Vol 5
Issue 17
In this Issue WESTERN VISAYAS
President Benigno S. Aquino III, together with Governor Alfredo G. Marañon, cabinet secretaries (l-r) Herminio B. Coloma, Jr, Joel Villanueva, Proceso Alcala, Mar Roxas and Bago Irrigators’ Association Rosemary Caunca, leads the ceremonial switch on of the bagging machine that will mechanically pour 50 kilos of rice onto a sack at the modern rice mill facility – Negros First Rice Processing Center in Barangay Tabunan, Bago City. *(EAD-PIA6 photo)
April 27 - May 3, 2015
Published by: PIA 6, 7 & 8
Sec. Coloma: Average of 1M jobs yearly under Aquino gov‘t By Fayette C. Riñen CEBU, May 1 (PIA) --Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Sonny Coloma Jr. in a press briefing to Cebu media early this afternoon said that an average of one million jobs annually have been generated under the Aquino administration improving the lives of workers. Coloma made the announcement as the country marks Labor Day placing emphasis that employment generation is a priority thrust under this administration. The PCOO chief said agencies like the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) are doubling their efforts in crafting programs that could open more job opportunities for the Filipinos. ―There are 300,000 job openings countrywide facilitated through the DOLE,‖ said Coloma who flew in to Cebu yesterday together with President Aquino and nine other cabinet members including Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz and TESDA Secretary Joel Villanueva. ―Through TESDA, government is providing various technical skills trainings to make people more employable,‖ by matching the skills to the needs of the labor market, said Coloma. Coloma also said that nearly five years into the Aquino
presidency, much has been done to improve the plight of workers such as the higher ceiling for the tax exemption of the 13th month pay of ordinary workers in both public and private sectors and the improvement of labor standards focusing on occupational health and safety by hiring more workers in DOLE to monitor and check on the conditions of workers in hazardous sectors as well as assistance to vulnerable sectors including the plight of overseas Filipino workers. As some labor groups demand for salary increase and raise minimum wage to P16,000, Coloma said this is unrealistic. ―Although we recognize their right to hold protests, this however is not justified,‖ said Coloma adding that raising the minimum wage to P16,000 makes the Philippines the country with the highest minimum wage. Coloma urged labor groups to reconsider their demand as this will be a total turn-off to investors. ―What we want is for more investors to come in and create more job opportunities,‖ said Coloma. Coloma further said the minimum wage is just a benchmark or a reference point where workers can complain if their salary is lesser than what is required under the law. There are other jobs that offer higher salary depending on one’s qualifications, he said. (mbcn/fcr/PIA7)
Gov. Petilla sees brighter future for Leyte‘s farmers More on Region 6, pages 2-3. Also CLICK Here…
CENTRAL VISAYAS
President Benigno S. Aquino III unveils the New Mill Facility Marker in line with the expansion project inauguration of CEMEX Philippines, Apo Cement Plant at Barangay Tinaan, City of Naga, Cebu, May 1, 2015 with a theme: ―Building A Better Future‖. (vvv/PIA Cebu)
More on Region 7, pages 4-5. Also CLICK Here…
EASTERN VISAYAS
Justice secretary Leila de Lima answeres questions from the media during a press conference at the VIP Lounge, DZR airport, Tacloban City, April 30. The Secretary is in Eastern Visayas as commencement speaker of the Eastern Samar State University graduation exercises in Borongan, Eastern Samar. (Vino R. Cuayzon)
More on Region 8, pages 6-7. Also CLICK Here...
TACLOBAN CITY, LEYTE, April 28 (PIA) – When super typhoon ―Yolanda‖ spread heavily its wrath in the region in 2013, the future of the farmers here went bleak and hopeless, so went likewise the apprehension of Governor Dominic Petilla. This he said during the launching today of the ―Pasyada 2015‖, at the Palo Pagibig Plaza which aims to boost tourism visits with food and agricultural production. In his opening message, Gov. Petilla shared his apprehension for his constituents, after super typhoon ―Yolanda‖ wrecked the province particularly the farmers’ livelihood. Fortunately he said, a few days after the devastation, Food and Agriculture Office (FAO) representatives approached and asked what he needed. ―I told them, I need to restore the livelihood of my farmers,‖ Petilla recalled. Indeed, he said, on December 7, barely one month of the ―Yolanda‖ aftermath, the first shipment of 63-thousand sacks of certified seedlings were received by the Department of Agriculture here, who in turn distributed the seedlings to the different farmers in the province of Leyte, with the help of the mayors and local agricultural officers. ―And by May 2014, after four months of farming, DA reported a huge harvest,‖ the Leyte chief executive shared. He cited for instance, the Tanauan farmers who produced 19 -thousand metric tons of rice in 2014 from its 10-thousand in 2013. This way, he said, the farmers did not only recover their production they also ―did it better‖.
Petilla also estimated some 6M coconut trees which were toppled down by the ―Yolanda‖ calamity and it can take seven years for the coconut farmers to recover. For the untoppled trees, two years would be good for the farmers to await recovery. However, with the Compact Farming being introduced to the farmers, a better future might just be in the offing. The training program started with 38 farmers using high value crops; now it has 2,500 families being helped. The training continues where 200 to 300 families are being added up per training and it is continuing until all the farmers in the 1,393 barangays have all been trained. ―Can you imagine the impact the program can give to the agricultural industry and the economy here?‖, Gov. Petilla said. A lot more training programs and interventions are underway for the farmers in Leyte, he said, because from here ―we can show the world that the Leyteños are hard working people coupled with our businesses and industries,‖ he added. ―And not only that, our next target would be the livestock production,‖ Gov. Petilla informed. ―We are also looking at the total well-being and health services for our farmers in order to keep them healthy with their families,‖ Gov. Petilla concluded. ―Pasyada 2015‖ was launched together with Palo Mayor Matin Petilla’s More Income in the Countryside (MIC)-Agri Fair which likewise aims to boost the income of the farmers in the locality. The fair featured local and agricultural products, vegetables and processed foods which were locally produced. (PIA-08)
PNoy - Negros Cyber Center to create 26T jobs By Lorenzo O. Lambatin Jr. NEGROS OCC., May 1 (PIA6)—President Benigno S. Aquino III said the Negros first Cyber Center in Bacolod City which he inaugurated April 30 will generate 6,000 direct jobs and 20,000 indirect jobs. Called Information Technology–Business Process Management hub, IT BPM, the president inaugurated this P674 million project sitting on a two-hectare lot located at Lacson cor. Hernaez Sts. The President also visited Bago City where he inaugurated a multi-million rice processing center in Brgy. Tabunan, President Aquino unveiled the marker at the main entrance with local officials led by Negros Occ. Gov. Alfredo Marañon. He was welcomed at the lobby by DTI Sec. Gregory Domingo, PEZA Dir. General Lilia de Lima, Negros Occ. Vice Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson and Bacolod City Mayor Monico Puentebella. The building will house call centers at the Business Resource Center, a space to start-up IT companies and training center for IT-BPM like Technology Business Incubation Center, research and development facility and creative studio. It will also have restaurants, banks and conference and exhibition halls. ―The most important is that the whole enterprise is owned and under the management of the local government. This means the expected P90 million income per year will go directly to the provincial government,‖ he said. ―This (building) was started in 2012 and completed in October 2014. It opened and started to operate last December. This is a proof that this structure –with the right people and
plan, at the right quality and price and planning, the project can be made concrete benefitting the people‖ he said. Meanwhile, the P63.9 million Negros First Rice Processing Center (RPC) in Barangay Tabunan, Bago City. Was put up through a counter parting scheme involving the Department of Agriculture which chipped in P19.9 million and the Provincial Government which spent P44 million including the additional allocation for the expansion. The Negros First Rice Processing Center is a modern rice processing facility which has the milling capacity of 10 tons per hour with series of re-circulating dryers coupled to a single biomass furnace that has the milling recovery of 68 percent. (JCM/ Lljr-PIA6 wth EAD report)
President Aquino replies to media queries during the press conference at the side of his visit to Bacolod City, April 30 to inaugurate two major development projects. (PIA6/Bacolod Infocen)