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Monday, February 29, 2016 Vol. 11 No. 144
Govt pushes back timetable for rollout of Sangley Airport $10B I
P. | | 7 DAYS A WEEK
BEHIND THE SCENES: PPP OPPORTUNITIES FOR INTROSPECTION
B L S. M
T looks like the $10-billion Sangley Airport, originally seen pursued under President Aquino, will be denied the pleasure of entertaining interested bidders under a new timetable bared by Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio A. Abaya. He acknowledged in a spot interview the multibillion-dollar project’s “full feasibility study” will only materialize a year-and-ahalf from now, or well beyond the President’s term and inconsistent with a self-declared goal to keep the ball rolling before the Chief Executive leaves office.
INSIDE
MILA IMSON: WORLD-CLASS JEWELER
PPP Lead
Cost of constructing Sangley Airport
Abaya acknowledged he has yet to receive the feasibility study from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) on the multibillion-dollar airport project seen to replace the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia), making it impossible for the government to meet its target of opening the project to bidders before the Aquino administration ends. C A
BMReports
Alberto C. Agra
B
Conclusion
EHIND the public-private partnership (PPP) scene, press releases and awarded contracts are latent assumptions. The underlying premises of PPPs must be understood, put in the foreground and subjected to discourse. A PPP is so much more than the instrument signed by an implementing agency (IA) and the winning private-sector proponent (PSP). A PPP goes beyond the construction, operations and delivery of projects. C A
LIFE
PPP’S TRUE NORTH
D1
ECHOES OF 1991 GULF WAR LINGER ON IN MIDEAST
Better Quality of Life
‘Con-dorms’ offer challenges to traditional students’ lodging B M R M Researcher
PERSPECTIVE
E4
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First of three parts
ESTLED behind a gray edifice on Padre Noval Street in Manila is a two-story house whose wooden façade has grown darker, thick with construction dust.
PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 47.6770
Along its halls echo the clanking of steel hitting steel and steel hitting concrete from a jackhammer. The sound crawls into the room of Kate Caguiat, a student at the University of Santo Tomas (UST). She has found her old dormitory a mute witness to the noisy birthing of a new form of students’ lodging: “con-dorms.” The BM counted
about 17 condominium-type dormitories, or con-dorms, near the Royal Pontifical UST. Caguiat’s temporary abode is one of 177 dormitories. She told the BM she has gotten used to the grinding of rivets and the hum of cranes for the past two semesters from the construction of the nearby con-dorm.
Hard and Soft Projects
Sustaining Partnerships
More Revenues AUTHOR: ALBERTO C. AGRA
BM GRAPHICS: JOB RUZGAL
C A
n JAPAN 0.4224 n UK 66.5809 n HK 6.1366 n CHINA 7.2963 n SINGAPORE 34.0380 n AUSTRALIA 34.3519 n EU 52.6020 n SAUDI ARABIA 12.7169
Source: BSP (26 February 2016 )
A2 Monday, February 29, 2016
BMReports BusinessMirror
www.businessmirror.com.ph
G-20 finance chiefs want ‘CONDORMS’ OFFER governments doing more CHALLENGES
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INANCE chiefs from the world’s top economies committed their governments to doing more to boost global growth amid mounting concerns over the potency of monetary policy. In a pledge that will prove easier to write than deliver and may disappoint investors looking for a coordinated stimulus plan, the Group of 20 (G-20) said, “we will use fiscal policy flexibly to strengthen growth, job creation and confidence.” After a two-day meeting in Shanghai, finance ministers and central bank governors also doubled down on a line from their last gathering that “monetary policy alone cannot lead to balanced growth.” For those few analysts calling for a 1985 Plaza Accord-type agreement to address exchangerate tensions, there was no such luck: International Monetar y Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde said there were no discussions about anything like that. The G-20 members did reaffirm they will refrain from competitive devaluations, and—in new language—agreed to consult closely on currencies.
Reaching limit
AN increasing sense, monetary policy is reaching its limit permeated officials’ briefings during the meetings that ended on Saturday. While central banks proved critical in avoiding a global slide into depression last decade, there is now no consensus among the world’s top economic guardians
After six or seven years of trying to promote recovery, there is no appetite for fiscal stimulus, and no easy or obvious reforms that have been neglected.” —J backing stepped-up monetar y stimulus. That leaves focus on fiscal policies that are subject to domestic political constraints, and a structural-reform agenda the G-20 said will be gauged through a new indicator system. “Central bankers have done their bit in recent years to stabilize the world economy,” said Frederic Neumann, cohead of Asian economic research at HSBC Holdings Plc. in Hong Kong. “But as their tools are losing their
effectiveness, only more aggressive fiscal policy and structural reforms will help to lift growth.” A mong t hose publ ic ly indicating a potentially reduced role for central banks was Lagarde, who said on Friday the effects of monetary policies, even innovative ones, are diminishing. Bank of England Governor Mark Carney used a Shanghai speech ahead of the G-20 to voice skepticism over negative interest rates—now in place in continental Europe and Japan—and their ability to boost domestic demand.
Negative spillovers
FOR his part, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, speaking in a prerecorded video at the G-20, said quantitativeea si ng pol ic ies c a n’t re move structural obstacles to growth and may lead to negative spillovers. The People’s Bank of China has been using more orthodox tools to support fiscal spending and structural reforms. Adding to an atmosphere of unease about further central bank actions, some officials expressed concern about Japan’s policies, after its surprise move to adopt negative interest rates last month roiled the currency market. “The debate was also about Japan, to be honest—there was some concern that we would get into a situation of competitive devaluations,” Eurogroup chief Jeroen Dijsselbloem, who heads gatherings of euro area finance ministers, told reporters on Saturday. “If policy decisions—for example, for domestic issues— lead to devaluation, we should inform and consult with the
different countries.” Japanese policy-makers are now contending with a yen that rallied more than 6 percent in February, the biggest monthly surge since 2008—and one that stoked speculation among traders that officials could intervene in the market by selling the currency. The G-20 said in the Shanghai Communiqué that “we will consult closely on exchange markets,” language that wasn’t included in its September statement. Delivering on the G-20 statement to ease pressure on central banks will require political appetite for unpopular domestic reforms, while new spending may be constrained by already overstretched budgets, especially across much of the advanced world. “Where is the boost to growth going to come from? Fiscal policy? Reform?” said Richard Jerram, the chief economist at Bank of Singapore Ltd. “After six or seven years of trying to promote recovery, there is no appetite for fiscal stimulus, and no easy or obvious reforms that have been neglected.” Some countries are heading in the other direction on the fiscal front. UK Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne warned just days ago he may make further cuts in public spending in his annual budget on March 16. Japan is planning a 2017 sales-tax increase. German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble rejected fiscal stimulus on Friday. US budget policy has proved a constant battleground between Republicans and Democratic President Barack Obama. Bloomberg News
TO TRADITIONAL STUDENTS’ LODGING
C A
Her landlady barely complains. “That has been going on for months, it’s almost music to our ears,” 67-yearold Amarillo Marquez said. “But some of my boarders can barely sleep.” Marquez, likewise, is not worried the con-dorms would lure away students to her dorm. “Even if they keep on building those sky-high condominiums, students will still prefer to stay in dormitories like mine,” she said. “It feels more like home.” The house with sliding capiz shell windows is not the only one of its kind that lies on streets bordering the UST in Sampaloc, Manila. Countless of preAmerican War wood-and-steel houses dot the inner streets of Dapitan, Padre Noval, Lacson Avenue and España Boulevard. Some of them still display signs originally hung in the 1940s. Some were written by hand, others etched on wood, but most weathered the changing seasons through the years. Every sign, however, contain the same message, unchanged and permanent: “Room for Rent”.
Martial law
THE dormitory run by Marquez has been around since then-President Ferdinand E. Marcos declared a military regime. Some of my boarders would go out to the street to join demonstrators at the height of martial law, she recalls. “They were all girls. We’ve always had lady dormers. Boys are too rowdy to handle,” she said. Caguiat’s mother, Joselyn, had been a previous dormer of Marquez while she was taking up Nursing in Far Eastern University. The younger Caguiat said that her mother preferred that she stayed somewhere familiar and trusted by the family. “I would like to stay in one of the condos, but this is cheaper, and Manang Yeye takes good care of us,” said the Economics freshman, recalling how their landlady texts them whenever they’re not home by 9:30 in the evening.
Far-flung
DORMITORIES have been the mainstay choice for college students to reside in during the course of their education, especially those living in far-flung cities and provinces that take hours of travel to reach. However, due to the course of urbanization and demographic transition, high-rise condominium living has allured those moving in the city, for work or education, without any properties of their own. Of the 177 dormitories mentioned, 97 were commercial types; two to four stories high; some with fancy, wellthought of names; others settled with common surnames injected with “dormitories” at the end. Others were named after Catholic saints. Ten ladies’ dormitories run by Catholic religious congregations stand at the margins of the UST. One dorm is said to have been in the early 1900s. Other than the commercial dormitories, 80 of those in the border are houses. However, like Marquez’s, these apartments that
177
The total number of dormitories within the vicinity of the Royal Pontifical University of Santo Tomas as counted by the BUSINESSMIRROR
accommodate students. These include a house with a 2-meter gate flanked by bougainvillea trees and whose leaves cover much of the ground-floor screens. Another have potted plants lining the three-step entrance like watered down version of a red carpet walk. Another dormitory offer a common room lit by four French windows. Colorful laundry decorates the panes of the floor above this. Thirtyseven of these apartments have signs that read “Bedspace Available.” though most specified they only accept women.
Transients
MARQUEZ said that her “home” was not limited to students around the EspañaRecto university belt. There are times that she took in transient individuals reviewing for board exams for a few nights. When asked whether this has posed a security concern over her regular dormers, she was quick to counter that she did not accept these people without the referral of her previous boarders. “These instances, favors were called in by friends of friends. Of course, I wouldn’t let strangers in,” she said. Aside from the 17 condominiums raised around UST, another 11 were noted to be under construction, including the one next to Marquez’s establishment. In 2014 the Quezon City Building Department recommended the termination of the operation of 39 dormitories in Barangay Krus na Ligas, adjacent to Teacher’s Village flanking next to the University of the Philippines-Diliman Campus. The buildings were said to be for closure because of functioning without any formal permit and clearance for fire safety, undoubtly making the dormitories unsafe for occupants. Then Quezon City Building Official Isagani Versoza, who was in charge of the structure investigation, said their utmost priority is the safety of the tenants. A dormitory in Sampaloc was gutted with fire in 2006, leaving eight people charred to death and four other boarders injured. Police report showed that some of the victims were allegedly drunk during the night of the fire. Furniture and other possessions of the dormers were said to be blocking exits, causing impenetrability. “I remember that,” Marquez said. “But, of course, our dormitory is safe. How could it function for at least 30 years if it weren’t so?” she said of her highly combustible house with no fire escape. To be continued
news@businessmirror.com.ph
BMReports BusinessMirror
Monday, February 29, 2016 A3
Edca reopens old wounds in Subic S B H E | Correspondent
UBIC BAY FREEPORT —The statue of “Inang Laya” (Mother Freedom) in this free port provides a telling symbol of Philippine sovereignty, or the lack of it.
THE US Navy’s fast-attack submarine USS Topeka arrives in Subic Bay in this file photo taken in January. HENRY EMPEÑO
Standing against the backdrop of a clear blue sky and the azure Subic Bay, it is a fitting image of triumph, the embodiment of a Filipino nation freed after 12 Philippine senators rejected the RP-US Military Bases Treaty in September 1991. Lately, however, this symbol of regained freedom increasingly appears out of place, as destroyers, frigates and submarines dock frequently at the nearby Alava Pier under the Expanded Defense Cooperation Agreement (Edca) between the Philippines and the United States. The incongruent picture of Inang Laya, the national pride rubbed raw by the return of American military forces to Subic, and the reappearance of social ills spawned by the presence of foreign sailors and soldiers also divide a community that has seen the best and worst of US military presence. Questions linger: Would the Subic Bay Freeport community benefit from Edca? Or like when it hosted the US naval base before, would it have to make a sacrifice again for the greater interest of the country? For Larry Salazar, who used to work at the Subic Naval Base, there will always be social costs along with whatever benefits could be derived from hosting a military base. “If you’d ask the ordinary locals, they’d say they want Edca because they earn from the arrival here of American sailors and soldiers. For example, when liberty for American sailors was canceled because of the Pemberton case, a big leisure establishment in the Subic Freeport was said to have lost P7 million in unrealized income. On a smaller scale, even tricycle drivers also want US servicemen to come here, so they can also earn dollars. And when liberty is canceled, even the small people lose,” Salazar said. “There will, of course, be social ills like prostitution, but I think we need to coexist with the US military now that Edca is already a done deal. We just need to sharpen regulation, so that we can lessen the social impact,” he said. Salazar was one of the Subic 42, a group of Filipino workers whose employment at the Subic Naval Base was terminated by the Americans because of labor unionism. He recalled that the employees of the former Subic Naval Base used to earn comparatively better, because their wages were based on surveys (among US military facilities worldwide). “Now the question is, will the SBMA [Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority] and the Philippine military base earn from Edca?” Salazar asked. Another wound brushed raw by Edca is the issue of sovereignty. Ansbert Joaquin, a local journalist, said there appears to be no hope that the Philippines would get equality and respect when it deals with the US. “The relationship should be on equal terms, but experience has shown us that is difficult to achieve,” Joaquin said. He added that in the recent case of Pemberton, the US Marine soldier convicted of killing a Filipino transgender in Olongapo City, the US showed how it would trample on the Philippine judicial system when and if it wanted to. “In that case, the US authorities did not turn over the convicted US Marine to Philippine authorities. What more if it was the American national interest at stake? Even with Edca, they won’t honor Philippine laws, but pursue their own interest,” Joaquin said. The unequal terms was also noted by Amethya de la Llana, a manager at the SBMA, which now oversees operations in this former naval base. “The predominant factor in accepting Edca is the supposition that US presence brings us some kakampi versus Chinese bullying. To a certain extent, this is true. But it also makes us a primary target [in case of a US-China
conflict],” de la Llana said. De la Llana was very familiar with this scenario of Subic (and the Philippines) becoming collateral damage in the event of an all-out war between the US and some superpower rival—and the divisive effect of the bases issue on the local community. As a college student in the 1980s, the native Zambaleña was among those who called for the dismantling
of the US bases—even when her father, the late Judge Gualberto de la Llana, sat as chairman of Zomorus, the Zambales-Olongapo Movement for the Retention of US Bases. Many times father and daughter debated heatedly over the issue. And now, the issues come back under Edca. “I think the lack of a provision explicitly saying that the US would come to our aid when we are
attacked by another nation makes it unfair to the Philippines,” de la Llana said. “The economic benefits under Edca are okay, but what I don’t like is that Edca allows the US to hide behind the skirt of the Philippine military, when we know for a fact that we’re putting up these Philippine naval and air bases inside the Subic Bay Freeport Zone for the benefit of the Americans.”
Agriculture/Commodities
A4 Monday, February 29, 2016 • Editor: Jennifer A. Ng
BusinessMirror
news@businessmirror.com.ph
Expand crop insurance, group tells 2016 bets
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B M G P
HE next administration should expand crop insurance and provide a more extensive coverage to help farmers cope with climate change, a nongovernmental organization said over the weekend.
Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (Sinag) Executive Director Jayson Cainglet urged presidential hopefuls in the May 2016 elections to include the expansion of the crop insurance in their economic agenda. “We need the assurance that whatever happens, farmers will be able to replant their crops and growers will be able to raise their chicken and pigs,” Cainglet told the BusinessMirror. He said the P1.6 billion given to the Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. (PCIC) for 2016 is only enough to cover a fraction of Filipinos involved in agriculture. “PCIC’s budget can only cover 5 percent of farmers in the country. It would not help much if we are hit by calamities,” Cainglet said. Last year Sinag said the government should increase its budget for crop insurance by tenfold to allow farmers to recoup losses caused by natural calamities. Cainglest also said the next administration should ensure that small producers are automatically covered by PCIC, and are compensated once they incur losses. Christopher Morales, officer in charge of the Department of Agriculture’s Field Operation Service, said the government is rolling out programs and interventions to battle the negative impacts of El Niño, and is preparing for the possible occurrence of La Niña. “We are making sure that we have available seeds to provide farmers for damaged crops that need replanting. We will also advise farmers whether they need to harvest early, or if they should defer farming to avoid losses,” Morales said.
Apart from the expansion of crop insurance, Sinag also called on presidential bets to consider waiving irrigation fees and to prioritize the fight against smuggling. “What’s killing the agriculture sector for the past 10 years is really the smuggling of agricultural products,” he said, adding that the next administration should determine why smuggling is “lucrative” in the Philippines. Meanwhile, Senate President Pro-Tempore Ralph Recto urged the government to release funds for the equipment upgrade of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) pursuant to a law modernizing the agency. Recto said an initial P3 billion for new weather-forecasting facilities has been authorized under the Pagasa Modernization Act, which President Aquino signed into law on November 3, 2015, as Republic Act 10692. With the possibility of a La Niña episode this year, Recto said the release of funds “is crucial, as Pagasa actually incurred a budget cut this year, from P3.44 billion in 2015 to P1.21 billion for 2016.” He said Pagasa needs to have more equipment and weather stations installed in other parts of the country. The 13th Doppler radar was inaugurated in Iloilo last Friday. Recto said Pagasa has only P4.2 million this year to install, repair and maintain telemetering and multiplex system for flood forecasting and warning system in 18 major river basins. With Butch Fernandez
CROWD DRAWER The Department of Agriculture float in this photo was a hit among the residents and tourists who watched the Grand Float Parade in Baguio City on Sunday. The parade of floats bedecked with flowers was one of the activities lined up for the monthlong 21st Baguio Flower Festival or Panagbenga. MAU VICTA
East-West Seed tops global seed index V EGETABLE seed provider East-West Seed topped a global survey which measured and compared efforts of the world’s leading seeds companies to make high-quality seeds more accessible to smallholder farmers. The Access to Seeds Index 2016 published recently showed that East-West Seed was ranked No. 1 in two indices: Global Index for Vegetable Seed Companies and Regional Index for Eastern Africa. “Due to the nature of its business model, in which smallholder farmers are the primary customers, the company has developed a robust governance and strategy system around access to seeds,” the report read. “It prioritizes the needs of smallholder farmers in the development of both local and global crops,” it added.
The Access to Seeds Index Foundation, which published the report, noted that local smallholder farmers are involved in the company’s production activities, with 90 percent of farmers participating in seed production. The foundation is funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Dutch government. East-West Seed also carries out research and development (R&D) for all global index vegetable crops in its portfolio, as well as seven local crops in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. “The company’s collaboration with Rijk Zwaan in the Afrisem breeding program is innovative due both to the focus on local crop development for Eastern Africa and the fact that two competitors are working on this development together,” the report read.
El Niño now wreaking havoc on fishponds in Lingayen
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INGAYEN, Pangasinan—The fishery sector in this capital town of Pangasinan is under serious threat from El Niño. Edgar Sison, president of the Lingayen Federation of Fisherfolk Organizations (Liffo) Inc., said about 60 percent of the rivers in the town already dried up due to the effect of El Niño, resulting in low production of fish. He aired this concern during the Liffo First General Assembly held at the Pangasinan Training and Development Center on Saturday. He said, “Our agenda include dis-
cussions on how to address El Niño and how to seek assistance from concerned agencies.” “Compared to other sectors, only a small share of assistance reaches our industry,” he added. Sison disclosed that at present, El Niño poses the biggest threat to their industry. Thus, they request the provincial government and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) to provide them water pumps to ensure water in their fishponds. Meanwhile, BFAR Provincial
Fishery Officer Glicerio Legaspi said consultative meetings were being conducted to plan for the dredging of rivers to address El Niño. Legaspi added that the BFAR provincial office was also monitoring illegal fishing in Pangasinan.“We have patrol boats going around the provincial waters—West Philippine Sea and Lingayen Gulf— guarding against illegal fishing,” he said. Still, Legaspi added that the province remained the top fishery producer in the country. During the assembly, Legaspi disclosed the agency’s priority pro-
grams to aid the fishermen. These projects include the National Shellfish Program; provision of fishery gears and paraphernalia; techno-demo projects; Gender and Development livelihood program; and Mangrove Enhancement Program. Also, the provincial government, through the Provincial Agriculturist Office, vowed to provide help to the fishery industry. Dalisay Moya, officer in charge provincial agriculturist, noted that to increase fishery production is one of their objectives. PNA
Despite its strong performance, the foundation said East-West Seed discloses a limited amount of information publically, providing most information only on engagement. “The company can improve its Transparency score by disclosing more information publicly, especia l ly on its gover nance and accountability, marketing and sales, local seed sector advancement and R&D activities,” the report read. East-West Seed Co. Ltd. was founded in the Philippines in 1982, but moved its headquarters to Thailand shortly afterward. More recent, the company has expanded its operations to other tropical and subtropical parts of the world. Sy ngenta and Bayer Crop Science followed East-West in the Global Index of Vegetable Seed
Companies, while Victoria Seeds and East African Seeds ranked after the company in the Regional Index for Eastern Africa. DuPont Pioneer ranked first in the Global Index of Field Crop Seed Companies, its position primarily determined by its strong breeding program focusing on the regions where smallholder farmers are active. Syngenta and Bayer CropScience also made it to the top companies under this index. The Access to Seeds Index identified four regions with foodsecurity challenge, smallholderfarmer presence and agricultural potential, namely, Latin America, Western Africa, Eastern Africa and South and Southeast Asia. Its findings showed that the seed industry, as a whole, is active in all these regions, with the exception of Western Africa. Mary Grace Padin
Australia’s gold output climbs to 12-year high–Surbiton
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OLD output in Australia, the world’s second-biggest producer, reached the highest in 12 years in 2015, as rising prices see miners revive mothballed operations. Full-year production was 285 metric tons last year, almost two tons more than in 2014 and the highest annual total since 2003, mining consultancy Surbiton Associates Ltd. said on Sunday in an e-mailed statement. Bullion is the best-performing commodity this year, rising 15 percent, as haven demand lures investors and expectations mount that the Federal Reserve won’t raise US interest rates further in 2016. Producers in countries, including Australia, are also benefiting from weaker local currencies that trim
costs and help to boost margins. Gold in Australian dollar terms touched A$1,778.65 an ounce on February 11, the highest since September 22, 2011. Spot bullion closed on Friday at $1,223.46 an ounce, and is headed for a second successive monthly advance. “If you factor higher prices and tighter cost containment into the overall equation, margins have increased,” Surbiton Director Sandra Close said in the statement. “Much of the local gold sector is traveling quite well for the moment.” Saracen Mineral Holdings this month poured its first gold from the reopened Thunderbox mine in Western Australia, while Metals X Ltd. resumed production at the Central Murchison gold project in October. Bloomberg News
West Coast sardine populations long sinking
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BLOOMBERG NEWS
ARDINES off the West Coast have continued on a steep decline, with populations this summer forecast to be down 93 percent from a 2007 peak, according to a draft assessment from the National Marine Fisheries Service. The sardines are a key forage food for sea lions, salmon and many other species, as well as a source of income for commercial fishermen. In some years, sardines have been worth from $10 million to more than $20 million annually to a West Coast fleet. Last year the sardine implosion was so severe that the Pacific Fishery Management Council voted to call off the season that was scheduled to start in July for West Coast fleets, including
those in Washington state. This year, as the council meets this spring, it will have more bad news on sardines to review. The stocks of sardines aged one year or older are forecast to be 64,422 metric tons, about a third lower than the 2015 assessment. “Pacific sardines are an incredibly important economic and ecological ocean resource,” said Geoff Shester, a fishery scientist with Oceana, a marine conservation group. “Fishermen with lost income will suffer financially, and marine animals, like California sea lion pups, will face another year of fighting starvation.” A lbert Carter of Ocean Gold Seafood in southwest Washington said
sardines are a significant part of the company business when populations are strong. Carter, who serves on a Pacific Fishery Management Council advisory committee, said he has not had a chance to review the new sardine assessment. But he said if populations have continued to decline, he does not expect a 2016 season. Sardine populations historically have had huge fluctuations that reflect changing ocean conditions. Shester of Oceana said sardines also have been overfished, which has prevented populations from fully rebounding during prime ocean conditions and knocked them back much lower when the oceans were less favorable. TNS
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AseanMonday BusinessMirror
Monday, February 29, 2016 A5
Asean foreign ministers voice concerns on South China Sea
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OREIGN ministers from the 10 countries of the Asean said they were “seriously concerned” by recent developments in the disputed South China Sea region and will seek a meeting over the issue with China.
At the end of their annual retreat, held this year in the Lao capital of Vientiane, they noted their worries and reaffirmed the importance of maintaining peace, security and stability in the area. The strategically important South China Sea is at the center of a territorial dispute involving China on one side and a number of Asean countries on the other, including Vietnam, the Philippines and Malaysia. Tensions have ramped up since China began a massive land-reclamation program in 2013. Recent satellite imagery suggests that China has installed surface-to-air missiles in a
disputed area in the Paracels chain, prompting accusations that Beijing is militarizing the area. A joint statement said the Asean foreign ministers “remained seriously concerned over recent and ongoing developments and took note of the concerns expressed by some members on the land reclamations and escalation of activities” in the South China Sea. The statement added that the activities have “eroded trust and confidence, increased tensions and may undermine peace, security and stability in the region.” Vietnamese Foreign Minister
Pham Binh Minh told reporters as he left the meeting that he was “seriously concerned about the situation” and called for the “nonmilitarization” of the South China Sea. Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong said Asean would seek a meeting with China over the matter, though no date or venue had been set. Other matters were on the agenda, too. The ministers reiterated their perennial call for the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula. They also addressed Islamic extremism, in the wake of an attack in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta in January that left eight people dead. “The threat is real. It’s no longer fictitious or mere imagination,” said Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman. Other topics included ways to bring about ever closer economic cooperation since the advent of the Asean Economic Community at the end of last year.
Arbitration ruling
A SENIOR U.S. official says that an upcoming ruling on a case brought
by the Philippines to arbitrate territorial claims in the South China Sea will also be binding on China, despite its boycott of the proceedings. China contends it won't be bound by the ruling that the Hague-based tribunal will deliver this year. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Thursday Beijing did not consent to arbitration and would not reconsider its position. But White House Asia Policy Director Daniel Kritenbrink said on Friday the ruling will be binding on both nations as parties to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos). He said at a recent summit, President Barack Obama and Southeast Asian leaders agreed on the need to respect such legal processes for resolving disputes.
‘Political provocation’
CHINA, meanwhile, has accused the US-allied Philippines of “political provocation” in seeking international arbitration over territorial claims in the South China Sea. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi
said on Thursday the decision by Philippine leaders to lodge a case with a tribunal in The Hague was “irresponsible to the Filipino people and the future of the Philippines.” China has refused to participate in the proceedings. A ruling is expected later this year, after the tribunal decided last October that it could hear the case. The Philippines initiated arbitration in early 2013, after Beijing refused to withdraw its ships from a disputed shoal under a US-brokered deal. It contends that China’s massive territorial claims in the strategic waters do not conform with the 1982 Unclos and should be declared invalid. The Philippines also asserts
that some Chinese-occupied reefs and shoals do not generate, or create a claim to, territorial waters. Wang blamed the Philippines for shutting the door to negotiations with China over their dispute and seeking arbitration without China’s consent. He said China was prepared to negotiate “tomorrow.” “We are neighbors just separated by a narrow body of water,” Wang told the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank. “We want to contribute to the Philippines’s economic development.” In Manila Communications Secretary Herminio B. Coloma Jr. said the Philippines would not comment on Wang’s remarks. AP
[The China] activities have eroded trust and confidence, increased tensions and may undermine peace, security and stability in the region.”—A
A6
Monday, February 29, 2016
The World BusinessMirror
Editor: Lyn Resurreccion * news@businessmirror.com.ph
Iranian moderates winning election T
DEMOCRATIC presidential candidate Hillary Clinton (right) is embraced by an audience member while posing for a photograph at a campaign event at Miles College in Fairfield, Alabama, on Saturday. AP/DAVID GOLDMAN
AS REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES FIRE INSULTS AT EACH OTHER
Clinton wins big over Sanders in S. Carolina C
OLUMBIA, South Carolina— Hillary Clinton overwhelmed Bernie Sanders in the South Carolina primary, drawing staggering support from the state’s black Democrats and putting her in a strong position as the race barrels toward crucial multistate contests on Tuesday. Clinton’s lopsided win on Saturday—she led by 48 points with nearly all precincts counted—provided an important boost for her campaign and a moment to wipe away bitter memories of her loss to Barack Obama in South Carolina eight years ago. She won the support of nearly 9 in 10 black voters, crucial Democratic backers who abandoned her for Obama in 2008. During a raucous victory rally, Clinton brief ly reveled in her sweeping support from South Carolina voters, hugging backers and posing with them for selfie photos. But then she pivoted quickly to the contests to come. “Tomorrow this campaign goes national,” she said. “We are not taking anything, and we are not taking anyone, for granted.” Taken together, 865 Democratic delegates are up for grabs in the March 1 Super Tuesday contests in 11 states and American Samoa. Clinton’s campaign hopes her strong showing in South Carolina foreshadows similar outcomes
48 pts
Hillary Clinton’s lead over Democratic presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders
in states like Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee a nd Virg inia t hat vote on Tuesday and have large minority populations. Sanders, expecting defeat in South Carolina on Saturday, left the state even before voting was finished and turned his attention to some of the states that vote in next Tuesday’s delegate-rich contests. In a statement, Sanders vowed to fight on aggressively. He drew 10,000 people to a rally in Austin, a liberal bastion in conservative Texas, the biggest March 1 prize. “This campaign is just beginning,” he said. “Our grassroots political revolution is growing state
by state, and we won’t stop now.” Clinton’s victory came at the end of a day that saw Republican candidates firing insults at each other at rallies in states voting on Super Tuesday. Donald Trump, working to build an insurmountable lead, was campaigning in Arkansas with former rival New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and calling Florida Sen. Marco Rubio a “light little nothing.” Texas Sen. Ted Cruz was asking parents in Atlanta if they would be pleased if their children spouted profanities like the brash billionaire. And Rubio was mocking Trump as a “con artist” with “the worst spray tan in America.” Clinton made a stop in Alabama, a Super Tuesday state, on Saturday before returning to Columbia, South Carolina’s capital, for an evening victory party. Sanders has energized young people and liberals with his impassioned calls for breaking up Wall Street banks and making tuition free at public colleges and universities. But the senator from Vermont, a state where about 1 percent of the population is black, lacks Clinton’s deep ties to the African-American community. Exit polls showed six in 10 voters in the South Carolina primary were black, by far the largest proportion in any of the contests so far. About seven in 10 said they wanted the next president to continue Obama’s policies, and only about 20 percent wanted a more libera l course of action, a ccord i n g to t he p ol l s con ducted by Edison Research for T he A ssociated Press (A P) and
telev ision net works. Clinton’s sweeping v ictor y suggested South Carolina voters had put aside any lingering tensions from her heated 2008 contest w ith Obama. For mer P resident Bi l l C l i nton m ade statements dur ing that campaign that were seen by some as questioning the legitimacy of the black presidential contender. Clinton’s second White House bid lurched to an uneven start, with a narrow victory over Sanders in Iowa and a crushing loss to the senator in New Hampshire. She pulled off a five-point win over Sanders in last week’s Nevada caucuses, a crucial victory that helped stem Sanders’s momentum. Clinton will pick up most of South Carolina’s delegates, widening her overall lead in AP’s count. With 53 delegates at stake, Clinton will receive 39, Sanders at least 14. Going into South Carolina, Clinton had just a one-delegate edge over Sanders. However, she also has a massive lead among super delegates, the Democratic Party leaders who can vote for the candidate of their choice at this summer’s national convention, regardless of how their states vote. Because Democrats apportion delegates proportionally, Sanders is simply hoping to stay close to Clinton in the South. But he’s focusing most of his attention on states in the Midwest and Northeast, including his home state of Vermont. On the Republican side, voters will cast ballots in 11 states, with 595 delegates at stake on Super Tuesday. AP
EHR A N, I ra n—Pa r t i a l election results in Iran on Saturday point to major gains by reformists and moderates who favor expanding freedoms and engaging with the West, and who defended the recently implemented nuclear deal with world powers against opposition from hard-liners. Friday’s election was the first since last summer’s agreement was finalized, lifting international economic sanctions in exchange for Iran curbing its nuclear program. US officials had hoped the deal would strengthen President Hassan Rouhani and other moderates, paving the way for greater cooperation on other regional issues. Reports in the semiofficial Fars and Mehr news agencies showed hard-liners losing ground in the 290-seat legislature. None of Iran’s three main political camps—reformist, conservative and hard-line—was expected to capture a majority, but the reformist camp is on track for its best showing in more than a decade. Reformist candidates were set for major gains in Tehran, which sends 30 representatives to the chamber and is seen as a political bellwether. Partial results released by the government showed 26 reformists among the 30 front-runners and just one hard-liner. Mohammad Reza Aref, the most prominent reformist candidate, was at the top of the list, and the sole hard-liner, Gholamali Haddad Adel, was 10th. Some 1.3 million ballots have been counted in Tehran, where turnout is expected to exceed the 2.6 million who voted in 2012. Partial results from Tehran showed moderates also gaining ground in the 88-member Assembly of Experts, which will select the successor to 76-year-old Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s top decisionmaker since 1989. Rouhani and former President A kbar Hashemi R afsanjani, a relative moderate, led in Tehran, which will send 16 candidates to the assembly, the official Irna news agency reported. Just two hard-liners are currently among the 16. The current assembly has six hard-liners from Tehran. Irna initially reported the Assembly of Experts results as final, but later both Irna and state TV said they were based on a partial tally. Both Rouhani and Rafsanjani currently sit in the assembly, which is elected every eight years and at present includes around 20 moderates. There were no immediate results from other constituencies, and vote counting was still under way. The final results from the elections are expected on Monday. In a statement, Rouhani thanked Iranians for taking part in the election and urged unity, calling for a “new chapter in the growth of the
national economy by using domestic strength and foreign opportunities,” a reference to Iran’s openness to foreign investment now that sanctions linked to its nuclear program have been lifted. Iran has dozens of political groupings and organizations, but no major, long-standing parties like in the West. Broadly speaking, the election is a showdown between hard-liners in one camp, and relative moderates supporting Rouhani and reformists on the other. There are also independent conservatives not aligned with either bloc. Nearly 55 million of Iran’s 80 million people were eligible to vote. Participation figures were not immediately available, but Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli on Saturday said turnout likely exceeded 60 percent based on the partial counting of the votes. Polls closed at midnight and of f ic i a l s i m med i ate ly beg a n counting the ballots. In the capital, officials counting the ballots in three different districts told The Associated Press that reformists were leading their hard-line rivals. The officials requested anonymity because t hey were not aut hor ized to speak with reporters. A substantial reformist bloc could herald a major shift in Iran’s internal politics. The hard-line camp is largely made up of loyalists of Rou hani ’s predecessor, Ma hmoud Ahmadinejad, who during his two terms in office stoked tensions with the US and cracked down on dissent. Ahmadinejad also alienated large sectors of the conservative camp, leading some moderate conservatives to ally with reformists in this election in a bid to reduce the power of the hard-liners. Reformists last rose to power with the 1997 election of President Mohammad Khatami, followed by the 2000 parliamentary elections that brought a reformist majority for the first time. The movement pressed for an easing of Islamic social restrictions, wider freedom of expression and better relations with the West. But their hold on power was broken in the next election in 2004, when reformist candidates were largely barred from running. Ahmadinejad’s victory in 2005 sealed the movement’s downfall. Reformists were virtually shut out of politics until Rouhani was elected in 2013. T he pre s id e nt i a l e le c t ion in 2009 was followed by mass protests over a l leged vot i ng fraud, but other past elections in Iran have been held without any major disputes. However, the Guardian Council has the right to vet candidates, and this year it disqualified all but 200 of the 3,000 reformist candidates who had hoped to run. AP
Irish leader rues ‘merciless’ election losses 2nd former Mexican president hits Trump
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UBLIN—Ireland could be on course for a historic alliance between ageold foes—the Fine Gael and Fianna Fail parties—as partial election results on Saturday revealed strong voter rejection of the existing coalition government of Prime Minister Enda Kenny. Kenny said he was surprised by the unexpectedly strong losses for his centrist Fine Gael and even heavier blows for his left-wing partner, Labour. “Democracy can be very exciting, but it’s merciless,” he said. Yet, Ireland’s soft-spoken leader vowed to remain in office atop a new coalition and would seek new allies with the sole aim of creating “as stable a government as can be created.” He declined to rule out a historic partnership with Fianna Fail, which has never shared power with Fine Gael since their founders took opposite sides in Ireland’s civil war 94 years ago.
With all 40 of Ireland’s constituencies repor ting official first-round results, Fine Gael attracted 25.5 percent of firstpreference votes in Friday’s election, down 10.6 points from the last election in 2011. Many rounds of ballot counting remain under Ireland’s complex system of proportional representation. Declared winners for all 158 seats in Ireland’s parliament were expected by Monday. Fianna Fail—which faced political ruin in 2011 after leading the country to the brink of bankruptcy and a humiliating international bailout—mounted an unexpectedly strong comeback. The party took 24.3 percent of first-preference votes and appeared poised to double its parliamentary seats at the expense of Fine Gael and Labour. The latter retained just 6.6 percent support, off 12.8 points from 2011. Finishing a somewhat lackluster third was the nationalist Sinn Fein, a hard-left critic of the government’s painful but broadly
successful pursuit of austerity. Sinn Fein won 13.8-percent support, as it sought to capitalize on voter discontent over an era of tax hikes, spending cuts and pruned wages that Ireland is only starting to leave behind. But protest votes against austerity flew in myriad directions to a half-dozen other small parties and independents. With Fine Gael and Fianna Fail now nearly even in public support, the question is who can negotiate an alliance sufficient to hold a parliamentary majority: Kenny or Fianna Fail chief Micheal Martin. Martin, like Kenny, remained coy on the prospect of forging an alliance. But he said voters wanted a new government, so he intended to nominate himself as prime minister when the new parliament convenes on March 10. “We’re committed to doing our best by the country and ensuring that the country gets a good government,” Martin said. “But it will take time.” AP
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EXICO CITY—Former Mexican President Felipe Calderon on Saturday joined his predecessor in office in unloading on Donald Trump, calling the Republican front-runner’s campaign racist and saying his discourse on immigration is fueling anti-American sentiment around the world. Calderon, a conservative who was president of Mexico from 2006 to 2012, even said he thought Trump was trying to exploit the same social feelings and resentments as did Adolf Hitler. “I think his logic of exalting white supremacy isn’t even acting against immigration—Donald Trump is the descendant of migrants—it is acting and speaking against immigrants who have
a different skin color than him, which is frankly racist and is a bit like the exploitation of raw nerves that Hitler did in his day,” Calderon told reporters after a meeting of the National Action Party (PAN), in Mexico City. Calderon’s comments parallel those made earlier by former President Vicente Fox, who preceded Calderon in office and also belonged to the PAN party. In interviews with Univision and Mexican media, Fox called Trump “crazy,” a “false prophet” and an embarrassment to his party. When asked about Trump’s assertion that he was going to get Mexico to pay for his proposed border wall, Fox used an explicative to make his point the country would never do so.
Trump said Fox ought to be “ashamed of himself” for his vulgarity and demanded an apology. Trump has angered many Mexicans for his campaign rhetoric denigrating some immigrants as “rapists” who bring crime and drugs to the United States. Threats of mass deportations of Mexicans and other migrants illegally in the country, along with his promise to build a wall separating the nations, have added to the bad feelings. Calderon said Trump’s discourse is “sowing hate” against the US around the world and this is not in Washington’s interest. Dur ing a v isit to Mexico’s capital, Vice President Joe Biden apologized for the inflammatory rhetoric about Mexico in the US presidential campaign. AP
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Monday, February 29, 2016
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US economy better than presidential hopefuls say–Buffett
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MAHA, Nebraska—Billionaire investor Warren Buffett said on Saturday that the nation’s economy is in better shape than the presidential candidates make it seem, though businesses like his still face challenges. In his annual letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders, Buffett didn’t name specific candidates or issues, but noted that the negative drumbeat about the economy, healthcare reform and income inequality may get voters down about the future. “It’s an election year, and candidates can’t stop speaking about our country’s problems [which, of course, only they can solve],”
wrote Buffett, who has endorsed Democ rat ic H i l l a r y C l i nton. “That view is dead wrong: The babies being born in America today
are the luckiest crop in history.” Buffett struck an optimistic tone in the wide-ranging letter, which largely focused on what contributed to his conglomerate’s $24-billion profit last year and discussed Berkshire’s prospects for the future. The letter also touched on climate change. Buffett defended the lending practices at its mobile home unit, Clayton Homes, and Berkshire’s association with the 3G Capital investment firm. Clayton’s lending practices have been questioned over the past year in stories by The Seattle Times and The Center for Public Integrity that suggested the company was using predatory lending practices. Buffett said Clayton follows state and federal regulation and retains ownership of every mortgage it finances. He included a copy of a disclosure form Clayton uses to inform customers about lending options. Berkshire teamed up with 3G Capital to buy Kraft Foods and Heinz—and promptly announced
BUFFETT AP/NATI HARNIK
layoffs at both firms. Buffett said Berkshire has always craved efficiency and tends to buy lean companies, while 3G looks for investments that need costs reduced. Edward Jones analyst Jim Shanahan said on Saturday the fact that Buffett devoted space to defending 3G and Clayton suggests he’s still hearing criticisms. Buffett has addressed both topics at shareholders meetings in the past. The letter also noted that Berkshire shareholders will be asked this year to vote on a proposal requiring the company to prepare a report on
the threat climate change poses for its insurance operation. Buffett said it’s reasonable to worry about climate change’s effect on the world, but it shouldn’t hurt insurance companies because policy prices are set annually based on that year’s risks. “As a homeowner in a low-lying area, you may wish to consider moving,” Buffett said. “But when you are thinking only as a shareholder of a major insurer, climate change should not be on your list of worries.” Buffett said change can create challenges for Berkshire. For instance, he said, its BNSF railroad is certain to haul less coal in the future and Geico insurance could be hurt by driverless cars. He said Berkshire’s businesses will adapt just as the company did when its original Berkshire Hathaway textile operation failed. He said Berkshire has an advantage in that it can invest in a variety of industries through its subsidiaries, which agreed to 29 smaller acquisitions worth $634 million
last year. Buffett’s letter is one of the most well-read documents in the business world each year because of his successful track record and his knack for explaining complicated subjects in simple terms. The 85-year-old Buffett has said he has no plans to retire, and he offered no new hints about his future in Saturday’s letter— other than to joke about being 100 years old when he announce Geico’s latest successes. Buffett said the book value of Berkshire’s businesses improved 6.4 percent last year, even as its stock price fell 12.5 percent. When dividends are factored in, the S&P 500 gained 1.4 percent by comparison. Berkshire Hathaway employs more than 360,000 people at its eclectic mix of companies, including insurance, utilities, railroad, manufacturing and retail firms. Berkshire also holds significant stakes in Coca-Cola, Wells Fargo, American Express, IBM and other companies. AP
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Monday, February 29, 2016
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GERMANY DEEMS PASSPORTS FROM I.S. TERRITORY INVALID BER LIN— Ger many has declared Syrian and Iraqi passports issued in territory controlled by the Islamic State (IS) group invalid. The Interior Ministry confirmed a report on Saturday by the weekly Der Spiegel that German authorities stopped recognizing the passports last December 10. The measure was taken less than a month after French police found Syrian passports on the bodies of two men involved in the deadly November 13 attacks in Paris. Security services believe IS seized large numbers of blank passports and passport-making equipment when they captured Deir el-Zour, Raqqa and al-Hasaka in Syria, and Mosul and Anbar province in Iraq. The Interior Ministry said all documents issued from those cities since January 1, 2015, are invalid in Germany and their bearers’ identities are considered unconfirmed, unless they can provide other documents. AP
FIRST SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED ZIKA CASE VIRUS SEEN IN FRANCE
PAR IS—A high-ranking French health official says a first case of sexually transmitted Zika virus has been diagnosed in France on a nonpregnant woman. François Bourdillon the director general of the French Institute for Public Health Surveillance, told BFM television that “the patient had not travelled, her companion was returning from Brazil” where he was infected with the Zika virus. He says both are “doing well.” Zika is primarily spread by mosquito bites, and transmission through sex is considered rare. In the United States the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said last week two cases of sexual transmission of Zika from male travelers to their sexual partners have been confirmed and four others are probable amid an investigation into 14 potential cases. AP
CHINESE CHRISTIAN PASTOR AND WIFE SENTENCED TO PRISON
BEIJING—A Chinese pastor who opposed a government campaign to remove crosses atop churches has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for illegal activities, including corruption and disturbing social order. His wife received 12 years for similar crimes. A court in eastern Zhejiang Province on Friday sentenced Bao Guohua and his wife Xing Wenxiang after concluding they had illegally organized churchgoers to petition the government and disturb social order, according to provincial Zhejiang Daily newspaper. The couple also was accused of “tricking” members of its congregation into donating $336,000 that was spent on cars and other personal purchases, it said. For the past two years, authorities have removed hundreds of crosses from churches in the province, where there is a large Christian community, saying they violate building codes.
A SYRIAN covers his face as he walks between destroyed buildings in the old city of Homs on Friday. A cease-fire brought peace to parts of Syria on Saturday, but scenes of damage to properties like this show the devastation caused by the more than four years of civil war. AP/HASSAN AMMAR
Cease-fire brings relative quiet to Syria
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EIRUT—A cease-fire brought relative quiet to parts of Syria for the first time in years on Saturday, offering civilians rare respite from Russian and Syrian government air strikes despite some limited breaches of the agreement brokered by Washington and Moscow.
Fighting continued against the Islamic State (IS) group, which launched a surprise offensive on a northern town and carried out a suicide-truck bombing in central Syria. The extremist group, along with al-Qaeda’s branch in Syria, the Nusra Front, is not party to the cease-fire, which went into effect at midnight. The cease-fire marks the most ambitious international attempt yet to reduce violence in the devastating conflict, which has killed more than 250,000 people, wounded a million and generated one of the worst refugee crises since World
1 person was killed, 1 was wounded by sniper fire War II. There were numerous violations of the cease-fire on Saturday, but the level of violence was markedly down nationwide, giving hope to war-weary civilians across the country. “Today we woke up and it was calm, stable. And even in the street...it was complete calm,”
said Loris Atwah, a 65-year-old resident of Damascus. “We pray to God that the ceasefire will continue,” said Ragheb Bashir Ali, 22. In southern Syria the situation was “calm” on Saturday, according to opposition activist Ahmad al-Masalmeh, who is based in the southern city of Daraa. Quiet also prevailed in large parts of the central province of Homs, according to Mohammed alSibai, who is based in the province. “The situation yesterday was very bad and fighting was intense,” al-Masalmeh said. “Then it was like a football match. People were excited and once the referee blew his whistle all the noise stopped.” The opposition’s Syrian Civil Defense, a group of first responders known as the White Helmets, posted on Twitter: “In comparison with past 4 years, today very quiet and #SyriaCeasefire holding in the main. Long may it last.” Syria’s state-run news agency said militants fired several shells on residential areas in the capital in the first breach of the cease-fire
around midday on Saturday. Sana says the shells were fired by “terrorist groups” entrenched in Jobar and Douma, two opposition-held Damascus suburbs. It later said one person was killed and another one was wounded by sniper fire on the outskirts of the government-held Sheikh Maksoud neighborhood in Aleppo city. Rebel groups said they have registered numerous violations by government forces across the country that could threaten the agreement. Lt. Col. Fares al-Bayoush, commander of the 1,300-strong Fursan al-Haq Brigade, a US-backed rebel faction, told The Associated Press that his group and others affiliated with the mainstream Free Syrian Army are so far abiding by the truce. “If they continue with these violations, we will be forced to retaliate accordingly,” he said by phone from southern Turkey. He added, however, that the cease-fire has sharply reduced government attacks across northern Syria, where his group is based. T h e U N e nv o y f o r Sy r i a , Staffan de Mistura said some
incidents were to be ex pected, but that the situation after the first night and day of the ceasefire was “quite reassur ing.” A top military official in Moscow said Russia has grounded its warplanes in Syria to help secure the cease-fire. Lt.-Gen. Sergei Rudskoi said that while Russia will continue air strikes against IS and the Nusra Front, Moscow is keeping its aircraft on the ground for now “to avoid any possible mistakes.” He said the Russian military had established hot lines to exchange information with the US military in order to help monitor the cease-fire and quickly respond to any conflict situations. The US has provided the Russian Defense Ministry with similar maps and its own list of opposition units, which have agreed to respect the cease-fire. Rudskoi said that according to the US-Russian agreements, a rebel unit that accidentally comes under attack should contact Russian or US representatives, who would quickly resolve the matter. AP
Macedonia reopens border 3 stabbed at KKK anti-immigrant rally L to Iraqi, Syrian migrants D OMENI, Greece—Macedonia reopened its border to Iraqi and Syrian asylum-seekers on Saturday, hours after migrants protested peacefully on the Greek side of the border, demanding admission into Macedonia. Haider Sahd, a UN field officer in Macedonian town of Gevgelija, confirmed the border opening to The Associated Press. According to Greek police, Macedonia wou ld ad mit 30 0 migrants on Saturday. Macedonian authorities said the number let in could reach 350. A similar number of migrants, who had entered Macedonia earlier in the week, boarded a train
in Gevgelija on Saturday, heading to Macedonia’s border with Serbia. Macedonia had effectively shut down the border to all migrants since late Thursday night, enraging the Greek government. Macedonia has repeatedly said it has only slowed down or shut down migrant flows in response to bottlenecks further up along the Balkans migrant route. In two separate protests on Saturday, about 450 refugees gathered close to the fence marking the Greece-Macedonian border, carrying placards reading “Open the border” and shouting the same slogan. Before Macedonia decided to
open its border, about 6,000 migrants had crowded a nearby tent camp, braving rainy weather overnight, Greek police said. Another 500 migrants are camped at a gas station 17 kilometers away. Although the protests were peaceful, tempers were fraying among the migrants. “No one can stop the refugees, because people are dying in Syria and Iraq,” said Mohamed Kamel, 39, an Iraqi Kurd from Kirkuk, who was traveling with his wife and 7-year-old daughter. “People [at the camp] are hungry and angry,” Kamel added. “If this situation continues, we will break down the fence.” AP
OS ANGELES—Three people were stabbed on Saturday, one critically, after a small group of Ku Klux Klan (KKK) members staging an anti-immigrant rally in Southern California clashed with a larger gathering of counterprotesters, the police said. The violence erupted shortly after noon in Anaheim’s Pearson Park, about 3 miles from Disneyland. The KKK had advertised plans for the rally, and about 30 anti-Klan protesters showed up beforehand, Anaheim Police Sgt. Daron Wyatt said. When six Klan members arrived, they were attacked as they exited their cars, he said. One Klansman stabbed a counterprotester with the decorative end of a flag pole, Wyatt said. That stabbing set off a vicious brawl in which Klan members and protesters fought across an entire city block. Witness video shows Klansmen dressed in black shirts decorated with the Klan cross and Confederate flag patches being surrounded by counter-protesters as they arrive at the park in an SUV. A KKK member
appears to hold out a flag pole to fend off the crowd. “I got stabbed,” a man is then heard screaming, lifting his T-shirt to show a wound to his stomach. A fire hydrant where the man briefly sat was covered in blood. One Anaheim police sergeant saw another Klan member with a knife in his hand and a counterprotester bleeding nearby, Wyatt said. The sergeant took the KKK member into custody. Meanwhile, counter-protesters stomped on two KKK members, he said. “All hell broke loose,”said Brian Levin, director of California State University, San Bernardino’s Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, who witnessed the violence. “I thought they were going to stomp these Klansmen to death.” Wyatt said police were present when the violence erupted, but he did not say how many officers were deployed. Anaheim police had notified the public about the planned KKK protest on Friday and said they would be “monitoring the situation for any violations of law.” The department also
said that while the group’s signs and fliers might be provocative, they are protected by the First Amendment. Levin said he did not see any uniformed officers at the park when the violence erupted. He said he tried to get between counterprotesters and Klansmen to help quell the melee until officers were able to reach the scene. “I’m still kind of a little bit shaken by it,” he said. Police Chief Raul Quezada defended the way his department handled the situation, saying a contingent of officers were dedicated to the gatherings and they were able to arrest all of the main participants in the clash. “Preventing violent confrontations is always our goal; unfortunately the handful of individuals committed to criminal behavior this afternoon caused the violent episode,” he said in a statement. Chris Barker, who identified himself as the “imperial wizard” of the Loyal White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, said his members were holding a peaceful anti-immigration demonstration and acted in self-defense. AP
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A9
WTC transit hub opens under cloud of $4-B cost
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EW YORK—The soaring, white transportation hub opening next week at the World Trade Center (WTC) was designed to evoke a bird in flight, but it is hatching under a cloud. There will be no ribbon-cutting celebration when the train station’s grand hall, called the Oculus, opens this coming week because the head of the bi-state agency that controls the hub has blasted it as a “symbol of excess,” with runaway costs approaching $4 billion. That’s roughly the same price as the nation’s tallest skyscraper, next door—the 104-story One World Trade Center. “The cost of projects, big and small, matters—a lot,” Patrick Foye, executive director of the Port Authority (PATH) of New York and New Jersey, said in a statement through a spokesman. “Whether
due to unforeseen conditions, errors or misconduct, cost overruns consume precious resources and undermine public confidence.” After first indicating that there would be no ceremony at all, officials with the authority said late on Thursday that the transit facility would partially open on March 3, and that there would be a ceremony when it becomes “fully operational” later this spring. Ribbon cutting or not, the hub, which includes a commuter rail station, retail shops and connections to several subway lines, appears destined to take its place among the city’s most talked-about landmarks.
THE World Trade Center Transportation Hub, designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, is under construction in this July 16, 2015, photo. It is set to open next week. AP/MARK LENNIHAN
Intended to serve partly as a monument to the victims of the September 11, 2001, attacks, the hub was designed by Spanish-born architect Santiago Calatrava to convey the feeling of a bird released into the air, with steel wings poised for takeoff. Some critics have compared it to a dinosaur skeleton or an armadillo. Adjacent skyscrapers can be seen through the bird’s curved white ribs, which enclose a vaulted, cathedral-
like space. “It is a monument to life, it is a monument of faith in this city and a monument dedicated to the people,” Calatrava said during a recent tour. The station is replacing one that served PATH trains to and from New Jersey and that was destroyed along with the twin towers in 2001. Though some parts of the hub are still under construction, PATH trains will ultimately be connected to 11 New York City subway
lines, as well as ferries. Shops and restaurants scheduled to open this summer will give tourists and commuters a reason to linger. “I think of the person who comes to New York commuting, lives in a very modest apartment somewhere in New Jersey, comes here and has to go to work maybe in a cellar and do a very simple work,” Calatrava said. “In this minute that I am here, I can at least enjoy a place in which somebody is saying, ‘You are an important guy.’” Steve Plate, the chief of major capital projects for the Port Authority, called the hub “the eighth wonder of the world” and described how the building “is aligned precisely to allow the sun to come in exactly in that opening on September 11 at 10:28, when the last tower fell, to capture that light and remember that moment.” W hen Calatrava’s design for the transportation hub was announced in 2004, it was budgeted at $2 billion, and then-New York Gov. George Pataki said it
would be finished by 2009. The Port Authority puts the current cost at $3.9 billion because of overruns and delays blamed on factors, including the architect’s exacting demands and the complexity of building the hub while the September 11 museum and new office towers were also under construction. In a marvel of engineering, the new complex was built around, beneath and above an existing, still-operating subway line. That line, the No. 1 train, now passes through the new hub on a 60-meter-long bridge that lacks any support columns. The decision to keep the subway line intact was partly responsible for the huge cost. The 64-year-old Calatrava, best known for train stations in European cities, including Lisbon and Zurich, has complained of being unfairly blamed for cost overruns at the trade center, telling The Wall Street Journal last May, “I have been treated like a dog.” The Port Authority’s Plate defended the building’s costs. AP
Tourism&Entertainment BusinessMirror
A10 Monday, February 29, 2016
Editor: Carla Mortel-Baricaua
MARCH TO HONOR VETERANS
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ITH names of war heroes held high, Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Americans Legions, the Sons and Daughters of Bataan, the Women Auxiliary Group, local government units, non-governmental organizations, academia, students and corporations are set to march for a cause on April 11. In commemoration of the valor and sacrifices of American and Filipino soldiers during the Death March, the day will be marked by the second Annual Capas Freedom March that will start at the Bataan Death Memorial Shrine and end at the Capas Monument Shrine.
FORMER President Fidel V. Ramos with Capas Freedom March head Mina Gabor on a vintage Army jeep
CAPAS National Shrine memorial slab
With this year’s theme, “March for a Veteran,” the event will have each participant carrying a name card in memory and in honor of a veteran. The march also aims to raise funds for the production of the miniature diorama of the Capas Concentration Camp that will be displayed at the Capas Memorial Shrine, and for the educational scholarship of children of soldiers killed in the line of duty. “The price of freedom that we all now enjoy is partly the result of the long, arduous ordeal that our Bataan Death marchers endured. [With
this event] we want to instil the value of nationalism to the younger generation, and promote peace and freedom,” said Lt. Gen. Ernesto Carolina, Philippine Veterans Affairs Office (PVAO) administrator. The daylong activities include a film showing, historical seminar and performances from the military groups. The organizers—the Department of National Defense (DND), PVAO, the Department of Tourism, the province of Tarlac, the municipality of Capas and AAP Travel—hope to gather more than 2,000 participants, the number of individuals
CAPAS Concentration Camp historical marker
CAPAS National Shrine
who joined last year’s march. AAP Travel President Mina Gabor said the Freedom March promotes historical tourism by revisiting historical places while underscoring
the lessons of the past that Filipinos should not forget. As part of the DND’s weeklong celebration of the National Veterans Week, the Capas Freedom March retraces the
last miles of the fateful event. “Local and foreign military personnel who have fought in a war, and family members and friends of veterans will march together,
united as one in remembering the sacrifice of the heroes,” Gabor said. On April 9, 1942, some 60,000 Filipino and American troops underwent the infamous Death March, shortly after the United States Army Forces in the Far East surrendered to the Japanese Imperial Army during World War II. Regarded as one of the worst war crimes in history, the prisoners of war (POWS) were forced to march 88 kilometers from Mariveles, Bataan to San Fernando, Pampanga. From there, they were herded to jam-packed trains to Camp O’Donell in Capas, Tarlac, where they were interred until 1945. Under the heat of the sun and extreme conditions, only 54,000 reached the camp, some 10,000 soldiers died along the road. More POWs died at Camp O’Donell due to hunger, diseases and poor sanitation. Carla Mortel
A church’s history, tales and glory
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T is seldom that a Catholic Church in the country does not have its own revolutionary role in history. Whether it served as a military hospital, a shelter for the revolucionarios, or just a plain church that withstood the country’s colonizers, it remains a historical structure that matters. One of the churches that depict the Filipinos’ religiosity and patriotism is the Immaculate Conception Parish Church found in Dasmariñas City, Cavite. The town of Perez-Dasmariñas, known as Dasmariñas City today, formerly belongs to the Nuestra Señora del Pilar Parish of Imus, Cavite. By the Royal Order of the Queen Isabela II of Spain, the Immaculate Conception Parish Church, the first Catholic Church in Dasmariñas City, was built in July 1862 and was separated from the Parish of Imus, with Fr. Valentin Diaz as its first Augustinian Parish priest. The church’s earliest existing baptismal record belonged to Eduardo Santos, and its first wedding was registered by the couple Basilio Reyes and Manuela Campana in 1867. In 1896, during the Philippine revolution waged against the Spanish rule, the Immaculate Conception Parish Church witnessed the bloody battle between the Spanish soldiers and the Filipino revolutionaries. And, in February 1897, the Spanish forces came and
brought destruction to the town, where they burned all the houses and structures in Dasmariñas but left the church untouched. The Immaculate Conception Parish then served as the military seat of the Spanish government. Aside from its rich historical past, the Immaculate Conception Parish Church is instrumental in building the spiritual lives of the people of Dasmariñas through its patron, the Mary Immaculate. A devotee of 30 years, Rosalinda “Rosie” Bignotia witnessed how the Mary Immaculate helped her overcome life’s challenges. “From the church of Cainta, Rizal, in 1989, I reported as a member of the church’s laity to the convent of Immaculate Church and served as its chapel coordinator until I resigned last year,” Bignotia said. She also became an active lay minister and served as vice president of the Legion of Mary in Dasmariñas. “During the term of the late Fr. Ricardo Javier Salazar [parish priest from April 30, 1994 until July 30, 1997], I went to the church’s Blessed Sacrament and prayed every day. Every prayer request, even for my friends and my relatives, was answered by the Mary Immaculate, even the broken relationships with my siblings were fixed.” When they inherited a property, Bignotia had problems with her siblings. She then prayed for
a settlement amicably for everybody. Later on, the property was divided equally among the siblings and Bignotia received her inheritance without any argument from her siblings. In another circumstance, her husband received a miraculous healing from an ailment right after the saint appeared in his dreams. “He stood up and raised his hands and said: ‘I now believe in the Lord. I saw Mary Immaculate. It’s true. I feel better now.’” According to Bignotia, they went for a medical checkup the week after and the test results showed that his body is completely cured even though he was not hospitalized. The Immaculate Conception also plays an important role in the community by providing education through the Immaculate Conception Academy (ICA). The educational institution nurtures students by integrating theoretical knowledge and practical experience to prepare them for The educational institution nurtures students by integrating theoretical knowledge and practical experience to better prepare them for college and their future working environment. They also teach the students both academics and theology. As part of its public service, couples can join the annual mass-wedding ceremony conducted by the church every February 14.
THE Immaculate Conception Parish Church in Dasmariñas City, Cavite is known for its history and classical architectural designs.
For tourists, it is interesting to note that the Immaculate Conception Parish Church is the first parish church to be known as the “Home of the Paru-paro Festival” in Cavite. Today, the Immaculate Conception Parish Church is 154 years old and features fascinating architecture, starting with its wooden main doors engraved with the Mysteries of the Holy Rosary. The church showcases
neoclassical architecture and earthquake baroque architectural design that are simply beautiful and dramatic. Its façade has two four-story bell towers on both sides of the chapel. The church is made of white volcanic rocks called sillar, which were gathered from Barangay Malagasang, Imus, Cavite, in November 1862. Inside, you can find the bronze Stations of the Cross emblems on
its walls and the dangling vintage chandeliers that uplift the spiritual aura of the church. Carved by Don Esperidion Arevalo of Santa Cruz, Manila, the original image of the Immaculate Conception is prominently displayed on the church retablo. Every church has its own story, and Cavite’s Immaculate Conception Parish Church is no different and, yet, it stands out in its own glory. Maica Garcia
Tourism&Entertainment BusinessMirror
Editor: Carla Mortel-Baricaua
Monday, February 29, 2016
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Northern region’s natural wonders and cultural adventures up close
BALINGASAY river
FOOD tasting at Matutina’s
B L S. M Photos by Martin San Diego
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Second of two parts
Y legs were sore from climbing several flights of stairs to the top of the zipline at Balungao Adventure Park in Pangasinan. Located in Carmen, Pangasinan, the enormous playground is known for its land and air sports.
It is home to the longest zipline in the Philippines, which runs for 1.4 kilometers (km). Pair that up with the shorter version of the ride, at about 600 meters, the whole zipline adventure spans for more than 2 km and promises the view of lush greeneries, winding roads and friends cheering for you at the finish line. We hiked our way through the zipline itself. Legs shaking from looking down, I took a big gulp and closed my eyes for a few seconds to compose myself. Shifting my view from the bottom to the horizon, I saw how majestic the mountain was—its trees still green and untouched. My hands were cold and beads of sweat rolling down my face, I uttered a quick prayer and told myself to stay calm. It was my first time to ride the zipline, superman style, and it was exhilarating. I found courage when I imagined myself soaring like an eagle on top of a mountain and, after a few seconds, called on the attendant to release the bung. Shouting, I zoomed past the line, my hands tried to search for something to hold on to. After a second or two, I found myself enjoying the speeding ride. My insides did a quick leap and I started to marvel at how beautiful the scene was. I am, indeed, an eagle flying on top of the trees. After reaching the drop-off point, we then climbed the stairs going to the second zipline, which ends at the base camp of the Balungao Adventure Park. Adrenaline now pumping through my blood, the zipline going back to the camp was more than easy for me. After the release, the clean, unpolluted air of Carmen breezed through my body. I held my camera tighter
and felt my body moving from one direction to another. I was not prepared for it, but I quickly grew accustomed to the feeling of being pushed to another angle. It gave me a wider view of the area—painted with different hues of green, brown and blue. Toward the end of the second zipline, I zoomed past two rocks, to which I thought my feet would skid to, but didn’t. Reaching the finish line, I declared my fear of heights slightly conquered and promised myself to do more activities like it. But the adventure park is more than just its adrenaline-jacking zipline attractions, it also features an all-terrain vehicle ride. A friend and I paired up for the ride—none of us know how to drive decently, at the very least—and we drove past the terrain going to a point where Mount Balungao can be viewed in all its majesty, trees surrounding it, not a speck of it was bald from deforestation. My hands held the hand clutch firmly and tried to steer as perfectly as I can. At one point, I hit the gas too hard that we went too fast, and when we reached a curvature, we almost toppled sideways. We laughed with the rush of blood, my face, must have flushed from both shame and nervousness. After a full day of adrenalinepumping activities at the Balungao Adventure Park, we drove for about three hours to Lingayen, where we were welcomed by the local tourism group of Pangasinan. We ate dinner and had drinks at El Puerto Marina, where a live band was playing a variety of songs. I volunteered to be the first to sing a song for the group and had our fill of laughs and booze. After an eventful day, we checked-in at Hotel Con-
suelo, one of the very first hotels in Lingayen and had an almost-all-boys after party with a few bottles of beer and great music. Our call time was at 8 in the morning and half of the guys were still half asleep by 7:30 a.m. We rushed to the bathroom and quickly packed. We didn’t bother to eat breakfast, because the day was set for a culinary experience. We were the last ones to board the bus and I personally apologized for the delay. They were forgiving, at least, and we started our culinary tour of Pangasinan at Matutina’s Restaurant in Dagupan. The chef of the restaurant taught us how to cook various food items from the menu. He cooked pakbet, a local vegetarian dish that uses fish sauc; bangus sisig; buttered shrimp and oysters, and poki-poki; eggplant omelet; among others. I decided to lessen my food intake for breakfast, because we were still hopping to another restaurant for another cooking demo, but the buttered oysters kept me going. The flavor of the sea danced across my palate, each bite was smooth, almost velvety. Being a seafood lover, I couldn’t help but fall in love with the local cuisine. With my stomach almost full, we headed to Patio Elmina for another culinary show. The chefs taught us how to cook crispy shrimp and crunchy bangus sisig. We also had our lunch at the same restaurant, but I only ate a bit of everything, as my stomach could not possibly hold more food. We rested for a while, then headed to the provincial capital of Pangasinan in Lingayen. It is probably the most beautiful capitol building in the Philippines, its façade strong, and its interiors very modern. Each facility of the capitol screams of efficiency and comfort. Lit with low yellow and ambient lights, the rooms inside the building can make a tourist wish that his local government would be the same. After a tour of the building, we headed to the house of the legendary Princess Urduja, who is known as a skilled warrior and maritime navigator. The house, where the current governor of Pangasinan resides, has a taste of Southeast Asian art to it, antique and jade ornaments and sculptures of Hindi gods decorated the interior of the house. The house and the capitol building are a short walk from each other. A
few meters away is the beach front of Lingayen, where fine, almost powder-like gray sand stretch the whole expanse of the area. I removed my slippers and walked barefoot, enjoying the sand’s texture. With kids playing by the sand and tourists taking pictures of the afternoon sun, the beach was a real treat from all the stress from the busy city. The place was perfect for a chill afternoon, where one can simply wait for the sun to set, as he or she listens to the ocean’s waves, or do a little kite flying. The people from Lingayen took kite flying to a whole new level. Facilitated by the Pangasinan Power Kites group, our bunch did what is called power kiting. Such an activity is a prerequisite to kite boarding, where one rides a board while flying a power kite, an aerofoil-shaped wing allows the user to somewhat drive the board. The said activity needs to be done by the beach, or anywhere where the wind is strong. The science behind this sport is embedded in the socalled wind window or the area in which the kite can fly. Power is significantly strong when the kite is far away from the window—an imaginary semi-circle that is measured by the numbers of a clock. On the other hand, the pull of the kite is much weaker when it reaches the two ends of the area. Watching the guide fly his kite seemed easy, but actually pulling off the activity is a different story. There are two kinds of lines that can be used for power kiting. The first that we tried was the two-line kite. It is typically used to familiarize the user on how to play with the kite. At the onset, my kite flew for about five seconds, then it slowly dipped to the edge of the window to the right. Pull the line on your left hand, the guide quickly told me. I obliged, and the kite once again made it to the 12-o’clock mark. I felt a sense of fulfillment doing this. It was my first time to fly a kite, after all. We then tried the four-line kite, which allows for more control, but requires more upper body strength to pull. I felt my muscles tense by the time I held the handle, but it was much easier to operate than the two-line kite. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to try riding a board. The wind that day wasn’t much of a cooperative buddy. We surrendered to watching the sun kiss and reunite with the ocean,
while it left hints of red, orange and yellow in the sky. We then headed off to Riverside Resto in Bugallon to eat dinner. It was almost past dinner time when we reached the restaurant. Seeing the food coming in from one corner to another, I felt almost like a king. We were served roasted chicken on a skewer, a variety of fried rice, pinaputok na hito, different kinds of barbecue and many more. I ate with my bare hands and washed everything down with a serving of buko juice. Our group checked in at Punta Riviera Resort in Patar, Bolinao, and called it a night after a few rounds of beer. We woke to the beauty of the sun rising before the ocean and the river adjacent to it. Like crystals, the waves glimmered with the bright red star, almost as if it was calling us. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes; fresh, salty air running through my nostrils, I sighed and thanked God for a wonderful morning. Half of the day was spent at Pacific Salt Farm, where we learned the intricacies of manufacturing salt. We rode a train line that snakes through some of the salient points at the 500-hectare salt farm, which also boasts of the only salt lake in Southeast Asia. The said lake produces 3,000 mighty energy eggs—duck eggs boiled under the salt lake for about three to four days—per year. After a thorough lecture from Johnny Khonghun, the owner of the salt farm, we had a quick lunch at the farm and left for Balingasay River. Awarded as the cleanest river in the Philippines, the tour featured a floating-restaurant ride along the river. Perfect for nature lovers, the river is home to different kinds of mangroves and a variety of aquatic life. We also had dinuguan with puto for snacks and enjoyed a 15-minute head and back massage from the locals. We then went back to the resort to learn more about permaculture, an enclosed system of agriculture that simulates the natural ecosystem outdoors. It was almost sunset when the lecture ended and I hurriedly ran to the adjacent beach to catch the view. I sat there for a while and watched how the sky turned from deep blue to blood-red. The sea glimmered, as the waves become stronger, with each kiss to the shoreline forming foam. My friend and I then went back to our room, washed up, and rested—we still have a par-
ty waiting for us by the pool. A local band was now jamming with the crowd and food was served. We chatted over beer and played the several drinking games and shared secrets everyone swore not to talk about (but, of course, we did anyway). We slept at around half past three in the morning, and woke at 8, had a quick breakfast and bid goodbye to the resort. My head was heavy like lead. I had a little too many drinks from the night prior and I swore never to do it again. Our group headed for our last stop. It might not be a tourist destination, but paying a visit to the elderly living in the Little Sisters Seminary was one all worth it. The team from the North Philippines Visitors Bureau—headed by Grace Ayento of Manila North Tollways Corp. and Edsel Ochoa—brought gifts and donations to the grandmas and grandpas. They prepared a little program for us, with one lola singing classic Filipino and Pangasinense songs. We also wooed them with a little song and did a little hip-hop dance battle. The head nun of the seminary toured us around the facilities of Little Sisters, and brought us to the main veranda of the building. From that point, we saw a couple of islands and islets that are still green with vegetation. This place, I thought, is a perfect view for the elderly, who long for love and care. Decades-worth of hardwork and sacrifice for their children—most of which they might have forgotten—are all worth it for this magnificent view. I prayed silently for blessing and protection for the elders and we wished them good health and longer life. We then had lunch at Elianas in Alaminos and headed straight back home. Six days was enough for a respite from the busy city, but those six days had me longing for more of those easy nights with an ice-cold beer at hand, amazing landscapes and beautiful people. That Sunday morning when I woke up with the sun rising from the east it had me thinking which part of the north is next on my list. The author is a travel bug who also happens to be a business reporter for the BusinessMirror. He constantly falls in love with the places he visits and swears to go back to where the Muses call him. He manages a blog called TravelBible.PH, but has to render more time to update his web site.
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Science Monday BusinessMirror
Monday, February 29, 2016
Editor: Lyn Resurreccion • www.businessmirror.com.ph
AS PLANTGROWTH BOOSTER
Research on irradiated carrageenan shows promise S S T | Special to the BM
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ICE is a major staple for Filipinos, and the demand for sufficient supply has made the Philippines one of the world’s largest importers, with 1.8 million tons in 2008 alone, according to the World Rice Statistics. There are a lot of factors affecting the production of rice. Increasing population, limited land area and constant calamities make rice yield lower than what is expected. Farmers use fertilizers, such as the inorganic ones, to boost rice production. Constant research and experiment have led the researchers of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), particularly its agency, the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic, and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCAARRD), to the discovery of the potential of irradiated carrageenan as an effective plant-growth regulator. “ This is food for rice,” Dr. Jocelyn Eusebio, director of the Crops Research Division of the PCCAARD, told the BusinessMirror in an interview. “In our research, the carrageenan plant-growth regulator [CPGR] has a potential to help farmers get a higher rice yield of 15 percent to 30 percent, and results are consistent,” Eusebio explained.
The science of irradiated carrageenan
CARRAGEENAN is an indigestible polysaccharide. Polysaccharides
15% to 30% Increase in rice yield are large chain-like carbohydrate molecules and are energy sources. Carbohydrates are a great source of energy for humans, as such they are also good for other living things. The research started as a concept for plant growth and inducers of resistance against pests. “We started the project with carrageenan as biostimulant for plant growth in rice, mung beans and peanut,” said Angelito T. Carpio, PCAARRD science research specialist and project coordinator. “Within a three-year plan, significant results occurred in rice and, thus, narrowed the road to focus on rice applications alone,” Carpio added. Although there has been studies on the potential of carrageenan as growth regulator, the method the DOST-PCAARRD used, together with the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (PNRI), the council that performed the irradiation of carrageenan, enhanced the capabilities of carrageenan to a more useful product for rice.
DR. Jocelyn Eusebio, director of the Crops Research Division of the Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic, and Natural Resources Research and Development, talks about the science of the carrageenan plantgrowth regulator which enhances rice yields 15 percent to 30 percent. STEPHANIE TUMAMPOS
“Carrageenan drippings have already been used as growth regulators and have given good results. Its extract is used by some farmers. Yet, upon application on rice fields, the amount of time for rice to absorb these drippings took longer,” Eusebio said. This has led the team to explore the possibilities of carrageenan, if further broken down into smaller molecules. Through the PNRI, carrageenan was subjected to irradiation, or exposing the product to lowlevel radiation. Irradiation of products, including food, is safe, according to the PNRI. The carrageenan, originally from red edible seaweed, when subjected to
irradiation, enhances the availabilit y of its micronutrients. “ T hese m ic ronut r ients, suc h as boron, calcium and zinc, are needed by rice at small but sufficient amounts to enhance its growth,” Eusebio added. The carrageenan is first processed into powdered form and dissolved in water. W hen dissolved, it is then subjected to i r rad i at ion to f u r t her brea k down its particles. The irradiation does not only enhance the availability of micronutrients but also breaks the carrageenan down to nanoscale level for the rice to easily absorb when sprayed by farmers.
“We need to break down the carrageenan into smaller particles and reduce its molecular weight so it can be easily absorbed by plants,” Eusebio explained. The effects of using the CPGR on rice plants does not only make rice resist diseases but also increases its immunity, hence, withstand certain adversities than those not applied with CPGR.
Promising future
BLARING results were definitely noted, most especially when Typhoon Lando hit the multilocationtrial rice fields. There was a good harvest of rice, despite the farms having been hit by the typhoon.
The fields that were not treated by the product were lodged. In multilocation trials held in Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Iloilo and Laguna, particularly at the University of the Philippines Los Baños, increased yields of about 15 percent to 30 percent have been found. A higher application of the CPGR gave a 60-percent increase in Bulacan. “This is a promising technology, because it is compatible with farmers’ practice,” Carpio told the BusinessMirror. He said there is no genetic intervention, which makes this breakthrough a nongenetically modified product. “CPGR is approved by the Food and Fertilizer Authority as a plant-growth promoter,” Carpio added. Science Secretary Mario G. Montejo was also impressed with the results of this project. During last week’s Science Nation Tour in General Santos City, Montejo highlighted the research as a solution for affordable and effective growth regulator. “The investment in this project is around P15 million, and imagine the thousands of hectares that can benefit from [it],” Montejo said. As for the cost, Eusebio reiterated that the technology is competitive and can lower the cost of application. “The CPGR costs around P700 for a hectare. The reduction [in price] is big compared to inorganic fertilizers and other varieties that cost around P1,000 to P1,500 per hectare,” Eusebio said. Because of the positive results, the DOST has partnered with the Department of Agriculture, together with Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala, through a memorandum of agreement in 2015 to upscale the verification tests in seven regions in the country.
New Doppler radar for Visayas launched China and US race in gene-editing technology
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ITH the modernization program of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) in full swing, it is expected that the agency will be able to further improve and upgrade its weather forecasting by covering the entire Visayas region. To attain this goal, the Iloilo Doppler Radar and Synoptic Station in Wesviarc, Barangay Hamungaya, Jaro, Iloilo City, was inaugurated recently. The station is one of the facilities that Pagasa recently put into operation in May 2015 to provide more accurate weather data for a more precise weather forecasting not only in Iloilo but in the entire Visayas; thus, ensuring the safety of vulnerable communities from natural hazards, like typhoons and floods. “This Doppler Radar and Synoptic Station is the 13th of the targeted 15 Doppler radars by yearend that will provide more accurate forecasting to enable our farmers, our communities, to prepare ahead of time when there is a coming typhoon, because this will give us detailed data to predict the amount of rainfall in particular areas at a particular given time,” Science Secretary Mario G. Montejo said. The Doppler radar is capable of scanning and monitoring rain clouds as far as Masbate and Sorsogon area in the north, and Surigao and Davao area, plus the whole of Visayas region. Thus, it is enabling “nowcasting,” where an impending typhoon can be easily detected and tracked, allowing for three hours lead time. Montejo said the Doppler radar will be very useful not only on weather monitoring but for other applications, as well. “The Iloilo Doppler Radar will provide us with data sets that will be helpful in managing crop planting, so farmers will know weather con-
SCIENCE Secretary Mario G. Montejo (fourth from left) unveils the marker on the new Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration Iloilo Weather Station, where a new Doppler radar is installed. With Montejo is Iloilo Gov. Arthur Defensor Sr. (right). RODOLFO P. DE GUZMAN/S&T MEDIA SERVICE
ditions suitable for planting, applying fertilizer and harvesting,” Montejo said. The Doppler radar will also enhance the capability of Pagasa to mitigate the negative effect of El Niño by detecting rain clouds used for cloud seeding to induce rain. With this sophisticated weather equipment, the supply of water for irrigation and agriculture will be assured and water shortage can be averted. The initiative of the DOST and Pagasa was lauded by no less than Gov. Arthur Defensor Sr. of Iloilo, who expressed his gratitude on behalf of the people of Iloilo. “We, in the province of Iloilo, will now be much, much prepared because of this Doppler radar, and this important project will surely benefit us all. I thank Secretary Montejo for this commendable project,” Defensor said. The important thing to know is that with this Doppler radar, we will now be able to provide local weather forecasts for the different areas in Iloilo province and in the entire Visayas region, and this will be very helpful to our farmers, businessmen, students and the people, in general, Montejo reiterated. “The Iloilo Doppler radar will empower our people to make them safe and
well-informed, and I see that your support and our collaboration will result in our proper response during times of calamities,” he said. After the ceremonial ribbon cutting, the science secretary, together with special guests and Pagasa officials, toured the entire facility, including the command center, where weather monitoring is done using computers and other equipment. The land where the Pagasa station is located was donated by the Department of Agriculture. Besides Montejo and Defensor, others present during the inauguration were Dominador Co, executive assistant; Iloilo City Mayor Jed Patrick Mabilog; Peter Sobrevega of the Department of Agriculture; Dr. Renato U. Solidum, director of Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology; Dr. Landrico U. Dalida Jr., deputy administrator of Pagasa; Dr. FlavianaHilario of Pagasa, Engr. Oscar Tabada, Pagasa-Visayas Region Service Division OIC; Elena Quezon representing the governor of Guimaras; representatives of Aklan State University and Capiz State University; and Aklan Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Officer Gerry Biona.
.S. companies racing to develop a promising gene-editing technology are up against a formidable competitor—the Chinese government. China has long set its heart on building an expertise in genomics, and its government is pouring funds into a new—and sometimes controversial—tool called Crispr, encouraging its researchers to advance the technology. Chinese scientists say they were among the first in using Crispr to make wheat resistant to a common fungal disease, dogs more muscular and pigs with leaner meat. The scientific research bankrolled by the Chinese government could eventually be tapped by agricultural and pharmaceutical companies. Programs funded by Beijing are, among other things, working on disease-resistant tomatoes, breast-cancer treatments and increasing the oil content in soy beans. In the southern city of Guangzhou, researchers who received government funds went a step further, sparking an international ethical debate last year after tweaking the genetic makeup of human embryos using Crispr for the first time. Formally called Crispr-Cas9, the genetic-editing tool acts like a pair of low-cost and highly precise molecular scissors that can cut out unwanted sections of DNA and insert desired ones. It has revolutionized what was once a time-consuming, pricey and inaccurate process, and scientists and businesses worldwide are seeking to capitalize on this emerging technique. The expertise the Chinese groups are developing positions them to eventually challenge US gene-editing companies, some of which have raised millions in venture capital. “I would rank the US and China as first and second Crispr-Cas9 research countries, respectively, at this time. Both countries have much strength in this area,” said Paul Knoepfler, an associate professor of cell biology and human anatomy at the UC Davis School of Medicine in California, who recently published a book titled GMO Sapiens, discussing the application of gene-modifying technology on humans. “The US currently gets the edge in high-profile papers, Crispr biotech and intellectual property. China has published a lot in Crispr animals.” The Boston Consulting Group estimated in September that US gene-editing companies have attracted more than $1 billion in investment since 2013. Editas Medicine Inc., Intellia Therapeutics Inc. and Poseida Therapeutics Inc. are among the US biotech companies researching Crispr to tackle health disorders. Editas this month raised about $109 million in the first US initial public offering
of 2016. While Crispr has yet to be proven effective in creating new treatments, pharmaceutical companies worldwide see it as a potent tool. The hope is that it could potentially generate therapies for conditions from cancer to blood diseases.
Chinese research
A CHINESE team at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou last year became the first to report Crispr work in human embryos, attempting to edit a gene that causes the blood disorder, thalassemia. The study was at least partly funded by two governmentrun organizations, the National Natural Science Foundation of China and another called the National Basic Research Program. The research caused an international stir, even though the scientists only used “nonviable” human embryos—or those obtained through fertility clinics and without any potential for live births. Prof. Huang Junjiu, who led the study, declined to comment. In publishing their findings, the Chinese researchers said Crispr needs to be better understood and more accurate before being used in human testing. While there is still little private investment in gene editing in China, a publicly traded Chinese company called Shenzhen Jinjia Color Printing Group Co. in a December statement said it would provide 3 million yuan ($460,000) in funding to the university. The company, which prints cigarette boxes, has identified the health industry as a key area of growth and hopes to eventually share the rights to the Crispr-based thalassemiatreatment technology, it said via e-mail. In the US the federal government doesn’t fund work that destroys or creates human embryos for research purposes. This month the UK’s Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority gave a group of researchers permission to conduct Crispr research on human embryos, although they still need an ethics committee to approve their plans. Using Crispr to cure disease “is probably ethical,” said Eric Hendrickson, a professor at the University of Minnesota Medical School, whose research uses Crispr techniques for DNA repair. “To use that technology to make your child run faster or jump higher is uniformly frowned upon. The technology to do that, however, will soon be in place.” Most of China’s funding for Crispr research is coming from the government, with very few private companies putting money into gene modification work, said Lai Liangxue, deputy director of the Southern China Institute of Stem Cell Biology
and Regenerative Medicine. “Whether it’s animal or plant, our country has special funds for this aspect of work.” Last year the National Natural Science Foundation of China, a prominent government backed institution that funds research, awarded more than 23 million yuan ($3.5 million) to at least 42 Crispr projects, more than double the previous year. It is just one of several government institutions providing Crispr funding in China. China is also aided by a large pool of internationally trained scientists, many of whom have returned home after working overseas. The Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology didn’t respond to a fax seeking comment. Backed partly by grants from the Ministry of Science and Technology, Lai, the researcher in southern China, has focused on biomedical applications of Crispr. He’s given pigs genes that allow them to contract human diseases and serve as trial subjects for new treatments, or even act as potential sources of organs for human transplant.
Getting licenses
LAI’S team also snipped a gene that inhibits muscle growth in beagles, enabling the modified dogs to have stronger muscles, run faster and jump higher than normal ones. The same technology could potentially benefit the police and military in the future if applied to canine breeds commonly used by law enforcement agencies, he said. Pa r t o f t h e c h a l l e n g e f o r C h i n e s e companies will be getting licenses to use Crispr commercially once there are patents awarded internationally. Several academic institutions in the US and elsewhere have already filed patent applications for Crispr-Cas9 technology. “Without obtaining licenses from these parties, commercial applications in China or elsewhere will be hampered,” Jin-Soo Kim, a professor with the Center for Genome Engineering at Seoul National University. Crispr has already boosted a new industry in China that supplies genetically edited animals to foreign research labs and pharmaceutical companies. Researchers in the US and China also see its potential in agriculture—to potentially create disease resistant grains or better quality meat. Raising a genetically engineered pig with Crispr technology is already cheaper in China at about 700,000 yuan, while in the US it could cost four or five times as much, Lai said. Labor and other costs are lower in China. Bloomberg News
Green Monday BusinessMirror
www.businessmirror.com.ph • Editor: Lyn Resurreccion
Monday, February 29, 2016 A13
Drought, harsh winter decimate livestock in Mongolia
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L ZII T, Mongol i a—T he Mongolian herder gazed out of his felt tent at the half-eaten carcass of what was his riding horse, now lying in bloodstained snow and being devoured by hungry dogs. “I had 700 head of cattle,” Huyag Tserennyam said while staring out into the white wilderness in the remote mountainous area of Ulziit. “I’ve lost 150 so far.” It has been a harsh winter in Mongolia following an especially dry summer—a weather pattern unique to the country and known here as a dzud—decimating tens of thousands of livestock and prompting the Mongolian government this week to formally launch a dzud appeal, seeking foreign aid, for the first time in six years. There were indications in the summer that it would be a difficult year, and Tserennyam said he prepared extra grass in anticipation of a rough winter. He has used up all of the animal feed he received as aid from his local government, and has nearly used up his grass reserve. “I really tried, but I still lost—and I keep on losing—my herd,” the 60-year-old said, feeding his one remaining horse. That horse is now his only mode of transport; it carried his wife to a recent doctor’s visit. Supplies are running low, and the couple’s milk tea is watery. More than 10,000 head of livestock have perished across Tserennyam’s province of Bayankhongor this winter, said Col. Munkhbaatar Togoo, head of the province’s Emergency Management Division. Temperatures have d ipped as low as - 46 degrees Celsius (-51 degrees Fahrenheit), about 16°C (29°F) lower than normal. Snowfall in some mountainous areas reached 70 centimeters (28 inches), he said. “Compared to recent years, this is unusually cold. It’s had big effects on herding lifestyles,” Togoo said. The summer drought meant that cattle had less to graze on, failing to fatten up sufficiently before winter. In addition to those that have died, many of the survivors are so thin that their meat is not of high enough quality to sell if they perish, Togoo said. Mongolia’s government announced its dzud appeal on Tuesday. This winter is worse than the last dzud in 2009 and 2010, and a greater part of the country is affected. Only 45,000 livestock have died so far this year, compared to the 9.7 million attributed to the 2009-2010 winter, but the vast majority of losses typically take place in the spring before the grass grows back in May. The Asian Development Bank is contributing $3 million in assistance toward local infrastructure and risk-management plans, including helping districts prepare shelters for herders, as well as emergency training. Further assistance is coming from Red Cross societies of Britain, Japan and Finland, said Purevjav Jambalragchaa, a coordinator with the Mongolian Red Cross Society. Many herders are struggling to supply themselves with food because the snow is often too thick for horses or motorbikes to pass through. The Red Cross Society is preparing donations of food and cash, including $160,000 of aid coming in from abroad. In a largely nomadic country where animals provide meat, dairy and textiles, it is difficult to lose so much livestock. “Our lives depend on them,” Tserennyam said, looking away from a pile of dead goats sheltered behind a steep rock by the mountain’s edge. “Because of them, we get our flour and rice. Without them, we’re nothing.” AP
FOREST PARK Rays of light illuminate the Old Zig-Zag Road in Atimonan, Quezon province. The Old Zigzag Road, more popularly known as bitukang manok (chicken intestine), is the most famous landmark within Quezon National Forest Park, what with its dreaded dangerously winding road network. NONIE REYES
Monarch butterflies rebound in Mexico
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EXICO CITY—Monarch butterflies have made a big comeback in their wintering grounds in Mexico, after suffering serious declines, experts said on Friday. The area covered by the orangeand-black insects in the mountains west of Mexico City this season was more than three-and-a-half times greater than last winter. The butterflies clump so densely in the pine and fir forests they are counted by the area they cover rather than by individual insects. The number of monarchs making the 5,500-kilometer migration from the United States and Canada declined steadily in recent years before recovering in 2014. This winter was even better. This December, the butterflies covered about 4 hectares, compared to 1.13 hectares in 2014 and a record low of 0.67 hectares in 2013. While that’s positive, the monarchs still face problems: The butterflies covered as much as 18 hectares 20 years ago. “The news is good but, at the same time, we shouldn’t let our guard down,” said Omar Vidal, director of the World Wildlife Fund in Mexico. “Now more than ever, Mexico, the United States and Canada should increase their conservation efforts to protect and restore the habitat of this butterfly along its migratory route.” The United States is working to reintroduce milkweed, a plant key to the butterflies’ migration, on about 3 million hectares within five years, both by planting and by designating pesticide-free areas. Milkweed is the plant the butterflies feed and lay their eggs on, but it has been attacked by herbicide use and loss of open land in the United States. Dan Ashe, the director of the US Fish and Wildlife Service, said that in the first year of that effort, the
4 ha. The area the butterflies covered in December
US had managed to restore about 100,000 hectares of milkweed, and raised about $20 million for the program. “It is time for celebration because we see the beginning of success,” Ashe said. “But our task now is to continue building on that success.” The Washington, D.C.-based Center for Biological Diversity, which is pushing for endangered species status for the monarchs, noted that even with the rebound, the butterflies are still only at 68 percent of their 22-year average. It said in a statement that “the population was expected to be up this winter due to favorable summer weather conditions in the monarch’s US breeding areas.” “The increase is certainly great news, but the bottom line is that monarchs must reach a much larger population size to be resilient to ever-increasing threats,” said Tierra Curry, a senior scientist at the Center. In Mexico, meanwhile, illegal logging has remained a problem. It more than tripled in the monarch butterf lies’ wintering grounds in 2014, reversing several years of steady improvements. Illegal logging had fallen to almost zero in 2012.
A KALEIDOSCOPE of monarch butterflies clings to tree branches in the Piedra Herrada sanctuary near Valle de Bravo, Mexico. AP/REBECCA BLACKWELL
Authorities said the reserve’s buffer area lost more than 9 hectares in 2015 due to illegal logging in one area, but said the tree cutting was detected and several arrests were made. The forest canopy acts as a blanket against the cold for butterflies forming huge clumps on branches during their winter stay in Mexico. Monarch expert Lincoln Brower wrote in a research paper that the 2015 forest loss was actually 10 hectares in the reserve area, and said the illegal logging “questions the effectiveness of current strategies to protect the already precarious overwintering habitat of the monarch butterfly.” The logging took place in a particularly sensitive area of the reserve, and if butterflies can’t find shelter there, “they may be forced into forested areas with less microclimatic protection,” exposing them to potential cold and rain that can prove fatal, Brower wrote. Alejandro del Mazo, the head of Mexico’s protected natural ar-
eas, credited the three countries for their cooperation and said they were on their way to achieving the goal of having 220 million butterflies in the reserve by 2020. Del Mazo estimated there were 140 million this year. “This is a motivation for us to continue building bridges between our three countries, not walls,” Del Mazo said. The migration is an inherited trait: No butterfly lives to make the full roundtrip, and it is unclear how they find their way back to the same patches of pine forest in Mexico each year. Some scientists suggest the butterflies may release chemicals marking the migratory path and fear that if their numbers fall too low the chemical traces will not be strong enough for others to follow. The long-term trend is troubling. After their peak in 1996, when the monarchs covered more than 17.8 hectares, each time the monarchs have rebounded, they have done so at lower levels. The
species is found in many countries, but experts fear the migration could be disrupted if very few butterflies make the long trip. Largely indigenous farm communities in the mountain reserve have received government development funds in return for preserving the 56,259 hectare reserve that United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization has declared a World Heritage site. Writer and environmental activist Homero Aridjis, and the chief scientist for Parks Canada, Dr. Gilles Seutin, also suggested that favorable weather conditions may have helped the monarchs rebound this year. “Although thanks to more favorable weather conditions along the monarch’s migratory routes numbers in the reserve this season have increased, this does not mean we can ignore one of the main threats to the monarchs now: the extremely damaging illegal logging taking place within the reserve,” Aridjis wrote. AP
A14 Monday, February 29, 2016 • Editor: Angel R. Calso
Opinion BusinessMirror
editorial
Japan is dying
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HE human race has always been faced with catastrophic situations that have often altered the course of history. The Black Death, or bubonic plague epidemic of the mid-14th century, killed as many as 200 million people across Asia, including taking out 30 percent of the European population.
The feudal system and serfdom was dealt a deathblow as an economic system by the plague. There were not enough workers left to till the fields and to buy finished goods. Workers now demanded wages, and not just food on the table, in return for their labor. Every turn of a century has seen forecasts of the end of the world. In the 1950s and 1960s global nuclear war was the doomsday prediction. We have now progressed to “global warming” and “climate change” as the threat to life on planet Earth as we know it. In the 1970s the fear of overpopulation putting the world on a course to extinction seemed rational at the time. Limited resources placed against a potentially unlimited human population is an argument that is difficult to dismiss. We know now that the greater problem may be the distribution of the resources rather than the amount. However, many nations are facing potential “extinction” because their populations are shrinking. For a nation to maintain a stable population, the replacement rate needs to be at a minimum of 2.1 children per woman. Interestingly, as of 2010, nearly 50 percent of the world population lives in nations with subreplacement fertility. These nations are able to maintain their population numbers through immigration into the country. However, Japan is showing a disastrous population growth and subsequent demographic trends into the future. Japan’s fertility rate is only 1.4 children per woman, and this declining fertility rate has been a trend for two decades. Now that trend is catching up with Japan, as the latest census shows that the population declined by nearly 1 million between 2010 and 2015. This is the first time in modern history that Japan’s population has decreased. It has been clear for some time that Japan was in trouble. Population growth peaked in 1950 and has fallen continuously since 1975. By 2011 it had hit zero growth. As life span increases and fewer babies are born, the population also ages. Five percent of Filipinos are age 65 and over. Less than 15 percent of Americans are in the 65-plus age group. Currently, over 30 percent of Japanese are senior citizens. Reduced population growth has been a concern since earliest times. The Greek historian Polybius blamed the decline of the Hellenistic world on low fertility rates. He wrote in his Histories that “in our time all Greece was visited by a dearth of children and generally a decay of population, owing to which the cities were denuded of inhabitants, and a failure of productiveness resulted, though there were no long-continued wars or serious pestilences among us.” This describes 21st-century Japan.
The lessons of 30 years of Edsa Atty. Jose Ferdinand M. Rojas II
RISING SUN
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AST February 25 marked the 30th anniversary of the People Power revolution, the nonviolent series of protests that overthrew a 20-year authoritarian regime and shook the world.
People Power was a phenomenon like no other—it had ordinary people clamoring for change and taking decisive action to make their voices heard. Many put their lives on the line, showing the world that Filipinos, while a peace-loving people, do not lack for courage and determination when circumsta nces dema nd taking a stand. The struggle for the return of democracy was a long and difficult one, but it was worth it; we of the Baby Boomers and Generation X, and the succeeding generations of the millennials and iGen are now reaping its benefits. This became most apparent under the daang matuwid, which, through reforms and other restructuring actions, ushered in a development boom
and a rise in the economy. The celebrations last Thursday were marked with an event at the People Power Monument on Edsa, attended by President Aquino, former President Fidel V. Ramos, government officials, members of the diplomatic corps and many others. In his speech on the occasion, President Aquino opened with lyrics from the song “Handog ng Pilipino sa Mundo” that he said captured the spirit of Edsa: “Ating kalayaan kay tagal nating mithi, ’ di na papayagang mabawi muli.” He pointed to the freedoms curtailed under martial law that we now take for granted: the freedom to jet off to Boracay or a foreign country without the authorities monitoring every move; the free-
dom to stay out all night and not be limited by a curfew; the freedom to access information from all over the world on a smartphone, anytime, anywhere. The latter, especially, would be difficult for young people to understand, those who cannot imagine a society with such restraints. The historical record, however, is clear on that point. Information under martial law was mostly propaganda, especially news on current events. Practically the only things that one could be sure of that was true, the President said, were the komiks and movie pages in the newspapers. He went on to speak of other abuses and excesses that occurred under that regime, emphasizing the fact that all these did, in fact, happen, despite the efforts of revisionists to engineer a contrary spin. This was the reality during that period. Can we, the President asked, allow these things to happen again, to us and our loved ones? During that dark time, the countr y was bled dr y. Today, the President said, under the renewed democracy we enjoy, over 7.7 million Filipinos have been lifted from poverty, with 4.4 million households benefiting from
the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program. Over 92 percent of the population is covered by the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. The country now has the lowest unemployment rate in 10 years. Infrastructure programs have completed badly needed roads and bridges all over the nation. Other accomplishments of the government point to the success of the present policy of reform. The President reminded the younger generations that they have the responsibility to maintain the stability of present times by remaining vigilant against a return to a dictatorship. He quoted his mother, the late President Corazon C. Aquino, as having said: “The problems we face are our generation’s making. It is our generation that has to correct them. Your role is to prepare yourselves better to avoid making the same mistakes.” The President ended by repeating the lyric he quoted at the start: “Nawa’y ang kalayaang kay tagal nating minimithi ay hinding-hindi na mababawing muli.” nnn
Atty. Rojas is vice chairman and general manager of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office.
Behind the scenes: PPP opportunities for introspection By Alberto Agra
PPP LEAD Continued from A1 (11) A PPP is much more than a technical and financial contract. A PPP is much more than a financial, technical and legal transaction. A PPP should be pursued as a covenant with the people for the public good to attain better quality of life. This is the “True North” of PPPs. PPP is more than the business. (12) A PPP is not just a twoparty involvement. The signatories to a contract are not the only stakeholders in a PPP. The people, end-users, civil-society organizations and regulatory agencies are all members of the PPP community. They must be active and not be fence sitters. (13) PPP is a change strategy. A PPP must effect change. If undertaken for the public good, PPPs should result in transfor-
mation and purposive deviation from the status quo. The vision of government must, thus, be clearly laid out. (14) PPP is an SDG. Last year the Millennium Development Goa ls of the United Nations morphed into the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). No. 17 of the 17 SDGs is “Partnership for the [16] Goals.” The 16 SDGs are the outcomes and outputs ranging from “no poverty,” “quality education,” “zero hunger” and “reduced inequalities” to “clean water and sanitation,” “ life below water” and “on land,” “good health and well-being.” No single stakeholder can achieve and be responsible for change. (15) PPP is not a panacea. PPP must not be viewed as if it is the only solution to the infrastructure and service deficits. There are other developmental strategies in
PPP must not be viewed as if it is the only solution to the infrastructure and service deficits. There are other developmental strategies in the government arsenal. Procurement, loans, official development assistance, guarantees, and use of national and local funds are the other strategies, which may be implemented singly or in conjunction with each other and PPPs.
the government arsenal. Procurement, loans, official development assistance, guarantees, and use of national and local funds are the other strategies, which may be implemented singly or in conjunction with each other and PPPs. (16) PPP promotes competitive advantage. PPPs by national government agencies, state corporations, local governments and state universities and colleges, individually and collectively, pro-
mote the competitive advantage of the country and its individual units. The government cannot be solely responsible for development. Partnership with and for a purpose is critical. (17) PPP for Asean integration. To achieve the goals of Asean integration and for the country to be a front-runner, and not a laggard in the region, the whole Philippine bureaucracy must embrace PPP as a development strategy. If they do not, we will lag behind those countries with tremendous competitive advantages. (18) PPP defines the role of government. In typical PPP arrangements like build-operatetransfer, build-transfer-operate and build-lease-transfer schemes, the IA is a passive participant. The government simply oversees and regulates. The government steers and not rows. However, in a joint venture, the IA is an active participant. It contributes, implements, operates and sets policy. These options are all legal. What do you think of these eight? Let us take this opportunity for introspection.
Opinion BusinessMirror
opinion@businessmirror.com.ph
Israel has breathing room–for now
Auditing the auditors
B F G | Miami Herald / TNS Forum
A
MID the turmoil raging in the Middle East—multiple wars, competing terrorist groups and a growing number of governments involved in the fighting—there is no question that the security situation for Israel has changed. What is less clear is whether Israel has become more or less secure as the result of the unrest.
At the moment, Israelis are experiencing a wave of attacks against civilians, perpetrated mostly by young Palestinians. The consequences are tragic for the victims and their families and highly stressful for millions of Israelis. But as a largely leaderless and disorganized movement, the lowgrade uprising does not pose an existential threat to the country. More troubling is the continuing construction of tunnels by Hamas, which has shown it can use them to kidnap Israelis and infiltrate the country. Beyond that, the picture is a mixed one. Syria and its war lie close to the heart of Israel. Israel’s thirdlargest city, Haifa, is less than 90 miles away from the Syrian capital, Damascus. Thousands of Israelis can hear the Syrian shelling from their homes. The fighting in Syria encapsulates just how complicated it is to assess the impact of Arab turmoil on Israeli security. That war has brought forces from Iran, Israel’s most dangerous and determined enemy, to the Syrian-Israeli border. In addition, it has spawned the Islamic State, or ISIS, a vicious terrorist group that has made it clear it intends to bring its jihad to Israel and, in fact, has already made inroads in Gaza. At the same time, the Syrian war has embroiled several of Israel’s enemies, not only distracting them from their goal of destroying the Jewish state, but inflicting heavy losses on their forces. Hezbollah, the Iran-linked Lebanese militia, is fighting in Syria on the side of the government of Bashar al-Assad. Both Iran and Hezbollah are focused on saving Assad. Hezbollah, in particular, at Iran’s insistence, is paying a high price to defend the Syrian regime. By some estimates, thousands of Hezbollah fighters have been killed in Syria. And Syria, still officially at war with Israel, is being devastated. In addition, the rise of Iran is making Sunni regimes—who view Iran as the greatest threat to their security—reconsider their stance toward Israel. Quiet and not-soquiet ties between Israel and Arab states are emerging out of shared concerns about Iran.
In the short term, the situation has made Israel more secure, mostly because some of Israel’s enemies are occupied in Syria and are using their arsenals there, and because the new regional calculus makes antipathy toward Israel a lower priority. I have personally spoken with many (non-Palestinian) Arabs in the past couple of years who have told me Israel is a problem for Palestinians, not for them. That is an important positive change from Israel’s perspective. The security gains, however, quickly fade if one looks at a longer horizon. Hezbollah, for example, is clearly in no position to attack Israel right now. But Israeli officials estimate that the group already has more than 100,000 rockets aimed at Israel. When the war in Syria ends, Iran and Hezbollah will redirect their gaze toward Israel. By then, Iran will have collected tens of billions of dollars from the end of sanctions against its nuclear program. Some of that money will go to rebuilding Hezbollah after its Syria losses, and to strengthening Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, also involved in Syria today. Depending on exactly how the war ends, Israel could find a whole new series of challenges. If Assad survives, he will be even more beholden to Iran than before. And Iran will be stronger. In addition to how Assad fares, the condition of ISIS when the war ends could have repercussions in Israel. The collapse of the peace process with Palestinians combined with the lack of support by Palestinians for their leaders could make the Palestinian areas fertile recruiting ground for ISIS and make the chances for an IsraeliPalestinian deal even more remote, presaging even more unrest. And then there is the Iran nuclear deal, parts of which expire in 10 years, others in 15 years. Depending on what happens in and with the Islamic Republic by then, a nuclear Iran, viscerally anti-Israel, could become a reality. The turmoil in the Arab Middle East gives Israel some security breathing space. Let’s hope Israeli leaders use it wisely, because it is only short term.
Jun Cuaresma
DEBIT CREDIT Conclusion
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AST week I discussed about the global development in the accountancy profession amid news of inappropriate financial reporting or accounting scandals happening around the world, and the response of national professional regulators by setting up a regulatory body to oversee the conduct of an audit of companies by the external auditors [hereinafter, interchangeably referred to as external auditors or Certified Public Accountants (CPA) practitioners].
In our jurisdiction, our Professional Regulatory Board of Accountancy (BOA) has adopted our own external audit Quality Assurance Review (QAR) Program, but is yet to implement it. Our Securities Exchange Commission, on the other hand, has been working on the revision of its Rules on Financial Statements Reporting that will include, among others, the implementation of its own QAR System of external auditors accredited by the commission, but is yet to be finalized and approved for implementation. Pending the implementation and approval for a QAR Program/System, there is no local regulatory body that currently audits the auditors in this country, which situation may be good or bad, or should I say, may pose both challenges and/or opportunities to our regulators; to companies being audited or the auditees; and to CPA practitioners, whether big firms or small or medium practitioners (SMP). It is, indeed, a challenge to our regulators, at present, inasmuch as the extent of compliance of the CPA practitioners with the prescribed auditing and ethical standards and regulatory policies, particu-
larly on the extent of the adoption or nonadoption of the quality assurance elements into the practice of the CPAs in the Philippines, is not known because they have not yet conducted a QAR on these CPA practitioners. Moreover, it could also taint the image of the whole Philippine accountancy profession because of the failure to implement the QAR Program/System, as it is one of the criteria set in the Asean corporate governance scorecard. To the companies being audited, it is maybe a challenge as well, as they are not assured of the quality of audits conducted by their external auditors, which may expose them to undetected material or significant weaknesses in their internal control and may lead to material misstatements or fraud in their financial statements. On the whole, the present developments would be an opportunity for CPA practitioners, especially for SMPs, as such would give them time to prepare, prior to the eventual implementation of the pending, but definitely coming, QAR Program/ System. It is an opportunity that should be taken advantage by SMPs
Bloomberg View
T
HE Democratic calendar finally reached a good Hillary Clinton state on Saturday, and wow, did she take advantage of it. She was expected to win big. Nate Silver projected that if the national race was a tie between Clinton and Bernie Sanders, she would win in South Carolina by about 20 percentage points. Instead, she romped by far more—as I write this, she’s taking over 70 percent of the vote. The bottom line is that Sanders still hasn’t found any way to appeal to black voters, who made up a large percentage of Democratic turnout. Without them no candidate can compete for a Democratic presidential nomination. The exit polls in South Carolina project Sanders lost the black vote by some 70 percentage points. That not only doomed him today, but also it dooms him in far too many states to have any serious chance of being nominated. We’re going to see the effects on Tuesday, where polls have Sanders
getting crushed in Texas, Arkansas, Alabama and Georgia. Outside of his home state of Vermont, where he’s expected to win easily, it’s not clear from the polls that he’ll win anywhere. Clinton, for example, appears to be leading or tied in Massachusetts—a state where Silver had anticipated Sanders would need to win by 11 percentage points to get to a national tie. If Clinton does have a very good day on Tuesday, Sanders will just be too far behind in delegates to catch her unless something changes dramatically, and very soon. Sanders has run an impressive campaign, sparking enthusiasm among many people and forcing Clinton to take the primaries and caucuses seriously. He’s earned the right to contest the nomination as long as he wants. He’ll have to start thinking now, however, how he can best serve the “revolution” he espouses. Does he really want to take his revolution into loss after loss in the remaining primaries and caucuses? Does he believe trying to pick off a handful of
for them to evaluate their current practices and determine gaps needed to be addressed in order to put in place the necessary audit quality control in their practice before the QAR Program implementation. This may include the preparation of a Quality Control, Ethics and Risk Manual and development of a system for conflict checks and client acceptance risk assessment. In this regard, no less than our accredited CPA professional organization, the Philippine Institute of CPAs, has developed a voluntary QAR Program that will soon be available to all CPA practitioners, mostly for SMPs, where they can opt to be subjected to peer review to assist them in pointing out areas where audit quality improvements can be made to their respective audit practices. I kept on saying SMPs because QAR is not at all new to large CPA firms or firms that belong to international networks. These large firms have been subjected to internal QARs by their respective international network firms to ascertain their compliance with international auditing and quality control standards, and ethical and technical standards prescribed by their network firm. However, the BOA cannot use the results of the internal QAR of these local large CPA firms as the results are private in nature, and are not made available to the public. Moreover, the US PCAOB has conducted inspections or QAR to certain local large CPA firms who handle audits of local entities related to, or significant component of, US public companies. In the end, auditing the external auditors creates a number of benefits to all stakeholders of the accountancy profession: (1) the BOA can ascertain the compliance of CPA practitioners/external auditors to the auditing and quality control standards, and ethical and technical standards it prescribes; thus, further uplifting the practice of accountancy in the Philippines to
How to get Irish taxpayers smiling
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RELAND’S next government will inherit strong economic growth and a lopsided tax system. Its main task will be to fix the second without spoiling the first. Opinion polls detect great public dissatisfaction with the established political order, and it’s no surprise: When Ireland’s banks imploded in 2008, the cost of bailing them out fell entirely on the nation’s taxpayers. A special charge of up to 11 percent was imposed on almost everyone, so that marginal rates for many in the middle class now routinely exceed 50 percent. Although Prime Minister Enda Kenny’s Fine Gael is likely to reemerge from elections on Friday
as the largest party in parliament, it will probably be diminished. A hung parliament is likely, and the accompanying uncertainty could endanger Ireland’s healthy but fragile economic recovery. It would also be unnecessary. Very little divides the two main parties—Fine Gael and Fianna Fail‚ in terms of ideology. Their origins derive not from left and right, but from the civil war that was sparked by the terms Ireland accepted for its independence, in the 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty. Fine Gael included those who favored the treaty’s compromises with the British; Fianna Fail, those who rejected them. Nearly a century on, the parties should not have too much trou-
A shellacking in South Carolina B J B
Monday, February 29, 2016 A15
states is the best use of all of those small contributions he is so proud to have garnered? Oddly enough, Sanders has basically been a loyal Democrat during his career in Congress, despite refusing to call himself a member of that party. He’s certain to warmly endorse Clinton before the convention. The only question whether he does it after a few more weeks, or waits until she technically clinches the nomination in the delegate count, or even until the final primaries in June. Can he and his supporters figure out something constructive to do with the energy they have generated together? Will they take to state and local primary elections, working to elect liberals over more moderate Democrats? Will they turn to the general election, and try to win back the US Senate and some governorships—and maybe some state legislatures—for Democrats? Sanders hasn’t been a national leader during his long political career. He is one now. He has to decide what he will do with his new influence.
A GOOD night for Clinton fans.
BLOOMBERG
ble burying the hatchet. Governing together, they could ensure the recovery—and reform the country’s tax system. Their opposition—and the party that looks to make the biggest gains in Friday’s vote—is Sinn Fein. Formerly the political wing of the Irish Republican Army, Sinn Fein is rebranding itself as a party of the left. It promises to not only keep the special tax charge but also impose new taxes on people earning more than €100,000. Yet, Ireland already has one of the developed world’s most progressive income-tax regimes. The rates are so uneven, in fact, they undermine the vaunted ability of Ireland’s 12.5-percent corporate
higher level of standards; (2) to CPA practitioners, the audit QAR shall help promote a culture of quality and good governance in their respective accounting practices; (3) the companies being audited will have peace of mind knowing that their external auditors put great regard to audit quality when they make independent assessments of compliance with financial reporting standards; and (4) more important, to the general public or users of audited financial statements (FS) for there will be a higher level or reasonable assurance that the financial information embodied in the FS certified by external auditors are reliable and credible. In conclusion, the adoption and implementation of the QAR Program/System will generate a culture of quality and good governance among CPA practitioners, who become committed to ethical and quality control audit standards, and who uplift the delivery of audit services that will put reliability and credibility to the audited FS used by local and foreign businessmen in making sound business decisions. By then, our accountancy profession shall be able to justify its existence, and the significance of its role as one of the drivers of our nation’s development, economic growth and global competitiveness. Jun Cuaresma is the managing partner and chief operating officer of P&A Grant Thornton. P&A Grant Thornton is a leading audit, tax advisory and outsourcing services firm and is the Philippine member of Grant Thornton International Ltd. He has been in public accounting for his entire professional career, with over 30 years of solid experience in the audit of local and international companies in various industries. This column accepts contributions of articles from accountants that are of interest to the accountancy profession, in particular, and to the business community, in general. These can be e-mailed to boa.secretariat.@ gmail.com.
tax rate to attract global companies to this relatively small island. The prospect of marginal rates as high as 65 percent makes it hard for companies to hire the skilled foreign workers they need. It also weakens the incentive to work. Ireland needs to broaden its tax base. At present, thanks to giveaways during the precrisis boom years, 32 percent of earners are paying no tax at all (the comparable share in the UK is 11 percent). The special tax charge has at least brought 500,000 new payers into the system. It could be made equitable and efficient if it were turned into a social-security fund for pensions. Bloomberg View
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House urged to pass bill giving women 100-day maternity leave 3.41 L B J M N. D C
ADY lawmakers have asked the leadership of the House of Representatives to consider the passage of a measure giving women 100 days maternity leave with pay when session resumes on May 23.
Party-list Rep. Emmi A. de Jesus of Gabriela, one of the authors of House Bill 6399, said the measure seeks to address the plight of working women in the country. Committee on Women and Gender Equality Chairman and Liberal Party Rep. Linabelle Ruth R. Vil-
larica of Bulacan, who endorsed the bill for plenary approval last month, said the measure seeks to expand Republic Act 8282, or An Act Further Strengthening the Social Security System (SSS). Party-list Rep. Luzviminda C. Ilagan of Gabriela, another author of
Total fertility rate in the Philippines from 2000 to 2005
the bill, said “maternity is one vital social function played by women.” “The bill seeks to ensure maternity protection is not only a payback to women but also enhances gender equality as mandated in the Constitution and the Magna Carta of Women,” she said. For her part, Lakas Rep. Lani Mercado-Revilla of Cavite, also an author of the bill, said the Constitu-
tion recognizes the role of women in nation-building. “It now becomes imperative that under whatever circumstances a pregnant woman is in, the State shall promote and protect her right,” she said. Mercado-Revilla said providing additional maternity leave for working mothers in the government and in the private sector would provide them sufficient time to take care of their newborn babies, bond with them and regain their full health. Under the bill, beneficiaries would get full pay based on their average weekly or regular wages, whether child delivery is through normal or caesarian. Women can also avail themselves of additional maternity leave of 30 days without pay. The measure also provides that
employees in the private sector who will avail themselves of the maternity leave period and benefits would receive not less than two-thirds of their regular monthly wages. The employers will be responsible for the salary differential between the actual cash benefits received from the SSS and their average or regular wages, for the entire duration of the ordinary maternity leave, the bill added. Authors said the bill assures security of tenure to the female employee, and its availment should not be used as basis for demotion in employment or termination and transfer to a parallel position or reassignment from one organizational unit to another in the same agency. It tasks the Government Service Insurance System and the SSS
to immediately conduct a review of the maternity leave benefits of woman-employees in the government service and the private sector. The Philippines has one of the highest fertility rates in Southeast Asia, based on a report from the World Bank. The country recorded three births per woman in 2013. According to the projection made by the Philippine Statistics Authority, total fertility rate (TFR) in 2015 to 2020 will go down slightly to 2.76, from 3.41 recorded from 2000 to 2005. The World Bank defined total fertility rate as the number of children that would be born to a woman if she were to live to the end of her childbearing years. TFR in the Philippines is expected to go down drastically in 2040, when it is expected to settle at 2.07.
Govt pushes back timetable for rollout of Sangley Airport…
“Jica is finishing up the feasibility study and we hope to receive that within the first quarter. Then we will move to the next phase, which is the conduct of a full feasibility study,” Abaya said. That full feasibility study, he said, will take another 18 months, meaning the government’s undisclosed timetable for the project’s implementation would also be pushed back by more than half a year. Upon completion, the winning bid will still be scrutinized by the Investments Coordination Com-
mittee and the National Economic and Development Authority, or the Neda Board. “In 18 months we can determine the location, and the economic rate of return, the viability of the project, it’ll be complete—all that the Neda Board will require should be tucked in there,” Abaya said. The government, apparently, is not in a hurry despite the worsening aircraft and passenger congestion at the Naia. Last year saw Naia’s four terminals push past their maximum rated capacity for the first time, as
more and more international and domestic flights were launched despite the lack of capacity-building projects at the air hub. Data collected by the Manila International Airport Authority (Miaa) show the airport coping with the influx of 36.68 million passengers last year, 7 percent higher than only 34.09 million passengers the year prior. Broken down, the airport handled 19.51 million domestic passengers last year—around 2 million higher than the 17.17 million it served in 2014. International
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passenger count was basically flat. “For something as big as $10 billion or $15 billion, you have to do it right. You cant proceed without getting into every detail,” Abaya said. “We are looking at a 10-year period, the feasibility study is still within the 2025 schedule.” Under the draft pre-feasibility study submitted by Jica, the airport should be commercially operational by 2025, or some 10 years from now. T he study pinpointed t wo Cavite-based locations, called Sangley 1A and 1B. As to the official
location that will be endorsed by Jica, the transport chief can only speculate. Wherever Sangley Airport will be located, Abaya will endorse the project to the Neda Board. Sangley 1A is in the same site as the naval station in Cavite. The other is located near the Central Manila Bay, in between the military base and a reclaimed area. The first option will cost both the government and a private-sector partner less than the second choice. The first one only costs $10 billion, while the other one is pegged at
C
around $13 billion. The future airport will boast of four runways that can handle 700,000 aircraft movements a year, capable of servicing 130 million passengers annually. The deal was seen implemented under the government’s key infrastructure program alongside funding from official development assistance. But for aviation expert Avelino L. Zapanta, a former president of two local airlines, the solution to the mess at the main international gateway shou ld a l so i nvolve short-term goals. “Sangley is a long-term solution, there’s no problem with that,” he said. “It will take decades to be constructed and the government should see that our problem is right here and now. We need an immediate answer to the congestion.” He referred to the Naia as a “mess.” “What I recommend is for us to pick the low-hanging fruits— meaning, we have to declare Clark International Airport as the main international gateway. This will free up Manila of at least a third of its flights,” Zapanta said. Once this was done, the operations of several airlines will then be moved to Clark. “That is the only way to virtually decongest Manila overnight,” he said. “When they do that, in the next two years, Manila will slowly be decongested.” Philippine Airlines President Jaime J. Bautista has said that given the amount of time that the government needs to construct a new airport, it is but wiser to consider Clark first before Sangley. “Sangley is a good plan. But it will take time, right? It will take about 10 to 15 years to be completed. In the meantime, let’s fix Clark first,” he said. Philippines AirAsia President Joy D. Caneba also said there is no reason for the government not to develop both air ports at once. “Clark is already a viable airport. Let’s develop this first, but there is no reason for us to develop only one or two major airports, as the demand for air travel has grown exponentially and the growth is forecast to continue with increasing low-cost airline operations and the expanding middle class, and the Philippines is losing opportunities if we do not start building, expanding and improving airports now,” she said.