June 17 a holiday to celebrate Eid’l Adha
President Ferdinand Marcos declared June 17 a regular holiday to give way for Muslims to celebrate Eid’l Adha or the “Feast of Sacrifice.”
Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin signed Proclamation 579 declaring the holiday nationwide.
The National Commission on Muslim Filipinos recommended the issuance of Proclamation 579, noting that Eid’l Adha is the second major festival for Muslims after Eid, al-Fitr, which is celebrated after the holy month of Ramadan.
P53.3 million allotted for barangay halls in Lanao Sur
The Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) handed P53.3 million to the Lanao del Sur provincial government for the construction of 20 barangay halls in the province.
Interior and Local Government Secretary Sha Elijah Dumama-Alba handed the check to Lanao del Sur Governor Mamintal Alonto Adiong, saying the village halls are expected to enhance government and community service at the grassroots level.
Alba said the money is the first tranche of a larger allocation for barangay halls under the BARMM General Appropriations Act of 2023.
Lamitan tightens quarantine as African Swine Fever hits Basilan town
Authorities in Lamitan City in Basilan province have tightened the quarantine in and around the city after incidence of African Swine Fever spread early this week.
Lamitan City Mayor Roderick Furigay said the ASF virus has spread to the swine population to nine barangays as of last weekend after blood samples tested in the Regional Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory in Ipil, Zamboanga Sibugay were found positive.
Furigay ordered checkpoints in and around Lamitan City, which has a sizable Christian population, to stop the entry and exit of live pigs and pork meat to contain the spread of the ASF virus.