Poster launching Mayor Ricarte “Dong” Padilla’s program to replant one million trees across the municipality of Mambulao in three years. Below: Another poster urging Mambulaoans to sponsor tree planting materials for only one peso a seedling. – Photos courtesy of ARTEM ANDAYA, Member, Sangguniang Bayan
MAMBULAO Mayor Ricarte “Dong”
Padilla has partnered online news tunnel MWBuzz in his massive tree-planting
program.
Padilla has engaged the online
news through Percy A Ostonal, MWBuzz marketing and advertising director, and
Alfredo P Hernandez, MWBuzz editor in chief, to raise funds for the production
of planting materials such as bakawan and upland tree species.
The mayor also sought assistance
in the information drive.
Padilla’s invitation was relayed
by Cynthia Canoy, the LGU’s community affairs coordinator, to Ostonal the other
day.
Canoy said in a personal message
that the LGU wishes to partner MWBuzz in its mangrove and forest reforestation
program that seeks to plant one million trees in three years, covering 2,000
hectares across the municipality of Mambulao.
“Patutulong rin po kami sa promotion ng
program among Mambulaoans overseas and elsewhere in the Philippiines.
“And if possible, also along the sponsorship
drive for bakawan seedling propagation to sustain the tree planting exercise.”
In response, Ostonal is
fine-tuning a fundraiser that would involve able Mambulaoans, to be launched
soon.
To kick-start the fundraiser,
MWBuzz has earmarked an initial amount for the production of at least 10,000
bakawan seedlings.
It has also pledged an amount to
pay for 100 young guyabano trees that would be planted by interested high
school students.
Already, a group of Mambulaoans
based in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has also pledge its support and is now
raising the money, while a family foundation has sponsored 5,000 bakawan
seedlings.
Padilla said the municipality has
about 14,000ha of mangrove areas, but only 3,000ha have bakawan.
However, he said 3,000ha would
not be enough to encourage marine life to come back to the mangrove areas to
breed abundantly and use them as their permanent habitat.
“We need to replant and rehabilitate at least
10,000ha to provide a viable place for our marine life to breed and propagate
the species and thus, supply our Mambulao Bay with enough fish in the coming
years … our bay used to be thriving as a fishing ground that sustained the
livelihood of our small fishermen.”
Ostonal said: “MWBuzz is engaging
Mambulaoans with an opportunity to help to support its fundraiser towards the
replanting of our denuded forests and mangrove areas."
Sangguniang Bayan Member Artem
Andaya told MWBuzz it would only cost one peso to grow one bakawan seedling,
which would be ready for transplanting.
Andaya is spearheading the
tree-planting activities.
He thanked Ostonal for MWBuzz’s
offer to the Mambulao LGU to start a fundraiser for the tree planting program
after lauding the online news site’s success in generating donations for the
“Sulong Pangkabuhayan sa Kariton” program launched recently.
MWBuzz, through its
representative, former Mambulao councilor Carlos Taboada, will turn over a
check for P40,000 to Padilla shortly.
The money was raised by
Mambulaoans in the US, Canada, Middle East and elsewhere in the Philippines.
A P2,000 soft-loan would be
extended to qualified indigent households for income generating projects using
a fully-outfitted “kariton” (push cart).
Those who wish to assist MWBuzz
fund drive may send private message (PM) to Ostonal through his Facebook
account “Percy Ostonal” or to Hernandez, through FB account “Alfredo P
Hernandez”.
MWBuzz will coordinate their
donations with Mambulao LGU.
As of today, MWBuzz has raised funds to pay for the growing of 23,000 bakawan seedlings (including 100 guyabano trees)
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