VIGAN CITY—This year’s Viva Vigan Festival of the Arts and the Binatbatan Festival is on starting from May 1 to 6, City Mayor Eva Marie Singson Medina announced.

It is the 7th Binatbatan Festival and the 16th Viva Vigan Festival of the Arts. The Binatbatan Fest was launched on May 2002 in honor of the well-known Abel – Iluko fabrics of the city, while the Viva Vigan Fest of the Arts was launched in May 1993 to promote the city’s unique historical arts and cultures. Read the rest of this entry »

By Venus May H. Sarmiento

THREE natural wonders of the Philippines may just make it to the world’s ‘Seven Wonders of Nature’ if we campaign and vote for them online.

Waiting to be included in the much coveted list are the Tubbataha Reef in Sulu, Chocolate Hills of Bohol and the Underground River in Puerto Prinsesa, Palawan.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo exhorted all Filipinos here and abroad to help the government in its campaign for the three wonders to win in the search. Read the rest of this entry »

NO “rice access cards” have been issued yet by government thru the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) which is still in the process of finalizing the list of beneficiaries and developing a distribution strategy that will be as fool-proof and tamper-proof, as possible.

DSWD Secretary Esperanza Cabral issued this clarification in the wake of reports that some families are this early already being offered such “access cards” for P2 to P10 apiece.

She asked barangay officials to be alert for such scams, admitting that her office cannot keep a 24-hour watch over such scam artists who may go to communities. Read the rest of this entry »

Special to the PANGASINAN STAR

UNDER the leadership of Chairman Cesar T. Duque and Dr. Catalino Rivera Jr., the University of Pangasinan has launched new and innovative programs designed to sustain its mission as the education leader in Region I and access its graduates high-salaried employment after completing their college degrees.

Dr. Rivera identified “Grow @ UPang,” a graduates’ services program handled by External Linkages and Alumni Relations Office that would link graduates across programs to competitive places of employment and opportunIties maximizing use of their knowledge, skills and abilities including values and dispositions gained from their university-based courses and programs.”
Read the rest of this entry »

By DANNY O. SAGUN

THERE is enough supply of rice in Pangasinan owing to the good harvest in the main and second croppings, according to farmers from this palay-rich province.

The province produces rice more than the needs of its population of some 2.7 million, it was gathered from the National Food Authority.

The farmers believe there is no rice or food crisis as claimed by some sectors. They said the crisis is just “artificial” created by unscrupulous traders thru hoarding of the nation’s main staple.
Read the rest of this entry »

By VENUS MAY H. SARMIENTO
Pia Dagupan Infocenter

SOCIAL Welfare Secretary Esperanza Cabral said Saturday for as long as the objectives of the “Ahon Pamilyang Pilipino” program, a flagship program of government against poverty and hunger, are kept and fulfilled by beneficiary-families, how the amount is spent will be entirely up to them.

Cabral said the DSWD precisely monitors the output or result, not the amount given a particular family for the APP program.

At a media conference called during her visit to Dagupan City on
a field inspection and assessment activity of the Area Vocational Rehabiltation Center (AVRC) unit of DSWD in Bonuan, the DSWD head also vowed to see to the relocation of the center’s office that is now threatened to be washed out to sea by big waves battering the beach area. Read the rest of this entry »

BUSINESSMEN, beware!

UNSCRUPULOUS people are taking advantage of the current Dagupan Bangus Festival to solicit money from local businessmen for their own personal benefit.

This was disclosed during a press conference called by Vice Mayor Belen Fernandez, executive chairperson of the Bangus Festival and Councilor Alfie Fernandez, executive vice chair person.

Both officials said they have not sent out any solicitation letter to any businessman or person in Dagupan City as they have enough event sponsors already. Read the rest of this entry »

THE Dagupan Bangus Festival 2008, drums beat stronger and the chants and whoops went wilder last Saturday as the ‘Festivals of the North’, a street dancing competition among festival champions in Dagupan and other towns and cities of Pangasinan and the Ilocos region, rolled out in the city’s main avenues.

Adjudged top winners were the Pandan Festival street dancers of Mapandan for the Dry category and the Pindangan Festival performers of Ago, La Union for the Wet category.
Read the rest of this entry »

URDANETA CITY – The city government will intensify its pro-poor programs here to benefit marginal families affected by the soaring prices of commodities.

City Mayor Amadeo Perez Jr. said they will continue the milk program of the city government as a strategy to bring down the malnutrition rate prevalent among children here from zero to six years old.

The program aims to provide milk to children of poor families till they gain weight, he explained. Read the rest of this entry »

LINGAYEN — The National Food Authority (NFA) branch in western Pangasinan has fielded more rolling stores in a bid to end queues by people at NFA outlets located in different public markets.

Marissa Jacinto, NFA branch information officer, said the rolling stores were sought by local officials to help their constituents, especially marginal families, buy cheaper rice.

The rolling stores are now selling NFA rice in Barangay Bolo and St. Isidore Parish in Labrador,Burgos, Bantayan and Pangapisan Norte in Lingayen, and other towns at two to three kilos per family. Read the rest of this entry »