Businessmirror august 10, 2017

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Thursday, August 10, 2017 Vol. 12 No. 301

Govt needs ₧272B yearly to bridge housing gap

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By Cai U. Ordinario

at least P229.5 billion a year for soc i a l i zed-hou si ng loa ns under the Home Development Mutual Fund (Pag-Ibig).

Del Rosario said this is something the administration wants to

start during President Duterte’s term, so the next administration will have something to start with.

“When a new administration takes over, they don’t have a starting point because the program of

DEL ROSARIO: “The private sector has a big role to play in closing the housing backlog; the government can’t do it alone.”

the previous administration was limited to their stint only. So now, we are targeting 10 years, so the next administration can use this as a launching pad for their housing programs,” del Rosario added.

Del Rosario said the planned P420-billion 10-year funding for informal-settler families (ISFs) will allow the construction of housing units worth P300,000 each, with

See “Asean,” A2

CARP: Free distribution of public lands?

Rene E. Ofreneo

laborem exercens

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n top of the socioeconomic-reform demands being pushed by the National Democratic Front, collectively dubbed as the Comprehensive Agreement on Socioeconomic Reforms (Caser), is the free distribution of land for the country’s landless rural poor. During the ill-fated peace talks in Amsterdam in July, the question was raised: Where will the government get the land to distribute for free to wouldbe agrarian-reform beneficiaries (ARBs)?

One of the answers: public lands.

Continued on A11

Regional group to rebut claims vs coconut oil

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PATRON: “We’re coming up with ways to develop MSMEs; we want to integrate them into supply chains, which means linking them with companies in the region that will buy their products.”

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Continued on A2

Asean course eyed to help MSMEs thru regional links

he Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is eyeing consultations with the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and the Department of Education (DepEd) to design a course on the Asean to prepare the youth for the region’s economic integration.

Through the course, the DFA aims to promote entrepreneurship for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and help them turn local brands into global ones, Zaldy B. Patron, the executive director of the DFA Office of Asean A ffairs, told the BusinessMirror.

The initiative is part of the Asean’s priority for inclusive and innovation-led growth in the region under the chairmanship of the Philippines this year, which is also the association’s 50th founding anniversary. It is one of the six priorities of the group, which include people-oriented

business news source of the year

@cuo_bm

he Duterte administration intends to jump-start a 10-year plan that will solve the country’s 6.5-million housing backlog entailing at least P2.72 trillion in funding, according to the new head of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC).

HUDCC Chairman Eduardo D. del Rosario told the BusinessMirror the government will need to allocate an average of P42 billion annually to end the decades-old problem on illegal settlers, and

2016 ejap journalism awards

PRECIOUS CARGO The logo of Danish shipping company A.P. Moller-Maersk A/S is shown on a container sitting at the Manila International Container Terminal on August 8. According to Bloomberg, Maersk told customers in the last week of July it’s still clearing backlog from a shutdown of its online ordering system after its machines were infected by malware. NONIE REYES

Your financial adviser may be charging too much

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xcessive fees have become an obsession for many investors, and rightly so: Over time, an extra 1 percent or 2 percent a year can take a big bite out of a portfolio.

It’s not always easy to know how much you’re paying, however. Even if you can decipher your quarterly statements, you might not realize your adviser has an incentive to steer you into particular funds or recommend expensive insurance products.

The good news is that the market for financial advice is getting more competitive. Fees on many investments are falling, including those on some of

PESO exchange rates n US 50.3880

the priciest products, such as hedge funds. Revenue for the asset management industry dropped last year, the first annual decline since 2008.

But how do you know if you’re getting a good deal? A new survey of almost 1,000 financial advisers sheds light on what US investors are actually paying and what they’re getting in return. Inside Information, an adviser newsletter, asked advisers about a variety of costs to clients, including investment fees, trading costs and financial planning fees. The sample was limited almost entirely to independent advisers, who tend to

charge more transparent fees than brokers or insurance agents paid on commission.

The traditional rule of thumb is that a financial adviser costs 1 percent per year. That’s only partly right. The survey found that the median cost of hiring a financial adviser is 1 percent only for clients with $1 million or less in assets.

The more money you have, the less you typically pay. The median cost of a financial adviser for portfolios worth $5 million to $10 million is just 0.5 percent per year.

See “Financial adviser,” A2

embers of the Asia Pacific Coconut Community (APCC), including the Philippines, will counter the negative propaganda contained in the latest report of the American Heart Association (AHA), which indicated that coconut-oil consumption is unhealthy.

Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) Administrator Romulo J. de la Rosa told the BusinessMirror that the decision was made during a meeting of the 18-member intergovernmental organization in July in Jakarta, Indonesia.

“We urged the other APCC members that we should jointly face this [bad rap against coconut oil].

There were some suggestions, one of which is that they [APCC members], in their own national efforts, will come up to counter-campaign the study of AHA,” de la Rosa said in an interview. “We all agreed to that, and we also agreed that all APCC member-countries will do further steps to address the bad publicity against coconut oil.”

De la Rosa disclosed that the APCC is also set to submit a position paper to the World Health Organization (WHO) defending coconut oil and citing its benefits to human health.

“There will be a statement from the Secretariat to the WHO and Food and Agriculture Organization [FAO]. Because there is a need to raise the matter to the WHO,” he said. “It seems like the World Health

DE LA ROSA: “We all agreed to that, and we also agreed that all APCC membercountries will do further steps to address the bad publicity against coconut oil.”

Organization initially echoed the stand against saturated fats, although coconut oil was not singled out, but was implied to.”

Indeed, dietary guidelines on the WHO’s web site showed that it advises consumers to shy away from saturated fats, such as coconut oil, and prefer consuming unsaturated fats, like vegetable oils, instead.

The PCA chief said that, based on the monitoring by the United Coconut Associations of the Philippines (Ucap), there has been no reported withdrawal of coconut-oil purchase orders (POs) from the Philippines since the AHA released its presidential advisory against the commodity.

“So far what they [Ucap] are saying is that there has been no big impact on coconut oil, particularly there has been no actual effect in sense of sales. There has been no withdrawal of POs according to members of Ucap,” de la Rosa said.

“There has been no cancellation of orders, then that means our coconut-oil exports have not been affected by the bad propaganda. That’s why we are planning to Continued on A12

n japan 0.4568 n UK 65.4691 n HK 6.4408 n CHINA 7.5116 n singapore 36.9712 n australia 39.8670 n EU 59.2109 n SAUDI arabia 13.4365

Source: BSP (9 August 2017 )

BMReports BusinessMirror

A2 Thursday, August 10, 2017

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Govt needs ₧272B yearly to bridge housing gap Continued from A1

some 1.4 million ISFs benefiting.

Addressing the remainder of the backlog, pegged at 5.1 million, will require at least P2.3 trillion for 10 years, or P229.5 billion a year.

This is assuming that each unit to be built will cost P450,000 each, the top level of socialized housing projects. The limit of Pag-Ibig housing loans, P6 million, is already considered as a high-end housing unit. If a P450,000 unit is loaned with PagIbig at an interest rate of 3 percent, the borrower will only pay around P1,897 a month, or P22,764 a year.

Del Rosario said this remains affordable since most of those nonISFs that are seen to purchase the

5.1-million housing backlog are regular employees who are gainfully employed and have regular incomes, but do not have access to housing facilities.

This is the reason del Rosario said the HUDCC and the six key shelter agencies are keen on forging partnerships with the private sector to address this portion of the housing deficit.

Del Rosario said HUDCC and the key shelter agencies (KSAs) are open to undertaking public private partnerships (PPPs) with interested firms doing construction projects and real-estate developments, among others.

“The private sector has a big

Financial adviser. . .

In one sense, the rich are getting a better deal. But in another sense, they’re getting hosed. An investor with $500,000 paying a 1-percent fee is handing over $5,000 a year to his adviser. An investor with $5 million paying a 0.5-percent fee is being charged $25,000 for more or less the same service.

Looking solely at the median cost of hiring an adviser can be deceiving. Bob Veres, the editor and publisher of Inside Information, was surprised by the wide variety of fees that financial advisers charge.

“There are people charging 2 percent or more,” he said. “I don’t know how they get away with it.”

For the smallest portfolios, more than 1 in 5 advisers charge 1.5 percent or more per year. High fees are

Continued from A1

rarer for wealthier clients, but not unheard of; 1 in 8 advisers charge 1 percent or more to clients with $2 million to $3 million in assets.

These numbers are just the cost of hiring an adviser, and don’t take into account other fees that investors pay. The biggest are fees on mutual funds and other investments. The typical adviser picks investments costing 0.5 percent a year in expense ratios, the survey found.

If you add up all the costs paid by investors, including trading costs and platform fees, the total is a lot higher than 1 percent.

While a majority of clients pay from 1 percent to 2 percent, there are plenty of outliers. For clients with $1 million to $2 million, 18 percent of advisers end up

role to play in closing the housing backlog; the government can’t do it alone,” he said.

However, del Rosario lamented that the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) only approved a budget of P4.7 billion for HUDCC and its six KSAs for 2018.

Del Rosario said they initially proposed a budget of P68.7 billion.

This includes all the budget needed to address ISF requirements, disaster-relocation needs and other pertinent items that the housing sector will need.

In 2016 the housing agencies were granted a collective budget of P33.38 billion. However, due to low absorptive capacity, the govern-

ment only used P16.38 billion.

With this, the housing agencies had a carryover of P17-billion budget, which was added to the approved housing allocation of P15.3 billion this year. This means the total budget for 2017 of HUDCC and the KSAs is pegged at P32.3 billion.

“We requested P68.7 billion, but the housing sector was allocated P4.7 billion. Hopefully, during the budget deliberations, we can still haggle and come up with a bigger amount so that we can address the housing needs,” del Rosario said.

Addressing Filipinos’ housing needs is important, not only because of Filipinos, but also due

charging 2 percent or more.

There’s nothing wrong with paying 1.5 percent a year—if your adviser is providing real value for that money. A good financial planner can help with far more than just managing your investments. Planners’ services can include, among other things, tax planning, retirement planning, estate planning and advice on insurance, budgeting, maximizing Social Security, and making charitable gifts.

Many advisers are adding these services to prove their value to costconscious customers. “The core of what a financial advisor does to earn their fees is changing,” financial planner Michael Kitces wrote in a review of the survey results.

However, “there’s no clear consensus on how to value [financial planning services] effectively.”

In the meantime, advisers and customers are questioning the traditional ways financial advice is delivered. Many brokers are switching from charging commissions to charging fees based on the assets under management. The Inside Information survey shows some independent advisers are beginning to shift to other kinds of charges, such as hourly rates and retainer fees. Only a third of advisers surveyed charge only AUM fees.

Lawyers tend to charge by the hour, and doctors based on the services they deliver. It’s strange that advisers still charge based on the quantity of assets they handle, not the actual work they do, Veres said.

“If financial planning is going to be a profession,” he said, “there’s going to be a need to be a tighter match between what you charge and the service you provide.” Bloomberg News

P16B in scholarship funds available for free college tuition Continued from A12

Earlier, the CHED estimated that at least P30 billion is needed to fund free education in SUCs. Also, Nograles said his committee would look at the budget of underperforming agencies, underspending offices, unspent funds and unutilized funds in 2017 as possible another source of fund.

“What’s important right now is we know we have P16 billion and we have a source for this. If the

required funding is over P16 billion, that’s when we will consider sourcing from departments and agencies that are underspending or underperforming,” he said.

“We will be consolidating all scholarship funds and spending them according to RA 10931 since this is the latest law that supersedes all other laws, and this law takes into consideration scholarships in SUCs, local universities and colleges [LUCs], technical vocational institutions [TVIs], and

even private colleges and universities,” Nograles added. The lawmaker added the implementing rules and regulation (IRR) of the free college education law will be finished within 15 days.

“It was agreed during the meeting that [the] CHED and Tesda must come up with an accurate figure on the number of students who would benefit from the free higher-education law so that his panel can figure out how much is really needed to ensure its full

implementation,” Nograles said.

“We still need to come up with the total number of students who will benefit from this law, taking into account that for college next school year, there will be many seniors and freshmen coming in but fewer sophomores and juniors because of the K to 12 Program.

This final number will determine how much money is needed,” Nograles said. He said students who will benefit from the law will be coming from 114 SUCs, 16 LUCs accredited by the CHED and 122 TVIs under Tesda.

to the Philippines’s international commitments. The Philippines is among the 189 countries that committed to the Global Agenda 2030, or the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in September 2015.

The Global Goals aim to end poverty and hunger, promote universal health, education for all and lifelong learning, achieve gender equality, sustainable water management, ensure sustainable energy for all, decent work for all, resilient infrastructure and reduce income inequality between and among countries.

The goals also include creating sustainable cities, ensuring sustainable consumption and production, taking action against climate

Asean. . .

change, conserving and sustainably using oceans and marine resources, reducing biodiversity loss, achieving peaceful and inclusive societies and revitalizing global partnership for development.

The first target under SDG 11 that seeks to make cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable is ensuring access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services, as well as the upgrade of slums. This is also part of the New Urban Agenda adopted by world leaders in Quito, Ecuador, in 2016. The Philippines, represented by former HUDCC Chairman and Vice President Maria Leonor G. Robredo, signed the declaration.

Continued from A1

and people-centered Asean, peace and stability, maritime security and cooperation, resiliency and regionalism. “We talked with the CHED and the DepEd and they said it is taught in high school. In my time, Asean occupied one chapter of our history book. But if we want to be serious about the economic regional integration, all of us should call the attention of the institutions to teach more about it and know how it would fit with other subjects and make its teaching more often and extensive,” Patron said.

Patron added universities and colleges should explore Asean relations to maximize the current and targeted regional trade policies for MSMEs. He added the course could also complement the proposal of Sen. Cynthia A. Villar that would make entrepreneurship as a separate subject to be taught among high-school students.

“We’re coming up with ways to develop MSMEs; we want to integrate them into supply chains, which means linking them with companies in the region that will buy their products. We also want to reduce costs of doing business. The ministers are now targeting a 10-percent reduction in doing business for MSMEs”, he said.

The lower cost would serve as an additional incentive to MSMEs, which comprise 99.6 percent of the country’s businesses, to produce goods that are 97-percent tariff-free or zero-importation cost among Southeast Asian countries.

He said the Philippines, as chairman, will further encourage innovative products from startup businesses that use digital platforms for cheaper delivery and wider market reach.

“Digital economy is very much part of the plan. We want to encourage start-up businesses and other innovative businesses. The Asean will be coming up with a declaration on innovation that emphasizes the significance of start-up businesses and disruptive innovations for the transformation of all sectors,” Patron said.

He said the Philippines and Thailand are the only Asean members who have made initial contributions to the association’s science and technology fund, which aims to enhance information sharing

Budget. . .

Continued from A12

According to Teo, the Philippine’s P1-billion marketing budget is lower than Indonesia’s $127 million, Hong Kong’s $66.4 million, India’s $64 million, Malaysia’s $36 million, Thailand’s $23 million Singapore’s $15 million.

As per the National Tourism Development Plan for 2016-2022, target foreign arrivals for 2018 is 7.4 million, up from the 6.5-million goal this year. Foreign visitor receipts are estimated at P473 million in 2018, compared to the P407-million target this year.

Alegre and Teo have expressed

and create business solutions, apart from expanding the region’s various bodies of knowledge. He said the Philippines has contributed $1 million to the fund.

Patron said the course will also help introduce the Filipino youth to various business councils among the Asean members.

The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry operates business councils with Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam.

“I encourage the youth to interact with Philippine business councils or the companies involved in the Asean economic integration.

Because of Afta, Filipinos now have more choices of products. Before, we were limited to US products and investments,” Patron said.

“Free trade with the US under its current administration is now dead, so the regional trade is our opportunity,” he added.

The DFA also wants to include in the course the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) that facilitates free trade with the 10 Asean members and the countries with free-trade agreements with the region.

“RCEP is part of that and six other countries that include Japan, India, China, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. Negotiations are difficult because the countries have different interests, but they want to see progress under our chairmanship. The government is partnering with Australia to particularly promote women and youth entrepreneurship,” Patron said.

In its 50 years of existence since its creation on August 8, 1967, the Asean has still much to accomplish, but Patron hopes promoting awareness of its missions, issues and successes to Filipino youth in schools will further energize and provide insights to its leaders toward a more cooperative, innovative, peaceful, united and progressive Asean.

“Our immediate neighbors are the other Asean members, so why not have celebrations and discussions of issues and progress of the Asean every August 8? The youth are the future national and business leaders of the country, so let us educate them about the Asean,” Patron said. Kathryn Jose confidence that agency will hit its 6.5-million foreign-arrivals goal this year.

“Let’s face it, [the declaration of martial law has] affect [tourism in the area], we can’t deny that, but in other areas of the country tourists still arrive,” Alegre said. But he said the agency will continue with its promotion of the Philippines abroad to attract more tourists.

“I hope the President would lift martial law by the end of the year as there were cancelations [of trips due to martial law] but we’re doing our best,” Teo said.

“We invite travel operators, media bloggers, influencers to come to the Philippines to see we’re safe,” she added. Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

The Nation BusinessMirror

news@businessmirror.com.ph

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Thursday, August 10, 2017 A3

DOJ’s Aguirre says no easy way out for Comelec chief

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By Joel R. San Juan

@jrsanjuan1573

HE Department of Justice (DOJ) said on Wednesday it would still pursue the possible graft and money-laundering case against Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman Andres D. Bautista, even if he and his wife Patricia Paz decides to settle their marital dispute amicably.

In an interview, Justice Secretary Vitaliano N. Aguirre II said the allegation of Patricia Paz that his husband has ill-gotten wealth, which could reach at least P1 billion, cannot be considered as a private issue involving the couple.

“This is not a private relationship

matter. It concerns the money of the people of the Philippines. Whether they settle, I think the proceedings will continue either in the impeachment court or ordinary criminal proceedings,” Aguirre stressed.

In light of this, Aguirre said he has reiterated his directive to the

National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to thoroughly verify information and documents provided by Patricia Paz for possible graft and money-laundering cases against the Comelec chairman.

Aguirre also disclosed that he has asked the NBI to look into possible anomalies at the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) during the stint of Bautista as chairman.

The DOJ secretary said he met with three PCGG commissioners on Wednesday to discuss the ongoing probe.

In Department Order 517 issued on August 7, Aguirre directed the NBI to conduct an investigation and case buildup on Bautista on his alleged failure to disclose information required in the statement of assets, liabilities and net worth (SALN) and for possible violation of the anti-money laundering law.

He also directed NBI Director Dante Gierran to submit a monthly report on any updates

related to the probe.

Aguirre noted that any results of the investigation being conducted by the NBI on the alleged undeclared assets of the Comelec chief may be used as evidence in any impeachment or criminal proceeding against him.

In her affidavit submitted to the NBI, Patricia Paz said she discovered several passbooks, as well as bank and real property documents, under her husband’s name and some of his relatives that were not included in his 2016 SALN. In his 2016 SALN, Bautista declared a total net worth of P176.3 million.

Among the documents that Patricia Paz disclosed to prove his husband’s ill-gotten wealth were 35 Luzon Development Bank (LDB) passbooks with a total balance of P329.2 million; a foreign-currency account with Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) with $12,778; an RCBC personal account with P257,931.60; an HSBC account with HK$948,358.97; a condominium

unit in One Bonifacio High Street at Bonifacio Global City (BGC) in Taguig City; a condominium unit in The District in San Francisco California.

Patricia Paz claimed that she was kept in the dark by Bautista with regard to 13 other real properties listed in his SALN. Aguirre said the NBI is not prohibited from proceeding with the investigation, even if Bautista is an impeachable official.

“The immunity of the impeachable officers is the filing, but you are not prohibited from investigating, so in the event that this investigation will be able to [gather] some evidence then, later on, these evidence...could be presented...during the impeachment trial,” Aguirre said.

He added evidence can also be used in any criminal case that might be filed against Bautista later, or even if he is acquitted in an impeachment proceeding. Bautista, he stressed, could still face possible criminal cases even if he is acquit-

BOC breached SOP in seizure of ₧6.4-B shabu shipment

AFP chief Ano: Joma Sison may have gone nuts

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By Butch Fernandez @butchfBM & Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

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enate probers learned on Wednesday Bureau of Customs (BOC) personnel allegedly violated standard operating procedures (SOP) in the seizure of P6.4 billion worth of shabu from China, raising concerns it could weaken the case against suspects involved in the illegaldrug shipment.

Questioning witnesses and resource persons at the resumption of their inquiry, Sen. Richard J. Gordon, Senate Blue Ribbon Committee chairman, elicited information from Customs officials that the “SOP was not followed” in opening the 23 crates declared to contain chopping boards but turned out to be 600 kilos of shabu, or methampetamine hydrochloride.

“The evidence was contaminated,” Gordon lamented, adding that instead of an “LOA [letter of authority] to inspect the shipment, the BOC officers should have gotten a search warrant.”

Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) chief Isidro de la Peña, testifying at the hearing, confirmed the violation of SOP in drug seizures. He reported that, instead of waiting for PDEA, the crates containing shabu were already pried open when PDEA agents arrived at the scene. “We wont be able to support the case anymore,” he said.

De la Peña recalled that the BOC called PDEA between 9 and 10 a.m. PDEA agents alerted about the seizure, led

by PDEA-NCR chief Wilkins Villanueve, testified that upon arrival they found the drug canisters “already on the floor”.

“I have no personal knowledge of where it came from,” Villanueva said.

For his part, Gordon expressed disappointment and indicated the committee is likely to recommend filing appropriate charges against erring officials who mishandled the case.

Witness protection

IN a related development, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said it is looking into the possibility of placing Customs broker Mark Taguba under its Witness Protection Program (WPP) following his testimony before the House of Representatives detailing alleged corruption in the agency.

In an interview with reporters, Justice Secretary Vitaliano N. Aguirre II said the DOJ would review Taguba’s eligibility upon receipt of the latter’s application for WPP coverage.

Although, Aguirre said, there seems to be a basis for Taguba to be covered by the WPP. “I believe there is basis for him to apply for WPP. But, of course, in order to do that, we have to assess his qualifications,” he explained.

“The process is simple. You make an application and submit your affidavit, then we could give you immediately a provisional coverage. But, of course to be formally accepted for full coverage, we have to assess the affidavits whether you are qualified or not,” he pointed out.

It can be recalled that during the House hearing on the entry of the P6.4-billion shabu shipment in the country from China, Taguba implicated a trusted aide of BOC chief Nicanor E. Faeldon, along with several others, in the reported P270 million in bribes to BOC personnel for prompt release of shipments.

Among those named by Taguba were Customs Director Milo Maestrecampo, Faeldon’s former colleague in the military; Teddy Raval of the Intelligence Group; intelligence officer Teodoro Sagaral; district collector Vincent Maronilla; Director Niel Estrella of the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service; a certain “Major Gutierrez” who turned out to be already deceased; a certain Jayson and Maita, the latter from the formal entry division.

ted in an impeachment trial.

“If he is acquitted in the impeachment trial, there are aspects that may not have been possibly covered by the impeachment trial that he could be investigated on and a complaint could be filed despite an acquittal in the impeachment trial. We could wait for the expiration of his term [if he is acquitted and remains an impeachable official] before the appropriate criminal cases are filed,” the DOJ secretary explained.

Aguirre added he is expecting the Anti-Money Laundering Council to be more cooperative in the NBI probe since it has a memorandum of agreement with the former and considering that Bautista’s wife, already has documents she presented to the NBI, including alleged records on numerous bank accounts of her husband.

“I believe so because it’s the NBI who has a memorandum of agreement with the AMLC, not the DOJ. So the NBI will be making the request,’ Aguirre said.

Power up

Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) linemen checks on the electrical meter of a squatter colony along Road 10 in Manila. Meralco recently announced it will be imposing a rate increase this month that will see an additional P27 in the monthly power bills of households consuming 200 kilo-watt hours a month who comprise twothirds of the utility’s customer base. Meralco attributed the P0.1338 increase to higher generation and transmission charges, as well as taxes and other expenses. NONIE REYES

O what else is new?

This was the apparent sentiment of the military following claims made by Communist Party of the Philippines Founding Chairman Jose Maria “Joma” Sison that government forces, with the assistance of the US Central Intelligence Agency, is planning to assassinate him.

“I believe Sison needs professional psychiatric help to treat his hallucinations. His statement is another [figment] of his imagination,” AFP Chief of Staff Gen. Eduardo M. Año said in a news statement issued on Wednesday.

Sison also alleged that the military is planning to oust President Duterte.

“If I remember right, ’yan din ang kuwento n’ya n’ung [that was Joma’s story in] 1999 during the time of former President [Joseph] Estrada, where he also alleged that a hit team was sent to the Netherlands by President Estrada and former Chief PNP [Philippine National Police] Director General Panfilo M. Lacson Sr. to kill him using former ABB and RJ Faction operatives,” Año said.

This is almost, if not the same plot, Sison is claiming now, the AFP chief said.

“Exactly the same plot as narrated by Sison. Sison is not only a criminal and master of deception but a congenital liar,” he said. PNA

Parojinog cases may be transferred from Ozamiz to Manila–prosecutor

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he Department of Justice (DOJ) will ask the Supreme Court (SC) for the transfer of the cases filed against the Parajinog siblings if the judge of Regional Trial Court (RTC) in Ozamiz City inhibit from handling the cases.

Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Juan Pedro Navera, head of the DOJ panel handling the cases, said Justice Secretary Vitaliano N. Aguirre II could seek the transfer of cases before the SC as he did in the cases against arrested Maute terrorists and supporters.

“It will be up to the [DOJ] management to seek the transfer of cases if there are no takers among the Ozamiz RTC judges,” he said.

The DOJ made a comment after Judges Edmundo Pintac of the RTC Branch 15 and Salome Dungog of the RTC Branch 35 in Ozamiz both expressed plans to inhibit from the cases against the siblings filed by the DOJ last week.

“It should be heard and tried in a neutral place; not here in Ozamiz,” Pintac said in a television interview.

Dungog, for his part, explained that he would inhibit from the case because he is already set to retire on August 22.

The DOJ ordered the filing of criminal charges against Ozamiz City Vice Mayor Nova Princess Parojinog-Echavez and her brother, Reynaldo Jr., in connection with the antidrug operation, which killed suspected narco-politician Mayor Parojinog and 13 others on July 30.

In a 14-page resolution dated August 2, the DOJ charged Echavez with violation of Republic Act (RA) 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, and also with illegal possession of firearms and ammunition under Section 28 of RA 10591.

Her brother Reynaldo Jr. is also facing three counts of illegal possession of firearms and ammunition. He is also facing a separate case for illegal possession of explosives before the RTC in Ozamiz.

“Respondent Nova Princess Parojinog is not a licensed firearms holder of any kind of caliber based on [Philippine Na-

tional Police firearms and licensing division records]. There is, therefore, no recourse but to find probable cause against respondent Nova Princess Parojinog for illegal possession of light weapon and ammunition,” the resolution read.

The drug charges, on the other hand, stemmed from the seizure of plastic sachets containing shabu from the siblings during the raid.

The DOJ cited the plain view doctrine and indicted the siblings for drug possession even if the search warrant used for the raids was only for illegal firearms.

The lack of licenses for the firearms seized from the vice mayor’s house warranted their indictment for illegal possession of firearms.

On August 4 Aguirre issued an immigration lookout bulletin order (Ilbo) against Ozamiz City Councilor Ricardo “Arthur” Parojinog, who managed to evade arrest following the raid that led to the death of 14 people, including the Ozamiz mayor on July 30.

In a memorandum, Aguirre directed

Immigration Commissioner Jaime H. Morente to instruct all immigration officers in the country’s airports and seaports to be on the lookout to prevent attempts of Ricardo to leave the country.

“Considering the gravity of the offense/s possibly committed, there is a strong possibility that the foregoing personalities may attempt to place themselves beyond the reach of the legal processes of this department by leaving the country,” Aguirre’s order said.

A person subject of an Ilbo can still leave the country subject to conditions and requirements, including clearance from the DOJ. He also directed the National Bureau of Investigation to obtain additional information on the seven personalities, such as latest photo, other known aliases, place of birth and a copy of the passport.

The DOJ chief also required the prosecutor general to regularly update the Bureau of Immigration on the status of complaints and cases filed against them. PNA

Economy

A4 Thursday, August 10, 2017 • Editors: Vittorio V. Vitug and Max V. de Leon

BusinessMirror

Neda cites PHL strides in infra buidup, ease in doing business

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overnment economic planners on Wednesday highlighted the significant strides the country made in making businesses and the economy competitive, particularly in addressing the bottlenecks on implementation of infrastructure projects.

In his speech delivered during the Philippine Development Forum, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia said the country has adopted new policies to improve and streamline the approval processes of major public-investment projects.

Pernia said these include the raising of the Investment Coordination Committee (ICC) project review cost floor from P1 billion to P2.5 billion; and streamlining of approval procedures for minor changes in scope, cost, financing and extension of implementation or loan/grant validity of projects.

As of July 24, there were 15 awarded public-private partnership (PPP) projects and 20 PPP projects in the pipeline, most of which were approved during the previous administration.

The Duterte administration is committed to pursue and respect all

₧1B to ₧2.5B The hike in the review cost floor recently implemented by the ICC previously approved PPP projects, regardless of which were approved during the previous administration.

Pernia, National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) director general, also cited the amendments to the build-operate-transfer (BOT) law and its implementing rules and regulations (IRR), which were part of the legislative agenda proposed under the Philippine Development Plan (PDP).

He said the bill was among those endorsed by the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council

Executive Committee (Ledac-Execom) for adoption by the full council.

“The amendment will introduce reforms to address bottlenecks in PPP project implementation, further encourage private-sector participation, and keep the policies attuned to the changing business environment,” Pernia said.

Reducing bottlenecks in the implementation of PPP and infrastructure projects were among the top 10 actionable recommendations submitted by the private sector for the government to consider at last year’s Sulong Pilipinas forum—in the context of the 0-10 points Socioeconomic Agenda of the Duterte administration.

Pernia said the Neda Board also approved last month the adoption of a National Transport Policy (NTP), which envisioned a national transport system that is “safe, secure, reliable, efficient, integrated, intermodal, affordable, cost-effective, environmentally sustainable and people-oriented.”

He identified regional transport infrastructure, such as airports, and mass-transport infrastructure that will facilitate ingress and egress of goods and people in metropolitan centers, among the priorities of the administration.

Pernia said the administration, likewise, supports a long-overdue tax reform crucial to help the Philippines attain upper middle-income country status, and reduce poverty incidence

to 14 percent by year 2022.

“The gains from tax reform will also help fund high-impact infrastructure projects, as well as programs in education and health [including full implementation of the responsible parenthood and reproductive-health law],” he stressed.

The Neda chief further said economic planners have included a taxreform program in the priority legislative agenda of the PDP. Congress has already approved the Comprehensive Tax Reform Program’s (CTRP) first package on third reading in May, upon the President’s certification of the proposed legislation as “urgent”, he said.

“We now look forward to its approval in the Senate within the year,” Pernia added.

He also identified other top actionable recommendations of the private sector which the country made significant strides.

These are improving the ease of doing business, developing regional industries and local work force, implementation of a National Broadband Plan, national ID system for improved targeting of social services and responsible mining, delivery of support services to the farmers and reviewing the Conditional CashTransfer Program.

These actionable recommendations are in line with the PDP 2017 to 2022, the blueprint for the country’s development over the next six years. PNA

news@businessmirror.com.ph

ADB pushes ‘roaming’ health insurance coverage for OFWs

By Cai U. Ordinario

@cuo_bm

T

he Asian Development Bank (ADB) is urging the Philippines to extend “roaming” health insurance to migrant workers to prevent them from losing their jobs and falling into poverty.

In an Asian Development Blog, ADB Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department Principal Health Specialist Eduardo P. Banzon said the Asean can act as “launch pad” for roaming health coverage, similar to the European Union.

“In a world where borders are blurring and becoming increasingly permeable, health coverage needs to be just as mobile. If not, it will never be truly universal,” Banzon said.

Based on the ADB’s Asian Economic Integration Report 2016, Asia and the Pacific is the largest source of international migrants at 83.3 million, or more than a third of the 243.7 million migrants worldwide as of 2015. Intraregional migration, meanwhile, stood at 30.6 million in 2015.

Banzon said these numbers will likely increase, especially in light of the Asean community and its aim of making it easier for workers to cross borders.

He said the increase in movement across borders into growing and interconnected economies will make roaming universal health coverage a reality.

Banzon said migrants are considered “informal communities” who are vulnerable to various communicable and noncommunicable diseases.

Saipan is new destination for local high-stake rollers

By Recto Mercene @rectomercene

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aipan’s gaming and entertainment industry is becoming a go-to destination for Filipino high-stake rollers who want to take a break from gaming traditional destinations like Macau and Las Vegas.

Aviareps, a leading tourism, hospitality and aviation representation company with over 50 offices in 43 countries working with the Marianas Visitors Authority (MVA), said they have seen a gradual increase in Filipinos traveling to Saipan and spend time at the Best Sunshine Live Casino.

“The island only has one casino, but it is strategically integrated to other places of activities within the island. It is increasingly becoming a buzzword for Filipino gaming aficionados,” Aviareps Philippines Office Director Jean Lugan said.

She added: “With direct flights from the Philippines courtesy of Philippine Airlines, Saipan is becoming a very attractive destination for Filipino high-stake rollers looking for alternative destinations.”

A main island of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, which is under US authority, Saipan quickly catapulted to the top in terms of its reputation in the gaming industry rivaling some of the world’s biggest gambling enterprises with its Best Sunshine Live Casino, which only opened in 2015.

Last year the casino reported revenues amounting to $32.40 billion from its VIP tables, higher than

gaming giant the Venetian in Macau, which generated $28.90 billion. In the same year, Best Sunshine Live also collected more than 50 percent in income compared to Macau's Wynn Resorts Ltd. According to Lugan, with the Philippine gaming industry yet to be fully developed coupled with some of the recent developments, Filipinos, especially the high-rollers, will continuously look abroad.

“This is where Saipan has an advantage because of its proximity and the large Filipino community in the island. Filipinos will feel right at home there,” Lugan said.

Filipinos currently account for close to 40 percent of Saipan total population of 55,000.

Best Sunshine Live is a temporary casino run by Best Sunshine International, which is a subsidiary of Hong Kong-listed Imperial Pacific International. The temporary casino will be running until the five-phase construction of the permanent casino. The target for the integrated resort project is to have 4,252 rooms, 300 villas, 1,600 gaming tables and 3,500 slot machines.

Estimates of Imperial Pacific’s total investment for the resort is now at $7 billion. The first phase of the project started in January.

The second phase will be acquiring the lease of the land now housing the Mariana Resort & Spa when it expires in 2018.

Aviareps is a leading tourism, hospitality and aviation representation company with over 50 offices in 43 countries.

Kins of 5 troops killed in Marawi get P1M each from ‘philantropist’

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MusseL harvest Freshly harvested mussels are unloaded at the Navotas Fish Port for distribution in Metro Manila’s wet markets. NONIE REYES

‘Japanese investors remain confident in PHL economy’

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apanese investors remain confident in doing business in the Philippines, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said on Wednesday.

“There’s strong confidence on the current administration and the good growth momentum anchored on positive economic reforms and fundamentals,” Lopez told reporters in a text message.

The DTI chief made the statement after a report on data from Japan External Trade Organzia-

tion (Jetro) showed that foreign direct investments (FDI) from Japan dropped 56.6 percent to $561 million in January to May 2017 from the same period in last year.

“It was the onetime transaction between Bank of Tokyo and Security Bank last year that caused the difference in the decline of FDI from Japan,” Lopez said.

In April last year Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ bought 20-percent stake in Security Bank amounting to $792 million.

“Disregarding this transaction,

FDI from Japan for the period January to April 2017 would show an increase to $82.32 million from $57.81 million in January to April 2016, disregarding the $792-million equivalent of such transaction,” he added.

It was also noted that government investment mission in Japan in March has gained around P198.5 billion worth of investment interests from Japanese businesses.

Most of these interests were from the Sogo Shosha group or diversified Japanese conglomerates. PNA

PCCI awaits Duterte’s detailed socioeconomic plan

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he Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) said on Wednesday the Duterte administration may have “overlooked” some of the items on the wish list of reforms the business chamber submitted last year, notably in the areas of information communication technology

and ease in doing business. That’s why the PCCI, according to PCCI President George Barcelon, is seeking for a more detailed plan on the administration’s 10-point socioeconomic agenda.

On the sidelines of the 2017 Sulong Pilipinas, a Philippine Development Forum, the PCCI president said that

The ADB expert said these include mental-health disorders, maternal mortality, substance use, alcoholism and malnutrition.

They are also prone to being victims of violence and face numerous barriers to decent health care, especially if they are considered illegal in their host countries.

“For low-income migrant workers from developing countries of Asia and the Pacific, getting sick may not only put them at risk of losing their jobs and income, with huge bills to pay. It may very well drive them into poverty,” Banzon said.

Pushing for universal health care across borders will also ease the financial burden of out-of-pocket expenditures for health needs.

Banzon said household out-ofpocket payments for health-care services often account for over 50 percent of total health spending in Cambodia, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, India, Pakistan and the Philippines.

In the Philippines data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed households remained the largest spenders for health at 68 percent of health expenses and the government is a far second at 17 percent.

“The Philippines requires its outgoing migrant workers to get healthinsurance coverage, but this means paying upfront and getting reimbursed later,” Banzon said.

PSA data also showed per-capita health expenditure in the country rose 8.5 percent to P5,859 in 2014 from P5,400 in 2013 at current prices.

the private sector would like to hear more details of the administration’s socioeconomic pillars.

“An example is the state of the information and communication technology…here in Metro Manila. There are a lot of progress on making this accessible, but more have to be done

to expand the scope,” he said. “Hopefully, at the end of the day, we hear the President...giving us, in response to what have been presented, maybe more detailed plan or timeline for some of the projects,” the PCCI head said.

“What are the areas that you want to prioritize? I do not expect them to

do everything at the same time. So how they prioritize and what kind of timeline they would give,” he added.

Barcelon said that among the key areas that were crucial to the economy included infrastructure, human development, and the ease of doing business. Catherine N. Pillas

he families of five soldiers killed in the ongoing fighting in Marawi City against Maute Group remnants have received P1 million each from an anonymous philanthropist on Wednesday.

The donation is part of the P98 million the latter earmarked for military troops killed in the fighting.

Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Public Affairs Office chief Col. Edgard Arevalo said the five families were formally handed the money by AFP chief of staff Gen. Eduardo Año during short ceremonies at the General Headquarters Conference Room in Camp Aguinaldo, Quezon City.

On August 2 the AFP chief handed P1 million each to the families of three soldiers of the 4th Infantry Division, who were killed in action in Marawi City during his visit to Camp Evangelista in Cagayan de Oro City.

Arevalo said the P90 million will be turned over to the major services for distribution to other beneficiaries.

“What is immensely admirable with this anonymous donor, apart from his or her selflessness in giving away such an enormous sum of money, is the continuing commitment to provide P1 million each to the family of soldiers who may be KIA [killed in action], God forbid, in the continuing crisis in Marawi. The number of soldiers KIA has now reached 122, from 98 at the time of the pledge,” he added.

The donation was deposited in the account name “AFP Marawi Casualty” in the Land Bank of the Philippines. The account was opened in June for those who have expressed desire to help the families of soldiers who died in battle.

“On behalf of the AFP, our soldiers and their families, I wish to commend the generosity of our benefactor who chose to remain anonymous despite the enormity of this gesture,” Año said. PNA

Agriculture/Commodities BusinessMirror

news@businessmirror.com.ph

Editor: Jennifer A. Ng • Thursday, August 10, 2017

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Govt issues rules for MAV rice importation

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

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@jearcalas

ocal traders may start applying for permits to import rice under the minimum access volume (MAV) scheme on August 29, according to the guidelines released by the National Food Authority (NFA) on Wednesday.

The NFA released Memorandum Circular AO-2017-08-002, which detailed the guidelines for the importation of 805,000 metric tons (MT) of rice under the MAV scheme of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Imports within MAV are usually slapped a lower tariff.

“Rice importation under this program shall be pursuant to Republic Act 8179 and the July 24, 2014, decision of the WTO on waiver relating to special treatment for rice of the Philippines,” Cabinet Secretary Leoncio B. Evasco Jr., who is also the NFA Council (NFAC) chairman, said in the memorandum circular.

Under the importation guidelines, rice traders are allowed to source from countries with a specific quota and from omnibus origin, or other rice-producing countries.

Rice traders and farmers’ groups can import 293,100 MT of rice from Thailand and Vietnam. They can also import 50,000 MT of rice from China, India and Pakistan; 15,000 MT from Australia; and 4,000 MT from El Salvador.

“No applicant shall apply, directly, or indirectly, for an import volume allocation under this program in excess of 20,000 MT for crop year 2016-2017,” Evasco said.

Evasco noted that well-milled rice imported under the 2017 MAV program will be slapped a 35-percent tariff. The quality should also not lower be than 25-percent brokens and/or any special rice variety.

The NFAC, the highest policy-making body of the NFA, has divided the shipment of rice imports under the 2017 MAV into two phases: first, starting from December 20 until February 28, 2018; and the second phase covering June 1, 2018, until August 31, 2018.

NFA Deputy Administrator for Marketing Operations Tomas R. Escarez told the BusinessMirror that the NFAC scheduled the arrival of rice imports in two phases to ensure imported rice would not depress palay prices.

“The reason behind this is to ensure that its arrival will not coincide with the harvest season, which usually ends on the second week of December. So we allowed imports to arrive between the second week of December until February 28, when there is no harvest of rice,” Escarez said in an interview.

“Imported rice will also be allowed to arrive in the country from July to August, because again, these are the lean months for palay. So, this will not affect local producers,” he added.

While most of the rice imported under MAV could arrive within 2018, Escarez said the NFA’s decision to purchase rice from abroad to beef up its buffer stocks would depend on the supply situation next year.

“The importation of 805,200 MT is not usually totally availed because some of the rice come from Australia, China. Usually we do not source from those countries because we import from Asian countries, like Thailand and Vietnam,” he added.

After interested importers have filed their letter of intent, the NFA MAV prequalification team will conduct the validation and authentication of all the requirements submitted by the applicants.

The team will also verify if the applicant is a party to any case or investigation for rice smuggling, hoarding, unauthor-

East-West Seed appoints new GM

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eading tropical vegetable seed company, East-West Seed (EWS), named Henk Hermans as new General Manager (GM) in the Philippines, effective July 11. Former GM Mary Ann Sayoc has taken on a new role, representing EWS globally as lead public affairs for the East-West Seed Group.

EWS said in a statement that Henk brings over 20 years of management, marketing and sales expertise gained in Asia, the Middle East and Europe.

Since joining EWS in 2015 as senior advisor for facilities development, Henk has led the setup of facilities for EWS in Indonesia, Thailand, Myanmar and India. One of his most notable projects was the unique and stunning East-West Seed Regional Head Office in Nonthaburi, Thailand.

Henk completed an international executive programme in General Management from INSEAD in Singapore and France.

He also graduated with an MSc in engineering from Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands.

“There are a lot of opportunities in the vegetable industry that Filipino farmers can tap. East-West Seed will continue to uphold its commitment to support Filipino farmers to unlock their full potential, by providing them with access to high-quality seeds and knowledge in new farming technologies,” he said.

“Together with our partners, we will also support the farmers by strengthening the whole vegetable value chain, and encouraging more people to eat and grow vegetables,” he added.

ized rebagging or resacking of government stocks to commercial sacks, diversion and cornering activities.

“The validation would take about another 30 calendar days. So the issuance of certificate of eligibility [COE] will be around first week of November,” Escarez said.

He added one of the significant changes in the 2017 MAV impor-

tation program is the decision of government to allow rice traders to decide when and how much they will import. For example, traders could choose to import 40 percent of their volume allocation during the first phase and the remaining 60 percent during the second phase of the MAV program, according to Escarez.

“Before, when they receive the COE,

they automatically pay 50 percent of the tariff. But now, if you only decide to import 40 percent of your volume during phase 1, they will only pay half of the tariff for the 40-percent volume,” he said. “The remaining tariff shall be paid by the importers once, before the clearance of customs, when their shipments arrive.”

Under the guidelines, all rice import-

ers are also required to register with the Bureau Plant Industry-National Plant Quarantine Services Division prior to the conduct of negotiation and actual importation.

Last year, the NFA allowed 210 farmers’ organizations and private firms to import 692,340 MT of rice, 110,160 MT less than the 2016 MAV volume of 802,500 MT.

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TheBroa

Business

Thursday, August 10, 2017

Salmonella summons PH I

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

Satit Sae Tiw | Dreamstime

T is shorter than the width of a strand of spider-web silk. But it is now challenging the stability of an industry and of Philippine authority. Experts call it Salmonella. It arrived in May.

So the Department of Agriculture (DA) believes, as some inbound shipments of mechanically deboned meat of chicken and beef from Brazil, which arrived sometime between May and June, tested positive for Salmonella.

The discovery of the existence of this pathogen in the meat imports prompted the government agency to impose a temporary ban on goods coming from a country more than 18,000 km away.

The World Health Organization (WHO) identifies Salmonella as one of the major causes of foodborne illnesses, or commonly known as “food poisoning,” around the globe. In fact, the WHO identified the species, which measures 2 to 5 microns, as one of the four key global causes of diarrheal diseases.

“Most cases of salmonellosis [a symptomatic infection caused by bacteria of the Salmonella type] are mild,” the WHO said. “However, sometimes it can be life-threatening. The severity of the disease depends on host factors and the serotype of Salmonella.”

“The bacteria are generally transmitted to humans through consumption of contaminated food of animal origin, mainly meat, poultry, eggs and milk,” the WHO added.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also identified other commodities that could be contaminated with Salmonella: ground beef, tuna, pork, tomatoes, sprouts and even peanut butter.

The CDC estimates that at least a million food-borne illnesses in the United States are caused by Salmonella annually. About 19,000 hospitalizations and 380 deaths in the US annually are attributed to Salmonella, making it the deadliest pathogen.

“Most persons infected with Salmonella develop diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps 12 to 72 hours after infection. The illness usually lasts four to seven days, and most persons recover without treatment,” the CDC said. “However, in some persons, the diarrhea may be so severe that the patient needs to be hospitalized.”

The CDC is a federal agency that conducts and supports health promotion, prevention and preparedness activities in the United States, with the goal of improving overall public health.

Safety

THE National Meat Inspection Service (NMIS), an attached agency of the DA, started performing tight inspections on all beef and poultry meat imports from Brazil on March 24. This was done following media reports of the alleged “rotten” Brazilian meat in March

and the submitted communication of Brazil to the World Trade Organization on March 22.

Upon discovery that meat imports from Brazil tested positive for Salmonella in July, the DA immediately imposed a ban on the imports.

At first, the DA banned the importation of meat from one specific Brazilian meat-packing plant, where one of the contaminated shipments came from. The DA later on expanded the ban to cover 24 more Brazilian meatpacking plants.

However, on July 31, Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol issued Memorandum Order 32 authorizing the temporary suspension of the accreditation of all Brazilian foreign-meat establishments (FMEs).

The order formalizes the DA chief’s earlier pronouncement that he will impose a total ban on Brazilian meat imports and repeals MO 30, which imposed a temporary import ban on 25 Brazilian FMEs.

“In the meantime that [we] are conducting tests, we can temporarily stop the importation from Brazil and then clear them [meatpacking plants] one by one,” Piñol told reporters in an interview on July 20. “It will be a total ban of all Brazilian companies. But we will clear them one by one as we conduct the validation.”

Piñol slapped the ban based on the guidelines provided under NMIS Memorandum Circular 9-2008-5, Series of 2008, which indicates a “zero-tolerance policy” on Salmonella. The memorandum circular, titled “Microbiological limits for assessment of microbiological quality fresh, chilled and frozen meat,” states that “microbiological limits for salmonella spp. must be absent in 25 grams sample.” Piñol emphasized the MC’s provision in MO 32, a copy of which was given to reporters on August 7.

According to the DA chief, a total of 246 out of 492 container vans were sampled and subjected to laboratory analysis from March 1 to June 30, wherein samples from 18 containers, or 7 percent, tested positive for Salmonella.

The DA is now preparing to send a mission to Brazil that would physically inspect and investigate some 25 FMEs involved in the shipments that were tainted with Salmonella.

“They will check the facilities and then, as soon as they are cleared, we will lift their bans [sic] one by one,” Piñol said.

Based on the list available on the NMIS web site as of September 16, 2016, there are about 57 accredited Brazil-based FMEs allowed to export meat and meat

products to the Philippines.

However, the document showed that the validity of the accreditation of all 56 FMEs in Brazil is “for revalidation”.

Standards

HOWEVER, the DA drew flak from the industries affected by the imposition of import bans. These included meat importers, traders and even meat processors.

The Meat Importers and Traders Association (Mita) has urged the DA to reconsider its zero-tolerance policy on Salmonella. The Mita said the tests conducted by

the government on meat imports are not in accordance with the Codex Alimentarius.

Under MC9-2008-5, fresh meat and offals, chilled meat and offals, frozen meat and offals and chilled/frozen comminuted meat/ offals are classified under “Case 1” and “Case 10.” (An offal is the internal organs and entrails of a butchered animal.)

According to the International Commission on Microbiological Specifications for Foods (ICMSF), “Case 1” of raw meat for total plate count (TPC) includes: carcass meat before chilling, chilled carcass

meat, chilled edible offal, frozen carcass meat, frozen boneless meat, frozen comminuted meat and frozen edible offal.

Meanwhile, the “Case 10” classification is used to measure the presence of Salmonella in cooked poultry meat, according to ICMSF. Testing of E. coli in fresh and frozen fish is classified as “Case 4”.

“Obviously it is physically impossible for meat and offal to be both raw and cooked at the same time. It has to be one or the other.

As well, chicken MDM [mechanically deboned meat] is not fish,” Mita President Jesus C. Cham said

in a letter addressed to NMIS Executive Director Ernesto S. Gonzales dated July 13.

“Hence, we respectfully request that MC9-2008-5 be withdrawn and reissued to adhere to Codex Alimentarius Commission recommendations. As a logical consequence, we request that the zero-tolerance policy on Salmonella on raw meat be discontinued,” Cham added in the letter, a copy of which was obtained by the BusinessMirror.

Citing the reasons above, Cham said it is wrong for the Philippines to ban Brazil imports solely on the basis of Salmonella.

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“Excessive bacteria would be an acceptable justification, provided that their products consistently exceeded the limits,” he said. “The Philippines is applying the wrong tests and consequently arriving at the wrong conclusions and policy.”

Cham added that Salmonella in raw meat is not a concern, as all bacteria found in raw meat would be killed by cooking, especially when very well done, like what Filipinos usually do.

“Salmonella in fully cooked ready-to-eat processed meat is dangerous. But you can see from the international standards it is

not a concern in raw meat,” he said.

“The concern in raw meat is the total bacteria population or aerobic plate count, also referred to as TPC. As long as TPC is within limits then the meat is fit for human consumption. Meaning, it is fit for cooking, not necessarily safe if eaten raw or half-cooked,” he added.

Sales

THE Philippine Association of Meat Processors Inc. (Pampi) also appealed to the government to reconsider its zero-tolerance policy for Salmonella in raw materials, as

this could increase the retail price of canned goods, such as luncheon meat.

Pampi Director Rex E. Agarrado said removing Brazil from the list of possible sources of meat for the Philippines, just after lifting the ban on European exporters, could jack up the prices of raw materials, such as MDM.

“With this development, we expect a repeat of what happened in the first quarter, when chicken MDM prices doubled,” Agarrado told the BusinessMirror.

“The estimated impact of this is that, for hot dogs, the retail price could go up by 10 percent to 15 percent,” he added. “For canned goods that are MDM-based, such as meat loaf, beef loaf and luncheon meat, prices could go up by as much as 10 percent.”

Agarrado pointed out they are giving “101 percent” support “that there should be zero tolerance for Salmonella in finished products, but not for raw materials, which undergo a ‘kill process’.”

Agarrado said salmonella is killed at a temperature of 71°C.

“When we can our products we subject it to 118°C to 121°C. That’s close to double the temperature that is necessary to kill the organism,” he explained. “Our hot dog-producing members’ minimum internal temperature in cooking hot dogs is 75°C and some even reach 82°C.”

He noted that other countries and renowned institutions, such as the North American Meat Institute, have ruled out that Salmonella in ground beef and chicken mechanically deboned meat that are intended to be cooked “does not constitute a violation of federal rules since cooking destroys this”. Agarrado also said the United Kingdom does not have standards for Salmonella in minced beef or MDM.

“Likewise, Australia recognizes—and uses the word politically—an unavoidable level of Salmonella in raw chicken or material,” he said. “In a baseline study in 2010 they found that raw poultry that is being sold in the market is likely to be contaminated with Salmonella.”

Agarrado said his group wants the DA to address the issue on Salmonella in raw materials based on science. “We are asking for sobriety. We will never want to put our consumers at risk.” Pampi joined the Mita in asking the government to review its “zero-tolerance” policy for Salmonella in raw materials.

Sorry

HOWEVER, the NMIS is adamant

that the policy should remain in force despite the appeal of meat importers and processors to review and make the policy consistent with international standards.

“As I have said, we will not compromise. We are doing this to safeguard public health, because that is our main objective,” Gonzales told the BusinessMirror. “We set the guidelines; we set the policy, so [meat importers and processors] would have to comply with that. If they cannot, then I am sorry.”

The NMIS chief said meat processors and importers could consider raising the matter of reviewing the zero-tolerance policy with Piñol.

“The NMIS recommends policies and it is up to the secretary whether he would approve it or not,” Gonzales said. In an earlier interview, Piñol said he is open to the possibility of discussing the government’s zero-tolerance policy with stakeholders in the local meat industry.

“We cannot just implement what [meat industry stakeholders] are recommending. We need to study the recommendation; we cannot just change policies overnight,” he said.

For his part, the agriculture chief is cognizant that imposing a blanket ban on Brazil would affect Manila’s meat trade, as the South American country is one of the country’s major sources of meat.

Brazil accounts for 6 percent of the Philippines’s annual meat imports.

“We cannot do anything about it. We have to make sure that our consumers are protected more than anything else,” Piñol said.

“Trade can always resume the moment things are cleared. Our first and foremost priority would be the safety of our consumers.”

However, the agriculture chief said he is open to the possibility of discussing the government’s zerotolerance policy with stakeholders in the local meat industry.

“While we have to make a policy on that, we just cannot implement what they are recommending. We have to study it, we just cannot change policies overnight,” Piñol said. “We have to call industry stakeholders again and discuss this with them.”

The NMIS, however, made an assurance that Philippine markets remain free of Salmonella-tainted meat products. Gonzales said the agency has also not recorded any new cases of shipments contaminated with the bacteria since July.

The NMIS, an attached agency of

the DA, is the sole national controlling authority on all matters pertaining to meat inspection and hygiene.

Data obtained by the BusinessMirror from the Bureau of Animal Industry showed that the country’s meat imports in the first half of the year declined by nearly 13 percent to 280,269.056 metric tons (MT), from 322,013.273 MT a year ago.

Solution

WHILE Salmonella is easily killed when cooked at a temperature of at least 70°C, Gonzales pointed out that all strains of Salmonella are “harmful” to humans.

“All strains of Salmonella are harmful to humans; that doesn’t change. The effect depends on the amount of contaminated food you have consumed,” he said. “If you eat a chicken that is heavily infested with Salmonella, you can even die.”

Indeed, the growing case of Salmonella in the world has prompted the WHO to convene the Codex Alimentarius Commission, the body overseeing the Codex Alimentarius, to adopt guidelines and standards in handling the bacteria in meat.

“It is therefore no surprise that the Codex Alimentarius has recently proposed guidelines for the control of Salmonella in meat and poultry. The recently adopted guidelines provide a clear path to the reduction of salmonellosis,” said Jose Emilio Esteban, chairman of the Codex Committee on Food Hygiene.

“They address good production practices and potential interventions to reduce transmission. They also emphasize the importance of education and training for those involved in the food chain from farm to fork,” Esteban added.

The Codex Alimentarius, commonly known as “Food Code,” recommends thorough cooking as a way to eliminate Salmonella in meat.

“Cooking chicken meat thoroughly will eliminate Campylobacter and Salmonella,” it said.

“It has been shown that cooking chicken meat to 165°F (74°C) minimum internal temperature, with no hold time, will give at least a 7 log10 [a logarithmic formula] reduction in both Campylobacter and Salmonella.”

The Food Code also encourages consumers to be aware of the ways to prevent the contamination of Salmonella in food.

“Consumer education should

focus on handling, hand washing, cooking, storage, thawing, prevention of cross contamination, and prevention of temperature abuse,” it said.

The Codex Alimentarius is a joint Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and WHO food standards program that aims to protect consumer health and promote fair practices in food trade.

Meanwhile, the CDC advises consumers to observe the clean, separate, cook and chill guidelines to avoid contamination of Salmonella in handling and preparing food.

First, CDC said that consumers should wash hands with warm, soapy water for 20 seconds before and after handling uncooked eggs, or raw meat, poultry and seafood and their juices.

“Wash utensils, cutting boards, dishes and countertops with hot, soapy water after preparing each food item and before you go on to prepare the next item,” it said. “Don’t wash raw poultry, meat, and eggs before cooking.

Germs can spread to other foods, utensils and surfaces.”

CDC added that consumers should observe separating raw meat, eggs, seafood from other foods, especially when preparing cooked food.

“Keep raw meat, poultry, seafood and eggs separate from other foods in your grocery cart and in your refrigerator. Keep eggs in the original carton and store them in the main part of the refrigerator, not in the door,” it said. “Keep raw meat, poultry and seafood separate from ready-to-eat foods, such as salads and deli meat. Use separate cutting boards and plates for produce and for raw meat, poultry, seafood and eggs.”

The CDC also pointed out that one should never place cooked food on a plate that previously held raw meat, poultry, seafood or eggs.

CDC also advised consumers to cooked raw meat at a safe internal temperature to ensure the elimination of Salmonella in the food. Raw beef, veal, lamb, fish, pork and ham should be cooked at 145°F, while ground meat (beef, pork, veal and lamb) and egg dishes should be cooked at 160°F.

Meanwhile, poultry meat, such as chicken, turkey and duck, including grounded ones, and casseroles should be cooked at a 165°F level.

CDC also advised consumers to keep refrigerator temperature at 40°F or colder.

A8

Banking&Finance

Thursday, August 10, 2017 • Editor: Jun B. Vallecera

BusinessMirror

Economists forecast a stay in policy rates at MB meet

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By Bianca Cuaresma

@BcuaresmaBM

ower-than-projected inflation across the Philippines makes for a more compelling argument that the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas will opt for a stay on the rate at which it borrows from or lends to banks when it meets today to decide on the matter.

Singapore-based DBS Bank, for instance, said the rate-setting meeting of the BSP’s Monetary Board (MB) today, Thursday, was not likely to announce any change in the monetary settings.

Its analysts said the MB seem to “not be in a hurry to tighten its own monetary policy”.

According to DBS Bank economist Gundy Cahyadi, the BSP

will keep its main policy rate unchanged at the current 3-percent mark and that this should remain frozen till a policy-rate adjustment, likely by as much as 25 basis points, is decided on later in the year.

“The Central Bank is not in a hurry to tighten its monetary policy. This is despite being faced with a gradual policy tightening

in the US,” Cahyadi said.

“And the Central Bank also suggested no reason to panic, even as the peso remains weak,” he added.

This has reference to the exchange rate trading weaker by 16 centavos right off the bat on Wednesday to P50.58 per dollar at the local currencies market called the PDS. It would close the day’s transactions also 13 centavos weaker than a day earlier. By the time all transactions ceased, the exchange rate weakened by 23.3 centavos to P50.621 per dollar.

Cahyadi’s views mirrored that of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which recently said the monetary settings remain appropriate, no matter that the policy rate has to rise at some point.

“We think monetary stance is appropriate today. But when we look at the world, we do see interest rates are going to increase, and this is most likely going to have an impact on the Philippines. We would expect higher interest rates in the Philippines down the road

I

portfolio to be able to reach their financial goals,” Insular Life Senior Executive Vice President and Head of Sales and Marketing Jesus G. Hofileña said.

The Peso Global Equity Fund allows retail investors to part ic ipate i n t he per for m a nce of world market leaders, such as Microsoft, Unilever, Pfizer, Nov a r t i s, C he v ron, K i mber ly- Clark and Shell, using the local currency. “ The fund can enhance investors’ financial portfolio to achieve goals for a child’s quality education, a comfortable retirement or wealth management”, Hofileña said.

Investing in the Peso Global Equity Fund can be done by availing of Insular Life’s single-pay VUL products, Variable Returns Asset and First Million Fund.

Funds managed by Insular Life weathered last year’s rollercoaster ride for Philippine stocks,

rewarding its investors with “very decent returns”.

Among these funds, the Growth Fund posted the highest return at 4.05 percent, followed by the Equity Fund at 3.21 percent.

The Balanced Fund, a mixed exposure of equity and fixed income assets, also delivered a respectable return of 2.64 percent. Insular Life’s peso funds outperformed the market in general.

Case clippings

By Justice S J Ranada Jr. SHERIFF’S–demanding money from litigant A sheriff’s conduct of unilaterally demanding sums of money from a party-litigant purportedly to defray expenses of execution, without obtaining the approval of the trial court for such supposed expenses and without rendering an accounting, constitutes dishonesty and extortion, and falls short of the required standards of public service. Such conduct threatens the very existence of the system of the administration of justice.

Geronilla v. Montemayor 05 Jun 2017

AM P-17-3676 Perlas-Bernabe, J

Traits of high-performing association boards

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et me share with you the findings of a governance benchmark ing study by the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) Foundation, which was published in its book, entitled What Makes High-Performing Boards: Effective Governance Practices in MemberServing Organizations, cowritten

by Beth Gazley and Ashley Bowers. While the publication came out some time back, the findings are still relevant and applicable in the context of Philippine associations.

According to the report, the highest-performing boards had the following attributes: Strategic focus. High-performing boards were twice as l i k e ly to i nvest s u b st a nt i a l board meeting time to strategic considerations. Fully 99 percent of these boards were operating under an organizational strategic plan—and the plan was more likely to be one the board had worked jointly with staff to develop, rather than allowing staff to drive the planning. The result is striking: the top-performing boards also had healthier membership and budget growth and their leadersh ip wa s more st able;

Association World Octavio Peralta their CEOs were less likely to report intentions to leave the organization.

Com m it ment to a s se s s m e nt a nd s k i l l s d e v e l o p ment. These boards were twice as likely to set board-level performance goals for themselves, almost twice as likely to invest in board-development activities, such as mentoring and training, and twice as likely to engage in formal or informal board selfassessment.

Effective recruitment processes. They were also more likely to recruit new board members broadly, by, for example, soliciting nominations from outside the board rather than depending on CEO nominations. They were more likely to screen prospective board members and to hold competitive elections rather than voting for a single slate. The result? Their CEOs were half as likely to report challenges finding board members who had the

qualifications they needed and half as likely to report problems keeping the board members they wanted.

Hig h pa r t ic ipat ion le vels. Once these board members were recruited, the CEOs at topperforming associations were half as likely to report board meetings that failed to make a quorum or to report that board members had left office before their terms were up. These may seem like minor issues, but they weaken leadership, complicate governance processes for staff and other board members, slow dow n board decision-mak ing and create a culture of weak accountability.

In many instances, the differences between high and low performers were subtle. For example, low-performing boards were no more likely than highperforming boards to have policies on term limits, to screen board members, or to impose diversity requirements on board membership. There are no easy fixes. Rather, the margin of excellence appears to rest in the ability of some boards to connect the dots. They learn to use board structural considerations not as a crutch or excuse but as a vehicle

Planbank marks 65th anniversary

in line with global tightening of financial conditions, but we don’t see the need to tighten monetary policy stance today,” IMF Article IV Mission Head Luis Breuer earlier said.

St a k e ho l d e r s , e s s e nt i a l l y banks, trust units and other financial-sector players all agree the BSP has to make that policy adjustment at some point forward.

“Looking at how market rates have behaved so far this year, however, expectations are still for the BSP to start tightening soon enough. While we are not overly worried at this juncture, there are rising concerns over the widening current account deficit,” Cahyadi said.

“Consumpt ion g row t h is strong at 6-percent pace, while investment growth is solid in the double digits. Even if the inflation trajectory doesn’t scream for higher policy rates as yet, the BSP can definitely afford to adjust rates higher in the coming months,” he added.

Insular Life’s local currency fund investing overseas nsular Life, the first and largest Filipino-owned insurance company, has launched a new product that allows the local investors to diversify into global markets through the local currency.

Called the Peso Global Equity Fund, this variable unit-linked ( V U L) f u nd a i ms to ac h ieve long-term growth and capital appreciation by investing majority of its assets in instruments whose principal exposure is in income-producing equity securities in markets throughout the world.

“At this point, when funds are flowing into developed markets, it is timely to provide our clients with options to diversify internationally. Peso Global Equity Fund provides access to international equities that can take our investors’ investment to the next level.

The goal is to optimize their

news@businessmirror.com.ph

for asking the tough questions and engaging in a deeper level of introspection that leads to an effective understanding of what works well for them.

I believe these attributes of high-performing boards can encourage associations here to reflect upon how to enhance their board process and practice and how to maximize their boards’ contribution to the growth and sustainability of their organizations.

The column contributor, Octavio “Bobby” Peralta, is concurrently the secretar y-general of the Association of Development Financing Institutions in A sia and the Pacific (ADFIAP) and the CEO and founder of the Philippine Council of Associations and Association Executives (PCA AE).

PC A A E is holding the Associations Summit 5 (AS5) on November 22 and 23, at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC), which is expected to draw over 200 association professionals here and abroad. The two-day event is supported by A DFI AP, the Tourism Promotions Board and the PICC. E-mail inquiries@adfiap.org for more details on AS5.

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lanbank Rural Bank of Canlubang Planters Inc. marks its 65th anniversary with a Thanksgiving Mass at the main office on National Highway, Barangay Halang, Calamba City, Laguna.

Incorporated in 1952, Planbank has grown into a network of 15 branches in the provinces of Laguna, Batangas and Bulacan, and continues to expand.

Planbank specializes in serving farmers, small businessmen, market vendors and other community entrepreneurs. Its loan products include real-estate mortgage, back-to-back loan, credit line, Social Security System pension and auto loan. It also offers lowinterest jewelry loan where customers get loans in exchange for

jewelry pieces as collateral.

Despite challenges in the global markets and the local banking industry, Planbank remains bullish that it will post continued growth, and vows to expand its reach in the market.

In October 2013 the bank was acquired by the ALC Group of Companies, headed by the late Ambassador Antonio L. Cabangon Chua, whose initials gave the group its name. Other member-companies of the conglomerate are the Fortune Life Insurance Co., Fortune General Insurance Corp., Fortune Medicare Inc.; Eternal Gardens, Eternal Plans Inc., publicly listed Citystate Savings Bank Inc. and the Aliw Media Group, which includes the BusinessMirror, Philippines Graphic and Aliw Broadcasting Corp.

AseanThursday BusinessMirror

news@businessmirror.com.ph

Asean is nobody’s backyard –think tank

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S Asean foreign ministers, as well as foreign ministers from the US, China and other partners of the region meet for a series of top-level talks, the 50-yearold regional bloc should assert that Southeast Asia is nobody’s backyard, a think tank in Manila said.

Ambassador Albert F. del Rosario, chairman of Stratbase ADRi (ADRi) said: “Bringing Asean citizens to feel kinship and a shared stake in the association is an enormous and incomplete task for the sociocultural community. But it has to be done, because our region’s identity will be an anchor for stability and will drive future action.”

The consensus system empowers the few over the many and contributes to why Asean is adrift.

Continuing this outmoded system allows an outsider to take advantage of the decisionmaking process.”

—del Rosario “Asean has to address its outmoded governance system. The consensus approach, where a single country can block a decision, is responsible for the difficulty in reaching a unanimous decision. The consensus system empowers the few over the many and contributes to why Asean is adrift. Continuing this outmoded system allows an outsider to take advantage of the decision-making process. Are we ready to hand over our sovereignty and sovereign rights to a tyranny of the minority?” del Rosario said.

Ambassador Robert R. Romulo, chairman of the Carlos P. Romulo Foundation said: “The world has moved on from a unipolar center of power [of the United States] to one where multipolar centers of geopolitical and economic powers compete for allegiance in return for benefits.”

Han Sung Joo, former minister of Foreign Affairs of South Korea said: “I think the most urgent issue is not how to update and change the current rules, but how to deal with the challenge of multilateralism that comes from unilateralistic impulses, nativistic nationalism and anti-globalization.”

Often caught between conflicting interests from global powers, Asean should define its own leadership, even as its space for political action is becoming more constrained, said Dindo Manhit, president of ADRi. “Over the last decade or so, Southeast Asia had witnessed a protracted power play between Washington and Beijing in relation to the vital sea lanes in the South China Sea. The Asean nations themselves, including the group, had played minor roles, even as the two powers tried to exert dominance in the region.”

He stressed, “By becoming a more united bloc with a strong sense of regional identity, Asean will cement its role as a key player in the international arena.”

He cited China’s unabated militarization of South China Sea, in defiance of an arbitration ruling handed down last year, as an important geopolitical turn in the region that is hard to ignore.

Editor: Max V. de Leon • Thursday, August 10, 2017 A9

China steals spotlight at Asean as Tillerson keeps low profile

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or evidence of China’s burgeoning swagger on the world stage, look no further than Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s performance at an Asian security meeting this week.

Wang was easily the most active among the dozens of diplomats participating in the Asean talks in Manila, holding 14 meetings on Sunday alone. In almost hourly press gaggles, he prodded North Korea to entertain overtures from Seoul and pushed back against Asean criticism of China’s island-building in the disputed South China Sea. Wang’s spin through the spotlight was the latest example of China’s more proactive diplomacy under President Xi Jinping, who has presented himself as an outward-looking alternative to Donald J. Trump’s “America First” policies. In contrast, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson made only limited comments to the press during the gathering, leaving Wang to give reporters the only account of the pair’s meeting.

One official with the Chinese delegation said Wang’s accessibility to the press at the summit represented a conscious effort to demonstrate the country’s growing role in global affairs. In a break with past practice, the Chinese side set up a media area near Wang’s room at the Conrad Manila hotel and gave access to foreign reporters.

“This is a consensus among the top leadership,” said Wang Yiwei,

director of Renmin University’s Institute of International Affairs in Beijing. Xi “demands that the ministry be more active, more assertive and better and more frequently explain China’s stance to the international community”, he said.

‘Hide, bide’

Xi has set the bar with high-profile speeches, such as his defense of globalization at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in January. He hosted the Group of 20 (G20) last year and in May gathered representatives from scores of countries of promote his “Belt and Road” trade-and-infrastructure initiative.

For decades, China avoided attention under the “hide and bide” policy of late leader Deng Xiaoping—and its rise to diplomatic power has been bumpy. At a similar Asean gathering seven years ago, Wang’s predecessor, Yang Jiechi, fumed at criticism from “small countries” about its claims to much of the South China Sea. And at the G20 summit in Germany last month, China’s foreign ministry held no press briefings whatsoever.

Still, Xi’s outward shift has shown some early success in shaping the narrative at least in Asia, quieting

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (second from left) is escorted by Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Zhao Jianhua (left) upon arrival to take part in the 50th Asean Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and its Dialogue Partners. AP

the South China Sea dispute and deflecting Trump’s attempts to blame China for Kim Jong Un’s pursuit of nuclear weapons.

In one question-and-answer session, Wang urged North Korea to halt weapons tests and to accept new United Nations sanctions while calling on the US and South Korea to reduce tensions. In another, he noted that the South China Sea accounted for “much less” of Asean’s communiqué than past summit, his voice hoarse from talking.

Personal flare

Wang, 63, also demonstrated a personal flair rare for Communist Party officials. The former Chinese ambassador to Japan reminded newly installed Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono that his politician father was known to “speak from his heart”.

He also joked with Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman about his new mustache.

It wasn’t the first time the pompadour-sporting Wang has drawn attention overseas. Last year his confrontation with a Canadian reporter over China’s human-rights record generated Internet memes at home.

Wang might also be in position for a promotion later this year to China’s top diplomatic post, now held by his predecessor Yang. His state councilor position is among dozens of offices that could be reshuffled after a key party congress later this year.

Tillerson approach

China’s approach at the Asean summit drew a sharp contrast with the lower-key Tillerson, who has sought

to trim US diplomatic personnel and speaks less frequently to the press than his predecessors. Wang was free to put words in his American counterpart’s mouth last Sunday when discussing a possible Trump visit to Beijing later this year.

“Like Secretary Tillerson said, we’re hoping it could shape Sino-US relations over the next 50 years,” he told reporters.

Still, Wilfrido Villacorta, a former ambassador and permanent Philippine representative to Asean, said a quieter approach may have served US interests. He called Tillerson “a real diplomat when he made himself scarce” to avoid criticism that he was interfering in discussions on the South China Sea. China’s accessibilit y didn’t smooth all the rough edges of its diplomacy in Manila. Wang canceled a scheduled one-on-one meeting with his Vietnamese counterpart due to a spat over the South China Sea, according to people familiar with the situation. China saw Vietnam as responsible for language in an Asean statement that mentioned land reclamation, the people said.

“Ultimately, what happens in the rhetorical arena is just one element, and certainly not the most important one, in Sino-US relations,” said Jonathan Sullivan, director of the University of Nottingham’s China Policy Institute. “But the capacity for China to make gains while the US is enduring the dysfunction of the Trump administration is the reason I think we’ll see more proactive engagements like Wang Yi’s in Manila.” Bloomberg News

Vietnam seeks windfall selling $7-B brewery in slices

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ietnam’s plan to sell its Saigon Beer Alcohol Beverage Corp. stake in tranches may help the government extract the best price after the brewer’s market value surged to $7 billion.

The phased sale will be one way for the government to get “maximum valuation” for its 90-percent holding in the company, also known as Sabeco, according to Javier Gonzalez Lastra, a London-based analyst at Berenberg. The government expects to sell the first of three slices of its holding in the country’s biggest brewer in the fourth quarter, according to people familiar with the matter.

“Whoever gets the first tranche will have probably paid very high,” Lastra said. “You will be happy to pay a huge premium just to put yourself at the front of the queue, and if you got the first and second tranche, there’s nobody that’s going to come and just beat you out for the third tranche to have a minority stake.”

Heineken NV, Anheuser-Busch InBev NV and Japan’s Asahi Group Holdings Ltd. are among about halfa-dozen foreign companies that have shown interest in a stake in Sabeco. An expanding Vietnamese middle class and youthful population

40.6 liters

Vietnam’s per-capita beer consumption, biggest in Asean helped drive a 300-percent surge in beer demand since 2002, according to Euromonitor. By looking to sell in portions, Vietnam is banking on the fact that beer demand will continue to rise, said Thomas Jastrzab, an analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence in Hong Kong.

The government is expected to approve Sabeco’s plan by the middle of next month, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is not yet public. Additional sales of stakes in the company may take place through 2018, they said. Sabeco Chairman Vo Thanh Ha wasn’t immediately available for comment.

Nguyen Trong Dung, vice chairman of the government’s national steering committee for enterprises renewal and development, said a decision hasn’t been made on the Sabeco plan and declined to comment on benefits of selling the stake in

multiple tranches.

Shares of Ho Chi Minh City-based Sabeco have more than doubled since listing last December on expectations of a stake sale. Its priceto-earnings ratio is 36, compared with about 20 for Carlsberg A/S, the Danish brewer that owns a stake in Hanoi Beer Alcohol Beverage Corp.; Heineken has a multiple of about 25 times and Asahi Group 22.

“Sabeco is quite expensive, since the Vietnam beer market is only expected to grow 6 percent this year,” said Tran Nhat Trung, a Ho Chi Minh City-based analyst at ACB Securities Co. “But it may still be attractive, es-

pecially to the Japanese companies, since they face the negative interestrate economy back home.”

Beer demand

Sabeco’s shares have climbed 28 percent this year through Tuesday, compared with the 19-percent gain in the benchmark Vietnam Ho Chi Minh Stock Index. The stock dropped as much as 1.2 percent in Ho Chi Minh City trading on Wednesday.

A risk of selling the Sabeco stake in more than one tranche would be if Vietnamese beer demand slumps, reducing the valuation for the second and third tranches, Jastrzab said.

Vietnam’s per-capita beer consumption will reach 40.6 liters (11 gallons) this year, making it the biggest consumer of the amber fluid in Southeast Asia, according to Euromonitor. Heineken and Carlsberg are fighting for market share in the country as international brewers seek to expand their Asian presence through acquisitions. AnheuserBusch InBev bought South Korea’s Oriental Brewery Co. for $5.8 billion in 2014, while Heineken purchased Singapore’s Asia Pacific Breweries two years before that.

Sabeco, the maker of Saigon Beer and 333 Beer, had a 40-percent share of its domestic market in 2016 and has the capacity to produce more than 1.8 billion liters of beer a year, according to the company’s annual report.

The Vietnamese government, which needs billions of dollars in infrastructure investments for highways to airports, is stepping up efforts to cut its holdings in stateowned firms in a bid to narrow its budget deficit. The country plans to privatize 137 state-owned companies through 2020 and expects to complete the process in 40 of them this year. Bloomberg News

Thai Beverage to buy KFC restaurants in fast-food push

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hai Beverage (ThaiBev), the spirits giant that makes Chang beer and SangSom rum, is expanding into the fast-food business to take advantage of the rising appetite for fried chicken in Asia.

ThaiBev agreed to purchase more than 240 existing KFC restaurants in Thailand for about 11.3 billion Thai baht ($340 million). A deal is also in place for the company to take over stores that are being developed, with the cost of those locations to be determined when the transaction closes, according to a filing.

KFC is operated by Louisville, Kentuckybased Yum! Brands Inc., which also runs

the Taco Bell and Pizza Hut chains.

Billionaire Chairman Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi, who founded the company, has been seeking to diversify ThaiBev’s operations for years, with a goal of generating more revenue from nonalcoholic beverages by 2020. The fast-food push comes as Western restaurant companies increasingly target Asia as a key market for growth. For ThaiBev, the KFC deal is a bid to seize on the popularity of chicken in Asia, according to Nirgunan Tiruchelvam, a director at Religare Capital Markets in Singapore.

“The KFC acquisition is a very good way of exposing oneself to the rise

of quick-service restaurants in Asia, especially the rise of chicken consumption,”he said. Emerging-market demand for KFC is strong, and the concept has a local focus in each market. The brand is centered around a protein with few belief-based dietary restrictions, giving it a broad base of potential customers.

Yum!, which spun off its China division last year, is seeking to accelerate development of its Pizza Hut, KFC and Taco Bell brands, particularly in overseas markets. At the same time, Yum aims to become 98-percent franchised by the end of fiscal 2018.

Thailand accounted for 2 percent

of KFC’s sales in emerging markets last quarter. It was the only region in that division that saw sales drop year-overyear, posting a 2-percent decline.

Charoen previously expanded his property business amid government measures to curb alcohol consumption in Buddhist Thailand. He was ultimately forced to list the company unit in Singapore in 2006 after activists and monks held protests to block a local share sale by the company. The company’s longterm strategy involves generating 50 percent of its revenue from countries outside Thailand and nonalcoholic beverage by 2020. That’s expected to drive

more deals in the region. Sales outside that country amounted to less than 4 percent in the last fiscal year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

“Thai Beverage is a company that is looking to expand in the food and beverage space in Southeast Asia,” Tiruchelvam said. “It has very strong core cash flow from its spirits business, and it’s expanding into other areas.”

Yum! shares slumped 1.1 percent on Tuesday in New York, after reaching a record high on August 2. ThaiBev did not trade on Wednesday as the Singapore market was closed for a holiday.

Bloomberg News

A10 Thursday, August 10, 2017 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

editorial

The key to regional peace and stability

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op diplomats of Asean and China who attended the 50th Asean Ministerial Meeting in Manila showed their ability to work together to maintain regional peace and stability when they agreed on the framework for a code of conduct (COC) in the South China Sea and targeted to start formal negotiations on the actual code by the end of the year. For the first time, they underlined the importance of nonmilitarization and selfrestraint in conducting activities by all claimants, including those mentioned in the Declaration on the Conduct of the Parties in the South China Sea. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the most substantial progress made was that, with the joint efforts of China and Asean, the situation in the South China Sea has been stabilized. His words: “We have carried out effective cooperation and have brought it back to the track to resolve disputes through direct dialogue and negotiation by the parties directly concerned.”

Wang earlier said talks for a nonaggression pact aimed at preventing clashes from erupting in the strategic and potentially oil- and gas-rich disputed waterways may start this year if outside parties don’t cause a major disruption. He was apparently referring to the US, which China has, for the longest time, accused of meddling in what it says is an Asian dispute that should be resolved only by the countries involved. China’s other precondition before it agrees to start talks on the COC is that “the situation in the South China Sea should also be generally stable”.

At the closing ceremonies of the 50th Asean Ministerial Meeting and Related Meetings, Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter S. Cayetano said the joint communiqué that called for nonmilitarization and self-restraint in South China Sea activities reflects the sentiment of the whole Asean.

Describing the joint communiqué as a “negotiated document” adopted by all Asean members, the DFA chief also agreed with China’s proposal to have a generally stable [South China Sea] and no major disruption from outside parties before they could announce the official start of the COC consultation in November.

“I look at it more as a prerequisite and it is a logical prerequisite for me. That’s why, if you look at our statement, it is directed to all states that we shouldn’t do anything in the area unilaterally and shouldn’t do anything that will make us regret and lose trust and lead to conflict,” Cayetano said.

China has had robust economic ties with Asean, a region of more than 600 million people with a combined GDP of $2.4 trillion. But the Asian giant had long been perceived as delaying negotiations with Asean for the maritime code to allow it to complete its land reclamations in the South China Sea without any regulatory restrictions. But things may turn around soon. By agreeing to start substantive consultations on the text of the COC within the year, China is showing the world it wants solve disputes through dialogue and consultation with all parties concerned to ensure peace and stability in the Asian region.

In the joint communiqué, the Asean foreign ministers commended China’s growing role in the region and expressed expectations for more high-level dialogue and higher level of economic integration.

When completed, the COC will certainly create new opportunities for closer strategic partnerships and greater economic development in the region.

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How to spot the next stock-market rally John Mangun

OUTSIDE THE BOX

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ext month I will be speaking at the Financial Advisors Congress on “How to Spot the Next Stock Market Crash”.

But, in fact, “crashes” are much easier to forecast than longterm stock-market rallies.

Certainly, there are always hidden lions waiting to pounce on stock prices. If North Korea’s “Kim Jong-nuts” decides to get physical against any surrounding territory, this will obviously trigger a worldwide stock-market disaster. But that is an easy-money bet—just like the eventual Metro Manila earthquake—that you cannot do anything about nor should you try.

It will come or not. In the meantime, life goes on until we come to that bridge to cross.

Suppose, though, that tomorrow Kim changes his mind, “finds Jesus”, and issues a statement along the lines of “Nukes? My bad. You guys come over for dinner and we be friends”? In other words, we rarely

consider the positive because the way to protect ourselves is to always be looking at the worst-case scenario.

I do that for a living.

However, preparing for that worst case is only to protect what you have. How do you forecast the “best-case” scenario where the real money is made?

In perfect hindsight, on January 1, 2009, you should have liquidated all your possession, begged, borrowed or stolen (ok, not stolen) every cent or centavo you could and bought the Philippine or New York stock markets. Since that day, the stock markets have really not looked back. Certainly, there have been some down moves on the Philippine Stock Exchange. But, overall,

There are two great mistakes that stock-market investors make. Obviously, the first is holding losing postings too long.

Recently, someone talked to me about an issue that they bought at P18. The price is now P6. They wanted some advice about what to do. There is no advice. The other great mistake is watching and waiting as the stock price goes higher.

both markets have been going in one direction—up.

There are two great mistakes that stock-market investors make.

Obviously, the first is holding losing postings too long. Recently, someone talked to me about an issue that they bought at P18. The price is now P6.

They wanted some advice about what to do. There is no advice.

However, the other great mistake is watching and waiting as the stock price goes higher.

When the price is going down, the mentality is “I bought at P18 and the price is P16. No big deal.” Then, we go to “I can’t sell at P14 when I should have sold at P16. Maybe it will go back up.” At P8, the “should

have sold” price was P10.

But the same thing happens when prices are going higher. “I should have bought at P6 and it’s now P8.

Maybe it will correct.” The investor then feels that the best entry point was missed and decides to wait, hoping the stock will go back down one more time to get in.

Note this well. There is no “best price” to buy in or to sell out. Puregold went from P12 to P48 before it peaked. D&L Industries, from P3 to P12. Cebu Pacific, on the other side, went from P130 to P50. All an investor should be concerned about is making money when the price is going up and not losing money when the price is going down.

So how can we spot the next stock-market rally? The same way you could have in 2009. Simplistically—and stock-price movements are simple—when prices stop going down, that is when to buy. But let me give you a preview on stock-market crashes. When prices stop going up, it does not mean the market is turning down.

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

The urgency of building a new airport in Clark Val A. Villanueva

Businesswise

I

was one of those who experienced the hellish traffic last Friday.

What used to be 45-minute ride from our place in Santa Rosa, Laguna, to Arnaiz Avenue in Makati on a midmorning road trip turned into a two-hour bumper-to-bumper travel.

We also noticed that the southbound traffic going to the airport was at a standstill, converting the road leading to Villamor into a virtual parking lot. I could just imagine the stress of those who had booked for air travel, only to miss their respective flights.

From former President Corazon C. Aquino’s time to the current administration of President Duterte’s (who, by the way, boasted during the presidential campaign that he would solve the Metro Manila’s nightmarish traffic in three months), experts have regularly raised the alarm that, unless Metro Manila is decongested, land and air traffic would persist

and worsen. Actually, we didn’t need a prophet to predict the gargantuan traffic nightmare that the commuting and motoring public confront every day.

Some of the solutions that need urgent actions are the construction of new roads (which is now slowly being addressed by Duterte’s “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure program) and the construction of a new airport outside of Metro Manila.

There are moneyed groups— such as those headed by “frenemies” Manuel V. Pangilinan of the First Pacific Co. Ltd. and Ramon Ang of San Miguel Corp.—that have expressed interest in either improving

the Clark International Airport or building new ones. The Duterte administration, however, would rather undertake the construction of a new airport on its own.

The Pangilinan group’s offer covers only Clark’s expansion, operations and maintenance which the government is likely to approve since it deems this project to be smaller in scope and could be left in the hands of the private sector.

Ang’s proposal to build an entirely new airport in Bulacan, however, runs counter to this administration’s decision to do away with the public-private partnership (PPP) route, which I believe would be more beneficial to the government.

Transportation Secretary Arthur P. Tugade rationalizes the junking of the PPP. He says a negotiated deal between government to government is the faster course and a better option to facing delays that may emerge with public biddings concerning the private sector.

We could not emphasize enough, however, the urgency of building an entirely new airport. BusinessWise believes that only Clark offers the best location.

Through the years, only one

domestic and three international terminals have been built at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia), with the frequency of plane arrivals and departures at only 40 an hour. Naia has only one long runway, crossed by a shorter one. Building another runway is now a daunting task because the peripheral areas have been converted to residential areas. There is just simply no more space for growth on Naia’s 6.7 hectares of land.

In contrast, Clark’s has over 4,000 hectares with two giant runways built by the US Air Force for its 13th Air Force which hosted giant bombers and jet fighters in World War II, the Korean and Vietnam War. Its runaways could even house the US Space Shuttle.

The best time for every single major new airport construction, from conceptualization to first flight, is seven years. Conceding that an airport’s location could be anywhere anyone wants to build it, it will never see the first landing for a minimum of another seven, or more likely, 10 years. So, what is to be done over the next seven to 10 years?

See “Villanueva”, A11

Opinion BusinessMirror

opinion@businessmirror.com.ph

CARP: Free distribution Do not be afraid! of public lands?

Msgr. Sabino A. Vengco Jr.

Alálaong Bagá

Dr. Rene E. Ofreneo

LABOREM EXERCENS Continued from A1

T

he truth is that the government has been identifying and distributing public lands under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (Carp). When former Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) Secretary Gil de los Reyes was accused by farmer unions and civil-society agrarian-reform advocates for being slow and indecisive in the implementation of the Carp, he explained that past DAR administrators had an easier task distributing easy-todistribute lands. Thus, from 1972 to 2012, “more than three-fourths of distributed lands [76 percent] are either government-owned lands [GOL/Kilusang Kabuhayan at Kaunlaran or KKK, lands and settlements] or lands distributed through voluntary modes of acquisition [voluntary land transfers or voluntary offer to sell].”

In contrast, de los Reyes complained that he was left with landdistribution targets that are “more difficult, more tedious and more contentious”. As of December 2013 the DAR reported that a total of 8,250 hectares had been distributed by both the DAR and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). The “difficult” lands, mostly given by de los Reyes with simple “notices of coverage” (NOCs), totaled around 1 million hectares and were bequeathed by de los Reyes to DAR Secretary Paeng Mariano for full completion.

The CARP implementation in public lands are, indeed, relatively easy because these are in the hands of the government. In fact, majority of the lands distributed in the first two decades of the CARP were public lands, such as the 1.5-millionhectare lands set aside for the KKK program during the Marcos period, the landed estates developed by the government in the 1960s and the various land-settlement projects organized by the DAR in the past. Also included are the forestry lands under the Integrated Social Forestry and the Community-Based Forest Development programs of the DENR. However, the Carp in public lands also raises some vexing questions. First, there are no published details on the magnitude of the different public lands that were or are made available for Carp distribution. How developed are these lands? Who were/are the occupants of these lands—informal settlers, indigenous peoples and corporations?

Who were identified as beneficiaries, and how were they documented as beneficiaries? Information related to these questions is extremely scanty.

There are no published details on how the alienation process was or is being done. As it is, reports on the achievements in public land distribution are statistics, aggregated statistics, which do not tell much.

Mary Ann Manahan of Focus on the Global South reported that many of the public lands had occupants even before the Carp, and some of those who control and exploit the public lands were landed families, like the political families in Bondoc Peninsula. With the Carp, it was easy for these families to award the lands to the members of their own families or political wards, while the poor informal settlers and indigenous peoples (IPs), uninformed about the Carp, were not included in the Carp process because they were not aware of their rights under the law.

It should be pointed out that, through the decades, poverty and joblessness have forced many landless rural poor to invade public lands and engage in slash-and-burn farming, small-tree logging and charcoal making. They are often blamed for the denudation of the forests. In reality, they enter forest areas only after these forests had been cleared and dirt roads were built by the big logging companies. Again, are these informal settlers monitored and given lands? This is not clear in various DAR and DENR reports.

But the public land invaders are not only the landless rural poor. They include the rich—resort developers, poultry and piggery corporations, “land bankers” and land speculators, managers of fighting-cock farms, operators of shooting ranges and rest-house owners who have no titles or even permits to occupy public or forest lands.

Another area that the DENR has not explained or clarified is the status of the big pasture lands that were leased to big ranchers in the past and the idle mining concession areas that have been abandoned or left undeveloped by mining companies. How many pasture lands have remained pasture lands? How many mining areas have remained mining areas? How many pasture and mining lands have been converted into private lands and who occupy them? Have these lands been covered by the Carp? Again, there are no clear DAR and DENR reports on these.

Finally, a problematic area in public land management and CARP implementation is securing the ancestral-domain rights of the IPs. There are more than a hundred IP groups listed by the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples. These IPs claim around 2.5 million hectares as part of their ancestral domain.

Under the Indigenous People’s Reform Act (Ipra) of 1997, these IPs are entitled to security over their lands, with the government issuing Certificates of Ancestral Domain Titles (CADT). There are conflicts in the implementation of the CARP and Ipra, primarily because of the weak delineation of IP areas, alienable public lands, claims of non-IP beneficiaries and, yes, the claims too of mining companies. Some conflicts naturally turn violent when IP lands are awarded to non-IP beneficiaries or when IPs are displaced by mining companies. It also takes years, sometimes five years, to process IP application for the CADTs. All the foregoing show the importance of having a comprehensive and reliable survey and inventory of public lands. The Revised Forestry Code, issued originally as Presidential Decree 705 in 1975, provides for the following under Section 52: “A complete census of kaingineros, squatters, cultural minorities and other occupants and residents in forest lands with or without authority or permits from the government, showing the extent of their respective occupation and the resulting damage, or impairment of forest resources, shall be conducted.”

So far, we have not seen any DENR census or comprehensive report on the various occupants of public lands. Thus, before any decision on the distribution or redistribution of public lands is made, it is incumbent upon both the DAR and DENR to find out what is really the situation on the ground in supposedly public lands. Reform in public land occupancy is clearly in order.

Paging Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu and Mariano.

W

e need real faith in Jesus as we try to live up to our role in the world. We are asked to cross to the other side of the sea on a boat buffeted by waves and with opposing winds, and to do what Jesus does (Matthew 14:22-33).

Alone on a stormy sea Hearing the death of His friend, John the Baptizer, Jesus sought earlier to be alone in a deserted place. But the crowd came hungry for Him, and He fed 5,000 of them in the wilderness. Still wanting to be alone with His Father in prayer on the mountain, he sent his disciples on a boat to precede Him to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, while He sent the people away too (I think, giving them from the leftover bread of the miraculous feeding, pabaon provision for the road and pasalubong take-home for their families).

Themselves nourished by the bread from Jesus, the disciples have the assignment to go out to sea and

cross over to the other shore. Any questions the disciples might have they kept to themselves, for they have just seen that their reservations about feeding the crowds in the desert were baseless. But after surviving one, they were to run into another crisis. Some kilometers offshore, alone and at night, they found themselves being tossed about by the waves and tried hard by the turbulence caused by the contrary wind. The boat of the Church battered by waves and resisted by winds is in danger.

Walking on the water

The exhausting struggle against the angry sea put uncertainty in their hearts, and it turned into

Thursday, August 10, 2017 A11

terror around four in the morning when they saw someone walking on the sea toward them. “It’s a ghost!” was their instinctive reaction, a specter sowing fear in their world of spirits. The disciples’ task to cross the sea was in itself fraught with risks. The sea is the abode of evil spirits, the abyss and seat of the kingdom of darkness. For the “bark of Peter” to cross the sea is to bring the fight to the enemy. A stormy sea must be expected, for the Church is a counterculture going against the current in a world pervaded by evil.

But the Church is never really alone in the midst of the storm.

Someone walks with sovereign power on the sea: Jesus Christ, who is now the visibility of the Almighty in control over the chaotic waters.

“It is He,” who alone can say “I am” in identification with the reality of God. Jesus has already conquered the kingdom of darkness, and He walks on the sea triumphantly.

Peter, representing the entire boat tossed about by the waves, exemplified the wavering between faith and doubt in the face of conflicts. “If it is you...”, then they can really cross the sea and weather the turbulent passage, and be like Jesus on top of

President Corazon C. Aquino’s PCGG

and his cronies.

Castro also said that, through the help of the group, he was able to discover that the Aquino administration indeed made a mistake of not impleading the corporate assets of Marcos and his cronies.

But instead of criticizing the Aquino regime, Castro chose to call the blunder a simple act of omission committed by former PCGG lawyers who, according to him, believed in theory that only an individual can be a crony or a defendant and not the corporation or its assets.

Castro told this writer that the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) lawyers themselves believed at the time the civil cases were filed that the corporate assets were just used as vehicles to acquire or hide the hidden wealth of the individual defendants and, therefore, the corporate assets did not have a personality different from the individual defendants.

Whatever, it was nonetheless a costly mistake with far-reaching legal implications. The original 43 civil cases had grown in number to should focus on the Clark Freeport alone. The country still needs the Naia and another airport. In this respect, I believe that the proposal of San Miguel Corp. to construct another airport is still viable.

The main beef of those against having the Clark Freeport as a host to the new airport is its distance from Metro Manila. Admittedly, this is a myopic view, considering that not all air travelers reside in the metropolis. A high-speed railway to connect Clark to Metro Manila is not only expensive but problematic, as well since right-of-way issues are bound to hound its construction.

There are many misconceptions related to the benefits of high-speed rail transport. In effect, anyone living in Makati City and nearby areas could still use the Naia, in much the same way that a resident in Washington,

D.C., can use National, Dulles or BWI, or an individual living in New York could use JFK, La Guardia or Newark.

There are over 23 million people living in the Clark Catchment Basin. Do you live, time-wise, closer to Clark or the Naia? The catchment is comprised of those who live in Regions 1, 2, CAR and 3, and the northern environs of Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas and Valenzuela.

Now, consider how each of these 23 million-plus residents will be forced to travel on Edsa to get to the Naia, when it would have been easier to fly in and out of Clark? Similarly, the $6 billion in exports from Clark, not to mention other shipments going to or from the catchment basin, by and large, go in and out of the port of Manila because of insufficient use of the port of Subic (where similar situations can be found in the port

of Batangas and Southern Luzon).

Every passenger vehicle and cargo truck in the catchment basin, diverting to Clark or Subic, would be one less on the already overcrowded infrastructures of Metro Manila. The cost to the government is nothing more than political will. There is no downside to the expansion of the Clark airport (or either port). Quite the contrary, its growth would provide a variety of benefits, including a second major international gateway in Luzon as an alternative to the Naia, which would serve as a major metropolitan center to help alleviate Metro Manila congestion and provide an economic stimulus to the national economy. It would be a huge economic multiplier.

Part Four

W

HEN Chairman Magtanggol Gunigundo took over the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG), one of the first things he did was to try to correct what he believed to be an immoral and onerous agreement signed by David M. Castro and Roberto S. Benedicto. He asked the Sandiganbayan in a petition to allow the PCGG to revise the compromise deal, but the court denied his petition.

continued from A10

The year-old Duterte administration, no matter how aggressively it pursues the construction of a new airport, will find it impossible to build one. Promotion and expanded use of Clark (and the ports of Subic and Batangas) to get the northbound traffic from the Naia, and the trucks bound for the port of Manila totally off Edsa is really a no brainer. Our country needs more than two airports. Most of the major cities today have two, even three or more major airports actively servicing its people.

Even with Clark and/or another new airport located in the south, the Naia should continue to operate.

What we are saying here is that it doesn’t mean that the government

Join me in meditating on the Word of God every Sunday, from 5 to 6 a.m., on dwIZ 882, or by audio streaming on www.dwiz882.com.

Another controversial case that escaped scrutiny was the return lock, stock and barrel of Meralco, ABS-CBN and other corporations to the Lopez family shortly after the Edsa uprising.

The Lopezes claimed that they were victims of the Marcos regime.

But a set of documents belied their claim, showing that they sought Marcos’s help for financial assistance for Meralco and offering the sale of their shares in three letters signed

by Eugenio Lopez on February 19, 1973, March 20, 1973, and September 17, 1973.

The sale was finally consummated on December 16, 1974, to Meralco Foundation Incorporated, which assumed the indebtedness of Benpres Holdings in Meralco Securities Corporation to foreign and local banks amounting to P101.1 million.

The deed of sale was, in fact, guaranteed by the Philippine National Bank through a letter of credit it issued to the foundation for the purchase of the Benpres shares of stocks.

The foundation also assumed Benpres’s P9.5-million debt on stock subscription and an obligation to pay Benpres P48.6 million on its equity, payable by installment over a 10-year period at a 10-percent interest on the unpaid balance.

In other words, what this particular set of documents showed was that the Lopezes were not victims of martial law but were, in fact, the beneficiaries when Marcos helped them out of their financial mess.

Strangely, the takeover by the Lopez family of the Meralco after the Edsa revolt was shrouded in mystery despite President Corazon C. Aquino’s avowed policy of full disclosure and transparency.

database

Villanueva. . .

Alálaong bagá, Peter asked Jesus to command him to come over on the water. He did not arrogate to himself the power of Jesus; he only requested to be commanded and empowered by him. Believing and calling Jesus as the Lord, Peter took the steps in his journey deeper into the mystery of his master. It entailed overcoming his fear, with his eyes on Jesus.

But he wavered, letting his mind fill with the noisy opposing winds, and he started to sink. He asked for help, and Jesus caught him. Peter was led to see that his “little faith”, as manifested in his doubt, needs to mature still. With Jesus on the boat with His disciples the threatening forces died down, and they recognized His power as the Son of God. But it is clear their homage must include understanding that faith translates into participating in Christ’s power and action. They still have to grow into what Jesus commanded: “Do not be afraid!” in the face of the storm.

320 civil cases, while the 44 criminal cases increased to 171; 117 were then pending trial before the Sandiganbayan and various regional trial courts, while the remaining 54 were still in the preliminary stage before the Ombudsman.

Sixteen of the civil cases were scheduled for pretrial, four for trial on merits, 16 were pending hearing on incidental issues and four were under consideration for a possible compromise agreements—all with the Sandiganbayan.

Nine other civil cases were for the forfeiture of the Marcoses’s assets, while the lawyers of the Marcoses and their cronies have filed 107 cases with the Supreme Court against the PCGG. So far, only 27 cases had been resolved by the High Court.

The remaining 80 cases were still pending with the High Tribunal, while the other cases in the lower courts were yet to be scheduled for hearings.

Because of the legal complexity, these cases may not be resolved at all, considering the usual delay in scheduling the hearings, in the production of documents and in various dilatory tactics resorted to by some lawyers to get the advantage in the litigation of these cases.

The prosecution of these cases suffered another setback because of the existing animosities between the OSG and the PCGG. The OSG had been repeatedly accusing some PCGG officials of not allowing its prosecutors to have complete access to the body of evidence under PCGG custody or control.

The court also remanded several criminal cases to the Ombudsman for reinvestigation, as the PCGG, according to the court, cannot be investigator, prosecutor and judge, all at the same time.

Cecilio T. Arillo

Solicitor General Raul Goco also filed a reconsideration with the Supreme Court on behalf of the PCGG, but the High Tribunal affirmed the lower court’s decision and, thus, barred the PCGG from further bothering Benedicto.

Before Gunigundo took over the management of the PCGG, Castro hired the services of Shamrock, a group of professional economists, lawyers, accountants and researchers, to review and evaluate all the legal actions against the Marcoses and their cronies.

Some officials under Gunigundo, however, criticized the hiring of Shamrock, saying that important PCGG records were unnecessarily exposed to people who were not covered by the government’s mandatory requirements on accounting, auditing and handling of state secrets.

Interviewed, Castro ignored the criticism and bragged that it was Shamrock that helped collate the evidence for the 10 of the 12 banner civil cases filed with the Sandiganbayan against Ferdinand E. Marcos

the situation walking on the water.

That would not be impossible; it is part of their mission.

To be continued

For comments and suggestions, e-mail me at mvala.v@gmail.com.

2nd Front Page BusinessMirror

A12 Thursday, August 10, 2017

www.businessmirror.com.ph

LGU workers can acquire housing units for uniformed personnel at ₧200/month

H

By Cai U. Ordinario

@cuo_bm

omeless public-school teachers, barangay officials and other local government unit (LGU) employees can inherit thousands of unwanted military and police housing units if they want to acquire them, at minimal cost, according to the Housing and Urban Development Coordination Council (HUDCC).

In a n inter v iew w it h t he BusinessMirror on Wednesday, HUDCC Chairman Eduardo del Rosario said the council estimates that around 25,562 teachers, barangay officials and LGU workers in areas where these housing units are located could benefit from the program.

For those who will avail themselves of the houses, they will be

25,562

The estimated number of unoccupied AFP/PNP housing units being offered to local government personnel

charged P200 a month, or P2,400 annually, for the first four years.

This monthly payment will gradually increase starting the fifth year, until they are able to fully pay for the unit. “Those who will benefit will be the government employees in the locality. These houses will be given to LGU workers, such as teachers and barangay officials,” del Rosario added.

The government initially built 66,124 housing units for the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP). However, due to the location and the small sizes of the units, only 17 percent, or 11,000 units, have been occupied to date by the military and police force.

Del Rosario said among the primary reasons the AFP and PNP personnel refused to avail themselves of the housing units are the location and the size of each unit.

He added this is why the HUDCC has chosen to offer the units to government employees working in LGUs.

Apart from this, del Rosario said the HUDCC decided to expand each unit to 44 square meters, from the original 22 sq m, to give recipients more space. This is also why only 25,562 units will be offered toLGUs. “[There was no] proper consultation. The main objective of the prev ious administration was to build houses just so the government can say it was able to provide housing units for the AFP and PNP,” del Rosario added.

“If the AFP/PNP cannot accept the units because they are too small, the LGU workers will also not accept them. So, instead of giving only 22 square meters, they will be given 44 square meters each,” he added.

Meanwhile, in terms of the 4,000 units occupied by Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap (Kadamay), del Rosario said the government will honor the President’s commitment to them.

Del Rosario added that the Nat ion a l Hou si ng Aut hor it y found that 90 percent of the Kadamay members who occupied the

housing units were qualified recipients of the houses.

However, the government cannot give them additional space, like the arrangement they are extending to LGU employees.

“This is an exceptional case that should be treated that way. If they demand that [the] government give more free housing units, the government does not have the capacity to do that. [And if the government gives more free housing,] it will never end, so it has to stop.

[There should be a] stop to forceful entry and a stop to giving houses for free,” del Rosario said.

Philippine InTstitute for Development Studies Vice President Marife Ballesteros agreed with this view that free housing places a lot of pressure on the government’s budget.

Ballesteros said significant financial pressure will be given to the government, considering there are about 900,000 Filipino families living in danger zones and those living as informal settlers in various

‘Budget to boost tourism’

P16B IN SCHOLARSHIP FUNDS AVAILABLE FOR FREE COLLEGE TUITION

T

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

O

@joveemarie

he chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations on Wednesday said the government will consolidate the various scholarship funds in the 2018 proposed national budget to bankroll the implementation of the free college education law.

National Unity Party Rep. Karlo Alexei Nograles of Davao City said this would allow the government to raise P16 billion to implement Republic Act (R A) 10931 or Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act. Nograles added his committee, Budget Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno, Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Chairman Patricia B. Licuanan and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) Secretary-General Guiling A. Mamondiong have agreed to consolidate government-scholarship funds.

“Together with the Department of Budget and Management [DBM] and the CHED, we have achieved a breakthrough and managed to identify at least P16 billion that would be readily available in time for the first semester enrollment next year,” he said.

According to Nograles, various scholarships can be found in different State Universities and Colleges (SUCs), CHED, the departments of Health, Agriculture, Science and Technology (DOST), Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and Tesda.

Continued on A2

COMMUNICATING HOPE AND TRUST Luis Antonio G. Cardinal Tagle, archbishop of Manila, called on mass-media workers to use the power of digital and social media to promote the theme of the 39th Catholic Mass Media Awards (CMMA), “Fear not, for I am with you (Isaiah: 43:5) Communicating hope and trust in our time”, during an audience he had on Tuesday with trustees and judges of the CMMA at the Archbishop’s Residence in Intramuros, Manila. In the photo are Rev. Fr. Joselito L. Buenafe (from left), trustee and chairman of CMMA Production; Antonio A. Henson, vice chairman; Juan P. Dayang, secretary; Engr. Feorelio M. Bote, trustee; D. Edgard A. Cabangon, chairman of the board of trustees; Tagle, Evelina I. Atienza, trustee; lawyer: Patricia A.O. Bunye, trustee; Benjamin V. Ramos, assistant to the chairman; Rev. Fr. Rufino C. Sescon Jr., trustee and executive director; and Rev. Fr. Hans D. Magdurulang, judges coordinator. The 39th CMMA Night is scheduled on October 25.

Regional group to rebut claims vs coconut oil Continued from A1

make a counteroffensive statement because their claims are basically rehashed ones,” de la Rosa added.

De la Rosa also said the bad rap against coconut oil had a minimal to less effect, particularly on Americans, due to the consumers knowledge and awareness on the benefits of the commodity.

Citing several studies, the AHA said in an advisory on June 15 that coconut oil raised LDL cholesterol the same way other saturated fats found in butter, beef fat and palm oil. Increase in LDL cholesterol, which is considered bad cholesterol, is a major cause of artery-clogging plaque and cardiovascular diseases, according to the AHA. “Because coconut oil increases LDL cholesterol, a cause of CVD [cardiovascular disease], and has no known offsetting favorable effects,

we advise against the use of coconut oil,” the AHA advisory read.

Instead of consuming coconut oil, the AHA urged consumers to replace it with polyunsaturated or monosaturated fat, which “lowers blood triglyceride levels”, an independent biomaker of risk for CVD. “Replacing saturated with polyunsaturated fat prevents and regresses atherosclerosis in nonhuman primates. Overall, evidence supports the conclusion that polyunsaturated fat from vegetable oils [mainly n-6, linoleic acid] reduces CVD somewhat more than monounsaturated fat [mainly oleic acid] when replacing saturated fat,” the advisory read.

“Evidence has accumulated during the past several years that strengthens long-standing AHA recommendations to replace saturated fat with polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fat

locations nationwide.

She added this is on top of the estimated 144,00 housing needs of victims of various disasters.

“The housing cost is not that small,” Ballesteros told BusinessMirror. “Housing solutions, though are broad, and there are strategies the government can use with less burden on year-on-year budget.”

Based on HUDCC data, the housing need is around 5.56 million as of the end of 2016. Some 1.4 million are considered informal-settler families, and 40 percent of them are residing in Metro Manila.

The HUDCC also estimates that slum areas grow by 3.4 percent annually, making access to affordable housing a key development challenge for the Philippines.

In the past six years the national budget has only allocated 1.135 percent for housing, or around P23 billion annually.

The allocation decreased to only 0.12 percent of total GDP annually in 2000 to 2014, the lowest among Southeast Asian countries.

to lower the incidence of CVD. Reduction in total dietary fat or a goal for total fat intake is not recommended,” it added.

In a statement released on June 21, the APCC condemned the AHA report, saying it is “totally false and misleading”. “[The] APCC finds this AHA report totally false and misleading while allegedly representing the commercial vested interest of its sponsors who are telling the same old story that saturated fats contribute to high cholesterol levels, which is misleading information,” the APCC said.

The APCC added the robust growth of the coconut industry, which threatens the market share of vegetable-oil producers, may have caused the latest attack against coconut oil.

“Higher-value products are experiencing unprecedented growth in volume of export and value,

especially in the last five to seven years. This magnitude of growth would obviously be taking market share away from some of competitor vegetable-oil products,” the APCC said. It also expressed confidence that consumers will not be persuaded by the recent claims of the AHA. “[The] APCC is convinced that this good news for the coconut growers is causing old stories to reappear from its critics with its bad science. The traditional consumer of coconut will not be deterred, while the recently introduced consumers would by now be convinced of the true nutritional and health benefits of coconut to also not be deterred,” its statement read.

The APCC is an intergovernmental organization of 18 coconutproducing states in the Asia-Pacific region, including the Philippines, which aims “to promote, coordinate and harmonize all activities of

the coconut industry”. It accounts for over 90 percent of world coconut production and exports of coconut products.

Latest trade data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed that export receipt from coconut products from January to May this year doubled to $792.432 million, from $393.857 million recorded in the same period last year.

During the five-month period, the Philippines earned some $691.523 million from coconut oil alone, which is more than double or 119.17 percent more than the $393.857 million recorded a year ago. Revenue from coconut oil accounted for the bulk of export receipts from coconut products.

It also remained as the country’s top agricultural export product, accounting for 39.58 percent of the total export revenue.

Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

fficials of the Department of Tourism (DOT) on Wednesday said the agency’s budget for its branding-campaign program would allow the Philippines to attract more tourists next year.

During the agency’s 2018 budget deliberations at the House, Tourism Undersecretary Katherine de Castro said the bulk of the P1-billion lump-sum allocation would be spent for global media placements (P100 million), brand development, including strateg ic placements (P300 million), media study (P50 million) and “global media influencers” (P250 million).

In an interview with reporters, Tourism Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, Communications and Special Projects Frederick M. Alegre said while the budget for the branding program is small compared to other Asean nations, it is would help attract more foreign and local tourists.

“We’re happy that Congress is supportive of [the proposed additional budget for the DOT’s branding program] because compared to our neighbors in the Asean we’re really far behind,” Alegre said.

The DOT official said the country’s branding campaign will still be “It’s More Fun In the Philippines.”

“P1 billion is a welcome expression of support from Congress that we hope will get past both the Senate and the House because the whole government knows that for tourism to grow, we need to promote and that’s where the budget is going to be used,” he added.

Despite a “very low budget”, for branding, Tourism Secretary Wanda Corazon T. Teo said the agency continued to meet tourist arrival targets.

See “Budget,” A2