A Letter from the Office of the Mayor Ismael V. Tumaru

Dear Mr. Orlando Paragua:

Greetings from the Municipal Government of Aparri!

We appreciate that a fellow Aparriano residing in the US – Mr. Condring F. Rapadas is very much concerned about the conservation of our “gacca”. We are gladly informing Mr. Rapadas that to date, it is still available especially during summer but no longer as abundant as it used to be. This is in two distinct species – big and small.“Gacca” gathering is done through a trap called “tako” drawn along the seashore. The municipal government of Aparri under the able leadership of Mayor Ismael V. Tumaru,M.D. had launched a comprehensive coastal resource management to preserve and protect the marine environment and its resources.

For the information of Aparrianos who are residing elsewhere and abroad, we are happy to inform you that Aparri is now a FIRST CLASS MUNICIPALITY. It has gained national prominence in local governance having been conferred the HALL OF FAME AWARD as Most Outstanding Municipality in the Philippines. Many of its programs and projects are dubbed as “good practices” that can be replicated by other LGUs. The MARENU NGA BEVAY, GAWAGAWAYAN NAT TATOLAY (A Clean Sea, A Healthy Community) program successfully led to the conversion of the notorious seashore of Punta, San Antonio and Maura which was dubbed as the “longest toilet in the world” into a tourist spot and destination. It merited the GALING POOK AWARD as one of the 10 outstanding programs of LGUs in the Philippines. These feats and more were attained under the leadership of the incumbent Mayor Ismael V. Tumaru, M.D.

In order to promote tourism and further boost economic progress and development, construction of the Public Park is on-going. The Aparri Airport was reopened last May 11,2009 for light planes (10 sitters) of Cyclone Airways doing test flights of student pilots. Negotiations for the rebuilding of the seaport (pier) into an international facility are underway. Target is at the end of the year.

Meanwhile, the Municipality of Aparri, Cagayan is also currently negotiating in behalf of the Aparri Water District under General Manager Ramon E. Gorospe for the installation of a sophisticated water system with Chairman Prospero Pichay of the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA).

The facility will be composed of either a Water Clarifier Filtration or Reverse Osmosis System. The former is a machine that purifies water direct from the Apagonan Creek while the latter is a desalination instrument that can purify water from the Cagayan River or from the sea. The project which is in line with the government’s 10-point agenda of adequate potable water supply is intended to both the Eastern and Western barangays of the municipality.

If completed, the water system can generate 4,000 cubic meters of water per day which is the demand of the current population. As of now, the Aparri Water District is catering to 1,360 households with a daily supply of 760 cubic meters. The project which will be implemented in 3 phases costs Php 50M to be funded by LWUA.

These and more are good reasons for every Aparriano to be proud of their beloved hometown.

Alma P. Cadiente-Diaros, Community Affairs Asst. II