‘Take responsibility as public servants,’ LTO reminds PUV operators
By Eli C. Dalumpines

CEBU CITY, May 11 (PIA) – The top official of the Land Transportation Office(LTO) in Central Visayas has again reminded the operators of public utility vehicles (PUVs) on their responsibility as public servants.

LTO-7 Director Raul Aguiluz, in a forum on road safety hosted by PIA-Cebu this morning, said PUV operators are issued franchises because they expressed their intention to deliver public service by engaging in public transportation.

“And being public servants, they have to see to it that their vehicles are road worthy to ensure the safety of the passengers,” Aguiluz stressed.

According to Aguiluz, his office is conducting road worthiness tests on PUVs annually but the responsibility of ensuring that their vehicles are in top condition throughout the year rest on the operators.

In this connection, he urged them not to wait for traffic enforcers to impound their vehicles before they start fixing them.

Aguiluz said they cannot enforce traffic laws 24 hours a day so they need their cooperation in minimizing road accidents.

Road accidents, he informed, ranked number eight in the list of the top causes of deaths in the country.

The official cited the discipline of the driver, the condition of the motor vehicle and environment as the three major factors that cause road accidents.

In this campaign though, LTO and other agencies tasked to enforce traffic laws will focus on the driver and the condition of the vehicle as these are more crucial.

Aguiluz, likewise, informed that his office has implemented other measures like roadside random drug test and the distribution of road safety kits to educate drivers of their responsibility in upholding road safety and minimize road accidents. (FCR/ECD/PIA 7-Cebu)

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CITOM supports PHL Road Safety Plan 2011-2020,

adopts measures to minimize traffic accidents

by Fayette C. Riñen

CEBU CITY, May 11 (PIA) - As part of their commitment to the Philippine Road Safety Decade Action Plan 2011-2020, the City Traffic Operations Management (CITOM) under the Cebu City Government is continuing its replacement of traffic LED lights in order for drivers to follow correcttraffic rules and regulations on the road. 

CITOM Executive Director Atty. Rafael Christopher Yap said that they are also strengthening their enforcement on traffic laws and ordinances such as apprehending vehicles that emit too much carbon dioxide under the anti-smoke belching campaign.

Yap said they are wholly supporting the road safety action plan spearheaded by the Land Transportation Office (LTO) along with other stakeholders to ensure that lives are saved and damages to properties be avoided due to vehicular accidents.

“As much as possible, we want to reduce the number of traffic accidents not only in Cebu City but elsewhere in the province as public transport vehicles ply the city route,” according to Yap. The Cebu South Bus Terminal is also located within the city.

The Philippine Road Safety Action Plan 2011-2020 was launched in Cebu this morning during the weekly Kapihan sa PIA at the CITOM Conference Room attended by leading regional transport agencies such as the Land Transportation Office (LTO) and the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.

The launching is not only a nationwide event but other member-countries of the United Nations throughout the world likewise launched today their respective Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020, this is learned.

CITOM on the other hand, committed its support to the country’s road safety decade action plan as it recognized the need for measures that should be adopted and sustained in order to greatly decrease the volume of vehicular crashes.

LTO-7 Regional Director Raul Aguiluz has placed vehicular accidents as the top seven to eightleading cause of death among Filipinos.

Aguiluz however did not cite the figure on the incidence of road accidents in the country but that cases of road crashes are climbing at an alarming rate.  (PIA 7-Cebu)

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Cebu transport agencies conduct random drug testing as

PHL launches today ‘Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020’

By Fayette C. Riñen

CEBU CITY, May 11 (PIA) - Cebu bus and mini-bus drivers at the South and North Bus Terminals were subjected to a random drug testing this morning as part of the measures to be adopted to ensure passenger safety as the Philippines launched today the ‘Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020.’

In Cebu City, a composite team from the regional offices of the Land Transportation Office (LTO),Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), City Traffic Operations Management (CITOM) and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA)-7 led the random drug test and before noontime, had one driver yielding positive of the use of illegal drugs.

The initial result however, still had to be subjected to a confirmatory test before sanctions can be taken.

LTO-7 Regional Director Raul Aguiluz during the launching of the action plan in the Kapihan sa PIA bared the gravity of the incidence of road accidents not only in the country but worldwide.

“Road accident is the top seven or eight leading cause of deaths in the country and even worldwide,” Aguiluz bared.

Three major factors cited by Aguiluz why road crashes happened are the drivers themselves, motor vehicles and the environment.

“This is why we are conducting a random drug test among bus drivers because we want road accidents to be minimized,” according to the LTO-7 chief.

The LTO-7 director also stressed the need for the continuing education among public transport drivers on their heavy responsibility in upholding road safety as lives are at stake.

Part of the launching activities today was the conduct of inspection of the road worthiness of public utility jeepneys, buses, mini-buses, taxi vehicles with regards to the condition of their brakes, hand brakes, lights, tire, among others.

Roadside emission testing in certain areas of the city was also done as part of heightening public awareness on the significance of road safety measures.

LTFRB-7 Regional Director Ahmed Cuizon on the other hand, said that although aiming for a ’zero-accident’ at the end of 2020 is a toll order and quite ambitious but “we want to lower the number of road accidents to the lowest denomination as much as possible.”

“There are many people who die more due to road accidents compared to people who die of cancer. And this is so unfortunate as most victims are getting younger,” Cuizon said.

Annually, 1.3M people die from road crashes worldwide and the figure is projected to rise to 1.9M by 2015 as quoted in a Daily Inquirer news citing a report from the United Nations on the incidence of global road crashes.

Today, 100 other nations worldwide including the Philippines also launched their own decade action plan as part of their commitment to the United Nations Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020. (PIA 7-Cebu)

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DSWD-7 initiates free birth registration program for Badjaos in Cebu 

By: Hazel F. Gloria

CEBU CITY, May 11 (PIA) --- One hundred thirty-one (131) Badjao families benefited from the free birth registration program the Department of Social and Welfare Development (DSWD-7)  initiated and launched today at the Mambaling Sports Complex, Cebu City.

In an interview with PIA, Jaybee Binghay, Information Officer of DSWD-7 said, Barangay Mambaling has the biggest Badjao community for the Pantawid Pamilya beneficiaries in Central  Visayas.

The free birth registration is part of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program that aims to articulate the importance of registering babies at birth.

It is widely known that most of the children of Indigenous People (IP) such as the Badjaos are not registered that is why they are not accepted in schools due to the lack of birth certificates of their children.

One of the requirements to be considered as a Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino beneficiary is that the children of school age in the family must be in school 85% of their time, otherwise the families are not enrolled as beneficiaries.

DSWD-7 regional director Ma. Evelyn Macapobre explained during her speech that all provincial governors, city and municipal mayors are enjoined to support the free birth registration by waiving the fees arising from or related to birth registration.

Macapobre encouraged the Badjao families to avail of these program so that they are able to register their children and have their NSO birth certificates
especially for the children who will enroll in the in-coming school year in June.

Several agencies joined in today's launching including the National Statistics Office (NSO), National Commission on Indigenous People (NCIP), Department of Education (DepEd), Local Civil Registrar (LCR) and the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA).

This is a one-month long free birth registration with the theme, “Isulong ang Karapatan ng Bata, Magpatala.” (PIA-7)

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Cebu mayor is RDCOM Visayas chair for the NEDA Board

CEBU, May 11 (PIA) --- Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama who is the chairperson of the Central Visayas Regional Development Council (RDC-7) is  now Chair of the Regional Development Committee Visayas (RDCom Visayas) after the RDC chairs of regions 6, 7 & 8 voted for mayor Rama during the RDCom Visayas meeting on May 10 at the Marco Polo Hotel, Cebu City.

The RDCom Visayas includes Capiz Governor Victor Tanco, Sr. as RDC-6 chair and Leyte Governor Carlos Jericho L. Petilla as chair for RDC-8 and Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama as RDC-7 chair.

National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA-7) regional director Marlene Rodriguez said, as the new chair of the Visayas RDC, Mayor Rama will represent the Regional Development Councils of Western Visayas, Eastern Visayas and Central Visayas in the NEDA Board-Regional Development Committee.

The NEDA-Board is composed of the secretaries of various national government line agencies and the chairs of the RDCom of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

Mayor Rama, who took his oath of office as RDC-7  Chair on May 3, has already been briefed on the structure and functions of the NEDA Board and its Inter-agency Committees, including the RDCom. 

According to Rodriguez, the NEDA Board-RDCom was created at the national level to coordinate and integrate regional development efforts as well as promote cross-regional and regional/local concerns.

It also seeks to ensure that spatial implication of policies are adequately considered in national development policy formulation.

It will strengthen the linkages between national and regional/ local planning, programming, project development, budgeting and implementation, among other things.(PIA-7/MBCN & NEDA-7/Vittoria de Veyra,KMD) 

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PhilHealth pays over P10.8M for cervical cancer treatment

CEBU, May 11 (PIA) --- PhilHealth Regional Office-7 in the last three years, has paid out over P10.8M in benefit claims to an average of about 2,300 claims for cervical cancer treatments that were processed per year.

PhilHealth medical officer Dr. Maria Eliza Alipio saw an increasing trend in the number of PhilHealth claims received for confinements due to cervical cancer from 2008 up to last year.

 According to PhilHealth, its members can avail of benefits for cervical cancer treatments, such as radiotherapy and chemotherapy.

Cervical cancer is classified as Case Type C under PhilHealth’s unified benefit schedule.  It means that if a patient undergoes radiotherapy or chemotherapy in a tertiary hospital, the member can avail a maximum of P28,000 coverage for drugs and medicines; and P21,000 for x-ray, laboratory procedures and others.

This is the maximum benefit that the members can avail for the series of sessions done within 90 days from the first treatment.

 Additional benefits that members enjoy per session of radiotherapy or chemotherapy include P1,200 as operating room fee or fee for the use of the facility where the treatment is done, and P560 for the professional fee.

These can be availed of for a maximum of 45 sessions or days per year.

 Like most cancers, the chances for cure lie in early detection. Female PhilHealth members and dependent wives who are 30-45 years old may avail of free cervical cancer screening given by the Department of Health (DOH), in observance of the Cervical Cancer Awareness Month.

The month-long free cervical cancer screenings will be done at the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC) and other DOH-retained hospitals. (PIA-7/Hazel F.Gloria & PhilHealth-7/ Marie Beatrix S. Elias, IO)