Detained army officer running for Congress

TABUK CITY, KALINGA – Detained Army Capt. Dante Langkit, 37, has declared his readiness to run for Congress in the coming elections either for the lone congressional seat of his native Kalinga province or through the party list system.

Langkit already took the first step by making sure that he is a registered voter of Taga, Pinukpuk, this province which was made possible when he was granted a three-day temporary freedom by jail authorities so he could travel home.

His twin brother Danzel, however, told the local media that there was no need for the captain to register because upon verification, his name still appears on the voters’ list of Precinct No. 78-A of Taga, Pinukpuk.

“His registration was not affected by his detention,” Danzel said.

Capt. Langkit who was accompanied by two jail guards and told to stick with the approved itinerary talked with the media here on May 12, the last day of his leave from jail, about his political plans.

He said that he is among the members of the Samahang Magdalo (SM), an organization headed by renegade soldiers Gen. Danilo Lim and Senator Antonio Trillanes IV and duly registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission, being considered for nomination in the event that the SM will be accredited as a party list organization in time for the 2010 elections.

He said that the SM legal department is already working on the accreditation of the organization as a party list group by the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) and that at the same time, the SM is in the process of strengthening its national organization through the enlistment of its sympathizers as members of the group.

“We are targeting three percent of the electorate of each congressional district,” Capt. Langkit said.

Gunning for the congressional seat of Kalinga is also an option, the army officer said.

Capt. Langkit rebutted what he branded as black propaganda leveled against the SM.

He said that it is not true that the group is left-leaning and is allied with subversive groups claiming there is nothing in the code of conduct of the SM which is anti-government.

“We advocate love of God, country, family, our people and the environment. We are also averse to bribery and the selling of votes. The SM is a dagger in the heart of the people who do not believe in our advocacies,” Capt. Langkit said.

Capt. Langkit also laughed at the allegations that the SM has lots of funds.

“Our coordinators ride motorcycles. As for us, we are just hitching rides,” Capt. Langkit said.

He told the local media that when his twin brother Danzel made a run for Congress in the last elections, he campaigned on a shoestring budget but still managed to garner 11,300 votes.

A member of Philippine Military Academy Class 1995, Capt. Langkit was nabbed in April 2006 for alleged involvement in the alleged coup plot against President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo two months earlier and has been in detention since then. He is being tried by a court martial.

Danzel said that the charges against his brother remain unproven and that there appears to be an effort to delay the court proceedings and deny him justice.

“It is inspiring our sympathizers who want to know the truth,” Danzel said. **By Estanislao Albano, Jr., ZZW

Super body formed to address Chico River pollution

BONTOC, MTN. PROV., May 15, 2009 – The Cordillera Regional Development Council (RDC) here created a task force to address the worsening pollution of the Chico River which strands from this landlocked province to Kalinga and Cagayan. The river is suffering from the unabated disposal of garbage and liquid wastes along the river to the detriment of downstream communities and other water users.

The Chico River has been identified as one of the major river systems in the Cordillera that provides sufficient water resources for electric power generation, agriculture, domestic water, ecotourism or recreation and fishery.

The super body will be composed of representatives from the regional offices of the DENR, Environmental Management Bureau (EMB), DPWH, DILG, National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) and the local government units of Mountain Province and Kalinga.

The task force shall ensure complimentary and concerted actions of government agencies, local governments and other stakeholders in addressing the problem of garbage and waste disposal and to oversee the effective implementation of activities that would ensure the proper disposal of such wastes of communities and households to prevent the eventual death of the river, popularly being used by foreigners for white-water rafting activities.

Earlier, the province of Kalinga has expressed grave concern on the massive pollution of the river through Resolutions No. 2009-035, 2009-045, 2008-477, 2008-478 and 2005-123 of the provincial board which were eventually endorsed to the RDC-CAR for appropriate action.

The Kalinga provincial government has established a provincial monitoring team headed by boardmember Fernando M. Abay and composed of representatives from the DENR office in Kalinga and the local government units concerned which recently conducted an inspection of the river and met with provincial officials of Mountain Province and the municipal officials of its capital town regarding the alarming state of pollution along the river.

On the other hand, the EMB-CAR also conducted dialogues and consultations with officials of Mountain Province on the establishment of materials recovery facilities, sanitary landfill sites and the conduct of massive information and education campaign activities on solid waste management in communities along the river.

The RDC asserted that only a concerted action of government agencies, local governments and other stakeholders can ensure a comprehensive and sustainable solution to the garbage and waste disposal problem along the river.

For their part, Bontoc municipal officials disclosed they are implementing strict waste management practices to prevent residents from dumping their solid and liquid wastes along the Chico River. **By Dexter A. See, ZZW

Missing Tabuk City woman found dead in Cagayan

TABUK CITY, KALINGA – The body of a woman fished out of the Cagayan River in Santo Nino, Cagayan on April 30, 2009 has been identified as that of a mentally ill 37-year old woman who last left her residence at Magsaysay, this city, on April 6.

Teacher Amparo Dalingay of Casigayan, this city, said that relatives did not feel concerned when Lailanie Lucena, 36, did not come home after a couple of days as she sometimes disappeared for a few days then returned home.

But when Lucena did not come home after a week, relatives and neighbors searched the barangay and neighboring barangays to no avail.

However, one of the search groups got information that Lucena was seen boarding a jeep bound for Roxas, Isabela with a male companion at Bulanao, this city.

Hopes of finally finding the missing woman arose when on May 1, a news report over Bombo Radyo-Tuguegarao City announced that the body of a woman was found in a sack floating in the Cagayan River in Abaryongan Ruar, Santo Nino, Cagayan on April 30 and was buried by barangay official and the police on the same day.

Dalingay said that when Brenda Ravelo, the sister of the victim with whom she was staying, went to Santo Nino on May 7 with photos of Lucena, the local police declared they were 90 percent sure the body they buried was that of Lucena.

Dalingay also said that Ravelo recognized the body to be that of her sister from earrings and a hairclip worn by the victim.

Ravelo quoted the Santo Nino police as saying that according to the medico legal examination conducted, the victim was strangled to death.

Ravelo added that the Santo Nino police did not say whether Lucena was raped prior to being killed or not.

The body was exhumed and brought home to Tabuk City on May 11. **By Estanislao Albano Jr., ZZW

Tabuk City LGU bans tandok for rabies

TABUK CITY, KALINGA – The Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) here enacted an ordinance prohibiting the usage of the tandok as alternative treatment for dog bites.

The tandok is a sucking instrument made of the tip of cow horn and of late, also of plastic. It is believed by people here that the instrument can cure snake bites and dog bites and even kill pain from rheumatism.

Councilor Alma Sandra Mejia who authored the ordinance said there was an urgency of passing the legislation because of the growing number of dog bite victims who sought treatment from mananandoks (tandok administrators) dying from rabies.

Among the recent victims was Ronald Buado, 25, resident of Calanan, this city, who died of rabies 109 days after going for tandok treatment. He did not seek medical treatment until it was too late.

The ordinance penalizes mananandoks found using tandoks on dog bites with a fine of not less than P2,000.00.

“There is no empirical data to prove that tandok is effective against dog bites. On the contrary, there is evidence to show it is ineffective. People who believe that tandok can cure rabies might be basing their conclusion on cases where the dog was not rabid,” Mejia said.

Mejia told the media that despite the public announcement of the consultations on the proposed ordinance, no mananandok attended the activity.

Ordinance No. 4, series of 2009, which is captioned “Rabies and stray dog control ordinance of the City of Tabuk,” also prohibits the trade of dog for meat.

Mejia said that, aware of the penchant of many residents of the city for dog meat, some members of the SP had expressed concern that the provision will not be implemented but in the end, the consensus of the body was that “it is better to have an ordinance supporting national laws prohibiting the slaughter of dogs for dog meat than to have none at all.”

The penalty for violation of the provision is P5,000.00 per dog and imprisonment of from one to four years.

Among other provisions, the ordinance mandates dog owners to present their dogs for registration and vaccination and to keep them from freely roaming in public places.

Included as responsibilities of the LGU under the ordinance are to maintain adequate supply of animal anti-rabies vaccine at all times, conduct free anti-rabies vaccination, maintain and improve animal rabies surveillance system and conduct research on rabies and its control in coordination with other agencies. **By Estanislao Albano, Jr., ZZW

Lady welder opts to use skill for self-employment

TABUK, KALINGA - Ellena Madigyem-Bumatnong, 38, the only woman who graduated from the course Gas Tungsten Arc Welding (GTAW) during the mass graduation of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority Provincial Training Center (TESDA Kalinga -PTC) plans to use her new skills as her capital for self-employment.

Bumatnong, who is also a National Certificate II (NC11) holder for Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW), is investing on welding courses as she plans to establish her own welding business someday.

She said that working abroad is not the only option for those who have acquired skills. As a mother of small five children and a Midwifery graduate, Ellena chose to stay home to work and be with her family. **by gigi dumallig. Read more...

Tribes fail to settle murder of Lammawin

BONTOC, MOUNTAIN PROVINCE – Efforts to restore peace between the tribes involved in the killing of the late judge Milner Lammawin hit a snag after the contending parties failed to agree on how the case is to be settled.

Lammawin was killed allegedly by Maducayan tribesmen in Tabuk, Kalinga months after Edwin Lingbawan, a Maducayan native, was shot to death while on their way to Tabuk from Tuguegarao City. One of those on board the vehicle was Tabuk mayor Camilo Lammawin, brother of the late judge. Milner’s wife, Venus, is a memer of the Bontoc tribe.

In the meeting facilitated by the Bontoc Council of Elders at the Anglican Diocesan Center here last May 2, relatives of Venus Lammawin, rebuffed the suggestion of lawyer Basilio Wandag of the Maducayan tribe that the problem be mended through “Pakpakan,” a manner by which the case is to be settled by immediate family members and that no damage is to be demanded by an aggrieved party except for a token heartily offered by the offender. Unlike the bodong system, this mode of settlement does not go through many rituals but the mere exchange of food. Partaking the food offered by an offender implies forgiveness on the part of the aggrieved party. **By angel baybay. Read more...