Tirona installed as Caceres’ 4th archbishop

NAGA City, Nov. 17, 2012―Archbishop Rolando Joven Tria Tirona, OCD was installed November 14 as fourth archbishop of the Archdiocese of Caceres in a two hour solemn liturgical rites.

Tirona succeeded Dominican Archbishop Leonardo Zamora Legaspi who served as metropolitan bishop of Caceres for 28 years.

Caceres new Archbishop Rolando Tria-Tirona kisses the crucifix during the liturgical reception at the Holy Cross Parish in Tabuco, Naga City.

The new prelate called on the clergy, religious and laymen and women to further help in making the local church responsive to the needs of the times.

He also expressed his thanks to the “best clergy” he ever knew, the clergy from the Prelature of Infanta, drawing loud applause from the congregation.

The 66-year old Tirona served as Prelate of Infanta, which has the northern portion of Quezon Province and the whole Province of Aurora as territory.

Around 700 to 800 priests and laymen and women from Infanta joined Tirona to Naga City.

The prelate also acknowledged the presence of his predecessor in Infanta, 86-year old Bishop Emeritus Julio Xavier Labayen, a fellow Carmelite.

Acknowledging his new flock, Tirona also quipped “From today, the best clergy I know comes the Archdiocese of Caceres” to the louder applause from the Bicolano priests and the congregation in attendance.

The Archdiocese of Caceres has over 80 parishes with less than 300 priests serving over a million Catholics.  The average annual ordinandi for the ecclesial province is four deacons.

The provincial government of Camarines and the Naga City government passed resolutions expressing their sincere appreciation for the service rendered to the archdiocese by Caceres Archbishop Emeritus Leonardo Z. Legaspi as its spiritual leader.

The Papal Nuncio Archbishop Giuseppe Pinto wished the new Caceres archbishop well even as he thanked Archbishop Legaspi for his successful ministry in the ecclesial province for nearly three decades.  He also wished Archbishop Legaspi the best of health.

Aside from the Papal nuncio, other archbishops who concelebrated with Archbishop Tirona were Manila Archbishop Emeritus Gaudencio B. Cardinal Rosales, Manila Archbishop and Cardinal-Designate Luis Antonio G. Tagle, CBCP president and Cebu Archbishop Jose S. Palma and Caceres Archbishop Emeritus Leonardo Z. Legaspi.

About 30 other bishops, mostly from Luzon and the Visayas attended the two-hour installation rites with hundreds of priests from the Dioceses of Daet, Libmanan, Legazpi, Sorsogon, Masbate, Catanduanes, Malolos and the Prelature of Infanta. (Melo M. Acuna/CBCPNews)

Legarda Supports IMF Chief’s Call for Inclusive Growth to Reduce Poverty

MANILA, November 17, 2012-Senator Loren Legarda today agreed with the statement of International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Christine Lagarde that the Philippines should ensure inclusive growth, especially through support for rural enterprises, to reduce poverty.

Legarda, author of several laws that support rural livelihoods, noted Lagarde’s observation that despite the positive economic growth in the country, 42% of the Philippine population is still poor, living on a budget of less than two dollars a day, primarily because growth is felt mostly only by the rich and the middle class.

“Our country is experiencing positive economic growth as attested to by no less than Ms. Christine Lagarde, the Managing Director of the IMF. What we should also focus on is spreading the wealth. Ms. Lagarde said that inclusive growth can be attained if rural enterprises are supported. We have to ensure that the benefits of our economic gains will trickle down even to the far-flung barangays in the country. We have to make our laws work to be successful on that,” she said.

In line with this, the Senator called for the full implementation of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Act (RA 9501), the Barangay Kabuhayan Act (RA 9509), and the Agri-Agra Reform Credit Act (RA 10000), which she all authored.

“We must invest heavily in the countryside, stimulating growth of MSMEs that will provide more employment opportunities. Training programs should be established in barangays to encourage people to engage in self-employment alternatives. Furthermore, we should extend adequate technical and financial support to our farmers and fisherfolk. Government agencies, such as the Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Labor and Employment, and the Department of Agriculture, must coordinate well in implementing our laws on rural enterprises,” Legarda stressed.

The MSME Law strengthens and provides more assistance to MSMEs by requiring lending institutions to allocate at least eight percent of their total loan portfolio to micro and small businesses. It also provides access to new technologies and regular entrepreneurship training programs for workers as well as a comprehensive development plan that would ensure the viability and growth of MSMEs in the country.

The Barangay Kabuhayan Act establishes livelihood and skills training centers in the fourth, fifth and sixth class municipalities in the country.

The Agri-Agra Law requires banks to allocate 25% of their loanable funds to the agriculture sector to finance the acquisition of work animals, farm equipment or machinery, seeds, fertilizers, livestock, feeds and/or other similar items for farm production.  Of the 25%, 10% should be given to agrarian reform beneficiaries and 15% to the agriculture sector.