MANILA, Philippines — On Friday, Catholics mark the feast day of St. Bonaventure (San Buenaventura), considered as one of the greatest Doctors of the Universal Church. In the country, commemorative rites and festivities will be held in honor of the popular Italian saint in Mauban, Quezon; San Fabian, Pangasinan; Butag, Bulan, Sorsogon; San Pablo City; and Borongan, Samar. The Order of the Friars Minor (OFM), also known as the Franciscans, will hold special masses in honor of the eight minister-general of the religious order.

Venerated worldwide and known for the numerous miracles attributed through his intercession, St. Bonaventure was ranked with St. Thomas Aquinas as the greatest Doctors of the Church by Pope Sixtus V. Born in Tuscany, Italy in 1221, he entered the Franciscan Order in 1243 and was chosen as minister-general in 1256. (Christina I. Hermoso)

Preventive measure

Vice President and Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) chair Jejomar C. Binay has called on local government units to update their Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP) as another disaster preventive measure.

Binay made the announcement during the HUDCC Pabahay Caravan in Tacloban as he underscored the role the housing sector plays in preventing natural calamities through proper land use planning. He pointed out the tragic incident in St. Bernard, Southern Leyte where houses were buried by a landslide. (JC Bello Ruiz)

Health warning

Health officials Thursday discouraged the use of geckos (tuko) as ‘cure’ for asthma and AIDS saying the practice is ‘folkloric’ and is not backed up by any scientific evidence. “There is no basis that this practice cures ailments like AIDS or brings relief from symptoms of asthma.

Thus, we do not recommend it as cure for any ailment,” the DoH said in a statement. The DoH warned that the use of geckos as cure ‘could be dangerous’ because patients might not seek proper treatment for their diseases. Asthma could get serious when left untreated, health officials said. Serious cases require hospitalization and more expensive treatment later. (Jenny Manongdo)

Assistance

The Philippine government vowed to extend assistance to an estimated 800 Filipino teachers who may be adversely affected as a result of an agreement between the Wage Hour Division of the United States Department of Labor and the Prince George's County Public School in Maryland, which prevents the school district from hiring new teachers and renewing visas of current foreign workers due to its willful violation of wage laws on the hiring of overseas employees.

"As part of the Philippine government's mandate to protect Filipinos abroad and promote their welfare, (we) will assist the affected teachers in making representations with appropriate US government agencies," the Philippine Embassy in Washington DC said in a statement. (Roy C. Mabasa)

Job program

To provide immediate jobs to overseas Filipino workers (OFW) who might be displaced by the Saudization policy, the government is now conducting an onsite job facilitation program in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA).

Labor spokesperson Nicon Fameronag said during a media forum DoLE has launched an onsite employment assistance program in its Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) in KSA, which will provide alternative employment to OFWs who are at risk from the Saudization policy without going back to the Philippines. “ (Samuel Medenilla)