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NEWSBRIEFS Int’l Jamboree pushes environment advocacy
Gearing up the youth with the proper knowledge to combat global warming, the Boy Scouts of the Philippines (BSP) Mayon, Albay Council, in partnership with the Provincial Government of Albay, City Government of Ligao and Bicol University (BU) held this year’s Scouts for Environment International Jamboree at Kawa-Kawa Natural Park, Tuburan, Ligao City last August 21 to 25. Themed “Scouts: Help Save Mother Earth,” the jamboree intended to help the students in gaining adequate and thorough understanding of the climate change adaptation and mitigation practices, disaster preparedness and risk reduction management in order to create a better response among participants towards issues concerning the environment and health. A total of 6,495 delegates coming from the 13 regions of the country participated while 35 foreign participants from the countries of Belgium, Croatia, France, Germany, Japan and United States of America also joined.
Danica Navida
Hellobicol to lift tourism
Advocating the promotion of region-wide tourism through online journalism, Bicol Organization of Neo-Journalists (BONJour) of Bicol University College of Arts and Letters (CAL) launched hellobicol.com to the worldwide web. “As a journalism student, I am advocating the promotion of youth’s awareness for the appreciation of Bicol cultural heritage,” said Zanie Jovellana, project initiator and online content editor. The said website will feature photos and written features on the lifestyle, arts and cuisine of Bicol Region and will open awareness for the youth about Bicol culture. Multi-media features specifically videos dubbed as Hello Bicol Express will also be included in the site. Joan Marcia Navara, BONJour president stated, “Hellobicol.com is open for tourism-relevant stories of all students whether they are journalism students or not.” For the project maintenance, BONJour is in pursuit to more partnerships with the local government tourism units. The Provincial Tourism and Cultural Affairs Office (PTCAO) have already agreed to help the project. In the past, BONJour Insider had also been published online tackling similar concepts. However, due to insufficient written outputs the site suddenly had to stop circulating. Now with Hellobicol experiencing the same, Jovellana conveyed, “I planned to close it temporarily, but then I decided not to waste a single chance for anybody who might happen to browse the page.” He admitted that looking for contributors and convincing students to write was the real challenge. The site is undeniably still lacking articles.
Jessamine Ll. Raynera
SC SCRaPS/page1 PDAF fund,” Gonzales added. However, Albay 1st district Congressman Edcel Lagman said that he will ensure the continuous funding by the Department of Education (DepEd) and CHED of his Lagman scholarship program. According to Albay 2nd district Congressman Al Bichara’s Scholarship Coordinator Aileen Nuyda, the allocated funds for the students on the first semester came from their remaining funds from CHED during the previous semesters. ABOLITION’S IMPACT During the first semester, OSS recorded the partial number of grantees of the three congressmen in Albay: Cong. Edcel Lagman of 1st district has 343 scholars who receive P5,000 per semester; Cong. Al Francis Bichara of the 2nd district has 138 beneficiaries who receive P5,000;
DWBU FM gears up for ‘on-air’ broadcast by Ariane Mae Cornejo with reports from Danica Villagarcia
DWBU FM 106.3 has officially reached the airwaves after its launching that was witnessed by various local media practitioners, BU faculty personnel and students at the Bicol University College of Arts and Letters (BUCAL) Amphitheatre last Sept. 18.
“[DWBU FM 106.3] is a gift of the university to the students,” CAL Dean Dr. Ma. Julieta Borres said. “All the efforts are for the love of the students and so by giving this laboratory, I hope that the students will appreciate, take care and treat the radio station as their own property.” The radio station, aside from being a laboratory of communications related courses, will serve as an avenue for extension programs of the college and of the university. Borres said that Radyo Verde programs aired during Fridays (10:00-11:00 am) at Radyo Veritas will be pulled out and will be transferred to DWBU FM next semester. On the other hand, the We-Men’s Forum program aired during Saturdays (4:00-5:30 pm) at the same station will remain at Veritas. Both programs are utilized by students for their laboratory. Print and Broadcast Media (PBM) Department Head Dr. Agnes Nepomuceno stated, “The program of We-Men’s Forum will stay with the station because they have the legal ownership of it. It was actually my brainchild while working at the station.” She explained that the college and the station have worked for a partnership during the inexistence of the DWBU FM. Borres said that DWBU FM is more likely to adapt a magazine show format to cater both young and adult listeners. The dean reiterated that as a laboratory, the radio’s programs will be different from the mainstream as it will use the output of the students’s learning as an application in the laboratory. Nepomuceno stated that there are no clear cut appointments yet, but she assured providing support for the station. “We should always be in line with the advocacy of CAL and Bicol University,” she said. Borres, moreover, said that in CAL’s pursuit for excellence, the radio station will eventually be expanded into television streaming to
upgrade its service to the students. In the coming semester, Borres said, the station is to hire a full-time expert on the technical and clerical aspects of the station. The station will also likely to air on a broadcast time of 6:30a.m. until 6p.m. BU President Fay Lea Patria Lauraya said during the launching of the radio station that it is one of the answered urgent dreams of the university and that it will be a part of the experiential learning of the BU students. “[DWBU FM 106.3] is the humble reservation of the university’s quality policy and will cater services that will meet the highest level of clientele service,” she said.
charge. However, she cleared that the account is now on the process and will be settled September this year upon expiration of the covered month (September 2013) of the bill. The payment will be charged to students’s laboratory fees paid upon enrollment. Michelle Bonto, the account executive of Radyo Veritas, was mum when asked regarding the station’s reason for the delayed issuance of the receipts.
“As a scholar kasi pahirapan naman talaga yun paggamit sa scholarship namin sa enrolment. We need to [prepare and present] requirements pa before we can enroll. In my case, ngayong nagdaang enrollment, hindi ko nagamit yun scholarship ko kasi the Office of Cong. Bichara was not able to give the OSS the lists of students that are deserving to avail the scholarship. Saka ayaw magbigay ng Office of Cong. Bichara ng letter of acknowledgment sa amin for some reasons. Kaya sa huli nag-full payment na lang ako,” she said. Nuyda, on the other hand, said that with the TRO issued last August, the entire process became difficult. “With the plan of abolishing PDAF, scholars were totally affected especially those poor students relying on their scholarships,” she said. Nuyda explained that all of its 600 scholars will still get the refund for the previous semester but
as of the second semester, only 253 BU scholars will be covered by the scholarship grant. Since the tranche of the 2013 PDAF was frozen by the high court, the refund for this school year will come from the remaining fund from the previous semesters. Nuyda added that the liquidation report from CHED will determine how much fund is left for the utilization of the scholarship grants. “The scholarship will continue for this second semester, while for private schools, there’s no really source of fund, we’re having a hard time looking for ways to pursue giving grants for our scholars especially those studying in private schools,” Nuyda disclosed.
STILL UNCLEAR Since its launch, BUFM is often set off-air, which usually disappoints students who tune in to the station and hear nothing. A freshman from the College of Education DEBT TO PAY who requested anonymity said that the station is The launching of DWBU FM 106.3 ended useless since it’s not airing. the almost two-year waiting for the radio station’s “Every time I listen to the radio and set materialization. However, CAL still has an unpaid the frequency to DWBU, all I can hear is a muffling debt of P84,000 to Veritas, where the programs sound,” the student said. Radyo Berde and We-Men’s Forum were formerly Sunshine Baron, a senior Journalism aired. student, added that since the station was launched, The said amount charged on January she only heard the station go on-air once, 2012 is still unpaid because no bill was issued until “Maybe, I just don’t know the air times,” September this year, Borres said. Baron said. “Pag magbabayad ka ng bill mo, parang In contrast to the laments, Mariane kapag magbabayad ng kuryente, kailangan may Belen of CAL shared, “I am happy that finally, CAL resibo. Wala naman silang naibigay na bill,” she has launched the station. It only proves that the stated. university indeed is after for the students’ service.” The billing invoice for January-June Belen said that the reception in the first 2012 and July-December 2012 both amounting district of Albay is good and she heard the station to P24,000 each were dated September 6 while on-air playing OPM music. for January-September this year with P36, 000 Audio Visual Communication (AVC) outstanding balance was only given last September senior student John Carlo Abrigo supported Belen’s 13. claim and said that the station, which is on its test Nepomuceno, also a regular broadcaster broadcast, is usually off-air because it is unlike the of the said station, said that she told the station usual community radios. to follow-up for the payment in CAL through the Borres explained that the station is only college’s National Service Training Program (NSTP) to test broadcast this year to comply with the because Radyo Verde was anchored from it. requirement of the National Telecommunications “When I entered the scene, I was handling Commission (NTC). The issuance of permit the batch of fourth year Journalism students,” according to her is after a year. Nepomuceno said. “When Veritas told me that there She said that the PBM department are still unpaid accounts, I urged them to issue a will take the lead in handling the station. The receipt so I can give them to CAL.” radio station, on the other hand, will also serve Borres added that the issue was part of the as a laboratory for most of the students with obligation of the professors, being the faculties-incommunications related courses. However, Nepomuceno said that the department has a limited participation in managing the radio as of now. “It is not yet clear kung ano ang magiging role ng department. Although it belongs to [PBM], someone should be on top of it. We always have to wait for the dean,” she explained. On a separate interview, Borres said that there is no regular program yet because there are still no format of programs coming from the department and that there are matters still to be considered. “Right now, everything is not yet fixed, there will be an administrative council kung sino ang head, but next semester, it will be fully operational for the hands-on of the students,” Borres said. As of press time, DWBU FM is operated by the AVC students for the technical aspects. The DWBU FM was officially launched during the university’s 44th founding anniversary. The station ID was composed by Professor Ramil Chavenia and sung by Tintin Reñon. SURFING THE AIRWAVES. BUFM hits the radio airwaves as it was formally launched at the BU Multi-Purpose Build BUFM was proposed by Prof. ing on September 18, 2013. The university’s contestants for the newscasting competition on different years, Sheena Anacito Dimatera and Dr. Nepomuceno Alicante (left) and Menlyn Bautista (right), sign on as student disc-jocks. CHARMAINE ADUVISO during the revision of the AB Broadcasting curriculum last June 2010.
and 575 grantees are receiving P2,500 from Cong. Fernando V. Gonzalez of the 3rd district. Bichara’s grantees were ensured of the scholarship grant amounting to P5,000 this school year 2013-2014, Nuyda said. She stated that 253 BU scholars will get the grant, in contrary to what has happened to some of its scholars. Jovie Panuelo, a scholar of Bichara and student from the College of Arts and Letters (CAL), lamented that she was not able to avail her P5,000 for the said scholarship program for the first semester of the school year. “Nangutang pa po ang mama ko para makapag-enrol ngayong 2nd semester,” she said. Diosun Fye Jadulos, a student from College of Business, Economic and Management (CBEM), shared the same sentiment during the enrollment.
With reports from Alyssa Joselle Bañares, Ariane Mae Cornejo, Jervy Anne Romero, Arthessa Ladoing, Alyssa Joana Aro and Jessica Bechayda.