The Social Security System distributed 1,000 packs of relief goods to its members and pensioners who were devastated by typhoon Nina in nine barangays in Virac, Catanduanes last Mar 8. Right photo shows SVP for Luzon Operations Group Josie G. Magana (2nd from right) and SSS Luzon Bicol Division Officer-in-Charge Elenita Samblero (4th from right) gave the relief package to Cesar Taule Sr, a 61-year old pensioner from Brgy. Buenavista. Also present in the relief operations were (from left) Brgy Calampong Chairman Bienvenido T. Tablate, Brgy. Casoocan Chairman Alexander Guerrero, SSS Virac Branch Head Divina T. Avila, Brgy. Buenavista Chairman Vilma F. Vargas and SSS Senior Communication Analyst for Corporate Communications Department Mercedita P. Lucena. SSS senior officials were in Virac, Catanduanes to extend their help to SSS members who are typhoon victims devastated by typhoon Nina last December 2016.

By Jason B. Neola NAGA CITY --- Everyone will be seeing in the dark at nightfall of March 25, this year, when this city joins the world in celebrating Earth Hour, the largest global environmental campaign which is being undertaken every year to mitigate climate change. Earth Hour highlights a worldwide movement wherein individuals, communities, governments and other advocacy groups will voluntarily turn off non-essential lights from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. as a gesture of humanity’s love for planet Earth. Hundreds of millions of people in more than 162 countries and 7,000 cities and towns in the world will unite in a single moment of showing their love for Mother Earth by switching off the lights for an hour. The practice was originally performed in 2007 in Sydney, Australia in an effort to fight global warming, the greatest threat facing our planet today. The worldwide shutting off of lights, which will be done at exactly 8:29:50 PM, will simultaneously be witnessed in different cities and towns across many countries. Mayor John G. Bongat said that in this city the event will kick off at Plaza Rizal at 6:30 p.m., where the registration by the participants in the advocacy walk will be conducted earlier together with the distribution of glow-in-the-dark sticks. A send-off prayer will also be recited which will be followed by a brief message from the winners of Ms. Earth Beauty Pageant. The activities will fall on the event’s part III. The celebration’s part 1 will be held at SM City Naga Activity Center where the different environmental programs and activities of the city government and its partners are to be showcased while the part 2 is the Earth Hour Zumba Party which will be on its 4th year now. To be held at the Plaza Quezon, the party will start at 5:00 o’clock in the afternoon. The advocacy walk will pass the major streets in Central Business District I and II and shall end at SM City Naga, the venue for the formal celebration of Earth Hour. Highlighting the pre-Earth Hour activity at SM, which is the event’s part 4, will be the inter-school competition of best short film entries. The public will also view a video presentation on efforts undertaken by LGU-Naga during the celebration of Earth Hour in previous years. Videos on SM Cares Campaign and its Earth Hour advocacies, and the events occurred worldwide during the celebration of Earth Hours will also be shown. At 8:29.50 PM, the public will witness the ceremonial switching off of lights by guests and SM representatives after the 10 seconds countdown and the subsequent lighting of candles forming the “60+” sign, which indicates the one hour and 1 minute lights-off. Various performances shall take the center stage during the Earth Hour activity. Playing of environmental songs and the delivery of addresses from the city’s first lady, Farah Bongat, City ENRO Oscar Orozco, City Mayor John Bongat and EMB-5 Regional Director Eva Ocfemia will end the activity’s part 5. Highlighting the part 6 of the event is the advocacy night bike ride that will pass along the roads where business establishments that partnered with the organizers of various Earth Hour events are located. The ride will start from Panganiban Drive passing Rotunda to Magsaysay Avenue then to Peñafrancia Ave. to Liboton then to Queborac Drive to the urban poor site then to Abella St., to Felix Plazo St. to Mabolo Bridge then to Diversion Rd. will turn left to Puregold in Roxas Avenue (formerly Diversion Rd.) to Bicol Health Access then to SM City Naga.

QUEZON CITY --- “Ang Babaeng Humayo,” Charo Santos-Concio’s triumphant comeback film, which became last year’s international critical hit, debuts on Philippine TV via SKY Cable’s Critics’ Choice Pay-Per-View. The groundbreaking masterpiece from Lav Diaz will run until March 31 with a seven-day commercial-free continuous viewing. In the film, Charo plays Horacia, a woman who spent 30 years behind bars for wrongful imprisonment. After her release, Horacia tracks down the former lover responsible of framing her for murder to exact revenge. It continues to reap international recognition, including 3 nominations in the coming 11th Asian Film Awards, namely Best Screenplay, Best Director, and Best Actress. The Asian Film Awards will be held in Hong Kong on March 21. Last year “Ang Babaeng Humayo” became the first Filipino-film to win the Golden Lion, the top prize at the prestigious Venice Film Festival, the oldest film fest in the world. The film produced by Cinema One Originals and Sine Olivia Pilipinas and its lead star have received glowing reviews from international critics. Clarence Tsui of The Hollywood Reporter wrote in his review that “The Woman Who Left is an immensely immersive and engaging tale about a wronged individual’s grueling struggle between reconciliation and revenge. Featuring Diaz’s immaculate imagery — in high-contrast black and white, as usual — and a majestic performance from Charo Santos, The Woman should leave Venice with a few prizes before its long global trek…” In Variety’s Guy Lodge’s eyes, “Ang Babaeng Humayo,” “the latest supersized opus from Filipino maximalist Lav Diaz is a powerful and, by his standards, refreshingly contained moral study. Ethan Vestby of The Film Stage lavishes the movie with similar enthusiasm, writing “Lav Diaz’s Golden Lion winner from this year’s Venice Film Festival feels like something of a surprise because, for all its extended shots, luminous black-and-white photography, and socio-historical weight, The Woman Who Left is ultimately an unostentatious work.” Meanwhile, Screen Daily invests a keen interest for the lead star’s performance, saying “Santos-Concio, acting in a film for the first time in 17 years after building a successful career as a producer and media executive: she shows a phenomenal range of shading as the elusive, changeful Horacia, as well as an imposing but gentle authority.” SKY’s pay-per-view offer also includes the acclaimed film, “Honor Thy Father” starring Charo’s co-star in “Ang Babaeng Humayo,” John Lloyd Cruz. The pay-per-view is available to SKY subscribers with SKYcable, Destiny Cable, and SKYdirect plans for only P199. Alternatively, SKY subscribers may also choose to stream the movies online via its video-on-demand site and app, SKY On Demand using a SKYbroadband or SKYmobi internet connection. SKYcable, and Destiny subscribers can register by texting HUMAYO to 23662 or activating online via mysky.com.ph/humayo. SKYdirect postpaid subscribers may text SKY to 23668, while SKYdirect prepaid subscribers may convert their ABS-CBNmobile load to avail of this pay-per-view offer by texting PPV HUMAYO to 23667. Meanwhile, SKYbroadband subscribers can visit mysky.com.ph/skyodsubscribe to activate the pay-per-view. SKY Cable Corporation is the first to introduce cable television to Filipinos in 1990. Since then, it has been a frontrunner in technology and cable TV content by being the first to design a highly customized viewing experience among subscribers, and offering the most number of HD channels. Its properties have expanded beyond pay TV. These are One SKY Premium (unlimited all-in-one plans), One SKY Lite (consummable all-in-one plans), SKY On Demand (video-on-demand), SKYmobi (mobile internet), SKYcable (pay TV), SKYdirect (direct-to-home pay TV), and Destiny Cable.

An Multi-Sectoral Electrification Advisory Council (MSEAC) kan Camarines Sur II Electric Cooperative (Casureco II) mas pinapaboran an presenting kamugtakan kan cooperativa sa irarum kan superbisyon kan National Electrification Administration (NEA) huli ta nakakabentaje man giraray na mantenido digdi an proteksyon sa lado kan miembros-consumedores asin manijamiento. Si Irsam Flores, MSEAC Federation President nagpahayag sa entrevista kan Bicol Mail na sa saindang inicial na orolay naheheling na mas magiging paborable sa duwang lado kun itatampad na mag-parehistro sa Cooperative Development Authority o sa Security and Exchange Commission. Kun sa CDA maparehistro an Casureco II, ini magiging stock cooperative asin saro nang profit oriented an manijamiento mantang paborable sana ini sa darakulang consumedores o negociantes huli ta sinda iyo an igwang kakayahan na magtaya nin dakulang cantidad sa capital sharing alagad mayong kakayahan an ordinaryong consumedores, sabi pa ni Flores. An Casureco II nagtalaan nin referendum sa maabot na Octubre 2017 na isasabay sa Annual General Membership Assembly (AGMA) nganing dagos nang isusunad an tolong pagpipilian kan miembros-consumedores kun sain sinda mapabor; enot kun sa presenting kamugtakan kan cooperativa na nasa lindong kan NEA, ika-duwa - kun maparehistro sa CDA nganing maging stock cooperative asin ika-tolo sa SEC na pueding padalaganon nin darakulang corporasyon. Saindang pig-ehemplo an ibang cooperativa nin electricidad na nagpa-converter sa CDA, si paglaom kan miembros-consumedores na magkakaigwa sinda nin divedindo mientras na sinda saro nang stock cooperative, alagad negativo mantang parating nalulugi. Kabale pa sa desbentaje an mga darakulang consumedores na igwang dakulang capital sharing iyo an ma-ambisyon na magcandidatong director mientras na kaipuhan maprotehiran ninda an pigtayang milyon pesos na capital. Kun padagos na mamantenir sa irarum kan NEA kun igwang calamidad an cooperativa madaling nakaka-aprovetsar nin calamity loan sa hababang por ciento alagad kun sa CDA dawa obligado pa an NEA na magreparo sa manijamiento kaipuhan mag-utang sa bangko na mas halangkaw an por ciento, sabi pa. An MSEAC, matabang sa consumedores nganing saindang ipaliwanag an mga bentaje asin disbentaje sa tolong mga isyu na isusunad sa referendum. An NEA nagpaluwas nang memorandum sa gabos na cooperativa nin electricidad na dapat mag-apod nin referendum antes kan Enero 2018. (DPA)

Saludo si Major General Manolito Orense Division Commander kan 9th Infantry Division Philippine Army sa Bikol sa saiyang mga soldados sa pakikipag laban contra sa mga rebeldeng New People’s Army sa kabikolan, alagad pig-alerto sa posibleng pagbaluos kan mga kalaban kan gobierno. Sa encuentro kan Alpha Company hale sa 83rd Infantry Batallion kaibahan an nagkapiranng miembros kan Cafgu laban sa treintang armadong grupo sa Barangay Pinamihagan, Lagonoy Camarines Sur kan Domingo, Marso 12) nakabawi an tropa kan militar nin apat na armalite rifle, sarong M-14 rifle, sarong machine gun, quinceng improvised explosive device, backpacks na may personal na mga gamit asin mga subersibong dokumento. Saro man an binawian nin buhay sa mga rebeldeng NPA na pinag bisto sana sa Alyas na Nick na susog sa militar may halangkaw na katungdan sa kilusan. Sa lado man kan Tomas Pilapil Command, nilusob soboot kan tropa kan militar an mga rebelde na nagkukunducir nin pulong–pulong sa lugar para aramon an problema kan mga paraoma digdi. Afuera sa encuentro sa banwaan nin Lagonoy, nagkaigwa man encuentro sa pag ultanan kan mga rebeldeng NPA sa Gubat,Sorsogon asin kan tropa hale sa 31st Infantry Batallion. Sa tahaw kan pag ogma sa trayumpo kan operasyon laban sa mga rebelde sa rehiyon, pinatanidan ni MGen Orense an saiyang mga taohan na dai maging kampante huli ta posibleng naghahalat lang nin tamang tiyempo an mga kalaban para magbalos. An pagkakabawi kan mga armas asin pagkagadan kan saindang mga kaibahan an magiging magabat na rason para mag-balos an mga rebelde. Huli kaini, inalerto kan nasabing oficial ang gabos na detachment asin patrol base kan 9th infantry division para pag-andaman an aktibidad kan mga kalaban kan gobierno. Digdi sa Camarines Sur, an mga banwaan sa Partido Area an higot na binabantayan kan 9th Infantry division huli ta yaon digdi an aktibidad kan mga rebelde huli naman kan mga bukid na lugar asin harayo sa presencia kan mga awtoridad. Bilang pag midbid sa matrayumpong operasyon kan mga soldados asin Cafgu, an pamayo kan 9th ID, nagtakod nin medalya asin nagtao nin plake sa doceng miembro kan Alpha Company hale sa 83rd infantry battalion na pinamamayohan ni Lt.Col Eduardo Monjardin, Batallion Commander asin kan duwang Cafgu. (Melvin Machado)

Dai kakayahon kan Ciudad nin Naga an quinientos (500) toneladang basura aroaldaw na hinahagad kan sarong companya na nag-oopresir nin waste to energy project sa Barangay San Isidro na lugar kan bubugtakan kan sanitary landfill project kan City Hall. Sinabi pa na imposible sa ciudad na itao an saindang kinakaipuhan na toneladang basura, huli kaini dai sinda puedi digdi, sabi ni Bise Alcalde Nelson Legacion. An hinahagad na kondisyon kan companya kaipuhan ninda an 500 hasta 1,000 toneladang basura aroaldaw na dai kayang iproducer ini kan ciudad, kun arog kaiyan an kahagadan ninda ‘no deal ta dai ta kaya’, sabi pa. Si Engr. Joel Martin, pamayo kan Solid Waste Management Office kan City Hall nagsabi na sagcod lang sa noventa (90) toneladang basura an saindang nakokolekta aroaldaw. An Baybridge Services Philippines, na pinamamayohan ni Lorelia Macabulos Ortega bilang Business Development Officer katuwang an Theold Bis International nagsumiter na kan saindang project proposal sa Sangguniang Panlungsod asin ipinasa muna sa Committee on Environment na pinamamayohan ni Consejal Salvador Del Castillo. Ipinahayag pa na an companya pueding magproducir nin quince hasta viente megawatts gikan sa hinahagad na 500 hasta 1,000 toneladang basura aroaldaw. Sinabi man kan pamayo kan komite na sainda man giraray aadalan an propuesto alagad ipapadagos na kan ciudad an sanitary landfill project mientras na pigtagamahan na ini nin sobra sa dos cientos milyon pesos gikan sa caja kan lokal na gobierno. Dinagdag pa ni Legacion na kan nakaaging sesyon regular kan SP mientras na yaon man sana an presencia kan mga representante kan companya pigtawan lang ninda nin opurtonidad na magpresentar kan propuestong waste to energy project alagad an saindang hinahagad na kondisyon imposibleng kayahon kaya ‘’no deal’’. Tada nang raya an ciudad asin dapat maging malikay sa paglaog sa ano man kondisyones arog kan nangyari sa C.G. Global Corporation pigparaparalaom kan waste to energy project alagad biglang nagsibog an korporasyon na sarong Korean firm. Napag-araman kan Bicol Mail sa mga representante kan companya na kun kulang an basura sa laog kan ciudad pueding magkolekta sinda sa pagtaraid na mga municipalidad na miembros kan Metro Naga Development Council asin maging sa iba pang lugar. Saro pa sa kondisyon kan companya an loteng gagamiton sa waste to energy project maghahale sa City Hall mientras an gabos na gastos sa proyecto hale sa saindang korporasyon na igwang kapital nin treinta y cinco hasta treinta y siete milyon dolyar. (dpa)

‘‘Dai makiki-aram an PNP Camarine Sur sa caso kan pulis na dinakop huli sa extortion’’ Ini an pigcierto ni P/Sr. Supt. Jerry Bearis, Provincial director kan PNP Camarines Sur sa ’pasalubong’’ sa saiyang liderato bilang bagong pamayo kan pulicia sa provincia. Susog ki P/Supt Errol Garchitorena, Jr , Public Information Officer kan Camarines Sur Police Provincial Office, nangangapudan an saindang oficina sa posibleng mga naging victima kan suspek na si PO2 Gilbert Embuestro namagdulok sa saindang oficina nganing matabangan. Puon ipasunod an internal cleansing sa organisasyon kan PNP nagkaperang pangaran nin mga pulis an ipinadara sa oficina ni PNP Regional Director Chief Supt. Melvin Buenafe para linawon an mga reclamo sa sainda. Kabali sa pinagmo-monitor an aktibidad kan nasabing suspek na pulis alagad bako pang malinaw kun ano an anomaliyang pinaggigibo kaini hasta mangyari an entrapment operation sa Ciudad nin Naga. Sa pagkakadakop sa suspek ina-aram ngonian kun igwang posibleng kasabwat. Si P02 Embuestro, aktibong miembro kan Intelligence Unit kan Pamplona Municipal Police Station an dinakop sa paagi kan entrapment operation kan Naga City Police Office, CSPPO-Intelligence Division, Regional Intelligence Unit asin kan grupo kan 9th Infantry Division kan Phillipine Army matapos i-reclamo nin extortion ni Rustal Oliva sarong foreman kan China-Geo Construction. Nagpabisto pa an suspek na miembro siya kan rebeldeng New People’s Army. Nabawi sa suspek an tolong Units nin celphone na may SIM cards na ginamit sa transaksyon, sarong calibre 45 na may Serial Number 2126541, may sarong magazine na may limang bala, sarong caliber 9mm TM Beretta na may PNP Logo Markings “PNP PROPERTY’’ asin may serial number G792232 na may sarong magazine asin doceng bala, wallet na may laog nin I.D asin an smart padala claim stub. Nasangatan na nin casong robbery with intimidation asin pagbalgar kan R.A 10591 si P02 Embuestro na dati man naka-destino sa Pili Municipal Police Station. (Melvin Machado)

Nagkaperang mga tinampo sa Ciudad nin Naga na sakop kan national road naghiwas na matapos kan road widening project na pig-implementar kan Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) alagad dakul pang ulang na mga poste kan Camarines Sur II Electric Cooperative (Casureco II) na delicado sa aksidente sa trafico. Sa Sangguniang Panlungsod, si Consejal Joselito Del Rosario pamayo kan Committee on Public Safety sa saiyang privilege speech sa sesyon regular kan Martes, Marso 14 saiyang tinawan duon an mga ulang na estractura sa mga tinampo na kaipuhan mahale sa paagi nin pagkaigwa nin Tripartite Memorandum of Agreement entre kan 2nd Engineering District kan DPWH, Casureco II asin City Hall para sa pampublicong seguridad. Saiyang sinabi na an RA No. 10531 o mas midmid sa National Electrification Administration Reform Act of 2013 na naging ley kan Junio 1, 2013 asin an implementing rules and regulations (IRR) nag-efecto kan Agusto 13, 2013. Susog sa IRR an Department of Energy asin DPWH sa laog nin 180 diyas puon na mag-efecto ini, dapat mag-isyu nin IRR nganing ipasunod an maninigong kompensasyon sa mga cooperativa nin electricidad. Alagad pakalipas nin haros tolong taon na mayo pa nin joint issuance an DOE asin DPWH. Si dating DOE Secretary Carlos Jericho Petilla kan Junio 26, 2015 nagpaluwas nin circular bilang ‘Interim Uniform Guidelines and Procedures for the Recovery of Just Compensation for Relocation’, sabi pa kan consejal. ‘Sinabi po sa sinambit na guidelines na in the determination of relocations costs, the ECs and the proponent of the government or non-government project is encouraged to come up with a collectively agreed valuation, taking into consideration the aggregated benefits of the project to the community’, sabi pa sa privilege speech. Piglinaw kan consejal na sa lado kan Casureco II asin DPWH naglaog na kuta sa sarong MOA nganing resolberan an situasyon sa Pili-Diversion Road, na kun saen an mag-ibong na lado nagkasundo nganing iimplementar an paghubo kan mga poste sa mag-ibong na abaga kan tinampo alagad an DPWH Legal Service sa central office dai nag-uyon envez an saindang posisyon na an RA 10531 o NEA Law bakong maninigong basehan nganing itao an kompensasyon. Digdi sa Naga, base sa initial assessment kan City Engineers Office. Igwa pang 180 mga poste an nawalat sa mga pinahiwas na tinampo. Huli kaini, pigtutulod ni Del Rosario an saiyang propuesto na ‘Resolution granting authority to his honor, the City Mayor to enter into a Tripartite Memorandum of Agreement with the DPWH 2nd Engineering District and Casureco II to address the urgent public safety concerns brought about by road widening in some roads in Naga City. An propuestong resolucion nakasunad na sa public safety committee. (DPA)

WITH great pride, we take our hats off to the five Bicolano members of the House of Representatives who voted against the re-imposition of death penalty in our justice system. Despite the overwhelming odds where the House majority threw their principles out of the window to please a blood-thirsty chief executive, these five men and women courageously held on the non-negotiable belief that sentencing someone to death denies him/her the right to life as enshrined in both our Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. We salute Bicolano Reps. Gabriel Bordado, Jr. (3rd district, CamSur), Evelina Escudero (1st district, Sorsogon), Salvio Fortuno (5th district, CamSur), Edcel Lagman (1st District, Albay), and Marisol Panotes (2nd District, Camarines Norte) for their uynwavering stand against death penalty. We are so proud that we want their photos embedded on this editorial page – a most important page of every newspaper. These men and women are Bicol’s latest pride, aside from VP Leni Robredo, Leila de Lima, and Antonio Trillanes, among others, who continue to play their indomitable roles as guardians of our democratic principles, particularly in this period of hate and violence, political patronage, treasonous actions, graft, and excessive use of dirty words. We also commend the young students of the Universidad de Sta. Isabel, Ateneo de Naga University, Naga Parochial School, and the Holy Rosary Minor Seminary for holding a noise barrage to express their opposition to the return of death penalty at the time of the voting in the Lower House. Together, we firmly argued that, among other reasons, the death penalty is anti-poor and that punitive justice system will never resolve structural social problems. Further, researches have proven that mistakes happen in meting out death as a sentence. The risk of executing an innocent person can never be eliminated. An argument in court underscored the fact that 7 out of 10 death sentences handled by the lower courts were wrongfully prosecuted. During the time of Bicolano Sen. Raul S. Roco, as chair then of the Senate Justice Committee, he sent his staff to do research in archives, police HQs, and libraries about contemporary accounts of criminals sent to the death row and see how crimes went high or low after each execution. As presented to him, the number of crimes did not go down after the notorious hired killer and gangster Baby Ama was executed in the 1960s, or when three of the four rapists (the fourth died in prison) of actress Maggie de la Riva, also almost during that same period, were burned in the electric chair. As a result of the Bicolano senator’s eloquent sponsorship speech before the plenary hall of the Senate, the death penalty was eventually disallowed in our justice system. As it is now, it took a former mayor from Mindanao, where human life seems to be so cheap, to summon his underlings to re-impose what has been banned. Our next battle is in the Senate before the House measure is finally enacted. Let’s not forget that Nietzche gave us this fair warning: When fighting monsters, you must take care not to become one yourself. Killing by the state is wrong as well, potentially even worse than killing by an individual.

Joseph Ochoa ““There are so many opportunities in life, that the loss of two or three capabilities is not necessarily debilitating…” – Jim Davis “Say Eye Will” Training for Teachers to Learners with Visual Impairment was held from March 11 to 13, 2017 at the PSO Blue Room and Resource Center for the Blind, Naga City hall, to SPED teachers and receiving teachers of pupils and students with visual impairment, within Naga City, across Camarines Sur, and Camarines Norte, and college students majoring in SPED in certain major universities in Naga City. Guest speakers in the training were Hoang Thi Nga, Dean of the Special Education Faculty of the Pedagogy University of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and Hà Thanh Vân, Principal of the Nguyen Dinh Chieu School for the Blind, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, both under the support of English national, Davina “Gabby” Morritt, President and CEO of Eye Will, Inc., a charitable non-government organization based in Hue, Vietnam, founded to support education for persons with disability in developing countries, in partnership with the local government unit of Naga through the Resource Center for the Blind, Philippine Blind U nion and Naga Central School II SPED Center Visually Impaired Department. The training was aimed to Identify adaptations and accommodations for curriculum modification, based on the potentials and needs of learners with visual impairment, in the context of inclusive education; and Adapt these strategies of adaptations and accommodations as component of curriculum modification for implementation of a comprehensive and inclusive program instruction for learners with visual impairment, as confidence in taking measures towards the full development of human potential and sense of dignity and self-worth, and the strengthening of respect for human rights, fundamental freedoms and human diversity among learners with visual impairment, through appropriate and inclusive education, are acquired. Among the resource speakers were Ateneo de Naga University faculty, Ma. Jeanette O. Naval Ph.D., San Rafael Elementary School SPED Center Principal Edna J. San Jose, Felix Chavez and Joseph Bautista, both of Resource Center for the Blind. In case your mind got jumbled with the terms, a SPED teacher is a Special education teacher who works “with students who have a wide range of learning, mental, emotional, and physical disabilities (in the context of the training, sensory impairment – visual impairment) by adapting general education lessons to the context of children with special needs. On the other hand, a receiving teacher (or in other cases, referred to as a general teacher) works with a regular class with one to two children with special needs in the class in an inclusive setting; thus “receiving the child with exceptionality” in his/her regular class. Philippine education as per DepEd Order no. 72 s. 2009, is posed towards inclusive education for children with disability (at least on documents), not segregated in self-contained classrooms, but engaging in learning experience alongside regular children in a regular classroom. As stated in RA 7277 or the Magna Carta for Persons with Disability Section 12 Access to Quality Education paragraph 1, “It shall be unlawful for any learning institution to deny a person with disability admission to any course it offers by reason of handicap or disability.” Ironically, while the training is in a stance to promote inclusive education for Filipino learners with visual impairment, the guest speakers come from a setting in which learners with visual impairment are self-contained in a school exclusively for the blind. If you have paid attention, one of the guests is the head of Nguyen Dinh Chieu School for the Blind, which by the name itself, suggests of an academic institution exclusively for students with visual impairment, safe and secluded from the pressures of the regular classroom environment, in which children with blindness have to keep up with challenges in the level of that faced with regular learners, and the social struggles that come with interactions with a potentially discriminating sighted society. In one perspective, such setup is beneficial as it facilitates the direction of services, because the recipients are gathered in one physical community. However, on the other hand, considering local context, would that be feasible for learners with visual impairment residing in Labo, Caramoan, in remote areas of Tigaon, in Libmanan, in Calabanga, in economic conditions in which travel fare is an everyday struggle? I had a student with total blindness, from Sipocot once, and she and her mother had to catch the 3 pm train every day to go home in an affordable transport fare, which means she had to take leave from class at 2 pm. I have observed persons with visual impairment who had taken most of academic life in self-contained settings, and have underdeveloped perceptions of oneself and society, and social skills. Take into consideration living inside the box of self-contained class, safe from discrimination and bullying, and at the same time, lacking the opportunity of regular social experiences. “…my power is made perfect in weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:9

THE recent revamp in the Lower House of Congress which effectively divested opposition congressmen from chairmanships of their respective committees for voting against the passage of the death penalty bill emphasizes the adage that to the victor belongs the spoils. Indeed, it is a sad commentary in our country that if one is doing well and good in his job, he is generally relegated to the background. Look at what is happening to DENR Secretary Gina Lopez who is finding it hard to earn the confirmation of the Commission on Appointments as full-fledged DENR Secretary despite her “indomitable” crusade for environmental protection and sustainable development. It is sad to note during the Commission on Appointments hearing that many vested interest groups are opposed to her appointment. Reports are that her appointment was by-passed by the Commission and a new date for confirmation hearing has been set after the scheduled recess of Congress. In the meantime, hopefully she will be re-appointed by President Rodrigo R. Duterte. After all, as recent print media and television reports indicate, Lopez has the support of top environmental leaders and organizations in the country and the President himself. On the other side of the coin, this writer commiserates with our fellow Bicolano Atty. Jovy Salazar, Chairman of the Energy Regulatory Board who is facing hearing before the Committee of Energy in Congress for alleged anomalies and questionable transactions in the Board. Atty. Salazar is from Legazpi City and I was among his avid supporters when he ran for National President of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) years back. I was then active in my private law practice and lecturer at the UNC College of Law. I fervently hope that he passes through his present ordeal. And so also with our fellow Bicolano Senator Leila de Lima who is presently embroiled in her legal battle to obtain her freedom from detention over her firm stand against extra-judicial killings allegedly perpetrated by the Duterte administration. TRIVIA: Belated birthday greetings to my AdeNU high school batch ‘54 batch mate Frank Timoner of Daet, Camarines Norte who celebrated his 81st birthday anniversary last Monday, March 13. Our batch mates visited him in Daet last month as he has been ailing lately. The USI high school batch ‘55 is scheduled to have their monthly luncheon-fellowship meeting this coming March 18 at the residence of their batch mate Rose Cruz. QUOTATION OF THE WEEK: “THE GREATEST ASSET OF ANY NATION IS THE SPIRIT OF ITS PEOPLE, AND THE GREATEST DANGER THAT CAN MENACE IN ANY NATION IS THE BREAKDOWN OF THAT SPIRIT - THE WILL TO WIN AND THE COURAGE TO WORK.” GEORGE H. COURTELYOU FOR OUR WORD OF LIFE: “I SAY TO THE LORD: YOU ARE MY GOD; LISTEN, LORD, TO THE WORDS OF MY PRAYER.” PSALM 140:7

A nasty war is raging in the social media. Dragged into it are ordinary netizens. And miserably caught in the crossfire is the good name of certain individuals including Naga “An Maogmang Lugar”. As Vice Mayor of this city, it pains and saddens me to witness this saga. I therefore call on everyone, particularly our dear Nagueños and Nagueñas, to find time to reflect and be calm. Above our own valued opinions and individual concerns is the greater good of the public, of Naga which should be our primordial considerations! Let us NOT BREAK! Let us remain UNITED!