Metro Cagayan de Oro

4th Philippine Sports Tourism Awards to be held in Clark

Following its resolve to honor and highlight the movers and shakers of the sports tourism industry in the Philippines during these tumultuous times, the 4^th Philippine Sports Tourism Awards, with the Clark Development Corporation as host, will be held on December 10 at the Clark Marriot Hotel.

Organized by Cebu-based public relations agency Selrahco PR with full support from Smart Communications, Universal Robina Corporation, Coca-Cola Philippines, and Clark Development Corporation, the 4th Philippine Sports Tourism Awards will be recognizing exemplary sports initiatives from the public and private sectors who have shown interest and deep conviction in promoting sports tourism in the country during 2019.

A total of 14 categories namely Sports Tourism Destination of the Year, Sports Tourism Organizer of the Year (private and government), Sports Tourism Event of the Year (domestic and international), Sports Tourism Sport Association of the Year, Sports Tourism Destination Marketing of the Year, Sports Tourism Hotel of the Year, Sports Tourism Event Sponsorship of the Year, Sports Tourism Charity Event of the Year, Sports Tourism Airline of the Year, Adventure Event of the Year, Sports Venue of the Year, and Sports Media Coverage of the Year. In addition, two special categories will also be awarded to public and private personalities in the realm of sports tourism.

The Philippine Sports Tourism Awards also recently created the Sports Turismo Alliance, an official member of the International Associations of Event Hosts, to build a community of movers and shakers of Philippine sports tourism consisting all winners of previous sports tourism awards including Sunrise Events Inc., Dumaguete City, Philippine Airlines, Province of Cebu, Davao City, Cebu Pacific and Resorts World Manila, to name a few.

This year’s event in Clark will follow stringent social distancing and health & safety protocols for the physical event. The organizers have committed to limit guest capacity to ensure safety and security during the ceremony as it keeps the fire of sportsmanship in the country burning.

“This year has posed a great challenge for the sports and tourism sector in the country and what we need now more than anything is grit and gratitude. We are all excited and gearing up to award the most inspiring individuals and organizations of 2019.” Says PSTA founder and chairman Charles Lim.

“2019 was a bumper year for Philippine sports and tourism,” Lim explained, “and we would not want to let it go unheralded.”

Aboitiz businesses optimistic of sustained strategic growth amid pandemic challenges

Amid the ongoing challenges posed by the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the various business units of the Aboitiz Group expect to maintain their momentum and proceed with their projects and plans for the year.

“Despite the headwinds of the first nine months, the Aboitiz Group’s business continuity plans have proven effective and will remain in place as we continue to exhibit resilience in our operations toward the end of the year,” said Sabin M. Aboitiz, Aboitiz Group President and Chief Executive Officer.

Power

Aboitiz Power Corporation remains committed to helping ensure the reliability, affordability, and sustainability of the country’s energy system for the long term. The company has set a target of 4,000 MW of attributable capacity by 2020 and has surpassed it with the ownership of GNPower Dinginin, which will serve the country’s baseload demand.

Unit 1 of GNPower Dinginin will synchronize by the end of 2020 and will commence commercial operations by the second quarter of 2021. Unit 2 will synchronize and earn commissioning revenues by the second quarter of 2021 and will commence commercial operations by the third quarter of 2021.

Meanwhile, the 39-MW Naga Power Plant Complex in Cebu started commercial operations last August after obtaining a Provisional Authority to Operate from the Energy Regulatory Commission.

AboitizPower has set its eyes on aggressively expanding its ‘Cleanergy’ portfolio in the next 10 years, with the goal of shifting its overall energy mix into almost 50:50 Thermal and Cleanergy capacities by 2030.

Banking & Financial Services

Meanwhile, Union Bank of the Philippines sees continued traction of its digital take-up.

In the third quarter, UnionBank breached 1.5 million retail digital customers from only 1 million retail digital customers in the second quarter. Of this figure, over 335,000 were digital accounts opened via the UnionBank mobile application (app). Consequently, UnionBank Mobile App transactions grew by almost three times to 3.6 million transactions for the month of September versus January 2020.

Similarly, corporate digital customers onboarded via the UnionBank ‘The Portal’ nearly doubled to over 14,500 from more than 7,900 at the start of the year.

Given the increased shift of customer behavior amid the pandemic, UnionBank will continue its customer acquisition and engagement initiatives via digital channels and platforms.

However, the bank maintains its previous expectation of a flat loan and asset growth for the banking industry in 2020, given the continued weakness in the country’s economy and a slower demand for credit until the end of the year. The bank also expects the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ reverse repurchase (RRP) rate and reserve requirement ratio (RRR) to be kept unchanged this year to give the economy some time to absorb the excess liquidity freed up earlier this year. As of end-September, RRP rate and RRR is at 2.25% and 14% respectively, lower by 175bps and 200bps from the start of the year.

Food

Despite the pandemic, the Food Group continuously prioritizes vital capital expenditures to protect its bottom line.

The Farms business’ planned expansions in Northern Luzon have been recalibrated in 2020 and the Food Group has started looking for opportunities in Visayas and Mindanao. Nevertheless, sow-level capacity is still expected to reach 29,000 heads by 2030.

The Food Group has operationalized its meat fabrication and processing plant, which will provide more stability in profitability through selling high-margin pork meats compared to live hog selling.

Meanwhile, Feeds Philippines will operate its third feed mill in Iligan, which will serve the growing requirements of its Visayas and Mindanao customers by end-November 2020.

Lastly, Food Group International will pursue fast-growing segments like aqua and attractive geographies where there is a captive market and the ability to compete. Carefully-selected and strategic investments of the group can capture outsized returns while steadily building a strong, diversified regional food business integrated across the business system.

Infrastructure (Aboitiz InfraCapital)

Aboitiz InfraCapital is optimistic about its small cell sites venture and is anticipating an uptick in leases in its current pole network in the next two years on the back of increased demand.

Meanwhile, the Aboitiz Integrated Economic Centers or Industrial and Commercial Business Units, newly-transferred from AboitizLand, only saw minimal disruptions as a majority of their locators remained operational through the strictest portions of the community quarantine.

Aboitiz InfraCapital’s three industrial zones, namely, Lima Technology Center (LTC) in Batangas, Mactan Economic Zone II (MEZII) and West Cebu Industrial Park (WCIP) in Cebu will be expanded and transformed into smart cities over time to maximize potential while earning value from the sale and lease of industrial land and exploring new product lines to offer the market.

Lima Water Corporation, with its recently DENR-accredited laboratory services unit, will be ready to support the growth of LTC. At Apo Agua Infrastructura, Inc., construction of the Davao City Bulk Water Supply Project is ongoing despite the challenging environment brought about by COVID-19. While the company continuously reassesses the impact of COVID-19 on its program, it remains optimistic for a 2021 target completion.

Infrastructure (Republic Cement)

Despite construction being among the industries heavily affected by COVID-19, Republic Cement’s cement milling capacity is expected to increase by 2.3 million tons per annum (MTPA) to 9.7 MTPA after the mills in Bulacan and Iligan come on stream.

Once commissioned, these new mills will enable Republic Cement to further support the government’s Build, Build, Build program, and the private sector’s infrastructure needs.

Republic Cement’s main focus over the past few months has been to maintain operations at full capacity while ensuring the health and safety of its teams. This is done through the stringent implementation of above minimum health and safety protocols while simultaneously ensuring that all collaborators and customers are properly educated on the latest COVID-19 health protocols and government mandates.

Land

Aboitiz Land, Inc. is expected to exceed its pre-pandemic sales performance on the back of shifting market needs and its innovative selling techniques.

The quarantine shifted real estate preferences as houses and lots in suburban locations became more attractive to property seekers, according to industry watchers. Riding on this wave are AboitizLand’s residential developments, located in emerging growth centers in Central Luzon, Batangas, and in Cebu.

AboitizLand is also banking on digitization efforts to mitigate the operational impact of the pandemic. Aside from augmenting construction efforts through digitization to build houses more expediently but with the same level of quality, it is also looking to increase efforts in the digital space to convert sales and introduce more competitive payment terms to attract a broader market.

AboitizLand’s reservation sales for the months following the community quarantine have averaged above 80 percent of original targets despite lockdown restrictions and is well on its way to exceeding its 2019 performance.

###

About Aboitiz Equity Ventures

Aboitiz Equity Ventures, Inc. (AEV) is the public holding company of the Aboitiz Group with major investments in power, banking and financial services, food, infrastructure, and land. Today, AEV is recognized as one of the best-managed companies in the Philippines and in the region, consistently cited for its commitment to good corporate governance and corporate social responsibility. With five generations of Aboitiz Group business success behind it, AEV continues to drive change for a better world by advancing business and communities.

To date, the Aboitiz Group’s total contribution to the national COVID-19 response effort has reached over P2.2 billion (excluding various payments waived, reduced, extended, or restructured to help customers cope with the impact of COVID-19), underscoring the group’s sustained campaign to help address the urgent needs of frontliners and affected communities nationwide. (AEV)

Finding first Christian church in Camiguin could change island’s history

The history of the Catholic church in this island province may have to be rewritten once the ruins of its first Christian church and fortress is found.

In a soon to be published book, The Untold Stories of Camiguin Island, Social and Cultural Anthropologist Dr. Andrés Narros Lluch, contends that the existing chronology of the Catholic Church’s history as currently exhibited in the old church ruins in Catarman is misleading, since it does not match with the Cosas Notables of the Augustinian Recollects manuscripts.

**One of the Libros de Cosas Notables Manuscripts of the Agustinian Recollects**

According to the Cosas Notables manuscripts, the Punta Pasil church and fortress was built in 1622, and for almost two centuries was the religious and political center of the island.

In his paper Surfacing the untold stories of Camiguin Island, co-authored with the late Dr. Erlinda Burton and published in Vol. XXXIX of the Xavier University’s Kinaadman Journal, Lluch explains:

According to the Cosas Notables de Catarman of Calisto Gaspar, the first Recollect Fathers started to build the first church, convent, and Cota in 1622, and worked hard to convince the natives to settle down around the church. In their account, the priests were able to convert the very same year six hundred “souls”. It is mentioned that they converted almost the entire population of the Island.

However, if we follow W.H. Scott’s estimations, there may have been around one thousand people living in the island at that time. Therefore, the four hundred remaining may be inhabitants but not converts to the faith following the priest’s words, calling them the remontados.

The building structures (church and convent), which were constructed out of corals and lime, served not only as a religious temple but as a fortress as well to protect the people from the pirates’ raids. The strength, thickness and size of the walls, plus the “loving words” of the priest from the sacred book, built the perceptions among the locals that the new but totalitarian Christian God offered them a good deal of protection.”

However, sometime between 1797 and 1804, the Church and Convent of Punta Pasil was burned down by the remontados unhappy with the tax system introduced by the friars. In the fire, not only the buildings and the relics were lost, but all manuscripts of the Recollect Fathers from 1622.

“It was only in 1806 when Father Juan Martin del Rosario began the building of what is known today the Old Church of Catarman (Guiob). However, current nameplates and booklets of Camiguin history date this to 1622. Therefore, they silence the almost two centuries of history of Punta Pasil,” Lluch emphasized.

Once the ruins of the Punta Pasil church and fortress are located, Lluch believes it would correct the chronology of the Catholic Church’s history in the island.

The Kilaha Foundation, UP Department of Archeology and the Submarine Division of the National Museum have been advocating to the local government of Camiguin the need to explore the area of Punta Pasil in order to find the first Christian Church and fortress from where the island was converted into Christianity, Lluch added.

The Kilaha Foundation was co-founded by Lluch in 2015 to document and support local culture and identity, as well as preserve the fascinating biodiversity of Camiguin.

“We believe it’s important to properly document the landmarks of Camiguin Christian history, especially because the deep Christian beliefs and faith of current Camiguinons,” Lluch stressed. “We hope the publication of the book helps to go beyond and start explorations not only in Punta Pasil, but as well in Guinsiliban and in the highlands of Sagay.”

“Archival findings are the best first building blocks for further archaeological explorations. In this regard, we therefore believe that the first steps has been taken already,” he noted.

The archival research findings have been published in the previously cited paper Surfacing the untold stories of Camiguin Island which details the archival findings and advocate for further archeological explorations under water (in Punta Pasil and Guinsiliban) and inland (in highland Sagay).

Lluch earned his PhD in Social and Cultural Anthropology from the Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (UNED). He has done field work as an aid worker and social researcher in Southeast Asia, Central Asia, Central America, South America, East Africa, and Europe for twenty years.

He belonged to the Southeast Asia Department at the School of Oriental and African Studies (2011–2012), was guest researcher in the Department of Anthropology at the London School of Economics and Political Science, and associate researcher in the Department of Anthropology at the University of the Philippines Manila (2012–2014). He is currently an affiliated researcher at Research Institute of Mindanao Culture (RIMCU) at Xavier University (Ateneo de Cagayan).

Lluch has previously published the book La comedia de la cooperación internacional: historias etnográficas del desarrollo en la isla de Camiguín (Catarata, 2016) and currently alternates between Spain and Brussels, where he works at ODS as Senior Evaluator.

**La comedia de la cooperacion internacional**

-30-

Smart releases free-to-download storytelling, gardening, and disaster preparedness videos for teachers’ virtual classes needs

To help ensure continuous learning in education’s new normal, PLDT wireless unit Smart Communications, Inc. (Smart) has released video resources suitable for teachers’ virtual classes needs, all aligned with the Most Essential Learning Competencies (MELC) of the Department of Education (DepEd).

Supplementary teaching materials include the LearnSmart e-Storytelling series, Maging Laging Handa disaster-readiness videos, and the gardening web series Kalye Mabunga.

Bringing the magic of stories into people’s home through technology

In partnership with DepEd, the LearnSmart e-Storytelling Series was initially released in May 2020 on the Smart Communities Facebook page. Main storyteller Rey Bufi is the founder of The Storytelling Project, Smart’s partner organization that has been sharing the love and joy of reading with kids in remote communities.

For its re-release as supplemental learning materials for virtual classes, all 31 e-Storytelling episodes were enhanced to include Filipino sign language translation. Each story, which aims to teach kids about their own uniqueness, and important values such as acceptance, inclusivity, courage and obedience, concludes with an in-depth analysis by a child psychologist.

Content are mostly in the mother tongue, as studies show that this facilitates better understanding and enhances the learning experience. This is all in keeping with Smart’s goal of providing original homegrown content in local languages to local communities.

Promoting a culture of preparedness to children

Maging Laging Handa supports DepEd’s initiative to integrate disaster risk reduction in the education curriculum. The video series covers precautionary measures and safety tips for various calamities such as typhoons, floods, tsunamis, storm surges, earthquakes, and landslides.

Reviewed and approved by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, and the Mines and Geosciences Bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, materials include a DepEd co-developed teacher’s guide on how these videos can be integrated into curriculum.

Maging Laging Handa features Tonipet Gabba as online instructor; three puppets namely Inay Lena, a mother hen; Brownie, a dog; and Kali, a carabao; and all-original Tagalog songs aimed at making the learning journey richer and more exciting. Episodes simplify disaster-related concepts like the typhoon signals, rainfall warning signals, and the differences between a storm surge and a tsunami.

Raising awareness on food security

To educate children early about the basics of food security, Smart and the Department of Agriculture – Agricultural Training Institute (DA-ATI) produced a web series called Kalye Mabunga. This is in support of the government’s ongoing Plant, Plant, Plant campaign that encourages people to attain food security at the household level by making available healthy, nutritious food in their own homes.

Each 10-minute episode tackles topics such as choosing which vegetable, fruit, and herbs can be planted in an urban setting, as well as tips on garden maintenance and proper habits. Episodes on making gardening supplies out of recycled materials, as well as using plants for art projects, aim to encourage children to get interested in plants.

Upholding quality education for sustainable development

The release of these videos on YouTube follows DepEd’s recent announcement that resource materials under the Smart-backed CVIF-Dynamic Learning Program (CVIF-DLP) developed by the Central Visayan Institute Foundation (CVIF) can now be downloaded for free from DepEd Commons. Just visit www.commons.deped.gov.ph and go to the Spotlight folder. After clicking on the CVIF-Dynamic Learning Program folder, just select the grade level and subject for junior or senior high school, then download the needed files. The DepEd portal, as well as www.dlp.ph, can be accessed by Smart, Sun, and TNT subscribers even without data load.

Supported by Smart and PLDT-Smart Foundation (PSF) for over a decade, CVIF-DLP is one of only three supplemental learning materials being endorsed by the DepEd for this school year.

Along with other subsidiaries of parent company PLDT, Smart recognizes quality education as a foundation in improving people’s lives and obtaining sustainable development. In support of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDG), particularly SDG #4: Quality Education, education continues to be a flagship CSR program throughout PLDT Group, with a strong emphasis on digital literacy.

Click on these links to access and download Smart’s learning resources for free on YouTube: , ,.

For more information on Smart’s corporate social responsibility advocacies, visit www.facebook.com/SmartCommunities.

Fomer MILF’s fighter turns new leaf to fulfill son’s dream to become a policeman

TANGKAL, LANAO DEL NORTE —– He was 15 years old when he started firing a gun and in the following years, he saw himself brandishing firearms and joining fire fights against the government forces.

Anowar Mapandi, now 46, did not even finish grade six because he had to hide in the mountains of Lanao del Norte.

Former Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) fighter Anowar Mapandi says his life is better after the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) and supports the studies of his 11-year old son who wants to become a policeman. (Divina M. Suson)

In 2008, Mapandi was brigade commander of the 125^th Base Command, Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF) of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), North Western Mindanao Front (NWMF) Command in Camp Rabbah Darul Shuhadah in Tangkal, Lanao del Norte.

He led over a hundred of BIAF fighters who joined the attacks in the towns of Kauswagan and Kolambogan that left at least 28 civilians and three soldiers dead. Several properties were burned.

Twelve years later, Mapandi’s only child, an eleven-year old boy, is dreaming of becoming a policeman.

“I am supporting him. That is why I am happy of what our life is becoming now because of the BOL (Bangsamoro Organic Law),” Mapandi said.

New hope

On Monday (November 2), Mapandi again led his colleagues and their families in a gathering that rarely happened in their area in Barangay Beruar in Tangkal town, some 22 kilometers away from the main national highway of Lanao del Norte.

The child of a former Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) fighter fills up a contact tracing form at the entrance of the venue where thousands of former MILF fighters and their families gathered on Monday in Barangay Beruar, Tangkal, Lanao del Norte. (Divina M. Suson)

But instead of firearms , Mapandi’s group brought with them NEW hopes that when they went home that day, they would bring food for their families.

His former commander, who led them in the 2008 attack, arrived and brought sacks of rice from the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) and news of a series of development programs on the way to their areas.

“I am here today with no firearms and no camouflage uniform because I am no longer an enemy of the government. I am here today, not to wage war against the government but to bring projects and development for our area,” said Abdullah Macapaar, now a Member of Parliament of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

Macapaar, known as Commander Bravo when he was the commander of the MILF-BIAF NWMF, led the attack that Mapandi was part of in 2008.

He announced to the community that the former stronghold of the MILF, that was also the site of fierce gun battles during the all-out-war in 2000, will become a beneficiary through a memorandum of agreement signed on September with the OPAPP and the provincial and municipal governments of Lanao del Sur and Lanao del Norte to implement projects of Payapa sa Masaganag Pamayanan (PAMANA) worth P85 million.

The projects will support the normalization program under the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) and are part of the government’s commitment to help spur economic activity in Camp Bilal and its neighbouring areas.

“Without peace, there is no development. Thus I encourage you (MILF community) to strongly unite against enemies of peace. I am still a warrior but now a warrior for peace,” said Macapaar addressing the crowd composed of around a thousand of his former fighters and their families. He spoke in Maranaw and Filipino.

Bayanihan

The event, called Kapamagogopa o bayanihan, was facilitated by the the civil society organization (CSO) Pakigdait, Inc., a faith-based organization in Lanao del Norte.

The wife of a former Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) fighter fills up the contact tracing form at the entrance of the venue where thousands of MILF gathered on Monday in Barangay Beruar, Tangkal, Lanao del Norte. (Divina M. Suson)

The event is a confidence building measure to strengthen relationships among the MILF commanders and the security sector.

“This activity aims for an inclusive, unified and peaceful Camp Bilal,” said Pakigdait Director Abel Moya.

Bilal is the area in Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur where MILF camps under Macapaar are located.

“Our front commander, Minister Abdullah Macapaar, is visiting all camps and one of his promises that instead of the base commanders going to Camp Kura-kura, he will go down and visit the community. He started it in Picong (Lanao del Sur),” said Musa Sanguila, secretary of Pakigdait Board of Religious Leaders.

Col. Charliemagne Batayola, deputy commander of the Army’s 2^nd Mechanized Infantry Brigade, said the government’s troops are visiting the area with their combat uniform and firearms but not to wage war.

“Nais po namin na isipin ninyo na nandito kami bilang inyong kaibigan kasi pareho tayo, ang MILF at ang Armed Forces, ay mag pagmamahal sa kapwa at pagmamahal sa kapayapaan o ang tinatawag nating Kalilintad,” Batayola said.

(We would like you to think that we are here as your friends because we are in the same boat. We love our brothers and we love peace called Kalilintad.)

Col. Nolie Anquillano, deputy brigade commander of the Army’s 103^rd Infantry Brigade, based in Marawi City, called on the MILF community to also help the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) in the fight against the Dawlah Islamiya (DI) who are still recruiting and the New People’s Army (NPA) that continues sowing threats in Lanao provinces.

“Sana mapigilan natin ang ating mga kapatid na MILF na huwag sumanib sa kanila (DI and NPA) dahil ang interes ng kapayapaan ay hindi lamang interes ng Philippine Army ngunit interes din ng MILF at ng buong sambayanan,” Anquillano said.

(I hope we can convince our brothers in the MILF not to join them (DI and NPA) because the peace is not only an interest of the Philippine Army but also of the MILF and the whole nation.)

The Wives of former Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) fighters gather Monday (November 2) to attend the Kapamagogopa or Bayanihan event in Barangay Beruar, Tangkal, Lanao del Norte, attended by the former commander of Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF), now Bangsamoro Member Parliament Abdullah Macapaar, known as Commander Bravo, and officials of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the provincial government and the civili society organization Pakigdait, Inc. (Divina M. Suson)

For his part, Col. Ireneo Sebastian, deputy brigade commander of the Army’s 55^th Engineering Brigade, committed to fast track the ongoing projects in Camp Kura-kura including a multi-purpose gym and other camp developments.

“Masaya na ako sa buhay namin ngayon. Hindi na kailangang magtago. Makakababa na ako sa sentro (ng lungsod) na walang pangamba, walang dalang armas,” said Mapandi who said he never attempted teaching his son how to fire a gun.

(I am happy now of our life, we don’t need to hide. I can go down to the town proper without fear and without guns.)

“Hindi rin ako nag-impluwensiya sa kanya na sundan ang pagiging fighter ko dati dahil ayokong mapareho siya sa akin. Gusto kong makatapos siya ng pag-aaral at maging pulis gaya ng kanyang pinapangarap,” he added.

(I never influenced my son to follow my life as a fighter because I don’t want him to be like me. I want him to finish school and become a policeman like what he dreams to be.)

–end–

IGRB urges nat’l, Bangsamoro gov’ts to fast-track autonomy, devolution

The Intergovernmental Relations Body (IGRB) tasked to build on points of cooperation between the national and Bangsamoro governments met for the fourth time in October to find ways of further fast-tracking the processes leading to a functional autonomy in the new Muslim Mindanao region.

During the meeting held via Zoom, the IGRB urged the national government and their counterparts in the Bangsamoro government to speed up the process of delineating the local and national programs in the new autonomous region in Muslim Mindanao to determine which of these may be funded by the national government.

Nat’l. Government – Bangsamoro Gov’t Intergovernmental Relations Body first consultative meeting in Davao Dec 16 2019. (peace.gov.ph)

The National Government-Bangsamoro Government IGRB instructed the concerned national government agencies and ministries of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) to meet with their counterparts and speed up discussions on this major issue.

The IGRB, co-chaired by Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III and BARMM Education Minister Mohagher Iqbal, have agreed to regularly meet every 90 days beginning December 2019 when the body was first convened in Davao City.

But Dominguez said the IGRB, which last met on August 28 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, convened earlier than the usual 90-day timeframe last October 9 to move ahead with the discussions on the issues that need to be threshed out by the body and speed up the implementation of the provisions under Republic Act (RA) No. 11054 or the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL).

Dominguez called on the BARMM not to hesitate in bringing as soon as possible to the national government’s attention any issue that needs to be addressed immediately by the IGRB to further fast-track the process of resolving urgent concerns between them.

Iqbal, for his part, thanked Dominguez and the IGRB members from the national government for finding ways to speed up the resolution of issues from BARMM’s end.

He said the BARMM expects to sustain the cooperation it has carefully built with the national government.

During the meeting, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) committed to establish regional offices of the Bureaus of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) and of Fire Protection (BFP) in the BARMM, as mandated under the BOL.

National Government – Bangsamoro Government Intergovernmental Relations Body holds first consultative meeting in Davao 16 Dec 2019. (peace.gov.ph)

In terms of its personnel and organizational structure, the BFP is already operational in the BARMM, but the establishment of its facility is still ongoing.

The National Police Commission (NAPOLCOM) also committed during the meeting to establish a regional office in the BARMM.

The IGRB also discussed the creation by the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) of a district in the Bangsamoro region in coordination with the Ministry of Transportation and Communication (BARMM-MOTC), which is also mandated under the BOL.

On the transfer of the management of historical and cultural sites in the BARMM, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) agreed to engage with the BARMM’s Bureau of Cultural Heritage (BCH) on this concern.

Meanwhile, the Intergovernmental Energy Board (IEB), which held its kick-off meeting last September 3, agreed to discuss the energy development issues in the BARMM such as those concerning joint exploration, development and the utilization of fossil fuels and uranium.

Dominguez has underscored the need to put in place the coordination mechanisms between the national government and the BARMM, such as the IEB and the other intergovernmental bodies to accelerate the implementation of programs leading to lasting and genuine peace and development in Mindanao.

-oOo-

LGU Iligan breaks ground for former NPA rebels training center

ILIGAN CITY —– The local government unit (LGU) of Iligan broke ground on Friday (October 30), to start the construction of a Halfway House, a training center and temporary shelter for former New People’s Army (NPA) rebels who surrendered to the government.

Located inside the compound of the former National Steel Corporation (NSC) in Barangay Suarez, Iligan City, the P852,200 structure financed from the LGU’s coffers is set to be finished within 75 working days.

Lt. Col. Domingo Dulay, Jr., commander of the Philippine Army’s 4^th Mechanized Infantry Battalion, said the Halfway House is also called the “Happy Home Project” that will serve as temporary shelter and a training venue for the livelihood of former rebels.

“Inaasahan na sa pamagitan ng programang ito ay mas lalong mapapangalagaan ang seguridad ng mga dating rebelde habang inihihahanda nila ang kanilang mga sarili sa bagong buhay na payapa at matiwasay,” Dulay said. (We are hoping we can help protect the security of former rebels through this program while preparing them to move forward and live peacefully and harmoniously.)

The construction of Halfway House is part of the government’s program called Enhanced Comprehensive and Local Integration Program (E-CLIP).

It is where the former rebels are being treated, transformed and prepared for reintegration mainstream society.

They will stay in the temporary shelter while waiting for the benefits they can get from the government through the E-CLIP.

This month, a permanent P5-million Halfway House in Sitio Fatima in Barangay Abuno will be opened according to Dulay.

The Army’s 554^th Engineering Battalion and the 55th Engineering Brigade will help in the construction of the training canter with the former rebels who be paid for their work under the Cash for Work Program of the LGU.

The local government unit of Iligan breaks ground on Friday (October 30) to start the construction of a temporary shelter and training center for former New People’s Army (NPA) rebels as part of the Enhanced Comprehensive and Local Integration Program (ECLIP). (photo: 4th Mechanized Infantry Battalion, PA)

As of October 30, there were 34 former NPA fighters who surrendered to the military through the 4^th MIB. One of them was believed assassinated by his former colleaguesin February this year , one died of sickness and another is in jail.

“Ang proyektong ito sa ilalim ng City Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict ng Iligan ay patunay ng pagkakaisa ng iba’t-ibang sektor upang mabigyan ng pag-asa ang mga miyembro ng rebeldeng grupo na nagbalik loob at makahikayat pa sa iba na iwanan ang armadong pakikibaka at mamuhay ng mapayapa,” Dulay said.

–end-

USAID, Plan International release MRP business grants for Marawi, Lanao Sur youth

ILIGAN CITY —– The United States Agency International Development (USAID) and Plan International released on Thursday (October 29), business recovery grants to two Muslim youth groups in Lanao del Sur and Marawi City, as part of the Philippine Coffee Month celebration.

The turn-over of the P260,000 livelihood package is part of the Marawi Response Project (MRP) that started during the Marawi siege in 2017.

Team Aqilah at the turn-over ceremony of their grants in-kind from the USAID and Plan International under Marawi Response Project at Tabes Palace, Pala-o, Iligan City.

It highlighted the culmination of the Business Month Celebration in Iligan City and was featured duringf the launching of the “Kapehan sa Iligan Chamber”, an online forum of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation of Iligan, Inc. (CCIFII).

The two groups, Aqilah and the Alog Youth Association, requested grant assistance for their coffee production projects which was approved by the MRP according to Lauro Ilagan, USAID Plan MRP, Economic Development Leader.

The Aqila, whose project is called Cup of Hope, is a group of young social entrepreneurs based in Mindanao State University (MSU) Marawi, selling coffee while offering professional pro-bono counseling to students and others adversely affected psychologically by the Marawi siege.

The group is composed of internally displaced persons (IDPs) from the most affected area (MAA) and host community members.

The grant is in the form of machinery that will be used to sustain the f Cup of Hope Café.

“They are in the process of re-investing profits to build a stand alone coffee shop in the city of Marawi,” said Ilagan.

The other group, Alog Youth Organization, is a group of 20 students and young professionals who cook and package coffee to revive traditional coffee mixes such as coffee-ginger, coffee-turmeric and others.

Ilagan said this youth organization is also composed of IDPs and host community members who will produce and package native ground coffee in partnership with existing local coffee farmers who will benefit from the project. It is based in the town of Tubaran in Lanao del Sur

Mohammad Modiaba, the leader of Alog Youth Organization, said they are not doing it for themselves but to help the coffee farmers in their community and the nearby municipalities who are into coffee farming.

“We are going to buy coffee beans from farmers, not only from our municipality but also in Lumbatan, Butig, Lumbaca Unayan and Sultan Dumalondong, package then sellt them. The National Coffee Association committed to help us,” Modiaba said.

“This is a big help especially to the out-of-school youth in the community whom we will hire as workers. It is not the group members who will benefit but rather the youth and the people in the community,” he added.

Members of the Alog Youth Association based in Tubaran, Lanao del Sur receive the certificate granting them the business recovery package from the Marawi Response Project of the United States Agency International Development (USAID) and Plan International on October 29 during the culmination of the Business Month Celebration at Tabe’s Place in Barangay Palao, Iligan City. (Divina M. Suson)

The MRP is a US$25-million four-year cooperative agreement with Plan International that supports the economic recovery of communities in Lanao provinces that were directly impacted by the 2017 conflict in Marawi City.

Twenty two youth groups from Marawi City and Lanao del Sur were granted livelihood packages.

The MRP also supports the capacity-building of local businesses, including training in business administration, financial management, market development and specialized skills that are critical in sustaining and growing businesses and generating employment.

“This activity is one of several avenues that MRP supports to help the local business community,” Ilagan said.

–end–

Around 12,000 workers in Iligan affected by the pandemic : business group

ILIGAN CITY —– The Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation of Iligan, Inc. (CCIFII) said on Thursday that around 12,000 workers lost their job when their respective companies were closed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Some of these have closed permanently while others are just temporarily closing. but with no timeline as to when they will reopen, according to Reggie Punongbayan, CCIFII president.

She said that these employees were working from around 1,000 companies and businesses that got closed since June, two months after the pandemic broke out,

“This data comes from the DOLE base ra usab kini sa mga nag-report sa ilaha,” Punongbayan said on Thursday (October 29) during the launching of the online forum “Kapehan sa Iligan Chamber”

Reggie Punongbayan, President of Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation of Iligan, Inc. (Photo: PIA Iligan)

City Councilor Demy Plando, Committee Chairman on Trade, Commerce and Industry in Iligan City Council, said the local government unit (LGU) had not considered identifying the number of affected employees but have allocated given financial assistance to selected employees who lost their jobs during the pandemic.

The assistance was the local version of the Social Amelioration Program (SAP) of the Department of Social Welfare and Development.

Plando did not mention how much was given and how many beneficiaries received it.

“As to the specific percentage (of employees who lost their jobs) in Iligan, we don’t have the figure. Maybe the CCIFII can provide us the necessary figures that could help us especially in the proposed ordinance,” said Plando, one of the guests during the launching of Kapehan sa Iligan Chamber.

However, the city council passed on its first reading proposed ordinances to help businesses to rise from the pandemic effects, among them the staggered payment of taxes.

The city council is also discussing a proposed ordinances on an amnesty on real property taxes from the previous years, the moratorium on the increase of taxes for 2021, and the waiver of the lessor’s rentals for the months of April and May.

“Those were the months when the economic was greatly affected. That is deductible from their taxes due to the city,” Plando said.

The city council according to Plando will try to pass these into ordinances by the end of 2020.

-end-

Iligan Chamber launches monthly online forum

ILIGAN CITY —– The Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation of Iligan, Inc. (CCIFII) launched Thursday (October 29) an online forum that aims to provide guidance to the local business community in the cities of Iligan and Marawi and the provinces of Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur.

Dubbed “Kapehan sa Iligan Chamber”, the event will be conducted monthly in cooperation with the Philippine Information Agency (PIA) Iligan, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Plan International through the Marawi Response Project, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the city government of Iligan.

“This project stems from the clamor of the local business community to have a platform of engagement with the local governments of their respective towns and cities, particularly during this period when the COVID-19 pandemic has caused major disruptions to the economy,” said Reggie Punongbayan, CCIFII president.

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation of Iligan, Inc. (CCIFII) launched on Thursday (October 29), a monthly forum, dubbed Kapehan sa Iligan Chamber, to be streamed live on the facebook pages of the Philippine Information Agency and Radyo Pilipinas Iligan. (Divina M. Suson)

It will be streamed live on the facebook page of the PIA and will be aired over Radyo Pilipinas Iligan.

Punongbayan said, ‘Kapehan’ will allow local entrepreneurs to bring out key concerns about the current state of doing business under quarantine measures of the so-called “new normal”.

It stems from clamor of the business community to have a platform of engagement with the local government units of their respective towns and cities particularly during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic which has caused major disruptions to the economy.

The launching on Thursday highlighted the culmination of the Business Month celebration that recognized Iligan Chamber of Commerce as the Most Outstanding Chamber Level I (Highly Urbanized City) in Mindanao, and Iligan City as among those awarded the Recognition of Regional Response to COVID-19.

The Most Outstanding Chamber Award was presented on September during the 29^th Mindanao Business Conference (MinBisCon) hosted by Davao City Chamber.

Engr. Nestor Ilagan, CCIFII Vice President-Internal said 45 chambers of commerce in Mindanao vied for the award but only five were declared finalists composed of the chambers in General Santos, Zamboanga City, Iligan City, Surigao City ang Tandag City.

Iligan Chamber of Commerce has more than 200 members but some of them have been permanently closed while others are in temporarily closure because of the pandemic according to Punongbayan.

-end-