Perez said that the city’s commitment to education is shown by the construction and repair of schoolbuildings in barangays, funding support and technical assistance to non-formal education, scholarships, and additional teachers.

He said that last year, the city government constructed 14 schoolbuildings and school facilities in several schools here. Fifty-six teachers where hired with a monthly honorarium of R4,000.

In addition, he said, 32 students were the beneficiaries of scholarships provided by the city’s "Study Now, Pay Later" program that helps poor but deserving students pursue their college education.

Perez said that the city was able to encourage out-of-school youths through the non-formal education program to acquire alternative learning modules which enabled them to gain employment.

He said that the best proof of Urdaneta’s total concern for good quality education for Urdanetaneans is the growing success of the City College of Urdaneta which has transformed into a repository of academic excellence. It has 6,000 students at present and it is the first community college in the country and first chartered school in Region 1 (Ilocos). (Fa Sison Almazan)

Quezon City, for the fifth straight year, posted a budget surplus of R300 million last year as a result of the city government’s continuing effort to expand its tax base to increase revenue collection.

Quezon City Mayor Feliciano Belmonte Jr., quoting a report submitted by Quezon City Treasurer Dr. Victor B. Endriga, said the city government has over R7.37 billion in revenues in 2005, an increase of R880 million compared to its total collection in 2004.

A report from the Department of Finance’s Statement of Income and Expenditures Databank Bureau of Local Government Finance showed that Quezon City posted a R7,376,391,780 gross collection and a total of R6.5 billion in revenues in the general fund from January to December last year.

Endriga, president of the Philippine Association of Treasurers and Assessors (Phaltra), said it further solidified the city’s status as the No. 1 local government unit (LGU) in tax collection effort.

The Finance department report indicated that Quezon City has no borrowings from any banking institution compared to Manila which has incurred about R859 million in inter-local transfers while Makati City has R51.7 million in loans. (Sel A. Baysa)

HONG KONG (AP) — More than 100 Filipinos marched in Hong Kong yesterday to demand the release of Anakpawis Rep. Crispin Beltran, who was arrested on suspicion of playing a role in plots to oust President Arroyo.

"Stop political repression," "Release all political detainees," read placards held by the activists who marched through downtown Hong Kong to the Philippine Consulate General in Hong Kong.

Organizers said 300 people took part in the march, but police put the crowd at around 130.

The protesters condemned the Arroyo administration for the detention of Beltran, who was arrested late last month and is facing a capital charge of rebellion. He has denied the allegation.

They said the arrest "gravely violates his fundamental human and political rights" and exposes "the government’s lack of respect for human rights."

The demonstrators called on the government to respect freedom of speech, peaceful assembly, and the press.

A resolution urging the Polytechnic University of Quezon City (PUQC) to include call center training in its courses in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) was recently filed before the Quezon City Council.

In his resolution, Quezon City District 2 Councilor Winston "Winnie" Castelo stressed the need for the training, citing the emergence of calls for the establishment of call centers not only in Quezon City but all over the country.

Dubbed as the "ICT Capital of the Philippines," Quezon City, under the leadership of Quezon City Mayor Feliciano Belmonte Jr., is cognizant of the importance of information technology as one of the major factors for accelerating social and economic development, he said.

Last year, the PUQC, a public school funded by the Quezon City government, started offering new courses, including Bachelor of Science in Information and Communication Technology. It has two campuses, one in San Francisco and another in San Bartolome.