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PHL JULY BOP SURPLUS www.businessmirror.com.ph

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Thursday, August 26, 2021 Vol. 16 No. 316

P.  |     | 7 DAYS A WEEK

UP TO $642M FROM $8M

A SHOPKEEPER carries a sack of rice at a retail store in Las Piñas City. Despite a reduction in rice imports, the country is enjoying a stable supply of the staple, thanks to record-high palay harvest in the first half of the year. NONIE REYES

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B B C

@BcuaresmaBM

HE country’s transactions with the rest of the world yielded dollar earnings for the country in July this year, contrasting the two-month dollar deficit in May and June, data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Wednesday showed.

BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno told reporters that the country’s Balance of Payments (BOP) posted a surplus of $642 million in July this year, significantly higher than the $8-million surplus in the same month last year.

It is also a reversal of the BOP deficit of the country in the previous months. For the entire first seven months of 2021, the coun-

try’s BOP only hit a surplus in April and this July. All other months yielded dollar deficits for the country. The BOP is usually considered as an important economic indicator in an economy as it shows the level of earnings or expenses of the Philippines with its transactions with the world.

C  A

2-wk ECQ in NCR cost 90K workers their jobs B S P. M sam_medenilla

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VER 90,000 workers were displaced during the twoweek enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in the National Capital Region (NCR), according to the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).

This was lower than DOLE’s initial projection that around 300,000 to 400,000 workers will be displaced due to the lockdown from August 6 to 20, 2021.

In an online press briefi ng, S “-,” A

TUTAY: “You have to note that our figure is for formal sector workers only. It does not include the informal sector workers and repatriated OFWs [overseas Filipino workers], who are joining the unemployed.”

PESO EXCHANGE RATES ■ US 50.1590

CLIMATE CHANGE TOLL SEEN TO HIT $20M A YEAR B C U. O @caiordinario

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HE Philippines may incur losses of over 5 percent of GDP annually, or the country’s annual infrastructure budget, due to climate change, according to the latest Asia Pacific Disaster Report 2021 released by the United Nations (UN).

The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) report, launched on Wednesday, also noted that the Philippines’s annual average losses from rising temperatures and emissions could cost the country over $20 million a year.

“The string of record-breaking weather events show that we do not have the luxury of ‘waiting this out’: action must be taken now to address these risks,” Special Representative of the United Nations SecretaryGeneral for Disaster Risk Reduction, Mami Mizutori said.

“This includes increasing international funding for disaster risk reduction and climate adaptation, especially for countries graduating from the least-developed category,” she added.

The report said the poor in the Philippines are among the most vulnerable in Southeast Asia based on estimates using representative concentration pathways (RCPs).

The data showed that RCP 4.5 stands for moderate climate change scenarios while RCP 8.5 are severe climate

change scenarios.

Under RCP 4.5, 15 percent of the country’s poorest could experience multihazard cascading risks due to climate change between 2020 and 2039.

The moderate climate change estimates also showed that the affected population is bound to increase to as much as 24 percent of the poorest Filipinos between 2040 and 2059.

In terms of RCP 8.5 or the severe climate change scenarios, 26 percent of the country’s poorest will be affected by multihazard cascading risks between 2020 and 2039. The number is seen to increase to 30 percent between 2040 and 2059.

“The poor populations at the greatest risk under RCP 8.5 live in: Bangladesh, India and Nepal in South and SouthWest Asia; Myanmar, Lao People’s Democratic Republic and Philippines in Southeast Asia,” the report stated.

“The top 5 countries which are at the greatest increase in risk, between 2020 and 2040, are Pakistan, Afghanistan, Bhutan, Myanmar and Cambodia,” it added.

The impact of climate change on natural and other biological hazards in the Philippines include more heatwaves which could increase death due to heatwaves by 1 percent.

The rising sea levels and excessive flooding in the country

IMF’s SDR allocation will boost PHL liquidity—BSP

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HE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has welcomed the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) latest Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) allocation, saying it is expected to provide additional liquidity amid the pandemic.

In a statement on Wednesday evening, BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno confirmed to reporters that the Philippines’s share in the SDR allocation amounting to SDR 1,958,027,771.00 was credited to the country’s SDR account.

“The BSP supports the IMF SDR allocation which will provide additional liquidity to member-countries particularly during this period as efforts are exerted to address the Covid-19 crisis,” Diokno said.

“We expect this to result in an increase in the country’s gross international reserves [GIR],” he added.

The IMF advised member-country authorities that the SDR allocation can be used to boost foreign exchange reserves and reduce reliance

on debt, create space for countries to step up efforts against the crisis and support reforms to the economy.

The BSP also said IMF member-countries can exchange their SDRs for hard currencies with other IMF members. The newly allocated SDRs are reflected in the GIR until the national government determines its use.

Earlier this year, the IMF slashed their growth projection for the Philippines on Wednesday, citing slow recovery in the first half of the year.

Following the Philippines’s annual economic check-up from the IMF via its Article IV consultation this year, the global monetary authority cut its growth projection of the Philippines from 6.9 percent to 5.4 percent for this year.

What pulled the economy down in the first S “IMF’,” A

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■ JAPAN 0.4575 ■ UK 68.8884 ■ HK 6.4405 ■ CHINA 7.7520 ■ SINGAPORE 37.0259 ■ AUSTRALIA 36.3954 ■ EU 58.9719 ■ SAUDI ARABIA 13.3761

Source: BSP (August 25, 2021)

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News BusinessMirror

Thursday, August 26, 2021

PHL JULY BOP SURPLUS UP TO $642M FROM $8M C  A

A surplus means that the country had more dollar earnings than its dollar expenditures during the period.

The BSP said the BOP surplus in July 2021 reflected mainly the national government’s (NG) net foreign currency deposits with the BSP and the BSP’s income from its investments abroad.

The surplus could have been larger, if not partly offset by the NG’s payments of its foreign currency debt obligations and the BSP’s net foreign exchange operations.

The BOP surplus in July reduced the cumulative BOP deficit in the first seven months of the year to $1.3 billion from a deficit of $1.94 billion in the first semester. The current year-to-date BOP level is a reversal from the $4.12-billion surplus recorded in the same period a year ago.

Earlier this year, the BSP said they expect the country’s BOP to hit a surplus of $7.1 billion by the end of 2021.

Despite optimism on the recovery of the country’s BOP, the BSP also earlier said the threat of resurgence of Covid-19 cases, the emergence of new variants of the virus and the risk of slower-thanexpected vaccine deployment amid supply issues could “cast a shadow” on the projected BOP recovery path.

For 2022, the BSP projects overall BOP surplus to settle lower at $2.7 billion, driven mainly by the anticipated narrower current account surplus for the year.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

DBM releases P312M to DOH for govt, private HCWs’ SRA

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HE Department of Budget and Management (DBM) released a total of P311.79 million to the Department of Health (DOH) to cover the payment of the Special Risk Allowances (SRA) of public and private health workers.

In a statement on Wednesday, the budget department said the funds will be charged from the Miscellaneous Personnel Benefits Fund and Unprogrammed Appropriations under this year’s national budget.

Moreover, the DBM said the DOH shall facilitate the downloading of the funds to the DOH-retained hospitals, treatment and rehabilitation centers, private hospitals, and other Covid-19 facilities.

“Guided by Administrative Order 42 and DBM-DOH Joint Circular 1 dated June 16, 2021, about 20,208 public and private health workers directly catering to Covid-19 patients shall receive an SRA not exceeding P5,000 per month from December 20, 2020 to June 30, 2021. The grant of the Covid-19 SRA shall be pro-rated based on the number of days that the public and private health workers physically report for work in a month,”

the DBM said. The release of the funds came three days after President Duterte ordered the DOH and DBM to facilitate the release of SRA to health workers following complaints from some groups of medical professionals.

Earlier, the Filipino Nurses United (FNU) warned of a possible mass resignation if they still can’t receive their SRA from DOH.

Guidelines on nurses

IN a related development, the DBM also released on Wednesday the guidelines on the upgrading of the salary grade of Nurse II from Salary Grade (SG) 15 to SG 16 and to retain the position titles of Nurse III to Nurse VII with their corresponding SGs. “The provisions stipulated in Budget Circular 2021-2 shall be effective not earlier than June 1, 2021. The DBM would like to emphasize that the modification of the position attributes will not re-

sult in the reduction in the salary of the incumbent nurses,” it said.

This means that Nurse II may now receive a monthly salary of P36,628-P39,650, higher than his or her previous monthly salary of P33,575-P36,323, based on the second tranche monthly salary schedule for the national government this year.

In June this year, the Office of the President directed the DBM to overturn the Budget Circular 2020-04 it issued last year, which FNU said “effectively demoted” senior government nurses from their present ranks while nurses in Nurse II positions will even have a salary upgrade to Salary Grade 16.

The DBM said its Budget Circular 2020-4 upgraded the salary of the Nurse I position from SG-11 to SG-15 but this resulted in the modification of the position attributes of the remaining non-entry level nurse positions.

Bernadette D. Nicolas

GORDON TO DUQUE: GIVE ALL HEALTH WORKERS SRA B C M-C @Claudethmc3

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ENATE Blue Ribbon Committee chair Richard Gordon has challenged Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III “to take the risk” and give special risk allowance (SRA) to health-care workers

(HCWs) even if they do not cater to Covid-19 patients.

This, as Duque said that the P311.79 million SRA, covered by DBM’s Special Allotment Release Order, has been downloaded to hospitals as of August 25, for over 20,000 health workers. See related story above.

Alliance of Health Workers National President Robert Mendoza asked during the Blue Ribbon hearing if all HCWs would be able to receive the SRA even if they are not directly exposed to Covid patients like janitors and other hospital personnel, to which Gordon reminded Duque that “this was the agreement” since hospitals are considered as hazardous areas.

“Did you consider that situation?” Gordon asked Duque.

“I have expressed my support for that and I’ve written the good chairman [of] COA [Commission on Audit] about the liberal interpretation of the provision of law [on] the grant of SRA. I will await the good chairman’s response because the position of DOH Executive Committee is that it would be best that there would be a law created to allow for the grant of SRA, to not just who are directly in-care of the patients or in direct contact but everyone in the facility, owing to the high transmissibility of the Delta variant, everybody is at risk,” Duque said.

Gordon had pointed this out to Duque in the first Blue Ribbon hearing last week on the COA report flagging “deficiencies” in DOH’s management of pandemic funds.

Duque said on Wednesday he also asked the technical advisory group of experts to prepare some inputs that may be considered by Congress and Senate by “crafting a law that will have technical undertakings coming from our experts on a matter of Delta variant and its intense transmissibility.”

Urging Senate to file a bill

UPON hearing this, Gordon told Duque: “Do not pass it on to us.

You say you will look for savings [so that] you can cover both. In fact, the opinion rendered by the chair-

RICHARD GORDON

man of COA is towards a liberalizing opinion interpretation.”

“Are you now saying that we should draft a bill so that you can do it?” an irked Gordon asked Duque.

“That would be ideal, Mr. Chairman,” Duque responded.

Gordon then said, “I’m ready to file that bill but you said you’re going to do that [give the SRA to all HCWs in hospitals], so if you’re not going to do that, then we still have a problem, don’t we?”

“Meron po talaga [Yes, there would be],” Duque said, citing “legal basis.”

“The liberal interpretation cannot substitute for a legal basis...I really wanted to give it to them, if there are funds, I am willing to give them all the SRA. The problem is, COA will question us,” Duque stressed, speaking partly in Filipino.

However, Gordon assured him that if he will take the risk, “I am willing to file that bill right away as an emergency measure.”

IMF’s...

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half of the year is largely the second wave of Covid-19 cases in the country, which likely peaked in April, IMF Article IV Consultation Mission Head Thomas Helbing told reporters in a virtual briefing.

The resurgence of cases during the period necessitated stricter quarantine measures which disrupted economic activity and “weighed” on market confidence, Helbing added.

While the IMF said the economy is expected to start its path to recovery toward the third quarter of the year, Helbing warned of pockets of uncertainty in the near-term recovery.

Bianca Cuaresma

2-wk...

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Labor Assistant Secretary Dominique R. Tutay said the affected workers were permanently or temporarily displaced by 3,000 companies, when NCR was placed under ECQ. “You have to note that our figure is for formal sector workers only. It does not include the informal sector workers and repatriated OFWs [overseas Filipino workers], who are joining the unemployed,” Tutay said.

Prior to the ECQ in NCR, she said they registered in the region 255,000 workers, who lost their jobs, and 1.17 million workers who were temporarily displaced.

DOLE earlier said it hopes no further ECQ in NCR and its surrounding provinces will be implemented so as to minimize the number of displaced workers this year.

Among the measures the government is eyeing to prevent similar large-scale lockdowns is the mass vaccination of workers.

In NCR, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Abalos said 75 percent or 11.7 million of the 14 million adult population in NCR already got their first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine.

Of these, 7.3 million got their first dose, and the balance of 4.2 million are considered fully vaccinated.

DOLE is also pushing for the vaccination of more workers in Calabarzon, Central Luzon, Central Visayas to minimize the need of lockdowns in such areas.

Labor Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III said the National Task Force Against Covid-19 granted his request for 452,000 Covid-19 doses, to be administered to workers in construction and manufacturing in the said regions.

“We believe doing this would speed up economic recovery,” he said.

DOH logs 13,573 new Covid cases

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HE Department of Health (DOH) on Wednesday logged 13,573 additional Covid-19 cases, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 1,883,088.

The agency attributed “the relatively low number of cases today” to “lower laboratory output last Monday.” There were also 15,820 recoveries and 228 deaths recorded.

Of the total number of infections, 6.7 percent (125,378) are active, 91.6 percent (1,725,218) have recovered, 1.73 percent (32,492) died. The DOH said that 176 duplicates were removed from the total case count. Of these, 174 are recoveries.

Moreover, 152 cases previously tagged as recoveries were reclassified as deaths after final validation. All laboratories were operational on August 23, 2021, but seven laboratories were not able to submit their data to the Covid-19 Document Repository System.

Based on data in the last 14 days, the seven non-reporting laboratories contribute, on average, 0.9 percent of samples tested and 1.0 percent of positive individuals.

Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

CLIMATE CHANGE TOLL SEEN TO HIT $20M A YEAR C  A

could increase by more than 50 million the number of Filipinos exposed to these risks.

The Unescap noted that in 2019 alone, over 19 million people were displaced by natural hazards in Asia and the Pacific, which accounted for around three-quarters of the global total.

The Asia-Pacific region had the four largest numbers of people displaced that year: India, 5.1 million people; Philippines, 4.1 million people; Bangladesh, 4.1 million people; and China, 4 mil-

lion people.

“Notwithstanding the progress made by many countries in devising more robust systems of early warning and responsive protection—with far fewer people dying as a result of natural disasters—the Covid-19 pandemic has demonstrated that almost without exception, countries around the world are still ill-prepared to deal with multiple overlapping crises, which often cascade, with one triggering another,” said Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, United Nations undersecretary-general and executive secretary of ESCAP. “Tropical

cyclones, for example, can lead to floods, which lead to disease, which exacerbates poverty.”

The triple threat of disease, disaster and climate change is causing not only considerable human hardship but also significant economic losses. Currently, the annual average disaster-related losses are $780 billion.

This could nearly double, to around $1.4 trillion, in a worstcase climate scenario. Choosing a proactive strategy of adapting to natural and other biological hazards would be far more costeffective at an annual cost of $270 billion.

The Nation BusinessMirror

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CIDG, alleged rape victim file raps vs Joma, 3 Red leaders

By Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

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HE Philippine National PoliceCriminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) and a former female cadre have filed before the Department of Justice (DOJ) a criminal complaint against Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) founder Jose Maria Sison and three other communist rebels for human trafficking, child abuse and several other offenses.

The PNP-CIDG, along with Lady Desiree Miranda, a rebel returnee, accused Sison and her recruiter Redsa Balatan of violating Section 3 in relation to Section 3(a)(b) of RA 9208 as amended by RA 10364 (Expanded Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2012); Section 4(i) of RA 10364; and Section 10(a) in relation to Sections 3(d)(4) of RA 7610 (Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and Discrimination Act) for allegedly recruiting a child to engage in armed activities and for acts of child abuse, cruelty and exploitation.

DOJ-National Prosecution Service (NPS) Prosecutor General Benedicto Malcontento said the complaint would be handled by the DOJ-Anti Trafficking in Persons Task Force (ATPTF) chaired by Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Lilian Doris Alejo.

The DOJ-ATPTF is expected to assign the complaint to a prosecutor or a panel of prosecutors for the conduct of preliminary investigation.

Also named as respondents in the complaint were Miranda’s superiors in the communist movement identified Rey de la Pena a.k.a. “Reynaldo Santos” and Joel Caliwliw.

Both de la Pena and Caliliw were accused of two counts and four counts of rape, respectively,

by Miranda.

The complaint was filed based on the affidavit executed by Miranda where she claimed that she was recruited by the communist group at the age of 14 as a member of militant group Anakbayan.

The rape incidents allegedly took place in Angeles City, Pampanga in March 2011; in Nueva Vizcaya in April 2016, in Nueva Ecija in March 2018, and in Pangasinan in April 2018.

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Thursday, August 26, 2021 A3

ECCP exec hopes to see end of major lockdowns by Oct amid vax rollout

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad @TyronePiad

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HE European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP) hopes that the country will not be put under hard lockdowns anymore by October amid the vaccination rollout.

ECCP President Lars Wittig said in a virtual briefing on Wednesday welcomed the vaccination program in the country, noting that the monthly shipments of Covid-19 jabs are aiding the economic recovery and further mobility.

“I would not rule out, it [hard lockdown] could happen again, but

come October, hopefully, it [hard lockdown] should theoretically be impossible unless there’s an entirely new variant,” he explained.

Wittig commended the “effective” targeting of vaccination rollout in main urban areas of the country, including the National Capital Region (NCR).

He said such move is necessary for health reasons given its dense population, in addition to being a major economic contributor.

“This is the highest risk area in terms of health because we live very close to each other and have that type of physical interaction; and by also targeting the working population

because these major cities, not least NCR, are representing a giant share of the GDP [gross domestic product],” Wittig explained.

Amid the pandemic, Wittig said that no major European company has folded and left the Philippines yet despite a survey by the business chamber showing that 92 percent of its members have been adversely affected by the pandemic.

“They have been hanging in there and adapting and fighting for the best possible outcome along with everybody else,” he said. These include companies from the different sectors including business-process outsourcing, manufacturing, services, trans-

portation and food and beverage.

However, he explained that some manufacturing firms shut down because they are “obsolete for the Philippines market” already. The ECCP official is not expecting them to resume operations in the country.

ECCP Executive Director Florian Gottien said that the European firms, especially small and medium enterprises, are still looking at the Philippines for expansion.

“Many European companies are actually using this pandemic, this crisis, in looking into how they can enter other markets, restructure, outsource some of the tasks that were traditionally

done in Europe,” he said.

Wittig called for the passage of major economic reforms to boost foreign direct investments, generate more job opportunities and accelerate economic recovery. These include amendments to the Foreign Investments Act, Public Services Act and Retail Trade Act. “As we continue to navigate the ‘new normal,’ it is crucial that the government intensifies its efforts to improve the country’s overall competitiveness and make the country a more attractive destination for trade and investments to recover from the adverse effect of the pandemic,” he said.

Duterte’s VP plan leaves PDP-Laban faction in a bind on choice for president in ’22 polls

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

& Manuel T. Cayon @awimailbox Mindanao Bureau Chief

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HE “conditional” decision of President Duterte to run for vice president in the May 2022 polls has left the faction of Partido Demokratiko Pilipino–Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) led by Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Alfonso Cusi uncertain on its choice on who will be its standard bearer.

In an interview with CNN Philippines on Wednesday, Executive Vice President of the Cusi-led PDP-Laban and Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles confirmed that Duterte disclosed in his latest public address that he will not push through with his vice presidential bid in case her daughter, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio, join the presidential race next year.

Nograles issued the clarification after the Presidential Communications Operation Office (PCOO) aired on Tuesday evening the video of the public address, where the said statement of the President was edited out. PCOO has yet to state the rea-

son for removing the said segment of the address.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque, who was also present in Duterte’s address like Nograles, also confirmed Duterte issued the condition out of “delicadeza.”

“We’ll cross the bridge when we get there.... We are just making the plans and making our decisions as far as PDP-Laban is concerned, everything else is purely hypothetical, speculative,” Nograles said.

Pending acceptance

THE camp of PDP-Laban led by Senator Emmanuel “Manny” Pacquiao called the Go-Duterte tandem of the Cusi faction as a “decoy candidacy.”

Ron Munsayac, executive director and chairman of the public information committee of the PDP-Laban wing led by Pacquiao, insists that the Cusi faction is backing the candidacy of Mayor Sara Duterte.

PDP-Laban was split into two factions after Cusi led a national assembly, which led to him being elected as the party’s president last July.

The result was not accepted by the faction of Pacquiao, who formed a separate PDP-Laban Wing.

Both groups are currently seeking recognition from the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

NOGRALES said they hope Duterte, as well as Senator Christopher “Bong” Go, who is being eyed by PDP-Laban to be its presidential candidate in the upcoming polls, will already be decided if they will accept their party’s endorsement by September 8, 2021, when they hold their national convention.

“Between now until September 8, we are giving time for Senator Bong Go to give any statement that he wants, if he wishes. Hopefully he will accept our endorsement the same way that President Duterte accepted our endorsement,” Nograles said.

When asked what will be the PDPLaban plan in case both Duterte and Go decided to forgo their candidacy in the 2022 polls to give way to Sara Duterte’s candidacy, Nograles said they may consider forming an alliance with other political parties.

Decoy candidacy

Mayor Sara: I refuse to be a political punching bag

THE presidential daughter, Davao

City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio has asked his father and his political party to stop mentioning her “as reason for them running or not running” for the top political posts in next year’s election.

Mayor Sara disclosed on Wednesday that the President has “personally confirmed to me” that he would run for the vice presidential post and that he would have Senator Go as his tandem for the top position.

In a statement she posted on Thursday afternoon in the Internet, and a copy of which was also posted in the chat group of Davao City news reporters, Mayor Sara described the Presidential message to her as “not pleasant event.”

She did not say why but said she “strongly suggest” to the President and the senator “to own up publicly their decision to run as a tandem.”

“If they can confirm it privately, then I do not see the reason why they can not be candid about it to the public,” she said. “They should simply present to the people what they can offer to our country and how they can help our fellow Filipinos.”

She said they should do this “and to stop talking about me and make

me the reason for them running or not running.”

She said she was left with two letters “for consideration” after she was informed by the President.

One note, she said, “explained why I should endorse the Go-Duterte tandem and the other suggested that I take in Sen. Go as my Vice President.”

She also took a swipe at the divided political party of her father, the PDP-Laban, a party that was originally formed by stalwarts in Mindanao of the federal movement and which later became identified with the late Sen. Aquilino “Nene” Pimentel Jr. “Sen. [Koko] Pimentel and Mr. Ronwald Munsayac should stop blaming me for the sad state of their political party,” she said.

“It is not my fault that no one among you is a leader worthy of the respect of the majority. Do not blame me for the sitcom that your party has been reduced to,” she added.

Also, she emphasized, “I am not a ‘Last Two Minutes’ person. I think I organize, and I implement accordingly. In the meantime, I refuse to be a political punching bag for a party in complete disarray.”

Atimonan fishermen, barangay officials BARMM rushes to stock up on oxygen save whale shark trapped in Lamon Bay tanks amid Covid Delta variant threat

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By Jonathan L. Mayuga @jonlmayuga

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T least 30 fishermen, concerned residents and barangay officials in the town of Atimonan, Quezon, came together to rescue a juvenile whale shark (Rhincodon typus) that was caught in a fishnet in Barangay Angeles early this week, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) reported.

The whale shark was discovered around 10 a.m. on Monday, August 23, at Barangay Angeles as it tries to wiggle out of the fishnet near the shore of Lamon Bay. According to the Conservation and Development Division-Coastal Resources and Foreshore Management Section of DENR-Calabarzon, this is not the first time a marine mammal was sighted in the community.

“This may indicate rich marine biodiversity in the area and we need to continue to conserve and protect the marine ecosystem. Kung ano ang ginagawa natin sa kagubatan at kalupaan, ay magkakaroon din ng epekto sa ating katubigan at karagatan.

Kaya patuloy natin itong pag ingatan,” Regional Executive Director Nilo B. Tamoria said in a news statement.

The official is calling on the pub-

FISHERMEN from a village in Atimonan, Quezon, aided by concerned residents, undertake a rescue operation to save a juvenile whale shark caught in a fishnet in Barangay Angeles early this week.

The presence of the sea creature, according to Environment Regional Executive Director Nilo B. Tamoria “indicates rich marine biodiversity in the area.”

lic not to touch a whale shark when encountering one. It is also advised not to feed the species as it can alter their behavior and could pose a harmful effect on them.

Based on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) listing, whale sharks have a decreasing population trend and are classified under the Endangered (EN) category—a designation applied to species at a very high risk of extinction due to rapid decline in the population of 50 to 70 percent over the previous 10 years.

The identified major threats

to whale sharks include fisheries catches, bycatch in nets, and vessel strikes.

In case of a whale shark encounter, the DENR-Calabarzon is urging the public to report the incident to the nearest DENR office in the area.

Other Environment and Natural Resources-related concerns may also be reported via hot line 8888, SMS to 09561825774/09198744369, email to r4a@denr.gov.ph , or send photos, videos, and other information via official Facebook Page of DENR-Calabarzon: https://www. facebook.com/DENR4AOfficial/.

AVAO CITY—The Bangsamoro Autonomous Region i n Mu s l i m M i nd a n ao (BARMM) would be storing more oxygen tanks ahead of another likely Delta variant-triggered surge, saying it would not solely rely on lockdowns but to prepare also to respond to actual and widespread infections.

The Bangsamoro Parliament on Tuesday approved the measure seeking to procure an additional P50 million worth of additional oxygen tanks in the BARMM. All 51 members of the Parliament, also known as the Bangsamoro Transition Authority, voted to pass on third and final reading the BTA Bill 95 or the Oxygen Buffer Stock of 2021.

Members of the Parliament Ziaur-Rahman Adiong, Atty. Nabil Tan, Atty. Ubaida Pacasem and Engr. Baintan Ampatuan authored the measure.

Adiong said that the bill would help ensure that provincial hospitals in the region have enough supply oxygen tanks and ventilators.

He said the Philippines was dealing with the third wave of Covid-19 infection, “which has caused major hospitals across the nation, notably the Amai Pakpak Medical Center in Marawi, to reach full bed capacity.”

Other medical facilities in the

BARMM have already reported high occupancy rates, citing a surge in ventilator use, Adiong said.

“The newly mutated delta variant should give us an idea on how we should respond quickly to the growing threat of these more infectious and virulent Covid-19 variants,” he said, noting that the bill was intended to prevent further Covid-19 fatalities.

Adiong emphasized that the region “could not rely solely on lockdowns, but it needed to be prepared to respond rapidly.”

The Bangsamoro Parliament, he said, “is putting ready resources to good use and can help save lives through the recently enacted measure.”

Under the bill, the additional tanks will be equitably distributed to the different provinces in the region, composed of the central Mindanao provinces of Maguindanao and Lanao del Sur, and their cities of Cotabato and Marawi, and the southwestern island provinces of Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi.

As of August 23, the Bangsamoro Inter-Agency Task Force on Covid-19 reported 52 new cases in the region.

Ampatuan and Pacasem believe that the region would experience a

supply shortage, especially given the recent severity of infection caused by Delta and Lambda variants.

“This is a timely bill barring any unforeseen incidents or events caused by the pandemic,” Pacasem remarked.

With the bill’s passage, he said, oxygen tank supplies will be available to meet patients’ ventilation demands during their treatment, preventing unnecessary fatalities from the coronavirus.

The fund for the oxygen tanks would be released by the Ministry of Finance of Budget and Management to the Ministry of Health subject to the standard accounting and auditing laws, rules, and regulations.

Meanwhile, the Mindanao campus of the University of the Philippines has scheduled an online lecture and forum on “Breakthrough Infections: Bakunado na Ako, Bakit Covid [+] Ako Ngayon?”

“Breakthrough infections from Covid-19 are possible because of the high transmissibility of the Delta Variant,” it said in a briefer for the August 27 online lecture.

“All vaccines are effective in minimizing the risk of severe illness, hospitalization and death. But infection is possible among those who are fully vaccinated.”

Manuel T. Cayon

A4 Thursday, August 26, 2021 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

Economy BusinessMirror

PHL seeks $1.9-B China loans, 4 infra projects under review

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By Bernadette D. Nicolas

@BNicolasBM

HE Philippines is seeking $1.9 billion in loans from China to fund its infrastructure projects.

Finance Undersecretary Mark Dennis Joven told reporters the Export-Import Bank of China is currently reviewing four infrastructure projects: three bridges in Metro Manila project; DavaoSamal bridge project; Mindanao flood control project, and the SubicClark Railway project.

“Moving forward, we have four projects under review by the China Exim [Export-Import Bank of China] with the amount of $1.9 billion, and we have around $4.6 billion worth of other projects, which are undergoing initial procurement,” said Joven, who heads the DOF’s International Finance Group.

Joven separately told the BusinessMirror that other projects under the initial procurement stage

are financed by either the ExportImport Bank of China or the China International Development Cooperation Agency.

Last year, the government received a total of $620 million in Official Development Assistance (ODA) loans and grants from China.

However, China is only the country’s top sixth ODA partner in 2020 while Japan topped the list, according to Joven.

Despite admitting that they encountered difficulty getting approvals for the financial assistance from China, Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III expressed satisfaction with what the country has so far received from them.

Given that the country has

really just started dealing with China, the finance chief said they had anticipated there will be difficulties.

“First of all, the Chinese projects, once they get approved, they get implemented rather quickly.

Okay. And you can see it in the bridge, bridges, etc. So are we happy with them? Yes we are happy because they are according to terms that are beneficial to us. We pay a very good interest rate. The terms are good, and the projects are okay,” Dominguez said.

“Since we were just really starting to deal with China, in a very massive way that our bureaucracies and procedures do not exactly match. So we did encounter some difficulties in getting approvals, and basically understanding each other,” he added.

While the country’s system is already “quite in tune” with the Japanese and to some extent with the American system and the European system, Dominguez pointed out the country’s system with China is “not exactly meshed yet.”

Nonetheless, Dominguez said the country’s loan agreements

with China offer protection for “both sides.”

Joven agreed with Dominguez, saying the Export-Import Bank of China does not own the contractor and it will not finance a project that is not bankable.

“In the end, for our protection and for the protection of Chinese government, all the projects which are implemented should be bankable projects. Otherwise, [what will happen is], we will be paying for loans which you know for white elephant projects, which we don’t want and they don’t want too,” he said.

Unlike loans from Japan, Joven explained that procurement stage comes first before China disburses the loan.

Because of this, Joven said the Philippine government has “better control on the procurement process” when it secures loans from China.

“We don’t want to cut corners in the procurement of Chinese-funded projects, Hence, we must attend to them right away and if procurement is smoothed out, then we go to financing, so it gives us two levels of protection,” he said.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Asean finalizes trade facilitation initiatives with US–DTI official

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad @TyronePiad

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HE Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) bloc recently finalized two trade facilitation initiatives with the US, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) reported on Wednesday.

In a recent dialogue partner consultation, the Asean senior economic officials—with the Philippines represented by DTI Assistant Secretary Allan B. Gepty—met with Deputy Assistant US Trade Representative for Southeast Asia and the Pacific Marta Prado.

The officials finalized the 20212022 Asean-US Trade and Investment Framework Arrangement (TIFA) and Expanded Economic Engagement (E3) Work Plan during the meeting.

These cover the facilitation of initiatives supporting the region’s economic recovery thrusts in different fields, including digital economy, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), sustainable development and labor, among others.

The TIFA, which was concluded in 2006, guides the Asean-US trade and economic cooperation and strengthen ties between the trading partners.

The E3, meanwhile, will be submitted to economic misters at a consultation next month for endorse-

ment and implementation.

“The Philippines welcomes the continued engagement and developments of initiatives between Asean and US, particularly in the areas of Digital Trade, Transparency and Good Regulatory Practices, MSME Development, Trade Facilitation, and the Asean Single Window. These are important areas of cooperation, especially in the post pandemic period,” Gepty said.

During the meeting, Gepty also stressed that trade rules must cope with the economic developments so they will remain relevant amid the changing business landscape.

The Asean economic community (AEC) earlier this month was in the process of finalizing the framework of the circular economy for the regional bloc in a bid to promote sustainable growth.

The said framework, which is aimed to be adopted by October at the 20th AEC Council, identifies key strategic priorities in support of Asean’s agenda on circular economy, incorporating the region’s initiative in economic resiliency, resource efficiency and sustainable growth.

For the Philippines, the House Committee on Economic Affairs is currently tackling House Bill 7609, also known as the “An Act to Promote Circular Economy and a Whole-of-Nation Transition Towards a Sustainable Future.”

Comelec awards ₧1.6-billion contract to F2 DOTr inaugurates newly completed Siquijor port, airport upgrade projects to transport poll materials in 2022 elections

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

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HE Department of Transportation (DOTr) will inaugurate today, Thursday, two transport infrastructure projects that will help Siquijor reach “rapid economic and tourism growth.”

Transportation Secretary Arthur P. Tugade listed the two projects as the upgraded Siquijor Airport and the modernized Siquijor Port.

Completed on July 30, the Siquijor’s upgraded airport sports a new passenger terminal building (PTB), powerhouse, and vehicular parking

area (VPA).

At max capacity, the new terminal can accommodate 60 passengers at any given time, six times its capacity before the upgrade.

Tugade added that “repair and maintenance of the perimeter fence and construction of concrete pathwalk, runway provision, taxiway, and apron markings were also completed ahead of time.”

Meanwhile, the upgraded Siquijor Port cover the construction of an RC Wharf with Ro-Ro ramp, a back-up area, and a port lighting system. It was completed last March.

“With its improved facilities, the port now allows faster turnaround

time of vessels and shortens the waiting period for passengers, shippers and reduced queueing of rolling cargoes,” Tugade said.

Before the modernization project, the old Siquijor Port can only service a maximum of four ferries.

With the renovation works already completed, it can now serve up to eight vessels with provision to handle a 65-meter cargo ship and can service two Ro-Ro vessels at the same time.

Both projects are expected to “ boost equitable and inclusive growth in the areas of employment, local trade, and investments,” according to Tugade.

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HE Commission on Elections (Comelec) has finally awarded the P1.6-billion contract for the transportation of election paraphernalia for the 2022 polls to F2 Logistics despite concerns over the supposed link of its owner to President Duterte.

In a brief statement on Wednesday, Comelec spokesman James Jimenez confirmed the Comelec en banc has approved the Notice of Award to the said company.

He said the Comelec en banc made the decision after it was able to complete the “post-qualification” process for the said contract.

“The post-qualification process had already been ongoing for more

The post-qualification process had already been ongoing for more than a week prior.

Comelec spokesman James Jimenez

than a week prior,” Jimenez said.

Election watchdogs opposed the said transaction amid reports that F2 Logistics reportedly owned by

BM

Davao businessman Dennis Uy. Uy was among the top campaign contributors of Duterte during the 2016 elections. Samuel P. Medenilla

SC upholds constitutionality of GOCC Governance Act

DOLE freezes increase in HCW deployment cap

Specifically excluded from the coverage of the law are the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, state universities and colleges, cooperative, local water districts, and economic zone authorities and research institutions, provided that a third of their board members shall be appointed from the list submitted by the Governance Commission.

However, the SC pointed out that the equal protection clause in the Constitution “is not a guarantee of absolute equality in the operation of laws.”

The said provision, according to the Court, does not prevent a “reasonable classification” of the subject of legislation.

“In sum, excluding certain entities—the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, state universities and colleges, local water utility districts, cooperatives, economic zone authorities, and research institutions—from the law’s coverage does not violate the equal protection clause, because there is reasonable basis to do so,” the SC said.

“Without a showing that the exclusions under Section 4 of Republic Act No. 10149 created unreasonable distinctions between classes of entities, this Court finds that the exclusions were valid,” it added.

HE Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) may no longer hike the deployment cap for overseas health-care workers (HCW) amid a “perceived” shortage in the local labor market.

DOLE’s Technical Working Group on Mission Critical Skills (TWG-

continued from a12

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

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MCS) made the conclusion after reviewing the available pool of HCWs in the country.

Labor Assistant Secretary Dominique R. Tutay, also member of TWGMCS, explained that while there are currently a large number of available medical workers in the country, there are those who either remained unemployed or those who are employed on jobs not related to health care.

“That is why we did not [recommend] to raise [the deployment cap] because there is already this perceived supply gap,” Tutay said.

Fewer board passers

SHE said this was worsened by the onset of the pandemic last year, which disrupted the conduct of licensure exams for several healthcare professions.

The labor official noted that if more medical workers will be able to pass the board exams this year, the TWG-MCS may consider recommending a higher deployment cap.

Last January, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) imposed the 5,000 deployment cap for HCWs to ensure the country would still have a sufficient pool of workers for its Covid-19 response.

₧42-B fund transfer from DOH to DBM illegal, insists Drilon continued from a12 “And also I would like to state, for the record, that MOA was not required to the fund transfer transactions with the PS-DBM since it covers [or it] was underscored already considered as common good supplies in the aforesaid GPPB [Government Procurement Policy Board] resolutions, banking on

the provision of other relevant basis,” said Duque, who also cited the Republic Act 184 or the “AgencyTo-Agency Procurement of Goods, Infrastructure Projects and Consulting Services.”

When Drilon asked Duque if he sees that there was nothing wrong with that process, the latter responded: “Yes, your honor. You are right.”

“However, with the findings of COA, we have agreed that, with their guidance, we can still come up with the memorandum of agreement as this is one of the deficiencies that was reported,” Duque said, adding that they will have to comply with 60 days after receiving COA’s report.

Called to testify, former DBM Undersecretary Lloyd Christopher Lao who used to head PS-DBM when the monies were transferred and bids were called, asserted there was no need for a MOA at that time as what were being acquired were common supplies.

But Drilon pointed out that there was nothing in the law that rules

out the need for MOA under such arrangements.

According to Health Secretary Francisco Duque, they transferred funds to PS-DBM last year because the DOH personnel were neck-deep in work, and were busy procuring other supplies and services for non-Covid programs.

“We also did procure, you are right, but the volume...di kakayanin [we have limited capacity],” Duque explained to Drilon.

“Punong-puno na ang tungkulin ng aming internal bids and awards committee [the hands of our bids and awards committee are full] so we needed help,” the DOH official stressed, adding that the PS-DBM have the capability to store international supplies.

Duque added that belated submission is allowed as the COA gave them 60 days to correct deficiencies in the documents on the use of pandemic funds.

DOH Finance Management Office Director Rowena Lora reported that of the P42-billion fund, P39 billion was already utilized as of June 30, 2021 and the report submitted to COA stated that P12 billion was unused due to absence of physical deliveries of purchased items.

Lora,meanwhile said that of the P42-billion fund transferred to the PS-DBM for the procurement of PPEs, including face masks and face shields, P39 billion was already utilized as of June 2021.

www.businessmirror.com.ph • Editor: Angel R. Calso

The World

Harris urges more China pressure in meeting with Vietnam leader

V

ice P resident K a m a l a Harris urged countries in the region to apply more pressure on China in a meeting with Vietnam’s president, stepping up her criticism of Beijing on a visit to Asia. “ We need to f ind ways to pressure and raise the pressure, frankly, on Beijing to abide by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and to challenge its bullying and excessive maritime claims,” Harris said at the start of a meeting in Hanoi with Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

Harris said the US wants to upgrade its relationship with Vietnam to a strategic partnership, and said the Biden administration strongly supports the former US adversary’s request for a third former US Coast Guard cutter. Harris also said the US would donate an additional 1 million Pfizer vaccines to Vietnam, which would start arriving within the next 24 hours, bringing the total to 6 million so far.

Vaccines have been at the forefront of an American diplomatic offensive in Southeast Asia, with the region accounting for about a fifth of all doses the US has given globally. The Biden administration is aiming to bolster ties with countries in China’s backyard, with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and now Harris visiting the region over the past few weeks.

Phuc, who spoke before Harris, said US assistance on vaccinations “is truly valuable and meaningful to Vietnam at a time when we are faced with ample difficulties posed by the Covid-19 pandemic.” Press were escorted out of their meeting room before any Vietnamese officials commented on her suggested diplomatic upgrades. Phuc didn’t mention China in his remarks.

While Vietnam has become increasingly worried about China’s assertiveness over disputed territory, it has avoided overtly siding against Beijing along with other Southeast Asian nations keen to balance ties between the world’s biggest economies. Vietnam announced Tuesday that China would give it another 2 million vaccine doses, with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh telling Beijing’s envoy that his country maintains an independent foreign policy and wouldn’t join an alliance against another country.

Vaccine diplomacy is also a critical part of China’s political calculus. President Xi Jinping earlier this month announced plans to expand vaccine exports to two billion doses this year, matching commitments by Group of Seven nations. Just 1.9 percent of Vietnam’s population has been fully vaccinated, according to data

compiled by Bloomberg, among the lowest vaccination rates anywhere in Asia.

‘Huge opportunities’

Harris later on Wednesday will hold a discussion with Southeast Asian officials on health security, before launching the Southeast Asia regional office for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. US agencies including the CDC committed another $23 million to Vietnam’s pandemic response, bringing the total to about $44 million so far, according to the White House.

The Department of Defense has also committed to provide 77 ultra-low temperature vaccine freezers to assist vaccination distribution efforts in all 63 provinces. These freezers are specially designed to accommodate the most extreme vaccine storage requirements, significantly enhancing Vietnam’s national vaccine distribution network.

In Vietnam, Harris stopped at a memorial for John McCain, the late US senator whose plane was shot down over Hanoi during the Vietnam War. Harris’s trip to Singapore and Vietnam has been overshadowed

by Afghanistan, where a rapid collapse of the US-backed government has left the Biden administration rushing to evacuate Americans and those who assisted their 20-year war effort against the Taliban, which now controls almost all of the country. Photographs of helicopters over Kabul evoked images of air rescues from Saigon—now known as Ho Chi Minh City—more than 45 years ago, lending Harris’s previously scheduled visit to Vietnam an unplanned historical echo.

“US businesses and other businesses from the other parts of the world see huge opportunities for growth,” Ted Osius, president and CEO of the US-Asean Business Council, said in an interview with Bloomberg Television. “Security is really about more than ships and planes, it’s also about ties between nations, and what I think the vice president is doing is cementing those ties in multiple areas on the two stops of her trip.”

Harris’s departure from Singapore on Tuesday was delayed for more than three hours because of concerns about “an anomalous health incident” in Hanoi, the State Department said. The phrase “anomalous health incidents” describes so-called Havana Syndrome, which has afflicted dozens of US diplomats and intelligence officials who describe feeling ill and other unusual physical sensations after hearing strange sounds.

The US has not determined a cause for the affliction. Bloomberg News

BusinessMirror

Thursday, August 26, 2021

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Japan to further expand Covid emergency areas as cases surge

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OKYO—Japan was set to expand its coronavirus state of emergency for a second week in a row on Wednesday, adding several more prefectures as a surge in infections fueled by the Delta variant strains the country’s health-care system.

The government last week extended the state of emergency until Sept. 12 and expanded the areas covered to 13 prefectures from six including Tokyo. Sixteen other prefectures are currently under quasi-emergency status.

The government at a meeting of experts Wednesday proposed upgrading eight prefectures from quasi-emergency status to a full state of emergency. Those prefectures include Hokkaido and Miyagi in the north, Aichi and Gifu in central Japan, and Hiroshima and Okayama in the west.

The proposal was expected to be approved and formally announced later Wednesday.

Japan’s state of emergency relies on requirements for eateries to close at 8 p.m. and not serve alcohol, but the measures are increasingly defied. Unenforceable social distancing and tele-working requests for the public and their employers are also largely ignored due to growing complacency.

The Japanese capital has been under the emergency since July 12, but new daily cases have increased more than tenfold since then to about 5,000 in Tokyo and 25,000 nationwide. Hospital beds are quickly filling and many people must now recover at home, including some who require supplemental oxygen.

More than 35,000 patients in Tokyo are recovering at home, about one-third of them unable to find a hospital or hotel vacancies immediately. Only a small percentage of hospitals are taking virus patients, either for financial reasons or because they lack the capability to treat the infections, experts say.

Japan has weathered the pandemic better than many other countries, with around 15,600 deat hs nat ionw ide since t he start, but its vaccination efforts

lag behind other wealthy nations.

About 40 percent of the population has been fully vaccinated, mainly elderly people.

Economy and Fiscal Policy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura, also in charge of the Covid-19 measures, said Wednesday that infections are spreading among those in their 20s to 50s who are largely unvaccinated.

He urged them to take extra caution.

“Just imagine you may be the one getting infected tomorrow,” he said.

Rising infections among schoolchildren and teenagers could accelerate the surge as they begin returning to school after the summer vacation, said Dr. Shigeru Omi, top government medical advisor. He proposed schools curtail activity and urged high schools and colleges to return to online classes.

“Infections in Tokyo are showing no signs of slowing, and the severely tight medical systems will continue for a while,” he told a parliamentary session Wednesday.

The government has faced criticism for holding this summer’s Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics despite strong opposition from the public. Officials deny any direct link between the games and the spike in infections.

Other developments:

S. Korea reports 2,155 new cases

South Korea has reported 2,155 new coronavirus cases, nearly matching a record daily increase set earlier this month amid an alarming spread of infections.

With Wednesday’s report, the country has tallied more than 1,000 new cases for 50 consecutive days, including a record 2,221 on August 11.

The virus has shown no signs of slowing despite officials enforcing strong social distancing restrictions short of a lockdown in Seoul

and other large population centers where private social gatherings are banned after 6 p.m.

The Health Ministry is concerned that transmissions could further increase dur ing next month’s Chuseok holidays, the Korean version of Thanksgiving when millions of people travel across the country to meet relatives. It is considering measures to reduce travel during the period, such as limiting train occupancy.

New daily high for New South Wales

Australia’s New South Wales state has recorded another new daily high of 919 coronavirus infections. It also has had two more deaths related to Covid-19.

New South Wales’s previous high for a 24-hour period was 830 infections reported Sunday.

Health Minister Brad Hazzard said Wednesday that the health system in Australia’s most populous state is under pressure but is coping.

The Covid-19 death toll has reached 76 in New South Wales since the outbreak of the Delta variant was first detected in Sydney on June 16.

Neighboring Victoria, Australia’s second-most populous state, reported 45 new infections Wednesday.

Both states are locked down.

Idaho hospitals swamped

State leaders in Idaho are urging people to volunteer at hospitals to help health workers who are being swamped by a rising number of Covid-19 cases.

Idaho Public Health Administrator Elke Shaw-Tulloch says hospitals need help with everything from housekeeping to delivering care, which could be provided by retired health workers.

The director of the Idaho Department of Health and Welfa re says volu nteer help is bad ly n e e d e d t o k e e p t h e s t a t e ’s med ica l fac i l it ies operat ing.

Dave Jeppesen says that “their level of capacity is so strained that we are talking about crisis standards of care—we’re dangerously close to that as this point in time.”

As of Friday, the number of coronavirus infections statewide had increased 31 percent compared to the previous week, and hospital admissions for Covid-19 were up about 30 percent, according to data from the CDC.

Ivermectin poisoning in Alabama

A poison control hotline in Alabama is fielding increasing calls about possible poisoning with Ivermectin poisoning, an animal de-wormer that doctors are warning people not to try as a home remedy for Covid-19.

The Alabama Poison Information Center at Children’s of Alabama has fielded 24 Ivermectin exposure cases so far this year, of which 15 were related to Covid-19 prevention and treatment.

It says there have been five other calls seeking information about Ivermectin.

By comparison, the center had six total calls involving the dewormer in 2019 and 12 in 2020.

Federal regulators have approved Ivermectin to treat people and animals for some parasitic worms and for head lice and skin conditions, but the drug is not approved for Covid-19. The human and animal formulations are not the same, and doctors say it is dangerous for people to selfdose, particularly with the large quantities given to animals.

Fauci pushes antibody treatments

Dr. Anthony Fauci is urging hospitals and doctors to make greater use of antibody treatments for people infected with Covid-19 as hospitalizations and deaths rise due to the spread of the Delta variant.

Infusions of antibody drugs can keep patients who are exper ienc ing m i ld-to -moderate symptoms from getting so sick they need hospitalization, the gover n ment ’s top i n fec t iou s disease specialist said at Tuesday’s W hite House coronavirus briefing. They also can ser ve as a preventive treatment for people exposed to someone with a documented infection.

Three antibody products are available under emergency use author ization from the Food and Drug Administration, and they’re free thanks to ta xpayer support. But Fauci says they remain “a much-underutilized inter vention.”

However, demand for the drugs increased five-fold last month to nearly 110,000 doses, with the majority going to states with low vaccination rates. Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott has been among the patients treated with antibodies. AP

China reopens terminal at world’s 3rd-busiest port Malaysia leads Asean GDP

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he Meishan terminal at China’s second-busiest port reopened Wednesday following a two-week shutdown that further snarled already stressed shipping routes in Asia.

The terminal will start the resumption of normal operations Wednesday, a port official said at a press conference in the city of Ningbo. The terminal was about a quarter of the Ningbo-Zhoushan port’s capacity and was shut from Aug. 11 after a worker was found to be infected with Covid-19.

The congestion and delays on global shipping routes due to Covid has only worsened this year as Chinese exports hit new records due to rising global demand. This was the second closure of part of a port in China this year due to a Covid outbreak, after the monthlong shutdown of Yantian port from late May. With demand for vessels and containers rising this year and

bloomberg photo

companies ramping up exports to Europe and the US for the year-end holiday shopping season, even a limited closure of part of a port is costly for both shoppers and shippers. Even though the Meishan terminal was only shut for a few weeks, it will likely take a while for the congestion to ease.

It now costs almost $11,000 for a container to ship goods from Shanghai to Los Angeles, a new

record and more than 220 percent higher than a year ago.

Shanghai airport outbreak

An outbreak at the cargo terminal at Shanghai’s Pudong International Airport is also disrupting airfreight shipments. Five workers at the terminal were found to be infected with Covid last week, according to the China Daily, and the entire cargo zone at the airport

was shut Friday, the Global Times reported Sunday.

Cargo-handling “capacity has been cut by an estimated 80 percent-90 percent. We anticipate congestion to continue through the week of August 30, with the hopes we can get back to ‘normal’ by early September,” according to Neel Jones Shah, executive vice president at Flexport Inc., a digital freight forwarder. “To keep goods moving, Flexport has been trucking significant quantities of client cargo from Pudong to Hong Kong.”

A worker who answered the phone at the company running the cargo area said the terminal was still operating although the number of flights had been reduced. He declined to give his name or details of the reduction, and other officials at the company that runs the terminal declined to comment when contacted by phone. Bloomberg News

downgrades amid Delta’s grip

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alaysia leads growth downgrades by economists across Southeast Asia as the Delta variant forces countries to reimpose pandemic restrictions.

Malaysia’s growth outlook for this year was downgraded the most, a swing of 1.4 percentage points to a 4.3 percent expansion, according to the latest economist survey results compiled by Bloomberg. Thailand, downgraded to 1.2 percent from 2.4 percent in May’s survey, is still expected to post the slowest growth.

Singapore is the only country in the region to buck the downgrade trend, now forecast to grow 6.5 percent compared to a previous estimate of 6.3 percent.

The rapid spread of the highly infectious Delta variant and low vaccination rates have caught muc h of Sout he a st A si a of f guard. The region registered ro-

bust economic recovery in the second quarter, but it was flattened by comparisons with last year’s crash.

The region is now suffering a sharp downward movement in private consumption and investment due to suppression measures, as well as inadequate fiscal and monetary support, said Trinh Nguyen, senior economist at Natixis SA in Hong Kong.

For the current quarter, forecasts for Malaysia’s GDP growth were slashed by the most in the region, by 2.8 percentage points from May’s survey. Thailand was second-worst, cut by more than 2 percentage points in both the third and fourth quarters.

The Asian Development Bank l a s t mont h d o w n g r a d e d it s Southeast Asian growth forecast in its outlook supplement to 4 percent from 4.4 percent.

Bloomberg News

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Hou

A Business

Thursday, August 26, 2021 | www.businessmirror.com.ph

THE STATE OF THE HO D

By Ma. Leonila Garcia

URING this health crisis, the home has become the haven and refuge for everyone against the deadly COVID-19 virus. To say that everyone appreciates the home more than before is an understatement. The home is where everything is being done. It’s become the children’s playground and school at the same time, the aspiring entrepreneurs/online sellers’ marketplace or warehouse, and the makeshift or half-way offices for people on work-from-home set up, among many others.

A man fixes his roof after it was damaged by Typhoon Quinta in Bacoor, Cavite. NONIE REYES

Today’s homes are no longer just the roof over one’s head. With the uncertainty, it has definitely become the place where one feels the most affection, care, and love from and for the family around him. That’s why even at this time, more and more Filipinos are dreaming, planning, and investing their hard-earned money to buy or invest in properties they intend to make their homes.

Many Filipinos go abroad and work for the ultimate dream of having their own homes after years of toiling in foreign lands.

Unfortunately, for some, owning a place to call his own would still remain a dream, for now, even if the government said it is on track for the current target housing units.

Gov’t on track

THE Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) on July 14, 2021 said it was confident in achieving the current administration’s housing projects of 1.1 million units.

DHSUD Secretary Eduardo del Rosario said during the first leg of Pamana ng Pagbabago 2021,

Binondominium is the housing project of the City of Manila.

a pre-State of the Nation Address (SONA) 2021 series, that they have achieved 82 percent of the Philippine Development Plan housing target for 2017 to 2022 as of March 31.

The DHSUD said it “has constructed or assisted 928,000 Filipino families to have a house of their own.”

With less than a year to go before the end of President Rodrigo Duterte’s presidency, Del Rosario said the DHSUD will be able to accomplish the project 100% or even exceed the target of housing during this administration.

“If we meet that target, it would mean that the economic situation of the general public will be alleviated, also because housing construction is a pump primer in the economy,” he said.

The official added that housing construction involves the services of 80 allied sectors, which triggers economic activities.

Meanwhile, Human Development and Poverty Reduction Cluster (HDPRC) Chairperson Rolando Bautista stated in his report that 928,953 families have been given affordable housing since 2016.

Bautista, who is also the secretary of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), said the government has also distributed 168,741 land hectares to 118,715 agrarian beneficiaries, totaling 300,000 residential and agricultural free patents.

Struggle of owning a home

MANY Filipinos, particularly those belonging to the lower-middleincome families, overseas workers included, still continue to struggle with owning a home acquired from a mass housing project. Many would still prefer renting given their limited income.

Based on a rental study conducted by the Philippine Statistical Research and Training Institute (PSRTI), middle-income families accounted for the bulk or 889,033 families of the 1.5 million who are renting homes nationwide in 2012.

The study stated that the rental level of P1,000 to P1,999 a month included the most number of households at 497,807 families while 122,034 families paying around

NHMFC introduces BALAI BERDE in Indonesia

NHMFC President Carlo Luis P. Rabat (right) presents the corporation’s newest BALAI BERDE Program during the panel discussion on “The Role of Housing Finance in Responding to the Challenges of Climate Change” organized by PT. Sarana Multigriya Finansial (Persero) or SMF Indonesia. Also in photo is SMF’s Senior Vice President and Head of Securitization, Mr. Sid Herdi Kusuma (left).

N

ATIONAL Home Mortgage Finance Corporation (NHMFC) President Carlo Luis P. Rabat introduced to the Indonesian government the corporation’s newest BALAI BERDE Program in the recently held panel discussion entitled “The Role of Housing Finance in Responding to the Challenges of Climate Change”.

The event, live streamed via YouTube and Zoom app, was organized by PT. Sarana Multigriya Finansial (Persero)/SMF.

BALAI BERDE is the newest program of NHMFC and the first of its kind among the government’s Key Shelter Agencies (KSA) under the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD). It is a new program designed to increase capital allocations for green projects that contribute to environmental sustainability and resiliency to climate change and natural disasters.

In his talk, President Rabat emphasized

that BALAI BERDE is a new platform that provides liquidity facility to any public or private housing loan originators who construct, retrofit and finance any green certified housing units or residential buildings. To qualify for this program, the housing loan portfolio subject for purchase must receive a green building certification from Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiency (EDGE) or any green certifying bodies.

He said that a few years ago, there was reluctance to green buildings and green economy which may be born from a belief that the process is too expensive and time consuming.

“But now, there are many reasons to pursue it this time. Green buildings emit fewer greenhouse gases, consume less energy, use less water, and offer occupants healthier environments than do typical buildings,” he stressed.

President Rabat also added that he be-

lieves that a green economy ensures sustainable development and infrastructure resilience.

“We are one with you in promoting sustainable and greener housing to address this pressing issue of climate emergency,” President Rabat assured SMF and the participants.

Mr. Sid Herdi Kusuma, SMF’s Senior Vice President and Head of Securitization, expressed their appreciation to NHMFC for imparting its experience and best practices on green projects, which they can replicate in their country.

SMF is the government of Indonesia’s secondary mortgage institution, and also a co-member of NHMFC in the Association of Asian Secondary Mortgage Market Organization (ASMMA).

Meanwhile, NHMFC is also slated to showcase its BALAI BERDE Program in the International Finance Corporation’s (IFC) World Green Building Week 2021 by September of this year.

ousing

ssMirror Special Feature

www.businessmirror.com.ph | Thursday, August 26, 2021

OUSING INDUSTRY

Antipolo City in Rizal; San Pedro City in Laguna; and Carmona, Imus and Bacoor in Cavite.

The Balai Housing Program is the Duterte administration’s 10-year national housing program strategy to close the country’s shelter gap. The program aims to improve government efforts in addressing Filipinos’ housing needs, with the private sector playing a significant and pivotal role.

However, based on the 2015 Family Income and Expenditure Survey (FIES), the average income in the Philippines is P267,000 per household per year. The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) estimated that there were a total of 22.73 million households in 2015.

AmBisyon 2040 A government housing project in Naic, Cavite

P2,000 to P3,999 for rent are usually female-headed households.

The study also revealed that middle-income households are looking for investments that would allow them to maximize their hard-earned pesos. This means they are looking for homes that

are affordable and near their place of work. They also preferred worthwhile investments that can accommodate their families comfortably.

HUDCC’s flagship program, Balai Filipino Housing Program (Building Adequate Livable

Affordable and Inclusive Filipino Communities), showed that the ceiling for socialized housing programs remains steep for millions of Filipino households.

In Memorandum Circular 2, series of 2018, issued on September 2018, then HUDCC Secretary

General Falconi V. Millar said the ceiling for socialized housing is P700,000 for a 22-square-meter (sqm) property, while P750,000 is the ceiling for a 24-sqm property in the National Capital Region and other areas such as San Jose del Monte City in Bulacan; Cainta and

TO meet the country’s housing targets, the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) focused on providing access to affordable, adequate, safe, and secure shelter in wellplanned communities in the hope of addressing income inequality and meeting its goal through “AmBisyon 2040.” The goal of AmBisyon 2040if for every Filipino to own a single detached house by 2040.

The government also intends to decrease the proportion of urban population living in informal

A7

settlements from 7.53 percent in 2016 to 5.53 percent by 2022.

Additionally, the government wants to improve the proportion of socialized housing targets towards housing needs; improve the proportion of low-cost housing targets met to housing needs, and deliver socialized and low-cost housing units.

The PDP aims to increase the proportion of socialized housing by 16.53 percent and low-cost housing, 5.5 percent by 2022 from the 2016 baselines of 8.6 percent and 5.27 percent, respectively.

In terms of delivering socialized housing units, the PDP aims to increase delivered socialized housing to 1.086 million by 2022 from 82,612 in 2016. For low-cost housing, the target is 361,398 units by 2022 from 50,626 in 2016.

Meanwhile, the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) said these targets may be hampered by suitable land for socialized and low-cost housing and the availability of basic services/ utilities (i.e., water and power supply) are provided on time.

Further, Neda said an adequate budget for housing may also fall short and issues may arise in land titling, land conversion, and compliance to land development/ housing construction documentary requirements.

Despite all these constraints and challenges, every Filipino – the middle class, even the low income and the poor -- deserve to own a home.

It is part of “AmBisyon 2040.” It is everyone’s hope that this dream of owning a piece of the land of their birth will become a reality.

BusinessMirror

A8 Thursday, August 26, 2021

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF QUALIFICATION AND DESCRIPTION SALARY RANGE 3D ANALYZER INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES INC. 7-8/f Double Dragon Plaza 255 Edsa Cor. Macapagal Blvd. Brgy. 076 Pasay City CHEN, GUIDE Basic Qualification: Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect Brief Job Description: spoken in other parts of 1.

Attracts potential customers by answering products and China. service questions; suggesting information about other products and services. Maintains customer records by Salary Range: updating account information in Mandarin Format.

Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 LIN, JIANHUI Basic Qualification: Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect Brief Job Description: spoken in other parts of 2.

Attracts potential customers by answering products and China. service questions; suggesting information about other products and services. Maintains customer records by Salary Range: updating account information in Mandarin Format.

Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 LIN, JIAOXI Basic Qualification: Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect Brief Job Description: spoken in other parts of 3.

Attracts potential customers by answering products and China. service questions; suggesting information about other products and services. Maintains customer records by Salary Range: updating account information in Mandarin Format.

Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 WANG, QING Basic Qualification: Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect Brief Job Description: spoken in other parts of 4.

Attracts potential customers by answering products and China. service questions; suggesting information about other products and services. Maintains customer records by Salary Range: updating account information in Mandarin Format.

Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 WANG, WEI Basic Qualification: Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect Brief Job Description: spoken in other parts of 5.

Attracts potential customers by answering products and China. service questions; suggesting information about other products and services. Maintains customer records by Salary Range: updating account information in Mandarin Format.

Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 ZHANG, QIAOLING Basic Qualification: Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect Brief Job Description: spoken in other parts of 6.

Attracts potential customers by answering products and China. service questions; suggesting information about other products and services. Maintains customer records by Salary Range: updating account information in Mandarin Format.

Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 8 STONE BUSINESS OUTSOURCING OPC 5-10/f Tower 1 Pitx Kennedy Road Tambo Parañaque City WANG, MINGYONG Basic Qualification: Marketing Staff Mandarin Speaking Fluent in Mandarin both oral and written 7.

Brief Job Description: Interact with customer to provide information, support Salary Range: and problem resolution to inquiries and order status Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 WU, JINFANG Basic Qualification: Marketing Staff Mandarin Speaking Fluent in Mandarin both oral and written 8.

Brief Job Description: Interact with customer to provide information, support Salary Range: and problem resolution to inquiries and order status Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 XU, DECHUN Basic Qualification: Marketing Staff Mandarin Speaking Fluent in Mandarin both oral and written 9.

Brief Job Description: Interact with customer to provide information, support Salary Range: and problem resolution to inquiries and order status Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 ZHAO, SHUNAN Basic Qualification: Marketing Staff Mandarin Speaking Fluent in Mandarin both oral and written 10.

Brief Job Description: Interact with customer to provide information, support Salary Range: and problem resolution to inquiries and order status Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 ALLEGRO MICROSYSTEMS PHILIPPINES, INC. 4756 Sampaguita Street Marimar Village Sun Valley Parañaque City Basic Qualification: KISSAUN, NIGEL GORDON 15+ years of experience in Managing Director high volume semiconductor operations (FAB and/or 11.

Brief Job Description: assembly/test).

Create, manage, and track large department or factory budgets; Manage Finance and operations.

Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above ATHOUSANDCONCEPTS INC. Flr. No.g/f S Maison, Moa Complex Bldg. Seaside Blvd. St. Barangay 078 Pasay City Basic Qualification: Creates designs and visualizes MOORE, JOSEPH KEARNS room experience for Visual Director customers. Manage graphic 12. designers set and exhibit or Brief Job Description: other design staff Have excellent interpersonal and communication skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 BEST RELIABLE RESOURCES CORP. Ub 111 Paseo De Roxas Bldg. Paseo De Roxas San Lorenzo Makati City Basic Qualification: KADOSI, YEHEZKEL Bachelor’s degree in Hebrew Accounts Payable Analyst accounting /finance or related / 3 years’ experience Brief Job Description: / irs 1099 compliance and 13.

Manage the full accounts payable cycle from receipt of reports sap fi-ap / fluent in invoices to payment including coding invoices matching Hebrew language is a must purchase orders obtaining approval and entering the invoices into the accounting system.

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: bachelor’s degree in business administration or related / BUZAGLO, LIOR (ELIAHU LIOR) 8 years’ experience contact Workforce Planning Analyst center environment aht fcr 14. art etc shrinkage adherence Brief Job Description: occupancy etc fluent English Build workforce planning models from scratch to support speaker the ever growing needs of our support teams No.

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

COGNIZANT TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS PHILIPPINES, INC. 2nd, 3rd, And 4th Floors, Science Hub Tower 4 Bldg. Mckinley Hill Cyberpark Fort Bonifacio Taguig City Basic Qualification: JAISWAL, VIKAS KUMAR Experience in leading Director - Digital Business Operations multiple programs for Insurance, Banking and 15.

Brief Job Description: Telecommunication etc.

Global service delivery management for multiple Cognizant client within Insurance Digital Business Salary Range: Operations Php 150,000 - Php 499,999 D.M. CONSUNJI, INC. Dmsi Plaza 2281 Pasong Tamo Ext., Magallanes Makati City Basic Qualification: KODA, YOSHINORI consultant for mechanical, Consultant For Project Management electrical, plumbing and fire 16. protection Brief Job Description: Provides advice about strategic and operational issues for Salary Range: the project Php 90,000 - Php 149,999 FORMUNIA CORPORATION Units A&b 20/f Rufino Pacific Tower 6784 Ayala Ave. Cor. V.a. Rufino St. San Lorenzo Makati City

No.

17.

Brief Job Description: The Mandarin Information System Developer Specialist will be strategist and a leader able to steer the company to the most profitable direction while also implementing its vision, mission and long term goal.

FRABELLE FISHING CORP. 1051 North Bay Boulevard Nbbs Proper. Navotas City BOLOTOVA, VALENTYNA Sales And Marketing Consultant 18.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

GUO, JIE Mandarin Information System Developer Specialist

Brief Job Description: In-charge for sales and marketing for eastern European countries and Russia.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Proven experience as a Mandarin Information System Developer Specialist, Familiarity, knowledge and awareness on Machinery and Heavy Equipment use by company, Demonstrable experience in developing strategic business plan.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Russian and Ukranian speaking; Has the ability to analyze needs of international customers.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

GATEWAYSOLUTIONS CORP. Unit 2306 Antel Global Corporate Center Julia Vargas Ave. Ortigas Center, San Antonio Pasig City Basic Qualification: Must be a College graduate; CAO THI HAI Can Prepare product Customer Service Representative or service reports by collecting and analysing Brief Job Description: customer information; Can A customer service representative supports customers contribute to team effort by 19. by providing helpful information, answering questions, accomplishing related results and responding to complaints. They’re the front line of as needed; Can Manage large support for clients and customers and they help ensure amounts of incoming calls that customers are satisfied with products, services, and features.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Must be a College graduate; CHAU DAT NAM Can Prepare product Customer Service Representative or service reports by collecting and analysing Brief Job Description: customer information; Can A customer service representative supports customers 20. contribute to team effort by by providing helpful information, answering questions, accomplishing related results and responding to complaints. They’re the front line of as needed; Can Manage large support for clients and customers and they help ensure amounts of incoming calls that customers are satisfied with products, services, and features.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Must be a College graduate; HUANG, CAIYING Can Prepare product Customer Service Representative or service reports by collecting and analysing Brief Job Description: customer information; Can A customer service representative supports customers 21. contribute to team effort by by providing helpful information, answering questions, accomplishing related results and responding to complaints. They’re the front line of as needed; Can Manage large support for clients and customers and they help ensure amounts of incoming calls that customers are satisfied with products, services, and features.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Must be a College graduate; HUANG, YULIN Can Prepare product Customer Service Representative or service reports by collecting and analysing Brief Job Description: customer information; Can A customer service representative supports customers 22. contribute to team effort by by providing helpful information, answering questions, accomplishing related results and responding to complaints. They’re the front line of as needed; Can Manage large support for clients and customers and they help ensure amounts of incoming calls that customers are satisfied with products, services, and features.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Must be a College graduate; NGUYEN THI KIM OANH Can Prepare product Customer Service Representative or service reports by collecting and analysing Brief Job Description: customer information; Can A customer service representative supports customers 23. contribute to team effort by by providing helpful information, answering questions, accomplishing related results and responding to complaints. They’re the front line of as needed; Can Manage large support for clients and customers and they help ensure amounts of incoming calls that customers are satisfied with products, services, and features.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Must be a College graduate; VONG MY AN Can Prepare product Customer Service Representative or service reports by collecting and analysing Brief Job Description: customer information; Can A customer service representative supports customers 24. contribute to team effort by by providing helpful information, answering questions, accomplishing related results and responding to complaints. They’re the front line of as needed; Can Manage large support for clients and customers and they help ensure amounts of incoming calls that customers are satisfied with products, services, and features.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 J-NA ALLOUT TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS CORP. 3/f Lipams Bldg. #48 President Avenue Bf Homes Parañaque City Basic Qualification: KANG, SUNGMUK College graduate, speaks Korean Customer Service Representative & write fluently (Korean & 25.

English) Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls & customer service inquiries Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A.- PHILIPPINE GLOBAL SERVICE CENTER 23/f Net Plaza 31st St. E-square Zone Fort Bonifacio Taguig City Basic Qualification: KOONAMMAVE, STALIN THOMAS Excellent prior custody & Payment Lifecycle Manager Iii fund services, markets or prime brokerage operational Brief Job Description: experience along with Managing Transaction processing related activities of managing staff • Ability to Custodian function in the most efficient and highly work closely with business 26.

Control framework oriented environment. · Review of partners and interact with daily / weekly / monthly performance metrics pertaining all staff levels • Ability to to the function and to identify and track reasons for be flexible, follow tight deviation from agreed levels or expected behaviour. deadlines, organize and Ensure resolution of all ageing / sensitive outstanding prioritize work items by having close engagement with global and local stakeholders/ internal departments.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 JSLINK INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION 803-804 Ri-rance Building Aseana Enclave Aseana City Tambo Parañaque City CHOW KAI CHIN Basic Qualification: Commercial Specialist Consultant Able to speak Chinese, English and malay 27.

Brief Job Description: Provide advise to companies to solve problems, create Salary Range: value, improve growth and minimize business efficiency Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 and profitability MC SPENCER CONSULTANCY, INC. L-40 Pbcom Tower 6795 Ayala Ave., Cor. V.a. Rufino St. Bel-air Makati City

No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

ALVAREZ LOPEZ, FERMIN Strategy Head

Basic Qualification: Marketing degree and MBA. Brief Job Description: 28.

Leading the strategy management team in the Salary Range: development of long-range of strategic plans and Php 90,000 - Php 149,999 objectives through identification of strategic issues and opportunities.

NEW ORIENTAL CLUB88 CORPORATION Sky Garage Bldg. Aseana Avenue, Entertainment City Tambo Parañaque City 1331 Pearl Plaza Bldg. Quirino Ave. Tambo Parañaque City CAO, HONGBAO Basic Qualification: Chinese Customer Service Customer support and data base services 29.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral Salary Range: and written communication skills Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 CHEN, HONGTING Basic Qualification: Chinese Customer Service Customer support and data base services 30.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral Salary Range: and written communication skills Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 CHEN, CONG Basic Qualification: Chinese Customer Service Customer support and data base services 31.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral Salary Range: and written communication skills Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 CHEN, WENHAO Basic Qualification: Chinese Customer Service Customer support and data base services 32.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral Salary Range: and written communication skills Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 CHEN, WENJIAN Basic Qualification: Chinese Customer Service Customer support and data base services 33.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral Salary Range: and written communication skills Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 LIU, WEI Basic Qualification: Chinese Customer Service Customer support and data base services 34.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral Salary Range: and written communication skills Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 MO, WUFENG Basic Qualification: Chinese Customer Service Customer support and data base services 35.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral Salary Range: and written communication skills Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 PENG, ZENG Basic Qualification: Chinese Customer Service Customer support and data base services 36.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral Salary Range: and written communication skills Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 WEN, KUNCHENG Basic Qualification: Chinese Customer Service Customer support and data base services 37.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral Salary Range: and written communication skills Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 XIAO, ZHENGZONG Basic Qualification: Chinese Customer Service Customer support and data base services 38.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral Salary Range: and written communication skills Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 YANG, YUSONG Basic Qualification: Chinese Customer Service Customer support and data base services 39.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral Salary Range: and written communication skills Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 ZHANG, HONGWEI Basic Qualification: Chinese Customer Service Customer support and data base services 40.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral Salary Range: and written communication skills Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 ZHANG, JIANDONG Basic Qualification: Chinese Customer Service Customer support and data base services 41.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral Salary Range: and written communication skills Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 JUAN WIDHARSANJAYA Basic Qualification: Indonesian Customer Service Customer support and data base services 42.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral Salary Range: and written communication skills Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 HEW WAI HING Basic Qualification: Malaysian Customer Service Customer support and data base services 43.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral Salary Range: and written communication skills Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 JAMES LIM WAI KIT Basic Qualification: Malaysian Customer Service Customer support and data base services 44.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral Salary Range: and written communication skills Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 SAN SAN OO Myanmari Customer Service 45.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills YE ZAW Myanmari Customer Service

46.

47.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills

LEE SHAO JIE Singaporean Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

NGO VAN THANH Vietnamese Customer Service 48.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills

OCEAN AIRE HOTEL CORPORATION Oceanaire Bldg. Ltd. Cbp. D. Macapagal Blvd. Brgy. 076 Pasay City

Basic Qualification: Customer support and data base services Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Customer support and data base services Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Customer support and data base services Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Agriculture/Commodities BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Editor: Jennifer A. Ng • Thursday, August 26, 2021 A9

PHL keen on exporting more mangoes, pineapples to US

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

T

HE Philippines wants to export more pineapples and mangoes to the United States after the two countries reached an agreement on measures that will address Washington’s biosecurity concerns.

The Department of Agriculture (DA) also said Washington has accepted the evidence submitted

by Manila which proves that the Smooth Cayenne pineapple—the Philippines’s main export variety— is not a host to the oriental fruit fly.

The DA said American officials

are currently drafting an operational work plan (OWP) to irradiate Philippine fresh mangoes upon arrival in the US, which removes the preclearance inspection requirement.

“Expanding the export market of Philippine pineapples and mangoes in the US and other countries will not only enhance our national economy, but more importantly, provide increased incomes to thousands of farmers and their families in pineapple- and mango-producing provinces nationwide,” Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar said in a statement on Wednesday.

The DA said officials from the

Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) and USDA-Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS) virtually met last August 12 to talk about the prospective market expansion of Philippine pineapples and mangoes to the US. The DA said the USDA-APHIS has accepted the evidence submitted by the Philippine government that the “Smooth Cayenne” pineapple variety is not a host to the oriental fruit fly.

“The fruit pest, known scientifically as Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel), is very destructive and often finds its way into the US, sometimes triggering wide-scale eradication pro-

grams,” it added.

The DA said the USDA-APHIS will provide BPI the risk mitigation measures for oriental fruit fly. Once the DA-BPI agrees with the proposed mitigation measures, the USDA-APHIS will publish the initial notice in the Federal Register for a 60-day stakeholder comment period, according to the DA. Should there be no opposition or problems faced during the comment period, then the USDA-APHIS will publish the final notice officially allowing the expanded market access for Philippine pineapples into the US, except Hawaii.

“The Philippines may start ship-

ping pineapples to various US markets before year-end,” the DA said.

The DA added that the USDAAPHIS has also agreed to draft an OWP for the irradiation of Philippine fresh mangoes upon arrival in the US. The DA-BPI will provide the USDA-APHIS its official comments on the OWP, it said.

“Irradiation is a phytosanitary treatment that uses ionizing radiation to prevent the introduction or spread of regulated pests by achieving either mortality, preventing successful development like nonemergence of adults, sterility or inactivation,” it said.

“Irradiation of mangoes upon arrival in the US is an option offered by the USDA in response to the request of the Philippines to remove pre-clearance inspection.”

The DA said the Philippines currently exports fresh pineapples to the US through Guam, Commonwealth of MarianasIsland,andNorthAtlanticregions. From 2013 to July 15, 2021, the country’s pineapple exports amounted to only 346,190 kilograms (kg).

The country previously exported fresh mangoes to the US, from 2005 to 2008, totaling 386,099 kg, all produced in Guimaras Island, according to the DA.

Farmers’ co-op extends lease contract with banana exporter T

HE Davao Marsman Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries MultiPurpose Cooperative (DAMARB-MPC) has decided to extend its lease agreement with banana exporter Marsman Estate Plantation Inc. (MEPI).

“The farmer-members have recognized the importance of having a lease contract with a stable company, which has become more significant these days as they face the challenges brought about by the pandemic that is affecting not only the country but the entire world,” Hernando Rivero, chairman of DAMARB-MPC, said.

Rivero said 697 or about 92 percent of the 762 agrarian reform ben-

eficiaries (ARBs) of MEPI agreed to extend their respective contracts of lease while the other 164 ARBs chose to become independent banana growers.

“The other 164 ARBs who chose not to lease their lands to MEPI, like the members of Marsman Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Cooperative and later Marsman Individual Farming Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Cooperative opted to acquire the land through the Voluntary Offer to Sell scheme of DAR and to become independent growers,” he said.

Rivero said the extension of the contract would insulate them from problems hounding the industry today, such as the spread of the Panama

disease since they have a “fixed land rental scheme which MEPI recognizes come hell or high water.” He said small independent banana growers are “facing serious problems with Panama disease.”

“It was perhaps one of the best decisions made by the members of DAMARB-MPC because in the succeeding years the banana sector suffered severe setbacks brought about

by Panama disease and the substantial drop of banana prices in the international markets,” he said.

Rivero said they issued the statement ahead of the anticipated decision by the Presidential Agrarian Reform Council (PARC) on DAMARB-MPC’s and MEPI’s motions for

reconsideration on PARC’s Resolution 2016-30-05 dated September 12, 2016. The resolution approved the revocation of the lease agreement between MEPI and DAMARBDEVCO, which is now DAMARB-MPC. “While the motions for reconsideration were pending resolution, MEPI and DAMARB-MPC continued to talk and amended their land lease contracts under the guidance of the Provincial Agrarian Reform Coordinating Committee [PARCCOM] in Davao del Norte,” the group said.

“In fact, the latest amendment to the contract made in December 2019 and signed by individual ARBs saw land rentals and incentives increasing from the existing P50,000 per

hectare per year to P90,000—recognized as among the highest-ever land rental plus the incentive not only in the banana-growing industry but in the entire farming sector,” it added.

Rivero added that based on the 5th amendment of the contract of lease, each ARB-member is entitled to receive an annual variable production incentive beginning 2019.

“For the years 2019 and 2020, since MEPI achieved a production of more than 4,300 boxes, our ARBs received an additional P80,000 for two years,” he said.

“MEPI assumed the payment of all local taxes for our lands and for its improvements. To compare, real

property taxes on the lands awarded to ARBs of other cooperatives remain delinquent because of their inability to pay the same.”

The group said MEPI donated the 799-hectare banana plantation to DAMARB-MPC in consideration of a lease-back agreement of 30 years, with corresponding land rentals to be paid by MEPI. The lease agreement was approved by the then PARC which, at the time, was headed by former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, on the condition that the land be subdivided and individually titled to the ARBs who could then freely choose what they want to do with their own land. Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

A10 Thursday, August 26, 2021 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

editorial

Leadership lessons from pricey cabbage

I

t’s easy to blame climate change for the current runaway prices of vegetables in Metro Manila wet markets. Government price monitoring reports showed that the average prices of vegetables have risen for one straight month after production areas were battered by weeks-long rains brought about by the southwest monsoon (Habagat) last month. For example, the price of cabbage has skyrocketed to P300 per kilogram from P80 per kilogram in July. The average price of pechay Baguio is now 233 percent higher than its previous price last month, as it now fetches between P150 and P270 per kilogram. In comparison, the price of dressed chicken in Metro Manila wet markets ranges from P125 to P170 per kilogram.

Department of Agriculture (DA) officials attributed the price spikes to the adverse impact of Typhoon Fabian and monsoon rains to vegetable farms in Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR), Regions 2, 3, and 4A. (See, No early relief seen for veggie price spike, in the BusinessMirror, August 23, 2021). In the CAR region alone—the country’s top source of highland vegetables—the estimated damage to vegetable production reached P80 million, DA-CAR Regional Executive Director Cameron P. Odsey said. “The volume of vegetables being traded now in La Trinidad [trading posts] is declining. Before the Habagat damage, which is up to early August, we were seeing volumes that are bound for Manila at 1,500 metric tons daily,” he told the BusinessMirror. “Then the volume being traded gradually decreased to 1,400 metric tons, 1,300 metric tons, and now we are seeing only 1,000 metric tons per day.”

The spike in vegetable prices is bad news for minimum wage earners in the metropolis. The legislated daily minimum wage in Metro Manila is P537 (P16,110 per month), but when adjusted for inflation, the real daily minimum wage goes down to P434. How can a minimum wage earner now afford to buy cabbage at P300 per kilogram?

An expensive cabbage can tell so many things to a leader who cares to listen: Our farmers face new challenges for survival because of climate change; in the time of the pandemic, the erratic nature of the distribution chain makes for multiple layers of inefficiency; and some retailers in wet markets fleece consumers on the pretext of decline in vegetable production due to climaterelated reasons.

The poorest households in Metro Manila are the ones hardest hit by runaway food inflation because it directly affects their purchasing power. Even the so-called middle-class professionals in the private sector, and government employees are complaining. If not resolved soon, the current spike in food prices will likely increase the incidence of poverty.

When the price of cabbage goes beyond the means of ordinary wage earners, it’s time to ask the hard questions: In the time of the pandemic, how do people survive with no money for food? Why do Filipino workers remain poor? Politicians depend on poor people’s votes, why don’t they deliver on their campaign promises?

For example, why do we still have millions of minimum wage earners who are “endo” (derived from “end-of-contract”) workers? “Endo” is a form of contractualization that involves companies giving workers temporary employment that lasts them less than six months. Then the companies terminate their employment just short of being regularized in order to skirt on the benefits that come with regularization. Getting the raw end of the deal, “endo” workers do not enjoy the benefits given to regular workers—such as SSS benefits, PhilHealth, Pag-IBIG housing fund contribution, sick leave, maternity leave, vacation leave, and 13th month pay, among others. If they get sick, they earn nothing; no sick leave benefits.

The high prices of cabbage may yet create awareness among millions of disadvantaged workers. Social media has become an integral part of the daily life of Filipinos, and now is a good time for them to use it as a voice of social good.

If “endo” workers unite, they may be able to vote out of office some elected government officials that are answerable only to the more powerful interests in Philippine society.

In May 2022, these “endo” workers will have a chance to choose a candidate that listens to their voices. They need to elect a public official that knows how to help farmers increase production and drive vegetable prices to affordable levels. That’s the best way for “endo” workers to ensure that the price of cabbage will stay within their means.

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The Grind John Mangun

OUTSIDE THE BOX

T

he concept is so much a fundamental part of nature that it is found in almost all scientific disciplines. Yet there is only one place that it is a common term.

The definition of “grind” is “to wear down, smooth, or sharpen by abrasion or friction; to reduce to fine particles, as by pounding, crushing or pulverizing.” But it is also used to describe a “dreary, monotonous, or difficult labor, study, or routine.”

It is the process by which every object in space that circles another is subject to either a decaying or expanding orbit which will eventually see that object crash into the center or hurtle itself outward unless some external force intervenes.

Over time even a trickle of a stream—let alone a large river—can carve through rock and soil creating massive canyons. A tree’s roots continue to grow outward even for several thousand years, displacing everything in their path. “The Grind” is

like a supernatural force that cannot be stopped and will conquer over time.

The one common usage of the term is known well by casinos and should be familiar to all gamblers if they want to win. The House always wins, and the reason is “The Grind.”

A single-deck blackjack will have a house edge of roughly 1.5 percent.

Depending on the type of dice game you are playing, the house edge will be 1.4 percent. If you are looking for a high chance of winning, play video poker. The house edge can be as low as 0.5 percent. But even if the odds at 99.9 percent in your favor, the house will still win because of the grind.

If you play long enough, even that 0.5 percent will take your bank account to zero in the long run. The city of Ephesus—mentioned in the

I have lived on this planet for a relatively long time and I have never experienced a “grind” like we are going through now. The closest situation in memory—although most that lived through it as adults are dead—was World War II. Day after day of turmoil and never knowing when it was going to end.

Bible—was a seaport dating back to 6,000 years before Christ. Ephesus was completely abandoned by the 15th century after Christ.

Its importance as a commercial center declined as the Küçük Menderes River slowly silted up the harbor.

This major sea trading city is now 6 kilometers from the sea. The grind will always get you.

I have lived on this planet for a relatively long time and I have never experienced a “grind” like we are going through now. The closest situation in memory—although most that lived through it as adults are dead— was World War II. Day after day of turmoil and never knowing when it was going to end. Even rebuilding after historic natural and man-made disasters have an end in sight.

We will see some major adjust-

Biden resists Afghan deadline pressure but seeks backup options

P

By Jennifer Jacobs and Justin Sink | Bloomberg Opinion

resident Joe Biden resisted mounting pressure to keep US troops in Afghanistan past his August 31 deadline but ordered his national security team to come up with contingency plans if he determines that a delay is needed.

“The completion by August 31 depends on the Taliban continuing to cooperate, allowing access to the airport for those who we’re transporting out, and no disruption to our operations,” Biden said in an address from the White House Tuesday afternoon. “I’ve asked the Pentagon and the State Department for contingency plans to adjust the timetable, should that become necessary.”

The president has come under withering criticism from lawmakers who say his administration is going to leave behind American citizens and Afghan allies who aided US forces over the past 20 years if the military evacuation mission isn’t extended. Biden promised his administration would spell out on Wednesday how many Americans

remain in Afghanistan.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday that Biden should “forget about August 31” and send troops out beyond the Kabul airport’s perimeter to ensure more people are evacuated.

Democrats also questioned Biden’s decision. Representative Adam Smith of Washington state, chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, said “it would be malpractice” to not have a contingency plan if the evacuation must continue past August 31. Representative Elissa Slotkin of Michigan cited “strong bipartisan support” to extend the deadline.

But Biden said the risks to US troops are growing. He and top White House officials expressed

The G-7 meeting, convened by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, may have been the last chance to press Biden to push back the US withdrawal date. If the deadline holds, it effectively means that civilian evacuations at the Kabul airport must end within the next few days to allow enough time to get remaining US and other troops out.

confidence the US could evacuate a substantial—but unspecified— number of Americans and Afghan allies from the country in the coming days. So far, he said, about 71,000 people have been evacuated since August 14.

“Every day we’re on the ground is another day we know that ISIS-K is seeking to target the airport and attack both US and allied forces and innocent civilians,” Biden said, citing the local offshoot of Islamic State.

After days in which US officials repeatedly refused to say how many

ments that will probably last at least through my lifetime. For example: February 5, 2021: “Long-Haul Travel May Not Get Going Until 2023.

A rebound in passenger air traffic ‘is probably a 2022 thing,’ according to Joshua Ng, director at Alton Aviation Consultancy.” That was the forecast until the Covid hit the fan in the past two months. Mr. Ng has not commented recently.

Yet we continue to see forward momentum on the completion of hotels designed for international travelers.

Too much money has already been invested—sunk costs—and cannot rationally be stopped. But will we see in two or three years a portion of those resorts converted to condo-hotels?

Are we coming to the end of “mallbuilding” as home delivery becomes more popular? Technology and service will continue to improve, perhaps moving away in the Philippines from men and women on motorcycles to “pick-up collection points” rather than massive malls?

The only way to beat The Grind is to adjust. Forgive me but “when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.”

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

Americans have been evacuated, and how many may remain in Afghanistan—trapped in Kabul or further afield—Biden said Secretary of State Antony Blinken will provide a “detailed report” on Wednesday.

Biden spoke with Group of Seven allies earlier in the day and cited areas of agreement, including on the need for the Taliban to protect womens’ rights, but extending the end-August deadline was also a key goal for leaders in nations including the UK and France.

The G-7 meeting, convened by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, may have been the last chance to press Biden to push back the US withdrawal date. If the deadline holds, it effectively means that civilian evacuations at the Kabul airport must end within the next few days to allow enough time to get remaining US and other troops out.

Earlier in the day, a Taliban spokesman said at a news conference that “the airport is now closed and Afghans are not allowed to go there See “Biden” A11

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Thursday, August 26, 2021 A11

Resilience in a riskier world The pitfalls of ‘overexpansion’

By Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana

O

ver the past two decades, the Asia-Pacific region has made remarkable progress in managing disaster risk. But countries can never let down their guard. The Covid-19 pandemic, with its epicentre now in Asia, and all its tragic consequences, has exposed the frailties of human societies in the face of powerful natural forces. As of mid-August 2021, Asian and Pacific countries had reported 65 million confirmed coronavirus cases and more than 1 million deaths. This is compounded by the extreme climate events, which are affecting the entire world. Despite the varying contexts across geographic zones, the climate change connection is evident as floods swept across parts of China, India and Western Europe, while heatwaves and fires raged in parts of North America, Southern Europe and Asia.

The human and economic impacts of disasters, including biological ones, and climate change are documented in our 2021 Asia-Pacific Disaster Report. It demonstrates that climate change is increasing the risk of extreme events like heatwaves, heavy rain and flooding, drought, tropical cyclones and wildfires.

Heatwaves and related biological hazards in particular are expected to increase in East and North-East Asia while South and South-West Asia will encounter intensifying floods and related diseases. However, over recent decades fewer people have been dying as a result of other natural hazards such as cyclones or floods. This is partly a consequence of more robust early warning systems and of responsive protection but also because governments have started to appreciate the importance of dealing with disaster risk in an integrated fashion rather than just responding on a hazardby-hazard basis.

Nevertheless, there is still much more to be done. As the Covid-19 pandemic has demonstrated, most countries are still ill prepared for multiple overlapping crises—which often cascade, with one triggering another. Tropical cyclones, for example, can lead to floods, which lead to disease, which exacerbates poverty. In five hotspots around the region where people are at greatest risk, the human and economic devastation as these shocks intersect and interact highlights the dangers of the poor living in several of the region’s extensive river basins.

Disasters threaten not just human lives but also livelihoods. And they are likely to be even more costly in the future as their impacts are exacerbated by climate change. Annual losses from both natural and biological hazards across Asia and the Pacific are estimated at around $780 billion. In a worst-case climate change scenario, the annual economic losses arising from these cascading risks could rise to $1.3 trillion—equivalent to 4.2 percent of regional GDP. Rather than regarding the human and economic costs as inevitable, countries would do far better to ensure that their populations and their infrastructure were more resilient.

This would involve strengthening infrastructure such as bridges and roads, as well as schools and other buildings that provide shelter and support in times of crisis. Above all, governments should invest in more robust health infrastructure. This would need substantial resources.

The annual cost of adaptation for natural and other biological hazards under the worst-case climate change

Biden. . .

continued from A10

now. Only foreigners are allowed to go.” It only served to underline the obstacles on the ground, with a new regime in charge.

The degree of discord was apparent in the final G-7 statement that had little in terms of concrete steps yet warned that “we will judge the Afghan parties by their actions, not words.”

“In particular, we reaffirm that the Taliban will be held accountable for their actions on preventing terrorism, on human rights—in particular those of women, girls and minorities—and on pursuing

Covid-19 has demonstrated yet again how all disaster risks interconnect—how a public health crisis can rapidly trigger an economic disaster and societal upheaval. This is what is meant by “systemic risk,” and this is the kind of risk that policymakers now need to address if they are to protect their poorest people. scenario is estimated at $270 billion.

Nevertheless, at only one-fifth of estimated annualized losses—or 0.85 percent of the Asia-Pacific GDP, it’s affordable.

Where can additional funds come from? Some could come from normal fiscal revenues. Governments can also look to new, innovative sources of finance, such as climate resilience bonds, debt-for-resilience swaps and debt relief initiatives.

Covid-19 has demonstrated yet again how all disaster risks interconnect—how a public health crisis can rapidly trigger an economic disaster and societal upheaval. This is what is meant by “systemic risk,” and this is the kind of risk that policymakers now need to address if they are to protect their poorest people.

This does not simply mean responding rapidly with relief packages but anticipating emergencies and creating robust systems of social protection that will make vulnerable communities safer and more resilient. Fortunately, as the Report illustrates, new technology, often exploiting the ubiquity of mobile phones, is presenting more opportunities to connect people and communities with financial and other forms of support. To better identify, understand and interrupt the transmission mechanisms of Covid-19, countries have turned to “frontier technologies” such as artificial intelligence and the manipulation of big data. They have also used advanced modelling techniques for early detection, rapid diagnosis and containment.

Asia and the Pacific is an immense and diverse region. The disaster risks in the steppes of Central Asia are very different from those of the small island states in the Pacific. What all countries should have in common, however, are sound principles for managing disaster risks in a more coherent and systematic way—principles that are applied with political commitment and strong regional and sub-regional collaboration.

Ms. Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana is the United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific.

an inclusive political settlement in Afghanistan.”

The fate of foreigners and Afghans whose ties to outside powers leave them vulnerable to Taliban reprisals dominated the buildup to the meeting. Johnson and French President Emmanuel Macron were among those expected to urge Biden to shift his position—though the British government also warned that was unlikely due to the deteriorating security situation in Kabul.

Johnson said the G-7 agreed Tuesday on a road map for how to deal with the Taliban, and that the “number one condition that we are insisting upon is safe passage” beyond August 31 for those who want to leave Afghanistan.

Val A. Villanueva

Businesswise

I

recently had a spontaneous Zoom chat with friends from different business fields, driven more by our desire to check on how each other is coping with the pandemic.

These friends are successful industry leaders whose businesses survived and thrived despite being hammered by past financial crises and whose respective bottom line remains in the black. One is an expat CEO of a large manufacturing concern; two are presidents of large multi-national companies, and one is a country manager of a large equity firm. I met all of them during my early foray into business writing, and we never lost touch over the years.

The chat progressed into a scholarly exchange on how their companies have kept their heads above water and their projection of what lies ahead for the country in the nearand long-term. Most agreed that, as long as the country’s economic team remains focused, the Philippines will survive, albeit on a much slower economic pace. But any growth comes with the caveat that the political climate should remain stable. The pandemic, they chorused, has torn down global economic growth, and our country was not exempt from the fallout.

The discussion then veered into some business ventures which in the good days had injudiciously expanded too quickly. A friend brought up the case of Dennis Uy who has been recently in the news selling out some of his company’s assets to pay off debts. There’s nothing wrong with this, the others chimed in, for as long as Uy’s company assets can sufficiently cover all obligations and if the company’s debt servicing remains current.

Uy, the CEO of the country’s newest mobile operator Dito Telecom-

munity, has invested in several ventures—from food shops to energy firms—in a dizzying expansion binge that are all leverage-backed.

The buying spree, according to the country manager of the equity firm, raised concern early on about Uy’s group debt standing, more so now that we are in the midst of a pandemic-generated recession.

In a recent stock exchange filing, Phoenix Petroleum Philippines revealed that “its board had mandated the management to enter into negotiations on a possible sale of assets or investments as part of its debt management and funding activities.”

The stock filing came in the wake of the sale of Uy’s 100 percent share in logistics venture 2GO Group, which has been chipping away Uy’s earnings in Chelsea Logistics and Infrastructure Holdings. The company sold the 31.7 percent stake to conglomerate SM Investments for around P6.6 billion ($136 million).

“The proceeds of the sale will be used to pay down the loan obtained for the acquisition of the shares,” Chelsea announced.

SM bought the shares at P8.50 each. By this time, SM should have already filed the mandatory tender offer documents to the Securities and Exchange Commission. In this mode, minority shareholders are offered a chance to walk away with similar terms during buyout transactions.

Recall that in 2017 Chelsea obtained a $220-million loan from the Bank of China to support the purchase of its 2GO stake. It somehow lessens pressure on Chelsea, which saw its net loss tumble to P367.2

Most company officials in the group chat believe that Uy has spread himself too thinly. Udenna’s debts skyrocketed by over 200 percent to P104 billion in 2017, with most funds poured for investments and acquisitions. million during the first nine months of 2020. Its overall losses for the period hit P2.6 billion, undermining profits from the previous year, as pandemic wrought havoc on Philippine business.

“With the divestment, Chelsea will not be impacted by 2GO losses, which will aid the company in recovering from the current Covid-19 pandemic,” Chelsea Logistics President and CEO Chryss Alfonsus V. Damuy said in a stock-exchange filing.

Phoenix, on the other hand, has been financially bleeding as Covid lockdowns put a brake on the transportation industry. This is one of Uy’s earliest ventures. He was a virtually unknown businessman from Davao whose fortunes grew when President Duterte became president. Uy, who donated P30 million to Duterte’s candidacy, has acquired 36 companies since 2016. He took over shipping lines; the Philippine franchise of the Family Mart chain of convenience stores; a food and management school; a logistics hub, and Ferrari car dealership. Uy’s other capital-intensive projects involve a $1-billion integrated resort and casino, and Dito Telecommunity, which was launched several months back. Uy’s telecom firm is mandated to invest at least $5 billion over a period of five years.

An official of Uy’s Udenna Development contacted by BusinessWise who begged for anonymity defended his boss’ buying binges. He said that Uy’s main motivation is to fast-track the country’s economic growth under a President whom Uy believes can lead the country to economic prosperity. Uy himself was quoted by Nikkei Asia in 2017 as saying: “[When] you believe in the leadership, you believe in the potential of the country.”

The Udenna official allays fear

The doctor is in… Afghanistan!

Susan V. Ople

Scribbles

H

ow many of you are afraid to even venture out of your front door because of the Covid-19? I am. And yet, here is a Filipina who has gone way beyond the local market, to work in the country that one fears the most: Afghanistan.

Her full name is Evangeline Cua, and she hails from Northern Samar.

Banggi works for Medecins Sans Frontieres or MSF, also known as Doctors Without Borders. MSF has for its tagline: “Medical aid where it’s needed the most.”

Where it’s needed the most, right now, is Afghanistan, now under the control of the dreaded Taliban. Doctor Cua works in a 100-bed hospital that functions as a trauma center in the city of Kunduz. It has modern hospital equipment and welltrained staff. There are two other Filipino doctors working for MSF, one is assigned in Herat and another one is assigned in Khost province.

Banggi said she has yet to meet her two kababayans.

“We don’t take in Covid-19 patients in the hospital. We only check symptomatic patients and so far, none of the trauma patients that we have treated were infected with the virus,” Banggi said, adding that the virus is not really top of mind among civilians who face the risk of daily and instant extinction from bombs and gunshots. She said the fighting has caused the vaccination program to stop.

Since she joined the MSF in 2015, Doctor Cua has been assigned to Iraq, Syria, Yemen, South Sudan, Camer-

oon, Central African Republic, Jordan to treat the Syrian wounded and Afghanistan.

It was during her first stint in Afghanistan, six years ago, that she wrote these lines: “I witnessed mass casualty incidence every day for several days [more than 10 serious patients at a time] during the heavy fighting. I saw kids with really serious injuries; families hit by airstrikes, pregnant patients shot in the crossfire, wounded fighters and civilians. Our team was reduced from 16 to 6 and I was one of those who stayed to continue treating patients.”

She and her team had to perform 16 surgeries in one day.

After being treated for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which gave her a break from the war-torn country, the lady doctor is back in Kunduz City in the northern most part of Afghanistan. She arrived in Kunduz City on August 1.

According to Banggi, most of their patients are Taliban fighters who got wounded while fighting for the control of Kunduz. While Kunduz has fallen into the arms of the Taliban, the Filipina doctor said that everyone respects the neutrality of the MSF. “The Taliban leadership made an assurance that they will not in-

Dr. Evangeline Cua

terfere in our activities,” Banggi told this writer.

I met Banggi through an online group called “Empowered Women” organized by Arlene Donaire, who, like Banggi, is a talented and avid photographer. Parts of that group are peace advocate Amina Rasul-Bernardo, entrepreneur Corina Unson and this writer, as a labor migration expert. As women, we were all in awe of the selfless and high-risk nature of Banggi’s work.

Banggi admitted that she can’t help but also think of her family’s own struggles with the pandemic.

“My parents are in their 70s and two of my sisters are living with them.

It’s difficult to ask the elderly to just stay home. My mom got bored at one point that she left the house without informing anyone. She went to the wet market. We realized that

about the group’s mounting debts.

He says the group’s debt-to-equity ratio had improved from 3.09 percent in 2018 to 2.7 percent in 2019—latest figures are unavailable—which is still higher than those of other Philippine conglomerates. In 2019, Udenna net profited P3.39 billion on a record P110.67 billion revenues, he said.

Most company officials in the group chat believe that Uy has spread himself too thinly.

Udenna’s debts skyrocketed by over 200 percent to P104 billion in 2017, with most funds poured for investments and acquisitions. They assume that part of the proceeds from the sale of Uy’s assets could be used to partially finance his revenuegenerating investments in telecommunications, oil, and infrastructure in order to lessen his bank borrowing. As it is, however, the expat of the large multi-national company in our group chat believes that Udenna’s debt-against-profit comparison doesn’t look good, saying that the company has a feeble balance sheet.

Still, the Udenna official remains confident that Uy’s group is taking the right step: “It’s just a hiccup and considering the effect of the pandemic on global and local business, we’re not the only one trying to survive under these trying times. Our finances as per our books remain sound and there’s no imminent danger for us to be worried about.”

But the general sentiment in our group chat is that Uy has to work doubly hard to keep its balance sheet healthy. Has he bitten more than he could chew? At the moment, it looks likely, but it would be interesting to see the results of the corrective steps his company has taken. It could prove crucial in his effort to borrow more.

It helps that banks are betting on his relationship with Duterte. But once the loans have ballooned to unmanageable levels and the balance sheet wobbles, it would be worth watching if Uy would lose the trust he currently enjoys.

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

she just missed socializing and talking to people but when I learned about this, I almost had a heart attack.”

She requested us to pray for her sister, a nurse, who has been recently hospitalized due to Covid-19.

Thankfully, her parents are now fully vaccinated, and her mom has discovered the world of K-drama. “My mom now watches K-drama instead of the news, which means she can be less worried about me.”

How bad did it get in Afghanistan when she first arrived there in 2015? An article that Doctor Cua wrote for MSF describes her experience amid successive air strikes: “F*ck! The word came unbidden from my mouth. We had not made it very far when I tripped and fell down on something soft. A dead human body… or bodies! Oh, dear God! Stifling a scream and fearing the worst, I slowly got up. Tiny pieces of glass, which could have seriously cut me, were clinging on the surface of my OT gown. I ached all over. No major injuries though. Good.”

And, six years later, she is back in Kunduz City at a time of even greater uncertainty now that the entire country is under Taliban control. Right now, her hospital has changed its admissions criteria to accommodate more civilians, hoping that this would deter any untoward hostile actions.

Bravo, Banggi! We are so very proud of the person and doctor that you are.

A12 Thursday, August 26, 2021

DTI WEIGHS PROGRESS OF MANUFACTURING SECTOR IN PANDEMIC

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad @Tyronepiad

W

HILE some manufacturing sectors have recovered already, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said that others need more catching up to do, especially amid the threats of future lockdowns.

Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said in a virtual event on Wednesday that nearly all manufacturing subsectors recently showed double-digit growths already but stressed that some are still below their prepandemic levels.

“While conscious of our gains, our optimism for the manufacturing sector needs to continue further and translate into more robust production,” he said.

In his presentation, the DTI chief listed sectors that have already returned to prepandemic levels: paper and paper products; furniture; wood, rattan and bamboo; pharmaceuticals; basic metals; computer, electronic and optical products; chemicals; and other manufacturing.

Manufacturing for metal products; rubber and plastics; printing and recorded media; tobacco, leather and footwear; and electrical equipment are nearing the 2019 levels, the DTI added.

“While second quarter of 2021 posted stellar growth rates, this performance hasn’t

offset yet the huge declines experienced in 2020. Many sectors haven’t reached their prepandemic outputs back in second quarter of 2019,” he said.

These include food products, beverages, wearing apparel, textiles, coke and petroleum, transport equipment, machinery and equipment, and other non-metallic mineral products.

“As we journey towards recovery, there are still risks that we have to manage such as new variants, future lockdowns, and possible delays in vaccination rollout. These are the uncertainties that we still need to prepare for,” Lopez warned.

As such, Lopez stressed the importance of digital technology in ensuring business continuity amid the pandemic.

He explained that digital technology can be used to improve supply chain visibility and reliability amid the changing production patterns.

“In this day and age, organizations which are resilient to external shocks will have a competitive advantage,” Lopez said. “Firms and enterprises must be agile to rapidly tailor production and supply systems and develop new capabilities to adapt to changes in consumer behavior.”

The Philippines’s Purchasing Managers’ Index slipped to 50.4 in July from 50.8 the earlier month, which still showed expansion albeit slower.

SC upholds constitutionality of GOCC Governance Act

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By Joel R. San Juan

@jrsanjuan1573

HE Supreme Court has unanimously upheld the constitutionality of Republic Act No. 10149 or the GovernmentOwned or -Controlled Corporations (GOCCs) Governance Act, signed into law in 2011 to address the poor handling of the operations and abuses committed by officials of these corporations.

In a 72-page decision penned

by Associate Justice Marvic Leonen, the Court en banc dismissed the consolidated petitions filed

by Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman and Surigao del Sur 1st District Rep. Prospero Pichay Jr. assailing the constitutionality of RA 10149 on the ground that it violates their right to security of tenure, unduly delegates legislative and breaches the equal protection clause of the Constitution.

“Congress enacted Republic Act No. 10149 to address the reported abuses, poor performance, and inefficiencies in the operations of GOCCs. The law, among others, reduced the terms of incumbent GOCC officers and created a central policy-making and regulatory body for GOCCs, tasked with reforming and developing a standardized compensation and position classification system for GOCCs,” the SC ruling stated. “ These actions were geared toward achieving what Congress perceived to be a great public need

.... Absent any clear showing of unconstitutionality, these provisions, duly deliberated upon and approved by the legislature, are upheld,” it added.

Pr ior to the passage of the law, congressional inquiries into the activities of some GOCCs showed billions of funds going to waste due to excesses and incompetence of its officials, including the “obscene bonuses” and retirement schemes given to board of directors of these firms, particularly in the Manila Economic and Cultural Office, where directors could retire after only two years of service, at the rate of P600,000 per year of service.

The inquiries conducted in 2009 also showed the GOCCs’ mounting debt despite accounting for 28 percent of national expenditures while their debts were valued at P5.557 trillion, exceeding the national government’s assets of P2.879 trillion.

Of the P475.296-billion interagency receivables, 91 percent or

P433.383 billion were due from GOCCs. Despite these inefficiencies, Congress reported that GOCCs still declared approximately P14.6 billion in dividends, and received subsidies worth around P7.6 billion, or greater than their tax liability of around P6.7 billion.

To address these abuses, Republic Act No. 10149 was signed into law on June 6, 2011.

The law is primarily geared towards improving the State’s “ownership rights in GOCCs and to promote growth by ensuring that operations are consistent with national development policies and programs,” said the high tribunal.

In order to fulfill this objective, the law created the Governance Commission for GOCCs (Governance Commission), an agency attached to the Office of the President.

It is empowered, among others, to evaluate the performance and determine the relevance of GOCCs, and to ascertain whether these GOCCs should be reorganized, merged, streamlined, abolished, or privatized, in consultation with the department or agency to which they are attached.

The petitioners argued that Section 17 of RA 10149, which shortens to one year the fixed terms of incumbent CEOs and appointive directors of GOCCs with original charters, violates their constitutionally guaranteed right to security of tenure under Article IX-B, Section 2(3) of the Constitution.

However, the Court dismissed the argument, saying that the legislature may, “in good faith” “change the qualifications for and shorten the term of existing offices” even if these changes would remove, or shorten the term of, an incumbent.

It also said the shortening of the term of GOCC officials is for the interest of the public.

“Public interest warrants the term reduction. Shortening the term of directors to one year allows for a yearly evaluation of their performance and promotes accountability for public funds,” the SC said.

The SC did not give credence to the petitioners’ claim that Section 5 of RA 10149 creating the Governance Commission is an invalid delegation of Congress’ exclusive power to reorganize and public offices.

It explained that the Governance Commission was merely tasked to conduct an evaluation to determine the propriety of the reorganization, abolition, merger, streamlining or privatization of GOCCs as mandated under RA 10149.

T he Gover n a nce Com m i s sion only needs to carry out the mandate. In ascertaining the determinants for abolishing or reorganizing GOCCs, the Governance Commission only acts as an investigative body on behalf of Congress Likewise, the SC rejected the petitioners’ argument that the law violates the equal protection clause under the Constitution since it excluded some GOCCs. Continued on A4

₧42-B fund transfer from DOH to DBM illegal, insists Drilon

By Butch Fernandez @butchfBM

& Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

S

Correspondent

ENATE Minor it y L eader Frank Drilon maintained on Wednesday the transfer of P42 billion in pandemic response funds of the Department of Health (DOH) to the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) violated the procurement law, indicating those involved could be haled before the graft court.

This, as the Senate Blue Ribbon investigating committee, chaired

by Senator Richard Gordon, continued its “moto proprio investigation” of the issues flagged in the 2020 Commission on Audit (COA) report related to budget utilization of the DOH, especially its expenditures to fight Covid 19.

T he f i rst hea r i ng G ordon called last week focused on widespread complaints by public and private health workers about nonpayment or delayed payment of pandemic-related benef its like hazard pay and special risk allowances, as mandated by the Bayanihan law.

At Wednesday’s second hearing, several senators dwelt at length on the issue raised by Sen. Imee Marcos earlier: why did the DOH transfer P42 billion of its funds to the DBM’s Procurement Service (PS-DBM), to outsource the bidding and purchase of badly needed personal protective equipment and pandemic-related supplies?

Drilon, a former Justice Secretary, said the DOH action vio-

lated existing implementing rules and regulations (IRR) and the Procurement Law when the P42billion fund was transferred to PS-DBM. He noted the irregularity stems from the absence of a MOA required for documentary tracing in disbursing the P42-billion fund, the same basis for COA flagging this among DOH’s “deficiencies” in fund management in 2020.

Drilon noted that the P42 billion transferred to PS-DBM comprised the biggest chunk of the “mismanaged” P67 billion DOH Covid-19 funds.

Citing Section 7.3.3 of the Implementing Rules and Regulations of the Government Procurement Reform Act, Drilon stressed the need to have a memorandum of agreement (MOA) before the funds was transferred by the DOH to PS-DBM. “Prudence could have dictated that when you transferred P42 billion to another agency, out of the budget of the DOH, you should have signed a MOA; is that not a prudent thing to do for a Secretary [of the DOH]?”

Drilon asked Duque. This transfer was found by COA to have not been “supported with complete documentary requirements contrary to law and regulations, and casted doubts on the validity, regularity and propriety of transactions.”

Duque responded by saying that they have a “document” to cover the transfer which is called “agency procurement request.”

Continued on A4

A POLICEMAN mans the Old Santa Mesa Street-Ramon Magsaysay Boulevard intersection in Manila. According to the Safe Cities Index 2021 report from The Economist Intelligence Unit, Manila came in at 51st out of 60 cities ranked across 76 indicators covering digital, health, infrastructure, personal and environmental security. ROY DOMINGO

₧15.5-B Comelec budget cut to stymie electoral boards

By Samuel P. Medenilla

T

@sam_medenilla

HE Electoral Boards will bear the brunt of the slashed budget of the Commission on Elections during the conduct of the 2022 National and Local polls.

On Wednesday, Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez lamented the

decision of the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to reduce their proposed P42-billion budget to P26.5 billion in the 2022 National Expenditure Program (NEP).

“Even a cursory review of the National Expenditure Program, however, immediately reveals that the budget for the Electoral Boards will be one of the most affected,”

Jimenez said in a brief statement.

He said they are currently reviewing the other parts of their operation that will be affected by the budget cut.

Nevertheless, Jimenez said Comelec is committed to hold the next elections even with their budgetary constraints.

“The DBM’s deep cut into the

Comelec’s proposed budget will significantly impact how the Comelec will conduct the 2022 National and Local Elections,” Jimenez said.

“The Comelec assures the public however, that it will continue to advocate for its budget in order to ensure that the 2022 National Elections will be honest, credible, orderly, peaceful, and safe,” he added.

Companies BusinessMirror

Editor: Jennifer A. Ng

Thursday, August 26, 2021

B1

AC Energy keen on floating solar projects

A

By Lenie Lectura

@llectura

C Energy is looking at embarking on floating solar power and offshore wind power projects to help the country attain its renewable energy (RE) goals.

“We are aware of several companies developing floating solar, including ourselves. There’s a lot of potential. Laguna Lake, for example, is a great location for floating solar,” said AC Energy President Eric Francia during a forum titled “Energy’s Sustainable Future in Renewables and Nuclear.”

He said Laguna Lake is an ideal location for a floating solar power

project since there are already various transmission facilities within the area. “The good news about Laguna Lake is it’s almost at the center of the demand and the demand load center and you can connect to the various substations, relieve the pressure on NGCP [National Grid Corporation of the Philippines] to keep on building transition lines.”

The company is already prepar-

ing to sort out the necessary permits to pursue its interest in a floating solar power project, which, Francia said, could be done in the next two to three years. “That’s ripe for the picking, we are hopeful the LLDA [Laguna Lake Development Authority] will finalize its policy and start issuing the water rights to the various developers.”

Aside from floating solar, AC Energy is also looking at offshore wind power projects.

“Offshore wind is much talked about lately. It is 5 to 10 years away in terms of the competitiveness of the technology, similar to battery storage. Definitely, it is something that we, as an industry, should look at,” said Francia.

Hydrogen power is also being recognized as fuel of the future. Though it is still in the early days and the technology is still expensive, Fran-

cia said hydrogen is “something that could take the trajectory of solar and battery storage.”

The Department of Energy (DOE) is keen on looking into the potential applications of hydrogen in the Philippine setting. After creating the Hydrogen and Fusion Energy Committee (HFEC), the DOE has entered into two Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) on research and development activities.

The government signed an MOU with Australian firm Star Hero, to evaluate the conversion of coal-fired power plants to hydrogen sourced from RE feedstock and with Japan’s Hydrogen Technology, Inc. to assess hydrogen utilization for power generation.

“Energy transition is upon us, not overnight. You cannot just switch off all the carbon emitting power plants, it has to be an orderly tran-

PAL adopts multicurrency pricing

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

L

egacy carrier Philippine Airlines’ (PAL) partnership with Amadeus will allow passengers to pay via different currencies and give them more cost-effective ways of booking for their flights.

Specifically, PAL tapped Amadeus for its FX Box Platform, a new currency conversion module, which allows passengers to pay for their flights via their currency of choice.

With the FX Box Platform, PAL offers are repriced in the passenger’s currency based on direct access to highly competitive exchange rates.

“By working with Amadeus we’ve made it easier for international travelers to book our flights in currencies they understand. Enhancing the traveler’s payment options with FX Box provides transparency and improves the experience of our travelers,” Wilson H. Go, PAL Chief Information Officer, said.

He added that the solution makes

the booking experience simpler and easier for travelers, especially for those who are in territories outside of the Philippines.

“Making travel simpler and easier through digital innovations is a key priority for PAL as we prepare to add more flights and welcome an increased number of international travelers on our nonstop flights within Asia, to North America, UK, and the Middle East,” Go said.

This partnership makes PAL the

first carrier to deploy multicurrency pricing in its platform.

“Displaying the offer in the traveler’s currency drastically improves the shopping experience and boosts conversion rates. Imagine a US citizen who’s traveled to Japan and then needs to book a flight to the Philippines. It’s hard for that US traveler to compare the airline’s offer and make a decision when it’s priced in Japanese Yen or Philippine Pesos,” Amadeus Managing Director for Payments Bart Tompkins said.

Meralco communicates excellence in 2021

T

he Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), the country’s premier electric distribution utility, continues to exude excellence beyond providing stable and reliable power in its franchise area. Recognized for its initiatives centered on customer ser vice excellence, communication, and transparency, it recently bagged three golds, three silvers, and three bronzes at the 2021 Stevie International Business Awards (IBA). It commanded superiority in the field of communications in the global scene as it bested 3,700 nominations from various organizations from different industries in 65 countries.

The prestigious Stevie International Business Awards is an annual awards program started in 2002 and joined by top corporations to showcase professional achievements and compete for various awards. It honors and generates public recognition of these achievements and positive contributions of organizations and working professionals worldwide and is one of the world’s most coveted prizes.

Awarded Gold were the One Meralco Foundation (OMF) program “One for Trees: Helping Farmers Survive the Pandemic through Sustainable Reforestation;” the “Meralco Annual Report,” which was recognized as the best annual report among utilities in 2021; and the “MVP The Man and His Art,” a book that showcases Filipino artistry that graces the halls of Meralco, PLDT, First Pacific, and MVP’s residence. The “Meralco Sustainability Report,” “Energizing offgrid schools in the Philippines,” and “Powering-up Communities Amidst the Pandemic” were given Silver awards. Meanwhile, “A Back to School Program to support Teacher-Frontliners during the Pandemic,” the “Meralco Advisory,” and the “Meralco Facebook

page” each bagged a Bronze award.

Furthermore, Meralco was recognized for its initiatives in customercentric innovations in the 8th Annual Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards— an awards competition open to all organizations from 29 nations in the region, focusing on recognizing innovation in all its forms.

Awarded Gold was the “Meralco 2019 Sustainability Report,” an all-inclusive discussion of Meralco’s sustainability agenda. This is the third international recognition received by the said publication. Two entries, “Fitting The Bill: Meralco Makes Paying Bills Easier With The Customer Account Number (CAN)” and “Safeguard the Economy at All Costs: Meralco Waives Energy Demand Charge” both received Silver, while “Safety first: Empowering Enterprises to fight an invisible enemy” was awarded Bronze.

According to Meralco President and CEO Ray C. Espinosa, “Excellent customer service and communication are at the core of what we do in Meralco, and transparency is a value we’ve long adhered to. To be recognized internationally for campaigns focused on these is definitely an honor, and a feat for the many men and women of Meralco who have been toiling relentlessly for the fulfillment of these programs, despite adversities brought by the pandemic.”

Consistently showing excellence in communications, the One Meralco Group also received various citations from different award-giving bodies in the country. It recently topped pandemic response communications in the 18th Philippine Quill Awards, an awards program organized by the International Association of Business Communicators–Philippines. Its entry “Meralco Digital Press Conferences: Keeping Close with Media and Public Despite Social Distancing” was awarded

the Top Communication Award for COV ID Communicat ions.

Alongside this are 31 Excellence and Merit Awards for various programs. Meralco was also named Company of the Year 2nd Runner Up in the event, which was held via livestream due to the pandemic.

The Quill Award is bestowed to companies, organizations, and institutions for the use of excellent communication programs, research, learning and development, and skills to achieve business goals and make a difference in society.

Among Meralco’s programs that won Excellence Awards were the following internal and external programs in various categories: “Meralco Goes Green”, “Cov idComms 2020: Keeping the Lights On in the time of Pandemic”, “Laging Handa: The 2019 One Meralco Foundation Backto-School Program”, “Meralco Advisory: Informing, Educating and Equipping Customers with Knowledge through Innovative Communications”, “Meralco Adv isor y: Informing, Educating and Equipping Customers with Knowledge through Innovative Communications”, “Ensuring our Stakeholders are Informed: The 2019 Quarterly Meralco Operating and Financial Media Briefings”, “CovidComms 2020: Green Transport for Frontliners”, “Kaisa sa Kabuhayan: Aplaya Sardines Enterprise with Atimonan Fisherfolks”, “KKK Towards a Green Future”, “MVP Academic Achievement Awards 2019 “Builders of the Future”, “Meralco is Ready: Hosting of the 2019 4Q Nationwide Simultaneous Earthquake Drill”, and the “2019 Meralco Sustainability Report: Sustaining the Future”.

Meanwhile, the following internal and external programs were g iven Mer it Awa rd s i n various categories: “2019 One

Mera lco Cool-tura l Festiva l ”, “One For Trees: Engaging Employees in Sustainable Reforestation”, “Araw ng mga Lineman: Pasasalamat sa IDOL naming Lineman”, Meralco Integrated Reporting Management System: A Big Leap Towards a Safer Work Place”, “Una sa Lahat, Safety”, “Power Up Forum-Sustainability Edition”, “MakaBayad”, “Bayanihan at Malasakit: Meralco’s Taal restoration and CSR response”, “Covid Comms 2020: Enlightening the public on ECQ months bill spike issue through media engagement”, “Meralco’s revitalized renewable energy push for solar microgrids”, “Household Electrification Program”, “The Good Store: A Commitment to Sustainability”, “Meralco’s proactive supply procurement communication campaign”, “Typhoon Tisoy Response: Managing crisis communications during 2019’s strongest t y phoon”, “COV ID Comms 2020: From Farmers to Frontliners”, “No School Left in the Dark-Energizing the farthest public schools in the Philippines”, “Cov idComms 2020: Flattening the Curve by Flattening the Fear-One MER ALCO Covid-19 Online Awareness Roadshow”, and the “Meralco Liwanag Park Digital Tour”.

Another award-giving body that recognized Meralco’s excellence in communications is The Anvil Awards, an awards program annually held by the Public Relations Society of the Philippines (PRSP). Meralco and OMF received eight silver awards for their various programs in the 56th Anvil Awards, which was also held via livestream. The Anvil Awards, dubbed “the Oscars of Philippine Public Relations,” recognizes outstanding external and internal programs, campaigns, and tools that exemplify the highest standards of PR practice in the country.

sition. We need to have a long-term roadmap.

Renewables will have a big role to play, gas will have a transition

role and all of these enabling technologies will have to be factored in as they get developed over time,” he said.

B2

Companies BusinessMirror

Thursday, August 26, 2021

PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

August 25, 2021

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

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

43.5 112.8 82.9 24.1 9.21 46.25 19.14 20.5 55.3 19.6 112.9 79 1.18 4.3 2.9 0.355 0.67 212 2,450

44.5 113.5 83 24.3 9.28 46.4 19.5 20.55 56.05 20 113 79.2 1.21 4.31 3 0.36 0.7 215.8 2,598

43.95 112.7 82.85 24.3 9.27 46.4 19.1 20.45 55.9 19.6 113 78.5 1.22 4.31 3 0.35 0.66 216 2,450

43.95 113.5 83 24.4 9.4 46.45 19.1 20.7 56.05 20 113.2 79.35 1.22 4.31 3 0.36 0.7 216 2,450

43.5 111 82.2 24.1 9.21 45.85 19.1 20.45 55.2 19.6 112.8 78.5 1.21 4.31 3 0.35 0.66 212 2,450

43.5 113.5 83 24.1 9.28 46.4 19.1 20.5 56.05 19.6 113 79 1.21 4.31 3 0.36 0.7 215.8 2,450

15,100 1,260,680 751,000 20,200 562,000 1,934,900 1,000 120,000 480 53,100 287,050 109,710 89,000 5,000 27,000 260,000 80,000 240 210

658,255 142,670,814 62,278,856.50 488,800 5,221,404 89,361,570 19,100 2,468,260 26,815.50 1,044,912 32,437,248 8,679,298.50 108,040 21,550 81,000 91,150 53,600 51,438 514,500

-4,350 100,911,867 -16,909,762.50 -27,786 -35,487,975 -42,735 -7,783,445 4,099,951 465,500

INDUSTRIAL AC ENERGY 9.29 9.31 9.29 9.34 9.2 9.31 18,495,300 171,789,762 ALSONS CONS 1.18 1.2 1.2 1.21 1.17 1.21 452,000 531,930 26.1 26.15 25.25 26.15 25.2 26.1 4,875,400 125,935,350 ABOITIZ POWER 0.59 0.6 0.6 0.61 0.59 0.59 21,435,000 12,742,650 BASIC ENERGY FIRST GEN 29.3 29.35 29.05 29.35 29.05 29.3 1,110,400 32,403,560 74 74.1 74 74.65 73.95 74 278,460 20,599,649.50 FIRST PHIL HLDG 289 290 288.6 290 287.4 290 101,150 29,280,380 MERALCO MANILA WATER 18.46 18.48 18.1 18.56 18.02 18.46 2,292,700 42,156,744 3.14 3.16 3.15 3.16 3.14 3.14 483,000 1,521,400 PETRON 3.93 3.96 3.92 3.96 3.92 3.92 8,000 31,540 PETROENERGY PHX PETROLEUM 12.62 12.88 12.64 12.88 12.62 12.88 31,200 401,564 18.2 18.3 18.3 18.46 18.3 18.3 240,600 4,425,040 PILIPINAS SHELL 12.96 12.98 12.8 12.96 12.8 12.96 137,000 1,770,400 SPC POWER AGRINURTURE 5.85 5.95 6 6.07 5.8 5.95 446,100 2,629,138 2.85 2.86 2.82 2.87 2.82 2.87 72,000 204,740 AXELUM CENTURY FOOD 25.05 25.15 25.35 25.35 25 25.15 411,700 10,389,025 DEL MONTE 12.8 12.84 12.6 12.94 12.6 12.8 142,800 1,829,432 8.27 8.29 8.34 8.35 8.24 8.29 1,069,000 8,862,200 DNL INDUS 15.48 15.5 16.04 16.38 15.46 15.5 5,574,100 86,732,530 EMPERADOR SMC FOODANDBEV 78.95 79 79.7 79.9 79 79 280,010 22,146,311 0.65 0.67 0.65 0.65 0.65 0.65 27,000 17,550 ALLIANCE SELECT FRUITAS HLDG 1.18 1.19 1.19 1.2 1.17 1.18 4,894,000 5,806,120 GINEBRA 103 103.1 107.6 107.9 102.7 103.1 58,740 6,160,915 201 205 199.9 205 198 205 232,900 47,002,536 JOLLIBEE 7.6 7.98 7.69 7.98 7.69 7.98 11,400 90,682 MACAY HLDG MAXS GROUP 6.15 6.18 6.07 6.15 6.06 6.15 425,300 2,608,517 0.225 0.23 0.225 0.23 0.225 0.225 310,000 69,850 MG HLDG MONDE NISSIN 16.62 16.66 16.76 16.76 16.58 16.62 5,216,000 86,957,086 SHAKEYS PIZZA 7.71 7.72 7.8 7.81 7.7 7.71 31,000 240,326 0.88 0.9 0.88 0.91 0.88 0.88 8,525,000 7,545,610 ROXAS AND CO 1.42 1.43 1.44 1.48 1.41 1.43 33,000 47,080 ROXAS HLDG SWIFT FOODS 0.13 0.131 0.132 0.132 0.129 0.131 6,010,000 782,840 142 142.1 141.9 142 139.7 142 614,760 87,259,366 UNIV ROBINA 0.83 0.84 0.8 0.84 0.8 0.84 8,075,000 6,584,890 VITARICH CONCRETE A 51 51.45 51 51 51 51 100 5,100 1.22 1.23 1.22 1.23 1.22 1.23 511,000 624,770 CEMEX HLDG 14.32 14.38 14.8 14.8 14.4 14.4 118,600 1,741,072 EAGLE CEMENT EEI CORP 8.28 8.37 8.3 8.4 8.26 8.28 110,400 914,796 6.95 7 7 7.02 6.86 7 93,600 651,768 HOLCIM 6.2 6.21 6.22 6.22 6.19 6.21 399,500 2,480,425 MEGAWIDE PHINMA 13.82 14 13.8 14 13.8 14 21,200 295,060 0.98 1 0.98 0.98 0.98 0.98 38,000 37,240 TKC METALS VULCAN INDL 1.53 1.54 1.63 1.63 1.54 1.54 16,203,000 25,483,800 CROWN ASIA 1.7 1.72 1.7 1.7 1.7 1.7 25,000 42,500 1.79 1.83 1.79 1.84 1.78 1.83 120,000 215,180 EUROMED PRYCE CORP 5.41 5.44 5.44 5.44 5.44 5.44 6,900 37,536 CONCEPCION 21.3 21.85 21.1 21.3 21.1 21.3 10,900 231,790 2.93 2.94 3 3 2.86 2.94 5,709,000 16,785,140 GREENERGY 8.74 8.75 8.75 8.88 8.7 8.75 375,100 3,298,745 INTEGRATED MICR IONICS 0.92 0.95 0.93 0.93 0.91 0.91 59,000 54,090 5.78 6.02 6.02 6.02 6.02 6.02 900 5,418 PANASONIC SFA SEMICON 1.19 1.2 1.19 1.21 1.19 1.2 450,000 535,870 CIRTEK HLDG 4.57 4.58 4.55 4.61 4.55 4.57 1,464,000 6,709,070

74,360,362.00 5,900 -11,047,880 456,650 16,492,570 490,798 5,920,622 3,765,472 -327,720 1,098,056 2,560 -230,140 -35,255 6,390 -1,401,171 14,296,694.00 -3,728,587.50 205,500 -1,217,933 13,025,149 2,020,090 -21,985,696 -35,916 -431,150 7,050 -432,940 -7,158,298 -344,160 -109,728 175,626 218,230 231,790 4,152,690 -1,319,648 -240,920

HOLDING & FRIMS ABACORE CAPITAL 1 1.01 1.01 1.03 1.01 1.01 3,087,000 3,139,850 ASIABEST GROUP 6.07 6.35 6.45 6.45 6.02 6.08 11,200 68,837 740 741 715 741 714 741 322,160 236,943,220 AYALA CORP 40.6 41.5 40.6 41.5 40.05 41.5 455,000 18,773,845 ABOITIZ EQUITY ALLIANCE GLOBAL 10.34 10.36 10.46 10.7 10.24 10.34 3,641,300 37,607,282 4.37 4.38 4.5 4.5 4.35 4.38 2,654,000 11,659,050 AYALA LAND LOG 6.68 6.75 6.75 6.75 6.65 6.65 3,600 24,250 ANSCOR ANGLO PHIL HLDG 0.95 0.96 0.95 0.96 0.95 0.96 1,799,000 1,710,650 0.56 0.57 0.57 0.57 0.56 0.57 1,210,000 683,500 ATN HLDG A COSCO CAPITAL 4.98 5 5 5 4.98 4.98 511,000 2,550,325 DMCI HLDG 6.35 6.36 6.15 6.35 6.15 6.35 15,608,800 98,063,296 7.55 7.75 7.65 7.75 7.65 7.75 7,000 54,050 FILINVEST DEV FORUM PACIFIC 0.29 0.32 0.29 0.32 0.29 0.32 240,000 72,150 GT CAPITAL 525 528.5 529 531.5 525 525 158,810 83,932,335 3.82 3.85 3.85 3.85 3.85 3.85 3,000 11,550 HOUSE OF INV 66 67.65 65.1 67.65 64 67.65 2,538,660 168,203,439 JG SUMMIT JOLLIVILLE HLDG 5.4 5.72 5.8 5.8 5.73 5.73 6,100 35,268 0.67 0.68 0.67 0.7 0.67 0.67 247,000 166,190 LODESTAR LOPEZ HLDG 3.02 3.14 2.99 3.01 2.99 3.01 1,004,000 3,002,040 LT GROUP 9.07 9.08 9.25 9.29 9.06 9.08 8,773,100 79,905,400 1.36 1.47 1.41 1.49 1.36 1.47 28,000 39,790 MJC INVESTMENTS METRO PAC INV 3.89 3.9 3.88 3.93 3.87 3.9 16,662,000 64,984,700 PACIFICA HLDG 3.12 3.15 3.18 3.2 3.15 3.15 43,000 135,730 2.11 2.14 2.15 2.2 2.1 2.14 196,000 416,390 PRIME MEDIA 995 1,010 987 1,010 974.5 1,010 166,650 166,729,550 SM INVESTMENTS SAN MIGUEL CORP 110.9 111 110.7 111.7 110.4 111 26,910 2,984,679 133.1 137.9 133 137.9 133 137.9 130 17,780 TOP FRONTIER WELLEX INDUS 0.26 0.27 0.26 0.26 0.26 0.26 700,000 182,000 ZEUS HLDG 0.195 0.199 0.198 0.2 0.198 0.2 110,000 21,800

56,680 -26,955,110 10,092,445 -1,815,554 232,830 -1,857,931 9,386,920 -53,838,365 -11,550 128,458,830.00 -37,379,765 4,101,940 -10,700 103,353,600 -1,571,508 -130,000 -2,000

PROPERTY ARTHALAND CORP 0.66 0.67 0.67 0.67 0.66 0.66 128,000 84,840 ANCHOR LAND 7 7.59 7.2 7.2 7 7 14,100 100,040 33.7 34 33.7 34 33.55 34 7,248,100 244,866,880 AYALA LAND 1.1 1.12 1.12 1.12 1.1 1.1 21,000 23,200 ARANETA PROP AREIT RT 36.9 37 36.9 37.45 36.9 37 222,600 8,280,115 1.36 1.41 1.42 1.42 1.35 1.36 2,991,000 4,075,720 BELLE CORP 0.87 0.88 0.88 0.88 0.86 0.88 63,000 54,970 A BROWN CITYLAND DEVT 0.78 0.79 0.79 0.8 0.78 0.78 286,000 224,930 0.125 0.129 0.127 0.129 0.125 0.129 16,320,000 2,040,750 CROWN EQUITIES CEBU HLDG 6.1 6.29 6.1 6.29 6.1 6.29 2,300 14,087 CEB LANDMASTERS 3.11 3.12 3.15 3.15 3.1 3.12 929,000 2,898,000 0.435 0.445 0.445 0.45 0.43 0.445 28,320,000 12,424,750 CENTURY PROP 10.34 10.36 10.16 10.4 10.16 10.34 422,200 4,341,766 DOUBLEDRAGON DDMP RT 1.82 1.83 1.83 1.83 1.79 1.82 8,689,000 15,730,620 6.92 6.95 7 7 6.95 6.95 43,900 306,264 DM WENCESLAO EMPIRE EAST 0.28 0.285 0.285 0.285 0.28 0.285 340,000 95,800 EVER GOTESCO 0.385 0.39 0.415 0.42 0.39 0.39 37,920,000 15,229,750 7.19 7.2 7.15 7.23 7.15 7.2 2,104,900 15,150,203 FILINVEST RT 1.1 1.11 1.1 1.11 1.09 1.11 3,883,000 4,284,050 FILINVEST LAND GLOBAL ESTATE 0.85 0.9 0.87 0.87 0.85 0.86 3,833,000 3,286,710 7.11 7.44 7.21 7.21 7.2 7.2 9,600 69,169 8990 HLDG PHIL INFRADEV 1.28 1.31 1.34 1.34 1.26 1.28 317,000 408,940 CITY AND LAND 1.29 1.3 1.35 1.35 1.29 1.3 390,000 512,830 2.93 2.94 2.9 2.94 2.9 2.94 6,015,000 17,592,480 MEGAWORLD 0.305 0.31 0.315 0.32 0.305 0.31 20,740,000 6,504,400 MRC ALLIED PHIL ESTATES 0.55 0.56 0.57 0.58 0.54 0.55 12,955,000 7,163,840 1.89 1.92 1.92 1.92 1.89 1.89 119,000 225,840 PRIMEX CORP 16.82 16.84 16.9 16.9 16.62 16.84 2,454,000 41,306,532 ROBINSONS LAND PHIL REALTY 0.265 0.27 0.275 0.275 0.265 0.265 6,900,000 1,847,700 1.5 1.52 1.5 1.51 1.5 1.5 43,000 64,710 ROCKWELL SHANG PROP 2.6 2.65 2.65 2.65 2.65 2.65 26,000 68,900 STA LUCIA LAND 3 3.06 3.06 3.09 2.99 3.07 89,000 273,650 34.3 34.8 33.5 34.8 33 34.8 5,516,700 188,868,185 SM PRIME HLDG 3.7 3.81 3.81 3.81 3.7 3.7 19,000 70,890 VISTAMALLS SUNTRUST HOME 1.58 1.62 1.6 1.63 1.6 1.63 275,000 440,030 43.1 49.9 47 47 47 47 500 23,500 PTFC REDEV CORP VISTA LAND 3.5 3.53 3.48 3.53 3.45 3.53 786,000 2,762,690

SERVICES ABS CBN 10.88 10.9 10.88 11 10.86 10.9 47,100 513,672 GMA NETWORK 13.76 13.82 13.84 13.86 13.6 13.76 1,137,800 15,635,206 0.41 0.425 0.41 0.41 0.41 0.41 100,000 41,000 MANILA BULLETIN GLOBE TELECOM 2,600 2,620 2,280 2,700 2,278 2,600 617,875 1,528,963,510 PLDT 1,345 1,346 1,256 1,345 1,256 1,345 476,080 628,647,555 0.13 0.131 0.128 0.133 0.125 0.13 772,780,000 100,028,280 APOLLO GLOBAL 29.65 29.7 30 30 28.95 29.7 9,611,100 283,280,120 CONVERGE DFNN INC 3.82 3.87 3.97 3.97 3.81 3.88 830,000 3,253,950 8.18 8.19 7.8 8.18 7.8 8.18 10,093,500 80,792,701 DITO CME HLDG 1.41 1.49 1.49 1.49 1.49 1.49 5,000 7,450 IMPERIAL NOW CORP 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.05 2 2.03 4,127,000 8,355,550 0.395 0.4 0.395 0.4 0.395 0.4 2,460,000 975,550 TRANSPACIFIC BR 2.19 2.22 2.2 2.24 2.18 2.22 281,000 615,090 PHILWEB 2GO GROUP 8.08 8.21 8.22 8.22 8.22 8.22 2,100 17,262 13.9 14.1 14.1 14.1 14.1 14.1 1,000 14,100 ASIAN TERMINALS CHELSEA 2.56 2.58 2.54 2.59 2.54 2.58 323,000 827,380 CEBU AIR 43.85 43.9 44.2 44.2 43.8 43.85 219,700 9,669,780 180 180.5 178 180 178 180 455,330 81,890,869 INTL CONTAINER 16.22 16.46 16.22 16.22 16.22 16.22 5,400 87,588 LBC EXPRESS LORENZO SHIPPNG 0.94 0.99 0.94 0.94 0.94 0.94 13,000 12,220 4.8 4.82 4.74 4.85 4.74 4.82 1,505,000 7,231,290 MACROASIA 1.8 1.82 1.8 1.82 1.8 1.8 47,000 85,060 METROALLIANCE A METROALLIANCE B 1.8 2.04 1.8 1.8 1.8 1.8 1,000 1,800 1.07 1.09 1.05 1.15 1.04 1.09 973,000 1,065,210 HARBOR STAR 1.71 1.75 1.73 1.77 1.7 1.75 210,000 365,310 ACESITE HOTEL BOULEVARD HLDG 0.099 0.1 0.104 0.104 0.099 0.1 134,530,000 13,600,920 2.27 2.46 2.38 2.54 2.18 2.46 2,540,000 5,856,720 DISCOVERY WORLD 0.52 0.54 0.54 0.54 0.54 0.54 98,000 52,920 WATERFRONT IPEOPLE 7.13 7.29 7.08 7.48 7.08 7.3 53,000 390,170 0.345 0.35 0.345 0.345 0.345 0.345 170,000 58,650 STI HLDG BERJAYA 5.32 5.45 5.35 5.5 5.34 5.5 14,300 76,980 BLOOMBERRY 6.08 6.09 6.07 6.1 5.97 6.08 2,996,900 18,129,688 1.95 2.03 1.94 1.94 1.93 1.93 12,000 23,210 PACIFIC ONLINE LEISURE AND RES 1.44 1.49 1.49 1.49 1.44 1.49 1,452,000 2,153,430 MANILA JOCKEY 1.91 2.17 1.91 1.91 1.91 1.91 10,000 19,100 1.63 1.64 1.67 1.69 1.62 1.64 2,697,000 4,439,830 PH RESORTS GRP 0.41 0.415 0.41 0.415 0.41 0.41 2,920,000 1,197,350 PREMIUM LEISURE ALLHOME 8.21 8.25 7.58 8.34 7.58 8.25 3,173,000 25,616,222 1.29 1.31 1.28 1.3 1.28 1.29 1,082,000 1,397,580 METRO RETAIL 40.05 40.2 40 40.4 40 40.2 592,400 23,808,875 PUREGOLD ROBINSONS RTL 51.25 51.3 50.8 51.65 50.8 51.3 545,600 27,987,231 85.5 85.8 86 86 85.5 85.8 17,730 1,524,715 PHIL SEVEN CORP 1.11 1.12 1.1 1.14 1.1 1.12 1,574,000 1,758,840 SSI GROUP WILCON DEPOT 24.1 24.15 24.5 24.5 23.85 24.15 1,366,400 32,939,865 0.32 0.33 0.32 0.33 0.32 0.32 1,180,000 377,700 APC GROUP 5.18 5.49 5.49 5.49 5.49 5.49 5,000 27,450 EASYCALL GOLDEN MV 476 480 470.2 480 470.2 480 540 256,906 6.8 7.1 7.1 7.1 7.1 7.1 1,000 7,100 IPM HLDG PRMIERE HORIZON 1.21 1.22 1.27 1.3 1.18 1.21 37,087,000 45,342,620

MINING & OIL

ATOK 5.88 5.89 6.38 6.38 5.89 5.89 4,538,200 27,050,349 1.49 1.5 1.5 1.51 1.49 1.5 2,807,000 4,210,890 APEX MINING 6.27 6.29 6.25 6.31 6.21 6.27 937,900 5,879,849 ATLAS MINING BENGUET A 5 5.28 5.34 5.34 4.99 5.28 72,500 362,597 4.98 5.3 4.98 4.98 4.98 4.98 10,000 49,800 BENGUET B 0.29 0.295 0.3 0.3 0.29 0.295 120,000 34,950 COAL ASIA HLDG CENTURY PEAK 2.8 2.85 2.85 2.85 2.85 2.85 10,000 28,500 6.05 6.1 6.19 6.19 6.19 6.19 100 619 DIZON MINES FERRONICKEL 2.27 2.28 2.26 2.28 2.25 2.27 3,377,000 7,648,000 GEOGRACE 0.27 0.285 0.28 0.28 0.27 0.275 340,000 92,750 0.138 0.14 0.139 0.141 0.139 0.139 5,500,000 768,060 LEPANTO A LEPANTO B 0.144 0.149 0.14 0.143 0.14 0.143 18,970,000 2,657,530 MANILA MINING A 0.01 0.011 0.01 0.011 0.01 0.011 114,600,000 1,178,300 0.01 0.011 0.01 0.011 0.01 0.011 90,200,000 902,700 MANILA MINING B MARCVENTURES 0.93 0.97 0.97 0.99 0.93 0.93 315,000 298,140 NIHAO 1.25 1.26 1.25 1.27 1.25 1.26 45,000 56,480 5.55 5.56 5.55 5.63 5.51 5.55 3,705,800 20,610,417 NICKEL ASIA 0.9 0.93 0.92 0.93 0.9 0.93 640,000 583,990 ORNTL PENINSULA PX MINING 5.65 5.66 5.56 5.66 5.5 5.65 975,000 5,460,684 16.36 16.46 16.68 16.94 16.36 16.36 6,529,600 107,518,600 SEMIRARA MINING 0.0082 0.0084 0.0084 0.0084 0.0083 0.0084 23,000,000 191,200 UNITED PARAGON ACE ENEXOR 16 16.1 16.4 16.4 16 16.1 116,400 1,866,592 0.011 0.012 0.011 0.012 0.011 0.011 105,700,000 1,163,000 ORNTL PETROL A PHILODRILL 0.01 0.012 0.011 0.011 0.011 0.011 4,600,000 50,600 PXP ENERGY 6.3 6.35 6.39 6.39 6.25 6.35 699,900 4,431,917

PREFFERED HOUSE PREF A 100.2 102 102 102 102 102 20 2,040 ALCO PREF B 100.7 103.3 100.7 100.7 100.6 100.6 1,000 100,610 103.2 109 108.9 109 108.9 109 2,000 217,995 ALCO PREF C CEB PREF 43.75 43.8 43.8 44 43.8 43.8 103,700 4,549,150 CPG PREF A 102.1 102.9 101 102.9 101 102.9 4,400 451,810 100.7 100.9 100.9 100.9 100.9 100.9 76,960 7,765,264 DD PREF GTCAP PREF B 1,022 1,042 1,041 1,042 1,041 1,042 110 114,570 MWIDE PREF 100.7 101 101 101 101 101 420 42,420 106 106.8 106.8 106.8 106 106.8 4,700 498,360 PNX PREF 3B PNX PREF 4 1,003 1,006 1,003 1,003 1,003 1,003 900 902,700 PCOR PREF 3B 1,169 1,180 1,180 1,180 1,169 1,169 320 374,300 76.05 76.1 76 76.1 76 76.05 29,050 2,208,155 SMC PREF 2C SMC PREF 2F 78.6 78.65 78.6 78.65 78.6 78.65 40,020 3,146,573 SMC PREF 2I 78.9 78.95 78.9 78.9 78.9 78.9 2,850 224,865 76.25 76.5 76.2 76.4 76.2 76.4 9,290 708,358 SMC PREF 2J SMC PREF 2K 76.55 76.8 76.55 76.55 76.55 76.55 1,100 84,205

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS ABS HLDG PDR 10.38 10.5 10.5 10.5 10.5 10.5 800 8,400 GMA HLDG PDR 12.3 12.48 12.1 12.3 12.08 12.3 38,600 471,054

WARRANTS LR WARRANT 0.5 0.51 0.52 0.54 0.49 0.5 4,530,000 2,270,890 TECH WARRANT 1.85 1.86 1.89 1.97 1.82 1.85 37,321,000 70,817,750

670 -22,942,245 50,220.00 59,980 10,140 -212,950 269,400 -761,794 -5,297,910 24,300 -278,434 -1,027,960 -1,340 -7,710 928,130 215,550 -86,220 -7,570 1,356,724.00 50,350 17,991,580 -206,940 695,380,120 32,160,715 -1,788,940 -75,231,020 2,223,200 1,874,145 667,380 23,700 58,620 -1,383,995 -1,029,651 381,520 -4,790.00 -299,500 716,190 3,508,193 63,930 12,300 9,032,460 -757,740 3,108,100 -8,284,074 -94,620 2,200 6,453,280 -211,200 -94,040 -6,130,200 923,769 -664,570 438,930 19,920 28,500 -1,867,840.00 -12,510 3,602,344 254,826 -54,559,612 -36,969 -2,422,750 -42,420 - -8,400 52,282 600,000 -140,730

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES

ALTUS PROP ITALPINAS KEPWEALTH MAKATI FINANCE MERRYMART

20.6 2.03 4.13 2.41 3.71

FIRST METRO ETF

103.6

20.65 2.07 4.4 2.97 3.73

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS

104.5

19.02 2.09 4.16 2.4 3.62

21.5 2.09 4.4 2.4 3.74

19.02 2.02 4.15 2.4 3.62

20.6 2.03 4.4 2.4 3.73

568,900 145,000 39,000 9,000 4,030,000

11,681,661 295,380 167,260 21,600 14,873,800

-951,765 16,440 21,950 -160,760

101.4 103.6 101.4 103.6 11,000 1,126,096 94,412

www.businessmirror.com.ph

SEC: Regulating fintech is a delicate balancing act

By VG Cabuag

T

@villygc

he Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said it is mandated to protect the investing public from possible risks brought about by innovations, such as financial technology (fintech).

At the same time, SEC Commissioner Kelvin Lester K. Lee said the agency understands that fintech and innovation play an important role in the country’s economy as the pandemic highlighted the importance of financial services.

“We have witnessed the greater importance of fintech in its role in

allowing access to financial services despite restrictions on our movements,” he told regulators during the webinar on “Fintech Beyond Covid-19: What Next?” during the 15th Regional Leadership Program for Securities Regulators.

As supervising commissioner of the SEC’s Philifintech Innovation

Office, Lee said the Philippines is primed for fintech innovation.

Based on the 2021 Technology and Innovation Report of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, it ranked the Philippines 44th out of 158 counties for readiness for frontier technologies and second for information and communications technology deployment, skills, research and development, industry activity and access to finance.

“So, fintech clearly is important for the Philippines. But of course, to effectively implement and roll out fintech innovations in a particular jurisdiction, we need to discuss the role of the regulators,” Lee said.

“It’s a delicate balancing act. On the one hand, as regulators we don’t want to stifle innovation; in fact, we want to encourage growth. But on the other hand, we need to be aware of the risks, some of which are very

uncertain at this point, that may arise by allowing new innovations to operate.”

Lee said regulating the fintech sector is challenging as it entails foreseeing the risks and making room for them to encourage innovation.

“And it’s with all that in mind that we at the SEC, when we have to approach fintech and other digital innovations, we have to approach it very carefully,” he said.

In regulating fintech in the Philippines, the SEC will adhere to the principle that “no one size fits all;” adopt an activity-based rather than an entity-based approach; implement principles-based regulations rather than specific rules; and remain technology neutral, he said.

“Our aim is that through our innovation office, we can regularly touch base with our stakeholders, and we get to learn from each other.”

‘Foreign investments key to going nuclear’

By Lenie Lectura @llectura

I

nvestments from foreign players who are willing to do business in the Philippines will push the country to embrace nuclear energy, a top official of AC Energy said on Wednesday.

“I think the best bet in terms of potential strategy for the Philippines is to get foreign investors because they are the ones, especially the incumbents, who have experience in terms of investing in nuclear,” said AC Energy President Eric Francia during a forum titled “Energy’s Sustainable Future in Renewables and Nuclear.”

“The hurdle they have to address is doing business in the Philippines, the market condition and so forth.

But I’d be curious to hear what international investors in nuclear are saying about entering the Philippines.”

The Philippine Energy Plan already projects the inclusion of nuclear power in the country’s energy mix by 2030. The Energy Program Inter-Agency Committee will conduct a study on the country’s adoption of a national position on a Nuclear Energy Program.

Carlo Arcilla, Director of the Philippine Nuclear Institute, said there should be a national position, signed

by President Duterte, declaring that the country is ready to adopt nuclear energy. “Without that signature, we will not go anywhere.”

Francia observed that industry stakeholders are hesitant to pursue nuclear energy citing risks

involved in operating a nuclear power facility. “The deal breaker, critical issue is risk management. It’s that ‘what if ’ scenario.

If something goes wrong, it could be catastrophic not only in the community where the nuclear plant is but also to the corporate sponsor. That’s the fear. It’s the risk management factor.

Whereas with coal or gas, if something goes wrong, the worst-case scenario arguably is management or is less severe than nuclear. So that stigma or fear, or risk, is something corporates are concerned about,” said Francia.

For Arcilla, it would be “irresponsible” to not even consider nuclear even if it’s just a possibility. “If we don’t consider nuclear in the equation and we take coal out there’s just no way that you can escape fact that electricity prices will increase because we have to import the replacement for Malampaya gas.”

Nuclear energy prices, he added, could be “about half” of existing electricity rates.

Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi has stressed the potential contribution of nuclear energy in efforts to accelerate the attainment of a secure and sustainable energy future for the Philippines.

“It is high time that the feasibility of safely utilizing nuclear energy to meet our energy requirements be considered,” Cusi said. “We might be at par with our more developed regional neighbors like South Korea,

which took advantage of developing its own national nuclear energy program despite the economic challenges it was facing at that time.”

In December last year, the DOE -cha ired Nuc lear Energ y

Program Inter-Agency Committee (NEP-IAC) submitted to the Office of the President its initial report endorsing the adoption of a National Position for a Nuclear Energy Program.

mutual funds

August 25, 2021

NAV

One Year Three Year Five Year

per share

Return*

Y-T-D Return

Stock Funds ALFM Growth Fund, Inc. -a

215.69

10.14%

-6.58%

-4.48%

-5.07%

ATRAM Alpha Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a

1.4815

45.34%

-0.39%

1.01%

12.83%

13.58%

-10.66%

-7.44%

-5.13%

-7.46% n.a.

-8.42%

ATRAM Philippine Equity Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 2.9724

Climbs Share Capital Equity Investment Fund Corp. -a 0.7362 8.79% First Metro Consumer Fund on MSCI Phils. IMI, Inc. -a 0.7478 8.47%

-4.92% n.a.

0.84%

First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund,Inc. -a

-4.29%

-2.7%

-3.11%

9.23%

4.7874

13.49%

First Metro Save and Learn Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,4 0.7196

-6.41%

-6.39%

-5.42% n.a.

-4.63%

12.2%

-5.14%

-3.46%

-6.05%

9.73%

-4.71%

-3.78%

-5.14%

MBG Equity Investment Fund, Inc. -a

97.22

24.39%

PAMI Equity Index Fund, Inc. -a

44.0123

Philam Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a

463.87

Philequity Alpha One Fund, Inc. -a,d,5

1.0677

20.81% n.a. n.a.

Philequity Dividend Yield Fund, Inc. -a

1.1461

14.47%

-4.26%

-2.66%

Philequity Fund, Inc. -a

33.4456

13.86%

-4.4%

-2.7% -1.89%

-2.35%

-3.81%

10.83% n.a. n.a.

-5.71%

4.5249

13.01%

-4.49%

-2.71%

-5.56%

755.75

12.91%

-4.46%

-2.87%

Philequity MSCI Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a

0.8609

Philequity PSE Index Fund Inc. -a Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a Soldivo Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a

0.6889

14.57%

-8.16%

-5.81%

-4.17%

Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Equity Fund, Inc. -a 3.4906

12.38%

-6.34%

-3.88%

-3.68%

Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Stock Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.8631 12.53%

-4.79%

-3.02%

-5.95%

United Fund, Inc. -a

-4.81%

-2.05%

-4.82%

-4.28%

-2.35%

3.159

12.79%

-5.29%

-5.73%

Exchange Traded Fund First Metro Phil. Equity Exchange Traded Fund, Inc. -a,c

101.4681

12.89%

-5.66%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities $1.1589

10.63%

4.05%

5.23%

-3.66%

Sun Life Prosperity World Voyager Fund, Inc. -a $1.8148

ATRAM AsiaPlus Equity Fund, Inc. -b

20.34%

12.15%

11.55%

8.49%

-0.9%

Balanced Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ATRAM Dynamic Allocation Fund, Inc. -a

1.6536

5.15%

-1.01%

-2.07%

ATRAM Philippine Balanced Fund, Inc. -a

2.1734

5.79%

-2%

-1.89%

-4.9%

First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund Inc. -a 2.5608

6.68%

-0.82%

-0.82%

-2.52%

First Metro Save and Learn F.O.C.C.U.S. Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a,1 0.188

2.56% n.a. n.a.

NCM Mutual Fund of the Phils., Inc. -a

5.55%

0.85%

-0.05%

-1.69%

1.9309

PAMI Horizon Fund, Inc. -a

3.6273

4.11%

-0.29%

-1.33%

-4.24%

Philam Fund, Inc. -a

16.2515

4.78%

-0.15%

-1.3%

-4.05%

Solidaritas Fund, Inc. -a

2.0268

6.34%

-1.42%

-0.95%

-3.21%

Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 3.4945 7.25%

-2.47%

-2.05%

-2.2%

Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2028, Inc. -a,d 0.9723

3.81% n.a. n.a.

-4.92%

Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2038, Inc. -a,d 0.8838

5.57% n.a. n.a.

-6.89%

Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2048, Inc. -a,d 0.8689

7.34% n.a. n.a.

-6.88%

Sun Life Prosperity Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a

8.82%

-1.35%

0.8757

-3.12%

-2.41%

-5.34%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Cocolife Dollar Fund Builder, Inc. -a

$0.03846

-2.11%

2.89%

1.21%

PAMI Asia Balanced Fund, Inc. -b

$1.0777

3.99%

2.78%

2.81%

-1.69% -6.3%

Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Advantage Fund, Inc. -a $4.7641 15.25%

9.26%

8.08%

5.57%

Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Wellspring Fund, Inc. -a,3 $1.2212 6.93%

5.36%

4.27%

1.59%

Bond Funds

Holcim wants to hasten sustainability initiatives

C

ement firm Holcim Philippines Inc. has appointed two officers who will handle the company’s sustainability and environment initiatives.

The company appointed Zoe Sibala as senior vice president for sustainability. It also expanded the role of Richard Cruz, the company’s current vice president for health, safety and security, to include the environment portfolio.

“Having senior leaders focused on these will help us achieve our goal of leading the building materials industry in resource efficiency, environmental stewardship, health and safety, and corporate social responsibility. We are confident that Zoe and Richard will further fast-track sus-

tainability initiatives so we can be a stronger partner of the Philippines in building progress,” Horia Adrian, the company’s president and CEO, said.

As head of strategy since 2017, Sibala helped craft Holcim to expand its business amid a more competitive market environment. She held leadership roles in finance, strategy and business development in legacy Lafarge Philippines’ aggregates unit, which was acquired by Holcim in 2015.

Cruz, meanwhile, was appointed to his current post in 2018.

He joined Holcim’s waste management unit Geocycle as laboratory engineer in 2008 and helped it attain Integrated Management System certifications on quality and environment. VG Cabuag

Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a

372.69

1.17%

3.05%

2.4%

0.44%

ATRAM Corporate Bond Fund, Inc. -a

1.9253

-1.25%

1.11%

0.18%

1.32%

Cocolife Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a

3.2376

1.22%

3.52%

4.27%

0.71%

Ekklesia Mutual Fund Inc. -a

2.2604

-2.37%

2.1%

1.18%

-1.55% -0.57%

First Metro Save and Learn Fixed Income Fund,Inc. -a 2.4391 -0.86%

3.2%

1.65%

Philam Bond Fund, Inc. -a

4.4764

-5.03%

4.22%

1.08%

-3.41%

Philam Managed Income Fund, Inc. -a,6

1.3177

0.5%

3.95%

2.67%

-0.26%

Philequity Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a

3.9798

0.52%

4.65%

1.91%

-0.53%

Soldivo Bond Fund, Inc. -a

1.037

-0.69%

4.72%

1.54%

-0.48%

Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.216

0.67%

5.05%

2.28%

0.31%

Sun Life Prosperity GS Fund, Inc. -a

-0.3%

4.39%

1.59%

-0.3%

1.7498

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a

$487.81

1.9%

3.15%

2.09%

0.81%

ALFM Euro Bond Fund, Inc. -a

Є220.59

1.6%

1.07%

0.82%

0.64%

ATRAM Total Return Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -b $1.2065

-5.77%

-2.72%

2.56%

1.4%

First Metro Save and Learn Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $0.0262 -1.13%

1.85%

0.86%

-1.5%

PAMI Global Bond Fund, Inc -b

$1.0545

-3.36%

0.47%

-1.12%

-3.5%

Philam Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a

$2.5315

0.83%

5.14%

1.9%

-0.16%

Philequity Dollar Income Fund Inc. -a $0.0630986 3.4%

3.56%

2.08%

1.25%

Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Abundance Fund, Inc. -a $3.2051 -0.95%

3.29%

0.72%

-0.57%

Money Market Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a

130.54

1.33%

2.97%

2.53%

0.56%

First Metro Save and Learn Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.0545 1.08% n.a. n.a.

Sun Life Prosperity Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.3083

1.55%

2.79%

2.55%

0.61% 0.9%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Starter Fund, Inc. -a $1.0583

1.02%

1.61% n.a.

0.56%

Feeder Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities Sun Life Prosperity World Equity Index Feeder Fund, Inc. -a,d,7 1.3291

30.37% n.a. n.a.

17.66%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund Inc. -b,d,2

$0.99

4.21% n.a. n.a.

1.02%

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

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

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

6 - Re-classified into a Bond Fund starting February 21, 2020 (Formerly a Money Market Fund).

7 - Launch date is July 6, 2020.

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

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Banking&Finance

Bill exempting medical goods from taxes OK’d

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz @joveemarie

T

HE House of Representatives on Wednesday approved on second reading a bill exempting critical medical supplies, including medical oxygen, from taxes.

Through viva voce voting, lawmakers passed House Bill (HB) 8895 or the proposed Public Health Emergency Importation Tax Exemption Act, which exempts critical medical products, essential goods, equipment, input and raw materials necessary during public health emergencies from value-added tax (VAT), import duties and other government fees and by private firms, government instrumentalities and local and national governments.

HB 8895 seeks to ensure and protect the health and safety of the people by adopting mechanisms that would enhance the State’s capacity to address threats to the health security of the citizenry.

The bill is expected to be approved on third and final reading next week.

The bill mandates the Secretary of Health and Secretary of Finance to draw up the list of goods subject to exemption. The exemptions will require the declaration of a public health emergency by the President

after December 2023, but will be in effect until then.

Critical medical products refer to vaccines and other necessary medicines to contain public health emergencies.

Essential goods refer to personal protective equipment (PPE) such as: gloves, gowns, masks, goggles and face shields; surgical equipment and supplies; laboratory equipment and its reagents; medical equipment and devices; support and maintenance for laboratory and medical equipment, surgical equipment and supplies; medical supplies, tools, and consumables such as alcohols, sanitizers, tissue papers, thermometers, hand soaps, detergents, sodium hypochlorite, cleaning materials, povidone iodine; testing kits; and, such other supplies or equipment as may be determined by the Department of Health and other relevant government agencies.

The bill said the Secretary of Finance, upon the recommendation of the Secretary of Health and the Secretary of Trade and Industry, may also suspend the threshold on required export sales for availment of privileges under Title XIII of the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997, to allow manufacturers to sell to the domestic market.

NPC bans online lending apps for privacy violation

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad @Tyronepiad

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HE National Privacy Commission (NPC) has ordered the shutdown of four online lending apps (OLAs)—JuanHand, Pesopop, CashJeep and Lemon Loan—due to privacy violations.

In a statement on Wednesday, the NPC said it has launched an investigation into the said OLAs amid complaints of unauthorized use of personal data, resulting in harassment and shaming of borrowers.

The ban imposed on the lending apps shall remain in effect until lifted by the NPC. The privacy watchdog said the apps gained access to the borrowers’ personal information through their mobile devices, including contacts and social media data. The NPC described this as “excessive,” as the OLA operators may “weaponize” the information to “harass and shame delinquent borrowers before persons in their mobile devices’ contact list to collect debts.” “ These online lending apps raised many red flags and the companies operating these apps demonstrate problematic data actions that expose borrowers to serious privacy risks and harms,” Privacy Commissioner Raymund E. Liboro said.

The findings by the Complaints and Investigation Division of the NPC revealed that the OLAs violated the principles of transparency, legitimate purpose and proportionality in the Data Privacy Act of 2012 and the NPC issuance on the Processing

of Personal Data for Loan-Related Transactions.

“Companies operating these apps were provided the opportunity to reply to NPC’s findings, but two of the apps did not file position papers, while the other two failed to convince the Commission why it should not impose the ban,” the privacy watchdog said.

The NPC is also looking into possible criminal liabilities of the OLA operators’ directors, officers and agents.

The privacy agency instructed in four separate orders the Wefund Lending Corp. (JuanHand), Joywin Lending Investor Inc. (Lemon Loan), Cash8 Lending Corp. (CashJeep) and Populus Lending Corp. (Pesopop) to stop processing of borrowers’ personal data.

The NPC informed the National Telecommunications Commission and the Goggle Llc. to take down the erring OLAs. Currently, the privacy watchdog said it is studying and investigating over 200 OLAs available for downloads.

NPC has been cracking down on OLAs, issuing a ban against 26 lending apps in 2019 for failing to respond to allegations lodged against them, including use of personal data to shame delinquent borrowers.

These are no longer publicly available for download, installation or use, NPC said.

Citing Google statistics, NPC noted that JuanHand has downloads of over a million; Lemon Loan and Pesopop, over half-a-million; and, CashJeep, more than a hundred thousand.

BusinessMirror

Editor: Dennis D. Estopace • Thursday, August 26, 2021

B3

COA voids billions of pesos of textile firms’ tax credits

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By Bernadette D. Nicolas

@BNicolasBM

HE Commission on Audit (COA) has so far invalidated almost P1.6 billion in tax credits that were found to have been illegally secured by six textile firms from 2008 to 2014.

The Department of Finance (DOF) said on Wednesday that the tax credit certificates issued to these textile firms came from the One-Stop Shop Inter-Agency Tax Credit and Duty Drawback Center (OSS). Created via Administrative Order 266 by then-President Corazon Aquino, the center is headed by the DOF. These companies include CapitalRoll Knit Corp. (CRC), Uni-Glory’s Knitting Corp. (UKC), Primeknit

Manufacturing Corp. (PMC), TaiCheng Integrated Resource Inc. (TICIRI), Miskhu Industrial Corp.

(MIC) and Universal Pacific Knitting Mills Inc. (UPKM).

Based on a June 22, 2021, letter sent by the COA-Special Audits Office (COA-SAO) to the DOF, the disallowed TCCs to the textile firms have already amounted to P1.58 billion.

The amount includes the new set of Notices of Disallowances (NDs) that

were issued by the COA in the second quarter for P389.27 million in TCCs. As of the first quarter of the year, the COA-SAO reported that NDs were issued to these textile firms for having secured P1.195 billion in illegal TCCs. The latest set of NDs covered TCCs that were issued mostly between 2010 and 2014, according to the letter sent by COA-Director Gloria Silverio.

The textile firm which received the largest amount of illegal TCCs so far is the CRC with P664.92 million.

This was followed by UKC (P241.68 million), PMC (P214.31 million), TICIRI (P198.81 million), MIC (P136.98 million), and UPKM, Inc. (P127.81 million).

Of the newly disallowed TCCs by these textile firms, the bulk was in the CRC at P97.72 million, followed by the UKC (P70.88 million), the PMC (P60.04 million), the Ticiri (P57.54 million), the MIC (P56.87 million) and the UPKM Inc. (P46.2 million).

COA holds lieable several past officials and employees of the DOF, the Board of Investments, the Bureau of Customs and the OSS who were responsible for processing and approving the illegal TCCs between 2008 and 2014, as well as the recipients and claimants from the six companies.

Approved applications meant tax credits on the duties and taxes that exporters supposedly paid. They could then use the amount to pay other tax liabilities due the government. The practice of these alleged exporters who illegally obtained TCCs was to sell the certificates to other companies at a discount. The latter would then use the TCCs to pay their own tax liabilities.

The COA found that the OSS issued TCCs to either ghost exporters or real companies that were not in the export trade or did not deserve the tax credits issued to them, such as these six textile companies.

Ice-delivery man’s life-earnings eaten by termites

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ERMITES feasted on his life savings.

Adonis Buemia, 70, has been delivering ice for a living for 30 years. Despite being a solo parent and a primary caregiver to a special child, his hard work paid off: he was able to buy a house and a brand-new tricycle.

Buemia also made sure he had savings. From his 300-peso daily income, Buemia saved P100 or a third of his daily income for savings; tucking away the money inside a cabinet in his home.

However, his savings almost disintegrated in the cabinet after termites gobbled the wooden cabinet and, eventually, the cash stored inside. Desperate to save his hard-earned cash, Buemia commented on the Facebook account of a program in a local TV station for help.

In turn, the program referred his case to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

The BSP confirmed on Wednesday that it recently facilitated the replacement of nearly P50,000worth of hard-earned yet termite-

mutilated savings of Buemia.

The BSP Currency Policy and Integrity Department (CPID) immediately pre-evaluated what was left of the termite-infested bills. BSP Acting Deputy Director Nenette E. Malabrigo contacted the bank nearest Buemia’s residence and endorsed the mutilated cash for replacement.

The BSP reported that Buemia received the replacement of his cash savings last August 11.

“Masayang-masaya talaga ako at napaliltan na at naibalik nang buo ang ipon ko. Maraming salamat sa bangko na tinanggap nila ’yong pera.

At maraming salamat sa Bangko

Sentral sa lahat ng tulong para mapalitan ’yong pera ko,” Buemia said.

[I was really happy and I was able to recover and get my savings back in full. Many thanks to the bank that accepted the money and to the Central Bank for all the help to change my money.]

The BSP said that while they do replace dilapidated bills upon evaluation, Buemia’s story should encourage people to open up their own bank accounts.

“To avoid damage caused by termites, water, and other elements, the BSP encourages the public to keep their savings in BSP-supervised fi-

nancial institutions where they will be safe and secure,” the BSP said in a statement.

The BSP earlier issued a circular, which aims to enable Filipinos to facilitate payments and save money with ease, accessibility, and convenience, through the Basic Deposit Account (BDA).

BDAs are affordable, no frills and easy to open that even those without valid IDs can apply using alternative documents or via the apps of selected banks. These deposit accounts only require an opening deposit amount of P100 or less and have no maintaining balance nor dormancy charges, but may earn interest for depositors.

For replacement of dilapidated bills, BSP’s regulations are as follows: the size of the remaining bill should be 60 percent or 3/5th of the original size of the bill; a portion of any of the two facsimile signatures must still be seen or observed; and, the windowed security thread must remain intact unless otherwise caused by fire, insect and any form of unintentional mutilation.

Bianca Cuaresma

PDIC to sell residential units, lots via e-bidding

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HE Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. (PDIC) announced it will sell five condominium units and 27 residential lots through an electronic public bidding (public e-bidding) at https://assetsforsale.pdic.gov.ph on September 24.

To be sold on an “as-is, where is” basis, the properties with an aggregate minimum disposal price of P54.1 million, are situated in Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, Pangasinan and Quezon. These include 19 residential lots, eight residential lots with improvements, a commercial condominium unit

and four residential condominium units located in Isabelle Mansion, Edison Avenue, Sun Valley, Parañaque City.

A one-time registration on the PDIC e-bidding portal is required to enable interested buyers to participate in the e-biddings.

Online bids shall be accepted by the PDIC Real and Other Properties Acquired (ROPA) Disposal Committee only from direct buyers who registered in the e-bidding portal. Online bids may be placed between 9:00 a.m. of September 23 and 1:00 p.m. of September

24, 2021. The e-bidding portal may also be accessed by clicking the “Assets for Sale” icon in the PDIC website homepage at www. pdic.gov.ph.

The complete list and description of the properties, requirements, e-bidding process and Conditions of Bid are posted on the e-bidding portal. The standard format of the Special Power of Attorney and Secretary’s Certificate, which are required for participants who are submitting bids on behalf of another individual or an organization, respectively, may be downloaded from the PDIC

e-bidding portal.

The PDIC, as liquidator of closed banks, disposes of various assets through public biddings and negotiated sale. Proceeds from the liquidation of closed banks’ properties are added to the pool of liquid assets of these banks for distribution to uninsured depositors and other creditors in accordance with the rules on concurrence and preference of credits. The disposal of these assets increases the chances of uninsured depositors and creditors to recover their trapped funds.

Unemployment benefits released by SSS in 1st half up by 407% to ₧732.15M

T

HE Social Security System (SSS) announced it released P732.15 million in unemployment benefit disbursements to 54,282 members from January to June 2021, higher by 407 percent from the same period of last year.

Number of member-beneficiaries also rose from 11,917 to 54,282 by 355 percent.

SSS President and Chief Executive Officer Aurora C. Ignacio said that the steep jump of benefit releases is associated with the increase in members’ awareness on the availability of the said benefit for those who were involuntarily

separated from work mainly due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We’re glad that this program was able to assist our workers in the private sector especially during these times that majority were left jobless due to the pandemic,” Ignacio was quoted in a statement as saying. “Aside from that, the safety and convenience of our online services and checkless disbursements helped our qualified members to get their benefits on time which really served their purpose.”

The Unemployment Benefit is one of the landmark provisions of Republic Act 11199 or Social Se-

curity Act of 2018 effective March 5, 2019. Qualified are covered employees, including kasambahay (household helpers) and Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who were involuntarily separated from employment due to economic downturn, natural or human-induced calamities/disasters, installation of labor-saving devices; redundancy; retrenchment or downsizing; closure or cessation of operation; and disease or illness of the employee whose continued employment is prohibited by law or is prejudicial to his or her coemployees’ health.

Moreover, members must not be more than 60 years old at the time of involuntary separation. In the case of underground or surface mineworkers and racehorse jockeys, they should not be more than 50 years old and 55 years old, respectively. Members must have also paid at least 36 monthly contributions, 12 months of which should have been paid within the 18-month period before the involuntary separation.

Qualified members will receive a monthly cash benefit, which is equivalent to 50 percent of member’s average monthly sa lar y

credit (AMSC) for a maximum of two months. For example, member-applicant with an AMSC of P16,000 will receive a 2-month unemployment benefits worth P16,000 (P8,000 for each month).

Benefit claim should be filed within one year from the date of member’s involuntary separation.

However, if the one year deadline for filing falls on March 5, 2020, up until the last day of enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) and/or general community quarantine (GCQ), the involuntary separated member may still file their claims until 60 days from the declaration

of the government of the end or the last day of the ECQ/GCQ. The step-by-step guide for the online submission of the unemployment benefit claim application can be accessed through the Facebook account of the SSS. Ignacio also reminded its members to register online at the pension fund manager’s website to create their own SSS accounts for the enrollment of disbursement account via the disbursement account enrollment module before the online submission of unemployment benefit claim application.

Envoys&Expats BusinessMirror

B4

Thursday, August 26, 2021

www.businessmirror.com.ph

47TH YEAR OF bilateral RELATIONS

PHL, UAE set space cooperation in motion

A

BU DHABI—The Philippines and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will venture into new horizons together, as both marked the 47th anniversary of the establishment of their diplomatic relations.

Initiated by the Philippine Embassy in Abu Dhabi through the Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) and the UAE Space Agency (UAESA), the two countries recently embarked on a space collaboration on August 19.

PhilSA Director General Dr. Joel Marciano Jr. and UAESA Executive Director Ibrahim Al Qasim lauded the Philippine Embassy’s efforts to bring together the two space agencies, as well as discussed practical

ways the Philippines and the UAE can move forward with space cooperation. Linkages on space-technology applications for identified priority areas such as food security, hazard management and climate studies were discussed.

The two sides also considered exchanges of experiences on the respective space programs between Filipino and Emirati scientists.

PhilSA and UAESA also commit-

Sputnik Light vaccine okayed for use in PHL

M

OSCOW—The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), Russia’s sovereign wealth fund, announced on Monday that the single-component Sputnik Light vaccine against the coronavirus has been approved under the emergency use authorization (EUA) by the Philippines’s Food and Drug Administration.

Based on human adenovirus serotype 26, the Sputnik Light vaccine is the first component of the Sputnik V vaccine, which is seen by the Russian Federation to help significantly reduce infection rates in the Philippines and establish herd immunity in the latter in a short period of time.

Said vaccine is safe and highly effective as demonstrated by realworld vaccination data in a number of countries. In particular, data from Argentina’s Ministry of Health yielded 78.6 to 83.7-percent efficacy among the elderly. Meanwhile, it is 93.5-percent effective in Paraguay’s ongoing vaccination campaign.

In March 2021 the two-dose Sputnik V vaccine was approved in the Philippines under EUA. The jab has been authorized in 69 countries covering a total population of more than 3.7 billion people to date.

Based on its safety and efficacy, the single-component Sputnik Light vaccine is now both used on a standalone basis, and also studied in combination with counterparts from other producers in a number of countries. The heterogeneous boosting approach, or “vaccine cocktail” using human adenovirus serotype 26 as the first component and human adenovirus serotype 5 as the second component, was at the core of Sputnik V—the world’s first registered vaccine versus the coronavirus.

With this successful approach in creating a longer and more durable immunity against the coronavirus, RDIF took the lead in initiating partnerships with other vaccine producers to conduct joint studies with a combination of the first component of Sputnik V with foreign vaccines.

Studies on the combination of Sputnik Light with other vaccines are ongoing in Argentina, Azerbaijan, and the United Arab Emirates.

They have been approved in Russia and Belarus.

RDIF CEO Kirill Dmitriev said, “The approval of Sputnik Light by...regulatory authorities of the Philippines allows for expanding [its national vaccine portfolio by adding another Russian variant, which has demonstrated safety and high efficacy in many countries. A single-shot Sputnik Light has efficacy higher than that of many foreign two-dose vaccines, and enables the vaccination of] more people in a shorter time frame.”

Other key advantages of Sputnik Light, according to the RDIF and the Embassy of the Russian Federation in the Philippines, are as follows: n It has been proven effective against all new strains of the coronavirus, as demonstrated by the Gamaleya Center during laboratory tests. n The vaccine is compatible with standard storage and logistics requirements. n It is based on a well-studied human adenoviral vector platform proven safe and effective with no long-term side effects, as confirmed in more than 250 clinical trials conducted globally in the past two decades, while the history of human adenoviruses use in vaccine development started in 1953. (Related story,

August 24, 2021: FDA okays EUA for Russian single-dose vax Sputnik Light)

ted to work together toward signing a memorandum of understanding this October to conduct a face-toface meeting in Dubai, which will coincide with the 72nd International Astronautical Congress (IAC), with UAE as host.

“What better way to commemorate the 47th year...of the establishment of [our nations’] diplomatic relations than by getting our two space agencies to meet and see what our shared aspirations can achieve together,” Ambassador Hjayceelyn M. Quintana said in her remarks at the UAESA Headquarters in Masdar City. “Let us make this...a milestone in our relations. By forging this path of space cooperation, the Philippines and the UAE are charting a new frontier in our bilateral relations which, like space, will be of limitless possibilities.”

KCC, PKCI, bring ‘Happy Hallyu Day 5: A Virtual Fest’

AMBASSADOR Hjayceelyn M. Quintana (left) and UAE Space Agency’s Ibrahim Al Qasim ABU DHABI PE

Reimagining a more resilient UN system–with Taiwan in it

By Jaushieh Joseph Wu Minister of Foreign Affairs, Republic of China (Taiwan)

A

FTER more than 200 million infections, and over 4 million deaths and counting, the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic has raged across the globe. This has created a profoundly devastating socioeconomic impact on our interconnected world, with virtually no countries spared.

The pandemic has disrupted global trade, exacerbated poverty, impeded education and compromised gender equality, as middle- to low-income nations continue to bear the brunt of the burden.

As many countries brace for another spike prompted by the highly contagious Delta variant, the world looks up to the United Nations (UN) to ramp up comprehensive efforts to resolve the crisis, ensure better recovery, and rebuild sustainably.

This is a daunting task that requires all hands on deck. It is time for the global body to welcome Taiwan—a valuable and worthy partner that stands ready to lend a helping hand.

In the last few months, Taiwan, like many other countries, has been dealing with a surge of Covid-19 cases after almost a year of success in containing the virus. Yet, it got a handle on the situation and emerged even more ready to work with allies and partners to tackle the challenges posed by the pandemic. Its effective response to the contagion, rapid capacity expansion to meet global supply-chain demand, and substantive assistance toward partner countries around the world, all speak to the fact that there is no lack of compelling reasons for Taiwan to play a constructive role in the UN system.

Achieving the SDGs

HOWEVER, under pressure from the People’s Republic of China (PROC), the UN and its specialized agencies continue to reject Taiwan, citing the

WU

1971 UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 (XXVI) as a legal basis for this exclusion. But the language of the resolution is crystal clear: It merely addresses the issue of China’s representation in the UN; there is no mention of Chinese claim of sovereignty over Taiwan, nor does it authorize the PROC to represent Taiwan in the UN system.

Fact is, the PROC has never governed Taiwan. This is the reality and status quo across the two sides of the Taiwan Strait. The Taiwanese people can only be represented on the international stage by their popularly elected government. By falsely equating the language of the resolution with Beijing’s “One China Principle,” the PROC is arbitrarily imposing its political views on the UN. The absurdity doesn’t end there.

This exclusion also obstructs the participation of Taiwan’s civil society. Taiwanese passport holders are denied access to UN premises for tours and meetings, while journalists cannot obtain accreditation to cover UN events. The only reason for this discriminatory treatment is their nationality. Barring members of Taiwan’s civil society from the UN defeats the ideal of multilateralism, contravenes the UN’s founding principles of promoting respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, as well as hampers the UN’s overall efforts.

For six decades Taiwan has been providing assistance to partnercountries around the world. Since the adoption of the UN 2030 Agenda, it has focused on helping them achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and, more recently, engage

in antipandemic response and postpandemic recovery. Meanwhile, at home, Taiwan has fulfilled its SDGs in gender equality, clean water and sanitation, as well as good health and well-being, among others. Our innovative, community-based solutions harness public-private partnerships for the benefit of society as a whole.

Moral, material losses

THE World Happiness Report 2021, released by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network, ranked Taiwan as the happiest in East Asia, and 24th in the world. The ranking indicates how the people of a country feel about the social support they receive, and reflects in large part a country’s implementation of the SDGs. Taiwan is willing to pass on its experience, and work with global partners to build a better and more resilient future for all.

At a time when the world is sounding the clarion call for climate actions and to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, Taiwan is actively charting a roadmap toward the goal, and has drafted dedicated legislation to facilitate this process.

Climate change knows no borders, and concerted efforts are a must if we want a sustainable future. Taiwan knows this, and is working on the best ways to turn the challenges of carbon reduction into new opportunities.

In his oath of office in June this year, UN Secretary-General António Guterres pointed out that the health emergency has revealed our shared vulnerabilities and interconnectedness. He said the UN, as well as the states and people it serves, can only benefit from bringing others to the table.

Denying partners that have the ability to contribute is a moral and material loss to the world as we seek to recover better together. Taiwan is a force for good. Now is the time to bring Taiwan to the table, and let Taiwan help.

GPCCI encourages sustainability thru wastewater upgrade for SMEs

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HE Ger m a n-Ph i l ippi ne Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GPCCI), in cooperation with the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines Foundation Inc., Global Compact Network Phils., as well as the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), held the Wastewater Compliance Workshop Series for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) nationwide from July 5 to August 4.

“We are pleased that we [were able

to provide this platform of exchange, which allowed] almost 800 Philippine companies to address their environmental impacts,” GPCCI President Stefan Schmitz remarked. “Given that the country is often struck by the effects of climate change and particularly with the issue of water shortage, companies have to establish a business case...mindful of the environment and aligns with the resources that we have.”

The month-long workshop series, which consisted of six events, aimed at addressing local SMEs’ compliance

with the Water Quality Guidelines and General Effluent Standards of 2016 (Administrative Order 201608), as well as the updated standards of DENR Administrative Order 2021-19.

The training series also tackled different aspects of a system upgrade: from understanding the effluent standards and wastewater regulations, to technical approaches by industry, financing aspects, and communicating achievements to stakeholders through sustainability reporting. The German Federal

Ministry of the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety funded the project.

Ambassador Anke Reiffenstuel stated: “Germany has recently passed the Supply Chain Due Diligence Act, where German companies employing more than 3,000 employees will be held responsible for their entire supply-chain networks starting...2023.”

The envoy shared this new law’s relevance to the country: “Concerning bilateral business relations, this will affect business partners in the

Philippines because it encompasses all business sectors. Hence, it is timely for stakeholders to learn about wastewater upgrades, and [the ways to report] the achievements of implementing these upgrades successfully.”

Building on the success of the event series, GPCCI will hold a virtual business mission in November with German solution providers in the water and wastewater management sector who are looking forward to meet local business partners for their market entry.

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APPY Hallyu Day (HHD)” is turning 5 soon, and everyone is invited to a virtual fest on August 28 and 29, both at 7 p.m. on the Philippine K-pop Convention Inc. (PKCI) Facebook page.

Celebrate Korean Wave with Kentertainment talks, K-pop performances, contests, games and more together with PKCI and Korean Cultural Center (KCC) in the Philippines.

K-drama enthusiast Kristel Fulgar will join this year’s special guests and share her passion for producing and directing her “Love from Home” web drama. K-pop’s “dance diva” Dasuri Choi will share her stories and tips as a performer. Survival show “Under Nineteen” participant C13 will also take the audience on a journey as a Korean trainee and perform his debut single Stay.

Concert producer Happee Sy and the country’s premiere Korean entertainment emcee Kring Kim will join forces as they reminisce and spill stuff about K-pop concerts.

Philippine pop or “P-pop” idols will grace the HHD5 digital stage as they perform K-pop hits from different generations, plus their latest singles. Press Hit Play will charm in their get-to-know segment and performance of debut single WIN! BINI and BGYO are back to take on K-pop challenges with K-pop songs, their debut single Born to Win and comeback song, The Baddest.

A five-day “Countdown Special” will happen until August 27, where participants can expect entertaining segments, Twitter parties, and exclusive prizes every day from partners, as well as affiliated K-pop fan clubs and guests: K-pop fans Cherie & Mel will share travel preparations, experiences and tips when watching K-concerts in a different country. Learn choreography highlights of a hot K-pop song from dance coach Tank Bautista. Philippine-based Korean Kim Kyung-min will host the virtual fest, with opening performances by multilingual soul-pop princess Venisse Siy and performer-producer J.O. Watch out also for local K-pop fan clubs favorites.

Bringing the best of Asia, check out “A-pop” at apopbooks.com for best-selling K-titles translated into English, and anticipate new releases soon. Fanlife, meanwhile, is the gateway to stuff loved by many. Register for free at fanlife.ph, and use the promo code: HAPPYHALLYU until September 4 for 10-percent discounts.

Presented by the Philippine K-pop Convention Inc. together with the KCC in the Philippines; Korea Foundation for International Culture Exchange; Hallyu Com-On; Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism; and PKCI’s affiliated K-pop fan clubs, in partnership with A-pop and Fanlife.

Parentlife BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

• Thursday, August 26, 2021

On an errand run?

Go about it quickly and safely NOW that the Metro has reverted to stricted community quarantine measures, getting things done may again be a bit of a challenge. At ShangriLa Plaza (www.shangrila-plaza.com), running errands is quick and safe and can be done all in a single place.

Here are the essential tasks that mall guests can carry out at the Shang, which continues to make its community’s safety and convenience a top priority. n Check off that grocery list. Fill the fridge and pantry with premium, quality goods from The Marketplace. Grab staples and household favorites, and discover special offerings such as premium cheeses and deli meat for the family to enjoy. Stock up on natural products at Healthy Options. Aside from having a wide range of health supplements, its flagship store at Shangri-La Plaza also offers organic food like beef, poultry and fresh vegetables, as well as other good-for-you grocery items. n Complete bank errands. Deposit, transfer or withdraw money, update accounts or pay bills while at the Shang. The mall has five banks within its premises: BDO, BPI, HSBC, PNB and Security Bank, which are open on weekdays from 9 am to 3 pm, except for Security Bank which is open weekdays at 11 am to 4 pm. n Fix common home problems. Pick up hardware and home repair and improvement needs at True Value. This hardware store also carries other home solutions from smart plugs and switches, bakeware, cookware, to gardening tools. n Get health and wellness must-haves.

Make sure to have maintenance medications, first aid supplies, essential medicines, vitamins, and other medical necessities on hand by dropping

by Mercury Drug. The drugstore also offers select grocery items that one can quickly pick up while buying meds. Meanwhile, Watson’s combines a pharmacy for health needs and an extensive array of beauty, personal care, and wellness offerings. n Shop for school or work-from-home needs. Ensure that the kids and the adults as well have what they need to sustain their new online setup. Stop by and shop at National Bookstore and Office Warehouse for school or office supplies and materials, furniture, and even gadgets that make studying and working from home easier.

Clockwise: Meagan at 10 had mastered slicing mushrooms thinly; Meagan at 9 at a business dinner in Shanghai with my supplier colleague Grace; Meagan at 9 being interviewed on ABS-CBN; Marcus at 7 at our family adventure in Cubao; and Meagan and Marcus last 2020 at the Republic Fencing’s Young Musketeers Tournament.

How courage is built: Part II

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S I shared last week, courage is very much needed in overcoming today’s many uncertainties. Beyond this, it brings us to the reality that the predicaments our children will face tomorrow may be as unimaginable as how we never expected the continuing dire straits brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.

But beyond macro problems, courage for me is a fundamental value I have always found important.

I always considered it as a game-changing value to becoming “life smart.” Courage is important in finding one’s personal voice. It allows us to boldly face our strengths and weaknesses, and love our own unique person. For kids, especially teens, courage is important in living through this “social media” world.

In our own families, we need the courage to express our thoughts and affections. In our work or craft, we need to be proud of our hard work and our ideas. In our everyday lives, courage is needed to respect our own wants, and pursue life in our own terms.

Today, as reflected in the speech of my son Marcus that I shared last week, my once super shy boy has evolved into taking on leadership roles in group projects, speaking out his thoughts at home, and openly aiming toward being a professional athlete one day. For my daughter, Meagan at 15 continues to aim for multiple goals in academics, leadership and even

Climate change activity book for kids now available online ACCORDING to Unicef (2019), children’s rights and the state of the environment are not mutually exclusive. In fact, children are among the most vulnerable sectors to the impacts of climate change. It threatens their life, health, education, and their right to grow in a safe environment. It is estimated that around 503 million children live in areas with high risks of floods and rising sea levels, while 160 million live in areas experiencing drought. But despite these, children are the least heard when it comes to climate-related decisions.

I am the Change in Climate Change, an informational activity book on the environment, is a response to this challenge. It was written by University of the Philippines Professor of Geology, Dr. Alyssa M. Peleo-Alampay featuring artworks by the members of Ang Ilustrador ng Kabataan (Ang INK), the country’s only organization of visual artists for kids. The UBS-funded book is published by the Center for Art, New Ventures, and Sustainable Development (Canvas).

Geared for kids six to 12 years old, its pages are filled with child-friendly illustrations, age-appropriate language, and interactive activities. The book encourages children to learn about climate change: its definition, causes and effects. Its suggestions of easy day-today practices involve and empower kids by providing climate change education, awareness and training. Most importantly, the book is a way to increase children’s adaptive capacity, promote environmental stewardship in the community, and raise a generation that’s capable of creating real change.

I am the Change in Climate Change retails for P350 at www.lookingforjuan.com. Every purchase of this

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book is matched by a donation to two Filipino kids in disadvantaged communities through the online store’s Buy-1-Donate-2 program, in support of Canvas’ “One Million Books for One Million Filipino Children” campaign.

Launched in 2019, Looking for Juan reimagines the way we shop and consume by shaping a world where every item purchased gives back. With social responsibility at its core, the store was created to promote public appreciation of Philippine art and culture and champion children’s literacy. It is home to Canvas-published books and the store’s own line of artinfused merchandise. Proceeds from Looking for Juan’s product line and partnerships help support Canvas’ various efforts to strengthen children’s literacy and bring Philippine art and culture closer to the public, as well as provide artists with royalties for the use of their artworks.

fun goals like becoming a drummer. I am proud that if before she only aimed at competing in the SEA Games, she has now boldly announced to her coaches her desire to represent the Philippines in the Olympics for fencing one day. I have always encouraged my kids that there is no shame in not achieving a goal one has set out for himself. Instead, what I emphasized is that aiming and working for something big for oneself is already a rewarding journey on its own.

Below are some of tips in building courage in kids: n COURAGE STARTS AT PLAY. There are two particular type of activities for kids that I have found effective.

First, allow kids to freely play alone. I remember the hours when my son in his toddler and preschool years would freely play with his blocks, animal figurines, or art materials without interruption. We would hear him do voices and create stories. Then he would pack away and move on to his next set of toys. I believe it made him more confident in making decisions, because he was allowed to hear his own wants. I believe this also allowed him to be comfortable with himself.

Second is play time that encourages trial-anderror. Puzzles and games are great for this. The ideal age for me to introduce puzzles to a child is at 2.

Jumbo puzzles with only a few pieces make for a good start. My favorite trial-and-error activity involves chores using play toys for asking the order, preparing ingredients, cooking, serving, then cleaning up with a mop and broom—this would be ideal to start at 2 as well. So at 8, my daughter was already bold enough to cook real meals. At the time, while she was cutting mushrooms, she accidentally cut herself and there was so much blood that I almost fainted, but we got it under control after 10 minutes. I thought she would never go to the kitchen again. Instead, she kept on wanting to learn and the photo in the collage shows Meagan at 10 comfortably slicing mushrooms thinly. n EXPOSE KIDS TO PEOPLE AND ACTIVITIES THAT TEACH

COURAGE. When my son was in preschool, I often noticed he would hum a tune when he was playing.

I enrolled him in voice lessons. After that semester, I noticed him being able to communicate more with both kids and adults. His teacher even gave him a chance to join a school contest. This evolved to him showing an interest in the violin, which he plays up to this day.

That’s why I really liked the program Dr. Francis Xavier M. Dimalanta, MD, introduced, called Play SMART (Sports, Music, Arts, Reading, Theater), where he recommends to give ample variety for children to choose their interest, while building resilience and confidence in them to take ownership of their skills.

The photos I share here are some of the activities I would do for my kids. I have them to business trips. After Meagan tried Repertory Philippines one summer, she gained confidence to model and be on TV. Both my kids continue to engage in sports activities like fencing and basketball. n FOSTER EMOTIONAL STRENGTH AND CONFIDENCE. I always make the effort to enter my kids’ world of interest. In my weekly one-on-one time with each child, I would follow his or her lead. When my son was into Animal Kaiser games, I would play with him in the arcade. When he was into Yokai, I asked him what each character was. We also like going on impromptu family adventures. One Saturday afternoon, I was visiting an employee’s event in Cubao, and my son needed a haircut. As seen on a photo in the collage, my husband just took him to this small dark barber shop that was so different than what he was used to.

Lastly, encourage prayer. I always share with my kids how faith has helped me find courage in the toughest situations.

Let’s all build courage in our kids and our families, one bold step at a time, and show this pandemic that we will come out of this strong. Happy couragebuilding, everyone. n

B6 Thursday, August 26, 2021

Mobility of fully-vaccinated individuals in NCR to boost confidence, protect the unvaccinated

MPIC, Maynilad partner with LLDA to protect Laguna de Bay via LAWA

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ETRO Pacific Investments Corporation (MPIC) and Maynilad Water Services, Inc. (Maynilad), together with other companies in the MVP group, signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MOC) with the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA) to jointly protect the Laguna Lake and its surrounding provinces, cities, and towns.

This cooperation is solidified through the Laguna de Bay Welfare Awareness or LAWA program spearheaded by MPIC under its Gabay Kalikasan advocacy and stresses the critical role that the Laguna Lake plays with respect to the social and economic development of the region. LAWA aims to consolidate the group’s efforts in promoting awareness and establishing various programs in line with LLDA’s mandate to “transform Laguna Lake into a vibrant economic zone showcasing ecotourism by addressing the negative impact of watershed destruction, land conversion and pollution”.

The Laguna de Bay Region covers 77 tributaries and is endowed with rich natural resources. Laguna Lake alone, is home to a variety of organisms that comprise its biodiversity pool. Of note are the 31 species of fishes belonging to 16 families and 19 genera, the most dominant and important species of which, are the Therapon plumbeus and Glossogobius giurus (white goby), 154 species of phytoplankton, 36 species of zooplankton, and 24 species of macrophytes. Other organisms thriving in the lake include different species of mollusks, crustaceans, and birds that feed on the lake’s resources. In addition to this, it is also a vital water source that is used for irrigation, hydroelectric power generation, as a transport route, a venue for recreation,

livelihood, and domestic water supply.

“Protection of the environment is not just the government’s responsibility, it’s also the private sector’s responsibility to do their part to help,” said MPIC Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan. “Through this LAWA Initiative, we wish to reiterate the group’s support, particularly Metro Pacific, to LLDA and their efforts in protecting Laguna Lake from the many factors that could cause its demise.”

To formalize this partnership, a virtual signing event was held on August 23 and was attended by key representatives from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, LLDA and the MVP Group.

To introduce the Program, an awareness campaign video hosted by Gabay Kalikasan Volunteer LAWA advocate Dominic Roque was also featured in the event.

DENR Undersecretary Rodolfo C. Garcia highlighted in his message that “The DENR welcomes this MOC that ensures the usefulness of this lake and its watershed for future generations. I thank and congratulate LLDA, MPIC and the rest of the MVP Group for this partnership.

We hope that this will inspire others in the private sector to partner more productively with us and our attached agencies.”

“Our water treatment facility’s production capacity can be affected by the varying raw water quality of the lake.

We have had to incorporate technology upgrades including reverse osmosis, use of Distributed Control System and automation in our plants to address algal blooms and spikes of organic and inorganic matter reaching levels that are unprecedented over the past 10 years” stressed Maynilad President and Chief Executive Office Ramoncito S. Fernandez.

In accepting the partnership, LLDA

General Manager Hon. Jaime C. Medina said “You took the initiative which we welcome and accepted, because you share LLDA’s vision and mission to achieve the Sustainable Development of the Laguna de Bay region. Through the LAWA program and GABAY advocacies for a sustainable Philippines, you have chosen Laguna de Bay as one of the vital ecosystems to protect and nurture. Effective today and with due respect to Mr. Manuel V. Pangilinan, you will be our MVP, the Most Valuable Partners of LLDA in the protection and conservation of Laguna de Bay.” MPIC and Maynilad, through LAWA will further align with LLDA to identify key areas of collaboration. Initial priority areas include the promotion of waste water management systems to help address the lake’s algal bloom problem, organization of clean-up drives for the tributaries, and the establishment of programs to hamper the proliferation of water hyacinths, the most damaging aquatic plant worldwide, currently covering approximately 20% of Laguna de Bay. “Ecosystems such as Laguna de Bay support all life on Earth. The healthier our ecosystems are, the healthier our planet and all of us will be,” said Chaye A. Cabal-Revilla, MPIC Chief Finance, Risk and Sustainability Officer. “LAWA will be one of our anchor programs under Gabay Kalikasan because we strongly believe in LLDA’s strategic objectives. We are all one in our purpose of contributing to national development and uplifting the lives of our fellow Filipinos.”

Other MPIC Group Companies supporting this initiative include MetroPac Water Investments Corporation, Meralco Powergen Corpor.

Kabataang Gitarista holds 9th anniversary recital online

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HE Kabataang Gitarista, a group of high school students participating in the classical guitar training program of the Cultural Center of the Philippines Artist Training Division, will mark its ninth anniversary on August 28, 3 pm, with an online recital on the CCP Facebook page.

The recital will feature the group’s 22 students from public schools in Manila, Pasay and Parañaque, including Classical Guitar majors now pursuing music scholarships in college as well as members of the Bicol Chapter of the KG. They will perform a program offering featuring solo classical, Filipino and popular works of composers such as Bach, Tarrega, Calatayud, Giuliani, Sor, Sanz, Carulli, Scarlatti, Sinesi, Cuenco and Silos.

The KG program was organized

by CCP’s Artist Training Division, then headed by Melissa Corazon V. Mantaring in August 2012, to promote appreciation for, and interest in classical guitar performance among public high school students; to provide the highest level of classical guitar training free of charge through the support of generous individuals; and to develop a performing classical guitar ensemble. In 2017, the KG Bicol chapter, the only one outside Metro Manila, was established under the

tutelage of Angelo Inting.

Mantaring, who retired from the CCP in 2020 but continues to helm the KG. J “Besides seeing the members improve from zero training to eventually perform, it’s rewarding to see them acquire not only technical skills in playing the guitar, but also self confidence, discipline, and time management, with some even getting better grades in school. Those pursuing a Music degree in college have merited scholarships so their parents don’t need to pay tuition anymore. To realize that the program has somehow helped them improve their lives is such a good feeling.”

The KG has given performances in selected public and private schools, aside from joining competitions. In November 2019, the KG Trio won third prize in the Ensemble Category, and Edel Mark Bitao won third prize in the Solo Junior Category of the Saigon International Guitar Festival and Competition held in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam. Later in the month Edel Mark Bitao won first prize and Job Cabagsang won third prize at the National Music Competition for Young Artists (NAMCYA) Junior Category.

Currently, around 30 guitarists are being trained under the program.

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RESIDENTIAL Adviser for Entrepreneurship and Go Negosyo Founder Joey Concepcion proposed to only allow fully-vaccinated individuals' entry to various establishments in NCR. As per IATF-EID, once 50 percent of the region's population is already done with getting inoculated, said proposal can be considered.

“This proposal to only allow fullyvaccinated individuals’ full mobility in NCR will not only increase confidence of the consumers in various establishments, as well as banking confidence, which will then drive economic recovery because it can also protect the unvaccinated individuals,” he said.

MMDA Chairman Abalos expressed his support to the proposal of Concepcion and said that the government will work with the private sector to make it happen. He also explained that the recently-implemented lockdown in the past two weeks has actually helped to slow down the transmission of COVID-19 cases in NCR. “We can see from the data that there is a decrease in COVID-19 cases in Metro Manila, and I think that this is because of the lockdown [recent ECQ],” Abalos shared.

Based on the data presented, 70 percent of the total reported COVID-19 cases brought by COVID-19 is from the unvaccinated category.

This is equivalent to 15,130 cases from a total of 21,765 cases in NCR. As 43.5 percent of the NCR’s total population is already fully vaccinated, Abalos is optimistic that Concepcion’s proposal can finally come to fruition in the next coming months. “PA Joey, I think by the end of the month we can reach 50 percent fully-vaccinated individuals in Metro Manila. We’ll do our best to consider your proposal,” he affirmed.

Meanwhile, IATF-EID Chairperson and DOH Secretary Francisco Duque III said that Concepcion’s proposal can actually incentivize the unvaccinated to finally get inoculated. In terms of herd immunity, Duque said that the nature of the Delta variant has increased the

threshold for achieving herd immunity than its usual percentage.

“Herd immunity should be at least 87 percent of the population because of the Delta variant,” he shared.

DOH Epidemiology Bureau Medical Specialist Dr. Alethea De Guzman explained that because of vaccination efforts, COVID-19 cases may drop at the end of the year.

“We can expect case projections to drop around November. The earlier we ramp up our vaccination efforts, the earlier we can perceive the benefits in terms of case reduction and decrease in hospitalization,” she stressed.

Meanwhile, Dr. Guido David of OCTA Research Group says that there is a decrease in the 1-week growth rate of COVID-19 cases in NCR. “There may be a moderate decrease of cases

by September, and this can be attributed to the lockdown,” he expressed.

Meanwhile, Epidemiologist, senior technical adviser, and head of Epimetrics, Inc. Dr. John Wong expressed that there has to be various measures that will complement our goal of achieving herd immunity.

“Severe infections and deaths needed to be prevented alongside implementing various measures to attain herd immunity ” he explained.

“Once 50 percent of Metro Manila population has been fully-vaccinated, considering limiting the mobility of the unvaccinated can be the safer option to open the economy and protect everyone,” Concepcion stressed. He then assured that this is not discriminatory, since it will only be a temporary response to right the threat of the Delta variant.

Win real life rewards daily while playing games with Bengga

AS BENGGA takes hold, the app hopes to promote an NFT and cryptocurrency token economy, making it ripe for potential partners.

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EW Play2Earn game Bengga is staking its claim in the rising billion-dollar gaming industry by bringing a vast selection of tangible rewards such as digital goods and cryptocurrencies to the everyman. With Bengga, users DON'T NEED to be champion Esports athletes to win monetary prizes, as the free app allows users to win real-life rewards while playing a vast selection of games.

Bengga players are awarded coins that they can exchange for money and rewards of monetary value. The concept is similar to the Grab App Rewards Center and streaming app Kumu, where frequent use earns more rewards. With Bengga, however, you get treated to its constantly updated library of hundreds of mobile games.

The games in Bengga fall under the umbrella of hyper-casual games—the genre of games designed to be simple, easily playable, and massively engaging due to the low learning curve required to play. The app ran a public beta last May 2, following its private beta testing stage.

During the Public Beta, Bengga was able to grow its userbase by 5,611% with PHP 0 advertising spend. Each user spends an average of 40 minutes daily playing games in Bengga. The app’s user base is also quickly surging, evidenced by a Top 45 Lifestyle App ranking in the iOS App store, and a Top 65 Social App ranking on the Google Play Store.

Since the onset of the pandemic in March 2020, the engagement of hyper-

casual games increased by a staggering 72 percent. Prior to that, the number of downloads for hyper-casual games increased by 103 percent over the period of December 2019 to March 2020. The data proves that people are increasingly getting hooked on hyper-casual games— and Bengga aims to reward that.

“We just want Bengga to be the platform that allows people to get rewarded by having fun because time and effort is scarce" says Bengga Head of Games and Rewarding Experiences Troy Serafica who, incidentally, is also the founder of the Effort Economy, the blockchain project that Bengga is using.

“Video games are already a fully integrated part of our lives, so we’re not really reinventing the wheel. We’re just letting people make the most of what’s already a huge part of their daily business.”

Aside from that, Bengga hopes to promote NFT and cryptocurrency technology to build game-centered economies, that can then be leveraged to increase brand engagement, revenue, and exclusive access to various items.

“Crypto play is both the present and the future,” says Troy Serafica, “all we want to do is lead Filipino gamers to it.”

All in all, Bengga intends to provide a large scale version of something no gaming app ever had. The team behind Bengga believes that ‘gamifying’ people’s lives by providing immediate and real-life incentives is the future, and they want to be ahead of that curve.

Editor: Anne Ruth Dela Cruz

Health&Fitness BusinessMirror

Experts push for vaccination to fight Delta, Lambda variants

By Rory Visco

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Contributor

irst it was the Alpha, Beta, Gamma, then the much dangerous Delta, and now the Lambda, all variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

What do we really know about them? The Alpha, the first variant from the original strain that started in China, is supposedly the more transmissible one at about 50 percent. That we know already. The Beta and Gamma variants, well, not so much.

But what captured the world’s attention was the emergence of the Delta variant, supposed to be highly transmissible compared to Alpha, and now the Lambda, where not much is known yet.

The Delta variant

Guido David, PhD and a fellow at the OCTA Research Group, was one of the speakers during the “Data Behind the Delta” webinar organized by PhilCare, PhilLife, Comm&Sense and Stitch Solutions.

He said the Delta variant was first detected in India and has now overtaken all the other variants in the United Kingdom. This may be partially because the country relaxed its restrictions because they had sufficient vaccination at that time, according to Dr. David.

However, he cited this finding as country specific and largely depended on the level of vaccination.

In the Philippines, cases involving the Delta variant are exponentially increasing, he said, even more in early August. “What we’re seeing right now based on samplings, the percentage of Delta variant cases has increased to about 30 percent in the entire country. Based on genome sequencing, it was previously around 26 percent. This is concerning because the percentage of the Delta variant has been increasing for the past weeks.”

Group urges smokers to quit; cites risks for deadly diseases

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ealthJustice Philippines, a non-profit organization, reiterated its call for smokers to kick the bad habit as they expressed concern for nonsmokers who are exposed to the equally deadly secondhand smoke while staying at home due to the threat of Covid-19 and its variants, particularly Delta.

Due to the people’s restricted movements, HealthJustice feared that staying at home will give people more chances to smoke which will expose family members, especially children, to secondhand smoke.

“According to the World Health Organization [WHO], Department of Health [DOH], health experts and scientists, there is no safe level of exposure to tobacco smoke.

That is why we should first think of our health and measures to avoid the ill-effects of smoking cigarettes and heated tobacco products and vaping,” said lawyer Benedict G. Nisperos, Legal Consultant of HealthJustice Philippines.

For his part, former Health Secretary Jaime Galvez -Tan, a trustee of HealthJustice Philippines, warned that exposure to secondhand smoke may have devastating effects to the heart.

“During this Covid-19 pandemic, we should make our home smoke-free for tobacco use and secondhand smoke may cause serious health hazards like heart disease,” Dr. Galvez -Tan said.

According to WHO, tobacco use is the second leading cause of cardiovascular diseases [CVD] after high blood pressure, with smoking and secondhand smoke contributing to approximately 12 percent of all heart disease deaths globally.

Meanwhile, the DOH said that ischemic heart diseases or the “hardening of arteries” continue to be the leading cause of death in the Philippines with more than 74,000 cases recorded in 2016.

It may be noted that chemicals in cigarette smoke cause the blood to thicken and increases the risk of blood clots.

Smoke exposure

Dr. Galvez-Tan also said that smokers and vapers are believed to be at high risk for contracting Covid-19, “and so you should not be breathing the air that came from someone else’s lungs” for that person may have contracted the disease.

“Another problem with smoking, vaping and exposure to secondhand hand smoke and aerosols is that they increase risks associated with Covid-19 virus transmission,” said Dr. Galvez -Tan. Prior to the pandemic, the 2015 Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS)—Philippines showed that secondhand smoke exposure is highly prevalent in public places, particularly in bars and nightclubs at 86 percent.

Tobacco exposure has been linked to 87,000 annual deaths among Filipinos, more than the number of deaths due to HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria combined.

Secondhand smoke exposure was also found to be prevalent in public transportation at 38 percent; followed by restaurants at 22 percent. Other public places also affected by secondhand smoke are in government buildings at 13 percent; schools at 11 percent; and health-care facilities at 4 percent. Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

However, he noted the limitations in the country’s bio-surveillance capabilities where only 100 samples can be sequenced daily, and with around 8,000 cases noted daily that would be only 1 to 2 percent. But with the imposition of the stricter lockdown and decrease in mobility, it may have already impacted on the increase in cases, and it is seen to slow down further, says Dr. David.

Also, with regards to the reproduction number, or the average number of transmissions, it indicates a similar surge just like what happened last March here in the National Capital Region (NCR). “But we shouldn’t allow the reproduction number to go even higher, which would mean an increase in cases and more hospitals becoming full and overwhelmed.”

Right now, Dr. David said the goal is to reduce the reproduction number to less than one. “The Alpha variant reproduction number is four, which means one person can already infect four people. But if 75 percent of the people are vaccinated, meaning three out of the four will be protected from the virus and this can bring the reproduction number down to just one, which is the goal of pandemic management.”

However, it’s a different case with the Delta variant, which has a reproduction number of about five to eight, but Dr. David puts it at an average of six so the variant can infect up to six people. However, he said what he’s demonstrating is the value of vaccination in achieving herd immunity and stopping the spread of the virus.

“By vaccinating more people, coupled with strict compliance to health protocols like wearing of face masks, the more will be protected and this will help stop, or even just limit, the spread of the virus.”

The Lambda (C.37) variant

We’re not even done yet with Delta and now here comes the Lambda variant, which started in Peru and reportedly is also highly transmissible. Not much is known yet regarding its infection rate or virulence, nor

any clear evidence that current vaccines are ineffective against this strain.

According to Prof. Cynthia Saloma, Ph.D., of the University of the PhilippinesPhilippine Genome Center (UP-PGC), during the latest episode of University of the Philippines’ Stop Covid Deaths, cited data from the GISAID, or the Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data, a public database for the sharing of information on genome sequencing of SARS-CoV-2.

She said that in April 2021, a lot of submitted data to the GISAID was Alpha, but in a short period this was overtaken by Delta with supposedly 99 percent of submission was more for Delta.

And now there’s the Lambda variant, which Dr. Saloma said has already spread to 34 countries (mostly in South America) including the Philippines.

She said about 4,150 cases with the Lambda variant were already sequenced with the earliest case noted in Peru in December 2020.

She said the United States Centers for Disease Control and Preventtion (US-CDC) does not see the Lambda as a variant of interest (VOI) because it does not seem to be spreading too much compared to Delta since its spread is happening mostly in South America. However, the World Health Organization (WHO) thinks otherwise.

In the Philippines, there’s only one Lambda case detected out of more than 11,000 genome sequences, coming from a 35-year-old female. However, Dr. Saloma noted that in vitro data in Japan showed that mutation in the Lambda variant has the potential for immune evasion.

She stated that a lot more data as to the clinical and epidemiologic implication of this variant is needed and reiterated that vaccines will still work against preventing severe cases and hospitalization.

Again, health experts are one in saying that the more people are vaccinated, the less the viruses will mutate and more people will be protected.

Men reluctant to deal with prostate problems

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emember finding out or reading stories of people talking about their prostate problems? Some even passed away because they didn’t pay much attention to it. A vast majority of men probably don’t even know about prostate or prostate cancer or Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH). Is it dangerous to one’s health? Is this ailment exclusive to men?

According to Dr. Jeff Jubilado, Chief of Clinics at the Pasig Doctors Medical Center and Assumption Specialty Hospital and Medical Center, Department Chair for Urology at the Marikina Valley Medical Center, and Medical Affairs Manager (Urology) of GSK Philippines, BPH, in its simplest terms, is the non-cancerous enlargement of the prostate.

He said BPH manifests with a myriad of symptoms that can cause problems with urination. “It is a progressive disease and, if left untreated, may lead to complications such as inability to urinate, recurrent urinary tract infection [UTI], kidney disease.

Patients may also end up with surgery,” Dr. Jubilado explained.

A disturbing reality about BPH is that it also affects many aspects regarding the quality of life of men. He pointed to three factors like frequent toilet visits can affect sleep for men and their partner. His social life can also be limited by the need to have easy toilet access. And perhaps, more disturbingly for many men, BPH may mean decreased sexual activity, which has been reported by partners of men with prostate disease.

No statistics

Currently, there are no statistics or data about Filipinos with BPH, according to Dr. Jubilado. However, he mentioned a 1997 study that included the Philippines, which stated that the prevalence of symptomatic men in Asia are 18 percent among the 40-45-yearold males, 29 percent for those aged 50-59 years, 40 percent for 60-69 years old, and 56 for those 70-79 years of age.

But contrary to what some men think that BPH is similar to prostate cancer, BPH is definitely not, although both conditions can manifest with similar symptoms.

Among these symptoms, Dr. Jubilado said, are frequent urination, urgency, nighttime urination, weak urinary stream, intermittent urination, having to strain when urinating and sensation of incomplete emptying. Other symptoms are inability to urinate and the presence of blood in the urine.

“That is why it is important for men 40 and above to have themselves assessed for urinary symptoms and consult a doctor to differentiate between BPH and prostate cancer.”

BPH is also different from UTI or urinary tract infection, which may also have similar symptoms as BPH but requires a different treatment. Antibiotics is usually given for UTI, whereas prostate medications are given for BPH, but these two conditions may also coexist.

Target age

In terms of target age for BPH, Dr. Jubilado revealed that genetics may also play a role as sons of men with BPH are more likely to develop it as well. “Older age and testosterone are also linked but may not be the cause.

Currently, the causes of BPH are not well understood. As such, it’s still not definite why only men of a certain age develop BPH.” When asked about some symptoms of BPH such as frequent urination, which is also a symptom for diabetes, Dr. Jubilado said frequency is only one of the symptoms of BPH. He advised that if the patient has any of the other symptoms, then it would be best to consult a doctor to differentiate between BPH and other causes like diabetes.

It is said that most men won’t go to the doctor and will always reason out that there’s nothing wrong with him, that he’s strong as a bull, etc. Dr. Jubilado, however, said that based on research, the reluctance to consult and seek help stem from a low awareness of BPH as a disease. Most patients, he said, attribute the symptoms as just a part of aging.

What many men don’t know is that BPH is treatable. Treatment is usually categorized into conservative treatment (includes behavioral and dietary modification), pharmacological (medication with one or a combination of drugs), and surgical. “There are a lot of innovations in terms of surgical treatment like laser, robotics, among others. There are also studies that show the reduction in the risk for urinary retention [inability to urinate] and BPH-related surgery with appropriate treatment.”

To generate awareness about BPH and how men should have themselves checked for earlier symptoms, GSK Philippines, Dr. Jubilado said, came up with the “Love My Prostate” campaign, which aims to educate the public about BPH, its symptoms and how it affects the quality of life of men and their families.

He said the campaign’s main goal is for men to consult their doctor in order to manage their condition. Patients can go to www. lovemyprostate.com, where they will have access to information such as a free symptoms test to check the severity of their symptoms and a list of doctors nationwide who manage BPH that they can consult. The website also has a section on BPH to help them understand their condition. Rory Visco

Thursday, August 26, 2021 B7

Govt efforts in family planning, HIV continued amid Covid-19 pandemic

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

ue to harmonized interventions and quick responses from national and local government and development partners, many Filipinos were still able to avail of family planning (FP) and HIV prevention services despite the effects of Covid-19 on the country’s health system.

Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III said that as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to loom over the globe, the utter enormity of its scale has impacted even the reproductive behaviors of the Filipino individuals, “thus it is paramount that we ensure that family planning services and other essential sexual and reproductive health services are continually accessible to the public.”

“These health services need to continue both in the community and in health facilities. However, more than that, we need to take the steps necessary to promote greater openness towards these topics surrounding family planning. Through conversations, we ultimately create awareness on the importance and benefits of family planning in promoting the overall health and well-being of the population. May we be relentless in our pursuit of stimulating open discussions that promote Masayang Pamilya and Healthy Pilipinas,” he added.

port from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), rolled out the harmonized FP communication plans that maximized online communication and digital platforms.

This includes a series of online campaigns launched in celebration of the National Family Planning Month this August within the context of sexual and reproductive health during health crises, sexually transmitted infections (STIs), informed choice and responsible parenthood, and adolescent health and development.

Moreover, the DOH and USAID assisted 146 government hospitals in establishing their FP programs that addressed the needs of postpartum women interested to practice FP right after delivery.

In 2020, the DOH allotted around P410 million for the procurement of FP commodities, a 33-percent hike from previous year’s budget allotment.

POPCOM augmented the commodity requirements during the same period.

As a result, the country’s FP users in 2020 increased by 460,000, an increase of six percent from the previous year’s users, and this brought the total to around 8.1 million, according to the DOH. New acceptors of FP also increased by 43 percent, despite a number of dropouts caused by the series of lockdowns and quarantines nationwide.

HIV

In the pipeline

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To ensure the continuous delivery of essential services to patients during the enforcement of community quarantines, the Department of Health (DOH) said that it had adopted innovative approaches in the country’s HIV program like providing refills of the antiretroviral (ARV) drug which is used to treat HIV. The DOH said that drug refills can be even by accessed by transient patients, employing client-centered approaches for pick-up and delivery of this HIV medication, such as the use of available courier services, government vehicles, transport network vehicle services, and home delivery.

Regional HIV Helplines were established for various referral needs of displaced and stranded PLHIVs or People Living with HIV within and outside the respective regions operated by community-based organizations.

In 2020, the DOH designated 56 primary HIV care facilities and 107 treatment hubs, or a total of 163 facilities nationwide, to provide HIV services, including free antiretroviral drugs.

Program implementers are also expected to support HIV treatment facility expansion this year through the continuous provision of quality services and the appropriate use of the PhilHealth Outpatient HIV/AIDS Treatment fund packages.

The DOH said that there are 77,882 cumulative cases of HIV as of April 2020, and 45,444 of them are already on life-long treatment.

Family planning

In support of FP services delivery, the DOH and the Commission on Population and Development (POPCOM), with sup-

To keep the momentum going for agencies behind the FP programs and HIV prevention in the backdrop of Covid-19, the DOH, POPCOM and USAID are set to roll out more innovative communication initiatives which will encourage more Filipino couples to seek FP information and services.

One of these efforts is a video which will be turned into TV and radio advertisements. The video was launched during the “Usap Tayo sa Family Planning” experts’ joint online dialogue with the DOH and POPCOM last August 18.

According to the DOH, the new communication campaign materials take a “fresh and positive spin” on FP through song and dance.

The catchy lyrics are designed to address fear and anxieties that are barriers to FP use, as indicated in a USAIDsupported formative research.

Developments on FP and HIV prevention

Regarding the overall developments on FP and HIV prevention in the country, POPCOM Executive Director Juan Antonio Perez III said, “The pandemic heavily bore down on our medical and health-care systems, especially those directly involving FP delivery and HIV services.”

“However, the collective energies of government institutions and their allied institutions did not succumb to the challenges of the times,” he said.

He stressed : Together with the leadership of the DOH and the USAID, I call on all our partners to press on with our work at hand, so that we can continue to further improve the quality of lives of the Filipino families whom we are mandated to serve.”

Air purifier necklaces useless in fight vs Covid-19, says DOH

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f you are thinking of wearing an air purifier necklace, better think again.

Earlier, it was reported that the province of Cebu will require all public utility vehicle drivers and conductors to wear personal air purifiers. But can these necklaces really protect them against Covid-19?

“There’s no evidence,” said Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire.

Although it will cause no harm, Vergeire stressed that the DOH is not recommending the use of such a device.

“Sinabi na po natin dati ‘yan, na wala po ‘yang ebidensya. Bagamat hindi po ito nakaka-cause ng harm sa isang tao, pero hindi rin po siya nakakapagbigay ng proteksyon laban sa Covid-19 [We have already said it before that there is no evidence to support that. Although it may cause no harm, it will not also give you the protection you need against Covid-19],” she said.

In October 2020, the DOH clarified that it does not endorse the use of air purifier necklaces which claim to kill viruses or bacteria and protect wearers from contracting the disease.

Not recommended

She noted that under the Philippine

Covid-19 Living Clinical Practice Guidelines, the use of ionizing air purifiers against Covid-19 is “not recommended.”

The Covid-19 Action Network (CAN) echoed what Vergeire said as they expressed concern over Cebu provincial government’s policy mandating all PUV drivers and conductors to wear personal air purifiers.

“We also criticize the provincial government for encouraging government employees to purchase these air purifiers and issuing a memorandum which requires workers to wear air purifiers at all times,” the group said.

They stressed that there is still a lack of solid evidence to support the personal air purifiers’ efficacy in preventing Covid-19.

The group said that there are other ways to improve ventilation such as opening windows in vehicles which is less costly and, more importantly, have been proven to reduce Covid-19 transmission.

“While we believe in supportive health measures, especially given the spread of the Delta variant, these policies must be d ata-dr iven and backed by science,” the group stressed.

Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

Sports

MP Promotions President Sean Gibbons says Manny Pacquiao deserves a farewell fight fit for one of the greatest fighters ever. WENDELL ALINEA

BusinessMirror

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By Josef Ramos

OS ANGELES, California— One of the men in Manny Pacquiao’s innermost circle doesn’t want Sunday’s fight to be the Filipino boxing icon’s last.

“Give Sir Manny a farewell fight he truly deserves as a sports hero,” Sean Gibbons, president of Pacquiao’s boxing outfit MP Promotions, told BusinessMirror on Tuesday. “He deserves one.”

Gibbons said that just like basketball superstars Michael Jordan and the late Kobe Bryant and tennis ace Andre Agassi who all had farewell games, the sitting Philippine senator should be honored the same.

But Gibbons said the final decision rests in Pacquiao, who, at 42, couldn’t summon the speed and fury in fists and quickness in his feet and lost via unanimous decision to Cuban

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| Thursday, August 26, 2021 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

Yordenis Ugás last Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

“It’s really up to the senator to answer that [retirement], but I believe Sir Manny [Pacquiao] deserves a tremendous farewell somewhere in the world—the objective is to give back to him, like Kobe Bryant’s last game and Michael Jordan’s, like all the greats,” Gibbons said.

“The senator has to have a fight of the night, a party, or just like a celebration of everything he accomplished in boxing,” he added.

Gibbons said yielding to Ugás was only one loss that won’t diminish all the greatness Pacquiao established in the ring.

“There’s no shame in anything, we took a gamble in a certain type of fight after preparing for a left-handed match for seven weeks—and the style just wasn’t good,” said Gibbons, adding that he intends to talk with

the eight-division world champion next week about his plans.

A rematch with the 35-yearold Ugás (27-4 record with 12 knockouts), Gibbons said, could be a possibility after the Cuban said he’s willing to give Pacquiao (67-8-2 record with 39 knockouts) a rematch “if he likes to.”

Pacquiao has been spending most of his time in his room with wife Jinkee at their apartment along North Laurel Boulevard in Los Angeles.

PACQUIAO OVERTRAINED?

VETERAN promoter Aljoe Ortiz Jaro said Manny Pacquiao lost to Yordenis Ugás overtrained, especially in his running regimen that caused his legs and thighs to develop cramps during the fight.

Jaro, who is now based in Orange County where he manages the California Health Care Provider,

Australia’s Greco captures 1st gold of Tokyo Para Games

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OKYO—Cyclist Paige Greco of Australia claimed the first gold medal of the Tokyo Paralympic Games, winning the 3,000-meter pursuit on Wednesday on the velodrome.

Wang Xiaomei of China was second and bronze went to Denise Schindler.

It was the first of 24 gold medals up for grabs on Wednesday as the Paralympics got underway in the

middle of a pandemic that has seen new cases in Tokyo soar since the Olympics opened just over a month ago.

Medals were also contested on Wednesday in swimming and

BEJINO GETS BIGGEST TEST IN TOKYO POOL

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LL eyes will be on swimmer Gary Bejino, who will be the first Filipino campaigner to plunge into action in the Tokyo Paralympic Games as he competes in the men’s SM6 200-meter individual medley at the Tokyo Aquatic Center on Thursday in Japan.

A back-to-back gold medalist in the Asean Para Games in the 2015 Singapore and 2017 Malaysia editions, respectively, Bejino is racing in lane No. 7 in the second of three heats starting at 9:32 a.m.

(8:32 a.m. Manila time).

The top eight overall finishers in the heats will enter the finals scheduled at 5:22 p.m. (4:22 p.m.) later in the day.

Bejino would have been joined by another para-athlete in competing in the second day of action of the World Para Games in the stint supported by the Philippine Sports Commission.

But powerlifter Achelle Guion, who also set to compete Thursday, had to stay at home after testing positive for Covid-19 on the day of the Philippine contingent’s departure for Tokyo last Sunday, the Philippine Paralympic Committee announced last Tuesday.

Swimming Coach Tony Ong said that Bejino felt a bit nervous by the fact that this was his first Para Games and “competing in the highest level of competition. But I told him not to worry and enjoy. In enjoying the process and you make it to the finals, then let’s take it from there.”

told BusinessMirror that he saw Pacquiao’s determination to execute his team’s fight plan but couldn’t execute in the middle and later rounds because of fatigue.

“It should be that two weeks before the fight, he must slow down in training—no more running on the hills of Griffith Park,” said Jaro, adding that his coaches should have focused instead on mindsetting motivation, more mitts and fight plan “rather than too much running.”

Before heading to Las Vegas a week before the fight, Pacquiao ran for a minute at Griffith Park and around the University of Nevada, Las Vegas track oval the following day. He also sparred no less than 25 rounds at the Wild Card Gym, which for Jaro is “an absolute no.”

“He [Pacquiao] was overtrained, that’s why he’s cramped and he experienced fatigue all over his

body. That’s my observations and that’s the truth,” Jaro said. “His mind wanted to do it, but his body couldn’t respond because he’s too tired.”

Jaro hinted that he favors a farewell fight for Pacquiao but he should face either Robert Guerrero or Amir Khan and avoid unified welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. or a rematch with Ugás.

Jaro produced some of the country’s best former world champions, including International Boxing Federation (IBF) minimumweight champion Florante Condes, World Boxing Council (WBC) lineal and Ring Magazine flyweight titlist Sonny Boy Jaro, IBF flyweight champion Amnat Ruengrueng of Thailand, WBC minimumweight champion Denver Cuello and world youth super bantamweight winner Bernabe Concepcion.

wheelchair fencing.

Greco was born with cerebral palsy, which mostly affects the right side of her body. It was her first Paralympic Games medal.

“It feels amazing,” Greco said. “I still can’t believe it. I keep looking down and seeing [the gold medal].

It’s not really sunk in yet.”

Away from the competition, organizers confirmed Wednesday that two more athletes have tested positive for Covid-19 in the Paralympic Village. That brings to three the total of positive tests by athletes in the Village over the last two days.

Over the last three days, organizers have confirmed nine positive tests in the Village. The additional six, who are not athletes, are described as “Games-related personnel.” AP

AMBASSADOR to Japan Jose Laurel V (third from left) meets with officials of Team Philippines (from left) Philippine Sports Commission Commissioner Arnold Agustin, Philippine Paralympic Committee President Mike Barredo and Robespierre Bolivar, deputy chief of mission of the Philippine Embassy in Japan.

Road to Angela Lee MIXED martial arts (MMA) athlete Denice Zamboanga is one tough cookie who’s been making a name for herself inside the One Championship circle since her debut in December 2019.

Since she defeated Jihin Radzuan by unanimous decision in One: Mark of Greatness, she’s been in “who’s next” mode in a span of less than a year. After Radzuan, she put away heavy favorite Mei Yamaguchi also by unanimous decision in “Fire and Fury” (February 2020). A year ago, she claimed her third victim in One, Watsapinya Kaewkhong of Thailand by submission.

Counting her other victories before she joined the One family, she has had eight successful bouts (three unanimous decisions, three submissions and two TKOs) with no losses to show.

Zamboanga, who now trains out of the Marrok Force Gym in Bangkok, is so good she is one of eight fighters who have been selected to slug it out in One’s Inaugural Women’s Atomweight Grand Prix. She will face veteran and well-seasoned Seo Hee Ham of South Korea in One Championship: Empower on September 3.

Clearly, she’s rattling the cage and making waves, prompting everyone to ask where she wants to go. Judging from her trajectory, bold style and unshakeable confidence, the path can only lead to Angela Lee, the young martial arts phenom who is the reigning One Women’s Atomweight World Champion. Aptly named “Unstoppable,” Lee is the standard every atomweight measures herself against. And the prized apple they all want to shake from the tree.

Denice does not play coy about wanting to challenge Angela. In fact, mainstream and social media were abuzz with the Angela Lee-Denice Zamboanga feud that featured some hot and spicy exchanges between the two.

The Filipina, considered the No. 1-ranked contender after her string of impressive performances, was not shy about wanting to take a shot at the title. When Lee became pregnant and any possible encounter with any challenger had to be put on hold, Zamboanga expressed her opinion candidly. Lee should do what all great champions do, she said. Respect other fighters and vacate the championship belt since she cannot defend it.

Lee called Zamboanga “entitled,” adding “You’re an eager, up and coming contender, but I hate to break it to you. You don’t get a free belt just like that. You gotta EARN it by taking it from The Champ.”… The Grand Prix will produce the true No. 1 contender and I will defend my belt against the Grand Prix winner,” the Champ clapped back.

So. To get to where Angela is, the Lycan Queen has to embark on a voyage quite like the one Odysseus took to get to Ithaca. The path is strewn with myriad obstacles and challenges. And copious amounts of patience, unwavering focus and fierce determination are required.

This is the road map. To get to Angela Lee and her precious belt, Denice must first slay dragons along the way. She must defeat her opponent Seo Hee Han in the first round of the Grand Prix. If she does, she moves on to face the winner of the bout between Ukranian Alyona Rassohyna and the wily Stamp Fairtex of Thailand in the next round. Assuming she triumphs again in the second round, her ordeal continues.

She has to conquer the winner of the other division— anyone among USA’s Alyse Anderson, Japan’s Itsuki Hirata, China’s Meng Bo or India’s Ritu Phogat. And if at the end of that trail, she is still unbowed and standing, then she meets Angela Lee in that much coveted, much aspired for title fight.

“It seems like they’re throwing everything at you, giving you the toughest, most experienced fighters before you can go where you want to go. Mukhang inilalayo ka nila talaga kay Angela Lee,” Randy Caluag of the Manila Standard teased Denice at Tuesday’s Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum.

Lee has not made it any easier for the determined 24-year-old from Quezon City who says she is inspired by the feats of Olympians Hidilyn Diaz, Nesthy Petecio, Carlo Paalam and Eumir Marcial to give pride to the country. Lee picked Seo Hee Han to triumph over Zamboanga in their upcoming first round fight, citing her experience.

“I’m not focused on what Angela feels. I’m focused on my opponent. Actually, what she said—that I won’t get through the first round—has given me extra motivation,” said Denice, playing it extra cool this time.

“Na-trigger lang siya sa akin dahil sa mga sinabi ko dati.

Ako kasi ang unang fighter na nagreply sa kanya. All the rest preferred to stay quiet,” Denice explained.

Her team—brother Drex and coach Fritz Biagtan—says Denice continues to work hard and is polishing her game.

And they both agree. She IS tough.

“Denice trains with male fighters and they’re not being soft on her either,” revealed Coach Fritz.

Denice vows she will not let her fans or the country down.

“Ibang Denice ang lalabas sa September 3. Magandang laban ito.

This is the co-main event that should be the main event. Hindi sila magsisising [panoorin],” she said.

If the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, that first step is the fight against 34-year-old veteran Seo Hee Ham inside the ONE Circle on Empower. It is the first all-female fighters MMA event in history.