Blackouts stay for 2-3 hrs

daily in city of Zamboanga

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Blackout schedules are still from two to three hours per day in this city, according to the Vice President Bong Atilano of the Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative-Board of Directors.

In an interview, Atilano said that Zamcelco is still short of nine (9) megawatts per day where in the total requirement per day is 78 megawatts.

PSALMS and the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) are providing the city with only 51 instead of 63 megawatts earlier contracted with the cooperatives.

The 18 megawatts provided by Therma Marine Incorporated (TMI)   brings the supply to a total of about   69 megawatts.

Atilano said that while it is true that cities like Davao City and Cagayan de Oro have no blackout because they have their own standby power.

but in other areas in Mindanao still experience similar blackout like General Santos City.

Atilano said that the two to three hours blackout schedules that reduced from the eight to ten hours

usually occur during the peak hours of the day particularly on the peak load hours from 5 :00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.

Atilano added that it is twice a day depending  which means if blackout  for two to three hours scheduled in the morning  there is no more blackout in the afternoon and evening.

However,  it still depends since blackout schedules are between 10:00 am. To 11:00 p.m. daily, Atilano ended

Lobregat claims Climaco is strongest

bet for Zambo City Mayor in 2013 polls,
Fabian out of “ Man Junto Junto Kita” ?

Mayor Celso L. Lobregat   said on May 7 that Congresswoman Maria Isabelle C. Climaco is the strongest candidate for Mayor in 2013 poll election in this city, in effect leaving out Congressman Erico Basilio Fabian, who since last year has already announced that he is running for mayor.

All three elective officials are of the Laban ng Demokratikong Filipino (LDP) although they sort of parted ways in the May 10, 2010  Election where Climaco joined the Liberal Party in Support of now elected President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III.

In that election, Fabian joined the Nationalista Party and rallied under presidential candidate Manny Villar.

Lobregat did not join any other party in 2010 and did not openly support any presidential candidate. He instead clung on to the LDP plus an added political group called Adelante Zamboanga that is chaired by his brother Joemar.

After that May 10 election, they sort of, allied themselves with the LDP whose battle cry in Zamboanga is “Man junto junto kita” (Let us stay together).

The mayor is serving his last and third term as city’s chief executive and has plans to run for Congress in the May 2013 elections.

He will run for Congress in the district now occupied by Climaco who is serving her second term and open to running for a third term.

In a radio interview,  Lobregat said that  his statement  is not a manifestation of preference and   the result of the consultation conducted last Thursday  between the three of them  Congresswoman Climaco of District I and Congressman Erico Basilio Fabian  of District II .

If Climaco will choose to run for a third term in District I, she will have to confront Lobregat who wants to occupy her position in congress.

With Climaco running for mayor, Lobregat is confident that he will win as representative for District I.

Lobregat said that Climaco has to make an ultimate -final decision to run for mayor of Zamboanga City considering that she is not only representative of district I but also occupies a higher position in government but people are asking her to run.

“The people are asking her to run, “Lobregat said.

On the other hand, another party mate, Congressman Erico Basilio Fabian is on his third term and his only option is to run for mayor in the 2014 local elections.

Unless Fabian decides otherwise (like retiring which he hinted several times), he will be confronting Climaco for the position of Mayor of Zamboanga.

There is also the  possibility of Zamboanga del Norte former Congressman Romeo Jalosjos running also for Mayor of Zamboanga. The Jalosjos family is from Zamboanga City.

Lobregat’s brother, Joemar has already, sort of, announced his candidacy to run for Congressman of District II, since Fabian can.t run for the position anymore.

Last month, Joemar filed for a change of residence, with the Comelec Office,  from district I in the City Proper to Pasobolong in District II where the family manages a mango farm.

While the position of Mayor for Zamboanga in 2013 will be hotly contested, as some political pundits say;  the incumbent mayor  stands to benefit most if the uncumbent congresswoman for District I (Climaco) at his urging decides to run for another position.

And if Joemar wins in District II and Celso wins in District I, the Lobregat family will have effective control of Zamboanga’s link to the Manila government in the next several years.

Food agency urges farmers
to increase rice production


The National Food Authority (NFA) in this city is encouraging local rice farmers to increase their production.

NFA’s records said that last year the city’s farmers produced only 18% percent of the rice that is consumed by the now some 800,000 people in this city.

The remaining 82 perrcent of the city’s rice supply came from neighboring provinces like Zamboanga Del Sur, Zamboanga Sibugay, and as far as General Santos City, Ilo-Ilo, Cotabato and Manila.

NFA provincial Manager Gaudencio Nuega Jr. said, of the city’s 98 barangays, only five of these are into rice production.

Rice-producing barangays include Manicahan, Talisayan, Curuan, San Ramon and Talisayan.
Nuega said, Zamboanga is not a rice-producing city and can be categorized as “critical” area in terms of rice production.

The rice-eating populace of the city consumes some 6,196 bags/sacks of rice per day, and only 15% NFA rice is being supplied by the food authority to the market while 85% are commercial rice, Nuega said.

Rice farmers, farmers ‘cooperatives, bring/sell their milled rice to NFA, and NFA supplies the market.

The city has about 3,000 hectares of flatland suitable for rice production, but only about one fourth of the area is being cultivated for lack of irrigation facilities.

The area called Balinsungay is just about 18 kilometers east of the city proper.

Most of the city’s ricefields in the city have been converted into residential areas.

Some 60 hectares of Riceland at barangay Tulungatung, about 20 kilometers weste of the city proper has been identified for a resettlement site for the homeless in the city.

Despite protestations from the Department of Agrarian Reform, the city government spent over 100 million pesos to fill up about ten hectares of this rice field for a housing project.

A ricefield located at the east end of the Zamboanga International Airport (ZIA) runway is now occupied by a religious group where only grasses grow these days.

Studies have shown that if the entire area can be irrigated, farmers there could have three cropping and harvests in a year, more than enough to supply the needs of the people in this city and with some extra for sale in neighboring islands and provinces.


Money is readily available in Zamboanga for water projects. 


The city has three water fountains costing no less than a total of more than P30 million.


These projects, beautiful to the eyes, throws water to the air, but none of these drops fall on parched ricelands in Zamboanga.