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CITY OF SAN FERNANDO -- Central Luzon’s Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board announced yesterday the granting of a P16 increase in minimum daily wage for workers in the region

eff ective on May 1, Labor Day.

P16 minimum wage increase OK’d in CL

EFFECTIVE MAY 1

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CLARK FREPORT – A celebra-tion of Kapampangan visual arts unfolded Wednesday at SM City Clark with the staging of the My City, My SM, My Art cultural road-show here.

My City, My SM, My Art, which is a celebration of Philippine tradi-tional arts and modern design, is the latest in the My City, My SM series which initially featured My City, My SM, My Cuisine and My City, My SM, My Crafts.

Among the honorees were in-

ternationally renowned chef/art-ist Claude Tayag; Ronna Man-ansala, granddaughter of na-tional artist Vicente Manansala; actress/painter Ana Capri; paint-er/sculptors Hermie Pineda and Norman Tiotuico; noted glamour

My City, My SM, My Art fetes Kapampangan artists

Ballerinas by the Maestro’s granddaughter Ronna Manansala. P !"! $% B!&' L()*!&

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THE DUTERTE adminis-tration’s “Build, Build, Build” team conducted a site inspec-tion of the NLEX Harbor Link Segment 10, an all elevat-ed expressway aimed at pro-viding direct access between the port area and the northern provinces of Luzon via NLEX.

Metro Pacifi c Investments Cabinet Secretaries and NLEx executives join the rounds of massive infra projects.

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Corporation (MPIC) Chairman Manuel Pangilinan, MPIC President Jose Ma. Lim, and Metro Pacifi c Tollways Corpo-ration (MPTC) President Ro-drigo Franco hosted the team composed of Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade, Public Works and Highways

‘Build, Build, Build’ team inspects NLEx Harbor

Link Segment 10 project

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ANGELES CITY- New cases of carnapping and serious illegal detention have been fi led against some of the suspects in the kidnap-murder of Ko-rean national Jee Ick Joo in October last year.

Judge Irineo Pangilinan of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 58 here said he received the complaints at about 10 a.m. Wednesday.

During the supposed arraignment of SPO4 Ricky Sta. Isabel and SPO4 Roy Villegas yester-day afternoon, the judge said he had yet to read the new complaints as he was already loaded with hearings on eight cases and a wedding when the complaints were received by his sala.

The identities of the suspects in the new cases

SERIOUS DETENTION, CARNAP

New cases fi led vs suspects in Jee kidnap-murder

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ANGELES CITY- Movie actor Mark Anthony Fer-nandez and kidnap-mur-der suspect SPO1 Ricky Sta. Isabel met and sat on the same bench at Branch 58 of the Region-al Trial Court (RTC) here Wednesday afternoon, but their diff ering cases were deferred for diff er-ent reasons.

The supposed ar-raignment on the Jee case was timed with the continuing hearing of il-legal drugs case against movie actor Fernandez

Mark Anthony,Sta. Isabel share court

bench for different casesat 2 p.m.

Sta. Isabel and Fer-nandez sat on the same bench, separated only by their guards. Fernan-dez was wearing an or-ange T-shirt marked with PPJ or Pampanga Pro-vincial Jail, while Sta. Is-abel was in black T-shirt marked NBI.

The judge reset hear-ing on Fernandez’s case to April 26, noting that the government prose-cutor had sought to be excused as he was to

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cause it was a metal sculpture which is seven feet tall and made from discarded metal materials from junkshops

However, Manansala said she has about eight paint-ings, mostly of ballerinas, on display at the show using oil and acrylic.

“All of them are my favor-ites,” she said.

“I have nothing in particu-lar,” she mused when asked what her inspiration was. “What my heart feels comes out to my canvas,” she add-ed.

BrilliantMendoza, who is the fi rst

Asian to win the prestigious Best Director Award at the Cannes Film Festival for his fi lm “Kinatay” in 2009 and is regarded by the world’s top fi lm critics as an Ultra-neo-re-alist, was the fi rst My City, My SM honoree.

At one point, Jonalyn Al-bong, the person who played the role of Manoro (the teacher) in the fi lm directed by Mendoza, was given a plaque of appreciation.

National artist for visual arts Vicente Manansala was honored with a video presen-tation of his works which was capped with a presentation to her granddaughter Ronna who was among the master artists feted in the My City, My SM My Art series.

To cap the night, the win-ner in the My City, My SM, My Art contest, which is also advocating art for all by con-ducting workshops in com-munities for a new generation of artists, was announced as Peon Tam Q. Mercado for his work in “sand art.”

photographer Borj Meneses and multi-awarded fi lmmaker Briliante Mendoza.

National Artist for Visu-al Arts Vicente Manansala was also honored during the event which was attended by Mabalacat City Mayor Ma-rino “Boking” Morales; De-partment of Tourism region-al director Ronnie Tiotuico; Clark Development Corp. (CDC) president/CEO Noel F. Manankil and VP Alveen

Tabag; Angeles City’s fi rst lady Mrs. Herminia Pamintuan; and SM executives led by SVP for marketing communications group Millie F. Dizon and SM Clark mall manager Andrea L. Madlangbayan among others.

My City, My SM, My Art was launched in cooperation with the Metropolitan Muse-um of Manila and the Nation-al Commission on Culture and the Arts “in celebration of Phil-ippine visual arts – painting, sculpture, printmaking, pho-tography and fi lmmaking.”

The My City, My SM cam-paign series “bring art and people together by show-casing the works of masters, modernists, and millennials in a road show that advocates arts for all the teamwork with communities to mount exhib-its, workshops, and contests in key cities around the Philip-pines.”

WatercolorsClaude Tayag said what he

showcased were one of his early works which are origi-nal watercolors he painted in 1981. His fi rst one-man ex-hibit was staged in 1978 when he was 22 years old with the theme Filipino fi estas like Mo-riones, Ati-Atihan and even saints a and landscapes.

Philippine themes have re-mained his inspiration but he added that “for me the inspi-ration is the subject matter it-self.” As to his forte watercol-ors, Tayag revealed it as “most diffi cult since there is no rem-edy for mistakes unlike oil or acrylic which can be scrapped or painted over.”

“This is one of the messag-es I want to impart to the pub-lic because this is the most dif-fi cult to master once you put the paint on paper that’s it,” he said. “In watercolor you have to be very, very sure of your strokes. It’s the mastery of the medium.”

“I love watercolors because you have to work very fast in one sitting you must be able to fi nish your work,” he added.

Asked of his favorites, Ta-yag said: “I love all my works. They are all my favorites. They are just like my children.”

He said Emilio Aguilar “Abe” Cruz, painter, writer,

journalist and diplomat who was the best friend of his fa-ther Renato “Katoks” Tayag, was his biggest infl uence in his paintings which he also considered his mentor.

GlamourGlamour photographer

Borj Meneses said “through the years since my fi rst ven-ture, photography has become a lifestyle for me and not just work or hobby.”

Meneses, who is offi cially a communications offi cer and graphic artist of CDC, said he was inspired by his uncles who were also photographers but learned his craft through self-study.

Meneses’ photos are regu-larly featured in various glam-our magazines.

KulitanNorman Tiotuico, younger

brother of DOT regional direc-tor Ronnie, said he took up for-mal studies at the University of the Philippines College of Fine Arts and considers a center-piece monumental sculpture at the Pampanga State Agri-cultural University – Sibul Ning Kabiyasnan (Spring of Knowl-edge) – as one of his master-pieces.

“I did that for four months because it was six meters in height by 20 meters,” he said.

Tiotuico said the “Kuli-tan” which was inscribed “ing banwa keti sulip (heaven on earth)” is foremost of his works on display at the My City, My SM series.

BallerinasManansala admitted that

her most important work was not on display at the show be-

My City, My SM, My Art fetes Kapampangan artistsF!"# $%&' 1

Claude Tayag with his ‘Santos’ Guru of glamor Borj Meneses

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CITY OF SAN FERNANDO - No less than 10,362 over-seas and local jobs will be up for grabs for Central Luzon folk in various job fairs to be sponsored by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on May 1, Labor Day.

“At least 7,575 local job vacancies are to be fi lled by 143 participating companies from various industries. An-other 2,787 overseas jobs are also to be fi lled in through 24 private recruitment agencies authorized by the Philippine Overseas Employment Ad-ministration,” DOLE regional director Ana Dione disclosed.

LABOR DAY GIFT

10,362 foreign, local jobs up for grabs“The vacancies are prelim-

inary fi gures submitted by the DOLE fi eld offi ces in coordina-tion with the Public Employ-ment Service Offi ces in the re-gion and more vacancies are to be announced before Labor Day,” she said.

With the theme “Matatag na Kabuhayan at Trabaho Tungo sa Progresibong Pag-babago,” the job fairs are to be held simultaneously in SM Baliuag in Bulacan, SM Pam-panga, SM Clark, and SM San Fernando downtown in Pam-panga.

Other job fairs are also to be held in Metro Town Mall in Tarlac City, Freedom Park Capitol Grounds in Cabanat-

uan City, and Ayala Harbor Point Mall in Subic Bay Free-port Zone.

In Bataan, the job fair will be held not on May 1, but on May 5 at Vista Mall in Balan-ga City.

“These job fairs are under the ‘Trabaho, Negosyo, Kabu-hayan (TNK)’ concept of DOLE and Department of Trade and Industry,” Dione added.

“TNK aims to achieve full employment and creation of jobs in Key Employment Gen-erators specifi cally in the man-ufacturing, agri-business, con-struction, tourism, IT-BPM, transportation and logistics, and retail and trade,” Dione explained.

SAMAL, Bataan -- The second oldest town in Bataan on Thursday began celebrating its 376th founding year with an early morning long parade.

Samal, one of 11 towns and a city in the province, was founded on April 20, 1641. It follows Abucay as the oldest town placed under the spiritual ministration of the early Do-minicans.

The Image of Saint Catherine of Sienna, town patron saint, was present.

A fl oat depicting bloody scene of fi ghting during World War II led the parade that started from Barangay Calaguim-an East to the town plaza where a short program was held.

Barangay offi cials from 14 villages joined the parade and so with Mayor Gene dela Fuente, Vice Mayor Aida Macalinao and other municipal offi cials.

Municipal employees were in colorful headgears while middle-aged women showed their dancing skill.

Groups of elementary pupils and high school students were in lively and multi-colored costumes.

Senior Inspector Larry Valencia, Samal police chief, de-scribed the town as a very peaceful place and its citizens warm and cooperative. –Ernie Esconde

Second oldest town in Bataan celebrates 376th founding year

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THE PHILIPPINES’ leading airline, Cebu Pacifi c (CEB), boosts its presence in the largest travel event and tour-ism campaign in the Davao region, the Visit Davao Fun Sale (VDFS). Now on its fourth year, the partnership between CEB and VDFS takes on an advocacy angle, in an eff ort to promote Davao and peripher-al areas in Southern Mindan-ao as safe, enjoyable and ex-hilarating travel and adventure destinations for both local and foreign tourists.

As part of the seven-week activities for VDFS, CEB is fl ying-in top adventure trav-el bloggers and digital infl u-encers from Singapore, Ja-pan and South Korea to visit Davao and check out attrac-tions such as the beaches in

Cebu Pacifi c partners up with Davao Tourism in Visit Davao Fun Sale 2017

Mati City, Aliwagwag Falls and Eden Eco Adventure Park; go dolphin-watching off the coast of Mati, white-water rafting in the Davao River, pub-crawling in Davao’s city center, or shop-ping at the Aldevinco Center.

“CEB takes pride in hav-ing the most fl ights to and from Davao. But more than the fl ights, we need to do our part to help entice tourists to fl y to Davao and experience what the region has to off er. Davao and adjacent provinc-es have so much to off er tour-ists from all walks of life—from thrill-seekers to laidback trav-ellers; families on vacation; barkadas on a getaway and even solo backpackers,” said Atty JR Mantaring, Vice Pres-ident for Corporate Aff airs of Cebu Pacifi c.

Cebu Pacifi c has the most extensive domestic route net-work among Philippine car-riers, with direct, inter-island connections to major tourist destinations. Operating a hub in Davao, CEB has 141 fl ights to and from Davao, with six di-rect domestic routes (Cebu, Bacolod, Cagayan de Oro, Iloilo, Zamboanga and Ma-nila); and a direct fl ight to Sin-gapore. The airline’s exten-sive network covers over 100 routes and 66 destinations, spanning Asia, Australia, the Middle East, and USA.

Launched in 2014, the Vis-it Davao Fun Sale is a part-nership between local gov-ernments in the region, the Department of Tourism, oth-er national government agen-cies and private enterprises to promote tour packages and unique experiences to tour-ists such as food and delica-cy must-tries, as well as lei-sure and wellness activities. This year’s tours include spe-cial packages for Davao City, Island Garden City of Samal, Sta. Cruz in Davao del Sur where one of the trails to Mt. Apo is located, and the Ha-miguitan Range and Wildlife Sanctuary. Since its launch, VDFS has helped push tour-ism growth in the region to double-digit levels, capping 2016 with 100,000 tourist ar-rivals. VDFS 2017 runs from April 16 to May 31, 2017.

(L-R) Dir. Roberto Alabado III, Regional Director, Department of Tourism XI; Charo Lagamon, Corporate Communications Director, Cebu Pacifi c Air; and Edmund Mayormita, Vice President, Visit Davao Fun Sale Execom

OLONGAPO CITY---Three drug pushers were arrested by operatives of Police Station 6 in a drug operation in Baran-gay Barretto here.

Senior Inspector Walter Primero, Station 6 command-er, identifi ed those arrested as Maricris Maga y Misa, 34; Teresita Torres y Supe, 63, and Ronald Honra y Mendoza, 47, all residents of La Union Street, Barangay Barretto.

Report said all the sus-pects were engaged in drug traffi cking in Barangay Barret-to and caught in the act of sell-ing shabu worth P200 to a po-lice poseur-buyer.

Recovered from the sus-pects were eight transparent plastic sachets of shabu.

All suspects are now in jail facing charges for violation of Section 5 and 11, Article ll of RA 9165. –Johnny R. Reblando

3 pushers nabbed in buy-bust

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E d i t o r i a l

TODAY IN PHILIPPINE HISTORYSource: www.kahimyang.info

LLL Trimedia Coordinators, Inc.Publisher

General ManagerEditor

Marketing ManagerLayout

Circulation

Atty. Gener C. EndonaCaesar “Bong” LacsonJoanna Niña V. CorderoDondie B. VenturaLacson Macapagal

Business & Editorial offi ce at Unit B Essel Commercial Center,McArthur Highway, Telabastagan, City of San Fernando

Tel. No. (45) 625•0244 Cel. No. 0917•481•1416puntogitnangluzon@yahoo.com or marketing@punto.com.ph

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acaesar.blogspot.com

Zona Libre Bong Z. Lacson

Opinion

Dumped sighsENVIRONMENT Management Bureau (EMB) Region III director Lormelyn Claudio lauded the provincial government for the distribution of brand new dump trucks in all cities and municipalities of Pampanga.

… Claudio said Pampanga is the only province in Central Luzon who (sic) used to provide dump trucks to local government units…

So reported the provincial information offi ce of Monday’s initial distribution by Gov. Lilia G. Pineda and Vice Gov. Dennis Pineda of dump trucks to 18 LGUs “for the eff ective implementation of the solid waste management program of the province.”

Maybe, just for some insurance, the mayors – upon the initiative of their league president, Lubao’s Mylyn Pineda-Cayabyab -- signed a memorandum of agreement for the maintenance of the heavy vehicles. The governor enjoining them to “take good care and properly maintain the dump trucks so the use could be maximized for the proper handling and hauling of collected garbage in the respective towns and cities.”

While we join Claudio in her ebullience over the Capitol’s truly remarkable stride in the direction of solid waste management, we – just the same – would like to remind her offi ce of its apparent failure in Pampanga to live up to its very name – environment management.

Even as industrial pollution has remained a constant in San Simon, new reports are emerging of swarms of fl ies – from the tiniest langaw to the biggest bangaw – germinating in some bakahan – invading whole communities.

It is no exaggeration, not a few attest to its factuality, that a body lying in state had to be put under a mosquito net else it would be totally covered with fl ies.

So what has Claudio to say on this?

San SimonAnd yes, didn’t Claudio herself – in

February last year – tag San Simon as the only Pampanga town included in 10 Central Luzon LGUs haled to the Ombudsman by EMB for violation of Republic Act 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act?

“The 10 towns had been repeatedly directed to comply with RA 9003 down to the barangay level, ensure the operation of materials recovery facilities, and enact ordinances to compel residents to adhere to the law,” so was Claudio quoted in a news story then.

Furthered she: “Aside from fi ling charges, we have implemented the forced closure of dumpsites in Mariveles, General Tinio, Jaen, and San Simon by securing the area to prevent further activities of dumping of wastes.”

Last thing I remember of that issue is the San Simon mayor denying any dumpsite operating in the area. Absuelto na po ba, Madame Claudio?

By no means was San Simon the only Pampanga town with a dumpsite, Mayor what’s-

her-name Wong’s denial, notwithstanding.

Bishop AmboNo less than then-San Fernando Auxiliary

Bishop Pablo Virgilio David said “dumpsites are everywhere” in the province.

Dared Bishop Ambo any denier then: “My group can give you a guided tour where the dump sites of Pampanga are. Every LGU has one.”

Indeed, the EMB in an order Claudio herself signed on January 17, 2011 recommended the “execution of closure orders” on open dumpsites in 16 areas in Pampanga including the cities of San Fernando and Angeles for gross violation of Republic Act 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2001.

The order was explicit in saying “…the LGUs failed to truly demonstrate their will to close the existing open and controlled dumpsites…”

In October 2012, a composite group of the EMB, the provincial environment and natural resources offi ce and the Alliance for the Development of Central Luzon represented by the environmentalist Alfonso Dobles conducted an inspection of the dumpsites in Pampanga.

Hospital wastesAmong its fi ndings: the Guagua dumpsite

near a water body hosted hospital wastes – used syringes, bloodied bandages, plastic dextrose bottles and tubes, etc. – and the burning of garbage was a regular activity; unsegregated garbage is indiscriminately buried in the quarry sites of Barangays Manuali and Mitla in Porac; in Mabalacat, the LGU’s central material recovery facility in Barangay Sapang Balen was “nothing but a sawali-fenced area surrounded by sacks of plastics and in the center lay unsorted garbage” and “a few meters away from the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway, a pile of fresh garbage is pushed into a body of water that had turn black because of the decaying trash, waiting for bulldozer to cover it with sand.”

Concluded the inspection team then: “…12 years since the enactment of the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 (RA 9003), local government units in Pampanga continue to use and operate dumpsites despite its prohibition and despite the legal mandate that the LGUs shall be primarily responsible for the implementation and enforcement of this act.”

That: “The LGUs have likewise shirked their responsibility in the management, improvement and maintenance of water and air quality within their territorial jurisdictions.”

Fast track to Claudio’s exuberance at Monday’s turnover of dump trucks at the Capitol now: Madame, what happened na po?

Preserve, cherish the pale blue dot,

the only home we’ve ever known

LOOK AGAIN at that dot. That’s here. That’s home. That’s us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suff ering, thousands of confi dent religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every “superstar,” every “supreme leader,” every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there-on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam.

The Earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena. Think of the endless cruelties visited by the inhabitants of one corner of this pixel on the scarcely distinguishable inhabitants of some other corner, how frequent their misunderstandings, how eager they are to kill one another, how fervent their hatreds. Think of the rivers of blood spilled by all those generals and emperors so that, in glory and triumph, they could become the momentary masters of a fraction of a dot.

Our posturings, our imagined self-importance, the delusion that we have some privileged position in the Universe, are challenged by this point of pale light. Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark. In our obscurity, in all this vastness, there is no hint that help will come from elsewhere to save us from ourselves.

The Earth is the only world known so far to harbor life. There is nowhere else, at least in the near future, to which our species could migrate. Visit, yes. Settle, not yet. Like it or not, for the moment the Earth is where we make our stand.

It has been said that astronomy is a humbling and character-building experience. There is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world. To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we’ve ever known.”

(In celebration of Earth Day, this excerpt from Carl Sagan’s Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space)

ON APRIL 20, 1874, Servilla-no Aquino, a Katipunero and patriarch of Aquino family, was born in Angeles, Pampanga to Braulio Lacsamana Aquino and Antonina Petrona Henson Aguilar.

When he was young, his family migrated to Tarlac.

He was the grandfather of the slain Senator Benigno S. “Ninoy” Aquino, Jr.

At the age of 24, Aqui-no joined Andres Bonifacio’s Katipunan and served as a major in the Philippine Rev-olutionary Army in Tarlac un-der the command of General Francisco Makabulos.

He became a general in the revolutionary army of Emilio Aguinaldo when the Philippine Revolution broke out in 1896.

He later went to Hong Kong with Aguinaldo when the Pact of Biak-na-Bato was signed and resumed fi ghting during the Filipino-American War.

He served as delegate to Malolos Congress in 1898 and in 1899, he was appointed to represent the province of Sa-mar.

He died on February 3, 1959 at the age of 84.

Servillano Aquino is bornin Angeles, Pampanga

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Halo-haloDing Cervantes

OpinionNapag-uusapanLangFelix M. Garcia

Stern warnings from ArgentinaON MAY 22 last year, Bishop Hector Sabatino Cardelli of San Nicolas de los Arroyos of Argentina approved as having “supernatural character” the apparitions of Jesus Christ and the Blessed Mother to ordinary housewife Gladys Quiroga de Motta over years since 1983.

Gladys’ mystical experience started on 24 September, 1983, when she noticed that the rosary hanging in her room was glowing. The following day, Sunday 25 September, Gladys was praying the rosary when suddenly she saw Our Lady with the Child Jesus in her arms, bathed in a bright light.

Since then, Gladys has received over a thousand messages from Jesus and the Blessed Mother, including those meant for the whole world, extending stern warnings on what wayward humans can face in the future.

At one time, the Blessed Mother said, “You must be warned, children, the plague is big. At these moments all humanity is hanging by a thread. My children, the senseless person is dead, even if alive, because he does not fear the justice of God, nor fears not fulfi lling of His commandments. He wants to ignore the fact that the Lord’s day and his judgment will arrive. Blessed are those who fear God’s judgment.”

“God’s warning is over the world. Those who stay in the Lord have nothing to fear, but those who deny what comes from him do. Two-thirds of the world is lost and the other part must pray and make reparation for the Lord to take pity. The devil wants to have full domination over the earth. He wants to destroy. The earth is in great

danger,” Our Mother said.Mary also said, “The majority of mankind

has allowed itself to become contaminated and asSan Nicholas 2 a result the world is under a warning. . . . The young fi nd themselves facing a corrupt, horrifying world. Do not allow yourselves to be taken in by the calamities which you have before your eyes. At these moments all humanity is hanging by a thread. If the thread breaks, many will be those who do not reach salvation. That is why I call you to refl ection. Hurry because time is running out; there will be no room for those who delay in coming!”

Our Mother also said: “The weapon that has the greatest infl uence on evil is to say the Rosary,” even as she described pride as a “giant evil” in the world of today.

A special devotion to the Holy Rosary and perpetual novenas, “never interrupted,” are needed against evil, she added.

The Blessed Mother also told the world: “A new time has begun. A new hope has born; attach yourselves to this hope. The very intense light of Christ is going to be reborn, for just as on Calvary, after Crucifi xion and death, the Resurrection took place, the Church too will be born again through the strength of love.”

(Kaugne ning pamipaganaka at pamipaulaga king pang-Kad-uang Pulung Banuang Aldo nang Kematayan ning meging Presidente ning Filipinas, DIOSDADO P. MACAPAGAL, ngening Abril 21, 2017, iting poesia a makapatungkul king bie nang delanan, a kipmuan inspirasyun, malugud keng yam-pang para king melapupuring Anak ning balen Lubao at ning Labuad Kapampangan)

Ing ‘Poor Boy’ ning Lubao

BULAN ning Setyembre,

Caduang pulu’t walung aldo king bilang na

Banua ning Mengabus,

Libu siam a ralan, apulu ing petsa;

Carin San Nicolas

Ning balayan Lubao macalmang linto ya

Lalam nang bubungan

Ning metung a dampang meging carinan da

Ding pamilyang PANGAN

Ampon MACAPAGAL king panaun a ita,

Iting parangalan

A meging mapuring Anak ning Pampanga.

Ibat king malati

Kinb bie cacaluluan carin na miyanad,

Dela nang meragul

Itang cababan lub, ganaca at sipag;

Ing cacaluluan da

E meging sumbagal king cayang paninap

Uli ning matibe

Capagnasan niting magyari yang ganap;

Ing bengi gewa neng

Aldo, at ing oras nang paynawa dapat

Pegobra na banting

King para gastus na makasaup ditak.

Ninu’yti at nanu

Ing meging papil na keti Capampangan

Baket anti ta’yang

Idolo mo wari king bie nang delanan?

Balen, e mu bucud

Dai re ring Watas king Amanung Sisuan,

Meging matibe neng

Pundasyun mu naman niting lalawigan;

At ketang panaun

A metung ya karing kekatang Congressman,

Penicuanan niti

Ing asuywan na ca king keyang cagiwan.

E mu pilan ucdung

Menungculan ya’yti carin king Congresu,

At metung ya naman

Caring dacal diling asaupan a tau;

Dapot msan mu man

E na gewang punan iti king gubyernu

Banting micualta ya

O magcamal banding ibat king e ustu;

King mipmung tetagan

Ampon calinisan ning keyang prinsipyu,

Pepakit na niti

At gimpanan mayap ing pamagserbisyu.

At agiang canitang

Ya nang matas diling opisyal ning bansa,

King tungculan niti,

Ala yang depat a pamagsamantala;

Catapatan murin

Ampon tetagan lub itang migdatila

Busal ning pusu nang

Alang nanu pa mang keca pamagcunwa;

Capilan man Balen

Caring para keca e ya migpasasa

Nune lalu ya pang

Mgsicap canita king ba’cang minawa.

(Atin yang kasuglung)

B� A����� M�!�"�#

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO – In an eff ort to make education accessible to all, the Depart-ment of Education (DepEd) has reaffi rmed its partnership with STI Foundation through the re-launch of STI’s Mobile School on Monday.

The undertaking is strengthened with the signing of a Memorandum of Agree-ment (MOA) between DepEd and STI Education Services Group, Inc. with “Driving Ed-ucation Where IT Matters” as the focus of the partnership.

“There is a saying that ‘if Muhammad does not go to the mountain, then the mountain goes to Muhammad.’ And so if the child does not go to the school, then the school will go to the child,” Education Secre-tary Leonor Magtolis Briones said.

“And this is the concept of the STI, which we support very, very strongly, and which we believe in,” she added.

“There are four advocacies around which the MOA signing is woven. The fi rst one is bring-ing the school to the students; the second talks about reach-ing out to out-of-school youth (OSY); the third one talks about capacitation, for facul-ty and administrators of the DepEd; and the fourth, which is the emphasis, innovation and technology,” explained Atty. Monico Jacob, STI Ed-

DepEd, STI up partnership with IT mobile school

ucation Services Group, Inc. CEO and vice chairman.

The STI Mobile School is “a computer laboratory on wheels equipped with basic computer modules for public high school students and teachers. Since the agreement with DepEd in 2015, the Mobile School has catered to 126,716 elementary and high school students na-tionwide through its 947 sites.”

The learning modules are composed of computer con-cepts, offi ce productivity tools and information technology. It also has multimedia tools such as photography and im-age manipulation, 3D anima-tion and video editing.

At present, the STI has six Mobile Schools, three units going around Metro Manila and nearby Luzon areas; one unit in Visayas, and two units in Mindanao. All units are equipped with school man-agement software, surround sound system and multimedia equipment.

IT education, SHS and ALSThe STI Mobile School is

an alternative and innovative way of reaching learners who do not have access to modern technology such as computers and internet connection.

“We are aware of the fact that more than fi ve million chil-dren are out of the school sys-tem. We are also aware that our 25 million learners in the school system need to be ca-pacitated, to be upgraded. Not

only our learners but also our teachers need to be capaci-tated as well,” Briones pointed out.

She added that the Mobile School will be exciting for the young learners to see a bus that transports not people but knowledge.

“This is where STI has been playing a very important role as a partner, as a system of learning, focusing on tech-nology, as well as other useful professions. We are partner-ing with the STI so that we can move faster,” Briones stated.

Stepping up to the chal-lenge, STI expressed its sup-port to the Secretary’s request to have a very strong Alterna-tive Learning System (ALS) to reach OSYs and to make available all the digital con-tent of ALS in the STI Mobile School.

Included in the agree-ment’s important interven-tions is STI’s provision of a technician on board the bus to inspect and ensure that the computers are in good work-ing condition, train IT offi cers in schools, and conduct regu-lar reports to DepEd.

Capacity-building activi-ties for public school teach-ers on information technology and the possible inclusion of a coding component in the cur-rent curriculum beginning Kin-dergarten up to Senior High School (SHS) are being eyed through the agreement.

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ANGELES CITY—After opposing the establish-ment of sports betting in Nepo Mart Area, op-position Councilor Car-melo “Pogi” Lazatin, Jr., has also voted against the establishment of a poker club in Friendship area, which is also adja-cent to several schools, churches and an urban poor area.

In a letter addressed to Andrea Domingo, Chairman and Chief Ex-ecutive Offi cer of Phil-ippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) dated April 18, 2017, Lazatin asked her offi ce to “look into the matter” since the es-tablishment of the Pok-er sports club located at Prince Hotel in River-side Subdivision in Ba-rangay Anunas, Angeles City violates “the appli-cable radial distance re-strictions as per Section 2 under Regulation 3 of the Gaming Site Regula-tory Manual Version 2.2 for Electronic and Bin-go Games set by PAG-COR.”

Under the Gaming Site Regulatory Manual Version 2.2 dated Sep-tember 21, 2016, poker gaming site must be “at least 200 meters away from schools, places

of worship/ churches, horse racing outlets, public markets, informal settlers and resettlement areas”

Lazatin claimed that the said poker club is located near American International Learning Academy, Amen Mission Christian School, Gen-try International School, Jesus Christ the Eternal Word Parish, Iglesia ni Cristo locale of Friend-ship and an urban poor area in Barangay Anun-as.

The Angeles City Council majority bloc ap-proved recently Resolu-tion number 7648 series of 2017 entitled “Reso-lution interposing no ob-jection to the establish-ment, maintenance and operation of PAGCOR li-censed Archer88 Enter-tainment Incorporated of Poker Sports Club locat-ed at Prince Hotel, Gan-ges St., Corner Yangtze St., Riverside Subdivi-sion, Barangay Anun-as, Angeles City” spon-sored by Councilor Car-lito Ganzon.

Lazatin and Coun-cilor Jesus “Jay” Sangil opposed the passage of the resolution during the City Council’s regular session number 5 dated February 21.

During the session, Lazatin asked to put on record the names of the registered owners of the poker club.

Councilor Ganzon, as recorded in the min-utes of the session, re-plied “Korean, wala dito sa Pilipinas. Yung kore-anong, sinasabi ni Kon-sehal, anak ng tatay at nanay niya.”

Ganzon further said that “hindi ko alam ang pangalan wala dito sa Pilipinas.”

Lazatin said that as approving body, the City Council “must know ev-ery details of the resolu-tion.”

“Ito ang trabaho ko bilang konsehal ng siyu-dad,” Lazatin said.

Lazatin also opposed the establishment of electronic bingo, “inst-awin” and the controver-sial sportsbetting in New Point Mall, which is ad-jacent to major schools and universities, Holy Rosary Parish Church and the city’s heritage district, which is one of the major projects of the City Mayor Edgardo Pa-mintuan.

“I will continue this crusade to protect our youth against vices,” Lazatin remarked.

–Press release

Pogi Lazatin opposes poker club in Friendship

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F��� ���! 1

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINESREGIONAL TRIAL COURTTHIRD JUDICIAL REGION

BRANCH 60ANGELES CITY

HOME DEVELOPMENTMUTUAL FUND (PAG-IBIG), Mortgagee,

-versus- FC Case No. 2017-1536

ANTONIO A. RAZON JR.MARRIED TO EMILIA M. RAZON,

Mortgagor.x----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------x

NOTICE OF SHERIFF’S SALEUpon Extra-Judicial Petition for Sale under Art. 3135, as amended fi led by

the above-named Mortgagee against the mortgagors ANTONIO A. RAZON JR. married to EMILIA M. RAZON with postal address at 249 San Antonio St., San Angelo Subd., Angeles City in order to satisfy the mortgage debt which as of July 29, 2016 amounted to ONE MILLION SIXTY SIX THOUSAND SEVEN HUNDRED EIGHT PESOS & 12/100 (P1,066,708.12) Philippine Currency, including penalties and other charges incurred in the fi ling of this foreclosure aside from expenses of collection and other charges allowed by law, the undersigned Sheriff IV hereby gives notice and announces that on April 26, 2017 at 10:00 o’clock in the morning at the Municipal Circuit Trial Court of Mabalacat, Municipal Hall, Xevera, Mabalacat City will sell at public auction for cash and in Philippine Currency, the following parcel of land with existing improvements and future improvements thereon, to wit:

T.C.T. No. 172027A parcel of land (Lot 60, Block 4 of the cons.-subdivision plan

Pcs-03-016531, being a portion of consolidation of Lots 5 & 6, Pcs-03-00950, Lot 546-A (LRC) Psd-217854, Lot 544-B-2-A-3- Psd-03-169696, Lot 4-D Psd-03-170954, LRC Record No. ), situated in the Barangay of Tabun, Municipality of Mabalacat, Prov. of Pampanga, Island of Luzon. Bounded on the NW., along line 1-2 by Lot 59, Block 4; on the NE., along line 2-3 by Lot 62, Block 4; on the SE., along line 3-4 by Road Lot 15; and on the SW., along line 4-1 by Lot 58, Block 4, all of the cons.-subd. plan. x x x containing an area of THIRTY FIVE (35) SQUARE METERS.

Prospective buyers/bidders may investigate for themselves the above-mentioned parcel/s of land for their information and protection.

In the event the public auction should not take place on the said date, it shall be held on May 3, 2017 at the same time and place without further notice.

Angeles City, March 17, 2017.

PEPITO G. PAMINTUAN Sheriff IV cc:

HOME DEVELOPMENT MUTUAL FUNDSuburbia Commercial Complex,Mc Arthur Highway, Maimpis,City of San Fernando, Pampanga

Antonio A. Razon Jr. & Emilia Razon249 San Antonio St., San Angelo Subd.,Angeles City, Pampanga

PUNTO! Central Luzon: April 6, 13 & 20, 2017

NOTICE OF EXTRAJUDICIAL SETTLEMENTNotice is hereby given that the heirs of FRANK A. TOCA who died intestate

on July 9, 1981 and PRUDENCIA CABRERA TOCA who died intestate on April 17, 2007, both in Angeles City executed an Affi davit of Extrajudicial Settlement with Waiver of Rights of their estate, more particularly described as a parcel of land (Lot 7, Blk. 45 District 1-A) with existing improvements, situated at EPZA Resettlement, Pulung Cacutud, Angeles City, before Notary Public Eric V. Mendoza as per Doc No. 814, Page No. 81, Book No. 77, Series of 2017.

Punto! Central Luzon: April 20, 27 & May 4, 2017

NOTICE OF EXTRAJUDICIAL SETTLEMENTNotice is hereby given that the heirs of the SPOUSES EDILBERTO

LINAG and ADELINA ABALOS LINAG who died intestate on December 7, 1976 and October 16, 2016, respectively, both in Mabalacat, Pampanga executed an Affi davit of Extrajudicial Settlement with Waiver of Rights of their estate, more particularly described as a parcel of land (Lot 24, Block 15 of the subdivision plan (LRC) Psd-119579, being a portion of Lot 35 Mabalacat Cadastre, LRC Cad. Rec. No. 132), situated in the Barrio of Dau, Municipality of Mabalacat, Province of Pampanga and covered by Transfer Certifi cate of Title No. 96607-R, before Notary Public Severino T. Santos as per Doc No. 300, Page No. 40, Book No. 329, Series of 2017.

Punto! Central Luzon: April 20, 27 & May 4, 2017

Secretary Mark Villar, National Economic and Development Authori-ty Director General Er-nesto Pernia, and Bases Conversion and Devel-opment Authority Presi-dent Vince Dizon.

“Build, Build, Build” is the mantra of the admin-istration’s infrastructure program where sever-al government agencies are partnering to imple-ment major projects in-volving roads, bridges, railways, airports, and green cities to bolster development and ease traffi c congestion in the country.

Featured as one of the big-ticket projects in the said infrastructure plan, the NLEX Harbor Link Segment 10 is en-visioned to alleviate traf-fi c congestion and drive commerce between the Harbor area and Cen-tral and North Luzon. It is seen to advance trans-

‘Build, Build, Build’ team inspects NLEX...port logistics and facili-tate effi cient delivery of goods.

“Metro Pacifi c re-mains committed in sup-porting Pres. Duterte’s infrastructure program. The NLEX Harbor Link will be a great boost to the country’s cargo transport industry as car-go trucks will have 24/7 direct access from the port area to the northern provinces of Luzon and vice versa,” said MPIC Chairman Manuel Pan-gilinan.

“The P10.5-billion project, which is us-ing the alignment of the Philippine National Rail-ways (PNR), traverses Karuhatan in Valenzuela City, Governor Pascual Avenue in Malabon City, and C3 road in Caloocan City,” DPWH Secretary Mark Villar said.

Targeted to be com-pleted at the end of this year, the NLEX Harbor Link Segment 10 is be-ing implemented under

the traffi c decongestion program of the DPWH. Secretary Villar said, “The Duterte adminis-tration is keen on pri-oritizing projects which not only aim to address traffi c problems but also generate massive in-vestments to help im-prove the lives of the Fil-ipino people.”

The 5.7-km express-way will decongest Met-ro Manila by providing an alternative entry to NLEX, bypassing EDSA and other busy streets of Manila. Once opened, travel time from the Ma-nila Port to the NLEX will take only 10 minutes.

MPTC President Ro-drigo Franco cited that “Segment 10 is just one of the expansion proj-ects geared towards connecting NLEX to key areas in Metro Manila to provide further conve-nience to motorists and spur economic growth in nearby cities and prov-inces.”

Aside from improved movement of cargo trucks, other project benefi ts include effi cient traffi c management and lower incidence of road accidents due to better road pavement.

Franco added, “Mo-torists who will be us-ing Segment 10 will en-joy the same seamless, safe, and speedy travel experience like that of those plying the NLEX mainline.”

Segment 10 is the second and last portion of the NLEX Harbor Link. The other component, the 2.4-km Segment 9 became operational in March 2015.

The NLEX Harbor Link will also pave the way for the NLEX-SLEX Connector Road, which is expected to decongest major thoroughfares and improve linkages be-tween airports, seaports, and growth corridors in the north and south.

–Press release

attend a “caucus discus-sion” in Baguio City. He noted, however, that the postponement was “vig-orously objected to by the defense.”

Pangilinan noted that the prosecution in Fer-nandez’s case was sup-

Mark Anthony...F��� ���! 1 posed to present yester-

day a fourth witness who also did not show up in court.

“Hopefully, it will be the last hearing,” Fer-nandez’s mother actress Alma Moreno was heard saying after the judge re-set the hearing.

–Ding Cervantes

still had to be disclosed, but it is expected that the respondents would include those already named by state prose-cutors in the kidnap and murder of the Korean na-tional.

Pangilinan also or-dered the release of Ra-mon Yalung, one of the initial suspects in the kid-nap and murder of the Korean businessman. This, after state prose-cutors, in a re-investiga-

New cases fi led vs suspects...F��� ���! 1 tion of Jee’s case, ex-

cluded Yalung and other persons, including three personnel of the Nation-al Bureau of Investiga-tion (NBI) among those initially implicated in the case.

Pangilinan noted that the lawyers of both Sta. Isabel and Villegas did not object to the ex-clusion of Yalung in the kidnap-murder case, prompting him to order the immediately release of Yalung from detention at the Angeles City jail.

Pangilinan also reset the arraignment of Sta. Isabel, after his co-ac-cused SPO4 Roy Ville-gas failed to show up in court yesterday. He re-set the arraignment to May 31 after noting that the PNP custodial center where Villegas was de-tained “could not escort him because of lack of subpoena.”

State prosecutors who were at the court said they expected that the other suspects in the case of the Korean

businessman would also show up for arraignment on May 31, after the De-partment of Justice in-cluded their names as suspects in the reinves-tigation that Pangilinan had earlier ordered.

Also present at the court were the wife of Jee, and other Korean friends, including an offi -cial from the South Kore-an embassy who asked not to be named but said that he was at the court only to observe.

–Ding Cervantes

“The Board deemed it best to increase the minimum wage at a rea-sonable and equitable level in light of the re-gional poverty thresh-old level vis-à-vis av-erage wage, along the need to promote per-formance-based incen-

P16 minimum wage increase OK’d in CLF��� ���! 1 tive schemes under the

Two-Tiered Wage Sys-tem,” Wage Order No. RBIII-20 said.

The total new mini-mum wage for the prov-inces of Bataan, Bula-can, Nueva Ecija, Pam-panga, Tarlac, and Zam-bales will now be P380 for non-agriculture es-tablishments with total

assets of P30 million or more, P373 for non-ag-riculture establishments with total assets of less than P30 million, P350 for agriculture plantation workers, P334 for agri-culture non-plantation workers, P369 for retail and service workers with 16 or more employees, and P355 for retail and

service workers with less than 16 employees.

In Aurora province, the total new minimum wage is P329 for non-ag-riculture, P314 for agri-culture plantation work-ers, P302 for agriculture non-plantation workers, and P264 for retail and service workers with less than 16 workers.

B# E�$%! B. E&'�$(!

MARIVELES, Bataan -- The Freeport Area of Bataan (FAB) in this town on Wednesday clarifi ed that 55 Chinese nation-als apprehended by the Bureau of Immigration on Tuesday committed crime in China and not in Bataan or anywhere in the Philippines.

Emmanuel Pineda, FAB administrator, went to the extent of repeated-ly saying that there was no online gambling in the

FAB EXEC CLARIFIES

55 Chinese nabbed in Bataan for crime in ChinaFreeport but only tech-nical support for online gaming through the busi-ness process outsourc-ing or BPO.

“I learned from Admin-istrator Pineda that FAB and the locators have no liability in the case of the nabbed Chinese. The Chinese entered the Phil-ippines legally with all pa-pers in order,” Gov. Albert Garcia said.

He said BI and the Chinese Embassy raid-ed FAB after the Chinese government cancelled

their passports.“We will maintain

close relation with the Bureau of Immigration so that everything will be in order at the Freeport,” the governor said.

Pineda said the Chi-nese were arrested be-cause of online gam-ing committed in China which is an economic crime in that country.

He said that when the Chinese came to the Philippines and applied for visa, their derogatory record in China was not

posted in the Philippines. It was only lately that the Chinese government cancelled their passport so BI has to operate on them.

“They were arrest-ed as illegal alien and not for online gaming in Bataan,” Pineda said.

The administrator said the 55 Chinese ap-prehended by the Immi-gration bureau were part of about 400 Chinese working in 20 BPO and other companies in the former Bataan Export

Processing Zone.He said there are 120

multinational fi rms pres-ently operating in FAB with more than 36,000 workers in direct employ-ment.

“Walang illegal na operasyon sa FAB,” he said.

Pineda said the mis-sion order of BI was on individuals and not on the companies.

THINK GREEN

PUNTO! CENTRAL LUZON • APRIL 20 - 22, 2017 • THURSDAY - SATURDAY

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