wow! meron bago dito...thanks sir Kimber :colgate:

^^ They're the only provinces without a thread here on SSC-Philippines. Kawawa naman sila. :lol:

Conal says power plant complies with Clean Air Act requirements PDF Print E-mail
Companies
Written by Paul Anthony A. Isla / Reporter
Tuesday, 10 March 2009 19:24

CONAL Holdings Corp. (CHC) has assured stakeholders that the planned 200-megawatt (MW) coal-fired power plant will comply with the Clean Air Act.

Conal Holdings Corp. told residents of Kamanga, Kiamba and Maasim in Sarangani province in a recent forum the company will be more than willing to explain all the technical aspects of the project to interested parties.

In a statement, Joseph Nocos, CHC vice president for business development, said he told the stakeholders that there are current technologies that keep emissions way below the standards set by the Philippine Clean Air Act. These technologies, he said, can even comply with the more stringent emissions standards set by the World Bank.

CHC said the public consultation was held to provide the venue for arguments of the contending parties. It added that the caucus helped them and the residents clarify issues on the impact of the project to the environment and general health of those living in the host villages of Kamanga and Maasim, as well as the technical requirements of the plant, including the air, water and solid wastes and measures to prevent environmental damage posed by the $450-million power facility.

The holding a public forum is one of the requirements before it can secure an environmental compliance certificate (ECC) for the proposed project.

CHC said the public forum was initiated by a team from the Environment Management Bureau (EMB), an agency under the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, which is evaluating the ECC application for the proposed power plant.

Headed by Cesar Siador Jr. of the EMB environment impact assessment division, the team declined to give the timetable for the release of its decision.

Maasim Mayor Anecito Lopez Jr. the caucus was attended by more than 3,500 residents,

The National Transmission Corp.-Mindanao earlier warned of a shortfall in power supply following the steady growth in demand unless new generating plants are put into commission.

For its part, the Department of Energy (DOE) said power demand is expected to grow steadily at 4.3 percent annually. For one, the Mindanao power grid is expected face a power supply shortfall of 84 MW and will further increase to 174 MW in 2011 and by 270 MW in 2012.

At present, only the 42.5-MW Sibulan hydro power plant located in Davao del Sur is set for commissioning late this year.

http://businessmirror.com.ph/home/companies/7248-conal-says-power-plant-complies-with-clean-air-act-requirements.html

^^ They're the only provinces without a thread here on SSC-Philippines. Kawawa naman sila. :lol:

also Maguindanao and Cotabato City :D

Sarangani gov prepares to assume RDC XII leadership (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090310.htm&no=95&r=r12&y=&mo=)

General Santos City -- In preparation for his assumption as Chairperson of Regional Development Council (RDC) XII, Sarangani Governor Migs Domiguez was given a full briefing by the RDC XII Secretariat led by the OIC Vice-Chairperson Teresita Socorro C. Ramos, OIC Regional Director of NEDA XII on 05 March 2009.

Governor Dominguez was appointed by Her Excellency President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on February 17, 2009. Prior to his appointment as acting Chairperson, Gov. Dominguez ably presided the last meeting of the Council on December 15, 2009 upon unanimous approval of the body. He also convened a special meeting of the Council on 13 January 2009 at Intramuros, as part of the opening of the Wow Philippines Kuyog Tanu Ko Kalilintad hosted by the Department of Tourism.

OIC Vice-Chairperson Ramos provided Gov. Dominguez an overview of the mandates, functions, structure and composition of the Council, as well as, on operational concerns particularly those that need the review and approval of the Chairperson.

She also shared with the Governor some issues regarding the pending organization of the Advisory Committee (AdCom) which is composed of the members of the Region XII House of Representatives and of the Executive Committee. Gov. Dominguez also conveyed the need to be assisted by a Co-Chairperson who would come from the Private Sector to forge stronger partnership and collaboration for regional development.

As RDC XII Chairperson he also expressed his concern over the relevance of the RDC on the lives of the people in the region, particularly in responding to the real issues of armed conflict, disaster and poverty.

He pointed out that RDC XII needs to "sell" itself to its stakeholders, and re-invent itself, if necessary. Thus on this note, Gov. Dominguez shall be calling for a consultative meeting with the Regional Directors of key government agencies and Private Sector Representatives on March 20, 2009 in Koronadal City.

The meeting hopes to generate valuable inputs for the crafting of the Chairperson's development agenda which he will deliver when he is inducted to the post on March 31, 2009 during the 26th Regular Meeting of RDC XII.

congrats for a new thread..

Officials release marine turtle hatchlings (http://mb.com.ph/node/199209)
By MIKE U. CRISMUNDO

BUTUAN CITY -- Environment and local officials of Glan released some 72 marine turtle hatchlings in a coastal village off Glan, Sarangani province.

Community Environment and Natural Resources Officer (CENRO) Rhawell M. Pamplona, head of the DENR field office in the Municipality of Glan, released the three-week-old sea turtles of the Hawksbill species (Eretmochelys imbricata) last Wednesday in Barangay Pangyan, Glan town.

Mr. Wenie Vergara, Chief of the Protected Areas, Wildlife and Coastal Zone Management Section of CENRO Glan, said the release of the three-week-old sea turtle was successful.

Also present during the release were Barangay Pangyan Kagawad Soping Endilong who represented Barangay Chairman Hermilo de los Santos.

When asked what prompted the residents to take care of the marine turtles, De los Santos said he informed the residents earlier that slaughtering marine turtles and gathering their eggs are prohibited by law.

“Kun karnehon nato ang mga pawikan, mahimong makolob ang atong mga kaldero,” (If we slaughter
marine turtles, we will lose our livelihood) De los Santos said in the vernacular in reference to possible incarceration of offenders.

Due to hunting and egg gathering, the hawksbill turtle, along with eight other marine turtle species, is facing a very high risk of extinction, hence classified by the government as critically endangered.

yung koronadal city saan ba yun na belong?

yung koronadal city saan ba yun na belong?

South Cotabato :)

hope to see photos of Koronadal... murag ala man pud tingali thread nila.....

hope to see photos of Koronadal... murag ala man pud tingali thread nila.....

kauban sa Gen San city :)

5 hurt as explosion rocks overpass in Kidapawan
03/22/2009 | 09:18 PM

MANILA, Philippines – Five people were reported injured following an explosion at a pedestrian overpass in Kidapawan City Sunday evening, according to a Bombo Radyo report.

The incident occurred at 6 p.m. at Barangay Poblacion in Kidapawan City. The injured were rushed to a nearby hospital.

The incident followed an explosion at a bus terminal in Cotabato City that damaged two passenger buses before dawn Sunday. No one was reported hurt in the Cotabato incident. - GMANews.TV

tsk tsk tsk:ohno:

5 hurt as explosion rocks overpass in Kidapawan
03/22/2009 | 09:18 PM

MANILA, Philippines – Five people were reported injured following an explosion at a pedestrian overpass in Kidapawan City Sunday evening, according to a Bombo Radyo report.

The incident occurred at 6 p.m. at Barangay Poblacion in Kidapawan City. The injured were rushed to a nearby hospital.

The incident followed an explosion at a bus terminal in Cotabato City that damaged two passenger buses before dawn Sunday. No one was reported hurt in the Cotabato incident. - GMANews.TV

Blast near Kidapawan market injures at least 7
03/22/2009 | 09:34 PM

KIDAPAWAN, Philippines – A bomb exploded on an overpass near a public market in the southern Philippines on Sunday, wounding seven people hours after another blast damaged two buses in a nearby city, officials said.

The market bombing damaged a concrete overpass and rained metal shrapnel and debris that wounded seven vendors and commuters on the road below, North Cotabato Vice Gov. Emmanuel Piñol said.

The blast shattered windows in nearby stores. Soldiers and police cordoned off the area and intensified patrols, police said.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack and it was too early to tell if Muslim guerrillas, who have been blamed for past bombings in the predominantly Roman Catholic city, were involved, Kidapawan police Chief Chino Mamburam said.

In the earlier attack, a homemade bomb was hurled by two men on a motorcycle into the compound of a bus company in nearby Cotabato City before dawn Sunday, damaging two buses but causing no injuries, regional military spokesman Lt. Col. Jonathan Ponce said.

Ponce said the attackers were most likely members of the rebel group Moro Islamic Liberation Front who wanted to extort money from the bus company.

Many guerrillas resumed fighting with troops in August after peace talks collapsed over an aborted preliminary deal on a Muslim homeland. Clashes have erupted sporadically since then.

The guerrillas have been fighting for decades for self-rule in Mindanao, the homeland of minority Muslims in the predominantly Roman Catholic country. - AP

http://www.gmanews.tv/story/153778/Blast-near-Kidapawan-market-injures-at-least-7

Mura man pod diay og Iraq ng dapita oi.... nganong dili man na sila mahurot....:bash:

nah hala nganong nagdungan man ning mga explosion aning dapita....

daghan raba ko kaparyentehan dinhang lugara... :ohno:

dalha sila sa safe na lugar like pagadian...

nah hala nganong nagdungan man ning mga explosion aning dapita....

daghan raba ko kaparyentehan dinhang lugara... :ohno:

Oo, dalhon nako sila sa Iraq....:lol:

ngano dyud kaha ning mga tawhana noh, daghan man ta kaayo ug mga military dihang dapita, especially kanang doul sa overpass, naa man diha sa kilid ang station sa mga military. . . .tsk, tsk, tsk....nus a pa kaha ni masulbad...

Sarangani forms coalition against TB (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&r=r12&y=&mo=&fi=p090330.htm&no=26)

Alabel, Sarangani -- Local governments here together with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and local partners have formed a coalition to fight tuberculosis in celebration of World TB Day.

"We should celebrate by the way we are able to address the disease," USAID health chief Dr. Aye Aye Thwin said during an earlier event Friday (March 27) in Malapatan town.

In Alabel, officials of the Coalition Against TB in Sarangani were sworn to duty by Governor Migs Dominguez.

Community volunteers and members of TB LINC (Linking Initiatives and Networking to Control Tuberculosis) attended the celebration in both towns.

"Nothing is impossible when we work together," Governor Dominguez told volunteers and partners.

"The solution to our problem is government and community working together and providing adequate education and health for everyone. I thank the USAID for opening us the window for these opportunities," the governor added.

"Actions are needed to counter TB and the community needs our support," Thwin said.

Alcantara Foundation (AF) executive director Cecile Dominguez noted Malapatan to be the first municipality in the province to pass an ordinance for TB control. In Alabel, a TB control resolution is on its final reading.

AF is USAID's local partner in the fight against TB.

According to the provincial health office, Alabel has 70% case detection (of TB) rate and has 85% cure rate. Malapatan has 68% case detection rate and 98% cure rate in the past three years.

Alabel now has a TB Microscopy Center.

Both towns have allocated a special fund of P100,000 each this year for TB control.

Community volunteers under TB LINC reach out to far-flung communities to detect cases of TB. Malapatan has 84 TB LINC volunteers.

"By now, we have low detection rate but we have addressed almost all the cases of TB in our community," Malapatan municipal health officer Deomides Remitar said.

congrats to this new thread..

Cotabato village registers zero unemployment and crime rates (http://mb.com.ph/articles/202070/cotabato-village-registers-zero-unemployment-and-crime-rates)
By BONG M. REBLANDO, ALI G. MACABALANG

Kidapawan City – Rep. Jun Piñol (2nd district, North Cotabato) cited a progressive village in North Cotabato with zero unemployment and crime rates as a clear proof of his claim to address the Mindanao conflict.

“Peace is relative to development,” said Piñol, as he led several journalists to Barangay Loayon in Makilala town, North Cotabato, possibly the only village in the country without unemployment and crime problems.

Inhabited by 80 percent Bagobo tribesmen and a few lowlanders, Loayon enjoys stable peace and order, all year round, he said.

“Loayon could be the only village in the country that has zero unemployment and crime rates. Thanks to its rubber industry. It is insurgent-free as all villagers are working either in rubber plantations or engaged in trade and commerce,” Piñol said.

As this developed, the neophyte solon is urging the national government to allot more funds to agriculture, especially on high-value crops like rubber, oil palm, coconut and bananas, which command high prices in the world market.

“I am challenging Presidential Adviser on Peace Process Secretary Avelino Razon Jr. to pilot the worst insurgency plagued village by infusing funds for its local economy and empowering all villagers to be employed in their own farms. Surely, when stomachs are full, no one thinks of violence or venture to go to the mountains,” Piñol said.

Despite the bombings that jolted Makilala town, leaving scores of dead and wounded, Loayon, which is some eight kilometers away from the highway, have not tasted the tragic pains of terrorism, insurgency and other organized crimes.

With a population of over 4,000 and still growing due to economic opportunities, Loayon boasts of its hills and mountains that are 70 percent planted with rubber trees – the village’s main industry.

observation lang nako no... may nalabwan pa ang NPA sa mga MILF... grabe ilang mga bombings.... :ohno:

Women's group cites SMI for environmental conservation (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090413.htm&no=20)

Koronadal City -- The Local Council of Women of Columbio, Sultan Kudarat, has cited the efforts of a local mineral development company in supporting their efforts on environmental conservation.

Council chair Cherry Bermudez expressed her appreciation of the support extended by Sagittarius Mines, Inc. (SMI) during a recent tree planting activity of the LCW and the Local Government of Columbio (thru the Municipal Environment Natural Resource Office (MENRO).

Bermudez said that their group, being a self-sustaining municipal organization of women, cannot by itself emphasize the women's role in community building without its partnership with government and the private sector, like SMI.

The activity mainly showed the vitality of the private and public sectors' partnership in social and environmental activities. With this, we are able to eliminate the negative impressions towards minerals development," she said.

Bermudez stressed that environmental protection and conservation is an integrated responsibility that requires the participation of everyone.

SMI communications manager John Arnaldo said the company has always committed itself to stewardship of the natural environment by continually initiating and giving support to reforestation programs involving communities and project stakeholders.

Over 300 women and youth volunteers from the 16 villages of Columbio planted about 420 seedlings of perennial and fruit-bearing trees in barangay Maligaya in Columbio.

Being a watershed area, Maligaya has been identified by the Community-Based Environment Monitoring Program (CBEMP) of Columbio as the primary source of water in the local communities.

CBEMP is a multi-sectoral group composed of representatives from the community – based organizations and the local government unit of Columbio, SMI, and host communities that monitors environmental impacts of development activities in the municipality.

SMI provided the seedlings and conducted a briefing on tree planting procedures. Volunteers were also updated on the developments in the Tampakan Project.

"We hope that by supporting tree-planting activities, we help raise public awareness and promote a multi-stakeholder collaboration in forest restoration in the communities", said Lauro Domondon of SMI's Stakeholder Engagement and Partnership – Sultan Kudarat team.

City doc runs Ilongo-style hospitality resort in Glan (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090413.htm&no=04&r=r12&y=&mo=)
By Russtum G. Pelima

Gumasa, Glan, Sarangani -- Dr. Delfin Besquillo traded his family businesses in Metro Manila for a beachfront in Gumasa, Glan. He finds solace here that he longs the community to cherish and for tourists to experience.

Dr. Besquillo, 77, is a retired dental surgeon. Along with wife Solficia and five children, he wants to see and share their Ilongo-style hospitality, finally turning their property in Gumasa to one of the newest and unique tourism destinations in Sarangani. Welcome to Coco Beach Resort.

"Tourism is about friends, about public relations," Dr. Besquillo mused.

Perhaps the dentist is more than a businessman from Manila who sold his properties there which they earned for 40 years and leaving prominent friends all for Coco Beach.

"I am going to spend my retirement here." Of course Dr. Besquillo means more than money which he articulated later. He could have chosen happiness this way if he realized earlier. Well, that's what the voice and the smile of the wise Ilongo old man was saying, that he almost forgot.

"At first I wanted to call it 'A beach with Ilongo hospitality'," he proudly said. Then, he asked, in big laughter, if I know how hospitable the Ilongos are. This Ilongo writer said yes.

Last December, 3,000 teachers in the province held their Christmas party at Coco Beach. The Besquillos earned only P10,000 for the whole day affair. The resort just billed the accommodation and that is all - P10,000.

"We want to be an alternative tourism sand and beach destination to cater to tourists alike. For all you know, not all tourists are rich," said Dr. Besquillo.

"That goes with our hospitality. Usually I would ask two or three guests who would spend their gay time here 'Nag- enjoy kayo?' (Did you enjoy?)" And then shortly, a 'thank you' for their stay. Dr. Besquillo said this three times that summer afternoon, always wearing a smile.

Owners of the neighboring resorts, Rosal and White Haven, are Solficia's brothers, Dodong and Dr. Ernie Adarna.

Rosal and White haven are both "high-end" beaches as Dr. Besquillo describes them which the Besquillos' Coco Beach would want to complement.

Rosal opened in 2005 and White Haven in 2004, according to Ronnie Saulda, a caretaker of the Adarnas.

Coco Beach is an added attraction when Sarangani Province celebrates Sarangani Bay Festival in May as a tribute to the bay, its bounty, from which coastal communities of the province's six municipalities depend for a living.

Entrance fee per person to Coco Beach is P30/day and P40/night. Kids five years old and below are free.

It has a store and very clean restrooms and bath. There are tents for rent but guests can bring their own tents and rent space for P100 overnight. Open cottages cost P500-P200 depending on the size you want.

Of course Coco beach offers closed/aircon cottages for P2,500 only, good for four persons.

The Sarangani Bay Festival on May 27-29 would again stage what organizers say is the "biggest beach party in Mindanao" at Gumasa white sands.

With sports such as beach volleyball and football, kayaking, skim boarding, jet skiing, bancarera, the 11-kilometer swim-across-the-bay race, and a historical reenactment of the history of the bay in the opening day, Sarangani Bay Festival, now on its fourth year, doubles the number of guests every time, according to the provincial tourism office.

Sarangani Bay has a rich natural sea bounty and history. Many legends as to how it got its name mystified both voyagers and tourists. It is a constant passage of the trading relationship between the Northern Islands of Indonesia (Sangihe Islands) and the southernmost tip of the Philippine archipelago for over 500 years.

Dr. Besquillo, a practicing dentist for 47 years in Manila where he and Solficia earned their properties, has not learned this much yet. He just said: "We only heard and see on the internet that tourists are overflowing and the political leadership is supportive of tourism in Sarangani."

Yet, the couple has decided to give up everything about the urban at their life's dusk, including their profession.

Their sons, computer engineer Delfin Jr. and Dennis, a commerce graduate, attend tourism seminars everywhere. Dr. Besquillo said their children are much more willing to manage the beach any time soon.

For once, Dr. Besquillo could share one more knowledge of life's profession to his children: the virtue of hospitality, with Coco Beach as the school.

:cheers:

^^contest diay ni sila padaghanay ug bombings pre? :lol:

Coco Beach Resort, GUMASA, Sarangani

http://mindanao.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/coco-beach-in-gumasa.jpg

http://mindanao.com/blog/2009/04/city-doc-runs-ilongo-style-hospitality-resort/

na notice lang nako ug I think maka benefit ang uban places sa mindanao kay atleast sa kidnaping sa mga IRC staff, dili na mindanao ang tagdaya sa media kung dili ang specific na jud na place. kay kung mindanao man gud, damay ang tanan, lain na dayon ang perception sa uban. thank god na educate na ang media most particularly those from luzon and visayan na nag cover.

Fire Tree in Sarangani Highway

http://mindanao.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/fire-tree-in-sarangani-highway.jpg

ALABEL, Sarangani (April 18, 2009) – A fire tree, (scientific name Morella faya, previously myrica faya) blooms with bunches of fiery orange flowers along the national highway to the province’s east coast going to Gumasa, Glan, where tourists can enjoy powder-white sand beaches. Sarangani’s coastal highway, connecting the east and west coast of the province and its only landlocked town of Malungon, was built by the United States in the early 90s. (Cocoy Sexcion/SARANGANI INFORMATION OFFICE)

http://mindanao.com/blog/2009/04/fire-tree-in-sarangani-highway/

Teachers’ Workshop

http://mindanao.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/teachers-workshop.jpg

ALABEL, Sarangani (April 18, 2009) – Arcie Mallari, team leader of the Silid Aralan, Inc., gives a lecture to teachers and youth leaders for the two-day workshop sponsored by Smart Communications, Inc. Friday, April 17, at the Provincial Capitol. They are volunteers for summer reading class mentoring to incoming Grade 3 pupils in Sarangani. (Cocoy Sexcion/SARANGANI INFORMATION OFFICE)

http://mindanao.com/blog/2009/04/teachers%E2%80%99-workshop/

Oxfam

http://mindanao.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/oxfam.jpg

ALABEL, Sarangani (April 18, 2009) – Vice Governor Steve Chiongbian Solon and Umair Hasan, Humanitarian Program Coordinator of the international organization Oxfam, sign a memorandum of agreement Friday, April 17, for the donation of early warning system devices to Sarangani “to reduce disaster risk”. The project is supported by the European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid Department through its Disaster Preparedness Program. Included in the early warning system devices and operations equipment are 1 unit Laserjet printer, 1 unit laptop, 2 units Garmin E Trex H GPS, 2 units Audioworks AMR-16HS 20W round horn with siren megaphone, 3 units Sharp Karaoke System and 4 units Digital Rain Gauges. (Cocoy Sexcion/SARANGANI INFORMATION OFFICE)

http://mindanao.com/blog/2009/04/oxfam/

http://img14.imageshack.us/img14/4806/250pxphlocatorsarangani.png
http://img14.imageshack.us/img14/4199/logojvj.jpg

Alabel is a 1st class municipality in the province of Sarangani, Philippines. Being the capital town of Sarangani and adjacent to the highly urbanized sea port city of General Santos [1], it has a population of 71,872 as of the 2007 census.

Alabel is largely based on agriculture with a high level production of dried coconut meat. Animal husbandry is the second biggest income earner, notably cattle farming. Other agricultural products are coconuts, maize, sugarcane, bananas, pineapples, mangoes; pork, eggs, beef; fish.

The economy has accelerated in the past decade driven by advances in global communication technology and the finishing of a modern highway that tremendously improved trade and transport.

Alabel Floating resort...

http://img14.imageshack.us/img14/4418/alabelfloatingresort.jpg

Isla Parilla, Alabel

http://img14.imageshack.us/img14/623/islaparillaalabel.jpg

Fisherman's Hall, Alabel...

http://img14.imageshack.us/img14/2985/alabelsarangani.png

http://img14.imageshack.us/img14/4717/munofglan.png

Glan is a 1st class municipality in the province of Sarangani, Philippines. Located on the west by Sarangani Bay, on the north by Davao del Sur, and on the south by the Celebes Sea. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 83,051 people in 16,990 households.

Glan is largely based on agriculture with a high level production of copra. Aquaculture is the second biggest income earner, notably milkfish and shrimps culture. Other agricultural products are coconuts, maize, sugarcane, bananas, pineapples, mangoes, pork, eggs, beef, and fish.

The economy has accelerated in the past decade driven by advances in global communication technology and the finishing of a modern highway that tremendously improved trade and transport. It has also benefited from its political role as the seat of the provincial government.

Gumasa Beach in Glan, Sarangani

http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/6725/gumasabeachglan.jpg

Another scene of Gumasa Glan

http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/3944/gumasa1glan.jpg

Kapatan Beach Glan

http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/645/kapatanbeachglan.png

Another resort scene in Glan

http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/4466/resortinglansarangani.jpg

A lovely couple in Glan

http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/1223/resortlovelycoupleingla.jpg

Rosal resort in Glan

http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/8395/rosalresortglan.jpg

Sunset at Glan

http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/2522/sunsetatbrodlouiewhites.jpg

http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/4444/phlocatorsaranganikiamb.png

http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/4093/kiambasealorchid.jpg

Kiamba is a 3rd class municipality in the province of Sarangani, Philippines. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 44,724 people in 9,095 households.

It is bordered on the west by Maitum, on the east by Maasim, on the north by South Cotabato, and on the south by the Celebes Sea.

Beach in Kiamba

http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/5086/beachinkiamba.jpg

Another beach in Kiamba

http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/930/beachinkiamba1.jpg

Celebes sea, Kiamba

http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/4930/celebesseasurfkaimba.jpg

Kaimba Sunset

http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/3558/kiambasunset.jpg

skimboarding in kaimba

http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/4043/skimboardinginkiamba.png

Tuka Marine Park, Kiamba

http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/2605/tukamarineparkkiamba.png

Tuka Marine Park, Kiamba

http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/2605/tukamarineparkkiamba.png

I miss Tuka. I miss Kiamba. Adto ko karong Mayo... mayo madayon...

noy kulas, hehehe pila ka oras byahe from davao to sarangani? especially that tuka.....

I miss Tuka. I miss Kiamba. Adto ko karong Mayo... mayo madayon...

20 bands, film viewing mark Earth Day in Sarangani (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090423.htm&no=65)
by Beverly Paoyon

Alabel, Sarangani -- Twenty local bands performed in a free concert Wednesday night (April 22) at Sarangani Capitol gym, capping a day-long viewing of environmental films at the Environmental Conservation and Protection Center (ECPC).

The bands from Socsargen (South Cotabato-Sarangani-General Santos City) played until 3am to a crowd celebrating Earth Day.

"Thru music we want to be heard with our vision about the world and how we can express our ideas to care and protect it," said Renan Garcia of "Rom Project", a band from Kiamba.

"Earth Day is an event to unite. We use music and our compositions as a tool to care for the earth" said Garcia.

Dodoy Pelima of a local band said "we are shouting one voice through music. We are one for our Mother Earth to live and enjoy in a clean and green home called earth."

The concert, organized by Capitol's Information and Communications Technology unit, was hosted by Sarangani provincial government in partnership with the Publishers Association of General Santos City and South Cotabato, RD Foundation, Alcantara Foundation, Sarangani Bay Prime Bangus, Smart Communications, K101 FM Love Radio, Sapol and Mindanao Bulletin.

Organizers said the EarthDay Music Festival was "one big reason to celebrate peace and environmental prosperity."

The Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office and ECPC led the celebration of the 39th International Earth Day with the theme: "Tubig at Lupa, Buhayin; Hangin, Linisin; Batas, Tuparin."

Among the films shown were "Inconvenient Truth" and "Blue Planet", documentaries on global warming and marine life. The show was open to the public at the audio-visual room of ECPC.

ECPC's film viewing was aimed at instilling "awareness to the participants (public) on the causes of global warming and climate change, its negative consequences to man and the environment, such as loss of biodiversity, and its connectivity to the various ecosystems with emphasis on the marine ecosystem."

Sarangani's ECPC is a frontline office that focuses on advocacy campaigns on environmental protection and has been involved in various global and local environment-related activities.

Noel Cariño, Sarangani's environment officer, said the film showing is one of Sarangani's initiatives in participation of the Earth Day celebration this year.

He said the focus is "advocacy for the protection of Mother Earth."

Cariño said the provincial government has undertaken in advance a tree-growing and ground-weeding activity at Pangol-eel village, barangay Alegria in the capital town of Alabel on April 17. Cariño stressed on the individual's responsibility in "helping Mother Earth grow in its natural way."

"Let's start to make Mother Earth regenerate in its own way. Help protect, conserve and sustainably manage our environment," he said.

He added "Mother Earth is only the best place where people live. The life given to us by God should be managed well. If we manage Godly our life, Mother Earth, will not be vanished."

Earth Day, marked every 22nd day of April, is a modern-day global environmental awareness movement which started 39 years ago in the United States and since then observed in more than 180 countries and participated in by almost half a billion people globally.

In the Philippines, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo signed on April 10, 2008 Presidential Proclamation No. 1481 declaring April as Earth month.

North Cotabato builds RP’s first school building made of bricks (http://mb.com.ph/articles/203554/north-cotabato-builds-rp-s-first-school-building-made-bricks)
By BONG M. REBLANDO, ALI G. MACABALANG

KIDAPAWAN CITY – The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said that school buildings made of bricks will soon dominate learning institutions in the province of North Cotabato.

DPWH District Engineer Leonardo Martinez said the two-room brick school building, which is inexpensive yet durable, comfortable and good looking, will be the first in the country.

Martinez said the new school will soon be opened for use by pupils at the Mariano Mancera Memorial Elementary School here in the city.

Built at a cost of P 1.43 million from the Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) of Rep. Jun Piñol (2nd district, North Cotabato), the novelty edifice would be inaugurated on June with Public Works and Highways Secretary Hermogenes Ebdane as guest of honor and speaker.

Martinez said it was Piñol who opened the idea of constructing the school building made out of bricks and find out how it would fare with those built with concrete hollow blocks, in endurance, costs, comfort and view.

“He wants something new but on condition the school building would be cost-efficient, durable, comfortable and beautiful. And out of nowhere, comes out a school building made of bricks,” said Oliver Jao, Piñol’s chief of staff on how the idea was conceived.

Jao said the neophyte solon plans to use bricks in constructing schools in the 2nd district of North Cotabato which is composed of eight towns – M’lang, Magpet, Matalam, Tulunan, Makilala, President Roxas, Antipas, Arakan, and the city of Kidapawan.

Meanwhile, Dr. Remy Rivera, schools division superintendent, said North Cotabato has over 171,000 pupils in 41 districts and 63,817 students in 134 public high schools and the population is growing fast wherein the need for more school buildings is a must.

As this developed, she hailed Piñol’s policy to set aside funds for the construction of school buildings out of his PDAF since the budget of the Department of Education is insufficient to cope up with the needs of a growing student population.

Martinez and his staff supervised the construction of the school building and found out that the period to build it is almost the same with school buildings made of concrete hollow blocks.

mas daghan man gud equipment ang mga abuysaf compared to NPA nga pobre ra sad... moslems from Malaysia and Indonesia ata ang supporters sa mga abusayaf :bash::bash:

^^contest diay ni sila padaghanay ug bombings pre? :lol:

any pic 'te?

North Cotabato builds RP’s first school building made of bricks (http://mb.com.ph/articles/203554/north-cotabato-builds-rp-s-first-school-building-made-bricks)
By BONG M. REBLANDO, ALI G. MACABALANG

KIDAPAWAN CITY – The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said that school buildings made of bricks will soon dominate learning institutions in the province of North Cotabato.

Roxas pushes for Sarangani economic zone (http://mb.com.ph/articles/203670/roxas-pushes-sarangani-economic-zone)
By MARIO B. CASAYURAN

Senator Manuel Roxas II on Saturday called for the immediate approval of Senate Bill 2983 seeking to establish the Maasim-Kiamba-Maitum Industrial Triangle (MAKIMA-IT) Special Economic Zone in Sarangani as the country’s backdoor link to the East ASEAN Growth Area.

Roxas, chairman of the Senate economic affairs committee, cited section 5 of Republic Act 7916, known as the Special Economic Zone Act of 1995, stating that Sarangani in southern Mindanao is a priority area for the establishment of economic zones.

The Liberal Party (LP) president who authored the bill said the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Japanese government have spent millions for the General Santos airport and the South Cotabato international seaport that would serve the Sarangani economic zone.

There is also the four-lane highway connecting General Santos city and Sultan Kudarat near the proposed economic zone, he explained.

Sarangani, according to Roxas, is strategically located at the southernmost tip of Mindanao, directly facing Indonesia and other neighboring East Asian countries, making it the gateway to the BIMP-EAGA (Brunei Darrusalam, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines-East ASEAN Growth Area) and the country’s backdoor to international linkage.

“This strategic geographical location gives Sarangani great potential for industry complementation with its proximate neighbors, compete in an international market and harness vast investment possibilities,’’ he said.

The measure, once approved, is expected to facilitate employment generation, increased family standards and improved human development for Sarangani through enabling an environment of increased equity investments, supervised by residents of Sarangani themselves, he explained.

Roxas explained that government would give incentives to businesses that would put up their production plants at the Sarangani ecozone.

noy kulas, hehehe pila ka oras byahe from davao to sarangani? especially that tuka.....

mga 4 to 5 hours ang davao-gensan-kiamba. ganahan ko mobyahe diha kay ok kaayo ang dalan. aspalto from gensan to kiamba. ok pud kaayo ang view between gensan and kiamba. makaagi og murag diyerto na lugar, nya cliff sa kilid. dagat ang ubos.

WATCH PACQUIAO vs. HATTON LIVE!!!
while enjoying your favorite SMB
on May 03, 2009 8AM on the ff. outlets:


:drunk:



Kis, Limketkai Center, CdeO

Mindy's Valencia, Poblacion, CdeO

Sunriva, Velez Street, CdeO

Big Dipper, Quezon Ave., Iligan

Sir Edwards, Malaybalay City, Bukidnon

Jive Restobar, Bonifacio St., Davao

Kanto Bar, Matina, Davao

Hagar's Place, Lanang, Davao

Crown Regency, Cabaguio Ave., Davao

Kampo Theater, National Hi-way, Tagum

Ultrabowl, Brgy. San Francisco, Panabo

Woodstock Restobar, JC Aquino St., Butuan

Arrester Restobar, Borromeo St., Surigao

Hillpark Hotel, Midsayap, North Cotabato

Iris Garden, Kidapawan, North Cotabato

Mabis Point, Polomolok, South Cotabato

Mr. Big Shot, National Hi-way, GenSan

Hotel Camila I, Brgy. Central, Dipolog

Park88, Pasonanca, Zamboanga

Tebi & Sean, Gov. Camins Ave., Zamboanga

$ :cheers1: $

Cotabato public school teachers find boundless ICT possibilities (http://mb.com.ph/articles/204047/cotabato-public-school-teachers-find-boundless-ict-possibilities)

MIDSAYAP, North Cotabato — Some 102 public elementary school teachers in this town were excited and thrilled as they were introduced to the nearly endless possibilities of information and communication technology (ICT).

The teachers concluded last week a five-day training on ICT and were provided with basic computer skills to improve classroom instruction and management.

“I’m very excited to incorporate these new skills in my teaching strategies.

With the aid of computers, I can now create colorful and exciting instructional materials,” expressed Joy Bugayong, a Grade five teacher from the Ilbocean Elementary School in this town.

She added that with computer-aided materials, it would be easy for her to catch the attention of the students and motivate them to participate in the discussions.

“Like a kid, I’m amazed at the possibilities as they seem boundless,” explains Bugayong regarding the capabilities of ICT, and added that she is eager to learn more and master some of the software programs.

Yvette Tan, Materials and Technology Specialist of United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID’s) Education Quality and Access for Learning and Livelihood Skills (EQuALLS2) Project, said the training is part of USAID’s goal to train 1,000 elementary school teachers in basic computer competency, particularly those in conflict-affected areas in Mindanao.

“USAID, through EQuALLS2 Project, signed an agreement with Microsoft last February to provide free training and discounted software to elementary school teachers,” she said.

Tan added that the partnership leveraged $150,000 from Microsoft to train the teachers in basic computer competency, which will complement EQuALLS2 project’s existing teacher trainings in English, Science and Math.

The hands-on training included basics in MS Word to help teachers prepare their lesson plans, use of PowerPoint to develop instructional materials; knowledge in Excel to help them calculate grades; and familiarity with Encarta to allow them to locate reference materials and check subject contents, facts, and figures.

In addition to these series of trainings, USAID will also provide 32 computer suites for Midsayap elementary teachers to access and use.

“The EQuALLS2 ICT initiative, which supports the Department of Education’s (DepEd’s) ICT4E program, aims to install 180 computer suites for use by elementary school teachers in EQuALLS2 target municipalities, rolling out through 2011,” Tan explained.

It was gathered that at least four elementary districts of this town will each receive eight computer suites complete with peripherals.

After the training, the teachers are given three to six months to practice, review and exercise their newfound computer skills.

The teachers will also receive free modules and materials on the lessons discussed during the training.

Calcent Link becomes 1st BPO in Cotabato City



http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/images/stories/Daily_Images/2009/April/04302009/regions-pic01.jpg



DAVAO CITY—A central Mindanao city now has its first call center, the farthest that anyone from the outsourcing and offshoring industry (O&O) has gone in search of an appropriate location outside the congested and expensive Manila and Cebu centers.

Calcent Link Solutions is now operating the first combined training and outbound call center in Cotabato City, according to the Growth with Equity in Mindanao (GEM), an agency formed by the US Agency for International Development and the Philippine government.

The call center in Cotabato City, 242 kilometers west of this city, is a partnership with Davao City-based BE Sure Outsourcing Co.

The company has already hired and trained several agents, mostly women, to call for accounts in the US.

“We train [aspiring agents] first and then hire some of them,” said Pete Marquez, Calcent Link owner and president of the Metro Cotabato Chamber of Commerce.

Calcent Link offers a 10-day basic workshop, covering US geography and culture, American English, communication skills development, call simulations, stress management and personality improvement.

“The English skills of our trainees were exceptional to begin with and that’s not an area of concern,” said Marquez. “We’re pleased with their persistence in selling.”

Calcent Link director Andy Orobia said its local agents “are proving as good as any other call-center agents in the country.”

“The opening of the first call center in this city is indicative of a new phase in the development of the business-process outsourcing sector in Mindanao,” said the GEM.

Cotabato City produces more than 1,800 college graduates a year, mostly from Notre Dame University, Cotabato City State Polytechnic and 17 other tertiary-level schools. Most of the graduates have majored in accounting and courses related to the medical profession, GEM said.

“There being few white-collar job options in the city, many of these graduates end up working in other places, such as the new wave BPO hubs of Davao and Cagayan de Oro, or further afield in Manila or Cebu,” GEM said.

“As these outsourcing hubs grow more congested, however, BPO firms are setting up auxiliary offices in other locations,” it added.

The statement quoted a local call-center agent, Sahanie Ali, as saying that “working here is convenient because the cost of living is low and I can go home daily to my family.”

“From my hometown in Sultan Kudarat [a municipality next to Cotabato City] I cross the Rio Grande de Mindanao by banca, then take a jeepney to work,” she said.

Renne Subido, GEM deputy program manager for business development, said “setting up BPO operations at the labor source has advantages for both the firms and their local hires.”

“There’s less attrition,” he added.

Subido said Cotabato City could be “a focal point for remote, or virtual, training and subcontracting,” citing moves of the O&O industry to look for satellite operations in other cities in Mindanao, such as [B]Zamboanga, Iligan, Cotabato, General Santos and Marawi.

wrong thread mani oi. cotabato city is in the province of maguindanao..

:bash::bash: mag libog lagi ning provinciaha ni... mao nga imbes naa ko tana i post nga info dili nalang kay basin masayop na pod...

wrong thread mani oi. cotabato city is in the province of maguindanao..

mao jud ni prolema hehehe
nawala naman ang thread sa cotabato city

North Cot sets up Citizens' Food Watch (http://www.mindanews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6319&Itemid=50)
by Malu Cadeliña-Manar

KIDAPAWAN CITY -- A group of 83 professionals from the academe, business, and peoples’ organizations in North Cotabato has organized a Citizen Food Watch to monitor the food sufficiency in the province.
The group was formed after a forum-dialogue held Friday at the University of Southern Mindanao (USM) in Kabacan town, a known rice granary in North Cotabato.


Food sufficiency, the group said, is the ability to produce enough food to support a population.
“But is there enough food for the nation?” asked one of the participants.


Abby Pato, lead convener of the Task Force on Food Sufficiency (TFFS) in Mindanao, said poverty and food insufficiency have disturbed many villagers, especially in areas where there is little or no development projects at all.


“But despite various development-oriented efforts, many are still poor. Poverty has not only persisted but worsened,” he said.


These development initiatives, he added, have often displaced rural families from lands they have been cultivating.


“Not only have the rural people been left with few employment options to support their livelihood, it has also become difficult to buy the food that they once used to produce themselves,” Pato explained.


The Citizen Food Watch of North Cotabato, according to Pato, has signified its intent to strongly support the campaign on food sufficiency.


The campaign is spearheaded by the TFFS, in coordination with USM and the Integrated Rural Development Foundation-Mindanao.


There are ways to fight food insufficiency and poverty, government officials said.


Dr. Hilario Antonio of the Malmar Irrigation Project in Pikit, North Cotabato, said the government must build roads, irrigation dams, and other infrastructures needed by the farmers.


Antonio cited the construction of Malmar dam project, which is already 57 percent completed.

If the dam becomes fully operational, it would benefit more than 20 thousand farmers from North Cotabato and Maguindanao.


Food insufficiency can be reduced by encouraging farmers to use high-yielding varieties, according to Rodel Mañara, chair of the North Cotabato Provincial Agriculture and Fisheries Council.


Fernando Nunez, administrator of the National Food Authority, said government has allotted some P100 million for the development of upland and white corn production.


“The plan will address food security problems,” he said.


Nunez has also proposed a bio-mass furnace for seed dryers and acknowledged the need for construction of grain storage facility in North Cotabato with a capacity of 30,000 bags.

Kidapawan mediamen join World Press Freedom Day (http://mb.com.ph/articles/204670/kidapawan-mediamen-join-world-press-freedom-day)
By MALU CADELINA MANAR

KIDAPAWAN CITY — Members of the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) in this city will celebrate World Press Freedom Day on Tuesday with former radio commentator Alberto Martinez who survived an attempt on his life in 2005.

Organizers said the activity will be held at Martinez’s “hideout” somewhere in North Cotabato.

Martinez has been in hiding since 2008 when the trial of the frustrated murder case he filed against three persons, one of them a soldier, started.

Martinez, according to City Prosecutor Al Calica, has been placed under the Witness Protection Program of the Department of Justice (DoJ).

Calica heads a special group of prosecutors from central Mindanao region tasked to follow up cases of media killings and harassment.

The luncheon meeting with Martinez next week is part of the NUJP’s celebration of the World Press Freedom Day.

During the meeting, Calica will brief the media on Martinez’s case.

Martinez’s attempted murder case is only one of the many cases handled by Calica.

He also keeps records of the case of Marlene Garcia-Esperat, one of the most hard-hitting print journalists in Central Mindanao who was killed many years ago in a town in Sultan Kudarat.

Martinez was shot in the back on April 11, 2005 in Barangay Oasis in Kabacan town.

Martinez is a blocktime anchorperson of Radyo Natin, a community radio in North Cotabato affiliated with the Manila Broadcasting Company.

He is also a pastor of the Church of God World Mission.

The suspects, he said, were probably slighted by his remarks in one of his presentations during his blocktime program sometime April in 2005.

National Museum declares "important cultural property" in Maitum (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090507.htm&no=45)
By Russtum G. Pelima

Maitum, Sarangani -- The National Museum of the Philippines declared here on Tuesday (May 5) the "Pinol Cave formation" area as "important cultural property".

Maharlika Cuevas, Director III of the National Museum, formally handed a copy of the National Museum declaration to Mayor Elsie Perrett at the opening of "Treasures of Maitum" diorama.

Important cultural property is defined by the National Museum as cultural property that has been singled out from among the innumerable cultural properties as having exceptional historical and cultural significance to the Philippines, though not sufficiently outstanding to merit the classification of National Cultural Treasure.

"It is hereby resolved, the Panel of Experts made it known its support for the declaration of the Pinol Cave formation and the surrounding area, Municipality of Maitum, Sarangani Province as an Important Cultural Property by virtue of Presidential Decree No. 374," the declaration stated.

"The archaeological site in Pinol and surrounding area are in need of protection from treasure hunting and illegal excavation and should be preserved for the present and future generation of Filipinos," it added.

Municipal officials, representatives from the National Museum and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts opened a diorama of the "important cultural property" showing replicas of the archaeological finds of anthropomorphic secondary burial jars associated with the Metal Age in the Philippines.

At a symposium, officials from the National Museum warned illegal dealers of selling artifacts.

In 1991, a National Museum team led by Dr. Eusebio Dizon and Rey Santiago excavated Ayub Cave in barangay Pinol.

Dizon described the finds as "amazing anthropomorphic potteries, which could suggest the backbone of our own culture. Never before have we seen such a magnificent archaeological assemblage."

Before Dizon’s archaeological team found the potteries, treasure hunters had already explored Ayub cave, leaving potsherds inside. Authorities suspect some of these ancient potteries were sold then.

But most of the original artifacts are now preserved at the National Museum.

"Maybe a civilization here was advanced in their time showing unique burial practices of preserving the death of their loved ones," said history Professor Lilian Grapa from Mindanao State University.

"Maitum is a burial ground. Therefore there must be a habitation," Grapa added.

Dizon explained secondary burial jars are so called because only parts of the fragmented bones such as the teeth, fingers, and legs are placed inside the pottery vessels and then placed into a bigger jar.

According to archaeological research, this part of Mindanao had a 7,000 years old forest. Some 5,000 years ago, the eruption of Mount Matutum and Mount Parker in South Cotabato covered the whole area with lahar.

"There were no people during this time. The earliest human occupation that we have documented so far is the Maitum for Mindanao, much earlier than Butuan (13th century) and Tawi-tawi (4000 years ago)," Dizon said in an interview last year.

"The designs on the Maitum pottery are characteristics of the Developed Metal Age in the Philippines," according to the National Museum declaration.

In April 2008 as a result of earthmoving activities, another cave site, Sagel Cave, was accidentally discovered in the area containing artifacts and human remains.

The Municipal Council of Maitum has passed Resolution 2008-048 declaring the newly found cave in Sitio Sagel, Barangay Pinol, Maitum, Sarangani Province as Archaeological Site.

"Archaeological activities in the area contribute greatly to scientific knowledge not only of the history of Maguindanao area but of Philippines prehistory in general," the declaration said.

North Cotabato launches pro-poor projects (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090507.htm&no=20&r=r12&y=&mo=)

Koronadal City -- North Cotabato Province is fortunate to be one of the beneficiaries of the government's pro-poor projects in Eastern Mindanao.

These fifteen (15) various projects cost P7,500,000 which include farm to market roads, construction of school buildings, health centers and barangay hall in the municipalities of Pikit, Alamada, President Roxas and in the City of Kidapawan. These projects are aimed at increasing literacy rate, hasten the delivery of services and spur economic growth in the province.

Secretary Gilberto C. Teodoro, Jr. of the Department of National Defense and concurrent project steward of the government's pro-poor projects in North Cotabato under the Comprehensive Livelihood Emergency Employment Projects (CLEEP) was the Guest of Honor and Speaker during the Launching and Turn-over Ceremony of the Pro-Poor projects held recently at the Provincial Capitol Rooftop, Amas, North Cotabato.

"We're here to extend help, to jumpstart development and extend assistance to people in times of crisis", Secretary Teodoro said.

"To lead the stewardship not only thru peace and order but, promise to protect people from the wiles of the enemy", he added.

North Cotabato Governor Jesus N. Sacdalan disclosed that five (5) projects were already implemented in the municipalities of Pikit, Alamada and President Roxas by the 524th Engineering Construction Batallion, 52nd Engineering Brigade, Philippine Army in partnership with the Provincial Government of North Cotabato.

"These are proofs that our national government is really that sincere in responding to our needs thru the Department of National Defense (DND) to sustain peace and order thru livelihood programs and development after the armed conflict" said, Governor Sacdalan.

These pro-poor projects are initiatives of Her Excellency President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and implemented under the direct supervision of her cabinet secretaries. The Department of National Defense created the National Development Support Command which takes charge in the implementation of various development projects.

The launching and turn-over ceremony was attended by the provincial officials, municipal mayors, barangay leaders who were recipients of the said projects, Officials of the Philippine National Police (PNP), Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), media and other line agencies concerned.

Maitum opens diorama of archaeological discovery (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090505.htm&no=59&r=r12&y=&mo=)
by Russtum Pelima

Maitum, Sarangani -- The National Museum of the Philippines, local officials and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts opened for public viewing Tuesday, May 5, a diorama of archeological finds with a miniature replica of Ayub Cave where anthropomorphic secondary burial jars were found.

The exhibit at the municipal hall coincides with the May 4-7 celebration of the town's 50th foundation anniversary and its Binuyugan Festival.

Called "Diorama of the Treasures of Maitum", the exhibit shows replicas of burial jars dug in 1991 by a National Museum team led by Dr. Eusebio Dizon and Rey Santiago at Ayub Cave in barangay Pinol.

The original artifacts are now preserved at the National Museum.

"These treasures were declared as important cultural property by the National Museum," Mayor Elsie Perrett said. "Every Maitumian should be very proud of this."

By declaring the Pinol Cave formation and the surrounding area of Maitum as an "important cultural property," a National Museum resolution said "the archaeological sites in Pinol and surrounding area are in need of protection from treasure hunting and illegal excavation and should be preserved for the present and future generation of Filipinos."

"For this we are truly grateful and we promise to protect this treasure," Perrett said.

"We are continually looking for non-renewable cultural resources that we have to protect and preserve," said Maharlika Cuevas, Director III of the National Museum.

"Our role in the National Museum is to give proper attention to our cultural treasures like this," Cuevas added.

A symposium that followed the ceremonial ribbon cutting of the diorama was packed by teachers from Mindanao State University and local teachers.

Dizon and Santiago wrote in their book "Faces from Maitum" that the burial jars bore radiocarbon dates of "1930 plus or minus 50 BP (calibrated date of 5 BC to AD 225) and 1830 plus or minus 60 BP (calibrated date of AD 70 to 370)."

Dizon, head of the National Museum's archeological division, presented a paper about Maitum burial jars at the 14th national Conference on local and National History in 1993.

"Our Southeast Asian neighbors have nothing of this type of archaeological find. We should be extremely proud as Filipinos in discovering the amazing anthropomorphic potteries, which could suggest the backbone of our own culture."

Sultan Kudarat nakikiisa sa Earth Month celebration (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&r=r12&y=&mo=&fi=p090505.htm&no=97)
by Andrew Hornales

Koronadal City -- Nakikiisa ang lalawigan ng Sultan Kudarat sa paggunita ng Earth Month celebration ngayong buwan ng Abril.

Iniulat ni Environment and Natural Resources Officer Daniel P. Robles na ang mga activities na isinasagawa ay tumututok sa pagtugon sa environmental protection at ang epekto ng climate change.

Kabilang sa mga environmental care activities na ginanap sa Sultan Kudarat ang Climate Change Hearing, Tree at Bamboo Planting activities at Solid Waste Management orientations para sa mga newly-appointed government personnel at ang mga Student Program for Employment of Students (SPES).

Nilagdaan din ang ilang mga kasunduan kaugnay ng Cave Biology Study sa bayan ng Sen. Ninoy Aquino at ang Lake Buluan Limnological Study na naglalayong malaman ang tamang hakbang sa paggamit sa mga likas na yaman ng Sultan Kudarat.

Kasabay ng pagdiriwang, binigyang diin ni Robles ang mahalagang papel na gagampanan ng mga kawani ng pamahalaan sa pagtaguyod ng malinis at environment-friendly na lalawigan.

Sarangani Province is truly the Tourism gateway of Socsksargen Region. :)

Saranggani raw is the Boracay of the South... True?

Saranggani raw is the Boracay of the South... True?

^^Sarangani has more culture than Boracay. --> this is just my personal opinion. :D

Mt Apo climbing boosts Kidapawan tourism industry (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090508.htm&no=75&r=r12&y=&mo=)


Kidapawan City -- Local officials of Kidapawan City are elated over the increase in the number of tourists eager to climbs the country’s highest peak and enjoy the scenery of Mt. Apo.

Kidapawan City Mayor Rodolfo Gantungco noted that the number of tourists this year has increased despite the local government’s move to limit the number of Mt. Apo climbers in a bid to protect the environment and preserve its bountiful natural resources.

"Sa totoo lang, ang ganda ng turnout ng tourism especially ng domestic tourist patungong Mt. Apo. During this summertime lumampas kami sa climbing capacity," Gantuangco said.

Since they expect more domestic tourist who are interested to join the Mt. Apo summer trek, the mayor said they have to limit the number of climbing hours just to be able to accommodate them.

"We really intend to limit the number of the mountain climbers, pero talagang napakarami ng gustong umakyat kaya ang ginawa naming ni-limit na lang iyong number of climbing hours," he said.

Aside from mountain climbing, domestic tourist coming from all over Mindanao also enjoy the cold and hot water spring, tranquility and natural beauty of the Lake Agco resort and spa at the foot of Mt. Apo.

The locals government units supervises the operations and maintenance of the Lake Agco resort and spa which continues to draw foreign and local tourist attraction.

Sarangani cave yields human-shaped potteries (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090508.htm&no=79)


Maitum, Sarangani -- Long after the National Museum excavated a cave in barangay Pinol, the archaeological discovery was never heard among locals and no media report came out about it. In 1996, Sarangani information officer Serafin Ramos Jr. got a tip from a friend in the Moro National Liberation Front. This is his story released in October 1996.

The peace agreement between the government and the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) may not bring immediate peace to Mindanao but it brings hope that further studies on anthropomorphic potteries associated with the Metal Age in the Philippines (circa 500 B.C. to 500 A.D.) can now be made where they were found in Ayub Cave, barangay Pinol in Maitum, Sarangani.

Villagers found the cave in 1991 while searching for birds' nest, a delicacy. (It is said that birds gather seaweeds for their nest in the coastal village, using their saliva to clump the weeds).

Instead, they unearthed a national treasure--hundreds of pottery, many of them designed and shaped like humans, some with heads and breasts.

"No one dared touch them because they were afraid," said Hadji Ayub Mindog, who owns the land where the cave is. Mindog has been MNLF vice chair for military affairs in the area since 1972. The village has been under MNLF control since.

Ayub recalls that among the other things found inside the cave was an earthenware table; on top of which were arrows pointing at various directions. The table and most of the potteries were destroyed or buried during an earthquake, he says.

The cave is a stone's throw from the village proper, near a mosque. One has to pass through thick shrubbery and climb about two meters on an 80-degree slope to reach it.

The mouth of the cave, where shards of pottery are still scattered, is two meters high and three meters wide.

Its insides are now flooded. Villagers say it is difficult to pump out the water.

Ayub recalls that when the potteries were removed, human bones and skulls were also discovered.

"We retrieved so many skeletal remains, I think about three sacks," he said. Some were brought to Manila while the others were buried elsewhere outside the cave.

Villagers claim the skulls and bones were smaller than today's humans.

Dr. Eusebio Dizon, museum curator 1 of the Archaeology Division of the National Museum, said a paper presented at the 14th National Conference on Local and National History in 1993 that the Ayub Artifacts were "made of earthenware potteries designed and formed like human figures with complete facial expressions."

The potteries "were used as covers for secondary and/or multiple burial jars and can be associated to the Metal Age in the Philippines, circa 500BC to AD 500," Dizon said. "These artifacts may have been our material evidence of the backbone of the Maguindanao prehistory and of the course, the Filipino people in general."

Dizon reported having seen at the site at least 25 pieces of restorable anthropomorphic potteries in the collection of the villagers.

"What is important to realize is the significance of these fine cultural materials which are a product of human behavior, and forming a tradition in their own right that can be compared to the rest of other burial practices in the world," he said.

"The depiction of human faces and figures in earthenware medium itself has been a great tradition by the people who produced these artifacts for their generations, and for us to discover. This is a wealth of culture traditions which has been lost through the years, perhaps hundreds or millennia of centuries ago."

Dizon could not say whether the people who utilized these anthropomorphic urn burial practices are related to any of the remaining populace in the area.

"In order to validate population genetic continuity between the prehistoric people and the present generation, a DNA test should be conducted on the skeletal remains and the result of which can be compared with samples taken from the present population in the area," he said.

"What is certain though, is that these noteworthy cultural remains were discovered and archeologically excavated in the Maguindanao area. The Filipino people must work hard in order to reconstruct their origins as a people whose basis lies in their archaeological past," Dizon said.

One villager showed in his collection of three pots. Another brought out a sack and showed his, shaped like a human head.

"That must have been how the ancient people looked like," Ayub said. He still has two pots and one head-form at home. Archaeologists from the National Museum had convinced him to bring the items to Manila for reconstruction. He claims to have brought over 300 artifacts.

Today, he wants the items back, claiming that the National Museum promised to return them after reconstruction. "Until now, I have not received a letter from the Museum," he said.

Ayub plans to display the artifacts in the proposed provincial museum or return them to the cave, "So it will be a tourist spot in Sarangani."

National treasures, however, must be preserved and studied to better understand our glorious past.

The cave, guarded in the past by the MNLF, must continue to be secured against thieves.

Maybe this time, a joint team on MNLF and government troopers can stand guard by the cave while archeologists work undisturbed.

Ngano naghimo pa og bag-ong thread di ba naa na may SOCCSKSARGEN THREAD?

Ngano naghimo pa og bag-ong thread di ba naa na may SOCCSKSARGEN THREAD?

moderator nagbuhat, see page 1 :)

Kiamba, Sarangani Province

Welcome Manny Pacquiao
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U/C Pacman house
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'round Kiamba town proper
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Brgy Libe, Kiamba

Sunrise
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Moon
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Fishpond/punong
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Sarangani Bay 15-km swim challenge excites enthusiasts (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090512.htm&no=19)
by Russtum G. Pelima

Glan, Sarangani -- Sarangani's 4th swim-across-the-bay this year has stirred the interest of swimmers even from outside Mindanao to join the historic event in the country.

"It is the first and only 15-kilometer swim challenge crossing the whole stretch of the bay," organizer Nemrod Butil said.

This year, teams from Boracay and Palawan would race against other teams from Davao, South Cotabato, General Santos City and Sarangani who had joined during the past three years. Organizers said a maximum of 10 teams can join the May 29 swim from Maasim to Glan.

"They are very excited to come and join the contest and also to enjoy our yearly celebration of the Sarangani Bay Festival," Butil said.

Butil met last month in Boracay with events coordinators who expressed their intention to join despite airfare costs.

"They will be spending almost P100,000 for their team from Boracay to Sarangani, but their passion convinced them to come and join decisively," Butil said. "They are just asking for accommodation which of course we will provide."

Butil said Boracay and Palawan teams would like to model the Sarangani swim contest mechanics which follows the rules sanctioned by the Philippine Amateur Swimming Association.

Radyo Boracay would send a team to cover and broadcast the event live.

The Sarangani swim-across-the-bay is a 15-kilometer swim relay from Kamanga Beach in Maasim town to Reycon Beach in Tango, Glan, crossing the 230-hectare protected seascape of Sarangani Bay.

The swim challenge is one of the highlighted beach sports for the provincial celebration of the Sarangani Bay Festival each May.

"This is also an environmental campaign to let the people know that the bay is safe and clean," Butil said.

Six coastal towns of Sarangani depend much on the bay. Everyday, thousands of community fisher folk set out to the bay and the Celebes for fishing.

A story about a whale shark named "Putol" dwelling in the bay was often told by these fishermen.

According to the story, the whale shark is so named because, many years ago, a fisherman encountered the whale shark and nearly capsized his banca. Out of surprise and anger, the fisherman chopped the whale shark's fin and drove it away.

At the swim-across-the-bay challenge last year, boat marshal Jessie Esquibel with the swimmers of the Sta. Cruz (Davao) team claimed he saw "Putol" during the race.

Whale sharks are not man eaters. They are territorial mammals by the sea. Until now, some people believe "Putol" still lives in the bay to retaliate.

"He seemed to want to join the race," Esquibel said.

The Sta. Cruz team won the event last year and bagged the P50,000 prize.

Pacman - Boxer of the Decade

Sorry people that I've posted here.
From Ring Magazine.
http://www.ringtv.com/blog/663/great..._for_pacquiao/

Read on
===========================================================
Great debate: The case for Pacquiao
Posted May. 12, 2009 at 09:28pm
By Michael Rosenthal
Buzz up!
I stated in my Top 10 list on Monday that Manny Pacquiao – not Floyd Mayweather Jr. – is the best fighter of this decade.

Some readers agreed. Many didn’t. One guy was so incensed that he vowed to get all his friends to boycott me, which I think might’ve been going overboard. This isn’t life or death, after all; it’s supposed to be fun.

The reactions got me thinking: OK, what is the overriding reason I believe Pacquiao is better than Mayeather, as well as Juan Manuel Marquez, Bernard Hopkins, Joe Calzaghe, Winky Wright and a few others who might have credentials?

The answer finally became clear: Because Pacquiao moves me, as does Marquez to a lesser extent. The others don’t.

I acknowledge that a strong case can be made that Mayweather is the best fighter of the 2000s. He is the most naturally gifted of these fighters and has a perfect record (39-0, 25 knockouts). He has what it takes to win and does so, plain and simple.

If that’s how you define the best fighter, then he’s your man. God bless you.

That’s not my definition, though. To me, skills and winning are only part of the equation.

I admire the sublime ability, speed and athleticism of Mayweather, as I did Pernell Whitaker. They are virtuoso boxers, master technicians, certainly among the best of their eras. At the same time, there’s something missing with both of them, in my opinion. I call it the “thrill factor.”

To me, the greatest fighters aren’t just admirable; they’re part technician and all warrior. They, too, have exceptional skills and win consistently but also take risks, both in terms of who they fight and in the ring. They seek out the best possible opponents and then go to war, putting both their record and well being on the line.

That’s what fans pay to see – fights, not dance contests. They want those thrills, the kind that Pacquiao provided in a heaping dose with his one-punch knockout of Ricky Hatton on May 2.

“The great matchmaker-promoter Teddy Brenner once said, ‘There’s no room for perfection in boxing,’” said television analyst Larry Merchant. “What he was saying is that fans don’t come for a clinic. And I think, unlike other games, fans count. … I generally give a close round to the fighter who is making the fight, the aggressor, the guy throwing the most punches. Ultimately, I think that’s also how we judge who the best pound-for-pound fighter is if it’s close.

“When I look at the phantom list of greats, I see guys who sought out challenges. Robinson fighting LaMotta six times, Leonard fighting Duran three times and Hearns twice and then moving up to fight Hagler. That’s greatness. They didn’t always win but so what? …

“When I look at Pacquiao,” Merchant continued, “I see that he fought Morales three times, Barrera twice, Marquez twice and then moved up to fight the top guys at 140 and 147 pounds at whatever status they had at the time. That to me says a lot. I think Pacquiao is better than Mayweather. That doesn’t mean he would beat him because Mayweather is naturally the bigger man.

“If you look back at the record, though, I think it shows that Pacquiao is better. I want someone willing to take risks, someone who moves me.”

I feel I could build a very strong case for Pacquiao against Mayweather based strictly on accomplishments.

Pacquiao has faced better opposition, most notably fighting the three future hall of famers from Mexico –- Morales, Barrera and Marquez –- a total of seven times (going 5-1-1). Mayweather also has faced some elite fighters –- Genaro Hernandez, Jose Luis Castillo and Diego Corrales, among others -- but has been extremely selective.

Pacquiao won three major titles in three weight classes (WBC junior lightweight, WBC lightweight and THE RING junior welterweight) and beat Oscar De La Hoya at welterweight within a span of 14 months, a feat that has drawn comparisons to the great Henry Armstrong.

Under the tutelage of trainer Freddie Roach, Pacquiao has evolved from a one-handed brawler into a complete boxer-puncher who seems to be improving at a rapid rate 14 years into his professional career. I’m not sure people realize how rare that is.

Pacquiao and Mayweather have two common opponents, De La Hoya and Hatton. Pacquiao dismantled both while Mayweather barely beat De La Hoya and took much longer to stop Hatton, although De La Hoya had weight issues against Pacquiao.

“Let’s just look at the two fights against Hatton,” said Mike Silver, an historian and author of The Arc of Boxing. “Mayweather calls Hatton ‘the toughest fighter I ever faced’ and Pacquiao utterly destroyed him. C’mon, if Mayweather has the skills he professes to have, he should’ve dominated a club fighter like Hatton.

“And a prime De La Hoya beats Mayweather. Every time (De La Hoya) threw the left jab, Mayweather had no answer. A great fighter doesn’t react that way to a left jab.”

I acknowledge again that Mayweather’s proponents could come back with their own arguments. He’s a better boxer, he’s unbeaten, he usually wins easily, he’s won more major titles than Pacquiao. They probably have more on their list.

And they'll mention the fact that too much has been made of Pacquiao's last three victories, against tough, but limited David Diaz, a depleted De La Hoya and Hatton.

However, when you add the “thrill factor” into the equation, I feel that puts Pacquiao over the top.

Pacquiao and Mayweather probably will meet in the ring if the latter beats Marquez on July 18, which illustrates the spirit of the two fighters: Pacquiao would be the one taking the risk by fighting a bigger man.

That’s what Pacquiao is all about. And why I believe he’s the greater fighter.


Michael Rosenthal’s column appears Wednesday’s. He can be reached at RingTVeditor@yahoo.co

Now, That puts Manny Pacquiao into the league of Sugar Ray Robinson, Henry Armstrong and Muhammad ALi..

PAcquiao has just proven that he is not just the:

Greatest Filipino Boxer of All Time...
Greatest Asian Boxer of All Time...
No. 1 Pound for Pound Boxer in the World
8 Time World Champion (3 WBC Tiltles, 1 IBF Title, 1 IBO Title and (3 Ring Magazine Titles in 3 divisions - A historical feat that Manny Pacquiao holds)
6 Division Champion (WBC Flyweight, IBF Superbantamweight, Ring MAgazine Featherweight, WBC and Ring Magazine Superfeatherweight, WBC Lightweight and Currently IBO and Ring Magazine Lightwelterweight Champion of the World
4 Time Lineal World Champion (Flyweight, Featherweight, superfeatherweight and light welterweight) the best record in the world... only manny pacquiao has done it....

and now...

the Greatest Fighter of the DECADE...

how is that? Manny pacquiao is indeed/truly one of the worlds greats, isn't he?

Sa Matinago Falls unta mi pero change venue sa Nalus Falls kay accessible sa car.

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More Kiamba pics...

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Mt Matutum (taken from Samal)

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Indoor residual trainings conducted in Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090520.htm&no=64&r=r12&y=&mo=)


Koronadal City -- The provincial health offices of Sultan Kudarat and Sarangani has conducted a training on Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS).

These trainings were initiated by the Tropical Disease Foundation Incorporated (TDFI) through its Provincial Project coordinators and funded by the Global Fund-Malaria Component, Round 6.

The participants came from the identified priority endemic barangays of the two provinces.

The Center for Health Development-SOCCSKSARGEN Regional Entomologist had provided technical assistance as facilitator to the IRS training.

The DOH said, the objective of the training was to involve the community for sustainability of the program, as it also aimed to train individuals in the affected community the correct and safe application of a residual insecticide to indoor surfaces on which malaria vectors may rest.

Other aspects like safety, protective clothing, preparations (household/equipment), mixing, handling and spray techniques, procedures after spraying, disposal of remains of insecticides and empty packaging, maintenance of equipment, trouble-shooting and preparation of insecticide spray were also discussed.

The purpose of IRS includes, Epidemic control and focal spraying when cases continue to increase or if there is no significant decline after the distribution of mosquito nets and retreatment of nets. IRS can also be used as supplementary measure in highlands (unstable malaria, higher altitudes).

Indoor Residual Spraying is used for malaria vector control. However these strategies frequently lack well trained staff to apply the insecticides and maintain the application equipment. With good skills and quality application equipment, hazards to human health and the environment, as well as financial losses can be avoided, a DOH report said.

Pumunta aq ng Kidp1 dis month lng,
ang ganda tlga kya lng wlang Mall,

kunti pa kasi mga shoppers sa kidapawan... when i visited their central warehouse, eh kunti lang mga tao nakikita ko... pero malaki na rin yung central warehouse nila for a city like kidapawan... at mukha na rin siyang mall...

Sarangani Bay Festival opens in Kiamba (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090529.htm&no=A7)
by Russtum G. Pelima

Kiamba, Sarangani -- The fourth Sarangani Bay Festival opens in Woodbridge Beach Resort with a huge crowd and visitors from all over the country.

Sarangani Bay Festival, an advocacy of the provincial government for the protection and preservation of the bay, is the biggest beach party in Mindanao.

"Sarangani Bay Festival was conceptualized in 2006 mainly as a tribute to the bay," Mayor Rommel Tomas Falgui said.

In February 2006, then provincial Board Member Falgui passed a resolution for the formulation of Sarangani Bay Festival for the protection and preservation of Sarangani Bay.

Falgui said his town's primary livelihood is fishing. Neighboring towns of Maasim, Kiamba and Maitum have thousands of marginalized fisher folk sailing off everyday for hook and line fishing.

The three-day affair opens with lumba bugsay, a paddling race participated in by community fisher folk from the three towns for a 10-kilometer race from King's Haven to Woodbridge beach early morning.

"We are happy to join in this event. We feel that we are really part of the bay as the source of our livelihood," Sofonias Andoyo said. Andoyo and partner Reymar Cabañas won the race against 17 competitors.

Andoyo has four children he sends to school including his daughter, now in college, with fishing as the family's only income.

"Conquering this part of the bay through paddling our small banca is a grateful challenge," Andoyo said.

"We learn every time we have the Sarangani Bay celebration," Vice Governor Steve Chiongbian Solon said.

"This time you will be touring around Sarangani with beach fun and activities."

A 170-kilometer adventure race from Maitum town to Glan starts the next day. Racers will make stops in the six coastal towns and do each town's unique product or adventure such as diving in Maasim's Lemlunay diving spot and prepare the Maguindanao tinagtag in Malapatan.

"This time we have the whole country and foreigners witnessing our celebration," Solon said.

Beach sports, coastal clean up, artificial reef deployment, bay bodies bikini open, concert and party will fill the three day summer fun.

"It is our way of campaigning for the preservation of the bay," Mayor Rom said.

"You can also visit our wonderful waterfalls and Tuka snorkeling haven and marine sanctuary and enjoy the hospitality of the people of Kiamba," Mayor Rom said.

Artificial reef project kicks off in Kamanga (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090529.htm&no=A4&r=r12&y=&mo=)
by Macky Macavinta

Maasim, Sarangani -- An estimated 50 artificial coral reef domes are deployed today during the opening of the Artificial Reef Deployment project of the local government of Maasim in partnership with Conal Holdings Corp.

A total of 500 artificial domes will be deployed within a span of three months across three sitios of Maasim. These are Tampuan, Looc and Mangelen.

More areas would be identified for the deployment of additional domes.

This project spearheaded jointly by LGU Maasim and Conal Holdings on June 21, 2008 is in compliance with Republic Act 7160 which states "The participation of the private sector in local governance, particularly in the delivery of basic services, shall be encouraged to ensure the viability of local autonomy as an alternative strategy for sustainable development".

Artificial reefs are used as aggregating devices that will provide marine life shelter thus promoting the growth of underwater species from algae to corals as well as fishes. This is part of promoting a "self-sustaining marine community".

Conal Holdings Corporation is the proponent of a power plant set to be constructed in Kamanga. It would provide an estimated 200 megawatts of electricity to the Southern Mindanao grid by 2011.

Sultan Kudarat workers join Brigada Ahensiya (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090603.htm&no=81&r=r12&y=&mo=)
by Andrew Hornales

Koronadal City -- Everybody perspiring.

This was the scene in Sultan Kudarat when provincial employees stretched their muscles in an effort to make their respective department clean and beautiful.

In line with the clean and green beautification program, departments and offices under the provincial government did their part in this year's clean up program of the Civil Service Commission (CSC) dubbed as "Brigada Ahensiya" to instill orderliness in the workplace.

Recently, the CSC issued Memorandum Circular No. 12 series of 2009 which directs all government agencies to devote one to three days in May for office clean-up. This includes sorting of files and records, refurbishing of facilities, planting, repainting and beautification of offices and building surroundings.

Under said Memorandum, the "Brigada Ahensiya" which was launched recently, will be observed annually to ensure effective and efficient delivery of government basic services to the people.

Noting also its contribution to employee's morale and productivity, the clean-up program of the CSC is also expected to create a positive impression among clients, especially in areas where frontline services are provided.

In a memorandum relative to this CSC circular, Governor Datu Suharto T. Mangudadatu thru Provincial Administrator Manuel S. Lastimoso, Jr., orders heads of provincial offices to lead their employees in the clean-up activities as it supports the objectives of the just-launched 2009 Search for the Cleanest and Greenest Provincial Office.

Among the objectives are to make the provincial government a model for clean and green program and to promote best practices on proper waste management, thus making the capitol more conducive for local and foreign visitors.

To have an improved delivery of services and to keep the "SMILE Policy" in the bureaucracy, the Provincial Government of Sultan Kudarat has set aside the Thursday Sports Day for the Brigada Ahensiya last May 28, 2009.

.


the Beautiful Park of Kidapawan City
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj232/qwert_guy/kidapawan/Image098.jpg?t=1244890717

init jud na ky hinungaw man na sa Mt. Apo...never been there but i'm sure init na ky mas init pa man daw na sa hotspring sa may Makilala...

init jud na ky hinungaw man na sa Mt. Apo...never been there but i'm sure init na ky mas init pa man daw na sa hotspring sa may Makilala...


unsa ang init gkodses?:dunno:

pila ka jolibee naa ang kidapawan?


isa ra man siguro...

unsa ang init gkodses?:dunno:

well, sa may batasan, makilala, malasado imo itlog didto...ingn ako mga barkada mas init man jud daw na sa may lake agco so hard boiled na ang itlog didto...hehehe.sayang gani i didn't have a chance to go there before going abroad. but it's one of the places i'll visit when i go back home.

ah ok, kaadto na ko anang batasan... naa jud mga areas dinha nga mag aso tungod sa kainit... nindo raba ng mag humol ana kay its therapeutic.....

yup. nindot na baya didto kay sauna first nako adto didto, wla jud tindahan then wla pud entrance fee. pero last nako adto naa na changes, i think gi-promote sa makilala government.

.


the Beautiful Park of Kidapawan City
http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/jj232/qwert_guy/kidapawan/Image098.jpg?t=1244890717


WOW..GANDA NG VIEW

maganda talaga ang kidapawan....

Mas maganda kung magsilayas na diyan ang mga terorista...

hindi naman talaga taga jan ang mga terorista... bumibisita lang jan/....:lol:

^^
Kaya nga..Bumibisita...Pero wag palaging bumisita..:lol:

AFP attack MILF troops in Cotabato province, more civilians displaced (http://luwaran.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=815:afp-attack-milf-troops-in-cotabato-province-more-civilians-displace&catid=81:moro-news&Itemid=372)

June 23, 2009 - Patrolling of the 7th Infantry Battalion and 40th Infantry Battalion, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP)attacked yesterday the guerilla units under the National Guard and General Headquarters Base Commands of the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces – Moro Islamic Liberation Front (BIAF – MILF) .

MILF forces attacked by the AFP troops were holding positions at the high ground of Sitio Tubak, Barangay Pagangan and Sitio Bualan, in Upper Nalapaan in the municipalities of Aleosan and Pikit, respectively, Province of Cotabato.

AFP Composite troops started their combat patrol towards the positions of MILF guerillas at 1pm. Heavy firefight ensued minuets later at the high ground areas situated along the boundaries of Aleosan and Pikit, which is around two kilometers away from the national highway.

Civilian residents from Bualan and TukabUpper Pagangan evacuated to proper Nalapaan as the gun battle fumed up. Until the evening, civilians from areas adjacent to the areas of encounter continued to flee to safer grounds.

Firefight subsided at around 3:30pm when AFP troops started moving out of the area back to their barracks along the national highway after sensing the fierce counter-offensives by the MILF fighters. Several rounds of artillery strikes were fired by AFP troops but only devastated civilian communities.

No casualty was reported on the side. Accordingly, three AFP troops were wounded in action.

Meanwhile, the Nonviolent Peaceforce (NVPF), an independent international organization working for the protection of civilians in armed conflict, was quick to go to the area to help in the evacuation of the civilians and look into their situation at evacuation sites.

Ateef Hamid, NVFP Executive Director, conveyed gratitude to both AFP and MILF which gave the assurances to cooperate with the NVFP in protecting the civilians.

The AFP attacked on the MILF forces not under the command of Ustaz Ameril Umbra Kato of the 105th Base Command again confirmed that the ongoing military campaign of the government is against the entire MILF forces.

^^
Amff!!!!!:bash::bash:

nkpunta nq d2 b4, just 1 day visit,
kya lng wla aq npansing Mall,
meron ba?

Hello,
Does anyone have a picture of the new fountain built in front of the Sultan Kudarat Provincial Capitol in Isulan?

$450-M power plant to rise in Sarangani

By Amy R. Remo
PDI

MANILA, Philippines—The Alcantara Group’s power subsidiary, Conal Holdings Corp., said on Wednesday it would proceed with the construction of a $450-million, coal-fired power plant in Maasim, Sarangani Province.

The 200-megawatt project would be implemented in two phases, according to CHC project manager Gregorio S. Gonzales.

“Phase I will include the construction of the first 100-megawatt plant and the common facilities for the whole power station complex. Phase II, representing the second 100-megawatt capacity, will be started within 18 to 24 months after the commencement of construction of Phase I,” Gonzales added.

He said the power plant was expected to go on-stream commercially by late 2012, at the earliest.

CHC’s coal facility is expected to help ease the power supply shortfall in Mindanao, which is expected to reach 174 MW by 2011.

In October last year, Energy Secretary Angelo T. Reyes warned that this year, electricity demand would “outstrip supply in Mindanao.”

According to the Department of Energy, 2009 would already be critical for the Mindanao grid with peak demand reaching 1,525 MW, excluding the additional capacity requirement of 100 MW.

Based on its own estimates, CHC pegged the growth in power demand on the island at a conservative 3 percent annually, using 2008 (with a peak demand level of 1,288 MW) as the base year.

“At this rate, the actual reserves in the Mindanao grid will likely fall by 60 MW in 2014 and 16 MW in 2015 before completely going into a deficit in 2016. When reserve capacity goes down to this level, any plant outage in the grid will lead to power outages,” CHC said.

“Thus, the completion of the second [phase] of the coal project in late 2014 will just be in time to stave off a regime of rolling brownouts due to a shortage in capacity in the Mindanao grid,” the company added.

CHC—a joint venture between the Alcantara family’s Alsons Consolidated Resources Inc. and Thailand’s Egco—will put up the power plant within the franchise area of local power distributor South Cotabato II Electric cooperative (Socoteco II).

CHC said it expected prices of electricity in South Cotabato to drop by as much as 95 centavos a kilowatt-hour as soon as the facility goes on stream.

KALAHI-CIDSS continues to build community projects in Sarangani
(http://pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090706.htm&no=27)

Malapatan, Sarangani (July 6) -- Government's Kapit-bisig Laban sa Kahirapan-Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (KALAHI-CIDSS) continues its program of building collaborative projects for the community.

KALAHI-CIDSS representatives and local officials led the turn-over ceremony of a P2-million development center at Lun Padidu National High School Friday, July 3.

With the local government's effective implementation of the KALAHI-CIDSS' Phase 1 three-cycle project in partnership with the community, Malapatan qualifies for its Phase 2 project implementation.

"The development center at the school grounds is intended not only for students but for the community for various purposes," said barangay councilor Jean Delos Santos.

The development center is a covered court that can be used for sports and community gatherings.

KALAHI-CIDSS provided the initial fund of P500,000 for the first span of roofing for the project.

Gemma Rivera, Department of Social Welfare and Development assistant regional director, thanked community leaders for the success of the project and urged the community to use the development center wisely.

The World Vision International committed an additional P500,000 for the project and the remaining expenses will be shared by the provincial government.

"The role of the government is to give hope and inspiration for you so that you can fulfill your dreams," Governor Migs Dominguez told students.

Students and teachers applauded as they gathered in front of the stage to welcome Governor Dominguez with local officials and KALAHI-CIDSS representatives.

"I want to see you become doctors, nurses, engineers, teachers, when I am old," the 32 year-old governor added.

Visiting the KALAHI-CIDSS projects in Sarangani in 2006, World Bank program manager for KALAHI-CIDSS Andrew Parker said "these are projects that involve the community right from the start, encourage transparency and thus prevent corruption." (PIO-Sarangani/PIA-SarGen)

Taking a different road for tourism (http://globalnation.inquirer.net/news/breakingnews/view/20090706-214152/Taking-a-different-road-for-tourism)
By Izah Morales

http://images.inquirer.net/media/globalnation/articles/images/pic-07060823170422.jpg
The municipality of Maitum sets up a sanctuary for sea turtles as part of its conservation efforts.

MAITUM, Sarangani – Out of the hustle and bustle of the city lies the Old Poblacion where children treat crabs as pets and mothers weave nets for their men who fish.

But a main feature is the sanctuary for sea turtles (pawikan), which provides an alternative source of income and a chance for the local government to promote tourism.

The Pawikan Nesting Sanctuary seeks to conserve natural resources.

“We’re all about the preservation of the natural resources and the community that we visit. We bring our clients to untouristy spots where they can learn about the community through immersion,” said Charisse Aquino-Tugade, president of Cultureight Travel, who brought 12 individuals to get first-hand experience of the six-day Ancient South Crash Tour.

The Municipality of Maitum, together with different people’s organizations like Bantay Dagat, put up the sanctuary in 2003, said Elton Galima, Maitum tourism operations assistant.

“The local government is extending more conservation efforts to help preserve the pawikans like the Olive Reedley, Hawksbill, and rain turtle,” added Galima.

In a month, about 10 turtles visit the coast line of Old Poblacion to lay eggs, said Danny Dequiña, caretaker of the Pawikan Sanctuary.

A mother pawikan lays about 100-200 eggs, said Dequiña.

However, only 0.01% of the pawikan survive when released to the sea, said Galima.

Thirteen guests of Cultureight held 200 three-week old Olive Reedley and hawksbill and released them into the Old Poblacion beach, facing the Celebes Sea.

“Only one of the 100 turtles will survive due to opportunist predators like seagulls, crabs, and natural phenomenon like global warming,” said Galima.Aquino-Tugade believes that alternative tourism leads to sustainable tourism.

“We should promote the Philippines in a sustainable way by patronizing local products, riding local transportation, and uplifting the communities that we visit,” said Aquino-Tugade.

Cultureight Travel wanted to take the road less traveled by exploring the unexplored spots in the Philippines.

For more information on Cultureight Travel, check www.cultureight.com.

^^ nice naman talaga basat sarangani.. wow ung san matinago falls... ehh di bah dilikado mag pasyal diyan..?

Kidapawan villages benefit from infrastructure projects (http://mb.com.ph/articles/209707/kidapawan-villages-benefit-infrastructure-projects)
By MALU CADELINA MANAR

Kidapawan City – At least 13 of the 40 villages in this city, which are mostly farming communities, would benefit from various agriculture and infrastructure projects proposed by the city government here under the Mindanao Rural Development Project (MRDP).

According to Mayor Rodolfo Gantuangco of this city, the projects would include construction of warehouses and solar dryers, which will help rice and corn farmers dry and process their produce.

Also, the proposal would include the construction of flat bed dryers for rice for the five different rice producing villages in the city, including San Roque, Macebolig, Binoligan, Linangkob, and San Isidro.

Gantuangco said that each flat bed dryer could accommodate up to 12 tons of harvested palay.

Gantuangco said five farmers organizations from 10 villages here will be the beneficiaries of the agri-infrastructure projects, which include the Kalaisan-Mabakal Farmers Association in the villages of Kalaisan, Macebolig, Sumbak, and Kalaisan; the Paco-Binoligan Farmers Association in the villages of Paco and Binoligan; the San Rotado-San Roque Farmers Association in the villages of San Roque and Patadon; Linangkob-Sikitan Farmers Association in the villages of Linangkob and Sikitan; and the Ganesan-San Isidro Farmers Association in the villages of Gayola, New Bohol and San Isidro.

nkpunta nq d2 b4, just 1 day visit,
kya lng wla aq npansing Mall,
meron ba?


meron sila Central warehouse... medyo malaki na rin...

.
http://www.mindanao.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/022306img_0765.jpg

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http://farm1.static.flickr.com/250/453613974_7576e03bb6.jpg

maganda talaga lahat ng cities sa mindanao fresh and vibrant d katulad d2 sa manila classy and luma na maganda sana kaso d napepreserve ang cleanliness and beauty niya eh

at maganda ang climate ng kidapawan... di masyado mainit.... kakaiba ang simoy ng hangin, parang pasko....:lol::cheers:

merry christmas dyan sa kidapawan masarap mga prutas dyan ha

may regular schedule ba ang pag akyat ng Mt. Apo via Kidapawan route?

Sarangani wild river ride for brave hearts

INQUIRER.net
First Posted 17:06:00 07/17/2009
MAITUM, Sarangani—This province is not just world boxing champion Manny Pacquiao’s home. It is also home to an outdoor sports haven.

The village of New La Union here, gateway to 1.6-kilometer Pangi River, is about one and a half hours from General Santos City by land.

Vincent Yabes, a son of Maitum’s former mayor, discovered the tourism potential of the white water tubing here in 2003, says tourism operation assistant Arlex Narte.

Since then, the town has hosted about 250 guests a month, said Narte.

What’s the difference with white water rafting? No muscle pains because instead of paddling, adventurers just ride down the river on a tube made of recycled truck rubber tires.

A fee of P120 is equivalent to about 30 minutes of thrill; fee includes a life jacket and a helmet for protection. Thrill seekers are advised to wear outdoor sandals with straps rather than slippers because of the strong current, as well as goggles.

Guests who are under 18 are asked to get consent from their parents, even as a local guide takes care of the guest from the back tube.

“Sometimes, there's a tendency for the tube to turn over. So, we remind the guest not to panic and hold the rubber handles attached on the tube firmly,” says Narte.

^^ summer and october.

merry christmas dyan sa kidapawan masarap mga prutas dyan ha

^^ feel na feel mo na ang christmas ah.....

Strong support for Southern Mindanao’s industrial ecozone triangle (http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=0&nid=2&rid=223747)

BUTUAN CITY, Aug. 13 (PNA) -- Key stakeholders in Mindanao are urged to back and strengthen Sarangani's bid to create the Maasim-Kiamba-Maitum Industrial Triangle (MAKIMA-IT) as this would cushion impact of the global economic crisis on Mindanao and pave the way for the island's accelerated growth, a top government Mindanao official said Thursday.

Undersecretary Virgilio Leyretana, chairperson of the Mindanao Economic Development Council (MEDCo), said Mindanao stakeholders should support the proposed economic zone as this would help not only Sarangani but the whole island-region develop a self-sustaining tourism, industrial, financial and investment hub necessary to generate job and income opportunities.

"The ecozone offers a competitive package for investors," said Leyretana, adding that aside from the tax holidays, investors are also given with tax and duty-free importation of raw materials while foreign nationals are also given multiple entry visas should they wish to do business here.

Leyretana also urged both Congress and Senate to pass House Bill No. 5877 authored by Rep. Erwin Chiongbian of the lone district of Sarangani and Senate Bill No. 2983 authored by Senator Mar Roxas II, two similar bills creating MAKIMA-IT in Sarangani.

Recently, the Senate joint committees on economic affairs, local government, appropriation, finance, trade and industry and economic affairs have already approved and endorse the bill for a plenary discussion.

Meanwhile, House Committees on Economic Affairs and Trade and Industry have similarly endorsed approval of the bill, though a pending ocular inspection will still have to be done by the committee members, it was gathered.

Earlier reports said under the proposed bill, the MAKIMA-IT Special Economic Zone (Mitseza) will have an authorized capital of Php10 billion, about Php6 billion of which is reserved for government and Php4 billion for private investors.

The ecozone will feature key investment areas such as agro-processing, manufacturing and modern fishing port complex.

Sarangani is strategically located at the southernmost tip of Mindanao with Sarangani Bay as its major source of marine-resource products, including their most coveted Sarangani Bangus (Milkfish).

Maasim, Kiamba and Maitum are just three of its seven municipalities with wide array of white beaches, commercial plantations, mangrove forests and aqua-marine farms.

Surrounded by over 230 kilometers of unspoiled coastline, Sarangani offers more than 4,000-square-kilometer typhoon-free land and marine resources as well as tourism sites which include the Ayub cave where the anthromorphic jars, known worldwide as the Maitum jars were found in 1991.

The Celebes Sea serves as the province's access to the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) and the rest of the world.

Sarangani's promising investment climate is seen through its large mango, banana and pineapple plantations. Cattle ranches and commercial fishponds are also found in the province.

The local government units (LGUs) and business groups in SOCSKSARGEN have earlier signified support to the bill.

To date, Mindanao only has two economic zones namely the Zamboanga City Special Economic Zone Authority and the Philippine Veterans Investment Development Corporation (PHIVIDEC) in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental.

The proposed MAKIMA-IT is said to be Southern Mindanao's own version of Subic and Clark special economic zone authorities. (PNA)
LDV/MUC/mec

Strong support for Southern Mindanao’s industrial ecozone triangle (http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=0&nid=2&rid=223747)

BUTUAN CITY, Aug. 13 (PNA) -- Key stakeholders in Mindanao are urged to back and strengthen Sarangani's bid to create the Maasim-Kiamba-Maitum Industrial Triangle (MAKIMA-IT) as this would cushion impact of the global economic crisis on Mindanao and pave the way for the island's accelerated growth, a top government Mindanao official said Thursday.

Undersecretary Virgilio Leyretana, chairperson of the Mindanao Economic Development Council (MEDCo), said Mindanao stakeholders should support the proposed economic zone as this would help not only Sarangani but the whole island-region develop a self-sustaining tourism, industrial, financial and investment hub necessary to generate job and income opportunities.

"The ecozone offers a competitive package for investors," said Leyretana, adding that aside from the tax holidays, investors are also given with tax and duty-free importation of raw materials while foreign nationals are also given multiple entry visas should they wish to do business here.

Leyretana also urged both Congress and Senate to pass House Bill No. 5877 authored by Rep. Erwin Chiongbian of the lone district of Sarangani and Senate Bill No. 2983 authored by Senator Mar Roxas II, two similar bills creating MAKIMA-IT in Sarangani.

Recently, the Senate joint committees on economic affairs, local government, appropriation, finance, trade and industry and economic affairs have already approved and endorse the bill for a plenary discussion.

Meanwhile, House Committees on Economic Affairs and Trade and Industry have similarly endorsed approval of the bill, though a pending ocular inspection will still have to be done by the committee members, it was gathered.

Earlier reports said under the proposed bill, the MAKIMA-IT Special Economic Zone (Mitseza) will have an authorized capital of Php10 billion, about Php6 billion of which is reserved for government and Php4 billion for private investors.

The ecozone will feature key investment areas such as agro-processing, manufacturing and modern fishing port complex.

Sarangani is strategically located at the southernmost tip of Mindanao with Sarangani Bay as its major source of marine-resource products, including their most coveted Sarangani Bangus (Milkfish).

Maasim, Kiamba and Maitum are just three of its seven municipalities with wide array of white beaches, commercial plantations, mangrove forests and aqua-marine farms.

Surrounded by over 230 kilometers of unspoiled coastline, Sarangani offers more than 4,000-square-kilometer typhoon-free land and marine resources as well as tourism sites which include the Ayub cave where the anthromorphic jars, known worldwide as the Maitum jars were found in 1991.

The Celebes Sea serves as the province's access to the Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia Philippines East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA) and the rest of the world.

Sarangani's promising investment climate is seen through its large mango, banana and pineapple plantations. Cattle ranches and commercial fishponds are also found in the province.

The local government units (LGUs) and business groups in SOCSKSARGEN have earlier signified support to the bill.

To date, Mindanao only has two economic zones namely the Zamboanga City Special Economic Zone Authority and the Philippine Veterans Investment Development Corporation (PHIVIDEC) in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental.

The proposed MAKIMA-IT is said to be Southern Mindanao's own version of Subic and Clark special economic zone authorities. (PNA)
LDV/MUC/mec


^^:banana: This is good for Mindanao economy. We will no longer be too dependent on our Northern neighbors.. Let's explore the south by supporting the BIMP-EAGA... :D

^^:banana: This is good for Mindanao economy. We will no longer be too dependent on our Northern neighbors.. Let's explore the south by supporting the BIMP-EAGA... :D

Pilot Project: COAL - Fired Power Plant! :banana:

Pilot Project: COAL - Fired Power Plant! :banana:


:ohno: Coal-Fired Power Plant is bad for the environment right??? :ohno:

:ohno: Coal-Fired Power Plant is bad for the environment right??? :ohno:

Sana totoo yung sinabi nila na enough ang technology to minimize the effect of COAL sa environment...

Kelangan din talaga ng POWER PLANT sa SOCSKSARGEN especially nanjan na ROB at SM sa GENSAN...

House economic committee backs Sarangani special ecozone
By Russtum G. Pelima

Kiamba, Sarangani (PIA SarGen/PIO Sarangani) -- The House Committee on Economic Affairs has expressed support to the creation of the Sarangani MAKIMA-IT (Maasim-Kiamba-Maitum Industrial Triangle) Special Economic Zone Authority or SMITSEZA.

"This committee is very supportive of the special economic zone," said committee chair Rep. Ramon "Red" Durano IV (5th District, Cebu) during a public hearing here Thursday (September 3).

Committee members consulted provincial and municipal officials, business, youth and various community sectors and organizations.

Durano said SMITSEZA will be the third special economic zone to be approved by Congress following Samal and Surigao Del Sur.

"I'm very happy to inform you this morning that House Bill 5877 has already been unanimously approved last August 5, 2009 jointly by the committee on economic affairs as well as the committee on trade and industry subject only to refinement," said committee vice chair Marc Douglas Cagas IV (1st District, Davao Del Sur).

Durano led the party with senior majority floor leader Jesus Crispin Remulla (Cavite, 3rd District), Cagas, Antonio Lagdameo Jr. (Davao Del Norte, 2nd District), and committee secretary Jannalenna Sheng-Olladas.

SMITSEZA was authored by Sarangani lone district Rep. Erwin Chiongbian under House Bill No. 5877.

The House Committees on Economic Affairs and Trade and Industry chaired, respectively, by Durano and Antonio Alvarez (1st District, Palawan) had approved House Bill No. 5877 to effectively respond to the urgent national effort to minimize, if not eradicate poverty in the region.

In a press statement, Chiongbian said the economic zone seeks to transform the area into a self-sustaining, industrial, commercial, financial, investment and tourism/recreation center.

Chiongbian said the ecozone will create employment opportunities in and around the special economic zone and effectively encourage and attract legitimate foreign investments that are vitally and sorely needed in his province.

"The proposed measure will realize the objective of providing jobs to my constituents particularly those in the countryside, increase their productivity and individual incomes and improve the level and quality of their living conditions," Chiongbian said.

Chiongbian said the special economic zone intends to maximize the full economic potential of the Municipalities of Maasim, Kiamba and Maitum (MAKIMA).

"This will serve as a venue to fully utilize the tremendous resources in the area such as the rich and arable agricultural land and diverse marine life," Chiongbian said.

"It will increase economic activity not only in MAKIMA municipalities but also province wide and within the region where raw materials for production and support services shall come from increased incomes and Gross Domestic Product (GDP)," Chiongbian added.

The measure retains MITSEZA as the governing authority to provide a clear identity of the corporate entity.

"If enacted into law, tremendous economic progress would be realized not only for the province but for the entire SOCSKSARGEN region as well," Chiongbian said.

SOCSKSARGEN stands for South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani and General Santos City.

Cagas said "as far as technicalities are concerned, there is no any means of hindrance to the further approval of the bill."

"We are planning today for a better tomorrow," Governor Migs Dominguez said. "With the support of this committee, we will be able to achieve our dream of economic development."

Governor Dominguez reported big investments such as a $7-million reforestation program, a $5-million shipyard expansion and a $450-million coal plant project that are coming into the MAKIMA area.

"We are very excited because it is the first time that a special economic zone will be institutionalized here," said Bronx Hebrona, president of Sarangani Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

For the Mindanao Economic Development Council, Undersecretary Virgilio Leyretana said the "council is a virtual oversight of the economic and social development programs in Mindanao. As such, we support the establishment of the SMITSEZA within the ambit of the three towns."

MAKIMA-IT is an inter-local government cooperation aimed at harmonizing and integrating the development plans of the three towns.

It is a public-private sector partnership with the local governments taking lead and the local private sector as the engine of growth.

SMITSEZA is a response to the growing investment interest in the MAKIMA area as a decentralized, self-reliant and self sustaining industrial, commercial, financial and investment center.

It is a separate customs territory ensuring free movement of goods and capital within, into and out of MAKIMA with tariff-related incentives such as duty-free importation of raw materials, capital and equipment and incentives to registered enterprise.

"This for sure has a big impact to our lives specially on livelihood," Benjamin Donato, a representative from the indigenous people, said. "We share the same belief to uplift our people above the poverty threshold."

After the consultation, Durano and party made an ocular inspection in Kalaong, Maitum, with a 150-hectare area for rubber plantation and processing as part of SMITSEZA development plan.

In Kamanga, Maasim town, the committee visited the SM 200 coal plant project. The plant uses a state-of-the-art technology for the $450-million project seen to operate for 35 years.

"At least now questions are answered," Remulla noted.

Remulla who had been visiting coal plants abroad asked on "what to do with the heavy metals."

Project manager Gregorio Gonzales said its modern technology using electrostatic precipitator filters these particulate matters. "And all we can see is only the white ashes," Gonzales said.

"The next thing you should do is to build a big cement factory where the ashes are useful," Remulla said.

"This is a huge development in the three neighboring towns," Vice Governor Steve Chiongbian Solon said. "Other special economic zones in the country offer investments but not cheaper power."

"We commit to pass this bill the soonest possible time," Remulla said. "It is a long and arduous task for Sarangani. A bill is not enough to solve our problems. It depends so much on the political will, leadership and commitment of the people of Sarangani." (PIA SarGen/PIO Sarangani) [top]

Coco Beach Resort, GUMASA, Sarangani

http://mindanao.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/coco-beach-in-gumasa.jpg

http://mindanao.com/blog/2009/04/city-doc-runs-ilongo-style-hospitality-resort/

^^ang ganda nang beach, how far is it from the city proper and can someone post more pics of the beach.:)

^^ang ganda nang beach, how far is it from the city proper and can someone post more pics of the beach.:)

Coco Beach katabi ng ROSAL Beach.. both owned ata by ADARNA? Correct me if I'm wrong ha? sure ako sa ROSAL... :nuts:

Nice PIX and CHIX... :lol:

Sarangani barangay gets P500,000 assistance from province (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090918.htm&no=65&r=r12&y=&mo=)
By Joy Sevilla

Alabel, Sarangani -- Officials of barangay Poblacion in Alabel accepted a check worth P500,000 from the provincial government as a supplement for the completion of a two-storey barangay hall during the culmination activity of the 53rd Araw ng Poblacion on Thursday (September 17).

The barangay hall, which costs P3.5 million, started construction in 2008 and was targeted to be completed in November this year.

Barangay Captain Florentina Salarda said the amount from the provincial government will be used for the construction of the building's second floor.

"It costs P3.5 million. We are grateful to those who became instruments for the completion of our new barangay hall. The building is composed of six rooms and every room is spacious," Salarda said.

She added that financial assistance from Congressman Erwin Chiongbian, the municipal government of Alabel through Mayor Corazon Grafilo, and Bayan Muna, have been very useful for the construction of the building's first phase.

Governor Migs Dominguez, on the other hand, said barangay Poblacion is awarded and recognized by the local government as the "most functional barangay" and Salarda as an "outstanding barangay captain."

He stressed in his speech that true leaders are for the development of the community. He also said children should be trained and taught good values not only at home, but most specially at school where these students spend most of their time.

"Sa bahay, mga magulang, at least isang oras lang maturuan ninyo ang inyong mga anak. Sabi nga ni Rizal, ang kabataan ang pag-asa ng bayan, pero kahit bata pa, pwede naman maging leader," the governor said.

Vice Governor Steve Chiongbian Solon likewise lauded the officials of barangay Poblacion, adding that the provincial government always supports the activities of the barangay because it is for the development of the community.

"We congratulate you for the good work, for working double time to make barangay Poblacion an example. Natutuwa kami na natupad ang hangarin ninyo na maging showcase sa ibang barangay," Solon said.

The Road to Maasim, Sarangani Province


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Return trip to Gensan.

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50 Sarangani students get scholarship from US State Department (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p090923.htm&no=37&r=r12&y=&mo=)
By Russtum G. Pelima

Alabel, Sarangani -- The US State Department has granted 50 students of Colon National High School in Maasim the English Access Micro-scholarship Program launched Tuesday (September 22) in partnership with Synergeia Foundation and Quality Education for Sarangani Today (QUEST).

The program is an initiative of the United States Embassy in the Philippines and the US State Department that aims to nurture the intellectual abilities of students who are potential leaders of their indigenous and disadvantaged communities.

"You can be as successful as you want to be," said Martha Buckley, United States Embassy cultural affairs officer.

Buckley emphasized on the importance of the English language and English-speaking skill "in our much globalized world".

"We need to find a way to talk to one another in business and other fields. We need to have a common language," Buckley said.

English has evolved and become an international language after Greek, Latin, and French languages.

"It was a competition," said Dr. Milwida Guevarra, Synergeia Foundation chief executive officer.

"At first Colon National High School was recommended for the scholarship so we made a proposal. Washington reviewed the proposal and finally approved it," Guevarra added.

"Kayo ang munting inspirasyon namin (You are our little inspirations)," Governor Migs Dominguez told the students.

"You are the cream of the crop. After two years, let’s show them that we are the best in the Philippines," the governor added.

"This is an opportunity for you, parents and children to show your best," Mayor Aniceto Lopez, Jr. said.

The program has a total budget of $35,600 covering salaries, books and instructional materials, transportation, administration and enhancement activities of the students for two years.

Curita Nani is one of the thankful recipients of the program.

"I want to be a nurse someday and help my parents," Nani said.

None of Nani’s 11 siblings is a professional or finished college. Her father goes fishing as their source of income while her mother Sapiya keeps the house.

"Daku gyud kayo akong pasalamat sa mga nagtabang kay kung wala sila makonsensya gyud ko nga dili makaeskwela akong anak (I am very thankful to those who help us because without them I will feel very guilty not being able to send my daughter to school)," Nani’s mother said.

"After I finish my studies, I will also make a program on education to help other children finish their studies," honor student Adrian Ladres said.

The students will receive one hour intensive academic session after regular class everyday for two years including summer (8 hours a day for 10 days).

^^dapat ipakita ng mga estudyante na karapatdapat sila sa scholarships na yan...:applause:

Alabel is a 1st class municipality in the province of Sarangani, Philippines. It is the capital municipality of Sarangani.


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You can see more photos of Sarangani Province in Jibrael Angel Blog :

http://jibrael.blogspot.com

.

Oct 31-Nov 2, 2009

Rough Road
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The Karatola
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The Boiling Lake
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The Falls
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WOW! GENSAN is bounded by 3 1st class municipalities of Polomolok, Alabel and Tupi (Soon to be Cities) :lol:

WOW! GENSAN is bounded by 3 1st class municipalities of Polomolok, Alabel and Tupi (Soon to be Cities) :lol:

Metro GenSan in the making? :)

Metro GenSan in the making? :)

INDEED! Polomolok is positioning to become a city soon (I think within 5 years pwede na maging city ang POLOMOLOK)...

Alabel is one of the 16 cities na binawian ng citihood ng Supreme Court pero hopefully maging city din xa! Ganun din ang TUPI!

Maasim is also progressing after siguro ng COAL POWER PLANT at MAKIMA Industrial Triangle...

Meron ng 3 cities ang SOCSKSARGEN... GENSAN, KORONADAL and TACURONG!

:banana::banana: OO naman nice talaga basta sarangani hometown ko yan ei..ang daming tourist spot....:cheers::cheers::cheers:

The Road to Maasim, Sarangani Province


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Return trip to Gensan.

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wow!!! really nice view!!!

Alabel is a 1st class municipality in the province of Sarangani, Philippines. It is the capital municipality of Sarangani.


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You can see more photos of Sarangani Province in Jibrael Angel Blog :

http://jibrael.blogspot.com

.

Galing!!! Parang hindi sa Pinas!!! Hope to visit this place...

Regional consular office hailed
By ALI G. MACABALANG
Manila Bulletin (http://www.mb.com.ph/node/229009/regional-con)
November 11, 2009, 4:07pm



COTABATO CITY – Villagers in two Mindanao regions have seen brighter prospects in their desire to work abroad and earn ample income for their poor families affected by natural and man-made calamities, following the establishment here of a Regional Consular Office (RCO).

“Things have brightened as the opportunity is brought closer to us, and we are very grateful for it,” a teary eyed Zainab, a 32-year-old widow, told the Manila Bulletin in Moro dialect, referring to the opening of the RCO at the City Hall building here.

The RCO here led by Regional Director Dalidig Tanandato serves the coastal towns of Lanao del Sur and entire Maguindanao, both of the Muslim Mindanao region, and the provinces of Sultan Kudarat, North Cotabato and South Cotabato under Region 12.

When asked about her teary eyes, Zainab said, “These are tears of joy that fell after I got my passport in so short a time” at the RCO manned initially by a skeletal force.

Zainab said that after her husband died four years ago and their four kids stopped schooling due to poverty, she has been desirous to work abroad but the difficulty and cost of acquiring a passport from distant Davao and Cagayan de Oro cities made her hesitant.
“Finally, I got my key to work abroad. I have a prospect employer in Dubai…And my children now have better chances of resuming studies,” the Moro widow averred.

Zainab was one of some 500 passport seekers who lined up and submitted required documents to the RCO late last week and got their passports the next working day.

Like her, other new passport holders described Tanandato and his skeletal workforce as “very courteous and accommodating.”

“We hope all government workers are like them,” said Esperanza, who happened to be another widow desiring to work abroad since 2008.

Sarangani Province Munato Festival 2009 is a go! (http://www.mindanaoan.com/2009/11/12/sarangani-province-munato-festival-2009-is-a-go/)
3 views

By Taga Mindanao, on November 12, 2009

Announcements, Entertainment, Events, Festivals, Fiesta, Government, Mindanaoan Update, Sarangani, SoSCksargen, Soccksargen, Socsksargen, Tourism, Travel

Tags: events in mindanao, Festivals, festivals in mindanao, go sarangani, go sarangani travel, michelle solon, miguel rene dominguez, mindanao blog, mindanao blogger, mindanao festival, mindanao fiesta, mindanaoan, mindanaoans, munato festival, munato festival 2, munato festival 2009, sarangani governor, sarangani province, sarangani vice governor steve solon, steve chiongbian solon


Everything seems to be up and ready for the much-awaited Munato Festival 2009 in the Province of Sarangani, Mindanao. The festivities will begin on November 23 although the bigger events will really start by the 25th. Munato Festival in Sarangani is one of the much-awaited events in that area of Mindanao.

Check out the schedule below. Thanks to Miss Michelle Solon, wife of Sarangani Vice Governor Steve Solon, for the information. Congratulations are also in order to my classmate Sarangani Gov. Miguel Rene Dominguez and to the rest of his staff!

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munato 2009
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Pacquiao earns 7th title in 7th class


First time in world boxing history!

Congratz GenSan,Saranggani and of course Mindanao for having Pacman in our island!

Arabian sheik to invest in Sarangani

Thursday, 26 November 2009 00:00
BY ISAGANI P. PALMA CORRESPONDENT
Manila Times

GENERAL SANTOS CITY: Arabian investors are infusing multimillion-dollar worth of investments in a 50-hectare agricultural land development in the town of Malungon in this city.

Tommy Ala, Department of Agriculture regional director for Central Mindanao, said the group of Mohamad Al Raighi, an Arabian sheik and chief executive officer of Middle East-based Tabuk Agricultural Development Co., visited the Kalumbarak Skyline Village in Malungon town with the intention of putting up a multimillion dollar worth investment in the proposed agricultural area.

Agriculture officials said the project would help support and sustain the country’s agricultural produce in typhoon-prone areas in Luzon.

“Our foreign visitors are interested to look into the potentials of Region 12, particularly its rice, corn, banana and pineapple plantations. They are now here in Mount Kalunbarak to explore and conduct actual site validation,” said Ala in an exclusive interview with The Manila Times.

The 10-vehicle convoy carrying the Arabian businessmen and local agriculture officials trooped to the village a thousand feet above sea level, which overlooks the scenic Mount Matutum in South Cotabato, General Santos City, Sarangani and parts of Davao del Sur.

The group conducted the on-land assessment survey following an aerial viewing of the project site in February.

Ala said the Department of Agriculture is now expecting a letter of intent from the foreign investors.
He said a group of technical people from the Middle East would be arriving by early next year to facilitate the implementation of the project.

Ala did not disclose the total amount of the investment “pending final arrangements,” but he assured that the project would boost the country’s food supply, which is constantly under threat because of the strong typhoons that hit Luzon and devastate agricultural lands.

“We have no exact figure yet but I am certain we would be able to determine it after receiving the letter of intent, which is expected to be forwarded to our office this week. But, definitely, we are talking here of a multimillion-dollar worth of project transaction and nothing less,” Ala said.

Elsie Sia, the local project counterpart and owner of Davao City-based Elsie Enterprises, said Raighi also plans to put up a fully equipped tourist hotel in Kalumbarak as he expects an influx of foreign visitors in the area once the project materializes.

Malungon town Vice Mayor Benjamin Guilley said Raighi is open to an agreement with the local government for the maintenance of the access road and security of project site.

Ala said Tabuk, the mother company of 11 other Arabian business firms, has chosen the southern part of the region because it is generally peaceful besides its strategic location.

He said the DA-12 priority program will concentrate on enhancing rice production to maintain its rank as the Number One rice-producing region in Mindanao. It is fifth in the entire country.

Ala said Region 12 is also the top corn producer in Mindanao and third nationwide. It is first in coffee production, second in pineapple, second in rubber and fourth placer in banana production nationwide.

Quest for alternative fuels in Sarangani gets boost

MALUNGON, Sarangani—The continuing quest for alternative fuels has received a boost with the introduction of a large-scale bio-seed production in idle lands that were once sanctuaries of bandits and other lawless elements in Sarangani.

The 406-hectare Tangantangan seed project, which is being bankrolled by the F2S Finance Cooperative of Japan, lies up on the hills of barangay Malabod on the triangular boundaries of South Cotabato, Davao del Sur and Sarangani.

The multimillion-peso venture broke ground in November 2009, and actual seed production is expected to start around the same time this year.

In a memorandum of agreement, the Japanese funding firm had entered into with the local government, F2S will shoulder all production costs—from land preparation to harvesting.

The firm will also serve as a ready market for raw Tangantangan seeds at the standard buying price of P5 a kilo.

Tangantangan is an indigenous plant whose seeds are being utilized in the manufacture of an ecology-friendly biodiesel gas that has just recently been introduced to help cut down deadly gas emissions by motor vehicles and factories using fossil fuels.

Malabod barangay chairman Danilo Constantino said the entry of the multimillion-peso farming project would augment the presence of food giant Dole Philippines in Malungon and spur agricultural productivity in far-flung areas considered too dangerous to till.

The project is seen as uplifting the living condition of people in isolated villages that were previously known as havens of cattle-rustlers and bandits in the province, said Constantino.

He said that because of the return of peace and tranquility in most of the former badlands, the local government was able to carry out the construction of farm-to-market roads linking isolated villages to the town proper, including barangay Kiblat, a mountain village of 613 Ilonggo, Cebuano and B’laan households, some 19 kilometers off Malabod.

“This, in turn, has encouraged many agri-business companies to put up shop here and the locals to go back to the lands they had abandoned at the height of trouble with the bandits so many years ago,” he said.

As of this writing, another farm-to-market road is being added to the road network around Malabod and outlying areas.  Funded by the Department of Agriculture, the 500-meter road will be up in March this year.

Kiblat barangay chairman Aurelia Yanson said that aside from further pumping up the local economy, the Tangantangan project had given the villagers reason to stand up to their former nemesis, the bandits and the cattle-rustlers.

“Before, we had no peace and could not sleep well at night because we had to be constantly on our toes watching over our draft animals and other livestock if we wanted to see them on the following day. Those days of fear are gone.”

Coco Beach katabi ng ROSAL Beach.. both owned ata by ADARNA? Correct me if I'm wrong ha? sure ako sa ROSAL... :nuts:

Nice PIX and CHIX... :lol:

Yup! magkapatid cla, minana pa ata nila yan sa mga magulang nila eh.
nakausap namin minsan ung matandang lalaki, cla ung may-ari ng coco beach bale ung asawa daw nya ang ADARNA.

nindot kaayo ang Sarangani.. Tourism destination jud cya sa South Central Mindanao..

Isla Jardin del Mar, Glan’s newest white beach resort opens

Bariles just received an invitation from the owners of Sydney Hotel and Isla Parilla to the “soft opening” of their newest baby – the Isla Jardin Del Mar, a beach resort at Gumasa, Glan, Sarangani Province on Saturday, January 23, 2010.

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"THE PICTURE FILE OF THE INVITATION TO THE ISLA JARDIN DEL MAR SOFT OPENING OF JANUARY 23, 2009"

Situated at what was once a secluded cove along the shorelines of Gumasa, right after the property of the Salazars and the Adarna’s, the whole resort occupies a total of 34 hectares, have of which have earmarked for development. Isla Jardin Del Mar which literally means “Island Garden of the Sea” in Spanish is managed by Charlemagne “Wanchin” Tan-Delfino. She gushes about how the provincial Governor Migs Dominguez and Glan Municipality Mayor Yoyong Yap were instrumental in the resort’s development with their provision for a road to be built from the highway to the beach. Why that name? Because if viewed from the air, Isla Jardin del Mar looks like a “peninsula connected to a small island… with the cottages and a restaurant floating over two separate white sand bars.”, according to the Sarangani Provincial Office P.R. The P.R. continues: “The pinkish white shoreline stretches and curves 750 meters, which gives one an impression that the beachfront is part of a small island”.

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Each available airconditioned bamboo cottage with terrace and private bathroom may be rented out for P2,000 per day and is inclusive of free breakfast for two. Ten more fan-equipped cottages are cheaper at P1,500 and is good for four people. There is also a line of open cottages for those who don’t plan to stay overnite.

There is a lagoon at the other side of the road and a fish pond is being readied for fishing hobbyists. Mountain trek activities have been arranged for would-be nature enthusiasts and the views from the hills which serve as boundaries for the property should delight everyone. Just at the other side of the road is a lagoon.

“There will be crabs and a fish pond in the future so we can do fishing,” Delfino disclosed. It is a breathtaking view of a small lake and the Sarangani Bay atop the hills which serve as the boundaries for Isla Jardin Del Mar. At the beach there is a coral garden about 25 meters from the shoreline which can be enjoyed by snorkelers and divers due to this thriving school of colorful coral fish.

Watch out for a follow up article on Isla jardin del Mar, this time with more pictures. Bariles and his friends will be at the opening where a Beach Volleyball competition and an SMB Beach Party with live band await them. Yey!

Maayong Gabii Cotabato, Sarangani, and Sultan Kudarat! Yours truly and @BarPa of Davao City have started our campaign of creating SSC MINDANAO. The primary aim of this campaign is to build camaraderie, harmony, and unify all members of Skyscrapercity Mindanao which includes all cities, provinces, and region. I am sure many of you are aware of CVCs especially between CdeO and Davao. We want to end this and transform skyscrapercity as a venue for brotherhood. Will this really work? As long as we have the support of the majority then we will consider this campaign a success. We will then have rules where everybody's voice will be heard. Let us no longer tolerate conflicts. How? Do not reinforce the negative comment posted by one member. Instead, immediately remind him to be tact and calm. Let us immediately kill the fire if we can sense that it's already there.

Please support us by putting your city and your name in the list. To all those who have already supported this campaign DAGHANG SALAMAT. To all those who have shown their interest, we truly appreciate your kind gesture. Please support this campaign by putting your city and your name in the list. Thank you and GOD bless us all.

This is the list of our supporters as of January 27, 2010 (20:28).

SSC Mindanao supporters from CdeO:
1. Michael_Ray
2. Adeuksom
3. regjeex
4. dark_knight_detective

SSC Mindanao supporters from Davao

1. BarPa

N. Cotabato Provincial hospital to receive funding, facilities (http://positivenewsmedia.net/am2/publish/Health_21/N_Cotabato_Provincial_hospital_to_receive_funding_facilities.shtml)

MIDSAYAP, North Cotabato, Feb. 16 (PNA) - With additional funding from the Department of Health and congressional funds, the North Cotabato provincial hospital is expected to have face-lift and improved hospital services, Rep. Bernardo Pinol (2nd district, North Cotabato) on Monday said.

Pinol was pushing for the conversion of the provincial hospital into a regional hospital, but his proposal remained pending before the House Committee on Health.

Pinol was able to secure P72 million additional funds for the improvement of the Cotabato Provincial Hospital.

He said P54 million was allocated for the construction of additional hospital rooms while P18 million will be utilized in the purchase of sophisticated hospital equipment, including a platelet separator.

Speaking during his radio program, Pinol said another P15 million has been secured for the improvement of the Mlang District Hospital in the town of Mlang, North Cotabato.

Pinol said the amount will be taken from the budget of the Department of Health for 2009.

“With these developments, I am very optimistic that we can improve the delivery of health services in the 2nd district,” Pinol said.

Earlier, South Cotabato 2nd district Rep. Arthur Pingoy, chairman of the House Committee on Health, told Pinol during their meeting that the conversion of CPH into a regional hospital is not possible at this time.

Pingoy said the DOH has not yet conferred full recognition of the Cotabato Regional Medical Center (CRMC) in Cotabato City as official medical center in Region 12.

He said DOH only allows one regional hospital per region thus Pinol’s proposal remains pending before the committee.

Pinol posed no objection to the move of Pingoy’s committee but said he expects that his proposal will be given priority in the committee’s succeeding meetings. (PNA)

Sarangani gov backs greater private sector investment in tourism (http://pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p100222.htm&no=37&r=r12&y=&mo=)

Koronadal City (22 February) -- For tourism industry to be a viable business and a sustainable venture, a larger part of the investment should come from the private sector, says Governor Miguel Rene Dominguez of Sarangani.

Gov. Dominguez, in his message during the fourth leg of Eco-Mismo: The Philippine Conference on Eco-Tourism and Eco-Productivity in this city on Saturday said, "Our formula in Sarangani, hindi po dapat ang gobyerno lamang ang mamumuhunan at magplano para sa isang industriya na ang makikinabang ay hindi lang ang gobyerno kundi tayong lahat."

"Six years ago, when Sarangani was created out of South Cotabato? Sarangani does not have tourism activity," Dominguez said.

It is now one of the major destinations in the region, taking pride in its pristine beaches, diving sites, water tubing adventures, and festivals to name a few. (PIA)

Daily rotational brownouts in South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat extend to 5 hours (http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=260691)
By Allen V. Estabillo

KORONADAL CITY, Feb. 24 (PNA) – The daily rotational brownouts here and the neighboring areas rose to at least five hours Wednesday following another cutback in power supplies implemented by the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP).

Engr. Santiago Tudio, general manager of the South Cotabato Electric Cooperative (Socoteco)-I, said they were forced to extend the scheduled daily brownouts to five hours from the previous four hours implemented last Tuesday after the NGCP further reduced its power load for the South Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat service areas.

“NGCP relayed to us on Tuesday evening another change in its allotted power and it resulted to a daily brownout of at least five hours based on the computations from our engineering department,” an advisory from Socoteco’s member services division said.

Socoteco-I serves the municipalities of Tampakan, Tantangan, Surallah, Banga, Norala, Sto. Nino, T’boli Lake Sebu and the city of Koronadal in South Cotabato as well as the municipality of Lutayan in Sultan Kudarat.

The electric cooperative implemented power supply cut to its area feeders beginning Wednesday morning in two rotations at two hours and 30 minutes each.

The five-hour brownout is so far the worst since the NGCP implemented its load shedding scheme in central and southern Mindanao last November.

In late January, local power utility firms started imposing daily rotational brownouts of at least two hours and it increased to three hours by the second week of this month.

In an advisory, the NGCP said the Mindanao grid still has limited power supply due to generation deficiency triggered by the decreasing water levels of the Pulangi River in Bukidnon and the Lake Lanao-Agus River System in Lanao del Sur.

It said the reduction to critical low levels of the two water resources, which hosts the National Power Corporation’s (NAPOCOR) main hydroelectric plants, was mainly caused by the continuing onslaught of the long dry spell or El Niño Phenomenon.

“Due to very low water inflow to the power plants' reservoirs, the capabilities of Agus plants were reduced by 50 percent. Pulangi plant's capability was reduced by as much as 75 percent,” the advisory said.

As of February 24, the NGCP reported that the existing power resources in Mindanao only has an available capacity of 863 megawatts (MW), dropping by more than 200 MW since last week.

With Mindanao grid’s peak load leveling at 1,220 MW, the NGCP said the island’s power deficiency has far at least 357 MW. (PNA)

For hosting geothermal plant, Kidapawan demands 'special treatment' from NGCP (http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=261350)

KIDAPAWAN CITY, Feb. 27 (PNA) -- For hosting one of the biggest geothermal plants in the country, the city government here is demanding a ‘preferential’ treatment from the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP)

Vice Mayor Joseph Evangelista, chair of the Sangguniang Panglungsod ng Kidapawan, said that as host of the Mount Apo geothermal power plant, the city deserves a ‘special’ treatment from the NGCP.

By special treatment, Evangelista meant that the city be spared from long hours of blackouts as a result of the load shedding that the NGCP has been implementing since February 1 when the generation deficiency of the Mindanao power grid continues to decline due to the dry spell.

“It’s an irony that we are suffering so much from the series of blackouts while it’s true that we host one of the country’s biggest geothermal power plants. We will not just ask but demand from the NGCP that we be given special or preferential treatment. I believe we deserve that,” said Evangelista.

According to him, the city government is bent on pursuing the case it filed in 2009 against the NGCP for violating the memorandum of agreement (MOA) it signed in early 1990s when the geothermal power project was still being discussed.

Evangelista clarified that contrary to reports, the city government is not ‘dumping’ the case against the NGCP. “It’s just that the case is still being tried in court here. We have not heard of it after we filed the case in 2009,” he said.

In 1994, the NGCP inked an agreement with the then Philippine National Oil Company (PNOC), the Cotabato Provincial Government, and the City Government of Kidapawan where it said the province would be given a separate or direct line from the geothermal plant.

Evangelista, then mayor of the city, was one of the signatories.

The city, since the NGCP started to shed load from the Mindanao power grid, is experiencing an eight-hour blackout daily. Power is shut off from 4 a.m. up to 6 a.m.; from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.; and from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

“The long blackouts are hurting us, the city’s economy in particular. We can’t afford to see our businesses here suffer so much from these blackouts,” he said. (PNA)

Small business players mull closing shops
Saturday, February 27, 2010
By Bong S. Sarmiento

KORONADAL CITY -- Several business owners in South Cotabato are now considering closing shops temporarily due to prolonged rotating brownouts prevailing in the area, a business chamber official said Friday.

Carlito Y. Uy, president of South Cotabato Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation Inc., said the worsening power situation caused losses to electricity-dependent small business establishments.

"They're thinking of closing shops until the power situation returns to normal," he noted.

Among the sectors reeling from the rotational power outages are internet cafes, service and machine shops, and fresh food producers, Uy said.

The province experienced a near-straight 10-hour power interruption on Wednesday, a big leap from the one-to-two hours rotational brownouts previously implemented in the area.

An advisory from the South Cotabato Electric Cooperative I said that power rationing would be cut daily by six hours in one service area -- in twice basis interruptions starting Friday, until the supply improves.

The National Grip Corp of the Philippines, the private operator of the country's transmission network, has placed Mindanao in a red alert status due to the declining power production in the island.

As of Friday, Mindanao has available capacity of 900 megawatts (MW) against peak load of 1,210 MW, or a deficit of 310 MW.

Power generation in southern Philippines has been in the declining mode due to low water inflow to the Agus and Pulangi plants. More than half of Mindanao's power requirement comes from hydropower plants.

The El Nino climatic condition has been blamed for the low water inflow.

Construction of $450-M coal-fired power plant in Sarangani postponed
by MindaNews
Tuesday, 02 March 2010 20:27



GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews/02 March) — Delays in the finalization of the contract has caused the postponement next month of the construction of the Alcantara-led 200-mewagatt coal fired power project in nearby Maasim, Sarangani, a senior company official today said.

Conal Holdings Corp., proponent of the $450 million coal power plant in Barangay Kamanga, had planned to begin construction of the plant within the first quarter of this year.
“The implementation of the [coal-fired power plant] project will officially be launched in the beginning of April,” said Joseph C. Nocos, Conal Holdings vice president.

Nocos told MindaNews the company is presently in the process of finalizing negotiations with the prospective contractors, which he declined to name.

Asked whether Conal has inked an agreement with investors to help push the project, he replied that “an announcement will be made in due course.”

Nocos also said they were not keen on asking the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to bankroll the project, following a report that Conal Holdings and bank officials had a recent meeting in Maasim town.

He said that the company was not in discussions with the ADB for financing. The ADB has been financing power generation projects, such as the $135-million loan for a coal-fired power plant project in the People’s Republic of China.

Nocos said Conal Holdings’ power plant will be built in two 100-MW phases, at an interval of one year, which will improve supply in the Mindanao grid.

It is expected to go on commercial stream two to three years from now.

Since last month, Mindanao has been experiencing daily rotational power interruptions due to the declining generation capacities of the Agus and Pulangi hydropower plants.

Low water level inflow due to the El Nino weather phenomenon has diminished the production capacities of these hydropower plants, which provide more than half of Mindanao’s power supply.

Nocos said their coal-fired power plant project will be the “most economic and quickest solution to the need for a non-hydro baseload power station in the Mindanao grid.”

It will help reduce the island’s dependence on hydro resources which are vulnerable to the vagaries of the weather, he added.

Conal Holdings is 60% controlled by Alsons Corp. The rest is held by the Electricity Generating Public Company, Thailand's biggest power producer.

The local Catholic Church and various environmental groups have been opposing the coal-fired plant project of Conal Holdings, which will rise near a world-class diving spot in Maasim town, on concerns over its impact on human health and the environment.

Even with the power shortage Mindanao has been experiencing, Fr. Romeo Q. Catedral, social action director of the Diocese of Marbel, nixed anew the coal-fired power project.

The priest has urged the company to embark on renewable energy sources. (MindaNews

Smart partners agro-forestry project with Sarangani (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p100302.htm&no=23)

Alabel, Sarangani (2 March) -- The Smart Communications, Incorporated (SMART) Public Affairs Department in Mindanao has provided 10,000 rubber hills and other provisions for its reforestation project in Sarangani.

Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (PENRO) head Noel Cariño noted the project contributes significantly to the province's own reforestation project.

"At first, Smart made a pledge of commitment with the province in 2006 for the mangrove reforestation in Maitum and Alabel," Cariño said. Smart provided mangrove propagules for the 6-hectare planting site in Maitum.

Smart has a total of 500 hectares for its reforestation project in Sarangani while the province has 2,200 hectares for its upland reforestation project.

Cariño said his office will employ agro-forestry technology for sustainable upland management and contour farming.

"This will include planting of fruit trees and cash crops which we plan to ask assistance from the other departments like the office of the agriculturist," Cariño said.

"It's an environmental program which is part of our corporate social responsibility," Smart-Mindanao public affairs officer Haydee Bernabe said.

"In Sarangani, we chose rubber and coffee plantation to provide livelihood for the community. These fruit trees bear fruits faster and can be managed more easily."

Smart purchased more than 200 kilos of coffee or 750,000 seedlings for propagation from Nestle Philippines. In a hectare of land, 20 hills of rubber can be planted.

Smart also provided 10,000 6'x8' cellophanes for planting hills.

"Our main job is to strengthen the communities by providing them technical trainings in order to sustain the project," Cariño said.

Barangays to receive Smart's reforestation project are New Aklan in Glan, Alegria in Alabel, barangays Lun Masla and Patag in Malapatan, and Falel in Kiamba.

The project includes a tree-planting site in Bagacay, Alabel to develop the town's Septage Treatment Facility into an eco-park.

PENRO also helped Conal Holdings Corporation's reforestation of 7,500 hectares focused on the MAKIMA (Maasim-Kiamba-Maitum) Industrial Triangle as "carbon sequestration" project for its 200 megawatt power generation plant in Maasim. (PIOSaragani/PIA SarGen)

Electric coop in North Cotabato defies NGCP load shedding order (http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=12&fi=p100302.htm&no=16&r=r12&y=&mo=)

Koronadal City (2 March) -- In an emergency meeting yesterday, the board oif directors of the Cotabato Electric Cooperative (Cotelco) has decided to disregard orders from the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) for load shedding in its area of responsibility.

Cotelco's BOD reasoned that it is irrational for North Cotabato to experience power outages despite the fact that two of the country's largest geothermal power plants are located in Mt. Apo in Kidapawan City, this province.

This decision came after the request of the electric cooperative to be given preferential or special treatment with regards to the ongoing power curtailment.

Cotelco Board Member Rodolfo Cabiles Jr. said, "Cotelco will not shut off its sub-stations. We will leave it to NGCP to cut off power to our lines."

"Bahala ang NGCP mag-cut off sa ating linya, kung gugustuhin nila," Cabiles stressed.

The decision was made effective after the board's 12:00 to 1:00 pm meeting with members of the media yesterday.

He explained that the failure on the part of NGCP to provide separate and dedicated line from the geothermal plants for Cotelco constitutes a breach to the memorandum of agreement signed between the Government of Cotabato, National Power Corporation (Napocor), and the Philippine National Oil Corporation (PNOC).

The MOA was signed in 1994, four years before the actual operation of the geothermal plants in Mt. Apo.

Also, the board of directors and staff of the cooperative plan to visit Lake Lanao and Pulangi dam to confirm the conditions of the hydroelectric power plants. (PIA 12)

Sarangani gov relieves warden, 5 jail guards over escape of MILF leader (http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=262591)

GENERAL SANTOS CITY, March 5 (PNA) -– Sarangani Gov. Miguel Dominguez ordered the relief Friday of the jail warden and duty guards of the Sarangani provincial jail in connection with the escape early Thursday of an alleged field commander of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) who was tagged as behind the series of attacks in Maasim town in 2008.

Dominguez said he relieved jail warden Renato Purisima and five of his men pending the ongoing investigation on the escape of suspect Muhammad Jafar Maguid alias Tikboy Maguid from the provincial jail in Barangay Baluntay in Alabel town around dawn Thursday.

The relieved jail guards, who were listed as on duty along with warden Purisima at the time of the jailbreak, were identified as Cesar Abton, Benjamin Tondog Jr., Ragie Bogador, Venancio Mandi and Frederick Tanedo.

“We’re trying to establish whether this was a case of an inside job or he escaped just by his own,” the governor said.

Aside from the relief of the six jail personnel, Dominguez said they have put up a P100,000 reward for any information that would lead to the arrest of the suspect, who was considered a “high risk” prisoner.

A report released by the Sarangani provincial jail management said Maguid escaped from the jail’s cell number 4 between 12 midnight Wednesday to 5 a.m. Thursday by sawing off one of the steel bars protecting its windows.

Maguid reportedly took of his personal belongings during his escape, which was confirmed at around 5:30 a.m. by one of the 16 other inmates confined at the cell.

Maguid had been charged with murder, destructive arson, robbery with violence against or intimidation of person for the August 18, 2008 attack by suspected rogue MILF members on the Maasim municipal police station and the town’s public market that resulted to the killing of two civilians.

His group was also blamed for the twin grenade attacks infront of the Maasim municipal hall on the eve of its foundation anniversary celebration on June 20, 2009.

The suspect was arrested on July 30 last year in a raid by joint police and military personnel at his alleged hideout in barangay Daliao in Maasim town and was moved to the provincial jail on August 3.

Senior Supt. Restituto Gatera, Sarangani police director, said they have launched a region-wide manhunt against the suspect, who supposedly admitted during previous inquiries of being a member of the MILF’s 105th base command.

“We’ve dispatched some of our personnel to determine the possible areas that he might have gone after the escape,” he said.

Gatera said they already alerted other police units in the region for the possible presence of Maguid and distributed his photographs to police and other law enforcement agencies in the area to help properly identify the suspect. (PNA)

Fire razes Kidapawan City mall (http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=0&nid=2&rid=262956)

COTABATO CITY, March 8 (PNA) -- A fire of still unknown origin destroyed the two-story KMCC Mall in Kidapawan City, North Cotabato Monday morning.

Initial reports from radio DXMY here said the fire started at around 8:35 a.m. at a neighboring hardware store and quickly spread to the mall and a local bank.

Loud explosions were heard from inside the mall amid the ongoing blaze, the reports said.

Fire trucks from various parts of the province rushed to the area to help contain the fire.

There were no immediate reports of casualties in the incident. (PNA)

Sultan Kudarat bets to sign peace covenant to ensure HOPE (http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=262889)

COTABATO CITY, March 8 (PNA) - To ensure honest, orderly, and peaceful elections, local candidates in Sultan Kudarat will commit not to use violence, intimidation and electoral fraud by signing a peace covenant for the purpose.

Lawyer Ken Laguialam, Sultan Kudarat election supervisor, said a covenant signing initiated by the Commission on Elections (Comelec), police and military and other stakeholders for the May 10 elections will be held in Koronadal City on Tuesday.

Laguialam explained that neaby Koronadal City was chosen as venue because it was "neutral."

While Sultan Kudarat is not traditionally violent during elections, Laguialam said a peace covenant is still needed to ensure the balloting would be peaceful.

"Sultan Kudarat is not politically hot spot but peace covenant signing is till important because it will help the outcome to become more credible," Laguialam said.

Sultan Kudarat has one city, 11 municipalities, 249 barangyas, 2,513 precincts with a total of 383,264 registered voters.

Those running for the governor are Efrain Defino (Ind), Rodolfo Villaceran Estorque (Ind), Suharto Tan Mangudadatu (Lakas), and Carlos Valdez Jr.

Ernesto Matias Fontanilla is running unopposed as provincial vice governor.

Those seeking for the first congressional seats are reelectionist Pakung Mangudadatu (Lakas) and Radin Camlian Sakaluran (Ind).

For the second congressional seat, the candidates are Reynaldo Arguelles (Ind), Roberto Examen (Ind), Arnulfo Go (Lakas), Nesthur Gumana (Ind) and Jacqueline Talmadge (Ind).

Fourteen candidates are seeking to become board members in Sultan Kudarat’s two congressional districts. (PNA)

Sarangani mulls declaration of state of calamity due to El Niño (http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=263193)

GENERAL SANTOS CITY, March 9 (PNA) – Sarangani officials are pushing for the immediate declaration of the entire province under the state of calamity due to the continuing onslaught of the long dry spell or El Niño phenomenon that already destroyed some P28 million worth of agricultural crops in the area.

Sarangani Vice Gov. Steve Solon said Tuesday members of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan have started discussions during its regular session on Monday regarding the possibility of declaring a state of calamity in the province due to the El Niño, which already affected four of its seven municipalities.

He said the move was based on a recommendation for a calamity declaration submitted by its Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council (PDCC).

“We’re now studying the PDCC’s proposal and also started gathering the necessary data from the field to determine the extent of the damage wrought by the El Niño,” Solon said.

Solon assured that the Sangguniang Panlalawigan is ready to make a calamity declaration if it later finds necessary to do so.

Hermelo Latoja, PDCC action officer, said the latest assessment made by the PDCC and the province’s Task Force El Niño showed that the dry spell already affected palay and corn farmlands in Alabel, Maasim, Malapatan and Malungon municipalities.

He said the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPAG) reported an initial crop damage of P18.88 million for corn and P8.78 million for palay.

“Right now, around 46 percent of the 70,000 families in the province were already affected by the adverse effects of the El Niño,” Latoja said. He said the sectors that were so far hit hardest by the drought were the farming and municipal fishing sectors.

On Tuesday, the OPAG dispatched its personnel to the areas that were affected by the ongoing drought to consolidate the extent of the damage to agricultural crops and livestock.

Provincial Agriculturist Jonathan Duhaylungsod and other members of the Task Force El Niño also made rounds with officials of the affected local governments to work out the immediate declaration of their areas under the state of calamity.

Under the Local Government Code, local government units are authorized to declare a state of calamity to allow the utilization of its calamity fund, which comprise five percent of their annual budget.

A province may be placed under the state of calamity if at least three of its municipalities were already affected by a calamity and have officially made such declaration. (PNA)

US Embassy Chargé d’Affaires Bassett inaugurates new school in Sarangani (http://businessmirror.com.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=22783:us-embassy-charge-daffaires-bassett-inaugurates-new-school-in-sarangani&catid=45:regions&Itemid=71)

MALAPATAN, Sarangani—A two-classroom building worth P700,000 was inaugurated in barangay Tuyan here Monday, with a top US Embassy official in attendance.

The building was donated by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and Petron Foundation, and officially turned over by US Embassy Chargé d’Affaires Leslie Bassett, said Rustom Pelima, provincial information officer of Sarangani province, on Monday.

Bassett said in a statement recorded by Pelima, “We have to pick the schools that have the support of everybody, including local government officials like the barangay captains, schools that have wonderful teachers to work extra hard with pupils to try to improve education.”

Bassett was with her staff, including USAID Director Elzadia Washington, who turned over to the school books from USAID’s Education Quality Access for Learning and Livelihood Skills (EQUALLS2) project.

The Sarangani provincial government has opened 18 new integrated schools in its remotest barangays where education is one of the centerpiece programs under Gov. Miguel Rene “Migs” Dominguez.

Tuyan Elementary School in barangay Tuyan here is the only school of peace in Sarangani being recognized by the United Nations.

“This is because we have the cooperation of the community as we integrate the concept of peace in our curriculum which our faculty members learned from the province-wide Culture of Peace trainings,” said Edgar Egano, school principal.

Petron Foundation executive director Malu Erni said Sarangani has constructed various school buildings  in the province. Erni said of these, Petron assisted in the construction of 120 new school buildings. Erni said Petron Foundation still has 480 school buildings up for construction under their education program.

“Petron fuels the HOPE program. HOPE stands for Helping Filipinos Overcome Poverty through Education,” Erni said.

Also thanking the donors was Department of Education regional director Isabelita Borres.

“We promise to use our new school building and all its facilities wisely,” Ayesha Harid, a Grade V pupil, said.

PPA earmarks P75M more for expansion of Sarangani port
GLAN, Sarangani, March 19 (PNA) – The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) has earmarked an additional P75 million for the proposed expansion and upgrading of the terminal port here within the next two years.

Engr. Francisco Belimac Jr., PPA district manager, said the funds would be used to improve the existing facilities of the Glan port in the wake of the foreseen surge in trade activities between the area and nearby North Sulawesi province in Indonesia.

“We’ll be expanding the wharf area and construct additional facilities to help accommodate bigger ships (from Indonesia),” he said.

On Thursday, a delegation from Tahuna Regency in North Sulawesi arrived at the port here for a three-day trade mission in Sarangani province and areas covered by the emerging Jose Abad Santos, Glan, Sarangani-Cooperation Triangle (JAGS-CT).

JAGS-CT refers to the trade cooperation earlier forged by the municipalities of Jose Abad Santos and Sarangani in Davao del Sur and Glan in Sarangani.

The arrival of the 164-man delegation, which is specifically looking to expand trade and cultural ties with JAGS-CT, was personally graced by President Gloria Macapal-Arroyo during a brief swing in the area Thursday.

Belimac said the Glan port expansion project covers the construction of additional 30 meters of the existing wharf area that is worth P35 million, the construction of the P16 million roll-on, roll-off or RoRo ramp and the repair of its existing rock causeway worth at least P24 million.

He said the extension of the wharf area will complete its expansion by at least 35 meters, which would reportedly be enough to allow standard cargo and passenger vessels to make their call at the port.

He said the repair of the port’s rock causeway will focus on its expansion into a two-way lane to help ease the movement of cargo trucks to and from the wharf area.

Belimac said the construction of the RoRo ramp will mainly complement the earlier completion of the RoRo terminal port at Mabila port in Sarangani town in Davao del Sur.

He said both Mabila and Glan Roro port facilities were being developed for the proposed opening of the RoRo route between the area and Tahuna Regency.

“We’re now developing the RoRo route within the JAGS-CT area, which would later expand towards North Sulawesi and hopefully the BIMP-EAGA (Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines-East Asean Growth Area),” Belimac said.

The visit of the Tahuna delegation was an offshoot of a request made earlier this year by the local government of Tahuna to the Indonesian Consulate to further strengthen its bilateral initiatives with the JAGS-CT.

The areas of cooperation between JAGS-CT and Tahuna include education and training, socio cultural development, tourism promotion, fisheries, marine resources development, and trade and commerce. (PNA)
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=265389

Summer Rate Promos at Isla Jardin del Mar

Gumasa,Glan,Sarangani Province, The cold month of February has just left us but it seems that summer is already here much, much earlier courtesy of the El Nino Phenomenon. The series of daily brownouts that ensued has made matters worse for everyone, disrupting work schedules, bedtime habits and sleeping hours due to the sweltering heat and humidity, especially in this city of what was once the barren lands of dusty Rajah Buayan.

It seems that all everyone wants to do right now is to hie off to the nearest beach getaway in GenSan or nearby Sarangani Bay or fresh water pool resort to escape from all these.

The good news is one such resort has come up with their Summer Weekdays Escapade Promotions in time for the long hot Summer break.

Friends, below is Isla Jardin Del Mar Resort’s Summer Weekdays Escapade Promo which have been adjusted to accommodate more barkadas and families looking for the perfect and affordable getaways.

http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/2195/86948902.jpg

Isla Jardin del Mar, located at Gumasa, Glan, Sarangani opened less than three months ago in a star-studded affair and has lowered their rates for beachgoers and vacationists who hate the usually crowded weekends and go for the more peaceful weekdays at the beach.

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The Isla Jardin del Mar Weekdays Escapade Promo is valid only from Mondays to Thursdays and runs from Marh 8, 2010 to June 30, 2010. Please read the mechanics of the two packages they are offering in the poster above. They have separate packages for DAY TOURS and OVERNITE STAYS plus separate fees for their OPEN and CLOSE COTTAGES.

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"THE TWO ROWS OF OPEN COTTAGES OF ISLA JARDIN DEL MAR RESORT LOCATED AT THE SOUTH SIDE OF THE BEACH"

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"SOME OF THE 10+ OVERNIGHT COTTAGES OF ISLA JARDIN DEL MAR RESORT FOUND AT THE NORTH SIDE OF THE BEACH FRONTAGE EQUIPPED WITH EITHER FANS OR AIRCONDITIONING. EACH COTTAGE HAS TWO ROOMS WITH DOUBLE-DECKED BEDS."

Here are some of the pictures we took during our visit there at the Inauguration, courtesy of Manager Wanchin Tan-Delfino.

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"THE NORTH SIDE BEACH OF ISLA JARDIN DEL MAR"

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"BEACH VOLLEYBALL IS JUST ONE OF GAMES ONE CAN PLAY AT ISLA JARDIN DEL MAR"

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"A JET SKI COULD BE RENTED WHILE AT ISLA JARDIN DEL MAR RESORT. AN INSTRUCTOR WILL BE ON STAND BY TO ASSIST YOU"

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"THE LARGE LAGOON BEHIND THE OVERNIGHT COTTAGES. IT COULD ALSO BE SEEN FROM THE HILLSIDE ROAD LEADING TO ISLA JARDIN DEL MAR'S MAIN ENTRANCE."

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"THE CLUBHOUSE BESIDE THE ENTRANCE OF THE RESORT SERVES AS THE MAIN RESTAURANT/CANTEEN OF ISLA JARDIN DEL MAR."

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"THE CONCRETE ROAD BEHIND THE OVERNIGHT COTTAGES."

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"SOME PICNICKERS ENJOY THE SHADE OF THE TALISAY AND COCONUT TREES AT THE BEACH:

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"THE ENTRANCE OF ISLA JARDIN DEL MAR AFTER NEGOTIATING A ROAD CARVED OUT FROM THE HILLS OF GUMASA GLAN COURTESY OF THE PROVINCIAL GOVT OF SARANGANI. THAT'S THE BUS WHICH OFFERS FREE RIDES TO PICNICKERS."

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"BARILES IN A SOUVENIR SHOT WITH (L-R) BING & ARMI ROYECA; ISLA JARDIN DEL MAR MANAGER WANCHIN TAN-DELFINO; BLOGGERS JINKY BORELA; MANDI NICOLAS (GENSAN GAZER); LYLE SANTOS, ORMAN MANANSALA; RIC DUMALAY DURING THE OPENING OF THE NEW TOURIST DESTINATION."

Pacquiao mounts aggressive campaign for his Sarangani congressional bid
GENERAL SANTOS CITY, March 24 (PNA) –- World boxing sensation Manny Pacquiao will temporarily set aside his recent ring exploits once he arrives here on Friday as he takes on another shot for a congressional post through the lone district of Sarangani province in the upcoming May 10 synchronized national and local elections.

Dominico Congson, chair of Pacquiao’s political party People’s Champ Movement (PCM) here, confirmed Wednesday that Pacquiao will immediately join the campaign trail once he arrives via the city airport here on Friday, which is also the start of the official campaign period for local candidates.

“We were advised that he (Pacquiao) will forego with the usual grand arrival activities here to give more focus to his campaign,” he said.

The city government here usually organizes a grand hero’s welcome for Pacquiao’s homecoming following his successful fights abroad.

After demolishing Puerto Rican champion Miguel Cotto in an exciting fight last November, city folks gave Pacquiao a rousing welcome through a motorcade around the city proper and a public press conference at the oval plaza gymnasium here.

Pacquiao, currently the reigning World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight champion, successfully defended his crown last March 13 in a clinical 12-round domination of former welterweight champion Joshua Clottey of Ghana.

Congson said Pacquiao, who is facing businessman Roy Chiongbian in his bid for Sarangani’s lone congressional seat, will proceed to the towns of Maasim, Kiamba and Maitum in Sarangani to join the launching of PCM’s campaign bandwagon.

He said the opening salvo of Pacquiao’s planned aggressive campaigning will be personally graced by Nacionalista Party (NP) presidential bet Manuel Villar and other national candidates.

Pacquiao’s PCM forged an alliance with Villar’s NP last December in a bid to propel the boxing champion’s second attempt for a seat at the House of Representatives in the coming May elections.

In the 2007 elections, Pacquiao lost his bid for the first congressional district seat of South Cotabato to incumbent Rep. Darlene Antonino-Custodio.

He has since changed his official residence from this city to Kiamba town in Sarangani province, where his wife Jinkee hails, and registered PCM as a local political party as part of his political plans.

Ernesto Quisay, chief of staff of City Mayor Pedro Acharon Jr., said they already anticipated such decision but cited that they have yet to get official word on the matter from the Pacquiao camp.

He said the local government will proceed with their usual preparations for Pacquiao’s scheduled homecoming on Friday for possible last-minute changes on the latter’s plans. (PNA) http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=13&sid=&nid=13&rid=266090

11 rebel returnees in Sarangani receive cash aid
DAVAO CITY, March 28 (PNA) -- Eleven rebel returnees in Sarangani formally received initial cash assistance under the government's social integration program during a simple ceremonies over the weekend at the provincial capitol of Sarangani Province.

Second Lt. Angela Friga Cinco of the civil-military operations of the 73rd Infantry Battalion based in Sarangani Province said the surrenderees came from various areas of the province also yielded their firearms after learning the opportunity offered by the government for them to return to the folds of the law and live normal lives with their respective families.

She said the 11 returnees underwent a 5-day values formation and reorientation seminar designed by Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process as part of a process to reintegrate them into the mainstream society and start a new life.

“The awarding of economic package has restored hope to the former rebels whose life was ruined by Communists teachings,” Cinco said.

Dante Tiwado, alias Garry, 19 years old, the youngest among the rebel returnees, voluntarily surrendered to 73rd Infantry Battalion on Aug 04, 2009 bringing along with him an Armalite (M16) rifle with two magazines and one rifle grenade. According to him, the rifle was trusted to him by NPA leader named Kumander Brigol.

He turned himself in for he can no longer bear the difficulties of constantly running away and playing hide and seek with authorities.

Lt. Colonel Edgardo de Leon, commanding officer of the 73rd IB called on the rebels to follow the cue from their former comrades who are now on the side of the government.

He assured the sincerity of the government for them to be given a second chance in life.

“The government is sincere in its offer of economic assistance to rebels who will voluntarily surrender with their firearms. We are calling upon the colleagues of Garry to follow and take this opportunity to have a new life of a free man”, de Leon said. (PNA)http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=266873

Cotabato Muslim trader to attend US Presidential summit on entrepreneurship in Washington
COTABATO CITY, March 31 (PNA) -- A Cotabato City-based Muslim local trader and a popular entrepreneur in Manila are among the participants from 40 countries all over the world who will take part in the US Presidential Summit on Entrepreneurship in Washington DC.

Bai Sandra Basar, a board member of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) Business Council and businessman Joey Concepcion, both representing the Philippines will attend the April 26 to 27 summit, the US Embassy press office today said.

Basar, who operates a chain of hardware stores in Cotabato City, is also a member of the Mindanao Regional Development Council representing Region 12.

Concepcion is a businessman, entrepreneurship consultant, and co-founder of the Philippine Center for Entrepreneurship, Inc. whose “Go Negosyo” movement instills optimism and business spirit among Filipino businesspeople and entrepreneurs.

As President Obama announced in his June 4, 2009 speech in Cairo, the Summit on Entrepreneurship will identify how we can deepen ties between business leaders, foundations, and entrepreneurs in the United States and Muslim communities around the world.

The Summit will highlight the role entrepreneurship can play in addressing common challenges while building partnerships that will lead to greater opportunity abroad and at home.(PNA)http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=267350

Dominguez escapes bomb attack (http://www.dailymirror.ph/Apr-2010/Apr2710/front2.html)
BY DIANA LHYD SUELTO

Sarangani Governor Miguel “Migs” Dominguez escaped a bomb attack yesterday just as he was coming from an investigation on a reported assassination attempt on Glan Mayor Enrique “Yoyong” Yap.

According to Dominguez’ personal aide Ariel Decena, the incident happened at around 11:40 a.m. as Dominguez’ convoy was passing through the Lun Masla Bridge in Malapatan town, Sarangani Province.

The improvised explosive device was placed in an abandoned red motorcycle. No one was hurt in the explosion.

Decena said Dominguez was shaken by the explosion but was unhurt. He readily went to the provincial police office to report the incident.

The incident happened hours after an assassination attempt on Yap, whose vehicle was reportedly blocked by three vehicles in Barangay Pangyan at around 10:58 p.m. on April 25.

Yap, however, escaped by overtaking the suspects’ vehicles and immediately called for police assistance.

The police rushed to area and accosted the six suspects who are now incarcerated at the Glan Police Precinct.

It was learned that the six suspects are from Zamboanga and General Santos City.

Two vehicles with plate number RBR 709 and MDM 577 were also recovered by the authorities, along with an Armalite rifle and one .45 caliber pistol.

Yap is running for reelection under the Lakas-Kampi CMD. His rival for the position is Sarangani board member Tata Yap, who is a cousin and is running under the Nacionalista Party along with boxing champ Manny Pacquiao who is seeking the gubernatorial post.

In an interview over ABS-CBN News Channel yesterday, Dominguez said he had just come from Glan town to investigate the assassination attempt on Yap when the bomb attack happened.

He said he was on his way home when the bomb exploded between his car and another vehicle in his convoy.

-oOo-
Minor blast, says police official of failed bomb attack against Dominguez

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews) – The roadside bomb attack on a convoy of Sarangani Gov. Miguel Rene Dominguez before noon Monday was reportedly considered a minor blast as only the explosive’s blasting cap went off, police officials said late Monday afternoon.

Senior Supt. Restito Gatera, Sarangani police director, said results of their investigation showed that the bomb’s main component, a live 105mm mortar shell, did not explode when the governor’s convoy passed by a bridge in Barangay Lun Masla in Malapatan town at around 11:40 am Monday.

“The bomb’s trigger failed so only the blasting cap exploded. It’s considered a minor explosion,” he told reporters.

No one was reported hurt in the attack, which happened while the governor‘s group was on its way back to the provincial capitol in Alabel town.

Dominguez, who is seeking reelection for his third straight term as Sarangani governor under the administration coalition Lakas-Kampi-CMD-Sarangani Reconciliation and Reformation Organization (Sarro), proceeded to the coastal municipality of Glan early Monday to look into the alleged assassination attempt on close ally Mayor Enrique Yap.

Gatera said members of the explosive and ordnance division (EOD) found the 105mm mortar shell and its other components still intact when they responded to the scene.

He said the bomb was planted inside the toolbox of a red Yamaha Crypton motorcycle, which was parked on the right side at the other end of the Lun Masla bridge.

The EOD team recovered a Motorola two-way radio, which was used as the bomb’s triggering device, he said.

“(The bomb) could have caused major damage to the passing convoy if it exploded completely. Fortunately that did not happen,” the police official said.

Gatera said they are currently investigating several leads regarding the attack but he did not elaborate further.

He said police investigators are now trying to locate the owner of the abandoned motorcycle that was used in the attack.

Gatera said a witness initially told police investigators that an unidentified person reportedly parked the motorcycle near the edge of the Lun Masla Bridge prior to the explosion.

He added the same person then acted like calling somebody through his mobile phone before hastily leaving the scene. Allen V. Estabillo/MindaNews

Tolits Bana's Photostream (http://www.flickr.com/photos/robs_troy/page4/)

Gardens of Saranggani Highlands
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See Tacurong City light up during Christmas (http://saggi-space.blogspot.com/2010/05/sultan-kudarat-city-of-tacurong-lights.html)! I have the fondest memory of my birth place, it's nice celebrating the holiday season here, with fireworks, live performances and christmas light all over the place.
http://saggi-space.blogspot.com/2010/05/sultan-kudarat-city-of-tacurong-lights.html

Hi! pila ka oras ang biyahe GENSAN to MAITUM?

Tacurong City, Sultan Kudarat -- In an almost two hectares of land lying by a river bank here, the crack of dawn offers a melodious harmony of birds; thousands dot the skies also during sunsets, a pleasure for bird watchers.

Visit the BARAS BIRD SANCTUARY (http://saggi-space.blogspot.com/2008/07/bird-sanctuary.html)

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Home » Sun.Star Davao » Business
DOE: Diesel-run plants top power production in Mindanao
Sunday, May 9, 2010
By Carlo P. Mallo

DIESEL and gasoline-run plants now contribute 40 percent to power produced in Mindanao this year, much higher compared to their 17 percent share in the power production pie in 2009.

Based on data gathered from the Department of Energy (DOE), the breakdown of electricity production in power crisis-stricken Mindanao is: diesel and gasoline run power plants, 40 percent; hydro power, 26 percent; coal-run power plants, 24 percent; and geothermal power plants, 10 percent.

Click here for Election 2010 updates

This is in stark contrast to the composition of the island's power production in 2009 wherein plants powered by diesel and gasoline contributed a measly 17 percent.

In 2009, hydro power was the primary source of power, contributing 53 percent to total output, followed by coal-fed power plants, 19 percent, and geothermal, 11 percent.

Last February and March, Mindanao suffered from severe power outages due to the drying up of hydro power plant sources.

Latest DOE monitoring showed that hydro power plants in Mindanao, which tap Lake Lanao and Pulangi River, only generate 95 megawatts, a far cry from their full capacity of 982 megawatts (MW). The drying up of water sources are seen to continue until the end of the year.

The Alcantara-led group Conal Holdings Corporation is pursuing two major coal-fed power plants that will produce an aggregate of 300 MW.

The Saranggani Coal Plant will produce 200 MW upon completion. By 2013, the Saranggani Coal Plant is expected to start running at 50 percent capacity or 100 MW upon the completion of its first phase. With the expected completion of the second phase by 2014, the Saranggani Coal Plant will be able to produce another 100 MW.

By 2014, Conal Holdings also expects the completion of its Zamboanga Coal Plant which is expected to add 100 MW of power to the Mindanao grid.

Pacquiao KOs old dynasty, is proclaimed

By Aquiles Zonio
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 05:26:00 05/15/2010


Filed Under: Eleksyon 2010, Elections, Politics, Inquirer Politics, Pacquiao

ALABEL, Sarangani, Philippines—Boxing hero Manny Pacquiao has been declared winner of the congressional race in Sarangani province after the canvassing showed him trouncing his rival by almost 60,000 votes.

Pacquiao, who obtained 120,052 votes, was proclaimed representative of the lone district of Sarangani at midnight Thursday.

Pacquiao’s win is considered historic for ending the political dominance of one of the country’s oldest political families.

His opponent, Roy Chiongbian, is a scion of the Chiongbians who have been in power in the region for more than 30 years. Many politicians have attempted to challenge the Chiongbians’ leadership in the past but failed.

In his remarks, Pacquiao extended a reconciliatory hand to his opponents, saying he wished to work with them for the good of the province.

Gigantic task

“My victory did not end our quest, rather it marked the start of gigantic task to work for the improvement of the people’s lives,” he said in Filipino.

Pacquiao said he would concentrate on the campaign promises he made, which include the setting up of a provincial hospital.

Sarangani does not have a provincial hospital and sick indigents have to be taken to General Santos City, about an hour’s drive from this town, for treatment.

Pacquiao also said he would work for the establishment of livelihood programs for the poor, particularly the farmers and the fishermen.

Athletes’ welfare

He said his priority in Congress would be the passage of laws that would uplift the condition of athletes, protect and advance their interests.

He also pledged to help poor but deserving children to pursue an education.

“I could see in them how I struggled hard just to get to school. But because of poverty, my mother could not afford to send me to school,” said Pacquiao, who has said he had wanted to be a priest when he was young.

He said he would see what laws are still needed to help the poor in terms of education.

And if he fails to deliver on his promises during his three years in Congress, voters should reject him in the next elections, Pacquiao said.

“Help me also by monitoring my performance as a public official,” he said.

Gracious loser

Roy, the youngest son of the late congressman James Chiongbian and former governor Priscilla Chiongbian, was gracious in defeat.

He called on all residents to rally behind Paquiao and other provincial officials.

He said the Chiongbians will support the newly elected officials—including Pacquiao-to make the province a safe and better place to live in.

Pacquiao’s mother, Dionisia, who celebrates her 61st birthday today, said her son’s victory was the greatest birthday gift she has received.

She said it will be a double celebration for the Pacquiao family.

Among the invited guests are Imelda Marcos, the widow of the dictator Ferdinand Marcos, and singer-politician Imelda Papin.

Gumasa, Glan, Sarangani

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Fisheries bureau planning to establish mariculture park in Sultan Kudarat

GENERAL SANTOS CITY -- Plans to set up a mariculture park in Central Mindanao have gained ground for the propagation and production of high-value fish stocks, a regional fisheries official here said.

Sani D. Macabalang, regional director of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), said the mariculture park will host fish cages to produce milkfish (bangus), rabbit fish (danggit), trevally (talakitok) and grouper (Lapu-Lapu), besides promoting seaweed and mussel farming.

Mr. Macabalang said the coastal town of Kalamansig in Sultan Kudarat province has been chosen as site of the project. The waters off Kalamansig town include portions of Celebes Sea and the Moro Gulf.

"With this mariculture park, we hope to accelerate the socioeconomic growth of the area," he said in an interview here on Tuesday last week.

Mr. Macabalang said the regional office of the bureau is funding initial development of the area, like the cement anchor that will cost at least P2.5 million. He said support infrastructure like a cold storage plant and road development will form part of the project. The office then hopes to attract investors.

Based on BFAR’s plan, the mariculture park will have three clusters -- a full developed area with pre-installed cages for the marginalized sector, semi-developed areas with mooring facilities for small investors, and bare areas for big investors.

A two-year contract, based on a rent-to-own scheme, will be introduced for marginalized fisherfolk by which BFAR will provide eight fish cages sized 10 x 10 meters per party.

On the other hand, small investors are allowed a maximum of two mooring spaces, with each mooring space designed for a maximum cage size of 20 m x 20 m.

This way, BFAR’s regional office hopes to increase fish stocks and introduce sustainable fisheries management among Sultan Kudarat communities.

Mr. Macabalang said his office hopes to open the Kalamansig mariculture park this year, which will be the 58th in the country.

In line with the efforts to set up a mariculture park, the regional BFAR office recently sent 10 technical workers on a nine-day exposure trip to six successful mariculture parks in the country, namely: Sta. Rita and Basey in Samar, Quinapondan and Guiauan in Eastern Samar, Balingoan in Misamis Oriental and Panabo in Davao del Norte. The trip was designed to enhance the knowledge and skills of the regional technical staff in mariculture park management, said Mr. Macabalang.

Asked why the mariculture park won’t be set up in Sarangani Bay, which is considered more ideal since access roads are already in place in the surrounding areas like Sarangani province and General Santos City, Mr. Macabalang said the area has already been declared a protected seascape. -- RSS
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Murag nahuman naman cguro ni nga project... murag gi feature ni sya sa travel channel....

Murag nahuman naman cguro ni nga project... murag gi feature ni sya sa travel channel....

Wala pa man ata BRO...
Basin ang nafeature bro kay katong Masjid Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah sa Brunei jud mismo

naa baya U/C sa Cotabato mismo... murag i've seen that one back 2009 ata to... kaabi gani nako ug nahuman na... the biggest mosque in Philippines man gani to ingon sa host...

naa baya U/C sa Cotabato mismo... murag i've seen that one back 2009 ata to... kaabi gani nako ug nahuman na... the biggest mosque in Philippines man gani to ingon sa host...

Aw bacin U/C pa?!? Wa jud ko nakabalita human na ni... cge lang bro ako ra iconfirm ni! SALAMAT Bro!

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Saranggani Highlands Garden and Restaurant (http://saggi-space.blogspot.com/2010/07/inside-saranggani-highlands-garden-and.html)
http://a.imageshack.us/img194/1865/saranggani5.jpg

Modern dam in North Cotabato nearly complete (http://www.sunstar.com.ph/davao/modern-dam-north-cotabato-nearly-complete)
By Malu Cadeliña Manar

KIDAPAWAN CITY -- The construction of a state-of-the-art dam of North Cotabato's Metro Kidapawan Water District (MKWD), one of the biggest water districts in South and Central Mindanao, is already half complete, data showed.

Once completed, it would benefit some 7,000 service connections to the city's east portion and nearby towns in North Cotabato, according to MKWD assistant general Engr. Sandy Alqueza.

Updates on President Benigno Aquino III's presidency

The project is worth P40 million, which was taken from the more than P250 million loan of the MKWD with the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA) released last year.

The construction started early January this year, at the height of the El Niño phenomenon. The project is expected to be completed before the year ends. This is the fourth intake box the MKWD has constructed since it started its operations more than 10 years ago.

The MKWD has built a 13-kilometer transmission line from Lapaan 4 dam to the two biggest reservoirs located at the east and west portions of the city -- a 600-cubic meter reservoir at the Cotelco Village and the 500-cubic meter reservoir at Amas Village.

The project, according to Alqueza, is part of the five-year development plan of the MKWD, aimed at expanding and improving its water works in North Cotabato.

The source of the dam comes from Kansal Falls located at Sitio Lapaan in Barangay Perez, this city, which according to MKWD officials, was not affected when the drought hit Mindanao region late last year.

The water supplied by the MKWD from the Kansal Falls, according to Anima, is still one of the cleanest and cheapest in Asia.

At present, the MKWD is supplying clean drinking waters to some 22,000 households and other service connections in the city, and nearby towns in North Cotabato.

On Tuesday, the MKWD, together with some representatives from peoples' organizations, non-government organizations, religious sector, local government units, and media, visited the area and planted some 200 seedlings of Tinikaran and Lawaan near the dam.

"We make tree planting a regular activity of the MKWD. We also make it a policy that whoever visits the dam must plant at least 10 seedlings of species, which are endemic to the area," Anima said.

The site where the dam is located is part of the more than 600 hectares of the Mount Apo declared by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources as a protected area.

Published in the Sun.Star Davao newspaper on August 12, 2010.

St. Louis Hospital (http://saggi-space.blogspot.com/2010/08/sultan-kudarat-tacurong-citys-st-louis.html) in Tacurong City, now open...check out these photos: http://saggi-space.blogspot.com/2010/08/sultan-kudarat-tacurong-citys-st-louis.html

Yah! Sa tabi ng Tacurong Terminal

Any updates, pictures of the giant Mosque funded by the Sultan of Brunei and designed by Palafox that is being built in Cotabato?

TALAKUDONG FESTIVAL (http://saggi-space.blogspot.com/2010/09/talakudong-festival-2010-calendar-of.html) is fast approaching. Sayang I wouldn't be there to witness the parade but I was able to get their schedule here (http://saggi-space.blogspot.com/2010/09/talakudong-festival-2010-calendar-of.html)

Any updates, pictures of the giant Mosque funded by the Sultan of Brunei and designed by Palafox that is being built in Cotabato?

Just sharing...

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Masjid Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah

To rise in a five-hectare prime land in Cotabato City, the place of worship will host the largest and most modern masjid in the Philippines. The masjid is the center for worship among the Muslims. Furthermore, the project aims to contribute to the unification of the people in Mindanao.

Starting around 02:30 GMT on Saturday, September 25 (10:30 AM [Philippine Time] on Saturday, September 25), SkyscraperCity will be down while we re-work our back-end network. The downtime may take as much as 7 hours as we have to move servers around a bit.

For Questions or Comments, please visit this thread (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1221255).

Consumer Welfare Month in Sarangani
October 12, 2010, 9:02pm

ALABEL, Sarangani (PIA) – The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR)-led consumer welfare month celebration this year kicked off with a tree-planting activity at the Capitol grounds Monday.

This year's theme is “Consumers: Green Multipliers.”

“One day, it might be too late,” Sarangani Gov. Migs Dominguez said at the opening ceremony.

“While it is true that we have a growing population, we have lesser portion of land to plant and lesser communities who have their own land to till,” he added.

“Let us all work to save and protect our environment and focus our resources especially on education,” the governor added.

Students from Alabel National Science High School joined the tree planting activity at the Capitol grounds led by Dominguez, DENR provincial officer Geronimo Sequito, and Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Provincial Director Nenita Barroso.

“We cannot bring back what was lost already, but we can do more in protecting our planet by planting more trees,” Sequito said.

As this developed, Sequito urged fellow government employees in Sarangani to become models on solid waste management.

“Ours is not just service by fulfillment. Government service is a service of mission,” Barroso said.

“Service with compassion is working beyond eight hours in the office, and even spending our own money because we get paid anyway,” Barroso said.


http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/281890/consumer-welfare-month-sarangani

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs156.snc4/37116_484217105109_337424530109_7293102_3421431_n.jpg

Municipality of Glan
CHONGBIAN bldg.,
Glan,Sarangani Province
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs234.snc4/39041_454505955109_337424530109_6580657_7123691_n.jpg

Kidapawan City, North Cotabato
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/hs478.ash2/75162_168260816525582_100000249932193_478772_1425599_n.jpg

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs923.snc4/73653_168261179858879_100000249932193_478778_5535856_n.jpg

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs923.snc4/73653_168261183192212_100000249932193_478779_4468908_n.jpg

Kidapawan City, North Cotabato
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/hs478.ash2/75162_168260816525582_100000249932193_478772_1425599_n.jpg

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs923.snc4/73653_168261179858879_100000249932193_478778_5535856_n.jpg

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs923.snc4/73653_168261183192212_100000249932193_478779_4468908_n.jpg

^^ Wow.. More pics of Kidapawan City.. :D

Sarangani water lab operation to help business in Southwestern Mindanao (http://mindanews.com/main/2010/11/16/sarangani-water-lab-operation-to-help-business-in-southwestern-mindanao/)
By Mindanews | Tuesday| November 16, 2010 | Filed under: Business, Top Stories


GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews/15 November) — The Department of Environment and Natural Resources has accredited a water testing and waste water treatment laboratory facility in nearby Sarangani, a move seen to help the local business sector, officials said.

Sarangani’s revenue-generating Environmental Protection and Conservation Center (ECPC) was recently certified compliant with International Organization for Standardization 17025, the standard used by testing and calibration laboratories, said Jelyn E. Apura, the center’s executive director.

“We encourage business companies [in the region] to have their water and waste water testing conducted in the ECPC,” Apura said in a statement.

In January this year, the Department of Health accredited the center’s drinking water testing facility worth P6 million.

The P1.9-million waste water treatment testing laboratory, on the other hand, was acquired three years ago.

Both facilities are now accredited by the DENR, Apura said, adding they need between P10 and P15 million for the accreditation of the center’s existing food testing laboratory.

The environment department last year handed a P19-million food testing facility but more funds are needed to have it accredited, she added.

Nenita L. Barroso, Department of Trade and Industry – Sarangani director, said the laboratory’s various testing facilities would give a boost to the food and other industries in the region.

When the food facility is given accreditation, entrepreneurs would no longer go to Manila for food testing, she noted.

Barroso said this will help them save on their cost and result in lower prices of commodities with quality products from the Soccsksargen area.

Soccsksargen, or Central Mindanao, straddles the provinces of South Cotabato, North COtabato, Sultan Kudarat and Sarangani and the cities of General Santos, Koronadal, Tacurong, Kidapawan and Cotabato.

The ECPC’s drinking water testing facility will help a company planning to go into water drinking business to secure the needed certification required by regulatory authorities, said microbiologist Eddie Ladiaman.

The center employs two microbiologists, three chemists, and one medical technologist for its technical operation.

One basic requirement that water companies should comply with for drinking water is a low-cost microbiological analysis for total coliform costing P350 and and pH test at P160, Tadiaman said.

The ECPC so far is the only one-stop shop local government unit-managed laboratory center in Southwestern Mindanao.

The Sarangani government earlier conceptualized the center as a revenue-generating enterprise and at the same time as a learning facility for those in the academe.

Preserved animals from the sea, air and land can be found in the center, which has become one of the study tour destinations in the region. (Bong Sarmiento/MindaNews)

Residents oppose coal-fired power plant project

MAASIM, SARANGANI -- A 75-boat flotilla and a human banner with about 800 participants were formed Saturday to send a message opposing the proposed 200-megawatt coal-fired power plant of Alcantara Group-led Conal Holdings Corp.

http://www.bworldonline.com/webpics/articles/image/201011218fcce.jpg

This handout photo received on Nov. 21 from environmental action group Greenpeace and taken on Nov. 20 shows around 800 villagers from the town of Maasim in Sarangani province in Mindanao forming the words "No To Coal" on the grounds of a local elementary school. The community was joined by Greenpeace volunteers and crew from the visiting Greenpeace flagship Rainbow Warrior --AFP

The activities were part of a campaign by Maasim People’s Coalition on climate change (MP3C) and Greenpeace International.

The flotilla was composed of outrigger-boats of local fishers while the human banner that spelled out "NO TO COAL" was composed of students, activists and residents.

The flotilla was part of the entourage of world-renowned Rainbow Warrior campaign ship of Greenpeace.

"This is our show of opinion as a community against the dirtiest source of power that threatens the pristine environment and people of Maasim and neighboring municipalities," said Nerissa B. Tongco, MP3C officer who joined the human banner.

"There are threats of global warming and using ‘deadly coal’ will exacerbate the problem. The community has to act against what may cause the destruction of the environment and endanger human lives," said Ms. Tongco.

"Deadly Coal" is the group’s catch-phrase printed on T-shirts.

Amalie Conchelle H. Obusan, climate and energy campaigner of Greenpeace, said collaboration with local groups is part of the campaign to localize the advocacy against the use of coal as industrial fuel.

"Greenpeace seeks for 50% renewable energy efficiency in the country by the year 2020," adding it "will ask President [Benigno S. C.] Aquino’s support to achieve this."

Fr. Apollo G. Salazar of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente, a religious group opposing the coal plant, said in his talk at the event that there is a need to augment sources of power in Mindanao but "it must be from a sustainable and clean source, not coal."

The coal-fed plant is said to stabilize the energy grid in Mindanao that currently relies on hydropower, or over 50% as power source.

Conal Holdings’ officials claimed on the Sarangani provincial government’s Web site that "the P20-billion facility... is the answer to [a] projected power shortage on the island in 2012."

Conal Holdings has promised minimal air and water toxic emission by using "circulating fluidized bed combustion technology, but this has not appeased opposition groups.

As the human banner and flotilla campaigns were held, banners apparently supporting the coal-fired plant were put up all over the town.

One reads "Start the development in Maasim, we support CFPP (coal-fired power plant)."

Another said in the dialect: "The church opposes the coal plant but cannot provide us jobs."

Joseph C. Nocos, Conal Holdings vice-president for business development, said in the government Web site that the project "can provide 1,000 jobs for the community."

Ms. Tongco said: "The coal project is part of what is called the holy trinity of development aggression in Soccsksargen (South Cotabato, North Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani, General Santos)."

The other two are the Tampakan copper project of Sagittarius Mines, Inc. and a coal-mining project under San Miguel Corp. in Lake Sebu, both in South Cotabato. -- Louie O. Pacardo
|


http://www.bworldonline.com/main/content.php?id=21594

Nice updates!

Sarangani Sunset

http://multiply.com/mu/raullabajo/image/19/photos/22/600x600/3/RAUL-GLAN-0062.JPG?et=gnaBsXTDH5FMbgEWEaTV0g&nmid=88059502

http://multiply.com/mu/raullabajo/image/19/photos/22/600x600/4/RAUL-GLAN-0088.JPG?et=oNtYrsEu4yRKh1GiP8Pi%2BQ&nmid=88059502

http://multiply.com/mu/raullabajo/image/17/photos/22/600x600/19/RAUL-GLAN-0102.JPG?et=QlBAVjqY95255AY9Ijm77A&nmid=88059502

http://multiply.com/mu/raullabajo/image/19/photos/22/600x600/9/RAUL-GLAN-0045.JPG?et=N6Ax87ZRdawA31BwfFJUzw&nmid=88059502

http://multiply.com/mu/raullabajo/image/19/photos/22/600x600/16/RAUL-GLAN-0083.JPG?et=1Dgd%2B%2BH%2B%2Bnt%2CH8QDK8NZhA&nmid=88059502

http://multiply.com/mu/raullabajo/image/18/photos/22/600x600/21/RAUL-GLAN-0073.JPG?et=U0cbQZzpOLeknqr%2CsYaHcQ&nmid=88059502

Maayong Pasko! :)

Kidapawan City, North Cotabato
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/hs478.ash2/75162_168260816525582_100000249932193_478772_1425599_n.jpg

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs923.snc4/73653_168261179858879_100000249932193_478778_5535856_n.jpg

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs923.snc4/73653_168261183192212_100000249932193_478779_4468908_n.jpg

cge ka adto ug kidapawan bai?hehehe cge ko adto didto pero kapoi man kuha ug pics oi.hehehe.. maayo paka kay nakakuha pa.hehehe

St. Louis Hospital, Tacurong City

http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r216/bongskie09/P110111_1331.jpg

unsay nice and affordable hotel sa cotabato city? mao ni akong first stop sa akong travel...

unsay nice and affordable hotel sa cotabato city? mao ni akong first stop sa akong travel...

Uban Q ShaK beh...
enwy, wla pa jud ko nakatamak dra Cotabato City ba...
kumbinsiha q ba... Unsa jud dpat hinungdan kung ngano kinahanglan jud nga mkatamak q diha?:)

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heard 2P will be flying to new routes by mid this year... tacloban... general santos... and cotobato...

heard 2P will be flying to new routes by mid this year... tacloban... general santos... and cotobato...

^^ This is good news.. :banana::banana:

heard 2P will be flying to new routes by mid this year... tacloban... general santos... and cotobato...

More airlines operating in the region, more choices. More choices, more competition. More competition, lower the prices.. while improving the service..
Good for the people of SOCSARGEN..

5 new trial courts to rise in Sarangani

GENERAL SANTOS CITY – For almost two decades now, Sarangani, a province straddling seven towns with an estimated population of nearly half a million people (2007 census), has only one trial court to boost.

But the wheels of justice will soon grind faster for Sarangani, which was carved out of South Cotabato province in 1992, with five new courts in the pipeline, two of them ready for groundbreaking rites on Wednesday (March 2).

Arnel Zapatos, Sarangani provincial legal officer, said that Supreme Court Chief Justice Renato Corona would lead the groundbreaking ceremonies at the capitol compound in Alabel town.

Zapatos said the creation of the five new regional trial courts in Sarangani stemmed from the enactment of Republic Act 10123, which former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo approved on June 3, 2010.

Sarangani is under the 11th Judicial Region.

Zapatos said they are considering putting up three of the five additional trial courts in Glan, Malungon and Kiamba.

The Kiamba branch would serve the MAKIMA economic sub-grouping, he added. MAKIMA stands for Maasim, Kiamba and Maitum.

“(With) accessibility and speedy determination of cases before the court, justice is served. That is its impact. All these efforts are support towards the strengthening and sustaining peace and order in the province,” Zapatos said in a statement.

“It will be a progressive implementation just like what we want to happen in the province to achieve the Justice Enhancement and Empowerment Program (JEEP) objectives by 2012,” he said.

Senator Francis Pangilinan had put up a P3-million support fund for the P8-million project.

JEEP was initiated in 2007 “in order to help support the provincial initiatives in promoting social
justice by focusing its interventions to the provincial jail and to the lone regional trial of the
province,” a project briefer said.

Corona will also lead the conduct of small claims workshop among barangay captains and women sectors with orientation and dialogue on the following day.

“According to a study by the Supreme Court, small claim cases (lower than P100,000) clog the dockets in regional and municipal trial courts. To unclog the dockets, new rules and procedures in small claims direct municipal trial courts to mediate those cases,” Zapatos
said.

A dialogue and validation workshop with court administrator Jose Midas Marquez will also be held at the Kasfala Hall for court infrastructures on Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) judicial region.

Zapatos said the Provincial Legal Office’s milestones for the JEEP are the institutionalization of the Provincial Mediation Center in 2007, implementation of the Justice On Wheels (JOWs) mobile court in 2008, and the creation and establishment of additional trial courts in the
province through RA 10123.

Since its operation in 2008, JOWs has decreased the number of inmates at the provincial jail by 64 percent, from 600 to 216, in December 2010, records from the provincial legal office said.

Sarangani Gov. Miguel Rene Dominguez said the five new trial courts, which are expected to become fully operationalize by next year, will boost the justice system in the province.
Justice will now be closer to our people, he said.

http://www.mindanaotimes.net/?p=17901

Malapit na ang groundbreaking ng SARANGANI PROVINCIAL HOSPITAL courtesy of Rep. Manny Pacquiao...

It's really fateful that Manny didn't win here in GENSAN... Mas marami talaga siya matutulungan sa Sarangani na mahihirap...

pero nakakahinayang din kung dito naging representative si Manny, for sure marami siya magagawa para sa GENSAN... but still, kudos for MANNY and to all Sarangans!

Dongon Falls
Lake Sebu, South Cotabato
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4082/4881959308_86b3cbcca2_z.jpg

by: sweetcaroline

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs536.snc3/30396_1477016326294_1260307059_1348484_5115538_n.jpg

where is this?

Alabel is a 1st class municipality in the province of Sarangani, Philippines. It is the capital municipality of Sarangani.

http://i819.photobucket.com/albums/zz111/emmanuel_e/100_9913.jpg


.

ang ganda talaga ng sarangani capitol. :)

ang ganda talaga ng sarangani capitol. :)

Soon to be a city... This wonderful place will be an integral part not just of METROPOLITAN GENSAN but of Saragani Prov.

naa na diay CALDA sa MARBEL? i saw it last sunday on my route to san filipe.

http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/197581_197163323639368_100000371054303_607536_7341099_n.jpg

and MANDARIN TEA GARDEN kay murag mag open pud..naa ko nakita nga tarp

Halal industry gets boost (http://mindanews.com/main/2011/03/08/halal-industry-gets-boost/)
By Bong S. Sarmiento | Tuesday| March 8, 2011

KORONADAL CITY (MindaNews/07 March)—A state-owned halal laboratory has risen in Southwestern Mindanao as another bigger facility commenced construction in the region to boost efforts for the country to penetrate the estimated $3 trillion global halal market, an official said on Monday.
Zenaida Laidan, Department of Science and Technology regional director said the new halal clearinghouse facility worth at least P24 million recently opened in Cotabato City to cater to the needs of small, medium and large enterprises.
“Construction of civil works for a bigger halal laboratory has commenced and is now about 30% complete,” she told MindaNews.
The P75-million facility being built in this city, the capital of South Cotabato, will be known as the Philippine National Halal Laboratory, Laidan said.
Halal refers to food or non-food products permissible under the Islamic faith.
The newly-launched halal laboratory facility at the DOST-12 compound in Cotabato City has a range of services that span the entire supply chain of halal food and selected non-food products, a project briefer said.
It employs advanced technology and state-of-the art equipment and it is the only existing halal laboratory in the country devoted to serving local and international clients, Laidan said.
The facility is capable of profiling fatty acids of animals and plants; DNA analysis of foods and other processed products; gelatin content analysis of milk and other dairy products; testing of genetically modified organism; alcohol content analysis of beverages and other related products; qualitative detection of haram in meat products; and detection of lard in bakery products and edible oils, among others.
Laidan said that among those who will benefit from the halal laboratory are food and beverage manufacturers, food service outlets, caterers, food distributors and suppliers, food importers and exporters, pharmaceutical manufacturers and medical device producers.
The laboratory was established in line with the Philippine Science and Technology Program for the Development of the Halal Industry strongly pushed by Laidan.
She noted that the DOST is the “competent government authority in the technical aspect of validating compliance of products and services to halal requirements.”
For the laboratory, Laidan said her agency has partnered with the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos, which will handle the religious aspect of validation.
Sani Macabalang, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources director for Southwestern Mindanao, earlier called for a partnership among government stakeholders to fully develop the country’s halal industry.
“The complementation of proper technical agencies in upgrading the halal industry in the country is essential, not only to boost the economy, but also for the reassurance that the rights and well-being of Muslim Filipinos are recognized and valued. Foremost of this is to ensure the halal integrity of all products coming from the Philippines,” he said.
Laidan said that a halal laboratory is very important especially for a non-Muslim country like the Philippines, as it will increase the integrity of locally-made halal products especially those bound for markets in Muslim countries
“We cannot assure that a particular product is halal using only our naked eyes or senses. Only through testing and analyses in our laboratory can we guarantee that products are really halal,” she said. (Bong Sarmiento/MindaNews)

http://mindanews.com/main/2011/03/08/halal-industry-gets-boost/

naa na diay CALDA sa MARBEL? i saw it last sunday on my route to san filipe.

http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/197581_197163323639368_100000371054303_607536_7341099_n.jpg

and MANDARIN TEA GARDEN kay murag mag open pud..naa ko nakita nga tarp

Wow! Congrats to Marbel...
Di napud magpabilin ang dakbayan sa koronadal... padaun sa paglambo... :banana:

Salamat sa info bro...

calda pizza is located along alunan ave paakyat ng banga near the provincial capital while the new mandarin is housed at ace centerpoint sa expansion building along gensan drive...

calda pizza is located along alunan ave paakyat ng banga near the provincial capital while the new mandarin is housed at ace centerpoint sa expansion building along gensan drive...

:banana:

http://img196.imageshack.us/img196/439/cots.jpg (http://img196.imageshack.us/i/cots.jpg/)

Uploaded with ImageShack.us (http://imageshack.us)

http://img196.imageshack.us/img196/439/cots.jpg (http://img196.imageshack.us/i/cots.jpg/)

Uploaded with ImageShack.us (http://imageshack.us)

:banana:

Hiligaynon news: Youth Summit ginhiwat sa Columbio, Sultan Kudarat

KORONADAL CITY, Mar. 16 (PIA)-- Mga siyen mil dos siyentos (1,200) ka mga pamatan-on sang Munisipyo sang Columbio, Sultan Kudarat ang nagpaidalum sa apat ka adlaw nga pagtililipon sang mga kabataan nga gintipon sang 27th Infantry Battalion, Philippine Army kag National Youth Commission.

Tuyo sang nasambit nga pagtililipon nga nagsugod sadtong Biyernes nga itudlo sa mga pamatan-on sa Columbio ang kaayuhan sang isa ka malinong nga pook.

Ginhambal ni Lt. Col Joel Nacnac, puno sang 27th IB nga tudluan nila ang mga pamatan-on nga mangin baganihan kag makapungsodnon.

Nagalaum si Nacnac nga sa pagbalik sang mga kabataan sa ila pook mangin manugbantay sila sang katawhay kag magdumala sang mga kabataan sa ila pook.

Nahanungod man sa ginhiwat nga pagtililipon, nagpasalig si Columbio Mayor Amirh Musali nga buligan niya ang kabataan sa pook, ilabi na ang wala nagabutho pinaagi sa paghatag sang scholarship.

Sa ini nga tikang man mabuhinan ang mga kabataan nga mabuyo sa mga bisyo o mag-upod sa mga rebelde nga grupo nga New People’s ARMY.

Sa subong padayon ang libog sang banwa nahanungod sa grupo nga NPA. Sining nagligad nga semana, pila ka hitabo sang inaway sa tunga sang NPA kag militar sa lugar, ilabi na sa dulunan sini kag sa mga banwa sang Magsaysay kag Matanao, Davao del Sur. (EBdelaCruyz/PIA12)

http://www.pia.gov.ph/?m=1&t=1&id=22676

House committee approves science high in Central Mindanao (http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/nation/view/20110317-325956/House-committee-approves-science-high-in-Central-Mindanao)

By Carlo Agamon
Inquirer Mindanao
First Posted 12:47:00 03/17/2011

Filed Under: Congress, Legislation, Science (general), Education, Philippines - Regions
KIDAPAWAN CITY, Philippines—The House committee on science and technology has approved a bill providing for the establishment of a Philippine Science High School in Central Mindanao, the bill’s proponent said here Wednesday.

Representative Nancy Catamco of North Cotabato’s 2nd District said that if House Bill 2818, which the committee approved on Tuesday, is eventually passed into law, the PSHS campus will be established in Kidapawan.

The bill will now go to the plenary.

Catamco argued before the House committee that despite a law mandating the establishment of PSHS campuses in each of the country’s regions, Central Mindanao still has no such school.

“It will be noted that there are currently only two campuses in the whole of Mindanao although the laws creating the PSHS System envision that there should be a PSHS campus for each of the 17 administrative regions,” she said in an interview.

Catamco said in the whole country, only 10 PSHS campuses exist. These are in the National Capital Region; Southern Mindanao; Western Visayas; Eastern Visayas; Bicol; Northern Mindanao; Ilocos; Central Visayas; Central Luzon; and Cagayan Valley.

She said seven administrative regions, including Central Mindanao—composed of North and South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat and Sarangani—are without a PSHS campus.

Catamco said her intention was to make available to the region’s youths access to “high-quality secondary education” that only the PSHS system can offer.

“It is in line with the vision that ultimately, the youth of Central Mindanao would be highly skilled and competitive and would be able to contribute to nation-building by helping our country attain the desired mass of professionals and leaders in science and technology,” she said.

7 Falls @ Lake Sebu
http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/179464_133662420030970_100001616391243_215301_753838_n.jpg
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Sarangani Provincial Capitol
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Gumasa Whitebeach, Glan, Sarangani
http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/67324_110850102312202_100001616391243_79701_6853172_n.jpg

7 Falls @ Lake Sebu
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Sarangani Provincial Capitol
http://a3.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/69351_110850075645538_100001616391243_79700_111239_n.jpg
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Gumasa Whitebeach, Glan, Sarangani
http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/67324_110850102312202_100001616391243_79701_6853172_n.jpg


Dakpan jud ang tiil... :)

Dakpan jud ang tiil... :)

^^OT...dakpa sa akong tiil nga laagan kaau... hahaha:bash::lol:

Soon to be a city... This wonderful place will be an integral part not just of METROPOLITAN GENSAN but of Saragani Prov.

alin po ang soon to be a city? alabel?

alin po ang soon to be a city? alabel?

I heard they applied for cityhood before but denied because the population is not enough to qualify Alabel to become a city...

Water park to open soon in Koronadal
Comment| More | By Maria Jose

RiaLity Bites

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

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THE great wave is coming! Are you ready for it?


This summer, a three-hectare resort and water park will open this summer in Koronadal City, South Cotabato.


Post your online prayers for Japan earthquake victims

Paraiso Verde Resort and Water Park is being constructed with the vision of being a world-class tourist destination and the leader in wholesome family leisure in Southern Philippines.


Paraiso Verde Resort and Water Park centers on four recreational water structures: a Wave Pool, a Raging River, a Kid's Paradise, and a Lap Pool. The pools feature state-of-the-art filtration systems.


At the heart of the resort is a 2,200-square-meter wave pool. It is powered by wave machines manufactured by the top-notch Murphy Waves in Scotland.


The Raging River has a 190-meter loop that has raging waves coursing through its loop, giving the swimmers a thrilling ride.


Meanwhile, kids and toddlers will be able to enjoy the cool waters are they dip into a 650 square meters kiddie pool equipped with modern water play structures such as mushrooms, kiddie slides, and buckets.


The park also features lap pool and a swim club for those who want to swim to improve their health and fitness.


These state-of-the-art recreational structures are complemented by various cottages, a food court and a multi-purpose pavilion.


The pavilion can accommodate 300 people and will serve as a venue for the park guests' special occasions.


Paraiso Verde is owned and managed by Paraiso Verde Resort Inc. The company and its employees operate on the mission of providing a fun-filled and relaxing aquatic experience for the whole family; of providing excellent resort services to our guests and exceed shareholder expectations; and of continually improving quality of service.


Paraiso Verde is currently the largest recreational water park in the Soccsksargen Region and one of the most-awaited tourist destinations in Mindanao. It also houses the Cinco Niñas Filipino Cuisine Restaurant and various functions rooms and halls.


With world-class facilities and well-trained management and staff, the park will make sure that each guest gets a good value for his money, charging only P200-P250 for an entire day's use of all the pools.


Locals and tourists alike are awaiting the grand opening of this very exciting destination. And it will be happening very soon! Definitely, this summer will be more exciting with the arrival of this great wave.


For more information on these exciting developments, visit the Paraiso Verde Website at http://www.paraisoverderesortandwaterpark.com or at them on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/ParaisoVerde. Follow them at http://www.twitter.com/PVerdeResort at http://www.piclyf.com/ParaisoVerde. For inquiries and reservations, you may contact them at paraisoverderesort@yahoo.com or at +6383-5201338.


Published in the Sun.Star Davao newspaper on March 23, 2011

KIDAPAWAN CITY
http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/207213_203760226313011_100000371054303_651589_3651785_n.jpg

http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/205666_203769686312065_100000371054303_651624_7794946_n.jpg

http://a3.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/199579_203771489645218_100000371054303_651629_2380447_n.jpg

KIDAPAWAN CITY
http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/207213_203760226313011_100000371054303_651589_3651785_n.jpg

http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/205666_203769686312065_100000371054303_651624_7794946_n.jpg

http://a3.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/199579_203771489645218_100000371054303_651629_2380447_n.jpg

Thanks bro...
Nice pics of KIDAPAWAN City.. :)

http://mindanews.com/main/wp-content/uploads/03mosque02.jpg
GRANDEST. The Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Masjid in Cotabato City,touted to be the grandest mosque in the Philippines, is now “99.12% complete,” said Richard Harris Jordan, project manager. Jordan says they expect to finish project, partly funded by Brunei, by mid-May. MindaNews photo by Bong Sarmiento


Brunei-funded grand mosque in Mindanao to open soon (http://mindanews.com/main/2011/04/03/brunei-funded-grand-mosque-in-mindanao-to-open-soon/)
By Bong S. Sarmiento | Sunday| April 3, 2011 | Filed under: Top Stories


COTABATO CITY (MindaNews/03 April) — Construction of the grandest mosque in the Philippines is now almost complete.
The grandeur of the Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Masjid (Muslim center of worship), which reportedly costs $48 million, dominates the landscape in this village backdropped by the Moro Gulf.
Partly funded by Brunei and designed by the renowned Philippine architectural firm Palafox Associates, the mosque in Kalanganan Dos, some eight kilometers from the main road, is being constructed by the Manila-based New Kanlaon Construction, Inc.

“The mosque itself is 99.12% complete,” Richard Harris Jordan, project manager, said last week, adding they expect to finish the project by May 15.
Its minarets measure 43 meters high (141 feet) on top of which are pilot’s lights to avoid aerial accidents at night, he told MindaNews.

The height is equivalent to a 15-storey building. Crescent moons adorn the domes painted in gold.

Jordan declined to state the exact amount of the project, but said the funding of the mosque was “53% shouldered by the Sultanate of Brunei.”
The construction of the mosque started two years ago and was announced with the coming then of Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah to Manila.

Reports then said that Brunei would fund the $48 million mosque project. Sultan Bolkiah has reportedly been invited to the grand opening. Brunei, a rich country known for its oil deposits, has been helping in the Mindanao peace process between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation.

It is a member of the Malaysian-led International Monitoring Team, which is monitoring the implementation of the ceasefire agreement between the government and the Moro rebels.

Jordan said the mosque alone occupies an area of at least half a hectare or 5,000 square meters, within a five-hectare property donated by the family of former Maguindanao representative Didagen “Digs” Dilangalen.

The mosque can accommodate 800 male and 400 female worshippers, Jordan said. A fountain will be among the main features of the courtyard, but is still to be installed. The building is painted in white and gold. Workers, however, are still busy attending to the fence and landscaping. At one time, Jordan said 300 workers were hired for the construction but the number has been reduced now to a little over a hundred as the building is now almost complete.

Cotabato City is the administrative center of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. (Bong S. Sarmiento/MindaNews)

MindaNews (http://mindanews.com/main/2011/04/03/brunei-funded-grand-mosque-in-mindanao-to-open-soon/)

http://mindanews.com/main/wp-content/uploads/03mosque02.jpg
GRANDEST. The Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Masjid in Cotabato City,touted to be the grandest mosque in the Philippines, is now “99.12% complete,” said Richard Harris Jordan, project manager. Jordan says they expect to finish project, partly funded by Brunei, by mid-May. MindaNews photo by Bong Sarmiento


Brunei-funded grand mosque in Mindanao to open soon (http://mindanews.com/main/2011/04/03/brunei-funded-grand-mosque-in-mindanao-to-open-soon/)
By Bong S. Sarmiento | Sunday| April 3, 2011 | Filed under: Top Stories


COTABATO CITY (MindaNews/03 April) — Construction of the grandest mosque in the Philippines is now almost complete.
The grandeur of the Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Masjid (Muslim center of worship), which reportedly costs $48 million, dominates the landscape in this village backdropped by the Moro Gulf.
Partly funded by Brunei and designed by the renowned Philippine architectural firm Palafox Associates, the mosque in Kalanganan Dos, some eight kilometers from the main road, is being constructed by the Manila-based New Kanlaon Construction, Inc.

“The mosque itself is 99.12% complete,” Richard Harris Jordan, project manager, said last week, adding they expect to finish the project by May 15.
Its minarets measure 43 meters high (141 feet) on top of which are pilot’s lights to avoid aerial accidents at night, he told MindaNews.

The height is equivalent to a 15-storey building. Crescent moons adorn the domes painted in gold.

Jordan declined to state the exact amount of the project, but said the funding of the mosque was “53% shouldered by the Sultanate of Brunei.”
The construction of the mosque started two years ago and was announced with the coming then of Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah to Manila.

Reports then said that Brunei would fund the $48 million mosque project. Sultan Bolkiah has reportedly been invited to the grand opening. Brunei, a rich country known for its oil deposits, has been helping in the Mindanao peace process between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation.

It is a member of the Malaysian-led International Monitoring Team, which is monitoring the implementation of the ceasefire agreement between the government and the Moro rebels.

Jordan said the mosque alone occupies an area of at least half a hectare or 5,000 square meters, within a five-hectare property donated by the family of former Maguindanao representative Didagen “Digs” Dilangalen.

The mosque can accommodate 800 male and 400 female worshippers, Jordan said. A fountain will be among the main features of the courtyard, but is still to be installed. The building is painted in white and gold. Workers, however, are still busy attending to the fence and landscaping. At one time, Jordan said 300 workers were hired for the construction but the number has been reduced now to a little over a hundred as the building is now almost complete.

Cotabato City is the administrative center of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. (Bong S. Sarmiento/MindaNews)

MindaNews (http://mindanews.com/main/2011/04/03/brunei-funded-grand-mosque-in-mindanao-to-open-soon/)

ALHAMDULILLAH!

.
North Cotabato allots P6M for road project
SunStar (http://www.sunstar.com.ph/davao/business/2011/04/13/north-cotabato-allots-p6m-road-project-150258)

KIDAPAWAN CITY -- The Provincial Government of Cotabato has allotted P6 million as its equity for the projects to be constructed this year in different towns under the second phase of the adaptable program loan of the Mindanao Rural Development Program (MRDP), a poverty-alleviation initiative implemented by the Department of Agriculture (DA).

Under the project, at least 50 percent of the funds would be shouldered by the MRDP and the rest by the provincial government.

The MRDP projects, which include farm-to-market roads, would be constructed in 12 identified areas in North Cotabato.

In a statement, Cotabato Gov. Lala Talinio-Mendoza said that the LGUs where the projects are located are required to allot 10 percent from their internal revenue allotment (IRA) as counterpart.

Mendoza signed a memorandum of agreement with the 12 municipal mayors, which stated, among other things, that the funds should not be diverted to other projects.

The project construction will start, she said, 30 days after the local government units (LGUs) receive the funds.

Each of the 12 LGUs would receive half a million pesos from the provincial government.

Under the project, the P6 million financial assistance to 12 LGUs would be used to implement the construction of farm-to-market roads in the towns of Alamada, Aleosan, Antipas, Libungan, Kabacan, Midsayap, Pikit, and Tulunan, and in Kidapawan City.

Part of the funds would also be used to rehabilitate a portion of the national highway in Matalam and President Rojas towns.

The MRDP’s adaptable program loan phase 2 is jointly funded by the World Bank, national government, and LGUs which cover Mindanao’s 26 provinces and 225 municipalities.

The project seeks to further improve rural incomes and achieve food security through agri-fishery infrastructure, livelihood enterprise, and biodiversity conservation projects.

http://mindanews.com/main/wp-content/uploads/03mosque02.jpg
GRANDEST. The Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Masjid in Cotabato City,touted to be the grandest mosque in the Philippines, is now “99.12% complete,” said Richard Harris Jordan, project manager. Jordan says they expect to finish project, partly funded by Brunei, by mid-May. MindaNews photo by Bong Sarmiento


Brunei-funded grand mosque in Mindanao to open soon (http://mindanews.com/main/2011/04/03/brunei-funded-grand-mosque-in-mindanao-to-open-soon/)
By Bong S. Sarmiento | Sunday| April 3, 2011 | Filed under: Top Stories


COTABATO CITY (MindaNews/03 April) — Construction of the grandest mosque in the Philippines is now almost complete.
The grandeur of the Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Masjid (Muslim center of worship), which reportedly costs $48 million, dominates the landscape in this village backdropped by the Moro Gulf.
Partly funded by Brunei and designed by the renowned Philippine architectural firm Palafox Associates, the mosque in Kalanganan Dos, some eight kilometers from the main road, is being constructed by the Manila-based New Kanlaon Construction, Inc.

“The mosque itself is 99.12% complete,” Richard Harris Jordan, project manager, said last week, adding they expect to finish the project by May 15.
Its minarets measure 43 meters high (141 feet) on top of which are pilot’s lights to avoid aerial accidents at night, he told MindaNews.

The height is equivalent to a 15-storey building. Crescent moons adorn the domes painted in gold.

Jordan declined to state the exact amount of the project, but said the funding of the mosque was “53% shouldered by the Sultanate of Brunei.”
The construction of the mosque started two years ago and was announced with the coming then of Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah to Manila.

Reports then said that Brunei would fund the $48 million mosque project. Sultan Bolkiah has reportedly been invited to the grand opening. Brunei, a rich country known for its oil deposits, has been helping in the Mindanao peace process between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation.

It is a member of the Malaysian-led International Monitoring Team, which is monitoring the implementation of the ceasefire agreement between the government and the Moro rebels.

Jordan said the mosque alone occupies an area of at least half a hectare or 5,000 square meters, within a five-hectare property donated by the family of former Maguindanao representative Didagen “Digs” Dilangalen.

The mosque can accommodate 800 male and 400 female worshippers, Jordan said. A fountain will be among the main features of the courtyard, but is still to be installed. The building is painted in white and gold. Workers, however, are still busy attending to the fence and landscaping. At one time, Jordan said 300 workers were hired for the construction but the number has been reduced now to a little over a hundred as the building is now almost complete.

Cotabato City is the administrative center of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. (Bong S. Sarmiento/MindaNews)

MindaNews (http://mindanews.com/main/2011/04/03/brunei-funded-grand-mosque-in-mindanao-to-open-soon/)


A New Mindanao Landmark!!!

A New Mindanao Landmark!!!

Truly MAGNIFICENT!

http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x281/damlenes/SultanBolkiahmasjid.jpg


http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x281/damlenes/60537_446002952239_572677239_5078168_7073859_n.jpg



http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x281/damlenes/61856_444074767239_572677239_5039409_7428032_n.jpg

http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x281/damlenes/72482_460485842239_572677239_5332593_5942488_n.jpg

http://i182.photobucket.com/albums/x281/damlenes/61856_444074777239_572677239_5039411_4541196_n.jpg

^^^^ nice pics, BEAUTIFUL gud kaau ang Southern Mindanao :):)

KIDAPAWAN CITY
http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/207213_203760226313011_100000371054303_651589_3651785_n.jpg

http://a3.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/199579_203771489645218_100000371054303_651629_2380447_n.jpg

Kidawapan needs a major major beautification!!!! hahaha.. :lol::lol:
no offense meant!

deleted

naa na diay CALDA sa MARBEL? i saw it last sunday on my route to san filipe.

http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/197581_197163323639368_100000371054303_607536_7341099_n.jpg

and MANDARIN TEA GARDEN kay murag mag open pud..naa ko nakita nga tarp

Operational na ang Mandarin Tea Garden sa Ace Centerpoint new wing fronting Gensan Drive. This is the second resto of Mandarin, the first one is in Fitmart Mall.

Dongon Falls
Lake Sebu, South Cotabato
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4082/4881959308_86b3cbcca2_z.jpg

by: sweetcaroline

Nice one sweetcaroline!!!

naa na diay CALDA sa MARBEL? i saw it last sunday on my route to san filipe.

http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/197581_197163323639368_100000371054303_607536_7341099_n.jpg

and MANDARIN TEA GARDEN kay murag mag open pud..naa ko nakita nga tarp

oo, may ara sang Calda Pizza sa may Uptown infront of Protech, meron din TiaNINA pasta and pizza sa may ybl terminal and mama ria pizzaria sa may socot gym. ang Mandarin sa may ace sa ila nga extension.