By Rachel Magday   NUEVA VIZCAYA, Philippines — Nueva Vizcaya Electric Cooperative (NUVELCO) is aiming to restore electricity across the province by December 12, 2025, following widespread damage from Suoer Typhoon Uwan. NUVELCO General Manager Fredel Salvador said crews are working nonstop and could finish sooner if conditions allow, though some areas remain hard to reach. According to NUVELCO’s latest assessment, roughly 19,000 of the cooperative’s 20,896 poles were affected—many toppled, broken, or otherwise damaged. So far, teams have inspected 2,354 poles, and 177 field personnel are currently deployed on restoration work. Salvador appealed for patience as crews face hazardous conditions. “We ask for your patience, cooperation and prayers as our personnel work around the clock under dangerous conditions to bring power back to every community. NUVELCO will not stop until service is fully restored,” he said. NUVELCO credited Task Force “Kapatid” for helping accelerate repairs. Support has come from several electric cooperatives, including Cagayan I and II, Pampanga II and III, Tarlac I and II, Zambales I, and Marinduque.

By Rachel Magday   NUEVA VIZCAYA, Philippines — Governor Atty. Jose V. Gambito has created “Task Force Uwan” to coordinate and accelerate recovery efforts in areas hit by Super Typhoon Uwan (Fung‑Wong), under Executive Order No. 22, s. 2025. The task force will be chaired by King Webster B. Balaw‑ing, Community Affairs Officer IV and head of the Public Affairs and Information Assistance Division (PAIAD) of the office of the Governor. Members include Provincial Engineer Engr. Jerry A. Tan; Provincial Agriculturist Absalom Rizal D. Baysa; Provincial Health Officer II Dr. Anthony F. Cortez; and Provincial Social Welfare and Development Officer Flordelina C. Granada. The PAIAD of the Governor’s office will serve as the secretariat, providing administrative support and maintaining records. Task Force Uwan will act as the province’s central body for implementing and monitoring post‑disaster rehabilitation. Its mandates include drafting, carrying out, and tracking a Post‑Disaster Rehabilitation Plan; forming committees or technical working groups as needed; mobilizing other offices, agencies, LGUs, and stakeholders; and setting protocols and timelines to meet targets. It may also perform other functions as directed by the governor. The task force must submit quarterly implementation reports and an annual accomplishments report to the governor. Funding will be sourced from the Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund and other provincial funds, subject to existing budgeting, accounting, and auditing rules..    

  By Rachel Magday   NUEVA VIZCAYA, Philippines — The Nueva Vizcaya Provincial Jail (NVPJ) was named Outstanding Provincial Jail in the Philippines for the fourth time during the national convention of the Provincial Wardens Association of the Philippines (PWAP) held in the city of Mati, Davao Oriental from November 11 to 14. SFO4 Carmelo Andarada was likewise recognized for the fourth time as Outstanding Provincial Warden and was elected National President of PWAP during the same gathering. The NVPJ received multiple citations in addition to the Outstanding Provincial Jail award: Best Practice for its implementation of the Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA), Best Livelihood for its inmate livelihood programs, Cleanest Provincial Jail, and Child-Friendly Provincial Jail. Two jail personnel were also honored as Best Provincial Jail Employees — prison guard April Rose Lictawan and casual employee Candice Marie Alagano. The awards were presented during the PWAP national convention, which brought together wardens and jail administrators from across the country to share best practices, recognize exemplary facilities and personnel, and discuss sectoral reforms. The GCTA citation acknowledges NVPJ’s procedures in granting reductions in sentence for eligible inmates who demonstrate good conduct and comply with program requirements, while the livelihood recognition highlighted the facility’s vocational and income-generating programs for persons deprived of liberty (PDLs). Andarada expressed gratitude to PWAP for the recognitions and to Nueva Vizcaya Governor Atty. Jose V. Gambito for sustained support for the jail’s programs and policies, which he credited as instrumental to the awards. As incoming national president of PWAP, Andarada is expected to promote the sharing of proven practices from NVPJ with other provincial jails and to advocate for reforms that prioritize rehabilitation, humane conditions, and reintegration services. Governor Gambito extended his congratulations to the jail and its staff and reiterated his commitment to transforming NVPJ into a rehabilitation and learning center. “As a lawyer, I have observed that some PDLs become more hardened criminals upon release, which is something we want to prevent,” Gambito said. “By converting the provincial jail into a rehabilitation and learning center, we aim to equip PDLs with knowledge and skills that will help them reintegrate into society successfully.”#RMI

By Rachel Magday   NUEVA VIZVAYA, Philippines — The death toll in Nueva Vizcaya from Super Typhoon Uwan rose to four after rescuers on Tuesday morning recovered the body of a 10-year-old boy in Kasibu who was buried by a landslide. The child’s 12-year-old sibling survived the incident in Barangay Alloy. An initial police report said the brothers were asleep when the slope gave way. Responders from the Bureau of Fire Protection, the Philippine National Police and the Kasibu Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office launched a rescue but were able to save only the older child; the younger was declared dead on arrival. Kasibu police said the site was remote, reachable only after about an hour of trekking, with no mobile phone or internet signal. The town remains isolated at all entry and exit points because of multiple landslides, along with downed trees and toppled power poles blocking roads, authorities added. In a separate incident yesterday afternoon, the body of a man in his 30s was recovered in Barangay Maasin, Quezon town, after he was also buried by a landslide, according to the PNP. Police said the victim’s father traced him to a mountain hut where he had gone to secure belongings as the storm neared; when the son failed to return, the father searched the area and found the structure had been buried. Last Monday, authorities reported that 5-year-old twins from Barangay Balangabang in Kayapa died in a landslide at the height of the typhoon.

KAYAPA, Nueva Vizvaya, Philippines — A five-year-old twin boy died, crushed to death by a landslide during the height of Typhoon Uwan in Barangay Balangabang, Kayapa, Nueva Vizcaya, early morning, November 10. According to PMaj. Len Gomultin, chief of Kayapa PNP, they received a report landslide at around 2:30 in the morning where the victims were sleeping with their parents and another sibling when they were suddenly covered by the landslide. The father tried to save his children and brought them to the nearest hospital but the victims were declared dead on arrival. Their parents and another sibling who sustained injuries in the incident were immediately rushed to the nearest hospital. It can be recalled that Super Typhoon Uwan made landfall in the area of ​​Maria Aurora, Aurora at around 9:10 pm on November 9, moving through Nueva Vizcaya, Cordillera to La Union, accompanied by strong winds and torrential rain.  

By Rachel Magday   NUEVA VIZCAYA, Philippines — The Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Region 2, in partnership with the Provincial Local Government Unit (PLGU) of Nueva Vizcaya, distributed checks totaling PHP 2.2 million to 58 former Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) from various towns in the province today under the agency’s Reintegration Program. The release covered livelihood grants ranging from P8,000 to P20,000, as well as medical and bereavement assistance of PHP 5,000 to P20,000 for eligible beneficiaries. The awarding was led by Provincial Board Member Flodemonte S. Gerdan on behalf of Governor Atty. Jose V. Gambito, alongside Alma D. Chavente, head of OWWA Region 2’s Reintegration Unit, and Dolly Rose C. Minas of the Governor’s Office Public Employment Service Division, who oversees the province’s OFW Welfare Center. Chavente commended the provincial government for establishing the OFW Welfare Center, which she noted is the first of its kind in the region and a significant support hub for OFWs in the province. Gerdan reiterated the provincial government’s commitment to OFWs and urged beneficiaries to use the financial assistance wisely to build sustainable livelihoods and avoid the need to work abroad and leave their families. OWWA’s Reintegration Program is a set of initiatives designed to help returning OFWs and their families become productive members of their communities upon their return to the Philippines.

By Rachel Magday   NUEVA VIZCAYA, Philippines — Eleven college students with disabilities in Nueva Vizcaya have received educational assistance from the provincial government through the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office (PSWDO) under its Tulong Dunong Program. The beneficiaries, who study at various tertiary institutions across the province, were personally handed their assistance by Governor Atty. Jose V. Gambito. He commended the students for pursuing higher education despite their disabilities and urged them to complete their degrees. “Finish your studies; that is the key to improving and uplifting your life. When you graduate, come here and apply for a job, and if I am still the governor, you will be given priority for employment,” Gambito said. One beneficiary, Angelo Gabriel Patawig, a political science student at St Mary’s University in Bayombong, expressed gratitude, noting that he has been a regular recipient of the Tulong Dunong educational assistance from his first year until now as a graduating student. He said the support has been a significant help, especially since his parents do not have stable livelihoods. Patawig advised fellow students with disabilities not to be defined by physical limitations: “Do not dwell on our physical limitations. My mindset is that I am normal and can do everything to achieve my dreams.” The Tulong Dunong Program aims to support at least the partial cost of tertiary education, including education-related expenses of its grantees.  

By Rachel Magday   NUEVA VIZCAYA, Philippines — “We reject destructive mining in Nueva Vizcaya because it causes massive excavation, land instability, and exploits local communities,” Saint Mary’s University (SMU) of Bayombong said in a statement posted on its Facebook page. The Catholic university also condemned corruption, calling it “evil in every shape or manner” because it destroys public trust, weakens government offices, and breeds cynicism and hopelessness. SMU linked environmental harm to corrupt practices, saying the misuse of natural resources, mining, and pollution violate ancestral lands and the rights of Indigenous peoples who have long cared for the Watershed Haven of Cagayan Valley in Nueva Vizcaya. The school said its stand follows Catholic teaching, citing Pope Francis’ Laudato si’ and the Bible verse, “God looked at everything he had made, and found it very good” (Genesis 1:31). Issued in communion with the Diocese of Bayombong, the Board of Trustees, the administration, employees, students, and alumni, the statement said SMU will speak out against corruption, oppose destructive mining in the province, work with government leaders and communities on environmental education to promote ethical governance, and carry out sustainable practices to keep governance transparent, protect human rights, and care for the environment for the long term. Saint Mary’s University is a Catholic school in Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya. For almost 100 years, it has served the province and the Cagayan Valley, educating hundreds of thousands of students and graduates. Its mission is to form Christian disciples and to promote a healthy learning environment, human development, and care for creation. The university ended its statement with a prayer to Blessed Virgin Mary for guidance and protection as it works to build communities where love, justice, and peace prevail.

By Rachel Magday   NUEVA VIZCAYA, Philippines — The province of Nueva Vizcaya was recognized as a Regional Winner in the Provincial Category at the 2025 SubayBAYANI Regional Awarding Ceremony held at Meynard’s Resort and Convention Center in Tuguegarao City on October 30. The province was also named a National Finalist, underscoring its continued success in effective and efficient infrastructure governance. Representing the Provincial Government of Nueva Vizcaya at the ceremony were Assistant Provincial Engineer Noel V. Adducul; personnel from the PPDO; Engr. Cesar A. Senteta; Engr. Jophel B. Lacuesta; and Mr. Raffy Ian P. Pagala, who accepted the award on the province’s behalf. The infrastructure project recognized for its sound implementation and results is the upgrading of the Jct. Nat’l–Bua–Bulala–Muta–Macabenga Road in Kasibu— a three-kilometer undertaking with a total budget of P73 million. Implemented in two phases in 2019 and 2020 through the Department of the Interior and Local Government’s Conditional Matching Grant to Provinces (CMGP), the works included concrete paving, stone masonry headwalls and slope protection, metal guardrails, warning and chevron signs, and white thermoplastic pavement markings. According to Provincial Engineer Jerry A. Tan, the entire provincial road section from Brgy. Bua in Kasibu to Brgy. Macabenga in Dupax del Norte was fully concreted in 2022 after the provincial government allocated more than P166 million to complete over 10 kilometers of concrete road, further improving connectivity along the route.   The upgraded roads are already producing measurable economic and social benefits. Farmers in Kasibu and surrounding barangays can now transport produce more quickly and at lower cost to the Nueva Vizcaya Agricultural Terminal (NVAT), reducing spoilage and improving market returns. Residents and students enjoy safer, shorter trips to schools, markets, and health centers, while more reliable public transport and reduced vehicle wear have improved everyday mobility and supported local commerce by shortening travel times between upland communities and town centers. “Our message is simple: infrastructure in Nueva Vizcaya is built right, monitored closely, and meant to serve our people,” Governor Atty. Jose V. Gambito said. “This SubayBAYANI recognition shows that when we follow standards and demand transparency, farmers earn more, students travel safer, and communities thrive.” The SubayBAYANI Awards, the DILG’s flagship recognition program, honors exemplary local governments for excellence in infrastructure delivery and spotlights tangible community gains achieved through sound governance and citizen-centered innovation.