Businessmirror August 27, 2018

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Monday, August 27, 2018 Vol. 13 No. 317

DOF eyes end-2018 OK of tax bills in Congress

By Rea Cu

T

@ReaCuBM

HE Department of Finance (DOF) has made good on its commitment to submit to Congress the remaining packages of the Duterte administration’s Comprehensive Tax Reform Program (CTRP), with the last two packages, Package 3 and Package 4, already submitted to the House of Representatives.

Medal Tally As of 7 p.m.

Country

G

S

B Total

1 China

73 57 34

164

2 Japan

39 32 45

116

3 korea

25 29 37

91

4 Ir iran

14 14 11

39

5 indonesia

12 12 23

47

6 dpr korea

11

5

7

23

7 thailand

9

8

30

47

8 chinese taipei

8

11 13

32

9 India

7

7

17

31

10 Uzbekistan

5

11

9

25

11 KAZAKHSTAN

5

8

27

40

12 UAE

3

6

3

12

13 Mongolia

3

2

5

10

14 Philippines

3

0

10

13

15 Hongkong,china 2

6

13

21

16 Kyrgyzstan

2

5

8

15

17 Malaysia

2

5

5

12

18 singapore

2

2

9

13

19 Jordan

2

1

7

10

20 cambodia

2

0

1

3

21 Kuwait

2

0

0

2

22 vietnam

1

7

12

20

23 Macau, china

1

2

1

4

24 Bahrain

1

2

0

3

25 Lebanon

1

1

2

4

26 korea

1

0

1

2

27 iraq

1

0

0

1

28 lao, pdr

0

1

2

3

28 Turkmenistan

0

1

2

3

30 saudi arabia

0

1

1

2

₧181.4B

The amount expected to be raised from tax reform in 2019, as part of the P3.2 trillion in revenues targeted to sustain the strong fiscal performance and aggressive spending plan into the medium term

earlier committed by DOF officials, submitted before end-July to the House, from where all taxation measures emanate under the bicameral Congress.

Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said the government aims to raise P3.2 trillion in revenues in 2019, including about P181.4 billion from tax reform, which will help sustain its strong

It depends #1: Why so Alberto C. Agra

ead

L AlbertoPPP C. Agra

T

his is one of those series by this columnist that delves deeper on the intricacies of public-private partnerships. The past series are on PPP Conversations, Dissecting PPP Contracts and Ps in PPPs. This first of the new series explains the title, “why it depends?”—why there are different answers to a PPP question?

focuses on reforming property taxation in the country to make the valuation system more equitable, efficient and transparent, was submitted on July 26, 2018, while Package 4 focusing on the rationalization of capital income taxation was submitted on July 24, 2018.

According to the DOF, all remaining CTRP packages were, as

With tighter rules, fewer OFWs sent to Kuwait

‘2 GOLD TO BE TRUE’

There are varied reasons and bases why and when to adopt PPP or procurement; hybrid or whole-life PPP; build-operate-transfer law, joint-venture guidelines or agency-specific regulations; solicited or unsolicited; 12-percent rate of return or higher, or even a different tariff mechanism.

Continued on A11

See “DOF,” A2

By Samuel P. Medenilla

Continued on A2

T

@cuo_bm

Meanwhile, the Neda is still waiting for the President’s signing of the revised Foreign Investment Negative List (FINL), which aims to address some of these concerns.

In July Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia said the President has yet to approve the FINL, which the Neda submitted earlier this year.

See “Internet,” A2

See “PCA,” A2

Golfers (from left) Bianca Pagdanganan, Yuka Saso and Lois Kaye Go celebrate after adding two more golds to the Philippines’s medal haul, this time in the 18th Asian Games golf competitions at the Pondok Indah Golf and Country Club in Indonesia. Story on C3. Nonie Reyes/Canon 6D MKII

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ESTRICTIONS on foreign investments in mass media, advertising and education are already obsolete, according to a former socioeconomic planning secretary.

In a recent presentation, former National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) Director General Cielito F. Habito said these restrictions have prevented the country from taking advantage of many opportunities to create jobs.

These jobs could come in through new foreign direct investments (FDI), as well as higher skills and learning

PESO exchange rates n US 53.4880

brought about by top-notch foreign institutions.

“One of the reasons for our continuing difficulty in attracting FDI [are the] persistent restrictions on foreign participation in many key sectors of the economy,” Habito said.

“We have missed out on a lot of opportunities for creating even more millions of jobs for our compatriots,but we still have too tight restrictions... enshrined in our Constitution and our laws,” he added.

Habito said fears that foreign institutions would “brainwash” Filipinos through mass media and advertising have been mooted by the fact that millions of Filipinos have cable television

and can access information through the Internet.

In terms of education, Habito said, foreign restrictions have prevented the country from joining its Asean neighbors in being the Asian locations of top-notch universities.

He said Malaysia and Singapore now have branches of the prestigious US-based Yale University and Johns Hopkins University.

“Actually, in the 1990s, Harvard University almost came here to set up a Harvard Medical School Training Hospital except, again, our laws apparently prevented even that,” Habito said.

In his presentation, Habito noted that no foreign ownership is allowed

@jearcalas

HE Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) has rebuked the claim of a Harvard professor that coconut oil (CNO), the country’s top agricultural export, is “pure poison” and “one of the worst things” humans could consume.

The PCA said claims on CNO by Karin Michels, an epidemiologist at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, are “a ruthless attack that is based on old science and flawed research.”

In a statement at the weekend, PCA described it as “a rehash of the smear campaign orchestrated by US-based entities that represent rival oil and big pharmaceutical interests.”

In the PCA’s view, “This appears to be a regular annual attack on coconut oil, which has gained much adherence as a healthy and environmentally friendly vegetable oil that is produced by small-holder farmers throughout the country.”

Last year the American Heart Association issued a health advisory that warned people against consuming CNO, as it could raise one’s bad cholesterol level, resulting in cardiovascular diseases. AHA recommended that people consume polyunsaturated or monosaturated fat instead.

Michels made headlines recently when she called CNO “one of the worst things you can eat” during her lecture at the University at Freiburg.

With Internet, caps on foreign investments in media ‘obsolete’

By Cai U. Ordinario

Pure baloney: PCA hits new smear drive vs coconut oil

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

@sam_medenilla

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business news source of the year

P25.00 nationwide | 5 sections 28 pages | 7 days a week

In turn, the Executive is looking to have all the tax bills approved by the end of 2018, noting the vital role these will play in ensuring enough revenues to sustain the Duterte administration’s development plan, especially the ambitious “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure program.

Package 3 of the CTRP, which

EWER Filipino household service workers (HSW) are now bound for Kuwait as the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) tightens its requirements for Kuwaiti recruiters and employers.

As of August 10, 2018, the POEA told the BusinessMirror that it approved the overseas employment certificate (OEC) of only 1,049 Filipino HSWs, since they were allowed to work again in Kuwait last July.

The applications of the said HSWs were already being processed by the POEA when the government decided to stop the deployment of

2016 ejap journalism awards

in mass media, except recording, while limited foreign ownership was imposed on private radio networks where foreigners are only allowed 20-percent ownership; advertising agencies, 30 percent; and education, 40 percent.

Waiting for FINL

n japan 0.4806 n UK 68.5342 n HK 6.8139 n CHINA 7.7802 n singapore 38.9315 n australia 38.7414 n EU 61.7305 n SAUDI arabia 14.2619

Source: BSP (24 August 2018 )

News

BusinessMirror

A2 Monday, August 27, 2018

The choice of CJ de Castro: No tokenism, Palace insists

J

By Elijah Felice E. Rosales @alyasjah

By Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

UDICIAL professionalism, not tokenism, was what President Duterte practiced in appointing Teresita Leonardo-de Castro as the new head magistrate of the country, Malacañang asserted on Sunday.

In a text message to reporters, Presidential Spokesman Harry L. Roque Jr. said it is “nonsense” to allege de Castro’s ascent to power as the President’s token to her. De Castro has taken over the post of the Chief Justice in replacement of Maria Lourdes A. Sereno, who was ousted by her peers, including de Castro, in a vote on a quo warranto petition. That quo warranto, lodged by Solicitor General Jose C. Calida, was slammed by critics as violative of the constitutional mandate to subject impeachable officers like the chief justice only to impeachment in Congress.

“That is nonsense. President Duterte upheld judicial professionalism by appointing [the] most senior of aspirants,” Roque said in a mix of English and Filipino, re-

acting to criticism that the post of CJ was a sort of “payback” for de Castro, who had testified in House hearings on the Sereno impeachment complaint and gave adverse comments on the latter.

Duterte last week handpicked de Castro to lead the Judiciary, following the ouster of Sereno through a quo warranto petition.

De Castro, the most senior member of the Supreme Court (SC), was one of eight justices who voted in favor of Sereno’s removal.

De Castro earlier voted in two crucial court battles of this administration: the hero’s burial of the late dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos and the one-year extension of martial law in Mindanao.

In spite of this, Malacañang believes she is still more competent than Sereno, who was put in power

With tighter rules, fewer OFWs sent to Kuwait Continued from A1

overseas Filipino workers (OFW) to Kuwait last February.

The number of over a thousand approvals in July is significantly lower compared to the average monthly deployment of 5,000 Filipino HSWs to Kuwait in 2016 to 2017.

In a statement, recruitment consultant Emmanuel Geslani attributed the declining deployment trend to the refusal of some foreign recruitment agencies (FRAs) in Kuwait to comply with the POEA’s requirements.

This includes the controversial $10,000 to $50,000 deposit in the POEA’s new escrow requirement for FRAs in Kuwait.

FRAs are the foreign partners of Philippine recruitment agencies (PRA), which process the recruitment requirements of OFWs in their host countries.

“Many foreign recruitment agencies are not willing to pay additional KD 3,000 (Kuwaiti Dinar) in escrow deposits since they already paid a bond of KD 40,000 in Kuwait,),” Geslani said.

As of August 26, 2018, a KD is equivalent to $3.29.

Earlier this month, Labor and Employment Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III announced the temporary suspension of the escrow requirement for FRAs in Kuwait.

The suspension will be in effect until the POEA governing board can issue a new resolution, which will apply the requirement to all destination countries of OFWs and not just Kuwait.

Another factor which affected the deployment of Filipino HSWs in Kuwait is the new POEA policy for their employers.

Compared to its previous policy, POEA said Kuwaiti employers now face stringent requirements under the newly signed Philippine-Kuwait memorandum of understanding (MOU).

POEA said it has yet to accredit any new Kuwaiti employer of HSWs under the new MOU. Under the MOU, Kuwaiti employers must now allow their Filipino HSWs to keep their passports, mobile phones, and open bank accounts in their employee’s behalf for salary purposes.

The signing of the MOU was a condition set by President Rodrigo R. Durterte on Kuwait before he allowed the resumption of the deployment of OFWs to Kuwait in May. Duterte ordered a deployment ban in Kuwait after learning about the brutal death of a Filipino HSW, Joanna Demafelis, allegedly at the hands of her employer. Her body was found in a freezer at her employers’ home, about one year since she went missing.

Ombudsman’s rule. . .

When he assumed his position, Martires said he found out that each department in the Ombudsman is handling cases and conducting separate preliminary investigations.

He said that, under the law, it is the Office of the Special Prosecutor that has the power and authority to conduct preliminary investigation of cases being brought to the Ombudsman.

Martires added that all those assigned in the Office of the Special Prosecutors are also the ones who will litigate the cases.

“A l l t h e s e l aw ye r s c o n d u c t i n g preliminary investigation will be reassigned to the Office of the Special Prosecutor. I cannot understand why the previous ombudsman placed the preliminary investigation in the hands of the deptartment and not in the Office

Continued from A12

of the Special Prosecutor,” he said.

Martires added that under the setup he will put in place, the lawyer who conducted the preliminary investigation will be the one who will litigate the case, and not pass it to a special prosecutor. “So what we found, what they are doing right now is actually against the law. We want to correct this,” he added.

During the event, Martires also asked lawyers not make an attempt to bribe any officer or employee of the Ombudsman, as he vowed to run after them once he finds out of any such bribery, consummated or not.

“Once I find out that an officer [has been] corrupted, I will not just run after the officer of the Ombudsman, I will also file disbarment proceedings against the corrupt lawyer. It takes two to tango,” he warned.

by the previous administration.

“She has had infinitely more experience than the former CJ [Chief Justice],” Roque added.

De Castro will serve as head magistrate for less than two months. She is scheduled to retire on October 8.

Support from Martires

In a related development, Ombudsman Samuel Martires has urged all lawyers to rally behind De Castro, his former colleague at the high court.

In his speech during the 50th founding anniversary of San Beda’s Lex Leonum Fraternitas in a Makati City hotel, Martires said de Castro is well-prepared for the post, even though she only has two months to serve before retiring.

Martires, who also served as associate justice of the SC prior to his appointment as Ombudsman, said de Castro has the full support of her colleagues in the SC. He conceded that de Castro was demonized in the media when she testified against Sereno in the impeachment proceedings conducted by the House of Representatives against the latter.

De Castro was described by detractors as driven by bitterness because then-President Benigno S. Aquino III disregarded the seniority rule in choosing the Chief Justice

PCA. . .

Continued from A1

During her lecture, titled “Coconut oil and other nutritional errors,” Michels tagged the vegetable oil “pure poison.” The PCA said it supports the statement of the 18-member-nation Asia and Pacific Coconut Community (ACPCC) which decried Michels’ statements.

“In a statement given out during the 48th Cocotech Conference in Thailand attended by well-respected scientists and researchers on coconut technologies, the APCC decried Michels’ statement as “sensationalist, contrary to the truth and damaging to the welfare of millions of people,” it said.

Michels’“hasty” statement, the PSA added, merely echoes AHA’s health advisory in June 2017. “She echoes the AHA advisory which likewise drew attention on how coconut oil increases LDL cholesterol known as the bad cholesterol,” it said.

“Both have conveniently omitted the fact that coconut oil also raises levels of good cholesterol or highdensity lipoprotein (HDL) which counters the bad effects of LDL cholesterol,” it added.

Furthermore, the PCA explained that recent studies conducted abroad revealed “that dietary cholesterol is not the root cause of cardio vascular disease but inflammation.”

“Dr. Dwight Lundell, a world renowned heart surgeon who has performed over 5,000 open-heart surgeries, revealed that the biggest culprit of chronic inflammation is the

Internet. . .

Continued from A1

However, he gave assurances the updated FINL will be signed soon.

Apart from contractors, the FINL will also ease foreign restrictions on private recruitment, whether for local or overseas employment; teaching in the higher education levels; retail trade enterprises; and domestic market enterprises.

Pernia said the updated FINL will make it possible for a 100 percent-owned telecommunications firm to operate in the country.

The NEDA chief said that while some laws need to be amended to make these changes possible, there are already a number of bills filed in Congress that will support the FINL. The Neda is tasked to review and revise the country’s Regular Foreign Investment Negative List (RFINL), which contains restrictions

when he appointed the relatively junior Sereno to the post in 2012.

“I hope, as lawyers, you will support the new Chief Justice. During those times there was an impeachment in Congress, she was the one carrying the truth,” Martires told the Lex Leonum Fraternitas.

He thinks de Castro can still make an impact and leave a legacy in the judiciary despite her brief term. “All she has to do is to continue all her programs and the other programs beneficial to the Judiciary. In a short span of time, she can do that,” Martires told the Businessmirror.

During her public interview by the Judicial and Bar Council for the CJ post, de Castro expressed confidence that she would be able to accomplish significant program during her remaining two months in the SC. She told that panel that she has been leading various judicialreform programs since 2007. De Castro said she intends to review the case-management information system, which allows parties to easily track the status of their cases.

She will also reorganize the ethics and ethical standard committee of the SC, which was organized during the time of the late Chief Justice Renato Corona but ceased to operate during the term of Sereno.

overconsumption of simple, highly processed carbohydrates (sugar, flour and all the products made from them) and of omega-6 vegetable oils like soybean, corn and sunflower that are found in many processed foods,” it said.

The PCA also said the US National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, and the British Medical Journal “are replete with overwhelming number of studies proving coconut oil to be one of the healthiest foods in the planet.”

“Researchers have time and again uncovered the amazing secrets of coconut oil and its healthy fats called medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs).

Coconut oil is a great source of MCFAs. And, the most amazing is the fat content in coconut oil which is rarely found in nature: lauric acid (C12),” it explained.

“Pure coconut oil contains about 50 percent lauric acid which is considered a “miracle” ingredient by nutritionists because of its unique health-promoting properties. Coconut oil is the richest natural source of lauric acid, followed by human breastmilk. When lauric acid is present in the body, it is converted into monolaurin which has good antiviral, antimicrobial, antiprotozoal and antifungal properties,” it added.

The APCC is an intergovernmental organization of 18 coconut-producing states in the Asia-Pacific region, including the Philippines, which aims “to promote, coordinate and harmonize all activities of the coconut industry”. It accounts for over 90 percent of world coconut production and exports of coconut products.

on foreign investments and the practice of professions based on the constitution and Philippine laws.

The RFINL contains investment areas/ activities where foreign equity participation is limited by mandate of the Constitution and specific laws. It also consists of investment areas/activities where foreign equity participation is limited for reasons of defense, security, risk to public health and morals, and protection of small- and medium-sized domestic market enterprises.

The amendment of the list is headed by the Neda Secretariat, as provided for under Section 8 of RA 7042, or the Foreign Investments Act of 1991. The latter states that amendments may be made upon the recommendation of the secretary of national defense or the secretary of health, or the secretary of education, endorsed by the Neda, approved by the President, and promulgated by a Presidential Proclamation.

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House panel sets Sept. 4 hearing on impeachment complaint vs 7 SC justices

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

F

@joveemarie

OLLOWING the directive of Speaker Gloria MacapagalArroyo to expedite the impeachment process against seven members of the Supreme Court, the House Committee on Justice chairman on Sunday said the deliberations of the complaints will begin on September 4.

Oriental Mindoro Rep. Paulino Salvador C. Leachon, the panel chairman, said the impeachment complaints against seven justices, who had voted to oust former Chief Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno in a controversial petition for quo warranto, will be included in the Order of Business on Tuesday and will be referred to the justice committee the same day.

“Our target is September 4, the earliest. Under the rules, we have three days to notify all the respondents [after the referral to the committee],” said Leachon in a radio interview. Earlier, Arroyo said she wants to expedite the impeachment proceedings so that it would not affect the legislative agenda of the lower chamber.

Moreover, Leachon vowed to hear the impeachment complaints independently and “will be guided by the rules on impeachment.”

The lawmaker said the committee will jointly hear the seven complaints against the seven justices “to make it easier and simple.”

The complaints were filed by some members of the “Magnificent 7” opposition bloc before the Office of the House Secretary General against Justices Teresita Leonardo de Castro, Diosdado Peralta, Lucas Bersamin, Andres Reyes, Francis Jardeleza, Noel Tijam and Alexander Gesmundo.

Over the weekend, President Duterte appointed de Castro as the new Chief Justice, to serve for a historically brief tenure of 41 days.

“Those involved in these complaints, particularly the seven justices, I can assure them, I can

DOF. . .

Continued from A1

fiscal performance and aggressive spending plan into the medium term. The revenue goal is equivalent to 16.5 percent of GDP, an improvement from the 15.6 percent attained in 2017 and this year’s target of 16.2 percent.

According to the finance chief, the projected amount of P181.4 billion will come from the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion, which took effect on January 1, 2018, as well as from Package 1B, the other half of the TRAIN, which was submitted in 2016 but was not approved together with TRAIN. Package 1B includes measures on the proposed tax amnesty program and adjustments in the Motor Vehicle Users Charge.

Finance Undersecretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua explained that the first CTRP package, or the TRAIN law, was designed to provide hefty personal income-tax cuts for 99 percent of Filipinos and at the same time raise supporting funds to enable the government to spend big on infrastructure and human capital development.

Package 2, which was submitted on January 16 this year, is meant to fix the flawed corporate taxation system in the country that has generally favored a select group of corporations and barred both the national and local governments from generating a commensurate level of revenues from certain businesses and individuals.

Package 2 plus, which proposes to increase the excise tax on tobacco and alcohol products and increase the government’s share from mining, is currently pending in Con-

guarantee them, that the committee will try and hear these [complaints] with utmost impartiality,” Leachon vowed.

The seven justices were charged with culpable violation of the Constitution and betrayal of public trust by Albay Rep. Edcel C. Lagman, Magdalo Party-list Rep. Gary Alejano, Ifugao Rep. Teddy B. Baguilat, and Akbayan Party-list Rep. Tom S. Villarin.

The complainants said that the May 11 Supreme Court ousting Sereno by granting the quo warranto petition “is not only errant, it is also malevolent. It is not only bereft of constitutional anchorage, it is also a blatant subterfuge, an orchestrated charade.”

They said the seven justices committed culpable violation of the Constitution because they are fully aware that impeachment is the only mode or process of removing impeachable officials.

Also, they added that the petition for quo warranto or any other mode of removal is anathema to the unequivocal mandate of the Constitution solely vesting in Congress the power to impeach.

Timeline

Meanwhile, after deliberations at the Justice committee, members of the panel will vote to determine the sufficiency in form and in substance of the complaints. Then the approved committee report and the accompanying Articles of Impeachment will be sent to the Committee on Rules, which will then decide, within 10 session days, when to calendar the matter for plenary deliberation.

Once the matter is in the plenary, the House has 60 session days to finally vote on whether to send the impeachment to the Senate for trial. A vote of at least one-third of the lower chamber is needed to send the impeachment complaint to the Senate, which will then convene as the impeachment court. gress. For the tobacco and alcohol tax, the DOF adopted Senate Bill 1599 introduced by Sen. Emmanuel D. Pacquiao. For the mining tax, it endorsed House Bill (HB) 7951 filed

by Rep. Estrellita B. Suansing.

President’s pitch

In his State of the Nation address last July 23, President Duterte identified tax reform among his administration’s top priorities, particularly Package 2, which he said would benefit small businesses and “stands between today and millions of jobs in the near future.” This cuts corporate- income tax (CIT) and rationalizes the system of fiscal incentives.

With strong suppor t f rom the President, Doming uez III s a id he i s ho p i n g C on g re s s could pass Package 2 and the rest of the CTR P packages before the end of 2018, especially because law makers would, at the onset of 2019, be a lready preoccupied w ith their respective campaigns for next year’s midter m elections.

As for Package 2, the House of Representatives already concluded the technical working group meetings that consolidated 12 similar measures and inputs from stakeholders, all of which seek to lower the CIT rate and modernize investment incentives under HB 8083. The latter is now more popularly known as the Tax Reform for Attracting Better And High-quality Opportunities (Trabaho) Act. HB 8083 is set for plenary interpellation and second reading when the House resumes session on August 28 after the one-week congressional break.

The Nation BusinessMirror

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Nearly 200 ‘pollywogs’ on PHL Navy flagship perform ‘shellback’ rites

A

BOUT 160 sailors and soldiers considered “pollywogs” aboard the Philippine Navy’s flagship BRP Gregorio del Pilar undertook the “shellback ceremony” on Saturday as the vessel crossed the equator on its way to Darwin, Australia, to participate in the military exercises Kakadu.

Lt. Maria Christina Roxas, public affairs officer of the Naval Task Force 91 (NTF 91), said pollywogs are considered as sailors who have not yet crossed the equator. They took the “crossing the line” ceremony, which was administered by shellbacks, or sailors who have already crossed the equator, as “one-in-a-lifetime experience,” Roxas explained.

The shellback ceremony, which involved a series of mental and physical challenges from shellbacks, led by “King Neptune and his aides,” is a time-honored ritual that dates back to at least 400 years of seafaring.

“The ‘line-crossing’ ceremony is one of the oldest but interesting ceremonies at sea.

It is a time-honored ritual that dates back at least 400 years of seafaring. The ceremony observes a mariner’s transformation from a slimy pollywog to a trusty shellback, also called a Son or Daughter of Neptune. It was a way for sailors to be tested for their seaworthiness,” Roxas said.

She further explained that when a ship crosses the equator, “King Neptune” comes aboard to exercise authority over his domain and to judge charges brought against pollywogs that “they are only posing as sailors and haven’t paid proper homage to the god of the sea.”

No fear

CAPT. Ruth Valdevilla, the naval dentist accompany ing the contingent and the most senior pollywog, was at first afraid of the ceremony, but was soon enjoying the whole ritual.

“This is not what I imagined. In my services for our contingent, I was very fearful of the shellback ceremony but, as the event was taking place, I found myself and the rest of crew enjoying,” she said. “I was proud and honored to have this experienced with such a great crew; the memory for my lifetime.”

Marine reservist Sgt. Maria Dolores Babaan also shared the same feeling.

Army Major William Sabado said the linecrossing ceremony was “a lifetime experience,” adding “everything is unexpected. It is a good tradition that even the most senior officer gives his utmost participation. [I], as an Army person, felt the excitement and anticipation that transpired in this event. The experience broadens my perspective toward the Philippine Navy.”

The shellbacks, led by NTF 91 commander, Capt. Junjie Tabuada, who acted as King Neptune, said the ceremony was intended for the ship’s crew to enjoy the time while heading to the exercise area.

“This was a rare opportunity for the PN contingent to be part of a Navy tradition that is centuries old. It is a fun activity that builds camaraderie and teamwork among the contingent and for morale boost more than anything else,” Roxas said. “High-ranking members of the crew and those who have been shellbacks the longest dress up in elaborate costume and each play the part of King Neptune’s court.”

The ceremony was later followed by a boodle fight.

The NTF 91 is joining other navies from 21 countries for the Kakadu exercise, which involves a series of exercises, war maneuvers and sea trainings beginning on August 31 and lasts up to September 15. Rene Acosta

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Monday, August 27, 2018 A3

Suicide of teachers, children prompts call for govt action

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz @joveemarie

& Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

A

Correspondent

group of concerned Filipinos and a congressman has called on the government to act on the spate of suicide involving teachers and children.

The Teachers Dignity Coalition (TDC) on Sunday urged Education Secretary Leonor M. Briones to help unburden teachers with workloads following the two suicide cases in just two months allegedly due to work-related issues.

The Department of Education (DepEd) is also in the mind of Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Raymund F. Villafuerte who filed House Bill (HB) 7858 following reports that Filipino kids as young as 10 years old have committed suicide because of depression. Villafuerte is pushing for the passage of a measure mandating the DepEd to include life education and peer counselling programs in schools.

“Two cases of [teachers’] suicide in just two months purportedly due to work-related issues should alarm the DepEd and take necessary steps,” a statement by the TDC said. “We have been raising the issue of overburden due to clerical tasks required to teachers.”

The TDC issued the statement on August 26, after receiving news a teacher took her life after 21-year-old Emylou Malate, a multi-grade teacher in La Paz, Leyte, committed suicide in their house in Limba village on July 14.

LIS, Cloud

ACCORDING to TDC National Chairman Benjamin Basas, the DepEd’s introduction of a new performance rating system called “Learner Information System,” or LIS, adds pressure to teachers.

The DepEd has claimed the LIS helps teachers cut time spent on the system and allows them to focus on teaching. However, the TDC insisted “that [LIS] would again result to heavy workloads.”

“We appeal to Briones to put a halt on all the required nonteaching-related tasks, class observations and paperwork and listen to us in a dialogue,” the group said. “How many more teachers will commit suicide [for you to listen to us]?”

However, the DepEd has said it is banking on the migration of the LIS to the department’s Cloud facilities and the provision of enough resources for more than 100,000 daily users, which is four to five times the usual capacity of LIS. The DepEd emphasized this could see more users able to work with the system during the day than at night or wee hours of the morning.

“Complaints from parents and teachers

Two kindergarten classes with approximately 50 pupils each share a regular-size classroom divided by a wooden wall at President Corazon Aquino Elementary School in Quezon City. A group of teachers and a lawmaker are eyeing the Department of Education as a key intervening factor that can address the spate of suicides involving teachers and children. ALYSA SALEN

have been passed on to us about the LIS, which [they said] keeps them sleepless,” Briones said.

“The continuous improvements in the department all aim to help improve the welfare and efficiency of our teachers and personnel.”

Long overdue

DEPED Undersecretary for Administration Alain Del B. Pascua said the LIS dashboard now registers an average of 130,000 teachers accessing the system from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and only less than 1,000 users at night—opposite of the common traffic.

“This is only the beginning of a department-wide effort to improve the efficiency of existing DepEd systems,” Pascua said.

“It is long overdue and it will go a long way in helping our teachers have more time to teach than working on the LIS.” Since the improvement, system problems due to high volume of users were encountered for only three days between July 30 and August 1. The increase in capacity of key resources to accommodate more users resulted in minimal reports of slowdown.

Migration to the Cloud was a strategic decision, which allows the DepEd to easily increase or decrease the capacity of the LIS based on the current requirements without going through the long process of purchasing new equipment, Pascua explained. It also ensures that LIS will continue operations even in cases of blackouts or other untoward events that might affect the DepEd’s Data Center, he added.

The DepEd has also established a project team whose sole purpose is to improve the LIS. Recent enhancements now allow schools to enroll eligible learners who were unable to finalize enrollment in the previous school year, Balik-Aral learners who have no record in the previous year and transferees from public and private

schools. Once all the planned interventions are completed, teachers will no longer need to spend long hours complying with the requirements of the LIS. DepEd Information and Communications Technology Service (ICTS) Director Abram Y.C. Abanil, meanwhile, said the DepEd is working nonstop in their assessment of existing systems, apart from the LIS, “to ensure that they fulfill their objective of simplifying work.”

Mental health

TO address suicidal tendencies of children, Villafuerte is pushing for the institutionalization of a Youth Suicide Prevention program.

The bill also intends to establish Youth Health Centers to address the stigma of mental health and identify youth issues.

According to Villafuerte, he filed the bill following the approval by Congress of the Comprehensive Mental Health Act, which aims to respond to the mental-health needs of Filipinos by integrating mental health into the general health-care system.

While the proposed law is now just waiting for the President’s signature, there is still a room for a preventive system in the case of youth suicide in the country, Villafuerte said.

Under the bill, the DepEd, in coordination with the Department of Health (DOH), is mandated to formulate and include in the elementary and secondary education curriculum a course on Life Planning.

“Life Planning Education [LPE] shall require lectures and discussions on self and identity; personal, family, community values; communication and interrelationship with others; sexuality and gender roles; community participation; health; psychological thinking and employment, among others,”

the bill states. Training shall be provided to school administrators, teachers, guidance counselors and other school personnel responsible for delivering LPE, Villafuerte said.

Public light

ACCORDING to the lawmaker, youth suicide came into public light during a Senate Committee on Youth hearing on the report by the National Poison Management and Control Center (NPMCC).

Villafuerte said the report stated that Filipino kids have committed suicide because of depression. He noted the NPMCC’s report said about 16 percent of the total suicide cases recorded are from the youth, teens aged 10 to 19 years old.

A study on the prevalence of suicide attempts among Filipino youth showed that roughly 1 in 10 Filipino youth aged 15 to 27 has considered suicide an option, he added.

The lawmaker said implementing a peercounseling program in schools will encourage positive mental health for students.

“It should include a peer-counseling training course that teaches basic counseling skills, as well as a mentor-mentee program to stimulate relationship and confidence building and skill and academic motivation,” Villafuerte said.

R&D

Under the bill, the Department of Health is tasked to conduct research and development (R&D) programs on “the effectiveness of new and existing youth suicide prevention strategies, techniques, technology, including clinical studies and evaluations of such strategies and related research aimed at reducing youth suicide and providing support for emotional and behavioral disorders, which may lead to suicide attempts.”

A4 Monday, August 27, 2018 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

Economy BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

‘Govt help crucial to hiking export receipts’

E

By Elijah Felice E. Rosales

@alyasjah

xpanding export receipts by 5 percent this year may be a tall order for exporters, but they remain bullish that the target will be achieved if measures favorable to the business community are enacted in time for the holiday season.

Sergio R. Ortiz-Luis Jr., president of the Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. (Philexport), said exporters are optimistic they can still rebound in spite of a dismal firstsemester performance.

Ortiz-Luis attributed his confidence to the usual trend of growing demand for local products during the holidays. “It will be better than the first half because it is approaching the Christmas season, so we expect it will be good,” he said in a statement.

However, he also recognized that while shipments may increase dur-

ing the holidays, it does not necessarily mean that the export sector will be able to hit its growth target of 5 percent this year.

The sector has yet to exhibit a positive performance this year. In June export receipts contracted by 0.1 percent to $5.7 billion, from $5.704 during the same month last year. Ortiz-Luis attributed this to the decreases in receipts of mineral products, ignition wiring sets, aircrafts and ships and fresh bananas.

Ortiz-Luis said export revenues must expand by an average of 7.5

percent in the second half of the year to achieve the growth target. He said this itself is a “tall order.”

“There are some improvements in our market. Electronics seems to be doing well. In agriculture, it is coconut that is growing, the rest are going down. We hope that mineral products should contribute also,” the Philexport chief said.

The sector, he added, will need the cooperation of the government to fully benefit from the strong demand expected during the holidays. He pinned his hopes on, among others,

the ease of doing business (EODB) law to streamline government processes resulting to faster trade transactions.

“We are requesting for budget support. Financing of exporters themselves should be improved, especially for the small and medium enterprise exporters. We have high hopes that the EODB law would cut down red tape and bring down the costs,” Ortiz-Luis said.

Apart from this, he urged the government to make more affordable the transport, shipping and power costs in the country.

Infra, not incentives, will entice investors–economists Fast-track energy reforms ‘Generous’

Photo shows a portion of the Bacolod Economic Highway, one of the infrastructure projects that the government has rolled out under its “Build, Build, Build” program. Economists said infrastructure projects such as the Bacolod Economic Highway would enable the Philippines to attract more investments. PHOTO FROM BUILD.GOV.PH

By Cai U. Ordinario

@cuo_bm

P

utting up the necessary infrastructure and eliminating red tape, and not additional incentives, will attract investors to the Philippines, according to economists from the Ateneo Center for Economic Research and Development (ACERD).

While incentives could help, bad roads, lack of transportation, and difficulties in doing business would discourage investors from setting up shop in Philippine areas in need of more jobs.

“Our problem is not really incentives per se,” ACERD Director Alvin P. Ang said in a recent forum. “We are really worse off in infrastructure; this is where we need to catch up.”

Ang said that based on data from the World Economic Forum (WEF), the three main areas of concern of investors in the Philippines are inefficient government bureaucracy,

inadequate supply of infrastructure and corruption.

Previous years would show a different order of the top 3 issues but would still remain the top three areas of concern of investors when it comes to the Philippines.

Data presented by former Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Cielito F. Habito showed Total Approved Foreign Investment by key Investment Promotion Agencies posted a 37.9-percent contraction in the first quarter of the year.

“We still need a lot of catching up. As you know, we are the lowest among Asean,” Ang said. “We need to improve on it further but with the data coming from the investment agencies showing negative [growth], we need to do a lot of work. Hopefully, the recently passed ARTA law [AntiRed Tape Act] which should simplify business registrations in the country.”

Habito said data showed that the Philippines was the

laggard in terms of foreign direct investments (FDI) among the Asean-5.

In 2017 Habito said Bangko Sentra l ng Pilipinas (BSP) data showed the countr y only booked $10.1 bil lion wor th of investments. W hile this was higher than those that f lowed into T hailand and Ma laysia, he said this may just be a “ f luke.”

Habito said in terms of exports, the country only earned $69 billion last year.

This was the lowest among the Asean-5 and the gap between the country’s export earnings and those of its neighbors have widened.

“Thirteen years ago, Vietnam was still lagging behind us. And we were only $45 billion away from Indonesia. Look at where we are now, we are now $100 billion lower than Indonesia, Vietnam has since overtaken both the Philippines and Indonesia,” Habito said.

Ang said the country’s taxincentive system is actually one of the “most generous” in the Asean. The Philippines offers a minimum of four years of incentives plus an eight-year extension, as well as a “ forever” gross income earned tax of 5 percent.

Other Asean countries offer a maximum of 20 years of incentives, such as Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia and Lao PDR. Worth noting was the fact that Singapore, which offers only a three-year incentive to investors, has the highest FDI in the region.

Further, Ang said, only the Philippines offers income incentive “forever.” This has also been pointed out by the Department of Finance (DOF) in previous Congress hearings.

The DOF said these “deal sweeteners” are enshrined in 123 laws and even 192 noninvestment tax incentives. These incentives have been in existence for the past 50 years.

The 123 investment-led fiscal incentives has protected many firms across at least 25 major industries. There are also incentives extended for various sectors under the Board of Investments; enshrined in the Local Government Code of 1991; the National Internal Revenue Code; and the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act. The most number of incentives are given to communication and postal services with as much as 42 investment-led fiscal incentives followed by a far second, the energy/oil industry with 14 fiscal incentives.

Other industries that have more than two fiscal incentives are agrarian reform/ agriculture, eight incentives; games and amusement and banks/financial industry, five incentives each; air transport services and BOI-registered firms, four incentives each; and environment/pollution control and shipping industry, three incentives each.

These concerns will be addressed by the Tax Reform for Attracting Better and High Quality Opportunities bill which is now pending in Congress.

Economic managers to tackle infra push, tax reform at Ejap forum

M

embers of the government’s economic team will speak at the second Ejap Economic Forum organized by the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines, which will be held on August 28 at the Ayuntamiento de Manila in Intramuros.

The theme of this year’s forum is “Tax Reform and Infrastructure Development: The Road to an Inclusive Philippine Economy.”

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Nestor A. Espenilla Jr. will open the event with a discussion on inflation and re-

forms in the banking system.

The first part of the forum will focus on the government’s Comprehensive Tax Reform Program and other macroeconomic developments. Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III will lead the lineup of speakers that also include Budget Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno and Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia.

The second part will center on the “Build, Build, Build” (BBB) infrastructure program. Transportation Secretary Arthur P. Tugade and Public Works Secretary Mark A. Vil-

lar will discuss the government’s infrastructure road map, while Metro Pacific Tollways Chief Executive Officer Rodrigo E. Franco and SMC Infrastructure Chief Financial Officer Raoul C. Romulo will talk about initiatives of the private sector.

Thomson Reuters journalist Karen Lema and Likha CuevasMiel of Mergermarket will serve as moderators.

“We expect this year’s forum to be a venue for meaningful discussions about the pressing economic issues affecting the Filipino people,” Ejap President Louella Desiderio said.

“Ejap appreciates the participation of this year’s speakers led by the government’s key policymakers,” she added.

The forum is held in cooperation with San Miguel Corp., LT Group Inc., SM Investments Corp., Metro Pacific Tollways Corp., PLDT Group, International Container Terminal Services Inc., Light Rail Manila Corp., JG Summit Holdings Inc., Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., Bank of the Philippine Islands, Udenna Corp., Globe Telecom Inc., Nickel Asia Corp. and First Metro Investment Corp.

to bring down electric bills, government told

By Butch Fernandez @butchfBM

& Lenie Lectura

T

@llectura

he Duterte administration was asked over the weekend to front-load energy sector reforms to quickly mitigate mounting consumer outrage against skyrocketing electric bills.

Sen. Sherwin T. Gatchalian on Sunday cited a recent Pulse Asia Survey affirming that 60 percent of Filipinos were “dissatisfied with current electricity prices.”

Gatchalian, who chairs the Senate Committee on Energy, noted the survey finding that Metro Manila residents recorded the highest dissatisfaction rate, with 84 percent expressing discontent.

The senator stressed that “the people need immediate respite from all these back-breaking commodity price increases, especially when it comes to their monthly electricity bills.”

He prodded the Duterte administration to “act quickly to institute pro-consumer reforms that will produce energy savings for Filipino households.”

Gatchalian listed three primary reasons electricity rates in the country are among the highest across the region: bureaucratic inefficiencies that drives away potential investors; the lack of competition and transparency in power-supply contracting; and rising stranded contract costs and stranded debt left behind by the National Power Corp.

The Senator suggested that Congress can help solve these issues promptly, urging members of the Senate and the House of Representatives to expedite passage of three energy-related measures to save consumers as much as P1.85 per kilowatt hour if they are enacted into law. Computing this would result in overall savings of P370 per month and P4,440 per year for a household consuming 200 kWh per month.

According to Gatchalian, the first measure, the Energy Virtual One Stop Shop (EVOSS) Act of 2017 (Senate Bill 1439), aims to cut pervasive red tape in the permitting process of new power generation projects.

EVOSS, however, remains pending in the House of Representatives even as the Senate already passed it on third reading last year.

In addition, Gatchalian cited the Murang Kuryente Act, authored by Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph G. Recto, allowing the government to tap the P207billion Malampaya Fund to pay the “stranded contract costs and stranded debt of Napocor.”

Since these obligations are passed on to consumers through t he u n iversa l c h a rge i n t he monthly electric bill, Gatchalian said applying the fund to pay these debts could save consumers more than P0.55 per kWh. He is set to sponsor the measure when the Senate reconvenes plenary session on Tuesday.

As a companion measure, Gatch-

alian filed Senate Bill 1653, to be known as the Competitive Selection Process (CSP) Act which aims to foster “transparency and competition” in power-supply contracting by requiring all generation contracts to undergo open bidding.

“Through this, it would be possible to discover the real cost of electricity in order to get the lowest price for the benefit of the consumers,” Gatchalian said of the proposal now under plenary consideration.

He added that early passage of the measure is expected to “provide relief to power consumers who have been burdened by exorbitantly high electricity rates for far too long.”

Warning

Consumer advocacy group Laban Konsyumer Inc. (LKI) warned the Department of Finance (DOF) of higher power rates with the second package of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Act. “We are monitoring the removal of incentives in the power sector under the Train 2, particularly in the renewable-energy [RE] industry. Everything will be subjected to 12-percent value-added tax,” LKI President and former Trade Undersecretary Victorio A. Dimagiba said.

Under Section 15 (g) of Republic Act 9513, or the Renewable Energy Act, “the sale of fuel or power generated from renewable sources of energy, such as but not limited to, biomass, solar, wind, hydropower, geothermal, ocean energy and other emerging energy resources such as fuel cells and hydrogen fuels, shall be subject to zero-percent value-added tax [VAT].”

Dimagiba said the TRAIN 2, which is being pushed by Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III, is an additional burden to the consumers still reeling from the impact of TRAIN 1.

The DOF earlier admitted during the Senate hearing that it did not compute the indirect effect of TRAIN 1 on inflation.

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Deputy Governor Diwa C. Guinigundo said only 0.7 percentage point of the 5.7-percent July inflation rate can be attributed to the tax-reform law.

According to Ibon Foundation, TRAIN 1 is among the biggest factors driving inflation rate and further inflationary surges are likely to happen in 2019 and 2020 when the next two rounds of additional taxes on oil products take effect.

“The price increases from TRAIN are very permanent and even if inflation rates moderate this does not mean that prices will be lower. It is grossly deceitful for economic managers to give the impression or claim otherwise,” Ibon said.

“Prices will continue to rise for the poor from TRAIN’s new and higher taxes unless the government says that the inflation rate will turn negative, which is unlikely,” the think tank added.

Ibon said that, among all the major factors driving high prices, the government has the most control over the taxes it charges.

The Regions BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Editor: Dennis D. Estopace • Monday, August 27, 2018 A5

Ayala Land to develop Luzon properties

P

By VG Cabuag

@Villygc

ROPERTY developer Ayala Land Inc. (ALI) said its project in Tarlac province, a former sugar plantation, will feature commercial and residential uses and potentially some area for industrial usage.

According to Anna Margarita Dy, ALI head of strategic landbank management group, the master-planning for the property will take either one or two years.

Last March ALI sealed the Philippine Competition Commission’s approval for the acquisition of a 290-hectare land with Central Azucarera de Tarlac in April.

The company, meanwhile, expects to develop the massive

Davao 4th-most competitive behind Metro Manila cities

D

AVAO CITY—This city was behind only three Metro Manila cities in the top competitive highly urbanized cities, keeping its consistent form in the top 5 list since 2015.

The city bagged the Fourth Most Competitive City in the Highly-Urbanized category during the 2018 Cities and Municipalities Competitiveness Index Awards at the sixth Regional Competitiveness Summit held at the Philippine International Convention Center on August 16.

Ivan Cortez, officer in charge of the City Planning and Development Office, said the award was accorded by the Department of Trade and Industry to city governments that show outstanding performance in the field of economic dynamism, government efficiency, infrastructure and resiliency.

“The award is the testament of all the efforts made by all of the departments of the city government to bring development to Davao City,” Cortez said. “With this award, we can see that the government is unceasingly giving its best to continue to improve its services.”

Davao City placed third in economic dynamism, taking into consideration factors like the size of economy, sources of material, structure of economy, safety compliance of businesses, cost of living, financial deepening involving the number of financial institutions within the city and number of people employed.

The city also landed third in infrastructure, which include roads, water and power utilities, telecommunication, number of transport vehicles, education and health facilities, and financial technology capacity.

In resilience, Davao ranked second, over its performance in land-use planning, disaster-risk management plan, early-warning systems and emergency infrastructures.

Cortez said Davao was ranked behind Quezon City, Pasay and Manila.

The selection was made involving 33 highly urbanized cities.

He added the city was consistent on the top 5 list of highly urbanized cities since 2015.

The cities and municipalities competitiveness index measures a local government unit’s competitiveness and presents an opportunity for local governments to better understand their performance against global standards. This also gives an avenue for them to come up with well-informed decisions toward becoming a more competitive LGU, he added. Manuel T. Cayon

UnionBank continues digital banking push

U

NIONBANK of the Philippines (UnionBank) is eyeing to complete 13 more of its digital hubs by the end of this year to shape the market into digital banking.

UnionBank President and CEO Edwin R. Bautista told reporters last week that apart from its Ark branch in Makati City, three more Arks will be set up nationwide with one Ark each for Cebu, Davao and Bonifacio Global City (BGC) in Taguig by year-end.

The Ark, UnionBank’s first fully digital branch, is at the Insular Life Building at the corner of Ayala Avenue and Paseo de Roxas Street in Makati City, and was opened in September last year.

UnionBank earlier said it has seen a 44-percent digital adoption rate from its over 3 million customers, to date. “[We’re putting up] 14 by the end of the year. There will be four big Arks like this and ten smaller versions,” Bautista said. “The three big ones will be in Cebu, Davao and another one in BGC.” As for the other 10 digital hubs, he noted that UnionBank will be renovating its existing branches to make smaller versions of the Ark instead of constructing new branches.

“We are not building new branches anymore but we are spending to renovate the old ones into the Ark,” he added.

Bautista said the push for customers to shift to digital banking would provide more deposit balance to the bank, among others. For one, customers won’t withdraw all their money from automated teller machines (ATM), which means that they’ll use it to buy things through a point-of-sale (POS) terminal, resulting to the bank making 1 percent to 1.5 percent from the transaction in virtual discounts, he explained.

“A digital customer has four times the deposit balance compared to a nondigital. Remember this number—four, six and 12. Four times the deposits, six times the number of transactions and, more important, we make 12 times more than the average of a nondigital customer,” he said. Rea Cu

27,852-hectare property, which it has a joint-venture deal with Green Square Properties Corp. (GSPC) and Green Circle Properties and Resources Inc. It said it will have a mixed-use development oriented toward tourism, commercial and residential and institutional uses, according to Dy. “The property features a 36-kilometer coastline fronting the Pacific Ocean,” Dy said.

In May this year the company agreed with GSPC

and GCPRI to set up a 51.49-percent joint venture, with ALI holding the majority, to develop the property that spans the Aurora and Quezon provinces.

ALI earlier said its first-half earnings grew 18 percent to P13.5 billion, from last year’s P11.5 billion, last year, propelled by solid contributions from its property development and commercial leasing businesses.

Total revenues climbed 25 percent to P80.4 bil-

lion, from last year’s P64.5 billion developed more mixed-use properties across the country. “[Our] performance remained robust and reflected a sustained demand for residential products,” ALI said.

Sales reservations reached P72 billion, 17 percent higher and equivalent to an average monthly take-up of P12 billion. Net booked sales registered at P50.4 billion, 25 percent higher than the previous total of P40.5 billion.

The World BusinessMirror

A6 Monday, August 27, 2018

Standoff over Syria: US, Russia trade chemical weapon warning

T

he United States and Russia exchanged warnings about a possible chemical attack in Syria and a Western military intervention in response, on the eve of what may be one of the decisive campaigns in the Middle Eastern country’s civil war.

Tensions between the nuclear powers flared after National Security Adviser John Bolton told his Russian counterpart, Nikolai Patrushev, that the US has information Syrian President Bashar al-Assad may be preparing to use chemical weapons to recapture the northwestern province of Idlib from rebels.

The US is ready to respond forcefully, Bolton said during a five-hour meeting in Geneva on Thursday, according to four people familiar with the discussions. Assad’s army, with Russian air support, has been mustering troops and tanks around Idlib, the last stronghold of Syrian opposition groups now dominated by jihadists.

Russia’s Defense Ministry hit back on Saturday, accusing the US of collaborating with al-Qaeda-linked rebels who are preparing to stage an incident that would serve as a pretext for another round of Western attacks on Assad.

‘New provocations’

In April 2017 and again a year later, the US carried out limited airstrikes on Syrian targets as punishment for what it said was the use of chemical weapons. Bolton said any US action will be stronger this time, the people familiar with the talks said.

“We caution Washington against another military escapade,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said in a phone interview on Saturday. “When things don’t turn out the way the US and its allies want, then new provocations are prepared.” While the Geneva talks have highlighted a dangerous new flashpoint in the Syrian war, they also addressed new possibilities for cooperation between the US and Russia, according to the people familiar with the discussions.

Central to the talks was the role of Iranian forces in Syria, and the presence of about 2,000 US troops in the country’s northeast, where

they’re allied with Kurdish fighters seeking autonomy from Damascus.

‘Desire to stay’

As the Assad-Russia-Iran alliance gained a decisive advantage over Western-backed rebel groups, US goals in Syria have shifted. President Donald Trump’s administration, like its allies in Europe and the Gulf, has largely abandoned the goal of toppling the Syrian leader. It’s now more focused on removing the Iranian forces that played a key part in Assad’s victory.

The US and Russia are nowhere near an agreement on how that could be brought about, according to one of the people familiar with the talks.

Still, the issue was raised in Geneva—and so was the prospect of an eventual withdrawal of all US troops from Syria, something Trump aides said on Saturday that the president is still keen to achieve.

An American pullout could only happen when all Iranian fighters, as well as their weapons and their militia allies, are gone from Syria—and it’s not clear if Russia could deliver that outcome even if it wanted to, one of the people said. The US would also have to be satisfied that Islamic State has been completely crushed in Syria.

Ryabkov said Russia doesn’t believe that the US wants to withdraw its troops. The evidence “shows the opposite—Washington’s desire to stay in Syria for a longer period of time,’’ he said.

Editor: Angel R. Calso

New Australian Prime Minister Morrison unveils stability cabinet

Joint patrols

At one particular American base in Syria, near the border with Iraq, the possibility of direct US-Russian military collaboration was floated during the Geneva talks, according to the people familiar with them.

Again, no agreement was reached.

But there was interest in further discussion of a plan that could see the two countries’ soldiers working together around the Al-Tanf base to guard against the flow of militants or weapons across the border, the people said.

On the wider issue of Iran, America and Russia remain far apart. Russian President Vladimir Putin has been a vocal supporter of the agreement signed by world powers in 2015 to curb Iran’s nuclear program and lift sanctions.

Trump pulled the US out of that accord in May, saying it had failed to effectively deter Iran from pursuing nuclear capabilities or meddling in the region. His administration is now ramping up economic pressure on the Islamic Republic, and trying to persuade allies to join in.

The US position in Geneva was that there can be no overarching deal with Russia over Syria as long as there’s any Iranian presence there, according to two of the people familiar with the talks. Ryabkov said that Russia views the American demand for a radically reduced Iranian role in the Middle East as “out of touch with reality.” Bloomberg News

Presidents, lawmakers laud John McCain for devotion to country

Morrison

N

ew Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison unveiled his first cabinet on Sunday as he sought to unify the Liberal Party and reassure the nation after a week of tumultuous infighting that saw Malcolm Turnbull turfed out of the top job.

Morrison named Marise Payne to replace Julie Bishop as foreign minister and promoted Christopher Pyne to oversee defense. Mathias Cormann will stay in his role as minister for finance and failed leadership challenger Peter Dutton retained a reduced home affairs portfolio.

The reshuffled cabinet bookends a chaotic week in which Turnbull was ousted by his own party—the sixth time since 2007 that Australia has changed prime ministers. Morrison, the former treasurer, was a surprise victor in the Liberal Party ballot after the populist right wing of the party, which had agitated for Turnbull’s removal, was unable to persuade enough moderates to back Dutton.

“Government stability is being

restored, we are getting on with the job,” Morrison said. This cabinet will “tackle the big challenges that are before us with some new ideas and a fresh emphasis while restoring some of the emphasis of the times past.”

The swath of new cabinet appointments come as the governing party battles to restore unity ahead of an upcoming federal election, due by May, with the opposition Labor Party leading in opinion polls.

“We saw a handful of individuals who decided to wreak havoc” last week, Simon Birmingham, who takes on the tourism portfolio, told ABC TV earlier on Sunday. “That was very destructive. Every single man and woman in the Liberal Party room needs to put that type of behavior behind us and make sure we do unify for the future. The Australian people expect us to care about them and their interests.”

Former Prime Minister Tony Abbott, who was beaten by Turnbull in a leadership ballot in 2015, did not win a place back in cabinet. Bloomberg News

Korea bares proposed changes to ‘chaebol’ conglomerate rules

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In this November 7, 1991, file photo, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., (left), is hugged by former North Vietnam Col. Bui Tin on Capitol Hill in Washington after a hearing of the Senate Select Committee on POW and MIA affairs. Tin oversaw a military prison operation dubbed the “Hanoi Hilton,” where McCain was held prisoner during the Vietnam War. McCain, the war hero who became the GOP’s standardbearer in the 2008 election, died on August 25. He was 81. AP Photo/Dennis Cook

W

ASHINGTON—Presidents and lawmakers from both parties honored Sen. John McCain’s decades of service to his country in the hours after his death on Saturday. President Donald J. Trump, who once criticized McCain for being taken prisoner during the Vietnam War, said his “deepest sympathies and respect” went out to McCain’s family.

McCain, 81, died at his ranch in Arizona after a yearlong battle with brain cancer. On Saturday night a black hearse accompanied by a police motorcade could be seen driving away from the ranch near Sedona where the Republican senator spent his final weeks.

Trump’s brief Twitter statement said “hearts and prayers” are with the McCain family. First lady Melania Trump thanked McCain for his service to the nation, which included more than five years as a prisoner of war and six terms in the Senate.

Trump and McCain were at odds until the end. The president, who mocked McCain’s capture in Vietnam

during the 2016 campaign, jabbed at the senator even after his illness for voting against Republican efforts to roll back President Barack Obama’s health-care law. Earlier this summer, McCain issued a blistering statement criticizing Trump’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Former presidents, including those who blocked McCain’s own White House ambitions, offered emotional tributes.

Obama, who triumphed over McCain in the 2008 election, said that despite their differences, McCain and he shared a “fidelity to something higher—the ideals for which generations of Americans and immigrants alike have fought, marched and sacrificed.”

Obama said the two political opponents “saw our political battles, even, as a privilege, something noble, an opportunity to serve as stewards of those high ideals at home, and to advance them around the world.”

Former President George W. Bush, who defeated McCain for the 2000 Republican presidential nomi-

nation, called his one-time political rival “man of deep conviction and a patriot of the highest order” and a “friend whom I’ll deeply miss.”

Bush was among those expected to speak at McCain’s funeral.

McCain was the son and grandson of admirals and followed them to the US Naval Academy. A pilot, he was shot down over Vietnam and held as a prisoner of war for more than five years. He went on to win a seat in the House and in 1986, the Senate, where he served for the rest of his life.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell called McCain a “fascinating personality.”

“He would occasionally be in a bad place with various members, including myself, and when this would blow over it was like nothing ever happened,” McConnell said on Saturday after a GOP state dinner in Lexington, Kentucky. “He also had a wicked sense of humor and it made every tense moment come out better.”

Former Vice President Joe Biden, who developed a friendship with

McCain while they served together in the Senate, said the Arizona lawmaker will “cast a long shadow.”

“The spirit that drove him was never extinguished: we are here to commit ourselves to something bigger than ourselves,” Biden said McCain is expected to be remembered in Arizona and Washington before being buried, likely this week, at the Naval Academy Cemetery on a peninsula overlooking the Severn River.

Other plans were taking shape, too. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., announced that he wants to name the Senate building that housed McCain’s suite of offices after the Arizona senator, who served as chairman of the Commerce Committee and the Senate Armed Services Committee.

“As you go through life, you meet few truly great people. John McCain was one of them,” Schumer said.

“Maybe most of all, he was a truth teller—never afraid to speak truth to power in an era where that has become all too rare.” AP

outh Korea’s antitrust watchdog proposed new rules for family-run conglomerates to make it harder for such businesses to muscle through their agendas at the expense of minority shareholders.

The proposed amendments to existing regulations would require a newly created holding company to own at least 30 percent in an entity it wants to treat as a listed subsidiary and at least 50 percent for an unlisted unit, according to a draft the Fair Trade Commission released in Seoul. The current minimums are 20 percent for listed and 40 percent for unlisted.

The steps are expected to be proposed to the National Assembly in November and are in line with campaign promises made by President Moon Jae-in to reform chaebol, companies that account for more than 50 percent of total market value on the benchmark KOSPI index. The draft amendments to the Monopoly Regulations and Fair Trade Act, first enacted in 1980, reflect changes in the country’s economic environment, the regulator said on Friday in a statement.

“Conglomerates will find it harder to make changes like mergers or spin-offs among affiliates without support from the market and share-

holders,” FTC Chairman Kim Sangjo said in a briefing held on Friday.

Kim was appointed by a president who himself won office amid a wave of popular support for stemming chaebol power.

The government faces a challenge in reforming conglomerates in ways that could be painful for the sprawling business groups because it must rely on them to promote economic growth, in particular manufacturing. Moon has referred to chaebol titans as a “deep rooted evil,” but has yet to substantially change the rules they operate under.

“I would give 20 points out of 100, a basic score, to what the Moon government has done for corporate governance reform,” said Bruce Lee, chief executive officer at Seoul-based Zebra Investment Management.

“Chaebol would stop doing bad things, but that’s not enough for an improvement.”

The new rules would apply to companies with assets equivalent to 0.5 percent of gross domestic product or more, a standard that will be implemented one year after that amount exceeds 10 trillion won ($8.9 billion).

The same percentage of 2017 GDP would come to about $7.7 billion, based on International Monetary Fund figures. Bloomberg News

Trump claims US close to ‘big’ trade agreement with Mexico

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ASHINGTON—President Donald J. Trump says the United States is close to a “big trade agreement” with Mexico and he’s citing improving ties between the two countries.

Trump says on Twitter that the US-Mexico relationship “is getting closer by the hour” and he says a trade deal “could be happening soon!”

He’s spoken of better relations

with America’s neighbor following the rise of Mexican President-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.

The US and Mexico have been discussing a trade deal as part of negotiations over the North American Free Trade Agreement. The Trump administration is seeking a revised version of that trade deal with Mexico and Canada.

Trump’s relationship with Mexico has been strained over his push for it to pay for his border wall. AP

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Banking&Finance BusinessMirror

Monday, August 27, 2018 A7

BIR plans for shift to cash-based system

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By Rea Cu

@ReaCuBM

HE House of Representatives and the Executive may continue their dispute on discontinuing the obligationbased budgeting system, but the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) is already preparing for a transition to the annual cash-based budgeting system.

The agency has issued a revenue memorandum circular (RMC) prescribing the guidelines for the process of early procurement for the year 2019 by government agencies, following the circular letter issued by the Interagency Task Force

created under Administrative Order 25 (AO 25 IATF).

Under BIR RMC 69-2018 issued this month, the BIR requires all officials in its revenue region offices to comply with Circular Letter 2018-8 issued by the AO 25 IATF

Perspectives

Getting to success

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ONNECTED enterprise is playing a critical role in differentiating the great insurers from the good insurers. Given endemic system issues, competency and commitment shortages, and the demands to streamline processes and liberate data from stovepipes, true change will be difficult.

However, falling behind will create challenges that could be insurmountable. It is time for insurers to get serious about winning, serving and retaining their customers.

To succeed, insurance companies must: n Prioritize investments based on connected enterprise capability maturity. To avoid the risk of disjointed initiatives and wasted investment, insurers should conduct an objective assessment of their maturity level for each of the eight connected enterprise capabilities—identifying where they are doing well, any gaps between current and desired state, and where they need to focus to fill those gaps. They should prioritize initiatives and investments based on this assessment and develop a road map to deliver a compellingly differentiated experience across the customer journey. n Tackle the limitations of legacy systems with technology architecture strategies. It’s time for insurers to stop kicking the can down the road and take steps to create the high-performance technology architectures they need to meet customer and business expectations. Agile development strategies, microservices and as-a-service models go a long way in weaning insurers off legacy environments that are impeding their success. n Implement connected enterprise metrics that measure short- and long-term results. Delivering a connected enterprise strategy is an evolutionary approach, not an overnight transformation. Even for sophisticated multichannel practitioners, many long-used operational metrics will only scratch the surface of what a profitable interconnected and aligned strategy can deliver.

Along with measuring overall sales and profit performance, professionals responsible for the strategy must implement key performance indicators that measure the customer view—metrics like share of wallet, channel transitions and customer lifetime value. n Educate decision-makers to gain buyin for required connected enterprise investments. To capture funding, professionals must advocate for the role that interconnected and aligned capabilities can play in delivering expected return on investment and meeting business objectives. Sharing this knowledge across the enterprise serves many purposes: It allows management to avoid questions that might stymie needed funding approval processes; improves the odds of successfully winning those investment budgets by keeping all parties focused on the key objectives; and takes at least some of the competition out of choosing among non-synergistic competing initiatives. n Build up the connected enterprise talent pool. The market for employees with experience in executing connected enterprise strategies is heating up. Insurers will have to hire more creatively and faster than ever before or risk losing the battle for the right employees. It is easier—and less expensive—to hire mind-sets over skill sets: teaching employees new skills is much easier than changing their attitudes.

The excerpt was taken from the publication entitled Aligning behind your customer agenda. © 2018 R.G. Manabat & Co., a Philippine partnership and a memberfirm of the KPMG network of independent member-firms affiliated with KPMG International Cooperative (“KPMG International”), a Swiss entity.

All rights reserved. Printed in the Philippines For more information on KPMG in the Philippines, you may visit www.kpmg.com.ph.

in July this year, prescribing the conduct of early procurement for fiscal year 2019 National Expenditure Program (NEP), which is seen to be implemented during October to December this year.

“The annual appropriations for 2019-onwards shall be limited to the requirements for payment of goods delivered, services rendered, and infrastructure projects completed by the end of a fiscal year. To ensure efficient implementation of programs, activities, and projects, agencies shall undertake timely procurement planning and early procurement activities,” the circular letter said.

The circular letter explains that since the national budget for 2019 will shift from the current two-year obligation-based to annual cash-based budgeting system, all government agencies are instructed to conduct early procurement planning activities, which was pointed out to ensure efficiency

in the implementation of government programs and activities.

“All government entities covered by this circular shall undertake early procurement activities, from October to December 2018, upon the submission of the Fiscal Year 2019 NEP to Congress,” it added.

Included under early procurement activities are the preprocurement conference up to the post qualification of bids, and recommendation by the Bids and Awards Committee to award the contract to the winning bidder, among others.

The AO 25 IATF is chaired by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) and cochaired by the Office of the Executive Secretary (OES), with members from the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda), the Presidential Management Staff (PMS) and Department of Finance (DOF).

The IATF was created to harmonize,

unify, streamline and simplify all existing monitoring and reporting requirements and processes consistent with the Results-Based Performance Management System (RBPMS).

The administrative order was signed by former President Benigno S. Aquino III on December 2011.

Last week the DBM and the Neda insisted that the Executive will continue to push for a cash-based budget for 2019 despite a standoff with Congress.

The government is proposing a P3.757trillion 2019 national budget, which was pointed out to be crucial for the “Build, Build, Build” program. The budget for 2018 is P3.77 trillion under a two-year obligation-based system.

The House of Representatives decided on Wednesday to continue deliberations for the 2019 national budget when Congress resumes its session next week.

Green Monday BusinessMirror

A8 Monday, August 27, 2018

www.businessmirror.com.ph • Editor: Lyn Resurreccion

Trees: Protection from flash floods, landslides

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By Michael A. Bengwayan | Special to the BusinessMirror

or thousands of families from Metro Manila, Calabarzon to Central Luzon, Ilocos region and up to the Cordillera Administrative Region, many may be familiar with the Biblical Noah’s Ark story.

But millions more have or are getting an experience of what it is.

To meteorologists at the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa), the government’s weather agency, this is all part of climate change where a phenomenal rainfall volume in 2009’s Typhoon Ondoy (international code name Ketsana) was dropped in just one day.

To env ironment a l ists, t he floods are worsening because the people have destroyed nature’s first defense against it—the trees.

“If you have trees within and around communities, you will not worry too much about f looding as those who have treeless areas,” ecologists at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NULS) and the Center for International Forestry Research (Cifor) would say.

Erratic rainfall could worsen with soil erosion and landslides, the two international environmental agencies said.

Trees prevent floods, landslides

Trees contr ibute immensely in preserving soil. Far reaching roots hold soil in place and fight erosion, NULS-Cifor said, adding that trees absorb and store rainwater, which reduce runoff and sediment deposit after storms.

They help the groundwater supply recharge, prevent the t ra n s por t of c hem ic a l s i nto streams and prevent flooding.

Trees help reduce erosion by

increasing filtration, holding soil particles together, and slowing wind and water flow, the research institutions elaborated.

Each mature tree, about 10 years old, absorbs in its trunk and branches some 1,500 liters to 2,000 liters of water which help keep the water table up. The trees’ roots suck water deep from under the ground to as low as 200 feet.

They hold the soil together so that erosion is prevented. They absorb rain during rainy days such that water run off is prevented from going down low-lying areas like residential places, streets and markets, NULS-Cifor ecologists explained.

No trees, no protection

The environmental group Cordillera Ecological Center (CEC) in Baguio City explained: “When there are no trees to protect the soil, gully erosion occurs because the shape of the terrain concentrates water flows over or through the land; and the soil is not cohesive enough to prevent soil loss.”

This is what happened in Rizal province, where years of quarrying, especially in Rodriguez and Montalban has resulted in gullies that brought down rainwater inundating towns up to Marikina river.

Gully erosion is best controlled by planting trees on higher ground around the gully area, CEC said.

Citing its many years of forestation experience, CEC said wherever possible, trees should be planted

Trees in Maasin, Southern Leyte Nonie Reyes

in conjunction with deep-rooted and fast-growing grasses, which will also use water, increase infiltration and control flow.

While slowing of water flow may not prevent gully erosion completely, it can dramatically reduce the rate of erosion.

Diversion banks can take water elsewhere, but quite often this shifts the problem to a new site.

Building a dam is an effective but expensive solution, CEC bared.

Trees help hold the soil together

Although not as important as reducing flow, trees planted in and around the gully may help hold the soil together. The closer to the gully, the wetter the soil will be,

and may need to be planted with different species.

To avoid scouring, plant small shrubs with f lexible stems within the gully rather than trees, CEC explained, adding that it had a five-year tree-planting experience in stopping gully erosion in the town of Mankayan caused by the Lepanto mining activities in Benguet.

CEC environmental specialist Dobbels Wallang said sheet and rill erosion can also happen if a property is treeless. To prevent this from happening, trees should be planted across the slope. The distance between the rows of trees planted affects the slope’s length which, in turn, affects the rate of

The land is like a sponge, it can only take so much, and without trees holding soil particles together, it is bound to release what it has absorbed.”

—CEC foresters

soil loss, he explained.

Trees and shrubs can also be planted in strips along contours to check run offs. Banks can be used to decrease slope length, but trees are much less susceptible to damage by floods than conventional banks, and have the added bonus of increasing the rate of water infiltration, he added.

Making the Agno River as an example, where dozens of Pangasinan and La Union barangays were flooded by the overflowing river, Wallang said trees can also be planted on river banks to provide bank stabilization.

While trees obviously cannot change slope steepness, they will slow down the rate of water flow when planted across the slope.

Trees are most effective on steep slopes when used in conjunction with dams, contour and diversion banks for changing slope angles and increasing infiltration, he said.

The land can save communities

CEC Foresters Darwin Pandosen and George Facsoy, who have led

CEC reforestation efforts in Leyte and Davao del Sur, said to fully understand the problem of flooding and landslides, one must understand the land.

“The land is like a sponge, it can only take so much, and without trees holding soil particles together, it is bound to release what it has absorbed,” they said.

And when water is released, it follows its own level as a law of physics. Therefore, trees at the higher elevation of every communities should be preserved, should be planted and low-lying canals and rivers banks’ hedged with trees, they recommended.

The foresters frown on the existing procedure of deepening canals. Instead, they said, roads and pathways should be elevated and hedged with trees.

During dry season, they said, grass, sedges, bushes and shrubs must not be cut because these act as soil cover, preventing topsoil erosion from torrential rains come rainy season.

In the Philippines trees are being felled at a rate of 300 hectares to 600 hectares annually, a cut rate so fast, many of the trees have never been seen by the existing generation.

The country, like most developing nations, is vulnerable to global warming. The problem is made worse by the widespread destruction of forests.

The trees, once a symbol of the Philippines’s rich and proud heritage, tell its people of what they are—strong, enduring, hardy, magnificent and symbolize all the people of the country.

All of a sudden, they are being destroyed along with generations yet to come.

The enemy: the people.

Bengwayan has a masters degree and PhD in Development Studies and Environmental Resource Management from University College Dublin, Ireland, as a European Union fellow. He is currently a fellow of Echoing Green Foundation in New York.

IPs least responsible World’s biggest shipping firm to test Russian Arctic route C for climate crisis

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NITED NATIONS—Indigenous peoples, who comprise less than 5 percent of the world’s population, have the world’s smallest carbon footprint, and are the least responsible for our climate crisis. Yet, because their livelihoods and well-being are intimately bound with intact ecosystems, indigenous peoples disproportionately face the brunt of climate change, which is fast becoming a leading driver of human displacement.

In Papua New Guinea, for example, residents of the Carteret Islands—one of the most densely populated islands in the country—have felt the effects of climate change intensify over recent years. With a high point on their islands of just 1.2 meters above sea level, every community member is now at risk from sea-level rise and storm surges.

Moreover, the community depends almost entirely on fishing for their food and livelihoods, but the health of sea grass beds and coral reefs has gradually deteriorated from warming waters and coral bleaching.

The residents of these islands faced a stark choice—to be passive victims of an uncertain government resettlement program, or to take matters into their own hands. They chose the latter.

In 2005 elders formed a community-led nonprofit, called Tulele Peisa, to chart their own climate course. In the Halia language, the name means “Sailing the Waves on our Own,” an apt metaphor for how the community is navigating rising sea levels.

I n 2 0 1 4 t h e i n i t i at i ve wo n t h e prestigious United Nations Development Programme Philippines-led Equator Prize, in recognition for their ingenuity, foresight and proactive approach in facing the challenges of climate change, while keeping their cultural traditions intact.

Earlier this month, Jeffrey Sachs, a worldrenowned American economist, public-policy

analyst, and director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, published an article entitled “We Are All Climate Refugees Now,” in which he attributed the main cause of climate inaction to the willful ignorance of political institutions and corporations toward the grave dangers of climate change, imperiling future life on Earth. The year 2018 will likely be recorded as among the hottest year humanity has ever recorded.

Yet a slew of recent articles highlight that we are not on track to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement. We have not shown the collective leadership required to tackle this existential crisis.

Carteret Islanders have been broadly recognized as the world’s first climate refugees, but they are not alone. Arctic indigenous communities are already facing the same plight, as are their regional neighbors from the island nation of Kiribati.

According to the World Bank, their plight will likely be replicated around the world, with as many as 140 million people worldwide being displaced by climate change within the next 30 years or so.

But the Carteret Island leaders are more than just climate refugees. They have done something precious few political leaders have done to date—they recognized the warning signs of climate change as real and inevitable, they took stock of their options, and they charted a proactive, realistic course for their own future that promised the most good for the most people.

Therefore, they could also be called the world’s first true climate leaders.

Let’s hope that our world’s politicians and CEOs have the wisdom, foresight and fortitude of the elders of Carteret Islanders. Because like it or not, we will all be sailing the climate waves on our own, with or without a rudder and a plan. Jamison Ervin/IPS

OPENHAGEN, Denmark— Danish shipping group AP Moller-Maersk said last Thursday it would send a cargo vessel through the Russian Arctic for the first time as a result of melting sea ice.

Janina von Spalding, spokesman for the world’s biggest shipping company, said the new ice class container vessel, Venta Maersk, would embark on trial journey in the Arctic route over Russia next month.

“I think it is important to underline that this is a one-off trial

designed to explore an unknown route for container shipping and to collect scientific data—and not the launch of a new product,” von Spalding said in an e-mail to The Associated Press.

“In today’s fast-paced world, companies that want to lead must innovate,” she said, adding the trial “w ill offer us a unique opportunity to gain operational ex perience in a new area and to test vessel systems, crew capabilities and the funct iona l it y of t he shore based support setup.”

T he Nor t her n Sea Route cou ld be a shor ter route for journeys from East Asia to Europe than the Northwest Passage over Canada because it will likely be free of ice sooner due to climate change.

Experts say it could reduce the most commonly used East AsiaEurope route via the Suez Canal from 21,000 kilometers to 12,800 kilometers, cutting transit time by 10 to 15 days.

Von Spalding said the ship will leave Russia’s Pacific port city of Vladivostok around September 1

with a cargo of frozen fish and sail to Saint Petersburg where it will arrive by the end of the month.

The transit route was coordinated with Russian authorities after careful evaluation of ice conditions, and ice breaker assistance will be at hand, the Copenhagenbased group said.

“Currently, we do not see the Northern Sea Route as a commercial alternative to our existing network which is defined by our customers’ demand, trading patterns and population centers,” she added. AP

Building of more engineered sanitary landfills urged to handle growing waste problem

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etro Clark Waste Management Corp. (MCWM), the operator of the Philippines’s first engineered sanitary landfill, underscored the importance of building quality, engineered sanitary landfills in tackling the country’s growing waste problem.

“The number of sanitary landfills in the Philippines remains small despite the passage of Republic Act 9003, which requires for the closure of open and uncontrolled dumpsites about 17 years ago,” MCWM President and CEO Rufo B. Colayco said.

Citing data from the National Solid Waste Management Commission, Colayco noted that 403 open and 108 uncontrolled dumpsites continued to operate across the country, while less than 15 percent

of local government units had access to 118 sanitary landfills in 2016. “ We need more eng ineered s a n it a r y l a nd f i l l s ac ros s t he country,” Colayco said. “We have to ensure they conform to the highest standards and actually serve their purposes.”

At the minimum, RA 9003 requires sanitary landfills to have liners; a leachate collection and treatment system; a gas control recover y system; groundwater monitoring well system; covers; closure procedure and post-closure procedure. The environmental protection features aim to protect the air, soil and groundwater from contamination by leachate and other waste-related emissions.

“We hope to set the bar high for

waste management in the Philippines through our world-class engineered sanitary landfill within the Clark Freeport Zone,” Colayco said.

MCWM operates the Clark Integrated Waste Management Facility within the Clark Freeport Zone. It is the first engineered sanitary landfill in the Philippines and one of the first in Asia to receive ISO certification.

Partly owned by German conglomerates BN lngenieure GmbH and Heers and Brockstedt Umwelttechnik GmBH, the facility is patterned after the engineered sanitary landfills of Germany, a world leader in waste management.

It has multiple layers of liners, including a 2.5-millimeter highdensity polyethylene material that exceeds Philippine standards.

It also includes a leachate collection and treatment system, gasrecovery system, materials recovery facility and environmental buffer.

“We can only build as many sanitary landfills,” Colayco noted. “As our population continues to grow and our economy expands further, we need to find more ways to reduce the increasing volume of our waste.”

Colayco cited the experience of Germany and other European countries, where wastes are turned into an energy source, among others.

“Let us take advantage of the existing waste-management solutions that help us take a significant step forward to our ultimate goal: to preserve our environment for the future generations and ourselves,” Colayco said.

Biodiversity Monday BusinessMirror

Asean Champions of Biodiversity Media Category 2014

Monday, August 27, 2018

Editor: Lyn Resurreccion • www.businessmirror.com.ph

Fishing ban around Snake Island in Palawan pushed

Snake Island, Palawan Philippinebeaches.org

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h e Ecosystems Research and Development Bureau (ERDB) is pushing to declare a fishing ban in certain areas around Snake Island in Palawan to allow the marine ecosystem to recover and the important fish species to repopulate the area and replenish the fish stock.

The ERDB, an attached agency of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), believes that declaring a fishing ban around the Snake Island is necessary even as an effort to rehabilitate the area hit by coral bleaching have shown an initial success.

The fishing ban “in identified areas” will save the coral reefs in the fringing and winding 7.5-hectare island, the ERDB believes.

Closed in 2012 from the public, the Snake Island is found in a cluster of islands around top tourist destinations El Nido and Puerto Princesa City.

Coral bleaching

The DENR has ordered the closure of Snake Island after finding evidence of coral bleaching—or the turning the color of corals to white as they lose the greenish-brownish color of organisms called Zooxanthellae of the Alveolata group that reside in coral surfaces.

These photosynthetic organisms are destroyed as a result of global warming, or the increase in temperature of oceans, sealevel rise and acidification, overfishing and destructive fishing, such as of dynamites.

After the 2012 closure, a 2016 review of DENR-ERDB discovered that significant portions of the reef have started to provide spaces for settlement of young coral colonies.

More bleaching effects

In May of the same year, another team of experts doing orientation and photo documentation on Snake Island, locally known as Kalumpang, in Honda Bay, Palawan, however, were alarmed by the massive coral bleaching in the area.

The massive coral bleaching was reported in a B usinessM irror exclusive in June 2016, when the Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB) revealed that as much as 90 percent of the corals in three different sites around Snake Island were severely affected.

Ironically, the discovery of the dying corals came after Snake Island was declared as the national marine research station of the DENR. Specifically, the activity conducted from May 10 to 13, aimed to showcase the three major coastal ecosystems in the area, including coral reef, seagrass beds and mangroves.

The team—composed of representatives from the DENR-BMB through the Coastal and Marine Division, DENR-Palawan Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office (Penro), Palawan Council for Sustainable Development, Studio H2O and the UP Marine Science Institute—dived in the three sites around Snake Islands to take photos, but was surprised to see the bad condition of the corals.

The coral bleaching, according to the report, could be an effect of El Niño.

The same sites were assessed by another team from the DENR-ERDB just two weeks before the DENR-BMB team went to dive in the sites, and found the corals to be still in good condition.

Algal bloom

T h e E R D B ’s f i n d i n g s , m e a n w h i l e , revealed that some par ts have been found to have a high algal cover (algal bloom) which is known to hinder the recover y of affected corals.

According to ERDB experts, algal-feeding fish, such as the parrotfishes, siganids, acanthurids and wrasses, among others, were observed. But they must be constantly protected from fishing to increase their meager numbers.

The rapid succession of algae on reef structures might be caused by the reduced population of herbivors or plant-eating fish species, coupled with an influx of excess nutrients from nearby tributaries, according to Jose Isidro Michael Padin, ERDB supervising science research specialist.

Overfished

The assessment found out that exhaustive fishing in the area resulted in the decline of algae-feeding fish, leaving no natural control measure for the increasing algal bloom.

Delineating “no-fishing zones” on the island will help coral-reef rehabilitation, the ERDB expert concluded.

“In order to protect the island and to help in the recovery of the corals in the area, there is a need to delineate areas for fishing and nonfishing. This will allow the coral reefs to recover,” said ERDB Director Dr. Sofio B. Quintana in a statement released through Growth Publishing.

Padin explained that ERDB’s effort to restore corals on Snake Island is worth it.

“Hard corals can survive a bleaching event and return to their normal state unless the unfavorable conditions continue for a prolonged period,” he said.

Sea star infestation

According to the ERDB, another factor which can hinder the recovery of the coral reef is the growing population of sea stars.

Sea stars belong to a species which feed on healthy coral polyps leading to the bleaching of some Acroporid corals. The outbreak of sea stars may be caused by increased nutrients in the water or the removal of its predators, or both.

The ERDB research team is continuously monitoring the sea stars’ population and is looking at the possibility of resorting to necessary control methods, such as manual removal or induced death.

Preliminary findings of the ERDB team have been presented in January to concerned stakeholders, which included the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), DENRCity Environment and Natural Resources Office of Puerto Princesa City, DENR-Penro Palawan, Environmental Management Bureau (EMB), Palawan Council for Sustainable Development (PCSD), Puerto Princesa City Tourism Office, and the Puerto Princesa City Environment and Natural Resource Office.

Science-based solutions

Among the solutions proposed were sciencebased coral transplantation, restocking of herbivorous fingerlings and the continuous monitoring of water and other marine resources of the island.

A fishing moratorium to increase fish population on Snake Island has been raised.

This is also seen as a long-term solution for the reported decline of fish stocks in Honda Bay. Quintana gave assurance that ERDB will continue to provide science-based information in order to help protect the natural beauty of Snake Island.

Popular tourist spot

Snake Island has been among the most popular tourist spots in El Nido due to its S-shaped sandbar, where adventurers walk on low tide, as they appear to “walk on water.”

The sandbar connects Snake Island to other islands in Palawan.

Snake Island has been envisioned to become an exhibition area for three ecosystems—coral reef, sea grass beds (from monocotyledon plant group of grasses, lilies and palms that form underwater meadows) and mangroves.

With the DENR’s rehabilitation, the Snake Island has been replanted with 17 hectares of nine species of mangroves.

Fishery stocks, including caesionid (dalagang bukid) and jacks (talakitok), have been restored as surface fishes, and groupers (lapu-lapu), acanthurids (labahita), siganids (danggit) and damsel fish (palata) as bottom dwellers.

The rehabilitation of Snake Island is part of a larger program of the DENR to restore the health of natural resources in degraded ecotourism sites, including the entire El Nido.

The DENR also ordered in April the closure of almost 80 establishments in El Nido that were violating the 30-meter “no-store” area from shoreline policy. Jonathan L. Mayuga

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PHL waters ‘incredibly important’ for juvenile whale sharks–study

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By Jonathan L. Mayuga @jonlmayuga

or juvenile whale sharks—or at least to a few which scientists were able to observe—the Sulu and Bohol Seas and the waters in between are important feeding grounds.

A globally endangered species, the behavior of whale sharks, locally called butanding, largely remains a mystery.

Scientists studying their behavior continue to work to demystify these gentle giants, even as governments have recently agreed to step up the effort to protect and conserve them.

The Philippines is known to promote whale shark interaction as a tourist attraction, particularly in Donsol in Sorsogon and Oslob in Cebu, where the largest congregation of whale sharks have been observed in the past.

The authors of the study, entitled “Satellite tracking of juvenile whale sharks in the Sulu and Bohol Seas, Philippines,” include Gonzalo Araujo, Sally Snow, the executive directors of the Large Marine Vertebrates Research Institute Philippines (Lamave) and Chris Rohner and Simon Pierce of the Marine Megafauna Foundation (MMF).

Satellite-tag study

L ast mont h scient ists f rom Lamave, MMF and Tubbataha Mangement Office announced the result of a scientific study on satellite-tagging whale sharks in the Philippines.

Lamave is the largest independent nonprofit, nongovernment organization solely dedicated to the conservation of marine megafauna and their habitats in the Philippines.

The study, published in the journal PeerJ, was the most complete tracking study of whale sharks in the Philippines to date, with satellite tags deployed on individuals in multiple sites.

The study has contributed to what is currently known about whale sharks in the Philippines and Southeast Asia. It shows that the Philippines is an incredibly important area for juvenile whale sharks.

But the proponents of the study said more research is needed to understand the location and movements of adult whale sharks.

Whale shark hot spot

An important hot spot for whale sharks, the Philippines hosts the third-largest known population of whale sharks.

While the species has been protected in the Philippines since 1998, globally it was uplisted in 2016 to “endangered to extinction” in the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species.

The reason: population decline of more than 50 percent largely caused by continued exploitation in the Indo-Pacific area, the proponents of the paper said in a July 24 statement to the press.

In Southeast Asia concerns remain due to continued fishing in regional waters.

The proponents of the study believe that understanding the movements of whale sharks in the Philippines is vital if we are to identify conservation priorities for the species.

Spot5 satellite tags

In the study, 17 whale sharks

were tagged with Wildlife Computers Spot5, or the French Satellite Pour l’Observation de la Terre (Satellite for the Observation of Earth) tags in three different locations in the Philippines: Panaon Island (Southern Leyte), Northern Mindanao (Misamis Oriental and Surigao del Norte) and Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park (Palawan). Tagging took place between April 2015 and April 2016.

All tagged whale sharks were juveniles, ranging in size between 4.5 meters to 7 meters; 73 percent of them were male.

“By attaching Spot5 satellite tags to the sharks, the team was able to follow the movements of juvenile whale sharks in near real time. The tags work by communicating with passing Argos [Advanced Research and Global Observation Satellite], transmitting a location when the wet/dry sensor is triggered when a tagged whale shark breaks the surface,” the study said.

Transmission tags were tethe re d to a wh a le sh a rk b y a 1.8-meter line.

Tracking results

The tracks from the tags revealed that all whale sharks stayed within the Philippines over the tracking period, emphasizing the importance of the archipelago for the species, the study revealed.

The longest track observed was from a whale shark originally tagged in Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park, which appeared to swim through the Sulu and Bohol Seas and into the Pacific, a journey accumulating over 2,500 km in length.

“While whale sharks are not known for their speed, results revealed that one individual whale shark was averaging 47 km a day, further emphasizing the species’ mobile tendencies,” the study added.

Araujo, the lead author of the paper, explained: “This research highlights the high mobility of whale sharks, even juveniles, and the need for broader-scale management and conservation plans for this endangered species.”

Conservation priorities

So far, dedicated research by Lamave and citizen scientists has identified over 600 whale sharks in the Sulu and Bohol Seas, yet

the proximity of this population to fisheries in the broader region (South China Sea) means it is vital to monitor this population as a whole to understand if this population is in recovery or continuing to decline.

“Identifying threats and mitigation strategies is a conservation priority for the species. Lamave continues to study whale sharks in five key areas in the Philippines, working with local and national governments, as well as collaborating organizations to develop conservation strategies for this iconic species,” he said.

Further study needed

In an e-mailed response to the BusinessMirror, Snow, one of the study proponents, said further study of the behavior of whale sharks is needed.

They admitted that because the study was for a limited time only with the tags having attached for a short period, they cannot say for sure whether the observed whale sharks would stay in Philippine waters.

However, they suggested that since the Philippines is an important feeding area for whale sharks, with rich upwellings of food, the juvenile sharks found near the coast often aggregate to feed and the sharks’ movements may be between feeding sites.

Unknown behavior

The normal behavior of a whale shark remains unknown because of the limited study conducted about them. Studies should cover the entire life cycle of the species if to be able to really know what is a “normal behavior” of the species, the study proponents said.

They said it is also inconclusive to say that feeding the observed areas is part of their so-called normal behavior of the species “Scientists are still trying to answer many questions about whale sharks, including where they reproduce, where they give birth and how far they travel,” they said in the press statement.

Crossing borders

However , different studies have shown that some whale sharks have swum between international borders, while others have found that some have stayed within one region.

However, this infor mation was l imited to t he t ime t he sharks are tagged and only gave the scientists an insight into their behavior during that time of six months, and not for their entire life.

“For this reason, we can’t really call it ‘normal behavior’ as we are still investigating what normal behavior is,” they said.

In search for food

They added, however, that whale sharks may be making large-scale

Whale sharks, more popularly known as butanding, in the Philippines FILE Photo

movements in search for food, or in the case of the adults, they could also be moving to different areas to reproduce.

Scientists are still investigating the answer to the questions on the behavior of this mysterious species.

As the study only recorded the movements of some individuals for a limited period, the proponents of the study could not ascertain how long the whale sharks stay in the Philippines.

Besides, they said a lack of baseline data for comparison prevents them from making a conclusion.

“What we found out was that the juvenile whale sharks we tagged for this study, stayed within Philippine waters. So at least for these individuals at this stage of their life, the Philippine waters are important,” they said.

What makes the Philippine waters unique?

The Philippines lies at the heart of the Coral Triangle, the global center of marine biodiversity. It is an incredibly important area for marine life and hosts a huge number of species, including the whale shark.

‘Butanding’ conservation leader

Since whale sharks have been protected in the Philippines since 1998, the proponents of the study believe that the Philippines is already a leader in whale shark conservation.

“The biggest threat lies outside Philippine boundaries where whale sharks are not protected. The findings from this study contributed to what we already knew about the butanding here and helped us create effective conservation strategies for the species, by identifying key hotspots or movement corridors,” they said.

Further research, they reiterated, is needed to investigate if whale sharks move outside the country’s boundaries. Such information will be a key to creating better international protection.

More protection needed

As the whale shark is protected, the best way people can ensure they contribute to the shark’s protection is by supporting sustainable whale shark-tourism initiatives, which have strict guidelines and interact with the sharks in the natural environment.

Another way is by keeping the oceans clean by reducing plastic use and engaging in cleanup activities, adding that marine life needs healthy oceans.

More important, to help protect the whale shark, various stakeholders should report any whale shark stranding or incidents with fishing gear to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, and concerned local government units “so teams can ensure the safe return of the animal to the sea.”

A10 Monday, August 27, 2018 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

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editorial

PSE: ‘White-skin’ obsession

W

e read about the amount of money Asians spend on skin whiteners and other products and treatments to achieve the Western ideal of beauty. According to a marketing study, 4 out of 10 women surveyed in Hong Kong, Malaysia, the Philippines and South Korea used a skinwhitening cream. Whitening creams account for half of the $320-million market for facial creams in Thailand.

However, it is not only the “beauty market” that is obsessed with white skin. This past week the Financial Times published an article titled “Fund managers turn their back on the Philippines.” From the panicdriven commentary from local pundits, the title might have been “Skin Whitening Creams Banned in Asia.”

Every nation and stock market in the world has this sign hanging on its front door: “Foreigners Welcome. Bring Your Money.” On the New York Stock Exchange, just a decade or so ago, foreign ownership was minimal. Today, foreign money owns at least 25 percent of all NYSE shares.

Further, the trading activity of foreigners is significant. About 50 percent of all trading on the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) is being done by foreign money. But what is never mentioned when there is foreign net selling is, to whom are the foreigners selling?

If foreigners sold P2 billion more than they bought, that means that local investors bought P2 billion more than they sold. Stock market trading is a zero-sum game. For every share sold, there has to be an equal amount bought.

According to the Financial Times, “Fund managers have slashed their exposure to the Philippines by more than half in the past three years.”

Also, “The retreat has been broad based, with 83 percent of funds cutting their exposure to the Philippines over the past year.”

If you compare the PSE composite index (PSEi) between now and both three years and one year ago, the index is almost at the same level. So maybe they made or lost a little money if the investors simply bought and held.

However, the article goes on to report, “Only 58 percent of funds now have any holdings at all in the Philippines, the lowest level since early-2012.”

From mid-2009 to the end of that year, the PSEi gained about 25 percent. In 2010 the PSEi was up about 40 percent. The stock market was relatively flat in 2011. The year 2012 was strong with a 35-percent improvement.

If foreign fund holdings went down to a low level in 2012, then theoretically foreigners started selling perhaps near the 2012 top.

But a major move on the PSEi came from 2012 to the recent historic high this past January 2018 with an approximately six-year gain of 46 percent. Perhaps the foreign money exited at the high at PSEi 8,500.

Logic also assumes that the foreigners invested as the market went higher, which makes sense.

However, there is a tendency for foreign money to be big buyers at the top and big sellers at a bottom. Over a 12-month period, foreign buying was highest in December 1996 and January 1997 when the PSEi topped out. The same situation occurred leading up to the 2009 bottom.

Foreign funds are more cautious than the average investor, not wanting to be the first in or the last out. Therefore, if foreign funds are not now in the PSE, that may be the most positive sign that our stock market is going to move higher over time as it started doing in 2012.

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Ambassador Howard Dee: Ramon Magsaysay Awardee for 2018 Atty. Jose Ferdinand M. Rojas II

RISING SUN

T

he Ramon Magsaysay Awards, Asia’s equivalent of the Nobel Prize, was created in 1955 to “celebrate the memory and leadership example” of former Philippine President Ramon Magsaysay. It is given to select Asians who are models of service and excellence in addressing issues affecting their societies. Previous Filipino awardees include Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo, Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago, former Senate President Jovito Salonga, former Chief Justice Hilario Davide and Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales.

On July 26, 2018, the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation (RMAF) announced the 60th batch of awardees. The awarding ceremony will be held at the Cultural Center of the Philippines on August 31, the birth anniversary of President Magsaysay. President of RMAF Carmencita T. Abella said: “We assert our belief that good is happening in the positive constructive power of

Atty. Lorna Patajo-Kapunan

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legally speaking

T. Anthony C. Cabangon Lourdes M. Fernandez

Affairs in 2002 during the Arroyo administration, and as member of the Bangsamoro Basic Law Peace Council during the Aquino administration.

The former Unilab president was also one of the Founding Trustees of Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) back in 1970. The PBSP is an NGO that he helped establish to allow member-companies to contribute a portion of their profits for sustainable development and poverty reduction programs. A few years later, he started the Assisi Development Foundation Inc. together with Jesuit priest Francisco Araneta to help Filipinos in need.

He was also the founding chairman of the Philippine Development Assistance Program (1984) and the lead convenor of the National Peace Conference in 1990.

Ambassador Howard Dee, now 87 years old, also served as cochairman of Tabang Mindanaw and vice chairman of Caritas Manila and Pondo ng Pinoy. We salute you, sir, for your passionate service and years of hard work. Congratulations and Mabuhay!

A class suit under the passenger bill of rights

✝ Ambassador Antonio L. Cabangon Chua Publisher

greatness of spirit and its expression in moral leadership that upholds the moral good.”

For this year, the awardees are Youk Chang from Cambodia, Maria de Lourdes Martins Cruz from East Timor, Bharat Vatwani from India, Vo Thi Hoang Yen from Vietnam, Sonam Wangchuk from India, and the Philippines’s Howard Dee. According to Abella,

the works of these awardees are a “defiant declaration of hope, (not giving up) despite meager resources, daunting adversity and strong opposition. Their approaches are all deeply anchored on a respect for human dignity.”

Howard Q. Dee was former Philippine ambassador to the Holy See and Malta (1986-1990). RMAF Chairman Senen Bacani said Dee is being recognized for “championing the human face of peace, justice and economic growth... and for his quietly heroic acts of service to the Filipino people, his abiding dedication in pursuit of social justice and peace in achieving dignity and progress for the poor, and his being, by his deeds, a true servant of his faith and exemplary citizen of this nation.”

In 1993 Dee chaired the government panel for the peace talks between the Ramos administration and the members of the Communist Party of the Philippines, the New People’s Army, and the National Democratic Front. He also served as Presidential Adviser (Cabinet Secretary) on Indigenous People’s

R

epublic Act 776, otherwise known as the Civil Aeronautics Act of the Philippines, mandates that the Department of Transportation and Communications (now the Department of Transportation (DOTr), through the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB), “regulate the economic aspect of aviation and develop and promote the air potential of the Philippines, with due regard to public interest and convenience.”

Furthermore, Republic Act 7394, otherwise known as the Consumer Act of the Philippines, mandates that the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) “protect the consumers against deceptive, unfair and unconscionable sales acts or practices and from misleading advertisements and fraudulent sales promotions.”

Pursuant to such mandates, DOTC-DTI Joint Administrative Order 1, Series of 2012 “Providing for a Bill of Rights for Air Passengers and Carrier Obligations” was promulgated in December 2012.

This little known Administrative Order came to light because of the recent Xiamen Air fiasco. The Regulations provided thereunder “apply to all aspects of contracts of carriage for flights or portions of a flight into, from, and within the territory of the Philippines operated by Philippine air carriers, and flights or portions of a flight from the territory of the

Philippines operated by foreign air carriers” (Section 3).

The Rights of Air Passengers under the said Administrative Order are as follows: 1. Right to Full, Fair and Clear Disclosure of the Service Offered and all the Terms and Conditions of the Contract of Carriage (Section 4); 2. Right to Clear and Non-Misleading Advertisements of, and Important Reminders Regarding Fares (Section 5); 3. Right Against Misleading and Fraudulent Sales Promotion Practices (Section 6);

Clearly, under these circumstances, someone has to be held responsible and liable criminally, administratively and civilly for damages to those affected passengers. Obviously, Xiamen Air is the principal culprit. Manila International Airport Authority said Xiamen Air will need to pay at least P15 million.

4. Right to Transportation and Baggage Conveyance (Section 7); 5. Right to be Processed for Check-In (Section 8); 6. Right to Sufficient Processing Time (Section 9); 7. Right to Board Aircraft for the Purpose of the Flight (Section 10); 8. Right to Compensation and Amenities In Case of Cancellation of Flight (Section 11); 9. Right to Compensation and Amenities in Case of Flight Delay (Section 12); 10. Right to Compensation for Delayed, Lost and Damaged Baggage (Section 14); 11. Right to Compensation In Case of Death or Bodily Injury of a Passenger (Section 15); 12. Right to Immediate Payment of Compensation (Section 16).

Clearly, the Right to Compensation of an airline passenger for canceled or delayed flights is

provided for under the Passenger Bill of Rights. Thus: “Section 11. Right to Compensation and Amenities in Case of Cancellation of Flight. In case of cancellation of flights, the following shall be observed: 11.1 In case of flight cancellation attributable to the carrier, a passenger shall have the right to: (a) Be notified beforehand via public announcement, written/published notice and flight status update service (text); (b) Be provided with the following, if he/she is already at the airport at the time of the announcement of the flight cancellation: sufficient refreshments or meals (e.g., snacks consisting of at least a bottle of water and a sandwich, or breakfast, lunch, or dinner, or a voucher for the same, as the case may be); hotel accommodation (conveniently accessible from the airport); transportation from the airport to the hotel, v.v.; free phone calls, text or e-mails, and first aid, if necessary; and (c) Reimbursement of the value of the fare, including taxes and surcharges, of the sector cancelled, or both/all sectors, in case the passenger decides not to fly the ticket or all the routes/sectors; or (d) Be endorsed to another air carrier without paying any fare difference, at the option of the passenger, and provided that space and other circumstances permit such See “Kapunan,” A11

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Opinion

Valor for fellowmen

It depends #1: Why so?

BusinessMirror

By Alberto Agra

Siegfred Bueno Mison, Esq.

PPP Lead

THE PATRIOT

I

N the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the highest form of recognition is the Medal of Valor. We have more than a million soldiers who have served and are serving the country, but there are only 41 Valor awardees in the Philippines since the AFP started giving out this award in 1935. And of the 41, only 14 are still living. Interestingly, out of the 41 Valor awardees, three came from my PMA Class of 1987—Custodio Parcon, Robert Eduardo Lucero and Cirilito Sobejana. Army Captain Rommel Sandoval is the 41st recipient of the Medal of Valor for his efforts in the Marawi City incident.

Unbeknownst to many, these Valor awardees are granted extra privileges by Republic Act 9049.

Among other grants, recipients or the dependents of the deceased recipients get a monthly gratuity pay, on top of their salaries or pension, and are also entitled by law to be prioritized when applying for work in the government. They are also entitled to get a 20-percent discount from hotels, transportation services, restaurants and theaters. I personally think that these privileges are not as commensurate. After all, a Valor awardee performed “a deed of personal bravery or self-sacrifice above and beyond the call of duty so conspicuously as to distinguish him above his comrades.”

Valor is most often associated with the military world. It is synonymous to courage, fearlessness and bravery, especially in battle.

Oftentimes, the Medal of Valor (Medal of Honor in the United States) is awarded posthumously.

For the early Christians, valor was not too uncommon since, of the 12 disciples of Jesus, with the exception of Judas, only one did not perish by way of violent death. The early disciples, knowing fully well that they face danger for spreading Christianity, ended up either crucified, stoned, burned alive or stabbed mercilessly to death.

In the Bible, Psalm 60:12 says, “Through God we will do valiantly, for it is He who shall tread down our enemies.” Christians, then and now, do not fear death or persecution. Hence, valor and death seem to be part of one package.

Nonetheless, I have seen valorous deeds, not in battle or ending in death, performed by ordinary and common people. And the accident involving an aircraft of Xiamen Airlines in Manila on August 16, 2018, brought out the best in some of my colleagues in Philippine Airlines (PAL).

For instance, on that weekend and the succeeding days after runway 6/24 was closed due to this unfortunate incident, all 40 employees of the Customer Experience Office led by Jessica Abaya mobilized themselves to help beleaguered PAL colleagues handle various passenger concerns, either in the ticket offices, customer contact centers or in the airport. The combat zone, if ever there was one, was at the airport where hundreds of distraught passengers were ready to do battle, so to speak. Likely inspired by the presence of PAL President Jaime Bautista and SVP Nicky Gozon at PAL Operations Center on a Sunday, the entire Customer Insights Team managed by Marlon Ramirez and four employees from the Human Capital Department, Carmina Padelera, Joseph Richard Zablan, Bienjamin Leofando and A na Katrina de Jesus, in particular, volunteered to help manage the chaotic conditions in the combat zone. These brave souls opted to spend the special nonworking holiday commemorating the assassination of Ninoy Aquino by going, ironically, to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport on August 21, 2018. I am sure there were so many other PAL volunteers that day who contributed their skills

Another valor episode occurred in Bangkok, where one of the PAL flights from the Middle East was diverted due to the runway closure. The cabin crew led by Flight Purser Rex Abello took the initiative to patiently stay with and listen to the ordeal of the stranded passengers, primarily overseas Filipino workers. This simple gesture of being present at the moment, when tempers are likely over the roof, helped diffuse the tension and stress felt by affected passengers. and time to help others.

Another valor episode occurred in Bangkok, where one of the PAL flights from the Middle East was diverted due to the runway closure. The cabin crew led by Flight Purser Rex Abello took the initiative to patiently stay with and listen to the ordeal of the stranded passengers, primarily overseas Filipino workers.

This simple gesture of being present at the moment, when tempers are likely over the roof, helped diffuse the tension and stress felt by affected passengers.

On this day where the death of a Filipino martyr is being remembered, my martyr-like colleagues chose to commemorate the holiday by valiantly and valorously facing PA L customers whose flights were either cancelled or delayed or diverted. Although they did not face death, unlike soldiers in combat or the early Christians during the Roman Empire, these volunteers performed commendable acts under the pain of verbal attacks for reasons beyond their control. There were countless other valorous stories, whether from a coworker in PAL, an employee of our major gateway or even from an affected passenger himself. The fact remains that this eventful episode, fortuitous as it was, provided opportunities for common people to perform acts of valor.

While some say that valor is the absence of indecision even in the face of death, believers consider valor as God Himself, as written in Psalm 118:16, which says, “The right hand of the Lord is exalted; The right hand of the Lord does valiantly. I will not die, but live, and tell of the works of the Lord.” In the Bible, valor is also what is communicated by the word strength. And that is how we should love the Lord—with all of our valorous strength! In Latin, valor means to be strong, to be worthy. Thus, valor and death do not always come together; but valor and fortified love always do.

Whoever has a fortified love for another, like a soldier’s patriotic love for his country or an employee’s dedicated devotion to her company or a believer’s selfless love for the Lord above, that brand of love, I must say, is the foundation for any individual to perform deeds of valor! Beyond the call of duty is a big factor of valor. But, how much you love your fellowman is way bigger!

For questions and comments, please e-mail me at sbmison@gmail.com.

Continued from A1

O

r, when it is the national government agency (NGA), government corporation or local government unit (LGU) involved; or the case of approval or nonintervention by the National Economic and Development Authority.

Then there’s the right to match, outbid or the chance to submit a better offer; or foreign investment is allowed or qualified; and debt-equity ratio can be 75-25 or 50-50; among other answers.

Before we qualify the answers, we must first tackle the reasons we need to qualify and distinguish them. Knowing the why leads us to an understanding of the foundation and realities of Philippine PPPs.

(1) There is no single PPP law in the Philippines. Contrary to what some may argue, there is no single law on PPP that governs all possible modalities between the government and private sector proponents (PSPs). We have a number of laws, regulations, guidelines and policies that deal with some 30 contractual arrangements.

And 24 were in the old list of this columnist.

Monday, August 27, 2018 A11

(2) Decentralization. Different NGAs, government-owned and -controlled corporations, government instrumentalities, government financial institutions, state universities and colleges, and LGUs may adopt their own PPP policies.

Pursuant to their respective mandates and authorities, they can do this whether they are expressly allowed or not prohibited from doing so for as long as no law is violated.

Centralists frown upon this concept.

(3) Project conditions. Another variable that needed to be factored in choice-making is the project condition. The location, and the financial, environmental and technical aspects shape the questions PPP stakeholders ask, and these limit the available options.

(4) Political and social realities. Of course, PPPs do not exist in a vacuum. Choices and decisions, and answers are molded depending on acceptability, leadership style, risk appetite, successor or protester’s risk, accountabilities, innovation, proximity from elections, influence,

The millennial Filipino CPAs

composed of millennials from 15 to 34 years old, and by 2030 it will rise to 70 percent.

Most of their concerns are about their growth in everything they do. Millennials find meaning in their duties and responsibilities, and that’s their ultimate parameter when evaluating job opportunities

being offered to them. They expect a rewarding experience from their employers and team leaders so that trainings and enhancement programs within the organization must be put into consideration. Work-life balance is also one of their concerns.

They will not hesitate to resign and look for a better workplace if they find their current work unfulfilling.

Millennials are incorporating technology in their workplace.

Gone are the days when accountants use manual worksheets, do tedious accounting functions manually and produce reports such as financial statements and budget matrix. They can perform their tasks immediately and have the results in an instant. Millennials find solutions to their problems using technology.

Millennials constantly connect to the Internet through laptops and smartphones. They don’t have to be stationary in the same work desk every day to manage their tasks, as they can work remotely. New innovative and advanced software tools

are readily available in the market that are helpful in performing their tasks efficiently and effectively.

They are result-driven individuals.

The millennials may not be as patient as those from the previous generations. However, they are capable of being involved in serving their community. Their passion and innovative values can contribute toward the developmental growth of the Philippines.

Considering what Jose Rizal said, that the “youth is the hope of the fatherland,” they are the hope of the country. We, the millennial certified public accountants, are relying on the previous generations of accountants (CPAs) to help mold our generation with integrity and objectivity. In the end, we are willing to help in the development of our beloved country.

case may be), free phone calls, text or e-mails, and first aid, if necessary; and (b) rebook or refund his/ her ticket in accordance with the preceding Section or be endorsed to another carrier, in accordance with the preceding Section.

12.2 In case such Terminal Delay extends to at least six hours after the ETD for causes attributable to the carrier, it shall be deemed canceled for the purpose of making available to the passenger the rights and amenities required to be provided in case of actual cancellation, as provided for in Section 11.1; and in addition, an affected passenger shall be given the following: (a) Additional compensation equivalent to at least the value of the sector delayed or deemed canceled to be paid in the form of cash or voucher, at the discretion of the air carrier; and (b) the right to board the flight if it takes place more than six hours after the ETD and the affected passenger has not opted to rebook and/or refund. For this purpose, the air carrier is obliged to exert all efforts to contact the passenger for the flight.

12.3 A passenger shall likewise have the right to be provided with sufficient food and beverage, in cases of Tarmac Delay of at least two hours after the ETD, reckoned from the closing of the aircraft doors, or when the aircraft is at the gate with the doors still open but passengers are not allowed to deplane.

12.4 The provisions of this Section shall be the minimum entitlement of a passenger in case of delay and shall not prohibit the air carrier from granting more favorable conditions or recourses, as it may deem appropriate.”

On August 19, 2018, a Xiamen

Air Boeing aircraft skidded off a runway at Ninoy Aquino International Airport. This caused 300 flights to be canceled, delayed or redirected, which affected at least 45,000 passengers who were stuck in the three Naia terminals, some without food, beverages and hotel accommodations. Many overseas Filipino workers had given their last money to their families who bid them good-bye at the Airport and had no money to spend during their long, uncertain wait. Some OFWs feared they had lost their employment contracts as they were a no-show with their prospective employers abroad.

Clearly, under these circumstances, someone has to be held responsible and liable criminally, administratively and civilly for damages to those affected passengers. Obviously, Xiamen Air is the principal culprit. Manila International Airport Authority says Xiamen Air will need to pay at least P15 million. This is a paltry amount not commensurate to the chaos and furor they caused, which Miaa said cover only the cost of manpower and rental of crane and equipment used to lift the jet off the field. The entire crew should be detained pending further investigation. Domestic carriers Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific, Philippine Air Asia, Cathay Pacific and Singapore Airlines had apologies for the inconvenience their passengers suffered. But providing food, beverages and in few instances hotel accommodations do not excuse these carriers from failing to respond immediately with replacement flights, rescheduling of canceled flights, rescheduling of planes, crew and operational resources. Naia personnel, from sheer

volume of affected passengers and pressure of work, were reportedly outright discourteous.

Where was the government while this crisis was ongoing at the Naia?

Clearly, the Department of Transportation should have weighed in as the Miaa, the Civil Aeronautics Board and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines—agencies directly involved with airport operations, air carriers and airline passengers are under the supervision of the DOTr. The agency’s bleak response was a statement of Secretary Arthur P. Tugade that this Naia mayhem is an “eyeopener” and cause for “the review of emergency protocols and a revisiting of the Air Passenger Bill of Rights.”

Fortunately, my family decided to go to Montemar Beach Resort in Bataan instead of flying out during that fatal long weekend. Otherwise, I would have immediately gathered signatures of the affected passengers to protest the incompetence, inefficiency and discourtesy of airport personnel. I would have demanded the immediate detention and full investigation of Xiamen Air pilots and crew for their blatant disregard and disrespect for our Philippine aviation regulations.

This is ripe for a class action suit to test whether the Air Passengers Bill of Rights truly protects the ordinary air passengers—not the powers that be. And certainly, our government must be petrified with the reality that a single aircraft stuck on a runway can cripple the operations of the entire airport for several days. This elevates the issue from protection of air passengers to the bigger issue of national security and defense.

That must be the lesson the government learned from this “eye-opener”!

Ervym Cave

DEBIT CREDIT

O

ne of the respected professions in the Philippines is the accountancy profession because of its prestige and good reputation imparted to the public. A great number of the members of this noble profession belong to the millennial generation (born between the early-1980s to early-2000s). Technology has always been part of the millennials’ life. This is constantly being applied to their respective chosen field of expertise. The attitudes and beliefs of these young individuals greatly affect the growth of their respective organizations.

Millennials are coming of age, and they are entering the work force with a work culture that is significantly different from the values that the previous generations upheld. Based on the survey made by Philippine Statistics Authority, almost 50 percent of the Philippine work force in 2015 is

Kapunan. . .

continued from A10

re-accommodation; or (e) rebook the ticket, without additional charge, to the next flight with available space, or, within 30 days, to a future trip within the period of validity of the ticket. However, for rebooking made in excess of the aforementioned 30 days for a trip likewise within the validity of the ticket, fees and/or fare difference shall apply.

Provided, that in case a carrier cancels a flight at least 24 hours before the ETD, it shall not be liable for the foregoing amenities, except, it shall be obliged to notify the passenger, and, in accordance with the preceding provisions, to rebook or reimburse the passenger, at the option of the latter.

11.2 In case the air carrier cancels the flight because of force majeure, safety and/or security reasons, as certified by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines, a passenger shall have the right to be reimbursed for the full value of the fare.

11.3 The provisions of this Section shall be the minimum entitlement of a passenger in case of cancellation, and shall not prohibit the air carrier from granting more favorable conditions or recourses, as it may deem appropriate.

Section 12. Right to Compensation and Amenities in Case of Flight Delay and Exceptions Thereto.

12.1 In case of Terminal Delay of at least three hours after the ETD, whether or not such is attributable to the carrier, a passenger shall have the right to: (a) Be provided with refreshments or meals (sufficient snacks, breakfast, lunch or dinner, as the

democratic space, rule of law, dispute resolution mechanisms, etc.

(5) Differing opinions. Opinions and positions may also be contextual and personal. Points of view may depend on whether one: (a) has a liberal or restrictive view toward PPP; (b) belongs to the government or private sector; (c) if in government, is part of an implementing, audit or a regulatory agency; (d) is the signatory to a contract, a recommendatory authority or only a consultant; (e) is a/an lawyer, economist, environmentalist, oppositionist, academic, practitioner; (f) is a career or elective official; among other perspectives.

PPP is therefore not a one-sizefits-all proposition. There is discretion and subjectivity at the policy and project levels. There are, however, constants. For one, the selection of the PSP must adhere to requirements of PACT—Public advantage, Accountability, Competition and Transparency.

Time to ask the questions and learn from the answers.

Ervym Cave is a Certified Public Accountant and Certified Tax Technician. He is currently taking up Master in Accountancy Major in Taxation at the University of the East. He is connected with RX Global Sales and Mktg. Corp.

2nd Front Page BusinessMirror

A12 Monday, August 27, 2018

Ombudsman’s rule: No trial by publicity, ‘blind’ fact-finding

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By Joel R. San Juan

@jrsanjuan1573

ewly appointed Ombudsman Samuel R. Martires is set to implement several policies meant to avoid trial by publicity of government officials and employees against whom criminal or administrative complaints are filed.

The point of the exercise is to stop, among others, a perceived practice to file nuisance cases against personalities ahead of an election, with a view to providing the content for a demolition campaign, or even to get them suspended.

Speaking at the 50th founding anniversary of San Beda’s Lex Leonum Fraternitas at a Makati hotel on Saturday evening, Martires said he has informed the Office of the Special Prosecutor that fact-finding investigations should be conducted secretly and with confidentiality.

Martires said he would be adopting, in receiving the complaints, the bar code system being used by the Supreme Court in the conduct of the Bar exams

to keep the identity of the Bar examinees and the integrity of the examinations until the release of the results.

Under the new system, Mart i re s e x pl a i ne d t h at once a compl a i nt aga i nst a gover nment of f icia l or employee is filed before the Ombudsman, it will be immediately placed into the system and subsequently assigned to a fact-finding office for further investigation and verification.

The complainant, according to Martires, will not be given a receiving copy but merely a reference number. “ The complaint will be redacted; what will be given to the investigator is only the name of the project being complained

“The complaint will be redacted; what will be given to the investigator is only the name of the project being complained of, not the name of the person subject of the complaint.”—Martires

of, not the name of the person subject of the complaint,” the Ombudsman said.

Once the investigation is completed and verified to be accurate, the decoding of the complaint will be done and the complainant will be asked to formally submit a verified complaint, which will undergo preliminary investigation.

Martires said that no information will be filed before the Sandiganbayan without the trial prosecutor having interviewed their witnesses.

“I assure you once the case is filed before the Sandiganbayan, you will not hear a single word from the Office of the Ombudsman saying that this particular accused is guilty of the offense charged, as I said I don’t want trial by publicity,” Martires stressed.

Only Sandigan can suspend

Aside from this, Martires said he will be issuing an order next week prohibiting prosecutors from the Ombudsman from filing a motion before the Sandiganbayan seeking the suspension of a government officer pending the trial of the case filed against him.

“I will be issuing an office order next week prohibiting every prosecutor from filing motions to suspend pendente lite [pending litigation],” Martires told the members of the fraternity who attended the event.

He explained that under the law, the court can motu propio issue a suspension.

“It will now be up to the Sandiganbayan to suspend a public official who has a pending case before it,” the Ombudsman said.

Martires said he does not want any politician meddling with the affairs of the Ombudsmt Furthermore, Martires said he wou ld be simpl if y ing t he conduct of preliminar y investigation by re-assigning law yers assigned to the Office of the Ombudsman to the Office of the Special Prosecutor.

@akosistellaBM Special to the BusinessMirror

T

HE Department of Tourism (DOT ) is working on opening up underutilized international gateways in the country to give foreign tourists easier access to more

tourism destinations.

This developed as the agency looks forward to the mounting of chartered flights between Macau and Subic via the Clark-based nonscheduled carrier, Royal Air Charter Service Inc. “The DOT is working with Royal Air to bring in tourists from China. Through our Route Development Team, we are

SOUTHWEST MONSOON AFFECTING WESTERN SECTION OF LUZON as of 5:00 am - August 26, 2018

providing marketing support to air carriers to increase tourist traffic to underutilized international gateways in the Philippines, such as the Subic Bay International Airport,”said DOT Spokesman and Undersecretary for Tourism Development Benito C. Bengzon Jr. in a news statement.

Royal Air is eyeing to mount seven

Burglars take ₧.5-M cash, gadgets from Pinoy Mecca pilgrims

One of the four rooms forcibly entered by burglars in a hotel in Mecca. Note the scattered things in the room. NCMF photo

See “Ombudsman’s rule,” A2

By Edd K. Usman

DOT taps underused gateways to lure more foreign tourists

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo

www.businessmirror.com.ph

daily flights a week between the two destinations, using a 97-seater British Aerospace AvroRJ100. The said flight is expected to produce additional 697 international air seats, or about 35,308 seats per year, from China.

“Subic Bay has a lot to offer to leisure and business travelers with its natural, cultural and adventure attractions coupled with world-class accommodations and other tourist facilities,” added Bengzon. The free port, formerly a US naval base, hosts casinos, theme parks and white beaches.

SFS also serves as a gateway to the rest of Zambales and its popular beaches, as well as to other regions, with teeming tourist sites like Pangasinan, Tarlac and Pampanga. It is also accessible to Metro Manila, three hours away, via the national highway.

“Subic Bay is a special economic zone in the Philippines, which, by law, allows the entry of foreign nationals without the required visa for a maximum of 14 days,” said Bengzon. “This is a good opportunity for Philippine tourism as Chinese nationals do not need to queue in our consular offices in China to secure the entry visa to the Philippines.”

China is the second-largest source market for tourists for the Philippines.

From January to July 2018, Chinese visitor arrivals grew by 40 percent to 764,094. (See, “China lifts tourist arrivals by 9.7percent in January-July 2018,” in the BusinessMirror, August 24, 2018.)

The DOT is targeting to attract some 7.4 million international tourists this year.

On June 21 Royal Air inaugurated its Macau to Mactan International Airport route, making available 35,308 international air seats per year from China, with daily flights seven times a week, using the same aircraft.

With a fleet of three BAe Avro RJ100, Royal Air also flies between Macau and Tuguegarao, Cagayan, as well as Macau and Laoag, Ilocos Norte.

According to its web site, the carrier was established in 2002, and flies domestic nonscheduled airline and cargo services to Manila, Batanes, Cauayan in Isabela, Clark in Pampanga, Kalibo in Aklan, Maconacon in Isabela and San Vicente in Palawan.

It has a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity issued by the Civil Aeronautics Board dated May 2017.

Special to the BusinessMirror

S

TILL unidentified burglars victimized some Filipino pilgrims in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, who lost over half-a-million pesos in cash and other valuables.

There are over 6,000 Filipinos in the kingdom who performed the five-day Hajj from August 19 to 23, a small fraction of the more than 2 million pilgrims from many parts of the world.

Dr. Dimapuno “Jun” Datu Ramos Jr., media head of the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos (NCMF), revealed the burglary on Friday on his Facebook page.

The burglary happened during the five-day Islamic religious undertaking (August 19 to 23).

No one was hurt in the burglary, which occurred in Mecca while the pilgrims were out of their hotel. Apparently, the burglars sneaked into the rooms from windows they forcibly opened, and then ransacked the rooms.

“While the Hujjajj were [out], four rooms occupied by Filipino pilgrims under Sheiks Abdulcarim Imam and Said Asgar in Hotel Manarat were forcibly entered into by unknown [burglars],” Datu Ramos quoted reports from the NCMF supervisory team in Mecca, the center of the Hajj and the Islamic world.

He said when the Filipinos returned to their rooms and their losses inventoried, it was found out the thieves had carted off a total cash of P124,000 and 19,500 Saudi riyals (around P234,000).

Datu R amos said the Filipino pilgrims also lost laptops, watches, tablets and smartphones with a combined cash equivalent of P154,000.

Other losses also included various jewelry items worth P62,000.

All in all, Datu Ramos, director of the Bureau of External Relations (NCMF-BER), said the missing cash and valuables amounted to P574,000.

The NCMF-BER’s post received a lot of comments, one of them from Nassif Macasindel, who revealed one of their companions— his nephew—in another pilgrims’ hotel also lost $1,200 in cash (more or less P63,000).

He said the theft happened more than two weeks ago (he did not name the hotel), and that when they returned to their hotel on August 24 in Mecca from Mina, they

found out the burglars struck again, ransacking and destroying several pieces of luggage.

Datu Ramos said that when the victims informed Director Abdullah Macarimpas, vice chairman of the NCMF 2018 Hajj Executive Committee, about the incident, he reported the incident to the hotel management and ordered a check of the premises.

They found out that the burglars forcibly entered through a back window in one of the rooms of the hotel, he said.

Informed of the incident, the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh sent a representative, Moamar Ayo and his associates Abdulhalim Langco and Faisal Tamano. They assisted the pilgrims and coordinated with the hotel administration, the Saudi Hajj service provider and the local police.

Through the embassy’s initiative, Datu Ramos said “an amicable settlement was arranged between the hotel owner and the victims, and the (losses) are to be paid in recompense.”

Lawyer Omar Pangarungan of the Department of Foreign Affairs reiterated his suggestion that the NCMF should inform and coordinate with the DFA any (official) foreign travels.

“I am glad this incident validated my suggestion to NCMF to take [cognizance of ] the need to coordinate their foreign trip activities with the DFA. It is important to always bear in mind that only the DFA, through their accredited diplomats in the host countr y, can effectively undert a ke st rong re prese nt at ion s with the Saudi local authorities,” he said.

Pangarungan, who has helped many overseas Filipino workers through negotiations over their various problems (including court cases), said previous administrations of the defunct Office on Muslim Affairs, which the NCMF replaced, had requested the DFA to designate him as its representative to oversee the Hajj operations, focusing on representation purposes with Saudi Hajj and police authorities.

Meanwhile, Benj Abuat of the NCMF recalled that Saudi Hajj authorities disseminated to all Hajj centers an advisory “that all valuable items, including money or cash, are strongly advised to be deposited for safekeeping in their respective Maktab or hotel management.”