CALAMBA KICKS OFF JMC CUP 2
CALAMBA City, Philippines - Host City Mayor Joaquin Chipeco, Jr. announced that the second level of the CALAMBA FOOTBALL FESTIVAL’s JMC CUP kicks off today, May 19 at the sprawling grounds of the Rizal Plaza in Calamba City, Laguna, site of the world’s tallest statue of our national hero, Dr. Jose P. Rizal.
Inspired by the success of the AZKALS, Congressman Justin Marc “Timmy” Chipeco of the 2nd District of Laguna, formed the Calamba Puppies with the hope of identifying and training young talents to help boost the football development program of the Philippine Football Federation (PFF). This PFF-sanctioned grassroots program under the technical management of the Laguna Football Association (LFA), seeks to discover young football players who may one day play for the Philippine national team.
“Sa maagang edad, mas madaling mahasa ang mga bata sa larong ito kung saan mas me pag-asa tayong mga Pilipino na manalo” said Former Senator Joey Lina who heads the Calamba Football Festival, Inc. According to Lina, private sector support is crucial in this long-term endeavor, which is being presented by the Lina Group of Companies, Air21, San Miguel Corporation, with the support of Cherifer and Stotsenberg Hotel, and in cooperation with Union Galvasteel, Yakult and Greenfields Development Corporation.
Some 75 teams from Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon (CALABARZON), as well as teams from the National Capital Region (NCR) will be participating in this one day football festival for Under 9, Under 13 and Under 17 categories.
Top winners of this event will qualify in the JMC CUP Level 3, i.e. the National Football Invitationals to be held on August 11-12, 2012 in Calamba, with the support of Deped Calamba and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) which issued Memorandum 2012-85 enjoining the participation of all local government units nationwide.
The first level of the JMC CUP was successfully held last Feb. 12 in Calamba, with no less than FIFA Vice President, Prince Ali Bin Al-Hussein of Jordan as special guest.
2011 Top Ten Taxpayers
MARKER
OF
RECOGNITION
UNVEILED
City Mayor Hon. Joaquin M. Chipeco, Jr. together with Dir. Josefina E. Castillo-Go, Regional Director of DILG Region IV-A, unveiled the Seal of Good Housekeeping (SGHK) marker at the front lobby of Calamba City Hall last Monday, On February 6, 2012. The award was given to recognize the City Government’s good governance performance in terms of planning, sound fiscal management, advancing accountability and transparency, and valuing of performance monitoring in local governance. Calamba City is the first city within the CALABARZON area conferred with the said award.
Last July 26, 2011, the Seal of Good Housekeeping Award was presented by the Secretary of Interior and Local Government Hon. Jesse M. Robredo to Mayor Chipeco during the Tapatan Roadshow in recognition of the City Government’s efforts in internal housekeeping. The SGHK marker serves as certification of this award.
According to DILG City Director Roseller H. Rizal, the Seal of Good Housekeeping is a performance incentive in line with the DILG’s commitment to aggressively upgrade the interventions to elevate the practice of governance in local government units that values transparency, accountability, participation and performance into an institutionalized status.
RD Castilla-Go acknowledged the achievements of the City Government in nutrition, employment, agriculture, business permits and licensing system, and alternative learning system. She congratulated the City for qualifying for the Performance Challenge Fund (PCF) and the Local Government Support Fund (LGSF) amounting to Php 3M and Php 30M respectively.
In response to RD Castilla-Go’s message, Mayor Chipeco expressed his gratitude for the award given and in recognizing the City Government’s efforts in good governance in internal housekeeping. He also informed the public that the Php 30M LGSF will be used in the reconstruction of Bañadero Bridge damaged by Typhoon Milenyo on 2006. Moreover, he commended the City Council, Department Heads and City employees in their efforts to achieve the Good Housekeeping award.
The marker is now prominently displayed at the lobby of the City Hall as a challenge to continue the pursuit of excellence in local governance and civil service in the City Government of Calamba.
City Government of Calamba
thru the
City College of Calamba
CONGRATULATES
the following for passing the 2011 CPA Board Exam:
1. Batario, Mary Rose Barit
2. Cadiang, Alpha Nourah Perez
3. Meer, Paul Albert Quimbao
4. Sales, Michelle Danika De Dios
Former Calamba Mayor, Atty. Eduardo T. Yu Jr. passes away at 77
Our Gift, His Legacy
By Calamba City Mayor Joaquin M. Chipeco, Jr.
What would I give to someone who already has everything as he celebrates a milestone birthday? What will be a fitting tribute to a great man who sacrificed all for his country, a man is not only revered in his hometown but in different places around the globe?
These questions entered my mind in the middle of June 2010 as the Rizal@150 Executive Committee began to meet in what would be a series of weekly meetings in preparation for Dr. Jose Rizal’s Sesquicentennial Birth Celebration in 2011. Several monthly activities were lined up for the yearlong celebration, all in commemoration of the hero’s venerable life and remarkable works but there seemed to be something missing. I envisioned something more tangible, something befitting Rizal’s stature as our National Hero and the last Renaissance man to walk this earth. It should be something that our future generations would see as a testament of their elders’ reverence to our greatest.
These thoughts kept playing over and over in my head, caused some sleepless nights and led me to ask the opinion of several trusted friends. Then seemingly out of nowhere, like an unexpected bolt of lightning, it came…why not build a monument of Rizal and make it the tallest in the world?
THE PLANNING STAGE
Once the idea was born, it gelled into my mind and consumed my being. Our hero has several monuments dedicated to him in many parts of the country and even around the world. In Jinjiang City, Fujian Province, China, an exact replica of the Rizal monument in Luneta was built in honor of his Chinese origins. Other Rizal monuments can be found around the globe, some in places Rizal visited during his travels such as the one in Wilhelmsfeld, Germany and another Madrid, Spain. Here in the Philippines, a tall Rizal monument is now a tourist attraction in Nueva Viscaya and was built by a Jordanian national who idolized Rizal. These and a host of other monuments dedicated to this great man made me realize the enormity of the impact his short life has made not just to us Filipinos but to foreigners as well. This solidified my resolve to build the tallest Rizal monument that will be our lasting legacy to Rizal’s hope of the nation.
Hearing about our vision, offers of help poured in. Someone told me that PAGCOR grants financial assistance for projects like this. After studying our proposal and realizing its significance, President Benigno S. Aquino III authorized the release of Php 2.5 Million to initially fund the monument. With this settled, the task of commissioning a sculptor became uppermost in my mind. A close friend gave me the name of a rising young sculptor, Jose Dionas F. Roces. Some voiced their apprehensions on giving the project to someone as young as Roces but I would only quip, “Didn’t Rizal himself proclaim the youth to be the hope of our fatherland, so why not give the noble task of fashioning his likeness to one of them?”
Dr. Jose Rizal's 150th Birth Anniversary
Freedom Park: Opinyon, Simpatya at Legalidad
Nakalathala ngayon sa internet ang ilang artikulo na tumatalakay sa isyu ng pagpipiket o pagrarally ng ilang grupo (mga taong nagsasabi na sila ay mamamayan ng Canlubang) sa Harap ng City Hall ng Calamba, pati na rin ang pagpapaalis sa kanila ng mga awtoridad nitong nakaraang Mayo 17, 2011.
Ayon sa ilang manunulat o komentaristang nakikisimpatya sa nasabing grupo, ilegal at labag sa konstitusyon ang pagpapaalis sa mga raliyista sa harap ng City Hall. Sinasabi nila, bagama’t di nila gaanong nililinaw sa publiko, na ang pagpipiket o pagrarally sa isang lugar o bayan na walang itinalagang “freedom park” ay maaaring gawin kahit walang permit mula sa Lokal na Pamahalaan.
Sa mata ng mga ordinaryong mamamayan, ang mga artikulong isinulat at ngayon ay nakalathala sa internet ay halintulad sa isang lason na unti-unting tumutunaw sa malayang pag-iisip ng mga mamamayan na sa huli ay hahantong sa kawalan at pagkalito ng diwa. Sa tema ng mga sulating iyon ay maaaring ipalagay na ang mga manunulat na iyon ay ginagamit lamang ng ilang maimpluwesyang na tao upang makakuha ng simpatya at magbinhi ng pagdududa sa integridad ng kasalukuyang pamunuan sa Lungsod ng Calamba.
Bilang tawag ng tungkulin ng isang mapagobserbang mamamayan at upang wakasan ang mapanlinlang na basahin at artikulo sa internet at bigyang kaliwanagan ang mga mamamayan ng Calamba tungkol sa mga isyu ng pagpipiket/pagrarally sa harap ng City Hall, ang komentaryong ito ay magalang na inilimbag at inilathala sa publiko.
Freedom of Expression at BP 880
Tunay nga na ang karapatang magtipon at magpahayag ay ginagarantiya at pinoprotektahan ng ating Saligang Batas. Ngunit, gaya ng iba pang karapatang pantao, sibil o pulitikal, ito ay maaaring limitahan o i-regula ng estado para sa kapakanan ng mas nakararami.
Sa isang matandang kaso na dinisisyunan ng Korte Suprema, mariing idineklara ng hukuman na: “The right to freedom of speech, and to peacefully assemble and petition the government for redress of grievances, are fundamental personal rights of the people recognized and guaranteed by the constitutions of democratic countries. But it is a settled principle growing out of the nature of well-ordered civil societies that the exercise of those rights is not absolute for it may be so regulated that it shall not be injurious to the equal enjoyment of others having equal rights, nor injurious to the rights of the community or society. Xxx. Primicias vs. Fugoso, 80 Phil. 71 (1948).” Kaya’t kaugnay ng nasabing desisyon ay nabalangkas ang Batas Pambansa Blg. 880 o Public Assembly Act na naglalayong i-regulate at protektahan di lamang ang interes at karapatan ng mga taong nais matipon at magpahayag kundi pati na rin ang kapakanan ng mga tao sa komunidad na maaaring maabala o maapektuhan ng mga pagkilos o aktibidad na konektado sa malayang pagpapahayag.
Batay sa probisyon ng BP 880, sino man na nagnanais magtipon at magpahayag sa mga pampublikong lugar ay kailangang kumuha muna ng permit sa lokal na pamahalaan ng lugar kung saan gaganapin ang pagtitipon. Ngunit ang permit ay di na kailangan kung ang pagtitipon at pagpapahayag ay gaganapin sa freedom park o sa isang pribadong lugar.
Nitong 2006 lamang ay muling kinatigan ng Supreme Court ang constitutionality ng BP 880 kung saan malinaw na binanggit ng mga mahistrado na: “BP 880 is not an absolute ban on public assemblies but a restriction that simply regulates the time, place and manner of the assemblies.” (Bayan vs. Ermita, GR no. 169838, April 23, 2006).
Bagama’t may malinaw na patnugot sa malayang pagtitipon at pagpapahayag, minabuti rin ng Kataastaasang Hukuman na ideklara sa kaso ng Bayan vs. Ermita, GR no. 169838, April 23, 2006, na magtalaga ang bawat bayan at lungsod ng isang “freedom park” kung saan malayang makakapagtipon ang mga mamamayan upang magpahayag kahit walang permit mula sa lokal na pamahalaan. Sinabi rin ng Korte Suprema na kung walang i-deklarang freedom park ang lokal na pamahalaan, ang lahat ng pampublikong parke at plaza na matatagpuan sa bawat munisipalidad at pamahalaang lungsod ay maituturing na “freedom park” at walang permit na kailangan upang magtipon at magpahayag doon.
Pagpipiket/Pagrarally sa harap ng City Hall
Sa kaso ng mga tao o grupong nagtipon at nagpiket sa harap ng City Hall ng Calamba, nakita at matatandaan na nagnais lang sila na ipahayag ang kanilang saloobin at hinaing sa lokal na pamahalaang lungsod. Ngunit, ang paraan ng kanilang paggamit ng karapatang magpahayag ay di naaayon sa batas sapagkat ayon sa mga namumuno sa lungsod, wala silang kaukulang permit para magrally sa harap ng City Hall. Hindi naman nila maaring ikatwiran ang desisyon ng Supreme Court sa Bayan vs. Ermita sapagkat sa nasabing desisyon, maaari lang magrally o magtipon ng walang permit sa mga freedom parks o kung walang freedom park ay sa mga pampublikong parke at plaza lamang at hindi sa harap ng City Hall kung saan may proyektong isinasagawa ang pamahalaan at kung saan nakakaabala sa mga tao at empleyadong pumapasok sa City Hall.
Bagaman walang kaukulang permit ang mga raliyista, minabuti pa rin ng mga namumuno sa Pamahalaang Lungsod ng Calamba na huwag silang agarang paaalisin upang mapakinggan ang kanilang mga hinaing. Sa katunayan ay inabot ng halos dalawang buwan silang nagkampo/nagpiket sa harap ng City Hall at di sila agarang dinisperse kahit wala silang permit. Ngunit, dahil sa patuloy na abala sa mga taong napunta sa City Hall pati na rin ng pagkaantala ng proyektong ginagawa sa harap ng City Hall ay minabuti na ng Pamahalaang Lungsod na mapayapang pakiusapan ang mga raliyista na umalis sa lugar kung saan sila nagpipiket. Ang pagpapaalis at mapayapang pagdi-disperse ng mga raliyistang walang permit ay malinaw na itinakda ng BP 880 bilang proteksyon sa karamihan ng mamamayan at kumunidad.
Konklusyon
Bilang konklusyon, malinaw na may batayan at naaayon sa batas ang pagpapaalis sa mga nagpiket at nagrally sa harap ng City Hall ng Calamba. Kahit maraming nalinlang at nakisimpatya sa mga napaalis na raliyista dahil sa mga maling alegasyon sa internet, ang kanilang opinyon at simpatya ay hindi magreresulta sa legalidad at katwiran. Sa huli, bilang hamon, kung talagang sa kanilang opinyon ay sila ang kinakatigan ng batas, bakit kaya hindi nila ito idaan sa tamang forum upang kuwestyunin ang ginawa ng awtoridad? Bilang mga sibilisadong sambayanan, ang kuwestisyon ng legalidad ay dapat ihain sa ating mga hukuman na may sapat na kaalaman at karanasan upang bigyang kahulugan ang nilalaman ng batas at tukuyin ang merito ng bawat kontrobersya. Hindi ang internet ang tamang forum upang patunayan ang katwiran, sapagkat sa internet, puro katanungan lamang at walang malinaw na kasagutan ang maaaaring matagpuan sa bawat isyu ng bayan.
