Quake sparks panic, traffic
A MAGNITUDE 6.9 earthquake, the strongest recorded in Central Visayas in 90 years, struck Tayasan in Negros Oriental at 11:49 a.m. yesterday.
No major damage and no deaths were reported in Cebu Province. But the official report listed at least seven killed—two of them girls under 12 years...
Rumors of a tsunami hitting downtown Cebu City caused people to panic
FOR several minutes yesterday afternoon, the streets in downtown Cebu City looked like a scene from some disaster movie, with thousands of panic-stricken people running to safety.
At past 2:30 p.m., shortly after Phivolcs lifted the “tsunami alert level 2” status in Cebu, panic and...
Ex-CH consultant to oversee Cosap
CEBU City’s anti-drug office now has a new head after Mayor Michael Rama designated his former consultant, Leonardo Chiu, to take charge of the office and improve its operations.
Rama is not happy with the performance of the Cebu City Office for Substance Abuse Prevention (Cosap) staff...
Smart-PLDT to provide free wifi on parade route
FOR the first time, Sinulog revelers will be able to enjoy access to the Internet in most parts of the grand parade and procession routes, a service that a private company will give to the Cebuanos for free.
With the free Internet access, revelers will be able to update their friends and...
Sinulog’s tab may hit P40 million
CEBU CITY – Be hospitable, be vigilant. These are just some of Mayor Michael Rama’s appeals to the public as Cebu City prepares for the Sinulog 2012 festivities, which will celebrate Cebu as a City of Culture.
In keeping with the festivities’ theme, furniture pieces, couture and other...
Dengue drops in Cebu City to 2 cases per 1T persons
THIRTEEN patients, all of them children, died of dengue fever last year and at least 1,680 others were hospitalized due to the dengue virus.
According to the Dengue Fever Surveillance 2011 Report of the Cebu City Health Department (CHD), the fatalities were aged six months to 13 years old...
Relocate 72 Tejero families displaced by road project
A CEBU City councilor urged Mayor Michael Rama to provide a relocation site for the 72 families who stand to be evicted from the City-owned lot they are occupying in Barangay Tejero.
Councilor Alvin Dizon said the families from Tejero should not be treated differently from the families...
Cruising for bruising
This particular group was practically unheard of decades ago, but since 2008, their number has increased year after year.
Although MSM is only the second leading mode of HIV transmission in Cebu City (the first being heterosexual contact), it was the predominant mode of transmission in 10...
Denial to defiance
CHAD (not his real name) was 18 when he was confined in the hospital for pneumonia. Before that, he had been in and out of the hospital for fever and skin infection, but it took several laboratory tests to find out what his illness was.
After a series of blood tests, doctors learned he...
Christmas blooms in Singapore
IF SANTA were to walk through Singapore’s streets right now, he would feel right at home, with majestic reindeers, sparkling snowflakes, adorned Norfolk pine trees, colorful lights and carolers ready to greet him and every visitor in the city.
It’s Christmas in the tropics once again, and...
City wants to lump Fuente O’s 100th in P18-M celebration
WITH an P18-million proposed budget, organizers of Cebu City’s 75th Charter Day celebration will include activities to celebrate the centennial of the Buhisan Dam and the Fuente Osmeña circle, as suggested by the City Council.
City Hall will again recognize outstanding individuals and...
Cebu budget draft cut by P1.1B
CEBU CITY -- The executive department has revisions of the proposed 2012 budget of the Cebu City Government. For one, the total amount is only between P10.5 billion and P10.775 billion, not the original P11.8 billion.
City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete cut short the second budget...
Rama orders mall construction stopped due to mosque damage
CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama suspended the construction of a portion of a department store in Barangay Mambaling yesterday, and told the developer to correct the deficiencies of the project.
The mayor’s directive came after the administrator of the mosque beside the construction site...
‘Rescue’ of street carolers begins
WORRIED over the children’s safety, the Cebu City Commission for the Welfare and Protection of Children (CCWPC) and the barangays have started “rescuing” carolers, especially those who live in the streets.
The Barangay Council for the Protection of Children (BCPC) and the Department of...
Teeners see bright future after undergoing City’s skills training
POVERTY kept them from going to college, but three teenagers are determined to find decent jobs so they can ease their family’s financial troubles.
Jecil Saromines, Mary Mae Ouano and Teresita Bacus have just learned how to use a high-speed sewing machine and to sew by hand.
Get act together, world firm execs urge Cebu
CEBU CITY -- Local officials in Metro Cebu need to get their acts together and integrate plans if they want to have effective and sustainable solutions to common challenges, including flooding and traffic congestion, experts said.
Members of the IBM Executive Service Corp. (ESC) also...
Lawyer hits City’s workout plan
A LAWYER criticized the plan of the Cebu City Government to use taxpayers’ money for workout sessions in the gym of elected officials instead of extending this to provide essential services and helping displaced “environmental refugees.”
“Please consider the legality and morality of your...
Cebuano OFW’s family doubts it was suicide
GLEN Garcia left to work as a waiter in Malaysia last year after learning that his wife would give birth to twins. He wanted to be able to give them a good life.
Today, the one-year-old twins will see their father for the first time when he arrives in a casket, a month before he would...
City records 20 new HIV cases
TWENTY more Cebu City residents were confirmed to have contracted the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) last month, prompting government doctors to warn drug users against the use of injectable drugs.
Records of the City Health Department’s (CHD) HIV/Aids Detection Unit showed that in...
2 seafarers remember near-death experience
THE moment their vessel leaves port, seafarers brace themselves for a long journey that is constantly threatened by uncertain weather conditions.
But like in most high-risk professions, continuous training, presence of mind and safety precautions help them cope with the hazards of their...
City condo now houses poor students from brgys.
FOR several years after it was built in 1996, the Cebu City Condominium was the subject of numerous state auditor reports for alleged irregularities in its construction and the failure of the City Government to put it to proper use.
City Hall has not been using the building as a housing...
Coast Guard Cebu gets 2 tugboats
THE Philippine Coast Guard Cebu improved its capability with two new tugboats for search and rescue operations, as it welcomed the arrival of a privately owned vessel equipped with devices for firefighting, salvaging and marine pollution control, the first of its kind in Cebu.
Coast Guard...
PDIC to hold forum for LBC’s clients on Friday; CH to help
DEPOSITORS of LBC Development Bank in Cebu City grew impatient yesterday when they could not get any explanation on the status of their accounts and why the bank ended up in receivership.
For some worried depositors, the forum scheduled on Friday yet is too long a wait.
PB secretary’s certification states deal for Balili lot purchase not ratified
THE Provincial Board (PB) authorized Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia to enter into a memorandum of agreement (MOA) for the purchase of the Balili property in the City of Naga, but the legislative body did not ratify the MOA after this was signed.
This was shown in an Aug. 12, 2011...
Cebu City dads draft ordinance for city college
NOT wanting to be left behind by neighboring towns and cities, the Cebu City Council is finalizing the ordinance that will create the Cebu City College, which was first proposed in 2008 yet.
Establishing a community college would not need additional funding, Vice Mayor Joy Augustus Young...
