Issuu

“So, what can we think? We cannot think anything. A terror attack might happen everywhere, it does happen everywhere.”—Ali Batur, whose brother died in the Istanbul airport attack. AP

media partner of the year

“With a disunited United Kingdom, we need a united Europe more than ever.”—Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel, as European Union leaders grappled with the aftermath of Britain’s exit from the economic bloc. AP

“I’m not saying they shouldn’t answer. I’m just—I’m helping them out a little bit.” —President Barack Obama joked, when a reporter asked the leaders of Canada and Mexico to weigh in on Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. AP

BusinessMirror

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A broader look at today’s business

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Saturday, July 2, 2016 Vol. 11 No. 266

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NEW TOURISM CHIEF TO CONVENE STAKEHOLDERS TO A PRICING SUMMIT

Teo to lower room rates to hike arrivals By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo

INSIDE

garbine gone

Sports

HE new tourism chief is eyeing a standardization of room rates to encourage more foreign visitors to travel to the Philippines.

BusinessMirror

GARBINE GONE L

By Howard Fendrich The Associated Press

ONDON—After two days filled with rain, the sun actually made an appearance at Wimbledon on Thursday, allowing for plenty of play all around the grounds, a chance to finally conclude the first round— and several surprises, the biggest of which was French Open champion Garbine Muguruza’s exit. No. 2 Muguruza, who reached her first Grand Slam final at the All England Club a year ago and won her first Grand Slam title less than a month ago, was one of 18 seeded players who lost on Day 4, including 11 women. Admittedly lethargic, and displaying none of the verve or confident shotmaking she’s known for, Muguruza lasted less than an hour in the second round on Thursday, beaten 6-3, 6-2 by Slovakia’s Jana Cepelova, a qualifier ranked 124th. “My energy was not really there,” Muguruza said. “I was trying, but [it] didn’t work at all.” That same sentiment might have been expressed by some of the other players who joined her on the way out of the tournament, including No. 31 Kristina Mladenovic in a weather-delayed first-round match, and No. 7 Belinda Bencic, No. 14 Sam Stosur, No. 15 Karolina Pliskova, No. 16 Johanna Konta, No. 17 Elina Svitolina, No. 20 Sara Errani, No. 22 Jelena Jankovic, No. 30 Caroline Garcia and No. 32 Andrea Petkovic, all in second-round matches. That group includes a Grand Slam champion (Stosur), major finalists (Errani, Jankovic), the first seeded British woman at

| SAturdAy, July 2, 2016 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph sports@businessmirror.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao Asst. Editor: Joel Orellana

Subs deliver for Portugal M

ARSEILLE, France—Portugal likes to leave it late at this European Championship, whether Cristiano Ronaldo is having a good game or not. The Portuguese have been level after 90 minutes in every game this tournament, a run that continued on Thursday as Ronaldo and his teammates drew 1-1 with Poland after extra time, before advancing to the semifinals with a 5-3 victory on penalties. With Ronaldo once again far from his best, two of the Real Madrid star’s supporting cast stepped up. Eighteen-year-old Renato Sanches, Portugal’s youngest ever starter at a European Championship, scored the equalizer and

GARBINE MUGURUZA is one of 18 seeded players who lost on Day 4, including 11 women. AP

Wimbledon since 1984 (Konta, eliminated by 2014 runner-up Eugenie Bouchard) and a top-10 player considered a possible future star of the sport (Bencic, who retired because of a leftwrist injury while trailing American qualifier Julia Boserup). There was nearly another big name gone. But No. 3 Agnieszka Radwanska, the 2012 Wimbledon runner-up, saved three match points, then took advantage when her opponent, 18-year-old Ana Konjuh of Croatia, twisted her right ankle by accidentally stepping on a tennis ball during a point. That happened at 7-all in the third set and, although Konjuh continued to play after a medical time-out, Radwanska was able to finish off a 6-2, 4-6, 9-7 victory. The seven seeded men who lost, all in the second round, were No. 8 Dominic Thiem, No. 13 David Ferrer, No. 16 Gilles Simon, No. 23 Ivo Karlovic, No. 25 Viktor Troicki—who launched an epic tirade at the chair umpire because of a call two points from the end of his five-set defeat—No. 26 Benoit Paire and No. 30 Alexandr Dolgopolov. Muguruza was never able to get going, making 22 unforced errors and managing to produce only nine winners. She said she felt tired and on the verge of an illness. She also wished she had taken more time to rest after the grueling two weeks at Roland Garros that culminated with a victory over Serena Williams in the final. Asked whether coming into Wimbledon as the owner of a major trophy made her feel a weight on her shoulders, Muguruza replied: “No, not pressure. I think, for sure, more expectations from other people.”

took man-of-the-match honors with his smart movement and neat footwork. Then substitute Ricardo Quaresma struck the winning penalty in the shootout, five days after he scored an extra-time winner against Croatia in another late show by the Portuguese in the round of 16. Quaresma fired his spot-kick past Lukasz Fabianski to line up a match against either Wales or Belgium in Lyon on Wednesday, securing Portugal’s fourth semifinal at the last five European Championships. “It was enormous pressure. I had an entire country in my hands,” Quaresma said. “I knew it was going to be a goal.” AP

CLIMBERS’ RACE

AINT-LO, France—Not too long ago, a successful Tour de France for Mark Cavendish meant coming away with a handful of victories. Not anymore. And not only because German rivals Marcel Kittel and Andre Greipel have taken over as cycling’s top sprinters. “The sprint opportunities are less,” Cavendish said on Thursday, lamenting how Tour organizers have created more challenging routes in recent years with more hilly stages in the opening week, as opposed to the purely flat opening stages that the race once started with. “In 2008, it was 18 Cat [category] 2, Cat 1 and HC [Hors Categorie, beyond category] climbs in the whole Tour de France. Last year there was 18 in the last week. This year there’s 28 Cat 2, Cat 1 and HC climbs,” Cavendish said. “It’s quite an increase.”

@Pulitika2010 Special to the BusinessMirror

He won four stages in 2008, six in 2009, five each in 2010 and 2011, and three in 2012. But over the last three races, he has won a total of three stages, and just one last year. While the first three stages this year—highlighted by Saturday’s scenic opening leg from Mont-SaintMichel to Utah Beach—set up well for sprinters, the route gets hilly from the fourth day onward. “It makes more people win, which is good for the sport but it definitely changes our approach,” Cavendish said. “You don’t go with a nine-man leadout team to the Tour de France anymore unless you’re happy with just a couple of stage wins. “There’s a longer list of GC [general classification] contenders than there ever was. And the teams are built behind them. That makes it very difficult for the sprinters.” AP

RIO WITHIN REACH

Officially beginning his quest for a third consecutive Olympic gold medal in the 100-meter dash, Usain Bolt cruises his way through the quarterfinals at the Jamaica National Senior Championships—which serve as his country’s trials to decide who goes to the Rio Games in August. No one has ever won three golds in the 100, which is what Bolt could do in Rio. AP

In a news briefing on Friday following a Mass to celebrate her taking over as head of the Department of Tourism

sports

RAIN TREE FACILITY FOR THE ELDERLY OurTime BusinessMirror

B4 Saturday, July 2, 2016 • Editor: Efleda P. Campos

(DOT), Secretary Wanda Corazon T. Teo said she wants to meet with the different industry stakeholders, such

We will do our best to hit 10 million to 12 million arrivals.”—Teo

as hotels and resorts, transportation providers, and travel and tour operators, in a “pricing summit to standardize the rates and pricing of travel and tour packages” in the country. “We have to sacrifice a little,” she stressed,

By Mary Grace Padin

news@businessmirror.com.ph

By Felicia T. Recto | Special to the BusinessMirror

HAT do you do when the people who need the most help don’t get the assistance they need?

THE house

DAUBENBUECHEL

up a facility that specializes in geriatric care was not easy. In the Philippines nursing homes are viewed generally as commercial entities and, so, putting up one in a residential area or a village is something that would most likely be rejected. In fact, Rain Tree was rejected by 30 villages before it was finally accepted by Doña Rosario Heights in Muntinlupa City, where they are currently situated. The challenges did not stop there. Though the facility’s mission in providing geriatric care is clear, Daubenbuechel said there is still a stigma attached to nursing homes, something he eventually hopes to change. “The perception here is nursing homes are a bad thing; it’s not part of our culture. People who neglect their parents or elderly are bad. This is something I’m trying to change,” Daubenbuechel said. He said he also aims to draw the line between what a nursing home is and what a nursing home is not, which is a medical facility. “In the Philippines people always look up to the doctors. The doctor knows it all. Now the challenge with the nursing home is, a nursing home is not a medical facility, but people expect there should be doctors, or that doctors should run the facility. But it’s actually not. In countries where homes for the aged are accepted, like in the United States or Europe, it’s run by the nurses. It’s a nursing home, not a doctor’s home,” Daubenbuechel said.

THE room

Rain Tree pegs its services at a starting price of P45,000. Though it may seem like a tall price to pay, the price is inclusive of a fully furnished and air-conditioned room, nursing care and other support services, daily meal—including special diet—individual laundry and housekeeping services, social activities and entertainment (depending on the resident’s needs), and monthly consultations with visiting doctors, an additional P800 per visit. The geriatric care provided by Rain Tree is divided into three categories: Care Level 1, which is four hours of support a day; Care Level 2, eight hours of support a day; and Care Level 3, 12 hours of support a day. The care level is dependent on the type of care the resident needs, and this is assessed by Rain Tree at the beginning of the resident’s stay in the facility. “First, we have a document where we assess the resident, so we basically look at 11 different areas of the life of the resident. Can they still eat? Can they still dress and wash themselves independently? After this assessment, we say we know the problems, and we define our goals: What do we want to achieve? More important, what does the resident and the

family want to achieve?” Daubenbuechel said. The expense of the resident’s stay increases as the resident moves up a care level, or is in need of more intensive care. Daubenbuechel said this would entail an additional P15,000 to P20,000. Rain Tree is also partnered with Lifeline Rescue and Asian Hospital, two of the major healthcare facilities in Muntinlupa City. In case of emergencies or major accidents, a Lifeline Rescue ambulance would immediately take the resident to Asian Hospital, which admits the resident right away. One of Rain Tree’s most notable features is the intensive training of their nurses. Because the facility deals with residents with special needs, especially those with Alzheimer’s and dementia, they need nurses who provide not just physical care, but psychological and emotional care, as well. “What is the main task of the nurse? To make the patient well. But what is the main task of a geriatric nurse? Most often you can’t make the resident well anymore because of Alzheimer’s and dementia. There’s nothing you can do, except understand the disease, react properly to it and make the resident feel comfort-

able,” Daubenbuechel said. The nurses at Rain Tree are trained under the supervision of D au b e n b u e c he l ’s mot he r Carol Daubenbuechel, a director of nursing in a geriatric school in Germany. They undergo this training for one month, which is composed of videos from the facility’s head nurse—an international patient-safety trainer—as well as a 700-page quality management document that contains the standards for long-term care. Daubenbuechel said it is necessary for the nurses to be trained according to this standard, otherwise, the resident would not get the quality care they need. Since a good percentage of Rain Tree’s residents have Alzheimer’s and dementia, the nurses are trained to approach them in a way that is tailored to the resident’s behaviors, attitudes and emotions. In short, they serve mostly as a guide to help the residents perform their necessary daily tasks or to process information. “My typical interview question is, you have a lady in this house, she’s 85 years old, and she always wants to see her husband, who passed away five years ago. What do you do? Basically 95 percent of the cases, the nurses would say I would tell her the truth because she deserves to know the truth. Part of the training is that you can solve this differently. ‘Lola, your husband went on a business trip to whichever.’ Usually you know what the history of the husband was. “You can tell the lady ‘But if you want, we can sit together and write him a post card or a letter.’ And then you write the letter, bring it together to the post office, depending on which state the lady is. So you give her activity on one hand, and spare her the suffering by knowing that her husband is dead,” Daubenbuechel said. He also said the more experienced a nurse is in handling residents, the higher care level she is ssigned to. For example, a nurse

who has been with the facility for several months would be assigned to a resident who is in need of Care Level 2, or even 3. Now that he has a facility that is up and running, Daubenbuechel does not plan to stop there. He plans to open up the facility not just for possible residents, but for village executives who might be interested in having Rain Tree in their residential area. “The main reason I started this is I would like people to see a home for the aged is not that bad. Executives of other villages can see and understand what we do. I always say the first project is the most difficult and you need to open a door where people understand Hey there is nothing I got to be afraid of,” Daubenbuechel said. Daubenbuechel is also endeavoring to create a new initiative to tie up to the Rain Tree project— bringing geriatric-care education to the Philippines. Currently, he is partnered with Procivitate, a public-private partnership with the German government, which trains Filipino nurses in German and geriatric care before they are dispatched abroad. Because this initiative exists, he aims to extend this further to families, so that they would know how to deal with and take care of their elderly family members. Daubenbuechel is in the process of forming an alliance with seven nursing homes to ensure the government will create measures to assist and provide for the elderly. He also plans to partner with the Department of Social Welfare and Development to shoulder the supplies for the Golden Acre’s nursing home. Though it is starting small, Rain Tree is a big step forward for geriatric care in the Philippines. Already, there is a silver lining for the 7 million elderly Filipinos who do not have the care they need. Hopefully one day, Rain Tree will be found not just in its home in Muntinlupa City, but all over the country, helping those who definitely need it the most.

Continued on A2

Struggle vs elder abuse goes on even as WEAAD ends By Sandra Sendingan

Special to the BusinessMirror

VEN in this modern day and age where the platform to raise increased awareness on key social problems are readily available, various elderly civic groups and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) celebrated World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD) on June 15 with the acknowledgment that the battle is far from over. “The main problem with elder abuse not just in the Philippines is that it is an underreported issue,” Aura Sevilla of Coalition of Services for the Elderly (Cose) said. The World Health Organization estimates one in 10 older people go through abuse per month, but this remains an underestimation since only one in 24 cases of elderly abuse is reported, the event’s statement said. Coupled with the glaring lack of research into the taboo issue, elder abuse continues to pervade Filipino households, keeping everyone, but the perpetrator and the elderly victim, in the dark.

In fact, Sevilla, a project coordinator for Cose, an NGO that has worked with and for the elderly sector for 25 years, reveals the organization relies on the findings of a study conducted more than a decade ago due to lack of existing local research. The study, done in 2004, was conducted by Edna Co of UP NCPAG. The study revealed that 40.6 percent of elderly respondents admitted to abuse with the perpetrators coming from their own family. The study also found that elderly abuse takes two forms: physical abuse and negligence. The respondents from urban areas relayed how the lack of an established reporting system makes it all the more difficult for the issue to reach public consciousness, in effect diminishing its urgency in the legislative agenda. “It’s a job of the government: To make sure that older persons’ rights are realized and enjoyed until they die. There are some [government] efforts pero kulang pa…kaya meron pa rin tayong elder abuse ngayon,” Sevilla added.

To respond to the need for an efficient and centralized reporting mechanism for cases of elder abuse, the Department of Social Welfare and Development launched as pilot test Reporting System and Prevention Program for Elder Abuse Cases, a mechanism for local government units that will make reporting on elderly abuse easier. The program was launched last June 15 and is being pilot tested across four regions in the country. Sevilla said the common misconception on elder abuse being a domestic matter to be settled without any outside intervention impedes government efforts at rehabilitation and denies the nature of the issue as a social ill. “Aging issues are not just anyone’s issue; it’s our issue. Lahat tayo tumatanda; lahat tayo darating sa point na we’ll all grow old. This is something that’s also an investment to the future kasi if you make this world a better place for older persons, then there’s also a better place for us waiting,” she said.

OUR TIME

GRANDMA’S DAY

On a weekend, BusinessMirror contributing photojournalist Suzanne June (left) and younger brother Nonie pay their Inang Jovita a visit in her ancestral farm in Magsaysay, Bayombong, Nueva Vizcaya. The 88-year-old vegetarian personally grows organic vegetables of her choice in her backyard. LEONARDO PERANTE II

TV STATION OF THE YEAR CNN Philippines bags the Television Station of the Year plum during the Rotary Club of Manila (RCM) Journalism Awards 2016

A PLEASING HERITAGE Preserve us, O God, for in You we take refuge. We say to the Lord, “You are our Lord. Our happiness lies in You alone.” O Lord, it is You our portion and cup; You Yourself who secure our lot. Pleasant places are marked out for us a pleasing heritage, indeed, is ours! We will bless the Lord who gives us counsel, who even at night directs our heart. We keep the Lord before us always; with Him at our right hand will show us the path of life, the fullness of joy in Your presence, at Your right hand, bliss forever. (Psalm 16: 1- 5-8, 11) Amen! Give Us This Day, Committee on Divine Worship, Shared by Luisa M. Lacson, HFL

@ _enren

he new chief of the Department of Agriculture (DA) has directed all remaining and future regional directors of the agency to strive for rice self-sufficiency in all regions of the country in the next two years. Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol said DA regional directors who will not be able to achieve rice self-sufficiency in their areas within the target period would be dismissed from their office. “We have to have rice sufficiency in two years’ time—four cropping seasons—in every region. That’s the task of the new directors. If they don’t achieve this, I will remove them [from their position],” Piñol said during his turnover ceremony at the DA.

THE room

Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol (left) and his predecessor Proceso J. Alcala share a light moment at the turnover rites. NONOY LACZA

Continued on A2

Rain Tree facility for the elderly finally finds a home This was the question former Retirement and Health Coalition Executive Marc Daubenbuechel, a German national, sought to answer when he was working with the European Chamber of Commerce (ECC) in 2006. That year the ECC, in partnership with the Department of Tourism, the Department of Health and the Philippine Retirement Authority, sought to bring in foreign retirees in order to address the problem of unemployment, especially for nurses, and also provide decent housing for the retirees. “If you look at why the Philippines makes sense for foreign retirees, it’s because its population is English speaking, and it’s basically pretty much a Westernized nation. You don’t come here and feel like you’re totally lost, and you have good health workers, especially the nurses,” Daubenbuechel told the BusinessMirror. As he continued to get retirement requests from foreigners and Filipino-Americans living with elderly family members, a new question arose: If the Philippines is taking care of foreign retirees, who is taking care of the Filipino retirees? “You need to ensure that you can take care of your own population with regards to health-care needs,” Daubenbuechel said. “If you look now at inviting foreign retirees and we are not even able to look after our very own elderly in the Philippines, I think there is something wrong.” This growing concern sparked an idea that after much hard work, struggle and dedication, became a reality and, thus, Rain Tree was born. Rain Tree is Daubenbuechel’s first project that caters specifically to the Filipino elderly. Described as a “home away from home,” RainTree is a geriatric-care facility and nursing home for those in need of assisted living and other types of care. Rain Tree also provides services for the elderly with special conditions, such as Alzheimer’s and dementia. The facility has been open since June 15 and is currently in the process of marketing. For Daubenbuechel, putting

PIÑOL WANTS RICE SELF-SUFFICIENCY ACHIEVED IN 2YRS

at a hotel in Makati City. In photo are (from left) Roberto M. Pagdanganan, RCM district governor; Frank A. Evaristro, RCM director in Charge; Alfonso Marquez III, vice president for News and Current Affairs, CNN Philippines; Armie Jarin-Bennett, executive vice president and managing editor, CNN Philippines; D. Edgard A. Cabangon, chairman of the board, Nine Media Corp.-CNN Philippines; RCM Vice President-elect and Chairman of the Journalism Awards Committee Babe G. Romualdez; and RCM President Eusebio V. Tan. NONOY LACZA

PESO exchange rates n US 47.0070

jor infrastructure components. Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc., which invests in electricity, has surged 23 percent; and Metro Pacific Investments Co., with water and power units, is up 20 percent. Mr. Duterte, the firebrand former mayor of Davao City, has said he intends to ramp up infrastructure spending to 5 percent of GDP, from 3.2 percent under Aquino. Only a dozen PPPs, worth $4.2 billion, have been awarded since 2010; and Aquino handed his successor a list of 50 such deals to speed

By Cai U. Ordinario

@cuo_bm

growth in the nation with the lowest infrastructure quality among Southeast Asia’s emerging markets.

he National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) is eyeing the review of the Investment Coordination Committee (ICC) evaluation process in a bid to fast-track approval for implementationready projects. On the sidelines of the Neda turnover ceremonies on Friday, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary and Neda Director General Ernesto M. Pernia echoed the President’s call to cut red tape in government agencies. Pernia said the Neda’s response would be to do the same, including the review of the ICC process, which evaluates and approves big-ticket government projects. “We have to decide what steps in the red tape, in the approval of things, can be cut out. We should be able to do that in 100 days,” Pernia said. “We need to speed up, the low-hanging fruits and then those that are ready for implementation. [We have to push for] speed and efficiency,” he added.

Continued on A2

See “Pernia,” A2

Investors pin infra hopes on Duterte n de r f o r m e r P r e s i d e nt Benigno S. Aquino III, publicprivate partnerships (PPPs) were cynically referred to as PowerPoint presentations due to a lack of progress in building roads, rail and power plants. Investors are betting President Duterte, who took over on Thursday, will be able to make speedier progress than his predecessor. Seven of the top 10 performers on the Philippine Stock Exchange index (PSEi) since the May 9 elections are utilities or conglomerates with ma-

Pernia wants ICC process reviewed to rush approvals

Definitely, these laws will help, but political will is really the clincher.” —Del Castillo

n japan 0.4553 n UK 62.5945 n HK 6.0584 n CHINA 7.0708 n singapore 34.9027 n australia 35.0202 n EU 52.2107 n SAUDI arabia 12.5389

Source: BSP (1 July 2016 )

BMReports BusinessMirror

A2 Saturday, July 2, 2016

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Teo to lower room rates to hike arrivals Continued from A1

noting t hat Phi l ippine hotel rates are expensive compared to those in other Asean countries. “We have to standardize [rates]. How come it’s cheap to go to Bangkok? We lower the rates so people will come.” This developed as she seeks the approval of President Duterte to hold the Ms. Universe beauty pageant in 2017, an event she feels would drive more foreign visitors to the Philippines. “I want the project very much, and I will recommend this to the President, who has the final say. I plan to hold portions of the pageant in several tourism destinations, and with over 100

candidates, it will surely attract more visitors to the Philippines,” Teo said. The DOT chief said she recently met with Paula M. Shugart, president of the Ms. Universe Organization who had proposed to hold the 2017 beauty pageant in the Philippines next January. Teo is also looking forward to the continuation of the Madrid Fusión Manila, a landmark project started by her predecessor Ramon R. Jimenez Jr., which firmly installed the Philippines as an international gastronomic center in Asia. For 2017, Teo said she wants to invite Anthony Bourdain, former chef of Brasserie Les Halles in New York, and now a novelist

and TV host/producer of several travel and food shows. Bourdain was in Manila last year to shoot an episode of his Parts Unknown show for CNN. Teo said among her priorities for 2016 are the improvement of roads, bridges, and gateways like airports and seaports; the development of other destinations and improvement of the present destinations; and the implementation of more promotions to be able to hit the arrivals target. Under the National Tourism Development Plan, the agency’s target for foreign visitor arrivals is 10 million for 2016, and 56.1 million for domestic tourists. “Since we have already reached the 3-million [for-

eign] arrivals mark, we will do our best to hit 10 [million] to 12 million arrivals,” she added. Part of the promotions activity is the continued use of the popular “It’s More Fun in the Philippines” brand campaign created by Jimenez, to market the country abroad. “But probably, we might have to come up with a better campaign slogan in the near future,” the new DOT chief said. Teo added that the agency will also actively market the Philippines through social media, a platform that helped Duterte win as President. “DOT will also focus on e-marketing, i.e., promoting the Philippines through social media, like Facebook and Twitter, so we

PIÑoL WANTS RICE SELF-SUFFICIENCY ACHIEVED IN 2 YRS Continued from A1

Regions that are already self-sufficient, such as the Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon and Davao region, are also expected to further improve their palay production, he said. In turn, the new DA secretary committed to provide all production support to the regions, including seeds, fertilizers and other farm inputs. He also promised to improve irrigation facilities, such as communal and small-scale irrigation systems. To carry out this plan, Piñol said he is looking at a budget of P30 billion, which will be used as assistance to local farmers and fishermen within the next two cropping seasons. “We will do our numbers, we will compute and on Tuesday afternoon the Cabinet Economic Cluster will meet. It’s chaired by [Finance] Secretary [Carlos] Sonny G. Dominguez III and I promised to present to them my costing for the rice-sufficiency program,” he expounded. Meanwhile, one of the strategies being eyed by Piñol to attain rice self-sufficiency in the country is increasing the average yield of farmers. “Our target right now is to increase productivity by at least 1 metric ton [MT] per hectare per harvest. If we can do that, we’re done,” he said. Piñol said the national average rice yield of the Philippines remains at 4 MT per hectare, despite there being farmers who have already harvested as much as 12 MT to 15 MT per hectare. He said increasing the average yield by at least 1 MT per hectare will result in additional volume that exceeds the shortfall of the country, which is about

1.8 million metric tons (MMT). “If it can be done by other farmers with [a yield] of 12 MT per hectare, I don’t see any reason why other farmers cannot do it,” the official said. Improving the country’s average yield would entail reviewing the irrigation, fertilization and seeds program of the government, according to Piñol. He said the DA is currently looking at investing in high-quality seeds good for an area of 2 million hectares. Piñol, during an interview with the media, also revealed he is eyeing to create a grain-surplus stock by the end of the term of President Duterte. “At the end of the term of the President, my vision is to be able to come up with a grain-surplus stock [that is] good for six months. Grains, not rice,” Piñol said. He said the DA will be putting up grain silos in critical areas all over the country to ensure the different regions have prepositioned stocks of grains in case of calamities and natural phenomena, such as El Niño. The DA, under the term of former Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala, has been able to increase the country’s rice selfsufficiency level to 97 percent in 2013, from 81 percent in 2010. The DA said palay production from 2012 to 2015 exceeded 18 MMT yearly, a level which was sustained even with the devastation of El Niño in 2015. Piñol also named a few individuals that he is recommending to become top officials of the agencies under the Office of the Presidential Assistant for Food Security and Agricultural Mechanization (Opafsam). Piñol said he has asked the permission of Mr. Duterte to recommend the next administrators of the National

Irrigation Administration (NIA), National Food Authority (NFA), Philippine Coconut Author it y (PC A) and Fer tilizer and Pesticide Authority. “Although these four agencies are not directly under the DA right now, I was able to secure the approval of the President to now recommend officials who will handle these agencies of the government,” Piñol said during the turnover ceremony at the DA. He endorsed C’zar M. Sulaik, NIA regional director for Caraga, as new NIA administrator; Domingo Duerme, former Philippine Airlines vice president for Mindanao, as NFA administrator; and Al Mendoza, journalist and farmer, as PCA administrator. Piñol said he has already submitted a memorandum to Duterte, recommending that the four agencies under the Opafsam be returned to the DA for “effective operations.” Piñol also named other appointees who will work as officials of the DA. He has retained Bernadette Puyat, who is now chief of staff of the DA, and Segfredo R. Serrano, undersecretary for policy, planning, research and development and regulations. He introduced Evelyn Laviña as undersecretary for high-value crops and Ranibai Dilangalen as undersecretary for special concern. Commo. Eduardo Gongona was named director of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources. The secretary’s brother, Ferdinand Piñol, was assigned as his executive assistant. Other officials named were Francisco Villano Jr., assistant secretary for finance; lawyer Hansel Didulo, assistant secretary for Visayas; Enrico Garzon Jr., assistant secretary for livestock; Lerey Panes, assistant secretary for special projects; and Bong Año, assistant secretary for operations, among others.

don’t have to join all travel fairs.” She said she wants to develop and promote new destinations in Mindanao, such as Cagayan de Oro, Davao, Davao Oriental and Surigao. Meanwhile, the DOT chief announced her new management team, which is a mix of old and new faces. These are Falconi Millar, undersecretary for Administration; Gwen Javier, assistant secretary for Administration; Ma. Lourdes Japson, assistant secretary for the Office of the Secretary; Katherine de Castro, undersecretary for Media Affairs, a newly created post; Shalimar Tamano, assistant secretary for Media Affairs, also a new post; Alma Rita Jimenez, un-

dersecretary for Tourism Regulation Coordination and Resource Generation (TRCRG); Eden David, assistant secretary for TRCRG; Benito Bengzon Jr.. undersecretary for Tourism Development Planning; and Rolando Canizal, assistant secretary for Tourism Development Planning. Tamano, David, Bengzon and Canizal are old hats at the DOT. In her brief speech before DOT employees after the Mass, Teo said “there would be no changes from the director level down…kaya relax lang kayo.” She later told reporters that heads of DOT-attached agencies will also remain except for the Intramuros Administration, whose head already resigned.

Investors pin infra hopes on Duterte Continued from A1

“Duterte’s character as a man of action is making a lot of people expect that he will make infrastructure projects move faster, unlike the previous administration,” said Nescyn Presinede, a trader at Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. in Manila. “There is a growing sense that using his accomplishment in Davao as a gauge, he will not let bureaucracy stand in the way.” Aquino had success in narrowing the budget deficit, winning credit-rating upgrades and boosting economic growth to the fastest in Asia apart from China. But he struggled to overcome bureaucratic and legal hurdles, such as right-of-way for toll-road projects, to get more infrastructure built.

Political will

The government signed a law in March to address the right-of-way problem and the Public-Private Partnership Center, a public agency, is working on a PPP bill to minimize risks for investors, improve transparency, and create a fund for unexpected costs in cases where the state can’t meet its commitments. Duterte wants to cut the implementation time for PPP projects to 18 to 20 months from an average of 29 months under Aquino, said Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III. “Definitely these laws will help, but political will is really the clincher,” said Astro del Castillo, managing director at First Grade Finance Inc. in Manila. “The past six years showed that the outgoing administration could have done more.” The Philippines is behind Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia in all seven quality indicators covering roads, rail, ports, air infrastructure, electricity supply, and fixed and mobile telephone connectivity, according to a 2015 report by KPMG. It trails frontier-market Vietnam in five of the seven areas. The country is “starved” of infrastructure, according to David Nicol, chief investment officer at Metro Pacific, which last month bought a controlling share of the largest power supplier in central Philippines and increased its stake in Manila Electric Co., the nation’s

Pernia. . .

Continued from A1

Pernia, however, said any change in the ICC process would have to be consulted with other Cabinet members. Efforts to fast-track projects augurs well with the Duterte government’s aim of increasing infrastructure spending to at least 5 percent of GDP. Other priorities of the Neda in the first 100 days is to craft the Duterte government’s Philippine Development Plan (PDP), or the administration’s socioeconomic blueprint for the next six years. Pernia said the Neda should be able to complete a draft of the PDP in 100 days or less. This will enable the government to present the complete PDP by December 2016. “We have to get started on the PDP. We should be well on the way to completing it. We need to have a draft probably by three months [or] maybe four months,” Pernia said. The ICC is one of the seven interagency committees that advise the Neda Board, the highest policy-making body of the government. The approval process of the ICC has been revised recently, particularly the process

largest electricity retailer. Electricity demand rose 86 percent in the 15 years through 2014, compared with 44 percent growth in generating capacity, government data show. San Miguel Corp., a brewer that expanded into rail and toll roads, and Ayala Corp., a property developer that got into infrastructure, have made recent investments in the sector. Electricity will be a focus of the new administration and “assuming Duterte moves faster than Aquino, investors will react positively,” said Smith Chua, who helps manage about $12 billion as chief investment officer at Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI).

Cash on hand

The nation’s largest conglomerates, including Aboitiz, Metro Pacific, Ayala, GT Capital Holdings Inc. and JG Summit Holdings Inc., have the cash on hand to pursue infrastructure projects, according to BPI, BDO Unibank Inc. and Metropolitan Bank and Trust Co. “There’s so much anticipation for projects that many companies, including banks, raised funds,” said Fritz Ocampo, chief investment officer at BDO Unibank, the nation’s biggest money manager, which oversees $20 billion. “If executed more aggressively this time around, expect conglomerates holding a lot of cash in their war chests to participate.” The PSEi is up 12 percent since Duterte was elected. That’s one of the best performances in Asia and has helped lure $599 million of net inflows since the end of April. The gauge closed up 0.4 percent on Friday. Aboitiz Equity climbed 1.4 percent, paring an earlier gain of as much as 3 percent, and Manila Electric Co. increased 1.9 percent. “Any improvement in the pace of implementing infrastructure projects could cause investor optimism and push up the market,” said John Padilla, head of equities investment at Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co., which oversees $8.2 billion. “The only way to get into that action will be through conglomerates like Metro Pacific, which will be at the forefront, and the banks.” Bloomberg News

of evaluating public-private partnership (PPP) projects. In a policy circular issued in March 2016 obtained by the BusinessMirror, the PPP Governing Board is mulling over the extension of the project-evaluation process of the ICC Technical Working Group to 10 working days from the initial 15 days. This policy circular amended the 2014 memorandum circular issued to then-PPP Center Executive Director Cosette Canilao by former Neda Director General Arsenio M. Balisacan. The 2014 memorandum circular stated that project appraisal for PPPs will no longer go through the ICC Technical Board, but through a technical working group, which will evaluate PPPs in 10 working days. However, it can be noted that since the 2014 memorandum circular, several PPP projects have suffered delays and underwent rebidding. These projects include the Light Rail Transit Line 1 South Extension and, more recently, the Laguna Lakeshore Expressway Dike Project. Both were initially approved by the ICC and the Neda Board in 2014. Other PPPs that have encountered problems recently are the Davao Sasa Port project and the Cavite-Laguna Expressway, which were also approved in 2014.

Economy BusinessMirror

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Saturday, July 2, 2016

Villar lists priority measures in 17th Congress T

he Senate is expected to front-load the passage of an enabling law converting the multibillion-peso coconut-levy collection into a trust fund for coconut farmers soon as the 17th Congress convenes on July 25. Sen. Cynthia A. Villar on Friday confirmed plans to enlist the Senate leadership’s commitment to prioritize approval of the refiled bill embodying the “Coconut Farmers and Industry Development Act,” which provides for “a coconut-levy trust fund for coconut farmers.”

Early passage of the measure is seen as the senator noted that the bill already went through committee hearings and plenary deliberations in the previous Congress, where, Villar recalls, she was “able to sponsor the said bill under Committee Report 106 and it reached the period of amendments in the Senate plenary.” “It is our objective to make a law that will be sufficient to realize our collective goal of ensuring long-term benefits to the 3.5 million Filipino coconut farmers,” Villar said.

The senator explained that the proposed legislation, likewise, aims to address how cash assets worth P72 billion plus accrued interest will be invested. Villar also affirmed the inclusion of transparency provisions “on how the remaining noncash assets worth approximately P30 billion will be sold.” The remedial legislation is high on the list of Villar’s priority legislative agenda for 17th Congress, during which she also committed to push the passage of bills protecting the plight

of farmers and fishermen, as well as overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). “We used the [congressional] break to consult with our constituents and visited areas here and abroad, where we learned the best practices in agriculture. In drafting the content of our bills, we were guided by the results of these consultations and visits,” the senator said. Moreover, Villar vowed to work for early approval into law of a separate bill earlier

rejected by former President Benigno S. Aquino III, which would have granted a P2,000 acrossthe-board increase in the pension of 1.9 million Social Security System (SSS) members. Villar, who sat as chairman of the Committee on Government Corporations and Public Enterprises, labored to ensure passage of the P2,000 SSS pension hike by both houses of the previous Congress only for Aquino to veto the bill. When the 17th Congress opens regular

sessions late this month, Villar said she will also “prioritize the creation of a department for OFWs, the Department of Migration and Development,” which she expects to gain wide support from the new set of senators. “We will make government transaction easier for OFWs by putting in one department the agencies that they need in securing permits and in availing assistance. We will also strengthen the repatriation and legal assistance program,” Villar said. Butch Fernandez

A4 Saturday, July 2, 2016 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

editorial

Time for a parliament and not a president?

hanging the form of the Philippine government to a parliamentary system is one of those ideas that will not go away. It is not that this is necessarily a bad suggestion, but more along the lines of wondering about space aliens. Will they bring world peace or will they come to eat the planet? The argument for this change seems to start with, “Six years is too long for a bad president; too short for a good president.” But who gets to decide about good and bad? Voters do not necessarily decide that in a parliamentary system, but we will get to that in a moment. The first thing you must understand about a parliamentary system is that strong and reliable political parties are not just a nice idea, but are absolutely mandatory. Here is the reason. In a fixed-term presidential system, you vote for the person you want as president and get the political party as an add-on. It is sort of like marriage. You wed the person you love and get his or her family as a bonus, or maybe as a curse. If your local congressional candidate is of the same party as your presidential pick, you do not have to vote for him or her, because you know that person to be a liar and a crook. The parliamentary system is more like an arranged marriage. You must vote for the party and its local candidate to get the person you want to be the prime minister, even if the local candidate is a liar and a crook. But remember the prime minister that you wanted in office? If his or her political party decides it wants a new prime minister, it can put in a new person, and you do not get to vote on it. British Prime Minister David Cameron just resigned because he supported the losing side in the recent referendum. But voters will not have a voice in replacing Cameron. His Conservative Party Members of Parliament will vote for a new prime minister. Another difference in a parliamentary system is that, in most countries, ministers or Cabinet secretaries are usually members of the parliament. These ministers are mostly responsible for creating policy, rather than actually managing the department. The bureaucratic civil service does that job. A popular argument for a parliamentary system is that great economic powerhouses, like Singapore and Germany, have parliaments. But so also do Bangladesh and Somalia. President Rodrigo R. Duterte has indicated that he favors a federal system to give the provinces more authority. That does not require a parliament, as the United States is both a federal system and presidential, as is Mexico. We can certainly discuss a potential change to a parliamentary, but as with all decisions like this, the people need to fully know the choices and the potential consequences. As of now, they do not. Since 2005

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Is the PSE too expensive now? John Mangun

OUTSIDE THE BOX

une was a good month on the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE). While all eyes were focused on the PSE Composite Index (PSEi), the PSE All-Shares Index reached a historic high, as did the Property Index. It is understandable to perceive caution that the local stock market is in a “too far; too fast” mode. If that is the case, then—as always—stock prices will come down to relieve the upside pressure. But there must be some way of evaluating if stock prices on the PSE are too expensive. This is a constant dilemma for investors. When you buy shoes, you can compare prices of two items of similar quality. Comparing the quality of companies particularly across national borders is difficult. Nonetheless, investors like to use the Price-Earnings Ratio (PER). The problem is, PER evaluations are completely subjective. A global survey asked people at what height a person is “too short”

or “too tall.” Not surprisingly, there was a huge variation in the answers. Most people considered that someone quite a bit shorter than they were was considered too short. On a national level, the height of a person considered too tall might be the average height of a person in another country. There is no objective measurement of too short or too tall. Stock-market analysts know that PER is not reliable, and those that follow it tend to make excuses when it does not help. A better evaluation tool is the price/earnings to growth ratio, which measures if the stock price is moving with corporate earnings growth or decline. But all of this treats the stock market as if prices moved in some

Here is the point. In comparison of the economic growth and stock-price increases in the past 10 years, we are way behind both Malaysia and Indonesia, and almost the same as Thailand. Our stock prices are not growing with the economy as fast as Indonesia and Malaysia. All things being equal—which, of course, they are not—we are cheap in comparison.

sort of economic vacuum. We say that higher economic growth makes companies more profitable, and stock prices should go up. But how do we measure if prices are moving slower or faster than the economy? If we could measure that, then we might be able to say one stock market was expensive in relation to another. There are many reasons investors choose one investment vehicle over another. But it all starts with available money. We can measure the wealth of a nation by using the per-capita GDP (PGDP). Since 2006 to end-2015, the Philippine PGDP is up 160 percent. The PSEi is 225 percent higher.

Therefore, the growth of the PSEi was 40 percent more than the PGDP growth. Are we expensive or not? The numbers for Japan are a 10percent increase in PGDP and zero percent for the stock market. Not much help there. For Malaysia the numbers are 18-percent PGDP and 83 percent for that stock market, a 360-percent difference. The Thailand stock market grew 36 percent higher than PGDP growth, so maybe we are expensive. But the Indonesian stock-market increase was 160 percent of PGDP growth. Here is the point. In comparison of the economic growth and stockprice increases in the past 10 years, we are way behind both Malaysia and Indonesia, and almost the same as Thailand. Our stock prices are not growing with the economy as fast as Indonesia and Malaysia. All things being equal—which, of course, they are not —we are cheap in comparison. But which of these nations has the highest average economic growth in the past 10 years? Do you really need to think about it? E-mail me at mangun@gmail.com. Visit my web site at www.mangunonmarkets.com. Follow me on Twitter @mangunonmarkets. PSE stock-market information and technical analysis tools provided by the COL Financial Group Inc.

Blame the Brexit liars, not the duped voters

By Tim Farron | Bloomberg View

mong the letters I have received from new members—10,000 have joined the Liberal Democrats in the wake of the referendum—was one saying this: “I can’t believe just how stupid I’ve been, sorry doesn’t really cover the hurt my part has caused more than 16 million residents of our great country. Please save the union between the United Kingdom and Europe.”

Buyers’ remorse after the vote to leave the European Union (EU) seems widespread. But I don’t blame those who were duped. I blame those who knowingly made undeliverable promises. Voters had barely returned home from the polls before “Leave” leaders announced there would not be an extra £350 million ($473 million) a week to spend on the National Health Service, despite the claims plastered on the side of their battle bus. Promises to cut immigration have been similarly abandoned. But the really big whoppers have yet to be revealed to voters. Boris Johnson promised that Brexit would create 300,000 jobs. But other than Whitehall scurrying to recruit an army of bureaucrats to haggle over emergency trade deals in the coming years, the only talk in the labor market is of job losses. And then we have the really big

lie: that somehow, Britain would be able to reduce free movement from Europe, but remain in the Single Market. Perhaps, whoever inherits the title of prime minister—or should that be poisoned chalice?—will pull off a spectacular negotiating coup, but I’m not holding my breath. More ambitiously still, the Leave campaign suggested we will be able to strike a deal, which restricts EU immigration to Britain but leaves Britons free to live and work on the Continent. Again, don’t hold your breath. It is now clear there is absolutely no Brexit plan, either from those who have schemed all of their political lives for this moment, or from George Osborne, who claims it is not his responsibility, even though he remains Chancellor of the Exchequer (for now at least). The Conservatives have put a bomb under the economy, destroying their

But the really big whoppers have yet to be revealed to voters. Boris Johnson promised that Brexit would create 300,000 jobs. But other than Whitehall scurrying to recruit an army of bureaucrats to haggle over emergency trade deals in the coming years, the only talk in the labor market is of job losses.

reputation for economic competence. That is their problem; but since David Cameron announced his resignation, there has been a massive vacuum at the heart of the British state. Both the Conservatives and the Labour Party risk descending into civil war as they fight their respective leadership campaigns. This puts responsibility on the Liberal Democrats to fight for our European future. There is particular frustration among young people, 73 percent of whom voted “Remain,” and we must give voice to them. There was already scandalous generational unfairness in Britain. All young people are asking for is economic competence, a government prepared to tackle international challenges with

international solutions, and some of the opportunities that were enjoyed by the baby-boom generation; those are reasonable demands. I was really struck by the mood of optimism, openness and determination at a massive rally I addressed this week in Trafalgar Square. Many of those attending were young and concerned for their future—chanting “EU, EU, EU” with passion and fervor. Truly, we live in extraordinary times. These are the people we politicians must fight for. Meanwhile, I have been in Brussels to urge understanding on European leaders furious with the market turmoil unleashed in their economies by Brexit. And I’m urging the government to pump funds into the British Business Bank to ensure liquidity. Britain’s overriding priority now must be to remain in the Single Market, to head off a major recession, which will destroy jobs and livelihoods. No matter what the outcome of the bloody leadership battles in the Conservative and Labour parties, the Liberal Democrats will be the only party fighting the next election fully committed to maintain the best possible relations with Europe. Bring it on.

opinion@businessmirror.com.ph

Opinion

Counting no votes

Cardinal Tagle blesses Caritas Manila’s two mobile clinics

BusinessMirror

Teddy Locsin Jr.

Rev. Fr. Antonio Cecilio T. Pascual

Free fire

TARU Oishi of Nikkei writes that in 1995 a local election in Japan revealed “an intriguing anomaly in voting behavior.” In Japanese fashion, one official of the Kanagawa Prefecture whispered to another, “Aren’t there a bit too many?” “A bit?” A bit. Japanese are like that. They pay close attention to itsy bitsy little things because big bad things have small beginnings. There was an unusually large number of blank ballots and an unusually large number of spoiled ballots on which voters write something other than a candidate’s name. “Idiot” is a favorite with those unhappy with the choices given, Itaru writes. [He has a refreshingly clear way of writing English prose.] The increase in blank and spoiled ballots was three times that in the previous election—or 8.1 percent of the total. Here, 8.1 percent is not noticed. Not even 20 percent. Or the disappearance of, say, a projected 4 million more votes for President Rodrigo R. Duterte or a million lead for Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. before he took a nap and woke up and it was all gone. And so on. Even party-list groups inexplicably lost in the count the votes that surveys said they would win in the voting before the transmission. But Japan understands democracy, unlike the monkeys here. For Japanese, the candidate who gets one honest vote more than his closest rival is the winner; and not just a rightly sore loser in an election protest. A winner does not have to win by a gigantic landslide so he can afford to lose a million votes in the transmission and still emerge the winner. But does it matter if those who disdain to vote are ignored?

When the United States held elections in Iraq, the size of the boycott was huge as were spoiled ballots. After the winners were proclaimed, the Iraqi electorate proceeded to vote with guns for the candidates, who were not picked to be candidates because they embodied the real aspirations of the Iraqi nation to be rid of corrupt US puppets. And so another insurgency defeated the US. That is why there is a powerful suggestion (from me and others) that the ballots in the next election must contain “none of the above” below all the lousy choices. That way, the small winners know that their days are numbered; and democracy knows, with numerical exactitude, how many have stopped believing in it. And if democracy continues to be a joke, it knows that its days are also numbered.

Germany working to integrate refugees By Trudy Rubin

The Philadelphia Inquirer/TNS

ERLIN—Whatever happened to all those refugees? Last summer, TV screens were filled with horrific stories of Syrian (and Iraqi and Afghan) refugees risking their lives on sea and land to reach Germany. Chancellor Angela Merkel welcomed them as a matter of principle, but her decision angered other European nations. It also helped fuel a wave of European hostility toward immigrants and the European Union’s (EU) policy of open borders. That hostility in turn fuelled Britain’s Brexit vote. It boosted the appeal of right-wing populist parties across the continent that warned of Muslim nogo zones and the imposition of sharia law. So I was curious to learn how Germany was making out with its roughly 1 million newcomers. After talking with federal and local officials in several cities, along with refugees in Berlin and Dresden, I’d say they’re doing surprisingly well. “The level of fear is disproportionate to what is being implemented,” says Jessica Bither, who works on refugee-integration issues at the German Marshall Fund’s Berlin office. These fears were inflamed by the infamous attacks on women during New Year’s Eve celebrations in Cologne by gangs of young, mostly Arab, men. An exhaustive study by Die Zeit newspaper, though, found that most of the perpetrators were not war refugees but petty criminals who had no chance of getting asylum. Moreover, the closing of borders by countries in the western Balkans and an EU deal with Turkey to halt the unchecked flow has drastically cut the numbers reaching Germany. And many migrants who did not come from active war zones will be refused asylum. This has given federal, state and local officials (who bear the brunt of handling refugees) a chance to move many of them out of mass shelters and into vacant apartments or repurposed office buildings. German officials are intent on drawing lessons from the past, when large inflows of Turkish guest workers failed to integrate for two or three generations. Numerous conferences are focused on the mechanics of “integration”: how to sequence language and job training so immigrants can rent apartments and build new lives.

One clear goal is to prevent the formation of inward-looking Arab immigrant ghettos. Benedict Gobel of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation told me: “The government wants to avoid a Molenbeek [the Moroccan-Belgian district of Brussels that produced Islamic State terrorists] or the French banlieues [North African slums outside Paris] or the development of no-go zones, in terms of law enforcement.” Toward that end the German parliament is preparing a new integration law that will speed up job placement and language training, which, right now, is often lagging. The law may also permit local governments to decide where asylum-seekers should live, although this provision is controversial, and many believe it won’t work. However, in many locales, proactive officials and nongovernmental organizations, along with legions of German volunteers, are doing impressive work helping refugees. I will be writing more about some of these efforts on Philly. com/trudyrubin, but here are a couple of snapshots. In Dresden, where the anti-immigrant Pegida group demonstrates weekly, Domenic Heyn, personal assistant to the mayor for social affairs, has been working on settling around 5,700 refugees, mostly single men, and one quarter of them from Syria. “Our focus is on teaching them German,” he said, with many volunteers doing the teaching. Job searches come next. But to brainstorm new ideas on integrating immigrants, he visited Boise, Idaho, on an exchange program called Welcoming America. He was joined by Michael Krueger, who heads a committee established by the city to promote tolerance. There they attended job workshops where Afghani and Iraqi immigrants did “speed dating” with local employers. Heyn said he was impressed with the “Yes, let’s do it” spirit in the room and wants to hold a similar event in Dresden by September. Krueger took me to a children’s camp where Iraqi and Syrian refugees volunteered to entertain the children. “I want to work, no matter what, even for no pay,” Iraqi refugee Ammar said in broken German. His entire family had been wiped out by the Islamic State, and his ear half shot off. The German volunteers have also set up a refugee theater troupe and a choir, where they sing songs from their home countries.

SERVANT LEADER

anila Archbishop His Eminence Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle, DD, recently inaugurated Caritas Manila’s two mobile clinics, which will help to provide health care to street children and poor families.

The mobile clinics from the United States stemmed from a fund-raising drive initiated by the US-based Barnabite Heart to Heart Ministry for its “Make Sad Eyes Smile” project. In his message after the blessing on June 24, Cardinal Tagle said the new state-of-the-art clinics, dubbed as “Clinic In A Can”, will be used to extend medical, dental and surgical procedures to poor residents in depressed areas and relocation areas in Metro Manila under Caritas Manila’s Damayan: All is Well Health Program.

“If they can’t come to the hospital, then the clinic will go to them. Through these clinics, we hope that God’s concern and healing could reach many people,” said Cardinal Tagle, who was elected as president of Caritas Internationalis in May 2015 by over 130 member-organizations from all over the world. Cardinal Tagle also extended his gratitude to the collaborators reiterating that, just like any act of love, there’s a community behind it. “So we thank the collaborators and friends who pursued this

Saturday, July 2, 2016 A5

worthy project, this is close to a miracle. People were generous. People were selfless…. These mobile clinics as gifts are impetus and invitation for all of us to spread compassion. Let us nurture the gift and let it be used responsibly to promote the good especially of the poor,” Cardinal Tagle added. American priest Rev. Fr. Robert Kosek, president of Barnabite Heart to Heart Ministry, said the clinics are simple “acts of kindness” and proof that “love still exists.” “I call these clinics the oasis of mercy through the countless of people who donated…people who cannot be here but gave $1 or 50 cents,” Father Kosek said. Father Kosek served in the Diocese of Cavite for almost two years, when Tagle was still its bishop. He was the former rector of the Barnabite Seminary in Tagaytay City before he was assigned back to the US. The Barnabites, Catholic priests belonging to religious order of the Clerics Regular of Saint Paul, founded the Barnabite Heart to Heart Ministry in 2013 in line

with their congregation’s charism: to renew Christian fervor in the world—a fervor which stretches out to charity and service among God’s people. It is a ministry which has, as its purpose, love and service to God and humanity. They offer assistance to the needy brothers and sisters in Asia. Caritas Manila is the Archdiocese of Manila’s lead social services and development ministry. Apart from Caritas Damayan: All is Well Health Program, Caritas Manila runs diverse projects that help the poor fulfill their human potential, such as the Youth Servant Leadership and Education Program, Restorative Justice Ministry and social entrepreneurship programs Caritas Margins and Segunda Mana.

To know more about Caritas Manila, visit www. caritasmanila.org.ph. For your donations, please call our DonorCare lines 563-9311, 564-0205, 0999-7943455, 0905-4285001 and 0929-8343857. Make it a habit to listen to Radio Veritas 846 in the AM band, or through live streaming at www.veritas846.ph. For comments, e-mail veritas846pr@ gmail.com.

Health care is a jewel in the IT-BPM industry Jemain Tinio Diaz de Rivera

Forward Moving

he field of health-care information-management services (HIMS), which consists of the processing, maintenance and care of health-care data, for utilization in hospitals, doctors’ offices, clinics, insurance companies and organizations that provide health-related services, has demonstrated the highest sectoral growth rate in the Philippine information technology and business process management (IT-BPM) industry for the past few years. The rising demand and cost of services, access to skilled talent and opportunities provided by the digitization of data and the way we communicate have become catalysts for innovation in the HIMS industry. The Philippines has a culture of care, and a large pool of clinically trained personnel, making it the destination for access to a young, health educated work force that adapts seamlessly into the digital age of information and utilization. The Healthcare Information Management Association Philippines (Himap) promotes, markets and represents the Philippine HIMS sector to the world. Likewise, it develops, adopts and nurtures best practices in people, process and technology related to HIMS.

Services and solutions in all aspects of the market include pharmaceutical (pharmacovigilance, clinical trial, adverse advent reporting); hospitals, clinics and practitioners (medical coding, revenue cycle management, remote monitoring); payer insurance firms and TPA’s employers (data/utilization management, customer service/support lines, health-care analytics); software development (EMR/HER platform design, application development, security tools); and equipment manufacturers (service and support, application augmentation). Filipino nurses have been working abroad since the 1970s. The US was a big destination, and other countries in the Middle East and in Europe soon opened their borders to Filipino nurses.

There were about 200,000 unemployed or underemployed nurses in the Philippines in 2011. Lacking options in the health-care field, nurses opted to seek employment in the IT-BPM industry, such as contact centers and some health-care global sourcing companies. Following the remarkable growth of the IT-BPM industry, and as the HIMS sector blossomed, powered by the health-care professionals with westernbased medical education and English language fluency. A lot of the nurses were US registered nurses, with US certification standards allowing them to work on US documents. The growth of the Philippine HIMS sector is phenomenal. From generating $102 million in 2010, it grew to $1 billion in 2013. The 2015 revenue was almost $1.8 billion. By 2015, the work force has grown to around 116,000, composed of health-care professionals, attracting companies from all over the world. Most HIMS jobs are day-shift, from Monday to Friday. Some companies have expanded to locations outside Metro Manila, like Cebu. Health-care professionals are making the shift. Pharmacists, doctors, physical therapists, dentists and other fields in the health-care group are building careers in the IT-BPM industry. The Department of Science and Technology, through the Department of Information and Communications Technology, repeatedly recognized the HIMS and its achievements in attaining the highest growth

Donald Trump’s ‘Pocahontas’ playbook By Timothy L. O’Brien Bloomberg View

onald Trump has had some fun lately with Elizabeth Warren’s self-proclaimed Native American ancestry. “Pocahontas is not happy, she’s not happy,” he said of Warren a few weeks ago. He re-upped on Monday, telling NBC News that Warren “made up her heritage, which I think is racist.” As we know by now, Trump has routinely dotted his speeches and embroidered his Twitter feed with references to Warren as “Pocahontas”—all the while expressing doubts about her lineage. (Warren cites “family stories” as the provenance for the claim that she has Cherokee heritage, which has been scrutinized ever since she launched her successful Senate bid as a Democrat almost five years ago). “She said she was Native American, but she wasn’t able to document it,” Trump said at a news conference in May. “I think she’s as Native American as I am.” For those who follow Trump, this line of attack comes with an echo. Long before Elizabeth Warren was on the scene, Trump had put the notion of Native American identity and lineage into play as he pursued a larger goal. (Disclosure: I wrote a Trump biography, “TrumpNation,” for which he sued me because, among other things, it questioned the size of his fortune. The suit was later dismissed.) In 1993 Trump testified before the House of Representatives as it examined

the rapid growth of Native Americanowned casinos and offered his views on why further expansion might be a bad idea. At the time, Trump had already put three of his Atlantic City casinos into bankruptcy protection and was about two months away from doing the same with the Plaza Hotel in New York. Having flirted with personal bankruptcy, bridling under an allowance set by his bankers, and on the verge of losing his last big Manhattan real-estate project, Trump was perhaps a little antsy about competition in his local New Jersey gambling market. Front of mind for Trump was the Mashantucket Pequots, whose Connecticut casino, Foxwoods, had expanded a year earlier and was booming. Trump invoked the specter of organized crime, telling the committee that he was the “largest casino operator in the world” (he wasn’t) and that “there is no way the Indians are going to protect themselves from the mob.” (Despite those fears, Trump would later go on to manage a Native American casino in California.) George Miller, a California Democrat who supported Native American gambling and was a member of the House committee overseeing the legalization debate, debated Trump on the merits of those fears before the pair discussed comments Trump had made on a radio show: Miller: Is this you discussing Indian blood: “We are going to judge people by whether they have Indian blood,” whether they are qualified to run a gaming casino or not?

Trump: That probably is me, absolutely, because I’ll tell you what, if you look — if you look at some of the reservations that you have approved—you, sir, in your great wisdom, have approved — I will tell you right now, they don’t look like Indians to me, and they don’t look like Indians. Now maybe we say politically correct or not politically correct. They don’t look like Indians to me, and they don’t look like Indians to Indians, and a lot of people are laughing at it, and you are telling how tough it is, how rough it is, to get approved. Well, you go up to Connecticut, and you look. Now, they don’t look like Indians to me, sir. Miller: Thank God that is not the test of whether or not people have rights in this country or not, whether or not they pass your look test. Trump: Yes. It depends whether or not you are approving it, sir. Miller: No, no, it is not a question of whether I am approving it. It is not a question of whether I am approving it. Mr. Trump, do you know in the history of this country where we have heard this discussion before: “They don’t look Jewish to me.” Trump: Oh really? Miller: “ They don’t look Indian to me.” “They don’t look Italian to me.” And that was the test for whether people could go into business or not go into business, whether they could get a bank loan: You are too black; you are not black enough. The House committee then listened to a recording of the radio program Miller had referenced.

rate in terms of revenues generated. The Philippines has achieved global leadership in contact centers and is working to become a leader in the nonvoice sector, gaining hold on health-care information management, finance and accounting, human resources and creative process for global sourcing. Global trends show high-growth opportunity for the local HIMS with countries, such as the United States, the UK, Canada and Hong Kong. Our country has all the ingredients it needs to achieve our targets as identified in the 2016 IT-BPM road map. Preparing for the year 2022, Himap is organizing the Philippine Healthcare Information Management Services Conference 2016. The theme of this year’s conference is “Global Convergence Enabling Inclusive Care and Innovation.” It will be held in Makati City on September 15. The Philippines is a country with a very high literacy rate, where education is given utmost priority by parents. The country looks forward to the growth of the HIMS sector, where the over 600,000 college and university graduates every year can and will find career opportunities, and build a career. With government support; careful planning by the IT-BPM and HIMS industry leaders; and with the availability of the needed infrastructure, such as electricity, communication and Internet connectivity, the HIMS sector will be like a beautifully polished jewel where Filipinos can dominate as it grows in the global IT-BPM space.

“I could perhaps become an Indian myself,” Trump told the radio host, Don Imus. “I think I might have more Indian blood than a lot of the so-called Indians that are trying to open up the reservations.” Seven years later, Trump was at it again, lobbying against the legalization of casino gambling in New York state. In language that could have come straight from his current presidential bid, he deployed a series of newspaper and broadcast ads to brand one tribe seeking a license, the Mohawks, as drug dealers and criminals. Trump initially kept his involvement in the Mohawk ad campaign a secret until a controversy arose around the effort. His lawyer turned over early drafts of the incendiary ads to a state-lobbying commission examining the campaign; Trump had given approving feedback on those drafts with handwritten notes in their margins: “looks good” and “not bad.” Maybe it’s not a surprise that Trump is reaching into his old playbook as he lays into Elizabeth Warren. But for others in the Republican party who are worried that their presumptive presidential nominee won’t abandon racially charged attacks—and still cling to the hope that Trump is someone who can evolve and be “more presidential”—they should remember that their guy isn’t someone who changes his ways, or harbors regrets. “Any regret calling her Pocahontas?” Fox commentator Bill O’Reilly asked Trump recently, in a chat about Warren. “Do you regret that?”

A6 Saturday, June 2, 2016 • Editor: Dionisio L. Pelayo

The Nation BusinessMirror

news@businessmirror.com.ph

Dela Rosa, Visaya vow to join hands against criminality

By Rene Acosta

@reneacostaBM

EWLY promoted Director General Ronald dela Rosa and Lt. Gen. Ricardo Visaya assumed on Friday as National Police chief and Armed Forces chief of staff, respectively, vowing to push and bring results to the Duterte administration’s strong stance against criminality, while disciplining members of the uniformed service, including ridding them of corrupt members.

Dela Rosa, a member of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) Class of 1986 who was promoted to his rank minutes before he was installed by President Rodrigo R. Duterte as National Police chief, admonished the 160,000 members of the force to join him in the crusade of cleaning the country from criminals, including those in the drug business, while weeding out unworthy policemen. “In my fight against drugs, criminality and corruption, either you are with me or you are not with me. If you are with me, then let’s do it. But if you are not with me, then you are finished,” dela Rosa warned. “We will be relentless in our internal cleansing efforts. We have to eliminate the scalawags from within

our ranks,” dela Rosa said. He gave a two-day deadline for unworthy members of the police he called as scawalags to surrender to him, otherwise, they should prepare for a “war” with their colleagues. “Kayong mga kotong, abusado, tamad na pulis, bilang na ang mga araw ninyo. Lalo na kayong mga pulis dito sa Metro Manila na pinagmamayabang pa ninyo na kayo ang mga ninja, na kayo ang taga-recycle ng shabu [methamphetamine hydrochloride]. I am giving you 48 hours to voluntarily surrender to me at sabihin ninyo sa akin lahat. Otherwise, mag-AWOL [absent without official leave] na lang kayo at mag-full-time drug lord na lang at makipag-giyera na lang kayo sa amin,” dela Rosa said.

“Hindi ko po masisikmura ang kalakaran ngayon sa mga kotong na pulis... hindi kung magkano ang kolekta sa illegal gambling, kundi magkano ang kanilang koleksiyon sa illegal drugs,” he added. Dela Rosa warned scalawag policemen to stop from their illegal activities, otherwise, he would stop them, hinting he would kill them. “I am telling you this, this has to stop right now, or I’ll stop you from enjoying your life. I promise you, change is coming, including your birthday, which will be changed to November 2,” he warned. Amid his strong pronouncements, dela Rosa managed to insert a light moment, provoking laughter from the audience that included former National Police chiefs. He also acknowledged their help when he was still a junior member of the police or even its forerunner, the Constabulary. Poking fun at former National Police chief Nicanor Bartolome, dela Rosa said he was envious on how Bartolome had grown his mustache, while also thanking dismissed Director General Alan LM Purisima for improving the “White House,” the official residence of the National Police chief, that his family would occupy during his watch. Purisima had received criticisms, allegedly for the lavish constrution of the dwelling inside Camp Rafael Crame, the National Police general headquarters. At the Armed Forces turnover of command ceremony, Visaya said the military will relentlessly

pursue the Abu Sayyaf Group and other lawless elements operating around the country. “We will be unrelenting in our focused military operations against terrorist groups, like the Abu Sayyaf Group and all its allied terrorist cells. We will realign military resources to their identified bailiwicks and sanctuaries, and apply our military strength to suppress them, hunt them down and finish them,” he said. “We will continue to apply the full force of the law 24/7 to go after these criminals and profit-seeking elements who operate under the guise of religious fervor and holy war,” he added. Along with the terrorism problem, Visaya said the military will also join in the campaign against criminality, working hand in hand with the police. “We will also intensify our support to law-enforcement agencies, particularly the National Police and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, in their mission to eliminate widespread criminality and the wanton destruction of lives brought about by the spread and use of illegal drugs,” he said. Before he assumed as the top military chief, Visaya, member of the PMA Class of 1983, was the chief of the Armed Forces Southern Luzon Command. Retired Maj. Gen. Delfin Lorenzana a lso for ma l ly assumed his position as secretary of national defense, succeeding Voltaire T. Gazmin.

EDC joins opposition to MNHPI tariff hike Urban poor

HE semigovernment Export Development Council (EDC) has joined the call of port stakeholders for the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) to reject Manila North Harbour Port Inc.’s (MNHPI) petition for a 37.45-percent increase in cargohandling tariff. EDC said in a statement the requested tariff increase was “not only too much but unjustified and unwarranted.” “It would be prudent for PPA to defer action on the tariff hike until a new set of PPA officials was installed by President Rodrigo R. Duterte,” EDC Vice Chairman Sergio Ortiz-Luis said. The same call was issued by port users, while terming the tariff-hike proposal as both unwarranted and unjustified. In a position paper, the Philippines Interisland Shipping Association (Pisa), the umbrella group of domestic shipping and related associations, the PPA said, should defer any action “on the MNHPI rate-increase petition until a new board of directors

is appointed” by President Duterte, “especially the vice chairman in the person of the general manager of the authority, which is presently held by an officer in charge.” Pisa cited PPA statistics showing a steady increase in volume handled at the North Harbor, which enabled NHPI to generate net income or total comprehensive income of P177.9 million for 2012, P305.7 million for 2013 and P332.6 million for 2014. The Philippine Liner Shipping Association (PLSA) also questioned the basis of MNHPI’s petition for the tariff increase through its claim that it needed to increase its pool of port workers from 1,100 in 2014 to 1,470, or a 34-percent increase. “MNHPI is a monopoly in domestic trade and port stakeholders have no choice but to transact business with them. Being a monopoly, it should even cut its cost, rather than increase it,” said Ortiz-Luis, who is also president of Philippine Exporters Confederation Inc. “MNHPI should be considered a

public utility because it provides service mostly to shipping lines, which are considered public utilities. Shipping lines docking at North Harbor have no other option but to avail themselves of MNHPI services,” PLSA Chairman and President Sulficio Tagud Jr. said. “As such, the government should not only regulate the MNHPI return on investment and profit margins, but also have to make sure that no unnecessary costs are included in the computation because, ultimately, the public will pay for the inefficiencies of the operator,” PLSA’s position paper submitted to the PPA said. Using the 2014 PPA statistics where volume in twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU)—inbound and outbound Manila showed a total of 1,043,705 TEUs with PLSA, having an 86-percent share on total volume carried at the North Harbor, PLSA Executive Director Rona Gatdula said the impact of the increase in freight tariff would translate to an additional annual stevedoring cost of P118.78 million among PLSA members.

Philippines bags prime rank in US human-trafficking roster By Joel R. San Juan

@jrsanjuan1573

HE Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (Iacat) on Friday announced that the country has been accorded the Tier-1 status by the US State Department in its 16th Global Trafficking in Persons (GTIP) report. Tier-1 status is the highest ranking that can be given to a country whose government fully complies with the minimum standards for the elimination of severe forms of human trafficking as provided by the 2000 Trafficking Victims Protection Act’s of the United States. The country was given the Tier-1 status after five years of being Tier 2 in the GTIP. Tier-2 countries are those whose governments are making significant efforts to bring themselves at par with those standards. Iacat Director Darlene Pajarito welcomed the latest recognition of the country’s antihuman-trafficking efforts, as the country has also been recognized as number one in Asia and third in the Asia Pacific by the Australia-based Global Slavery

Initiative by Walk Free Foundation two weeks earlier. “The Tier-1 ranking reflects the individual accomplishments, as well as the collective efforts of all our partners in government, civil society and relevant stakeholders,” Pajarito said. Pajarito attributed the top ranking to the collective efforts of the various government offices comprising the Iacat, including its non-governmental organization partners and other individuals and groups, whose “grit and passion” helped stave off the menace of human trafficking in the country. Iacat noted that in 2010, the country was in danger of being downgraded to Tier 3, since it has been in the watch-list for two consecutive years prior. Tier-3 ranking is given to countries whose governments do not fully comply with the minimum standards and are not making significant efforts to do so. Amid the threat of losing $700 million in nonhumanitarian assistance, the government has since intensified its campaign through Iacat

and has continuously gained recognitions for its innovative campaign. Based on the report, among the government’s initiatives that contributed to its upgraded status were the “continued vigorous law-enforcement efforts” led by the National Police and the National Bureau of Investigation. The Supreme Court was also mentioned in the report, citing the continuous trial system pilot project aimed to expedite trafficking in persons cases. Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose L. Cuisia Jr. led the advocacy work for the Philippines’s antitraffickingin-persons campaign in the US. He welcomed the news, as he officially stepped down on Friday as the country’s top envoy to the US. “I welcome the report’s recognition of the Philippines’s efforts to combat trafficking, particularly in the areas of increased convictions; expanded antitrafficking campaigns for migrant workers; and increased prosecution to avoid child sex tourism, resulting a Tier-1 ranking,” Cuisia said. With Recto L. Mercene

to hound Noynoy

N urban-poor group has threatened to hound former President Benigno S. Aquino III at his Times Street home in Quezon City. Lourdes Bermas, secretary-general of the September 23 Movement (S23M), said the group guarantees that the former chief executive would not have “peace and quiet and open air” at his residence. S23M is an alliance of urbanpoor groups based in Sitio San Roque, the biggest urban-poor community in North Triangle, and sits near West Triangle, where the Aquino home is located. Aquino, a bachelor, reportedly seeks to stay at his Times Street home for keeps. The group blamed Aquino for the demolitions and human-rights violations, which have traumatized urban-poor families in San Roque for the past six years. Ber mas noted t hat ar med policemen used violent means to break their barricades and assist demolition crews in destroying their shanties. “On September 23, 2010, less than three months after Aquino assumed his post, residents of Sitio San Roque experienced the savagery of the Aquino administration, when some 500 demolition crew members, assisted by hundreds of armed policemen and water cannons, tore down the homes of about 100 families living along Edsa. “The only thing that stopped the demolition rampage was the barricade at Edsa, which stranded tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of commuters and forced Aquino himself, who was then visiting the United States, to declare a moratorium on demolition,” Bermas said. She added that the moratorium is temporary, as they continue to receive threats of demolitions with regularity since 2010, even as sitio residents also put up barricades at Agham Road in July 2013 and January 2014. Marvyn N. Benaning

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ARELLANO University’s Jiovanni Jalalon (6) reacts as he tries to drive past San Sebastian College’s Ryan Costelo. NONOY LACZA

10 teams vying in Shakey’s girls volleyball finals

EN teams brace for a weeklong battle of power, hits and wits as they slug it out for top honors in the Shakey’s Girls’ Volleyball League of Champions Season 14 at Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig. The event, which gathered the top teams from grueling regional qualifiers, got under way on Friday with four matches. The formal opening will only be held on Saturday to be graced by Shakey’s Events Manager Stef Leuterio, Luz Ricardo of Mikasa and MyPhone’s Inyi Yruma. Southern Luzon, represented by the core of De La Salle-Lipa, nipped National University (NU) of the National Capital Region in a classic five-setter to clinch the crown last year with the two fancied teams tipped to clash again for this year’s championship with almost intact rosters. De La Salle-Lipa and NU are grouped with Ateneo de Davao, Southwestern University (SWU) and Holy Family Academy in Pool A, while University of Santo Tomas and Kings’ Montessori School head Pool B, which includes Central Philippine University (CPU), Iligan City Nationa High School and Holy Rosary College. “While De La Salle-Lipa and NU have the materials and motivation to go at it again this year, we expect a host of others to contend for the crown,” Tournament Director Johanz Buenvenida of the organizing Metro Sports said. De La Salle-Lipa tangles with SWU at 3 p.m. on Saturday, after the 2:30 p.m. opening ceremony, while UST and Holy Rosary College collide at 4 p.m. before Ateneo de Davao and Holy Family Academy square off at 5 p.m. Kings’ Montessori and CPU duel in the main game at 6 p.m. De La Salle-Lipa and NU are set to face off on Tuesday at 4 p.m. The top 2 teams from each pool after the single-round elims will advance to the crossover semis on Wednesday with the winners to dispute the crown on Thursday.

ERBIA and France are good enough to win men’s basketball medals at the Olympics. First, they have to get there. The final three places in the 12-team field are on the line in the three Olympic Qualifying Tournaments (OQT) next week. Serbia and France, which won silver and bronze two years ago in the Basketball World Cup, will be among the favorites to earn berths after falling short last summer. The new format to fill out the Olympics has 18 countries still in the running for spots in Rio. Six teams will be in each tournament, and the three winners will be Brazil-bound. Some teams still trying to get there are better than a few who have already qualified. Four of the world’s top 10 will be competing, including France (No. 5), Serbia (No. 6), Turkey (No. 8) and Greece (No. 10). The Serbs have a powerful team and homecourt advantage as they try to lock up a spot that eluded them in last year’s EuroBasket. “We still need to fine-tune our teamwork, but that’s normal at this stage of preparations. We are going through this process together so that we will still be playing until the end of the OQT, and hopefully after that, too,” Coach Aleksandar Djordjevic told Fiba.com after his team won its three tune-up games. Serbia hosts one tournament in Belgrade that also includes Angola and Puerto Rico in Group A. The Czech Republic, Japan and Latvia are in Group B. In Manila it’s Turkey, Canada and Senegal in Group A; with France, New Zealand and

the hosts in Group B. The Milan field has Greece, Mexico and Iran in Group A; Italy, Croatia and Tunisia in Group B. Each team will play the others in its group, with the top-2 finishers in each advancing to the semifinals. The tournament champions will then be drawn into the Olympic field, with two slated to end up in a group with the US. In the Manila OQT, Tony Parker wants to cap his international career with an Olympic medal. The French failed to earn their chance playing on home soil last summer when Spain beat them in the Eurobasket semifinals, but stand a good chance now if they can hold on until the arrival of Nicolas Batum, who is a National Basketball Association free agent and won’t be available until after he signs a contract on July 7. In Serbia the hosts swept a home-andhome with France and beat Greece, another top contender, in their warm-up play. Serbia has one of Europe’s top point guards in Milos Teodosic and a top young prospect in Denver Nuggets All-Rookie selection Nikola Jokic, but will miss injured Timberwolves forward Nemanja Bjelica and Spurs center Boban Marjanovic, who is a free agent. Longtime guards JJ Barea of the Dallas Mavericks and Carlos Arroyo should again provide the strength for the Puerto Ricans.

By Ramon Rafael Bonilla

IOVANNI JALALON delivered another mammoth performance and led Arellano University to a lopsided 99-81 victory over San Sebastian in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Season 92 seniors basketball tournament on Friday at Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan City. The all-around guard, an early favorite for the Most Valuable Player honors, was unstoppable on both ends. He unloaded 31 points, dished out 11 assists and collected a career-high eight steals for the Chiefs, who cruised to their second straight victory for a share of the early lead with Mapùa and San Beda. Called “The Bus Driver” for his stealthy plays that placed

him as one of the deadliest players in the league, Jalalon exploded with 14 points in the first half, which Arellano University handily controlled, 71-57. The Stags unleashed a 10-2 run to cut the deficit to 69-75 early in the fourth quarter, but Alvin Capobres buried consecutive treys to bail the Chiefs out of trouble with eight minutes to play. Dioncee Holts sank back-to-back jumpers and Jalalon, the 5-foot-9 pride of Cagayan de Oro, and Kent Salado manned the backcourt with impunity to seal the victory for the Chiefs. “Defense,” said Chiefs Coach Jerry Codiñera, referring to the key to their victory. “The backcourt pressure employed by Jalalon and Salado stopped their offense.”

In Turkey, their tough defense, anchored by NBA center Omer Asik in the middle, always gives the Turks a chance to stay in games. They gave the US its toughest test in the 2014 Basketball World Cup. With Timberwolves star Andrew Wiggins sitting out, the Canadians could regret not locking up a spot when they blew a late lead against Venezuela in last year’s International Basketball Federation Americas semifinals. Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks, meanwhile, is a do-

everything star and Sacramento’s Kostas Koufos a solid center for a Greek team that scored a pair of victories over Turkey during its pretournament schedule. The Italians, on the other hand, haven’t reached the Olympics since winning silver in 2004. But they have plenty of shooting behind NBA players Danilo Gallinari and Marco Belinelli and former No. 1 pick Andrea Bargnani, a top coach in Spurs assistant Ettore Messina, and the backing of a home crowd to get them there this time. AP

HAPPY FOR ‘GOLDEN TICKETS’

RACHEL ANN DAQUIS (right) and Jovelyn Gonzaga pose with their “golden tickets.”

Both games will be aired live on ABSCBN Sports + Action Channel 23 and via streaming on www.v-league.ph. “We’ll definitely go for it,” said BaliPure player-coach Charo Soriano, whose wards did not only move closer to a dream finals stint but also avenged their eliminations setback last week that saw them blow a 2-0 set lead and lose in five. Alyssa Valdez marked her 23rd birthday in

style, firing a match-best 24 hits in powering BaliPure to a 25-20, 25-19, 26-24 victory, with the former league Most Valuable Player raring to unleash another performance to remember and steer the team to the championship round of the season-opening conference of the league, sponsored by Shakey’s. Air Force, meanwhile, went to powerspiking Judy Caballejo in the clutch as it turned back Laoag, 25-20, 26-24, 26-24,

Salado finished with 17 points and six assists, while Holts added 16 markers and five boards. Lervin Flores, a revelation in Arellano University’s first win of the season over University of Perpetual Help, finished with 10 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Ryan Costelo led San Sebastian with 15 points and six rebounds, while Capobres and Calisaan added 14 and 12 points, respectively. John Calvo also rose to the occasion for Letran and initiated a tricky back-door play in the dying seconds to bail the defending champion Knights—who squandered an 18-point lead—past the College of Saint Benilde Blazers, 56-52, also on Friday. With 12.3 seconds remaining and Letran ahead 54-50, Calvo got away from a tight inbound defense and found an opening for a quick lay-up that all but sealed the Knights’ second win in three games. Calvo and John Quinto finished with 11 points apiece, with the latter adding five rebounds. Jom Sollano topscored for Letran with 16 points he iced with nine rebounds. Clement Leutcheu had 11 points and Christian Fajarito and Carlo Young made nine points each for the Blazers, who are tied with the Knights at 2-1 won-loss.

FRANCE’S Florent Pietrus (center) talks to Boris Diaw (right) and Nicolas Batum during their Basketball World Cup Round of 16 match against Croatia in Madrid in September 2014. AP

C COLA-Army stars Jovelyn Gonzaga and Rachel Anne Daquis are grateful to be chosen as two of seven Philippine Superliga (PSL) players who will play alongside seven foreigners on the Philippine team to the International Volleyball Federation Women’s Club World Championship, from October 18 to 23, at the SM Mall of Asia Arena. Gonzaga and Daquis received the first two “golden tickets” from PSL President Ramon Suzara before the RC Cola-ArmyStandard Insurance-Navy match the Lady Troopers won, 25-23, 25-19, 25-14, in the All-Filipino Conference on Thursday at the Cuneta Astrodome.

BaliPure, Air Force eye V-League Open championship berths ALIPURE and Air Force brace for strong comebacks by their respective opponents in Game Two of the Shakey’s V-League Season 13 Open Conference semifinals series at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan on Saturday. Air Force takes a crack at the finals first at 4 p.m. against Laoag, while BaliPure and Pocari Sweat face off at 6:30 p.m. in what promises to be a pair of slam-bang matches.

Saturday, July 2, 2016 A7

in their side of the Final Four. The former University of Santo Tomas star unloaded 15 points, including the set-clinching hits in the second and third frames. In the Spikers’ Turf Season 2 Open Conference, Cignal and Air Force also try to arrange a title showdown as they seek win No. 2 against Sta. Elena Construction and Instituto Estetico Manila at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., respectively. Lance Agcaoili

“This is a childhood dream come true,” Gonzaga said. “I tried not to expect this privilege so I won’t get hurt. I thank God for this opportunity.” “I am thankful to the PSL for its faith in me. Whatever role given to me I will perform with all my heart,” said Daquis, who, like Gonzaga was emotional as their names, were announced. “This is also for my family, especially for my [recently departed] Mom, who also dreamt of seeing me play in a major international tournament,” said Gonzaga, the probinsyana from Guimaras who is now one of the country’s top players. Daquis, a many-time national athlete, admitted that doubters have come her way and the pressure is on for her. But she vowed to give her best and prove her haters wrong, like what she did while playing for Far Eastern University in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines. “The pressure is on me, but I am resting my fate on Papa Jesus,” Daquis said. The identities of the remaining five local players will be announced in the next few weeks. They will team up with seven reinforcements from Brazil, Japan and Italy for the club championship.

Lance Agcaoili

Department of Sports up

HE 17th Congress opens shop on Monday and this early, potential signs on the creation of a Department of Sports are evident. True to his campaign promise, Partylist Rep. Mikee Romero (1Pacman) has manifested to file a bill that seeks to create a Department of Sports, a government entity that will lead the implementation of policies on the promotion and development of sports and health and fitness programs in the country. House Bill 287, according to Romero, will address various issues and hurdle challenges that confront Philippine sports. In the event that a sports department is created, the head will hold the position of secretary and will regularly attend Cabinet meetings, something that the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman doesn’t enjoy. The PSC chairman holds the post of an undersecretary. Romero said the PSC has failed to live up to its mandate of providing leadership and setting priorities and direction of all national amateur sports and development, particularly on grassroots participation. He stressed the Department of Sports would immensely benefit not only athletes and coaches, but also their families. “Since Mansueto Velasco won a silver medal in boxing in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, the Philippines has not won a single medal in the succeeding editions,” said Romero, adding that after the country won the overall championship in the 2005 Southeast Asian Games it hosted, “Philippine sports seemed to have reached its threshold.” Romero also called on “overstaying” sports leaders to step down and give way to young and visionary sportsmen.

Sports BusinessMirror

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By Howard Fendrich The Associated Press

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aturday, July 2, 2016 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph sports@businessmirror.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao Asst. Editor: Joel Orellana

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