LA TRINIDAD, Benguet, Monday March 21 - -Benguet Congressman Ronald Cosalan wants this capital town to be recognized as the flower capital, not Baguio City.

Cosalan said La Trinidad should be given proper acknowledgment for being the producers of flowers.

He added that most of the flowers being used during the Panagbenga or the Baguio Flower Festival come from La Trinidad and so it should be given acknowledgement.

The lawmaker from Benguet said there is a misconception because most people especially those who are not from the province have the idea that flowers and strawberries come from Baguio City. He said this should be corrected.

"People should educated so they would not be misinformed," he added.

Even strawberries, which are branded as from Baguio City are really being produced at the La Trinidad Strawberry farm and even processed to become jams, wines, cakes and other products. (PIA CAR)

BAGUIO CITY, Monday March 21 – The city government needs to shell out a P13 million fund as its counterpart for the completion of two vital land surveys initiated by the Dept. of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

The city council approved Resolution No. 63 series of 2011 requesting Mayor Mauricio Domogan being the chair of the City Development Council (CDC) to include the said amount in either the 2011 supplemental budget or in the 2012 City Annual Investment Plan or the Executive Budget to complete the townsite survey (CAR Baguio City) for final lot survey and adjustments of old surveys, and the barangay political boundary survey of all the barangays in the city.

In the measure authored by Councilor Isabelo Cosalan Jr., he noted that the DENR embarked on two significant projects in the city -- the ongoing Townsite Survey–CAR Baguio City for Final Lot Survey and Adjustment of Old Surveys project and the incoming Barangay Political Boundary Survey of all the Barangays of Baguio City.

He said that on October 15 last year, a public consultation-meeting on the updates on the above was conducted by the Committee on Urban Planning, Lands and Housing and attended by the Regional Technical Director for Lands, DENR-CAR, the TS-CAR Baguio City contractors, representatives from the Baguio City District Engineering Office, Department of Public Works and Highways-CAR, City Environment and Natural Resources Office-Baguio, A.O. 504 Clearing Committee, City Buildings and Architecture Office, City Engineering Office, City Planning and Development Office, barangay officials, and the general public.

“In said forum, the DENR and the TS-CAR Baguio City contractors acknowledged that there was a dramatic increase in the number of lots surveyed and yet to be surveyed and that the actual output as per contract in the barangays were easily surpassed causing an undeniable budget shortfall for the completion of the project,” the alderman noted.

“According to the presented status and considering the increase in the number of lots, a total of 8,880 lots or 20 percent were surveyed as against the 44,682 target lots and the additional sourced out funds is approximated to cover about 2/3 of the total project. Likewise, an amount was also earmarked for the conduct of Barangay Political Boundary Survey but conceded that the funds may not be enough,” he said.

Cosalan said the completion of the TS-CAR Baguio City and that of the Barangay Political Boundary Survey are most advantageous to the city vis-à-vis development planning, policy formulation, program/project implementation, including the proper and definite resolutions of conflicts and inconsistencies.

“Among others, the TS-CAR Baguio City projects will certainly facilitate the patenting of alienable and disposable public lands thereby generating higher income for the city through realty and other related taxes while an approved Barangay Political Boundary Survey for the city will assure the corresponding distribution of Internal Revenue Allotment of barangays,” he said

“Being the foremost beneficiary and in view of the projects’ encompassing impact to the city’s development, the city’s counterpart of at least 1/3 of the total project is fair enough and justifiable,” the resolution noted.

The resolution proposed that the amount be divided as follows: P10, 000,000 for the TS-CAR Baguio City and P3, 000,000 for the Barangay Political Boundary Survey.

It further requested the mayor and the City Development Council to certify the above projects as priority projects of the City of Baguio in partnership with the DENR-CAR. –*(AR-PIO baguio city//PIA CAR)

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet, Monday March 21 -- Local police here are monitoring jueteng operations in the province.

This was confirmed by Police Provincial Director PSSupt. Benjamin Lusad, in an interview last week. According to Lusad, he has directed his policemen to conduct massive information gathering in the province to look for the operations of jueteng. He said that police are monitoring all the municipalities in the province.

Lusad said they are checking those municipalities which have reports of jueteng operations before because it is more likely that these are the areas where jueting operations is back.

There have been reports that kubradors have been nabbed in a municipality but Lusad said they are still confirming the report.

Lusad reiterated that the ‘one strike policy ‘ for chiefs of police where jueteng exists is still in effect.

Meanwhile, the provincial government of Benguet is in all out war against all kinds of illegal gambling operations in the province. *(PIA CAR)

BAGUIO CITY, Monday March 21 – The youth or young Cordillerans should try to read and learn even a little about our history and on the issue of autonomy, as our region is very unique compared to the other parts of the country, so said Regional Development Council (RDC-CAR) co-chairman Dr. Virgilio Bautista, in an informal forum with the local media.

According to Bautista, it is only through autonomy that we can establish and strengthen our identity, especially the identity of the indigenous peoples (IPs), in terms of our cultural way of preservation and utilization of our natural resources and wealth.

Bautista also reiterated that the law says that to pursue the dream of regional autonomy is essential for the region’s development.. Bautista also said that at present, the region’s development plans and programs still depend on the decision makers in the national government, whereas in an autonomous state, it will be the people who will decide what programs or projects are more beneficial to the region’s development.

RDC-CAR Committee on IP’s Concern and National Commission on Indigenous People (NCIP) regional director Amador Batay-an agreed with Bautista.

According to Batay-an, the young people should be educated on the history of Cordillera and on why we are still lagging in terms of development compared to the other regions.

Batay-an explained that in terms of the distribution of national wealth, the Cordillera Region is at the losing end, as based on national standard, land area and population are the criteria in the distribution of Internal Revenue Allotments (IRA).

“Our land area and population are not even comparable to any region or even to a single large province or city, which is why there are provincial/municipal local government units in the region who get less,” he said.

“It is in this situation why we are opting for development through regional autonomy which constitutionally recognizes our needs,” Batay-an said.

“Culturally, geographically and historically CAR (Cordillera Administrative Region) is unique and so with our geography and our history. We have always been divided by the central government, which is why we should be one, as provided by Executive Order 220 of the Philippine Constitution, to be one in pushing for regional autonomy,” he said.

RDC-CAR is now in into the drafting of the third autonomy act and it is engaging all sectors to participate and unite under a common goal of achieving regional development through autonomy. (PIA CAR)