All set for the 138kV Sta Barbara substation transmission line that will soon boost sufficient power distribution in Panay Island that will be sourced from the Global Business Power Corp. GBPC) plant in Ingore, La Paz, Iloilo City.

This was assured by Engr. Gil Altamira of the Panay Energy Development Corp. (PEDC), an affiliate of GBPC, and Engr. Christopher Paras of the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) during the groundbreaking rites of the P346 million transmission line project on December 10, 2009 at the GBPC compound here.

Paras said the first coal fired power plant in Panay with 164 megawatts is more than enough to supply power in Iloilo City and the rest of Panay Island provinces and Negros Occidental.

Iloilo City, currently consuming from 70 to 75 megawatts, is expected to increase its power demand starting next year after several call centers and commercial hubs especially Megaworld Corp. are in place. Read more »

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has lauded the commitment and participation of the Italian government as a vital partner in development projects in some rural areas in the province of Iloilo.

Speaking at the Monday, December 1 inauguration of the Tinapay ng Bayan project of 15 out-of-school youths in Janiauy town, province of Iloilo, the President said the Italian government assisted the bakery project of the Pag-asa Youth Association of the Philippines (PYAP) of Janiuay with bakery equipment such as oven, refrigerator, baking pans and other tools.

The livelihood and hunger mitigation cooperation project is managed by the OSYs and located inside the Good Samaritan Gawad Kalinga project in Brgy. Sta Rita, Janiuay.

The bakery project is currently making profits in producing more than 1,000 packs of break every day delivered to various school canteens in the municipality of Janiuay. Read more »

Its open sidewalk season to more than 1,000 sidewalk vendors here starting Monday, December 7, 2009 as a yearly accommodation to vendors to sell their wares during the Christmas season.

City Mayor Jerry P. Treñas said the sidewalks along Calle Real notably the JM Basa and Iznart streets and areas surrounding all city plazas will be open to the vendors with no payment to the city government.

“We are doing this for the past eight and a half years during my administration as our Christmas gift to the vendors to make additional income during the season,” Treñas said.

Community assistance officer Zellah Gil will be incharge of giving the space allotment to sidewalk vendors so as to ensure order and avoid chaos. However, vendors must be residents of this city and not from other provinces, the city mayor said. Read more »

This year’s 4th Regional Development Council (RDC) VI meeting was hosted by the Province of Capiz last December 4, 2009 held at the Hall of Governors, Provincial Capitol in Roxas City. Chaired by Antique Governor Salvacion Zaldivar-Perez, the RDC is the highest policy-making and planning body of the region.

Capiz Governor Victor A. Tanco, Sr. welcomed the RDC VI members and the Provincial Planning and Development Office gave a brief video presentation of the Province’s major accomplishments and development directions. Selected as the venue of next year’s ONE Visayas Summit for Culture, Arts and Heritage in Roxas City, Mr. Alfonsos Tesoro of the Capiz Provincial Tourism Office presented the preparations undertaken by the province for the event which will involve various selected towns of the province where major activities will be held. The Summit will showcase the cultural aspect of the entire Visayas Region from Panay, Negros, Cebu, Leyte and Samar.

The body discussed, among others, the various committees’ issues and concerns, as well as, accomplishments, projects and programs in need of RDC VI endorsement. The body approved a total of eleven (11) RDC resolutions which included the following: Read more »

Beat the drums and make way for the 2010 Dinagyang Festival celebration!

The Iloilo Dinagyang Foundation Inc. (IDFI), tasked by city mayor Jerry P. Treñas to prepare the most acclaimed local festival of festivals in Western Visayas, will once again lay the ground works for the festival celebrated last weekend of January every year in honor of the city’s patron saint Senior Sto Niño.

Iloilo Dinagyang Festival

Dinagyang Tribes committee chair Dr. Jaime Manila said there will be a total of 16 Dinagyang tribes to vie for honors. Dr. Eden Deriada, chair of the Kasadyahan Tribes committee disclosed that there will be 9 groups to vie in the mardi gras contest.

IDFI chairman Lee Chuan admitted that although next year’s celebration will have a moderate budget but this will not sacrifice the quality of performance to showcase the best practices of Ilonggo culture and tradition. Read more »

The Iloilo City Solid Waste Management Board passed Resolution No. 31, series of 2009 on November 17 by approving a project on on-site composting of market wastes at the different public markets of this city.

Project proponent, Engr. Raul Gallo of the Office of Public Services said the onsite composting is an actual compliance of Republic Act 9003 or the Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 on waste diversion and reduction and Republic Act 9729 or the Climate Change Act of 2009 stabilization of the greenhouse gas concentration and methane gas emission.

Markets are major source of biodegradable wastes that account for some 16 percent of the total waste generation in Iloilo City. The project is expected to reduce the volume of market wastes delivered to the Calajunan dumpsite, Gallo said.

It will also mitigate the cause of climate change by reducing the volume of greenhouse gas emission. Read more »

The city government has contracted many ongoing development programs with international funding agencies and there is an urgent need for the next elected city mayor to honor these commitments in a bid to make this southern city a premier city in the country by 2015.

This was bared by outgoing city mayor Jerry P. Treñas as he is preparing to embark in another political position in the government by running for congressman of this southern city in next year’s election.

“Nagapangamuyo gid ako nga kabay pa padayunon sang madason nga city mayor ang mga programa nga may suporta sang mga organisasyon pangluwas (I pray that the next city mayor will continue the programs supported by international organizations) Treñas said.

The graduating city mayor bolted recently the ruling administrations political party Lakas Kampi CMD to pursue his bid to run for a Congress seat. He will challenge the position of incumbent Cong. Raul T. Gonzalez Jr. of Lakas for the lone city congressional district. Read more »

The span of Gen Luna highway in the city proper will be replanted with pine trees and flowers but not with mixed tree species like eucalyptus, gmelina and mahogany.

This was assured by city mayor Jerry P. Treñas after environmentalists complained to him about the cutting down of 12 old grown pine trees at the highway.

Treñas said the cutting down of trees goes through a process and the Department of Public Works and Highways sought the approval of the city environment and natural resources office (CENRO) to cut down the trees to give way for the construction of a second flyover project here.

The multi-million peso second flyover project will be located at the junction of Jalandoni and Gen Luna streets and DPWH has started the clearing of the area including cutting down of trees and the transfer of electric posts and waiting sheds. Read more »

The German Technical Cooperation (GTZ) has observed and lauded three best practices of the city government here in solving its solid waste management problem.

This was disclosed by Dr. Johannes Paul, team leader of the GTZ-AHT SWM4LGUs support project which rendered technical to the city on its solid waste management program.

Dr. Paul said the city government, in cooperation with the private sector, has one of the best approaches in recycling of garbage starting from the organization of waste pickers, factory of useful products made from recycled garbage, and junkshops organization.

The city has also an comprehensive community-based recycling program that allow usually slum dwellers to gather and sell recycled materials, including the solid waste fair conducted every month in cooperation with a shopping mall here that encourages waste segregation and reuse of recycled materials. Read more »

Policemen at the Regional Office 6 at Camp Delgado have accepted the challenge to make their police facility as an environment-friendly police camp as well as the first police camp outside Metro Manila to have a Material Recovery Facility (MRF).

SSupt. Marietto Valerio, chief of the PRO6 support service staff, exhorted the policemen to comply with the requirement on solid wastes after more than 50 policemen participated in the information, education and communications campaign spearheaded by solid waste specialist Armando Dayrit upon the direction EMB Reg. Dir. Oscar Cabanayan.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources –Environment Management Bureau (DENR-EMB) is currently going to government offices in Western Visayas to bring the message of proper solid waste disposal management and segregation at source. Read more »