Naga City ordinance promotes eco-friendly vehicles

by Lizel S. Macatangay

NAGA CITY, Jan. 11 (PIA) -- Eco-friendly, and noise and air pollution-free vehicles which means less-tainted air that will produce a healthy atmosphere — this are the bases of City Ordinance No. 2011-065 which allows the operation of e-trikes in this city.

The legislation aims to provide the community with an alternative means of transport that will promote, among others, a less polluted setting and for the drivers and operators to have an opportunity to earn a higher and complementary source of income.

Since the said vehicles will be using electric charges and not the conventional gasoline or fuel, the said ordinance also specifies that charging stations will be established in strategic public places within the city outskirts. Designated parking areas shall also be decided by the office of mayor John Bongat through the Public Safety Office, manned by PSO Chief Lito Del Rosario.

Just recently, Bongat received 10) electric bikes or e-bikes courtesy of the Climate Change Program of the United Nations, making the City of Naga the first municipality to be a recipient of the said vehicles, free of cost. The vehicles will be used by selected departments to deliver the basic services being offered by the city to its constituents.

The said e-trike operation is only limited within the bounds and territorial jurisdiction of Naga City . A total of 1,600 electric driven vehicles are expected to ply the city routes once the said program become fully operational.

The ordinance was authored by City Councilors Nelson Legacion, Esteban Abonal, Joaquin Perez Jr., Alex Nero, and Raoul Rosales. (MAL/LSM, PIA-Camarines Sur)

Cholera watch raised in Albay

LEGAZPI CITY, Jan. 11 (PIA) -- Although health authorities said there is no cause for alarm yet, the province of Albay is now under close watch against possible cholera outbreak, the Provincial Health Office warned Tuesday.

Provincial Health officer Dr. Luis Mendoza said that Albay recorded seven new cases of positive Cholera (Bibrio) in the dying days of December last year, just in time when the province was supposed to be declared free from the disease. “We will have to wait for another six-month period before we can say that we are already free from cholera but unfortunately due to bad weather condition during the past few weeks, we started to get reports on cases in the province.”

Mendoza said that five of the seven cases were from the town of Daraga, one in Ligao City, and another in Legazpi.

“Because the cases reported were from sporadic areas, we are closely monitoring and accounting for possible additional cases, but an outbreak will only be declared once the cases are concentrated in one particular community,” Mendoza explained.

He added that there have been no cases since last week and no casualty has been reported yet although three people have died of cholera earlier this year in Barangay Gapo, Daraga and the new cases (five) last month were mostly from Balinand, an adjacent village.

“This is why we alerted all municipal and city health officers across the 15 towns and three cities of Albay, and not only the affected areas, to practice proper household chlorination, proper food preparation, boiling of drinking water especially those from open wells, and most importantly, proper human waste disposal,” he said.

Aside from cholera, the PHO is also watching for new incidences of dengue cases where two cases were reported each in Daraga and Oas towns, one case in Pioduran, and another in Ligao City. “This is only for December and we are accounting for the other areas to complete the statistics."

Mendoza also called for proper cleanliness and eradication of possible mosquito breeding places in support of Albay Gov. Joey Salceda’s program of zero casualties among Albayanos. (MAL/REN-LGU ALbay)

Vet office to conduct hygienic meat butchering and meat vendors training

by Irma A. Guhit

SORSOGON CITY, Jan. 11 (PIA) -- The Sorsogon City Veterinary Office will conduct this Friday, January 13 the regular hygienic meat butchering and meat vendors’ training to ensure that meat sold in the city public market here undergoes the proper sanitary process and that measures on safekeeping the meat are properly handled.

Dr. Alex Destura, city veterinarian here, said that to assure the public that clean and safe meat will be sold to the public in the city market here, it is a must that butchers and vendors undergo the hygienic training which they will be conducting.

Destura explained that as part of the safety measure their office is implementing especially in the butchering and selling of meat, the one- day training will provide the meat vendors and butchers the know how on properly handling, cutting up, preparing, transporting, and selling meat.

The city veterinary office will soon see an upgraded class double A slaughter house here where meat for consumption within the city is reliably safe for consumption, handled properly and transported from the slaughter house to the market and to other outlets here within the city.

The training is also a must to all butchers and meat vendors as the activity is a prerequisite for the renewal of their license and business permit.

According to Dr. Destura, one of the objectives of the city is that no double dead meat or “botcha”will be sold here and that meat vendors and butchers alike will adhere to the safety inspection procedure of meat sold in the public markets.

He also explained that the city veterinary office has been strict in the implementation of all the precautionary measures and certain rules that had to be imposed as regards to cattle and hog butchering and meat handling.

He also have coordinated with all piggeries here selling hogs to follow also the set of standard set by their office so that the procedure and processes observed in slaughtering be followed as no home backyard slaughtering will be allowed for selling.

The meat shop operators here especially the big supermarkets get their supply of meat from trusted big company suppliers which are branded and have undergone the safe process of meat processing or packaging.

He also said that those who will engage in meat processing should also be guided properly and should be required to register so that the city veterinary office will be informed of the type of business they are into. (MAL/IAG-PIA Sorsogon)