BusinessMirror March 27, 2015

BusinessMirror

three-time rotary club of manila journalism awardee 2006, 2010, 2012

U.N. Media Award 2008

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A broader look at today’s business

TfridayNovember 18,2015 2014Vol.Vol.1010No.No.169 40 Friday, March 27,

n n

P25.00 nationwide | 7 sections 32 pages | 7 days a week

Central bank response according to market consensus, says no to rate-cut peer pressure

BSP bucks global trend of policy easing

By Bianca Cuaresma

INSIDE

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car of the month

BYD S6 2.4L DCT

motoring

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shailene woodley and the world of ‘insurgent’ T

The spiritual leprosy of sin

HANK You, Jesus, to all that You did to us, especially through Your suffering, death and resurrection, all those affected by the leprosy of sin could and can experience total healing. More than any vaccine and costly treatment, You have defeated sin at the root, and offers salvation from it through the Church. As Your disciples, we are all expected to become Your allies in combating any type of leprosy, and especially the spiritual leprosy of sin. Amen.

WORD AND LIFE, FR SAL PUTZU, SDB AND LOUIE M. LACSON Word&Life Publications • teacherlouie1965@yahoo.com

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

Life

This kept the overnight borrowing, or reverse repurchase rate (RRP), at 4 percent and the overnight lending, or repurchase (RP), at 6 percent for the fourth time in a series.

The interest rate on the special deposits was also kept steady at 2.5 percent and the deposit reserve rate at 20 percent.

The move proved within market expectations, as indicated by an earlier private economists poll by the BusinessMirror. This was also in contrast to the widening trend of monetary-policy easing—or interest

THROWBACK CUISINE »D3

BusinessMirror

Friday, March 27, 2015

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Shailene Woodley and the world of ‘Insurgent’ B T B Los Angeles Times

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HE wait is over for Divergent fans. Insurgent, which is now in theaters worldwide, sees Shailene Woodley return to the big screen as action heroine Tris Prior.

The sequel, based on the second installment in Veronica Roth’s best-selling YA book trilogy, follows Tris Prior, a young woman who discovers she has an aptitude for multiple factions in her dystopian world’s rigid societal system. Tris tries to hide this unusual and dangerous trait,

C  D

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life

By Lorenz S. Marasigan

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“It brings into focus with the international community the differences in terms of what is being said and what is happening on the ground,” the Philippines’s top diplomat said. Del Rosario’s speech came at a time of increasing aggressiveness by China, marked by reclamation activities covering seven reefs in the West Philippine Sea. The two artificial islets are feared to choke off access to Ayungin Shoal, where a rusting Philippine Navy ship is beached and is home to a contingent of troopers.

IVERSIFIED conglomerate San Miguel Corp. (SMC) is pushing to strengthen its infrastructure arm through the consolidation of its toll-road businesses, making the latter’s project portfolio more pleasing to the eyes of potential investors and government partners.

In a regulatory filing, the food-toinfrastructure firm’s corporate information officer, Ferdinand K. Constantino, said Atlantic Aurum Investments BV, the parent firm of the companies holding the concession rights over the South Luzon Expressway (Slex) and the Skyway System, has transferred control of the thoroughfares to San Miguel Holdings Corp. (SMH).

Specifically, the board of directors “ratified the transfer of 48.47 percent of the outstanding shares in Atlantic Aurum Investments BV to San Miguel Holdings Corp.,”which now holds 95 percent of the former, which was originally controlled by Indonesia’s Citra Group.

“The board also approved the consolidation of the Skyway and the South Luzon Expressway tollway businesses into the books of the company, and the inclusion thereof in the subsequent events in the 2015 audited financial statements of the company,” Constantino said, referring to SMH. “It makes perfect sense,” First Grade Holdings Inc. Managing Director Astro C. del Castillo said, when sought for comment. He explained that the consolidation would make management of the toll-road firms more efficient, resulting to a less complicated ownership structure.

“It makes sense considering that these companies will be under one

See “Sea row,” A2

See “SMC,” A2

TRILEVEL FALLS One of Filipinos’ favorite pastimes is to go to the nearby falls or beach areas to escape the summer heat. In southern

Cebu in Badian, Kawasan Falls is one of the top destinations of both foreign and local tourists, where clear and fresh waters flow freely from Alegria upstream to Badian downstream. Kawasan Falls has three levels, with the one in photo showing the second level. Stephanie Tumampos

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‘Sea row more than just maritime entitlement’

SEASONAL EMPLOYEES

Sports

SMC toll-road business now consolidated under SMH

he Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Thursday delivered a widely expected move of keeping the policy rates, as well as related policy tools, such as the interest on its special deposits and the banks’ deposit reserve ratio, unchanged.

BusinessMirror

MAJOR LEAGUE CAREERS OFTEN START WITH WINTER GRUNT WORK

F

ORT MYERS, Florida—Long before any of that Major League Baseball (MLB) money starts landing in their bank accounts, most players are in a similar predicament as everyone else in the regular work force.

Between baseball seasons, there are no paychecks, and bills don’t stop for the winter.

So they need to find some other income.

“Especially the guys who got picked in the 10th round and above,” Minnesota Twins reliever Casey Fien said. “I signed for $500 and a plane ticket. So I had to go out and earn my money.”

He went to Costco.

The right arm that would eventually fetch Fien a $1.38-million salary from the Twins for 2015 was once used for stacking crates, pallets and boxes at the bulk retail giant’s location in San Luis Obispo, California. Drafted in the 20th round in 2006 by Detroit, Fien showed up for five-hour night shifts at the store during his off-seasons until making his MLB debut in 2009 with the Tigers.

First-round draft picks receive multimillion-dollar signing bonuses, but by the 10th round, players get around $140,000 in guarantees. The bonuses drop sharply further down the board.

Minor-league living is hardly large. Meal money, for one, is tough to stretch beyond Pizza Hut, and pales in comparison with

the majors. The minimum salary for a player in Class A is $1,100 per month over a five-month season. In Triple-A, it’s $2,150 per month. Prospects on the 40-man roster make at least $41,400 annually while they’re still in the minors, but that’s a category that covers only up to 15 of the 150-plus minor leaguers in most organizations.

Unglamorous jobs outside the game can be important, humbling reminders for aspiring major leaguers to appreciate their athletic talent and opportunity. After all, this “regular” work can be a career for others.

Being hired can be another matter, though. Players are typically only available from October through February. They need time to

Oopss...wrong park!

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ONE-HANDED PITCHER ICK ROBINSON was settling into his new job as the baseball coach at the University of Tennessee-Martin, moving some things around his office when he came across a few articles that had been written about the previous year’s team.

He made a somewhat startling discovery: His best returning pitcher had just one hand.

Now, Carter Smith is turning into one of the best pitchers in the Ohio Valley Conference. The 6-foot-2 left-handed senior has been solid as a weekend starter for the Skyhawks, leading the conference with a 2.03 ERA in 31 innings while striking out 29.

Most gratifying for Smith is he’s being looked at as a good college pitcher instead of a curiosity.

“It’s great that it’s a good story, but what I really wanted is to have success at this level,” Smith said. “It’s just working hard, staying persistent and being willing to put the time in to get better.”

The 22-year-old from Saint Louis was born without a right hand, but that didn’t stop him from grabbing a ball and glove as a youngster to play catch with his five siblings. He learned how to throw and catch through trial and error, slowly perfecting the technique that would allow him to have success at the Division I level.

When he pitches, he throws with his left hand while balancing the glove on right forearm. After he lets go of a pitch, he quickly slips his left hand into the glove so that he can field a potential line drive, bunt or hard grounder. If he catches the ball, he pulls the glove off with his right arm, lets the ball fall into his left hand and gets in position to throw again.

It sounds difficult, but Robinson said Smith does it so seamlessly that it’s barely noticeable.

By Recto Mercene

SEASONAL EMPLOYEES

OME pitchers have trouble finding the plate. Edwin Jackson of the Chicago Cubs had a much bigger problem: He couldn’t find the ballpark.

Jackson missed his Major League Baseball spring training start on Tuesday against the Oakland Athletics when he drove to the wrong stadium. Fitting, too—he once walked eight batters in a no-hitter, and has never been known for great location.

The 31-year-old veteran said he typed “Oakland Athletics spring training complex” into the Google Maps app on his phone and it directed him to Phoenix Municipal Stadium.

Too bad for Jackson, he didn’t realize Oakland no longer played there. Instead, the A’s moved out after last spring and now host games about 8 kilometers away at Hohokam Stadium.

“It was my fault for not looking to see where it was,” Jackson said.

Phoenix Muni, as the ballpark is called, is the current base for Arizona State University.

So Jackson headed to Hohokam, which was the Cubs’ longtime spring home. He eventually got to the right place, not that it helped him.

He entered the game in the second inning and was tagged for eight runs and nine hits in only 1-2/3 innings of a 14-2 loss.

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| Friday, MarCh 27, 2015 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph sports@businessmirror.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

“Honestly, I’d rather have him on the mound fielding a bunt in pressure situations than anyone else,” Robinson said. “He’s so smooth with it.”

Smith’s system is similar to that of former Major League Baseball pitcher Jim Abbott, who was also born without a right hand. He played 10 seasons in the big leagues, winning 87 games and even throwing a no-hitter.

Smith said his dad took him to Busch Stadium to watch Abbott pitch in the 1990s and it helped reinforce that having only one hand didn’t have to stop him from playing baseball.

Abbott, now 47 and living in California, said he was excited to learn about Smith’s success on the mound. He also can relate to one of Smith’s biggest goals: Wanting to be known as a good pitcher instead of the guy who plays with one hand.

“When you grow up missing a hand, you know what it’s like to want to fit in and want to be a part of something,” Abbott said. “Being a good teammate means not always wanting to call attention to yourself, so I know the battle he’s going through. I’m proud that he feels that way.”

Smith said he’s tried to never let one hand affect what he can or can’t do in athletics. He even played basketball as a freshman and sophomore in high school before deciding to concentrate on baseball.

There have been a few adjustments in college—like learning to hide the ball a little better during his windup and delivery so batters can’t pick up the pitch from his grip—but for the most part his system has stayed the same since he was 6 years old.

He said teams have tried to lay down a few early bunts to

train, too, so hours can be tricky.

“I interviewed at about 15 places and heard back from one,” said Twins prospect Taylor Rogers, recalling his 2013-2014 offseason with a Denver-area substance-abuse counseling service for offenders on probation.

An internship was offered, but he couldn’t make himself available enough. So he was assigned to supervise urinalysis testing, instead.

“To make sure they weren’t doing any drugs. So I would watch them do that. I didn’t have to handle the samples. I just made sure they weren’t tampering with it,” Rogers said. “It just kind of happened where I couldn’t find anything else. It’s tough to get a seasonal part-time job.”

Rogers, an 11th-round pick in 2012 who pitched last year for Minnesota’s Double-A affiliate, considered joining relatives who are firefighters and carpenters, but the occupations aren’t ideal for a guy trying to stay healthy and fit for baseball.

“That kind of takes down the percentage of jobs you can find where you’re not going to wear yourself out or risk putting a nail into your finger,” Rogers said.

There’s less risk at the grocery store, but makes for amusing encounters. Working one winter at the Rainbow Foods in his hometown of Shoreview, Minnesota, Twins pitching prospect Mark Hamburger noticed the team’s minor-league director in the next line.

Jackson joins an ever-growing list of ballplayers to get lost.

A few years ago, a couple of Cincinnati Reds went to Yankee Stadium when their game against the New York Mets was really at Citi Field.

Roger Clemens once got mixed up trying to find Montreal’s spring stadium in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Perhaps Atlanta Braves pitcher Pascual Perez had the hardest time. In 1982, after getting his driver’s license earlier in the day, he famously spent two hours on I-285 circling the city, unable to figure out how to exit to Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium.

Jackson said his late arrival didn’t cause his lousy results.

“I was already dressed and got here in time to get ready, but they didn’t want me to rush things,” he said. “I came to the stadium with the mind-set of being ready. It was a crazy way to start the day.” AP

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“I was wearing my apron and everything,” Hamburger said, smiling. “He was like, ‘Mark Hamburger! What are you doing here?’

Then I said, ‘Well, you know I didn’t really get too big of a signing bonus, so I’ve got to do stuff,’ and he was like, ‘Oh, nice to see you.’”

Former pitcher Garrett Broshius, who spent six seasons in the San Francisco Giants system, spent a couple of winters with a cognitive psychologist on memory research. His ballplayer friends varied widely on work. One sold women’s shoes at Macy’s over the holidays. Another worked for a dog-walking service. Another was a Jimmy John’s sandwich-delivery guy.

Twins prospect Alex Meyer was a former first-round pick by the Washington Nationals who didn’t need the winter money so much, but two years ago he took substitute teaching assignments for $63 a day to connect with his Greensburg, Indiana, hometown.

“It shows you how hard it is to earn $100, when there’s people out there who work paycheck to paycheck,” Meyer said. “It definitely makes you understand the opportunity we have in this game to take care of your family.” AP

CUBS pitcher Cubs pitcher Edwin Jackson winds up at the wrong park and misses his Major League Baseball spring-training start. AP

UNIVERSITY of TennesseeMartin pitcher Carter Smith is excelling.

see if he can field his position, but after a couple outs, they try a different strategy.

“It’s never bothered me,” Smith said. “I just look at it as a free out.“ Smith was voted a team captain during the offseason and has validated his teammates’ decision with great performances.

Robinson said Smith keeps opposing batters offbalance despite a fastball that tops out between 86 to 88 miles per hour. Instead of pure velocity, he relies on good command, a slider and a deceptive change-up.

“Not only is he a really good pitcher for us, but he brings the love of baseball to the field every day,” Robinson said. “We have yet to find anything he can’t do. When you watch him handle himself on the mound, it’s pretty incredible.”

Like most playing Division I college baseball, Smith hopes his career can continue at the professional level next year.

But if it doesn’t, he’s well prepared. He’s majoring in sportmanagement and has made the OVC Commissioner’s Honor Roll the past three seasons.

“I’d love to stay on the field playing, but maybe someday I’d like to get into the front office,” Smith said. “I definitely want to stay around the game no matter what happens.” AP

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oreign Secretary Albert F. del Rosario on Thursday said he welcomes statements made

by American legislators calling for a comprehensive strategy to stop China from pursuing an ongoing reclamation on disputed islands in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea).

“We also welcome the call for a more substantive support and focus on the Asia rebalance strategy of the United States,” del Rosario said, as he keynoted the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines

PESO exchange rates n US 44.7720

Del Rosario said this move by the American lawmakers “is very helpful for our case,” as well as for other countries claiming the contested waters.

Forum at the Marco Polo Hotel in Pasig City.

Four US senators, led by Sen. John McCain, chairman of the Senate Armed Services and Foreign Rela-

tions committees, wrote to the US secretaries of defense and state, highlighting China’s alleged “aggressive” behavior in pushing its sovereignty claims in the West Philippine Sea. The senators, which include Bob Corker, Bob Menendez and Jack Reed, also bemoaned the lack of a comprehensive US strategy for the maritime commons of the IndoPacific region.

Del Rosario said this move by the American lawmakers “is very helpful for our case,” as well as for other countries claiming the contested waters.

n japan 0.3750 n UK 66.6297 n HK 5.7737 n CHINA 7.2068 n singapore 32.6731 n australia 35.1650 n EU 49.1283 n SAUDI arabia 11.9382 Source: BSP (26 March 2015)

News

BusinessMirror

Friday, March 27, 2015

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BSP bucks global trend of policy easing rate reductions—seen in other emerging markets and neighbor economies.

The policy-making Monetary Board based its decision on the assessment that the inflation environment continues to be manageable. Its latest baseline forecasts indicate that inflation was likely to settle within the lower half of the target range of 2 percent to 4 percent this year.

BSP Deputy Governor for the Monetary Stability Sector Diwa C. Guinigundo said the central bank’s inflation forecast for the year was scaled back slightly to 2.2 percent from the 2.3 percent forecast on February 12 when the Monetary Board last met to set the rates.

Guinigundo said the slower forecast inflation was scaled back on account of a lower-than-expected wage hike implemented only this month.

About a week ago, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) announced a P15 increase in the daily basic minimum wage.

Guinigundo pointed out the BSP assumed a P20 increase in the daily

Thrift banks. . .

“Last year we did some preemptive moves in anticipation of developments in the US Fed and the fact that in 2014, there were pressures on prices. To be sure that we keep inflation expectations well-anchored, we decided to go into preemptive moves,” Guinigundo said.

The BSP started its tightening cycle in March 2014, but paused in September the same year. The tightening translated to a 200 basis-point hike in the banks’ deposit reserve ratio, a 50-basis-point hike in the SDA interest rate and 50-basis-point hike in the main overnight policy rates.

“Now for 2015 and 2016, the situation has not changed. The US is still about to tighten—although uncertainty remains as to when and how much. We will not waste those preemptive moves for nothing. At this point, the economy does not need additional monetary stimulus,” Guinigundo said.

The BSP reiterated they will continue to monitor domestic and external developments that going forward has potential impact on prices and on financial stability.

minimum wage much ealier.

According to the BSP, the risks to inflation remained “broadly balanced,” as pending petitions for upward adjustments in the utility rates and possible power shortages offset the downward risks emanating from uneven global economic activity.

For next year, the BSP forecasts inflation hitting 2.5 percent or unchanged from forecast bared on February 12.

The Monetary Board’s rather tame inflation outlook helps fortify the argument against the BSP, following the path of central banks in more than 20 jurisdictions across the world that scaled back interest rates in recent months due to falling inflation and increasingly unsatisfying local output growth.

Guinigundo intimated the BSP was not likely to reverse or “waste” the preemptive tightening moves the Monetary Board set up early in 2014, especially now that inflation has proven benign and the economy barely needs monetary stimulus as output remains robust no matter the global uncertainties.

Continued from A1

Continued from A8

As of end-December 2014, more than one-third of the industry’s loan portfolio went to the real-estate segment, accounting for 35.37 percent of total loan portfolio, or P201.91 billion. This shows the viability of middle-income hous-

ing projects, the chamber said.

Loans to individuals for consumption purposes followed with 29.20 percent share, or P166.70 billion, while wholesale, retail trade and repair of motor vehicles was on third spot at 8.59 percent, or P49.03 bil-

lion. The three sectors accounted for the bulk of the industry’s total loan portfolio equal to 73.16 percent.

As of September 2014 figures, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said thrift banks focused more on MSMEs.

MARCH 27, 2015 | FRIDAY

Sea row. . .

SMC. . .

Continued from A1

holding firm. It will be make them more efficient, as they could create business departments on different management aspects,” he said.

The consolidation should also give the infrastructure arm of the most diversified conglomerate in the Philippines a competitive edge against rivals in the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Program.

“I think, given that it has intention to bid for other infrastructure deals, it can have more leverage as the consolidated company will have a better background,” del Castillo explained.

The food-to-infrastructure firm has pursued several infrastructure deals under the government’s key infrastructure thrust. The conglomerate has, so far, won one deal, the P15.68-billion Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) Expressway, which was awarded in 2013 to its unit Vertex Tollways Development Inc. At present, it is pursuing several deals under the PPP scheme. It has set its eyes on the P35.42-billion CaviteLaguna Expressway deal, whose rebidding’s deadline for bid submission was set for May 19. It will require bidders to place offers higher than P20.1 billion in premium, the alleged financial proposal of SMC. To recall, the results of the initial auction for the deal was declared void

by President Aquino, after his uncle’s firm sought for a reconsideration of its multibillion-peso bid.

It took the government four months to decide on the petition of Optimal Infrastructure Development Inc., which sought to overthrow the offer of Team Orion of Ayala Corp. and Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc.

3-DAY EXTENDED FORECAST

TODAY’S WEATHER

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MAR 28 SATURDAY

MAR 29 SUNDAY

METRO MANILA

22 – 32°C

23 – 33°C

TUGUEGARAO

22 – 33°C

23 – 33°C

LAOAG

LAOAG CITY 23 – 33°C

MAR 30 MONDAY

MAR 28 3-DAY SATURDAY EXTENDED FORECAST

MAR 29 SUNDAY

MAR 30 MONDAY

23 – 33°C

METRO CEBU

23 – 32°C

22 – 30°C

21 – 30°C

24 – 34°C

TACLOBAN

22 – 31°C

23 – 29°C

22 – 29°C

23 – 32°C

CAGAYAN DE ORO

SBMA/CLARK 25 – 32°C METRO MANILA 22 – 33°C

TAGAYTAY CITY 20 – 28°C

24 – 32°C

23 – 33°C

23 – 32°C

22 – 32°C

21 – 31°C

23 – 32°C

24 – 32°C

22 – 30°C

23 – 33°C

24 – 33°C

23 – 34°C

BAGUIO

14 – 21°C

15 – 21°C

14 – 22°C

METRO DAVAO

SBMA/ CLARK

25 – 31°C

23 – 30°C

24 – 32°C

ZAMBOANGA

TUGUEGARAO CITY 21 – 30°C

BAGUIO CITY 13 – 20°C

TAGAYTAY

20 – 28°C

20 – 27°C

LEGAZPI ILOILO/ BACOLOD 23 – 32°C METRO CEBU 24 – 31°C

TACLOBAN CITY 24 – 32°C

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY 23 – 32°C

ZAMBOANGA CITY 24 – 34°C

PUERTO PRINCESA

ILOILO/ BACOLOD

23 – 29°C

22 – 29°C

22 – 30°C

SUNSET

MOONSET

MOONRISE

5:56 AM

6:08 PM

11:51 PM

11:38 AM

NEW MOON HALF MOON

5:36 PM

25 – 32°C

25 – 33°C

23 – 32°C

MAR 27 3:43 PM

CELEBES SEA

11:57 PM

0.00 METER

Partly cloudy to at times cloudy with rainshowers and/or thunderstorms

Partly cloudy to at times cloudy with rainshowers

23 – 33°C

23 – 32°C

23 – 33°C

Partly cloudy skies Cloudy to at times cloudy with rainshowers and/or thunderstorms

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SABAH

LOW TIDEMANILA HIGH TIDE SOUTH HARBOR

MAR 20

Watch PANAHON.TV everyday at 5:00 AM on PTV (Channel 4).

METRO DAVAO 23 – 33°C

SUNRISE 19 – 27°C

LEGAZPI CITY 24 – 30°C

PHILIPPINE AREA OF RESPONSIBILITY (PAR)

tion on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC-SCS), in which signatory states undertook to exercise self-restraint of activities that could complicate or escalate disputes, or affect peace and stability.

The Philippines has a pending case against China before the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague, contesting the validity of their so-called nine-dash line claim.

China has refused to participate in the proceedings, but released a position paper claiming that the court has no jurisdiction over the issue.

Del Rosario, however, said that the tribunal has managed, with utmost professionalism, the challenges posed by China’s decision not to appear, taking care to make sure neither side is prejudiced by that decision.

He said this was reflected by the scope and detail of its questions submitted to the Philippines requesting for additional argument and information on December 16, 2014.

Del Rosario said the Philippines had submitted detailed responses and extensive additional information comprising 12 volumes.

From the original 4,000 pages of arguments and maps, the Department of Foreign Affairs said over 3,000 pages were submitted lately “so that all in all, the Philippine submission exceeds 7,000 pages.”

“Preparing such an extensive submission in such short order required substantial effort and coordination with concerned government agencies,” he said.

Former Air Force Officer Rep. Francisco Acedillo, now party-list representative of Magdalo, said latest maritime surveillance photos revealed how China’s land reclamation is expanding to cover all seven reefs it now occupies.

The latest reclamation work is being done on Mischief and Subi reefs, known to the Philippines as Panganiban and Zamora, which are fast catching up with the five other reefs, where China had done reclamation work early last year.

Acedillo branded this move as “graver danger to the country’s national security.”

But del Rosario said that the Philippines remains undaunted and continues to advocate a peaceful and rules-based settlement of disputes in accordance with universally recognized principles of international law. He said that the Philippines has also protested the massive reclamation activities undertaken by China in all seven features it occupies in the Spratly Islands.

“The alterations of these features are plainly intended to change the character, status and maritime entitlements of the said features which prejudice the arbitration and undermine the work of the Arbitral Tribunal to hear and objectively decide the case,” he said. He said the massive reclamation activities in the South China Sea have a tremendous environmental impact which damage the marine environment and threaten marine biodiversity.

He added that China had also breached the 2002 Asean Declara-

NORTHEAST MONSOON AFFECTING LUZON (AS OF MARCH 26, 5:00 PM)

Northeast Monsoon locally known as “Amihan”.

It affects the eastern portions of the country. It is cold and dry; characterized by widespread cloudiness with rain showers.

PUERTO PRINCESA CITY 24 – 31°C

Continued from A1

@PanahonTV

2:49 PM

0.89 METER

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The Nation BusinessMirror

Canadian Embassy welcomes ‘solution’ to waste shipment

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By Recto Mercene

he Canadian Embassy on Thursday welcomed the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) statement, confirming that the content of 50 containers now pending at the Manila ports are neither toxic nor hazardous, but residual waste.

“The case is a private commercial matter involving a Canadian company and its Philippine partner. But the embassy engaged the government and its relevant agencies to actively seek to assist and resolve it in keeping with the spirit of collaboration and cooperation that characterizes our countries’ relations,” the embassy said in a statement.

The Canadian Embassy said there are no current domestic laws, which its government could apply to compel the shipper to return its container to Canada.

The embassy said it had worked with the shipper and with the Philippine government to find a solution to the waste shipment, “in accordance with our two countries’ respective regulations and legislative framework.”

“We are pleased that this matter has been resolved and would refer you to the DENR for an update,” the embassy added.

Despite Internet search, however, the BusinessMirror could not find any statement from the DENR referring to the controversial shipment, which arrived in the country six months ago.

The materials had been declared as recyclable plastic, but inspections conducted by Customs officials revealed that the shipment was tons of waste that included used plastic diapers, among other things.

Customs Commissioner John Sevilla said it is clear that the waste materials were shipped to the Philippines illegally, adding that the recipient Chronic Plastics Inc. had tried to mislead Philippine authorities on the nature

of the shipment in order to bypass regulations involving such cargo.

The 50 containers of plastic waste had arrived at the port of Manila from Canada in several batches.BusinessmanJimMakrissaid,“Thestory of this garbage thing is just driving me nuts.”

Makris is the owner of Chronic Inc., a business that sends mixed plastics across the Pacific to be sorted in the Philippines and sold for recycling.

“Anybody who’s in plastic, who knows plastic, will tell you it’s the stupidest thing I’ve heard of in my entire life,” Makris said, as quoted by the local news reports.

Because it was declared as plastic for recycling, the Bureau of Customs said Makris’s company broke the law by shipping “tons of garbage,” consisting of household trash and some adult diapers.

Makris, who began his recycling venture in the Philippines nearly a year ago, said the alleged trash-filled containers were part of his second shipment to the country.

He said the contents, which he bought from a recycling firm in Vancouver, were “95-percent plastic,” but also contained some paper and aluminum that one would find in a standard household recycling bin.

Makris believes there was a misunderstanding about his shipment.

A Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada spokesman said that the government hasn’t been advised of the situation, but will monitor developments through Canadian officials in the Philippines.

Under the Basel Convention, to which Canada and the Philippines are signatories, it is illegal to ship hazardous waste internationally, except in special circumstances.

Makris insisted that it wouldn’t be possible for such waste to get into his shipments, which are also inspected before they leave Canada.

Editor: Dionisio L. Pelayo • Friday, March 27, 2015 A3

Aquino dislodged by Drilon, Binay as most trusted in Pulse Asia poll

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By Butch Fernandez

alacañang shrugged off the results of Pulse Asia’s first-quarter survey showing President Aquino’s trust rating has nosedived, relegating him behind Senate President Franklin M. Drilon and Vice President Jejomar C. Binay after the botched Mamasapano operation.

Pulse Asia’s latest survey ranked Drilon with the highest approval rating at 49 percent and trust rating at 44 percent.

He was followed closely by Binay, who got 46 percent (approval) and 42 percent (trust) ratings, compared to Mr. Aquino’s 38 percent

and 36 percent, respectively.

Asked if this should be a cause for concern at the Palace, Communications Secretary Herminio B. Coloma Jr. would only say that “approval and trust ratings provide valuable feedback that the highest officials may use as guidance in

their policy- and decision-making.”

Despite the drop in President Aquino’s ratings, Coloma gave assurance that the President remains “firmly determined to fulfill his promises to his bosses—the Filipino people.”

“In all his actions and decisions he [Mr. Aquino] abides by his sworn duties and serves in accordance with his judgment on what is best for the nation—regardless of the ebb and flow of public sentiment and popularity ratings,” Coloma added.

Meanwhile, without saying the word sorry, President Aquino begged “in all humility” for public understanding, even as he vowed to go after erring officials who should be held answerable for the killing of Special Action Force (SAF) 44 commandos, 18 Moro rebels and five civilians in the so-called Mamasapano massacre.

Speaking at the Philippine Na-

tional Police Academy’s Lakandula Class of 2015 graduation rites in Silang, Cavite, on Thursday, President Aquino acknowledged that the death of the SAF commandos he sent on a mission to serve warrants on high-value terrorist targets hiding out in Moro Islamic Liberation Front territory “has become part of our national consciousness.”

“To every Filipino who has felt failure or has been hurt because of the events related to this operation, it is with the abiding humility that I ask for your deepest understanding,” Mr. Aquino said.

The President added that he is aware that “no words will suffice to explain the deaths of our brave policemen. A report or a speech can never reflect the entirety of what is felt by a parent who lost a good child. All I can do, after saying all that must be said, and after doing all that must be done, is to ask for your deep understanding.”

Ombudsman fails to secure TRO vs CA order on Binay

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By Joel R. San Juan

HE Office of the Ombudsman on Thursday failed to immediately secure a temporary restraining order (TRO) against the Court of Appeals’s (CA) implementation of its order enjoining the six-month preventive suspension order on Makati City Mayor Erwin “Junjun” Binay Jr. At a news briefing, Supreme Court Spokesman Theodore Te agreed to just order the respondents CA’s Sixth Division and Binay to comment on the

petition for certiorari and prohibition filed by the Ombudsman not later than April 6, the start of the Court’s summer session in Baguio City.

Binay’s suspension was in connection with the graft case filed against him for the alleged overpricing of the construction of the Makati City Hall Building 2.

In her 36-page petition for certiorari and prohibition filed on Wednesday, Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales also asked the Court to enjoin the CA’s Sixth Division from conducting further pro-

ceedings in connection with the petition filed by Binay seeking the nullification of his suspension, as well as his suppemental petition seeking to cite in contempt the Ombudsman, Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, Interior Secretary Manuel Roxas II and several others for their purported refusal to heed the TRO issued by the CA. Besides the CA, the Ombudsman named the Makati City mayor as respondent in the petition.

Carpio-Morales argued that the CA’s issuance of a TRO on the preventive suspension order it

issued against Binay has undermined the Ombudsman’s independence as acknowledged in the Constitution and Republic Act 6770, or the Ombudsman Act of 1989. It explained that the Office of the Ombudsman is an independent body created by the 1987 Constitution to curb corruption and abuse in the government It added that it was deliberately constitutionalized and placed outside the ambit of the political branches of the government to free it from the insidious tentacles of politics.”

Economy

A4 Friday, March 27, 2015 • Editors: Vittorio V. Vitug and Max V. de Leon

BusinessMirror

news@businessmirror.com.ph

Traders, consumers to benefit from cabotage law

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By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

ocal traders and consumers will benefit from lower cost of domestic-shipping services once the bill seeking to liberalize the entry of foreign vessels between ports in the country is passed into law, a lawmaker said on Thursday.

Party-list Rep. Sharon Garin of Aambis-Owa, vice chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means, in a statement said the measure will also protect the domestic-shipping industry from foreign competition, and preserve locally owned shipping infrastructure for national security purposes.

Last week the House committees on Trade and Industry, Ways and Means and Transportation have jointly adopted and approved the Senate version of the measure—filed by Sen. Paolo Benigno “Bam” Aquino IV—allowing foreign vessels to transport and

coload foreign cargoes for domestic transshipment.

She said the bill is expected to be tackled at the floor, when session resumes on May 4. Congress is on a break from March 21 to May 3.

Under the bill, coloading shall refer to arrangements between two or more international or domestic sea carriers, whereby a sea carrier bound for a specified destination agrees to load, transport and unload the container van cargo of another carrier bound for the same destination.

Currently, the 57-year-old Tariff and Customs Code of the Philippines said the right to engage in the Philip-

pine coastwise trade is limited only to vessels carrying a certificate of Philippine registry.

Garin added that allowing foreign ships to carry goods to and from local ports will not only result in cheaper cost of shipping, but also decongest Philippine ports.

“For instance, the cost of shipping a twenty-foot equivalent unit container from Kaohsiung in Taiwan to Cagayan de Oro is $360, or P16,000 only, while the cost of shipping the same cargo from Manila to Cagayan de Oro will take $1,120, or almost P50,000,” said the lawmaker, citing a news report.

Meanwhile, one of the authors of the bill in the lower chamber, Nacionalista Party Rep. Mark Villar of Las Piñas City, chairman of the House Committee on Trade and Industry, said liberalizing the carriage of cargoes within Philippine waters will ultimately benefit the Filipino people.

“Various studies showed the high cost of domestic-shipping services is attributed to the lack of meaningful competition in the industry. In fact, recent data from the Maritime Transport Authority provide evi-

dence of concentration of domestic operation in the hands of few players, and this lack of competition is exacerbated by a restrictive cabotage policy, as foreign vessels are not allowed to engage in interisland shipping,” he said.

The measure seeks to assist importers and exporters in enhancing their competitiveness in the light of intensifying international trade and to lower the cost of shipping containerized export cargoes from Philippine ports to international ports and containerized import cargoes from international ports.

The bill added that ships arriving from foreign port shall be allowed to carry a foreign containervan cargo to its domestic port of final destination, after being cleared at its port of entry.

Also, the measure said ships arriving from a foreign port shall be allowed to carry foreign container van or cargo by another foreign vessel calling at the same port of entry to domestic port of final destination of such foreign cargo.

The bill added that the commissioner of the Bureau of Customs (BOC), upon such reasonable condi-

tions, may clear any foreign vessel for any domestic port and authorize the conveyance therein of a foreign container van containing foreign cargo brought from aboard upon such foreign vessel; Allow a foreign vessel to take a foreign container van containing import or export articles or cargo at any Philippine port and convey the same upon such foreign vessel to foreign port; and Authorize the transshipment of such foreign cargo intended for export through another Philippine port of its conveyance by another foreign vessel to the cargo’s foreign port of final destination.

The BOC commissioner may also impose penalties to foreign ship operators violating this act and take measures to address illegal activities, including smuggling, the bill said.

“The BOC, upon due notice, hearing and determination of the existence of any breach or violation of the provisions of this act or any rules and regulations issued pursuant hereto, shall have the power and authority to impose penalty on any foreign ship opera-

tor in an amount to be determined in implementing rules and regulations,” the measure added.

“Foreign ship operators shall submit their cargo manifest to the Philippine Ports Authority to ensure that no domestic cargoes are carried by foreign ship. No foreign vessel shall be allowed to carry any domestic cargo or domestic van, whether loaded or empty, even if such domestic container van may contain foreign cargo,” the bill said.

Another author of the bill, Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino Rep. Rufus Rodriguez of Cagayan de Oro, said the measure also intends to promote competition in the shipping industry by allowing foreign vessels to transport passengers and cargoes between ports within the country’s waters.

Rodriguez added that the move to liberalize the country’s cabotage law is one way to lower the transport cost of agricultural and industrial products, spur tourism and increase port revenues through the entry of foreign vessel operators.

This measure is one of the priority bills of the 16th Congress and the Aquino administration.

Aquino looking for successor who will continue his reforms P resident Aquino may endorse a successor from outside his own Liberal Party as he struggles to find a popular candidate who can continue his economic reforms.

The ruling party could name its candidate for 2016 elections from a coalition of at least five other parties, Mr. Aquino, 55, said on Wednesday in an interview at the presidential palace in Manila. President Aquino, who is limited by law to a single term, joined with those parties in Senate elections in 2013.

“We represent the entire coalition that has banded together,” Mr. Aquino said. “We’re hoping to keep that group united behind a single candidate to ensure victory and, therefore, promote continuity,” he said, adding the group plans to announce its candidate by June.

Mr. Aquino, whose popularity recently fell to the lowest since he took office, is facing the biggest crisis of his almost five-year administration amid public anger over a botched counterterrorism raid in January.

He’s now seeking to salvage a peace pact with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Mindanao in the country’s south—a deal meant to cement his legacy.

By canvassing potential candidates from outside his own party, Mr. Aquino would give himself room to pick someone with broad support who can continue his reforms like fighting graft and boosting infrastructure. But it also reflects a lack of strong contenders from his inner circle as Mr. Aquino risks lame-duck status in the last 15 months of his term.

“Aquino doesn’t have much of a choice because his party doesn’t have a winnable candidate,” Ramon Casiple, executive director of the

Institute for Political and Electoral Reform in Manila, said by phone.

“All Liberal Party politicians, except Aquino, are trailing in the ratings game. But he can’t run again.”

‘Credible’ election

The President’s approval rating stood at 38 percent in March down from 59 percent in November, according to a poll by Pulse Asia Research Inc. His trust rating slumped to a record low of 36 percent from 56 percent. Pulse Asia polled 1,200 people from March 1 to 7, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

“The immediate concern is that I preside over an election that’s credible,” President Aquino said when asked about his worries about the 2016 vote. He said he was confident that, at the end of his term, anyone, who looked at his administration’s record “in the six years that we finished, will say that we really gave our all.”

Vice President Jejomar Binay, Sen. Grace Poe, former President Joseph Estrada and Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte led Pulse Asia’s latest public poll on preferred candidates. Poe, who, according to the Senate web site, got the most votes of the more than 20 million cast in the 2013 Upper House polls, is part of Mr. Aquino’s coalition. Her father is actor Fernando Poe Jr., who lost to ex-President Gloria Arroyo in the 2004 presidential ballot.

With his term ending in 15 months, President Aquino is seeking to safeguard an economic resurgence that’s seen the nation post its best period of growth since the 1950s.

The Philippines will have an even better year on rising incomes, growing tourism, typhoon rebuilding and manufacturing gains, he said.

President Aquino (right) and Finance Secretary Cesar V. Purisima listen during a Bloomberg Television interview at the Malacañan Palace compound in Manila on Wednesday. The President discussed numerous issues of political and economic significance, including the possibility of endorsing a successor from outside his own Liberal Party, as he struggles to find a popular candidate, who can continue his economic reforms. Bloomberg

The Philippines is forecast to be among the five fastest-growing economies in the world in 2015, according to Bloomberg surveys covering more than 60 countries. The nation expanded 6.1 percent in 2014 and Mr. Aquino is targeting growth of as much as 8 percent this year and next.

January raid

SCHOOL-MAINTENANCEPROGRAM

Sharp recently adopted Cupang Elementary School-Annex in Sitio Santo Niño, West Cupang, Muntinlupa City, as part of its School Maintenance Program. The company believes that good facilities play a vital role in students’ academic achievement and behavior, so Sharp employees, schoolteachers, employees and parents took a day to gather and help construct the school’s handwashing area and signage. Their efforts included tiling of corridors, painting of the façade and installation of insulation foam in the ceiling at the kindergarten area. Together, they are one in hoping to make a difference in the lives of the school’s 936 pupils, 24 teachers and eight nonteaching personnel.

President Aquino bypassed the chain of command for January’s police operation, where 44 commandos died in a clash with Muslim rebels, a police investigative body had said earlier this month. He also let then-National Police chief Alan Purisima, a close friend, take part in the planning and execution of the mission, while he was suspended for a graft probe, according to a police Board of Inquiry report released on March 13.

“As Aquino’s approval ratings dip and people question his crisis-

management skills, his ability to push ahead with the peace process has also been undermined,” Richard Javad Heydarian, a political science professor at De La Salle University in Manila, said by phone. “With a weaker legacy, his political capital to affect the outcome of the 2016 presidential elections through endorsements will also suffer.”

Lot of clout

The President on March 9 said he was misled about details of the raid that targeted Mamasapano town in Maguindanao province, an area inhabited by fighters from MILF and Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, a splinter group that isn’t party to the peace accord.

Mr. Aquino accused his detractors of unnecessarily prolonging the issue of the botched mission to weaken his leadership. The intensity of their attacks shows that “even our oppo-

nents think I still have a lot of clout with our people,” he said.

“The President must achieve something permanent if he wants to be remembered by the people,” Casiple said. “Apart from the new autonomous region, he must rally passage of bills on political reforms, antidynasty and freedom of information because all the reforms he has achieved so far could disappear after he leaves.”

Pending in Congress are 26 priority measures, including a reduction in tax breaks, a law amendment to spur more infrastructure spending, and legislation to modernize the Bureau of Customs, Mr. Aquino said.

Mindanao insurgency

MILF Vice Chairman Ghadzali Jaafar said on Wednesday that the government violated a cease-fire agreement as police failed to coordinate with the rebel group ahead of the

raid. There were no plans to turn over the rebels involved in the fire fight, he said by phone.

President Aquino signed a peace pact with the 11,000-strong MILF in March last year to end a four-decade insurgency in Mindanao that has killed as many as 200,000 people and thwarted efforts to unlock investment in the mineral-rich south.

A bill to enforce the peace accord by setting up a new Muslim autonomous region with more powers and wealth is at risk after the January 25 clash.

Four out of 10 Filipinos oppose passage of the measure, according to the Pulse Asia poll released last week.

“Try to imagine yourself saying ‘Let’s renounce peace and let’s go to war,’” Mr. Aquino said in the March 25 interview. “I don’t think any person would want to be that face or will lend his face to the voice that says war is a better alternative than peace.” Bloomberg News

Economy

BusinessMirror Friday, March 27, 2015 A5

LTO lifts 150-day limit on temporary licenses

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By Lorenz S. Marasigan

he Transportation department admitted on Thursday that there is a shortage of license cards in various Land Transportation Office (LTO) branches around the country, a situation which forced the regulator to lift the 150-day limit on temporary licenses.

In an e-mailed statement, the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) said it is taking action to address this problem, earmarking P450 million to stablize the supply by the third quarter of 2015.

Prospective bidders may begin purchasing bid documents, as bid submission and opening is set on April 20. The bid for each piece of license card should not exceed P90.09.

The winning supplier will be required to deliver the goods within 30 calendar days from the issuance of the notice to proceed, which is targeted in July 2015. “Given the urgent need for license-card supplies, the DOTC hopes that, this time around, the project will not be stopped by judicial orders,” the statement read.

The current supplier, Amalgamated Motors Philippines Inc. (Ampi), was awarded a five-year contract in 1984. Upon the contract’s expiration in 1989, the government extended the arrangement on a yearly basis until 2006.

Since 2006, there has been no contractual relationship, but the government has continued paying Ampi on a “quantum merit” basis, or in sums equivalent to the goods delivered.

“Seeing the need for a proper contract as a matter of

good governance, the DOTC and the LTO sought to bid the project out in December 2010. This, however, was prevented by an injunction order issued by the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City in February 2011,” the statement read. Another injunction order was issued by the same court in June 2012 based on a case Ampi filed against the transport department to question the bid.

The Court of Appeals eventually caused the lifting of both injunctive writs.

In 2014 the Commission on Audit also disallowed further payments to Ampi, sans a valid contract procured under applicable rules. This bolstered the DOTC and the LTO’s position that the project should be bid out, contrary to potential attempts to stop the project through court issuances.

“With the shortage in Ampi’s license-card supply, the LTO was left with no choice, but to issue temporary driver’s licenses with a 150-day validity period, with the expectation that Ampi would be able to provide license cards within that period,” the statement read.

“In view of the continued shortage, however, the LTO removed the 150-day limit until the shortage is addressed, by way of Memorandum Circular AVT-20151925 dated March 20, 2015.”

Sharp decline in fuel cost pulled down wholesale prices in January

By Cai U. Ordinario

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P300/DAY BUSINESS Filipino street vendor Nestor Jerez (left), peddles snacks and drinks along a busy street in Manila on Wednesday. Jerez said he works 12 hours a day to earn an average of P300 (about $7) selling peanuts, crackers, water and energy drinks to motorists. AP

Enhanced MVIS a must–DENR PHL to push single e-commerce platform within Southeast Asia A

By Jonathan L. Mayuga

N official of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) underscored the need to enhance the implementation of the Motor Vehicle Inspection System (MVIS) in compliance with the Philippine Clean Air Act. However, the Coalition of Clean Air Advocates of the Philippines (CCAAP), a group composed of clean-air advocates and transport groups, nixed the recommendation of the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) to allow the private sector to implement the MVIS, saying it will cause fee to go sky-high.

The group said that, from less than P200, the cost may go up to P3,000, or more, which will add burden to owners of private motor vehicles.

The MVIS is currently being implemented by the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) through the Land Transportation Office (LTO).

The group insists that the government take charge of implementing the MVIS, ensure efficiency in the process of issuing certification of compliance or permit and maintain the cost of the MVIS certificate to a minimum.

Asked to comment, Environment Secretary Ramon JP Paje said it is beyond the mandate of the DENR. For his part, DENR Undersecretary Jonas Leones, also the concurrent director of the DENR’S Environmental

Management Bureau (EMB), said the effective implementation of the MVIS is imperative to reduce air pollution, particularly in Metro Manila.

“Whether it is public or private, as far as the DENR is concerned, we want it implemented as soon as possible,” he said.

He said it is up to the concerned agencies of the government to weigh options, but reiterated that implementation of the MVIS will greatly help the government achieve its target of reducing air pollution in Metro Manila.

The DENR believes that ensuring all vehicles plying Metro Manila’s routes are road-worthy and emit less carbon will help the country meet the international standard for air quality at 90 micrograms per normal cubic meter (ug/Ncm) Total Suspended Particles.

Last Wednesday Paje announced a directive requiring the use of cleaner fuels for all types of vehicles starting July 1, 2015.

The DENR prescribes the use of the Euro-4 fuel standard, in effect, phasing out the current Euro-2 fuel being sold in the market. Also, under the same order, only Euro-4-compliant vehicles will be allowed in the local market starting January 1, 2016.

The DENR-EMB is monitoring air quality in Metro Manila through its 17 air-quality monitoring stations installed in strategic locations in the country’s capital.

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he Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said on Thursday it will propose a single e-commerce platform for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) within the Asean in the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) ministerial meeting to be held in Boracay.

The ministerial meeting, dubbed as “Apec Ministers Responsible for Trade” to be held in May, will discuss issues affecting MSMEs and the way they do business across the Asean.

“We already have ideas we can agree on identifying e-commerce platform to be used by MSMEs across Apec economies,” Trade Secretary Gregory L. Domingo said.

The proposed platform outlines customs rules and procedures and regulations for the rules of origin (ROO).

“MSMEs are having a hard time exporting. A single platform wherein they can book their sales and with links to logistics will boost MSME trade across the region,” Domingo said.

The Philippines will suggest an MSME with shipments of $2,000 or less be exempt from the ROO, since ROO rules apply to countries of regions with existing free-trade agreements.

Domingo pointed out that many of the MSMEs see the influx of goods and services in their own markets, but find it very difficult to take advantage of the free trade agreements because of the very cumbersome rules and procedures.PNA

holesale prices nationwide further declined in January 2015 due to the sharp drop in pump prices, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

The General Wholesale Price Index (GWPI) contracted 6.6 percent in January 2015. In December 2014 the GWPI dropped 4.1 percent. The index posted a growth of 4.6 percent in January 2014.

PSA data showed the GWPI of crude materials, inedible, except fuels index, which contracted 2.7 percent, while the mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials index declined 38 percent.

The sharp reduction in oil prices helped cushion the 5.6-percent growth in the GWPI of the heavily weighted food index.

The GWPI in Luzon posted the steepest decline at 7.5 percent, with the crude materials, inedible, except fuels index, as well as mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials index, falling 4.4 percent and 39 percent, respectively.

The GWPI in the Visayas and Mindanao both contracted 3 percent in January. The mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials index declined 29.9 percent in the Visayas and 28.5 percent in Mindanao.

Meanwhile, on a monthly basis, the GWPI nationwide contracted 2.5 percent in January 2015 due to the 14.7-percent decline in the mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials index.

“Prices of gasoline, diesel oil, kerosene and LPG were generally lower during the month. Hence, the mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials index in the Philippines declined by 14.7 percent; Luzon, -15.2 percent; Visayas, -12.9 percent; and Mindanao, -7.6 percent,” the PSA said.

The wholesale prices of food, on the other hand, posted a monthly growth of 0.6 percent. Luzon posted the highest growth in wholesale prices of food at 1.2 percent.

The PSA attributed this to higher wholesale prices of food items, such as fish, canned meat, sugar, cocoa products, fruits and some vegetables.

In the Visayas, wholesale prices of eggs, some fish species, fruits, vegetables and desiccated coconut were higher, causing the GWPI in the region to increase 0.3 percent.

However, in Mindanao, lower prices of rice, hogs and some fruits and vegetables pushed down its group’s index by 3.1 percent.

The GWPI is an indicator designed to measure the changes in the price levels of commodities that flow into the wholesale trade intermediaries.

Wholesale price refers to the price of commodity transacted in bulk for further resale or processing. It is the actual “spot” transaction price received usually by the wholesalers, distributors or marketing agents for large lots but net of discounts, allowances and rebates.

The PSA also said the GWPI is the sum of the producer price, wholesale trade margin, tax markups and distribution cost of the wholesaler.

Palace calls on Filipinos in Yemen to return home

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alacañang has urged the Filipinos in Yemen to return home as the political and security situation there has deteriorated further.

“We reiterate DFA’s [Department of Foreign Affairs] urgent call on all our kababayan [countrymen] in Yemen to leave immediately due to the unstable security situation there,” Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte said in a text message

to Palace reporters.

The DFA has raised Alert Level Four over Yemen, which means mandatory repatriation.

“There are an estimated 700 Filipinos still in Yemen and our embassy there continues to assist them in returning to the country,” Valte said.

Yemen President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi was reported fleeing the country as the rebels entered the capital Sana’a. PNA

A6 Friday, March 27, 2015

Opinion BusinessMirror

editorial Infrastructure in support of efficient air-transport service

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wo separate entities recently announced that they will accelerate the development of our country. The first comes from the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Center, which said the expansion and modernization of six secondary airports, namely, Bacolod, Iloilo, Panglao, Laguindingan, Davao and Puerto Princesa, will be opened for bidding. It is expected that the bidding will be completed before March 2016. The projects will approximately cost P114 billion ($2.60 billion).

The other comes from Cebu Pacific, one of the country’s rapidly growing air carriers. The company’s president, Lance Gokongwei, was quoted that, given the congestion at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Cebu Pacific will focus increasing flights and expanding domestic and international traffic from secondary airports in various parts of the country.

Gokongwei’s outlined vision is tantalizing. He said Cebu Pacific will complement its international program with a strong domestic component. In the domestic arena, the potential for growth is big. Of the 100 million population scattered among 7,107 islands, a portion of them now traveling by buses or boats, will soon be switching to airplanes, hence, the increase of number of planes.

The opportunities for growth in the international arena are also attractive. Cebu Pacific currently has flights to Singapore and Hong Kong, from the Iloilo and Kalibo airports. The company plans to expand flights to Japan, South Korea and other international destinations from the same or other secondary airports in the future.

These new and expanded routes will have a substantial impact on Philippine tourism. Gokongwei noted that the Philippines can do a lot better than its current share of 5 percent of travelers to Southeast Asia and 20 percent of those traveling to Thailand. As a tourist destination, the Philippines has the potential of equaling or exceeding Thailand and Indonesia.

For background, Cebu Pacific started operations in March 1996 and currently flies to 28 cities in 17 countries in Asia, Australia and the Middle East. It carried 16.9 million passengers in 2014.

It expects to raise this number to 18 million in 2015.

These PPP projects will, hopefully, solve the problems posed by Cebu Pacific. The basic premise behind the PPP Program is that it can bring enormous public works and projects without burdening the government with huge financial costs, thus liberating huge sums of money in the government budget for use in other equally meritorious public structures and facilities.

For its part, the private sector benefits not just by recovering its investment and earning a reasonable rate of return on it but by identifying itself with projects and facilities directly beneficial to the people.

The rest of the government’s PPP projects, altogether amounting to more than $100 billion, already announced as ready for bidding, will speed up the laying down and completion of the country’s infrastructure.

Air transportation is indispensable to the rapid development of our archipelagic country in moving people and goods, and enhancing domestic and international tourism. Let us lend it the infrastructure it needs to give our country efficient air-transport service.

What happens now?

James Jimenez

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spox

HE temporary restraining order (TRO) issued by the Supreme Court, enjoining the Commission on Elections (Comelec) from implementing the extended warranty contract program it entered into with Smartmatic-TIM, seems to have opened the floodgates of speculation about the fate of the 2016 national and local elections. Will it be automated? Are we going back to manual?

What happens now?

Well, now would be a good time to take a good, long and sobering deep breath.

First and this cannot be emphasized enough the TRO is not a decision on the merits, and it is altogether too soon for any side of this controversy to claim victory. At most, the TRO reflects the Supreme Court’s desire to look deeper into the issue raised (in separate cases) by the Integrated Bar of the Philippines and Bishop Broderick S. Pabillo, DD, et al. The long and short of these petitioners’ shared cause is that they believe the contract for the diagnostics and repair of the more than 80,000 Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines should have been arrived at through a public bidding.

There has been no declaration

from the SC that it has ruled favorably on the petition, although it has been argued by some that the TRO itself is already a favorable outcome.

That assertion is arguable because, if you think the whole thing through, calling a halt to the already ongoing diagnostics and repair means we are significantly delaying the preparation of these PCOS machines for the 2016 elections. Keeping in mind that these machines constitute the bulk of what it will take to automate the presidential elections next year, taking them out of play leaves the Comelec with only 23,000 ballot counting machines, at best. Needless to say, that won’t be enough to automate the elections nationwide. And that isn’t exactly the most favorable outcome for the country.

Second, although the TRO is for the appropriately ominous “indefinite period,” it is, by no means, permanent. To this end, the Comelec has already manifested its intention to vigorously pursue its lifting and the final dismissal of the actions that precipitated it. Considering that the PCOS diagnostics and repair program was actually slated to be completed over a period of five months, a prompt lifting of the TRO means there is still the possibility that the program can actually be completed within the year. The challenge, therefore, is to prevent this case from dragging on and on.

And, third, even assuming the absolute worst-case scenario—where the use of the 81,000 PCOS machines becomes impossible—there remains a multitude of options that will prevent a reversion to nationwide manual elections.

It was for the purpose of fleshing out these options—some of them already conceptualized long before the issuance of the TRO—that the Comelec immediately convened a series of emergency meetings aimed at preparing fully thought-out alternative action plans, in the event that the use of the PCOS machines is no longer a viable option.

At these meetings, no possibilities are discounted. As a result, budgets are being refreshed and finalized for every scenario, from the

outright purchase—through public bidding, needless to say—of more than a hundred thousand brandnew optical-mark reader machines to the conduct of mixed elections, where some precincts will be able to use vote counting machines and others won’t.

These various options being available, however, doesn’t change the fact that hovering just beyond the pale of acceptability, there is still the possibility of the need to retrogress to nationwide manual elections.

Just to be very clear about it: This is not an option the Comelec deems acceptable. However, if there is to be a comprehensive response to the change in the automation landscape wrought by the TRO—and because manual elections are ultimately preferable to the no-election scenario already being bruited about by those hungry for it—then this nightmare scenario needs to be considered, as well.

For now, though, it is a waiting game. For the Comelec, to see whether the Supreme Court will set oral arguments or simply require the submission of position papers; for the rest of the country, to find out whether how big a part modern technology will play in the election of the next president of the Republic.

James Jimenez is the spokesman of the Commission on Elections.

Opinion BusinessMirror

opinion@businessmirror.com.ph

Where have all the remittances gone?

The greatest comeback Tito Genova Valiente

Alvin P. Ang PhD

EAGLE WATCH

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ast week the Asian Development Bank hosted a conference on remittances for development. The conference was attended by a number of country representatives and companies offering new and innovative ways to facilitate money transfers from abroad. I was one of the speakers in the conference, where I spoke on a project called the Remittance Investment Climate Analysis for Rural Hometowns (Ricart).

Since 2010 Jeremaiah Opiniano from the University of Santo Tomas and myself have been developing ways of connecting remittances to local economic development. We have observed as early as 2008 that remittances growth in the Philippines has gone down from doubledigit levels in the early 2000s to about 9 percent. From 2008 to last year, growth has settled to about 6 percent. In 2011 Ricart won a grant to implement a tool that will help local governments assist overseas Filipino workers (OFW) in finding investments and business opportunities in their localities that expectedly will bring positive externalities in terms of job creation and improved local business climate. We had initially implemented Ricart in Maribojoc, Bohol, and Magarao, Camarines Sur, in 2012; in Pandi, Bulacan, in 2013 and in Guiguinto, Bulacan, in 2014.

What are the key lessons from Ricart, thus far? It is a foregone conclusion that migrant families have more income and savings than their nonmigrant counterparts. The average monthly income of these families is about P15,000, and the average savings is about P5,000 per month. Other interesting findings are Migrant families have more people working locally apart from the remitter; migrant families have higher educational levels than their nonmigrant counterparts; migrant workers have the highest educational attainment, but are working as nonprofessionals abroad. Ricart also asked the families about their need for financial literacy. Only a little over half of the respondent migrant families are able to correctly answer interest rates, inflation and loans questions. Migrant families claimed that they get their own ideas in handling money and that they do not need help in the same. They also rate their skills in handling money as good. As regards owning a business, it was found that about 60 percent of both migrant and nonmigrant families own a sari-sari store or is engaged in farming and livestock as business.

These findings, though, not generalizable for the country, are able to give us a good snapshot of the environment for savings and investing by OFWs. It would seem that local government units (LGUs) need to work beyond the usual to maintain the savings and consumption of these families within its bounds. In particular, the LGUs (as like any other government agency) should be able to provide the nurturing environment for business in their localities. This can come in the form of providing basic information of what are the key competitive advantages of the locality, the business and

investment options and facilitating business registration and processes. Many of the migrant families are actually spending their received remittances outside of their LGUs for lack of business activities there. It is recognized that remittances are private flows and, therefore, private decisions are made to where they go. In this regard, the government can only provide guidance through information to where private flows can be utilized to best benefit the whole locality. Another aspect that may be done or encouraged by the LGUs is the conduct of basic financial literacy. It can do so in partnership with schools and civil-society organizations.

Participants should include both the migrant worker and his family.

We have been seeing a number of privately organized financial literacy seminars for OFWs and their families.

However, they are mostly focused and catering to a higher income level group of migrants. Consider the table below by the author from the 2002 and 2013 Survey on Overseas Filipinos (SOF). This table compare the average monthly remittance of different types of workers by gender in 2002 and 2013. It can be clearly seen that professionals and executives comprise less than 20 percent of total migrant workers, although this has increased over the 10-year period.

The average remittances also have relatively stayed the same. The bulk of the OFWs are actually in the lower-income service, unskilled and labor workers.

This is significantly dominated by women. Note that the per-capita remittance levels have not increased significantly despite overall remittances breaching $25 billion in 2014. This implies that a large number of the workers who have left are no longer the professional type but the lower-skilled ones.

The Ricart data and the SOF data are pointing to the following: a) There is a need to provide basic financial literacy for OFWs and their families beyond the usual. Thus, private financial literacy seminars must consider income capacities and gender contexts; b) Because OFWs do not receive large amount of remittances but need social protection, the private sector must assist the government in designing and offering savings and investment products for lower-income migrant families; c) LGUs must expand their support for OFWs and their families by providing better information and facilitative services for business and investments.

Male 4.3 8.8 7.8 3.6 13.0 0.6 24.9 24.4 12.6

Female 0.8 8.4 4.8 7.6 15.8 0.1 2.2 2.1 58.3

2013 Share to total

Executives and Managers Professionals Technicians Clerks Service Workers Trade Workers Plant and Machine Laborers and Unskilled

Male 5.1 10.1 11.1 3.1 13.4 25.2 21.9 10.0

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HE story has been told many times how a young girl who sold water at the train station went on to become a film actor, hailed by critics as one of the best, if not the best this poor country has produced.

The story has been told so many times one feels the narrative is now an incantation capable of bringing back to the land prosperity in terms of the arts.

The trains do not run anymore in the town. The town where that little girl with lovely, sad eyes is now a city. Water is bottled by companies or franchises. The region is richer; its people slowly loving the land and the language. The young girl is several decades older. Many names have been linked to her name, all marked by superlatives. She has won recognition in the big city and in many places where her art of cinema is considered supreme. She has gone through crisis and personal predicaments. She has bounced back from the lows that lesser celebrities would have paid for to keep hidden.

She looks at you straight in the eye and declares without timidity what she wants. This is not the person impersonated always as shy. In fact, she is that complex: no one can really

Female 1.8 13.1 4.0 7.3 19.0 0.6 1.7 52.5

Average monthly remittance (US$) Male 418.6 371.7 397.0 241.8 205.7 158.8 238.2 285.1 194.9

Female 202.1 216.5 180.4 151.6 151.6 198.5 137.1 202.1 119.1

Average monthly remittance (US$) Male 376.9 424.1 396.6 302.3 227.7 306.3 278.8 200.3

Female 267.0 274.9 223.8 223.8 180.6 278.8 219.9 141.4

impersonate her. At their best, those who marvel at her persona can only construct caricatures.

She is complex. She is Nora Aunor. And she is back in the land of her birth. The adage that no one becomes a prophet in one’s place is going to be reconstructed because she would be honored in two provinces, Albay and Camarines Sur. As I write this, loyal admirers and officers of her many fan clubs were on their way to Naga City onboard a chartered bus. They have planned this trip some months back after they were informed that Ateneo de Naga is going to give Nora Aunor the Bulawan na Bikolnon Service to Bikol award. This is the highest award the university can bestow in the field of arts and culture to a Bikolano.

The ceremony would take place on March 27.

The citation begins with the line: “Nora Aunor, from the start of her career never denies her humble beginning.”

The citation states how from “that beginning in Iriga, we learn about fate and how it can bring forth a great artist. The proof of that great art is captured by the screen and books, in documentations about how that girl one night, many years ago left this region so she can come back to it with boon and grace. The roles that she shares with us are manifold: from a woman who sleeps with and loves the enemy, to a young girl who sees the Virgin but declares that there is no miracle—all these are subjects so daring and brave we wonder where Nora Aunor gets the audacity to portray them. “ The citation concludes by saying: “Therefore, in recognition of her achievements in cinema, television, theater and radio, contributing to the rise of Philippine entertainment industry, inspiring generations of Bikolano filmmakers and actors, and creating a tradition of scholarly works and film criticisms, the Ateneo de Naga University is most privileged to confer on Nora Aunor the Bulawan na Bikolnon [Bulawan means Golden] Service to Bikol Award, given this 27th day of March, in the 2015th year of our Lord.”

Genius is always way ahead of any time. The case is the same with Nora Aunor. One looks at her arriving in the hotel and one sees this lithe figure barely visible in the crowd. For the critics and film readers, that is not the Nora Aunor honored but the voice, body and the face that can overwhelm a space created by camera

The Great Women ICT Platform

Alvin P. Ang is professor of economics and senior fellow of Eagle Watch at the Ateneo de Manila University.

2002 Share to total

Executives and Managers Professionals Technicians Clerks Service Workers Farmers Trade Workers Plant and Machine Laborers and Unskilled

annotations

Friday, March 27, 2015

Jeannie E. Javelosa

Women Stepping UP

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ARCH as women’s month is the perfect time to launch the first in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean): an all women-focused online platform. With technology as enabler to support women networks, collaborations and enterprise trade, a grouping of organizations came together on March 5 to launch the Gender Responsive Economic Actions for the Transformation (Great) of Women informationcommunications technology (ICT) Platform (GW-ICT Platform).

The aim of the GW-ICT Platform is to link women entrepreneurs, in business and professional sectors and women’s groups through technology that will enable their economic empowerment and create networking strength. Taking the lead are the Business and Professional Women Network-Makati (BPW Makati) with partner PLDT Smart Foundation Inc. and PLDT SME Nation Inc. Multinational company IBM (Philippines) Corp. offered their SmartCloud as the GWICT Platform’s social business tool.

Supporting this ICT Platform is the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), the Philippine Commission for Women (PCW) and the Enabling Communities with Hope and Opportunities for Sustainable Initiatives (ECHOsi) Foundation. These three groups now run the GW-ICT Platform’s value and supply-chain development program—with support from the Canadian government—and market preparedness for womanentrepreneurs. The GW-ICT Platform is an integrated platform to

address gender issues in both micro- and social enterprise development and deliver a truly inclusive economic development. The goal is to help women up the supply and value chain. Today this platform is the country’s gender platform.

The GW-ICT Platform hopes to bring in other women groups, such as Women Business Council, Women Corporate Directors, Spark, Network of Enterprising Women and Women CEO group, among others.

The PLDT-Smart Foundation hopes to align their SME Nation womanentrepreneurs. The PCW and the DTI Women’s Desk joint role is to draw in Gender and Development (GAD) Focal Persons in government agencies into this platform for networking opportunities by way that GAD budgets can really support women’s economic development. The longer term direction is to invite women under industry and professional groupings. This GWICT Platform may prove to be the online group where women can support their own value or supply chain in their businesses or professions.

This is also to drumbeat the women activities related to the buildup of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Women and the

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lens. More, the region of Nora Aunor’s birth is also honoring the persona, the humility behind the celebrity, the power behind the mystery.

A day before the awarding at the Ateneo de Naga University, the city of Naga would also honor Nora Aunor with a honorary citizenship that would make her a Nagueña.

It is a gesture acknowledging how many years ago, Nora Aunor stood on the small stage of Plaza Quezon and, perhaps, looked around a bit timid, while a crowd gazed at her wondering what kind of voice could come from that body. It is said that Nora then was interested in the prize money so she could buy food for her family and pay the debts they had incurred among neighbors. That made her strong. She heaved up her shoulders and when they came down, the voice slowly rose, the vibrato rare, as she sang of the night and the music. The moon swung and the clouds sort of lifted the shadows.

But the little girl was not aware of anything but the song carrying her to the world where her talent soared supreme and no debt or cruel neighbors ever existed.

That girl was back in the city of her dreams and she would speak how cities that take care of their artists are good cities. Back with the people who love her, she once more heard her name chanted, and a song about gratitude played like forever in her mind.

E-mail: titovaliente@yahoo.com

Economy Forum in September, and the value of collaborating and connecting for the Asean Economic Community in December.

Access into the GW-ICT Platform is given to one central person of each group who invites the members into their own groups into the SmartCloud. Online, they can have group meetings, chat, mentoring, e-mail, instant message, resource share and easy Web conferencing, where meetings can be held securely. Mentoring programs, market place, job placements, recruitment and events are offered to all in the GW-ICT Platform. In this space women can truly help women find jobs, trade, teach each other and, as a whole, become a transformative force in the economy.

Jeannie E. Javelosa is the founding president of BPW Makati; president of the ECHOsi Foundation Inc.; and cofounder of ECHOstore and the EON stakeholder-relations firm. This article reflects the opinion of the author and does not reflect the official stand of the BPW network. Women Stepping Up is a rotating column of members of BPW Makati. For more information on BPW Makati, visit www.womensteppingup.org.

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www.businessmirror.com.ph

Asean moves to end connectivity woes A

By Cai U. Ordinario

SEAN countries are discussing possible ways to overcome so-called infrastructure constraints and improve project and program connectivity in the region, according to the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Center.

This was one of the key highlights of the Asian Legal Business (ALB) Asean Integration Summit 2015 in Singapore. “[The summit] tackled the role of regional infrastructure cooperation in growth and integration and the various projects for improved

and integrated roads, railways, air[ports], [sea]ports, and energy and telecommunication networks for the Asean [region],” the PPP Center said.

The PPP Center also said that one of the session, chaired by PPP Center Deputy Executive Director

Eleazar E. Ricote, tackled physical connectivity as prerequisite for shared economic growth.

The session similarly discussed Asean countr y infrastructure development requirements to spur intra-regional trade and regional demand.

“One of topic highlights to accelerate the necessary private investment in the region through overcoming challenges on PPP,” the PPP Center said.

In the first Asean PPP Forum in Manila last December, the Philippine government encouraged Asean members to create a regional PPP Center in the Philippines.

The center aims to explore the possibility of cre-

ating a fund to support PPP projects in the region.

The forum was conducted in support of the Master Plan on Asean Connectivity, which seeks to address the region’s infrastructure constraints ahead of the Asean Economic Community.

Apart from a regional institution, PPP Center Executive Director Cosette Canilao said setting up a fund, similar to the country’s Project Development and Monitoring Fund (PDMF) could help Asean countries design PPP projects.

Canilao said the creation of the revolving PDMF, which is used to finance prefeasibility studies for PPPs that result in economically viable projects, is a critical factor in the success of PPPs in the country, and, possibly for Asean membercountries, as well.

Timta will not lead to cuts in fiscal perks–Domingo

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he Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has assured businessmen that the consolidate measure it is currently preparing with the help of the Department of Finance (DOF) on the reporting of incentives will not limit the grant of fiscal and nonfiscal perks.

At the sidelines of a national food fair on Wednesday, Trade Secretary Gregory L. Domingo spoke on the developments in the crafting of the controversial Tax Incentive Monitoring and Transparency Act (Timta).

He said the two departments have agreed on reporting incentives in an aggregate basis as opposed to a company-level reporting.

“We want to be transparent, as well. Our only concern, which they [DOF] have also acknowledged, is we don’t want firm-level data but aggregated. By sector and by type of incentive are okay us, but not by company,” Domingo said.

However, on the point whether a tax expenditure account (TEA) will be created under the General Appropriations Act (GAA), Domingo said the Senate version has already removed this provision.

The DOF, however, has not agreed on this yet.

“We prefer the Senate version, but we have to reach an agreement with the DOF; we still need to discuss it,” he added.

In a previous position paper, the DTI, through the Board of Investments, has opposed the creation of the TEA under the GAA, saying the account will hinder the operation of investmentpromotion agencies (IPAs) because of the stringent budgetary process that the appropriation law undergoes.

The TEA will serve as an account for the projected incentives that will be handed out to various IPAs annually. The trade office earlier said the TEA would essentially cap the amount of incentives to be given to qualified projects, as these would be based on projected investments for a given year. If the incoming investments exceeded the projection, the trade department would be forced to ask Congress for additional appropriation. Catherine N. Pillas

Thrift banks saw gross loans rise 13 percent in 2014

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he Chamber of Thrift Banks (CTB) reported gross loans rising 13 percent in 2014, to P570.89 billion from P505.22 billion a year earlier on sustained lending activity in its niche markets.

CTB President and RCBC Savings President Rommel Latinazo also said loan growth for the thriftbank industry should grow in double digits this year on the back of sustained economic growth.

Looking forward, he said demand for loans should continue, particularly from the micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) borrowers.

Over the years, the thrift banking industry supported and reached out to the depositors and borrowers, especially in the countryside.

“The loan growth will be sustained in areas, where we have our presence. A lot of developments are happening in Metro Manila.

We see growth in Metro Cebu and Metro Davao and there’s a lot of opportunities offered in provinces,” Latinazo said.

“While thrift banks make up about only 8 percent of the total resources of the banking system, we have provided solutions to the ever-growing needs and challenges faced by SMEs,” he added.

The industry’s credit growth of 13 percent in 2014, the chamber said, reflect sustained lending activity in its avowed niches of operation, the MSMEs, housing and consumers.

Thrift banks continued to provide support to the domestic economy given the broad-based growth in loans and investment inflows to key economic sectors.

See “Thrift banks,” A2