MINDANAO DAILY TRUTH | JUSTICE | PROGRESS
Volume XII, No. 048
www.mindanaodailynews.com
Thursday, September 8, 2022
P15.00
Pikit in North Cotabato is not a ‘ghost town’ – mayor By Bong S. Sarmiento
A
post on Facebook that Pikit town in North C otabato province has turned into a ghost town, or deserted, due to the worsening peace and order condition is not true. Pikit Mayor Sumulong Sultan noted the false information was aimed at destroying the town’s image under his leadership. “Walang katotohan at fake news yan. Nandito naman kami – ang ating kasundaluhan, andito ang ating kapulisan para tingnan ang kapayapaan dito (There’s no truth to it and that’s a fake news. We are here – our soldiers and the police to see to it that we have
peace),” the mayor told the Oblates-owned Notre Dame Broadcasting Corp. “We are business as usual,” he added. Major Maxim Peralta, Pikit police chief, also disputed that the municipality has become a ghost town. Instead of spreading unverified information, it would be better to help work for peace, the police officer said. Peralta admitted the local police force lack manpower to fully secure the town, a first-class municipality with a population of at least 164,646 individuals. Denz Vlog, which is followed by at least 5,270 Facebook users, posted on August 29 photos of deserted streets with the caption: See GHOST, page 11
Voters advised to check track records of barangay, SK candidates during pandemic By ANTONIO L. COLINA IV
DAVAO CITY (MindaNews) – Two years after the postponement of Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections (BSKE), voters will have a better gauge of the capacity of their local leaders to lead because of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, an official of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC)Davao said on Tuesday. Barangay elections in Davao Occidental in 2013. MindaNews file photo by RUBY THURSDAY MORE Lawyer Gay Enumerables, COMELEC assistant regional director, said over Davao City Disaster Radio (DCDR 87.5) on Tuesday that the pandemic tested the capabilities of the barangay leaders who were at the forefront of the local government’s response to COVID-19. “They should have excelled during that time, so that people would see how good they are in providing services,” she said. Enumerables said that at the height of COVID-19 lockdowns, barangay leaders practically handled essential programs, from the distribution of cash aid and food assistance, to taking care of those who tested positive,
INDONESIA TRIP. President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. concludes his three-day state visit in Indonesia on Tuesday (Sept. 6, 2022). Malacañang said Marcos’ first foreign trip as Chief Executive yielded around USD8.48 billion (PHP466.6 billion) worth of business deals. (Photo from Office of the President FB page)
Barangay elections in Davao Occidental in 2013. MindaNews file photo by RUBY THURSDAY MORE
and to locating isolation facilities. “During the pandemic, everything was closed. It was the barangay that handled everything,” she pointed out. She said there were barangays that were criticized during the distribution of cash aid. Enumerables said the filing of certificate of candidacy (COC) for the December 5, 2022 synchronized barangay and SK elections would push through from October 6 to 13. Section 10 of Republic Act 10742, or the SK Reform Act of 2015, provides that
an “official of the Sangguniang Kabataan, either elective or appointee, must be a citizen of the Philippines, a qualified voter of the Katipunan ng Kabataan, a resident of the barangay for not less than one year immediately preceding the day of the elections, at least 18 years but not more than 24 years of age on the day of the elections, able to read and write Filipino, English, or the local dialect, must not be related within the second civil degree of consanguinity or affinity to any incumbent elected national official or to any incumbent elected regional,
provincial, city, municipal, or barangay official, in the locality where he or she seeks to be elected, and must not have been convicted by final judgment of any crime involving moral turpitude.” Section 39 of the Local Government Code provides that an elective local official must be a citizen of the Philippines; a registered voter in the Barangay, municipality, city, or province or, in the case of a member of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, Sangguniang Panlungsod, or Sanggunian bayan, the district where he intends to be elected; a resident See RECORDS, page 11
Marcos’ Indonesia trip yields $8.5 billion in business deals By Azer Parrocha
MANILA – President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. will bring home around USD8.48 billion (PHP466.6 billion) worth of business deals from his three-day visit to Indonesia, a Palace official said Tuesday. Press Secretary Trixie CruzAngeles said these agreements, which were secured during Marcos’ roundtable discussion with Indonesian business leaders and investors on Monday, would generate at least 7,000 new jobs. Of the amount, she said the Philippine government secured USD7billion in infrastructure for unsolicited
private-public partnerships (PPPs) such as a C-5 4-level elevated expressway. Marcos’ trip also yielded USD822 million in investments in textiles, garments, renewable energy, satellite gateway, wire global technology, and agrifood and USD662 million in trade value for the supply of coal and fertilizer. In a press briefing in Jakarta, Marcos told reporters that Indonesian business leaders and investors were “very enthusiastic” about starting businesses in the Philippines. He said they have also committed to “expanding” their See DEALS, page 11