The Summit started on a high note!
A 99.75% over-all rating in the Gawad Kalasag regional finals and a back-to-back win in the prestigious competition provided the provincial government of Isabela with just the right push as it embarked on its first ever Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Summit held June 24 – 25, 2014.
Some four hundred local chief executives, DRRM experts, policy makers, scientists, AFP, PNP and BFP officials and personnel, rescuers and representatives of the private sector converged at the Governor Faustino N. Dy Session Hall of the Isabela Provincial Capitol for the two-day summit initiated by the Office of Civil Defense Region 2 in partnership with the PDRRMC and DILG – Isabela.
The Summit was aimed at strengthening linkages and harnessing inter-agency cooperation among partners and stakeholders in order to build safer and more resilient communities in the province of Isabela.
In his message before the delegates, Isabela Governor and PDRRMC Chair Faustino Dy III underscored the primordial duty of government to uphold the people’s constitutional right to life and property. “Isinasagawa po natin ang Summit na ito dahil naniniwala po tayo sa kahalagahan ng buhay ng bawat isa sa ating nasasakupan. Hindi natin maatim na mawala o ipagsapalaran ang kahit isang buhay,”he stressed.
It was 0.25 shy of a perfect score but certainly very impressive nonetheless.
The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council of the province of Isabela obtained 99.75% in the 2014 Gawad Kalasag Search for Excellence in Disaster Risk Reduction and Humanitarian Assistance regional finals and was adjudged Best PDRRMC in Region II, thus, earning a berth in the national finals, while affirming its predominance in disaster preparedness in the Cagayan Valley region.
This was disclosed by Office of Civil Defense Regional Director Norma C. Talosig, Chairperson of the Regional Evaluating Committee, in her message before some four hundred participants to the first Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Summit which opened June 24, 2014 at the Gov. Faustino N. Dy Session Hall, Isabela Provincial Capitol.
It was a back-to-back victory for the province, having been given the same honors in 2013 after beating the provinces of Cagayan and Nueva Vizcaya.
When Isabeleños see red, they take to the streets to engage in activities that promote physical development in order to raise precious funds for their favorite charity – the Philippine Red Cross (PRC).
True to form, the province of Isabela, touted as the volunteer capital of the Philippines, raised a total of P1,008,750.00 through the Family Fun Run and the Padyak Isabeleño Fun Bike, two of the highlights in a series of major activities leading to the 158th Founding Anniversary of the Province of Isabela.
Provincial Administrator and PRC Isabela Chapter BOD Chair Noel Manuel Lopez turned over the check representing the proceeds to PRC Chapter Administrator Antonita Asis in simple rites held recently at the Isabela Provincial Capitol.
It was a day of pomp and ceremony.
Finally, after one hundred fifty-eight years, the people of Isabela enthroned Queen Isabella II of Spain in her place of honor in the front and center of the sprawling eight hectare compound of the Isabela Provincial Capitol, the province’s seat of power.
Basking in the glory of the province’s rich cultural heritage and taking great pride in her immense agricultural prowess, the people of Isabela led by Governor Faustino Dy III and Vice Governor Tonypet Albano celebrated the province’s 158th Founding Anniversary, focusing on the theme “Isabela: ang pagsibol ng bagong sentro ng AGRIkultura”.
