News Briefs: June 10, 2019

COA flags PAO’s P13.1-M excess supplies

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Audit (COA) has flagged the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) over some P13.1 million in excess office supplies that it purchased in excess of its allocation.

But the PAO, headed by Persida V. Rueda-Acosta, told the audit body that due to “the influx of Dengvaxia cases,” office supplies must readily be available for use.

The audit body added that upon examination of the PAO’s 2017 audit, it emerged that despite the existence of stock for 2017, additional purchases were made in 2018, resulting in overstocking.

The agency said the purchase of stocks exceeding an agency’s one-year requirement should have been subject to approval by the President. —Patricia Denise M. Chiu

‘Domestic roaming’ needed in case of network failure

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Misamis Oriental, Philippines — The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) regional office in Northern Mindanao pushed “domestic roaming” services so that subscribers will have an alternative whenever telco networks malfunction.

Teodoro Buenavista Jr., NTC regional director,  said the idea came about after Globe Telecom went offline for four hours last Tuesday due to “multiple fiber cuts” in their network.

Globe Telecom liaison officer James Lopez said they were still investigating what caused the breakdown, although he recalled that the same incident happened in the past due to strong underwater current. —Jigger J. Jerusalem

Cebu lawyers hit destruction of Tañon Strait mangroves

CEBU CITY, Cebu, Philippines — Environmental advocates have requested Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu to look into the destruction of mangroves in Barangay Tangil-Tapon, Dumanjug, Cebu, a part of the Tañon Strait Protected Seascape.

In a letter dated June 6, the environmentalists requested Cimatu to issue a suspension of any permit issued with respect to the mangroves considering the negative impacts this had on the already declining health of mangroves and fisheries.

In their letter, lawyers Gloria Estenzo-Ramos of Oceana Philippines, Rose Osorio of the Philippine Earth Justice Center Inc. and Jocelyn Caceres of Environmental Legal Assistance Center said it “was shocking to see dead, dying mangroves in a cleared area in Dumanjug … [and] a sign showing an ‘Earth-Balling Permit’ issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources for three species of the 930 mangroves (418 ‘bungalon,’ 26 pagatpat and 490 ‘bakawan’).”

But Cleo Colis of the Cebu Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office said earth-balling the mangroves was the best option for them since “there will be a road widening in the area and earth-balling these mangroves is needed.”

Colis said the mangroves would be transferred to another location and replenished with new ones.” —Ador Vincent Mayol