Congratulations to the new president of the Catanduanes State University, Dr. Gemma Arcilla Guerrero-Acedo!
As expected after the gubernatorial victory of former Pres. Patrick Alain T. Azanza, the prohibitive favorite earned the nod of majority of the members of the Board of Regents (BOR).
Her ascendance to the top post of the island’s premier higher educational institution, something she probably never dreamed of decades earlier, ensures that the governor will have a reliable partner in realizing his vision of hope for both the province and the HEI.
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Converge CEO Dennis Uy’s promise of expanding his company’s fiber optic network to the island is certainly doable within the year.
Its Catanduanes expansion is part of its plan to increase its subscriber count to four million by 2025 by placing more fiber lines in third- and fourth-class municipalities.
A news item indicated recently that Converge is raising its capital expenditures to at least P20 billion, with P12 billion allotted for infrastructure expansion.
Like telecoms giant PLDT, it has invested heavily in hardening and disaster-proofing its network by putting the cables underground so it would not be affected by the frequent typhoons in Bicol.
Once it completes the undersea connection, Converge will have to work double time if it wants to corner a sizeable number of subscribers in the province.
According to a knowledgeable source, PLDT already has 90 percent coverage in Virac and San Andres, with just the hinterland barangays without internet coverage.
In Bato, San Miguel, Gigmoto and Baras, its service coverage in the barangays is at least 80 percent.
Most likely, its fiber optic network will complete the island’s loop by next year, with the company probably starting its northern expansion in Caramoran town where there is a large potential subscriber base.
Once it begins work on this section, its services would soon be available in the other towns of Pandan, Bagamanoc, Panganiban and Viga.
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Anent the local coconut industry, the area planted to coconut in Catanduanes has more or less remained stagnant since 2018, stuck at 15,800 hectares for seven years now.
Production of mature coconuts has likewise declined by nine percent to just 3,700 metric tons in 2023.
Statistics from the PSA show that super typhoon Rolly inflicted considerable damage on the coconut industry in late 2020, with production of mature coconuts falling by 30 percent.
With howler “Pepito” thrashing coconut trees in the north late last year, expect production to fall again in 2025.
The PCA website shows Catanduanes with the highest price of whole nuts at P20 per kilogram as of July 16, 2025.
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Our gratitude to the few who remembered the birth anniversary of the late Tribune founder Fredeswindo T. Gianan Sr. last Monday, July 21, 2025, and offered prayers for his eternal repose. He would have been 89 had he not succumbed to pancreatic cancer in 2000.
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THE ANNUAL CHECKUP. An old man goes to the doctor for his annual head-to-toe checkup.
The doctor comes in with a folder full of test results and says, “I’ve got two major concerns.” The old man says, “Ok, doc, let’s hear it.” Doctor says, “Well, as you know we ran a full body MRI, and we discovered that most of your major organs are riddled with cancer.”
“Oh no!” the old man exclaims. “And there’s more?”
The doctor says, “Unfortunately, yes. With your age and lifestyle, you’re also showing pretty advanced signs of Alzheimer’s.”
The old man says, “Wow. That’s a lot to take in. But at least it’s not cancer.”