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A broader look at today’s business Wednesday, June 20, 2018 Vol. 13 No. 249

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BoP deficit breaches $2B in first 5 months

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By Bianca Cuaresma

@BcuaresmaBM

HE Philippine economy continued to bleed millions of dollars in May, with the month’s balance of payments (BoP) balance hitting the largest monthly deficit since July 2017.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’s (BSP) foreign-exchange operations, and the payments of the national government for its maturing obligations pushed the country’s BoP further into negative territory in May,

hitting a $583-million deficit for the month. The BoP is the economic managers’ way of summarizing all the transactions of the Philippines with the rest of the world.

A deficit in the BoP means the

economy’s dollar earnings were not enough to cover for the dollar expenditures during a given period. A surplus, on the other hand, means more dollars went into the economy than the volume of outflows.

$583M

The balance of payments deficit in May 2018 May’s deficit is significantly larger compared to the $59-million deficit seen in May 2017.

The Philippines’s BoP has been in deficit for the entire five months of 2018, with its total deficit in January to May hitting $2.08 billion.

This is worse by over $500 million than the projected BoP deficit by the end of 2018.

It is also a steep worsening from the $136-million deficit seen in the same five-month period in 2017.

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A man is not just how he walks if he can Teddy Locsin Jr.

free fire Philippine statement delivered by Ambassador Teddy Locsin Jr. on June 12, 2018, at the General Debate, Conference of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities at the United Nations Headquarters, New York. Roseny Fangco wrote the speech.

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hank you, Mr. President. The Philippines joins other states parties to this Convention in affirming and advancing the rights and freedoms of persons with disabilities (PWDs), protecting their dignity, and ensuring their full enjoyment of human rights and opportunities, and recognizing that they are, like those not disadvantaged, agents and beneficiaries of all aspects of development; and—in cases as rare as among the not disadvantaged—outstanding examples of human achievement as in the person of the late Stephen Hawking. A man is how she or he thinks, what she or he contributes to humanity by exceeding past human limits—and not how she or he walks if she or he can.

Continued on A6

COURTING JAPAN: MANILA SET ON $1-B SAMURAI BONDS

By Rea Cu

@ReaCuBM

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INANCE Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III confirmed on Tuesday that the Philippines plans to issue around $1-billion samurai bonds this year, following its two successful floats of dollarand renminbi-denominated securities in the offshore markets in the first quarter of 2018.

“This year we are also planning to issue around $1 billion worth

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Continued on A2

business news source of the year

See “BOP,” A2

BSP: PHL not overheating, but risks must be managed

HE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) dispelled anew concerns of an overheated economy, and gave assurances that it remains on its toes for emerging risks in the horizon.

Speaking at the Philippine Economic Briefing in Tokyo, Japan, on Tuesday, BSP chief Nestor A. Espenilla Jr. said the Central Bank’s latest assessment of the economic dynamics show no solid evidence of overheating in the local front.

In recent years, the Philippine economy has been the darling of global investors due largely to its favorable dynamics: enjoying a high gross domestic product growth rate paralleled by a low and stable inflation.

2016 ejap journalism awards

of samurai bonds,” Dominguez told Japanese businessmen during his opening remarks at the Philippine Economic Briefing (PEB) held at the Imperial Hotel in Tokyo, Japan.

Buoyed by the tight spreads of the Philippines’s earlier bond issuances this year, Dominguez said such developments “indicate confidence in the fiscal and debt management of the Duterte administration.”

See “Samurai bonds,” A2

Govt finalizing Mile Long redevelopment plan

T Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III delivers a speech during the Philippine Economic Briefing in Tokyo, Japan, on June 19. The event was attended by about 600 investors, Japanese government high-ranking officials and the Philippines’s top officials. Photo by PCOO OSEC Media

PESO exchange rates n US 53.4580

HE government will redevelop the Mile Long property in Makati City into a mixed-use high-rise area, with 100 percent of the revenues generated from the property to go to military pensions, the Department of Finance

(DOF) has reported.

Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said that, “essentially, the plan is to take the piece of property and redevelop it to a highrise mixed development, and it is See “Govt,” A2

n japan 0.4836 n UK 70.8105 n HK 6.8105 n CHINA 8.3048 n singapore 39.5692 n australia 39.6712 n EU 62.1396 n SAUDI arabia 14.2547

Source: BSP (19 June 2018 )

News

BusinessMirror

A2 Wednesday, June 20, 2018

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Slovaks vow justice will be done as OFW hero Acorda comes home

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By Recto Mercene

@rectomercene

HE remains of overseas Filipino workers (OFW) Henry John Acorda, hailed as a hero for rescuing two women being harassed at a street in Slovakia but was killed defending them, was flown in on Tuesday morning to Manila, in a homecoming marked by tributes and unspeakable grief from both his relatives and admiring strangers.

The Slovak A319 plane chartered by the Slovak government touched down at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport at 10:50 am, bearing Acorda’s remains and his mother Stella and two siblings.

On hand to welcome the remains were Foreign Secretary Alan Peter S. Cayetano, close relatives of the deceased, officials from the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) and the Manila International Airport Authority.

Acorda died in a hospital on May 31, 2018, from serious injuries sustained while trying to protect two people—a Filipina and a Polish woman being harassed by a Slovak national.

The plane parked at the Ages Hangar, Old Balagbag terminal.

Speaking in a mixture of Filipino and English, Cayetano wondered aloud “how a young man can die in an instant and vanish from this world” from such a senseless death.

“His heroism makes us proud to be a Filipino because we are willing to stake our lives to protect others even on distant shores.”

Cayetano added that if his plan to set up an OFW center in Taguig becomes reality, he would name it after Henry Acorda. “I personally will recommend naming the center after him because he is someone that we should emulate.”

Acorda’s death was followed by a rally in Bratislava, the capital, by hundreds of Slovakians and other people outraged by his death in the hands of a suspected “neo-Nazi,” with calls for an end to racism.

The ralliers also paid tribute to Acorda, a finance analyst who had been working in Slovakia for one year. He used to be assigned in Malaysia, according to his eldest brother Edwin.

Cayetano said the expenses to bring home the body of Acorda will be shared by the Slovak and the

ACCORDA’S relatives wait as his casket is being unloaded. RECTO MERCENE

Philippine government. It was not made clear whether financial assistance by the Slovaks was given to Acorda’s family.

From the airport, the casket was taken to the Heritage Park in Taguig City, where Acorda will be laid to rest on Saturday. His family resides in Taguig.

Cayetano relayed the Slovakian government’s assurance to Acorda’s family that justice will be serve.

The suspect is now in the Slovak government’s custody, and was described in news reports as a man believed to be a neo-Nazi. Acorda, 36, was assaulted in the heart of the capital on May 26 by 28-yearold Juraj H., whose surname has been withheld pending trial.

CCTV footage made available to the media showed that Juraj H. hit Acorda, who then fell and became

unconscious. The attacker continued to kick Acorda in the head and used a mobile phone to photograph him even as he lay unconscious on the street.

The OFW died in hospital five days later from injuries he sustained in the attack.

Organizers of the protest held after Acorda’s death told the local Slovak newspaper that around 3,000 protesters, mostly in their 20s, turned out for the memorial rally that began with a violinist playing a mournful tune.

Acord a’s mot her Stel l a on Tuesday said she had forgiven the men who participated in the killing of her son, but not the one who killed him. “I will never forgive him,” she said briefly at the tarmac where the Slovak airplane was parked nearby.

BSP: PHL not overheating, but risks must be managed Continued from A1

However, concerns started to rise on whether the economy could be facing early overheating indicators after local inflation started to pick up and liquidity conditions started to rise.

“Amid all these developments and given the sustained strong growth of the Philippine economy in recent years, some have raised concerns on potential overheating,” Espenilla acknowledged.

“To date, we continue to see limited evidence of this based on inflation dynamics, as well as

output, liquidity and credit conditions,” Espenilla said in his presentation on Tuesday.

The governor pointed out that their findings are consistent with views of independent analysts, citing Moody’s Investors Service’s opinion in April 2018, where the credit watcher said it does not believe that the Philippines’s strong credit growth poses material financial stability risks for the Philippines given the banking system’s buffers.

Espenilla, however, said the BSP recognizes potential risks to the economy that need to be

Samurai bonds. . .

In showcasing the Philippines’s vibrant economic prospects, the finance chief recalled that when the government issued $2 billion worth of 10-year global bonds in January, its spread was 37.8 basis points over the United States Treasuries, while its maiden “Panda” bond float of 1.46 billion renminbi in March had an even tighter spread of only 35 basis points over the benchmark.

The finance chief gave no other details of the planned yen-denominated bond float, but said earlier that the government will proceed with the issuance by September or October of 2018.

Continued from A1

This year’s PEB, which showcases the Philippines’s economic resilience amid its goal of spurring infrastructure development to achieve inclusive growth, is the second held in this Japanese capital since last year.

In his remarks, Dominguez said bilateral relations between the Philippines and Japan have emerged closer and stronger these past few years as the former rises to join the elite group of Asia’s tiger economies, fueled by its long-term goal to achieve zero poverty rates in about two decades from now.

To date, Japan has been the

“managed ”, particularly citing the United States Federal Reserve’s normalization path, as well as protectionist threats in advanced economies.

“We remain cognizant that the US Fed continues to unwind its balance sheet and implement further interest rate hikes that can expose emerging markets to possible capital flow reversals, currency depreciations and inflationary pressures,” Espenilla said.

“The threat of protectionist policies, as well as geopolitical risks, also remain. To address this, the Philippines has been building re-

lationships with other countries— aside from our traditional trading and investment partners—to diversify markets for our exports and to find additional sources of foreign direct investments,” he added.

The governor said the BSP, in anticipation of these risks as well as the perils that overheating poses to a fast-growing country, has deployed and continue to develop macroprudential measures, as well as conduct vigilant monitoring and surveillance, especially over the real-estate property sector, and on liquidity and credit conditions.

Philippines’s major source of official development assistance (ODA) in terms of infrastructure support, one of its top trading partners, and its fourth largest source of foreign tourists, according to Dominguez.

As the Philippines continues to institute reforms both in the economic and peace and order fronts to sustain its growth momentum, Dominguez assured the Japanese business community that the government during the watch of President Duterte will continue to further open the economy to investors and “improve the ease of doing business, respect the sanctity of contracts and promote a more conducive climate for investments.”

He added, “As we modernize our infrastructure and accelerate our growth, we look forward to increased investment flows from Japanese companies.

We are impressed with the commitment to excellence that imbues your corporate culture. We hope to benefit from the transfers of technology that invariably tracks investment flows.”

Joining Dominguez at the briefing were Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia, Budget Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno and Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Nestor A. Espenilla Jr. To date, Japan has formalized a total of about $1.25 billion in loans and grants for the Philippines.

On top of providing ODA financing for these projects, Japan is also the Philippines’s second major trading partner, with total bilateral trade at $20.8 billion in 2017.

Japan is also the fourth-largest source of tourists for the past three years. In 2017 some 584,000 Japanese visited the Philippines, an increase of 9 percent over the previous year.

According to Dominguez, the government is revisiting its Foreign Investments Negative List to open more areas for joint ventures and direct investments, reviewing its procedures to reduce red tape and shorten approval time for business start-ups, and exploring possibilities for expanded e-governance using digital technologies.

BOP. . .

Continued from A1

The BSP blamed the five-month deficit on the widening merchandise trade deficit of the country, brought about by the sustained rise in imports of raw materials and capital goods to support domestic economic expansion.

Bianca Cuaresma

Just last week, the BSP revised its BoP projection for 2018 to paint a grimmer picture.

With the adjustment, the overall BoP position is now projected to incur a $1.5-billion deficit for 2018.

Despite the adjustment, the BSP said the expected BoP deficit is“very manageable”and is only equivalent to -0.4 percent of the country’s gross domestic product.

China’s import tariff cuts for 1,500 goods could hurt PHL

By Elijah Felice E. Rosales @alyasjah

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HILIPPINE exports are expected to lose big from China’s decision to cut tariffs on nearly 1,500 consumer goods, as they will face stiff competition for access to the Asian superpower’s market, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said.

Initial assessment done by the DTI’s Export Marketing Bureau (DTI-EMB) indicated that the Philippines will not benefit from China’s recent effort to fix its global trade surplus. In a bid to boost its imports, China reduced its average tariff rate to 6.9 percent, from 15.7 percent, on 1,449 products from most favored nations (MFN).

The move may sit well with Beijing’s trading partners, but not with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, such as the Philippines.

The sweeping tariff cuts, the DTI-EMB argued, will “erode” the competitive advantage of Asean member-states in trading with China.

“Reduction in MFN rates ranges from 1 percent to as high as 25 percent. Indicatively, the reduction of MFN tariff will have minimal impact on Philippine goods exports, since these tariff lines already enjoy preferential rates under the ACFTA [Asean-China Free Trade Area],” the DTI-EMB said.

The Philippines, as a member of the Asean, is covered by the regional bloc’s trade deal with China. The ACFTA allows Asean economies to export 90 percent of product lines to China at lower or 0-percent duty, and vice versa.

However, preferential tariffs under the ACFTA would practically be of no use, as dozens of goods traded by Asean member-states to China will have drastically lower duties starting July 1.

“However, this move to reduce MFN rates may increase competition from nonAsean countries exporting to China. MFN rates have been reduced significantly for products such as handbags [10 percent], tuna [7 percent], face powders [5 percent] and soaps [2.5 percent], which may erode the competitive advantage of the Philippines vis-à-vis non-ACFTA partner-countries supplying this product,” the DTI-EMB pointed out.

It added the Philippines will certainly feel the pang of China’s new tariff regime, as its top exports were also covered by the list. “Furthermore, the adjusted 5 percent MFN rates on pineapples in can, pineapple juice, satchel bags and paper boxes, which are also top export products to China, are now at par with ACFTA preferential rate,” the DTI-EMB said.

The agency vowed to continue evaluating the impact of Beijing’s tariff cuts and how Manila will fare with its new competitors.“The [DTI-EMB] will continue

Govt. . .

Continued from A1

large enough to have three elements, commercial, office and residential.”

The government hopes such redevelopment strategy will draw the best level of revenues that can, in turn, fund the retirement of military personnel.

Dominguez explained that the government is still studying whether to transfer the Mile Long property ownership to a government-owned and -controlled corporation (GOCC), specifically the Bases Conversion and Develop ment Authority (BCDA), which will then go into a joint venture with the private sector for the development of the area.

“It will be easier for us to do it through a GOCC to go into a joint venture. So what we are contemplating is to transfer the property to BCDA and have them do the JV. But we will have a special approval committee for the design of the joint venture. Maybe we’ll ask the PMO [Privatization and Management Office], and also we want to make sure the funds for this will be allocated as the President requires: 100 percent for the retirement of the military...,” he added.

Noted architect and urban planner Felino A. Palafox Jr. has already submitted four concept designs on how

the assessment on the Philippines’s competition from non-ACFTA economies supplying these products to China,” it said.

Trade lawyer Anthony A. Abad of Abad Alcantara and Associates said the Philippines is on the losing end of China’s decision to unilaterally cut duties on hundreds of products. Advantage is lost, he added, and the country cannot do anything about it, as it is within China’s jurisdiction to adjust its tariff regime.

What the government and exporters can do instead, Abad said, is they can take advantage of other agreements covered by the ACFTA. “If you have a free-trade area or preferential trading agreement, of course you will have trade diversion issues. You do lose your advantage [in the process], but that’s a country’s prerogative to unilaterally lower tariffs,” the said.

“However, you also have to take into consideration that a free-trade area is not just about tariff removal. There are other chapters that deal with other disciplines that may involve investments, investment protection and other things like intellectual-property rights,” he added.

“A free-trade arrangement is a confidence-building measure between and among the countries. Yes, you can say [China] opened up competition on the basis of tariff-free treatment, but you still have an advantage because of other components of [the ACFTA],” the trade lawyer said.

China decided to cut import tariffs on nearly 1,500 products to boost its imports—a move that Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez described as proof of its “seriousness in helping balance its global trade surplus.” Duties on consumer items, including apparel, home appliances, processed food, cosmetics and drugs, were significantly reduced.

Tariffs on footwear, headgear, kitchen supplies, apparel and fitness products were slashed to 7.1 percent, from 15.9 percent; washing machines and refrigerators to 8 percent, from, 20.5 percent; and processed food and mineral water to 6.9 percent, from 15.2 percent.

MFN rates on cosmetic, medical and health products were also pulled down to 2.9 percent, from 8.4 percent. Duties on several drugs, including penicillin, cephalosporin and insulin, were scrapped.

China is a major trading partner of the Philippines. Last year total traded value between the two countries was at $23.82 billion, higher than the $21.94 billion recorded in 2016.

This ranks China as the country’s fourth-largest export destination—just behind Japan, the United States and Hong Kong—and top import source.

However, the balance of trade still weighs heavily toward the Asian superpower at $9.84 billion.

to redevelop the Mile Long property, according to Dominguez.

Court ruling In June 2017 the Court of Appeals (CA) ruled in favor of the government in the case involving the 2.9-hectare property known as the “Mile Long” property in Makati City. In a decision penned by Associate Justice Jose Reyes Jr., the CA’s Fifth Division dismissed one of the two cases filed against the government on the ground of lack of jurisdiction of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) in Makati to hear the petition.

It granted relief to the plea of the government to dismiss the case after the RTC issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) on August 13, 2016, stopping the ruling of the Metropolitan Trial Court. The MTC had ordered Sunvar Realty to vacate the premises and pay back rentals amounting to P478,200,600 as of May 15, 2015, with monthly rental of P3,209,400 beginning on June 15 up to and until defendant shall have vacated the premises.

In February this year Dominguez had said that the government plans to cut up the 2.9-hectare Mile Long property into parts and sell some of them to the private sector after an appraisal has been done.

Mile Long had been in the possession of Sunvar Realty for 35 years until the RTC in Makati City told the Prieto family to vacate the property. Rea Cu

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Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Wednesday, June 20, 2018 A3

SC affirms Sereno ouster, CJ post now officially up for grabs

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By Joel R. San Juan

@jrsanjuan1573

HE Chief Justice position is now officially up for grabs after the Supreme Court (SC) affirmed with finality its decision nullifying Maria Lourdes A. Sereno’s appointment to the Judiciary’s top post in 2012.

During Tuesday’s regular en banc session of the High Tribunal, the magistrates junked t he motion for reconsideration filed by Sereno seeking the reversal of the Court’s May 11 ruling, which granted the quo warranto petition filed against her by Solicitor General Jose C. Calida.

The High Court also officially opened the Chief Justice position for nominations and applications since under the Constitution, the President has 90 days to fill up vacancy in the Judiciary. “ The Supreme Court en banc, during its session today [Tuesday], in the matter of…Republic of the Philipines, represented

by Solicitor General Jose Calida v. Maria Lourdes P. A . Sereno, de-

nied with finality respondent’s motion for reconsideration of the Court’s May 11, 2018, decision,” announced Teodoro Te, SC spokesman.

“For purposes of Article VIII, Section 4, paragraph 1 [of the Constitution], the 90-day period for filling the vacancy in the Office of Chief Justice commences today, June 19, 2018,” he added.

Te also said the Court maintained its May 11 voting on the pet it ion, w it h eight ju st ices granting the quo warranto division, while six others voted to deny the petition.

Associate Justice Noel Tijam penned the Court’s May 11 decision, as well as the resolution on Sereno’s motion for reconsideration.

The associate justices agreed with Justice Tijam that Sereno should be declared ineligible for the Chief Justice position were Teresita Leonardo-de Castro, Diosdado Peralta, Lucas Bersamin, Francis Jardeleza, Samuel Martires, Andres Reyes and Alexander Gesmundo.

Acting Chief Justice Antonio Carpio, Presbitero Velasco Jr., Mariano del Castillo, Marvic Leonen, Estela Perlas-Bernabe and Alfredo Benjamin Caguioa voted to grant Sereno’s motion for reconsideration and for the reversal of the May 11 decision.

In its May 11 ruling, the Court held that Sereno should have been disqualified for the Chief Justice post for engaging in private practice of profession while in government service; for representing that after her resignation from the University of the Philippines in 2006, she was engaged, full time, in private practice although documents would show that she was engaged as counsel by the government in the arbitration proceedings against the Philippine International Air Terminals Co. Inc., builder of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3; for stating in her Personal Data Sheet that she was deputy commis-

sioner of the Commission on Human Rights, only to be later claimed that it was only a functional title; and for committing tax fraud when she failed to truthfully declare her income.

Aside from ordering Sereno to vacate her post, the SC also initiated an administrative case against her for alleged violations of the Code of Professional Responsibility and Code of Judicial Conduct “for transgressing the sub judice rule and for casting aspersions and ill motives to the members of the Supreme Court.”

In her motion for reconsideration, Sereno maintained that the Court has no jurisdiction to hear and resolve the quo warranto petition filed by Calida, which sought the nullification of her appointment as Chief Justice.

Being an impeachable officer, Sereno insisted that she can only be removed through impeachment proceedings by the Senate, acting as the impeachment court.

Sereno argued that the nullification of her appointment through the quo warranto petition is null and void, as it was rendered in violation of her right to due process to the refusal of her six colleagues to inhibit from the case.

Sought for comment on the denial of Sereno’s motion, her spokesman lawyer Jojo Lacanilao said they were no longer surprise with the Court’s decision.

“We were not surprised by the final result of the SC decision, but we remain convinced that the decision is unjust and will be questioned by the people for a long time to come,” Lacanilao said in a text message to reporters.

Good luck

Presi d e n t i a l S p o k e s m a n Harry L. Roque Jr., for his part, said the Palace is aware that not everyone will agree with the SC decision to deny the motion for reconsideration filed by Sereno on her ouster.

“So like it or hate it, we have to succumb to the decision of the Supreme Court. That is now final and [an] executory decision. [Sereno’s] term as Chief Justice has ended.

We wish her good luck in her everyday life as a private citizen,” Roque said.

He also noted that the President has yet to choose from the shortlist to be submitted by the Judicial and Bar Council. “We still have no idea who will be included in that shortlist to be submitted to the President and from which list he

will choose the next Chief Justice of the Republic,” he said.

8 associate justices next

With the finality of the decision of the Supreme Court in the quo warranto case dismissing and removing Sereno from office, a lawmaker on Tuesday said he will now proceed with the filing of impeachment complaints against the eight justices of the High Court.

Party-list Rep. Tom D. Villarin of Akbayan said the impeachment complaints will be filed against the eight justices of the SC who “have committed an impeachable offense in disqualifying Sereno’s appointment.”

“We will now proceed to filing the impeachment complaints and, hopef u l ly, we’ l l have it f iled as soon as we f inished compiling pertinent facts relevant to the individual charges against each of the eight justices,” Villarin said.

“It was a done deal sealed by Malacañang, which now exercises omnipotent powers over the Supreme Court, through the omnipresent quo warranto petition it can file against any SC justice and other impeachable officials,” he added.

With Bernadette D. Nicolas and Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz

‘Guidelines’ being crafted for police in crackdown on ‘tambay’

By Rene Acosta @reneacostaBM

A

MID an outcry from some quarters that the crackdown on tambay has merely given cops more avenues to violate human rights, National Police (PNP) chief Director General Oscar D. Albayalde has ordered his subordinates to craft guidelines covering the nationwide implementation of the campaign against street loiterers.

The directive, issued to the PNP Directorate for Operations and the PNP Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management, was made in response to President Duterte’s order for the police to ensure that human rights are protected at all times during operations.

Albayalde said the guidelines should guide the policemen in enforcing local ordinances, as he clarified that individuals are not being rounded up during wee hours for vagrancy—which has been de-

criminalized—but for violating various local ordinances.

“We will consolidate [local ordinances] nationwide…Implementation of city ordinances forms part of our police operational procedure [POP], and it is stated in our POP that respect for human rights is a paramount consideration [during our operations],” the PNP chief said.

The National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) has already rounded up more than 5,000 individuals in weeklong operations in Metro Manila.

The operations have drawn criticism, with some calling it a prelude to the declaration of a martial law, although Duterte had earlier said they were being taken up to rid the streets of “troublecausing” individuals.

Albayalde said there is nothing new to the operations, and that during his stint as NCRPO director, he carried out the Oplan “Rody”—to rid Metro Manila of undesirable people

Journalist’s murder, other killings spark protest rally in Panabo City

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ndignant journalists, joined by concerned socio-civic organizations and like-minded citizens of Davao del Norte, have staged a protest rally to denounce the unabated spate of killings, including that of an editor-publicist of a local newspaper, and some political elders in the province.

The protesters cried out for immediate solutions to the unsolved killings, to serve justice to the victims and their grieving families and relatives, and to bring the seeming crime wave to an end.

One of the latest victims was Dennis Denora, 67, who was gunned down on June 7 in broad daylight in Panabo City by two motorcycle-riding suspects in what was largely believed to be an offshoot of his calling as a hardhitting mediaman.

Initial police reports reaching the Presidential Task Force on Media Security indicated that the assassination of Denora was in apparent retaliation over his series of stories extremely critical about the “failed promises of a powerful politician” based in Davao City.

The attack on Denora was the second high-profile slaying to hit Davao del Norte in as many weeks.

Just a week earlier, Councilman Santos Samoranos, 65, of Barangay La Paz in Carmen town was waylaid while on his way to the town proper. He died at the District Hospital despite the doctors’ efforts to save his life.

On July 3 last year Dexter Welborn, also a councilman of the Visayan Village in Tagum City, was shot dead by two gunmen riding in tandem on a motorcycle in Purok Matinabangon that was right within his jurisdiction.

Welborn ran for a congressional seat against Speaker Pantaleon D. Alvarez in the 2016 polls.

Just four months earlier, on February 19, 2017, two hit men fired at close range on former provincial agrarian reform official Nicasio Lemente, 68, of Mankilam, Tagum City.

Lemente and his wife were on their way home after attending Mass when the killers, who were waiting for him in front of a drug store, accosted him, then opened fire.

On January 4, 2017, a gunman shot dead Jecris Compuesto, a barber in Pagsabangan, Tagum City, in the presence of his pregnant wife and customers who were all shocked by the audacity of the attack.

especially during the wee hours.

“They are usually the cause of troubles, especially when they are already drunk,” he said.

In defending the new police campaign, Albayalde said no one had been arrested for vagrancy, but for violations of various local ordinances.

“Nobody was arrested because of vagrancy…those arrested were those smoking in public places, illegal vendors, half naked in public, drinking in public places or streets, urinating in public place, illegal barker, littering, breach of peace, obstruction, riding in tandem and traffic-code violators and concealment of deadly weapons,” he said.

Albayalde said that all regional police offices were instructed to coordinate closely with local government units for the consolidation of ordinances, as the guidelines will be issued within the week.

“A l l ord ina nces shou ld be known to our policemen for implementation,” he said.

‘Piracy, not barter, is norm in Scarborough’

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hat is happening in Scarborough is not barter, but piracy by Chinese Coast Guard personnel who “forcibly” take away the prized catch of Filipino fishermen.

This was according to the Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya), who alleged that the seizure of fish catch of Filipino fishermen by the Chinese Coast Guard happens on a daily basis.

This regular routine, the group said, can be likened to “piracy,” or the practice of hijacking and robbing ships in the sea.

The Philippines and China are both claiming portions of the South China Sea, including the Scarborough Shoal. China is claiming almost the entire South China Sea, including 80 percent of the exclusive economic zone and the extended continental shelf of the Philippines.

In a consultation with the fisherfolk of the municipalities of Santa Cruz and Masinloc in the province of Zambales, Pamalakaya learned that in every fishing trip in Scarborough Shoal, Chinese Coast Guards patrolling in the disputed area board their fishing boats and grab their fish catch with impunity.

Jonathan L. Mayuga

A4 Wednesday, June 20, 2018 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

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Monster.com reports 14-percent Neda urges congressional passage of natl land use bill increase in March online hiring T

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nline hiring posted a doubledigit growth in March on the back of positive investor sentiment on the recent economic gains of the Philippine economy, according to a report of Monster.com.

In the Southeast Asia Online Recruitment Trends Report, Monster.com said based on the Monster Employment Index (MEI), online recruitment in the country grew 14 percent in March 2018.

“The spike in hiring activity at the start of 2018 comes as no surprise for the Philippines, given its overall positive hiring trend earlier in 2017, driven partly by positive investor outlook on the country’s macroeconomic fundamentals,” the study read.

Monster.com said the positive trend in online recruitment is expected to continue for the remainder of 2018.

It cited data from the Microsoft and IDC Asia/Pacific, which stated that the country’s GDP will likely increase by $8 billion, or P416.9 billion, in the next four years.

“This increase will likely boost job creation, salaries and training opportunities, pointing toward an even more promising hiring growth prospects ahead,” Monster.com added.

Among the industry sectors, retail had

the steepest annual growth in online hiring. This could bode well for a consumption driven economy like the Philippines.

The business-process outsourcing (BPO)/information-technology enabled service (ITES) sector posted, however, an overall decline of 2 percent.

The first three months of 2018 saw a decline in BPOs’ growth compared to last year. But in March online hiring in the sector slowed to 13 percent.

Human resources (HR) and admin professionals were the recorded highest

growth in demand among job roles.

The demand for HR and admin employees rose by 18 percent compared to last year.

The report also said the year saw the highest growth year-on-year in online hiring for marketing and advertising sectors compared to Singapore’s and Malaysia’s percentage growth.

“The advertising and marketing sector in the Philippines continue to dominate and exhibit growth in online hiring activity. It is one of the top growth industries in the country, seeing an upward trend since August 2017,” the report read.

MEI Philippines is a monthly gauge of online job posting activity, based on a real-time review of millions of employer job opportunities culled from a large representative selection of career web sites and online job listings nationwide.

The index, however, does not reflect the trend of any one advertiser or source, but is an aggregate measure of the change in job listings across the industry.

Pearl Anne M. Gumapos

The spike in hiring activity at the start of 2018 comes as no surprise for the Philippines, given its overall positive hiring trend earlier in 2017, driven partly by positive investor outlook on the country’s macroeconomic fundamentals.”—MEI

he National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) on Tuesday underscored the need to adopt the results of the most recent cadastral survey, even as it urged the immediate Congressional passage of the National Land Use Act (Nalua).

In a news statement, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia said data from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources showed 71 percent or 1,163 out of the 1,634 cities and municipalities have been contesting the computation of their land area.

To resolve land valuation issues, Pernia also urged government sectors to look at the 2011 to 2015 cadastral survey data as an instrument in addressing land boundary conflicts and in adjusting local government units’ internal revenue allotments.

“The national government needs to immediately decide on the official adoption of the said survey data to resolve lingering contestations. Thus, the National Land Use Committee [NLUC] is urging the tripartite committee to look at the results of the 20112015 cadastral survey and arrive at a consensus on the official adoption of the survey results,” Pernia said.

Pernia sits as chairman of the Neda Board’s NLUC, which recently discussed the land valuation disputes and the bill as in need of immediate action.

The tripartite committee is composed of the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the National Mapping and Resource Information Authority and the Department of Budget and Management .

The NLUC also expressed its strong support for the immediate enactment of the Nalua or House Bill 5240 to Congress, which will institu-

“The national government needs to immediately decide on the official adoption of the said survey data to resolve lingering contestations.

Thus, the National Land Use Committee is urging the tripartite committee to look at the results of the 2011-2015 cadastral survey and arrive at a consensus on the official adoption of the survey results.”­—Pernia

tionalize a national land use policy and ensure the sustainable use of the country’s land and physical resources.

The bill also intends to address agrarian-reform issues, climate change, national database completion and geo-hazard mapping and disasterrisk reduction and management.

“The National Land Use Act was identified as a priority legislative measure during the second State of the Nation Address of President Rodrigo R. Duterte on 24 July 2017, where the President appealed to all legislators to immediately pass the Nalua to ensure the rational and sustainable use of our land and our physical resources,” an NLUC resolution stated.

The resolution is due for confirmation through referendum by all principal members of the NLUC. The House of Representatives has already approved on May 2, 2017, its version of the Nalua bill.

Currently, five Nalua bills have been filed in the Senate, but have reached committee discussions as of this writing. Marc dela Paz

‘BBB’ seen creating an average of 1.1 million jobs until 2022

By Cai U. Ordinario

T

@cuo_bm

he Duterte administration’s massive infrastructure push is expected to generate the most number of jobs by 2022, according to the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda).

Neda data showed that the “Build, Build, Build” (BBB) infra buildup program is expected to create as much as 1.71 million jobs by 2022.

On average, the jobs to be created by the BBB program is expected to reach 1.1 million annually between 2018 and 2022.

The lowest number of jobs created by the BBB, the data added, reached 106,824 jobs last year. This year, however, around 823,696 jobs are expected to be created.

Starting next year or 2019, the BBB program will be creating over a million jobs annually. In 2019 some 1.12 million jobs will be generated, some 1.23 million in 2020 and 1.4 million jobs in 2021.

On Tuesday Sen. Emmanuel Joel J. Villanueva, chairman of the Senate Committee on Labor, Employment and Human Resources Development, emphasized the need to address the jobs-skills mismatch in the country, especially in light of the BBB program.

“There should be a strong academe-industry linkage and our workers should be skills-ready for the 1.1 million jobs projected to be created annually, or for the 820,000 jobs to be generated this year under the Build, Build, Build program,” Villanueva said.

“I think the DOLE [Department of Labor and Employment] should already be reporting on the progress of the programs addressing the job-skills mismatch and Tesda [Technical Education and Skills Development Authority] on the tech-voc [technical-vocational] trainings. The agencies should already be working on the identified hard-to-fill jobs, among others,” he added.

Further, Villanueva said passing Tulong Trabaho Act, or Senate Bill 1431, would help democratize access to skills training, which would

help more job-seeking individuals be successful in landing jobs that match their skills.

Under the bill, Villanueva proposed to establish a Philippine Labor Force Competencies Competitiveness Program, which is based on Labor Market Intelligence Reports.

Villanueva said the measure is industry-driven which ensures that individuals meet the demands of industries and equip them the right skills for the job.

The measure has already been approved in the Senate on third and final reading on May 30 last year.

“Once enacted into law, we can address the gap of unemployment in the country by providing free tech-voc training and improving the skills of Filipinos who chose not to pursue tertiary education,” Villanueva stressed.

“We hope that our counterpart in the House of Representatives will soon pass a similar measure which will address job-skills mismatch and guarantee decent jobs for every Filipino,” he added.

Meanwhile, unemployment continued to decline to 5.5 percent, the lowest recorded rate for all the April rounds of the Labor Force Survey (LFS) in the past decade.

However, youth unemployment remained high despite improving to 13.8 percent, which is also the lowest in the past decade.

The data on unemployment was based on new definitions. The government adopted a new unemployment definition compliant to that of the International Labour Organization (ILO).

Under the ILO definition, the unemployed include all persons who are 15 years and above as of their last birthday and are reported as those without work and currently available for work and seeking work.

The ILO also said the unemployed include those without work and currently available for work, but not seeking work because they are tired/believed there was no work available; awaiting results of previous job application; had a temporary illness/disability; bad weather; and waiting for rehire/ job recall.

Japan embassy holds jobs fair for returning nurses and caregivers

By Manuel T. Cayon

Mindanao Bureau Chief @awimailbox

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AVAO CITY—The Japanese embassy has announced it would hold a jobs fair at the end of next month to allow returning Filipino nurses and caregivers another chance or opportunity to continue working in Japan.

The embassy said the event would benefit the returnees, who obtained the Japanese licensure, or even those who were unable to obtain the Japanese licensure, to allow them to continue their work in Japan after the conclusion of their initial contract of between three and five years.

The same opportunity would be provided to those who opted to return and stay back home in the Philippines, it said.

Japan has been accepting Filipino “nurse and caregiver candidates” under the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement. Since then, more than 700 of them have already returned to the Philippines. The Jpepa was signed in 2006.

The jobs fair would be conducted on July 31at the Makati Diamond Residences.

“Their experience of working in hospitals or caregiving facilities in Japan under the direct guidance of their Japanese supervisors, and superior knowledge and skills in this field, make them valuable prospects for Japanese companies looking for this particular work experience,” the embassy said.

Apart from being familiar with the Japanese working environment, “they have also acquired basic conversation ability in Japanese as they have been educated for six to 12 months of extensive basic Japanese language training provided by the Japanese government, plus their years of stay in Japan,” it added.

The embassy said it has held an annual job fair beginning in 2012 with Japanese companies and medical institutes. “This initiative is a gesture of the Japanese government’s commitment to assist the returning Filipino nurse and caregiver candidates in finding opportunities, which will enable them to continue to apply the knowledge and skills they gained in Japan.”

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Trump, GOP meet as outrage builds over new border policy

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A SHINGTON— Ca l ls are mounting on Capitol Hill for the Trump administration to end the separation of families at the southern border ahead of a visit from President Donald J. Trump to discuss legislation.

Trump’s meeting late Tuesday afternoon with House Republicans comes at a time when lawmakers in both parties are up in arms over the administration’s “zero tolerance” approach to illegal border crossings.

Under the polic y, a l l unlawf u l crossings are refer red for prosec ut ion— a process t h at moves adu lts to the custody of t he US M a rsh a l s S er v ice a nd send s ma ny c hi ld ren to facilities r un by the Depar tment of Hea lt h a nd Hu m a n Ser v ices. Under the prev ious administration, such families were usua l ly refer red for civ il depor tation proceedings, not requir ing separation.

Nearly 2,000 children were separated from their families over a six-week period in April and May. The fight is erupting at a time when the House was already embroiled in an election-year struggle over immigration legislation that threatens to depress voter turnout in November.

Democrats have seized on the family separation issue, swarming detention centers in Texas to highlight the policy. They are demanding that the administration act to keep migrant families together. Republicans are increasingly joining Democrats in that call.

Mic higa n Republ ica n Rep. Fred Upton called for an immediate end to the “ugly and i n hu m a ne prac t ice,” add i ng , “It’s never acceptable to use kids as bargaining chips in political process.” K ansas GOP Sen. Pat Roberts said he is “against using parental separation as a deterrent to illegal immigration.”

“The time is now for the White House to end the cruel, tragic

separations of families,” Sen. Lisa Murkowski, Republican-Alaska, said in a news statement.

The Trump administration insists the family separations are required under the law.

At a W hite House briefing Monday, Homeland Secretar y Kirstjen Nielsen declared, “Congress alone can fix it.” That line has been echoed by others in the administration, including Trump himself, who has falsely blamed a law passed by Democrats for the “zero tolerance” approach to prosecutions of families crossing the border.

Two immigration bil ls under consideration in the House cou ld address the separations, but t he out look for pa ssage is dim. Conser vatives say the comprom i se leg i sl at ion t h at GOP leaders helped negotiate w ith moderates is inadequate.

Rep. Jim Jordan, RepublicanOhio, a member of the Freedom Caucus, said he’s skeptical that even a full-throated endorsement from Trump will be enough to get the compromise bill through the House.

T he compromise bil l shifts away from the nation’s longtime preference for family immigration to a new system that prioritizes entr y based on merits and sk il ls. It beefs up border secur it y, clamps dow n on il lega l entr ies and reinforces other immigration laws.

To address the rise of families being separated at the border, the measure proposes keeping children in detention with their parents, undoing two-decade-old rules that limit the time minors can be held in custody.

Rep. Dave Brat, RepublicanViginia., another Freedom Caucus member, said he expects the GOP compromise bill to be defeated if it reaches the floor. “There’s not enough votes because it doesn’t solve the problem,” he said.

Faced with the prospect of gridlock in the House, senators appear willing to take matters into their own hands. AP

Wednesday, June 20, 2018

A5

China vows to retaliate as US targets $200 billion in tariffs

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HINA vowed to retaliate after President Donald J. Trump threatened tariffs on another $200 billion in Chinese imports, deepening a trade dispute between the world’s two biggest economies.

In an immediate rebuke to Trump, the Ministry of Commerce in Beijing said it would retaliate with “strong” counter measures. “If the US loses its senses and publishes such a list, China will have to take comprehensive quantitative and qualitative measures and retaliate forcefully,” according to a statement from the ministry on Tuesday.

Markets soured as the trade war deepened, with Asian stocks and United States equit y futures trading lower, while safe havens including the yen, gold and Treasuries climbed. Soybean meal futures jumped. China is the world’s largest commodities consumer and has previously said it will levy tariffs on $34 billion worth of US agriculture products.

A statement from the White House Mond ay even ing sa id Trump had instructed the US Trade

Representative’s office to identify $200 billion in Chinese imports for additional tariffs of 10 percent and on another $200 billion after that if Beijing retaliates.

“The United States will no longer be taken advantage of on trade

by China and other countries in the world,” he said. “We will continue using all available tools to create a better and fairer trading system for all Americans.”

The developments suggest a deepening trade dispute that the International Monetar y Fund has described as one of the biggest risks to global growth. By targeting goods that are finished in China but whose components are often sourced from neighboring South Korea, Japan and Taiwan and more, the US strategy could hurt the economies of America’s allies too.

“The collateral damage from an

escalating US-China trade war will be widespread,” said Rajiv Biswas, Asia Pacific chief economist at IHS Markit in Singapore.

There are dangers for the US economy too. If implemented, Trump’s tariffs would mean a sizable amount of imported Chinese goods would be exposed to new tariffs. Higher prices on imported goods could dampen consumer sentiment and pressure inf lation.

“The first $50 billion in tariffs are targeted at machinery and other goods that don’t directly impact consumers,” said Tom Orlik, chief economist at Bloomberg Economics. “Pulling off the same trick with tariffs on $200 billion would be tough to do.”

The US President last week threatened 25-percent tariffs on $50 billion in Chinese products and said at the time that he would impose even more duties if China retaliated. That retaliation was swift in coming, with a statement from Beijing on Friday that it would “strike back forcefully.”

China’s threat “clearly indicates its determination to keep the United States at a permanent and unfair disadvantage,” Trump said Monday. “This is unacceptable. Further action must be taken to encourage China to change its unfair practices, open its market

to United States goods and accept a more balanced trade relationship.”

The latest salvo came as Trump seeks to convince US lawmakers to let Chinese telecom company ZTE Corp. remain in business after it became a bargaining chip in the trade row. Earlier this month, the Trump administration gave ZTE a reprieve for breaking a sanctions settlement after the company agreed to pay fines, change management and agree to American oversight. ZTE’s survival has been a key goal of Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Shares in ZTE dived after the Senate passed legislation on Monday evening that would restore penalties.

The US imported $505 billion of goods from China last year and exported about $130 billion, leaving a 2017 trade deficit of $376 billion, according to United States government figures. The fact that America imports more from China will make it harder for Beijing to match Trump’s attacks, according to Derek Scissors, a resident scholar at the conservative American Enterprise Institute in Washington who focuses on China.

“A ll they can do is impose higher tariffs on a smaller subset of products,” he said. That being said, “China is going to retaliate,” he added. Bloomberg News

Wealthy Asians are getting richer faster than anyone else–report

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ich A si a n s got r ic he r faster than anyone else in the world last year. Wealth assets held by high-net-worth individuals in the Asia-Pacific region jumped almost 15 percent to $21.6 trillion in 2017, according to a Capgemini SE report released Tuesday. Accelerating economic

growth and equity market rallies helped push the global total to a record $70.2 trillion, the World Wealth Report showed.

T he r ising number of millionaires in Asia is prompting f i n a nc i a l f i r m s f rom C red it Suisse Group AG to DBS Group Holdings Ltd. to expand private

banking operations throughout the region. While Japan and China contributed the bulk of Asia’s wealth last year, India topped the global chart when it came to the growth rate.

“Emerging markets in Asia, such as China and India, are going to be the engine of growth,” said David

Wilson, the consulting firm’s head of Asia wealth management.

Global wealth is on course to e x c e e d $10 0 t r i l l ion b y 2025, according to the report, which defines high-net-worth individuals as those with at least $1 million in investable assets.

Bloomberg News

America bares plans Study shows 1 billion small arms in world, up from 2007 to create ‘Space Force’ U

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ASHINGTON—President Donald J. Trump a n nou nce d Mond ay that he is directing the Pentagon to create a new “Space Force” as an independent military service branch aimed at ensuring American supremacy in space—though he may have limited power to develop a new militar y command. W hile Trump has previously talked about his desire for a space unit, he seemed to take those musings one step further, specifically ordering the Pentagon to begin the creation of a sixth branch of the American armed forces.

“W hen it comes to defending America, it is not enough to merely have an American presence in space. We must have American dominance in space,” Trump said during remarks at the White House. “We are going to have the Air Force, and we are going to have the Space Force, separate but equal.”

Turning to seek out Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Trump said, “General Dunford, if you would carry that assignment out, I would be very greatly honored also.... Where’s General Dunford? General? Got it?”

Dunford appeared to acknowledge the order, responding, “We got it.” But the directive seemed to take defense officials by surprise. Creating a new joint military command is

largely the purview of Congress, which would have to provide the authority and any funding or shifting of money to a new unit.

Pentagon Spokesman Dana White said that the department u nderst a nd s t he president ’s guidance, and is working on the matter while taking into consideration the implications for intelligence operations for the other services. “Working with Congress, this will be a deliberate process with a great deal of input from multiple stakeholders,” she said.

A senior congressional aide said that Trump’s order is consistent with efforts by members of Congress over the past two years to find a way to dedicate additional resources to the country’s warfighting in space. But the issue has been contested, and even Defense Secretary Jim Mattis expressed some early reluctance to creating a new military service, citing the expense and broader effort to integrate warfighting.

T he D e f e n s e D e p a r t me nt i s a l re a d y i n t he m id d l e of a cong ression a l ly m a nd ated re v ie w of t he s p a c e forc e i s s ue.

T he s t u d y b e g a n i n M a rc h , w it h a n i nt e r i m re v ie w due i n A u g u s t a nd a f i n a l re p or t due on D e c e m b e r 31. It ’s not c l e a r i f t he pre s id e nt ’s com ment s on Mond ay were mea nt t o o v e r r id e or i n f lue nc e t h at s t u d y. AP

NITED NATIONS—There are over 1 billion firearms in the world today, including 857 million in civilian hands— with American men and women the dominant owners, according to a study released Monday.

The Small Arms Survey says 393 million of the civilian-held firearms, 46 percent, are in the United States, which is “more than those held by civilians in the other top 25 countries combined.”

“The key to the United States, of course, is its unique gun culture,” the report’s author, Aaron Karp, said at a news conference.

“American civilians buy an average of 14 million new firearms every year, and that means the United States is an overwhelming presence on civilian markets.”

The report said the numbers include legal and illegal firearms in civilian hands, ranging from improvised craft weapons to factory-made handguns, rifles, shotguns and, in some countries, even machine guns.

The estimate of over 1 billion firearms worldwide at the end of 2017 also includes 133 million such weapons held by government military forces and 22.7 million by law-enforcement agencies, it said.

Karp said the new global estimate is significantly higher than the 875 million firearms estimated in the last survey in 2007, and the 650 million civilian-held firearms at that time—mostly due to increasing civilian ownership.

While the US was dominant in civilian ownership in 2007 and 2017, the report said the United States is only fifth today in military firearms holdings, behind

In this file photo, handguns are displayed at a trade show in Las Vegas. A new study by the Small Arms Survey released on Monday says of small arms estimates, there are over 1 billion legal and illicit firearms in the world today, including 857 million in civilian hands—with American men and women being the dominant owners. AP

Russia, China, North Korea and Ukraine. It is also fifth in lawenforcement holdings, behind Russia, China, India and Egypt.

The Small Arms Survey released its study to coincide with the third UN conference to assess progress on implementing a 2001 program known as Prevent, Combat and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small

Arms, which includes marking weapons so they can be traced.

The conference opened Monday and ends June 29.

Small Arms Survey director Eric Berman stressed that the Genevabased research and policy institute isn’t an advocacy organization.

“We don’t advocate disarmament. We are not against guns,”

he said. “W hat we want to do, and what we have done successfully for the last 19 years, is to be able to provide authoritative information and analysis for governments so that they can work to address illicit proliferation and reduce it—and to reduce also the incidents of armed violence.” AP

A6 Wednesday, June 20, 2018 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

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editorial

Govt must not abandon rice farmers

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he President confirmed last week what some experts have been saying all along: That the Philippines will be hard pressed to achieve rice self-sufficiency. This self-sufficiency mantra gained traction during the Arroyo administration, when the Philippines struggled to buy rice from other countries in 2008. Despite having the money to import rice, supply was thin then as the combination of natural disasters and the need to feed their own people forced sellers to hoard their rice supply.

The realization that exporting countries would always prioritize their own citizens, coupled with the ill effects of climate change, prompted the government to reexamine its rice policy. To hike production and ultimately achieve rice self-sufficiency, the government raised its support price for paddy to P17 per kilogram, from P11.50 per kg in 2008. It also rolled out a program dubbed FIELDS (Fertilizer, Irrigation, Education and training farmers and fishermen, Loans, Dryers and other postharvest facilities, and Seeds of the high-yielding, hybrid varieties). FIELDS was a P43.7-billion program, which sought to help farmers increase their output. The government also pumped more money into irrigation and expanded irrigated rice areas.

Rice self-sufficiency means the Philippines would no longer have to depend on imports as the staple required by Filipinos are planted, harvested and purchased locally. The country has shown that it is capable of being self-sufficient in the staple. In 1992 the Philippines had rice surplus and was even able to export 35,101 metric tons (MT), according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). That year the Philippines produced 5.97 million metric tons and needed 5.7 MMT for 65.34 million Filipinos. The PSA noted that per-capita consumption of the staple was only at 87.13 kg or 238.71 grams per day. Rice cost only P10.25 per kg in the National Capital Region in 1992, about 8.7 percent of the minimum wage of P118 for nonagriculture workers.

The former chief of the National Statistical Coordination Board, Dr. Romulo A. Virola, and President Duterte both attributed the decline in Philippine paddy production to the loss of farmlands devoted to rice. Virola said it does not help that the conversion of irrigated lands into subdivisions and golf courses remain unabated. Also, millions of hectares of farmlands lack irrigation, which is crucial to growing a water-loving crop like rice. The government’s aspiration to increase mechanization to cut labor cost and improve productivity remains just that—a dream. Farmlands in Mindanao that are suitable for rice are being used for cash crops. This practice has not changed despite the continuous expansion of the country’s population.

These may have been the reasons the President seems exasperated about the country’s rice-supply situation. The task of fixing it is daunting, but this should not stop the government from trying. Duterte has shown he has the political will to go after criminals and drug addicts. This kind of resolve is needed in pursuing our rice self-sufficiency goal. Otherwise, rice farmers need an alternative livelihood if government is abandoning its self-sufficiency bid.

The government must give a clear signal if it intends to move the country away from producing rice to just importing its entire requirements. Sending out confusing signals would discourage farmers and even cause volatility in the international rice market as the Philippines is a major importer of the staple. Should it make up its mind about abandoning the self-sufficiency goal, the government must have a backup plan in place to help 2.4 million farmers cope with the certain loss of their livelihood.

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A man is not just how he walks if he can Teddy Locsin Jr.

Free fire Continued from A1

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en years ago, the Philippines ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the 23rd country to do so. Since then, we have sustained concerted efforts to include persons with disabilities in all state programs, including in poverty eradication, political participation, and gender and development, among others; knowing that accidents of birth and in life cannot, with courage and perseverance and the help of others, limit the human capacity for achievement.

We have ensured accessibility in all public places. We have established special education facilities, provided employment assistance to PWDs, given them access to free health care, and mandated local government units in the country to involve persons with disabilities in the management of the Persons

with Disability Affairs Office. No one can know them better than one facing the same challenge. Someone said that war is too important to be left to the generals; we have realized his mistake and now we say that war is too important to be left to civilians—so is it with disabilities.

Persons with disabilities are

Ten years ago, the Philippines ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the 23rd country to do so. Since then, we have sustained concerted efforts to include persons with disabilities in all state programs, including in poverty eradication, political participation, and gender and development, among others; knowing that accidents of birth and in life cannot, with courage and perseverance and the help of others, limit the human capacity for achievement.

issued a PWD ID card that gives them certain privileges and discounts in services and goods. The approach “Gender and Development with Disability Lens” is being utilized to integrate disabilities with gender issues, and implement it in empowerment programs for young women. The last Monday of March of every year is the Women with Disability Day in the

Philippines, celebrated with awareness-raising activities to break common myths and misconceptions about disability; and to highlight the role of women with disabilities in development.

We believe that we have gone a long way, but we aim to do more for and with persons with disabilities.

Together, we the United Nations have come a long way. We have experienced many gains, but challenges remain. Among them, in the area of data and statistics. We support New Zealand in behalf of the Group of Friends of persons with disabilities and thereby reaffirm that data is critical to the attainment of Sustainable Development Goals for persons with disabilities.

Finally, we renew our commitment to continue the work, and to never put down the burden of human responsibility to give a shoulder to lean on to those who might otherwise be left behind, and thereby leave us poorer by the lack of their companionship in a journey we would not have undertaken without them. We are going all the way together or not at all.

Don’t follow Australia’s grim path on migration

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By David Fickling | Bloomberg Opinion

ariborz Karami had been held in Australia’s offshore detention system for five years when he killed himself in his mouldy tent on the Pacific island of Nauru on Friday. Less than a month earlier, a 52-year-old member of Burma’s Rohingya ethnic group died after throwing himself from a vehicle near Australia’s other offshore detention center in Papua New Guinea’s Manus Island.

In all, 15 people have perished in the country’s offshore detention system since the camps in Manus and Nauru were reopened in 2013, according to the Australian Border Deaths Database, a project of Melbourne’s Monash University, with seven of that total suspected suicides.

Australia’s treatment of people arriving by sea in search of asylum— “boat people,” as they’re known locally—has long been a stain on a nation that’s become a beacon for free movement since the end of its racist White Australia policy in 1973, with the proportionately highest migrant stock of any large country after Saudi Arabia.

The way that a system originally intended as a temporary measure has gradually turned into a “dire humanitarian situation” that’s contrary to “common decency” (in the words of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) offers a warning to the United States as it heads down its own path of more restrictive immigration enforcement.

The core justifications that have

been offered for Australia’s detention of boat people since it started in 1992 are strikingly similar to those now being proffered in the US: that the policy is essential both for the government to maintain control of its borders, and to prevent migrants from risking their lives on dangerous crossings. All too rarely is it asked why refugees are prepared to make such perilous and expensive journeys in an era when mass air transport can move people around for far less than the $3,000-and-upward cost of being smuggled across a border. At its most basic, it’s often about supply and demand.

Australia, for instance, had until the past year held its annual migrant intake close to 13,750 since 1996.

That’s despite a one-third increase in Australia’s population and a global group of at-risk people that’s risen from 20 million to 68 million over the period.

The US is little different: Its ceiling on refugee admissions, which averaged about 113,000 in the 1980s and 1990s, had fallen to 75,000 since 2000 before being cut to 50,000 and,

The core justifications that have been offered for Australia’s detention of boat people since it started in 1992 are strikingly similar to those now being proffered in the US: that the policy is essential both for the government to maintain control of its borders, and to prevent migrants from risking their lives on dangerous crossings.

this year, 45,000 by the Trump administration.

The effect of this government restriction has been visible in the gap between applications for Australia’s various humanitarian migrant programs and acceptances: Only one in four people who’ve sought asylum and protection over the past decade have been accepted.

Some of those refuseniks have gone on to other countries, such as those in North America, or the European Union. Some, to be sure, may have returned to their homeland due to a weakening of unrest or giving up on their hopes for a better life elsewhere. Many, though, have been left in the limbo that’s driven some to seek their chances paying people-smugglers to take them over the high seas separating Australia from Indonesia.

The lesson is the oldest one of prohibition: Whenever the supply of a highly desirable good is restrict-

ed—whether it’s liquor in the US in the 1920s, or the right of asylum in Australia in the 2010s—the black market will find a way of filling the gap, and only the most draconian of policies will be able to stamp it out.

That’s why governments should acknowledge their own role in creating this problem. By imposing artificial caps on migrant flows that are driven by war and chaos, they create the demand for treacherous alternative paths across borders. By restricting numbers, they turn people from refugees worthy of sympathy in the public mind into illegal lawbreakers deserving punishment.

As the world has seen in Baghdad’s Abu Ghraib prison, the infamous Stanford Prison Experiment, and Australia’s own camps in Nauru and Manus, once you start treating the vulnerable as criminals who need to be punished in order to deter others, it’s remarkable the level of cruelty humans are prepared to accept.

The 1,995 children who were separated from their parents and detained in the US between mid-April and the end of May aren’t many fewer than the 2,500 people of all ages who’ve been put into Australia’s Pacific detention centers since 2013.

America, with its noble history as a home for the world’s dispossessed, should be wary of following Australia’s path. A restrictionist approach to migration can look like a delicate tool for a temporary problem when it’s first taken up. Once in the hands of the government, it’s a ratchet.

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

National Strategy for Financial Inclusion

To clean the air, act–don’t just measure pollution Michael Makabenta Alunan

on the contrary

Dennis B. Funa

INSURANCE FORUM

T

he National Strategy for Financial Inclusion (NSFI) was constituted on February 26, 2014, through a consultative process and serves as a guidepost for public and privatesector stakeholders to accelerate financial inclusion in the Philippines. It was launched in July 2015 during the visit of the United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance and Development, Queen Maxima of the Netherlands. It was also during this launch when 12 government agencies and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas signed a memorandum of understanding to signify their commitment to the NSFI. Financial inclusion or an inclusive financial system is defined as “a state wherein there is effective access to a wide range of financial products and services by all.” Access to these financial products is important for the development of every household, and eventually for every Filipino. These financial products may be in the form of savings, payments, credit, investments, remittances and insurance.

Savings refers to access to savings account, checking and current account, pensions and other forms of deposit accounts. Credit refers to personal consumer credit, credit cards, mortgage and other similar credit facilities.

Payments refers to access to the different payment forms whether paperbased or electronic fund transfers.

Remittances may either be domestic or international remittance facilities.

Investments may involve equities, debts and other forms. Insurance may refer to life or nonlife insurance. With the formulation of a national strategy, it is clear that financial inclusion has become a policy objective of the national government.

Indeed, financial inclusion is a challenge in the Philippines. Only 4 out of 10 Filipino adults actually save. Sixty-eight percent of those who saved kept their monies at home.

Thirty-three percent saved in banks, 7.5 percent in cooperatives and 2.6 percent in group savings (or paluwagan). As of the end of 2014, 36 percent of municipalities do not have a banking office. The number of domestic banking offices, though, have been increasing. As of the end of December 2014, there were 10,315 banking offices throughout the country, an increase from 7,585 in 2001.

In terms of credit, most loans extended are from informal sources, such as family, friends, and relatives (62 percent) and informal lenders (10 percent). The others obtained loans from financing companies (12 percent), cooperatives (10.5 percent), microfinance nongovernment organizations (9.9 percent) and banks (4.4 percent).

In terms of insurance, as of 2013, only 32.5 percent of the population was covered with life insurance.

The national strategy has formulated a vision: “A financial system

Financial inclusion or an inclusive financial system is defined as “a state wherein there is effective access to a wide range of financial products and services by all.” Access to these financial products is important for the development of every household, and eventually for every Filipino.

These financial products may be in the form of savings, payments, credit, investments, remittances, and insurance. that is accessible and responsive to the needs of the entire population toward a broad-based and inclusive growth.” In support of this, four pillars have been identified to support this vision: a) policy, regulation and supervision; b) financial education and consumer protection; c) advocacy programs; and d) data and measurement.

First Pillar: Policy, regulation and supervision. The government shall enable responsible innovation and market-based solutions while upholding financial stability and consumer protection. Institutions must set up effective and efficient financial infrastructure that will promote financial inclusion.

Second Pillar: Financial education and consumer protection. This can be carried out by forging partnerships and collaboration among key stakeholders. Another key is by developing and implementing targeted financial education programs.

Third Pillar: Advocacy programs. The key strategy is by raising awareness and support for financial inclusion.

Fourth Pillar: Data and measurement. Through this fourth pillar, institutions must create a robust financial inclusion database that will inform evidence-based policymaking. It will also enable progress monitoring and facilitate evaluation of financial inclusion initiatives.

Dennis B. Funa is the current insurance commissioner. Funa was appointed by President Duterte as the new insurance commissioner in December 2016.

E-mail: dennisfuna@yahoo.com.

A

S we celebrate the 19th anniversary of the Clean Air Act on June 23, it is worth noting its policy declaration giving “focus primarily on pollution prevention”, which is being ignored as most clean air activities and budgets are concentrated on monitoring ambient air pollution or measuring emissions during anti-smoke belching campaigns.

DENR doing well but not on clean air. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) is doing well in environmental issues like the Boracay cleanup drive, solid-waste programs, waste water, greening program, Pasig River rehab, coral reef and mangrove rehabilitation, etc., but is sorely lacking in solid programs on air-pollution prevention and other tasks it is mandated to implement.

For two decades, the DENR limited itself to measuring ambient air pollution and expanding the same by purchasing air monitoring stations worth billions. And yet, it gets the same results with emissions possibly worsening with more vehicles now (415,000 four-wheeled vehicles and almost 1 million motorcycles sold last year) with no massive intervention efforts.

Sure miss with measure? So far, we measure air pollution endlessly from all angles: 1) at ambient air through monitoring stations; 2) emission Tests at anti-smoke belching road apprehensions, 3) private Emission Testing Centers (PETCs) during car registrations 4) emissions tests at Motor Vehicle Inspection System (MVIS) centers; 5) planned emission inventories by local government units (LGUs) measuring emissions from household stoves, commercial barbecue grills, etc.

Measuring pollution in many ways may be necessary initially, but

we will surely miss the point if we keep measuring endlessly. And yet data gathered cannot diagnose problems or identify solutions.

Ambient air expert Dr. Emman Anglo said that measuring ambient pollution is difficult in an archipelago subjected to sea breeze and air turbulence that dilute pollution concentrations, making measurements inaccurate, more so as most monitoring cannot read real-time pollution.

It’s different in continental countries, where air is more stagnant.

Another sure miss is measuring emissions at PETCS and MVIS centers, where illegal “nonappearance” paper compliance is widespread. And conducting emissions inventory, like counting barbecue grills, stoves, etc., will require an entire army gathering data house to house. But why bother about household or smokestack factory pollution, and not focus instead on vehicle emissions, which now shares 93 percent of total air pollution in Metro Manila.

DOTr modernization is right, but needs reforms. The Department of Transportation (DOTr) transportation modernization is a program in the right direction, but needs reforms.

Modernization will reduce emissions, improve traffic and increase earnings if done properly. Vehicle replacement is fine, be it electric, Euro-4 diesel, LPG engine, etc., but whatever the transport consumer’s

Bloomberg Opinion

‘A

wise general makes a point of foraging on the enemy,” according to the Chinese general Sun Tzu. “One cartload of the enemy’s provisions is equivalent to 20 of one’s own.”

The lesson of that maxim—that leaders need to pay close attention to the economics of conflict, and make sure that costs are imposed more on the enemy than the home front —holds as true today as it did twoand-a-half millennia ago. Washington doesn’t appear to be listening.

The White House’s promise to impose 10-percent tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese goods on top of the existing $50 billion issued this week—with an option to add a further $200 billion on top of that— would put almost the entirety of the

US’s $526 billion of imports from China in jeopardy.

That may look like a strong move.

China, with only $155 billion or so of imports from the US, simply doesn’t have enough trade to respond in kind.

In truth, however, the big numbers conceal some deep weaknesses.

To see why, consider Sun Tzu. The initial lists put out by US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer have been surgical in targeting only goods that can avoid a widespread popular backlash against President Donald J. Trump’s trade policies. Most of the 1,102 products on the latest tally are intermediate goods, such as storage heaters and lubricating oils, whose raised costs are unlikely ever to directly hit consumers’ hip pockets.

The exceptions threatened to date have tended to be rarely purchased durable goods (such as the washing machines that have risen 17 percent

choice, periodic maintenance is needed. More so, as the vehicles undergo stress from passenger overload and an average of 14 hours of operating time.

Humans need food, sleep, vitamins, exercise, etc., to remain healthy. In like manner, vehicles need periodic maintenance, otherwise they easily break down, affecting amortization payments that may possibly cause this multibillion-peso program to fail.

Unfortunately, maintenance seems missing in the program, although it’s the heart of clean fleet management, anchored on clean vehicles and clean emissions. Section 21 of the Clean Air Act states that the DOTr must implement emission standards through: 1) inspections with MVIS; and 2) maintenance policy, which doesn’t mean the DOTr does the maintenance, but requires it as a periodic habit of operators and drivers. There are many options here, but, perhaps, maintenance may be integrated into the financing equation as a built-in program per group to neutralize the financial brunt of modernization. This way, costs of modernization need not be passed on to commuters through fare hikes, while reducing air pollution as the No. 1 silent serial killer in the metropolis.

Silent killer on the loose.

Deaths from cardiovascular and respiratory diseases caused by air pollution have risen, while health costs and lost economic opportunities have ballooned from $2.2 billion in 1990 to $2.8 billion in 2013, says World Bank and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation.

Deaths of Filipinos caused by air pollution soared from 38,676 in 1990 to 57,403 in 2013. Mortality figures are higher if we include the 85,000 Filipinos who die yearly because of respiratory diseases like bronchitis, emphysema, pneumonia, etc.

World Bank’s Enviroment Monitor 2002 cited the UP Institute of Public Health’s study, saying drivers recorded the highest chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases at 32.5

percent and pulmonary tuberculosis at 17.5 percent. Although respiratory diseases and smoking are cited factors, the correlation with emissions are undeniable as street children recorded the second-highest incidence of pulmonary diseases. The World Health Organization (WHO) confirms that cardiovascular diseases are aggravated by air pollution.

Penalties aren’t fine, education is vital. Apart from penalties slapped on smoke belchers, Clean Air Act’s Section 46 requires violators to undergo seminars on emissions reduction. After all, no amount of penalties or frequency of apprehension will reduce emissions. Not even a change of vehicle or engine will wipe out emissions.

Education is, therefore, important, which is lasting and empowering. Education implements Clean Air Act’s Section 11, mandating the government to make available all information, best practices, and technological options on pollution control.

Section 3b encourages market-based instruments of consumer’s choice, but all this can only be learned if Section11 is implemented.

Cooperatives key to empowerment. Cooperative-building is key to genuine empowerment for the common good, and not corporations, wherein an individual with the majority ownership can seize control of a business. In cooperatives, the one-man-one-vote rules and no individual can dominate the group.

As roads can’t be widened, route rationalization will mean lesser jeepneys, but nobody is displaced with the consolidation of cooperatives that own vehicles or even buses with higher capacities to optimize earnings.

Benefits of cooperativism and maintenance through clean fleet management can mean P8 to P10 per liter in tax exemptions and fuel savings, and much more through consolidated marketing rebate-tieups with gas stations.

E-mail: mikealunan@yahoo.com

PCSO reorganization to enhance delivery of services Florante S. Solmerin

FACT IS MIGHT!

W

hile revenues from Lotto, Small Town Lottery (STL), Keno, Digit games and Sweepstakes are continuously being generated, the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) leadership is now focusing its attention on enhancing the organization’s delivery of services, particularly the free medical services given to our less-fortunate countrymen.

PCSO is a charitable agency under the Office of the President, which should not be politicized, including its officers and employees. In fact, they should unite and support changes necessary to eliminate the

padrino system of old.

I believe in the capability of General Manager Alexander “Mandirigma” Balutan to implement board decisions headed by Chairman Anselmo Simeon Pinili. However, Balutan still

Trade war’s coming for your hip pocket, America

By David Fickling

Wednesday, June 20, 2018 A7

in price since tariffs were imposed in a separate move in January), or products such as flat-screen televisions that have become dramatically cheaper over the past decade.

In both cases, the products are ones where average Americans might be expected to initially miss the pain of rising costs—and even flat-screen TVs were removed from Lighthizer’s most recent list after consultation with industry.

In other words, Lighthizer has been ensuring that his trade armies forage on the enemy. The tariffs will hurt the revenues of Chinese exporters, as higher prices damp demand while US wholesalers switch to other countries wherever substitution is possible. By avoiding swathes of consumer products, meanwhile, he’s limited the risk of popular discontent.

The problem is that the US is at a

strategic disadvantage on this front.

As we’ve written before, China’s exports to the US tend to be consumer goods, while trade in the opposite direction is weighted toward raw materials and intermediate parts. That means Lighthizer is already close to or past the limit where he can raise prices on Chinese products without American voters noticing.

What are the next major categories of goods where the US can impose further tariffs? Mobile phones, with $73 billion of imports from China in 2017, would be next on the list, followed by computers and accessories; furniture and mattresses; toys and games; clothing and shoes; and televisions. The six categories together amount to another $273 billion.

Such action would smack Middle America between the eyes, and Washington could be expected to do its utmost to avoid it. But the wiggle

needs the full support of every PCSO official and employee.

I just hope that those who need to listen, act and assist people in need will do their part in making sure that the plan to fix the organization will see the light of day.

If this happens, PCSO will surely become more relevant in generating funds, and the PCSO leadership under Pinili and Balutan will have shown their mettle.

What the PCSO is doing for indigents and poor patients is not an easy task. However, the agency’s leaders have consistently shown their dedication and desire to give back to the public in the form of needed services all the goodwill and trust shown by the people who endlessly patronize PCSO’s games.

This year the PCSO is expected to implement its new organizational

structure. I hope that all its officers and employees will embrace change and support it. PCSO can’t afford to allow old systems to rule the agency. I pray that PCSO’s new organizational structure won’t get politicized.

In 2017 PCSO earned P52.9 billion, and almost half a million people benefited from its revenues through various services like medical assistance, free medicines, medical procedures like operations and others. The agency also distributed ambulances and funded the equipment upgrade of the country’s poorest provinces.

From January to April 2018, PCSO has already earned P20.8 billion, benefiting almost 154,000 indigents.

room is limited, as the Council on Foreign Relations’ Brad Setser has pointed out. W hile it’s possible in theory to compile the next $200 billion hit list by imposing levies on almost every traded item other than those big six consumer categories, there’s no way to reach Trump’s final total without doing so.

Look at how the two commanders in chief are arraying their armies and you should be concerned about America’s ability to withstand attack.

The careful curation of Lighthizer’s existing lists suggests a general aware of his weaknesses on the home front who is following orders from a commander oblivious to the risks. Should the trade war begin in earnest, Washington had better be ready with an explanation for the rising cost of living and decline in farm exports ahead of November’s midterm elections.

Meanwhile, China’s domestic industrial machine—which managed to offset the wrenching export declines from the 2008 financial crisis without pushing economic growth below 6 percent—is roaring in readiness. Steel production in May rose 12 percent from a year earlier, the fastest pace in five years, while thermal electricity output climbed 10 percent. That stimulus may worsen China’s economic imbalances and harm the global climate, but—combined with the relative immunity from popular anger you’d expect in an authoritarian state—should keep the nation strong as the trade battle heats up.

It may well be that the White House’s latest threat is no more than a gambit. America’s consumers had better hope so. If not, the front line of this conflict is coming to their hip pockets.

E-mail: fetad@yahoo.com.