BONGABON, Nueva Ecija—The Central Luzon Media-Citizen Council (CLMCC) and the Central Luzon Media Association (CLMA) launched on Saturday here the “Save Sierra Madre, Save Lives, Save the Future” photo exhibit competition that aims to raise public awareness on the need for a concerted effort to help protect the Sierra Madre mountain ranges from devastation.
Mel Ciriaco, from Nueva Ecija and one of the Immediate Past Presidents of the CLMA-Region 3 led a tree planting activity at the foot of the Sierra Madre mountain in Barangay Labi in this town before the official kick-off of the project.
Central Luzon and adjacent regions have been very blessed because of the protection endowed by the Sierra Madre mountain ranges, the CLMCC and the CLMA said in a statement
In the most recent typhoons in 2024 and in the previous years, the bulk and the peaks of the pristine Sierra Madre that spans the whole of Luzon Island had protected and saved residents from the whips of catastrophes.
Ironically, this very own nature everyone in the region nest as sanctuary, particularly the indigenous people is preyed on by forces, and now faces high risk of devastation. Its forest while shielding the regions from calamities is being denuded and which has been the cause of flash floods and major flooding in the downstream provinces, towns and cities scoring lives, destroying properties and leaving us with an overall economic turmoil due primarily to agricultural and infrastructural damages, the statement also said.
“As Central Luzon journalists, not only through the might of our pen that we can advocate on the plight to save and protect Sierra Madre. Through “Save Sierra Madre, Save Lives, Save the Future” Photo Exhibit/Competition, we, the Central Luzon Media-Citizen Council (CLMCC) and the Central Luzon Media Association (CLMA) reinforce a strong campaign for public’s awareness of the needed protection and preservation of our sacred nature, God’s constant reminder of His love to mankind,” the statement further stated.
The project, according to Carmela Reyes-Estrope, also aims to generate funds for the much-needed upliftment of the professional and accountability capabilities, including the social welfare needs of the media members of the CLMCC and the CLMA including other media people in the region.
CLMCC together with other media-citizen councils in different regions and provinces in the country were established in 2022 through the Philippine Press Institute (PPI) and the International Media Support (IMS). The Media-Citizen Council is aimed to serve as a mediation and conciliation table between media members who are subjects of libel and cyberlibel complaints and the complaining aggrieved parties against their news articles and reports.
Led by Atty. Jo Clemente of Tarlac Integrated Bar of the Philippines (IBP) as CLMCC Chairman of the Board, other key officers of the councils have underwent a one week training for Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) by the Office of the ADR of the Department of Justice in July last year.
The council has as staple members other than the media the legal, who are members of the IBP, business, academe, youth and church and as primary partners, the local government units, the police and the military and other key sectors.
Deng Pangilinan, current president of CLMA Region 3 said the photo competition runs from March 1-June 30, 2025 and is open to all amateur and professional, media and non-media members including students using DSLR, manual or mirrorless camera.
Submission of entries is on July 16-30. The pre-selected winning entries will be displayed in a two-week exhibit from August 16-31 at SM San Fernando. Awarding will be on August 31 at SAM SSAN Fernando.
First prize winner will receive P50,000, second prize P40,000, third prize P30,000, fourth prize P20,000 and fifth prize P10,000 and trophy.
All media members except the organizing committees are disqualified from joining the competition.
Caesar “Bong” Lacson, founding proponent of CLMA said the winning entries will also be featured in similar exhibits in other SM malls in Central and Northern Luzon where Sierra Madre mountain ranges also span.
All interested parties are required to like and follow the social media pages of CLMA and CLMCC to also see the regular updates about the photo exhibit and competition and other activities of the groups.