Philippine Information Agency Central Visayas

  (Land Transportation Management System website/PIA file photo) CEBU CITY, Cebu, Sept. 30 (PIA) -- The Regional Development Council Central Visayas (RDC-7) has requested the Land Transportation Office (LTO) to fully implement the online renewal of Philippine driver's license and come up with parameters as to who are qualified for such service. The RDC-7 made the request in a resolution endorsed during the third quarter full council meeting held virtually on Sept. 17, 2021. The LTO is already implementing its partial automation in application and renewal through its Land Transportation Management System (LTMS) launched in May 2020, which allows applicants to secure appointments at their preferred LTO office, upload their requirements, and pay for license fees online in order to prevent long queues at the LTO licensing offices. However, the LTMS online portal only covers selected offices and still requires applicants to personally appear at the LTO branch or satellite offices for bi

PCOO Sec. Martin Andanar says the Duterte Legacy Caravan highlights the government's accomplishments under Pres. Rodrigo Duterte's administration in his virtual message during the nationwide simultaneous launching of "Barangayanihan Caravan Towards National Recovery" at the Police Regional Office 7 quadrangle in Cebu City on Sept. 30, 2021. (PCOO/HBZ/PIA) CEBU CITY, Cebu, Sept. 30 (PIA) -- Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Sec. Martin Andanar said Pres. Rodrigo Duterte's agenda of "Tapang at Malasakit,” which the various government agencies adhere to since he assumed leadership of the nation, embodies a whole of nation approach that enables him to fulfill his promise of real change to the lives of Filipino people. Andanar said his agenda against corruption, criminalities, and societal ills of the nation resulted in the positive changes of the country; ensuring economic prosperity, proactive and efficient social services and upholding human

In cooperation with the Philippine Economic Zone Authority and local government units (LGUs), the Aboitiz Integrated Economic Centers hosted vaccinations for its industrial zone workers and commercial tenant employees. This is in line with the Aboitiz Group’s commitment to protect its team members from COVID-19 and even extending it to the wider community. “With the highly transmissible Delta variant in the country, we are working with PEZA and the LGUs in Batangas and Cebu to ensure safety within our parks. It is important for us to do our part in keeping the 90,000 workers in our Estates safe and employed. The workers’ continued health also ensures that we can sustain operations, keep the economy running, and that our surrounding communities remain as safe as they can possibly be,” said Rafael Fernandez de Mesa, First Vice President for Aboitiz Integrated Economic Centers. Staying true to the Aboitiz Group’s core value of Responsibility, the Estates’ respective vaccination drives dem

LARENA, Siquijor, Sept. 30 (PIA) -- Despite the surge of COVID-19 cases in the province, not a single patient is left waiting outside of the Provincial Hospital.  This is according to newly designated Officer-in-Charge George Walthrode Opay of the Integrated Provincial Health Office (IPHO) during the Provincial Inter-Agency Task Force meeting on Sept. 28.  “ Wala ta’y patient nag-atang sa gawas, admitted silang tanan (We have no patients waiting outside),” said Opay as he laid down his plans and measures to properly manage the ongoing COVID-19 crisis in the province.  “I really want to be aggressive in curbing this COVID-19,” he said, noting that the behavior of the virus in Siquijor is likely that of the Delta variant with the rising number of reported and unreported cases.  Opay said with the COVID-19 patients now transferred to the new hospital in Caipilan, Siquijor, they now have 163 beds which are all occupied, from a total bed capacity of 75 at the old hospital.  FILE PHOTO:  Th

The Provincial IATF meeting attended by some members of the RIATF MEID.   SIQUIJOR, Siquijor, Sept. 29 (PIA) -- The Regional Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (RIATF MEID) is now closely monitoring the surge of COVID-19 cases in Siquijor province.   During the Provincial IATF virtual meeting attended by the Department of Health (DOH), Office of Civil Defense (OCD) and other member agencies on Sept. 28, DOH-7 Regional Director Jaime Bernadas said the critical part of the response is the cooperation of the barangay officials, barangay health emergency and response teams (BHERTs), and health workers at the local government unit and DOH.  Bernadas said that short of capability of testing, the role of the barangay health workers and officials in the surveillance and monitoring are critical because they are at the forefront. DOH-7 Regional Director Jaime Bernadas assured the Siquijor province of their support in the management of the surge of COVID-19

SIQUIJOR, Siquijor, Sept. 28 (PIA) -- COVID-19 cases continue to surge in the province of Siquijor which already logged a total of 866 active cases, with 104 new cases, 459 recoveries, and 10 deaths as of Sept. 27 based on data from the Department of Health Central Visayas Center for Health Development (DOH-7).  On Sept. 24, Siquijor province recorded a total of 203 new COVID-19 cases based on the DOH case bulletin, the highest since the start of the pandemic in 2020, said Zella Maye Samson of the Provincial DOH here. Of the total, Siquijor has the highest number with 51 cases, followed by  Larena (46), Maria (43), San Juan (26), Enrique Villanueva (23), and Lazi (14).  On Sept, 25,  an additional 186 total confirmed cases were recorded with Siquijor logging the most number of cases (83), followed by Larena (47), Lazi (20), San Juan (16), Enrique Villanueva (15), and Maria (5).   From a COVID-free status for seven months last year, the first two cases of COVID-19 in the province were r

Multi-sectoral partnerships forged amid the pandemic have provided the needed assistance to frontliners tending to COVID-19 patients. With the values of service and malasakit in mind, PLDT-Smart Foundation has turned over cash assistance to Cebu medical frontliners via Project Balik Buhay’s (PBB) SalBaBida Program. Project Balik Buhay (PBB), spearheaded by leaders from the public and private sectors, seeks to assist COVID-19 frontliners and safely reopen the economy with minimum health protocols in place. The two-month SalBaBida Program was initially launched in support for nurses, whether full-time or project-based, who are attending to COVID-19 patients in participating private hospitals in Cebu.   “We understand the need for putting the welfare and safety of our frontliners first. We are happy to be part of Project Balik Buhay as the project aims to sustain our doctors and nurses in Cebu as they continue to serve amidst the surge in COVID-19 cases. This follows our Chairman

(L-R) Proprietor Joseph Bahian with PSTD Engr. Mario de la Peña and a witness during the turnover of check to Jovic Lumber Yard Furniture Center from DOST-7 as technology upgrading SETUP assistance for the firm. (DOST-Siquijor photo) A check under the Small Enterprise Technology Upgrading Program (SETUP) was turned over from the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-7) through Siquijor Provincial S&T Center to Joseph Buhian, proprietor of Jovick Lumber Yard Furniture Center. The funding aid is for the project “Furniture processing technology upgrading for Jovick Lumber Yard Furniture Center for increase production and improve quality furniture items.”  The activity was done on Sept. 10, 2021 at DOST Siquijor Provincial S&T Center led by Provincial Director Engr. Mario de la Peña.  The fund is intended for the acquisition of efficient furniture processing equipment to enhance the product quality and increase productivity of Jovick Lumber Yard Furniture Center, which is loca

Members of Bitaug Small Coconut Farmers Association (BISMACOFA) are looking forward to another bountiful harvest as peanut plants at the community’s two-hectare peanut farm at Bitaug, Enrique Villanueva, with an extension 3-hectare site at Lomangcapan, Enrique Villanueva, Siquijor, turns 55 days old during the regular weekly monitoring of the sites by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) Community Empowerment through Science and Technology (CEST) Program project team of Siquijor State College (SSC) Research and Extension Division led by Dr. Philna Palongpalong on Sept. 4, 2021. The project entitled “Community Empowerment thru Science and Technology (CEST) for Selected Farmers in Enrique Villanueva Siquijor” which started in 2020, is under the CEST project of DOST-7 through DOST Siquijor Provincial S&T Center led by Director Engr. Mario de la Peña.  The project aims to establish Sustainable Community-based AANR-Livelihood Enhancement and Development (SCAANR-LED) Program i

Turnover of stalls to the Bitaug Small Coconut Farmers Association for the display of their fresh agricultural product yield. (DOST Siquijor photo)  The Bitaug Small Coconut Farmers Association (BISMACOFA) now has stalls for their fresh agricultural product yields as one unit of stall for each of the four “puroks” of Bitaug, Enrique Villanueva, Siquijor, were turned over to the association by the Department of Science and Technology – Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development (DOST – PCAARRD) through Siquijor State College (SSC) and DOST Siquijor Provincial S&T Center (PSTC) at Siquijor State College Covered Court recently. Dubbed as “Lataran sa Kaumahan,” the stalls are expected to showcase fresh commodities from BISMACOFA’s Techno Demo Farm, communal gardens, native chicken farm, etc. which are projects under the S&T Community-based Program for Inclusive Development (STC4iD) of DOST-PCAARRD. It will also showcase products from

The Municipal Civil Registrar of the six municipalities in Siquijor with the PSA officers attending the National Convention on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics held Sept. 1-3, 2021 via video conferencing. (FJA Pescante FB photo) The Local Civil Registry Offices (LCRO) of Siquijor, Siquijor was among the top national awardees for the year 2020 during the first ever National Convention on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (1NCCRVS) held Sept. 1-3 via video conferencing.    The awarding of the Outstanding LCROs nationwide gives recognition to  the exemplary efforts of the LCROs with regards to their overall Civil Registration activities.  The LCRO of Siquijor, Siquijor led by MCR Fernando Jose Pescante, Jr. bagged fifth place in the Medium Category and was recognized as one of the Hall of Fame awardees as a consistent awardee in five years. LCRO-Siquijor belonged to the medium category with approximately 1,000 to 1,999 submitted civil registry documents.   Timely submission o

Before sailing into the port of Manila, the Australian Defence Force and the Philippine Navy conducted Exercise Lumbas, a bilateral Australia-Philippines exercise focusing on high-end training and interoperability. Today, the Australian maritime task group of HMA Ships Canberra, Sirius, and Anzac docked in Manila harbour for a three-day port visit as part of Indo Pacific Endeavour 2021 (IPE21). IPE21 is Australia´s flagship regional engagement activity and a demonstration of Australia´s steadfast support for a peaceful, inclusive and resilient Indo-Pacific region, with ASEAN at its core. Since late-August, the IPE21 task group has engaged in a program of mutually supportive at-sea activities, training programs and capacity building with several partners in the region. The three-month deployment involves around 700 people, including Australian defence and civilian personnel and participants from partner nations. These include Captain Constancio Reyes from the Philippine Navy, who we are

A Cebu City-based firm offering beauty, cosmetic, home and personal care has been flagged by the Securities and Exchange Commission as an investment scam after it was found to be soliciting investments from the public even without the necessary license and permit. SCET Colleens Corporation with office address at Unit 2004 Grand Residences, Apitong St., Cebu City has claimed to have a secondary license but upon investigation by the SEC Enforcement and Investor Protection Department (EIPD), the document they were using was fake, SEC Cebu extension office officer-in-charge Atty. Alma Marie Estrada-Dalena said quoting the EIPD report. SCET Colleens offers a number of investment packages and promos ranging from the P3,800 to P1.08 million promising lucrative passive returns of five to eight percent return of investment per month and other bonuses with little or no risk. “The public is reminded that any offer or promise of ridiculous rates of return will little or no risk is an indication of

Dumaguete City distributes rice subsidy at 10 kilos to each barangay household  amid the COVID-19 pandemic. (Contributed photo) DUMAGUETE CITY, Negros Oriental, Sept. 20 (PIA) -- A total of P4.3 million has been distributed to 874 COVID-19 patients as financial assistance at P5,000 each from Dumaguete City.  Mayor Felipe Antonio Remollo said the financial aid to the patients who tested positive for COVID-19 is another program of the city to help those in crisis situation amid the pandemic. This is also in response to the loss of income of patients and their expenditures while in isolation and treatment, Remollo said. While in isolation, all COVID-19 patients are entitled to food rations delivered by barangay officials and health workers three times a day, along with the close contacts that are placed under quarantine.  The city has set some requirements to claim financial assistance for COVID-19 patients, including copy of the positive RT-PCR swab test result, quarantine completion cer

DUMAGUETE CITY, Negros Oriental, Sept. 16 (PIA) -- Dumaguete City has received a donation of 16,000 face masks from Temasek Foundation based in Singapore through Filinvest Land Inc. as a show of unity in this time of pandemic.  Earlier, the city also received 500 doses of Astrazeneca vaccines donated by Filinvest Development Corp. represented by its Assistant Vice Pres. Phil Adnil Calumpang and Branch Manager Ryan Pasicaran of Filinvest Land Dumaguete. The donated vaccines will be used in the ongoing COVID-19 vaccination of eligible city residents.  Mayor Felipe Antonio Remollo (2 nd   from right) receives the face masks with Filinvest Assistant Vice Pres. Phil Adnil Calumpang (2 nd   from left) on Sept. 15.    (CPIO) The said vaccines were received by Mayor Felipe Antonio Remollo, Councilor Lilani Ramon, and City Health Officer Dr. Maria Sarah Talla and will be used solely for the purpose of Filinvest to support the city government’s efforts in combating COVID-19. In his message to Te

DUMAGUETE CITY, Negros Oriental, Sept. 16 (PIA) -- The Dumaguete City Health Office (CHO) has already administered 53,569 doses of COVID-19 vaccines to eligible 31,685 city residents as of Sept. 14.  The vaccinees have received Sinovac, Astrazeneca, Moderna, Pfizer, and Janssen jabs.  Dr. Maria Sarah Talla of CHO said that 1,146 individuals also received their COVID-19 jabs in the two vaccination sites at Pulantubig Gym and Robinson Place, particularly those who returned to get their second doses on Sept. 15.   Of the 31,685 eligible residents vaccinated, 2,409 are medical frontliners (A1); 7,305 senior citizens (A2); 7,948 persons with comorbidities (A3); 9,270 frontline personnel (A4); and 4,753 indigent persons (A5) were inoculated based on the order of priority of the Department of Health. Five government employees and two pupils (as young as five years old) are among the 27 newly-confirmed COVID-19 cases along with 15 recoveries reported on Sept. 16. Dumaguete City currently has 1

Supreme Court representatives with Dumaguete City Mayor Felipe Antonio Remollo (extreme right) during a coordination meeting on the conduct of bar examinations. (Contributed photo) DUMAGUETE CITY, Negros Oriental, Sept. 15 (PIA) -- Around 1,020 examinees from various law schools in Visayas and Mindanao are expected to take the bar exam on four Sundays of November in Dumaguete City. Silliman University College of Law in Dumaguete was selected as one of the 28 local testing centers across the country. Supreme Court (SC) Associate Justice Mario Victor Leonen, chairperson of the 2020/21 Bar Examinations, said “this is an unprecedented move to meet the sign of the times, the exams will be digitalized, proctored and localized, administered not in one venue, but in several cities and municipalities.”   A delegation from the SC met with Mayor Felipe Antonio Remollo, Vice-Mayor Karissa Tolentino-Maxino, and Councilor Lilani Ramon to discuss the assistance that the city government can provide an

Alegria Mayor Verna Magallon says she plans to reward barangays that have a high turnout for senior citizens who get vaccinated during the Resbakuna Town Hall held Sept. 7, 2021 in the Municipality of Alegria. (IDC/PIA) CEBU CITY, Cebu, Sept. 13 (PIA) -- With only six to seven percent turnout for vaccination among elderlies, Alegria Mayor Verna Magallon urged the senior citizens to get vaccinated against the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and enjoined others to help promote vaccination.  "Let us encourage our senior citizens and inform them of the advantages of getting jabbed and, hopefully, that other senior citizens who already got inoculated would urge their friends to do the same,” said Magallon during the Resbakuna Town Hall held Sept. 7.  She cited the spread of fake news and negative propaganda on social media as one of the major challenges for having a low vaccination turnout. The mayor said she hopes the presence of the Resbakuna team would help improve the turnout o

Representatives of the Philippine Information Agency 7, Inter-Agency Task Force against COVID-19 Visayas, Department of Health 7, Department of the Interior and Local Government 7, Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc., and KBP Cebu Chapter pose for a photo opportunity after the meeting held Aug. 31, 2021 at the Visayas Vaccination Operations Center in Oakridge Business Park, Mandaue City, Cebu. (IDC/PIA) CEBU CITY, Cebu, Sept. 13 (PIA) -- The national government agencies in Region 7 along with the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) against COVID-19 in the Visayas partnered with the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP) Cebu Chapter to assist in the dissemination of correct and factual information of the vaccines and to enhance public trust in vaccination.  With the alarming spike of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases due to the Delta variant, the Philippine Information Agency Region 7 (PIA) formulated a narrative framework in terms of communication that would be effective in t

Consolacion, Cebu Mayor Joyjoy Alegado, MD says the municipal government plans to focus their budget on health during the Network Briefing News interview hosted by Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Martin Andanar last Thursday, September 1, 2021. (Screen grabbed from Presidential Communications Facebook Live) CEBU CITY, Cebu, Sept. 8 (PIA) -- To provide further response to the threat of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), Consolacion Mayor Joyjoy Alegado, MD wants to prioritize the funding for health care to ensure his people's safety. During the Network Briefing News interview hosted by Presidential Communications Operations Office Sec. Martin Andanar, Alegado said health is wealth. "We won't be able to do anything if our people get sick. As of now, we have difficulty in treating individuals in hospitals in Cebu City. So we really see the need to focus our budget on health," the mayor added. He said that with Consolacion being part of Metro

DUMAGUETE CITY, Negros Oriental, Sept. 6 (PIA) -- The municipal government of Pamplona has extended livelihood interventions to its women’s federation group to help augment their livelihood amid the pandemic. Pamplona Mayor Janice Degamo shared this during her Network Briefing News interview with Presidential Communications Operations Office Sec. Martin Andanar over Radyo Pilipinas on Sept. 6.  Degamo said the municipal government in partnership with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) through its KALAHI-CIDSS Program turned over a building to the women’s federation where they can cook and sell the delicacies of their town. The municipal government also embarked on skills retooling training and seminars to capacitate the women’s federation  members on various means of livelihood. “They will attend, they will learn and they get to bring home not just the knowledge but the start-up capital. (We) give the person the opportunity to learn a skill and give a capital para