Nation

BY LEANDER C. DOMINGO ILOCOS NORTE: A rare feat for any local government unit (LGU), the Commission on Audit (CoA) gave the Provincial Government of Ilocos Norte (PGIN) the highest degree of audit opinion for 2020. In a letter to Governor Matthew Marcos Manotoc, lawyer Chito Janaban, CoA Region 1 director, said they rendered an “unmodified opinion” on the fairness of presentation of the financial statements for reasons stated in the CoA's Independent Auditor’s Report. In auditing parlance, an unmodified opinion is made by an auditor when financial statements are prepared, in all material respects, in accordance with International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) as well as applicable regulations. Gayfelyn Labayan, CoA audit leader assigned at the PGIN Capitol, said o...

NGCP continues to improve the overall performance of the transmission grid since taking over as the country’s sole transmission service provider in 2009. Among the key indicators in which it continues to outperform is the Frequency of Tripping (FOT) which measures the number of times high-voltage transmission lines tripped or experienced forced outages for every 100 circuit kilometers (ckm).  NGCP’s 2020 performance shows a significant decrease in tripping incidents across all three major island grids.  In Luzon, the number has gone down significantly from 3.985 in 2008 to 0.932 in 2020, marking a 76.6 percent decrease in tripping incidents, Visayas recorded 4.542 to 0.335, a decrease of 92.6 percent and for Mindanao, the number went from 7.951 to 0.504, a decrease of 9...

BY LENDER C. DOMINGO Peter James Icalia Gann CONTRIBUTED PHOTO ILOCOS NORTE (May 20)—A university mentor here has been selected as ambassador of the American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB), an international professional society devoted to the advancement of plant science research and education. Peter James Icalia Gann, an assistant professor of the Mariano Marcos State University (MMSU) College of Agriculture, Food and Sustainable Development (CAFSD) will have a term of two years as ASPB ambassador. Founded in 1924, ASPB promotes the growth and development of plant biology, encourages and publishes research in plant biology, and advances the interests, growth and education of plant scientists in general.  Over the decades, the ASPB has evolved and expanded to provi...

US military personnel with Indo-Pacific Command’s Civil Military Support Element– Philippines and Philippine coastguardsmen work together to unload US COVID-19 PPE donations. US EMBASSY PHOTO MEDICAL clinics, hospitals, rural health units and municipal health offices in four provinces, the National Capital Region (NCR or Metro Manila) and Zamboanga City battling Covid-19 have been allotted P5.7-million worth of personal protective equipment (PPE) and medical supplies by the US military. The supplies included disposable gloves, goggles, face shields, disinfectant sprays and other items to support frontline workers in the provinces of Cagayan, Palawan, Zambales, Sarangani and Zamboanga City and the NCR. “As long-standing allies, we are proud to support the Philippine first responde...