The Ilocos Times

By Dominic B. dela Cruz Staff Reporter Senator Ma. Imelda Josefa “Imee” R. Marcos assured rice farmers of P6.9 billion in additional aid by this month, in the form of palay purchases or cash, using undisbursed funds from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). Ms. Marcos allayed worries that a memorandum of agreement among the DSWD, Department of Agriculture and National Food Authority to purchase palay from local farmers “was held in abeyance” following a Supreme Court decision in October preventing budget allocations for items not specified in the national budget through a mere resolution in Congress. Both the Senate and the House of Representatives earlier approved joint resolutions to convert cash aid from the DSWD’s Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) into rice, to be bought from local farmers unable to compete with cheap rice imports. However, the high court ruling in the case of Ang Nars party list vs. the Executive Secretary et

Laoag City —As continuing support to the nationwide anti-illegal drugs campaign of President Rodrigo R. Duterte, the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) granted PHP5 million to the Ilocos Norte provincial government to fund the construction of a community-based rehabilitation facility at Brgy. Tamdagan in Vintar. DDB Undersecretary Earl Saavedra personally handed the check to Ilocos Norte Governor Matthew Joseph M. Manotoc on December 13, 2019 at the Provincial Capitol.   “We put communities at the center of all our anti-drug efforts and our intention is to really help local government units put up rehabilitation facilities na tutulong sa ating mga kababayan na napariwara ang landas at naging biktima ng paggamit ng illegal na droga ,” Mr. Saavedra remarked. “ Itong community-based rehabilitation facility na ipapatayo dito sa Ilocos Norte ay initiative ni Governor Matthew Marcos Manotoc because in his persistent discussion with the DDB , nabanggit ni governor na prior

Cruise passengers arrive at the Ilocos (Salomague) Port in Cabugao, Ilocos Sur. (DOT Laoag sub-office photo) By Leilanie G. Adriano Staff Reporter Currimao , Ilocos Norte—The international seaport of Currimao welcomed another cruise ship on January 6,2019. According to Xavier Ruiz, tourism operations officer in Ilocos Norte said MV The World, with 160 passengers departed from Hongkong and docked near the at the Currimao seaport on January 6, 2020. Part of the passengers’ itinerary was to visit various cultural heritage sites in the province such as the UNESCO World Heritage Site of St. Augustine Church in Paoay, Ilocos Norte and the wonder city of Vigan in Ilocos Sur. On the same day, the MV Royal Caribbean which is bigger than the MV The World also returned at the Salomague Port in Cabugao, Ilocos Sur with thousands of passengers, mostly from China and the United States of America. Last year, the Royal Caribbean made a stop at the international seapor

By Leilanie G. Adriano Staff Reporter LAOAG CITY—Over 2,000 rice farmers from Ilocos Norte received cash assistance worth PHP5,000 each on Monday courtesy of the Department of Agriculture. The farmer-beneficiaries include those who were affected by low price of palay or un-milled rice due to the government’s Rice Tariffication Law. The first batch of Ilocano farmers came from Laoag, Bacarra, Badoc and Solsona. In Ilocos Norte, the DA through the concerned local government units had identified a total of 19,000 beneficiaries of the Rice Farmer Financial Assistance Program. During the distribution program held at the Ilocos Norte Centennial Arena, DA Regional Director Lucrecio Alviar Jr. said the cash assistance is unconditional. “ Hindi po ito pautang. Ito ay dagdag ayudang pinansyal para sa mga Ilokanong magsasaka ,” Mr. Alviar told farmers. Under the directive of the Duterte administration, the DA, the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP), and the Develo

The cities of Batac (top) and Laoag are now open for business permits for both new businesses and renewals. (Doms dela Cruz)

By Dominic B. dela Cruz Staff Reporter City of Batac —With aims of improving the Bataqueños’ quality of living, the city government here is setting pro-poor programs and policies, primarily with regards to building application and other related permits. In a regular Sangguniang Panlungsod session, councilors here unanimously passed a measure that will set the city government’s thrust toward this goal. Batac councilor Lucky Rene Bunye, who moved for its approval, said the measure is based on the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) as an indicator to accurately measure poverty. The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Board Resolution NO. 01 series of 2017-129 determines the poverty threshold (PT) and has set the minimum income/expenditure requirement for a family/individual to meet the basic food and non-food requirements. Section 209 of the National Building Code of the Philippines (NBCP) states that “Traditional Indigenous Family Dwellings shall

By Leilanie G. Adriano Staff Reporter LAOAG CITY—The Ilocos Norte provincial government is beefing up rice stocks in the province to ensure steady supply even in extreme emergency situations or during strong typhoon. The Sangguniang Panlalawigan unanimously approved Draft Provincial Resolution No. 2019-11-060 authorizing Ilocos Norte Governor Matthew Joseph M. Manotoc to execute and sign a memorandum of agreement with the National Food Authority for the rice sales in preparation for the occurrence of natural calamities. As the harvest season is nearing to an end in the province, SP member Domingo Ambrocio, chair of the committee on agriculture said in an interview that there is a need to maintain a stable price of major crops in the province. Last year, the Ilocos Norte board has allocated around PHP35 million for the purchase of palay and rice in the province to qualified rice traders and farmers. Qualified traders refer to groups and individuals who are engage