Homegrown talent Malu Barry is set to perform at the Nobi Alfresco Bar at Quimpo Boulevard in Davao City tonight, July 20, 2013. This will be the first time in 19 years for Barry. The lounge act "A Song for You" will be directed by Norie Sayo, with special guests "The Don".
Barry became popular in Manila's entertainment world in the early 1990s because of her husky voice which is reminiscent of the world-famous singer Karen Carpenter. She has also appeared in several films including The Untold Story: Bizconde Massacre, Anabelle Huggins Story and Laro sa Baga among others.
Davao City is one of the most livable cities in Asia. This is the city of durian, the King of Fruits. This is where the Philippine Eagle soars. Get your daily dose of news, features, and issues that matter straight from Davao City.
Saturday, July 20, 2013
Davao to install 130 more CCTV’s worth P100M in time for Kadayawan
Davao
City is set to install additional 130 close circuit television (CCTVs) worth
P100 million in its bid to reach its goal of up to 300 CCTVs all over the city
in the future.
“The
cameras which will be designed by IBM will be installed for protection and
traffic management,” Public Safety and Security Command Center Chief, Retired
P/Chief Superintendent Francisco Villaroman said during the iSpeak Media Forum
held at the Davao City Hall Thursday.
He
said there are at present around 130 CCTV cameras all over the city. These and
the additional ones will ensure that the urban centers and the main
intersections are properly covered, he said.
“We
really need the CCTVs to be up especially in time for the Kadayawan,” he said.
The Kadayawan Festival will kick off on August 9 and will culminate on August
17 and 18.
However,
he said, the new cameras will be installed on installment basis. The executives
from IBM Manila were in the city Wednesday and met with the Abratique Group to
coordinate the installation of the CCTVs, he added.
Villaroman
said these are no ordinary CCTVs because these are sophisticated and
multifunction cameras that can be used as evidences in court later on for
traffic violation or even criminality. “The CCTVs are so sophisticated that if
we are looking for a certain vehicle color, it will be easy to monitor all
vehicles with that specific color and we can check their plate numbers,” he
said.
The
new CCTVs will make Davao a model around the world when it comes to these types
of cameras, he said. This is also the first time that IBM will design such a
camera and not even Makati has this type of camera, he added.
Once
the additional CCTVs are fully installed, he said, we will request more IT and
engineering personnel to man the center which is now operating on a 24-hour
shift with 12 hours each shift. Villaroman said there is a plan to still
operate 24 hours but on three shifts, with 8 hours per shift to make the people
more efficient in monitoring the cameras.
Davao CCTVs fail to monitor fleeing kidnap gang due to wrong info
The
remaining 10 members of the “Bye-Bye” kidnap-for-ransom-gang which evaded the
authorities after a shoot-out in C.M. Rector Avenue Thursday may have already
left the city, although no one knows for sure.
Two
of the gang members were kicked on the spot outside Allied Bank while another
one died on the way to the Southern Philippines Medical Center. The fourth
member is now in the custody of the authorities but ten more are on the run and
the authorities have no idea where they were headed after the shootout.
“Unfortunately
the witness gave the people on the ground wrong information as to the
description of the vehicles so our cameras were not able to monitor them,” Public
Safety and Security Command Center (PSSCC) Chief, Retired P/Chief
Superintendent Francisco Villaroman said during a press conference Thursday.
Villaroman
said a CCTV was installed right in front of the area where the shootout
happened. However, he said, “hindi pa nakakabit ang monitor when the incident
happened so we cannot really see.”
He
said the witness, who was still in shock after the incident, gave the wrong
color and type of vehicle so the cameras nearby and along the way were not able
to zero in on the appropriate getaway vehicle.
The
authorities earlier asked the public to watch out for Montero vehicles with
plate number FBU 1238. However, he said, the kidnappers are not stupid enough
to use real plate numbers which the authorities can easily flag down during their
trip from Manila to Davao.
“But
Dabawenyos should not be scared because the kidnappers are actually based in
Central Luzon and in Manila, not in Davao,” he said.
Villaroman
said they have received a phone call asking for assistance but he did not elaborate
on this, saying that giving away more information may warn the kidnappers. He
also reiterated that the authorities are not allowed to conduct an illegal
search so what they follow is the Plain View Doctrine.
Airlines not feeling the pinch of foreign travel advisories
Most
of the airlines flying to and from Davao City are not affected by the different
foreign travel advisories issued by their governments against the cities of
Davao, Zamboanga and Cotabato.
Photo courtesy of Rudolph Alama |
Among
the countries that have issued the travel advisory separately are big tourism
markets including Australia, Canada and the United States of America.
“We
had informal discussions with the airlines but we are still gathering data for
possible cancellations as a result of the travel advisories,” City Tourism
Officer Lisette Marques said during Thursday’s iSpeak Forum at the Davao City
Hall.
Marques
said Silkair is a regional airline and these countries are their market so it
is of course affected by the travel advisory. However, she said, most of the
airlines in the city are focused on the domestic market so they are in no way
affected by the advisories.
She
said they have not also seen cancellations in relation to the Kadayawan as a
result of the advisories. “The Ad Congress cancellation is another matter since
it was a result of internal problems,” she added.
Marques
said there are many indications that Davao City is growing as a destination.
She said she has just received information that a medical association has
already scheduled a convention in the city for May 2014 with a delegation of
3,000 people.
When
asked about the preparedness of the city when it comes to accommodation, she
said “this is a happy problem” because it is an indication that many people are
visiting the city.
Thursday, July 18, 2013
P2.5M Padre Pio Chapel to rise in Davao del Sur
Padre Pio devotees bent on raising chapel funds
|
Devotees
of the miraculous Padre Pio are set to build a P2.5 million green chapel in
barangay Lago in Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur to serve as a source of enlightenment
for everyone and not just for Catholics.
Padre
Pio, who has become popular worldwide for his many miracles, got the gift of
stigmata while kneeling in front of as crucifix in 1918.
“This
is not only a chapel but is set to become a religious landmark in Davao del
Sur,” devotee and Padre Pio Movement in Davao member Edgar Canda said during
ISpeak last Thursday at City Hall.
Canda’s
family, who hails from Davao del Sur, has donated 2,000 square meters of land
where the chapel will be built. An elevated portion of the land will be
allocated for the Padre Pio Chapel while the lower level will be for the Bagobo
Museum, he said.
“By
building the Padre Pio Chapel here we want to promote culture and faith as
one,” Canda said. But what sets the Chapel apart, he added, is that it will be
based on green architecture as designed by Architect Daniel Plenos.
He
said the Sta. Cruz Chapel, which will hold its groundbreaking on July 22 this
year, will be patterned after the San Giovanni Rotondo Shrine of Padre Pio in
Italy.
“Since
the Chapel will be built in a hilly location that overlooks Davao del Sur, the
architecture will blend in with the environment and not destroy it,” he
said. The location is a virgin forest,
he said, so it is a priority to maintain the beauty of the terrain.
Philexport to look into closure of Iran banana market due to shipment problems
The
Philippine Exporters Confederation is set to form a group that will look into
the possible closure of the Iran banana market to Davao banana exporters due to
the United States economic embargo on Iran.
“We
are not aware that our banana exports are no longer being sent to Iran but we
will surely look into this especially with the Mindanao Exporters Congress,”
Philexport XI Chairperson Domingo Ang said during Club 888’s media forum held
at the Marco Polo Davao Wednesday.
The
Mindanao Development Authority reported that banana is the number two dollar
earner of Mindanao next only to coconut, with a 14.94 percent share in the
total Mindanao export. Mindanao’s banana exports increased by 33.85 percent,
from $467.3 million in 2011 to $625.5 million in 2012.
Ang
said the problem will definitely be discussed during the Mindanao Exporters
Congress slated in the city on August 1 to 3, 2013. The Congress will focus on
topics like Improving Exports to Increase Philippine Competitiveness as well as
Strengthening the Enabling Environment for Mindanao’s Export Growth.
The
Philippine Banana Growers and Exporters Association (PBGEA) earlier expressed
its concern about the possible P4 billion losses that will be incurred by the
region’s banana industry as shipping companies stopped all shipments to Iran
this year, including the shipment of exported bananas from Region XI.
PBGEA
executive director Stephen Antig said Mercury Steamship Agencies, Inc., an agent
of the Pacific International Lines which ships bananas to Iran, has advised
them about the suspension of its operations. A letter sent to its valued
clients indicated the last acceptance of cargoes bound for Iran was last June
15, 2013. The Mercury officials said that they have suspended the shipment of
cargoes to Iran as of June 16 this year.
Antig
said the suspension of shipments to Iran was part of the commitment of the
shipping companies to foreign trade regulations in view of the economic
sanctions imposed by the US against Iran which happens to account for 50
percent of the banana market in the Middle East.
“We
have had difficulty in exporting bananas to Iran a long time ago but some
exporters have found a way to export bananas through the long way although that
is more expensive,” banana industry player and Cacao Industry Development
Association of Mindanao (CIDAM) President Ireneo Dalayon said.
Another
option, according to Antig, is the APL or the American Presidential Line which
is willing to load bananas and ship them to Iran bound for Iran if the exporter
has a license from the US Treasury.
Coconut still top priority over palm
The
Mindanao Development Authority reiterated that coconut is still a top priority
for the government despite the growing popularity of palm oil.
“The
production of palm oil is only being encouraged and promoted in idle lands and
in no way should palm compete with the existing coconut plantations,” Mindanao
Development Authority’s Romeo Montenegro said at a press conference held at the
Marco Polo Hotel.
He
said coconut copra and palm kernel remains the top dollar earner of Mindanao
with a 21.26 percent share in the total exports of Mindanao as of 2012.
However, he said that coconut exports decreased by 19.48 percent, from $1.1055
billion in 2011 to $.89 billion in 2012.
The
MINDA report shows that coconut or copra got the largest share of Mindanao’s
exports to the United States amounting to $359 million or 43.2 percent of the
total exports to the US. Coconut copra was also Mindanao largest export to the
Netherlands amounting to $303.68 or a share of 61 percent of the total exports
to the said country.
“Despite
the challenges faced by the coconut industry demand continues to increase but
there seems to be a reduction of supply,” he said. Montenegro said this is why
the government is encouraging the planting and production of more coconut and
its byproducts.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Araw ng Dabaw Tattoo Fest 2024 organizers eye tattoo industry as next tourist attraction
Tattoos have come a long way in the Philippines. From being frowned upon, tattoos are now considered art and a form of self-expression. Da...
-
Davao City's very own Sunstar Super Balita was given a few minutes nationwide exposure in ABS CBN's showbiz Sunday Show "The Bu...
-
The P1.5 million Solidarity Ring, the biggest gold ring in the Philippines, is now on display at the Museo Dabawenyo in time for the Kadaya...
-
PLDT phone booths that have been conveniently installed near the rest rooms of SM City Davao is making life easier for Dabawenyos especiall...