17 Barangays in Negros Oriental Get Solar Energy

Bayawan Mayor Ismael Martinez and recipients of solar home system units.            Photo Credits:  Roy Bustillo

The Department of Energy (DOE), in cooperation with the Bayawan City government and Silliman University, distributed solar home system (SHS) units in the city during the ceremonial switch-on on Wednesday (August 5).

Bayawan Mayor Ismael Martinez thanked the DOE for choosing his city as a site for its House Electrification Program (HEP), which would greatly help 17 barangays that don't have power.

Martinez said children in these barangays could now study better and people would become more productive. Electric lighting, he added, could also help deter crimes.

According to DOE-Visayas Director Antonio Labios, this is the second time the DOE had this project in the Visayas, with this one having the largest number of beneficiaries of HEP at 2,989.

Labios said that most of the sitios are only accessible by foot or by habal-habal when the weather permits. The areas are also 5 kilometers away from the last pole of the local electric cooperative.

The solar home system units are composed of solar panels with a 10-kilowatt peak capacity and 30-kilowatt peak capacity batteries.  Original post by CNN:  DOE Gives Solar Energy Units to Negros Oriental Barangays.

Bacolod Lawmaker Files Barangay Legal Office Bill

A lawmaker has filed a bill creating the Office of Barangay Legal Officer to help resolve the legal issues in the barangay level.

Rep. Evelio R. Leonardia

Rep. Evelio R. Leonardia (Lone District, Bacolod City) said problems confronting the local government units most especially the Punong Barangays are intermingled with legal issues.

 “The complication and intricacies of legal issues that Punong Barangays have to address necessitate the presence of a legal mind,” Leonardia said.
House Bill 5917 seeks to amend Section 396 of Republic Act 7160, otherwise known as The Local Government Code of 1991, by adding a subsection, a provision creating an Office of the Barangay Legal Officer.

Under the bill, no person shall be appointed barangay legal officer unless he is a citizen of the Philippines and a resident of the local government concerned, with good moral character and a member of the Philippine Bar.

Likewise, the applicant must have practiced his profession for at least one year to qualify for the position of barangay legal officer.

The measure further provides that the term of the barangay legal officer shall be coterminous with that of his appointing authority.

The barangay legal officer is also mandated under the bill to take charge of the office of legal services and do the function of the legal officer.

The bill mandates a barangay legal officer to formulate measures for the consideration of the Sanggunian and provide legal assistance and support to the governor or mayor.

Likewise, a legal officer shall develop plans and strategies particularly those, which have to do with programs and projects related to legal services upon the approval of the governor or mayor.

The measure states that the appointment of legal officer shall be optional to the barangay. Original Post: Bill to Create the Office of the Barangay Legal Officer.

Endangered Turtle 'Maltreated' in Samar Barangay - DENR

A man sits on a leatherback sea turtle tied to a bamboo pole in Barangay Marabut in Samar in an undated photo, one of several that elicited outrage among netizens. The turtle has been released back to the sea.

TACLOBAN CITY, Philippines  – Photos of a still unidentified man sitting on a leatherback sea turtle, locally known as pawikan, recently went viral on social media.

The pawikan, which measures six feet long and three feet wide, was tied to a bamboo post and has since been released back to the sea – but not without first inciting outrage from netizens.

Six photos were uploaded by Jose Lastimado on his Facebook account last Aug. 6 at past 9 a.m. Lastimado was reportedly the former village chief of Pinamitinan and Association of Barangay Councils (ABC) president of Marabut town in Samar.

The photos were captioned “Big catch pawikan in Brgy Sta Rita Marabut Samar (sic).”

In his spot report, lawyer Danilo Suarez of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) community environment and natural resources office in Samar said the pawikan was caught in the fish net of a certain Jessy Amora, about one kilometer away from the shoreline of the village, on Aug. 5 around 1:30 a.m.

Corazon Horca Makabenta, officer-in-charge of the DENR’s conservation and development division here, said the pawikan was released “after the DENR took photodocs and measurements at 11 a.m. in the morning that same day.”

Makabenta, through her Facebook account, also thanked the public for their “expression of concern and support.”

She said the person who “maltreated” the pawikan would be charged with violation of Republic Act 9147, or the Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act.

Some reports said the man atop the pawikan was Lastimado although this information has yet to be verified.
As of press time, Lastimado has deactivated his Facebook account.

The leatherback sea turtle (Dermocheleys coriacea) is considered an endangered species here and elsewhere in the world.

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) describes it as the “largest of all living sea turtles and the fourth largest modern reptile behind three crocodilians.”

Adult leatherback sea turtles can reportedly grow to as long as nine feet and weigh an average of 300 to 500 kilos.

Data show that the largest leatherback sea turtle ever recorded had a length of about 10 feet and weighed 916 kilos. Original Post:  Sea Turtle Caught in Samar Philstar Headline Aug. 10, 2015.

Dead Barangay Residents "Sign" Protest Over Port Project

PANGLAO, BOHOL, Philippines  — The barangay chairman of Tangnan in this town alleged that he found some names of already dead persons in the manifesto of protest against the planned construction of a sea port at sitio Tabuan in the village.

Photo of a typical jetty port.  Credits:  Wikipedia

Punong Barangay Cirilo Gatase told The Freeman that the manifesto, signed by hundreds of barangay residents, was published in the local weekly papers recently allegedly perpetrated by critics and political enemies of Panglao Mayor Leonila Montero and Vice Mayor Pedro Fuertes.


Gatase however said he was unsure of how many “dead persons” signed the protest papers, and he had tasked his secretary to determine this further.
 
Contrary to the published manifesto, Gatase said the Barangay Council was not totally against the construction of the port, but only wanted to have the project go through the process, like a barangay assembly or public hearing first to make his constituents understand it more.

A public hearing was earlier conducted though, in the presence of the mayor and the vice mayor, but Gatase would like to do it again for the sake of transparency and wider consultation.  Another public hearing was slated at the Barangay Hall, he added.

Earlier, barangay residents protested against the planned jetty, citing environmental degradation, perceived rise of criminality and preservation of patrimony.

Gatase confirmed that the Barangay Council on June 9 last year approved Resolution No. 12-14, “authorizing the C. Harrison Power Enterprises and Construction Services to construct a jetty port and operate the same for the purpose of delivering construction materials needed for the New Bohol Airport.”

The resolution also authorized Gatase himself to enter into a memorandum of agreement for the construction of the jetty port.

The MOA further provided that the planned port will be constructed by Ormoc City-based C. Harrison Power Enterprises and Construction Services, the contractor, having a “width of 50 meters, length of not less than 300 meters, and a depth of not less than 15 meters at the expense of the contractor.”

The port was intended for the “unloading and delivering construction materials needed by the contractor for the new Bohol Airport.” It will be for the exclusive use of the contractor for a period of 10 years, the MOA said.

The barangay will get P1,100 as docking fee from the contractor for every barge at the port. The latter shall also pay local taxes for port operations, while providing spaces for docking fishing boats and developing a barangay road to and from the port and the highway. (Source:

"Dead persons" among signatories in protest vs Panglao port project? - The Freeman)

The Way I Look at It 

Whichever way I look at it, this kind of project is good for the  barangay.  Fortunate is a barangay such as Brgy. Tangnan because whether it likes it or not, it is in the path of progress and development.  It is up to its leaders and residents whether to take advantage of this positive development or not.  

Add to this, the system that was adopted to bring this project to reality is timely and aligned to the so-called Public-Private Partnership where projects that can't be funded by a  government unit are financed instead by the private sector.

This in my view, is an innovative model to speed-up the development of a town, province or even a barangay.

When a barangay is in the path of progress, just like the used-to-be "backward" barangay where I was born and grew up but now hosts over 5,000 business establishments, it's about time for barangay leaders to change their mindset when it comes to developing their respective barangays. 

Their focus should not only be on how they'll make ends meet with their IRAs or Internal Revenue Allotments.  A barangay chairman is just like a CEO or Chief Executive of a company and the barangay that he leads, just like a corporation.

Like in a corporation, the priority of a barangay chairman of today should be a sustained effort in generating revenues for the barangay under its jurisdiction so it will have the budget to sustain all the needed services for its constituents. (JIM) 

Washing Away Old Behavior After Yolanda

Barangay Plaridel, a remote village in the municipality of Dagami in Leyte, has moved on from super typhoon Yolanda.  The survivors there now focus on the opportunities rather than their losses.

“Typhoon Yolanda changed our lives. It changed our way of farming and how we do things everyday.  We are still adjusting to the changes, among them our village’s improved hygiene practices,” said Barangay Captain Benedicta Gabrieles.  Plaridel was one of the hardest-hit remote upland villages.


Coconut farming used to be the main source of income. The villagers admitted that before typhoon Haiyan struck, their community did not practice environmental and personal sanitation.

“Before the typhoon, only 33 households out of 126 have toilets. Everyone in the community disposed feces and defecated in the field, bushes and open spaces or under banana and coconut trees," Gabrieles shared while villagers beside her laugh with disgust and shame.
Gabrieles and her constituents admitted that owning toilets was never a top priority in their community.

“I have been in this village for three decades but I never owned a toilet. If we buy a latrine, our family will be hungry for weeks,” added Roselyn Tulfo, a mother of 5.
A latrine costs about $100 or P4,400 in Philippine pesos.

Doing it ‘Anywhere’
Tulfo used to allow her children to defecate anywhere. “If they want to, I told them to go to the bush but I always reminded them to be careful of snakes and other insects. If the little children are afraid to go to the bush, their playmates accompany them,”Tulfo said.

Often, the children consider defecating as part of their playtime and they would do it in open spaces that also serve as their playground. “At first, you will notice the children playing around the open spaces and when someone wants to defecate, everyone follows. They normally will do it beside a banana trunk or uprooted trees where they can sit down and hide from everyone’s view,” Tulfo narrated.

The adults admit they too defecate in the open.

This behavior changed when World Vision, in partnership with UNICEF, introduced a Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) strategy that included a Zero Open Defecation (ZOD) program.
 
The campaign aims to eliminate open defecation. It also teaches households to use their toilets to ensure a clean environment and prevent the spread of water-borne diseases such as diarrhea and parasitic infections.

Many families here don't have toilets at home nor find them important.

Big change
“World Vision provided us with relief goods but what made us very happy was when they taught us on the importance of clean environment. They also provided us with latrines. The lessons they taught us will never be gone because it became our new routine,” Tulfo said.

Before World Vision distributed the latrines to beneficiaries, the World Vision WASH team carried out sanitation behavior activities in the community.

The team educated the whole village on how important hygiene and sanitation were in ensuring the health of the family and the whole community. Since then, the villagers observed the big difference from the day they did not defecate in the open.
“Now, we do not see so many flies around us since we started using our own toilets,” Gabrieles said.

But the community said it took them awhile to adjust, especially the children. “The children are not used to use toilets. My child Jeamae, 13, was afraid to use the toilet thinking she will fall down in the hole,” Tulfo said.

The hygiene and sanitation practice in the community has since become a barangay ordinance. Families who do not use their toilets will be penalized.

“The areas used for defecating were converted to vegetable gardens. We are happy that our community has become cleaner and everyone is doing gardening while we wait for our coconuts to re-grow,” Gabrieles says.

Barangay Plaridel is now one of the villages certified as a Zero Open Defecation (ZOD) barangay and is recognized as a role model for other barangays. – Source of Report: Maryann Zamora/Rappler.com

 Maryann Zamora is a Communications Officer of World Vision, an international non-profit organization that focuses on the protection of women and children. World Vision is a Project Agos partner.  Photo by World Vision.

Barangay Calls for Help in Saving Turtle Nests

Residents and fisherfolks in Barangay Candiis in Magsaysay town in Misamis Oriental are pushing for more support from the government and non-government organizations for the protection of the barangay’s nesting site of the critically-endangered hawksbill turtle.

According to barangay records, almost every month they witness several large marine turtles make it to shore to lay eggs.

Last September, the volunteers identified another nesting site and fenced the area to protect the eggs from predators and warn off beachgoers not to trample on the nesting area.

 “Several of our fishermen would report to us sightings of the turtles near the shoreline and then our fisherfolks will observe them lay their eggs and identify those nesting site for us to fence and put extra protection. Unfortunately, sometimes we will get reports of dead turtle along the coastline and even on nearby barangays and towns,” said Venerando Cabresos, barangay chairman of Candiis, Magsaysay town.
Cabresos recalls that since his childhood their barangay has been the spot where large hawksbill turtles lay their eggs.

“This barangay has been identified as an area where the turtles have been laying their eggs, and the barangay has a huge three-kilometer shoreline that should be kept safe from those who have other intentions for the turtles,” said Cabresos.

Close up view of the Hawksbill turtle.  Photo Credit:  Wikipedia.

Rolando Pagara, in-charge of the area’s Pawikan Conservation, said the effort in protecting the nesting site started back in 1999.

“Since 1999, so much had been done for the protection and preservation of the nesting sites here in Magsaysay. Unfortunately, most of our volunteers also need additional support for their livelihood for them to also sustain their families. Monitoring these areas requires a huge amount of time and effort, this takes away valuable quality time for most of our volunteers who are also fishermen,” said Pagara.

Pagara explained the need for protecting the marine turtles that lay their eggs in the area.
“Our town, Magsaysay is a very unique case since from study most hawksbill turtle lay egg on white sand beaches, here you see brown sand yet they still come back year after year to lay their eggs. As far as I know, this town has the most numerous record of hawksbill turtle nesting in the Philippines. And the amazing part, is that we also have in several occasion other marine turtles such as the Olive Ridley and Green turtle nesting along our coastline,” he said.

Pagara added that even though most of the fishermen know that it is illegal to hunt and catch the turtles he gets reports of dead turtles washed out in the shoreline without Carapace or the turtles shell; a sought commodity in the black market.

“Hawksbill shells are the primary source of tortoiseshell material used for decorative and medicinal purposes. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species outlaws the capture and trade of hawksbill sea turtles and products derived from them,” Pagara said.

Republic Act No. 9147 or the Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act aims to protect all wildlife, including the marine turtles. Hunting, killing, gathering, their eggs, destroying their nests, selling, transporting and mere possession of any part or derivatives is punishable with a fine of P100,000 to P1,000,000 and/or imprisonment of 16 to 12 years. (Original Post, Villagers Call for Renewed Support on Turtle Nesting by Erwin M. Mascarinas, SunStar Cagayan de Oro, Oct. 3, 2014)

A Barangay Should Be a Bastion of Our Democracy

By: Manny Valdehuesa

If a person’s home is said to be his castle, a citizen’s community is the bastion of his freedom and way of living; in both cases, one must be solicitous and protective.

Given the infirmities of our political system, the least we citizens can do is secure the arrangements in our respective communities and try to influence events and processes in constructive ways in order to exemplify civilized and harmonious living.

We should foster a sense of community by relating to one another in neighborly ways, holding more meetings of the Barangay Assembly, addressing more thoroughly our local concerns, and work to promote harmony and solidarity.

The Barangay Assembly, composed as it is of all adult residents, can be a powerful forum for reforms and a culture medium for orderly change. It involves the entire community, so it is the ideal venue for bringing its diverse sectors together.

As an all-inclusive forum and decision-making body, it can also serve to process issues and expand understanding in the minds and hearts of everyone.
*****

But very rarely do barangays engage in open, candid, or free discussions; so there is no leveling of attitudes, values, or opinions; no cross-fertilization of insights or ideas about policies, priorities, or programs. There ought to be wide understanding, broad agreement, or express cooperation among neighbors.

Citizen participation in community-wide deliberations should condition local governing approaches and styles. Such social and political participation render people less susceptible to the wiles of traditional politics and its corrupting influences.

It is also in the course of participatory processes that people influence one another, leading to mutual agreement, understanding, and cooperation. Such processes are especially important in a community that is home to multi-sectoral, multi-ethnic citizens.

We need not convert or persuade one another; but we do need to open our eyes to our different views and lifestyles. Persuasion need not be an overt purpose; but it can just happen in indirect or subtle means. Even simply voicing an opinion carries influence. One’s presence alone can be a positive influence.
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Expressing a positive opinion about someone is an indirect way of endorsing him or her for serious consideration, while complaining about the policies or principles of another is a subtle way of discouraging others from endorsing or supporting him.

There ought to be frequent discussions on policies and public affairs in our community. Democracy would mature faster if people are used to open discussions, group petitions, and shared resolutions on matters of mutual interest.

Such petitions and resolution have great impact on the upper levels of the political system in ways that few are aware of, in unseen or even devastating ways.

It’s important to keep in mind that it is unlawful for barangay officials to engage in partisan politics. As the ground-level implementers of the strategy of political party campaigns, it is they who make it possible for party candidates, regardless of background or competence, to win the community’s votes. To engage them in conversation, to monitor possible violations in thought or conduct, is healthy for social interaction and community development.
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Absence of interaction within the community renders its members susceptible to manipulation and external influence. It is why party-sponsored candidates generally have an edge in winning a community’s vote, especially if no significant contrary voices are raised from the neighborhoods. That’s why it is important to attend community meetings, to prevent untoward influences to dominate.

As the basic unit of our Republic, its building block, it is important for the barangay government to conduct itself in accordance with law.

Wayward barangays and badly-performing barangay leaders are bad for our Republic’s stability and integrity. They are easily infiltrated by insurgents, their officials easily fooled into supporting Communists who pretend to champion the causes of the poor.

Today, according to intelligence estimates, as much as one-fourth of our barangays are influenced by the Communist New People’s Army, with no data on others under the sway of terrorist enclaves in Mindanao.
*****

It’s what happens when barangay officials are readily manipulated by people with dubious loyalty to the Republic or when big traditional politicians (trapos!) bribe local officials to do their bidding.
Just like any foundation—for an edifice, an institution, or any social structure—the base is an essential determinant of stability and endurance. A building with an unsteady base cannot withstand earthquakes or gale-storms. An institution—like a school with a weak curriculum and mediocre faculty—won’t endure for long.

So is it with a democratic republic; it needs a durable base consisting of a citizenry with unshakeable political will.

By this is meant a constituency consisting of caring, engaged, and informed citizens: caring about its wellbeing, engaged in its governing processes, informed of its affairs, and alert in protecting it against negative influences. Tend to your barangay! Attend your Barangay Assembly On October 12! (Source: MindaNews, Oct. 1, 2014.)

Manny is former UNESCO regional director for Asia-Pacific; secretary-general, Southeast Asia Publishers Association; director, development academy of Philippines; vice chair, Local Government Academy; member, Cory Govt’s Peace Panel; and PPI-UNICEF awardee, most outstanding columnist. Today he is President, Gising Barangay Movement Inc valdehuesa@gmail.com