The Civil Service Commission (CSC) will be conducting the 2nd Career Service Professional and SubProfessional written examinations for this year on October 18. Application period will run from May 25 to September 3.

Last May 3, more than 180,000 took the Career Service Examination Paper-and-Pencil Test. Passing the CSE is one of the basic requirements in applying for a position in government.  The CSE ensures that only competent and credible workers enter the public service.

The examinations are open to individuals, regardless of educational attainment, who are Filipino citizens including those holding dual citizenship, at least 18 years old at the time of filing of application, and have not taken the same level of examination within three months before the date of examination.

Applications should be filed in person at the CSC Regional Office (CSCRO), or at any of the concerned CSCRO’s Field Offices, where the applicant intends to take the examination. The CSC, though, has warned that acceptance of applications may be closed at any time before Sept. 3, 2015 once the CSC Regional/Field Office has reached the target number of applicants. Examination fee for both levels of CSE-PPT is P500.

Applicants are advised to access the CSC website www.csc.gov.ph and look for the 2015 CSE-PPT Examination Announcement, for details on testing centers, qualifications, application requirements and procedures, and other relevant information.

THE Bohol Paddlers’ Association (BPA) Team A ruled the 200-meter Dragon boat exhibition matches last Saturday at the Polambato Wharf in Bogo City.

BPA-A won the exhibition match in 50.84 seconds, beating Team Bogo (52.07) in the finals. Cebu City’s Grupo Habagat failed to make the finals after losing the semifinals to Bogo, finishing in 55.88 seconds to Bogo’s 54.33.

Retired General Carlos Holganza, founder of the Cebu Dragon Boat Association (CBDA), expressed his satisfaction with the successful event.

“I am happy how the event turned out. I can see that there is more interest now,” said Holganza. Four teams joined the event, including two squads from BPA.

Holganza said they plan to hold another friendly dragon boat competition two months from now in Southern Cebu.

“We will be discussing our plans with the Cebu Provincial Sports Commission (CPSC). We could possibly hold it at SRP Talisay City,” said Randy Su, Habagat Outdoor Equipment proprietor and the co-founder of CBDA.

CBDA hopes that by the end of the year, they can already set regular competitions. 

Read full story here. 

Published in the Sun.Star Cebu newspaper on May 25, 2015.

(PNA) -- The first-ever dragon boat race in Cebu will be held on May 23 in Bogo City, Northern Cebu.

“We have been planning about this a long time ago already,” said Randy Su, a commissioner of the Cebu Provincial Sports Commission (CPSC) in an interview here with the Philippine News Agency Saturday night.

“This is one of our alternative sports program,” said Su, president of the Habagat Outdoor Equipment and organizer of the Carera Habagat Adventure Race.

Local paddlers and would-be paddlers in Cebu were also invited to first join the two-day basic dragon boat clinic on May 21-22.

The clinic will be conducted by a national coach from Manila and from the Philippine Dragon Boat Federation.

“We also have invited two dragon boat teams from Bohol to play for exhibition races on May 23,” said Su, also a kayaker and mountaineer.

The dragon boat event is part of the Bogo City’s fiesta celebration which will also have its annual bacarera race.

“We have lots of potential dragon boat paddlers especially in the municipalities and provinces of Cebu,” Su added.

CPSC is planning to buy two units of 10-satr dragon boats, which will be used for the training of CPSC’s dragon boat teams.

Each unit, which will cost PHP150,000, will be made by a Bohol-based manufacturer.

"We also want to hold an international dragon boat race here in Cebu soon,” Su said. (PNA) FFC/LCM/LOLITO T. DELOS REYES/LDP

POLICE arrested two suspected members of a big-time robbery group in a drug bust in Barangay Banban, Bogo City last Tuesday night.

The team led by Chief Insp. Richard Oliver, the city police officer-in-charge, caught Franklin Booc Araneta, 30; and Naice Velez Oporto, 34, at 8 p.m.

Araneta and Oporto were allegedly cohorts of Joel Sumabong, who was charged in court for allegedly leading a bank robbery in Bogo City in 2005 but was eventually acquitted.

Sumabong was arrested by the intelligence operatives of Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) in a buy-bust last January.

“We are checking if they are involved in some past shooting and robbery incidents in Bogo City,” said Oliver in Cebuano in a phone interview.

The suspects are level two drug pushers for they can allegedly dispose of 200 grams of illegal drugs per week.

Click here to read full story.

CEBU CITY, January 27 (PIA) --- Cement company APO CEMEX today turned over a P2 million school building to the municipality of San Remigio. 

This is a concrete manifestation of a strong public-private partnership, said San Remigio Mayor Mariano Martinez.

Nino Ybanez, San Remigio Information Officer,  said the turn over ceremony was done at the Training Center in Barangay Poblacion.

At the same time, they also held the graduation of 30 San Remigiohanons from the “EXPERTO AKO” Masonry Skills Training.

Ybanez said the 30 residents compose the first batch of the training participants that was purposely under the typhoon Yolanda assistance of Cemex.

But for the formal masonry course, Ybanez said that Cemex and the Technical Education Skills and Development Authority (TESDA) will have to be finalized along with their PESO Manager Antonio Villamor.

Apo Cemex is located in Barangay Tinaan, southern City of Naga.  It was originally called Apo Cement Corporation (APOCEMCO) until it was acquired by Cemex Philippines in 1999.

It is among the largest cement producers in the country. CEMEX Foundation's support for education, environment, and livelihood primarily revolves around the objectives of promoting sustainability and welfare of the community. 

San Remigio was one of the northern towns heavily affected by typhoon Yolanda in 2013.  (rmn/fcc/PIA-Cebu)

source: http://news.pia.gov.ph/article/view/2441422350074/apo-cemex-gives-p2m-school-building-skills-training-to-san-remigio

By Oscar C. Pineda

Tuesday, January 27, 2015

THE municipality of Medellin, Cebu now has two roving nurses tasked to answer house calls and provide medical assistance to senior citizens in its 19 barangays, said Mayor Ricky Ramirez.

Medellin has around 5,000 senior citizens, said Ramirez. The 2010 census placed its population at 50,000.

“Mas nindot ni kay ang di kalakaw murag gi-door-to-door ang pag-atiman nila (This is good because it is like providing a door-to-door service to those senior citizens who can no longer walk),” said 66-year-old Angelina Mangubat, Office of the Senior Citizen Affairs (Osca) president and Barangay Dayhagon secretary.

Ramirez said that the blood pressure and vital signs of the elderly will be regularly checked by the nurses, giving priorities to those who are bedridden and on wheelchairs. He revealed that the nurses will use two motorcycles.

These nurses, who are also called mobile health care workers, are given barangay assignments where they would visit the homes of the elderly from Monday to Friday.

They are also on-call anytime of the day to respond to emergency cases.

Read full story here.

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THE Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) will organize chapters in the City of Bogo and Toledo City this year to help professionalize local business organizations.

It will be like a "Big Brother concept" as CCCI itself will reach out to these organizations. Ma. Teresa Chan, CCCI president, said that this will help the local business chapters become like CCCI so they could become drivers of growth in their own locality. They will also become local extension of the chamber. 

Currently CCCI has a local chapter in Bantayan Islands which is created after super typhoon Yolanda hit the area. 

CCCI planned to have a presence in the northern and southern part of Cebu Province so that local business organizations can benefit and participate in the private-public partnership (PPP) which can help achieve economic goals in the locality. 

Sunstar reported that CCCI will be assisted by the NGO “WECan” in institutionalizing the formation of cluster business chambers in the countryside.

SunStar:

Bogo and Toledo cities have huge potential to become economic drivers of Cebu province, she said.

Bogo, which is located 101 kilometers north of Cebu City, has the potential to become a local transshipment hub to other provinces.

Early last year, the Cebu Provincial Government and the Bogo City Government announced it will jointly develop the Polambato Wharf in northern Cebu where 40 hectares of flatlands have been declared a part of a special economic zone.

According to a Philippine News Agency report, Bogo City Mayor Celestino Martinez Jr. said locators have expressed interest to locate at the proposed industrial site and are looking for a port for the shipment of cargoes.

The area is said to be ideal for light to medium industries and sets an advantage because of its immediate access to the port of Polambato and the major road networks of the province.

Click here to read full article.

By Lawrence Agcaoili (The Philippine Star) | Updated January 15, 2015 - 12:00am

...

Cebuanos can go to San Vicente Parish Church in Bogo, San Juan Nepomuceno Parish Church in San Remigio and the Cebu Cathedral.

The St. Joseph the Worker Parish in Tagbilaran, Bohol and the Parish of the Most Holy Rosary Church in Estancia, Iloilo will also establish viewing site for their communities.

Click here to read full article.