CEBU – Governor Gwendolyn Garcia is retaining the Chairmanship of the Regional Peace and Order Council (RPOC), giving the first lady governor of Cebu her third term as RPOC head. The RPOC 7 also unanimously picked Police Regional Office 7 Director Ager Ontog as Vice Chairman.

In a recent meeting, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) 7 Director Pedro Noval, head of the RPOC Secretariat, read two draft resolutions, one for the appointment of the new chairman and vice chairman and another for the appointment of three private sectoral representatives.

Both resolutions bear the memorandum issued by DILG Secretary Jesse Robredo last August 11, 2010 directing the reconstitution of the RPOC.

The three private sector representatives are lawyer Tereso Balangkig as civic sector representative; Rev. Roberto Alesna as religious sector representative; and Teodoro Locson representing business. Garcia has been RPOC chairman since her first term of office.

She thanked Council members for their continued confidence and assured them that she will continue to serve as best she could. Ontog, for his part, also assured the Council to fulfill his mandates well as RPOC Vice Chairman. (Mars W. Mosqueda, Jr.)

Kalibo Airport Improvement Continues

KALIBO, Aklan (PNA) – The administration of President Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III is continuing improvements in the Kalibo International Airport (KIA) which is one of the major tourism gateways in the country, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP).

Engr. Percy Malonesio, CAAP-Kalibo Chief, said that Department of Transportation and Communications (DoTC) officials have informed him of the remaining budget for the improvement of the KIA.

"I was told there was budget left at the DoTC for the improvement of the KIA. DoTC officials told me the remaining budget allocations will all be used according to its purpose," Malonesio said.

The airport is currently undergoing development such as construction of the terminal building, extension of runway, access roads, improvement of old and new terminal building, construction of elevated runway and vehicular parking area, asphalt overlay of runway, extension of apron and construction of drainage canal, expansion of terminal building, rehabilitation and repair of old passenger terminal building.

Certified Rice Seeds Ready for WV Farmers

ILOILO CITY (PNA) – The Department of Agriculture (DA) here said 6,700 bags of rice certified seeds (CS) are being made available for farmers in Western Visayas.

Edgar Baylon, DA regional rice seed coordinator, said the available stock of certified seeds include 8,000 bags for Negros Occidental, 500 bags for Capiz and 200 bags for Antique.

This is under the rapid seed supply financing project (RaSSFiP) extension phase for the 2011 dry cropping season, he said. In the RaSSFiP project, the National Food Authority (NFA) will procure CS from the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) accredited seed growers.

These seeds should be not more than three months from the date of certification by the National Seeds Quality Control Service (NSQCS).

Meantime, farmers must agree to pay their equity under the 50:50 scheme, depositing or paying through the banks.

It is expected that NFA Regional Office 6 will import CS from Regions 1, 2 and 3 due to lack of locally available seeds.