Drug group leader arrested in Pangasinan

ANTI-NARCOTICS agents have arrested leader of a notorious drug group operating in Pangasinan and two female members, who happened to be twins, in separate buy-bust operations in northern Philippines, official said Friday.

Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Director General Undersecretary Jose Gutierrez Jr. said that the suspects affiliated with the Guevarra Drug Group, operating in Asingan, Pangasinan, and adjacent municipalities, were nabbed in two consecutive operations conducted on May 22.

Education sec lauds Pangasinan Palaro hosting

LINGAYEN -- Education Secretary Armin Luistro said over the weekend that Pangasinan has set a benchmark in the hosting of Palarong Pambansa.

Luistro's closing message was overflowing with good words to Governor Amado Espino Jr. and the education department's appreciation to all the efforts made by the province of Pangasinan.

NCR dominates Palarong Pambansa, brings home crown

LINGAYEN -- The National Capital Region (NCR) reigned supreme in Palarong Pambansa 2012 as it captured its 7th consecutive over-all championship crown Saturday.

Palarong Pambansa 2012 officially ended Saturday afternoon with NCR earning 733 points from 245 total medals it amassed from both the elementary and secondary level.

Western Visayas captures Palaro special games crown

LINGAYEN -- Western Visayas, composed of 33 differently-abled athletes, won the over-all crown in the Palarong Pambansa 2012 Special Games held in Pangasinan.

Ilocos Region, last year's overall champion, finished as first runner-up this time, while Davao Region is second runner-up.

Cagayan Valley breaks Palaro long jump record

LINGAYEN, Pangasinan -- Western Visayas captured the first gold courtesy of javelin throw event at the ongoing Palarong Pambansa here, while an athlete from Cagayan Valley set a new record in the long jump event.

Games officially started Sunday at the Narciso Ramos Sports and Civic Center here while the formal opening of Palarong Pambansa 2012 will be held Monday with President Benigno Aquino III as guest of honor.

Palarong Pambansa 2012 begins

LINGAYEN – Palarong Pambansa 2012 starts today, Sunday, with two events in the morning at the Narciso Ramos Sports and Civic Center.

Football games will commence at the Pangasinan State University-Lingayen with Caraga facing Calabarzon at 6:30 a.m. and Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao against Northern Mindanao at 3 p.m.

Gun ban takes effect in Pangasinan

DAGUPAN CITY – Gun ban is in effect in the province of Pangasinan from May 5 until May 17.

Philippine National Police Chief Director General Nicanor Bartolome in a memorandum ordered the temporary suspension of Permits to Carry Firearms Outside of Residence (PTCFORs).

Security strengthened for Bangus fest

DAGUPAN CITY -- Police have strengthened security in various areas in the city for the ongoing Bangus Festival and the upcoming Palarong Pambansa during the first week of May.

Dagupan City police chief Romeo Caramat Jr. said 100 police personnel will be deployed Saturday along the parade route of the Gilon, Gilon Street Dancing competition.

Dagupan prepares for Palaro 2012 hosting

DAGUPAN CITY -- While the City Government here is busy with the ongoing Bangus (milkfish) Festival, officials are also preparing for the city's hosting of the upcoming Palarong Pambansa 2012.

The biggest national sporting event will open on May 7 at the Narciso Ramos Sports and Civic Center here. President Benigno Aquino III will grace the occasion.

First-timer wins roast pig cook-off

DAGUPAN CITY -- A resident of Barangay Bonuan Gueset here bested 29 other participants to win the championship crown during Tuesday's Dagupan's Best Special Lechon Cook-Off.

Melchor Corpuz, head of the Hotel and Restaurant Management Department of STI College-Dagupan, pocketed the P50,000 cash prize for coming up with the best lechon (roast pig) recipe during the competition.

Dagupan mayor to negotiate sale of McAdore property

DAGUPAN CITY -- The McAdore property acquired by the City Government from the Assets Privatization Trust will soon be up for sale.   The City Council convened for special session and passed a resolution authorizing Mayor Benjamin Lim to negotiate for the sale of the McAdore property and a piece of land owned by the City located at nearby Calasiao town.

30 contestants to compete in Dagupan's lechon cook-off

DAGUPAN CITY -- After contestants in the Bb. Bilbilin Dagupan, Little Miss Dagupan, Bikini Open and Miss Gay ramped and paraded on stage, 30 special lechons will take center stage this time.   Thirty lechoneros will showcase their expertise Tuesday in the Bangus Festival event dubbed "Dagupan's Best Special Lechon Open Cook-Off."

Fisheries bureau releases golden milkfish

DAGUPAN CITY -- The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) released to a pond the golden milkfish (bangus) turned over to it by a fisherman.

BFAR-National Integrated Fisheries Technology and Development Center (NIFTDC) chief Westly Rosario said the golden milkfish was transferred to the fishpond inside the research center.

Aquino to grace Palaro opening

LINGAYEN -- President Benigno Aquino III will be present at the opening ceremonies of the 2012 Palarong Pambansa to be hosted by the province of Pangasinan.   He will be the guest of honor and speaker during the May 7 opening ceremonies to be held at the Narciso Ramos Sports and Civic Center here.

Election recall vs Bani town officials stopped

CALASIAO -- All election recall proceedings all over the country has been stopped by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) en banc due to budgetary and time constraints.

In effect, the petition for the recall filed last year against Bani Vice Mayor Filipina Rivera and her allies in the Municipal Council, namely, Councilors Cothera Gwen Yamamoto, Ruben Ampler, Rosalindan Acenas and Tamerlane Olores is put to naught.

Pangasinan schedules summer events

DAGUPAN CITY -- Big events will be happening this summer in different areas in Pangasinan.

The town of Bayambang will practically open the festivities with the celebration of its annual fiesta with its own Malangsi Fish-tival as highlight.

Police change of command ceremony cancelled

LINGAYEN -- The ceremony set for the turnover of the Pangasinan police provincial director post was cancelled Monday afternoon.

Governor Amado Espino Jr. said he only learned about the scheduled turnover ceremony Sunday evening. The media learned about it in a press conference Monday morning.

Ex-Central Bank governor leads Asna awardees

LINGAYEN -- Seven Pangasinenses who had made a mark and great contribution to humanity will be accorded the greatest reverence by their very own province on April 11 through the Asna Awards.   It will also be the third year celebration of Agew na Pangasinan (Pangasinan Day), which will be on April 5. The activities and celebration, however, were moved to April 11 as April 5 falls on Holy Week.

Murder suspect falls after 10 years of hiding

LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – After a decade of hiding for killing his own cousin, one of the top most wanted persons in Ilocos Region was finally arrested by elements of Pangasinan Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) at his hideout in Caloocan City recently.

Police Provincial Director Modesto Carrera said the suspect, Efren Respicio Madalipay, 35, native of Badoc, Ilocos Norte, had a P140,000 bounty from the Department of the Interior and Local Government.

Guv condemns killing of ex-Lingayen vice mayor, wife

LINGAYEN -- Governor Amado Espino Jr. has condemned the gruesome killing of former Lingayen vice mayor Ramon Arcinue and wife Sorahayda by a lone gunman in Sampaloc, Manila last Wednesday.

“The slaying of the Arcinue couple is condemnable in the highest degree and is a direct and despicable assault on civil society," Provincial Administrator Rafael Baraan said, quoting the Pangasinan governor.

Red tide scare mars Gali-la Hundred Islands Festival

ALAMINOS City will celebrate the Gali-la Hundred Islands Festival in March sans the street grilling of talaba or oyster, which was introduced several years ago.

For several weeks now, the rivers of nearby Anda, Bolinao and Bani had been affected with red tide based on the shellfish alert earlier issued by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR).

93 sacks of shellfishes seized in Pangasinan town

DAGUPAN CITY -- Authorities intercepted 93 sacks of oysters, mussels and another shellfish locally known as "batutoy" from red tide affected Bolinao town.

The latest confiscation came a week after more than 30 sacks of oysters were confiscated from vendors, the composite team City Agriculture Office and the River and Coastal Protection Management Office.

4 dead, 13 injured in vehicle collision

ROSALES -- A multiple vehicle collision Friday afternoon along the busy national highway at Barangay Carmen killed four and injured 13.

Rosales Police Chief Inspector Jackson Seguin said the vehicles involved were three trucks, three tricycles, two motorcycles and an owner-type jeep. The accident happened around 1:30 p.m.

Pangasinan reaps awards from regional development council

SAN FERNANDO CITY, La Union -- The Regional Development Council conferred five major awards on Environment and Local Governance to the province of Pangasinan.

During the Performance Awards Day recently, Pangasinan emerged as champion in six areas, namely: Best Local Government Unit (LGU), Best Practices for its massive river clean-up and dredging operations (under its program Ilog Ko, Aroen Ko, Bilayen Ko), Best Performing LGU Based on Local Governance Performance Monitoring System (LGPMS), Best LGU Poverty Reduction Program Implementer, Best LGU Millennium Development Goal (MDG) Project Implementer and Best Project Implementer.

Nacionalista formulates policies for Aquino

DAGUPAN CITY -- The Nacionalista Party (NP) is in the process of formulating policies that it plans to propose to the Aquino administration.

The policies will cover poverty reduction, peace and order, and education program.

Plastic utensils, Styrofoam banned in Palarong Pambansa

PLASTIC plates, cups, spoons, forks, styrofoam utensils, and other non-biodegradable materials will be banned in this year's Palarong Pambansa, which will be held in Pangasinan.

"Pangasinan’s hosting of Palarong Pambansa 2012 will become the benchmark for the next Palaro and thereafter," said Governor Amado Espino Jr., as the Provincial Government steps up preparations for the Philippines' summer national games.

Education officials to meet in Pangasinan

LINGAYEN, Pangasinan -- About 70 officials from the Department of Education (Deped) central office in Manila, including directors from 17 regions, are in the province for the three-day Palarong Pambansa 2012 management committee meeting.

Pangasinan is hosting the national sports event for the second time since 1995, the only province to do so. Governor Amado Espino Jr., then the police provincial director, was the Palarong Pambansa 1995 task force commander.

Frustrated murder charge filed vs village chief’s attackers

DAGUPAN CITY, Pangasinan -- Two suspects were charged with frustrated murder Wednesday morning after they supposedly attempted to kill a barangay captain from San Fabian town last January 25.

Dave and Roldan Veloria were riding in tandem in a motorcycle when they allegedly shot Recto Orjeda several times.

Big-time drug pusher falls

URDANETA CITY, Pangasinan -- An alleged big-time drug pusher, listed in the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA)-Ilocos’s target list, was captured in a buy-bust operation Wednesday morning.

PDEA-Pangasinan Chief Sharon Ominga identified the suspect as Isidoro Tira alias Chris Tira, a resident of Barangay Poblacion, this city.

Pangasinan bridge to be closed to traffic

CALASIAO -- The 50-year-old Villamil bridge in this town will be permanently closed to motor vehicle traffic effective Monday noon.

The closure of the bridge was announced last week by project engineer Sofronio delos Santos and health and safety engineer Marino Estrella of the Foundation Specialist Inc., contractor of the new bridge.