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Pondering while celebrating Living up to your name Siegfred Bueno Mison, Esq.
Joel L. Tan-Torres
THE PATRIOT
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hat is the profession in the Philippines which celebrates a weeklong festivity of activities pursuant to a Malacañang proclamation? I believe that our accountancy sector is the only one among the 43 professions in the country which has a weeklong celebration every year.
This week accountants and the accountancy profession’s many stakeholders will have their Accountancy Week Celebration (AWC) from July 15 to 21. The many activities ranging from seminars, sports fest, outreach programs, accounting quiz contests, etc., are to be held in various locations throughout the Philippines. The 90 chapters of Philippine Institute of CPAs here and abroad and the more than 250 Junior Philippine Institute of CPAs chapters will all be coming out with activities for the AWC. The accountants have been conducting this weeklong festivities since 1966 when thenPresident Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr. issued in March 1966 Proclamation 19 declaring the AWC. The AWC tradition continues to be celebrated every third week of July pursuant to Malacañang Proclamation 218 that was issued by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in July 2002. At about the same time last year, on the occasion of the AWC then, I wrote about my concern on some initiatives in our accountancy profession. One year thereafter, I again ponder on some of these issues and more in this article. Accounting schools would have addressed by now their response to two recent developments, namely the influx of the first batch of senior high school graduates proceeding to take up the accountancy program and the offering of the new accountancy programs provided for in Commission on Higher Education Memorandum Orders 27 to 30. Both of these present opportunities, as well as challenges for all accounting schools. For these incoming freshmen, the school administrators will have to evaluate their admission policy and basic accounting offering as they take into account the additional two years and accounting and bookkeeping learning of this batch of students. Schools would have already decided by now if they would add any of the new accounting course/s to their existing program. Three major initiatives are still on the pipeline. The rollout of the Quality Assurance Review, the update of the Accountancy Law, and the
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Leonen, “to say that one spouse may divorce and the other may not contribute to patriarchy. It fosters an unequal relationship prone to abuse in such intimate relationship. The law is far from rigid. It should passionately
implementation of the Asean Mutual Recognition Arrangement have long been in gestation. Because of the high impact and value that these will provide to the profession, it is imperative that the remaining kinks and requirements be addressed and resolved so as to move these three initiatives forward. An assessment must be made of the regulatory measures that the Board of Accountancy and other regulators had instituted in the past years. There is a need to evaluate the effectiveness and areas for improvement of various measures, such as accreditation rules for the various accountancy sectors; the adoption of the Expanded Auditors Report and Certificate of Compilations Services; the increase of the audit peso threshold; the inspection of establishments and schools and establishments; and the investigation of complaints against erring CPAs. With a new Code of Ethics that includes the response to noncompliance with laws and regulations; and the revived focus on disclosure of client information and professional skepticism, the CPAs would have to constantly be alert and conscious of their growing responsibilities. Meanwhile, the demands of globalization and digital technology continue to impact the day-to-day engagement of the professional accountant. These require the accountant to be aware of these developments and to be ready to change his or her mind-set and way of doing things to continue to be relevant. These are thoughts that we should all ponder upon as we celebrate our Accountancy Week. Joel L. Tan-Torres is the chairman of the Professional Regulatory Board of Accountancy. A Certified Public Accountant who placed No. 1 in the May 1979 CPA Board Examinations, he is concurrently a tax partner of Reyes Tacandong & Co., CPAs. He was the former commissioner of the Bureau of Internal Revenue from 2009 to 2010. This column accepts contributions from accountants, especially articles that are of interest to the accountancy profession, in particular, and to the business community, in general. These can be e-mailed to boa.secretariat.@gmail.com.
guarantee equality.” I fully agree with Justice Leonen and the majority opinion of Justice Peralta. But still, no amount of judicial activism can be a real substitute for an Absolute Divorce Law that has long been advocated by countless suffering wives chained to the shackles of loveless marriages with philandering and abusive husbands!
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nomatology is the study of proper names of all kinds. Anthroponymy is the study of the names of human beings. Some parents look to their beliefs in giving names to their children. For instance, most Catholic parents in the Philippines name their daughters after patron saints according to the calendar, but will almost always be preceded with the name Maria presumably to pay homage to the mother of Jesus. Interestingly, not too many people know that the name Mary or its derivative Maria is a Hebrew term for beautiful, in the same way that not too many people know that APL de AP stands for Angel Lindo Pineda of Angeles, Pampanga. APL de AP is one of the members of the popular band Black Eyed Peas. We can safely presume that by adopting such a name, APL de AP wants to honor his roots and heritage as a Filipino. Luzviminda, which stands for Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao, is another name that is proudly Filipino. Such a name was quite prevalent a few decades ago; unfortunately, I have yet to encounter a Filipino millennial these days with such a patriotic name. Roilo is another name, although not as obvious as Luzviminda or APL de AP, which is proudly Filipino. As several people mourn the passing of Roilo Golez a few weeks ago, one report mistakenly referred to him as Rogelio. Rogelio is not an uncommon name, but Roilo is. The name of Roilo is actually a combination of the provinces of Romblon and Iloilo, the roots of this distinguished United States Naval Academy graduate. The Roilo name turned out to be predictive of Roilo’s career as this
former boxing champion during his cadetship days served the country with much patriotic fervor until his death. His stints in public service include three years as a national security adviser and 18 years as an active legislator in Congress. The name Roilo, unique as it is, will always be associated to Roilo Golez, a true advocate of Philippine sovereignty. The name Salvador is the Spanish form of the Latin name “Salvator,” which means savior. Since my father, my brother and my son are all named Salvador, prophetically, they may have performed or likely to perform savior-like functions sometime in the future. I know of one Salvador in Philippine Airlines (PAL) who has been trying his best to “save” the cabin services department since he took over the post a few months back. Salvador “Bud” Britanico Jr. has been slowly introducing innovative ideas to improve crew scheduling processes, a perennial issue among flight attendants and stewards. He has managed to make crew schedules more transparent and provide faster communication with the crew when it comes to changes in the published schedule. Though the system is still at its
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infant state, I am pleased to see how this particular Salvador in PAL has audaciously engaged the union leadership in his quest to maintain if not save the relationship between the union and management. Knowing the usually competing interests of each side, he finds a middle ground to minimize conflicts while generating cost savings in PAL. Thus far, by simply tweaking a few processes in crew assignments, Bud’s efforts have resulted to lower crew costs in some PAL flights. Most recently, I know of one insurance company who recently renamed its corporate name to Bethel, which means “House of God.” And, as if on cue, Bethel, as a new company under a new set of leaders, has somehow mutated into the true meaning of its name as seen during its first board and organizational meeting. Its Vice Chairman Amiel Mercado, whose first name means “my people belong to God,” led an inspiring opening prayer as well as a closing prayer, although the latter was not included in the board agenda. Amiel implored the power and grace of God to help guide the company leaders toward financial success, principally for the benefit of its employees—his people who belong to God. Shortly after the board meeting, the priest who officiated the blessing ceremonies of the new office space appropriately declared that he was actually blessing the people and not just the office. For him, it was more important to bless the employees than the rooms and cubicles where they work. Somehow our names, either chosen (as in the case of APL de AP) or given (as in the case of Roilo), can be a good predictor of how our lives will turn out in the future. In the Bible, Abraham used to be called as Abram. But when he was called upon to be a father at 100 years of age, he was
AP Diplomatic Writer
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ASHINGTON—President Donald J. Trump’s persistence in pursuing friendly ties with Vladimir Putin has highlighted a growing disconnect within his administration over Russia policy. Trump speaks fondly of Putin and a desire for better relations with Moscow, but the rest of his executive branch remains highly critical and deeply suspicious of the Russian president and the Kremlin’s intentions. The stark contrast in approaches has been thrown into sharp relief as Trump and Putin prepare for their summit in Finland on Monday, amid unremitting criticism of Russia from Trump’s State Department, Justice Department, Treasury Department and Defense Department.
That might be explained as a good cop-bad cop strategy with Russia. But the mixed messaging has left America’s friends and allies confused, particularly after a contentious Nato summit, where Trump questioned the value of the alliance that Putin has long denounced and sought to weaken. Just three days before the Helsinki summit, the Justice Department announced the indictment of 12 Russian intelligence officers in special counsel Robert Muller’s investigation into Moscow’s meddling in the 2016 US presidential election. That brings to 25 the number of Russians charged in the investigation. Trump has denied any collusion with Russia and has repeatedly cited Putin’s denials of any Russian interference in the campaign, suggesting there is little or nothing he can do to demand accountability. The Kremlin has denied that the
For questions and comments, please e-mail me at sbmison@gmail.com.
Why Mueller’s latest indictment is so breathtaking
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By Eli Lake | Bloomberg Opinion
obert Mueller’s latest indictment in his investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 election is chock full of extraordinary details. Its most breathtaking revelation, however, is just how scary-good America’s cyberspies are. Mueller’s indictment shows how a dozen Russian military intelligence officers probed, hacked and pilfered the servers of the Democratic National Committee, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the campaign of Hillary Clinton. It lists their names and ranks. It details how they paid for things (in Bitcoin) and what they researched, which programs they used and how they tried to hide their tracks. It reveals the phony personas some agents used in their online interactions—“Alice Donovan,” “Jason Scott” and “Richard Gingrey.” And it has a tantalizing detail about the campaign’s timing: On the same day that then candidate Donald J. Trump publicly asked the Russians “to find the 30,000 e-mails that are missing,” for example, the Russian hackers probed Clinton’s personal servers.
All of this makes for compelling reading. But it also reveals an irony about online privacy. The very government capabilities derided five years ago as potential invasions of privacy were necessary in pinning blame on a foreign government that used much cruder techniques not only to read the communications of American citizens, but to release them on the Internet. Put another way, we need Big Brother to expose the snooping of little brothers. And the threat Russia posed to the privacy of Democratic Party officials such as John Podesta and Neera Tanden is not fleeting. Foreign states and private actors pose a grave and continuing threat to the privacy of American citizens. Think of the many hacks in just the last few years. There was the
2014 hack of Sony Pictures before the release of The Interview, a spoof of North Korea’s dictator. That hack exposed the e-mails and personal messages of Hollywood executives and movie stars. The FBI and the US intelligence pinned it on North Korea, shortly after the attack, but they have not released the kind of detail found in the Mueller indictment. Or consider the case of Elliott Broidy. Earlier this year, news outlets began publishing a trove of his personal e-mails that showed how Broidy, a Trump fund-raiser, lobbied the president to fire then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. Broidy reportedly wanted the US to take the side of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in their dispute with Qatar. Broidy now alleges in a lawsuit that the hack was a Qatari plot, which the Qataris deny. It’s hard to overstate the importance of the US intelligence community in these cases. Despite the growth of the private cybersecurity industry, this kind of crime is very hard to investigate and prove, especially if the suspected culprit
Trump wish for warm Putin ties highlights policy disconnect By Matthew Lee
renamed to appropriately elevate his status, as it was written in Genesis 17:5-6: “No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you.” And true enough, Abraham became the father of many descendants who later on became kings. To cap the transformation in Bethel General Insurance and Surety Co., Bethel is now providentially led by its youthful President Dominga Garcia, whose first name means “of the Lord.” Applying principles of onomatology and relevant verses in the Bible, a company whose new name means House of God and led by leaders whose names mean “my people belong to God” and “of the Lord” will gradually live up to the meaning of its name in the near future, similar to how Abram became the father of many nations shortly after he was renamed Abraham. Our name stays with us from birth until death. We rarely have control over such choice, but our names can somehow define who we can be, as in the cases of Roilo Golez and Salvador Britanico Jr. In my case, Siegfried or its westernized counterpart Siegfred, is the name of the legendary king/dragon slayer in German mythology. It also means victorious peace. We should thank our parents for giving us our names. To us, how we live up to our name, whether given by our parents, as in the cases of Amiel and Dominga, or chosen by us, as in the case of Bethel Insurance, will ultimately depend on our free will. But for Him, He already knows way beforehand—that’s something we refer to as God’s will.
Russian state interfered in the election. The indictments were unsealed just hours after Trump again referred to Mueller’s inquiry as a “witch hunt” and after the president told reporters at a news conference with British Prime Minister Theresa May, “I think I would have a very good relationship with Putin if we spend time together.” A day earlier in Brussels, Trump did say he would raise the election issue with Putin, but also said: “I don’t think you’ll have any ‘Gee, I did it, I did it. You got me!’ There won’t be Perry Mason here, I don’t think. But I will absolutely, firmly ask the question.” Trump also has expressed little interest in continuing the harsh US criticism of Russian activities in Syria, Ukraine and elsewhere, and of Russia’s human rights record. In fact, he’s raised doubts about US demands for Russia to return to Ukraine the territory of Crimea it
annexed in 2014, and has suggested a bargain could be in the works for Russia’s ally Bashar Assad to remain in power indefinitely in Syria. Contrast that with the messaging of the State Department. Under Trump, the department has issued regular stinging critiques of Russia, including on human rights and press freedom. Those have been sustained since former CIA Director Mike Pompeo was installed as top US diplomat in April and despite the president’s growing calls for friendship with Putin. Ahead of Russia’s national day on June 12, Pompeo said the United States honors “the citizens of the Russian Federation and their aspirations for the democratic principles of universal freedom, civil liberties and the rule of law.” On July 6 department spokesman Heather Nauert condemned the “selec-
tive targeting” by Russia of US-funded news organizations. And this Thursday the department criticized a “pattern of intimidation and violence against those who express dissent across Russia.” Pompeo has also been steadfast in his support of Nato. While Trump was questioning the commitment of Nato allies at this past week’s summit in Brussels, where leaders agreed on modest steps to improve military readiness in Europe, principally to counter Russia, Pompeo was lauding the 29-nation grouping as “the most successful alliance in history.” Pompeo also warned in a tweet: “Weakness provokes; strength and cohesion protect.” Defense Secretary Jim Mattis has been no less critical of Russia and its attempts to weaken or entirely subvert trans-Atlantic alliances.
is foreign state or entity. The US government has capabilities that are not available to the private sector. If the victims of foreign-state hacking ever want to receive justice, they will need the digital spying infrastructure of the National Security Agency. This is not to say that the government poses no threat to privacy. The leaks of intercepted phone calls between the Russian ambassador and Trump’s first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, were dangerous. So was the leak about former Trump campaign aide Carter Page being under federal surveillance. The US government was also wrong to hide its collection of telephone metadata from the public until former contractor Edward Snowden exposed this program. But when foreign governments, such as Russia, hack the accounts of US citizens and make public their private communications, Americans will invariably rely on US intelligence agencies to learn about it. And in this new kind of political warfare, attribution is the first step toward deterrence.
“Putin seeks to shatter Nato,” he told graduates of the US Naval War College last month. “He aims to diminish the appeal of the Western democratic model and attempts to undermine America’s moral authority. His actions are designed not to challenge our arms at this point but to undercut and compromise our belief in our ideals.” Measure that against Trump’s suggestion at a rancorous summit of the Group of Seven last month in Canada that the leading industrialized countries include Russia in their elite grouping of democracies—a suggestion that got short shrift from the other nations. And as Trump has talked about bringing Putin back into the international fold, the Treasury Department has continued to impose sanctions on various Russian officials, companies and businessmen.