BALON DAGUPAN ATHLETES DOMINATE PSI GRAND PRIX QUALIFIERS

DAGUPAN CITY – The Balon Dagupan Swimming team again proved its dominance when it was adjudged as overall champion during the Philippine Swimming Incorporated’s 2019 Grand Prix CNL-CAR Long Course Qualifying Leg held in the city from April 6 to 7.

This after the team ranked first among 11 clubs comprising of 113 participants from North Central Luzon and Cordillera Administrative Region for it to grab the overall title.

MDSF Vikings Swim Club was adjudged first runner-up while Torpedo Ray Swim Club earned the second runner-up honor.

The dominant swimmers of Dagupan City that bag the overall championship title during the Philippine Swimming Incorporated’s 2019 Grand Prix CNL-CAR Long Course Qualifying Leg.

Balon Dagupan athletes under the 10 years old and under age group also hauled 24 gold medals during the competition.

Dagupan City Sports Commission (DCSC) Vice Chair Finnela T. Sim disclosed that this was the fourth consecutive overall title won by the city for the qualifiers.

Surveys at Facebook, Radio not Credible

By Mortz C. Ortigoza

I was amused hearing two radio reporters of a premier radio station talking about two candidates for a higher office. These duo ingratiate with their favorite politicos because they have a 15 percent commission on the air time fee they exact from any one of them.

Reporter 1: Noong sinabi ko na hindi na kukuha si ____ ng air time napailing iyong P.R man ng kalaban. Sinabi niya sa akin: “Akala ko madami pera iyong kabilang partido. Naka prepara na ang missile namin, kwitis lang pala ang kaya”.

I blurted with a guffaw.

This radio station bills very expensively a buyer of its air time.

***

A seasoned politiko who was with us said that despite the projects an elective public official had given to his constituents he should have wherewithal to buy votes because voters who belong to the C-D-E Classes are apathetic about  the countless projects he gave but will vote for a candidate because of his money.

“I could afford to buy even with three waves for one thousand pesos for each of the voters,” he quipped.

He cited that a few days before the election he will test if the opponent could reciprocate his one thousand pesos.

“If my opponent could not do a financial tit –for-tat, I’ll forego the last two waves”.

Who said, son of a gun, that election is a cake walk? Winning it is not for the faint heart. One needs to spend tens if not hundred of millions of pesos in a position that gives only a PhP100, 000 monthly pay and emoluments.

4 Richest P'gasinan Towns “Flaunt” 2019 Budget

By Mortz C. Ortigoza

BAYAMBANG – Together with three other first class towns, this highly populated 77 villages’ town in Pangasinan leads other municipalities with their highest annual appropriation budget (AAB) this year.

This thriving town has an AAB of PhP506 million while Sual, Malasiqui, and Mangaldan have PhP350 million, PhP333 million, and, PhP312.5 million, respectively this year.

VISIONARY MAYORS - From left clockwise: Bayambang Mayor Cezar T. Quiambao, Sual Mayor Roberto "Bing" Arcinue, Malasiqui Mayor Noel Anthony Geslani, and Mangaldan Mayor Bona Fe D. Parayno. 

“We have PhP506 million budget this year  where some come from the disposal of assets in Magsaysay,” Mayor Cezar T. Quiambo told the crowd from the public and private sectors who witnessed the inauguration of the proposed LGU housing project in Barangay Bical Sur here.

Quiambao told reporters that every year his family controlled corporations like Stradcom and other businesses like a mall  pay more than PhP 80 million of their taxes  in this town.

 Western Pangasinan located Sual however faces a problem because many members of her Sangguniang Bayan or Legislature held hostage its PhP350 million proposed budget.

According to an exasperated town mayor Roberto Arcinue that he had sent last October 10, 2018 all the necessary documents for the annual appropriation budget to the Sangguniang Bayan or legislature but as of press time they did not act for it.

A source who asked for anonymity told this newspaper that some councilors allegedly asked the mayor for one million pesos each of them favor so they will pass the budget ordinance.

Section 323 of the Local Government Code states that in case the sanggunian concerned fails to pass the ordinance authorizing the annual appropriations at the beginning of the ensuing fiscal year, it shall continue to hold sessions, without additional remuneration for its members, until such ordinance is approved, and no other business may be taken up during such sessions. If the sanggunian still fails to enact such ordinance after ninety (90) days from the beginning of the fiscal year, the ordinance authorizing the appropriations of the preceding year shall be deemed reenacted and shall remain in force and effect until the ordinance authorizing the proposed appropriations is passed by the sanggunian concerned. However, only the annual appropriations for salaries and wages of existing positions, statutory and contractual obligations, and essential operating expenses authorized in the annual and supplemental budgets for the preceding year shall be deemed reenacted and disbursement of funds shall be in accordance therewith.

Sual had more than PhP300 million AAB last year.
Most of the taxes of this tiny town came each year from more or less P200 million business taxes of the Team Sual Corporation (TSC) and San Miguel Corporation (SMC) that procured and sold in the market the electricity generated by the TSC.

“Other revenues came from the annual P110 million Internal Revenue Allotment from the national government, the Real Property Taxes, share from the Special Education Fund, tens of million pesos a year business tax from the huge hundreds of bangus fish cages where this town was dubbed by the Bureau of Fisheries & Natural Resources as the biggest milk fish producer in the country, and others,” Arcinue stressed.

Because of the huge revenues from these entities, the social services given back by the Arcinue Administration to its constituents could not be emulated by any cities or towns in Pangasinan and probably by other local government units in Northern Luzon.

Mangaldan Mayor Bonafe D. Parayno once crowed to this newspaper that the Central Pangasinan town burgeoned because everyday there is a market day thanks to the economic spill over of neighboring Dagupan City.

The other projects Parayno have been implementing are the Triple A slaughter house and the Phase II of the 76 stalls market areas that has been funded by a loan of P40 million from the Land Bank of the Philippines.

“It has been renovated, rehabilated with a cost of ten million pesos in order to get a triple A ratings to the town’s vision,” she cited the abattoir where businessmen in Dagupan City and other towns in Pangasinan patronized for the slaughter of their livestock.

Parayno wanted the thriving town to be the Meat Processing Capital of Pangasinan.

“Kilala ang Mangaldan at ito ang dinarayo kaya panahon na para ipakita sa ating turista lahat ng turista  na ang ating bayan ay hinde napapagiwanan ng panahon,” she said.

This town, Sual, Malasiqui, and Mangaldan have a population based on the 2015 Philippines Statistics Authority of 118,205, 34,149, 130,275, and 106,331, respectively.

An official of the Commission on Election (Comelec) told this writer last November that among the voters in the 44 towns and 4 cities’ province, this town, Sual, Malasiqui, and Mangaldan have 75, 911, 28, 940, 81, 342, and 65, 115 registered voters, respectively.

READ MY OTHER ARTICLE:

Nabayaran Ang Mga Senators Natin?

Sual Dads "Hostage" P350M Budget

By Mortz C. Ortigoza

SUAL – Many members of the Sangguniang Bayan (legislature) of this second richest town in the Philippines will not pass the PhP350 million annual appropriation budget for this year even it was already submitted last October 2018 to them by the mayor here.

SESSION - The lawmaking body of the local government unit of Sual, Pangasinan in one of its sessions. Photo grab from the internet

“I would like to reiterate that my office has transmitted the proposed annual budget for fiscal year 2019 with all the necessary documents pertaining thereto at the Sangguniang Bayan last October 10, 2018 and has likewise made a request for a special session regarding such in January 15, 2019 bearing in mind the earnestness of the approval of the same for the timely and proper execution of projects and other expenditures covered and/or to be covered by it,” an exasperated Mayor Roberto Arcinue narrated to this writter his letter.

This robust town in Pangasinan was dubbed on the 2017 Annual Financial Report (AFR) of the Commission on Audit as the second richest town among the 1,488 towns all over the archipelago.

COA said that this 1,218 megawatts coal power plant hosting town has an asset of P2.53 billion.

Who is Stupid Between Me and This Ex-Solon, Radioman?

By Mortz C. Ortigoza

Angelo Palmones is an average if not a mediocre broadcaster and a former Agham Partylist congressman, he did not know economics as based on my recent  squabbles with him at Facebook.

His ignorance was exacerbated by his gall to call me “stupid” after I wrote last week on my blog cum column that North Cotabato is one of the poorest provinces in the Philippines. 

Excerpts:

ANGELO PALMONES: Whoever invited this stupid blogger is insulting the people of North Cotabato. He tossed up his sponsors with flowery piece by pulling down the efforts of all people of NCot. Better research will guide you boy on how many products of my beloved province are now sold abroad. Violence is more prevalent in Metro Manila, check your stat before making generalization. North Cotabato is not M’lang!"

(When a common friend at Facebook Luvin Candari, an Ilonggo, tagged me on Angelo’s attack, here was my answer)

MARK MACHEVELLI ORTIGOZA (MY OTHER NAME AT FB): Sabton ta na’ kung sino mas stupid sa amon ni Angelo (I’m going to rebut him and show who is stupid between me and Angelo) . The son of a gun was shooting from the hips. I only need to cite a NEDA report in my column. Luvin Candari is smarter than this congressional has- been. Im going to school him he he he.

PALMONES: That NEDA report has been disputed. The most recent and relevant basis of North Cotabato’s standing, including some of the well-performing towns and Kidapawan City, is DILG’s SEAL OF GOOD GOVERNANCE. You can Google it for better understanding.

ORTIGOZA: My arguments will be anchored on the number of poor Filipinos to buttress my argument that your province is one of the Top 10 Poorest Provinces in the Phillippines. SEAL is primordially on management level. I will talk in my column about economic threshold in peso term as based on the data of the Philippines Statistics Authority, National Anti- Poverty Commission, and NEDA.

PALMONES: Good luck for that piece. I hope it will improve rustic Mlang.

My argument on my blog that got the goat of Palmones was not new to me since I used, for example the Annual Per Capita Poverty Threshold (APCPT) on my radio and newspaper commentaries in Luzon whenever I compared the provincial and municipal local government units in the northern part of the country.

DOTr Sec. says development of Lingayen Airport in the offing

 Lingayen, Pangasinan — Soon the dream of Pangasinenses of having a commercial airport in Pangasinan as linchpin for employment, tourism, and investment will be realized.

This after Department of Transportation (DOTr) Secretary Arthur Tugade — during the launching of a DOTr - TESDA joint project was held on April 3 at the Sison Auditorium — disclosed that the Lingayen Airport, here, will be upgraded for commercial operations.

Department of Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade

The transportation department through the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines has already allocated an initial budget intended for the expansion of the said airport, where a flying school has since operational.

“We will push to do that (referring to the development of a commercial airport) because we know that you need it,” Tugade said.

NEW DREDGING MACHINE ARRIVES IN DAGUPAN , PLUNGES TO WORK

DAGUPAN CITY – Desilting and dredging operations of shallow rivers here have been accelerated after the arrival last April 3 of a new dredging machine from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH.

The amphibious excavator has a 0.51 cubic bucket and the latest technology in dredging which was immediately  put to work at a part of the Calmay River.

NEW DREDGING MACHINE – A new dredging machine from the Department of Public Works and Highways arrives in Dagupan City and is now employed in dredging the Calmay River. The amphibious excavator is the fourth machine set to fast track the city’s desilting and dredging operations. (CIO photo by Arriz Fruelda)

“This is the same machine currently being used in the rehabilitation of Manila Bay. This excavator was already reserved for Dagupan City before the Manila Bay rehab on account of Mayor Fernandez’s request,” said DPWH Dredgemaster Nestor Cabacungan.

The excavator joined three other dredging machines deployed at the major river here earlier by DPWH. These include the Watermaster machine now being used in excavating sediment from upstream; the Visayas I that focuses on removing silt from the mouth of the river; and the 8-2 dredge now also being harnessed in also dredging another part of the Calmay river.

DPWH Area Equipment Engineer Bernie Valencerina underscored the importance of maintenance dredging in the city especially because Dagupan is the catch basin of water and silt from upstream.