Cayetano declares VP bid in Davao

DAVAO CITY-Senator Alan Peter S. Cayetano announced his vice presidential bid in the city today and hinted that he is still waiting for his possible presidential partner to declare his bid for the presidency.

“I am running for vice president of the Republic of the Philippines. I am putting my faith in God and to you our people," Cayetano said. He was accompanied by his wife Taguig City Mayor Lani Cayetano.

While he did not mention the name of the person which he will support as president, Cayetano hinted that he had Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte in mind when he said "Just like you, I am still waiting, praying and hoping that this person will run for president."

Among the reasons why he declared his vice presidential bid in Davao City, the bailwick of Mr. Duterte, are decentralization, transformational changes in Davao City and the city being the battle ground for peace and development.

"I have been mouthing that we should get the funding and focus out of Manila so it is but proper that I announce it here," he said. The city is also known for many transformational changes, he said, and it has been known as the battleground of peace and development.

"Davao is a good example of progress. I took my oath as a Senator in Cebu and I am privileged to announced my vice presidential bid here in Davao," he said.

While it is not yet clear if Mr. Cayetano will run under the Nacionalista Party or as an independent candidate, it is clear that he will be pursuing his vice presidential bid even if he does not get the party's support.

Aside from Mr. Cayetano, two other members of the Nacionalista Party have indicated their interest to run for vice president in the 2016 elections namely Senator Ferdinand E. Marcos, Jr. and Senator Antonio F. Trillanes IV.

"Our party will meet in a few days. NPC is not committed to any one group and there are no talks of coalition yet. That will come when it is clear who among the party members will run for vice president and president," he said. All three of them, he said, had a previous agreement that there will be a free zone if all of them decides to run.

While Mr. Cayetano has not named the president he will support next year, the presence of Mr. Duterte's political team including former North Cotabato Governor Emmanuel F. Pinol and former Davao City Councilor Peter T. Lavina has raised suspicions that there could be a brewing agreement between them.

“It is usually the presidential candidate who initiates his choice for vice president," he said. Asked about Mr. Duterte's previous declaration that he will not run for president, he said "It’s really up to Mayor Duterte but I think it is the country that will lose if he doesn’t file as president."

Mr. Cayetano met with Mr. Duterte during the Kadayawan celebration on August 21 but he said "we barely discussed politics that time." However, he admitted that his sister Senator Pia S. Cayetano is flying in to Davao night of September 29 for a possible meeting with him and Mr. Duterte.

"I hope to run with a person who is as passionate as I am. He will be my wingman, parang Batman and Robin. You work well together," he said.

What struck him about the Million March Rally initiated by Mr. Duterte's supporters in Manila last Saturday was not only the number of people who went there voluntarily without being paid but also the boxes where supporters can contribute one peso for Mr. Duterte.

"With a campaign that is primarily supported by the people he will be in one of the best positions because he is able to run without owing anything to people with vested interested," he said.

He denied any plans to preempt the declaration by the LP today (Sept. 30) considering that LP has previously intended to declare their vice presidential candidate on Sept. 28 which did not push through.

While Mr. Cayetano said there are many candidates who have the capability to rule the country, it dies not include Vice President Jejomar C. Binay as "he is marred by corruption issues, we should not tolerate graft and corruption."

Mindanao agenda

In his introductory speech before declaring his bid for the vice presidency. Mr. Cayetano stressed that the whole of Mindanao, and not only the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), should get a BBL-like law and not just the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

He said the demand for Federalism which Mr. Duterte is promoting is getting louder and he is supporting it although is tis only one of the ways of decentralizing Manila's powers.

Mr. Cayetano said he introduced the Mindanao Peace and Development Plan which provides a specific plan for Mindanao's development. "Given the BBL's budget of P100 billion a year we prepared a plan which will only require P65 billion for a 200-kilometer Mindanao Railway and this is already with the National Economic Development Authority," he said.

Duterte not running

Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte has put to rest all speculations about his plans cor the 2016 presidential elections.

"Hindi ako tatakbo. Wala akong ambisyon maging presidente (I will not run. I have no ambition to become president)," Duterte said in a press conference yesterday afternoon.

Duterte apologized to his supporters, the Moro people who believed in him and to those who have spent money, albeit unsolicited, for his advertisement and promotion.

"I am sorry. I told you it was just federalism all along," he said, referring to his Federalism Speaking Tour in some parts of the country. He said he will support candidates who will in turn support federalism and asked his supporters to just follow his lead.

He said he will support people who will run for the Senate and mentioned the names of Representative Roman Romulo, Anti-Crime and Terrorism through Community Involvement and Support (ACT-CIS) Party-list Rep. Samuel Pagdilao and Mark Villar.

Duterte said he will retire from public office in 2016 with the hope that his daughter, former Mayor Sara Duterte will run for mayor next year. However, Sara said she has not yet decided but the people will know her decision in October during the deadline for the filing of the Certificate of Candidacy.

He also warned that there will never be peace in Mindanao unless the Bangsamoro Basic Law in an acceptable form is approved by Congress, or without it, federalism is given to the people. 

Duterte has repeatedly denied he is interested in running for president for various reasons including health and finances. However, he has become more emotional in the past few weeks and even said "the presidency is a failed dream"

"Nakig-istorya na ko sa akong mga anak...Si Baste, Veronica, Inday...dili sila manugot. Sorry!," was Duterte's reply when asked if he has already sought the consent of his children regarding the possibility of his running for the 2016 presidential elections at Almendras Gym last week.

Duterte’s rating at the SWS and Pulse Asia presidential surveys has consistently been on the rise. A presidential electoral survey conducted by the University of Mindanao-Institute of Popular Opinion (UM-IPO) from July 11 to 18 this year also showed him at the top of the list with a rating of 80 percent compared to last year’s survey where he got a 65.8 percent rating.

Meanwhile, Mar Masanguid of the Duterte for President Movement said he is not giving up hope that Duterte will still run for president because there is still time.

"Mudagan si Mayor. Motoo mo sa ako. Mag uban man mi sa Manila sa September 14-16 ngano muadto pa man dya didto kung di dya mudagan," Masanguid said.

All systems go for K to 12 in Davao Region

The Davao Region is 97% ready to implement the K to 12 Program, with the Senior High School (SHS) up for full implementation  by 2016, despite the cases it is facing at the Supreme Court. 

“We started the advocacy for K to 12  as early as 2010 even if the law was only signed in May 2013,” said Dr. Luzminda Onor, Chief of the DepEd Curriculum and Learning Materials Division (CLMD).

The K to 12 Program covers Kindergarten and 12 years of basic education to include six years of primary education, four years of Junior high school and two years of senior high school. Through this, the Program aims to prepare the students to master concepts and skills and prepare them for employment and entrepreneurship.

There are two laws that regulate the implementation of K to 12 and these are Republic Act 10157 or the Act institutionalizing Kindergarten Education and Republic Act 10533 which is the Implementing Rules and Regulations of the Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013.

In Region XI, a total of 43 private schools have been given permits to offer SHS and the list is still growing since the DepEd is still evaluating the capability of the other private schools. While Schoolyear 2016-2017 will be the full implementation of the SHS, there are schools that have volunteered to be the early implementors by 2015.

On the other hand, almost all public schools are allowed to offer the SHS. However, Onor said, those with a population of more than 5,000 will have a standalone school that will offer SHS. There are three standalone schools in the city namely the Sta. Ana National High School, Davao City National High School and the Daniel Aguinaldo National High School

“By 2016 there will be 145,192 students that will enter Senior High School,” Onor said.

While DepEd will spearhead today a commemoration-celebration for the signing of K to 12 into law, there are other sectors that are not convinced with the K to 12 Program and have questioned its constitutionality with the Supreme Court.

The Council of Teachers and Staff of Universities and Colleges in the Philippines (COTESCUP), Suspend K to 12 Alliance and the Coalition for the Suspension of K to 12 questioned the constitutionality and petitioned the Supreme Court to stop the implementation of K to 12, Republic Act 10533 or the Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013 and its Implementing Rules and Regulation.

Earlier, Father Joel Tabora, President of the Ateneo de Davao University (ADDU) and vice president of he 1,300 member schools of the Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines (CEAP) said K to 12 has already began and it is impossible to put a stop to it now.

"We at CEAP are all opposed to any postponement. we have already began. This isn't just something you can stop," Tabora said.

Tabora said "It is way too late to ask for postponement now. I am disappointed that we have responsible Congressmen with whom we have been speaking all the time (about the K to 12) who are now saying that we have to postpone it.” 

Davao road networks at bottom of 16 cities in WWF study

Davao City’s economy may be touted as one of the strongest in Mindanao and even in the whole country but it ranked lowest among 16 Philippine cities when it comes to road network according to a recent World Wide Fund (WWF) for Nature study.

“Out of the 16 cities Davao City has the worst record with only nine percent of its total road network paved,” said Jose Maria Lorenzo Tan, Vice-Chairman and the President and CEO of WWF-Philippines isaid. Tan was in the city for the presentation of WWF’s findings on a study on the Business Risk Assessment and the Management of Climate Change Impacts of 16 cities conducted from 2011 to 2013.

Aside from Davao, the other cities included in the study are Baguio, Cebu, Iloilo, Cagayan de Oro, Dagupan, Laoag, Zamboanga, Angeles, Batangas, Naga, Tacloban, Butuan, General Santos, Puerto Princesa and Santiago.

“The city (Davao) may report it builds new roads but these are not really paved roads,” he said. Davao has one kilometer of paved road for every 20 square kilometer of land, he said, compared to Puerto Princesa which has one kilometer of road for every 1.7 square kilometer of land.

Tan said “one thing that scares me when he (Duterte) becomes president is that we may not have any roads at all.” While he admitted that almost everywhere within the city is paved, he said people should go to the outskirts to see the real state of the road network.

Tan said Dabawenyos could not claim that Davao is the largest city in terms of land area because “halos magkasing-laki lang sila ng Puerto Princesa and the latter have kilometers of paved road.”

Davao City has a land area of 2443.61 sq km compared to Puerto Princesa’s land area of 2539.82 sq km. Davao is however more populated with up to 1.5 million people as of 2010 compared to Puerto Princesa with only 222,673 people during the same period.

Population in Davao City has grown by 692,109 from 850,316 in 1990 to 1,542,425 in

2010. Population Density has increased from 348 per sq km in 1990, to an estimated 631 per sq km in 2010.

The report shows that in parallel with the city’s population growth and expansion, the number of Motor Vehicles here has exploded by 3.5 times, from 37,378 vehicles in 1990, to 136,283 motor vehicles in 2010.

“Barring inner city re-development, better traffic management and an improved road network, road congestion and degraded air quality could be a matter for concern,” Tan said.

Tan said one cannot expect the city to pave all its roads at one time due to finance constraints. However, he said, it should get inspiration from Puerto Princesa where Mayor Edward Hagedorn allots a budget for paved road annually.

“Puerto Princesa is almost as big as Davao but its road network is much bigger. It has traditionally allotted an annual budget for cementing its roads so they are doing it slowly but surely,” he said.

He said it is not enough to just point a finger at the national government  because the local government can improve its road network every year by apportioning a little of its budget for paved roads just like Puerto Princesa.

“The paved road ratio is something that will have to be improved. We will make sure of that by the next presidency,” said Engr. Mario Luis Jacinto, former chief of the City Planning Office and now consultant to the city mayor.

Jacinto said the city has not been getting enough allocation for roads from the national government but “we will make sure that it will be improved especially in the production areas.”

P40.57B Davao Airport bidded out

The Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) formally called for bidders who are interested to undertake the P40.57-billion development, operations and maintenance of the Davao International Airport under a public-private partnership scheme.

“The Davao Airport will be part of a bundled airport projects to be undertaken by the DOTC and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA),” said National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) XI director M. Lourdes Lim said.

However, she said, it is the sentiment of the Regional Development Council (RDC) members “na di makasama ang Davao Airport sa bundled bidding. Sana mahiwalay kasi baka ma tie-down namana nd maulahi ang pag award.”

The Davao Airport is the third busiest airport in the country that handles direct flights daily and direct flights to Singapore weekly. The airport has a 10.56% annual average growth rate for the last five years, handling 2,795,251 passengers in 2013.

 “As of now we haven’t really seen the final tender documents but during the discussions at the Committee and Council levels, that was the sentiments of the members of the Council that dito sana at mahiwalay ang Davao Airport project,” she said.

The bid notice indicated that the winning private sector bidder will be required to start expanding the passenger terminal building, apron, other airside and landside facilities of the airports.

DOTC reported that the Davao Airport is expected to breach its estimated design capacity in the next few years. The Bacolod-Silay, Iloilo and Laguindingan and Puerto Princesa airports have reportedly already exceeded their estimated passenger capacity.

Including Davao, the project will involve a total of six airport projects in the country namely: P4.57-billion New Bohol (Panglao) Airport; P5.81-billion Puerto Princesa Airport; P14.62-billion Laguindingan Airport; P20.26-billion Bacolod-Silay International Airport and the P30.40-billion Iloilo Airport.

DOTC Undersecretary for Legal Affairs Jose Perpetuo M. Lotilla earlier said they are planning to break up the airport tender into two contracts covering three projects each, with each bundle roughly equivalent to an estimated annual throughput of five million passengers.

All interested parties are required to pay a non-refundable fee of P1 million before they can acquire the invitation documents consisting of the invitation to pre-qualify and bid, project information memorandum (PIM) and instructions to prospective bidders (ITPB).

Davao sends 60 emergency personnel, P8M to Leyte

photo courtesy of Pil Yong Gogo

Davao City is set to provide a total of P8 million cash assistance and send more than 60 disaster personnel to assist the victims of Typhoon Yolanda in the province of Leyte.

Duterte officially sent off Team A consisting of 50 people to Leyte at 12 midnight Saturday. A convoy headed by Central 911 officer-in-charge Emmanuel Jaldon left Davao midnight and will travel by land to Leyte.

“Naghangyo lang ko sa mga rebelde na ayaw hilabti ang convoy kay para man ni sa mga nanginahanglan sa Leyte (I am begging the New People’s Army rebels not to harm the convoy since they were sent to assist the victims in Leyte),” Duterte said.

Team B which will be headed by Duterte will be leaving for Leyte today (Monday). Duterte said the city will give P2 million to Tacloban, P3 million to Southern Leyte and P3 million to the province of Leyte.

Jaldon said Central 911 has been on standby even before the landfall of Typhoon Yolanda to assist those who will suffer the brunt of the typhoon in the city,. However, he added, we are ready to provide assistance to other areas as per approval by the Mayor.

photo courtesy of GMA's Una Ka Bai!

“Ang Central 911 equipment dili lang kini para sa mga taga Davao; para pud kini sa laing manginahanglan (Central 911 equipment is not only for Davao but also for others who might need it),” Duterte said.

Team A consists of rescue and retrieval operations, medical, engineering, police and military personnel. Some people from The City Social Services Development Office (CSSDO) also joined the team.

Among the Central 911 equipment ready for dispatch anytime according to Jaldon are six rubber boats with a capacity of seven people, two rigid hulls made of fibreboard with a capacity of 10 to 12 people and one kayak with a capacity of two to three people which is being used for immediate rescue needs.

Peaceful Elections in Davao

“Peaceful.”

This was the description made by Davao City Police Office (DCPO) Chief Sr. Supt. Vicente Danao, Jr. said after the polls closed at 3 P.M. yesterday. The same description was echoed by Chief. Supt. Wency T. Pascual, Philippine National Police (PNP) XI Regional Director even as he made his rounds early this morning of the different polling places in the city as well as in Davao del Norte and Davao del Sur.

“The election was fundamentally peaceful,” Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte said after casting his vote at the Daniel R. Aguinaldo National High School at 2 P.M. yesterday.

He said he is happy with the peace and order during the conduct of the election in the city and hopes it will continue even during and after the counting of the ballots.

While he could not say how many candidates he has supported during the barangay elections, he said he has a supporter in every barangay. “Mga 90% halos lahat sila personal choice ko,” he added.

“Si Angging (referring to former councilor Angela Librado Trinidad who was one of those seeking a barangay captain seat during yesterday’s election) personal choice ko yan,:” he said. I am a resident of this barangay so I have a right to my personal choice but I am not bringing the party into this, he added.

Pascual was concerned about the peace and order in some Areas of Concern (AoC) in the city specifically Barangay 23-C. However, Danao said even this barangay had a peaceful and normal election.