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Thursday, May 10, 2018 Vol. 13 No. 208

Tall order for PHL to hit ’18 export goal–experts

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By Cai U. Ordinario & Bernadette D. Nicolas

@cuo_bm @BNicolasBM

he Philippines would be hardpressed to meet its export and import targets this year due to the lackluster trade performance of the country in the first quarter, economists said on Wednesday.

Economists interviewed by the BusinessMirror made the pronouncement after the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Wednesday that the country’s

export receipts declined by 6 percent, while the import bill grew by only 6.8 percent in the January-toMarch period.

For 2018, the government is tar-

geting to hike export revenues and the import bill by 9 percent and 10 percent, respectively.

“It is seasonal for exports, but I was expecting a higher import growth because of infrastructure spending and related activities,” University of Asia and the Pacific School of Economics Dean Cid Terosa told the BusinessMirror.

Terosa said receipts from merchandise exports must grow by 14 Continued on A2

DOLE to craft rules for ‘endo’ EO

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Rene E. Ofreneo

laborem exercens

S

ince the turn of the millennium, the skyline of Metro Manila, Metro Cebu and other cities of the country has been changing. Concrete skyscrapers have been sprouting in central business districts and highly urbanized sites in the three island groupings of the archipelago.

The real-estate boom is partly fueled by the consumption spending of families dependent on overseas Filipino worker (OFW) breadwinners who happen to have good jobs overseas and are, therefore, earning well. The demand for condo units being built by the Sys, Ayalas, Gokongweis and Consunjis still has to taper off.

But the bigger explanation for the boom is the demand of call centers and business-process outsourcing (BPO) investors for thousands of information and communications technology (ICT) cubicles and office spaces. The offshore service providers have chosen to locate their back-office and call-center work and operations in the high-rise buildings built in the most expensive districts of many cities. These are the most prestigious addresses in the country today.

Manila opts to stay neutral on calls to back free trade

@sam_medenilla

Continued on A12

‘Islands of globalization’: An archipelago within an archipelago

Continued on A12

By Samuel P. Medenilla

he Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is set to convene next week the National Tripartite Industrial Peace Council (NTIPC) for the formulation and enforcement of new safeguard against job contractualization embodied under Executive Order (EO) 51.

“We are targeting to hold it before [May] 26. So it will likely be on the third week of the month,” Labor Undersecretary Joel B. Maglunsod told the BusinessMirror.

Under Section 2 of the said EO, “the security of labor and employment may, by appropriate issuances, in consultation with the National

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9 percent The increase being targeted by the government for exports this year

2016 ejap journalism awards

By Elijah Felice E. Rosales

T BALIKATAN 2018 Philippine and US Marines storm the beach during an amphibious landing exercise at the two-week joint US-Philippines military exercise, dubbed “Balikatan 34-2018,” on Wednesday at the Naval Education and Training Command in Zambales province, which is facing the South China Sea in northwestern Philippines. About 8,000 US and Philippine troops are taking part in the annual exercise, the largest since President Duterte came to power. AP

PESO exchange rates n US 51.8870

@alyasjah

he Philippines on Wednesday opted to stay with the so-called nonaligned at the World Trade Organization (WTO) and did not join the group of 41 countries that reiterated their support for free trade.

In a joint statement, the 41 WTO member-countries said global trade would stabilize only if the multilateral trading system embodied by the WTO is adhered to

We encourage WTO members to refrain from taking protectionist measures and to avoid risks of escalation.”

and practiced by all governments.

The group of 41, made up of developed and developing economies, said they “consider a well-functioning, rules-based multilateral trading system” as the foundation of global economic stability, prosperity and development.

Continued on A12

n japan 0.4755 n UK 70.2965 n HK 6.6102 n CHINA 8.1492 n singapore 38.7217 n australia 38.6558 n EU 61.5691 n SAUDI arabia 13.8358

Source: BSP (9 May 2018 )

BMReports BusinessMirror

A2 Thursday, May 10, 2018

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Tall order for PHL to hit ’18 export goal–experts Continued from A1

percent in the next three quarters to meet the government’s targets.

For the import bill, the expansion must average at least 11 percent.

Ateneo Center for Economic Research and Development (Acerd) Director Alvin P. Ang and Unionbank Chief Economist Ruben O. Asuncion both agree that only a double-digit growth in exports and imports can allow the Philippines to hit its trade targets this year.

While demand is usually weak during the first quarter, Ang said the country’s export performance in the first quarter “leaves more questions than answers.” He said the figures are “puzzling” considering that the country’s manufacturing output grew by more than

DOLE. . .

Continued from A12

at Progresibong Manggagawa are against the EO since they claim the order will just allow employers to propose more jobs to be contracted out.

NTIPC is the policy-recommending arm of DOLE composed of rep-

20 percent during the period.

Despite the decline in export receipts in the first quarter, Asuncion expressed confidence that the government’s infrastructure push would allow the Philippines to end the year with “positive” trade figures. He also said global demand for various commodities produced in the Philippines will recover in the next few quarters.

Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia said concerned government agencies must improve its marketing efforts to sell more products abroad.

“As evident from the slowdown in trade figures of Asia, and even

negative performance of the Philippines, China and India in the latest exports figures, the Philippine government should double its efforts in marketing the country’s export products to international consumers,” Pernia said.

He urged the Department of Trade and Industry to continuously encourage exporters to innovate and improve export quality by providing more access to testing, certification and accreditation facilities that will facilitate domestic compliance with international quality standards.

Pernia noted that the government is working on increasing the share of halal goods to 11 percent of total exports through the recent

establishment of the National Halal Certification Scheme.

He also highlighted the need to intensify the efforts of the country’s trade missions abroad, including business-matching initiatives in order to create new markets for Philippine-made goods.

The National Economic and Development Authority said the country’s total merchandise trade declined by 3.4 percent in the month of March alone, as exports contracted and imports barely grew at just 0.1 percent from last year.

The value of exports fell by 8.2 percent, from 26.9 percent a year ago, on account of lower revenues from sales of manufactured goods,

Budget Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno said in a news briefing on Wednesday that GDP likely grew 7 percent in the first quarter. Diokno issued the statement ahead of the release of the GDP data on Thursday.

In a separate interview with the BusinessMirror, Diokno said the manufacturing and services sectors likely boosted GDP growth during the period.

“Industry, manufacturing is very robust, and services, including our banks, that’s what we are looking at. If you look at the report of ma-

jor companies, their growth rates are high so, on that basis, you can anticipate [that], and you can really see that manufacturing plus construction, to me, are the major drivers,” he said.

Earlier, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said GDP expansion would likely fall within the 7-percent to 8-percent target of the government. The BSP attributed this to higher government spending on infrastructure.

According to the latest World Economic Outlook released by the International Monetary Fund, the Philippines is expected to be the fastest-growing economy in Southeast Asia and second fastest in the world over the next two years.

resentatives from the government, employers’ organization and labor groups. Its members are replaced with every new administration through Palace appointments.

Labor Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III said that, ideally, they would have opted to first update the membership of NTIPC since its current representatives are serving on a holdover capacity.

“We would ask labor and management to submit their nominees...after that we will convene,” Bello said.

Maglunsod said they have already submitted to Malacañang a list on the new batch of NTIPC representatives, but it is yet to be acted on by President Duterte.

“Until it [has been decided upon]…the [current members of]

NTIPC will continue with [their] job even if it is on [a] holdover capacity,” Maglunsod said. No less than the members of the NTIPC issued a resolution, urging Duterte to appoint new sectoral representatives in at least 21 government agencies.

Among the agencies, which it noted should be given new members, is the NTIPC; National Labor Relations Commission; Philippine

Economic Zone Authority; and Social Security System. “The workers’ and employers’ sector had been continually expressing their concern in the government genuineness of sectoral representation in the various policy-making and advisory tripartite bodies,” NTIPC said in its Resolution 1, series of 2018.

“It has been observed that there

are quite a number of current sectoral representatives who are [on a] holdover capacity pending the selection of new representatives and a number of sectoral positions presently vacant due to natural attrition...,” it added.

NTIPC urged Duterte to finally appoint a new set of sectoral representatives to concerned agencies as soon as possible.

Strategies

agro-based products, minerals and petroleum products.

GDP growth

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The Nation BusinessMirror

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Thursday, May 10, 2018 A3

Sereno bound to lose SC post–House leader

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz @joveemarie & Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

A

leader in the House of Representatives on Wednesday said beleaguered Chief Justice Maria Lourdes A. Sereno won’t escape the fate of losing her post as chief magistrate, either through quo warranto or impeachment.

House Committee on Justice Chairman Rep. Reynaldo V. Umali of the Second District of Oriental Mindoro expressed confidence that the High Court will grant the quo warranto petition against Sereno.

However, if the SC justices vote against the petition, Umali said, members of the lower chamber will vote at the plenary to impeach Sereno.

Decision time

SC justices are expected to hold a special en banc session on Friday to decide on the quo warranto petition. The petition, filed by Solicitor General Jose C. Calida, questioned the validity of the appointment of Sereno.

“That’s what I think. That’s my reading also on the situation, basing it from an earlier action taken by the Supreme Court where the court en banc voted 13-0 on her going on leave. I think the numbers will no longer differ so much. If they differ, I guess it’s just about one or two changing votes and siding with the Chief Justice,” Umali said. “[In the lower chamber] we voted 38-2 at the committee level.

And I guess, numbers will also not change in the plenary. I guess it will be a supermajority voting to impeach her,” he added.

Weakening

For his part, Party-list Rep. Gary C. Alejano of Magdalo said the quo warranto petition could only lead to the weakening of the democratic institutions in the country like the SC. The removal of a sitting justice, he said, is a power of Congress through impeachment.

Meanwhile, the House of Representatives will decide on the impeachment complaint against Sereno when Congress resumes session next week.

The return

Sereno on Wednesday announced her return to the SC to assume her post after going on an indefinite leave on March 1 to prepare for her impending impeachment trial before the Senate.

Sereno’s decision to report for work came two days before her fellow magistrates are expected to decide on the quo warranto petition filed by Calida seeking the nullification of her appointment as chief magistrate.

Lawyer Carlo Cruz, one of Sereno’s spokesmen, said the chief magistrate decided to return to the SC after completing her preparation for her legal defense against the impeachment complaint filed against her.

“Now that the purpose of her leave of absence has been served, the Chief Justice will resume performing her constitutional mandate and discharging her responsibilities as head of the Judiciary. Her return to her office is in full consonance with our Constitution,” Cruz said.

Sereno’s camp shared the opinion of constitutionalist and former SC Justice Vicente Mendoza that the Chief Justice is legally within her rights to end her leave and return to the office.

“Justice Mendoza stated that preventing her from resuming her post would bring about a constitutional crisis and upset the balance of power in government’,” Cruz stated.

He added the Chief Justice will inhibit herself from the deliberations of the magistrates on the quo warranto petition, which is expected on Friday, in accordance with the Code for Judicial Conduct and out of delicadeza.

L aw yer Jojo L ac a n i l ao, a not her S ere no s pokes man, told reporters that Sereno arrived around 7:30 a.m. at the Supreme Court to resume her duties as Chief Justice.

Internal matter

IN Malacañang, meanwhile, Presidential Spokesman Harry L. Roque Jr. said President Duterte recognizes judicial independence and respects the separation of powers of the three branches of the government, including a functioning Judiciary.

“The decision of Chief Justice Maria Lourdes A. Sereno to end her indefinite leave and the reported ruling of the quo warranto petition against the Chief Justice are internal matters to the High Court,” Roque said.

The President earlier took a swipe at Sereno, calling her “dumb” and “ignorant.”

He also previously said in a news briefing that he is Sereno’s “enemy,” and that he will ask Congress to fast-track her impeachment.

Controversy

IT can be recalled that the SC en banc castigated Sereno’s camp for putting the magistrates in a controversy when it issued a statement that caused confusion with regard to the nature of her leave of absence.

In a resolution issued on March 1, the Court en banc said it considered Sereno to be on indefinite leave starting March 1, 2018 and appointed Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio as acting chief justice.

Sereno’s camp, however, said there is no need for the chief magistrate to seek permission from the en banc to perform her duties as Chief Justice.

Cruz said Sereno only has an administrative duty to inform the

SC about the termination of her indefinite leave.

“She has returned and Associate Justice Carpio was in an acting capacity during her leave. But the

leave is over, so the Chief Justice who remains the Chief Justice is taking over,” Cruz said He added Sereno is ready to preside over the

special en banc session on Friday, where the quo warranto petition is expected to be tackled and resolved by the Court. With Bernadette D. Nicolas

Economy

A4 Thursday, May 10, 2018 • Editors: Vittorio V. Vitug and Max V. de Leon

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Guerrero bares Marina reorganization agenda

By Lorenz S. Marasigan

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@lorenzmarasigan

aritime Industry Authority (Marina) Administrator Rey Leonardo B. Guerrero has proposed a 14-point agenda to give the agency the boost that it needs to carry out lasting reforms in the industry.

Aside from completing the 10-year draft of the Maritime Industry Development Program, which provides a general framework and execution plan for the agency, Guerrero said he wants to complete the revision of the draft on the Philippine Merchant Marine Rules and Regulations.

He also wants to complete the Marina’s quality procedures covering all major services at the Marina Central Service Units in preparation for the eventual implementation of the agency’s Integrated Management

System; and to finish of the draft for the Philippine Fishing Vessels Rules and Regulations. These, he said, will help make “merchant marine services and procedures more efficient.”

To strengthen the organization, Guerrero proposed for a reorganization on the agency. He also wants to accelerate the filling up of vacant plantilla positions, and to revive the Marina Performance Governance System, and work on the validation by the Civil Service Commission of Marina’s implementation of the strategic

Performance Management System.

Guerrero, a military man, also plans to ensure the full compliance of the industry with the audit findings of the European Maritime Safety Agency relating to Philippine Maritime Education, training and certification system.

He, likewise, plans to prepare the industry for another audit from the IMO Member State Audit Scheme in 2021; and to strengthen the Philippine participation in international meetings and conferences.

House backs call to exempt teachers’ poll pay from tax

briefs state workers to get midyear bonus by may 15

By Jovee Marie N. dela Cruz @joveemarie

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ess than a week before the upcoming barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections, lawmakers on Wednesday asked the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) to exempt from taxes the honorarium and allowances to be received by public-school teachers who will serve in the May 14 elections.

House Committee on Appropriations Chairman Rep. Karlo Alexei B. Nograles of the First District of Davao City, and Party-list Reps. Antonio L. Tinio and France L. Castro of ACT Teachers urged the BIR to promptly issue a decision that the honoraria and travel allowances of poll workers will not be taxed.

Earlier, the BIR said it would take at least 5 percent on the honoraria and transportation allowances of the teachers who will work in the electoral board as withholding tax.

Currently, the Republic Act 10756, or the Election Service Reform Act (Esra), provides for the honoraria rates: P6,000 for chairmen of electoral boards; P5,000 for members of EB; P4,000 for Department of Education Supervisor Officials; and P2,000 for support staff.

On top of this, they are all entitled to a P1,000 travel allowance. The said honoraria and allowances shall be paid within 15 days from the date of the election. Other benefits include a minimum of five days’ service credit; legal indemnification package worth P50,000; medical assistance of up to P200,000; and election-related death benefit amounting to P500,000.

There are more than 42,000 barangays or villages in the entire country.

“I am backing the call of Department of Education Secretary Leonor [M.] Briones for tax-free allowances and other remuneration for our publicschool teachers. During election season, no group of people in the government sacrifices more than them; they deserve it,” Nograles said.

“The stipend for teachers is not that big to begin with, especially when you compare it to the daunting task at hand. Sparing it from tax will be consistent with President Duterte’s propeople stance, which we saw with the doubling of the base pay of the lowest-ranked military and uniformed personnel earlier this year,” he added.

For his part, Tinio said teachers deserve to receive the full amount of the honorarium after undertaking their high-risk job as poll workers.

“It is only under [the] Duterte administration that even poll workers’ honorarium and travel allowance are not safe from taxation,” he said.

“We don’t see any reason for the BIR to deprive the members of the BET [Board of Election Tellers] of their full compensation, as the majority of them are public-school teachers earning below P250,000 threshold that should already be exempt from income tax,” Tinio added.

He said that the majority of teachers and other election workers receive bonuses less than P90,000, the ceiling of tax-free bonuses.

Meanwhile, Castro said the travel allowance should not be taxed, as it is essentially not an income but actually a form of reimbursement for the expenses incurred by poll workers in the performance of their official duties, such as bringing the election paraphernalia to precincts and taking them back to the local Commission on Elections (Comelec) offices.

“Consistent with the administration’s policy of taxing more heavily the minimum-wage and lower-income earners through the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion law, which increased consumption taxes like value-added tax and excise taxes on oil, this tax on the poll workers’ pay is yet another proof that Duterte’s administration has a knack of putting the tax burden on those who receive less,” Castro said.

“We enjoin the BIR to immediately issue decision that it will not tax the poll workers’ honorarium and travel allowance for election service.

Moreover, we are calling on the Comelec and all concerned government agencies to take all necessary means to guarantee that the improvements mandated by Esra are realized,” she added.

“Marina participants in such conferences should have prepared and clear positions, interventions and papers before being allowed to travel,” he said.

Other efforts also include the assessment on the implementation of Republic Act 9295, also known as the “Domestic Shipping Development Act of 2004”; the implementation of regulatory reforms to ease doing business in the maritime industry; and the reengineering and updating of the contents of the Marina web site.

Seashell house

An elderly woman weaves together various species of seashells to create shell curtains and other shell-based decorations at her sidewalk stall in Manila. The Philippines, an archipelagic country, boasts of an abundance of seashell species that are harvested and crafted from household decorations to classic capiz windows. ALYSA SALEN

NTC releases circular on paperless billing

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O address the issue of paperless billing, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) recently issued Memorandum Circular 03-04-2018, which lays down the guidelines on electronic billing.

Under the NTC order, or the “Guidelines on Electronic Billing,” or e-billing, telephone company subscribers are given the option to receive electronic bills in lieu of paper bills. For those who will still opt to receive paper bills, the commission mandated telcos to deliver bills free of any charge.

In choosing to receive electronic bills, the subscriber has the responsibility to regularly check his e-mail or other medium of communication selected.

The circular further stated that new subscribers shall exercise the options at the time of signing the contract for service.

If a subscriber opts to receive electronic bills, he or she shall provide an e-mail address where the statement of account shall be forwarded. Telcos, however, may offer and/or use other mediums of communication, including Web portals, provided

notice to subscribers are made.

The subscriber’s statement of account, among others, shall be sent electronically as agreed upon by both parties not later than 30 days from the end of each monthly billing cycle.

Subscribers who are currently using electronic bills and other medium of communications through designated e-mails, online portal access and/or other designated electronic options have the option to return back to receiving paper bills, subject to prior notice to, and procedures set by the concerned telco.

Manila City Hall to acquire 46 dialysis equipment for GABMMC by year-end

By Roderick L. Abad

Contributor

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@rodrik_28

AVING already reached its full capacity in 2017, three years after it’s establishment, the Manila Dialysis Center at the Gat Andres Bonifacio Memorial Medical Center (GABMMC) will receive 46 new machines from the local government of Manila this year in aid of hundreds of kidney patients struggling to get free treatments.

“At present, there are 26 dialysis machines at the GABMMC and these would be increased to 72 by the end of 2018, to accommodate hundreds of Manileños afflicted with kidney diseases,” Mayor Joseph Ejercito Estrada said during the 20th anniversary commemoration of the hospital.

The provision of dialysis treatment pro bono, the mayor said, actually started when he was the president of the country.

Because during the time hundreds of poor patients trooped to Malacañang to avail themselves of free dialysis treatments, he initiated to build additional free dialysis centers and expand public access to life-saving treatments.

Each treatment would cost around

P2,000 to P2,500, which poor patients could not afford, thus, posing risks to those who would not get immediate treatment.

Now that he’s been serving as the city’s local chief executive, Estrada said that he is now duty bound to give help to the needy.

“As mayor of Manila, I am privileged that I am now in a position to help our hospital achieve its most important mission: to assist and attend to the health needs of our people,” he said.

He, likewise, lauded the doctors, nurses, medical staffs and utility personnel of GABMMC for their continued help to extend medical assistance to underprivileged families of Manila.

Estrada said that GABMMC is close to his heart because it was in 1998 when he was elected President of the Philippines that he first visited the hospital.

In other developments, the mayor led the circumcision of more than 500 young boys, conduct of handhygiene workshop for kids, Art by Batang Gat Painting contest, blood letting, provision of free reading glasses, medical and hand cardiopulmonary resuscitation training course and intravenous therapy

workshop for nurses.

The local chief executive said he was proud that the majority of his constituents supported his program that lifted the city from billions of pesos from debt left behind by his predecessor to achieve his vision of modernizing the city’s hospitals.

“When we attained a debt-free status in 2015, the rehabilitation we did at Gat Andres continued,” the mayor said.

“In addition to the repair of the hospital’s facilities, we also launched the Manila Dialysis Center back in December 2014, in partnership with Braun Avitum Philippines,” he recalled.

Estrada also expressed his appreciation to GABMMC Director Dra. Luisa Aquino for her dedication to extend medical assistance to the poorest of the poor residents of the city.

“Through her initiative, many changes have been made in GABMMC. Changes that impact positively on the quality of our service to all Manileños,” he stated.

Expansion works on the dialysis hub in the country’s capital are still ongoing in preparation for its opening in June of this year.

Government workers will receive their 2018 midyear bonus equivalent to one-month basic salary starting on May 15, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) announced on Wednesday.

In a news statement, Budget Secretary Benjamin E. Diokno said a total of P36.2 billion has been allocated for the midyear bonuses of more than 1.5 million government employees. “The amounts required for the grant of FY [fiscal year] 2018 Mid-Year Bonus to personnel of national government agencies are charged against the agency-specific allocation for the payment of midyear bonus under the FY 2018 GAA [General Appropriations Act],” Diokno said.

Diokno cited Budget Circular 2017-2, which states that those who are qualified for a midyear bonus include employees who have rendered at least four months of service from July 1, 2017, to May 15, 2018, remained in active government service as of May 15 and obtained at least a satisfactory performance rating in the applicable performance appraisal period.

The budget circular covers all positions of civilian personnel whether regular, contractual or casual in nature, appointive or elective, full time or part time created in the Executive, Legislative and Judiciary branches, constitutional commissions and other constitutional offices. Also covered are officials and employees of various local government units, including barangays and military uniformed personnel.

Diokno said the funding requirement for the midyear bonus has already been released to the agencies through the GAA. Bernadette D. Nicolas with PNA

palace names new appointees President Duterte has appointed former Manila City Vice Mayor Isko Moreno as Department of Social Welfare and Development undersecretary. Along with Moreno, Duterte also appointed governance specialist Antonio Joselito Lambino II as Department of Finance (DOF) assistant secretary.

Their appointment papers dated May 8 were released on Wednesday.

Moreno, whose real name is Francisco Domagoso, resigned as CEO and board member of the North Luzon Railways Corp.

(Northrail) last October, citing personal reasons. In July last year Duterte appointed Domagoso as chairman of Northrail, which oversees the railway system development that links Manila to the North.

Lambino serves as a consultant and policy advocacy advisor to the Strategy, Economics and Results Group of the DOF. He provides strategic advice on stakeholder-engagement initiatives in support of the Comprehensive Tax Reform Program.

Sherwin Rigor was also appointed as Department of Environment and Natural Resources undersecretary, while Gerard Camiña will be serving as a board member at the Bases Conversion and Development Authority, replacing Romeo DV. Poquiz.

Rigor is the chairman of Poro Point Management Corp.

Bernadette D. Nicolas

DPWH renews drive vs. road, traffic sign obstruction

The public works department will take a proactive signs against politicians whose campaign materials are obstructing traffic signs, its chief said on Wednesday.

Public Works (DPWH) Secretary Mark A. Villar said his group is calling on the public to report road right-of-way (ROW) violations, specifically signs with road messages and advertisements installed or displayed within areas of easement.

“Although DPWH field personnel nationwide continuously monitor and remove unnecessary signs within 6-meter easement on each direction of our national roads, we still ask the public to be of assistance and provide us with any information of ROW violations so we can immediately act on them,” he said.

His call was made after recent reports of unauthorized gantry signs installed within the ROW of national roads.

Under Section 23 of Presidential Decree (PD) 17, also known as the Revised Philippine Highway Act, and the National Building Code of the Philippines (PD 1096), these road obstructions are prohibited.

Gantry signs, which are commonly installed along roads to promote businesses or individuals, especially during election season, are strictly prohibited as they obstruct or distract the view of motorists and official traffic signs.

Poorly installed signs, likewise, constitute serious hazards and pose imminent danger to the public in the event of strong winds and typhoons.

Under PDs 17 and 1096, the DPWH has the right to impose penalties to violators and file appropriate legal action pursuant to Administrative Order 160-A and the Civil Code of the Philippines.

Owners of signages obstructing government ROW are given 15 days to dismantle, otherwise the DPWH Regional and District Engineering Office will have it removed pursuant to DPWH Department Order 73, series of 2014. Lorenz S. Marasigan

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Banking&Finance BusinessMirror

Editor: Jun B. Vallecera • Thursday, May 10, 2018

A5

Inflation data could force Senate The association to temporarily suspend TRAIN Act movement in the

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By Butch Fernandez

@butchfBM

he Senate Economic Affairs Committee hinted broadly of suspending later this year the excise tax levied under the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law to help keep runaway inflation in check, Sen. Sherwin T. Gatchalian, panel chairman, said after presiding over a public hearing on Wednesday.

Asked if rising inflation warrants the suspension of the excise tax schedule imposition of higher tax imposed in the TR AIN law, Gatcha lian ind icated he would “need one more quarter” to assess if the situation warrants tax suspension.

“In my opinion, we need one more quarter to make a decision,” Gatchalian told Senate reporters after the hearing. “We are only in the second quarter [as of now]. So, we need one more quarter.”

Gatchalian said the committee would move to further review the inflation environment, adding: “It is very clear that when inflation goes up, it’s the poor that gets hit harder by rising prices.”

The senator told reporters that when inflation “goes past 4 percent, then we will have to recommend drastic measures either to suspend

the excise tax or to add more cash transfers.” He added the members of the Committee on Economic Affairs would then “have to make a decision on what to do by the end of the third quarter.”

At the same time, Gatchalian welcomed Sen. Bam Aquino’s plan to file a bill to suspend implementation of the TRAIN law.

“It [filing the bill] is good so we can deliberate on it,” Gatchalian said, quickly adding, “filing a bill will open up the discussion.”

He further said, “We will need one more quarter to have an accurate reading. One more quarter will give us enough time—at least three more months; we can discuss if we need to suspend the TRAIN law or increase cash transfers,” referring to the P200 government subsidy for poor families.

“If you ask me, it should be raised

to P400 at the very least, to cover the impact of higher oil prices that trigger upward adjustments in prices of basic commodities,” including the impact of the increase in the price of gasoline at the pumps.

Moreover, Gatcha lian a lso claimed one of the prime triggers of the rice-price hikes was the disappearance of rice supplied by the National Food Authority (NFA) in the markets.

“I have to emphasize that one of the biggest reasons commodities prices have risen so high is because NFA rice is not in the market and that is also why inflation is so high.”

He pinned the blame on “mismanagement of the NFA,” adding that its officials should move to correct the situation, or risk another round of rice-price hikes.

“NFA rice supply should be managed well because that is key in bringing down the price of commodities for the Filipino consumer,” he said in Tagalog.

Gatchalian also welcomed the “mitigating measures” that Aquino is set to file this week calling for a scale back in the personal income tax even though this would cut the government’s revenue take.

“Definitely, I foresee problems in reducing the income tax for those earning P250,000.”

The senator added: “So we reduce

the tax on those earning P250,000 but extract an excise on fuel. So we need to study the matter closely.

It is important this is thoroughly discussed and analyzed.”

Gatchalian also acknowledged that the Committee on Economic Affairs is reviewing possible adjustments to the excise tax schedule under the TRAIN law.

“That’s correct,” Gatchalian said when asked if the Senate is leading to that direction.

“What is important here is to check inflation and, as shown in the hearings, rising prices felt most by the poor sector. So we are taking steps, and one of them is the possibility of suspending the excise tax or increase the cash transfer program for the indigent sector.”

The review includes adjustments on excise tax-exempt areas as well, he said.

“We are also looking into that,” he added.

In the same interview, he did not rule out the Senate considering proposals lowering the income tax exemptions.

“We can study that,” the senator said, even as he admitted “this will be complicated, as the IRR [implementing rules and regulations] of the Bureau of Internal Revenue had already been issued, so there are these complications.”

BSP sets up regulatory unit for fintech entities

By Bianca Cuaresma

T

@BcuaresmaBM

he Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Wednesday said the Monetary Board approved the creation of a regulator y subsector for financial technology (fintech) companies as part of the broader goal to bring them into line as the economic landscape changes.

BSP Deputy Governor Chuchi G. Fonacier told the BusinessMirror the country’s central monetary authority seeks only to ensure a level and safe playing field for the fintech firms given their growing influence in the banking scene.

Fonacier said the new subsector will be under her department, adding one new division to the existing four. No positions have been given to the department yet.

She said the creation of the fintech subsector is part of a BSP-wide initiative to realign, recalibrate and keep in step with the evolving requirements of

financial players in an increasingly digital landscape.

At the recent Asian Development Bank (ADB) annual meetings in Manila, BSP Governor Nestor A. Espenilla Jr. stressed the importance of a regulatory environment that “fosters innovation while ensuring risks are effectively managed.”

“We continuously monitor fintech developments. We espouse proportionate regulation, multistakeholder collaboration and consumer protection,” Espenilla said.

“We do this because we believe that the democratization of technology enables efficiencies,” he added.

While the gains are modest, the BSP said the Philippines has posted significant milestones in allowing digital payments companies to thrive with the least bit of regulation possible.

The BSP reported, for instance, that the share of adults who used the Internet to pay bills or buy something online grew by 6.3

percentage points to 9.9 percent in 2017.

Those who made or received digital payments in the past year rose by 5.6 percentage points to 25.1 percent.

One of the current sectors looking to benefit from the rise of fintech in the country is the remittance sector.

Case clippings

By Justice S J Ranada Jr. WRIT OF KALIKASAN—nature and purpose A writ of kalikasan is an extraordinary remedy covering environmental damage of such magnitude that will prejudice the life, health or property of inhabitants in two or more cities or provinces; it is designed to accord a stronger protection for environmental rights and to provide a speedy resolution of a case involving one’s constitutional right to a healthful and balanced ecology, and likewise address the exponential nature of large-scale ecological threats.

Osmeña v. Garganera GR 231164 20 Mar. 2018 Tijam, J

Consumer finance provider seeks wider market share H

aving successfully doubled its customer base to 2 million in 2017, Praguebased finance technology (fintech) company Home Credit now looks to grow its market share further as it explores new product segments for financing.

In a statement on Wednesday, Home Credit Philippines (HCPH) strengthened its nationwide presence, with Mindoro Occidental and Ifugao being the latest provinces to open their doors to HCPH in March. HCPH is now in 47 provinces nationwide.

HCPH CEO Annica Witschard said that, while smartphones and tablets remain the company’s goto commodities for financing as consumer demand remains high, the company expanded its product portfolio to include furniture, ebikes, power tools and sporting goods, with more segments being

closely looked at.

“Our smartphone financing segment, in partnership with leading brands and retailers, has been very successful, and is one of the reasons behind our success in the Philippines,” Witschard said.

“But we also know that there is a lot of demand for Home Credit financing for many other product segments. So as we continue to drive business in the smartphone segment, product diversity will be another key for us. It’s just a matter of finding the most strategic products and services to add to our portfolio,” she added.

Witschard explained that as new products are rolled out, customers can expect the same fast process that Home Credit has become known for. Unlike many “traditional” financial institutions, Home Credit is able to provide consumer loans faster and

In particular, Espenilla said transaction costs potentially could be cut in half, based on one of his recent speaking engagements.

In 2017 personal remittances to the Philippines reached $31.3 billion, or 10 percent of the country’s output or the gross domestic product (GDP) and 8.3 percent of the gross national income (GNI).

with fewer requirements.

“All you need to do is walk into a store, pick the item you need, apply for the loan right in the store using just two valid IDs, get the result of the application in 20 minutes, and this will be the customer experience even with our upcoming products,” she said.

Already considered as a fintech g iant in countr ies such as China, Vietnam and Indonesia, Home Credit has grown in popularity since arriving in the country in 2013. The year 2017 was considered a landmark year, as Home Credit doubled its customer count in the country from 1 million to 2 million in just six months while expanding its presence nat ionw ide.

The company is now present in nearly 4,000 stores, including the biggest malls, in 47 provinces throughout the country.

Philippines

I

wish to sh a re with you an article written by Arianna Rehak, director at AssociationSuccess.org, a US digital publishing company and an online community of association professionals globally. Our association, the Philippine Council of Associations and Association Executives (PCAAE), invited Arianna to speak to our members in February. Here’s what she wrote: “I recently returned from the Philippines, where I found myself immersed in an emerging market. I was staying in the Bonifacio Global City [BGC], a new business district in Manila. Every single building in the vicinity was less than 10 years old, and the sky held as many cranes as buildings. Traffic is what you would expect from a city experiencing rapid growth; everyone waits for their turn to enter the metropolitan area and engage in the ever-expanding commercial opportunities.

“I was in Manila presenting with the Philippines Council of Associations and Association Executives, which gave me the opportunity to learn about the local association landscape. Filipino associations exist in the thousands, and the vast majority are run by volunteers.

“I was particularly impressed by the work PCAAE volunteers do to keep their organization booming. As I presented, several of them were working to meet deadlines. Imagine. As a volunteer team, they are successfully putting out a physical publication called, Association World, maintaining a web site, planning out a daylong seminar once a month, organizing an annual conference and so much more.

It has been a fast-paced four-year journey for PCAAE since its inception in November 2013, when the Philippine Tourism Promotions Board, the Philippines International Convention Center, and the Association of Development Financing Institutions in Asia and the Pacific got together and formally launched PCAAE with the support of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE).

“The powerhouse behind PCAAE is founder and CEO Octavio ‘Bobby’ Peralta. Bobby became an association executive by chance in 1991 after a 15-year banking career. When he searched for association management resources in the Philippines and came up blank, he looked to the global market and joined ASAE. It broadened his skills, knowledge and perspective on the association world, assets he now shares with his local working community. Bobby’s dream is to bring a sophisticated understanding of association management to his member-organizations, and his relentless efforts have earned him the nickname, ‘The Association Man.’ “PCAAE aims to be an active supporter and participant in the ever-growing association community in the Asia-Pacific region, as well as the global association community. Bobby has big plans for the future. With the support of ASAE, he initiated the setting up of the Asia-Pacific Federation of Association Organizations (APFAO) in March 2015, with PCAAE, the Associations Forum, the AustralAsian Society of Association Executives, and the Korean Society of Association Executives as founding members.

“I left Manila feeling inspired by the work I saw and optimistic of the ever-increasing role that associations are playing for the betterment of our truly global society.”

Association World Octavio Peralta

The column contributor, Octavio “Bobby” Peralta, is concurrently the secretary-general of the Association of Development Financing Institutions in Asia and the Pacific (ADFIAP) and the CEO and founder of the Philippine Council of Associations and Association Executives (PCAAE).

PCAAE is holding a mini-conference on public relations, branding and communications on June 6, 2018, at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC). The event is supported by ADFIAP, the Tourism Promotions Board, and the PICC. e-mail inquiries@adfiap.org.

Worker retraining costs could earn businesses incentives

By Rea Cu

T

@ReaCuBM

he Department of Finance (DOF) said Filipinos need to continuously adapt to technology-driven change in anticipation of new jobs that require up-skilling.

Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said that, while new technologies “destroy” certain traditional jobs, such also create new ones under what has been ca l led the four th industrial revolution.

He also said workers should prepare for a future of continuous learning to remain relevant and productive in a world of disruptive technologies.

Earlier, Asian Development Bank (ADB) President Takehiko Nakao said people have to be taught how to learn throughout their lives.

“We should embrace innovation. We should look at the bright side, but again provide

safety nets for those who cannot catch up all the time,” Dominguez said at the ADB governors’ seminar forming part of the activities of the 51st ADB annual meetings held last week in Mandaluyong City.

According to Dominguez, governments should deal with the impact of technology-driven progress on its labor force by encouraging the private sector, through the grant of incentives, to upgrade the knowledge and skills of workers.

Governments should also ensure that micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) are able to take advantage of disruptive technologies by providing them with access to new tools, such as faster Internet connectivity, enabling them to transact business online or through cashless systems like the use of QR codes.

“I’m sure the government cannot do it all on its own. We have

to govern in a smarter way, we have to anticipate the potential problems, and we have to take necessary action. But again, we also have to encourage the private sector to share the burden here,” he added.

He said when he took over as finance secretar y in 2016, he immediately sat down with leaders of the business-process outsourcing (BPO) sector to encourage them to retrain work ers b e c au se “m ac h i ne intelligence was just around the corner.”

Since the meeting, Dominguez said the BPO industry, which accounts for some 6 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), has accelerated its training to upgrade workers’ skills so that they can move up the job value chain rather than remain stagnant in traditional BPO jobs as call center agents, which could easily be replaced by automation.

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INTRAREGIONAL TRADE, STRATEGY 2030, DMCs MARK THE PATH OF THE REGION’S GROWTH AS ECONOMIC DRAGON

ADB plan for prosperous Asia: A

By Cai U. Ordinario

S the world was ushered into a new millennium 18 years ago, the economies of the West and the East rode a seesaw in the playground where the former was considered the bully; the latter steadily rose to the top.

For the Asian Development Bank (ADB), that ride was more filled with glee and faster for the economies in Asia and the Pacific.

To note, the region has seen its global GDP share rise by 33 percent in 2016 from 25 percent in 2000. Meanwhile, North America and Europe saw their shares drop to 27 percent and 26 percent in 2016 from 33 percent and 30 percent in 2000, respectively.

Leading the growth in the region are the People’s Republic of China, India and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).

China’s share in Asia and the Pacific region’s GDP increased to 45 percent in 2016 from 14 percent in 2000, while India accounted for 9 percent in 2016 from 2000. Japan’s share in the region’s GDP declined to 20 percent in 2016 from 57 percent in 2000.

Southeast Asian nations, meanwhile, have been posting high economic growth that will be sustained at an average of 5.2 percent this year and next year. The ADB said this is no surprise since the subregion boasts of a market of 640 million.

“In the last 25 years, economic growth across Asia, but particularly in Southeast Asia, has been built on deepened trade relations between intra-Asian trade relations and global trade. So the economic success story of China, the economic success story of Vietnam, of Thailand, of any of these countries like Bangladesh, is very much built on the increases in free trade,” ADB Vice President for East Asia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific Stephen Groff said.

“And I think what we see, even if we see a slight downturn in global trade following the global financial crisis, we did continue to see very stable levels of trade, intra-Asia trade. And even as there is continued downward pressure on global trade following Brexit and following elections in the US, there’s been some pickup recently in global trade, but intra-Asia trade has continued to strengthen at the rate that exceeds that of global trade. So I think free trade is what has made Asia a global economic powerhouse,” Groff explained.

Exceeded expectations

BASED on the ADB’s flagship publication, the Asian Development Outlook for 2018, trade within Asia grew by 13.1 percent, slightly outpacing 12.7-percent growth in total trade. However, this was not enough to alter the share of intraAsia trade in total trade, estimated at over 45 percent in 2017.

The ADB said export demand exceeded expectations, growing by 10.9 percent after contracting 5.4 percent in 2016. However, imports increased faster than expected, by 16.5 percent in US dollar terms.

The volume of commodity exports from the region’s 10 largest economies (comprising about 90 percent of total exports) rose by 8.6 percent after falling slightly in 2016. Real manufacturing exports in these economies rose by 4.5 percent after a slight decline in 2016.

Imports of commodities and primary products, which comprise about 70 percent of all imports, grew by 29 percent after falling by

10.5 percent in 2016.

The ADB also said both exports and imports of manufactured goods grew substantially in 2017 in real terms, by 4.5 percent and 4 percent, respectively, with the direction of trade in intermediate goods revealing links through global value chains.

The report noted that the ADB expects trade to grow in 2018 and 2019, albeit more slowly. It added that data available to February 2018 suggests “growth in trade continues [February itself being seasonally slow because of the Lunar New Year].”

“However, growth is expected to slow to half of the 2017 rate as effects from the strong pickup in 2017 wane,” the ADB said. “Domestic demand in developing Asia will take the driver’s seat as private consumption and investment expands, triggering continued high growth in imports.”

Major roles

ECONOMISTS agree that intraregional trade will play a major role in the Asean and in the Philippines in the next 20 or so years. This is especially in the context of the Asean integration.

Former Tariff Commissioner George Manzano told the BusinessMirror in an interview that greater integration, particularly in the case of the Asean, can cushion the impact of a trade war between “great powers” such as the United States and China.

Manzano said diversifying markets by trading more with its fellow members in Asean will enable the Philippines to continue earning from its exports in case of external shocks that would emanate from the impending trade war.

Further, Ateneo de Manila University Dean of Social Sciences Fernando T. Aldaba said both intra- and extraregional trade in the Asean can help boost antipoverty efforts, especially if the government ensures that there is a level playing field for all businesses.

“If the food and agriculture processing sectors located in relatively poor regions are competitive and are able to export in and outside the region, this will definitely help reduce poverty and inequality. Thailand and Vietnam are prime examples,” Aldaba said.

Addressing inequality

HOWEVER, Manzano said that in terms of addressing widening inequality, trade can still have a positive impact. But it has to be accompanied by infrastructure investments, he added.

Manzano explained that trade can open opportunities for millions.

The more opportunities there are, the greater chance for people to be lifted from poverty, he added.

However, this will not be enough to address inequality, Manzano said, adding that trade can increase incomes but not at the same time. This is the problem with addressing inequality since it is a complex issue.

He said in order to address inequality, there is a need to not only be an open market, but also to have sufficient infrastructure and good governance to keep trade flowing. These are needed to supply

THE Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank, Asia’s premier lending institution, attend the final business session of the 51st ADB annual governor’s meeting on May 5 in Mandaluyong City. AP/BULLIT MARQUEZ

the markets and allow the market to access producers.

“Even though we are open, our neighbors are open to our exports, we cannot fill up our exports because we don’t have enough roads or the capacity to increase supply so even though we negotiate that their markets become open, it will not be very fruitful if, despite their opening, we cannot meet their demands because we ourselves are constrained by our supply. Usually the constraint is due to infrastructure and poor governance,” Manzano said.

Asian challenges

DESPITE the robust economic growth exhibited by the Asia and the Pacific region in recent decades, its socioeconomic development remains incomplete as millions struggle with poverty and countries experience high income inequality.

The region remains home to 1.24 billion people living below $3.20 per day. This is composed of 915 million living above $1.90 per day but below $3.20 per day and 326 million in extreme poverty and living below $1.90 per day.

Further, the ADB said the number of food-insecure people living in Asia remains significant by accounting for 64 percent of the undernourished people in the world, or almost 520 million people in 2016.

Apart from poverty, income and social inequalities among and within countries in the region persist. The ADB noted data from the World Bank which stated that nearly 80 percent of the region’s population lived in countries with widening inequality between the 1990s and 2000s.

The gini coefficient, one of the main measurements of inequality, is a range of numbers between 0 and 1, where 0 represents perfect equality and 1 represents perfect inequality.

Based on the World Bank’s Gini Index, the Philippines’s gini cofficient has been pegged at around 0.40 to 0.46 between 1985 and 2015.

The highest level of inequality was recorded in 1997 during the Asian financial crisis at 0.46, while the lowest was in 2015 at 0.40.

According to data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), Metro Manila’s gini coefficient was at 0.3909. But the highest gini coefficient where there is wider inequality is in Davao, which has a gini coefficient of 0.4695, while the lowest gini coefficient is in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) at 0.2801.

Other inequalities

MORE than income inequalities, there are social inequalities that prevent all people living in Asia from equally accessing education opportunities and health needs, as well as access to electricity, water sources and sanitation.

“Systemic gender gaps in productivity, wages and income poverty persist, particularly in households headed by women,” the ADB said. “Growing inequality could undermine social cohesion, endanger social and political stability, and hamper the region’s economic prospects.”

These existing conditions could worsen if governments in the region fail to address threats that are coming their way. These threats include technological advancements that render routine jobs obsolete; disasters that wipe out gains in socioeconomic development; and, environmental degradation and urban ills that threaten the health and wellbeing of people.

Technological advances, which are good for economies since they can increase productivity and create new industries, can worsen employment prospects of workers who are

not well versed in using or working with these technologies.

The ADB said new technologies can create new ways of learning through online learning platforms like virtual classrooms; improve health of people via telemedicine; create digital marketplaces to grow and develop micro, small and medium enterprises; and revolutionize banking and finance, among others.

“While new technologies will lead to the creation of new jobs, including in new industries, these jobs may require skills that many workers do not yet possess, contributing to the possibility of unemployment and/or low wage growth for lessskilled workers. The challenge for the region is to capitalize on the opportunities technology brings, while preparing for and mitigating the risks,” ADB said.

Climate woes

THE ADB said climate change and disasters risk jeopardizing the gains in socioeconomic development of the recent decades. Climate change can send more tropical cyclones, floods, droughts and heat waves knocking at the door of countries in Asia and the Pacific.

Not to mention geophysical hazards, including earthquakes and tsunamis, which can also claim lives and property.

Further, environmental degradation and urban ills threaten the health and well-being of people. Air pollution, water pollution and stress, inadequate waste management, deforestation, land degradation and biodiversity loss, among others, are just some of the growing environmental pressures in the region.

Rapid economic growth has caused the bad side of urbanization, growth and development, to rear its ugly head. The region’s urban population in the region in-

creased to 48 percent in 2015, from only 20 percent in the 1950s. This is projected to rise to 58 percent in less than 15 years.

Urbanization has also caused the growth of slums in the region.

The ADB estimated that around 431 million people are living in slums in developing Asia as of 2014. This was 58 percent of the world’s total slum population.

With environmental pressures rife, the ADB said this worsens the plight of the poor and vulnerable.

External shocks

THE ADB also pointed out that amid these, there is a need to address the external shocks created by globalization; meet the new global agenda or the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement; wipe out infrastructure deficits; respond to aging societies; improve governance; and foster greater cooperation in the region.

The draft Strategy 2030 document stated that more countries are part of global value chains (GVCs) for various commodities, which has created a plethora of economic opportunities for many countries.

However, the caveat is that these countries become exposed to external shocks that could affect these GVCs. Proof of this was the widespread impact in financial markets, which resulted in the 2007 to 2009 global financial crisis.

Apart from these, countries are hard-pressed to meet their commitments to the SDGs and the Paris Agreement.

The SDGs or Global Goals is a set of 17 socioeconomic goals that 193 United Nations member-countries like the Philippines committed to meet by 2030. The goals are composed of around 169 targets and over 300 global indicators. The SDGs were adopted in September 2015.

The Paris Agreement, mean-

aderLook

sMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph | Thursday, May 10, 2018

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: Opportunities and challenges MDBs like ADB cannot finance all the solutions to the region’s massive development challenges.

Strategy 2030

IN order to respond to the mounting needs of the region, the ADB is in the process of crafting Strategy 2030, the ADB’s new long-term corporate strategy.

Strategy 2030 is an updated version of Strategy 2020 that was crafted in 2008. It sets the course for ADB engagement with DMCs in Asia, taking into consideration their changing needs.

To date, the ADB said there are 73 activities in various parts of the world that are related to the formulation of Strategy 2030, and some 1,150 individual stakeholders were consulted between October 2015 and April 2018.

The draft was presented and discussed at the recently concluded Governors’ plenary on the Strategy 2030 draft at the 2018 ADB Annual Meeting. The ADB board is set to release the final strategy by the third or fourth quarter of this year.

“It builds on various assessments of ADB performance, including the Midterm Review of Strategy 2020, development effectiveness reviews, and studies by the Independent Evaluation Department,” the ADB said.

The ADB’s priorities are addressing poverty and reducing inequalities; accelerating progress in gender equality; making cities more livable; fostering regional cooperation and integration; and tackling climate change.

Country support

while, aims to strengthen the global response to climate change by keeping a global temperature rise this century well below 2 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase even further to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

“Given the size of the region’s population, meeting key SDGs on poverty, hunger and lack of access to social services will depend critically on Asia and the Pacific’s success,” the draft stated.

Power failure

MEANWHILE, the region also has a large infrastructure deficit. The ADB estimates that the region’s infrastructure needs could be anywhere from $22.6 trillion to a climate change-adjusted amount of $26.2 trillion between 2016 and 2030.

Based on the ADB’s estimates, the largest deficit is in the power sector, with over 400 million Asians lacking electricity.

The 45 Developing Member Countries (DMCs) need to invest around $11.7 trillion to $14.7 trillion on power-related infrastructure. Under the baseline estimates, this accounts for 52 percent, while under the climate change-adjusted scenario, this can take up 56 percent of all infrastructure investments.

The second largest area for investment is the transport sector, which will require as much as $7.8 trillion under the baseline scenario or $8.4 trillion under the climateadjusted scenario.

This is followed by communications and water and sanitation investments reaching as much as $2.3 trillion and $0.8 trillion under the climate-adjusted scenario, respectively.

“Poor quality infrastructure requires urgent attention. In many countries, power outages restrain economic growth and underdevel-

oped transportation networks restrict the flow of people, goods and services. Rehabilitation and better management and maintenance of infrastructure assets are essential,” ADB said.

Aging Asia

ANOTHER major challenge is rapidly aging societies across the Asia and the Pacific region. While many countries still enjoy young populations, including the Philippines where the median age is 23, the experience of countries like China offers perspective. From being an aging society, China became an aged society in just 15 years.

The ADB said the United Nations estimates the elderly population—those aged 65 and over—in Asia and the Pacific to increase to about 870 million by 2050 from about 334 million in 2016.

The rapid aging in Asia, ADB Chief of the Social Development Thematic Group Wendy Walker earlier told the BusinessMirror, could be traced back to the reproductive health policies implemented in various countries in the region. The rapid aging in China, she said, was certainly brought about by its one-child policy.

This is the reason University of Asia and the Pacific School of Economics Dean Cid Terosa said it is no longer advisable for the Philippines to continue cutting its fertility rate.

The PSA said fertility refers to the average number of children that would be born alive to a woman—or group of women—during her lifetime if she were to pass through her childbearing years conforming to the age-specific fertility rates of a given time period.

Health financing

THROUGH the years, the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) said the country’s

total fertility rate declined to 2.7 children in 2017, from 3 children in 2013.

The aging problem is also placing health systems and facilities at risk. To date, ADB Sustainable Development and Climate Change Department Principal Health Specialist Eduardo P. Banzon said health systems must be able to respond not only to acute conditions but also chronic ones.

In an Asian Development blog, Banzon said health-care services for chronic conditions, including noncommunicable diseases, such as heart disease and cancer, will become more in demand.

Apart from this, Banzon said countries should also look at health financing, particularly in many low- and middle-income Asian countries, which “lack the cohesiveness and efficiencies required for universal health coverage.”

“To cope with aging populations, countries in developing Asia will have to reconfigure their health-service delivery systems and step up ongoing moves around the region toward universal health coverage, so older people will not face the risk of financial hardship as they access care,” Banzon said.

Lastly, challenges of the region include improving governance and fostering greater cooperation in the region. These will pave the way for solutions to various challenges faced by the region, the ADB said.

The multilateral lender added that countries must institute reforms to counter corruption and strengthen professional civil services, regulatory quality and the rule of law to ensure that the benefits of growth are equitably and widely shared.

This, ADB said, also puts to light the need to tap the private sector as well as other development partners since governments and

IN terms of addressing poverty and inequality, the ADB intends to support countries in efforts that will improve the business environment for small- and medium-enterprises; enhance efforts to support core labor standards; as well as supporting DMCs with efforts that seek to maximize information and communication technology to deliver education outcomes; and re-skilling programs that can help mid-career and older workers.

The ADB also aims to support reforms in health financing to reduce out-of-pocket expenses in DMCs, as well as programs in transport, urban areas, water, sanitation and energy to ensure that indirect health benefits are met. The bank also aims to support efforts that seek to improve the design and delivery of social protection programs.

In terms of gender equality, the ADB aims to increase its sovereign and nonsovereign projects linked to improving gender equality. By 2030, the ADB said at least 50 percent of all its projects will promote gender equality.

This means supporting projects that seek to generate employment and entrepreneurship opportunities for women; projects that are designed for elderly care services that ease the burden of women’s family care duties; removing discriminatory policies and provisions in laws that prevent women from taking on larger roles in nation building; ensuring safety and mobility of women, as well as their access to basic services, as well as reduce their burden in performing unpaid domestic work; and protecting women against economic, food, and other crises by encouraging gender-responsive budgeting.

Developing partners

TO help megacities in Asia cope with rising demand for sustainable solutions, apart from supporting social and economic reforms, the ADB aims to support mass public transport such as subways and bus systems linked to cycle and pedestrian pathways that will enable urban populations to be more mobile in cities.

The Manila-based multilateral development bank also aims to support urban planning efforts

and extending financing to help cities explore other sources of financing. The ADB said it is open to partnering with stakeholders and service providers to improve sector plans, institutional creditworthiness, project design and delivery, and sustainability of services.

This also means helping value chains to make both urban and rural areas food secure. ADB said it will help build rural roads, market infrastructure and agri-logistics centers to achieve this.

Drones, satellites

THE ADB said it intends to promote the use of satellite and droneassisted applications to increase irrigation efficiency and ensure sustainable use of land and water resources. The bank will also help efforts that ensure food safety.

The bank is also open to helping government improve service delivery and capacity, as well as the promotion of regional cooperation and integration that will boost economic opportunities for millions.

In terms of climate change, the ADB intends to make 75 percent of its commitments climate relevant by 2030. This means helping DMCs access clean technology and financing and scaling up support for low greenhouse gas emission energy and sustainable transport strategies, as well as disaster risk reduction efforts.

“The ADB will pursue this through the selective use of concessional financing, greater engagement with the private sector, and support for innovative PPPs. The ADB will also facilitate access to carbon finance through domestic and/ or international carbon markets to incentivize mitigation investments,” the document stated.

Grave concerns

WHILE Strategy 2030 proves to be an exhaustive strategy to combat numerous development constraints faced by the region, grave concerns have been raised, particularly on addressing climate change.

Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities Executive Director Renato Redentor Constantino said the strategy remains unclear on how to operationalize the Paris Agreement. He said Strategy 2030 lacked concrete measures by which the ADB can help DMCs meet the 1.5 degree Celsius threshold mandated by the Paris Agreement.

Constantino said increasing financing for climate change-related projects is not enough to help DMCs meet their Paris Agreement commitments. He said, “The goal of vulnerable countries is to not only survive but to thrive in the midst of the climate crisis. This means transforming member-country economies and more importantly transforming nothing less than the investment agenda itself of ADB.” Constantino said the ADB should take a more proactive stance by phasing out financing for carbonintensive activities. Civil society organizations (CSOs) expressed their dismay over the ADB’s financing of coal projects, saying the Manilabased multilateral development bank extended $10.74 billion worth of financing for coal projects between 2009 and 2017.

In the Philippines, the CSOs said the ADB extended loans of $120 million for the construction of the Korea Electric Power Corp.’s 200-MW coal-fired power plant in Cebu province, and $200 million for the rehabilitation of the Masinloc Power Partners Ltd.’s 600-MW coal-fired thermal power plant in the Zambales province.

Questionable spending

THE bank has also made equity investments worth $1,054,850 in a project of the Philippine Investment Alliance for Infrastructure, which involves a 552-MW coal-fired power plant in Kauswagan, Lanao del

Norte, southern Philippines.

“Public spending for fossil fuels was already questionable a decade ago, when the ADB had identified massive and growing threat of climate change to the region’s economies. Refusing to definitively phase out lending for carbon-intensive activities today is just pigheaded myopia,” Constantino said.

The CSOs expressed “grave concern” for the energy policy of the bank, saying that this will not help DMCs meet the SDGs and the Paris Agreement.

They urged the ADB to stop financing new coal-fired power plants and coal mines, and move in the direction of swiftly phasing out fossil-fuel use, especially coal, and ensuring a just transition.

“Setting restrictions in funding coal projects is no longer adequate at a time of intensifying climate change and increasingly catastrophic impacts, especially on developing countries. They are also pointless since the policy also promotes actions that worsen climate change,” the CSOs said.

“Further burning of fossil fuels contributes to exacerbating the climate crisis and multiplying the difficulties of vulnerable populations. Poverty deepens with the destruction and loss of lives, homes, natural resources and livelihoods brought about by climate change,” they added.

Enormous challenges

NGO Forum on ADB Executive Director Rayyan Hassan also raised concerns regarding the 2009 Safeguard Policy Statement (SPS), saying that higher standards of safeguards should apply in any ADB-financed project.

In recent times, the forum said projects such as the Myingyan Gas Project cofinanced by IFC, ADB, and the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) showed that various local grievances surrounding environmental degradation, labor violations and displacement are surfacing.

Hassan also said the ADBAIIB cofinancing initiative would further underline the glaring gaps in the ADB’s delivery mechanism of its safeguards as revealed by the operational review conducted by its own Independent Evaluation Department in 2014.

He said there was a lack of any disclosure and reporting gaps in the ADB’s financial intermediary private-sector projects, and there was an increase in Category B projects to avoid more stringent environmental and social assessments.

Hassan also said projects suffered from poor quality at entry of information in regards to environment, resettlement and indigenous peoples’ issues preproject approval and a lack of clear response on project monitoring by the ADB on safeguards with almost nonexistent on-site field visit by ADB safeguard staff.

Without clear applications of ADB safeguards in this cofinancing project, Hassan said the local people are being left helpless in the face of private-sector operators.

“The stringent application of environmental and social safeguards with strong human-rights dimension is integral for the ADB to prove that it is indeed a bank for development,” Hassan said in a statement.

The economic success of the region cannot overshadow the enormous challenges it faces. The ADB’s Strategy 2030 provides solutions, but these are not enough to plug development gaps.

Asia may be the belle of the ball in terms of economic growth and diversity, but its time is running short. If DMCs do not meet these challenges head on, when the growth pendulum swings again, its economic success could be no more and only its development challenges will remain.

The Regions BusinessMirror

A4 Thursday, May 10, 2018 • Editor: Dennis D. Estopace A8

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Local poll violence noted 4 days before votes cast

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By Rene Acosta

@reneacostaBM

Two female cops still with Abu Sayyaf in Sulu

ITH barely four days before the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections, the Philippine National Police (PNP) has already listed 28 casualties from election-related shootings, prompting Director General Oscar D. Albayalde to exhort policemen to exert more effort in ensuring the peaceful holding of the polls.

Albayalde said that no less than Secretary to the Cabinet Leoncio B. Evasco Jr. has ordered the PNP during its command conference on Tuesday to make sure the elections on Monday will be “safe as possible.”

“I think that [that] responsibility lies on the PNP, and of course with our AFP [Armed Forces of the Philippines],” Albayalde added.

Based on the record of the PNP, at least 28 barangay officials and even civilians have been shot in relation to the barangay and SK elections.

“Of the 28, 22 were killed, but not all of them are candidates, some are civilians,” Albayalde said. “But we suspect these are connected with the incoming barangay elections.”

Aside from the casualties, the PNP is also keeping watch over the more than 7,000 areas around the country that have been listed as election hot spots.

Out of these areas, around 600

barangays have been categorized as areas of immediate concerns, or where the barangay and SK elections are hotly contested.

These areas are in the provinces of Abra, Masbate and Bulacan and in Mindanao.

“This is why we have to intensify the conduct of Oplan Sita and checkpoint operations, and the implementation of gun ban, especially in hot spot areas or election watch list of areas,” Albayalde said.

Albayalde called on the candidates to observe the sanctity of the elections and not use it to terminate their rivals.

“Let us show to the world that we are civilized people, that we can conduct very peaceful elections in an honest manner,” he said.

The PNP will be deploying at least 160,000 policemen during the day of the elections, working in tandem with members of the military.

DOH Calabarzon continues distribution of ambulances

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he Department of Health (DOH) Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon) continued to distribute ambulances and dental buses as part of the P80-million allocation for the procurement of the medical transports under the Health Facilities Enhancement Program. The HFEP aims for the improvement of health facilities and special service delivery units in the rural areas.

DOH Calabarzon Regional Director Eduardo C. Janairo turned over on Wednesday three ambulances and one dental bus to the municipalities of Biñan in Laguna, Lobo and San Luis in Batangas and Padre Burgos in Quezon.

“My only request to the local executives and recipients of these units is to manage them effectively, take good care of them and use them as intended; an emergency medical transport for patients needing immediate treatment and care,” Janairo said during a ceremony at the Quirino Memorial Medical Center Grounds in Quezon City.

According to him, 36 of the 49 units were already allocated and the additional 13 are still to be distributed to eligible local government units.

“Let us not forget these units were given to provide prompt basic and advanced life-support services for patients in rural areas 24/7,” Janairo added.

The first dental bus was given to the provincial government of Batangas.

The donated land ambulances is an Asian utility vehicle- type with an MPV of 2.5 liters diesel, four cylinder, 16 valves, dual overhead camshaft, variable nozzle turbo with front mounted intercooler and fuel injection with common rail fuel system and fitted with necessary medical equipment, such as BP apparatus, first-aid kit, oxygen tank, oxygen tank regulator, minor surgical set, manual resuscitator, stethoscope, automatic external defibrillator, fire extinguisher and a led flashlight.

The dental bus is furnished

with two dental chairs, dental bed, a basin (complete with faucet setup) and compartments for medical equipment and medicines, dental tools and power inverter that will enable it to operate in powerless communities.

“This emergency units will attend to emergencies, disaster and rescue operations in the rural communities, especially those in remote barangays and with these units in placed, we can lessen impediments in health-care delivery,” Janairo concluded.

Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

Recipients of ambulances from DOH Calabarzon • Municipality of Lobo, Batangas; • Municipality of San Luis, Batangas; • Municipality of Mabini, Batangas; • Barangay Dolores, Taytay, Rizal, Antipolo City; • Barangay Muntindilaw, Antipolo; • Barangay Beverly Hills, Antipolo; • Barangay Mambugan, Antipolo; • Barangay San Isidro, Antipolo; • Barangay Mayamot, Antipolo; • Pagsanjan, Laguna; • Agdangan, Quezon; • Buenavista, Quezon; • Catanauan, Quezon; • General Luna, Quezon; • Macalelon, Quezon; • Mulanay, Quezon; • Padre Burgos, Quezon; • Pitogo, Quezon; • San Andres, Quezon; • San Francisco, Quezon; • San Narciso, Quezon; • Unsan, Quezon; • Cainta Municipal Hospital (3); • Taytay Emergency Hospital (3); • Rizal Provincial Hospital System, Angono (2); and Rizal Provincial Hospital System Margarito A. Duavit Hospital, Binangonan (2).

M

SLIPPERY SLOPE

This undated photo shows fishermen preparing to catch fish after launching their boats at the Sorsogon City Bay. Aside from fishing, the bay has become a natural attraction that lures local and foreign tourists. NONOY LACZA

EMB assessing environment impact of fish kill in Bulacan C

ITY OF MALOLOS—Lormelyn E. Claudio, Central Luzon director of the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), has dispatched a team to assess the environmental impact of the fish kill in Obando town.

Environment Secretary Roy A. Cimatu has given the directive to assess the environmental impact of the fish kill since an estimated 250 metric tons of cultured fish were killed in the incident and may pose health and environmental hazards to the affected communities, according to Claudio.

The EMB team will be coordinating with Celia Esteban, provincial environment and natural resources officer of Bulacan, together with the local government of Obando and will conduct water sampling of the river system of the town.

Findings by a fish health in-

spection team from the Provincial Agriculture Office of Bulacan and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) that earlier investigated the fish kill show the fish mortalities were due to the extremely low dissolved-oxygen content of the fishpond water caused by the cloudy skies and abrupt rainfall in the area.

Jocelyn E. Gomez, provincial public health officer of Bulacan, said that as of the moment, no untoward health incident related to the fish kill was reported.

On the other hand, Wilfredo M. Cruz, director of BFAR-Region 3, said that affected fishpond operators in the seven villages of Pag-asa, Paliwas, Hulo, Lawa, Paco, Tawiran and Salambao in Obando town have decided to give the dead cultured fishes free of charge to fisherfolk in the areas.

The dead fishes gathered were sold at P200 per 40-kilo banyera as fish meal for fishpond operators raising

crabs and prawns in other fishpond areas of Bulacan, Cruz said.

He added that local fisherfolk’s income were augmented when they were able to sold at least 125 metric tons as fish meal while the rest of the dead and decaying fishes were buried.

Cruz said the BFAR is currently assessing the volume of fingerlings that they will be providing to the affected fishpond operators.

Fishermen confided that it will take several weeks before commercial fish and crustacean species return to the affected river system of the town.

Meanwhile, Freddy Sta. Maria Jr., municipal agriculture officer of Obando, said that the cleanup of the affected fishponds were already completed as of Wednesday.

The foul-smelling odor of the decaying fish affecting the barangays has already subsided, Sta. Maria claims. Kristen Roz Mateo

ilitary operat ion s against kidnappers in Sulu has led to a rescue of a captive but left two female policemen still in the hands of their abductors who are alleged members of the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG).

Brig. Gen. Cirilito Sobejana, commander of the Joint Task Force Sulu, said Blas Jackosalim Ahamad was rescued by members of the Marine Battalion Landing Team 3, led by Lt. Col. Ramil Holgado, at around 2 p.m.

Ahamad, resident of Sitio Palar, Barangay Gandasuli, Patikul, Sulu, was recovered at Sitio Budjang, Barangay Libog Kabao, Panglima Estino, Sulu, by the operating Marine elements.

The rescue of Ahamad only left his two companions, who are policemen, in the hands of the ASG following the release and recovery over the weekend of another kidnap victim, Faizal Ahidji.

All four were abducted on April 29

by ASG members, led by subleader Almujer Yadah, at Barangay Liang, Patikul, where the terrorists later demanded for the payment of ransom in exchange for their release.

The Philippine National Police said earlier it has had no contact with its abducted members, although it has been assured by the military that operations were continuing in order to rescue them.

Sobejana said the information provided by Ahidji, who was released by his abductors at Sitio Daang Puti, Barangay Bangkal, Patikul, had paved the way for the rescue of Ahamad, and possibly even for their two companions who are policewomen.

“The valuable information he shared to us lead to the rescue of Blas Jackosalim Ahamad. Efforts to rescue the remaining kidnap victims shall continue,” Sobejana added.

“With the support of the local government units, the religious leaders, the Sultanate of Sulu, other stakeholders and the community as a whole, we may be able to safely rescue the remaining kidnap victims from the hands of the Abu Sayaff,” he said. Rene Acosta

Crimes in Bacolod down 21% in April briefs

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ACOLOD CITY—Crime volume in this city decreased by 20.98 percent in April.

The Bacolod City Police listed 241 crimes from April 1 to 30 this year, 64 incidents less than the 305 recorded in the same month last year.

In a news conference on Wednesday, city police Officer in Charge Senior Supt.

Francisco Ebreo said Bacolod City remains generally peaceful with zero high-profile crime incidents.

Index crimes slid 37.78 percent from 90 in April last year to 56 last month.

Index crimes are those committed against persons and properties, with focus on murder, homicide, physical injury, robbery, theft, rape, car theft and motorcycle theft.

Non-index crimes, or violations of special laws, dropped 13.95 percent from 215 in April 2017 to 185 last month.

The Bacolod City Police’s index crime clearance efficiency rose 7.82 percent to 58.93 percent last month, from 51.11 percent in April last year. Its crime solution efficiency in April, likewise, increased by 7.18 percent to 66.07 percent from 58.89 percent in the same period in 2017.

Crime clearance efficiency refers to the percentage of cleared cases out of the total number of crime incidents for a given period of time, while crime solution efficiency is the percentage of solved cases out of the total number of crime incidents.

Also last month the Bacolod police arrested seven most wanted persons and 20

241 The total number of cases of crime recorded from April 1 to 30 in Bacolod City

other wanted persons.

In its anti-illegal-gambling campaign, a total of 121 persons were arrested in 43 operations and 43 cases were filed, while in its antidrug campaign, 27 persons were apprehended in 16 operations and 23 cases were filed.

A total of 270.66 grams of shabu worth P4.06 million were seized last month.

In March the total crime volume also declined 34.65 percent to 215 from 329 in the same month in 2017. Of the 215 crimes, 55 were index and 160 were nonindex crimes.

In February crimes dropped by 27.3 percent to 229, from 315 in the same month last year.

The police recorded only 58 incidents of the eight focus crimes during the second month this year. The figure is 53.58 percent less than the 125 incidents recorded in February 2017.

In January the eight focus crimes decreased by 55 incidents, from 99 in the first month of 2017. PNA

bulacan registers 1,494 dengue cases

CITY OF MALOLOS—Dengue cases in Bulacan has reached 1,494 as of April 28, according to Jocelyn Gomez, provincial public health officer of Bulacan. Gomez said the number is 21 percent higher compared to the 1,237 cases reported last year for the period of January 1 to April 28. Three localities registered more than 100 cases with the city of San Jose del Monte reporting 187, followed by the towns of Hagonoy with 141; Santa Maria, 102; and the rest of the cities and municipalities registering cases below 100. Gomez noted that male cases were higher at 54.3 percent compared to the 45.7 percent for females. Two deaths were also reported for the same period—a male and female both 13 years old—compared to five last year, with one coming from the city of Malolos and one from Pulilan town, Gomez said.

She added that out of the 569 barangays of Bulacan, a total of 10 barangays were clustered for suspected dengue cases.

Kristen Roz Mateo

film on 19 aklan martyrs gets grant

KALIBO, Aklan—Shooting for a full-length documentary category for the stories of the 19 martyrs in the province may begin as an Aklanon film enthusiast and his team has received a grant. JR Macahilas, the director of the documentary, said they would use a grant from the Film Development Council of the Philippines, which is under the Office of the President. The script is tentatively titled Daan Patungong Tawaya. Macahilas told the BusinessMirror he would tap John Barrios of the University of the PhilippinesVisayas as consultant, Kevin Pison Piamonte as codirector, and Ruperto Quitag and Emman Larona as directors of photography. The 19 martyrs is a story of local revolutionary leaders who were killed during the Spanish occupation in the province. Their martyrdom is being commemorated every month of March in this town. A shrine was built to remind Aklanons of their bravery during the Spanish occupation.

Jess L. Fernandez of the Aklan Historical Society said the film documentary would be a welcome contribution to continue reminding the new generations on the history of the province. Jun N. Aguirre

Agriculture/Commodities BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

PHL, Israel to set up ‘modern’ farm in Clark

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he Department of Agriculture (DA) is eyeing a partnership with the Israeli government to help modernize Philippine agriculture by putting up a pilot farm that will make use of solar technology in Clark, Pampanga.

“We are pursuing the collaboration between the Israeli and Philippine government on modern agriculture, specifically,” Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol told reporters in a recent interview.

“We have agreed to establish a pilot farm where we will showcase solar technology with greenhouse,” he added.

Piñol said the DA and the Israeli government will establish the pilot farm in a 50-hectare plot in Clark.

“This is a new concept in solarenergy production, [as] underneath the solar panels would be greenhouses with controlled temperature to produce high-value crops and vegetables,” he said.

The DA chief said they are targeting to construct the pilot farm before the end of the year using funds from the Philippine government. The Israeli government would provide the solar technology with greenhouses, according to Piñol.

“Clark is a very strategic [area] because of its airport facility. The 50-hectare solar farm cum greenhouse that we intend to establish will be done with the PNOC [Philippine National Oil Co.],” he added.

Citing the PNOC, Piñol said the pilot farm would be able to produce 25 megawatts of power from the 50-hectare greenhouse.

“According to the PNOC, for every hectare of solar farm with greenhouse, they will be able to use 0.5 megawatts,” he said. “So, at 50 hectares, we are looking at about 25 megawatts of power to be produced from 50 hectares of greenhouse.”

Piñol said they would send farmers from Benguet province in July to Israel where they will undergo training on modern vegetable production.

This is part of the partnership between the DA and the Israeli government on enhancing the skills of Filipino farmers, according to Piñol.

Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

Editor: Jennifer A. Ng • Thursday, May 10, 2018 A9

Govt to roll out rice-research software

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

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@jearcalas

he Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) said it is developing an analysis tool that would allow researchers to fast-track the breeding of new stress-tolerant rice varieties to help farmers cope with climate change.

PhilRice, an attached agency of the Department of Agriculture, said it will be releasing “soon” a database software called the Rice Integrative Genomics Workbench in Galaxy (RIGby).

“RIGby wil help generate economic data needed in developing new rice varieties that are resistant to pests and diseases and can withstand drought, f lood, low temperature and salinity,” Dr. Reynante L. Ordonio, a PhilRice biotechnology expert, said in a statement.

Ordonio described RIGby as a “swiss knife” of tools for bioinformatics, as it contains the important data on rice breeding, which could hasten data generation and analysis.

The PhilRice said current rice sequencing and analysis takes “so much time,” as the data needed for the process are bulk and requires a large amount of storage.

“Through sequencing, traits needed to develop high-quality and stress-resistant varieties are mined.

Genomic data, which require large amounts of storage, contain the

functions of specific genes,” the PhilRice said.

Jan Michael C. Yap, project leader and lead developer of RIGby, said the software was specifically designed for rice research, as development of new stress-tolerant varieties are vital to cut the losses incurred by farmers due to climaterelated problems.

“Better rice research is expected from the software, which will eventually benefit the farmers,” Yap said.

The PhilRice said the software would still undergo beta testing with rice researchers being encouraged to use RIGby. It added that RIGby is a “free software and open for development to anyone.”

The Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development is funding the development of RIGby, according to PhilRice.

Last year the PhilRice said it was banking on an “advanced and more efficient” breeding process to produce climate-resilient rice seeds.

PhilRice scientist Roel Suralta

Photo shows NSIC Rc 222, one of the rice varieties developed by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice). NSIC Rc 222 is known to have “moderate” resistance to pests. To come up with more varieties like Rc 222, the PhilRice is currently developing an analysis tool dubbed as “RIGby.” www.philrice.gov.ph.

said precision breeding enables plant breeders to target traits that can be quantitatively associated with specific genes, which enhance plant performance.

“Precision breeding has been practiced in the Philippines for years. A classic example of PhilRicereleased variety that is also a prod-

uct of precision breeding is the NSIC Rc194, or Submarino 1, which has a submergence-tolerant trait,” Suralta said. “Other PhilRice varieties with improved disease-resistance are also a product of precision breeding,” he said.

PhilRice said precision breeding involves the transfer of specific

desired traits—such as those that can tolerate drought conditions or resist certain diseases—into existing outstanding cultivars.

“It improves speed and precision, as desirable traits within the entire map of genetic material of related plants are identified and targeted,” Suralta said.

Capiz farmers get land titles, farm equipment from DAR

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he Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) recently distributed certificates of land ownership award (CLOAs) to 154 farmers in the province of Capiz.

In a statement, the DAR said a total of 157.0374 hectares of lands divided into 240 CLOAs were formally handed over to 154 agrarian-reform beneficiaries in a ceremony held in Roxas City on Tuesday.

Based on data provided by the DAR Region 6, a total of 97 farmers

from the town of Pontevedra received their CLOAs during the ceremony; three from the town of Panay; nine from Panitan; 33 from Sigma; and 12 from Dao. DAR Undersecretary Karlo S. Bello of the Field Operations Office led the distribution activity and was joined by DAR-Region 6 Director Atty. Eugene Follante and other key officials of the agency from the central and regional offices.

The official turnover of millions

worth of support services was also facilitated during the ceremony to two agrarian-reform beneficiaries’ organizations (Arbos) in the province of Capiz. A four-wheel drive 90 horsepower Mccormic Tractor was formally handed down to the Agrarian Reform Cooperative of New Guia, an Arbo from Maayon town.

The tractor, worth P3.7 million, will be used by the cooperative to serve the rice, corn and sugarcane farmers in Maayon. The tractor is

already equipped with custom disc plow, trailing harrow and a trailer truck. According to the estimates of the DAR-Region 6, around 546 hectares of rice, 222 hectares of corn and 287 hectares of sugarcane lands will directly benefit from the services of the newly acquired tractor.

Chief Agrarian Reform Officer Anthony Arostique said the facility was released under the Climate Resilient Farms Productivity Support Project of the DAR.

The same cooperative was also the recipient of microfinance program worth P650,000 for swine production, catering and crop production, Arostique added. Another support facility, a two-wheel drive six-wheeler hauling dump truck was also turned over to ESMAC Multi-Purpose Cooperative of Binuntucan, Pontevedra.

The P3.5 million worth dump truck will be utilized for hauling services of rice, corn and sugarcane farmers in the area. Jonathan L. Mayuga

China cutting purchases of soybeans from American farmers in face of tariffs threat

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ASHINGTON—With the threat of tariffs and counter-tariffs between Washington and Beijing looming, Chinese buyers are canceling orders for United States soybeans, a trend that could deal a blow to American farmers if it continues.

At the same time, farmers in China are being encouraged to plant more soy, apparently to help offset any shortfall from the United States.

Beijing has included soybeans on a list of $50 billion of US exports on which it has said it would impose 25percent tariffs if the United States follows through on its threats to impose the same level of tariffs on the same value of Chinese goods.

The US tariffs could kick in later this month; China would likely retaliate soon after.

It can take a month or more for soybean shipments to travel from the United States to China. Any soybeans on their way to China now could be hit by the tariff by the time they arrive.

“The Chinese aren’t willing to buy US soybeans with a 25-percent tax hanging over their head,” said Dan Basse, president of AgResource, an agricultural research and advisory firm. “You just don’t want the risk.”

China typically buys most of its soybeans from South American nations such as Brazil and Argentina during spring and early summer. It shifts to US soybeans in the fall. As a result, for now, the cutbacks from the United States are relatively small.

But should they persist, it could cause real pain to US farmers. Roughly 60 percent of United States soybeans are shipped to China.

There might also be a political impact: Three of the top 5 soybeanexporting states—Iowa, Indiana and Nebraska—voted for President Donald J. Trump in 2016.

Illinois, the top soybean exporter, and Minnesota, the third-largest, backed Hillary Clinton.

Basse said that it has been roughly three weeks since China has made any major soybean purchases, an unusually long delay.

Some Chinese buyers might be showing support for their government in the trade dispute by turning away US soybeans, Basse said. The dispute may also make it seem too risky to buy from the United States over the long run.

“The United States could lose the reliable supplier label that we’ve had these many years,” Basse said.

Data from the US government data show that sales of soybeans have fallen from about 255,000 metric tons in the first week of April, when the trade dispute began, to just 7,900 in the week that ended April 26.

Cancellations have also jumped, to more than 140,000 metric tons in the week ending April 26. In the same week last year, there were no canceled sales at all.

Some analysts argue that the shifts aren’t yet particularly significant. China buys most of its

In this April 5 file photo, Matt Aultman, a grain salesman and feed nutritionist with Keller Grain & Feed Inc., shows locally grown soybeans during an interview at their facilities in Greenville, Ohio. AP

soybeans from the United States in the late summer and fall, and then switches to South American sources, mainly Brazil and Argentina, in the spring. So the current market activity doesn’t necessarily reflect the pattern that would occur during the main buying season.

“These numbers we’re talking about are pretty minor,” said John Baize, an economist for the US Soy-

bean Export Council. The United States ships about 35 million metric tons of soybeans to China a year, Baize said. China usually imports about 100 million tons a year and can’t import enough from other countries, he said, to abandon the United States as a source. “Where’s China going to buy its beans?” Baize asked.

That may be true in the short run. But Basse suggests that Brazil

has enough land that could be used for soybean cultivation that it could soon mostly replace the United States as a supplier to China.

And if the Chinese market were to be closed to US farmers, they might be able to sell some portion of their soybeans to other markets. Baize said that huge multinational companies, such as Cargill and ADM, might, for example,

sell more United States soybeans to Europe, where they wouldn’t face any tariffs, though this likely wouldn’t make up for the loss of the Chinese market.

At the same time, China is looking more to its own farmers. Since China announced its potential tariffs on US soy in April, the government has encouraged farmers to cultivate more soybeans. Beginning this month, Chinese farmers say, Beijing reduced corn subsidies and raised annual soybean subsidies from 2550 yuan ($400) per hectare to 3000 yuan ($470) or more per hectare in major soybean-producing provinces in northeast China.

An adjustment had already been planned to help draw down China’s substantial corn stockpiles, so the change wasn’t necessarily aimed at US soy growers, analysts say.

But the subsidy adjustment did come with political undertones. Officials in major soybean-producing provinces were describing the promotion of local soybeans as “the most important political task in agricultural production at present.”

Heilongjiang in northeast China announced a pilot project to plant soybeans on over 100,000 new hectares, with an extra 2,250 yuan ($353) subsidy per hectare.

The moves are prompting farmers like Liu Cong to focus more on growing soy. Liu says he used most of his land to grow corn last year but this year is planting more soybeans. AP

A10 Thursday, May 10, 2018 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

editorial

Agri sector needs flagship projects

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n his speech during the 51st annual meeting of the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) Board of Governors, President Duterte urged the multilateral development bank to lend more to the Philippines.

Duterte said the government needs more funds to bankroll the implementation of infrastructure projects under the “Build, Build, Build” program. Build, Build, Build, or BBB, is an ambitious program that would require some P8 trillion until 2022.

The government would certainly need more funds as it had declared that it intends to finance the rollout of various infrastructure projects than resort to the public-private partnership scheme introduced during the previous administration. While not totally abandoning PPPs, the current administration would rather spend for public infrastructure projects to fast-track the implementation of projects, which seek to create more jobs to cut poverty incidence.

Poverty, however, is more prevalent in the countryside. The International Fund for Agriculture Development (Ifad) noted that more than half of the Philippines’s 100 million people live in rural areas and many of them are poor. The Ifad said agriculture is the primary and often only source of income for poor rural people, most of whom depend on subsistence farming and fishing for their livelihood. Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed that among the nine basic sectors, the poorest were farmers and fishermen. In 2015 poverty incidence among farmers and fishermen were at 34.3 percent and 34 percent, respectively. The PSA noted that these sectors also recorded the highest poverty incidence in 2006, 2009 and 2012.

The government policy-makers did not seem to pay much attention to these figures when they crafted the BBB program. Of the 75 big-ticket “flagship projects”, only 11 are for the agriculture sector and are mostly focused on irrigation. Flagship projects are considered “high impact” or “game changing” because of their potential to create more jobs.

The agriculture sector is also in dire need of “flagship” projects, or those that would provide a boost to farmers’ production. The previous administration attempted to do this under the PPP scheme. These big projects include the establishment of cold-chain systems along four major food routes to and from Metro Manila and Cebu, and the construction of rice processing and trading centers with bulk handling and logistics support in 10 major seaports nationwide.

The Duterte administration must go beyond irrigation projects and the construction of farm-to-market roads if it wants to spur the growth of the farm sector. The 2017-2022 Public Investment Program is a good start as there are a number of research and development projects that have yet to secure funding. These are projects that aim to improve the quality of food produced in the country, cut production costs and help farmers in their planting decisions. At this time, when the Duterte administration is banking on the farm sector to boost export receipts, local food producers need all the assistance they can get to increase their competitiveness. The government would do well to keep this in mind when officials go around seeking more funds from multilateral development banks.

How ‘real money’ works John Mangun

OUTSIDE THE BOX

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t a time when virtually all the combined knowledge of 6,000 years of human history is available at the click of a mouse, so many people are breathtakingly ignorant. It is not just that too many people could not even begin to rewire a lamp or change a car’s flat tire—although that is frightening enough. It is that basic knowledge of the real world is deficient even in the face of the narrative killer called facts.

While it may be understandable that most of us have no idea of the purpose of the human spleen, at least we do have the brains to seek professional medical advice if we have a persistent pain in the upper far left part of the abdomen where the spleen is located.

However, if common sense dictates that the paper on the bottom of a siopao is not to be eaten, we should know about other everyday things like money, for example.

For the past decade, you have

probably heard that paper money is not “real” money and is fiat currency, which is bad. The reason certain experts tell us our money is not real is because the paper currency is not convertible or exchangeable by the government into a hard asset like gold, seashells, or bat guano. They say that this fiat money is created out of thin air because it is not “backed” by a hard asset. That is as logical and accurate as saying that chocolate milk comes only from brown cows.

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been and are still issuing too much debt but that is a separate issue that does not have to do with real money.

Even if the paper money is “backed” by gold, for example, the conversion rate can change at any time as the US did in the 1930s. Further, the key to the deal is that there is reasonable expectation that the government can repay the loan, just like there is a reasonable expectation you can repay your credit-card advance.

Therefore, the most critical aspect to fiat currency is the supply, which is absolutely limited to the amount that people are willing to loan the government, exactly as your cash advance is limited to the amount the bank is willing to give. Even Bitcoin—backed by nothing—is “real money” despite Warren Buffett’s comment at the Berkshire Hathaway 2018 annual shareholder meeting last Saturday that “Bitcoin is probably rat poison squared.”

E-mail me at mangun@gmail.com. Visit my web site at www.mangunonmarkets.com. Follow me on Twitter @mangunonmarkets. PSE stockmarket information and technical analysis tools provided by the COL Financial Group Inc.

Duterte kicks out De Lima, Sereno; Leni next to get the ax?

Since 2005

Founder

You go to work and you are paid for your time and effort. One day you come to buy my car, carrying P200,000 in cash. I ask you where the money came from and you say that you took cash advance on your credit card. In shock, I tell you that your money is not real because you created it out of thin air. You did nothing to earn the money, therefore, it is not real. You did not exchange your gold, seashells, or bat guano for the money, therefore, it is not backed by a hard asset.

My silly story is no less ridiculous than saying “fiat currency” is not real money. Like your credit-card cash advance, governments raise money for spending by borrowing money from the banks—your deposit money—and issuing debt backed by the full faith and credit of the government. It is just like your promise to repay your creditcard advance.

When governments do create money out of thin air, like what Venezuela is doing, and Zimbabwe before, without a believable promise to repay the loans, then hyperinflation happens almost immediately.

We can say that governments have

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omorrow (May 11), the whole nation will witness the prostitution of the country’s justice system, unless a miracle happens, as the Supreme Court gives weight to Solicitor General Jose Calida’s quo warranto petition against Chief Justice (CJ) Maria Lourdes A. Sereno.

Even the CJ’s supporters have thrown in the towel, but will proceed with the so-called Jericho March to protest the injustice to be rendered by those who have been bequeathed by the Constitution “to render fair and just judgement.”

Alas, Lady Justice is no longer blindfolded, as she acquiesces to the demands of those who shun democratic processes. We all know where this is leading to: the total revision of history, which started even prior to Duterte’s ascension to power.

It is the Marcos family’s quest to seek redemption by totally erasing the hideous misdeeds committed by their dictator-patriarch Ferdinand Marcos Sr. against the Filipino people during his murderous regime that led to his ouster in February 25, 1986, via a peaceful people power revolution.

The Marcos family discovered a gold mine in social media, adeptly using it to condition the minds of the younger generation who are clueless to what transpired during martial law.

The narrative that the late strongman Marcos is “the greatest president the country has ever had” gained traction among unsuspecting millennials who later formed the Marcoses’ political base. This unwarranted claim gave life to Bongbong Marcos’s online trolls who then began trumpeting the family’s “good deeds” in various social-media platforms.

It didn’t take long before the family found a person who would champion the family’s quest to refurbish its image: Davao Mayor Rodrigo Roa Duterte. Ironically, Duterte’s late mother Soledad was one of the active anti-Marcos leaders in Mindanao.

The despot got Duterte’s blessing to be buried at the Libingan ng mga Bayani, the first step to the Marcoses’ bid to deodorize the family’s image.

Now the fight shifts to the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET), which is hearing the election protest that Bongbong Marcos (BBM) filed against Vice President Leni Robredo. There is growing fear that, this early, the PET

is showing some bias in favor of BBM. The Supreme Court, sitting as the PET, earlier junked the motion Robredo filed to consider 25 percent of oval shading as a valid vote. Robredo’s camp earlier filed a motion urging the PET to follow the Commission on Elections’s (Comelec) Random Manual Audit Guidelines and Report. It claims that the threshold percentage in determining the validity of votes during the 2016 national and local elections was 25 percent and not 50 percent oval shading.

I find this technicality ridiculous.

Whether it’s shaded 10 percent or even less, the intent of the voters was clearly to cast their lot on their preferred candidate. Why their votes have to be invalidated just because of shading issues elicits serious questions about how the PET, now possibly without Sereno, will conduct the electoral protest.

In the first place, BBM’s protest is questionable. If he were indeed cheated, then all those who won during the 2016 election were cheated as well, owing to the nature of the automated election process.

While the vote counting machines (VCM) are not perfectly tamper-proof, any form of cheating presents an insoluble task. It requires enormous resources, manpower and precise timing. For one, every vote is logged and stored into the SEALED machine at precinct level. This means that there is foundation for verification. Yes, the final results are ultimately taken from the information transmitted to the Consolidated Canvassing System (CCS), but if any erroneous or anom-

alous transmissions were detected, such a comparison can easily be done with the results stored in the transmission chain, from the National Board of Canvassers, Provincial Board of Canvassers and Municipal Board of Canvassers, all the way down to the information stored at the VCMs at precinct level.

And speaking of “erroneous or anomalous transmissions,” a timedelayed firewall prevents any other transmissions that are not sent within a set time interval. It would be extremely difficult to synchronize any unauthorized or altered transmissions with this system, because the system will only take specific transmissions from specific VCMs at specific times.

Any mismatch among these would be immediately reported by the CCS. In the case of failed transmissions, the system protocol is to have the results manually transmitted. While these may seem like a window of opportunity for cheating, the results still must be transmitted by transporting the entire VCM itself via a computer authorized by the system that is also under the care of the Municipal Board of Canvassers.

Speaking of VCMs, the Comelec has decided to buy, instead of rent, them. The poll body has relied on them in the past elections and found them to be reliable. They have already been tried and tested under real-life conditions.

Purchasing the machines was more economical. Consider these: For the 2016 presidential polls, the Comelec reportedly spent somewhere around See “Villanueva,” A11

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

A tale of two Koreas: When two become one

The evangelizers

DECISION TIME

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and in hand and coupled with a hug, the two leaders of North and South Korea—Kim Jong Un and Moon Jae-in— discussed the world’s elusive dream of putting an end to the long-drawn Korean War that started in the 1950s. In 1953 an armistice delivered a cease-fire to the Korean War but the absence of a peace treaty did not help in bringing an official conclusion to the conflict.

This is why the community of nations was filled with delight seeing the Panmunjom village inside the demilitarized zone unfolding into a site for a remarkable announcement from the two leaders that there will be no more war in Korea and that the road to denuclearization will be the way forward, with the United States and China providing support.

Welcome surprise

Nobody expected that the recent hard line directives of the US to the UN Security Council to impose strong economic sanctions against North Korea such as banning its exports worth more than $1 billion a year and the limitation on China’s oil exports to Pyongyang shall result to something as dramatically important like this. With a vow to seriously discuss a possible treaty that will close the last chapter of a long standing truce book, political and foreign policy experts are saying that this can be the start of the removal of nuclear weapons in North Korea.

Both leaders, likewise, committed to work together and continue the efforts with the US to end the dispute.

And while China took the sidelines in this event, it also heralded the pronouncements in Panmunjom.

Caution and disbelief

Can there be one Korea? There are tough challenges in terms of merging the two countries into one. Economically speaking, North Korea is agriculturally based and its GNP cannot compare to that of South Korea, which has one of the biggest economies in the world right now.

The latter is one of the leading centers of technology and engineering in the Asia-Pacific region.

On the security front, it is of common knowledge that the secretive North’s military industrial complex is legendary. It has a huge number of vessels, helicopters, submarines and aircraft. Of course, one cannot miss their arsenal of both nuclear and chemical weapons. The North Korean army is now close to 1.2 million, not to mention those in the reserve force. What to do with these resources will surely be problematic.

Different and contradictory

Talking about people and culture, South Korea is one of the most IT

Villanueva . . . continued from A10

P8 billion to rent almost 97,000 VCMs from Smartmatic. For the upcoming 2019 midterm elections, therefore, that figure will likely remain the same, if not higher, due to inflation.

Fortunately, in the existing Comelec-Smartmatic contract (yes, this is a foregoing stipulation of a previously signed and approved contract, so conspiracy theories about “midnight deals” have no basis whatsoever), the poll body has the option to purchase the machines for P 2.21 billion after a certain period of time. Compare the rental fee of P8 billion to a purchase cost of P2.21 billion. Doesn’t that sound like a no-brainer, in the name of prudent spending?

Furthermore, there is a clause that requires Smartmatic to fully repair and/or refurbish each VCM free of charge before the sale is completed. Accordingly, there is no

driven, entertainment-frenzied but also the most educationally competitive societies in the world right now. The young are obsessed with glitz and glamor, video games and pop irreverence. Work hours are long, tedious and stressful for most South Koreans and it may be very difficult to assimilate North Koreans who are used to predictable “work-home-work” or “schoolhome-school” routines. The possibility of unfair comparisons between the two societies may be socially difficult in a two system, one nation set up.

In the international political scene, the China-Russia-North Korea security coalition vis-à-vis the US-Japan and South Korea bloc and their respective interests have to be carefully balanced or reconciled. With a reunification, some would wonder what would happen to the US troops in the South. And what will be the disposition on China’s traditional all out support for North Korea because of its sensitivity to US presence?

Realistic questions demand early reflection, masterful review of all options given the honest need for a new geopolitical landscape for peace.

Though arduous and daunting, let us savor these once in a lifetime moments when the two Korean leaders with common forebears, ancestors and bloodlines, talk about what binds them as a people—common heritage, values such as love for family and people, love for nature, cultural treasures in food, arts, music and literature and everything else that makes us human.

The mere spectacle of this reunion is quite a sight to behold. So let it be. The world deserves this, even just for a while.

A Bachelor of Arts magna cum laude graduate of the University of the Philippines, the author is a management consultant on Strategy and Investment. He was a lecturer at the University of the Philippines before he was hired as researcher-reporter of ABS-CBN Channel 2. He also served as deputy commissioner of the Bureau of Customs; CEO of the Office of Civil Defense, Department of National Defense; chairman and CEO of MNL Corp.; chairman and CEO, Orion Energy Corp.; and member of PMA Class of 1987.

For comments and suggestions, e-mail arielnepo.businessmirror@gmail.com.

risk of obsolescence or significant depreciation. The VCMs are guaranteed to be reliable for the 2019 elections, and even in 2022.

This effectively saves the Comelec over P5 billion, which it could use for other endeavors, such as voter registration and distribution of voter IDs. God knows they need a lot of help in those areas.

Of course, there will always be some pundits and armchair analysts questioning the dependability of the VCMs. This brings to mind a recent conversation I had with an insider from the administration, who confided that, thus far, the ongoing vice presidential vote recount has mirrored the exact results of the ones coming from the automated VCMs. Now that the election machines have been bought by the Comelec, hopefully the next step is to stop candidates from buying the election itself.

For comments and suggestions, e-mail me at mvala.v@gmail.com.

The church

Msgr. Sabino A. Vengco Jr.

Alálaong Bagá

Ariel Nepomuceno

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he Ascension of Jesus Christ into the Father’s eternal glory was not the end of the Savior’s direct and personal involvement with our salvation. Rather a new chapter was opened in the ongoing mission of leading humankind back to the love of the God, henceforth with the followers of Jesus as evangelizers proclaiming the Gospel to the whole world (Mark 16:15-20).

The Gospel These concluding verses of Saint Mark seem to have been added early on to his original text as an inspired summary of what followed in the Christian community after Jesus was raised to heaven. The final mission He entrusted to His disciples is to “proclaim the gospel to every creature.” They are to “go to the whole world” to do this. And what they are to communicate to the world is the very person of Jesus, not merely a body of doctrines, for in Mark’s writing the gospel is Jesus Himself (1:1).

The object of the proclamation is Jesus who is the salvation of humanity.

That is why “Whoever believes

Thursday, May 10, 2018 A11

and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned.”

The centrality and indispensability of Jesus is unmistakable. His coming and incarnation signified the presence of the kingdom of God and indicated the fulfillment of the prophecies of old (1:14-15). This salvific event demands repentance and faith, trust in the person of Jesus, reorienting oneself totally according to Him, living in communion with Him. Baptism is the symbol and sacrament of such a new life of personal intimacy with Jesus. To refuse to entrust oneself to Jesus cannot but mean to reject salvation, to condemn oneself to isolation from God.

The body or assembly of the followers of Jesus, the ecclesia/iglesia (katipunan), is principally to be concerned with evangelization, the mission of announcing to the whole world Jesus’ gospel of salvation. Christians are literally to be the embodiment of Jesus Christ and His sacrament in the world today. Hence their words must be in accord with and replicating His Word, their actions imaging and concretizing his love and mercy, their ministry an extension of his service. The church is not about herself; she is of Jesus and for Jesus. Her mission is not just to build herself up, but to spread to all the world God’s kingdom in and through Jesus.

Believers who live in union with Jesus are his kindred spirits (kadiwa). Without authentic faith, they cannot possibly do their appointed task. But in the Spirit of Jesus they can today accomplish what the disciples did then, preaching everywhere and accompanied with signs of wonder and might, as Jesus promised that those who believe in Him will be accompanied by deeds confirming the Word. In words and deeds, Jesus continues today the work of salvation in and through the ministry of His followers, and this will be till the end of time. All believers

are tasked to share the faith they have; evangelized, they are called to be evangelizers—every generation with their own methods and expressions and vigor. For instance, one should be able to choose any saints of the modern times or any apostolic group of today and narrate of their proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ and of their acts of heroic love and mighty deeds.

Alálaong bagá, Jesus Christ in heaven is glorified by His followers’ commitment to share and proclaim to the world His Gospel of salvation.

This Gospel of life means not only words but deeds of Christ-like love and compassion for all especially for the needy and the little ones. Here and now, as evangelizers and bearers of the Word of salvation to the whole world, we cannot detach ourselves from the social and political realities and challenges around us. The gospel of Jesus Christ is addressed to humankind integrally, and we do not witness to it with only declamation of doctrines, but particularly with our corresponding lives of love and fidelity.

Join me in meditating on the Word of God every Sunday, from 5 to 6 a.m. on DWIZ 882, or by audio streaming on www.dwiz882.com.

Short on being dutiful, responsible and disciplined Cecilio T. Arillo

database

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HIS month marks the sixth death anniversary of Gen. Guillermo Pecache, a distinguished Philippine Military Academy alumnus (Class of 1951) and himself a respected lawyer, who wrote an enlightening subject on terrorism and human rights as president of the Asian Institute of Strategic Studies and of the Philippine Chapter of the Asia-Pacific League for Freedom and Democracy.

“Those who insist that no threat or danger can ever justify the curtailment of certain human rights, stand on a lofty cloud of idealism, yet would not hold themselves responsible for the deaths of innocents. Their impassioned arguments only make it possible for terrorists and the lawless to move about freely and exploit human rights and liberties to violate those of others,” Pecache said.

Terrorism is a clear, present and actual danger that compels many to contemplate whether human rights should have primacy over human lives.

For those who understand the true concept of democracy, moral confusion is not a problem since always the first and highest consideration would be the welfare of the majority of the people, the national interest, public order and public safety much as legitimate demands of minorities and even deviants are accommodated, Pecache said.

“It would be worthwhile to go back to that basic document, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a document that enumerates a long list

of rights and people tend to overlook its concluding two Articles, without which the preceding rights would not be viable.

“Although couched in diplomatic language, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights unequivocally affirms that terrorists have no human rights. It tells us that the enjoyment of human rights is subject to the democratic requirements of public order and the general welfare,” Pecache argued.

The 1987 Constitution, crafted after President Corazon C. Aquino hastily took over the presidency in the 1986 People Power revolt, made martial rule and the suspension of the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus virtual impossibilities and of limited potency, making their declaration by the president, as well as their duration, subject to the pleasures of Congress and/or of the Supreme Court.

Provisions of the Constitution also make the Republic prone to instability particularly the shortened terms of office of public officials and limitations on successive uninterrupted terms. While the intention

for these are noble, these have only induced dynasties, discontinuity of policies and excessive politicking at the expense of public service.

The most glaring weakness of the current charter is less in its text rather than its nonimplementation. Of what use are the provisions on elections, impeachment and recall when Presidents can be deposed anytime, and the resulting extra-constitutional succession or take-over ratified or legitimized in unorthodox ways or those inconsistent with laws?

Thus, it is a great wonder if the Philippines which is “democratic and Republican state,” as the 1987 Constitution phrases it, can develop the strength it needs to become competitive internationally and stable internally. In addition to structural changes based mainly on constitutional amendments, it appears that what is needed to mold a stronger Republic from the national security viewpoint is a disciplined citizenry, responsible government and a fervor for national unity and patriotism.

Not saying that democracy does not figure in the equation, it must be pointed out that in the 32 years of democracy that have transpired since the 1986 Edsa uprising, the Republic has yet to enjoy a meaningful moment of strength, said the bestselling book, A Country Imperiled, authored by this writer and published in 2011 by Amazon, one of the world’s largest publishing houses.

“Always, the nation wallows in insecurity and instability, not knowing when fuel and power prices will rise again, or whether the current President will complete his or her term, or when the next coup d’état will come, or where terrorists, kidnappers and criminal syndicates might strike next, or which bank or preneed company will collapse soon or

Europe’s wrongheaded data rules

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his month the European Union will embark on an expansive effort to give people more control over their data online. Known as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), it’s ambitious, well-intentioned and largely wrongheaded. As it comes into force, Europe should be mindful of unintended consequences—and open to change when things go wrong.

No one could say the GDPR lacks purpose. At more than 260 pages long, it articulates dozens of goals in the service of “a strong and more coherent data protection framework.”

Meeting these ambitions will be the job of companies—wherever they’re located—that process the data of European citizens. Among other things, they’ll

need to obtain consent from users; explain how their data will be used; allow people to see what’s been swooped up; and permit them, at any moment, to withdraw their consent or demand that their data be deleted.

Given the public backlash against data collection—and support for the GDPR’s stated goals—this approach might seem reasonable. But look more closely and the drawbacks are glaring.

Most obvious are the costs. By one estimate, big multinationals will spend $7.8 billion simply preparing for the GDPR. They’ll need to hire compliance staff, compile voluminous documentation, handsomely pay lawyers and consultants, and in many cases rethink their business models and retool

their technologies. Failure to comply could result in fines of up to 4 percent of global revenue.

Surely Facebook and Google can afford such costs, you might say. Yet this, too, is a problem: The GDPR is likely to advantage big tech companies at the expense of smaller ones. Few small businesses will be able to fully comply with these rules, while many of them will suffer from having less effective advertising.

Europe’s dearth of notable start-ups will hardly improve.

Worse, the rules could impede innovation. Many blockchain companies could be shut out entirely. Cloud computing may become substantially more complicated. Systems that rely on artificial intelligence could in many cases be in-

whether the government will make compromises in negotiating peace with rebels,” said the book’s introduction written by the late Dr. Galileo Kintanar Sr. “Democracy has not made the nation neither stronger nor more prosperous and in the final analysis, it has not even gainfully increased liberties and rights, except among terrorists and subversives,” Kintanar said.

The practice of democracy is not alien to Filipino temperament and the theory that Asians find greater security or comfort in despotism is hardly applicable to the country.

This is so because in the Philippine setting, the practice of democracy has been long on freedoms, rights and privileges and short on being responsible, dutiful and disciplined.

Still, hope remains for the Republic of the Philippines. Japan and Germany, which are both devastated worse than the country at the end of the Second World War, have since become world economic powers. Apparently, their citizens and leaders were more patriotic, disciplined, united and resolute. The Republic, never having been a world power, not even an Asian power, is still developing its unity and strength, the process slow and erratic.

If the country is weak, it is less because others are stronger, but more because of its inherent faults.

Filipinos and others, who do not want the Republic to be strong, have condemned the people to the cruel consequences of weakness. They confuse strength with war, weakness with peace.

But soon they shall discover their folly, for as evolution proceeds, only the strong survives.

To reach the writer, e-mail cecilio.arillo@ gmail.com.

compatible with the GDPR’s mandates.

It’s an ominous sign that Facebook has already started pulling some data projects from Europe.

Yet all this is more or less by design; there will also be unintended consequences. Although the GDPR aims to improve data security, for instance, its privacy rules may compromise a crucial tool used by security researchers, thereby increasing spam, phishing attacks and malware. Its compliance costs could inhibit cybersecurity investment.

Its emphasis on obtaining consent for data collection is, in practice, likely to mean endless “click to proceed” boxes that leave customers little more informed—and significantly more irritated—than before. Bloomberg View

2nd Front Page BusinessMirror

A12 Thursday, May 10, 2018

New DOT chief vows to be tough on corruption; will keep ‘It’s More Fun in the PHL’ brand campaign

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo

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@akosistellaBM Special to the BusinessMirror

HE new tourism secretarydesignate has vowed to be tough on corruption and to go over all project contracts with a finetooth comb.

In a news conference at her office at the Department of Agriculture (DA) where she is an undersecretary, Berna RomuloPuyat said, “I will take a look at it [P60-million media-placement deal between the Department of Tourism and the People’s Television Network Inc.], then leave it to the authorities [to determine the criminal liability].”

She emphasized that she would be going over all the project contracts that have been signed in the past. “I will look at everything.

I’m very meticulous. [Personally], before I sign anything I have three lawyers look at it, and an accountant.” She added she will also take a look at the Buhay Carinderia project of the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB). “I have nothing against street food, but you can do everything and not hold it, in lieu of Madrid Fusión Manila [MFM],” she said.

Romulo-Puyat defended the MFM for having helped farmers and the marketing of their produce.

“You know [MFM] is a very successful project,” she said.

“When we started in 2015, the DA was one of the major sponsors because it’s about food. Our job was to promote the local ingredients.

And all I had were 45 chefs who volunteered, Tony Boy Escalante, Margarita Fores, all the top chefs gave their services for free, just so they could produce the best the country had to offer,” Romulo-Puyat added.

“My main objective then was to prove to the whole world that we had good food. I got surprised that local consumers and chefs found these tasty local ingredients. Since then, the chefs have asked me where they get those ingredients and buy them.... it’s a way to get to know the

Philippines through food,” she said.

Romulo-Puyat also said she would keep the “It’s More Fun in the Philippines” brand campaign. “It works! It’s a successful campaign.

Why do we have to change it? To change it, the DOT would have to pay for a new one again.”

She expressed admiration for former Tourism Secretary Ramon R. Jimenez Jr., who was instrumental in launching that “more fun” campaign. “I have so much respect for him. He knows how to think out of the box. Ang galing n’ya. [He’s very good.]”

Romulo-Puyat said she would likely keep the career officials at DOT. “I’ve been working with them for five years already, the career officials are very good. They’re very professional no matter who the President is. I’m excited to work with them again.”

Romulo-Puyat said she was a stickler for civil-service rules, and said she would not have any family members involved with the DOT or any of its projects. “Even when my brother ran for the Senate, I didn’t even campaign for him. That’s prohibited under civil-service rules. And your only capital is your reputation.”

She declined to make any categorical statement regarding the holding of the Miss Universe beauty pageant, as she has yet to talk to the DOT officials who have been organizing it. “When I meet with them, I plan to ask about their plans and programs for next year, because we’re all preparing our budgets for 2019. I want to see it, and I want them to evaluate it, where to focus on with the limited budget, so I can’t say if it will push through our not.”

Romulo-Puyat was appointed as DOT secretary after Wanda Corazon T. Teo resigned her post on

Tourism Secretary-Designate Berna Fatima Romulo-Puyat explains to media on Wednesday why it was prudent to keep the “It’s More Fun in the Philippines” brand campaign. ma. stella F. Arnaldo

Monday over allegations that her brothers benefited from the media placement contract of the government agency with People’s Television Network Inc. An investigation by the Office of the President is ongoing, while the Ombudsman has said it would be coordinating with the Commission on Audit (COA) to find out more about the case.

Why me?

Hard-hitting journalist Erwin Tulfo, meanwhile, has finally broken his silence on the P60-million tourism advertisement of PTV-4, which is being questioned by the COA, and has resulted in the resignation of his sister, Wanda, as secretary of the DOT. Tulfo, a news anchor of PTV-4 and commentator of Radyo Pilipinas, explained that he didn’t know anything about the issue because he was not involved in the negotiation or contract signing between the DOT, PTV-4 and Bitag Media Unlimited Inc. (BMUI).

It can be recalled that the COA was asking for the memorandum of agreement (MOA) between PTV and BMUI regarding the said ad

placement, amounting to P60 million. But Erwin clarified that he has nothing to do with it, since he is just an ordinary talent and employee of BMUI and not the owner nor the producer, as mentioned in some reports. “I would like to clarify that I am not the owner, producer or an official of BMUI and I have nothing to do with its operation, ” he said in Filipino.

Tulfo added that he decided to give his side after noticing that his name is also being dragged to the controversy, and he was mentioned in some news reports as the owner and producer of BMUI, which, he said, is owned by his brother, Ben. “Like an ordinary employee, I am just a talent or a casual employee of BMUI, just like anchor man, Alex Santos,” he said. “Hindi ko maintindihan kung bakit pinipilit ng ilan na isama ako sa isyung ito gayung ang kinalaman ko lang ay mga kapatid ko ang nasa sentro ng kontrobersiya,” Tulfo added.

He also challenged those behind the issue to just file a case against him, adding that he is more than ready to be investigated and face them in court.

Manila opts to stay neutral on calls DOLE to craft rules to back free trade for ‘endo’ EO Continued from A1

The group also took note of the recovering merchandise trade across countries, in which they said “all regions contributed.”

They were also encouraged by the WTO’s positive forecast for this year and next.

“However, we are concerned about increased trade tensions and related risks for the multilateral trading system and world trade. We encourage WTO members to refrain from taking protectionist measures and to avoid risks of escalation,” the group said in the joint statement.

Similar to WTO Director General Roberto Azevedo’s recommendation, the 41 countr ies called on the economies in conflict to seek the negotiating table and resolve disputes in bilateral discussions. T hey a lso urged the parties to take appropriate measures contained in the WTO

dispute settlement procedure.

“We consider that action is needed to address major challenges facing the WTO. We particularly note difficulties in concluding negotiations and divergent positions on trade and development,” they collectively said.

“With respect to the WTO’s dispute settlement mechanism, we emphasize the importance of filling all current and future vacancies on the Appellate Body without delay. We underline the necessity for members to contribute to keeping the WTO effective, relevant and responsive to all members’ needs, and we commit to continue working with all members to improve the WTO,” they added.

The Philippines, its continued observance of the multilateral trading system notwithstanding, did not sign the statement. But six member-states of the Asean, name-

ly, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, signed the statement.

The other cosponsors of the statement include Argentina, Australia, Bangladesh, Benin, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Côte d’Ivoire, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Hong Kong, Iceland, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Liechtenstein, Mali, Mexico, Moldova, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Qatar, South Korea, Switzerland, Macedonia, Turkey, Ukraine and Uruguay.

The statement was issued at a time when the effectiveness of the multilateral trading system is put to question by the protectionist measures adopted both by Washington and Beijing. The contending economies have also threatened to raise barriers via stiffer tariff schedules on dozens of products.

Continued from A1

Tripartite Industrial Peace Council under Article 290(c) of the Labor Code, as amended, declare activities which may be contracted out.”

In the upcoming NTIPC meeting, Maglunsod said, they will focus on the creation of the guidelines for the implementation of the said provision of EO 51.

“We will discuss EO 51, particularly, it if it will be by industries,” Maglunsod said.

The Federation of Free Worker earlier said it is hopeful that the said provision of the EO will give workers the power to oppose the contracting out of jobs.

The Partido Manggawa, Trade Union Congress of the Philippines, and Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa See “DOLE,” A2

www.businessmirror.com.ph

‘Islands of globalization’: An archipelago within an archipelago Continued from A1

As a result of the foregoing, the call-center and BPO investors/ locators have fueled the construction of what a Dutch researcher, Jana Maria Kleibert, terms as “islands of globalization.” These islands are “globalized enclaves,” providing offshored services to corporate and individual clients based in North America, Europe and other developed countries of the world. These call-centers/BPO offices are virtual extensions of these countries. As such, these islands of globalization constitute a separate archipelago unto themselves.

They are an archipelago within an archipelago.

What are the major factors that contributed to this enclave development?

In her book Expanding Global Production Networks (University of Amsterdam, 2015), Kleibert offered several explanations. First, the call-center/BPO investors locate their offices in areas closest to target “talents,” meaning the pool of readily available graduates with facility in English communication and skills in the use of ICT gadgets. These are mostly the well-educated urban youth, who can be enticed to work even at night time because of a First World work environment in the air-conditioned high-rise buildings. This is complemented with higher pay and extra benefits that ordinary Filipino workers do not get.

Second, the BPO firms and call centers require secure office spaces and Internet connectivity. Kleibert quoted a European BPO manager: “You can see, this building is like a fortress. That’s the same with all BPO offices here. We want to make sure our stakeholders are satisfied with what they see here in terms of security.”

Third, real-estate developers, mostly Filipino conglomerates, are happy because the call-center/BPO buildings have been declared “special economic zones” (SEZs) by Philippine Economic Zone Authority.

Hence, they are exempted from land and property taxes. Specifically, they are exempted from the 12-percent value-added tax.

The enclave nature of the development of these “islands of globalization” is further reinforced by the efforts of the call-center/ BPO investors and their allied real-estate developers to promote western lifestyle and culture among their employees, such as wearing designer clothes and watches or downing a bottle of beer after work (even if it is six o’clock in the morning). Not surprisingly, the ground floors of these high-rise buildings are occupied by shops retailing Western goods, complete with ATM machines. Kleibert summed up the enclave nature of the culture being developed in these islands of globalization based on the example of the Bonifacio Global City.

The BGC, she said: “…hosts not only office space for call centers and back offices of international banks, but also entertainment, shopping and residential spaces. Service-based SEZs go beyond simply segregated spaces of living and consumption, but constitute globally oriented 24-hour enclaves engaging in export service delivery. The privately owned, highly securitized and sanitized spaces, are shaped according to a highly Americanized model of modernity, in which call-center agents take calls during US working hours (Filipino night time), speak with American accents, and pay dollar-equivalent prices for a breakfast at McDonald’s, or a coffee at Starbucks. Entertainment opportunities abound in these space, which almost resemble theme parks. Options range from bowling, to watching the newest Hollywood blockbusters, to buying American-branded goods in the air-conditioned shopping malls.”

Work, work environment and the emerging culture in these islands of globalization are fascinating topics for any sociological discourse on the call-center/BPO phenomenon among academics.

However, the question that is raised by Kleibert is worth pondering: Is the enclave nature of the SEZ-classified sector the ideal development model for the Philippines? These islands of globalization are a world apart from the rest of the country. Linkages with the domestic market and even culture are limited. This is one reason one Filipino economist observed that the sector tends to accentuate inequality and economic dualism in the country.

Of course, the sector, considered a gift of globalization (like migration), is a major contributor to the GDP. It has created a million plus jobs for the country and the dollar earnings it generates are now close to the total amount of foreign exchange remitted by the OFWs. There is even a cryptic comment by some call-center managers: “Work overseas but stay at home,” for the work done is really for foreign clients, not Filipinos.

There is, however, a downside worrying the sector managers and government policy-makers. Robotics, artificial intelligence and advances in interactive communication are threatening the jobs at the low end of the call-center/BPO sector. Jobs on the voice side of the sector are the most vulnerable. Socioeconmic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia was even reported to have admitted that growth in the sector has already “plateaued.” Are we going to witness a repeat of the jobs decline in the garments industry, which at one time had generated over a million jobs in the country and now employ just around 100,000 or less?

This brings us to the issue of the sustainability of GVC industries, which are vulnerable to changes in technology and investment priorities of the GVC multinational organizers.

Scaling up in the call-center/BPO sector, which has been happening gradually or incrementally, mostly in the nonvoice side (design, creative programing, etc.), needs to be speeded up. But the problem is that the nonvoice side accounts only for a fraction of total employment in the sector. And scaling up, involving more technology and higher productivity, does not necessarily lead to more jobs.

Clearly, a more comprehensive industrial policy of upgrading the sector, promoting productive linkages with the domestic economy and developing a more inclusive and balanced industrial and agricultural development for the whole archipelago is in order. Are the Executive and Legislative branches ready for this task?