Ifugao to press on with
preservationof rice terraces
BANAUE, Ifugao. — An annoyed Gov. Teodoro Baguilat said talks
of dropping the Banaue Rice Terraces from the list of world heritage sites of
the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco)
due to their decline is not helping any, but they will continue with
preservation efforts even if the de-listing happens.
"The province will not die if we are de-listed," he said. "We
are taking steps to preserve it and we are doing our best. Give us the resources
to preserve it and allow us to plan, because some do not comprehend our
situation here."
Ifugao has four major rice terraces and the Unesco had
included all of them in the world heritage list in 1995, the first to be
inscribed as a continuing living cultural landscape. The century-old terraces,
however, has suffered a decline in aesthetic appeal due to time, giant
earthworms, and man.
Baguilat is set to meet with Unesco secretary general,
Preciosa Soliven today to have what he called a "leveling off, presenting what
can be done realistically to the terraces.
"I want to present an activity-oriented action plan and show
what we are all doing to save our heritage. If they de-list us, we will still
continue to preserve it and it will still be ours," Baguilat said.
Among the measures currently being undertaken to save what is
left of the terraces are the implementation of a land use zoning plan,
strengthening of the terrace walls and an irrigation program.
Two years ago, President Arroyo ordered the relocation of
what she tagged as "squatters" in the famous terraces to preserve the site.
Baguilat, however, said it was a mistake. "They are not
squatters; that is their ancestral land, it is their property, and they will
stay," he said. He added that the settlers can do whatever they want with their
land. "The most we can do is tell them not to use GI sheets as their roofs and
try to be more tourist-oriented."
Baguilat stressed that he will not sacrifice the land of the settlers along
the terraces to satisfy the need for aesthetic appeal for the benefit of local
and foreign tourists. – Maria Elena Catajan
FUSE head supports
Grade 7, 5th year in high school
SORSOGON Rep. Salvador Escudero III said he will endorse the
extension of formal basic education from 10 to 12 years provided it will be in
consonance with a shortened stay for students in college.
The plan seeks to establish a Grade 7 in the elementary level
and a 5th year in high school.
"While it is true we have a very short basic education
curriculum, we have also one of the longest tertiary curriculum. It is not the
length of time students remain in school, but it is the quality of teachers,
facilities, the ratio between teachers and students that matter most," Escudero
said.
Escudero is also president of the Foundation for Upgrading
the Standard of Education (FUSE) whose advocacy is the improvement of teachers’
skills.
The Philippines is the only country in the Asia-Pacific
region with 10 years of basic education [6 in elementary and 4 in high school].
Singapore and Brunei have 13 years of basic education; Malaysia, Thailand,
Cambodia, Indonesia, Vietnam have 12 years; and Laos and Myanmar have 11 years.
"In my six years as chairman of the education commission in
the 8th, 9th and 10th Congress, there were so many bills proposing such
extension," Escudero said. "We should not look at basic education in isolation.
While it is true we have a very short basic education curriculum, we also have
one of the longest tertiary curriculum."
The proposals were for a one-year pre-baccalaureate system between high
school and college that would bring the Philippines at par with other countries
and ensure the readiness of high school graduates for tertiary education.
500 kilos of ‘double dead’
meat seized in Pasay
FIVE hundred kilos of suspected "double dead" meat were
seized by officials of Pasay City’s Health Department on Friday.
City veterinarian Dr. Ronaldo Benasor said they intercepted
the hot meat aboard a taxicab at the corner of Primero de Mayo and Taft Avenue
before dawn just as it was about to be delivered to the public market in
Libertad.
The meat reportedly came from Balintawak, Quezon City.
The occupants of the taxi managed to escape, Benasor said.
He said the meat had no seal from the National Meat
Inspection Commission (NMIC), meaning it did not pass through the required
inspection before being sold and delivered to markets. "Upon closer inspection,
the meat had wounds on it, which is a sign that the hogs died of some kind of
disease," he added.
The seized meat was later burned at the local slaughterhouse
to prevent it from getting back to the market.
Last July, Pasay health authorities confiscated about 700
kilos of "tainted" pork meat from one Rex Panganiban, who had been arrested just
days earlier for possession of 300 kilos of more of the same hot meat.
During interrogation, Panganiban said the meat came from Sta. Maria, Bulacan,
which was among the areas being monitored by the Department of Agriculture for
an outbreak of hog cholera virus. – Ashzel Hachero
