Businessmirror August 25, 2018

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SPEEDY ARROYO The ‘small but terrible’ newly minted Speaker moves with lightning speed to push key pieces of legislation in the House, and both friends and foes are in awe.

MEDAL TALLY As of 4 pm R

Country

G

S

B

Total

1

China

60

41

22

123

2

Japan

26

29

35

90

3

South Korea

19

22

28

69

4

Iran

10

11

8

29

5

Indonesia

9

7

11

27

6

Thailand

6

4

18

28

7

India

6

4

13

23

8

DPR Korea

6

2

5

13

9

Chinese Taipei

5

6

11

22

10

Uzbekistan

4

9

7

20

11

Mongolia

3

2

4

9

12

Kazakhstan

2

7

19

28

13

Singapore

2

1

6

9

14

Vietnam

1

5

7

13

15

Hong Kong

1

4

12

17

16

Malaysia

1

3

1

5

17

Lebanon

1

1

2

4

18

Macau

1

1

0

2

19

Philippines

1

0

5

6

20

Jordan

1

0

3

4

21

Kyrgyzstan

0

4

5

9

22

Turkmenistan

0

1

1

2

23

Saudi Arabia

0

1

0

1

24

Myanmar

0

0

2

2

25

Afghanistan

0

0

1

1

25

Pakistan

0

0

1

1

25

Qatar

0

0

1

1

REPRESENTATIVE and former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo waves at the plenary hall of the House of Representatives together with other allied legislators on July 23, 2018. AP/AARON FAVILA

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz, Mark Joseph Fernandez & Joahna Lei Casilao

O

N July 23, 2018, in what was supposed to be a usual State of the Nation Address (Sona) of President Duterte, an unexpected turn of events changed the dynamics of the Lower House—the sudden ouster of former House Speaker Pantaleon D. Alvarez and the election of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as his replacement.

The abrupt change of leadership took place starting from before until after the Sona proper.

As an organized protest timed with the Sona—which was said to be the biggest in number of participants—was happening a few blocks from the Sandiganbayan, some House members inside the Batasang Pambansa Complex’s plenary hall were also having their own “protest” to oust Alvarez via a manifesto. They said Arroyo should replace Alvarez because the country “will benefit from the experience, competence, sobriety, steady and unifying leadership” of the former president.

Ousting the then-Speaker took a whole day because Alva-

rez was not present during the morning, when the manifesto was raised, effectively putting the matter on hold. However, after the 50-minute Sona of the President, the manifesto resurfaced as Alvarez was already in the hall.

Some 244 members of the House of Representatives resumed session that evening, formally replacing Alvarez with Arroyo in a landslide 184 affirmative votes against 12 abstentions.

Arroyo is the first female Speaker of the Lower House, and for her first 12 session days as new leader, bills in various stages were rapidly being approved.

With the quick turn of events in the Lower House, what ac-

complishment could have been achieved so far from House Speaker Arroyo’s 12 session days? What was the effect of this event on the dynamics of the Lower House and how did the management of “Speedy Arroyo” manage to rapidly address so many bills that were left at bay during Alvarez’s term?

BOL

ONE of the most significant laws that were passed is the Bangsa­ moro Organic Law (BOL), which initially became collateral damage in the chaos triggered by the coup against Alvarez. But the new Speaker quickly ensured the bill Continued on A2

The day they came to kill them all FOWL RAISERS REMEMBER THE PAIN OF HAVING CULLING TEAMS SNUFF OUT THE LIVES OF THEIR BIRDS, AS THE AVIAN FLU RAGED

A

By Samuel P. Medenilla

ND then there was silence. Zenaida Soza, 59, woke up one August morning in 2017 with the familiar clawing sounds and clucking of thousands of egg-laying hens near their doorstep finally gone.

“The farm became very quiet. I missed the noise made by the chickens, especially during their feeding time. They would make a certain sound when they are hungry. Now it is too quiet,” Soza told the BusinessMirror in an interview.

This was after she asked the Department of Agriculture (DA) to depopulate her poultry farm because of a biologic nightmare the

country has yet to face until last year—bird flu.

“My only request to them is if they could do it quietly and without the media because I didn’t want to be asked any question at that point, when everything was still fresh,” Soza narrated.

It happened discreetly. Uniformed government personnel and DA representatives came to

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 53.4880

CHICKENS line a poultry farm in this August 10, 2018, file photo. The BusinessMirror recently visited San Carlos, San Luis, Pampanga, which was declared by the Department of Agriculture on August 11, 2017, as the ground zero of the bird-flu outbreak. NONIE REYES

help Soza’s employees start culling what remained of her ailing poultry farm.

Soza wasn’t there to witness it.

She and her other family members were at the home of her sibling in San Fernando, Pampanga, to escape the stress from the apparent mercy killing.

After a few hours, it was finally over. The seven chicken coops in her farm were emptied, cleaned and disinfected. The following day, not a trace of any fowl remained in the facility.

Soza couldn’t believe it that time. The 25,000 chickens in her poultry farm in Mexico, Pampanga, which her family lived off for 20 years, were wiped out in just a few weeks.

Continued on A2

n JAPAN 0.4806 n UK 68.5342 n HK 6.8139 n CHINA 7.7802 n SINGAPORE 38.9315 n AUSTRALIA 38.7414 n EU 61.7305 n SAUDI ARABIA 14.2619

Source: BSP (August 24, 2018 )

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A2 Saturday, August 25, 2018

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The day they came to kill them all Continued from a1

As far as the media is concerned, the spread of the virus was isolated in the 7-kilometer zone put up by the government around the poultry farm in San Luis, Pampanga, which was declared “ground zero” for the virus by authorities.

The said farm was owned by Soza’s mother.

Unknown sickness

SOZA recalled the virus started infecting her chickens on July 29, 2018.

No one could recall how and from whose poultry farm it started, but everyone would agree it started with rumors.

Months before the declaration of the first-ever outbreak of bird flu in the country in 2017, there were already stories of some farms having to deal with some mystery illness.

Soza dismissed it as another typical sickness.

“We thought the owners of the poultry farms who lost all their chickens were only careless,” Soza admitted.

But then July 29 came, and it started affecting her farm. At first

it only affected a few chickens.

At that time, Soza said, they thought it was just ordinary sickness, which could be cured by the usual antibiotics and caused minimal deaths.

“At first, about 10 chickens were infected. This continued to increase every day despite our administration of antibiotics,” Soza said.

The infected birds, Soza pointed out, exhibited no physical symptoms, until they died.

“They still looked healthy. They would still eat and continue to lay eggs. And then they would just die as if they had a heart attack,” Soza said.

She added she already had a nagging feeling at the time that there was something unusual in the disease of her fowls.

It spread faster, and was deadlier than those she encountered before.

“That was when I felt fear and panic. I was no longer just thinking about the chicken, but also our workers. What if it is something that could infect humans?” Soza said.

Stricter health-protection measures were implemented at

Soza’s farm. Workers were required to wear goggles, gloves, boots, and change their clothes whenever entering the farm.

As the days went by, the number of fatalities in Soza’s farm continued to increase and eventually reached 900.

“Every day my helpers would tell me there were more deaths.

Eventually, I instructed them to no longer tell me the numbers. Instead [just tell me] if it’s many or few. If they would say many, I would already understand. I no longer want to know the exact number,” Soza said.

When three of her seven large chicken coops were already wiped out, that was the time she started losing hope, Soza confided.

With so many deaths in Soza’s and other poultry owner’s farms in Pampanga, the government already took notice and started taking samples of the infected chicken to identify the still-unidentified disease then.

On August 11, the DA confirmed the bird-flu outbreak and started plans for quarantine and massive culling operations. Hundreds of chicken were already dead before the announcement came.

Speedy Arroyo Continued from a1

would get right back on track, and the bilateral conference committee version was quickly ratified by the chamber, and the law was signed

by President Duterte in July 2018.

BOL, officially known as the “Organic Law for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao,” creates the Bangsa­ moro region and abolishes the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

The Bangsamoro region would be headed by a chief minister and a ceremonial leader called a Wali.

Under its structural government, the region would have a parliament of 80 members composed of 50 percent party representatives, 40 percent district representatives and 10 percent sectoral representatives.

Except for energy-producing bodies of water like Lake Lanao that would be handled jointly by the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Bangsamoro region, the latter would oversee all inland bodies of water.

The coverage of the region includes current ARMM provinces such as Tawi-Tawi, Sulu, Basilan, Maguindanao and Lanao del Sur, while the outcome of a regional plebiscite is being awaited.

The law provides that “the six municipalities of Lanao del Norte and the 39 barangays of North Cotabato could vote to join the territory in a referendum to be conducted in the mother territory of the areas involved.”

Under the law, 75 percent of the national government taxes, fees and charges collected in the Autonomous Region in the Bangsamoro shall be shared with the Bangsamoro, including the shares of the local government units, and the remaining 25 percent goes to the national government.

Meanwhile, on revenue sources, the law states that “the Bangsamoro Government shall have the power to create its own sources of revenues and to levy taxes, fees and charges.”

The sources of revenue of the Bangsamoro government shall include taxes; fees and charges; annual block grant from the national government; revenues from exploration, development and utilization of natural resources;

dividends from Bangsamoro government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs), financial institutions and other corporations; grants and donations; and loans.

Rice tariffication bill

ANOTHER important bill that had languished but was quickly pushed is House Bill (HB) 7735, or the Revised Agricultural Tariffication Act, which was approved on third reading on August 14.

The rice tariffication bill is among the urgent measures presented by the President during his third Sona. HB 7735 was transmitted to the Senate, which is still deliberating on its own version at the committee level.

The bill aims to convert quantitative restrictions or caps on rice imports, into tariffs—a move seen to help lower prices of the staple.

The measure also mandates pooling the duties on rice imports into a “Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund,” which will help rice farmers become competitive, with low-interest beneficial loan services.

The bill gives powers to the National Food Authority in managing the direct importation of rice to check its quality and stock control.

Meanwhile, the President will also have the authority to control the applied rate, regulate rice exports, impose temporary regulations or restrictions on the volume of imports of rice and enter into trade negotiations or renegotiations relating to the bound or maximum rates committed to or to be committed by the Philippines in relation to rice.

Cha-cha update

MEANWHILE, Arroyo said the House of Representatives will wait for the Senate’s move on the resolution for the two chambers to convene as a Constituent Assembly (Con-ass) to amend the 1987 Constitution.

Also, Arroyo already filed a resolution “expressing the sense of the House” that both chambers vote separately in a Con-ass to break the stalemate on the manner of voting and for Congress to advance the administration’s push for federalism.

Under the resolution, Arroyo said senators are a vital part of Charter change (Cha-cha) to reach a federal system of government.

Arroyo has also directed lawmakers to discuss all proposed amendments to the Constitution during a Constituent Assembly and not in committee hearings.

Section 1, Article VII of the Constitution provides that “any amendment to, or revision of, this Constitution may be proposed by: (1) The Congress, upon a vote of three-fourths of all its Members.”

Senators, however, argued that voting should be done separately because the greater number of the House would practically drown out the Senate position.

Despite Arroyo’s stand that both chambers should vote separately when the Con-ass tackles Charter amendments, several senators are wary, saying the Speaker’s stand does not represent the entire chamber and there is nothing that stops certain House members from pushing to have a joint voting, where the senators will certainly be outnumbered.

Trabaho law

MEANWHILE, the House Committee on Ways and Means has endorsed for plenary approval the second package of the Duterte administration’s Comprehensive Tax Reform Package, since renamed by congressmen as the “Tax Reform for Attracting Better and High-quality Opportunities” or Trabaho law.

HB 7982, or the proposed Corporate Income Tax and Incentives Reform Act, which is now pending for second reading approval, seeks to modernize the country’s incentives regime and reduce corporate income taxes.

According to Rep. Dakila Carlo E. Cua of the Lone District of Quirino, the ways and means chairman, the bill contains several features geared toward employment generation.

“It gives new investments outside urban areas an additional two years of incentives. At the same time, it gradually lowers the corporate income tax rate to 20 percent by 2029,” he said.

From the current 30 percent, the bill said the rate of corporate income tax shall now be 28 percent beginning January 1, 2021; 26 percent beginning January 1, 2023; 24 percent beginning January 1, 2025; 22 percent beginning January 1, 2027; and 20 percent beginning January 1, 2029.

Collateral damage

THE blanket declaration from the DA covered not only chicken but all other fowls, including ducks.

Augusto Sambile’s duck poultry farm was among those affected by the DA’s 7-kilometer quarantine zone.

While the virus indiscriminately killed chickens, it spared ducks.

However, the 41-year-old former counselor in San Luis said two weeks after the bird-flu outbreak, he was eventually forced to let the government cull his 1,380 healthy ducks.

“With egg products no longer allowed to leave the area, we no longer have any revenue. Leaving our ducks alive would have ruined us since we would have to feed them,” Sambile said.

Unlike Soza, Sambile watched when the government slit the throats of his ducks and then buried them in a lot near his home. The deed was done after an hour and a half.

“I was teary eyed when they did it. I just bought a new batch of ducks that time,” Sambile said.

Letting the government kill their chickens and ducks allowed

The measure, however, provided that the President may advance the scheduled reduction in the corporate income tax when adequate savings are realized from the rationalization of fiscal incentives, as certified by the secretary of finance.

The bill is in line with the President’s priority of reviewing and modernizing the current incentives regime. At the same time, the bill proposes measures that will minimize the impact of moving to a new regime.

For the first two years, the bill retains the current set of incentives. This gives investors enough time to study the new regime and apply for new incentives appropriate to their respective activities.

Moreover, Cua said the new tax reform will be front-loaded in the plenary as it was declared a priority bill of both Arroyo and Duterte.

Islamic banks

THE House Committee on Banks and Financial Intermediaries also recently approved an unnumbered bill that aims to provide for the regulation and organization of Islamic banks.

The substitute bill, authored

by Speaker Arroyo and Party-list Rep. Sitti Djalia Turabin-Hataman of Anak Mindanao, aims to fill the financial needs of the underserved Muslim population.

The measure will act as the core of Islamic banking business in accordance with Shari’ah principles.

The bill will have authorization by the Monetary Board, with the discretion to include conventional banks and foreign Islamic banks in the Muslim community.

Meanwhile, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) will still regulate and supervise the activities within the proposed Islamic banks.

4Ps

A BILL institutionalizing the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) and giving the poorest families cash grants of up to a maximum of five years is also nearing approval after the House recently approved it on second reading.

HB 7773 seeks to reduce poverty and promote human capital development in the country by breaking the intergenerational cycle of poverty, promoting gender equality, and ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education.

The 4Ps is a major antipoverty program of the government that started during the term of thenPresident Arroyo and was continued by her two successors.

It mandates the Department

raisers like Sambile to get compensation, even if it was just a fraction of their costs.

“I bought each duck for P280, but the government only paid me P80 for every one of them,” Sambile said.

Still, it was better than getting nothing. Sambile used the P108,000 he got as compensation to pay for the feeds of his ducks.

By the time the DA’s campaign against the bird-flu threat was over, around 500,000 birds had been killed in Pampanga.

Picking up the pieces

IF there was anything Soza learned from her ordeal, it was this: You have to continue pursuing a dream.

“Keeping busy is the key to avoid depression. There were stories of some raisers who suffered a stroke because of depression.

I couldn’t let that happen to me since I still have my children, who depend on me,” Soza said.

A year after the incident, Soza’s chicken coop remained bare, as she decided to move to a new business venture: an LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) refilling station.

She said it had been her dream business even before the bird-

of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to select qualified households nationwide using a standardized targeting system to conduct a revalidation of the beneficiaries every three years.

The measure also mandates the provision of a lump-sum conditional cash transfer to be received by each qualified householdbeneficiary equivalent to P2,200 per month for health/nutrition and education expenses, or the equivalent of P26,400 per qualified household-beneficiary per year.

The bill defines the poor as those households whose income falls below the poverty threshold as defined by the National Economic and Development Authority and who cannot afford in a sustained manner to provide their minimum basic needs of food, health, education, housing and other essential amenities of life.

Under the bill conditionalities of coverage by the program include: Children aged 0 to 5 must receive regular preventive health checkups and vaccinations; Children aged 1 to 18 must avail of deworming pills twice a year; Children aged 3 to 4 must attend day care or preschool classes at least 85 percent of the time; Pregnant women must avail themselves of pre- and post-natal care and give birth with the assistance of a skilled or trained health-care professional in a health facility.

The appropriation shall continue until the program has covered 60 percent of the total number of extremely poor households in the country, as may be determined by the Philippine Statistics Authority at the time of the enactment of the Act.

BSP capitalization

THE House of Representatives has also endorsed for Senate approval a measure increasing the BSP capitalization from P50 billion to P200 billion.

HB 7742, or “An Act Reinforcing the Corporate Viability of the BSP,” will strengthen the Central Bank’s monetary and financial stability functions and enhance its regulatory powers, amending for the purpose RA 7653, or the New Central Bank Act.

The bill seeks to enhance the administration of the country’s monetary, credit and banking system.

It also aims to strengthen the supervisory, regulatory and examination powers of the BSP. To strengthen the Bangko Sentral’s prudential supervision functions, the bill proposes to expand the

flu incident. And because, she stressed, it no longer involved any living organism.

Still, there are days she would still fondly remember the poultry business, especially at night.

“Our farm is located near the highway. At night, it used to have lights so you could see it from afar.

Now, it is dark and sad,” Soza said.

As for Sambile, he is still hoping the government will honor its promise to provide them funds to start over again.

“We are not asking for grants.

We are willing to pay the government eventually,” Sambile said.

Sambile currently earns his livelihood as a driver of a for-rent van, which he owns.

But the income from it, he laments, is not as regular or as substantial as when he was still operating his duck farm.

He used to earn P2,000 per day from selling the eggs of his ducks. Now, he only gets an income whenever someone would rent his van.

“If the bird flu didn’t happen, we would have been better off now,” Sambile said.

entities under its supervision to include other categories of financial institutions, and grant authority to impose sanctions on transfers and acquisitions of substantial shares of banks and quasi-banks without BSP approval.

Besides the additional capitalization, the measure seeks to restore tax-exempt status, especially on its governmental functions.

Earlier, Rep. Ben P. Evardone of the Lone District of Eastern Samar, chairman of the House Committee on Banks and Financial Intermediaries, said the measure will “help transform the Bangko Sentral into a more effective and dynamic central monetary authority that can keep pace with the demands of its mandate.”

Meanwhile, among other important measures that have been approved on third reading include: HB 7373, or “An Act Requiring the Planting of Trees for Any Construction of Residential, Commercial, Industrial and Public Buildings.” The measure is an economy-friendly bill, which mandates the planting of trees in every construction projects for residential, commercial, industrial and public buildings.

HB 7437, or “An Act Prohibiting the Privatization and Corporatization of Public Hospitals, Public Health Facilities and Public Health Services, and Providing Penalties for Violations Thereof,” prohibits the privatization and corporatization of public hospitals and facilities.

Indeed, she has not been called “Speedy Arroyo” for nothing. Among her first and most significant moves as newly elected Speaker was to meet with the economic managers, “from one professor to another,” and ask for options on how to slay inflation, which has been lashing all sectors and which was being blamed on the first of the tax-reform packages. With the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law getting the brunt of public ire for its higher excise taxes on fuel and sugar-sweetened beverages, among others, it was becoming difficult for lawmakers to endorse any of the succeeding tax reforms of the administration.

It was this kind of initiative—behaving like a “President” while serving as Speaker—that has caused Arroyo to be regarded with both awe and grudging admiration by believers and critics alike. How she will continue to change the political landscape, as she makes her moves in and out of Congress in the months leading to the 2019 elections, is something worth watching.

TheWorld BusinessMirror

Saturday, August 25, 2018

A3

US-China trade talks end with no breakthrough

W

ASHINGTON—United States and Chinese negotiators ended two days of meetings on Thursday without breaking a deadlock over trade that has unnerved financial markets and disrupted global commerce.

The delegations “exchanged views on how to achieve fairness, balance and reciprocity in the economic relationship,” Lindsay Walters, a White House spokesman, said in a statement. She did not mention further talks.

A Chinese Commerce Ministr y statement said the talks were “constructive and frank ” but gave no details. It said the two sides would “maintain contact.”

The dispute over China’s high-tech industrial policy escalated on Thursday as the Trump administration and Beijing imposed taxes on an additional $16 billion of each other’s goods.

The administration last month had

slapped tariffs on an initial $34 billion in Chinese products, and Beijing responded in kind.

The Trump team is preparing tariffs on $200 billion more of Chinese products, and China has vowed to counterpunch by targeting $60 billion in American goods.

The US-China talks this week were the first since discussions in June failed to produce any agreement.

The Trump administration accuses China of using predatory tactics to obtain American technology, including forcing US companies to hand over trade secrets in exchange for access to the Chinese market. AP

5 tourists rescued from flooded home as hurricane hits Hawaii

H

ONOLU LU — Si rens wa i led while workers piled sandbags in front of hotels and police blared warnings to tourists to leave the world-famous Waikiki Beach as Hurricane Lane barreled north after dumping nearly 2 feet of rain on Hawaii’s mostly rural Big Island.

Emergency crews rescued five California tourists from a home they were renting in Hilo after a nearby gulch overflowed and flooded on Thursday.

Suzanne Demerais said a tiny waterfall and small stream flowed near the home when she first arrived with four of her friends from the Los Angeles area. But the stream turned into a torrent and the river rose rapidly over 24 hours. Hawaii County firefighters, who were in touch with the home’s owner, decided to evacuate the group before the water rose further. They floated the five out on their backs, Demerais said.

“It was quite an experience because we weren’t planning to have a hurricane during our vacation time,” Demerais said.

Hurricane Lane, which was still offshore, lashed the Big Island with nearly 20 inches (50 centimeters) of rain in about 24 hours. It was packing maximum sustained winds of 120 mph (193 kph), making it a Category 3 hurricane.

Forecasters say it will move close to or over portions of Hawaii’s main islands later Thursday or Friday, bringing dangerous surf of 20 feet (6 meters).

About 200 miles (320 kilometers) north of Hilo, on the state’s most populated island of Oahu, employees of the Sheraton Waikiki resort filled sandbags to protect the oceanfront hotel from surging surf.

Stores along Waikiki ’s glitzy K al a k au a Avenue st ac ked sa ndbags along the bottom of their glass windows to prepare for heav y rain and f lash f looding.

Police on loudspeakers told surfers and swimmers to get out of the water, saying the beach would be closed until further notice.

The Marriott Resort Waikiki Beach in Honolulu designated a ballroom on the third floor as a shelter for guests and began removing lounge chairs from around the pool and bar area.

At the Hilton Hawaiian Village, guest Elisabeth Brinson said hotel staff left a notice that the rooms will

still have water and phone service, and a backup generator would power one elevator per building in the event of a power outage.

Brinson, a native of the United Kingdom now living in Denver, said many shops were closed, and those still open were frantic with people buying food, beer and water to take back to their rooms.

“We knew it was coming, so I tried to just cram as much as I could into the last few days in anticipation so we could cross things off of our list,” said Brinson, who is accustomed to hurricanes after living in Florida.

Lane was not projected to make a direct hit on the islands, but officials warned that even a lesser blow could do significant harm. Some areas could see up to 30 inches (about 80 centimeters) of rain.

United Airlines canceled its Friday flights to and from Maui. The airline added two additional flights from Honolulu to San Francisco on Thursday to help transport people off the islands.

Hawaiian Airlines canceled all Friday flights by its commuter carrier, Ohana by Hawaiian.

Hawaii’s biggest hotels are confident they can keep their guests safe as long as they stay inside, said Mufi Hannemann, CEO of Hawaii Tourism and Lodging Association.

“The only concern is those that venture outside of the properties, that would like to hike on a day like this or who would like to still go into the ocean and see what it’s like to take a swim or surf in these kind of waters,” Hannemann said.

Honolulu shopping malls and office buildings closed early on Thursday and planned to shut their doors on Friday.

Shelters were open throughout the islands, with 350 people in them in Oahu. Aid agencies were also working to help Hawaii ’s sizable homeless population, many of whom live near beaches and streams that could flood.

Because there’s not enough shelter space statewide, Hawaii Emergency Management Agency Administrator Tom Travis urged people who were not in flood zones to stay home.

The National Weather Service downgraded the Big Island to a tropical storm warning, meaning it expects sustained winds of 39 mph (62 kph) to 73 mph (117 kph) on the island instead of stronger hurricane force winds. AP

ExportUnlimited BusinessMirror

A4 Saturday, August 25, 2018 • Editor: Efleda P. Campos

DTI, EDC kick off series of PEDP stakeholder-engagement seminars

By Kristina Noelle S. Andaya | Trade-Industry Development Specialist

I

Knowledge Processing Division

N an effort to cascade the Philippine Export Development Plan (PEDP) 20182022 to the regions and solicit commitments among stakeholders to implement it, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), through the Export Marketing Bureau and the Export Development Council (EDC), kicked off a series of stakeholder engagements on July 25 and 26, 2018, in Region 12 for General Santos City and Koronadal City. Next stop was for the National Capital Region and Region 4B on August 15, 2018.

The event was attended by representatives from different government agencies, private sector and business support organizations. The various agencies agreed to align their respective programs to accomplish the PEDP 2018-2022 Strategies, namely: (1) improve the overall climate for export development, (2)

exploit existing prospective opportunities from trading engagements and (3) design comprehensive packages of support for selected products and services sectors.

The PEDP 2018-2022 supports the country’s long- term vision: Ambisyon Natin 2040. Based on Memorandum Circular 27, the following agencies are

DIRECTOR Senen M. Perlada of the Department of Trade and Industry’s Export Marketing Bureau presented the Philippine Export Development Plan (PEDP) 2018-2022 and highlighted the movements of goods and services in the Philippine Trade Map during the PEDP 2018-2022 Stakeholders Engagement in the National Capital Region with participation of Region 4B and Mimaropa.

engaged to ensure the efficient, responsive, and well-coordinated strategies of the PEDP: the DTI, Department of Agriculture, Department of Energy, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Health, Department of Finance, Department of Information and Communications Technology and Department of the Interior and Local Government.

Other government agencies involved are the Department of Public Works and Highways, Department of Transportation, Department of Tourism, Department of Labor and Employment, Department of Science and Technology, Technical and Education Skills Development Authority, Commission on Higher Education, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Department of Foreign Af-

fairs and National Economic and Development Authority.

The agencies shall administer the strategies and develop new programs that will help boost the region’s exports.

The concerned government offices shall work, review, institute reforms and implement all pertinent policies that will integrate the PEDP, Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise Development Plan, and the Philippine Development Plan to boost export.

The succeeding stakeholder engagements will be held to promote growth in Region 4A on August 31; Region 8 on September 5; Region 10 and Caraga on September 7; Region 11 on September 11; Region 1 and Region 3 on September 19; and Region 6 and Region 7 on September 27.

PHL exporters join Brunei Halal Showcase 2018

By Kalene Ann M. Ebora EMB-FAMD

I

N an effort to boost the local coconut industry, the Philippines held the first World Coconut Congress (WCC) with the theme “The Time is Now.” The event was held from August 14 to 16, 2018, at SMX Convention Center, Mall of Asia Complex, Pasay City.

The event was part of the celebration of the National Coconut Week.

The congress was organized through the United Coconut Association of the Philippines, in partnership with the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) and the Department of Trade and Industry-Export Marketing Bureau (DTI-EMB).

Through the event, the PCA aimed to promote the Philippine coco-sugar product globally.

Thetopicsdiscussedduringthecongressincludedtheglobalcoconutsupply anditsdemandsituation,thePhilippine coconut supply’s action plan, boosting thecoconutsupplyandmakingitsvalue chain sustainable and competitive, and opportunities in integrated coconut processing, among others.

There were also exhibits that featured various coconut products and business matching and networking activities. Also featured were non-traditional coconut products, coconut oil utilization breakthroughs, as well as the coconut’s health and wellness benefits.

The DTI-EMB led the businessmatching activity held simultaneously during the conference. Buyers from Australia, France, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Mexico and the United Kingdom

participated in the activity. Potential products for further negotiation included food (refined, bleached and deodorized coconut oil, virgin coconut oil, desiccated coconut, coconut milk, skimmed coconut milk) and nonfood (coconut fiber, coir). Around 130 business meetings (excluding the ones held at the exhibitors’ booths) were conducted during the three-day event.

Some local and foreign industry experts were invited to share their insights and knowledge during the WCC. Among the speakers were Uron Salum, executive director of Asian & Pacific Coconut Community; Dr. Julian McGill, head of LMC International Southeast Asia; Dr. Ivan Idrovo, CEO of Strategic Development Cooperation Asia; Dr. Fabian Dayrit, chemistry professor at the Ateneo de Manila University; Jesus Arranza, president of Coconut Oil Refiners Association; Marco Reyes, president of the Virgin Coconut Oil Producers and Traders Association of the Philippines; and Senen M. Perlada, DTI-EMB director.

The first-ever WCC gathered over 500 stakeholders from around the globe. The international event served as a venue for the coconut-industry stakeholders from academe, business and the government sector to meet and discuss the current scenario, issues, opportunities and prospects for the global coconut industry.

The Philippines is the world’s second-largest coconut producer and No. 1 exporter of coconut products.

In 2017 the country exported $2.1 billion worth of coconut products, up by 42.7 percent from $1.4 billion in 2016.

Pasola organizes PHL participation in biggest archi, interior design

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HE Department of Trade and IndustryExport Marketing Bureau (DTI-EMB) led a Philippine delegation at the Brunei Halal Showcase (BruHAS) 2018 held from August 8 to 12, 2018, at the International Convention Center in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam.

The DTI-EMB organized the country’s participation in the fair to help bring raw materials, processed food and pharmaceutical products to new markets.

Exporters from the food-processing sector, cosmetics and pharmaceutical industries who joined the Philippine delegation included Alter Trade Corp., Castillejos Agrifarms Inc., Edna and Rebecca’s Banana Chips and Coated Peanut, Fruits of Life Inc., Year Luck Food and Industrial Corp., Doxo Trading, Pasciolco International Inc., C and H Cosmetic Industry and Stadler Laboratories Inc. BruHAS is an annual International Trade Expo that promotes awareness on the development of the local halal industry, promotion of halal products and support to entrepreneurs.

In April 2017 the Philippines and Brunei signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on the Halal Industry and Halal Export Development and Promotion.

Strengthening its commitment to pursue strategic initiatives in advancing the local halal industry, Philippine officials, headed by DTI Undersecretary Abdulgani M. Macatoman, attended the joint committee meeting as part of the sideline activities of the country’s participation in that halal fair. The meeting aimed to establish a guide on the implementation of the MOU with the framework of responsibilities by both countries.

For 2018 the DTI aims to strengthen the role of the local halal industry to help foster economic growth. The industry has advanced its initiative by engaging and strengthening bilateral relations with key markets and partners. It has gained a multitude of support for the industry, which translated into policy reforms. In July this year, the DTI through its Philippine Accreditation Bureau, signed an MOU with the United Arab Emirates— Emirates Authority for Standardization and Metrology, which aims to ease the technical barriers on trade and enable bilateral trade between the Philippines and the UAE, particularly the halal products.

PHL holds 1st World Coconut Congress to boost local industry

DEPUTY Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Energy, Manpower and Industry of Brunei Darussalam Tutiaty Abdul Wahab (front, left) greets Philippine Department of Trade and Industry Undersecretary Abdulgani M. Macatoman during the Brunei Halal Showcase 2018 held from August 8 to 12, 2018, at the International Convention Center in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei.

DTI brings 2 PHL start-ups to IDEAS Show 2018

By Vic Soriano | CTIDS, DTI-EMB

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N a move to promote Philippine start-ups and increase their global connectedness, the Department of Trade and Industry, through the Philippine Trade and Investment CenterTaipei and DTI-Export Marketing Bureau, and in cooperation with QBO Innovation Hub, facilitated the participation of two local start-ups in the recently concluded 2018 IDEAS Show held in Taipei, Taiwan.

The two start-ups—Pushkart. ph and Empleo—were among the 41 start-ups from seven countries that participated in the six-minute pitch competition held at the National Taiwan University Hospital International Convention Center on July 24, 2018.

The seven countries from the AsiaPacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) represented were South Korea, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan and Vietnam.

Pushkart.ph is an online supermarket with a mission to make shopping fun and easy by delivering fresh groceries and medicine to the consumer’s doorstep from retail stores around the city.

Empleo maximizes job placement in the technical services industry by offering a “Platform as a Service” that matches jobs with candidates based on qualification, training, location

and other preferences automatically; and providing insights, through data, about job influxes, demand and placement rates.

Awarded with the Jury Gold Awards were Dipp, Uspace, Olis Innovation, Toss Lab, Luxrobo and EzQ Co. Dipp is the company behind the “Software as a Service” (SaaS) marketing creative automation platform, helping business with digital advertising and social-media engagement.

Uspace is a private parking-space sharing provider, while Olis Innovation is a Customer Relationship Management and marketing SaaS, using big data and artificial intelligence to help offline businesses manage and retarget their customers through LINE and Facebook chatbots.

Toss Lab is an office messenger providing effective and efficient communication at workplaces, while Luxrobo is a magnetic modular device for the building and connecting of do-it-yourself, Internet of Things and robotic creations.

EzQ Co. provides an ecosystem for online merchants, shippers and buyers.

A day before the competition, the participants and delegates from other Apec economies, such as China, Indonesia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Thailand and the United States visited two International Startup Accel-

erators, namely Hsinming Youth Hub (HYH) and Andong Youth Startup Hub (AYSH), both located in Taoyuan City.

HYH is a 2,380-square-meter space that provides 12 independent offices, coworkingspace,conferencerooms,communication areas and self-built servers, andothersoftwareandhardwaredevices.

AYSH was established by the Department of Youth Affairs of the Taoyuan City government to cooperate with Asia Silicon Valley Development Plan.

This space is dedicated for youth in Taiwan to help them start a business on the information and communications technology industry. AYSH focuses on the application of augmented reality, virtual reality and mixed reality.

The group also visited EXPO Taipei, where they were briefed on available resources for start-ups and Taiwan’s policies encouraging the growth and development of the start-up community. The delegates were also toured in the different facilities located at the venue, such as Aquaponics, Fashion Block and Fablab Taipei.

Now on its 11th year, IDEAS Show 2018 has already incubated 870 startups; has been participated in by 22,000 attendees, 17,640 pitching competition participants and 440 exhibiting teams; has generated 870 media reports; and has facilitated 319 international contests, 436 international exhibitions and $300 million in investment.

ES Pasola, globally renowned paper artist and product designer, headlines the Philippine participation in Maison & Objet, a major sourcing event for interior design and related industries the world over, as creative director. The country’s participation is organized by the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry’s Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (Citem).

Pasola integrates the wide array of home and design products offered by eight Filipino exporters into one cohesive design statement, Philippine design as we live it. Capsule displays echoing various lifestyle settings preview the adaptiveness of local design across a variety of geographic locations, climate seasons, cultures and lifestyles.

Her choice of products on display also manifest the uniqueness of the Philippine design sensitivity—one that marries form and function in practically an unlimited number of ways.

Pasola has been curating a wide array of creative exhibitions in the Philippines and abroad, both for paper and nonpaper products. She also serves as a creative consultant to many companies. Multiawarded as she is multifaceted, Pasola often shares her artistic visions through her exquisite paper collages. She is also a veteran of many Manila FAME editions, Citem’s premier international buying show, flexing and honing her design artistry by working with local exporters across a wide array of products.

As busy as she is with commissioned endeavors (special design exhibitions and space styling for residential and commercial spaces) and business enterprises (TesP Draft Hub, a design studio and manufacturing company, and One of T, a home and lifestyle showroom), Pasola actively spreads the gifts of artisanal craftmanship through her involvement in the Great Women Program, which focuses on growth opportunities for small producers in remote communities. Currently, she is in the midst of the establishment of the Artist Village and Art Hotels, both in Palawan.

For Maison & Objet, Pasola worked with Basket & Weaves (planters and other furnishings), Cagayan de Oro Handmade Paper (lamps and novelty items in handmade paper), Chanalli (table top items), Finali (furniture), L’auras Y Levi Inc. (home accessories), Tadeco (home accessories), Tali Handmade (fashionable bags) and WeaveManila Inc. (abaca rugs and carpets).

PHL artisan jam maker gains international recognition

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HE Fruit Garden, an exporter assisted by the Department of Trade and Industry, was recently awarded one star by Great Taste for its pineapple coco rhum jam during the release of Great Taste 2018 on August 1, 2018, at The Guild Headquarters in Gillingham, Dorset, United Kingdom.

The Fruit Garden’s jam was recognized with one star of excellence against 12,634 products entered by producers across the globe. Great Taste said this year, 1,207 foods grabbed two stars, and 3,254 were awarded a one star. Meanwhile, 192 foods achieved their highest rating, three stars. These translated to a total of 37-percent accredited products out of all the entries this year.

Great Taste, tagged as the world’s most coveted food awards, started in 1994. It is considered the largest and most trusted accreditation scheme for fine food and drink. Products were blind-tasted by panels of specialists, which included top chefs, food writers, influencers, food critics, restaurateurs and fine-food retailers.

OurTime BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Editor: Efleda P. Campos • Saturday, August 25, 2018 A5

Singapore’s Lee sees ‘large expenditures’ on health, housing

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INGAPORE’S Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong outlined plans to boost support on health care and public housing he said will require “large expenditures,” putting pressure on the city-state to find new sources of funding for its growing social spending.

Lee’s initiatives—detailed in his annual National Day Rally speech on Sunday—are aimed at providing financial reassurance to Singaporeans for years to come and to address locals’ concerns about rising living costs. The plans come at a time when governments around the world grapple with the challenge of losing voter support over rising income inequality.

“These are fundamental commitments by my government to you,” he said. “They are ambitious endeavors and will require large expenditures.

These schemes will stretch over 50 years and more, several generations and many general elections.”

While the economy is doing well, unemployment is relatively

low and wages have increased, many Singaporeans still feel their incomes aren’t sufficient to cope with higher costs, Lee said. He cited several reasons for this, including young families spending on housing and preschool education, medical costs for the elderly, lifestyle costs, such as travel and food and inflation.

Higher taxes

LEE said Singapore will require a “thriving economy and sound government finances” to fund the initiatives, which range from extending health-care insurance to revamping public housing.

The plans may also require higher taxes, a broader tax base, or both,

said Francis Tan, an economist at United Overseas Bank Ltd. in Singapore. The government will also have to welcome more immigration over the next decade to counter the low fertility rate, he said.

In order to avoid the strain on infrastructure and other services that an immigration boom to 2011 caused, the plans outlined by Lee suggest the government is trying to get ahead of a possible influx of foreign workers by putting necessary infrastructure in place first, Tan said.

“Probably there will be an increased shift in taxation toward the wealthy ones,” he said. “They will turn on the tap but not so quickly” on immigration, ahead of completion of those infrastructure projects over the next decade or so, said Tan. Here are details of the plans outlined by Lee in his speech:

Health care: Community health assist scheme will be extended to all Singaporeans with chronic conditions regardless of income and more polyclinics will be build across Singapore to improve access.

Elderly care: Financial support for long-term care will be extended by revamping the current ElderShield program into the

CareShield Life in 2020, to cover all Singaporeans born in 1980 or later, and to increase payouts. The government will help pay for medical costs, among other initiatives, for the post-independence generation, most of whom are in their 60s.

Housing: 99-year leases on public housing are needed to be fair to future generations, since there would be a shortage of housing if land was sold on freehold. Upgrading of public housing blocks will be extended to those built up to 1997.

A new voluntary scheme will also be introduced in 20 years time to allow residents to vote on redeveloping housing estates before the 99-year lease expires.

Water: The cost of producing clean water increased significantly over the years. Water will always be a precious and strategic resource, and a sensitive foreign policy matter for the nation. The government needs to build more desalination plants to produce clean water in Singapore.

Electricity tariffs: Fixing electricity prices isn’t financially sustainable, not best way to help low-income families.

Consumer goods: To help curb the price of infant milk formula, the

government has set up a task team to, among other things, simplify import processes and tighten regulations for labeling. Average prices of formula milk have dropped.

Food centers: Since many Singaporeans eat out, the government will be building more of the popular food centers. It will also nominate “hawker culture” to be included on the Unesco’s cultural heritage list.

Global tensions: There are no winners in a trade war, and small, open economies are vulnerable.

Singapore will suffer “collateral damage.” In an uncertain global environment, Asean becomes more important for Singapore, especially Malaysia and Indonesia.

Malaysia: The new government of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad wants to review some infrastructure projects with Singapore, including deferring the high-speed railway. Both sides have to carry out what has been agreed to, unless there’s an agreement to change the terms. Mahathir also wants to review the 1962 water agreement with Singapore, but Lee said that agreement is sacrosanct and must proceed strictly in accordance with its terms. Bloomberg News

Photographer documented 1968 Soviet invasion

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RAGUE—It’s been 50 years, but powerful images of the Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia taken by photographer Josef Koudelka still resonate among Czechs and elsewhere in the world—they’ve even been admired in Russia.

As the armies of the five Warsaw Pact countries invaded his country an hour before midnight on August 20, 1968, Koudelka was ready. Risking his life, he took thousands of photos in the week that followed, capturing the shocking experience for his nation—and the defiance of its people.

After the negatives were smuggled out of the country, the photos that were published in the West became one of the most famed documentary series of the 20th century.

Looking back at 1968 in an interview with The Associated Press, Koudelka said he seized the once-in-acareer opportunity.

“The opportunity to take so many photos made it possible for me to do something I never thought I would be able to do,” Koudelka said. “And I think that a majority of people in Czechoslovakia who knew me as a photographer didn’t even think I could do anything like that.”

His photos captured the mood on the streets of Prague: the public anger, frustration and massive protests against the troops that came in with tanks to crush the Prague Spring— the brief period of liberal reforms under leader Alexander Dubcek meant to lead toward democratization of communist Czechoslovakia.

“It was a tragedy. But also miracles happened at the time,” Koudelka said. “One of the biggest miracles for me was—and that has happened at major events elsewhere—that people are able to completely change overnight.”

He said in reaction to the attack, the whole nation became united.

“No matter who you were, only one thing mattered: We were all against them,” he said.

One of his now-iconic photos shows a man holding his coat wide open in front of an armed soldier standing on a Soviet tank, while another one captures an elderly man trying to hit a tank with a cobblestone.

“My photos captured a moment when we behaved like a nation,” Koudelka said. “And that didn’t happen too often in our history.”

Unarmed people could not stop the armies, however, and the country was subsequently taken over by a hard-line Communist regime fully loyal to Moscow. The occupying troops stayed for over 20 years and withdrew only after the 1989 Velvet Revolution led by the late Vaclav Havel.

According to historians, 137 people were killed by Warsaw Pact soldiers in 1968 alone, and a total of over 400 died during the occupation of Czechoslovakia.

Koudelka’s photos were first published by media around the globe in 1969 under the attribution “PP” (Prague photographer) to prevent his persecution by the Communists.

He left the country in 1970 to work for the Magnum Photos agency and didn’t reveal until 1984 that he was the author of the 1968 pictures.

Now 80, Koudelka is not ready to retire. He still keeps his camera busy every day.

Over his long career, he took many great photographs, including his Gypsy, Exile and Panoramas series that are in the collections of major museums, including the Centre Pompidou in Paris, the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles.

But his 1968 photos have been most known globally. This year alone, there are exhibitions of his work in Poland, Belgium and Italy, together with a retrospective, Returning, at the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague accompanied by the publication of his new book of the same name. AP

‘KULKULIS’ Elders passing through Malcolm Square in Baguio City can avail themselves of the Mountain Province foot reflexology using short wooden sticks called kulkulis. This novel massage method costs P100 for both feet. LAILA D. AUSTRIA

A fast-aging China tries reverse mortgages

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HE China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission wants to help the elderly enjoy their golden years in comfort. With the world’s fastestaging population and a pension system beset by shortfalls, China is turning to a staple of late-night television commercials—reverse mortgages—to help out retirees.

It just might work.

Outside of Beijing and Shanghai, China’s real-estate market is nearly moribund after years of spiraling values drove home-ownership beyond the reach of many people.

In the southern city of Shenzhen, which has an official population of 12.5 million and more than 4 million housing units, only 12,804 units changed hands in the first half of this year. To put that in perspective, it would take 163 years at this rate to sell off existing units. In the coastal city of Xiamen, with a population of more than 4 million, just 2,500 units were sold.

Yet housing is one area where China has significant untapped wealth and low debt ratios. When the government began letting people buy their own property, or at least secure long-term leases on state-owned land, most of the existing housing stock was sold to tenants at heav y discounts.

After decades of rising prices, the paper value of homes now far exceeds outstanding loan values. While the estimated paper value of urban residences is about 360 trillion yuan, total household debt is only 44 trillion yuan. Even if you assume that all Chinese consumer debt was used to purchase an urban apartment, this would suggest a loan-to-value ratio of only 12 percent. In other words, 88 percent of China’s urban home value would be owner equity.

At the same time, China has a looming pension crisis. Staterun plans face large and growing shortfalls, estimated at almost $100 billion. Some provinces have either run out of money to service their pensions or soon will. Government subsidies to the social-insurance fund are budgeted to rise by 35 percent in 2018. And yet, for many Chinese, pensions are pitifully small as it is: By one estimate, they average only about 1,400 yuan per year.

Bloomberg News

Aging ‘gun town’ fights for its future in Germany’s bipolar boom

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he rolling green hills of Thuringia, Suhl exudes old-world charm with a picturesque center of fountains, pastel-painted buildings and churches dating as far back as the 15th century.

But the city of 36,000 is being left behind as the rest of Germany powers ahead.

Known as “Gun Town” because of its long tradition in weapons manufacturing, Suhl has the unenviable distinction of being the most elderly place in Germany—already one of the oldest countries in the world. The average age of the city’s residents has risen to 50, the only sizable German municipality to reach that milestone as young people flee for better prospects in urban centers, such as Berlin, Munich and Frankfurt.

“It’s a shame,” said Anne Steinke, 27, who was born in Suhl but moved to Hamburg five years ago. “It was clear to me that I had to get out, not because I didn’t like it but because it was not possible to do what I wanted,” she said during a visit to her family, which has ties to the city going back at least 100 years.

While Suhl may be hardest hit by the demographic trend, it’s not a total outlier.

Much of the former communist East is aging faster than other parts of the coun-

try, such as affluent Bavaria and BadenWuerttemberg. The diverging prospects —similar to the rural-urban shift taking place in many other countries—sharpens the divide between Germany’s winners and losers and sows the seeds for social and political discontent.

Propelled by people who feel neglected by established parties, the far-right Alternative for Germany, or AfD, has become a powerful force, in line with political trends in countries including Italy, Hungary and Poland.

In an August 14 poll from INSA, the populist party’s support was 17 percent, nearly level with the Social Democrats—traditionally the mainstream party of the working class ­while Chancellor Angela Merkel’s bloc slumped to 29 percent. In the Suhl district, the AfD was the second-strongest party with 23 percent of the vote in last year’s general election.

Between 2000 and 2016, Suhl’s population declined by nearly a quarter, the biggest drop in Germany. The regional statistics office predicts a further 7.3-percent decline by 2035. But that’s only part of the picture. Working-age residents between 20 and 64 are set to shrink by

nearly a fifth. That would weaken the town’s tax base and make it even more difficult to finance public services.

The strains are evident outside Suhl’s well-kept center. Clusters of weeds sprout in front of a derelict shopping center, and communist-era apartment blocks built to cope with a population surge that peaked at 56,000 in the late-1980s are being torn down. Once-thriving firms like gunmaker Sauer and motorcycle manufacturer Simson are long gone.

The dire outlook for communities like Suhl is an opportunity for the AfD. Its hard-line policies on asylum and immigration and its opposition to what it sees as threats to Germany’s Christian traditions clearly resonate with people uneasy about the future. The party will have a chance to expand its support in a host of regional elections next year, including in Thuringia.

“Our western identity is being weakened by a massive influx from the Islamic sphere,” Anton Friesen, an AfD member who represents Suhl in Germany’s lower house of parliament, said in a telephone interview. “That, combined with our catastrophic demographic situation, is of deep concern to me.”

A center for processing refugees is located in Suhl and has been the site of frequent disturbances—from false fire alarms to violent altercations. The city’s web site includes answers to frequently asked questions about the center, including how to handle a fear of foreigners.

Ironically, a key focus of urban revival efforts is to attract new residents from outside Germany.

“Immigration can be part of the problem, as well as part of the solution,” said AfD’s Friesen. “But we certainly need more skilled workers coming in.”

To that end, there’s a governmentfunded project to bring 150 young people from Vietnam to Thuringia, linking with the well-established community from the Asian country that’s a legacy of the communist era. A similar project with Spain failed mainly because the program took place in the depths of the region’s gloomy winter.

“We’ve learned from that,” said Jan Scheftlein, deputy head of the area’s chamber of commerce and industry.

“We didn’t focus enough on the issue of social integration. January in the Thuringian forest can be cold, wet and dark.”

A6

Saturday, August 25, 2018 | Editor: Jun Lomibao

BM Asian Ga

Business

JAKARTA PALEMBANG 18TH IT’S an experience of a lifetime for Jordan Clarkson during the opening ceremonies.

FILIPINO ATHLE A 172-ATHLETE Team Philippines plunges into action in the 18th Asian Games Indonesia is hosting only for the second time since 1956 in Jakarta and Palembang, each of them hoping to bring home the gold medal that has become elusive in what is considered as the Olympics of Asia.

Weightlifting’s Hidilyn Diaz, the 27-yearold silver medalist in the Rio de Janeiro

Roxanne Yu gains the experience she needs.

HEIGHT is might in wushu’s sanda and Divine Wally finds herself on the losing end.

THE men’s and women’s poomsae teams give the country its first medals in the Games.

ELIEN ROSE PEREZ has a big future ahead of her.

2016 Olympics, bagged the country’s first gold medal in the multisport quadrennial competition that beats the Summer Games in terms of athlete participation by more than a thousand.

The BusinessMirror Chief Photographer Nonilon Reyes catches all the action using a Canon 6D MKII—each photograph depicting the spirit of competition, fair play and sportsmanship.

Games Special

sMirror

ASIAN GAMES

mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph | Saturday, August 25, 2018

Hanniel Abella stands her ground and gets a point.

ETES IN ACTION THE Filipina spikers hold fort against the bigs of Asian volleyball.

Christian Standhardinger muscles his way through Kazakhstan.

HIDILYN DIAZ comes to the rescue early into the Asian Games to win the country’s first gold medal.

JAN GWYNN TIMBANG does his routine in the floor exercise.

AGATHA WONG is one charming bronze medalist.

FILIPINO fans cheer the athletes.

A7

BusinessMirror

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

Saturday, August 25, 2018

FITBIT Charge 3

Baseus Simple Wireless Charger

Baseus Wireless Charger Gravity Car Mount

Sobba Alkaline Drops

From YouTube screen to the boxing ring the technivore ed uy

whereiseduy@gmail.com

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ARK your (Google) Calendars, people: the biggest Internet event in history is happening today, August 25, 2018— inside the boxing ring and you could watch the livestream on YouTube PPV. Two of the most popular YouTubers—Logan Paul and KSI—are taking their rivalry to the squared arena to trade punches in what many are also calling the biggest “white collar” match ever.

Wait, Who? What? And why?

Either those two sentences made you feel so clueless or so Tito (or Tita).

Do you know Logan Paul? Do you know Logan Paul besides the controversial “suicide / dead body” video controversy he posted?

Let me bring you up to date.

Logan Paul is a 23-year-old American YouTuber who first found fame on the now-defunct video sharing app, Vine. When Vine shut down, Paul had already gained enough following that he easily made it big on YouTube, where he now has 18 millionplus subscribers (earning him around $15 million annually). He has also built a lifestyle brand, called Maverick, and his merchandise have added even more millions to his bank account.

When he’s not trying to be funny doing pranks or making awful rap songs, Logan uploads equally crazy stuff. Like the one where he and his friends camped out in Japan’s Aokigahara forest, a notorious hot spot for suicides, and filmed a dead body.

But being the Internet celebrity he is, he quickly made an apology—via a tweet.

KSI, on the other hand, is Olajide “JJ” William Olatunji, in real life. He is a 25-year-old British YouTuber who began making gaming videos of him playing FIFA when he was 15 years old. He has around 18 million subscribers He is also famous for his “disses” (insult music videos) directed at other YouTubers talking about their fame, their millions and how much better they are than their counterparts. It’s like listening to inside jokes—except with a lot of cursing and lyrics that won’t make sense unless you know them. Oh, he’s

also become controversial for trivializing rape in some of his videos.

But like Logan, he’s also earning millions from his YouTube videos, reason enough to make him drop out from school.

The Logan vs KSI match isn’t actually the first time these YouTubers are settling their differences with punches to the face. It all started when KSI challenged another (lesser) famous YouTuber, Joe Weller, to a boxing match in February and claimed victory.

After winning the match, KSI said: “If any YouTuber wants it, you can come get it. Jake Paul, Logan Paul, any of the Pauls, I don’t care.” A few fiery YouTube videos were later exchanged and the rest, whether we like it or not, is history.

This isn’t just a one-fight deal as the two have already scheduled a rematch happening in the US in February of next year.

The UK flight will take place at the historic Manchester Arena—the same venue where the likes of Mike Tyson, Amir Khan and David Haye filled the 21,000-seater arena during their boxing glory days.

And just like real boxing matches, the KSI vs Logan match will also have several undercard matches featuring—you guessed it—other YouTubers!

The second main event will feature their little brothers Jake Paul, Logan’s brother taking on KSI’s sibling Deji. Other matches include: JMX vs Coach Richards; Momo vs RossiHD; AnEsonGib vs Jay Swingler; FaZe Sensei vs overtflow; Rackaracka vs Scarce; Call me Ham vs Jrizzy Jeremy.

Sounds ridiculous?

Well, we haven’t even talked about ticket prices which start at £34 ($43) and going up to £516 ($666), or the fact that none of the people involved are actually fighters (not counting their verbal tirades or diss battles). Or the fact that KSI vs Weller was, as you’d expect, a terrible bout, pretty much like watching those barangay boxing matches we have during fiestas but with higher production values.

As for the Logans? They also have a history of putting equally terrible live shows that aren’t entertaining or funny, reviewers say.

Still, the hype is real and reports say they are selling lots of tickets, and no you won’t be able to watch for free either as YouTube is charging $8 for the PPV—and warned that those who will try to live stream the match will be banned.

As expected, people are calling the match an insult to the sport of boxing, and I pretty much agree. It’s also hard to take this fight seriously, despite all their training/workout videos (KSI is training with Floyd Mayweather Sr.), or how they’ve tried to imitate how the WWE and MMA do their prefight promos about

hating each other in real life. Because, in reality, it’s just another gimmick for these two Internet celebrities to add millions of views, new subscribers and dollars to their already fat bank accounts.

Oh, KSI also came up with this YouTube Boxing Championship Belt. I know it’s impossible, but I hope that’s one title our Pambansang Kamao, Sen. Manny Pacquiao would consider for his next fight—and I’d be more than happy to pay, just to see these influencers take some real punches on their smug faces.

WIRELESS CHARGING FROM BASEUS

ONE feature that a lot of people are now looking for in their smartphones is wireless charging. It’s not really a new technology, but it has become popular ever since Apple adopted it for the iPhone 8 and iPhone X. If you’re an iPhone user and would like to experience the convenience of wireless charging, you might want to check out these new products I’ve discovered from Baseus.

Baseus’s new #gowireless line allows you to get extra juice for your mobile devices hassle-free. No messy cables and, of course, fast charging for your Qi-enabled devices.

First is the Baseus Simple Wireless Charger.

The simplicity lies with the ease of use as you don’t need any cord to plug in or out of your device when you need to charge; all you need to do is place your smartphone on top of the charging pad. It will even notify you when it’s fully charged.

It stands out from other wireless pads because of its transparent tempered glass surface, where you can see its high-technology chips and visible circuits and some readable details. It’s made of a lightweight, matte-textured polycarbonate backplate with rubberlike stoppers at the bottom to prevent it from sliding and keep it securely in place.

It also has a bright LED indicator and it automatically goes to sleep when your smartphone is fully charged. Charging time on my iPhone X took around two hours. Another device that caught my attention is the Baseus 1+1 Wireless Charger Backpack Power Bank 5000mAh. Yes, it’s both a protective case and a wireless charger powerbank which adds 150 percent extra power to your iPhone X. You can use the magnetic PU case to protect your iPhone X from scratches and minor bumps.

The battery pack attaches easily via magnet and it supports lightning headphones so you can charge or enjoy music/calling at same time. There are also four LED lights on the side to indicate how much power it has left and show you its charging status. It also has a

Foldable Kickstand design, which you could use when watching videos.

The Baseus Bracket wireless powerbank, on the other hand, is a stylish wireless charging pad plus an 8000 mAh power bank. It has a full-screen digital display, USB dual output, intelligent quick charge and 5W wireless charging capabilities.

Finally, there’s the Baseus Wireless Charger Gravity car mount. Now, charging your phone in your car with all those dangling wires can be messy and a bit distracting, and if you have other passengers who also need to charge, you’ll even be competing for that free port of your car charger If you have a Qi-enabled phone, this car mount doubles as a wireless charger with a built-in intelligent clip that allows it to adjust to the required current depending on the device. It attaches to your airvent and you can easily secure and remove your phone with one hand.

For more information, visit www.baseus.com.

FITBIT CHARGE 3 BETTER THAN EVER

FITBIT announced the latest evolution of its Charge family of devices, the Fitbit Charge 3. Charge 3 features an elevated, premium swimproof design with a touch-screen display, 15+ goal-based exercise modes, essential smart features to stay connected to what matters most, up to seven days battery life, and Fitbit’s most advanced sensor and algorithm technology in a tracker.

Fitbit’s Charge family is the most popular of Fitbit’s product lineup, with 35 million devices sold to date. Meanwhile, IDC estimates shipments of fitness trackers will continue to comprise a significant portion of the overall category for the next several years.

Charge 3 is crafted from exceptional, lightweight materials, including an aerospace-grade aluminum case and Corning Gorilla Glass 3 display for a slimmer, modern silhouette, increased durability and more comfortable fit for men and women. It features a crisp, touch-screen display that is nearly 40 percent larger and brighter than its predecessor, offering a more intuitive experience with easy access to your most important information.

Fitbit Charge 3 is the first wearable with an inductive button, which includes new patent-pending technology that provides a streamlined, swimproof design, increased space in the device to add more sensors plus a larger battery with up to seven days of use, and more effortless interaction while

Continued on A11

A8

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

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MARKING his 5th birthday in July, Kensington Palace released this official photo of Prince George, the eldest son of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, who is third in line to the British throne. AP

BusinessMirror

Should babies and children be in the public eye?

PRIMETIME

DINNA CHAN VASQUEZ @dinnachanvasquez luckydinna@gmail.com

I

N other cultures, babies and children of celebrities and public figures are not exposed publicly via traditional or digital media. If they are, the exposure is usually limited to special occasions or events.

Princess Aiko, the daughter of Japan’s Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako, is 16 years old and she leads a very private life.

Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, the children of Prince William and his wife Kate Middleton, don’t have Instagram or Facebook accounts that are updated daily. We see pictures and videos of the kids during official events and other such occasions. I don’t know how it works but I think that media coverage is preapproved by Buckingham Palace.

In the Philippines presidential daughter Veronica “Kitty” Duterte has accounts on Twitter and Instagram but in terms of media coverage, she is only seen during selected official functions. Most of the time, people leave her alone on social media, which is how it should be.

Isabelle Duterte, the president’s granddaughter, was vilified on social media because of her designer purses and Malacañang photo shoot. This happened even when people didn’t know her circumstances.

Vice President Leni Robredo’s daughter Jillian Robredo was also exposed to scorn and ridicule early on after her mother was elected.

Thankfully, people have generally left Isabelle and Jillian alone, and they continue to respect Kitty’s privacy and right to live as a normal teenager.

Baron Trump, the son of US President Donald J. Trump and his wife Melania, has also been the subject of cruel jokes despite only being 12 years old. This, despite the fact his parents have guarded the boy’s privacy. I don’t understand how people would cruelly attack a boy because of his facial expressions. Do we even know him, aside from what we see publicly?

I’m also a parent and whatever the politics of the parents of these children, it is painful to see them being the objects of hate and ridicule.

I love cute babies and children but my opinion is, exposing them very early to social media with daily updates via photographs and videos puts them at risk for unnecessary comments, good or bad.

BEWARE THE FAX MACHINE: SOME HACKERS TARGET OLD GADGETS

LONDON—What could be less threatening than the old office fax machine? Nothing. That’s precisely why it’s used as a backdoor for hackers to get into an organization’s network.

Check Point, a cybersecurity firm in Israel, said on Sunday that their research discovered security flaws in tens of millions of fax machines. The hack works by sending an image file through the phone line—or a file that the fax machine thinks is an image file—and that is coded to contain malicious software. When a company receives the photo, the image is decoded and uploaded into the fax-printer’s memory, allowing the hackers to take over the device and spreading the malicious code through the network.

“Many companies may not even be aware they have a fax machine connected to their network, but fax capability is built into many multifunction office and home printers,” said Yaniv Balmas, group manager of security research at Check Point.

The researchers focused on Hewlett Packard’s OfficeJet Pro all-in-one fax printers—the global market leader for fax machines. Hewlett Packard quickly fixed the issue—a patch is available on their support page—but the same vulnerabilities are present in most fax machines, including those by Canon and Epson. Many machines are too old to even update. That means it will be difficult for companies to stop hackers from entering their system.

Globally, businesses use an estimated 45 million fax machines. Faxes are still widely used in health care, banking, and law, sectors in which highly sensitive data is stored. In the US medical sector, 75 percent of all communications are sent by fax.

To prevent organizations’ networks from becoming compromised, experts recommend that companies check if their fax machines can be updated, or place fax devices on a secure network that is separate from the networks that carry sensitive information. AP

HELPING MERCHANTS CATER TO MORE SHOPPERS ONLINE

Assumption College is one of the schools that is very strict about exposing kids in media. A celebrity was kicked out of Assumption after she appeared in a TVC. This may sound very old-fashioned but I totally get this line of thinking.

It’s another matter if the kids are children of celebrities. For example, Scarlett, the daughter of Vicki Belo and Hayden Kho, has her own fans.

It can’t be helped that the child’s parents are in the public eye. Even her aunt and uncle are sort of public figures. Celebrities visit the Belo-Kho residence regularly.

At the end of the day, parents decide whether

to allow their minor children to have social-media accounts, or to be photographed for newspapers and magazines. I just think it’s a scary world out there and children should always be protected.

If there is one thing I think all parents should do, it is to prevent their underage children from posting pictures of themselves in bikinis and revealing clothing on social media. It is scary how some sexual predators could use these images of minors for purposes that are unsavory. It’s another matter if adults are posting pictures of themselves.

Minors using social media should be guided by their parents/guardians. ■

Cashalo, GetGo sign partnership

CASHALO General Manager Hamilton Angluben and GetGo Rewards General Manager Nik Laming sign a memorandum of agreement that will provide GetGo members more opportunities to fly for free just by becoming a Cashalo user.

Saturday, August 25, 2018 A9

CASHALO, the No. 1 solution that gives Filipinos financial freedom through fast and affordable access to credit on-demand, and GetGo, Cebu Pacific’s lifestyle rewards program, announced recently a new partnership that will provide GetGo members with greater flexibility and opportunity while planning their next getaway.

Existing members only need to download the Cashalo app via Google Play or the App Store, sign up with their GetGo credentials (mobile number and e-mail address) along with an invitation code provided exclusively on GetGo channels, and earn 50 GetGo points once registered. As a bonus, from now until October 15, users will be eligible to earn 250 more GetGo points when they successfully avail themselves of their first loan through the Cashalo app.

Studies show that Filipinos love to travel, may it be locally or internationally. Filipinos made at least 5 million international trips in 2015, and 3 out 5 Filipinos aged 15 and above made trips within the country in 2016, with 99 percent arranging their own trips. “We’re thrilled to partner with GetGo which shares our goal of helping Filipinos achieve more,” says Hamilton Angluben, general manager of Cashalo (www.cashalo.com).

“Enabling greater flexibility, freedom and opportunity is at the core of what we do. Traveling is an important part of every Filipino’s lifestyle and this

partnership is the first of many in our commitment to serving more Filipinos in many ways.”

“We’re excited to be Cashalo’s partner as we add more rewarding ways to make traveling more accessible for every Juan,” adds Nik Laming, general manager of GetGo Rewards. “We have more surprises coming for Cashalo customers and GetGo members.”

Cashalo enables quick, easy and secure access to credit through its innovative mobile app. Offering some of the lowest interest rates in the market and with same-day approval and disbursement, Cashalo is already being used by thousands of Filipinos to build their financial futures.

GetGo, one of the leading lifestyle rewards programs in the Philippines, has been consistent with giving its members the travel benefits and experiences they deserve. Through this partnership with Cashalo, GetGo stays true to their promise of providing its loyal members more opportunities to earn GetGo points and increase their chances of flying to their dream vacations for free.

Cashalo is the leading solution for Filipinos who want financial freedom at their fingertips. It is the first product of a strategic partnership between Hong Kong-based technology player Oriente—whose founders are behind Internet giants Skype and LU.com—and Express Holdings Inc., a subsidiary of JG Summit Holdings Inc.

FILIPINO online shoppers are estimated to reach up to 42 million by 2025 and will spend about P918 billion in purchases online. This is as forecasted by a study conducted

by Google and Temasek in 2017, proving the continuous development of the country’s e-commerce market.

As this happens, it opens many opportunities for local merchants, especially since it isn’t saturated yet. In fact, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is pushing for more developments in the online retail scene through its Philippine E-Commerce Roadmap. By 2020 it aims to contribute at least 25 percent of the country’s gross domestic product.

The DTI also revealed that, with the country holding the fastest Internet user growth, a young population, and a growing purchasing power in Manila and other cities in the country, e-commerce now holds a great potential to become bigger than ever.

According to Ofri Kadosh, CEO and founder of Payo (payo.asia), today’s Filipino consumers have the ability to shop anything at any given time. It has provided them the convenience of being able to browse through items while in the comfort of their own homes or even when traveling.

However, despite the booming e-commerce industry, many merchants are still far from fully leveraging opportunities to meet the demands of the country’s online shoppers. Kadosh noted that “this is due to the low creditcard penetration in the country, where only 8 percent of Filipinos are credit-card holders, while 72 percent still do not have bank accounts—a challenge that merchants in the Philippines have to face.”

In the Philippines disheartening stories of online shopping experiences, like not receiving what they ordered or getting something that looks different from what they wanted, scares potential customers away from using other payment methods besides COD. In fact, 93 percent of online shoppers in the country today still prefer paying in cash, said Kadosh.

“It is understandable why online shoppers are not willing to risk their money when shopping online. However, merchants also find it hard to integrate COD into their payment system due to high cancellation rates and unsuccessful deliveries,” added Kadosh. “This is exactly why we are also trying to build consumer trust by providing a COD gateway system that merchants can use in their respective e-commerce platforms. It is a win-win situation.

The merchants get to earn more and consumers get to shop online without any worries.”

Today, Payo has taken a major step to help merchants and their consumers to experience better COD transactions through its gateway system. Once the consumers place their orders, a pool of data scientists will then process every sale, all the while recording and analyzing the client’s order history to identify potentially problematic accounts to help minimize cancellation rates and increase revenues.

A10 Saturday, August 25, 2018

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SQUARE CEO Jack Dorsey is interviewed on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.

After long resisting change, Twitter CEO Dorsey wants to revamp the “core” of the service to fight rampant abuse and misinformation. AP

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Can Twitter change its ‘core’ and remain Twitter?

N

BY BARBARA ORTUTAY The Associated Press

EW YORK—After long resisting change, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey wants to revamp the “core” of the service to fight rampant abuse and misinformation.

But it’s not clear if changing that essence—how it rewards interactions and values popularity—would even work.

Though Dorsey was scant on details, what is certain is that the move will require huge investments for a company that doesn’t have the same resources that Google and Facebook have to throw at the problem. Any change is likely to affect how users engage with Twitter and hurt revenue, testing the patience of both users and investors.

“Social networks have a history of... wellintentioned but badly designed efforts to fix this,” said Nate Elliott, principal at marketing research firm Nineteen Insights.

Twitter isn’t alone in having to deal with hate, abuse, misinformation and bad actors using the service for elections interference, targeted harassment and scams. And Twitter isn’t alone in proposing fixes that don’t get to the heart of the problems.

Case in point: Facebook. After Russian trolls were found to have used Facebook to interfere with the 2016 US elections, including by purchasing ads, the company spent a lot of time and energy building a tool that shows who’s behind political advertisements. But Elliott said it’s not even clear which ads on Facebook are the ones causing problems around foreign elections meddling. In 2016 Russian agents weren’t so much running political ads for or against candidates but rather social ads on divisive issues such as gun control and immigration.

But like Facebook, Twitter has to try—or at least be seen as trying.

Dorsey told The Washington Post that Twitter had not considered changing the core of the service until now. Like Facebook and others, Twitter has been accused of tinkering around the edges, tweaking policies and hiring masses of moderators when what’s really needed is a fundamental shift in how they work and how they make money in order to survive. While many former executives and other insiders have proposed radical shifts at major social networks, it’s rare for a sitting CEO to propose something as drastic as revisiting the foundation that his company is built on.

“We often turn to policy to fix a lot of these issues, but I think that is only treating surface-level symptoms that we are seeing,” Dorsey said.

Twitter confirmed Dorsey’s comments to the Post, but declined further comment.

TEACHERS GET IPADS TO HELP WITH STUDENT READING LITERACY RALEIGH, North Carolina—North Carolina public school reading teachers in early grades will benefit from new technology to help them better monitor student literacy strengths and weaknesses.

State schools Superintendent Mark Johnson says the Department of Public Instruction has provided iPads to every reading teacher in kindergarten through third grade, delivering them in time for the start of classes. Johnson is highlighting the purchases on Wednesday at an event in Salisbury.

Johnson’s office says the devices cost $6 million, with funds coming from those previously unused from the state’s Read to Achieve program, designed to have students reading at grade level by the end of third grade. Some districts who don’t use iPads will receive other devices.

Johnson announced in March each K-3 reading teacher was getting $200 to purchase literacy materials. AP

YouTube NextUp comes to Manila

Revamping the core could mean changing the engagement and rewards designed to keep users coming back—in the form of seeing their tweets liked, responded to and retweeted, and seeing their follower counts grow. It’s the tiny dopamine hits we get with each like that makes us feel better and keeps us returning for more. Take that away, and users might not want to return. In turn, advertisers might stay away, too, as they rely on monthly and daily user numbers, as well as user interactions, to gauge how well their ads work and how much to spend.

Unlike Facebook, Elliott said, Twitter doesn’t have billions of users to absorb any hits on user growth.

Even if the changes work, he said, “it’s going to cost them so many users and so much money I can’t imagine them sticking with these kinds of changes.”

Paul Verna, an analyst with research firm

eMarketer, also isn’t “terribly optimistic” that Twitter can make its service safer without hurting its business. The same goes for Facebook and YouTube.

“Because they rely on an advertising business model, they need to not only continue to reach audiences, but try to get them to spend as much time on platforms as possible,” he said. “That creates an inherent tension between your business needs and being a good citizen.”

That said, Twitter may not have to reinvent itself completely to improve. Elliott said better policies might go a long way toward reducing the abuse. For example, it’s currently OK to harass someone on Twitter, as long as it’s not harassment based on certain categories such as gender and sexual orientation. Elliott said Twitter may just need to prohibit all harassment. ■

LEADING video-sharing platform YouTube is announcing the launch of its NextUp contest in the Philippines to turbocharge the careers of local upand-coming YouTube creators. Since its launch in 2011, NextUp has helped over 500 creators in more than 13 countries take their channels to the next level, giving them skills, mentorship and a network to help them create compelling content. This year, YouTube NextUp is looking for creative and inspiring creators who will join a weeklong creator camp at the next YouTube Pop-up Space Manila from September 7 to 12 where they will learn production techniques from NextUp alumni and work closely with top YouTube creators.

So who’s NextUp (www.youtube.com/nextup)?

YouTube is looking for passionate and motivated YouTube creators who are ready to create powerful stories with better production skills; those who are seeking mentorship from production and channel development experts; and eager participants looking for an opportunity to collaborate with talented creators and be a part of the global NextUp community.

NextUp’s launch in the Philippines further boosts opportunities for a growing community of Filipino creators. Last year the Philippines saw a 50-percent growth in hours of content uploaded to YouTube. The number of Gold Creator Award channels also almost doubled, with more than 15 Gold Creator Award channels in 2018.

“We’re bringing NextUp to the Philippines to support Filipino creators, who are among the most creative and inspiring in the world. We want to help them bring their YouTube careers to the next level by exposing them to meaningful learning experiences,” said Gabby Roxas, Google Philippines country marketing manager. “We are also giving Filipino creators the opportunity to inspire and learn from other creators around the world who share their passion for creating great online content.”

Oppo launches power-packed F9 POPULAR mobile phone brand Oppo has launched its latest smartphone release, the F9. It’s the brand-new breakthrough F series smartphone that will ship with VOOC Flash charge, gradient colors and a unique Waterdrop Screen design.

A favorite among Oppo fans, VOOC Flash Charge applies a low voltage fast charging mechanism to deliver lightning-quick charging. With its standardized configuration 5V/4A, it can achieve a charging speed four times faster than conventional 5V/1A charging technology. While guaranteeing fast-charging performance, VOOC also ensures a safe charging process. Specifically, Oppo VOOC has five layers of protection from the charging adapter to smartphone, including low temperature and voltage, which ensures a fast and safe charge.

The Oppo F9 uses a gorgeous gradient color design, again a first in the series. The company created this design as a result of technological advances in color processes, while gradient colors in the market are

already popular among young people.

Previously, smartphone design using flat color profiles could be considered dull or static, while with gradient color, now young users can show of their personality and attitude.

The three colors on offer are Sunrise Red, Twilight Blue and Starry Purple, with

inspiration coming from nature—sunrise, twilight and starry skies. Oppo wanted to infuse these feelings into the design of the product to provide consumers with vitality rooted in nature. Moreover, to achieve a unified design, F9 for the first time applies a gradient design on the side frame, making the sides and the back a naturally connected whole.

In addition to the unique gradient color options, the device will also feature Oppo’s first FHD+ Waterdrop Screen with a high screen-to-body ratio up to 90.8 percent. This provides a vivid, visual enjoyment without increasing the size of the phone while the high-resolution screen offers a more immersive experience to consumers.

“We look forward to introducing the F9, the successor of our best-selling F7 model, to the Philippine market,” Oppo Philippines Vice President for Marketing Jane Wan said.

“Our F Series continues to develop and improve with every device, and the F9 proves to be the most powerful and innovative in its class with its VOOC fast-charging and Waterdrop Screen features.

In pursuit of perfecting the art of technology, Oppo always puts the user first, and the F9 is the latest product of that commitment.”

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

From YouTube screen to the boxing ring Continued from A8 maintaining the performance expected from the brand’s most advanced fitness tracker.

Charge 3 also delivers the most advanced health and fitness features found on a Fitbit tracker to date.

With more than 9 trillion minutes of heart rate data tracked, Fitbit has enhanced its 24/7 PurePulse heart rate technology for even greater accuracy during exercise compared to Charge 2; and provides a better measure of calorie burn and resting heart rate to optimize workouts and uncover health trends. The addition of a relative SpO2 sensor—a first for a Fitbit tracker—adds the potential to estimate relative blood oxygen levels and help track new health indicators, like sleep apnea. Fitbit helps millions of users better understand their sleep patterns and the lifestyle habits that can impact them. The company started tracking sleep in 2009 and has built one of the largest databases of sleep over the past seven years with more than 7.5 billion nights tracked. Fitbit also introduced Sleep Stages & Sleep Insights based on heart rate variability to give you an even more in-depth understanding of sleep quality.

The Fitbit Charge 3 will be available starting November for P9,990 in black with a graphite aluminum case, or blue gray with rose-gold aluminum case.

A FEW DROPS OF WELLNESS WITH Sobba

A MONTH ago, I met with Harry Freires, a multiawarded Filipino chemical engineer. He claims that his creation, called Sobba Alkaline Drops, can help restore the body’s PH level to keep you healthy, among a lot of other benefits.

Freires said he was working as a chief engineer in 1987 at a British-owned water plant company in the dessert of Al Kharj, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, when he first invented Sobba and has since worked on perfecting it.

Sobba is short for Sterilized Oxygenated Bicarbonate—Buffered Alkaline. Registered under the Food and Drug Administration Philippines, it’s an excellent acid and alkaline fighter that helps restore blood pH level to 7.4, returning your body to its homeostatic state.

“Most of the food and drink we take are acidic in nature, while some are strongly alkaline. Our body has naturally build-in ‘buffering system” to resist and maintain your blood pH to normal. However, as one grows older, the body’s buffering capacity decreases,” explained Engr. Freires. “Sobba helps to resist and maintain blood pH level to normal and assist your body’s requirement to attain a homeostatic state.”

Sobba is an ozonized water treated with highenergy oxygen to contain elevated oxygen levels for the prevention of serious diseases. The buffering action of Sobba also aids in oxygen absorption (dissolved oxygen directly proportional to alkalinity) to help achieve optimum health and a better life.

Among its many benefits are: maintaining the body’s healthy blood pH balance; effectively preventing acidosis and alkalosis; aiding the body’s self-healing capability; increasing the body’s oxygen absorption and strengthening the body’s immune system.

For information, visit www.Sobbatechnology.com. n

Saturday, August 25, 2018 A11

How to find and delete where Google knows you’ve been

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VEN if “Location History” is off on your phone, Google often still stores your precise location.

Here are some things you can do to delete those markers and keep your location as private as possible. But there’s no panacea, because simply connecting to the Internet on any device flags an IP address, a numeric designation that can be geographically mapped. Smartphones also connect to cell towers, so your carrier knows your general location at all times.

TO PREVENT FURTHER TRACKING FOR any device: Fire up your browser and go to myactivity.google.com. Sign into Google if you haven’t already. On the upper left drop-down menu, go to “Activity Controls.” Turn off both “Web & App Activity” and “Location History.” That should prevent precise location markers from being stored to your Google account.

Google will warn you that some of its services won’t work as well with these settings off. In particular, neither the Google Assistant, a digital concierge, nor the Google Home smart speaker will be particularly useful.

On iOS: If you use Google Maps, adjust your location setting to “While Using” the app; this will prevent the app from accessing your location when it’s not active. Go to Settings-Privacy-Location Services and from there select Google Maps to make the adjustment.

In the Safari Web browser, consider using a search engine other than Google. Under SettingsSafari-Search Engine, you can find other options like Bing or DuckDuckGo. You can turn location off while browsing by going to Setting-PrivacyLocation Services-Safari Websites, and turn this to “Never.” (This still won’t prevent advertisers from knowing your rough location based on IP address on any web site.)

You can also turn Location Services off to the device almost completely from Settings-PrivacyLocation Services. Both Google Maps and Apple Maps will still work, but they won’t know where you are on the map and won’t be able to give you directions.

Emergency responders will still be able to find you if the need arises.

Kalyanaraman Shankari (right) and her husband Thomas Raffill hold their phones while posing for photos in Mountain View, California. An Associated Press investigation shows that using Google services on Android devices and iPhones allows the search giant to record your whereabouts as you go about your day. AP

On Android: Under the main settings icon click on “Security & Location.” Scroll down to the “Privacy” heading. Tap “Location.” You can toggle it off for the entire device.

Use “App-level permissions” to turn off access to various apps. Unlike the iPhone, there is no setting for “While Using.” You cannot turn off Google Play services, which supplies your location to other apps if you leave that service on.

Sign in as a “guest” on your Android device by swiping down from top and tapping the downward-facing caret, then again on the torso icon.

Be aware of which services you sign in on, like Chrome.

You can also change search engines even in Chrome.

TO DELETE PAST LOCATION TRACKING FOR any device: On the page myactivity.google.com, look for any entry that has a location pin icon beside the word “details.” Clicking on that pops up a window that includes a link that sometimes says “From your current location.” Clicking on it will open Google Maps, which will display where you were at the time. You can delete it from this pop-up by clicking on the navigation icon with the three stacked dots and then “Delete.”

Some items will be grouped in unexpected places, such as topic names, google.com, Search or Maps.

You have to delete them item by item. You can wholesale delete all items in date ranges or by service, but this will end up taking out more than just location markers. AP

Gadget shopping just got more convenient TWENTY-FOUR/SEVEN gadget shopping has now become more convenient as Philippine technology group Star Inc. offers its complete lineup of Starmobile phones (www.starmobile.ph) and JUMPU mobile accessories on 7-Eleven’s CLiQQ online shop (www.cliqqshop.com).

“After our retail expansion to over 900 sari-sari stores nationwide, we are scaling up our partnership with 7-Eleven to make it even easier for more Filipinos to purchase Starmobile and JUMPU products,” said Ardie Balderrama, sales and marketing head

of Starmobile. “The e-commerce partnership we launched last year has shown promising results, allowing us to scale our reach significantly while still driving efficiencies, especially when it comes to logistics and shipping.” This development strengthens the partnership between Star Inc. and 7-Eleven, the country’s leading convenience store chain. The partnership started in 2014, when the latter started carrying Starmobile devices in their stores.

The effort expanded in 2017 when both companies began offering Starmobile’s in-demand Play Five and

Play Lite on in-store CLIQQ kiosks, as well.

“7-Eleven is excited to offer more Starmobile and JUMPU devices in both our online and offline shops,” said 7-Eleven Senior Category Manager Micah Alvarado.

“We have been working on expanding our merchandise and introducing retail innovations that will allow us to serve our customers better. We want to strengthen our positioning as the Filipinos’ go-to place whenever they need something essential quickly and conveniently.”

Huawei P20 Pro named as ‘Best Smartphone of the Year’ Huawei Consumer Business Group (CBG) recently received an award from the European Image and Sound Association (Eisa), a group comprising 55 of the world’s most respected consumer electronics magazines. The Huawei P20 Pro was named “Eisa Best Smartphone 2018-2019” by the association in recognition of Huawei’s commitment to quality, design and performance, as well as the company’s long track record of introducing stylish, powerful and winning devices. This is the sixth consecutive year that Huawei has been recognized by the Eisa.

“For us the most important reward is creating products that let consumers enjoy and have fun with smartphone photography. The Huawei P20 Pro provides a wealth of photography features to help capture and share the moments that mean the most to our users,” said Li Changzhu, vice president of handset business for Huawei CBG. Eisa selected the P20 Pro as the best smartphone of the year for being “the most advanced, innovative and technically superior smartphone ever,” as well as “the perfect companion for mobile users, [and] also a trendsetter in the mobile photography field.”

The revolutionary Leica Triple Camera on Huawei P20 Pro boasts the highest total pixel count among all

smartphone cameras on the market today. In addition, it supports three times optical zoom and five times hybrid zoom, plus innovative features including Huawei AIS (AI image stabilization).

The sleek design of the P20 Pro features barely there bezels and all-new gradient colors. Thanks to the world’s first AI-powered chipset, the phone delivers a fast and smooth user experience.

The premier camera features allow for a superb low-light photography experience, making it one of the few devices capable of shooting long-exposure photos clearly without a tripod, owing to Huawei’s proprietary AIS technology. In addition, the 4,000 mAh battery puts it among the smartphones with the largest battery capacities. Taken together, the Huawei P20 Pro represents “a winning combination of great hardware, optics and craftsmanship,” noted Eisa.

Eisa members include expert media across the full spectrum of consumer electronics from 27 countries, and each member contributes to one or more of Eisa’s six Expert Groups—namely, photography, mobile devices, Hi-Fi, home theater audio, home theater display and video, and in-car electronics.

Every year Eisa members nominate a list of

products that they consider the standout performers in each of these Expert Groups. Nominations are then presented at Eisa’s AGM, where members conduct an in-depth deliberation before voting for the

winner of each category.

The award will be formally presented to Huawei during IFA at the Eisa Awards Ceremony on August 31 in Berlin.

Sports BusinessMirror

A12 Saturday, August 25, 2018

Editor: Jun Lomibao | mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph

Al Mendoza alsol47@yahoo.com

THAT’S ALL

Worth a gold; Beijing’s Fab 4 Margarita “Meggie” Ochoa and Jenna Kaila Napolis compete in jiujitsu’s newaza women’s -49 kgs class and find themselves vying for the bronze medal on Friday.

Ochoa wins the all-Filipina duel to claim the country’s sixth bronze medal. NONIE REYES/Canon 6D MKII

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By Jun Lomibao

AKARTA—Daniel Caluag sets out to retain his BMX gold medal in cycling in the 18th Asian Games— but the London Olympian has to contend with former Asian champions and a reigning Southeast Asian Games titlist on Saturday at the Jakarta International BMX Track.

Caluag, now 31 and a Registered Nurse in the US, has trained incognito for these Games, opting not to compete in UCI races as what he did for his qualification for the London 2012 Olympics.

Doubts have been cast on his preparedness to retain the crown—the only gold medal for the country in the Incheon 2014 Asiad—but Caluag stressed he has prepared well and hard for Jakarta.

CALUAG EYES PHL’S 2ND GOLD

“It’s not a matter of watching out for my opponents. For me, it’s watching out about myself, how I will fare on race day,” said Caluag, who will race alongside younger brother Christopher John.

“I’m sure they [rivals] know me and I, too, know about them. It’s ‘whoever shows up at the gate’ that a competitor in my event has to brace for—and that includes my brother,” he added.

The men’s race consists of 12 riders—including last year’s Asian champions Jukia Yoshimura (2017) and Yoshitaku Nagasako both of Japan, and last year’s Kuala Lumpur SEA Games winner Gusti Bagus Saputra

‘LUCKY 13’ OF ATHLETICS OPENS CAMPAIGN IN JAKARTA ASIAD J

AKARTA—Call them Lucky 13 but the Philippine athletics team—led by hurdler Eric Shauwn Cray and pole vaulter EJ Obiena—plunges into action starting on Saturday in the 18th Asian Games at the Gelora Bung Karno Main Complex.

Cray and Obiena, both coming off impressive performances in recent Asian tournaments, have the best chances for a medal in these Games, but Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association (Patafa) President Dr. Philip Ella Juico is hopeful that the rest of his athletes can deliver.

The last athletics medal captured by the Philippines in the Asian Games came in 1994, courtesy of Elma MurosPosadas with a 6.41-meter leap in the long jump.

Juico fervently hopes the drought ends here in Jakarta.

“If everything goes right, like timing, pacing, many of our athletes like even Harry Diones and Janry Ubas, can also spring some surprises,” said Juico, who himself was appointed jury of the Asian Athletics Association (AAA) in charge of the athletics disciplines these games.

Reigning Southeast Asian Games decathlon champion Aries Toledo begins the ball rolling with the 100 meters at 10 a.m. today before his 10:45 a.m. long-jump competition and the 12 noon shot put. He winds up his busy decathlon day with the high jump later at 6:50 p.m. and the 400 meters in the night cap at 9:30 p.m.

Ubas, the bronze medalist in the long jump of the 2017 SEA Games and decathlon in the 2015 edition of the biennial meet, tries to qualify in the finals of the

long jump at 6:50 p.m.

But what excites Juico is the association’s newest find, Kristina Marie Knott.

“The one thing good about Kristina Knott is, very few in Asia know anything about her. The first time they saw her in action was about a month ago in the Vietnam Open, which was the last tournament we took part in before the Asian Games,” Juico said.

The Fil-American Creative Writing student of University of Miami runs in the 100-meter heats at 6:30 p.m. today.

In the coming days, Cray, who is coming off a gold medal in the 400-meter hurdles of the 2017 Asian Athletics Championships and a silver in the 60-meter run of the 2017 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games, takes part in the 400-meter hurdles and the 4x100 relay with Trenton Beram, Anferenee Lopena and Clinton Bautista.

Beram is also joining the 800 meters, while Bautista is slated to compete in the 110-meter hurdles.

Obiena, the pole vault favorite in the SEA Games before he was sidelined by an ACL tear, is now fully recovered. He competes in the pole vault on August 29, where he is one of the favorites.

Marco Vilog is the Philippines’s bet in the 800 meters, while Francis Medina takes part in the 400-meter hurdles.

Mary Joy Tabal, who has been training in Tuscany for several months, joins the marathon tomorrow, while Marestella Sunang makes what could be her last hurrah in these games in the triple jump competitions on August 27.

Jun Lomibao

Coach Yeng: Filipino dribblers develop chemistry in time for game vs Koreans

J

AKARTA—South Korea—in Coach Yeng Guiao’s words— is not one tough assignment now that the Filipino dribblers are close to achieving chemistry and cohesion in the 18th Asian Games.

With National Basketball Association player Jordan Clarkson and his teammates—composed mostly of the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters—bonding closer together not only in practice but most especially at the Athletes’ Village, Guiao’s confidence has climbed rungs up.

“Historically, the Koreans… it’s always hard to win against them, and most of the time our national team ends up losing,” Guiao said as he boards the bus with his players for

the team’s practice on Friday at the GMSB Gym here.

“This time, I have a good feeling that with Jordan Clarkson, and of course the way the players are playing, the way they are developing and the way we are getting that cohesion, I think things are even this time going to the game against Korea,” Guiao added.

In his debut for the Rain or Shine-led team, the 6-foot-5 Clarkson collected 28 points, eight rebounds and six assists in the team’s heartbreaking 82-80 loss to the Chinese in the Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games here.

Guiao also got solid performances from Stanley Pringle, who scored 18 points; Christian Standhardinger, who had 16

of Indonesia.

The men’s seeding run is set at 9:25 a.m. (10:25 a.m. in Manila) right after the 9:05 a.m. seeding run for women, where the Philippines’s Sienna Elaine Fiennes, only 19, gets to be thrusted into her first major international competition after coming out of a UCI BMX juniors program at the World Cycling Centre in Aigle, Switzerland.

Fiennes will face two formidable opponents both from China—Zhang Yaru, the 2017-2018 Asian champion and Lu Yan, the silver medalist in Incheon.

But like Caluag, Fiennes feels everyone has a fighting

chance for the gold in BMX racing, where one spill would totally hurt a rider’s medal aspiration.

The Jakarta track is basically UCI regulation, putting the participants on a level playing field.

Caluag, who works at two California hospitals on a three-day-a-week schedule, said he is more conditioned to race now than he was for Incheon.

“I’m definitely more prepared now than Incheon,” said Caluag, who said he draws inspiration not only for the country but also from his wife Stephanie and daughters Sydney and Kailani. This is the first time he is competing away from home without his wife.

The motos will precede the seeding run and the finals will be raced at 11:20 for the men and 11:25 for the women.

Uzbekistan’s Oksana Chusovitina, 43, is a seven-time Olympian and Asian Gamer but is still winning medals. AP

Age, even in gymnastics, doesn’t matter

J

AKARTA—There was a silver lining for seven-time Olympian Oksana Chusovitina at the Asian Games.

The 43-year-old Uzbekistan gymnast took silver in the vault, one-tenth of a point behind 16-year-old South Korean Yeo Seo-jeong.

Yeo, who was born 10 years after Chusovitina made her Olympic debut and won gold in the team event in ‘92 in Barcelona, won with 14.387 points.

Chusovitina, who won the vault at the 2002 Asian Games and took silver medals in the event at the 1994 and 2014 editions, is competing with the intention of qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics in 2020—at 45.

At the other end of the spectrum, 15-year-old Shardul Vihan became India’s youngest medalist in shooting at the

Asian Games when he took silver in the double trap final behind Shin Hyun-woo of South Korea.

Japanese teenager Rikako Ikee has been a star in the pool, and picked up her fifth gold medal and seventh overall of the meet to give her country a slight lead over China for swimming superiority.

The 18-year-old Ikee swam the butterfly leg of Japan’s winning 4x100-meter medley relay, and is tied for second for the most gold medals and overall medals won by a competitor at a single Asian Games.

Only North Korea shooter So Gin Man, who won seven golds and eight medals overall in 1982, has done better. Ikee still has one race to go in Jakarta. So does Chinese backstroker Xu Jiayu, who won his fourth gold with victory in the 200. AP

points; and Lee, who had 10 points off the bench.

Guiao, however, is hoping to get the most from his brave men when they clash with the Koreans in a knockout quarterfinal on Monday at 11 a.m. (Manila time).

The Nationals finished No. 2 in Group D with the mighty Chinese topping the group elims with a 2-0 card.

The Koreans, likewise, dominated their rivals, completing a 3-0 win—thanks to the solid effort of naturalized player Ricardo Ratliffe, who averaged 23.3 points and 13 rebounds.

Aside from the 6-foot-10 Ratliffe, who played as import for the Magnolia Hotshots Pambansang Manok in the PBA last season, Korea will also have its deadly

shooters like Lee Jung-hyun, Kim Sun-hyung, Heo Ung, Heo Ilyoung, Jeon Junbeom and big man Kang Sangjae.

Guiao, however, is confident the national team is ready for the challenge in their make-or-break encounter, as the winner meets either Iran or Syria in the semifinal round of the Asian Games.

That confidence of Guiao emanated from the team’s gutsy stand with the Chinese.

“In our game against China, we were not as efficient,” said Guiao. “It was actually Jordan’s first game after the NBA Finals with the Cavs. So we’re expecting a little bit more efficiency with the Korea game.” Jun Lomibao

IT was a loss worth already a gold. That’s what it was.

We were not even supposed to finish strong. Our chances of winning were both nil and slim. But, hey, didn’t we give them more than a scare?

So, fret no more. We lost to China 82-80 but not after nearly pulling off the Asian Games’ biggest basketball upset.

We collapsed. We let a three-point lead in the dying seconds vanish. We bungled a couple of winning plays.

Pressure did us in?

We just couldn’t handle the specter of prosperity?

But it’s all right, it’s all very fine.

Wasn’t it enough that we almost made it?

Had Paul Lee’s buzzer-beater from afar went in, we could have won it.

In short, endgame breaks didn’t go our way. Too bad, indeed. Against China, the Great Wall is simply too massive, and too tall, to conquer.

Nothing to be ashamed off, though. Chin up all the way, please? Besides, it was just a game for positioning.

We’ve already advanced to the next round, anyway.

And, in our heroic stand against the giants-laden Chinese, give credit to Jordan Clarkson, whose 28 points became instant proof of the wisdom behind the concerted move to tap him—at all cost—for the basketball campaign in the Asiad.

Perhaps, had Clarkson, the Fil-Am from Los Angeles playing for Cleveland alongside LeBron James in the Cavaliers’ gallant but losing stand against Steph Curry and the Warriors in the last NBA Finals, not suffered cramps in the homestretch, the ending might have been different.

Our three-point lead with seconds remaining might not have been erased by China’s blazing 5-0 windup resulting in our two-point defeat.

Suddenly, as a result of our unexpected brilliance against China, we’ve become sort of a title-contender.

If that’s an illusion, who cares? Let it be—for now.

Look, the game has remained the talk of the town, almost overshadowing the golden effort of our weightlifter (53 kg) Hidilyn Diaz, the 27-year-old lass from Zamboanga.

With her awesome feat that followed her Olympic silver in 2016 Rio, Diaz has finally put the country on the golden column, lifting us to 16th place among 45 nations in the quadrennial Games.

With her breakthrough triumph that equaled our lone gold in the 2014 Incheon Asiad, Diaz, easily richer now with her P6-million-plus incentives, said, in anticipation of her stint in the 2020 Tokyo Olympiad: “It can be done. An Olympic gold can be won.”

Words only a true warrior can utter.

THAT’S IT Thank God I was able to watch the Philippines-China basketball game on Tuesday night at the Philippine Embassy in Beijing, China, in the company yet of Jimmy FlorCruz and his beauteous and comely wife, Anna Segovia. I thought I’d miss watching it. Jimmy had come to the rescue. He commandeered the embassy’s innermost crannies to pluck out the TV set for my delectation; thanks a lot, Jimmy! Almost each time we scored a basket, Jimmy, the retired CNN Beijing bureau chief (14 years in the service), would jump, arms raised high and yell, “Yes!” My profound gratitude to Ambassador Chito Sta. Romana who, together with Jimmy and Anna, and also the always affable Eric Baculinao, had vigorously and unselfishly mapped out our study/immersion tour, brief but bursting with wisdom and a wealth of information, of the Chinese capital and its environs.

The trip to Badaling, for sure, at the foot of the Great Wall was an experience to remember. Thanks, Jimmy and Anna. Eric was kind enough to insert his dinnerhosting for us despite the closeness of his media trip to Tibet (he is the current NBC Beijing Bureau chief).

Amba Chito, Eric, Anna and Jimmy, a.k.a. Fab Four, were so gracious enough in treating us lavishly each to sumptuous dinners (all Chinese lauriats, of course!) for three nights, causing us all to gain added poundage— but to our eternal delight, though, as it gave us a forceful reason each scurrying to a must-gym visit the very minute we got home. And what’s more, our trip of a lifetime was capped by a dinner marking the 32nd wedding anniversary of Anna and Jimmy, which was punctuated—fittingly an idea from Sol’s fertile mind—by an artistic-filled performance unleashed each by our nine-strong delegation composed of Mercy and Bob Corrales, Jay and Bebot Glorioso, Angie Castillo, Yumi Gunigundo, Lydia Villacrucis, Sol Juvida and yours truly. Mercy’s “Ang Bayan Ko” was heartrending and Jay’s “La Vie En Rose,” done a capella, was simply so superb it nearly brought tears to my eyes, if not everybody. In his response, Jimmy did “Shades of Gray” in his own inimitable way that, well, it virtually brought the house down. Again, to Amba Chito, Eric, Anna and Jimmy, thank you very kindly. Thank you also to Amba Chito’s extremely embassy efficient staff led by Betsy Liu and Oyong Toledo. Till next time, with Jimmy’s permission? (hehe).... Cheers!