BusinessMirror September 4, 2015

BusinessMirror

THREETIME ROTARY CLUBB OF MANILA JOURNALISM AWARDEE 2006, 2010, 2012

U.N. MEDIA AWARD 2008

A broader look at today’s business Thursday 18, 2014 Vol.4,102015 No. 40 Vol. 10 No. 330 Friday, September

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PALACE WILL ONLY ENDORSE BILL CUTTING TAX RATES IF ACCOMPANIED BY REVENUEGENERATING MEASURES

‘No piecemeal tax reform’ B B F  J M N.  C

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ALACAÑANG, taking the cue from Finance Secretary Cesar V. Purisima, is unlikely to endorse the passage in Congress of a long-pending bill mandating downward adjustments in individual and corporate income-tax rates.

INSIDE

BECAUSE MERYL STREEP JUST ROCKS The beauty that surrounds us

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EAR God, make us understand that created in Your image and likeness, our first calling is to know, love and serve You. Let us love You because You created us. Let us love ourselves and others with all humility. May we appreciate the beauty that surrounds us. May we be contented with what we have. May we maximize the use of all with our gifts so we can be fruitful not only to ourselves but with others. Let the beauty that surrounds us add to our healthy attitudes to life. Amen.

DAILY PRAYERS, VIRGIE SALAZAR AND LOUIE M. LACSON Word&Life Publications • teacherlouie1965@yahoo.com

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos • lifestylebusinessmirror@gmail.com

Life

Secretar y Edw in Lacierda, President Aquino’s chief spokesman, gave an indication of Malacañang’s position when asked if the Palace would support the awaited approval of the bill being pushed by Sen. Francis G. Escudero with the backing of the House Ways and Means Committee.

Replying through a text message, Lacierda quoted Purisima’s stand that the government “cannot put our fiscal sustainability and credit rating at risk by doing piecemeal

GAB FAB: THE GIRL WITH THE BIG VOICE »D4

BusinessMirror

Friday, September 4, 2015

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Because Meryl Streep just rocks

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ITH three Academy Awards (2012’s The Iron Lady Lady, 1983’s Sophie’s Choice, 1980’s Kramer vs. Kramer Kramer) and 19 Oscar nominations—the most for any actor, male or female—Meryl Streep takes on a whole new gig (as a hard-rocking singer/guitarist) for Oscarwinning director Jonathan Demme and Academy Award-winning screenwriter Diablo Cody in Ricki and the Flash. In an original film loaded with live musical performances, Streep stars as Ricki Rendazzo, a guitar heroine who made a world of mistakes as she followed her dreams of rock ‘n’ roll stardom. Returning home, Ricki gets a shot at redemption and a chance to make things right as she faces the music with her family. Streep stars opposite her real-life daughter Mamie Gummer; Rick Springfield, portraying a Flash member in love with Ricki; Kevin Kline as Ricki’s exhusband; and Audra McDonald as Kline’s new wife.

Ricki and the Flash will be shown exclusively at Ayala Malls Cinemas nationwide starting September 9.

It is interesting that the Ricki character is not that successful as a rock star.

Absolutely. There is more forgiveness in the fact that my character is supposed to be mediocre.

I was immediately enamored with the script for this movie. I sat in a chair and it made me laugh. It was very “felt” and moving and sort of bumpy. It felt honest and it was funny.

Did you ever harbor rock-star dreams when you were younger?

I never harbored rock dreams when I was younger.

When I was in high school I sang with a band a couple of times, at these sort of country farmers granges, but I had no illusions. We played Motown and went down well with the audience—all 13 of them! So I had a little of Ricki’s experience there in that area.

You’ve worked with director Jonathan Demme before, on The Manchurian Candidate.

We worked together on that over 10 years ago and that was a very different experience. It was a remake of a famous film, and it was extremely stylized. My character was fairly straightforward, as a villain, and you’re not interested in all the character’s different dimensions. It’s sort of flat-out Iago evil. But this film had more layers and was a lot more fun to approach. It was our own to invent. It wasn’t coming from any other material.

And Jonathan has a rich connection to music. His Talking Heads film, Stop Making Sense, is seminal.

He’s done amazing things with Neil Young and with Talking Heads; that’s a terrific movie. He really gets it.

That’s his wheelhouse; he loves the music and so do I. I love music. Rick Springfield was maybe the biggest gift that this movie had, and all the guys in the band, Rick Rosas [the bass player] and our drummer, Joe Vitale.

I had heard of Bernie Worrell [the keyboard player]. I knew Rick, of course. Sadly, Rick Rosas passed away after we made this film, and we’ve dedicated it to him.

He was particularly generous to me.

He had played with Neil Young for 30 years and came off Neil’s tour straight into our rehearsals. And I started from zero. I didn’t know anything about anything. We had two weeks to rehearse as a band, and that’s no time

at all, even if you can play the guitar!

Were Rick and the backing band very patient with you?

Oh yeah. I was really at their feet. I was just in love with these guys. I’m sure it was really annoying because I kept apologizing, which is very annoying, but they were very patient. Then there was a moment about a week in when we started sounding like a band. It is like people say with golf—you hit a good shot and then you are in it forever.

Could you play the guitar at all beforehand?

I knew a D chord in college, D, G, E and A. That’s all you need. No, I had to learn bar chords—that’s the real thing—and the blues, all that stuff. We were playing Edgar Winter and really great stuff. I love Bruce Springsteen. We were so lucky to get that song. Bruce doesn’t let stuff go that often, so it was fantastic that he let us have it.

Stepping away from the music, it must have been great to work with Kevin Kline again, and with your daughter, Mamie?

Kevin is wonderful and a really, really great actor.

I’ve known him for so many years and we’ve done a lot together in theater and in film. Have you seen him onstage? He is pretty great. Kevin is a very talented musician himself and I love working with him. He did come up to me on the first day when we were playing in the club, and he said, “You don’t sound bad.” I thought, “Thank you.” That was the highest compliment. He meant that we sounded good. At least, that’s how I took it—as a compliment! And, yes, I got to work with my

daughter, Mamie, as well and that was joyful. I loved doing my scenes with her and I think she’s terrific.

Who chose the music for the movie?

I brought the Bruce Springsteen track. They were looking for something anthemic for that last wedding song. They were looking for original music. Jonathan went to a lot of songwriters but there was nothing. Then I heard this song coming down to work one day on the Bruce Springsteen Channel! We have that on satellite radio—a channel dedicated to Bruce—and when I heard this song I thought it sounded like our story. It was our narrative. I played it for Jonathan and there we were.

Getting it was tough, though, because Bruce doesn’t let that much of his music go.

What about the rest of the music?

For the music we tried to find things that cover bands would play. We went to some cool venues in the San Fernando Valley and listened to some live bands.

Those bands played what the folks want. The people in those places are such an interesting mix. You have some 70-year-olds, and then some hipsters who are there ironically, and everyone is dancing. Everyone is having a great time and the music is real rock ‘n’ roll, which has kind of gone away now that everything has become mainstream. It’s nice to hear the early stuff again and then to play it.

LIFE

How much guitar training did you have before you started rehearsing?

I played for three months. To begin with I started

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UNICEF: 40% SCHOOL DROPOUTS IN MIDDLE EAST CONFLICT AREAS The World BusinessMirror

B2-2 Friday, September 4, 2015

RNC SEEKS WAY TO AVERT THIRD-PARTY RUN OF TRUMP

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ASHINGTON—The Republican National Committee (RNC) on Wednesday challenged every 2016 Republican presidential candidate to sign a pledge not to undertake a third-party bid under any circumstances.

The challenge, confirmed by multiple campaigns, is aimed squarely at Donald Trump.

While he is leading the packed Republican field in early polls, the billionaire businessman has repeatedly threatened to launch a thirdparty bid. That leaves open the possibility that he could leave the party should he fail to claim the Republican presidential nomination.

Such a decision would make it all but impossible for the Republican Party to win the White House in 2016.

The Trump campaign did not respond to questions about the pledge late on Wednesday, although RNC Chairman Reince Priebus is set to meet privately with Trump on Thursday in New York City shortly before Trump addresses reporters.

The meeting was confirmed by an RNC official who wasn’t authorized to discuss the plan publicly and requested anonymity.

In recent days, Trump has hinted he would soon decide whether to rule out a thirdparty bid.

“We’re going to make a decision very soon,” he said on Saturday in Nashville, “and I think a lot of people are going to be very happy.”

Several candidates contacted late on Wednesday confirmed that they would sign the pledge, among them Ohio Gov. John Kasich and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, although few doubted the intentions of the vast majority of the party’s 17 presidential contenders.

The RNC’s pledge asks candidates to promise to “endorse the 2016 Republican presidential nominee regardless of who it is.”

Further, it asks them to pledge “that I will not seek to run as an independent or write-in candidate, nor will I seek or accept the nomination for president of any other party.”

An RNC spokesman declined to comment. AP

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FRENCH FARMERS STAGE 1,500STRONG TRACTOR PROTEST IN PARI P S

PARIS—Hundreds of tractors were descending on Paris on Thursday in a boister boisterous protest by farmers blocking highways to express their anger over falling French food prices and high taxes.

They are protesting increasingly slim margins they blame on cheap imports and high payroll charges, which they say make them unable to compete against Germany, much less Eastern Europe or beyond, and they’re seeking support from the French government and the European Union.

Tractors bearing spray-painted slogans, such as “Our charges are killing us,” moved slowly on Thursday morning along major arteries to the capital, squeezing past tollbooths. They planned to gather at the Place de la Nation in eastern Paris, and some farmers want to head to Parliament. Protest organizer FNSEA, France’s largest farming union, said 1,500 tractors from around the country were planning to take part. AP

JUDGE REFUSES TO DROP CHARGES AGAINST POLICE IN GRAY DEATH

A SYRIAN refugee girl, Zubaida Faisal, 10, skips a rope while she and other children play near their tents at an informal tented settlement near the SSyrian border on the outskirts of Mafraq, Jordan. AP/MUHAMMED MUHEISEN

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MMAN, Jordan—Forty per percent of children from five conflict-scarred Middle Eastern countries are not attending school, the United Nations agency for children said on Thursday, warning that losing this generation will lead to more militancy, migration and a dim future for the region.

An estimated 13.7 million schoolage children from Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Libya and Sudan are not in school, out of a total of 34 million, the United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) said.

The dropout rate could increase to 50 percent in coming months as conflicts intensify, Peter Salama, the agency’s regional chief, told the Associated Press.

“We are on the verge of losing a generation of children in this region,” he said. “We must act now or we will certainly regret the consequences.”

He said Unicef needs an additional $300 million this year to make a

dent in the numbers and give more children access to education. The agency so far has received $140 million, or 40 percent of its 2015 appeal, for the education of displaced Syrians.

Thursday’s report marks the first attempt to show the scope of the regional education crisis, Salama said.

The report said that education is increasingly being disrupted by fighting and the displacement of millions of people.

Close to 9,000 schools in Syria, Iraq, Yemen and Libya have either been destroyed in fighting, turned into shelters for displaced people

U.S. OFFICIALS MARK 70TH YEAR OF WWII’S END

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EARL HARBOR, Hawaii—US officials and veterans gathered on a decommissioned battleship in Pearl Harbor on Wednesday to mark the 70th anniversary of World War II’s end.

“It was not about retribution. Like today’s ceremony, it was an acknowledgement that the shared losses of World War II vastly exceeded the immediate gains at the time,” said Adm. Scott Swift, the commander of the US Pacific Fleet, told a crowd of several hundred gathered on the deck of the former USS Missouri Missouri.

The Missouri’s decks are where Japanese Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu and Army Gen. Yoshijiro Umezu signed documents to formally surrender on September 2, 1945.

The USS Missouri was anchored in Tokyo Bay at the time.

Allied leaders, including Gen. Douglas MacArthur and Adm. Chester Nimitz, also signed the surrender documents.

The ship is now a museum called the Battleship Missouri Memorial. It’s moored at a spot overlooking where the USS Arizona sank during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.

Ray Morse, who was an 18-year-old sailor on board the Missouri 70 years ago, said he wouldn’t miss the gathering “for anything.”

“I always hope to see some of the guys from the ship,” said Morse, of Huntington, West Virginia. AP

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Unicef: 40% school dropouts in Middle East conflict areas

VETERANS and their families bow their heads during a ceremony marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, on September 2, in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The veterans gathered onboard the decomissioned battleship USS Missouri Missouri, the same ship Japanese Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu and Army Gen. Yoshijiro Umezu boarded in TTokyo Bay on September 2, 1945, to sign documents to formally surrender. AP/AUDREY MCAVOY

or been commandeered by fighters, Unicef said.

In Syria and Yemen, one in four schools can no longer be used for education, the report said. In Syria, 50,000 teachers no longer report to work, while thousands of children have to cross front lines to take their school exams.

“The forces that are crushing individual lives and futures are also destroying the prospects for an entire region,” the report said.

Salama said he believes lack of access to education is helping drive the increasingly desperate attempts

by Middle Eastern asylum seekers to reach Europe. Children who are not going to school are also more vulnerable to recruitment by militant groups, he said.

He said that Unicef has seen a rise in recruitment attempts, in parallel with the drop in school enrollment.

The agency called for greater ef efforts to educate children in conflict zones, including through selflearning kits and an e-learning program, known as “Sahabati,” Arabic for “My Cloud.”

The program would teach Arabic, English, math and science, with a system of online assessments and certification, the report said. It’s not clear when it will be rolled out.

The report also called for increased investment in education in

humanitarian emergencies.

More money should be spent, among other things, on school systems in countries hosting refugees, including more than 4 million Syrians who fled civil war, Unicef said.

More than half the Syrian refugee children, or 700,000, are not in school, the report said.

In 2010 between 7 million and 8 million school-age children in Syria, Libya, Iraq, Yemen and Sudan were not in school, said Juliette Touma, a Unicef spokesman. Reasons included ongoing conflicts, such as in Sudan and Iraq, as well as poverty.

Since then, new conflicts have erupted in Syria, Libya and Yemen, while fighting in Iraq has intensified following land grabs by the extremist group Islamic State there last year.

Currently 13.7 million children from the five countries affected by conflict are not in school, the report said. This includes 2.7 million Syrian children, including 700,000 in host countries; 3 million children in Iraq; 2 million in Libya; 3.1 million in Sudan; and 2.9 million in Yemen.

The number of dropouts and children who have never been to school is bound to increase. In the next few months, with the situation expected to worsen, “up to half...of school-age children will be out of school,” Salama said. AP

BALTIMORE—A judge refused to dismiss charges against six police officers in connection with the death of a black man from injuries he suffered while in custody. He also refused to remove the prosecutor in the case.

The death of 25-year-old Freddie Gray—who succumbed to injuries sustained after his arrest on April 12—sparked protests, rioting and unrest that shook Baltimore for days. A demonstration on Wednesday outside the Baltimore courtroom where a pretrial hearing on the charges took place attracted dozens, and resulted in just one arrest.

Defense attorneys failed to convince Circuit Judge Barry Williams that what they claimed was prosecutorial misconduct on the part of State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby was reason enough to drop the charges against the police officers—which range from second-degree assault to seconddegree murder. AP

MEXICO SENATE RATIFIES ACADEMIC AS NEXT AMBASSADOR TO U.S.

MEXICO CITY—Mexican lawmakers have confirmed a US-based Mexican academic as the country’s next ambassador to the United States.

The 98-3 vote in the Senate means Miguel Basanez becomes Mexico’s top envoy to its northern neighbor and main trade partner.

Arguably Mexico’s most important diplomatic post, the office of ambassador to Washington had been vacant for five months before President Enrique Pena Nieto nominated Basanez in mid-August. Basanez is an expert on opinion polling and adjunct professor at Tufts University’s Fletcher School.

He was sworn in Wednesday at the Senate.

About 11.4 million Mexican-born people live in the US, while some 1 million American citizens reside in Mexico, according to the Foreign Relations Department. AP

PAPAL PPAL ADDRESS COMES WITH COMPLICATIONS

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ASHINGTON—With his ongoing criticisms of hardline immigration policies and consistent warnings about climate change, Pope Francis’s address to Congress later this month is starting to look a little uncomfortable for Republicans—especially Catholics, such as Speaker John Boehner, who invited the religious leader to speak.

This week, with the pope’s new comments on abortion, Democrats got a reminder that the head of the world’s largest church can make politicians from either party squirm.

Francis announced on Tuesday a “Year of Mercy,” beginning in December, during which priests worldwide are empowered to offer forgiveness to women who have undergone abortions, which the church still considers a “moral evil.”

The papal announcement drew a blank stare from Congress, with CQ Roll Call requests for comment from the two most prominent Catholics in Congress—Boehner and his Democratic Party counterpoint, Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi—going unanswered.

But Francis’s comments come as abortion has re-emerged as an explosively divisive issue for Congress, with some Republicans pushing for new action in the wake of a series of undercover videos detailing abortion practices and the transfer of fetal tissue at Planned Parenthood clinics.

On Wednesday Cardinal Donald Wuerl, speaking in Washington at a Christian Science Monitor breakfast, reminded reporters the church has not changed its position on abortion.

“The destruction of innocent life in the womb is wrong, it’s simply wrong,” the cardinal said, going on to decry the use of fetal tissue documented in the Planned Parenthood videos. “That’s even more heinous when use is made of the remains of a child that has been destroyed in the womb.”

If his previous actions are any indication, Francis will not shy away from controversy when he addresses Congress in three weeks.

He could chastise lawmakers and the US for unchecked capitalism.

He could elaborate on a responsibil-

ity for stewardship of the Earth. He could call on Congress to address immigration, or, as he has called it, a “humanitarian emergency.”

The Vatican has already promised the September 24 address will touch on immigration, an issue that has split Republicans from the presidential contest down to individual House races. But pending September fights over Planned Parenthood funding and a Senate proposal to ban abortions after 20 weeks could do the same with Democrats.

With conservatives increasingly drawing a line on funding Planned Parenthood and the government in the same bill, and with government funding set to run out on September 30, many Republicans could feel emboldened by the pope’s joint meeting.

And in the world of politics, where members of Congress show a special talent in hearing only that which confirms their positions and ignoring that which contradicts them, the pope’s address could further expose many of Congress’s familiar divisions. TNS

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revenue-reducing legislation.”

Instead, Lacierda said the finance secretary “urged Congress to approach fiscal reform from a holistic standpoint, with the goal of making the structure more buoyant, equitable, progressive and competitive.”

“This will allow us to continue increasing investments in our people and infrastructure, which is crucial to our competitiveness and ability to attract investments and create job opportunities,” Purisima added.

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ELECTRIFYING LEARNING (From left) Oscar S. Reyes, president and CEO of Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) and vice chairman of One Meralco Foundation; Manuel V. Pangilinan, chairman of Meralco and One Meralco Foundation; and Education Secretary Bro. Armin A. Luistro, FSC, attend the launching of One Meralco Foundation’s energy education program dubbed “The Power of Dreams” at the Meralco Theater. NONOY LACZA

I.M.F. CITES THREATS TO WORLD ECONOMY Port operators, govt move C to avoid repeat of logjam

HINA’S slowdown, volatile financial markets and tumbling raw-materials prices have raised the risks to economic growth around the world, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) reported on Wednesday.

In an assessment of threats published as top finance ministers and central bankers meet this week in Turkey, the IMF warned that the problems could lead to “a much weaker outlook” for global growth.

It urged wealthy countries to continue easy-money policies and “growth friendly” tax

and spending programs. Some emerging-market countries, meanwhile, should let their currencies fall substantially to support their exporters and economic growth, while a lso enacting refor ms to make their economies more efficient, it added.

The Chinese economic slowdown, though long anticipated, “appears to have larger-thanpreviously-envisaged” repercussions in other countries, the IMF said. China’s troubles have sent the prices of raw materials, such as oil and copper C  A

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PERATORS of Manila ports are implementing a new vehicle-appointment system in anticipation of increased cargo movements starting October, with the goal of preventing a repeat of the logjam that disrupted operations at the sea gateways last year.

The implementation of the Terminal Appointment Booking System (TABS) in the country’s main seaports was firmed up at

the meeting of private and public stakeholders on Thursday. The discussion centered on the foreseen pickup in trade activity in the last quarter of the year.

Officials of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza), the Department of Trade and Industry Cabinet Secretary Jose Rene D. Almendras and representatives of the port operators were present during the meeting.

According to a Peza official, it was agreed during the meeting that a ve-

hicle-appointment system affecting all companies using Manila’s ports be put in place. The TABS is aimed at easing traffic flow along roads leading to the country’s main sea gateways by only accommodating previously booked pickups by trucks.

The practice is also in line with international practice, the Peza official said. It will be implemented round-the-clock.

“We hope it will be more efficient; 80 percent of the volume that goes C  A

PHL, Vietnam may sign strategic deal at Apec meet B R M

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HE Philippines and Vietnam will sign the two countries’ strategic partnership agreement, possibly during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) meeting in Manila in November, according to Foreign Secretary Albert F. del Rosario and Vietnamese Ambassador Duong Truong Trieu on Wednesday night.

“Yes, this [agreement] has been nurtured

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 46.7170

for quite some time and it was proposed by my prime minister [Nguyen Tan Dung], when he visited the Philippines last year in May,” Duong said.

Dung was in Manila on May 21, 2014, upon the invitation of President Aquino during the World Economic Forum here.

Mr. Aquino and Dung shared each country’s experiences in settling disputes in the East Vietnam Sea with China.

Del Rosario served as the guest speaker

during Vietnam’s 70th anniversary celebration of independence at the Sofitel Hotel.

Also present were US Ambassador Philip Goldberg, former President Fidel V. Ramos and former Speaker Jose de Venecia.

Duong said the foreign ministers of the Philippines and Vietman will try to work out the draft of the strategic partnership agreement, which is “almost finished.” “With that agreement, there will be many, many S “A ,” A

n JAPAN 0.3885 n UK 71.4864 n HK 6.0281 n CHINA 7.3403 n SINGAPORE 32.9946 n AUSTRALIA 32.7631 n EU 52.4725 n SAUDI ARABIA 12.4572 Source: BSP (3 September 2015)

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Friday, September 4, 2015

Port operators, govt move to avoid repeat of logjam Continued from A1

through the ports are from Peza so we will be affected,” the Peza official added. Specific details will still be threshed out in further meetings, the official said.

International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI), operator of the Manila International Container Terminal (MICT), said in a statement the port has already soft-launched the project ahead of the expected surge in economic activity, as shipments increase in preparation for the holiday season.

The TABS will address the current unpredictable surge in the truck traffic by scheduling the time slots for container pickup and dropoffs. Truckers can increase their trips per day, cargo owners can move

Apec meet. . .

their goods more promptly and terminals can allocate resources more efficiently due to the predictable volume and schedule.

The ICTSI said with the system in place, the Manila port community should expect more organized truck movement and experience a managed and consistent flow of trucks the entire day.

The TABS is an electronic platform for booking containers in the two international ports of Manila.

Designed to facilitate the entry and exit of containerized cargo, to and from MICT, the TABS was developed in response to restrictive road policies that were introduced to combat the congestion of Manila ports in 2014 as a result of the truck ban imposed by the Manila City government.

Continued from A1

expectations politically, economically and on the field of diplomacy; and I do believe that with the strategic partnership agreement, we will bring our relationship up to a higher level and it will be more comprehensive and more fruitful cooperation in almost every aspect of relations,” Duong explained.

Asked whether the new partnership would lead to reducing tension in the South China Sea, Duong said: “We will deepen our cooperation in order to solve all the issues concerning the South China Sea in the most peaceful

ways in accordance with international law. The only thing I can say right now, there will be a tighter, much closer cooperation, and there will be some kind of exchange of visit, information, everything, I can’t go into details right now.”

“But you can imagine, there will be a very, very good agreement and I do believe that between Vietnam and the Philippines, we will become much closer friends and we will share lots of things together. We will have many things in common and we share and help each other, toward the future.”

news@businessmirror.com.ph

‘No piecemeal tax reform’ Continued from A1

The Palace earlier indicated that the administration is not closing the door on the proposal to lower income-tax rates.

However, Coloma suggested that proponents of the measure in the Senate and the House should first “identify new and additional sources of tax revenues” to offset the reductions.

Escudero, who coauthored Senate Bill 716 amending the National Internal Revenue Code, aims to adjust existing net taxable income levels from 32 percent to 25 percent, as well as nominal tax rates by adopting adjustments in individual income-tax rates to reflect the erosion of purchasing power caused by inflation.

Escudero suggested that President Aquino could either certify the urgency of passing the bill lowering income-tax rates, or submit a Palace-preferred version of the measure that Congress could adopt for early approval.

The Senate, however, must await passage of the counterpart bill in the House, it being a revenue-related measure that, under the rules, must emanate from the House of Representatives before Senators can approve it.

Coloma, however, also cited Purisima’s preference for a “holistic review” of the tax structure to avert risking the country’s fiscal situation, with estimated revenue losses amounting to P30 billion a year if the proposal to lower income-tax rates is adopted by the government.

Congress priority

The leadership of the 16th Congress on Thursday agreed to prioritize in the next five weeks eight important bills.

Hou s e Sp e a k e r Fe l ic i a no Belmonte Jr. and Senate President Franklin M. Drilon, after the Congress leaders’ monthly meeting, said both chambers are eyeing to pass in the next five weeks—or before their October 10 break—the proposed 2016 General Appropriations Act (GAA), proposed Basic Law on Bangsamoro Autonomous Region (BLBar), proposed Tax Incentives Management and Transparency Act (Timta), the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) reform law, proposed creation of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), amendments to the build-operate-transfer (BOT) Law, amendments to the Customs and Tariff Modernization Act and a bill amending the Revised Penal Code (RPC) insofar as the monetary values are concerned.

Not included in their priorities in the next five weeks are the proposed Freedom of Information Act and anti-dynasty bill.

Belmonte also expressed confidence that the lower chamber will muster a quorum in the next five weeks to prioritize these bills.

Drilon said that the Senate will exert extra effort to pass the proposed BLBar. “I have discussed this [BLBar] with the majority of the senators [and we can pass it]. We will exert every effort to pass it. Our objective is to pass this before we go on a

break,” Drilon said.

Present during the monthly meeting were Belmonte, Drilion, House Committee on Ways and Means Chairman and Liberal Party Rep. Romero S. Quimbo of Marikina, House Majority Leader and Mandaluyong Rep. Neptali Gonzales II, Minority Floor Leader Rep. Ronaldo Zamora and Sen. Ralph G. Recto.

The proposed 2016 GAA and the BLBar are under committee deliberations and plenary deliberations, respectively, at the both chambers of Congress. The BLBar aims to create the new Bangsamoro juridical entity replacing the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

The Timta, meanwhile, seeks to promote transparency and accountability in the grant and administration of tax incentives to business entities, private individuals and corporations. The congressional bicameral committee will start to reconcile the two chambers’ different versions of the Timta this month.

The Senate and the House have also reached a consensus to postpone the SK elections from the scheduled February 21, 2015, to October 31, 2016. Both chambers already approved their versions of the proposal to create the DICT. The proposed amendments to the BOT law are currently pending in the Senate, while the House Committee on Public Works and Highways has approved the proposal in June.

The measure aims to strengthen the basic legal framework in undertaking public-private partnership projects. Meanwhile, the proposed amendments to the Customs

Modernization and Tariff Act are already at the period of interpellations in the House plenary, but are still under the committee deliberations in the Senate.

Also, the measure “adjusting the amount involved, value of property or damage on which a penalty is based and the fines under Act 3815, as amended, otherwise known as the RPC” is pending at the committee level of the both houses.

The measure will amend Article 26 of the RPC and most of the threshold figures in Book 2 based on the proportionality of the crime to the prescribed penalty in relation to present values.

Five session days

Meanwhile, Gonzales said the lower chamber will conduct a Monday-to-Friday session schedule to discuss important measures.

Like their regular schedule from Monday to Wednesday, the majority leader said sessions for Thursdays and Fridays would start at 4 p.m.

Gonzales said the last two weeks of session—or from September 28 to October 9—will be allotted to pass the 2016 budget, while the first three weeks—or from September 7 to 25—will be for pending priority bills, including the BLBar. “We agreed to hold a weekly fivesession day in the next five weeks starting on Monday [September 7].

This is to ensure the passage of priority bills, including the BLBar. The last two weeks before adjournment are exclusively for national budget’s approval,” Gonzales said.

Economy

A4 Friday, September 4, 2015 • Editors: Vittorio V. Vitug and Max V. de Leon

BusinessMirror

news@businessmirror.com.ph

DOT to launch new tourism campaign

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo | Special to the BusinessMirror

S

TILL committed to its 10-million target for foreign visitor arrivals in 2016, the Department of Tourism (DOT) is launching a new promotion dubbed “Visit Philippines Again” next year.

Tourism Secretary Ramon R. Jimenez Jr. made this announcement during his presentation on the “State of Philippine Tourism 20102014” at the Third Philippine Tourism Forum (PTF) on Thursday at the SMX Convention Center.

Describing it as an “economical” campaign, he said: “We wanted to create a program that actually induces revisiting or new visits because it is a stronger retail orientation. We’re trying to put together packages and rewards and inducements so that when a tourist returns to the Philippines for a second or fifth time, he will get discounts.”

He told the BusinessMirror that these discounts and reward packages would be made available through airlines, tour operators, travel agencies and other tourism service enterprises. “We are now in the process of gathering their inputs and securing their operation on this.”

He added that part of the advertising component for the 2016 advertising campaign will emphasize last year’s main events, but tagged with an “again.” “So this would mean Madrid Fusion Manila ‘again,’ MTV Evolution ‘again,’ etc. Of course, we have new things like the ‘World Street Food Festival’ for the first time in the Philippines. We try to use the peoples’ money wisely.”

Jimenez stressed that the

current Visit the Philippines Year (VPY) 2015, has been instrumental in posting the gains in visitor arrivals this year. “We are accelerating faster than expected. The July numbers are fantastic! We hit 489,000 visitors in July,” which is 14 percent higher than arrivals in July 2014. On a monthon-month basis, the July arrivals were 25 percent higher than June’s 390,486 visitors.

He said he expected the foreign visitor arrivals to strengthen further toward the end of the year. “June is usually a trough in terms of arrivals.

So we’re coming out of the trough faster than expected.”

He noted that even the arrivals from mainland China are encouraging. Chinese tourists grew by 19.4 percent to 32,495 in June, year-onyear, arresting the previous months’ slowdown. The DOT chief expressed optimism that the tourists from China would continue to grow steadily.

But he stressed that tourism receipts, more than the headcount, will give a more accurate picture of the state of the country’s tourism sector.

During his presentation before participants at the PTF, he said foreign visitor receipts hit P275 billion in 2014, a staggering 70-percent increase from the P162 billion recorded in 2006. Said visitor receipts account for 7.6 percent of the Philippines’s total exports of goods and services,

Tourism Secretary Ramon R. Jimenez Jr. expounded on the gains by the tourism sector under the Aquino administration at the 3rd Philippine Tourism Forum at the SMX Convention Center on Thursday. He said foreign visitor receipts hit P275 billion in 2014, up 70 percent from receipts in 2006. Said visitor receipts account for 7.6 percent of the Philippines’s total exports of goods and services, and ranks tourism third in top export earners.

Photo by Department of Tourism

and ranks tourism third in top export earners of the country, after miscellaneous items (P911 billion) and semiconductors (P695 billion).

He also noted that domestic tourism receipts reached P1.5 trillion in 2014, a 240-percent jump from the P441 billion recorded in 2006.

Domestic travel has grown by leaps and bounds that it now represents 16 percent of total final household expenditure, i.e., most households now spend on domestic travel. “Most tourism expenditures in 2014 come from accommodation services [35 percent] and shopping of tourism goods [15 percent],” he said.

About 4.8 million persons, Jimenez underscored, are now directly employed in the tourism sector, up 16.2 percent from 4.13 million in

Hearing on taxi-fare petitions set

W

HILE a lawmaker sought for the reduction of taxi fares around the Philippines, the operators of these transport services pleaded otherwise.

Citing the declining prices of fuel, Rep. Manuel M. Iway of the First District of Negros Oriental requested the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) to reduce the per 300-meter taxi charge by a peso.

This will bring the charge to P2.50 per 300 meters from the current P3.50. Iway also sought for a 25-centavo reduction in jeepneys fares in Metro Manila and parts of Regions 3 and 4.

The Philippine National Taxi Operators Association (PNTOA) opposed this, however, and instead sought for the increase in the rate of waiting time

of taxi services in Metro Manila and in the provinces from P3.50 to P5 for every two-minute waiting time.

The LTFRB is set to hear the petitions on September 21 at the agency’s headquarters in Quezon City.

“Upang lubos naming mapag-aralan ang mga petition ng ating mambabatas at PNTOA, nagpapatawag ang LTFRB ng public hearing upang marinig ang kanilang panig ng sa gayon maging patas ang ating desisyon sa kanilang mga hinahing,” LTFRB Chairman Winston M. Ginez said. He added that his office will allow parties contesting or opposing the approval of the proposed fare reduction to file, in written form, their position prior to the hearing date. Both parties must also appear to submit their position papers on the said date. Lorenz S. Marasigan

2010. “Thus, tourism employment now represents 12.5 percent of total employment. This means about 125 for every 1,000 employment is in the tourism industry.”

In addition, the tourism industry has expanded by 143 percent to P982.4 billion in terms of direct gross value added from P405 billion in 2006; the industry now accounts for a 7.8-percent share to the economy. It ranks fifth in contribution to the gross domestic product, after manufacturing, trade, real estate and agriculture.

Jimenez is hopeful with these trends set by the tourism industry under the Aquino administration, the DOT’s proposed budget of P3.61billion for 2016 would be approved by Congress. “If you ask the congress-

men, I think they consider tourism underfunded. We’re one of those areas where they wish we had more money.”

The proposed DOT budget also includes funding for the National Parks Development Committee (P209.19 million) and the Intramuros Administration (P444.21 million).

Carrying the theme “The Business of Tourism: Asean and Beyond,” the Third PTF was organized by the Philippine Tour Operators Association, and also serves as a preevent conference to set the tone for its 26th Philippine Travel Mart (PTM) this weekend at the SMX Convention Center.

PTM is the biggest annual travel trade exhibition in the promotion and marketing of domestic and inbound tourism.

Next president should sustain P-Noy’s inclusive-growth tack

T

he next president should build on the gains of the Aquino administration while instituting more reforms toward inclusive growth, according to top economists.

“To ensure that growth can be inclusive, the first step is to create new opportunities through which everyone can participate and contribute,” Prof. Epictetus Patalinghug, a convener of Albert Del Rosario (ADR) Institute and professor emeritus of economics and finance at the Cesar E.A. Virata School of Business of the University of the Philippines (UP), said during a discussion sponsored by ADR Institute.

Participants in the discussion talked about different perspectives on the relationship between economic growth and poverty reduction.

Patalinghug said there should be an uninterrupted long-term, higher growth and sustainability, where everybody has an equal opportunity to participate and contribute to economic growth.

Second, there must also be credible and effective institutions to enforce the rule of law, he said.

He also cited the need to lower the cost of transportation between the rural and urban markets and to link small rural entrepreneurs to urban manufacturers for access to capital and information.

Dr. Vicente Paqueo, a visiting research fellow at the state-run think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies, a consultant for Asian Development Bank (ADB), former professor of economics at UP and former country sector coordinator at the World Bank, said the Philippines should nurture the seeds embedded in key policy reforms, such as on foreigninvestment regulations, the K to 12 Program, the reproductive-health law and the recently passed competition law.

Paqueo’s suggestions include revisiting policies that don’t work or are counterproductive, such as the rice policy, regulations that make labor markets inflexible and constitutional restrictions on foreign investments.

He said the government’s flagship Conditional Cash-Transfer Program, or the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, is “not a magic bullet” but is an “effective strategy” to give the poorest an opportunity to move out of poverty in the long run through education, better health and nutrition as it targets intergenerational poverty.

Paqueo said concerns of leakages are “unfounded” and “overblown,” as the program still

largely benefits those who are vulnerable and need help.

Meanwhile, renowned economist Dr. Gerry Sicat agreed that freeing up the country to global trade is the most guaranteed route to ensure growth and solve inequality, citing the case of China and Vietnam.

“Foreign capital is the free good that we have rejected since the 1940s. When I look at these developments, I see how we have been left behind,” Sicat said.

Said Ferdie Diaz, cochairman of the Technical Working Group on Labor and Social Policy Issues of the Employers Confederation of the Philippines, “jobless growth had been the most evident consequence of inadequacy in foreign direct investment.”

“Even Vietnam is ahead of us in terms of reducing poverty. According to estimates, about 20 million Filipinos are currently unemployed underemployed, or engaged in low-productivity employment,” Diaz said. He said the solution is in agriculture, which, at its current state, “suffers from low productivity” and adds little value to the industry or other sectors. Poor rural infrastructure and insufficient access to financing remain as key impediments to the development of the industry, he added.

“Neglect of this sector can be seen in its declining share of the gross domestic product [GDP] over the years, even as the sector accounts for about 35 percent of the labor force and 70 percent of the poor,” he said.

Investment in infrastructure also continues to be lackluster, Diaz said, with the country’s spending on infrastructure representing only 3 percent of the GDP in the countryside.

Prof. Dindo Manhit, president of ADR Institute, underlined the need for the government to commit to a “big push” that will open up the country to job-generating capital investments and acceleration of infrastructure spending to address port and airport congestion, the abysmal public transportation system and the high cost of power.

Other guests in the ADR Institute discussion were distinguished members of academe, such as Cesar Virata, former Director General of the National Economic Development Authority Romulo Neri, Dr. Celia Reyes of PIDS, Dean of the School of Labor and Industrial Relations of UP Dr. Jonathan Sale and Dr. Eduardo Banzon of ADB, among others.

briefs

NO CHANGE IN SEPTember GENERATION CHARGE Generation charge, a major component of a Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) bill, is likely to remain unchanged this month.

“Indications show that the generation charge will remain stable this September,” said Meralco Utility Economics Head Larry Fernandez. Generation charge last month stood at P4.55 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), lower by P0.19 per kWh from the previous month.

“While improved dispatch levels and cover costs from SPEX [Shell Philippines Exploration B.V.] Malampaya, to compensate for past gas-supply restrictions provide downward pressure on generation costs, these may be offset by the effect of the peso depreciation,” Fernandez added.

Last month’s generation-charge reduction was largely driven by lower charges from power plants under the independent power producers due to lower fuel costs resulting from the quarterly repricing of natural gas and lower condensate cost due to fewer gas restrictions requiring these plants to use the higher priced condensate.

Lenie Lectura

24/7 public wi-fi available by december

The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) on Thursday said the 24/7 free public Wi-Fi will be available nationwide by December, Undersecretary Louis Casambre said during the House Committee on Appropriations’s hearing on the agency’s P17. 9-billion budget for 2016. He said the agency has already covered 25 percent of its target cities and municipalities.

According to Casambre, the proposed budget allotted for the Free Wi-Fi Internet Access in Public Places program for 2016 is P1.6 billion. It is higher from this year’s P1.4 billion.

“There are 7,118 sites. About two-thirds are in the municipalities. The other third are in the cities covered,” he said, “We’ll branch out to 967 municipalities outside Metro Manila including Class 4, 5 and 6 municipalities.” Jovee Marie N. de la Cruz

Consolidated Asean printers show starts today in Manila

Buhain Players in the printing industry are holding a three-day exhibition and conference to drum up initiatives that will further their growth in an integrated Asean setting.

Printech 2015, a consolidated grand printing show of Asean printers and printing-industry suppliers, will run from September 4 to 6 at the World Trade Center, Manila.

Lawyer Dominador D. Buhain, president of the Philippine Printing Technical Foundation (PPTF), said Printech 2015 is a unified printing-industry response to the challenges of the Asean Economic Community.

Buhain, who occupies various regional positions such as ad interim president of the Asean Print Association, was recently elected first vice president of the Forum of Asia Pacific Graphic Arts during a printer’s convention last month in Kuala Lumpur.

Together with the industry leaders, Buhain leads the country’s unified initiatives to put the Philippine printing industry in the world printing arena.

PPTF is the interim president of the Asean Print, an international body comprising the national printing associations of Asean countries.

Likewise, PPTF is currently spearheading the Asean Print Trilogy to be held from November 23 to 25 at the Novotel Hotel, Araneta Center, Cubao.

For inquiries, call Cristy Manuel of the PPFT secretariat at tel. nos.

713-0902 and 713-2671 or e-mail pptf1967@gmail.com.

A6 Friday, September 4, 2015

Opinion BusinessMirror

editorial

‘Odd-even solutions’

T

he Philippine government has proven its inability to deal with the problems that are at the core of its responsibility. As the Aquino presidency enters its waning months, no amount of begging for the benefit of the doubt can now disguise the fact that it has failed the public.

The biblical book of Proverbs says that, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” In the original Hebrew, the word vision means to look into and anticipate the future. While no one expects the government to be prophetic, the people have the right to expect that their leaders will see the potential problems of public interest and offer reasonable and practical solutions.

We wrote last month that succeeding administrations did not make any viable preparations for the inevitable severe El Niño weather conditions that the nation is facing. We were assured by Malacañang that, in fact, the government was on top of the problem. Now we are being warned about the possibility of 12-hour water interruptions.

Before we are accused of expecting the government to be able to change the weather, let us mention that the main source of water supply for Metro Manila is the Angat Dam reservoir, built in 1967. It does not take much vision to know that the Angat-Ipo-La Mesa water system has been overstretched and outdated for many years. But we have come to a point where the best that the government can offer for a solution is no solution at all.

Apparently, the traffic congestion in Metro Manila is another situation that could not have possibly been foreseen. We have been told that it is a result of great economic growth in the past few years. This means that the growth of the economy was anticipated but the growth of traffic congestion was not.

The President ordered the Philippine National Police Highway Patrol Group to take charge directing the traffic and clearing major intersections that are identified as “choke points” along Edsa. If this is a solution, why was it not implemented years ago?

If lack of planning causes a water shortage, then the solution is a 12-hour ban on water. If there are too many cars causing congestion, ban half the cars, this time with an “odd-even scheme.” Do we notice a pattern here?

Perhaps the next “radical solution” to the transportation disaster known as “Metro Rail Transit 3” will be another odd-even scheme based on the first letter of a passenger’s family name. We do not want to even speculate the solution that will be offered for airport congestion.

From the BusinessMirror: “One year has passed since the government launched the auction for the long-term maintenance contractor of Metro Rail Transit Line 3, yet, it has only achieved one thing: surpass a key hurdle for an emergency procurement.” Government leaders and politicians can plan a year or two in advance for the next election. But when it comes to public services, it takes a year to declare a problem an “emergency.”

This kind of governing has gone on far too long. When the people decide that they cannot stand this abuse any longer, then it will be a real emergency for the ruling class.

Unity candidates James Jimenez

T

spox

he entire country is currently enthralled by two soap operas.

The first is the subversively educational and enlightening serial drama better known by the hashtag with which it has invaded everyone’s awareness, #AlDub. The second is the soap opera called “Who’s running for what and with whom?”

In the meantime, while we’re distracted by these two cultural marvels, the very essence of democracy is being eroded right under our very noses by yet another, perhaps also cultural, phenomenon: unity candidates.

A unity candidate—along with its collective noun form: the unity ticket— results when politicians collude among themselves to give the voting public only two choices: the candidate they put forward or nothing. Considering that our electoral system requires only that a candidate get more votes than anyone else to be declared the winner, even the choice to abstain is practically an illusion.

If you don’t vote for the unity candidate, you’re still going to see him take office.

You know who else does it that way?

North Korea.

According to a diplomat from the Hermit Kingdom: “While candidates could be nominated by anyone, it was the practice for all candidates to be nominated by the parties. These nominations were examined by the [Democratic Front for

the Reunification of the Fatherland] and then by the Central Electoral Committee, which allocated candidates to seats. The candidate in each seat was then considered by the electors in meetings at the workplace or similar, and on election day the electors could then indicate approval or disapproval of the candidate on the ballot paper.”

In that rogue state, the motivations for this kind of single-candidate elections are clear and unambiguous. Elections are nothing more than a political census, doubling in function as a loyalty check. Defectors report that while a voter can actually choose to reject the single candidate on his ballot, he has to do so by using a red pen placed right next to the ballot box, in full view of the election officials. Under circumstances like that, only the insane or suicidal would dare dissent.

Here, our politicians coyly trot out words like “unity,” “harmony” and “consensus.” They unfurl rationalizations like “unity candidates minimize

the divisiveness of elections,” or “unity candidates eliminate election violence.”

I beg, most vigorously, to differ.

As Adam Smith, the father of modern economics, said: “People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public.” And that’s exactly what unity candidates are: a conspiracy among politicians, to deprive the public of any real choice in who their leaders will be, thereby ensuring that the leadership positions all go to the few, chosen by the conspirators.

The funny thing is, when this same strategy is used in other fields, it is often considered criminal.

Take Section 65 of Republic Act 9184, for instance. The law says “when two or more bidders enter into an agreement which call upon one to refrain from bidding for Procurement contracts,” they will have committed a crime punishable by imprisonment of up to 15 years. They can also be permanently disqualified from holding public office and from transacting business with the government. If this sort of behavior is considered criminal in other contexts, why should it be any different in politics where it is no less harmful?

Consider this. Since the unity candidate is the only choice the voter has, the power brokers behind him are given free rein with respect to how they use governmental power. Those of us who consent to this arrangement ought to be reminded that an environment where a single power bloc controls positions of leadership has, time and again, been proven to be a fertile breeding ground

for corruption, oppression and abuse.

Hand in hand with corruption comes the power to increase the cost—both financially and otherwise—of accessing even the most basic government services. With no fear of accountability via an electoral loss, unity leaders can easily restrict the availability of services to those who are perceived as allies, denying them outright to those who are considered enemies. And worse, even if corruption is kept to a minimum, the lack of any electoral challenger eliminates the need to improve or innovate, leading to generalized stagnation. Does any of that sound familiar? It should, because those are some of the hallmarks of life under a dictatorship.

Sadly, the practice of fielding unity candidates is not illegal. After all, no person can be forced to run for office if he doesn’t want to. This is, however, nothing more than a convenient excuse for the power brokers who make it their business to forge unity tickets. Or at least, it used to be when they still felt the need to justify their strategic moves.

Nowadays, it seems like they don’t care about maintaining even that semblance of adherence to democracy. Now, it’s either they invoke buzzwords or they capitalize on the public’s fear of violence.

In either case, they are doing the electorate an injustice by undermining the most fundamental principles of democracy and free elections.

But do we notice? No, we don’t. We’re too busy lip-syncing kumbaya.

James Arthur B. Jimenez is director of the Commission on Elections’s education and information department.

Opinion BusinessMirror

opinion@businessmirror.com.ph

Is China becoming a house of cards?

Friday, September 4, 2015 A7

Marketing religions Tito Genova Valiente

Ser Percival K. Peña-Reyes

EAGLE WATCH

H

istory shows that China’s embrace of a market-based system, combined with trade liberalization, an abundance of cheap labor and massive foreign direct investments (FDI), sparked an explosion in its manufacturing sector.

As the Associated Press (AP) reported six years ago, the Chinese population of 1.3 billion provided an almost inexhaustible supply of low-cost labor. The average factory wage in China at the time of the AP report was about 40 US dollar cents per hour, which was one-sixth that of Mexico and one-fortieth of what US factory workers were paid.

Naturally these low labor costs presented an enticing opportunity for foreign firms to decrease average production costs and expand their scale of operations; thus, FDI in China had increased dramatically.

In fact, starting from a baseline of less than $19 billion in 1989, FDI in China grew to over $300 billion in just 10 years. China’s economic prospects looked bright and the country was widely touted as the de facto “factory of the world.”

Lately, however, it appears that China’s fortunes are already shifting dramatically. A recent Cable News Network (CNN) article sharply poses the question of whether China’s economy is really growing as briskly as its government claims: http:// money.cnn.com/2015/08/21/news/ economy/china-economy-slowdown/.

The Chinese government has been doing the following: 1) making a surprise devaluation of the yuan in an effort to boost exports; 2) propping up markets by actually buying stocks; and 3) spending big and cutting interest rates in an effort to stimulate the economy. It does look odd for China to be taking all these actions if it were really chugging along at the 7-percent growth rate its latest government statistics show.

As a result, stock markets around the world are tanking mainly because investors are afraid that the world’s second-largest economy will drag other countries down with it.

As the CNN article notes, China is a major buyer of commodities, like oil and copper. If it turns out that China will not be able to purchase as much of these commodities as earlier anticipated, countries, like Australia, Canada and Brazil, which supply these commodities to China, stand to suffer considerably.

In the US, China’s economic condition has been one of the most widely discussed issues among company executives in the latest round of earnings reports and investor calls.

Top corporate officials are trying to figure out how to operate in a China that’s “not booming anymore.” The problem here is that nobody knows exactly how to calibrate expectations. After all, there could be a huge difference between China in a major slowdown (2-percent growth) and China in a minor slowdown (5 percent to 6-percent growth). A recent

MAIL

Please e-mail your letters to the editor to opinion@businessmirror.com.ph.

Letters chosen for publication in this section are edited for brevity and clarity.

Your esteemed newspaper published an article from Bloomberg View penned by Leonid Bershidsky on July 22, “Ukrainians suspect Putin-Obama Cooperation.” It is noteworthy in some respects and I

article from The Economist discusses the causes and consequences of China’s market crash: http://www. economist.com/news/business-andfinance/21662092-china-sneezingrest-world-rightly-nervous-causesand-consequences-chinas. Another recent article from Business Insider features what market analysts are saying about China’s “Black Monday”: http://uk.businessinsider.com/ analysts-reaction-china-black-monday-2015-8.

These recent developments are casting doubt on China’s growth numbers appear to have something in common with this year’s news reports of fake rice, as well as older reports (those from seven years ago) of melamine-tainted milk. It’s no secret that many Chinese firms tend to favor quantity over quality, and they’d do whatever they could to increase profit margins. Such candid observations can be found in Paul Midler’s exposition of China’s quality control issues in his work, entitled “Poorly Made in China”: http://www. economist.com/node/13642306. In July of this year, CNN published a similarly themed article on whether China is “cooking its books”: http://money.cnn.com/2015/07/15/ news/economy/china-gdp-economicstatistics/?iid=EL. All these events, both recent and old, serve to highlight China’s focus on expanding its economic muscles and reach without carefully balancing potential social and environmental impacts.

Indeed, history will also show that systems lacking in transparency or clarity run a huge risk of collapse.

Lest it be forgotten, it was seven or eight years ago when the global financial system was crippled by the proliferation of mortgage-backed securities and other complex derivatives, which largely originated from the US. The US government, of course, had to take the lead in purging these toxic assets from the system. So, in the spirit of clarity and fairness, it should be acknowledged that China is not the only country in history that has succumbed to the temptation of “taking shortcuts.” Be that as it may, reality is quickly catching up with China, and the proverbial house of cards comes to mind. By all indications, China could be turning itself into one right now, with potentially dire consequences for its economy and the rest of the world.

One can only hope that the damaging effects will be contained sooner rather than later.

This article was written by Ser Percival K. Peña-Reyes, lecturer on Macroeconomics at the Department of Economics, Ateneo de Manila University.

annotations

‘A

gora” was the name of the place designated in Alexandria where people gathered to talk and trade. It was not simply a marketplace; agora was a free space. In the absence of clear democratic processes—the 4th-century Roman-occupied Egypt had slaves—the agora was akin to our legislative buildings, the only difference, perhaps, was that there were more people conscious of their intellect during that era.

Agora is also the title of a historical fiction directed by Alejandro Amenabar in 2009. It is the story of Hypatia, a mathematician and a philosopher who was teaching in an academy heavily influenced by the teachings of Plato. It is to the credit of this period that a woman teaches male students. In Hypatia’s class were two students who would later challenge her heart and intellect. There was Orestes who became the Roman prefect and later converted to Christianity. Then there was Synesius of Cyrene, a bishop who comes back to convince Hypatia, his mentor, to convert to Christianity, and to whom the philosopher uttered these words: Your (referring to Synesius) duty is to believe and mine is to doubt and question.

Very few people know or acknowledge Hypatia. There are accounts stating that there was no major female philosopher in that period. In an age where gender-sensitivity marks great discourses, there are strong claims that gender bias caused the life of Hypatia to be pushed to the margin, and then, consequently obscured.

There are issues in the film Agora that have been swept under the massive Catholic rugs: These are the historical facts that, long before the cruelties of other big religions, Christianity and its early evangelizers developed their own

mean ways to assert the place of the new religion among those declared as pagans. It is the index of Christianity’s strength from the 4th century that all other religions after and before it were all condemned to the dustbin label of “paganism.”

Wherever I get the chance to teach ancient and political theories in the Catholic universities I am connected with, I always try to find time to show this film, Agora. My purpose is to systematically examine the past of the religion I belong to. The other implicit aim of this intellectual exercise is to constantly validate one thing that is true about Christianity and, in this case, Catholicism—that we are allowed to criticize the institutional religion and with it, the officials managing the faith.

I had the opportunity to study in a Jesuit educational institution, and later the wisdom to teach in two of its universities. Teaching anthropology, I was fond of telling my students to “suspend your own belief systems” as we look at other cultural systems. Then one day, in one of those years, a theologian asked me to clarify a complaint by a student that I am allegedly teaching about godless societies. What is happening, Tito?

Flabbergasted and quite embarrassed because the Jesuit asking me the question was one of those I truly admired. I

could not reply quickly enough. Before I could open my mouth, the good priest asked: Is it a kind of searching, Tito? I grinned the smile of a slave who was able to save ancient manuscripts from the great library of Alexandria. I nodded and said: Yes, Father Jack, I am searching.

Searching is good, according to the good old priest. Even doubting.

This is what makes me proud of being a Catholic, I can always criticize my own faith. Criticism can be an act of faith itself as I distinguish clearly between the doctrine and the practices of those trying to understand the teachings. There is no claim of perfection in this religion as we live in this valley of tears. We are pilgrims, Saint Augustine assured us.

Popular culture can vouch for the stability of the Catholic religion. Recently I watched (and reviewed for this paper) a film titled The Vatican Tapes.

Even as I saw the trailer showing the film as belonging to the horror genre, I was expecting sordid revelations about the corruption in that city-state. The film turned out to be exploitative of the label “Vatican.” The film is about exorcism

and a great bulk of action happened in the US. The only time we are afforded what could be the locale of the Vatican Tapes is toward the end. I did not hear complaints from the Vatican and no official curse was thrown at the direction of the film. No death sentence, either, was handed down to those who spoke ill of the Church.

The Catholic Church had a share in censoring and banning literature that it saw as not fit for its believers. All that is technically of the past. The institution may relatively remain progressive from the viewpoint of those who seek to push the limits of moral standards, as well as questioning, but the institution has done reforms that one cannot expect to happen in other established religions.

Think of Vatican II and the introduction of the vernacular as the language of the sacred. Think of liberation theology and its respect for ideologies.

I like this religion, this Catholicism, because when summoned, it would always save itself by its constant search, doubt and belief.

E-mail: titovaliente@yahoo.com

Diverse boards make profitable companies Pacita U. Juan

Women Stepping UP

I

recently heard a woman executive declare: “Just because they are women does not mean they are good for the company!”

Aray! (Ouch!) Has this woman not heard of diversity? Or is she just unenlightened about diversity?

Diversity, not equality as many activists want to put it, is what business people want in their boards as the new mantra for profitability. Credit Suisse studies have proven that companies with diverse boards are more profitable. Is it a coincidence or a scientific fact?

You can Google Credit Suisse: https:// www.credit-suisse.com/ph/en/news-andexpertise/news/economy.article.html/article/pwp/news-and-expertise/2015/06/ en/diveristy-on-board.html Or even just note this excerpt: Diversity on Board!

Barbara Lejczak, Editor, Credit Suisse The report “The CS Gender 3000: Women in Senior Management” demonstrates that companies with more women in the boardroom bring better returns and outperform on the stock market.

However, Europe still needs to appoint

another 400 women to director positions to meet diversity quotas and targets.

Here in the Philippines, we have just started the Philippine chapter of Women Corporate Directors (www.womencorporatedirectors.com), who meet in global conferences or institutes, such as on happening in Japan—The Asia Institute on September 10 and 11, 2015, at the ANA Hotel. There is also a New York annual meeting and a European Institute in the first quarter of each year.

But still, in corporate boards of nonprofits, we also need diversity as nonprofits need to be sustainable financially, if not overly profitable. Take the Sharephil, or Shareholders Association of the Philippines (www.sharephil.org) led by Evelyn Singson. The men do not mind having Evelyn as chairman. The Management Association of the Philippines (MAP, www. map.ph) now has two women on board out

of nine governor seats. Maybe this is also a reason MAP remains as one of the most sustainable nonprofits.

So, profit-making companies must take note of this study and realization that it is not just adding women, but it is changing a default “all male” or “all female” board to a diverse one.

I know of EON Inc. (www.eon.ph), a board I used to sit in as director for four years, which now has four women and three men on the board . And you can ask its CEO Junie del Mundo how successful EON has become as a stakeholders relations company.

I sit in our own family board where there are three women and four men, two of the men being independent directors.

Now, that is diversity. Not equality as I have previously pointed out.

So, if you are looking for a way to make your company profitable, look at your corporate board. In our ECHOsi Foundation, a nonprofit, we have two men and three women. Again, a diverse board. In the Philippine Coffee Board Inc. (www.philcoffeeboard.com), another nonprofit, we have three women and six men on board. Diversity rules and these boards have been sustainable models for many years now.

In all-women organizations and allmen organizations, they find that diversity can be attained by having male (in the case of an all-women board) advisors and, conversely, female advisors

for an all-male board. Usually though, these one-gender organizations live on donations and grants and are more difficult to sustain. This is why they have fundraisers ad infinitum.

And what may be the reason your company may be struggling to eke out a profit? Take a second look at your corporate board. Maybe you will find the key to sustainability and profitability.

Make it a diverse board.

Simple and doable. Get in touch with www.icd.org to find independent female or male directors for your company or organization.

Pacita “Chit” Juan is a current governor of the Management Association of the Philippines (www.map.ph) and is a vice president of Business and Professional Women (BPW-Makati). She is also the president of Women’s Business Council of the Philippines (www.womenbiz.ph) and the Philippines Coffee Board Inc. (www.philcoffeeboard. com) You can find her on LinkedIn: Pacita Juan; Facebook: Pacita “Chit” Juan; and Twitter: @chitjuan. E-mail her at puj@ echostore.ph.

This article reflects the author’s opinion and is not the official stand of the BPWMakati.

Women Stepping Up is a rotating column of members of BPW-Makati and comes out twice a month. For more information on BPW-Makati, visit www.womensteppingup.org.

Implementing the Minsk pact is the way to solve the Ukraine conflict wish to comment on some of the issues raised by Bershidsky.

First of all, even the author, who doesn’t suffer from cherishing kindly feelings for Russia, admits that “Ukraine remains unruly, corrupt, economically supine and rife with armed groups.” The only thing he omits is the source of the grievances that started with a political turmoil and bloodshed triggered by the West which backed unconstitutional coup d’état in February 2014 against the legitimate and internationally recognized president of the country.

The policies of the new government in Kiev did not help eradicate corruption and unlawful elements,

revitalize economy or ensure social welfare of the Ukrainian people. On the contrary, they only aggravated the situation, which was left by the previous rulers of Ukraine. Nowadays it looks like Ukraine, under the guidance of President Poroshenko, is heading toward Somalia rather than the European Union.

As for the “Russian aggression in the east” of Ukraine, it is high time to remind that the legal definition of aggression presupposes the declaration of war. Poroshenko, despite his regular bellicose and flaming statements, did not declare war on Russia and preferred instead to ask Moscow for more discounts on gas

and preferential credits.

But certainly, the main point of the article is to accuse Russia and the US of making a tacit or overt deal. It paints a bleak picture of big players deciding the fate of Ukraine behind its back. I decided to wait for a while before I send my comments to your newspaper just to highlight how groundless and speculative those conjectures of the author are.

The agreement on Iranian nuclear program has nothing to do with the civil war in Ukraine—war unleashed

by Kiev authorities against millions of Ukrainian citizens in the East of the country.

Russia is not a party to the intra-

Ukrainian conflict and has been exerting every effort to facilitate political solution to the crisis in Ukraine. Moscow helped the parties concerned to achieve the Minsk Agreements and now calls for their full and effective implementation.

This is the way to solve the conflict in Ukraine. There is no need to look elsewhere or to assume any decisions in this respect could be reached by superpowers’ intervention.

Bershidsky construed the lobbying of US Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland for constitutional amendments as a payback to Russia, virtually a request from Washington for Poroshenko to surrender

to the demands of those who defend Donbass and Luhansk regions. Time proved him wrong. Military situation there is a cause for concern again. We see the buildup of troops by the Ukrainian Armed Forces as if Kiev is preparing for another war.

I hope this letter will be published in your newspaper. The Embassy of the Russian Federation is open to contacts and partnership with you and will be ready to assist in any matters concerning objective and truthful coverage of the events related to Russia.

Ilya Perenkov Press Attaché

2nd Front Page BusinessMirror

A8 Friday, September 4, 2015

BSP not worried over weaker peso as gains to offset losses

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By Bianca Cuaresma

he Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) shrugged off concerns over the condition of the local currency amid its weakening versus the dollar and other regional currencies in recent days.

BSP Deputy Governor for the Monetary Stability Sector Diwa C. Guinigundo said that, while admittedly, the peso has seen volatility in the previous weeks, other sectors of the economy are actually benefiting from a weaker currency.

Guinigundo said the peso is being affected by negative market sentiment—a phenomenon seen

across the region.

“People are speculating that the US dollar, because of the pending normalization in the US, will continue to strengthen versus regional currencies. We were affected by the herd mentality that [is] prevailing in the foreign-exchange markets today,” the deputy governor said.

The peso has traded near the

Guinigundo said the peso is being affected by negative market sentiment—a phenomenon seen across the region.

47-territory in the previous weeks after global developments erupted causing global markets to tumble.

On Thursday the peso traded at 46.73 to a dollar, weaker than the 46.705-to-a-dollar value seen in the previous day’s trade. The total traded volume, per the Philippine Dealing System, is at $518.8 million—slightly lower than the $565.986 million seen in the previous day.

“But because we have fundamental basis for stability, we always say that once the market is able to digest

Imf cites threats to world economy. . .

into a freefall, pinching Brazil, Russia and other commodity exporters.

The report did not revise the fund’s economic forecasts for this year, last updated in July, though it concluded that “downside risks have risen.” The IMF expects the global economy to grow 3.3 percent this year, little-changed from 3.4 percent in 2014; the US economy to grow 2.5 percent, versus 2.4 percent in 2014; the 19-country

euro zone to grow 1.5 percent, nearly double 2014’s 0.8 percent; and China to grow 6.8 percent, down from 7.4 percent last year.

Some economists expect Chinese growth to decelerate even more—to below 6 percent. The Chinese stock market has been falling since mid-June, and on August 11 Chinese authorities unexpectedly devalued China’s currency, the yuan. They said they were responding to signals from investors

what is happening abroad and here in the Philippines, they should be able to think twice before leaving the Philippines,” Guinigundo said.

Specifically, Guinigundo cited resilient growth, manageable price environment, balance of payments surplus, the current-account surplus and general banking stability as among the “fundamental bases for stability.”

Guinigundo also said while a weak peso may be bad for the debt servicing of the government, as well as for importers of oil, raw materials and intermediate products, it will also be beneficial for the country’s exporters, business-process outsourcing receipts and the remittances of overseas Filipino workers.

The deputy governor also said the country’s foreign-exchange reserves will still be ample amid recent volatilities in the foreign-exchange market.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

WORLD BANK PUSHING $250-M FINANCING FOR FLOOD-CONTROL PLAN

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he World Bank is eyeing a $250-million loan to bankroll the relocation of informal settlers in Metro Manila and the construction of flood-control infrastructure. The World Bank loan will augment the government’s P50-billion Oplan Likas, the national resettlement program of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).

Motoo Konishi, World Bank country director for the Philippines, clarified that, while the amount was not yet approved, it is intended to finance the first phase of a master plan for a flood-control project in Metro Manila.

The first phase entails the installation of pumping stations around Metro Manila to regulate water flow in times of flooding, as well as the relocation of informal settler families (ISFs). The master plan will

be presented to the National Economic and Development Authority for approval upon completion, Konishi added.

This plan is in collaboration withtheDILGandwillaugmentthe agency’s efforts in its Oplan Likas national resettlement program.

The World Bank’s effort is pivotal as ISFs around Metro Manila alone are estimated at 600,000, or about 3 million people, according to the National Housing Authority. Nationwide, the estimate is around 1.5 million ISFs. Apart from the flood-management project, the World Bank has been providing technical assistance on issues related to land, housing finance, and institutions over the last five years.

The international lender is also giving assistance to the National Summit on Housing and Urban Development, led by the committee chairs of both houses of Congress. Catherine N. Pillas

Continued from A1

that the currency was overvalued. But skeptics feared it was a desperation move to give Chinese exporters a competitive advantage—and a sign the economy was weaker than anybody realized.

In an interview with CNBC on Wednesday, US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew warned China against manipulating its currency to give its exporters an unfair advantage. “We are going to hold them accountable,” he said.

The IMF is also worried about the potential fallout if the US Federal Reserve (the Fed) decides this year to raise the short-term interest rate it controls, pinned near zero for seven years. Higher US rates would likely lure investment out of emerging markets to America and drive up the value of the US dollar. That could shake up global markets. It could also squeeze emerging-market companies that

have borrowed in US dollars and would have to scrounge up more money in their local currencies to meet the payments.

In June IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde advised the Fed to delay a rate hike until 2016. She argued that the risk of raising rates prematurely—and damaging the US and global economies—outweighed the risk of waiting too long and allowing inflation to creep up. AP