The Ilocos Times

Laoag City —She left as Ilocos Norte governor; she returned as a senator. Senator-elect and outgoing Ilocos Norte Governor Ma. Imelda Josefa “Imee” R. Marcos returned home on May 27, 2019 after her official proclamation as senator on May 22, 2019. She expressed her excitement as she finally returned to Ilocos Norte, saying: “It’s a real joy to be back home. Na -miss ko kayong lahat at ang Ilocos Norte. Ako’y talagang natutuwa na makapiling kayong muli sa natitirang panahon ko bilang gobernador ninyo .” The outgoing Ilocos Norte governor is also thankful to the Ilocano community for their firm support to her senatorial bid, as well as to the “Team Marcos” in the local elections. “Thank you so much for your devoted support. The North indeed remembers, and I will never forget. Kahit papaano’y nanguna ako hanggang sa Cagayan. It’s been a difficult campaign not only for me but also for those who won with me here in the province. Talagang the ‘Solid North’ is aliv

  Local election officials proclaim re-elected Batac Mayor Albert D. Chua as winner in the May 13, 2019 midterm election. Mr. Chua promises to continue his programs in all sectors for the betterment of all the Batacqueño.  Doms dela Cruz    By Dominic B. dela Cruz Staff reporter Batac City —“ Agtultuloy latta iti napudno ken naayat a pinagserbi kenni Batacqueño tapnu sangsangkamaysa iti pinangpatibker ti adigi iti pinagdur-as ”. This was the statement reelected Batac Mayor Albert D. Chua said after his proclamation as in the 2019 midterm elections. Mr. Chua begins his second term as mayor on June 30, 2019. Mr. Chua said his programs and advocacies in the field of education, agriculture, infrastructures, health, social protection, tourism and all continues for the people of Batac and the city. He stressed that there is a need to complete and finish all the existing projects and programs of the city government now before starting new projects.

By Leilanie G. Adriano Staff Reporter LAOAG CITY—Cecile Araneta-Marcos, the widow of the late Sangguniang Panlalawigan member and Ilocos Norte vice gubernatorial candidate Mariano ‘Nonong’ V. Marcos II, who died of cardiac arrest last month is substituting in for her late husband’s candidacy. As the official campaign for local elections started on March 29, 2019, Mrs. Araneta-Marcos was accompanied by her sons and the Marcos family at the Commission on Elections on the same day to personally file her certificate of substitution candidacy. Commission on Elections Resolution 10420 allows substitute candidates for those who withdraw their candidacies—and not just for those who die or get disqualified—until midday of election day. The substitute, however, should share the surname of the original candidate. No substitution is allowed for independent candidates. "The substitute for a candidate who died, withdrew his candidacy, or was disqualified by final judgmen

  RUN FOR PEACEFUL ELECTIONS . Sports enthusiasts and their families join the fun run for a clean and orderly 2019 elections on March 9, 2019. (Photo courtesy of INPPO) By Leilanie G. Adriano Staff Reporter LAOAG CITY—Hundreds of runners from various parts of Ilocos Norte and nearby provinces joined the fun run on March 9, 2019 from Camp Valentin S. Juan in this city to the town of Vintar. Organized by the Ilocos Norte Police Provincial Office (INPPO), Police Maj. Angelito de Juan of the investigation division said the fun run aims to advocate peace in the upcoming May mid-term elections. “This is a friendly run with our allies and the candidates. We hope that we get rid of hurting and teasing each other during the campaign,” said Mr. De Juan during the opening program at the INPPO open ground. The event was among the activities of the INPPO and the Commission on Elections, which also led the February 7, 2019 interfaith rally and January 13, 2019 walk for

Laoag City —A Facebook poll conducted February 11-18, 2019 by radio station DZJC shows entrepreneur Edward “Boyet” Quilala amassing 72 percent of the votes in the mayoralty race for the Municipality of Currimao. He is running against incumbent Mayor Gladys Go Cue who obtained a 28 percent vote share in the survey participated in by over 1,200 netizens. An online poll conducted earlier, January 28-February 4, 2019, by The Ilocos Times also saw Mr. Quilala winning over Mrs. Cue, with the former obtaining 58 percent of the almost 3,000 votes cast. In an interview with The Ilocos Times , Mr. Quilala expressed his gratitude for the very strong support he has been getting from his townmates. Reading from the poll comments and through his personal interactions with Currimaoeños, Mr. Quilala surmised that “ Nabannogda metten ” [They have grown tired] and that they are crying for change. However, while Mr. Quilala is appreciative of the snowballing support, he says he is car

Ilocos Norte Governor Ma. Imelda Josefa “Imee” R. Marcos urged authorities to crack down on dating sites being used as platforms for “love scams” victimizing gullible Filipinos especially on Facebook. "Paraphrasing our great poet Francisco Balagtas  na nagsabing ang pag-ibig pag dumapo sa puso ninuman, hahamakin ang lahat masunod ka lamang...ayun, na- love scam,  napahamak nga ," Ms. Marcos said.  “In October last year, an overseas Filipino worker lost PHP600,000 after falling in love with a woman using a fake FB account. That poor OFW is just one of thousands of Filipinos who fall victim to online predators who manipulate their feelings to extort money,” she continued.  “ Nakakabulag kasi talaga ang pag-ibig . If someone appears too good to be true,  sigurado hindi mapagkakatiwalaan yun lalo na kung ayaw makipagkita in person  at video chat  lang ang gusto . People should be very careful with their hard-earned money and life savings  dahil lamang sa mga m

By Bernard Ver Contributor Laoag City —Ilocos Norte Governor Ma. Imelda Josefa “Imee” R.   Marcos bid adieu on her last speech at the “Tan-ok ni Ilocano Festival of Festivals” as the province’s governor on February 2, 2019. Ms. Marcos is on her third and final term as governor. In her speech, she thanked the “powerful team” that crafted the Tan-ok fest years ago to celebrate Ilocanos and give thanks for the good harvest of every hardworking Ilocanos. The celebration showcases the unique historical and cultural tradition of 21 municipalities and two cities in the province. The magnanimous aura at the stage and the direction of the show remains iconic thru the support of the Provincial Government of Ilocos Norte especially its tourism office spearheaded by Aian Raquel and the PGIN Communications & Media Office.

By Bernard Ver Contributor Dingras , Ilocos Norte—The League of the Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP) Ilocos Norte chapter is appealing to the Commission on Election (Comelec) to reconsider returning their police escorts during the election period. LMP President and Dingras Mayor Erdio Valenzuela said that there are reports received by his office about some threats encountered thru text messages from unidentified sender towards most of the mayors in the province. Mr. Valenzuela added that their organization is worried enough about the bombing incidents in the southern part of the country and even the ambush of Quezon City’s Brgy. Bagong Silang chairperson Criselle Beltran and her driver Mario Salita recently. The league will also send petition letters to the Philippine National Police headquarters for them to hear LMP-IN’s request for the election period, Comelec Resolution No. 10446, Section 33 states that “[D]uring the election period, no candidate for p

By Dominic B. dela Cruz Staff reporter Laoag City —The city new local government operations officer Janet Duarte is eyeing the holding of additional special Sangguniang Kabataan elections for the city’s 37 barangays. Ms. Duarte said the said barangays have incomplete number of elected SK officials, thus the special elections. The planned special election is based on a Dept. of Interior and Local Government Memorandum Circular No. 2018-212 dated December 20, 2018, which states the need to complete the set of SK officials in all the barangays within 30 days upon issuance. However, with 237 barangays having incomplete SK officials, the 30-day period does not apply to the city. A supplemental memorandum was issued wherein it states that the city of Laoag can conduct special SK elections until March 31, 2019. Record shows that the city DILG started conducting special elections on January 19 and 20, 2019 for 10 Barangays. Ms. Duarte expressed hopes that all th

Umadani manen ti panagpipili. Ala, narway dagiti nasasayaat a kandidato, ngem ditay maikkat nga agraira met latta dagiti sansilmo a a pulitiko. Isu a tapno ditay manen a mairubo, intay man amirisen dagiti sumaganad a listaan dagiti “lima” a maipanggep kadagiti pulitiko ken animal.   Ken kas espesyal a ramen daytoy a bilang, pagraramanantay man ti listaan dagiti nasisita a panawagan. *** 5 a kababalin ti adu a pulitiko: 1. Aguni wenno umisem kenka, maminsan laeng iti kada tallo a tawen. 2. Am-ammo wenno pagayam wenno kabagyannaka, maminsan laeng iti kada tallo a tawen. 3. Addaan ti prinsipyo agpaay kadagiti tao, maminsan laeng iti kada tallo a tawen. 4. Agboluntaryo nga agidonar ti kasapulan dagiti umili, maminsan laeng iti kada tallo a tawen. 5. Mangted ti paglidok ken igatang ti istaltope a pulutan, maminsan laeng iti kada tallo a tawen. *** 5 a pagsasao maipanggep kadagiti animal: 1. Ti uleg, uray maawanan gita, ulegto latta. 2. Amin

No quorum. A near empty Sangguniang Panlungsod session hall welcomed the council’s January 14, 2019 regular session as the seven-member majority bloc were absent with only the five-member minority bloc attending the said session. ( Doms dela Cruz) By Dominic B. dela Cruz Staff reporter Laoag City —The lack of a quorum stalled deliberations on the city’s proposed 2019 annual budget during the Sangguniang Panlungsod’s January 14, 2019 regular session. The majority bloc, which earlier rejected the passage of the annual budget on January 3, 2019, were all absent: councilors Handy T. Lao, Portia Pamela R. Salenda, Ferdinand Domingo, Edison Bonoan, Roque Benjamin Ablan, Justine Chua and Michael M. Keon. The five-strong minority bloc, composed of councilors Roger John C. Fariñas II, Shirley O. Sin, Edison Siazon, and ex-officio members Liga ng mga Barangay Laoag President Mary Michelle Louise “Mikee” V. Fariñas and Sangguniang Kabataan federated president Faye Lao, howev

Laoag Mayor Chevylle V. Fariñas, who is running for reelection, joins the unity walk, interfaith rally and peace covenant signing at the Aurora Park held January 14, 2019 and attended by all the candidates for the 2019 midterm elections. ( Doms dela Cruz)

Laoag City— Ilocos Norte Governor Ma. Imelda Josefa “Imee” R. Marcos filed her certificate of candidacy for senator at the Commission on Elections office in Intramuros, Manila on October 16, 2018. In filing her candidacy for the May 19, 2019 midterm elections, she said, “ Naniniwala tayo na malaki ang maitutulong natin sa bansa sa usapin ng ekonomiya lalo na ngayon na halos walang patid ang pagtaas ng presyo ng mga bilihin . Inflation ang pangunahin nating problema sa kasalukuyan at nasasaktan lalo ang mahihirap dahilan sa 60% ng kanilang kita ay napupunta sa pagkain .” “ Kaya naman ipinaglalaban ko ang agarang pagsuspindi sa VAT kahit isang taon lamang, para agad-agad na mapagaan ang bigat ng sobrang taas ng presyo ng petroleo at pagkain na nagpapahirap sa ating mga kababayan ,” the governor added. She also showcased Ilocos Norte as a proof of her public service after the province became one of the fastest and most efficient in reducing poverty rates in the whole

City elections officer Atty. Julius Balbas assists Laoag Mayor Chevylle V. Farinas and city administrator John Michael V. Fariñas in filing their respective COCs for mayor and vice mayor, respectively. ( Doms dela Cruz) By Dominic B. dela Cruz Staff reporter Laoag City —Incumbent Mayor Chevylle V. Fariñas filed her certificate of candidacy (COC) on October 11, 2018 for her third and final term. Her running mate is her son, current Laoag City government administrator John Michael V. Fariñas. Prior to her official filing, they had a mass at the Laoag City Basketball Court, which non-government organizations, barangay officials and the public attended. In her speech after the mass, Mrs. Fariñas thanked incumbent Laoag councilors Roger John Farinas and Shirley O. Sin; former Laoag councilors Sonia B. Siazon, Joseph Tamayo, Yvonne Ranada, Derick Lao, and new face Jardin O. Sin, son Mrs. Sin. She also stressed that they will not resort to substitution a

By Bernard Ver Contributor Dingras , Ilocos Norte--The League of the Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP)-Ilocos Norte President and Dingras Mayor Erdio Valenzuela his political line-up is ready for next year’s elections. Mr. Valenzuela in an interview said that they’ve submitted their list of candidates for the incoming election to Ilocos Norte Governor Ma. Imelda Josefa “Imee” R. Marcos, who he said is as their political ally and head of their political party. The list contains the name of the incumbent mayor, vice-mayor and eight town councilors. However, Mr. Valenzuela refused to divulge the names on his list. He said they might change the arrangement of candidates. The current Dingras mayor and Vice Mayor Jeffrey Saguid are both political allies of Ms. Marcos. The Commission on Elections set the filing of candidacy on October 11 and 12, and October 15-17, 2018, from 8 am to 5 pm.

By Dominic B. dela Cruz Staff reporter Laoag City—In preparation for next year’s midterm elections, the city’s Commission on Election office is currently holding voters’ registrations. Pursuant to Comelec Resolution No. 10392, city elections officer Atty. Julius Balbas said they began receiving filing of registration application on July 2, 2018. He added the election office is open from 8 am to 5 pm, Mondays- Saturdays, including holidays. They will accept registrations until September 29, 2018. Mr. Balbas said application for registration includes the transfer/transfer with reactivation, reactivation, change/correction of entries/ and inclusion/reinstatement of records in the list of voters should be personally filed by the applicant. The Comelec Resolution also states that the Comelec election officers (CEOs) may also conduct satellite/offsite registration of voters. Relative to this, Mr. Balbas said they have conducted offsite registration for students