Representatives from the Guizhou Vocational College of Foodstuff Engineering will be in Antique on Oct. 20-21 for exploratory talks about the on-the-job-training (OJT) program for their Hotel and Restaurant Management (HRM) students at the University of Antique (UA).

They will be checking on the curriculum offering of UA to make sure it matches with their program, said UA President Dr. Pablo Crespo Jr., in an interview on Tuesday, Oct. 3.

The Chinese vocational college and UA signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) during the Philippines-China University President Cooperation Dialogue and Networking Session in China on Aug. 30 this year.

“The MOU (signing) was held during the China-Asean Education Cooperation Week that I attended with Commission on Higher Education (CHED) chairman Prospero De Vera,” Crespo said.

The MOU on reciprocal collaboration allows the two higher learning institutions to send their students for an OJT.

Crespo said UA had already produced successful graduates working in four-star hotels in the Philippines and abroad.

“UA is also a recipient of a grant from CHED for a hot and cold kitchen where students can train on food innovation,” he said.

The P15 million grant provided by CHED in 2021 enabled UA to establish a hot and cold kitchen with equipment, including a refrigerator, a three-deck oven, burners, kneaders, and mixers, among others, needed to bake and cook hot food.

The university has male and female dormitories, aside from the dorms outside of the campus in Sibalom town that could accommodate students from China.

“Hopefully, by our next school year, there will already be Chinese students who could come for their OJT in UA,” Crespo said.

UA students will also have a vast international learning experience in China since Guizhou is into grain, oil, and food industries.

“The international linkage will widen the horizon of the students,” Crespo said.PNA

The vessel started its maiden voyage from its home port in Iloilo City on June 26 and passed by this capital town on June 27 before proceeding to Cuyo town in Palawan province.

“The vessel arrived safely today (June 29) in Cuyo, Palawan,” said Jose Edison Tondares, board secretary of the Maria Estrella del Mar Shipping, Inc. that operates the vessel and a subsidiary of the Saint Anthony’s College (SAC), in an interview.

He said they are hoping the revision of the Iloilo-Antique-Palawan maritime route can boost trade and tourism in these areas.

He said the M/V Maria Estrella del Mar is being established as a reliable commercial passenger-cargo ship.

“The ship welcomes passengers who simply like long travel and the solace of the sea,” Tondares said.

The vessel berths at the Milagrosa-J Shipping Port at Lapuz, La Paz, Iloilo City, departs Monday at 7 p.m. and arrives here at 6 a.m. the next day.

It leaves this town for Cuyo, Palawan 9 p.m. on Wednesday and arrives the next day at 6 a.m.

From Cuyo, it travels directly to Iloilo City at 6 p.m. on Friday and arrives the following day at 8 a.m.

In addition to catering to passengers and cargoes, the vessel will also host the maritime on-board training program and navigational trips, and shipboard familiarization.

“SAC also aims to have the vessel complement its Bachelor of Science Marine Transportation and Bachelor of Science in Marine Engineering programs with an actual sailing commercial ship that could later serve as a maritime laboratory extension of the school,” Tondares said.

The maritime route is also expected to “help ease the damaging stress brought upon by the heavy trucking on the mountain highway between Antique and Iloilo,” Tondares said.

The vessel Romblon Bay used to transport passengers from Metro Manila to Antique to Cuyo but stopped in the 1980s for lack of passengers when a roll-on roll-off started to operate from Metro Manila directly to Palawan.PNA

Antique is no longer free from African swine fever (ASF) as the top official of the Department of Agriculture (DA-6) confirmed on Wednesday, June 21, that swine mortalities in the municipality of Hamtic were caused by the animal disease.

DA OIC Regional Dir. Jose Albert Barrogo said that based on their clinical laboratory report, four of the five serum samples submitted by the Provincial Veterinary (ProVet) Office to the DA

Regional Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (RADDL) in Iloilo City on June 19 were positive for ASF.

“We had the copy of the results of the serum samples confirming it to be positive for ASF submitted to the Office of Governor Cadiao today,” Barrogo said in a phone interview.

Barrogo urged the concerned local government to implement depopulation and culling of hogs within the 500-meter radius of the affected site to prevent the further spread of the viral disease.

Hogs within a 500 meters radius could already be infected by the disease, he added.

“We urge the provincial government and the LGU of Hamtic to provide assistance to the affected hog raisers,” he added.

He said that the laboratory result could also be used by the LGU of Hamtic, in particular, to declare a state of calamity so it could assist hog raisers.

The Hamtic Municipal Agriculture Office (MAO) has recorded deaths of 1,359 hogs valued at PHP13.04 million in 22 barangays.

Hamtic has more or less a 9,000 hog population.

Barrogo added that Executive Order 35 issued by Hamtic Mayor Julius Ronald Pacificador on June 19, 2023, allowing the transport, slaughtering, and sale of apparently healthy swine and pork could only be possibly implemented within the barangays of the municipality.

“The LGU should really have to contain the spread of the ASF,” Barrogo said.PNA

Vegetables, fruits and other commodities sold at lower prices, including President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. (PBBM) rice sold at P20 per kilo, are available in 16 Kadiwa trading stores in Antique.

Engr. Israel de Guzman, general manager of the Jubilee Agila Bayanihan Agriculture Cooperative in Antique, said 16 trading posts or Kadiwa retail stores have been established in seven municipalities of the province.

They can be found in Pandan, Libertad, Sebaste, Hamtic, Tibiao, Sibalom and Belison with two or three stores either at the town proper or in barangays, he said.

“We first established the Kadiwa store in Pandan on March 8 this year. Mayor Tomas Estoperez Jr. was interested in opening the Kadiwa store in his hometown because of the low prices of rice and vegetables being offered by the traders to the farmers,” he said.

He said that to make the enterprise sustainable they have come up with a scheme that an indigent can only buy two kilos of rice from the store daily so that others would also have the chance to purchase the staple food.

“We also encourage those who want to acquire the low-priced rice to first buy P100 worth of vegetables to help farmers,” he said.

Apart from selling agri-fishery products at affordable prices, he said farmers can also sell their produce at a higher rate. Farmers can now sell newly harvested palay, for instance, at P18 per kilo compared to the P15 per kilo offered by traders.

Their ampalaya produce is bought at P55 per kilo, thrice higher than the buying price of traders, and sold at P60 a kilo.

Kadiwa stores also bought onions at a maximum price of P90 per kilo and sold to buyers between P100 to P120 for every kilo.

Kadiwa is a marketing initiative of DA that aims to provide a direct link between the producer and consumer, reducing intermediaries thus farmers earn higher while fresh quality and quality products are made affordable to the consuming public.PNA

ProVet public health division chief Dr. Marco Rafael Ardamil said the 24-hour border checkpoint, with the augmentation of personnel from the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO) of the local government unit (LGU), has been implemented since April 14.

“Even during last weekend, the 24/7 border checkpoint was implemented to make sure that no hog, fresh or processed frozen pork from other places affected by the ASF could enter Antique,” Ardamil said.

He said border control in the northern part of Antique was strengthened after the ASF case was reported in Barangay Arcangel in Balete, Aklan on April 13.

This leaves Antique as the only ASF-free province in Panay Island since Iloilo and Capiz also recorded ASF incidents.

“Aside from the strengthened border checkpoint between Antique and Iloilo in the southern part of Antique, the border in the northern part had also been tightened to maintain our province as ASF-free,” Ardamil said.

Ardamil said that since the hog industry in Antique is still safe for human consumption, thus Iloilo and Aklan sourced their supply from this province.

“Our hog raisers are allowed to transport their hogs to Iloilo and Aklan and other provinces in Panay island in order to help meet their local demand, but we are not accepting any incoming,” Ardamil.

The current price of the live weight hog has reached P175 per kilogram, which is the highest ever recorded since October 2022 when Iloilo province reported its first ASF case.

Before the ASF cases last year, the price ranged from P120 to P130 per kilogram, which gradually increased because of the demand.PNA

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) reported that responders, volunteers and other stakeholders have so far cleaned-up around 75.72 percent of the oil spill affected coastlines in barangays Semirara, Tinogboc and Sibolo in Caluya, Antique.

This was revealed during the 1st Quarter Full Council Meeting of the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (RDRRMC) 6, March 31, in Iloilo City.

PCG District Western Visayas Marine Environmental Protection Unit Deputy Commander Ensign John Edgar Bertillo said that 70 percent of the total length of coastline in Semirara affected by the oil spill was already cleaned from contaminated sands and debris.

He also reported that around 30 percent of the oil spill affected coastline at Barangay Tinogboc was cleaned from the contamination, and cleaning in 80 percent of the oil spill affected coastline in Barangay Sibolo was also done.

About 2,915 sacks, 111 one-toner bags, 119 pails and 441 drums of contaminated sands and debris were collected due to the oil spill incident based on records from the PCG District Western Visayas as of March 29 this year.

Bertillo added that Western Visayas has the best and well-coordinated response in this oil spill incident, so far.

The Philippine Coast Guard District Western Visayas personnel, together with volunteers, continue to clean the oil spill affected coastlines of contaminated sand and debris in barangays Semirara, Tinogboc and Sibolo in Caluya, Antique. (EJB-PIA6/Photo by PCG District Western Visayas)

The oil spill incident brought by the sinking of MT Princess Empress affected a total of 6,295 households composed of 23,432 individuals in the affected three barangays of Caluya town.

MT Princess Empress was loaded with 800,000 liters of industrial oil when it sank off Oriental Mindoro on February 28.AAL/EJB/PIA6

Resolution 31, series of 2023, passed by the Sangguniang Bayan of Caluya in its special session on Monday, March 6, said the oil spill has reached the shorelines of Sitio Sabang in Barangay Tinogboc; Toong, Banua Proper, and Sitio Balibao in Barangay Semirara, and Sitio Liwagao in Barangay Sibolo.

“The oil spill can lead to a possible widespread environmental and health hazards all throughout the islands of the municipality, which is detrimental to public health and economic well-being of the residents, most especially the fisherfolks, shell collectors, and seaweed farmers composing the majority and the marginalized sectors of our society,” part of the resolution noted.

Residents in the affected areas, including those in barangays Alegria, Sibato, and Imba, depend heavily on the affected waters for their livelihood, the resolution added.

“The municipality calls for immediate response and intervention from the national government agencies, technical experts, and stakeholders in providing the necessary intervention to prevent the widespread contamination in other islands of the municipality,” it said.

Department of Social Welfare and Development Disaster Response Management Division head Judith T. Barredo, in a conference on Monday afternoon, said those affected by the oil spill are mostly fisherfolk and areas near the shorelines at risk of fume inhalation, quoting the report of the local government.

The latest data from the Coast Guard District Western Visayas (CGDWV) showed that 6,298 families consisting of 22,020 individuals have been affected by the incident.

The CGDWV, in its situation report, said a total of 190 sacks of oily wastes were collected from the coastline of Sitio Sabang in Barangay Tinogboc as of 12:45 p.m. on Tuesday.

The clean-up operation, however, was temporarily stopped because of the high tide.

On the other hand, the Iloilo City government will send separate sets of personal protective equipment (PPEs), consisting of masks, gloves, hazmats, face shields, and goggles to the municipality of Caluya and the Philippine Coast Guard that they can use in the cleanup operations.

City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Officer Donna Magno said the PPEs committed by Mayor Jerry P. Treñas when he met with the Regional Development Council Infrastructure Development Committee and other concerned agencies on March 4 are expected to arrive in Caluya on March 8.

She added that the city government is also waiting for the response of the University of the Philippines Visayas to convene the technical working group and conduct a pre-disaster risk assessment relative to the oil spill incident.

“The value of the study, that will tell us of possible scenarios for us in Iloilo City, province, and Guimaras to do anticipatory actions,” she said in an interview on Tuesday.PNA

The oil spill suspected from a sunken vessel off the coast of Naujan, Oriental Mindoro is a threat to the seaweed industry in Caluya Island in Antique valued at P79 million and providing livelihood to 99 percent of the more or less 11,000 fisherfolk in the area.

“Looking into the oil spill trajectory model by the UP-MSI (University of the Philippines Marine Science Institute), it will pass by Caluya going to Palawan. We don’t know the dispersal of the oil, so when it passes by it will affect the seaweeds in Caluya Island,” said Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) Regional Director Remia Aparri in an interview on Monday, March 6.

The seaweed farm on Caluya Island is around 1,532 hectares, the majority of which are in the islands of Panagatan and Sibay.

Based on the report of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), the areas currently affected by the oil spill are the 4-kilometer coastline of Sitio Sabang, Barangay Tinogboc and 2 kilometers in Barangay Semirara, all in Semirara Island and another 2 kilometers in Sitio Liwagao, Barangay Sibolo in Liwagao Island, within the municipality of Caluya.

In a press conference, Coast Guard District Western Visayas (CGDWV) Public Information Officer Jansen Y. Benjamin said that they don’t “negate the possibility” that the two islands will be “contaminated” through a drift scenario although for now there was no sighting of the oil spill.

“If ever, these areas will be a priority for protection. Maybe our experts will have these prioritized for shoreline booming or protection,” he said, adding that they will try to deflect the oil spill to a less sensitive area.

However, the spill boom is yet to be transported from the Lipata Port in the municipality of Culasi.

They had been prepositioned since March 4 and waiting for the good weather that will allow the tugboat carrying the equipment and PCG personnel to depart going to Caluya.

Aparri said that the impact of the oil spill will be minimized if the Philippine Coast Guard can put in place spill booms and other measures to be done in coordination with the local government unit.

The regional director said that currently, they are still validating the stages of the seaweed since these grow the whole year round.

Based on the oil spill experience in Guimaras in 2006, the seaweed will just melt once it is hit by the oil slick.

Aside from the seaweed farm, Aparri said the fishing activity in the area will also be halted.

Aparri advised fisherfolk to harvest their seaweed if already in the harvestable stage and should also secure their fishing boats and not expose themselves to the oil spill because it is detrimental to their health.

The oil spill possibly came from the motor tanker, MT Princess Empress, which sunk on Feb. 28. However, the PCG has yet to confirm this waiting for a laboratory test.

As of Monday, the PCG reported that the collected oil and debris is around 8,200 liters.

The volume of oil that reached Sabang and Liwagao was estimated at 40 drums each and two drums in Barangay Semirara.Perla Lena/PNA