Monday, May 30, 2022

https://www.sunstar.com.ph/

https://www.sunstar.com.ph/

Davao City bans loading of provincial bus passengers in bus stops

Posted: 30 May 2022 08:03 AM PDT

THE Davao City Overland Transport Terminal (DCOTT) announced on May 28, 2022, that it will temporarily ban loading passengers at bus stops until further notice.In an online statement, DCOTT said while the ban is in place, all passenger loading for North Bound, South Bound, and West Bound buses should be done at DCOTT only instead of bus stops scattered around the city."In view of the recent incident of a bomb explosion inside a passenger bus, all passengers are advised to board a bus in the Davao City Overland Transport Terminal only. This is for security purposes," the statement read.DCOTT head Aisa Usop told SunStar Davao on Monday, May 30, picking up passengers along highways is also banned but unloading of passengers at designated bus stops is still allowed.However, point-to-point or terminal-to-terminal travel is highly encouraged."Nakig-coordinate ta usab sa (We have coordinated with) the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board and mao pud na ang (that is also the) stand ni (of) Regional Director Nonito Llanos... this is for security reasons," Usop said.Usop said the City Transport and Traffic Management Office (CTTMO) had given DCOTT information instructions to implement the temporary suspension.She added that CTTMO will monitor bus stops and other usual loading zones in the city while the Task Force Davao will monitor highways, to ensure that the temporary ban is being followed.Bus operators caught violating will be issued appropriate citation tickets.The DCOTT head said loading of passengers at DCOTT is necessary to ensure proper inspection of passengers and baggage to avoid untoward incidents after the recent bombing incident of a public passenger bus in Koronadal City and another blast near the Barangay Calean bus terminal in Tacurong City, both occurred on May 26.At the same time, Task Force Davao Commander Col. Darren Comia said during a radio interview that they will implement heightened and enhanced security measures at border control points."Nag-recommend na tayo na 'wag na munang magpasakay doon sa mag designated bus loading and unloading zones dito sa downtown Davao City. Dahil ito sa panghitabo last week didto sa Tacurong and Koronadal ng South Cotabato. Naay pagsabog, pagbuto didto and ang pagbuto didto sa bus," Comia said.(We have recommended temporarily banning loading passengers at designated bus loading and unloading zones at downtown Davao City. This is because of what happened last week at Tacurong and Koronadal in South Cotabato, where an explosion took place.)The temporary suspension was recommended by Task Force Davao after the city has been placed under red alert due to the said blasts but Usop has not stated when the suspension or red alert will be lifted.

Whole-genome sequencing lab in UP-Mindanao operational

Posted: 30 May 2022 08:03 AM PDT

THE whole-genome sequencing (WGS) laboratory at the University of the Philippines (UP)-Mindanao was launched last March, according to the Department of Health (DOH)-Davao on May 30, 2022."We launched the expansion of the genome center not only in UP Diliman but also to include Visayas and Mindanao, and that's in Davao last March... Ni-launch na natin ang (We have launched the) Davao genome center together with Visayas genome center," Dr. Gerna Manatad, assistant regional director of DOH-Davao, said during the Kapehan sa Davao press conference on Monday, May 30.The WGS laboratory in UP-Mindanao is a tripartite of the Philippine Genome Center (PGC) Mindanao, Southern Philippines Medical Center (SPMC), and DOH-Davao.Manatad said the WGS laboratory is coordinating with the Epidemiology Bureau under DOH to fully maximize the facility and cater to specimen samples from Mindanao. In a previous press conference, head of the Regional Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit of DOH-Davao Dr. Rachel Pasion said DOH-Davao was only allowed to submit 65 specimen samples for Covid-19 detection but with the new WGS satellite facility, the PGC in UP-Diliman will be decongested.At the same time, the WGS laboratory can accurately and promptly detect diseases and their sub-variants, particularly Covid-19.

Foundation needs P56 million to transfer Eagle Center to Eden, Toril

Posted: 30 May 2022 08:03 AM PDT

THE Philippine Eagle Foundation (PEF) will need P56 million to transfer the Eagle Center to Barangay Eden in Toril from Malagos, said Andi Baldonado, PEF development manager."The long term plan is really to move already, kasi hindi na po conducive yong Malagos for breeding and keeping the bird safe para sa mga ganitong threat, avian flu, it's becoming more frequent na, para mas ma-seclude natin 'yong population and avoid the risk of contamination, so we need to isolate them." Baldonado said.(Moving is part of our long term plan because Malagos is no longer conducive for breeding and keeping the birds safe from avian flu. We need to isolate them so that we can protect their population and avoid the risk of contamination.)PEF said in a statement that it only takes a single case of avian flu in the Philippine Eagle Center (PEC) to wipe out the captive breeding stock.Earlier, a bird flu outbreak was reported in Magsaysay, Davao del Sur, which is around 90 kilometers southwest of the PEC, posing a risk to the 34 eagles in the center.Aside from the outbreak, a python attacked a juvenile Philippine eagle and died inside its snake-proofed and safe enclosure.According to Baldonado, the target location is part of the protected area of Mount Apo.Compared to 8.4 hectares in Malagos, the eyed location in Eden is around 50 hectares and is allotted for conservation."That's very small (Malagos area), it's not enough even for a buffer area, in fact if you look at Malagos right now, yong enclosure namin right now, next to it is farm lot, wala tayong buffer, talagang yong mga agila natin exposed lang to form activities and other residential activities around the area." Baldonado said.However, she said developing the new location comes with a big price tag."This have to take more time, kasi ang laki ng budget na kailangan namin to develop the facility, based on our framework plan, we need at least P56 million to develop enclosures, hospital for the eagles for the area, hindi accessible itong area na ito kaya it all causes a lot of expenses when it comes to construction," Baldonado said.(We need at least P56 million based on our framework to develop enclosures, hospital for the eagles because the location is not accessible, which is why developing it can be expensive.)Baldonado said they hope to get support from the government for the allocation of the budget requirement and to engage with their corporate partners, donors and fundraising activities."We're still working on aligning our plans with the city's plan as well with the development of this area," Baldonado said.PEF said that since the pandemic in 2020, they have recorded 12 eagle rescue cases from Mindanao.Meanwhile, PEF will celebrate its 35th year and presents the Philippine Eagle Week (PEW) in SM Lanang Premier from June 4 to 13, 2022 with the theme "#AgiLaya: Lasting Freedom for the Philippine Eagle."The event will highlight an exhibit from June 5 to 12, 2022, featuring Philippine Eagle conservation milestones.

DOH-Davao: Covid-19 cases in Davao plateaus to 29-32 per week

Posted: 30 May 2022 07:59 AM PDT

THE Department of Health in Davao Region (DOH-Davao) observed that Covid-19 cases in the region have plateaued to 29 to 32 cases per week."We see a pattern of 29-32 cases, weekly yan, 0.4 percent out of 600,000 specimens," Dr. Gerna Manatad, DOH-Davao Assistant Regional Director, said during the Kapehan sa Dabaw sa SM City Davao on May 30, 2022.Manatad said for this week (May 23-29), only 31 cases have been recorded in the whole region while 29 cases on May 16-22, 2022."We hope to sustain this kind of situation in terms of covid cases," Manatad said.Manatad said that they are closely monitoring the new variant of Covid-19."We are also submitting reports, as long as it fits the circumstances or criteria, kailangan nating kolektahan ng sample for genomic sequencing (We need to collect samples for genomic sequencing), we are closely coordinating with the epidemiology bureau and with the Philippine Genome Center... Local Government Units (LGU) as well as mga hospitals na nag-aadmit ng mga Covid confirmed (as well as admitted confirmed Covid patients in the hospitals)," Manatad said.Manatad said that good vaccination coverage helped to slow down the transmission of the virus.Compensation benefitsMeanwhile, DOH said it has released a total of 1,690 compensation benefits for frontliners who caught coronavirus. Of this number 1,677 were mild to moderate cases, 11 were severe and critical cases, and two died.Frontliners in the Health Services who contracted Covid-19 or died from it will receive sickness and death compensation benefits up to P100,000, while the legal heirs will receive up to P1,000,000 from the DOH.The eligible healthcare workers and support staff who have mild to moderate illnesses due to Covid-19 will receive P15,000, while severe or critical illnesses will receive P100,000.The coverage term runs from January 1, 2022, until the nationwide state of a public health emergency is abolished.

Bill expanding Davao Light’s area hurdles 3rd reading

Posted: 30 May 2022 07:49 AM PDT

THE Senate approved on third and final reading the bill expanding the franchise area of AboitizPower subsidiary Davao Light and Power Company (DLPC) to Davao del Norte on Monday afternoon, May 30.The Upper House passed on second reading House Bill (HB) 10554 (Committee Report No. 609) or an act expanding the franchise area of DLPC of the AboitizPower subsidiary to include Tagum City, the Island Garden City of Samal (Igacos), Asuncion, Kapalong, New Corella, San Isidro, and Talaingod in Davao del Norte. These areas are currently covered by the Northern Davao Electric Cooperative (Nordeco).The bill will grant Davao Light an expanded franchise area for 25 years, which aims to ensure the continuous and uninterrupted supply of electricity in the said areas.At present, the franchise area of Davao Light only covers Davao City and Panabo City, Carmen, Dujali, and Sto. Tomas in Davao del Norte.During the votation, 16 senators voted in favor for the franchise extension, one opposed, and another one abstained.HB 10554 was authored by Palawan Representative Franz Alvarez, Committee on Legislative Franchises chairperson, along with Mindanawon Representatives including Davao del Norte Representative Pantaleon Alvarez, PBA Partylist Representative Jericho Nograles, and Camiguin Representative Xavier Romualdo.Manila Fourth District Representative Edward Maceda also sponsored the bill.The lower passed it on third and final reading on January 24 this year.In the Senate, HB 10554 was sponsored by Senator Grace Poe while Senator Ralph Recto serves as co-sponsor.Senator Risa Hontiveros, who opposed the bill, clarified that while she does not question the integrity of DLPC in providing stable electric supply, she said her vote goes out to Nordeco.The senator said that Nordeco admitted problems in the past decade hounding its the operations due to management issues Hontiveros pointed out that the electric cooperative made strides in improving its overall performance such as bringing down the system loss, revitalizing leadership and workforce, and categorization improvements, among others."However, by repealing Nordeco's franchise seemingly by implication through the expansion of the franchise of another distribution utility into Nordeco's franchise area, are we exposing Nordeco's consumer members, as well as its employees to more risk and uncertainty?" she said."The passage of this law also raises fundamental policy questions vis a vis the granting of franchises to operate electric distribution systems in areas that are still under the exclusive franchise of electric cooperatives," she added.Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, who abstained from voting, said that while he understood the sentiments of the Nordeco consumers who had been rallying for improved electric services, he also understood that the electric cooperative has also undergoing difficulties in their collection."As evidence by their collection deficiency of 61 percent in 2021," Gatchalian said, adding that low collection would affect their payment in debts, and issues in investing in capital expenditures (capex), which would affect their service.He also said that once Davao Light takes over the entire Davao del Norte, the remaining consumers of Nordeco in Davao de Oro could expect a surge of power rate from P8.6 per kilowatt hour (kWh) to P15.4/kWh."[It is] a 78.49 percent increase due to increased generation rates, distribution supply metering, charges, and reinvestment fund for sustainable capex," Gatchalian said.The bill is in response to the alleged continued inability of Nordeco to improve its poor service that has exacerbated the miseries faced by his constituents during the Covid-19 pandemic crisis.High-ranking officials had criticized Nordeco's operation, including Davao del Norte Representative Pantaleon Alvarez, Governor Edwin Jubahib, and Island Garden City of Samal Mayor Al David Uy.Originally, Maco in Davao de Oro was included in the franchise expansion. However, it was delisted.Davnor Modernization Movement Convenor Ave Rose Castillo, in a statement, thanked the Senate and House of Representatives for listening to their plight "for better power service.""Finally, after many decades, we can experience the electrical services we need and deserve in order to power our homes, businesses, and industries.This is the turning point the residents of Davao del Norte have been clamoring for, and this is what Davao del Norte needs to move forward to progress," Castillo said.In a previous statement, she said that they are dismayed with Maco not being included in the franchise."Maco was dropped from the bill primarily because of the opposition of the current provincial leaders of Davao de Oro," Castillo said."We are dismayed by this development because it will prevent progress in Maco — a strategic port municipality adjacent to the commercial city of Tagum," Castillo added.Davao Light and Nordeco have not issued any statement following the development of the measure in the Senate.
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