SAN JACINTO – A board member from the fourth district is under fire for reportedly acting as counsel for the accused in an aborted hold-up incident here last week.

A son of Board Member Manuel Ancheta however denied the allegation saying his father saw the suspects by chance when he visited the municipal hall a day after the robbery-shooting incident. He claimed his father who is a lawyer was not the counsel of the suspects – Federico Patricio, his sons Ruben and John Ray, and grandson Melvin Soriano.

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SAN JACINTO – The national high school here seems forever in search of a good administrator.

Dr. Alfredo S. Calugay, who was reassigned here only about eight months ago, was the subject of a complaint filed by some 20 teachers and employees with Department of Education Region 1 Director Vilma Labrador.

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By DANNY O. SAGUN

FINALLY, the provincial director of the Philippine National Police broke his silence and allowed media to interview him more than two weeks after Gov. Victor E. Agbayani issued a memorandum directing him to intensify the campaign against crime and illegal gambling activities.

Sr. Supt. Alan Purisima told a live phone interview over Bombo Radyo Dagupan Thursday morning that he had already directed his men in the field to act on the concerns raised by the governor in his memorandum.

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AN official of the city government admitted that the projected income of the city this year at P350 million was over-estimated, spawning some P10 to P14 million shortfall in collection at the end of the year.

City Treasurer Romelita Alcantara told the city council there was no inefficiency in collection of taxes but they had simply over-projected the income of the city, particularly from stall rentals in the new three-storey Malimgas Public Market.

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TWO persons drowned one after the other in two days while swimming in Bonuan Binloc Blue Beach within Tondaligan Park here due to deadly high waves, spawned by a wind surge in the Lingayen Gulf.

This was disclosed by Tondaligan Park Administrator Dino Zabala who said the high waves that reached over eight feet, are also threatening to destroy some 100 for-rent picnic sheds, doubling as videoke bars along the shoreline, also within the park area here.

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THE illegal numbers game called jueteng is making a fast comeback throughout the country, according to Archbishop Oscar Cruz of the Lingayen-Dagupan archdiocese.

Cruz, the number one anti-jueteng crusader in the country and former president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, said the jueteng comeback was expected.

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THE Pangasinan Consumer Welfare Council (Consumernet) has set its programs and projects for 2006 as approved in the council’s technical meeting last Tuesday.

The yearlong activities include information advocacy thru the use of print and broadcast media, quarterly information caravans, establishment of consumer welfare desks (CWDs) in the local government units and business establishments and installing Timbangan ng Bayan (public weighing scales) in all public markets.

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BINALONAN – The provincewide campaign against slot machines, video karera and fruit game machines yielded positive result when 31 such machines belonging to 11 different owners were seized here last week.

It was the biggest operation against the banned machines which were reported to have recently proliferated in all nooks and crannies of the province as though replacing illegal jueteng that has grounded to a halt in the middle part of this year.

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SAYAN INDIO
Mario F. Karateka

E, ANTOEY, asabila lamet so Krismas o Piyesta’y Inkianak, onong ed say abangonan tayon relihiyon.

Kumusta’y media noche yo ey? Kompleto tay pamilya? Akapasyar kayod baley ya binmantay ed say piyesta’y Dagupan? Agkayota mantayegteg ed betel no labi tan palbangon?

No “on” odino “olrayt, OK” so ebat yod saratan a tepet, sakey kayod mapalar iran pinalsa’y Ama ta apalabas tan alikna yo so ispirito na Krismas a, no manbilang et medyo makisir so panangan ed lamisaan, et masayaksak metni lamlamang ta walan manbibilaynid tapew na sayan mundo so inkasaysikayo.

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THE PEN SPEAKS
Danny O. Sagun

WE ARE amused by that report quoting Mangaldan Councilor Jessie de Guzman as saying he has received P5,000 from one “Engineer Flores” purportedly to facilitate the passage of an ordinance that will allow the use of the public plaza for peryahan starting this month up to March for the town fiesta. Vice-Mayor Bernardo Abalos, who was acting mayor at that time, vehemently denied De Guzman’s claim saying testily that the matter won’t stand unless the money was marked.

We now recall the frank admission of San Fabian Liga ng mga Barangay head Roland Villegas of having been offered not just a few thousand pesos for the speedy passage of a measure authorizing one entity to set up a water district in that town. If we recall right, Villegas’ brother Riby, the vice-mayor, strongly belied the claim of his younger brother. At least there are still public officials in our midst who are ready to spill the beans, if need be, although they would surely be subjected to scorn and ridicule by their colleagues, peers and friends for squealing.

Their motives are suspect too as the public knows who they are, as in the case of De Guzman and Villegas. De Guzman, it is recalled, has figured in some controversial spiteful actions in the town, while Villegas was tagged as a jueteng lord before although nothing substantial on this ever came out. Personal backgrounds notwithstanding, we commend them for their courage in exposing alleged irregularities.

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