BusinessMirror April 06, 2021

LEAN OVERSEAS DEMAND

w

n Tuesday, April 6, 2021 Vol. 16 No. 174

P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 18 pages |

CUTS PHL PMI IN MARCH

AJ Laberinto arranges books in his second-hand book shop called Books from Underground located at Lagusnilad in Manila. The bookstore carries a wide array of books that one can buy for a bargain. Many businesses have shut down and new ones emerged in the second year of the pandemic, and his unique bookshop is one of those that were able to reopen. NONIE REYES

T

By Bianca Cuaresma

@BcuaresmaBM

HE Philippine manufacturing industry’s performance slightly dipped in March on slower overseas demand.

International think tank IHS Markit reported on Monday that the country’s Philippines’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) in

March hit 52.2, slightly declining from the 52.5 PMI in the previous month.

A country’s PMI is aimed at gaug-

House seeks review of pork imports MAV hike, tariff cuts

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

T

@joveemarie

HE House of Representatives has asked President Duterte to reconsider his recommendation increasing the Minimum Access Volume (MAV) for pork by 350,000 metric tons (MT) and retain the existing 40-percent tariff.

In a statement sent to the BusinessMirror, Agriculture and Food Committee Chairman Mark Enverga of Quezon said the House sent a letter to the Office of the President, through the Presidential Legislative Liaison Office (PLLO), last March 29, 2021.

The letter was signed by Enverga, Speaker Lord Allan Velasco and

Committee on Trade and Industry Chairman John Reynald Tiangco of Navotas.

“Allowing importation beyond the shortage and with a lower tariff will cause oversupply not only in Luzon, but also in the Visayas and Mindanao where there is ample supply of pork,” said Enverga.

“The members of the Committees [on Food and Agriculture and House Committee on Trade and Industry] are one with the livestock sector in expressing its opposition to the volume being requested by DA [Department of Agriculture], as industry data and data provided by the Philippine Statistics Authority [PSA] only showed a shortage of 150,275 metric tons,” he added.

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

The think tank said the Philippines’s latest PMI reading was indicative of a modest improvement in the health of the manufacturing sector, with growth registered throughout the first quarter of 2021.

Broken down, local manufac-

turers saw an “especially subdued” foreign client demand during the month as restrictions linked to the Covid-19 pandemic persisted in abroad markets.

The Philippine manufacturing sector’s performance was still strong compared to its counterpart in neighboring countries in Southeast Asia. Out of the seven countries in the region, the Philippine manufacturing sector ranked the third strongest performance during the month.

Continued on A2

BIR KEEPS DEADLINE, BUT OKS NO-PENALTY CHANGES TILL MAY 15

By Cai U. Ordinario

D

@caiordinario

UE to the government's revenue needs during a pandemic, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) is not extending the April 15, 2021 deadline for the filing of taxes for year 2020.

However, BIR Deput y Commissioner Arnel Guballa told the BusinessMirror on Monday that taxpayers will be allowed to amend their filings until May 15 without any penalties.

“The DOF [Department of Finance] policy direction is no extension on the deadline.

But taxpayers can amend before or on May 15 without penalty,” Guballa said in a message.

Guballa said the BIR, as of press time, does not have estimates of taxes that could be collected for 2020.

However, based on the BIR’s monthly collection goal, the agency aims to collect P235.237 billion in April. This will allow it to

reach the total tax collection goal of P2.081 trillion this year.

Tax collection target from BIR operations, which includes taxes on net income and profits as well as valueadded tax, is P231.57 billion in April. The remaining P3.668 billion is the target for non-BIR operations.

Earlier, BIR allowed the filing of tax returns and the payment of taxes falling within the period of March 22 to April 30 this year to be filed anywhere, even outside the jurisdiction of the Revenue District Office (RDO) where the taxpayer is registered.

In Revenue Memorandum Circular (RMC) 412021 signed by BIR Commissioner Caesar Dulay, the BIR said this flexibility given to taxpayers aims to provide them relief “in relation to the current surge in Covid-19 cases that is affecting the entire country which has prompted establishments to operate at half their manpower capacity.”

See “BIR,” A2

Continued on A2

PESO exchange rates n US 48.5440

n japan 0.4387 n UK 67.1364 n HK 6.2431 n CHINA 7.3938 n singapore 36.0788 n australia 36.9129 n EU 57.0829 n SAUDI arabia 12.9451

Source: BSP (April 5, 2021)

News

BusinessMirror

A2 Tuesday, April 6, 2021

Fitch Solutions slashes ’21 growth forecast for PHL

F

By Bianca Cuaresma

@BcuaresmaBM

ITCH Solutions, the research arm of the Fitch Group, said on Monday it slashed its economic growth forecast for the Philippines as the country continues to struggle in controlling the number of Covid-19 cases.

In a research note, the international think tank said they are cutting the forecast from 7.6 percent down to 5.8 percent, with risks “very much tilted to the downside.”

“We expect the lockdown measures to be extended, given the continued surge in cases and the prolonged impact on hospital capacity,” Fitch Solutions said.

“The likelihood of further out-

breaks in other regions remains high, and, given the slow vaccination rollout in the country as less than 1 percent of the population has been vaccinated as of endMarch, we believe the Philippines’s recovery will continue to be hampered by the pandemic,” it added.

The Department of Health (DOH) reported on Monday that the country’s total number of cases

are now at 803,398 after recording 8,355 new cases during the day.

President i a l spokesperson Harry Roque also announced over the weekend that the country’s capital region—Metro Manila— along with neighboring provinces Bulacan, Laguna, Cavite and Rizal will remain under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) for at least one more week to control the spread of the virus.

Fitch Solutions said that in the first quarter of the year, there were some signs of gradual recovery in the economy. However, this will “likely be reversed” due to the most recent lockdowns and the rising cases.

“The Philippines economy is highly vulnerable to lockdowns given its high reliance on domestic consumption and investment; and thus growth will likely fall again until lockdown measures are eased,” Fitch Solutions said.

The global think tank also announced revisions on forecasts of

private consumption in the country from 5.5 percent to 4.5 percent.

“Our expectation for a modest recovery assumed that domestic demand would gradually recover and the government’s infrastructure plans would come to fruition, resulting in a sharp increase in domestic activity. However, the slow vaccine rollout and recurrent difficulties in containing outbreaks look set to stall the recovery further,” Fitch Solutions said.

As private consumption is expected to slow down, the research firm said growth support for this year will likely stem from a gradual recovery in external demand and remittance flows.

“We believe that overall remittance flows will begin to gradually rebound as growth picks up globally, particularly on the back of a recovery in the US and the Middle East on the back of rising oil prices, which together accounted for 57.4 percent of remittances in 2019,” Fitch Solutions said.

TOURISTS STILL WELCOME AMID BORACAY LOCKDOWN

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo

@akosistellaBM Special to the BusinessMirror

T

OURISTS won’t be dissuaded from visiting Boracay Island, the so-called crown jewel of Philippine tourism, despite the rising number of Covid-19 cases there.

Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat told the BusinessMirror, “As long as tourists follow the minimum health protocols and the LGU [local government unit] has been implementing surgical lockdowns, then it is fine [for tourists to go to Boracay].”

She added, “We were assured that those establishments where Covid-19 cases were recorded were closed and disinfected for 48 hours, which are the protocols issued by the DTI [Department of Trade and Industry] and DOLE [Department of Labor and Employment].”

This developed as the municipal government of Malay in Aklan put more areas in Boracay under “surgical lockdown” over the weekend.

According to the Malay Municipal Health Office (MHO), as

of April 4, there were a total of 153 confirmed cases of Covid-19, 90 of which are active cases. Of the total confirmed cases, 65 have recovered, and only one death was recorded, which happened last year.

In a news conference on Good Friday, Mayor Floribar Bautista said two zones, this time in Brgy.

Manoc-Manoc, are under surgical lockdown, while the entire Brgy. Balabag, where a number of resorts are located, has been placed under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) for 14 days.

He added, in Filipino, that tourists within the lockeddown localities will be issued quarantine passes, to allow them to move around their respective areas. “Establishments with tourists should be able to inform their respective barangays how many quarantine passes are needed for their guests,” he said.

He said tourists arriving in Caticlan (gateway to Boracay) who are booked in resorts where there is an ECQ or surgical lockdown, “are being advised to rebook in establishments outside these areas.”

Outbreak from Manila tourist?

In Friday’s news conference, MHO head Dr. Athena Magdamit explained in Filipino, the increase of cases in Boracay was traced to a party involving visitors from Manila. “On March 10, there was a tourist who came from the NCR who went to Boracay and had a party with locals. Right after then, went back to Manila, and fell ill on March 30. Based on our contact tracing, the people the tourist associated with during the party, manifested Covid symptoms on March 16. But they still didn’t go for medical consultations.”

This is the first recorded case of tourist-to-locals transmission of Covid.

Tourists from NCR are supposed to present negative Covid-19 test results before flying and being allowed by the officials at the Caticlan airport to proceed to Boracay.

Local residents, on the other hand, blame the rising Covid cases on workers going in and out of Boracay, as many reside in the mainland, and government officials summoning island resi-

dents for meetings in Kalibo. All are allowed to re-enter Boracay, untested.

“I will bring this up for discussion in the next BIATF meeting with the LGU,” said Romulo Puyat. “All tourists are tested but the locals are free to go in and out. We can discuss with the resorts to consider asking their staff to work in shifts every 14-15 days so they don’t have to leave the island everyday,” she stressed.

Flights suspended to R6, et al.

Meanwhile, the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) on Sunday issued an advisory suspending flights from the National Capital Region, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Cebu City, and Davao City to Region 6 (Western Visayas) and from April 4 to 10. This, after the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) approved on Saturday the request of governors from the region’s provinces to halt flights as Covid cases are rising.

CAB Executive Director Carmelo Arcilla said in a text message, Region 6 airports include Iloilo, Bacolod, Roxas, Kalibo, Caticlan, and Antique.

House seeks review of pork imports MAV hike, tariff cuts Continued from A1

Last March 26, 2021, the Palace submitted a letter to the House of Representatives recommending the increase in the MAV for pork by 350,000 MT. The government has raised its proposed volume of imported pork this year to address the expected local demand for the food item, as African swine fever (ASF) and a series of typhoons hit the local industry. The current MAV is only at 54,000 MT. “We informed the President of the outcome of the series of hearings conducted by the committees on the various measures relative to the rising food prices, particularly pork prices, where the Department of Agriculture [DA] presented its proposal to increase the MAV by 350,000 metric tons and to reduce inquota tariff from 30 percent to 5 percent for the first six months and 10 percent for the succeeding six months and out-quota tariff from 40 percent to 15 percent for the first six months and 20 percent for the succeed-

ing six months,” Enverga said.

Keep tariffs

Also, Enverga said the House has asked the President to retain the pork tariffs at 40 percent. “ T he committees submit to the plan of importing pork meat that is enough to fill the supply shortage but not with a lower tariff, as local hog producers already find it difficult to compete with the importers under the existing tariff of 40 percent,” he said.

According to Enverga, the plan of lowering tariff can be counterproductive and may have a negative impact on the local hog industry in the long term.

“In view of the foregoing, the House respectfully appealed to the President that we import only the needed volume and that tariff on pork imports be retained at existing rates so as not to further injure our ailing local hog industry,” he added.

Earlier, the National Economic and Development Authority said the Committee on Tariff and Re-

lated Matters (CTRM) proposed to immediately lower pork tariffs to 5 percent within the MAV and 15 percent outside the MAV for 3 months, with a slight increase to 10 percent within the MAV and 20 percent outside the MAV for 9 months.

The Neda said these rates are significantly lower than the current 30 percent within the MAV and 40 percent outside the MAV. Under Republic Act 8178 or the Agricultural Tariffication Act, in case of shortages or abnormal price increases in agricultural products, whose quantitative restrictions are lifted under this Act, the President may propose to Congress, revisions, modifications or adjustments of the MAV. However, if Congress fails to act after 15 days from receipt of the proposal, the same shall be deemed approved.

“As far as I understand, 15 calendar days, since not specified in Agricultural Tariffication Act, from March 26 so lapses April 9. If im not mistaken,” said Enverga.

Congress went on its Holy

Week recess and is scheduled to resume its session on May 17, 2021.

According to a copy of draft guidelines earlier obtained by the BusinessMirror, the Philippines is mulling over allocating half of the proposed MAV plus for pork of 350,000 metric tons to existing licensees, and giving 25 percent each to domestic hog producers and to non-licensees.

The draft said half of the allocation of the three sectors shall arrive on or before June 30, with the next 25 percent arriving between July 1 and September 30. The remaining 25-percent allocation shall arrive between October 1 and January 31, 2022.

The DA through its National Livestock Program, in consultation with the MAV Management Com m it tee (M AV-MC), sh a l l conduct continuous monitoring and assessment of domestic pork supply and demand situation “to determine whether or not there is a need to release the remaining MAV plus allocation.”

www.businessmirror.com.ph

GOVT STUDIES JANSSEN VACCINE EUA, COVID ‘TREATMENTS’ CLAIMS

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

T

Correspondent

HE Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Monday said it is already reviewing the application for emergency use authorization (EUA) of Janssen Pharmaceuticals for its single-dose Covid-19 vaccine.

This development was welcomed by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST). “One good thing is that Janssen Pharmaceuticals did clinical trials in the Philippines, the results of which only the vaccine developing company can announce,” the DOST said.

The DOST added that more vaccines with EUA approved by the FDA “means more vaccines can enter the country, adding to the adequacy of supply.”

“The DOST is involved in vaccine evaluation prior to clinical trials where our FDA is also the approving authority, particularly through DOST’s Vaccine Expert Panel [VEP],” the DOST added.

The FDA can also tap the services of the VEP in processing EUA applications.

Covid treatments

Meanwhile, the Department of Health (DOH) and the FDA have clarified the claims on the approval of potential Covid-19 treatments.

The Lianhua Qingwen, a prescription medicine approved by FDA in the Philippines, is “not” registered as a Covid-19 medication, DOH said.

“Moreover, the role of the FDA, as per Republic Act [RA] 3720, is to license, monitor, and regulate medicines like Lianhua Qingwen for the safety of Filipinos. Any food or medicinal products not registered in the Philippines should not be sold and are subject to seizure or confiscation hence the FDA issued Advisory 2020-767 before the registration of Lianhua Qingwen,” the DOH said.

On August 7, 2020 Lianhua Qingwen was able to acquire FDA registration but for purposes of being used as a traditional herbal product that helps remove “heat-toxin invasion of the lungs, including symptoms such as fever, aversion

BIR…

to cold, muscle soreness, stuffy and runny nose.”

“Additionally, the use of Lianhua Qingwen is only allowed with a doctor’s prescription.”

Ivermectin

All current Ivermectin products registered in the country, on the other hand, are for “veterinary use” and are only allowed for the treatment of internal and external parasites as well as prevention of heartworm disease in animals hence the issuance of FDA Advisory 2021-0526.

The FDA is currently processing an application filed on March 31 for product registration from concerned parties.

Moreover, studies from The Philippine Covid-19 Living CPG Reviewers of a systematic review of six randomized controlled trials showed that: 1.Ivermectin did not significantly reduce the risk of mortality among patients with mild to severe Covid-19 cases; 2. Ivermectin was not associated with a definite benefit of other clinically important outcomes such as clinical improvement at Day 6-10, clinical deterioration, and need for mechanical ventilation; 3. Ivermectin did not significantly reduce the duration of hospitalization and the time to resolution of symptoms; and 4. The rate of hospitalization discharge did not differ significantly between the Ivermectin group and the placebo group.

Based on the current evidence from randomized controlled trials, the DOH agreed with the Covid-19 Living CPG Reviewers and does not recommend the use of Ivermectin for the treatment of Covid-19.

“Moreover, Dr. Rabindra Abeyasinghe, World Health Organization [WHO] Representative to the Philippines, has stated that there is no evidence that supports the use of Ivermectin to treat Covid-19, even as a preventive measure. The use of ivermectin for Covid-19 has to be evaluated through clinical trials.”

The DOH and FDA said they are open to allowing pharmacies for compounding Ivermectin.

Continued from A1

“This will make it easier for taxpayers to do their civic duty of paying their taxes and helping the government generate more funds for Covid-19 response and other priority programs amid the fresh surge in coronavirus infections,” Finance Secretary Carlos Domin-

guez III said following the issuance of the BIR Circular.

The BIR also encouraged taxpayers to file their tax returns electronically through the eBIR Forms Facility and pay their taxes through the bureau’s authorized digital payment channels.

LEAN OVERSEAS DEMAND CUTS PHL PMI IN MARCH Continued from A1

Vietnam had the strongest PMI of 53.6, followed by Indonesia’s 53.2. After the Philippines’s 52.2, Singapore follows suit with 50.7.

Malaysia and Thailand registered below the 50 growth threshold while Myanmar had the worst performance during the month with a PMI of 27.5.

While there is optimism among local manufacturers, IHS Markit economist Shreeya Patel warned of looming risks to the sector, especially on the price front.

“The Philippines manufacturing sector ended the first quarter on a positive note with a modest expansion recorded in March. Promisingly, output volumes rose despite a moderation in new order growth.

Meanwhile, employment levels fell only marginally with anecdotal evidence suggesting that this was mostly voluntary, and not due to

cost-cutting efforts at firms,” Patel said.

“A key area of concern, however, continues to be rising price pressures. Material shortages were often blamed for the higher costs incurred by firms. A sustained increase in client demand, however, allowed some firms to partially pass on rising expenses,” the economist added.

Employ ment in the sector, however, saw no improvement in March as it registered the 13th consecutive month of contraction in employment.

Supply chain pressures were also reported to be building up in March as lead times for inputs lengthened.

In particular, manufacturers cited freight delays as driving the deterioration in vendor performance, which resulted in significantly longer delivery times.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

The Nation BusinessMirror

After Holy Week break, Davao City task force braces for ‘mega surge’ of coronavirus cases

By Manuel T. Cayon

@awimailbox Mindanao Bureau Chief

D

AVAO CITY—This city is bracing for a likely “mega surge” in Covid-19 infection despite seeing a declining trend, as City Hall prepared additional quarantine and confinement facilities, expanded mandatory testing for close contacts of new infections, and encouraged private hospitals to prepare to participate in the admission of Covid-19 patients.

Davao City Covid-19 Task Force Focal Person Dr. Ashley Lopez said that the city is preparing a contingency plan for the potential mega surge of cases, anticipating the current spike being experienced in Metro Manila and some parts of Cebu may spill over to the rest of the country.

The plan includes preparations for temporary treatment and monitoring facilities (TTMF), isolation and quarantine facilities, staffing, and encouraging private hospitals to participate and allocate hospital beds for Covid-19 patients.

The task force has started implementing the expanded mandatory testing of all close contacts in all levels of a Covid-19 positive patient. “When you say all levels, tanan nga [all those] possible close contacts, not only direct contacts like F1, but it involves also the second generation and third generation contacts. We will trace them

so we could test them,” he said.

With more testing, the city task force could accurately assess the Covid-19 situation in Davao City, bailiwick of President Duterte, Lopez added.

Aside from the expanded mandatory testing, the task force had also intensified case finding and surveillance of influenza-like illnesses and acute respiratory infections. “These are colds and coughs, fever that reaches 38 degrees and last for about 10 days or more.”

Lopez urged Dabawenyos experiencing said illnesses to help the government in its fight against Covid-19 by going to the nearest District Health Office and be scheduled for swab testing.

The city is yet to see the Covid-19 trend after the Lenten week last week, saying that while City Mayor Sara Duterte Carpio has directed the closure of all resorts and tourism establishments during the week, she said residents might have skipped on it by going elsewhere in the region to frolic and disregard health protocols.

Lopez said how residents and visitors conducted themselves during the holiday week may be a likely source of a feared surge of cases.

So far, Mati City, the capital of Davao Oriental and one of the favorite holiday and tourism destinations in the region, has reported on Monday that it has not received any report of an infection case.

Court workers included in A4 priority group for inoculation

By Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

T

HE Supreme Cou r t has announced that at least 30,000 judiciary employees have been included in the priority population group A4 of the government’s vaccination drive against Covid-19.

T he A4 pr ior it y popu l at ion group is composed of non-medica l publ ic a nd pr ivate essent i a l workers who face c l ients but ca nnot consistent ly meet m i n i mu m h e a lt h s t a n d a r d s l i ke a ir c irc u l at ion, physica l d ist a nc ing a nd l im ited e x po su re t ime.

Acting Chief Justice Estela Perlas-Bernade made the disclosure in a news statement issued on Monday informing the personnel in the judiciary that the National Task Force Against Covid-19 (NTF) has approved the Court’s request for inclusion in A4 category.

In its letter-request dated March 31, 2021 sent to the office of NTF chief implementer Carlito Galvez, the SC through Bernabe, insisted that justices, judges, and court personnel of the SC, Court of Appeals, Court of Tax Appeals, Sandiganbayan and trial courts are frontline government workers in the justice sector, whose functions are essential at all times, especially during the pandemic.

Included in the A4 priority population are frontline personnel in essential sectors, including unifor med personnel and those in working sectors identified by the Inter Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) as essential during the enhanced community quarantine period.

“Indeed, through its adjudicatory functions, the Judiciary is an essential institution in the justice sector that works hand-in-

hand with the executive branch of gover nment to effectively perform its task of maintaining peace and order and safeguarding public welfare in accordance with the rule of law. Truly, during this unsettling pandemic, upholding the rule of law assumes greater significance. Thus, access to judicial relief should be constant,” Bernabe said.

The letter-request also stressed t hat consider ing t he cour ts’ role as one of the five pillars of the criminal justice system, court employees should be considered as workers in an essential public sector who are likewise “directly client facing and cannot dutifully meet minimum public health standards,” which circumstance falls under category A4.

Furthermore, Bernabe pointed out that the continued in-court operations despite existing community quarantines has put the lives of court employees at risk to Covid-19 infection, who in turn, regularly interact w ith other stakeholders that already fall in the priority groups of the vaccination program.

“Thus, for all these reasons, the inclusion of Judiciary employees in category A4 of the said plan is truly fitting,” Barnabe maintained.

Bernabe said the Judiciary would still have to discuss with the NTF the details for the implementation of the inoculation program for those in the A4 category.

Ho w e v e r, B e r n a b e not e d that the NTF has communicated that vaccines arriving this April 2021 would be partly allotted for the Judiciary.

“Rest assured, the Court is actively exploring all ways and means in order to ensure the safety and well-being of all Judiciary employees as we faithfully discharge our duty to the public in this time of unparalleled crisis,” Bernabe told court employees.

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Tuesday, April 6, 2021 A3

PHL warns China of daily protests if ‘militia’ stays T

HE Philippines warned Beijing it would face a barrage of diplomatic protests if Chinese vessels believed to be part of a “maritime militia” do not leave disputed South China Sea areas, escalating the spat between the two nations.

“For every day of delay, the Republic of the Philippines will lodge a diplomatic protest,” the Department of Foreign Affairs said in a news statement issued on Monday. It also repeated its call for the Chinese vessels to immediately withdraw from Whitsun Reef, referred to by the Philippines as Julian Felipe Reef, which Manila maintained is part of the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.

The presence of China’s vessels near the reef, shows Beijing’s intent to occupy more disputed areas, Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said in a separate news statement issued on Sunday.

China has “done this before” in other contested areas like Scarborough Shoal and is “brazenly violating Philippine sovereignty,” Lorenzana said. He was reacting to a statement from China’s embassy in Manila, which on Saturday described waters around the Julian Felipe Reef— where hundreds of Chinese vessels were spotted early last month—as “traditional fishing grounds” and

THIS photo taken on May 14, 2019 shows a Philippine Coast Guard ship (R) sails past a Chinese coast guard ship during a joint search and rescue exercise between Philippine and US coast guards near Scarborough shoal, in the South China Sea. BLOOMBERG NEWS

“part of China’s Nansha Islands.”

The embassy’s statement “contained blatant falsehoods,” the Philippine Foreign Affairs department (DFA) said, citing its 2016 international arbitration victory against Beijing. The agency also reminded Chinese embassy officials that they are guests who must respect Philippine officials.

The remarks from the Defense and Foreign Affairs departments signal a tougher stance from the Philippine government, which had initially issued a formal diplomatic protest to China, saying the ships raised concerns on overfishing and safety of navigation. In a separate

statement on Saturday, Lorenzana also refuted China’s earlier response that those vessels were sheltering from the wind, saying the weather in the area has been good.

“Oddly, if it is a strategy and not idiocy then swarming accomplishes nothing; they were doing this in consonance with claim of traditional fishing. Chinese were doing this in 1s, 2s and 3s. Coming and going fishing makes no claim of possession per se...”—Teddy Locsin Jr. (@teddyboylocsin) April 4, 2021 Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro “Teddyboy” Locsin Jr. separately said on Sunday that he is “considering a demarche” following the Chinese

Embassy’s claim that Julian Felipe Reef is part of China’s territory. He also said on Twitter that “swarming accomplishes nothing.”

The DFA added that while the Chinese ambassador is expected to assert his country’s claims, “ . . . It behooves us to reaffirm our counterclaim. His is based on alleged tradition; ours is grounded firmly in law—UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea) & Arbitral Award for two. There is a principle: TRADITION YIELDS TO LAW.” UNCLOS, DFA maintained, “superseded any historic rights, or other sovereign rights or jurisdiction, in excess of the limits imposed therein.”

The DFA said both the Philippines and China are parties to UNCLOS and that the award on July 12, 2016 in the South China Sea Arbitration “are clearly the only norm applicable to this situation.”

The Philippines, under President Duterte, has in recent years been building friendly ties with China while keeping its alliance with the US. The Biden administration in late March expressed concerns over the presence of Chinese fishing vessels near the disputed reef, saying Beijing uses “maritime militia to intimidate, provoke and threaten other nations.”

Bloomberg News and Recto Mercene

Ivermectin alert: Lawmakers warn public DOJ appoints vs online traders peddling restricted meds 2 prosecutors in 2020 Pizarro murder case

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

L

AWM A K ER S on Monday warned the public against abusive online sellers peddling anti-parasitic drug Ivermectin as treatment for Covid-19 infection, and asked the Department of Trade and Industry to tighten the monitoring of e-commerce sites selling restricted medicines.

Deputy Speaker for Trade and Industry Wes Gatchalian of Valenzuela made said he has noticed an increase in the number of sellers offering Ivermectin in e-commerce sites.

According to lawmaker, for as long as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is yet to issue a compassionate special permit for Ivermectin to be used as a treatment for the coronavirus disease, consumers should stick to the approved use of the drug.

He said Ivermectin has been registered and approved by the FDA as an anti-parasitic drug for use in animals.

It has not been approved by the FDA for humans as there is still inadequate scientific evidence on its use as treatment of any viral infection.

He also reiterated his call to online e-commerce platforms to exercise due diligence with regards to its merchants and not pass off the responsibility to law enforcement agencies to run after people who are behind these online illegal activities.

“We appreciate that online e-commerce sites like Lazada have clearly classified Ivermectin as a veterinary drug, however, there may be unscrupulous individuals who will use the leniency of these online sites that make the drug easily accessible, to prey on the public especially now when word has spread that Ivermectin may be used as a cure for Covid-19,” Gatchalian said.

“Please be on the lookout for abusive online sellers who are taking advantage of the current situation and even manipulating the price of Ivermectin. I just want to remind the public that this drug has not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for human use and may be highly harmful to the health of our consumers,” he said.

Earlier, FDA Director General

Eric Domingo told lawmakers that any use of Ivermectin for the prevention or treatment of Covid 19 should be avoided as the benefits and safety for this purpose has not been established.

Currently, the FDA said the registered Ivermectin products in the country for human use are in topical formulations under prescription use only, saying this is used for the treatment of external parasites such as head lice and skin conditions such as rosacea.

The FDA said the registered oral and intravenous preparations of Ivermectin are veterinary products, which are approved for use in animals for the prevention of heartworm disease and treatment of internal and external parasites in certain animal species.

Moreover, Gatchalian said, “People should never take animal drugs, as the FDA has only evaluated their safety and effectiveness in the particular species for which they are labeled. Using these products in humans could cause serious harm.”

“Lazada and the other e-commerce platforms should tighten their control especially when it comes to medicines and other drugs. For one, the prices of these should never exceed the suggested retail price. Second, they should ban sellers who market drugs to be utilized for other than their recommended function,” he said.

Moreover, Gatchalian renewed his call for the immediate passage of the Internet Transactions Act (ITA) into law, which will mandate online platforms to exercise due diligence in the onboarding of sellers to protect consumers, adding that that a law regulating internet transactions would curb the prevalence of scams and other fraudulent and deceptive practices.

Under the ITA, e-commerce platforms shall be held liable with online merchants if the consumer suffers damage as a direct result of the transaction. On the other hand, an e-commerce platform will be held jointly liable if it fails, after notice, to expeditiously remove or disable access to goods or services appearing on its platform that it knows, or should know, to be not compliant with the law.

“During these times when people

are under a pandemic and relying heavily on online transactions, an enabling law that will impose stricter rules and regulations…[and prevent] consumers from falling prey to these unscrupulous individuals are all the more needed,” he said.

“Let us all be vigilant, help monitor and report to authorities online marketplaces for fraudulent covid-19 drugs, or those that sell unapproved products and make false or misleading claims, to protect the health and safety of our consumers,” he added.

Tighten monitoring

AMID the clamor for the FDA to consider repurposed drugs as alternative cure for the coronavirus disease, Muntinlupa Rep. Ruffy Biazon cautioned the public against purchasing products claiming to be Covid-19 medicines unless the products are registered and approved by appropriate government regulatory agencies as Covid-19 treatments or prophylactics.

Biazon also called on the Department of Trade and Industry to tighten the monitoring of e-commerce sites selling restricted medicines.

Biazon also noted the increasing number of sellers of non-approved drugs in online platforms like Instagram and Facebook and e-commerce sites including Lazada and Shopee as he warned the public to avoid buying from entities that do not present the necessary business registration and permits to sell regulated products to the public.

The former Customs chief also expressed alarm over the confiscation of some P9 million worth of smuggled Chinese medicines, including Lianhua, in February.

“These smugglers are realizing that there is a viable market for the drug here in the Philippines. Had the Bureau of Customs not seized these contraband medicines, they would have probably ended up in the grey or black market.

“Ivermectin for human use was recently allowed by FDA to be produced only by one pharmaceutical company after it applied for registration. On the other hand, Lianhua Qingwen is a prescription drug and should only be sold as such from drugstores and other authorized outlets,” he said.

T

HE Department of Justice (DOJ) has assigned two prosecutors to conduct a preliminary investigation into the murder complaint filed by the National Bureau of Investigation in connection with the killing of retired Court of Appeals Associate Justice Normandie Pizarro.

Prosecutor-General Bendicto Malcontento said he has designated Assistant State Prosecutor Mike Humarang and Assistant Prosecution Attorney Grace Arboladura to determine whether there is a probable cause to indict principal suspect Dr. Ramon T. Pangan for murder under Article 248 of the Revised Penal Code.

The murder case was filed on March 23 before the DOJ by the NBI five months after it conducted a parallel investigation into Pizarro’s disappearance in October 23, 2020.

It can be recalled that Pizarro’s car was found abandoned on October 23, 2020 by residents of Manabak Road, barangay San Juan, San Simon Pampanga.

Blood stains and other items were found inside the vehicle although the whereabouts of its driver or owner have remained a puzzle.

Subsequently, local police confirmed that the vehicle was indeed owned by Pizarro.

On October 30, police officers from the Capas Police Station in Capas, Tarlac received a report from barangay officials about their discovery of a decomposing cadaver. Following forensic examination of the body by the NBI, it was established that the victim’s cause of death was a gunshot wound to the head.

A DNA analysis report released on December 21, 2020 disclosed that the body was that of Pizarro.

Malcontento said the preliminary investigation on Pizarro’s murder case would start once the enhanced community quarantine is lifted in the National Capital Region (NCR).

The NBI filed the case against Pangan based on the sworn affidavit of witness Raul Concepcion that prior to his death, Pizarro confided to him through a text message about Pangan’s unpaid cash loans amounting to P90,000 and the reason why such loan was made. Joel R. San Juan

A4 Tuesday, April 6, 2021 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

Economy BusinessMirror

PHL to perform better in ’21 ease of doing biz survey, ARTA says

T

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

@TyronePiad

HE Philippines is expected to perform better in the upcoming World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business (EODB) 2021 survey, with the Anti-Red Tape Authority (ARTA) citing its reforms to streamline government processes.

“I see a much improved score for the [EODB] Survey this 2021 as our reforms aimed at streamlining and speeding up government processes are finally coming to fruition,” ARTA Director General Jeremiah Belgica said in a news statement issued on Monday.

The Philippines scored 62.8 last year,

which positioned the country at the 95th spot. This is an improvement from when the country scored 57.68 in 2019 and sat at 124th rank out of 190 countries.

In the Southeast Asian region, the Philippines is at seventh rank, lagging behind Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam and Indonesia. But it is

DPWH revises construction safety rules in areas under strict community curbs

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

T

HE Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has revised its construction safety guidelines in line with the recent recommendations from the Covid-19 task force, prohibiting private and personal “small-scale projects” in areas under strict lockdown.

Under a department order, the agency is allowing all “essential public and private construction projects” at full operational capacities in areas under the enhanced community quarantine and its modified version, “subject to strict compliance with the new construction safety guidelines, with the exemption of smallscale projects.”

“In ECQ and MECQ areas, we are prohibiting the operation of small-scale projects that are private and [of] personal use, and which, because of scale, would impractically be unable to comply with our guidelines,” said Public Works Secretary Mark Villar.

The department order defines “essential public and private infrastructure projects” as follows: health, quarantine, and isolation facilities for Covid-19 patients, including dorms for health-care workers; vaccination centers or facilities necessary for supply, distribution, and administration of vaccines; facilities for construction personnel of doing emergency works and other disaster risk reduction and rehabilitation works; and educational facilities and other government structures/ offices/buildings.

It also allows the construction of sewerage and water service projects, and digital works; priority public infrastructure projects such as roads, bridges, flood-control,

and active transport facilities; and priority private infrastructure projects to include facilities for food production, agriculture, fisheries, energy, housing, communication, water utilities, manufacturing, and business-process outsourcing (BPO).

For areas under the general community quarantine and its modified version, all public and private construction projects subject to the latest construction safety guidelines.

The safety guidelines include the mandatory testing of employees, constant disinfection of facilities at project sites, provision of sanitation facilities, food transportation, and protective equipment to employees, and the quarantine of any symptomatic worker.

If one confirmed case of Covid-19 was detected, any construction site shall be locked down for 24 hours for disinfection. Employers are required to report cases to the Department of Health and comply with the contact tracing protocols.

The head of the DPWH Implementing Office (IO) shall monitor the compliance of the new construction safety guidelines in DPWHimplemented projects. LGUs and other national government agencies, government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCC) shall monitor compliance of their own implemented projects.

Concessionaires, contractors, and subcontractors, suppliers, its responsible officers, directors or employees, who violate any of the provision of the new guidelines may face termination/rescission of contract without prejudice to the imposition of additional administrative sanctions as the internal rules of DPWH may provide and/ or further criminal action that may be filed.

ahead of Cambodia, Lao PDR and Myanmar. Belgica is “highly confident” that reforms in four particular indicators will bode well for the country. These include Trading Across Borders, Protecting Minority Investors, Enforcing Contracts, and Dealing with Construction Permits.

Among the developments in these areas include the automation of issuances for business and construction permits and digitization of land titles in Quezon City.

ARTA also noted “the reduction of cost and number of days for the filing and service and trial and judgment phase on breach of contractual obligations of the procedure for small claims cases before the Quezon City Metropolitan Trial Courts.”

However, Belgica expressed worries that ARTA’s efforts in certain areas— Starting a Business, Dealing with Construction Permits, Registering Prop-

erty, and Enforcing Contracts—will not be fully recognized. He noted that some parts of the EODB methodology should be reviewed and improved.

The agency said that it has elevated its concerns to the World Bank since last year. ARTA also appealed anew to the organization in the hope of amending its methodology.

“By doing so, I see a study that is more reflective of the Doing Business situation not only in our country but also in other economies,” Belgica added.

EODBisamongthefactorsaninvestor islookingatwhendecidingonaventurein a specific country. Ranking highly in the survey signals that the country’s regulatory environment is business-friendly.

The Board of Investments and the Philippine Economic Zone Authority approved investments amounted to a total of P1.11 trillion last year, which is 11.7 percent lower than P1.26 trillion both agencies booked in 2019.

IPOPHL eyes pre-Covid IP filings level in 2021

T

HE Intellectual Property of the Philippines (IPOPHL) is eyeing to claw back to the pre-pandemic level of IP applications this year, banking on filings from micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

On Monday, IPOPHL opened the National IP Month 2021 with the theme focusing on the MSME sector.

“We...hope this celebration will help us revive IP filings to prepandemic level, the driver of which we hope will be our MSMEs, independent inventors and artists,” IPOPHL Director General Rowel S. Barba said.

Last year, IP applications went down, which Barba attributed to prolonged lockdown measures not only in Metro Manila but in other major areas as well.

Trademark applications fell by 10 percent to 35,724, while patents shrunk by 9 percent to 3,648. Utility models filings plunged by 45 percent to 1,235; industrial design, 23 percent, 1,259; copyright, 44 percent, 940.

“Hopefully, ma-recover lang namin ’yung nawala nung 2019, we’ll be happy,” he said, noting that easing restrictions will help in achieving the goal.

Ba rba sa id t h at IPOPHL’s month-long celebration will be focused on pushing more MSMEs to “create, protect and commercially optimize their IPs; help them integrate IP strategies into their business models; and eventually realize the exclusive rewards and competitive advantage one enjoys from IP.” In 2018, MSMEs accounted for some 47 percent of total filings, IPOPHL said.

The IPOPHL chief said it was vital to help the MSMEs recover as they comprise over 99 percent of the busi-

nesses and employs about 63 percent of the work force.

Citing the European Patent Office and the European Union IP Office, Barba noted that IP asset holders have 20 percent higher profits than those who do not own IP. This only proves the high value of IP and intangible assets, such as technology, design and brand value, in the global value chains, he explained.

Barba said that IPOPHL is also pushing the MSME sector to explore potential opportunities outside the country via international filing systems and programs. These include the Inventor Assistance Program and Patent Cooperation Treaty Assistance Program.

“With IP, the lack of financing, which is a major hurdle to MSME growth, can also be eased as they can obtain additional streams of income through the licensing of their IPs to third parties,” he added.

In a separate statement, IPOPHL announced the extension of the Juana Make a Mark incentive program on Monday. It is a program designed to encourage trademark registration among women led MSMEs. The fourth cycle of the program aims to benefit 1,000 applicants, Barba said. “ With registration, women entrepreneurs could enjoy timebound exclusive rights over their trademarks. T his gives them strategic advantage in building their brand and business and the right to prevent others from using their marks for the same or similar goods or services without their authority or consent,” he added.

So far, the program has 3,000 beneficiaries. Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

www.businessmirror.com.ph

New technology can drive innovation—if people come first

By Henry J. Schumacher

T

O compete in the world of tomorrow, companies need to stay with technology trends. But they have to realize that innovation isn’t just a technology process. A cultural shift, setting innovators free to try new things and keeping employees involved, bridges emerging tech adoption with innovation.

You may remember one of my previous columns where I outlined that leaders have to shift from being “commanders” to becoming “coaches.”

Businesses strive for innovation to stay competitive, but adopting emerging technologies is not the be-all and end-all for transformation.

Mature companies begin innovating with emerging technology by breaking it out into a workflow independent of daily technology needs. Cultural shifts and fitting the work force into the equation play an important role in the success of innovation too. Especially at a time when more and more millennials and centennials are entering the work force with clearly different expectations, but with a new approach to committing effectively to the success of an organization.

We have to realize that they want to be part of solution delivery!

Let’s look at some tech trends we have to take seriously:

Artificial Intelligence or AI— to be mastered by humans

Data-intensive applications— in manufacturing and in data management

Cyber security—as digitalization opens our “doors” for hackers

Health data—both money maker and data privacy hot spot.

As you can see, the Covid-19

crisis has dramatically accelerated corporate digital transformation. Companies need to integrate emerging technologies into innovation processes if they want to stay ahead of the curve.

In this context I liked the statements Mr. Abid Zaidl, chief operating officer of Microsoft Philippines, made. He said: “You have to bring in automation. You can’t rely on the old ways of doing things.” Microsoft wants the Philippines to embrace technology tighter and faster. He is promoting digital channels like chatbots, and adds: “Once you have chatbots, you have to train the AI engine on the data. Are you collecting that data? Are you doing that analysis? Are you training your engine? Do you have that layer that interacts with your customer? You have to control your process well.”

GiventhefocusonAIandmachine learning, we have to clearly bear in mind that people and work come first, then emerging technologies!

Innovation isn’t just a technology process. A cultural shift, setting innovators free to try new things and keeping employees involved, bridges emerging tech adoption with innovation.

Leading with technology, instead of with the work force, creates a humans vs. machine mentality.

The mentality creates more work for humans to fill in process gaps.

When adopting emerging technologies and innovative processes, executives should consider how do I keep my people relevant and employed even as I bring on automation, as opposed to maybe viewing the humans as disposable.

Leaders can make it safe for employees to be part of the emerging technology and innovation process by creating incentives. Skilling opportunities provide the ability to work with the technologies, and businesses can secure employees with other positions if the innovations minimize their current roles.

Organizations who lead with the work force and involve their people constructively, and who are continuously experimenting with emerging technologies, are the ones who are the most agile and the ones who are able to proactively anticipate and deal with how technology is going to evolve the work equation.

In conclusion, let me repeat: new technologies can drive innovation—provided people come first.

We have to see key technologies like AI more as a chance than a threat.

Your feedback is more than welcome; contact me at hjschumacher59@gmail.com

Oil firms raise fuel pump prices

O

IL companies announced they would increase fuel prices starting Tuesday.

Gasoline prices will go up by P0.65 per liter, diesel by P0.05 per liter and kerosene by P0.05 per liter.

The price hike takes effect at 6 a.m. of April 6. It would be implemented by Seaoil, PetroGazz, Total Philippines,

Pilipinas Shell and PTT Philippines.

Meanwhile, Cleanfuel’s price adjustment will take effect at 4:01 p.m.

Other oil firms are expected to announce their price adjustment soon.

Last week, pump prices went down by P1.20 per liter for gasoline, P1.40 per liter for kerosene and P1.30 per liter for diesel. Lenie Lectura

Govt urged to mobilize food inspection facilities in ports

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

A

N advocacy group on Monday urged the national government to hasten the establishment of food inspection facilities in the country following reports of alleged excessive use of antibiotics by fish farms in China.

Tugon Kabuhayan, in a news statement, said the country’s major ports should also be inspected to ensure the quality and safety of imported produce consumed by millions of Filipinos.

“Overuse of antibiotics can lead to the development of drug-resistant superbugs in the long run. This is a food safety concern that needs to be addressed since we import from countries like China,” the group said.

“We must emphasize that we shouldn’t discriminate in terms of inspection and testing. All imported fish and other food items, for that matter, should be tested for antibiotics and diseases, regardless of their country of origin,” it added.

In 2019, the group said the Philippines imported almost P9 billion worth of fish, mollusks and aquatic invertebrates from China. These

include species like pompano, baby shrimps and tilapia.

“We cannot risk our people consuming possibly contaminated imported fish and other food products,” the group added.

Tugon Kabuhayan has cited a report from the South China Morning Post showing a research undertaken

by Peking University professor Wen Donghui in a paper published in the journal Marine Environmental Science this month.

The report said that “data collected from many locations along China’s 32,000-kilometer coastline in recent years suggested that antibiotics were

building up at an alarming pace and were being found in fish and other forms of marine life.”

“The use of antibiotics in off-shore farms is subject to less stringent regulations than on land because of the common belief that the huge body of ocean water can dilute the drugs,” the report stated.

The report added that, “In waters near some farms in Guangdong and in the Bohai Sea, for instance, the concentration of antibiotics could reach more than 2 micrograms per liter of sea water. That was equivalent to dropping 20,000 penicillin pills into a standard

swimming pool [250 mg/pill].”

Prohibited antibiotics like fulfathiaole, chloramphenicol and erythromycin were detected in the waters, which may also indicate that the farmers in China may have used antibiotics in violation of regulations. While these antibiotics might not cause immediate harm, “the combined effect of different types of antibiotics remains poorly understood and requires further investigation,” said the researchers.

While Tugon Kabuhayan recognized the Department of Agriculture’s commitment to build the country’s first Agriculture Com-

modity Examination Area (ACEA), it said there is an urgent need for its construction and operation.

“We commend the DA for allocating budget for the border inspection facilities, but we hope other agencies like the Philippine Ports Authority would approve it with dispatch,” the group added.

“The industry is always ready to support government’s initiatives especially when it comes to food safety, in any way it can. In the absence of first border inspection, perhaps the government can consider accrediting third-party testing centers to do the job,” it said.

News BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Govt urged to enforce ‘right set of policy choices’ to reap demographic dividend

By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario

R

EAPING the demographic dividend may be an uphill climb for the Philippines due to lack of economic prospects brought about by the pandemic, according to IBON Foundation.

In a news statement, IBON Foundation’s Contributor Sanny D. Afable said the government must invest in people to boost the country’s chances of repeating an Asian miracle.

Afable said at least a third of the Asian Miracle experienced by South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia was due to reaping the demographic dividend.

“While things are bleak from where things stand at present, the experience of our neighbors tells us that a demographic dividend is possible given the right set of policy choices,” Afable said.

“The Philippine government cannot simply anticipate a demographic dividend without putting in the necessary investments in its greatest resource: the people,” he pointed out.

Afable said East Asian countries that made the Asian miracle possible invested in education and rural development. These governments also instituted wealthsharing mechanisms that ensured economic growth trickled down to the poor.

T he cou nt r y, A f able sa id , would do wel l to lear n from these policies to ma ximize the benefits of having a young population. Having a young population ensures the economy of a steady supply of workers and consumers and is one of the primar y factors in reaping the demographic dividend.

T he ot her fac tors i nc lude decent employ ment oppor t unities through a steady stream of loc a l a nd foreig n i nvest ments, as wel l as fa l ling fer ti lit y rates, wh ic h helps reduce t he nu mber of dependents in a n economy.

“The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic forces us to confront and root out the long-standing population realities. These have all been magnified in what has been a disaster of a year: widespread poverty and hunger, a broken health care and education system, record-high unemployment, and ultimately an economy that is leaving today’s youth and future workers in the lurch,” Afable said.

“Unless these structural issues are finally addressed, there will simply be no demographic dividend on the horizon.”

However, Undersecretary for Popu lation and Development Juan Antonio Perez III told the BusinessMirror that reaping the demographic dividend also depends on human behav ior, which, he said, is utterly difficult to predict.

Perez said reaping the demographic dividend also rests on the ability of the government to better implement Reproductive Health and Family Planning services.

He added there have been no “societal lockdowns” experienced by the country before which could be used as basis on how Filipinos could react in terms of their family planning practices.

“We have never had societal lockdowns to guide us if people will limit or advance their fertility. W hat we do know is that family planning has an impact on fertility; that impact is reduced by the pandemic. A second year of lockdowns will set us back another year in the program,” Perez said.

In January, Perez said that the demographic dividend remains achievable by 2025 when about 2/3 of the Philippine population will be of working age.

Perez said that in the last two years, the working age population has been growing by 1 million or more annually. As a percentage of the population, since 2019 the working age population has grown by 1/4 of a percent at 64.02 in 2019, 64.15 in 2020 and 64.28 in 2021.

“POPCOM [Commission on Population and Development] believes that the increase in crude birth rate in 2021 will be a temporary blip in our population development and should resume its downward trend by 2022. Population growth is expected to stabilize at 1.06 percent by 2025,” Perez said.

He said achieving the desired replacement rate means reducing unplanned pregnancies in the country, which make up 30 percent of pregnancies ever y year.

Perez said the increase in unplanned pregnancies this year could bring it up to 4 out of 10 pregnancies, but this should be a one-year event if we recover steadily from the effects of the pandemic.

Tuesday, April 6, 2021 A5

NCR+ curbs lead to displacement of 7K more workers–DOLE exec

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

O

VER 7,000 more workers lost their jobs during the first week of implementation of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in the National Capital Region (NCR) and its surrounding provinces.

Citing its initial displacement report, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said this was the initial count of employees, who were rendered jobless either due to retrenchment or permanent closure of their companies during

the said period.

Labor Assistant Secretary Dominique Tutay said the number of displaced workers on March 31, 2021 rose to 118,210 from just 111,000 on March 23, 2021.

“If we will look at our administrative data, [the displacement] was higher last week,” Tutay said during an online news briefing on Monday.

President Duterte has placed “NCR plus,” which includes Metro Manila, Laguna, Cavite, Rizal, and Bulacan, under ECQ from March 29 to April 4, 2021 in a bid to slow down the spike in the daily new novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases.

The lockdown, which was marked with stricter business and movement restrictions, was extended to April 5 to April 11, 2021 to further arrest the increase in infections in NCR plus.

NERS consultation

THE labor official said they are still studying the overall impact of the ECQ to the country’s work force, but she said she expects figures will further lead to additional permanent displacements.

To address the increasing displacement during the pandemic, DOLE is currently conducting stakeholder consultation for the govern-

PRC chief welcomes DOH order on saliva-based RT-PCR testing

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco Correspondent

P

HILIPPINE Red Cross (PRC) Chairman and CEO Sen. Richard J. Gordon on Monday welcomed the directive of Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III for the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) to cover saliva-based RT-PCR testing in its benefit packages.

“Finally, we can even lower the price of saliva testing, we can convince our fellowmen to test regularly, especially the labor force,” Gordon said in Filipino.

Hesaidthatthesalivatestwhichcost P2,000 each, or almost half the price of a swab test, it will also minimize the risk of exposure and transmission of the virus to health-care workers. PRC is now only waiting for PhilHealth to finalize and release the guidelines for the charging of the saliva tests.

Duque, on March 31, 2021, signed

Finally, we can even lower the price of saliva testing, we can convince our fellowmen to test regularly, especially the labor force.

BM

Sen. Richard J. Gordon

the Department of Health (DOH) Memorandum 2021-0161 clarifying the interim guidelines for saliva testing for the unified implementation of its regional offices.

The department now allows only the RT-PCR processing of saliva samples by licensed laboratories with special certification issued by the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM).

Moreover, the DOH instructed PhilHealth to “develop the appropriate payment and provider engagement mechanisms for saliva-based PCR testing,” with no additional payments beyond the PhilHealth coverage to be charged to the patients.

The directive came three months after the DOH first approved the use of saliva as an alternative to nasopha-

BI warns expats violating IATF health protocols in workplace

By Joel R. San Juan

@jrsanjuan1573

T

HE Bureau of Immigration (BI) is set to probe foreign executives of some companies who are reportedly violating Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) protocols in their workplaces.

Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente also warned aliens of possible deportation if they are caught violating IATF protocols.

“Foreign nationals are expected to follow Philippine laws, and blatant disregard of rules and persons of authority may be reason for their deportation,” he said.

Immigration Intelligence Chief Fortunato Ma-

nahan Jr. disclosed that the agency has been receiving reports of violations of health protocols reportedly committed by foreign executives in their respective offices.

“We will be conducting an investigation into these reports, and if found with merit, will file immigration cases against aliens involved,” Manahan said.

He indicated that aside from deportation proceedings, criminal action may also be initiated against erring aliens.

It can be recalled that last year, a Spanish national was blacklisted for allegedly violating the enhanced community quarantine policies and for hurling expletives to Makati policemen.

Human rights action best way forward, global experts say

E

XPERT panelists who attended the recent The Economist Sustainability Week forum strongly maintained that as human rights issues occur across countries, supply chains and industries, the work of protecting and respecting human rights should take priority for individuals, corporations, and governments alike.

Collective action on human rights has to be the building block to whatever solution we agree on—it is always easier to solve a problem when everyone works together, stressed Chris Southworth, secretary general of the International Chamber of Commerce UK. “The responsibility sits with NGOs as much as it does business—we all have to step up to the plate and adapt the way we work.”

Benefits of collaboration

SOUTHWORTH added that the positive impact corporations can have on society was exemplified by the business community’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic. “Be it the automotive industry repurposing factories to create ventilators

ment’s National Employment Recovery Strategy (NERS).

Tutay said NERS is expected to lead to the reemployment of 1.6 million workers, who became permanently displaced last year, and reduce unemployment to 5 percent.

Among the highlights of NERS is DOLE’s proposed wage subsidy for employers, particularly micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSME), which will allow them to retain their workers.

Tutay said the consultations for the crafting of the NERS would culminate in a Job Summit, which they will hold during the Labor Day next month.

or the fashion industry turning their talents to creating much-needed PPE, companies and businesses rallied to meet those needs and fill the gap that governments and public health could not,” he pointed out.”

It was unanimously acknowledged during The Economist virtual summit that regulation and policy must reflect the benefits of collaboration, and that to bring about positive change, all views should be included, discriminative policies eradicated, and unrelated personal agendas set aside.

Exclusion instead of partnership

YET, it was found during the prestigious summit that the tobacco industry is not only excluded from the Covid-19 vaccination program of some governments but is also barred from collaborating with government agencies, NGOs and even agencies of the United Nations (UN) in pushing for the global human rights agenda.

“The best way to protect human rights is to follow the United Nation’s Guiding Principles (UNGPs) framework

which applies to both states and businesses,” averred Suzanne Wise, senior vice president corporate affairs and communications of Japan Tobacco Inc. (JTI). ”The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals call for increased partnerships, yet in contrast to this, some UN agencies and organizations call to exclude certain industries from such partnerships. In doing so, they exclude over 100 million people from the tobacco industry alone, including 40 million farmers.”

ARISE in action

IN spite of this exclusion, JTI has successfully placed 60,000 children in education through its ARISE program and conducted over 345,000 routine on-theground observation visits to farmers in 2020 alone, which all contribute to the company’s continual effort to achieve the highest standards of human rights across its global operations.

According to Oxfam, Covid-19 caused inequality to rise in virtually every country on earth with the number of people living in poverty increasing from 200 million to

500 million in 2020 alone.

“The number of people at risk of human rights violations grew alongside them. To tackle this problem head on, the need for governments and corporations, including the tobacco industry, to collaborate, has never been stronger,” said Wise.

“We urge governments and policymakers to recognize that the world does not turn in isolation, and that human rights must be fought for by all organizations, together, not only by a selected few,” she proposed. “By coming together to achieve a common goal, there are many millions of people, including 40 million farmers, who will benefit.”

In the Philippines, the plan of government, through its health department, to bar industries from tobacco, infant milk formula, soda, and beer from participating in vaccine procurement was heavily criticized by lawmakers and policymakers as discriminatory and unlawful. The ensuing uproar forced government to rethink the plan.

ryngeal and oropharyngeal swab among PRC laboratories. Gordon, who introduced the cheaper, faster, and non-invasive saliva tests for PhilHealth members, welcomed the move, especially now that the country is reporting an unprecedented second surge of Covid-19 cases.

Gordon also emphasized that antigen and antibody tests for saliva are not allowed under the DOH guidelines. Such tests are less sensitive compared to RT-PCR tests that PRC conducts, and might produce more false negative results.

“Only Red Cross is allowed to conduct RT-PCR test,” Gordon said as he appealed to the public not to patronize rapid test for it would be dangerous for it sometimes yield false negative results.

BusinessMirror

A6 Tuesday, April 6, 2021

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS NO.

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS POSITION

3M SERVICE CENTER APAC, INC. 17th, 18th, 19th Floors, Bonifacio Stopover Corporate Center 31st Street Cor., 2nd Avenue Bonifacio Global City Taguig City 1.

PARK, PHYEUN South Korean

HIRE TO RETIRE SPECIALIST

8 STONE BUSINESS OUTSOURCING OPC 5/f To 10/f, Tower 4 Pitx #01 Kennedy Road Tambo Parañaque City

NO. 39.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

POSITION

NO.

WANG, JIE Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPSENTATIVE

BIG EMPEROR TECHNOLOGY CORP. Eastfield Center Cbp1, Macapagal Blvd. Brgy. 076 Pasay City

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

POSITION

NO.

86.

ZHANG, LI Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

87.

ZHENG, TIANFU Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

40.

HUANG, ZONGHANG Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING TRANSLATOR

88.

ZHENG, ZHIFA Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

41.

LIANG, JUNNING Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING TRANSLATOR

89.

ZHOU, RIFENG Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

SONG, QINGWEI Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE

42.

ELIZABETH Myanmari

COMPUTER SYSTEM ANALYST

90.

ZHOU, YUHUA Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

3.

MAI, HONGYE Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

43.

TEH YING SOON Malaysian

COMPUTER SYSTEM ANALYST

91.

ZHOU, BINGAN Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

WANG, JUNPENG Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

44.

LAU LIK SHENG Malaysian

COMPUTER TECHNICAL SUPPORT SPECIALIST

92.

4.

ZHU, JIANGTAO Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

45.

NGUYEN TRA GIANG Vietnamese

COMPUTER TECHNICAL SUPPORT SPECIALIST

WANG, SHUNFA Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

46.

THANDAR HLAING Myanmari

COMPUTER TECHNICAL SUPPORT SPECIALIST

6.

WANG, QINGLONG Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

47.

HU, LEI Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

7.

ZHU, QIANSHENG Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING PROGRAM DESIGNER

48.

LI, SHAOYOU Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

8.

ZHU, JINHUA Chinese

CHINSE SPEAKING PROGRAM DESIGNER

49.

9.

BAI, YONGLONG Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

10.

CHEN, JIE Chinese

11.

2.

5.

CIPEC CONSTRUCTION INC. U-1202 Global Tower Condo Gen. Mascardo Cor. Capt. M. Reyes Sts. Bangkal Makati City 93.

WANG, YI-PO Taiwanese

INSTRUMENT SUPERVISOR

CLOSETWEARS INC. 2/f 2u-22 2u-2s 999 Shopping Mall Soler Street 028 Bgy. 293 Binondo Manila 94.

PARVEZ, SOHEL Bangladeshi

PRODUCTION MANAGER

LIU, JING Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

50.

PENG, YABAO Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

CROWDPULSE INC. 3rd Floor Polar Center B Ldg. Edsa Cor. Cornell Brgy. Wack-wack Mandaluyong City

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

51.

TANG, LIPING Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

95.

GUO, SHAOLONG Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING ADMIN ASSOCIATE

FANG, XINYU Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

52.

WU, SHUICHI Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

96.

LIN, QIN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING BUSINESS ANALYST

12.

HU, JIAQI Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

53.

CHEN, ZIYOU Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

97.

HAN, QIHAO Chinese

13.

LIAO, ZHUHUA Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

54.

CHEN, MINPING Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

14.

NANG HLA HLA PWINT Myanmari

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

55.

CHEN, YIMING Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

15.

NGO VAN THANH Vietnamese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

56.

DONG, WEI Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

16.

NGUYEN ANH LINH Vietnamese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

57.

HE, JIE Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

17.

NGUYEN THI HUONG Vietnamese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

58.

HONG, YONGHUANG Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

18.

QIU, TAO Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

59.

HUANG, JUN Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

SHI, RUI Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

DA PROSPERITAS HOLDING INC. 16/f Tower 6789 6789 Ayala Ave. Bel-air Makati City 98.

XU, WEN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING ADMIN ASSOCIATE

EASTERN GOLD CORPORATION 503 Nueva St Binondo Manila 99.

XIE, SHAOFENG Chinese

MARKETING AND SALES AGENT

ENCORE AMUSEMENT AND GAMING SUPPORT SERVICES CORP. 3f Metlive Metro Park Edsa Ext. Cor. Macapagal Blvd. Brgy. 076 Pasay City BUI VAN ANH Vietnamese

CUSTOMER SERVICE SPECIALIST

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

POSITION

124.

YAN, CHUNYING Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

125.

YU, LIANG Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

FLYING DRAGON NETWORK PHILIPPINES INC. 4th-11th Floor Aseana 3 Building Aseana Avenue Corner Diosdado Macapagal Tambo Parañaque City 126.

AI, BINGNAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

127.

CAO, LIFENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

128.

CAO, YICHAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

129.

CHEN, CHEN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

130.

CHEN, WANWAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

131.

CHEN, XIANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

132.

CHEN, YANJUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

133.

HAN, TINGXU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

134.

HE, HANXIAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

135.

HUANG, DONGCHAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

136.

HUANG, KAIYIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

137.

LAI, YINGBIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

138.

LI, XINTONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

139.

LI, ZHAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

140.

LI, TONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

141.

LIANG, BAICHENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

142.

SUN, ZIJUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

143.

WANG, GONGZHANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

144.

DUONG QUANG KHANH Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

60.

LI, MEILAN Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

100.

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

61.

LIAN, XIAOQING Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

101.

LE THI MY TRINH Vietnamese

CUSTOMER SERVICE SPECIALIST

145.

LE DUC THANG Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

62.

LIANG, WEISHI Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

102.

LU QUOC DAT Vietnamese

CUSTOMER SERVICE SPECIALIST

146.

LE HONG HOANG Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

63.

LIANG, BOLI Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

103.

PHAM DUC SON Vietnamese

CUSTOMER SERVICE SPECIALIST

147.

LE THI THU HA Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

64.

LIAO, YIZHONG Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

65.

LIU, XIAOYAN Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

104.

FENG, YUANZHI Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE (CSR)

148.

LE MY YEN Vietnamese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

LIU, YINGYING Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

105.

GUO, HAO Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE (CSR)

149.

25.

YUE, YUANZU Chinese

66.

LUONG TUAN HAO Vietnamese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

67.

LU, JIAJIN Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

106.

LI, XIAONA Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE (CSR)

150.

26.

ZHANG, DONGCHENG Chinese

NGUYEN TU TIEN Vietnamese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

68.

LYU, JINPENG Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

107.

SHANG, CHUANBO Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE (CSR)

151.

27.

ZHAO, JUNWEI Chinese

NGUYEN VAN CHUNG Vietnamese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

69.

OU, CONG Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

108.

WU, ANMI Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE (CSR)

152.

28.

ZHOU, YUHAN Chinese

TRAN THANH VAN Vietnamese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

70.

PENG, SHIYONG Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

FIRST GREAT COMPUTER TECHNOLOGIES INC. Lot 5 Sta. Agueda Cor. Queensway Pagcor Drive Sto. Niño Parañaque City

153.

XIE, WEI Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

71.

QIAN, YING Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

109.

HUANG, YANG Chinese

IT TECHNICAL MANDARIN

72.

SHANG, ZHENG Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

110.

DI, QINGYANG Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

154.

73.

SUN, DONGXUE Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

111.

DING, JINCHENG Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

74.

TAN, BILU Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

112.

HUANG, FENG Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

HUA JIE MANAGEMENT AND CONSULTANCY CO. LTD. INC. Unit 146 The Manila Residence Tower 2 Taft Ave. 078 Bgy. 709 Malate Manila

75.

TIAN, XIANGYANG Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

113.

HUANG, ZHILING Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

114.

LAN, JINLING Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

19.

20.

21.

22.

23.

24.

SONG, ZHIBEI Chinese WANG, JIAJIA Chinese XIN, MINGKUN Chinese YAN, MENGFAN Chinese YUAN, XUEQING Chinese

ALFANET GLOBAL SOLUTIONS, INC. Flr. No. 4th & 5th W Mall Bldg. Diosdado Macapagal Ave. St. Zone 10. Barangay 076, District 1 Pasay City 29.

CHEN, JINXIANG Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING ADMIN SPECIALIST

30.

CHEN, GARRY Taiwanese

MANDARIN SPEAKING HR AND ADMIN DIRECTOR

ANOC99 CORPORATION 5/f Ayala Malls Manila Bay Building D. Macapagal Blvd. Cor. Aseana Street Tambo Parañaque City

FAREAST OUTSOURCE PROCESSING INC. 7th, 8th, 9th Flr. Nu Tower Moa Coral Way Brgy. 076 Pasay City

GATEWAYSOLUTIONS CORP. 8/f Edsa Cor. Sultan Brgy. Highway Hills Mandaluyong City

HOPE-FOR-THE-CHILDREN INC. U 26 Ext-b 3f Bac. Bagong Mile F.b Harrison St. Brgy. 076 Pasay City

155.

XIONG, LI Chinese

ZHOU, DAIQUN Chinese

FUNDRAISING & SPONSORSHIP COORDINATOR (FOR CHINESE SPONSORS)

TELEMARKETER (MANDARIN SPEAKING)

31.

GUO, HUANHUAN Chinese

32.

WANG, RUNDONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

76.

WANG, BING Chinese

33.

WANG, MIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

77.

WEI, WEI Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

115.

LI, MENGFEI Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

156.

34.

YU, WANGZHUANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

78.

WU, SHUANGLONG Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

116.

LYU, QIANFENG Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

IRISBLOOM INC. Unit 25d 2/f Zeta Ii Bldg. 19 Salcedo St. San Lorenzo Makati City

35.

PHAM VAN THAI Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

79.

XIANG, XIAOFEN Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

117.

PI, KAI Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

157.

ZHANG, HAN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING ADMIN ASSOCIATE

80.

XIE, YONGJIAN Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

118.

WANG, XIAOQIN Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

158.

ZHANG, ZHOUPING Chinese

81.

XU, YUNJIE Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

119.

WANG, ZIFAN Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

ARINSO INTERNATIONAL PHILIPPINES, INC. 4/f Bldg. 1 Eton Cyberpod Corinthian Ortigas Ave. Cor. E De Los Santos Ave. Ugong Norte 3 Quezon City

36.

MURALEEDHARAN PILLAI, HARIKRISHNAN Indian

OPERATIONS MANAGER, PAYROLL ANZ

BAOLONG TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRY GROUP LIMITED INC. 20-29th/f Century Diamond Tower Kalayaan Ave. Cor. Salamanca St. Poblacion Makati City

82.

YAN, TAOTAO Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

120.

WANG, XIN Chinese

83.

YANG, HUI Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

121.

WANG, LIANG Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

HY POWER TR SUPPLY INC. Unit 2902-c West Tower Pse Center,exchange Road Ortigas Center, San Antonio Pasig City NAM (SPOUSE OF PARK), JEONG SU South Korean

IMPORT MANAGER

J-NA ALLOUT TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS CORP. 3/f Lipams Bldg. #48 President Avenue Bf Homes Parañaque City 159.

CHEN, CHING-CHIEH Taiwanese

CHINESE MARKETING CONSULTANT

160.

CHEN, PING-HAO Taiwanese

CHINESE MARKETING CONSULTANT

37.

WANG, BIAO Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

84.

YI, QIFA Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

122.

XU, YONG Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

161.

CHEN, WEI-LIN Taiwanese

CHINESE MARKETING CONSULTANT

38.

XU, LULU Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

85.

YU, XUWANG Chinese

MANDARIN LANGUAGE SPECIALIST

123.

XUE, BINGBING Chinese

MANDARIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

162.

JI, CI-SYU Taiwanese

CHINESE MARKETING CONSULTANT

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS NO.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

POSITION

NO.

163.

TSAI, CHIA-WEI Taiwanese

CHINESE MARKETING CONSULTANT

164.

WANG, LIN Chinese

CHINESE MARKETING CONSULTANT

JINSHENGLONG BUSINESS SUPPORT, INC. 3rd, 4th, 5th, 7th, 8th, 9th Flr. Filinvest Bay City Brgy. 076 Pasay City

Tuesday, April 6, 2021

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

POSITION

NO.

POSITION

207.

WEI, YONGZHUAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

259.

XU, XIANYAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

208.

WU, YU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

260.

YANG, SHU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

209.

WU, YANPING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

261.

YAO, LONGXIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

165.

SUN, YUANLING Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

210.

WU, ZILONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

262.

YOU, JIANLIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

166.

XIAO, SILIANG Chinese

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

211.

WU, WEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

263.

YU, KANGFA Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

212.

WU, YAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

264.

ZHANG, KAI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

213.

XIE, WENDIAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

265.

ZHANG, WENGE Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

214.

YANG, DONGDI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

266.

ZHANG, PEIFEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

215.

YE, RONGCHENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

267.

ZHI, YONGDONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

216.

YIN, NINGNING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

268.

NGUYEN VAN HAI Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

217.

YU, SHASHA Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

269.

VAY NHIT PHI Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

218.

YU, HUI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

JMRM BRANDED OVERRUNS IMPORT-EXPORT INC. Unit No. S-135, Bac, Lrt Shpg, Mall Bldg. Taft Ave. Ext. St. Barangay O78 Pasay City 167.

EMON, YOUSUF KHAN Bangladeshi

INVENTORY SPECIALIST

JP & L BEAUTY PRODUCTS INC. 22 The Trade And Financial Tower 7th Ave. Cor. 32nd St. Fort Bonifacio Taguig City 168.

SEGAL HETLY, MORAN Israeli

MULTILINGUAL - PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT SPECIALIST

KOBAYASHI PHARMACEUTICAL (SINGAPORE) PTE. LTD. MANILA BRANCH Unit 702 7/f Tower One & Exchange Plaza Ayala Ave., Cor. Paseo De Roxas Bel-air Makati City 169.

KADOTA, MASAAKI Japanese

BRANCH MANAGER

KONGANBUDDIES MARKETING INC. 48/f Lower Ground Pbcom Tower 6795 Ayala Ave. Cor. V.a. Rufino St. Bel-air Makati City 170.

AGUS ELINA Indonesian

INDONESIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

171.

BENNY SUTANTO Indonesian

INDONESIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

172.

HALIM BACHTIAR Indonesian

INDONESIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

173.

PETRIC BUNAIDI Indonesian

INDONESIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

174.

REYNER FADJAR Indonesian

INDONESIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

175.

STEVEN CANG Indonesian

INDONESIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

176.

SUMARDI GUNAWAN Indonesian

INDONESIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

177.

YAKUB Indonesian

INDONESIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

178.

YEREMIA AGUNG GUNAWAN Indonesian

INDONESIAN CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

179.

WANG, ZIHE Chinese

MANDARIN MARKETING SUPERVISOR

180.

XIE, XIAORU Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING HELPDESK SUPPORT

181.

ZOU, JIE Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING HELPDESK SUPPORT

182.

WU, SHU-CHEN Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING HR SPECIALIST

183.

DENG, FENGQIONG Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING SEO SPECIALIST

LARKSPUR INC. 19/f Marco Polo Hotel Manila Sapphire Road Ortigas Center San Antonio Pasig City 184.

SHI, WANBIN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING ADMIN ASSOCIATE

185.

YOU, HONGLIN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING ADMIN ASSOCIATE

186.

ZHANG, LIPING Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING ADMIN ASSOCIATE

187.

WU, ZIJIAN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING BUSINESS ANALYST

188.

WU, MENGXIAO Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE

LUCKY365 CONSULTING LIMITED CORP. U/18a 18/f 18/f Trafalgar Plaza 105 H.v. Dela Costa St. Bel-air Makati City 189.

LIN, JUNYUAN Chinese

MANDARIN SPEAKING MARKETING SPECIALIST

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. 4th-11th Flr. Nexgen Tower C4 Rd. Edsa Ext. Brgy. 076 Pasay City

OAMPI INC. 8/f 6780 Ayala Ave. Ayala Ave. San Lorenzo Makati City FELICIANO, JUDITH BOCADO Angolan

PORTUGUESE CONTENT MODERATION ANALYST

219.

ZHANG, LING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

270.

220.

ZHANG, KAIXIONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

221.

AYE THANDAR WIN Myanmari

MYANMARI CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

POWERCHINA PHILIPPINES CORPORATION Unit 2101 21/f Bdo Equitable Tower 8751 Paseo De Roxas Bel-air Makati City

222.

DAN SY DAU Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

223.

DAO DUY SON Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

271.

HE, RUI Chinese

EQUIPMENT INSTALLATION SPECIALIST

SCULPTURE HOSPITALITY SERVICES PHILIPPINES INC. 5f Phinma Plaza 39 Plaza Drive, Rockwell Center Poblacion Makati City 272.

DOYLE, BRETT ALLEN American

GENERAL MANAGER

DO NHU Y Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

225.

HOANG NGOC QUANG Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

226.

MA THI NUONG Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

273.

227.

NGUYEN DIEU LINH Vietnamese

VIETNAMESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

SKY DRAGON GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES CORP. 2f-5f Unit 710 Shaw Blvd. Global Link Center, Brgy. Wack Wack Mandaluyong City

224.

MOBICON NETWORKS LIMITED CORP. 32/f Rufino Pacific Tower 6784 Ayala Ave. Cor. V.a., Rufino St. San Lorenzo Makati City 228.

ARAFAT, A S M YEASHIR Bangladeshi

PROJECT DIRECTOR

NEW ORIENTAL CLUB88 CORPORATION Sky Garage Bldg. Aseana Avenue, Entertainment City Tambo Parañaque City CHAI, ZHIPIAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

CHANG, LONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

231.

CHEN, WENXIANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

232.

DU, PENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

233.

FAN, LINFENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

234.

GUO, WEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

235.

HE, ZHENZHEN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

236.

HU, YINGXIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

237.

HUANG, FUMING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

238.

JIANG, PING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

239.

LI, MINGHUI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

240.

LI, MINGTONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

241.

LI, WEIWEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

242.

LI, YAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

229.

230.

SDW REALTY AND DEVELOPMENT INC. 3/f Pioneer Cor. Reliance Hmr. Brgy. Highway Hills Mandaluyong City

190.

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

191.

JIA, AICHUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

243.

LI, ZUNZHOU Chinese

192.

LI, SIPENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

244.

LIN, YANXIU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

193.

LI, YANPING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

245.

LIU, JIANWU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

194.

LIANG, XINGZHI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

246.

MA, DONGHAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

195.

LIANG, DAILIANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

196.

LIU, JINGJING Chinese

197.

247.

NIE, XIAOXIAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

248.

QIN, XIANGHUI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

LIU, WEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

249.

SHEN, XIANBIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

198.

PAN, SUBING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

250.

SONG, LIQUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

199.

QIN, HUAIYI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

251.

TAN, HONGJUN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

200.

QIN, JINKE Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

252.

WANG, YU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

201.

QIN, ZHENJUAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

253.

WU, YUNPENG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

202.

QIN, JINXING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

254.

WU, WEIPING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

203.

SUN, HUAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

255.

WU, YAOZONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

204.

SUN, SHAOXUAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

256.

WU, HAIYANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

205.

TAO, MINGHUA Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

257.

XIA, CHAO Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

206.

WANG, XIANGLONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

258.

XIAO, XU Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE

SENIOR CONSTRUCTION CONSULTANT

NO.

FOREIGN NATIONAL / NATIONALITY

POSITION

TENMAN PROJECT MANAGEMENT INC. Unit 805-808 The One Executive Office Bldg. #5 West Ave. Nayong Kanluran 1 Quezon City 302.

DANG, CHARLES TUAN American

SENIOR DESIGN MANAGER

TRIVES TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION Tower 4 Bayport West Naia Garden Residence, Naia Road Tambo Parañaque City 303.

CHEN, GUANGFEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

304.

LIU, JUNYING Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

305.

MA, JUNCHUAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

306.

SU, SIMIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

307.

TIAN, CHENGPIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

308.

XI, PAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

309.

XU, SHUXIANG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

310.

YANG, JIAWEI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

TWILIGHTBIZ INC. 40/f Pbcom Tower 6795 Ayala Ave., Cor. V.a Rufino St. Bel-air Makati City 311.

LIN, DUNJI Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE

312.

PAN, BINGTING Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

VAN GOGH BUSINESS PROCESS OUTSOURCING INC. 5/f Ayala Circuit Bpo-1 Bldg. Theater Drive Circuit Makati Carmona Makati City 313.

ANITA KARTIKA Indonesian

COMPUTER TECHNICAL SUPPORT SPECIALIST

314.

CHEN, CONG Chinese

INFORMATION SECURITY ANALYST

315.

FENG, JUNWEI Chinese

INFORMATION SECURITY ANALYST

316.

GUO, XIAOLONG Chinese

INFORMATION SECURITY ANALYST

317.

JIANG, QIUMEI Chinese

INFORMATION SECURITY ANALYST

274.

GUO, YAN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

318.

LIU, RONGSHENG Chinese

INFORMATION SECURITY ANALYST

275.

YANG, JINLONG Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

319.

LU, ZHENYU Chinese

INFORMATION SECURITY ANALYST

276.

YAO, HUIXIN Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

320.

MI, LIN Chinese

INFORMATION SECURITY ANALYST

277.

ZHANG, CHONGHUI Chinese

CHINESE CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

321.

TANG, LULU Chinese

INFORMATION SECURITY ANALYST

278.

HUANG, HAO Chinese

CHINESE RESEARCH ANALYST

322.

TIAN, YONGXIANG Chinese

INFORMATION SECURITY ANALYST

279.

JIN, ZHIHUI Chinese

CHINESE RESEARCH ANALYST

323.

YANG, ZEXI Chinese

INFORMATION SECURITY ANALYST

280.

WEI, JINQIN Chinese

CHINESE RESEARCH ANALYST

324.

ZHAN, SHIMIN Chinese

INFORMATION SECURITY ANALYST

281.

WU, YU Chinese

CHINESE RESEARCH ANALYST

325.

ZHU, CHENGLU Chinese

INFORMATION SECURITY ANALYST

282.

YAN, YONG Chinese

CHINESE RESEARCH ANALYST

326.

WANG, TENGYUE Chinese

IT TECHNICAL MANDARIN

283.

YUAN, QINGMAO Chinese

CHINESE RESEARCH ANALYST

327.

ZHU, SHUAIHU Chinese

IT TECHNICAL MANDARIN

284.

ZHANG, ZONGBAO Chinese

CHINESE RESEARCH ANALYST

328.

YANG, JIE Chinese

QA (QUALITY ASSURANCE) SPECIALIST

285.

LEE, YONGKEUN South Korean

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

286.

LEE, SANGHUN South Korean

CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

VIVO MOBILE TECH., INC. Unit 3302c, 3302d, 3303a, 3303b, 3303c, 3303d, 3304a, 3304b, & 3304c E Ortigas Center San Antonio Pasig City

287.

NANG NOON LU Myanmari

RESEARCH ANALYST

SKYWORTH (PHILIPPINES) CORPORATION U-2202 & 2204 22/f Antel Corporate Centre 121 Valero St. Bel-air Makati City YI, PENGWEI Chinese

329.

WANG, LINJIA Chinese

(ENGLISH-MANDARIN SPEAKING) MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATE - TRADE MARKETING

WHEELSTRIP CORP. 40/f Pbcom Tower 6795 Ayala Ave. Cor. V.a Rufino St. Bel-air Makati City 330.

XIE, ZUOWEI Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING ADMIN ASSOCIATE

331.

ZHENG, PENG Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATE

MANDARIN SPEAKING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT SPECIALIST

332.

LIU, XIANG Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

SPECTRALCHROMA INC. Unit 25d 2/f Zeta Ii Bldg. 191 Salcedo St. San Lorenzo Makati City

333.

WANG, ZHEN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING DATA ENTRY CLERK

288.

HE, JINHUA Chinese

KELLY, JOSEPH DAMIAN British

OPERATIONS DIRECTOR

SONG FLAVOURS GLOBAL TRADING, OPC 94 Dragon Street Midtown Subd. San Roque Marikina City 289.

LE MINH HOANG Vietnamese

A7

290.

GAO, QI Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING ADMIN ASSOCIATE

291.

PAN, ZHIMIN Chinese

CHINESE SPEAKING CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE

SUPERANTS INC. Unit 2802 The Trade And Financial Tower 7th Ave. Cor. 32nd St. Fort Bonifacio Taguig City 292.

CAM THI DUY Vietnamese

CONSULTANT (MANDARIN SPEAKING)

293.

DAO TRUONG AN Vietnamese

CONSULTANT (MANDARIN SPEAKING)

294.

LE LONG HO Vietnamese

CONSULTANT (MANDARIN SPEAKING)

295.

NGUYEN THI NHU QUYNH Vietnamese

CONSULTANT (MANDARIN SPEAKING)

296.

PHAM THI ANH Vietnamese

CONSULTANT (MANDARIN SPEAKING)

297.

PHAM VAN TUAN Vietnamese

CONSULTANT (MANDARIN SPEAKING)

298.

TRAN VAN CHINH Vietnamese

CONSULTANT (MANDARIN SPEAKING)

299.

LONG CAP PHI Vietnamese

FINANCE SPECIALIST (MANDARIN SPEAKING)

300.

SU VAY VONG Vietnamese

FINANCE SPECIALIST (MANDARIN SPEAKING)

301.

TSAN BICH VAN Vietnamese

HUMAN RESOURCE ASSISTANT (MANDARIN SPEAKING)

WORLD MEDICAL RELIEF-PHILIPPINE NATIONAL BUSINESS AND COORDINATION CENTER FOUNDATION, INC. 14-d 14/f Ocean Tower Condo. Roxas Blvd. 077, Bgy. 701 Malate Manila 334.

HUANG, HOUDONG Chinese

EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT

335.

WANG, YAN Chinese

EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT

ZENGAGE INC. Unit 403 4f Corporate 101 Bldg. No. 101 Mother Ignatia St. South Triangle 4 Quezon City 336.

LEVY, KFIR Israeli

CHIEF OPERATIONS OFFICER *Date Generated: Apr 5, 2021

In the ad material of Notice of Filing of Application for Alien Employment Permits published on March 27, 2021, the position of KANCHWALA, SOHEL HATIM under SECURITY BANK CORPORATION, should have been read as SENIOR CONSULTANT OF COLLECTION TRANSFORMATION DEPARTMENT and not as published.

Any person in the Philippines who is competent, able and willing to perform the services for which the foreign national is desired may file an objection at DOLE-NCR Regional Office located at DOLE-NCR Building, 967 Maligaya St., Malate Manila, within 30 days after this publication.

Please inform DOLE-NCR if you have any information on criminal offense committed by the foreign nationals.

ATTY. SARAH BUENA S. MIRASOL REGIONAL DIRECTOR

A8 Tuesday, April 6, 2021 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

editorial

Not just fishermen

B

eijing’s belligerence and bullying of the Philippines is made obvious even in the way it deals with our government officials.

The Chinese embassy in Manila, in a statement on Saturday, called Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana “unprofessional” because he told Chinese ships moored in Julian Felipe Reef to leave.

Beijing has maintained that the Chinese vessels there—as many as 220 at one point —are just fishermen sheltering from poor weather.

“I am no fool,” Lorenzana said. “The weather has been good so far, so they have no reason to stay there. These vessels should be on their way out. Get out of there.”

On Monday, the Department of Foreign Affairs upped the ante on its earlier diplomatic protest over the Julian Felipe reef swarming by 200-plus militia boats. It called the bad weather alibi a “blatant falsehood” and said the Chinese embassy statement tried to peddle again “the clearly false narrative of China’s expansive and illegitimate claims in the West Philippine Sea.” Indeed, it is implausible for so many commercial fishing vessels to be anchored in one area for so many days, not doing any fishing, not earning, just lying idle together in one spot, even if weather conditions are sunny with not even a hint of a storm.

And even if they are just fishermen, what are they doing there in the first place? Julian Felipe Reef in the Kalayaan Island Group lies in the Philippines’s exclusive economic zone. It sits 175 nautical miles west of Bataraza town in Palawan and 638.229 nautical miles from Hainan Island.

In rejecting China’s assertion that Julian Felipe Reef and its waters are their “traditional fishing grounds,” the DFA statement on Monday said: “Tradition yields to law whether or not it is regarded as traditional fishing. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos)—to which both the Republic of the Philippines and China are parties—and the final and binding 12 July 2016 Award in the South China Sea Arbitration are clearly the only norm applicable to this situation.”

The 2016 arbitral ruling, it added, “conclusively settled the issue of historic rights and maritime entitlements in the South China Sea. The Tribunal ruled that claims to historic rights, or other sovereign rights or jurisdiction that exceed the geographic and substantive limits of maritime entitlements under Unclos, are without lawful effect. It further ruled that Unclos ‘superseded any historic rights, or other sovereign rights or jurisdiction, in excess of the limits imposed therein.’”

Jay Batongbacal, director of the UP Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea, along with other scholars here and abroad, have often accused the Chinese government of using civilian fishing vessels for its maritime militia, to enforce its claims on the SCS. This maritime militia, they say, is organized and funded by the Chinese government.

They often swarm or occupy a contested area in another country’s territorial waters. They use their numerical advantage to prevent access and drive away local fishermen, virtually claiming it, like what they did in Scarborough and the Mischief Reef, which the Philippines also lost to China.

Several scientists’ groups, such as Oceana and Agham (Advocates of Science and Technology for the People), have cited incalculable damage of the reef activities on Philippine patrimony. Per Agham’s estimate, the activities of China’s maritime militia account for at least 16,000 hectares of destroyed reefs as of 2017, which costs up to P33.1 billion per year.

The continued encroachment could cause the fishing industry to collapse; and 627,000 Filipino fishermen to lose their livelihood.

And yet the Chinese embassy has the temerity to justify their activities, even counseling Lorenzana to keep a sober head.

“China is committed to safeguarding peace and stability in the waters and we hope that authorities concerned would make constructive efforts and avoid any unprofessional remarks which may further fan irrational emotions,” said the Chinese embassy statement on Saturday. It added that it has “taken note of the perplexing statement by Philippine Defense Secretary on Chinese fishing vessels around Niu’e Jiao in the South China Sea” (referring to Julian Felipe reef), insisting that Niu’e Jiao “is part of China’s Nansha Islands” and that the waters around it “has been a traditional fishing ground for Chinese fishermen for many years.” To that, we say, again, tradition yields to law, and in this case, the norm is limited to Unclos and the 2016 arbitral ruling (see above, per DFA).

“It is completely normal for Chinese fishing vessels to fish in the waters and take shelter near the reef during rough sea conditions. Nobody has the right to make wanton remarks on such activities,” the Chinese embassy said.

Well, it is also perfectly normal and professional for our own defense chief to stand up to China and defend our territory on this issue, so please do not take umbrage at his remarks.

Also, please do not talk to our officials as if they need scolding for their nationalism or for doing their jobs.

The Chinese embassy should not be surprised when Philippine officials muster the courage to stand firm as a matter of national duty and honor and uphold Philippine sovereignty—something they should have done a long time ago.

China should instead be surprised that the encroachment of its maritime militia into Philippine territory has not yet triggered a military clash sparked by its shameless expansionism. This, at a time when the deadly Covid-19 virus’s origin in China has already sparked an unfortunate racial backlash in the West, thus deflecting blame on innocent people instead of arrogant governments.

Since 2005

BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business ✝ Ambassador Antonio L. Cabangon Chua

Let’s address the vaccine backlog Manny B. Villar

THE Entrepreneur

T

he global vaccine supply may be short at the moment but this should not stop our authorities and the private sector from doubling their efforts to find solutions and address the problem.

Many advanced nations, especially the US, have cornered the initial batches of Covid-19 vaccine doses from available drug makers. They are far richer than the Philippines and other developing nations, and these wealthy nations can readily shell out the money to ease out competitors for the vaccine. This inequity is a global reality.

The big gap in supply and demand, however, will eventually narrow down as more people from the industrialized countries get their jabs. The supply lack will ease and the poorer nations will finally obtain their share of the vaccines. In the meantime, the Philippines should prepare a practical strategy on how to distribute the bulk of the vaccines when they arrive, and how to efficiently contain the virus when the global vaccine demand eases.

Achieving herd immunity, of course, is the primary goal. But get-

ting to that objective requires hard work and a pragmatic approach. For instance, after inoculating our health workers and the elderly who are most vulnerable to the disease, who are the next in line? Do we prioritize our workers next? Should we concentrate the bulk of the available doses in Metro Manila and the bubble provinces of Cavite, Laguna, Rizal and Bulacan?

Prioritizing the workers of Metro Manila and Calabarzon, which combined account for about 60 percent of the gross domestic product, is logical.

But let us defer the decision or plan of action to our health authorities and economic managers. The data and science, hopefully, will guide them on which option will be most effective in stemming the rising tide of infections.

Indonesia, the hardest-hit in Southeast Asia with over 1.5 million cases last week, has allowed private companies to acquire vaccines under

‘Fortune favors the bold’

Founder Publisher Editor in Chief Associate Editor News Editor

T. Anthony C. Cabangon

Lorenzo M. Lomibao Jr., Gerard S. Ramos Lyn B. Resurreccion, Dennis D. Estopace Angel R. Calso

Online Editor

Ruben M. Cruz Jr.

Chairman of the Board Ombudsman President Advertising Sales Manager Group Circulation Manager

W

ith justifiable fear running strongly it is a tragedy that the public has a difficult time getting unbiased analysis regarding the pandemic. Journalism has deteriorated to the point that it is often unrecognizable from propaganda and disinformation.

Eduardo A. Davad Nonilon G. Reyes D. Edgard A. Cabangon Judge Pedro T. Santiago (Ret.) Benjamin V. Ramos Aldwin Maralit Tolosa Rolando M. Manangan

BusinessMirror is published daily by the Philippine Business Daily Mirror Publishing, Inc., with offices on the 3rd floor of Dominga Building III 2113 Chino Roces Avenue corner De La Rosa Street, Makati City, Philippines.

Tel. Nos. (Editorial) 817-9467; 813-0725. Fax line: 813-7025.

(Advertising Sales) 893-2019; 817-1351, 817-2807.

(Circulation) 893-1662; 814-0134 to 36. E-mail: news@businessmirror.com.ph.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Printed by brown madonna Press, Inc.–Sun Valley Drive KM-15, South Superhighway, Parañaque, Metro Manila MEMBER OF

OUTSIDE THE BOX

Jennifer A. Ng Vittorio V. Vitug

Senior Editors

Creative Director Chief Photographer

John Mangun

Lourdes M. Fernandez

Investigative journalism used to start with “Let’s see where this leads us.” Currently, most “investigative journalists” start at the end and works backwards to “prove” a conclusion. The only ones that are entitled to do the latter are people like me that write “Opinion.”

But even then, we “nonjournalists” would prefer not to win the “Fastest Thrown Under the Bus by a Newspaper Award” for writing nonsense conclusions based on bad biased research regardless of the topic.

There is not a single issue regarding the Covid pandemic that is simple.

But then again, this is the world that we live in. “The Oregon Depart-

ment of Education [ODE] is now ‘trying to undo racism in mathematics’ by providing training for ‘ethnomathematics’ because white supremacy manifests itself in the focus on finding the right answer and goes so far as to contend there shouldn’t be wrong or right answers.”

Let’s hope that someone tasked to teach “ethnomathematics” is not responsible for doing the calculations for things like building bridges and skyscrapers.

David Wallace-Wells is an American journalist and deputy editor for New York magazine. Mr. WallaceWells just cranked out—and I say this with admiration, even awe—

an inoculation program to achieve faster herd immunity and reopen the economy quicker. But the scheme created a controversy and clashed with the health policy of the World Health Organization.

The world health body noted that the program ran counter to its call for equal access to vaccines globally due to a shortage in supply. Vulnerable groups, especially the poor and unemployed, could be at a disadvantage against workers who can afford the vaccines.

Indonesia’s program is not necessarily the template for our private sector program. But our health authorities should look at the merits of inoculating the majority of our workers soon to save the Philippine economy. These workers are one of the most exposed sectors to a possible virus infection. Trade Union Congress of the Philippines President Raymond Mendoza correctly recognized that it is the workers who go to the streets, take public transportation, and troop to their respective factories, offices, malls and plantations. They can easily get infected and become super spreaders.

Besides, our private sector-led initiative is more inclusive than that of Indonesia. The Dose of Hope initiative, as a case in point, is purchasing 17 million doses of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine through tripartite agreements with the private sector and local governments. Half of the

9,000 words titled “How the West Lost Covid.” This is a prime example of “Let’s see where this leads us.”

Wallace-Wells quotes from many genuine experts in medical fields with expertise on the pandemic and keeps his own conclusions to a minimum. And that is what makes this article a must-read.

Francois Balloux, an infectiousdisease epidemiologist and computational geneticist at the University College of London: “It’s not obvious that different measures taken in different places have clearly led to different outcomes. The country that had the strictest lockdown for longest in the world is Peru, and they were absolutely devastated. I think the slightly depressing message is that there is not just a set of policies that will bring success and can just be applied to any place in the world.”

Balloux: “If you read the national press from any country, be it Germany or Switzerland or France, whatever [like the Philippines?], there’s a strong feeling in most places that, actually, the situation is the worst locally.”

National leaders and health ministers have been vilified. That is to be expected since critics have

doses being bought by businesses will go to their employees while the other half would be donated to the government.

My Villar Group, through AllHome Corp., earlier signed a deal with AstraZeneca to buy Covid-19 vaccines for its employees and for donation to the public. The Villar Group has also signed an agreement with Moderna for an even bigger order.

The assistance will also be given to the families of the employees.

The private sector has remain committed and is willing to do its share in purchasing and distributing available vaccines to workers and the rest of the population. It has just obtained the green light from President Duterte last week to import “at will,” and I believe it is just a matter of time before we can iron out a few kinks in this private sector initiative.

Distributing the vaccine the most efficient way is critical in quickly reopening the economy. We should be reminded that previous lockdowns that lasted for months have cost millions of jobs and left many households hungry. A prolonged lockdown would take away the jobs of many Filipinos and lead them dying from hunger and illnesses rather than from Covid-19.

We can’t let that happen again.

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

something to complain about even if they offer limited if any solutions.

However, the answer may have been given early last year but few were listening.

March 13, 2020, Mike Ryan, WHO’s executive director of health emergencies: “What we’ve learned through the Ebola outbreaks is you need to react quickly. You need to go after the virus. Be fast. Have no regrets. You must be the first mover.

The virus will always get you if you don’t move quickly.”

“If you need to be right before you move, you will never win. Perfection is the enemy of the good when it comes to emergency management.

Speed trumps perfection. And the problem in society we have at the moment is everyone is afraid of making a mistake, everyone is afraid of the consequence of error. But the greatest error is not to move. The greatest error is to be paralyzed by the fear of failure.”

In an environment that is always dominated by politics, fear of failure always dominates.

E-mail me at mangun@gmail.com. Follow me on Twitter @mangunonmarkets. PSE stock-market information and technical analysis provided by AAA Southeast Equities Inc.

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Tuesday, April 6, 2021 A9

Protecting corporate reputation Rob Bonta: Attorney General of California

By Reynaldo A. De Dios

W

hen uncertainty is associated with a firm’s good reputation being sullied with the result that it suffers loss of revenues, increased expenses or both because of some event that damages its reputation such as accounting fraud or product recall, it is perceived as reputation risk.

For example, is the management of reputation risk still perceived as critical? If so, at what level should it be managed—corporate, departmental or other.

Reputation risk can also arise from product tampering, bad press, or bad behavior of key employees.

In these cases, there is no insurance coverage against reputation risk and the role of top management would be to identify the causes and to immediately take the necessary control measures.

In response, a new business concept was developed—Reputation Management—because reputation is the most strategic of assets.

The value of corporate reputation cannot be measured in monetary terms but it incorporates corporate image, goodwill and brand equity. A survey by Lloyd’s of London revealed that e-commerce crimes and loss of reputation or brand are two of the most significant risks corporations face today.

In the present age, corporations are now operating in a business climate influenced by major societal themes, including increased scrutiny by investigative reporters including accountability to political and special interest groups.

As a matter of fact, a number of global firms has experienced reputation damaging situations that were man-made and could have been preventable had the reputation risks that caused them been identified early enough.

Prevention is the least costly and most efficient means to protect a treasured reputation. Preventing defects that can tarnish or destroy a reputation saves an extraordinary amount

of anguish, time, effort and money.

It starts with the published policies and procedures that all organization employees are expected to follow and implement. These should be a reflection of the reputation that the firm wants to achieve. If a company wants to be known as a safe and friendly place to work, its policies should assure the employees they will not suffer from discrimination, harassment or safety issues. If a firm wants to be a good community neighbor, its programs should allow employees to contribute and participate in community programs and services as well as promote a clean local environment.

With these policies in place, a firm lays the groundwork for the implementation that all the departments must report all defects, large or small, immediately to senior management.

It has been proven that trivial incidents can mushroom into devastating scandals if the so-called “trivial” events were not reported soon enough to senior management for analysis and proper action.

It is therefore necessary to integrate an enterprise wide reporting system. In addition, it is important that crisis management, disaster planning and emergency are already in place. A strong reputation results in a strong competitive edge and the firm will enjoy increased productivity and employee morale, plus the loyalty of customers and a higher level of respect from the press as well as politicians. In the Philippines, San Miguel Corp. and Ayala Corp. are examples of firms with good reputation.

The author is a risk management consultant and Editor of Insurance Philippines magazine.

Manny F. Dooc

TELLTALES

A

Filipino-American, Robert “Rob” Andres Bonta, has been nominated as Attorney General of California, the most populous state in the US, by Governor Gavin Newsom. Until 2017, the same office was occupied by US Vice President Kamala Harris prior to her election as the first colored American Senator from her state. As we now know, Kamala Harris was elected Vice President of the US in a turbulent election last year. Bonta will fill the remaining term of Xavier Becerra who was appointed by President Joe Biden as the new US Health and Human Services Secretary.

Bonta was born a day after martial law was declared in the Philippines on September 22, 1972. He was barely two months old when the family left Quezon City to settle in California Central Valley where his parents worked for the United Farm Workers of America. They resisted the authoritarian regime of Marcos in the Philippines and found home organizing the California farmworkers who were mostly Filipinos and Mexicans. His early exposures to injustices and social wrongs committed against the poor ingrained in him the intense desire to right them. Bonta spoke with passion and commitment when he said: “Those lessons stuck with me, and it became clear to me that an injustice against one is an injustice against all. It made me want to become an attorney to fight for people who’ve been wronged, who’ve been hurt, who’ve been harmed, who’ve been mistreated, and be their champion.”

Bonta personally believed that the law provided the best path to make a positive difference in the lives of many people. Big words but he has matched it with actions.

An honest review of vaccine registration Lyca Balita

Onwards

I

t took my brother less than two minutes to finish his online registration for his Covid-19 vaccination in the city of Manila. He did this all on the built-in Internet app on his phone, no extra app needed. The following day, he got his vaccine. He can easily access his vaccination passport, which contained all the information he needed, such as the date of his first shot and the schedule for his next.

Out of curiosity, I compared the process with that of Quezon City. To clarify, I focused only on their online registration processes, excluding the onsite vaccination queues, documents to be presented onsite, politics, and other factors.

Quezon City has two options for online registration: assisted booking which first requires a QCitizen ID, or self-booking through EZConsult.

Long story short, assisted booking took way over 15 minutes just to finish the first step of applying for a QCitizen ID, assuming all requirements are complete. This is followed by the waiting time for approval, then compliance with corrections in case of rejection, then more waiting for approval, then finally the next step: registration for the vaccine.

Especially when compared to the online registration in Manila, the QC site was not exactly mobile-friendly.

As for the self-booking option, filling up the application took up less time, but the approval has taken over 24 hours and counting. I checked Quezon City’s official page to see if other residents shared the same experience, and the comments section of their posts reveal the residents’ collective confusion and frustration over the application process.

Meanwhile, the entire registration process for the city of Manila really took less than two minutes, no approval needed. The online process required only personal information, a selfie, and a one-time pin, and the web site already gave a QR code to be presented onsite along with the

required documents. No ID was required, which was inclusive since not everyone has an ID, and not everyone can get one at this time anyway.

Contrasting the ease of vaccine registration in these two cities was interesting considering that first, Manila and Quezon City have the highest active cases in NCR Plus with over 10,000 each as of this writing; and second, these two are both major cities with huge budgets. Only time will tell the effects of the ease of vaccine registration process, but for now, it’s probably logical to theorize that more residents from cities with easier vaccine registration will get their vaccines soon.

So kudos to whoever was in charge of Manila’s online registration system. That’s how the registration should be—simple, accessible, quick, and user-friendly. No extra apps, no approval time, and no excessive information demanded.

Registration for vaccination should be aimed at encouraging more people to get the shot anyway—it shouldn’t be for suspicious data gathering by local governments or preventing non-residents from getting a shot. Everyone gains if more people get the vaccine, so the process should be easy. Some people are already hesitant about getting vaccinated, so adding to that by making the registration complicated is just making things worse.

The government has been banking on the vaccine as though it would miraculously end the pandemic, so now that some batches are here, why

aren’t they making the vaccination process much easier? Why haven’t they figured out the most efficient vaccination process, when they’ve had a year to prepare? Why is the online registration process per LGU in the first place, making some residents luckier than those from cities with more difficult systems?

Much of the conversation right now is focused on how many new cases there are per day, which brands are currently available, and which groups should be prioritized for vaccination.

While these conversations are important, we should also consider the practical aspects of the vaccination program, like the online registration systems, or even the queueing environment, leniency with onsite requirements, and asking why some people don’t want a vaccine in the first place. With the way things are, it’s difficult to immediately change the disheartening number of cases per day, the available brands of vaccines, and which people should be included in the priority groups. But for now, it’s easier to demand change when it comes to the more tangible systems like the ease of online registration to get a vaccine. Maybe we can start there — if not for ourselves, at least for those who struggle with technology and complex forms to fill up. Again, vaccination programs should be aimed at making the vaccine accessible to the most number of people possible.

We have the right to demand these changes. Government officials are not our bosses; they are here to serve and represent us, and to listen to our voices. The vaccine is the only option we have right now, since other solutions such as truly effective contact-tracing, mass testing, and real lockdowns with subsidies seem to be unavailable, if not ignored. So while we’re early in the vaccination program, we can demand for accessibility to ensure that when the rest of the batches arrive, more people can get the shot easily, and it might even change the minds of those hesitant to get their shot.

For feedback, send an e-mail to lyca.balita@ gmail.com

Bonta has caught initial public attention by getting elected as the first Fil-Am in the State Legislature of California where he has served the state’s 18th Assembly District covering the East Bay area of Oakland, Alameda and San Leandro. He has authored several laws seeking to improve the criminal justice system such as a legislation that will phase out the use of private or for-profit prisons and detention facilities. Recently, he has filed a bill denominating racially motivated 911 calls as hate crimes. He has also proposed a legislation to provide funds to community-based organizations that render mental health services for victims of hate crimes and restorative justice. It also recommends eligibility for compensation to victims of hate violence even if they do not submit a police report. Bonta currently serves as the Assistant Majority Leader in the California State Legislature.

Bonta finished his Bachelor’s Degree in History at Yale University and pursued a law degree at the same school, pitting talents and locking horns with the best and the brightest

legal minds both from the faculty and the student ranks. Soon after leaving Yale, he served as a law clerk for one of the more progressive and respected judges in the country, Judge Alvin W. Thompson of the US District Court for the District of Connecticut. Then he worked in a reputable law firm in the San Francisco Bay Area where he further honed his legal practice.

Later, he joined the public service as Deputy City Attorney of the City of San Francisco where he stayed for 10 years until he got elected to the state legislature in 2012.

Bonta is our pride and joy. Together with other prominent Fil-Ams who have brought honor to our country, we trust that Bonta will continue to distinguish themselves in public service. After his nomination was announced, Bonta declared that one of his top agenda “is to make sure that we protect those who are facing the forces of hate and that we hold accountable those who perpetrate hate violence against others in our community.” In an interview made by the Managing Editor of the Asian Journal, Bonta recalled the early years when many business establishments in California posted signs at their doors which read: “No Filipinos allowed.” But now, Bonta avers that: “In today’s California everyone is not just allowed, we belong.” And it is heartwarming to hear him say, “I will do everything in my power to make sure everyone continues to belong and that I fight for them.” Bonta vowed that the “government should work for the people—not the powerful—and as Attorney General, I will make it my mission to hold the powerful accountable when they cheat Californians and abuse the public trust.” This must be music to the ears of every Filipino who has adopted the US as their own country particularly in the light of the ongoing hate crimes being waged against the Asian Amer-

icans. The post of Attorney General of a major American state in the US like New York, California and Texas is a stepping stone to get elected or appointed to a higher office. The incumbent governor or Texas, Greg Abbott, and his predecessor, Texas Senator John Cornyn, both served as attorney general of the state. Current New York Governor, Andrew Cuomo, and the disgraced former NY Governor Eliot Spitzer, made their name as a crusading attorney General of New York. We are now all familiar with the career path of Vice President Kamala Harris whose political star rose when she was elected the Attorney General of California. Former Governor Jerry Brown had earlier used the office as a springboard to catapult him to the governorship. The state attorney general is the chief lawyer and head of the state’s department of justice. He wields great power which can promote one’s political stock and destroy political enemies. California has the largest legal department in the US, second only to the US Federal Department of Justice. Bonta, if confirmed, will lead more than 1,100 lawyers and 3,700 non-attorneys in his department. Reared by parents who were both civil rights advocates who had worked and rubbed elbows with Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta, two acknowledged champions of farmworkers in the US, Bonta has the DNA to protect the legal rights of every American, particularly the oppressed. Getting the best education and exceptional work experience which his keen intellect deserved, Bonta is equipped with adequate tools to overcome his challenging tasks. Since his father is an American citizen, Bonta is considered an American citizen at birth although he was born in Quezon City.

He will have limitless opportunities to achieve his American dream. Let’s all pray to that.

Rationalizing tax incentives under CREATE Atty. Rodel C. Unciano

Tax Law for Business

O

ther than the reduction in corporate income tax, the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act has likewise reformed the bundle of tax incentives available to corporate taxpayers. For this purpose, CREATE law expanded the function of the Fiscal Incentives Review Board to include policy making and oversight functions on the administration and grant of tax incentives, among others. It is vested with the authority to grant appropriate tax incentives to qualified registered business enterprises, although Investment Promotion Agencies, under a delegated authority from the FIRB, may still grant available incentives under CREATE. Subject to certain conditions, types of incentives that may be granted to registered projects or activities include 1) Income Tax Holiday (ITH), 2) Special Corporate Income Tax (SCIT), 3) Enhanced Deductions (ED), 4) Duty exemption on importation of capital equipment, raw materials, spare parts, or accessories, and 5) Value Added Tax exemption on importation and VAT zero-rating on local purchases.

Income tax holiday

The period of availment of ITH shall be for a non-extendible period of four to seven years, depending on location and industry priorities. Registered enterprises that fully relocate outside the National Capital Region (NCR) will be entitled to an additional three years of ITH while registered enterprises that locate in areas recovering from disasters or conflict will be entitled to an additional two years of ITH. This is apparently consistent with the government’s objective of decongesting the National Capital Region and expanding growth and development in the countryside.

Registered business enterprises whose projects or activities were granted only ITH prior to the effectivity of the CREATE shall be allowed to continue with the availment of the ITH for the remaining period of the ITH as specified in the terms and conditions of their registration.

Special corporate income tax

The SCIT is a tax equivalent to 5 percent of gross income earned and is in lieu of all national and local taxes. This may be granted for export enterprises for a period of 10 years. This is akin to the 5 percent gross income tax under the old regime but the 5 percent SCIT is not available to domestic market enterprises by virtue of the President’s veto. Registered busines enterprises, whose projects or activities were granted ITH prior to the effectivity of CREATE and that are entitled to the 5 percent tax on gross income earned incentive after the ITH, shall be allowed to avail of the 5 percent tax on gross income for a period of 10 years. On the other hand, registered business enterprises currently availing of the 5 percent tax on gross income earned granted prior to the effectivity of the CREATE shall be allowed to continue availing the incentive at the rate of 5 percent for 10 years.

Enhanced deductions

CREATE encourages job creation, research and development, training, and the use of local materials. Thus, the law grants several performance-based enhanced deductions for a maximum period of 10 years, as follows: a) Depreciation allowance for assets acquired for the production of goods and services (qualified capital expenditure) of additional 10 percent for buildings and additional 20 percent for machineries and equipment.

b) Fifty percent additional deduction on labor expense incurred in the taxable year. This shall not include salaries, wages, benefits and other personnel costs incurred for managerial, administrative, indirect labor and support services. c) One hundred percent additional deduction on research and development incurred in the taxable year. d) One hundred percent additional deduction on training expense. e) Fifty percent additional deduction on domestic input expense. f) Fifty percent additional deduction on power expense. g) Deduction for reinvestment allowance for manufacturing industry. h) Enhanced Net Operating Loss Carry Over. Loss incurred by a registered project or activity during the first three years from the start of commercial operation may be carried over as deduction from gross income within the next five years following the loss.

The enhanced deductions shall not be granted simultaneously with the SCIT.

Duty exemption

The duty exemption shall only apply to the importation of capital equipment, raw materials, spare parts, or accessories directly and exclusively used in the registered project or activity by the registered business enterprises. These must be directly and reasonably needed and will form part of the direct cost of the registered project or activity by the registered business enterprises. Also, these must not be produced or manufactured domestically in sufficient quantity or of comparable quality and at reasonable prices.

VAT exemption

The VAT exemption on importation and VAT zero-rating on local purchases shall only apply to goods and services directly and exclusively used in the registered project or activity by a registered business enterprise.

The reformed tax incentives under CREATE are expected to result in employment generation, countrywide development and a more inclusive economic growth. Let’s support CREATE for it to fully serve well its purpose in uplifting the lives of every Filipino and in improving the country’s economy in general.

A10 Tuesday, April 6, 2021

GESMUNDO SWORN IN AS CHIEF JUSTICE

T

Gesmundo photo courtesy of SC -PIO

A

SSOCIATE Justice Alexander G. Gesmundo on Monday took his oath as the country’s 27th Chief Justice following his appointment by President Duterte, replacing retired Chief Justice Diosdado Peralta.

Chief Justice Gesmundo will serve as chief magistrate for five years or until his mandatory retirement on November 6, 2026, when he turns 70.

The Supreme Court said it received the transmittal letter from the Office of the President on the appointment of Chief Justice Gesmundo only on Monday.

He immediately took his oath before Senior Associate Justice Estela M. Perlas-Bernabe at the En Banc Session Hall on Monday afternoon.

Associate Justice Marvic Leonen

was also at the Session Hall while the rest of the Associate Justices and the Chief Justice’s immediate family witnessed the oath-taking via videoconferencing.

Gesmundo has been in public service for 36 years with more than a decade and a half served in the judiciary.

After passing the Bar Exams in 1985, he joined the government as trial attorney in the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) and was recognized as the Most Outstanding Solicitor in 1998.

After 20 years with the OSG, Gesmundo was appointed Associate Justice of the Sandiganbayan on October 15, 2005. On August 14, 2017, he was appointed to the SC as its 178th magistrate. Joel R. San Juan

House eyes ‘new’ industries in DTI post-CREATE list

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

T

@joveemarie

HE House Comittee on Ways and Means is now working with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) in crafting the investment “promo brochure” or the list of priority industries under the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Act. House Committee on Ways and Means Chairman Joey Sarte Salceda of Albay, principal author and sponsor of the CREATE Act, said he will push for resiliency-building innovations in the priority list.

“Like many great historical events, Covid-19 has made many industries redundant. The key to national development is not to resurrect dead industries but to create new ones. The root word of innovation is ‘new.’ We need new life in our economy, so we need new industries,” Salceda said.

“Definitely, I am pushing for innovations in food and agricultural manufacturing, financial technology, sanitation, healthcare, and education to be part of the SIPP,” he added.

The lawmaker is now working with the DTI, particularly the Board of Investments (BOI), to craft the Strategic Investment Priorities Plan (SIPP), which is the list of sectors that will qualify for incentives under CREATE. “I am in touch with the DTI and the BOI. I’ll help the complete the list as soon as possible, hopefully within the month.”

Under CREATE, recently enacted as Republic Act No. 11534, the BOI is mandated to craft the SIPP, which determines qualification and the length of incentives an enterprise will receive.

“The SIPP will basically be the promo brochure our investment

₧1.3T in nonfinancial assets now in BTr registry system

promotion agencies use to invite investors into the country. This is urgent work. We have to create new jobs now,” Salceda said.

Meanwhile, the lawmaker said he wants to use the SIPP to prepare the country’s economy for shocks similar to Covid-19.

“This will not be the last pandemic. As we destroy more habitats and human settlement meets wildlife more, we will see more diseases. It will take time to reverse the ecological damage we tolerated. So, we have to prepare for the consequences in the meantime,” Salceda said.

“That means more investment in research and development, particularly for medicine. You see, even if we develop vaccines, diseases always mutate and evolve ahead of our research. Therapeutics will bring us back to the old normal, so we need to invest in cures. The SIPP should reflect this national priority,” he said.

In the meantime, he said the provision that the President can grant special incentives to very big investments is already in effect.

“I urge investors who are looking to invest $1 billion in the country to already talk to the applicable investment promotion agency,” Salceda said.

“I urge the BOI to complete the list as soon as possible. Completing the SIPP is like the storefront sign that says ‘we are open for business,” he added.

Under CREATE, the corporate income tax (CIT) rate is reduced to 20 percent from 30 percent for domestic corporations with net taxable income of P5 million and below and have total assets of P100 million and below, effective July 1, 2020. All other local firms and resident foreign companies are imposed a 25-percent income tax.

By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

HE Bureau of the Treasury (BTr) disclosed on Monday that as of December 2020, some P1.3 trillion worth of the government’s nonfinancial assets have been included in the National Asset Registry System (NARS).

In a statement, National Treasurer Rosalia de Leon said the NARS, which provides the government with a consolidated database of its nonfinancial, strategically important assets, has an initial 533,925 asset data count in its system.

The BTr launched the NARS in 2017 to maintain a reliable inventory of the national government’s nonfinancial assets and help in the monitoring, inspection and validation and management of assets under custody by the National Government.

“The NARS provides the government a consolidated database of its strategically important non-

financial assets, thus enabling more efficient financial risk management, enhanced service delivery, and improved risk reduction for sustainable asset management in the long term,” De Leon said.

De Leon said the assets includes 348,938 school buildings under the Department of Education (DepEd); 8,337 bridges and 33,119 kilometers (km) of roads under the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH); and 247 irrigation facilities and dams maintained by the National Irrigation Administration (NIA).

The NARS database includes 122 social welfare centers of the Department of Social Welfare

DE LEON: “The BTr is currently working on enhancing the NARS to a web-based portal and with more functionalities with the help of development partners such as the World Bank and Japan International Cooperation Agency.”

and Development (DWSD) and 1,580 towers of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT).

The list also contains 15 power plants under the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM); 268 government hospitals; and 68 rehabilitation centers under the Department of Health (DOH).

“The BTr is currently working on enhancing the NARS to a web-based portal and with more functionalities with the help of development partners such as the World Bank and Japan International Cooperation Agency [Jica],” De Leon said.

As the BTr further expands the initiative, they are looking at other strategically important assets to

include in their inventory. Helping select these assets is the DBCC Technical Working Group on Asset Management as stated by Joint Memorandum Circular (JMC) No. 2020-1 or the Philippine Government Asset Management Policy (PGAMP).

Based on the JMC, the Philippine government asset management policy is aimed at “increasing the efficiency, improving decisionmaking, managing risks better and reducing costs in government.”

De Leon said in tandem with the GSIS, the BTr aims to successfully place by mid-2021 the policy for the National Indemnity Insurance Program (NIIP), which will cover nonfinancial assets like school buildings, bridges and roads in the National Capital Region (NCR) and the country’s eastern seaboard.

She said BTr is also coordinating with the DepEd and DPWH on the revalidation of data on the schools, roads and bridges to be listed under the NIIP to determine those that were damaged with the series of natural calamities in 2020, and review the requirements and timelines for the policy to factor in asset changes and current market sentiment.

The NIIP, an initiative led by the BTr, aims to provide adequate and comprehensive insurance protection to socioeconomically important government assets against perils such as typhoons, floods, storm surges, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions.

Motorcycle riders are checked by members of the Manila police at a checkpoint area at the boundary of Manila and Quezon City as lockdowns continue on the second week of an Enhanced Community Quarantine in Metro Manila and four nearby provinces. ROY DOMINGO

Fuel marking yields ₧210B in tax, duties T OTAL duties and taxes collected by the government through its fuel-marking program have exceeded P200 billion as of last week.

The government already marked 21.59 billion liters of fuel since the program started in September 2019 until March 25 this year, according to an infographic shared by Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III with reporters.

Of the P210.626-billion total duties and taxes, the bulk or P182.92 billion was collected by the Bureau of Customs and the remaining

P27.7 billion, by the Bureau of Internal Revenue.

By fuel type, diesel comprised 60.67 percent of fuel marked, followed by gasoline (38.79 percent) and kerosene (0.54 percent).

Most of the fuel marked was in Luzon (73.84 percent), then Mindanao (20.97 percent) and Visayas (5.19 percent).

Topping the list of 23 companies that participated in the fuelmarking program is Petron with a 22.32-percent share or 4.82 billion liters of fuel marked.

Next to Petron is Shell with 19.91

percent or 4.3 billion liters, followed by Unioil with 10.42 percent or 2.25 billion liters, Seaoil with 8.39 percent or 1.81 billion liters and Phoenix with 7.57 percent or 1.63 billion liters.

Fuel marking makes use of a unique chemical marker that can be embedded at a molecular level in petroleum products—gasoline, diesel and kerosene—thereby enabling authorities to test, identify and distinguish petroleum products with paid excise taxes.

Under Republic Act 10963 or the Tax Reform for Accelera-

tion and Inclusion Act (TR AIN), petroleum products that are refined, manufactured or imported to the Philippines such as, but not limited to, unleaded premium gasoline, kerosene, and diesel, shall be marked by an official marking agent after payment of taxes and duties.

The fuel-marking program was launched with the aim of halting illegal importation, manufacturing and other fraudulent activities relating to the use and sale of petroleum products in the country. Cai U. Ordinario

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Companies BusinessMirror

Tuesday, April 6, 2021

B1

ERC junks PSALM appeal to collect universal charge

By Lenie Lectura

T

@llectura

he Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has denied a motion for reconsideration sought by the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) to recover a total of P10.843 billion from consumers to pay for the debts incurred by the National Power Corp. (NPC).

The ERC, in an order promulgated last March 29, stood by its May 2020 decision, as “it finds no merit in the motion.”

“The Commission finds no cogent reason to disturb its order dated May 28, 2020. Wherefore, the foregoing premises considered, the Motion for Reconsideration dated September 4, 2020 filed by PSALM

on September 7, 2020 is hereby denied for lack of merit,” the agency ruled.

The ERC denied PSALM’s petitions for 2018 Universal ChargeStranded Contract Costs [UC-SCC] amounting to P6.12 billion or equivalent to 6.2 centavos per kilowatthour [kWh] and for the 2018 Universal Charge-Stranded Debts [UC-

SD] amounting to P4.722 billion or equivalent to 63 centavos per kWh. SCCs are the excess of the contracted cost of electricity under eligible independent power producer contracts over the actual selling price of the contracted energy output.

SDs are unpaid financial obligations of the NPC that have not been liquidated by the proceeds from the sales and privatization of its assets.

The ERC is no longer allowed to order the collection of new SCC and SD from the time the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of the Murang Kuryente Act (MKA) took effect in May last year.

“Considering that the IRR of the MKA took effect on May 5, 2020, it is axiomatic that the Commission is no longer allowed to order the collection of new UC for SCC and SD, from the time onwards,” the commission said.

Under the MKA, a budget of up to P208 billion-representing the government’s share from the Malam-

paya Gas-to-Power Project-has been set aside pay for these charges.

PSALM raised its concern that the Malampaya fund may turn out to be insufficient to cover the SCC and SD and anticipated shortfall in the course of payment of all of PSALM’s liabilities. However, the ERC said these are “mere conjectures and speculations.”

“Considering the explicit provisions of Section 4 of the MKA that the Malampaya Fund shall be utilized for the payment of the remaining SCC and SD, and that any anticipated shortfall shall be included in the Government Appropriations Act; as well as the expressed directive under Section 7 of the same law that no new collection for a UC for SCC and SD shall be allowed, the Commission can no longer approve any application for the collection of SCCs and SDs, whether the application is pending or new. Thus, archiving the petition as prayed by PSALM is superfluous as it no longer serves a purpose,” the ERC ruled.

Listed firms raised ₧41.63B in Q1

By VG Cabuag @villygc

C

apital raised at the Philippine Stock Exchange Inc. (PSE) for both primary and secondary offer shares in the first quarter more than doubled to P41.63 billion, from last year’s P19.24 billion.

Capital-raising activities for the first three months of the year include one initial public offering (IPO), one follow-on offering, two stock rights offerings and two private placements.

“The approval of our amended listing rules should help acceler-

AirAsia to fly only essential passengers during ECQ

A

irAsia on Monday said that only essential travel will be allowed until April 11, as mandated by the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) Resolution 106-A, in light of the extension of enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in the National Capital Region (NCR) Plus.

The airline also informed its guests from NCR Plus, Cebu and Davao City on the temporary suspension of inbound travel to Region 6 (Kalibo, Bacolod and Iloilo) until April 10.

Domestic flights to and from Manila will continue to operate subject to compliance with local government unit (LGU) restrictions on frequencies and capacity. Essential travelers and Authorized Persons Outside Residence (APOR) include the following: Health/emergency frontline personnel, government officials and frontline personnel, duly authorized humanitarian assistance actors, persons traveling for medical/humanitarian reasons, persons going to the airport for travel abroad, persons crossing zones for work or business permitted in the zone of destination, and going back home, returning or repatriated OFWs and other overseas Filipinos returning to their places of residence.

With travel plans being fluid during the current pandemic, AirAsia said it offers enhanced flexibility options for guests to manage their flights. “AirAsia is offering provisions for guests who wish to make changes to their flights in line with the new developments following the Philippine government’s latest directive.” Guests coming from and going to Manila with existing flight bookings with a departure date from March 22 to April 11 can move their flight from April 12 until June 30 and will be able to select from a range of extended flexibility options for future travel. Recto L. Mercene

ate IPO listings at the exchange, especially in the SME Board with the relaxed requirements and the adoption of a sponsor model for listing,” PSE president and CEO Ramon S. Monzon said.

“When approved, our proposed rules on preferred shares only listing and proposed revisions to the backdoor listing rules should also encourage more listings at the PSE.” Average daily value turnover was up by 64 percent year-on-year to P10.99 billion from P6.68 billion last year. Foreign investors continued to exit the local market as net foreign selling for the

quarter reached P47.91 billion, a 55 percent increase from P30.89 billion last year.

“Despite the increase in net foreign selling our market experienced record turnover for the first quarter as local investors increased their share in the trading volume to 74.3 percent from last year’s 54.6 percent,” Monzon said.

“Another noteworthy development was the increase in the participation of retail investors.

Preliminary information shows that retail investors may have accounted for over 45 percent of turnover for the quarter from 26.9 percent in 2020.”

The benchmark PSE index ended the first quarter at 6,443.09 points, a 10-percent decline yearto-date. The All Shares index also finished lower in the first three months, down by 8 percent yearto-date.

“Uncertainty about the pace of the country’s vaccination program which in turn affects the prospects of the country’s economic recovery has discouraged foreign investors from investing in the Philippine market. But we expect that once a good percentage of the population has been vaccinated, these investors will soon regain confidence in our economy,” Monzon said.

Globe upgrades network in 2 provinces

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

G

lobe Telecom Inc. said on Monday it has upgraded its network capacity in “key locations” in the provinces of Aurora and Sorsogon to “bring better and more enjoyable mobile experience to its customers.”

Joel Agustin, Globe SVP for Program Delivery, Network Technical Group, said the company has upgraded its network capacity to 4G in Dipaculao, Maria Aurora and San Luis in Aurora; and in Donsol, Castilla, Gubat, Matnog, Pilar and Sorsogon City in Sorsogon Province over the last three months.

The initiative involves the upgrade of 13 sites in four towns of Aurora, and 15 sites in five towns of Sorsogon.

“For the customers to experience the advantages and benefits of having clearer voice calls, low probability of dropped calls and to send and receive text messages on time, we are asking them to upgrade their old 3G sim cards now to 5G-ready 4G LTE sims. To upgrade to 4G LTE capable mobile devices, they can avail of existing Globe promos that will give them the best value for their money,” Agustin said.

Globe is offering customers a free upgrade of their sim cards through various stores and markets in the 2 provinces.

He noted that Globe’s sustained

Manila Water tariff freeze until 2022 under new deal

BusinessMirror file photo

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

M

anila Water Company Inc. has agreed to impose a moratorium on increasing its rates until 2023 under a new concession agreement it forged with the government.

The Department of Justice (DOJ), which drafted the new accord, said Manila Water agreed to hold off rate hikes until December 31, 2022.

“So their next possible adjustment for water rates will happen only in 2023,” Justice Secretary Menardo I. Guevarra said in an online press briefing on Monday.

Under the new accord, Manila Water is prohibited from passing on corporate income taxes to consumers. Tariff adjustment for inflation has been reduced to two-thirds of the impact of the consumer price index, from 100 percent in the previous contract.

Manila Water and the government also agreed to scrap the Foreign Currency Differential Adjustment, the national government’s performance undertaking for the future debt of the company, and the non-interference clause.

“The national government may enter the picture, may put its foot down and intervene [on matters related to Manila Water] if necessary without fear of getting penalized or getting sued for such intervention,” Guevarra said.

Additional regulations

BusinessMirror file photo

network builds and upgrades have so far resulted in better customer experience, citing the fourth quarter of 2020 report by Ookla, which showed that its average download speed improved by 22 percent to 16.44 Mbps from 13.50 Mbps the year prior.

Globe is spending P70 billion in capital expenditures (capex) this year, higher than the P60.3-billion capex spent in 2020 to further modernize its mobile and fixed line networks.

Globe booked a net income of P18.62 billion in 2020, a 16-percent drop from P22.28 billion the

year prior, as its revenues dipped by 2 percent to P146.38 billion from P149.01 billion while having flattish operating expenses at P72.87 billion.

Its core net income likewise plunged by 13 percent to P19.52 billion from P22.45 billion during the same comparative periods.

On a normalized basis, which removes the effects of seasonality, one-time influences, and unusual revenue and expenses, Globe booked a net income of P20.44 billion, still an 8-percent decline from the P22.28 billion it booked the year prior.

The new agreement recognized Manila Water as a public utility which will allow the government to make the company more accountable through additional regulations.

These include requiring all debt and expenditure of Manila Water to be reviewed and approved by the appropriate regulatory office; all fully recovered assets from the company to be immediately transferred to the government to prevent double payment at the end of contract; and limiting Material Government Adverse Action (MAGA) for things only within the control of the National Government.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said

the government’s new concession agreement with Manila Water was modeled after the New Clark City Joint Venture Agreement of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA).

Guevarra said the government and Maynilad Water Services Inc. will soon start discussions on a new concession agreement.

President Duterte sought the review of the government’s concession agreement with the companies after a Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in Singapore awarded Manila Water and Maynilad P7.4 billion and P3.4 billion, respectively, for unenforced water rate hikes.

Duterte refused to comply with the ruling and instead threatened to file economic sabotage cases against the two companies, prompting them to renegotiate their concession agreement with the government.

Guevarra said Manila Water has effectively waived the PCA award under the new concession deal.

B2

Companies BusinessMirror

Tuesday, April 6, 2021

PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

April 5, 2021

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

ASIA UNITED BDO UNIBANK BANK PH ISLANDS CHINABANK CITYSTATE BANK EAST WEST BANK METROBANK PB BANK PHIL NATL BANK PSBANK RCBC SECURITY BANK UNION BANK BRIGHT KINDLE COL FINANCIAL MEDCO HLDG NTL REINSURANCE PHIL STOCK EXCH

41.7 101.5 82 23 7.56 9.57 44.7 10.52 22.75 54.1 17.5 120.2 69.4 1.55 3.98 0.38 0.73 142

43.45 101.6 83 23.1 8.31 9.62 44.75 10.94 22.8 56 17.7 120.8 70 1.59 3.99 0.4 0.76 143.8

43 101.6 81.95 23.3 7.49 9.6 44.5 10.98 22.65 56 17.4 121 69.6 1.58 3.95 0.42 0.72 142

43 103 83 23.3 8.34 9.81 45.1 10.98 23.05 56 17.5 122 70 1.62 3.99 0.42 0.76 143.8

41.65 101 81.7 23 7.49 9.56 44.5 10.98 22.65 54.1 17.3 120.1 69.3 1.51 3.95 0.375 0.72 140

41.65 101.5 83 23 8.31 9.57 44.75 10.98 22.8 54.1 17.5 120.8 69.4 1.55 3.99 0.4 0.73 142

3,000 3,806,970 537,650 35,200 400 79,600 2,051,500 1,200 1,923,000 420 6,900 191,730 41,180 392,000 236,000 240,000 81,000 2,450

128,335 387,087,936 44,364,114.50 810,720 3,163 764,238 91,890,005 13,176 43,898,780 23,330 120,520 23,163,059 2,863,556.50 606,860 939,730 92,450 59,170 346,216

-106,591,262 -12,153,812.50 -361,790 -60,779 -32,802,610 -2,050,550 -373,862 -1,488,212.50 -1,600 -23,400 58,800

INDUSTRIAL AC ENERGY 7.31 7.32 6.96 7.4 6.96 7.31 43,153,100 311,999,036 ALSONS CONS 1.24 1.26 1.24 1.26 1.24 1.24 138,000 171,200 ABOITIZ POWER 23.65 23.9 23.75 23.95 23.5 23.65 1,230,200 29,158,305 BASIC ENERGY 0.91 0.92 0.88 0.92 0.87 0.92 70,893,000 64,134,040 30 30.1 30.2 30.7 29.85 30.1 588,600 17,739,460 FIRST GEN 69.8 70 69.8 70.05 69.7 69.8 28,380 1,984,274 FIRST PHIL HLDG 274.6 275 272.4 276.8 270.8 274.6 101,240 27,695,538 MERALCO 16.1 16.12 15.8 16.22 15.62 16.1 5,228,400 83,547,492 MANILA WATER PETRON 3.05 3.06 3.06 3.06 3.04 3.06 1,495,000 4,557,670 PETROENERGY 3.8 3.89 3.8 3.8 3.8 3.8 14,000 53,200 PHX PETROLEUM 11.16 11.5 11.48 11.5 11.1 11.5 251,200 2,882,468 PILIPINAS SHELL 20.45 20.5 20.45 20.8 20.3 20.5 782,100 16,038,915 10.42 10.44 10.44 10.44 10.34 10.44 117,200 1,220,442 SPC POWER 13.76 14.4 13.78 14.5 13.78 14.5 800 11,096 VIVANT AGRINURTURE 7 7.04 7.07 7.07 6.91 7.05 1,026,800 7,247,803 AXELUM 3.45 3.48 3.48 3.5 3.44 3.48 847,000 2,937,500 CNTRL AZUCARERA 13.2 13.5 13.7 13.7 13.5 13.5 5,300 71,760 CENTURY FOOD 18.62 19 18.5 19 18.48 19 2,678,900 49,834,118 DEL MONTE 9.08 9.12 9.16 9.16 9.08 9.08 54,100 493,567 DNL INDUS 7.17 7.25 7.05 7.32 7.05 7.25 1,628,800 11,776,344 10.2 10.26 10.2 10.26 10.1 10.26 170,000 1,737,200 EMPERADOR 59.3 59.85 60 60 59.05 59.3 15,940 946,719 SMC FOODANDBEV 0.62 0.64 0.61 0.64 0.61 0.63 27,000 16,880 ALLIANCE SELECT FRUITAS HLDG 1.41 1.42 1.42 1.43 1.4 1.42 1,283,000 1,812,650 GINEBRA 50.9 51 50.95 51.15 50.85 51 94,250 4,807,324 JOLLIBEE 181.2 181.6 176.9 181.8 175.5 181.6 495,750 89,361,466 LIBERTY FLOUR 31.95 32.6 32.2 32.8 32 32 1,100 35,660 7.28 7.83 7.83 7.83 7.23 7.83 500 3,797 MACAY HLDG MAXS GROUP 5.79 5.89 5.73 5.9 5.73 5.78 44,600 259,479 0.36 0.365 0.355 0.37 0.34 0.36 45,520,000 16,211,250 MG HLDG 7 7.07 6.98 7.1 6.98 7.07 65,600 462,378 SHAKEYS PIZZA ROXAS AND CO 1.02 1.03 1.01 1.04 1.01 1.02 1,777,000 1,819,020 RFM CORP 4.59 4.74 4.74 4.74 4.74 4.74 1,000 4,740 SWIFT FOODS 0.136 0.137 0.139 0.141 0.135 0.137 9,450,000 1,285,600 UNIV ROBINA 133.5 133.8 133 136.5 131.6 133.5 735,570 98,402,639 0.81 0.82 0.8 0.83 0.8 0.82 1,024,000 828,930 VITARICH VICTORIAS 2.25 2.3 2.25 2.3 2.25 2.3 25,000 57,000 CONCRETE A 53 54 55.2 55.2 52 55 520 27,520 CONCRETE B 57.9 61.95 60 63 55.45 62.75 600 34,247.50 CEMEX HLDG 1.19 1.2 1.14 1.19 1.14 1.19 1,622,000 1,902,030 DAVINCI CAPITAL 3.05 3.06 2.88 3.06 2.82 3.05 7,600,000 22,609,690 EAGLE CEMENT 10.6 10.9 10.9 11 10.6 10.6 335,900 3,603,276 EEI CORP 7.3 7.6 7.23 7.6 7.23 7.6 449,200 3,267,860 5.61 5.69 5.69 5.69 5.5 5.61 60,300 337,515 HOLCIM 6.4 6.43 6.35 6.4 6.3 6.4 289,400 1,841,887 MEGAWIDE 12.22 12.28 12.28 12.28 12.26 12.28 53,300 654,084 PHINMA 1.14 1.16 1.13 1.17 1.13 1.16 244,000 281,380 TKC METALS VULCAN INDL 2.24 2.25 2.03 2.24 1.95 2.24 8,472,000 18,157,620 CROWN ASIA 1.82 1.83 1.85 1.85 1.82 1.82 749,000 1,377,140 EUROMED 2.09 2.12 2.23 2.23 2.01 2.09 308,000 637,240 MABUHAY VINYL 4.5 4.58 4.58 4.58 4.58 4.58 2,000 9,160 5.2 5.28 5.17 5.3 5.17 5.2 90,900 472,379 PRYCE CORP CONCEPCION 20.8 21 20.5 21 20.5 21 3,073,100 62,999,780 GREENERGY 3.63 3.64 3.71 3.82 3.63 3.64 18,247,000 67,603,230 INTEGRATED MICR 11.12 11.16 10.5 11.14 10.5 11.12 860,500 9,357,964 IONICS 1.1 1.11 1.11 1.11 1.1 1.1 24,000 26,530 SFA SEMICON 1.27 1.3 1.28 1.3 1.26 1.3 173,000 220,750 CIRTEK HLDG 6.21 6.25 6.28 6.33 6.1 6.21 1,035,300 6,441,671

-20,926,877 -23,331,700 -99,530 3,315,550 -208,047 -9,195,286.00 25,449,920 -960,520 5,245,905 -192,096 -842,580 -5,762,548 -9,090 -897,371 -183,600.00 -537,907 -5,720 2,204,003.50 11,171,676 -41,622 -2,906,700 -311,104 -868,160 8,130 -349,637 -1,170 1,036,980 -529,576 -5,800 -34,054 4,009 -281,192 1,888,440.00 18,200 2,100 0 -282,520 -791,272 26,660 4,516

HOLDING & FRIMS ABACORE CAPITAL 1.18 1.19 1.13 1.22 1.12 1.19 49,152,000 58,018,750 ASIABEST GROUP 6.92 7.16 7.29 7.29 6.91 7.16 1,100 7,706 AYALA CORP 740 750 740 750 735.5 750 126,650 93,959,890 ABOITIZ EQUITY 35.5 35.55 35.2 35.55 34.5 35.5 1,457,900 51,375,085 10.86 10.88 10.64 10.88 10.54 10.86 6,278,200 67,923,118 ALLIANCE GLOBAL 3.01 3.03 3.06 3.06 3 3.03 691,000 2,088,580 AYALA LAND LOG 6.42 6.6 6.5 6.6 6.37 6.6 8,900 57,255 ANSCOR ANGLO PHIL HLDG 0.67 0.68 0.68 0.71 0.66 0.67 4,959,000 3,354,250 ATN HLDG A 0.74 0.75 0.74 0.75 0.72 0.75 2,910,000 2,133,230 ATN HLDG B 0.73 0.75 0.73 0.76 0.73 0.75 412,000 303,770 COSCO CAPITAL 5.2 5.23 5.2 5.25 5.15 5.2 4,283,500 22,272,197 DMCI HLDG 5.6 5.61 5.5 5.66 5.5 5.61 9,434,200 52,872,722 8.42 8.67 8.67 8.67 8.67 8.67 1,000 8,670 FILINVEST DEV FORUM PACIFIC 0.255 0.26 0.255 0.255 0.255 0.255 60,000 15,300 GT CAPITAL 527.5 533 522 535 520 533 25,440 13,415,435 3.53 3.66 3.64 3.67 3.64 3.67 6,000 21,870 HOUSE OF INV JG SUMMIT 58.9 59 59.75 60.65 58.55 58.9 674,290 39,703,348.50 LODESTAR 1.01 1.02 0.99 1.03 0.96 1.01 8,865,000 8,849,610 LOPEZ HLDG 3.33 3.49 3.33 3.34 3.33 3.33 131,000 436,750 LT GROUP 13.38 13.4 13.22 13.4 13.22 13.38 473,400 6,329,860 0.465 0.485 0.485 0.485 0.485 0.485 20,000 9,700 MABUHAY HLDG METRO PAC INV 3.87 3.89 3.79 4 3.74 3.89 23,159,000 89,513,950 3.53 3.7 3.53 3.53 3.53 3.53 1,000 3,530 PACIFICA HLDG PRIME MEDIA 2.6 2.62 2.58 2.7 2.53 2.62 2,320,000 6,046,990 SOLID GROUP 1.24 1.25 1.23 1.25 1.23 1.24 119,000 147,960 SYNERGY GRID 333 344 344 344 332 333 860 286,260 SM INVESTMENTS 969 984 956 984 956 984 131,550 128,475,605 116.5 117 118.8 119.3 117 117 128,890 15,126,235 SAN MIGUEL CORP 135.3 135.8 132.8 136.2 132.8 135.8 9,250 1,251,123 TOP FRONTIER 0.26 0.265 0.26 0.26 0.26 0.26 3,940,000 1,024,400 WELLEX INDUS ZEUS HLDG 0.2 0.206 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 2,300,000 460,000

-533,800.00 695 -6,182,370 -14,238,645 3,374,102 638,160 96,200 -1,875,226 1,691,919 526,370 -6,121,225 -16,830 -433,420 -1,517,798 49,359,880 148,640 60,809,465 2,951,045 -573,920.00 14,000

PROPERTY ARTHALAND CORP 0.63 0.64 0.63 0.64 0.62 0.64 580,000 370,500 ANCHOR LAND 7.4 8.47 7.33 7.33 7.33 7.33 100 733 AYALA LAND 34.45 34.5 34.35 35.05 34.35 34.5 7,539,700 260,502,485 ARANETA PROP 1.18 1.29 1.19 1.2 1.16 1.17 129,000 152,650 34.65 34.7 34 34.7 33.95 34.65 779,500 26,837,315 AREIT RT 1.47 1.52 1.52 1.52 1.47 1.47 11,000 16,670 BELLE CORP A BROWN 0.86 0.87 0.86 0.88 0.84 0.87 4,445,000 3,779,540 1.06 1.07 0.96 1.2 0.96 1.07 24,742,000 26,668,590 CITYLAND DEVT CROWN EQUITIES 0.128 0.13 0.129 0.132 0.128 0.13 56,440,000 7,225,870 CEBU HLDG 6.5 6.56 6.42 6.5 6.42 6.5 2,200 14,195 CEB LANDMASTERS 5.88 5.9 5.88 5.9 5.81 5.9 1,364,900 7,998,518 CENTURY PROP 0.375 0.38 0.39 0.39 0.37 0.38 3,680,000 1,384,100 0.315 0.33 0.32 0.33 0.315 0.33 1,230,000 389,450 CYBER BAY 13.36 13.4 13.36 13.58 13.04 13.4 1,075,300 14,394,624 DOUBLEDRAGON 2.15 2.17 2.12 2.17 2.12 2.15 27,462,000 58,873,350 DDMP RT 6.84 6.86 6.9 6.9 6.84 6.86 18,000 123,638 DM WENCESLAO EMPIRE EAST 0.28 0.285 0.285 0.285 0.285 0.285 240,000 68,400 EVER GOTESCO 0.102 0.104 0.095 0.105 0.095 0.105 2,880,000 285,050 FILINVEST LAND 1.12 1.13 1.12 1.13 1.1 1.13 8,012,000 8,979,430 GLOBAL ESTATE 0.81 0.82 0.81 0.81 0.81 0.81 15,000 12,150 7.1 7.47 7.4 7.5 7.4 7.49 10,300 77,014 8990 HLDG PHIL INFRADEV 1.42 1.43 1.37 1.46 1.37 1.43 2,363,000 3,358,380 2.86 2.9 2.33 3.16 2.32 2.9 55,111,000 155,927,390 CITY AND LAND 3.6 3.61 3.57 3.65 3.57 3.6 5,177,000 18,618,590 MEGAWORLD MRC ALLIED 0.39 0.395 0.385 0.4 0.375 0.395 34,030,000 13,203,150 PHIL ESTATES 0.74 0.75 0.63 0.78 0.61 0.75 217,077,000 158,838,160 PRIMEX CORP 2.75 2.77 2.1 2.75 2.08 2.75 22,935,000 56,199,410 18.22 18.42 17.86 18.42 17.8 18.42 1,594,700 29,118,248 ROBINSONS LAND 0.27 0.28 0.265 0.28 0.265 0.28 660,000 180,200 PHIL REALTY ROCKWELL 1.6 1.62 1.57 1.65 1.57 1.6 1,234,000 1,984,080 2.77 2.79 2.74 2.78 2.72 2.78 374,000 1,029,940 SHANG PROP STA LUCIA LAND 2.22 2.32 2.21 2.32 2.21 2.32 208,000 478,360 SM PRIME HLDG 34.5 34.65 35.2 35.7 34.35 34.5 4,098,000 142,194,200 VISTAMALLS 3.71 3.8 3.8 3.8 3.71 3.71 14,000 52,210 SUNTRUST HOME 1.45 1.48 1.49 1.49 1.43 1.45 1,647,000 2,403,570 3.74 3.75 3.74 3.78 3.71 3.75 1,957,000 7,310,650 VISTA LAND

219,030 -96,545,785 6,534,545 -21,420 -279,380 89,600 685,083 82,250 19,200 1,370,954 16,843,470 -4,140 -2,850.00 104,110 -67,340.00 117,790 -9,214,600 303,300 -1,347,670 1,004,740.00 4,273,714 -678,540 -60,410 8,840 -13,311,210 101,490 -2,673,700

SERVICES ABS CBN 10.92 10.98 10.9 11 10.8 10.98 45,100 492,200 GMA NETWORK 8.81 8.83 8.75 8.92 8.71 8.81 2,868,300 25,370,448 MANILA BULLETIN 0.435 0.445 0.445 0.445 0.44 0.44 40,000 17,650 GLOBE TELECOM 1,840 1,845 1,895 1,896 1,833 1,840 74,150 137,548,665 1,266 1,270 1,221 1,292 1,216 1,270 108,685 136,333,540 PLDT 0.203 0.204 0.197 0.21 0.196 0.203 425,290,000 86,795,990 APOLLO GLOBAL 18.4 18.46 18.54 19 18.34 18.4 5,387,300 99,794,994 CONVERGE 3.66 3.7 3.63 3.8 3.63 3.7 381,000 1,389,300 DFNN INC DITO CME HLDG 10.26 10.28 10.16 10.42 10.02 10.26 9,170,700 93,994,574 JACKSTONES 2.04 2.09 2.08 2.12 2.03 2.09 78,000 162,590 NOW CORP 2.61 2.62 2.67 2.67 2.6 2.61 1,301,000 3,406,570 TRANSPACIFIC BR 0.43 0.435 0.42 0.44 0.42 0.435 13,980,000 6,013,750 2.8 2.85 2.77 2.86 2.77 2.85 205,000 576,590 PHILWEB 8.4 8.5 8.5 8.5 8.4 8.5 62,900 533,110 2GO GROUP ASIAN TERMINALS 15.24 15.5 15.12 15.12 15.12 15.12 100 1,512 CHELSEA 3.18 3.19 3.28 3.28 3.16 3.19 641,000 2,047,820 CEBU AIR 46.35 46.4 45.05 46.95 45.05 46.35 319,100 14,699,615 INTL CONTAINER 121.6 122 121.1 122.9 121.1 122 398,860 48,539,203 LBC EXPRESS 16.4 16.98 16.4 16.98 16.4 16.4 2,700 44,860 LORENZO SHIPPNG 0.95 1.05 1.08 1.08 1.08 1.08 1,000 1,080 4.86 4.9 4.99 4.99 4.83 4.9 1,414,000 6,925,350 MACROASIA 2.46 2.49 2.5 2.5 2.41 2.49 418,000 1,020,420 METROALLIANCE A METROALLIANCE B 2.45 2.81 2.7 2.95 2.7 2.9 15,000 43,080 PAL HLDG 6.1 6.2 6.2 6.2 6.1 6.1 10,600 65,620 HARBOR STAR 1.22 1.23 1.15 1.25 1.13 1.23 672,000 799,490 ACESITE HOTEL 1.72 1.74 1.67 1.74 1.54 1.74 367,000 622,970 BOULEVARD HLDG 0.084 0.085 0.082 0.084 0.08 0.084 144,240,000 11,879,720 3.96 3.98 3.95 4.09 3.9 3.96 893,000 3,535,150 DISCOVERY WORLD GRAND PLAZA 9.11 11 8.98 11 8.98 11 3,300 31,452 WATERFRONT 0.6 0.61 0.6 0.62 0.58 0.6 17,751,000 10,657,470 FAR EASTERN U 580 590 580 580 580 580 160 92,800 IPEOPLE 6.73 7.83 6.71 6.72 6.71 6.72 400 2,685 STI HLDG 0.38 0.385 0.385 0.385 0.38 0.38 30,000 11,450 BLOOMBERRY 7.01 7.02 6.9 7.02 6.85 7.01 4,030,900 28,012,548 PACIFIC ONLINE 2.04 2.07 2.04 2.07 2.04 2.04 56,000 114,390 1.79 1.8 1.85 1.85 1.77 1.8 208,000 379,250 LEISURE AND RES 2.06 2.08 2.09 2.09 2.09 2.09 5,000 10,450 MANILA JOCKEY PH RESORTS GRP 2.09 2.12 2.06 2.12 2.02 2.12 2,229,000 4,652,810 0.385 0.39 0.385 0.39 0.38 0.385 570,000 219,350 PREMIUM LEISURE ALLHOME 8.01 8.08 8 8.15 7.93 8.08 598,100 4,779,834 METRO RETAIL 1.3 1.31 1.33 1.33 1.29 1.3 3,047,000 3,989,870 PUREGOLD 38.7 38.75 39.2 39.2 38.5 38.7 2,810,100 109,047,370 ROBINSONS RTL 55.6 56 57.2 57.2 55.55 55.6 204,410 11,433,245.50 95 98.5 91.5 98.5 91.5 98.5 501,130 46,109,704 PHIL SEVEN CORP 1.21 1.22 1.2 1.21 1.19 1.21 657,000 789,640 SSI GROUP 17.26 17.42 17.8 17.8 17.2 17.26 1,562,100 27,040,520 WILCON DEPOT 0.385 0.39 0.395 0.395 0.38 0.385 3,950,000 1,508,400 APC GROUP EASYCALL 6.36 6.49 6.33 6.5 6.32 6.36 23,300 147,678 GOLDEN MV 440 449 440 449 440 449 740 330,170 IPM HLDG 4.9 5 5 5 5 5 5,000 25,000 PAXYS 2.25 2.47 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.3 1,000 2,300 2.12 2.13 2.05 2.15 2.01 2.12 25,958,000 54,596,560 PRMIERE HORIZON 4.31 4.74 4.5 4.5 4.3 4.3 10,000 44,200 SBS PHIL CORP

-64,271,635 48,490,035 1,310,260 1,034,816 -1,101,270 -325,814 179,640 51,200 56,000 41,760 7,662,565 -11,504,397 -481,050 -51,900 -874,820 3,441,959 16,460 120,250 136,430 1,793,146 -2,493,080 -41,086,040 -5,005,759.50 -170,610 34,700 -13,673,048 1,850,270 -

MINING & OIL ATOK 9.12 9.2 9 9.5 8.79 9.12 2,013,800 18,304,584 -25,480 APEX MINING 1.41 1.43 1.42 1.43 1.41 1.41 441,000 626,890 38,560 ATLAS MINING 6.29 6.3 6.29 6.53 6.29 6.29 178,000 1,138,028 26,710 2.35 2.72 2.55 2.72 2.55 2.72 5,000 12,920 BENGUET A COAL ASIA HLDG 0.28 0.295 0.285 0.285 0.28 0.28 120,000 34,150 CENTURY PEAK 2.75 2.8 2.7 2.8 2.7 2.8 222,000 605,400 586,350 8.8 9.49 9.16 9.49 8.6 9.49 27,100 233,882 DIZON MINES FERRONICKEL 2.41 2.42 2.48 2.48 2.38 2.41 2,046,000 4,927,910 -937,400 GEOGRACE 0.315 0.325 0.325 0.33 0.31 0.325 880,000 280,000 3,200 LEPANTO A 0.13 0.132 0.133 0.133 0.129 0.132 8,890,000 1,161,330 LEPANTO B 0.131 0.139 0.139 0.139 0.139 0.139 80,000 11,120 11,120 0.0096 0.0097 0.0097 0.0098 0.0097 0.0097 23,000,000 223,200 MANILA MINING A MANILA MINING B 0.0097 0.0099 0.0099 0.0099 0.0099 0.0099 2,000,000 19,800 19,800 1.21 1.22 1.25 1.25 1.18 1.21 852,000 1,017,010 -18,050 MARCVENTURES 2.19 2.24 2.29 2.29 2.18 2.24 55,000 121,680 NIHAO NICKEL ASIA 5.09 5.1 5.19 5.23 5.06 5.1 898,600 4,601,053 118,511 OMICO CORP 0.405 0.42 0.435 0.44 0.42 0.42 110,000 46,850 ORNTL PENINSULA 0.83 0.85 0.86 0.86 0.83 0.85 248,000 206,750 PX MINING 4.55 4.6 4.8 4.8 4.54 4.55 177,000 811,560 26,460 13.52 13.6 13.66 13.66 13.48 13.6 1,836,500 24,905,174 -2,497,474 SEMIRARA MINING 0.0074 0.0075 0.0075 0.0078 0.0074 0.0075 96,000,000 734,100 UNITED PARAGON ACE ENEXOR 22.6 22.85 23.1 23.1 22.2 22.85 217,600 4,962,100 120,630 0.012 0.013 0.013 0.013 0.012 0.012 135,100,000 1,651,300 ORNTL PETROL A ORNTL PETROL B 0.012 0.013 0.012 0.013 0.012 0.013 1,600,000 19,300 PHILODRILL 0.011 0.012 0.012 0.013 0.011 0.011 113,500,000 1,311,100 PXP ENERGY 8.56 8.57 8.59 8.68 8.56 8.56 118,700 1,019,690 -338,506

PREFFERED HOUSE PREF A 99.6 101 101 101 101 101 10 1,010 AC PREF B1 525 535 534 534 534 534 580 309,720 CEB PREF 40.9 40.95 40.7 41 40.7 40.9 159,400 6,524,930 1,567,570 CPG PREF A 101.1 102.4 101 102.4 101 102.4 4,660 474,274 100.6 102.4 102.4 102.5 102.4 102.4 160 16,385 DD PREF FGEN PREF G 107 110.7 107 107 107 107 4,260 455,820 GLO PREF P 502 503.5 503.5 503.5 503.5 503.5 10 5,035 GTCAP PREF B 1,030 1,041 1,035 1,035 1,035 1,035 20 20,700 MWIDE PREF 99.9 100.1 99.9 100.1 99.9 100 20,700 2,070,030 PNX PREF 3B 101 103.9 103.9 103.9 103.9 103.9 40 4,156 PNX PREF 4 987.5 990 990 990 987 990 3,270 3,228,275 PCOR PREF 3B 1,124 1,145 1,124 1,127 1,124 1,124 5,425 6,098,340 1.68 1.9 1.68 1.68 1.68 1.68 7,000 11,760 SFI PREF SMC PREF 2C 77.85 79 77.8 78 77.75 77.85 50,110 3,900,647 -389,373 78.95 79 78 78.95 78 78.95 60,320 4,730,740.50 SMC PREF 2F SMC PREF 2H 76.55 77.95 77 77.1 76.5 76.5 47,950 3,686,500 SMC PREF 2I 78 78.9 78.9 78.9 78.9 78.9 170 13,413 SMC PREF 2J 76.2 76.9 76.15 76.2 76.15 76.2 2,000 152,375 SMC PREF 2K 75.8 75.9 76 76 75.7 75.9 267,810 20,326,659 -

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS ABS HLDG PDR 10.5 10.94 10.5 10.5 10.5 10.5 174,000 1,827,000 0 GMA HLDG PDR 8.47 8.48 8.35 8.49 8.33 8.48 376,200 3,144,251 -131,021

WARRANTS LR WARRANT 2.06 2.07 2.05 2.19 2.02 2.06 6,743,000 14,066,520 95,170

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES ALTUS PROP 18.8 19 18.72 19.34 18.52 18.8 108,400 2,037,706 -146,472 ALTUS PROP 2.7 2.71 2.5 2.75 2.5 2.7 1,636,000 4,344,170 196,690 ALTUS PROP 5.1 5.3 5.07 5.33 5.07 5.3 7,100 37,378 ALTUS PROP 2.53 2.59 2.53 2.53 2.53 2.53 4,000 10,120 5.45 5.46 5.3 5.65 5.25 5.46 25,807,100 140,677,185 286,421 ALTUS PROP

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS

FIRST METRO ETF 99 98.35 98.7 99.5 98.3 98.35 27,240 2,688,580.50 102,646

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Shakey’s posts ₧247-M loss as lockdowns hit operations

S

By VG Cabuag

@villygc

hakey’s Pizza Asia Ventures Inc., the listed pizza restaurant chain led by the Po family, said it incurred a net loss of P247 million from the previous year’s income of P865.23 million.

The company said it incurred losses for most of 2020, but it posted an income of P215 million in the fourth quarter. However, this was not enough to offset the losses it incurred during the previous three quarters.

“2020 was obviously a one-ofa kind year amidst the Covid-19 pandemic and the restaurant industry was one of the hardest hit.

Nonetheless, despite our net loss for the year, we’ve managed to

pull through with positive cash flows, improved cost structures, and greater ability to address offpremise demand thanks to the gallant efforts of our team and the numerous business innovations we’ve been put into place,” Vicente Gregorio, the company’s president and CEO, said.

The company’s business was heavily affected by the series of lockdown measures, which at its peak in March through May, forced

the temporary closure of 91 percent of its store network.

W hen quarantine measures eased, store traffic inched up slowly during the second half of 2020, but it still booked a loss of P171.95 million for the third quarter.

For the fourth quarter, however, the company’s systemwide sales reached P1.8 billion, a growth of 33 percent from the third quarter due to the seasonal holiday pick-up, increased dine-in sales, as well as a resilient delivery and carry-out business.

For the entire year, the company ended with total sales of P6.6 billion, or just 64 percent of sales in 2019. On a same-store sales basis, excluding the impact of closed stores, sales were down 30 percent year-on-year, it said.

“We are pleased by the improvements we saw towards year-end which gave us the confidence to further invest in future growth, readying ourselves to better compete in the ‘new normal’ while creating jobs

amid the Philippines’ tough economic environment,” Gregorio said.

“Moving into 2021, the ability to stay nimble and adapt to the everchanging environment will be of utmost importance. We are hopeful that dine-in continues to recover this year, but are nonetheless managing the fact that guests will likely continue to need convenient and flexible out-of-store options.”

The company earlier said it will restart a store network expansion strategy that was put on hold last year due to the pandemic. The stores will, however, have smaller footprints and reduced investment requirements relative to traditional brick-and-mortar stores.

This ensures payback periods are kept short and return on capital remains high.

The company is also looking to build locations that have the Shakey’s, Peri-Peri Charcoal Chicken and R and B Milk Tea brands in one location to maximize its existing asset base.

First Gen taps BW Gas as FSRU provider

A

unit of First Gen Corp. (First Gen) has selected BW FSRU IV Pte Ltd. as its FSRU (Floating Storage Regasification Unit) provider, bringing FGEN LNG Corp. (FGEN LNG) a step closer to introducing LNG (liquefied natural gas) in the country next year.

FGEN LNG executed a 5-year Time Charter Party with BW FSRU IV, a wholly-owned subsidiary of BW Gas Limited, for the charter of a FSRU in respect of FGEN LNG’s Interim Offshore LNG Terminal that will be built at the First Gen Clean Energy Complex in Batangas City, Philippines.

The BW Paris FSRU has an LNG storage capacity of 162,400 m3 and a nominal and peak gas send out capacity of 500 MMscfd (million standard cubic feet per day) and 750 MMscfd, respectively. When compared to the Malampaya gas facility, the nominal send out capacity of the BW Paris is 25 percent more. Malampaya, at its peak, produced a maximum gas volume of approximately 400 MMscfd.

In addition to providing storage and regasification services, the BW Paris is capable of providing ancillary services such as the reloading of LNG into trucks and small scale LNG vessels, which can then distribute LNG to nearby industrial areas as well as the rest of the Philippine archipelago.

The LNG project will allow FGEN LNG to accelerate its ability to introduce LNG to the Philippines as early as third quarter of next year, to serve the natural gas requirements of existing and future gas-fired power plants of third parties and FGEN LNG affiliates.

“FGEN LNG believes the project will play a

critical role in ensuring the energy security of the Luzon Grid and the Philippines, particularly as the indigenous Malampaya gas resource is expected to be less reliable in producing and providing sufficient fuel supply for the country’s existing gas-fired power plants, and even less so for additional gas-fired power plants.

The entry of LNG will encourage new power plant developments, as well as industrial and transport industries, to consider it as a replacement to more costly and polluting fuels,” it said.

An FSRU is a Liquefied Natural Gas Carrier (LNGC) that is capable of storing LNG and which has an onboard regasification plant capable of returning LNG into a gaseous state and then supplying it directly into the gas network.

A typical FSRU has a storage capacity of between 125,000 m3 and 170,000 m3. According to the International Gas Union World LNG Report - 2020 Edition, approximately 6 percent of the global fleet of 541 LNGC vessels operate as FSRUs as of the end of 2019.

BW FSRU is involved in the global market of transportation and floating regasification services of LNG, including construction, ownership, and operation of FSRUs and other LNGCs. Last year, FGEN LNG chose McConnell Dowell Philippines Inc. for the LNG terminal’s engineering, procurement and construction contract.

FGEN has partnered with Japan’s Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd for the design, development, testing, commissioning, construction, ownership, and operations and maintenance of the LNG project. Lenie Lectura

Globe commits to deliver service support to customers under ECQ

G

lobe assures its customers that it will continuously deliver service support and #ExtraCareAtHome amid the extended enhanced community quarantine covering Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Rizal and Laguna.

The company said customers can safely manage their Globe transactions from home by maximizing any of Globe’s digital channels.

With the GlobeOne or Globe At Home apps, Globe customers have quick access and visibility on their data usage, troubleshooting needs, or even customer field service for Globe At Home customers.

Globe At Home technicians are mandated to strictly practice safety protocols especially during in-location services. From taking mandatory medical checks before they depart to observing 2-meter distancing from the customer during house calls, Globe At Home prioritizes not only customers’ safety, but employees’ as well.

“At a time that we need to remain connected the most, the Globe online store is easily accessible for customers to purchase their connectivity essentials,” the company said.

The convenient online one-stop shop allows customers to conveniently add to cart and check out not just Globe prepaid products, but other ‘new normal’ essentials so they can work or study

from home at ease: https://shop.globe.com.ph/.

Apart from the GCash app, Globe prepaid subscribers can replenish their load from any of the following apps: GlobeOne, or Globe At Home apps: Shopee, Lazada, Grab, Coins.PH, Puregold Mobile App, Telepreneur, as well as BPI and BDO. Another option is to approach Globe’s offline channels from supermarkets, convenience stores, or remittance centers for their loading needs as long as customers will strictly follow the mandatory guidelines of wearing face masks and face shields, and observing social distancing in public places. Some of these offline partners include RD Pawnshop, Palawan Pawnshop, AlfaMart, 7-Eleven, Ministop, Puregold, SM Supermarkets, and Robinsons Supermarket.

Apart from load, customers may also purchase Globe prepaid products such as Globe At Home prepaid modems or pocket wifis from Globe’s official partners: Puregold, SM Supermarkets, Waltermart, Robinsons Supermarket, Shopee, Lazada, and Grab.

For a complete list of Globe’s authorized distributors where customers can buy their Globe devices, visit this link: https://www.globe.com. ph/distributors.html.

mutual funds

April 5, 2021

NAV One Year Three Year Five Year Y-T-D per share Return* Return Stock Funds ALFM Growth Fund, Inc. -a 206.86 16.43% -8.78% -4.02% -8.96% ATRAM Alpha Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 1.2883 47.23% -7.46% 1.36% -1.88% ATRAM Philippine Equity Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 2.8383 18.17% -12.96% -6.16% -9.41% Climbs Share Capital Equity Investment Fund Corp. -a 0.7315 22.16% -8.34% n.a.

-9.01% First Metro Consumer Fund on MSCI Phils. IMI, Inc. -a 0.667 10.38% n.a. n.a. -10.06% First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund,Inc. -a 4.5339 17.49% -6.75% -2.95% -8.24% First Metro Save and Learn Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,4 0.6549 9.41% -10.52% -8.06% -13.81% MBG Equity Investment Fund, Inc. -a 96.14 40.51% -6.19% n.a.

-5.69% PAMI Equity Index Fund, Inc. -a 42.4635 20.19% -6.93% -2.76% -9.36% Philam Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 444.97 17.32% -6.91% -3.27% -9% Philequity Alpha One Fund, Inc. -a,d,5 1.0058 25.58% n.a. n.a.

-8.34% Philequity Dividend Yield Fund, Inc. -a 1.0811 18.67% -6.3% -2.14% -7.46% Philequity Fund, Inc. -a 31.7836 18.95% -6.46% -1.76% -8.59% Philequity MSCI Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.8247 18.37% n.a. n.a.

-9.67% Philequity PSE Index Fund Inc. -a 4.348 20.81% -6.44% -2.01% -9.25% Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a 727.19 21.01% -6.34% -2.15% -9.29% Soldivo Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 0.6571 18.4% -10.48% -5.63% -8.6% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Equity Fund, Inc. -a 3.2954 16.68% -8.47% -3.5% -9.06% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Stock Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.8312 20.31% -6.68% -2.26% -9.43% United Fund, Inc. -a 3.0607 19.69% -5.89% -1.08% -7.78% Exchange Traded Fund First Metro Phil. Equity Exchange Traded Fund, Inc. -a,c 97.5736 21.15% -6.14% -1.47% -9.28% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ATRAM AsiaPlus Equity Fund, Inc. -b $1.2528 54.15% 4.16% 8.34% 4.15% Sun Life Prosperity World Voyager Fund, Inc. -a $1.6643 52.55% 9.87% n.a.

-0.51% Balanced Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ATRAM Dynamic Allocation Fund, Inc. -a 1.6162 14.26% -2.89% -1.41% -3.14% ATRAM Philippine Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 2.1414 14.54% -3.15% -0.65% -6.3% First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund Inc. -a 2.4804 11.21% -2.34% -1.62% -5.58% First Metro Save and Learn F.O.C.C.U.S. Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a,1 0.1866 6.08% n.a. n.a. -6.04% NCM Mutual Fund of the Phils., Inc. -a 1.8871 8.88% -0.29% 0.54% -3.92% PAMI Horizon Fund, Inc. -a 3.5272 12.45% -1.83% -0.74% -6.89% Philam Fund, Inc. -a 15.8134 12.14% -1.76% -0.77% -6.63% Solidaritas Fund, Inc. -a 1.9817 11.37% -2.62% -0.59% -5.37% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 3.3572 11.03% -4.18% -1.87% -6.05% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2028, Inc. -a,d 0.9443 12.2% n.a. n.a.

-7.66% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2038, Inc. -a,d 0.8609 15.73% n.a. n.a.

-9.3% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2048, Inc. -a,d 0.8446 16.5% n.a. n.a. -9.48% Sun Life Prosperity Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a 0.8276 13.92% -5.19% -2.52% -6.77% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Cocolife Dollar Fund Builder, Inc. -a $0.03794 0.93% 2.31% 1.3% -3.02% PAMI Asia Balanced Fund, Inc. -b $1.1213 29.41% 2.02% 4.71% -2.51% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Advantage Fund, Inc. -a $4.4803 36.82% 7.2% 7.81% -0.72% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Wellspring Fund, Inc. -a,3 $1.1747 19.68% 3.45% n.a.

-2.28% Bond Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 369.89 2.62% 3.06% 2.55% -0.32% ATRAM Corporate Bond Fund, Inc. -a 1.9075 -0.49% 0.66% 0.17% 0.38% Cocolife Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a 3.2174 2.22% 4.05% 4.51% 0.08% Ekklesia Mutual Fund Inc. -a 2.2426 0.3% 2.12% 1.44% -2.33% First Metro Save and Learn Fixed Income Fund,Inc. -a 2.4245 2.88% 3.06% 1.71% -1.17% Philam Bond Fund, Inc. -a 4.4468 2.38% 3.8% 1.79% -4.05% Philam Managed Income Fund, Inc. -a,6 1.3154 4.95% 4.18% 2.62% -0.44% Philequity Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.9608 5.55% 4.31% 2.49% -1.01% Soldivo Bond Fund, Inc. -a 1.0229 6.75% 4.03% 2.03% -1.83% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.1667 3.63% 4.58% 2.65% -1.23% Sun Life Prosperity GS Fund, Inc. -a 1.7285 1.97% 3.86% 1.97% -1.51% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $481.59 3.18% 2.83% 2.33% -0.47% ALFM Euro Bond Fund, Inc. -a Є219.39 2.6% 1.02% 1.16% 0.1% ATRAM Total Return Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -b $1.1758 1.55% 1.7% 1.12% -8.17% First Metro Save and Learn Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $0.0257 0.78% 1.2% 0.88% -3.38% PAMI Global Bond Fund, Inc -b $1.0477 0.13% 0% -0.67% -4.12% Philam Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $2.4566 4.94% 3.82% 2.05% -3.12% Philequity Dollar Income Fund Inc. -a $0.0624962 5.65% 3.19% 2.2% 0.29% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Abundance Fund, Inc. -a $3.1011 0.02% 1.73% 0.83% -3.8% Money Market Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 129.85 2.45% 3.19% 2.54% 0.03% First Metro Save and Learn Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.0498 1.53% n.a. n.a.

0.16% Sun Life Prosperity Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.3008 2.09% 2.89% 2.58% 0.32% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Starter Fund, Inc. -a $1.0552 1.49% 1.75% n.a.

0.27% Feeder Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities Sun Life Prosperity World Equity Index Feeder Fund, Inc. -a,d,7 1.193 n.a. n.a. n.a. 5.61% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund Inc. -b,d,2 $0.98 15.29% n.a. n.a.

0% a - NAVPS as of the previous banking day. b - NAVPS as of two banking days ago. c - Listed in the PSE. d - in Net Asset Value per Unit (NAVPU).

1 - Launch date is September 28, 2019. 2 - Launch date is November 15, 2019. 3 - Adjusted due to stock dividend issuance last October 9, 2019.

4 - Renaming was approved by the SEC last October 12, 2018 (formerly, One Wealthy Nation Fund, Inc.). 5 - Launch date is December 09, 2019.

6 - Re-classified into a Bond Fund starting February 21, 2020 (Formerly a Money Market Fund). 7 - Launch date is July 6, 2020.

"While we endeavor to keep the information accurate, the Philippine Investment Funds Association (PIFA) and its members make no warranties as to the correctness of the newspaper’s publication and assume no liability or responsibility for any error or omissions. You may visit http://www. pifa.com.ph to see the latest NAVPS/NAVPU."

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Banking&Finance BusinessMirror

JCR cites lender’s ‘strong fin’l durability’ in rating

By Bianca Cuaresma @BcuaresmaBM

T

HE Japan Credit Rating Agency Ltd. (JCR) announced it has affirmed the investment grade rating of Security Bank Corp. amid the economic and health crises, on the back of the lender’s “strong financial durability.”

The credit watcher gave Security Bank an “A-“ investment grade rating with a stable outlook, the same level as JCR’s Philippine sovereign rating.

JCR said the rating reflects Security Bank’s relatively robust domestic business base, high profitability and solid capital base. The credit watcher also said it has incorporated into the rating the effects of the lender’s alliance with MUFG Bank.

“Security Bank’s financial durability stays strong as indicated by its high loan-loss provision coverage ratio and capital adequacy ratio in addition to its high profitability ensured by a high net interest margin”,” JCR said.

Security Bank’s non-performing loan (NPL) ratio is also expected to be “controlled at a manageable level if the economy recovers steadily as the pandemic subsides”. JCR attributed

this to Security Bank’s strengthened credit management for individual borrowers.

Security Bank President and CEO Sanjiv Vohra welcomed that development and said that their current strong base will be used to pandemic recovery efforts and technological innovations. “[JCR’s] affirmation of its credit rating for Security Bank is a testament to our strength as we continue to provide our customers with better banking services in these trying times,” Vohra was quoted in a statement as saying. “Our strong capital position is an important pillar which both our customers and employees can rely upon to weather the challenges brought by the Covid-19 pandemic.”

“That capital will continue to be deployed to support our clients’ pandemic recovery efforts, employee health & safety initiatives, and investments in systems and technology to deliver on our promise,” he added.

Data from the financial intermediary showed its provision coverage ratio is at 115 percent at the end of 2020. The bank’s consolidated common equity Tier 1 ratio stood at 19.2 percent at the end of 2020.

Made in USA reflation trade is a globally unwanted export

T

HE US bond tantrum is sending a chill through indebted countries, which have for years paid less to borrow more.

As the American economy powers ahead, government bond yields from Australia to Italy are taking the cue and following those of the US upwards. Those higher costs threaten to undermine a flagging recovery in Europe, which is losing control of the pandemic and extending curbs.

They’re also unwelcome for emerging markets reliant on dollar funding.

“This is something investors are watching,” Thomas Wacker, head of credit at UBS Global Wealth Management, said. “Any increase in interest rate costs reduces countries’ fiscal headroom and adds to future deficits when it could have been spent on investments and reforms. Debt sustainability is a valid concern.”

Yields on Group of Seven government debt have more than doubled since the start of the year after climbing 27 basis points to 0.48 percent, according to Bloomberg Barclays index data, as Treasury yields set a blistering pace.

While it’s hard to pin down how much of that is down to what’s happening in the Treasury market, analysts at ING Groep NV point to the US as the driver, going as far as to assert that no reflation trade would be happening in Europe in a world in which it was isolated from the US. Regardless of whether they can blame run-it-hot American economic policy, the rising price of government debt has become a headache for policymakers and investors alike.

In an interview with Bloomberg Television, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde last week said that policy makers won’t shy away from using all their powers to stop bond yields moving higher.

The ECB has accelerated bond buying to push back against rising borrowing costs.

Bond math

THE math goes something like this: Every 10 basis-point move across Europe’s debt structure would translate into about 11 billion euros ($12.9 billion) of annual interest. That’s based on a back-of-the-envelope calculation of the region’s debt at 11 trillion euros, according to European Commission data, and the average rate of interest at 1.6 percent, or 181.42 billion euros over a four-quarter rolling period.

For now, funding conditions in the euro region are still low compared

with costs of existing debt. Italian 10-year bonds sold with a coupon of 4.75 percent almost a decade ago are likely to be refinanced at a much lower rate given their current yield of 0.631 percent.

Across the Atlantic, there’s even less cause for worry, this year anyway. Interest payments on the national debt fell last year and are on track to continue sliding -- even after all the pandemic spending and amid the highest 10-year borrowing costs in a year.

But a period of belt-tightening down the line could harm the economic recovery and eventually require more stimulus from central banks, according to Mark Nash, a money manager at Jupiter Investment Management.

“The market will have to look for austerity in the future,” Nash said.

“There is just too much debt. The recovery is masking this so far, but fragilities are growing for markets.”

Tantrum redux

NASH says the “canary in the coal mine” is the developing world, already feeling the impact of rising costs to borrow in US dollars. A benchmark gauge of emerging-market stocks has trimmed gains to just 3.4 percent for the year amid concern poorer nations will lag efforts to deliver vaccines to their population and stimulus to their economies.

Emerging-market nations owe more than $4 trillion in dollar debt, according to estimates from the Bank for International Settlements. The burden gets bigger as US yields rise, with the potential that their debt troubles spill over into other markets, according to Nash.

While the causes are different from the taper talk that wreaked havoc on markets in 2013, there may be parallels with the chaos sparked by then Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke suggesting monetary stimulus would be pared at some point in the future.

This time bond markets have become unruly because the US has unleashed trillions of dollars in fiscal stimulus, according to Steve Major, the head of fixed-income research at HSBC Holdings Plc. “For all the talk of another taper tantrum, we may have already had something similar but this time it was brought on by the government’s aggressive fiscal loosening. Shall we call it a ‘fiscal tantrum’?” Major said.

“Whatever the reason, the economy is not going to be helped by higher yields.” Bloomberg News

Tuesday, April 6, 2021 B3

Risk-averse investors troop to short-term govt securities

T

By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

HE Bureau of the Treasury awarded P25 billion in Treasury bills (T-bills), which still enjoyed an overwhelming response from investors looking for a safe haven for their cash.

Monday’s auction was oversubscribed by almost three times the initial P25-billion offering as tenders reached P67.5 billion.

The government also opened a tap facility window for 364-day T-bills for a volume of P5 billion.

However, all bids tendered at P1.1 billion were rejected by the auction committee.

“Risk aversion drove strong buying interest on haven assets particularly on the front end with inflation print seen the same as last month,” National Treasurer Rosalia V. De Leon told reporters last Monday.

BTr data showed that for the 91-

day T-bills, the Auction Committee accepted P5 billion of the P12.650 billion bids at an interest rate of 1.295 percent, slightly higher than the 1.269 percent in the March 29 auction.

For the 182-day T-bills, the accepted bids reached P8 billion. A total of 16.712 billion bids were tendered and P8.712 billion were rejected. The interest rate for these T-bills was 1.646 percent, higher than the 1.609 percent in the previous auction.

In terms of the 365-day T-bills, a total of P12 billion bids were accepted of the P38.126 billion tenders. The interest rate was 1.912 percent, lower

This undated photo shows the Bureau of the Treasury building in Manila. The Treasury awarded P25 billion in Treasury bills to investors who are trooping to safe haven assets.

than the 1.926 percent recorded in the previous auction.

The country’s inflation rate continued its climb from 4.6 percent in January to 4.7 percent in February, government data last Friday revealed. The February figure is the highest since the 5.1 percent recorded in December 2018 and the 2.6 percent in February last year.

In the first two months of the year, inflation averaged 4.5 percent. For this year, the government’s

target range for inflation is 2 to 4 percent.

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin E. Diokno earlier allayed investor worries on the spike, saying the acceleration of prices in February are still supply-side in nature and will likely taper off in the coming months.

(See, “BSP won’t act on inflation till there’s evidence of secondround effects,” in the BusinessMirror, March 6, 2021).

Surge in cashless transactions to continue–BancNet

A

UTOMATED teller machine (ATM) consortium BancNet Inc. said cashless payments are here to stay even after the pandemic, as people have experienced and gotten used to transacting online during the quarantine.

In a statement on Monday, BancNet CEO Aristeo P. Zafra Jr. said they forecast sustained growth in cashless payments in 2021.

“Customers preferred to go cashless in their payments and we see this trend to continue in the ‘new normal‘ because people have seen the value and experienced the convenience of cashless payments,” Zafra said.

The CEO said that early in 2021, they are already seeing a continued surge of growth in their own platform even as the country went into a more relaxed form of quarantine in January and February this year.

In the first two months of 2021, Zafra said bill payments processed by BancNet nearly doubled to a total of 2.84 million transactions compared to only 1.49 million in the first two months of 2020. Overall, cashless payments processed by BancNet in 2020 more than tripled compared to the volume the year before.

Zafra also said that in the first two months of the year, InstaPay vol-

ume reached a total of 54.65 million transactions, 372.23 percent higher compared to 11.57 million in the same period in 2020.

Payments for purchases through point-of-sale machines were also noted to have increased further to more than 15 million in the first two months of the year, which is 1.26 million, or 9.19 percent higher compared to 13.77 million in the same period last year.

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin E. Diokno earlier announced his personal goal that half of financial transactions in the country should be digital by the end

of his term in 2023.

But because of the economic and health crises, Diokno said this may be achieved sooner than the projection by the end of 2022.

Diokno also reported that coin demand in 2020 fell by 57 percent in volume and 60 percent in value from its level in 2019.

“The BSP expects the transition to gather pace amid the rise in electronic payments during the COVID-19 pandemic. In view of this, the BSP will continue to engage the public to ensure that Filipinos will adjust well to this transformation,” Diokno earlier said. Bianca Cuaresma

Countering investment insanity with intelligence

I

remember when I was in high school I saw a movie wherein there were several people standing in front of giant screens shouting.

A lot of them were busy talking to the phones and shouting at other people.

Most of them have this small slip of paper and there were those who were writing on pieces of papers as if taking orders. I didn’t know how exactly to describe it at first.

It was like a demonstration or a political rally, or perhaps it was more like a restaurant where people are so hungry that they are scrambling to have the orders taken and the waiters were taking their orders as fast as they could. People were shouting and screaming; some were cursing.

There were days when people would be jubilant and clapped their hands.

The scenario I just described to you was a movie wherein there was a stock market scene. I grew up wondering what that hullabulla was all about. The stock market intrigued me. I was so fascinated how people could make money that way. That thought stuck to my mind until I formally learned what the stock market is all about. I was just given a glimpse by Hollywood on how the stock market works.

The stock market is a very unique market. It is probably the only type of market where so much emotions are involved. You don’t see people shouting and panicking in the fish market just because there is a huge storm coming. You certainly don’t see them selling their fish in panic because the price of fish will go down by virtue of some external event. In the fish market or any other market they might do a mark down sale because of low

Atty. Zigfred Diaz

personal finance demand but you certainly don’t see people doing a panic selling or buying like crazy whenever somebody projects that the price of fish will go up because of some reason.

The stock market is dictated by two things, FEAR and GREED. When there is so much fear in the market the prices goes down. People start to panic and dump stocks irregardless at what price they bought it. When there is so much greed in the market, people go crazy over stocks. They buy without regard to the financials of the underlying business that the stock represents. They want to buy whatever is the latest stock craze.

The market is driven by so much emotion that most of the time the decision most stock market players make are often irrational, illogical and just plain dumb and stupid.

In order to give you an insight on how the stock market really works.

Consider this illustration given by the late Benjamin Graham, Warren Buffett’s mentor, otherwise known as the Dean of Wall street, father of securities analysis and value investing and author of the masterful treatise, “Securities Analysis” and “The intelligent investor” both considered as classics and the bible of investing.

In “The Intelligent Investor” Graham gives a powerful illustration on how the stock market works. He writes:

“Imagine that you own a small share in a private business, which you purchased for $1,000. One of the other owners of the business, named Mr. Market, approaches you to tell you what he thinks your share of the business is worth. And everyday, he offers to either buy your share of the business for that price, or, to sell you an additional share of the business for that price.

Each day, however, he quotes you a different price from the day before. Sometimes the price he quotes sounds about fair. Sometimes it’s high. Sometimes it’s low. If you are a prudent investor or a sensible businessman, will you let Mr. Market’s daily communication determine your view of the value of a $1,000 interest in the enterprise? Only in case you agree with him, or in case you want to trade with him. You may be happy to sell out to him when he quotes you a ridiculously high price, and equally happy to buy from him when his price is low.

But the rest of the time you will be wiser to form your own ideas of the value of your holdings, based on full reports from the company about its operations and financial position.”

The point that Graham is making is that you as an investor should not regard the whims and caprices of Mr. Market in determining the value of the stocks you own. You should learn to profit from market folly instead of participating in it. Graham concludes that the investor is better off concentrating on the actual performance of the underlying business which a stock represent, rather than being too concerned with the wild gyrations of the market.

Sometimes you can’t believe how such smart, financially savvy and intelligent people could be dictated by fear and greed resulting to their making ridiculous and irrational decisions. Well it does happen and it has been happening for the past centuries ever since the stock market has existed. To show you an example of how myopic, manic depressive and bipolar the market is, the Philippine stock market in particular, the market has valued a retail grocery chain close to 45 billion pesos when its net income could barely even reach 30 million within this year. On the other hand the market only valued a holding company who has a majority stake in a large grocery store chain network for only more or less 40 billion pesos when its income could very well exceed more than 5 billion pesos this year. The intelligent investor would take advantage of this and buy the stock that the market undervalues for the time being.

After all, as Benjamin Graham wisely concludes, in the short run, the market is a voting machine, that is it tallies up popular and unpopular firms but in the long run it is a weighing machine, meaning eventually the market will realize the value of the companies with solid fundamentals and will soon price its stock accordingly. This is how intelligent investors profit from the myopic, manic depressive bipolar and insane Mr. Market.

Zigfred Diaz is a Cebu-based registered financial planner of RFP Philippines. To learn more about personal-financial planning, attend the 89th RFP program this May 2021. To inquire, e-mail info@ rfp.ph or text at 0917-6248110.

B4

Art

BusinessMirror

Tuesday, April 6, 2021 • Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Today’s Horoscope

❶ Dali-Clocks, 2020, acrylic on canvas, 32”x24”

By Eugenia Last

❷ Rizal Eye-

Chart Series: Small Eye, 2020, acrylic on canvas, 36”x24”

z

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Tokio Myers, 37; Candace Cameron Bure, 45; Zach Braff, 46; Paul Rudd, 52.

❸ Theseus and

Happy Birthday: Set your sights on what excites you. Be innovative, believe in yourself and do whatever it takes to achieve happiness. Put your heart and soul into life, love and being the best you can be. The rewards will be outstanding, and the satisfaction you receive will encourage you to embrace the future with optimism. Love and self-improvement are favored. Your numbers are 9, 16, 23, 31, 36, 40, 44.

the Minotaur, 2020, acrylic on canvas, 40”x30”

a

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Call on those you trust for input. Running your ideas by people who offer encouragement along with common sense will help you navigate your way through any pitfalls you encounter. Fitness, personal growth and romance are favored. HHHH

❶

❷

b

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Keep your thoughts to yourself until you have a clear picture of how you want to proceed. A change made in haste will be met with obstacles that result in sensitive implications. Thorough research will eliminate negative results. HH

❸

Onto another dimension of design

T

HE prolific design career of Carlo S. Tanseco has seen him break through in the different sectors of the industry. From product design to furniture and commercial creations, the architecture graduate from the University of the Philippines pursues excellence with steely resolve and artistic flair in every venture.

His mantra: “It is about ideas that challenge the system.”

At the onset of the pandemic last year, however, when the very system began to do the challenging, the veteran designer, like all of us, was cornered into the unfamiliar. And like those of us who have been

c

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Don’t waste time.

Size up your situation and make things happen.

A chance to get ahead is heading your way, and preparation will help build the confidence you need to dazzle anyone making an offer. Personal improvement adds to your appeal. HHHHH

d

to showcase the results of his pursuit as a painter through Juxtaposed: Between Order and Complexity, a solo exhibition by Art Cube Gallery that will be presented in the upcoming Art Fair Philippines 2021 Online. The annual showcase is slated to run next month from May 6 to 15.

Tanseco’s art reflects his deep-rooted orientation with patterns and order that he consciously presents with the intention to disrupt. Such is the case in his pieces that feature pop art portraits of literary titans like Jose Rizal and art icons like Salvador Dali.

In Dali-Magnifying Glass, Tanseco lulls the viewer in with one style and surprises with another through closer inspection, where the magnified right eye of the Spanish surrealist painter pops out in hyperrealistic depiction. Meanwhile, Tanseco reimagines the mythical labyrinth with heavy 3D design influence in Theseus and the Minotaur.

By applying his design orientation to his paintings to a degree that still affords creative freedom, rather than letting it dictate his flow, Tanseco is able to present imaginative works that are evidently informed of ratios, patterns and rules. This is what makes breaking them defiantly effective and uniquely his. n

fortunate enough at least, Tanseco used the time in lockdown to expand his horizons. He sought for new artistic expressions and found his hand reaching for a paintbrush. After spending many years as a designer, Tanseco began his foray into painting.

Tanseco has garnered multiple awards as a product designer. He is a member of a celebrated design group Movement 8 and has participated in various prestigious trade shows. It is an illustrious list that includes Manila F.A.M.E., Philippines International Furniture Show, Cebu X, Maison et Objet in Paris, Ambiente in Frankfurt, Index in Dubai, along with other exhibitions in Poznan, Krakow and Moscow.

One of his greatest achievements was being a featured designer in a high-profile material library for product and industrial designers in New York.

This is the same degree of excellence that Tanseco now attempts to achieve as a painter. Since the lockdown last year, he has been zeroed in on perfecting his craft, surrendering to the process of art making with an approach that has worked for him for many years.

Tanseco continues to build his knowledge in the arts, to familiarize himself with the rules and eventually bend them to his will. Tanseco is now set

DLS-CSB, Gateway Gallery team up for ‘Sinulid Epilogue 20-21’ virtual exhibit THE De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) partners with Araneta City’s Gateway Gallery for the first virtual presentation of the school’s annual Sinulid: Epilogue art exhibit.

Ongoing until April 10, the Sinulid Epilogue 20-21: Unconventional Threads may be viewed by the public via bit.ly/3rT4zgu. The virtual exhibit features a collection from 16 top students of DLS-CSB’s Fashion Design and Merchandising program Batch 2020 who presented their unique take on Filipino identity through art.

The virtual exhibit showcases different materials, various weaving designs, and the artistic points of view of the students threading their interpretations of the modern Filipino. It reflects the historic heritage of the islands and the seas (religious deities, mystical folklore, and oriental

influences), local pop cultures (OFW balikbayans, cockfighting), and the challenges of daily life mirroring the extremely rich and vibrant Filipino culture.

Apart from the virtual exhibit, the Sinulid Epilogue 20-21: Unconventional Threads also involves a series of webinars and student-related activities to promote camaraderie during this time of pandemic.

Sinulid Epilogue 20-21: Unconventional Threads is the latest offering of Gateway Gallery, Araneta City’s art museum devoted to the promotion of Philippine culture, heritage and art. Also available for viewing via the Gateway Gallery web site is Art Heals: Echoes of the Pandemic. The long-running SiningSaysay: Philippine History in Art exhibit and #YouMatter mental health exhibit can be viewed via the mobile app Gateway Gallery Pocket Museum.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Concentrate on what you need to do to succeed. Refuse to let personal matters interfere with your professional responsibilities. Focus on contracts, money and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. HHH

e

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Press people for answers. Use your communication skills to your advantage. Get the lowdown, and make decisions based on the facts you derive from the conversations you have. A partnership that can help you advance looks promising. HHH

f

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Take a virtual class or set up an online interview. Take action if you want to bring about change.

Don’t make excuses when it’s up to you to make things happen. Putting the blame elsewhere won’t help you reach your goal. HHH

g

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Take care of responsibilities, and free up time to enjoy yourself with someone you love. How you use time and space will make a difference to your mental and emotional well-being. Don’t make unnecessary purchases. HHHHH

h

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Put everything in place before you leap into action.

Understanding what’s possible will help you avoid a costly mistake. An innovative plan will require a strict budget to avoid overspending. HH

i

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): An emotional matter will cause you to overreact if you aren’t careful. Size up whatever situation you face, and put a strategy in place that will eliminate outside interference. HHHH

j

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): You’ll face opposition if you initiate a change without going through the proper channels. Look for a positive way to get others on board, and you’ll get the support and assistance you need to get things done your way.

HHH

k

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Don’t let what others do cause stress. Focus on what you can do to add to your security. A moneymaking opportunity looks promising. Don’t miss out because you’ve taken on responsibilities that don’t belong to you. Clear your calendar and proceed. HHH

l

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Keep your plans a secret, and you’ll avoid a disagreement. Do something energetic if you feel stressed or anxious. Don’t make a premature move based on an emotional situation. Time is on your side. HHH Birthday Baby: You are optimistic, ambitious and intelligent.

You are persistent and friendly.

‘takeout order’ by zachary david levy and joanne sullivan The Universal Crossword/Edited by David Steinberg

ACROSS 1 Encyclopedic range of knowledge?

5 Speed for some game highlights 10 Treasure hunter’s need 13 Igneous rock source 14 Herculean work 15 Destiny 16 Tag sale task 18 “Now it’s clear” 19 Must 20 Hollywood statuette 21 “Snowden” org.

24 The end of the English language?

25 Misplace 27 Supporting 29 Fully processed 30 Ancient Greek instrument 31 Kama ___ 32 Swap 37 Makes sopping wet 38 Hertz alternative 41 Soldiers’ sets with utensils 45 Flushed 47 Bathroom surface 48 On a winning streak

9 Sch. near Washington Square Park 4 50 Mission Impossible protagonist Hunt 51 Streaming platform for peterparkTV 54 Long journey 55 “Stop pretending!”...or a hint to answering each starred clue 59 Identify 60 Al ___ (not too soft) 61 Younger sister of Bart 62 Wonder-full feeling 63 Determined to do 64 Melt, like a candle DOWN 1 German peak 2 Paving supply 3 Egg cells 4 Braff who cohosts Fake Doctors, Real Friends 5 Thin portion 6 Spiked, as punch 7 Sad notice in the paper, briefly 8 Stonehenge structures 9 NPR’s URL ending 10 Costumed figure at a game 11 “Relax, soldier!”

2 Took a long, hard look 1 15 Clenched hands 17 Tea brand with a London Fog Latte flavor 20 Where to see sea stars 21 Org. for Lions and Bears 22 Put into words 23 Parcel unit?

26 Taj Mahal site 28 Stereotypical cowboy’s nickname 29 Avoids a punch, perhaps 31 Sugar maple, for New York 33 Invite over the threshold 34 Tightly wind 35 Wander (about) 36 ___ Rachel Wood of Westworld 39 Frigid 40 Nickname that drops “art” 41 Sicilian peak, for short 42 Have a meal without cooking?

43 Crafty plan 44 What’s being risked 45 Far from fresh 46 Carve in granite 48 Aware of, slangily

2 “This ___ take long!”

5 53 Grasped 55 Deg. for one working on fillings 56 Word after “in the” or “on the” 57 Long-running forensic series 58 Keg part

Solution to April 1’s puzzle:

Show BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

• Tuesday, April 6, 2021

B5

‘Dito at Doon’ a happy kind of surprise this se we need at tth is time New breed ‘Law & Order’ brings back NYPD detective Stabler LOS ANGELES—The latest member of the Law & Order franchise has a familiar face playing a familiar character, but producer Dick Wolf says he’s switching up the storytelling.

NBC’s Law & Order: Organized Crime stars Christopher Meloni as New York police detective Elliot Stabler, the role he played until 2011 on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

Unlike the largely self-contained episodes of its Law & Order relatives, the new drama shifts from one criminal syndicate to another in multiepisode arcs. It debuts on Thursday at 10 pm EDT, paired in a crossover episode with Law & Order: SVU at 9 pm EDT. Think of it this way, Wolf suggested: “If the first eight episodes are The Godfather, the second eight episodes are American Gangster and the third eight episodes are Scarface.”

“You have major antagonists around to build a really good, longer-term story,” he told The Associated Press. That allows for options “we haven’t had a chance to explore yet, including antagonists that aren’t complete ‘black hats,’ that can be more nuanced.”

Law & Order: Organized Crime also brings a new writerproducer to the franchise’s ranks, Ilene Chaiken, whose credits include the groundbreaking The L Word, which featured LGBTQ characters, and The Handmaid’s Tale.

“I’ve known her by reputation for a long time,” Wolf said.

“Over the last 30 years there’s very few truly landmark shows, but The L Word is one of them.”

Chaiken is “not only skilled, she’s incredibly insightful about human emotion” and with a different “rhythm” than he has, Wolf said. He called that a necessity for Organized Crime, with Meloni’s Stabler among the most “pre-Miranda cops on television.”

In other words, the sort of law enforcement officer who didn’t like to play by the rules, such as informing a person under arrest of their rights—the sort of character that TV once routinely celebrated as heroic.

“What she had to do was keep that character intact, but soften and change him in a believable manner that got him into the present, so that’s he’s not a dinosaur,” Wolf said. “Not an easy thing to do.”

The franchise’s theme music will be featured, with what he fondly calls yet another “Goldberg Variations”—a reference to Bach’s 19th-century aria and its 30 iterations. The Law & Order tune is practically an American standard, given the original show’s ubiquity in reruns and the enduring Law & Order: SVU, now in its 22nd season with Mariska Hargitay.

The new series is just part of the expansive TV real estate Wolf’s empire occupies, including NBC’s Chicago Fire and its pair of spinoffs, and CBS’s FBI and its about-to-be two spinoffs, with the recent announcement of FBI: International for next season. All are produced by Wolf Entertainment and Universal Television.

He cites Charles Dickens as inspiration for his intertwined shows, explaining how his approach compares to that of the British novelist.

“It’s Dickens’ London: Anybody who appears in any of the books can appear in any of the others,” he said, excepting A Tale of Two Cities, which adds Paris to the mix. Wolf owns all the books in the format in which they were released, most in monthly sections.

“People would line up for six hours” for the next installment, he said. And, like TV and unlike films, the story could go on as long as the author and the public wanted.

“A movie exists for 110 minutes. A successful show exists for 110 hours,” Wolf said. AP

JANINE GUTIERREZ (from left), director JP Habac and JC Santos

E

VERYONE seems to be talking about the movie Dito at Doon, a small beautiful film from TBA Studios that explores connections and misconnections, telling us about the similarities and differences in that complicated thing called love, making us go through the little joys and big emotions on-screen during this difficult time of pandemic lockdown when movements are restricted, and freedom in a general seems to be on pause.

Logging on at the standard one and a half hours, the film is probably one of the few good ones produced during the past year, when life suddenly took on a different turn for most of us. Intelligently written by the duo of Kristin Barrameda and Alex Gonzales, and exquisitely directed by JP Habac, the movie soared higher largely because of its wonderful casting, led by JC Santos and Janine Gutierrez.

We have written about Janine recently and join many of our peers that opine about her being the next best actress to watch out for. The brave and brilliant young actress trusted her intuition, took a leap of faith, and made a major career decision that defied the odds, making her a happier creative artist.

But we are particularly happy for JC, whose years in theater have molded him to be the sensitive actor that he is today.

We have seen a few of his performances onstage— Orosman at Zafira, Atang, Kung Paano Ako Naging Leading Lady, Constellations and Lam-Ang. We also saw his development as an actor in the independent film circuit in movies, like Esprit de Corps, Imbisibol, Sakalaing Hindi Makarating, 100 Tula Para kay Stella and Motel Acacia.

Last year, Santos became a first-time dad and

his world automatically took a different turn. “My daughter, who just turned one, was born just a few weeks before the local lockdown and I became a more sensitive, more protective, more focused man. You see, these are extraordinary times and becoming a family man at a time like this requires you to have more than just balls,” he told us.

And because these times require us to not only calibrate our minds and thought patterns but also to think about things and situations more logically, Santos had so many things running in his mind.

“What are the work possibilities for actors, for me?

How safe will the work environments be? Where is the safest place to work where I and my co workers can still remain healthy? All these questions went

‘Karelasyon’ joins GMA’s afternoon lineup BEGINNING April 5, the award-winning drama anthology series Karelasyon spices up GMA afternoon lineup with the show’s much-loved episodes airing from Monday to Saturday after Eat Bulaga.

Produced by GMA Public Affairs, Karelasyon first aired in 2015 and was hosted by Carla Abellana. Each episode featured various GMA stars with stories written and directed by acclaimed film writers and directors.

On the first week of its return, the show brings back the stories that reveal the real nature of relationships, based on true-to-life experiences of people who have faced different ordeals in the hopes of keeping the love of their lives.

This Tuesday, the anthology series features “Martir” bannered by Max Collins as Emily, who believes her relationship with boyfriend Alvin (Rafael Rosell) can still work out despite the latter’s dangerous habit.

Meanwhile, catch the story of “Instant Baby” featuring Rocco Nacino on Wednesday. Paul (Rocco) and his wife Lily (Kris Bernal) are not able to bear a child. They get an offer

to adopt the yet-to-be-born baby of Rowena (Karen delos Reyes)—but with a price that the couple did not expect.

On Thursday, Karelasyon airs the episode “Sulot” which narrates how Jane’s (Jade Lopez) relationship with her gay best friend Mico (Gio Alvarez) is put on a line when she gets attracted to Mico’s lover.

Kristoffer Martin headlines Friday’s episode, titled “Mama’s Boy.” Former nightclub dancer Abby (Louise delos Reyes) married Marcus (Kristoffer) in the hopes of finding a better life. But her new husband’s extreme attachment to his own mother threatens to wreck their young marriage.

Capping off the first week of Karelasyon episodes is “Puri” top billed by Yasmien Kurdi. Sandra (Yasmien) and Martin (Ervic Vijandre) are conservative lovers who are preparing for their wedding. But before this anticipated event, a horrendous crime happens to the bride.

More well-received episodes of Karelasyon await viewers in the following weeks.

Archbishop: Harry, Meghan didn’t wed before Windsor service LONDON—The archbishop of Canterbury has confirmed that he legally married Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at Windsor Castle in May 2018, despite the couple’s claim that they had another, private, ceremony three days earlier.

During an interview with Oprah Winfrey earlier this month, Meghan said that “three days before our wedding we got married.”

“We called the archbishop and we just said, look, this thing, this spectacle is for the world, but we want our union between us,” she said. “So the vows that we have framed in our room are just the two of us in our backyard with the archbishop of Canterbury.”

Justin Welby said the couple were legally married at the castle on May 19, 2018 but would not disclose what occurred at private meetings before that.

“I signed the wedding certificate, which is a legal document, and I would have committed a serious criminal offence if I signed it knowing it was false,” said Welby, who is head of the church of England.

Welby told Italian newspaper La Repubblica that “I won’t say what happened

through my mind many, many times,” he said.

He was lucky to have found some work on TV, and then this awesome find. Santos should be thankful for projects, like Dito at Doon, because not only do these roles challenge him as an actor but also such work opportunities allow him to work with people and teams with no overbearing egos.

With the final cut locked and the film accessed by the public, it has become all about how meticulously crafted, wonderfully put together and naturally acted the movie is, and for us who continue to hope for good, local films despite the insurmountable challenges these productions have to hurdle, a film like Dito at Doon certainly gives us the happy kind of surprise that we need especially during these trying times. ■

BRITAIN’S Prince Harry pulls back the veil of Meghan Markle watched

by Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby during their wedding at Saint George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle in Windsor, near London, England, in 2018. AP

at any other meetings.” He said he’d had “a number of private and pastoral meetings with the duke and duchess before the wedding.”

In the interview with Winfrey, Meghan claimed that she had experienced racism and callous treatment from the royal

household and the press during her time as a working member of the royal family.

In early 2020, Meghan and Harry announced they were quitting royal duties and moving to North America, citing what they said were the unbearable intrusions and racist attitudes of the British media. AP

PMPC PRESENTS ‘AWIT SA PANDEMYA’ VIRTUAL CONCERT ON APRIL 18

BY LEONY R. GARCIA WITH the more aggressive and deadly virus variants in our midst, the more we need to be extra careful. Everyone ought to follow strict health protocols and government guidelines.

Stay at home unless your travel is essential in nature.

To help ease the lockdown crazies, the Philippine Movie Press Club Inc., the pioneering group of entertainment press in the country, presents Awit sa Pandemya: A PMPC Benefit Concert on April 18 (Sunday), via the Ticket2me.net platform, 8 pm (PHST, SGT), 5 am (PDT).

A virtual concert gathering the country’s popular performers, Awit sa Pandemya aims to entertain the fans and followers of local celebrities at this time of the pandemic. The event also serves as a call for unity as we all continue pray for a better tomorrow. Furthermore, it serves as a fundraiser for the press club, with

the proceeds to be used in the medical assistance of the PMPC officers and members, especially those in their senior years who are in dire need for medicine and their daily maintenance.

Awit sa Pandemya boasts of an impressive lineup that includes Alden Richards, Christian Bautista, Jed Madela, Kuh Ledesma, Gerald Santos, Ima Castro, Luke Mejares, Jeric Gonzales, together with (in alphabetical order) JV Decena, Gari Escobar, Christi Fider, Joaquin Garcia, Jos Garcia, Sarah Javier, Charo Laude, Diane de Mesa, Renz Robosa, Lil Vinceyy, and the Zcentido Ska Band.

A project of the PMPC Special Project Committee, queries on sponsorship, support and other matters regarding this event, may be relayed through 0905-3595091 (Roldan), 0927-7489834 (Fernan) or 0995-4432503 (Rommel).

Stay safe at the comfort of your home and enjoy the show. More information is available at 0918-8427346.

B6 Tuesday, April 6, 2021

DSWD provides technical assistance to LGUs during ECQ in NCR+

As COVID cases surge, DDB removes LHQW from the Dangerous Drugs List

P

ROFESSOR Guido David of the OCTA Research Groups expressed concern over the spike in new cases after restrictions on travel, business establishments, and mass gatherings have been eased.

With infection rate reaching 5,0009,000 plus this March 2021, the highest tally in the last seven months, The Philippine College of Emergency Medicine reported an observation of family clustering of COVID cases.

Health experts agree that this is not the time to let our guard down and in fact, there is a need to respond to the situation urgently and with great caution to effectively manage and control the spread of the virus.

While waiting for more vaccines to be delivered to our country, Phil.

Archipelago Intl. Trading Corp. took a proactive approach and requested the Office of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte for the reclassification of Lianhua Qingwen capsules to over the counter (OTC) to make them more accessible to our fellow Filipinos.

This was referred to the Committee on Reclassification of the Dangerous Drugs Board, and after the conduct of a public hearing, in-depth discussions, and a thorough evaluation, it was favorably recommended by the Committee and resolved by the DDB

Board under Regulation No.1 Series of 2021 to remove Lianhua Qingwen capsules from the list of dangerous drugs for a period of one (1) year pursuant to section 93 of RA 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drug Act of 2002. The said DDB Regulation takes effect 15 days after publication, which in this case was on March 12, 2021. The effectiveness of the DDB Regulation comes at a time when we need all the help we can get to curb the surge and bring it down to more manageable level.

M

ARCH 31, 2021 was a momentous day for Asian Hospital and Medical Center (AHMC) as the 2nd dose vaccine against COVID-19 were inoculated to its employees.

AHMC strongly supports the Philippine government and the DOH vaccination program against COVID-19 as this is our hope in alleviating the spread of this virus. Despite the surge of infection that our country is experiencing, this 2nd dose of vaccine gives us the opportunity to be immune to the virus so we can rebuild our community and country.

The first recipient of the vaccine (1st dose and 2nd dose) was Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr. Jose M. Acuin at the Conference Facility Unit where a team of multidisciplinary professionals were stationed to be part of the program.

Those who received the 2nd dose were Human Resources Director Ms. Aimee

In the meantime, while awaiting the decision of the FDA on whether they will reclassify it as OTC, Lianhua Qingwen’s current classification is Prescription Drug (Rx)—requiring a doctor’s prescription. Prescriptionholding consumers may purchase in all Mercury drug stores nationwide and other drug stores at a suggested retail price of P288.00/box (24 capsules/box).

For more information on Lianhua Qingwen, visit www.philarchipelago.com or call tel. no. (02) 8361-7491 to 98 loc. 844.

Jane Martinez; Innovation, Sales and Marketing Director Dr. Jesus Randy Cañal; and Asian Hospital Professional Staff Association President and Emergency Medicine Consultant, Dr. Erick Tiongson.

Close to 3,000 employees including doctors, nurses and other hospital workers were vaccinated to complete their 2nd dose.

AHMC formed a Vaccination Task Force to solely focus on the vaccination program which includes members of its medical community, and representatives from different units such as Human Resources, Infection Prevention and Control Committee, Pharmacy Services, Quality Management, Medical Informatics, Corporate Communications and so on.

The Vaccination Task Force also included a team monitoring and attending to concerns on Adverse Effects Following Immunization (AEFI) of every vaccinee.

Smile Train Philippines receives several awards for its Telehealth and Virtual Speech Program

S

DSWD added that the LGUs may include other beneficiaries such as lowincome individuals living alone and belonging to the most affected and vulnerable sectors.

DSWD will provide the list to the LGUs today, at the earliest, to enable them to start the distribution of the aid to the qualified recipients that will be given in cash or in kind depending on the discretion of the LGUs. The DSWD commits to assist the LGUs of the National Capital Region, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna and Rizal to ensure efficient and effective delivery of the needed assistance.

BPI-Philam warns against top deadly diseases in PH, offers health insurance with wellness program

AHMC begins the 2nd dose of COVID-19 vaccine inoculation

MILE Train has always been committed to exploring various avenues and utilizing technology through its Virtual Telehealth Program and Speech Camp to reach more patients and communities in the country.

The programs received recognitions from peers in the communications industry from the Public Relations Society of the Philippines (PRSP) and the Philippine Chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC).

The awards received by the program underscored the dedication and commitment of the volunteers, healthcare institutions, and corporate partners of Smile Train Philippines to rally support for cleft patients so that they may still receive comprehensive cleft care even during the pandemic.

Smile Train’s Speech Telehealth Program in the Philippines has supported more than 100 patients, providing them with more than 700 cleft care-related sessions, including speech therapy, nutritional support, breastfeeding guidance for mothers of babies with clefts, pre-surgical consultations, and psychosocial care.

Results which made it possible for

A

S part of its technical assistance, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) said that it will provide the list of beneficiaries of Emergency Subsidy Program (ESP) to the local government units (LGUs) covered by the latest financial assistance of the government to low-income beneficiaries that are affected by the imposition of the enhanced community quarantine from March 29 to April 4.

The list of beneficiaries served in the ESP implementation may be used by the LGUs as a reference for identifying the individuals who will be given aid in their respective localities. Based on the issuance of the Department of Budget and Management, an eligible individual is entitled to PhP1,000.00, provided that the assistance given to a family should not exceed the cap of PhP 4,000.00.

the programs to be conferred with the Silver Anvil Award at PRSP’s 56th Anvil Awards and a Merit Award at IABC’s 18th Philippines Quill Awards.

Launched in April 2020, two weeks into the lockdown, the Virtual Telehealth program is manned by volunteer speech language pathologists. Maximizing technology and social media, the Virtual Telehealth Program made use of Facebook Live, chat applications such as Viber and Messenger, and online discussions to ensure that speech therapy classes continued virtually. More than that, the Telehealth Program managed to reach cleft patients who live in rural or isolated communities and made its services

more readily available or convenient for people with limited mobility, time, or transportation options.

Smile Train believes that every child is worthy of the opportunity to live a normal life. Its pivot to providing speech therapy sessions online during such challenging times is a testament to the foundation’s agility and diligence to providing quality comprehensive cleft care to the ever-evolving needs of its beneficiaries. The program not only showcased how Smile Train was able to adapt swiftly but it also helped in highlighting the different gaps present when it comes to the assistance needed by cleft lip and palate patients.

Manila Doctors Hospital, St. Luke’s Medical Center (Quezon City and Bonifacio Global City), The Medical City, and Cardinal Santos Medical Center.

A

MID the continued fight against COVID-19, bancassurance leader BPI-Philam urges the public to be wary of other diseases that cause the most deaths in the Philippines. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the top causes of death in the country in 2020 were ischemic heart diseases (99,680 registered deaths), neoplasms or cancers (62,289), and cerebrovascular diseases (59,736). The same diseases were the top causes of death from 2015 to 2019 as well.

The leading death cause, ischemic heart diseases, increased about 2.3% this year from the 97.5 thousand deaths in 2019 and the average 82,547 deaths from 2015 to 2019. Meanwhile, neoplasms and cerebrovascular diseases decreased 9.3% and 6%, respectively, from 2019.

“On top of our battle with the pandemic, it’s clear in the statistics that certain diseases have been taking a toll for several years now. It’s crucial then to take action towards enabling more Filipinos with access to quality yet affordable health care while implementing the necessary sector reforms. BPI-Philam is committed to do its part by providing solutions that not only address immediate needs but have long-term benefits too,” said BPI-Philam Chief Executive Officer Surendra Menon.

MedLife Protect Plus

BPI-Philam combines the power of a robust life and health insurance plan with its proprietary wellness program to help Filipinos manage their expenses and take better care of their total well-being. It recently launched an investment-linked life and health insurance product that gives considerable protection and better access to medical care with minimal out-of-pocket expenses. The product, MedLife Protect Plus, covers even the leading diseases like hypertensive diseases, chronic respiratory diseases, cancers, and diabetes except when it is a pre-existing condition at the time of subscription.

When choosing a health insurance plan that can help address top diseases, BPI-Philam says consumers should check whether the policy provides enough coverage for basic in-patient hospitalization, critical care, surgical benefit, and emergency services; recovery care coverage; as well as access to a wide network of health care providers. This is crucial to ensure the early management of diseases and give the patient better chances at recovery.

MedLife Protect Plus, for instance, provides coverage of up to 90% of medical costs and access to the wide network of accredited providers by leading healthcare administration firm AVEGA. This includes but is not limited to the Asian Hospital and Medical Center, Makati Medical Center,

Prevention through healthy lifestyle choices

WHILE it is uncertain how many Filipinos are predisposed to the top deadly diseases, there are ways to prevent and control them before they worsen or become fatal.

In the same way that the WHO provides information and guidance on various evidence-based interventions, BPI-Philam is giving customers the option to integrate their MedLife Protect Plus plan with Philam Vitality, a science-backed health and wellness program. By making healthy lifestyle choices, Philam Vitality active customers reap rewards in the form of special perks from lifestyle establishments, as well as boosts in insurance coverage by as much as 50 percent.

Proven performance

AT less than a year since its launch in September 2020, MedLife Protect Plus has already been able to service a client who was diagnosed of having a small myoma.

A former overseas Filipino worker who came home to be with her family for good due to the pandemic, the patient was diagnosed in just a month after getting their policy. The prescribed surgery would have cost her about PHP200,000 in medical bills, a sizable amount for many Filipino families, but her health card covered most of it, allowing the patient to focus on getting better instead.

“Dismissing life and health insurance thinking that one is physically fit or doesn’t feel anything out of the ordinary is equivalent to having a false sense of invincibility to life’s uncertainties. But having certain diseases cause the most deaths year over year should be proof enough that the threat is ever present. We can’t always control what will happen in the future, but we can always focus on what we can do to secure it,” Menon said.

The premium payment can go as low as PHP1,986 per month for an 18-year-old male, payable until the age of 65 and with benefit coverage until 80 years old. Premium will vary based on several factors such as age, gender, and health status. MedLife Protect Plus is designed to benefit the underserved market including freelancers, owners of small businesses and their employees, as well as OFWs and their families. Apart from health insurance, it provides up to 90x life insurance benefit and built-in cash value passive income through investments. The provider, BPIPhilam, is the bancassurance arm of AIA Philam Life in the Philippines. More information about products and services is available at the website <bpi-philam.com>, thru the virtual assistant Bessie (via Messenger), or on Facebook <fb.com/BPIPhilamOfficial>.

IABC PH holds 18th Philippine Quill and 8th Student Quill Virtual Awards

T

HE first virtual Philippine Quill awards was aired on Youtube on March 25, 2021 at six in the evening.

Hosted by ABSCBN's Ron Cruz, the twohour ceremony honored 408 awardees in the student and professional levels who achieved the IABC's international standards of excellence in communication strategy and campaign implementation. Belle Tiongco, President of IABC Philippines, announced,” On behalf of the Board of trustees of the IABC Phils, I wish to thank the schools, students, communications agencies, non·profit organizations, government agencies, private and corporate organizations, for their support to the annual Philippine Quill and Student Quill awards. We are very proud that year after year, this flagship awards program has become bigger and better as entries exemplify the highest global standards of excellence. Remarkably, even during a challenging year, we delivered with

enthusiasm and optimism."

"I believe our virtual event highlighted the important role that communicators played, and continue to play during this pandemic. Words have power, and with creativity and commitment those words transform our darkness into light, our disappointments into hope, and that together we all keep the faith - and we win! " added Joe Zaldarriaga, IABC Phils Chairman and Vice President for Corporate Communications of Meralco.

BusinessMirror was media partner.

All results were validated by the official tabulator Reyes Tacandong & Co. IABC Philippines celebrated its 38th year in 2020, and is the first chapter outside the United States of America. It upholds excellence in business communication through masterclasses and other learning activities that equip its members with trends and global-standard communication skills and strategies.

www.businessmirror.com.ph • Editor: Angel R. Calso

The World BusinessMirror

Tuesday, April 6, 2021

B7

Mumbai locks down as India posts 103,558 new infections

In this image made from video, soldiers and police officers assist residents to cross a flooded road in Malaka Tengah, East Nusa Tenggara province, Indonesia on April 5. Multiple disasters caused by torrential rains in eastern Indonesia have left dozens of people dead and missing and displaced thousands, the country’s disaster relief agency said Monday. AP

Indonesia landslides, floods kill 55 people; dozens missing

J

AKARTA, Indonesia—Multiple disasters caused by torrential rains in eastern Indonesia have killed at least 55 people and displaced thousands, the country’s disaster relief agency said Monday. More than 40 other people were missing.

Mud tumbled down from surrounding hills onto dozens of homes in Lamenele village shortly after midnight on Adonara Island in East Nusa Tenggara province.

Rescuers recovered 38 bodies and at least five people were injured, said Lenny Ola, who heads the local disaster agency.

Flash flooding killed at least 17 people elsewhere and at least 42 are missing, according to the National Disaster Mitigation Agency.

Relief efforts were hampered by power cuts, blocked roads covered in thick mud and debris as well as the remoteness of the area on an island surrounded by choppy seas and high waves, said the agency’s spokesman, Raditya Jati.

The bodies of three people were recovered after being swept away by floods in Oyang Bayang village, where 40 houses were also destroyed, Ola said. Hundreds of people fled submerged homes, some of which were carried off by the floodwaters.

In another village, Waiburak, three people were killed and seven missing after overnight rains caused rivers to burst their banks,

sending muddy water into large areas of East Flores district, Ola said. Four injured people were being treated at a local health clinic.

The death toll reached 55 by Monday morning after the rains caused cold lava to tumble down the slopes of Ili Lewotolok volcano and hit several villages, Jati said.

That disaster on Lembata Island killed at least 11, while at least 16 others were still buried under tons of cold lava, Jati said.

The lava was left after the volcano had erupted in November.

Hundreds of people were still involved in the rescue efforts as of late Sunday, Jati told a news conference. At least six villages have been affected by flash floods and a landslide that cut five bridges on the island, he said.

Photos released by the agency showed rescuers and police and military personnel taking residents to shelters.

Authorities were still collecting information about the full scale of casualties and damage in the affected areas, Jati said. Severe flooding also has been reported in Bima, a town in the neighboring province of West Nusa Tenggara, forcing nearly 10,000 people to flee.

Seasonal rains frequently cause flooding and landslides in Indonesia, an archipelago of 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or near fertile flood plains. AP

Covax chief: Vaccine rollout to exceed 100 countries soon

C

oronavirus shots should be rolled out to over 100 countries in the next couple of weeks, from 84 at present, with a shortage of supplies the limiting factor, said one of the leaders of the World Health Organization’s vaccine initiative.

“If we had more doses, we could make these available,” Seth Berkley, chief executive officer of Gavi Alliance, a public-private partnership that works to provide vaccines for developing countries, told CBS News’ “Face the Nation.”

“What we’re talking about now is ultimately getting access to the large manufacturing facilities,” Berkley said from Geneva. Once US needs are met later this year, for example, those plants “really could be used to come online for the rest of the world.”

Countries like the US, the UK and Israel, and the developed world in general, have marched ahead with their vaccination programs since the first shots were approved in late 2020.

On the other end of the scale, more than 30 countries haven’t yet started or have barely commenced vaccinations, including much of Africa, according to the WHO. “The big challenge here is the inequity that we talk about between developed countries and developing countries,” said Berkley, an epidemiologist.

“We are only safe if everybody is safe, and nothing tells us this like the new variants, because if we have large populations that are not vaccinated, then there is the risk that we will see new variants pop out and they will continue to spread across the world,” he said.

Berkley said Covax, the largest global vaccination program

in histor y, has placed orders for more than 2 billion shots, but most will come in the second half of the year. He tied the delay to “vaccine nationalism” that’s meant there are less doses available.

India, for example, is the largest supplier of vaccines to the developing world, and it’s cut exports in a bid to more quickly vaccinate people at home in response to a new wave of Covid outbreaks, he said. “We had expected, in March and April, about 90 million doses, and we suspect we’ll get much, much less than that, and that is a problem,” he said.

In the US, President Joe Biden by early March had ordered almost enough Covid-19 shots to fully inoculate every American adult twice.

The US, with 4 percent of the world’s population, has injected about a quarter of the world’s Covid shots to date. It’s also had the world’s highest total number of Covid cases, at over 30.6 million, and deaths, at almost 555,000.

The EU, Canada and Mexico have all asked Washington to consider sharing doses more widely, including vaccines that haven’t yet been approved for use in the US. In mid-March the White House said it would “loan” 4 million doses to its two North American neighbors.

Berkley said the US has been a “fabulous supporter of Gavi and of Covax” but that he hopes at some point it will provide access to manufacturing capacity.

“Once the US needs are met, those facilities really could be used to come online for the rest of the world, which could help stop the acute pandemic,” he said.

Bloomberg News

I

ndia added more than 100,000 infections over the last 24-hours, a record increase that pushed its richest state to order offices to work from home and shut malls and restaurants through April.

Maharashtra, which houses financial hub Mumbai and contributes about 15 percent of national output, will halt all non-essential services from 8 p.m. on Monday.

Private offices were asked to work from home, with some allowances for banks and stock exchanges.

The country reported 103,558 new infections, according to data from the federal Health Ministry on Monday.

“There is an alarming rate of growth of Covid-19 cases and deaths in the country,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s federal government said in a statement over the weekend.

As infection numbers continue to spiral five Indian states are in the middle of local elections with thousands of people thronging to campaign rallies, while the northern Uttarakhand is marking the

month-long Hindu pilgrimage of the Kumbh Mela, which draws hundreds of thousands of people to the banks of the Ganges River.

Maharashtra is the epicenter of this fresh outbreak, which follows an unexplained lull in recent months that allowed businesses to re-open and fostered optimism among policy makers about a recovery in growth. The renewed restrictions will weigh on the central bank, whose officials meet Monday through Wednesday to decide monetary policy.

India’s S&P BSE Sensex Index dropped as much as 1 percent in early trading on Monday as investors weighed the impact of a virus resurgence on companies’ earnings. Twelve of 19 sector sub-indexes compiled by BSE Ltd. dropped, led by gauges of banks and financial companies. Hotels

A health worker administers the COVISHIELD vaccine for Covid-19 at a Government Fever Hospital in Hyderabad, India on April 1, 2021. India is accelerating its vaccination drive by opening it up for everyone above 45 years just as cases spike sharply after several months. AP/Mahesh Kumar A.

and cinema operators plunged.

Asia’s third-largest economy had slumped into a historic recession last year af ter Mod i announced a sudden and strict nationwide lockdown. Most experts attribute the resurgence in infections to residents flouting health and safety rules after a re-open was permitted, while some of f icia ls inconc lusively blame a new infectious strain of the coronavirus.

The country has made little

progress in sequencing its test samples, with news reports stating that less than 1 percent of samples have so far been studied.

Maharashtra accounted for 57 percent of new infections over the past 14 days and 47 percent of deaths during the period. More than half of the state’s hospital beds are occupied and authorities warned that health care systems could be overwhelmed in 15-20 days unless the rate of growth is significantly curbed. Bloomberg News

Malaysian ex-PM Najib appeals graft conviction in 1MDB saga

P

UTR AJAYA, Malaysia—A Malaysian court on Monday began hearing an appeal by ex-Prime Minister Najib Razak to overturn his conviction and 12year jail sentence linked to the massive looting of the 1MDB state investment fund that brought down his government in 2018.

The appeal came more than eight months after a high court found Najib guilty of abuse of power, criminal breach of trust and money laundering, making him the first Malaysian leader to be convicted. He has said he was misled by rogue bankers and that the case against him is political.

The ruling was part of the first of several corruption trials against Najib that are linked to the 1MDB scandal, which sparked investigations in the US and several other countries. US investigators alleged that over $4.5 billion was stolen

Former Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, center, wearing a face mask arrives at Court of Appeal in Putrajaya, Malaysia on April 5. The court Monday began hearing an appeal by Najib to overturn his conviction and 12-year jail sentence linked to the massive looting of the 1MDB state investment fund that brought down his government in 2018. AP/Vincent Thian

from 1MDB and laundered by Najib’s associates.

Najib, 67, arrived at the Court of Appeal early Monday but didn’t speak to reporters. Najib, who set

up 1MDB shortly after taking office in 2009, has denied all wrongdoing and his sentence was stayed pending the appeal.

Last July, Najib made brief re-

marks under oath before his sentencing, saying he wasn’t aware of the 42 million ringgit ($10 million) channeled into his bank accounts from SRC International, a former 1MDB unit.

But the judge ruled that Najib’s argument that he was duped by Malaysian fugitive financier Low Taek Jho into believing the money was part of a donation by the Saudi royal family, to keep Najib from being suspicious of 1MDB plundering, was far-fetched and a weak fabrication.

Investigators have identified Low as the mastermind behind the looting of 1MDB and he remains at large.

Najib’s second and third trials involving some of the remaining charges are ongoing. His wife and several officials from his party and previous government have also been charged with graft related to 1MDB corruption. AP

Jordan’s King Abdullah sends tough message on dissent in royal family

J

ERUSALEM—Jordanian authorities said Sunday they foiled a “malicious plot” by a former crown prince to destabilize the kingdom with foreign support, contradicting the senior royal’s claims that he was being punished for speaking out against corruption and incompetence.

Faced with rival narratives, the United States and Arab governments quickly sided with Jordan’s King Abdullah II, reflecting the country’s strategic importance in a turbulent region.

Domestically, Prince Hamzah’s unprecedented criticism of the ruling class—without naming the king—could lend support to growing complaints about poor governance and human rights abuses in Jordan.

At the same time, the king’s tough reaction— placing his popular half-brother under house arrest and accusing him of serious crimes—illustrated the limits on public dissent he is willing to tolerate.

“The kingdom’s stability and security transcend everything,” said Ayman Safadi, Jordan’s foreign minister and deputy prime minister, as he accused Hamzah and two senior Jordanian officials of conspiring with foreign elements to destabilize the kingdom. “The plot is totally contained.”

Yet Safadi’s news conference on Sunday did little to address questions surrounding the weekend’s dramatic events. In the night from Saturday to Sunday, Hamzah had announced in a secretly recorded video leaked to the media that he had been placed under house arrest.

Hamzah’s mother, Noor, weighed in on Twitter,

writing Sunday: “Praying that truth and justice will prevail for all the innocent victims of this wicked slander. God bless and keep them safe.”

Abdullah and Hamzah are both sons of the late King Hussein, who remains a beloved figure two decades after his death. Upon ascending to the throne in 1999, Abdullah named Hamzah as crown prince, only to revoke the title five years later. While the two are said to have generally good relations, Hamzah has at times spoken out against government policies, and more recently had forged ties with powerful tribal leaders in a move seen as a threat to the king.

In his video, Hamzah, 41, accused Jordan’s ruling class of corruption and stifling freedom of expression.

“I’m not part of any conspiracy or nefarious organization or foreign-backed group, as is always the claim here for anyone who speaks out,” he said. He said his love for the country is seen as “a crime worthy of isolation, threats and now being cut off.”

Hamzah is a popular figure in Jordan, widely seen as pious and modest. But in his televised address, Safadi painted a far different picture, accusing the prince of engaging in a secret plot that would have harmed national security had it not been foiled at the last minute.

“When they [security services] intercepted certain communications speaking about a zero hour, then it was clear that they [the alleged plotters] moved from designs and planning to action,” Safadi said.

“As a result, it was necessary for the security and

intelligence apparatuses to move to throttle at birth this malicious plot.”

Safadi did not provide specifics on the alleged plot or say what other countries were purported to have been involved. But he said that some 14 to 16 associates of Hamzah had been arrested, in addition to two former senior officials, Bassem Awadallah and Sharif Hassan bin Zaid, a member of the royal family.

Awadallah is a former Cabinet minister and one-time head of the royal court.

Safadi said Hamzah was warned Saturday by the country’s military chief to halt his activities but rejected the request. He claimed the prince recorded the conversations, passed them to foreign sources and issued his video message “in an attempt to distort facts and to gain sympathy domestically and internationally.” He said the prince’s activities amounted to “incitement and efforts to mobilize citizens against the state.”

Safadi accused Awadallah, now a prominent businessman in the Gulf, of handling the contacts with foreigners. He also claimed an individual with links to foreign intelligence services had offered services to Hamzah’s wife on Saturday afternoon to try to get her out of the country.

The Jordanian news site Amoon identified the individual as an Israeli named Roy Shaposhnik. In a statement to the AP, Shaposhnik identified himself as a “former Israeli” businessman living in Europe, and a close friend of Hamzah’s, but denied ever being an intelligence agent. He said he offered to host Hamzah’s wife and children after hearing about the prince’s

predicament. The offer, he said, was based on the “strong personal friendship” between their families.

Safadi declined to say whether the prince would be charged with a crime, saying only there were attempts to resolve the matter amicably.

Such public clashes between the highest ranks of the long-ruling family are unheard of, and any signs of instability in Jordan could raise concerns throughout the region.

The United States swiftly announced its “full support” for Abdullah. Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman and Kuwait all expressed solidarity with the king.

Labib Kamhawi, a Jordanian political analyst, said the strong support for Abdullah reflected his generally good relations across the region as well as a concern that similar troubles could strike other countries.

None of the leaders in the region “would like to see havoc hitting any regime,” Kamhawi said. “It could be contagious.”

The US considers Jordan a major ally, granting it access to military equipment and assistance. US special forces and other troops routinely train with the Jordanians. The kingdom hosts some 3,000 American troops.

Stability in Jordan and the status of the king have long been a concern throughout the region, particularly during the Trump administration, which gave unprecedented support to Israel and sought to isolate the Palestinians, including by slashing funding for Palestinian refugees. AP

Sports

Nesthy, Carlo win, but not Irish in first tune-up fight in one year

BusinessMirror

B8

| Tuesday, April 6, 2021 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

N

THEY’RE DANCING IN ITALY R

OME—Social distancing isn’t usually part of the ballroom dancing lexicon.

But in an industrial zone on the outskirts of Rome, couples of every age twirl and turn across the dance floor, even through a pandemic, just as ballroom dancers have done for decades around the world.

While much of Italy is in a coronavirus lockdown, with live music and theatrical performances barred, cinemas shuttered and many sporting activities limited, competitive ballroom dancing is alive and well here, albeit with precautions.

The couples at the New Dancing Days hall are preparing for the Italian Championships in Rimini in July and as such are allowed to keep practicing, given that the government considers their activity in the national interest. It’s the same allowance that has enabled other federally recognized competitive athletes to keep training in Italy even during the latest round of virusrelated closures.

“Yes, we can do it. Here we can keep on dancing,” said Raffaella Serafini, the 45-yearold owner of New Dancing Days and a 35-year veteran of competitive ballroom dancing.

In the huge hall with mirrors on the walls and multi-colored lights, couples wear masks during warm-ups and pauses but are allowed to remove them while performing traditional ballroom or Latin dances. Most keep them on anyway.

“It’s something beautiful for us because we’re older, but we can still put ourselves in play,” said Franco Cauli, a 70-year-old dancer who along with his 74-year-old partner is training for a competition at the end of April.

He said he felt safe with the health protocols taken by the school and says participants rigorously respect them.

The Italian Dance Sport Federation has decreed that 34 athletes are allowed to train in a school the size of New Dancing Days, recognizing that continuity in practice is necessary. Currently there are 17 couples, aged nine to 76, who train up to five days a week.

From a viewing spot above the dance floor, Serafini keeps an eye on her twirling students and shouts directions to them. If she sees something wrong, she’ll stop the music, go down to the dance floor and demonstrate the correct way to do a step, pose or twirl.

“The school is my great pride. When I see them on the dance floor, it is like I am there,” she said.

IKEE QUALIFIES FOR OLYMPICS

IN Tokyo, Japanese swimmer Rikako Ikee on Sunday qualified for the Tokyo Olympics just two years after she was diagnosed with leukemia.

She swam a time of 57.77 seconds in the 100-meter butterfly at Japan’s national championships held at the new swimming venue for the Tokyo Olympics. That qualified her for a place in the medley relay.

She was overcome with tears in the water after the race, and could barely speak out of the water later, sniffling and crying at the same time. She slammed her left arm against the water when she realized she’d won.

Caterina Galasso, 62, and Silvano Nocca, 72, pose for a portrait after a practice session at the New Dancing Days school in Rome, as leukemia-stricken Rikako Ikee qualifies for the Tokyo Olympics. AP

“I was not expecting to win the 100 meters at all, and I was feeling far less confident than during the Olympic qualifiers five years ago,” she said.

“I thought I wouldn’t be able to win for a long time. But I trained hard to win. And, in the end, I came into the race telling myself I’m back. And so I feel that, even if you go through suffering and pain, your hard work will always be rewarded.”

The 20-year-old Ikee returned to the pool about a year ago but had said her goal was only to prepare for the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

She had downplayed her chances for her home Olympics.

She would have been among the favorites in several Olympic races in Tokyo races if she had not fallen ill and faced setbacks.

“I wanted to try to feel true happiness just being here,” she added. “My teammates cheered me on, sending me off [to the race].

And so I am now filled with happiness.”

Ikee won six gold medals in 2018 at the Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia, which included the 50 and 100-meter freestyle, and the 50 and 100-meter butterfly. She also won gold in two relays, and added two silvers. AP

T

By Miguel La Torre

HE Professional Chess Association of the Philippines (PCAP) will play two more conferences in its maiden season and one of these tournaments will be named the Wesley So Cup after the super grandmaster who switched to US citizenship last February.

So, 27 and currently ranked No. 9 in the International Chess Federation, will be sponsoring the prize money for the second conference originally called the Reinforced Cup. “It will now be called the Wesley So Cup,” PCAP Commissioner Paul Elauria told a videolinked press conference on Monday.

Elauria said that it was So’s camp through his spokesperson, former Philippine actress Lotis Key, which offered to bankroll one of PCAP’s tournaments.

By Josef Ramos

ESTHY PETECIO and Carlo Paalam hurdled their opponents with relative ease but not Irish Magno in a one-day tournament serving as part of the Olympic-bound Filipino boxers’ training program in Thailand over the weekend.

Petecio knocked down Thai Porntip Buapa twice in securing the women’s featherweight victory, while Paalam defeated another local bet, Wuttichai Yurachai, in a men’s flyweight clash.

Magno, meanwhile, saw a wakeup call in her loss to Jitpong Jutamas in their women’s flyweight duel at the mini-tournament called the Thailand International Boxing Series 7 held at the Phetchbuncha Samui Stadium in Koh Samui island.

All three Olympic qualifiers fought for the first time after more than a year because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“I was defeated through points, I felt there’s still a lot of things I need to improve,” the 29-year-old Magno told BusinessMirror on Monday. “In the Olympics, I expect my opponents to be more competitive than here so I will triple my effort.”

Thai tops ANA, Saso shares 50th place

Y

UKA SASO recovered with a 71 in the final round on Sunday and wound up tied for 50th place in the ANA Inspiration that Thailand’s Patty Tavatanakit won by two strokes in Rancho Mirage, California.

After a horrendous 77 the day before, Saso nailed three birdies to cushion a double-bogey seven at Mission Hills’ Dinah Shore course for an even 288. She finished 18 strokes behind Tavatanakit and banked $10,081. Tavatanakit, meanwhile, had no idea Lydia Ko was tearing up the course three groups ahead.

“Didn’t look at the leaderboard at all today,” Tavatanakit said. “Just because—I saw her name up there, but I didn’t look at it—I wanted to play my own game, which I did, and did a really good job of that today.”

With a chip-in eagle on the par-5 second, two birdies and a lot of par saves, the long-hitting Thai survived Ko’s charge without realizing how close it was until she finished and was preparing for the traditional victory leap into Poppie’s Pond.

“Like I said, I didn’t really look at the leader-

OMBAT sports will be the topic of discussion as the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) Forum webcast edition resumes on Tuesday after the Holy Week break.

Association of Boxing Alliances in the

“We’re in constant communication with SGM [super grandmaster So] and Ms. Lotis Key. The idea to sponsor a PCAP tournament was theirs,” Elauria said.

“They told us that they want to help PCAP and we said that it’s an honor and we’ll name it the Wesley So Cup.” The total purse for the recently-concluded All-Filipino conference was P175,000 with Laguna Heroes bagging P100,000, Camarines Soaring Eagles P50,000 and Iloilo Kinsela Knights P25,000 for finishing in the podium.

Elauria said the So camp could be increasing the prize money for the second conference, the schedule of which has yet to be determined by the organization.

That P175,000, which converts to close to $3,500, would be generous for So, who pledged allegiance to the US flag only last February 26.

So, who was world No. 2 in March 2017,

Philippines (ABAP) Secretary General Ed Picson serves as the main guest in the two-part session presented by San Miguel Corp., Milo, Amelie Hotel Manila, Braska Restaurant and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.

Jayhawk and Tar Heel Vincent Juico @VJuico, Instagram vpjp_j, vince.juico@gmail.com

SPORTS WITHOUT BORDERS WHEN I saw the news on University of North Carolina (UNC) Tar Heels head coach Roy Williams’s retirement on April 1, I thought it was an April Fool’s Day joke.

It wasn’t. It wasn’t because the announcement was on every major news outlet in the US. As a die-hard fan of the Duke University Blue Devils, it made me nervous every time Duke had to play a Coach Williams-coached team, Kansas before, then UNC after.

After 33 years, 15 with the University of Kansas Jayhawks and 18 with his alma mater, the Tar Heels, Roy Williams is calling it a career.

According to cnn.com, “I love coaching, wor king with kids on the court and in the locker room...I will always love that and I’m scared to death of the next phase, but I no longer feel like I’m the right man.” Williams continues, “It’s been a thrill. It has been unbelievable. I’ve loved it. It’s coaching and that’s all I ever wanted to do since the summer after my ninth grade year of high school.”

He led the Jayhawks to two National Championship appearances and four Final Fours.

He coached the Tar Heels to three national titles (2005, 2009 and 2017).

According to the same article, Michael Jordan—who Williams personally recruited as

board,” Tavatanakit said “I didn’t really care who did anything. I just wanted to focus on myself.”

Five strokes ahead entering the day and six in front after the eagle, Tavatanakit shot a four-under 68 in 100-degree heat to beat Ko by two strokes in the first major championship of the year.

Ko matched Lorena Ochoa’s 2006 tournament record with a 62, shooting seven-under 29 on the front nine for the best nine-hole score in event’s 50year history. The New Zealander began the day tied for seventh at six under, eight strokes behind Tavatanakit in the tournament played without spectators for the second time in seven months.

“My game was really solid and I felt like I gave myself a good run at it, but maybe Patty was just a bit too far away,” said Ko, who was winless since April 2018. “I think it just shows it doesn’t matter how far back you are, you can always go for it.”

Nelly Korda (66), Sei Young Kim (66) and Nanna Koerstz Madsen (66) and Shanshan Feng (69) tied for third at 11 under. With AP

Super GM So sponsors purse for PCAP tourney

Forum on boxing, MMA C

Magno and men’s featherweight Eumir Felix Marcial, who is currently training at the Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles, earned their tickets to Tokyo at the Olympic qualifiers in Amman, Jordan, in March 2020.

Paalam and Petecio, on the other hand, earned tickets to the Olympics by virtue of their lofty positions in the world rankings.

“My coaches said it’s a step-by-step process. I need to study everything here. I am hoping to bounce back on Sunday in the next box-off,” said Magno, who beat Jutamas by split decision in the semifinals of the 2019 Southeast Asian Games in Manila but lost in the final to Vietnam’s Thi Tam Nguyen.

In the other fights that featured Filipinos, James Palicte lost to Somchay Wongsuwan in a men’s light welterweight bout and Marion Piñar bowed to Yeasungnoen Peerapat in a men’s welterweight clash. Women’s lightweight Riza Pasuit and featherweight Aira Villegas lost to Sudapon Seesondee and Preedakamon Tintabthai, respectively.

The Olympics are under four months away from July 23 to August 8.

assistant coach to the late great former Tar Heels Coach, Dean Smith—said, “His great success on the court is truly matched by the impact he had on the lives of the players he coached—including me.”

“I’m proud of the way he carried on the tradition of Coach Smith’s program, always putting his players first,” Jordan added.

Head Coach Mike Krzyzewski of rival Duke University said, “While we were on opposite sides of college basketball’s greatest rivalry, we both understood how lucky we were to be part of it and always tried to represent it in the way it deserved.

“Personally, I will miss competing against him, seeing him at coaches’ meetings and having the opportunity to discuss how to make our game even better,” Krzyzewski added.

Coach Williams leaves with a resume filled with 33 years of accomplishments and achievements, 903 wins—third most in NCAA college basketball history, second only to Mike Krzyzewski of Duke and Jim Boeheim of Syracuse.

According to ESPN.com, Williams said, “Everybody wants to know the reason, and the reason is very simple. Every time somebody asked me how long I was going to go, I’d always say, ‘As long as my health allows me to do it.’”

“But deep down inside, I knew the only thing that would speed that up was if I did not

SO

banked $30,000 for finishing fourth in his last tournament—Meltwater Champions Chess Tour Magnus Invitational last March 22—hiking his winnings early in the year to $85,000.

The PCAP also has yet to set a date for the Open Conference, but PCAP chairman Michael Chua bared that the league will hold an All-Star Game on May 2.

“We want to showcase the talent of PCAP and the players and it will give all the players another goal to shoot for,” Chua said in the same online press conference.

The 24 teams—12 each for the North and South divisions—could include foreign players—titles or untitles—in their rosters for the Wesley So Cup. The Open Conference, on the other hand, will showcase foreign teams competing against the domestic squads.

One strawweight world champion Joshua Pacio and 2019 Southeast Asian Games silver medalist Jenelyn Olsim of Team Lakay open the public sports program at 10 a.m.

Powered by Smart and with Upstream Media as the official webcast partner, the Forum is livestreamed via the PSA Facebook page fb.com/ PhilippineSportswritersAssociation and also shared

by Radyo Pilipinas 2 Facebook page.

feel that I was any longer the right man for the job.... I no longer feel that I am the right man for the job.

“I love coaching, working the kids on the court, the locker room, the trips, the ‘Jump Around’ [pre-game] music, and trying to build a team,” Williams said. “I will always love that.

And I’m scared to death of the next phase. But I no longer feel that I’m the right man.”

What struck me while reading his statements was the tremendous and enormous humility of this man, my sense is he is his biggest critic and he sets the bar high for himself and his players. He is the only Coach in NCAA history to win 400 games in both schools.

Philadelphia 76ers guard Danny Green played for Roy Williams for four years. He recently donated a $1-million endowment scholarship gift to the Tar Heels’ basketball program, “I became a man in four years there,” said Green, a three-time National Basketball Association champion. “He’s always been more than a coach to me. He taught me how to be a man and how to do things the right way.”

According to cbssports.com, “Prior to his run with the Jayhawks, he was an assistant under Dean Smith at North Carolina for a decade. During that time, he recruited and helped coach a player by the name of Michael Jordan. Arguably the greatest player of all time, Jordan has maintained his relationship with Williams over the years.”

I think the measure of a great coach is not the trophies or the accolades, but the players whose lives he impacted. He taught his players not just basketball lessons, but life lessons, lessons that they’ll take with them when they play at the next level when they move on to the next chapter of their life.