosion and cause the building...
8/19/2011
11 KILLED ON WAY TO FUNERAL

        Malfunctioning brakes caused a municipal dump truck to speed downhill and fall on its side in Barili town, south Cebu, killing eleven people in a large group of mourners on their way to a funeral yesterday. The accident left at least 49 injured, many of them relatives and neighbors of the 68-year-old woman whose coffin they were accompanying to the St. Anne Parish Church in the town proper for a requiem Mass...
8/19/2011
Rescue made by local folk

        THEY could hear the cries of passengers underneath the fallen six-wheeler dump truck. Local villagers used rope and cut down trees for leverage to lift the “Clean and Green” government truck that had fallen on its right side on the mountain road. Balao barangay captain Hilario Inego told Cebu Daily News they couldn't wait for paramedics or emergency workers to arrive, so 20 residents went about lifting the ...
8/19/2011
No earth-moving work, drainage plan promised

        The developer of Monterrazas yesterday assured representatives of two subdivisions it would stop earth-moving activities until flood mitigating measures are undertaken by Sept. 15. Lawyer Dindo Perez, managing director of Genvi Development Corp., also presented a plan for a parallel drainage that would manage the catchment area below the Monterrazas property in the hills of Guadalupe. Perez represented the ...
8/19/2011
Dads beg off from China travel

        CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama's trip to Xiamen, China, will push through next month, but four city councilors begged off from joining, saying they had other commitments. The mayor will go with three city consultants and some businessmen. “It's the mayor's discretion to decide who to bring in his travel. The city can even pay for their travel,” said Councilor Jose Daluz III, one of four councilors earlier inv...
8/19/2011
Nuns, girls leave orphanage as wall collapses

        OVER 80 girls, four nuns and three drivers housed in an orphanage in a Cebu City mountain barangay vacated the building after the rip-rap retaining wall in front of the compound gave way past 9 p.m. Wednesday night. "We were about to sleep when all of a sudden we heard a crashing sound. At first we didn't have an idea what it was. Then we realized that it was the rip-rap (facing the highway) that collapsed,...
8/19/2011
Pupils appeal for help after big Carreta fire

        Grade school pupils affected by Wednesday’s barangay Carreta fire appealed to the Cebu City government for help especially since they lost their uniforms and school materials in the blaze. Eight-year-old Carlo, a grade 2 student of the Carreta Elementary School, said his parents were only able to save two sets of his clothes. Carlo, the second of five siblings, said he hoped that his family could get more ...
8/19/2011
Bella helps Carreta fire victims

        Bella Ruby Santos, a suspect in the kidnap and murder of Ellah Joy Pique, made her presence felt yesterday. Santos, through her lawyer Rameses Villagonzalo, donated five sacks of “Bulldog White Rice” and a box of canned goods and noodles to fire victims in barangays Carreta and Tejero, Cebu City. The donation was coursed through GMA-7’s Kapuso Foundation. “All she (Bella) wanted is to help. The donation wa...
8/19/2011
Dialogue to solve Mandaue flooding

        THE Mandaue City Chamber of Commerce and Industry will invite the management of Rolliing Hills Funeral Homes and other establishments to a dialogue with City Hall to solve the city drainage problem. The firms encroach and contribute to clogging waterways and flooding when it rains in the city, said MCCI executive director Marlene Bedia. “I think they (traders) also want to solve the problem since they are a...
8/19/2011
COA scraps pre-audit requirement

        The Commission on Audit (COA) lifted its pre-audit requirement on government transactions. “However, whenever circumstances warrant.... this Commission may reconstitute pre-audit or adopt such other control measures,” said a July 11, 2011 COA circular signed by chairperson Ma. Gracia Pulido Tan. Tan said that while COA is mandated by the constitution to conduct pre-audit, “subsequent developments... have sh...
8/19/2011
‘Extend deadline for move to Lagtang’

        The Talisay city government was asked to extend the deadline for the transfer of Tabunok vendors to the new market in barangay Lagtang. Representatives of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) who made a site inspection said they still have to check data on the building. The DENR will review findings of its ocular inspection, said Willi...
8/19/2011
BSP Banks should circulate more coins

        Manila — The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas has directed banks to be more active in helping circulate coins within the economy, reminding them that such a task is part of their financial intermediary role. The directive came amid observations that coins, which the BSP said was important in aiding the smooth flow of commercial transactions, have not been properly circulated within the economy. The BSP said it...
8/18/2011
FIRE SWEEPS 150 HOUSES

  Trucks run out of water in hour-long blaze in Carreta and Tejero     Fire swept through the interior of two barangays of Carreta and Tejero, destroying about 150 houses at noon yesterday. It was the biggest recorded fire of the year in Cebu City after the Aug. 9 fire in T. Padilla, which destroyed over 100 houses, officials said. Most of the victims yesterday were low-income and middle-income families living in cro...
8/18/2011
SRP tunnel needs brighter lights, signs

        Switch on your car headlights and follow the 60-kilometer-per-hour-speed limit in the SRP Tunnel. That’s what motorists will be reminded to do after the six-vehicle collision on Tuesday, when a soft drink delivery truck driver who sped into the tunnel’s north-bound lane in Cebu City rammed a truck in front of him. The tunnel was reopened to vehicular traffic at 4:30 p.m. yesterday. The Cebu City Traffic Op...
8/18/2011
Hanging bridge in Guba needs fast repair

        Sunday's downpour damaged a hanging bridge in the mountain barangay of Guba in Cebu City, forcing schoolchildren to wade through the river or walk a longer route. The City Council yesterday decided to fund the bridge repair. “Barangay Guba does not have the resources to replace or even repair the bridge,” said Councilor Alvin Arcilla, whose resolution requesting aid was approved. City engineers will prepar...
8/18/2011
Fire victims save Niño images

        Nene Mahayahay, 35, snatched her cherished image of the Sto. Niño as she ran out of a burning house. In tears, she watched flames consume her home in sitio Ponce Dos, barangay Carreta in Cebu City yesterday. She was preparing lunch when a neighbor shouted the alarm, sending other residents in panic. The housewife said she ran out with only enough time to snatch the religious icon along with one rubber shoe...
8/18/2011
‘Province needs courts to stop tabloid printing’

        Only the court has the authority to stop the publication and circulation of tabloids. This was the reaction of lawyer Earl Bonachita when asked about the legality of a proposed provincial ordinance to ban tabloids with “immoral, vulgar, and sexually provocative” content. “The province can’t legally stop the circulation of tabloids if the courts haven’t determined if these are against public morals,” said Bo...
8/18/2011
Developer needs correct rainfall data

        The developer of the upland Monterrazas de Cebu project in barangays Guadalupe and Tisa, Cebu City, will set up a weather station in their work area to obtain accurate rainfall data. The data is expected to help developer Genvi Development Corp. plan flood-mitigation measures, said lawyer Dindo Perez, the firm’s managing director. Rainfall data would be used to determine the size of water detention ponds, P...
8/18/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      RECALLS IN DANAO CITY THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) in Danao City will submit to Manila today a copy of the recall petition that Danao City Mayor Ramon “Boy” Durano Jr. filed against his brother Vice Mayor Ramon “Nito” Durano III and the City Council. City Election Officer Dominic Ian Marigomen will submit the Comelec Provincial Office's report with the copy of the recall petition that Mayor Boy and City ...
8/18/2011
Students invent waste carrier

        A trisikad for collecting garbage may be the next big thing in congested areas. A “trashsikad” made by five third-year mechanical engineering students from the University of San Carlos promotes clean air and is a cheap way to transport garbage. The tricycle fitted with a plastic container is one of the inventions showcased in the 2011 Central Visayas Regional Invention Contests and Exhibits organized by the...
8/18/2011
‘Check barangays for cybersex dens’

        LAPU-LAPU City Mayor Paz Radaza tasked several government agencies in the city to check barangays for the presence of cybersex dens. The Department of Social Welfare and Development, Barangay Peacekeeping Action Team and the barangay tanods were tasked to inspect barangays especially Marigondon, Maribago and Basak. The barangays were earlier reported to have cybersex dens by Supt. Anthony Obenza, city polic...
8/17/2011
6-VEHICLE SMASHUP IN TUNNEL

        A delivery truck driver was killed yesterday in a six-vehicle smashup in the SRP tunnel in Cebu City. His Elf pickup, loaded with soft drink cases, sped into the subway past 5 p.m., turned a sharp curve and hit the rear of another truck, setting off a collision, one after another, of vehicles caught in rush hour traffic. At the accident site, Cebu City Police chief Ramon Melvin Buenafe said he noticed there...
8/17/2011
Citom looks into speeding, tunnel signage

        THE multiple-vehicle crash that claimed the life of a truck driver in the SRP tunnel is a main topic in today's regular board meeting of the Cebu City Traffic Operation Management (Citom). Citom chairman Sylvan Jakosalem said they have to address the lack of signals or markings in the tunnel to alert drivers of the sharp curve and downhill slope as they enter. “We will coordinate with the Department of Publ...
8/17/2011
Capitol’s next target lewd AM radio shows

        Not just sexy tabloids, but AM radio stations with “sexually provocative” programs will be studied for possible regulation, said Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magapale. Magpale said the Provincial Board agreed in last Monday's caucus to consider this for review. She said they initially discussed the matter with PB Member Julian Daan also known as “Teban,” a radio talent of radio dyHP owned by Radio Mindanao Network ...
8/17/2011
Pa, daughter saved from rising river

        A DOWNPOUR that flooded most streets in Cebu City nearly cost the lives of a 46-year-old scavenger and his 7-year-old daughter in Sanciangko Street, Cebu City. Edwin Saldua and his daughter Christine were scavenging for garbage to recycle below the bridge when the water level in the creek suddenly rose past 2 p.m. They were trapped there until rescuers used ropes to pull them up, said Cebu City Fire Marsha...
8/17/2011
City mayor challenges Council on ‘no flyover’ policy

        CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama who said he’s already taken a stand against more flyovers in the city challenged the City Council to do the same. Rama made this statement when asked about the scheduled Aug. 26 public hearing on the construction of two new flyovers endorsed by Rep. Rachel “Cutie” del Mar of Cebu City’s north district, who said funds were already available for the projects to start this year. “T...
8/17/2011
P5 million raised to spruce up street

        At least P5 million has been raised so far to finance the beautification of Cebu City’s Osmeña Boulevard. Businesswoman Mariquita Salimbangon Yeung said her group so far raised the amount for the Beautify Cebu project from donations. Yeung appealed for more donations in a meeting that she and Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama called yesterday to update businessmen about the project. She said boulevard establish...
8/17/2011
Humabon’s Jesus icon returning to Cebu

        A historic wooden bust of the suffering Jesus Christ is coming home to Cebu. The Order of Saint Augustine (OSA) decided to return the four century-old image to the Basilica Minore del Sto. Niño in downtown Cebu City where it was kept from 1572 to 1965. “This is the third most important icon here in Cebu. We will secure it. I hope the return of the Ecce Homo will deepen our faith,” Fr. Tito Soquino, OSA yest...
8/17/2011
Kin seeks Capitol aid to bring home remains of OFW

        “WE want her home.” This was the cry of the family of Juvy Montesoso, the 32-year-old Overseas Filipino Worker who was found dead near the basketball court of a hotel in Kuwait where she worked as receptionist. Rochel Montesoso, the victim’s sister was in tears when she and her partner Raul Constantino yesterday visited the offices of Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia and Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale to seek help in br...
8/17/2011
DOH-7 tracing illness source

        The Department of Health in Central Visayas is trying to find the source of diarrhea that downed at least 80 dancers from Toledo City, who performed in the Pasigarbo Festival on Monday. Samples of food and water which the dancers ahd for breakfast were sent to the Department of Science and Technology in Central Visayas (DOST-7) to determine their bacteriological content, said Dr. Expedito Medalla, head of th...
8/17/2011
Tree branch cuts power in Basak

        ANOTHER tree accident during yesterday afternoon's heavy rains caused a brownout in the barangay Basak area. The gusts of wind and heavy rain caused a large branch to fall off an acacia tree cutting electric wires on its way down and partially blocking the road in barangay Basak, Cebu City, said Alvin Santillana, Cebu City Risk Reduction Management Council chief. Santillana said as of 5 p.m. the Visayan Ele...
8/17/2011
Tabloid to stop ‘Wildflower’

        A LOCAL tabloid has decided to discontinue its controversial column “Wildflower.” “We will be pulling out this particular column just to satisfy the demands of the board (Cebu City Anti-Indecency Board), which is representing the Cebuanos,” lawyer Jesus Atoc told reporters yesterday. He said the management of Freeman Banat News decided to remove the daily series, a fiction narrative, which is the subject of...
8/16/2011
TABLOIDS UNDER FIRE

Vice gov sponsors ban of ‘lurid, vulgar’ papers   A move to ban “tabloids” in Cebu province reached first base yesterday in the Cebu Provincial Board. The “Anti-Tabloid Ordinance of 2011” introduced by Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale was referred to the PB committee on laws for study. The target of the ban, based on the draft, are tabloids whose pictures and other content are considered “immoral,” “vulgar” and “sexually provocative.” ...
8/16/2011
Flyovers, road widening to start 2011 — Cutie

  Plans for two new flyovers in Cebu City are the subject of a public hearing on Aug. 26. Owners of adjoining areas and other stakeholders will be invited, said Rep. Rachel "Cutie" del Mar of Cebu City’s north district. She also announced that she arranged for P150 million national funding for road-widening work in the traffic-clogged Banilad-Talamban road. The flyovers, which will cost P600 million, “will start this yearm,” she s...
8/16/2011
Cabbie found dead under bridge

    A TAXI driver who went missing last Sunday afternoon was found dead under the Canduman-Cabancalan Bridge in sitio Riverside, barangay Kalunasan in Mandaue City at 9:30 a.m. yesterday. Edward Clarin, a 27-year-old resident of barangay San Jose in Cebu City was fished out by a team from the Cebu City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council. Senior Supt. Anderson Comar, the Cebu City fire marshal who headed the search...
8/16/2011
Plastics factory hit by fire P300T goods lost

    ABOUT P300,000 in goods and items were lost in a fire that struck a plastic straw factory in barangay Paknaan, Mandaue City, past 9 a.m. yesterday. SFO2 Roy Garcia, chief investigator of the Mandaue City Fire Station, said the fire broke out in the warehouse occupied by Tomorrow’s Plastic Inc. The factory is a subsidiary of Shemberg Marketing Corp. Garcia said the fire began at the building's annex where a strawder machin...
8/16/2011
Toledo student dancers suffer bum stomachs

    At least 110 dancers who took part in the Pasigarbo sa Sugbo festival suffered stomachaches right after breakfast yesterday, health officials said. About 80 of them suffered diarrhea and had to be treated by a medical team stationed at the Cebu International Convention Center. The dancers, mostly high school students of Toledo City’s contingent, were expected to repeat their winning performance last night during the award...
8/16/2011
Carcar wins P1.2 M prize

  THE dance troupe of Carcar City’s Kabkaban Festival received the top P1.2 million prize from the Capitol in last night’s award rites at the Cebu International Convention Center. Madridejos town’s Isda festival won the P900,000 second prize while Argao town won P800,000 for third place. Each of the 40 participating contingents will get P200,000. /Correspondent Carmel Loise Matus  
8/16/2011
Danao tops dengue cases in province

  DANAO City tops this year’s list of dengue cases in Cebu’s rural areas, a Capitol health official said yesterday. Danao City recorded 136 dengue cases from January to August this year, said Dr. Cristina Giango, Integrated Provincial Health Office chief. Danao is followed by Talisay City with 65 cases, Minglanilla town with 61 cases and Balamban with 57 cases. The list excludes Metro Cebu cities of Cebu, Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu. Nex...
8/16/2011
Task force to inspect, trim trees in Cebu City

    A Cebu City task force created to check trees for safety now has its hands full. Work begins tomorrow for the “inventory of old trees group,” said Alvin Santillana, head of the Distaster Risk Reduction and Management Council. The group will prune acacia trees along Gorordo Avenue and in barangays Guadalupe and Tejero, Santillana said. This is to minimize risks and accidents that may result from the presence of trees, shr...
8/16/2011
CIDG to train cops to fight cybercrime

  THE Police Regional Office (PRO-7) in Central Visayas will undergo training in September on fighting cybercrime. The office has coordinated with the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Manila to send trainers, said Chief Supt. Ager Ontog, PRO-7 director. About 50 policemen from Central Visayas will undergo training. Ontog, who visited Capitol yesterday, said the policemen will be deployed in key cities and municipalit...
8/16/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

  ‘HAND OVER CADAVER TEST RESULTS’ REGIONAL Trial Court Judge Soliver Peras of Branch 10 pressed officials of the National Bureau of Investigation to turn over to the Public Attorney’s Office results of tests on cadavers of victims of the sunken MV Princess of the Stars on pain of contempt. The bureau has yet to comply with the court order issued last May 24. The victims’ data remain confidential as agreed upon by the NBI and the I...
8/16/2011
Ombud inquiry eyed on projects

  Barangay officials were incapable of implementing infrastructure projects in their areas, a City Hall investigation team said in its report. The team assigned by Mayor Michael Rama will submit their findings to the City Council and the Ombudsman-Visayas for further investigation. They said barangay officials would name those involved in influencing the implementation of the projects. The projects that turned out to be substandar...
8/16/2011
Mandaue college given leeway amid closure bid

  DESPITE a closure order against them, the Mandaue City College (MCC) faction headed by Dr. Paulus Cañete will be given due process, city officials said yesterday. “We will give them time to comply with the requirements in acquiring a business permit,” City Legal Officer Giovanni Tianero said. The City Treasurer's Office earlier recommended the closure of the MCC faction headed by Cañete. Tianero said they will secure certificat...
8/16/2011
Pique donates P2T for reward

    Renante Pique donated P2,000 cash to the fund-raising drive for the reward money to be given to any informant of the whereabouts of Bella Ruby Santos. Last week, the Cebu Provincial Police Office headed by Senior Supt. Patrocinio Comendador Sr. started the P50,000 fund-raising drive, which now raised P32,000 as of press time. Comendador said Renante voluntarily donated to support the Task Force Ellah Joy. Remante said...
8/15/2011
OIL FIRMS YIELD, CUT FUEL PRICES

Gasoline down P1.50, diesel P1.70; govt warned on stockpiling   Local oil companies are slashing prices of gasoline products by P1.50 a liter and of diesel and kerosene by P1.70 per liter, following government pressure and the steep drop in oil prices in the international market. Petron Corp. and Chevron Philippines will implement the rollbacks effective today. Other oil companies like Eastern Petroleu and Flying V Philippines ...
8/15/2011
DOT chief’s open skies policy call draws flak

  Even with his impending exit, Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim still raised the hackles of some tourist stakeholders with his appeal to his successor and other related agencies to continue supporting the administration's “open skies policy.” Cebuano travel executive Robert Lim Joseph, who called for Lim's ouster a day before the secretary confirmed his resignation, said the open skies policy was among the reasons why he was not out of...
8/15/2011
Ombud’s lamppost case sent back for review

  THE Ombudsman-Visayas investigation into the 2007 lamppost scam sustained yet another setback when the Sandiganbayan remanded one of the related cases for the second time. The remanded case covered contract no. 06H00048 for lampposts set up in Lapu-Lapu City. In its resolution, the Sandiganbayan's third division said “there is a need for a new preliminary investigation against the respondents.” Named respondents in the case were...
8/15/2011
Central Visayas registers 2-T cases of dengue

  ABOUT 2,601 dengue cases with 18 deaths were recorded in Central Visayas from January to August this year, health authorities said yesterday. According to the Regional Epidemiological and Surveillance Unit of Central Visayas (RESU-7), the number is still lower than the 4,810 cases with 37 deaths recorded for the same period last year. Affected patients are between one month old to 79 years old. Cebu City still had the most number ...
8/15/2011
Cyberporn tackled in Dinagat festival

  AT LEAST 3,000 people filled the Cordova Sports Center to witness the Dinagat festival yesterday afternoon. Five contingents clustered from different barangays of Cordova town, north Cebu delivered colorful, dramatic, historic and meaningful dance performances. Mayor Adelino Sitoy cheered with the Cordovanhons and visitors who attended the event. Also in attendance were Provincial Board member Arleigh Sitoy, Rep. Luigi Quisumbing...
8/15/2011
Garcia, another Marcos in Senate?

Guests allude to 2013 elections at Cebu Charter Day lunch Is a new national political party in the making? The politician guests whom the Capitol invited for Cebu’s 442nd Charter Day celebration implied as much. Rep. Rudy Fariñas of Ilocos Norte’s first district, over the weekend, predicted that his home province’s Gov. Imee Marcos and Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia will be the country’s “next senators.” Fariñas, Governor Marcos, Sen. Fer...
8/15/2011
Students decide to save endangered town snail

Business plan shift: from carinderia delicacy to eco-tour We had to risk losing the contest by shifting our business plan rather than risk the extinction of our key persona – the takyong. This was how Girlie Garces, Communications Officer of San Miguel Brewery, described how “takyong” -- a snail found in Borbon town, northern Cebu -- changed the team's whole perspective. Garces was one of the mentors of Southwestern University (SWU) b...
8/15/2011
Danao people urged to speak up on feud, leaders

      AMID the political rivalry between the Durano brothers, Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale encouraged the people of Danao to speak up. Magpale said only the people in Danao could tell who their true leader was. Magpale made the call after expressing dismay at how far the rivalry between the Durano brothers, Mayor Ramon “Boy” Durano Jr. and Vice Mayor Ramon “Nito” Durano III had reached. Vice Mayor Durano III and the Da...
8/15/2011
Cordova town to build 300 septic tanks

    CORDOVA town plans to build at least 300 septic tanks and a septage treatment plant in the town. Mayor Adelino Sitoy said the septic tanks would be used to store domestic waste from the neighboring cities. He said this was a joint project between the town and the Metro Cebu Water District (MCWD). “Waste that are collected from the neighboring towns and cities will also be processed to the septage plant,” Sitoy said. Si...
8/14/2011
WHY NOT ACE?

        Several Cebu business group leaders said they would like to see Joseph “Ace” Durano back in the Department of Tourism (DOT) as top honcho. Sources in Malacañang, however, said the post of Secretary will most likely go to a Ramon Jimenez, a veteran Manila-based advertsing executive who helped the presidential campaign of Benigno Aquino III. (See story on page 39) “Yes, we are willing to support a Cebuano as ...
8/14/2011
Why Lim flopped Aloof, no rapport

        MANILA—It was envisioned to be a partnership between the government and the private sector, but yesterday outgoing Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim and Tourism Congress (TC) vice president Jaime Cura traded strong accusations that bared what apparently has been ailing the tourism sector since last year. According to Cura, Lim "ignored and snubbed" the Tourism Congress, a private body created under the Tourism ...
8/14/2011
Imelda shurgs off fall

        I’m okay. It happened because I was young.” This was what Rep. Imelda Marcos of Ilocos Norte told reporters minutes after recovering from her fall during yesterday's luncheon at the Capitol's Social Hall. The crowd present gasped and fell silent for several seconds on witnessing the 82-year-old Imelda miss a step and slip as she walked down a low, red carpeted stage after delivering a message. She fell fla...
8/14/2011
Education campaign launched against child cyberporn in Cebu

        A PROGRAM aimed at promoting community awareness of cyberpornography will be launched by the Children's Legal Bureau (CLB) in the province. Dubbed as the “Child Protect Movement,” the CLB said it is a “back to basics” education campaign that seeks to empower the Cebuano communities especially their children on their rights to protection from cyber pornography. “Start from the community. Empower the people t...
8/14/2011
Vessel loses power, returns to pier

        A PASSENGER vessel bound for Bohol province had to return to the Cebu City port area after experiencing engine trouble, stranding 285 passengers for five hours yesterday. The Ocean Jet 5 left the Cebu City pier 1 at 6 a.m for Bohol province and had reached Laius Ledge in Talisay City when the ship captain called the Philippine Coast Guard to inform them that they had to return to recharge the battery of thei...
8/14/2011
Pasigarbo draws more towns

        This year's Pasigarbo sa Sugbo festival drew more participants and better performances from Cebu's towns, Capitol officials said last night. “I know the dancers and the choreographers dug deep to find the artist in them really burning inside. We are seeing more of them assisting, not one but a whole fleet working together to make their festival outstanding,” siad Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale in a speech opening t...
8/14/2011
Ilocos, S. Cotabato plan to follow dancing inmates program

        THE provinces of Ilocos Norte and South Cotabato plans to replicate Cebu's rehabilitation program for its inmates who dazzled top officials with one of their dance performances yesterday morning. Ilocos Norte Gov. Imee Marcos and South Cotabato Gov. Arthur Pingoy Jr. were accompanied by their contingents when they watched the performance of the famed dancing inmates of the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehab...
8/14/2011
Exploration of Cebu City’s caves needs inventory, safety

        Tour operators and mountaineering groups want caves in Cebu City identified for preservation and eco-tourism. Michael Alfon, president of the Cebu Association of Tour Guides (CATO), said that his group was expanding their activities to eco-tourism. Local tours include trips to a cave in Kalunasan and another in Guadalupe, where a replica of the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe is found. “But cave exploratio...
8/14/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        EXEC’S PLEA A HEARING officer of the Department of Labor and Employment entered a plea of “not guilty” on accusations of extorting money from from a spa owner last May 5. Wilfredo Wagas denied the allegations during his arraignment before Regional Trial Court Judge Raphael Yrastroza of Branch 13 on Thursday. He was assisted by lawyer Salvador Solima.A pre-trial conference is scheduled on Oct. 14. Wagas...
8/14/2011
Green sea turtle rescued in Lapu

        Local authorities last week rescued and freed a green sea turtle that was caught in the nets of fishermen in Lapu-Lapu City. Barangay Captain Cyrus Iyas of San Vicente in Olango Island, Lapu-Lapu City took custody of the turtle from the fishermen. He then turned it over to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Central Visayas (DENR-7). The DENR-7 said in a statement that the turle, weighing...
8/14/2011
Spa worker nabbed

        A HOTEL and spa worker facing qualified theft charges was arrested on Friday in Lapu-Lapu City. Joanne Ramin of barangay Banilad was arrested at the Lapu-Lapu City spa where she was working. A company, where Ramin previously worked, filed a qualified theft case against her after she allegedly failed to account for company funds. Police served her the arrest warrant issued by Regional Trial Court Judge Silv...
8/13/2011
LIM QUITS DOT POST

  Stakeholders optimistic; Durano’s name floated     Tourism stakeholders in Cebu and across the country greeted voiced surprise over Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim’s decision to resign from his post yesterday noon. Citing personal reasons, Lim announced his resignation at a news briefing in Malacañang. President Aquino accepted his resignation, which becomes effective on Aug. 31. In resigning his post, Lim said he ne...
8/13/2011
Vacate Centcom lots, Capitol tells occupants

        The Capitol yesterday sent another batch of demand letters to occupants of the former Central Command lot in barangay Apas that forms part of its multibillion-peso Ciudad project. Provincial Treasurer Roy Salubre told Cebu Daily News that there are 15 affected lot owners. One of them is Rico Palcuto, a retired police colonel who ran as vice mayor in last year's elections. This development came amid disagr...
8/13/2011
Dad says Rama apologized for trip remarks

        CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama reportedly apologized to a city councilor over remarks he made on his China trip scheduled on Sept. 8 to 11. Councilor Alvin Arcilla said the mayor apologized to him for remarks he made in last Wednesday's press conference concerning the people he would include in his delegation for his trip to Xiamen, China. Rama said it was his prerogative as mayor to choose whom he wanted to ...
8/13/2011
NBI-7 raids yield P3.5 M in footwear

        ABOUT 800 pairs of shoes and slippers worth P3.5 million were seized in simultaneous raids in three commercial establishments in Cebu and Mandaue by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation yesterday. An NBI-7 team led by Agent Bernard dela Cruz carried out raids after a representative of DC Shoes in Australia complained that their products were counterfeited. Dela Cruz asked the media not to reveal t...
8/13/2011
Theater, 18-year dream come true

        After 18 years, the Cebu Performing Arts Center, which is now called the Cebu Cultural Center (CCC), has finally opened yesterday. Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale described the center as a product of kindness. She said the nearly two decades that it took the CCC to be completed was “a proof that the Cebuanos could flex, blend and bend in going against the wind just to reach their destination.” The theater, l...
8/13/2011
Tom O. accepts Guardo apology, drops libel case against him

        “I OFFER my apologies.” This was the statement of businessman Jonathan “Atan” Guardo as he met with Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district yesterday afternoon at the Philippine Mediation Center inside the Palace of Justice. The two political rivals arrived at an amicable settlement during the mediation proceedings on a libel suit filed by Osmeña against Guardo. Osmeña withdrew the libel charges h...
8/13/2011
Dancing inmates wow MICE visitors

        Applause and cheers were again heard at the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) as the dancing inmates performed before 200 foreign and local visitors on Wednesday. The visitors, who were mostly participants of the the three-day incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE) convention, raised their cameras to take footage of the inmates’ dances. Some of them were standing on top of ...
8/13/2011
Cordova festival tackles campaign against cybersex

        The campaign against cybersex den operators was incorporated in tomorrow's celebration of Cordova town's 13th Dinagat Festival, which carried the theme “Cordovanhon ko, ngano diay?” (I'm a Cordovanhon, what about it?).” Edgargo Casquejo, Dinagat festival coordinator and dean of Cordova college, told reporters that the festival theme has something to do with the series of raids on cybersex den raids in Cordo...
8/13/2011
Barangay aid sought in cutting trees

        LOCAL disaster prevention officials will tap barangay officials in cutting down old trees that could collapse anytime soon. Alvin Santillana, executive director of the Cebu City Risk Reduction Management Council (CCRRMC), said labor costs and limitations hinder them from completing the task. “As early as last year we started cutting down old buri trees but we can't complete them immediately. It's not an ea...
8/13/2011
Pasigarbo fest route readied

        ALL roads lead to Mandaue City for the Pasigarbo Festival Parade and the city's traffic division have mapped out routes to ease traffic congestion. Edwin Ermac, head of the Mandaue City Traffic Enforcement Agency (Team), said major thoroughfares will be closed starting at 11 a.m. today. About 75 Team personnel will be deployed in key areas to help ease the traffic. Streets that will be opened for the parade...
8/12/2011
‘CEBU ROLE IS CRUCIAL’

    DOT: Province has infra, labor to compete     The “Cebuano spirit” is what the Philippines needs to reclaim its premier status as Asia’s destination for meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE), the country’s tourism chief said yesterday. In last Wednesday’s opening of the Philippine MICE Conference at the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC), Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim said Cebu will ...
8/12/2011
Cebuana titlist survives attack

        A Cebuano beauty titlist is recuperating at the St. Luke's Medical Center a day after surviving an assault by a drunken man in the parking lot of a condominium in Mandaluyong City. Ms. Earth 2008 Karla Paula Henry will consider filing charges against the assailant, reportedly a tenant of the same condominium, her friend and fellow beauty crown-holder Ana Maris Igpit said. Igpit said Henry parked her car and...
8/12/2011
Ombud rejects petition for Gwen’s suspension

        Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia has something to smile about yesterday. In a press conference held yesterday, the governor's daughter and point person Christina Garcia-Frasco read two separate orders from the Ombudsman that denied a request for a suspension order on her pending their inquiry into the Balili property purchase case. In their orders, the anti-graft office denied the request of businessman Crisologo...
8/12/2011
‘Govt still leading tourism efforts’

        WHILE the private sector is an integral partner, eventually it is the government that will spend and subsidize the private sector for the country's tourism development. Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim said this amid a call made by a Cebuano travel executive for the abolition of the Department of Tourism (DOT) and his resignation from the agency. Lim, who received support from Cebu officials, declined to comme...
8/12/2011
Region 7 execs reconcile projects with dev’t plan

        LOCAL officials in Central Visayas are meeting with secretaries of various government agencies to reconcile their projects with the Aquino administration's development plans. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said he had his audience with Public Works Secretary Rogelio Singson last month concerning the flyover projects being implemented by the government in Cebu City, which he opposed. The mayor, who chairs the ...
8/12/2011
‘Cut down trees,’ city folk demand

        After an acacia tree fell on a jeep in Sikatuna Street and killed the driver, alarmed residents have been calling the Cebu City Risk Reduction Management Council (CCRRMC) office to request that old trees in their neighborhood be cut. Gale Yncierto, CCRMC phone operator, said the callers want the trees cut down as soon as possible. “Others got angry and demanded that the trees near them be cut down immediate...
8/12/2011
Developer to present flood mitigation plans

        The Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Central Visayas (DENR-7) will discuss the environmental violations of a high-end subdivision developer in a technical conference next week. Genvi Development Corp., the developer of Monterrazas de Cebu project, will present the precautionary measures they will take to correct the violations, said lawyer Fernando Alberca, DENR-7 legal division chief. Alb...
8/12/2011
Comelec to verify signatures

        THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) will soon start verifying the signatures of people who signed the recall petition against Danao City Mayor Ramon “Boy” Durano Jr. The Comelec in Cebu province already received a copy of the en banc resolution that deemed the petition sufficient in form, said Lionel Marco Castillano, provincial election supervisor. Early last month, Vice Mayor Ramon “Nito” Durano III sou...
8/12/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        THREATS TO ABUSE VICTIM’S FATHER THE father of the Mandaue City girl who allegedly died of abuse by her stepmother received death threats and was accused of rape. Arthur Flores said a woman claiming to be the aunt of his former live-in partner Abigael Catindijan, suspect in the death of Kate Arianne Chu Flores, 5, called him last Wednesday and made lewd comments. When he hung up the phone, the woman, who...
8/12/2011
Net cafe owners told to register business in brgy

        With recent raids of cybersex dens in Cordova town, a Mandaue City barangay is requiring Internet cafes including those piso-piso Internet cafes to register their business in the barangay. Barangay captain Ernie Manatad of barangay Subangdaku in Mandaue City said they required these businesses to register so that they could be monitored if they were engaging in illegal activities such as cybersex operations....
8/12/2011
Vendors ask Palma Help us

        THE Tabunok market vendors sought the help of Cebu's prelate in resolving their relocation dispute with Talisay City. Nally Murillo of the Task Force Detainees of the Philippines said that Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma advised them to hold more dialogues and consultation with other government agencies and nongovernment organizations to rally support for their cause. Murillo accompanied yesterday the vendors to...
8/11/2011
TREE CRUSHES PUJ DRIVER

  90-year-old acacia topples over passing jeepney in Zapatera     Hala, kahoy!” (Look out, a tree!) The warning shouted by a jeepney passenger came just in time for six passengers to jump out the vehicle. It was too late, though, for the driver Clenio Bontuyan, 63. He was crushed to death when a 90-year-old acacia tree toppled on the jeepney, pinning him in his seat. The freak accident took place in a well-traveled ...
8/11/2011
Truck pulls down Veco pole, taxi hit

        A TAXI driver yesterday escaped death by jumping out of his taxi when a concrete Visayan Electric Co. pole fell on P. Del Rosario Street. The pole was pulled down when a passing truck of Atlantic Hardware snagged overhead telephone cables of the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. attached to the pole. Taxi driver Gary Almencion was driving along when the post fell and smashed the taxi’s windshield and h...
8/11/2011
Higher jaywalking fine opposed as ‘anti-poor’

        A Cebu Council proposal to increase anti-jaywalking fines up to P1,000 is “anti-poor” and would not solve congestion traffic congestion, stakeholders said in a public hearing yesterday. Rafael Yap, head of the City Traffic Operations Management (Citom), said the measure would only draw “adverse” reactions from the poor. “Most pedestrians are the poor who belong to classes C, D, E,” and cannot afford the new...
8/11/2011
Parents seek the release of Bohol girls

        THEY want their children back. Parents of the 15 Boholano girls who were rescued at the pier in Cebu City in transit to Manila asked the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD-7) to release their daughters. But the girls will have to stay in the DSWD center until social workers complete their assessment of the cases of suspected human trafficking. “The parents appeared worried about the conditi...
8/11/2011
‘Recall vs Danao mayor sufficient in form’

        DANAO City Vice Mayor Ramon “Nito” Durano III yesterday expressed jubilation over what he calls winning the first round in his campaign to unseat his elder brother, the mayor. The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has certified his petition seeking the recall of Mayor Ramon “Boy” Durano Jr. as “sufficient” in form. Copies of the Aug. 5 Comelec en banc resolution were distributed yesterday at a press confer...
8/11/2011
Can mayor’s consultants come along?

        Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama plans to attend a trade fair in Xiamen, China, from Sept. 8 to 11 but the City Council yesterday deferred approval of the trip amid questions about who of his travel companions should be funded by City Hall. Four city councilors and three consultants are listed as part of the mayor's delegation. “Consultants are not employees. We don't have to authorize their travel,” said Coun...
8/11/2011
Dad slams ‘advantage’ for Ciudad developer

        Undue advantage may have been extended to Fifth Avenue Development Corp. with the issuance of an opinion by the Cebu City legal office, which favored the implementation of their P1.2-billion Cuidad project along Governor Cuenco Avenue. “This is like giving undue advantage to a private individual,” said Councilor Edgar Labella, chairman of the Cebu City Council committee on laws. Labella said if proven, this...
8/11/2011
Whirlwind wrecks 2 Mandaue homes

        TWO houses were damaged and trees fell after a whirlwind hit sitio Sector 6, barangay Pagsabungan, Mandaue City, while rain fell on Tuesday night. No one was hurt and other homes in the sitio were spared. Each of the affected families will receive cash worth P5,000 and food assistance from the city's Department of Social Welfare and Services, said Roger Paller, public information officer. Nine-year-old Dav...
8/11/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      CONTRACTUALS NOT REHIRED THE contracts of more than a hundred Mandaue City job-order workers were not renewed. “Most of the regular employees in each department are not performing their job well because they are dependent on the job order employees,” said City Treasurer Regal Oliva. The job-order employees' salaries are taken from the city's budget for Maintenance and Operating Expenses but the government wants ...
8/11/2011
‘Lacion women weave sarok

        Each of these hats take two to three hours to make. The sarok, a hat made of bamboo strips and banana leaves have come to be associated with Consolacion town in northeastern Cebu. Three women demonstrated sarok weaving in the town’s booth at the ongoing One Cebu Expo in the Cebu International Convention Center in Mandaue City. Sixty-eight-year-old Guilerma Balaba of barangay Tulo-tulo, Consolacion said she...
8/11/2011
‘Exhibitors don’t need to pay tax’

        “DO your homework.” This was the message of Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia to Mandaue City Treasurer Regal Oliva, who said One Cebu Expo exhibitors need to pay P110 per day for using booths in the Cebu International Convention Center from Aug. 1 to Aug. 15. “He shoots... from his mouth without studying his facts and getting it right,” Garcia said. Capitol spokesman Rory John Sepulveda said there are no taxable...
8/10/2011
TOURISM TAKES CENTER STAGE

        Cebu's biggest hotels and resorts are putting their best foot forward in the next four days for an international conference that mines tourism’s most lucrative market—conventions, meetings and large-group events. About 200 delegates started arriving for the conference, which will be opened tomorrow by Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim and Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia at the Cebu International Convention Center. While ...
8/10/2011
CHED readies charges vs defiant college head

        If he persists in operating the school, Mandaue City College president Dr. Paulus Cañete will face criminal and administrative charges to be filed against him by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED). Lily Freda Milla, CHED’s director for Local Universities and Colleges and State Universities and Colleges, warned of this action in a live video press conference yesterday. Milla, speaking in Manila, told ...
8/10/2011
Governor’s brod files libel raps

      A COUPLE will face trial on libel charges filed by Barili Vice Mayor Marlon Garcia for allegedly posting defamatory remarks against him in Facebook. Victor Vergara Jr. and his wife Fleurelie were charged by the Cebu Provincial Prosecutors' Office on a complaint filed by Mayor Garcia, younger brother of Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia. Fleurelie posted lengthy remarks berating Mayor Garcia for allegedly passing on to the...
8/10/2011
Cash rewards await tipsters in trafficking case

        COMMUNITY vigilance like that shown by the maritime police that resulted in the rescue of 12 minors and three young women in the Cebu City port area gives “hopeful stories of rescue” for human trafficking victims. The International Justice Mission (IJM) reiterated this point amid confirmation by Capitol officials that tipsters who provided information that led to the arrest of the mother-daughter team respon...
8/10/2011
Sibonga’s dancers aim for top prize

        A dance troupe that will represent the Bonga Festival of Sibonga town, southeastern Cebu, aims to clinch this year’s Pasigarbo sa Sugbo Festival of Festivals championship. The “grand showdown” of Cebu’s festival dancers will take place Saturday at the Cebu International Convention Center in Mandaue City. Bonga dancers placed second among more than 40 contingents in last year’s contest. Victor Cuenco, Bong...
8/10/2011
Treasurer One Cebu exhibitors owe Mandaue

        EXHIBITORS who used booths in the Cebu International Convention Center in Mandaue City need to pay the city government, an official said. Mandaue City Treasurer Regal Oliva said the exhibitors who used stalls in the center must pay P110 per day for their us from Aug. 1 to Aug. 15 since they are generating income. “We are just seeking equitable interest,” Regal said, adding that taxes are the lifeblood of th...
8/10/2011
Stone breaks windshield of dancer’s car

        A CAR windshield was broken after it was hit by a huge stone while it was parked outside the home of dancer Jonas Cabellon at Tormis Extension, Urgello Street in barangay Sambag Uno, Cebu City. Cabellon, a member of Manila-based dance troupe Men at Work, owns the Toyota Corolla. Residents said they did not see who cast the stone yesterday morning. Cabellon’s brother Julius said some persons who envy his b...
8/10/2011
Vice Mayor Young upset ‘Who’s helping Ciudad?’

        Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young and the Cebu City Council will scrutinize today the opinion of the City Legal Office, which favors the controversial P1.2-billion Ciudad project. “We will investigate this. I want to know how they came up with the idea,” Young said. “It's like a city official is helping Fifth Avenue.” The vice mayor warned that action will be taken against parties trying to twist the law to a...
8/10/2011
Board suspends 15 Mactan stone plants

        ABOUT 15 stone-cutting and processing plant operators in Cordova town and Lapu-Lapu City were ordered closed by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) for failing to secure a quarry permit from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources. “The issuance of the cease-and-desist orders came after an inventory and investigation conducted by the bureau of existing operators without the necessary permits f...
8/10/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      Landfill offer A PRIVATE firm offered to build a landfill facility in barangay Agsungot, Cebu City, to replace the Inayawan landfill, which is scheduled for closure on Oct. 1. Cebu Eco-Ventures through their consultant A.V. Mendoza submitted their proposal to Mayor Michael Rama who then referred it to City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete for study. Poblete said the Cebu-based firm already secured an environment...
8/10/2011
‘Road contractor’s pay claim legit’

        Contractor TOA Corp. may soon get paid for completing six years ago the Mambaling access road of the South Road Properties. Cebu City Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young said the City Council is now convinced of the need to settle the city's obligation with the contractor. “It appears to us that it is really an obligation,” Young said. Young invited Edwin Merin, TOA consultant to a completed project presentation...
8/10/2011
DENR Prepare for disaster

        The Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Central Visayas (DENR-7) warned local government units to continue monitoring of areas prone to flooding and landslides. DENR-7 spokesman Eddie Llamedo said the LGUs should revisit the geo-hazard assessment provided by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau to prepare for disasters. The geo-hazard assessment maps out soil with limestone composition or the pro...
8/9/2011
ISLAND GIRLS P0RN TARGETS

Boholanas were prey for Internet   They had jobs waiting for them in Luzon with “Internet” operators, even though the young girls didn’t how to use a computer. What kind of work? They were told to expect to “face the computer and follow instructions” to be given by a foreigner. This was the account of four of the 15 Boholana girls who were stopped from boarding a ship to Manila Friday afternoon indicate they were targets of c...
8/9/2011
Mandaue victim’s kin, DSWD disagree on bill

  A bill recently approved in the House of Representatives makes it illegal for parents, teachers or guardians to inflict corporal punishment on children for actions like striking, pulling hair or piercing skin. But for some old-timers, such strictness is not cruelty, but part of old-fashioned Filipino family discipline. Even if her 5-year-old grandchild died allegedly due to physical abuse by a stepmother, Myrna Flores of Mandaue ...
8/9/2011
Police to file abuse charges vs little Kate’s stepmom

   CHARGES of physical injury with homicide and child abuse will be filed today against the stepmother of the 5-year-old girl who died after two weeks of confinement in a government hospital last month. Kate Arianne Chu Flores died last July 27, but Chief Insp. Elmer Fernandez, chief of the Centro police precinct in Mandaue City, said it took them over a week to file the charges due to a request from the family. He said the fam...
8/9/2011
Female therapist found buried in mountain brgy

  A FEMALE therapist was found dead and buried near bamboo trees in sitio Jubao, barangay Agsungot, Cebu City, before noon yesterday. The remains of 24-year-old Maricris Villadolid were found by her live-in partner Richard Taburnal who got alarmed after she failed to return to their shared home in Agsungot, nearly a kilometer away from the crime scene. Homicide investigator Julius Regis said Taburnal found Villadolid's remains under...
8/9/2011
Gov eyes ratings for fighting cyberporn

    The Cebu provincial government is considering adding new criteria for awards given to barangays, towns and cities under the expanded Green and Wholesome Environment that Nurtures (eGwen) Our Cebu program. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said screening local government units for activity in fighting human trafficking and cybersex as well as keeping locales graffiti-free would “constantly make every LGU conscious that this will ...
8/9/2011
‘Protect nature, boost tourism’

  THE tourism industry in any city can grow if its ecology is protected, an environment advocate said. Puerto Princesa Mayor Edward Hagedorn said one way his city kept tourism sustainable is by maintaining a state-of-the art landfill facility. Hagedorn was guest speaker and awardee in yesterday’s fifth anniversary of the 888 News Forum at the Marco Polo Plaza Hotel. He was among the persons and institutions cited for improving tour...
8/9/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    MAYOR LEADS RECOUNT SAN Fernando Mayor Antonio Canoy emerged the winner in the recount of ballots from 10 precincts conducted by the court. Canoy got 3,967 votes compared to 3,031 votes garnered by former San Fernando mayor Lakambini Reluya. The recount of votes was conducted before Regional Trial Court Judge Ramon Daomilas Jr. of Branch 11 since May. Reluya chose which ballots to use in the proceedings. Canoy, howeve...
8/9/2011
DOH to confiscate mercury-loaded whitening creams

  Local health authorities will inspect retail outlets to confiscate skin whitening products with high mercury content today. The Department of Health (DOH) Food and Drug Authority issued last Aug. 4 order 2011-012 for the recall of the 23 whitening products. “The products pose imminent danger or injury to the consuming public,” the order warned. Elizabeth Tabasa, DOH Central Visayas licensing, standards and regulation chief, said ...
8/9/2011
Provincial Board invites Mandaue college head

  THE Cebu Provincial Board (PB) will tackle the controversy facing the Mandaue City College (MCC) under Dr. Paulus Cañete. PB Member and former Mandaue City mayor Thadeo Ouano sponsored a resolution in yesterday’s session to invite Cañete and Mayor Jonas Cortes to shed light on the situation of MCC. Ouano said his only interest is to “protect the students.” Last month, Professional Regulation Commission chairperson Teresita Manzal...
8/9/2011
P1,000 aid to police under study

  Police in Cebu province may expect some financial aid from the Capitol after the Provincial Board (PB) said it will study the allocation of P1,000 in cash allowance for every police officer. In yesterday's session Senior Supt. Patrocinio Comendador, Cebu provincial police chief, updated the PB on the operational needs of the police. PB member Rimophabil Holganza Jr. proposed the P1,000 allowance for every Cebu police officer. He...
8/9/2011
Exec Legal opinion won’t bind city mayor

  Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama is not bound by the legal opinion about the Ciudad project that the city administrator requested from the City Legal Office. City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete said yesterday that he requested for the legal opinion on the Ciudad development project along Gov. Cuenco Avenue, which was for his personal consumption. He said he sent his request two months ago when the Ciudad issue was not so controver...
8/9/2011
Recruiter Girls’ parents just wanted my help

  THE Tagalog-speaking recruiter said she was only trying to help poor families in Bohol province get a better life for their daughters. “Hindi ko akalain na magkakaganito (I didn't expect this to happen),” said Emma Leocadio, 41, in an interview. “Ang kanilang mga magulang ang nagpilit sa akin na hanapan ng trabaho ang knilang mga anak. Nagmamalasakit lang ako. Bakit nila ako ginaganito? (Their parents asked my help to find jobs fo...
8/8/2011
FAITHFUL URGED FIGHT PREDATORS

Trafficking raps to be filed against suspects in aborted transit case The Cebu Archdiocese yesterday lent its voice to the campaign against human trafficking, calling on its Cebuano faithful to be on guard and support the campaign against this crime. Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma issued the appeal a day after a mother and daughter were arrested on trafficking charges for transporting 12 girls and three young women from Bohol to Cebu City...
8/8/2011
Capitol to set up cameras inside prison

    A MONTH after an inmate committed suicide inside his isolation cell, the Capitol said it will install closed circuit TV cameras in various areas of the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC). Capitol security consultant Cesar Veloso said they will prioritize setting up the cameras at the isolation cell to prevent a repeat of the suicide. But he said there are still “blind spots” inside the CPDRC th...
8/8/2011
Cebu priests to offer counsel to settlers

  The clergy will serve as advisors to Cebu settlers facing demolition as they seek a more active role in caring for their less fortunate flock, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma said yesterday. In a dialogue with urban poor groups held at the Pasil Sports Center yesterday morning, Palma agreed with a suggestion from one of the settlers that the priests serve as advisors during demolitions. “Priests are shepherds. I can give them instructi...
8/8/2011
Oliva says Rama offered city treasurer’s position

  WAS there an offer for him to assume his mother's former post? According to Mandaue City Treasurer Regal Oliva, there was one from Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama but he turned it down. The son of former Cebu City Treasurer Ofelia Oliva said he can't live with the volatile political climate in Cebu City Hall. Oliva told Cebu Daily News that there was a recommendation for him to transfer to Cebu City from the Bureau of Local Governm...
8/8/2011
Eco lawyer shuns waste board post

Appointee, others mull suing Rama, Metro mayors for failure to report on air quality     Her name appears as one of the nongovernment organization representatives in the Cebu City Solid Waste Management Board (CCSWMB). But environment lawyer Gloria Estenzo-Ramos said she refuses to sit as a member of the board. “Ithank Mayor (Michael) Rama for believing in me but I cannot be in that position because I file environmental com...
8/8/2011
Trailblazers empower women, disabled

    “EMPOWERMENT is power in me.” This, said former Talisay City councilor Shirley Cabañero-Belleza was the motto of her advocacy for Gender and Development (GAD). Belleza is among the 100 Women Trailblazers cited by the Cebu province who excelled in their fields of endeavor. Their photos are on exhibit in the Capitol building. Belleza said the recognition is “a great honor.” The three-term councilor is known for pushing the...
8/8/2011
‘Guadalupe fire victims need more aid’ –Captain

      The family of 16-year-old Liezel Costanilla, who suffered second-degree burns during last Friday's barangay Guadalupe fire, is appealing for financial assistance for the victim. Jemar Costanilla, Liezel's brother, said he was appealing for financial assistance for the treatment and medication of her sister who was still in critical condition at the Cebu Doctor's Hospital. Liezel's body was reportedly 90 percent bur...
8/8/2011
Ombud starts graft drive in own backyard

  NEWLY appointed tanodbayan Conchita Carpio-Morales has started her campaign against graft and corruption in the country. As expected she decided to start within her own backyard. Morales has issued a memorandum directing all Ombudsman officials and employees to be at their respective offices from 8 am to 5 pm during workdays. Punch cards for each employees would be strictly monitored. In an interview, Assistant Ombudsman Virgini...
8/8/2011
CCCI eyes Capitol in hotel plan

  The Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) plans to build a business hotel, which is also a one-stop shop for tourists and travelers. CCCI president Samuel Chioson said he met with Cebu Gov. Gwen Garcia for an initial discussion about the plan. The chamber is also looking into possible investors for the planned hotel. “We will look into our partners, sa mga members namo who can participate sa putting up the hotel. Hotel is ...
8/8/2011
City to check tow firm’s bond papers – Abadia

      THE Mandaue City Legal Office will check if Jadewell Parking System Corp., the firm tasked to tow vehicles illegally-parked in no parking areas in the city, have pertaining documents regarding their post performance bond of P500,000. The City Legal Office led by its chief, lawyer Giovanni Tianero, found out that Jadewell didn't post performance bond, said City Administrator James Abadia. He said Jadewell would meet...
8/7/2011
15 BOHOL GIRLS STOPPED

        A guard at the Cebu port noticed something strange about the group of travelers. Two Tagalog-speaking women arrived by ferry from Bohol province escorting 15 adolescent girls past 6 p.m. Friday. They all checked in and were set to board a SuperFerry 12 vessel for Manila scheduled to depart in two hours. They didn’t look like relatives or students on a field trip. Noting the young ages of the girls, the ...
8/7/2011
Where will Cebu City divert its garbage?

        With the Inayawan landfill set for full closure on Oct. 1, Cebu City officials are exploring private waste facilities as options for diverting the city’s garbage volume of 500 tons a day. The option is pricey. Councilor Nida Cabrera said the city would have to pay P300,000 daily to use these facilities in Naga City in the south or Consolacion town in the north. Property owners there charge P700 per ton for...
8/7/2011
Anti-narc agent arrested for selling shabu

        AN anti-narcotics agent was arrested yesterday in Tagbilaran City, Bohol, province where he allegedly tried to sell shabu to an undercover policeman. A total of P100,000 worth of shabu was later found in his possession. Intelligence officer Steven Valles, who is assigned in Cebu, was arrested in a buy-bust operation in barangay Poblacion Dos, near the pier area of Tag bilaran. Valles, a native of Toledo Ci...
8/7/2011
Capitol workers get P20,000 bonus

        THE Capitol announced cash bonuses up to P20,000 per employee as it recognized its top-performing hospitals, employees and towns during yesterday's commemoration of Cebu's 442nd founding anniversary. At the Capitol Social Hall, Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia announced the results of their performance evaluation system. “I do not expect your love. I demand your professionalism and efficiency,” she told employees in...
8/7/2011
M’daue to collect tax from professionals

        The Mandaue City Treasurer's Office will visit media outlets next week to drum up awareness of the city's drive to collect taxes from professionals. The city government will require persons who passed the Professional Regulation Commission board exams to pay professional and occupational taxes of P165 a year. The taxes are based on the Mandaue City Revenue Code, said Regal Oliva, OIC City Treasurer. The lo...
8/7/2011
Coal ash bangus an Agro Fair hit

        There's nothing toxic or special about them, but the “coal ash bangus” tag on the display of milkfish at last week's Agro Fair at the Capitol grounds caught the attention of many buyers. Its P100 per kilo price was also a big come-on since supermarket prices for milkfish are pegged at P130 a kilo. Dr. Necias Vicoy, provincial agriculturist officer, said he came up with the name after the office rehabilitate...
8/7/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        RIPRAP PROBLEM THE barangay captain of Ibabao-Estancia is calling on the Mandaue city government to investigate if the rip-rapping work by lot owners beside the Mantuyong Creek were done inside the three-meter easement of the creek. Barangay captain Jun Del Mar said he reported the rip-rapping work to the City Engineer's Office. Lawyer Giovani Tianero of the City Legal Office said his office was waiting ...
8/6/2011
WANTED STEPMOM

        Police are looking for a pregnant 18-year-old woman, who has a lot of explaining to do. The stepmother of 5-year-old Kate Arianne Chu Flores was accused of maltreating the little girl, physically and emotionally, until the little girl fell ill and died, after two weeks of hospital confinement. The deat h certificate said the grade 1 pupil from Alang Alang, Mandaue City died last July 27 of “sepsis and post-...
8/6/2011
Palma leads ‘Garbo sa Sugbo’ awardees

        After serving barely seven months as the chief shepherd of the province’s Catholic flock, the award came as a surprise. “I haven’t done a lot for Cebu,” said Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma after receiving an Award of Distinction and Medal of Merit in last night’s Governor’s Ball at the Capitol Social Hall. It was the evening’s highest award in the annual Garbo sa Sugbo (Pride of Cebu) recognition marking Cebu p...
8/6/2011
Trans-Asia vessel cleared to sail

        MARITIME authorities are working to clear a second Trans-Asia vessel after one passenger vessel got the green light to sail at past 3 p.m. yesterday. Jose Cabatingan, information officer of the Maritime Industry Authority in Central Visayas (Marina-7), said that like the Trans-Asia 5, the MV Trans-Asia 3 complied with safety standards after the management rectified minor deficiencies found during the inspec...
8/6/2011
One Cebu Expo opens Cebu anniversary rite

        A SHOWCASE of Cebu's finest in products, services and culture opened today's commemoration of the province's 442nd founding anniversary. Today is a special nonworking holiday for Cebu province. Enrison Benedicto, chairman of the One Cebu Expo, said the event will allow Cebuanos and visitors to “discover, learn, see, and taste” what Cebu is. At least 370 exhibitors joined the event , which runs until Aug...
8/6/2011
Teacher whacks boy with stick

        A 12-YEAR-OLD boy stopped attending classes in barangay Langtad, Argao town, south Cebu, a day after his teacher struck him with a wooden meterstick. In a radio interview, the boy said he was hit in in his left hand, forearm and back with such force that it broke the stick. The incident took place Thursday and was reported to the Argao police precinct. The 40-year-old teacher, Vicente Lucero, said he had ...
8/6/2011
Man dead student suffers burns in Guadalupe fire

        One person died while another was injured in one of two fires that hit a residential area in Cebu City and a building in Liloan town yesterday. Giovanni Copio was declared dead on arrival at the Cebu City Medical Center after he fainted trying to save his belongings from the fire in sitio Sta. Lucia, Andres Abellana Extension in barangay Guadalupe. Not even rain that fell could stop the flames, which broke...
8/6/2011
‘No more flyovers, widen roads instead’

        WITH the worsening traffic conditions in the city, a flyover is not a feasible solution. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said road widening should be given priority over the construction of flyovers, which were considered eyesores to the city. “Ang importante is daghan og nanginahanglan og road widening, so unahon gyud na ang road widening. That is what is immediate, it’s (road) widening,” Rama said. Rama ...
8/6/2011
Councilor says revamp may affect city projects

        CEBU City Councilor Nida Cabrera yesterday raised concern that the revamp of commissioners may affect vital projects, such as preparations for the closure of the Inayawan Sanitary Landfill scheduled on Oct. 1. She said previous board members already laid down plans on where to divert wastes away from the landfill. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, however, assured that all projects under the 62 special bodies ...
8/6/2011
I’m not guilty of libel - trader

        BUSINESSMAN James Philip Tiongko entered a plea of “not guilty” on libel charges filed against him by Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama. Tiongko was arraigned yesterday before Regional Trial Court Judge Generosa Labra of Branch 23. The libel charge arose from statements Tiongko made during the campaign period of the 2010 election. In an interview after the proceedings, defense lawyer Edgar Gica said Tiongko had...
8/6/2011
Gov’s daughter dared Sue us

        File a case. This was environmental lawyer Gloria Estenzo-Ramos’ response to Capitol consultant Christina Codilla-Frasco’s statement that Ramos and lawyer Benjamin Cabrido would “face legal consequences” for filing complaints against Capitol officials. Frasco’s statement came after the Supreme Court dismissed a petition for certiorari filed by the Global Legal Action Against Climate Change (GLACC) led by Ra...
8/6/2011
‘Sick Arroyo checked in at airport’

      Manila—A “very, very sick” former First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo went through the regular departure route when he flew to Hong Kong on Sunday afternoon and any claim to the contrary is a lie. Raul Lambino, spokesman of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, said this Friday as he belied the Department of Justice's statement that the Bureau of Immigration had no record of the former First Gentleman's exit to ...
8/5/2011
GLOBAL PORN RING BUSTED

United States officials said they uncovered an international child porno network and arrested 72 people who used an online bulletin board called Dreamboard to trade tens of thousands of images and videos of sexually abused children. The Philippines was one of the countries where arrests were made, according to the Associated Press report. Attorney General Eric Holder and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano yesterday said ...
8/5/2011
PNP installs Internet ‘angel’ to fight sex predators 247

        MANILA—The Philippine National Police has installed an “angel” to watch over your child on the Internet. “Project Angel Net,” a 24/7 operation center and website aimed at fighting online sex predators and cyber-bullies, was launched on Thursday by the PNP's Criminal Investigation and Detection Group. CIDG Director Samuel D. Pagdilao Jr. said Angel Net seeks to protect children from cyber criminals commonly ...
8/5/2011
‘Beware of 11 skin creams from China’

        The Department of Health (DOH-7) reminded consumers anew to choose registered cosmetic products in the market. The warning came after the EcoWaste Coalition, a private watchdog group, tested several China-made skin whitening creams sold in Metro Manila retail stores and supermarkets and found 11 products with a high level of mercury content. Some of the face creams which they tested reached up to 28,600 par...
8/5/2011
‘Go after other lewd tabloids’

        CEBU Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale yesterday encouraged the Cebu City Anti-Indecency Board (CAIB) to go after other tabloids with lewd content. She said these tabloids were printed in Manila and sold in local news stands. “I am very happy we have a partner,” said Magpale after the CCAIB filed a criminal complaint on Wednesday against two Cebuano-language tabloids for running columns that the board said used “obs...
8/5/2011
Mandaue police look for Ouano slay clues in guns

        FOR lack of strong witnesses in the July 22 ambush of Antonio Ouano, Mandaue police are resorting to ballistics tests of handguns belonging to arrested suspects in other crimes. One of them, Michael Ancero, 29 was arrested yesterday following a motorbike holdup. Ancero denied any knowledge of the Ouano killing. He was picked up after he was identified by a female robbery victim, who was held up at gunpoint ...
8/5/2011
Marina clears 1 ship to sail

        One of the nine grounded vessels of Trans-Asia Shipping Lines ) is expected to sail again on Friday. Jose Cabatingan, information officer of the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) in Central Visayas, said their office was preparing the recommendation for the lifting of the suspension order on MV Trans-Asia 5. Marina suspended the operation of Trans-Asia following the sinking of one of its vessels, the M...
8/5/2011
‘Board course’ students anxious about future

        A junior student pursuing a bachelor’s degree in elementary education at Mandaue City College under Dr. Paulus Cañete fears she won’t be able to take the Licensure Examination for Teachers (LET). Glenda Ballera, 24, of barangay Jagobiao told Cebu Daily News she will leave everything to God after Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) chairperson Teresita Manzala, in a memorandum, said, “Graduates from ille...
8/5/2011
Zubiri promises to be back in 2013

        HE may have resigned from the Senate but Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri vowed to to stage a grand comeback in 2013. "This is a temporary setback, I will come back with a bang," Zubiri told the Inquirer in a phone interview yesterday. He said he would make a comeback and run for a Senate slot in 2013 so that he could continue serving again in an official capacity. In the meantime, Zubiri said he would continue ...
8/5/2011
‘Sven, Karen were presumed innocent’

        SAYING they were presumed innocent in the eyes of the law, the Provincial Prosecutor's Office denied Norwegian Sven-Erik Berger and fianceé Karen Castro Esdrelon's request to declare them “innocent” in the killing of 6-year old Ellah Joy Pique. The couple through their lawyer Glenn Villariza earlier filed a motion for the amendment of the resolution to include the sentence “Case is dismissed because r...
8/5/2011
‘Artificial family plan hard to promote’

        At 22, Suzzete Ortega is determined to undergo tubal ligation. Five months pregnant, the skinny mother of two said her third baby was an “accident.” She said she became pregnant again after she and her 24-year-old husband stopped using birth control. “We are already having a hard time raising our two children. Things will get worse when I give birth to this third one,” Padilla told Cebu Daily News. “I ev...
8/4/2011
2 TABLOIDS TOO SEXY?

        A criminal complaint was filed yesterday against two Cebuano-language tabloids for columns that the Cebu City Anti-Indecency Board (CCAIB) said were “obscene, indecent, and sexually suggestive.” The board, which is under the Office of the Mayor, said they decided to file the complaint after two columns in Sun.Star SuperBalita and Banat News continued to appear despite their appeals to their editors and pub...
8/4/2011
Ex-assessor in Balamban scam may get P79T terminal pay

        It’s now up to Balamban Mayor Ace Binghay whether to release P79,000 in terminal pay to a former municipal assessor implicated in the town’s land tax scam, which victimized over 100 property owners. The Balamban municipal council on Tuesday approved funds for the terminal benefits of Tita Yray, who filed for resignation after the scam was discovered in June. She was identified with two clerks as the ones wh...
8/4/2011
Gov, traders protest suspension of Trans-Asia

        Business leaders and Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia are protesting the order of the Maritime Industry Authority's (Marina) to suspend the entire fleet of Trans-Asia Shipping Lines Inc., saying it was both “unfair” and “drastic.” As Marina inspectors started checking the ships, a fire struck the cargo bay of MV Trans-Asia II docked at pier 5 of the Cebu City port area yesterday morning. The fire destroyed cargoe...
8/4/2011
Mayor’s special boards under council scrutiny

        The Cebu City Council is reviewing the composition of and budget for special bodies under the office of the mayor. Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young said the councilors want to stop the sending of proxies instead of appointed members to the meetings of the city’s 62 commissions, boards and councils. “The reason these persons are there is because of their knowledge,” Young said. “This (sending representatives) ...
8/4/2011
Scribes testify at usurpation hearing

        TWO journalists were made to clarify their print articles on the restoration of the legislative assistance fund and appointing powers taken away by Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia as alleged by the late Vice Gov. Gregorio Sanchez in his usurpation case against the governor. Their articles were presented as part of Sanchez’s daughter Grecylda “Gigi” Zaballero’s evidence in the Department of Interior and Local Gove...
8/4/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

      CYBERSEX UPSETS RADAZA LAPU-LAPU City Mayor Paz Radaza urged Senior Supt. Anthony Obenza, city police chief, to crack down on cyberpornography in the city. Radaza, in a press conference, said she told Obenza to submit this week a report on what action they have taken against cyberporn. The mayor said she knew about the presence of cybersex dens in the city only when reports quoting Obenza appeared in local daili...
8/4/2011
Supreme Court nixes plaint against Capitol

        The Supreme Court dismissed a petition for certiorari filed by ecology lawyers against Capitol officials and the Ombudsman recently. The petition filed by the Global Legal Action Against Climate Change (GLACC) stemmed from the Capitol’s alleged failure in 2009 to provide them documents on an agreement with the Korean Electric Co. to build a coal ash waste facility in barangay Tina-an, Naga City. The High Co...
8/4/2011
Demolitions in Mandaue creeks placed on hold

        THE demolitions in rivers and creeks of Mandaue City were put on hold pending the completion of a 6.5-hectare relocation site in barangay Paknaan. Nevertheless, the demolition team is monitoring the three-meter easement zone illegally occupied by settlers. City Legal Officer Giovanni Tianero said pigpens and restrooms-for-rent were demolished because “these structures were used to generate income for the in...
8/3/2011
NO TRIPS FOR TRANS ASIA

        The entire fleet of Trans-Asia Shipping Lines Inc. will remain on the docks pending inspection and completion of additional safety requirements, the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) said yesterday. Julian Sy Jr., Trans-Asia board chairman, said the company would lose at least P20 million daily with the suspension of its ships—eight remaining passenger vessels and one cargo vessel. Marina administrator E...
8/3/2011
Mayor revamps 62 boards

        Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama has his grip on all except a handful of commissions and special bodies, where he is designated chairman. In a July 28 memorandum, Rama introduced the new composition of the entities following a review of a total of 62 special bodies. In a partial list of 20 various boards, commissions and committees under his office, Rama is chairman in all except five. (See table on page 31.) ...
8/3/2011
Two lists of Capitol employees, different bosses

        “CAN you show us a copy of the plantilla signed by the governor?” With questions like these, the daughter-lawyer of Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia yesterday started probing claims that the governor had “usurped” powers of the late Vice Gregorio Sanchez Jr. when he was still alive. For over an hour, Sanchez's daughter Grecylda “Gigi” Zaballaero was cross-examined as a witness in the ongoing investigation of the Depar...
8/3/2011
Ouano sis receives text death threats

        A younger sister of murdered businessman Antonio Ouano yesterday sought help from Mandaue City police, saying she received death threats on her mobile phone. Vilma Ouano, accompanied by her lawyer Inocentes Fernandez, told Senior Insp. Rex Lomente, chief of the Investigation and Detection Management Branch, that she needs their help to identify people behind threatening text messages sent to her. Lomente sa...
8/3/2011
Farmer pleads ‘not guilty’

        IN an interview, he earlier admitted killing 53-year-old Canadian Darcy Hanz Reutenberg in the mountain barangay of Adlawon, Cebu City. But 46-year-old Rolando Aburot yesterday denied participating in the crime. “I wasn't the one who killed him,” Aburot told reporters after he appeared before Regional Trial Court Judge Ester Veloso of Branch 6. Aburot along with wife Marilyn and their 17-year-old son enter...
8/3/2011
Court clears 3 men, teener of 2008 campus murder

        So who killed 19-year-old Gerry Guiseppe Gatungay? A Cebu City court yesterday acquitted the three men and a 17-year-old boy accused in the October 2008 murder of Gatungay, a college student in barangay Mambaling, Cebu City. Regional Trial Court Judge Ester Veloso of Branch 6 said the prosecution failed to prove the guilt of Mark Jeus Aquino, Rodney Arias, Danrib Pradilla and a minor. The judge ordered the...
8/3/2011
Demolition crew clears shanties under bridge

        CEBU City Hall's demolition team started dismantling shanties from under the Basak Tagonol Bridge more than a year after it was scheduled for clearing. Noel Artes, head of the Squatters Prevention Encroachment and Elimination Division (Speed,) said the demolition was delayed several times after the 31 affected families requested for extensions and promised to take down their own structures. “The floodwaters...
8/3/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Six employees suspended THREE job-order and three regular employees of Mandaue City Hall were suspended for five days after being caught accepting concessions inside the VIP room of a karaoke TV bar in the city's North Reclamation Area. City Treasurer Regal Oliva said the employees were tasked to monitor the number of guests that patronize night clubs and KTV bars. The collection of entrance fees woul...
8/3/2011
Bohol governor succeeds Gwen

        Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia yesterday turned over chairmanship of the Regional Peace and Order Council in Central Visayas (RPOC-7) to Bohol Gov. Edgar Chatto. President Benigno Aquino III administered Chatto’s oath of office in rites at Bohol Tropics Resort in Tagbilaran City, Bohol. Aquino, who visited the province for the first time as President, appointed Chatto RPOC chairman last May. Chatto, in his spe...
8/3/2011
Body frisks at City Hall?

        TIGHTER security measures including body frisks and bag checks were proposed at the Cebu City Hall following July robberies that remain unsolved. Reynaldo Cuevas, president of the Care Best International Security Services Inc., said so far they have no lead on the identity of the robber. But he noted in his July 27 incident report that they did not see any sign of forced entry at the city post office, plann...
8/2/2011
‘IT’S NOT OUR FAULT’

Vessel cleared to sail, ship captain says; Salvage firm tapped to clean up oil spill   Oil leaks, engine problems and improperly secured cargo were among those being verified by the Coast Guard as factors that caused a Trans-Asia vessel to list and sink off Calabazas Island in Ajuy town, Iloilo, at 8:34 a.m. last Sunday. Coast Guard spokesman Lt. Commander Algier Ricafrente said the Special Board of Marine Inquiry (SBMI) will ques...
8/2/2011
Developer ordered to repair canals clearing ops on sked

  A subdivision developer was reminded to work on the drainage system while Cebu City Hall's demolition crews will be kept busy dismantling illegal structures as the rainy season shows no signs of letting up in the coming days. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said the developer of Monterrazas de Cebu should do more than desilting sedimentation ponds within their site to retain floodwater and prevent it from flooding homes in barangays G...
8/2/2011
Flyovers won’t reduce city traffic, Citom says

  FLYOVERS don’t reduce traffic congestion as shown by the presence of the Governor Cuenco Avenue flyover, the Cebu City Traffic Operations Management (Citom) said yesterday. Citom Executive Director Rafael Yap said there are other alternative solutions to the city's traffic problems other than building expensive flyovers. “We are not against flyover per se. What we are asking for is rationalization in putting up a flyover,” he tol...
8/2/2011
Tropical depressions bring rains to Cebu

    TWO tropical depressions will bring in the rains in Cebu and the rest of the country this week, the Mactan office of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Service Administration (Pag-asa) said yesterday. But Pagasa weather bureau chief Oscar Tabada said vessels can still travel pending further notice. Residents living near riverbanks and on elevated areas are advised to monitor their area for sudden ris...
8/2/2011
Exhibit, agro fair kick off affair

    Celebrating Cebu’s history through its “Women Trailblazers” and an agro-fair were two of the highlights during yesterday’s opening ceremony of the 442nd Founding Anniversary of the province. Local officials led by Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia and Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale graced the opening of the month-long province celebration. Garcia in her speech described as “sailing with and against the wind” her journey as governor o...
8/2/2011
Youth urged to back RH bill

  THE National Youth Commission (NYC) is encouraging the youth to support efforts to pass the Reproductive Health (RH) bill in Congress. Leon Flores, the chairman of the commission, said the agency would continue to campaign for the passage of the bill since it would be a significant facto to slow down the increasing cases of teenage pregnancy in the country. According to a 2010 study presented by NYC commissioner at large Percival ...
8/2/2011
Education dep’t to rally parents, teachers against cyberporn

  OFFICIALS of the Department of Education in Central Visayas (DepEd-7) will meet with Parents-Teachers Associations in the region to strengthen the campaign against cybersex. Dep-Ed 7 Regional Director Ricaredo Borgonia said he met with schools division superintendents and decided to issue this week a memorandum requiring parents to attend a “sit down meeting” with teachers. “We would discuss and discourage cybersex in the family,”...
8/2/2011
Hospital chief resigns

  The head of the Cebu City Medical Center (CCMC) is ending his seven-month stay with the government- run hospital to look for “greener pasture” in Canada. Dr. Eduardo Sedoripa applied with Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama for an indefinite leave that took effect on July 31. Rama appointed Dr. Gloria Duterte, head of CCMC's internal medicine department and coordinator of the violet ribbon advocates who help battered women, as acting hos...
8/2/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    MOTHER ON BELLA FEARING that authorities might maul or torture her daughter, the mother of Ruby Bella Santos said she would want her daughter to stay away from law enforcement authorities. “Kon akoy pabut-on, dili siya mo-surrender, kay kon mapriso siya, bun-ogon lang siya (If I were to decide, I would advise her not to surrender. If she will be imprisoned, she will just be mauled),” said Santos' mother Perla Heridiano. ...
8/2/2011
Lawyer, Sanchez daughter clash

  The Department of Interior and Local Government’s hearing of the usurpation case filed by the late Cebu vice governor Gregorio Sanchez Jr. against Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia continued yesterday with the testimony of his daughter Grecylda “Gigi” Sanchez- Zaballero. Three new lawyers handled the case with lawyer Randy Joseph Torregosa as its lead counsel. Gigi in her affidavit said her father directed her to continue “his quest for just...
8/2/2011
Allowances above board, regional prosecutor says

  REGIONAL State Prosecutor Fernando Gubalane said he would file perjury charges against businesswoman Brenda Tan who questioned the monthly allowances he received from LGUs. Tan allegedly claimed that Gubalane received P72,400—more than lawfully allowed—from LGUs. Tan said he should be receiving slightly more than P30,000. Gubalane said he was receiving a monthly stipend of P34,000 from four LGUs in Cebu. These include P12,000 fr...
8/2/2011
NBI investigates Ouano death

  THE National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) started its probe on the death of Mandaue City businessman Antonio Ouano. In an interview, NBI-7 Assistant Director Lauro Reyes said two agents are assigned to investigate, identify and file appropriate charges against the culprits. They are NBI-7 Supervising Agent Rennan Augutus Oliva and NBI-7 Agent Bernard dela Cruz. The NBI-7 will coordinate with the Philippine N...
8/1/2011
VESSEL STALLS, SINKS OFF ILOILO

Passengers, crew rescued; ship battered by waves, wind   Anna Liza Masamot awoke from a deep sleep to find herself and scores of other passengers of the ship MV Asia-Malaysia teetering dangerously to one side. “We are about to sink. I have my life vest on with me. Please tell me what to do,” she texted in Cebuano to her husband, a seaman named Archilles at 4 a.m yesterday. Archilles, who went to the Coast Guard to ask about her...
8/1/2011
Mayor Flyovers no, traffic master plan, yes

    About P1.3 billion worth of flyover projects are planned for Cebu City, but Mayor Michael Rama will have none of it. In a letter to Public Works and Highways Secretary Rogelio Singson, Rama called for a transportation master plan to be completed instead to “solve the horrendous traffic problem” in Cebu City. A flyover is being built in the junction of MJ Cuenco and General Maxilom Avenue with Gorordo and Archbishop Reyes ...
8/1/2011
Two kids perish in Bohol landslide

  A FOUR-YEAR-OLD boy and his two-year-old sister were killed while their parents and two workers were injured in a landslide that hit a bunkhouse in sitio Abatan, barangay Lincod, Maribojoc town in Bohol province. Maribojoc police identified the fatalities as John Rey Potat and his younger sister Princess Joy, of barangay Loreto in the nearby town of Cortes. The two children were declared dead on arrival at the Celestino Gallares ...
8/1/2011
Talisay city police mull fate of cyber sex victims

  VICTIMS or accomplices? That's the question that has stumped Talisay City police concerning the three women who were caught exposing themselves via web camera in an Internet cafe in Talisay City last Friday afternoon. “The investigators are still thinking if a case would be filed against them. They weren't placed behind bars since they were considered rescued victims,” PO3 Juanito Macabinta said. The three women were still in th...
8/1/2011
‘Use condos for city’s poor’

  The Cebu City condominium should be used to house the urban poor. Lawyer Collin Rosell, head of the Division for the Welfare of the Urban Poor said he wants to discuss with Mayor Michael Rama the use of the city condominium in the old Lorega San Miguel cemetery. “If possible, we should use it to address our housing concerns,” he told Cebu Daily News. Rosell said the city government is pursuing condominium type urban poor housing ...
8/1/2011
‘Dance of the water’ marker in Buhisan for dam’s centennary

    A MULTI-COLORED marker that would depict a “dance of the water” will be installed at the entrance of the Buhisan dam in February 2012 to mark its centennial celebration. The marker will bear the names of persons including the late Sergio Osmeña Jr. who made possible the building of the dam as a source of potable water for Cebuanos, said architect Melva Java. “But we wanted to do away with the bust and other traditional des...
8/1/2011
Nature’s fury Floods, landslides, sea accident

  The unpredictable weather in the past few weeks has caused rains that resulted to floods and landslides in some parts of Cebu City. Yesterday, the weather also caused big waves which hit a Cebu-based ship to sink off the coast of Iloilo. (See story on page 1.) All passengers and crew were rescued. With this development, the weather bureau yesterday also warned more rains in Cebu this week due to an active low pressure area in Luzo...
8/1/2011
‘I will contest 3rd district in 2013’

    There will be a Garcia vs Osmeña battle in the 2013 elections. “I am not shy to talk about it. I will run for the 2013 elections,” said former senator John Henry “Sonny” Osmeña on the sidelines of a visit to Toledo City in Cebu’s west coast yesterday. Osmeña’s announcement means that he will be up against incumbent Pablo John “PJ” Garcia, brother of Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia. PJ earlier this year announced that he woul...
8/1/2011
Agrarian officer indicted

  THE Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas indicted the head of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) in Cebu City for failing to liquidate cash advances amounting to P94,400.50. The anti-graft office recommended the filing of charges against Virgilio Alcomendras for “failure of accountable officer to render accounts” in violation of Presidential Decree No. 1445 or Ordaining and Instituting a Government Auditing Code of the Phili...
8/1/2011
Sonny No need to transfer Mactan airport

  THERE is no need for the transfer of the Mactan Cebu International Airport in Lapu-Lapu City to Cordova town. Former senator Sonny Osmeña said the suggestion to move the airport was “stupid, plain and simple.” “There is no need to transfer the airport as it stands right now on Mactan Island because we have spent, maybe easily P30 billion for that airport,” Osmeña said He said Cordova Mayor Adelino Sitoty, who proposed the airpor...
7/31/2011
Internet cafe owner arrested Quisumbing urges House inquiry

    An Internet cafe owner and a caretaker were arrested by Talisay City police over the weekend for suspected cybersex activities. Three women were also taken into custody for exposing their nude bodies in front of a web camera. The cafe had cubicles and curtains as partitions for the privacy of customers to surf and chat on the Internet. The three women admitted that they would strip for online viewers and were paid $100 ...
7/31/2011
Family, friends bid farewell to Ouano

        Attendance in yesterday’s burial rites of slain businessman Antonio Ouano was kept to a minimum. Only 200 employees were allowed to join the family and friends in the funeral procession that ended at the Cebu Memorial Park in Banilad, Cebu City. Clad mostly in white shirts and dresses, the mourners attended Mass at 8 a.m. in the Cosmopolitan Funeral Homes in Nivel Hills, Lahug. Media coverage was prohibit...
7/31/2011
Santos guilty for not facing case CIDG

        SHE has yet to be tried in court but already, kidnap-homicide suspect Bella Santos condemned herself guilty before the public, a task force assigned in the Ellah Joy Pique case said yesterday. Lawyer Inocencio dela Cerna, lead counsel of the Task Force Ellah Joy and the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Central Visayas (CIDG-7), said the kidnap-homicide case will start only when Santos turns hers...
7/31/2011
Tomas backs airport transfer to Cordova

        HE has no problem with a proposal to transfer the Cebu international airport to Cordova town, only with the bosses in the Capitol. Rep. Tomas Osmeña of Cebu City's south district said he backs Cordova Mayor Arleigh Sitoy's proposal to transfer the international airport to their town since the current Mactan location is fraught with tax and land ownership issues. “I just need Sitoy. As long as I only talk to...
7/31/2011
Pag-asa Mactan expects new P100-M doppler radar

        CEBU’S weather station in Mactan island has updated equipment to ensure more accurate and reliable forecasts. A P100 million weather surveillance doppler radar monitors precipitation areas, rain volume and wind, and can directly send the information online, said engineer Alfredo Quiblat, senior weather observer of the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pag-asa Macta...
7/31/2011
Foreign execs, diplomats to grace Cebu’s anniversary activities

        FOREIGN dignitaries from a Geneva-based think tank and Hong Kong diplomats are expected to attend some of the month-long activities marking the 442nd anniversary of the province of Cebu. The province will celebrate its anniversary on Aug. 6 but activities relating to the anniversary will be held throughout the month. Elizabeth Francia, the governor's chief of staff, said the province would be expecting fore...
7/31/2011
Genvi starts desilting ponds – captain

        THE developer of Monterrazas de Cebu has already started desilting its sedimentation ponds so that it can hold more rainwater and prevent this from overflowing into residential areas below the development site. Guadalupe barangay captain Michael Gacasan said that so far, Genvi Development Corp. had already worked on the desilting of their sedimentation ponds in sitios Kamanggahan, Buenahills and Dakit. “Clo...
7/31/2011
Amend Anti-Jaywalking Measure

        The Cebu City Council is pushing to amend the 10-year-old anti-jaywalking ordinance so that fines for violators can be increased to a minimum of P200 to a maximum of P1,000. Councilor Sisinio Andales said he also wanted the ordinance to be implemented citywide and not just on the junction of Osmeña Boulevard and Colon Street where traffic enforcers would mostly gather. “The jaywalking ordinance is only impo...
7/31/2011
‘File raps against former Customs collector’

        THE Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas has indicted a former collection oficer of the Cebu Port Authority (CPA) on charges of malversation of public funds. Manuel Gilbuena Jr. was held liable by the anti-graft office for allegedly incurring a cash shortage of P346,655.43 when he collected port dues at Madridejos town in 2005. Although Gilbuena is no longer in government service, the Ombudsman Visayas st...
7/31/2011
Ramadan starts Monday

        COTABATO CITY—Ramadan is not about fanaticism or terrorism but of cleansing and forgiveness. This was the reaction of a leading Muslim cleric to the alert status taken up by security officials in connection with the Muslim fasting month that starts on Monday. Earlier, Chief Supt. Felicisimo Khu, chief of the directorate for integrated police operations in Western Mindanao, said the alert was in anticipation...
7/31/2011
Bill filed to legalize church marriage annulments

        Manila — Cebu Rep. Pablo Garcia has filed a bill that seeks government recognition of annulment of marriages by various religious congregations in the country. House Bill 1290, to be known as An Act Legalizing Church Annulment Or Dissolution of Certain Marriages, notes that the government does not recognize annulment of marriages by religious sects because there is no pertinent law allowing it. Garcia said...
7/30/2011
TEARFUL GIRL POINTS TO KIN

      The judge took off his black robe to make him look less intimidating. He chose a female interpreter for the young witness. News reporters were asked to step outside the court room.   This was the setting of yesterday's resumption of trial of the Cordova cybersex case, where a 13-year-old girl was the second witness of the prosecution.   “We wanted to minimize her trauma,” said Prosecutor Lolita Lo...
7/30/2011
Mactan-Cebu airport ‘safest’ in Philippines

        The Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) was recognized as the safest in the country in terms of security measures for its operations. MCIA manager engineer Nigel Paul Villarete said the certification was issued by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP). “I’m very sure that many airlines would be more comfortable using our airport,” Villarete said in an interview. The MCIA is the sec...
7/30/2011
NBI-7 looking for lawyer in fake court ruling case

        THE lawyer accused of producing a fake court decision on a marriage nullification case has made himself scarce, prompting the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) to ask other lawyers to help find him. The NBI-7 is asking the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) to help locate local lawyer Luis Diores Jr. NBI-7 agent Bernard dela Cruz said they will ask the group on what sanctions...
7/30/2011
‘Beautiful’ Osmeña Blvd. ready for Christmas

        AN Osmeña Boulevard with Spanish-era brick sidewalks and colonial lamps will be finished in time for the Christmas holidays, said Mariquita Salimbangon-Yeung. The chairperson of the Beautiful Cebu Movement Foundation Inc. said a revitalized Osmeña Boulevard is the group’s Christmas gift to the Cebuanos. “This is also done in honor of Don Sergio Osmeña Sr. who became president of the Philippines,” she said. ...
7/30/2011
Ex-treasury chief tapped for parking project

        FORMER City Treasurer Ofelia Oliva is back in Cebu City Hall for a new job. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said Oliva will serve as a private partner in preparing for the conversion of of former beer and soft drink warehouses near City Hall into a parking space. He said he met with Oliva to discuss with her the project that he assigned to her when she was still city treasurer. “There is a project that she w...
7/30/2011
Coal ash landfill check yields more questions

        More questions were raised during a second ocular inspection of the coal ash landfill site in the Balili property in barangay Tina-an, Naga City, yesterday afternoon. Mandaue Regional Trial Court Judge Marilyn Ligura Yap of Branch 28 led the inspection of ongoing work in the ponds built by the provincial government. She took photos of the site, including the coal ash pond. The Korean Electric Power Corp. ...
7/30/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        Fiscal questioned on allowances A graft complaint was filed by a Lapu-Lapu City businesswoman against Regional State Prosecutor Fernando Gubalane. In her complaint to the Ombudsman-Visayas, Brenda Tan questioned the allowances received by Gubalane as excessive. She said he received P72,400 from local government units (LGUs) when he should be receiving slightly more than P30,000. Under Republic Act 100...
7/30/2011
Couple turns to UN, files 60-M case against gov’t

        Norwegian national Sven-Erik Berger and his Cebuana fianceé Karen Esdrelon aren't done yet. The couple has decided to seek the intervention of the United Nations (UN) in their pursuit to teach the local police a lesson for falsely accusing them months ago of kidnapping 6-year-old Ellah Joy Pique. Named respondent in their complaint was the “Republic of the Philippines.” “The (Philippine) government...
7/30/2011
Reassess mining, quarry works in uplands – Rama

        CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama wants to reevaluate quarry and mining operations in upland barangays to make sure they are not jeopardizing public safety. “With the erratic climate that we now have, we should be prudent and expeditious with our scrutiny,” he said. The mayor said that upland developments like the ongoing Monterrazas de Cebu earthworks contribute to flooding problems in the city. He asked for a...
7/30/2011
2 Cebu teachers sue DepEd Secretary

        Two public school teachers in Cebu province sued top officials of the Department of Education (DepEd) for allegedly not recognizing their promotions as principals in 2008. Lolita Uytico of Ronda Elementary School and Venus Bacalla of Tabuelan Elementary School filed their petition for mandamus with the Cebu Regional Trial Court. They said Education Secretary Armin Luistro and other DepEd officials continue ...
7/29/2011
LOCAL LAWYER FAKED ORDER

      A Cebuano lawyer is in hot water for allegedly preparing a bogus court decision for annulment of marriage. Luis Diores Jr. was recommended for charges of estafa through falsification of public documents by the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) based on the complaint of a female client. The client, Aileen Colina Bell, asked the NBI to file a disbarment case and criminal charges against he...
7/29/2011
Mayor’s proposal Move airport to Cordova town

        Cordova Mayor Adelino Sitoy yesterday offered to let his town host the Mactan international airport since Lapu-Lapu City can no longer accommodate the expansion of the facility. His offer surprised government stakeholders and representatives of the Mactan Cebu International Airport Authority (MCIAA) who attended the presentation of the master plan for the airport’s expansion. The Korean International Cooper...
7/29/2011
Is arrested man a suspect in Ouano murder?

        POLICE yesterday arrested a member of an alleged gun-for-hire group based in Balamban town and said he will be shown to witnesses of the July 22 killing of Mandaue businessman Antonio Ouano. Dwight Carmelotes, 26, was arrested several meters from the house of his live-in-partner in barangay Cubacub, Mandaue City, based on a warrant of arrest for another case of attempted homicide issued by the Municipal Tri...
7/29/2011
Children’s lawyer mulls rape raps against Aussie

        THE CHILDREN's Legal Bureau is considering filing a rape case against the 78-year-old Australian national who was arrested in Naga town, south Cebu, last week. Lawyer Jo-Ann Suarez-Pabriaga said the four children who were rescued from the Australian’s house admitted they were raped many times during their stay in the foreigner's house. “They provided a very detailed admission that they were raped,” Pabriaga...
7/29/2011
Suspected cybersex operators now sari-sari store owners

        AFTER raids in two cybersex dens in Cordova town, five suspected operators have reportedly shifted to selling packed food and putting up sari-sari stores. However, Cogon barangay captain Andres Dinoy said these people were still being monitored by barangay representatives because the change of activity may just be a temporary ruse. Dinoy, who earlier said there were five other cybersex operators in his bar...
7/29/2011
Earth claims 5 dwellings in Guadalupe

        A landslide covered five houses and closed a road in barangay Guadalupe, Cebu City, following a thunderstorm on Wednesday night. The storm also whipped up a whirlwind that hurt a woman in Talisay City. “Frequent rains loosened the soil,” said Alvin Santillana, head of the Cebu City Risk Reduction Management Council (CCRMC). The council, which had been on alert since July 22, evacuated at least 14 families ...
7/29/2011
6 cite ‘politics,’ leave Cebu City urban poor welfare office

        A SECTION head and five community organizers were the latest to resign from Cebu City’s Division for the Welfare of the Urban Poor (DWUP). Allanmar Cataluna, former head of the tenure section head, said he could no longer stand the “politics” in the office and that the new head, Collin Rosell, lacked a clear vision for the division. In his resignation letter, he said he enjoys working with the oppressed and...
7/29/2011
‘Mandaue should nix towing agency’

        The Traffic Enforcement Agency of Mandaue (Team) yesterday passed a resolution urging the city government to rescind its contract with Jadewell Parking System Corp. Lawyer James Jamaal of the City Treasurer’s Office said they will send a notice of rescission and collect undeclared fees from Jadewell. Team board member Francis Rod Bagaslao said their resolution was prompted by complaints from motorists about...
7/29/2011
Tricycle drivers grapple with dearth of riders

        A CITY ordinance allows only 2,000 tricycles to ply Mandaue City’s streets, but there are at least 10,000 units operating in the city. The violation of City Ordinance 32-91 has forced legitimate tricycle franchise holders out of business, lawyer Francis Rod Bagaslao, Traffic Enforcement Agency in Mandaue (Team) board member, yesterday told reporters. “There are many tricycle units operating in the city and ...
7/29/2011
Tracker files libel raps

        An anti-crime volunteer in Cebu City filed libel charges against a police official and three newspaper journalists for linking him to the fatal mauling of a robbery suspect. Rafael Enriquez filed his complaint with the Cebu City Prosecutor's Office. Named respondents in the complaint are Chief Insp. Bonifacio Garciano, head of the Investigation and Detective Management Branch of the Cebu City Police Office...
7/29/2011
Mayor There’s nothing wrong with pal’s action

        CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama sees nothing wrong with depositing a cash donation for City Hall project in a private account as long as the money will still serve its purpose. Rama gave this statement yesterday to defend his friend, businessman Joni Chan, who deposited a P98,000 donation from a soft drink company, for the establishment of a canteen and souvenir shop at the Cebu City zoo. “Ug i sulod sa iyang ...
7/28/2011
BOGUS COURT DECISIONS

  2 judges discover their names used in fake annulment papers     Some couples are ready to pay P200,000 to scrap their marriage. That's the price one Cebu judge learned is being offered to have a bogus court order of annulment prepared. His name appeared on one of them. “That's really a racket,” said Regional Trial Court Judge Olegario Sarmiento, who handles family court cases. “If it's that easy to come up with fak...
7/28/2011
Justice dep’t okays Wagas’ Cebu trip

        The Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) said former Compostela mayor Gilbert Waga secured a pass from Justice Secretary Leila de Lima to attend court hearings in Cebu. BuCor officer in charge Manuel Co and National Bilibid Prisons (NBP) Supt. Ramon Reyes said a request was filed with the Department of Justice (DOJ) to allow Wagas to appear in court in Cebu on July 22 and 25. This clarification came amid conflict...
7/28/2011
Rains to weaken in Cebu after ‘Juaning’ exit

        THE rains in Cebu would subside within the week following the departure of Tropical Storm Juaning from the country, the Mactan office of the state weather bureau Pagasa said yesterday. Pagasa weather analyst Alex Padin said Cebu will continue to experience rain showers and thunderstorms with heavy winds. But this won't be as heavy as the previous days due to Juaning's impending exit. Padin said even if th...
7/28/2011
Martinezes mum on graft raps

        THE camp of former Cebu Rep. Clavel Martinez and two of her children are still studying their legal options in the wake of the graft and malversation charges filed against them before the Sandiganbayan. In a phone interview, former Bogo City mayor Celestino “Tining” Martinez III said their lawyers will handle the cases filed against them. He declined to elaborate, saying he had to attend a meeting. The fo...
7/28/2011
Rotunda renovation on hold

        The rehabilitation of the historic Fuente Osmeña rotunda in Cebu City has been put on hold amid the city and provincial governments’ dispute about who owns the landmark. A private donor offered P10 million to fund the project but “it was put aside because of disagreements on... who should implement the rehabilitation,” said architect Melva Java. “The plaza should be left as it is, open to the public,” if th...
7/28/2011
‘Husbands push wives, children to cyberporn’

        Some husbands instigated their wives and children to go into the cybersex business, a police official said. Police said they discovered this during information campaigns on cyberpornography in barangays Buaya, Basak and Marigondon in Lapu-Lapu City. “The husband pushes his wife to engage in cybersex,” Senior Supt. Anthony Obenza, city police chief, said in yesterday’s Talakayan forum. Police have a hard t...
7/28/2011
European youth to build houses for Badjaos

        CEBU City is hosting 25 western Europeans on a 20-day visit to learn about Cebuano culture. The visit is part of the Multi-City Youth Exchange program organized by the city government and the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. The group would try to help the Badjao community in barangay Mambaling by building four houses for selected beneficiaries, said Ruby Cumba-Langeveld, a native of Borbon town who works as a...
7/28/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        MEETING ON DRAINAGE AFTER suspending work at the Monterrazas de Cebu project site in barangay Guadalupe, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said he wants to meet with members of the Southplains Homeowners Association to discuss the possibility of letting the Monterrazas drainage system pass through their area. He said he is also looking into clearing illegal structures on creeks and rivers in the barangay. Thr...
7/28/2011
Cebu police admits search for Bella tough

        A cat and mouse game” is how Cebu police describe their ongoing search for Bella Ruby Santos, principal suspect in the kidnap-homicide case of 6-year-old Ellah Joy Pique. While Task Force Ellah Joy is processing documents for a government-to-government request to extradite Britsh national Ian Charles Griffiths, lawyers representing him and Santos, his girlfriend, threatened to file a multi-million-peso lawsu...
7/28/2011
‘BIR memo could have prevented scam’

        AN existing memorandum issued by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) could have prevented a land tax scam that claimed hundreds of taxpayers as victims in Balamban town. The Provincial Board (PB) learned about this in yesterday's meeting with BIR officials. Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale said a BIR order directed the Land Registration Authority “to annotate in the transfer of certificate of title the serial num...
7/28/2011
Mandaue gov’t nixes contract with tow firm

        MANDAUE City Hall will cancel its contract with a towing firm after it failed to post a performance bond and received complaints about its performance. City Administrator James Abadia said they will send a notice of rescission to Jadewell Parking System Corp. signifying the termination of their contract which expires 60 days after the company receives the notice. Abadia said the Traffic Enforcement Agency o...
7/28/2011
Radio block-timer posts bail in estafa case

      THE radio block-timer who was accused of duping a woman to pay him P45,000 posted bail and stepped out of jail yesterday afternoon. Arman Cuban, 48, who hosts a Sunday morning radio show in dyLA, posted a surety bond to satisfy bail set at P40,000. Cuban faces charges of estafa in court. In her affidavit, complainant Lotes Laumen said she got in touch with him after reading Cuban’s advertisment in Banat News last...
7/27/2011
2ND WHAMMY FOR BUILDER

  Cebu City halts work on Monterrazas till flooding solved     For the second time since 2008, the developer of Monterrazas de Cebu in the mountains of Cebu City was issued a cease-and-desist order to prevent more flooding of lowland residences during a heavy rain. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama signed the order stopping Genvi Development Corp. from continuing its work until seven conditions are met. Monsoon rains yest...
7/27/2011
Ombud to look into hospital stay of jailed ex-mayor

        Where are the guards? Four uniformed guards are supposed to be escorting Muntinlupa convict and former Compostela mayor Gilbert Wagas, whom Cebu Daily News surprised in a private hospital room in Cebu City the other day. However, no guards were seen outside Room 256 of the Visayas Community Medical Center (VCMC) during the spot visit. Wagas quickly closed the door shut after recognizing the CDN reporter. ...
7/27/2011
Duranos slug it out in recall petition

        MORE than three weeks after his brother filed a recall petition against him, Danao City Mayor Ramon “Boy” Durano Jr. filed his own recall petition against Vice Mayor Ramon “Nito” Durano III before the Commission on Elections (Comelec) in Danao City. The mayor was accompanied by his lawyer and city legal officer Gloria Lastimosa-Dalawampu and his co-petitioner, City Administrator Jesus “Don” Durano, in filin...
7/27/2011
More security cameras eyed after robbery

        MORE security cameras are being considered for Cebu City Hall following last week’s theft of a laptop from the office of Councilor Alvin Dizon. Councilor Roberto Cabbarubias said he would propose buying 46 more units for installation in the lobby and grounds of City Hall The city government already spent P2.1 million for 46 security cameras earlier installed in the City Treasurer’s Office on the second floo...
7/27/2011
‘XXX’ video shown at trial

  The court yesterday watched 15 seconds of a a video that prosecutors said set off the discovery of a family engaged in cyberpornography in Cordova town in Mactan Island. The prosecution and Regional Trial Court Judge Toribio Quiwag of Branch 27 in Lapu-Lapu City viewed the brief clip. Scenes of lewd actions performed by minor-age children allegedly directed by their own parents operating a web camera filled a wide screen but pub...
7/27/2011
‘Ombud Morales should delegate’

        DECENTRALIZE the investigation and approval of cases. This was the plea of Pelagio Apostol, deputy ombudsman for the Visayas, to newly apppointed Tanodbayan Conchita Carpio-Morales. Apostol, in an interview, said sending cases that involve high-ranking government officials to their central office in Manila as ordered by former ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez delayed the issuance of resolutions. “The power t...
7/27/2011
Church official praises Aquino’s 2nd Sona

        AN official of the Cebu archdiocese said President Benigno Aquino III’s second State of the Nation Adress was “very good.” Aquino’s central message of fighting graft and corruption should inspire Filipinos, said Msgr. Esteban Binghay, episopal vicar of the Archdiocese of Cebu. “But he should not stop there. He should also provide clear and consistent direction on how to achieve his goals,” Binghay told Ceb...
7/27/2011
E. coli in Alegria water

        Water sources in a mountain barangay in Alegria town, southwestern Cebu are contaminated by E. coli bacteria, a Department of Health in Central Visayas (DOH-7)water sample showed. “The initial results for the water testing showed coliform growth in the water,” said Dr. Angelita Salarda, DOH-7 local health support chief. “There’s contamination but it does not necessarily mean that it is the cause of the typh...
7/27/2011
Region short of blood

        BLOOD supply in Central Visayas can hardly keep up with the region’s daily demand of 150 blood bags. Lack of blood donors extends the “everyday scarcity,” so the Sub-National Blood Center for the Visayas augments their supply with blood from Davao, which has a 115 percent donor rate. “We are tapping communities and encouraging them to donate more blood,” said nurse Randall Angub. The center only accepts b...
7/27/2011
Cebu clergy uncomfortable about fund drive

        TWO top Cebu church officials voiced their opposition to a fund drive pushed by former Manila City mayor Lito Atienza to buy vehicles for the seven bishops who returned their government-issued units.. Msgr. Achilles Dakay, media liason officer of the Cebu Archdiocese, said Atienza's “Funds for Church Unity” campaign that has drawn political leaders may cast the Catholic church in a negative light before the ...
7/27/2011
Osmeña Blvd. for beauty fund-raiser?

        Proponents of the “Road Revolution” that seeks a vehicle-free and pollution-free Osmeña Boulevard on Sundays may find themselves joined by another group. The Beautiful Cebu Movement (BCM) also wants to use Osmeña Boulevard on Aug. 14, a Sunday, for an event called Domingo sa Sugbo to highlight Cebuano art and culture. Janice Minor, Cebuana exporter and BCM fundraising officer, visited Cebu City Vice Mayor J...
7/26/2011
‘FIGHT VS UTAK WANG WANG’

 Aquino cites gains in State of Nation Address The hunger rate in the country is down by 5 percent, investment confidence is stronger, and other gains have been made in the fight against graft, said President Benigno Aquino III in his address to the nation yesterday. He said his campaign against “utak wang wang” or a mind-set of abuse and entitlement has yielded results in his first year of office. Aquino spoke before a joint sess...
7/26/2011
Ex-Mayor Wagas is in hospital, not Muntinlupa

    IS former Compostela mayor Gilbert Wagas sick? If he is, what’s he doing in a private hospital in Cebu City instead of Muntinlupa where he was supposed to be serving a Sandiganbayan sentence for malversation of public funds? The secrecy surrounding Wagas’ confinement stirred questions when Cebu Daily News found the ex-mayor in Room 256 of the Visayas Community Medical Center yesterday. The staff earlier denied he was the...
7/26/2011
Praise, letdown in P-Noy’s SONA

  From ordinary folks to local officials and the business community, yesterday's reactions to President Benigno Aquino III's second State of the Nation Address (Sona) ranged from disappointment and skepticism to satisfaction and glowing praise. “It's the same problems. Increases in prices of rice and gasoline and lack of jobs,” said food vendor Jing-jing Bulyo,41, as she served food in an eatery in Jones Avenue yesterday. Bulyo, who...
7/26/2011
Are you satisfied with P-Noy’s State of the Nation Address?

  “No. Everything has nothing to do with the ‘social transformation’ theme.” – Gilbert Galvez, student of Political Science, UP Diliman via Twitter “The President’s speech was plain and simple and yet sufficiently sober in light of the challenging times and the challenges ahead. I could feel the sincerity and eagerness of the President in curbing corruption in government.” – Cebu City Councilor Alvin Dizon via Facebook “SONA: ...
7/26/2011
Balamban folks talk of Aquino gov’t gains

  TWO Cebuanos were asked to share their views on how the Aquino administration improved the lives of people in their community in a live TV discussion with government channel IBC 13 minutes before President Aquino's State of the Nation Address (Sona). Councilor Dave John Karamihan of Balamban town said Cebu's ship-building industry was cited in the Sona along with the province's status as the most gender-sensitive local government u...
7/26/2011
UK police end probe against Briton suspect

    The Metropolitan Police Service in the United Kingdom (UK) has ended the investigation against Briton, Ian Griffiths, with regard to the kidnap-murder case of 6-year-old Ellah Joy Pique. Griffiths, who is in the United Kingdom, is one of the suspects in the kidnapping and killing of the girl here. Andrew Chalmers, the detective inspector of the Homicide and Serious Crime Command in the Metropolitan Police Service in UK, s...
7/26/2011
Vice gov is first witness

  Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale is scheduled to take the witness stand in today’s presentation of evidence related to the June 1 Cordova cyber pornography case. Magpale, in an interview, said she will tell the court how the Provincial Women’s Commission (PWC) got involved in the case involving parents who made five children and a niece perform nude in front of a web camera in exchange for cash. “If the children will be called (to tes...
7/26/2011
Victim’s kin given security escorts

    THE family of slain businessman Antonio “Tony” Ouano have not yet approached the Mandaue City police but have been provided with security escorts amid their grief. This developed as police yesterday released a facial composite of the gunman who killed “Tony” last Friday. The sketch matches four guns-for-hire whom policemen are monitoring, said Supt. James Goforth, head of Task Force Ouano. The perpetrator was estimated t...
7/26/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

  ‘CIUDAD WON’T WORSEN TRAFFIC’ THE Ciudad project of the Cebu provincial government will not necessarily worsen traffic in Cebu City's northern corridor, an engineer said. Additional access roads opened with the Ciudad project will ease traffic in the Banilad-Talamban road, said engineer Pedro Compendio, traffic consultant of 5th Avenue, the developer of the Ciudad project. At least 3,000 more vehicles will pass the street where ...
7/26/2011
DepEd official in hot water for claiming teacher’s check

    AN education official in Cebu was charged with estafa in court yesterday for allegedly forging the signature of a retired teacher to get P1,710.20 in cash. The Office of the Ombudsman indicted Elbert Ybanez on charges of estafa through falsification of public document. Bail was recommended at P24,000. The case stemmed from the complaint of retired teacher Lelen Catarig of Medellin Elementary School. On Aug. 17, 2007, Ca...
7/26/2011
Legal aid sought for victims suspect gets PAO lawyer ahead

  A former Balamban clerk implicated in the town’s land tax scam is tapping the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) for her defense. The problem is that dozens of scam victims who want to avail of similar free government legal service can no longer turn to PAO, said Balamban Councilor John Ismael Borgonia. “My advise to the victims was to go to the Public Attorney's Office but they were already denied because Sharee Melgar was there firs...
7/26/2011
Taxpayers Night budget cut to P1.2 M

  CEBU City's “Taxpayers Night” will be held on a modest budget of P1.2 million after the Cebu City Council found its original proposed budget of P2.3 million “too much.” The Taxpayers Night spearheaded by the City Treasurer’s Office was proposed by Mayor Michael Rama for next month. But in last Wednesday’s session, the council approved a resolution by Councilor Jose Daluz III that slashed the budget by half or P1.2 million. Vice ...
7/25/2011
Phone text messages eyed as clues in slay

  Two mobile phones of slain businessman Antonio 'Tony' Ouano recovered last Friday contained text messages that may provide clues to the perpetrators. Insp. Ramil Morpos, deputy chief of the Mandaue City police's Investigation and Detection Management Branch (IDMB) said they transcribed the text messages and phone calls from the cell phones but declined to elaborate. “Its possibly personal grudges that started from a business neg...
7/25/2011
Militants to rally against SONA

  MILITANT groups in Cebu join their counterparts in Manila and elsewhere around the country in staging rallies in response to President Benigno Aquino’s State of the Nation Address (Sona) today. But the weather may not be on their side as the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said rains could be expected in parts of Luzon, Eastern Visayas and Mindanao (see related story). Cebu Gov. G...
7/25/2011
Rainy weather ahead for Cebu this week

  RESIDENTS and visitors of Cebu can expect a rainy week ahead as an inter-tropical convergence zone (ITCZ) hits the province, the state weather agency Pagasa said yesterday. “The ITCZ and the low pressure area converged in Cebu which brings in the continuous rain,” Pag-asa Mactan weather observer Boy Artiaga said. He said the rain is expected to continue in Metro Cebu until Wednesday. Residents in mountain and low-lying areas wer...
7/25/2011
GET OUT, SINO WRITERS TOLD

Chinese embassy downplays incident, says it’s a ‘misunderstanding’ There were no criminal complaints filed, yet two Chinese online travel writers were ordered to leave the country following their airline altercation with President Benigno Aquino III's brother-in-law last Saturday. According to an Agence France Press report, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) blacklisted 33-year-old Han Yang and 31-year-old “XXX” Mailiyasi as a result of the...
7/25/2011
Summer workers’ pay, seniors’ cash delayed

      At least 1,370 summers workers have yet to claim their honorarium more than two months since they rendered service to the Cebu city government. Pre-audit requirements stipulated by the Commission on Audit (COA) caused the delay, said Emma Villarete of the cash disbursement section of the City Treasurer’s Office (CTO). “Since this is not a regular transaction, this has to pass a pre-audit,” Villarete told Cebu Dail...
7/25/2011
‘Arroyo really won in Cebu’ –Provincial Comelec

  Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo won the 2004 presidential elections in Cebu fair and square. “You could not do poll fraud” in the province, said Lionel Marco Castillano, provincial supervisor who served as election officer in Daanbantayan in 2004. “You could see that in the voting and in the canvassing of votes in the precinct, all parties were represented. We can say that cheats could not get into the canvassing,” Castiallano told Cebu...
7/25/2011
Atienza Defend clergy credibility, culture of life

    CATHOLIC laity should defend and promote the culture of life and credibility of the clergy, a pro-life advocate said. The Cebuano flock should defend bishops under fire for receiving donations from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes’ Office since the issue was in retaliation for the prelates’ opposition to the Reproductive Health bill, said Former Manila mayor Lito Atienza. Atienza, convenor of the National Coalition Fami...
7/25/2011
Ret. police general, priest to run 3,000 km for unity

  A priest and a retired police general are planning to run almost 3,000 kilometers from Luzon to Mindanao in eight months. Fr. Carmerlo Diola, Dilaab Movement Coordinator, and retired Police Gen. Samson Tucay will run 2,888 kilometers of the Philippine Maharlika Highway which starts from Laoag City in Luzon and ends in Zamboanga City in Mindanao. Diola and Tucay called the run as “Takbo Maharlika Tungo sa Pagkakaisa” (Maharlika Run...
7/25/2011
Gwen LP won’t gain from move vs Soco protest

      THE Liberal Party won't stand to gain in its bid to intervene in the election protest filed by businessman Glenn Anthony Soco against the late Cebu vice gov. Gregorio Sanchez Jr. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, who was Soco's running mate in the 2010 elections, said that the Liberal Party's representative, the late vice governor Sanchez was already deceased. “Now, who is afraid of what might be uncovered? Is someone be...
7/25/2011
LGUs told to build toilets for mountain barangay folks

  THE Department of Health in Central Visayas (DOH-7) has called on local government units to focus on providing toilets to residential areas in mountain barangays. The call came amid the typhoid cases in Alegria last week where 142 residents in the town's mountain barangays were affected. The health department also admitted that the lack of toilets in the municipalties was the principal cause of water contamination. The open defec...
7/24/2011
RUDE TOURISTS ARRESTED

  2 Beijing visitors in near-fistfight with P-Noy's brod-in-law     Two Chinese tourists were arrested after one of them held by the collar the husband of presidential sister Maria Elena "Ballsy" Aquino-Cruz on board a Cebu Pacific flight to Cebu yesterday morning. Han Yang, 33, and “XXX Mailiyasi”, 31, were detained at the Police Center for Aviation Security office at the Mactan Cebu International Airport for at least...
7/24/2011
Ouano kin, friends visit wake police looking for gun-for-hire

        Family members and relatives closed ranks at the wake of slain businessman Antonio Ouano, even as police investigators said his ambush was the handiwork of a professional gun-for-hire. Access to the large suite at the Cebu Cosmopolitan Funeral Homes in Nivel Hills, where an 8 p.m. Mass was held, was limited to family and close friends.. Inside the chapel, atop Ouano's bronze coffin was a cage with a live c...
7/24/2011
Legal aid group mulls raps against parents of victims

        EVEN if the childrens’ parents consented, an Australian still violated the law on child abuse when he kept four underaged girls at his home in barangay Inayagan, Naga City. With this, 11 photographs seized by police at the house showing 78-year-old Angelo Farina relaxing at home with teenage girls was crucial in the return of a search warrant. Some photos showed the girls, aged 14 and 15, in house dresses o...
7/24/2011
DOT on the spot, Ballsy was ‘calm’

        THE tense encounter between two Chinese tourists and Eldon Cruz on board a Manila-Cebu flight placed the Department of Tourism (DOT) and other government officials on the spot. The Beijing visitors are part of 12-member group of online travel writers invited by the DOT to promote Cebu City as a tourist destination. DOT representatives led by Regional Director Rowena Montecillo was at the airport throughout...
7/24/2011
Archdiocese drums support against RH bill

        DESPITE the heavy downpour, “pro-life” advocates gathered yesterday afternoon to rally support against the Reproductive Health Bill. The Sto. Niño Pilgrim Center was surrounded by Cebuano faithful clad in red, which signifies their pro-life stance and their opposition to other measures like the pending divorce bill and the same sex marriage proposition. In his Mass, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma reminded the C...
7/24/2011
Cebu City Hall to review drainage master plan

        IS a seven-year-old drainage master plan sufficient to stop flooding in Cebu City? Mayor Michael Rama said he wants to find out in a meeting with Engr. Pedro Adonis Compendio, architect of the plan and city engineering officials. Some officials of the Department of Engineering and Public Works (DEPW) don't think so. “The master plan wasn't comprehensive because it only identified macro solutions,” said En...
7/24/2011
Old cars, lots for sale in Cebu City

        OLD vehicles and lots with unpaid taxes will be sold by Cebu City Hall to the public at half their prices. Cebu City Councilor Jose Daluz III said city- owned service vehicles that were seven years old and more should be disposed in a public auction since the city spends millions for their maintenance. “The Commission on Audit said these vehicles are of no value at all so we might as well sell them and buy...
7/24/2011
Gwen gives contractor until August 1 to complete project

        Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia has set an August 1 deadline for the contractor to finish the Sugbo Performing Arts Center in Lahug, Cebu City. Garcia said she was giving a “non-negotiable” deadline to Pragmatic Construction so the center can be inaugurated in time for the founding anniversary of the Province on Aug. 12. The theater, located in the campus of the University of the Philippines Cebu College, was st...
7/24/2011
Only two automatic chlorinators installed in Alegria

        MAJORITY of water sources in the municipality of Alegria, southwest of Cebu lack automatic chlorinators. Dr. Samson Dela Pena, municipal health officer of Alegria, said the municipality which recorded 142 cases of typhoid fever from Brgy Maridejos and Valencia last week only has two automatic chlorinators installed in their nine barangays. Pena said the Capitol donated 10 chlorinators to Alegria town last M...
7/23/2011
OUANO KILLED IN ROAD AMBUSH

        It was raining heavily yesterday afternoon when gunmen ambushed Mandaue City businessman Antonio “Tony” Ouano near a road named after his family. Two men on a motorbike stopped as a backrider took aim and fired at Ouano who was driving his sports utility vehicle. Ouano was shot four times in the chest and belly. The death of the 69-year-old businessman, whose family is one of the oldest and wealthiest cla...
7/23/2011
Trafficking, abuse raps filed against Aussie

        Charges of human trafficking and child abuse were filed yesterday against 78-year-old Angelo Farina. The Australian was arrested after a raid Wednesday night in his house in barangay Inayagan, Naga City, where he was found keeping four underaged girls. Farina was brought to the Palace of Justice where charges were filed with the provincial prosecutor’s office. He was later returned to the Naga City jail for...
7/23/2011
Karen, Sven file P50-M suit against police

        IT'S payback time for Norwegian Sven-Erik Berger and his Cebuana fianceé Karen Esdrelon. The couple yesterday filed criminal and administrative charges against four police officers and an immigration official before the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas. Heading their hit list was former Cebu provincial police chief Senior Supt. Erson Digal and immigration officer Arthur Omega. The two were each slap...
7/23/2011
Neglectful parents to face raps, Gwen says

        PARENTS who use their children for online pornography rackets will face criminal charges in court, Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia yesterday. In a press conference, Garcia said she will no longer give reminders since parents turned a “deaf ear” on previous warnings. “What I would like to tell them now is if they will not embrace their responsibilities as parents, then they are equally liable and we will run aft...
7/23/2011
Five boys ‘molested’ by neighbor

    Five teenage boys were accompanied by their aunt and parents from their home in a mountain barangay in Naga City to the police station to file a complaint against their neighbor, whom they accused of molesting them. The boys, all cousins, pointed to their homosexual neighbor, who is working in a beauty parlor in Cebu City. He said that he felt pain whenever he would urinate. The four other boys aged 14 to 16 said they...
7/23/2011
Mayor assures safety of Bella in Naga jail

        Kidnap-homicide suspect Bella Ruby Santos will be assured of protection once she turns herself in to the Naga City government, Mayor Valdemar Chiong said yesterday. Though he has has no contact with Santos, the mayor said one of their three jail cells can accommodate female detainees. Santos has been in hiding since the court issued an arrest warrant for her last July 12. “We will make arrangements for he...
7/23/2011
Guadalupe families displaced by floods

        ABOUT P100-million worth of flood and drainage improvement projects are targeted for completion in Cebu City before the year ends. Mayor Michael Rama said this amid reports that 176 families in barangay Guadalupe were displaced after their houses were flooded last Wednesday afternoon. Most flood victims blame the upland Monterazzas de Cebu development for aggravating the flood. Guadalupe barangay captain ...
7/23/2011
Four firms eye waste energy plant in Cebu

      FOUR companies yesterday signified their interest to bid for a waste to energy facility in the province but one of them failed to qualify, a Capitol official said yesterday. Sinova Capital and MGT Power Ltd. managed to pitch their technical presentation while Fortune asked for a one-week extension to submit their proposal before the scheduled bidding. Quantum International pulled out from the technical presentation...
7/23/2011
‘Toxic toys’ in stores

        Twenty-five percent out of 100 children’s products purchased in Cebu tested positive for at least one toxic metal above levels of concern, results of a study by ecology groups showed yesterday. The “State of the Toys Analysis” (Sota) was done through the efforts of the Philippine Earth Justice Center (PEJC), EcoWaste Coalition and the IPEN to examine the consumer toxic exposure among children in the city. E...
7/23/2011
Militants press for release of pol inmates

        More than 50 members of different militant groups had only water, candies and crackers for lunch and dinner yesterday to support the call to release political prisoners. The militants' light lunch and dinner was a show of support to 200 political prisoners across the country who went on a three-day fast starting yesterday to press President Benigno Aquino III to release them. The different groups in Cebu, w...
7/23/2011
Rama taps Gwen’s help for fish market strategy

        To prevent the entry of illegally caught fish in Cebu City market, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama has asked Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia to request town mayors to issue a certification that would signify their towns as the source of fish and other marine products in city markets. Rama asked for the issuance of an Executive Order (EO) for the purpose. “I would like to recommend that the Provincial Executive Orde...
7/23/2011
Brother-musician of actress Pinky Amador found dead

        THE elder brother of actress Pinky Amador was found dead in a room inside his rented apartment on Sanson Road, Lahug, Cebu City, shortly before noon yesterday. The body of musician Emmanuel “Manny” Amador, 49, of Makati City was already bloated and in a state of decomposition when it was found by his neighbors and the owner of the apartment at past 11 a.m. Amador, who was a diabetic, might have died after s...
7/22/2011
GOOD, BAD NEIGHBOR?

        Two teenage sisters first complained. Their account about being enticed to live in the house of an elderly Australian in exchange for sex in barangay Inayagan, Naga City, prompted child rights advocates to file a case in April. “They did not receive any money, just free food, clothes and accommodation,” said lawyer Joan Suarez of the Children’s Legal Bureau. When the parents later backed off the case, poli...
7/22/2011
American sex offender nabbed

      THE National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) arrested on Wednesday a 52-year-old American national who is facing investigation in the United States America on accusations of child   Robert Dean Lunsford, who lives with his Cebuana wife in barangay Lagtang, Talisay City, was apprehended by the NBI-7 led by Special Investigator Arnel Pura outside a mall in Talisay City.   The US Depart...
7/22/2011
Typhoid claims lives of 2 Alegria residents

        Typhoid fever in Alegria town, southern Cebu, has killed two persons. The Department of Health in Central Visayas (DOH-7) confirmed yesterday the death of a 61-year-old man and a 21-year-old woman. Both were residents of Alegria town but died in separate hospitals in Cebu City. Their identities were still awaiting verification through death certificates from the hospitals, said engineer Noel Esparagoza, DOH...
7/22/2011
Trackers team disbanded

        THE Cebu City Police Chief yesterday said the Trackers team, a group of civilian anti-crime volunteers, has been disbanded. Senior Supt. Melvin Ramon Buenafe said this happened after its members were found involved in the July 7 arrest and death of a robbery suspect in the Fuente Osmeña police precinct, where the suspect was mauled during interrogation. The controversy led to the relief and transfer of Chi...
7/22/2011
Designer Malto, 41, dies

        CEBU fashion designer Salvador Malto passed away Wednesday afternoon, sending shock waves in his circle of friends and clients in clothes couture. He was 41. He suffered a ruptured aneurysm of the aorta. Malto was brought to the Perpetual Succour Hospital in Cebu City by his family about 1:30 a.m., according to his close friend and writer Orly Cajegas, quoting Malto’s father. The designer, who had a histor...
7/22/2011
Guadalupe sitios bear brunt of flood

        A state of calamity was declared in eight sitios of Guadalupe, Cebu City, after Wednesday’s downpour brought mud, silt and water rushing down from the mountains, where a large-scale subdivision is being built. The hour-long rain caused a flash flood that knocked down concrete fences, entered classrooms and littered roads with rocks and silt. The floodwaters rushed down to the low-lying sitio Dakit, said res...
7/22/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

        MANDAUE TRICYCLE DRIVERS’ SUBSIDY TRICYCLE franchise holders in Mandaue City will be given fuel subsidy cards worth P150 each. The cards will be distributed in the Mandaue City Sports Complex on July 28 and 29 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. City Administrator James Abadia said the subsidy program helped uncover fake franchises. So far, only 120 out of 1,799 franchise holders who renewed last March 2011 will rec...
7/22/2011
Students told Change schools

        Students of Mandaue City College (MCC) under Dr. Paulus Cañete who are pursuing degrees with board examinations have to transfer to a Commission on Higher Education-recognized school. MCC graduates “from board courses or programs shall not be allowed to take any licensure examination,” said Dr. Patricia Licuanan, Ched chairperson in a letter dated July 4. By virtue of Ched en banc Resolution No. 163-2011, L...
7/22/2011
Cops quiz Bella’s cousin about her whereabouts

        Bella Ruby Santos was in Cagayan de Oro last month. She may have been in Moalboal town in southwestern Cebu when the order to arrest her was issued on July 12. That’s what her cousin, Edgardo Villarino, told police who invited him for questioning yesterday. Villarino accompanied her to Mindanao on June 27 but told police yesterday he didn’t know the whereabouts of his elusive cousin after the arrest warra...
7/22/2011
Worker linked to fake franchise cases quits Mandaue City Hall job

        AN employee who was implicated in the issuance of fake franchises in Mandaue City Hall has resigned. Pureza Sollano, however, who worked for 17 years in the city government, cited health resons for her exit. City administrator James Abadia said he was considering filing charges against the woman after a fact-finding team headed by lawyer Giovanni Tianero of the City Legal Office identified Sollano as the p...
7/21/2011
URBAN FLASH FLOODS

  Downpour strands commuters, jams traffic Knee-deep floodwaters and a monster traffic jam plagued urban Cebu City following an hour-long downpour past 5 p.m. yesterday. At past 8 p.m., traffic was at a standstill in barangay Banilad and Archbishop Reyes Avenue. Hundreds of commuters going home from work and school were stranded as as frustrated motorists tried to navigate flash floods in city streets from downtown to uptown. ...
7/21/2011
Four girls rescued from Australian

    POLICE last night arrested a 78-year-old Australian for allegedly keeping four children as “sex slaves” in his house in barangay Inayagan, Naga City, in south Cebu. Naga police served a search warrant against Angelo Farina in his rented bungalow about 10 p.m. Law enforcers rescued four girls aged 14 to 15 who were in a state of shock. The house is a few blocks from the residence of Bella Ruby Santos, who is wanted with her...
7/21/2011
Typhoid cases confirmed in Alegria, says DOH-7

    Health authorities yesterday confirmed that typhoid fever afflicted several residents in Alegria town, southwest Cebu, and advised townfolk to boil their drinking water. Acting Regional Director Elizabeth Tabasa of the Department of Health in Central Visayas (DOH-7) said blood samples taken from 16 victims tested positive for typhoid, an infectious disease linked to fecal contamination of water or food. Tabasa said nine o...
7/21/2011
Cebu towns ‘vulnerable’ to land tax scams

    THE conditions that allowed fixers to pull off a land tax scam in Balamban town also exist in other Cebu municipalities, Cebu Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale said yesterday. “I was told that in other towns they also do that. I was told by some former mayors who were now Provincial Board (PB) members that it's happening in their place. There are no reports of that yet but it's dangerous to be swindled on a similar large scale,” she ...
7/21/2011
‘Intensify war on crime’

    The Lapu-Lapu City Police and barangay officials need to work better together to fight crime. “I call the attention of the police force and barangay officials to bring this (crime) volume down by half in the next six months,” Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Paz Radaza in her first State of the City Address (Soca). Wearing a violet Filipiniana attire, Radaza presented data showing a 24 -percent increase in incidents of robbery and not...
7/21/2011
Oliva told to return city firearm

    The head of the Cebu City Government Services Office yesterday asked former city treasurer Ofelia Oliva to return the 9mm pistol issued to her. Rolando Ardosa said Oliva already accounted for all other property and equipment under her office and turned these over to her successor, Acting City Treasurer Tessie Camarillo. Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima earlier denied Mayor Michael Rama’s request for the fourth extension ...
7/21/2011
Motorcycle-riding gunmen shoot dead pension house owner

    A PENSION house owner who checked into another pension house was gunned down by unidentified motorcycle-riding assailants in barangay San Nicholas, Cebu City, Tuesday night. Rolando Heramil Pelina, 53, died of several gunshot wounds in the body. He owned the Errol Pension House in Panganiban Street, Cebu City. PO3 Michael Codaste of the Cebu City police said Pelina was shot in front of West View Pension House at corner Mac...
7/21/2011
COA Justify overpayment or refund it

    State auditors advised the Lapu-Lapu City government that it should legally justify the overpayment of incentives to their employees or refund them. The auditors’ advice came amid their findings of a P6.8-million overpayment of incentives to Lapu-Lapu City employees last year. In their report, the auditors said the Performance Enhancement Incentive (PEI) worth P6,869,118 was beyond the standard set by the Department of Bud...
7/21/2011
Foreign chambers seek judiciary reforms

    MANILA — The Joint Foreign Chambers, the umbrella organization of foreign chambers operating in the country, is urging the government to implement major reforms, particularly in the area of the judiciary, in the run-up to President Aquino's delivery of his second State of the Nation Address. While generally satisfied with the accomplishments of the Aquino administration thus far, the group said more reforms could be done, ...
7/21/2011
Palma chosen to head river management body

    A new responsibility was given to Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma. The head of the Cebu archdiocese was chosen by stakeholders yesterday to head the newly formed Central Cebu River Basins Management Council (CCRBMC). Stakeholders chose the prelate, who will lead the Catholic Bishop's Conference of the Philippines starting December as they need a neutral leader who can build consensus, said Fr. Mar Alingasa, SVD of the Cebu Unit...
7/21/2011
‘It’s unsafe next to Mananga River’

    At least 100 tricycle drivers and vendors trooped to the new Talisay city Public Market yesterday morning to inspect the proposed parking lot for tricycles. Mario Meñamen, vice president of the drivers’ association, told Cebu Daily News he's unsatisfied with the parking lot being constructed near the new market in barangay Lagtang because the area was reclaimed from the Mananga River. Meñamen said he feared about the are...
7/21/2011
‘Monsoon traps’ can last an hour

    More rains may be in store for Cebu this week. Pagasa Mactan weather analyst Rafael Tapales said the heavy downpour was caused by a “monsoon trap” in the Visayas and Mindanao. He said monsoon traps were like waves of wind and water that originate from the east, and usually come with thunder and lightning. No low pressure area is reported in the Philippines. Tapales said rains caused by monsoon traps would usually last...
7/20/2011
100 DOWN IN ALEGRIA

Water supply causes next wave of ‘typhoid’ cases   Contaminated water supply in a mountain barangay in Alegria town, Cebu, has downed almost 100 persons, many of them children. Dr. Cristina Giango, Cebu provincial health officer, said the cases were “alarming” because of a previous typhoid outbreak in Alegria in December last year. Patients started showing up last week at the town's Reinheart Wertgen Memorial Hospital with high...
7/20/2011
Mayor to ask P-Noy aid for Oliva’s retention

  In making a last-ditch effort to keep Ofelia Oliva as Cebu City treasurer, Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said he will elevate his petition to President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III. "It is not just an ordinary issue but a matter of governance. If this is not clarified at the level of the Department of Finance, I will have this clarified with the President," he told reporters. Rama said he intends to speak with the President after Aq...
7/20/2011
Oliva’s son okay with city transfer

  WHY not me? Mandaue City Treasurer Regal Oliva yesterday pitched himself as a replacement for his mother, Ofelia, as Cebu City treasurer after Ofelia’s extension was dropped by the Department of Finance. “I can make P14 billion for (Mayor) Rama. I can always dance the tango in any local government because our family are good dancers and workers. Why not? We are very effective in everything that we do,” he said. Regal said his te...
7/20/2011
Mangroves dying, springs clogged

  Dying mangroves, a blocked spring, poorly installed plastic lining and thin filling materials were among the violations of environment rules noted in Cebu province's coal ash pond project in the Balili property in Naga City. William Cuñado, chief of the Environmental Impact Assessment Monitoring Division, questioned why engineers sealed the property's pond C though springs, where residents sourced water for drinking and other purpo...
7/20/2011
Officials asked firm to waive penalties for towed vehicles

  THE president of towing company Jadewell Parking System Corp. confirmed that some Mandaue City officials requested the waiver of penalties or charges for towed or impounded vehicles belonging to their friends or acquaintances. “This is because pagkakaibigan (friendship) at palakasan (power play) is part of Filipino culture. There were written requests coming from City Hall while others were verbally instructed,” Rogelio Tan told Ce...
7/20/2011
Bella not hiding at home, manhunt in progress

  ARMED with a warrant of arrest, members of the Naga City police yesterday went inside Santos' two-story house in barangay Inayagan, which she reportedly pawned to a businessman. Santos, one of the suspects in the kidnap and murder of 6-year-old Ellah Joy Pique last Feb. 8, wasn't home. Police also searched her old home a few blocks from her “dream house” but they only met Santos’ mother and sister. The police received the arr...
7/20/2011
Trackers like ‘private army’

    An investigator of the Commission on Human Rights in Central Visayas (CHR-7) said the group of anti-crime volunters in the Fuente police station was unique and acted “on their own.” CHR-7 Special Investigator II Lilybeth Llona said the “Tracker” team was acting like a “private army” of their founder Chief Insp. Michael Anthony Bastes, who was relieved from his post after the death of a theft suspect in police custody. A ...
7/20/2011
LGUs under watch on demolitions

  Any problems or issues tied to the Mahiga Creek demolition as pursued by the Cebu City government were resolved after it offered a relocation site and promised financial aid to the displaced families. But the Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor (PCUP) reiterated that local officials should conduct consultations and ensure a relocation site for settlers displaced by fire and demolitions. The commission said it is monitoring ...
7/19/2011
OLIVA IS OUT

Transfer of Cebu City treasurer is Rama’s loss, Osmeña’s handiwork     Congressman Tomas Osmeña got his way. His behind-the-scenes request to remove Cebu City Treasurer Ofelia Oliva for “overstaying” was sealed yesterday with a July 14 memo from the Department of Finance (DOF) naming her replacement. “Treasurer Oliva is hereby instructed to turn over subject office to Ms (Tessie) Camarillo as acting city treasurer...,” said...
7/19/2011
Fuente chief, 7 cops, ‘Tracker’ charged

    Chief Insp. Michael Anthony Bastes said he wasn’t around when a robbery suspect was beaten to death in the Fuente police precint two weeks ago. But his role in the July 7 arrest of Joven Tejano was noted in a police investigation that recommended him and seven other policemen for summary hearing on administrative charges. A separate criminal charge was already filed against Pedro Piañar, a civilian asset of the police, wh...
7/19/2011
Bella won’t yield yet says kin

  THE arrest warrant was issued by the court last week, but kidnap-homicide suspect Bella Ruby Santos isn’t ready to surrender yet. The Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in Central Visayas (CIDG-7) said “backdoor negotiations” with the family and relatives of Santos stalled. Kinsmen dropped their previous assurance that she would surrender herself to the police. They were reportedly discussing options of where Bella would ...
7/19/2011
No family visitors yet for rescued girls in Cordova raid

  SOCIAL workers are kept busy assessing the immediate family members of the children who were rescued from a cybersex den in Cordova town last Tuesday. Jaybee Binghay, spokesperson of the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Central Visayas (DSWD-7), said they are trying to locate relatives to whom the agency can turn over custody of the children. The girls, aged 9, 12 and 17 were caught performing naked in front of a we...
7/19/2011
Lapu to COA Dome, terminal earn

    The Lapu-Lapu City public terminal and newly inaugurated Hoops Dome have been generating public income, an official said. Acting city attorney and liaison officer to Congress Michael Dignos was reacting to state auditors who reported that the city-owned facilities needed to attract more investors. The terminal has been “operational for about one to two years now and the bus terminal has an estimated (daily) income of not ...
7/19/2011
PB listens to pros, cons

      Members of the Cebu Provincial Board (PB) need time to digest the pros and cons of the Reproductive Health bill. Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale said the PB will hold a caucus next week to determine their stand on the bill after listening to two doctors they invited to speak about the bill in yesterday’s session. Dr. Milagros Chan, a gynecologist, explained why the bill should become law while Dr. Rene Bullecer, a pro-life...
7/19/2011
Cops say family conspired to kill Canadian

  CHARGES of robbery with homicide were filed yesterday against the farmer who admitted killing 53-year-old Canadian Darcy Hanz Reutenberg in the mountain barangay of Adlawon, Cebu City. Rolando Aburot, 46, said he committed the crime alone. But Aburot's admission didn't stop the police from filing charges against his wife Marilyn and their 17-year-old son for an alleged conspiracy. The three respondents were brought before the ...
7/19/2011
Cop, ex-Navy man caught treasure hunt in Lorega?

  A police officer and a former Navy man were arrested yesterday by police in barangay Lorega, San Miguel in Cebu City after residents claimed they were part of a group responsible for excavating for rumored Japanese treasure in the village’s old cemetery. Arrested were PO3 Noel Monares, who is assigned at the Regional Intelligence Division (RID), and Romy Ahong, a former Philippine Navy man. They were turned over to the barangay h...
7/19/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

    NOT GUILTY PLEA ONE of the men who allegedly robbed Cebu Provincial Board Member Julian Daan entered a plea of “not guilty” during his arraignment yesterday. Rameses Abatayo denied the robbery charges lodged against him before Regional Trial Court Soliver Peras of Branch 10. Before the proceedings, Abatayo told reporters he was willing to admit his participation in the crime for a lesser penalty. Abatayo, who has three ...
7/19/2011
SSS set to deliver ID cards by end of July

  MANILA— The Social Security System is set to issue electronic identification cards for members, saying the long wait for the cards will soon be over. In a statement, the SSS announced that the issuance of the so-called Unified Multipurpose Identification System (UMID) cards would begin by the end of July. "Members who have been waiting for their IDs after the SSS card production stopped in April 2010 would be the first ones to...
7/19/2011
ROAD OPENING UNDERWAY

    Heavy equipment began leveling burnt structures in barangay Tejero to prepare for opening a 10-meter-wide access road. Engineering personnel also visited barangay Punta Princesa to survey the fire site. Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama said he wants access roads and reblocking completed within this week in the two barangays where fire struck on July 9 and 13, displacing almost 500 families. In a meeting, Rama told City H...
7/19/2011
City Hall to let go half of 42 advisers

  An environment advocate and a former mayor will be retained as advisers of Cebu City Hall. But about half of the city’s 42 consultants may not get their contracts renewed based on recommendations of a review committee, said Belinda Navasquez, secretary to Mayor Michael Rama. She wouldn’t give other details since the mayor has yet to act on the report. She said the committee, of which she is a member, drew up an initial list of th...
7/18/2011
‘BEWARE POLS BEARING GIFTS’

Palma says Church to be extra careful; says PCSO to blame for scandal Brotherly reminders” will be issued to priests who will receive or solicit donations from government, the incoming president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) said yesterday. Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma said this as he admitted that the recent fallout over the Pajero controversy involving seven bishops compelled the Church to become “extra ca...
7/18/2011
Ellah Joy case still haunts Karen, Sven

  They were long cleared by the Cebu court and police authorities but the stain of the kidnap-homicide charges continue to linger on Norwegian national Sven Berger and his Cebuana fiancee Karen Esdrelon. Assisted by lawyer Glen Villariza, the couple decided to request the Cebu Provincial Prosecutors' Office to declare them innocent of the charges in relation to the kidnap-murder of six-year-old Ellah Joy Pique. In their pleading fil...
7/18/2011
Money shops seen as conduits to cybersex operators

  CASH remittance institutions were identified as a conduit for payments of online pornography shows in Cordova town whose mayor called for a congressional investigation on these reports. In a forum held over the weekend, Cordova Mayor Adelino Sitoy said cyber pornography operators would call up their contacts inside the cash remittance institutions to verify if payments were transmitted prior to the start of a live, online show. ...
7/18/2011
Tourism dep’t eyes 6.3-M visitors by 2016

  THE Department of Tourism is gearing up to increase the number of tourists who will sample the Philippines’ “undiscovered treasures and hidden gems” to 6.5 million international arrivals, and over 32 million domestic travelers by 2016. In an interview at DZIQ 990 AM yesterday morning, Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim identified three key strategies that the DOT is focusing on to turn the Philippines into a “must experience” destinatio...
7/18/2011
Church pledges food, relief for Punta Princesa fire victims

  Kitchen utensils, mats, jars, blankets, plates, canned goods and rice were distributed last Saturday to at least 326 families affected by the fire that hit barangay Punta Princesa in Cebu City last week. Social Welfare Officer Marilou Buctot oversaw the distribution of 1,535 “take home” packages to persons at the grounds of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints near the fire scene. “We started distributing the goods...
7/18/2011
COA Don’t waive fines for vehicles towed away

    MANDAUE City officials were advised by the Commission on Audit (COA) to refrain from accomodating requests to waive the penalties, sanctions and charges imposed by towing company Jadewell Parking System Corp. on motorists. State auditors told the city government to “strictly enforce the city ordinance on the use and operation of parking spaces.” At the same time, the company should present its terms of reference based on t...
7/18/2011
NEWS BRIEFS

  TYPHOID IN ALEGRIA? PROVINCIAL health officials visited barangay Valencia, Alegria town Saturday morning to check the health of its residents after they received reports that some manifested symptoms of typhoid fever. Municipal Health Officer Samson Dela Peña told Cebu Daily News that he was with the staff of the provincial health office who visited the barangay yesterday. According to Dela Peña, they only knew of the situati...
7/18/2011
Auditors Mandaue City bought more lamppost parts than what were needed

  STATE auditors has asked the Mandaue City government to inspect and evaluate existing lampposts in the city to know the actual needs of the city to save on funds. The auditors’ recommendation came after they found out that the Mandaue City government bought more than what were needed in its P6.5 million purchase of 700 sodium lamppost sets, leaving some of the parts to be left outside the stockroom. The Commission on Audit auditor...
7/18/2011
Cordova – Reclamation project work ongoing

  Work of phase 1 of the the 132-hectare reclamation project of Cordova town in Mactan Island is ongoing. Cordova town Mayor Adelino Sitoy said this project would increase the economic activity of the town once development begins. Sitoy said Phase 1 would cover 10 hectares and cost about P80 million. The blessing of the site, which will be attended by Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, will be on August 14. Sitoy said they would be loo...
7/17/2011
BRGY LISTING ‘NET USERS’

  Cordova village checks hotspots of cybersex     What is Cordova town doing about cybersex operators? Barangay captain Andres Dinoy of Cogon said he's been asking families to register their Internet connections and computers with the barangay office. This way, it would be easier to locate parties misusing the Internet for pornography when a complaint is raised. So far 50 users have signed up, he said, but ...
7/17/2011
‘Rich’ Cebu province favors negosyo - critics

        Richest and strongest province – from whose point of view? That was the comment of ecology lawyer Gloria Estenzo Ramos on the State of the Province Address (Sopa) of Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia on Friday. She said the accomplishments listed were based on the business sector’s point of view. “There’s nothing new in her Sopa. That’s the same as last year’s. Has the quality of life of the people in Cebu ...
7/17/2011
Explain advances, projects, Lapu told

        UNLIQUIDATED cash advances amounting to P11.5 million in Lapu-Lapu City and the continued absence of tenants in the Hoops Dome stadium and public terminal topped the list of red-flagged items by state auditors. In a year-end report, the Commission on Audit (COA) said, Lapu-Lapu employees and officials failed to liquidate their local and foreign travels within a two-month period. Some of them were m...
7/17/2011
Suspended Lapu officials to seek reconsideration

      TOP officials of Lapu-Lapu City plan to challenge their suspension by the Visayas Ombudsman’s Office which ordered 18 officials supsended for six months for the overpriced purchase of computers worth P23.5 million in 2005. City Administrator Teodulo Ybañes was ordered suspended along with department heads City Budget Officer Victoria Andoy, City Treasurer Elena Pacaldo Rogelio Veloso, City Legal Officer Vi...
7/17/2011
Palma No law violated in donations

        In his first public appearance in Cebu following the controversy over donations of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO), Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma said the Church did not violate any law. “The truth is there was nothing illegal, unconstitutional and anomalous” with the donation of vehicles to bishops, he said. Palma spoke during a Mass celebrating the feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel ...
7/17/2011
Farmer says ‘sorry’ for shooting Canadian ‘uncle’

        After a night in jail, 46-year-old farmer Rolando Aburot yesterday poured out his grief and remorse over killing Canadian Darcy Hanz Reutenberg. “I'm sorry kaayo, Uncle,” Aburot said, referring to his 53-year-old friend. He said they had known each for more than 15 years, and that he called Retuentberg “Uncle.” In the Cebu City police office, Aburot recounted Reutenberg's efforts to help poor fam...
7/17/2011
Easy, solar bulbs for Cebu schools

        With the heat of the sun, a plastic soda bottle filled with water can shine 55 watts of light. The low-cost solar bottle bulbs are being proposed to share “a liter of light” in public schools of Cebu province. Illiac Diaz, chief executive officer of My Shelter Foundation based in Manila, submitted the proposal to Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia during his visit to the Capitol on Thursday. “She (Garcia...
7/17/2011
Capitol closes water deal

        The Capitol successfully negotiated the unsolicited offer for the Bulk Water Supply System with a consortium led by Manila Water Company Inc. Now, it is inviting bids for a comparative proposal for a joint investment agreement for the development, operation and maintenance of a bulk water supply system in the province. Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia announced the closing of the deal during her State of t...
7/17/2011
Council withdraws order approving e-games operations

        AT LEAST they agreed on this one. The Cebu City Council recalled a resolution which authorized the operation of a Pagcor Internet casino operation after Mayor Michael Rama reminded the body that it was prohibited and contrary to an existing city ordinance. City Ordinance No. 1860 “declares the installation, establishment and/or operation of Internet casino gaming in Internet cafes and other simila...
7/16/2011
‘STRONGEST, RICHEST PROVINCE’

  Gwen cites P28.6-B assets, new ‘unity’ with Cebu City     Cebu province remains strong. This was how Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia described Cebu during her annual State of the Province Address (Sopa) last night. Still debt-free, Cebu province has assets that grew from P20 billion in 2009 to P28.6 billion as of December last year, she said. With this financial standing, “Cebu is richer by a mile than the next richest ...
7/16/2011
Canadian’s body found in pit farmer arrested

        To neighbors, Canadian Darcy Hanz Reutenberg, 53, was a kind man who helped street children and provided jobs to poor families through a bakery he set up in Mandaue City. But to 46-year-old farmer Rolando Aburot, Reutenberg was a man who turned violent when he got drunk. Police yesterday arrested the farmer for shooting dead Reutenberg last June 26, and stealing the victim’s P50,000 cash and laptop compute...
7/16/2011
Bella to ‘yield’ to mayor, Binay

        HOMICIDE suspect Bella Ruby Santos will only surrender through the intercession of top local or national government officials, family members said. Santos' family and friends said they want her to surrender to Naga City Mayor Valdemar Chiong or Vice President Jejomar Binay. Santos' Makati-based lawyer Ana Luz Cristal reportedly has connections with the vice president in her role as secretary of the Makati C...
 
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