By Hannah Brockhaus / CNA VATICAN— On the first Sunday of Lent, Pope Francis said if we want to fight against the temptation of sin, we must be familiar with the Word of God – treating the Bible more like how we treat our cellphone. “During the forty days of Lent, as Christians we are called to follow in the footsteps of Jesus and address the spiritual battle against evil with the power of the Word of God,” he said March 5. “For this you have to become familiar with the Bible, read it often, meditate on it, assimilate it.” “Someone said: what would happen if we treated the Bible like we treat our cell phone? If we always carried it with us; or at least the small pocket-sized Gospel, what would happen?” Pope Francis spoke to pilgrims before leading the Angelus in St. Peter’s Square, drawing a stark comparison between the attention we give our cellphones and the attention we give Scripture, for example, always taking it with us, and going back if we forget it at home. “You forget you mobile phone – oh! I do not have it, I go back to look for it; if you read the messages of God contained in the Bible as we read the messages of the phone…” he said. The Pope reflected on the day’s Gospel reading from Matthew, which tells about the temptation of Jesus in the desert by Satan. The episode comes at a specific point, he said, soon after Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan River but before his public prosecution. “He has just received the solemn investiture: the Spirit of God descended upon Him, the Father from heaven declared him ‘my beloved Son’ (Matt. 3:17). Jesus is now ready to begin his mission,” he said. But first he must go up against the Enemy, Satan, who presents him with three temptations. “By means of this triple temptation, Satan wants to divert Jesus from the path of obedience and humiliation – because he knows that in this way evil will be defeated,” the Pope said. But the Word of God is like a shield against the poisonous arrows of the devil, Francis said. Jesus doesn’t use just any words – he uses the words of God, and in this way, the Son, full of the Holy Spirit, emerges victorious from the desert.” This is what we must do against the temptations of the devil, the Pope said. The comparison between the Bible and our cellphones “is strange, but sobering.” “In effect, if we had the Word of God always in our heart, no temptation could turn us away from God and no obstacle could deflect us from the path of goodness,” he stressed. We would know how “to win” against the daily temptations within and around us. “We would be better able to live a resurrected life in the Spirit, accepting and loving our brothers, especially the most vulnerable and needy, and even our enemies.” Let us ask the Virgin Mary, “the perfect icon of obedience to God and of unconditional trust to his will,” to help us during this Lent to listen to the Word of God in the Bible and “to make a real change of heart,” he concluded. “And, please, do not forget – do not forget! – What would happen if we treated the Bible like we treat our cellphone. Think about this. The Bible always with us, close to us!”

Dear Father, Ining nakaaging Miercoles, sa Katedral kan Naga, nagka-igua nin Via Crucis na kun saen an mga nagpartisipar nagsulot nin mga t-shirt na itom asin puti na mga nakasurat na Reject EJK and Death Penalty. Bako man daw po na alanganin man ini huli ta garo po baga rally? Boot ko po na maliwanagan. Minagalang, Rusty Dear Rusty, Enot sa gabos, an Miercoles de Ceniza pagiromdom sa sato kan realidad kan kasalan, kagadanan asin kan pangangaipo na magsolsol asin magbago. Binugtakan nin abo an satong angog sa pagpagiromdom sato na kita hale sa abo asin sa abo mabalik. Ini man paggiromdom sa sato na an kagadanan naglaog huli sa kasalan nin tawo. Sarong epekto kan kasalan iyo an kagadanan. Kita dai sana nagpangadie, kundi nagpahayag man kan satong pagmondo kan mga garadanan na nangyayari sa palibot niato; mga kagadanan na nagdadagdag an bilang; mga pagkagadan na dai maipaliwanag; mga pagkagadan na kun saen an biktima binubudbudan nin packaging tape. Namomondo kita huli ta dai maipaliwanag an mga garadanan na ini. Maski an mga nanonongdan o may kapangyarihan garo dai nin kontrol, dai mapugulan an mga garadanan na ini. Siisay man an kaggibo, namumundo kita. Alagad nahahandal man kita huli ta garo itinutugot na ini. Namumundo kita huli ta boot pang ‘i-legalize’ an paggadan sa paagi kan ‘Death Penalty’. Sa satuyang pagmundo minimidbid niato na an ugat nin kagadanan iyo an kasalan, an pagigin makasadiri. Kun kaya ini man pag-eksamen kun pano man kita nakakadagdag sa kultura nin kagadanan. An Cuaresma paggiromdom sato na yaon an oportunidad na magbago, na si Jesus tinubos kita huli kan Krus. Kun kaya kita naglalaom sa pagbago kan parakasala. Boot man niatong sabihon na namomondo kita sa mga krimen arog kan rape, sexual violence, pag-abuso sa mga kasaraditan, asin mga makangirhat na krimen. Kun kaya satuyang sinasayumahan an paggadan asin violencia. An satuyang pagtubod asin pagsunod ki Cristo nagtutulod sato dai magin buta asin bungog sa mga nangyayari sa palibot niato. An espiritu kan Cuaresma nagtutulod sato na isikwal an karatan. Kaya, an satuyang pagmundo bako sana lugod sa pagmati kundi mapatunayan man sa pagbabago nin buhay. Dai magkaka-igua nin pagbabago sa sosyedad kun dai nin pagbabago kan sadiri. Magin makahulugan lugod an satong pag-observar kan Cuaresma. Minagalang, Father

NEW MNCCI BOARD. The newly-sworn in members of the Board of Directors of the Metro Naga Chamber of Commerce and Industry for 2017 led by re-elected President Gilbert Albero (6th from left) extend their right arms in a gesture of solidarity and unity as they pledge to carry out their tasks as partners in the Metro Naga area’s continuing march to progress and development.

BRIDGE STATUS. Infrastructure consultants from Qualter Hall Technical, a British company, conduct technical assessment in the air and on the ground of bridges and roads in Camarines Sur, particularly in the second congressional district and in Naga City and the town of Pili before presenting the province’s bridge credentials to CamSur Gov. Migz R. Villafuerte (lower photo). PHOTOS COURTESY OF GENE GREGORIO.

By Manuel T. Ugalde LEGAZPI CITY ---- Informed of allegations that the regional office of the Department of Public Works and Highways is the most corrupt in Bicol, DPWH Secretary Mark Villar ordered the relief of its regional director, assistant regional director, and the agency’s legal officer. Ordered relieved were Regional Director Reynaldo Tagudando, Assistant Regional Director Armando Estrella and Legal Officer Oliver Rodulfo. Region 13 Regional Director Danilo Bersola will replace Tagudando while Marinduque District Engineer Esmeraldo Sarmiento will take over Estrella’s post in an acting capacity. Rodulfo will be replaced by a certain lawyer Laboga, reports said. Tagudando cannot be contacted for comment while Estrella confirmed he and Tagudando were both relieved of their posts. Estrella added Tagudando has been reassigned at the DPWH Bureau of Research and Standards while he admitted that he is still in the dark as to his fate, or would he be reassigned, if ever. It was reported that Estrella has only two years left before his retirement. Rodulfo has been reassigned to Cebu according to the DPWH website posted on Feb. 23. On January 14, Villar accidentally met with Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption founding chair Dante Jimenez at the Legazpi Airport departure area where the secretary was told by Jimenez: “Don’t you know Mr. Secretary that DPWH is the most corrupt in Bicol?” The short dialogue between Villar and Jimenez was reportedly witnessed by Estrella, legal officer Oliver Rodulfo,and other DWPH local officials. During the meeting, the VACC chair also asked the secretary to investigate the controversial collapsed portion of the P50-million Naga City River flood control project (which, however, has been restored by this time). Villar met with his Bicol regional and 15 district engineering executives in Legazpi City last January 13, 2017 where local journalists pursued but failed topersonally interview him. Prof. Salvador Flor, 70, president of the Bicol Reporters Association lamented that the dozens of local journalists who pursued Villar at the DPWH regional office here to personally bring to his attention a litany of alleged DPWH scandals were so disappointed after being informed that the secretary had unceremoniusly exited via the DPWH back door. In the evening, however, Villar was interviewed by selected few mediamen who were brought before him at the hotel that the secretary checked in. According to documents Tagudando was cited for having a hand in the promotion of certain engineer-officers and employees in the office. Ironically, the was filed by legal officer Oliver Rodulfo whom Tagundando also sued to be disbarred for alleged baseless accusations.

By Juan Escandor Jr. NAGA CITY --- Camarines Sur Rep. LRay Villafuerte has formally asked the House of Representatives to pry into the latest Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) scandal involving an allegedly blatant act of animal cruelty in one of the official entries to last yearend’s annual competition. In House Resolution No. 675, Villafuerte called on the appropriate House committee to conduct an inquiry into the “alleged animal cruelty exploits” by the production team of the MMFF official entry film “Oro.” Villafuerte said the graphic dog slaughter scene in “Oro” has caused so much public condemnation that the MMFF executive committee was eventually forced to stop its public screening and even recall the Fernando Poe Jr. (FPJ) Memorial Award that was given to the film. “The incident has called the attention of the People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) Asia, the world’s largest animal rights organization, therefore shedding a bad light on the film industry and the animal welfare condition in the country, and has requested the MMFF Executive Committee to have the awards garnered by the film withdrawn,” Villafuerte said in his resolution. He noted that the MMFF withdrew the FPJ award because “the killing of the dog in the course of the filming effectively casts a doubt on the movie’s ability to exemplify the human and cultural values espoused by the late Fernando Poe Jr.” In calling for the probe, Villafuerte said representatives of the production team of “Oro” have given conflicting accounts about the dog slaughtered in the movie, with one version claiming that the animal killed was a goat with some prosthetics, another assuring the head of the Film Development Council of the Philippines (FDCP) that no dog was killed in the movie, and in yet another one admitting before the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) that a dog had been slaughtered during the film shoot. “The representatives of the production team of ‘Oro’ acknowledged that they received a recommendation to put a disclaimer in the movie that ‘no animal was harmed during the filming’ but chose not to follow the recommendation,” Villafuerte also said. He recalled that an actress in the movie, Japo Parcero, posted on social media that two dogs had actually died during filming—the one used for the slaughter scene and the other accidentally suffocated when it was placed inside a sack. PAWS, Villafuerte said, believes that the production team of “Oro” violated Republic Act 10631, also known as the Animal Welfare Act of 1998. Before filing the resolution, Villafuerte said that on top of violating RA 10631, the film producers and director also committed another serious violation-- the distortion of the facts and events that transpired in 2014 in the small-scale gold-mining community of Barangay Gata, on which the movie was supposed to have been based. Villafuerte, who had served for three successive terms as governor of Camarines Sur, said that film authorities must ban the movie’s screening altogether in protest over its blatant violation of the Animal Welfare Act and its revisionist or “fallacious portrayal” of everyday life in Camarines Sur’s Caramoan Island. “The film is nothing but political propaganda masquerading as cinematic art in which the highly respected actors that took part in it plus the film crew were unwittingly used to present an alternate universe of events that never happened in Caramoan Island two years ago,” Villafuerte said.

By Jason B. Neola NAGA CITY --- City Councilor Jose “Sonny” C. Rañola, in his privilege speech last Tuesday, raised the alarm on the rising cases of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases in this city, which he said “show no sign of decreasing or slowing down even among young boys and girls.” Rañola, who co-chairs the Naga City Health Board with Mayor John G. Bongat, said that among the cities and provinces in Bicol, Naga and Camarines Sur had the highest HIV/AIDS cases from 1984 to 2016 and new cases were reported in 2016 (17 and 54 cases, respectively) making both of them on top of the list. He said that the people being infected are getting younger, with ages ranging from 15 to 24, which is also true in other provinces of the Bicol Region. Those infected with STD also involve younger patients – from 15 to 34 years. On STD cases, there were a total of 3 males and one female who were tested positive for syphilis in 2016, according to records at the Naga City Social Hygiene Clinic. Still, according to the same report, 17 males and 10 females, or a total of 26 persons were tested positive for gonorrhea. Moreover, 3 females and one male, or a total of 4 persons were tested positive for Hepatitis B during the same 12-month period last year. “I am here not to push the panic button. I am here not only as a doctor, but as a concerned citizen who would like to serve this warning against a deadly disease that never stops to stare us in the face,” says Rañola who recommended that children should be taught to avoid risky behavior and the HIV testing age should also be lowered to allow minors to avail of the service. In related development, the city councilor is drafting an ordinance which seeks to create a task force that will monitor and conduct surveillance on individuals, especially children or minors, suspected to be engaged in sex trade activities. He said the creation and mobilization of the task force would strengthen the city government’s campaign against sexually-related activities as it would aggressively perform the tasks to identify at risk individuals vulnerable to STDs, provide them with assistance and access for HIV/AIDS screening and/or vaginal smear, and enroll them to a series of seminars/lectures on STD prevention and control. If a suspect is a minor (at ages that range from 18 years old and below), the task force will inform his/her parents about the involvement of their child in sexually-related activities, and turn them over to the City Social Welfare and Development (CSWDO) or, if of legal age, turn them over to the Naga City Police Office for filing of appropriate cases. The proposed composition of the task force: the City Health Officer, the head of the City Social Welfare and Development Office, the chief of the Naga City Police Office, the city Legal Officer and a representative from a non-government organization, preferably catering to family, women and children sectors. AIDS situation Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is a chronic, potentially life-threatening condition caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). By damaging one’s immune system, HIV interferes with human body’s ability to fight the organisms that cause the disease. In the Philippines, around 25 Filipinos get diagnosed with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) daily, according to the latest report released by the Department of Health (DOH). The numbers are on upward trend. From only one person getting infected daily in 2008 , the number rose to 17 persons per day in 2014. Rañola, who is also the chair of Sangguniang Panlungsod’s Committee on Health, said that HIV is a sexually transmitted infection. It can also be spread by contact with infected blood or from mother to child during pregnancy, childbirth or breast-feeding. Without medication, it may take years before HIV weakens one’s immune system to the point that one finally acquires AIDS. “There’s no cure for HIV/AIDS, but there are medications that can dramatically slow down the progression of the disease. These drugs have reduced AIDS deaths in many developed nations. But HIV continues to decimate populations in Africa, Haiti and parts of Asia, including the Philippines, which has been cited by the World Health Organization to have the fastest growing HIV epidemic in the world,” he said. While Bicol may not be among the regions in the country with alarmingly high incidence of HIV cases where the National Capital Region has 39%, Calabarzon has 13%, Central Luzon has 11%, and Central Visayas that include Cebu has 11% compared to our 2%, Camarines Sur and Naga, according to the DOH Regional Office based in Legazpi City have the highest reported cases of HIV/AIDS from 1984 to 2016. In 2016 alone, Camarines Sur recorded 54 cases while Naga had 17 cases. Cumulatively – from 1984 to 2016 – Camarines Sur had 192 cases while Naga had 71 cases. “Yes, these figures may be low compared to other regions, but the prospect of multiplying rapidly is always there if we loosen our guards down, or fail to do enough to control or stop them from further spreading”, Rañola warned. Surely, the numbers are bad which could even get worse, considering that the statistics, especially for HIV/AIDS, are based only on who get tested and not on the entire population of the city or province, he added. As one expert, looking at the statistics, said: “This is an underestimate of people who actually have HIV because some refuse to be tested or do not know where and how to get tested, especially in urban areas.” Latest data by the DOH in Manila show that the HIV/AIDS virus is transmitted mainly on 4 ways: 1. Male to female sex 2. Male to male sex and sex with both males and females 3. Sharing of infected needles 4. Mother-to-child transmission City Health Office “While our City Health Office, thru the stewardship of City Health Officer Vito ‘Butch’ Borja, is trying its best to curb or control the spread of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases, they need everyone’s help to deliver their jobs more effectively and teach people of their role in fighting the menace, as well as the city government’s initiatives of parallel legislation and groundworks,” Rañola said in his speech. Regarding the small number of people who returned to the clinic for their HIV confirmation results, Rañola urged the city government’s counselors to communicate better and build rapport with reactive patients so that they would always go back to the clinic for closer examination, consultation and dialogue. It has been noted, based on report by our CHO, that of the 266 persons (males and female) that were screened for HIV in 2016, only 9 of them (who are all males) returned to the clinic for their confirmation results. Rañola said that it is fortunate that in Naga such efforts are complemented by legislation against discrimination and top-level multi-sectoral efforts. Naga City has a gender fairness ordinance, peer education ordinance, and an HIV/AIDS Council. “Perhaps we need to push more. Build stronger coordination among all stakeholders and strengthen more our crusade and political will against the deadly virus and how to respond to problems facing the community and probable patients, he added. “We should inform our people that anyone can get free HIV testing in our social hygiene clinic and that ARV treatments are shouldered by the government. We should not tire in teaching our people to practice safe sex and encourage them to use condom for safer measure,” he said. No less than the National Youth Commission (NYC) has expressed fear that the HIV/AIDS spread is becoming a worsening “youth epidemic” in our country. It said that: “The HIV epidemic in our country has a new face and it is the face of a young person.” Citing official statistics, the NYC confirmed that 62 percent of new HIV cases in the country in 2016 were among young people between 15 and 24 years old. An NYC Commissioner stated clearly that: “Out of the 29 Filipinos who get infected every day in the Philippines, more than half or 19 are 15 to 24 years old. Twenty-five out of the 29 are 15 to 30 years old.” “We should be doubling our efforts now – by every stakeholder – including families and the academe before the problem become even more tragic for many of our people, including the younger ones that may prove costlier and more difficult to handle on the part of the government,” Rañola concluded.

By Jorge Hallare LEGAZPI CITY --- A goldpanner was killed in Aroroy, Masbate on Monday evening while an active policeman assigned in Camp Crame was arrested on Monday morning in his house in Polangui, Albay for the murder of a military man last year, reports reaching the Police Regional Office in Bicol based here (PRO5) said Tuesday. Sr. Insp. Ma. Luisa Calubaquib, PRO5 spokesperson, said in Masbate, the goldpanner identified as Randy M. Rudio, 38, was dead on the spot after four unidentified gunmen shot him and three other companions while they were in front of a videoke bar in Barangay Puro, Aroroy town Monday (February 27) night. Rudio’s three other companions were wounded in the attack. Calubaquib said that at 9:30 p.m., the gunmen who were on board two motorcycles arrived and for no apparent reason shot Rudio and his three friends as they were talking together in front of Acacia Videoke K Bar. Rudio’s three companions, who were identified as Julius S. Ramones, 25, also a gold panner; and Carmi Grace Clarion, 30, and Grace Benesano, 26, both guest relations officers of the videoke bar, were rushed to the Masbate Provincial Hospital for treatment. Investigators from the Aroroy Municipal Police Office and Masbate Provincial Police Office said Rudio died from gunshot wounds on his chest and head. Some 12 empty shells of a .45-cal. pistol were recovered from the crime scene. In Albay, Chief Insp. Arthur Gomez, spokesperson and chief of Investigation Division of Albay Provincial Police Office, said SPO1 Ernesto LLadones Jr. gave up peacefully on Monday morning when arrested in his house in Barangay Centro Occidental, Polangui town for the murder of a military officer following traffic altercation in July 2016. Gomez said Lladones, 36, who is currently assigned at the PSPG-Protection and Escort Unit in Camp Crame in Quezon City, was arrested at 10:00 a.m. by combined provincial policemen and municipal policemen led by PO3 Nestor Sarile Jr. A warrant of arrest was issued against Lladones after he shot to death Cpl. Anthony P. Manuel, an active member of the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines when they engaged in a heated argument after their motorcycles collided at an intersection in Barangay Magurang in Polangui town on July 5, 2016. The victim was a native of Barangay Balogo, Oas town, also in Albay. Gomez said no bail bond was given for the temporary liberty of Lladones. (PNA) LAP/GVR/JH/CBD

By Jorge Hallare LEGAZPI CITY --- Agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) arrested a notorious personality in the illegal drug trade in this city who yielded P150,000 worth of shabu (methamphetamine hydrochloride) during a buy bust operation conducted at the city bus terminal Tuesday (Feb. 28) morning. Enrique Lucero, acting provincial officer of PDEA-Albay and Catanduanes, said the suspect identified as Jeff Borromeo was arrested for possession of shabu that were placed inside 10 transparent plastic sachets, each sachet weighing 5 grams, at 11:50 a.m. in the vicinity of the Legazpi City Grand Terminal along Tahao Road. Lucero said the Legazpi City Police Office headed by Supt. Nilo Berdin helped mount the buy bust operation against Borromeo, a resident of Barangay Sabang in this city. According to Lucero, Borromeo’s arrest is a big blow to the latter’s group that is supplying shabu to barangays, particularly those surrounding the central business district. “The suspect will be presented to PDEA Director General Isidro Lapeña who is expected to visit the PDEA regional office inside Camp Gen. Simeon Ola tomorrow (March 1),” said Lucero. He did not give any other details on Lapeña’s visit.

By Bobby Q. Labalan SORSOGON CITY --- Passengers in the province of Sorsogon barely felt the transport strike initiated by transport group CONDOR-Piston nationwide as transportation went on normally since Monday morning. Sorsogon Governor Robert Lee-Rodrigueza said transport services to and from this city, and from the various towns in the province were unaffected by the supposed strike. Rodrigueza said as per reports from various municipalities, transport services -- jeepneys, vans, buses and even tricycles – were plying their routes normally. “It seems that no transport group in the province joined the move,” the governor said. But he added that they have stand-by vehicles which are ready for deployment should there be a need for them. The governor also did not order the cancellation of classes and left the matter to the respective mayors or school principals for them to decide. Joseph John Perez, public information officer of the Department of Education Sorsogon Province division, said no school declared cancellation of classes in relation to the transport strike. Classes were going-on normally as no school was affected by the transport holiday, he said. Even schools in the city reported normal classes since Monday morning, Armand Engay, the city schools division information officer, said. As of noon of the same day, peace and order situation in the province is, likewise, normal, according to Senior Supt. Ronaldo Cabral, the Sorsogon police provincial director. “We have not monitored any untoward incident, so far, in relation to the strike,” he added. Rodrigueza said although they do not expect any more development, they would still keep monitoring the transport holiday until the organizers call it off nationwide. Meanwhile, Ramon Rescovilla, secretary-general of CONDOR-Piston-Bicol, admitted the transport strike failed in Sorsogon but it was successful in the other five provinces in the region. He attributed the failure to the lack of preparation by their local counterparts in the province.

MNDC chair and Naga Mayor John G. Bongat (4th from right) joins the technical working group headed by Onofre Alajor (3rd from right), municipal project development officer of Minalabac, in crafting the proposed charter bill that will convert MNDC into Metro Naga Authority. Photo also shows MNDC Project Officer Adolfo Badiola (standing) who introduced before the municipal project development officers from 17 LGUs the draft of the provisions contained in the proposed measure. REBECCA RAGAY PHOTO By Jason B. Neola NAGA CITY --- In a bid to acquire legal personality, the 17 local government units comprising the Metro Naga Development Council is drafting a proposed bill that will grant their allied organization a Congressional Charter and henceforth convert it into Metro Naga Authority (MNA). If enacted into law, the Authority will not only enjoy appropriations from the national budget but also obtain legal capacity including entering into contracts with private and international organizations and receiving grants from local and foreign entities as part of its initiative to facilitate the inflow of public and private investments for purposes of identifying funding sources for local development programs and projects. Currently, the body does not possess congressional charter as it is not even registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the government’s quasi-judicial securities-regulating agency, or with any other government instrumentalities that provide the inter-LGU alliance with juridical character. With the establishment of MNA, the Metro Naga Development Council shall function as its governing body which will be composed of mayors of all member-LGUs. Initially, the member-LGUs are as follows: the Municipalities of Bombon, Bula, Calabanga, Camaligan, Canaman, Gainza, Libmanan, Magarao, Milaor, Minalabac, Ocampo, Pamplona, Pasacao, Pili, San Fernando, and Siruma and the City of Naga. Once a chartered body, each member-LGU would also achieve stronger financial posturing as their group will be apportioned with funds from the national budget to finance their common development agenda, thereby sparing the LGUs from spending more to finance the development programs and projects as members of the alliance. “The LGU members become more capacitated to finance their own projects and programs as their financial contributions to MNA will be lessened,” says Adolfo M. Badiola, Jr., MNDC project officer. Among the functions of the Authority is to prepare, undertake, and implement comprehensive, integrated, and collaborative development programs to promote the Authority’s development agenda as approved by the Council. These programs include the formulation of comprehensive physical framework plan including, but not limited to, integrated road connectivity, disaster risk and climate change responsive land use planning and execution, traffic management, solid waste management, investment and tourism promotion, and; to promote growth in the areas of agriculture, industry, commerce or other similar activities, which may be necessary to the area’s socio-economic development, whether by itself, or in cooperation with private or government entities.

By Jason B. Neola NAGA CITY --- All’s well that ends well. With its neighboring town of Canaman in Camarines Sur formally acceding to enter into a memorandum of agreement relative to access of trimobiles to a specified route that connects the two towns, it is now Camaligan town’s turn, through their respective local government officials, to accept such intent, in pursuance of a Court-preferred compromise settlement to resolve the issue of trimobiles from Canaman being barred from entering Camaligan. In its session last February 27, the Sangguniang Bayan of Camaligan passed Resolution No. 179, which was approved by Camaligan Mayor Marilou Marquez-Hirose, that unanimously acknowledged the intent of LGU Canaman to enter into a memorandum of agreement relative to the operation of the San Jose West-Iquin-Mangayawan Sua-Del Rosario Trimobile Operators and Drivers Association whose member trimobile units pass through both municipalities. Earlier last February 7, the Sangguniang Bayan of Canaman passed a resolution authorizing their mayor, Henry P. Ragodon, to enter into a memorandum of agreement regarding the issue with Camaligan town. In his order that was prompted by a civil case for injunction with application for temporary restraining order following the apprehension by Camaligan authorities of trimobiles entering their town, Judge Santos prescribed a court-preferred settlement that will depend on the two municipalities executing and putting into effect a MOA that will govern the cross-entry of trimobiles between the two towns along the route mentioned.