BusinessMirror December 13, 2022

ROTARY CLUB OF MANILA JOURNALISM AWARDS

2006 National Newspaper of the Year 2011 National Newspaper of the Year 2013 Business Newspaper of the Year 2017 Business Newspaper of the Year 2019 Business Newspaper of the Year 2021 Pro Patria Award PHILIPPINE STATISTICS AUTHORITY 2018 Data Champion

BusinessMirror

EJAP JOURNALISM AWARDS

BUSINESS NEWS SOURCE OF THE YEAR

(2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021) DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

2018 BANTOG MEDIA AWARDS

FDI INFLOW IN 3 QTRS SHRINKS 10% TO $6.7B w

n

Tuesday, December 13, 2022 Vol. 18 No. 62

P25.00 nationwide | 2 sections 20 pages |

By Cai U. Ordinario

F

Moody’s arm sees 50-bps interest rate hike by MB

@caiordinario

OREIGN investments received by the country posted a doubledigit decline in the first three quarters of the year, according to data released by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

T

Data showed foreign direct investments (FDI) contracted 10 percent to $6.7 billion from $7.5 billion in the same period last year.

The data showed a 12-percent decline in debt instruments; 7.7-percent decline in reinvestment of earnings; and 2.9-percent decline in equit y other than reinvestment of earnings.

“FDI remained subdued amid lingering concerns on global economic slowdown, higher inflation, and the depreciation of the peso,” BSP explained.

See “FDI,” A2

GSP+ perks of PHL will be raised

by Marcos

P

RESIDENT Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. said he hopes the country’s human rights compliance will not affect its status under the European Union (EU) Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+).

Marcos made the remark after the EU threatened to remove the country’s trade privilege in February for its alleged human rights and press freedom violations.

“I don’t think one thing should be related to the other but we’ll see,” the President said in an interview with reporters during his flight

MASS WEDDING More than 100 couples exchanged I do’s in a mass wedding ceremony at the town hall of Santo Tomas, Batangas, on Friday, December 9, 2022. Mayor Arth Jhun Marasigan spoke about the sanctity of marriage to the newlyweds, most of whom are already raising their own families. A lawyer of 19 years specializing in annulments, he encouraged the now-married couples to also plan for a church wedding. BERNARD TESTA

HE Monetary Board is expected to hike interest rates by as much as 50 basis points in its meeting this week, according to Moody’s Analytics.

In its Asia Pacific economic preview, Moody’s Analytics expects BSP to raise the overnight reverse repo rate to 5.5 percent from the current 5 percent. The BSP in its last meeting raised interest rates by 75 basis points to 5 percent.

A week ago, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Felipe Medalla said the monetary authorities may be leaning toward raising interest rates by 25 basis points to as much as 50 basis points this Thursday, December 15. (Full story: https://businessmirror. com.ph/2022/12/02/phls-nextrate-increase-may-be-quarteror-half-point-bsp-gov/) Meanwhile, Moody’s Analytics also expects the country’s trade deficit to widen further to $4.9 billion in October, slightly higher than the $4.8 billion posted in September.

Based on the September data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the country’s trade deficit posted an increase of 26.5 percent from $3.81 billion in September 2021.

See “Moody’s arm,” A2

LEECHIU: OFFICE DEMAND EXCEEDS ‘20, ‘21 COMBINED

By VG Cabuag @villygc

T

HE country’s office demand this year has surpassed demand for 2020 and 2021 combined, according to a study of Leechiu Property Consultants.

Office demand for this year reached 975,000 square meters, surpassing the combined demand of 2020 at 389,000 square meters and 2021 at 540,000 square meters.

The back office sector accounted for the lion’s share of 2022 take-up at 466,000 square meters despite the dominance of the hybrid set-up which allowed some employees to work from home and the rest, on site.

Traditional office occupiers also registered a substantial take-up of 448,000 square meters after many companies mandated the onsite presence of their employees.

“Up to mid-2022, it was difficult to visualize year-end demand hitting close to the 1 million sq m mark. The results have exceeded expectations but we can’t put our guard down just yet,” company CEO David Leechiu said.

From only 124,000 square meters in the first quarter highlighted by widespread infections of the Omicron variant of Covid-19, office demand peaked in the third quarter at 313,000 square meters after political and other uncertainties were resolved by the May presidential elections.

Take-up leveled off in the fourth quarter and reached 283,000 square meters but with growth likely to continue in 2023 given a notable live requirement of 352,000 square meters.

Live requirements are office transactions in various stages of completion.

The sustained demand for office spaces is tempered by significant vacancies in some business districts and additional supply from newly buildings to be completed in 2023.

“We thus will start the new year cautiously optimistic about the prospects of the real estate industry in the next 12 months,” said Leechiu.

See “Leechiu,” A2

See “GSP+ perks,” A2

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 55.2700

n JAPAN 0.4047 n UK 67.8329 n HK 7.0992 n CHINA 7.9413 n SINGAPORE 40.8590 n AUSTRALIA 37.4675 n EU 58.2048 n KOREA 0.0424 n SAUDI ARABIA 14.6994

Source: BSP (December 12, 2022)

News

BusinessMirror

A2 Tuesday, December 13, 2022

With IRR, telcos prepping for SIM registration’s full rollout

T

By Lorenz S. Marasigan

@lorenzmarasigan

HE three telco operators in the Philippines welcomed the issuance of the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of the SIM Registration Law, saying that they are now preparing for the law’s full implementation.

Globe Telecom Inc. President Ernest L. Cu and Smart SVP and Head of Consumer Business Group-Individual Francis E. Flores said their groups are separately launching their online SIM registration platform.

“Globe is proud to be part of the technical working group that crafted the IRR, which we hope will pave the way for an orderly and timely SIM registration for all SIM users. We will continue our close collaboration with the government to ensure full implementation of

the SIM Registration Act to achieve our shared goal of stopping cybercrime, including SIM-aided fraud,” Cu said.

Flores said Smart is ready to implement new processes in compliance with the law.

“We are ready to roll out our SIM Registration processes after months of preparations, which have included, among others, studying best global practices and technology solutions from other countries that have already implemented

SIM registration. We will release more information about the SIM registration portal via our official channels in the next few weeks,” he added.

Meanwhile, Dito Telecommunity Corp. Chief Administrative Officer Adel Tamano reiterated Dito’s commitment to be compliant with the new law, which seeks to reduce text scams.

“We support this important initiative of the government to protect the public from phishing and similar types of fraudulent activities.

We will do our level best to make the registration process as simple and painless as possible for new Dito subscribers and our 14 million existing customers,” he said.

The IRR, crafted by the National Telecommunications Commission in consultation with the telco industry, has gone through public hearing.

It is expected to lay down the SIM registration procedure and

guidelines that all public telecommunications entities (PTEs) must follow in creating their respective registration platforms.

The IRR is expected to take effect on December 27.

“Our goal is to have a SIM registration process that is seamless, secure, inclusive and convenient for our customers,” he said.

Cu also said Globe has existing customers who are currently not using smartphones and may not be digital savvy. Globe shall put in place a special assistance process for these customers so they can go through the registration as well.

With connectivity being crucial to powering the Philippine economy’s resurgence, Flores said Smart is committed “to ensure that the implementation of the SIM Registration Law will be easy and convenient for subscribers and will not deprive subscribers of their right to connectivity.”

IPOPHL gets 40% less cases of counterfeiting, piracy

T

HE Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) said it received 92 reports and complaints on counterfeiting and piracy from January to November 2022, marking a 40-percent decrease from the 153 reports and complaints recorded in

the same period last year.

According to IPOPHL, latest data from the IP Rights Enforcement Office (IEO) breaks this down to 70 counts of counterfeiting and 22 of piracy.

“Counterfeiting accounted for 75 percent of the total reports

and complaints received, as apparel [shoes, clothes, bags and eyewear] remains to be the most counterfeited goods in the market with a share of 61.9 percent,” the IPOPHL said in a statement on Monday.

This was followed by perfume

and beauty products with a share of 7.9 percent; gadgets with 7.9 percent, food with 4.8 percent; home items with 4.8 percent; automotive materials with 3.2 percent; cigarettes with 3.2 percent; and pharmaceuticals/medical products with 1.6 percent. Andrea E. San Juan

Senate...

Continued from A12

“We passed the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling law, classifying large-scale agricultural smuggling as a heinous crime and a [form of] economic sabotage. And yet we keep resorting to importations. So if they’re not smuggled, the farm products are excessively imported,” he lamented.

He earlier joined Senate Ways and Means Committee chairman Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian and customs officials at the BOC headquarters in Manila to conduct an ocular inspection and discussion on the agency’s modernization program.

He stressed the BOC’s moder n i z at ion ef for ts shou ld be geared toward curbing agricultural smuggling and addressing alleged widespread corruption within the agency. “Our aim is to improve needed revenues for the significant programs. It’s also important to monitor the modernization program because smuggling remains rampant in many parts of the country,” Ejercito added.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

FDI...

Continued from A1

The decline in net debt instruments, based on BSP data, was the steepest decline since the contraction of 20.5 percent in December 2020.

Total net debt instruments reached $4.69 billion in the January to September 2022 period, lower than the $5.33 billion recorded in the same period of 2021.

“Net investments in debt instruments consist mainly of intercompany borrowing/lending between foreign direct investors and their subsidiaries/affiliates in the Philippines,” BSP explained.

“The remaining portion of net investments in debt instruments are investments made by nonresident subsidiaries/associates in their resident direct investors, i.e., reverse investment,” it added.

In September 2022, BSP preliminary data showed FDI recorded $626 million in net inflows. This was 7.9 percent lower than the $680-million net inflows in the same month last year.

Debt instruments contracted 36.8 percent in September to $351 million, while reinvestment of earnings declined 4.8 percent to $88 million.

However, equity other than reinvestment of earnings, soared 474.5 percent to $187 million in

September 2022.

“The decline in FDI net inflows reflected the decrease in non-residents’ net investments in debt instruments, which more than offset the growth in their net equity capital placements,” BSP said.

The BSP statistics on FDI are compiled based on the Balance of Payments and International Investment Position Manual, 6th Edition (BPM6).

FDI includes (a) investment by a non-resident direct investor in a resident enterprise, whose equity capital in the latter is at least 10 percent.

It also includes investments made by a non-resident subsidiary OR associate in its resident direct investor. FDI can be in the form of equity capital, reinvestment of earnings, and borrowings.

The BSP FDI statistics are distinct from the investment data of other government sources. BSP FDI covers actual investment inflows.

In contrast, the approved foreign investments data published by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), which are sourced from Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs), represent investment commitments, which may not necessarily be realized fully, in a given period.

Moody’s arm...

Continued from A1

The PSA also noted that the trade deficit in August 2022 recorded an annual increase of 81.9 percent, while in September 2021, it posted a growth of 68.1 percent.

In the January to September 2022 period, PSA data showed the country’s trade deficit amounted to $46.65 billion. This was 63.2 percent higher than the $28.58 billion posted in the same period in 2021.

Meanwhile, Moody’s Analytics noted that other central banks in the region that tightened their

monetary policy include the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which lifted the benchmark repo rate by 35 basis points to 6.25 percent in December.

This is on top of the 50-basispoint hike the RBI implemented in its meeting in September this year, according to Moody’s Analytics.

The Reserve Bank of Australia, Moody’s Analytics said, also lifted the cash rate by 25 basis points in December, leading official interest rates to reach 3.1 percent.

Cai U. Ordinario

GSP+ perks...

Continued from A1

to Belgium for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)EU Commemorative Summit this week.

He said he will bring up the matter during his meetings with the European Commission, the European Council and the European Parliament.

The GSP+ allows the duty-free entry of over 6,000 products from the Philippines to the EU, on the condition that the government upholds 27 international conventions on human rights, labor, environment and climate action and good governance.

It took effect in 2014 and allowed the country to raise the value of

exports to the EU from 5.3 billion euros that year to 7.77 billion euros in 2021.

In October this year, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said the government is trying to negotiate for the extension of the trade privilege, which is set to expire in December 2023.

The Federation of Free Workers (FFW) earlier urged the EU to hold the country accountable for the death of over 50 local trade unionists.

The International Labor Organization (ILO) is set to send a highlevel tripartite mission (HLTM) next month to look into reports of labor abuses. Samuel P. Medenilla

Butch Fernandez

Leechiu...

Continued from A1

Metro Manila accounted for 724,000 square meters or around 70 percent, with Bonifacio Global City taking up 232,000 square meters and Makati at 198,000 square meters. Cebu City took up 92,000 square meters, followed

by Davao at 50,000 square meters and Clark at 49,000 square meters.

Mikko Barranda, LPC director for Commercial Leasing, said that the IT-BPM sector, the largest Philippine employer, hired an additional 265,000 employees in the last three pandemic years. In 2021 and 2022 alone, 120,000 employees were recruited annually. Nevertheless, IT-BPM office demand only surged from 2021 to 2022 by 68 percent due to majority of the employees returning onsite for work.

Govt...

Continued from A12

Habito said this is just one example of the stringent importation rules of the Philippines. These must change in order to open the domestic market; encourage competition; and increase productivity.

Based on the PSA’s data, apart from the three kinds of onion, the highest increases in vegetable prices were observed in mustard, which saw prices increase 34.68 percent year on year and cucumber, 28.8 percent.

Other vegetables that saw high prices in November were chilli leaves at 28.47 percent; tomatoes, 25.95 percent; string beans, 22.83 percent; okra, 22.37 percent; and carrots, 21.44 percent.

Based on the data, all vegetables posted double-digit increases in price except for nine vegetables that posted single-digit increases and contractions.

Vegetables that posted singledigit increases in price were squash

which posted an increase in price of 8.22 percent, followed by gabi leaves, 8.01 percent; pechay, 7.53 percent; garlic, 4.66 percent; camote tops, 1.71 percent; and monggo sprout, 0.98 percent.

Items that posted year-on-year price declines in November included Baguio pechay, the prices of which contracted 10.21 percent; cabbage, 6.27 percent; and lettuce, 3.9 percent.

The PSA said the uptick in the food inflation was primarily influenced by the higher annual growth in the vegetables, tubers, plantains, cooking bananas and pulses index at 25.8 percent; and rice index at 3.1 percent.

Food inflation at the national level rose further to 10.3 percent in November 2022, from 9.8 percent in October 2022. In November 2021, food inflation stood at 2.3 percent.

The Nation BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

VP Duterte to check San Juan school’s digitization

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco @claudethmc3

V

ICE President and Education Secretary Sara Vicenta Z. Duterte is expected to visit today (December 13) the Pinaglabanan Elementary School in San Juan City to check on the free fiber optic internet connection and smart TVs in the classrooms provided by the city government.

Mayor Francisco Javier M. Zamora said all 13 public schools in the city will be provided with fiber optic internet connection and WirelessFidelity (Wi-Fi) connection in all classrooms and in common areas of the school as well as 55-inch smart TVs in all classrooms.

“Giving our students quality education is part of my 10-point agenda as mayor which is in line with our objective of being a smart city. We want to empower our public school students by providing them with facilities and equipment which are comparable or may even be better than what private schools have,” said Zamora said as he invited Duterte to show the efforts of the local government in providing quality education to its students.

Zamora and Duterte will observe the testing of the internet connection and check the possible applications that teachers can do using the smart TV such as teaching their lessons digitally through their gadgets, doing away with cartolinas, manila paper and using the blackboard and playing educational shows and related content for the students.

Learning experience

LIKEWISE, Duterte is expected to join Zamora in the distribution of one set of PE uniform to all public school students.

It may be recalled that at the beginning of the school year, Zamora said that he will give two sets of school uniforms.

A short demonstration will also be conducted in the classroom for multilingual instructional materials to further enhance the learning experience of the students.

These are now being piloted in Pinaglabanan Elementary School and the use of these in San Juan City public schools will be implemented by next year.

Meanwhile, students can use their tablets and laptops and free fiber optic internet connection to follow the lecture.

Aside from these benefits, all 12,500 San Juan City public school students were given free tablets in 2020 in partnership with the Department of Information and Communications Technology, with Grades 3 to 6 students of Pinaglabanan Elementary School getting free laptops.

Around 7,000 public school student households in the city have free fiber optic internet connection, provided by the city government, so they can still study at home and access a throve of additional information via the Internet.

All public school teachers were also provided with laptops, WiFi connection and seminars to aid them in teaching their students even in an online setting.

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Tuesday, December 13, 2022 A3

Congress moves to legalize motorcycle taxis

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

L

AWMAKERS are now working on the passage of measures legalizing and regulating motorcycle taxis.

Last Monday, the House Committee on Transportation began public hearings on measures that seek to ensure the safety of commuters while generating employment and livelihood opportunities.

Chaired by Antipolo 2nd District Rep. Romeo M. Acop, the House panel tackled several bills that seek to regulate motorcycles-for-hire. The panel also invited resource persons from national agencies, ride-hailing services and non-government organizations to provide input on the proposed measures.

In House Bill (HB) 2833 authored

by Batangas 6th District Rep. Ralph G. Recto, the lawmaker stressed that “in recent years, motorcycles-forhire also known as habal-habal, have been considered the fastest means of transportation, particularly amidst traffic congestion in urban areas like Metro Manila.”

According to Cebu Rep. Rachel Marguerite B. Del Mar, author of HB 128, a law regulating motorcycle taxis “will resolve the existing inadequacies in our laws and shall promote the safety and welfare of people who patronage motorcycles-for-hire.”

The bill, like similar measures, will require two-wheeled motor vehicles to register with the Land Transportation Office (LTO) so that they can be used as commercial vehicles and in order to transport

passengers and goods.

Registration’s benefits

DEL Mar emphasized that registration “will ensure that operators and drivers will be held responsible for the negligent operation of their motorcycles.”

“The same will likewise prevent abuse from owners, operators and drivers, thus ensuring low-cost transportation,” the lawmaker said.

The explanatory note of HB 307 pointed out that experiences in other countries have shown that legalizing motorcycle taxis would also help provide jobs for the unemployed. HB 307 is authored by Camarines Sur Second District Rep. Luis Raymond Villafuerte, Camarines Sur Fifth District Rep. Miguel Luis Villafuerte, Camarines Sur First District Rep. Tsuyoshi Anthony Horibata and Bicol Saro

Sarangani group, jail management bureau BOI whets appetite for renew agreement for prison food supply

By Jonathan L. Mayuga @jonlmayuga

T

HE Alkikan Vegetable Growers Association (Alvega), an agrarian reform beneficiary organization (ARBO) from Malungon, Sarangani, has renewed its marketing agreement with the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) for food supply to prisons.

The marketing agreement was facilitated by the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) to ensure that agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) gain a continuous market

for their farm produce, a statement from the DAR read.

Alvega President Leonard Dela Cruz expressed gratitude to the DAR for the support and coordination to their organization.

“We would also like to assure the BJMP that our organization will continuously produce and deliver quality products,” he said.

The marketing agreement, already on its third year, is marked by the sale of fruits and vegetables from Alvega.

OIC-Provincial Agrarian Reform Program Officer II Cenon S. Original said that “emerging opportunities

have been unlocked for Alvega.”

“These [opportunities] include the construction of farm-to-marketroad,” Original said adding that Alvega was also identified as a learning site for agriculture. The DAR also provided the organization a hauling truck and its members with technical knowledge on fertilizer.

The DAR said they also checked the progress of the farmers’ organization in terms of product sales, frequency, and volume of sales, which also provided an avenue for both parties to strategically resolve concerns and improve their partnership.

PBIDA expected to help PHL grow share in global bamboo market

By Jonathan L. Mayuga @jonlmayuga

B

AMBOO industry players believe the passage of the proposed Philippine Bamboo Industry Development Act (Pbida) would boost the country’s competitive edge in the natural bamboo market, particularly in transport, construction, furniture and fabric sectors, leading to industrial-manufacturing development using the lowly giant grass species as raw material.

Filed under House Bill 9576, the PBIDA was approved for third and final reading in August 2021. Advocates of the bill hope it could be certified as urgent by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.

A statement issued by the Kilusang 5K Foundation quoted its chairman Deogracias Victor B. Savellano as saying he believes the Pbida “will substantially help advance our industrial development.”

“We already have the clumps in our inventory. We just need the support for production, training, processing,” Savellano said.

The bill envisions to seize part of a global market—with a value of $8 billion in 2010—and institutionalize the Philippine Bamboo Industry Development Council (PBIDC).

Industry council

CREATED by Executive Order (EO) 879 in 2010, the PBIDC saw the prospect of bamboo replacing plastic, metal and other wood as manufac-

turing input.

While Savellano has earlier been appointed vice chairman of the PBIDC, the council has not yet been convened. A budget has neither been allocated for the council.

According to EO 879, the PBIDC should be composed of the heads of the following government departments: Trade and Industry; Environment and Natural Resources (DENR); Agriculture; and, Science and Technology.

Bamboo advocates are now petitioning government to allocate at least P100 million to jumpstart the development of bamboo as a manufacturing sector.

EO 879 mandates the DENR, the Mines and Geosciences Bureau and the Laguna Lake Development

Authority to use bamboo in at least 20 percent in their annual reforestation areas.

PBIDC Executive Director Rene E. Madarang earlier created three technical working groups for production and propagation, for industry and commerce and for training of workforce.

Economic potential

THE bamboo industry holds huge economic potential for contributing to industrialization, being a highlydurable and ecologically-friendly raw material.

Comparable to or even better than other hardwood, bamboo has already been technologically developed into engineered wood, composites, laminated wood, or strand woven bamboo

as sophisticated lumber or construction material.

Filipinos have extensively exhibited their creative genius in using bamboo.

For instance, the Cubo modular house designed by Earl Forlales is not only modern but one that is also a durable house made of indigenous materials. In 2017, designer Christopher Paris Lacson crafted the Banatti motorcycle whose body is made of highly durable, elegant-looking, light-weight bamboo.

Filipino Antonio de Leon designed a single-engine, light experimental aircraft that used a type of woven bamboo.

Bamboo also holds tremendous promise as green ethanol or fossil fuel substitute as a renewable energy.

DA Caraga puts up floating Sectors bat for seats as Bangsamoro Parliament holds talks nursery in Agusan Marsh

By Manuel T. Cayon @awimailbox Mindanao Bureau Chief

D

AVAO CIT Y—Creativity came to play in Agusan del Sur as the Caraga regional office of the Department of Agriculture (DA) installed a floating nursery for use of farmers living in the Agusan Marsh.

The floating nursery was developed last October and recently installed in a wetland area in Barangay Sabang Gibong, Talacogon, Agusan del Sur—an area commonly known as Agusan Marsh.

The DA Caraga office said the idea germinated after considering the area as a possible site for vegetable production, which could give additional livelihood for the marshland community.

It said the materials for the nursery—net, bamboo, ropes, seeds, seedling trays, plastic mulch and sprinklers—were given to the residents. They were also taught how to prepare the nursery, to cultivate the crops and how to manage livestock production. The technicians also explained and trained them on

how to make a floating nursery, the DA said.

The DA-Caraga office said it allocated P175,000 for the 50 units of the floating garden in the area using different methods of floaters. Initially, 10 units were already planted with bell pepper and Chinese cabbage (pechay).

The DA said its personnel would visit the community to provide guidance until the completion of the project; from planting, harvesting and to marketing.

The DA said it would ensure a sustainable livelihood for the community “despite the challenge of climate change since they have been experiencing floods for months, with no permanent agricultural land suitable for cultivation.”

This intervention was also adapted to the conservation efforts of the area’s biodiversity.

The DA said the Agusan Marsh is one of the most ecologicallysignificant wetlands in the Philippines, a protected area in Agusan del Sur declared during the time of former President Fidel V. Ramos.

Partylist Rep. Nicolas Enciso VIII. “Globally, motorcycle ride-hailing apps have been emerging in cities like Indonesia, Thailand, India, Paris and in East Africa, where the apps have been key in making motorcycle taxi rides safer,” said the Bicolano legislators.

“In Jakarta, motorcycle taxis have help driven unemployment rates downward as the ride-hailing apps attract many Indonesians to join as drivers,” they added.

In Metro Manila alone, more than 40,000 motorcycle riders are employed by three different transport network companies. In the absence of a law regulating them, motorcycles for hire have been allowed to operate under a pilot program supervised by the Department of Transportation Motorcycle Taxi Technical Working Group.

D

AVAO CITY—Sectoral representatives turned up in droves on Wednesday last week in Patikul, Sulu, as the Bangsamoro Parliament also went in full force in holding the first episodes of the public consultation on the Bangsamoro electoral code.

The Bangsamoro Parliament showed up in full force in Sulu for the public consultation on Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) Bill 29, or the Bangsamoro Electoral Code. Not to be outdone were sectoral organizations’ representatives had only eyes on ensuring that their sectors were included in the reserved seats in the BTA, which is currently the regional government’s interim Parliament.

Representatives from indigenous peoples, civil society organizations, women’s groups, religious groups, youth sectors, nongovernment organizations and academic institutions took part in the consultation arguing on representation as they submitted written position papers to the Rules Committee.

In the panel were members of the Committee on Rules and four deputy speakers, including Omar Yasser Sema, Nabil Tan, Paisalin Tago and Benjamin Loong.

Sema, a lawyer, said that re-

served seats would be provided for youth, women, religious and traditional leaders.

“We want to assure you that the process and procedure for selecting their representatives will be fair and in accordance with what they have agreed on,” he said.

Under BTA Bill 29, reserved seats and sectoral representatives would constitute at least 10 percent of Members of Parliament, with two seats reserved for non-Moro indigenous people and settler communities. Each of the following groups will have one sectoral seat: women, young people, traditional leaders and the Ulama, the Bangsamoro Information Office said.

Ensure compliance

DON Mustapha Loong and Tarhata Maglangit, both members of parliament, urged the women and youth sectors to submit position papers and work together on them.

Tan also clarified that the proposed electoral code, “in pursuit of autonomy, has new features” and pointed to the creation of the Bangsamoro Electoral Office, which will be under the control of the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

The BEC seeks to establish a

Bangsamoro Electoral Office that will serve as the central body of BARMM in the supervision of all elections, with delegated powers from the Comelec, to ensure compliance with laws and other pertinent rules of the Commission.

“We are also looking to see if the proposed bill is constitutional and fair for all stakeholders and we will go through that process during the deliberations in the plenary,” Tan said.

Loong expressed gratitude to the sectors and mentioned the presence of “His Royal Highness Sultan Muedzul Lail Tan Kiram of the Sultanate of Sulu and North Borneo and the first lady of Sulu, Hja. Nurunisah Tan.” He emphasized that the electoral code is one of the priority bills that the Bangsamoro Transition Authority Parliament must pass during the transition period.

Also last week, another BTA team held consultations in Bongao, TawiTawi for another code, the Bangsamoro Governance Code. Both codes had to be enacted on or before the first quarter of 2023, which BARMM Chief Minister, Ahod Ebrahim, had personally promised to President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to be enacted by that time. Manuel T. Cayon

investment from Hungary

By Andrea San Juan

T

HE Board of Investments (BOI) invited Hungarian firms to make use of the Philippines’s advantages such as the country’s abundance of green metals that the agency said can be used for battery production.

This was what Trade Undersecretary and BOI Managing Head Ceferino S. Rodolfo said in his welcome address during the Philippines-Hungary Business Networking Event last December 1.

A statement issued recently by the BOI said that Rodolfo “underlined the wealth of green metals in the Philippines, such as nickel, copper and cobalt.”

The statement quoted Rodolfo as saying the opportunity to tap these metals is backed by an executive order cutting tariffs on imported electric vehicles (EVs).

BOI data revealed that Philippine exports to Hungary increased by 40.26 percent, from $110.06 million in 2020 to $154.37 million in 2021, owing to the “new exports of machine parts and accessories, as well as the increase in outward shipment of products such as digital monolithic integrated circuits.”

Meanwhile, Philippine imports from Hungary expanded by 16.68 percent, a development attributed to the “sharp increase” of importation in parts of refrigerators and freezers, as well as in the inward shipment of materials for electronic machinery.

Apart from the EVs and green metals, Rodolfo pitched key economic reforms to Hungarian firms such as the the recent decision of the Department of Energy to allow 100-percent foreign ownership of renewable-energy sources.

Game-changing reforms

OTHER “game-changing” reforms that Rodolfo pitched to Hungarian firms include the amendments to the Public Service Act, the Retail Trade Liberalization Act and the Foreign Investments Act as well as the passage of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises law.

He also pitched the country’s foreign direct investments (FDI) into the Philippines in 2021. In 2021, the Philippines hit $10.52 billion of FDI inflows, from $6.82 billion in 2020.

Data from a report released by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad) in June showed that the country’s FDI inflows in 2021 are the highest in six years.

For his part, Adrian Kiss, CEO of the Hungarian Water Technology Corp. (HWTC), urged Hungarian firms “to be brave, come [and] do business in the Philippines.”

The BOI said Kiss issued the invitation after presenting some of HWTC’s completed collaborations with the Philippine government.

A4 Tuesday, December 13, 2022 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

Economy BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Govt, Nestlé look at Mindanao for additional coffee hectarage

By Manuel T. Cayon @awimailbox Mindanao Bureau Chief

D

AVAO CIT Y—Mindanao was identified as the likely production area for coffee to help the industry produce more and possibly go beyond the low sufficiency level of local supply.

The Department of Agriculture (DA) announced recently it was looking at the country’s second-

largest island group to augment the coffee production level, which remained stuck at 15-percent sufficiency level out of the total annual demand.

A document from the DA said the agency has engaged the local business of Nestlé S.A. to further revitalize coffee production.

According to Nestlé Philippines Inc., coffee production has declined by 3.5 percent every year for the past 10 years.

The DA said the Cotabato provinces lumped under the Soccsksargen (South Cotabato, North Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani and General Santos City) region, which supplies 70 percent of total national production, would be packaged as the country’s coffee capital.

Aside from Soccsksargen, the DA said it is also considering further supporting coffee growers in Bukidnon and Sultan Kudarat, areas that reported a three-fold increase in yield. The latter is credited to the “Good Agricultural Practices” program implemented

by Nestlé and the German Agency for International Cooperation

(GIZ), an international enterprise owned by the German Federal Government.

To maintain the momentum, Nestlé proposed to establish a coffee center in Sultan Kudarat and conduct research on balanced fertilization, the document from the DA read.

Full support

IN October, representatives from the DA and Nestlé Philippines Inc. met to discuss “collaborations that intend to uplift the Philippine coffee industry starting with the full support of the latter in the implementation of

the ‘Coffee Industry Roadmap 2021-2025.’”

The DA said it would strengthen its relationship with the private sector to boost production of local coffee and enable the country to go beyond the 15-percent sufficiency level.

The DA said that Nestlé has suggested that “the realization of the programs and initiatives highlighted in the roadmap will play a crucial role in the attainment of an advanced and progressive sector.”

The 5-year plan “provides a clear direction to enhance farmers’ technical capability and skills, towards increased yields and better incomes,”

the DA said.

Under the strategy, government would increase the local supply from farmers to boost production for use in manufacturing and “outof-home” consumption. The DA said it would establish a database containing vital information such as volume of production and current buying price that may be accessed by stakeholders.

The DA said that as plans firm up, it expects an improved production output forecast at 1,000 kilograms per hectare coffee yield, especially with interventions such as training and distribution of planting materials.

TRUST is a needed competitive advantage for you in 2023!

By Henry J. Schumacher

T

HE principle is simple: Compliance is the baseline that trust is built upon.

Organizations cannot afford to run afoul of the law or lose sight of their compliance obligations and expect to be trusted by consumers, shareholders and investors.

It is important for organizations to focus on the ethical use of data in automated systems by design, build greater transparency and accountability as novel technologies are developed and help to create trust between the organization and the individual by implementing appropriate protections.

Trust should be at the center of an organization’s operations and culture IT is the new gold standard for busi-

ness, as data shows trusted companies outperform the S&P 500 by 30 to 50 percent. It is critical that stakeholders from across the business understand how trust is managed and measured.

Building trust into the fabric of an organization is becoming vital to ensure that the functional goals and objectives of the trust focus are being met.

The coming 12 months will see a rise in organizations thinking of trust creation and the emergence of trust programs to effectively centralize required cross-functional collaboration. However, the growing concept of trust as a function isn’t simply found at the intersection of privacy, GRC (governance, risk and compliance), ethics and ESG (environmental, social and governance). Trust is its own specific function with its own specific programs, goals and processes.

Organizations seeking to implement a trust program in 2023 should take initial steps to identify their processes, create a responsibility assignment for all teams and stakeholders and look towards automation as much as possible.

Organizations with more mature trust programs should consider how they approach trust breaches. A breach of trust should be viewed by the trust office as separate to a privacy, security, or ethics breach, even if there are visible overlaps. Certain breaches of trust may not fall under the definition of a breach under any of the trust domains specifically but still have significant effects on consumer and employee trust, organizational reputation and revenue.

Certifications will act as a framework for an effective trust program

GETTING certified is more important than ever. Third-party validation helps with building trusted internal and external relationships and guiding trust programs.

Moving into 2023, privacy, GRC, ethics and ESG, will all be impacted by the need or want of credible certifications. GRC teams will be buoyed by recent updates to the ISO 27001 certification that will give them scope to reexamine their security and risk management controls. While ethics teams can look towards ISO 37001 to increase transparency in their anti-bribery policies. In Europe, the first data protection certification pursuant to Article 42 of the GDPR has been adopted by the European Commission. The long-awaited certification mechanism will give data controllers and processors across Europe an opportunity to achieve the same level of compliance for similar processing operations.

The importance of certifications on the supply chain has been a focus of risk management teams for some time, but their significance has been growing in recent years. In a 2021 study conducted by Cisco, it was found that 90 percent of organizations considered privacy certifications such as ISO 27701 or APEC Cross-Border Privacy Rules to be an important factor when choosing a vendor. What’s more, participants of that same study cited building trust as a benefit of investing in privacy more commonly than in any other area. Looking at the importance of

the APEC cross-border privacy rules for the Philippines and its Business Management Operations, certification must be considered.

With more certifications on the market than ever before, there is a proven demand for certifying compliance with these standards.

The primary motivation of which is to be able to demonstrate visible accountability for organizational issues such as risk management, ethical motivations and environmental matters through thirdparty validation.

However, it is not just accountability on an external level that certifications help to elevate. Certifications help to build an internal culture of trust by demonstrating the values of the company through action. They show employees that you talk the talk and walk the walk.

This can be vital to building operational compliance by ensuring that the connection between overarching compliance programs and an employee’s day-to-day responsibilities is made.

In conclusion: now it is time to start driving ethical change, with the goal to operationalize compliance, enable trust and drive value. Trust and privacy security will have to be embedded into the core of your business so that you can catch the tailwinds to achieve the 2023 success.

I hope that this focus on building trust and getting certified was helpful.

Should you need assistance in implementing the suggestions, let me know; I will get you in touch with experts; contact me at hjschumacher59@gmail.com.

News BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Tuesday, December 13, 2022 A5

House gives final OK to ACEF extension, 2 farm-related bills

By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

T

HE House of Representatives on Monday approved on third and final reading several agriculture-related bills, including the extension of the agricultural competitiveness enhancement fund (ACEF) and the proposed New Agrarian Emancipation Act. The lower chamber passed on third reading House Bill 6524 further extending the period of implementation of the ACEF until 2028.

The bill seeks to further extend the implementation period of the ACEF, which is set to expire in December 2022, to enable the Department of Agriculture to continue to use the funds for development activities of the farming sector.

It mandates the inclusion of duties collected from importation of agricultural products within the minimum access volume (MAV) mechanism to be credited to ACEF under Special Account 183 in the General Fund of the National Treasury.

The bill also directs concerned government agencies to submit pertinent documents to the ACEF Executive Committee and the Congressional Oversight Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization (COCAFM).

It requires the Commission on Audit to conduct a full audit and report on the status of ACEF grants and loans extended from 2016 to 2021.

House Committee on Agriculture and Food Chairman Mark Enverga said the extension was strongly backed and recommended by the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda).

Neda suggested revisiting such proposed provision considering that the ACEF’s remaining balance is at P4.4 billion as of August 2022, Enverga said.

“We recommend that the ACEF executive committee improve the disbursement of the fund and justify the additional allocation requested from import our-quota collections,” said Enverga, quoting the Neda in a position paper.

Unpaid CARP debt

THE House also approved on third

‘Noche Buena’ package at P500?

An insult to workers, says KMU

A

LABOR group slammed the proposed P500 budget “Noche Buena Package” by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), calling it an insult to workers who are now struggling to cope with high inflation.

In a brief statement issued last Monday, Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) secretary general Jerome Adonis said the DTI recommendation is an attempt by the government to condition people to make do with their meager salaries.

“They advised us to be practical. It is like we are not being practical trying to get by with our small salaries for the needs of our family,” Adonis said in Filipino.

Last week, DTI issued a price list of food items, which can be used by Filipinos to prepare their traditional Christmas Eve dinner, which includes ham, pinoy pandesal, cheese, spaghetti, and fruit salad, which have a total cost of P488.

Adonis, however, said the list showed DTI’s disconnect to the plight of workers.

Rather than coming out with such a list, the government should just grant their demand for a wage hike, he said.

“Theyshouldtrylivingasminimum wage earners,” the labor leader said.

Based on the latest data of the National Wages and Productivity Commission , the highest daily minimum wage rate is in Metro Manila for non-agriculture workers is at P570, while the lowest is P320 in Eastern Visayas. Samuel P. Medenilla

and final reading a bill condoning the unpaid debt of farmer-beneficiaries of the government’s agrarian reform program.

Under House Bill 6336 or the New Agrarian Emancipation Act, to be condoned or written off are “unpaid amortizations, interest payments, surcharges, and penalties of existing loans” of agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) secured under CARP or other agrarian reform programs or laws.

The Land Bank of the Philippines shall assume balances of unpaid obligations of ARBs to landowners.

The Department of Agrarian Reform shall issue a certificate of condonation to be annotated on the beneficiary’s emancipation patent (EP) or certificate of land ownership award (CLOA), which is the equivalent of a land title.

The condonation shall erase all mortgage liens on EPs and CLOAs in favor of the national government, as represented by Land Bank.

The bill provides that lands distributed to ARBs under the series of agrarian reform programs “shall not be sold, transferred, or conveyed except through hereditary succession, or to the government or to the Land Bank of the Philippines, or to other qualified beneficiaries through the DAR, for a period of 10 years from the issuance of the certificate of condonation or the CLOA.” Such lands “shall not be subject to conversion or any form of mortgage and encumbrance for a period of 20 years from the issuance of the certificate of condonation or CLOA.” Lands distributed to ARBs shall be exempt from estate tax. The exemption would apply only to transfers from the beneficiaries to their heirs.

The bill provides that the landowner is entitled to just compensation for the land acquired under CARP.

Agri-smuggling

THE House of Representatives also approved on final reading a bill seeking to amend Republic Act (RA) No. 10845 or the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act of 2016 to include large-scale agricultural smuggling of tobacco and other tobacco products as a crime of economic sabotage.

The House approved House Bill 3917 which amends Section 3 of the law which enumerates how the crime of large-scale agricultural smuggling is committed.

Under the amendment, the c r ime of econom ic sabot age through large-scale agricultural smuggling of tobacco, whether manufactured or unmanufactured, including finished products such as cigars, cigarettes or heated tobacco products, with a minimum excise tax and vat payable in the amount of P1 million, as valued by the Bureau of Customs (BOC), is committed by importing into the Philippines without the required import permit from the regulatory agencies; using import permits of persons, natural or juridical, other than those specifically named in the permit; or using fake, fictitious or fraudulent import permits or shipping documents, among others.

The current law only penalizes large-scale smuggling of sugar, corn, pork, poultry, garlic, onion, carrots, fish, and cruciferous vegetables, in its raw state, or which have undergone the simple processes of preparation or preservation for the market, with a minimum amount of P1 million or rice, with a minimum amount P10 million.

The proposed measure also penalizes the broker, agent, facilitator, forwarder, or warehouse lessor of the violating importer; and allows the use of a private port, fish port, fish landing site, resort, and/or airport to perpetuate the economic sabotage regardless of quantity.

The bill also amends Section 4 of the law by imposing the penalty of imprisonment of 30 to 40 years, and a fine of twice the fair value and the aggregate amount of the taxes, duties and other charges avoided by the smuggling of tobacco, whether manufactured or unmanufactured, including finished products such as cigars, cigarettes or heated tobacco products.

These penalties may be imposed on the registered owner and its lessee or charterer of a chartered boat, truck, warehouse or president or chief executive officer of the private port, fish port, fish

landing sites, resorts, who knowingly transport the tobacco product subject to economic sabotage.

The offense is non-bailable.

Internet transactions

ALSO approved on third and final reading is a bill regulating internet transactions and protecting consumers as well as merchants.

House Bill 4, authored principally

by Speaker Martin Romualdez, is titled, “An Act providing protection to consumers and merchants engaged in internet transactions, creating for the purpose the Electronic Commerce Bureau, and appropriating funds therefor.”

The bureau will be under the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

The proposed law is one of the priority legislative measures of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The President has called for the enactment of a law establishing “effective regulation of commercial activities through the internet or electronic means to ensure that consumer rights and data privacy are protected, innovation is encouraged, fair advertising practices and competition are promoted, online transactions are secure, intellectual property rights are respected, and where product standards and safety are observed.”

The proposed law will apply to all internet transactions and to all domestic merchants and foreign entities doing online business in the Philippines.

It defines “internet transaction” as the “sale or purchase of goods or services, whether between businesses, households, individuals, governments, and other public or private organizations, conducted over the internet.”

Open access

THE lower house passed on third and final reading House Bill 6 that provides for open access and transparency in the growing data transmission industry.

The bill proposes to establish a strong and independent regulatory system and body to create an environment within the data trans-

‘SPPC, govt have supply deal on Malampaya’

S

AN Miguel Global Power on Monday disputed an apparent move by the Malampaya consortium to distance itself from the issue of banked gas from the Malampaya fields, particularly the issue of the supply of 70 petajoules (PJ) in banked gas from Malampaya that South Premier Power Corp. acquired from Philippine National Oil Co. (PNOC) in June 2022.

“While the Consortium sought to communicate, among other things, that there is no ‘live contract’ for Malampaya gas between SPPC and the Consortium,” said San Miguel in a statement, “the facts of the issue stand:” 1. SPPC bought the Malampaya banked gas owned by the government through PNOC for US$1.2 billion SPPC signed a Gas Supply and Purchase Agreement (GSPA) worth P1.2 billion with PNOC for such banked gas last June 23, 2022, under the direct supervision of the Department of Energy (DOE), the PNOC Board, and the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel (OGCC). Government, through PNOC, owns and exercises rights over 70.26PJ banked gas.

While SPPC does not have a direct agreement with the Consortium, it is PNOC on behalf of government that has an existing contract with SPPC. In fact, in discussions for the sale of the banked gas, PNOC disclosed to SPPC that the government has fully paid the Consortium for the gas, which means that 100 percent of the gas should be deliverable to SPPC. 2. The SPPC-PNOC agreement is more advantageous to government With gas volumes from Malampaya on the decline, the prioritization of the SPPC and PNOC contract over the banked gas is widely considered to be more advantageous to government, as it was bought by SPPC at a significantly higher contract price compared to those of existing gas supply agreements from Malampaya with another power company.

3. Delivering the purchased gas supply to Ilijan will benefit consumers and reintegrate 1200 MW of baseload capacity to the grid Reintegrating Ilijan into the Grid using Malampaya gas supply will immediately add 1,200 MW of baseload capacity, helping stabilize power supply and prices. Historically, Ilijan contributes up to 10 percent of the net reliable capacity in Luzon. However, since Ilijan was cut off from Malampaya supply last June 2022, the system demand and supply situation has been very fragile with elevated and volatile electricity spot prices. From June to No-

mission industry that is conducive to open, fair, and innovation-propelled competition, and shall encourage investments in the development of digital infrastructure of the country.

According to the bill, the digital divide in the country has to be narrowed “by encouraging the development of data transmission infrastructure and removing any barrier to competition in data transmission services.”

The state is mandated “to require data transmission service providers to adhere to telecommunications standards suitable to the needs and aspirations of the nation and ensure that internet users enjoy the best quality of data transmission service.”

It includes the “provision of Voice over Internet Protocol [VoIP] services but does not include the provision of basic telephone service.”

The bill covers any person or entity whose business substan-

vember 2022, electricity spot market prices averaged P8.67/ kwh compared to only P4.31/kwh for the same period over the past three years. Compounding the problem is the exponential growth of demand over the past two years, which is seen to create a massive supply deficit by summer 2023. With no new major baseload capacities expected in the coming months, it is crucial for government to reintegrate Ilijan’s 1,200 MW capacity into the Grid in the interest of energy security.

4. Adding Ilijan’s 1,200 MW to the Grid will stabilize overall prices With Ilijan operating at full load, the addition of 1,200 MW of baseload capacity to the grid will reduce the overall power supply costs of industrial customers and distribution utilities including Meralco, that source a large portion of their supply from the electricity spot market (or WESM).

Stabilizing WESM prices will also mean that there will no longer be a pressing need to operate aging diesel plants that act as power reserves, but run at generation costs more than double the cost of coal power, yet deliver poor power quality.

Should the Malampaya supply be delivered to Ilijan, other affected power facilities can alternatively use condensate fuel, as allowed under their PSAs with Meralco. This will avoid disruptions to the energy trading market. Any increase in power supply costs will only affect the pertinent contract capacities using condensate fuel.

tially involves the transmission of data, including internet service providers, VoIP service suppliers and data centers.

It would apply to telecommunications companies “with respect to the data transmission services they provide and the interconnection to their networks that they extend to data transmission industry participants.”

The bill provides that all segments of the data transmission sector “shall be competitive and open.”

It provides for administrative penalties ranging from P100,000 to P5 million for every day the violation continues for an industry participant who fails to follow minimum service standards set by the NTC. If the participant commits a prohibited act, the imposable fine is P300,000 to P5 million for every day of violation.

Meanwhile, these bills will now be transmitted to the Senate for its own action.

BusinessMirror

Tuesday, December 13, 2022

A6

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

No.

3D ANALYZER INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES INC. 7-8/f Double Dragon Plaza, 255 Edsa Cor. Macapagal Blvd., Barangay 76, Pasay City AYU LESTARI Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking 1.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services; Maintains customer records by updating account information in Mandarin Format BUI THI HUONG QUYNH Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

2.

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

JANNUARI CHRISTIANDA Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

3.

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

KIM, TAEWA Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

4.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services; Maintains customer records by updating account information in Mandarin Format LEE, HYESEONG Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

5.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services; Maintains customer records by updating account information in Mandarin Format MIKHA ELIYA SAHALA Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

6.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services; Maintains customer records by updating account information in Mandarin Format RYU, JIHEON Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

7.

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

SONG, BYEONGGYU Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

8.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services; Maintains customer records by updating account information in Mandarin Format SUDRAJAT Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

9.

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

SUN, WENHONG Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

10.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services; Maintains customer records by updating account information in Mandarin Format THONG MY LINH Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

11.

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

VU THI KIEU LOAN Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

12.

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

YU, TAEJAE Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

13.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services; Maintains customer records by updating account information in Mandarin Format BAGAS PERMANA Customer Service Representative Mandarin Speaking

14.

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

CHUONG MY KY Customer Service Representative Mandarin Speaking

15.

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

Basic Qualification: Fluent in Spoken & Written Mandarin and Other Dialect Spoken in Other Parts of China

16.

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of china.

17.

18.

19.

20.

21.

22.

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

23.

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

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

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

PHAM THI MY HANH Buyer Senior Analyst - Vietnamese

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 24.

Brief Job Description: Performs Transactional Buying Activities which includes but not limited to managing the purchase order process to completion, maintaining price information in the system, follow through on PO deliveries and vendor coordination

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

MOONPANAN, NONGYAO Buyer Senior Analyst (thai)

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 25.

Brief Job Description: Performs Transactional Buying Activities which includes but not limited to managing the purchase order process to completion, maintaining price information in the system, follow through on PO deliveries and vendor coordination

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

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of china.

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

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of China.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of China.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of China.

29.

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of China.

30.

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

Basic Qualification: Bachelor’s degree in Business, Engineering, Finance or any related course, Minimum 2 years’ experience within sourcing area or purchasing transactional activities, Excellent English communication skills and knowledge of the Vietnamese language (Reading, Writing, Listening, Speaking skills) are necessary for this role

Basic Qualification: Bachelor’s degree in Business, Engineering, Finance or any related course, Minimum 2 years’ experience within sourcing area or purchasing transactional activities, Excellent English communication skills and knowledge of the Thai language (Reading, Writing, Listening, Speaking skills) are necessary for this role

26.

27.

28.

GUO, YUFEN Mandarin Operations Specialist Brief Job Description: Managing day to day operations.

31.

LI, ZHI Mandarin Operations Specialist Brief Job Description: Managing day to day operations.

32.

33.

34.

35.

36.

37.

LIU, YANZONG Mandarin Operations Specialist Brief Job Description: Managing day to day operations.

38.

39.

40.

Brief Job Description: Preparation of technical specification.

CHU, SSU-HAN a.k.a. CHU, FU-PANG Mandarin Human Resource (hr) Specialist Brief Job Description: Recruiting staff who can speak Mandarin

AYE MYAT THU Burmese Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

MARLAR AYE Burmese Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

LI, XIAOFANG Chinese Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

WANG, CHUANG Chinese Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

XU, ZHENBIAO Chinese Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

XU, ZHIZHAO Chinese Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

ZHAO, HUI Chinese Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

ROBIN Indonesian Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

CHU VAN THUAN Vietnamese Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

HUYNH MY HAN Mandarin Speaking Customer Service 41.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customer by answering products and services questions.

LIU HY THANG Mandarin Speaking Customer Service

42.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customer by answering products and services questions.

LUU KIM DOANH Mandarin Speaking Customer Service

43.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customer by answering products and services questions.

PHAM THI HUYEN DIU Mandarin Speaking Customer Service

44.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customer by answering products and services questions.

PHUNG MINH TOAN Mandarin Speaking Customer Service

45.

Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written.

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

ESCOBAR PALMA, GABRIEL ANTONIO Technical Consultant

Basic Qualification: Experience in design of concrete dams earth rock fill dams arch dams and any other type of dams.

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

Basic Qualification: Fluent in Mandarin, both oral and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read, and write Chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read, and write Chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read, and write Chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read, and write Chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read, and write Chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read, and write Chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read, and write Chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read, and write Chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read, and write Chinese language.

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

BAOLONG TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRY GROUP LIMITED INC. 24th-27th/f Century Diamond Tower, Kalayaan Ave. Cor. Salamanca St., Poblacion, City Of Makati

Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written.

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

Salary Range: Php 90,000 - Php 149,999

ANOC99 CORPORATION 5/f To 10/f Ayala Malls Manila Bay Building D., Macapagal Blvd. Cor. Aseana Street, Tambo, City Of Parañaque

Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written.

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

Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written.

ALPHA CENTURY CONSULTANCY INC. 15/f Tower 2 Rcbc Plaza, 6819 Ayala Ave., Bel-air, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of China.

Brief Job Description: Oversees reports regarding cash flow and ensures correct payment.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

AFRY CONTRACTING PHILIPPINES, INC. 8/f King’s Court Bldg., 2129 Don Chino Roces Ave., Pio Del Pilar, City Of Makati

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

AB LEISURE EXPONENT, INC. 5/f Sm Megamall Bldg. D, J Vargas, Wack-wack Greenhills, City Of Mandaluyong

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of china.

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

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of China.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION FIRMAN Mandarin Payment Supervisor

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

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

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in Spoken & Written Mandarin and Other Dialect Spoken in Other Parts of China

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of China.

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

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of china.

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of china.

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

No.

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

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of china.

Basic Qualification: Fluent in Spoken & Written Mandarin and Other Dialect Spoken in Other Parts of China

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

ZHANG, JIEQING Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in Spoken & Written Mandarin and Other Dialect Spoken in Other Parts of China

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

ZENG, XIAOPING Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of china.

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

YANG, JIE-CHENG Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in Spoken & Written Mandarin and Other Dialect Spoken in Other Parts of China

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

TRAN THI THUY Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in Spoken & Written Mandarin and Other Dialect Spoken in Other Parts of China

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of China.

NONG THI PHUONG Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in Spoken & Written Mandarin and Other Dialect Spoken in Other Parts of China

CHEN, XINXIANG Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

LUC THUY QUYEN Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of china.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

JIN, YANGHUN Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

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

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

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

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customer by answering products and services questions.

YANG, GUIMIN Mandarin Speaking Customer Service

46.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customer by answering products and services questions.

Basic Qualification: Can speak Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Can speak Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Can speak Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Can speak Mandarin Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: Can speak Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Can speak Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION CAI, SHIYAN Mandarin Speaking Customer Service Representative

47.

Brief Job Description: Recommends potential products or services to management by collecting customer information WU, GUANGYU Mandarin Speaking Customer Service Representative

48.

Brief Job Description: Recommends potential products or services to management by collecting customer information

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

No.

ZAN BICH DI Customer Support Specialist

Basic Qualification: Can speak Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

62.

Basic Qualification: Can speak Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

49.

Brief Job Description: Shall answer incoming phone calls from Chinese clients and troubleshoot customer technical problems with computer software and hardware.

VIDEN, CHARLES MORGAN ANDRE It Support Specialist

50.

Brief Job Description: Shall answer incoming phone calls from Chinese clients and troubleshoot customer technical problems with computer software and hardware.

Basic Qualification: Must be fluent in Chinese language (writing and speaking)

LI, JIA Mandarin Customer Support Representative

51.

Brief Job Description: Track and lead delivery and production deliverables and serve as a single POC; responding to business queries based on business

63.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Basic Qualification: Must be fluent in Chinese language (writing and speaking)

ZHOU, CHAO Mandarin Customer Support Representative 64.

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

Basic Qualification: Bachelor of Engineering, hand on experience in VBA, Oracle VB scripts, and SQL server and good knowledge on windows server 2008 * 2012 to support end to end production activities as a technical and business SME

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services.

KUNESHNI, FARHIZ FAROOKH Senior Service Delivery Manager 65.

Brief Job Description: Bachelor’s degree or the equivalent combination of education, training or work experience; requires strong management, organizational, team building coaching and mentoring skill; considerable knowledge of all operations lifestyle phases

CONCENTRIX DAKSH SERVICES PHILIPPINES CORPORATION 2-3f 5-6f 8-11f Spark Place Bldg. P. Tuazon Ave. Cor., 10th Ave. Cubao, Socorro, Quezon City

52.

Brief Job Description: The Associate Director, Service Delivery provides a focal point within the project delivery structure for clientspecific issues by ensuring client satisfaction through the delivery of the solution based on contractual requirements

Basic Qualification: Must be a seasoned Operations Director Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

53.

Brief Job Description: Being the voice of our players within our fast-growing online/offshore gaming platform, stay on track with the game updates, implementing procedures to support players, work creatively across multiple projects and platforms at the same time.

PHAN THANH DAN Customer Support Specialist

DENG, HAILANG Mandarin Speaking Customer Service 66.

67.

54.

Brief Job Description: Being the voice of our players within our fast-growing online/offshore gaming platform, stay on track with the game updates, implementing procedures to support players, work creatively across multiple projects and platforms at the same time.

PHUNG NGOC LINH Customer Support Specialist

55.

Brief Job Description: Being the voice of our players within our fast-growing online/offshore gaming platform, stay on track with the game updates, implementing procedures to support players, work creatively across multiple projects and platforms at the same time.

TANG SAU KHOANH Customer Support Specialist

56.

Brief Job Description: Being the voice of our players within our fast-growing online/offshore gaming platform, stay on track with the game updates, implementing procedures to support players, work creatively across multiple projects and platforms at the same time.

TRAN QUOC THANH Customer Support Specialist

57.

Brief Job Description: Being the voice of our players within our fast-growing online/offshore gaming platform, stay on track with the game updates, implementing procedures to support players, work creatively across multiple projects and platforms at the same time.

TRAN THI CHAM Customer Support Specialist

58.

Brief Job Description: Being the voice of our players within our fast-growing online/offshore gaming platform, stay on track with the game updates, implementing procedures to support players, work creatively across multiple projects and platforms at the same time.

TRAN THI LAM Customer Support Specialist

59.

Brief Job Description: Being the voice of our players within our fast-growing online/offshore gaming platform, stay on track with the game updates, implementing procedures to support players, work creatively across multiple projects and platforms at the same time.

TRAN VAN NGO Customer Support Specialist

60.

Brief Job Description: Being the voice of our players within our fast-growing online/offshore gaming platform, stay on track with the game updates, implementing procedures to support players, work creatively across multiple projects and platforms at the same time.

VONG SIN QUAY Customer Support Specialist

61.

Brief Job Description: Being the voice of our players within our fast-growing online/offshore gaming platform, stay on track with the game updates, implementing procedures to support players, work creatively across multiple projects and platforms at the same time.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customer by answering products and services questions.

68.

69.

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication skills in chinese, both spoken and written.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customer by answering products and services questions.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions, suggesting information about other products and services

ZHAO, FENGYUAN Mandarin Speaking Customer Service

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication skills in chinese, both spoken and written.

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

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customer by answering products and services questions.

ZHANG, KUN Mandarin Speaking Customer Service Representative

71.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customer by answering products and services questions.

ZHOU, JIE Mandarin Speaking Customer Service Representative

72.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customer by answering products and services questions.

YAN, HONG-YU Customer Service Chinese Speaking 73.

Brief Job Description: Employee shall perform the duties and responsibilities such as reports on the daily operations of call center activities BUDIMAN Customer Service Indonesian Speaking

74.

75.

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication skills in chinese, both spoken and written.

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication skills in chinese, both spoken and written.

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

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication skills in Chinese, both spoken and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Employee shall perform the duties such as reports on a daily operations of call center.

VIVIAN GEOVANI Customer Service Indonesian Speaking

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

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

Brief Job Description: Being the voice of our players within our fast-growing online/offshore gaming platform, stay on track with the game updates, implementing procedures to support players, work creatively across multiple projects and platforms at the same time

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in English and their respective native language for the position applied for, Fluent in Chinese Mandarin is an advantage.

Brief Job Description: Employee shall perform the duties such as reports on a daily operations of call center.

ANDERSON YEH JIAN TING Marketing Executive Chinese Speaking

76.

Brief Job Description: Manages the execution of different marketing strategies for a company.

WONG YET SOON Gaming Support Specialist 80.

Brief Job Description: Being the voice of our players within our fast-growing online/offshore gaming platform, stay on track with the game updates, implementing procedures to support players, work creatively across multiple projects and platforms at the same time

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

77.

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

VO VAN MANH Vietnamese Customer Support Specialist 78.

Brief Job Description: Experts at their product, and their primary duty is to resolve customer issues quickly and efficiently.

Basic Qualification: A Passion for Delivering Excellent Customer Service, Excellent Communication Skills in Chinese, Both Spoken and Written, Previous Experience in a Similar Role in the Offshore/ online Gaming Industry or Less Experience but a Good Attitude and Motivation to Learn

Basic Qualification: A Passion for Delivering Excellent Customer Service, Excellent Communication Skills in Chinese, Both Spoken and Written, Previous Experience in a Similar Role in the Offshore/ online Gaming Industry or Less Experience but a Good Attitude and Motivation to Learn Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

J-NA ALLOUT TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS CORP. 3/f Lipams Bldg., #48 President Avenue, B. F. Homes, City Of Parañaque Basic Qualification: Provides leadership for service delivery team including planning coaching recruitment selection performance development mentoring; monitors staff performance works with employees to implement goals and documents progress

BANG, YOUNGSU Korean Customer Service Representative 81.

Basic Qualification: Can speak mandarin

82.

Brief Job Description: Track main industry trends in Korean through blogs, micro blog sand forums.

KIM, DAE BONG Korean Customer Service Representative

83.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Can speak mandarin

Brief Job Description: Track main industry trends in Korean through blogs, micro blog sand forums.

JUN, JAESOOL Korean Customer Service Representative

Brief Job Description: Track main industry trends in Korean through blogs, micro blog sand forums.

KIM, DUKHO Korean Customer Service Representative

84.

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

Brief Job Description: Track main industry trends in Korean through blogs, micro blog sand forums.

Basic Qualification: Can speak mandarin

LEE, HANA Korean Customer Service Representative

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

Basic Qualification: Can speak mandarin

85.

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

SHEN, HO-KAI Chinese Technical Support Representative

Basic Qualification: Can speak mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

87.

Basic Qualification: Can speak mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: 21 years old and above with customer service experience

88.

89.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: 21 years old and above with marketing executive experience.

90.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: 21 years old and above with marketing executive experience.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services.

HUANG, ZONGRI Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service

NIM CAM MUI Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in VIETNAMESE and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

TA THI HUYEN Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service

VO VIET PHUONG Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service

HAFEEZ, HAJRA My Work & Life Team Lead, Sea And Central Team Amea

91.

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

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in VIETNAMESE and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Basic Qualification: College graduate, speaks and write fluently (Korean & English).

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, speaks and write fluently (Korean & English).

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, speaks and write fluently (Korean & English).

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, speaks and write fluently (Korean & English).

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

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in English and their respective native language for the position applied for, Fluent in Chinese Mandarin is an advantage.

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

Basic Qualification: College graduate/level and fluent in Mandarin/ basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate/level and fluent in Mandarin/ basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate/level and fluent in Mandarin/ basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate/level and fluent in Mandarin/ basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

MONDELEZ BUSINESS SERVICES AP PTE. LTD. PHILIPPINE BRANCH 6th Flr. Cyberpod Centris Three North Tower, Eton Centris Edsa Cor. Quezon Ave., Pinyahan 4, Quezon City

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: 21 years old and above with marketing executive experience.

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

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. 4th-11th Flr. Nexgen Tower, C4 Rd. Edsa Ext., Barangay 76, Pasay City

Basic Qualification: Can speak mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Track main industry trends in Korean through blogs, micro blog sand forums.

Basic Qualification: College graduate, speaks and write fluently (Korean & English).

JIU ZHOU TECHNOLOGIES INTERNATIONAL, INC. 25/f Robinsons Summit, Jg Summit Center, Ayala Ave., Bel-air, City Of Makati

INVECH TREASURE PROCESSING CORPORATION 3rd Floor, E Six West Campus Le Grand Avenue, Mckinley West,, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig PHUNG THI BINH Vietnamese Customer Support Specialist

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

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

GAMMA INTERACTIVE INC. 21/f Alphaland Makati Place, 7232 Ayala Ave. Cor. Malugay St., Bel-air, City Of Makati

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

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication skills in Chinese, both spoken and written

79.

86.

70.

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication skills in chinese, both spoken and written.

CHAEH WEN HUI Gaming Support Specialist

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in MANDARIN and at least college level with related BPO experience.

ZHANG, YONGDA Mandarin Speaking Customer Service

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

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

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customer by answering products and services questions.

WU, HUIPING Mandarin Speaking Customer Service

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

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication skills in chinese, both spoken and written.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

ITECHNO SPECIALIST INC. 9/f 100 West Building, Sen. Gil Puyat Ave., Pio Del Pilar, City Of Makati

FUWEALTH SERVICES INC. 18/f Techzone Bldg., 213 Sen. Gil Puyat Ave., San Antonio, City Of Makati

LIU, DINGDONG Mandarin Speaking Customer Service

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication skills in chinese, both spoken and written.

No.

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

Salary Range: Php 90,000 - Php 149,999

DATACLICK INTERNATIONAL CORP. E. Rodriguez St., Roxas Blvd. St., Barangay 3, Pasay City GIEP MINH HAI Customer Support Specialist

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication skills in chinese, both spoken and written.

FIDELITY INTERNATIONAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT, INC. 42/f Philamlife Tower, Paseo De Roxas, Bel-air, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 90,000 - Php 149,999

DAING, ANAND Associate Director, Service Delivery

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

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

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

COGNIZANT TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS PHILIPPINES, INC. 2nd, 3rd, And 4th Floors, Science Hub Tower 4 Bldg., Mckinley Hill Cyberpark, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

KURRU, ANIL KUMAR Technical Lead

Brief Job Description: Being the voice of our players within our fast-growing online/offshore gaming platform, stay on track with the game updates, implementing procedures to support players, work creatively across multiple projects and platforms at the same time.

A7

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

DIGITAL DECODER TECH. INC. Ub 111 Paseo De Roxas Bldg., Paseo De Roxas, San Lorenzo, City Of Makati

CAPSLOCK INC. 7th & 8th Flr. Y Tower Bldg., Coral Way Drive Cor. Macapagal Ave., Barangay 76, Pasay City RUSTAM It Support Specialist

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

Tuesday, December 13, 2022

Brief Job Description: Lead, coach, motivate, train and inspire direct reports to deliver team and project goals and develop talented individuals who can move on to other HR roles or other roles in the business. Provides day to day guidance and direction to the Workforce Admin teams leads to ensure excellent handling of queries and requests.

Oversees execution of all WFA T2 Service desk activities and plans daily service delivery. Manages individual and TL service performance

Basic Qualification: Experience in multiple areas of HR, expertise in HR administrative E-processes (ex: leave of absence, separations) management (3-4 years) . Experience in working in a shared service organization preferred.

Experience with data management, working in an HR system (SAP preferred) Salary Range: Php 90,000 - Php 149,999

NEW CHANGE TECHNICAL CONSULTANTS INC. 7/f Glorietta 4, Ayala Center, San Lorenzo, City Of Makati GRAY, CHRISTOPHER ANTHONY Electrical Superintendent 92.

Brief Job Description: General inspection of the workers and their performance, work plan, and safety performs condition assessment and behavior observation of areas and employees

Basic Qualification: Fluent in Mandarin and English language both written and verbal. Must familiar in expert planning and administrative writing and reporting skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

OCEANIC SYMPHONY SERVICES INC. 3/f Salcedo One Center, 170 Salcedo St., San Lorenzo, City Of Makati

BusinessMirror

Tuesday, December 13, 2022

A6 A8

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

93.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

CINDY HII SIN YEE Mandarin Operations Specialist

Basic Qualification: Can Speak Mandarin

Brief Job Description: Maintain accurate sales records

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

WANG, QUAN Mandarin Technical Support 94.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

Brief Job Description: Monitoring and maintaining computer systems and network

Basic Qualification: Can Speak Mandarin

96.

LE VAN LONG Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Provide specialized services to assist end-users in technology needs.

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

Brief Job Description: Provide specialized services to assist end-users in technology needs.

LIAO, HONGJI Mandarin Technical Support

97.

Brief Job Description: Provide specialized services to assist end-users in technology needs.

SHANG, JIN Mandarin Technical Support

98.

Brief Job Description: Provide specialized services to assist end-users in technology needs.

TAO, JUNYONG Mandarin Technical Support

99.

Brief Job Description: Provide specialized services to assist end-users in technology needs.

XIAN, ZHOUDONG Mandarin Technical Support

100.

Brief Job Description: Provide specialized services to assist end-users in technology needs.

Basic Qualification: Ability to multi tasks and manage time effectively.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Ability to multi tasks and manage time effectively.

118.

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

101.

102.

Brief Job Description: Creates and revises systems and procedures TONG CHUN KHEN Mandarin Administrative Specialist Brief Job Description: Creates and revises systems and procedures LIN, ZONG-YAN Mandarin Customer Service

103.

Brief Job Description: Maintain customer records by updating account information SUPINA Mandarin Customer Service

104.

105.

106.

107.

108.

109.

110.

111.

112.

113.

114.

115.

Brief Job Description: Maintain customer records by updating account information BUI THI LAN Mandarin Operations Specialist Brief Job Description: Maintain accurate sales records DAO PHUONG THANH Mandarin Operations Specialist Brief Job Description: Maintain accurate sales records FAN CHIANG, CHUN-HENG Mandarin Operations Specialist Brief Job Description: Maintain accurate sales records LE HOANG SU Mandarin Operations Specialist Brief Job Description: Maintain accurate sales records LENG, XUEQING Mandarin Operations Specialist Brief Job Description: Maintain accurate sales records LIAO, YU-KUANG Mandarin Operations Specialist Brief Job Description: Maintain accurate sales records MA, MING Mandarin Operations Specialist Brief Job Description: Maintain accurate sales records NGUYEN THI VINH Mandarin Operations Specialist Brief Job Description: Maintain accurate sales records NOVITA Mandarin Operations Specialist Brief Job Description: Maintain accurate sales records

TAN SHEN HAO Mandarin Operations Specialist Brief Job Description: Maintain accurate sales records

WANG, CHEN-WEI Mandarin Operations Specialist Brief Job Description: Maintain accurate sales records

Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written

119.

Brief Job Description: Analyzed and maintains customer satisfaction reports.

Brief Job Description: Serves as primary contact for problem resolution and information gathering customer complaints and work assignments.

FUJITA, TAKUYA Construction Manager 120.

Brief Job Description: Confer with management, production and marketing staff to discuss project specs and procedures.

DANG NGOC DOAN Vietnamese Customer Service Representative 121.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services.

DINH HUY HOANG Vietnamese Customer Service Representative 122.

Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written

DINH QUOC VIET Vietnamese Customer Service Representative 123.

Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services.

DINH THU HIEN Vietnamese Customer Service Representative 124.

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

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services.

Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written

DO VAN HUYNH Vietnamese Customer Service Representative 125.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services.

DOAN THANH TAM Vietnamese Customer Service Representative 126.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

DUONG CAO QUY Vietnamese Customer Service Representative 127.

Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

DUONG HONG NHUNG Vietnamese Customer Service Representative 128.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services.

Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Fluent in Mandarin both written and spoken wit at least 5 years experience in construction industry specializing in site technical support or equivalent

130.

HA HUU HUNG Vietnamese Customer Service Representative 129.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services.

FUNABA, TAKAFUMI Executive Director 131.

Brief Job Description: Facilitate the business set forth in the Philippines, provide advice and offer solutions on business and financial strategies: customers; facilitate cross-border inbound investment into the Philippines from abroad and outbound investment

Basic Qualification: A native speaker of the thai language (spoken and written).

132.

133.

Brief Job Description: Respond to questions of the general manager on management of the company; take charge of matters directed by the gm and supervise on business operations of his departments; assist in maintaining discipline in the company as well as in dealing with outside parties

134.

VICCI BUSINESS CONSULTANCY CORP. 44/f Pbcom Tower, 6795 V.a. Rufino St

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in English and their respective native language for the position applied for, Fluent in Chinese Mandarin is an advantage.

KIM, JAEIN Senior Associate - Quality (korean)

136.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in English and their respective native language for the position applied for, Fluent in Chinese Mandarin is an advantage.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in English and their respective native language for the position applied for, Fluent in Chinese Mandarin is an advantage.

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

Brief Job Description: Review standard quality working procedures to identify and address process GAPS and raise red flags for possible risk issues

RAYMOND LIM KHOON TEK Customer Relation Representative (mandarin Translation) Brief Job Description: Handles service support calls emails and chats related to clients inquiry

Basic Qualification: 3 or More Years of Relevant Previous Customer Service Experience Salary Range: Php 90,000 - Php 149,999

Basic Qualification: Fluent in English, mandarin and any multi lingual language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

WELL TREASURE PHILIPPINES INC. Unit No.602-p, Flr., No.6/f Five E-com Center Bldg. Blk. No.18 Pacific Drive Ext. Mall Of Asia Complex Subd. Zone 10, Barangay 76, Pasay City

YAMASHITA, YUDAI Hr Officer Japanese Speaking 137.

Brief Job Description: Outstanding in resolving conflict, has patience, and adaptability to assist Japanese clients. With exceptional positive attitude and Customer service skills towards Japanese Clients.

Basic Qualification: Experience in Management, , strong personal and judgment, with good oral communication skills specifically Japanese and English speaking.

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

ZAPPORT SERVICES, INC. 22/f & 36/f Burgundy Corporate Tower, 252 Sen. Gil J. Puyat Ave., Pio Del Pilar, City Of Makati OKKY FUSHIGI EMILI HARTONO GAIN Indonesian Speaking Customer Service Officer

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in English and their respective native language for the position applied for, Fluent in Chinese Mandarin is an advantage.

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

VCUSTOMER PHILIPPINES, INC. 3/f E-commerce Plaza Garden Road, Eastwood Cyberpark City, Bagumbayan 3, Quezon City

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

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in English and their respective native language for the position applied for, Fluent in Chinese Mandarin is an advantage.

Basic Qualification: Has at least 10 years of banking experience; knowledgeable on corp banking and has in-depth understanding banking products and processes, proficient in Japanese language (Business Level)

Brief Job Description: Generate profit for the bank by developing business opportunities with new and existing customers and fostering good and long-term relationships with customers, ensure the credit worthiness of the customers by performing comprehensive credit evaluation

135.

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

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

MIYAMURA, SHINTARO Vice President

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in English and their respective native language for the position applied for, Fluent in Chinese Mandarin is an advantage.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in English and their respective native language for the position applied for, Fluent in Chinese Mandarin is an advantage.

Basic Qualification: Has more than 20 yrs. Of banking experience; has extensive experience in bank’s business operations, including compliance, laws and regulatory requirements, it, HR operations and business promotion

OTANI, TAKANORI Managing Director

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in English and their respective native language for the position applied for, Fluent in Chinese Mandarin is an advantage.

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

Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing the banks overall planning and budgeting, monitoring that all targets set by group/head are achieved

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

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

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in English and their respective native language for the position applied for, Fluent in Chinese Mandarin is an advantage.

Basic Qualification: More than 20 yrs. Of banking experience; experience in product creation and setting up new businesses in the financial industry; facilitate crossborder inbound investment into the Philippines from abroad and outbound investment

Basic Qualification: More than 15 yrs. of banking experience has extensive extensive experience in handling strategic planning, budget control and risk management; knowledgeable in business operations; proficient in Japanese language (business level)

INOSE, YUSUKE Executive Director

Basic Qualification: Able to read & write, fluent in english, proven experience as construction manager.

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

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

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

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

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

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in English and their respective native language for the position applied for, Fluent in Chinese Mandarin is an advantage.

SUMITOMO MITSUI BANKING CORPORATION - MANILA BRANCH 21/f Tower One & Exchange Plaza, Ayala Ave., Cor. Paseo De Roxas, Bel-air, City Of Makati

Basic Qualification: A native speaker of the indonesian language (spoken and written).

SOMI UNLIMITED SOLUTIONS, INC. 10/f Tower 2 Double Dragon Plaza Bldg., Edsa Corner Macapagal Ave. St. Zone 10, District 1, Barangay 76, Pasay City

Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written

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

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

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

HO NGOC VANG Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

SHIMIZU PHILIPPINE CONTRACTORS, INC. King’s Court Bldg. 1, 5/f 2129 P. Tamo St., San Lorenzo, City Of Makati

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

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

Brief Job Description: Serve as Chinese site technical support.

CHAUYKONG, NAPATSAWAN Thai - Language Customer Support Staff

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Ability to multi tasks and manage time effectively.

WANG, CHANGWEI Site Technical Support

WINSTON GUNAWAN Senior Indonesian - Language Customer Service Support Staff

Basic Qualification: Ability to multi tasks and manage time effectively.

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

Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin, both oral and written

RUNNINGMAN CORPORATION 8/f Techzone Bldg., 213 Sen. Gil Puyat Ave., San Antonio, City Of Makati

Basic Qualification: Ability to multi tasks and manage time effectively.

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

No.

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

PHILIPPINE FULL DEGREE COMMUNICATIONS CORP. 18/f Yuchengco Tower 1, Rcbc Plaza, 6819 Ayala Ave., Bel-air, City Of Makati SOO WAI YEE Mandarin Administrative Specialist

Brief Job Description: Maintain and drive program knowledge for self and team

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

QINGJIAN GROUP CO. LTD. 1046 U500 Puso Ng Maynila Bldg., A. Mabini St., 072, Barangay 666, Ermita, City Of Manila

117.

Basic Qualification: Ability to multi tasks and manage time effectively.

LI, MING Mandarin Technical Support

CHANG, TING-YANG Mandarin Team Leader 116.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

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

OCTAGON PRIME OUTSOURCING SERVICES INC. 30/f Tower, 6789 Ayala Ave.,, Bel-air, City Of Makati

95.

No.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

138.

Brief Job Description: Indonesian written reports on a daily operation of call center activities performing customer-oriented telephone activities and various background operation duties.

Basic Qualification: Indonesian speaking and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

ZIV TRADE CORPORATION Warehouse, Alabang Zapote Rd,, Rsti Compound, Pamplona Uno, City Of Las Piñas

139.

ZHOU, FANGBING Mandarin Speaking Management And Trading Consultant Brief Job Description: Give advice and expertise to client to help them improve business performance

Basic Qualification: Fluent in English, mandarin and any multi lingual language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 *Date Generated: Dec 12, 2022

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

Please inform DOLE National Capital Region if you have any information on criminal offense committed by the foreign nationals.

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

TheWorld BusinessMirror

Tuesday, December 13, 2022

A9

Facing Covid surge, China expanding hospitals, ICUs

By Joe Mcdonald

B

The Associated Press

EIJING—Facing a surge in Covid-19 cases, China is setting up more intensive care facilities and trying to strengthen hospitals as it rolls back anti-virus controls that confined millions of people to their homes, crushed economic growth and set off protests.

President Xi Jinping’s government is officially committed to stopping virus transmission, the last major country to try. But the latest moves suggest the ruling Communist Party will tolerate more cases without quarantines or shutting down travel or businesses as it winds down its “zero-Covid” strategy.

A Cabinet meeting called Thursday for “full mobilization” of hospitals including adding staff to ensure their “combat effectiveness” and increasing drug supplies, according to state media. Officials were told to keep track of the health of everyone in their area aged 65 and older.

It isn’t clear how much infection numbers have increased since Beijing last week ended mandatory testing as often as once a day in many areas. But interviews and social media accounts say there are outbreaks in businesses and schools across the country. Some restaurants and other businesses have closed because too many employees are sick.

The virus testing site in Beijing’s Runfeng Shuishang neighborhood shut down because all its employees were infected, the neighborhood government said Saturday on its social media account. “Please be patient,” it said.

Official case numbers are falling, but those no longer cover large parts of the population after mandatory testing ended Wednesday in many areas. That was part of dramatic changes that confirmed Beijing was trying gradually to join the United States and other governments that ended travel and other restrictions and are trying to live with the virus.

On Sunday, the government reported 10,815 new cases, including 8,477

without symptoms. That was barely one-quarter of the previous week’s daily peak above 40,000 but only represents people who are tested after being admitted to hospitals or for jobs in schools and other higher-risk sites.

Shaanxi province in the west has set aside 22,000 hospital beds for Covid-19 and is ready to increase its intensive care capacity 20 percent by converting other beds, the Shanghai news outlet The Paper reported, citing Yun Chunfu, an official of the provincial health commission. Yun said cities are “accelerating the upgrading” of hospitals for “critically ill patients.”

“Each city is required to designate a hospital with strong comprehensive strength and high treatment level” for Covid-19 cases, Yu was cited as saying at a news conference.

China has 138,000 intensive care beds, the general director of Bureau of Medical Administration of the National Health Commission, Jiao Yahui, said at a news conference Friday. That is less than one for every 10,000 people.

Health resources are distributed unevenly. Hospital beds are concentrated in Beijing, Shanghai and other cities on the prosperous east coast. Thursday’s Cabinet statement told officials to make sure rural areas have “fair access” to treatment and drugs.

China’s controls kept its infection rate low but crushed already weak economic growth and prompted complaints about the rising human cost. The official death toll is 5,235, compared with 1.1 million for the United States.

China’s official total case count of 363,072 is up nearly 50 percent from the October 1 level after a rash of outbreaks across the countr y.

Peru president seen moving up elections amid protests

By Regina Garcia Cano The Associated Press

L

IMA, Peru—Peru’s newest president, Dina Boluarte gave in to protesters’ demands early Monday announcing in a nationally televised address that she will send Congress a proposal to move up elections.

Boluarte’s decision came after thousands of demonstrators took to the streets around Peru for another day on Sunday to demand that she resign and schedule elections to replace her and Congress. The protests turned deadly, with at least two reported deaths in a remote community in the Andes, according to officials.

Boluarte said she will propose the scheduling of general elections for April 2024.

Many of those demonstrating in the ongoing political crisis are demanding the release from custody of Pedro Castillo, the center-left president ousted Wednesday by lawmakers after he sought to dissolve Congress ahead of an impeachment vote.

Hundreds of people also protested in Lima, the capital, where riot police used tear gas to push protesters back.

The protests rocking Peru heated up particularly in rural areas, strongholds for Castillo, a former schoolteacher and political newcomer from a poor Andean mountain district. Protesters set fire to a police station, vandalized a small airport used by the armed forces, and marched in the streets.

A 15-year-old boy died of an injury suffered during a protest in the remote Andes community of Andahuaylas, Congresswoman Maria Taipe Coronado said as she made an impassioned plea from the legislative palace for Boluarte to step down.

“The death of this compatriot is the responsibility of Mrs. Dina for not submitting her resignation,” charged Taipe, who is affiliated with the party that helped Castillo and Boluarte to their election last year as president and vice president respectively before both were kicked out of that party. “Since when is protesting a crime?”

Taipe charged that authorities were using heavyhanded repressive tactics in quelling demonstrations.

But it remains unclear how the boy was fatally injured, and state media reported a second death in the same community without giving details.

Anthony Gutiérrez, director of a local hospital, told a radio station that the second protester to die was an 18-year-old person. At least 26 people also were reported injured.

Boluarte, 60, was swiftly sworn in at midweek to replace Castillo, hours after he stunned the country by ordering the dissolution of Congress, which in turn dismissed him for “permanent moral incapacity.”

Castillo was arrested on charges of rebellion.

Castillo’s failed move against the opposition-led Congress came hours before lawmakers were set to start a third impeachment attempt against him.

Scattered protests around the country have continued for days.

On Saturday in Andahuaylas, 16 people were treated for concussions at a hospital, and one of thos persons was was reported in serious condition.

Boluarte has called for a time of national unity to heal from the latest upheaval.

“The life of no Peruvian deserves to be sacrificed for political interests,”Boluarte tweeted Sunday following Taipe’s speech in Congress. “I express my condolences for the death of a citizen in Andahuaylas. I reiterate my call for dialogue and to put an end to violence.”

Protests erupted Nov. 25 after 10 people died in a fire in Urumqi in the northwest.

Internet users asked whether firefighters or people trying to escape were blocked by locked doors or other anti-virus measures. Authorities denied that, but the disaster became a focus for public anger.

Xi’s government promised to reduce the cost and disruption after the economy shrank by 2.6 percent from the previous quarter in the three months ending in June. That was after Shanghai and other industrial centers shut down for up to two months to fight outbreaks.

Forecasters say the economy probably is shrinking in the current quarter. Imports tumbled

10.9 percent from a year ago in November in a sign of weak demand. Some forecasters have cut their outlook for annual growth to below 3 percent, less than half of last year’s robust 8.1 percent expansion.

It isn’t clear whether any of the changes were a response to the protests.

In a show of official confidence, the No. 2 leader, Premier Li Keqiang, was shown by state media meeting with leaders of the International Monetary Fund and other financial institutions without masks last week in the eastern city of Huangshan. Earlier, Xi skipped a photo-taking session with Russian and Central Asian leaders during a summit

in Uzbekistan in September at which the others wore no masks.

Still, health experts and economists say “zero Covid” is likely to stay in place at least through mid-2023 because millions of elderly people need to be vaccinated before restrictions that keep most visitors out of China be lifted. The government launched a campaign last week to vaccinate the elderly, a process that might take months.

Experts warn there still is a chance the ruling party might reverse course and reimpose restrictions if it worries hospitals might be overwhelmed.

Meanwhile, experts cited by state media called on the public to reduce the strain on hospitals

by treating mild Covid-19 cases at home and putting off treatment for less serious problems.

Patients are standing in line for up to six hours to get into fever clinics. Accounts on social media say some hospitals turn away patients with problems deemed not serious enough to need urgent treatment.

“Blindly going to the hospital” is depleting resources and might delay treatment for serious cases, “resulting in serious risk,” the vice president of Ruijin Hospital in Shanghai, Chen Erzhen, told The Paper.

“We recommend trying to manage health at home,” Chen said. “Leave medical resources for people who really need treatment.”

A10 Tuesday, December 13, 2022 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.news.businessmirror@gmail.com

editorial

Connecting Naia to Metro Manila

A

trending tweet by GMA News anchor Atom Araullo on December 9 highlighted anew the sorry state of the country’s public transport system, particularly the difficulty of getting a ride at the country’s gateway—the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia).

Araullo tweeted: “Just arrived at the airport from an overseas trip.

No coupon taxis, no metered taxis, no Grab. Wala rin tayong mga bus at tren dito. Basically kung wala kang sundo, you’re dead. It’s been an hour and counting. This is what a broken transpo system looks like.”

“Update: Was able to book Grab after a little less than 2 hours.

Setting the pick up location to the departures area (T2) worked,” he wrote. “Just have to crawl through traffic. I feel bad for those lined up for taxis, only few pass by. Thanks for your thoughts and prayers!”

Sadly, the Naia is one of the poorly connected airports not only in Asia but in the world as far as public transportation is concerned.

This is a shame because our Asean neighbors like Singapore, Malaysia, and even Hong Kong have express trains linking their airports to their respective city centers.

The Philippines is notorious for excruciating traffic conditions and long commutes because it lags many neighboring countries in infrastructure development. Our transportation authorities know that improvement in public transportation generates positive impact, including higher economic growth.

When President Marcos picked Secretary Jaime Bautista, a former PAL president, to head the Department of Transportation (DOTr), people had high hopes that the seasoned frontliner in the transport industry can help improve the country’s public transportation mess.

During the turnover of leadership at the DOTr office in Clark, Bautista said that the country’s transportation system will be transformed and elevated to global standards under the administration of President Marcos.

He said: “As discussed during my initial meeting with President Bongbong, we will transform the Philippine transport industry and elevate it to global standards. We will focus our efforts on moving passengers and goods that use our roads, airports, seaports, and railways.”

Bautista said the department would ensure to provide “accessible, affordable, comfortable, and safe transport service throughout the country” through the use of its transport systems.

In performing his duties as department chief, Bautista sought the help of officials and employees in addressing issues concerning the transportation sector. “As a newcomer to this office, I anticipate the usual hesitation to any changes in the way you do things. I promise to listen to your suggestions. I have always been a good listener. I will not pretend to have all the solutions. With many daunting tasks ahead of us, I ask for your help in making this administration succeed in solving the seemingly insurmountable transport concerns of Filipinos,” he said, addressing DOTr officials and employees.

Secretary Bautista said he is keen on making a difference at the DOTr. Now that somebody has pointed out the need for adequate, reliable and safe transportation at Naia, we hope that the agency will give topmost priority to this urgent need. Filipinos are known for our hospitality. Lack of transportation at the country’s gateway can give the Philippines a bad reputation.

Since 2005

BusinessMirror A broader look at today’s business ✝ Ambassador Antonio L. Cabangon Chua Founder Publisher Editor in Chief Associate Editor News Editor

T. Anthony C. Cabangon

Online Editor

Ruben M. Cruz Jr. Eduardo A. Davad Nonilon G. Reyes D. Edgard A. Cabangon Benjamin V. Ramos Aldwin Maralit Tolosa Rolando M. Manangan

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

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

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

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

www.news.businessmirror@gmail.com

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

THE Entrepreneur

T

here is nothing good in surging inflation. When prices of basic items rise, it erodes the purchasing power of consumers.

But I believe high prices are temporary—they will go down in the near future and restore the currency’s lost purchasing power.

Neither do I believe that we have a runaway inflation. The high inflation rate we saw in November, especially of food prices, is caused by weather disturbances that temporarily disrupted supply, the shock of transport fare hikes and the weak peso. Food prices will eventually settle down as more crop harvests come in. And judging from the global trends last week, crude prices are softening to near pre-Ukraine invasion levels.

Thus, I believe the inflation rate will slow down in the coming months as global oil and non-crude prices ease and the interest rate hikes of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas work their way into the Philippine economy.

The high inflation rate, in reality, has failed to make dent on the country’s economic growth. Some of last week’s indicators show a solid and expanding Philippine economy.

High prices are not altering our growth path.

The nation’s labor market, per the report of the Philippine Statistics Authority last week, returned to its pre-pandemic level. The unemployment rate declined to 4.5 percent in October from 7.4 percent a year ago. The figure was an improvement from 5 percent in September.

The employment data translated to 2.24 million unemployed Filipinos, down by 1.26 million from the 3.50 million unemployed in October last year, and lower by 256,000 compared to the 2.50 million unemployed in September 2022.

The decision of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to resume face-toface classes, of course, created a lot of economic opportunities and reinvigorated the labor market. With our children back in school, those parents-at-home, especially mothers, were able to pursue more incomegenerating opportunities.

Other encouraging numbers are the declining prices of oil in the world market and the peso’s contin-

The age of excuses John Mangun

Jennifer A. Ng Vittorio V. Vitug Lorenzo M. Lomibao Jr., Gerard S. Ramos Lyn B. Resurreccion, Dennis D. Estopace Angel R. Calso

Chairman of the Board President Advertising Sales Manager Group Circulation Manager

Manny B. Villar

Lourdes M. Fernandez

Senior Editors

Creative Director Chief Photographer

Philippine economy is weathering high inflation

OUTSIDE THE BOX

L

ife provides us with a ‘March of Time’ that is fascinating when you look back, sort of like reading a murder mystery novel and realizing you figured out who the bad guy was 100 pages ago. Things that were unimportant become critical and that which seemed so vital in the past is swept away.

I would submit that one great social change in the past 50 years and around the world has been the change from accepting personal responsibility to find The Excuse.

It is a legend about George Washington but makes a great story about character. When Washington was six years old, he received a hatchet as a gift and damaged his father’s cherry tree. When his father discovered what he had done, he became angry and confronted him. Young George bravely said, “I cannot tell a lie…I did cut it with my hatchet.” Wash-

ington’s father embraced him and rejoiced that his son’s integrity was worth more than a thousand trees.

No excuses. Total honesty. No evading of personal responsibility.

Total acceptance of the consequences of individual behavior.

Read again Dr. Jose Rizal’s last poem “Mi Ultimo Adios.” Look through the flamboyant 19th century poetic language and you will find that the title should have been “Mi Ultimo Middle-Finger.” No excuses. Total honesty. No evading of personal responsibility. Total acceptance of the

The high inflation rate, in reality, has failed to make dent on the country’s economic growth.

Some of last week’s indicators show a solid and expanding Philippine economy. High prices are not altering our growth path.

ued recovery against the US currency. Dubai crude dropped to $75.12 per barrel on December 6, while the peso gained further against the dollar last Wednesday to close at 55.45.

The peso fell to a record low of 59 against the greenback four times in October.

These positive trends point to a robust fourth-quarter economic performance. A more stable peso and the declining prices of crude in the world market are also a clear signal that the inflation rate will reach its peak sooner or later and start to decline.

Government’s intervention efforts to address the inflation scourge are helping. Measures to boost food production and lower the cost of bringing farm produce to the market will go a long way in our fight against inflation. Of note is the expansion of the Department of Agriculture’s Kadiwa Program, which seeks to link producers to consumers and provide a higher profit share for local farmers and offer consumers more affordable prices.

Meanwhile, another encouraging indicator that supports a strong economic expansion in the fourth

It is a legend about George Washington but makes a great story about character. When Washington was six years old, he received a hatchet as a gift and damaged his father’s cherry tree. When his father discovered what he had done, he became angry and confronted him. Young George bravely said, “I cannot tell a lie…I did cut it with my hatchet.”

Washington’s father embraced him and rejoiced that his son’s integrity was worth more than a thousand trees. consequences of individual behavior.

“Most people do not really want freedom, because freedom involves responsibility, and most people are frightened of responsibility.”

—Sigmund Freud “Ninety-nine percent of all failures come from people who have a habit of making excuses.”

—George Washington Carver Nothing can illustrate the lack of responsibility both in business and

quarter of the year is the performance of our manufacturing sector. It registered its highest average capacity utilization rate for the year at 72.4 percent in October. Per the report of the PSA, almost a fifth or 19.9 percent of companies operated at full capacity, while 40.4 percent operated at 70-percent to 80-percent capacity.

The World Bank is in agreement with our economic strides. It increased its 2022 gross domestic product growth forecast for the Philippines to 7.2 percent from a previous estimate of 6.5 percent, citing higher consumer demand amid the reopening of the economy.

The multilateral institution based this year’s forecast on the 7.7-percent growth recorded by the Philippines in the first three quarters. It noted the removal of remaining restrictions on people’s mobility and business operations and the recovery of incomes and jobs. The reopening benefitted the services sector while government spending on infrastructure stimulated the growth of the construction and industry sectors.

I believe the Philippines is handling the inflation rate problem well based on recent positive economic indicators and the endorsement of the World Bank. Otherwise, we will not have a growth story to tell this fourth quarter.

For comments, send e-mail to mbv_secretariat@vistaland.com.ph or visit www.mannyvillar.com.ph

government than the recent multibillion-dollar fraud and failure of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX. As time progress, we will hear more and more of these answers/excuses from both the business and government sides—“I do not remember” and “I was not aware.”

One interesting side story to the FTX affair is the mass involvement of all kinds of celebrities who endorsed the cryptocurrency exchange to the public. Eighty high-rollers invested an average of $250 million in FTX Trading Ltd. including the Singapore government corporation Temasek ($275 million) and the Ontario (Canada) Teachers’ Pension Plan, ($95 million). However, it is the 1.2 million registered users—updated at the start of 2021—who collectively was cheated out of their $8 billion to $16 billion or about $10,000 each. The little guys with their hard-earned money always lose the most.

But the FTX story takes a turn.

One commentator: “Celebrities who thought doing crypto promotions would be a quick way to make some easy money have another thing See “Mangun,” A11

www.news.businessmirror@gmail.com

Shoppers, workers clash over post-pandemic expectations

N

Opinion BusinessMirror

Understanding ESG Atty. Jomel N. Manaig

Tax Law for Business

By Anne D’innocenzio | AP Business Writer

EW YORK—Before the pandemic, Cheryl Woodard used to take her daughter and her friends to eat at a local IHOP in Laurel, Maryland after their dance practice. But now they hardly go there anymore because it closes too early.

“It is a little frustrating because it’s not as convenient as it used to be,” said Woodard, 54, who also does most of her shopping online these days instead of in person because of stores limiting their hours.

Before the pandemic, consumers had gotten accustomed to instant gratification: packages and groceries delivered to their doorstep in less than an hour, stores that stayed open around the clock to serve their every need. But more than two and a half years later in a world yearning for normalcy, many workers are fed up and don’t want to go back to the way things were. They are demanding better schedules, and sometimes even quitting their jobs altogether.

As a consequence, many businesses still haven’t been able to resume the same hours of operations or services as they continue to grapple with labor shortages. Others have made changes in the name of efficiency. For instance, Walmart, the nation’s largest retailer and private employer, announced this past summer it doesn’t have any plans for its supercenters to return to its pre-pandemic 24-hour daily operations.

IHOP says a vast majority of its locations have returned to their prepandemic hours and some have even expanded them. But others, like the Laurel location that Woodward used to frequent, have indeed cut back.

The changes are creating a disconnect between customers who want to shop and dine like they used to during pre-pandemic times and exhausted employees who no longer want to work those long hours — a push-pull that is only being heightened during the busy holiday shopping season.

“Nobody is winning,” said Sadie Cherney, a franchise owner with three resale Clothes Mentor boutiques in South Carolina. “It is so demoralizing to see that you are falling short on both ends.”

Across all industries, the average number of hours worked per week per worker totaled 34.4 hours in November, unchanged from February 2020, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. But for the retail industry, it slipped 1.6 percent to 30.2 hours per week during the same period. Hours worked at restaurants were down by similar amount in October, according to the most recent data.

Meanwhile, the National Restaurant Association’s most recent monthly survey of 4,200 restaurant operators conducted in early August found that 60 percent of restaurants reduced hours of operation on the days they were open, while 38 percent closed on the days they would normally be open compared to right before the pandemic. And a report published by food and beverage research firm Dataessential showed the average US restaurant as of October was open around six fewer hours per week than in 2019—a 7.5 percent decline.

Cherney noted her stores returned to pre-pandemic hours last year but with the worsening labor shortages and higher labor costs, she has struggled to keep those same hours this year.

Her store in Columbia is open one hour later, but she had to offer wage increases to her workers. For her two other locations in Greenville and Spartanburg, hours have

Mangun. . .

Continued from A10

coming.” Several weeks ago, Tom Brady and wife Giselle Bündchen, writer/actor/television producer Larry David and basketball star Ste-

The changes are creating a disconnect between customers who want to shop and dine like they used to during pre-pandemic times and exhausted employees who no longer want to work those long hours—a push-pull that is only being heightened during the busy holiday shopping season. been reduced for personal shopping appointments throughout the week, and no longer accept second-hand clothing from shoppers on Sundays.

Cherney noted customers often complain about long waits to process their second-hand offerings, while her staff is overextended because they’re working 20 percent more than what they would like. The end result: Cash flow and profitability have both taken a hit.

Mani Bhushan, owner of Taco Ocho, a taco restaurant with four locations in the Dallas area, still struggles to hire cooks at his McKinney location, which opened in July 2021.

He said many workers can’t afford to live in this upscale suburb and have to travel from elsewhere. Several times a week he’s had to close the location early—something he has never had to do in the 40 years he has worked in the business.

Even when Bhushan is able to keep his normal hours of operation, he still has to cut off online orders earlier in the day and the service is not up to par with his other locations.

“I am a perfectionist,” he said.

“I am not happy. But I can’t fix it right now.”

The worker shortages should remain acute into next year even as several big tech companies have reduced staff or have frozen corporate hiring. The economy added 263,000 jobs while the unemployment rate remained at 3.7 percent in November, still near a 53-year low, according to the Labor Department. And while US job openings dropped in October from September, the number ticked up 3 percent in retail.

For mall operator Taubman Centers, which manages or leases 24 premier centers in the US and Asia, many stores are opening later than its centers to save on employee costs, according to Bill Taubman, president and chief operating officer. However, he said that causes frustration among customers who go to the mall thinking the store where they want to shop will be open.

Vicky Thai, a 27-year-old studying to be a physician’s assistant in West Hartford, Connecticut, said she’s often frustrated over the waits to get served at restaurants and stores. She recalled a recent restaurant experience where it took a long time just to get some water; at a local clothing store, she spent 30 minutes in line to buy an item because of staffing shortages.

But for every frustrated customer, there is a frustrated worker. Artavia Milliam, 39, of Brooklyn, New York, is a visual merchandiser at H&M in Times Square. She said she spends more of her time helping out on the sales floor than updating the mannequins because of the shortage of staff.

First of two parts

E

nvironmental. Social. Governance. These are the three pillars of an increasingly relevant corporate concept: ESG Compliance.

Locally, ESG Compliance has not yet caught steam. Worse, ESG may not even be in the radar of a significant number of our corporate leaders. However, obliviousness to ESG does not mean that one will be spared from its effects. This is not a case of “what you don’t know won’t hurt you.”

In this two-part article, we will take an elementary stroll into what ESG is, its importance, and possible consequences due to non-compliance. For this part, let’s take a slow approach and sink our teeth into what ESG is.

So, the question: What is ESG? Simply put, ESG is a corporate concept designed to assist organizations in identifying specific issues they face and determining the impact of their business to others with respect to the environment, to society, and

corporate governance.

The Environment aspect establishes the impact of the business of the organization to nature and the environment. The Social aspect deals with the impact of the organization to the society that includes its employees, stakeholders, customers, and the public in general. Lastly, the Governance aspect delves into how the organization is run.

From a corporate standpoint, ESG is the result of the various shifts and developments in the environmental, social, and corporate governance landscape. It ultimately boils down to another important corporate aspect: corporate responsibility.

The Paris Agreement on climate change and the recent COP27 climate conference highlighted the urgent and real need to set climate goals to

Tuesday, December 13, 2022 A11

From a corporate standpoint, ESG is the result of the various shifts and developments in the environmental, social, and corporate governance landscape. It ultimately boils down to another important corporate aspect: corporate responsibility. mitigate and adapt to climate change.

Dwindling natural resources and mounting waste and pollution have also ushered in herculean conservation and cleanup efforts.

Corporations are no strangers to this for their business have significant impact on the environment.

The way they do business affects the environment, both directly and indirectly. The environmental impact of a corporation is not limited to its actual and direct operations but also include the environmental impact of those within its supply chain.

Aside from making sure to walk the lines of environmental care, corporations must also do a tenuous balancing act with labor movements and advancement, social trends, and policy developments on one hand and corporate actions on the other. Social factors have the ability to affect an organization’s profitability and sustainability while an organization’s business can affect society through different

ways, like job and wealth creation for employees and stakeholders, respectively.

Unlike environmental and social factors, corporate governance is an internal matter. It covers company policies, disclosures, management structures, controls, and standards, among others. A robust corporate governance structure and mechanism reduces exposure to corporate mismanagement and dishonesty.

It also enhances a corporate value and makes the organization more attractive.

Knowing the nature of ESG is just half the battle. Corporate leaders must now understand why ESG is important to their business and what they must do to prepare.

For the second part of this article, we will discuss the importance of ESG compliance to corporations and the possible pitfalls and consequences due to non-compliance.

The author is a junior partner of Du-Baladad and Associates Law Offices (BDB Law), a member-firm of WTS Global.

The article is for general information only and is not intended, nor should be construed as a substitute for tax, legal or financial advice on any specific matter. Applicability of this article to any actual or particular tax or legal issue should be supported therefore by a professional study or advice. If you have any comments or questions concerning the article, you may e-mail the author at jomel.manaig@ bdblaw.com.ph or call 8403-2001 local 380.

Free ride: DC unveils bold plan to boost public transit

By Hope Yen | The Associated Press

Associated Press Business Writer Haleluya Hadero in New York contributed to this report.

Other cities, including Los Angeles and Kansas City, Missouri, suspended fare collection during the height of the pandemic to minimize human contact and ensure that residents with no other travel options could reach jobs and services at hospitals, grocery stores and offices.

But D.C.’s permanent free fare plan will be by far the biggest, coming at a time when major cities including Boston and Denver and states such as Connecticut are considering broader zero-fare policies to improve equity and help regain ridership that was lost with the rise of remote and hybrid work. Los Angeles instituted free fares in 2020 before recently resuming charging riders. Lately LA Metro has been testing a fare-capping plan under which transit riders pay for trips until they hit a fixed dollar amount and then ride free after that, though new Mayor Karen Bass has suggested support for permanently abolishing the fares.

Analysts say D.C.’s free fare system offers a good test case on how public transit can be reshaped for a post-pandemic future.

“If D.C. demonstrates that it increases ridership, it reduces the cost burden for people who are lower income and it improves the quality of transit service in terms of speed of bus service, and reduces cars on the road, this could be a roaring success,” said Yonah Freemark, a senior research associate at the Urban Institute. “We just don’t know yet whether that would happen.”

The $2 fares will be waived for riders boarding Metrobuses within the city limits beginning around July 1. In unanimously approving the plan last week, the D.C. Council also agreed to expand bus service to 24 hours on 12 major routes

downtown, benefiting nightlife and service workers who typically had to rely on costly ride-share to get home after the Metro subway and bus system closed at night.

A new $10 million fund devoted to annual investments in D.C. bus lanes, shelters and other improvements was also approved to make rides faster and more reliable.

“The District is ready to be a national leader in the future of public transit,” said D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen, who first proposed free fares in 2019 and says the program can be fully paid-for with surplus D.C. tax revenue. Roughly 85% of bus riders are D.C. residents.

The Metro system also serves neighboring suburbs in Maryland and Virginia.

About 68 percent of D.C. residents who take the bus have household incomes below $50,000, and riders are disproportionately Black and Latino compared with Metrorail passengers, according to the council’s budget analysis.

Not everyone is a fan.

Peter Van Doren, a senior fellow at the D.C.-based Cato Institute, said the plan risks high costs and mixed results, noting that the opportunity to improve ridership may be limited because bus passengers have been quicker to return to near pre-pandemic levels. He said government subsidies to help lowerincome people buy cars would go farther because not everyone has easy access to public transit, which operates on fixed routes.

“The beauty of automobiles is they can go anywhere and everywhere in a way that transit does not,” he said.

“We don’t know the subset of lowincome people in D.C. where transit is a wonderful option as opposed to not such a wonderful option.”

The council’s move, which will be finalized in a second vote later this month, came over the concerns of D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, who supports the concept of free fares but raised questions about the $42 million annual cost over the long term. “District residents and taxpayers will have to pay for this program,” she wrote in a letter to council members. “Our neighbors, Virginia and Maryland, should absorb some of these costs as their residents will benefit from this program as well.”

Allen also had proposed a $100 monthly transit benefit for D.C. residents to access the Metrorail system, but shelved the plan until at least fall 2024 due to the $150 million annual estimated cost. He described free bus fares as a “winwin-win” for the District because they will help the transit system recover and offer affordable, greenfriendly travel while boosting economic activity downtown.

The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, which currently faces a budget deficit of $185 million, part of which it attributes to fare evasion, praised the plan as “bold.” It said it looked forward to working with the city council, mayor and regional stakeholders “toward our goal of providing more accessible and equitable service for our customers.”

Nationwide, while transit ridership has returned to about 79% of pre-pandemic levels, that figure varies widely by region. In New York City, for instance, MTA chief executive Janno Lieber has suggested that city and state government step up to pay for trains and buses more like essential public services, such as a fire department, citing millions of transit riders he believes may never come back. In 2019, fares made up over 40 percent of total transit revenue there but have since slid to 25 percent, leading to an anticipated $2.5 billion deficit in 2025 along with the risk of soon using up the transportation authority’s federal Covid relief funds.

In D.C., where bus fares amount to a modest 7 percent of total tran-

phen Curry were sued over a 2022 Super Bowl ad promoting the failed cryptocurrency exchange.

Deadline Hollywood: “A new class action filed in federal court aims to take the Golden State Warriors superstar and a pantheon of big names to the financial woodshed over shilling

Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs (Nonfungible tokens), for hidden payoffs.

It’s an action that turns the spotlight uncomfortably not just on Curry again, but also Kevin Hart, Madonna, Jimmy Fallon, Justin Bieber, Paris Hilton, Serena Williams, DJ Khaled, Gwyneth Paltrow, and more.”

The lawsuit: “The manufactured celebrity endorsements and misleading promotions regarding the launch of an entire BAYC ecosystem were able to artificially increase the interest in and price of the BAYC NFTs causing investors to purchase these losing investments at drastically inflated

prices.” If this lawsuit succeeds, the celebrity endorsement game changes widely. And don’t even think about trying to sell me a hair-grow formula.

I have my attorney on speed dial.

On a personal note, Happy Birthday to Ada, my wonderful, beautiful wife and mother of our four sons.

W

ASHINGTON—The Covid-19 pandemic laid bare for the District of Columbia and other major cities that public transit was a lifeline for essential workers and that even modest fares could be a burden to them. So the nation’s capital is introducing a groundbreaking plan: It will begin offering free bus fares to residents next summer.

sit operating revenues, the transit agency may be able to more easily absorb losses from zero fares, said Art Guzzetti, the American Public Transportation Association’s vice president of mobility initiatives and public policy. He noted savings for city taxpayers from speeding up boarding, which could allow for more routes and stops, as well as reducing traffic congestion and eliminating the need for transit enforcement against fare evaders.

Currently, D.C. bus ridership stands at about 74 percent of prepandemic levels on weekdays compared to 40 percent for Metrorail.

Still, free fares can be a tough choice for cities. “If the consequence of a zero-fare program is you have less funds to invest in frequent service, then you’re going backwards,” Guzzetti said.

In Kansas City, which began offering zero-fares for its buses in March 2020 and has no planned end date, officials said the program has helped boost ridership, which has risen by 13 percent in 2022 so far compared with the previous year.

The free fares amount to an $8 million revenue loss, with the city paying for more than half of that and federal Covid aid covering the rest through 2023, said Cindy Baker, interim vice president for the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority, who describes the program as a success.

The program has eliminated altercations between passengers and bus drivers over fares, although there have been more instances of passenger disputes due to an increase in homeless riders, according to the agency. Baker said the transit agency has been adding security in response to some rider complaints.

Ché Ruddell-Tabisola, director of government affairs for the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington, cheered free fares as a much-needed economic boost, showing D.C.’s commitment to the well-being of late-night bartenders and restaurant workers needing an affordable way home. Associated Press

writer Christopher Weber in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

Without you darling, my life would be an empty shell, feeling nothing and meaningless.

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

A12 Tuesday, December 13, 2022

SENATE EYES TOUGHER SANCTIONS AGAINST AGRI SMUGGLERS

S

ENATOR Joseph V ictor Ejercito on Monday backed mounting calls Monday for tougher sanctions against agricultural smugglers including slapping them with non-bailable charges of economic sabotage to effectively end their illegal activities.

The lawmaker aired his lament as furious farmers warned the government that more than 20 smugglers are “as of now bringing in white and red onions, rice, and frozen meat products illegally through Philippine ports.”

Ejercito declared, “It is time to crush this group,” adding, “let’s slap them with economic sabotage charges because this is non-bailable. They are destroying the livelihood of our farmers.

He added that as the principal author of the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Law, “this news that we still have so many agri-smugglers operating in the country sadden me. It’s been six to seven years since the law was passed, but it seems people are just ignoring the law.”

Sinag: More smugglers scot-free

AT the same time, Samahang In-

dustriya ng Agrikultura (Sinag) president Rosendo So said in a radio interview that “there are numerous new smugglers who were not included in the list of agricultural smugglers previously submitted to the Senate.”

His group is currently working with the Department of Agriculture (DA) and Bureau of Customs (BOC) in pressing “economic sabotage charges against individuals involved in bringing in P30 million worth of smuggled white onions recently confiscated at the Manila International Container Port. “ Ejercito said the national government needs to fully implement the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act, which he principally authored during his first term in the Senate, in order to effectively address the rampant agricultural smuggling in the country.

He recalled that in previous hearings on the Department of Agriculture’s sugar fiasco, he blasted agriculture officials for failing to implement the measure and promoting excessive importation, lamenting it continues to harm small farmers.

See “Senate,” A2

‘Govt failure to make farms competitive behind inflation’

I

By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

NFLATION is high in the Philippines not because of importation but because of the country’s failure to increase competition in the market and encourage greater productivity in the agriculture sector, according to a former Socioeconomic Planning Secretary.

In an interview, economist and Brain Trust Inc. chairperson Cielito F. Habito told BusinessMirror that prices of vegetables, such as white onion in other places in the Asean, are significantly lower than those recorded in the Philippines.

Based on data obtained by this newspaper from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), prices of white onions soared 137.19 percent followed by red creole onion, with prices increasing by 47.15

percent and native onion prices growing 39.43 percent.

“This is why ‘imported inflation’ is incorrect. When we import, it’s cheaper. I was in Jakarta, Indonesia, I made it a point to visit the supermarket because the wet market was too far. I went to a high-end supermarket; the price of onions there was equivalent to P100 a kilo. Here, it’s almost P400.

How can you say inflation is imported?” Habito said.

“If you only open it up and force ourselves to compete with the productivity of our neighbors, if we did that 30 years ago when we acceded to the WTO (World Trade Organization), instead of exempting, opting out, and waiving all these requirements to open up, our onions would have been as cheap as P100,” he explained.

Habito said vegetables that saw a spike in price increases in November were among those that continue to suffer from stringent import regulations. There were even times when importation of these vegetables such as onion and garlic were banned in the Philippines.

He said this ban was in place during his time as Director General of the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda). Habito said he has been advocating to remove these import restrictions to bring down food prices.

“For the longest time, I’ve been saying that that has been our biggest disservice to our farmers because we remove the pressure for our agriculture, and I’m talking about our government, to really do what is needed to increase productivity. They (gov-

ernment) thought it was enough to help them (farmers) by closing our markets and protecting them (farmers). We should help farmers by nurturing, not by protecting, because in the long term, it will come back to haunt us (through high prices),” Habito said.

Efforts to bring down prices would also require diversification in terms of budget allocation in the Department of Agriculture (DA).

Habito said for the longest time, the DA’s other name was the “Department of Rice” because of its rice-centric policies.

These policies eat away funds that could also help develop and increase productivity in other crops, including vegetables. Habito added that funds could also be used to streamline the country’s importation regulations.

Part of these efforts could include simplifying the process of securing signatures when importing certain products. Habito noted that importing a popular brand of chocolate with nuts would require a permit from the National Dairy Authority because it contains milk and the Bureau of Plant Industry because it contains nuts.

See “Govt,” A2

Companies BusinessMirror

Editor: Jennifer A. Ng

Tuesday, December 13, 2022 B1

Meralco wants San Miguel SEC to accredit local filing agents unit to pay for costs of TRO

M

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

anila Electric Co. (Meralco) has issued a notice of claim against San Miguel Corp.’s South Premiere Power Corp.

(SPPC) to cover the additional costs it has been incurring in relation to a 60-day stay order on their Ilijan power supply agreement (PSA).

In a letter addressed to SPPC General Manager Elenita D. Go, Meralco FVP and Head of Regulatory Management Office Jose Ronald V. Valles said the company had to source 670 megawatts (MW) of energy from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM).

Hence, Meralco has to pay more than its contracted price

under its PSA with SPPC. Meralco has to source its energy from the WESM due to the two-month temporar y restraining order (TRO) on the Meralco-SPPC PSA that the Court of Appeals (CA) issued in favor of SPPC. To reca ll, the Fourteenth Division of the CA ordered the suspension of the implementation of SPPC’s PSA with Meralco,

given that it would suffer “grave and irreparable injury” from the difference between fuel costs and current power rates.

Earlier, SPPC sought for a price increase from the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

However, the regulator denied the petition as the PSA is fixed in nature, and the grounds for increase cited by SPPC and Meralco were not among the exceptions that would allow for price adjustment.

With this, SPPC sent a formal notice to Meralco, stating that it will “cease the supply of…the contract capacity and associated energy pursuant to the PSA” starting December 7 up to the entire duration of the effectivity of the TRO. “In view of this, Meralco hereby gives notice of its continuing claim against SPPC for the price difference between the WESM price and Contract Price under the PSA, to which Meralco would be exposed during the effectivity of the TRO or Writ of Injunction

if any is issued, in addition to all applicable fines, penalties and liquidated damages under the PSA in the event that the Court of Appeals eventually resolves the main case denying the Petition for Certiorari and/or claim of SPPC,” Valles said in the letter.

The claims will be on top of all applicable fines, penalties, and liquidated damages under the PSA in the event that the Court of Appeals eventually resolves the main case and denies the petition of SPPC. Earlier, ERC Chairperson and CEO Monalisa Dimalanta said the TRO will “will consequently expose approximately 7.5 million registered Meralco consumers in the National Capital Region and other areas in Region 3 and 4 to higher electricity prices without preparation usually observed in case of PSA termination.”

Fixed PSAs, she has said, have long been used to “shield” consumers from the volatility of prices from WESM and automatic fuel pass-through PSAs.

D&L bullish on prospects for 2023

By VG Cabuag

@villygc

D

&L Industries Inc., a chemical and food ingredients producer, said its record performance this year may be surpassed in 2023 as the economy continues to reopen.

“2023 will be an even better year than 2022,” D&L President and CEO Alvin D. Lao said on the sidelines of a ceremony marking the firm’s 10th listing anniversary on the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) last Monday.

Lao said the company is widely expected to surpass this year its record performance in 2018 even though its performance in the first quarter was affected by the surge in Covid-19 cases due to the Omicron variant.

Because of the surge in Covid cases, he said the company did not set a growth target for this year.

As people gain more confidence in going out of their houses with the recent lifting of the mask mandate, Lao said the resulting rise in consumer spending should be good for their various businesses.

‘Digital shift is PPA’s top priority’

T

he Department of Transportation (DOTr) is putting premium on the digital transformation of ports in a bid to reduce friction and corruption.

Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) General Manager Jay Daniel Santiago said the stateowned port agency views digitalization as an essential part of growth, as it promotes efficiencies and reduces corruption in transactions.

This, he said, will “greatly benefit the port users nationwide.”

“This digitization is really our highest priority now at PPA to prevent occurrence of usual problems encountered by people at the port. Once it is fixed and everything is done online, prolonged waiting of passengers will be avoided and inconvenience at trips will be prevented,” Santiago said.

He also highlighted the importance of expanding the port agency’s communication infrastructure for transparency and connectivity of projects and transactions across the country. Lorenz S. Marasigan

Philippine Stock Exchange President and CEO Ramon S. Monzon hands the anniversary plaque to D&L President and CEO Alvin D. Lao. Contributed photo

With the expected opening of D&L’s Batangas expansion plants in the second quarter of 2023, he said sales should rise once additional capacities come on stream.

The Batangas plant would also allow the company to ramp up its export business which currently account for 33 percent of total revenues. The reopening of the Chinese economy is also seen to boost exports to China which account for 5 percent of D&L’s overseas sales.

“I am confident that this net income growth trajectory will not only be maintained but will be surpassed in the coming years as the company’s new P10.2-billion facility in Batangas becomes operational next year, 2023,” said

PSE President Ramon S. Monzon during the anniversary bell-ringing ceremony at the bourse.

“This plant represents the next leg of growth for the company and our aspiration to be recognized globally as a world class Filipino manufacturing company,” Lao said.

Monzon said the confidence in the company is evident in how it has performed over the years. He noted that it has emerged as one of the honored companies in the Asian region by New York-based Institutional Investor, a leading international business-to-business publisher, in its 2019 All-Asia Executive team survey.

“D&L’s investors have also been amply rewarded… In less than three

years, its stock price reached an alltime high of P22.85, 431 percent higher than its P4.30 IPO price.

The company’s share price has since been adjusted downward by 50 percent, following its 100-percent stock dividend in August 2015.”

The company was included in the maiden selection of 20 companies that comprised the PSE Dividend Yield Index. It likewise qualified for the PSE MidCap Index.

Both indices were launched by PSE in March this year.

During the IPO, Lao said D&L raised about P4.6 billion and over the past 10 years, the company has returned three times, or a total of P13 billion in cash to shareholders through dividends.

“Aside from paying tribute to the company on its 10th listing anniversary, I think this event is a fitting occasion to wish D&L even more success as it marks its 60th year in operations next year.

It is my sincere wish and hope that the DNL narrative is one that can be emulated by those planning to take their company public,” Monzon said.

Filinvest’s Mercedes Gotianun dies at 94

M

ercedes T. Gotianun, one of the co-founders and the matriarch of the Filinvest Group, has passed away on Sunday.

In its disclosure, Filinvest said Mercedes or “Chita” died “surrounded by her loved ones.” She was 94.

Mercedes is the wife of the late Andrew Gotianun Sr., founder of Filinvest Development Corp. She was regarded as the perfect complement to the visionary leader as his tireless implementor.

Widely admired for her work ethic, she was known to be organized, determined and energetic.

Andrew and Chita’s harmonious synergy created a fruitful conglomerate, now among the country’s major firms with interests in Filinvest Land and Filinvest Alabang for property development, East West Bank for universal banking and Davao and North Cotabato Sugar Central. Hotels under the Crimson and Quest brands and power generation under Filinvest Utilities and infrastructure in the Clark International Airport

Mercedes T. Gotianun are among its other new ventures.

Even as a young student, Mercedes was a hardworking achiever.

She graduated valedictorian in both elementary and high school from the College of the Holy Spirit. She maintained her status as a university scholar through four years of college and graduated magna cum Laude with a BS Pharmacy degree from the University of the Philippines. She was also a member of the Sigma Delta Phi sorority.

She was an admired business leader who will be remembered as the

first woman president of a Philippine universal bank, having co-founded and led Family Bank and Trust Co. in the 70s and 80s, the precursor to BPI Family Savings Bank.

She was honored as a Legacy Awardee by GoNegosyo’s Inspiring Filipina Entrepreneurs Awards in 2017 for her achievements as a woman leader in the Philippine business arena. She also received the Mariang Maya award from Sigma Delta Phi, an award given to distinguished and accomplished members of the sorority.

Mercedes was the eldest among eight siblings, often described as a fierce protector of the family showing her maternal side even during the early years of her life. She is survived by her siblings, Eduardo, Zenaida, Blesilda and Domingo, Victor and Nenita, Benjamin and Elizabeth, and Celia.

The family of Mercedes includes her children, Bibot+ and Marivic, Jonathan and Cristina, Josephine a nd Jose ph , a nd M ic h ae l , her grandchildren and great grandchildren. VG Cabuag

T

he Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) wants to accredit service providers and agents who will assist the public in processing applications for company or partnership registration, and other transactions with the agency.

The initiative seeks to limit and regulate a smaller filing group who will be responsible for the overall compliance of business entities in a timely manner, to avoid late fees and penalties.

The SEC on December 12 released for public comment the proposed rules on the accreditation of company service providers (CSP) and company service agents (CSA) who can assist the public in the registration of partnerships and corporations, as well as the filing of reportorial requirements.

The same practice is currently observed in other jurisdictions such as Singapore, whose Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority has institutionalized the accreditation of registered filing agents.

The accreditation also seeks to help the public in need of assistance from legal and financial experts on the application for registration for partnerships or domestic corporations, as well as technical applications.

The draft rules define a CSP as an accredited SEC-registered corporation or partnership or an entity registered with the Department of Trade and Industry in good standing that provides services such as assistance in the application for registration of a partnership, corporation, or business management consultancy, as indicated in its Articles of Partnership or Incorporation.

A CSA, meanwhile, is a person who may be independent or employed with a CSP, and is duly accredited by the SEC to assist in the registration of a partnership and all kinds of corporations, and other services that may be determined by the Commission. A CSP must employ an SEC-accredited CSA who will also act as its duly authorized representative.

Applications submitted and processed through CSPs or CSAs could see faster turnaround times, as accredited service providers will be given a separate lane to access the SEC Electronic Simplified Processing of Application for Registration of Company. Moreover, they will be deemed complete and correct, and will no longer be subjected to

pre-processing by the SEC Company Registration and Monitoring Department.

Under the proposed rules, prospective CSAs must pass an online accreditation examination designed to determine their competency in the registration proceedings for corporations and partnerships.

Those who pass all four categories will be authorized to assist in the filing of reports in compliance with SEC Memorandum Circular No. 28, Series of 2020, and the submission of annual reportorial requirements.

The Certificate of Accreditation as an independent CSA or CSP shall be valid for three years following its date of issuance, renewable every three years thereafter.

All CSAs are required to undergo a continuing learning program consisting of at least 20 hours of SEC trainings/seminars as approved by the agency within their three-year accreditation period.

Employed CSAs who are accredited within the second year of the accreditation period of the CSP shall complete at least 15 hours of SEC training or seminars, while those who are accredited on the last year of the accreditation period of the CSP shall complete at least eight hours of SEC training.

In addition, prospective CSAs must secure registration with the Anti-Money Laundering Council or its equivalent, and provide an affidavit of undertaking, aside from other personal and business information.

Once issued, the certificate of accreditation for CSAs will be valid for three years, renewable upon applying and passing another accreditation test.

The SEC will randomly review the applications submitted by the CSA or CSP to ensure compliance, correctness, and completeness of the registration. Penalties will be imposed against CSAs and CSPs for errors and violations found during the post-audit review of the submitted registration documents.

VG Cabuag

B2

Tuesday, December 13, 2022

Companies BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Globe transfers 750 towers to Frontier G

By Lorenz S. Marasigan

@lorenzmarasigan

lobe Telecom Inc. said on Monday it has completed the second closing of the sale of its tower assets, transferring to Frontier Tower Associates Philippines Inc. 750 towers for P9.5 billion.

In a statement attached to a disclosure to the local bourse, the Ayala-led telco said with this development, it has already transferred 1,550 out of 3,529 towers to Frontier Towers.

It has already achieved 32 percent closing of its whole tower deal, transferring ownership of 2,251 out of 7,059 towers to both Frontier Towers and Miescor Infrastructure Development Corp.

Proceeds of the asset sale will be used to pay off debt and to fund capital expenditures for its network expansion.

“We are happy that we have successfully completed 32 percent of this record-breaking initiative giv-

ing us much leeway to cover for our 2023 debt servicing requirements amidst the backdrop of rising interest rates. This tower deal will also help us meet the changing consumer demand while ensuring that our network expansion is done in a sustainable and responsible way,” Globe CFO Rizza Maniego-Eala said.

Subsequent closings will happen as and when closing conditions are met but Globe expects the final closing for all portfolios to happen within next year.

“We continue to be committed to developing the Philippines telecoms sector and the pace at which we are completing the handovers of tower

sites in close collaboration with Globe is testament to that,” Patrick Tangney, Chairman and CEO of Frontier Towers, said.

Globe started selling off its towers to Frontier Towers and Miescor in August this year. The total consideration for the whole sale-and-leaseback initiative is roughly P71 billion.

“We are pleased with the remarkable progress of our tower deal with Frontier Towers. We believe that our strategic partnership with the tower companies is critical in this very competitive market and in providing the best internet connectivity in the Philippines that is comparable to the rest of the world,” Globe President Ernest Cu said.

ERC issues CDOs to retail power suppliers

T

he Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has barred retail electricity suppliers, distribution utilities (DUs), and the market operator from issuing notices of disconnections and from disconnecting the electricity supply of their contestable customers.

In a statement, the ERC said it has issued 13 cease and desist orders (CDOs) to Retail Electricity Suppliers (RES) and the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP) follow-

ing the series of hearing on petitions for dispute resolution filed by contestable consumers.

The cases were filed by consumers due to differing interpretations by the parties on the propriety of the imposition by RES of Fuel Cost Recovery Adjustments (FCRA) or Incremental Fuel Cost Increase (IFCI), the ERC said.

Contestable consumers, according to the ERC, said their contracts prescribed fixed rates. However, the adjustments are now being

“claimed unilaterally by their suppliers in violation of their supply contracts.”

RES Respondents, the ERC said, raised jurisdictional issues against ERC. DUs and the IEMOP were “impleaded since the issuance of notices and the disconnections of service are performed by such parties.”

“ERC directed the parties to maintain the status quo while the Motions to Dismiss filed by the RES are being evaluated by the

Commission. During this period, the parties are required to observe the terms and conditions of their supply agreements,” the ERC said.

With the CDOs, consumers are assured of continuous electricity supply pending the final resolution by the ERC. Under the Republic Act 9136, or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001, ERC is authorized to issue cease and desist orders after due notice and hearing.

Lorenz S. Marasigan

www.news.businessmirror@gmail.com

Banking&Finance BusinessMirror

Editor: Dennis D. Estopace • Tuesday, December 13, 2022

B3

New Maharlika bill gets House committee’s nod

T

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

@joveemarie

dependent directors.

THE unnumbered substitute bill also mandates that instead of the Philippine president, the Finance Secretary will serve as the chairman of the MIC board of governors.

the fund, shall be liable for all damages resulting therefrom suffered by the corporation.

Tieng said stockholders or members and other persons shall be punished by imprisonment of not less than one year but not more than five years or a fine of not less than P50,000 but not more than P2 million or both at the discretion of the court.

The lawmaker said his committee also formally adopted the removal of the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) and the Social Security System (SSS) as fund contributors.

Under the unnumbered bill, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) will now be a fund source of the MIF, joining the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP) and the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP).

The LBP will contribute P50 billion while the DBP will contribute P25 billion.

SSS, GSIS out

Public backlash

HE unnumbered substitute bill creating the Maharlika Investment Fund (MIF) was formally approved during an executive session by the House Committee on Banks and Financial Intermediaries, its chairman, Manila Rep. Irwin C. Tieng, announced last Monday.

The bill will now be transmitted to the plenary for another round of deliberations.

Tieng noted a provision in the bill that orders at least 20 percent of the net income of Maharlika Investment Corp. (MIC) remitted to fund the social services of the national government.

“The board [of the MIC] shall determine the dividend policies of the MIC, provided that at least 20 percent of the net profits of MIC shall be remitted to the national government to be earmarked for social welfare projects,” Tieng said.

The lawmaker disclosed that the 15-man board of the MIC would have four, instead of the original two, in-

ACCORDING to Tieng, his committee has approved the penal provision proposed by Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda. That provision says that any director, trustee or officer who willfully or maliciously violates investment guidelines set by the board of directors or whose acts of gross negligence, willful misconduct, fraud, actions in breach of any investment agreement; and in a loss suffered by

What you need to know about planning for your retirement

T

o retire young and to retire rich: this is the goal of most people; and this WAS certainly my goal. Yes, it was my goal—something that I wanted to achieve before…but not anymore.

And let me explain to you why.

Retirement as a goal

A lot of people work hard with dreams of retiring to a comfortable life in the future.

For them, retirement is the time when they don’t have to work anymore; and FINALLY, be able to do the things they enjoy the most—like spending time with their loved ones, traveling, doing volunteer work or maybe pursuing a passion.

If you see retirement this way, then I wouldn’t blame you if you want to retire young and to retire rich because who wouldn’t want to do all that, right?

But here’s the thing.

When you package retirement that way, then it’s like you’re waiting for the stars to align so you’ll have permission to become happy—and until then, you’ll just miserably work and daydream of the time when that moment will finally come.

Unpack your retirement

WHAT are the things that you plan to do when you retire? Unpack your retirement goals, list them down and work on them INDIVIDUALLY. Turn off your work phone and don’t check your email during weekends so you can give your loved ones all the time you have.

Save and invest for your travel fund and go on an amazing trip every so often.

Find a community you can help and do volunteer work at least once a month. Stop watching television and reading online gossip; instead, use your time to pursue a hobby or a passion.

Whatever the things that you want to do when you retire, there will certainly be ways to achieve them sooner and not later.

Dissolve the old idea of retirement

I used to wonder why most bil-

Fitz Gerard Villafuerte

personal finance lionaires continue to work despite having all that money in the bank.

Bill Gates first became the richest person in the world in 1995 but remains active until now in various projects. Oprah Winfrey became a billionaire in 2003; but she’s still working and running her own media network today. J.K. Rowling became wealthier than the Queen of England when her “Harry Potter” books became a film franchise; but she continues to write novels until now.

Why are they still working and not just, you know, “retire”?

The reason, I assume, is that they stopped believing in the old idea of retirement, which is that packaged dream of finally being able to do anything you want.

Instead, they defined concrete long-term goals that excite them—that gives them PURPOSE and MEANING— and that’s why despite already achieving wealth, they choose to continue working.

The strategy remains the same

FIGURE out what you want to do and have in life; then dedicate the time and energy to reach those goals. Regardless of what those goals are, the basic financial strategy remains the same—spend less than what you earn and regularly invest the difference.

But instead of working for that vague idea of retirement, you are now working to have the financial means to pursue the things that concretely matter to you—things that you’ll happily want to do and become busy with, beyond your retirement years.

Fitz Villafuerte is a registered financial planner of RFP Philippines. To learn more about personal-financial planning, attend the 99th RFP program this January 2023. To inquire, e-mail info@rfp.ph or text at 0917-6248110.

HOUSE Deputy Minority leader and ACT Teachers party-list Rep. France L. Castro said that based on the latest version of the bill, the authors have only repackaged the MIF. “For now they are not including the SSS and the GSIS as the primary funders due to the public backlash,” Castro said. “But in the bill, the said insurance systems are still open to fund the MWF; they are just wait-

ing for the people’s anger to simmer down.”

The latest version of Maharlika can also compel local companies to shell out funds, the Deputy Minority leader said. She cited the provision: “additional funding may, likewise, be sourced from investments of private financial institutions and corporations, as may be determined by the Board of Directors.”

“Furthermore, withdrawals from the MIF are not allowed except until ‘only after at least five years of investment activities’—in other words, the earliest would be the end of the term of Pres. [Ferdinand R.] Marcos Jr.,” she added.

According to Bayan Muna Chairman Neri J. Colmenares, the MIC “may compromise, condone or release, in whole or in part, any claim of or settled liability to the MIC, regardless of the amount involved, under such terms and conditions as may be prescribed by the Board of Directors, upon favorable recommendation of the Advisory Body, to protect the interests of the MIC and the integrity of the MIF.” “No amount of tweaking or amendments will save Maharlika because it is inherently public funds that are endangered by crony corruption,” Colmenares said. “Maharlika cannot be approved and must be scrapped.”

BSP, Pagcor

IN last Friday’s hearing, BSP Deputy Governor Francisco G. Dakila Jr. proposed a flexible set-up wherein the BSP will contribute from its declared dividends to the MIF’s startup fund.

BSP lawyer Leila M. Rivera explained to the House panel that the central bank declares dividends in the amount of 50 percent of their income.

Rivera said that with an estimated income of P60 billion to P70 billion for this year, dividends would be between P30 billion to P35 billion.

“The proposal is to have a 50-50 sharing between BSP’s capitalization and the funding source for the [MIF] until such time that the BSP is fully capitalized,” Dakila said. “Once the BSP is fully capitalized, the declared dividends of the BSP to the national government may be earmarked wholly to fund the [MIF].”

Dakila told lawmakers the central bank’s proposal would not affect the country’s international reserves.

The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) is also mandated to contribute 10 percent of its online gaming proceeds to the MIF. Representatives from the LBP, the DBP, and Pagcor formally expressed their support for the creation of the MIF during the hearing.

Risks, rewards

LIKEWISE, the Appropriations panel approved the proposal by Marikina Rep. Stella Luz A. Quimbo to exclude the General Appropriations Act (GAA) as one of the mandatory sources of funding for the MIF. Quimbo also reiterated the importance of the MIF amid the current socio-economic landscape.

She noted that instead of imposing an additional tax burden to the people, the establishment of the MIF provides an alternative source of revenue that can be used to fund critical government projects.

“That is precisely the goal of a sovereign wealth fund,” Quimbo added.

“The bill creates an investment vehicle that will pool surplus funds of the government and ensures that it will be managed professionally and transparently.”

Among others, the MIF bill requires the Board to engage internal and external auditors even as its books are also subject to scrutiny of the Commission on Audit.

In addition, there is a Joint Congressional Committee to monitor the implementation of the MIF law, a requirement to report to the President on the fund performance, a risk management unit to ensure a balance between risk and rewards and a cap on administrative and operating expenses of the MIF.

PhilHealth to offer mental healthcare benefit package

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

T

HE Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) announced last Monday it will launch next year a benefit package that would address Filipinos’ growing mental healthcare needs.

PhilHealth Senior Manager Rey T. Baleña said the state-run insurance corporation will launch mental health services next year under its Universal Health Care plans.

“It is one of the things we will be deploying this coming 2023. And that will be part of the benefit plan

of PhilHealth,” Baleña said during a news briefing.

“We will have an outpatient package for mental health. And we have been preparing this because we know that we have fellow countrymen that are in need of this service because of their mental health issues,” Baleña added.

He, however, did not provide any further details about the proposed plan. Nonetheless, Baleña noted that it will be bankrolled by the funds raised from the increased contributions of PhilHealth members.

Contributions to PhilHealth, a government owned and controlled

corporation, will now be at 4.5 percent of the monthly salary of members starting next year from the current 4 percent as stipulated by the Universal Health Care Act. Baleña addressed the criticisms against the impending contribution hike, saying that at the end of the day the increase in PhilHealth’s fund would result in wider and more efficient healthcare services to Filipinos nationwide.

“We understand the situation of our fellow Filipinos, even those of the employers, especially since employers and companies are still recovering from the impact of the

Covid-19 pandemic,” he said. “But let us think that our contributions are health investments.”

Baleña said that last year, PhilHealth paid P88-billion worth of claims. From the January-toOctober period of this year, the state-run firm has already paid P110 billion in health claims by its members.

Aside from the mental health service package, PhilHealth will also roll-out its transition to diagnostic related groups that would rationalize the payment system to patients depending on their health status and risk profile, he added.

‘Probe hike in catastrophe insurance premium rates’

A

lawmaker filed on Monday a resolution calling for an investigation on the impending abrupt and unreasonable increase of catastrophe—typhoon, flood, earthquake, among others— insurance premium rates.

In House Resolution 632, AGRI Party-list Rep. Wilbert T. Lee said the increase will greatly affect the prices of basic commodities and will be an additional burden to the public.

Lee said he filed the resolution to determine the scope and impact of the Insurance Commission’s (IC) Circular Letter 2022-34 that adjusted the applicable minimum and maximum catastrophe rates across the country.

The adjusted rates, which will take effect on January 1, 2023, are now diversified by determining factors such as risk zones and type of construction. As a result, there will be

a sudden huge increase in insurance premiums ranging from 40 percent to as high as 400 percent.

“The increase ranging from 40 percent to as high as 400 percent in insurance bills to companies, especially to MSMEs [micro-sized, smallscale, medium-sized enterprises] is too high to bear,” Lee said. “It is surely an unreasonable increase and certainly, the paying public will bear the burden of these abrupt increases in insurance rates.”

The lawmaker added that “taking into consideration that we are still just recovering from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is incumbent upon the government to respond to their critical needs as we slowly get back on our feet.”

“We must not add to the burdens of the public, especially the marginalized sectors,” Lee said.

Consult consumers

THE resolution noted that the high cost of catastrophe insurance premiums will certainly impact the unabated and record-high inflation. The bill also said the cost can contribute to the further increase in prices of basic commodities, taking into account the wide scope of catastrophe insurance that covers buildings, warehouses, equipment and residential properties.

The lawmaker said that despite conducting consultations with the Philippine Insurers and Reinsurers Association Inc. (Pira), an organization of all licensed non-life insurance companies in the country, it is crucial to consult the end-user consumers who will be immensely affected by the huge increase in insurance rates.

“The extent of the consultations

conducted by the Insurance Commission is very limited. Several organized business groups and private firms expressed their strong opposition to the said policy in the absence of proper consultation considering the very high increase in insurance cost that can be detrimental to the general public,” Lee said.

“The extremely high and sudden increase in premium rates is unacceptable considering the present challenges and recovery of firms doing business in the Philippines that are availing catastrophe insurance,” he said.

According to Lee, the IC must seriously revisit and hold the implementation of the said policy to allow them to carefully study its critical and detrimental consequences and outcome to various firms, MSMEs and public consumers. Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

US index futures steady at start of pivotal week for monetary-policy decisions

U

S index futures posted modest gains and the dollar erased an advance at the start of a pivotal week for monetary-policy decisions from the Federal Reserve, European Central Bank and a host of their peers.

Contracts on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 indexes were about 0.1 percent higher after weekly losses for the underlying indexes. Treasuries advanced, with the 10-year yield shedding 3 basis points.

Oil fell as traders weighed the demand outlook amid growing economic concerns. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index slid for the sixth time in seven days.

Investors are looking for firmer clues on how far and how fast central banks will tighten monetary policy from here on, as recession fears resurface. The Fed

is projected to slow its hiking spree to a 50 basis-point move on Wednesday, though officials have said borrowing costs will need to remain restrictive for some time.

US inflation figure on Tuesday will throw more light on whether that’s the case or markets have a case for expecting rate cuts in late 2023.

“Throughout this year, we have seen the Fed taking serious aggressive monetary-policy measures to control inflation,” Naeem Aslam, the chief markets analyst at Ava Trade Ltd., wrote in a note.

“However, the last reading made the Fed believe that inflation has started to move in the right direction. This means that they need to do less as there is plenty more tailwind behind this which will continue to push inflation lower.”

Still, a robust labor market and lingering concerns about inflation prevent traders from turning bullish. Disparities in the economic outlook between the world’s regions, from the resurgence of Covid in China to energy volatility in Europe, keep a lid on risk sentiment. The dollar was little changed, after posting a small gain earlier.

Following the Fed, the ECB will announce its rate decision Thursday, and may opt for a 50 basis-point hike. Markets also have to contend with decisions from the Bank of England and monetary authorities in Mexico, Norway, the Philippines, Switzerland and Taiwan.

While the tumult of this year has a gauge of global stocks headed for its biggest annual loss since 2008, the world’s

biggest investors predict that stocks will see low double-digit gains in 2023. As many as 71 percent of respondents in a Bloomberg News survey expect equities to rise, versus 19 percent forecasting declines. For those seeing gains, the average response was a 10 percent return.

Europe’s equity benchmark fell. All its industry subgroups posted losses, with commodity companies being the biggest drag. An index of Asian equities dropped, ending a two-day winning streak. The rapid spread of Covid cases in China added to concern, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index down about 2 percent.

Treasuries rose across the curve, with longer-dated securities seeing bigger yield decreases than the shorter ones.

Bloomberg News

B4

Art

BusinessMirror

Tuesday, December 13, 2022 • Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Rockstar? Painter? Just call Punk Zappa as someone with a ‘multi-personality in order’ ❶ THE Musician,

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Taylor Swift, 33; Jamie Foxx, 55; Wendie Malick, 72; Dick Van Dyke, 97.

Happy Birthday: Clear up unfinished business and ease stress. Closing out one year and opening another with a clean slate will empower you to incorporate plans that will add to your stability and make you feel secure moving forward. Simplify your life by gravitating toward people who ground you instead of toward those who cause havoc and negativity. Choose peace over chaos.

Your numbers are 4, 9, 15, 22, 27, 37, 42.

a

❷ Behold!

Multihyphenate Marcus Adoro

By Eugenia Last

z

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Listen carefully, and you’ll avoid a dispute. It’s not worth your time to start a feud with someone who doesn’t share your beliefs. Put your energy into being the best you can be and making a positive difference to those you encounter. HHHHH

Marcus Adoro, 2020, oil on canvas, 4”x6”

Rejoice! Surfernando is Hear Na Vinyl Release Album Cover, Marcus Adoro, 2022, oil on canvas, 24”x24”

Today’s Horoscope

b

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): If you crave change, do something simple and fun rather than extensive and expensive. Use your connections to find out what’s going on and how you can use what’s trending to get ahead. Do things right, not in haste. HH

I

T may have taken 50 odd years (“50 [years old na nga] ’ata ako, tatanong ko ulit nanay ko, kinalimutan ko na bilangin), a legendary music career, his fair share of ups and downs, but eclectic multihyphenate Marcus Adoro finally arrives at his moment as a bona fide exhibiting visual artist.

To be fair, it wasn’t only until a few years ago when the Eraserheads lead guitarist committed himself to painting. The practice, this creative outlet, after all, is what kept him sane during the pandemic, he said.

Now, amid his packed schedule of preparing for the highly anticipated reunion concert next week and recording a soundtrack, among other pursuits, Adoro proudly stars in his ongoing debut solo exhibition as a painter.

Titled Head and mounted by Vintana.ph (@vintana. ph), the show opened on December 5 at Pink House in Taguig City and is on view until December 19.

‘Hindi lang EHeads pinipinta ko’ DISPLAYED on the walls of the house converted into an event space and then into a pop-up gallery is the artist’s mélange of paintings, mostly figurative and largely created over the pandemic. It’s a collection of visualized memories and musings that showcase heavy influences by Van Gogh and Adoro’s great level of commitment to studying and experimenting with various techniques and materials.

Self-portraits abound, along with other pieces that take viewers into the inquisitive mind of Adoro. Of course, there are pieces about the Eraserheads, which became a hit series comprised of paintings, calendar, and even an NFT collection. But it is one that the artist now tries to slowly evolve away from to showcase other facets of his art.

“Eheads-related art somehow became a vehicle for me to learn various techniques by way repetition, so in a way I was discovering new insights while making band supporters happy, and it also helped me sustain this journey,” Adoro said in an e-mail interview ahead of the show. “This exhibition is also my way of saying ‘Huy mga bw*kang-in* niyo—hindi lang Eheads pinipinta ko lolzz.’”

c

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Not so fast. Time is on your side, and doing your due diligence will pay off. Focus on what’s important to you and the responsibilities that need your attention. Don’t leave yourself short because you feel you must clean up someone else’s mistake. HHHH

❶

d

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Draw on your insight and creative talent to make selfimprovements. Promote what you love to do and turn it into a commercial venture. Avoid shared expenses or picking up after others. Protect what you’ve worked so hard to achieve. HHH

❷ point he decided to become a painter one day.

It wasn’t until 2019, however, when Adoro followed through on the idea. Then came the pandemic and painting served as his form of meditation. He created art until it became routinary, with Adoro working on three to four artworks at a time.

“I learned that I can discipline myself because it came to a point where I was churning out pieces like clockwork,” he said. “Sunlight was suddenly my best friend during the day and alcohol during the night (to knock me off early so I can wake up early, and to soothe me from the problems of the world). I also learned to tame some medium—I particularly found oil challenging so I focused on it and is now my main medium. I also learned that I can survive doing art in trying times.”

Painting like clockwork “LIKE most children, I drew a lot—on wall and paper, and on soil or sand. I remember copying comic strips from newspapers and cartoons from Reader’s Digest,” said Adoro, who’s also known as, among other things, the bloody fishball-eating Punk Zappa.

During his college years at the University of the Philippines-Diliman, most of Adoro’s friends were from the UP College of Fine Arts. It was a network composed of the personalities of the local art circle, which exposed him to the avant-garde, the prevailing art thought at the time. In 2004, a couple of years removed from the disbandment of the Eraserheads, Adoro tried his hand in oil painting. It was at that

Method to madness ACCORDING to Vintana.ph founder and art director Angela Gaddi, Adoro disapproves of brandings, more so for his art.

“I don’t think he thinks he’s figurative,” she said during the exhibit opening, as Adoro’s artworks of portraits, forms, and scenes hang in the exhibition space. “He’s self-taught, but then he is not helterskelter as you might think because he is a rock star. When it comes to his art, he is actually very methodical.”

This level of meticulousness becomes evident upon

Continued on B5

posed intentionally and dressed in vibrant textiles and patterned garments. The artist’s dynamic compositions celebrate his subjects with thick swatches of paint, energetic linework and lively color.

Baron’s practice is distinguished by dualities between figuration and abstraction, color and form, dynamism and stillness.

Despite the artist’s varying subjects, his portraits are unified by a singular visual identity characterized by his energetic compositions, a paradoxical simplification and exaggeration of his subjects’ features,

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): If you want something, speed up the process, and don’t stop until you are satisfied with the results. Do your best to help others along the way and share your success with those you love. HHH

f

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Promote change and make things happen. Your enthusiasm and drive will help draw attention and support for you to achieve something new and exciting. A little charm will go a long way regarding love, personal gain and happiness. Romance is encouraged. HHH

g

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Learn all you can before you make a move or say something you’ll regret. Discipline will be a necessity to reach your goals. Do what you can to be of help, but don’t neglect your responsibilities in the interim. HHHH

h

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Don’t back yourself into a corner personally or professionally. Take time to go through the process from start to finish before deciding on what’s best for you. A move may not be welcomed by loved ones. Be patient, but don’t give up on your dreams. HH

i

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Listen carefully; misinformation is heading your way.

Verify information before you pass it along or alter your course due to what you hear. Searching for truth will enlighten you and encourage you to make a positive move. Hard work will pay off. HHHHH

j

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Address financial, medical or legal issues before time runs out. Don’t leave anything to chance or in someone else’s hands. Make positive changes to your home and share your time and space with friends and family. A unique offer is heading your way. HHH

k

RAFAEL BARON’S FIRST SOLO NEW YORK, New York—The albertz benda gallery presents Pose, the first New York solo exhibition of work by Brazilian artist Rafael Baron which opened on November 17.

With this exhibition, Baron presents a new body of large-scale paintings alongside smaller gouache-on-paper pieces capturing portraits of people that he comes across on a day-to-day basis in his hometown of Nova Iguaçu, Brazil.

Portraits of housewives, service workers and day laborers occupy Baron’s canvases,

e

and a flattening of receding space.

Through these works, the artist elevates working class citizens through references to classical portraiture. His subjects are depicted pridefully, with an atmosphere of regality and elegance befitting a royal portrait. These works endow Baron’s figures with power, the lower social status of his subjects subverted as they stand tall and proudly take up space.

In Laura, 2022, a woman with short blonde hair dominates the composition.

Her stern yet ambiguous expression is

elevated by her stance. Sitting stiffly upon a patterned chair, she dons sophisticated attire—a multi-colored turtleneck and long black skirt.

She folds her elbows on her knees as her hands hold a lit cigarette, its smoke billowing on the canvas. Baron does not aim to portray realism in his works; rather he captures the essence of his subjects and depicts their personalities through abstracted figurations.

Pose by Rafael Baron is on view until December 22 at albertz benda in New York.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Make a promise to yourself or someone you love that will show how you feel and how committed you are to a project, decision or plan. Added discipline, coupled with emotion and desire, will lead to better days ahead. HHH

l

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Abide by the rules and make sure your paperwork is updated. The more you do now, the easier it will be to enjoy the festive season. Transition into next year with a clean slate and a plan that excites you. HHH Birthday Baby: You are ambitious, charming and emotional.

You are creative and generous.

H: Avoid conflicts; work behind the scenes. HH: You can accomplish, but don’t rely on others. HHH: Focus and you’ll reach your goals. HHHH: Aim high; start new projects. HHHHH: Nothing can stop you; go for gold.

‘coffee break’ by julian lim The Universal Crossword/Edited by David Steinberg

ACROSS 1 What a dog “shakes” with 4 Jet ___ 7 Facility in Quantico, Va. 13 “Open sesame!” speaker 15 Like a toady 16 Archenemies (note the last 2 letters of this clue’s answer...)

17 Persist (...+ the first 6 of this one) 18 Person living abroad, perhaps 19 Bareilles of “Girls5eva” 20 Fur baby 21 The Phantom of the Opera suitor 24 “___ just not fair!”

26 Ordinary guy (last 2 letters...)

29 Place to get hitched (...+ first 3) 33 Tax filing mo.

34 Starts to melt 36 Bring joy to 37 Prescribed things, briefly 39 Batman installment, e.g.

41 Disneyland transport 42 “Not me!”

44 Arterial implant

Director Burton Chaperone (last 4 letters...)

Aww-inspiring? (...+ first 3) Part of WWII Put back to 0 “when r u arriving?”

What’s left to cartographers?

Tenant’s document Habitat for oysters (last 3 letters...)

Israeli city on the Mediterranean (...+ first 2) 66 “Yes, ___” (“Darn tootin’”) 67 “I’ll await your letter!”

68 Light beams 69 Workplaces for surgeons: Abbr.

70 “Head for the hills!”

DOWN 1 Sheet of glass 2 Honnold who free soloed El Capitan 3 Scaredy-cat 4 Denouement 5 16th prez 6 Helium, for one 7 Containing iron 46 47 49 51 52 53 56 58 62 64

8 9 10 11 12 14 15 19 22 23 25 26 27 28 30 31 32 35 38 40 43 45 48 50

Get some air?

Hospital hookups Speech characteristic for some Soothing succulent Like knees when kneeling Grizzlies, e.g.

“Me day” destination Bad thing to get off to in a race “Fancy meeting you here!”

Amherst sch.

Brine ingredient Hellraiser actress Clayton Opinion columns Acute care pro Second section Online business “I wanna do it!”

Soft shoe material Makeup of a white blanket?

Grandson of Eve Fishing vessel Lattice for plants Tire patterns Bothered relentlessly

53 54 55 57 59 60 61 63 64 65

Name that’s a fruit backward Sashimi fish Uses the + sign Messy digs State confidently Shang-Chi actor Liu Not odd Cost to enter Tandem bike’s capacity Screw up

Solution to today’s puzzle:

Show BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

• Tuesday, December 13, 2022

B5

Ukrainian youth choir defies war with messages of freedom COPENHAGEN, Denmark—From a dank Kyiv bomb shelter to the bright stage lights of Europe’s theaters, a Ukrainian youth choir’s hymns in praise of freedom offer a kind of healing balm to its war-scarred members. The Shchedryk ensemble, described as Kyiv’s oldest professional children’s choir, were in the Danish capital this week for a performance as part of an international tour that also took them to New York’s famed Carnegie Hall.

It was supposed to be part of a busy year to celebrate the choir’s 50th anniversary. But Russia’s February 24 invasion of Ukraine changed all that, with members scattering inside their homeland and abroad in search of safety. Some members say they have lost friends and family in the fighting.

“It is very difficult to gather the children,” said Marianna Sablina, the choir’s artistic director and chief conductor, whose mother founded the choir in 1971. Some of the members are “outside the borders of Ukraine, and only about a third of the forum currently lives in Kyiv.”

Earlier this year, the choir managed to reassemble and began rehearsing in Kyiv’s National Palace of Arts. The vagaries of war often plagued the rehearsals.

When Kyiv came under bombardment and suffered power outages, air raid sirens forced the choir to assemble in a darkened bomb shelter, illuminating their sheet music with whatever light source they could find. “When there are sirens, we go to the shelter and just sing with our phones and flashlights,” said 15-year-old choir member Anastasiia Rusina, whose family fled to western Ukraine following the invasion. “I think that we’re kind of getting used to it because it’s our job to do. We have a concert, so we just cannot skip any rehearsals,” she said.

The audience at Copenhagen’s Church of The Holy Ghost recently listened to the soaring voices of the choir, made up mostly teenage girls wearing black and white dresses accentuated by red and black squares on their sleeves and colorful beads around their necks.

“I sincerely hope that the concert here will send a message of love and hope and also sympathy and support to all Ukrainian families,” said Nataliya Popovych, cofounder of Copenhagen’s Ukraine House, a civil society organization which brought the group to Denmark. “Hopefully next year, all Ukrainian families will be able to celebrate Christmas properly,” she added.

At the core of the performance was the song “Carol of the Bells,” perhaps best known from the 1990 Christmas movie Home Alone. The carol was originally arranged by Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych in the early 1900s. The choir’s name, “Shchedryk,” comes from the song’s Ukrainian title.

“We have to send to people that our culture is so important to our world,” Polina Holtseva, another said 15-year-old choir member, whose family has stayed in Kyiv throughout the conflict. “It’s our culture, it’s our songs, and it’s so amazing that we have a chance to give you this music,” she said. Choir members Rusina and Holtseva said they don’t have any concrete career plans. They noted they don’t don’t even know what they’re going to do tomorrow. But amid the horrors of war, Shchedryk choir has become their “safe place.”

“We just don’t think about the war or our situation.

We just sing, we’re together with our friends, our family,” Rusina said. AP

Rockstar? Painter?

Just call Punk zappa as someone with a ‘multi-personality in order’ Continued from B4 deeper inspection of Adoro’s featured pieces for his debut solo exhibition. His saccharine worlds carry engaging, multi-layered narratives. As Gaddi puts it in the exhibition note, “Somewhere in between, where things aren’t seen with the naked eye, there is always goodness in the blue skies and flowers, but [also] another force—a wild pain and decay also accompanies everything.”

During the opening of Head—a title that signifies many things for Adoro, from his band name to “head case” to “check your head”—the artist discussed his idea for the show. He said it was meant to showcase his art, not necessarily to rebrand or confine himself as a visual artist.

“Para sa ’kin, ang pagiging artist, multi-discipline thing,” Adoro said, citing his ventures into screenplay writing and directing, among other stuff. For him, it’s not so much about deep diving into one discipline as it is about chasing that thrill of excitement over and over again in learning new things, methods and expressions.

“Like being a jack of all trades?” I asked. “’Di naman, ‘di ko gusto kadugtong nun eh,” Adoro quipped, smiling, before finding a term he liked better. “Parang...multi-personality in order.” n

Performances to watch out for at the MMFF T

HERE are many reasons why this year’s Metro Manila Film Festival (MMFF) looks promising, and this early we can already identify some of the noteworthy performances that might create ripples when the participating movies are finally shown on Christmas day.

Leading character actor Mon Confiado plays the main antagonist in Nanahimik ang Gabi. Known in the industry as an actor who goes deep into his many characters and meticulously prepares for his every new role, Confiado isolated himself in the mountains of Baguio and the untouched forests of Luzon for this prized role.

A few weeks ago, Confiado was awarded Best Supporting Actor by the Society of Philippine Entertainment Editors, an organization that hands out its annual recognition they call the Eddy Awards.

He won for his performance in the 2021 movie Arisaka, directed by Paul Soriano who also gave Confiado a lead role in a new movie, titled The Fisher, set to do the international festival rounds in 2023.

“I am truly privileged to be continuously entrusted with amazing roles to portray on the big screen by this generation of acclaimed filmmakers. I enjoy

acting on film tremendously because I can prepare before I completely submerge into my character, immerse myself in an unfamiliar milieu, and discover so many facets of truth, realities and characteristics of people and places. Acting is not only a passion but the core of my existence, and I treat every new assignment as another opportunity to reignite this passion and to constantly evolve as an actor,” Confiado said.

Calling the shots for Nanahimik ang Gabi is directorwriter Shugo Praico, who described the casting for Confiado’s role as a tricky one, with more than a dozen actors considered to portray the intruder’s character. “We couldn’t have gotten a better actor to give life to Mon’s character,” shared Praico, who together with director Lino Cayetano form the core of Rein Entertainment, the studio behind this highlytouted festival entry.

Another gem of a movie that is creating quite a strong buzz is Family Matters, directed by Nuel Naval from the script of Mel del Rosario, with a very strong ensemble cast.

We are more than delighted to know that veteran actors Noel Trinidad and Liza Lorena head the cast of this movie, and it is their first time to be paired onscreen. The careers of Trinidad and Lorena were understandably quiet during the pandemic, since both are senior citizens with higher health risks involved. “Thank God the industry is slowly getting back to normalcy so actors like Noel and I can start accepting acting jobs,” enthused Lorena, who is also busy working on a series starring Kim Chiu and Angel Aquino.

“I have hearing difficulty at my age but when I got hold of the script, I knew I had to accept this project,“ volunteered Trinidad, who many say will be a strong contender for the Best Festival Lead Actor plum. “I appreciate the nice feedback but truthfully, I wish

there would be a Best Acting Ensemble category because our film will surely be in contention, modesty aside.”

Playing their eldest son is thespian Nonie Buencamino, who always leaves an indelible mark in every role that he portrays. Buencamino is currently out of town working on an international project which has been filming since September.

“I am excited to watch the movie when I get back to Manila before Christmas. I almost did not get to do this because of schedule conflicts but it was a role too precious to let go, and I feel very happy that I was able to finish all my scenes the day before my flight,” he told us.

Another actor for this year’s festival that we are happy for is Joey de Leon, who shares lead duties with Toni Gonzaga for the movie My Teacher, directed

by Paul Soriano for his Ten-17 Productions. Gonzaga plays a high-school teacher who returned to her hometown and learns some of life’s most precious lessons from an unconventional 70-year old-student, played by De Leon.

“This movie is special, both fun and heartwarming, and perfect for the Christmas season.

I am happy to be have been cast for the role of the oldest student in the school. I hope that our film, and all entires for that matter, can help bring back the audience to the cinemas because it will be a big boost to the local film industry,” De Leon said.

The actors we mentioned are all deserving of recognition for sure. We just hope that the jury members will see past popularity and look objectively at the performances of Noel Trinidad, Mon Confiado, Liza Lorena, Nonie Buencamino and Joey de Leon when they choose their winners. Most of these names are underdogs for sure, but we always root for the underdogs who are most deserving, don’t we? n

Dreams, diversity...and ‘Dakila’ WHEN GMA Public Affairs began producing historical and socio-political dramas nearly ten years ago, little did the team know that they would eventually find themselves making the “Most Watched Drama of 2022” with the top-rating Lolong, the story of a hero fighting injustice and corruption in his small town. Lolong is GMA Public Affairs’ biggest series since its venture into drama production, one among a long list of titles that deal with relevant topics, like Philippine history (Katipunan, Ilustrado), the dreams of seafarers and financial literacy (One of the Baes, Owe My Love), and serious issues, like mental health and good governance (Love You Stranger, Bayan Ko).

While its success in scripted series may come as a surprise, excellent storytelling that impacts society has been touted as being at the core of what GMA Public Affairs has done over the last three decades. A pioneer in documentary, talk and news magazine programming, GMA Public Affairs has put the Philippines on the world stage, with its legacy programs recognized by prestigious award-giving bodies—from Cannes to Monte Carlo, London, New York, and Tokyo—even bagging four prestigious George Foster Peabody Awards trophies and a nod from the Emmys.

This 2023, impactful storytelling will remain at the heart of public affairs programming as it expands messagemaking to a wider audience through a diverse lineup of formats and titles.

Lolong and his crocodile friend Dakila

are set to make a big return. Lolong: Ang Luha ng Unang Atubaw follows the journey of Lolong (Ruru Madrid) after realizing his full potential as a hero who can save people from the hands of corrupt men. After freeing the people of Del Rio and Tumahan from the wicked Armando Banson (Christopher de Leon), Lolong chooses to live a peaceful life with the surviving Atubaws and Elsie (Shaira Diaz), the woman he loves. But fate plays a cruel joke when they discover that the most important treasure of their tribe—the crystallized tear of the first Atubaw—is missing. Ruru Madrid’s busy year will see him team up with real-life sweetheart Bianca Umali in The Write One, a romantic drama

with a touch of fantasy to be produced in partnership with a major online platform. It tells the story of Liam (Ruru), a frustrated man who is given a chance to rewrite his love and life story with the help of a mysterious typewriter.

The action series Black Rider and fantasy Sireno are also set to begin production in 2023.

In addition to televised dramas, GMA Public Affairs is set to launch exclusive digital series to be headlined by Sparkle’s young love teams. In Zero Kilometers Away, Kyline Alcantara and Mavy Legaspi play Gwen and Ardi, BFFs who initially meet on a dating app and decide to keep it platonic.

Perhaps GMA Public Affairs’ most ambitious venture in 2023 is its entry into filmmaking. At least four feature films are currently in the works for its newly formed film division, including Firefly, which follows a young boy’s search for the mythical island of fireflies described in his mother’s bedtime stories. The film is being helmed by Zig Dulay, acclaimed director of GMA classics Sahaya and Maria Clara at Ibarra.

While Public Affairs expands into different genres, its core offerings in documentary and public service remain at the fore. Twenty twenty-three will be a year of documentary specials shot in 4K with Lost Sabungeros as the banner title.

Planting White Seeds which tells the story of one man with an unorthodox offer to distribute his seed to Filipinas via artificial insemination; and AFAM Hunters, which explores the unique connections between Pinays and their foreigner lovers, complete the 4K docu lineup.

Flagship documentary program I-Witness, celebrating 23 years as Philippine television’s finest hour, will introduce fresh faces to its lineup of formidable hosts with the entry of Mav Gonzales and John Consulta.

GMA Public Affairs wraps up its 2023 content slate with Resibo: Walang Lusot ang may Atraso, a public service program hosted

by Emil Sumangil aimed at giving a voice to the public’s grievances and complaints, exposing wrongdoing, and providing concrete resolutions.

FROM left: Noel Trinidad, Mon Confiado, Joey de Leon, and Nonie Buencamino

B6 Tuesday, December 13, 2022

Marcos appoints Fereira as new CITEM Executive Director

DBP grants P152.1 million loan to a transport coop in Batangas

SHOWN IN PHOTO DURING THE BLESSING OF THE DBP-FINANCED PUJS OF BATRASCO ARE (FROM LEFT): Ronald Fabrea of Forland Philippines - The Legacy Trucks & Tractors Inc.; Engr. Marlon Manalo of LGU Lipa, BATRASCO Chairman Emmanuel Ada, Land Transportation Franchising Regulatory Board Region IV-A Regional Director Colonel Renwick Rutaquio, BATRASCO General Manager Romeo Macailao, Col. Aniceto Malapitan of the Provincial Government of Batangas, Mataas Na Kahoy Mayor Janet Ilagan, Land Transportation Office Assistant Regional Director Atty. April Casabuena, Cooperative Development Authority Regional Director Giovanni Platero, Provincial Cooperative, Livelihood and Entrepreneurial Development Office Department Head Cecilia Atienza, DBP Senior Assistant Vice President Violeta Dela Torre, and Office of the Transport Cooperative representative Cresenciana Galvez.

S

TATE-OWNED Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) has granted a P152.1-million credit assistance to a Batangas-based transport cooperative for the acquisition of 85 modern public utility jeepney (PUJs) units to promote sustainable transport system in the province, a top official said.

DBP President and Chief Executive Officer Emmanuel G. Herbosa said the loan to Batangas Transport Cooperative (BATRASCO) under the Bank’s Program Assistance to Support Alternative Driving

Approaches (PASADA) would finance the cooperative’s first batch of modernized public utility vehicles (PUVs) that would be deployed in six towns of Batangas which ranks as the 7th most populous province in the country.

“Our tie-up with BATRASCO further strengthens our longstanding commitment toward the improvement of the country's transport system that will promote convenience and ensure the safety of the riding public,” Herbosa said.

DBP is the eighth largest bank in the

country in terms of assets and provides credit support to four strategic sectors of the economy – infrastructure and logistics; micro, small and medium enterprises; environment; social services and community development.

BATRASCO is a duly registered cooperative managed by land transport officers with more than ten years of experience in the industry. It has more than 2,000 members, most of whom are based in Batangas.

The PASADA is DBP’s flagship program to modernize the country’s transport system that offers financing for the acquisition of brand-new and energy-efficient public transport vehicles as well as the provision of support facilities to transport corporations and cooperatives at favorable terms and conditions.

DBP Senior Vice President and Head of Lending Program and Management Group Carolyn I. Olfindo said that BATRASCO is the first transport cooperative in Batangas to have an approved loan with the Bank following the issuance of its Local Public Transport Route Plan, which includes seven routes in highly populated areas of the province.

She said the modern PUVs financed

by DBP would serve the travel needs of the riding public especially those in the cities of Lipa and Batangas and the municipalities of Mataas Na Kahoy, Rosario, San Juan, and Bauan.

“As of end of September 2022, DBP has approved 98 accounts under the PASADA with a total loan amount of P7.56-billion, as the Bank continues to explore ways to find sustainable solutions to hasten the modernization of the transport sector,” Olfindo said.

In response to Carats’ request, grill expert Mang Inasal sponsors SEVENTEEN WORLD TOUR

M

ANG Inasal, the country’s Grill Expert, is one of the sponsors of the highly anticipated return to the Philippines of the K-pop performance powerhouse, SEVENTEEN. "We appreciate how SEVENTEEN’s fans, the Carats, have been tweeting Mang Inasal to support SEVENTEEN WORLD TOUR [BE THE SUN] – BULACAN,” said Mang Inasal Business Unit Head Mike V. Castro. “And as a special Christmas gift to them, we are granting their wish and they’ll see Mang Inasal booths on December 17 at the

Lancaster Group of Companies opens R. M. Lim’s Chinese Buffet restaurant in Lancaster Hotel in Mandaloyung City

R

Prima Infra-led WawaJVCo inaugurates Phase 1 of Wawa Bulk Water Supply Project in Tayabasan Weir, Antipolo City

P

RIME Infra-led WawaJVCo on December 6, 2022 inaugurated Phase 1 of the Wawa Bulk Water Supply Project designed to deliver an initial 80 million liters per day of raw water.

Prime Infra Chairman Enrique Razon

Jr. and President and CEO Guillaume Lucci led the inauguration, along with WawaJVCo President Melvin John Tan, San Lorenzo Ruiz Builders and Developers Group Inc. (SLRB) Chairman Oscar Violago and President and CEO AJ

T

HE Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM), the export trade promotion arm of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), mandated in promoting the Philippines as a reliable source of quality export products and services in the global market, announced that Dr. Edward L. Fereira, Ph.D. was recently appointed by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. as its Executive Director. Fereira took his oath of office before DTI Secretary Fred Pascual at the DTI Main office.

He enters the country’s trade promotions industry bringing with him three decades of experience in the fields of science, business management, marketing, diplomacy, and now government service.

In 2018, Fereira was appointed as the Special Envoy of the President of the Philippines to the Republic of Kazakhstan. He also served as the First Honorary Consul of

MERALCO WORKS 24/7 TO COMPLETE RELOCATION WORKS FOR THE LRT LINE 1 CAVITE EXTENSION PROJECT. The Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) implemented a pole relocation project, involving the replacement of a 55-foot concrete pole and four spans of power cables and re-orientation of its attached two-level double crossarm, to accommodate the ongoing construction of the LRT Line 1 Cavite Extension project near Imelda Bridge, La Huerta, Parañaque City. The LRT Line 1 Cavite Extension Project is a joint project of the Department of Transportation, Light Rail Transit Authority, and the Light Rail Manila Corporation. This rail project will add 11 kilometers to the existing LRT Line 1 system and will have eight stations connecting Baclaran in Parañaque City to Bacoor in Cavite. To date, around 2,300 poles have already been relocated by Meralco to support the government’s priority infrastructure projects. Meralco and its subsidiaries are continuously working with the government to guarantee the timely relocation of affected electric facilities and support the speedy completion of projects under the Build Better More program.

Philippine Arena.”

Mang Inasal will also run a special concert ticket giveaway in its social community Mang Inasal Nation, wherein promo participants will just be asked to share a photo of their favorite Mang Inasal moment and caption it with their answer to the question: ‘Why do you want to see SEVENTEEN live?’

Want more Mang Inasal exclusives now? Visit www.manginasal.com for the latest updates, https://manginasaldelivery. com.ph for delivery deals, and follow Mang Inasal on social media!

From left are, Prime Infra President and CEO Guillaume Lucci, MWSS Chairman Atty. Elpidio Vega and Administrator Leonor Cleofas, Prime Infra Chairman Enrique Razon Jr., SLRB Chairman Oscar Violago and President and CEO AJ Violago, Antipolo Rep. Romeo Acop, Antipolo Vice Mayor Josefina Gatlabayan, Rizal Vice Governor Reynaldo San Juan Jr. and Calawis Barangay Captain Allan Abonyo.

DR. Edward L. Fereira, Ph.D is sworn in as the new Executive Director of CITEM by DTI Secretary Fred Pascual.

the Republic of Kazakhstan in the Philippines from 2004 to 2011.

The new executive director was also a former President of the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP), the country’s biggest business and management organization composed of top business luminaries. His stint in MAP became his springboard to diplomacy as he led and chaired various private and government trade missions to different countries.

Fereira’s government career includes leadership roles at the National Development Corporation (NDC), Philippine International Trading Corporation (PITC), First Cavite Industrial Estate (FCIE), Manila Gas, and Land Bank Realty Development Corporation (LBRDC) among others.

Fereira was conferred the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Technology Management by the Technological University of the Philippines (TUP). He also holds an MBA degree from the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) and a Master of Science (MS) in Marketing Management Development from Syracuse University in New York. He graduated from the University of the Philippines with a bachelor's degree in microbiology.

After completing his post-graduate studies in lunar microbiology, Fereira worked for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), under the Apollo 11 “First Man Moon Landing” project, as the first Filipino Lunar Microbiologist who examined the moon rocks brought back by Neil Armstrong, Edwin Aldrin and Michael Collins.

Before Fereira’s appointment, CITEM Deputy Executive Director Ma. Lourdes D. Mediran served as the agency’s officer-incharge (OIC).

Violago, Rizal Vice Governor Reynaldo San Juan Jr., and the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) led by Chairman Atty.

Elpidio Vega.

Also present were Antipolo second district congressman Romeo Acop, Antipolo Vice Mayor Josefina Gatlabayan, and representatives from Manila Water Company, Inc. (MWC) led by President and CEO Jocot de Dios, Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) led by Calabarzon Regional Executive Director Nilo Tamoria, and the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) led by Calabarzon Regional Director Dr. Carlos Buasen Jr. Phase 1 of the Wawa Bulk Water Supply Project is the Tayabasan Weir located in Antipolo City.

The construction of Phase 2 or the Upper Wawa Dam is ongoing and targeted to completed by 2025. Once Phase 2 is completed, WawaJVCo will be able to supply at least 518 MLD per day of raw water.

The Wawa Bulk Water Supply Project is being developed by WawaJVCo, a joint venture of Prime Infra and San Lorenzo Ruiz Builders and Developers Group, Inc.

.M. Lim's Chinese Buffet of the Lancaster Group of Companies opened last November 18, 2022 in Mandaluyong City.

The new Chinese restaurant is part of the Lancaster Group of Companies located at the Lancaster Hotel along Shaw Boulevard, Mandaluyong City.

R.M. Lim’s Chinese Buffet is named after the President and CEO of the Lancaster Group of Companies, Ronald M. Lim, offering to the public a value-for-money Chinese cuisine buffet with a massive spread that includes dimsum, noodles, soup, congee, and a variety of authentic Chinese dishes.

For only an affordable net price of P599, the buffet restaurant offers unlimited Chinese dishes that Chinese food lovers and enthusiasts will surely enjoy.

Led by Lim, with his Chinese culinary heritage, together with partners Norman Alensuela, and Marlon Aquino, R.M. Lim’s Chinese Buffet is open from 10 am to 10 pm

BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION. Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Trenas celebrated his 66th birthday last December 5, 2022 with a mass and a simple celebration at the grounds of the Iloilo City Hall.

daily, with no cut-offs and no breaks.

For reservations and inquiries, you may call the Lancaster Contact Center at 09688697673.

World Features

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

BusinessMirror

Tuesday, December 13, 2022

B7

Biden aims to narrow trust gap with US-Africa leaders summit W

By Aamer Madhani, Farai Mutsaka & Mogomotsi Magome The Associated Press

ASHINGTON—President Joe Biden is set to play host to dozens of African leaders in Washington this week as the White House looks to narrow a gaping trust gap with Africa—one that has grown wider over years of frustration about America’s commitment to the continent.

In the lead-up to the three-day US-Africa Leaders Summit that begins Tuesday, Biden administration officials played down their increasing concern about the clout of China and Russia in Africa, which is home to more than 1.3 billion people. Instead, administration officials tried to put the focus on their efforts to improve cooperation with African leaders.

“This summit is an opportunity to deepen the many partnerships we have on the African continent,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said when asked about the shadow that China and Russia cast on the meetings.

“We will focus on our efforts to strengthen these partnerships across a wide range of sectors spanning from businesses to health to peace and security, but our focus will be on Africa next week.”

To that end, White House officials said that “major deliverables and initiatives”—diplomatic speak for big announcements— will be peppered throughout the

meetings. The White House previewed one major summit announcement on Friday, saying that Biden would use the gathering to declare his support for adding the African Union as a permanent member of the Group of 20 nations.

The summit will be the biggest international gathering in Washington since before the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. Local officials are warning residents to brace for roadblocks and intensified security as 49 invited heads of states and leaders—and Biden—whiz around the city.

Talks are expected to center on the coronavirus, climate change, the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Africa, trade and more, according to White House officials. Biden is set to deliver remarks at a US-Africa business forum, hold small group meetings with leaders, host a leaders’ dinner at the White House and take part in other sessions with leaders during the gathering.

Biden has spent much of his

first two years in office trying to assuage doubters on the international stage about American leadership after four years of Donald Trump’s “America First” foreign policy. With this summit—a follow-up to the first such gathering held eight years ago by President Barack Obama—Biden has an opportunity to assuage concerns in Africa about whether the US is serious about tending to the relationship.

Biden’s effort to draw African nations closer to the US comes at a complicated moment, as his administration has made plain that it believes that Chinese and Russian activity in Africa is a serious concern to US and African interests.

In its sub-Saharan Africa strategy unveiled in August, the Biden administration warned that China, which has pumped billions into African energy, infrastructure and other projects, sees the region as an arena where Beijing can “challenge the rules-based international order, advance its own narrow commercial and geopolitical interests, undermine transparency and openness.”

The administration also argues that Russia, the preeminent arms dealer in Africa, views the continent as a permissive environment for Kremlin-connected oligarchs and private military companies to focus on fomenting instability for their own strategic and financial benefit.

Still, administration officials are emphasizing that concerns about China and Russia will not be central to the talks.

“The United States prioritizes our relationship with Africa for the sake of our mutual interests and our partnership in dealing with global challenges,” Molly

Phee, assistant secretary of state for African affairs, told reporters before the summit. “We are very conscious, again, of the Cold War history, we’re conscious, again, of the deleterious impact of colonialism on Africa, and we studiously seek to avoid repeating some of the mistakes of those earlier eras.”

The administration has been disappointed that much of the continent has declined to follow the US in condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but Biden is not expected to dwell on differences publicly.

The president is expected to participate with leaders in a session on promoting food security and food systems resilience. Africa has been disproportionately impacted by the global rise in food prices that has been caused in part by the drop in shipments from major grain exporter Ukraine.

“One of the unique aspects of this summit is the collateral damage that the Russian war has inflicted on Africa in terms of food supply and the diversion of development assistance to Ukraine. The opportunity costs of the invasion have been very high in Africa,” said John Stremlau, a visiting professor of international relations at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg.

Four countries that were suspended from the African Union— Guinea, Sudan, Mali and Burkina Faso—were not invited to the summit because coups in those nations led to unconstitutional changes in power. The White House also did not invite the East African nation of Eritrea; Washington does not have full diplomatic relations with the country.

Biden’s decision to invite several leaders to the summit who have

questionable records on human rights and democracy is looming large ahead of the gathering.

Equatorial Guinea was invited despite the State Department stating that it held “serious doubts” about last month’s election in the tiny Central African nation. Opposition parties “made credible allegations of significant electionrelated irregularities, including documented instances of fraud, intimidation, and coercion,” according to the department. Election officials reported that President Teodoro Obiang’s ruling party won nearly 95% of the vote.

Zimbabwe, which has faced years of US and Western sanctions over poor governance, human rights abuses and widespread corruption, also was invited.

President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who seized power from longtime ruler Robert Mugabe in 2017, has sought to cast himself as a reformer, but local and international human rights campaigners accuse him of repression that is just as bad or even worse than Mugabe’s.

Although Mnangagwa enjoys cozy relations with China and Russia, as did Mugabe, he has also sought to make friends with the US and other Western countries in an effort to bolster his legitimacy.

In a national address that he delivered in November in a new C hinese-g if ted mu lt imi l l iond ol l a r p a r l i a me nt b u i l d i n g , Mnangag wa held out the invitation to the US-Africa summit as a sign of his administration’s success. He said the southern African countr y welcomed the inv it at ion, but he a lso c a l led for the “unconditional ” remova l of sa nct ions t hat he bl a mes

for Z i mb a b we ’s d ebi l it at i n g econom ic woes.

“Emphasis remains on dialogue,” Mnangagwa said.

Ethiopia received an invitation even though Biden late last year announced he was cutting out the country from a US trade program, known as the African Growth and Opportunity Act, over Ethiopia’s failure to end a war in the Tigray region that led to “gross violations” of human rights. A peace deal was signed last month, but implementation faces major challenges such as the continued presence of troops from neighboring Eritrea.

Analysts say that African leaders will be looking for Biden to make some major commitments during the summit, including announcing his first presidential visit to sub-Saharan Africa, efforts to bolster the continent’s economy through private sector investment and trade and more.

Perhaps most importantly, it could be an opportunity for Biden to demonstrate that Africa is more than a battleground in its economic and military competition with Beijing and Moscow.

“I do strongly believe that the United States is still seen as a superpower from the African perspective, but most African leaders do not want to align with its promotion of democracy,” said Abraham Kuol Nyuon, a political analyst and associate professor of political science at the University of Juba in South Sudan. “They need the support of America but not the system of America.”

Mutsaka reported from Harare, Zimbabwe, and Magome from Johannesburg. Associated Press writers Cara Anna in Nairobi, Kenya, and Matthew Lee contributed to this report.

NASA Orion capsule safely blazes back from moon, aces test

By Marcia Dunn

AP Aerospace Writer

C

APE CANAVER AL, Florida—NASA’s Orion capsule made a blisteringly fast return from the moon Sunday, parachuting into the Pacific off Mexico to conclude a test flight that should clear the way for astronauts on the next lunar flyby.

The incoming capsule hit the atmosphere at Mach 32, or 32 times the speed of sound, and endured reentry temperatures of 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit (2,760 degrees Celsius) before splashing down west of Baja California near Guadalupe Island. A Navy ship quickly moved in to recover the spacecraft and its silent occupants—three test dummies rigged with vibration sensors and radiation monitors.

NASA hailed the descent and splashdown as close to perfect, as congratulations poured in from Washington. “ I ’m over whe l med ,” NA S A Administrator Bill Nelson said from Mission Control in Houston. “This is an extraordinary day...It’s historic because we are now going back into space—deep space—with a new generation.”

The space agency needed a successful splashdown to stay on track for the next Orion flight around the moon, targeted for 2024 with four astronauts who

THIS image provided by NASA shows the Orion spacecraft approaching Earth on Sunday, December 11, 2022, as it neared the end of its three-week test flight to the moon. NASA VIA AP

US Navy divers secure NASA’s Orion capsule during recovery operations after it splashed down in the Pacific off Mexico on Sunday, December 11, 2022, concluding a 25-day test flight. The mission should clear the way for astronauts on the program’s next lunar flyby, set for 2024.

MARIO TAMA/POOL PHOTO VIA AP

will be revealed early next year.

That would be followed by a twoperson lunar landing as early as 2025 and, ultimately, a sustainable moon base. The long-term plan would be to launch a Mars expedition by the late 2030s.

Astronauts last landed on the moon 50 years ago. After touching down on December 11, 1972, Apollo 17’s Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt spent three days exploring the valley of Taurus-Littrow, the longest stay of the Apollo era. They were the last of the 12 moonwalkers.

Orion was the first capsule to visit the moon since then, launching on NASA’s new mega moon

rocket from Kennedy Space Center on November 16. It was the first flight of NASA’s new Artemis moon program, named after Apollo’s mythological twin sister.

“From Tranquility Base to Taurus-Littrow to the tranquil waters of the Pacific, the latest chapter of NASA’s journey to the moon comes to a close. Orion back on Earth,” announced Mission Control commentator Rob Navias.

W hile no one was on the $4 billion test f light, NASA managers were thrilled to pull off the dress rehearsal, especially after so many years of f light delays and busted budgets. Fuel leaks and hurricanes conspired for

additiona l post ponements in late summer and fall.

In an Apollo throwback, NASA held a splashdown party at Houston’s Johnson Space Center on Sunday, with employees and their families gathering to watch the broadcast of Orion’s homecoming. Next door, the visitor center threw a bash for the public.

Getting Orion back intact after the 25-day flight was NASA’s top objective. With a return speed of 25,000 mph (40,000 kph)— considerably faster than coming in from low-Earth orbit—the capsule used a new, advanced heat shield never tested before in spaceflight. To reduce the gravity or G loads, it dipped into the atmosphere and briefly skipped out, also helping to pinpoint the splashdown area.

All that unfolded in spectacular fashion, officials noted, allowing for Orion’s safe return.

“I don’t think any one of us could have imagined a mission this successful,” said mission manager Mike Sarafin.

Further inspections will be conducted once Orion is back at Kennedy by month’s end. If the capsule checks find nothing amiss, NASA will announce the first lunar crew amid considerable hoopla in early 2023, picking from among the 42 active US astronauts stationed at Houston’s Johnson Space Center.

“People are anxious, we know that,” Vanessa Wyche, Johnson’s director, told reporters. Added Nelson: “The American people, just like (with) the original seven astronauts in the Mercury days, are going to want to know about these astronauts.”

The capsule splashed down more than 300 miles (482 kilometers) south of the original target zone.

Forecasts calling for choppy seas

and high wind off the Southern California coast prompted NASA to switch the location.

Orion logged 1.4 million miles (2.25 million kilometers) as it zoomed to the moon and then entered a wide, swooping orbit for nearly a week before heading home.

It came within 80 miles (130 kilometers) of the moon twice. At its farthest, the capsule was more than 268,000 miles (430,000 kilometers) from Earth.

Orion beamed back stunning photos of not only the gray, pitted moon, but also the home planet.

As a parting shot, the capsule revealed a crescent Earth—Earthrise—that left the mission team speechless.

Nottingham Trent University astronomer Daniel Brown said the f light’s many accomplishments illustrate NASA’s capability to put astronauts on the next Artemis moonshot.

“This was the nail-biting end of an amazing and important journey for NASA’s Orion spacecraft,” Brown said in a statement from England.

The moon has never been hotter. Just hours earlier Sunday, a spacecraft rocketed toward the moon from Cape Canaveral. The lunar lander belongs to ispace, a Tokyo company intent on developing an economy up there. Two US companies, meanwhile, have lunar landers launching early next year.

Sports BusinessMirror

MANNY PACQUIAO: I’m going to continue my training to get back in shape.

By Eddie Alinea

I

T wasn’t a fight, it was an exhibition.

As one-sided as an electric chair with Filipino ring great Manny Pacquiao, just the same, obliged for the half-filled crowd at the Korea International Exhibition Center in Goyang to enjoy.

It was more of an Oscar night and it was not Cesar’s Palace. Pacquiao rendered to Korean martial arts ace DK Yoo what’s his—but didn’t used to be. A bloody mouth, lumps in the ribs caused by stinging body punches, ringing in the ears, which the latter used to pass out, not get them.

It was over in six rounds of a twominute per round showdown with Pacuiao settling for an unanimous decision win.

And, most importantly, left the doors open to a return to regular fighting that marred his 27-year procareer and gifted him no less than a dozen world titles in unprecedented eight divisions no other fighter has accomplished in the history of the sport of sweet science.

“It’s nice to be back in the ring for this charity exhibition match. I’m going to continue my training to get back in shape,” the former senator, who will turn 44 on Saturday, said on the top of the ring shortly after the bout he dominated.

The father of five with wife, former Sarangani Vice Governor Jinkee, announced his retirement Augiut last year after losing to Cuban substitute boxer Cuban Yordenis Ugas.

But following his defeat in the presidential elections, rumors immediately circulated of an impending comeback leading to this exhibition encounter with Yoo, which

to many in the world boxing circle merely served as test whether he still has it to again bang heads and bodies against whoever.

Including against undefeated American tormentor Floyd Mayweather Jr. who beat him in a record-breaking showdown on May 2, 2015, in an attempt tom unify the World Boxing Association, World Boxing Council, World Boxing Organization and The Ring welterweight titles held at the MGM Grand n Las Vegas, Nevada.

Inevitably a rematch with Mayweather, 45, who himself has boxed in five exhibition since retiring was brought up to Pacquiao.

The Filipinio icon though said: “I don’t know, I don’t have an idea because that guy always changes his decision.”

Before the Yoo exhibition, talks about more fights of that nature cropped up to be held in early 2023 plus a regular boxing match against upcoming Ryan Garcia.

“It was nice to be back in the ring especially with this exhibition fight,” said Pacquiao, betraying his reluctance to admit his intention to fight again that was interrupted by politics.

Especially after seeing the terrific response of the Korean fans, who, as reports had it, formed a seemingly endless line of autograph-seekers wanting to have their pictures taken with the future Filipino Hall of Famer.

“I will continue my training to get back in shape when I get back home,” said Pacquiao, who was scheduled to arrive home Monday to prepare for his 44th birthday bash in hometown General Santos City.

CRISTIANO RONALDO says his dream of winning World Cup has “ended.” AP

D

OHA, Qatar— Cristiano Ronaldo said in a cryptic social media post that his dream of winning the World Cup with Portugal has

B

OXING icon Manny Pacquiao is still “hungry as a lion” and capable of fighting big time, according to former world champion and now businessman Gerry Peñalosa.

“Unlike other boxers, Senator Manny [Pacquiao] is always hungry and wants a competitive fight,” Peñalosa, a former World Boxing Council bantamweight champion said. “In fact, he wanted more rounds yesterday [Sunday in Korea].”

Pacquiao was declared winner by unanimous decision in his six-round exhibition fight with South Korean YouTuber DK Yoo in Goyang, South Korea, on Sunday.

Peñalosa told BusinessMirror that Pacquiao remains “aggressive, strong and fast.”

Pacquiao, who turns 44 on Saturday, expressed desire to come out of retirement and go for the big time belts, two of them unified world welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. and World Boxing Organization titlist Terence Crawford.

Youngest world champ I THINK I speak for all parents when I say that we raise them based on values like hard work, honesty, integrity, respect and humility and hope and pray that they turn out alright.

For the father of Philippine mixed martial arts, Alvin Aguilar, his daughter, 5-year-old Aleia Aielle Aguilar, the country’s youngest world champion in jiu-jitsu, Aleia is not your typical 5-year-old.

Aielle was exposed to jiu-jitsu as early as when she was

ended, while stopping short of announcing his retirement from international duty.

The 37-year-old Ronaldo left the field in tears after Portugal lost, 1-0, to Morocco in the quarterfinals on Saturday.

In his first comments after the elimination, Ronaldo said Sunday that it was “time to take stock” without saying explicitly if he wants to carry on being available for Portugal after 19 years in the national team.

“There’s no point in reacting rashly,” Ronaldo wrote on Instagram. “I just want everybody to know that a lot has been said, a lot has been written, a lot has been speculated about, but my dedication to Portugal has never wavered for an instant.

“I’ve always been just one more (Portuguese) fighting for everyone’s goal. I would never turn my back on my teammates or my country.”

Ronaldo, who is the all-time leading scorer in men’s international soccer with 118 goals, said putting Portugal “on the highest level in the world” was his biggest dream.

“In my five appearances at World Cups over 16 years, always playing alongside great players and supported by millions of Portuguese, I have given my all,” he wrote. “I left everything I had on the pitch. I’ll never shrink from a battle and I have never given up on that dream.

“Unfortunately, that dream ended yesterday.”

Ronaldo said he would now “let everyone draw their own conclusions.”

“For now. There’s not much else to say. Thank you, Portugal. Thank you, Qatar. The dream was beautiful as long as it lasted.”

The next major tournament is the European Championship in 2024. The next World Cup will be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico in 2026, by which time Ronaldo will be 41 years old.

Ronaldo is without a club after leaving Manchester United during the World Cup in the wake of an explosive interview before the tournament when he criticized the manager, board and his teammates at the English club.

His only goal at the World Cup was a penalty against Ghana in Portugal’s opening group game.

He became the first male player to score at five World Cups.

Brownlee’s naturalization big boost to Gilas–Angara SEN. Sonny Angara with (from left) Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas executive director Renauld “Sonny” Barrios, Justin Brownlee and Gilas Pilipinas team manager Butch Antonio.

MP ‘ready and capable’ for big fights–Peñalosa

By Josef Ramos

| Tuesday, December 13, 2022 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

RONALDO’S WORLD CUP DREAM ENDS

Pacquiao’s exhibition sortie in Korea first step to return from retirement Special to BusinessMirror

B8

“Those big fights require a serious training and I believe Pacquiao could still do it despite his age,” Peñalosa said.

Pacquiao retired in September last year after he lost to Cuban Yordenis Ugas via unanimous decision on August 21, 2021, in Las Vegas, Nevada for the World Boxing Association welterweight belt.

“As long as he’s in good condition and trains wisely, Pacquiao will definitely a beast, deadly and fast,” said the 50-year-old Peñalosa, who has a 55-8-2 win-loss-draw record with 37 knockouts when he was active. “Pacquiao is a deadly adversary especially if he’s enjoying what he’s doing.”

The fight with Yoo was an absolute mismatch, according to Peñalosa, adding that Pacquiao easily handled his Korean foe.

“The Senator remains the fighter that he is. It’s a good fight,” he said.

Pacquiao agreed to fight Yoo for charity. He will use the exhibition event’s proceeds to construct homes in his Pacman Village in General Santos City.

3 weeks old. Her mother, the country’s first ever jiu-jitsu world champion winning in 2009, Maybelline Masuda would bring her along and, according to Alvin, she’d play on the mat, see for herself, absorbing everything like a sponge and putting everything into practice.

My immediate thought was—I asked Alvin about this— was burnout.

The president and founder of the Universal Reality Combat Championship narrated how Aielle works hard at everything she does. She doesn’t take anything for granted and she also trains in other martial arts and sports that compliment her jiu-jitsu.

The important thing is that none of this is imposed on Aielle and that Alvin asks his little girl if she wants to stop or if she wants to keep going and that to always remind her to go out there and have fun and that she’s always is surrounded with kids her age when she trains.

Aielle wants to be the best in jiu-jitsu, she wants to win a ton of medals and trophies and to hear a story about a 5-year-old say that the sky’s the limit in terms of her talent and ability.

At 5, she’s barely scratched the surface of what she can achieve and accomplish and that’s a scary thought for her future opponents. As what Darth Vader said in the film “Star Wars: New Hope:” The Force Is Strong With This One.

T

HE naturalization of Barangay Ginebra San Miguel import Justin Brownlee will beef up Gilas Pilipinas for the sixth window of the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers in February while providing even more excitement to Filipino fans, Senator Sonny Angara said Monday.

As the author of one of the bills that sought for the naturalization of Brownlee, Angara said the addition of Brownlee to the national men’s team will provide further depth and firepower when it goes up against Lebanon and Jordan in February at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan.

“We would like to express our gratitude to our colleagues

in the Senate and the House of Representatives who gave their full support to the naturalization of Brownlee,” said Angara, also the chairman of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP).

“After several years of playing as an import in the PBA [Philippine Basketball Association], Brownlee has now deemed the Philippines as his second home and has demonstrated a strong desire to contribute to the country as a future player of our Gilas Pilipinas squad,” he added.

The naturalization bills were filed

by Senators Ronald Dela Rosa, Bong Go, Angara and Joel Villanueva, and were taken up in the Committee on Justice and Human Rights headed by Senator Francis Tolentino.

In the House of Representatives, the bills were filed by Reps. Mikee Romero and Gus Tambunting. SBP Vice Chairman Robbie Puno was among the co-authors of the bill.

The Senate approved House Bill 6224, without amendments, paving the way for the transmittal of the measure to the President for signing.

Brownlee joins Utah Jazz star Jordan Clarkson and 6-foot-11

Team USA to play in Manila in FIBA 2023 World Cup

T

EAM USA will play in the Philippines, Slovenia will travel to Japan and Canada will land in Indonesia for the International Basketball Association (FIBA) 2023 World Cup, the FIBA’s Central Board confirmed on Monday in Mies, Switzerland.

Both Slovenia and Canada have qualified for the World Cup, while USA remains in a good position to clinch a berth in the tournament in the last window of the qualifiers.

The FIBA allows each host to select a preferred team based on commercial reasons with their choice havibg no impact on the integrity of the event or the draw process.

As was the case at the World Cup 2019 with China, the Philippines, as

tournament host for the Group and Final phase, will be placed in Pot 1 for the draw.

They will be joined in Pot 1 by the best ranked teams in the FIBA World Ranking Men presented by Nike after the last qualifying window to be played in February 2023.

For that reason, USA and Philippines will be placed in two different groups of the four that will take place in the Philippines.

Japan has chosen No. 7 Slovenia.

They will vie the Group Phase in Okinawa, where two groups will be played.

Canada will play in Jakarta, Indonesia, with two of the top eight teams of the FIBA World Ranking Men joining them in the two groups in Indonesia.

Ronaldo started on the bench for Portugal’s games in the last 16—a 6-1 victory over Switzerland—and the quarterfinals.

Before the game against Morocco, Portugal coach Fernando Santos denied reports Ronaldo threatened to leave the World Cup after being told he wasn’t going to be in the starting lineup against Switzerland.

POST-RONALDO ERA

THE fortunes of Portugal’s national team have been inextricably linked with Cristiano Ronaldo for nearly two decades.

Is a new era upon us?

It remains to be seen if that was the last time the world saw Ronaldo on soccer’s international stage. In a post on Instagram on Sunday, he stopped short of announcing his retirement from international duty, but said his dream of winning the World Cup had “ended.”

If he does stop playing for Portugal, it marks a huge moment for the national team, given Ronaldo is its captain, record scorer and greatest ever player.

There’s a chance the team might also have a different coach for the first time since 2014 when qualification for the 2024 European Championship begins in March.

Ateneo Blue Eagles standout Ange Kouame as the current naturalized players who are eligible to suit up for Gilas Pilipinas in the FIBA World Cup and for future tournaments.

The Philippines is the main host Indonesia and Japan are the co-hosts of the 2023 FIBA World Cup set from August 25 to September 10, 2023.

With five PBA titles and two best import plums, Brownlee is now considered among the all-time greatest imports of the league and his career is far from over.

POC praises Carapiet’s FIM appointments

T

HE Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) hailed the election of Stephen Macky Carapiet as Asia’s sole representative to the executive board of the FIM— the global governing and sanctioning body for motorcycle racing.

The FIM, or the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (International Motorcycle Federation), held its general assembly on December 2 in Rimini, Italy, where Carapiet was elected to the sensitive post.

“The POC congratulates Mr. Carapiet for his election in the world governing body for motorcycling,” Tolentino said. “This is proof of the integrity and capability of Filipino sportsmen and sportswomen on the global stage.

Carapiet is the head of the National Motorcycle Sports Safety Association or NAMSSA—the national sports association for motorcycle racing—and a re-electionist president of FIM Asia, which has as members 28 countries.

The NAMSSA is an recognized member of the POC. Carapiet was also named to the four-member of the FIM-FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile) joint committee which will facilitate joint projects and initiatives on themes including safety, sustainability, medical and women.

As such, Carapiet is in the top four in the FIM’s governance. He was also appointed to the membership and affiliation committees and other working groups for the next four years