SLEX toll fee hike to affect Bicol traders

Joey Salceda

LEGAZPI CITY — Bicol is making a big noise over the South Luzon Expressway (SLEx)issue because most of the travelers are the lynchpin of the regions micro and small enterprises (MSE) which account to almost all businesses in Bicol, Albay Gov. Joey Salceda said.

Salceda said his strong opposition to the proposed SLEx toll hike was anchored on the fact that “viajeros and compradors” (travellers and traders) were the key players or the binding forces in rural markets, representing 99 percent of businesses in the region.

Bicol travelers and traders using vehicles accounts for only 15 percent of the total vehicular traffic at SLEx and Albay is estimated at four percent.

Asked why he became the prime mover against SLEx toll hike, Salceda admitted that it should be Batangas and Quezon provinces that should be at the forefront of this cause but Bicol would be economically affected.

He said the four percent actually translates to P400 million a year and this becomes big when compared to the province nominal aggregate household income of P18 billion using 2006 Family Income and Expenditures survey (FIES).

Using only the incremental impact of the approved toll hike (four percent of P9.8 billion less four percent of P2.7 billion), this represents a net resource transfer from the provincial economy of P280 million, although small it represent a third of the provincial budget of P920 million a year.

“To me as a governor is mandated to manage local economic development effort to reduce poverty, the revenue lost due to the toll fee hikes is a huge resource outflow that could be saved and retained in our local economy, ” Salceda said.

The money could be used by our households for their basic needs and by small businesses to invest. It is quite an effort to raise revenues or to attract new investments, he said.

“We are all for infrastructure modernization. But for whom? And at whose expense? ” Reports have it that once a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) is issued by the Supreme Court(SC) against SLEx this would send negative signals on the country’s policy predictability and undermine its attraction as an investment destination.

Salceda, said it is optimistic that his petition for a TRO would be granted because: the STOA joint venture was not subjected to procurement procedures- it was neither bidded out or even Swiss-challenged; and the toll was not subjected to notice and hearing.

The former Arroyo economic adviser said: “It is the judgment call of the investor to take the intrinsic risks as a consequence of such utter lack of transparency behind such shocking quadrupling of rates. Common sense would easily tell you that such lethal combination would trigger a public outcry. “

Salceda said in the six cases pending at the SC, the TRB is represented by Department of Justice and PNCC by Office of the government Corporate Counsel.

TRB is the first party to the STOA that stipulated the toll fee per km with formula for inflationary adjustment, who then represents the people, the consumers, the motorists, the rural viajeros, the farmers in all of this, he said. (PNA) RMA/LQ/MSA/cbd

3 Bicol rivers alive contrary to report

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB) in Bicol has maintained that three rivers in the region reported earlier as biologically dead are actually not dead at all, according to the agency’s regional official.

Engr. Gilbert Gonzales, DENR-EMB Bicol regional director, recalled that Anayan (Camarines Sur), Malaguit (Camarines Norte) and Panique (Masbate) rivers were earlier reported as biologically dead by media outlets here that prompted uncalled alarm among the residents directly gleaning resources from the rivers.

Gonzales said the bureau has been conducting surveillance, sampling and monitoring of the rivers to verify their status and environmental quality, consequently found out that these rivers remain in fact being utilized by communities along them.

Paracale and Malaguit rivers are classified as Class C waters while Anayan river is listed in Class D waters as stated in the 2009 annual assessment report pursuant to DAO 34 series of 1990.

“This means that these Class C inland waters could be utilized as fishery water for the propagation and growth of fish and other aquatic resources, recreational water (boating etc.) and industrial water supply for manufacturing processes after treatment, meanwhile Class D waters could be utilized for irrigation, agriculture, livestock watering and industrial water supply for cooling, etc, ” Gonzales explained.

Though the average dissolve oxygen (DO) level for Anayan River was 6.3 mg/L, Malaguit River – 7.4 mg/L and Panique River – 7.4 mg/L concentration level respectively, however, pH (basicity and acidity of water), temperature (T) and Total Suspended Solids (TSS) were also considered in the classification and assessment. Results concluded that it passed minimum requirement.

The term biologically dead which likely mean lifeless (anaerobic environment) or zero dissolved oxygen is not applicable in these rivers since as per assessment by the EMB, there are various aquatic livelihood undertakings such as fish cages, aquaculture and crab fattening that are predominant in the area.

Moreover, the bureau assured the public that a more intensive and pro-active program of action is underway to maintain and hopefully elevate these rivers’ environmental quality. (EMB V/PIA)

DPWH assists DepEd’s Balik Eskwela project

Repainting of pedestrian lanes in front of school.

The Maintenance Section of the Department of Public Works and Highway (DPWH) Camarines Sur  4^th District Engineering Office in coordination with Department of Education (DepEd) participated recently in the 2010 Oplan Balik Eskwela Program in time for the school opening on June 15.

DPWH activities undertaken during the 2010 Oplan Balik Eskwela program include asphalt patching of potholes along Iriga City-Masoli Road and San Isidro-Hanawan Road. Other activities performed in support of the program include declogging of line canals along Baao-Iriga City-Nabua Road, Barangays Agdangan, Pecuaria and San Isidro-Hanawan Road in Baao, Bula, and Iriga, respectively.

In order to preclude the happening of an accident involving school children, re-painting of faded pedestrian lanes in front of Baao Central School, Baao Community College, San Vicente High School, and San Juan Elementary School in Baao, was also included in the different activities in connection with the 2010 Balik Eskwela Program of the DepEd.

Schools that benefited under the program were the Iriga City Central School, San Francisco Elementary School, Regina Mondi College, San Agustin Elementary School, San Nicolas Elementary School, Centennial Child Learning Center, and Ver Bum Dei School, all in Iriga City.

To sustain the program on removal of road obstruction along the national highways, and cognizant of the safety of students and the general public, the continued removal of all forms of obstruction, billboards and election paraphernalia installed during the recent election and immediate clearing of obstructions along national roads leading to school sites, including inspection of structural stability of school buildings in our area of operation were also performed by the DPWH.

*   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *   *

SM DONATION - Residents of Barangays San Felipe and Balatas, Naga City were this year's beneficiaries of SM Foundation's Share Your Extras project. Bags of donations containing clothes, shoes, female and school bags, caps, linens and towels were distributed to the indigent residents of the barangays recently. The SM mall based outreach programs of SM Foundation, which is in partnership with the DSWD, showed the power of people helping people particularly in reaching out to the indigents and calamity victims.

7th Premio Arejola opens

The Premio Tomas Arejola para sa Literaturang Bikolnon (PTALB) is now accepting entries for its regular categories, namely: rawitdawit (poetry), osipon (fiction), osipon na pan-aki (stories for children), halipot na pasali na pan-entablado (one-act play), halawig na pasali na pan-entablado (full-length play), saysay (essay), nobela (novel), and the new category, halipot na pasali na pan-pelikula (screenplay for short films), Carlos Arejola, chair of the region-wide literary competition announced recently.

Widely regarded as Bicol’s premiere literary prize, the annual writing contest is open to all Bicolano writers and literary enthusiasts based in the region or elsewhere. New, unproduced, and unpublished works written in any of the variations of the Bikol language (e.g. Bikol Rinconada, Bikol Albay, Bikol Naga, etc) that show literary merit and social significance are eligible for the competition. Category winners receive P5,000 and the Premio Arejola medallion, and are eligible for the P10,000 cash prize and the title Parasurat kan Taon (Writer of the Year).

Also up for grabs are prizes for the Rawitdawit para ki Ina (Poems for the Lady of Peñafrancia), a special category open to pupils of the elementary level, high school students and out-of-school youth not more than 18 years old.

The category was inaugurated in 2008 to engender the creation of literary works that articulates a young person’s devotional sentiments to the Lady of Peñafrancia and states, in poetic manner, the significance of such devotion in today’s world. Private catholic schools, universities, and public high schools have participated in the category, which awards a specially-designed medallion and cash and prizes worth 3,000.00 for the winner and his/her coach.

Likewise being accepted are entries for the Premio Bibiano Sabino para sa Librong Bikol, now also in its 3rd year. The category is open to book authors, book designers/ illustrators, anthologists/editors and publishers of Bikol literary titles. To qualify, the book must be written in the Bikol language, edited/ anthologized, designed/ illustrated by a Bicolano native or resident. Titles published and distributed between September 2009 and August 2010 are eligible for the said book prize. The winner will receive a testimonial plague, P5, 000, and shall be listed in the roster along with the winners of the regular and special categories and Lifetime Achievement Awardees.

All short-listed entries will be awarded Diplomas of Merit in awards ceremony on October. Entries for all categories must be received on or before August 31, 2010. For full contest rules, please log on to http://www.panitikan.com.ph or email SuratBikol@gmail.com.