20 Metro Manila barangay officials face Ombudsman disciplinary action for violation of quarantine protocols – DILG

The Department of the Interior and Local Government has recommended the imposition of disciplinary action against 20 barangay officials in Metro Manila for alleged violation of quarantine protocols.

In a statement, Interior Undersecretary for Barangay Affairs Martin Diño said the five barangay chairs from Caloocan City;  five from Quezon City; two from Parañaque City; and one each from Mandaluyong, Las Piñas, Manila, Makati, Pasay, Taguig, Marikina, and Muntinlupa were referred to the Ombudsman pursuant to Section 21 and 26 of RA 6770 after their responses to the show-cause orders earlier issued against them were found to be “insufficient.”

Diño said the barangay officials’ offenses range from violations in the implementation of physical distancing in engagements with the citizens of barangays, illegal cockfighting, gambling, poor enforcement of lockdown protocols with children playing on the streets, negligence to gross neglect of duty, among others.

According to Diño, more cases are expected as his office was still investigating over 100 barangay officials for violations of quarantine protocols.

“We want to send a message sa mga pasaway na barangay official that the DILG will not tolerate any violation of ECQ protocols,” Interior Secretary Eduardo Añ said.

“As government officials, we should take the lead in following the law and not in breaking it,” he added. (Content reposted from Eagle News)

Students shared just one face mask in Daet barangay graduation program

The Department of Education is looking into an alleged health protocol breach in Daet, Camarines Norte involving students made to share a single face mask in a makeshift graduation ceremony.

In a statement posted on Wednesday, the DepEd said it has already started its fact-finding investigation through a division investigation committee from the DepEd Region V and has coordinated with the local government units in resolving the incident "at the soonest possible time."

Over the weekend, a Facebook video went viral for showing what looked like a graduation ceremony in a shed in Barangay Dogongan with children being made to share the same face mask as they take turns posing for a graduation photo.

The video, initially shared then deleted by a certain Teddy Aguirre, spread to various Facebook groups, eliciting criticisms from various netizens. A woman can be seen in the video assisting students as they held their certificates one by one, and as the graduation march song played. One student can even be seen removing her toga and handing it over to the next ones in line for the photo.

A tarpaulin was posted as backdrop of the ceremony, which read: "Daet North District, Dogongan Elementary School, 58th Graduation Exercise."

"We have also asked the person involved in the breach to submit a written explanation while the local DepEd COVID-19 Task Force will actively monitor the health of the learners concerned through the regional office," the department said.

"We would like to reiterate that graduation and moving up rites that require face-to-face interaction are postponed until further notice," the DepEd added. "Schools and community learning centers are highly encouraged to conduct virtual rites and other alternative non face-to-face activities to celebrate the end of the school year."

In a statement on Wednesday, DepEd Region V bared that the school already had a virtual graduation prior to the incident, and the activity was supposedly only for the distribution of school records and certificates of the students. It added that the activity only proceeded upon the request of the parents of the four students seen in the video.

"On the possible administrative offense, DepEd-Camarines Norte will not hesitate to impose appropriate sanction to anyone in our ranks, if found guilty after observance of proper administrative due process," it added.

The DepEd reiterated that activities requiring face-to-face interaction that are allowed by their agency and the guidelines of the Inter-Agency Task Force may be conducted only if the necessary health and safety precautions are strictly complied with, subject to protocols set for the community quarantine classification of each locality.

The department added that it will continue to hold seminars for teachers and stakeholders on preventive and precautionary measures to be observed and in schools and offices. (Content and photo reposted from CNN)

Rizal barangay official leads Bike-to-Work Donation Program to benefit workers ln his community

TAYTAY, Rizal- A young village leader in this town is leading a fund-raising drive for his co-villagers for the purchase of bicycles which will be given to selected recipients in this barangay.

Barangay Kagawad Tobit Cruz, of Sta. Ana in this town, said his Bike To Work Donation Program is targeting to raise P100,000 for the project that aims to give a bicycle each to at least 20 intended beneficiaries in his village.

As of June 15 three beneficiaries have received their bicycles. One of them was Chelsea Rose Cutamora, 24, a single mother who works in Pasig City who was only able to report for work by borrowing a bike from her neighbor when general community quarantine (GCQ) was imposed on the province recently.

Cruz also handed over a bicycle to John Benson Trucilla, a 23-year old truck helper who walks from his house to Cainta everyday. His neighbors were the ones who nominated him to the program after learning of his daily sacrifices for his family.

Another recipient of the Bike To Work Program was Bienvenido Artita Jr., an on-call house painter and construction worker who walks to Parang in Marikina City everyday just to work.

The donation program hopes to gather more donations to help workers who are forced by the situation to either walk or commute by any available means of transportation just to report for work, as messages of request continue to pour in on Cruz’s social media page.

Aside from cash donations, Cruz’s group also accepts donations of pre-owned bikes.

The young village official has included a link to a transparency portal in his social media account where the details of the donation are shown, including the names of the donors.

He has also been regularly updating the status of the bike donation drive on his Facebook account. (Content and photo reposted from Manila Bulletin)

Kagawad Tobit Cruz photo from his Facebook page.

Iloilo LGU pioneers ‘Gulayan sa Barangay’ project

The municipality of Pavia in the Province of Iloilo is one lucky town to be chosen as Western Visayas’ first recipient of the “Gulayan sa Barangay” project.

This project is under the Plant, Plant, Plant Program or “Ahon Lahat, Pagkaing Sapat (ALPAS) Laban sa COVID-19” program of the Department of Agriculture (DA).

On June 11, a “Gulayan sa Barangay” project was launched in Pavia covering four barangays: Cabugao Norte, Mali-ao, Pal-agon, and Purok 2.

DA Region 6’s High Value Crops Development Program (HVCDP) focal person Jonifer Frades said these barangays will serve as showcase areas or models of communal garden.

The project materialized through the efforts of Pavia Sangguniang Bayan (SB) member Daniel S. Fajardo II, chairman of the Committee on Agriculture, and with the support of DA Regional Office 6 and the municipal agriculture office.

Fajardo said the “Gulayan sa Barangay” project is timely. Vegetables are very important to keep the body healthy amid the threat of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, he explained.

Fajardo hopes that the project will succeed so it can be replicated to the rest of the barangays in Pavia.

During the project’s launch, DA-6 turned over assorted vegetable seeds such as ampalaya, eggplant, cucumber, okra, pechay, pole sitao, squash, and tomato, as well as garden tools such as hoes, plastic drums, rakes, spades, and sprinklers.

Fajardo also turned over 16 water containers for the communal garden project.

Municipal Agriculturist Homer Hubag, meanwhile, said his office will provide technical assistance and help in the management of communal gardens to ensure the project’s sustainability.

Each communal garden is to be managed by around 15 households through the bayanihan system.

Bonifacio dela Torre of DA-6’s HVCDP said Pavia is now slowly being converted into an industrial area, thus sustainability of the “Gulayan sa Barangay” project is a challenge. He is hoping that vegetable farming in Pavia will be sustained.

On the other hand, Frades is eyeing to make the communal gardens in Pavia a contest wherein all 18 barangays of the municipality will participate. He is also planning a “Vegetables Harvest Festival” in the town. (Content and photo reposted from Panay News)

In photo: Barangay Captain Emelina Serra and Kagawad Rovi Halanes of Barangay Mali-ao, Pavia, Iloilo receive vegetable seeds and garden tools for their communal garden during the launching of the “Gulayan sa Barangay” project in Pavia on June 11. Photo also shows Sangguniang Bayan Member Daniel S. Fajardo II (far right), Department of Agriculture (DA) Region 6’s High Value Crops Development Program (HVCDP) focal person Jonifer Frades (second from left), Bonifacio dela Torre (far left) of DA-6’s HVCDP, and Pavia municipal agriculturist Homer Hubag (second from right).

Negros barangay residents holds "social-distancing-rally" in front of barangay hall, one meter apart

A rally was conducted by residents of Barangay Canlandog, Murcia to show their strong support in condemning the atrocities and illegal activities of the Communist Party of the Philippines-NPA-Terrorist (CNTs).

Observing necessary health protocols for Covid-19, the people of Canlandog hoisted posters and tarpaulins, calling for an end to the "terrorist" activities, extortion, harassment, and deception of civilians, as well as recruitment of minors by the CNTs.

The event was followed by a pulong-pulong attended by the peace-loving residents and local officials of Barangay Canlandog headed by captain Reynaldo Gawad, and members of the Murcia Municipal Police Station and 79th Infantry (Masaligan) Battalion, 3ID of the Philippine Army.

It was highlighted with a message of peace by ABC president Hernan Alintana and the testimonies of alias Anne, a former rebel who was invited as a speaker and who shared her tragic experiences witnessing human rights abuses, sufferings and deaths of ordinary people perpetrated by the NPA.

In a statement, Lieutenant Colonel Gerard Alvaran, commanding officer of 79th Infantry (Masaligan) Battalion, expressed his appreciation to the people of Barangay Canlandog for their support towards ending CNT atrocities through their peace rally.

"It clearly shows that the peace-loving residents of Canlandog are already fed up of all the atrocities committed by the communist-terrorists. They long for a peaceful community where they can live normally with their loved ones free from CNT threats and deceptions. As your partner in this endeavor, the Masaligan troopers will continue to protect the public, especially the youth and innocent civilians, from any form of terrorist activities of the CNTs," he said.

"With the continued support and participation of the people of Murcia in our campaign against terrorism, we can really achieve an insurgency-free and peaceful society," Alvaran added.

The activity was also in line with the 122nd Independence Day celebration Friday, June 12, 2020. (Content and photo reposted from SunStar Bacolod)

In photo: Barangay Canlandog, Murcia residents stage a "social-distancing-rally", one meter apart, in front of the barangay hall. (Contributed photo)