BusinessMirror April 02, 2019

REAP WHAT YOU SOW S

INCE the BusinessMirror began publishing in 2005 and made “the broader look at today’s business” its guidepost in presenting the news, its editorial staff has worked tirelessly to deliver on that implicit promise.

No wonder, then, that the country’s leading business daily, adjudged “Best Business News Source” at the 2018 Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines (EJAP) Awards, continues to get recognition for its work.

The latest such recognition comes from the body that annually honors the best in agriculture and environment reporting, the Philippine Agricultural Journalists (PAJ), with its partner San Miguel Corp., organizers of the PAJ-Binhi Awards.

Eight trophies constituted the BusinessMirror’s harvest in the March 28, 2019, edition of the PAJBinhi Awards. A good harvest, indeed, for those who plant only the best in terms of business reportage with the broadest look.

DEPT. OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

PHILIPPINE STATISTICS AUTHORITY

2018 BANTOG DATA MEDIA AWARDS CHAMPION

n Agriculture Journalist of the Year (1st Place)—Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas n Agribeat Reporter of the Year (3rd Place, tie with Madeleine B. Miraflor from the Manila Bulletin)—Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas n Best Agriculture News Story—“Fowl farmers’ fears persist after bird flu flare-up” by Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas n Environmental Journalist of the Year (2nd Place)—Jonathan L. Mayuga n Best Environment Story of the Year—“PHL’s system to harmonize environment social progress fraught with ECC violations” by Jonathan L. Mayuga n Best Water Sustainability Story of the Year—“Water: Too big a problem to solve?” by Jonathan L. Mayuga n Best Agriculture Feature Story of the Year—“Fishing Moratorium: Is PHL doing it right?” by Jonathan L. Mayuga n Best Agriculture/Environment Section of a National Newspaper—BusinessMirror’s Agriculture/Commodities Section edited by Associate Editor Jennifer Ng

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

A broader look at today’s business n Tuesday, April 2, 2019 Vol. 14 No. 174

Port congestion dents manufacturing growth

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By Bianca Cuaresma

@BcuaresmaBM

HE earlier mood of optimism in the country’s manufacturing sector turned sour at the end of the first quarter of 2019, as the problem of port congestion dragged down production during the period.

Reports from IHS Markit on Monday showed that the Philippine manufacturing sector’s purchasing managers index (PMI) fell to 51.5 in March from 51.9 in February.

The PMI is a composite index meant to gauge the health of the country’s manufacturing sector.

It is calculated as a weighted average of five individual subcomponents. Readings above the 50 threshold signal a growth in the manufacturing sector while readings below 50 show deterioration in the industry.

The latest reading was the low-

est for seven months, indicating weaker growth of Filipino manufacturers.

IHS Markit economist David Owen flagged the problem of port congestion in Manila as one of the leading problems behind the slump in the month’s manufacturing sec-

Port congestion at Manila continues to increase lead times and reduce raw material supply, and will likely harm exports if the problem is not contained.”

—Owen

tor performance.

In particular, while many businesses saw volumes of work increase from February, others reported decreased production due to falling sales and reduced supply of raw materials.

See “Port,” A2

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See “Customs,” A2

Manny F. Dooc

TELLTALES

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ANY candidates in the coming elections are reelectionists, incumbent and former government officials. They have public service records that we can analyze and assess to help us make our choices. Admittedly, there are those whose past performance can stand strict scrutiny and whose accomplishments in office can measure up to, if not exceed, our expectation. They are solid performers and real achievers. Voting for them is a no brainer for those who want to see good leaders in government.

Continued on A11

DOF eyes ₧32-B income taxes from alien workers in online gaming ops & Samuel P. Medenilla

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@alyasjah

HE United States government has flagged corruption and red tape in the Bureau of Customs (BOC) as a key factor making trade more costly and less efficient.

In its 2019 National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers, the US Office of the Trade Representative (USTR) said customs barriers and port facilitation remain to be a huge concern for American exporters.

The USTR accused the BOC of corruption and red tape, as well as inconsistencies in the reference prices used for valuation, saying these make it difficult for shipments to enter the Philippine market.

“Reports of corruption and irregularities in customs processing persist, including undue and costly delays—irregularities in the valuation, 100 percent inspection and testing of some products, and customs officials seeking the payment of unrecorded facilitation fees,” the report read.

‘Fool me twice, shame on me’

@ReaCuBM

By Elijah Felice E. Rosales

WORKERS at a vehicle assembly plant in Southern Luzon are seen in this 2018 file photo. The earlier mood of optimism in the country’s manufacturing sector turned sour at the end of the first quarter of 2019, as the problem of port congestion dragged down production during the period. NONIE REYES

‘Humanitarian needs’ of Chinese illegals cited

By Bernadette D. Nicolas @BNicolasBM

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HINESE Ambassador Zhao Jianhua has “expressed concern” over the possible exploitation of Chinese citizens in the illegal gambling operations in the country, Malacañang said.

Presidential Spokesman and Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador S. Panelo revealed this in a statement

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 52.6290

on Monday after Zhao paid him a courtesy call.

Moreover, Panelo said Zhao called for cooperation in “strictly monitoring the situation and swift investigation and prosecution of those responsible.”

Prior to the courtesy call, Zhao also urged Philippine law-enforcement agencies to consider the humanitarian needs of Chinese nationals illegally working in the country.

While he reiterated that it is a clear

Chinese policy not to allow illegal Chinese workers to work in another country, he said it is up to the country where they are working to deal with the issue in accordance with the law. “But as we’re dealing with the illegal foreign nationals illegally working in China, we also follow our laws and procedures. But in the meantime, we would also call on the law-enforcement agencies here to deal with this issue professionally.”

See “Chinese,” A2

BUSINESS NEWS SOURCE OF THE YEAR

P25.00 nationwide | 4 sections 24 pages | 7 DAYS A WEEK

By Rea Cu

USTR flags corruption, red tape at Customs

2017 EJAP JOURNALISM AWARDS

@sam_medenilla

HE Department of Finance (DOF) said an estimated P32 billion in additional income taxes can be collected annually from foreign nationals (FN) working for Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (Pogo).

The interagency task force instructed to check the number of FNs employed in Pogos reported an initial list of 138,001 workers in the Internet-based operations, and it is estimated that the untapped subsector could yield an estimated P32 billion in additional income taxes annually for the government, the DOF said in a statement on Monday.

During a meeting with Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III last week, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and the Bureau of Immigration (BI) came up with a reconciled list of 138,001 workers, of which 54,241 were issued alien employment permits (AEPs) and another 83,760 granted special working permits (SWPs).

“What you have to do now is to reconcile the entire list. The maximum we know is 138,000. I have a suspicion that this figure is low,” Dominguez said.

Assuming that each foreign worker earns an average of $1,500 a month and is taxed at 25 percent of his or her gross income, Dominguez came up with a rough calculation of P32 billion a year in income taxes to be collected from

these workers.

The finance chief also pointed out that the names on the submitted list have no Taxpayer Identification Numbers (TINs) and their corresponding salaries reported were only around P20,000 each per month, which was “ridiculously low” for skilled foreign workers for Pogos.

“Enforce the law so we can collect the tax,” Dominguez added.

BIR’s Guballa: checks to go back in years

DEPUT Y Commissioner Arnel S.D. Guballa of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) said the agency will start working on the list to check how many years these workers have been here in the country and whether they have paid taxes for the last two taxable years.

Guballa said the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.

(Pagcor) has so far submitted a list of 126 out of 205 Pogos, which employ a total of 53,239 foreign workers with an average salary of about P41,000 each.

According to the BIR, other agencies such as the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) submitted the names of 52 foreign workers; the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) sent a list of 75 foreign workers; while the Clark Development Corp. (CDC), reported 2,463 foreign workers employed at the Clark and Subic special economic zones (SEZs).

The Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) and the SEZs in Bataan, Aurora and in other locations all failed to submit their respective lists, Guballa said.

See “DOF,” A2

n JAPAN 0.4740 n UK 68.6493 n HK 6.7046 n CHINA 7.8406 n SINGAPORE 38.8578 n AUSTRALIA 37.4666 n EU 59.1182 n SAUDI ARABIA 14.0348

Source: BSP (1 April 2019 )

News

BusinessMirror

A2 Tuesday, April 2, 2019

El Niño, budget delay will drag down PHL growth–World Bank

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By Cai U. Ordinario

main weak, as global growth and trade activities are projected to moderate in the medium term,” Qian added.

She said a reenacted budget means “no new programs and projects will receive funding.” This will cut government spending—a key driver of the Philippine economy.

The Duterte administration is keen on spending around P7 trillion to P8 trillion on various infrastructure projects in the medium term.

The budget will finance 75 flagship projects and over 4,000 projects identified in the Public Investment Program (PIP) until 2022.

Adding pressure to the economy, Qian said, is El Niño, as this could cut food supply and lead to higher inflation. She said this does not bode well for the poor as they usually bear the brunt of higher commodity prices.

“An intensified El Niño may lead to food supply constraints,

affecting the poor and vulnerable the most as they are spending a relatively larger proportion of their income in food. For instance, last year when food prices reached 5.2 percent on average, people from the first quintile [the poorest 20 percent of the population] faced 6.2 percent with over 60 percent of that driven by food inflation,” Qian said. Earlier, UP School of Statistics Dean Dennis Mapa said the increase in food inflation, especially for the poorest 30 percent, reached 7.1 percent last year.

High food prices in 2018 will have a negative effect on poverty reduction efforts. Food inflation felt by the poorest Filipinos reached 7.1 percent in 2018 with the highest observed in September at 9.9 percent.

In a study, Mapa said every 1-percentage-point increase in food

“Slowing output growth and a comparably modest rise in new business hampered manufacturers in March, with the PMI sliding for the fourth month running,” Owen said.

“Port congestion at Manila continues to increase lead times and reduce raw material supply, and will likely harm exports if the problem is not contained,” he added.

The Philippines’s weak performance in March caused it to drop in the rankings of manufacturing sector performance in the region during the month.

IHS Markit’s ranking of seven South-

east Asian economies showed the Philippines at third overall during the month, following Myanmar’s 52.4 and Vietnam’s 51.9 PMI. Following the Philippines is Indonesia’s PMI at 51.2 and Thailand’s at 50.3.

Singapore and Malaysia were in the contraction phase anew at 47.9 and 47.2 respectively.

On average, the region’s PMI rose from 49.6 in February to 50.3 in March.

The rate of growth ticked up to a threemonth high, as five of the seven monitored countries recorded increased production.

“[The] Philippines dropped to third place in the league table, as operating conditions improved at a slower pace and supply chains were constrained by port delays,” the report read.

Also, IHS Markit said business sentiment about the future dropped to a record low at the end of the first quarter, as more panelists expressed doubts over output growth this year.

“Overall for the first quarter, the PMI points to weaker growth in manufacturing production compared to the end of 2018, with employment trends also remaining subdued,” Owen said.

HE pace of the country’s economic expansion will be slowed by the delay in the passage of the 2019 budget and the impact of El Niño on food supply, the World Bank said on Monday.

The economic headwinds facing the country prompted the World Bank to revise downward its GDP forecast for the Philippines for 2019, 2020 and 2021.

The Washington-based lender estimated Philippine GDP growth for 2019 at 6.4 percent, and 6.5 percent for 2020 and 2021. It initially projected that economic expansion will be at 6.5 percent this year, and 6.6 percent in 2020 and 2021.

“The delay in approving the 2019 budget and the preelection spending ban on new public construction projects are expected to slow down public investment spending in the first half of the year, but [the latter] is expected to recover toward the second half of 2019 assuming that the budget gets approved very soon,” World Bank Senior Economist Rong Qian told reporters in a press briefing.

“Export growth is likely to re-

Port. . .

Continued from A1

Also, IHS Markit said firms saw a fractional decline in new export orders. “Anecdotal evidence suggested that weaker overseas demand and administration issues affected sales,” the research note said.

The report also said companies saw further delays to delivery times in March. Lead times increased marginally, mostly due to worsening port congestion in Manila.

DOF. . .

Continued from A1

“We have all the data, we just have to put it all together,” Dominguez said.

The finance chief expects the interagency task force to come up with a cleaned-up, reconciled list in 30 days, in time for their next meeting.

Over the weekend, the DOLE said the government can soon start its stricter tax regime for foreign workers employed in Pogos upon the release of the master list consolidated by the interagency task force instructed to find out the total number of FNs working in the sector.

The BusinessMirror obtained a copy of the report, which showed a total of 76,936 individuals currently working in 165 service providers of Pogo.

At least 87.9 percent or 56,180 of the FNs in Pogo were Chinese, followed by the Vietnamese as a far second with 1,862 (2.9 percent) and Indonesians with 1,586 (2.5 percent). The rest of the FNs employed by Pogo include Taiwanese, Malaysian and Thai workers, among others.

More labor inspectors

MEANWHILE, the labor department said the expected multibillion-peso tax collections from foreign workers in the Pogo sector will be used to hire an additional 5,000 labor inspectors.

On Monday, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said the new inspectors will help them in ensuring all foreign workers in the Pogo industry have the necessary work permits as stipulated in their master list.

“They will become part of our [regular] items since we really need them,”Labor Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III said in an interview.

DOLE said its current pool of 800 labor inspectors is not enough to allow the regular conduct of inspections of over 900,000 establishments nationwide.

Attempts by DOLE to ask Congress and the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to allow it to employ more labor inspectors have been consistently denied due to lack of funding.

But last week, Bello said, no less than Finance

6.4%

inflation causes a 0.68-percentagepoint increase in self-rated hunger incidence.

The 2018 data of the Social Weather Stations for self-rated hunger incidence increased by 10 percentage points, particularly for the second and third quarter. This was largely because the acceleration of food prices was the fastest during the two quarters.

The World Bank said, however, that the “bright spots” in the Philippine economy will ensure that growth will be above 6 percent.

“Higher private consumption due to lower inf lation, steady growth of remittances and election spending will fuel growth this year,” said Mara K. Warwick, the World Bank country director for Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand.

The Philippine GDP has been fueled by consumption, with households contributing more than twothirds of aggregate expenditures.

Annual private consumption growth declined from 5.9 percent in 2017 to 5.6 percent in 2018 due to high inflation. However, it is expected to rebound to 5.9 percent in 2019 and 6 percent in 2020 due to declining inflation and the continued job generation in the economy.

Remittances are expected to remain steady as new employment opportunities for Filipinos become available in countries like Japan, Germany and Poland, further fueling consumption.

@caiordinario

The World Bank’s revised forecast of Philippine GDP growth for 2019.

It also revised downward to 6.5 percent its growth forecast for 2020 and 2021. It initially projected that economic expansion will be at 6.5 percent in 2019 and 6.6 percent in 2020 and 2021

Secretary Dominguez finally agreed to endorse to DBM their request for an additional 5,000 inspectors.

“He [Dominguez] computed it will cost the government only around P2.5 billion a year to hire the new inspectors. This is small compared to their expected tax revenues [to be collected from foreign Pogo workers],” Bello explained.

“Hopefully, we will make representations with DBM during the Cabinet meeting today [April 1],”he added. The Department of Finance (DOF) earlier said it is anticipating annual tax revenue of P22 billion from the tax collections from foreign workers, who are mostly Chinese, in Pogo firms.

Based on its initial master list, DOLE said there are currently 56,180 foreign nationals in the Pogo sector. This could still increase since DOLE is still waiting for the list of foreign workers from 27 licensed Pogos.

Crackdown on illegals

THE head of the Senate Economic Affairs committee wants the government to crack down on foreign workers taking away jobs from the local labor force.

In a statement, Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian suggested that the Bureau of Immigration and the Department of Labor and Employment check out reports on the presence of aliens working in private construction sites.

Invoking Article XIII, Section 3, of the 1987 Constitution and DOLE Department Order 97-09 on the issuance of Alien Employment Permit, Gatchalian stressed, “it is the government’s duty to ensure that preferential treatment will be given to all Filipino workers in jobs that are available in the country—be it in construction sites or in office spaces.”

He added: “Kaya tayo nagtatrabaho na mapabuti ang ating ekonomiya at humihikayat ng mga mamumuhunan sa bansa ay upang makapagbigay tayo ng trabaho sa ating mga kababayan. Huwag sana nating hayaan na makuha ng dayuhan ang mga trabahong nakalaan para sa mga Pilipino sa sarili nilang bansa [We work hard to grow our economy and entice investors here so we can create jobs for our people. I hope we don’t allow aliens to simply grab jobs meant for Filipinos—in our own backyard].”

Chinese. . .

Continued from A1

”You have to take into consideration the humanitarian needs of those Chinese nationals, as we are doing exactly when it comes to Filipinos working illegally in China,” the ambassador said in a chance interview.

Although he admitted that this is a problem, he assured the public that China and the Philippines are handling the issue professionally.

“There is such a problem, and there’s a problem of Chinese working illegally here, but also there are Filipinos working illegally in China. So we are handling this in accordance with our respective laws and regulations. We are handling it professionally in the spirit of our friendship and cooperation,” he said.

This developed after the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) released its report on the initial master

Customs. . .

Continued from A1

“Some importers have reported that the Philippine Bureau of Customs continues to use reference prices for the valuation of meat and poultry products used in a manner that appears inconsistent with the WTO [World Trade Organization] Customs Valuation Agreement,” it added.

The USTR added that American investors have flagged Manila courts for reportedly being mudded with bribery. This, the USTR revealed, makes several firms reluctant about pouring in capital into the Philippines. “Both foreign and domestic investors have expressed concern about the propensity of Philippine courts and regulators to stray beyond matters of legal interpretation

list of foreign nationals (FNs) employed in the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (Pogo) sector.

The report obtained by the BusinesMirror showed a total of 76,936 individuals are currently working in 165 service providers of Pogo.

Out of this figure, 63,855 or 82.9 percent are FNs, while 13,081 or 17.1 percent are Filipinos. At least 87.9 percent or 56,180 of the FNs in Pogo were Chinese, followed

by Vietnamese as a far second with 1,862 (2.9 percent) and Indonesians with 1,586 (2.5 percent).

The rest of the FNs employed by Pogo include Taiwanese, Malaysian and Thai workers, among others. The DOLE said the numbers could still grow in the coming days, since a total 27 licensed Pogo firms have yet to submit their list of FN employees.

The Department of Finance earlier said it estimates there are over 100,000 FNs in the Pogo industry who are not paying appropriate taxes. into policy-making, as well as the lack of transparency in judicial and regulatory processes,” the report read.

“Investors have also raised concerns about courts being influenced by bribery and improperly issuing temporary restraining orders to impede legitimate commerce,” it added.

The USTR, in its report, also raised long-standing concerns over the country’s technical barriers to trade, including sanitary and phytosanitary measures.

Washington has long lamented the Philippine government’s maintenance of a two-tiered system for regulating the handling of frozen and freshly slaughtered meat for sale in local wet markets. The US last October announced its intent to collaborate with the Philippines on the development of cold chain requirements and best practices.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Duterte names ‘focal person’ in drug war as new SSS chief

By Bernadette D. Nicolas

focal person for Anti-Illegal Drugs by virtue of Presidential Decree 5.

She was also a council member of the National Food Authority.

Ignacio obtained her Bachelor of Science degree in Commerce, Banking and Finance from the Centro Escolar University.

@BNicolasBM

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RESIDENT Duterte has appointed Aurora C. Ignacio as the new Social Security System President and chief executive officer to replace Emmanuel F. Dooc, who resigned earlier following the passage of the new SSS charter.

The latest batch of presidential appointments, including Ignacio’s was dated March 28, a day before the election ban took effect.

Appointment of new employees, creation or filling up of new positions, promotion, or giving salary increases, remuneration or privilege are prohibited during the election ban which will last until May 12.

Dooc stepped down from his post as president and CEO and vice chairman of the SSS as his term expired upon the implementation of the new SSS charter last month.

The Social Security Act of 2018, which was signed into law by the President in February and took effect on March 5, seeks to strengthen the viability of the pension fund, among others.

Prior to her official appointment as head of SSS, Ignacio had served as the assistant secretary for Special Projects in the Office of the President and was designated

Other appointments

DUTERTE has also appointed Monalisa C. Dimalanta as the chairman of the National Renewable Energy Board.

Dimalanta is a practicing lawyer specializing in energy and mergers and acquisitions.

She received her law degree from the University of the Philippines in 1997, the same university where she also earned her Journalism degree in 1993. She also obtained her Master of Laws degree from the University of Michigan as a Dewitt fellow from 2000 to 2001.

Aside from Ignacio and Dimalanta, Duterte also named AnnClaire Credo-Cabochan as the new trade assistant secretary, replacing Ernesto Perez. Prior to this, Credo-Cabochan was a director at the Department of Trade and Industry.

She earned her bachelor’s degree in Business Administration at Silliman University and her Bachelor of Laws degree at San Beda College.

Govt fully awards all tenors in T-bills auction on slower inflation rise Continued from A12

“We saw also the decline in terms of the rates given by the Treasury, based on our second quarter issuance program,” she added. “We have also reduced the volume particularly for the T-bills.

So the volume has been trimmed to P15 billion per auction from the P20 billion that we had in the first quarter. And given again the inflation projections that, based on the media, it will be about 3.5 percent and much lower than the February reading.”

Last week, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said that it sees inflation to continue its downward trajectory, seeing it falling to 4 percent for March, on the back of lower food prices.

Meanwhile, de Leon also said that the nondeal road show in China was met with strong interest for the Philippines as more than 500 Chinese participants attended the Philippine economic briefing, with a number of rural banks expressing interest in the county’s

Pag-Asa. . .

Continued from A12

Panatag Shoal

HE also denied reports that Chinese vessels are scaring off Filipino fishermen on Panatag Shoal.

“It has already been denied by authorities here. There is no such thing,” he said.

Asked what his message is to fishermen who are afraid to go to Panatag Shoal, Zhao said “in general, fishing can go as usual” although he noted certain kinds of limits that both countries are observing.

“For example, Chinese fishing vessels getting too close to the Zhongye [Pag-Asa] islands there might be some concern from your side. If fishermen getting too close to the islands we have people, there might be concerns,” he said.

ICC case a ‘fabrication’

ZHAO also expressed confidence that the International Criminal Court (ICC) complaint filed by t wo -for mer h igh-ra n k i ng Philippine government officials against Chinese President Xi Jinping will not prosper, calling it a “political action viciously target-

issuance of Panda bonds.

“So they have expressed their interest to participate in the forthcoming onshore Panda [bond] issuance,” she said. “And they also expressed eventually if the volume of our issuance will also be bigger in terms of the volume.”

The country’s issuance of Panda bonds is being eyed for issuance during the second quarter of this year but will still depend on market conditions, according to de Leon.

Furthermore, the BTr is looking at a $500-million Panda bond issue equivalent to renminbi, which can still be upsized and a tenor of either three years or five years.

De Leon said the government is still securing approval for the issuance of the Samurai bond this year.

“We are still doing some paperwork and also there’s still a lot of work in terms of approval process; maybe not in the second quarter,” she added. “And we have to calibrate also our borrowings in terms of the spending.” Rea Cu ing the Chinese leadership,” adding that it is a proper action that is based on fact.

“It’s a fabrication and also a misuse of the mandate of the ICC,” he said.

President Duterte earlier assured China that the communication filed before the ICC by former Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales and former Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario against Chinese President Xi Jinping is not sanctioned

by Manila.

The two former officials earlier filed the ICC communication on behalf of thousands of Filipino fishermen “persecuted” and “injured” by China’s “atrocious actions” in the South China Sea and within the Philippine territory, which “remain unpunished.”

The complaint was filed prior to the effectivity of the country’s withdrawal from the ICC last month.

Although The Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration issued a landmark decision in 2016 invalidating China’s “excessive” claims to the West Philippine Sea, China has opted not to recognize the arbitral ruling.

The Nation BusinessMirror

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Dennis Sytin: I’m not behind my own brother’s murder

By Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

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USINESSMAN Dennis Sytin has denied before the Department of Justice (DOJ) allegations that he masterminded the killing of his businessman-brother Dominic Sytin at the Subic Bay Freeport on November 8, 2018.

In his counter-affidavit submitted to the DOJ during its preliminary investigation on the murder and frustrated complaint filed by Dominic’s wife, Ann Marietta, and the Olongapo City police, Dennis sought the immediate dismissal of the case against him saying that witness Edgardo Luib, the self-confessed gunman, failed to provide clear and positive identification of the alleged mastermind.

“I am not capable of murder. I have no derogatory record. I had no participation or involvement in the murder of my brother, Dominic. I have never met Luib. I did not socialize with Oliver [Fuentes] outside work,” Dennis claimed.

The complaint filed against Sytin is principally based on the statement of Luib, who claimed that the businessman induced him to kill Dominic through Fuentes.

Dominic’s driver/bodyguard Efren Espartero was injured during the incident which took place in front of the Lighthouse Hotel in Subic.

Contrary to the claim of Luib, Dennis said he was not at the All Hands Beach resort in Subic when they hatched the plan to kill his brother in September 2018.

“There is no clear and categorical statement from Luib that I was the person he and Oliver met with and talked to in September 2018 at All Hands beach....

There is no physical evidence which shows my purported link to the planning and perpetration of the crime to corroborate Luib’s statements,” Sytin said.

Instead, Dennis pointed to Fuentes as the mastermind in the killing based on the evidence presented by the police.

He said Fuentes had a motive in having his brother killed, being a disgruntled employee when Dominic fired him in August 2018 for allegedly padding job orders and pocketing P1 million from United Auctioneers Inc. (UAI) collections.

Dominic founded the said auction company together with his brother. “ The overwhelming evidence on record shows that it was Oliver who was the mastermind of Dominic’s murder from whom all instructions to Luib emanated,” the counter-affidavit read.

Dennis mentioned his full cooperation with the investigation on the case, as well as the result of the polygraph test, which showed consistencies on his statements, as proof of his innocence.

“My full cooperation in the investigation and favorable polygraph test results are proof positive that I do not have a guilty conscience and that I am with my whole family in seeking justice for the death of my brother Dominic,” he stated.

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Tuesday, April 2, 2019 A3

PHL, US start Balikatan ’19 exercise as DND renews call for treaty review

A

By Rene Acosta

@reneacostaBM

MERICAN and Filipino officials formally opened the Balikatan bilateral military exercise between the Philippines and the United States, as Manila maps out its move amid the reported continued presence of a large fleet of Chinese fishing vessels in Pagasa Island in the West Philippine Sea. Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff Gen. Benjamin Madrigal Jr. said on Monday that this year’s war games would involve at least 7,500 combined troops from the Philippine and the US which is bigger, given the use and influx of assets and equipment from both sides.

The exercise, which is also being joined by countries like Japan, Canada, New Zealand, South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam and the United Kingdom as observers, focuses both on internal operations and territorial defense.

A 60-man team from Australia, whose delegation is led by no less than the incoming chief of the Royal Australian Air Force, is also taking part in the war games, not as an observer, but a direct participant in the actual exercise, especially on counterterrorism.

“Balikatan 35-2019 have scaled up exercises, meaning more focus on the area of territorial defense and counterterrorism operations. It is our primary goal that the exercise outcome would be beneficial for everyone,” said Madrigal.

“In the conduct of our four major

events, the staff exercise and command-post exercise, joint interoperability events, combined-operability events and humanitarian civic assistance events, much shall be learned in enhancing our full spectrum of capabilities,” he added.

At the sidelines of the event, the top military chief said the government is contemplating on its action regarding the presence of Chinese vessels in Pagasa Island, which Malacañang admitted, have taken stationary positions in the country’s territory.

Madrigal said there were only about more than 200 vessels in the country’s territory that China is disputing, and not more than 600 as earlier reported, even by the media.

“The sightings were for 600, but the vessels involved were only around 200. The involved vessels were basically the same vessels which are being repeatedly seen,” he said.

Madrigal said the Navy and the Coast Guard were undertaking patrols in the area as he admitted the presence of the very big fleet of fishing vessels was alarming.

One of Ba lik atan’s area is Palawan, which sits close to the Pagasa Island.

Defense Undersecretary Cardozo M. Luna, who represented Defense Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana during the ceremony, said the country and the US needed to work together in order to meet security challenges, including beefing up their defense agreement.

“The geopolitics and security dynamics within the Indo-Pacific regions…are evolving so fast, we need to work together more to cope with these challenges, otherwise our past efforts and sacrifices in ensuring peace and stability for the past several decades will lose their meaning and significance,” he said.

“This is the best time for us, the

This is the best time for us, the Filipino and American peoples, to stay together and work hand in hand, shoulder to shoulder, to review our commitment for peace and posterity in the region. This is the very essence of the Philippine Department of National Defense[’s] desire to strengthen further our treaty alliance through our propose[d] review of our Mutual Defense Treaty.”—Luna

Marawi, Maguindanao town get ₧27M from Japan to construct and repair damaged school buildings

By Manuel T. Cayon @awimailbox Mindanao Bureau Chief

D

AVAO CITY—Two schools in Mag uindanao and Marawi City got P27 million in combined grant assistance from the Japan government, one set of new school building to bring it nearer to school children, the other one to repair battle-damaged building.

The donation of a combined 14 classrooms to the two schools was part of the five-package assistance last week totaling P42 million that also included the upgrading of a health center and donation of medical and agricultural equipment.

The Bayanga Norte Elementary School in Matanog, Maguindanao, received a grant of $169,645 (approximately P9 million) to construct two new buildings with seven classrooms and to be located nearer the residences of rural families.

The proponent is the municipal government of Matanog, whose

interior villages formed part of the erstwhile largest military camp of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

The Bayanga Norte Elementary School has its own existing makeshift and dilapidated classrooms and which could only be reached by children after walking for 3.5 hours and up to five hours going back and forth from their residence.

“When the project is completed, students’ walking hours will be reduced within 45 minutes and they will have improved access to education. This project is part of the Japan-Bangsamoro Initiatives for Reconstruction and Development or J-Bird 2,” the Japanese embassy said in a news statement.

In Marawi City, the assistance of $341,179 (approximately P18 million) was through the request of GMA Kapuso Foundation Inc. for the construction of a new building in Datu Saber Elementary School, whose existing building was “dilapidated and have been damaged during the Marawi Siege in 2017.”

“In addition, the school had more than 400 students [who] hold classes in six nonstandard classrooms, which resulted in congestion. Given these concerns, there is an immediate need to improve the poor situation of the school and its students,” the embassy added.

The new three-storey sevenclassroom school building is also part of the J-Bird assistance program.

The assistance was firmed up on March 22 by Japanese Ambassador Koji Haneda who signed five grant contracts at the Embassy of Japan with the representatives of recipient organizations for several social development projects in the Philippines. The ceremony was attended

by Assistant Secretary Salvador C. Malana III, of the Procurement and Administration of the Department of Education and Director Mar Wynn G. Bello, of the Bureau of International Health Cooperation of the Department of Health.

The new approved contracts of the Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects includes the repair and upgrading

of the main health center building and purchase of laboratory equipment in Dingalan, Aurora, (worth $109,567 approximately P5.8 million), the provision of medical equipment for the rural health unit of Balete, Batangas, ($98,880 or approximately P5.2 million), and the provision of a mobile drier with movable shed for the municipality of Calintaan in Oriental Mindoro ($72,007 or approximately P3.9 million).

The embassy said that since 2006, Japan “has been intensively implementing Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects (GGP) and other official development assistance (ODA) projects for conflict affected areas in Mindanao, collectively called J-BIRD. Assistance under this program has reached more than $200 million.

Also, the embassy said the Japanese government is the top ODA donor for the Philippines and launched the GGP in the Philippines in 1989 for the purpose of reducing poverty and helping various communities engaged in grassroots activities.

Angara: Action must be taken to avert looming housing crisis

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EELECTIONIST Sen. Sonny M. Angara said the country’s housing backlog could balloon up to 12 million by 2030 if left unaddressed and the homeless population could reach crisis proportions unless the government steps up efforts to provide them with permanent shelter.

“Out of a population of roughly 106 million to 108 million Filipinos, some 4.5 million don’t have any shelter and up to two-thirds of that number—3 million—are here in Metro Manila,” Angara said during an event organized by the Chamber of Real Estate & Builders’ Associations Inc. in Makati City.

Unless action is taken, Angara said citing a 2016 study by the University of Asia and the Pacific, the government housing backlog could reach 12 million in the next decade,

including the backlog of over 6 million units from 2001 to 2015.

Ironically, Angara said, these alarming figures came out in the midst of a booming real-estate industry, which from 2014 and 2018 contributed up to 12 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and taken up more than 18 percent of total bank loans.

He noted that while the market had a surplus of up to 561,000 units in mid- and high-cost housing in 2015, the gap for socialized, economic, low and even free housing was more than 11 times than that number, which is around 6.67 million units.

“In short, our real estate industry may be booming, but we’re doing poorly when it comes to sheltering our people and providing them with homes,” lamented the lawmaker

from Aurora, who is running under the platform “Alagang Angara.”

Housing, he said, plays a central, crucial role in the lives of poor Filipinos, as he noted that poverty eradication was unlikely to be met without addressing basic housing needs.

“Such housing crisis is just one piece of the greater puzzle that plagues our country—that of chronic poverty,” Angara said.

He added: “And although it is but one aspect of the problem, it is nevertheless critical. Because without a home, one cannot plant their roots.

One cannot lay down the stable foundation on which everything else in their lives should be built.”

Thus, Angara called for a paradigm shift in housing policy and practice amid the growing urgency to provide adequate, safe and affordable housing to millions of Filipino households.

The reelectionist senator also urged the government to spend more for housing to ensure that all Filipinos have access to decent homes.

Data from the Asian Development Bank showed that between 2000 and 2014, the Philippines spent only 0.12 percent of GDP for housing, in stark contrast to the average 0.75 of GDP spent by Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Bangladesh, Mongolia, Nepal and Sri Lanka for the sector.

For his part, Angara had fought for the retention of the value-added tax exemption for socialized and low-cost housing while Congress was deliberating on the government’s tax reform program.

This means that socialized housing units that cost P450,000 and below and low-cost housing units priced at P1.7 million and P3 million

remain VAT-free. Various studies showed that lifting the exemption would only drag down all efforts at solving the housing backlog.

Angara was also an author and cosponsor of the newly enacted law creating the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD).

The department focused on housing and human settlement issues was finally realized after languishing in the legislative mill for 27 years, spanning nine Congresses.

Angara said the work toward addressing the housing problem has just begun with the creation of DHSUD. “Given the gravity of the problems we face, I don’t think we should wait another three decades before we enact even more major reforms to our housing policies and programs,” he said.

Filipino and American peoples, to stay together and work hand in hand, shoulder to shoulder, to review our commitment for peace and posterity in the region. This is the very essence of the Philippine Department of National Defense[’s] desire to strengthen further our treaty alliance through our propose[d] review of our Mutual Defense Treaty,” he added.

On the other hand, US Ambassador Sung Kim said that the relationship, skills and cooperation that both countries will build during the exercise will spell a big on the security of the Philippines and the Pacific region.

“Our success in Maraw i is an important reminder of how the training, relationships and shared experiences forged during exercises like Balikatan enabled us to defeat security threats and save lives. Our cooperation in Marawi is also a clear reminder of the strength and the depth of our friendship, our enduring friendship,” he added.

Kim said the importance of Balikatan goes far beyond the interoperability of the two militaries as it would link the two countries together on a personal level, fortifying their friendships and better camaraderie from the lowest levels up to the leadership ranks.

Two IS men nabbed in Baggao, Cagayan

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OMBINED police and military operatives have arrested two suspected members of an Islamic State (IS)-inspired group and seized IS flags during a raid in the Cagayan Valley, confirming reports that IS militants are not just confined in Mindanao.

However, National Police chief Police General Oscar D. Albayalde dismissed the threats posed by the arrested suspects and their group, noting it had been nipped in the bud as a result of previous government operations.

“They were just trying to get attention,” said Albayalde at a news briefing at Camp Crame on Monday.

A belated report sent to Albayalde by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) said policemen and members of the Military Intelligence Group 2 arrested Altero Cariaga and his brother Greg Cariaga during a law-enforcement operation on March 28.

T he duo’s ar rest stemmed from the implementation of three search warrant at their residences located at Barangay Dabbac Grande, Baggao, Cagayan, that were issued by Judge Sheila Gacutan–Labuguen of the Baggao Municipal Trial Court.

The CIDG report said that Altero is the head of the Syuful Khilafa Fi Luzo, or Northern Jihadist Group, a terrorist and radical Islamic group established in Baggao, Cagayan, in 2016 that had reportedly been inspired by the IS. The raiding team seized two black flags of the IS. Likewise, the operatives recovered a homemade bomb, a 9 mm pistol, a .38-caliber revolver and several bullets.

Meanwhile, the Laguna Provincial Police Office (LPPO) has confiscated 95 loose firearms and has forced the surrender of 281 more for safekeeping in its ongoing implementation of the Commission on Elections gun ban.

Police Col. Eleazar Pepito Matta, LPPO director, said the seizure and turnover of firearms were part of their operations to ensure safe and peaceful conduct of the elections in the province. Rene Acosta

Economy BusinessMirror

A4 Tuesday, April 2, 2019 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

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Duterte urged to restore ‘BBB’ items in 2019 budget bill

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By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

@joveemarie

HE chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations on Monday urged President Duterte to consider restoring several items in the proposed 2019 P3.757-trillion General Appropriations Act (GAA) that have been removed by the Senate.

In a news statement, Camarines Sur Rep. Rolando Andaya Jr., the panel chairman, said the Senate has decided to reduce this year’s allocation for the President’s “Build, Build, Build” (BBB) program and other priority projects.

“It is the Senate that may find itself liable to accusation of sabotage when it decided, unilaterally, to cut down the allocation for the President’s Build, Build, Build program and other

priority projects,” he added.

“We are confident that the Office of the President would consider these items in their review and find ways on how to restore them in the President’s veto message,” Andaya said.

Plain obfuscation—Sotto

Senate President Vicente Sotto III, however, took a dig at Andaya's claims, and described it as a "last-

minute attempt to obfuscate the issue, and try to prevent the President's veto of their illegal realignments."

Sotto added: "Even their colleagues know. No excuses necessary because the President knows everything."

According to Andaya, the items taken out of the 2019 GAA by the Senate include, but not limited to, the following: Department of Transportation’s P5 billion for right-ofway projects; Department of Public Works and Highways’s (DPWH) P11.033 billion also for ROW projects and foreign assisted projects worth P2.5 billion.

“Depriving the government with funds for right-of-way and other infrastructure projects will surely hamper the implementation of the President’s Build, Build, Build program. Construction on priority projects including mass transit and railway systems will be mostly affected,” he added.

Andaya said the Senate has also

Indonesia OKs Free Wi-fi bill in transport importation of PHL terminals soon to be law farm produce from the south–DA

By Elijah Felice E. Rosales @alyasjah

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AK ARTA has allowed the entr y of Philippine farm produce, particularly from Mindanao, following successful bilateral negotiations between top trade officials of the Southeast Asian economies.

Indonesian Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita on Monday handed to Philippine trade officials two certifications allowing the entry of banana to Indonesia.

The first certificate recognizes Davao, North Mindanao and Soccsksargen as pest free areas for the farming of banana.

The other certificate registers local fresh food and plants in Indonesian testing laboratories, making Manila eligible to export farm goods to the Southeast Asian country.

Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol said the certificates removes procedures that hinder banana and other Philippine agricultural products from entering the Indonesian market. This, he added, is a complete turnaround from Jakarta’s previous resistant stance over Philippine farm produce.

The development also comes on the heels of the breakdown of talks between the two countries, when Indonesia reportedly showed disinterest to advance agricultural trade with the Philippines.

“They have too many restrictions, including the minimum residue level. Effectively, they really shut down our access to the market with measures that we cannot implement,” Piñol told reporters.

“It already removes all of the restrictions for the export of banana and other fruits. Under their requirements, every shipment has to be inspected. That is really restrictive. They lifted that already [under these certificates],” he added.

Piñol said he is next targeting to ship shallots to Indonesian markets, ending decadelong market restriction by Jakarta for horticultural products.

The Philippines is trying to reduce its trade imbalance with its Southeast Asian neighbor. Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed Manila imported $6.4 billion from Jakarta last year, of which Piñol claimed, an estimated $1 billion are agricultural products, including coffee and palm oil.

On the other hand, the Philippines exported $866.2 million to Indonesia, PSA data show.

“In particular, rest stops are indispensable for those traveling by land, as they provide a brief ‘pit stop’ for travelers and bus drivers.”

—Poe

By Butch Fernandez @butchfBM

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N awaited bill mandating free Wi-fi services in all transport terminals is on its way to becoming a law soon.

Embodied in Senate Bill 1749 which also mandates provision for clean comfort rooms for commuters, the measure passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives had been transmitted on March 21 to Malacañang for President Duterte to sign it into law.

The enrolled bill, entitled “An Act to Improve Land Transportation Terminals, Stations, Stops, Rest Areas and Roll-On/Roll-Off Terminals,” was adopted earlier by the House of Representatives without amendments, paving the way for its speedy transmission to the Office of the President to be signed into law.

Under the rules, SB 1749 will automat ica l ly l apse into l aw even if the President does not sign it 30 days after Malacañang received the Congress-approved measure.

Sen. Grace Poe, the bill’s principal sponsor, however, voiced hope Duterte will promptly sign the remedial legislation into law in time to take effect when students go home to their provinces during their annual school break.

Moreover, Poe pointed out that families traditionally also go on summer vacation traveling out of town to visit tourist spots and other known recreational destinations.

As approved, SB 1749 requires transportation and roll-on, rolloff terminal to have clean restroom facilities, as well as free Internet connections.

“The terminals must also have separate lactating stations for breastfeeding mothers,” Poe added.

In a news statement, the senator stressed that “an efficient and functional interprovince transport system is essential to ensuring that Filipinos travel safely.”

She added: “In particular, rest stops are indispensable for those traveling by land, as they provide a brief ‘pit stop’ for travelers and bus drivers.”

Poe asserted that “this is especially important for Filipinos who travel more than eight hours.”

DOE seeks stakeholders’ review of proposed ESS

By Lenie Lectura @llectura

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HE Department of Energy (DOE) is soliciting comments from industry stakeholders on a proposed framework for energy storage system (ESS) in the power industry.

ESS is defined by the agency as a facility acting as a load and a generator, which is designed to receive, store and convert such energy into electricity.

The DOE said it recognizes the applications and the benefits of ESS as an emerging technology in the improvement of the ESS. One of these, the department pointed out, is that ESS can manage intermittent operations of the variable renewable energy (VRE)-generating plants’ output, thereby, ensuring stability.

ESS will also be one of the key elements in the proposed Smart Grid Roadmap, which the DOE is promulgating to guide the industry in the implementation of respective initiatives to modernize the power system.

But there are existing and prospective ESS proponents in the country who raised concern on the

lack of governing policy framework for its regulation and operation, the DOE noted.

At the same time, some forms of ESS contain chemicals that are potentially harmful for both human lives and environment. The recycling and proper disposal of ESS facilities and components must be under the responsibility of the ESS proponent, the DOE said. Hence, the need to craft a framework.

Under the proposed framework, generation companies (gencos) and distribution utilities (DUs) directly connected customers and qualified third party may operate ESS. They must register their ESS, secure a certificate from the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

A competitive selection process (CSP) is required for DUs owning and entering into power supply agreements with ESS proponents.

The ERC, meanwhile, is expected to come up with a cost recovery mechanism, pricing structure, and accreditation standards and procedures for the deployment of ESS. The DOE will accept comments on the draft circular until April 5.

removed Technical Education and Skills Development Authority’s P3 billion for scholarship of rebel returnees, out-of-school youths and rehabilitating drug dependents enrolled under the Universal Access to Tertiary Education.

“As a result, at least 320,000 students enrolled under the program will lose their scholarship this year,” he said.

The lawmaker said the Department of Environment and Natural Resources’s P2.254 billion for National Greening Program, which resulted in 50-percent budget cut for all Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officers, except Antique, have also been allegedly removed.

“Department of Foreign Affairs’s P7.5-billion budget for SEA [Southeast Asian] Games taken out, but P5 billion transferred to Philippine Sports Commission and P2.5 billion nowhere to be found,” he added.

Andaya also said Miscellaneous

Personnel Benefit Fund (MPBF) worth P13.4 billion will also be affected.

“The MPBF is one of three sources of money paid to government personnel. The other two are the budgets lodged under each agency and the Pension and Gratuity Fund. Under Special Provision No. 1, the MPBF may be used for ‘deficiencies in authorized salaries, bonuses, allowances, associated premiums and other similar personnel benefits of national government personnel….,’” he added.

Andaya said the Pension and Gratuity Fund worth P39 billion will also be affected.

This fund covers the payment for the pension of AFP retirees; war or military veterans of the DND; retired uniformed personnel of the DILG, PC-INP, Namria and Philippine Coast Guard; and other retirees of the national government.

It also includes retirement benefits for optional retirees of the

national government; retired personnel of government-owned and -controlled corporations which are financially unable to pay said benefits, and personnel devolved to LGUs. Andaya also emphasized that the details of these budget cuts were not fully discussed in the bicameral conference committee. “ T he senators uni latera l ly decided on the budget cuts and realigned them to other items based on request of individual proponents. Up to now, the Senate has yet to make public a detailed report on the proponents who recommended the individual realignments,” he said.

The 2019 GAB has been transmitted for signature of President Duterte, and it is expected to be signed after the Office of the President has wrapped up its review of the veto message.

Meanwhile, Andaya said the House respects the veto power of the President. With Butch Fernandez

6 essential tips to manage compliance risks nior leadership should clearly communicate to middle managers, and the rest of the organization, the type of ethical conduct expected from each and every employee—themselves included. Beyond words, actual conduct matters; mere lip service has never convinced anyone.

Figuring out “what actually works” may also require a bit of experimentation. Novartis, the pharmaceutical giant, implemented a system where employees are only eligible for bonuses if they meet or exceed expectations of their values and behaviors.

On a more practical level, you should ensure that you deliver training in a way that is easily accessible to employees and engages them in a way resulting in them actually retaining the message. Failing to do so might render training meaningless. It has to be understood that for instance data breaches happen in operations.

In the same vein, using technology to easily collect conflict of interest declarations and signatures on important policies reduces the “annoyance factor” of manual processes and will drive engagement with your compliance efforts. That kind of software is available in the Philippines.

By Henry J. Schumacher

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E all know that managing compliance risks can seem like a daunting task. In fact, a survey of compliance officers published

by Nasdaq in late 2018 found that 55 percent of respondents named fully understanding regulation and how it impacts their business as their top concern for the next 12 months. In order to manage compliance risks, it is crucial that you take a systematic approach to identifying, mitigating and reviewing the compliance risks your business faces on an ongoing basis. Here are the six essential tips to take into account when evaluating your approach to compliance risk management.

1. Always start with a risk assessment

YOU can’t manage compliance risks if you don’t understand what your risks actually are. Without a thorough and scientifically justified risk assessment of all the elements that make up your compliance program; your policies, due diligence and tone at the top, will accomplish little if they do not address the right risks.

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to risk assessment. Compliance departments typically have limited resources; applying the same approach to the entire organization will inevitably lead to resources being spread too thin as they will end up being overallocated to low-risk markets. It is thus key to assess the risks faced by your business first in order to prioritize and address them appropriately.

2. Understand the latest enforcement policies

COMPLIANCE risks typically encompass a number of areas, including data protection—both personal and sensitive data—cyber security, fair competition and anti-corruption. As part of your risk assessment, you should ensure that you understand the requirements imposed by all applicable laws and regulations. However, beyond understanding the letter of the law, it is important that you stay up-to-date with the latest guidance and enforcement policies released by the enforcement agencies as prosecutors wield significant discretion when deciding whether to prosecute misconduct. Doing so could potentially be enormously beneficial if problems do arise, as you will have been able to tweak your compliance program to qualify for leniency.

3. Don’t forget to build a culture of ethics and compliance THE tone at the top of your organization is crucial. Se-

4. Ensure people feel free to speak up

A STRONG ethics and compliance culture in your organization is essential to ensure people feel free to speak up if they see misconduct in the organization. No matter how many procedures you have in place, employees will not feel free to blow the whistle on misconduct in the organization if they are not confident they can do so anonymously and without fear of retaliation.

Unfortunately, even the strongest internal controls can occasionally be circumvented by ill-intentioned employees. Once internal controls have failed, the only defense against the misconduct escalating further is a culture where employees are able to speak up. In an organization with a strong ethics and compliance culture, employees are your allies in ensuring that misconduct, when it does occur, is actually reported.

5. Continuously monitor and update your compliance efforts

AS your business is continuously changing, your compliance efforts should change in lock step. It would be a mistake to think of managing compliance risks as a one-time exercise of writing policies and setting up processes. You will only know whether your policies and procedures are effective if you evaluate them on a regular basis. Always ask yourself how you can best measure your impact. One key benefit of compliance technology is that it can give you insight into large amounts of data at a glance via useful dashboards and automatically generated reports. Again, a suitable software can be recommended.

6. Free up time and resources using automation

IT is evident that managing compliance risks is not an easy task; it requires managing lots of complicated processes, a myriad of stakeholders, as well as fostering a culture of ethics and compliance.

The complexity of compliance management and understanding that the safe journey into data protection needs automation inspired me to create a cooperation with Straits Interactive, a company in Singapore that has developed the online Data Protection Management System, to equip professionals, managers and executives with the competencies to perform their jobs in data protection. The DPMS is not only assisting in the compliance with the Philippine Data Privacy Act (DPA) but also with the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and privacy regulations in countries like Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, etc.

Comments are welcome, please contact me at Schumacher@eitsc.com.

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If you have any information / objection to the above mentioned application/s, please communicate with the Regional Director thru Employment Promotion and Workers Welfare (EPWW) Division with Telephone No. 400-6011.

ATTY. ANA C. DIONE, CPA REGIONAL DIRECTOR

A8 Tuesday, April 2, 2019

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Tuesday, April 2, 2019 A9

In the ad material of Notice of filing of Application for Alien Employment Permits published on March 29, 2019, the Company name and Address of Mr. Yang, Xin should have been read as FIRST GENPACT INFORMATION TECH INC. located at Unit G-16/M01, G19/M02 and G25, Solemare Parksuites Units Bradco Avenue, Tambo, Parañaque, Metro Manila and not as published. While in the application published on March 29, 2019, the applicant of WISHLAND SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGY INC. should have been read as Ms. Lin, Xiaojia and not as published. While in the application published on March 22, 2019, the applicant of WISHLAND SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGY INC. should have been read as Ms. Hou, Chengcheng and not as published. While in the application published on March 23, 2019, the applicant of POWERPORT DATA SYSTEM TECHNOLOGY INC. should have been read as Ms. Zhou, Yujia and not as published. While in the application published on March 19, 2019, the position of Mr. Li, Guang under UNBLOCKTECHNOLOGY CORPORATION should have been read as Information Processing Associate and not as published.

If you have any information/objection to the above mentioned application/s, please communicate with the Regional Director thru Employment Promotion and Workers Welfare (EPWW) Division with Telephone No. 400 6011.

ATTY. ANA C. DIONE, CPA REGIONAL DIRECTOR

A10 Tuesday, April 2, 2019 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

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editorial

Can’t blame celebrities

I

T comes as no surprise that many showbiz personalities are again running for political office in the 2019 midterm elections, given their successful campaigns in past polls. Indeed, many of those who are running are incumbent officials seeking reelection.

Candidates for local posts kicked off their campaigns on Friday, adding more showbiz personalities into the mix. A top-rating TV series had to kill four of its main characters because the actors playing them, being candidates, are banned from such TV appearances during the campaign period.

Eyeing a return to the Senate are Bong Revilla, Jinggoy Estrada and Lito Lapid, all multi-term senators in past Congresses. We won’t call them actorsturned politicians because they have been dual-citizens and veterans of both politics and showbiz for some time now, like the current Senate president, Vicente “Tito” Sotto III. Among other showbiz personalities running in May are singer Freddie Aguilar, also seeking a Senate seat; singer-dancer and former Presidential Communications Operations Office Assistant Secretary Mocha Uson, running as a party-list representative; Vilma Santos running for reelection as representative of the Sixth District of Batangas; Richard Yap running for congressman in Cebu; Richard Gomez, seeking reelection as mayor of Ormoc City; Isko Moreno, running for Manila City’s mayoral post; Jolo Revilla, son of Bong, running for his last term as vice governor of Cavite; his mom, Lani Mercado, seeking a second term as mayor of Bacoor City; and Edu Manzano, running for congressman in San Juan.

There are more on the list, too many to enumerate in this space, but you get the picture.

We shouldn’t blame actors and celebrities for running for political posts any more than we should blame politicians for using showbiz or posing like actors during their campaigns in an effort to win.

We have no doubt that there are actors-turned-politicians who take public service seriously and have done well. They’ve given up showbiz, at least during their stay in office, choosing to devote their time and energy to their government posts, making an effort to constantly improve themselves in the practice of public service.

Of course, there are also others miserably failing at it.

Our campaign season has always been very “showbiz” anyway. Celebrity endorsements and song and dance routines have always been part of Philippine political campaigns. Charisma, celebrity and cash tend to trump character and competence.

In ancient Rome, where the Senate originated, to be a celebrity and to be famous is to be known for one’s virtue, merit, accomplishments and exemplary deeds. They made portraits of famous individuals and coupled them with glowing testimonials that justified their right to good reputation and fame.

Nowadays, a celebrity is known merely for being well-known. Your being a celebrity does not depend on virtue or accomplishment. Indeed, somebody who has a million followers on social-media platforms like YouTube and Instagram can be a cyberspace celebrity.

Athletes and movie stars today are more popular than politicians, which is perhaps why politicians want to be in showbiz, so they could vie for the undiscriminating adulation of the public, and which is also why more actors and athletes want to run for public posts. They run because they can win.

Perhaps, we have a debased concept of celebrity. Our society has dissolved the tenuous bond between fame and merit. You look at the campaign season and see marketing gimmicks, an endless string of empty publicity. Campaign sorties are judged based on their “box-office draw.”

We are missing the essential revelation of critical issues and candidates’ characters. We are presented with a parade of hollow candidates whose entire reason for running seems confined to their glossy public personas.

And when the glow of the campaign wears off, and it is time to turn vague promises into reality, the real characters surface, and we often find that the winners fail to meet the benchmarks needed for good leaders.

As voters, we can only point our fingers at ourselves if we have come to confuse celebrity with competence and personality with performance.

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THE ENTREPRENEUR

T

HE tourism industry is one driver of economic growth that we should aggressively promote. Tourism directly creates jobs and significantly boosts the economy of a particular province or region.

Luring the foreign and local tourists to destinations such as Palawan, Bohol and Mindanao, however, will require modern gateways. The upgrade of our regional airports to international standards will hold the key to sustaining the tourism industry and dispersing economic activities for that matter.

The administration of President Duterte, fortunately, is moving ahead with the privatization of major regional airports in the country. As I’ve written earlier in this column, the upgrade of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Parañaque City and similar initiatives to enhance the capacity of regional gateways, such as Clark, Laoag, Legazpi, Cebu, Davao, Panglao (Bohol), Puerto Princesa, Iloilo, Bacolod and Laguindingan (Misamis Oriental), will fuel the growth in the

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countryside through the creation of additional livelihood opportunities.

Local and foreign tourists are easy to please as long as you offer them the amenities, such us clean toilets at the airport, a good road network to bring them fast to their destinations, convenient transportation modes and reasonably priced hotels or accommodations.

The local tourism industry will register a more vibrant growth if we can build the infrastructure requirements of the sector fast, starting with the privatization of our regional airports. ����������� The Philippine air-travel market expanded 10 percent in 2018 from the previous year, as more international and domestic passengers traveled to different destinations across the country.

Data from the Civil Aeronautics

Board recently showed that total passenger traffic increased in 2018 to 54.14 million from 49.18 million in 2017. Domestic passenger traffic, according to the CAB, reached 27.28 million last year, up 10 percent from 24.81 million in 2017.

The airline sector is feeling the tourism boom. Cebu ���������������� Pacific remained as the country’s leading domestic airline with 12.26 million passengers in 2018, up from 11.95 million in 2017.

Philippine Airlines (PAL), meanwhile, was the No. 1 airline in the international market with 7.44 million passengers in 2018, up from 6.88 million passengers in 2017. Cebu Pacific came in second with 5.02 million passengers last year, up from 4.74 million in 2017.

The upgraded Mactan-Cebu International Airport confirmed the increase in passenger volume when it posted a 14.6-percent rise in passenger volume in the first nine months of 2018. Latest available data show that operator GMR Megawide Cebu Airport Corp. accommodated 8.6 million passengers in January to September, up from 7.5 million passengers it handled in the same period last year. Domestic passengers accounted for 66 percent of the total, while international passengers shared the balance.

The upgrade of Mactan-Cebu International Airport and its increased

Trying to understand macroeconomics John Mangun

OUTSIDE THE BOX

Lorenzo M. Lomibao Jr., Gerard S. Ramos Lyn B. Resurreccion, Efleda P. Campos Dennis D. Estopace Ruben M. Cruz Jr. Angel R. Calso

MEMBER OF

Manny B. Villar

Jennifer A. Ng Vittorio V. Vitug

Online Editor Social Media Editor

Chairman of the Board & Ombudsman President VP-Finance VP Advertising Sales Advertising Sales Manager Group Circulation Manager

Modern PHL airports to lift growth higher

‘M

ACROECONOMICS is a branch of economics dealing with the performance, structure, behavior and decisionmaking of an economy as a whole. This includes regional, national and global economies”.

I was given a high compliment recently. A reader of my book said that I helped him better understand “macroeconomics.” I appreciate that. But when every day we are bombarded with government and private experts talking about the economy, you would think that everyone would have a basic understanding of the subject.

The truth is that in order to understand the “macro” all you have to do is look at the “micro.”

“Microeconomics is a branch of economics that studies the behavior of individuals and firms in making decisions regarding the allocation

of scarce resources and the interactions among these individuals and firms.” And each of us monitors the micro every day.

There are some basic truths that most of us know, which apparently escape the experts. For example, you never have to pay full price for a pair of name brand—Nike, Adidas, Fila or whatever—sports shoes. Pick any 30-day period and you’ll see one of the major brands having a good selection at 50 percent off regular price. “Inflation is screaming higher!” “Yeah, but I bought these shoes for P3,000 instead of P6,000.” That’s the way microeconomics works.

Real people shop for the best value. Maybe the experts do not. I like to shop. Well, no, I like to buy— I hate “shopping.” There is only one supermarket where I buy chicken; another for the best value in pork.

But the “pork store” is a total ripoff when it comes to vegetables.

The palengke is really the best place to buy fish and if you need meat in quantity for a special occasion. Unlike in the supermarket, palengke vendors are willing to give good discounts for large purchases to make sure they are sold out at the end of the day.

What do all these bits of microeconomic wisdom have to do with the macro picture? Everything, but the experts do not always successfully put the micro into the macro.

There is concern among the economy watchers that a slowdown in global growth will affect our exports. That is correct. However, our largest (58 percent) export products —electronic goods—do not make money. What this sector does is provide employment. Therefore, a small decrease in exports is not going to reduce employment and affect the economy. Other nations depend on

capacity to receive tourists has resulted in more flights coming in and going out. Sichuan Airlines increased flights to Chongqing, China, from four times weekly to daily starting in October, while PAL added more flights to Nagoya from three times to four times weekly.

Cebu Pacific, on the other hand, increased flights to Hong Kong from daily to 10 times weekly starting November 26, and flights to Tokyo Narita from four times weekly to daily starting December 1. Tiger Taiwan launched its Cebu to Taipei route with four times weekly flights on December 2.

Thus, we must sustain our infrastructure buildup to catch up with the influx of foreign tourists.

Data from the Department of Tourism show that international visitor arrivals hit an all-time high of 7.1 million in 2018, up 7.7 percent from the previous year, and in line with the medium-term target of 12 million arrivals by 2022.

The construction of new roads, railways and bridges to link towns and provinces, and the modern airports to be developed in our major cities will assure an inclusive economy—one that will give market access to nonurban centers and improve income in the countryside.

For comments, e-mail mbv.secretariat@gmail. com or visit www.mannyvillar.com.ph.

every crate of exported goods. If our manufacturing output is down—as it is now—companies start planning to hire fewer workers in the future.

But that is a bridge we cross when we get to it.

Individual consumer spending is highly elastic and fluid, which offsets most negatives in the macroeconomic picture. If chicken prices go higher, consumers buy pork instead. And interestingly, from my weekly trips to the market, vegetable, pork and chicken prices are just about the same as they were one year ago.

There is a major problem in understanding what the macro situation is. The economy is constantly caught between a rock and a hard place. The rock is the consumer who can adjust almost instantly to any short-term economic change. The hard place is the global economy, which is continuously acting like a drunken monkey holding an AK-47.

E-mail me at mangun@gmail.com. Visit my web site at www.mangunonmarkets.com. Follow me on Twitter @mangunonmarkets. PSE stockmarket information and technical analysis tools provided by the COL Financial Group Inc.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Opinion

‘Fool me twice, shame on me’

2019 ‘Cybersecurity Almanac: 100 Facts, Figures, Predictions And Statistics’

BusinessMirror

Manny F. Dooc

Cecilio T. Arillo

TELLTALES

DATABASE

Continued from A1

PartTwo

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N the other hand, there are candidates whose performance records are bereft of accomplishment, and yet they have the temerity to approach us again for our support. It pays to remember this adage: “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.” Others have even betrayed our trust by abusing their power and taking advantage of their position to amass more wealth and power. Are we that gullible to bring them back to power? If we do, we should not only resign from the ICC but from the human race, as well. We have no right to belong to the community of nations. nnn

SOME wannabes mistake the real world of politics and governance with the world of make-believe where they play roles as heroes. They think that their movie characters, which make millions of fans idolize them, can transcend beyond the silver screen.

We have tried them before, which encouraged more of them to join politics, but we should be more discerning and circumspect this time. I don’t belittle anyone, but actors should not just rely on their popularity and money. They should also possess qualifications and genuine interest to serve the public. I’m not looking for statesmen but people with a good heart and honest intentions. What we need are well-meaning politicians to run our bureaucracy and manage the affairs of the government. Statesmen are people who died a long time ago. Some actors and actresses have served in the government well and, in fact, many of them are still in office, and I am proud of them. These are the people who are true, who are for real, and they deserve our trust. nnn

AND speaking of politics, I got this joke from a friend whose name won’t be revealed because he still holds a very high and respectable position and this is not the kind of joke that he should be sharing with the public.

A little boy asks his dad, “What’s politics?” Dad says, “Well, son, let me try to explain it this way: I’m the breadwinner of the family, so let’s call me Capitalism. Your Mom, the administrator of the money, so we’ll call her the Government. We’re here to take care of your needs so we’ll call you the People. The nanny, we’ll consider her the Working Class. Now your baby brother, we’ll call him the Future. Now, think about that and see if that makes sense.”

So the little boy goes off to bed thinking about what Dad has said.

Later that night, he hears his baby brother crying and finds that the baby has severely soiled his diaper.

The little boy goes to his parents’ room and finds his mother fast asleep. Not wanting to wake her up, he goes to the nanny’s room. Finding the door locked, he peeks in the keyhole and sees his father in bed with the nanny. He gives up and goes back to bed.

The next morning, the little boy says to his father, “I think I understand politics now.” The father replies, “Good son, tell me in your own words what you think it is.” The boy promptly answers, “Well, while Capitalism is screwing the Working Class, the Government is asleep, the People are being ignored and the Future is in deep shit.”

I’m not looking for statesmen but people with a good heart and honest intentions. What we need are well-meaning politicians to run our bureaucracy and manage the affairs of the government. Some actors and actresses have served in the government well. These are the people who are true, who are for real, and they deserve our trust.

We will be in the same situation if we don’t vote wisely on May 13. nnn

AT no time since its creation under the 1987 Philippine Constitution has the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) been busier than during the term of President Duterte. He has already appointed five Justices, including two Chief Justices, during the first half of his term and a further opportunity to appoint eight more Associate Justices, including at least one more Chief Justice. Not since President Franklin Delano Roosevelt of the US have we seen a president packing the highest court with his appointees.

Before the JBC was embodied in our Constitution, the people had expressed vehement dissatisfaction over our judicial process and how our courts dispensed justice. They cited the incompetence and unprofessionalism of our judges and justices, which compromise the integrity and independence of the courts of the land. With its creation, we have high hopes that the JBC will improve the quality of the search and selection process of the members of the judiciary. More importantly as its own Vision Statement has proclaimed, the JBC shall become “an independent, efficient and a proactive sentinel of judicial service...unfettered by the shackles of friendship, relationship, or other considerations, thus vesting the cloak of Magistracy on those who will best dispense justice for all.”

My friends and brothers at the JBC have a herculean and Sisyphean task—to insulate the nomination and selection of the future members of the judiciary from any undue influence. I have the highest respect for you guys and I know you are equal to the task. I recall what President Harry Truman has said: “[W]henever you put a man to the Supreme Court, he ceases to be your friend.” I wish that is the case in our country, as well. In our own language, it means: “[Walang kamag-anak, walang kaeskuwela, walang kabarilan, walang kaibigan.]”

The Presidency is a lonely job.

Thus, President Truman once said: “If you need a friend in Washington, get a dog.”

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HE FBI reported that the Business E-mail Compromise, a.k.a. E-mail Account Compromise, a sophisticated scam targeting both businesses and individuals performing wire transfer payments, has cost more than $12.5 billion in losses over the past 4.5 years (as of its last tally through May 2018).

Less than half of companies globally are sufficiently prepared for a cyber-security attack, according to a Pricewaterhouse Coopers report that surveyed 3,000 business leaders from more than 80 countries.

Cybersecurity Ventures predicts that retail, oil and gas/energy and utilities, media and entertainment, legal, and education (K to 12 and higher education), will round out the top 10 industries for 2019 to 2022.

The five most cyber-attacked industries over the past five years are health care, manufacturing, financial services, the government and transportation.

ATM makers, banks and law enforcement have been scrambling to defend the 400,000 ATMs in the US against “jackpotting.” When cyber criminals take control of the machine, cash spews out of it like a Las Vegas jackpot. Jackpotting has been rising worldwide, though it’s unclear how much has been stolen because victims and police often do not disclose details.

Almost 50 percent of Ultra High Net Worth family wealth is being managed through family offices, which can be (cyber) targets due to the potential extortion value

attached to reputational threats.

Some 40 percent family offices lack cyber-security policy, 28 percent of these businesses have already been victims of cyber attacks.

Distributed Denial of Service attacks represent the dominant threat observed by the vast majority of service providers—and they can represent up to 25 percent of a country’s total Internet traffic while they are occurring. Globally the total number of DDoS attacks will double from 2017 figures, according to the Cisco Visual Networking Index.

Hacking tools and kits for cyber attacks, identity theft, malware, ransomware and other nefarious purposes have been available in online marketplaces for several years— price points starting as low as $1— which makes the cost of entry to a life of cybercrime nearly free.

Ransomware

RANSOMWARE damage costs are predicted to be 57X more in 2021 than they were in 2015. This makes ransomware the fastest-growing type of cyber crime. The US Department of Justice has described ransomware as a new business model for cybercrime, and a global phenomenon.

Bloomberg Opinion

Y

OU know the situation must be dire if a company’s shares spike after it confirms plans to dilute shareholders.

Japan Display Inc. (JDI), a maker of screens for the iPhone and other

gadgets, jumped as much as 14 percent on Monday. The catalyst was a brief statement from the company earlier in the day that said it was aiming to reach agreements this week to raise more than ¥110 billion ($990 million), including up to ¥80 billion from external parties through the issue of stocks and bonds.

That the company’s market value

Global ransomware damage costs are predicted to hit $20 billion in 2021, up from $11 billion in 2019, $5 billion in 2017 and just $325 million in 2015, according to Cybersecurity Ventures. Cybersecurity Ventures expects that businesses will fall victim to a ransomware attack every 11 seconds by 2021, up from every 14 seconds in 2019, and every 40 seconds in 2016. Ransomware attacks saw a 350-percent increase in 2018, according to one estimate.

Global spending on security awareness training for employees, one of the fastest-growing categories in the cyber-security industry, is predicted to reach $10 billion by 2027, up from around $1 billion in 2014. Much of this training is centered on combating phishing scams and ransomware attacks.

It’s widely reported that more than 90 percent of successful hacks and data breaches stem from phishing scams, e-mails crafted to lure their recipients to click a link, open a document or forward information to someone they shouldn’t. Training users how to detect and react to these threats is a critical ransomware deterrent.

The no more ransom online portal is now available in 35 different languages and carries 59 free decryption tools, covering some 91 ransomware families. So far, the tools provided on No More Ransom have managed to decrypt the infected computers of over 72,000 victims worldwide.

Crypto-jacking and SIM-swapping

CRYPTO-JACKING is illegally mining cryptocurrencies, and it’s gaining ground on ransomware as a favorite revenue stream for cyber criminals.

The problem is so severe that Google announced it would ban all extensions that involved cryptocurrency mining from its Chrome browser.

SIM-swapping is on the rise and

The new ‘one person corporation’ Atty. Jomel N. Manaig

TAX LAW FOR BUSINESS

M

OVES for the implementation of the recent amendments and revisions to the Corporation Code of the Philippines are now in full swing with the release of Notices from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) asking all interested parties for their comments or views on the proposed guidelines for (i) the establishment of a one person corporation and (ii) the conversion of an ordinary stock corporation into an OPC. One of the big changes to the present Code, courtesy of Republic Act 11232, otherwise known as the Revised Corporation Code of the Philippines, is the introduction of a new kind of corporation: the one person corporation. With the release of the proposed guidelines, we can now delve deeper into this new kind of corporation.

The OPC was created to make it easier and more inclusive for small businesses. It also enables for a faster process of incorporation as part of the government’s commitment to improve the ease of doing business in the country.

The Revised Corporation Code introduced several ways to make an OPC a viable option for small businesses: (i) the reduction of documentary requirements for incorporation

to only the Articles of Incorporation; (ii) removal of the minimum capital stock requirement; and (iii) conversion from ordinary stock corporation to an OPC, among others.

Despite all the attraction brought by the OPC, I invite you to take an elementary view into the OPC’s basic characteristic vis-à-vis the rudimentary tenets of our corporate laws and jurisprudence.

As the term would suggest, an OPC is a “corporation with a single stockholder, who can only be a natural person, trust or estate.” The proposed guidelines also expressly provides that the “single stockholder shall be the sole director and president of the OPC.” The OPC would then enjoy the freedom brought by a sole proprietorship with the added benefit of a

iPhone supplier’s share spike isn’t a good sign

By Tim Culpan

Tuesday, April 2, 2019 A11

is only ¥66 billion (it was four times higher back in 2015) shows the scale of this rescue refinancing. While investors may welcome this, it still doesn’t solve the fundamental problems at JDI, which has suffered five years of losses.

The shares had already spiked in December after reports that a group of Chinese companies were in talks to

buy as much as one-third of the digital display maker. The Japanese media reported over the weekend that the investment by a Taiwan-China consortium could close this week, prompting the statement from JDI and the relief rally from investors.

The details still need polishing, but it’s certain that existing shareholders

poses a major threat to cryptocurrency account holders.

Crypto-jacking was one of the fastest-growing cyber-security threats in 2018, with 25 percent of all businesses already falling victim to it.

A report from the Cyber Threat Alliance indicates a massive 459 percent increase in the rate of crypto-jacking, through which hackers hijack computer processing power to mine cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Monero.

Crypto-jacking participants can use more sophisticated means to evade detection and, according to one study, only around 50 percent of malicious attacks are detected.

On average, most crypto-jackers don’t earn much. One out of every 500 of the top million Alexa-ranked sites hosts crypto-jacking code. The 10 most profitable cryptomining sites identified generate between $119 to $340 per day, according to academics at Braunschweig University of Technology in Germany. It remains to be seen how many cryptojackers will revert to ransomware, and data theft and resale on the Dark Web for higher payouts.

SIM-swapping attacks have stolen tens-of-millions of dollars worth of cryptocurrency. The compromise involves tricking a mobile carrier employee into rerouting a subscriber’s phone number to a hacker’s SIM card. This enables the perpetrator to intercept the victim’s messages— including 2FA codes—which help locate the private keys used to access a cryptocurrency account. The first hacker convicted of SIM-swapping was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

To be continued To reach the writer, e-mail cecilio.arillo@ gmail.com.

separate corporate entity—a “oneman show” in a corporate setting.

This concentration of corporate power would necessarily yield absolute control to the single stockholder.

However, in the famous words of Spiderman’s Uncle Ben: with great power, comes great responsibility.

Chief among the basic principles of corporate law is the “doctrine of separate corporate personality” wherein a corporation is treated as a separate and distinct entity from its stockholder. A concomitant doctrine to it is the “doctrine of piercing the veil of corporate entity.” In the piercing the veil doctrine, the separate corporate entity is disregarded and the corporation is treated as mere association of persons, or in the case of two corporations, merge them into one.

Piercing the veil of corporate entity requires the court to see through the protective shroud that exempts its stockholders from liabilities that ordinarily, they could be subject to, or distinguishes one corporation from a seemingly separate one, were it not for the existing corporate fiction.

Our judicial system is replete with cases tackling the doctrine of piercing the veil of corporate entity. In those cases, the overriding factor in piercing the veil or not is of control, or lack thereof, exercised by the stockholders/directors. Where one corporation is so organized and controlled and its affairs are conducted so that

it is, in fact, a mere instrumentality or adjunct of the other, the fiction of the corporate entity of the “instrumentality” may be disregarded.

In the case of an OPC, it is without doubt that the control is with the single stockholder. To an extent, the OPC is but a mere instrumentality or adjunct of the single stockholder. By applying the case doctrines, a curious situation presents itself: how strict would the doctrine be applied to OPCs? The control necessary to invoke the doctrine is not majority or even complete stock control, but such domination of finances, policies and practices. The single stockholder would, in effect, have such character of control. Does it mean that the doctrine would automatically apply to him?

With all the potential surge of applications for incorporation of OPCs, let us hope that our would-be-incorporators include this small concern in their decision-making.

will have their stakes diluted. They don’t mind, though, because that outcome seems better than death.

Unfortunately, we’re still pretty much in the dark about what JDI—which was created back in 2012 by combining the small and midsize LCD operations of Toshiba Corp., Hitachi Ltd. and Sony Corp.—plans to do once it has the new

financing in place. I argued back in February that it needs a change of leadership as much as it needs money. The company is struggling with oversupply, slowing demand for iPhones, macroeconomic headwinds and trailing technology after missing the boat on OLED—the technology that Apple Inc. is using today on its smartphones.

The author is a senior associate of Du-Baladad and Associates Law Offices (BDB Law), a memberfirm of WTS Global.

The article is for general information only and is not intended, nor should be construed as a substitute for tax, legal or financial advice on any specific matter. Applicability of this article to any actual or particular tax or legal issue should be supported therefore by a professional study or advice. If you have any comments or questions concerning the article, you may e-mail the author at jomel.manaig@ bdblaw.com.ph or call 403-2001 local 370.

2nd Front Page BusinessMirror

A12 Tuesday, April 2, 2019

www.businessmirror.com.ph

PHL files protest over China moves in Pag-Asa

By Bernadette D. Nicolas

T

@BNicolasBM

HE Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has already filed a diplomatic protest over the reported presence of Chi-

nese vessels around the Pag-Asa Island (Thitu Island), Malacañang said on Monday.

Reports circulated over the weekend that the military had monitored in the area hundreds of Chinese fishing vessels, which

are considered as Chinese maritime militia and are occasionally complemented by the Chinese Coast Guard to sustain Beijing’s assertive presence in the vicinity of the sandbars.

“I understand we have already

issued a diplomatic protest per the Western Command. The DFA has already made a diplomatic protest over it,” said Presidential Spokesman and Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador S. Panelo in a Palace briefing on Monday.

However, Panelo could not exactly state the date when the diplomatic protest was filed, as he has yet to ask the DFA about the contents of the protest.

Despite the filing of the diplomatic protest, the Palace also disputed the report that “over 600 have been circling Pag-Asa Island,” calling it “exaggerated” and using “alarming language.”

Citing infor mation from Vice Admira l Rene Med ina of the Western Command forwarded to him by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, the Pa lace spokesman said that the total number of Chinese vessels “stationed ” at Pag-Asa Island is 275—not over 600 as reported. “If you say it’s circling, then it would appear that they are intending to do something, but if you are stationary, maybe you are just watching or looking,” Panelo said.

Nonetheless, he ad d e d , “a ny t h i n g that concer ns the security of the Philippines will always be a concern.”

Panelo vowed to ra ise t he issue of

the presence of Chinese vessels around the island with the Chinese Ambassador Zhao Jianhua, who was scheduled to make a courtesy call on him.

“No, we will ask them first, why.

First, if they acknowledge such fact as determined by us; number two, ask them why they are doing it; number three, we will politely ask them not to,” he said.

‘Just fishermen, not armed at all’

PRIOR to his courtesy call on Panelo, Ambassador Zhao said they are cooperating with the Filipino side to verify the reports, including the number of vessels in the area, but as far as he knows, these vessels are “not armed at all,” noting that these were actually manned

by Chinese fishermen.

“Well, as far that I know, there are fishermen from both sides, but whether...the number is 600, whether they are surrounding the islands that you have people there, it is really up to further investigation and verification,” Zhao told reporters in a chance interview.

Still, he gave assurances that there is no cause for concern as the issue is being handled diplomatically. “But we have been h a nd l i ng t h i s i ssue t h rough friendly and diplomatic channels so you don’t have to worry about whether there would be any kind of outbreak of conflict or not. You don’t have to worry about [that],” Zhao added.

See “Pag-Asa,” A2

Fuel prices down, but cooking gas price up

O

IL firms will roll back the price of petroleum products on Tuesday, April 2.

In separate announcements, the companies said they will reduce the price of gasoline by P0.10 per liter, diesel

by P0.30 per liter and kerosene by P0.20 per liter.

Seaoil Philippines and Eastern Petroleum will implement their price reduction at 12:01 a.m.

PTT Philippines, Total Philippines, Phoenix Petroleum, Pilipinas Shell and PetroGazz will implement their price adjustments at 6 a.m. of April 2.

Other oil firms will follow suit. Most oil firms adjust their prices every Tuesday morning.

For the past seven weeks, local pump prices have been on the rise, mainly due to recent world events, including the continuing production decline by members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, as well as by countries outside of Opec. The price of cooking gas, meanwhile, increased last Monday.

Petron said it implemented a P1.25-per-kilogram increase in LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) on Monday. “This reflects the international contract price of LPG for the month of April,” it said. Lenie Lectura

Govt fully awards all tenors in T-bills auction on slower inflation rise

T

HE Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) raised on Monday a total of P15 billion in its Treasury bills (T-bills) auction on the back of the downward trajectory of the country’s inflation rate.

National Treasurer Rosalia V. de Leon said the auction committee awarded all tenors in its latest T-bills auction as a declines in rates were posted for the government security.

“Again we see that, given the expectation of moderation in inflation for March, so the appetite continues to be on the long end; even for the short-end of the curve,” de Leon said.

The BTr awarded the full P4 billion on offer for the 91-day tenor with tenders for the security amounting to P8.808 billion.

The average annual rate for the security was capped at 5.635 percent, lower by 15.2 basis points from the 5.787-percent rate last auction. Tenders for the 182-day T-bill amounted to P6.772 billion with the auction committee fully awarding the P5 billion on offer.

The average annual rate for the security of 5.958 percent is higher by 3.1 basis points from the 5.927 percent last auction. The 364-day tenor was fully awarded with P6 billion as tenders reached P10.161 billion. The rate for the security was capped at 5.961 percent, which was 8.3 basis points lower compared to the 6.044-percent rate last auction.

Continued on A2

Editor: Efleda P. Campos

Companies BusinessMirror

Tuesday, April 2, 2019

B1

Solon urges review of water supply contracts nationwide

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By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

@joveemarie

OTING the expansion of Metro Manila water concessionaires to provincial water districts, a member of the House Committee on Metro Manila Development on Monday asked the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) to scrutinize and review the contracts of water concessionaires in the country.

Bagong Henerasyon Party-list Rep. Bernadette Herrera-Dy said PCC should regulate the provision of water services nationwide and guard the public against monopolies.

“Many are unaware that Manila Water and Maynilad also operate outside Metro Manila. They have joint ventures in other water districts,” Herrera-Dy said.

Subic container port installs more stackers to boost capacity

S

UBIC BAY FREEPORT—The Subic Bay International Terminal Corp. (SBITC), operator of the Subic Container Terminals 1 and 2, has acquired four additional reach stackers to ensure efficient port operations and optimize container yard space here.

The installation of reach stackers is part of the terminal operator’s initiative to further enhance its capacity in handling unladen containers from the surge of imports, after being assigned as evacuation center for empty containers last year, the SBITC said in a statement.

“Our investments in global standard port equipment and systems help in maintaining robust operations in NCT 1 and 2 to meet the needs and demands of our partners.

These new stackers firm up our position as a competitive international gateway for industries in the freeport area, and the North and Central Luzon region,” the SBITC added.

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma welcomed the private terminal operator’s efforts in boosting the capacity of Subic as a major transshipment hub.

She said the SBMA started last year the rehabilitation of roads leading to the Subic Container Terminal and other major piers in the Subic Freeport in order to increase portrelated activities here.

“Together with SBITC and the Bureau of Customs, we have also set up One-Stop Shop document processing in the terminal to further enhance efficiency and customer service in the port,” Eisma added.

SBITC said the reach stackers arrived at the terminal in March and will be fully operational by April.

Each stacker will have a load capacity of 45,000 kilograms and can stack up to five containers high.

The container terminal currently utilizes seven reach stackers for yard and vessel operations. The SBITC said there will be two more improvements within the first half of 2019. Henry Empeño

She asked the PCC to formulate a water resources anti-monopoly framework to regulate the contracts pertaining to water services throughout the country.

“In the absence of an existing national water regulatory commission, the PCC is the closest thing we have to a government agency that can somehow be a countercheck on the

business practices of the powerful water concessionaires,” Herrera-Dy in a statement.

Herrera-Dy said Maynilad also covers the cities of Cavite, Bacoor and Imus, and the towns of Kawit, Noveleta and Rosario. Maynilad is also in Cagayan de Oro because of the privatization of that city’s water services, according to the House assistant majority leader.

Herrera-Dy said Manila Water has joint ventures with the water districts of Boracay, Tanauan in Batangas, Pagsanjan and Victoria in Laguna, Calbayog in Samar, San Jose in Nueva Ecija, Calinog, Lambunao, Ilagan City, San Fabian, Manaoag, and Calasiao in Pangasinan, as well as in Bulacan and Leyte.

She said the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Center of the National Economic and Development Authority is bidding out two Pampanga Water Supply Projects and the Baggao Water Supply Project.

“I would not be surprised if either or both Manila Water and Maynilad are participating or will do so in the

bidding for these PPP water projects,” Herrera-Dy said.

Herrera-Dy is the author of House Bill 517 seeking the creation of a Water Regulatory Commission.

“Some would say the Local Water Utilities Administration has the current regulatory mandate, but a closer look at Presidential Decree 198 on the LWUA powers will show this agency has zero authority on monopolistic behavior. The water districts just furnish the LWUA copies of their joint venture agreements," the lawmaker said.

The charter provisions of the LWUA are contained in Title III of the Provincial Water Utilities Act of 1973.

“Back in 1973, there was no Manila Water and no Maynilad, but now, 43 years later, these two water firms are powerful forces. There are no other companies like them.

They are effectively a duopoly in the same way that Globe and Smart are in the telecommunications sector, and their parent companies are the same owners,” she said.

Tadeco electric substation upgraded to meet spike in industry demand

By Manuel T. Cayon Mindanao Bureau Chief

D

AVAO CITY—The electric power substation in the Tagum Agricultural Development Co. (Tadeco) has been upgraded to back the multimillion-peso projects going on or in the pipeline in Panabo City, the Aboitiz-owned Davao Light and Power Co. Inc. announced.

Davao Light said it has doubled the current capacity of the Tadeco substation in Panabo City, from 15 megavolt ampere capacity to 33 MVA. The upgrading is part of the company’s “rolling out series of refurbishment on its substations to cater to the current and future electricity needs of its franchise area.”

It said the power transformer of the Tadeco substation was up-

graded last week and has been operating at the upgraded version. It said it has also installed a modern protection equipment to increase power reliability.

The Tadeco substation would help address the growing power demand of the customers in the Davao del Norte area of Davao Light’s franchise.

“The completion of the Tadeco substation capacity upgrade would mean more reliable and continuous power supply with the thriving economy that the Davao del Norte area has such as Panabo City. This is Davao Light’s commitment to advancing business and communities,” Davao Light Director, President and COO Rodger S. Velasco said.

The Tadeco substation's new 33 MVA power transformer was energized and loaded on March 10.

The substation serves mostly

the far-flung areas of Davao del Norte and the Paquibato and Paradise Embac of Davao City. The substation provides the necessary electric requirement of Tadeco, the country’s largest banana plantation and the other plantations of the province.

The Tadeco substation has logged in an average peak demand of 10.5 megawatts. However, the Panabo City government disclosed it was negotiating multimillion-peso projects to boost its industry’s income, with publicprivate partnerships to develop its market, and tourism projects on its mangrove forest and marine cultural park, as well as a forest ecosystem park.

Its economic processing zone area developed by the Anflocor group has reported increasing interest from Chinese and other foreign investors.

2018 revenues of City of Dreams Manila fall 5% to $612.9M

By VG Cabuag @villygc

M

ELCO Resorts and Entertainment (Philippines) Corp. on Monday said revenues of the City of Dreams (COD) Manila slightly fell last year on lower VIP gaming volume.

The company that operates and owns half of the integrated resort and casino said in its disclosure that net revenues last year fell more than 5 percent to $612.9 million (around P31.87 billion), from the previous year's $649.3 million (P33.76 billion).

Adjusted property earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (Ebitda) rose 14 percent to $269.2 million, from the previous year’s $235 million.

“Property Ebitda is used by management as the primary measure of the Melco Entertainment Group’s operating performance and to compare our performance with that of our competitors,” it said.

VIP rolling chip volume fell 3 percent to $11.09 billion, from the previous year’s $11.5 billion, while win rate rose 3.2 percent from the previous year’s 3.1 percent.

Mass market table drop rose 14 percent to $787.3 million, from the previous year's $686.9 million, while hold percentage rose to 31.7 percent from the previous 29.6 percent.

Volume from the gaming machines increased 16 percent to $3.54 billion, from the previous $3.09 billion, while win rate was slightly down at 5.5 percent from the previous year’s 5.8 percent.

Melco Resorts and Entertainment Ltd. earlier said it expects stiff competition in Entertainment City, the country’s main gambling site where four major integrated resort and casinos are located.

Lawrence Ho, the company’s chairman, said they are more cautious on its Philippine operations, COD Manila.

“In the fourth quarter of 2018, COD Manila delivered its 12 consecutive quarters of luck-adjusted Ebitda growth. However, with the competition in and around Entertainment City, we’re more cautious about 2019 and beyond,” he said in a transcript of the company’s earnings call in February.

COD Manila had a net revenue of $155.2 million during the fourth quarter of the year ending December, down 7 percent from the previous year’s $167.5 million.

It generated adjusted Ebitda of $67.9 million for the period, up 26 percent from the previous year’s $53.8 million. The year-on-year increase in adjusted Ebitda was mainly attributable to better performance in all gaming segments, it said.

FIRM SUBMITS UNSOLICITED PROPOSAL TO DEVELOP SAYAK AIRPORT IN SIARGAO

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

T

HE Phi l ippine A ir por t Ground Support Solutions Inc. has submitted an unsolicited proposal for the development of the Sayak Airport in Siargao to the Department of Transportation (DOTr).

However, the proposal seems to be off tangent from the government’s plan to relocate the airport to a better site.

“They submitted the proposal for the operations, maintenance and development of Siargao Airport on February 21. It’s still being evaluated,” Transportation Undersecretary Manuel Tamayo said in a chance interview.

He noted, however, that the proposal is not in line with the govern-

ment’s plan to develop a new airport in a new site.

“There are a lot of limitations with Siargao because of the mountains.

That’s why we are looking into a new site as far as Siargao is concerned,” Tamayo said. “So their proposal is a bit offtrack.”

The government, he added, has already allocated P400 million to develop a feasibility study and for site acquisition.

“It will be bigger and longer,” Tamayo said.

He added, however, that the government is open to tapping the official development assistance programs of South Korea and Japan for the construction of the airport. It is also open to making it a public-private partnership deal.

“We’re open to anything,” he said.

IEE marks 50 years with bullish prospects

A

EARTH HOUR AT SM SAN MATEO Rizal Gov. Rebecca Ynares (third from left) urges her constituents to support the government’s

environmental conservation efforts, led the ceremonial switch off for Earth Hour at SM City San Mateo on Saturday, March 30. Featured behind the group is a lantern-inspired wall art made of recycled materials, including used plastic bags, cardboards and driftwood to promote upcycling not only on Earth Hour, but year-round.

S it turns 50 this year, International Elevator & Equipment Inc. (IEE) said on Monday it seeks to retain its leadership in the vertical-transportation system on the back of massive infrastructure and realestate developments across the Philippines.

A fter their media br iefing held in Taguig City, IEE President Ramoncito A. Ocampo told the BusinessMirror they currently hold 40 percent of the upwardconveyance market in the country “We have been a market leader since 1979,” he said of their consistent domain of the vertical-lift sector. “We want to maintain that because the market is growing.”

As to the company’s other businesses, Ocampo conceded their

overall market share is “not so big.”

In air-conditioning, for instance, he said they account for only 7 percent of the split-type and 30 percent of the variable refrigerant flow or VRF model.

“We’re developing our chillier market now,” Ocampo said. “ T hat ’s one of our potentia l growth [areas].”

For generator, he noted they have a 30-percent share of the total pie since they only market 1,000 Kilovolt-amp (kVA) diesel-powered products, mainly for big buildings.

“We want to increase our market share [in both categories],” Ocampo said, adding that marketing, promotion and increase in dealerships as the initiatives they consider to achieve their growth targets. Roderick L. Abad

B2

Companies BusinessMirror

Tuesday, April 2, 2019

PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

April 1, 2019

Net Foreign Stocks Bid Ask Open High Low Close Volume Value Trade (Peso) Buy (Sell) FINANCIALS

ASIA UNITED 58 58.7 58 58 58 58 3000 174000 BDO UNIBANK 130 131 134 134 130 130 2206740 289511551 110962391 BANK PH ISLANDS 83.45 83.5 84.35 85.2 83.4 83.5 765240 64172096.5 -10660232 CHINABANK 26.85 26.9 26.9 26.95 26.85 26.9 43600 1172550 -199030 EAST WEST BANK 12.2 12.3 12.16 12.32 12.16 12.2 189400 2312696 -1152522 METROBANK 77.3 77.8 79.85 79.85 76.65 77.3 2907040 225,417,978.5( 51,898,481.4996) PB BANK 13.8 13.98 13.86 13.86 13.86 13.86 200 2772 PBCOM 21.35 21.6 21.9 21.9 21.25 21.25 32300 688735 PHIL NATL BANK 56.8 56.9 57 57 56.6 56.8 1391770 79085145 -1129108 PSBANK 57.5 58.3 57.85 57.85 57.5 57.5 3420 196991.5 RCBC 26.55 26.6 26.7 26.7 26.5 26.55 51900 1380910 -337290 SECURITY BANK 170.7 172 172.9 172.9 169.7 172 116440 19919648 6882614 UNION BANK 61.5 62 60.85 62 60.85 61.5 540 33011 BRIGHT KINDLE 1.31 1.38 1.3 1.38 1.3 1.38 113000 151300 BDO LEASING 2.22 2.26 2.27 2.27 2.22 2.27 4000 9030 COL FINANCIAL 18.98 19 19.2 19.2 19.1 19.2 32400 620664 -113044 FIRST ABACUS 0.6 0.68 0.69 0.69 0.69 0.69 2000 1380 FERRONOUX HLDG 4.18 4.24 4.25 4.25 4.18 4.24 105000 443660 IREMIT 1.4 1.43 1.4 1.4 1.4 1.4 5000 7000 MEDCO HLDG 0.445 0.465 0.465 0.465 0.45 0.45 20000 9150 NTL REINSURANCE 0.93 0.95 0.92 0.95 0.9 0.93 486000 447480 -46250 PHIL STOCK EXCH 195.6 197 198.5 199.6 195.5 197 4250 845109 SUN LIFE 1800 1845 1800 1800 1800 1800 10 18000

INDUSTRIAL ALSONS CONS 1.42 1.43 1.46 1.46 1.4 1.43 958000 1348860 -1430 ABOITIZ POWER 35.2 35.3 35.4 35.4 34.7 35.2 555100 19422895 -2400640 BASIC ENERGY 0.235 0.24 0.244 0.244 0.235 0.244 50000 11930 FIRST GEN 21.25 21.4 21.7 21.7 21 21.4 301200 6435340 3810865 FIRST PHIL HLDG 79 79.05 79.25 79.4 79 79 70090 5554619 -2105066.5 MERALCO 385 385.6 380 385 375 385 243600 93354950 35989990 MANILA WATER 23.85 23.9 23.25 24.15 23.25 23.9 1200800 28621700 -17154370 PETRON 6.41 6.42 6.49 6.5 6.37 6.42 821900 5277758 -282033 PETROENERGY 4.2 4.28 4.15 4.28 4.15 4.28 190000 800840 -25290 PHINMA ENERGY 1.41 1.42 1.43 1.47 1.41 1.41 9977000 14337060 -18040 PHX PETROLEUM 12.02 12.2 11.86 12.3 11.86 12.2 137200 1663858 -4840 PILIPINAS SHELL 47.9 48 49.4 49.65 47.6 47.9 1495100 72056900 -5165480 SPC POWER 6.86 6.9 6.86 7 6.85 6.9 135000 930927 AGRINURTURE 14.8 14.88 14.88 14.92 14.78 14.88 355000 5272568 936006 CENTURY FOOD 15.62 15.64 15.66 15.66 15.6 15.62 1424800 22283176 -114238 DEL MONTE 6.1 6.18 6.2 6.2 6 6.18 14500 88330 24200 DNL INDUS 11.28 11.32 11.24 11.36 11.2 11.32 482800 5431504 -4449838 EMPERADOR 7.25 7.35 7.25 7.35 7.24 7.35 11400 82665 -35506 SMC FOODANDBEV 105 106 106 106 103.3 105 235630 24727011 -17873064 ALLIANCE SELECT 0.94 0.95 0.94 0.97 0.92 0.94 5517000 5201280 293890 GINEBRA 28.1 29 28 29.15 28 29.15 506400 14209465 JOLLIBEE 313.8 315 317 317.4 311.8 315 436040 136790566 31183656 MACAY HLDG 10.64 10.98 10.62 11.2 10.6 10.64 21400 233216 MAXS GROUP 14.32 14.34 13.82 14.4 13.82 14.34 4773600 67412490 256088 MG HLDG 0.2 0.202 0.209 0.209 0.2 0.2 1890000 384280 PEPSI COLA 1.39 1.4 1.41 1.41 1.38 1.4 1248000 1740470 654150 SHAKEYS PIZZA 12 12.1 12 12.2 12 12.1 1436900 17453888 -8240018 ROXAS AND CO 1.71 1.72 1.74 1.74 1.71 1.72 106000 182210 RFM CORP 4.71 4.75 4.7 4.75 4.7 4.75 100000 474950 -470250 ROXAS HLDG 2.48 2.5 2.5 2.5 2.5 2.5 1000 2500 SWIFT FOODS 0.128 0.129 0.128 0.128 0.128 0.128 70000 8960 UNIV ROBINA 151.9 152.3 151.9 152.6 151.6 152.3 988100 150173596 2874656 VITARICH 1.69 1.7 1.72 1.72 1.68 1.7 2183000 3714580 VICTORIAS 2.51 2.58 2.5 2.5 2.5 2.5 37000 92500 92500 CEMEX HLDG 2.62 2.63 2.62 2.65 2.57 2.63 4977000 12940850 -233470 DAVINCI CAPITAL 5.51 6 5.51 5.51 5.51 5.51 100 551 EAGLE CEMENT 15.82 15.9 16 16 15.82 15.82 124700 1973368 -98102 EEI CORP 9.3 9.33 9.21 9.4 9.2 9.3 139900 1297989 50845 HOLCIM 10.26 10.28 10.5 10.5 10.24 10.26 1654300 17191812 -4190286 MEGAWIDE 21.7 21.75 21.5 21.95 21.3 21.75 4011600 87569595 33831590 PHINMA 8.82 9.06 9 9 9 9 98700 888300 TKC METALS 0.97 0.98 1 1.03 0.97 0.97 991000 971980 -148320 VULCAN INDL 1.07 1.1 1.15 1.15 1.04 1.1 6015000 6435760 194970 CHEMPHIL 110 118.7 110 110 110 110 9260 1018600 CROWN ASIA 1.88 1.9 1.9 1.9 1.88 1.88 114000 215570 EUROMED 1.64 1.78 1.64 1.64 1.64 1.64 6000 9840 PRYCE CORP 5.6 6 5.79 5.8 5.6 5.6 180800 1018250 -841020 CONCEPCION 42.9 43.95 42.9 42.9 42.9 42.9 6000 257400 -0 GREENERGY 2.42 2.43 2.42 2.43 2.37 2.42 5816000 13953350 1097280 INTEGRATED MICR 12.44 12.46 12.5 12.6 12.44 12.44 623600 7780308 3001112 IONICS 1.75 1.77 1.72 1.77 1.72 1.77 170000 297180 1740 SFA SEMICON 1.29 1.32 1.29 1.34 1.28 1.33 125000 161690 CIRTEK HLDG 28.75 29.45 29.4 29.45 28.75 29.45 100600 2935825 -1292855

HOLDING & FRIMS

ABACORE CAPITAL 0.61 0.62 0.62 0.62 0.61 0.62 6991000 4295090 ASIABEST GROUP 20 20.25 20.25 20.5 19.96 20.25 42400 850109 AYALA CORP 927 930 940 941.5 925 930 129060 119954720 ABOITIZ EQUITY 59.8 59.85 58.9 59.9 58.75 59.8 493490 29367591.5 ALLIANCE GLOBAL 15.62 15.66 16.12 16.12 15.6 15.66 5983300 93832466 ANSCOR 6.5 6.55 6.5 6.5 6.5 6.5 209700 1363050 ANGLO PHIL HLDG 0.84 0.85 0.81 0.87 0.8 0.85 5116000 4277700 ATN HLDG A 1.38 1.4 1.43 1.43 1.36 1.38 7495000 10450060 ATN HLDG B 1.39 1.4 1.42 1.42 1.4 1.4 241000 338750 COSCO CAPITAL 7.62 7.63 7.67 7.68 7.6 7.62 2547000 19407273 DMCI HLDG 11.88 12.02 12.02 12.06 11.88 11.88 2806900 33615228 FILINVEST DEV 15.34 15.4 15.08 15.5 15 15.4 2046600 31508114 FORUM PACIFIC 0.231 0.24 0.23 0.24 0.23 0.24 100000 23100 GT CAPITAL 910 915 938 948 897 915 217330 198434810 HOUSE OF INV 6.95 7 6.95 7 6.91 7 126400 884280 JG SUMMIT 64.2 64.75 63.7 64.75 62 64.75 854130 54509763.5 JOLLIVILLE HLDG 5.21 5.84 5.36 5.36 5.36 5.36 100 536 LODESTAR 0.51 0.53 0.55 0.55 0.51 0.53 1220000 637140 LOPEZ HLDG 5.22 5.25 5.29 5.35 5.22 5.25 346900 1831661 LT GROUP 15.7 15.9 16.2 16.2 15.58 15.7 3295300 51665082 MABUHAY HLDG 0.56 0.57 0.55 0.57 0.55 0.56 838000 462920 METRO PAC INV 4.71 4.74 4.85 4.85 4.7 4.71 29455000 139206460 PACIFICA 0.044 0.045 0.041 0.044 0.039 0.044 109000000 4633300 PRIME ORION 2.97 2.98 2.97 2.98 2.95 2.97 638000 1885310 SOLID GROUP 1.33 1.35 1.33 1.35 1.32 1.35 165000 218700 SYNERGY GRID 420 430 420 420 420 420 1500 630000 SM INVESTMENTS 925 927 936.5 949.5 922.5 925 249330 230910615 SAN MIGUEL CORP 172.6 173.5 174 174 172.3 173.5 287270 49612995 SOC RESOURCES 1.19 1.2 1.07 1.23 1.07 1.2 20465000 23701610 TOP FRONTIER 260.4 268 270 270 260.4 270 2400 642356 WELLEX INDUS 0.234 0.24 0.239 0.245 0.23 0.24 4050000 951430 ZEUS HLDG 0.38 0.385 0.37 0.385 0.365 0.38 14320000 5398950

PROPERTY ARTHALAND CORP 0.82 0.83 0.83 0.83 0.82 0.82 447000 366950 ANCHOR LAND 10.22 10.9 10.22 10.22 10.2 10.22 17100 174722 AYALA LAND 44.9 45 44.85 45.15 44.7 45 17106900 769517710 ARANETA PROP 1.93 1.99 1.93 1.93 1.93 1.93 1000 1930 BELLE CORP 2.32 2.34 2.34 2.36 2.31 2.32 493000 1146380 A BROWN 0.77 0.78 0.78 0.8 0.78 0.78 949000 740890 CITYLAND DEVT 0.93 0.94 0.94 0.94 0.94 0.94 12000 11280 CROWN EQUITIES 0.24 0.242 0.243 0.243 0.239 0.242 850000 203920 CEBU HLDG 6.35 6.54 6.59 6.59 6.54 6.54 58400 384025 CEB LANDMASTERS 4.22 4.25 4.28 4.34 4.25 4.25 358000 1537620 CENTURY PROP 0.54 0.55 0.54 0.55 0.53 0.55 17734000 9615330 CYBER BAY 0.39 0.41 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.4 500000 200000 DOUBLEDRAGON 23.5 23.6 22.8 23.75 22.8 23.5 1510000 35401810 DM WENCESLAO 12.06 12.08 11.6 12.26 11.6 12.06 4284400 51874076 EMPIRE EAST 0.495 0.5 0.495 0.51 0.495 0.5 1448000 723745 FILINVEST LAND 1.5 1.51 1.54 1.54 1.5 1.5 8030000 12071250 GLOBAL ESTATE 1.29 1.3 1.33 1.33 1.27 1.29 1860000 2401270 8990 HLDG 12.8 12.9 12.88 12.94 12.76 12.9 4433400 57137960 PHIL INFRADEV 1.58 1.6 1.69 1.69 1.55 1.6 4690000 7536010 CITY AND LAND 0.83 0.87 0.83 0.87 0.83 0.87 11000 9170 MEGAWORLD 5.73 5.74 5.8 5.8 5.7 5.73 12059500 69250716 MRC ALLIED 0.38 0.385 0.39 0.39 0.38 0.385 4530000 1728450 PHIL ESTATES 0.46 0.485 0.485 0.485 0.465 0.485 590000 275700 PRIMEX CORP 2.63 2.67 2.68 2.68 2.62 2.67 125000 331780 ROBINSONS LAND 24.15 24.5 24.25 24.5 24.15 24.5 1077200 26210520 ROCKWELL 2.01 2.05 2.07 2.07 2.01 2.01 26000 53560 SHANG PROP 3 3.08 3.09 3.09 3 3.08 66000 199310 STA LUCIA LAND 1.53 1.55 1.55 1.55 1.53 1.55 268000 413310 SM PRIME HLDG 39.05 39.3 39.9 39.9 38.9 39.05 5393400 210937750 STARMALLS 6.52 6.67 6.7 6.74 6.51 6.52 220400 1450704 SUNTRUST HOME 0.75 0.78 0.75 0.78 0.75 0.78 366000 275570 PTFC REDEV CORP 52 57 52 59 52 59 1550 84080 VISTA LAND 7.13 7.24 7.24 7.27 7.13 7.24 2827300 20363374

SERVICES ABS CBN 19.92 19.98 20.55 20.55 19.88 19.92 599500 11947029 GMA NETWORK 5.84 5.85 5.88 5.98 5.84 5.85 1440600 8485863 MANILA BULLETIN 0.57 0.58 0.58 0.59 0.57 0.57 1711000 980730 GLOBE TELECOM 1912 1918 1938 1950 1910 1918 14910 28596550 PLDT 1105 1111 1139 1139 1102 1105 82710 91730685 APOLLO GLOBAL 0.041 0.042 0.043 0.043 0.042 0.042 10000000 421000 DFNN INC 6.8 6.81 6.9 6.9 6.75 6.81 33800 232318 ISLAND INFO 0.129 0.131 0.136 0.136 0.127 0.131 4440000 571800 ISM COMM 4.81 4.87 5.25 5.25 4.8 4.81 13108000 64260955 NOW CORP 2.48 2.49 2.55 2.56 2.48 2.48 744000 1865980 TRANSPACIFIC BR 0.405 0.41 0.41 0.415 0.405 0.405 3260000 1329350 PHILWEB 2.69 2.7 2.69 2.72 2.68 2.69 474000 1280310 2GO GROUP 12.2 12.5 12.3 12.5 12.2 12.5 20100 246850 ASIAN TERMINALS 15.76 16.3 15.76 15.76 15.76 15.76 80100 1262376 CHELSEA 5.27 5.3 5.66 5.9 5.25 5.3 2948700 15869088 CEBU AIR 81.3 81.9 82.95 83 81.05 81.4 139500 11409242.5 INTL CONTAINER 128.9 129.3 130.7 131.1 128.1 128.9 1601170 206831684 LBC EXPRESS 15.4 15.6 15.6 15.6 15.6 15.6 15000 234000 LORENZO SHIPPNG 0.97 0.98 0.93 0.98 0.93 0.98 1044000 998190 MACROASIA 21.95 22 22.4 22.8 21.8 22 463700 10331620 METROALLIANCE A 1.69 1.73 1.68 1.73 1.68 1.73 10000 17200 PAL HLDG 10.5 10.6 10.7 10.7 10.6 10.6 12100 129328 HARBOR STAR 2.91 2.93 3.02 3.12 2.91 2.91 1117000 3314890 ACESITE HOTEL 1.25 1.33 1.25 1.25 1.25 1.25 2000 2500 BOULEVARD HLDG 0.068 0.069 0.067 0.069 0.067 0.069 39580000 2682760 GRAND PLAZA 9.84 11 11.86 11.86 11.86 11.86 100 1186 WATERFRONT 0.65 0.67 0.67 0.67 0.65 0.65 583000 388000 CENTRO ESCOLAR 7.6 7.96 7.62 7.62 7.6 7.6 25000 190033 STI HLDG 0.69 0.7 0.71 0.71 0.69 0.69 1708000 1181930 BERJAYA 2.71 2.74 2.74 2.78 2.71 2.71 592000 1622460 BLOOMBERRY 11.64 11.7 12 12.02 11.62 11.7 2297300 27006946 PACIFIC ONLINE 4.41 4.56 4.82 4.85 4.4 4.57 334000 1486240 LEISURE AND RES 3.72 3.74 3.7 3.81 3.7 3.73 3008000 11267080 PH RESORTS GRP 4.57 4.78 4.55 4.79 4.52 4.79 47000 219660 PREMIUM LEISURE 0.85 0.86 0.86 0.87 0.85 0.86 3882000 3338590 TRAVELLERS 5.61 5.64 5.64 5.64 5.6 5.63 311500 1746608 METRO RETAIL 3.35 3.36 3.33 3.38 3.33 3.35 4726000 15836420 PUREGOLD 47.7 47.75 48.5 48.6 47 47.7 618100 29624590 ROBINSONS RTL 78.8 79 79.05 79.9 76.65 79 810000 63658955 PHIL SEVEN CORP 122.6 122.8 123 123 122.5 123 47430 5833685 SSI GROUP 2.46 2.47 2.38 2.46 2.36 2.46 9647000 23439610 WILCON DEPOT 15.32 15.48 15.7 15.7 15.2 15.48 6482200 100463458 APC GROUP 0.425 0.435 0.435 0.435 0.425 0.435 530000 228400 EASYCALL 11.88 12 11.96 12.14 11.88 11.88 42400 506920 GOLDEN BRIA 365 377 370.6 379.8 364 379.6 260 95928 IPM HLDG 7.09 7.1 7.1 7.1 7.1 7.1 15000 106500 PAXYS 3.05 3.13 3.19 3.26 3.06 3.13 12000 37280 PRMIERE HORIZON 0.91 0.92 1 1.02 0.9 0.91 67625000 63958460 SBS PHIL CORP 8.53 8.94 8.51 8.51 8.51 8.51 1000 8510

MINING & OIL ATOK 11.04 12.96 12.5 12.96 12.5 12.96 4000 50138 APEX MINING 1.4 1.41 1.42 1.43 1.4 1.41 2486000 3513090 ABRA MINING 0.002 0.0021 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.002 26000000 52000 ATLAS MINING 2.93 3.09 3.14 3.14 3 3.09 348000 1056410 BENGUET A 1.26 1.36 1.26 1.26 1.26 1.26 3000 3780 BENGUET B 1.35 1.55 1.22 1.35 1.22 1.35 6000 7970 CENTURY PEAK 2.61 2.62 2.62 2.62 2.58 2.61 601000 1565860 DIZON MINES 7.79 7.89 7.88 7.88 7.79 7.79 700 5470 FERRONICKEL 1.55 1.57 1.55 1.61 1.55 1.55 3437000 5414750 GEOGRACE 0.26 0.265 0.275 0.29 0.255 0.265 16470000 4370850 LEPANTO A 0.118 0.119 0.12 0.12 0.118 0.118 800000 95420 MANILA MINING A 0.0084 0.0091 0.0086 0.0086 0.0086 0.0086 1000000 8600 MANILA MINING B 0.0086 0.0095 0.009 0.009 0.009 0.009 9000000 81000 MARCVENTURES 1.07 1.1 1.06 1.1 1.06 1.1 102000 111680 NIHAO 1 1.05 1.03 1.07 1 1.05 252000 255360 NICKEL ASIA 2.46 2.48 2.5 2.51 2.48 2.48 660000 1641050 OMICO CORP 0.59 0.63 0.63 0.63 0.59 0.62 141000 88140 ORNTL PENINSULA 0.9 0.92 0.94 0.94 0.9 0.9 880000 794080 PX MINING 3.4 3.41 3.4 3.41 3.35 3.4 1169000 3946910 SEMIRARA MINING 21.5 21.55 21.95 21.95 21.45 21.55 324200 6993460 ORNTL PETROL A 0.012 0.013 0.013 0.013 0.012 0.012 3200000 40000 PHINMA PETRO 3.01 3.02 3.02 3.03 3.02 3.02 86000 259820 PXP ENERGY 9.95 9.96 9.4 10.5 9.2 9.96 9999100 98889868

PREFFERED HOUSE PREF A AC PREF B1 AC PREF B2 ALCO PREF B DD PREF SMC FB PREF 2 FPH PREF C GLO PREF P GTCAP PREF A LR PREF MWIDE PREF PCOR PREF 2A SFI PREF SMC PREF 2B SMC PREF 2C SMC PREF 2F SMC PREF 2H SMC PREF 2I

92.65 465.8 481 99 98 970 450.6 478.6 900 0.97 100.1 975 1.33 74.2 75.2 73.6 72 72.25

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS ABS HLDG PDR GMA HLDG PDR

19.08 5.72 1.93

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES ITALPINAS 4.85 XURPAS 1.13

116.8

13024165 -1141835 -38700 -9971206 -10200 -162000 -1220 -1576 -5271683 -2346939 45311385.0004 -51940 -1576725 -40040 172349.9999 -162860 -1823860 -67050 2848730 767030 -2281430 14238975 -38792158 114235 -58180 4974600 3380 -8510 25000 6750 -78500 143730 -63000 20200 -558950 191830 70880 8600 -3218790

93 479 455 100 99 972 450.6 494.8 900 0.98 101.8 970.5 1.79 75 76 73.6 73.45 74.45

94.95 479 497 100 99 972 450.6 494.8 900 0.98 101.8 970.5 1.79 75 76 74.6 73.5 74.45

93 479 455 99.8 98 969 450.6 494.8 900 0.97 101.8 970.5 1.78 75 75.2 73.6 73.45 74.45

94.95 479 490 99.8 98 969 450.6 494.8 900 0.97 101.8 970.5 1.78 75 75.2 73.75 73.45 74.45

2230 40 600 11800 60 90 300 80 60 108000 20 20 7000 1000 20010 20930 470 60

207780 19160 284550 1179640 5890 87300 135180 39584 54000 104780 2036 19410 12510 75000 1505335.5 1543530.5 34530 4467

-2036 -

19.2 5.74

19.5 5.74

19.5 5.8

19 5.72

19.08 5.77

249500 81300

4766498 468455

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1.94

1.86

1.95

1.86

1.93

153000

292200

-56100

4.94 1.15

4.86 1.13

4.94 1.15

4.84 1.1

4.94 1.13

96000 6714000

467950 7522760

-1314570

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS FIRST METRO ETF

20226965 -6820 237295 2488740 7345040 494512 -647500 -5880100 -20612188 70420 11177335 3321765 24060 43265950 105000 -16200 -7117657

95.9 478.4 490 99.8 99 980 479 494.8 942 0.99 101.9 1000 1.78 75 76 73.75 73.45 74.45

WARRANTS LR WARRANT

-188940 -2039.9999 -35129915 5224085.5 11780112 908050 -3353485 -8030758 -22515944 -23703200 2100 22685496 228982 -21127416 294800 -35443180 80000 130280 26500 -0 -84635765 -5791675 -54630 -195856 -256300 112500

117.2

118

118.4

116.8

116.8

7030

826625

208810

Editor: Efleda P. Campos

Lazada’s ‘Shoppertainment’ offer bolsters PHL, Asean sales

E

By Roderick L. Abad

@rodrik_28

LECTRONIC commerce (e-commerce) giant Lazada has proven effective its pioneering effort to bring entertainment to its trading business as it recorded over 5 million transactions during peak hours in the Philippines, or twice the number of visits to its portal on a normal day.

Called “Shoppertainment,” this new concept of blending shopping and entertainment was introduced by the company to offer customers a new experience of using their mobile application or app.

Lazada spearheaded in Southeast Asia the live stream of its first-ever Super Party concert, featuring British popstar Dua Lipa and top artists in the region, including Filipino personalities Nadine Lustre, Sam Concepcion and Pia Wurtzbach.

This event on March 27, which served as the highlight of its weeklong seventh anniversary, drew 12

million views both in-app and on television.

Consumer products Maybelline, Xiaomi, Coocaa, Promil and Pampers were the best-selling items locally during the festivity that made it to the Lazada Top Brand Leaderboard.

“It has been a wonderful seven years for Lazada and we are thankful for the chance to serve our shoppers, sellers and brands,” said Ray Alimurung, CEO of Lazada Philippines.

Region-wide, the online marketplace leader wrapped up its seven-day celebration with more

PAL management rewards outstanding employees

T

HE Philippine Airlines (PAL Group and PAL Express) awarded their outstanding employees following a rigorous assessment process spearheaded by the Human Capital Department.

In his speech at the awarding ceremonies held recently at the grand ballroom of the Century Park Hotel, PAL President and COO Jaime J. Bautista told the awardees: “This is your moment in the sun. The management and staff of Philippine Airlines look up to you as the models for a strong and empowered team of PAL professionals who will set a shining example for the rest of us to follow.”

Named Star Awardees of PAL were: Royce Piczon as Captain of the Year; Antonio Campos as First Officer of the Year; Wilfredo Abelo as Flight Purser of the Year; Liza Pangilinan as Cabin Crew of the Year; Victoria Caringal as Man-

ager of the Year; Maria Dolores Castillo as Assistant Manager of the Year; Angie Wee as Individual Contributor of the Year; Ma Antonette Dejan as Sales Frontliner of the Year; and Iraphine Guilas as Airport Frontliner of the Year.

PAL Express President Bonifacio Sam thanked their Star Awardees, saying: “We thank you for your invaluable contribution and your professionalism. May you continue to shine and serve as agents of change who inspire others to be the best version of themselves.”

Named Star Awardees of PAL Express were: Ramil San Miguel as Captain of the Year; Antoinette Noore Aquino as First Officer of the Year; Anna Nicolette Kho as Cabin Crew of the Year; Joselito Las as Manager of the Year; Rommel Bonzon as Assistant Manager of the Year and Jessica Melencio as Individual Contributor of the Year. Recto Mercene

briefs

BRIA HOMES OFFERS PINOY FAMILIES VALUE FOR MONEY

BRIA Homes, the fastest-growing mass housing developer in the Philippines, hopes to turn every Filipino’s dream home into reality, one development at a time. Bria Homes is a subsidiary of Golden Bria Holdings Inc., a company with a market capitalization of more than P200 billion. Today, Bria has a total of over 50 developments across the most progressive towns and cities in the country soon to rise.

Its target market are Filipino families and professionals—from ordinary Filipino workers to OFWs, and from entrepreneurs to retirees—who dream of having their own quality and budget-friendly homes and condominiums.

Among Bria Homes’s current developments is Alecza available in Malolos, General Trias, Santa Maria, Calamba and Camarines Sur.

E-JEEPNEY MAKER, HK PARTNER OFFER FLEXIBLE JEEPNEY FINANCING PROGRAM

TOP jeepney manufacturer Elmer Francisco Industries and Hong Kong-based firm Madison Holdings Group look forward to a potential business collaboration that will make brand new jeepneys affordable to transport groups and individuals through a flexible financing program.

The financing program will help operators and drivers abide by the government’s Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP). This is pursuant to Department of Transportation’s (DOTr) Department Order 2017011, the Omnibus Guidelines on the Planning and Identification of Public Road Transportation Services and Franchise Issuance.

Under the PUVMP, jeepneys that are at least 15 years old are deemed road unworthy. The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board noted that by 2020, around 180,000 jeepneys should be replaced with safer, more efficient and environment-friendly jeepneys.

than 318 million visits to its platform across its locations in Southeast Asia, including Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

The sales tally for the 24-hour shopping event coinciding with the Super Party was 15 times more compared to sales on normal days.

Over 5,000 individuals watched this concert live at the Indonesia Convention Exhibition (BSD) in Jakarta.

Meanwhile, shoppers on average came on the Lazada app six times daily from March 21 to 27, to play LazGame (Fruit Slash, Birthday Blast and Popping Balloons).

A total of 2.5 million people played to score more deals with 9 out of 10 customers collecting cupcakes redeemable for shopping vouchers.

“Our goal has always been to develop an e-commerce ecosystem that now includes live streaming, games and will continuously nur-

MUTUAL FUNDS

ture the growth of brands and sellers in the region,” Alimurung said.

Launched in 2012, the Lazada Group is now majority owned by Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. With around 300 million stockkeeping units or SKUs available, it offers a wide array of products from beauty, fashion, and consumer electronics to household goods, toys, sports equipment and groceries.

Focused on delivering an excellent customer experience, it offers comprehensive customer care and hassle-free returns through its own first and last mile delivery arm supported by approximately 100 logistics partners.

To fire up the businesses of Lazada’s brands and sellers, it recently unveiled in Singapore its “Super-solutions” to win market share in the region, by tapping on Lazada’s branding, marketing and sales offerings, to transform them into “Super eBusinesses.”

April 1, 2019

NAV ONE YEAR THREE YEAR FIVE YEAR Y-T-D

PER SHARE RETURN* RETURN STOCK FUNDS ALFM GROWTH FUND, INC. -A 265.16 -3.47% 1.39% 2.16% 5.13% ATRAM ALPHA OPPORTUNITY FUND, INC. -A 1.6175 1.81% 10.41% 4.93% 12.26% ATRAM PHILIPPINE EQUITY OPPORTUNITY FUND, INC. -A 4.1202 -4.78% 1.7% 1.05% 5.56% CLIMBS SHARE CAPITAL EQUITY INVESTMENT FUND CORP. -A 0.942 -1.42% N.A. N.A. 5.78% FIRST METRO CONSUMER FUND ON MSCI PHILS. IMI, INC. -A 0.8699 N.A. N.A. N.A. 5.99% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN EQUITY FUND,INC. -A 5.5048 -1.43% 1.52% 1.83% 4.43% MBG EQUITY INVESTMENT FUND, INC. -A 127.83 11.32% N.A. N.A. 9.76% ONE WEALTHY NATION FUND, INC. -A 0.8784 -4.4% -4.29% N.A. 5.53% PAMI EQUITY INDEX FUND, INC. -A 52.1425 -1.38% 2.21% N.A. 5.97% PHILAM STRATEGIC GROWTH FUND, INC. -A 545.95 -1.19% 1.28% 1.79% 6.06% PHILEQUITY DIVIDEND YIELD FUND, INC. -A 1.3154 -0.44% 2.87% 4.96% 4.9% PHILEQUITY FUND, INC. -A 38.8602 -0.5% 3.76% 4.24% 6.08% PHILEQUITY MSCI PHILIPPINE INDEX FUND, INC. -A,3 1.0417 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. PHILEQUITY PSE INDEX FUND INC. -A 5.2781 -1.22% 3.09% 4.18% 6.44% PHILIPPINE STOCK INDEX FUND CORP. -A 881 -1.09% 2.78% 4.14% 6.34% SOLDIVO STRATEGIC GROWTH FUND, INC. -A 0.9251 1.02% 1.72% N.A. 7.42% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY PHILIPPINE EQUITY FUND, INC. -A 4.3372 0.39% 3.21% 3.11% 6.86% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY PHILIPPINE STOCK INDEX FUND, INC. -A 1.013 -1.6% 2.78% N.A. 6.15% UNITED FUND, INC. -A 3.7221 1.52% 4.97% 4.2% 6.32% EXCHANGE TRADED FUND FIRST METRO PHIL. EQUITY EXCHANGE TRADED FUND, INC. -A,C,2 117.8442 -0.72% 3.85% 5.22% 6.41% ATRAM ASIAPLUS EQUITY FUND, INC. -B $1.0083 -9.98% 6.26% 1.45% 8.52% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY WORLD VOYAGER FUND, INC. -A $1.2542 -1.2% N.A. N.A. 13.49% BALANCED FUNDS PRIMARILY INVESTED IN PESO SECURITIES ATRAM DYNAMIC ALLOCATION FUND, INC. -A 1.7289 -2.35% -0.36% -0.72% 4.71% ATRAM PHILIPPINE BALANCED FUND, INC. -A 2.3229 -1.7% 1.35% 1.35% 5.15% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN BALANCED FUND INC. -A 2.6554 -0.12% -0.38% -0.73% 4.39% GREPALIFE BALANCED FUND CORPORATION -A 1.3539 -2.99% N.A. N.A. 3.8% NCM MUTUAL FUND OF THE PHILS., INC. -A 1.9177 0.19% 1.34% 1.82% 4.05% PAMI HORIZON FUND, INC. -A 3.6826 -1.67% 0.09% 0.96% 4.34% PHILAM FUND, INC. -A 16.6548 -0.39% 0.39% 1.04% 4.7% SOLIDARITAS FUND, INC. -A 2.1501 -0.38% 1.67% 2.64% 3.75% SUN LIFE OF CANADA PROSPERITY BALANCED FUND, INC. -A 3.8611 0.86% 1.51% 2.04% 5.74% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY ACHIEVER FUND 2028, INC. -A,D,4 1.0051 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. SUN LIFE PROSPERITY ACHIEVER FUND 2038, INC. -A,D,4 1.0048 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. SUN LIFE PROSPERITY ACHIEVER FUND 2048, INC. -A,D,4 1.0021 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DYNAMIC FUND, INC. -A 0.988 1.46% 1.66% N.A. 7.19% PRIMARILY INVESTED IN FOREIGN CURRENCY SECURITIES COCOLIFE DOLLAR FUND BUILDER, INC. -A $0.03614 2.38% 0.53% 1.63% 2.52% PAMI ASIA BALANCED FUND, INC. -A $0.984 -7.4% 3.3% -0.18% 5.11% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR ADVANTAGE FUND, INC. -A $3.6414 -0.52% 5.68% 2.57% 10.07% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR WELLSPRING FUND, INC. -A $1.0796 -1.04% N.A. N.A. 6.89% BOND FUNDS PRIMARILY INVESTED IN PESO SECURITIES ALFM PESO BOND FUND, INC. -A 347.08 2.79% 2.11% 2.06% 1.08% ATRAM CORPORATE BOND FUND, INC. -A,1 1.8766 0.5% -0.33% -0.34% 0.94% COCOLIFE FIXED INCOME FUND, INC. -A 3.0042 5.34% 5.22% 5.26% 1.12% EKKLESIA MUTUAL FUND INC. -A 2.1589 2.49% 1.19% 1.77% 1.33% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN FIXED INCOME FUND,INC. -A 2.2728 2.66% 0.68% 1.06% 2.87% GREPALIFE FIXED INCOME FUND CORP. -A P 1.6026 0.45% -0.86% 0.33% 2.44% PHILAM BOND FUND, INC. -A 4.0373 1.23% -0.32% 0.83% 3% PHILEQUITY PESO BOND FUND, INC. -A 3.606 3.62% 0.97% 1.21% 2.53% SOLDIVO BOND FUND, INC. -A 0.9219 1.35% -0.43% N.A. 3.28% SUN LIFE OF CANADA PROSPERITY BOND FUND, INC. -A 2.8878 4.47% 1.33% 1.84% 4.41% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY GS FUND, INC. -A 1.6056 4.27% 0.84% 1.42% 4.27% PRIMARILY INVESTED IN FOREIGN CURRENCY SECURITIES ALFM DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. -A $453.65 2.56% 1.91% 2.91% 1.2% ALFM EURO BOND FUND, INC. -A Є216.07 1.68% 1.47% 1.62% 1.61% ATRAM TOTAL RETURN DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. -B $1.1641 4.13% 1.58% 2.23% 3.4% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. -A $0.0252 1.61% 0.81% N.A. 1.61% GREPALIFE DOLLAR BOND FUND CORP. -A $1.7142 -0.78% -1.15% 0.9% 1.42% MAA PRIVILEGE DOLLAR FIXED INCOME FUND, INC. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. MAA PRIVILEGE EURO FIXED INCOME FUND, INC. ЄN.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. N.S. PAMI GLOBAL BOND FUND, INC -A $1.0663 2.04% -0.46% -2.13% 2.77% PHILAM DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. -A $2.2622 3.59% 0.71% 2.91% 4.19% PHILEQUITY DOLLAR INCOME FUND INC. -A $0.0580724 2.17% 1.2% 1.77% 1.92% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR ABUNDANCE FUND, INC. -A $2.9784 1.42% 0.12% 2.17% 3.7% MONEY MARKET FUNDS PRIMARILY INVESTED IN PESO SECURITIES ALFM MONEY MARKET FUND, INC. -A 122.21 3.45% 2.18% 1.75% 1.13% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN MONEY MARKET FUND, INC. -A,5 1.0062 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. PHILAM MANAGED INCOME FUND, INC. -A 1.1941 2.71% 1.07% 0.73% 1.03% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY MONEY MARKET FUND, INC. -A 1.2313 3.16% 2.45% 1.81% 1.01% PRIMARILY INVESTED IN FOREIGN CURRENCY SECURITIES SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR STARTER FUND, INC. -A $1.0221 2.07% N.A. N.A. 0.61%

* - NAVPS AS OF THE PREVIOUS BANKING DAY ** - NAVPS AS OF TWO BANKING DAYS AGO *** - LISTED IN THE PSE.

**** - RE-CLASSIFIED INTO A BALANCED FUND STARTING JANUARY 1, 2017 (FORMERLY GREPALIFE BOND FUND CORP.).

***** - LAUNCH DATE IS NOVEMBER 6, 2017 ****** - LAUNCH DATE IS JANUARY 08, 2018 ******** - RENAMING OF THE FUND WAS APPROVED BY THE SEC LAST APRIL 13, 2018. ********* - BECAME A MEMBER SINCE APRIL 20, 2018. ******* - ADJUSTED DUE TO CASH DIVIDEND ISSUANCE LAST JANUARY 29, 2018

The World BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Editor: Angel R. Calso • Tuesday, April 2, 2019

B3

Beijing bares concessions as trade negotiators head to US

T

HE Chinese government said it will extend a suspension of retaliatory tariffs on US autos and include the opioid fentanyl in a list of controlled substances, two steps that could generate a positive atmosphere for trade negotiations due to resume this week.

Beijing temporarily scrapped the 25-percent tariff imposed on vehicles as a tit-for-tat measure on January 1, after the White House delayed a rise in tariffs on $200 billion worth of products that had

been due that day. The Ministry of Finance announced an extension of the suspension on Sunday, without giving a specific end date. Vice Premier Liu He is due to return to Washington from April 3.

New Zealand leader visits China in bid to reset strained ties

C

HINA and New Zealand signed agreements on eliminating double taxation and tax avoidance as the two countries look to shore up relations following a series of incidents that cast doubt on the strength of their economic partnership.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern was welcomed by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Monday morning as she began a daylong visit to China. She is scheduled to meet with President Xi Jinping later in the afternoon. The two sides also signed memorandums of understanding on agricultural cooperation, bilateral financial dialogue and science and research cooperation, the Chinese government announced.

Ardern’s first visit to China as prime minister comes as her global profile grows in the wake of a mass shooting—modern New Zealand’s worst—that left 50 people dead and prompted her to overhaul the South Pacific nation’s gun laws. A longer visit had been planned but shortened to just a day following the attack, she told reporters last week.

New Zealand has been pushing to upgrade its free-trade agreement with China for some time, something Ardern was expected to raise during her visit. The renegotiation began two years ago. New Zealand has also been a focus of Xi’s growing campaign for influence in traditional bastions of US support in Asia Pacific.

Warming up

CHINA’S Foreign Ministry said last week that it hopes her visit strengthens bilateral trust and expands cooperation between the two countries. New Zealand’s opposition politicians have called for a re-warming of relations with China in order to avoid severe economic consequences.

Her visit “sends a positive signal that top officials from both countries are staying in contact to solve

major disputes. Communication in the tourism and culture sectors is getting back to normal,” Wang Jiazheng, chief representative of the Guangdong Economic and Trade Representative Office in New Zealand, told China’s state-backed Global Times this weekend.

China is New Zealand’s most important trading partner, with upwards of NZ$27 billion ($19 billion) in two-way trade last year.

Despite their economic ties, a series of incidents this year has triggered concerns of friction between the two countries, after Ardern’s government blocked embattled Chinese tech giant Huawei Technologies Co. from its next-generation 5G wireless network.

Along with neighboring Australia, New Zealand is a member of the Five Eyes, an intelligencesharing partnership that includes the US, UK and Canada and looks at trends including global concerns about China’s activities, particularly espionage and cyber penetration.

In comments made to reporters before her meetings in Beijing and streamed by New Zealand’s 1NEWS, Ardern said reporting that Huawei had been banned in her country was untrue.

“It will be helpful for me to explain that process and the fact that there has been some misreporting,” she said, adding that New Zealand makes it decisions independently of other Five Eyes nations. “I expect that some of the issues we have talked about here—cyber security—will come up,” she said.

“We hope that we can aspire to the greatest common denominator regarding each others’ interests and that when each side’s businesses invest in each other’s businesses, they can enjoy a fair, transparent convenient environment,” Li told Ardern in the Great Hall.

Ardern responded by calling China “one of our most important and far reaching relationships,” and saying that New Zealand is “committed to advancing our ties.” Bloomberg News

Chinese officials also pledged to tighten regulation on fentanyl from next month, a promise President Xi Jinping already made to President Donald J. Trump at a December meeting in Argentina. The inclusion of the drug as a controlled substance in a category of nonmedicinal narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances will start on May 1, according to the China National Narcotics Control Commission.

The moves signal China is trying to keep momentum in trade talks going as they enter what could be the final stretch before Trump and Xi are presented with a text to finalize or sign. Beijing is determined to prevent an escalation of the frictions that have hurt its economy and roiled markets, even as enforcement measures remain a

T

val authorities in Libya and a lingering boycott of Qatar by four fellow League members.

Algeria’s President Abdelaziz Bouteflika and Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir skipped the meeting as they contend with mass protests against their long reigns. Syria, a founding member, was expelled in 2011 during the early days of the uprising against President Bashar Assad.

Representatives from the 22-member league—minus Syria—jointly condemned President Donald Trump’s recognition of Israel’s annexation of the Golan Heights and his decision last year to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

In their final statement after the daylong summit, the leaders affirmed that the Golan, a strategic plateau once used

‘New progress’

CHINA touted “new progress” in talks after US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin visited Beijing last week. Both sides have been working line-by-line through the text of an agreement that can be put before Trump and Xi, people familiar said earlier.

The continued suspension of auto tariffs seeks to “create a good atmosphere for China-US economic and trade talks” and is a “positive response” to the US decision to delay import tax increases, the Ministry of Finance said in a statement.

The world’s second largest economy saw some early signs of stabilization in March as its manufacturing gauges signaled expansion.

But Premier Li Keqiang stressed last week that new threats are arising from weakness in global demand and warned that short-term fluctuations in growth numbers are unavoidable.

In addition to putting fentanyl on the controlled-substance list, China said it will crack down on underground networks who sell the drug online and ship them to the

US by disrupting their cyber communication channels and stepping up checks on private packages at its customs borders. The synthetic opioid is sold by online distributors across China and is blamed for thousands of overdose deaths in the US. Chinese officials also emphasized that the US opioid crisis is largely self-created and cannot be blamed on supply from China.

China “exercised great restraint and did its very best” with the recent moves, compared with the US only mulling to suspend some of its tariffs, said Li Yong, a senior fellow at the China Association of International Trade in Beijing. “Blame does not help to solve the problem. The right attitude should be to enhance cooperation and have construction communication.” Bloomberg News

Brexit creates power vacuum at heart of Britain’s govt

L

ONDON—Britain’s Parliament is deadlocked over plans to leave the European Union. The country’s ruling Conservative Party is fractured by an undeclared leadership contest. Opposition parties are baying for an early general election.

A power vacuum has paralyzed the heart of Britain’s government, dismaying both the European Union and the British public.

In the next two weeks, British Prime Minister Theresa May will lead the UK through domestic and international negotiations that will decide the fate of Brexit and determine the future of generations. Her task, as it’s been for almost three years, is to bridge the increasingly bitter divide that separates those who want to sever links with the EU and those who want to keep the ties that have bound Britain to the bloc for almost 50 years.

“In any other circumstance, they would have rolled her by now, either formally or informally,” said Tim Bale, a professor of politics at Queen Mary University of London.

“She’s the default because no one else wants the job.”

The power vacuum means May has almost no leverage as she tries to engineer a compromise with UK lawmakers who last week took control of the parliamentary agenda to debate alternatives to her Brexit deal, which has already been rejected by Parliament three times.

The House of Commons is scheduled to vote Monday on a variety of Brexit options, with two ideas— staying in the EU customs union and holding a second referendum on Brexit—emerging as the most likely alternatives.

While Justice Secretary David Gauke said on Sunday the government would have to “very carefully consider” the wishes of Parliament, he also said May’s EU divorce deal is still the best alternative. Gauke said the prime minister was “reflecting” on the possibility of bringing it back to Parliament for a fourth vote.

If the government can’t bridge the gap by April 12, Britain will crash out of the EU without a plan for future relations, damaging its economy, undermining the country’s unity and diminishing its stature in the world.

Arab League rejects Trump’s Israel policies at summit UNIS, Tunisia—The Arab League rejected the US recognition of Israeli control over the Golan Heights and other Trump administration policies seen as unfairly biased toward Israel at an annual summit on Sunday, showcasing unity on one of the few issues that unites the regional bloc.

Arab leaders also reiterated their commitment to resolving the conflict based on the Arab Peace Initiative of 2002, in which they would recognize Israel in return for a full withdrawal from the Golan Heights, as well as east Jerusalem and the West Bank, lands occupied in the 1967 war.

This year’s Arab League summit, held in Tunisia, comes against a grim backdrop of ongoing wars in Syria and Yemen, ri-

sticking point in negotiations.

“What matters is not whether these are big concessions or not, but that they are a quick response to the US concerns,” said Gai Xinzhe, a senior analyst at Sino Ocean Capital in Beijing. “It’s not like in the past when issues raised in bilateral dialogues dragged on without solution.

This is good for enhancing mutual trust in the negotiations.”

to shell northern Israel, is “Syria’s occupied territory.”

At the opening of the summit, King Salman said Saudi Arabia “absolutely rejects any measures undermining Syria’s sovereignty over the Golan Heights” and supports the creation of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, with east Jerusalem as its capital.

He added that Iran’s meddling was to blame for instability in the region. Saudi Arabia and Iran are locked in proxy wars in Yemen and Syria, and back opposing groups in Lebanon, Bahrain and Iraq.

Calling the meeting “the summit of resolve and solidarity,” Host-country Tunisia’s President Beji Caid Essebsi decried “regional and international interventions” in Arab affairs. AP

“I think it would be very, very bad news indeed,” Gauke told the BBC. “I don’t think the British people would thank us if we left without a deal.”

May’s political weakness stretches back to when she took office in July 2016, less than a month after Britain voted 52 percent to 48 percent in favor of leaving the EU. Despite the close result on such a momentous decision, May did little to build consensus about what Britain’s departure from the world’s largest trading bloc should look like.

Instead, she set out her own red lines: Britain must end the free movement of people coming in, end the

jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice in Britain and leave the European customs union so Britain could negotiate trade deals with other countries.

Then, seeking to bolster the small majority left to her by her predecessor, David Cameron, May called a disastrous early election in which she lost 13 seats. That left May as the leader of a minority Conservative government and forced her into an alliance with Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party.

Though weakened, May kept Brexit strategy in the hands of the Conservative Party and more spe-

cifically her own advisers.

But Brexit cuts across traditional political lines. Both May’s Conservatives and the opposition Labour party are split between those who want to sever links to the EU and those who want to remain close to the bloc. Even so, May has been reluctant to reach out to Labour for fear of deepening the split in her own party.

“She feels trapped politically,” said Thomas Raines, head of the Europe program at the Chatham House think tank. “Each step she takes toward the Labour Party will lose her support on her right flank.” AP

B4 Tuesday, April 2, 2019

A QUIET RETREAT IN THE CITY SUN LIFE EXECS TO EXPLORE GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES IN ASIA

S

UN Life Financial is looking forward to explore investment-growth opportunities in Asia to meet the needs of its clients. This was declared by the company in the recently concluded Sun Life Asia investments conference held in Manila.

“Asia is growing and our clients’ needs are evolving. It is important for us at Sun Life to strengthen collaboration and communication, so we can increase our capability to serve our clients,” Sun Life chief investments officer Randy Brown, who flew in all the way from Canada to join the event, said. “We need to rise to the challenge and bring Sun Life Asia

Investments to the next level.”

This was seconded by Sun Life Asia chief investments officer Sancho Chan. “Part of our strategy in Asia is to grow in scale, invest in our talent, and achieve excellence in distribution and operations. The insights gathered in this year’s conference will surely help us move closer to these goals,” he said.

Among the points tackled in the twoday conference were the key investment trends in emerging Asia and the fastchanging investment, geopolitical and technology landscapes. Speakers, such as Citigroup managing director Johanna Chua, MFS Investment Management business development director Chopin

Zhou and MFS Investment Management managingdirectorJonathanTiu,Macquarie infrastructure and real assets managing director Michael Rodriguez, Credit Suisse managing director Stephen Hagger, and Credit Suisse vice chairman for Asia Pacific and Sun Life of Canada (Philippines) Inc. Chairman Lito Camacho, shared insights along with internal speakers from Sun Life.

Present on the event were over 80 Sun Life investments executives from Hong Kong, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines.

The conference was held in the Philippines to highlight the country as one of Sun Life’s key pillars in Asia. This is a testament to Sun Life’s confidence in the Philippines, according to Chan.

“There are vast opportunities for growth in the country,” he said. “With the help of our investments team throughout Asia, we look forward to cultivating these opportunities so we may bring more Filipinos closer to achieving financial security and healthier lives.”

The Sun Life Asia investments conference was graced by (from left) Sun Life chief investments officer Michael Enriquez, Sun Life Financial Philippines Chief Executive Officer and country head Benedict Sison, Sun Life Financial global chief investments officer Randy Brown, and Sun Life Asia chief investments officer Sancho Chan.

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HE Ascott Ltd., an international serviced residence owner-operator, will offer special rates this coming Holy week.

The Ascott Ltd.’s Holy Week promo is inclusive of daily breakfast for two persons, welcome amenities, wireless Internet connection, use of recreational facilities featuring a swimming pool and fitness center, daily housekeeping service, daily replenishment of bathroom amenities and one parking slot.

The special rate starts at P3,500 net per night valid from April 14 to 21. There will also be a complimentary Easter Sunday activity for the guests on selected properties.

Said Casey Faylona, The Ascott Ltd. Philippines director for sales and marketing, “The aim of this

cluster promotion is to give a tranquil staycation to all customers who don’t have time to travel out-of-town during the Holy week.”

“Additionally, this will give families or group of friends a time to reflect on the real meaning of the season while having a quiet time in the city,” Faylona added.

The Holy Week special offer will be available in all Ascott properties, namely, Ascott Makati, Ascott Bonifacio Global City Manila, Somerset Alabang Manila, Somerset Millennium Makati, Somerset Olympia Makati, Citadines Bay City Manila, Citadines Salcedo Makati and Citadines Millennium Ortigas.

For inquiries and reservations, e-mail at enquiry. manila@the-ascott.com.

GET DISCOUNTS AT THE NO. 1 THEME PARK WITH YOUR METROBANK CARDS!

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N partnership with Metrobank, the Enchanted Kingdom (EK) has a gift to all Metrobank cardholders!

If you’re a Metrobank Fun Savers Club, debit or prepaid

cardholder, you get 10-percent discount on regular-day pass (P720 on weekdays and P810 on weekends) and other exclusive freebies. Get a free EK Wizard’s Club when you avail yourself of their birthday package good for 30, 50 or 100 pax, or a free food cart (choice of pop corn, hotdog, or cotton candy) when you avail yourself of their birthday package good for 15 or 20 pax. Simply present your Metrobank Fun Savers Club membership card, Metrobank debit card or Metrobank prepaid card to avail of these exclusive perks!

Tickets may be purchased at the front-gate ticket booths and Santa Rosa group sales office, and are good for the same day, valid on the day of visit. All tickets cannot be rebooked nor be used in conjunction with any other promos and discounts. This promo runs from March 16 to October 31.

Visit www.enchantedkingdom.ph to see the park schedule and plan your trip to Enchanted Kingdom!

THIS YEAR’S GOLDILOCKS CAKE BATTLE BANKS ON STUDENTS’ VISUAL FLAIR

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OLDILOCKS once again gave creative culinaryarts students the center stage to turn their cakes into masterful works of art in their Cake Battle, the intercollegiate cake-decorating challenge.

This year’s theme is “Dance” marterpiece for novice category, while “Musical”, “ Wedding” and “Over All” for advance category.

This year a total of 10 teams split into two categories, all vying for the title of champion cake decorators. The winners of the competition would also get P250,000 worth of baking showcase, plus P20,000 worth of Goldilocks gift certificates for the advance category; and P100,000 worth of baking showcase, plus P10,000 worth of Goldilocks gift certificates for novice category as prizes for the competition.

“Goldilocks really values the young talent we get to see every year we have our Cake Battle,” says Goldilocks marketing director Cherry Caluya. “For this year’s Cake Battle, we wanted to focus on the creativity and talent of young Filipinos when they create beautiful masterpieces.

We believe that cake decorating puts the art of baking to the next level, and the talent we have as Filipinos is endless.”

As the country’s No. 1 bakeshop, Goldilocks has been hosting their intercollegiate cake-decorating competition for over a decade now. Together with Gourdo’s and Avoset, Goldilocks was able to set the stage for the Goldilocks Cake Battle 2019 as they provided the materials and ingredients for each team to use in the competition. Many teams from culinary schools, universities and college all over the Philippines show off their skill in decorating

cakes, ranging from elegant to out of this world. With so much talent participating this year, the competition was definitely fierce.

Over 100 culinary and hospitality-management schools sent teams to compete in this year’s Cake Battle, that began early this year. Only 10 teams were chosen to compete in two categories, split between their cake battle experience. Teams from Bulacan State University San Jose del Monte, Gabriel Taborin College of Davao Foundation, Inc., Lyceum of the Philippines Laguna, University of Cebu and the Western Institute of Technology competed in finals for the novice category. Bulacan State University Malolos, Holy Cross of Davao College, Lyceum of the Philippines Laguna, Saint Anne College of Lucena and the Western Institute of Technology made up the teams who competed in the advanced category.

The finalists and audience of this year’s Cake Battle finals had the chance to rub elbows with and meet Goldilocks’ celebrity endorser Liza Soberano.

The country’s top cake decorators Heny Sison, Jackie Ang Po and Penk Ching all had a hard time judging the competition because of the high-level skill and artistry displayed at the competition but, ultimately, Lyceum of the Philippines University Laguna and Western Institute of Technology bagged the championship.

In photo are (from left) Leo Hs, sales manager, Rich Taiwan; Patrick Tong, vice president and managing director, Link Import and Export; Cherry Caluya, Goldilocks marketing director; and Rina Santiago, Goldilocks manufacturing director.

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| Tuesday, April 2, 2019 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

ROGER FEDERER tops the Miami Open to snatch his 101st title. AP

FEDERER. AGELESS. AWESOME. M

By Steven Wine The Associated Press

IAMI GARDENS, Florida—Orange streamers rained down while Roger Federer held another championship trophy aloft, his familiar grin as wide as ever.

For the ageless Federer, winning never gets old.

Now 37, Federer became tennis’ first repeat champion of 2019 when he won his 101st career title on Sunday by beating a hobbled John Isner in the Miami Open final, 6-1, 6-4.

Federer neutralized Isner’s big serve and won 32 of 35 points on his own serve. The 6-foot-10 Isner scrambled so desperately to stay in rallies that he hurt his left foot and limped badly through the final few points.

Isner said afterward he didn’t yet know the nature or severity of the injury.

Federer, by contrast, is just fine. He was the Dubai champion on March 2, and runner-up to Dominic Thiem at Indian Wells two weeks ago.

“This is a good phase, a good stretch for me right now,” Federer said. “I really feel super healthy. That’s why I have been able to play every day for the last four weeks. That’s something that maybe hasn’t always been the case for the last few years. So you appreciate these moments.”

Federer is 18-2 this year, best on the men’s tour, which stamps him as a threat to add to his record total of 20 Grand

Slam titles in 2019.

“Unbelievable for you to keep winning and playing this level of tennis,” Miami tournament director James Blake, a former top-five player, told Federer at the trophy presentation. “It makes me feel like such an underachiever.

We’re all just in awe.”

Isner also paid tribute to Federer during the ceremony.

“You were entirely too good today, entirely too good this whole tournament,” Isner said. “You are entirely too good your whole career. It’s absolutely incredible what you’re doing. We’re so lucky to have you in this game, and we all want you to keep playing and literally never retire. So keep it up, man.”

The first 33 men’s and women’s titles in 2019 were won by 33 different players, including Ashleigh Barty in the Miami women’s final on Saturday. Federer is the first repeat winner in 20 men’s tournaments this year.

“Kind of fitting,” Isner said.

Federer first played in the Miami tournament as a wild card 20 years ago. He won the title in 2005, 2006 and 2017 before it moved from Key Biscayne to its new home this year in the Dolphins’ complex.

“It has been a super long journey for me here,” Federer told the crowd. “To stand here right now really means a lot after so many years.”

The temporary stands inside the National Football League stadium were almost full for the final, but Federer quickly defused any drama. He broke in the opening game and then twice more in a first set that lasted only 24 minutes.

KISNER GETS IT RIGHT A

USTIN, Texas—Kevin Kisner can’t think of another tournament that made him grind so hard.

He began the Dell Technologies Match Play with a loss in the opening round. He had to play 120 holes over five days. Three matches were decided on the 18th hole. He had to play three sudden-death playoff holes just to get to the weekend. And on Sunday morning, he faced a cold wind that made temperatures feel like the upper 30s.

It all felt worth it when he made good on his second try at winning golf’s most unpredictable tournament.

Kisner outlasted British Open champion Francesco Molinari in the semifinals, and then let Matt Kuchar make the untimely mistakes on Sunday afternoon until Kisner closed him out with a 20-foot putt for a 3-and-2 victory.

“Grueling, not only from the mental side, but the physical side,” Kisner said. “A lot of golf and a lot of stressful holes and stressful putts.”

But then, that’s how he got here in the first place.

Kisner, who won $1,745,000 for his first World

Golf Championships title, recalls his father staking him $16,000 to see if he could make it as a pro golfer. He won his third tournament on the mini-tours, and when his bank account reached $40,000, he thought he was rich.

The lesson along the way: Make putts or lose money.

That’s what works at the Match Play, and he delivered enough key moments to capture the biggest win of his career.

“It was a long week. I prevailed. And I’m a world golf champion,” Kisner said.

He became the first player to win Match Play after losing in the championship match the previous year.

“If you’d have told me I’d be sitting here 10 years ago, I would probably have said you were crazy,” Kisner said. “I think it shows in my grind. That’s what I do. I’ve had ups and downs throughout it. I’ve won on every tour, every level. And had tremendous downfalls on every tour and every level. So I pride myself in the way I pick myself up and keep grinding.”

Last year wasn’t close, as Bubba Watson raced out

“Champion, Roger!” one fan yelled during a lull, prompting cheers. Federer went on to earn the adjective yet again.

To complicate matters for Isner, he said the top of his foot started to hurt during the first set, and the problem grew worse as the match progressed.

“It’s a terrible feeling,” Isner said, “going up against the greatest player ever, playing in this incredible atmosphere, and my foot’s killing me.

“Not that I would have won the match anyway. Let’s make that clear. But, you know, I think I could have made for a more interesting match, and one that was a little more fun.”

Federer said he felt badly for Isner but didn’t let that affect his game.

“It was just important to keep on doing what I was doing, and if he’s hurt, well, then so be it, and bad luck for him,” Federer said. “After the game, of course, you hope it’s nothing serious.”

While Isner may need time to heal, Federer will begin preparations for the clay-court season, which he skipped last year. He’ll play Madrid in May as a tuneup for the French Open.

“I’m not very confident going into this clay-court season, I can tell you that, because I don’t even remember how to slide anymore,” Federer said. “I’m taking baby steps at this point. I’m very excited. It’s a good challenge, a good test. Confidence? It’s in no man’s land.”

to a big lead and ended the match on the 12th hole.

Kisner never trailed against Kuchar, which didn’t make it any easier. Kuchar had a 12-foot putt to win his second straight hole and tie the match on No. 10, with momentum sure to follow.

He missed, and on his next swing, Kuchar put his tee shot in the water on the par-3 11th.

Kisner, equipped with a 2-up lead, took it from there.

He made putts from 6 feet and 4 feet to halve holes, and seized control on the 15th when Kuchar’s chip was too strong and led to another lost hole.

“It’s tough to maintain the high level of play the entire tournament,” Kuchar said. “You hope to do it, and I feel like I’ve kind of built a game that I could rely on playing some good, steady golf. But I gave too many holes away. I knew against Kisner I couldn’t do it, and he just plodded along...and let me make mistakes. And that was good playing by Kevin.”

Kisner became the first player to win the Match Play with a loss during the round-robin portion, which began in 2015. That felt like an eternity ago when he posed in front of the trophy, the sixth straight victory for an American in these World Golf Championships.

Kisner first had to get past British Open champion

NASA HATAOKA is doused with water by Ayako Uehara (left) and her mother, Hiromi. AP

Hataoka wins Kia Classic for 3rd LPGA Tour victory

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ARLSBAD, California—Nasa Hataoka won the Kia Classic on Sunday at Aviara Golf Club for her third victory in her last 16 Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour starts.

The 20-year-old Japanese player closed with a fiveunder 67 for a three-stroke victory over playing partner Inbee Park, top-ranked Sung Hyun Park, Jin Young Ko, Azahara Munoz and Danielle Kang.

“First couple days I wasn’t putting very well, so I didn’t real ly think I could pull this off,” Hataoka said through a translator. “Until the 18th hole, anything could happen, but I was just very relieved that my second shot landed on the putting surface.”

After driving left into the water en route to a bogey on the par-4 16th, Hataoka hit a sand wedge to a foot for birdie on the par-5 17th and closed with a par on the par-4 18th.

“I forgot about the bogey very quickly,” she said. “I knew that 17 was a chance I could make a birdie, and just very relieved and felt great that I was able to actually get a birdie.”

Hataoka shot a 64 on Saturday to pull within a stroke of Inbee Park entering the final round in the final event before the major ANA Inspiration at Mission Hills in Rancho Mirage.

“Big tournament coming up next week, so I’ll celebrate a little bit but get my mind refreshed and start again next week,” Hataoka said.

Hataoka finished at 18-under 270. She won the NW Arkansas Championship and Japan Classic last year.

“She played really solid,” Inbee Park said. “Didn’t really look like she was feeling the pressure, especially in the way she played the last hole. Just very smart.”

Winless in 12 months, Inbee Park had a 71 to miss a chance for her 20th LPGA Tour victory.

Sung Hyun Park also shot 71. Ko and Kang had 65s, and Munoz a 68. Ko won the Founders Cup last week in Phoenix.

Hyo Joo Kim matched the course record with a 62 to tie for seventh at 14 under. She parred the first five holes, then played the final 13 in 10 under with an eagle on 16. AP Francesco Molinari, so dominant that he had never played the 18th hole in five previous matches this week. Molinari birdied the 16th and 17th holes to tie the match, but on the 18th, the Italian threeputted from 25 feet above the hole as Kisner advanced.

Kuchar, who won the Match Play in 2013, had to beat Lucas Bjerregaard in the semifinals in another match that went the distance.

Bjerregaard, who knocked out Tiger Woods in the quarterfinals with clutch shots down the stretch, made a 10-footer on the 17th to stay alive, but he couldn’t come up with the birdie he needed on the 18th.

Molinari beat Bjerregaard in the consolation match, which was worth $712,000. Bjerregaard earned $574,000 for finishing fourth.

No matter the format, what hasn’t changed about Match Play is only one guy leaves happy. AP FOR Kevin Kisner, the lesson along the way is “to make putts or lose money.” AP

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Fr. Martin Cup Summer League up on Sunday

DUKE’S Zion Williamson (1) scores under basket against Michigan State’s Xavier Tillman (23) and Kenny Goins (25). AP

ZION, DUKE BOMB OUT W

ASHINGTON—Twenty minutes after his first and, in all likelihood, last season at Duke ended with an Elite Eight exit, Zion Williamson trudged through an arena hallway, his head down.

Following closely behind was teammate RJ Barrett, another fabulous freshman for the NCAA Tournament’s No. 1 overall seed. Two other members of their class were sitting in Duke’s locker room after a 68-67 loss to Michigan State in the East Region final on Sunday: Tre Jones covered his face with a white towel and sobbed; Cam Reddish put his right hand on the nape of Jones’s neck to console him.

“Our bond is very deep.

I don’t think nobody will ever understand it, because all season long, we were under the microscope,” said Williamson, who had game-highs of 24 points and 14 rebounds. “People said we wouldn’t do this, we wouldn’t

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HE 25th season of the annual Fr. Martin’s Cup Summer League will tip off on Sunday at the SGS Gym along G. Araneta Avenue in Quezon City, with an exciting quadruple-header, featuring defending seniors champion San Beda University.

The Red Lions will open their title-retention bid against the Mapua University Cardinals in Group A of the seniors division in the first game set at 8 a.m.

The San Beda-Mapua season-opening clash will be followed by the Group B juniors duel between San BedaRizal and Adamson University at 9:30 a.m. At 11 a.m., Group B squads Far Eastern University and Diliman College will battle in another seniors division affair.

Rounding out action on opening day are St. Patrick High School and Diliman Preparatory School in Group A of the juniors division at 12:30 p.m.

The seniors teams of San Beda and Mapua are grouped with Arellano University, University of Perpetual Help, De La Salle University, TRESTON and AMA University.

Joining FEU and Diliman College in Group B of the seniors division are Letran, College of St. Benilde, San Sebastian College and La Consolacion College.

The Summer League is only the first of three tournaments lined up for the year. A Division II league will begin in July, while a season-ending open tournament will commence in November.

do that. And I think we exceeded all their expectations. I’m very proud of my brothers.”

Actually, he was a player so dynamic, and Duke was a team so talented, that plenty of folks thought they were capable of anything—including a national championship.

After squeaking by in their previous two games by a combined total of three points when their opponents missed last-second chances from close range, Williamson and the Blue Devils could not quite come through this time.

They didn’t exactly lose to a nobody, of course: Led by Big Ten Player of the Year Cassius Winston, No. 2 seed Michigan State is headed to its eighth Final Four under Coach Tom Izzo. Still, the Blue Devils were a 2-1 title favorite after Selection Sunday and a pick in more than a third of ESPN’s brackets.

“We obviously had some pretty big-name guys and they had a lot of hype around them and things like that,” Jones said. “No one was jealous or insecure. Everyone just accepted it and had as much fun with it as we could.”

Now the question becomes how many of the key freshmen—that quartet accounted for all but eight of Duke’s points on Sunday— will return.

“They’re deserving of special things,” Coach

Mike Krzyzewski said. “Not going to the Final Four is a huge disappointment for us.”

Williamson is expected to go pro and be the No. 1 overall pick in the National Basketball Association draft.

Asked whether he was done in college, he replied: “I mean, obviously, it’s a high possibility, but I’m not really focused on that right now.”

Barrett is considered a top-3 talent, too, and while he had 21 points, six rebounds and six assists against Michigan State, he also ended up with seven turnovers and missed one of two free throws with a chance to tie the game.

After his first foul shot was off, Barrett wanted to miss the second, because Duke was down by two with 5.2 seconds and hadn’t fouled enough yet to set up a 1-and-1 for the Spartans. But it bounced high off the rim and slipped through the net.

“It’s funny that it went in,” Barrett said, his voice a monotone.

Funny how the Big Dance is coming to a close, too. After 14 of the top 16 seeds made it through the opening weekend—including all the No. 1s—the more surprising results arrived now, one after another.

Duke, North Carolina and Gonzaga all are gone.

So is the most talked-about player in all of college basketball, a 6-foot-7, 285-pound combination of size, strength and speed, known to many by just one name: Zion.

“For us to come this far, I’m proud of everybody,” Williamson said on Sunday night. “It’s been an incredible ride.” AP

GSW THREE-PEAT QUEST ON TRACK

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AKLAND, California—Towel around his neck, Stephen Curry raised both arms and pointed to the crowd with appreciation.

Curry and Steve Kerr realize the importance of small steps on the way to deep postseason runs and hanging championship banners.

One down. Many important victories still ahead in Golden State’s quest to three-peat.

Curry scored 25 points with five three-pointers and the Warriors beat Charlotte, 137-90, on Sunday night to clinch their fifth straight Pacific Division title and hand the Hornets their worst loss of the season.

“Obviously when you’re scoring like we were tonight it’s fun for everybody, no matter who’s finishing the possessions,” Curry said.

Splash Brother Klay Thompson scored Golden State’s initial nine points and finished with 24 and

six threes on a night Kerr could give his regulars a rest and better prepare the backups for the playoffs with more minutes. Curry and Thompson combined to shoot 11 for 17 from deep and 17 of 30 overall.

Kevin Durant contributed 11 points and nine assists.

Curry has made five or more threes in a career-best eight straight games. He has 335 so far, his secondmost in a season behind the National Basketball Association (NBA)-record 402 he hit in 2015-16.

The Warriors took charge from the opening tip and took it to the Hornets as the two-time defending champions returned to the court for the first time since a 131-130 overtime loss on Friday at Minnesota in which Golden State took exception to multiple late calls.

Starting Warriors center DeMarcus Cousins, who had 24 points and 11 rebounds in a 121-110 win at

Charlotte on February 25, was ejected with 6:09 left in the second quarter for a Flagrant 2 foul against Willy Hernangomez. Cousins scored eight points and blocked three shots in 11 minutes.

Kerr said Cousins inadvertently hit Hernangomez in the head with a closed fist trying to box him out, but “there wasn’t any malice intended.”

Hernangomez scored 22 points—14 on free throws—for the Hornets, who lost 129-115 on Friday at the Lakers.

“I didn’t see any fight out there tonight,” Hornets coach James Borrego said. “We gave into their offense tonight.... We made mistakes. We left Curry alone a few times, and you can’t do that.”

Charlotte leading scorer and All-Star Kemba Walker was held to nine points for his third game of the season not reaching double figures.

Quinn Cook added 21 points off the bench with

five threes as the Warriors shot a sizzling 21 of 33 (63.6 percent) from long range.

Draymond Green, meanwhile, whooped and hollered in the locker room with some serious school pride.

“Great day to be a Spartan!” Green said after Michigan State’s 68-67 NCAA Tournament victory over topseeded Duke to reach the Final Four.

Curry walked past his teammate after warmups and offered, “Congratulations, Spartan.”

“I’m not surprised, I actually thought that we could do it,” Green said.

“Duke has a lot of firepower, but it has gaps. An experienced team, and an experienced coach, can exploit those gaps.”

Curry’s mother, Sonya, along with California women’s basketball Coach Lindsay Gottlieb and two-time WNBA MVP Candace Parker, on the other hand, participated in a pregame future leaders event to introduce middle-school girls to careers in sports— part of Golden State’s efforts during Women’s Empowerment Month. The group was introduced at halftime. AP

NBA RESULTS Atlanta 136, Milwaukee 135, OT Dallas 106, Oklahoma City 103 LA Lakers 130, New Orleans 102 Sacramento 113, San Antonio 106 Washington 95, Denver 90

STEPHEN CURRY and the Golden State Warriors clinch their fifth-straight Pacific Division title.

Golden State 137, Charlotte 90 LA Clippers 113, Memphis 96

Miranda gears up for full season racing touring cars

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ANIEL MIRANDA is returning to race touring cars but this time on an international scale as the 22-year-old Cebuano confirmed his entry in the TCR Asia Series with Eurasia Motorsport, where he will be driving a Hyundai i30 N TCR this 2019.

Miranda already has a long list of accomplishments in motorsports. He started his career in go karts and was awarded Karter of the year in 2013. This was followed by the Toyota Vios Cup title in 2017 with Team Obengers before making the switch to single seaters.

Last year, he achieved a podium finish on his Asian Formula Renault (AFR) debut and was crowned vice champion in Formula V1.

Backed by Cebuana Lhuillier, Miranda is reunited with his AFR team to enter the Asian Touring Car series. Together they will compete in the full five-round TCR Asia Series championship that will take them to circuits in China, Korea and Thailand—with the season opener set from April 5 to 7 at the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia.

“This year will be a very exciting season for me. After a year in formula cars and finishing top five overall, I’ll be encountering a new challenge the TCR Asia Series with Eurasia Motorsport,” Miranda said. “This will allow me to improve on my race craft together with my motorsports career.”

Miranda recently completed a three-day test at Sepang to familiarize himself with the new machine. He was able to consistently improve at every session, working on his driving style, adjusting to running on full racing slicks, as well as acclimatizing himself to the hot Malaysian weather.

IT will be a very exciting season for Daniel Miranda.

F2 HOPING TO KEEP NO. 2 SPOT

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2 LOGISTICS seeks to build momentum before embarking for the quarterfinals when it clashes with dangerous Generika-Ayala in the Philippine Superliga Grand Prix on Tuesday at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan.

The game is set at 7 p.m. with the Cargo Movers looking to tighten their hold of the second spot.

Struggling teams Foton and Sta. Lucia, on the other hand, hope to end their miseries when they collide in the 4:15 p.m. match.

The Tornadoes rolled out the red carpet for star player Jaja Santiago over the weekend, but it still wasn’t enough as they suffered their 11th consecutive loss following a four-set meltdown against the Cargo Movers.

Foton Head Coach Aaron Velez said they need to beat the Lady Realtors not only to get

back on the winning track, but also to have a good chance of avoiding unbeaten Petron in the quarterfinals.

“We only have two games left in the preliminaries and both of them are crucial,” said Velez, who is in his first Grand Prix appearance.

“We have to win over Sta. Lucia on Tuesday to avoid finishing at the bottom. And with Jaja around, our chances are looking good.”

After blowing hot and cold in their first 10 matches, the Cargo Movers finally decided to call on Olympian Maria Jose Perez of Venezuela to replace Becky Perry as reinforcement.

The adjustment paid off. Perez, the Most Valuable Player two years ago, chipped in impressive numbers for the Cargo Movers in their impressive win over the Tornadoes over the weekend.

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TCC RARING TO BARE FANGS IN PHL OPEN A

LREADY daunting with its length, hazards, bunkers and undulating fairways and surface, the wind and heat are expected to make The Country Club (TCC) one real test for the revered men of the Philippine Golf Tour (PGT) Asia when the Solaire Philippine Open (SPO) is fired off on Wednesday.

“Kept in championship form all yearround, the TCC will be doubly tough at this time of the year with the heat and the wind to add to the severe challenges the course will pose to all the bidders,” said TCC General Manager Colo Ventosa, also the GM of the

organizing Pilipinas Golf Tournaments Inc. The last two SPO crowns have been won through sudden deaths at the windy TCC with a similar ending expected from the crack 132-player field that drew some of the top and rising players from at least 13 nations, including 39 from title-hungry Thailand and 11 each from Australia and the US. A select number of pros, meanwhile, get to test the 7735-yard Tom Weiskophdesigned one last time as they team up with officials and guests of the event’s chief

Junior amateur tourney gets going at Sherwood T HE country’s leading players and rising stars in the ranks slug it out in what looms to be a duel of shotmaking and putting in the Philippine Junior Amateur Open Golf Championships beginning on Tuesday at the Sherwood Hills Golf Club in Trece Martires, Cavite.

The heat and wind are also expected to test the field’s stamina and mental toughness in the 72-hole stroke play tournament serving as the third leg of this year’s PLDT Group National Amateur Tour, which features four divisions in both the boys and girls’ classes, including the centerpiece Albatross (15-18).

Although Aidric Chan, Sean Ramos, Josh Jorge, Carl Corpus and Paolo Wong get the top billings in the boys’ division, the likes of Joaquin Barro, Joaquin Gomez and Jacob Rolida, both 17, David Guangko, Rald Sarmiento and Joachim Yu are ready to pull off a surprise along with Riggs Illescas, Masaichi Otake and Pierre Ticzon and Koreans Kim Sang Jin, Kwon Tae Yon and Lee Sang Min, guaranteeing an exciting battle in the next four days for the local bets priming up for the Southeast Asian Games eliminations in May. Keen competition is also seen in the girls’ premier side of the event, sponsored by the MVP Sports Foundation, PLDT Group, Cignal and Metro Pacific, with reigning WExpress RVP Cup titlist Junia Gabasa heading the cast that includes Rafaela Singson, Kristine Fleetwood, Sophia Blanco, Isabela Tee, Kayla Nocum and Korean Kang Da Yun. Registration for the MVPSF Visayas Regional Golf Championships, meanwhile, is ongoing with another huge field expected to clash for top honors in the fourth staging of the event set from April 8 to 12 at the Cebu Country Club.

Fees are pegged at P3,000 (men’s and ladies

backers, including International Container Terminal Services Inc., Solaire, PLDT Enterprise, Meralco, BDO and PGT Asia Tour official apparel Pin High in today’s (Tuesday) pro-am.

They include Juvic Pagunsan, Angelo Que, Jobim Carlos and Clyde Mondilla, who will spearhead the country’s bid in the $500,000 championship sponsored

by Solaire Resort & Casino for the third straight year and sanctioned by the National Golf Association of the Philippines in the absence of injured and last year’s champion Miguel Tabuena.

But they will be as much tested as the rest of the crack foreign cast, led by Thais

SPORTS WITHOUT BORDERS VINCENT JUICO @VJuico Instagram vpjp_j, vince.juico@gmail.com

Other local players tipped to contend for the crown in the 72-hole championship closing out the 2018-2019 PGT Asia season are multititled Jhonnel Ababa, Philippine Masters winner Jerson Balasabas, veterans Jay Bayron, Elmer Salvador and Tony Lascuña, and PGTA leg champions James Ryan Lam and Joenard Rates.

Also joining the hunt are Thai Wisut Artjanawat, Aussies Clayton Bridges and Andrew Campbell, Americans Lexus Keoninh, Brett Munson, Sam Gillis, Paul Harris and Lexus Keoninh, Dutch Guido Van der Valk and England’s Grant Jackson and Joshua Grenville-Wood.

SHAW GOLF WINNERS

Oliver Gan and Paqo Barro hoist their trophies after winning the overall net crown in the recent 30th Bill Shaw Golf Classic at the Wack Wack Golf and Country Club. Also in photo are the club’s board president Lawrence Tan (fourth from right).

division) for local players and P4,000 for foreign entries and P2,500 (local) and P3,500 (foreign) for those competing in the Mid-Amateur Open category. Fee for club members is P1,500, according to the organizing National Golf Association of the Philippines.

Kristoffer Arevalo and Wiggan Tapdasan, meanwhile, head the Ace division (19-and-above) roster while set to dispute the Eagle title (12-14) are Leandro Bagtas, Miguel Castañeda, Zachary Castro, Jet Hernandez, Miguel Ilas, Emeric Loza, Miguel Roque, Rico See and Korean Rho Hyun Ho and Eagle Ace Superal, Laurea Duque, Jessica Ignacio, Rianne Malixi and Koreans Jeong Yeah Eun, Kwon Min Seo, Alexi Blanco, Annyka Cayabyab, Samantha Dizon and Arnie Taguines in the girls’ side.

Also on tap is the Birdie category (11 and below), led by Joshua de Guzman, Marc Nadales, Bhuvas Nagpal and Shinichi Suzuki (boys) and Celine Abalos, Nicole Gan, Jessica Ignacio, Stevie Umali and Precious Zaragosa (girls).

‘Blackjack’ Jack Ryan BLACKJACK Jack Ryan is the second athlete on my “Losers Documentary Series.” Ryan and his story was one of eight stories featured on Netflix’s sports documentary Losers.

Ryan is a streetball player from New York.

Blackjack’s exploits started in high school, where, as a senior, he averaged 26 points per game.

Ryan later took his game to East 5th St. Park in Brooklyn, where he mastered the tricks and shots he is known for. In his first season in a recreational league at West 4th, Ryan lit up former Detroit Piston Phil Sellers to the tune of 44 points.

Ryan is most well-known as a shooter, particularly from downtown. According to an article written by Bobbito Garcia about Ryan in a basketball magazine, former National Basketball Association (NBA) player Chris Mullin once said Jack is the best shooter he’d ever seen who hadn’t played in the NBA. Peter Vecsey got Ryan a tryout with the New Jersey Nets in 1990, but was cut which ended Ryan’s NBA aspirations. In May 2003 Ryan was named as one of “Slam Magazines Greatest Playground Ballers of All Time.”

Ryan proved he could knock down the threepoint shot when he won the 2005 City wide 3-Point Shooting Championships.

According to the Harlemwizards.com web site, Ryan is a “3 Time Guinness Record Holder, ESPN 3-Point Shooting champion, Slam Magazine Playground Legend Issue, subject of a documentary on his life Release and soon to be the subject of a major studio movie.

He combines high level hoops skills, world class tricks and fun.”

According to the pix11.com web site, “The Brooklyn native rose to stardom when he joined the Harlem Wizards in 1997. A year later he became the first white showman for the team. He’s been the subject of several documentaries and was played by Justin Timberlake in the biopic Release.

As I watched the episode on Ryan in the documentary, I cringed at all the missed opportunities and the ones Ryan took for granted. If it wasn’t an attitude problem, it was his drinking problem. A lot of “shoulda, coulda and woulda” in the life of Ryan.

JR. ALTAS CELEBRATE!

DESIREE DESERVES WEEKLY AWARD

RAMIREZ IN FORUM

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HILIPPINE Sports Commission (PSC) Chairman William “Butch” Ramirez holds court in Tuesday’s session of the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) Forum at the Amelie Hotel-Manila.

Ramirez will talk lengthily about the preparations being undertaken by the PSC for the country’s hosting of the 30th Southeast Asian Games during the session presented by San Miguel Corp., Tapa King, Amelie Hotel-Manila and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.

Ramirez stood hand-in-hand with the Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) and Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee in rallying Team Philippines for its coming campaign and hosting of the SEA Games by way of the GoPilipinasGo pep rally at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Field last week.

The Forum starts at 10:30 a.m.

Shortly after the session, the PSA will hold a general assembly for the election of its new set of officers. Lunch will be served afterward. PSA President Dodo Catacutan of SPIN.ph enjoins all members to attend.

Poom Saksansin, Chawalit Plaphol, Chapchai Nirat and Prom Meesawat, who lost to Tabuena last year, Malaysian Nicholas Fung, PGT Q-School top-notcher Marcos Pastor of Spain, young Korean and PGT leg winner Kim Joo Hyung, Taiwanese Tsai Chi-huang and PGT Asia leg champions Damien Jordan and David Gleeson of Australia.

Korean-American Micah Shin, who humbled the local aces to be become the first non-Filipino to win the TCC Invitational last year, is also in the fold, ready to score a repeat against a field toughened up by the leading campaigners from Korea, the Netherlands, Japan, England, India and Indonesia.

THE Country Club’s No. 18 is considered one of the toughest finishing holes in Asia.

‘THE CAPTAIN’ IN ACTION “The Captain” Alvin Patrimonio (right) runs

alongside North teammates Marcio Lassiter and Calvin Abueva (with ball) during the Philippine Basketball Association All-Star game on Sunday night in Calasiao, Pangasinan.

The North squad beat South, 185-170.

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UST when De La Salle University looked vulnerable, its graduating captain Desiree Cheng found her groove.

The three-time defending champion Lady Spikers were coming off a disheartening loss to University of the Philippines entering last week’s slate of matches.

The resurgent Cheng first found her form in leading the Lady Spikers with 19 points in a straight-sets win over upstart National University (NU) last Wednesday.

She followed up her superb performance with an inspired play, dropping a career-high 20 points to help her squad avenge their first round loss to University of Santo Tomas (UST) last Sunday.

For lifting De La Salle back to solo second in the standings, Cheng was named Collegiate Press Corps University Athletic Association of the Philippines Player of the Week.

The Lady Spikers, now with a 7-3 record, were determined to prove they were better than the team that lost in straight sets to UST in the first round. Cheng proved vital, not only because of her offensive exploits, but also as the De La Salle emotional barometer.

Adamson University, meanwhile, goes for the softball crown in Game Two of the titular showdown between the Lady Falcons and Tigresses on Tuesday at the Rizal Memorial

Baseball Stadium.

The Lady Falcons will try to annex their ninth consecutive title—18th overall—in the match set at 8:30 a.m.

Adamson University booked an abbreviated 11-2 victory in the series opener last Friday.

De La Salle also seeks to top its baseball championship series against Ateneo also in Game Two at 12 noon. The Green Batters won last Friday’s opener, 9-7.

In tennis, NU and Ateneo secured twice-tobeat incentives in the first-ever men’s Final Four after posting convincing wins on Sunday at the Colegio de San Agustin courts in the City of San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan.

NU blanked De La Salle, 5-0, while Ateneo overwhelmed University of the East, 4-1. In the other tie to cap the seven-team, double-round eliminations, UST nipped University of the Philippines, 3-2.

The loss, the seventh in 12 ties, eliminated the Fighting Maroons, handing the Red Warriors the last berth in the semifinals that are set on Saturday.

In the women’s division, NU and Ateneo forged a playoff for the remaining finals slot after hurdling their respective final elimination round tie. The Lady Bulldogs swept De La Salle, 5-0, while the Lady Eagles fashioned out a 4-1 win over deposed champion UST.

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EASON host University of Perpetual Help System Dalta ran away with the juniors division overall championships of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Season 94—the first for the school since joining the oldest collegiate league in 1984.

The Junior Altas earned 365 points to reign supreme by nipping five-time general champion San Beda University by a mere 1.5 points.

The Tony Tamayo-owned school topped chess, indoor volleyball, beach volleyball and athletics (each worth 50 points) and finished second in swimming for 40 points and fourth in table tennis and football for 30 points each. The school also garnered 20 points in basketball and tennis, 15 points in badminton and 10 points in taekwondo.

Arellano University placed third with 302.5 points.

Juniors Altas who won Most Valuable Player awards were Chris Pondoyo (chess), Hero Austria (indoor volleyball), Noel Micheal Kampton (beach volleyball) and Jerick “Toto” Arzaga (athletics).

Perpetual Help also reaped Coach of the Year trophies—Fide Master Roel Abelgas (chess), Sandy Rieta (indoor and outdoor volleyball) and Trece Academia (athletics).

ANTHONY JOSE MORAN TAMAYO (in barong, right), president of the University of Perpetual Help System Dalta, poses with the Junior Altas who emerge as the season’s overall champions.

HAMILTON TRIUMPHS AT FERRARI’S EXPENSE Sports

GOING OUT OF BUSINESS T

BusinessMirror

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| Tuesday, April 2, 2019 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

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By Jerome Pugmire The Associated Press

AKHIR, Bahrain—Lewis Hamilton’s surprise win for Mercedes at the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday was the latest present from rival Ferrari, served on a silver plate and wrapped with a red ribbon.

Hamilton won at a canter despite the Silver Arrows lagging behind the red Ferraris for most of the race.

First, Sebastian Vettel imploded under pressure from Hamilton, spiraling out of contention some 20 laps from the end as the pair of five-time Formula One champions fought for what seemed like second place.

Then it got even worse for Ferrari as race leader Charles Leclerc’s engine started losing power. “[It was] just a loss of power, completely,” Leclerc said.

“There were no signs before.”

It was the F1 equivalent of an open-goal in soccer for Hamilton, who took full advantage before getting a postrace hug from former Manchester United and England star David Beckham, who waved the checkered flag on Hamilton’s 74th career win. Only seven-time F1 champion Michael Schumacher has more with 91.

Leclerc finished third behind Valtteri Bottas as Mercedes somehow clinched a second straight 1-2 from two races, having been slower than Ferrari in

preseason testing and in Bahrain. Ferrari looked in ominous form after dominating every practice session and every section of qualifying on the 5.4-kilometer (3.3-mile) desert circuit.

“We were lucky. Ferrari outperformed us from the get-go,” Hamilton said. “It definitely feels weird. But what can you do? You can’t deny yourself [victory].”

Then, to rub further salt into Vettel’s wounds, Hamilton heaped praise on Leclerc—who drove brilliantly to secure pole position on Saturday and was only denied victory by problems with his car.

“Charles was incredible this weekend. He was so much faster than his teammate,” Hamilton said. “He has a bright future ahead of him.”

A despondent Leclerc thought he was going to become the third-youngest winner of an F1 race—after Max Verstappen and Vettel—having already become the second-youngest to qualify on pole after Vettel.

“You have a dream since childhood, your first win in Formula One,” the 21-year-old driver from Monaco said.

Red Bull’s Verstappen placed fourth, with Vettel crossing in fifth.

Leclerc only finished third because the safety car came out near the end after the Renaults of Daniel Ricciardo, and Nico Hulkenberg went off track.

Under safety-car rules, drivers must hold position.

Verstappen could not attack and missed out on a second

FORMER British football player David Beckham waves the checkered flag as Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton crosses the finish line. AP

straight podium, after third place at the seasonopening Australian GP two weeks ago behind Hamilton and Bottas.

Leclerc picked up a bonus point for posting the fastest lap. But Ferrari will know third and fifth spots were simply not good enough, after fourth and fifth in Australia.

“We’ll check everything we can,” Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto said.

Ferrari last won the drivers’ title in 2007 with Kimi Raikkonen, and its constructors’ title the following year remains its last. In the past two seasons, Ferrari challenged strongly before badly fading in the second part of the season after a series of mishaps, strategy errors and mistakes by Vettel.

Ferrari replaced struggling team principal Maurizio Arrivabene with Binotto, formerly Ferrari chief technical officer. But he’s in much the same position: with a fast car and a driver—Vettel—appearing prone to problems and errors. Heading into the Chinese GP in two weeks’ time, Ferrari has to find a way to stop throwing away points and Vettel needs to regain control.

Vettel did well to overtake Leclerc at the start of Sunday’s race, but Leclerc reclaimed his lead soon after with an audacious move on the German driver’s outside.

It looked even more like being Ferrari’s day when

Hamilton went too wide on Lap 20 and drifted further behind Leclerc. Vettel overtook him on Lap 23 to put Ferrari 1-2.

As it turned out, Hamilton needn’t have worried much because another Ferrari flop was on the way.

It happened on Lap 39 of 57.

Vettel initially fended off Hamilton’s attack well, but then lost control and span his car, prompting hands on heads in the Ferrari garage.

Question marks were raised in 2017 and 2018 about Vettel’s repeated mistakes under pressure, particularly when he crashed while leading the German GP last year.

Leclerc made no mistakes, but instead was undone by his car.

Panic crept into his voice with about 10 laps left.

“Something strange with the engine,” Leclerc said, his lead rapidly dwindling. “What’s happening?”

He soon knew.

Hamilton surged past him for his first Bahrain win since 2015 and third overall.

Bottas leads the title race, ahead of Hamilton 44-43, because of his fastest lap in Melbourne.

23rd horse dies at Santa Anita after accident A

RCADIA, California—A two-horse spill in the $100,000 San Simeon Stakes at Santa Anita on Sunday led to the 23rd equine fatality at the Southern California track in just over three months.

Arms Runner injured his right front leg and fell in the Grade 3 race on turf, two days after Santa Anita reopened to racing after being closed for nearly a month.

That caused a trailing horse, La Sardane, to fall. The fiveyear-old mare got back on her feet and walked back to her barn under her own power. She didn’t sustain any injuries, according to a statement issued by the track.

Jockey Ruben Fuentes didn’t ride the rest of the day. He was a late replacement for scheduled rider Joel Rosario.

Arms Runner was tended to by track veterinarians and vanned off. Track stewards said the horse trained

by Peter Miller was euthanized. Arms Runner had three wins in 13 career starts and earnings of $125,292, according to Equibase.

Jockey Martin Pedroza, aboard Arms Runner, rode later in the day.

The accident occurred as the horses crossed the dirt surface during the transition from the hillside turf course to

LAW ABIDIN CITIZEN and jockey Tiago Pereira (second from left) tows the field composed of Mesut (Geovanni Franco), Air Vice Marshal (Martin Garcia) and Cistron (Rafael Bejarano), to win the Grade III $100,000 San Simeon Stakes on Sunday at Santa Anita Park in Arcadia California. AP

the main turf course.

The majority of the fatalities at the Arcadia track since December 26 have occurred on the main dirt surface.

“While this incident happened during competition on a track that has been deemed by independent experts to be safe, we are working closely with the California Horse Racing Board to understand if there was anything additional that we could have done to prevent today’s tragedy,” according to a statement issued by the track.

“Today’s incident speaks to the larger issue of catastrophic injuries in horse racing that The Stronach Group together with our industry stakeholders are working to solve throughout California and

across the country.”

The rest of the nine-race card was completed after the accident.

The track closed on March 3 so officials could inspect and renovate the dirt surface after the series of fatalities that have drawn national attention outside the sport and criticism from animal-rights groups.

Track officials have not announced a singular cause for the unusual number of deaths.

The Stronach Group, which owns Santa Anita, announced an immediate reduction in the amount of anti-bleeding medication Lasix allowed on race days.

The California Horse Racing Board approved the measure, and it took effect on Friday.

A proposed rule that would eliminate the use of whips, except in cases where a horse’s or jockey’s safety is involved, still requires the approval of various state agencies. AP

CALGARY’S Inferno’s Brigette Lacquette (left) battles for the puck with Les Canadiennes de Montreal’s Lauriane Rougeau during the second-period action of the Clarkson Cup in Toronto late last month. AP

HE Canadian Women’s Hockey League’s (CWHL) abrupt decision to cease operations leaves North America with one pro league, and opens questions regarding the future of the women’s sport on both sides of the border.

“Unfortunately, while the on-ice hockey is exceptional, the business model has proven to be economically unsustainable,” the CWHL said in a statement on Sunday.

The decision to shutter the six-team Canadian-based league came a week after a record 175,000 TV viewers tuned in to watch the Clarkson Cup championship game. And it comes four days before the women’s world championships are set to begin in Espoo, Finland.

The CWHL, which was established in 2007, did not provide any details behind its decision, which becomes effective on May 1.

One question raised is whether the CWHL’s Chinesebased team, Shenzhen, was going to return for the 2019-20 season. Shenzhen joined the league two years ago, and paid the CWHL an annual fee.

Last week, Jakob Kolliker, the new coach of China’s national women’s team, told China Daily he hoped the nation would form its own league so his players didn’t have to travel internationally.

Messages left with CWHL officials, including interim Commissioner Jayna Hefford, were not returned.

Numerous players went to Twitter in posting notes expressing their disappointment.

“I’m heartbroken at the news of the CWHL folding,” Calgary Inferno forward Brianne Jenner said. “Hard to process this after our most successful season to date.... We will rebound from this.”

Added Canadian national team goalie Ann-Renee Desbiens: “Did not expect news like this morning. Hopefully, the different stakeholders will work together to find a solution and grow the game.”

The CWHL’s demise leaves the US-based, five-team National Women’s Hockey League (NWHL) as the only women’s professional league in North America. And the decision re-opens questions as to whether the National Hockey League (NHL) should step in and create one league with teams on both sides of the border.

In an e-mail to The Associated Press, NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly called the CWHL’s decision “unfortunate,” and added “it shouldn’t detract from what the people associated with this initiative have been able to accomplish.”

As for the league stepping in to run a women’s pro sports league, Daly wrote the NHL’s position remains unchanged at this point.

“We recognize the importance of women having options to play the game at the professional level. If those options were to become unavailable in the future, we would certainly consider doing what’s necessary to fill that void,” Daly wrote. “But that’s not the case currently.”

Daly’s response echoes what NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman told the AP in September.

Bettman said he had no interest in forming a third league because he didn’t want the NHL “to look like a bully” by pushing the existing leagues out of business.

He was also hesitant of the NHL assuming control of the CWHL or NWHL because, as he put it, “we don’t believe in their models.”

“We need to start on a clean slate,” Bettman said.

“If at some point the leagues say, ‘We’ve had enough, we don’t see this as a long-term solution, we’d like you to start up and we’ll discontinue operations,’ then we’ll do it. But we’re not pushing it,” he said. “If we’re going to get involved, it cannot fail, which means it has to be on us.”

In a statement, NWHL Commissioner and founder Dani Rylan said she was saddened to learn of the news, and assured fans the NWHL is committed to playing next season.

Calling it a priority, Rylan said she has already opened discussions to attract the CWHL’s top players to play in the US next season.

The two leagues first discussed the possibility of merging last summer, with Rylan revealing they had follow-up discussions in January, and were scheduled to meet again in April. AP

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Living God

EAR God, You are the source of our joy and happiness.

In gladness we pray: Shepherd us in love, oh God. Animate the worship, preaching and song of Your Church. Give wisdom, discernment and right judgment to Pope Francis and all entrusted with servant leadership in the Church.

Heal those who have suffered physical illnesses and wrongdoings relationships, abuse, injustice or neglect. Forgive our offenses and show us the right ways of doing our daily tasks.

May God bless us in mercy, fill our hearts with peace and lead us to walk in the light of Christ. Amen.

GIVE US THIS DAY SHARED BY LUISA LACSON, HFL Word&Life Publications • teacherlouie1965@yahoo.com

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

Life

CIRCLES: THE UNDYING LOVE BETWEEN BOTONG FRANCISCO AND ANGONO D4

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IF electricity isn’t available on your porch, consider one of these solar floor lamps from Ikea’s new collection.

HOMEGOODS showcases a variety of outdoor lanterns.

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IKEA’S solar-powered LED string light for outdoor use

THE solar outdoor lights by Les Jardins reinterpret the classic lantern design with a slim, teak-framed portable light that has a solar module producing LED light for up to 200 hours per charge. There’s a motion sensor and dimming capability as well.

A small but social spot: Trends in front-porch decorating

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By KiM CooK The Associated Press

ACK in the days before TV and airconditioning lured people indoors, Americans often hung out on front porches, enjoying the fresh air and socializing with neighbors.

In later decades, when they wanted to relax outside, people tended to do it in the backyard, away from noise and traffic.

But according to the National Association of Home Builders, the front porch is coming back. On renovation projects, the association says, adding or enclosing a porch is among the most common requests. In a 2016 survey, the group found that front porches were included in about 65 percent of new home builds, up from about 40 percent 20 years earlier. So what are some décor options for this small

but social spot?

“Comfortable seating is an important part of any front porch,” says Jenny Reimold of the Nashville, Tennessee-based design firm Whim & Willow, and a style expert for the retailer HomeGoods. She suggests a traditional outdoor bench or classic Adirondack chairs in a fun color like teal.

Place a rug to anchor the seating area and provide comfort underfoot, she says. “The rug should be roughly 2 feet wider than your seating arrangement.”

A rug is also a good way to bring more pattern and color to the porch, when you may not have much room for décorative elements.

No matter how much space you’ve got to work with, try to coordinate front-porch décor with your interiors for a cohesive look indoors and out.

Retailers are offering lots of options.

For example, if your style is contemporary, Target’s neutral-hued Project 62 abstract outdoor rugs, lumbar

CELEBRATING WORLD SLEEP DAY Uratex Premium recently celebrated World Sleep Day at SM Mall of Asia

Activity Center through a series of informative activities to raise awareness on the benefits of sleep. The five-day event includes an exhibit of the “Sleep Hive”—sleep pods showcasing the ideal space to getting the best sleep experience, and featuring Uratex Premium’s collection of luxurious mattresses. The celebration culminated with “Healthy Slumber, Healthy You,” an afternoon of talks about beauty, wellness and the importance of good sleep. Happy Skin CEO Rissa Mananquil-Trillo (center) discussed how good sleep affects aging, while sleep specialist Dr. Keith Aguilera (second from left) had a lecture on sleep and its benefits. Also gracing the event were (from left): host Honey Obusan-Dy, Uratex CEO Natividad Cheng and Trade Marketing Director Dindo Medina.

pillows, club chairs and string lights would blend nicely.

The new line, which includes indoor décor, was inspired by Target’s year of inception, 1962.

Also at Target, the rustic farmhouse vibe, currently popular indoors, can be brought to the porch. Galvanized steel pots can hold real or faux greenery. Smith & Hawken’s Montpelier collection provides deep, comfy Sunbrella cushions in chunky, whitewashed, eucalyptus-wood frames. Or for narrower porches, Opalhouse’s outdoor wicker chairs may be worth a look.

Those who live near water might like the crisp coastal vibe of all-weather wicker seating in creamy white with blue cushions, tied in with starfish, stripe or lattice patterned outdoor rug, and navy ceramic planters. And for boho décor fans, there are patterned terracotta planters, folk-arty floral rugs, fruity-hued and fringed toss pillows, and woven furniture.

Want a swinging seat, but don’t have a beam to hang it from? Consider Casaza’s freestanding swing chair, with a sturdy powder-coated frame holding an all-weather rattan seat with a plush cushion. Also here, a selection of ceramic or cement stools with unusual painted or textured finishes.

If you have no electrical outlet handy, you can still illuminate your front-porch seating area with battery-powered or solar lighting. Ikea’s new Solvinden solar collection includes string lights as well as table and floor lights, with beachy stripe or polka-dot patterns.

“Outdoor lanterns are essential elements for any outdoor space because they’re not only functional but versatile,” says Reimold. “They can be used with a variety of home styles, from coastal to farmhouse to traditional. Lanterns also transition well from summer to fall, making them a great purchase for year-round décorating.”

You’ll find whitewashed wood ones at HomeGoods, and Wayfair has a broad range of metal, ceramic or wood options. Use battery-operated pillar candles that can be tapped on and off with a remote control, for safety and convenience. Terrain’s Wildfire pillar offers a realistic flickering flame, and can be handily recharged with a USB cord. n

ETON CENTRIS UNVEILS GIANT MURAL ALONG EDSA

ETON Centris is known for its offices, restaurants, events, transportation hubs and its Sunday market. It is a place you’ll go to when you want to do things that you enjoy, like good food, events and music. Now, Eton Centris is paving its way to becoming a go-to place for public art enthusiasts in Quezon City.

As part of its revitalized branding, Eton Centris commissioned renowned artists Dee Jae Pa’este and Archie Oclos of Kapwa Studios to paint a huge, bright, and evocative mural on the wall of Centris Station mall along Edsa corner Quezon Avenue, Quezon City.

The 678-square-meter mural of Eton Centris is one of the largest murals in the Philippines. Expressing a profound respect for females and highlighting the importance of women empowerment in society, the art features three women in different stages—a child, a teenager and an adult.

The mural’s subjects are interspersed in a flowing imagery that depicts an appreciation for music, culture, and human connection, underscoring the DNA of Eton Centris as a place that celebrates things that people love. Another message that the mural tries to communicate centers around the importance of passing down tradition and culture from generation to generation in order to make it flourish and thrive.

“This beautiful mural is a milestone for Eton Centris because it is the largest of its kind in a lifestyle space. We want it to reflect the atmosphere, energy and soul of the place.

The vibrant colors communicate that Eton Centris is a place that is always full of celebration and life,” said Assistant Vice President for Eton Centris, Marjorie G. Abot. “When people see this mural, we want them to feel happy and uplifted, just as what they would experience within Eton Centris,” she said.

Abot said that Eton Centris has always been keen on working with and showcasing local talent. The development has continuously set the stage for musicians and bands, and this public art is its way of moving forward with its goal of making Eton Centris known as the soulful side of Quezon City and support local artists in the country.

The mural facing Edsa is the first of three parts to be featured in the property. In the pipeline are several murals to be unveiled in the coming months. It has captured the attention of passers-by and MRT commuters daily as it gives people a unique visual experience along the highway.

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‘Black Leopard, Red Wolf’ is epic tale by Marlon James

By Jonathan Elderfield The Associated Press

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thinking of Lionel Richie’s song “Dancing on the Ceiling.”

The storytelling is ambitious and enjoyable, and in many places, I’d say even epic. However, there were times when I wanted to put the book down and not return, most often in the first section of the novel and in the final one. At the beginning, I truly had trouble keeping the characters and sequence of events clear in my mind.

In the final part, I almost lost heart and could not finish. The story felt like it was taking the Rashomon effect to the nth degree, and was retelling the same battles and histories over and again. In the best fantasy series (Black Leopard, Red Wolf is to be the first installment of James’s Dark Star Trilogy), the reader wants to finish the tale and get on to the next adventure.

Sadly, that was not the case for me here. Several times during the final 80 pages, I put the book down, afraid I wouldn’t pick it up again.

The best writing, I found, was when James was at his most direct. My favorite lines, “I lived in town, which was a new thing for me. I have always been an edge man, always on the coast, always by the boundary. That way nobody knows if I have just come or was turning to leave” tells me about Tracker in a way that 100 killings and a multitude of foes did not. Tracker is never settled, always moving, always keeping others off-balance. The prose here is simple, direct, to the point, not interlaced with made-up words and multiple characters. The main body of the novel pulled me though an exciting new world, a fictional Africaninspired fantasy realm with lyrical prose and grand adventure, but sadly, I’m not sure I can say I’m excited for the next installment. n

B

LACK Leopard, Red Wolf (Riverhead Books) by Marlon James is a serpentine, epic tale set in a fantastic realm of evil monsters and villains and flawed heroes. At its center is a quest for a boy, a child whom we know is dead from the first line of the novel.

James, who won the 2015 Man Booker Prize for his novel A Brief History of Seven Killings, a fictionalization of the 1976 attempted murder of Bob Marley and beyond, brings his storytelling acumen to territory more commonly associated with Tolkien and George R.R. Martin.

The hero, if you can call him that, of this Homeric odyssey, is Tracker, one of a collection of characters engaged to find the missing boy. Tracker possesses the nose of a bloodhound or a wolf, but an otherworldly one, capable of hunting down the boy, many days missing and many miles away. The boy is a mystery, perhaps the key to the lineage of kings, wanted by several competing factions.

The story owes a debt to Homer, with a plot that curves and bends and defies a linear path, the ultimate outcome revealed in the opening lines. The story is as much about the storytelling as it is about the tale itself.

As with any monumental fantasy saga, Black Leopard, Red Wolf hits the required notes—kings, queens and witches, fabulously evocative locales, deceptions and betrayal, and more evil monsters than I could count. There were flesh-eaters and bloodsuckers, and a creature with a new favorite name, Omoluzu or Roof Walkers.

Though I confess to immediately

Don Winslow writes novel about war on drugs DON WINSLOW’S epic trilogy about America’s longest war, which he launched with The Power of the Dog in 2005 and continued with The Cartel in 2015, comes to a powerful and troubling conclusion in his new novel, The Border (William Morrow).

By “longest war,” Winslow does not mean Afghanistan. He means the war on drugs, which is 50 years old and counting.

Although Winslow chose to tell this story as fiction, he spent much of the last 20 years researching his subject on both sides of the border. “The more I learned,” he says his introduction, “the angrier I became.”

Art Keller, a violent Drug Enforcement Agency undercover operative in the first two novels, returns as the unlikely choice to run the Drug Enforcement Administration. He was reluctant to take the job, but he’s come to recognize that his previous efforts have come to naught.

“You’re standing on the Rio Grande with a broom...trying to sweep back the tide of heroin while billionaires are sending jobs overseas, closing factories and towns, killing hopes and dreams, and inflicting pain. Then they tell you to stop the heroin epidemic.”

Opiates, he knows, “are a response to pain.... The difference between a hedge fund manager and a cartel boss?

The Wharton Business School.”

So Keller attacks the problem in a new way, seeking to

uncover and punish powerful Americans who profit from the drug trade. He zeros in on an American bank that’s laundering tens of millions of dollars for the cartels by investing in New York City real estate. Those benefiting from the dirty money, it turns out, include the newly elected president of the United States, whom Winslow coyly names Dennison, and unambiguously models after Donald J. Trump.

Other characters from the first two books return, and more are added in a novel with a half-dozen subplots ranging from Mexican cartel power struggles to Guatemalan child asylum seekers to New York City junkies scrounging for a fix.

The novel, written in muscular, fast-paced prose, portrays torture, assassinations, mass murder, police payoffs, mass incarceration and political corruption from Guatemala to Washington, D.C. In the end, the words Winslow puts in his protagonist’s mouth leave no doubt what his years of research have led him to believe: “Because drugs are illegal, we send $60 billion a year to the violent sociopaths of the cartels, money that bribes police and politicians and buys the guns that have killed hundreds of thousands of people with no end in sight. The ‘Mexican drug’ problem is not a Mexican drug problem. It is the American drug problem. We are the buyers, and without buyers, there can be no sellers.” AP

Today’s Horoscope

By Eugenia Last

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Michael Fassbender, 42; Christopher Meloni, 58; Emmylou Harris, 72; Linda Hunt, 74.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Be secretive this year. The less others know about your plans, the better it will be for you. Keep your financial assets, personal information and passwords hidden to avoid theft or someone meddling in your affairs. Playing it safe will be the quickest route to achieving your goals and the success you desire. Your lucky numbers are 2, 10, 19, 26, 30, 37, 43.

a

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Take better care of your health and physical well-being.

Overdoing it will lead to exhaustion or injury.

Pay close attention to information being shared. Verify what you hear before you decide to spend money or make a vocational move. HHH

b

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Personal change will have a positive effect on someone you love, not to mention help you out when it comes to attitude, business and getting things done. A passionate approach to life will be better than channeling your energy into anxiety and excess.

HHHH

c

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Take a moment to reconsider your next move. Don’t get snowed into something that will do you more harm than good. Living in moderation and following your own path will prove to be beneficial. HH

d

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Do your own thing and enjoy. Live in the moment, and say no to anyone prompting you to be indulgent or lavish in any way. Focus on personal improvements, love and ensuring that important relationships are heading in positive directions. HHHHH

e

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Shine brightly, but don’t make promises you cannot deliver.

Your heart may be in the right place, but your reputation will suffer if you are too accommodating.

Only agree to what’s doable, and make changes that are necessary. HHH

f

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Simplify your life by sticking to the people you can trust and the prospects that are worthwhile. Learn as you go, and base each move you make on logistics.

A domestic or professional change should be made for the right reason. HHH

g

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Take positive action when it comes to your relationships with others and choosing friends who have as much to offer as you do. Refuse to let anyone dictate what you can do. Be honest but not too revealing. HHH

h

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Get out and participate in events and activities that are conducive to connecting with people who can help you get ahead. Mix business with pleasure, and you’ll enjoy sharing your success with someone you love. HHHHH

i

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Keep your personal thoughts and information to yourself in order to avoid someone taking advantage of you. Stick close to home, and keep your loyalty where it belongs.HH

j

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Old friends and lovers will have an impact on your day if you reach out. A change at home will be in your best interest. Don’t hesitate to engage in something that encourages you to revisit an old dream. HHHH

k

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Listen carefully and pursue your goals on your own. Your best effort will come from taking care of personal affairs that can be done only by you.

Leave no stone unturned, and stick to a plan that is realistic. HHH

l

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): You may feel like sharing your opinion, but don’t make someone angry in the process. Offering too much information can have a devastating effect on a friendship or your relationship with a sibling. HHH BIRTHDAY BABY: You are curious, original and sensitive.

You are passionate and expressive.

‘colorful characters’ BY GREG JOHNSON The Universal Crossword/Edited by David Steinberg

ACROSS 1 Very beginning 6 Multiple choice choices 10 Folk story 14 Baseball’s “Hammerin’ Hank” 15 Well-done’s opposite 16 Muffin-rising site 17 22nd and 24th president 20 A chip, sometimes 21 Not in mint condition 22 Justice Samuel 23 Yank’s foe 25 What’s discharged 27 Tamer of wild horses 32 Kool-___ 33 Burden 34 Builds, as a monument 38 Workbench object 40 Fizzling firework 42 Rank below marquess 43 Moved using long steps 46 Groups of Across clues 49 London restroom 50 StarKist tuna catchphrase 53 Dice game shout

6 Olympic torchbearer Muhammad 5 57 Not out?

58 Rich soil 61 Chemist’s container 65 Attorney’s reference book 68 Three card 69 Minuscule amount 70 Last name of the fictional people at the ends of 17-, 27-, 50- and 65-Across 71 Tacks on 72 Unknown quote source, briefly 73 Soup alternative DOWN 1 Crazy in love 2 Work hard for 3 Gait faster than a walk 4 Lead the people 5 ___ in a million 6 Stone-skipping paths 7 Hay bound with twine 8 Sets of principles 9 Software programmer, slangily 10 Like a 1-800 number 11 Be of use

2 Slow tempo 1 13 Provide funding for 18 Like some temporary tattoos 19 “Peter Peter Pumpkin ___” 24 Prefix with “friendly” 26 Sport-___ (SUV) 27 Little League equipment 28 Really funny person 29 Gym socks’ smell 30 Rose before it grows 31 Loan shark’s crime 35 Do a telemarketer’s job 36 Star Trek: T.N.G. counselor 37 Gin cocktail fruit 39 A locksmith may replace them 41 Rx writer 44 Donut quantity 45 Before, poetically 47 Frisbee brand 48 Actor Mineo 51 Trust 52 Muralist Diego 53 1945 conference site 54 Oscar or Grammy 55 Partner of “hemmed”

9 Eight: Prefix 5 60 Code-breaker Turing 62 Pop star, perhaps 63 Bluetooth speaker maker 64 Sight from sea 66 Org. with agents 67 Nova network

Solution to yesterday’s puzzle:

Show BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Tuesday, April 2, 2019

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THIS image released by Disney shows Eva Green in a scene from Dumbo. (DISNEY VIA AP)

GEORGE CLOONEY

George Clooney calls for boycott of hotels over anti-gay law LOS ANGELES—George Clooney is calling for the boycott of nine hotels in the US and Europe with ties to the sultan of Brunei Darussalam, which next month will implement Islamic criminal laws to punish gay sex by stoning offenders to death.

The Hollywood actor wrote on Thursday in Deadline Hollywood: “Are we really going to help fund the murder of innocent citizens?”

He writes that you can’t shame “murderous regimes,” but you can shame “the banks, the financiers and the institutions that do business with them.” Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah rules the oil-rich monarchy with full executive authority, and the hotels are owned by the Brunei Investment Agency. An e-mail seeking comment was sent to the agency on Friday.

The hotels are The Dorchester, 45 Park Lane and Coworth Park in the UK; Beverly Hills Hotel and Hotel Bel-Air in Los Angeles; Le Meurice and Hotel Plaza Athenee in Paris; Hotel Eden in Rome; and Hotel Principe di Savoia in Milan.

The new laws take effect on April 3. AP

Live-action ‘Dumbo’ struggles to soar at box office

THE CR3W

James, Sam and Billy in Araneta concert JAMES REID, Sam Concepcion and Billy Crawford— three of the country’s most popular singers, actors and all-around media personalities—have banded together to become The CR3W and are now all set for the coolest, sonic mood-filled Big Dome concert ever.

Presented by SCRATCHIT and produced by Viva Live Inc., the presentation, titled The CR3W, stars three of the hottest and most talented male stars in show business today. This will be held at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City on April 5. Crawford, a singer, dancer, comedian and host, started out as a child actor in the Philippines before relocating to the US and then launching his career as a teen idol in Europe.

From his base in France he came up with charting tunes like the platinum-selling “Urgently In Love,” “When You Think About Me,” “You Didn’t Expect That” and “Stormy Nights.” He resumed his career in the Philippines and has since then become one of the most popular hosts in local television with shows like Your Face Sounds Familiar, Pinoy Dream Academy and Pilipinas Got Talent.

He is at present one of the judges in the competition show World of Dance.

James Reid is a star of the big screen (Diary ng Panget, This Time, Never Not Love You) and of television (On the Wings of Love, Till I Met You). He is also known for big-selling soundtrack music like “No Erase,” “Bahala Na,” “On the Wings of Love” and “Hanap-Hanap.”

Reid also took on the role of songwriter and producer for his own label Careless Music and has released the album Palm Dreams with the singles “Cool Down,” “Turning Up” and “The Life.” He has recently unloaded “Summer,” a duet with Nadine Lustre.

Sam Concepcion, also a singer and actor, made his mark in theater in the title role of the musical Peter Pan. He made a big splash in films as the male lead of the musical I Do Bidoo Bidoo.

Concepcion has since then alternated between acting in films and recording. Among his hit songs are “Dati” with Tippy Dos Santos, “Kontrabida,” “No Limitations,” “Isang Daan” and “Kalsada.”

Reid, Concepcion and Crawford will surely rock the Big Dome with their trendy sounds on April 5 as CR3W. Tickets are available at TicketNet (911-5555), with prices: VVIP with Meet and Greet at P10,000; VIP Seated P5,000; Patron P4,000; Lower Box P2,500; Upper Box P1,500; and General Admission P500.

L

By Lindsey Bahr The Associated Press

OS ANGELES—Disney’s Dumbo isn’t exactly taking flight at the North American box office the way its other live-action remakes of animated classics have.

The Walt Disney Co. said on Sunday that the Tim Burton-directed film has earned an estimated $45 million domestically from 4,259 locations against a $170-million production budget. It’s less than half of what Beauty and the Beast, The Jungle Book and Burton’s own Alice in Wonderland opened to.

The remake of the 1941 animated film stars Colin Farrell and Danny DeVito. It got mixed to negative reviews from critics and currently has a middling 53 percent on Rotten Tomatoes.

Audiences who did turn out, however, had a different response than the critics and gave the film an “A-” overall, according to CinemaScore.

“We think it’s a solid start,” said Cathleen Taff, Disney’s president of theatrical distribution.

“We’re encouraged and hopeful with audience word of mouth.”

Internationally, Dumbo grossed $71 million, with $10.7 million coming from China, $7.4 million from the UK and $7.2 million from Mexico.

Disney has two other high-profile live-action remakes coming out this year in Aladdin (May 24) and The Lion King (July 19).

“I don’t think this is a mandate against live-action remakes. But sometimes when you don’t have the reviews, it can affect it,” said Paul Dergarabedian, comScore’s senior media analyst. “For Disney, the bar is set so high. This is just a little speed bump on what is already a spectacular year for Disney.”

Dumbo did bump Jordan Peele’s Us to second place. Us added $33.6 million, down only 53 percent, bringing its domestic total to $128.2 million in its second week. The Lupita Nyong’o doppelganger movie cost only $20 million to produce.

“For a horror, which generally have the scariest drops in the business, Us is really holding in there,” Dergarabedian said. “It’s good news for Jordan Peele.”

Easing the Dumbo disappointment, Disney and Marvel’s Captain Marvel landed in third place in weekend four with an additional $20.5 million. It’s now earned over $350 million in North America and is expected to cross the $1-billion mark globally sometime this week.

The teen drama/romance Five Feet Apart with Cole Sprouse and Haley Lu Richardson took fourth place with $6.3 million, down only 27 percent in its third week. And the pregnancy movie Unplanned rounded out the top 5 with $6.1 million from only

1,059 theaters. It’s another success for Pure Flix, which targets the faith-based audience.

“Serving that underserved audience can pay off quite well,” Dergarabedian said.

Not so lucky was The Beach Bum, a stoner-odyssey from the provocative filmmaker Harmony Korine starring Matthew McConaughey. It grossed only $1.8 million from 1,100 locations in its first weekend.

The weekend overall is down around 2 percent and the year is still lagging about 16.4 percent.

“Next week is going to have two of the biggest genres hitting the multiplex simultaneously,” noted Dergarabedian. The well-reviewed superhero pic Shazam! debuts along with a Pet Sematary remake.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at US and Canadian theaters, according to comScore.

Where available, the latest international numbers for Friday through Sunday are also included. Final domestic figures will be released on Monday.

1. Dumbo, $45 million ($71 million international) 2. Us, $33.6 million ($22.6 million international) 3. Captain Marvel, $20.5 million ($26.4 million international) 4. Five Feet Apart, $6.3 million ($6.2 million international) 5. Unplanned, $6.1 million 6. Wonder Park, $4.9 million ($2.5 million international) 7. How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, $4.2 million ($2.6 million international) 8. Hotel Mumbai, $3.2 million ($640,227 international) 9. Tyler Perry’s A Madea Family Funeral, $2.7 million ($35,000 international).

10. The Beach Bum, $1.8 million ($427,000 international). n

Vicky Morales renews contract with GMA TOP GMA News anchor Vicky Morales is looking forward to more years with the media giant after renewing her contract with GMA Network on March 21.

Joining Morales in the signing were GMA Network Chairman and CEO Felipe L. Gozon, President and COO Gilberto R. Duavit Jr., Executive Vice President and CFO Felipe S. Yalong, and Senior Vice President for News and Public Affairs Marissa L. Flores.

The 24 Oras anchor shared that in the three decades of being a broadcast journalist, she has always considered GMA as her second home.

“Kung tutuusin, itong contract signing, formality lang naman ito,” said Morales.

“Kahit walang kontrata, GMA will always be home for me.” She added that she remains thankful to the network management for trusting her through the years. “I’m feeling very grateful—siyempre sa mga namumuno ng GMA, sa tiwala nila sa atin. Grateful din [ako] sa mga program ko, which I love very much: 24 Oras, Wish Ko Lang and Good News. And of course grateful [ako] sa mga

katrabaho ko. I feel very blessed.”

On the part of GMA Network, Gozon said he could not be any prouder of the Wish Ko Lang host.

“Si Vicky ay tunay na homegrown.

Sa simula’t-sapul dito na siya nag-umpisa at isa na siya sa mga pillars ng ating News and Public Affairs group,” he said, adding how Morales continues to lead toprating programs up to now. “Lahat naman ng programa ni Vicky dito sa atin ay matataas ang rating. Kaya tayo ay talagang nagagalak na nag-renew na naman si Vicky,” he concluded.

Duavit, on the other hand, underscored how the ties between the network and the Good News host are stronger than ever.

“We are very privileged and happy that the relationship with Vicky has continued to evolve, deepen and even strengthen,” said Duavit. “Vicky, maraming salamat sa iyong muling pagtitiwala.”

Morales, who coanchors GMA’s flagship newscast 24 Oras with Mike Enriquez and Mel Tiangco, also hosts the pioneering

FROM left: GMA Senior Vice President for News and Public Affairs Marissa L. Flores, President and COO Gilberto R. Duavit Jr., Vicky Morales, Chairman and CEO Felipe L. Gozon, and Executive Vice President and CFO Felipe S. Yalong

public service program Wish Ko Lang. On GMA News TV, Morales spreads positive vibes as host of the magazine program Good News.

Morales was recently hailed as the Best Female News Anchor at the 2019 Paragala: Central Luzon Media Awards. Last year, she also won as the Most Outstanding Female News Presenter of the Year at the

Comguild’s 12th Annual Conference of Journalism and Mass Communication Students of the Philippines.

For Wish Ko Lang, Morales was awarded as the Best Public Service Program Host at the 32nd PMPC Star Awards, and received the Pinakamagiting na Personalidad ng Public Service Program honor at the 6th Kagitingan Awards for Television.

Art

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Tuesday, April 2, 2019

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A LOOK into the original gallery of National Artist Carlos “Botong” Francisco, which is managed by his grandson, Totong.

The undying love between Botong Francisco and Angono CIRCLES JT NISAY

jtnisay@gmail.com

O

NCE picked up, it took hours before his brushes were laid down.

National Artist for Visual Arts Carlos “Botong” Francisco was known to go on painting sprees that ran over meal times and rest, his family said, exposing himself to the visages of his artistic genius and the harms of lead-based paint. On March 31, 1969, he died of tuberculosis at age 57.

Fifty years after his passing, Botong lives on in the manifold masterpieces hung in collector’s homes, banks and museums, but none more so than in his hometown in Angono, Rizal, at Poblacion Itaas, where his art not only inspired generations of artists.

Along with other masters, it helped carve a small town’s identity.

It is the third year that San Miguel Purefoods Culinary Center is hosting a trip to highlight food tourism, and Rizal is this year’s featured circuit.

According to SMPCC Culinary Services Manager Llena Tan-Arcenas, the idea is to feature culinary gems of a province alongside its character. Previous stops included Cavite, Laguna and Baguio, which focused on history and heritage. For Rizal, it’s the arts.

Angono is billed as the “Art Capital of the Philippines,” a weighty title in a country rich with culture. Strolling its streets, however, would reveal the foundation of the claim.

Artworks are not just confined within walls, but featured on its structures’ exteriors as architectural quirks. A dragon installation casually snakes on a beam, while a village arc is adorned with designs of flowers and crops. Look at the house on the left and see a Higantes costume resting on the garage. Peep into the laundry shop at the right and on its walls hangs a painting of rice fields under the afternoon sun.

All these while its people are busy playing music or rehearsing dance at public spaces. A local tells us it’s also not uncommon to see idle tricycle drivers whipping out a notebook to sketch while waiting for passengers.

THE grandson of National Artist Carlos “Botong” Francisco, “Totong”

What’s most striking about these scenes, at this gallery of a town, is the casualness of it all. Art is a way of life in Angono, if not life itself.

Playing a major hand in this is the town’s favorite son, Botong. Along Doña Aurora, the street he grew up in, his figures of farmers and other characters depicting everyday life in the province line up the concrete walls via mural interpretations by Charlie Anorico.

Also on this street is Botong’s house and original gallery. His wife opened the space to the public as a museum shortly after Botong was conferred with the National Artist Award in 1973. The original document of the citation is available for viewing at the museum, citing Francisco for single-handedly reviving the forgotten art of the mural, and for remaining its distinguished practitioner for nearly three decades.

“Primarily a genre painter, he transcended the narrow medium, investing his murals and easels with the robust spirit and infectious gaiety of the simple people whose joys and sorrows he captured on canvas with enviable fidelity,” the document reads.

Managing the museum and entertaining guests for as long as he can remember is Botong’s grandson, Carlos “Totong” Francisco II. A dead ringer of his namesake, Totong was born after the

death of his prominent elder. Nevertheless, he feels like he grew up with the man with all the stories handed down to him.

“As a person, ang lolo, napaka down-to-earth, madaling lapitan. He’s a friend to everybody,” Totong said, who’s also an artist and into abstract expressionism.

A framed magazine feature about his grandfather tackles his congeniality, saying if not tied down in his gallery, Botong was out in the streets in a trademark ensemble of t-shirt, corduroy pants and slippers, engaging in conversations about current events.

The museum also houses pieces that let guests in on the life of Botong beyond visual arts.

Displayed are movie props and sketches from when he worked in the movies as a scriptwriter and a set designer. He was part of classic titles, such as Manuel Conde’s 1950 film Genghis Khan, along with Prinsipe Tenoso, Ibong Adarna, Siete Infantes de Lara and the Juan Tamad series.

There are also photos of Botong with the Rover Scout Circle Philippines, of which he was an active member. It was his time with the group that the artist stumbled into a fateful discovery: the country’s oldest known work of art.

On a field trip between Binangonan and Angono with the boy scouts, Botong laid down beside a rock wall to rest. The noted muralist then noticed etchings of what appeared to be of primitive quality.

Upon his reporting to the National Museum, which prompted archaeological excavations, the drawings were determined to be up to 5,000 years old. There are 127 visible figures in total on the site, with drawings of human-like characters forming a circle with what appears to be a leader at the center, depicting what seems an ancient ritual. The drawings are now known as the Angono Petroglyphs (“petro” is Greek for rock, “glyphs” for carving).

This richness in culture, along with unique fiestas and the passion and talent of the people, are what kept Angono close to Botong’s heart, forging a loyalty so strong that he repeatedly refused offers from patrons to study abroad and take in Western influence.

“To the poet of Angono, art is wedded in the indissoluble bond with the soil from which it springs,” Botong’s National Artist citation reads. “No painter of his time has more closely attuned to the spirit of his land and people. His genius fed on this never-failing source of inspiration, and he remained to end of his life, the authentic interpreter of the timeless round of the daily existence in the villages of his native land.”

“Ayon nga kay lolo,” Totong added, “Angono ay liglig sa inspirayon. Kaya ayaw umalis kasi narito na raw ang lahat.” n

HOTEL JEN’S ‘AFFORDABLE ART FAIR’ ONGOING until April 14 is Hotel Jen Manila’s Affordable Art Fair—an exhibition featuring the works of the Young Talent Programme 2018 winners at the Club Lounge. This exhibition is part of the Hotel Jen brand’s “Jen-Why Art” campaign, which aims to provide emerging young artists a platform to showcase their works to the artloving public.

One of Hotel Jen’s passions is discovering emerging local artists, and the Jen-Why Art program enables guests to rub shoulders with the best and brightest creative talents.

Turning the Jen properties globally

into a community space for local art gives young upcoming artists in the destinations where the brand operates an opportunity to showcase their creativity.

Guests can interact and “experience these artistic collaborations, enjoy sneak previews and works in progress exhibitions with Hotel Jen in Southeast Asia.” The brand’s participation in the Young Talent Programme organized by the Affordable Art Fair and ION Art reinforces Jen’s commitment to local communities by supporting local talents.

The Young Talent Programme’s goal is to identify young talents early, provide guidance and commentary

on their artistic development, then introduce them to galleries and art institutions. In the program’s seventh edition, eight artists in Southeast Asia were selected through an open call for proposals and portfolios.

From the eight artists initially selected, the Affordable Art Fair Singapore committee then chose three winners of the Young Talent Programme 2018. These winners—Arya Wirawan, Liu Ling and Jia Qi Lim—are to have their solo exhibitions fully supported by ION Art gallery in Singapore in September 2019.

Currently, the works of these winning artists from the Affordable Art Fair in

November 2018 are on a Southeast Asian tour, traveling to three Hotel Jen locations, first in Manila then Malaysia and Singapore.

The Affordable Art Fair was established in London in 1999 by Will Ramsay, with the main aim of providing a fun and exciting platform for people to gain acces to and knowledge of emerging talents, appreciate art and buy art.

Today, the Affordable Art Fair has become a global phenomenon with 14 fairs in 10 countries including London, Bristol, Amsterdam, Brussels, New York, Milan, Singapore, Hamburg, Stockholm and Hong Kong, and a new fair launching in Melbourne this year.

Amid gripes, Louvre pyramid celebrates 30 years with collage By thoMas adaMson The Associated Press PARIS—In a feat of optical illusion, French street artist JR completed a collage on Friday that plunges the Louvre’s pyramid into a vast chasm to mark the famed glass structure’s 30-year anniversary.

The temporary ground collage made of paper strips, when viewed from above, gives the famed 21-meter-high (nearly 70-foot-high) structure dizzying added depth, and is the second time JR has worked his art around Paris’s most visited museum after making it “disappear” in 2016 with a black and white photo trick.

It had Louvre President Jean-Luc Martinez enthused.

“It magnifies this iconic monument...I was immediately seduced,” he said.

But instead of transporting attendees at Friday’s opening to an imagined landscape, it seemed to leave many very unseduced amid complaints they couldn’t see any optical illusion from the ground at all. Some even accused the art of elitism, saying they were disappointed that the only way to appreciate the installation was to get a special VIP pass to view it from a balcony.

The Louvre defended the choice by saying an aerial view of the work would be projected to the public by two plasma screens in the courtyard. Officials, including French Culture Minister Franck Riester, feted the anniversary in a conference inside the museum on Friday evening.

The Louvre’s pyramid, designed by ChineseAmerican architect I. M. Pei and inaugurated on March 29, 1989, has often been the target of complaints or controversy.

The monument was initially likened to “sacrilege” as some thought the modernist edifice was at odds with the classic Renaissance style of Paris’s most prized palace. The Guangzhou-born architect was also accused of being insufficiently French by some in the media.

But with the passage of time, the uncommonly shaped lattice structure has won its detractors—and tourists—over.

Chinese engineer Yuan Chen, 30, brushed off criticism that a China-born architect shouldn’t have designed Paris’s second most recognizable peak.

“The pyramid is very famous in China. That’s why there are so many Chinese tourists here,” Chen said.

“If it’s so popular after 30 years, then he must have got something right.”

FRENCH street artist JR walks in the courtyard of the Louvre Museum near the glass pyramid designed by architect Leoh Ming Pei, in Paris, March 27, as the Louvre Museum celebrates the 30th anniversary of its glass pyramid. AP