Iloilo City gov't boasts of biz permit release in 20 minutes

By Wenna A. Berondo (The Freeman) Updated November 29, 2011 12:00 AM

ILOILO CITY ,Philippines - Good news for those who want to apply for business permits from the Iloilo City Hall.

Iloilo City Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog said the city government will cut the processing time of applying for business permits from 15 days to only 20 minutes.

"I have made a commitment that from almost 10 months in 2010 to make the processing of business permits to 15 days in 2011. Now, I made a commitment that by 2012, we'll make the processing time of business permits in only 20 minutes," the mayor said.

Mabilog made this announcement during the signing and launching of the partnership project on breastfeeding at a mall in this city over the weekend. This drew applause from the audience, especially the members of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Iloilo Inc.

The mayor also said he wanted to make Iloilo a business-friendly city by addressing the concerns of the investors particularly on flooding, high cost of electricity, lack of water and bureaucratic red tape in the city.

"This is to show how sincere the city government is in improving its service to the public," Mabilog said adding that, under his administration, the city government will continue implementing a lot of "firsts."

He said the new City Hall building at the Plaza Libertad, which is expected to be operational before this year ends, will be the first "green building" of the government.

The air conditioning units in the new City Hall will be solar-powered and it will also have a rainwater harvesting system to collect rainwater that would be used in the toilets of the building. These systems are expected to lower down the electricity and water consumption of the city, he said.

Mabilog further said the new building will have a breastfeeding and child minding center, which is another first in a government building.

The P710 million new City Hall building, which broke ground in February 2010, courted a lot of controversy because of allegations of overpricing, corruption and delay in its construction but these were all denied by city officials. __________________

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Iloilo ang Banwa Ko

"Iloilo ang banwa ko guinahingadlan
matam-is nga pulong ang amon guinmat-an
indi ko ikaw bulagan
banwa kong nahamut-an
ikaw ang guintunaan sang kalipayan

Ilonggo ako nga tunay
nga nagapuyo sa higad sang baybay
manami magkiay-kiay
sa tagipusuon
bug-os ang kalipay."

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Coal plant embarks on P1.5 million Iloilo watershed reforestation project

Iloilo River  @ the Heart of the City

By TARA YAP
November 27, 2011, 6:27pm

ILOILO CITY, Philippines — The 164-megawatt coal-fired power plant owned by the Panay Energy Development Corporation (PEDC) is embarking on a P1.5-million reforestation project at the Jalaur Watershed River Basin.

PEDC, a subsidiary of the Global Business Power Corp. (GBPC), part of the Metrobank Group of Companies, signed a deal with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR 6) for a reforestation program in a 40-hectare area of Bulabog-Putian National Park in the Iloilo towns of Dingle and San Enrique.

GBPC president Arthur Aguilar said it is part of its corporate social responsibility in protecting the environment.

Rene Morente, GBCP assistant vice president for health, service, and safety, disclosed that 1,111 seedlings per hectare will be planted in three years as a means of reducing the coal plant’s carbon emission.

Morente stressed that the coal plant is taking the challenge of implementing the carbon sink project with a long-term goal of sequestering carbon emissions, mitigating the illeffects of climate change, and increasing vegetation condition.

He also said that that the Jalaur Watershed River Basin is PEDC’s chosen beneficiary site as it is located within the only national park in Iloilo province. Meanwhile, a similar environmental program was also launched by GBPC’s 246-megawatt coal-fired power plant in Cebu province.

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Esplanade project kicks off next week

By: Francis Allan L. Angelo

THE P48.44-MILLION Iloilo River Esplanade Project will kick off next week after the architect of the project met with the contractor and Iloilo City government yesterday.

Architect Paolo Alcazaren arrived in the city Wednesday to discuss details of his design with winning bidder Roprim Construction and the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

Roprim won the contract after bidding P38.46 million for the project which is P9.98 million less than the approved budget of P48.44 million.

Alcazaren, who also designed the world renowned Singapore Quay, was tapped by Senator Franklin Drilon to plan out the esplanade which seeks to revive and preserve the Iloilo River.

Drilon has set aside part of his Priority Development Assistance Fund or pork barrel for the project which will expand the Treñas Boulevard, a popular fitness haven in the city.

After the meeting at the DPWH, Alcazaren proceeded to the Iloilo City Hall to meet Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog.

Mabilog said their discussions centered on the design and how the contractor will undertake the project.

Representatives from City Engineer’s Office were also present in the meeting to get a feel of the project.

“Eventually, it is the city government that will manage and maintain the esplanade and there is a need for the city engineer to be involved. We don’t want the project to obstruct certain portions of the boulevard such as the drainage which might pose problems to the esplanade in the future,” Mabilog said.

Mabilog said they are ready to assist Alcazaren and the contractor in the esplanade project.

http://thedailyguardian.net/index.php/local-news/4637-esplanade-project-kicks-off-next-week

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City eyes medium rise buildings for informal settlers

ILOILO CITY, Nov. 9 (PNA) -– The city government is mulling the establishment of medium rise buildings (MRBs) for informal settlers upon the recommendation of Vice President Jejomar Binay.

City Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog said that two lot properties of the city are suitable for such housing projects that will help decongest the number of informal settlers currently living in danger zones such as banks of the rivers and creeks.

Binay suggested to Mabilog the MRB concept which is a practice in Metro Manila to accommodate thousands of informal settlers with an initial funding for socialized housing project coming from the various shelter agencies under the Office of the Vice President.

Binay is currently the country’s housing czar and chairman of the Housing Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) and under him are key shelter agencies such as the National Housing Authority, Social Housing Finance Corporation, Pag-IBIG Home Development Mutual Fund, Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board, and Home Guaranty Corporation.

Mabilog said the Vice President saw the two city properties earmarked for MRBs during his visit here Tuesday. These are the city land property at Brgy. San Pedro, Molo district which was the former site of the new city hall building and the old slaughterhouse site at Barangay South San Jose, Molo.

The city mayor said the sites are suitable for MRBs of four to five stories to accommodate hundreds of informal setter families. The project will also use less land area for medium rise buildings.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=&nid=2&rid=384689

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