Barangay Chairman of Dapitan City Beheaded

Suspected Abu Sayyaf men have beheaded a barangay captain of Dapitan City whom they abducted along with two personnel of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) three months ago.

Brig. Gen. Alan Arrojado, commander of the Joint Task Group Sulu, said the cadaver could be Rodolfo Buligao, the barangay chairman of Barangay Aliguay Island in Dapitan City, Zamboanga del Norte. “A written note was found on top of the cadaver with that name,” said Arrojado.

The body was discovered on a road intersection in Barangay Lunggang in Maimbung town of Sulu at around 10 p.m. on Tuesday night.

“Accordingly, the beheading was executed by the captors of the victim when the negotiator did not meet the amount of ransom demanded by the captors,” said Arrojado.
Buligao and the two Coast Guard personnel, identified as Rod Allain Pagaling and Gringo Villaruz were seized while they were monitoring the arrival of vessels off Dapitan City on May 4.

In June, a video showing the three pleading for help had gone viral in social media, with the masked gunmen threatening to behead them. Original Post: Abu Sayyaf Men Behead Dapitan City Barangay Chief. Manila Bulletin

Barangay Treasurer in Negros Occidental Gets Life for Fraud

Prosecutors from the Office of the Deputy Ombudsman for Visayas have secured the conviction of Charlene Cabusas, former treasurer of Barangay Rizal, San Carlos City, Negros Occidental, for 30 counts of malversation through falsification of commercial documents that resulted in P780,000 in cash shortage.
 
The joint ruling issued by the San Carlos City Regional Trial Court (RTC), Negros Occidental Branch 57 sentenced Cabusas to suffer imprisonment of reclusion perpetua for each of 15 cases.
 
Meanwhile, for 14 other cases, she was sentenced to suffer imprisonment of 13 years, 1 month, and 11 days of reclusion temporal as minimum to 20 years of reclusion temporal as maximum.
 
For one other case, she was sentenced to suffer the indeterminate penalty of 8 years, 8 months, and one day of prision mayor as minimum to 14 years and 8 months of reclusion temporal as maximum.
 
During trial, the Ombudsman prosecutors established that from March 2008 to March 2009, Cabusas falsified 30 checks by altering their details.
 
The audit investigation conducted by the Commission on Audit (COA) found the 30 checks issued from the barangay’s Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) account were in excess of the stated amounts in their corresponding disbursement vouchers.
 
The COA determined that of the 30 checks, 16 of these were falsified with respect to the name of the payee and the amount, while the remaining 14 checks were falsified as to amount, resulting in a cash shortage of P780,000.

Cabusas admitted the cash shortage to the COA auditors.
A demand to produce the fund shortage was unheeded.




The San Carlos City RTC ruled that Cabusas was the payee, endorser, and recipient of the cash proceeds of all the 30 checks.


It said "the glaring discrepancy in the amount authorized vis-à-vis the amount reflected on the checks as encashed, coupled by the frequency by which the subject checks were drawn, readily reveal a deceitful hand at work. No other inference can be made except that the felonious acts of the accused were carefully calculated to illegally amass hundreds of thousands of pesos to the detriment of Barangay Rizal."
 
Aside from imprisonment, the RTC also ordered Cabusas to pay a fine of P780,000 equivalent to the amount malversed and another P780,000 for civil liability to Barangay Rizal with the accessory penalty of perpetual special disqualification for public office. Original Post: Woman barangay treasurer gets life imprisonment for P780,000 check fraud. InterAksyion.

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.