A seven-year-old girl was sexually molested by her alleged drug addict father in their house in Suterville last Sunday morning.

The suspect is now the subject of police manhunt after he fled committing the dastardly act.

Mayor Celso Lobregat yesterday welcomed the move of President Arroyo to construct a national road connecting Zamboanga City to the province of Zamboanga del Norte.

This after the president released funds of P30 million intended for the proposed highway from the city''s west coast to Sibuco in Zamboanga del Norte.

The 5th ARMM Business Congress registered an early success when it opened in Lamitan, Basilan yesterday.

As early as 10:00 in the morning, a business matching took place between Mr. Emmanuel Ching of Crystal Rubber Manufacturing Corporation, a Manila-based manufacturer of elastic threads and tapes, and the Sta. Clara Agrarian Reform Integrated Development Cooperative, one of the rubber extract producers in Lamitan. The cooperative was represented by Chairman Pol Cabasag

Two suspected holduppers were arrested during a police follow-up operation after they held up and robbed a man of P1,000 along P. Lorenzo St., at dawn yesterday.

A police report identified the suspects as Cesar Muin and Hamja Hajirul, both residents of Kasalamatan Village.

Now is the right time to change the Constitution in favor of a shift from presidential to parliamentary form of government, according to lawyer Councilor Kim Elago.

The councilor said he favors Charter change but the proper and only acceptable way to change the present 1987 constitution is through constitutional convention.

The final negotiation for the acquisition of the property that would house the bus terminal is about to be completed.

Mayor Celso L. Lobregat said there are only three properties in the Divisoria-Boalan area that the city is considering for purchase consisting of between three to five hectares.

Because of the deteriorating traffic situation here, the city government sees the importance to augment the present number of the traffic enforcers.

During yesterday''s press conference at City Hall, Mayor Celso Lobregat said he planned to hire additional traffic aides to be assigned in the different streets, especially in intersections to help police traffic officers in manning the traffic.

Unintended and unplanned pregnancies that may lead to deaths or disabilities from complications due to unsafe abortions, pregnancy and childbirth may increase with the plan of some sectors to ban all Intra Uterine Devices or IUD.

The Abay Pamilya Foundation, an ultraconservative Catholic and party-list group, together with four other anti-family planning groups submitted last October 7, 2005, a petition to the Department of Health to ban, delist and prohibit importations of all forms of IUD and to oppose the renewal of the registration of Mirena Intrauterine system. Banning IUDs may have negative implications.

The government''s strategy in fighting insurgency encompasses various initiatives like the implementation of infrastructure projects, medical and civic actions and extension of other vital services.

In addressing the threat of the communist insurgency, the government emphasized that it will not resort to using force and violence but a combination of security operations directed at armed adversaries, development directed at poor communities and governance initiatives at the local governments.

Every time tree planting is concerned it is always at Abong-Abong, Pasonanca. This noble project of greening the city has started way back in the early eighties when it was a requirement for graduation or government employees or offices should plant a tree and a certificate of tree planting is issued. Tree planting is also part of the itinerary of visitors in the city, like basketball stars, visiting dignitaries and high government officials and the tree planting is always in Abong-Abong. Schools and universities plant trees in that area as part of its project to help the government in her planting activities. If those trees grew, Abong-Abong should have been a jungle by now but where are those trees?

*

The truth hurts sometime. And hurts all the more, if the unadulterated truth has been divulged by a hold-no-punches, no- nonsense journalist, in a widely read, highly respected balanced daily in town.

*

Tragedy struck the Sangali Fish Port yesterday when five of its workers died of electrocution in what police said as a rare freak accident.

It was a quiet Sunday morning when port workers were tasked to empty and clean a deep well using a booster pump. The task was being carried out mainly by pumphouse operators Jaime Lagrete, Bonifacio Osal and Sergio Arcoy.

At least 6,000 people were mobilized to plant trees yesterday as the city marked its first "Dia de Siembrada" to highlight the World Arbor Day celebration.

About 13 schools and 45 private and government institutions and organizations joined the biggest tree-planting advocacy in the city.

Pandemonium broke loose after seven drunk men harassed the picnickers and vendors at the Cawa-Cawa beach during the celebration of St. John the Baptist last Saturday.

Anita Ambrocio, 58, married, a balut vendor and a resident of Recodo, told police investigators that her 40 pieces of balut worth P480 were destroyed by the seven men.

Lamitan seems to find its place in the sun and is fast changing as an obscure town of depredations, the worst to hit it was the two-day siege by the dreaded Abu Sayyaf led by Abu Sabaya whose real name is Aldam Tilao some four years past.

Under the new dynamic leadership of a young hizzoner, Roderick Herrera Furigay, the traumatic experience of that siege is over as limbs and lives are back to normal.