NABUNTURAN, Compostela Valley — Consistent with its climate change mitigation programs, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) has stopped accepting and processing of applications for Integrated Forest Management Agreements (SIFMA’s) and other logging contracts with logging component in the natural forests.

Mayor Celso Lobregat and Campo Islam barangay chairman Narzad Sampang talk about the circumstances that led to the fire in the house occupied by the Vasquez family at dawn Sunday in Lower Calarian. - Joey Bautista

Mayor Celso Lobregat poses with the awardees in the fellowship and awards night for the Science Club Advisers of the Philippines Saturday night at the Patio Palmeras. - Joey Bautista

HPG-9 Chief Sr. Supt. Romeo R. Uy gives letter of commendation to Insp. Leopoldo Macalindol, SPO2 Elmer Jaugin, PO2 Bobby Solis and PO2 Gether P. Abo-Abo. Also in photo were SPO4 Nestor Tabuan and Inspector Ceasar Lopera. - Allen Abastillas

Former Sulu Cong. Munir Arbison. - JEM

Today is the special natal day of our charming District 1 Congress Representative Maria Isabelle Garcia Climaco-Salazar. She was recently appointed as the Deputy Speaker for Mindanao. Sharing today with Social Whirl readers are some of the highlights why we should be always be proud of her.

Analysts at Citibank upgraded their forecast for the Philippines gross domestic product (GDP) this year to 6.7 percent after actual growth in the first half accelerated faster than originally expected.

The Board of Directors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) approved a US$ 400 million loan to support the expansion of the Philippines’ conditional cash transfer (CCT) program, known locally as the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).

Ayala National High School has just celebrated its 44th foundation anniversary. The institution has been in existence since September 5, 1966- the birthday of the school. It had been managed by seven different Principals and now it is being administered by Dr. Socorro P. Canaya, the former Principal of Sangali National High School.

A documentary program titled The Correspondents over ABS-CBN featured Barangay San Jose in Antipolo regarding its struggles on meeting the basic demands of Filipinos last July 27 2010. The episode showed how ordinary people live in accordance with the primitive ways of the past with no basic services of water, electricity, communication signals and less access to education and health programs of the government.

MARAWI CITY – Seventy-five out-of-school youth (OSY) from this predominantly Muslim city in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) graduated from short-term scholarships on technical-vocational skills training aimed to increase their employability or access to other livelihood opportunities.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said on Thursday it is supporting the celebration of the National Peace Consciousness Month this September with a kick-off ceremony Friday at the Peace Bell Area in Quezon Memorial Circle, Quezon City.

One of the police investigators in the Luneta Grandstand hostage stand-off told the Incident Investigation and Review Committee (IIRC) on Saturday that he had a chance to subdue hostage taker dismissed Senior Insp. Rolando Mendoza but was prevented from doing so by his superior officer as such practice is not in their protocol.

The Department of Health (DOH) has urged the public to avail of the free H1N1 immunization in public hospitals and clinics on or before Sept. 15, 2010.

Former Health Secretary Jaime Galvez Tan on Sunday urged the government to heighten efforts to research on alternative treatment for the dengue virus whose recorded victims nationwide, children and adults alike, has been rising and expected to reach 80,000 by the end of this year.