BusinessMirror June 12, 2020

Despite dollar surplus, PHL treads warily

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HE Philippines’s economic managers are still cautious of the pandemic’s effect on the country’s external position, despite a dollar surplus that exceeded a billion dollars and an all-time-high level of international reserves.

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Benjamin Diokno revealed on Thursday that the monetary board revised the Balance of Payments (BOP) projections of the Philippines for this year to take into consideration key developments in the first four months of 2020.

The BOP represents the total transactions of the country’s residents with the rest of the world for a given time period. A surplus means the country earned more dollars compared to what it has spent, while a deficit means

WORKERS at a flag store in Santa Cruz, Manila, which has been making flags for more than 50 years, unfurl a flag they made in time for the celebration of Philippine Independence. ROY DOMINGO

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spending overtook dollar earnings during the period.

For 2020, the BOP surplus projection was slashed to just $600 million from the November 2019 projection of $2.9 billion.

As a percent of the gross domestic product (GDP), the BOP is expected to contribute just 0.2 percent from the previous reading of 0.7 percent.

The revision of projections came on the heels of the BSP’s data—which was also released early Thursday—showing a significant rise in the country’s BOP in end-April this year.

The BOP surplus hit $1.6 billion in the first four months of the year—a turnaround from the string of monthly deficits seen early in 2020. April is the first month of BOP surplus for the year due to the $1.67-billion surplus that went into

the country during the month alone.

The higher BOP surplus also pushed the country’s gross international reserves (GIR) to an all-time-high level of $90.94 billion as of end-April.

Why the revision?

DIOKNO said the revision incorporates an expected “sharp contraction” in both global and domestic economic activities ahead.

The breakdown of the BSP’s new projections shows the biggest declines are expected in remittances and tourism receipts.

In particular, remittances are expected to contract by 5 percent for the year—reversing the early expectation of a 3-percent growth for the sector.

Continued on A2

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Friday, June 12, 2020 Vol. 15 No. 246

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ON COVID-19 RESILIENCE

WORKERS hoist flags at the Andres Bonifacio Monument in Caloocan City for Independence Day celebrations. The monument highlights the role of the founder and Supremo of the Katipunan, a Spanish-era revolutionary society, in the tough journey to liberation. NONOY LACZA

AS a Philippine Flag dances in the wind, a DPWH worker continues his welding works on Manila’s Ayala Bridge, the country’s first steel bridge. BERNARD TESTA

By Cai U. Ordinario & Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

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HILIPPINE economic managers on Thursday got a welcome dose of good news in the pandemic after the Japan Credit Rating Agency (JCR) gave the Philippines its first A rating on the grounds of “the country’s resilience” amid the lingering effects of the Covid-19 crisis.

JCR upgraded the Philippines to A-, from its previous BBB+ rating with a stable outlook. This means that the rating will stay put and won’t be subject to any changes in the next 12 to 18 months.

JCR said its decision to raise the Philippines’s credit rating was a fruit of its most recent assessment that the impact of the Covid-19 crisis on the domestic economy and the government’s fiscal standing will be temporary, given the country’s

strong fundamentals.

“JCR holds that a downturn will be limited given the country’s strengthened economic base, resilient external position, and the government’s economic stimulus package totaling more than 9 percent of GDP. JCR also considers that the fiscal soundness will not be impaired because while the fiscal deficit may widen, the package at this time is justifiable and the Continued on A2

Face-to-face dining allowed with restrictions

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo Special to the BusinessMirror

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ESTAURANTS which want to keep their intimate dining setup for their guests may still do so, as long as transparent dividers are installed at dining tables.

According to the Department of Tourism’s (DOT) Memorandum Circular No. 2020-004 titled Guidelines Governing the Operations of DOT-Accredited Restaurants, “Face-to-face seating in tables shall only be permissible when transparent dividers (e.g.

acrylic plastic, plexiglass, sneeze guards, etc.) are installed.” These guidelines will also be applicable to restaurants in DOT-accredited accommodation establishments.

As of 2019, there were 575 accredited restaurants across the country, 78 of which are in the National Capital Region, according to the DOT. However, Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat said, more restaurants were seeking accreditation with her agency, to give them a “seal of good housekeeping.”

(See, “DOT rolls out app to help restaurants reopen safely,” in the BusinessMirror, June 2, 2020.)

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n US 49.9540

Aside from regular health declarations and body temperature checks for their employees before they go on duty, restaurant owners are required to provide “food safety apparel,” which include hairnets or hair caps, face masks, face shields, gloves, apron; and shoe cover.

The DOT mandates strict adherence to proper hygiene and sanitation protocols. For instance, “Employees shall avoid touching with their bare hands ready-to-eat foods, instead, they shall use appropriate utensils such as spatulas, tongs, single-use gloves, or dispensing equipment. If the task

requires direct contact with readyto-eat foods, employees shall wash their hands and the exposed portions of the arms for 20 seconds prior to donning gloves and before touching food or food-contact surfaces. Hands shall be washed immediately after removing gloves.”

Employees who face guests, such as waitstaff, busboys and cashiers, “shall wash their hands frequently with soap and water at least every 20 minutes.”

The DOT requires restaurants to place disinfectant mats at their restaurants.

FITCH CUTS CURRENT ACCOUNT DEFICIT FORECAST ON PHL

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

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ITCH Solutions trimmed its current account deficit projection for the Philippines this year amid a weaker outlook for foreign direct investment (FDI) inflow due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

In a commentary on Thursday, the global debt watcher said it expected the current account deficit to be 1.7 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2020, lower from the previous forecast of 2.3 percent.

Current account balance refers to the net inflows and outflows of goods, services, income and remittances. Last year, the Philippines’s current account deficit went down by 95 percent to $464 million—0.1 percent of GDP—from $8.8 billion in 2018 on the back of “lower trade in goods deficits [and] higher net receipts in the trade in services,” according to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

“We expect the impact of the virus to disrupt FDI inflows into the country due to a combination of weaker foreign balance sheets and the shock to investor confidence and global growth,” Fitch said.

On Thursday the Central Bank reported that net inflows of FDI in February slowed down by 31.5 percent to $505 million from $737 million a year ago in the same month as the pandemic weighed on investor sentiment. The BSP said FDI inflows reached $1.2 billion in the first two months.

See “Fitch,” A2

See “Dining,” A2

n JAPAN 0.4665 n UK 63.6864 n HK 6.4458 n CHINA 7.0733 n SINGAPORE 36.1279 n AUSTRALIA 34.9378 n EU 56.8377 n SAUDI ARABIA 13.3157

Source: BSP (June 11, 2020)

News BusinessMirror

A2 Friday, June 12, 2020

Dining…

Continued from A1

Each restaurant can only use a maximum customer capacity of 50 percent of the seating or venue capacity. Seating shall be at least one meter between customers.

Dining tables that can accommodate 10 guests shall accommodate only five guests.

The DOT also prohibits the use of handheld menus, and instead “a menu shall be displayed on the counter or other conspicuous area.”

The DOT also prohibits selfservice and do-it-yourself customer refill condiment stations, along with buffets and salad bars.

Restaurants are also “highly encouraged” to use digital or online modes of payment for their guests. “If not viable, employees shall hand and receive cash on a small tray to avoid mutual hand contact with customers.”

Other salient features of the guidelines include standards on in-house and delivery services of restaurants, such as the establishment of pick-up or take-away zones for customers. The full text of the memorandum circular is on the DOT’s Facebook page.

The Inter-Agency Task Force on Wednesday approved the reopening of restaurants in general quarantine areas by June 15. However, only 30 percent of the restaurants’ capacity will be allowed for dine-in services.

“The DOT remains committed to its ‘slow but sure’ approach in reopening the tourism industry amid our current public health concern. To make this happen, we expect strict compliance from our partners of the protocols. The only way we can jumpstart tourism is to regain the confidence of our visitors,” said Puyat.

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PSA stands by employment data, Fitch… cites strict terms of its surveys

Continued from A1

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By Cai U. Ordinario

HE Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said the data it produces, including those on employment, are accurate.

This came on the heels of the statements made by Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III that the latest employment data was not factual and that only 69,000 workers were unemployed.

Based on the PSA data, the number of unemployed Filipinos increased by 5 million. This means that by April, around 7.3 million Filipinos were unemployed.

“For PSA surveys, we inform the respondents of their obligation to provide truthful and complete information under Section 25 of RA 10625 at the start of the interview,”

National Statistician Claire Dennis S. Mapa told BusinessMirror via SMS on Thursday. “In addition, the survey instrument has a series of questions that can detect potential inconsistency in the responses.”

Based on Section 25 of RA 10625 or the Philippine Statistical Act of 2013, PSA’s respondents “are required to give truthful and complete answers to statistical inquiries or surveys of the PSA and other statistical offices of the PSS [Philippine Statistical System].”

Rule 29 of the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of RA

10625 orders respondents in surveys to provide “truthful and complete answers” to PSA and other statistical offices of the PSS. It also provides that the PSA should not divulge “the name, address and telephone numbers; the business and products that they are engaged in; and the specific ranges of number of employees.”

Under Rule 30 of the IRR, individuals who violate Rule 29 face one-year imprisonment and a fine of P100,000. Companies that will violate the IRR will be fined anywhere from P100,000 to P500,000.

Any person caught divulging confidential information from the PSA will be fined P5,000 to P10,000 and face jail time of three to 12 months. Further, failure to comply with the survey clearance provision will also be fined P50,000 to P100,000, depending on the gravity of noncompliance.

Earlier, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said

the initial displacement figure this year was higher than that of fullyear 2018, which was only 68,587.

It is also expected to exceed the 88,947 full-year figure in 2019 as community quarantines continue to restrict business operations nationwide.

The DOLE earlier projected the number of unemployed workers this year could be as high as 3 million to 5 million.

In the April round of its Labor Force Survey, the PSA said 7.3 million workers were unemployed nationwide. Bello, however, noted that the figure of PSA is not based on “actual figures” like their displacement report.

“The 7.3 million is based on the survey result, not on actual [figures],” Bello explained.

The DOLE’s displacement report is the consolidation of data submitted by companies. It does not include unreported retrenchments, as well as the displacement of informal sector workers.

Solon prods Dar to fire BAI exec for chicken importation ‘bias’ Continued from A8

“The poultry producers deserve to be heard and be assured that the government is doing its share to combat the problem arising from high levels of importation of poultry products, while we are experiencing an oversupply of broilers in the market,” he added.

In an open letter to Secretary Dar, the United Broiler Raisers Association (Ubra) cited its disappointment with BAI, an attached agency of DA.

During the virtual meeting by the Philippine Council on Agriculture and Fisheries, Ubra proposed to suspend chicken meat importation amid the local supply glut, but this

was thumbed down immediately.

Enverga said his committee will also review the country’s importation policies to address the reported smuggling, illegal imports, unfair trade practices and the timing of government action related to poultry products importation.

“The country, more than at any other period, needs measures to ensure the adequacy, availability and affordability of our agricultural food products, and it should be done by protecting our local producers and manufacturers,” said Enverga.

Co: hazard from imports

FOR his part, Ako Bicol’s Representative Co said unabated chicken importation is

Despite dollar surplus, PHL treads warily Continued from A1

“Despite being resilient in the past crises, overseas Filipino remittances are seen to contract by 5 percent.… This is due mainly to the large repatriation of workers and major economic disruptions in host countries,” the BSP governor said.

Tourism receipts, meanwhile, are expected to contract by as much as 56.9 percent, also a reversal of the 12-percent growth seen before the pandemic.

“In any event, the plunge in tourism receipts in the Philippines pales in comparison with other countries that are heavily dependent on tourism receipts, such as Thailand, Hong Kong and some European countries,” the governor said.

Investments are also expected to take a hit. For foreign domestic investments, inflows are expected to net $4.1 billion this year, half of the earlier projection of $8.8 billion. For foreign portfolio investments, the projection was slashed to $2.4 billion in net inflows from the earlier $8.2 billion.

flooding the local market with chicken meat from unknown foreign sources. This, he said, could pose severe health hazards to consumers.

BAI officials, he said, failed to show evidence of overpricing or even lack of local supply to justify more imports. “Even at the start of the Luzon-wide lockdown, chicken prices have fallen to precariously low levels of P60 to P70 per kilo, which is unsustainable. Thus, allowing more imports at a time of local oversupply is both shady and unpatriotic,” Co said.

He asked Dar to review BAI’s decision-making and assess whether its officials are working for Filipino or foreign interests. “Whoever is making these

questionable antilocal and pro-imported guidelines has no business being in public service. It endangers the Philippine economy and could harm a long list of taxpayers. This should never be allowed to happen,” he added.

Co echoed the position of Ubra questioning BAI’s claim that poultry imports were too “minimal” to hurt local producers. “I agree with Atty. Bong Inciong that unbridled importation has caused so much damage to the poultry industry in the last 25 years. It’s true that the volume of imports need not be overwhelming to cause damage. We’ve seen how it depressed prices to unsustainable levels,” he said. Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

The country’s FDI inflows plunged by 23.1 percent in 2019 and Fitch is expecting further sinking this year.

The community quarantine imposed in several parts of the Philippines has been holding up processes in deciding on an investment as travel restrictions delay investor meetings, the credit-rating firm said.

“Moreover, business confidence globally has faulted, with disruptions to revenues, supply chains and operations, as well as a now weaker outlook for global growth, which we forecast to come in at -3.6 percent in 2020,” it added.

Prior to the pandemic, Fitch noted that the Philippines already had structural barriers that were scaring off foreign investments.

It was evident because the country was not able to capitalize on the relocation of manufacturing firms from China amid its trade war with the United States. Regional peers Vietnam and Taiwan benefited from the circumstance, the debt watcher said.

For one, Fitch said that the Philippines has many logistical challenges, a bane to manufacturing investors.

The country has “relatively poor infrastructure and connectivity into global supply chains,” it noted. Citing the World Economic Forum, it noted the country also trails other emerging Asian markets in terms of electricity supply to roads, ports and rail.

Fitch added that the delay in passage of the second package of tax reforms, aimed at lowering the corporate income tax to 20 percent, has been affecting investor sentiment.

“Without reforms and an ability to address the barriers to FDI, the Philippine economy may grow at a slower pace long term,” the debt watcher quipped.

With the reform still pending, Fitch said uncertainties are rising and deterring investors.

PHL gets 1st A rating on Covid-19 resilience Continued from A1

government debt will remain comparatively subdued,” the credit rater said.

Economic managers, including Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Benjamin Diokno, Finance (DOF) Secretary Carlos Dominguez III and National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) Acting Secretary Karl Chua issued statements to welcome the development.

Dominguez III said, “It’s the result of the President’s strong leadership and the teamwork of the Cabinet, BSP [Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas] and the legislators.”

Pandemic debt program

THE country’s investment-grade credit rating will allow the Philippines to pay off the debts it incurred in responding to the coronavirus 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic, according to the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda).

In a Palace briefing earlier on Thursday, Acting Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua noted that international credit ratings agencies had maintained the country’s BBB+ credit rating despite the fact that the country’s deficit has increased thrice.

The planned deficit for the year is 3.2 percent, but due to the pandemic, this was adjusted to 9 percent.

“We have a very good fiscal position and we have been very prudent in showing the international community that we can also provide the funds to support our economic recovery. We did tax reform—three packages passed already—and that is what is fueling confidence that we can actually repay our loans,” Chua, also director general of the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda), said.

Boon to infraspend

THE A- sovereign credit rating that JCR assigned to the Philippines is very important for the country to beef up infrastructure spending, which could provide jobs to Filipinos amid the Covid-19 pandemic, a leader of the House of Representatives said on Thursday.

House Committee on Ways and Means Chairman Joey Sarte Salceda said with the A- sovereign credit rating from JCR, the country joins the strongest emerging economies in the world.

“The rating suggests that we can borrow at very favorable rates, and that we can beef up our infrastructure spending more sustainably. I take this as a sign both to continue the pace of reforms that we have undertaken, and to push

for reforms that will speed up infrastructure completion to bolster GDP growth,” Salceda added.

According to Salceda, infrastructure spending has the highest multiplier effect on the economy.

“That’s why I am relieved that we are facing the current crisis from a position of great strength,” Salceda said.

Salceda’s infrastructure spending reforms include emergency powers for Build, Build, Build projects, an enhanced Build, Build, Build plan over the next three years, and land valuation reform to speed up right-of-way resolution.

“This is an unprecedented achievement and it is validation of the hard work we have been doing over recent years,” Salceda said.

‘Stable’ outlook

THE JCR has also kept its credit outlook for the Philippines at “stable,” meaning that it sees the country’s sterling status as more or less secure. The agency particularly cited Salceda’s proposed tax reforms and the capital adequacy of the financial sector as bases for the favorable assessment.

“The Duterte administration's centerpiece infrastructure development policy and Comprehensive Tax Reform Program (CTRP) aimed to secure part of the development costs have been steadily progressing since JCR’s last rating review,” the agency’s research note added.

The ratings agency said that “government by and large keeps the momentum for reforms.”

“I will continue to work with the economic managers so that we get the necessary policies to make implementing our growth and recovery strategies easier,” Salceda added.

Prudent borrower

THE Neda chief said the government has also been prudent with its borrowings, making sure that the funds are used for “productive activities” with high returns compared to the interest the government will pay for the loans.

The country has already secured a total of $2.6 billion worth of loans from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) this year. This includes both Covid-19 and nonpandemic-related loans.

This, the Manila-based multilateral lender said, is already higher than the country’s record borrowing of $2.5 billion in 2019.

As of April, multilateral development banks (MDBs), including ADB and World Bank, have extended a total of

$3.733 billion to assist the Philippines in its effort to address the pandemic.

Bills passage

CHUA said the passage of economic bills now pending in Congress is seen to improve the country’s chances of paying off its debt.

These bills include the Bayanihan II, Government Financial Institutions Unified Initiatives to Distressed Enterprises for Economic Recovery (GUIDE), the Financial Institutions Strategic Transfer (FIST), and the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE).

The proposed pieces of legislation aim to help small and medium enterprises, large firms and other stakeholders recover from the economic fallout brought about by Covid-19.

Recovery

SINCE the shift to general community quarantine (GCQ), around 75 percent of the economy has already been allowed to operate, including industries such as food and logistics, which were allowed to operate at 100 percent capacity, the Neda chief pointed out.

For some sectors such as services, Chua said the shift to the GCQ allowed them to operate at around 50 percent, further boosting expected recovery.

“The remaining 25 percent [of the economy includes] leisure activities, tourism, non-essentials that are not yet allowed to open under the GCQ. The economy is moving toward normalcy,” Chua said.

With most businesses still in enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in the second quarter, Chua said the economy is expected to post even worse GDP numbers in the April to June period.

Chua said the growth numbers for April and May would likely be dismal since the economy was at a standstill.

Metro Manila, which accounts for a third of the country’s GDP, was on lockdown during the period.

The partial reopening of the economy only began on June 1. It is, however, uncertain whether the GCQ will be retained or removed in economic hubs such as Metro Manila and Cebu.

“Our GDP projection for the second quarter will be worse than the first quarter. But the good news is starting June, many areas nationwide have been placed in GCQ or modified GCQ. Our prospects for growth are becoming clear as we enter the third quarter,” Chua said.

With Bernadette D. Nicolas

Independence Day A BusinessMirror Special Feature

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Friday, June 12, 2020 A3

INDEPENDENCE DAY IN THE TIME OF COVID-19

Modern-day heroes give plenty of reasons to celebrate this meaningful day

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By Edwin P. Sallan

O say that we’re celebrating Independence Day in a different way this year is an understatement. There is some irony in celebrating a national holiday about regaining our freedom from foreign rule since that very freedom has been compromised as a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Because most countries affected by the highly contagious and still incurable coronavirus were forced to declare lockdowns (or in our case, enhanced, modified enhanced and later, general community quarantines) in order to stop or at least minimize the spread of COVID-19 and eventually, “flatten the curve,” so to speak, many people have been confined to their homes for as far back as March.

In the Philippines as in many other countries, mobility was very much restricted as curfews were implemented on the local level and only those with quarantine passes (only one pass per each household) were allowed to go out for groceries, medicines and other necessities.

As lockdowns are now beginning to be relaxed on a global scale, many Filipinos are also slowly regaining the “freedom” that they’ve “lost” when the pandemic

struck and struck hard. Many, however, remain understandably guarded in the light of the fact that vaccines remain in development and are still months away from being available.

Classes in all levels were suspended and still remains that way except for schools that have offered online education. Many employees, at least those that were not laid off, were required to work from home.

Very few, mostly health workers and others considered as frontliners were allowed to do their jobs in their respective workstations. As recently featured

by BusinessMirror, there are also a good number of backliners that need to do their jobs outside of their homes.

Lest we forget, our freedom is also won and subsequently defended by our national heroes. It is just fitting, therefore, that Independence Day celebrates our modern-day heroes in our frontliners and even our backliners.

As a matter of fact, no less than the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) has recognized the “sacrifices of time, energy, expertise, and even their own lives” of these frontliners in this year’s celebration.

In its official poster that carries the timely theme, “Kalayaan 2020: Tungo sa

LET’S raise our flags and be proud.

SM City Bicutan celebrates the 122nd Independence Day of our country.

Bansang Malaya, Nagbabayanihan, at Ligtas (Kalayaan 2020: Towards a Free, United, and Safe Nation),” the NHCP has specifically depicted a doctor, a nurse, a soldier, a security guard and a food delivery personnel as among the frontliners that have dedicated themselves in leading the fight against COVID-19.

Even though this year’s celebrations are relatively simpler and devoid of the usual ceremonies, day-long events and of course, the usual crowds and parades as a result on the ongoing ban on mass gatherings, the NHCP says it is no less significant as “they who strive to keep the nation safe” deserve everyone’s gratitude.

To show this gratitude, the NHCP is encouraging every Filipino not just to display the Philippine Flag in their homes and offices but also to take selfies or photos while holding a miniature replica of the Philippine flag and a sign that says, “Thank you, frontliners!”

As featured in our Tribute to Backliners series, there are a number of unsung heroes that deserve our gratitude as well.

These include the grocery store staff and market vendors who make sure we can buy basic items; the farmers and fishermen who put food in our markets and groceries; the bank employees; the Customs inspectors who must quickly clear cargo, especially vital equipment and supplies to fight the virus; pharmacists, garbage men, and the engineers and workmen who must rush to build or retrofit off-hospital quarantine centers, among others.

Although not as visible as the frontliners, these backliners cannot “stay at home” because they have to do tasks considered as indispensable in this crisis. They are making sure that the rest of us can still have some semblance of normalcy despite the far from normal circumstances. They are heroes in their own right and are very much deserving of our appreciation as well, especially on this meaningful day.

A6

Friday, June 12, 2020 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

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editorial

Celebrating who we are and can be

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oday we remember and celebrate the struggle and sacrifices made in the battle for sovereignty and self-rule.

Yet, in spite of the battles fought—won and lost—we are still trying to come to terms with what we are as a nation. The predominant religion, the “second language” and much of our culture came from colonization. Who knows what this country would be called today if Magellan had found landfall much farther south on the islands of Maluku instead of Mactan?

Perhaps the problem is the “500 years in a convent and 50 years in Hollywood” mentality. We are constantly self-examining, and that is not necessarily a positive endeavor. It is one thing to look in the mirror for reflection and introspection. It is another thing to constantly ask, “Why am I not like the fairest of them all?”

It seems like every aspect of Filipino life must be viewed in comparison to another nation. The Tinikling dance reflecting the experience of our rice farmers is “unsophisticated” and “crude.” The Japanese Kabuki dance-drama, originated by the dancers and prostitutes of Yoshiwara (the red-light district in Edo) is refined and cultured. That was the opinion of one particularly well-known Filipino artist.

It is one thing to look for “best practices” that could be adopted. It is true that economies with less restriction on foreign investment seem to have more foreign investment. A more autonomous federalist form of government could be beneficial. Maybe the Senate should be elected by a geographic constituency rather than at-large.

Maybe the government should have adopted even some of the policies of other nations to combat the pandemic; but at least take into account local conditions. We hear what a failure our government is and what an incredible success story is New Zealand. Except, do any of the Philippine bashers realize that the combined population of the City of Manila and of Quezon City is larger than the entire country of New Zealand? Why are facts so hard?

Speaking of the pandemic, the Philippines is not the best— obviously—but far from the worst.

As of June 9th, based on the total number of deaths from the virus, the Philippines (about 1,100) is number 31 out of 215 nations and territories that have confirmed cases. Thirty locations have no deaths.

However, with “Deaths per 1 million population,” the Philippines is number 97. Not the best; not the worst.

Maybe we should do some comparisons. Mexico has 14,649 in the grave from Covid-19. Canada has recorded 7,960 deaths. Peru with a population 32 million has 6,000 fatalities. The population of Chile is about 19 million. Its death toll is 2,500. Turkey has less than 100 million, of which 4,800 have died. The Netherlands is slightly larger than the NCR with over 6,000 dead.

All of these nations have “deaths per million” of at least double to seven times as large as the Philippines: Austria (75 deaths per million), Finland (58), Norway (44), Israel (34), Iceland (29) and Colombia (26).

However, all these comparisons are inappropriate. Bananas and mangoes cannot be accurately compared even if they share a yellowish skin.

The Philippines is unique and has the capability to reach its great potential. But that potential will always be sometime in the future until the people believe it can be accomplished. That is what a group of men and women believed 122 years ago.

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Better Days

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T is now painfully obvious that it will take no insignificant time for our country to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic. Just as the virus can ravage the patient’s body, the pandemic itself has seriously hit the Philippine economy. Who among us here have not heard of a shop or restaurant that is permanently closing due to the financial stress of the quarantine? Even worse, this trend is ongoing, as various establishments are still closing, even now as we relax our quarantine guidelines.

The numbers paint a difficult picture. According to the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), around 2,000 companies have closed, with over 69,000 workers unemployed. The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) estimated that the unemployment rate in April stood at 17.7 percent, whereas it was at 5.5 percent the year before. This translates to around 7.3 million jobless Filipinos, many of whom were working in the entertainment, food, hotel, information, communication and construction industries. To make matters even more complicated, 321,000 OFWs across the world have lost their jobs. Many have come

home, emphasizing the need for an effective solution to economic situation as it is shaping up now.

During these difficult times, a decisive fiscal push from the government is needed to help our economy recover, as well as to strengthen and make it more resilient. This is why before the Senate went on recess last week, we worked doubly hard in the Committee on Finance to pass the “Bayanihan to Recover As One” Act. Also known as Bayanihan 2, this measure aimed to not only extend the validity of the RA 11469 or the first Bayanihan Law, which granted certain emergency powers like budget flexibility to the Executive, for

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We are taking the lead on ongoing discussions on how to address the economic needs of the nation. Our aim is to find the right components for a stimulus package that will encourage economic revival and growth, and then allocate funds that will make these measures work. The Covid-19 pandemic may have battered our economy, but that does not mean we are down for the count.

another three months. It also endeavored to extend and expand the scope of current Covid-19-related government assistance programs, as well as provide an initial economic stimulus especially for affected sectors like tourism, transport, agriculture and the creative industries.

Unfortunately, no certification of urgency was issued, which would have allowed Congress to swiftly pass the measure for the President’s signature before the session was closed.

This means that any proposed assistance for sectors that did not receive any aid or emergency subsidies in previous tranches, like part-time teachers, online freelancers, and workers in the informal sector, have been momentarily put on hold.

Is Anti-Terrorism Act the solution?

T. Anthony C. Cabangon

BusinessMirror is published daily by the Philippine Business Daily Mirror

MEMBER OF

Determining the economic stimulus we need

SERVANT LEADER

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rothers and sisters, in this time when many of us can’t understand how to rise above this difficulty we are facing —like the loss of livelihood, shortage of food, and apprehension about getting sick—Congress has passed a new measure to fight against terrorism. This is called the Anti-Terror Act of 2020.

The measure was hastily approved without any public discussion. And even if there are lawmakers disagreeing with the said bill because of provisions that arguably violate the Constitution, the majority of Congress prevailed in passing the bill after President Duterte certified it as urgent. If this is signed into law, anyone suspected of participating in planning or conducting activities considered by the new law as an act of terrorism may be arrested without a warrant and be detained for 14 days.

Under the old law, Human Security Act of 2007, anyone arrested without a warrant may only be detained for three days. The new Anti-Terror

Act can also permit wiretapping and monitoring of individuals or groups suspected to be involved in any terrorist act.

Many fear the possible abuse of this law by the authorities. The law may be used to instill fear and subdue legitimate expression of opinions and insight critical to the government. This kind of worry comes from the abuse that some of our fellowmen have experienced in the past. There is the bitter encounter of many of our fellow Filipinos in the war against drugs, where thousands of Filipinos, most of them poor, have fallen victims and were called out to have “retaliated” and thus killed. It is

likely that the poor would again suffer because of their lack of capabilities to protect themselves. The fear is that they will become the victims of the possible instances of abuse under the new law.

What is the root of terrorism?

Why are there people who encourage others to join such activities that seek to instill fear and cruelty?

Shouldn’t we focus more on how to find solutions to this problem? In our country, it is noticeable that terrorism and cruelty are rampant in places without public services and unnoticed by the government. Loss of development and life are the conditions that manifest terrorism. This will also be accompanied by the loss of trust by the people on the government being fair, reasonable, and acting with compassion. And since the people think the government neglects them, they are pushed to take reckless measures to attain any of their ambitions.

If we try to find the proper solution to the issue of terrorism in the social teaching of the Church, we may discover it in the principle called integral development or the overall development of the people based on their innate dignity. Like the will and promise of God according

On the other hand, this pause has provided the opportunity for even deeper discussions on what kind of economic stimulus should be enacted. At this point, it would be prudent for us to look at how other nations have addressed their own economic problems arising from the pandemic.

Other countries in the region have addressed the situation in different ways. Indonesia has in its last stimulus package the equivalent of $9.9 billion in additional financing, which includes support for credit guarantees for the private sector.

Thailand’s government, on the other hand, covers the interest for the first six months, and guarantees up to 70 percent of the loan worth $10.9 billion. Myanmar and Vietnam have similar lending programs in place, with reduced or no interest rates.

A well-planned economic stimulus package can serve to soften the economic blow to our country. Indeed, an Asian Development Bank brief for May 2020 recognizes that proper government response can reduce the economic effect of the pandemic by 30 percent with a short containment scenario, and 40 percent for long-term containment.

And it is not only in the planning, but also in how much we are willing to commit to the stimulus package.

As of May 19, Thailand’s $67-billion See “Angara,” A7

to the letter of Saint Paul to the 10 to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.

If we focus on this problem of terrorism, the suffering and lack of development that served as embers that cause cruelty is what our government should address. In truth, our Church also teaches us that the systematic neglect of development and justice for many in society is one form of cruelty. This is considered a social sin.

Brothers and sisters, the eradication of cruelty caused by poverty, and caring for those denied their rights, are humane and Godly ways that government can do to deter terrorism, instead of focusing on the Anti-Terror Act. The government must focus its efforts on revitalizing the trust of the people on the law, instead of detaining, monitoring, and oppressing them for exercising their freedom of speech.

Make it a habit to listen to Radio Veritas 846 Ang Radyo ng Simbahan in the AM band, or through live streaming at www.veritas846.ph, and follow its Twitter and Instagram accounts @veritasph, and YouTube at veritas846.ph. For your comments, e-mail veritas846pr@gmail.com.

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Opinion

Pacman for president

The lessons we learn from Covid-19

BusinessMirror

Manny F. Dooc

Dr. Jesus Lim Arranza

TELLTALES

MAKE SENSE

he first campaign salvo for the Presidential contest in 2022 was fired, of all people, by international boxing trainer Freddie Roach. In an interview last week, the Hall of Famer Roach had proposed that his favorite former ward, Senator Manny Pacquiao, should instead fight IBF world middleweight undisputed champion Gennady Golovkin, instead of defending his WBA super world welterweight crown against any challenger in his weight division. Roach suggested that Pacquiao should fight the best there is inside the ring. And as far as Roach is concerned, there is no worthier opponent than Golovkin who is regarded by boxing aficionados as the best pound-for-pound fighter at present.

he Covid-19 pandemic has taught humanity many lessons.

After infecting over 7.1 million people with over 406,000 deaths globally as of June 9, 2020, people now realize how helpless the world can be when confronted with something we have not seen before. We are living in a new and extraordinary time—one we were not prepared for or even equipped to adequately handle.

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The Pacman once fought at 154lb when he challenged the 5’11” Antonio Margarito and wrested from him the super welterweight crown. Roach believes that Pacquiao can put up a good fight against the fearsome Golovkin. His faith in Pacquiao has not been diminished by years. Pacquiao is now 41 but Roach is convinced that despite Pacquiao’s unparalleled record of holding titles in eight different divisions—in a class of his own—Pacquiao still “desires to be the best there is” by fighting the best in the world. But that is not the real story.

After trying to sell the super match between Pacquiao and Golovkin, Roach made a ringing endorsement of Pacquiao’s dream to serve as President of the Philippines.

“He wants to make his country better, and he wants to improve everything. He works hard, and he’ll do the best he can for everybody out there. I think he’s good for the country, and I think he’ll be a great President. I’d vote for him.”

Pacquiao’s alleged desire to become the president of our county was confirmed by his former promoter, Bob Arum, who claimed that the senator admitted to him his intention to seek the presidency in 2022.

So far, Senator Pacquiao has kept mum about it.

Well, why not? We’ve had various characters serving as president of our country since the end of the Second World War. We had five lawyers, a mechanic, a housewife, a soldier, an actor, an economist, a son of a former president, and now a former fiscal and city mayor. A boxer will enrich the cast. No profession or calling has the monopoly of talents required of a good president. Pacquiao is a thinking boxer and he conquers his ring opponents not just by raw courage and power. He has fought bigger and more intimidating boxers and bested them all—Miguel Cotto, Oscar de la Hoya, Ricky Hatton and many other future Hall of Famers. Some of them even hung up their gloves after their humiliating defeat at the hands of Pacquiao.

Pacquiao has his heart in the right places. He’s benevolent and charitable. He has earned his billions by the dint of hard work and honest labor.

He has shared his blessings with the unfortunate, even when he was not yet in government. Pacquiao is one of the recognizable names in sports. He is spoken about in the same breath as Muhammad Ali, Mike Tyson, Floyd Mayweather, and Sugar Ray Robinson. He has remained humble notwithstanding his extraordinary achievements. His formidable feat inside the ring as the only eight-

Angara. . .

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stimulus package is equal to 12 percent of the country’s gross domestic product, Malaysia’s package is equal to 15 percent of their own GDP, Singapore’s is at 13 percent, and Indonesia’s is at 3.8 percent.

We are taking the lead on ongoing discussions on how to address the economic needs of the nation.

Our aim is to find the right components for a stimulus package that will encourage economic revival and growth, and then allocate funds that

Political strategists should change the script this time.

They should look for a suitable candidate who can capture the presidential plum. Once elected, he can surround himself with the best minds to get things done, but he should set the tone at the top. We’ve had the “best and the brightest” but look where we are now. division titleholder is unequalled and may not be surpassed in the history of boxing. He has a name recall that Filipino voters will easily remember when they enter the polling precincts. His name will spellbind the masa, the working men, the informal settlers and the common tao who all adulate him as their savior and hero. Decent voters will go for candidates with pure and honest intention to serve the people, devoid of any pretense and hypocrisy, and Pacquiao will be their man. He is a man of God despite his brutal calling. He is not violent, duplicitous or a demagogue. Ordinary people identify with him and regard Pacquiao as one of their own who has strived hard and achieved his dream.

Democracy is threatened when one party completely dominates the government and perpetuates itself in power. It is a recipe for abuse and corruption. An effective opposition is imperative to promote “check-andbalance” in the government. What the opposition needs is a winnable candidate whom the people can rally around. Right now, there seems to be no one who answers that bill. I am certain there are better-qualified persons than Pacquiao, but they don’t have his magic name. Many quixotic bids in the past presidential elections had ended up in defeat and oblivion.

They were the best presidents the Philippines never had. The people want an electable candidate who embodies their simple aspirations and whose heart beats in unison with theirs.

Political strategists should change the script this time. They should look for a suitable candidate who can capture the presidential plum. Once elected, he can surround himself with the best minds to get things done, but he should set the tone at the top. We’ve had the “best and the brightest” but look where we are now. Why not consider one who possesses the values that matter most and gifted with a strong mass appeal that can command the votes of the electorates. Maybe they should listen to Freddie Roach. will make these measures work. The Covid-19 pandemic may have battered our economy, but that does not mean we are down for the count. If anything, we should consider this a challenge, for us to strengthen and improve our country’s economy, to make it more resilient against similar future events.

Sen. Sonny Angara has been in public service for 15 years—nine years as Representative of the Lone District of Aurora, and six as Senator. He has authored and sponsored more than 200 laws. He is currently serving his second term in the Senate.

E-mail: sensonnyangara@yahoo.com|Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @sonnyangara.

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Before the pandemic emerged, global society was so engrossed with economics, trade, science and technology that many people forgot what is essential—the health of the people. History is fraught with important lessons that the world failed to heed. The 1918 flu pandemic, where about 500 million people or one-third of the world’s population were infected, saw at least 50 million people killed worldwide.

The Covid-19 pandemic is mankind’s awakening. It showed us how fast life can change. One day, everything seems normal. The next day,

we have to live under a “new normal.”

The pandemic could be our biggest life reset—for we may never get back to the lifestyles we once knew.

With social distancing, community quarantines and lockdowns, it’s not only people being devastated; the whole economy has suffered its worst setback.

If virtual meetings will become the norm, there will come a time when we will miss the boardroom debates and face-to-face meetings.

With the current situation, we have no choice but learn how to be content staying at home. We have to trade

Agriculture for all Alvin Ang

EAGLE WATCH

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E could not agree more with the chorus now being said about agriculture. Even the business sectors are calling for more government support for agriculture. Our call at the Ateneo Center for Economic Research and Development (Acerd) has always been to go back and recover our agriculture sector.

The Covid-19 pandemic is giving us the opportunity to reboot our economic structure to align with the resources of our people. While it reflected a contraction in the first quarter, this sector was the least affected by the grim unemployment data for the April round of the Labor Force Survey (LFS). This suggests that it will be able to continue agricultural activity with least retrofitting required as against its industrial and services counterpart. Besides, anecdotal evidences have shown that the sector actually produced outputs but encountered severe logistical bottlenecks in mid-March.

Despite these, however, government has yet to make clear policy pronouncements on how to revitalize and reorganize agriculture so that it can provide economic support in this challenging times. Even the Balik Probinsiya Program is like a silent endorsement that countryside agriculture can protect jobs in this pandemic. The Department of

Agriculture (DA) has lined up a number of programs to assist the sector such as the SURE COVID, an interest free lending program for MSMEs in agriculture; Financial subsidy for rice farmers; Kadiwa ni Ani at Kita, an organized marketing program to address logistics issues; Urban Agriculture, free seeds distribution for urban dwellers. If you put this altogether, they seem to be independent programs addressing the situation in the short term. We understand that the DA is doing its best trying to manage wide ranging issues for the sector. We would like to contribute to having a cohesive overall agricultural vision and action. I had some discussions with farmers in the last two weeks and I believe some of their views can help.

Firstly, agriculture is not only about food, but also about nutrition and good health. There is a serious need to have agricultural production for the nutritional needs of our people. It addresses

Friday, June 12, 2020

Surely, the pandemic, too, will pass. While the current focus is on responding to Covid-19 and on coping with its adverse effects, the lessons we will collectively learn from this crisis are important, as they will help us prepare for the next global crisis.

Covid-19 gave us the opportunity to be with our families, and taught us to be more caring, sympathetic, and more understanding by being more sensitive to the feelings and needs of others, including our neighbors who need our help. In other words, the pandemic also gave us a chance to make ourselves better.

Life, indeed, is a continuing journey and things can change anytime along the way. Let us therefore cherish the memories of the past, even as we take all the lessons we can learn from these experiences.

American Tin Pan Alley composer and theatrical producer John Walter Bratton said: “May today be filled with bright hopes for the future and happy memories of the past.” Surely, the pandemic, too, will pass. While the current focus is on responding to Covid-19 and on coping with its adverse effects, the lessons we will collectively learn from this crisis are important, as they will help us prepare for the next global crisis.

some freedom for the greater good of the public.

Some people say surviving the pandemic already makes you a winner. But the more than two-month enhanced community quarantine we have to suffer sometimes makes us dwell on the memories of the past, when we are free to go anywhere we wanted to go. Covid-19 changed everything in our lives, not the least of which is the realization that we can live with less of the luxury we once took for granted.

The pandemic also made us realize that despite great advances in science and technology, mankind do not know everything. However, Covid-19 has affirmed our virtues as human beings. That despite being isolated from some of our loved ones, relatives and friends, we can use technology to help us feel closer to them.

Dr. Jesus Lim Arranza is the chairman of the Federation of Philippine Industries and Fight Illicit Trade; a broad-based, multisectoral movement intended to protect consumers, safeguard government revenues and shield legitimate industries from the ill effects of smuggling.

also our issues on malnutrition, stunting and wasting—critical to ensure a healthy work force in the future. Hence, we need to change the mindsets of those who go to agriculture as an enterprise. It must first address the needs of the country. This can further be simplified by addressing the needs of the municipalities, barangays and communities where the farm is located. Thinking local is crucial for it avoids logistical problems and meets the needs of the communities first. Related to this, the local governments must know the agricultural needs of their communities and how much agricultural products they are consuming. This is important because farmers are focused on the market outside their communities, hence, they demand farm to market roads, logistics, marketing support among others.

While this is not necessarily bad, they are exposed to a number of risks similar to the ones we faced.

Thus, a think local agricultural strategy may be better. It requires the local governments to prioritize supporting locally nutritious agricultural products. If necessary, they can subsidize and help campaign for people to eat local produce. For instance, bananas have become expensive even at the countryside. It has reached more than P100/kg. At that price it is already close to a kilo of chicken at P140/kg. It will not be surprising that people will shift to eating chicken than banana. An inter-municipality production plan can be done to ensure that basic

produce will be consumed locally.

An integrated agricultural system can actually be developed where livestock, fisheries and farming can be woven leading to self-sufficiency.

Once there is an excess produce then the localities should consider external markets.

At the national level, vigorous campaign on eating vegetables and fruits should be adopted such that the local family table will have these nutritious agricultural produce as part of the staple. Our Asean neighbors have long made affordable these products such that people consume them regularly. We should put back vegetables and fruits, apart from protein, on our tables and we should be deliberate on this. Thus, what we are saying essentially here is that agriculture sector now is not just an option for those who lost their jobs here and abroad. It is also not easy to make it as an entrepreneurial activity as like any business venture it entails so much preparations—financially, emotionally, physically and technically. This is why government should not just tell people to go into livelihood. We need to provide adequate training support apart from the usual financial aid. What may be done apart from the mindset change is to prepare the agricultural sector for our own food stockpile, stockpile that are nutritious and affordable, limiting our dependence on imported produce for those that we can produce.

In short, the sustainable structural change we can do is for agriculture to think small and local.

Don’t let the police hide their bad behavior

By Cathy O’Neil Bloomberg Opinion

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often consider data to have a narrative quality, an emotional valence. Some tell a story of triumph, some of heartbreak. What keeps me up at night, though, are the missing data—and particularly data on crime and police behavior.

Omissions are often neither coincidence nor accident. Rather, blind spots arise where violence or abuse of power occurs. Consider the data on sexual assaults and rapes of Hispanics in Houston. Reported incidents declined 43 percent in the year after Donald J. Trump’s election. A great success? Probably not: Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo suggested Hispanics did not feel safe reporting crimes in their community because they didn’t trust the policing system, or were afraid of deportation. Crimes reported by non-Hispanics actually increased over the same period.

Another deeply troubling example: Child abuse in New York City.

Reports have dwindled by more than half since the pandemic hit, most likely because kids aren’t going to school, where evidence of abuse typically gets noticed and reported. With no teachers, nurses or other adults to bear witness, abusers can effectively hold their victims prisoner.

Which brings us to the issue of police misconduct. How often do police in the US act badly? How often do they abuse or kill people? Which forces or officers are the worst offenders? Sadly, data are lacking to offer clear and complete answers to any of these crucial questions.

The number of deaths at the hands of police simply wasn’t comprehensively collected until the Guardian started to do so a few years ago. The data cover only 2015 and 2016 and rely on news reports and crowdsourcing (as opposed to the official data, which rely on in-

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formation submitted voluntarily by police departments). Still, they helped Harvard researchers show that the US had been misreporting about half of the deaths. Identifying the officers responsible is even more difficult. When, for example, activists won the release of data showing that stop-and-frisk tactics in New York City disproportionately targeted people of color, all information that could identify the officers involved (such as badge numbers) was removed. Most recently, police dealing with protests over the death of George Floyd actually covered or removed their badges, a practice that prevents people from reporting them for bad behavior.

Video footage helps expose what’s going on, but doesn’t offer a complete picture. Consider the now-famous case of the 75-year-old man who fell and was injured after being shoved by police in Buffalo, New York. Officials initially explained that he “tripped

and fell,” and it’s not clear how or whether the incident—and dozens of others caught and released on social media—will be reflected in official data. So the efforts of bystanders to document misconduct aren’t necessarily enough. We must ensure that the data are being collected and used.

One bright spot: This week, the New York State Legislature voted to repeal section 50-A of the state’s civil-rights law, which allowed police officers’ disciplinary records to be kept secret. Now, the public will be able to monitor the database to ensure that complaints are recorded.

Ideally, the disclosure could lead to rules on how long an officer can keep behaving badly and stay on the force.

I don’t say this lightly. I often criticize the way that allegedly objective—but actually deeply flawed— data are used to assess job performance. The grading of teachers, for example, went too far. With cops, though, we haven’t gone far enough.

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‘Collect P50-B POGO unpaid back taxes’ T

HE government should first go after the uncollected P50-billion tax due from Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) before targeting “small fry” among taxpayers, Sen. Joel Villanueva said on Thursday.

He made the call while noting that weeks after the Bureau of Internal Revenue issued an order for firms to submit a notarized commitment to pay arrears of previous years, none of the delinquent POGOs had stepped forward, per BIR report.

“Cast your tax nets on the big fish, not on the small fry,” the senator suggested Thursday as he prodded the BIR to “prioritize collection of back taxes from sectors like the POGO which owes at least P50 billion, to raise much-needed government revenue.”

Villanueva, chairman of the Senate Committee on Labor, Employment and Human Resources Development, cited the massive layoffs contributing to the spike in unemployment, even as he credited the entrepreneurial spirit of online sellers“for defying the odds and trying to survive through the different things they hawk on social media and shopping apps.”

He acknowledged that government needs to collect taxes, but suggested that the BIR prioritize those already proven to be delinquent taxpayers, starting with the P50-billion uncollected taxes owed by POGOs, stressing these are the ones the tax men should focus on.

At the same time, he prodded the BIR to “intensify its information campaign to encourage MSMEs to register with the BIR, the benefits of doing so and the taxes applicable to them even as he cited, for instance, that under the TRAIN law, sole proprietorship earning P250,000 or less is not subject to tax.

Pointing out that the government appeared

to be bending over backwards in urging POGO firms to pay their unpaid taxes, Villanueva lamented that“their call has fallen on deaf ears.”

As a condition for allowing them to resume their operations, “POGOs must settle taxes [they owe] the government,” including, he said, a notarized commitment to pay arrears in previous years, under the BIR’s Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 46-2020 issued on May 7, 2020.

He recalled that two weeks after the memo’s release, BIR Deputy Commissioner Arnel Guballa reported that no POGO firms or their service providers have yet come forward to settle their tax obligations.

The lawmaker lamented that government already gave POGOs several opportunities to set their operations in order, only for them to squander the opportunity. “The government has given the POGO so many opportunities to correct their operations. It is clear they have squandered such opportunities,” he said, in a mix of English and Filipino.

Villanueva suggested the same opportunity be extended to Filipino entrepreneurs, more so online traders, who he said are braving a new world of business in the pandemic, many of them delivering essential services.

“We should be thankful that our countrymen are resourceful. They were not given assistance and yet we are taxing Filipino traders who want to earn a decent living,” the senator said.

Meanwhile, Villanueva cited reports that at least three illegal POGO operations were busted by police during the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Parañaque, Makati, and Las Piñas, arresting over 450 foreigners and confiscating hundreds of gadgets and some P7 million in cash.

Butch Fernandez

LOW PRESSURE AREA 50 KM EAST NORTHEAST OF VIRAC, CATANDUANES SOUTHWESTERLY WINDFLOW AFFECTING PALAWAN, WESTERN VISAYAS AT MINDANAO as of 4:00 am - June 11, 2020

Citing 22-M backlog forecast, govt steps up housing projects

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By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

F the government fails to address the housing gap, the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) said the country’s housing backlog could balloon to 22 million in two decades.

In a televised briefing, DHSUD Secretary Eduardo del Rosario said preventing this from happening is the primary objective of the 20-year housing road map that the agency will be preparing.

He said the housing road map, slated to be released in October, will identify short-, mid-, and long-term strategies to boost the country’s ability to close the housing gap.

“As time goes by, the housing need increases. As per statistics, the housing need from 2017-2022 is about 6.5 million and if nothing is done, by 2040, it will hit about 22 million,” del Rosario said. “The housing gap would increase significantly if we do not formulate

strategies to strengthen housing production.”

Del Rosario said the government is currently working toward increasing the number of housing units that must be produced annually.

To close the housing gap of 6.5 million between 2017 and 2020, the government needs to build 250,000 houses a year. Currently, however, the housing sector can only build 203,000 to 205,000 units annually between 2016 and 2019.

The housing czar said that while this is still short of the target, this has already been improved from the 172,000 houses built annually prior to the Duterte administration.

Increasing the number of houses built, del Rosario said, will not only address the housing gap but also boost the economy. He said building one housing unit means boosting the production of no less than 80 industries.

Del Rosario said this kind of “economic trigger” is something the country needs at this time when the economy is reeling from the impact of the Covid-19 crisis.

“If we build more houses, this will boost the activities in the supply chain and it will trigger more economic activities, more resources for government and more resources for the people,” del Rosario said.

Post-lockdown

DEL ROSARIO said the housing sector has already resumed its activities after more than two months on lockdown.

As of June 10, he said DHSUDRegional Offices (ROs) reported that at least 47,412 workers of 204 developers have either resumed work or are set to return to 725 project sites all over the country.

This was after the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) allowed the resumption of real-estate activities in the country.

In the recent Labor Force Survey, employment in the construction sector dropped by 3.562 percentage points to 48.378 percent in April

Tight checks on vehicles as LSIs fill Naia environs

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2020 from 51.94 percent in April 2019.

“As far as pump priming the economy [is concerned], the housing sector can help significantly because its impact is immediate. And if we add the impact of construction to the supply chain with 80 related industries to housing, [the economy stands to benefit more],” del Rosario said.

The IATF allowed the resumption of private infrastructure projects last May 16, 2020. Based on the reports submitted by DHSUD-ROs, Region 4A account for much of the total number of projects with 301, followed by Region 3 (134) and the National Capital Region (128).

These projects consist of 288,709 subdivision and condominium units, with the National Capital Region or Metro Manila leading the list with 92,903 units.

Balik Probinsya

NATIONAL Housing Authority (NHA) General Manager Marcelino Escalada said the government has temporarily suspended the Balik Probinsya, Bagong Pag-asa (BP2) program to prioritize bringing home the locally stranded individuals (LSIs) in Metro Manila.

Escalada said, as executive director of the BP2 Council, he recommended the project’s suspension to ensure that students, repatriated overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), tourists, and construction workers who still do not have ongoing work in Metro Manila go home to their provinces.

“I decided as a matter of strategy to suspend in the meantime our roll outs for the Balik Probinsya, Bagong Pag-asa to give way, prioritize bringing home our fellow Filipinos who are stranded here in Manila such as OFWs, construction workers, tourists, students. That is the arrangement right now,” Escalada said.

Escalada said once stranded Filipinos in Metro Manila are brought back to their provinces, the BP2 can resume, probably in a month’s time.

He earlier reported that the government has received 79,746 applications. Of the total, 43,750 were travelling alone and 35,996 were travelling together with their families. The top destination in terms of province is Leyte with as much as 12.51 percent of applications.

This was followed by Samar with 5.51 percent; Negros Occidental, 4.54 percent; Northern Samar, 3.63 percent; Camarines Sur, 3.03 percent.

IRPORT authorities on Thursday barred cars and public utility vehicles, including passengers without confirmed domestic flights, from entering the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) terminal.

The travelers from Nueva Ecija, Silang, Cavite as well as Quezon City were surprised to learn that the airport authority has directed the police to refuse them entry beyond the airport gates.

Airport security personnel put up barricades a few meters away from the checkpoints leading to the Naia Terminal 3, in an apparent bid to stem the inflow of passengers, such as locally stranded individuals (LSIs), into airport premises even without confirmed flights.

The Manila International Airport Authority (Miaa), including the local air carriers, have advised passengers to check the latest airport directives before leaving their homes.

They were told to make sure they have confirmed tickets on specific days before embarking on their journey. The move is an effort by the Miaa to decongest the Naia terminals, which is usually crowded with passengers and visitors.

AirAsia’s advisory

BUDGET carrier AirAsia yesterday advised its guests that all necessary travel documents must be secured before proceeding to the airport for their flight.

The airline has gradually resumed commercial domestic flights following the easing of community quarantine restrictions in Metro Manila and several parts of the country.

Flights from Manila and Clark to Cagayan de Oro, Cebu, Puerto Princesa, and Davao City are now open for booking, the airline said.

Locally stranded individuals are required to present a Travel Authority or Pass that must be secured from the Joint Task Force Covid Shield of the Philippine National Police (PNP).

The pass is needed to travel across provinces or regions across the country under general community quarantine.

To secure this, AirAsia said guests must have a medical certificate from the municipal or city health office and a barangay certification that the person has no Covid-19 symptoms for the past 14 days before the day of travel.

For medical frontliners or persons in industries allowed to operate under general community quarantine, a company identification or any documentation from the company justifying the reason to travel is required.

The local government of one’s destination may also require such Travel Authority.

Returning overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), including all other arriving international guests, will be required to undergo quarantine and testing procedures upon arrival in the Philippines. Test results and a certification by the Bureau of Quarantine will be issued after.

Locally stranded individuals

NAIA in the past week has been crowded with overseas Filipino workers who were allowed to go home after months of being quarantined in the National Capital Region, but whose flights were either canceled or unconfirmed.

Airport chief Ed Monreal said that many of those they found scattered in the premises are so-called LSIs who stayed overnight at the Naia, hoping to secure walk-in flight bookings.

Recto L. Mercene

Solon prods Dar to fire BAI exec for chicken importation ‘bias’

A

KO BICOL Party-list Representative Elizaldy S. Co has urged Agriculture Secretary William Dar to fire officials of the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) who have shown alleged bias for chicken importation to the detriment of Filipino farmers.

The recent BAI pronouncement urging local poultry producers to limit production and “give way” to imports is anti-Filipino, Co said. “It’s like rubbing salt [on] the wounds of local poultry raisers facing the grim specter of bankruptcy and business closures amidst the Covid-19 pandemic,” he said on Thursday.

CO

Also on Thursday, the chairman of the House agriculture committee vowed to investigate the BAI pronouncement to limit and self regulate poultry local produc-

tion to “make space for imports.”

Instead of limiting local production, Quezon Rep. Mark Enverga said enforcement of the protection and regulations against unfair trade practices must be enhanced.

“I am alarmed by the pronouncement of BAI to limit and self regulate poultry local production. I urge, that we in government and the industry must work together and outline immediate courses of action to help the local broilers. Reforms are definitely needed particularly in our current tariff system and implementation,” said the agriculture panel chief.

Continued on A2

Companies BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Friday, June 12, 2020

Lockdown cuts Siam Cement sales in PHL by double digits

By Elijah Felice E. Rosales

P

@alyasjah

hilippine sales of Thailand-based Siam Cement Group (SCG) suffered a doubledigit decline in the first quarter, but the firm is confident that it can recover on sustained end to end supply chain management and a shift of activities to online.

SCG on Wednesday disclosed its first quarter sales in the country slipped nearly 24 percent to P3.36 billion, from P4.41 billion during the same month last year. The decline was expected by the cement producer for its operations worldwide, as the lockdowns that were implemented in many states disrupted construction buildup.

On the upside, SCG’s assets here grew

by more than half to P19.97 billion, from P13.07 billion, on new investments made in its packaging business.

With the exclusion of Thailand, SCG’s sales in Southeast Asia for the first quarter improved 5.6 percent to P46.76 billion, from P44.28 billion during the same period last year. Further, assets in the region expanded over 41 percent to P379.59 billion,

Rental revenues boost DoubleDragon income

from P269.15 billion.

SCG managed to maintain operations and productions during the coronavirus pandemic after crafting a business continuity plan that saw the firm transfer some of its activities.

In their plants, it said it enforced social distancing measures in priority of the health and safety of its stakeholders. The Thai firm also utilized digital infrastructure, such as cloud based tool, to assist its employees in working from home.

As governments try to piece the pandemic puzzle, SCG CEO Roongrote Rangsiyopash vowed to keep the firm’s plants running to contribute to the world economy’s recovery.

“Global economies are significantly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic,” said Rangsiyopash. “As the society, our partners and employees face these difficult times, SCG hopes to contribute to the economy by maintaining its strong market performance as seen in [the first quarter] 2020

operating results.”

SCG streamlined its end to end supply chain management to ensure the delivery of products, services and solutions to customers, Rangsiyopash added.

On the social service side, SCG and its subsidiaries donated face masks, personal protective equipment and rice bags to frontline workers in Bulacan and Batangas.

Likewise, United Pulp and Paper Co. Inc. (UPPC) in January planted 1,000 germinants of Malahurat trees at the La Mesa Watershed as part of environmental conservation efforts.

SCG is the largest and oldest cement and building materials manufacturer in Thailand and the whole of Southeast Asia.

SCG employs about 1,400 workers in the Philippines through its many subsidiaries, including SCG Marketing Philippines Inc., Mariwasa-Siam Ceramics Inc., SCG international Philippines Inc. and the UPPC. The firm has been doing business here since 1993.

Subic business fees, fines suspended until end of June

By Henry Empeño Correspondent

S

ubic Bay Freeport—The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) further suspended the collection of penalties and other fees from Subic Bay Freeport (SBF) business locators and residents to help them recover from the economic difficulties spawned by the Covid-19 pandemic.

SBMA Chairman and Administrator Wilma T. Eisma said the Subic agency has extended until June 30 the suspension of payment for penalties on late payment of billings, fees on deferment of deposit for maturing post-dated checks, and due dates covering payment schemes with deed of undertaking.

The SBMA initially suspended the same payments from March to end of May following the imposition of the Luzonw ide enhanced community quarantine (ECQ ) beginning March 16.

Eisma pointed out that the SBMA now gave due consideration to Subic stakeholders because it has ordered the majority of Subic locators to stop day-today operations and the residents to stay at home during the ECQ. “Given the status that we are right now where some companies are still closed or operating

on scaled-down capacity, we find it necessary to further assist our locators and residents by suspending the collection of these fees until June 30,” she added.

Prior to this, the SBMA board of directors approved the suspension of penalties and other fees as economic relief assistance to companies and other payers in support of Republic Act 11469, or the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act. These were contained in Cer t i f ic at ion No. 20 - 0 87, which suspended the imposition of penalty on late payment of billings from March to May; Certification No. 20088, which suspended fees on deferment of deposit of the maturing post-dated checks of locators and residents with written request for deferment from March to May; and Certification No. 20-089, which extended from March to May the due dates covering payment scheme agreements with deed of undertaking.

Eisma said the measures were ratified by the SBMA board by way of referendum and that the same resolutions authorized the SBMA chairman and administrator to extend said measures for another 30 days, as needed.

“Taking note that the SBF further complied with the extension of the ECQ from April 16 to May 15, the modified ECQ

from May 16 to 31, and the general community quarantine [GCQ] from June 1 to 15, local businesses really deserve some boost for them to recover.”

Along with the suspension of business penalties, the SBMA also extended the validity of expired IDs and access passes for SBF workers until June 30 and allowed the renewal until July 31 of vehicle decals with one-year validity that were issued last year.

These extensions were also deemed necessary as the SBMA expected more companies to reopen in the coming weeks, as more establishments comply with minimum safety protocols specified under government guidelines As of last week, close to a thousand companies were already operational in the Subic Bay Freeport under GCQ rules.

Accord ing to g uidelines from the Inter-Agency Task Force on Covid-19, some companies here were allowed to reopen at either 100 percent operational capacity; 50 percent up to full operational capacity; or 50 percent work-on-site arrangements, work-from-home, and other alternative work arrangement.

However, Subic Freeport companies involved in leisurerelated businesses were not yet allowed to operate under GCQ.

PLDT, partners to build international submarine cable

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

Perspective of Jollibee Tower in Ortigas Center, Pasig City. Photo taken from www.doubledragon.com.ph

By VG Cabuag @villygc

D

oubleDragon Properties Corp. on Thursday said its net income for 2019 grew 43 percent to P10.65 billion, from the previous year's P7.42 billion, mainly as a result of its continued expansion all over the country.

Revenues grew at a slower pace of 40 percent to P20.20 billion in 2019 from the previous year's P14.35 billion. Recurring revenues, or those that comes mainly from rent, was up 30 percent to P3.95 billion from the previous P3.03 billion.

Hotel revenues also grew 26 percent to P672.06 million, from the previous year's P533.62 million due to higher occupancy and room rates in the company’s operating hotel properties, the company said.

The company said it will keep its “four pillars of growth target” to complete its 1.2 million leasable space portfolio by 2022.

“It is trying times like these, when the most important aspect is having a relevant and resilient business model in the company's portfolio, and we are glad that Double Dragon's portfolio had the opportunity to be tested,” said Edgar Sia II, company chairman.

“The size of the company’s real estate portfolio and the revenues it used to generate will not matter much if the changes of customer behavior from this unprecedented global pandemic will make the real estate portfolio irrelevant going forward.”

The company targets to complete a leasable portfolio of 1.2 million square meters by 2022 comprising of 700,000 square meters from 100 community malls; 300,000 square meters from its Metro Manila office projects of mainly DD Meridian Park and Jollibee Tower; 100,000 square meters from the 5,000 hotel rooms of Hotel101 and Jinjiang Inn Philippines; and another 100,000 square meters of industrial space from various warehouse sites across the country.

F

ILIPINO telco titan PLDT Inc. and its international partners are building a new submarine cable that will connect the Philippines to China, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam to further build resiliencies and capacities.

Alfredo S. Panlilio, the chief revenue officer of the company, said the consortium called Asia Direct Cable (ADC) has tapped NEC Corp. to construct a 9,400-kilometer long submarine cable that can carry more than 140 Tbps of traffic. This means that it can enable high-capacity data transmission across the East and Southeast Asian regions.

“The ADC will further improve PLDT’s network resiliency by strengthening its data links to Asia and the rest of the world.

BusinessMirror file photo

This will help PLDT to address the expanding demand for more digital services for both enterprises and our individual customers,” he said.

ADC is a global consortium comprised of communications and technology companies, including CAT, China Telecom, China Unicom, Singtel, SoftBank Corp., Tata Communications and Viettel. The new cable system will complement PLDT’s existing submarine cables and will “provide

further diversity and resiliency” to the company’s international network.

PLDT currently has a network of 17 international cable systems, some of which will be retired in the next few years, as they have already maxed out their capacities.

On the customer side, this means that their Internet and data services experience will be improved, PLDT Global Corp.

President Katrina Luna-Abelarde said.

B1

Beneficiaries may get govt aid via GCash—DSWD

B

ENEFICIARIES of the government’s Social Amelioration Program (SAP) may choose to receive their cash aid via digital finance app GCash to help lessen human contact and curb the spread of Covid-19.

In a statement, GCash said it has been tapped by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for the disbursement of the SAP to hasten the distribution of cash assistance to beneficiaries.

“The government’s decision to tap financial technology [fintech] players to disburse financial assistance to those who are severely affected by the pandemic is very commendable. Using the GCash platform for the program ensures that the distribution of cash aid is not only secure and convenient, but also reduces the risk of spreading the virus,” GCash President Martha Sazon said.

Sazon said beneficiaries need only register in the newly-launched online platform called ReliefAgad to apply for cash aid and choose GCash as their pay out option. Using GCash, she said, ensures that the monies will be delivered straight to the recipients.

“In the face of a pandemic, mobile wallets have become a necessity. We at GCash are glad that the government has decided to tap us as a payout gateway for the SAP, and we are ready to implement this initiative through our best-in-class platform.” Lorenz S. Marasigan

SMC toll roads to go cashless

S

an Miguel Corp. (SMC) on Thursday said its toll roads will “soon go cashless” to help in the efforts to stop the spread of Covid-19, as contactless payments limit human interaction.

Ramon S. Ang, the company’s president, said the group will offer free installation of RFID stickers for vehicles that use its thoroughfares, namely: Skyway, Naia Expressway (Naiax), South Luzon Expressway (Slex), Southern Tagalog Arterial Road (Star Tollways), and the Tarlac-PangasinanLa Union Expressway (TPLEx).

This, he said, is in response to the directive of the Land Transportation and Franchising Regulatory Board (LTFRB), which required all tollways to offer “free installation of RFID for vehicles using expressways, as a means to limit direct hand contact for toll payments and ensure social distancing measure.”

“We are committed to protecting motorists and our tollway operators and ensuring that everyone’s health is safeguarded by limiting personal contact and going 100 percent RFID on tollroads that we operate.”

Ang said the first phase of the cashless shift, which will start on October 15, will cover the elevated portions of the Skyway, Naiax, and Slex. The second phase, which will take effect in January 2021, will cover the at-grade sections of the three tollways as well as Star Tollways and TPLEX. The free RFID installation areas are found in different sections of the SMC expressways. Lorenz S. Marasigan

B2

Companies BusinessMirror

Friday, June 12, 2020

PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

June 11, 2020

Net Foreign Stocks Bid Ask Open High Low Close Volume Value Trade (Peso) Buy (Sell) FINANCIALs

ASIA UNITED BDO UNIBANK BANK PH ISLANDS CHINABANK EAST WEST BANK METROBANK PB BANK PBCOM PHIL NATL BANK PSBANK RCBC SECURITY BANK UNION BANK BRIGHT KINDLE COL FINANCIAL FIRST ABACUS FERRONOUX HLDG IREMIT MEDCO HLDG NTL REINSURANCE PHIL STOCK EXCH SUN LIFE

45.9 104.4 73.05 20.65 7.68 40 9.41 17.5 21.95 47.25 18.5 103.5 54.8 0.74 17 0.57 2.5 0.95 0.3 0.58 165.8 1700

47.2 105 73.5 20.7 7.69 40.05 9.88 19.3 22 48.4 18.72 103.6 55.2 0.78 17.18 0.58 2.61 0.99 0.315 0.59 170 1750

47.5 104.9 75 20.8 7.65 40.25 9.81 18.88 22.3 48 18.72 102 56.75 0.69 17 0.58 2.62 0.95 0.3 0.6 170 1700

47.5 105 75 20.8 7.69 40.35 9.88 18.9 22.4 48.85 18.72 106 56.75 0.69 17.1 0.58 2.62 0.95 0.3 0.61 172 1700

45.9 101 73 20.3 7.41 39.2 9.81 18.88 21.9 47.15 17.02 100 54.5 0.69 16.9 0.57 2.62 0.95 0.3 0.58 170 1700

45.9 105 73.5 20.7 7.68 40 9.88 18.9 22 47.2 18.5 103.5 55.2 0.69 17.1 0.57 2.62 0.95 0.3 0.59 170 1700

2400 2355010 2260250 58800 1101200 3693100 2800 2000 850500 1900 30900 1129490 4160 1000 34900 3000 15000 1000 400000 336000 5680 700

110890 245663194 165893282 1212680 8337119 147306015 27553 37788 18732000 90405 565930 116784054 229059 690 593050 1720 39300 950 120000 198620 965690 1190000

-4590 -75081025 -52917365.5 -41410 -449338 -29361555 -3924035 4668 -784304 5650 7000 -600130 1190000

INDUSTRIAL AC ENERGY 2.2 2.22 2.23 2.23 2.16 2.2 8142000 17920670 286310 0.88 0.91 0.91 0.91 0.89 0.89 162000 144210 ALSONS CONS ABOITIZ POWER 28.55 28.9 28.85 28.9 28 28.9 882200 25279495 14548455 BASIC ENERGY 0.165 0.17 0.169 0.17 0.165 0.165 840000 140530 21.15 21.3 20.9 21.3 20.8 21.3 643900 13581390 -1394290 FIRST GEN 59.2 60 60.5 60.5 59.15 60 107550 6407635.5 -5080569.5 FIRST PHIL HLDG MERALCO 291 292 292 292 286.2 292 262480 76365600 -27575080 MANILA WATER 12.38 12.4 12.3 12.5 12.08 12.4 1470300 18084440 4485806 3.21 3.22 3.24 3.24 3.13 3.21 2611000 8332710 489820 PETRON 2.53 2.89 2.6 2.9 2.5 2.89 59000 161760 PETROENERGY PHX PETROLEUM 10.92 11.2 11.2 11.2 11 11.2 59500 664498 19.8 19.82 19.84 19.9 19 19.8 659000 12930142 107200 PILIPINAS SHELL 8.1 8.12 8.11 8.16 8.1 8.1 48000 390057 12991.9998 SPC POWER 13.64 14.96 14.96 14.96 14.96 14.96 200 2992 VIVANT AGRINURTURE 7.37 7.4 7.2 7.45 7.2 7.4 321600 2375254 143809 AXELUM 2.77 2.78 2.73 2.79 2.65 2.77 1309000 3564640 -67970 75.65 83.95 75.65 75.65 75.65 75.65 10 756.5 BOGO MEDELLIN 12.5 12.98 12.6 13.2 12.5 12.5 1300 16394 CNTRL AZUCARERA CENTURY FOOD 15 15.02 14.98 15.04 14.9 15 2168100 32521206 1055222 DEL MONTE 4.4 4.5 4.5 4.5 4.46 4.46 78000 350600 -62600 5.57 5.58 5.5 5.58 5.21 5.58 2028000 11062333 6805923 DNL INDUS 8.32 8.35 8.36 8.5 8.25 8.32 51696700 432,897,736( 429,592,252.9997) EMPERADOR SMC FOODANDBEV 69.7 70 70 70 67 70 51980 3575509 -543289 ALLIANCE SELECT 0.55 0.56 0.57 0.58 0.55 0.56 313000 174280 1.3 1.31 1.35 1.35 1.3 1.31 9114000 11954430 153220 FRUITAS HLDG 35.5 36 36.85 36.85 35 36 36300 1308190 442350 GINEBRA JOLLIBEE 145 145.1 144 145.3 140.5 145 2809030 404936553 204047770 MACAY HLDG 6.4 6.8 6.5 6.8 6.38 6.8 11500 74187 -32500 6 6.05 6.1 6.1 5.89 6 1917400 11484688 -3742199 MAXS GROUP 1.69 1.7 1.7 1.7 1.65 1.69 506000 858280 -107100 PEPSI COLA SHAKEYS PIZZA 6.35 6.36 6.65 6.65 6.12 6.36 1775200 11303467 2392528 ROXAS AND CO 1.81 1.82 1.81 1.82 1.79 1.81 484000 876480 1.61 1.63 1.51 1.6 1.51 1.56 35000 55090 -4530 ROXAS HLDG 0.108 0.115 0.107 0.107 0.107 0.107 100000 10700 SWIFT FOODS UNIV ROBINA 142 143 143 143 138.1 143 670390 94888332 3643125 VITARICH 0.86 0.88 0.87 0.88 0.83 0.88 5632000 4806400 -500 1.14 1.15 1.14 1.16 1.12 1.15 6569000 7503460 -79480 CEMEX HLDG 9.95 9.97 10 10 9.94 9.95 13450000 133835946 -125172338 EAGLE CEMENT EEI CORP 5.36 5.38 5.43 5.43 5.15 5.36 1247900 6646696 -157845.0003 HOLCIM 7.71 7.72 7.69 7.84 7.52 7.72 3067300 23519948 1570 7.61 7.62 7.21 7.78 6.9 7.61 12223300 89382869 5379792 MEGAWIDE 8.8 8.98 8.8 8.98 8.8 8.98 1300 11656 PHINMA TKC METALS 0.75 0.78 0.8 0.8 0.73 0.78 305000 232940 0.72 0.73 0.71 0.72 0.7 0.72 1556000 1107530 VULCAN INDL 1.82 1.83 1.84 1.84 1.82 1.82 72000 131640 CROWN ASIA EUROMED 2.42 2.43 2.54 2.54 2.41 2.43 902000 2211700 -59370 MABUHAY VINYL 3.55 3.6 3.59 3.64 3.59 3.64 9000 32390 4.25 4.3 4.34 4.34 4.3 4.3 7000 30300 PRYCE CORP 22.2 22.5 22.25 22.5 22.25 22.5 7700 171625 -169400 CONCEPCION GREENERGY 1.63 1.64 1.69 1.7 1.62 1.63 5645000 9389090 -756850.0001 INTEGRATED MICR 5.61 5.63 5.69 5.79 5.5 5.63 198400 1113342 234125 1.16 1.18 1.25 1.25 1.16 1.16 1416000 1685670 IONICS 1.39 1.4 1.43 1.48 1.38 1.4 3724000 5305350 -9940 SFA SEMICON CIRTEK HLDG 8.45 8.47 8.24 8.77 8.02 8.45 6807300 57679285 -598093.9998

HOLDING & FRIMS ABACORE CAPITAL 0.51 0.52 0.54 0.54 0.5 0.51 20438000 10407330 8.7 8.75 9.54 9.96 8.3 8.7 174500 1570304 ASIABEST GROUP AYALA CORP 782 790 780 793 765 790 398890 313389220 ABOITIZ EQUITY 49.05 49.95 49.5 49.95 48.05 49.95 1041800 51585265 7 7.04 7.08 7.08 6.8 7 45990400 320748143 ALLIANCE GLOBAL 1.76 1.78 1.78 1.78 1.7 1.78 1853000 3219500 AYALA LAND LOG ANSCOR 6.2 6.21 6.22 6.23 6.2 6.23 5800 35980 ANGLO PHIL HLDG 0.53 0.55 0.54 0.55 0.52 0.52 109000 58950 0.6 0.61 0.6 0.61 0.58 0.61 1124000 663620 ATN HLDG A 0.59 0.61 0.62 0.62 0.6 0.61 480000 291910 ATN HLDG B COSCO CAPITAL 5.52 5.57 5.62 5.62 5.44 5.57 3147300 17417634 DMCI HLDG 4.4 4.43 4.48 4.49 4.31 4.43 4615000 20399930 8.49 8.99 8.5 8.6 8.5 8.5 33900 288248 FILINVEST DEV 0.185 0.199 0.2 0.2 0.199 0.199 230000 45850 FORUM PACIFIC GT CAPITAL 490 491 490 498 480 490 566170 277180912 HOUSE OF INV 3.4 3.5 3.4 3.4 3.4 3.4 4000 13600 64.95 65 63.2 65 62.15 65 1593470 102679923 JG SUMMIT 5.63 5.64 5.64 5.64 5.63 5.64 38500 217136 JOLLIVILLE HLDG LODESTAR 0.52 0.54 0.52 0.55 0.52 0.52 229000 120210 2.69 2.71 2.65 2.71 2.65 2.69 479000 1276160 LOPEZ HLDG 8.82 9.13 9 9.13 8.7 9.13 1137800 10111148 LT GROUP 3.51 3.52 3.47 3.51 3.37 3.51 36659000 127330110 METRO PAC INV PRIME MEDIA 0.84 0.85 0.84 0.87 0.82 0.85 288000 246640 2.54 2.79 2.51 2.54 2.51 2.54 7000 17600 REPUBLIC GLASS 156.1 160 160.1 160.1 158 158 850 134641 SYNERGY GRID 941.5 951 930 951 911 951 198000 184837280 SM INVESTMENTS SAN MIGUEL CORP 104.6 104.7 104 106 102.1 104.6 512750 53533178 SOC RESOURCES 0.64 0.66 0.65 0.65 0.64 0.64 38000 24370 137.6 138 139.1 139.1 138 138 13750 1905453 TOP FRONTIER 0.185 0.195 0.19 0.195 0.19 0.19 120000 22900 WELLEX INDUS ZEUS HLDG 0.141 0.149 0.152 0.152 0.14 0.149 110000 16570

-696380 -2970 89456740 8084375 -20108342 3500 29140 -8100 -58200 591284 -3009130 -285698 -71001794 -9624412.5 36660 -801830 30358 42351720 3201 4689630 1349491 -315693 -

PROPERTY ARTHALAND CORP 0.58 0.59 0.59 0.59 0.57 0.58 1241000 716650 8.53 9 9 9 9 9 600 5400 ANCHOR LAND AYALA LAND 37.15 37.4 36.3 37.4 35.2 37.4 8390900 305890850 ARANETA PROP 1.03 1.07 1.03 1.03 1.01 1.03 42000 43110 1.44 1.47 1.43 1.47 1.4 1.44 288000 410280 BELLE CORP 0.59 0.6 0.61 0.61 0.59 0.6 660000 394970 A BROWN CROWN EQUITIES 0.124 0.126 0.122 0.126 0.122 0.124 70000 8730 6.1 6.36 6.1 6.36 6.1 6.36 1600 10124 CEBU HLDG 3.92 3.95 3.97 4.01 3.9 3.97 353000 1405830 CEB LANDMASTERS 0.39 0.395 0.4 0.4 0.39 0.39 6850000 2694150 CENTURY PROP DOUBLEDRAGON 19.9 20 18.1 20.9 18.1 20 3114500 62721082 DM WENCESLAO 6.69 6.7 6.66 6.7 6.6 6.7 1562800 10346160 0.285 0.29 0.29 0.3 0.285 0.29 7140000 2069550 EMPIRE EAST 0.096 0.099 0.093 0.099 0.093 0.096 1610000 153070 EVER GOTESCO FILINVEST LAND 1.03 1.04 1.04 1.04 0.97 1.03 17152000 17389410 GLOBAL ESTATE 0.82 0.83 0.83 0.83 0.81 0.83 218000 178560 10.1 10.26 10.3 10.3 10.08 10.1 32200 327258 8990 HLDG 0.89 0.91 0.88 0.91 0.86 0.91 1543000 1357590 PHIL INFRADEV CITY AND LAND 0.68 0.72 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 1000 700 3.34 3.39 3.2 3.39 3.1 3.39 50148000 166775090 MEGAWORLD 0.151 0.152 0.154 0.154 0.15 0.152 11360000 1716790 MRC ALLIED 1.43 1.48 1.42 1.49 1.42 1.49 14000 20330 PRIMEX CORP ROBINSONS LAND 19.08 19.58 19.3 19.68 18.34 19.58 3888500 75092012 PHIL REALTY 0.249 0.25 0.255 0.255 0.242 0.249 140000 34870 1.56 1.6 1.59 1.61 1.53 1.53 106000 168520 ROCKWELL 2.69 2.75 2.72 2.75 2.69 2.75 176000 475220 SHANG PROP STA LUCIA LAND 1.89 1.9 1.9 1.9 1.9 1.9 1542000 2929800 32.6 33.25 32.8 33.25 31.9 33.25 24280900 787954420 SM PRIME HLDG 3.9 3.98 4 4 3.9 3.9 48000 188870 VISTAMALLS 1.3 1.31 1.34 1.34 1.29 1.31 4877000 6406740 SUNTRUST HOME VISTA LAND 4.1 4.12 4.19 4.19 3.89 4.1 3842000 15607090

22731465 11400 -113270 -6994529 -38574 -660450 -284620 -206104 85180 48850470 -10131128 -17070 27400 437271645 -2933210

SERVICES ABS CBN 15.64 15.66 15.68 15.72 15.6 15.66 334800 5234464 5.05 5.09 5.11 5.12 5.01 5.05 641900 3248016 GMA NETWORK MANILA BULLETIN 0.365 0.38 0.365 0.365 0.365 0.365 30000 10950 2210 2218 2176 2218 2140 2218 59540 131176400 GLOBE TELECOM 1233 1249 1225 1249 1195 1249 199370 244880885 PLDT 0.053 0.055 0.055 0.057 0.053 0.055 30960000 1722390 APOLLO GLOBAL DFNN INC 2.9 3.03 2.99 3 2.99 3 15000 44970 DITO CME HLDG 2.71 2.72 2.76 2.76 2.65 2.72 32327000 87552000 0.08 0.082 0.078 0.082 0.078 0.082 1190000 93540 ISLAND INFO 1.6 1.85 1.75 1.85 1.75 1.85 3000 5350 JACKSTONES NOW CORP 2.1 2.11 2.02 2.18 2.02 2.1 8248000 17213610 TRANSPACIFIC BR 0.19 0.192 0.184 0.192 0.183 0.19 1120000 209700 2.42 2.44 2.5 2.5 2.36 2.42 1874000 4538390 PHILWEB 11.1 11.14 11.5 13.46 11 11.14 3307500 40517550 2GO GROUP CHELSEA 3.76 3.8 3.9 3.91 3.64 3.76 1756000 6593770 CEBU AIR 48.9 49 48.5 49.3 46 49 783700 37766900 101.7 103.3 103 103.1 99 103.1 2435950 246479760 INTL CONTAINER 14.2 14.28 13.8 14.9 13.8 14.28 66000 935536 LBC EXPRESS LORENZO SHIPPNG 0.75 0.84 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 1000 800 6.54 6.55 6.51 6.8 6.21 6.55 14546100 94461487 MACROASIA 2.47 2.49 2.61 2.61 2.42 2.47 3064000 7597330 METROALLIANCE A 7.15 7.16 7.14 7.15 7 7.15 87100 621023 PAL HLDG HARBOR STAR 0.87 0.89 0.9 0.9 0.85 0.88 749000 650420 BOULEVARD HLDG 0.026 0.027 0.027 0.028 0.026 0.027 9800000 257200 1.66 1.7 1.65 1.65 1.65 1.65 5000 8250 DISCOVERY WORLD 12.06 13 13 13 13 13 3300 42900 GRAND PLAZA WATERFRONT 0.395 0.41 0.41 0.41 0.395 0.395 130000 52550 6.4 6.48 6.1 6.49 6.1 6.48 1700 10637 CENTRO ESCOLAR 965 1010 1010 1010 995 995 260 259240 FAR EASTERN U 7.71 8.8 6.6 8.88 6.6 8.8 13700 107908 IPEOPLE STI HLDG 0.315 0.32 0.31 0.32 0.305 0.315 4570000 1424150 BERJAYA 2.18 2.25 2.19 2.27 2.17 2.25 107000 235280 7.64 7.72 7.8 7.8 7.28 7.72 9461500 71248492 BLOOMBERRY 1.98 1.99 1.97 1.98 1.96 1.98 221000 436330 PACIFIC ONLINE LEISURE AND RES 1.68 1.7 1.67 1.68 1.65 1.68 503000 840660 PH RESORTS GRP 2.7 2.85 2.48 2.86 2.43 2.85 346000 941860 0.345 0.355 0.36 0.37 0.335 0.345 20790000 7207100 PREMIUM LEISURE 7.3 7.38 7.65 7.65 7.11 7.3 7123000 52357835 ALLHOME METRO RETAIL 1.6 1.61 1.6 1.61 1.54 1.6 4926000 7819440 PUREGOLD 46 46.4 46.7 46.8 45.3 46.4 1407200 65058035 68.5 70 69.9 70 68 70 63170 4400764.5 ROBINSONS RTL 129 130 130 130 129 129 1720 222562 PHIL SEVEN CORP SSI GROUP 1.23 1.25 1.22 1.27 1.22 1.23 7499000 9329910 16 16.22 16.2 16.48 15.92 16 2643200 42386458 WILCON DEPOT 0.33 0.36 0.355 0.37 0.34 0.355 1390000 493400 APC GROUP EASYCALL 7.06 7.5 7.26 7.5 7.03 7.5 110000 790825 IPM HLDG 3.02 5 4.21 4.21 4.21 4.21 2000 8420 0.22 0.231 0.225 0.231 0.218 0.231 6200000 1386060 PRMIERE HORIZON 5.2 5.4 5.4 5.4 5.4 5.4 10700 57780 SBS PHIL CORP

9013600 77508920 44970 -6704990 572639.9998 35680 118020 16608 -1085160 -13841130 -35827355 95328 933664 -29750 6100 9950 750 -15500 -39420 3808329 1980 -599480 188800 9072545 -815820 4023735 -893578.5 -50760 -1444150 9718304 -18000 -50370 -

MINING & OIL

ATOK 9.71 10.18 10 10.18 10 10.18 4800 48326 APEX MINING 1.07 1.08 1.03 1.08 1.03 1.08 2131000 2240330 -282320 ABRA MINING 0.001 0.0011 0.001 0.0011 0.0009 0.001 1145000000 1145000 -100 1.95 2 1.97 2.05 1.95 1.95 555000 1105190 -19900 ATLAS MINING 1.18 1.19 1.27 1.4 1.1 1.18 680000 810610 BENGUET A BENGUET B 1.14 1.29 1.15 1.15 1.14 1.14 13000 14900 5699.9999 COAL ASIA HLDG 0.191 0.195 0.195 0.196 0.187 0.19 710000 137700 2.7 2.71 2.66 2.7 2.64 2.7 477000 1272620 270000 CENTURY PEAK 7.12 7.22 7.15 7.15 7.11 7.11 1000 7130 DIZON MINES FERRONICKEL 0.91 0.92 0.93 0.94 0.87 0.91 5902000 5315180 226060 GEOGRACE 0.202 0.203 0.214 0.214 0.202 0.202 270000 54680 0.074 0.075 0.075 0.075 0.073 0.074 2250000 166660 LEPANTO A 0.0063 0.0066 0.0065 0.0066 0.0065 0.0066 51000000 335000 MANILA MINING A MANILA MINING B 0.0068 0.0084 0.0066 0.0068 0.0066 0.0068 7000000 47400 0.61 0.62 0.62 0.63 0.6 0.61 510000 314080 MARCVENTURES 1.05 1.07 1.06 1.08 1.05 1.05 63000 67190 NIHAO 1.95 1.96 1.94 1.96 1.89 1.95 8079000 15554440 631390 NICKEL ASIA OMICO CORP 0.36 0.38 0.38 0.38 0.38 0.38 20000 7600 0.5 0.53 0.5 0.53 0.5 0.53 56000 28060 ORNTL PENINSULA 2.47 2.49 2.42 2.5 2.41 2.49 1010000 2476260 -278120 PX MINING 13.5 13.52 13.52 13.58 12.96 13.52 3370900 45196434 -354988 SEMIRARA MINING UNITED PARAGON 0.004 0.0043 0.0039 0.0039 0.0038 0.0038 4000000 15500 6.53 6.6 6.7 6.7 6.51 6.6 195800 1291451 10560 ACE ENEXOR 0.0076 0.0079 0.0079 0.0079 0.0079 0.0079 1000000 7900 PHILODRILL 4.98 4.99 5.1 5.1 4.86 4.98 1960700 9757401 -21314 PXP ENERGY

PREFFERED HOUSE PREF A 98 99 97.5 99 97.5 99 500 49485 AC PREF B1 506 519 520 520 519 519 540 280790 100 101.5 100 100 100 100 10350 1035000 -1035000 ALCO PREF B 502.5 504 504 504 502.5 502.5 400 201300 AC PREF B2R 100.1 100.2 100.1 100.2 100.1 100.2 4000 400406 400406 CPG PREF A DD PREF 101 101.5 101 101 101 101 4580 462580 108.8 110 108 108.8 108 108.8 2330 253240 FGEN PREF G 490 500 495 495 495 495 290 143550 FPH PREF C 510 520 520 520 520 520 10 5200 GLO PREF P GTCAP PREF B 1010 1020 1012 1012 1010 1010 650 656600 99.4 100 100 100 100 100 40600 4060000 MWIDE PREF 99.2 100 99.2 99.2 99.2 99.2 20 1984 PNX PREF 3A 103 106 106 106 106 106 1260 133560 -16960 PNX PREF 3B PNX PREF 4 999 1000 1000 1000 1000 1000 2755 2755000 1000 1030 1030 1030 1030 1030 130 133900 PCOR PREF 2B 1045 1048 1045 1048 1045 1048 585 612810 PCOR PREF 3A 1050 1065 1050 1050 1050 1050 5 5250 PCOR PREF 3B SMC PREF 2C 78 78.8 78.5 78.8 78 78.8 5900 464308 75.75 76.35 76.3 76.3 75.75 75.75 4000 303555.5 SMC PREF 2E 76.1 76.45 76 76 76 76 15000 1140000 SMC PREF 2H

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS ABS HLDG PDR 14.9 15 15.3 15.3 14.8 15 122300 1826864 -227964 GMA HLDG PDR 4.88 4.95 4.95 4.95 4.91 4.91 302000 1484640 -456770

WARRANTS LR WARRANT 0.78 0.79 0.8 0.8 0.79 0.79 61000 48590 2370

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES ITALPINAS 1.97 1.98 2.02 2.02 1.93 1.97 1698000 3349470 1360 KEPWEALTH 6.5 6.6 6.7 6.7 6.35 6.6 62800 407064 0.6 0.61 0.62 0.63 0.6 0.61 1095000 672730 XURPAS

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS

FIRST METRO ETF 97 97.5 97.65 97.65 95 97 26080 2500718.5 325316

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Phoenix to save over ₧300M due to tweaks in operations

By Lenie Lectura

T

@llectura

he rationalization of the entire supply chain of Phoenix Petroleum Philippines Inc., which the oil company undertook late last year, is expected to yield over P300 million in savings over the next few years.

Of the amount, the company said P88 million would be realized from operational expenditure (opex) savings and P230 million in working capital release.

“The company undertook major supply chain rationalizations late 2019, which included shifting in-house operations for both lubricants and FamilyMart to third-party services.

These amounted to up to P88 million in opex savings combined for both businesses over the next few years and P230 million in working capital release for lubricants alone,”

the publicly listed independent oil firm said Thursday.

Opex savings were mostly from permanent fixed cost reductions in warehouse rentals, staffing, and other logistics assets as well as increased efficiencies and elimination of pilferages, which are now borne by the third-party provider.

FamilyMart’s share in the P88million opex savings amount to P48 million and the remaining P40 million is expected from Phoenix.

Phoenix currently has 660 retail stations, 11 storage facilities, 72 FamilyMart stores, and two main

business offices.

When FamilyMart was acquired

by Phoenix in 2018, it had its own distribution center that included a leased warehouse, fleet of vans, and manpower. Last year, it shifted from an in-house distribution to a thirdparty service provider. This move can save FamilyMart up to P4 million monthly because it would no longer pay for warehouse rent and there is no more pilferage.

Similarly, the lubricant business of Phoenix used to operate and manage its own supply chain, including carrying of inventories and warehousing. Phoenix has also decided to shift to a third-party service provider, which it estimates will yield P40 million in savings in opex and P230 million in working capital release from not having the need to carry inventories anymore.

The oil firm is engaged in the trading and marketing of refined petroleum products, including LPG and lubricants, operation of oil depots and storage facilities, hauling and into-plane services.

Aside from its expanding retail network, it also serves major ac-

counts in various industries such as power, shipping, logistics, manufacturing, construction, and transportation.

It also expanded to the convenience retailing business with its acquisition of Philippine Family Mart.

Moreover, Phoenix said the consolidation of real estate into Duta Inc. would make real estate management more efficient and productive.

Duta, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Phoenix and its property holding company. Currently, real estate functions are embedded in the oil company with varying interests spread across multiple business units.

With the consolidation, Duta shall be in charge of the inventory of owned and leased assets, management of real estate, particularly leases, and future purchase of strategic properties.

Also, Duta will identify and implement real estate synergies with Phoenix’s other businesses. It will also co-develop with other real estate developers to achieve the properties’ best use and yield.

FLI banks on leasing to sustain growth

By VG Cabuag @villygc

F

ilinvest Land Inc. (FLI) said it will continue to focus on expanding its leasing business, mainly composed of its office developments and some shopping malls, which it considers as key to sustaining growth during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Close to half of our revenues come from our rental or investment properties. We will continue to grow this segment. Based on an international appraisal company, our existing investment portfolio and those under construction are valued at P190 billion,” said FLI President and CEO L. Josephine Gotianun-Yap during the company’s annual stockholders’ meeting conducted online.

Leasing revenues in 2018 contributed 46 percent to the company’s net income, and it grew to 48 percent last year. Of the P7 billion revenues from leasing in 2019, about three quarters, or P5.17 billion, came from office rental and the rest came from its shopping mall.

Trading revenues, or those sales from housing units, among others, still corner a

little more than half of income contribution from revenues, but it is growing at a slower rate of 5 percent compounded annual growth rate (CAGR), compared with 36 percent CAGR of FLI’s leasing business.

For 2020, FLI said it plans to complete five office buildings located in Northgate Cyberzone in Filinvest City in Alabang, Clark Mimosa, Quezon City and Ortigas Center; and two retail spaces in Makati and Quezon City.

The company is also expected to start leasing operations in its Innovation Park in Filinvest at New Clark City in Tarlac.

This year the company is planning to spend P16 billion for capital expenditures (capex), some 20 percent lower than last year's spending of P20 billion. Of this year’s capex, some P7.3 billion is earmarked for investment properties, and the balance for its residential trading business.

“It was necessary to re-evaluate our plans as we deal with this global pandemic, because as we take care of our own company, we also need to help our customers and tenants cope with the crisis,” said Yap. “We remain committed to address the de-

PT&T bullish on business prospects for this year

P

UBLICLY listed Philippine Telegraph and Telephone Corp. (PT&T) remains positive about its business prospects this year despite the ill effects of the Covid-19 crisis on the country’s economy.

The company is bracing itself for an increase in demand as the “new normal” has made internet access a basic necessity for people to stay connected while the lockdowns restrict mobility and human interaction, as well as business activities.

“With our own experience operating during the pandemic, helping clients with their connectivity, digital adoption and transformation needs, we see how digitalization is now a necessity and that we are on the right track with our goal of becoming a leading digital services provider in the country,” said James G. Velasquez, president and chief executive officer of PT&T. When the national government imposed the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) mid-march, the firm stayed operational to constantly provide its clients their much needed connectivity and information technology (IT) solutions services.

According to PT&T Chief People and Culture Officer Concepcion Roxas, they continued to offer connectivity and internet service while adhering to health and safety standards included in the Department of Health guidelines for all employees and clients.

“We also provided flexible work arrangements and extended financial and logistical

support to all our employees,” she said.

At present, PT&T has a network asset of 14,000 poles equivalent to 13,500 fiber kilometers covering almost 40 percent of the total population in high growth developing areas in the country.

With an additional 46,000 poles via Joint Pole Agreement, it has a potential to expand the nationwide network coverage to more than 110,000 fiber kilometers.

The optimistic outlook of the company for 2020 is buoyed by its continued improved business performance since last year.

Its full year 2019 results showed a solid growth bolstered by a 59-percent year-on-year (YoY) revenue increase due to 38-percent hike in subscriber base and introduction of IT/Digital Services portfolio. Core earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (Ebitda) rose by 89 percent YoY. Fixed broadband for enterprises expanded by 44 percent compared to 2018. This was driven by a 192-percent increase in subscribers since 2017 due to the added capacity on its network, and extended fiber reach within high growth potential areas in the National Capital Region and Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon).

By establishing IT Services business segment last year, it added a new portfolio as it actively seeks growth in this segment for 2020 and beyond. Roderick L. Abad

mand for properties, whether it is residential housing, office space, logistics lots or warehouse/factory buildings, or co-living dormitels. Amidst the crisis and more than ever, we

mutual funds

assure our different stakeholders that we will continue to deliver outstanding service to our tenants and build quality housing products for our homebuyers.”

June 6, 2020

NAV One Year Three Year Five Year Y-T-D per share Return* Return Stock Funds ALFM Growth Fund, Inc. -a 212.74 -20.69% -8.23% -4.74% -15.54% ATRAM Alpha Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 1.0306 -37.28% -13.72% -6.38% -25.43% ATRAM Philippine Equity Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 2.8728 -31.5% -12.86% -7.3% -21.9% Climbs Share Capital Equity Investment Fund Corp. -a 0.7286 -23.87% n.a. n.a. -18.78% First Metro Consumer Fund on MSCI Phils. IMI, Inc. -a 0.6935 -22.81% n.a. n.a. -18.34% First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund,Inc. -a 4.5591 -18.41% -6% -4.23% -14.44% First Metro Save and Learn Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,4 0.7238 -19.26% -8.8% n.a.

-15.21% MBG Equity Investment Fund, Inc. -a 76.55 -37.47% n.a. n.a. -25.92% PAMI Equity Index Fund, Inc. -a 42.9319 -19.5% -6.47% n.a. -16.28% Philam Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 455.49 -17.8% -6.02% -3.87% -14.51% Philequity Alpha One Fund, Inc. -a,d,5 0.9142 n.a. n.a. n.a. -11.25% Philequity Dividend Yield Fund, Inc. -a 1.0737 -20.61% -6.44% -3.44% -16.57% Philequity Fund, Inc. -a 31.6895 -20.14% -5.81% -3.08% -16.38% Philequity MSCI Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.847 -20.99% n.a. n.a. -16.81% Philequity PSE Index Fund Inc. -a 4.3755 -19.1% -5.9% -2.63% -16.23% Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a 731.78 -18.97% -5.9% -2.84% -16.09% Soldivo Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 0.6637 -29.95% -9.99% -7.06% -22.05% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Equity Fund, Inc. -a 3.3872 -23.35% -7.23% -4.08% -19.53% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Stock Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.8405 -19.03% -6.02% -2.76% -16.02% United Fund, Inc. -a 3.0737 -19.64% -4.59% -2.15% -15.87% Exchange Traded Fund First Metro Phil. Equity Exchange Traded Fund, Inc. -a,c 98.2671 -18.73% -5.38% -1.98% -15.98% ATRAM AsiaPlus Equity Fund, Inc. -b

$0.9578 0.65% -0.93% -2.25% -6.87% Sun Life Prosperity World Voyager Fund, Inc. -a $1.3571 9.79% -1.57% 5.33% n.a.

Balanced Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ATRAM Dynamic Allocation Fund, Inc. -a 1.5691 -10.58% -4.23% -3.64% 0.4% ATRAM Philippine Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 2.1206 -9.48% -3.68% -1.63% -2.77% First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund Inc. -a 2.4903 -7.1% -1.68% -2.65% -5.37% First Metro Save and Learn F.O.C.C.U.S. Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a,1 0.1916 n.a. n.a. n.a.

-16.15% NCM Mutual Fund of the Phils., Inc. -a 1.8759 -3.68% -0.59% -0.2% -4.44% PAMI Horizon Fund, Inc. -a 3.5711 -4.72% -1.58% -1.27% -5.75% Philam Fund, Inc. -a 15.9203 -5.82% -1.84% -1.44% -6.13% -8.74% Solidaritas Fund, Inc. -a 1.9788 -2.79% -1.14% -6.92% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 3.4033 -13.07% -3.51% -2.25% -11.92% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2028, Inc. -a,d 0.9684 -5.34% n.a. n.a.

-4.66% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2038, Inc. -a,d 0.8885 -13.2% n.a. n.a. -10.83% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2048, Inc. -a,d 0.8688 -14.97% n.a. n.a. -12.53% Sun Life Prosperity Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a 0.8428 -15.95% -4.43% -3.42% -13.54% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Cocolife Dollar Fund Builder, Inc. -a $0.03841 4.72% 2.53% 1.62% 0.47% PAMI Asia Balanced Fund, Inc. -b $0.9726 2.42% 0.37% -6.29% -0.73% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Advantage Fund, Inc. -a $3.8133 5.42% 3.68% 2.88% -2.49% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Wellspring Fund, Inc. -a,3 $1.0989 2.17% 1.67% n.a.

-2.65% Bond Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 363.94 4.21% 3.01% 2.47% 1.72% ATRAM Corporate Bond Fund, Inc. -a

1.9363 2.55% 0.88% -0.08% 1.8% Cocolife Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a 3.1821 4.68% 5.15% 5.11% 2.11% Ekklesia Mutual Fund Inc. -a 2.2785 4.98% 2.74% 2.21% 2.4% First Metro Save and Learn Fixed Income Fund,Inc. -a 2.4319 6.43% 3.19% 1.88% 3.09% 3.89% Philam Bond Fund, Inc. -a 4.5486 10.88% 2.29% 4.02% Philam Managed Income Fund, Inc. -a, 6 1.2879 6.77% 3.89% 2.11% 2.48% Philequity Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.9231 7.82% 4.16% 2.16% 3.56% Soldivo Bond Fund, Inc. -a 1.0233 10.03% 3.39% 1.58% 6.12% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.1501 7.79% 4.7% 2.86% 2.41% Sun Life Prosperity GS Fund, Inc. -a

1.7348 6.91% 4.13% 2.37% 1.98% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $472.23 3.48% 2.42% 2.59% 0.86% ALFM Euro Bond Fund, Inc. -a Є215.03 -0.53% 0.57% 0.86% -2.14% ATRAM Total Return Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -b $1.2135 3.44% 2.67% 2.31% 0.52% First Metro Save and Learn Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $0.026 2.36% 1.45% 1.2% 0.78% PAMI Global Bond Fund, Inc -b $1.0645 -1.25% -0.35% -0.03% -2.8% Philam Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $2.428 5.74% 3.05% 2.81% 1.01% Philequity Dollar Income Fund Inc. -a $0.0602707 2.64% 1.83% 1.73% -0.07% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Abundance Fund, Inc. -a $3.1661 4.45% 2.01% 2.2% -0.29% Money Market Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 127.73 3.79% 3.13% 2.37% 1.55% First Metro Save and Learn Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.0397 2.66% n.a. n.a.

1.31% 3.27% 3.03% 2.56% 1.3% Sun Life Prosperity Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.281 Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Starter Fund, Inc. -a $1.0439 1.7% n.a. n.a.

0.65% Feeder Fund Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund Inc. -b,d,2 $0.93 n.a. n.a. n.a.

-6.06%

a - NAVPS as of the previous banking day. b - NAVPS as of two banking days ago. c - Listed in the PSE. d - in Net Asset Value per Unit (NAVPU).

1 - Launch date is September 28, 2019. 2 - Launch date is November 15, 2019. 3 - Adjusted due to stock dividend issuance last October 9, 2019.

4 - Renaming was approved by the SEC last October 12, 2018 (formerly, One Wealthy Nation Fund, Inc.). 5 - Launch date is December 09, 2019.

6 - Re-classified into a Bond Fund starting February 21, 2020 (Formerly a Money Market Fund).

"While we endeavor to keep the information accurate, the Philippine Investment Funds Association (PIFA) and its members make no warranties as to the correctness of the newspaper’s publication and assume no liability or responsibility for any error or omissions. You may visit http://www. pifa. com.ph to see the latest NAVPS/NAVPU."

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Banking&Finance BusinessMirror

Friday, June 12, 2020 B3

Simpler lending process seen helping small businesses recover, continue operations

S

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

@joveemarie

IMPLIFYING processes involved in securing a loan could allow micro, small and medium-scale enterprises (MSMEs) to avoid shuttering operations after government’s measures against Covid-19 stalled the economy, according to Las Piñas Rep. Camille Villar.

During the virtual meeting of the House Committee on MSME Development about existing credit and loan facilities for MSMEs on Wednesday, Las Piñas Rep. Camille A. Villar said small businesses should be able to immediately tap available financing options. Villar noted the crucial role of the Small Business (SB) Corp. to help cashstrapped entrepreneurs.

According to Villar, vice-chairman of the House Committee on MSME Development, the role of SB Corp. is very important in “jumpstarting our economy because more than 95 percent of businesses in the

Prudential led nonlife insurers in 2019–IC

P

rudential Guarantee and Assurance Inc. (PGAI) retained its market leadership among nonlife insurers in terms of net premiums written in 2019.

The Insurance Commission announced on Thursday the top 10 nonlife insurance companies in terms of net premiums written, gross premiums written, net worth and total assets based on unaudited quarterly reports submitted to the government regulator.

With net premiums written amounting to P5.03 billion, PGAI emerged as the top nonlife insurance firm in 2019. It also earned the top spot based on net premiums written in 2018.

Trailing PGAI are: Pacific Cross Insurance Inc., with P4.88 billion of net premiums written; Malayan Insurance Co. Inc. (P3.98 billion); Charter Ping An Insurance Corp.

(P3.61 billion); and, Pioneer Insurance and Surety Corp. (P3.58 billion).

“Net premiums written are obtained by subtracting a nonlife insurance company’s reinsurance cessation from gross premiums written,” Insurance Commissioner Dennis B. Funa said in a statement. “It represents how much of the premiums nonlife insurers get for assuming risks.”

Total net premiums written by the nonlife insurance industry in 2019 surged by 15.71 percent to P58.821 billion from P50.834 billion in 2018.

Malayan Insurance (MICI) is still the No. 1 nonlife insurer based on gross premiums written.

“Gross premiums written are computed by taking the sum of an insurance company’s premiums from direct business and as-

sumed premiums before the effect of ceded reinsurance,” Funa said.

With P12.25 billion in gross premiums written, MICI notched the top spot followed

by PGAI, with P10.11 billion, Pioneer Insurance (P10.08 billion, BPI/MS Insurance Corp. (P6.12 billion) and Charter Ping An (P5.44 billion).

In 2019, gross premiums written by the nonlife insurance industry jumped by 13.51 percent to P92.479 billion from P81.469 billion in 2018.

Based on 2019 net worth, Pioneer Insurance led the pack with a net worth of P16.60 billion.

Next on the list were MICI, with P4.70 billion followed by BPI/MS (P3.56 billion), Philippines First Insurance Co. Inc. (P2.91 billion) and Standard Insurance Co. Inc. (P2.68 billion).

“The combined net worths of the top ten nonlife insurance companies accounted for 43.94 percent of the industry’s entire net worth for 2019, amounting to P91.21 billion,” Funa said.

The nonlife insurance industry’s total net worth last year reached P98.141 billion, soaring by 19.20 percent from P82.332 billion in 2018.

Aside from net worth, Pioneer Insurance also ranked first based on total assets, with P35.24 billion in 2019.

Placing second was MICI with P28.31 billion, PGAI (P17 billion), BPI/MS (P14.03 billion) and Charter Ping An (P12.70 billion).

Last year, total assets of the nonlife insurance industry rose by 10.26 percent to P259.576 billion from P235.418 billion in 2018. Bernadette D. Nicolas

Pandemic management strategy for associations

I

of truth and curated insights by initially thought that the keeping members up-to-date “stay at home” order brought on issues and trends that affect about by Covid-19 would them. There is also need to faciligive me more “me time” and family-bonding time only to Association World tate connections between those in the association community realize that, as the days proOctavio Peralta to enable them to share stories, gressed, I was busier than and to ask for and offer support. ever—organizing webinars for Ensure the financial sustainability of the members, accepting invites to speak in online association. forums, e-meetings with staff, and formulatIt is also best to understand the new finaning strategies for the associations that I am cial position of the association and undertake involved with. proactive cash flow management by cutting For all these activities, I was fortunate to reunnecessary costs and identifying the shift in ceive a pandemic management strategy frameincome, such as moving to online events. It is work from Belinda Moore, director of Australiaalso a must to continuously manage your relabased Strategic Membership Solutions (SMS), tionship with existing sponsors and supporters which specializes in strategy, sponsorship and and to plan your recovery strategy. membership support for associations, chariEqually critical is to ensure that your staff ties, unions and other not-for-profit entities. I members are supported to deliver the plan tweaked this template to be applicable to the outcomes in an environment where they are Philippine association setting. comfortable (e.g., work from home), and to Demonstrate consistent, purposeful and minimize the risk of the staff by automating calm leadership. and streamlining processes, where possible.

A good start for the management (secreIn essence, an association must have human tariat) team is to prepare a clear, written stratand financial strengths to survive this panegy that outlines a realistic pathway forward demic. This can only be achieved by a united through the crisis and then secure a buy-in from leadership (Board and management) that can the Board and staff. It would also be a good formulate and execute a clear strategy to promove to get allies from among a few membervide meaningful and impactful solutions to all champions who share your agenda to ensure a key stakeholders of the association—members, regular, consistent, and clear messaging to all volunteers, supporters and sponsors—during stakeholders throughout the crisis, including these trying times. strategies to deal with the downturn that will ensue during and after the pandemic.

Provide members with solutions they need The column contributor, Octavio “Bobby” Peralta, is concurrently when they need them. the secretary-general of the Association of Development Financing Members’ needs and welfare should be first Institutions in Asia and the Pacific and the Founder & CEO of the Philand foremost in the minds of the leadership ippine Council of Associations and Association Executives. PCAAE is team and immediate efforts should be made holding the Associations Summit 8 on November 25 and 26, 2020 at the Philippine International Convention Center which is expected to to provide the right support to each member draw over 200 association professionals here and abroad. The twosegment and to be prepared to innovate to day event is supported by Adfiap, the Tourism Promotions Board, achieve this. and the PICC. E-mail inquiries@adfiap.org for more details on AS8.

This is also the time to be a trusted source

Philippines are MSMEs.” “So we really need to help them,” she said. “I believe they are the most affected.”

Villar also urged the SB Corp. to disseminate information to the local level and lessen documentary requirements to potential borrowers to help respective constituents of lawmakers avail of the loan facility.

Recently, SB Corp. announced it will open a lending window to MSMEs affected by the 76-day lockdown of Luzon island that began on March 17.

The facility allows for firms with asset size of less than P3 million

to borrow between P10,000 and P200,000 and those with assets of up to P10 million may borrow up to P500,000.

SB Corp. Planning and Advocacy Head Frank Lloyd C. Gonzaga has said that a total of 4,198 loan applications have so far been processed by the government-owned financial institution with an aggregate amount of P571.17 million.

SB Corp. President Ma. Luna E. Cacanando added they have released some P23 million in loans to small businesses.

Villar, for her part, recognized the MSME sector as an important

driver of the Philippine economy and a major contributor for the country’s growing labor force. In 2019, 99.56 percent of establishments in the Philippines were MSMEs or a total of 1.42 million enterprises. Nearly seven out of 10 employed work in the MSME sector.

Due to the coronavirus, the lawmaker said large-scale community quarantines, travel restrictions and social-distancing measures were implemented by the national and local governments, which drove a sharp fall in consumer and business spending and affected small businesses and forced some to shut down.

B4

Relationships BusinessMirror

Friday, June 12, 2020

A brave new world

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Today’s Horoscope

By Eugenia Last

z

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Kendra Wilkinson, 35; Dave Franco, 35; Scott Thompson, 61; Timothy Busfield, 63.

Discovery Suites has implemented stricter sanitation measures to assure guests of their safety and protection.

Happy Birthday: Take a good look around you before you carry out your plans. Not everyone will be on your side. Emotional matters will leave you in a precarious position. Know when to say no and when to let go of the past. How you handle and dissolve problems now will determine how well you do down the road. Focus on long-term goals. Your lucky numbers are 2, 14, 23, 27, 30, 38, 42.

a

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Revealing too much will work against you. Work quietly behind the scenes on goals that can help further your interests. A financial gain is possible if you handle matters yourself. HHH

S

INCE late last year, I had slowly transitioned to paying my bills online.

It all started when I was too lazy to go to the bank to pay my credit card charges. We were on vacation in Boracay Island (which we sorely miss...damn Covid-19!), and while I had the funds to pay for the bill, the rotten state of the main beach road just made the trip to bank too exhausting just to think about.

So my ahijada Purple tells me, “Give me your money na lang, Tita Ninang, I’ll pay it for you.” At this point, she was working on her laptop; she then opened her bank’s web site, and paid my credit card bill right then and there. After the bank confirmed the online payment, I turned over the cash to her. Simple! (Why she was working while we were vacationing is another story altogether. Suffice to say, the family has always jokingly dubbed Purple an “overachiever.”)

Although I was impressed by how seamless the online transaction was, I was still a tad hesitant to jump on the digital payments bandwagon. After all, who hasn’t heard of the horror stories of hacked web sites, stolen passwords, and identity theft? Even one bank, a few years ago, famously suffered when a number of its automated teller machines were compromised by scam artists, who were able to steal ATM passcodes of the bank’s clients.

The only online transactions I had been making at this point were on my TNVS customer account, which I would sometimes top-up then pay for my rides around the city, food orders, and the occasional delivery of items I had bought from some purveyor or other. Then I found about the glorious advantages of mobile phone payments. Again though Purple.

I chanced on her tap, tap, tapping away on her phone this time, paying for some item she had bought from an online merchant. Intrigued, I downloaded the phone company’s virtual wallet app, began experimenting on ways to load funds to my account, then started paying most of my bills online (e.g., rent, water, power, cable TV, Internet, credit card, among others).

Yay! I no longer had to suffer the long queues at Bayad Centers or banks just to pay for my bills. I also started using my digital wallet to make purchases at department stores and retail companies. All I had to do was use my phone to scan the merchant’s QR code, type in the price of the item I was purchasing, then after clicking “send”—voila! the payment is reflected on the cashier’s screen.

These mobile wallet apps have been a lifesaver to many, especially through the hellishly long three months of community quarantines we had to suffer as we dealt with Covid-19. No longer the domain of millennials, digital wallets are now very much in vogue even among Gen-Xers and Baby Boomers. I have much older friends, seniors even, now using digital wallets not just to pay for their utilities online, but also to order food and groceries, since the lockdowns kept most of

b

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): It’s time to put your ideas and plans to work for you. Speak up, take action and follow through. Refuse to let what others do confuse or influence you. What you have experienced will be valuable when dealing with indecisive people. HHHH

c

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Keep your emotions under control. If you give in to someone’s persuasive tactics, you will end up wasting time.

Consider what you want and the best way to go about getting your way, and do not deviate from your plans.

HH

strictly implemented. Contactless check-in and check-out, food delivery in the room for hotel dining, customer service over the phone, and social distancing will be done to lessen the face-to-face interaction. These are just some instances of the new normal that guests will experience when staying at Discovery Suites.

“The safety of our guests, as what we always say, is our top priority. It is our business to care, and being able to make sure we provide a home for everyone brings us great inspiration to continuously strive for the best. This experience truly relives the essence of our mission as part of the hospitality industry and the nation,” adds Janice. Discovery Suites was one of the 33 hotels that remained open during ECQ, providing a safe sanctuary for its guests, and meals for frontliners under its “Food for Heroes” campaign.

For his part, James Montenegro, country manager of Chroma Hospitality Inc., says guests can expect a seamless and safe welcome to any Crimson or Quest hotel, starting from the airport pick-up and during their actual stay with these enhanced safety standards.

Among the safety standards are customized driverpassenger partitions in transport vehicles picking up guests from the airport, as well as upgraded amenities for guests such as hand sanitizers and antibacterial wet wipes.

He assures all guest rooms will be disinfected and remain empty for 24 hours after thorough cleaning and disinfection before accepting another guest check-in. A UV bulb will be installed in the room lamp while cleaning as an added sanitization measure.

“As we gear up our hotels and prepare for the new era of travel during this pandemic, we have created intensified guidelines for sanitation and cleanliness to make our guests feel secure when staying in any Crimson or Quest hotel,” says Montenegro. n

us at home.

According to published reports, mobile communications providers Smart and Globe have reported increased registrations to their virtual wallets—PayMaya and GCash, respectively—and higher online transactions. Both digital wallet apps have been around since 2000, but the pandemic has really forced the larger majority to use these out of necessity.

Post-Covid, I doubt if anyone would return to cash transactions. It’s just way too convenient for everyone.

Remember how we initially balked at using ATM machines to deposit and withdraw from our banks? Initially, these transactions were free, even if one used another bank’s machine. Despite the service fee, we still use the ATM for our bank transactions so that we don’t have to wait so long in line at our bank’s teller.

Now digital wallets have pushed us further forward, helping us to even skip the queue at the ATM, as we move bank transactions online, as well. It’s a brave new world, even for non-techies, and there’s no turning back. Virtual wallets and online transactions are here to stay. nnn AS the country gradually moves into less severe quarantine conditions, hotels are gearing up for the “new normal” in terms of stricter health protocols for a safer guest experience.

Discovery Suites, for instance, has implemented more extensive sanitation procedures with the launch of its campaign “Safe Like Home.” Aside from the preventive measures it has practiced since early this year, the new process includes thorough sanitation of the guest rooms and public area with the use of multiple disinfecting agents, says Janice Tiambeng, the hotel’s general manager.

The frequency of sanitation of high touch points such as elevator buttons, doorknobs and surfaces will also be

Notes on acting as artifice and politics as lies Continued from B5 favor of the bill.

Online, a parallel discussion was going on, more vociferous and open than the mysterious rituals in the Legislative houses. This was the release of the names of those who voted for the bill to be enacted into a law. Vilma Santos, the actress who is now a congresswoman, was one of those in favor of the bill. There was a caveat though: she voted “with reservations.”

The world was angry and no “reservation” could

assuage the people voicing their protest against Santos, as if it was her vote that made the difference.

And yet, it seems, the debate was following a different trajectory. Those expressing their disappointment with Santos were rallying behind what could be the actress’s most iconic role, that of Sister Stella L., the activist-nun. Dramatic were the disappointments now not so much against the person of Vilma Santos but with the actress who portrayed with bravura the daring role of an anti-establishment persona belonging to the Catholic Church.

There are lonely voices defending Vilma Santos

voting for the bill, if that act of favoring a bill perceived to be the death of free speech can be ever defended. These voices are saying Vilma was merely playing a role, that Sister Stella L. lives on in this fine film of the same title. Cogent, however, are the words of Lualhati Bautista, the author of Dekada ’70, proposing that “ang sining na walang paninindigan ay hindi sining [art not backed by a principled stand is not art.”

Art should always have irony. One irony is not lost on us: another celebrity, Lucy Torres-Gomez, given the latest listing, also voted in favor of the bill but no one is talking about her. No one really cares. n

d

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Embrace change. If you wait for someone to make the first move, you may miss out on something terrific. Follow your heart and intuition, and you will find your way to greater satisfaction and personal happiness. HHHHH

e

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Spend more time living up to your expectations and less time worrying about what others are doing. Plan to pursue the path that best suits the skills, experience and knowledge you have worked so hard to master.

HHH

f

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Proceed with caution. Don’t take action until you understand the situation and the consequence that a mistake will propagate. It’s best to take your time and do things right. A partnership will require an adjustment if it’s going to work. HHH

g

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): How you see yourself may not be how others see you. Take a peek at the way you look and how you present yourself. An update will boost your morale and give you the confidence you need to reach your initiative. HHH

h

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Take on a new challenge. Expanding your knowledge and interests will give you a chance to try something new and exciting. Figure out how best to invest in what you want to pursue without going into debt. HHHHH

i

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Don’t waste time on someone who is giving you the runaround. If something doesn’t seem right, distance yourself. Say no to temptation and yes to someone who brings out the best in you. HH

j

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): The past can teach you many lessons that will help you prevent making a mistake. When dealing with relationships, you are wise to remember how you’ve been treated before you bend over backward trying to please someone. HHHH

k

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Personal improvements can be made. Physical fitness, a healthy lifestyle and more time with someone you love will ease stress and, make you feel good about life. HHH

l

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): Problems will arise if you let someone play with your emotions. Know when to say no. Your intuition won’t let you down. If something doesn’t seem right, it probably isn’t. Walk away from situations that are indulgent. HHH Birthday Baby: You are convincing, outspoken and creative.

You are knowledgeable and sensitive.

onshore structures’ by adam vincent The Universal Crossword/Edited by David Steinberg

ACROSS 1 Basics 5 Was in debt 9 Hubbubs 13 Sudden transition 14 Extend the due date of 16 State after Indiana, alphabetically 17 Volcano flow 18 With 61-Across, homes that often have great views...or a possible description of the starred answers?

20 Blow off steam 22 Blew off steam 23 Sailor’s song, as some spell it 26 “Measure twice, cut once,” e.g.

29 Screw up 30 Fertility clinic cells 31 Green Bay-to-Dallas dir.

33 Archaeological site 34 Ballpark figure 37 “Sadly not” 39 Turning point 41 Pastry often filled with potatoes and peas 44 Weak spot for a boxer

48 Altar affirmation 49 Sra., in the US 51 E-filing org.

52 Quarter of four 53 Made a dash for 55 Wetland with cyclical flooding 58 Turk’s neighbor 60 Shout 61 See 18-Across 65 What the Swahili word “simba” means 67 Orchestra woodwind 68 Its capital is Nairobi 69 Parts of a journey 70 Sail’s force?

71 Bias 72 Game of Thrones girl DOWN 1 Word before “natural” or “inclusive” 2 Busy ones, metaphorically 3 Works on walls?

4 Reaches across 5 Crystal ball, e.g.

6 Teensy 7 Bring into law

8 Fake ducks 9 Was shown on TV 10 Gadgets 11 Possess 12 Warmed the bench 15 Personal question?

19 With no imperfections 21 Saint who wrote Utopia 23 Notice 24 Video game persona 25 Silver of FiveThirtyEight 27 The “G” in G&T 28 A compliment may boost it 32 World’s largest hot desert 35 ___ Jima 36 Unit of work 38 Some online pop-ups 40 Approached a base feet-first 41 Knight’s address 42 Mathematician Lovelace 43 Indian season known for downpours 45 More like Saint Nicholas 46 One often has four colons 47 Sodden 50 Liquid, solid and gas, for matter

4 Drafted an e-mail, say 5 56 Written with a pen 57 Gent 59 Grate on 61 Superhero punch sound 62 One of 2,297 for Hank Aaron: Abbr.

63 Pupil’s place 64 Tool with a chain variety 66 Code-breaking org.

Solution to yesterday’s puzzle:

Show BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Friday, June 12, 2020

B5

Notes on acting as artifice and politics as lies Artist Benjie Mallari zooms in on our glorious past

Benjie Mallari successfully created his enchanting menagerie of characters and scenes within a historical and contemporary cross-section of the ideal and idyllic life as he zooms in and out of various periods of our colorful and glorious past—from the 1900s to the Spanish colonial period, from the American colonial period to post-war Manila. The exhibit The Time Traveler: Glimpses of Yesterday presents the artist as a time traveler in Manila and the Philippines, a place he is so proud to be a part of.

Many Asian cities have ascribed to be deserving of the moniker “Paris of the East” but none proved more deserving than pre-war Manila. Dubbed the “Pearl of the Orient” because of the country’s collection of islands that resembled precious stones, Manila was the envy of neighboring Asian countries because of its European and American colonial inspired structures. In its prime, Manila boasted of its Art Deco buildings and palatial government offices. The population of the city also grew during this time as people from the provinces migrated to Manila, and ultimately became a center of history and identity.

It was also the time when people imbibed and adhered to the principles of respect and dignity, with people displaying high moral standards. Back when there was a manageable population and economy, people lived simply but inexpensively, and a peso could buy many things. It was a Manila with no high rises save for intricate and ornately adorned facades. The total population was by the hundred thousands, a tenth or less of today’s. Even automobile accidents were rare because people drove carefully and there was courtesy on the road. The bedlam of tooting horns was also unknown. There were no traffic jams, as cars moved slowly delivering students to schools or picking them up.

There was a euphoric crest in the quality of life.

Benjie Mallari’s works continue to enthrall because it explores so sincerely the timeless Filipino identity and its people’s interpersonal relations. He urges, now more than ever during these troubled times, that now is time to rediscover our identity, values, and faith in ourselves; a time to revisit our beliefs and the virtues we believe in such as hard work, thrift and industry. Undeniably, behind Mallari’s works lie great complexity and depth. The details of his oeuvre expose viewers to the realities and labyrinths of our epic past as it progresses to its current situation.

This time of the Covid-19 pandemic is a time of great doubt—a time of our people questioning themselves, doubting our future or our destiny. These are moments of great confusion with many people feeling down. But even though challenged with an unprecedented crisis, Filipinos remain unfailingly warm, their spirit unswervingly tenacious, and Manila—then and now, as it has always—gets back on its feet. Benjie Mallari’s artistic sensibilities go back several decades. A former art director of Meralco, he would also moonlight as a cartoonist of the daily opposition paper Ang Pahayagang Malaya during the Marcos dictatorship. Mallari, now based in Baguio, also designed the centennial calendar of National Artist Fernando Amorsolo, and jacket covers of albums of works by National Artist for Music Lucio San Pedro. He has a degree in Fine Arts, majoring in Advertising, from the University of the East.

The Time Traveler: Glimpses of Yesterday is an online exhibit that is ongoing until June 24. An online Artist Reception will be held on Monday, June 15, 5 pm, via a Zoom webinar. More details are available from Galerie Joaquin at 0926-7227925 or galeriejoaquin@gmail.com.

S

HOW business and politics share many things in common, and actors and politicians are kindred spirits. Rumors and intrigue are precious commodities actors and politicians can exploit for that darker side of communication, which is to conjure facts out of lies. Gossip is a given in both fields, with politicians built to survive any stinking tale about them and actors coming out better known by the population. “Bring it on” is a motto that appears to be a code of courage when it is really a lack of shame and guilt, a product of life coached to dismiss any kind of compass, moral or directional.

Actors and politicians, be they good in their craft or evil in their tasks, are recipients of destinies greatest boon—recognition of whatever form and persuasion.

Ethics makes the difference between the two: actors, whether they are good or faltering in their art, are in that realm where they are in touch with the transcendental power of creating roles and telling stories; politicians be they with the best of intentions or suffused with acclaimed ideals, which are anyway rare, enter a system that is de facto vile.

The actor faces the horizon in all its peregrinations and is ready to conjure dreams and inspirations or, in some plots, nightmare from which the human spirit can soar. Or, if that spirit plumbs the human capacity and reaches the depth of hell in other people, the journey is to learn, to know, to find a light. In the actor’s worst scenario, there is always a self, scared to death but still full of hope.

The politician faces a space and asks: What is in that space for me? There is no emptiness or vacant scene for a politician because he is always full of himself. That fullness, which is not necessarily positive, is the politician’s weapon to confront societies awkward in the presence of his uselessness.

Or, haven’t you asked before the question that maybe, just maybe, we really do not need politicians?

But you might say: We also do not need actors.

Maybe we don’t, but at least, give and take the mystery of supply and demand, we do not elect actors and we do not support them with our resources. If we watch them constantly and grovel at their perfumed feet, this is all a function of our own evolved and tortured psychologies, conscripted slaves to pulchritude. This is cliché but with actors, we elect them with our heart attuned to our own sense of beauty and magic, and enough marketing strategies to alter the orbit of our planet.

It is different with politicians. We vote them into power to find out that elections are really about consuming the power of the people. Commodified, the power becomes a product whose values come at a price—the loss of people’s power in the running of their lives, homes and communities.

Why do I belabor these points about art and politics? There is a need to rethink the kinship between actors and politicians for one good reason: What if actors become politicians and the politicians transform themselves into actors?

That is no more a question than a fact.

The last few days have seen exactly the answer to

the puzzle of actors and politicians becoming one.

With a new virus attacking a society ancient in its ways of ineptitude and underdevelopment, islands were closed, towns and cities barricaded, and local governments made to fend for themselves. As if that was not enough, a huge TV network was ordered to shut down. In a republic accustomed to entertainment and fiction, corporations were reminded how they are vulnerable before a government that is able to achieve anything at the expense of labor, capital and freedom.

The troubled days of persecutions brought out an examination of capitalism and a meditation on class structure and structured inequalities. Intellectuals clashed with each other in essays acerbic, trenchant but still intelligent.

The masses could not be stopped. Online, there were rants. Somehow, when it comes to masses, their complaints are grudges, grumblings and rants.

Actors and other entertainment figures with nothing to do in the lockdown turned to social media to air their grievances and talk as citizens.

Coco Martin was the first from the row of established and popular actors to join in the angry discourses. The actor has all the right, of course, to talk and his thoughts be counted in the mounting confrontations. It was a long impassioned talk. It was, to say the least, unrehearsed, unscripted. Many expected the people to applaud the actor; after all, he plays the principled policeman in the longest-running drama series on Philippine television. I was expecting a wave of support for the young man but, instead, hostilities surprised me and, even more so I presume, the actor. The points made by those who did not favor

the rage of Coco Martin were that the actor should have separated himself from the brave crusader named Cardo, and that he should have reined in his emotions and remained the gentleman. As in the TV series. And that his strong words should not have been uttered given how he has become a model of sorts for young people.

The issue is interesting: while the ratings of his show implies an approval of the character he portrays on free TV, that very character becomes presently the very reason why his critics think he should not abuse that authority, never mind if the conviction we attach on Coco Martin’s person is a creative invention.

I cannot assume what pushed Coco Martin to speak up was his perceived clout among his fans and followers. What we can read from this newly developed perspective is the general notion that actors have nothing intelligent to say. That, of course, is not true. The opposite with regard to politicians is scary— that being into politics makes them intelligent.

The loud voice of Coco Martin is justified. He has as much right as you and I to scream, shout, rage, rant and even curse at the sources of abuses and disgust.

He is a citizen and he has rights.

Just as people are forgetting this incident, a deliberation on a new bill, otherwise known as the “Anti-Terrorist Bill,” has been initiated. The whole process has been fast-tracked and before any cineaste could pay homage to Tarantino and say “Kill Bill,” the bill is being readied for signing into law. This means that senators and congressmen have already voted in

Continued on B4

Thoughts on the ABS-CBN hearings

I DON’T expect most politicians to be grateful. They’re very busy, either serving the people or stealing from the people.

Both are done with dexterity and panache. And it’s hard to tell who’s doing good and who’s committing a crime.

Many politicians are amorphous. They are extremely complex. They’re a different breed of human beings. Some dance in the darkness like bats. Beware and watch them carefully, intently and relentlessly. Use your flashlights or searchlights if you smell something foul. By now, we must have learned it is our sacred duty to take care of this country.

Because if we don’t, no one will.

Watching the ABS-CBN hearings, I do solemnly declare

I like Congressmen Edcel Lagman, Rufus Rodriguez, Sol Aragones, Benny Abante, Loren Legarda and the party-list reps of Bayan Muna, Ako Bicol and Gabriela. They are good men and women. They are respectful. They recognize how the shutdown of ABS-CBN affects its employees, the industry and the industries around it. They know the contributions the media institution has made in the country. They are not petty, nor bastos. I would like to be their best friend one day.

I also wrote other congressmen, saying that I hope they vote with their conscience on this issue. While many of them ghosted me, a few remarkable ones replied. I will not tell you what they answered on my e-mail or Facebook message but Alfred Vargas, Stella Quimbo, Tonypet Albano, Janette Garin and Yul Nieto shot to my “like list” for their honest answers.

Kudos goes to Stella Quimbo and her staff for thinking I was first asking for milk, and their e-mail declared that all her funding for this would come from her personal funds and donation from friends. If I were a billionaire, I would donate milk to her and her district. Pasensya na po, Ma’m Stella, hindi po ako maka-donate ng malaki para sa milk project niyo, kasi bilang bakla, ako lagi ginagatasan ng mga lalake eh! Charot!

Anyway, if they win again in 2022 should they decide to run, then it will be a simple validation, as far as I’m concerned, that not everything is lost in the Pinoy. If they

Arnel Pineda

don’t make it, I will escape for a day to a deserted seashore. I will weep with the sharks, seahorses and mermaids—not for them but for me and this country. After I commune with the sea, I will come back with hope that they will still be around to serve this country. nnn GLOBAL Pinoy artist Arnel Pineda voices the courage and spirit of local heroes in his self-penned song “Your Soldiers,” newly released under DNA Music.

In this pop rock track, the singer-songwriter also inspires unity to fend off the perils in a crisis, and dedicates it to the people leading the Filipinos’ defense against the coronavirus pandemic: the medical frontliners.

“Your Soldiers,” with music also from Arnel, is arranged

by Gabriel Tagadtad and produced by ABS-CBN Music’s creative director Jonathan Manalo. Its music video, uploaded on YouTube, immediately received positive feedback from listeners. Arnel is one of the artists under DNA Music, ABSCBN’s record label catering to the musicality of gifted Filipino rock and alternative artists.

Since 2007, the renowned Filipino performer has served as the lead singer of the iconic American rock band Journey.

Last month, he performed “Don’t Stop Believin’” with the band for Unicef’s Covid-19 benefit show.

VILMA SANTOS as the title role in Sister Stella L.

B6 Friday, June 12, 2020

Dinalupihan farmer follows passion through SM Foundation’s KSK program

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UELED by her passion for farming, Ivy de Guzman joined the Batch 219 of the SM Foundation’s Kabalikat Sa Kabuhayan (KSK) program in Dinalupihan, Bataan.

Ivy stated that knowledge gained from the program proved to be useful during the COVID-19 pandemic. When the lockdown was enforced, she and her batchmates were confident that they could produce their own food.

“Napakalaking bagay po ng mga natutunan namin sa KSK lalo na ngayon sa panahon ng COVID-19 pandemic.

Ginamit namin ang mga natutunan

naming sa KSK upang magkaroon ng pagkukunan ng aming makakain sa gitna ng pandemya. Bukod dito, naging mas maganda at maayos ang aming mga ani,” Ivy said.

They were able to sell their produce at farm gate prices to the local government unit who in turn distributed it as relief goods to their constituents. So not only was her KSK batch able to provide food security for themselves and their families but they were also able to contribute to the food security of their community.

As the current President of the Barangay Pita Farmers Association, Ivy

also shares the knowledge and resources from the program with the rest of her community in Dinalupihan, Bataan. She stressed that it is important that they too should understand the scientific way of planting and preparing the soil, know how to produce DIY organic fertilizers and pesticides, and irrigate and house their crops properly.

Batch 219 of the SM Foundation’s Kabalikat Sa Kabuhayan (KSK) program was supposed to have their graduation and harvest festival last mid-May 2020 but due to the lockdown, these activities are currently on hold.

Experience the magic at home with Enchanted Kingdom’s virtual rides and attractions

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HILE we all wait for Enchanted Kingdom’s big re-opening after it temporarily closed its gates to the public a few months ago due to COVID-19, thrill seekers can still enjoy the Park amidst the pandemic. Your favorite adventure destination is bringing magic and delights right to your home.

Featuring virtual rides and spell-binding spectacles that everyone has surely missed,

EK babies and Park fanatics can get a dose of the exciting theme park experience at the comfort of their virtual couches.

The loops and turns of Space Shuttle, One of the most loved EK rides that lifts its riders at 35.5 meters high – equivalent to an 11-storey high building – before releasing it down to the loops. One can easily get the intense feeling while watching the pull of gravity at an extreme height with

the adrenaline-pumping view.

This all-time EK favorite gives the same all-out-scream feeling as the ride maneuvers upside down.

Jungle Log Jam’s bumpy water ride, This amazon-inspired water ride gives one a quick exhilarating drop. The Jungle Log Jam takes riders up and down two slopes of different heights while seated on a gently floating hollow log. Viewers can still enjoy a unique ride experience without getting wet from the water splash while the log lands down.

The exquisite story of Enchanted Kingdom Featuring excerpts from the EK Story Musicale, the video showcases homegrown songs sang by the main characters, Princess Victoria and Princess Madeline.

All these virtual rides and attractions are posted on Enchanted Kingdom’s Facebook page. To see more exciting fun-filled online content and updates, visit Enchanted Kingdom’s official website and Facebook account: www. enchantedkingdom.ph and www.facebook. com/enchantedkingdom.ph

SYKES promotes at-home job application for Filipinos amid quarantine

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YKES Philippines, recognized as the 2019 BPO Company of the Year, continues to provide world-class opportunities to the country’s best talents by enhancing its online job application process. This promotes a safe and convenient job application experience to hopeful Filipinos amid the implementation of the quarantine.

In compliance with physical distancing protocols, SYKES encourages candidates to apply for online jobs in the comfort of their own home. Even before the pandemic, SYKES designed and launched its own online recruitment platform to revolutionize the way talents are recruited. One of its at-home job application platforms, e-Recruitment, brings applicant experience to the next level by providing fast and convenient end-to-end virtual recruitment from initial interview all the way to contract signing.

“We need to adapt and evolve to deliver solutions for the needs of our clients and continuously provide career opportunities to Filipinos, which is why we make it easier for them to apply for online jobs from their homes. With the amplification of virtual recruitment and deployment of work-at-home set-up, SYKES is able to provide solutions to its clients and ensure the safety and convenience of all applicants and new employees,” shared

by Cherry Wong, Senior Vice President for Area Operations.

SYKES’ quick response and ability to adapt to the situation have garnered positive feedback from its partners and clients. They acknowledged the top BPO’s agility, resilience, and commitment to their business, customers, current employees, and potential employees.

For an application to be considered, prior BPO (business process outsourcing) or any work experience is not mandatory, but the applicant must at least be a High School graduate or have completed K-12. Good English communication and basic internet and computer navigation skills are also a must. The top BPO employer also gives free English training through its “SYKES Academy” program for those who wish to join the BPO industry and improve their communication skills.

SYKES offers temporary WFH arrangement for select accounts. It offers

its employees an above-industry overall compensation package which includes varying allowances, night differential and night shift allowances, paid leaves, medical and dental coverage for employee and qualified dependents, and group life insurance coverage.

A pillar of the Philippine economy, the BPO sector continues to be a robust industry that can expect further expansion even amid the ongoing pandemic as demand for digital services, online deliveries, and technical support rise exponentially. At present, part of SYKES’ workforce still reports on-site while many have adopted a WFH scheme as a safety precaution. Employees reporting onsite are fully supported by the management with provisions for food, accommodation, and transportation when necessary. In addition, arrangements such as suspension of loan deduction, pro-rated 13thmonth pay, and advanced leave credits have also been accorded to employees.

SYKES is one of the country’s pioneering BPO companies. It capped off 2019 with various awards from both local and international award-giving bodies, which cemented its position as the best BPO and contact center employer in the Philippines.

With everything that SYKES has put in place to ensure employees are safe and looked after amid the pandemic, applicants can expect that the BPO pioneer is ready for the postpandemic future. The safety and security of each SYKES employee, also referred to as SYKESer, has always been and always will be its top priority.

Applicants who want to work or move up their careers at SYKES can apply at home and simply send a private message to SYKES Philippines’ official Facebook page (@SYKESPHofficial) with their name and contact details. They may also check career opportunities in the website <https:// careersph.sykes.com/leads> or other online job portals like Indeed, Jobstreet, Monster, and LinkedIn. The average turnaround time for applications is around 2-4 hours, wherein qualified applicants are interviewed by phone or video from initial to final screening. For more information, get in touch with SYKES on Facebook.

Belmont, Savoy hotels unveil safe stay campaign

DepEd: 5 million learners in first week of enrollment

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ONDUCTING a remote enrollment for the first time, the Department of Education (DepEd) has already drew a total of 5,086,600 public school learners nationwide in the first week of the enrollment period for School Year 2020-2021.

From 500,000 on the first day, it surged to 3.7 million enrolled learners on the second day as the joint implementation of Oplan Balik Eskwela (OBE) and Brigada Eskwela (BE) continues to roll out.

In total, DepEd has registered a total of 5,204,949 learners nationwide for both public and private schools at the end of first week of June.

The virtual enrollment, conducted only through phone or online platforms, was implemented as physical activities were still prohibited inside school premises to ensure safety of learners, parents and teachers.

Lyra Macada, a mother of an incoming Grade 5 learner, found the enrollment process convenient and safe as her and child’s health were prioritized.

"Bilang isang magulang, napakalaking tulong sa akin ang isinagawang Remote Enrollment ng DepEd. Tinawagan ako ng dating class adviser ng aking anak upang maitala ang anak ko sa Ikalimang Baitang.

Sa pamamagitan nito, mas mas nagiging madali ang enrollment at naisaalang-alang ang kaligtasan ng bawat isa dahil hindi ko na kinakailangan pang pumunta sa paaralan," Ms. Macada said.

Teacher Maria Victoria Guanzon of Sagay City, Negros Occidental hopes parents and learners will

continue to cooperate in this endeavor of DepEd. "Sa mga mahal naming magulang at magaaral, sa panahon ng pandemic na ito kinakailangan po ang ating pakikiisa sa mga alituntunin ng ating pamahalaan at ng DepEd family. Huwag munang pumunta sa paaralan. Tawagan lang ang inyong mga guro para makapag-enrol,” Teacher Guanzon said.

All learners who cannot enroll using any remote method will be allowed in the last two weeks of June to physically enroll, in strict compliance of physical distancing and health standards, and in coordination with the local government units.

Some school administrators also expressed their support on the ongoing virtual enrollment, which connected teachers and parents more.

“Bago sa lahat ang experience na ito at ang lahat ay nag-aadjust. Isa ring pasasalamat dahil sa willingness ng mga guro natin to adapt to this new normal. Masasabi ko na isa yun sa naka influence sa mga learners and parents para mag enroll. Kailangan nating ipag patuloy ang edukasyon ng mga bata kahit sa anong pamamaraan na kaya natin para sila maging produktibo,” Dr. Maria Cristina S. Marasigan, Principal of Tagumpay National HS, of Rodriguez, Rizal, said.

Meanwhile, efforts from the Public Assistance Command Center (PACC) have aided greatly in addressing concerns of parents, teachers, and learners with virtual Public Assistance Command Center (PACC) available at the central, regional, and division level to answer queries about the ongoing remote enrollment.

The OBE-BE joint team has already generated a total of 1460 resolved issues out of 1,600 concerns.

Among the inquiries addressed were of enrollment concerns with 1083 or 67.68%; other matters with 139 or 8.67%; Learning Continuity Plan with 105 or 6.56%; School Policy and Operations with 55 or 3.44%; and Examination and SHS Voucher concerns with 42 or 2.63%.

DepEd also noted that the resolution on concerns and registration intake is much higher compared last year, especially that no documentary requirements were demanded of the enrollees due to the present public health situation.

From June 1 to 4, PACC has addressed 1,460 concerns as regards to the incoming school year. Among the concerns addressed in PACC are regarding enrollment processes, Alternative Delivery Modes (ADM), and the Department’s Learning Continuity Plan (LCP). With the reconfiguration of Oplan Balik Eskwela and Brigada Eskwela, the Department is optimistic with the initial results it has garnered that are vital in its assistance in the implementation of the Learning Continuity Plan.

Running until the last day of enrollment, virtual command centers are also set up in the Regional and Division offices as part of the joint effort of Oplan Balik Eskwela (OBE) and Brigada Eskwela (BE). For more information on enrollment, visit www.deped.gov.ph/obe-be.

Belmont, Savoy hotels unveil Safe Stay campaign

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OME-grown Megaworld properties Belmont Hotel Manila and Savoy Hotel Manila, is gearing with up for the “new normal” regime in the hospitality industry as it embarks on a world-class health and safety campaign for its guests.

Dubbed “#SafeStay… We Care”, the program is a collaboration with its longtime partner Diversey Philippines in sanitation to assure guests of a safe stay with its stringent health measures.

“Despite the challenges of the Covid-19 health crisis in these uncertain times, the team, through careful planning and coordination, have commenced a series of initiatives to ensure that we shall be ready for the ‘new norm’ and other governmentmandated protocols once we have resumed normal operations,” says Savoy and Belmont area general manager Avinash Menon.

The safety campaign has five components—Safe Welcome, Safe Space, Safe Team, Safe Eats, and Safe Sleep— to ensure guests’ welfare from arrival to departure.

On top of the common thermal scanning, physical distancing and wearing of face mask, key protocols include luggage sanitation check, regular disinfection of guest rooms and high-frequency

touchpoints, public areas, and facilities, and 24-hour in-house clinic, and thorough disinfection of bed linens and towels during laundry, among others In addition, the hotel team members will be wearing personal protective equipment, masks, and hand gloves to observe strict hygiene, and Grab ‘n Go concepts and limited in-room dining Both located at the Newport City across the NAIA Terminal 3 in Pasay City, Savoy is an 11-story, 684-room airport hotel and recipient of the ‘Best New Hotel’ TripZilla Excellence Awards in 2018.

The 10-storey, 470-room Belmont is recipient of The World Luxury Hotel Awards in 2019 and the Airport Hotel of the Year by the London-based Travel and Hospitality Awards in 2017.

“We assure all our patrons and stakeholders that both hotels have been thoroughly sanitized and disinfected during the Enhanced Community Quarantine period, and shall continue well into the foreseeable future,” Menon concluded.

For more information, visit www. belmonthotelmanila.com or www. savoyhotelmanila.com.ph, or visit their official accounts on Facebook and Instagram.

Sports ONLY 4 SPORTS IN NCAA IN ’21

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

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NLY four sports will be played in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Season 96 program.

And the NCAA is focused on resuming action in the first quarter of 2021, a league statement on Thursday said.

The compulsory sports of basketball, volleyball, swimming and athletics would be played in Season 96, although the league is eyeing to include online chess and esports.

“Season 96, which will have Colegio de San Juan de Letran as host, shall begin in the early months of 2021, subject to the decisions of the government for the favorable conduct of games, which strictly observing proper health protocols,” the statement, co-signed by Season 96 President Rev. Fr. Clarence Marquez, OP and Chairman Fr. Vic Calvo, OP, said.

The NCAA traditionally hosts 11 sports.

Scrapped for next season are football,

BusinessMirror

tennis, soft tennis, softball, table tennis and taekwondo.

Cheerleading is also a medal sport in the league.

The NCAA also said it would relax its rules on eligibility and academic requirements for the coming season.

“Some rules and requirements on

student-athletes’ eligibility such as age, enrolment, grades and even playing years, shall be relaxed,” the statement said. “It remains the NCAA’s top priority to ensure the safety and health of our student-athletes, coaches and trainers, and the general viewing public.”

The NCAA furthered: “The league’s objective of youth development through

Friday, June 12, 2020 B7

sports deserves our unequivocal support in order to continue and contribute to the future of our nation and our world,” the league said.

Hosted by Arellano University, Season 95 of the country’s oldest collegiate was terminated last March because of the Covid-19 pandemic. As a result, no school was declared champion in volleyball, beach volleyball, football, tennis, table tennis, soft tennis, athletics and under-15 basketball.

Dutch envoy offers help on PHL’s bike culture

MLB BACKS BLM The general

managers of all 30 Major League Baseball teams are displayed holding #BlackLivesMatter signs during Wednesday’s Draft in Secaucus, New Jersey. Before the first pick was made, MLB delivers a message: The sport stands fully behind the Black Lives Matter movement. AP

GOLF PASSES INITIAL TEST ON RETURN

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HE Dutch offered a helping hand as the country tries to transition to a culture of cycling as a major mode of transportation amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Dutch Ambassador Saskia de Lang said in an online session on Thursday that the country could learn from the cycling culture The Netherlands has developmed and mastered.

“We can share our knowledge to the Philippines in the field of cycling,” de Lang said in the forum that included environmentalist and Antique Lone District Rep. Loren Legarda.

“We are open to any invitation by the local government units or any organization— governments, civil society or private sector— to discuss the issues of cycling,” she added.

The Netherlands is considered as the cycling capital of the world. Its Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management reported that in 2019, 25 percent of the Dutch use bicycles for transport.

The Netherlands has 23 million bicycles, exceeding its population of 17 million, and boasts of the most elaborate bicycle lane network in the world especially in the capital Amsterdam.

The demand for bicycles rose in the past few weeks as the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Infectious Diseases continue to ban jeepneys and buses.

“What we see currently is a surge of interest for alternative ways of transport in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic,” de Lang said.

The Dutch Embassy started cooperating with Iloilo City on the inclusion of bicycle infrastructure in its Comprehensive Land Use Plan last year. The collaboration stemmed from the need to decongest the city.

De Lang said she wanted a comprehensive cycling plan in the National Capital Region.

“We want to replicate what we did in Iloilo.

For biking lanes, you need some roads. You need infrastructure but not in all roads. It can be developed in a cost-effective way,” she said.

“It’s about the cyclist, the riders, and the better normal. When need to build lanes for those who need sustainable mobility,” Legarda said. Ramon Rafael Bonilla

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NCR under MGCQ signals horse racing’s comeback H ORSE RACING in the country targets a late July return without the usual crowd and fans at the racing clubs.

But the plan remains dependent on whether or not restrictions in the National Capital Region would be relaxed to a Modified General Community Quarantine.

This was the reply of Kenneth Ronquillo, Head of Secretariat of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Infectious Diseases, to a query by the Philippine Racing Commission, headed by Chairman Andrew Sanchez, on when the horseracing industry could resume operations.

Like all other events or activities, horseracing screeched to a halt in March because of the lockdown wrought by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Sanchez said the plan is to resume races—only during the weekends for six straight weeks—on July 19 at the San Lazaro Leisure Park in Carmona, Cavite.

The Manila Jockey Club’s San Lazaro track

would again host the races again on August 8 and 9, while the Saddle and Clubs Leisure Park of the Philippine Racing Club in Naic Cavite, would have a July 24 and 25 and August 15 and 16 schedule.

The Metro Manila Turf Club Inc. in Malvar, Batangas takes its turn on August 1, 2, 22 and 23.

Horseracing in the Philippines is a billion-peso industry. For the last decade, the industry contributed an average of P1.3 billion to the national treasury, including P1,352,930,422 last year.

A maximum of 10 races from the usual 12, with priority on the Rating-Based races, are being planned by the Philracom for the Sunday schedule which it would call Priority Day. If entries exceed the maximum number of 10, the excess entries will be bunched for another schedule of races a day before—a Saturday (Reserve Day), which will have a maximum of seven races.

The Philracom will guarantee a gross

For tennis, golf, tournaments without fans come at a cost

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HEN he first contemplated the prospect of a US Open without fans because of the coronavirus pandemic, the US Tennis Association’s chief revenue officer figured there was no way it could work.

Lew Sherr eventually came around to embracing the idea of a closed-door Grand Slam tournament—if it’s held at all—because it still could make money even if millions were forfeited with zero on-site receipts from tickets, hospitality, food and beverage or merchandise sales.

“Certainly better than not playing. It still makes sense financially and as a way to keep the sport vibrant and engage fans,” Sherr said. “As you get to lower-level tournaments, it becomes a much harder conversation.”

Golf, slated to resume Thursday in Fort Worth, Texas, also could take a real hit because of the virus and the recession.

Week-in, week-out events in tennis, where the pro tours are suspended at least until late July, do not bring in TV rights fees like the US Open, which averages $70 million per year in the host country alone. Some of the smallest tour stops even need to buy air time.

The biggest team leagues such as the National Football League and National Basketball Association seem to be in good shape because they derive most of their money from TV

Like the NCAA, the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) set a January opening for its 83rd season, although everything would still depend on the availability of a vaccine to guarantee the safety and health of athletes, coaches, officials and fans.

Philippine sports remains shuttered but major leagues and tournaments, including horseracing, have declared their strong intentions for their return. Ramon Rafael Bonilla

THE economic structures of certain sports mean they will be affected differently by the pandemic. AP

contracts worth billions each season.

Nascar, which returned last month with a flurry of races at empty tracks but announced plans Tuesday to begin allowing small numbers of fans, relies mainly on broadcast rights fees worth hundreds of millions annually. Another sport built around events at independent tracks, horse racing, will begin its Triple Crown series sans spectators at the Belmont Stakes in New York on June 20 with what might approach $100

million in online gambling.

But tennis and golf rely to a much greater degree on income generated from having people on-hand, especially for high-end tickets and hospitality. The economic framework for each tourney varies in both sports; smaller events, especially, would suffer financially if live audiences are eliminated or restricted.

One possible fallout of reduced revenue arou

prize of P200,000, distributed from first to fourth places, subject to government taxes for Sunday races only. Owners of horses, which fail to land in the too four of all races, including the Saturday schedule, will get an incentive prize of P1,000.

“We will start the races by 1 p.m. from the usual 3 p.m. on Sunday so that aficionados and those involved in the conduct of the races would be home early,” Sanchez said.

While horse-racing slowly returns to normalcy, some aspects would, however, change drastically.

Fans would be barred from the tracks with only the racing clubs’ employees, Philracom personnel, horse owners, jockeys, trainers and special guests allowed at the venues, ensuring that only 25 percent of the usual crowd would be present.

Jockeys would be ordered to wear special face masks and eye gear, while trainers and other personnel at the stables would be obliged to wear hazmats and

other protective equipment.

Bettors would be asked to strictly observe physical distancing while queueing for their bets at off track betting stations.

“That six-week period will determine whether we will increase the frequency of races,” said Sanchez, who added that the Philracom plans to start holding its stakes races beginning on August 30—3YO Maiden Stakes Race and Road to the Triple Crown Stakes Race—and every week thereafter until the end of the year.

The biggest of those stakes races are the P5 million Ambassador Eduardo “Danding” M. Cojuangco Jr. Cup tentatively slated on December 20, the Triple Crown Series, slated on September 20, October 18 and November 15, with a combined prize money of P9 million, the P2 million Sampaguita Stakes Race (September 6), the P2.5 million Juvenile Championship (December 27) and the P2 million Chairman’s Cup (December 13).

nd tennis could be reduced prize money, even at a major championship like the US Open. Another: Some tournaments simply could disappear.

“Will a 15,000-seat stadium need to seat only 5,000 because of social distancing? Will that be tennis’ future? If so, will the sport survive?” said James Blake, a former top-five player and tournament director at the Miami Open, one of more than 40 tennis events scrapped since March because of the COVID-19 outbreak.

“You either cut the prize money a little bit,” Blake said, “or you have one or two more years where these companies and tournaments can remain financially solvent, and then they can’t do it anymore.”

Here is a look at how economic structures of certain sports mean they will be affected differently by the pandemic: n Nascar RACE hosts receive 65 percent of Nascar’s $8.2 billion, 10-year television package; that in turn accounts for about 60 to 70 percent of track revenues. So it makes sense to move forward despite losing other revenue streams. “Assuming that we get all of our races in ... Nascar and its tracks will come through this OK,” Dover International Speedway Inc. President and CEO Michael Tatoian said. “It’s not that we’re going to be flying through it. It’s not that we’re not going to have any kind of impact. Of course we will. It will set us back. But not enough to be devastating.” n HORSE RACING THE Kentucky Derby, according to an estimate a few

years ago, makes only a little more than 10% of its revenue from broadcast rights. That’s why Churchill Downs, Belmont and Santa Anita Park all recently reopened to racing, even if no fans are present: The main source of revenue, online gambling, still functions just fine. Last year’s Belmont day drew $102 million in wagers with no Triple Crown on the line—and $91 million of that was off-track betting. n PGA TOUR ELIMINATING spectators means eliminating significant chunks of a tournament’s revenue.

That starts with big-earning hospitality tents and pro-ams that can bring in upward of $1 million, and includes other revenue sources like merchandise and ticket sales. Tournaments rely heavily on title sponsors—“We wouldn’t be able to return” without them, Commissioner Jay Monahan said. But it’s the local sponsorship that sustains each tournament.

And if discretionary spending by corporations dries up, the effects could be greater in 2021. n TENNIS The US Open—as of now, scheduled to begin in late August—gets about a third of its roughly $400 million in annual revenue from various American and international TV rights deals.

About a quarter is from sponsorship deals, some of which would be renegotiated if there were no on-site fans. Another 35% or so comes from tickets and hospitality, with less than 10% from food and beverage, merchandise, etc.—all of which would vanish without the hundreds of thousands who normally attend.

ORT WORTH, Texas—The Professional Golfers Association (PGA) Tour is not simply picking up where it left off.

Very little about the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial resembles the opening round of The Players Championship on March 12, the last professional golf played before the Covid-19 pandemic shut down golf and most everything else.

Players return to a new set of rules, starting with mandatory tests for the coronavirus when they first arrive and having their temperatures taken before they can get to the parking lot.

The tour said all 487 tests of players, caddies and essential personnel were negative.

On the course, players are to make every effort to practice social distancing and “show best practices for playing golf to our fans watching the telecast.”

Good thing Wednesday’s activity wasn’t shown on TV. Players and caddies exchanged clubs (players are supposed to handle the clubs themselves).

Caddies were not wiping down the flagsticks or bunker rakes after use. Social distancing felt more like a guideline.

It was just like normal in a return that is supposed to be anything but that.

“It’s going to be very easy to fall back into old habits because it’s just what we’ve done,” Rory McIlroy said Wednesday. “I’d say for the viewing public just to give the players and caddies a little bit of leeway if they see something on TV that isn’t quite right. We’re having to figure it out as we go along, as well.”

Of equal concern is what they do off the golf course, even with a designated hotel. Some are staying in houses. Justin Thomas, Rickie Fowler and Jason Dufner have their own chef.

The most obvious difference is no spectators on the course, making Colonial look like it does for the members except for ropes lining the fairway to give carts and mowers some guidance on where to drive.

Another difference is likely to be the number of people watching from home.

Golf is only the second major sport to return in the U.S. (motor sports are back in action), and a field featuring McIlroy, Thomas, Dustin Johnson, Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka is appealing.

There also is the underlying responsibility to show that returning at this time was the right move, and that golf can live up to its reputation as one of the safer sports.

“I think this week is very important because golf will be the center of the sports world, which it usually a few weeks a year is,” McIlroy said.

“But for people to have something to watch on TV where they actually don’t know the outcome I think is going to be nice for them. So I think that’ll be a good thing.”

“And I think it’s an important week because golf can show that we can play in a socially distant manner,” he said. “We can conduct a tournament and adhere to all the safety protocols that have been put in place.”

Koepka made no apologies for working with caddie Ricky Elliott the way he always does, mainly because his caddie is staying with him this week and both have been tested.

“You look at any other sport. I’m pretty sure LeBron James isn’t going to worry about setting a pick. Football, you’re not going to worry about tackling a guy because of social distancing,” Koepka said.

But he recognized the importance of getting through this week without incident, so that golf can continue until just short of Christmas. AP

Motoring BusinessMirror

Henry Ford Awards Best Motoring Section 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 2011 Hall of Fame

B8 Friday, June 12, 2020

Editor: Tet Andolong

Isuzu’s ‘Live Life Differently’ up; Slex Skyway

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SUZU Philippines Corp. (IPC) deserves praise for its resilience and perseverance in navigating a highground mode amid the stormy weather buffeting the industry for nearly four months now.

Unmindful of risks brought on by the pandemic, Isuzu is taking another bold step by unfurling the new D-MAX Boondock 4x4 on June 17 in a novel digital presentation via Facebook.

“For Isuzu Philippines Corporation, the nearly four months that Filipino motorists and families spent with each other in the relative safety of their homes during the various stages of the community quarantines have imparted valuable life lessons and inspiration to

live a life unlike they had before,” said Nora Liquido, the indefatigable spokesman of IPC. For his part, IPC President Hajime Koso, by way of addressing employees, customers and the nation as a whole, said: “We will emerge even stronger from every challenge. You can count on IPC to support you in your efforts to rebuild and recover. We support the Filipino people and its leaders as we get back on track to global greatness.”

The “Live Life Differently” campaign to mark the launch, said Liquido, encourages IPC’s clients and would-be customers to rediscover anew the endless possibilities of driving an Isuzu vehicle.

“To live life differently would mean to simply go beyond the comfort of our homes, to explore the outdoors, and open ourselves up to more adventures on board the new D-MAX,” Koso said.

The D-MAX Boondock 4x4’s Facebook launch is set at 5 p.m., making it the company’s first online vehicle presentation.

“It is but fitting that the campaign will be carried out by Isuzu’s ultimate off-roader, that is now made available in a 4x4 variant both for manual and automatic transmissions,” Koso said.

Koso added: “We move on from every challenge, and with every obstacle we hurdle, we must live life differently to be able to be tougher, more resilient, more enduring, and more dependable. The new D-MAX Boondock 4x4 is our response to the toughest challenge we have faced yet.”

Liquido concluded: “Now, as the nation gradually reopens its economy and finds new opportunities, Isuzu and its ‘Live Life Differently’ campaign can help the country build a road map to an even more

robust transport economy and be the Filipino motorists’ vehicle to renew and strengthen bonds with one another.”

Isuzu, the No. 1 pickup (called truck in America) in Vietnam, has been innately known as the Filipino farmer’s favorite farm ally.

Slex traffic improves

TRAFFIC flow has been considerably eased with the opening ahead of schedule of the Slex Alabang Southbound entry on June 7.

The toll plaza entry was closed previously to enable Slex contractors to undertake bored piling works for the resumed construction of the Skyway Extension Project.

To hasten completion of the bored piling works while maint a i n i ng qu a l it y, Sa n M ig ue l Cor p., through its contractor, EEI, used two rigs instead of just one.

“We want to assure the motoring public and government that the Skyway Extension Project will be finished at the soonest possible time,” said SMC President and COO Ramon S. Ang. “This is to demonstrate our commitment to continue to improve our facilities and services—no matter what the situation or circumstance is.”

Hot deals with feels Story by Randy S. Peregrino

OW that almost all car dealerships have resumed operation, auto manufacturers are reviving its respective business operations with exciting deals and promos. Discounts and lower down payments, among others, are all here for the interested car buyers.

down payment. Last, the Grand Starex is offered at a low P18,750 down payment.

Av a i l a b l e a t H O M E P a g e (Hyundai Online Market Experience), HARI’s digital platform was designed to help customers with their quotations, loan applications, and online purchasing of Hyundai vehicles in the comfort of their homes.

One With You on This Journey

Back 4 More Deals

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Honda Cars Philippines Inc. (HCPI) is aiming to prov ide opt ion s t h at w i l l m a ke c a r purchases easier for Filipinos, especially during these trying times. From May 23 to June 30, 2020, the “OneWith You on This Journey” promo covers the City, BR-V, Brio, and CR-V offered with updated cash discounts and all-in low-down payment.

The City 1.5 VX Navi CVT, New BR-V 1.5 V CVT, and Brio 1.2 S MT are all available through a 10 percent special all-in cash-out with payment terms of 36 up to 60 months through participating banks. The CR-V Touring Diesel 9AT, meantime, is available through 15 percent or 20 percent low net cash-out with payment terms of 36 up to 60 months, also through participating banks.

Other financing promo option offers are the Free One Mont h A mor t i z at ion, ava i lable for 60 months pay ment term only, and the Low Monthly A mor tization, available for 15 and 20 percent a l l-in dow n pay ment for 36 to 60 months pay ment term. A ll these offers include three-year LTO Reg istration and Chattel Mor tgage and free one-year Comprehensive Insurance w it h Acts of Nature, through select bank par tners. You may v isit www. hondaphil.com to k now more about the promo offers and list of par ticipating banks.

Homerun

Hyundai Asia Resources Inc. (HARI), the official distributor

On the part of Suzuki Philippines (SPH), its current promo offers aim to help car buyers seek the right vehicle for their daily needs. Until June 15, four models are being offered low allin down payment cash outs. For the newly released S-Presso and XL7, all-in down payments are as low as P48,000 and P120,000, respectively. The Dzire and Ciaz, on the other hand, are being offered at low all-in down payments of P28,000 and P8,000, respectively.

Now that most of SPH’s dealerships have resumed operation, the company is committed to continuously finding ways to come up with cost-efficient and exciting promos. To know more, you may visit https://auto.suzuki.com.ph/.

Battery and Disinfection Promo

of Hyundai passenger vehicles in the Philippines, has come prepared to ensure that their customers’ purchasing experience is more convenient, f lexible and affordable, through a unique promo approach.

T he HOMERU N (Hy u nd a i Owning Made Easy, Ready to Unlock Next Normal) sales promo,

which runs from May 19 to June 30, 2020, is the company’s way of offering the dynamic ride of your dreams affordable and accessible. For one, Tucson can be yours for as low as P12,123 a month. The premium sevenseater SUV Santa Fe, meantime, is offered at zero interest for five years, and as little as 20 percent

Meanwhile, Peugeot Philippines takes a step further in giving customers the best customer service possible by launching its Battery and Disinfection Promo.

The promo will allow customers to avail of free recharging of drained batteries before testing or replacement. Moreover, Peugeot dealerships will be offering a 20-percent discount on all types of batteries.

The batteries will have a twoyear warranty from the date of the service invoice. Before releasing the serviced units, all vehicles will undergo a disinfection process approved by the Peugeot head office in France.

This promo will run until June 2020 or until supplies last.

P10-B SMC project

THE project is one of SMC’s ambitious projects in a gallant bid by the conglomerate to help the country’s courageous vision to modernize our highway system.

Already, a sizable chunk of the P10 billion earmarked for the program had been spent, with hundreds of workers largely benefiting from the SMC largesse.

Ang said that as part of the company’s efforts to get back on track with construction of the project following a 60-day delay due to the enhanced community quarantine, the plaza reopened a week ahead of the June 15 original target.

“We are happy to report that workers are back at the site and earning income for their families,” Ang said. “We’re asking for the public’s continued cooperation and kind understanding for any inconvenience our work might cause.”

Skyway’s contractor, EEI Corporation, has strictly enforced safety, sanitation and other health measures at the work site.

These include: following the basic rules of social distancing, the use of face masks and gloves, and providing hand sanitation and disinfecting facilities, on top of on-site housing, for workers.

“These health and safety measures will remain in place while

we work on delivering this critical project to the public,” Ang added.

The project’s original target completion date was December 2020, but the two-month delay is likely to push this back a little.

At the resumption of the construction, Skyway management also closed about 700 meters of Lane 3 of the Skyway At-Grade section northbound from the old Alabang Entry Plaza. The one-month closure enabled workers to install scaffoldings to build the columns for Pier 34-49.

The P10 billion project extends Skyway from Susana Heights in Slex to Sucat and back and will provide a direct access to the elevated section of the Skyway. With the direct access to the elevated section of the Skyway, the project is expected to ease traffic to and from the south.

PEE STOP The new Lexus showroom schedule is from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday to Saturday, and from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays, according to Lexus Manila President Raymond T. Rodriguez…

Happy birthday to Maricar Parco (June 9), the eternally charming former BMW president…Tini Arevalo says Toyota’s free internal sanitation of Toyota vehicles has been extended up to June 16...

Happy Independence Day!

Toyota sees increase in inquiries on its certified used cars

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RANSPORTATION challenges brought about by the Covid-19 situation have convinced a number of commuters to seek personal modes of transport. And with more challenging financial situation, customers are looking for affordable deals for brand new cars, while others opt for used cars. But how can customers be assured of the quality of used cars?

In times like these when hard-earned money should go to quality products, certified used cars play an important role. With proliferation of used car web sites and outlets, it is increasingly difficult to discern which ones can deliver the best quality and value. Toyota’s Certified Used Car Vehicles (TCUV) program addresses exactly this—it brings peace of mind to the customers by ensuring that the used cars they are buying are certified by Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP).

TCUV is one of TMP’s value-chain programs that offers customers used vehicles that underwent a rigorous 211-point inspection and certification procedure before being classified as “certified used vehicles”. Cars offered by TCUV dealers come with additional limited warranty and are also qualified for flexible financing terms with Toyota Financial Services.

“Recently, most of those who inquire from our TCUV dealers are commuters who regularly use public and mass transport to get to work or to carry out essential trips for their family’s needs,” said TMP’s Assistant Vice President for Value Chain Section Gener Castillo. “This could mean there is increased demand for personal mobility among those who see having a car as a need, but would like a more affordable option and an easier way get financing approval without compromising quality, efficiency and safety.”

“With TCUV, customers enjoy easy-to-own cars with the consistent Toyota experience as they

are assured that the used cars passed Toyota’s strict and high quality standards,” added Castillo.

As of this time, only select Toyota dealers offer TCUV units. For Luzon and Metro Manila, these are Toyota Alabang, Toyota Balintawak, Toyota Batangas, Toyota Bicutan, Toyota Calamba, Toyota Dagupan, Toyota Global City, Toyota Manila Bay, Toyota Pasig, Toyota Pasong Tamo, Toyota Plaridel, Toyota Quezon Avenue, and Toyota San Pablo.

For Visayas and Mindanao, authorized TCUV retail outlets are Toyota Cagayan de Oro, Toyota Iloilo, Toyota Lapu-Lapu, Toyota Cebu City, Toyota Mandaue North and South, Toyota Tacloban, and Toyota Talisay.

Aside from offering certified used cars, TCUV dealers also source vehicles from current Toyota customers who wish to upgrade by trading in or selling their vehicle at fair value. A team of highly skilled and accredited assessors thoroughly check the vehicle under transparent operation to guarantee that the Toyota owner gets the fair value of their vehicle.

TCUV sourcing outlets are all the abovementioned dealers plus Toyota Abad Santos, Toyota Angeles, Toyota Butuan, Toyota Calbayog, Toyota Cubao, Toyota Dasmariñas, Toyota Makati, Toyota Marikina, Toyota Marilao, Toyota North Edsa, Toyota Otis, Toyota San Fernando, and Toyota Shaw.

For more information about TCUV buying or selling, customers may directly inquire at the TCUV dealer near them. For more updates about Toyota’s products and services, visit https://toyota.com.ph or join TMP ’s official social media accounts at facebook. co m / Toyo t a M o to r P h i l i p p i n e s, t w i t te r. com/ToyotaMotorPH and Instagram.com/ toyotamotorphilippines.

A BusinessMirror Special Feature

Friday, June 12, 2020 C1

Project Manager: Czarina Blancaflor

THE WORKPLACE, POST-QUARANTINE

By Elijah Felice Rosales

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HEY say it is better to be safe than sorry, and firms should be heeding those words by now.

The community quarantines put in place had kept majority of business operations closed since March.

And as restrictions were eased beginning May, they are finding reopening difficult for two reasons: first, the income losses they suffered which trimmed their capital; and last, the protocols—not to mention additional costs for retrofits and safeguards—they have to implement to keep their workplaces free from the virus.

In charge of watching over firms, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) in May issued a document outlining how

THE Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) was not spared by the pandemic’s quarantine restrictions. It was on floorless or offsite trading from March 19 to May 29. Traders were allowed to go back on June 1, but with one person per booth for physical distancing, and under strict instructions to wear face masks at all times. NONIE REYES

WORKERS ride their bikes to work alongside specially contracted buses authorized to ferry people to their offices and factories. NONOY LACZA

business operations should go by in the lockdown aftermath.

Drafted by the DTI’s Bureau of Philippine Standards, the guide on business continuity planning is framed in accordance with regulations set by the Philippine National Standard and advisories issued by the Department of Health and the World Health Organization. Likewise, it is aligned with

regulations imposed by the Interagency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF).

On human resource management, the general rule is work-from-home (WFH) to all extent possible. Firms are encouraged to do alternative work arrangements as much as possible to keep workers away from crowds where the virus can be

Continued on C2

A BusinessMirr

Friday, June 12, 2020 | www.businessmirror.com.ph

The workplace, post-quarantine Continued from C1 transmitted in a matter of minutes.

Senior citizens, pregnant mothers and people with health issues, especially if they concern the immune system, should be discouraged from physically reporting to work sites. Similarly, teams might have to say goodbye for now to their out-of-town and team buildings, nonessential business travels are out.

On process and business functions, managements will have to allow workers to work from home or go on alternating shifts to comply with social distancing.

Cashless

ON the other hand, customers should begin putting money in their digital payment accounts, as cashless transactions are touted as the new normal for purchasing. Meetings, trainings and seminars usually conducted in closed spaces will be shunned in favor of video and audio conferencing.

Employers are also required to appoint a health and safety manager with a mandate to monitor developments related to the pandemic, stay updated on latest health issuances of the government and make sure the organization is compliant with safety protocols.

They are also encouraged to keep workers away from mass transport and crowded areas. However, if operations must resume within the workplace, they

should ensure employees stay at home if sick—even if it is just a mild cough or low grade fever.

At the site, the health and safety manager must ensure the availability of face masks; soaps; alcohol or hand sanitizers containing at least 60 percent ethanol or isopropanol; medicines for flu, common colds and sore throat; tissues or disposable wipes; and waste bins with a plastic bag for proper disposal and minimum wasteto-bin contact.

Further, foot baths for disinfecting footwear may be installed at the entrance of the building as an added health measure. Managements may also put up disinfection tents close to the office for head-to-toe disinfection.

Employers may take appropriate action for a person with or without symptoms by utilizing the state’s health screening tool for Covid-19, wherein it would be determined if the individual, in the last 14 days, is returning from travel to affected areas; returning from travel anywhere else; or feeling unwell and develop flu-like symptoms.

Based on the results of the screening, appropriate action should be taken as necessary. As the person awaits advice from the nearest hospital or medical facility, the management should make sure he/she is kept two meters away from people.

With so many new protocols needed to be put in place, business operations will never be the same, indeed. But really, what is, after all that’s happened to the world?

FUTURE IS NOW: PANDEMIC PROPELS DIGITAL BANKING

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

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HILE experts say that the future is digital, it has become more evident now as the public has in the past months been prompted to shift to online banking platforms amid mobility restrictions due to pandemic-induced lockdowns.

According to S&P Global Ratings, the physical distancing imposed amid the coronavirus pandemic has promoted digital banking across Asia-Pacific region.

The credit watcher noted that heavier traffic and more volume to digital channels and contactless payment as more customers opt to use mobile and online banking.

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New N Digital traffic

THIS has been the case for Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC), which reported that its digital transactions have been surging since the community quarantine started in Luzon.

Its executive vice president and chief financial innovation and inclusion officer, Angelito M. Villanueva, said the bank does not see a sign of slowdown for the growth of transactions in digital platforms.

The Yuchengco-led bank reported an over 1,000-percent growth in transaction value that coursed through its cardless automated teller machine (ATM) withdrawal service in May. Bank of the Philippine Islands, meanwhile, shared that digital transactions increased to 90 percent during the lockdown from 72 percent prior. Amid the unprecedented shift to online, Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co. (Metrobank) announced it was increasing its spending for information technology (IT) projects and digital initiatives.

Metrobank said 70 percent of its annual capital expenditure was earmarked for the said spending. This translates to around P2.1 billion to P3.5 billion.

This, from its 50-percent allocation earlier, or around P1.5 billion to P2.5 billion.

Gokongwei-led Robinsons Bank also stepped up its digital services with the introduction of RBank Sign, a mobile application that allows potential customers to open new bank accounts online and free of charge.

UBX, the fintech platform of Union Bank of the Philippines, rolled out its remote mobileenabled ATM solution, “i2i Mobile ATM,” to allow rural banks and financial cooperatives across the country to distribute government subsidies to beneficiaries.

It recently expanded the i2i network to make cash transfers and payments more accessible.

UnionBank encourages individual taxpayers and small and medium enterprises to pay taxes online via its ePayment partnership with the Bureau of Internal Revenue.

Meanwhile, BDO Unibank Inc. is urging customers to pay bills from home via its online and mobile banking platforms. The bank noted that it has over 600 billers, including electricity, water, credit card and internet, registered to its digital platform.

Mobile wallets

WITH the shift to digital becoming a matter of survival, leading mobile wallet GCash has also quickly moved to help ease the quarantine challenge.

While physical mobility was restricted, devices became vital tools for people to get their food, medicine and other services.

“Even before the pandemic, GCash has advocated for the shift from cashless transactions. Now more than ever, we are willing to work with the national government to define a new normal for the financial industry in order to spare the economy from the impact of a full-on recession,” said GCash Head of Payments Jovitt Bajar.

As the government and communities keep striving to "flatten the (Covid) curve," e-wallets like GCash are seen to become even more relevant -- for paying bills, online shopping, or bank transfer. “It’s not just a matter of convenience anymore. Emerging from the crisis means we have to prioritize our customers’ safety,” Bajar noted.

Fintech

THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) is one with the call to advance the digital capabilities of the banking industry, noting that financial technology (fintech) can lead the way.

BSP Governor Benjamin E. Diokno earlier said that fintech can provide digital solutions to distribute the government's financial aid and loan support to targeted recipients.

It can serve as digital tools for micro, small and medium enterprises shifting to e-commerce and underwriting platforms for government’s direct lending programs, he said.

The Central Bank also recently introduced a roadmap which is aimed at increasing digital retail transaction by 50 percent. This, as the BSP eyes to have 70 percent of the Filipino adult population be financially included.

Globe debunks 5G myths based on experts’ opinions and studies

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S the world uses technology to face the new normal, there are also great efforts to malign technology and sow fear in the people’s mind. These emerging technologies will always be the favorite subject of malicious and unfounded claims. In recent weeks, 5G have been the subject of such claims in different parts of the world including the United States and in Europe.

5G is the latest wireless internet connectivity that promises faster speeds, higher bandwidth, and more stable internet connections compared to 4G. Is 5G bad for someone’s health? Does it have serious health implications to people?

Quoting the World Health Organization (WHO), there are no proven detrimental health effects caused by exposure to 5G or to any wireless technology up to this day.

In a recent article published by the UK's The Guardian, the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP), the international body in charge of setting limits to exposure to radiation, asserts that 5G is safe.

The ICNIRP is a Germanbased scientific body that studies the health risks of radio broadcasts. It called for new guidelines for millimeter-wave

5G, the most high-frequency version of the telecommunications standard. Based on the norms set

by ICNIRP, the standards being implemented in the United States and soon in Europe were improved further for added safety.

The ICNIRP also explained that 5G wireless standard uses beam-foaming technology which allows radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF EMF) “to be focused to the region where it is needed,” meaning it won’t be spread all throughout a large area. This will allow, for example, the same RF EMF frequencies to be sent to different users concurrently without interfering with one another, which increases communication rates because the frequency band does not need to be shared between users.

“We know parts of the com-

munity are concerned about the safety of 5G and we hope the updated guidelines will put people at ease,” said Dr. Eric van Rongen, chair of the ICNIRP. Both the WHO and the ICNIRP also noted that 5G isn’t a health risk as long as overall exposure adheres below international guidelines.

“Currently, exposure from 5G infrastructures at around 3.5 GHz is similar to that from existing mobile phone base stations. With the use of multiple beams from 5G antennas, exposure could be more variable as a function of location of the users and their usage,” the WHO explained.

Local experts have also shared their opinions on the matter. Dr. Gladys R. Cabrera, Health Physicist IV of DOH, said that since 2001, the Health De-

partment has maintained that no study so far has proven that cell sites cause cancer. “Cell sites do not cause adverse side effects.

It is harmless,” she explained.

This position was also supported by a respected oncologist, Dr. Johanna Cañal, VP of the Philippine Radiology Oncology Society, when she maintained that proximity to cell sites does not cause any known health risks, contrary to what many homeowners associations believe.

“Texting while driving or walking will cause more harm than radiation from cell phone use or cell tower. So far, the science says, there is no evidence to say that cell phone use or a nearby cell tower causes cancer,” she added.

5G is safe for the public and more importantly, there is no evidence to support the connection between the pandemic and 5G.

Globe highlights essential role of e-commerce for MSMEs

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ESPITE the gradual easing of quarantine protocols in most areas in the country, we still face the inevitable reality of what the new normal is. For Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) entrepreneurs, the internet has become a primary platform to keep their businesses afloat in a time where most consumers are obliged to stay at home.

To further guide MSME entrepreneurs in shifting their businesses to the digital sphere, Globe myBusiness has invited industry experts for its Business Consultation Caravan (BCC) online series.

In the latest installment of the series, the discussion centered on ecommerce— the benefits, the challenges, and the right tools to use to optimize it.

The panel of speakers was composed of Jannette Toral, e-commerce advocate from DigitalFilipino.com; Petrus Carbonell, Head of Business Development of Lazada; and Criselda Roque, Business Development Consultant of Globe

myBusiness. The discussion was led by Globe’s e-commerce Head, MJ Panganiban.

Establishing an online presence

MSME entrepreneurs can take their business to the next level by establishing a strong online presence that can be achieved by joining marketplaces, creating a website for the brand/store, and taking part in social media.

According to Janette Toral, entrepreneurs can use one or two without the other, but it is still best to utilize all three platforms to tap the full potential of your online presence.

On the other hand, Criselda Roque of Globe myBusiness shared that online presence goes beyond just being online. “It’s actually shifting to that digital mindset as well, which involves not only using technology, but understanding the impact of technology in our interactions and how we do things especially right now that we have to adapt,” she said.

Taking advantage of market changes

ENGAGING in online business during these times may seem daunting, but it really is an opportunity waiting to be seized given the rise of new E-Commerce trends in the country, which is supported by the market and policy changes by the government and the private sector.

“We cannot go back to how we do business. We cannot have a shop with the full capacity of people, standing room only is no longer an option, so definitely we have to tap into new ways of delivering our products and services online,” Toral stated.

With these changes, entrepreneurs have to boost not only their technical capacity but their leadership capacity to keep up, serve customers better, meet revenue requirements, and grow despite the circumstances at hand. “As entrepreneurs, we need to survive. Our employees also want us to survive. They want to see us functioning the best way that we can despite the limitations and restrictions so that we can keep the econ-

omy growing and help others in this space,” she added.

Benefits of going online

MSMEs looking to digitize their businesses are looking into a world full of options and possibilities.

For one, the rising trend in online business transactions has been there even before quarantine measures were imposed last March, according to LAZADA’s Petrus Carbonell. “With the quarantine, these trends have been accelerated and we’re seeing a lot of customers staying online.” At the same time, platforms for E-commerce are growing and most are for free.

Carbonell shared three basic factors that an MSME has to resolve to ensure success online: payment methods, logistics, and product quality. Beyond this, there are a ton of advantages in transitioning to Ecommerce. First is a bigger customer base, one that is of a national scale.

“One store can serve the whole Philippines and that is something very important that we have to see as an

MSME,” he added. At the same time, being online means business as usual amid unexpected scenarios like the ECQ, because people in E-commerce are able to operate safely from home.

Lastly, the ability to do simultaneous transactions with the use of technology is another valuable advantage.

Ultimately, Carbonell stated that the goal for all MSMEs is to go online now so that they can go national and grow their business.

Tools to effectively digitize your business

With the majority of the country’s MSMEs needing to adapt and to reinvent themselves to survive, the biggest questions are the how’s of transitioning from a brick and mortar store to an online business.

Through a trusted digital partner like Globe myBusiness, entrepreneurs can kick start their online journey and take advantage of the market opportunity. “Whether you’re a new company or you’ve already started your business, we have the right digital solutions for

your needs. We are actually known to provide mobile and internet services, but we also have relevant digital solutions to help you create success in your business”, Roque added.

With this, Globe myBusiness has identified key aspects needed for a smooth E-commerce experience using technology. These include online presence, convenience in ordering of goods and services, contactless payment, seamless processing of orders and delivery of goods, loyalty programs and promos that can add value to the total customer experience, and a secure network to protect transactions, financial records, and customer data.

To end, Roque highlighted the importance of providing an excellent customer experience now, more than ever. “This differentiates successful businesses from the rest.

Fortunately, technology makes it easier for entrepreneurs to do so.”

Learn more about Business Consultation Caravan and other efforts by Globe myBusiness via www. facebook.com/globemybusiness/.

Normal

ror Special Feature

www.businessmirror.com.ph | Friday, June 12, 2020

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

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S the country embraces its “new normal,” a new mindset on farming and agriculture shall arise: food production is not an easy task.

The disruption in the food trade caused by movement restrictions against Covid-19 have affected Filipino farmers and consumers differently.

On one hand, farmers struggle to sell their produce to earn income to survive the months-long lockdown and avert losses arising from glut and wastage.

On the other hand, Filipino consumers scrambled to stock up on food products even at the cost of

higher prices for certain goods.

The two scenarios have led to one big realization: the food system is flawed. That flaw - if not addressed holistically - could lead to higher poverty incidence in the rural side while urban dwellers would be left with costlier food supply.

Industry groups have pointed out that the Covid-19 pandemic experience shows that agricultural investments, especially by the government, should be ramped up to cushion impacts of future tradedisrupting factors.

No less than Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar has pointed out repeatedly in recent weeks that the agriculture sector should be getting at least 9 percent of the country's

annual budget. This, Dar pointed out, is equivalent to the economic contribution of the farm sector.

“The budget for agriculture right now is not even 1 percent [of total national government budget],” Dar said.

The Department of Agriculture (DA) has shot for the moon in the past by asking for a budget of as high as P333 billion, which was thumbed down due to tight budgetary space.

Short, efficient value chain

ASIDE from higher funding, a better market linkage for farmers and consumers is seen to be the “new normal.” A shorter value chain would mean an assured market with a better profit for farmers

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Food, glorious food: crisis shows ways to beat hunger while providing consumers with more affordable food products.

This could take the form of more trading posts set up in strategic areas—if possible, in every district, Dar said.

“We have to see to it that there are more trading posts in strategic positions in provinces. We only have a few at present in the provinces,” he said. “And there should also be bag-

sakan [dropoff] centers in every district, strategically located.”

The use of internet and smartphone applications to purchase food products would also be a new norm, as it cuts short the value chain compared to the traditional food supply chain.

In fact, the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) survey revealed that the govern-

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ment must strengthen online marketing of agricultural produce as more Filipinos rely increasinglyon digital or online food transactions.

In the view of Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan, who once served as presidential adviser on farming, local government units should also sustain their direct procurement of their food requirement from local farmers to provide them with assured market and better pricing in the new normal.

The food trade disruptions also made Filipino consumers realize that production of food is not an easy task. Consumers were forced to find alternative methods, like using Facebook and Twitter, to purchase food requirements after being faced with higher priced goods due to limited supply as constrained by restricted movements. Such reliance on technology to source food is seen to stay on as part of the new normal.

Government officials and industry experts believe that a renewed interest in urban agriculture would prosper in the new normal.

The government has been aggressive in promoting such food production systems to ensure household food security, especially in city dwellers, who have been too dependent on farm goods coming from provinces. (Read more: Covid-19 propels city-farming opportunities to centerstage, BusinessMirror Broader Look, A4-A5, June 11, 2020).

LIVING UP TO THE BAYANIHAN SPIRIT Nestlé Philippines, Globe Telecoms and SM Foundation are just three of the many companies providing assistance to frontliners and communities affected by Covid-19

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By Stephanie Joy Ching

ITH COVID-19 still wreaking havoc on a global scale, adjusting to the so-called “new normal” has been difficult for everyone.

As most people are forced to stay home, life has been particularly difficult for the less fortunate who had to rely heavily on “ayudas” from the local and national government to get by.

Frontliners are also finding it harder to grapple with this pandemic as lack of resources and equipment have also put their own safety in jeopardy.

Fortunately, this large-scale crisis has also prompted people to band together in order to survive. True to the bayanihan spirit that Filipinos are renowned for, many business leaders have put corporate social responsibility at the forefront of their operations and are leading the charge in helping the nation recover slowly from COVID-19. While the frontliners are rightfully deserving of praise, there are other quarantine heroes have also earned kudos for their unequivocal support to the cause.

With over a century of being known as the Filipino’s Kasambuhay, Nestlé Philippines has recently proven that they are there for us not just through the good times. The food processing giant recently implementing a P500 million program to assist families and frontliners alike, particularly those who need healthcare the most.

In addition to that, Nestlé is also actively supporting the Philippine Red Cross by helping fund testing laboratories, medical tents, personal protective equipment, test kits, and other essential health equipment. They also collaborated with local government units to provide Kasambuhay kits that contained a variety of Nestle products that include Nescafe, Bear Brand and Maggi brands to over one million families across the country.

“Through the years, Filipino families have come to trust Nestle as their Kasambuhay, with our much-loved brands and products that are appropri-

ate for different hours of the day and all stages of life. We care deeply for Filipino families and communities, and we will live up to their trust by doing our part to help, including sharing our products with those who need them most,” said Nestlé Philippines Chairman and CEO Kais Marzouki.

Tech giant Globe is also doing its part in achieving a faster and more effective process in dealing with the pandemic. Not only did the telecoms giant donate to support Pasig City’s efforts in actively fighting the disease, Globe also gave hospitals mobile device starter kits to ensure faster communication between the front liners in the three hospitals especially during emergency situations.

Moreover, the company has also provided free access to GoWifi services in both hospitals and quarantine facilities to make sure the hospital staff is always connected and ready to respond when new cases pop up.

Meanwhile, the SM Foundation helped both government hospitals and other medical institutions procure essential medical equipment such as N95 masks and alcohol as part of its own P100 million support against the pandemic. As of this writing the SM Foundation has donated over 20,000 N95 masks, more than 2,500 gallons of alcohol, 100 pieces of face shield, and 100 sets of N95 masks and goggles to numerous hospitals nationwide. In addition to providing medical equipment, SM Foundation also collaborated with Goldilocks to provide pastries and other baked products to frontliners.

No matter what their contribution, these and many more companies are making sure that the frontliners are more than ready to fight the pandemic and help the Filipino people recover from its devastating effects.