By DANNY O. SAGUNPIA Dagupan Infocenter

BARANGAY officials can openly support their candidates in the regular elections without violating any rules, an election official clarified Tuesday

Provincial election supervisor Reddy Balarbar said that it is only during the barangay election that the non-partisan concept applies. In such election, political parties are not involved

Balarbar issued the clarification in the wake of complaints that barangay captains have been openly supporting and campaigning for certain candidates in this mid-term election. Read more

LOOKS like things are really looking up for the Social Security System now. And a 10% increase in retirement benefits of its members ordered by President Arroyo on the strength of its remarkable performance – less than a year after they received a similar increase last September – should erase any doubt about its financial stability.

From its once precarious position, tottering to a bankruptcy of sort some years back, it has recovered much lost ground, that is, based on the report of SSS president Corazon dela Paz and echoed by no less than President Arroyo during the System’s recent 50th anniversary celebration. Read more

Nen MARIO F. KARATEKA

AGAYMETLAYAY kapara tayon Asyano a si Cho Seung-Hui, ginawa toran singa manok ya pantargit-praktisan so kaeskuela tod Birdyinya Tek Yunibersiti dimad Estados Unidos. Natan,natural singa paseseg-segangen tan suspetsado laingen iray taga-Asya ya manaayam ed saman a nasyon nen Bush.

Koreano si Cho. Balet dakel ya totoo ed Amerika, agda amtan ibiig itay Pilipino ed Koreano, o Intsik ed Koreano, o Indon ed Malaysiano, o Koreano ed Hapon.

Basta singkit o de color ka, Asyano ka. Read more

By BEHN FER. HORTALEZA, JR.

THERE was this wag of an announcer who blared one early morning last week while I was still rubbing the sleep off my eyes that the Agbayanis – Jamie for governor and Victor for congressman of the second district – are fast losing support now that the Spines (Rep. Amado Tutaan Espino) has stepped up his campaign and, according to him, gaining much ground.

I do not know about that.

I do know that the last time I heard a similar refrain (well, well, and from the same announcer too, I believe) about Victor supposedly getting jittery because his then opponent, former Ambassador and Senator Leticia R. Shahani was way up in the surveys, the Agbayani certified seed clobbered the opponent by Read more

By YOLLY Z. SOTELO

IT’S still a male-dominated world of politics in Pangasinan, where just about 15 percent of the total number of candidates from governor to councilors are contesting the political seats.

Records of the Commission on Elections showed that there are about 1,254 candidates for the different local positions, with 1,063 comprising the males and only 191 comprising the females.

At least 107 candidates are vying for the 44 town and four city mayor seats in the province. But of the total, only eight are females, with two of them running unopposed — Kimi Cojuangco for Sison and Mayor Vivien Villar for Sto. Tomas. Read more

By DANNY O. SAGUN

NEW-PO vice-mayoralty bet Vlad Mata last Wednesday hurled a challenge to the Fernandez camp – face him in a debate at the public plaza perhaps under the aegis of the media.

He hurled the challenge during a press conference with opposition senatorial bet Sonia Roco, widow of the late Senator and education Secretary Raul Roco at the Magic Cafe.

Mata said he and mayoral candidate Brian Lim are ready to discuss any issue affecting the city – finances, prosecution of programs and projects, etc. We do not know if the former mayor’s group is willing to face the so-called New Politics camp. Read more

URDANETA CITY – It will cost government only P300 to have a child fully immunized while the cost of saving a sick child’s life from a vaccine-preventable disease is infinitely greater.

This was emphasized by Health Secretary Francisco Duque III when he launched the “Garantisadong Pambata” (GP) program on Monday at the Urdaneta City and Sports
Center.

GP is a package of services for children from 0-11 months old, consisting of Vitamin A supplementation, immunization, breastfeeding and de-worming—all cost-effective interventions to ensure child survival. Read more

THIRTY-TWO election officers in Pangasinan are being reshuffled, mostly because they had been staying in their present areas of assignment for more than four years already.

Provincial Election Supervisor Reddy Balarbar said 28 of these election officers have stayed in their present areas of assignment for more than four years and therefore due for re-assignment even for a temporary period.

The reshuffle already started after the Holy Week and is continuing, he said. Read more

THE Philippine Coast Guard and the PNP Maritime Group are investigating the collision between a passenger banca and a fishing boat along the Pantal river here last April 15 where one person was killed and five others were injured.

A belated police report identified the lone fatality as Orlando Bruan, 45, a businessman, of barangay Canaoaloan, Binmaley. Read more

By DANNY O. SAGUN
PIA Dagupan Infocenter

FORMER Dagupan City Mayor Alipio Fernandez, Jr. is fit and strong to wage full-scale election campaign contrary to persistent rumors that he is ailing, his son Vice-Mayor Alvin Fernandez assured Thursday.

The young Fernandez, who in time is widely rumored set to substitute for his father, said that his father has been doing his campaign just like in the past elections – waking up early and staying late at night.

The resigned immigration commissioner, according to persistent reports, was not fit to withstand the rigors of campaign and was due for substitution by the incumbent vice-mayor, who surprisingly is a non-candidate now although he is eligible to run for re-election or seek the mayorship. Read more