CABUGAO, Ilocos Sur—Vigan City leads in the implementations of various government programs and projects in an evaluation conducted by the Regional Development Council (RDC) of the Ilocos Region.

The recognition was made during a simple ceremony held at Cabugao Beach Resort here during the regular RDC meeting held at the site on Monday.

Vigan City was cited by the RDC as cleanest, greenest and safest city in Region One.

On the other hand, Candon City was honored as the city’s best implementor of the Local Government Program Management System in the region.

Cabugao town was also chosen as the cleanest, greenest and safest municipality while Tagudin was the town’s best implementor of Local Government Program Management System. (PNA)

THOUSANDS spent Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Saturday at the Tondaligan in Dagupan, savoring the vastly improved rest and recreation area by the beach initiated by the city government.

The city government jointly launched on Wednesday Oplan Semana Santa and Oplan Baywatch to ensure a stress-free long holiday weekend for residents and visitors alike.

The beachgoers started coming in on Monday, their numbers peaking on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The huge crowd gave the owners and operators of the newly-built huts and sheds in the park a good earning weekend.
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By DANNY O. SAGUN

SAN FABIAN - A barangay captain who ran for mayor in the last local elections was abducted Tuesday morning by unidentified armed men on a road leading to the Philippine Tourism Authority resort in barangay Bolasi at around 8 a. m..

In a radio interview, police provincial director Sr. Supt. Isagani Nerez noted that oddly, Villegas had no bodyguards when his kidnappers flagged down his Nissan Terano and dragged him onto a waiting vehicle.
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WHO kidnapped the controversial and “colorful” Barangay Chairman Roland Villegas of Anonang, San Fabian?

The provincial office of the Philippine National Police said none of the law enforcement agencies operating in the province appear to know of the well-planned abduction of the barangay official whose personal career was controversial with some scrapes with the law on occasions.

Villegas was taken at gunpoint in barangay Bolasi on a road going to the Philippine Tourism Authority resort in San Fabian at about Read more

SAN CARLOS CITY – A policeman assigned with the Dagupan City Police was shot dead by an enraged security guard in barangay Matagdem, this city after the latter found the police officer in bed with his wife before dawn of Maundy Thursday.

SPO2 Jimmy Cornel, assigned with the police community precinct 6 in Bonuan was lying in a pool of his own blood at the guard’s house when police investigators arrived. He was apparently surprised by his attacker while still in bed and was unable to fight back.
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MALASIQUI—There will be no rice shortage in the Ilocos Region this year, an official of the Department of Agriculture field regional office said.

DA Field Regional Director Cipriano Santiago said weather permitting, the region will be able to harvest its target of 1.7 million metric tons of rice in the coming wet season.

He said the 1.7 million metric tons will be the region’s contribution to the nation that could help boost the country’s rice stockpile.
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LINGAYEN—The provincial government is not seeking any loan at this time.

This was clarified by Provincial Administrator Rafael Baraan who branded as ‘disinformation’ talks insisting that the provincial government is set to secure a P950 million letter of credit with the Land Bank of the Philippines.

Baraan said the P950 million letter of credit is being offered not only by Land Bank but also by the Philippine National Bank, Postal Savings Bank and Philippine Veterans Bank.
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ROSALES—Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap told newsmen here on Wednesday that the National Food Authority (NFA) has no choice but to buy rice from farmers for the short term.

This is in view of the impending precarious rice situation not only in the Philippines but also in other parts of the world due to grains underproduction last year.

“NFA will have to continue buying rice. Walang choice ang NFA, if any one sells palay, this need to be bought,” said Yap, in an interview aster opening the 2008 Agricultural Exposition here.
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FOUR weeklies in Pangasinan came out with a scathing pooled editorial denouncing rampant operation of jueteng in Pangasinan and the Ilocos Region.

All four weeklies challenged newly assumed Police Regional Director Chief Superintendent Romeo Hilomen, who replaced Chief Superintendent Leopoldo Bataoil, to stop jueteng.

The pooled editorial entitled “Perpetuating jueteng”, appeared simultaneously in “The Sunday Punch”, “Pangasinan Star”, “Northern Journal” and “Weekly Guardian”, expressing their contempt and disdain over the rampant operations of the illegal numbers game in the area. Read more

MALASIQUI—Rep. Rachel Arenas of the Third District of Pangasinan has appealed to the Department of Public Works and Highways to speed up the construction of the Calvo Bridge in Bayambang, for which the current delay has been drawing negative criticisms to her from constituents

A vital link from Bayambang town to Bautista, the Calvo Bridge underwent construction since the third quarter of last year but work has been sluggish.

Arenas was informed that the people are now getting impatient over the sluggish pace of construction of the Calvo Bridge.
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