NEWS BRIEFS
PALEA PROTEST
TWO wooden coffins were placed on display at the airport road by members of the Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA) Cebu chapter to dramatize their solidarity with their counterparts who were dispersed during their picket in Manila.
The said the coffins symbolize the death of the workers’ rights, the death of unionism, and the death of job security.
The Kahugpungan sa Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Sugbo (KANAMASU) members said the coffins symbolized the death of their rights, unionism and job security. They were joined by militant groups in their protest last Tuesday.
Last Oct. 29, four Palea members in Manila were injured after they were violently dispersed while holding a picket.
Tex Bulambot, Palea board member, said the government’s decision to support PAL management’s move to outsource its personnel “is a blatant example of the death of workers’ rights.” Correspondent Norman V. Mendoza
UNDAS ASSESSMENT
THE All Souls’ and All Saints’ Days celebrations in Cebu came and went without incident, according to the police.
Cebu Provincial Police Office Director Patrocinio Comendador said there were no untoward incidents in cemeteries and the liquor ban was fully enforced. But he said there was a rise in vehicular accidents compared last year.
“We hope to achieve an ideal situation by coordinating with other law enforcement agencies and identify accident-prone areas and behavior. Overall, I am satisfied with the way security was done,” Comendador told Cebu Daily News.
In Cebu City, there were few burglary incidents but Cebu City Intelligence Branch head Chief Insp. Romeo Santander said these were not related to the annual observance.
Santander gave credit to the barangay tanods and nongovenment volunteers, saying they helped maintain peace and order during the holidays.
Mandaue City Police Office (MCPO) Director Senior Supt. Noel Gillamac said they only received reports of two pickpocketing incidents during the holidays.
The celebration went on peacefully in his area except for a little crowd control problem in the four cemeteries in barangay Guizo.
In Lapu-Lapu City, Senior Supt. Anthony Obenza said the force they fielded during the holidays helped a lot in keeping the peace and order in Lapu-lapu City cemeteries.
Except for the arrest of a drunk man who allegedly harassed a woman inside a public cemetery, they have not recorded any untoward incident. Reporter Jucell Marie P. Cuyos, Correspondent Rhea Ruth Rosell and Norman V. Mendoza and STC Intern Tweeny Malinao
LAMPPOSTS REMOVAL
LIKE Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama, Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Paz Radaza also wants the decorative lampposts removed from the streets as these have become obstructions and eyesores.
“They are no longer serving their purpose so it’s better to remove them,” Radaza said.
These lampposts were installed during Cebu’s hosting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Summit in January 2007. Most of the decorative lamps have been looted and bulbs were broken or missing.
Mayor Rama also wanted to remove the lampposts installed in Cebu City streets. However their removal needed approval from the Sandiganbayan since the decorative lamps, which are under the custody of the Department of Public Works and Highways, are “evidence of the court.”
Graft charges are pending against two contractors and several local officials for allegedly overpricing the purchase and installation of these China-made lampposts. CORRESPONDENT NORMAN V. MENDOZA
