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Monday, December 25, 2017 Vol. 13 No. 75

Fatalities were workers of U.S. research firm who sought refuge on top floor of burning building

Deadly pre-Christmas mall blaze kills 37 in Davao City

By Manuel T. Cayon

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@awimailbox Mindanao Bureau Chief

AVAO CITY—Authorities have confirmed the death of 37 persons who were earlier reported trapped and missing on the top floor of a shopping mall here when it burned on until early morning of Saturday.

Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio said the victims were all workers of the United States digital research firm, Sample Survey Inc. (SSI), holding office at the fourth floor of the New City Commercial Center (NCCC), a chain of shopping malls and hypermarts in Mindanao and Palawan.

One body was already recovered last Saturday night “at the area where they were last reported to have concentrated to seek refuge from the smoke and heat.”

“But fire personnel only found

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@reneacostaBM

he nu mber of ba ra ngays affected by the New People’s Army (NPA) in Mindanao has increased during the first six months of 2017, according to the military, which also noted a spike in the number of attacks carried out by the rebels during the same period.

The NPA and its political arm, the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), had been declared a “terrorist” group by President Duterte following his scuttling of the peace talks with their umbrella organization, the National Democratic Front of the Philippines.

Based on data presented late last month by former military spokesman and now Armed Forces

Deputy Chief of Staff for Plans and Programs Maj. Gen. Restituto F. Padilla Jr., the rebels have maintained influence in 49 barangays in Western Mindanao as of June 2017, up from the 15 barangays at the end of 2016.

In Eastern Mindanao the guerillas also wield influence in 368 barangays as of the same period, up from 189 barangays at the end of 2016.

Earlier, the Armed Forces Eastern Mindanao Command (Eastmincom), through its spokesman Maj. Ezra Balagtey, reported that 45 percent of the total strength of the rebels, or about 2, 000 armed members, is concentrated within their operational areas.

The operational jurisdiction of the Eastmincom covers the whole

PESO exchange rates n US 50.1940

See “NPA,” A2

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PPP Menu No. 2: To court or be courted Alberto C. Agra

ead

PPP L Alberto C. Agra

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HE government cannot be forced to make a particular decision or compelled to order a specific viand of the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Menu.

In PPPs, while being consensual and contractual in nature, the initiatory and ultimate decision for a PPP-government project lies with the public sector. One such initiatory determination is the manner by which a public implementing agency (IA) chooses its private-sector proponent (PSP) for a particular project.

Continued on A6

See “Deadly,” A2

New hotel brand to debut in Manila on January 16

Communist-affected villages, NPA attacks rise in Mindanao

By Rene Acosta

2016 ejap journalism awards

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo

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‘BELENISMO’ IN TARLAC A Belen (Nativity Scene) in Tarlac bears the words “Born to Save,” one of the attractions of the 2017 “Belenismo.” Organized by the Tarlac Heritage Foundation in San Miguel, Tarlac, the annual Christmas display runs from November to January in the province’s 17 municipalities and one city. The annual Belenisimo has become a tradition in the province, depicting and celebrating the birth of Baby Jesus, the day God sent His Son to save the world. NONIE REYES

@akosistellaBM Special to the BusinessMirror

ITY of Dreams Manila is committed to improving its offerings to its customers, as its parent company introduced its new luxury hotel brand called “Nüwa.”

In a news statement sent over the weekend, Melco Resorts and Entertainment Ltd., a Hong Kong-based gaming and entertainment casino resort owner and operator, said Nüwa will replace the current Crown Towers Hotels in its flagship properties, the City of Dreams Manila and Macau. The launch of the new hotel brand will be officially made on January 16, 2018.

Melco Chairman and CEO Lawrence Ho said: “We are excited to introduce Nüwa. The new hotel brand embodies the very essence of Melco’s pursuit to provide our guests the very best in sophistication, quality and Continued on A2

n japan 0.4431 n UK 67.1947 n HK 6.4202 n CHINA 7.6219 n singapore 37.3690 n australia 38.6544 n EU 59.6255 n SAUDI arabia 13.3851

Source: BSP (22 December 2017 )

BMReports BusinessMirror

A2 Monday, December 25, 2017

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Lookout bulletin issued vs Aquino, ex-Cabinet men over vaccine mess

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he Department of Justice has issued an Immigration Lookout Bulletin Order (Ilbo) against former President Benigno S. Aquino III, some of his Cabinet members, and key Sanofi Pasteur executives in connection with the controversial P3.5-billion dengue immunization program of the Department of Health (DOH).

Deadly. . .

Continued from A1

one body, and there were none in the locker rooms or in the CR [comfort rooms, or rest rooms],” she told a news briefing at her office at the City Hall here.

Duterte-Carpio corrected the death toll figures to be at 37 following confusion over the name of an Asian-sounding name, “either Chinese or Korean, which was not found in the list of the SSI.” She said the 36 other SSI workers reported trapped in the fire were presumed dead after Bureau

of Fire Protection (BFP) officers told their families and their relatives in a meeting last Saturday night that “there were already zero chance of survival.”

“If the BFP personnel told us that if they push their way to that area they would be dead, how much more for those who were inside,” she said. Fire personnel were still unable to penetrate the fourth-floor area due to heat as firemen continued to suppress burning portions of the mall in Barangay Maa, along MacArthur Highway, some 3 kilometers south of downtown. The city mayor added all personnel of the

In a memorandum released last Saturday, Justice Secretary Vitaliano N. Aguirre II directed Bureau of Immigration (BI) Commissioner Jaime Morente to instruct all immigration officers in the country’s airports and seaports to be on the lookout to prevent attempts of Aquino and others to leave the country.

Placed under the Ilbo were former Budget Secretary Florencio B. Abad, former Executive Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa Jr., former Health Secretary Janette L. Garin, Guillaume Leroy, Olivier Brandicourt, Ruby Dizon, Thomas Triomphe and Carlito Realuyo.

Aguirre issued an Ilbo after militant group Gabriela and parents of children injected with anti-dengue vaccine Dengvaxia filed

graft charges before the Office of the Ombudsman.

Aguirre said that considering the gravity of the charges, there is a “strong probability” that the persons may leave the country.

“We thus deem the issuance of an Ilbo against the subject persons prudent in order to at least monitor the itineraries of their flight, travel and/ or whereabouts,” Aguirre added.

A person subject to an Ilbo can still leave the country subject to conditions and requirements, including clearance from the justice department.

An Ilbo is different from a court-issued hold departure order, since the former only directs the BI to be on the lookout for the subject, and to verify the status of a case against the subject person

and not to restrict an individual from leaving the country.

Earlier, Aguirre ordered National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Director Dante A. Gierran to “conduct investigation and case buildup over the alleged danger to public health arising from the P3.5 billion anti-dengue vaccination drive of the DOH and Sanofi Pasteur and, if evidence so warrants, to file appropriate charges thereon.”

Aguirre required the NBI to submit a status report on their investigation regarding the issue, but did not give the NBI a time frame on their probe.

He said the probe would look into whether government officials should be held liable for the seemingly rushed procurement of the vaccine and the immunization of

more than 700,000 children.

Aguirre admitted that among those who would be investigated for possible culpabilities is former President Aquino, who gave the gosignal for the DOH to proceed with the vaccination project in 2016.

Also poised to be investigated is Garin, Aquino’s former health secretary, who reportedly insisted on implementing the project despite strong objections from medical experts due to lack of certification from the World Health Organization.

Pharmaceutical giant Sanofi Pasteur recently issued an advisory to the public that its product Dengvaxia is effective for people who have had dengue prior to immunization, but creates a risk of a “severe” case of dengue for people who have not had dengue. PNA

NCCC mall were accounted for, but she told NCCC administrators to refer to the city government the families and relatives who would be seeking the whereabouts of their trapped kin.

The bodies would be sent to the Southern Philippine Medical Center (SPMC) for identification before they would be sent to the Cosmopolitan Funeral Homes. The families and relatives were all sent to the holding area at the Jica Building of the SPMC. Ja n n a A b du l l a h Mut a l i b, NCCC marketing manager, said the fire started at the third floor at about 10 a.m. last Saturday,

although the police said it could have occurred earlier. The mall opened early at 9:00 a.m. to accommodate grocery shoppers for the Christmas holidays.

The second and third floors, which display personal beauty accessories, bags, clothing and furniture and household appliances, were still closed to shoppers at the start of the blaze.

Duterte-Carpio said the city government would hold all actions until it receives the final report of the BFP. She has also asked the SSI to furnish them the list of their personnel at that time.

T he mayor a lso cautioned

against relying on nonverified reports, saying “negative comments are not appropriate at this time.”

She said she has asked the city lawyers to determine if “conflagration” could be classified a calamity situation to allow the city government to request the City Council to include the mall fire to justify the declaration of a state of calamity.

Duterte-Carpio said she had already asked the City Council to declare the state of calamity for the flood triggered by Typhoon Vinta that submerged several houses in 25 barangays on the night before the shopping mall fire.

She has also asked the City

Council to authorize here to use the full amount of the remaining P86-million calamity fund for the two incidents. The city government earlier allocated the calamity fund to help the victims of Typhoon Urduja in the Visayas.

Some 18,603 families were affected by the typhoon.

The mall was being frequented by the middle and lower-income families.

With the twin disasters, she announced she has ordered the postponement of Christmas festivities already lined up for implementation, “except for the Kaan festival, because it is a food festival.”

New hotel brand to debut in Manila on January 16 Continued from A1

innovation.” The company said the luxury hotel brand was inspired by the eponymous heroine from Chinese mythology—“Nüwa represents classic Asian refinement.” The gaming firm added that the brand “further exemplifies Melco’s core mission to continue providing a better guest experience. It is the first step in the preparation of the launch of Phase 3 of City of Dreams Macau in the second quarter of 2018.”

Geoff Andres, City of Dreams Manila property president, confirmed in an e-mailed statement to the BusinessMirror, that the rebranding of Crown Towers was in line with the sale of shares by Australian billionaire James Packer in Melco, which began last year. The sale was completed in May 2017, for which, Packer received $987 million.

“Upon the completion of the shares buyout, Melco launched Nuwa to help fully demonstrate the essence and value of Melco, which in its commitment to providing the best quality and standard to its guests, never ceases to improve itself, always introducing innovative concepts.”

While no new investment into upgrades will be happening in the short term, Andres added, “City of Dreams Manila is always and continuously improving the resort’s customer experience.” He added that the most recent example was the reopening of The Tasting

Room, a fine-dining restaurant in Crown Towers. Packer terminated his 12-year partnership with Ho, after booking losses from their joint gaming ventures, including the City of Dreams properties, since 2010.

Another major factor in Packer’s exit from his gaming investments in Asia, according to analysts quoted in published reports, were the arrests of several Crown employees in China in October 2016.

Following initial losses since its soft opening in November 2014, City of Dreams Manila finally posted a turnaround in its finances and recorded a net profit of some P497 million from January to September 2017. The integrated casinos registered a net loss of some P1.6 billion in the same period last year.

Gaming revenues of City of Dreams Manila have vastly improved since the warming of ties between Beijing and Manila, attracting massive numbers of Chin ese tourists into the Philippines. The Department of Tourism reported 810,807 visitors from China in the period January to October 2017, some 40 percent more than the arrivals in the same period in 2016. The surge in Chinese visitors in the 10-month period in 2017, earned the market a second place position among the Philippines’s top source of tourists. (See “DOT says 6.5million arrivals target for 2017 will be met as 10-month haul rises 11.5 percent,” in the BusinessMirror, December 12, 2017.)

NPA. . .

Continued from A1

area of Caraga, Davao provinces and parts of Northern Mindanao and Soccsksargen regions. The rest of the rebels or the remaining 55 percent are scattered in Luzon and in the Visayas.

Although the number of villages affected by the guerillas in the areas covered by the two military area commands in Mindanao went higher, the rebels, however, posted no increase in the number of their guerilla fronts within Western and Eastern Mindanao.

The NPA has no front in Western Mindanao as of June 2017, while it managed to maintain its 20 guerilla fronts in the areas of Eastern Mindanao.

A guerilla front is equivalent to a size

of a company in the Armed Forces.

According to the same data presented

by Padilla, the number of “activities” initiated by the rebels in Eastern Mindanao grew to 13 as of the first semester of 2017 from the three that were recorded as of the end of 2016. It also spiked in Eastern Mindanao, as it logged 276 from 204 for the same period.

From January 2017 up to November, the NPA has initiated a total number of 353 “violent” incidents in Eastern Mindanao and 16 in Western Mindanao.

The military categorized the incidents as ambush, raid;, “nuisance” harassment, disarming, harassment, landmine/IED attack, “Sparu” operations, liquidation; kidnapping; robbery holdup, bombing, arson and sabotage. The six highest violent activities that were carried out by the NPA were nuisance harassment, harassment, arson,

kidnapping, landmine attack and kidnapping in that order. The military data also showed that the burning incidents carried out by the rebels against business establishments, especially mining companies increased in Mindanao.

From January 2017 up to November, the guerillas undertook a total of 56 arson incidents in Eastern and Western Mindanao, destroying property worth at least 224.6 million. The number of attacks is higher than the 31 burning incidents that were recorded as of the end of 2016 in the same parts of Mindanao. A total of P101.56 million worth of property and equipment was destroyed in these attacks.

While Duterte has tagged the CPP and the NPA as terrorists groups and scuttled the peace negotiations, he has, however, declared a unilateral cease-fire with the rebels covering Christmas and the New Year.

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DTI to spur MSME growth to half of national output

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By Catherine N. Pillas

@c_pillas29

HE Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) sees the economic contribution of the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) segment to steadily grow to at least half of the country’s national output if continued efforts are pursued.

Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez told reporters, at the launch of Voyager Innovation’s coworking space early this week, the agency estimates the contribution right now to be at least over 40 percent.

“My hunch is the economic contribution of MSMEs is over 40 percent already. One methodology to determine that is to look at the companies incorporating at the Securities and Exchange Commission. Those companies worth below P100 million are growing. The revenue and income of those must be accruing to a larger contribution,” Lopez said, adding that in a couple of decades, this may attain the 50-percent level with increased focus on the sector.

With the directive from President Duterte to double down on supporting the country’s MSME segment, the DTI head said he intends to pursue increasing his agency’s budget in the coming years.

“The P50 billion that President Duterte mentioned during the Asean

summit will be an accumulated amount over the administration,” Lopez said, reiterating that MSME Development cornered a significant share of the budget per-program basis receiving at least P1 billion.

This is apart from the proposed increase of the sub-initiative under the MSME Development program, the Shared Services Facilities (SSFs), from P200 million to P1 billion.

“We’re putting in a lot more effort for MSME development, if you combine all the efforts for the segment that’s at least P1 billion. We don’t know if the SSF increase is included; it could be possible at P2 billion. Under the Small Business Corp., there’s also an additional P1 billion for the Pondo sa Pagbabago at Pag-Asenso [P3] program,” Lopez added.

Through the encouragement of the Senate, the DTI revived the SSF Program after removing the budget for it in 2017.

The SSF program—essentially an infrastructure and equipment lease arrangement in key industries

with cooperatives and small businesses—some 935 SSFs have been turned over to community-based cooperatives since 2013.

“It’s a vital ingredient for micro operations. If you’re a cooperative harvesting calamansi for example, you need machines. These machines are expensive even for a group,” Lopez said.

The P3 pProgram is being heralded as a key MSME support program for the DTI. In response to the prevalence of the “5-6” lending system that has already become the standard financing means for many Filipino microbusinesses, the DTI launched the P3 program early in 2016.

The microfinancing program intends to give MSMEs better access to finance by doling out loans at an interest rate less than three-fourths of the rate given in the 5-6 (of 20 percent) and with no collateral needed.

The implementing agency for the P3 program is DTI’s attached agency, the Small Business Corp.; the SB Corp. releases the funds to non-bank micro-finance institutions (MFIs), associations, cooperatives and other conduits who already have delivery and management structures in place to lend out the funds.

Since October the SB Corp. has accredited three national microfinancing institutions covering 75 provinces nationwide and 59 local conduits.

Beneficiaries are estimated at 22,422 individual business owners, and loanable amounts range from P5,000 to P100,000.

Of the P1-billion fund, SB Corp.

Vice President Melvin Abanto said approved credit lines extended to conduits are now at P827.5 million.

“Our borrowers in the P3 program are now more than 30,000. There are a lot of borrowers that have shifted away from the 5-6 system,” Lopez added.

The DTI earlier said the total operations of the 5-6”lending system—essentially a 20-percent addon-rate loan system—has totaled P2.4 billion. The Indian Chamber of Commerce said there are around 30,000 operators of the scheme in the Philippines.

Another component of the MSME Development Program—the establishment of Go Negosyo Centers— has also been gaining traction.

This year, the DTI proposed a budget of P514.6 million for the establishment of these one-stop shops for businesses.

To date, 562 Negosyo Centers have been established since its inception in 2014, with 297 centers launched under the current administration.

The Go Negosyo law, or Republic Act 10644, mandates the creation of a negosyo center in all provinces, cities and municipalities. Negosyo centers are one-stop shops circulated at the municipal level offering business advisory and businessregistration services to spur MSME development.

Under the budget notes for the agency, the DTI identified output indicators next year based on its proposed allocation: It aims to assist 168,610 MSMEs in 2018, compared to 144,533 this year.

3-centavo disparity disqualifies bidder to ₧4.9-M QC project

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco Correspondent

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HREE centavos might not sound like much, but it disqualified a bidder of a P4.9million drainage-improvement project in Quezon City.

The Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) disqualified A rmal Construction Supply and Services Inc. after discovering on December 21 that its surety bond was short of three centavos.

MMDA-BAC, presided by its vice chairman lawyer Victor Pablo Trinidad, announced the disqualification, stressing the surety bidder’s bond is one of the eligibility requirements for the bidding process and is set at 5 percent of the approved budget for the project.

The budget set by the MMDA for the project was P4,989,079.60, w ith 5 -percent equiva lent to P249,453.98. Unfortunately for Armal, its surety bidder’s bond was only P249,453.95, resulting

to its disqualification.

Trinidad said disqualifying a bidder which is only three centavos short of the surety bond showed the “MMDA is transparent and strictly compliant to the criteria imposed under the procurement law and its implementing rules and regulations.”

“The MMDA is guided by the basic principles of government procurement: transparency, competitiveness, good governance and accountability. As they say, the law may be harshm but it is the law,” Trinidad said.

‘The two other bidders who participated in the bidding process were PJ Construction & Supply and Tuchar Construction Inc. The winning bidder was PJ Construction with a bid price of P4,746,941.27 against Tuchar’s P4,804,072.44.

The BAC said Armal has the right to file a motion for reconsideration provided that it has sufficient basis.

T he drainage-improvement project is set to be implemented along Apo Street and its vicinity in District 1, Quezon City by 2018.

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Monday, December 25, 2017 A4

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Monday, December 25, 2017

Bitcoin plunges as ‘sharks’ circle in key test of cryptocurrency B itcoin faced one of its biggest tests this week, losing almost 20 percent of its value after the world’s largest cryptocurrency reached a record high on Monday.

The digital currency plunged as much as 30 percent last Friday, before paring losses, as this week’s selloff extended to a fourth day. The weekly decline is the biggest in almost three years. Other cryptocurrencies also tumbled: ethereum dropped as much as 36 percent and litecoin slumped as much as 43 percent, according to composite prices on Bloomberg.

Michael Novogratz, the former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Fortress Investment Group Llc. macro trader, said he’s shelving plans to start a cryptocurrency hedge fund and predicted that Bitcoin may extend its plunge to $8,000.

“We didn’t like market conditions and we wanted to reevaluate what we’re doing,” Novogratz said in a phone interview. He predicted last week that bitcoin could reach $40,000 within a few months.

Bitcoin dropped to as low as $10,776, before recovering to $14,303 at 4:04 p.m. in New York. It last traded below $10,000 on December 1, when the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission agreed to allow trading in Bitcoin futures. The price of the digital coin had more than doubled in the prior three weeks.

The losses represent a major test for the cryptocurrency industry and the blockchain technology that underpins it, which have rapidly entered the mainstream in recent weeks. Bears cast doubt on the value of the virtual assets, with UBS Group AG this week calling Bitcoin the “biggest speculative bubble in history.” Bulls argue the technology is a game changer for the world of investment and finance. Both will be closely watching the outcome of the current selloff.

“The sharks are beginning to circle here, and the futures markets may give them a venue to strike,” said Ross Norman, CEO of London-based bullion dealer Sharps Pixley Ltd., which offers gold in exchange for Bitcoin. “Bitcoin’s been heavily driven by retail investors, but there’ll be some aggressive funds looking for the right opportunity to hammer this thing lower.”

Traders who bought the currency on futures exchanges using collateral may start facing margin calls following the price decline. Two venues launched products in recent weeks that required hefty security, with Cboe needing 44 percent to clear contracts, and the CME 47 percent. Brokers set safety nets even higher.

Coinbase, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, said all buying and selling was temporarily disabled during the weekend rout, after having delays in processing wire transfers and verifying new customers for the past week due to higher traffic. Bitcoin transaction volume jumped more than 30 percent on Coinbase’s GDAX exchange, while fees to approve and record the transactions on the blockchain surged to a record $55, according to Bit Info Charts.

Many of the recent news stories and market moves connected to cryptocurrencies appear to carry hallmarks of the mania phase of a bubble. Long Island Iced Tea Corp. shares rose as much as 289 percent last Thursday after the unprofitable Hicksville, New York-based company rebranded itself Long Blockchain Corp. Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said last Thursday Bitcoin isn’t functioning like a normal means of payment and is being used for speculation.

Still, cryptocurrencies are attracting established players.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is setting up a trading desk to make markets in digital currencies, such as Bitcoin, according to people with knowledge of the strategy. The bank aims to get the business running by the end of June, if not earlier, two of the people added. Bloomberg News

US consumers’ holiday splurge coming at expense of savings

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mericans ate, shopped and were merry last month, so much that it’s increasingly pinching their savings.

The US personal saving rate dropped to a 10-year low of 2.9 percent in November, according to the Commerce Department. That came as consumer purchases advanced an inflation-adjusted 0.4 percent.

The steady spending gains and declining saving rate could suggest consumers are becoming more comfortable with their ability to pay back their debts, as a tight labor market helps buoy incomes. It could also prompt concern that consumers are leaving themselves vulnerable in case of financial distress.

“Given a robust labor market, stable personal income and solid consumer confidence data, we expect personal spending to be strong in the fourth quarter of this year,” Barclays Plc. economist Pooja Sriram said in a note last Friday. At the same time, the declining saving rate “will likely limit the extent to which consumption can accelerate, all else equal.”

The saving rate has declined by more than half since October 2015, though it remains above the record low of 1.9 percent in 2005, around the peak of the US housing bubble.

While the higher spending and less saving “can sometimes signal a period of distress, it is more likely a reflection of enthusiasm toward the economic outlook for myriad reasons,” Carl Riccadonna and Yelena Shulyatyeva of Bloomberg Economics said in a note. “If this momentum builds through the final month of the quarter, it could be an important signal that consumer spending will actively contribute to faster overall economic growth in 2018.” Bloomberg News

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A6 Monday, December 25, 2017 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

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editorial

The Christmas sacrifice

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STORY is told about a Christian missionary who traveled to the dense rainforests of Papua New Guinea to bring his message to one particular tribe. He spent time learning the language as best he could and to understand the local customs.

For whatever historical reasons, and in spite of the fact that archaeological evidence indicates that humans first arrived around 40,000 years ago, these people are known for their violent ways. In 1901 on Goaribari Island in the Gulf of Papua, missionary Harry Dauncey found 10,000 skulls in the island’s Long Houses, evidence of past practices.

Headhunting and cannibalism was practiced in many parts of the country as part of rituals related to warfare and taking in enemy spirits or powers even into the 20th century.

After gaining the trust of the people, the missionary told the story of Jesus of Nazareth, emphasizing the sacrifice of His death—the story of the Crucifixion. The tribe found the story amusing, particularly identifying with the betrayal of Judas Iscariot. This was something they could fully understand and appreciate. The fact that Jesus and His close apostles were fooled into thinking they could trust Judas only supported their view that enemies should be killed without mercy at every opportunity.

There was not any chance they would embrace a philosophy of “Love you neighbor as yourself.” They only people a person might be able to trust and love were members of one’s own tribe and even then, with caution.

Completely frustrated with his efforts to bring the tribe to his Christian religion, the missionary tried to put the crucifixion in the total context of the life of Jesus. Stories of healing and forgiveness of sins still fell on deaf ears. Again, in their minds, this fellow Jesus was wasting His time because people are basically treacherous and untrustworthy.

As the season approached, the missionary turned his teachings to the Christmas story. The faithful look at Christmas as the beginning of Christianity with joy and the knowledge the journey ends with death and sacrifice.

To the tribal people, the Christmas story—not the death on the cross—was the ultimate demonstration of love and sacrifice.

Tribal warfare could only eventually end with the killing and slavery of the loser by the winner. The only alternative would be that the tribal leaders on both sides would give his first-born son and heir in marriage to the other group. The son would leave his family and birthright and no longer be a member of his tribe. The son would give up his name, history and future. It was the ultimate sacrifice by father and son to bring a lasting peace.

The Christmas birth gave meaning to the people of “For God loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son.” We tend to think that giving one’s life by death may be the ultimate personal surrender. The tribe understood that there might be even a more painful sacrifice that can be made when we give away that which we hold even more precious.

What have we sacrificed this Christmas season?

PPP Menu No. 2: To court or be courted

By Alberto Agra

PPP Lead Continued from Page 1

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ither an IA will court or allow itself to be courted—whether it will go through bidding, open competition or competitive selection, and court the public, bidders and PSPs; or it will consider an unsolicited proposal from and allow itself to be courted by a PSP in a competitive challenge process.

The originator. In a bidding, the IA is the originator, while in a competitive challenge, it is the PSP. When an IA courts, it chooses the project and the modality, prepares the terms of reference, and drafts the PPP contract. The government, therefore, owns, as public funds are expended, the project documents. It publishes its intention to invite PSPs.

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In a competitive challenge, the PSP, without being invited, conceptualizes the project, prepares the unsolicited proposal, submits a project study and term sheet or draft contract. It spends for all these and, therefore, it has proprietary ownership over the study. Without one of these, the submission will be incomplete.

No guarantees. Like in any

Atty. Lorna Patajo-Kapunan

legally speaking

I

N a gathering of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community in Davao City on December 17, President Duterte clarified he was not rejecting same-sex marriage in the Philippines, but the law must be amended.

Duterte was referring to Article 2 of the Family Code of the Philippines (Executive Order 209 as amended), which provides that no marriage shall be valid unless the contracting parties have legal capacity and consent has been freely given. Legal capacity refers to gender (the contracting parties must be a male and a female) and age (they must be 18 years or older).

Sorsogon Bishop Arturo Bastes warned that the Church would not approve same-sex marriage because “the main great purpose of marriage is procreation of children and the building up of a loving family, the basic unit of human society, which is also the domestic church” (https: news mb.com.ph 2017/12/18).

Some countries have begun recognizing same-sex marriage. At present, same-sex marriage is legally recognized in Argentina, Belgium, Canada, Iceland, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, South Africa, Spain and Sweden. In the United States, same-sex marriages are not recognized federally, though same sex couples can marry in six of the 50 states and one district.

There are still other cases waiting to be resolved either at Congress level or at the Supreme Court. Some countries have already stood firmly to preserve the conventional concept of marriage—

that is a marriage between a man and woman only (Explanatory Note, House Bill [HB] 3179).

The ongoing debate on whether to legislate same-sex marriage in the Philippines will not be resolved overnight. In my opinion, we are missing the whole point of the debate—the LGBT community (if I understand them correctly) is fighting for no less than their constitutional right to equality and equal opportunity. Toward this end, several bills have already been filed in the House of Representatives, among them: n HB 01034 An act proscribing discrimination against members of the lgbt community and prescribing penalties therefor.

Pr i nc ipa l Aut hor/s: C a stel lo, Winston. n HB 01451 An act prohibiting discrimination of teachers who are unwed mothers, single parents and members of the LGBT community.

Principal Author/s: Belaro, Salvador Jr. B. n HB 02952/HB 5082 An act establishing LGBT help and protection desks in all Philippine National Police stations nationwide, amending for the purpose Title VII of Republic Act 8551, as amended, other-

process or courtship, the intention might not come true. When government courts, there could be no takers. In a bidding by an IA, no PSP may be interested or even if there are interested PSPs, they may be ineligible or their proposals may fall short of the standards set by the IA. When an IA is courted by a PSP, it may reject outright the latter’s unsolicited proposal. Even if an IA accepts a proposal, the arrangement may be short-lived.

The PSP may turn out to be unqualified or the IA and the PSP may not come to terms during the negotiations. The original PSP may also not get the award if a challenger prevails.

There are, therefore, no guarantees. A party can be forced to say yes. The other party must agree and follow the process set by law or relevant guidelines.

The courtship rules. Depending on the modality, the courtship rules may vary. Under the build-operate-transfer law and joint-

venture guidelines issued by the National Economic and Development Authority, courtship by IAs and PSPs are allowed. Under the Government Procurement Reform Act, concession laws like the National Water Crisis Act and the Electric Power Industry Reform Act, and Commission on Audit circular for divestment, unsolicited proposals are not. In these cases, only government can initiate.

The trend. The unofficial count of awarded projects by this columnist shows that, in the past eight years, nine out of 10 PPP projects by national government agencies are pursued through solicitation.

The reverse is true for governmentowned and -controlled corporations and government instrumentalities, and local governments. There are more awarded projects through the unsolicited route.

wise known as the “Philippine National Police Reform and Reorganization Act of 1998,” and for other purposes.

Principal Author/s: Santos-Recto, Vilma. n HB 04307 An act establishing an alternative education facility for LGBTs to be known as LGBT Specialist School and situated in the City of San Jose del Monte, Bulacan, and appropriating funds therefore.

Principal Author/s: Robes, Florida P. n HB 05584 An act defining domestic violence against individuals, including members of the LGBT community, other than women and children, and providing for protection measures for victims, prescribing penalties therefore, and for other purposes.

Principal Author/s: Sandoval, Federico II S. n HR 00184 A resolution of the House of Representatives expressing profound condolences for the victims of the Orlando Night Club shooting, the deadliest incident of violence against the LGBT people.

Principal Author/s: Olivarez, Eric L. n HR 00623 A resolution expressing the sense of the House of Representatives to terminate the visiting forces agreement in the light of the cases of abuses committed by United States of America military personnel against women, children and LGBT community on philippine soil.

Principal Author/s: De Jesus, Emmi A.; Brosas, Arlene D.; Zarate, Carlos Isagani T.; Casilao, Ariel “Ka Ayik” B.; Tinio, Antonio L.; Castro, France L.; Elago, Sarah Jane I. Most of these bills and resolutions have been approved by the House, transmitted to the Senate and awaiting appropriate action by the Senate

(when it has time to legislate and not investigate Noticeable in all the House bills filed, is that there is not one on samesex marriage (at least as of this writing).

There is, however, HB 3179 introduced as far back as October 2013 in the 16th Congress by Edcel B. Lagman covering property ownership of couples of the same sex living together, including its ownership, administration and dissolution. Known as “Same Sex Property Relation Act,” the bill proposes the registration of the same-sex relationship in the registrar of the city or municipality where either one of the partners actually reside. The same-sex partners, in the absence of any written agreement, shall be deemed as coowners of all the properties that they bring into, or acquire, during their actual living together, and shall have joint rights of administration. The same-sex partners can agree in writing (registered with the civil registrar) that certain properties shall be considered as separate properties and exclusively owned by the samesex partner to which it is attributed in the agreement. The coownership of properties of the same-sex relationship shall be deemed dissolved if one of them dies or chooses to terminate said same-sex relationship. Such dissolution must be registered with the civil registrar where the same-sex partnership was registered.

In my view, rather than a discussion on the morality or immorality of a same-sex marriage, the national debate should shift to recognizing the basic right of every person to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, the equal protection of the laws, and the right against discrimination on account of gender.

The LGBT community deserves no less!

Peace on Earth, goodwill to all humans!

The columnist hopes that this part of the 25-viand PPP Menu is clear.

Merry Christmas to all.

Sports BusinessMirror

A8 Monday, December 25, 2017

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

MBALA FOREGOES FINAL SEASON WITH DE LA SALLE B

EN MBALA, one of the most dominant players in the collegiate leagues, won’t be back next year to help De La Salle regain the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) men’s basketball crown.

The 6-foot-8 Mbala announced on Twitter late last week his decision to forego his final season in a Green Archer uniform.

“After five years, two incredible UAAP seasons, numerous off-season tournaments and, of course, countless unforgettable memories, it is with a heavy heart to announce that the time has come for me to move on from De La Salle University and the Green Archers,” the two-time UAAP Most Valuable Player said.

Mbala’s decision shocked De La Salle, which lost the Season 80 crown to Ateneo de Manila in three games last month. He averaged 23.3 points, 14.5 rebounds and 2.5 blocks in two dominant seasons.

He did not confirm his reason to forego his last year of eligibility but he is headed to Central America to play for Fuerza Regia de Monterrey in the Mexican professional league, Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional.

“I know my choice might come as a surprise to many and I admit the decision to leave was toughest I have had to make after being with La Salle for so many years,” he said. “But I feel that this decision is best for the next stage in my career and development.”

The Cameroonian national team star said he was grateful for his memorable experience in the Philippines and thanked De La

Salle Head Coach Aldin Ayo and the coaching staff, his managers and bosses and the La Salle community for “the incredulous opportunity.”

“You all have made my time in the Philippines worthwhile,” said Mbala, who steered La Salle to the Season 79 championship in his first season in the league.

Mbala first played for South Western University before he was recruited by De La Salle and spent three years to complete his residency.

“I am truly grateful for having had the opportunity to represent the Green Archers and will always be La Sallian at heart,” Mbala concluded. Lance Agcaoili

THE Philippines’s Jacob Ang holds his overall championship trophy in the Formula 125 Sr. Open.

Ang, backed by San Miguel Corp. and Eagle Cement, also ruled the X30 SR class. He is flanked by fellow Filipino John Dizon (left) and Haopang Zhang of China.

ANG DOMINATES ASIAN KART SERIES J

TWO-TIME Most Valuable Player Ben Mbala is headed to the Mexican professional league.

NONOY LACZA

ACOB ANG ran away with the overall crowns in the Formula 125 Sr. Open and the X30 SR classes of the Asian Karting Open Championships at the Kartodrome de Coloane Circuit in Macau recently.

Ang compiled 142 points after four legs held in Macau (June 10 and 11), Philippines (August 26 and 27), Thailand (November 2 and 4) and Macau (December 9 and 10) to win the Formula 125 class hands down over John Dizon (69 points) and China’s Haopeng Zhang (67 points).

He also dominated the X30 SR class with an overall 137 points after four legs, beating fellow Filipinos Mikey Jordan (70 points) and Dizon (68 points) in his campaign backed by San Miguel Corp. and Eagle Cement.

The other overall winners were Eduardo Coseteng (Formula 125 Jr. Open and X30 Jr.), Zach David (Minirok) and Leung Pui Chiu (Formula 125 Veteran Open). In the Macau leg, Ang placed second runner-up behind champion Eshan Pieris and Royce Yu in the X30 class and first runner-up to Royce Yu in the Formula 125 Sr. Open.

NBA RESULTS Toronto 102, Philadelphia 86 Charlotte 111, Milwaukee 106 Indiana 123, Brooklyn 119, OT Washington 130, Orlando 103 Atlanta 112, Dallas 107 Boston 117, Chicago 92 Memphis 115, LA Clippers 112 New Orleans 109, Miami 94 Oklahoma City 103, Utah 89 Denver 96, Golden State 81 Minnesota 115, Phoenix 106 Portland 95, LA Lakers 92 San Antonio 108, Sacramento 99

Ginebra-Magnolia on Christmas Day

T

HE Philippine Basketball Association treats fans with yet another “Manila Clasico” on Christmas Day, with Barangay Ginebra clashing with Magnolia Hotshots at the cavernous Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan.

The Gin Kings beat the then-Star Hotshots team last year, 86-79, in front of the 21,000 fans who showed up at the 55,000-seater arena.

The Governors’ Cup champions eye a repeat of that Christmas Day victory as the sister teams open their Philippine Cup campaigns on a big stage at 5:15 p.m.

“We’re are really getting forward and all we think about is getting the next championship,” Barangay Ginebra Head Coach Tim Cone said.

The Gin Kings are accustomed to the humungous Philippine Arena, having won their recent title against Meralco in seven games in October. That Game Seven saw an attendance record of more than 54,000 fans.

Although the Gin Kings are big-time performers before large crowds, what worries Cone is the unavailability of his key players.

Newly acquired forward Art de la Cruz reinjured his Achilles tendon in practice, while Joe Devance, one of Cone’s most trusted player in the rotation, is out for two months following a foot surgery. Ramon Rafael Bonilla

WARRIORS STREAK ENDS O

AKLAND, California—Warriors Coach Steve Kerr didn’t see much passion from his team last Saturday.

Golden State better find some fast for Christmas Day, when LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers come to town for a prime-time holiday rematch of the past three National Basketball Association (NBA) Finals.

Gary Harris scored 19 points to lead a balanced Denver offense and the Nuggets stopped the Warriors’ 11-game winning streak with a second impressive road victory in two nights, beating Golden State, 96-81.

“It didn’t feel like we were into it emotionally tonight. Sometimes after a long winning streak, whatever reason, you let your guard down a little bit. It wasn’t there,” Kerr said. “The biggest concern for me tonight, I didn’t see a lot of joy.... We weren’t having much fun.”

Nikola Jokic added 18 points and nine rebounds and Jamal Murray had 14 points, six rebounds and five assists for the Nuggets after their Friday win at Portland. They held the defending NBA champions to a season low for points.

Kevin Durant had 18 points and six rebounds in a particularly poor shooting performance for the typically efficient NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP). He was six for 17 and missed all five of his three-point attempts as the Warriors shot 38.6 percent.

Draymond Green had 10 points, six assists and five rebounds in his second game back after missing five of six with soreness in his right shoulder. He took a sharp elbow to the face from Jokic with 7:27 remaining and went down hard, then was getting x-rays on his left elbow afterward.

Klay Thompson scored 15 for the Warriors but was six for 21 overall and one of 10 on threes as Golden State went just three for 27 from deep. A night after posting his first career double-double with season bests of 20 points and 10 rebounds, Warriors rookie Jordan Bell contributed seven points and 10 rebounds.

Patrick McCaw’s floater with 7:13 to go pulled Golden State to 82-71, but the Warriors couldn’t do much more to fight back.

“I can’t remember seeing many teams hold that team to three of 27 from the three-point line,” Denver Coach Michael Malone said. “So it’s a hell of a win for us and it’s going to make Christmas obviously that much merrier.”

The Warriors were sloppy, lacked a flow on offense, looked a step behind most of the night and never got rolling trying to play catch-up much of the evening. Fans headed for the exits with a few minutes left, a rare sight at Oracle Arena.

“When you’re missing shots, you don’t let it affect your defense, but this is a feel-good game,” Durant said. “You want to make shots, that’s what gets us going, that’s what gets the crowd going.”

Golden State has regularly relied on big third quarters this season, and last Saturday it couldn’t even muster a strong fourth after going into the final period down 73-62.

It was also the second night of a back-toback for the Warriors, who beat the Lakers at home last Friday. They fell behind 53-41 at the break last Saturday.

Harris had his second strong game after missing one with a bruised elbow.

The Nuggets had lost five straight on Golden State’s home floor dating to a 100-99 win at Oracle on April 10, 2014.

It was an especially slow start for Golden State, which began six for 18—with Durant going one for five and Thompson missing his

Velez, Abarquez prevail in Naga

GOLDEN STATE’S Kevin Durant draws a foul from Denver’s Wilson Chandler during the second half of their game last Saturday. AP

initial four shots as the Warriors shot seven for 21 in the opening quarter.

Stephen Curry, meanwhile, did extensive on-court work during pregame warmups and appeared to be moving well on his sprained right ankle, though the two-time MVP isn’t going to play on Monday.

“If we weren’t playing Cleveland on Christmas and I told you Steph hasn’t even played in a threeon-three game, hasn’t had any contact at all and the game was 48 hours from now, you would say that ‘Steph’s not going to play,’ but because it’s the magnitude of the game and everybody wants to know, but we can’t let that affect our judgment,” Kerr said. “He can’t play. It would be completely irresponsible if he did.”

Curry has missed seven straight games. AP

Old but still not Melo Rick Olivares bleachersbrew@gmail.com

Bleachers’ Brew IT is said that as you get older, you mellow down. Or do you?

The headline on ESPN is most amusing—“How iso Melo was freezing Russ, George and the OKC offense.” You don’t say? Wasn’t anyone watching how the Denver Nuggets and New York Knicks fared under Carmelo Anthony? Didn’t both teams do much better when they jettisoned Anthony?

Before the current National Basketball Association (NBA) season tipped off, Rowan Ricardo Phillips wrote in The New Yorker, in Oklahoma City Anthony’s new star teammates, Russell Westbrook and Paul George, will make offensive opportunities come more easily to him. He’ll find spaces on the court he hasn’t seen in his NBA career, and face defenders preoccupied with other players. We may see something approaching the Olympic version of Carmelo Anthony, the one who has earned three gold medals and earned plaudits from coaches and teammates.”

That’s wishful thinking. As of today, December 24, both New York and Oklahoma sport identical 17-15 records. In terms of overall efficiency, the Thunder are 20th in the league. New York is ranked 11th! Gasp! What does that infer? The Knicks aren’t that bad and can only get better. Five players are averaging double-digit scoring.

The last time that happened in Gotham was 2014-2015 season when seven players averaged double figures in scoring. There’s a huge caveat to that though—only Tim Hardaway Jr. played more than 70 games that season. The rest—Langston Galloway (45), Anthony (40), Amar’e Stoudemire (36), Andrea Bargnani (29), JR Smith (24) and Alexey Shved (16) missed more than a bunch of games. So it stands to reason that someone else will pick up the scoring slack.

J

OHN DAVID VELEZ and Elizabeth Abarquez each carved out a pair of victories in varying fashions to dominate their respective sides in the Palawan PawnshopPalawan Express Pera Padala (PPS-PEP) Naga City regional age-group tennis tournament at the City of Naga tennis courts recently in Cebu.

Velez repulsed Andrei Padao, 6-3, 6-4, in a duel of fancied bets to nail the boys’ 14-and-under crown then the rising Davao star stopped Mark Albarracin, 6-1, 6-2, to annex the 16-under crown in the Group 2 tournament sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop and presented by Slazenger.

The top-seeded Abarquez from Carcar, Cebu, also held off young Alexa Milliam, 6-3, 6-4, in the girls’ 16-under finals then repeated over the Smapi, Ponte Vedra bet, 6-2, 0-6, 10-5, for the 18-under plum as she shared the Most Valuable Player honors with Velez in the event hosted by Naga City Mayor Kristine Vanessa Chiong and the various local government units.

Milliam earlier dominated Ashley McKenzie, 6-1, 6-2, but fell short twice of her upset bid against Abarquez in the tournament backed by the Unified Tennis Philippines, including PPSPEPP, Cebuana Lhuillier, Wilson, Toby’s, Dunlop, Slazenger and B-Meg.

The players Oklahoma traded away for Anthony—center Enes Kanter is averaging a double double (13.5 points and 10.0 rebounds per game), while Doug McDermott is adding 8.6 points an outing. The latter is sixth best on the team. And now, Oklahoma Coach Billy Donovan is asking Anthony to just wait for those kick outs from Westbrook and George.

I rooted for the Knicks, too. And Anthony, as well. But clearly, he’s a selfish player. When he chastised former Knicks teammate Kristaps Porzingis for praising the triangle offense of Phil Jackson, it was clear that he didn’t want an equal-opportunity offense.

After the ball was taken out of his hands, Anthony said, “I think for me it’s just a matter of accepting that role. That’s all it is. Realizing that’s what it’s going to be, these are the type of shots I’m going to get, this is the type of offense we’re going to be running and accepting that, and working on that role.

That’s something that I’ve kind of been doing over the past week, is allowing myself to accept that role and do whatever I gotta do to make this team win.”

You mean it never occurred to him that he had to do what it takes which means sacrificing some stats?

You’d think that with his best years behind him, winning a NBA championship and being a good teammate would mean more to him.

Right now, it is still early in the season to see where Anthony and the Thunder will finish. They are a playoff team right now based on their win-loss record but they aren’t the rolling thunder sort who will take the league by storm.

How this season ends up is going to be interesting to watch for many, many reasons. OKC and Carmelo Anthony...is one of them.