Ex-vice mayor held for illegal guns

Police arrested former Talugtog Vice Mayor Floro Q. Pagaduan after unlicensed firearms were found in his house.

Chief Supt. Edgardo Ladao, Police Regional Office 3 director, said that Pagaduan was arrested after a raiding team discovered in his house in Barangay Cabiangan an unlicensed M-16 automatic rifle with three loaded magazines, a 9 mm semi-automatic pistol and 51 rounds of  ammunition for caliber .45.

Pagaduan was held for questioning at the headquarters of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Team in Cabanatuan City.

The police team also raided the houses of two other former Talugtog vice mayors -- Reynaldo Cachuela in Barangay Quezon and Pacifico Monta in  Barangay Saguing -- but no weapons were found.

The raids were intended to search for loose weapons allegedly being used by the former officials' partisan armed groups and was based on a warrant issued by Guimba Regional Trial Court Judge Ismael P. Casabar. ###
 
 

Rizal ex-councilor arrested for illegal drugs

A former three term councilor of Rizal, said to be the town's top drug pusher, and his companion were arrested in a police buy-bust operation last August 25.

Supt. Ricardo E. Villanueva, provincial Police Intelligence Bureau (PIB) chief, identified those arrested as Crescencio Factor, 42, former Sangguniang Bayan member, of Barangay Estrella, Rizal and Darwin Esguerra, 17, of Mabini Extension and Dunber Street, Grand Victoria Estate Subdivision, Cabanatuan City.

Factor was arrested by a joint team from PIB and the Rizal police in a buy-bust operation in Barangay Cabucbucan at about 4:15 P.M.

Seized from the suspect were 10 plastic sachets of shabu worth P25,000 and two marked P1,000 bills.

Esguerra was caught while transporting illegal drugs to Factor. He was intercepted in Barangay del Pilar after his arrival in Cabanatuan City. Found in his possession was a cigarette pack containing shabu valued at P15,000.

Villanueva said that the police learned of Esguerra's drug deal with Factor through the former's text messages.

He said that the suspects' main supplier in Cabanatuan City was able to escape during a police raid conducted in Grand Victoria Estates  Subdivision. ###
 
 

Muñoz puts up Ecija's first sanitary landfill 

The Science City of Muñoz is constructing the first sanitary landfill in the province.

Mayor Efren L. Alvarez said that the P138 million project in a 22 hectare lot in Barangay Mangandingay, seven kilometers from the city proper, is scheduled to operate before the year ends.

He said that the access road to the landfill is being constructed, with a P14 million loan from the Land Bank of the Philippines.

Once operational, the landfill will accommodate the 30 to 60 tons of garbage from the city, and might eventually accept trash from adjoining places like San Jose City, Lupao and Carranglan.

Alvarez said that Gov. Aurelio M. Umali had asked if the project could serve as a district landfill center for the second congressional district.  The mayor said he would have to consult first his constituents and the Sangguniang Panglunsod.

City Eng. Armado Miranda said that that two hectares of the landfill site will be developed initially, with the entire project covering three phases.

He said that the project got the nod of the National Solid Waste and Management Commission and the Environmental Management Bureau. ###
 
 

SC orders Ecija, Tarlac to join Manila Bay clean up

The Supreme Court has ordered the provinces of Nueva Ecija and Tarlac and three government agencies to join the clean up, rehabilitation and preservation of Manila Bay.

The agencies tasked to join clean up efforts were the National Housing Authority (NHA), the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and the Department of Agriculture (DA).

In Nueva Ecija, with the exception of Nampicuan and Cuyapo, the 30 other towns and cities of the province are found along rivers, among them Rio Chico, Santor and Peñaranda Rivers that all drain to the Pampanga River and on to the Manila Bay.

In Tarlac, the towns of Concepcion, Capas, Bamban, La Paz, Victoria and Tarlac City are traversed by the Malasalasa Creek that also drains to the Pampanga River.

CHED was directed to integrate environmental concerns in the school curricula and pursue a nationwide educational campaign to protect the environment.

NHA was tasked to provide illegal settlers along the waterways with alternative housing sites.

Meanwhile, the DA's Bureau of Fishers and Aquatic Resources was asked to improve and restore marine life in Manila Bay and help local government units to develop fisheries and aquatic resources. 

The Fertilizer and Pesticides Authority, on the other hand, will adopt measures to prevent firms from discharging solid and liquid wastes into the bay.

Regional Director Florida Dijan of the Department of Interior and Local Government said that all provinces and agencies included in the Supreme Court order are required to submit quarterly reports of their accomplishments to the SC to ensure their compliance. ###
 
 

Capitol hosts 'Unang Sigaw' job fair

In connection with the 115th anniversary of "Unang Sigaw ng Nueva Ecija", the provincial government held a two day job fair participated in by several companies that offer local and overseas employment, at the old capitol compound in Cabanatuan City .

Edith Jongo, a consultant in the office of Gov. Aurelio M. Umali, said that the affair was part of the activities for the commemoration of "Unang Sigaw" that will culminate on the day of the historic occasion on September 2.

She said that the governor wanted to make the commemoration more meaningful.

An agri-aqua trade fair was also staged at the  Benigno S. Aquino, Jr. Freedom Park on August 31 featuring a wide array of Nueva Ecija products. ###
 
 

Provincial gov't, Korean firm to set up mango processing plant

The provincial government is looking into a partnership with a Korean food processing company for the setting up of a P30 million mango processing plant in line with the goal of turning Nueva Ecija into a food basket in Luzon and in line with the public-private partnership scheme.

Gov. Aurelio M. Umali said that the provincial government is fine-tuning the joint venture with Drupe International, Inc. for a 1,000 square meter mango processing facility

Umali said that the partnership will harness Nueva Ecija's potentials as a major mango producing area, with the province now ranking first in mango production in Luzon with huge plantations in Palayan City, General Tinio, Jaen and Talavera. ###
 
 

4 Japanese students visit Ecija

Four Japanese students and their supervisor visited Nueva Ecija for six days to get a deeper understanding of the local agriculture industry.

The visit was through the Japan East-Asia Network of Exchange for Students Program on agriculture and environmental issues.

The Japanese Embassy in Manila said the students visited the Muñoz city hall and Pantabangan Dam, the biggest dam in Asia constructed with Official Development Assistance from the Japanese government. 

They also went to Central Luzon State University, Philippine Rice Research Institute, Philippine Carabao Center and Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization.

Included in the itinerary was a meeting with recipients of the Japanese Government Scholarship Program, among them Dr. Renato Reyes, dean of the CLSU College of Arts and Letters.

The Japanese students also interacted the Aeta community and with 50 Sangguniang Kabataan members during a tree planting activity. ###
 
 

Ecija cops donate blood to dengue victims

Members of the Nueva Ecija Police Provincial Office (NEPPO) participated in a blood donation activity last August 23  to augment the needs of dengue victims in the province.

The local policemen donated some 91 units of blood that were stored in the Philippine National Red Cross-Nueva Ecija Chapter (PNRC-NE) blood bank inside the old capitol compound.

Rudell de Guzman, PNRC chapter service representative for blood donation, said that the donors were subjected to preliminary tests for the absence of HIV, malaria, hepatitis B and C and syphilis.

Supt. Ed Soriano, deputy provincial director for administration, said that the activity was the police's answer to the increasing need for blood supply for dengue victims. He said that local policemen have been donating blood through the provincial Red Cross chapter. ###
 
 

PHO comes up with anti-dengue mosquito 'recipe'

The Provincial Health Office (PHO) led by Dr. Benjamin Lopez urged residents to fight dengue-carrying mosquitoes with plastic bottle traps containing 50 grams of brown sugar and one gram of yeast dissolved in water.

Lopez's "recipe" calls for the use of the lower potion of a two liter plastic soft drink bottle as container and a funnel shaped dark wrapper inserted upside down in the top portion.

The PHO chief explained that when the mixture ferments, it will release carbon dioxide whose sweet aroma will attract mosquitoes that will then get trapped inside the container.

Dengue has killed five persons in Nueva Ecija from January to the middle of August this year. ###
 
 

DOLE gives P.5 M to Lupao rebel returnee cooperative

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) regional office gave P500,000 worth of livelihood assistance to a cooperative of rebel returnees in Lupao,

The Parista Barangay Defense System Multi-Purpose Cooperative received the assistance through DOLE's Integrated Livelihood Program.

The cooperative aims to provide livelihood assistance and skills generation and development to its members as they are reintegrated to mainstream society.

The awarding was witnessed by Lupao Mayor Richard Ramos and Vice Mayor Manuel Vendivil, Lt. Com. Orlando Suarez of 81st IB7ID of the Philippine Army, Department of Trade and Industry Provincial Director Brigida Pili and other local officials.

“Salamat po muli sa DOLE na pinamumunuan ni Secretary Badoz, sa pangalawang pagkakataon na ibinigay niyo sa amin; laking tulong po sa aming mga pamilya. Makakaasa po kayo na palalaguin pa namin ito at patuloy na pagyayamanin," Robert Gaid, chairman of the cooperative, said.

The DOLE had given the cooperative an initial capital assistance of P190,000 for their mushroom production project which later became a sustainable livelihood for the cooperative members through the efforts of the regional DOLE, the Department of Trade and Industry,  the 81st IB7ID of the Philippine Army, Barangay Parista, and the municipal government of Lupao. ###
 
 

Llanera poll employee, husband killed in fire

A Commission on Elections (COMELEC) employee assigned in Llanera and her husband died in an early morning fire in their home in the Science City of Muñoz last August 23.

SPO1 Efren Cara, duty investigator of the Muñoz police, identified the victims as Imelda Urbano, 58, a COMELEC employee in Llanera, and her husband Marcos, 38.

The fire in the couple's bungalow in Teacher's Village, Barangay Poblacion South, was tapped in at 1:30 A.M. and placed under control in less than an hour.

Neighbors said that they did not hear any cry for help from the victims.

Cara said that the victims were the only ones staying in the house whose gate and doors were padlocked, preventing firemen from entering. ###
 
 

4 arrested for fake P1k bills

Four persons were arrested for possessing fake P1,000 bills.

Sr. Supt. Roberto Aliggayu, provincial police director, identified the suspects as Bernard Rodriguez, 22; Cherry Carreon, 22; Michael Castillo, 24; and Ricardo Rodriguez, 41, all of Lower Bicutan, Taguig City. They were collared after a brief chase.

Earlier, a gasoline boy, Jayson Victorio, complained to the police that Rodriguez, who was aboard a truck, stopped to fill up at the M.S. Galang gas station. Rodriguez then got off and asked Victorio to change a P1,000 bill into smaller denominations. Victorio learned later that he was handed a fake bill.

He reported the incident to the police which chased and caught up with the truck in Barangay San Roque, Cabio.

Seized from the suspects were a magnum revolver with three bullets, nine fake P1,000 bills and a plastic sachet of shabu.

The suspects were detained at the Cabiao jail. ###
 
 

Pregnant woman killed, 2 hurt in Jaen shooting

A pregnant woman was killed and two suspected drug peddlers were seriously wounded when two armed men sprayed them with bullets in a rest house in Barangay Lambakin, Jaen last August 30.

The fatality as identified only as Sara, 18 to 20 years old, of Barangay Manggahan, Baliuag, Bulacan.

Wounded were the woman's live-in partners Darious Agapito, 39, of Lambakin and Darwin Galotice, 31, of Barangay Concepcion East, Zaragoza.

Chief Ins. Restituto Reyes, town police chief, said Agapito was number one in the Jaen police drug watch list while Galotice was facing theft cases in Zaragoza.

Dr. Jun Concepcion, medico legal officer, said that the woman, who was three to four months pregnant, sustained gunshot wounds mostly in the head and chest.

The motive for the shooting has yet to be established. ###
 
 

Man goes on shooting rampage in lover's house

A 49 year old man who could not accept his live-in partner's decision to break up with him went on a shooting spree and shot the appliances in his lover's house before shooting and wounding her brother who came to help her.

The shooting happened in the house of  Sherilyn Perez Santos in Barangay Sumacab Este, Cabanatuan City at about 10:30 P.M. last August 28.

Police identified the suspect as Arturo Feliciano Pajarillo, a businessman, of Barangay ACCFA.

Seriously wounded was the woman's brother, Joel Pangilinan Perez, 41, of Barangay San Josef Sur.

Investigators said that before the shooting, the couple engaged in a heated argument. The suspect was seen carrying a caliber .45 pistol and an M16 Armalite rifle when he escaped. ###
 
 

Two die, 2 injured in Carranglan highway accident

Two persons were killed instantly and two others were critically injured after a car slammed into an electric post along Maharlika Highway in Barangay Puncan, Carranglan last August 27.

Supt. Ricardo E. Villanueva, provincial police intelligence chief, said that the names of the victims were not immediately available.

He said the driver of the Honda CRV with plate number ZFK-480 could have lost control of the wheel because of the heavy rains brought by typhoon Mina.

Villanueva ordered the Carranglan police chief to secure the victims' car and belongings. ###
 
 

Man's body fished out of San Antonio river

The decomposing body of a man was found floating in a river in San Antonio last August 29.

Police identified the victim as Rico Gonzales, 45, of Barangay Santa Barbara.

Investigators said the  body was found by Nicolas Alvarez, 45, while catching fish at about 7:00 A.M.. He alerted the barangay tanods of his find.

The victim's family refused to have the body autopsied to determine the cause of death. ###