Feature: Rebel returnees find home in Community of Hope

by Lizel S. Macatangay

PILI, Camarines Sur, July 12 (PIA) -- Once homeless and in hiding, rebel returnees who decided to return to the folds of law have finally found their home in a Community of Hope, established under the stewardship of the provincial government of Camarines Sur, in partnership with Gawad Kalinga Foundation and forces that they call their adversaries, the officers and members of the 9th Infantry Division, Philippine Army.

The good news was conveyed by Major General Josue Gaverza, commander of 9th ID, PA as another pioneering effort that paved the way for the realization of a dream for these sixty (60) families of rebel returnees – that of owning a home and finding opportunities that remained elusive for their families for years of hiding in the hinterlands.

Camarines Sur, chosen as designer province in the country thru its innovative efforts and impressive construction of more than 4,700 GK homes and 125 villages in 35 municipalities and two cities in the province, has also forged a new ground by introducing the Community of Hope which is solely intended for the rebel returnees.

The symbolic groundbreaking ceremony was held last February 23, 2011 in Barangay San Jose here, significantly timed during the visit of President Benigno Aquino III for the launching of the El Verde Movement in Camarines Sur.

The said event was attended by GK Founder himself, Mr. Tony Meloto, Mayor Tomas Bongalonta of LGU-Pili, Lt. Gen. Roland Detabali, PA-South Luzon Command , officers of the 9th Infantry Division, Philippine Army in Bicol and Camarines Sur Governor Luis Raymund Villafuerte.

After the groundbreaking ceremony, 100 families accepted the offer and worked on the requirements to finally have their own dwellings. While 60 were lucky to have it this time, the petition or application of the other 40 families will undergo review and thorough scrutiny of the concerned agencies before they can finally have their own homes.

Along with the housing unit is a chance to undergo a livelihood training which will sustain the family’s needs.

The Community of Hope is indeed a place where optimism and new beginnings find its way, also in line with the peace and development efforts of the Aquino administration towards the realization of its thrust to attain genuine and lasting peace in the country. (MAL/LSM, PIA Camarines Sur)

P1.5M funds for entrep and livelihood development of MSMEs in Sorsogon

by Irma A. Guhit

SORSOGON CITY, July 12 (PIA) -- Some P1.5 million fund was released through the office of Rep. Diogracias Ramos of the second congressional district in Sorsogon to support the entrepreneurship and livelihood development of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in nine municipalities in the district, according to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) provincial office here.

Senen C. Malaya, DTI Sorsogon information officer., said Cong. Ramos has earmarked the amount to fund the revitalization of the handicraft industry, food processing and strengthen the production capacity of MSMEs in nine municipalities covered by the second district to eventually propel economic activities in rural communities.

Dubbed as "Development Initiative in Building Resourced-based Enterprise" (DBR), the congressional allocation is geared towards the strengthening of the MSMEs in the congressional district, according to Malaya.

Malaya said that Ramos is hopeful that this project, with the technical assistance of DTI Sorsogon, will upgrade the production and entrepreneurial competencies of MSMES, provide them tools, equipments and machines needed for their production.

Ramos, in his dialogue with DTI regional and provincial personnel, stated that the fund allocation should also shoulder costs to introduce latest designs and trends for craft producers, improve their packaging and labeling of products to be sold, improve product shelf life as in processed foods to enhance its marketability and enable the micro, small and medium enterprise to participate in trade exhibits and other marketing, explained Malaya.

Malaya said that Ramos in his stint as municipal mayor of Gubat has seen a lot of raw materials, discovered in the different municipalities in the second district that can be made into different kinds of viable products.

Ramos believed that MSMEs need only capitalization that is why his office provided the financial intervention and lead agencies for MSMEs development should be assisted by DTI.

Malaya said that the dialogue among Ramos, DTI Sorsogon chief Leah Pagao, and DTI V director Jocelyn Blanco, has sealed interoperability on crafting the plans on how this allocation should assist the local governments in terms of enterprise and livelihood development was clearly spelled out so that return of investment should be generated as a way to improve the quality of life of his constituency.

Malaya said that they have now conducted an interfacing with the chief executives of the municipalities of Bulan, Sta Magdalena, Matnog, Irosin, Bulusan, Barcelona, Prieto Diaz, Juban and Gubat, together with representatives coming from various MSMEs.

Some 115 participants from the different fields of MSMEs like those involved in food, crafts,furniture industry, and point persons in the 2nd district of the One Town One Product (OTOP) were present.

Discussion on the manner and process of on how the allocation will be and given was agreed upon by the LCEs following the guidelines provided to them .

Malaya said that with this dialog conducted they can now jumpstart the process on who and how to access the funds. (MAL/IAG, PIA Sorsogon)

NSO conducts Poverty Indicators Survey

VIRAC, Catanduanes, July 12 (PIA) -– As a rider to the July 2011 Labor Force Survey, the National Statistics Office (NSO) Catanduanes Provincial Office is presently conducting the 2011 Annual Poverty Indicators Survey (APIS) .

The 2010 APIS is the eighth in a series of annual poverty indicators survey conducted nationwide. This survey gathers data that can be used to generate non-income-based poverty indicators for monitoring poverty situation in the country. These indicators are useful inputs in the formulation of policies and programs to improve the living conditions of the poor.

The APIS is a nation-wide survey designed to provide non-income indicators related to poverty at the national and regional levels. It will gather data on the socio-economic profile of families and other information that are related to their living conditions.

Specifically, it generates indicators that are correlated with poverty, such as indicators regarding the ownership or possession of house and lot, the types of the materials of the roofs and walls of their housing units, their access to safe water, the types of toilet facility they use in their holes, and presence of family members of specified characteristics such as children 6-12 years old enrolled in elementary, children 13-16 years old enrolled in high school, members 18 years old and over gainfully employed and working children 5-17 years old. Program

For this round of APIS, a module on Social Protection Program was included to determine if the target beneficiaries of the program are reached.

Like all censuses and surveys undertaken by NSO, the conduct of these two surveys is authorized by various legislative acts and presidential directives namely:Commonwealth Act No. 591; Presidential Decree No. 418; Executive Order No. 121; Executive Order No. 352 and Executive Order No. 5.

In the province, nine (9) sample barangays, will be visited. The municipalities with sample barangays to be enumerated are Baras (2), Pandan (1), Caramoran (1), San Andres (3) and Virac (2) Actual interview is from July 11-31, 2011.

The reporting unit is the household. Pursuant to the provision of Section 4 of Act 591, information obtained from the respondents shall be held strictly confidential and shall not be divulged to any person except authorized NSO personnel acting in the performance of their duties. (MAL/EAB/NSO Catanduanes)

NSO undertakes BSP’s Consumer Survey

VIRAC, Catanduanes, July 12, (PIA)- The National Statistics Office (NSO) Catanduanes is undertaking the July 2011 Consumer Expectations Survey (CES).

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) in order to collect comprehensive information on the business conditions of the country in the household sector, contracted with the National Statistics Office (NSO) to conduct a Consumer Expectations Survey.

NSOs responsibility is to undertake the data collection and encoding of the questionnaires while BSPs responsibility is the generation of tables and analysis of the results.

The CES is a household-based survey on the consumers’ assessment of their financial situation, the economic condition of the country and the overall performance of the government.

The objectives of the survey are 1) to provide a quick and regular assessment of the financial condition of the consumers and economic condition of the country at present and in the near future, from the consumers’ own view points; 2) to generate forecasts in the direction of the country’s economic activity based on the consumers’ outlook in the next twelve months and 3) to provide quick and regular assessment of consumers’ outlook in terms of their income and expenditures.

Consumer spending and saving decisions have an important influence in determining the course of the national economy. The core questions cover three broad areas of consumer sentiments: personal finances, business conditions and buying conditions.

The results of the survey will guide planners in forecasting the direction of change of the economy as well as the behavior of key indicators such as inflation rate, interest rates and exchange rates.

The respondent shall be the household head or any responsible member of the household present during the time of interview who can provide reliable answers to the questions asked by the enumerator.

The authority for the survey emanates from Commonwealth Act No. 591, which authorizes the NSO under Section2 “to conduct by enumeration, sampling or other methods, for statistics purposes, studies of social and economic problems of the country.

Like any other surveys undertaken by the NSO, the data that will be gathered in the said survey are for statistical purposes only and will be published in summary forms. Information obtained from the respondents shall be held strictly confidential and shall not be used for investigation, taxation and law enforcement purposes and shall not be divulged to any person except authorized NSO personnel acting in the performance of their duties

In the province, one (1) sample barangay, will be interviewed, covering fifteen (15) sample households in Barangay Icanbato, Caramoran.

The reporting unit is the household which means that the statistics emanating from this undertaking will refer to the characteristics of the population residing in private households

Actual interview of sample households is from July 1-14, 2011. (MAL/EAB/NSO Catanduanes)

Chiz tasks DOJ on PCSO fund mess

LEGAZPI CITY, July 12 (PIA) -- Senator Chiz Escudero has urged the Department of Justice (DOJ) to take cognizance of the pieces of information revealed at the Senate inquiries into the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) fund mess.

Last week’s second Senate hearing unearthed damaging information that implicated former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo after former PCSO general manager Rosario Uriarte admitted that she was able to draw additional funds for intelligence operations of the agency, which were later found, at the course of the inquiry, to have been misappropriated and used for questionable or non-existent projects.

Uriarte told the Senate panel that portions of the agency’s intelligence fund were diverted to relief operations and “blood money” donations to Filipino workers facing death sentences in the Middle East.

All the disbursements, Uriarte admitted, were approved by Arroyo.

Escudero, chairman of the Senate committee on justice and human rights, said the DOJ should seriously look into Uriarte’s testimonies considering that her statements were given under oath and now a matter of public record.

“I leave it with the DOJ to decide on the matter but I hope they will consider the merits and the weight of the testimonies. The PCSO has been used as a promoter of patronage politics by the past administration and as such it has become a source of injustice and inequality in the use and distribution of its charity fund,” Escudero pointed out.

The senator said under the Revised Penal Code both Arroyo and Uriarte may be liable for malversation of public funds.

“At the very least, they could be charged with malversation of public funds given that they used government money for a purpose, however noble, other than what the fund was intended for,” the senator said.

He said “personal gain” was not shown nor proven during the hearing to make the liability plunder, the staggering amounts of the said intelligence funds exceeded P50 million notwithstanding.

Escudero said with these revelations, the PCSO charter must be revisited and made true to its purpose and mandate by amending certain provisions that have been abused in the past. (MAL/Office of Sen. Escudero)