LINGAYEN - - -   The province joins the nationwide  Women’s Month celebration with this year’s carrying theme, “CEDAW ng Bayan, Yaman ng Kababaihan.”

CEDAW, which means Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women, serves as an urgent call to raise the consciousness of women of their rights and empower them to become strong and self-sufficient individual.

The National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women (NCRFW), the country’s lead agency, through its memorandum circular, has called on all local government units (LGUs)  to focus on the need to generate resources to finance initiatives on gender equality and empowerment of women.

For its part, the provincial  government of Pangasinan, through its provincial social welfare office, has organized  a  group  called   Provincial Federation of  Kalipunan ng Liping Pilipina (KALIPI)  with a  mission of  encouraging  women especially in the   grassroot   level  to participate in the development efforts for their own advancement.

Provincial Social Welfare Officer Emilio P. Samson, Jr.  said the KALIPI, which is now on its fifth year, has  been organized in  compliance  with the Republic Act of 7192 of the Local Government Code of 1991 or Women in Development and Nation Building Act. Read more

DAGUPAN CITY - False report destroys all presumptions.

With this statement, the City Prosecutor’s Officer here on Monday (July 31) determined that the Lyceum Northwestern University was a victim of an untrue and unfair publicity and gave due course to a libel case filed by LNU president Gonzalo Duque against high-ranking officials of the Commission on Higher Education and a reporter of a national daily.

In a resolution, City Prosecutor Pelagio Palma indicted for the crime of libel Dr. Catherine Q. Castañeda, assistant director, Office of Programs and Standards (CHED); Dr. Fely Marilyn Lorenzo, chairman, Technical Committee on Nursing Education (CHED); and Jonathan M. Hicap, reporter of the Manila Times.

CHED chairman Dr. Carlito S. Puno and Dr. William Medrano, executive director of the Office of Programs and Standards, were earlier included as respondents but Duque withdrew the complaint against them for insufficiency of evidence.

The Manila Times publisher and editor-in-chief Fred dela Rosa, escaped indictment after Palma found no sufficient evidence against him.

The case stemmed from the publication of a news story in The Manila Times last March 15, 2006 that quoted CHED officials as saying LNU was among the 37 “very low performing nursing schools and among those whose nursing courses will be gradually phased out. Read more

ALAMINOS CITY, Pangasinan - Hundreds of responsible pet owners submitted their pets to free anti-rabies vaccination during the three-day intensified mass vaccination in all the city’s barangays last week.

For the fourth consecutive year now, the city veterinary office with the help of 65 clinicians from Benguet State University, Virgen Milagrosa State University and Tarlac College of Agriculture have spearheaded the city-wide anti-rabies vaccination drive.

The said program is in line with the observance of the United Nations Proclamation of the whole month of March as Rabies Awareness Month and to fully implement City Ordinance 2002-2003 otherwise known as Anti-Rabies Ordinance. Read more

LINGAYEN, Pangasinan - Philippine National Police Chief Director General Arturo Lomibao said here March 16 that former Gregorio Honasan will be treated just like any ordinary person with a warrant of arrest if he is arrested or he surrendered.

Pointing out that the PNP will not set any double-standard, Lomibao told newsmen when he graced the Gov. Victor Agbayani Cup Shoot Fest here that there is now a warrant of arrested by the court against Senator Honasan and other former retired officers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

He explained that the warrant was issued by a court in Makati City in connection with the alleged involvement of Honasan and the other retired officers in the aborted Oakwood mutiny in 2003. Read more

NARVACAN, Ilocos Sur - An army trooper was killed and five others were slightly wounded in a fierce gunbattle between elements of Philippine Army and the Communist New People’s Army in the mountain areas of Tubo, Abra last March 15.

However, the NPAs were believed to have sustained large number of casualties as evidenced by bloodstains in their position and in their route of withdrawal.

Heavy fires from soldiers, combined by air strikes forced the rebels to withdraw, carrying with them their wounded comrades.

The lone fatality on the government side was identified as certain Private First Class Pedralver of the Bravo Company of the Army’s 50th Infantry Battalion based in Guimod, San Juan, Ilocos Sur. Read more

Headline story by IKE F. PALINAR, SR. (January 24-31, 2006)

METRO DAGUPAN - Over 200 school heads in Region I have unanimously approved a resolution opposing the shift from presidential to parliamentary government. This is to strongly favor the retention of the presidential system as the best in the world to guarantee freedom, liberty, economic and structural development and happiness of the people. Read more