Pope Francis in Tacloban

Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, left, shows Pope Francis how to give the popular hand sign for 'I love you' at the Mall of Asia arena in Manila, Philippines, on Friday, Jan. 16, 2015.

WALLY SANTANA/AP

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TACLOBAN, Philippines — Pope Francis arrived in the typhoon-hit Philippine city of Tacloban on Saturday, where he was met by a huge crowd drenched from waiting for hours in the rain.

The pope will celebrate a Mass in an open field near the airport, and have lunch with survivors of Typhoon Haiyan, the November 2013 storm that leveled entire villages and left more than 7,300 people dead or missing.

A police official estimated the crowd at 150,000 and said tens of thousands more are lined up outside. Wearing plastic raincoats, the festive crowd clapped in unison to blaring music welcoming the pope, cheering when they heard the pope's plane land.

RELATED: Get updates on Typhoon Mekkhala at Stars and Stripes' Pacific Storm Tracker blog

Villagers hung banners welcoming the pope from the bow of a steel-hulled cargo shop that smashed houses when it was swept in by Haiyan and remains on shore.

"Pope Francis cannot give us houses and jobs, but he can send our prayers to God," said Ernesto Hengzon, 62. "I'm praying for good health and for my children too. I am old and sickly. I'm praying that God will stop these big storms. We cannot take any more of it. We have barely recovered. Many people are still down there."

The rains were brought by approaching Typhoon Mekkhala, which has prompted authorities to suspend ferry services to Leyte province, where Tacloban is located, stranding thousands of travelers including some who wanted to see the pope.

Francis is on the second full-day of a three-day visit to the Philippines. He was in Sri Lanka earlier in the week.

He issued his strongest defense yet of church teaching opposing artificial contraception on Friday, using a rally in Asia's largest Catholic nation to urge families to be "sanctuaries of respect for life."

Francis also denounced the corruption that has plagued the Philippines for decades and urged officials to instead work to end its "scandalous" poverty and social inequalities during his first full day in Manila, where he received a rock star's welcome at every turn.

Security was tighter than it has ever been for this pope, who relishes plunging into crowds. Cellphone service around the city was intentionally jammed for a second day on orders of the National Telecommunications Commission and roadblocks along Francis' motorcade route snarled traffic for miles (kilometers).

Police vans followed his motorcade while officers formed human chains in front of barricades to hold back the tens of thousands of wildly cheering Filipinos who packed boulevards for hours just for a glimpse of his four-door Volkswagen passing by.

Police said another 86,000 gathered outside one of Manila's biggest sports arenas, capacity 20,000, where Francis held his first encounter with the Filipino masses: a meeting with families. There, he firmly upheld church teaching opposing artificial contraception and endeared himself to the crowd with off-the-cuff jokes and even a well-intentioned attempt at sign language.

Francis has largely shied away from emphasizing church teaching on hot-button issues, saying the previous two popes made the teaching well-known and that he wants to focus on making the church a place of welcome, not rules. But his comments were clearly a nod to the local church, which recently lost a significant fight when President Benigno Aquino III pushed through a reproductive health law that allows the government to provide artificial birth control to the poor.

"Be sanctuaries of respect for life, proclaiming the sacredness of every human life from conception to natural death," Francis exhorted the crowd. "What a gift this would be to society if every Christian family lived fully its noble vocation."

He then deviated from his prepared remarks to praise Pope Paul VI for having "courageously" resisted calls for an opening in church teaching on sexuality in the 1960s. Paul penned the 1968 encyclical "Humanae Vitae," which enshrined the church's opposition to artificial birth control.

Francis noted that Paul was aware that some families would find it difficult to uphold the teaching and "he asked confessors to be particularly compassionate and understandable for particular cases."

But he nevertheless said Paul was prescient in resisting the trends of the times.

"He looked beyond. He looked to the peoples of the Earth and saw the destruction of the family because of the lack of children," Francis said. "Paul VI was courageous. He was a good pastor. He warned his sheep about the wolves that were approaching, and from the heavens he blesses us today."

Francis also urged families to be on guard against what he called "ideological colonization," an apparent reference to gay marriage, which isn't legal in the Philippines. The church opposes gay marriage, holding that marriage is only between man and wife.

The government has declared national holidays during the pope's visit, which culminates Sunday with a Mass in Manila's huge Rizal Park, and the crowds responded by turning out in droves to welcome him. Authorities estimated that between 700,000 and 1 million people lined his motorcade route in from the airport Thursday night.

"It is the wish of every Filipino to see him, and if possible, to interact with him, talk to him," said Alberto Garcia, a 59-year-old electrician who was among a crowd of about 100 people who gathered in front of a giant screen mounted on a truck at a public square to watch Friday's Mass. "Because that is impossible, just by being here we can take part in his mission to visit and bring grace to this country."

Francis was clearly energized by the raucous welcome, stopping several times Friday to kiss children brought up to him once he entered the presidential palace grounds. His motorcade didn't stop along the route, though, for him to get out to and greet the crowd as he likes to do.

It remains to be seen if he will chafe at the intense security provided by authorities, who appeared to leave nothing to chance. They have good reason to go overboard after Pope Paul VI was slightly wounded in an assassination attempt during his visit in 1970 and St. John Paul II was the target of militants whose plot was uncovered days before his 1995 arrival.

About 50,000 police and troops have been deployed to secure the pope in a country where relatively small numbers of al-Qaida-inspired militants remain a threat in the south despite more than a decade of U.S.-backed military offensives.

Associated Press writers Oliver Teves and Teresa Cerojano in Manila contributed to this report.

A German in Baguio

BAGUIO CITY—Heiner Maulbecker has experienced much in his decades-long service as a hotelier in the Philippines, but nothing made him realize more the value of working with Filipinos than the 7.7-magnitude earthquake that shook Baguio in 1990.

The hotel he was then serving collapsed. He was in the thick of saving survivors and pulling out the injured and the dead (at least 80 employees were killed).

He said the main lesson the quake gave him was this: “If I ever should be faced with a natural disaster again, I hope I am surrounded by Filipinos. Filipinos jump right in. They immerse themselves and don’t wait for help from the outside world.”

His love affair with Baguio didn’t start out sweetly.

When he first made his way up in 1979, after he was appointed to professionalize the running of then Hyatt Terraces Baguio, which was losing money and taken over by Hyatt, he took Naguilian Road.

UPPER House Village along South Drive in Baguio City. RICHARD BALONGLONG/INQUIRER NORTHERN LUZON

Kennon Road had been closed for two years. Marcos Highway did not yet exist.

He was at the wheel, the road was bad, it was a rainy day in October or November, and he had an Ilocano guide by his side.

The first thing he saw when he entered Baguio was the cemetery.

He thought, “We’re going up to hell!”

On Abanao Street, he saw a big billboard announcing a Fernando Poe Jr. movie with the actor pointing a submachine gun at pedestrians and motorists.

Before he was assigned to Baguio, Maulbecker had just finished a stint with Hyatt Bangkok.

Previously, he was with the Hilton chain, serving for 10 years in Frankfurt, Germany.

Istanbul was his last posting for the Hilton.

When Baguio was presented to him, he asked, “Where the hell is that in the Philippines?” He was assured it was “the Switzerland of the Philippines.” But when he finally got to Baguio, he said, “Switzerland my foot! This is like a hick town in the US!”

When he arrived at the Terraces, it looked “like a morgue. There were no guests, no light, no flowers, no life!”

The original owners built the hotel with no expert advice.

Its opening was timed for the World Bank-International Monetary Fund conference when there was a hotel-building boom and the government was generous with loans.

He stated in his report then that the hotel had too many employees, the payroll too high, the management nonexistent, and he couldn’t fire people.

He was there to make recommendations, which he promptly did so help could come fast. The goal was to make the hotel break even.

Prioritized were the chinaware, glasses, linen. He made a budget. Hyatt took it from there.

Renovations were done, an interior designer hired to give the rooms a uniform appearance.

HEINER Maulbecker. ELIZABETH LOLARGA

New function rooms were opened to attract those holding seminars. Two cooks from Hong Kong and Japan were flown in to beef up the kitchen.

Maulbecker retrained people to level up to basic hospitality industry standards.

While changes were being made, he observed how “the Filipino employee is the best that you can have. With the proper training, you can bring the best out of them.”

He tapped Thelma Fullon, who had a Girl Scout leader background, as training manager.

He said, “She could do what I couldn’t—whack them behind the head or kick them in the back if they’re not doing well.”

His accomplishment was to turn a “derelict, sad-looking, lifeless hotel into a jumping, lively hotel.”

He also brought in Tippin Coscolluela since he couldn’t find a hotel person in Baguio who also had a national perspective and knew the Hyatt philosophy.

He connected with the people of Baguio through print and radio spots.

“But the best way,” he said, “was to bring them to the hotel.”

He formed an Executive Circle with membership cards that entitled them to monthly buffets.

There were Greek, German, Japanese nights followed by movie-themed buffets (The Great Gatsby, Wild Wild West, Tarzan) “until we ran out of countries to represent.”

Hyatt Terraces’ edge was it had “showmanship. We knew how to present food. When I attended functions here, food was just presented on aluminum foil, lechon was just chopped, chopped, chopped. That was it.”

For 10 years, the buffets went on.

He said, “The people appreciated it. All of a sudden, their response was, ‘Hyatt is our hotel.’”

Professional pride

He admitted though that “it wasn’t love at first sight. I hated it during my first year, but I saw the potential. There was a job to be done. My professional pride kicked in.”

When the work became more enjoyable, financial success followed. By then, he was also envisioning what would happen when the Americans left their US bases in the Philippines, including their R and R place, Camp John Hay.

There were meetings with the tourism secretary and other ranking officials. His message to them in behalf of his management team was: “Don’t worry, we can run that.”

The idea was to make John Hay, Poro Point and the San Fernando airport one operational unit.

UPPER House features cottages that can house 10-14 people each. RICHARD BALONGLONG/INQUIRER NORTHERN LUZON

Then President Fidel Ramos liked the idea of making Baguio the jumping point towards such destinations as the rice terraces in Ifugao and the beach resorts in La Union.

But because administrations come and go, the plan didn’t pan out.

Maulbecker rued, “It didn’t happen. It would’ve made us the center of tourism development in Luzon.”

Before he retired as The Manor’s managing director last year, he had these accomplishments under his belt: He opened the golf course while the hotel wasn’t yet ready, he opened the hotel followed by the CAP Convention Center.

Country boy

Baguio appealed to him because he’s a country boy at heart.

Born and raised in Heidelberg, Germany, he liked Baguio because “it’s like a neighborhood. I became friends with the mayor. Even if we argue, we’re still friends. Living in the Philippines is like organized chaos. But if you know how to live in chaos and survive, that’s the way to live.”

He recalled attending a Hyatt general managers’ meeting where he was the only guy without a problem.

“I was confident with my staff, I got along with the owners, I knew everyone from the city’s chief of police to the chief of the presidential staff. I learned how to tell the phonies and pretenders from the real guys. The other managers wanted transfers because their owners were a pain in the ass. Everyone wanted a transfer, except me,” he said.

He also personally knew the Presidents.

“They came up to play golf, and I’d have coffee with them. I remember having a conversation with President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo about holiday economics. I told her she can declare Christmas four times a year!”

New challenge

Maulbecker hasn’t hung up his hotelier’s hat.

He loves a challenge, and he found another one in running the newly opened Upper House Village on 88 Paterno Street, South Drive.

Upper House features cottages that can house 10-14 people each. It acknowledges the trend among Filipino families of traveling in big groups once or twice a year.

MAULBECKER is a country boy at heart. ELIZABETH LOLARGA

“Hotels can’t cater to these groups, but our village can,” Maulbecker said. There’s a shift in the visitors coming up. The new and younger generation doesn’t know what Baguio is all about.”

He added: “It’s not like 30 years ago when everybody knew one another. Today they ask, ‘What can we do here?’ So we must offer more interesting things to do and see for them and these can be in the areas of culture, music, art, nature, fitness and wellness.”

Tribute

In his message at the recent tribute to him when he retired from The Manor, he said:

“This is not really a goodbye, as Baguio is my home. I think in the past life, I was bestowed with some of the wonderful Filipino blood which allowed me to make so many good friends, and also have such great working relationships. Being a hotelier for the past 52 years was not just a profession to me, but also a passion. It was sweat, blood, tears, courage and inspiration with dedicated long hours and sacrifice. It was teamwork, innovation, quick thinking and imagination.”

He closed with these words: “It is said, happiness is often more remembered than experienced. ‘One must wait until the evening to see how splendid the day has been.’ I knew then that I was happy, but didn’t know until now, how happy, how very happy I really was.”

Read more: http://business.inquirer.net/184794/in-baguio-german-hotelier-finds-a-home#ixzz3OTiWXq8V
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Philippine "Winter"

Metro Manila and Baguio City shivered Saturday as early morning temperatures dropped in most parts of Luzon, making Saturday the coldest day of the year so far.

Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) forecasters said the "amihan" or northeast monsoon was starting to peak, bringing down temperatures in Metro Manila to 18.9 degrees Celsius in Baguio to and in Baguio to 10.9 degrees Celsius on Saturday morning.

According to weather forecaster Aldczar Aurelio, Metro Manila was at its chilliest on Saturday at 18.9 degrees at 5:50 a.m., while Baguio was coldest at 10.9 degrees at 5 a.m.

Aurelio said Saturday’s average temperature in Central Luzon was 21 degrees, while Southern Luzon chilled at 22 degrees.

Even hot Tuguegarao cool

Even in Tuguegarao City, the capital of Cagayan province which is considered the hottest place in the country, the temperature dropped to 19 degrees at around 5 a.m., while Laoag City, the capital of Ilocos Norte, felt it at 16.3 degrees.

Last year, the temperature in Baguio City was lowest on Jan. 19 at 8.1 degrees, while Metro Manila was chilliest on Jan. 26 at 15.8 degrees.

Historically, the lowest temperature in the country’s summer capital was recorded at 6.3 degrees on Jan. 18, 1961, while the National Capital Region experienced its coldest morning in February 1962 at 14.6 degrees.

Aurelio said temperatures could dip further until February and maybe even early March. “The amihan is just starting to peak,” he added, pointing out that Saturday’s chill was caused by the strong amihan surge with it.

The northeast monsoon, bringing with it strong to gale-force winds, has also made the seas in the country’s coasts dangerous for fishing boats and other small vessels.

Aurelio advised small seacraft against venturing out to the seaboards of Luzon, the Visayas and the Caraga region, where waters are expected to be rough to very rough, and alerted bigger vessels to waves that could reach 4.5 meters.

Low pressure area

Meanwhile, he said a low pressure area (LPA) over the Pacific Ocean that the weather bureau was monitoring remained far from the country’s area of responsibility.

Aurelio said the LPA was some 3,000 kilometers east of Mindanao and there was a possibility it could develop into a tropical cyclone as it was still over the ocean. Bodies of water, he explained, were mostly where weather disturbances developed and gained strength.

In Pagasa’s forecast for today, Eastern and Central Visayas as well as Mindanao will experience cloudy skies with light to moderate rain showers and thunderstorms. Bicol and the Cagayan Valley as well as the Cordillera Administrative Region and the provinces of Aurora and Quezon, will have cloudy skies with light rains.

Metro Manila and the rest of Luzon will be partly cloudy to at times cloudy with isolated light rains, while Western Visayas will experience partly cloudy to cloudy skies with isolated rain showers or thunderstorms.

Read more: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/663787/saturday-coldest-so-far-in-metro-manila-baguio#ixzz3OTfQBnV1

Merry Christmas! Frohe Weihnachten!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2015 to all my dear readers of this blog. 

Thank you for your loyality!

Frohe Weihnachten und ein gesegnetes Neues Jahr 2015, meine lieben Blogleser!

Danke fuer Ihre Treue!

Philippine TV Station Didn't Fire News Reader

By Vittorio Hernandez, International Business Times

 

Waves crash as Typhoon Vongfong approaches Japan's main islands while surfers try to ride a wave at Eguchihama Beach in Hioki, Kagoshima prefecture, in this photo taken by Kyodo October 12, 2014. Typhoon Vongfong battered the southern Japanese island of Okinawa on Sunday, injuring 31 people and knocking out power before losing intensity and getting downgraded to a tropical storm. Mandatory credit. REUTERS/Kyodo (JAPAN - Tags: DISASTER ENVIRONMENT)

Like Super Typhoon Ruby, ABS-CBN news reader Korina Sanchez came on too strong to many televiewers when she expressed hope that Hagupit (Ruby) would spare the Philippines and instead hit Japan.

Many netizens didn't like her comment and didn't hide their disappointment. Some were not surprised because it was the second time involving the coverage of a super typhoon that Sanchez, the wife of Philippine Interior Secretary, created controversy because of her criticism of CNN's Anderson Cooper's coverage of Super Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) in November 2013.

 The recent incident led to a hoax report that Japan declared Sanchez a persona non grata for her comments. However, another Web site, Waffles at Noon, debunked the report, although a lot of Filipinos thought the veteran news reader deserved being banned in The Land of the Rising Sun as well as from national television.

Thus, it was not surprising that another satire news site rode on that angle and said that ABS-CBN fired Sanchez for her comment. Adobo Chronicles wrote that Sanchez's remarks embarrassed the country, causing Japan to file a protest to permanently keep her off from TV, which the international body allegedly backed 100 percent.

It would be recalled that in 2013, there were speculations that ABS-CBN suspended Sanchez for one week after she spoke against Cooper's coverage, although the "official version" is that she went on leave.

One indicator that Adobo Republic's article was a satire is that it quoted the "fired" news reader as saying in reaction to her receiving the boot, "Well and good! This will give me time to focus on campaigning for my husband in his 2016 bid to become elected as the next president. I'll have the last laugh when I become the First Lady."

For one, Roxas insists that his eyes are not on 2016 (yet), but on helping Ruby victims. But the best proof is that Sanchez is still on TV Patrol, although she would probably be best remembered for her Japan remarks.

JAN VAN DAM*: Christmas Parols in The Philippines

boys watching the colorful display in this shop  

The southeast Asian island nation has the world’s longest festive season — and pulls no punches in its celebratory zeal for the period, with lavish light displays, masses, and festivals held throughout the country from September until January.

☆ The Philippines has the longest Christmas season in the world — from September to January.
☆ The festive season is marked by traditional masses, spectacular light displays and family gatherings
☆ Some villages organise contents for the best Christmas decorations
☆ Traditional paper and bamboo lanterns known as ‘parols’ light up many Filipino villages and towns.

The parols are as important to Filipinos as the Christmas tree to Western culture — without parols Christmas wouldn’t be complete.

Christmas lanterns known as ‘parols’ light up many Filipino homes or streets. They were first created in the late 1800’s by artisans to help villagers find their way to churches to pray. Old paintings from that time show these lanterns already. The lanterns were used by people to light their paths during the ritual Yuletide dawn masses called ‘Misa de Gallo’ [midnight mass], because electricity was unavailable at the time in many rural areas. They were made of bamboo and paper and had a candle inside. Such lanterns are now more likely to glow with electronic lights, and made with plastic or capiz, but the ethos remains the same — a guiding light in the darkness for worshippers wanting to congregate and pray.

Make your own Christmas Parols in the Philippines.

Try to make your own parol for next year. A nice website with a good way to make a parol can be found on My Parol dot com And another one can be found at the website of the Bayanihan Community Center .

If you like to insert a lightbulb or candle, you need to make provisions before you finish the parol, but I do not need to tell you this. If you do: be carefull, because the paper and the bamboo might catch fire easily…

lantern parade in San Francisco  

Summary

 

Article Name

Christmas Parols in the Philippines

Author

Jan van Dam

Description

The Philippines has the longest Christmas season of all countries in the world: September - January. This is about the famous Christmas Parols in the Philippines, history and how to make them.

 

(c) 2103/2014 Jan van Dam (http://www.expatinthephilippines.com)

UN: No Sign of Islamic State Group Militants in Philippines

French Jean-Paul Laborde, center, U.N. Executive Director of the Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate (CTED), gestures beside Philippine Department of Justice, Justice Undersecretary Atty. Francisco Baraan III, right, and Sue Takasu, U.N. Senior Legal Officer, left, as they meet reporters at the Department of Justice in Manila, Philippines on Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014. Laborde said there is no evidence that Islamic State militants have gained a foothold in the Philippines but added the country can take more steps to help fight a group that has vowed to expand its reach. AP/Aaron Favila

   

A U.N. counterterrorism official said Thursday there was no evidence that Islamic State militants have gained a foothold in the Philippines, where Muslim rebels are active, but added that the country can take more steps to help fight a group that has vowed to expand its reach.

 

Filipinos belonging to two small but violent Muslim insurgent groups in the country's south, including the al-Qaida-inspired Abu Sayyaf, have publicly vowed support to the Islamic State group, sparking concerns among Philippine security officials. There have been reports of Filipinos sneaking into Syria and Iraq to fight alongside the Islamic State group, but the military and police say there's have found no proof of that after an investigation.

"There is no evidence that they are in the Philippines," Jean-Paul Laborde of the U.N. Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate told a news conference in Manila.

He said that the Philippines and other countries should continue to shield their territories from the terrorists, including by strengthening laws and regulations to prevent local Muslim communities from being targeted for recruitment and to deprive the militants of financial resources.

"They will try to get as much as they can in terms of foreign terrorist fighters, in terms of finance, in terms of everything, so it's possible that, one day, they will come to your country," he said.

 

Laborde discussed counterterrorism steps with Philippine officials and praised the government for establishing an anti-terrorism council to oversee a battle against extremists.

Philippines Pushes Developing Countries to Cut Their Emissions

By CORAL DAVENPORT, The New York Times

 

Burning debris from Typhoon Hagupit in the Philippines. At a United Nations summit meeting, officials from the nation, which scientists say is among the most vulnerable to climate change, are pressing every nation to reduce their use of fossil fuels. Credit Francis R. Malasig/European Pressphoto Agency 

 

LIMA, Peru — As the torrential rains of Typhoon Hagupit flood the Philippines, driving millions of people from their homes, the Philippine government arrived at a United Nations climate change summit meeting on Monday to push hard for a new international deal requiring all nations, including developing countries, to cut their use of fossil fuels.

It is a conscious pivot for the Philippines, one of Asia’s fastest-growing economies. But scientists say the nation is also among the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, and the Philippine government says it is suffering too many human and economic losses from the burning of fossil fuels.

Previously, Philippine negotiators — most notably, climate diplomat Naderev Saño, who shot to fame last year after staging a hunger strike in the wake of the deadly Typhoon Haiyan — have not been shy about demanding that the industrialized world cut its carbon emissions.

Disaster-Proofing Davao Oriental

TO DISASTER-PROOF an entire province, the local government must take the lead in ensuring mitigation and adaptation measures are in place.

Since Davao Oriental can no longer claim to be typhoon-free, the province has revisited its Provincial Development and Physical Framework Plan to better equip its municipalities when worse comes to worst.

 United Nations Development Program (UNDP) where both have found a common ground that Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation (DRRCCA) should be integrated in the local development planning.

modification and rezonification so that the areas determined as not so sound for habitation will be off limits to people.

"And as our firm commitment, the province is helping LGUs (local government units) to chart out their respective Municipal Comprehensive Land Use Plan while mainstreaming Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation measures in their respective development plans," said Governor Corazon Malanyaon, in her speech during a recent forum.

The Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) 11 has helped the province along with Department of Science and Technology (DOST) 11 and Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) to map out the geo-hazard areas, which is now followed in the establishment of resettlements.

The government is also working on restoring the province's environmental resources, particularly the programs on mangrove rehabilitation, coastal cleanup, dumpsite development and watershed rehabilitation.

When Pablo made landfall, it flattened most of Baganga, Cateel and Boston municipalities, leaving 457 deaths, 3,020 injured, 64,032 families affected, and P5.846 billion in government infrastructures, private structures and properties lost on its wake.

Also, the rich agriculture, tourism, trade, and service sectors incurred P8.5 billion damages while 30 percent of its coral resources were lost and 132,105 hectares of forest lands were destroyed.

With the plan now in place, at least the province can cushion the impact of typhoons, the same intensity or even stronger than Typhoon Pablo that wreaked havoc the province on December 4, 2012.

Rehab on track

With the means of livelihood destroyed, the province sought out the intervention of Department of Agriculture (DA)-Davao to help affected families get back on their feet.

The programs that were implemented include extension of 100 percent rice seed subsidy to more than 8,000 farmers in Baganga, Cateel, and Boston for a total area of 9,876 hectares, provision of seeds for corn production benefitting more than 7,000 farmers, and provision of seeds for vegetable production.

Also, part of the intervention was the distribution of cacao seedlings in the towns of Boston and Cateel benefiting almost 2,000 farmers, and seedlings for cassava production in affected towns to 5,742 farmers covering a total of 430 hectares.

On the housing, a total of 6,729 families received temporary shelters and emergency shelter kits containing basic construction tools and materials.

"These were provided by convergence of various local and international agencies under the Shelter Cluster. Meanwhile, the DSWD (Department of Social Welfare and Development), who aside from constructing bunk houses as temporary shelters also helped bring aid to families whose houses were partially damaged through the distribution of Emergency Shelter Assistance (ESA) in the form of cash," she reported.

The first and second releases amounted to P158.7 million, which benefited around 15,881 households.

Transition shelters were also put in place for a total of 5,359 families. 

"These shelters not only provided our people with the most basic comforts of a home, but mainly protected them especially from health risks due to poor hygienic conditions in congested emergency shelters," she said.

The governor added that there were close to 10,000 permanent homes completed and undergoing construction under the Modified Shelter Assistance Program of the provincial government and DSWD.

"No less than 5,000 construction workers, that include masons, carpenters, painters, plumbers, have been employed in the implementation of this massive housing project," she said.

Rise of hot chili

Jose P. Calub, officer-in-charge of Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)-Davao Oriental, during the DTI-Davao Media Interface at the Marco Polo Hotel Davao on Friday, said they are supporting eight major chili producers in Davao Oriental.

"Nakita namo na resilient ang (We saw that chili is more resilient) compared to other crops during typhoon," he said.

Right now, they are in the thick of things in helping these producers comply with the requirements to secure a certification from Food and Drugs Administration (FDA).

"So that when the Asean Community takes effect, our chili producers are ready," he said.

In Davao Oriental, most of the focus is centered on the three towns hit by Pablo -- Cateel, Baganga, and Boston.

The agency is also set to construct three facilities through the Shared Service Facilities (SSF) that are compliant with the regulations of the FDA.

With this initiative, a total of 1,000 families have benefited from the "Hot Pablo' Livelihood Project covering 100 hectares.

The beneficiaries, comprised of farmers and processors, were assisted in terms of production, skills development, product development marketing and branding.

The trade office has also observed a high local demand for chili, as evident on the sales generated from the trade fairs where processors have actively been participating in.

Last year, chili processors generated P6 million from joining trade fairs.

To address the immediate need of farmers to earn a living, Malanyaon added that livestock and draft animals such as carabao, cattle, goat and chicken were distributed to families.

There were also a series of skills, productivity and entrepreneurial trainings to strengthen livelihood projects such as bamboo (furniture, construction materials and baskets) processing, coco-bead and coco-furniture processing, driftwood furniture and novelties processing, bead making, rubber nursery and hot chili production and processing. 

These initiatives were facilitated through the support of some government agencies and Rural Entrepreneurship Advocacy for Change (Reach) program of the Provincial Government.

Other livelihood programs that are currently being pushed are; Driftwood Processing (Boston, Baganga, Cateel); Rosary-making out of coco-beads (Cateel); Carpentry Workshop and Material Recovery Facility (Cateel and Baganga); and Fiber-board Processing Facility (Baganga).

"These livelihood projects under the Debris Management supported more than 11,000 beneficiaries," Malanyaon added.

Given the intensity of damages caused by Pablo in the province, it will take a while before it can get back on its feet.

"Our 'Building-Back-Better' agenda is still a long way to go. But having a solid support from the national government and other development collaborators, and having put in place operational mechanisms, we are positive that we can harness more resources and partners... we can do more... and we can do better in the coming years... Always with that undaunted spirit 'to Move on and to Move up' as our mantra goes," she added.

Another Natural Disaster !

Cyclone May Enter the Philippines This Week

By Helen Flores (The Philippine Star)

State meteorologists are keeping a close eye on a developing storm off the Pacific Ocean that could enter the Philippine area of responsibility (PAR) later this week.

Jori Loiz, senior weather forecaster of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), said the looming cyclone was located some 1,500 kilometers east of the PAR as of yesterday afternoon.

He warned the developing weather disturbance is likely to reach the typhoon category as it hovers over the Pacific Ocean in the next few days.

Loiz told The STAR of two scenarios for the cyclone. The most likely is that the storm could intensify further but will veer north towards Japan. The second scenario is the cyclone will intensity into a typhoon and enter the PAR on Friday.

“The movement of the developing cyclone will depend on the high-pressure area northeast of the Philippines,” Loiz said, noting that the HPA has not moved in the past days.

“The most possible scenario is it will enter the PAR but will recurve toward east of Japan… But if the HPA will not move, the cyclone, which could be a strong one, could make landfall in the Philippines,” he added.

He noted that the location of the looming cyclone is also the place where Super Typhoon Yolanda formed last year.

“Hopefully, the HPA will move, because we expect this to be really strong. It is still far and could gain more strength while over the sea,” Loiz said.

He said one or two cyclones are likely to enter the Philippines this month, warning that cyclones during this time of the year usually make landfall.

The usual track of the cyclones during the latter part of the year is Visayas and Mindanao.

On Nov. 8 last year, Yolanda slammed the Visayas, leaving more than 6,000 people dead and 1,700 missing. Strong storms Pablo and Sendong hit Mindanao in December.

Meanwhile, Loiz said fair weather is expected in most parts of the country in the next three days, apart from isolated rain showers and thunderstorms.

He said a low-pressure area (LPA) that dumped rains in Mindanao and parts of Visayas and Luzon over the weekend was spotted at 75 km west southwest of Romblon, Romblon as of 10 a.m. yesterday.

The LPA was likely to dissipate or continue to cross Southern Luzon towards the West Philippine Sea, where it could regain strength, he said.