By Gina Rodriguez and Ephraim Aguilar
Inquirer Southern Luzon
CARAMOAN, CAMARINES SUR--WHAT’S the buzz in this remote, fourth-class municipality?
Rumors of Hollywood stars being filmed on the peninsula’s beaches of powdery white sand are told by word of mouth and in entertainment teasers, blind items, blogs and online discussion boards.
“It’s ‘Survivor,’” the locals say quickly, even if many of them might not have seen a single episode of this famous reality game show.
“Survivor,” which isolates its contestants in the wilderness to compete for cash and prizes, and is known to choose exotic environments as its location, has been taping its French version’s next season here for 28 days now.
Tourism and provincial government officials are tight-lipped about the taping of “Survivor-France” in Caramoan because of a confidentiality agreement signed with its producers.
And the location shoot has been closed off to keep kibitzers away.
Gota beach in Caramoan’s northeastern coast is the jump-off point to islets of limestone, granite and volcanic rocks scattered by the bay near the Philippine sea.
It is an easy 30-minute tricycle ride from the poblacion, and it used to be a public place.
But since the onset of summer, a billboard announcing that the area is “temporarily closed” has been prominently displayed at the entrance to the beach in Barangay Ilawod, at least four kilometers away from the town proper.
The billboard says the “massive developments” accompanying the Camarines Sur government’s construction of resort facilities and amenities are underway, and that the closure is for the “safety and security of everybody.”
Sneak peek
Early this month, an 18-year-old in a yellow shirt who was about to report for housekeeping duties at 7 a.m. managed to give kibitzers a peek of what’s happening in Gota.
According to the teenager, who begged not to be named for fear of losing her job, French guests are occupying 73 newly built cabanas on the beach.
She said she was hired from Naga City and was part of a 30-member housekeeping staff hired as contractual employees by the provincial government to serve the guests.
“I have been working there for more than two months now and my contract will end in a week’s time (or on April 15). But there will be a housekeeping staff here until the ‘Survivor’ taping is over,” she said.
A printed schedule—shown to the Inquirer by an employee of the municipal government of Caramoan on condition of anonymity—states that the duration of the shoot is from March 26 to May 3.
Edwin Remodo, administrator of the municipal government, said a memorandum of agreement (MOA) justifying the building of tourism-related infrastructure in Gota was signed between the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Protected Area Management Board and Camarines Sur during the term of then Caramoan Mayor Francis Benimerito.
The provincial government gained the right to manage and administer the Caramoan National Park, specifically Gota beach, which covers around 298 hectares, at the signing of the MOA on March 16, 2005, according to a copy of the agreement furnished the Inquirer.
The signatories were then Environment Secretary Michael Defensor (for the DENR-PAMB) and Gov. Luis Raymund “LRay” Villafuerte Jr. (for Camarines Sur.
Mum’s the word
Caramoan Mayor Constantino Cordial was on an official trip when the Inquirer visited his office to seek his comments on the closure of Gota beach.
He refused to issue a statement even on his mobile phone, saying he would rather speak with reporters personally.
In the poblacion, no one could describe the magnitude of the purported “massive developments” at Gota beach.
There is a gag imposed on anyone privy to the activities in the closed-off area, starting with the civilian security men at the outpost near the billboard.
A youthful guard, who said he had come from Naga for the job, expressed the hope that visitors would understand that he was under instructions to disclose nothing, particularly to media people.
A tall man in a red shirt living in one of the huts near the security outpost said some of the residents were opposed to the closure of what used to be a public space.
But the man, who was hired as an occasional laborer for the construction work inside, said he was cooperating because he was optimistic that the developments would benefit the townsfolk themselves.
Vincent Balmaceda, a graduating accountancy student of Ateneo de Naga University who spends each summer vacation in Caramoan with his family, is annoyed that the beach is suddenly off-limits.
But like most other poblacion folk, the 21-year-old knows that the closure is meant to ensure the unhampered filming of “Survivor.”
Reopening in June
Apparently aware of the brickbats generated by the closure of Gota beach, Villafuerte said the beaches in Caramoan were there even before he became governor and that the town had been known as one of the poorer places in the Philippines.
“The problem is now that there are developments ongoing, marami nang nagsusulsol (many tongues are wagging),” he said on the phone.
Villafuerte said Gota beach was off-limits for three months because it was being rented for exclusive use for filming and to make way for the construction activities.
He said the target reopening date was in June, and that the media would be sent invitations to visit in May.
“How can you open it to the public now when there is filming and construction? Paano kung may makaapak ng pako (What if somebody steps on a nail)?” Villafuerte said in exasperation.
According to the governor, the amenities provided for the production team at the beach are to ensure that they will have a pleasant experience during their stay, “para bumalik (so they will return).”
He said the Caramoan government would benefit much from the development projects in terms of investors and jobs.
“What we’re trying to show here is that with such limited funds, we can earn much through ecotourism,” he said.
2 Hollywood films
Villafuerte confirmed that two Hollywood films are in the works for possible shooting on Caramoan’s picturesque beaches. (The rumor is that one of these stars is California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, but Villafuerte neither confirmed nor denied this.)
The model for development in Caramoan is the CamSur Watersports Complex (CWC), which is enjoyed by rich and poor, Villafuerte said, adding that it should be “maganda (beautiful), accessible and affordable.”
In mid-2006, the provincial government put up the CWC, an extreme-sports facility in a six-ha cable park complex with a 4.5-ha oval artificial lake around a mounted island.
Located in the 118-ha provincial capitol complex, the cable park is second in the country but the first one owned by a local government unit.
Villafuerte said the provincial government was “implementing a P200-million development plan” in Caramoan.
“We are working to make the place more accessible by land, air and sea so that it can become a tourist destination,” he said.
He pointed out that Caramoan could be the next Boracay, with the difference that development projects were being carefully planned so it would not become like the latter—“overloaded” and plagued with sewage problems.
He said that in the future, he intended to address the road network and airport facility to make travel easy for visitors.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Friday, April 18, 2008
Captors release Albay militant prior to ‘amparo’
LEGAZPI CITY--SURVIVING WHAT COULD have been another extrajudicial slaying, former Bayan Muna Albay coordinator Noel Samar, 33, who was abducted by suspected soldiers Tuesday, was dropped off on a highway in Guinobatan, Albay Wednesday by his abductors, who even gave him P100 “so he can take a ride home.”
Vic Mirafuentes, spokesperson of human rights group Karapatan in Albay, said Thursday that Samar was released in Barangay Banao blindfolded, with no traces of physical torture but in a state of shock.
After his release, Samar refused to be interviewed for security reasons, Mirafuentes added.
The victim’s wife, though, Rogelyn Samar, 30, tagged the military as responsible for the abduction, quoting eyewitnesses in the neighborhood, prior to her husband’s release.
Rogelyn told the Inquirer earlier that the family will file a writ of amparo if her husband was not surfaced in two days.
Mirafuentes said the presence of witnesses, the support of militant groups for the victim’s family, and media coverage could have been important factors in Samar’s release.
Samar was an active leader of the League of Filipino Students and became a Bayan Muna coordinator for Albay in 2001.
He was abducted by eight to nine armed men while tending his retail store in Barangay Layon, Ligao City.
Rogelyn said that, according to witnesses, two men with closely cropped hair were seen buying soft drinks from her husband.
She said the same men grabbed Samar and hit him in the head with a .45 cal. pistol.
She added that when her husband lost consciousness, he was handcuffed and carried to an L-300 white Mitsubishi van that fled while being followed by two motorcycles. Ephraim Aguilar, Inquirer Southern Luzon
Vic Mirafuentes, spokesperson of human rights group Karapatan in Albay, said Thursday that Samar was released in Barangay Banao blindfolded, with no traces of physical torture but in a state of shock.
After his release, Samar refused to be interviewed for security reasons, Mirafuentes added.
The victim’s wife, though, Rogelyn Samar, 30, tagged the military as responsible for the abduction, quoting eyewitnesses in the neighborhood, prior to her husband’s release.
Rogelyn told the Inquirer earlier that the family will file a writ of amparo if her husband was not surfaced in two days.
Mirafuentes said the presence of witnesses, the support of militant groups for the victim’s family, and media coverage could have been important factors in Samar’s release.
Samar was an active leader of the League of Filipino Students and became a Bayan Muna coordinator for Albay in 2001.
He was abducted by eight to nine armed men while tending his retail store in Barangay Layon, Ligao City.
Rogelyn said that, according to witnesses, two men with closely cropped hair were seen buying soft drinks from her husband.
She said the same men grabbed Samar and hit him in the head with a .45 cal. pistol.
She added that when her husband lost consciousness, he was handcuffed and carried to an L-300 white Mitsubishi van that fled while being followed by two motorcycles. Ephraim Aguilar, Inquirer Southern Luzon
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Kin of seized Albay militant to file ‘amparo’
LEGAZPI CITY—-RELATIVES of a former Bayan Muna coordinator in Albay, who was abducted by suspected military men at about 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, will file a writ of amparo if the victim hasn’t surfaced in two days.
Human rights group Karapatan in Bicol identified the victim as Noel Samar, 33, married with three children.
Vince Casilihan, a staff member of Karapatan-Bicol, said Samar was an active leader of the League of Filipino Students and became a Bayan Muna coordinator for Albay in 2001.
Samar was abducted by eight to nine armed men while tending his retail store in Barangay Layon, Ligao City.
The victim’s wife, Rogelyn, 30, quoted eyewitnesses as saying that two men with closely cropped hair were seen buying soft drinks from her husband.
“Our neighbors said that when my husband was about to give them the soft drinks he was grabbed and hit in the head with a .45-cal. gun,” Rogelyn said.
She added that when her husband lost consciousness, he was handcuffed and carried to a L-300 white Mitsubishi van that quickly fled while being followed by two motorcycles.
The eyewitnesses noted that the L-300 van bore the license plate number DTB-165, Casilihan said, but the Ligao City police found that the number was not registered with the Land Transportation Office.
“Our family thinks this has something to do with my husband’s militant affiliations, though he never told me of any threats to his life,” Rogelyn said.
She said she was at work when the abduction happened and when she got home police were already in the area investigating.
She said she went to the military command based in Barangay Tula-Tula in Ligao City to inform its officials of the abduction.
“The military neither affirmed nor denied they had something to do with my husband’s abduction,” Rogelyn said in a mobile phone interview.
However, she said, the family had decided to be vocal in accusing the military.
“Based on our analysis, the way my husband was abducted is the same way other activists are being abducted by alleged military units,” Rogelyn said.
Casilihan said Samar is the eighth militant leader abducted in the Bicol region since 2001. Ephraim Aguilar, Inquirer Southern Luzon
Human rights group Karapatan in Bicol identified the victim as Noel Samar, 33, married with three children.
Vince Casilihan, a staff member of Karapatan-Bicol, said Samar was an active leader of the League of Filipino Students and became a Bayan Muna coordinator for Albay in 2001.
Samar was abducted by eight to nine armed men while tending his retail store in Barangay Layon, Ligao City.
The victim’s wife, Rogelyn, 30, quoted eyewitnesses as saying that two men with closely cropped hair were seen buying soft drinks from her husband.
“Our neighbors said that when my husband was about to give them the soft drinks he was grabbed and hit in the head with a .45-cal. gun,” Rogelyn said.
She added that when her husband lost consciousness, he was handcuffed and carried to a L-300 white Mitsubishi van that quickly fled while being followed by two motorcycles.
The eyewitnesses noted that the L-300 van bore the license plate number DTB-165, Casilihan said, but the Ligao City police found that the number was not registered with the Land Transportation Office.
“Our family thinks this has something to do with my husband’s militant affiliations, though he never told me of any threats to his life,” Rogelyn said.
She said she was at work when the abduction happened and when she got home police were already in the area investigating.
She said she went to the military command based in Barangay Tula-Tula in Ligao City to inform its officials of the abduction.
“The military neither affirmed nor denied they had something to do with my husband’s abduction,” Rogelyn said in a mobile phone interview.
However, she said, the family had decided to be vocal in accusing the military.
“Based on our analysis, the way my husband was abducted is the same way other activists are being abducted by alleged military units,” Rogelyn said.
Casilihan said Samar is the eighth militant leader abducted in the Bicol region since 2001. Ephraim Aguilar, Inquirer Southern Luzon
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Spa regimen now includes Bicol’s ‘pili’ fruit
By Ephraim Aguilar
Inquirer Southern Luzon
PILI, Camarines Sur--The country’s growing spa phenomenon continues to discover ways to natural wellness and the cutting-edge regimen in a newly opened spa here makes use of Bicol’s pili fruit in giving a restful experience to spa-goers.
Adding to its branches in Tagaytay, Puerto Galera and Pampanga, the award-winning Nurture Spa opened its fourth branch at the Camarines Sur Watersports Complex (CWC) here last week in time for the 3rd Philippine Cable Wakeboard Nationals.
After a long, vexed day spent in extreme sports, “extreme indulgence” in revitalizing spa treatments may not just be a luxury but a necessity.
This need for a haven of rest in an active environment such as the CWC leads to a bankable niche for Nurture Spa.
“We’ve heard so much about the CWC, which we know is the big thing now. We wanted to be here because, basically, we have the same market—the young and energetic crowd. We think spa and wakeboarding are very complementary to each other,” says Cathy Brillantes-Turvill, Nurture Spa’s chief executive officer.
One of the pioneers in the Philippine spa industry accredited by the Department of Tourism, this spa chain offers a range of regional treatments that use local ingredients grown from where its branches are located.
In Tagaytay, where coffee is a main product, Nurture Spa created the Kape Barako Coffee Scrub (P1,500). The rich aroma of coffee invigorates the senses as much as the skin.
“What makes Nurture Spa unique is that, when we open a branch, we make sure that we first do a research on the traditional healing treatments available in region, then we come up with a spa-like equivalent for them,” Brillantes-Turvill says.
For its Bicol branch, the Nurture Spa explored the use of pili (Canarium ovatum), which is abundantly grown in the region and is considered as Bicol’s “flagship commodity,” according to the Department of Agriculture.
The region accounts for 82 percent of national pili production, the bulk of which comes from Sorsogon province, which is tagged by the Department of Trade and Industry as the “commodity champion” for pili.
“Pili is an excellent antioxidant. It has good moisturizing properties. It is rich in vitamin E. What we do is we crush it to extract its wonderful properties,” Brillantes-Turvill says.
The pili fruit is a drupe lined with a thin, smooth and shiny covering.
At the core of this fruit is a nut tagged as the Philippine’s almond and boasts to be at par with Australia’s macadamia nut.
The only known fruit oil of commercial importance in the world market today are olive and palm oils but the pili kernel is another oil source with a big market potential of good use in the manufacture of soaps, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, data from DTI-Bicol revealed.
Spa menu
In Nurture Spa, pili is being used here as a component in services like facials, body scrubs and body wraps.
The one-hour “El Ray Malumoy Facial” (P1,200) is a natural relaxing facial of honey, pili and yogurt capped with a soothing mask of cucumber aloe vera and an acupressure facial massage.
Brillantes-Turvill says it is perfect in softening and moisturizing sun-burned and wind-hissed skin.
The one-hour Daraga Pili Polish (P1,200) is an exfoliating pili scrub that removes dead skin followed by a mini massage using rich moisturizing aloe vera and coco-butter base.
The Magayon Coco Pili Body Cocoon (P1,200) is one-hour nourishing wrap using fresh squeezed virgin coconut milk and mashed pili nuts bursting with vitamins and minerals.
Nurture Spa also offers packages composed of three treatments for three hours costing from P1,600 to P3,700 and an ultimate spa experience called “Maharlikang Lubos (Royal Pampering)” for P4,400 complete with five treatments for three and a half hours.
Brillantes-Turvill, president of the Spa Association of the Philippines, also says they created a CWC-signature treatment, especially designed for wakeboarders, called the 90-minute “Ni-laib Herbal Pouch Massage” (P1,500).
In this form of treatment, aching muscles are massaged with steaming hot pouches of traditional Filipinos herbs wrapped in banana leaves.
Brillantes-Turvill says what is important in Nurture Spa is that their therapists are hired from local communities and are selected on the basis of their “healing attitude.”
Inquirer Southern Luzon
PILI, Camarines Sur--The country’s growing spa phenomenon continues to discover ways to natural wellness and the cutting-edge regimen in a newly opened spa here makes use of Bicol’s pili fruit in giving a restful experience to spa-goers.
Adding to its branches in Tagaytay, Puerto Galera and Pampanga, the award-winning Nurture Spa opened its fourth branch at the Camarines Sur Watersports Complex (CWC) here last week in time for the 3rd Philippine Cable Wakeboard Nationals.
After a long, vexed day spent in extreme sports, “extreme indulgence” in revitalizing spa treatments may not just be a luxury but a necessity.
This need for a haven of rest in an active environment such as the CWC leads to a bankable niche for Nurture Spa.
“We’ve heard so much about the CWC, which we know is the big thing now. We wanted to be here because, basically, we have the same market—the young and energetic crowd. We think spa and wakeboarding are very complementary to each other,” says Cathy Brillantes-Turvill, Nurture Spa’s chief executive officer.
One of the pioneers in the Philippine spa industry accredited by the Department of Tourism, this spa chain offers a range of regional treatments that use local ingredients grown from where its branches are located.
In Tagaytay, where coffee is a main product, Nurture Spa created the Kape Barako Coffee Scrub (P1,500). The rich aroma of coffee invigorates the senses as much as the skin.
“What makes Nurture Spa unique is that, when we open a branch, we make sure that we first do a research on the traditional healing treatments available in region, then we come up with a spa-like equivalent for them,” Brillantes-Turvill says.
For its Bicol branch, the Nurture Spa explored the use of pili (Canarium ovatum), which is abundantly grown in the region and is considered as Bicol’s “flagship commodity,” according to the Department of Agriculture.
The region accounts for 82 percent of national pili production, the bulk of which comes from Sorsogon province, which is tagged by the Department of Trade and Industry as the “commodity champion” for pili.
“Pili is an excellent antioxidant. It has good moisturizing properties. It is rich in vitamin E. What we do is we crush it to extract its wonderful properties,” Brillantes-Turvill says.
The pili fruit is a drupe lined with a thin, smooth and shiny covering.
At the core of this fruit is a nut tagged as the Philippine’s almond and boasts to be at par with Australia’s macadamia nut.
The only known fruit oil of commercial importance in the world market today are olive and palm oils but the pili kernel is another oil source with a big market potential of good use in the manufacture of soaps, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, data from DTI-Bicol revealed.
Spa menu
In Nurture Spa, pili is being used here as a component in services like facials, body scrubs and body wraps.
The one-hour “El Ray Malumoy Facial” (P1,200) is a natural relaxing facial of honey, pili and yogurt capped with a soothing mask of cucumber aloe vera and an acupressure facial massage.
Brillantes-Turvill says it is perfect in softening and moisturizing sun-burned and wind-hissed skin.
The one-hour Daraga Pili Polish (P1,200) is an exfoliating pili scrub that removes dead skin followed by a mini massage using rich moisturizing aloe vera and coco-butter base.
The Magayon Coco Pili Body Cocoon (P1,200) is one-hour nourishing wrap using fresh squeezed virgin coconut milk and mashed pili nuts bursting with vitamins and minerals.
Nurture Spa also offers packages composed of three treatments for three hours costing from P1,600 to P3,700 and an ultimate spa experience called “Maharlikang Lubos (Royal Pampering)” for P4,400 complete with five treatments for three and a half hours.
Brillantes-Turvill, president of the Spa Association of the Philippines, also says they created a CWC-signature treatment, especially designed for wakeboarders, called the 90-minute “Ni-laib Herbal Pouch Massage” (P1,500).
In this form of treatment, aching muscles are massaged with steaming hot pouches of traditional Filipinos herbs wrapped in banana leaves.
Brillantes-Turvill says what is important in Nurture Spa is that their therapists are hired from local communities and are selected on the basis of their “healing attitude.”
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Salceda calls Bohol gov ‘parochial’ on rice
By Ephraim Aguilar
Inquirer Southern Luzon
LEGAZPI CITY--GOV. JOEY Salceda slammed the executive order signed Monday by Bohol Gov. Erico Aumentado regulating Bohol’s outbound rice shipment, calling it a “very parochial” move.
The executive order allows large traders, as classified by the National Food Authority, to ship only 500 sacks (at 50 kg each) in a week while each medium and small trader can ship 300 sacks and 100 sacks, respectively, every week.
Aumentado issued the order after he received reports from rice traders about the abnormal buying trend for husked and milled rice by dealers from other provinces, which, he said, would prejudice the supply of rice in Bohol.
Salceda asked Aumentado to reconsider the order restricting the export of Bohol’s rice output and the Department of the Interior and Local Government to strike down the executive order.
“My province is a major rice producer but our big population results in annual deficit of 1.6 million bags,” Salceda said.
“While it is given that it is the duty of governors to protect the welfare of their people in securing their food needs, the best way to achieve that is to cooperate with national authorities,” he added.
Bohol is the top producer of rice in Central Visayas with a production of 167,411 metric tons of rice in 2007, according to the Department of Agriculture.
Salceda said that even if Aumentado cited the General Welfare Clause of the Local Government Code of 1991 as the basis for issuing the executive order, it could only worsen a precarious national situation.
“It would impede trade and increase the national required buffer. It would further heighten price pressures. The consequences are unacceptable,” he said.
“We’re all in this together. Everyone should do his share to help solve this crisis,” he added.
Inquirer Southern Luzon
LEGAZPI CITY--GOV. JOEY Salceda slammed the executive order signed Monday by Bohol Gov. Erico Aumentado regulating Bohol’s outbound rice shipment, calling it a “very parochial” move.
The executive order allows large traders, as classified by the National Food Authority, to ship only 500 sacks (at 50 kg each) in a week while each medium and small trader can ship 300 sacks and 100 sacks, respectively, every week.
Aumentado issued the order after he received reports from rice traders about the abnormal buying trend for husked and milled rice by dealers from other provinces, which, he said, would prejudice the supply of rice in Bohol.
Salceda asked Aumentado to reconsider the order restricting the export of Bohol’s rice output and the Department of the Interior and Local Government to strike down the executive order.
“My province is a major rice producer but our big population results in annual deficit of 1.6 million bags,” Salceda said.
“While it is given that it is the duty of governors to protect the welfare of their people in securing their food needs, the best way to achieve that is to cooperate with national authorities,” he added.
Bohol is the top producer of rice in Central Visayas with a production of 167,411 metric tons of rice in 2007, according to the Department of Agriculture.
Salceda said that even if Aumentado cited the General Welfare Clause of the Local Government Code of 1991 as the basis for issuing the executive order, it could only worsen a precarious national situation.
“It would impede trade and increase the national required buffer. It would further heighten price pressures. The consequences are unacceptable,” he said.
“We’re all in this together. Everyone should do his share to help solve this crisis,” he added.
Captors release Albay militant prior to ‘amparo’
18 April 2008
LEGAZPI CITY—SURVIVING WHAT COULD have been another extrajudicial slaying, former Bayan Muna Albay coordinator Noel Samar, 33, who was abducted by suspected soldiers Tuesday, was dropped off on a highway in Guinobatan, Albay Wednesday by his abductors, who even gave him P100 “so he can take a ride home.”
Vic Mirafuentes, spokesperson of human rights group Karapatan in Albay, said Thursday that Samar was released in Barangay Banao blindfolded, with no traces of physical torture but in a state of shock.
After his release, Samar refused to be interviewed for security reasons, Mirafuentes added.
The victim’s wife, though, Rogelyn Samar, 30, tagged the military as responsible for the abduction, quoting eyewitnesses in the neighborhood, prior to her husband’s release.
Rogelyn told the Inquirer earlier that the family will file a writ of amparo if her husband was not surfaced in two days.
Mirafuentes said the presence of witnesses, the support of militant groups for the victim’s family, and media coverage could have been important factors in Samar’s release.
Samar was an active leader of the League of Filipino Students and became a Bayan Muna coordinator for Albay in 2001.
He was abducted by eight to nine armed men while tending his retail store in Barangay Layon, Ligao City.
Rogelyn said that, according to witnesses, two men with closely cropped hair were seen buying soft drinks from her husband.
She said the same men grabbed Samar and hit him in the head with a .45 cal. pistol.
She added that when her husband lost consciousness, he was handcuffed and carried to an L-300 white Mitsubishi van that fled while being followed by two motorcycles. Ephraim Aguilar, Inquirer Southern Luzon
LEGAZPI CITY—SURVIVING WHAT COULD have been another extrajudicial slaying, former Bayan Muna Albay coordinator Noel Samar, 33, who was abducted by suspected soldiers Tuesday, was dropped off on a highway in Guinobatan, Albay Wednesday by his abductors, who even gave him P100 “so he can take a ride home.”
Vic Mirafuentes, spokesperson of human rights group Karapatan in Albay, said Thursday that Samar was released in Barangay Banao blindfolded, with no traces of physical torture but in a state of shock.
After his release, Samar refused to be interviewed for security reasons, Mirafuentes added.
The victim’s wife, though, Rogelyn Samar, 30, tagged the military as responsible for the abduction, quoting eyewitnesses in the neighborhood, prior to her husband’s release.
Rogelyn told the Inquirer earlier that the family will file a writ of amparo if her husband was not surfaced in two days.
Mirafuentes said the presence of witnesses, the support of militant groups for the victim’s family, and media coverage could have been important factors in Samar’s release.
Samar was an active leader of the League of Filipino Students and became a Bayan Muna coordinator for Albay in 2001.
He was abducted by eight to nine armed men while tending his retail store in Barangay Layon, Ligao City.
Rogelyn said that, according to witnesses, two men with closely cropped hair were seen buying soft drinks from her husband.
She said the same men grabbed Samar and hit him in the head with a .45 cal. pistol.
She added that when her husband lost consciousness, he was handcuffed and carried to an L-300 white Mitsubishi van that fled while being followed by two motorcycles. Ephraim Aguilar, Inquirer Southern Luzon
NFA stops use of ‘indelible’ ink to mark rice buyers
By Ephraim Aguilar
Inquirer Southern Luzon
LEGAZPI CITY--THE NATIONal Food Authority in the Bicol region has called off the use of “indelible” ink to mark the fingers of buyers of government-subsidized rice after the scheme drew sharp criticisms.
Jose Guevarra, assistant NFA regional director, said the agency had been hearing comments from various sectors and the media that the ink-staining of buyers “demeans the poor,” who are queuing for the cheap rice because they cannot afford the commercial varieties.
Commercial rice is now being sold from P28 to P34 per kilo here.
NFA rice is still pegged at P18.25 per kilo, but buyers are still limited to three kilos.
“We have been receiving many calls from the public. Many were asking why it was necessary to use indelible ink,” Guevarra said.
He explained it was not the intention of NFA retailers to offend the poor but to prevent repeat purchases by the same person on the same day.
Guevarra said the NFA had given orders yesterday, through rice trade organizations like Grecon, to call off the use of indelible ink starting Thursday.
“We have to be sensitive and considerate of public opinion,” he said in a mobile phone interview.
He said the NFA office in Bicol also advised retailers to devise other plans to prevent certain buyers from cornering rice stocks.
“Now we see that the most we can do is to appeal to the public to help authorities ensure equal distribution of government rice,” Guevarra said.
Philippine National Police Director General Avelino Razon yesterday said he would order an investigation of the use of “indelible” ink, saying that it could be a hoax circulated to cause panic.
Guevarra said the Bicol region was expecting the delivery of 134,000 bags of rice from Vietnam this Friday and another 204,000 bags on April 16.
The NFA sells 9,112 bags of rice daily in the region, he said.
Inquirer Southern Luzon
LEGAZPI CITY--THE NATIONal Food Authority in the Bicol region has called off the use of “indelible” ink to mark the fingers of buyers of government-subsidized rice after the scheme drew sharp criticisms.
Jose Guevarra, assistant NFA regional director, said the agency had been hearing comments from various sectors and the media that the ink-staining of buyers “demeans the poor,” who are queuing for the cheap rice because they cannot afford the commercial varieties.
Commercial rice is now being sold from P28 to P34 per kilo here.
NFA rice is still pegged at P18.25 per kilo, but buyers are still limited to three kilos.
“We have been receiving many calls from the public. Many were asking why it was necessary to use indelible ink,” Guevarra said.
He explained it was not the intention of NFA retailers to offend the poor but to prevent repeat purchases by the same person on the same day.
Guevarra said the NFA had given orders yesterday, through rice trade organizations like Grecon, to call off the use of indelible ink starting Thursday.
“We have to be sensitive and considerate of public opinion,” he said in a mobile phone interview.
He said the NFA office in Bicol also advised retailers to devise other plans to prevent certain buyers from cornering rice stocks.
“Now we see that the most we can do is to appeal to the public to help authorities ensure equal distribution of government rice,” Guevarra said.
Philippine National Police Director General Avelino Razon yesterday said he would order an investigation of the use of “indelible” ink, saying that it could be a hoax circulated to cause panic.
Guevarra said the Bicol region was expecting the delivery of 134,000 bags of rice from Vietnam this Friday and another 204,000 bags on April 16.
The NFA sells 9,112 bags of rice daily in the region, he said.
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
‘Indelible’ ink marks NFA rice buyers
By Ephraim Aguilar
Inquirer Southern Luzon
and Jhunnex Napallacan
Inquirer Visayas and Christine O. Avendaño
NOWADAYS, A FINGERNAIL MARKED with ink is one sign that someone is poor, who buys government-subsidized rice.
“Indelible” ink is being used in the Bicol region not to guard against flying voters, but to mark consumers who are each entitled to buy one kilogram of cheap rice per day.
The “indelible” ink referred to by the National Food Authority (NFA) is the ink from stamp pads that its accredited retailers use to identify repeat buyers.
In Cebu province, some retailers are using pens to mark the fingernails of those who bought NFA rice from them.
These measures are being adopted to prevent consumers from acquiring subsidized rice more than their daily quota—up to three bags of one-kg rice pack at the NFA and one bag at an NFA-accredited retailer.
Prices of rice have soared because of a tight global supply that is aggravated by hoarding.
Saying there was no cause for panic amid the rising prices of rice, President Macapagal-Arroyo yesterday assured the nation that her administration was pursuing an action plan to ensure that the “rice situation remains stable.”
The plan includes a crackdown on those diverting rice supplies and “pervert(ing)” the price of the staple.
Ms Arroyo said she would lead the charge against unscrupulous rice traders.
“Anyone caught stealing rice from the people will be thrown in jail,” she said at the start of her weekly meeting with the Cabinet.
In a speech aired live on government television and radio, Ms Arroyo said the government was taking “decisive action” to prevent the global rise in the price of basic commodities like fuel and rice from becoming a crisis in the country.
She underscored the importance for the public to “understand what exactly the situation is and what we are doing about it.”
Don’t panic
“It would be unfortunate if panic overtook logic, for we will endure and survive this moment and come through it stronger,” Ms Arroyo said.
Jose Guevarra, assistant NFA regional director in Bicol, yesterday said that retailers had initiated the marking scheme to regulate the distribution of NFA rice to consumers waiting in long queues.
Despite the limit, people still find ways to go around it.
Guevarra said some consumers would have other family members line up for the NFA rice, which is being retailed at P18.25 per kilo.
“There are families with six members lining up to buy rice. Some people end up cornering the stocks. We need to distribute the commodity evenly,” he said.
He said rationing could be observed primarily in Legazpi City and other urban centers in the region.
Stable supply
Guevarra said there was no rice shortage yet in Bicol but defended the rationing of government rice, saying that the price of commercial rice is very high.
“People would, of course, choose the cheaper commodity. The NFA rice is still P18.25 per kilo while the commercial one would range from P28 to P34,” he said.
As of Monday, the NFA in Bicol still had 380,000 bags of rice, equivalent to a 44-day supply.
Exactly 134,000 bags of imported rice from Vietnam, good for 15 days, are to be delivered tomorrow at the Tabaco City port by two ships.
The NFA in Bicol tries to maintain a 56-day buffer stock for disaster contingency as the region lies on the typhoon belt, according to Guevarra.
Repeat customers
In Cebu province, NFA retailers have started selling a limited volume of rice to each buyer even as they marked fingernails to prevent repeat customers on the same day.
Some retailers, especially in Carcar City, have started using marker pens to mark the fingernails of those who bought rice from them, said Edgar Diez, NFA enforcement officer in Central Visayas.
The NFA has also tapped two parishes and increased rice allocations for “Tindahan Natin” outlets to serve the growing number of people lining up to buy the subsidized rice.
Church outlets
Diez said two parishes, one in Cebu City and the other in Bogo City, began distributing rice to consumers through the “Tindahan sa Parokya.”
The NFA regional office will tap more parishes to ensure that the low-income consumers can buy cheaper rice, Diez said.
He also announced that the regional office had decided to give additional allocation to Tindahan Natin (TN) outlets in the region because of the current situation.
The NFA regional office increased the rice allocations for all TN outlets from 15 bags to 20 bags per week because of the large number of people lining up to buy the cheaper rice, he said.
Diez said customers were allowed to buy from the authorized retailers one kilo to three kilos of NFA rice depending on the number of family members.
An official of the Catholic Church in Cebu said the Archdiocese of Cebu was ready to join in the distribution of the cheap rice to poor consumers.
But Msgr. Achilles Dakay, media liaison officer of the Cebu Archdiocese, expressed apprehension over reports that the government might consider distributing condoms to help solve the reported rice shortage.
Dakay made the comment after he heard Rep. Edcel Lagman pointing at the rising population as one of the causes of the rice shortage.
Three phases
In her speech, the President said the action plan consisted of three phases—securing rice supply, ensuring proper distribution, and enforcing laws to protect people against price gouging and corruption.
Saying that the country’s rice supply was “secure for the foreseeable future,” Ms Arroyo noted the recent arrival of 500,000 metric tons of rice from Vietnam and Thailand.
A total of 700,000 tons of rice from Vietnam, Thailand and Pakistan is expected to arrive this month, in May and in June, she said.
Public bidding
There will be a public bidding on April 17 for 500,000 tons of rice arriving in May, June and July, and another bidding for the balance of 500,000 tons in May for rice deliveries in June, July and August.
Mosques
To ensure proper distribution of rice, Ms Arroyo said that the government was seeking the help of the faith-based-community churches and mosques to help deliver the rice, especially to the poor.
Malacañang will submit to Congress a proposed Consumers Bill of Rights “that will help protect and defend consumers while strengthening penalties against those individuals or entities that abuse the right of our people to this basic commodity.”
Inquirer Southern Luzon
and Jhunnex Napallacan
Inquirer Visayas and Christine O. Avendaño
NOWADAYS, A FINGERNAIL MARKED with ink is one sign that someone is poor, who buys government-subsidized rice.
“Indelible” ink is being used in the Bicol region not to guard against flying voters, but to mark consumers who are each entitled to buy one kilogram of cheap rice per day.
The “indelible” ink referred to by the National Food Authority (NFA) is the ink from stamp pads that its accredited retailers use to identify repeat buyers.
In Cebu province, some retailers are using pens to mark the fingernails of those who bought NFA rice from them.
These measures are being adopted to prevent consumers from acquiring subsidized rice more than their daily quota—up to three bags of one-kg rice pack at the NFA and one bag at an NFA-accredited retailer.
Prices of rice have soared because of a tight global supply that is aggravated by hoarding.
Saying there was no cause for panic amid the rising prices of rice, President Macapagal-Arroyo yesterday assured the nation that her administration was pursuing an action plan to ensure that the “rice situation remains stable.”
The plan includes a crackdown on those diverting rice supplies and “pervert(ing)” the price of the staple.
Ms Arroyo said she would lead the charge against unscrupulous rice traders.
“Anyone caught stealing rice from the people will be thrown in jail,” she said at the start of her weekly meeting with the Cabinet.
In a speech aired live on government television and radio, Ms Arroyo said the government was taking “decisive action” to prevent the global rise in the price of basic commodities like fuel and rice from becoming a crisis in the country.
She underscored the importance for the public to “understand what exactly the situation is and what we are doing about it.”
Don’t panic
“It would be unfortunate if panic overtook logic, for we will endure and survive this moment and come through it stronger,” Ms Arroyo said.
Jose Guevarra, assistant NFA regional director in Bicol, yesterday said that retailers had initiated the marking scheme to regulate the distribution of NFA rice to consumers waiting in long queues.
Despite the limit, people still find ways to go around it.
Guevarra said some consumers would have other family members line up for the NFA rice, which is being retailed at P18.25 per kilo.
“There are families with six members lining up to buy rice. Some people end up cornering the stocks. We need to distribute the commodity evenly,” he said.
He said rationing could be observed primarily in Legazpi City and other urban centers in the region.
Stable supply
Guevarra said there was no rice shortage yet in Bicol but defended the rationing of government rice, saying that the price of commercial rice is very high.
“People would, of course, choose the cheaper commodity. The NFA rice is still P18.25 per kilo while the commercial one would range from P28 to P34,” he said.
As of Monday, the NFA in Bicol still had 380,000 bags of rice, equivalent to a 44-day supply.
Exactly 134,000 bags of imported rice from Vietnam, good for 15 days, are to be delivered tomorrow at the Tabaco City port by two ships.
The NFA in Bicol tries to maintain a 56-day buffer stock for disaster contingency as the region lies on the typhoon belt, according to Guevarra.
Repeat customers
In Cebu province, NFA retailers have started selling a limited volume of rice to each buyer even as they marked fingernails to prevent repeat customers on the same day.
Some retailers, especially in Carcar City, have started using marker pens to mark the fingernails of those who bought rice from them, said Edgar Diez, NFA enforcement officer in Central Visayas.
The NFA has also tapped two parishes and increased rice allocations for “Tindahan Natin” outlets to serve the growing number of people lining up to buy the subsidized rice.
Church outlets
Diez said two parishes, one in Cebu City and the other in Bogo City, began distributing rice to consumers through the “Tindahan sa Parokya.”
The NFA regional office will tap more parishes to ensure that the low-income consumers can buy cheaper rice, Diez said.
He also announced that the regional office had decided to give additional allocation to Tindahan Natin (TN) outlets in the region because of the current situation.
The NFA regional office increased the rice allocations for all TN outlets from 15 bags to 20 bags per week because of the large number of people lining up to buy the cheaper rice, he said.
Diez said customers were allowed to buy from the authorized retailers one kilo to three kilos of NFA rice depending on the number of family members.
An official of the Catholic Church in Cebu said the Archdiocese of Cebu was ready to join in the distribution of the cheap rice to poor consumers.
But Msgr. Achilles Dakay, media liaison officer of the Cebu Archdiocese, expressed apprehension over reports that the government might consider distributing condoms to help solve the reported rice shortage.
Dakay made the comment after he heard Rep. Edcel Lagman pointing at the rising population as one of the causes of the rice shortage.
Three phases
In her speech, the President said the action plan consisted of three phases—securing rice supply, ensuring proper distribution, and enforcing laws to protect people against price gouging and corruption.
Saying that the country’s rice supply was “secure for the foreseeable future,” Ms Arroyo noted the recent arrival of 500,000 metric tons of rice from Vietnam and Thailand.
A total of 700,000 tons of rice from Vietnam, Thailand and Pakistan is expected to arrive this month, in May and in June, she said.
Public bidding
There will be a public bidding on April 17 for 500,000 tons of rice arriving in May, June and July, and another bidding for the balance of 500,000 tons in May for rice deliveries in June, July and August.
Mosques
To ensure proper distribution of rice, Ms Arroyo said that the government was seeking the help of the faith-based-community churches and mosques to help deliver the rice, especially to the poor.
Malacañang will submit to Congress a proposed Consumers Bill of Rights “that will help protect and defend consumers while strengthening penalties against those individuals or entities that abuse the right of our people to this basic commodity.”
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