Camarines Sur, Philippines

Residents of Libmanan town in Camarines Sur in Bicol welcomed the appointment of Caceres Auxiliary Bishop Jose Rojas Jr. as their new bishop.

The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has said preparations are underway for Rojas’ installation scheduled for July 2.

A statement on the CBCP website said local clergy and various religious organizations have been meeting to prepare for the installation of the prelature’s second bishop.

Libmanan prelature was established on December 9, 1989. It covers the first congressional district of Camarines Sur and Milaor town from the second congressional district.

It was canonically erected March 19, 1990 with St. Joseph the Patriarch as titular saint.

Bishop Prospero Arellano was appointed the first Bishop-Prelature of Libmanan on December 9, 1989 but suffered a stroke in 2007.

GMANews.TV 

by Biolife News Service

Legazpi City (21 May) — The Kalunggay Farmers of Camarines Sur (KFCS) have started planting malunggay after the soft launch of a malunggay nursery last May 15, 2008.

Julian Lavadia Jr., a former Naga city councilor who now chairs the KFCS, worked closely with the local government to acquire an area in the vicinity of the Naga City Hall for the nursery.

Engr. Danilo Manayaga, President and CEO of Secura International, reiterated in his speech that the continuing increase in demand for moringa oil, a major byproduct of malunggay would spell big business opportunities for KFCS and many farmers of Camarines Sur.

Moringa oil is sourced from the seeds of malunggay and has enormous potential as edible oil and as biodiesel.

Malunggay thus provides farmers with food rich with vitamin A, iron, zinc and other micronutrients through the fruits and the leaves.

KFCS was established in November 2007 through a memorandum of agreement (MoA) that formalized a contract-growing scheme between Secura International and the association.

Mary Ann Guerrero of the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) also discussed with the farmers the proper planting of malunggay through seeds and cuttings and demonstrated the method at the nursery.

DA-Biotech Director Alice Ilaga encouraged the farmers to plant more malunggay, not only for health and nutrition but to exploit the business opportunities that await them.

Secura International needs 500,000 hectares planted to malunggay in order to answer the demand of US biofuel producers.

The company buys at the seeds at P10 per kilo.A farmer who plants a hectare of malunggay seedlings will harvest 20,000 kilos of malunggay seeds in the first two years, which translates into a net profit of P200,000 per hectare every year. (biolife news service)

CAMARINES Sur Rep. Luis Villafuerte has demanded that Manila Electric Company refund charges it illegally passed on to consumers as systems loss.

Villafuerte made the demand in a resolution seeking to ensure consumer protection by providing an affordable supply of electric power at a fair and reasonable price.

According to Villafuerte, Meralco should refund the charges to the consumers because they are not obligated to pay electricity that they never received or used.

The solon slammed Meralco for passing on to the consumers, through systems loss, electricity used by its offices and facilities. By: Jester P. Manalastas

Journal Online

CAMARINES Sur Representative Luis R. Villafuerte (2nd Dist.-KAMPI Party) has recommended measures aimed to lower the prices of electricity to consumers after in depth study and investigation.

In filing House Resolution 592 that will provide affordable supply of electric power at a fair and reasonable price to consumers, Villafuerte enumerated the measures as follows:

1. Refund of illegally passed on charges to consumers of Merlaco’s free use of electricity for its offices and facilities which were improperly classified as “Systems Loss”;

2. While Systems Loss is authorized under the law for Pilferage and Technical Loss, the cap on the recoverable rate of systems loss should be strictly enforced and the mode of recovery clearly specified by regulation to ensure protection of consumers;

3. VAT on systems losses should be stopped;

4. NAPOCOR should adopt as its energy pricing formula a flat rate (weighted average) for the generation charge and band on the time of use pricing scheme, the peak and off-peak hours rate;

5. TRANSCO should also be required to re-evaluate its transmission charges and reduce components thereof that it could absorb and not include anymore in its transmission charges;

Journal Online

WITH no more legal impediments, an administration lawmaker on Tuesday expressed optimism that Congress can soon grant the legislative franchise to the winning bidder of the National Transmission Corporation (TransCo).

In Tuesday’s hearing of the House Committee on Legislative Franchise, Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Villafuerte said that with the dismissal of the complaint filed by the disqualified TransCo bidder before the Makati Regional Trial Court, “it’s now all-systems-go for Congress to act on the application of the NGCP [National Grid Corporation of the Philippines] for a legislative franchise.”

Villafuerte is one of the principal authors of House Bill 3729, which seeks to grant the Monte Oro-led consortium, or the NGCP, “the franchise to construct, install, finance, manage, improve, expand, operate, maintain, rehabilitate, repair and refurbish the nationwide transmission system and the grid in the country.” By Sammy Martin, Reporter

Manila Times

Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Villafuerte Monday unveiled a nine-point measure which he described as a fool-proof program to lower electricity rates in the country.

At the same time, Speaker Prospero Nograles urged the House committee on energy to speed up a study on his proposal to temporarily suspend the expanded value-added tax (e-VAT) on electricity bills of residential consumers to find out if its impact on the economy is well within manageable level.

In his sponsorship speech for House Resolution 592, Villafuerte urged his colleagues in the House of Representatives to prioritize his resolution, citing the urgent necessity in adopting his proposed measures “that will ensure consumer protection by providing an affordable supply of electric power at a fair and reasonable price to the consumers.”

Villafuerte listed his proposals as refunding of illegal pass-on charges to consumers of the Manila Electric Co.’s (Meralco) free use of electricity for its offices and facilities which were improperly classified as “systems loss” when it was not; strictly enforcing the cap on the recoverable rate of system loss and clearly specifying the mode of recovery by regulation to ensure protection of consumers; stopping the VAT on system losses; adopting a flat rate (weighted average) for National Power Corp. as its energy pricing formula for the generation charge and abandon. With Charlie V. Manalo and Gerry Baldo

Daily Tribune

Pope Benedict XVI yesterday announced the appointment of Auxiliary Bishop Jose Rojas of Caceres in Naga City as the new bishop of the Prelate of Libmanan in Camarines Sur.

The CBCPNews said that the 52-year-old Auxiliary Bishop Rojas would replace the 71-year-old Bishop Prospero Arellano who reportedly resigned because of illness.

The Pope accepted his resignation. Rojas’ appointment was announced simultaneously at the Vatican and the Philippines. Arellano has been the head of the Prelature of Libmanan since 1989. By Evelyn Macairan

PhilStar

Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Villafuerte Monday filed a resolution suggesting that Manila Electric Co. be made to refund what he called the illegally passed-on cost of Meralco’s own use of electricity that was “improperly classified as systems loss.”

In House Resolution No. 592, Villafuerte also detailed other means by which consumers could somehow be relieved of the high cost of electricity.

“Meralco admitted that in year 2007, it incurred for electricity usage in its offices and facilities the amount of P531 million worth of electricity but Meralco added on this amount to the total systems loss charges that it passed on to the electric bills of the consumers,” Villafuerte said.

“Electricity which Meralco appropriates for its own use is not pilferage by Meralco but that constitutes cheating by Meralco in layman’s term if passed on to consumers,” he added in his resolution. By Norman Bordadora

INQUIRER.net

CAMARINES Sur Cong. Luis R. Villafuerte, vice-chairman of the House energy committee, yesterday accused Meralco and First Gas Holdings of peddling another  “blatant and unexpurgated lie” that  First Gas’ 1000-megawatt Sta. Rita Plant was fully available in 2000 and 2001 and that the power firm had to pay full capacity charges because Napocor failed to deliver the agreed transmission line facilities.

In a privilege speech last week, Villafuerte accused Meralco of improperly paying P12.99 billion in 2001 and passing the “horrendous amount to the electric consumers as part of its PPA or purchased power adjustment.”

He said that resorting to peddling falsehoods and issuing misleading statements cannot cover up or belie  what are contained in Meralco’s own documents that  the Lopez family-owned IPP, First Gas, did not deliver the corresponding electricity to Meralco in the year 2001 but was nonetheless paid by Meralco an average of P1.08 billion a month for full capacity fees and fixed expenses equivalent to 1000 megawatts.

Meralco, through spokesman Elpi Cuna –  in disputing the “ghost delivery” charges made by Villafuerte –  claimed that the payment of P12.9 billion in full capacity fees to First Gas was made because its 1000mw of capacity was available but could not be dispatched due to “the unavailability of transmission lines to connect First Gas power plant to the grid.”

Journal Online

NAGA City – Police are hunting another suspect in the killing of a computer shopowner and her son and wounding of another child in Barangay Sta. Cruz here Sunday.

Police spokesman PO2 Tobias Bongon said Lyndon See Lao, 17, of Blumentritt Street, fled but his companion, Lyndon Celimen, 19, of Barangay Mabulo here, is now under police custody. The duo were under the influence of drugs when they robbed and killed Analyn Hernandez Santos, 37, and her son J-Lemuel, 8,  and wounded Elihah Kevin, 11 at J-Mark Studio.

Celimen said they killed the victims because they got no money from Analyn.   by Sonny Sales

Journal Online