State projects to cushion local economy from crisis

published November 26, 2008 in BusinessWorld

PALO, LEYTE — The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said infrastructure and housing projects should continue to help the local economy mitigate the impact of the global financial crunch.

"Both have high multiplier effects. They create jobs not only in infrastructure and housing but also in the industries supplying raw materials to them," Buenaventura Go-Soco, NEDA regional director for Eastern Visayas said last week.

He said pump-priming efforts of the government will only succeed if productivity is increased in the agriculture, services and industries sectors.

Newly appointed Presidential Assistant for Eastern Visayas Cynthia Nierras confirmed that the government will implement pump-priming projects in the region.

She said the improvement of major roads in Samar island will also boost tourism and agricultural output. "Road openings will shorten travel time to capital cities and towns and facilitate transfer of goods and agricultural products," she added.

Circumferential roads are being constructed in Samar and Biliran islands. — Sarwell Q. Meniano

American publisher to subcontract work to APAC

published November 25, 2008 in BusinessWorld and Leyte Samar Daily Express

TACLOBAN CITY — The McClatchy Company, a newspaper and Internet publisher listed on the New York Stock Exchange, will tap the soon-to-open call center site of APAC Customer Services, Inc. here.

Martii Salazar, corporate director of McClatchy, visited this city recently to assess the skills of Filipino workers.

Her visit coincided with the job fair that APAC held to recruit personnel for its call center here, the first in Eastern Visayas and the first APAC site outside Metro Manila.

Ms. Salazar said they have a long-term partnership with APAC, a NASDAQ-listed business process outsourcing (BPO) company.

Based in Sacramento, California, McClatchy owns 32 daily newspapers, including the Sacramento Bee and The Miami Herald, and about 50 nondaily newspapers.

McClatchy is tapping APAC amid an impending recession in the US. In June and September, the company laid off thousands of workers, blaming low advertising earnings. "We’re hopeful that things will turn around quickly in the United States," she said.

APAC Vice-President for International Operations Doug Almond admitted that the financial crisis in the US might affect outsourcing companies here. "But it will force companies that never thought about outsourcing to take a look at it," he added.

He said APAC was unlikely to be affected by the global economic slowdown since most its clients are in health care, publishing, travel and logistics. He said BPOs whose clients are mostly in the US financial sector would be hit the most because of the ongoing crisis there. — Sarwell Q. Meniano

Eastern Visayas to miss palay procurement goal this year

published November 17, 2008 in BusinessWorld and GMANews.tv

PALO, Leyte — The National Food Authority (NFA) office for Eastern Visayas said state palay procurement will fall short of target, as farmers — especially those indebted to their buyers — have been selling more to private traders.

As of last month, NFA bought just 14,412 50-kilogram bags of unhusked rice in the region, against a target of 53,000 Lkg bags for the year.

NFA regional information officer Mary Agnes Militante said that out of the six provincial offices in the region, Biliran posted the highest procurement volume with 9,416 Lkg bags. NFA bought only 2,981 Lkg bags in Samar; 1,680 Lkg bags in Leyte; 243 Lkg bags in Southern Leyte; 60 Lkg bags in Northern Samar; and 32 Lkg bags in Eastern Samar.

Benjamin Marta, NFA regional director, said it would be hard for the region to meet its procurement target this year despite the higher buying price, incentives and intensified campaign.

"We were surprised by the low procurement in the region, even with our massive campaign," he said in an interview late last week, noting that private traders in the region offered to buy palay at P13-P18 per kilogram, compared to NFA’s P17/kg. — S. Q. Meniano

Anti-poverty financing may be extended

published November 14, 2008 in Leyte Samar Daily Express, BusinessWorld and GMANews.tv

TACLOBAN CITY — Anti-poverty projects financed by the World Bank (WB) may be extended beyond their end-term in June 2009.

Andrew Parker, WB task team leader for the Kapit-Bisig Laban sa Kahirapan-Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services project, said there are many unfinished activities in the program.

These include farm-to-market roads, hanging bridges, barangay schools and clinics, flood control, and water supply and sanitation facilities.

"The project started in 2003 and will end in June 2009. We still have many activities to implement. We also have arrangements where it is possible to extend if it’s necessary," Mr. Parker told Business World.

He said the World Bank has financed $70 million worth of projects in economically depressed areas nationwide.

The bank approved in 2002 a loan of $100 million for the anti-poverty program.

The implementing agency, Department of Social Welfare and Development, still has to complete various projects in more than 5,300 poor villages in 193 municipalities within 40 of the poorest provinces.

In Eastern Visayas, the project covers 848 barangays in the provinces of Leyte, Northern Samar, Samar, Eastern Samar and Biliran. — Sarwell Q. Meniano

Two governors suspended on graft cases

published November 12, 2008 in BusinessWorld

TWO PROVINCIAL governors and other officials involved in alleged graft and corruption and criminal cases were suspended yesterday by the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG).

The suspension orders on the two administration allies were slapped by the Sandiganbayan and Office of the Ombudsman.

In a press conference, Interior Secretary Ronaldo V. Puno ordered a 90-day suspension notice to Western Samar Governor Milagrosa Tan and a six-month suspension for Bataan Governor Enrique T. Garcia.

On Oct. 17, the Sandiganbayan’s fourth division ordered the suspension of Ms. Tan in connection with eight counts of graft filed against her and four other provincial officers.

Western Samar Vice-Governor Jesus Redaja was designated acting governor.

The charges stemmed from a complaint filed in 2004 by Fr. Noel Labendia, parish priest of the Diocese of Calbayog and founding leader of Isog Han Samar Movement, an anti-corruption group.

Mr. Labendia accused Ms. Tan and four other provincial officers of conspiring to approve questionable purchases of P16.1 million worth of "emergency supplies" for victims of typhoon Kidang, which hit parts of the province on Dec. 4-5, 2001, without public bidding.

The group said the purchases were made even before the calamity struck.

The other officials are administrative officer Rolando Montejo, provincial accountant Romeo Reales, provincial budget officer Maximo Sison and property inspection officer Numeriano Legaspi.

Mr. Garcia’s suspension was issued by the Ombudsman on Nov. 5.

He and three other provincial officials are facing charges of plunder, falsification of public documents, and malversation of public funds in connection with the sale of a private property three years ago.

Bataan Vice-Governor Serafin Roman was designated acting governor.

The provincial government allegedly seized in February 2004 P120 million worth of properties of bankrupt paper mill Sunrise Paper Products Industries, Inc., including a paper plant, machineries and two parcels of land in Doña village, Orani municipality.

On March 5, 2005, the provincial government consolidated the titles of the properties, and sold them through auction.

On April 21, 2005, Sunrise questioned the auction before the Bataan Regional Trial Court.

Although Sunrise and the Bataan government settled their claims amicably, Josechito Gonzaga, Ruel Masino and Alfredo Santos, former workers of Sunrise, filed graft charges against Mr. Garcia and three other provincial officials, namely, legal officer Aurelio Angeles, Jr., treasurer Emerlinda Talento and administrator Rodolfo de Mesa, before the Ombudsman.

Illegal, political harassment

In Balanga City, Mr. Garcia said the suspension order was illegal and a political harassment.

He added he is awaiting the Court of Appeals’ (CA) decision on his petition for a stay order on the suspension.

Interior and Local Government Assistant Secretary Emeterio S. Moreno, Jr. arrived at the provincial capitol to serve the suspension order but the governor refused to accept it.

Mr. Garcia said he asked DILG for extra time to wait for the CA decision.

Public services in the province have been halted since Monday as about 3,000 supporters of Mr. Garcia, including local government employees, formed a human barricade to prevent the governor’s suspension.

Mr. Garcia claimed Ombudsman Merceditas N. Gutierrez, of the Navarro clan of Samal town, has been blaming him for the defeat of her brother, Roseller, in the 2007 mayoralty elections. — Elizabeth T. Marcelo, Rey Garcia and Sarwell Q. Meniano

Sale of NFA rice dips as comm'l rice prices stabilize

published in Leyte Samar Daily Express

TACLOBAN CITY — Demand for government rice went down by 40% this month in Eastern Visayas as prices of commercial rice continue to decline after it escalated to a record high during the second and third quarters of this year.

National Food Authority (NFA) Regional Manager Benjamin Marta said that last August the food agency was selling 16,000 bags a day, but this was reduced to only 9,000 bags last month.

Marta explained that market participation for cheaper rice decreased to 17.20% at present from 20% last August. Of the six provinces in the region, Leyte posted the lowest market input pegged at 11.21%.“Leyte has a big volume of harvest. There’s less demand for NFA because even farmers don’t buy cheaper rice anymore,” Marta told Leyte Samar Daily Express.

Eastern Samar posted the highest market participation for government-subsidized rice at 36.32% but still relatively low than the 48% during the third quarter. Other provinces registered an average of 12% to 30% market participation.

The price of commercial rice has reached to as high as P50 a kilo in previous months.
“Since we flood the market, private traders were forced to bring down the price to an affordable level. It turned out now that even poor families prefer to buy commercial rice,” Marta said.

The official said that traders who purchased huge volumes of unmilled rice, or palay, in anticipation of higher demand during the off-harvest season were unable to unload their stocks because of the availability of government rice in the market.

In the region, the P18.25 per kilo NFA rice is available at Tindahan Natin Outlets. The P25 per kilo commercial grade, on the other, hand can be bought in Bigasang Bayan sa Palengke.

Rice traders claimed that oversupply of NFA rice caused sales of commercial grains to decrease by around 50%, which forced them to adjust prices to sustain their business.

Marta said that between September to October, rice prices are starting to fall as good harvests and government importation bring in supplies of the staple food down to depressed areas.

“It’s nice to note that price stabilization came out naturally. No more long lines in the market. We’re not worried if our sales have been going down because we are not here to compete with other traders. Our task is to give consumers an option,” he added.

The NFA regional chief aired his observation that farmers tend to keep their harvest in their houses rather than selling it to trader for the fear that cost of staple food would rise in the next months. (Sarwell Q. Meniano)