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Thursday, May 26, 2022 Vol. 17 No. 230

P.  |     | 7 DAYS A WEEK

BBM, SARA WINNERS

THE hands of President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. are raised by Senate President Vicente Sotto III and Speaker Lord Allan Velasco as he is proclaimed winner of the May 9 elections by the joint session of Congress on Wednesday (May 25, 2022). Joining him are (from left) sister Sen. Imee Marcos, his mother and former first lady Imelda R. Marcos, son Joseph Simon, sister Irene Marcos-Araneta, wife Liza Araneta-Marcos, and his first cousin, House Majority Leader Martin Romualdez. BERNARD TESTA

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@joveemarie

S he promised to repay the “trust and the confidence” of over 31 million Filipinos who voted for him, former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. was officially proclaimed by Congress on Wednesday the 17th Philippine president, with his running mate Sara Duterte-Carpio proclaimed as the vice president-elect.

The proclamation at the Batasang Pambansa capped what was billed the fastest canvassing—less than two days—in the history of elections in the Philippines, with Congress, sitting as the National Board of Canvassers, formalizing the landslide victory of the UniTeam tandem in the May 9 elections, with an unprecedentedly strong majority vote.

House Majority Leader and Leyte 1st District Rep. Martin G. Romualdez and Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri reported that Marcos received 31,629,783 votes, or a lead of more than 16,594,010 votes over his nearest rival, Vice President Maria Leonor Gerona Robredo.

For the vice presidency, the two lawmakers said Davao Mayor Sara Zimmerman Duterte-Caprio received 32,208,417 votes and had a margin of 22,879,210 votes over her closest rival, Sen. Francis Nepomuceno Pangilinan. The joint canvassing committee took just two days to finish tabulating 171 out of 173 certificates of canvass (COCs) from 81 provinces and independent cities, and those containing absentee local and overseas Filipinos’ votes.

The NBOC started the canvassing at 10:00 am on Tuesday and ended at around 3:30 pm on Wednesday.

The joint session of Congress presided by Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III and Speaker Lord Allan Velasco approved the report of the joint canvassing committee.

Later, they adopted the separate motions Zubiri and Romualdez to proclaim Marcos and Duterte as the winning president and vice president.

PESO EXCHANGE RATES

Under the 1987 Constitution, the President and the Vice President shall be elected by direct vote of the people for a term of six years, to begin at noon on the 30th day of June next following the day of the election, and to end at noon of the same date, six years thereafter.

The Constitution said the President shall submit to Congress, within 30 days from the opening of every regular session as the basis of the general appropriations bill, a budget of expenditures and sources of financing, including receipts from existing and proposed revenue measures.

The first State of the Nation Address (SONA) of Marcos is on July 25.

‘Pray for me, wish me well’

IN an ambush interview after his proclamation, Marcos asked the people to “pray for me. Wish me well. I want to do well.... When a president does well, the country does well.”

He said “the most valuable thing” a public servant may receive “from a fellow citizen is a vote.” While that vote embeds the people’s hopes and aspirations for the future, “also embedded in that vote are the trust and the confidence that they give to you.”

He said he was “inspired by this responsibility,” adding, “we may not be perfect, but we will always strive for perfection.”

Behind Marcos as his hands were raised by Sotto and Velasco were his wife Liza Araneta-Marcos, his

bares P350-B fiscal NEDA: SUBSIDIES CAN’T DOF BRING DOWN RICE PRICES plan to help outgrow debt B C U. O @caiordinario

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HE incoming administration can only bring down the cost of rice to around P20 to P30 per kilo if the government will help increase the productivity of farmers instead of “blindly” providing subsidies, according to the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda).

In a virtual briefing at the Kapihan sa Manila Bay on Wednesday, outgoing Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua said there is room to bring down the price of rice because Southeast Asian countries are able to produce the staple at a lower cost.

Chua said the cost of producing rice in Vietnam and Thailand, also predominantly rice-consuming nations, are 70 to 100 percent lower than in the Philippines. Currently, he said, rice averaged P35 to P45 per kilo.

“Kaya naman [it can be done] if we help farmers improve productivity instead of blindly giving subsidies na wala namang na-poproduce na [without] efficiency improvements and I think the rice tariffication and the RCEF [Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund] are the tools to help achieve those,” Chua said.

The law, Republic Act No. 11203, not only replaced quantitative re-

strictions on imported rice with tariffs, but also created the RCEF. The RCEF consists of an annual appropriation of P10 billion in six years to fund programs for farm mechanization, seed development, propagation and promotion, credit assistance, and extension services.

These programs were specifically identified to improve the productivity of rice farmers, reduce production costs, and link them to the value chain.

The excess from the P10-billion tariff revenue collection will be appropriated by Congress the following year for the direct financial assistance to rice farmers, titling of agricultural rice lands, expanded crop insurance program, and crop diversification program.

“The farmers need the support and the money is coming from the tariff from the rice tariffication.

So, one way to think about it is, if we change the rice tariffication law, then we will not have the money to support the farmers,” Chua said.

B B D. N @BNicolasBM

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HE Department of Finance (DOF) proposed that the next administration implement a set of fiscal measures seen to generate a total average of nearly P350 billion per year from 2023 to 2027 in a bid to help the country outgrow its debt at a faster rate.

With just a little over a month left before the Duterte administration ends, finance officials on Wednesday

finally unveiled their three-package proposed fiscal consolidation and resource mobilization plan which included the imposition of several taxes, among others.

To prevent the government from using borrowings to pay for the P3.2 trillion in incremental debt that the government incurred during the Covid-19 pandemic, the Bureau of the Treasury said at least P249 billion per year in incremental revenues  “DOF,” A

Taxes

APART from the RTL, Chua said, the outgoing administration does not recommend any tweaking of the tax reforms that were recently instituted.

For one, Chua said, the Tax ReC  A

S “C,” A

■ US 52.3290 ■ JAPAN 0.4126 ■ UK 65.6049 ■ HK 6.6668 ■ SINGAPORE 38.1574 ■ AUSTRALIA 37.1798 ■ SAUDI ARABIA 13.9514 ■ EU 56.1804 ■ CHINA 7.8643

Source: BSP (May 25, 2022)

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News BusinessMirror

Thursday, May 26, 2022

Congress...

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mother former first lady Imelda Marcos, sisters Imee and Irene, and Majority Leader Romualdez, his first cousin.

‘Heal the wounds’

SPEAKER Velasco noted that the Marcos-Duterte tandem is the first tandem elected together since 2004.

“In previous elections, Filipinos voted for president and vice president from different parties. Finally, this year, we will learn the importance of voting for a tandem—a Uniteam that can work together, a Uniteam that can collaborate with each other, and a Uniteam that can push for a shared national agenda,” he said.

“The people have spoken decisively. This is not just your sweeping electoral victory. This is an overwhelming victory for all Filipinos. This is a victory of our democracy,” he added.

Romualdez, meanwhile, urged Filipinos to put political divisiveness behind them and to support the newly proclaimed Marcos and Duterte. He said the election campaign “had been polarizing.”

“With the country reeling from the impact of a global pandemic and other major calamities and disasters, it was evident that the nation was divided as to what direction to take in order to move forward. But the majority has spoken. It is high time that we listen to their voice and uphold the outcome of our democratic process,” he said.

“Let us heal the wounds of political division, brace ourselves for the challenges ahead, and move forward as a strong and united Philippines. Let us be prepared to work harder for the nation and give our full support to the new leadership. At the end of the day, we are all Filipinos and we want nothing more than to see our beloved nation chart its own course and ultimately triumph,” Romualdez said.

“Finally, credit is due to the more than 55 million Filipinos, out of more than 66 million registered voters who, amidst the threat of Covid-19, braved the long queues to exercise their right to suffrage, resulting in a record-breaking 83.11 percent voter turnout. Indeed, our democracy is alive and vibrant! The ever-growing political interest shown by our electorate is symbolic of the people’s clamor for change, prosperity and progress,” he stressed.

The political division that Congress leaders allude to pertains to the angry exchanges between rival camps in the campaign, as those who identify with the political forces that ousted Marcos Jr.’s dictator-father after two decades in power vowed never to let the Marcoses return to Malacanang. In turn, Marcos supporters said their promise of “democracy” in the 1986 Edsa Revolt had brought the country nowhere.

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Next tightening move ‘not tied to any calendar date’—Diokno

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@BcuaresmaBM

ANGKO Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin Diokno said the BSP’s next moves to wind up their accommodative monetary policy will still be driven by the next set of economic data globally and locally.

In a recent speaking engagement, Diokno reiterated that any move to lift time-bound measures put in place to support the economy during the pandemic will be carried out based on latest eco-

nomic data, and is “not tied to any calendar date.”

The exit strategy will also be guided by the inflation and growth outlook over the medium term, the country’s public health status, and

DOF...

Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III told reporters that their proposed “comprehensive” plan which contains measures that are “fair, efficient, and corrective” will help the new administration address the long-term financial issues brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic as well as the ongoing RussiaUkraine crisis.

“The plan is doable and is designed to secure the gains that we have made under the Duterte administration and to ensure that the government can continue to make economic investments and pursue programs for recovery, maintain its high credit ratings, grow out of its

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must be raised. Estimated to generate an annual average of P349.3 billion in revenues, the proposed fiscal consolidation plan will not only help the government accomplish this, but will also help the country reduce its debt as a share of its economy—from the projected 60.7 percent this year to 55.4 percent in 2025. Without the reforms, the country’s debt-to-GDP ratio in 2025 is seen to reach 58.2 percent.

the domestic and global risks to the economy, he added.

“The balancing act requires a well-planned, well-calibrated, and well-communicated exit strategy to avoid causing substantial market volatility, reduce potential spillovers, and sustain the recovery momentum,” Diokno said.

In its monetary policy setting just last week, the BSP hiked its rates for the first time since the pandemic, as the country’s monetary authority tries to get a hold of the rising inflation expectations in the country.

This is the first time that the BSP hiked its monetary policy rates since implementing an ultra accommodative monetary policy stance to keep the economy afloat

during the pandemic.

It is also a month earlier than Diokno’s previous forward guidance of starting to hike monetary policy rates in the second half of this year.

“In deciding to raise the policy interest rate, the Monetary Board noted that the latest baseline forecasts have further shifted higher since the previous monetary policy meeting in March, indicating that elevated inflation pressures could persist over the policy horizon,” Diokno earlier said.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) chief economist Michael Ricafort, in his analysis after the monetary policy meeting, said policy rate hikes in the coming months are likely needed

to address risk of second-round inflation effects after the approved minimum wage hikes and possible hike in transport fares, all of which would lead to higher prices of other affected goods and services in the economy.

“It is a tough and delicate balancing act in managing the monetary policy, going forward, to prevent infl ation from spiraling further, while at the same time, helping sustain the fragile economic recovery prospects still reeling from the adverse effects of the pandemic that could be jeopardized by any premature tightening of monetary policy that may not be necessarily effective in curbing supply-side infl ationary pressures,” Ricafort said.

debt faster, and cushion the Philippine economy from future external shocks,” Dominguez said.

on capital goods.

consolidation plan.

For 2024, the DOF also projected P91.4 billion in revenues from its proposed reform on health taxes, which include increasing excise tax on cigarettes and e-cigarettes, imposing a unitary rate of P12 per liter volume on sweetened beverages, and taxing alcopops the same as fermented liquors.

It is also eyeing an annual average of P35.4 billion from its proposals to increase petroleum excise tax by P1 per liter for at least 3 years, repealing Presidential Decree 972 and imposing and increasing excise tax on domestic coal, and raising excise tax rates on imported coal.

Other measures included in DOF’s plan include clarifying the tax treatment for cryptocurrency transactions and strengthening Bureau of Internal Revenue’s capacity to perform transfer pricing audit.

For 2025, the DOF also listed the imposition of tax on carbon emissions.

As of end-March, the national government’s outstanding debt has hit a new record-high of P12.68 trillion. The government resorted to more borrowings amid the Covid-19 pandemic due to weaker revenue collections and increased spending brought by Covid-related expenditures.

The national government’s debtto-GDP ratio has also risen to a 17-year-high at 63.5 percent, above the internationally recommended 60-percent threshold by multilateral lenders for emerging markets like the Philippines and also the highest since the country’s debt-to-GDP ratio hit 65.7 percent in 2005 under the Arroyo administration.

‘Serious consequences’

THE finance chief warned that there may be “serious and spiraling consequences” to the country’s financial and economic health if the fiscal consolidation plan is not pursued.

Finance Officer-In-Charge Undersecretary Valery Joy Brion of the department’s Strategy, Economics, and Results Group pointed out that fiscal and economic crises may ultimately result from doing away or even just diluting the proposed fiscal consolidation plan.

Of the total annual estimated average revenue from the implementation of recommended fiscal measures, about 41 percent or an average of P142.5 billion yearly is expected to come from its proposals to expand value-added tax (VAT) base, repeal some VAT exemptions, and from the possible VAT rate reduction next year.

However, Brion stressed the need to consider expanding the base first before considering the cut in VAT rate.

“For the expansion of VAT base and the possible VAT rate reduction, we seek to limit VAT zero-rating to direct exports and to repeal VAT exemptions, except for education, agricultural products, health, financial sector, and raw food,” Brion said.

On top of this, she said they also propose to consider repealing the immediate expending of input VAT on capital goods under the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law and reimposing the 60-month limit to credit input VAT

Deferment of PIT cuts to ’25

MEANWHILE, the DOF is also proposing the 3-year deferment of the scheduled second tranche reduction in personal income tax (PIT) rates to 2025. It was originally set to be implemented next year under the TRAIN law.

Based on DOF’s estimates, the deferment in the cut in PIT rates will result in an additional annual average of P97.7 billion in revenues yearly.

For next year, the DOF also recommended these measures: the imposition of single and unitary rate based on the gross vehicle weight of all motor vehicles (annual average of P38.3 billion in revenues), imposition of excise tax on pickups and motorcycles (P19.2 billion), imposition of 12-percent VAT on digital service providers (P13.2 billion), imposition of taxes and charges on gaming (P13.1 billion), and rationalization of mining fiscal regime (P11.4 billion).

Likewise, the DOF also suggested imposing a P20 excise tax on singleuse plastics (P1 billion), expanding the coverage of tax on non-essential and semi-essential goods, and strengthening tax administration for income tax on social media influencers.

The two remaining packages under the Duterte administration’s Comprehensive Tax Reform Program which are still pending in the Senate—Passive Income and Financial Intermediary Taxation Act (Pifita) and the Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform Act—were also included in the proposed fiscal

NEDA: SUBSIDIES CAN’T BRING DOWN RICE PRICES C  A

form for Acceleration and Inclusion Law (TRAIN Law) paved the

way for the reduction in income taxes for 99 percent of income tax payers.

“Whether you’re an individual or corporation, we have expanded the tax base to fund all the human capital and infrastructure programs that we are benefiting from so we do not recommend changing the present,” Chua said.

Chua added that tweaking or reducing the excise taxes on fuel will also not be beneficial.

The reduction of fuel taxes, he said, will only favor the richest 10 percent of the population who consume 50 percent of fuel products, many of whom have their own cars.

Public transport, he said, helps reduce the country’s dependence on fuel. This is the reason for pushing a variety of mass transport infrastructure projects such as Bus Rapid Transits and railways.

Chua noted that the government has also provided facilities for alternative transport such as 500 kilometers of bike lanes,

which were undertaken during the pandemic.

The government has also pushed for the PUV modernization program which advocates for cleaner engines and fuels.

“Even with the high fuel price, the traffic is not [easing]. If you see the roads, that’s because the majority of fuel is consumed by the richer families. So we will just be subsidizing [them]. I’d rather keep the excise tax and use excess revenue to support the commuters,” Chua said.

Revenue measures to be proposed by the outgoing administration will soon be unveiled by the Department of Finance (DOF). It will provide greater detail in the administration’s proposed fiscal consolidation plan.

Earlier, Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III said sustaining the fuel-marking program will be included in the list of their recommended measures for the next economic team as it helped beef up revenues for the government.

Dominguez said he believes the fuel-marking program should be continued by the incoming administration. (Read the story here: www. businessmirror.com.ph/2022/05/17/ fuel-marking-among-dofproposals-tonew-admin/).

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SC greenlights trial of ex-agri exec linked in 2014 garlic cartel scam

Southeast Asia urged to take firm steps vs climate change

By Lenie Lectura

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Thursday, May 26, 2022 A3

@llectura

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XPERTS in climate change urged Southeast Asian countries to step up efforts to combat global warming more urgently following reports of the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on implications of the climate crisis on critical sectors and economic development in the region.

“We can strengthen the participation of countries in the international arena through research input—by mobilizing developing countries’ leading experts, practitioners, and scientists to strengthen the regional climate science agenda to build a common understanding,” said Dr. Mahawan Karuniasa, Indonesia Expert Network for Climate Change and Forestry (APIK Indonesia Network) chairman and co-founding member of the regional group Asia Climate Experts.

“A regional perspective is the best position to learn from one another and redouble our efforts, and the time is now,” Karuniasa added during a virtual forum on May 23.

Based on the mitigation report under the IPCC’s sixth assessment cycle, the world would encounter inevitable climate hazards in the next two decades once global warming breaches the 1.5-degree threshold.

Once this level has been exceeded, there will be severe impacts.

The forum coincided with the International Day of Biological Diversity.

ICSC energy transition advisor Alberto Dalusung III said energy has a direct impact on biodiversity, as fossil fuels continue to pollute the world’s resources adversely affecting life on land and water.

“As renewable energy and grid modernization investments continue to increase in the region, Indonesia taking the lead in the energy transition provides a signal to policymakers in other Southeast Asian countries to make the shift,” said Dalusung.

The call is not only to shift to renewable energy, but also to reallocate funds from fossil fuel-related investments to clean energy programs consistent with net-zero goals.

“Accelerated climate action in mitigating and adapting to impacts is critical to sustainable development. We need equity on adaptation and mitigation finance, considering investments for the co-benefits which are prominent in the IPCC discussions,” said Angelo Kairos dela Cruz, ICSC deputy executive director.

By Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

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HE Supreme Court has given the Sandiganbayan the go signal to proceed with the trial of former National Plant Quarantine Services Division-Bureau of Plant and Industry (NPQSD-BPI) chief Merle Bautista Palacpac for graft and grave misconduct in connection with her alleged involvement in the garlic cartel scam that was blamed for the soaring prices of garlic in 2014.

In a 14-page resolution, the Court’s First Division affirmed the July 24, 2019 and September 4, 2019 resolutions issued by the Sandiganbayan’s Fifth Division denying Palacpac’s motion to quash the charges against her and her motion

for reconsideration, respectively.

The case stemmed from a complaint filed by the Field Investigation Office (FIO) II, Office of the Ombudsman for violation of Section 3(e) and (j) of Republic Act No. (RA) 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act and grave misconduct and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service against several accused, including the petitioner.

Palacpac was accused of conspiring with other officials of the Department of Agriculture in giving unwarranted advantage to selected individuals and private sector groups involved in the growing and trading of garlic, allowing them to monopolize the supply of garlic and dictating the prices of the product in the market from January to July 2014.

This resulted in the price of imported garlic soaring from P260 to P400 per kilo from its price averaging from P165 to P170 per kilo.

In upholding the resolutions of the Sandiganbayan, the Court did not give weight to the petitioner’s claim that the anti-graft court acted with grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack of jurisdiction in denying her motion to dismiss the charges against her.

“Petitioner argues that the Information does not conform to the requirement of the law as it does not state the approximate date of the commission of the offense charged.

Although Section 3[e] is one of the grounds to quash the Information under Rule 117 of the Rules of Court, petitioner’s Omnibus Motion fails, however, to qualify as a meritori-

COMP and anti-mining groups hail court ruling on Marcopper incident

By Jonathan L. Mayuga @jonlmayuga

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HE Chamber of Mines of the Philippines (COMP) and anti-mining groups have welcomed the ruling of a local court ordering a mining firm to pay damages to survivors of the Marcopper mining disaster.

They were reacting to a decision dated May 16, 2022 rendered

by Judge Emmanuel Recalde of the Marinduque Regional Trial Court Branch 38, wherein Marcopper was ordered to pay each of the 30 plaintiffs P200,000 in temperate damages and P100,000 in moral damages for the civil case filed in 2001. The court also ordered the mining company to pay P1 million as exemplary damages in favor of the plaintiffs.

COMP, which represents the big players in the country’s mining industry, for one, expressed relief that the court has finally rendered a decision in favor of the plaintiffs, but clarified that Marcopper operated under the old mining law.

In news statement, COMP said the tailings spill in Marinduque almost 30 years ago, considered the worst mining incident in the country’s history, “is a constant reminder to miners all over the world that the safety of all stakeholders in host mining communities is paramount.”

“It underscores that extreme con-

sequences to people and the environment from catastrophic tailings facility failures are unacceptable,” COMP said.

Environmental guarantee fund

COMP said new laws governing mining have established a mandatory environmental guarantee fund mechanism known collectively as the Contingent Liability and Rehabilitation Fund (CLRF).

The CLRF—which consists of the Mine Rehabilitation Fund, Mine Waste and Tailings fees, and the Final Mine Rehabilitation and Decommissioning Fund—ensures just and timely compensation for damages and for progressive and sustainable rehabilitation for any adverse effect a mining operation or activity may cause.

COMP initiative

MEANWHILE, through its initiative dubbed Towards Sustainable Mining, COMP-member companies have aligned themselves with the Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management issued by the United Nations Environment Programme-led Global Tailings Review.

“To be compliant with the Standard, mining operators must use specified measures to prevent the catastrophic failure of tailings facilities and to implement best practices in planning, design, construction, operation, maintenance, monitor-

ing, closure, and post-closure activities,” it says.

New mining law

THE anti-mining group Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM), a group, which represents mining and mining-affected communities in the Philippines, meanwhile said it “gladly welcomes the landmark decision” in favor of the 30 plaintiffs against the Marcopper Mining Corporation. At the same time, the group said the ruling underscores the importance of a new mining law that would put the environment and mining communities above the interest of the mining industry.

“It may have taken decades for the court to make a ruling, but we are nevertheless hopeful considering that justice is finally served to the victims of one of the worst mining disasters in the country. The decision sends an encouraging signal to communities gravely affected by mining,” ATM said.

“At present, the mining laws in the country fall short in preventing destructive mining. A new law must be put in place to ensure mining disasters won’t happen again,” the group said.

For its part, the environmental group Kalikasan-People’s Network for the Environment (KalikasanPNE) described the court ruling as a victory of the people of Marinduque.

ous motion following the Revised Guidelines,” the SC said in a 14-page resolution penned by Associate Justice Henri Jean Paul Inting.

“Therefore, the Sandiganbayan did not err in denying petitioner’s motion to quash the Information on the ground that it is not a meritorious motion,” it added.

The SC also agreed with the Sandiganbayan that Palacpac’s right to the speedy disposition of the case was not violated. It stressed that the petitioner failed to consider the complexity of the case and the issues involved including the fact that there are 47 other individuals implicated and charged in connection with the scam.

“Further, there are voluminous documentary evidence and numer-

ous counter-affidavits that the Ombudsman needs to study and evaluate,” it explained.

Fur t her more, t he SC sa id Palacpac failed to substantiate her claims that the alleged delay in the Ombudsman’s resolution of the case was malicious, politically motivated and unreasonable.

“In the present case, petitioner failed to provide a plausible justification to establish that the alleged delay was malicious, politically motivated, or unreasonable.

There is only a sweeping generalization that there is a delay of three years. Consequently, the Court finds that the Sandiganbayan did not err in ruling that there is no inordinate delay in the disposition of the case,” the SC pointed out.

Lawyer, vlogger, DWIZ radio commentator Cruz-Angeles nominated as press secretary

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AWYER, radio commentator and famous online vlogger Rose Beatrix “Trixie” Cruz-Angeles was nominated as the press secretary of incoming President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. In a news statement Atty. Vic Rodriguez, incoming Executive Secretary for the new administration, said Cruz-Angeles accepted the nomination as press secretary, which makes her head of the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO).

The primary task of Cruz-Angeles is to oversee the operations of the PCOO, which includes the conduct of regular news briefings to media practitioners covering Malacañang activities.

Marcos Jr. had earlier announced he would not appoint a spokesperson, which in effect limits the function of the press secretary to a talking head during news briefings.

“I am grateful for the opportunity I am given to take part in the administration of President Bongbong Marcos as his press secretary.

It is with humility that I accept the nomination and assume the responsibility of running the affairs of the PCOO,” she stated.

Cruz-Angeles, who is noted for representing military officers charged with rebellion and mutiny, was also a former commissioner for Cultural Heritage of the National

Commission for the Culture and the Arts and former spokesperson of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines.

The veteran lawyer also wrote the draft of what later became Republic Act 10066 or the Heritage Act of 2009.

At present, Angeles is a radio host of Karambola program over DWIZ. She’s the former publisher of Politiko, an online publication on and about politicians and government officials in the country. She is also a former columnist (Art and Law) of Inquirer.net.

She also contributed countless materials to several magazines in the country, including Philippines Graphic, the lifestyle section of Manila Bulletin, and Cosmo Magazine Philippines.

Angeles was, at one time, a lecturer at the Ateneo de Manila University teaching Fine Arts 104 Arts and the Professional.

The incoming press secretary is also a former lecturer at the Institute for Cultural and Arts Management.

She was a social media strategist at the PCOO from July 2017 to 2018 during the administration of President Duterte.

Angeles finished her law degree at the University of the Philippines in 1997 and is taking an International Relations degree at the University of Minnesota in US as well as an MA in Archaeology, also in UP.

DAR, LRA issue guidelines for registration of C-titles Former rebel supporters in Ilocos Sur get govt aid

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HE Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) and Land Registration Authority (LRA) have signed a joint administrative order (JAO) that would speed up the generation and registration of computerized individual land titles (C-titles) in connection with the implementation of the World Bank-funded Support to Parcelization of Lands for Individual Titling (SPLIT) Project.

DAR Secretary Bernie F. Cruz and LRA OIC-Administrator Robert Nomar V. Leyretana led the signing of the joint AO entitled “Guidelines Governing the Issuance of Certified True Copies (CTC), Annotation, Registration, and Issuance of Computerized Individual/New Collective Certificate

of Land Ownership Award, and Cancellation of CCLOA under the SPLIT Project” held May 24, 2022, in Clark Freeport, Pampanga. Project SPLIT aims to provide individual titles to agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) covered under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP).

“The joint AO will expedite the generation and registration of computerized individual titles since it will no longer require submission of the Owner’s Duplicate Copy of the CCLOA title to the Registry of Deeds as a requirement for the processing of the C-titles,” DAR Undersecretary for Legal Affairs Office Luis Meinrado C. Pañgulayan said for his part.

Currently, about 90,000 hectares

DOH assures payment of T Covid perks to HCWs, staff

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco @claudethmc3

HE Department of Health (DOH) assured on Wednesday that it would continue to disburse benefits like the One Covid-19 Allowance (OCA), Special Risk Allowance (SRA), Meals, Accommodation, and Transportation (MAT) Allowance,

of validated CCLOAs are ready for registration but only 4,000 hectares have been registered. The entire LRA force, Leyretana said, will aggressively look forward and assured the finalization of the JAO. The joint DAR and LRA guidelines will revitalize the rediscovered synergy to efficiently and effectively ensure land tenure security and strengthen the property rights of the ARBs, DAR Central Luzon Regional Director James Arsenio Ponce said.

“With greater and improved partnership, we can move mountains, and there is no let-up in this upward trajectory, hand in hand and side-byside, we can accomplish more,” Ponce added. Jonathan L. Mayuga and Covid-19 Sickness and Death Compensation to health workers (HCW) and staff.

Through the DOH-Metro Manila Center for Health Development (MMCHD), a total of P86,507,118 OCA has already been released to 54 health facilities since January 2022.

A total of P403,492,881 from the recently released OCA has already

By Rene Acosta @reneacostaBM

A

T least 45 former members of New People’s Army’s underground mass organizations (UGMO) from two villages in Ilocos Sur have received their initial cash assistance following their decision to stop supporting the rebel group and turn themselves to the government.

The former rebel supporters from Barangay Caparian in Sta. Cruz and Barangay Paoc Norte in Sta. Lucia, both in Ilocos Sur, received P10, 000 each from the government and the military as an initial assistance while their full benefits under the governbeen allocated to 266 health facilities and is readily available pending the submission of documents, especially the signed memorandum of agreement and liquidation report from the previously transferred funds to the health facility. Alongside OCA, disbursements for SRA and MAT are also ongoing, DOH said.

For SRA, a total of P639,961,524

ment’s counter insurgency program are being processed.

The initial financial assistance, according to Army’s 7th Infantry Division commander Major. Gen. Andrew Costelo, was given as a “starting capital” for the former rebel supporters’ chosen livelihood.

The financial assistance was distributed by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Region 1 and the 71st Infantry Battalion.

Costelo said the financial assistance to the former UGMO members was a part of the initiative under the sustained efforts of the NTFELCAC (National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict) has been issued to 234 health facilities since February 2022, P581,302,189 of which has been claimed by 218 facilities, while P58,659,335 for 16 facilities remains unclaimed.

Meanwhile, for MAT, an amount of P80,768,000 has been issued to 47 health facilities; P76,631,000 has been claimed by 34 facilities and P4,137,000 remains unclaimed by 13

in Ilocos Region.

Before the cash assistance was given, the beneficiaries underwent social preparation to “capacitate, inculcate and reiterate” their responsibilities as well as the role of their local government units in the project.

“Ang tulong pinansiyal na ito ng gobyerno ay naglalayong magkaroon kayo ng panimula sa inyong napiling hanapbuhay. Kalimutan niyo na ang inyong mapait na karanasan sa kamay ng teroristang grupo at mag focus na lamang sa pagpapabuti ng kinabukasan ng inyong pamilya.

Huwag ninyong sayangin ang pagkakataong binigay sa inyo ng gobyerno,” Costelo told the beneficiaries. health facilities. For Covid-19 Compensation, a total amount of P180,000 has already been released to 12 health workers from the amount released by Department of Budget and Management (DBM) this May 2022.

The DOH said that P7,020,000 is ready to be claimed by 468 claimants awaiting completion of their requirements.

A4 Thursday, May 26, 2022 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

Economy BusinessMirror

Neda chief prescribes door-to-door drive for passage of natl land use act

By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario

I

F the next administration wants to finally pass the National Land Use Act (NALUA), the government must adopt a “door-to-door approach” used by the current administration in passing the tax reform program, according to the country’s outgoing chief economist.

In a virtual briefing at the Kapihan sa Manila Bay on Wednesday, outgoing Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua and the architect of the country’s tax reform program said this approach would ensure that lawmakers are able to understand the impact of passing such a law.

Chua said the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) staff could carry on this mandate by explaining to each legislator and making as many presentations as possible.

“You know in tax reform, we have to do door-to- door to explain to each legislator so this is something that should just continue, door-to-door and then make as many presentations as you can get the point across,” Chua said.

Chua said there are currently many misunderstood portions of the proposed NALUA. He said some

quarters are saying that land use will be the responsibility of one centralized agency in government.

He said this was not true and t hat loca l gover nment units (LGUs) still had jurisdiction over land use. However, land conversion of land from agriculture to other use has to be decided by a more centralized agency.

The bill currently proposes that this centralized agency be the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) instead of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR).

Land use is very important for an archipelago like the Philippines, and Chua said the entire country only has 300,000 square kilometers of land.

This size is not bound to increase even if the country’s population continues to multiply.

“The law or the bill mandates the preparation of all the physical land use, these are all very important.

The point here is the land is the most scarce resource so we better know how to use it best,” Chua said. “ We have to know that so that we can do urban planning better to better manage traffic, we have to do that so that we know which land or mountain or watershed should not be touched for our future,” he added.

Water

ANOTHER bill that needs to be communicated well to legislators is the creation of the Department of Water. Chua said there are critics who believe this new department will create another layer to the bureaucracy that is already cumbersome for the water sector.

There are at least 30 agencies related to the creation of policy and regulation for the water sector. This includes the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the National Irrigation Administration, the National Water Resources Board (NWRB), and various local water districts, among others.

Chua said the creation of an apex body for water policy and a single body that will regulate the sector, similar to the set up of the Department of Energy and the Energy Regulatory Commission, would be ideal for the water sector.

This will not only create order in the management of a very important natural resource but also government savings that will be avoided through the removal of duplicate functions in government.

“We have no coordination and single policy on water use and water, fresh water drinking water and for use for sanitation [which] is important to daily life,” Chua said. “It’s

not costly because you’re not adding [another agency because] you’re actually [consolidating] and making it more efficient.”

The Neda earlier said there is a need to improve water and sanitation investments to around P100 billion annually between 2020 and 2030 to meet the Sustainable Development Goals. The total price tag is P1.1 trillion by 2030.

The country has not invested this amount before on the water and sanitation sector and Neda said this is the reason for the need to also provide incentives for other stakeholders in the sector.

Without an apex body, Neda said, the efforts of these agencies could overlap and the water supply and sanitation sector would continue to struggle to provide services to millions of Filipinos.

If legislation will not be forthcoming, Neda said the government has the option to strengthen the NWRB through an executive order.

The Neda supports the proposed executive order on Integrating and Coordinating Management of Water Resources by Transforming and Strengthening the NWRB into the National Water Management Council, pending the legislation of the Department of Water Resources and the Water Regulatory Commission.

DOTr allots ₧180M to extend MRT 3’s free ride program

T

HE Department of Transportation (DOTr) is spending another P150 million to

P180 million to extend its free ride program for the Metro Rail Transit (MRT) Line 3 until the end of Presi-

dent Duterte’s term.

In a virtual news briefing on Wednesday, MRT 3 Director Michael Capati said the agency has decided to extend the free ride program from its original closing date of May 30 to June 30. The program started on March 28.

“We estimate that revenue loss from the program from March 28 to May 24 is P286 million in subsidy, an amount funded through the P7.1-billion budget from the general appropriations. For the one-month extension, we are projecting it to be between P150 million to P180 million,” Capati told reporters.

The government started the free ride program to help commuters who are affected by the rising fuel costs.

It also allowed the government to further test its capacity.

“This will allow the MRT 3 to further test its capacity and performance

in accommodating up to or more than 350,000 passengers,” Capati said. “We are now in the stage of testing the performance of our subsystems following the success of our full-scale rehabilitation. We hope to cater to more passengers with the extension of the free ride program, as well as showcase the improved services of the MRT 3 and restore the public confidence in our mass transport system.”

So far the program has benefited 15.73 million passengers.

When asked why the DOTr limited the free ride program to the MRT 3, Philippine National Railways (PNR) General Manager Junn Magno said the PNR is affected by the rising prices of diesel. “We are affected by the volatility of fuel prices. We might not be able to sustain our operations if we offer our services for free,” Magno said. Lorenz S. Marasigan

www.businessmirror.com.ph

BBM eyes partnership with India on local generic meds production

I

NCOMING President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. is keen on establishing an agreement with India to boost local production of generic medicines.

Marcos revealed in a news briefing that he met with Indian Ambassador Shambhu S. Kumaran and other members of the diplomatic corps at his headquarters in Mandaluyong City.

“India is one of the largest manufacturers of generic drugs. We could go into partnership para magkaroon ng production dito sa Pilipinas,” Marcos said.

“I have no doubt na ’yung manufacturers natin ay kaya nila pero we will get advice dahil may experience ang India,” Marcos added.

India is a pharmaceutical powerhouse, considered the world’s largest manufacturer of generic medicines, with its 20-percent share of global pharmaceutical exports.

It also accounts for more than half of all vaccines produced globally.

In 2021, India’s pharmaceutical

sector was estimated to be worth $42 billion.

“I think the new administration will carry forward the dialogue with the view of creating domestic capacities in the pharmaceutical sector to contribute to the health security of the Philippines,” Kumaran said in an interview with the media following his meeting with Marcos.

“India is one of the strongest partners of the Philippines in the health sector,” Kumaran added.

Aside from forging a solid partnership in generic medicines production, presumptive President Marcos and Kumaran also discussed continuing the “excellent bilateral relations” between the Philippines and India.

“We requested his continued support for the development of excellent bilateral relations between India and the Philippines,” Kumaran said.

“We’ve been having excellent progress over the past few years and we look forward to continuing the progress and dynamism under the new administration,” Kumaran added.

DBM okays substantial increases for DepEd’s GAS voucher programs

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco @claudethmc3

T

HE Department of Education (DepEd) thanked the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) following the approval of the proposed substantial increase in the Government Assistance and Subsidies programs—Senior High School Voucher and Educational Service Contracting (ESC) under its Tier 1 budget proposal for fiscal year (FY) 2023.

“DepEd expresses its gratitude to the DBM and the national government for their unwavering support of the voucher programs under GAS. The Department affirms its commitment in continuously implementing its voucher program efficiently and effectively,” DepEd said in a news statement on Tuesday.

Out of the P626.18 billion approved Tier 1 Level to the DepEd by the DBM, per

National Budget Memorandum No. 142, “Budget Call for FY 2023,” SHS VP got approval for P39.33 billion, which covers 1,132,155 voucher program beneficiaries (VPBs) for School Year (SY) 2023-2024.

Meanwhile, ESC got an approved P11.05-billion budget that covers 1,031,193 ESC grantees for SY 2023-2024.

With this substantial increase for SHS VP for 2023, the DepEd said that they are now better equipped to fulfill its mandate to improve and expand access to quality education for Junior and Senior High Schools under ESC and SHS VP respectively.

This is through aiding private education institutions by making payments to private schools on their billings filed and claimed in previous years.

In addition, the agency is also financially capacitated to make full payments to concerned private schools within one budget year.

Go prods next admin to push pandemic recovery, improve health-care system

By Butch Fernandez

S

@butchfBM

EN. Christopher Go on Wednesday prodded presumptive President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. to step up efforts to pandemic recovery and better preparedness through the improvement of the country’s health-care system.

In a news statement, Go, chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, also urged newly elected leaders to ensure continued efforts towards “not only pandemic recovery but also better preparedness” by further investing on the country’s healthcare system.

The administration senator reminded that even as the government transitions into the next term, concerned authorities should promptly move to further improve the public health sector, noting that the ongoing pandemic already “exposed persistent weaknesses” in the Philippines’s health-care system.

Noting, “We have taken a significant step back due to Covid-19,” he stressed, “We must reconstruct our lives as we continue to overcome the pandemic,” adding “We must reset, recoup, and rebound.”

At the same time, Go asserted the importance of learning from the pandemic, insisting there is an urgent need for government to “be more proactive and consistently examine policies regardless of inevitable changes in leadership.”

Moreover, the administration lawmaker had sought to encourage new leaders to carry on President Duterte’s legacy, starting with “strengthening of Malasakit Centers across the country to ensure that poor Filipinos continue to have easy access to government-sponsored medical aid programs.”

Go added: “Let us make sure that the poor and the needy, especially those who depend on government assistance, are taken care of.”

Even as he acknowledged significant progress to contain the pandemic, Go cautioned the country against complacency, suggesting that “instead, let us use this as an opportunity to learn from our shortcomings and ensure that we keep on the right path towards recovery while ensuring no Filipino is left behind.”

“We cannot afford to lose what we have gained in the past years, especially as our country is undergoing a leadership transition. Let us all take responsibility for ourselves and our communities to triumph over these challenge,” he said.

Citing the need to work together as a nation despite different political beliefs for the development of the Philippines, Go affirmed that, in his capacity, he will “continue to support and advocate for more initiatives that benefit underprivileged Filipinos, particularly those that can strengthen and expand the health-care system.”

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Comelec vows probe into case of ‘missing’ COCs from South

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

T

HE Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Wednesday assured it will conduct an investigation on who could be held responsible for the loss of Certificates of Canvass (COC), which were supposed to be sent to Congress for the canvassing of votes for president and vice president.

In a news conference, Comelec Commissioner Marlon S. Casquejo said they want to hold the unnamed personnel accountable because of the loss.

Under Comelec procedures, the first copy of the COC should be put in the ballot box intended for Congress sitting as the National Board of Canvassers (NBOC) for the canvassing of votes for president and vice president.

Last Tuesday, Congress was un-

able to find the hard copies of the COCs of Sultan Kudarat and Surigao del Sur from the ballot boxes sent by the concerned Provincial Board of Canvassers (PBOC).

Lawmakers were able to proceed with their canvassing using authenticated electronic COCs from the said provinces.

“We will look into what happened.

I guess [the incident happened], inadvertently due to fatigue or whatsoever reasons, but I think it’s not an excuse for us because it’s one of the clear jobs of our PEC [Provincial Election Supervisor] and election officers,” Casquejo said.

He said they would determine the possible sanctions against their personnel depending on the outcome of their probe.

“If it’s justifiable we could let it pass, then if not, then we will impose sanctions of that based on our civil service rules,” Casquejo said.

MMDA eyes revival of motorcycle lane along Commonwealth Avenue

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco @claudethmc3

T

HE Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) is eyeing the revival of the Commonwealth Avenue motorcycle lane to ease traffic congestion along the busy thoroughfare.

“Kasama sa inaaral ang pagbabalik ng motorcycle lane sa Commonwealth [The revival of motorcycle lane is one of the things that we are studying],” MMDA Chairman Romando Artes said.

In 2011, the MMDA, through the

agency’s Regulation No. 11-001, imposed the implementation of the motorcycle lane in Commonwealth Ave after it was approved by the Metro Manila Council (MMC).

The 4th lane of the of Commonwealth was designated as motorcycle lane.

The decision was then reached by the MMC after the MMDA observed an “alarming” increase in the number of accidents in the area, “Resulting in the tragic loss of life, limb, and property.”

Motorcycle riders are also required to observe a 60-kph speed limit.

Thursday, May 26, 2022 A5

IPOPHL gains major headway in fight against counterfeits and online piracy

By Andrea San Juan

T

HE landmark agreement among e-commerce platforms and brand owners, which aims to curb counterfeiting and piracy online, has successfully resulted in more aggressive efforts against infringers and louder calls for more digital economy players to join the accord, according to the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL).

During the first annual review of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) on May 12, representatives from Lazada, Shopee, Zalora, Golden ABC, Globe Telecom, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and Solar Pictures presented their accomplishments under the MOU. Representing Lazada, Jason Brasileno, Head of Business and Enterprise Risk, said that the number of listings removed from their platform increased by 118 percent from 74,801 in August to September 2021, to 163,287 in March to April 2022.

Lazada, a Singapore-based ecommerce giant, also established a trust-building awareness campaign through their “Sure Ka Sa Lazada” that guarantees that products are legitimate.

Speaking for Shopee, Public Affairs Manager Jaimmie C. Hans-Segovia reported that removal of counterfeit and pirated product listings increased by more than 400 percent between August to September 2021 and March to April 2022.

For Shopee, there’s also develop-

ment in terms of IP rights process, showing a “300 percent increase in rights holder-signatories’ use of Shopee’s intellectual property [IP] rights process.”

The China-based e-commerce giant also updated their IP process with tighter sanctions and new algorithms that target copied listings.

Meanwhile, Samantha Poblacion, Country Legal Counsel of Zalora, reported zero reports of incidents of IP infringement due in part to the platform’s thorough onboarding process. Nevertheless, the fashion and lifestyle e-commerce platform has been introducing new ways to address possible incidents, such as establishing a reporting mechanism and educating consumers and merchants of Zalora’s IP policy.

For his part, Mahar Sulayman “Butch” Ibañez, Film Acquisitions Head of Solar Pictures Inc., reported a 148 percent year-on-year increase of IP-infringing listings taken down by different platforms on the group’s request to protect movies and content owned by Solar.

For Golden ABC, Legal Manager for its IP Desk Kristian Nico C. Acosta likewise said there were more IP enforcement efforts made since acceding to the MOU, including an 83 percent hike in reports the company has requested for takedowns.

Meanwhile, Carlos Santos, Head of Analytics and Intelligence for Globe Telecom’s Corporate Communications, found over 1,600 posts infringing against the service provider for the full year of 2021, with almost

60 percent on fake broadband plans.

On the other hand, Angel Chen, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)’s Senior Counsel for Anti-Counterfeiting in the Asia Pacific, reported zero counterfeits on any platform.

Also present at the event were representatives from Unilever, Daniel Wellington, the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines and the Philippine Retailers Association.

Observers from consulting firm UK Rouse, through its Philippine partner Baranda & Associates— which provided technical assistance on the MOU—and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) were also present at the event.

In a news statement issued on Wednesday, IPOPHL said among the primary recommendations of the signatories to enhance the MOU was its expansion by having more online platforms, services and other rights holders join and establish an IP Code of Practice.

“I assure you that IPOPHL is constantly campaigning for more brand owners to join,” Deputy Director General Teodoro C. Pascua said in response to the recommendation.

Other recommendations included the following: holding coordination/ bilateral consultations between brand owners and online platforms; educating brands, sellers and online platforms on topics like platforms’ IP policy or brands’ product identification; learning from each other’s best practices; incorporating new terms

BCDA reopens New Clark City; grand opening event set on May 28 and 29 A FTER two years of restricted access due to the pandemic, New Clark City (NCC) in Capas, Tarlac, has been reopened to the public, allowing Filipinos to witness the splendor of this rising metropolis that showcases art, architecture and nature in one place.

In celebration of this milestone, the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), together with its development partner, MTD Philippines Inc., will host a grand reopening event at NCC on May 28 and 29, following the area’s soft reopening last May 7.

“With easing of lockdowns, BCDA felt that it is the right time to reopen New Clark City to the public, and enable visitors to experience what this future metropolis has to offer. We hope this move will uplift the spirit of Filipinos after two years of fighting the virus and inspire optimism that recovery is on the horizon,” said Atty. Aristotle B. Batuhan, BCDA officer in charge president and chief executive officer.

With the reopening, visitors can now tour NCC every weekend, with free access to open spaces and viewing areas within its world-class sports facilities.

This comes after two years of restriction due to the pandemic, which prompted the BCDA to convert the National Government Administrative Center (NGAC) and Athletes’ Village in New Clark City into instant medical and isolation facilities as part of efforts to strengthen the country’s health-care system.

Grand opening celebration

TO give the public a sneak peek of what NCC has to offer now, a grand reopening event filled with food, music, entertainment and sports will energize NCC on the weekend of May 28 and 29.

The festivities will start with a Ceremonial Bike Ride and Fun Run on May 28, joined by runners, bike

INSIDE the New Clark City Aquatics Center. The first Fédération Internationale de Natation-accredited swimming facility in the country, the Aquatics Center has served as a venue for various swimming events even during the pandemic.

enthusiasts, duathletes, triathletes, as well as national athletes returning from the 31st Southeast Asian Games in Hanoi, Vietnam. A free zumba class will follow to keep the adrenaline pumping.

Local bands and performers from Central Luzon will treat visitors to an evening street party, with food trucks lining up the venue to keep the crowd and their taste buds satisfied.

The following day, cycling apparel brand Twin Cycle Gear (TCG) will hold its first NCC Cycling Race Event with around 500 participants expected.

Nature and art, together

ENVISIONED as an inclusive, disaster-resilient, sustainable and smart metropolis, NCC features wide open spaces, jogging and bike lanes, parks, and sidewalks, making it a perfect out-

door destination.

Its world-class sports facilities also makes it well-positioned to be a top sports tourism hot spot in the country.

One of the things to look forward to when visiting New Clark City is the 4.5-hectare River Park, which features a 1.4-kilometer walkway along the Cutcut River. With the perfect blend of art and nature, the park hosts rich flora and fauna along the riverbanks with various installation artworks by Filipino artists on full display.

Viewing decks have also been opened to allow visitors to see NCC’s iconic sports facilities, namely, the Athletics Stadium and Aquatics Center— both of which were host venues during the 2019 Southeast Asian Games.

“Whether it be jogging, biking, sightseeing, strolling in the park or having a picnic, there are a number of things

that you can do in New Clark City. We want to offer this place as an option for a day trip or weekend getaway for athletes, art and nature lovers, travelers and families alike,” Batuhan said.

More offers will also be made available to the public in the future, especially athletes who seek to use NCC’s state-of-the-art sports facilities for their training.

Visitors from Metro Manila can access New Clark City via the seamless connection from North Luzon Expressway to Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEx), particularly through the latter’s Dolores or Concepcion Exit. Soon, the access road from SCTEx to NCC will also be opened to the public to shorten travel time.

Meanwhile, local and foreign travelers can also explore NCC via the nearby Clark International Airport.

like “non-ori” or “photocopied” to identify red flag listings; and addressing traceability concerns.

Further, the majority of the signatories renewed their commitments to rally behind the fight against the sale of counterfeit and pirated goods over the Internet and implement the MOU. “We will continue to work closely with all of you to ensure the continuity of the MOU and its delivery of concrete outcomes,” Pascua said.

“We do emphasize this cooperation among brand owners and online platforms established in the Philippines—and based on the MOU in the European Union [EU]—has been considered as best practice and cited by various international institutions already. Hence, we hope to greatly benefit from this,” added Pascua.

For her part, DTI Assistant Secretary and E-commerce Lead Mary Jean T. Pacheco pointed out that inputs from the MOU review will also be used in the DTI’s crafting of the E-Commerce Roadmap 20232025 as the existing roadmap ends this year.

“We want an e-commerce environment where all of you will flourish because at the end of the day we want the contribution of ecommerce in the country to grow exponentially,” Pacheco said.

The MOU was signed on March 1,2021. IPOPHL collaborated with the British Embassy under the UK Prosperity Fund Asean Economic Reform Programme in the creation of the MOU.

A6

BusinessMirror

Thursday, May 26, 2022

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

No.

3D ANALYZER INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES INC. 7-8/f Double Dragon Plaza, 255 Edsa Cor. Macapagal Blvd., Barangay 76, Pasay City BANG DIEU VAN Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking 1.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering products and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services; maintains customer records by updating account information in mandarin format.

BANH CHI THANH Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

2.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering products and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services; maintains customer records by updating account information in mandarin format.

CHUNG TRANH CAI Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

3.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering products and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services; maintains customer records by updating account information in mandarin format.

LAC HAN Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

4.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering products and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services; maintains customer records by updating account information in mandarin format.

LAM CAM OAI Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

5.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering products and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services; maintains customer records by updating account information in mandarin format.

LIAW WUI YEE Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking 6.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering products and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services; maintains customer records by updating account information in mandarin format.

LUU CHI HUNG Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

7.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering products and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services; maintains customer records by updating account information in mandarin format.

LY SY TAN Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

8.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services SAN QUI KIN Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

9.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services TANG GIA LONG Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

10.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services TAO HUE LAN Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

11.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services TRAN QUOC HUNG Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking

12.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services

TRAN VINH CHINH Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking 13.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of china.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of china.

VAN DUNG LIEN Customer Service Representative - Mandarin Speaking 14.

WANNAKHAM, RAWIT Service Desk L1 Analyst – Thai 15.

Brief Job Description: Answering incoming calls/chats/web tickets and providing technical assistance following established procedures and guidelines.

JOSEPH, JERRY Client Delivery Associate Director

16.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Manage solution delivery. Work with account management senior executive and commercial support teams to proactively manage and develop the service delivery operations team manage contract operational & financial commitments.

Participate in solution design processes area.

Typical annual objectives for the Accenture performance achievement process would be: achieve business objectives (sales, revenue, cci, cost-to-serve) through articulation and application of standard delivery solutions

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of china.

SHIONO, MASAMI Service Delivery Ops Specialist 17.

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of china.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Mandarin Speaking w/ at Least Some Secondary Education Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Mandarin Speaking w/ at Least Some Secondary Education

Brief Job Description: Responsible for activities assigned by the Service Delivery Manager, coordinate all escalation for potential client issues.

BATISTA DE OLIVEIRA, AMANDA Sw/app/cloud Tech Support Analyst

18.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Mandarin Speaking w/ at Least Some Secondary Education

Brief Job Description: The position will require candidates to take calls using any of the 6 languages to support our clients with their it-related incidents and requests. the following are detailed tasks for the postings: perform initial triage for it issues raised by customers, log, track, and update incidents, attempt first time fix resolution for known issues, identify target resolver group and route tickets, do remote troubleshooting, install/uninstall applications for incidents raised by customers.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Bachelor level university/ college degree si generally required, a 2 to 3 year technical or vocational degree may be considered equivalent.

25.

19.

Basic Qualification: 10-20 years’ experience in senior managerial role; with BPO contact center experience college graduate or undergraduate with relevant experience and trainings experienced in talent management and succession planning.

Extensive knowledge of instructional design theory and learning principles. Ability to calculate training ROI. Accurate and efficient with very good organizational skills and ability to manage tasks simultaneously.

Adaptable to learn new processes, concepts and skills

26.

27.

Basic Qualification: Graduate of any 4yr course, preferably it or engineering related, strong working knowledge of the service desk function, good knowledge level on multiple it technologies, excellent communications skills both written and verbal, willing and able to work effectively in a diverse and multi-cultural environment, willing and able to work on a shifting schedule.

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

FLORENTINA IRIYANTI WINA Bahasa Indonesian Language-officer Marketing 21.

Brief Job Description: Initiate conversation to uncover customer needs.

22.

PUTY JESSICA LALLO Bahasa Indonesian Language-officer Marketing Brief Job Description: Initiate conversation to uncover customer needs.

CHRIST AGUNG SAPUTRA Bahasa Indonesian-manager Affiliates 23.

Brief Job Description: Give appropriate and relevant information to the customers.

TAN, MINGLI Mandarin Language-officer Customer Service Brief Job Description: Initiate conversation to uncover customer needs.

Basic Qualification: Degree holder, must fluently speak and write in bahasa indonesian, vietnamese, thai to cater foreign market.

Brief Job Description: Initiate conversation to uncover customer needs; promote business and product.

Basic Qualification: Degree holder, fluently speak and write bahasa indonesian, vietnamese and thai to cater foreign market.

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: Degree holder, must fluently speak and write in bahasa indonesian, vietnamese, thai to cater foreign market.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Degree holder, must fluently speak and write any of the following languages (bahasa indonesian, vietnamese, thai, mandarin) to cater foreign market; at least 24 months relevant experience.

DANG PHU QUOC Vietnamese Language - Supervisor Marketing Brief Job Description: Promote business and products.

Basic Qualification: Must fluently speak and write vietnamese.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

CHINA HARBOUR ENGINEERING COMPANY 5/f Section E Ramon Magsaysay Center, 1680 Roxas Blvd., 076, Barangay 699, Malate, City Of Manila

QIN, XU Mandarin Deputy Project Supervisor 28.

Brief Job Description: The mandarin deputy project supervisor will be a strategist and a leader able to steer the company to the most profitable direction while also implementing its vision, mission and long-term goals.

Basic Qualification: Proven experience as mandarin deputy project supervisor, familiarity, knowledge and awareness on machinery and heavy equipment use by company.

Demonstrable experience in developing strategic business plan.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

Brief Job Description: pilot

Brief Job Description: Initiate conversation to uncover customer needs.

Brief Job Description: Initiate conversation to uncover customer needs.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

ZHU, JIANQUAN Mandarin Electrical Commissioning Analyst 29.

Brief Job Description: The mandarin electrical commissioning analyst will be a strategist and a leader able to steer the company to the most profitable direction while also implementing its vision, mission and longterm goals.

Basic Qualification: Proven experience as mandarin electrical commissioning analyst, familiarity, knowledge and awareness on machinery and heavy equipment use by company. Demonstrable experience in developing strategic business plan.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

ZHANG, YINGKAI Mandarin Heavy Equipment Maintenance Analyst 30.

Brief Job Description: The mandarin heavy equipment maintenance analyst will be a strategist and a leader able to steer the company to the most profitable direction while also implementing its vision, mission and long-term goals.

Basic Qualification: Proven experience as mandarin heavy equipment maintenance analyst, familiarity, knowledge and awareness on machinery and heavy equipment use by company.

Demonstrable experience in developing strategic business plan.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

ZHAO, LIANG Mandarin Human Resources Supervisor

BIGCAT SOFTWARE SOLUTIONS, INC. 18/f Pbcom Tower, 6795 Ayala Avenue Cor. Rufino Street, Salcedo Vill., Bel-air, City Of Makati

20.

WOO, HYUNDEOK Korean Language-manager Marketing

YU, HAODONG Mandarin Language-officer Customer Service

Basic Qualification: Open to high school graduates with related work experience.

Basic Qualification: bachelor’s degree

ELISABETH Bahasa Indonesian Language-officer Customer Service

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

SANGHUN, PAK Limited First Officer - A320

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Mandarin Speaking w/ at Least Some Secondary Education

24.

ASTRO AIR INTERNATIONAL, INC. ( PAN PACIFIC AIRLINES ) Unit 1401 & 1411 Aseana 3 Bldg., Macapagal Cor. Aseana Ave. Aseana City, Baclaran, City Of Parañaque

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Mandarin Speaking w/ at Least Some Secondary Education

No.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Mandarin Speaking w/ at Least Some Secondary Education

Basic Qualification: Mandarin Speaking w/ at Least Some Secondary Education

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of china.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

ACCENTURE, INC. 7f, Robinsons Cybergate Tower 1, Pioneer St, City Of Mandaluyong

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of china.

Brief Job Description: Attracts potential customers by answering product and service questions; suggesting information about other products and services

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

3M SERVICE CENTER APAC, INC. 17th, 18th, 19th Floors, Bonifacio Stopover Corporate Center, 31st Street Cor., 2nd Avenue, Bonifacio Global City, City Of Taguig

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Fluent in spoken & written mandarin and other dialect spoken in other parts of china.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

www.businessmirror.com.ph

31.

Brief Job Description: The mandarin human resources supervisor will be a strategist and a leader able to steer the company to the most profitable direction while also implementing its vision, mission and longterm goals.

Basic Qualification: Proven experience as mandarin human resources supervisor, familiarity, knowledge and awareness on machinery and heavy equipment use by company. Demonstrable experience in developing strategic business plan.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Degree holder, fluently speak and write bahasa indonesian, vietnamese and thai to cater foreign market.

Basic Qualification: Proven experience as mandarin mechanical project specialist, familiarity, knowledge and awareness on machinery and heavy equipment use by company. Demonstrable experience in developing strategic business plan.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

CHEN, SHENGHAO Mandarin Mechanical Project Specialist 32.

Basic Qualification: Degree holder, fluently speak and write bahasa indonesian, vietnamese and thai to cater foreign market.

Brief Job Description: The mandarin mechanical project specialist will be a strategist and a leader able to steer the company to the most profitable direction while also implementing its vision, mission and longterm goals.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Must fluently speak and write any of the following languages; chinese, bahasa indonesia, bahasa malaysia, vietnamese, thai to cater foreign markets.

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

ZENG, MANYU Mandarin Operations Analyst 33.

Brief Job Description: The Mandarin Operations Analyst will be a strategist and a leader able to steer the company to the most profitable direction while also implementing its vision, mission and long-term goals.

Basic Qualification: Proven experience as mandarin operations analyst, familiarity, knowledge and awareness on machinery and heavy equipment use by company.

Demonstrable experience in developing strategic business plan.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

CHEN, XIN Mandarin Project Controls Analyst 34.

Brief Job Description: The mandarin project controls analyst will be a strategist and a leader able to steer the company to the most profitable direction while also implementing its vision, mission and long-term goals.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Proven experience as mandarin project controls analyst, familiarity, knowledge and awareness on machinery and heavy equipment use by company.

Demonstrable experience in developing strategic business plan.

No.

SHI, SHAOQIN Chinese Speaking Admin Associate 46.

LIAO, XIAOYANG Mandarin Project Site Construction Officer

35.

Brief Job Description: The mandarin project site construction officer will be a strategist and a leader able to steer the company to the most profitable direction while also implementing its vision, mission and longterm goals.

NIE, BAIXIU Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate 47.

MA, ZIFENG Mandarin Site Officer 36.

Brief Job Description: The mandarin site officer will be a strategist and a leader able to steer the company to the most profitable direction while also implementing its vision, mission and long-term goals.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Assist/Help customers, give customers information about product and services

WANG, LIJING Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate 48.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proven experience as mandarin site officer, familiarity, knowledge and awareness on machinery and heavy equipment use by company. Demonstrable experience in developing strategic business plan.

Brief Job Description: Assist/Help customers, give customers information about product and services

Brief Job Description: Assist/Help customers, give customers information about product and services

ZHAI, DONGSHENG Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate 49.

Brief Job Description: Assist/Help customers, give customers information about product and services

GUPTA, GAURAV Engagement Delivery Lead 37.

Brief Job Description: Manage delivery for the account and serve as the first point of escalation for delivery; Accountable for the P&L of the account and for overall delivery across multiple locations in the engagement

Basic Qualification: 20+ years of experience managing complex, multiple clients / projects in healthcare industry; Experience in project management, transitions, solutions

YUDO IMMANUEL Sr. Business Analyst 38.

Brief Job Description: Performs advance analyst work and related duties using both english and bahasa language.

LUO, SHANSHUI Senior Marketing Specialist 50.

Basic Qualification: At least 2nd year college or senior high school graduate, minimum 6months bpo experience fluent in english and bahasa indonesia language.

Salary Range: Php 90,000 - Php 149,999

39.

Brief Job Description: Maintaining and monitoring project plans, project schedules, work hours, budget and expenditures.

Basic Qualification: Bachelor’s/ College graduate in any field Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

SHARMA, PANKAJ Accelerated Growth And Leverage (“agl”) And Asean-field Sciences Lead 40.

Brief Job Description: Leads the field science team that effectively characterizes, develops, delivers technology transfer, and provides support to existing product lines across all cp and traits disciplines

YOU, WEILI Marketing Officer 51.

41.

XIE, JIAHONG Chinese It Support Brief Job Description: Addressing internet technical issues

52.

53.

Brief Job Description: Assist/Help customers, give customers information about product and services

54.

JIA, YALIANG Chinese Speaking Admin Associate 43.

Brief Job Description: Assist/Help customers, give customers information about product and services

LI, MIN Chinese Speaking Admin Associate 44.

Brief Job Description: Assist/Help customers, give customers information about product and services

LIU, QIANG Chinese Speaking Admin Associate 45.

Brief Job Description: Assist/Help customers, give customers information about product and services

Basic Qualification: With Atleast 6 Months Customer Service Experience/Good in Oral Communication and Written

56.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

60.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Build sustainable relationship of trust through open and interactive communication in Mandarin speaking

Brief Job Description: Build sustainable relationship of trust through open and interactive communication in Mandarin speaking

Brief Job Description: Build sustainable relationship of trust through open and interactive communication in Mandarin speaking

KAN SIEW YUN Chinese Speaking Business Financial Officer 57.

Brief Job Description: Assist/Help customers, give customers information about product and services

OOI WEI KEONG Chinese Speaking Business Financial Officer 58.

Brief Job Description: Assist/Help customers, give customers information about product and services

Brief Job Description: MANDARIN DIGITAL MARKETING OFFICER

Brief Job Description: The MANDARIN HUMAN RESOURCES SUPERVISOR will be a strategist and a leader able to steer the company to the most profitable direction while also implementing its vision, mission and long term goals.

LIU, XINGYU Mandarin Information System Analyst 61.

Brief Job Description: The MANDARIN INFORMATION SYSTEM ANALYST will be a strategist and a leader able to steer the company to the most profitable direction while also implementing its vision, mission and long term goals.

CHANG, TSUNG-CHIEH Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk 62.

Basic Qualification: Can Work Harmoniously With Executive Team Such as the Marketing Director or Managing Director to Set the Marketing Strategy for the Business.

Must Be Willing to Hire and Manage Junior Marketing Team That Includes PR and Creative Staff. Able to Speak and Communicate Using Mandarin Is an Advantage

63.

Basic Qualification: Knows how to recommend potential products or services to management by collecting customer information and analyzing costumer needs Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knows how to recommend potential products or services to management by collecting customer information and analyzing costumer needs

64.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knows how to recommend potential products or services to management by collecting customer information and analyzing costumer needs Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: With Atleast 6 Months Customer Service Experience/Good in Oral Communication and Written

65.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

HECTECHURE CORP. Units A&b 20/f Rufino Pacific Tower, 6784 Ayala Ave. Cor. V.a. Rufino St., San Lorenzo, City Of Makati

Basic Qualification: Proven experience as MANDARIN DIGITAL MARKETING OFFICER, excellent communication, interpersonal and presentation skills.

Basic Qualification: Proven experience as MANDARIN HUMAN RESOURCES SUPERVISOR, excellent communication, interpersonal and presentation skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proven experience as MANDARIN INFORMATION SYSTEM ANALYST, excellent communication, interpersonal and presentation skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Assist/help customers, give customers information about product and services.

Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months customer service experience/good in oral communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months customer service experience/good in oral communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months customer service experience/good in oral communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months customer service experience/good in oral communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

JAN DE NUL (PHILS.), INC. 302 3rd/f Aseana Power Station Macapagal Blvd., Cor. Bradco Ave. Aseana City, Tambo, City Of Parañaque AYED, ABDELKADER Sandfield Master 66.

Brief Job Description: Organizes the distribution of task among his crew according to the agreed activities, reassesses plans, working methods and deadlines agreed with project management.

VAN OVERMEIREN, MONTE Sandfield Master

67.

Brief Job Description: Organizes the distribution of task among his crew according to the agreed activities, reassesses plans, working methods and deadlines agreed with project management.

Basic Qualification: Minimum of 10 years of working experience on international dredging projects.

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999 Basic Qualification: Minimum of 10 years of working experience on international dredging projects.

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

MERCK BUSINESS SOLUTIONS ASIA INC. 36th To 39th Floor, The Finance Centre Condominium, 26th Street Corner 9th Avenue, Bonifacio Global City, City Of Taguig DUONG THU HUONG I2p Advance Associate - Vietnamese Speaker 68.

Brief Job Description: Perform day to day processing of accounts payable transactions; verify the validity of the transactions and attachments for compliance with the company’s requirements; assist in both internal and external audits

Basic Qualification: Bacherlors/College Degree in Finance/ Accounting or related courses; at least 1 year work experience in accounts payable operatons Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. 4th-11th Flr. Nexgen Tower, C4 Rd. Edsa Ext., Barangay 76, Pasay City HTET HTET MAW ZIN Burmese Customer Service Representative 69.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires PHYU HNIN WAI Burmese Customer Service Representative

70.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries PHYU PHYU KHAING Burmese Customer Service Representative

71.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With Atleast 6 Months Customer Service Experience/Good in Oral Communication and Written

Brief Job Description: Assist/help customers, give customers information about product and services.

ZHANG, JING Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knows how to recommend potential products or services to management by collecting customer information and analyzing costumer needs

Brief Job Description: Assist/help customers, give customers information about product and services.

WAN, KAIKUN Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Assist/help customers, give customers information about product and services.

PENG, HUIWEN Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk

Basic Qualification: With solid knowledge of marketing techniques and principles

Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

INFOVINE INC. 8th, 9th, 10th/f Aspire Corporate Plaza Bldg., Macapagal Blvd. St., Zone 10, Barangay 76, Pasay City

GRAND PREMIUM CREST HOLDING INC. 16/f Tower 6789, 6789 Ayala Ave., Bel-air, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With Atleast 6 Months Customer Service Experience/Good in Oral Communication and Written

Brief Job Description: Build sustainable relationship of trust through open and interactive communication in Mandarin speaking

YANG, WENHUA Customer Service Representative Mandarin Speaking

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: With Atleast 6 Months Customer Service Experience/Good in Oral Communication and Written

Brief Job Description: Customer Service.

XU, SHUN-YA Customer Service Representative Mandarin Speaking

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

HSU, CHU-HSUAN Call Center Agent

HUANG, MINGZHENG Customer Service Representative Mandarin Speaking

55.

42.

Brief Job Description: Supporting the marketing manager in overseeing the departments operation

CHEN, LIMIN Customer Service Representative Mandarin Speaking

Basic Qualification: Responsible in maintaining computer accessories/peripherals and IT related equipment.

Basic Qualification: With Atleast 6 Months Customer Service Experience/Good in Oral Communication and Written

Basic Qualification: With Atleast 6 Months Customer Service Experience/Good in Oral Communication and Written

GERALDINE FONG JING YI Mandarin Digital Marketing Officer

SHIH, YING-TZU Mandarin Human Resources Supervisor

Basic Qualification: With Atleast 6 Months Customer Service Experience/Good in Oral Communication and Written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

GLOBALLGA BUSINESS PROCESS OUTSOURCING, OPC Ground Level, Level 2-5 Floor, Silver City 4, Ortigas East, Ugong, City Of Pasig

DYNAMIC STUDIO TECHNOLOGY INC. 5th To 10th/f Platinum Tower Building, Aseana Ave. Cor. Fuentes Street, Baclaran, City Of Parañaque

AN, GENG Chinese Speaking Admin Associate

59.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

FLYING DRAGON NETWORK PHILIPPINES INC. Ri Rance Ii Bldg., Block 2 Lot 3 Aseana City, Tambo, City Of Parañaque

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

DUNFENG MANAGEMENT INC. 17th Floor Units C & D, Marco Polo Ortigas Manila, San Antonio, City Of Pasig

Basic Qualification: With Atleast 6 Months Customer Service Experience/Good in Oral Communication and Written

FILFLY CONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT INC. #1295, G. Araneta Ave. Cor. N.s. Amoranto, Santo Domingo, Quezon City

DU PONT FAR EAST, INC. 8th Flr. I Square Bldg., Meralco Ave., Ortigas Center, San Antonio, City Of Pasig Basic Qualification: Has broad scientific and agronomic understanding and leadership, strategic planning on an interdisciplinary basis, and technical knowledge within the business region

Basic Qualification: With Atleast 6 Months Customer Service Experience/Good in Oral Communication and Written

No.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

DSCP, INC. Unit 306, 3/f, Bldg. No. 2, Marbella I Condo Bldg., Roxas Blvd., Barangay 13, Pasay City LEE, BYOUNGHAK Project Manager

Brief Job Description: Looking after the budget of the marketing department and making sure the budget spend is delivering a return on investment. Managing the design and production of promotional materials, such as websites and brochures.

Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

CONDUENT BUSINESS SERVICES PHILIPPINES, INC. 7f One E-com Building, Palm Coast Avenue, Mall Of Asia Complex, Pasay City

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

EASTERN GOLD CORPORATION 503, Nueva St., Barangay 289, Binondo, City Of Manila

COGNIZANT TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS PHILIPPINES, INC. 2nd, 3rd, And 4th Floors, Science Hub Tower 4 Bldg., Mckinley Hill Cyberpark, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

A7

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proven experience as mandarin project site construction officer, familiarity, knowledge and awareness on machinery and heavy equipment use by company. Demonstrable experience in developing strategic business plan.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

Thursday, May 26, 2022

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries PHYU PHYU KHAING Burmese Customer Service Representative

72.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries

SAI HTIKE AUNG Burmese Customer Service Representative 73.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Basic Qualification: Able to Speak, Read, and Write Chinese Language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write Chinese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write Chinese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write Chinese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write Chinese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

BusinessMirror

Thursday, May 26, 2022

A6 A8

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION THET THET PHOO Burmese Customer Service Representative

74.

75.

76.

77.

78.

79.

80.

81.

82.

83.

84.

85.

86.

87.

88.

89.

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93.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries CHOONG WEN HUI Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service.

DINH THI DIEU Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service

DONAL HALASAN HUTASOIT Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service.

DU, FU Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service

DUONG THI HA Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service

GAN YONG FEI Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service

HY MINH HIEN Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service.

KHAW BENG HUA Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service.

LAI SONG NGIO Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service

LE ANH PHAP Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service

LE NGOC TUONG VI Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service

LE THI NHUNG Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service

LE VAN HUNG Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service

NGUYEN TUONG VY Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service.

NGUYEN CAM XUONG Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service

NGUYEN HOP QUYEN Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service

NGUYEN QUANG BINH Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service

NGUYEN THANH LAM Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service

NGUYEN THI NGA Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write Chinese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level, and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level, and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

No.

94.

95.

96.

97.

98.

99.

100.

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Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

106.

Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level, and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

107.

108.

109.

Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Customer service

NGUYEN VAN QUANG Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service

PHAM THI THI Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service

PHAN CONG QUY Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service

PHAN VIET SANG Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service.

TANG YU LUNG Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service

THONG KIM PHUONG Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer service

TRAN THI QUYNH ANH Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service

VU VAN DUONG Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service

WIN TUN OO Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service

WONG FUI JIUN Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service

ZHAI, HUIQIN Call Center Agent Brief Job Description: Customer Service.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills YAN, WENKUN Chinese Customer Service Representative

110.

Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level, and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NGUYEN TUAN ANH Call Center Agent

MAI, ZHENHAO Chinese Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level, and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Customer service

KONG, XUYANG Chinese Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NGUYEN THI THANH HOA Call Center Agent

CHEN, ZEYAN Chinese Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills YU, JIHONG Chinese Customer Service Representative

111.

112.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires ZHAO, FENGKUAN Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Customer service

LUK TZE WOO Malaysian Customer Service Representative 113.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires

www.businessmirror.com.ph

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level, and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English

No.

YAU PECK GUAN Malaysian Customer Service Representative 114.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level, and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English

115.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

116.

117.

Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English

118.

119.

120.

121.

122.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

123.

124.

Basic Qualification: Customer support and data base services

125.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

126.

127.

128.

129.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries.

VU DINH HOP Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

130.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries.

VU VAN THANG Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

131.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write Chinese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write Chinese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write Chinese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write Chinese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write Chinese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write Chinese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write Chinese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write Chinese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: ABLE TO SPEAK, READ AND WRITE CHINESE LANGUAGE. Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read and write chinese language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

MPOTECH DIGITAL SYSTEM INC. 47/f Pbcom Tower, 6795 Ayala Ave. Cor. V.a Rufino St., Bel-air, City Of Makati HARDI SUTA WIJAYA Indonesian Customer Service Representative 132.

Brief Job Description: Provide product/services, information, answer questions and resolve emerging problems

VERANOVELIA Indonesian Customer Service Representative 133.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries.

VO THI THUONG Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level, and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English

Basic Qualification: Able to Speak, Read, and Write Chinese Language

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries.

VO THI CAO THI Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: Able to Speak, Read, and Write Chinese Language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: MANAGING INCOMING CALLS AND CUSTOMER SERVICE INQUIRIES. VO HOANG PHUONG Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: Customer support and data base services Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries.

TRINH THI THANH Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Customer support and data base services

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries.

TRINH THI MAI Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: Able to speak, Read, and Write Chinese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries.

TRIEU DAO VANG Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries.

TRAN XUAN TINH Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries TRAN THI LIEU Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries TRAN QUOC TOAN Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries TRAN QUOC PHI Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries PHAN THI TUYET Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries PHAN QUYNH THAO Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries PHAN BA THUAN Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries PHAM VIET BINH Vietnamese Customer Service Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries YAU SIEW HUI Malaysian Customer Service Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College Graduate/Level and Fluent in Mandarin/ Basic English

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

Brief Job Description: Provide product/services, information, answer questions and resolve emerging problems

VIVI NOVELIA Indonesian Customer Service Representative 134.

Brief Job Description: Provide product/services, information, answer questions and resolve emerging problems

Basic Qualification: Graduate 4 years bachelor degree with critical thinking and problem-solving skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Graduate 4 years bachelor degree with critical thinking and problem-solving skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Graduate 4 years bachelor degree with critical thinking and problem-solving skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

MYSTIC REALTY DEVELOPMENT CORP. Ub 111 Paseo De Roxas Bldg., 197 Paseo De Roxas, San Lorenzo, City Of Makati

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION LIAO, LIHUI Mandarin Customer Service Specialist

135.

Brief Job Description: Creating and updating customer’s account information WANG, ZHAOSHENG Mandarin Customer Service Specialist

136.

Brief Job Description: Creating and updating customer’s account information

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Excellent oral and written communication in mandarin

Basic Qualification: Excellent oral and written communication in mandarin

137.

Brief Job Description: Assist/help customers, give customers information about product and services

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

WU, JING Chinese Speaking Admin Associate 138.

Brief Job Description: Assist/help customers, give customers information about product and services

139.

Brief Job Description: Place software into production by loading software into computer, entering necessary of commands.

KERK YOCK SENG Business Lending Development Officer 140.

Brief Job Description: Develop business proposals, analyze current and past expenses.

TSAURAYI, VICTOR NHLEMA Business Lending Development Officer 141.

Brief Job Description: Develop business proposals, analyze current and past expenses.

YOSHIDA, HIROMU Business Lending Development Officer 142.

143.

Brief Job Description: Develop business proposals, analyze current and past expenses.

LIU, XIAOHUI Chinese Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Answering inquiries, resolving problems.

HUANG, YU Business Development Analyst 149.

150.

Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos-1year customer service experience.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos-1year customer service experience.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

151.

144.

Brief Job Description: Manage and develop employees performance expectations

Basic Qualification: Can speak mandarin

Brief Job Description: A commendable sales performance specializing in Financial Services and in Corporate Banking or Wealth Management/ Financial Planning services to high net worth clients. Fluency in English and Mandarin Language is a must.

145.

Brief Job Description: Assist/help customers, give customers information about product and services.

XIE, ZHAOCAI Chinese Speaking Brand Marketing Specialist 146.

Brief Job Description: Assist/help customers, give customers information about product and services.

LEE YANG KIT Maintenance & Material Administrator 152.

147.

Brief Job Description: Coordinate and cooperate with attorneys to ensure complex work at a high level of competence in one or more areas of law; prepare background materials, reports, papers and other documents as requested by the supervisor.

160.

Brief Job Description: Minimum 2 years experience working with computerized maintenance management systems (e-main) in the oil and gas industry

161.

SHAO, XIAOYUAN Marketing Specialist 153.

Brief Job Description: Contribute to the marketing effectiveness by identifying short-term and long range issues that must be addressed, provides information and recommends options and course of action.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite and CRM CMS software. Excellent written and verbal skills. With marketing background.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

TOSUNG CONST. PHP INC. Unit No. 701 Flr. No. 7/f Diplomat Condominium Bldg., Roxas Blvd. Cor. Russel St., Zone 10, Barangay 76, Pasay City

KIM, EUNGSU Consultant 154.

Brief Job Description: Plan, oversee and document all aspect of the Design and build for the Construction of roads ad Bridge Project. Coordinate internal resources for the execution of the project. Develop a detailed project plan to track progress.

Basic Qualification: 5 Year Experience in infrastructure projects to construct roads and bridges. Extensive experience and superior construction abilities.

Technical skills using the latest equipment and construction method. Must be able to speak Korean language. equipment and construction method.

Must be able to speak Korean language.

STEVEN SUDARWI Bahasa Language Customer Service Representative 155.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months customer service experience/good in oral communication and written.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Report on a daily basis operation of call center activities performing customer oriented telephone activities & various background operations duties.

162.

Brief Job Description: Indonesian written reports on a daily operation of call center activities performing customer-oriented telephone activities and various background operation duties JONI Indonesian-speaking Customer Service Officer

163.

Brief Job Description: Indonesian written reports on a daily operation of call center activities performing customer-oriented telephone activities and various background operation duties JOSHUA CHRISTIAN KAUMBUR Indonesian-speaking Customer Service Officer

164.

Brief Job Description: Indonesian written reports on a daily operation of call center activities performing customer-oriented telephone activities and various background operation duties JULIA KAWUNG Indonesian-speaking Customer Service Officer

165.

Brief Job Description: Indonesian written reports on a daily operation of call center activities performing customer-oriented telephone activities and various background operation duties MICHAEL MAURICE MANGGALA Indonesian-speaking Customer Service Officer

166.

Brief Job Description: Indonesian written reports on a daily operation of call center activities performing customer-oriented telephone activities and various background operation duties NEVI SELVIANA Indonesian-speaking Customer Service Officer

167.

Brief Job Description: Indonesian written reports on a daily operation of call center activities performing customer-oriented telephone activities and various background operation duties SANTI WIJAYA Indonesian-speaking Customer Service Officer

168.

Brief Job Description: Indonesian written reports on a daily operation of call center activities performing customer-oriented telephone activities and various background operation duties TANDRI ENDAH PURWANTI Indonesian-speaking Customer Service Officer

169.

WILLY DWI SAPUTRA Bahasa Language Customer Service Representative 156.

Brief Job Description: Report on a daily basis operation of call center activities performing customer oriented telephone activities & various background operations duties.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in writing, reading and speaking in both English/ Bahasa/ Thai/ Chinese/ Vietnamese/ Malay.

Brief Job Description: Indonesian written reports on a daily operation of call center activities performing customer-oriented telephone activities and various background operation duties

ANTON GUSTIAN Bahasa Language Customer Service Representative 170.

Brief Job Description: Professionally handle incoming requests from customers and ensure that issues are resolved both promptly and thoroughly

DERRON FELLIX YOHANES Bahasa Language Customer Service Representative 171.

Brief Job Description: Professionally handle incoming requests from customers and ensure that issues are resolved both promptly and thoroughly

KHAIRI RAMADHANI Bahasa Language Customer Service Representative 172.

Brief Job Description: Professionally handle incoming requests from customers and ensure that issues are resolved both promptly and thoroughly

HA, MINYUNG Korean Language Customer Service Representative 173.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Professionally handle incoming requests from customers and ensure that issues are resolved both promptly and thoroughly

W-TECH SOLUTIONS INC. 5/f Eco Plaza Bldg., 2305 Chino Roces Ave. Extn., Magallanes, City Of Makati ANTWI, CHRISTOPHER NIMAKO Wls Customer Service Representative 157.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for acting as a liaison between customer & companies

Basic Qualification: With at Least 6 Months Customer Service, Knowledgeable in Computer Applications Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

158.

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

WCL SOLUTIONS (PHIL.) CORPORATION U-912 9/f Phil Axa Life Centre, 1286 Sen. Gil Puyat Ave. Cor. Tindalo St., San Antonio, City Of Makati

JI, TIANMING Wls Customer Service Representative

159.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for acting as a liaison between customer & companies

ISAJI, YOKO Business Development Senior Manager Brief Job Description: Business/customer development

Basic Qualification: With at Least 6 Months Customer Service, Knowledgeable in Computer Applications Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Tenacity & drive to seek new business Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Indonesian speaking and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Indonesian speaking and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Indonesian speaking and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Indonesian speaking and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Indonesian speaking and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Indonesian speaking and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Indonesian speaking and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Indonesian speaking and written Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

ZIMI TECH, INC. 29th/f Burgundy Corporate Tower 252, Sen. Gil Puyat Ave., Pio Del Pilar, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Master’s degree in law from a reputable law school; having passed the prc bar exam is essential; fluent in mandarin chinese, full professional proficiency in english.

SUMITOMO METAL MINING PHILIPPINE HOLDINGS CORPORATION 24th & 25th Floor Nac Tower, 32nd Street, Bonifacio Global City, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

Brief Job Description: Monitoring and maintaining computer systems and networks.

TRI7 SOLUTIONS, INC. Unit 9-a 9/f Marvin Plaza Bldg., 2153 Don Chino Roces Ave., Pio Del Pilar, City Of Makati Basic Qualification: Proficient in writing, reading and speaking in both English/ Bahasa/ Thai/ Chinese/ Vietnamese/ Malay.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Can Speak Mandarin

FERNANDO FABIO SUAWA Indonesian-speaking Customer Service Officer

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months customer service experience/good in oral communication and written.

Basic Qualification: Proficient Language Skills and Skills Match to Job

ZAPPORT SERVICES, INC. 36/f Burgundy Corporate Tower, 252 Sen. Gil J. Puyat Ave., Pio Del Pilar, City Of Makati

Basic Qualification: Diploma in energy or warehousing and stocks inventory, OGUK, OPITO BOSIET Certificates Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

Brief Job Description: Maintain accurate sales records, reconcile delivery records with suppliers monthly.

ZHANG, XIAORAN Mandarin Technical Support

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent Communication, Interpersonal and Listening Skills, the Capability to Explain Complex Information Simply and Clearly, the Ability to Network and Establish Relationships With Clients, Negotiation and Influencing Skills as Well as Determination and Tenacity. Fluency in English and Mandarin Language is a Must.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

LA DONG PHUONG Mandarin Operations Specialist

TINGCLOUD DOCUMENTARY & MARKETING SERVICES OPC C-06 23/f Tower, 6789 Ayala Ave., Bel-air, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 90,000 - Php 149,999

STATE GRID CORPORATION OF CHINA (STATE GRID CORPORATION OF CHINA PHILIPPINE OFFICE) Unit 2 Level 21 Ibp Tower, Julia Vargas Avenue, Ortigas Center, San Antonio, City Of Pasig

DU, HANYI Legal Specialist

Basic Qualification: Strong knowledge of consumer industry, ability to think critically and creatively. Fluency in English and Vietnamese Language is a must.

THREE60 OPERATIONS SERVICES LIMITED Level 9 Arthland Century Pacific Tower, 30th Street Corner 4th And 5th Avenue Bonifacio Global City, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

SPRITZER TRADING CORP. 37/f Lkg Tower, 6801 Ayala Ave., Bel-air, City Of Makati

AUNG PHYO PAING Chinese Speaking Brand Marketing Specialist

Basic Qualification: Must be flexible, analytical and good communicators.

In the next few sections, we look at the academic requirements, professional certifications and soft skills requirements for BA roles, Fluency in English and Mandarin Language is a must.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

WIKITECH SERVICES INC. Unit 25d 2/f Zeta Ii Bldg., 191 Salcedo St., San Lorenzo, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

SOLIDLEISURE SOLUTIONS INC. Unit 2602-d & 2603-a West Tower, Psec Exchange Road, Ortigas Center, San Antonio, City Of Pasig ZHOU, HUAXIN Mandarin Supervisor

Brief Job Description: Conducts research, surveys and interviews to gain understanding of the business. Analyzing statistics.

Compiling and presenting information orally, visually and in writing, must be fluent in English and Vietnamese Language.

AHN, JOONPIL Financial Services Consultant

Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos-1year customer service experience.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Develop, implement and communicate metrics reporting processes and documentation across plants and companies in collaboration with operations, marketing and sales functions, fluency in English and Mandarin Language is a must.

VONG VAN HA Consultant

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos-1year customer service experience.

Basic Qualification: Degree in accountancy, finance and/or business administration. with effective management and leadership skills, good communication skills in oral and written form, Japanese or English, capable of multitasking flexible and can work under minimum supervision, must have at least 5 years of existence in similar position at senior management level.

No.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Good oral and written communication skills in mandarin, at least 6 months of related experience.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

TANZILA TRADING INC. U-29, 3/f Baclaran Bagong Milenyo Bldg., F.b. Harrison St., Barangay 76, Pasay City

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

RIGHT CHOICE FINANCE CORP. 5e-1 Electra House Bldg., 115-117 Esteban Street, San Lorenzo, City Of Makati

Brief Job Description: Directly report to the chief finance officer of the company, deal with risk detection and the company’s financial risk management, manage and in-charge of the treasury section of accounting department of the company, responsible for investing and financing, concerned with the storage and disbursement of cash of the organization

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

Salary Range: Php 90,000 - Php 149,999

Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months customer service experience/good in oral communication and written

OUTWIT, INC. 2/f Marvin Plaza, 2153 Chino Roces Ave., Pio Del Pilar, City Of Makati

LEE, HUNG-CHUN Mandarin Speaking Technical Support Specialist

148.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: With at least 6 months customer service experience/good in oral communication and written

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

MARU, ASUKA Treasurer

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NEO INCORPORATED North Tower Centrum Bldg., Aseana Avenue, Entertainment City, Baclaran, City Of Parañaque LIU, BAOBEI Chinese Speaking Admin Associate

No.

Thursday, May 26, 2022

WOO, HYEKYUNG Korean Language Customer Service Representative 174.

Brief Job Description: Professionally handle incoming requests from customers and ensure that issues are resolved both promptly and thoroughly

Basic Qualification: Proficient in Writing, Reading and Speaking in Both English and Korean/Bahasa/Chinese/ Vietnamese/Malaysian/ Cambodian Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in Writing, Reading and Speaking in Both English and Korean/Bahasa/Chinese/ Vietnamese/Malaysian/ Cambodian Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in Writing, Reading and Speaking in Both English and Korean/Bahasa/Chinese/ Vietnamese/Malaysian/ Cambodian Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in Writing, Reading and Speaking in Both English and Korean/Bahasa/Chinese/ Vietnamese/Malaysian/ Cambodian Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in Writing, Reading and Speaking in Both English and Korean/Bahasa/Chinese/ Vietnamese/Malaysian/ Cambodian Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

*Date Generated: May 25, 2022 Any person in the Philippines who is competent, able and willing to perform the services for which the foreign national is desired may file an objection at DOLE National Capital Region located at DOLE-NCR Building, 967 Maligaya St., Malate Manila, within 30 days after this publication.

Please inform DOLE National Capital Region if you have any information on criminal offense committed by the foreign nationals.

A9

TheWorld BusinessMirror

A10 Thursday, May 26, 2022

Biden says ‘we have to act’ after school rampage kills 19 children

By Zeke Miller & Chris Megerian

W

The Associated Press

ASHINGTON—Lamenting a uniquely American tragedy, an anguished and angry President Joe Biden delivered an urgent call for new restrictions on firearms after a gunman shot and killed at least 19 children at a Texas elementary school.

Biden spoke Tuesday night from the White House barely an hour after returning from a five-day trip to Asia that was bracketed by mass shootings in the US. He pleaded for action to address gun violence after years of failure—and bitterly blamed firearm manufacturers and their supporters for blocking legislation in Washington. ‘”When in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby?”

Biden said with emotion. “Why are we willing to live with this carnage? Why do we keep letting this happen?”

With first lady Jill Biden standing by his side in the Roosevelt Room, the president, who has suffered the loss of two of his own children—though not to gun violence—spoke in visceral terms about the grief of the loved ones of the victims and the pain that will endure for the students who survived.

“To lose a child is like having a piece of your soul ripped away,” Biden said. “There’s a hollowness in your chest. You feel like you’re being sucked into it and never going to be able to get out.”

He called on the nation to hold the victims and families in prayer—but also to work harder to prevent the next tragedy, “It’s time we turned this pain into action,” he said.

At least 19 students were killed at Robb Elementary School in the heavily Latino town of Uvalde, Texas, according to local officials.

The death toll also included two adults. The gunman died after being shot by responding officers, local police said.

It was just a week earlier that Biden, on the eve of his overseas trip, traveled to Buffalo to meet with victims’ families after a racist, hate-filled shooter killed 10 Black people at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York.

The back-to-back tragedies served as sobering reminders of the frequency and brutality of an American epidemic of mass gun violence.

“These kinds of mass shootings rarely happen anywhere else in the world,” Biden said, reflecting that other nations have people filled with hate or with mental health issues but no other industrialized nation experiences gun violence at the level of the US. “Why?” he asked.

It was much too early to tell if the latest violent outbreak could break the political logjam around tightening the nation’s gun laws, after so many others—including the 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut that killed 26, including 20 children—have failed.

“The idea that an 18-year-old kid can walk into a gun store and buy two assault weapons is just wrong,” Biden said. He has previously called for a ban on assaultstyle weapons, as well as tougher federal background check requirements and “red flag” laws that are meant to keep guns out of the hands of those with mental health problems.

Late Tuesday, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer set in motion possible action on two House-passed bills to expand federally required background checks for gun purchases, but no votes have been scheduled.

Biden was somber when he returned to the White House, having been briefed on the shooting on Air Force One. Shortly before landing in Washington, he spoke with Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and offered “any and all assistance” needed, the White House said.

He directed that American flags be flown at half-staff through sunset Saturday in honor of the victims in Texas.

President Joe Biden speaks about the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, from the White House, in Washington, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, as first lady Jill Biden listens. AP/Manuel Balce Ceneta

His aides, some of whom had just returned from Asia with the president, gathered to watch Biden’s speech on televisions in the West Wing.

“I’ d hoped when I became president I would not have to do this, again,” he said. “Another massacre.”

In a stark reminder of the issue’s divisiveness, Biden’s call for gun measures was booed at a campaign event in Georgia hosted by Herschel Walker, who won the Republican nomination for US Senate.

Speaking at an Asian Pacific American event that was intended to celebrate Biden’s Asia trip, Vice President Kamala Harris said earlier that people normally declare in moments like this, “our hearts break—but our hearts keep getting broken...and our broken hearts are nothing compared to the broken hearts of those families.”

“We have to have the courage to take action...to ensure something like this never happens again,” she said.

Echoing Biden’s call, former President Barack Obama, who has called the day of the Sandy Hook shooting the darkest of his administration, said, “It’s long past time for action, any kind of action.”

“Michelle and I grieve with the families in Uvalde, who are experiencing pain no one should have to bear,” he said in a statement.

“We’re also angry for them. Nearly ten years after Sandy Hook—and ten days after Buffalo—our country is paralyzed, not by fear, but by a gun lobby and a political party that have shown no willingness to act in any way that might help prevent these tragedies.”

Congress has been unable to pass substantial gun violence legislation ever since the bipartisan effort to strengthen background

checks on firearm purchases collapsed in the aftermath of the 2012 shooting.

Despite months of work, a bill that was backed by a majority of senators, fell to a filibuster— unable to overcome the 60-vote threshold needed to advance.

In impassioned remarks on the Senate floor Tuesday, Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., who represented Newton, Connecticut, in the House at the time of the Sandy Hook massacre, asked his colleagues why they even bother running for office if they’re going to stand by and do nothing.

“I’m here on this floor to beg— to literally get down on my hands and knees—to beg my colleagues,” he said.

Murphy said he was planning to reach out to Texas Republican Sen. John Cornyn after the two had teamed on an earlier background check bill that never became law.

He said he would also reach out to Texas’ other Republican Sen. Ted Cruz.

“I just don’t understand why people here think we’re powerless,” Murphy said. “We aren’t.”

Cornyn told reporters he was on his way to Texas and would talk with them later. Cruz issued a statement calling it “a dark day.

We’re all completely sickened and heartbroken.”

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., who sponsored gun legislation that failed to overcome a filibuster in the Senate after Sandy Hook, said, “We’re just pushing on people who just won’t budge on anything.”

“It makes no sense at all why we can’t do commonsense things and try to prevent some of this from happening,” he said.

The Associated Press writers Lisa Mascaro, Michael Balsamo, Alan Fram and Farnoush Amiri contributed.

Australia’s government urges China to remove trade barriers

C

ANBERRA, Australia—Australia’s new government has urged China to lift trade sanctions if it wants to reset a bilateral relationship that plumbed new depths under the previous administration.

The Chinese premier’s congratulatory letter to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on his election victory was widely seen as a relaxation of Beijing’s two-year ban on high-level government contact with Australia. Premier Li Keqiang said China was ready to work with Australia to improve the bilateral relationship.

But Albanese said it was China, not Australia, that had changed since his center-left Labor Party was last in power in 2013.

China has created a series of official and unofficial trade barriers in recent years to a range of Australian exports worth billions of dollars including coal, wine, barley, beef and seafood.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, left, and Foreign Minister Penny Wong attend a bilateral meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida alongside a meeting of the IndoPacific security coalition known as the Quad at the Akasaka Palace in Tokyo on Tuesday, May 24, 2022. The Quad consists of Australia, India, the United States and Japan. Issei Kato/Pool Photo via AP “It is China that has placed sanctions on Australia,” Albanese told reporters Tuesday at a Tokyo summit that he attended with President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“There is no justification for doing that

and that’s why they should be removed,” Albanese added.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers also called for China to immediately lift trade barriers between the free-trade partners.

“We would certainly like to see those sanctions and those tariffs lifted. They are

damaging our economy. They are making life harder for some of our employers and workers here in Australia and so obviously we would like to see those measures lifted,” Chalmers told Australian Broadcasting Corp. on Wednesday.

Before Albanese and his Foreign Minister Penny Wong boarded a plane to return to Australia from Tokyo, he thanked Australian voters who on Saturday’s election gave him the “extraordinary honor of representing Australia at important international forums.”

“I will always act with integrity. I will always act with honesty in my dealings with other leaders and our friends and partners,” Albanese said, in comments that could be aimed at his predecessor, Prime Minister Scott Morrison.

During a National Press Club speech last week, Albanese blamed Morrison for damaging relationships with other countries. AP

Editor: Angel R. Calso • www.businessmirror.com.ph

Beijing punishes dozen officials over Covid; Tianjin locks down

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eijing punished a dozen officials over two Covid-19 clusters as China’s capital continues to report new infections in its now month-long outbreak, while the nearby port city of Tianjin locked down its city center amid a simmering flareup.

T h e h e a d o f B e i j i n g ’s p o s t a l administration was warned for not properly supervising virus-prevention work and not paying enough attention to the growing case numbers over a cluster at a courier service outlet, according to a statement posted on the website of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, China’s top anti-graft agency.

Eight officials involved in a China Railwaylinked cluster were punished for lying about their movements.

The capital reported 47 new Covid cases for Tuesday, compared with 48 on Monday and 99 on Sunday, the highest of the current outbreak. While the numbers are still low, Beijing has been recording several dozen infections a day for the past month, suggesting mass-testing drives, work-fromhome orders in some districts and other Covid Zero measures haven’t been enough to extinguish the outbreak.

Beijing has pledged to strengthen virus controls among essential workers such as security guards, maintenance staff and workers at internal dining halls.

Still, the city’s persistent infections underscore the challenges of achieving

Covid Zero, and have swiftly turned the capital into a core area of focus for authorities as Shanghai’s outbreak ebbs.

Vice Premier Sun Chunlan—the top official for pandemic control, whose appearance at virus hotspots across the country typically reflects the central government’s priorities—came to Beijing this week and urged authorities to adhere stringently to China’s zero-tolerance virus approach and eradicate community spread more swiftly.

In the nearby port city of Tianjin, where an outbreak in January disrupted global auto giants Toyota Motor Corp. and Volkswagen AG, residents in the central Heping district have been told not to leave their housing compounds or neighborhoods unless necessary and have been encouraged to work from home for three days.

Elsewhere, Shanghai reported 387 new cases, down from 480 on Monday.

One infection was found outside of government-run quarantine in the financial hub. China isolates all Covid cases and their close contacts as a way of stemming transmission.

While the city has been officially easing the lockdown that kept its 25 million residents confined to their homes for almost two months, zealous grassroots volunteers who police housing compounds are still preventing many people from going outside. Bloomberg News

North Korea fires suspected ICBM and 2 other missiles

By Hyung-Jin Kim & Kim Tong-Hyung The Associated Press

S

EOUL, South Korea—South Korea’s government says one of the three weapons North Korea launched Wednesday was a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile.

South Korea’s government says the launches are “grave provocations” that threaten international peace. It says North Korea will only face international isolation if it continues its provocation.

North Korea’s long-range missile program is aimed at obtaining an ability to launch nuclear strikes on the mainland US. South Korea’s military earlier said North Korea fired three ballistic missiles off the North’s east coast, resuming its weapons launches after about two weeks. The launches came after President Joe Biden wrapped up his trip to Asia, where he reaffirmed the US commitment to defend its allies in the face of the North’s growing nuclear threat.

The North’s first missile launches in about two weeks also came as the country makes a much-disputed claim that its first domestic Covid-19 outbreak is weakening.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement that all three missiles were fired from near Pyongyang and flew toward waters off the North’s eastern coast one after another between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. on Wednesday.

It said South Korea subsequently boosted its surveillance posture and maintained a military readiness in close coordination with the United States. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol separately called a National Security Council meeting to discuss the North’s launches, his office said.

The US Indo-Pacific Command said the missile launches highlight “the destabilizing impact of [North Korea’s] illicit weapons program” though they didn’t pose an immediate threat to US territory and its allies. A command statement said the US commitment to the defense of the South Korea and Japan “remains ironclad.”

The White House said Biden has been briefed on the North Korean missile launches and will continue to be briefed as information develops.

Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi said the launches were “an act of provocation and absolutely impermissible.”

He accused North Korea of pressing ahead with its weapons development program while “ignoring the people’s suffering amid the spread of the coronavirus in the country.”

Kishi said one missile reached a maximum altitude of 550 kilometers (340 miles) while traveling 300 kilometers (186 miles), while another one flew 750 kilometers (470 miles) on a lower apogee of 50 kilometers (30 miles), before both landed outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone.

The launches were North Korea’s 17th round of missile firings this year. Experts have said North Korea’s testing is aimed at modernizing its weapons arsenal and at applying pressure on its rivals to wrest

sanctions relief and other concessions amid long-dormant nuclear diplomacy.

North Korea’s unusual pace in weapons tests this year included its first test of an intercontinental ballistic missile since 2017 in March. US and South Korean intelligence officials have said North Korea could soon conduct its first nuclear test in nearly five years as well.

After their summit in Seoul on Saturday, Biden and Yoon said they would consider expanded military exercises to deter North Korean nuclear threats.

Biden brushed aside questions about any possible provocation by North Korea during his trip, saying, “We are prepared for anything North Korea does.” Asked if he had a message for the North’s leader, Kim Jong Un, Biden offered a clipped response: “Hello. Period.”

After his meetings in Seoul, Biden traveled to Japan and met with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, where the leaders vowed to work closely to address security challenges, including North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic programs, and also what they called China’s “increasingly coercive” behavior in the region.

Hours before the North’s missile launches, US State Department spokesperson Ned Price told reporters in Washington that North Korea may be on the verge of a major weapons test. “Our concern for another potential provocation, be it an ICBM [intercontinental ballistic missile] launch, be a potential seventh nuclear weapons test, our concern has not abated in any way,” he said.

Before Wednesday’s launches, North Korea’s most recent missile tests occurred hours after the country on May 12 acknowledged its Covid-19 outbreak on its soil, after maintaining a widely disputed claim to be coronavirus-free for more than two years.

The country has said in the past few days that there has been “a positive sign” in its anti-virus campaign. Some observers predicted that North Korea would soon resume its missile tests.

Since its admission of the outbreak of the highly contagious Omicron variant, North Korea has said an unidentified fever has been spreading across the country since late April. It has stated how many people have fevers daily but identified just a fraction of the cases as Covid-19.

On Wednesday, North Korea’s state media said 115,970 more people fell ill due to feverish symptoms in the past 24-hour period but there was no additional death.

It’s the second consecutive day that North Korea has claimed no fatality.

It said its total fever cases reached about 3 million people but only 68 of them died, an extremely low fatality rate if the illness is Covid-19 as suspected.

North Korea has limited testing capability for that many sick people, but some experts say it is also likely underreporting mortalities to prevent possible political damage on Kim. The Associated Press writer Mari Yamaguchi contributed to this report from Tokyo.

Agriculture/Commodities BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Editor: Jennifer A. Ng • Thursday, May 26, 2022 A11

PHL rice inventory hits 10-month high in April

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas

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HE country’s rice inventory as of April 1 rose to a 10-month high as commercial entities, such as warehouses and retailers, had more stocks.

The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said nationwide rice inventory as of April 1 went up by 2.5 percent to 2.5 million metric tons (MMT) from the 2.444 MMT recorded a year ago.

“Furthermore, the rice stocks inventory level increased by 53.5 percent as compared with the previous month’s level of 1.632 million metric tons,” the PSA said in its monthly rice and corn stocks inventory report published recently.

Historical PSA data showed that the rice inventory recorded on April 1 was the highest in 10 months or since June 2021, when it reached 2.53 MMT. The PSA said more than half of April’s rice inventory or about 54.8 percent were from households while 39.8 percent were from commercial warehouses/wholesalers/retailers.

The PSA added that the remaining

volume of 5.4 percent was held by warehouses of the National Food Authority (NFA).

Rice inventory in households as of April 1 reached 1.372 MMT while those in commercial entities and NFA warehouses reached 997,420 MT and 135,870 MT, respectively.

“Relative to the April 2021 inventory level, rice stocks in the commercial warehouses/wholesalers/retailers grew by 35.1 percent. However, inventory levels in both the households and NFA depositories dropped by -6.3 percent and -43.7 percent, respectively,” the report read.

“This month’s rice stocks inventory showed increments of 58.7 percent in the households and 63.2 percent in commercial warehouses/wholesalers/retailers from their previous month’s record. On the contrary, stocks in NFA depositories fell by -13.1 percent.”

The BusinessMirror earlier reported that the country’s total rice imports in January to April leaped by 47.77 percent year-on-year to 1.189 MMT. The latest Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) data showed that total rice imports during the four-month pe-

riod were 384,594.907 MT higher than the 804,996.53 MT recorded a year ago.

The PSA also reported that the country’s corn stocks as of April 1 reached 777,370 MT, 8.9 percent higher than the 713,680 MT recorded a year ago.

“Comparably, corn stocks inventory grew by 73.4 percent from the previous month’s inventory level of [448,310 metric tons].”

The PSA said corn stocks in commercial entities, which accounted for 76.9 percent of total inventory, reached 597,490 MT while the remaining volume of 179,890 MT were held by households.

“In comparison with the April 2021 corn stocks inventory level, the commercial warehouses/wholesalers/retailers inventory level rose by 31.2 percent, while stocks in the households decreased by -30.3 percent,” the report read.

“Inventories in the stocks of households and commercial warehou ses/wholes a lers/ret a i lers climbed by 52.2 percent and 81.0 percent, relative to their respective levels in the previous month.”

A FARMER in Pangasinan displays threshed rice in this BusinessMirror file photo.

ABCI starts work on e-beam irradiation facility in Tanay Farmers in Sultan Kudarat hold harvest festival–DAR

By VG Cabuag

@Villygc

P

UBLICLY-LISTED A. Brown Co. Inc. (ABCI) on Wednesday said it has started the construction of the country’s first commercial electron beam (e-beam) irradiation facility.

The project, located in a 1.17 hectare of land in Tanay, Rizal, will be carried out by its unit, Irradiation Solutions Inc. (ISI).

The facility will be utilizing a new process that enables the treatment of goods using electron beam technology, the first of its kind in the country.

Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (PNRI) which has been championing the creation of a private irradiation facility since 2017, welcomed the Tanay facility.

“ABCI and ISI realized DOST’s [Department of Science and Technology] commitment to help

set-up a private irradiation facility.

For our part, DOST-PNRI will assist in the training of the future workers of the ISI irradiation facility on the different aspects of the irradiation process,” PNRI Director Carlo Arcilla said.

Paul B. Juat, CEO of ISI, said the project seeks to promote additional economic activity both locally and nationally.

“We are anticipating the creation of more jobs and other opportunities as a result of this new facility, which is expected to create an impact to the local economy of Rizal. And with irradiation technology recognized globally as a proven and safe technology, we can better support the growth of various industries and help develop multiple downstream industries as well,” Juat said.

E-beam irradiation is a

processing and preservation technique where food or nonfood products are exposed to accelerated electrons from electron beam machines. It is a globally accepted technology supported by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), particularly ISO 11137, which is the international standard governing the sterilization of health-care products using radiation. E-beam irradiation is used in more than 60 countries and is considered the most economical alternative among available commercial sterilization methods.

The company said the facility will be completed by September next year.

The e-beam facility will use a 10 MeV e-beam linear accelerator to sterilize single-use medical devices like surgical gloves, masks, and

syringes. It will be used to reduce the microbial load of food products like herbs, spices, and frozen seafood, among others. Future users of ISI’s e-beam facility, which were also in attendance during the groundbreaking ceremony, include Great Leaf Trading Inc., H.E.A.L.S. Inc, GH Nutripharma Inc., and Gyllmarc Ingredients Inc. The facility will consist of an E-Beam Building that includes the Bunker Shield, Cold Storage, Dry Storage and Administration Building.

“With ISI, cost-effective commercial sterilization services can help build resilience in agrifishery from shelf-life and postharvest losses on top of improving health and safety amid the pandemic. Moreover, improving local production to export quality opens the country’s doors to the international market,” Juat said.

Pasay co-ops get aid from DA for mobile market

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EN cooperatives in Pasay City received P50,000 each from the Department of Agriculture (DA), in coordination with the local government unit, to help boost their mobile market.

On May 23, Mayor Emi CalixtoRubiano received the financial assistance for each cooperative for them to establish “Kadiwa Mobile Palengke.”

The P50,000 financial aid for each cooperative was delayed due to the

ban imposed by the Commission on Elections.

Each cooperative, Calixto-Rubiano said, will have their schedule every Saturday and Sunday at the city’s 201 barangays to sell their goods.

It may be recalled that in February, the DA signed a Memorandum of Agreement with Calixto-Rubiano with Agriculture Undersecretary for Consumer and Political Affairs Kristine Evangelista-Aquino. Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

By Jonathan L. Mayuga @jonlmayuga

F

ARMERS belonging to the Silang Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Association (SARBA) from the town of Bagumbayan recently held a harvest festival showcasing dependable and reliable means of livelihood in their respective communities.

The activity was in line with the ARBs’ graduation from Buhay sa Gulay (BsG), an urban gardening community program, which was implemented by the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) at the height of the pandemic to support DAR-supported agrarian reform beneficiaries by providing them means of livelihood and sustainable food source.

The activity was graced by the Chief Agrarian Reform Program Officer Rhea Marie Betque.

“Always remember that you should all be committed to achieve the sustainability of this program.

Remarkable resilience of every ARBs to any problem should never wane, instead, should further strengthen your will to always find ways and move forward. Rest assured that with your sincerity and cooperation shown to us, more

projects will be poured which could be beneficial to everyone,” Betque said in a statement.

BsG Pointperson Cherry Mae Purazo said SARBA members’ means of livelihood in the middle of the pandemic, prior to the establishment of the BsG program, was purely rice and corn production. With the current situation, it is not enough to support their family, she said.

“Through this program, they started planting vegetable crops.

They received various farm inputs and tools from the DAR so that they could formally start the communal vegetable area in their community.”

The DAR- Sultan Kudarat said it implemented the BsG program to extend help to their beneficiaries, particularly those who were hit by the pandemic. “ T he DA R-Su ltan Kud arat through the BsG program, did not just help us in terms of livelihood, it also helped us strengthen the bond in our organization,” SARBA Bookkeeper Angela Cawacas said.

Cawacas added that although they have experienced challenges in terms of scheduling especially during the early stages of the implementation of the program, it has helped them gain more insights about management.

Food protectionism spreads with Malaysia poultry export ban

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ALAYSIA’S government met with the country’s biggest poultry producers to discuss subsidies and ensure continuity of local supply as the nation moved to ban exports of chicken in the latest act of food protectionism.

The Minister of Agriculture and Food Industries met 12 producers and livestock groups including Leong Hup Poultry Farm Sdn., HLRB Broiler Farm Sdn., PWF Corporation Bhd., and the Federation of Livestock Farmers’ Association of Malaysia on Monday, following a Cabinet meeting that discussed the ban.

Malaysia will halt exports of 3.6 million chickens a month from June 1, and investigate allegations of cartel pricing, PrimeMinisterIsmailSabriYaakobsaid Monday. The move is likely to hit Singapore, which sources a third of its supply from Malaysia, as well as in Thailand, Brunei, Japan and Hong Kong.

The ban is the latest in a series of government measures aimed at easing domestic prices as nations around the world battle rising food costs, partly driven by the war in Ukraine crimping food supplies. Indonesia recently temporarily banned palm oil exports,

India restricted wheat exports, and Serbia and Kazakhstan have imposed quotas on grain shipments.

The Singapore Food Agency said the restriction may result in temporary disruptions to the supply of chilled chicken, and urged consumers to be open to switching to frozen chicken or other meat products. About 34 percent of Singapore’s chicken imports were from Malaysia last year, it said, with almost all imported as live chickens and slaughtered and chilled in the city-state.

“If the disruption to chicken supply is temporary, then it may be manageable,” said Selena Ling, head of Treasury Research & Strategy at OCBC Bank in Singapore. “But if it’s persistent and more worryingly, reflective of more protectionist measures by other countries over food security and inflation concerns, then this could be a lose-lose scenario for everyone.”

Chicken cartels CHICKENS at the Chicken and Vegetables Farm Meranti facility in Puchong, Selangor, Malaysia, on March 14, 2022. Global food prices are at all-time highs, with a benchmark United Nations index soaring more than 40 percent over the past two years. BLOOMBERG NEWS

THE Malaysia Competition Commission is investigating reports that there are cartels that control the price and output of chicken among large companies, Ismail said, prom-

ising stern action against any firms found sabotaging supply. The probe is expected to be concluded by endJune, according to a statement from the consumer affairs ministry.

“Ifit’struethesecartelsexist,wewill take legal action against them,” he said.

State news agency Bernama reported that there was a shortage of poultry locally as cartels had planned to stop farm operations over the weekend.

Last week Ismail abolished the approved permit rules for imports of some food items including chicken, cabbage and evaporated milk to secure adequate food supplies in the country.

Malaysia imports about 60 percent of its food needs, and has been impacted by higher import prices as well as the weakening ringgit.

Malaysia’s food inflation is set to continue in the coming months amid elevated global commodity prices, domestic supply chain disruptions and depreciation of the local currency, researchers at MIDF Amanah Investment Bank wrote in a note Monday. The country is highly exposed to global shocks in the food supply chain given its status as a net food importer, it said. Bloomberg News

A12 Thursday, May 26, 2022 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

editorial

Can world leaders stop global fragmentation?

T

he World Economic Forum’s Chief Economists Outlook report warned on Monday of dire human consequences from the fragmentation of the global economy. Releasing their outlook at the WEF Annual Meeting 2022 in Davos, Switzerland, the World Economic Forum’s Community of Chief Economists said it expected lower economic activity, higher inflation, lower real wages and greater food insecurity globally in 2022, pointing to the devastating human consequences of the global economy’s fragmentation.

“We are at the cusp of a vicious cycle that could impact societies for years.

The pandemic and war in Ukraine have fragmented the global economy and created far-reaching consequences that risk wiping out the gains of the last 30 years,” said Saadia Zahidi, Managing Director at the World Economic Forum.

The report said the world is facing the worst food insecurity in recent history, especially in the Middle East and North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. With wheat prices expected to increase by over 40 percent this year and prices for vegetable oils, cereals and meat at all-time highs, the war in Ukraine is exacerbating global hunger and a cost-of-living crisis. The WEF said: “Over the next three years, chief economists expect food insecurity to be most severe in sub-Saharan Africa and in the Middle East and North Africa.

At the current trajectory, the world is on track for the worst food crisis in recent history, compounded by the additional pressure of high energy prices.”

The WEF said global leaders face difficult choices and trade-offs domestically when it comes to debt, inflation and investment. Yet business and government leaders must also recognize the necessity of global cooperation to prevent economic misery and hunger for millions around the world. The World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting this week will provide a starting point for such collaboration.

“The costs of further disintegration would be enormous across countries.

And people at every income level would be hurt—from highly paid professionals and middle-income factory workers who export, to low-paid workers who depend on food imports to survive. More people will embark on perilous journeys to seek opportunity elsewhere,” Zahidi said.

An International Monetary Fund blog—Why We Must Resist Geoeconomic Fragmentation—And How—said the flows of capital, goods, services, and people have transformed our world, helped by the spread of new technologies and ideas in the past three decades. These forces of integration have boosted productivity and living standards, tripling the size of the global economy and lifting 1.3 billion people out of extreme poverty, the IMF added.

“But the successes of integration have also brought complacency. Inequalities of income, wealth, and opportunity have continued to worsen within too many countries for a long time—and across countries in recent years. People have been left behind as industries have changed amid global competition.

And governments have struggled to help them.”

The IMF observed that tensions over trade, technology standards, and security have been growing for many years, undermining growth—and trust in the current global economic system. Uncertainty around trade policies alone reduced global gross domestic product in 2019 by nearly 1 percent, according to IMF research. And since the war in Ukraine started, “our monitoring indicates that around 30 countries have restricted trade in food, energy, and other key commodities.”

“Think of the impacts of reconfigured supply chains and higher barriers to investment. They could make it more difficult for developing nations to sell to the rich world, gain know-how, and build wealth,” the IMF said, adding that advanced economies would also have to pay more for the same products, stoking inflation. And productivity would suffer as they lost partners who currently co-innovate with them. IMF research estimates technological fragmentation alone can lead to losses of 5 percent of GDP for many countries.

“The hard fact is that we have all been too slow to act as our economic fabric started to fray. But if countries can find ways now to come together around urgent issues that transcend national borders and impact us all, we can begin to mitigate fragmentation and bolster cooperation,” the IMF said.

The lender said there is no silver bullet to address the most destructive forms of fragmentation. But by working with all stakeholders on urgent common concerns, we can begin to weave a stronger, more inclusive global economy.

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Global experts and elite John Mangun

OUTSIDE THE BOX

W

ords do not mean what they used to mean. For example, the word “awful” used to mean “worthy of awe” like “the awful majesty of God.” “Nice” used to mean “silly, foolish, simple.”

“Silly” went in the opposite direction. In its earliest uses, it referred to things worthy or blessed then used to refer to the weak and vulnerable, and more recently to those who are foolish. Also, words that we considered important have been bastardized (suggest you look that one up) over many decades.

One word we throw around a lot is “expert,” which is used as a high honorific as well as an insult, often by me. No one used the term much before the 1900s, maybe because no one was an “expert”—“a person who has a comprehensive and authoritative knowledge of or skill in a particular area.” Maybe the other reason for not using the word was because no one had a big enough ego to call himself or herself an expert. That was supposed be a term applied to a person by someone else.

“Elite” is another that began as “a select group that is superior in terms of ability or qualities to the rest of

a group.” I would not mind being considered part of the “elite” in my vocation. But—as with the expert— an “elite” is now someone who only imagines that he or she is “superior in terms of ability or qualities.”

Finally, the word “fascist,” which, from its origins, meant a believer in the political movement of fascism, a centralized autocratic government or group standing for “severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition.”

Today a person can quickly be called a “fascist” for saying that “cancel culture” is frequently speech censorship, that riots might not be the proper way of showing disagreement with election results, and that individual rights ought to take priority over the rights of the state and government.

Remember, “nice” used to mean “silly, foolish, simple.” Obviously, comedians David Chappelle and Ricky Gervais deserve to have their per-

I think I found the “fascist” authoritarian agenda and it does not seem to come from the so-called “populist” leaders like Trump, Hungary’s Viktor Orbán, Brazil’s Bolsonaro, India’s Modi, Mexico’s López Obrador, or our own Duterte. formances “canceled” because they offend a few people, some of whom actually saw their stand-up comedy routines.

The World Economic Forum is an international non-governmental lobbying organization founded in 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. Its 2022 annual meeting is ongoing in Davos, Switzerland with the theme “Working Together, Restoring Trust.” Two thousand leaders of government and business, along with press/media (There are more people from CNN than from Microsoft) are attending.

These people are the best and the brightest of the global experts and elite.

During a World Economic Forum panel, German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck said countries “should resist temptation to look after their own interests first.” Speaking about small and medium businesses, Norwegian finance CEO Kjerstin Braathen says energy transition will create energy shortages and inflationary pressures, but this “pain” is “worth it.” Australian eSafety Com-

missioner Julie Inman Grant tells the World Economic Forum, “We need a recalibration of freedom of speech.”

My response to each in order: “No thanks,” “What’s your own pain going to be?” and “Ok, shut up.” On something directly relevant to the Philippines, Oxfam Executive Director Gabriela Bucher “complains that countries are lowering taxes to be competitive.” Ms. Bucher would not be in favor of reducing foreign investment restrictions including tax changes that would make the Philippines more competitive.

My reaction to the WEF forum theme. We the People have been trying to work together and you are the ones that have broken our trust by keeping too many of us poor and stupid. Thanks much and also thank you to the press/media for enabling them.

Further, I think I found the “fascist” authoritarian agenda and it does not seem to come from the so-called “populist” leaders like Trump, Hungary’s Viktor Orbán, Brazil’s Bolsonaro, India’s Modi, Mexico’s López Obrador, or our own Duterte.

Executive Chairman K laus Schwab tells attendees at his World Economic Forum in Davos: “The future is being built by us” and not by you. I might have added the last part but Schwab was thinking it.

E-mail me at mangun@gmail.com. Follow me on Twitter @mangunonmarkets. PSE stock-market information and technical analysis provided by AAA Southeast Equities Inc.

China claims sabotage as UN rights official visits Xinjiang

By The Associated Press

B

EIJING—China on Tuesday said the US, Britain and other foreign powers are seeking to sabotage its foreign relations by orchestrating criticism surrounding a trip by the top United Nations official for human rights.

China has long held back the fact-finding mission led by Michelle Bachelet, focused on allegations of mass confinement, forced labor and compulsory birth control measures imposed on members of the Uyghur, Kazakh and other Muslim minorities.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin went on the offensive over such criticisms Tuesday, saying “the US, Britain and other Western countries have been repeatedly staging political farces around the U.N. high commissioner for human rights’ visit to China.”

“They have first openly pressured and strongly demanded that the high commissioner visit China and Xinjiang, and conducted the so-called investigation with presumption of guilt,” Wang said at a daily briefing.

The US, Britain and other countries “jumped out and spared no ef-

fort to disrupt and sabotage the visit, creating conditions and obstacles for the visit,” Wang said.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Bachelet in the southern city of Guangzhou on Monday, telling her that China opposes “politicizing” human rights and imposing double standards.

Bachelet’s trip is the first to China by a UN high commissioner for human rights since 2005.

Her six-day visit is focused on allegations of abuses against Muslim minorities in the northwestern region of Xinjiang, but rights groups fear it will help whitewash the crackdown labeled by the US as genocide.

China locked up an estimated million or more members of Uyghur, Kazakh and other Muslim minorities in what critics describe as a campaign to obliterate their distinct cultural identities. China says

it has nothing to hide and welcomes all those without political bias to visit Xinjiang and view what it describes as a successful campaign to fight terrorism and restore order and ethnic cohesion.

From Guangzhou, Bachelet is to travel to Kashgar, once a stop on the Silk Road, and Urumqi, the Xinjiang capital. The UN and China barred foreign media from accompanying Bachelet, and it’s unclear whom she will meet and how much access she will be granted throughout her visit.

The UN quoted Bachelet as telling Wang that she was looking forward to exchanges with “many different people during my visit, particularly with government officials, business leaders, academics, students and members of the civil society working on human rights and other social and economic issues.”

“While we will be discussing sensitive and important issues, I hope this will help us to build confidence and enable us to work together in advancing human rights in China and globally,” it quoted Bachelet as saying.

“Wang noted that to advance the international cause of human

rights, we must first respect each other and refrain from politicizing human rights.” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement posted on its web site.

“Multilateral human rights institutions should serve as a major venue for cooperation and dialogue rather than a new battlefield for division and confrontation,” it said.

China’s ruling Communist Party allows no political opposition and strictly limits free speech and rights to assembly and religious expression. China is also one of the five veto-wielding permanent members of the UN Security Council and has signed but not ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights administered by Bachelet’s office.

Beijing has also come under criticism over its refusal to criticize Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, as well as its hardline “zero-Covid” approach to the pandemic that has disrupted the lives of tens of millions of citizens and upended global supply chains.

In an online meeting Tuesday with Wang, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock called on “members See “China” A13

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Thursday, May 26, 2022 A13

Pandemic-weary Americans plan Rice Tariffication Law: Uncovering facts for summer despite Covid surge from half-truths and deceptive claims

H

By Caleb Jones & Stefanie Dazio | The Associated Press

ONOLULU—A high school prom in Hawaii where masked dancers weren’t allowed to touch. A return to virtual city council meetings in one Colorado town after the mayor and others tested positive following an in-person session. A reinstated mask mandate at skilled nursing facilities in Los Angeles County after 22 new outbreaks in a single week.

A Covid-19 surge is underway that is starting to cause disruptions as the school year wraps up and Americans prepare for summer vacations.

Many people, though, have returned to their pre-pandemic routines and plans, which often involve travel.

Case counts are as high as they’ve been since mid-February and those figures are likely a major undercount because of unreported positive home test results and asymptomatic infections. Earlier this month, an influential modeling group at the University of Washington in Seattle estimated that only 13 percent of cases were being reported to US health authorities.

Hospitalizations are also up and more than one-third of the US population lives in areas that are considered at high risk by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Northeast has been hit the hardest.

Yet vaccinations have stagnated and elected officials nationwide seem loath to impose new restrictions on a public that’s ready to move on even as the US death toll surpassed 1 million people less than 2 1/2 years into the outbreak.

“People probably are underestimating the prevalence of Covid,” said Crystal Watson, public health lead in the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security’s Coronavirus Resource Center. “I think there’s a lot more virus out there than we recognize, and so people are much, much more likely than they anticipate to be exposed and infected.”

A major metric for the pandemic—the seven-day rolling average for daily new cases in the US—skyrocketed over the last two weeks, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The figure was about 76,000 on May 9 and jumped to nearly 109,000 on Monday. That was the highest it had been since midFebruary, when the Omicron-fueled surge was winding down.

Deaths are still on the decline and hospital intensive care units aren’t swamped like they were at other times during the pandemic, likely because vaccinations and immunity from people who have already had the disease are keeping many cases less severe.

“The nature of the disease has changed. Two years ago I was seeing a steady flow of bad pneumonia cases. Now we are in a situation where people should be able to avoid that outcome by taking advantage of vaccines, pre-exposure prophylaxis (for high risk), and early anti-viral therapy,” Dr. Jonathan Dworkin, a clinical infectious diseases physician in Hawaii, said by e-mail.

In Hawaii, which once had one of the nation’s lowest rates of infection, hospitalization and death, new cases are surging among the state’s 1.4 million residents. The University of Hawaii will again require masks indoors across its 10-campus system beginning Wednesday.

With cases climbing for eight straight weeks, Hawaii has the second highest infection rate of any state, trailing only Rhode Island. But because positive home test results aren’t counted in official data, Hawaii’s health department estimates that the case count is actually five or

China . . .

continued from A12

of the international community to condemn Russia’s illegal war of aggression and to assume their responsibility to uphold international law and to protect the U.N. Charter.”

Baerbock cited the “shocking reports and new evidence of very

A major metric for the pandemic—the seven-day rolling average for daily new cases in the US—skyrocketed over the last two weeks, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

The figure was about 76,000 on May 9 and jumped to nearly 109,000 on Monday. That was the highest it had been since midFebruary, when the Omicronfueled surge was winding down. six times higher.

Despite its surge, visitors have been flocking to Hawaii’s beaches, especially in recent months.

Yaling Fisher, owner of Hawaii Aloha Travel, said bookings to the islands haven’t slowed during the surge. On the contrary, they’ve increased.

“Even now we are still busy,” she said. “We don’t see any cancellations.”

Samantha Hanberg, who was in Hawaii this week with her newlywed husband, said the couple left their masks at home in California when they left for vacation. She said she contracted Covid-19 early in the pandemic and subsequently got fully vaccinated, so she too feels safe.

“Nobody wants to get sick, but it’s definitely not at the forefront of my thought process anymore,” she said, snacking on shave ice on Waikiki Beach. “I’m to the point now where I just want to go back to living and enjoying life, and not being so worried.”

Officials initially shut down Hawaii’s tourism industry by requiring all incoming passengers to quarantine. They shifted to a testing requirement and then a vaccination exemption before dropping all restrictions in March.

Hawaii was the last state in the nation to drop its mask mandate, though it remains the only state to require all public school students to wear masks while indoors—a rule that will remain in effect throughout the summer and possibly into the next school year.

Nearly two years after California Gov. Gavin Newsom imposed the nation’s first statewide stay-home order, the state formally shifted to an “endemic” approach in February.

Like Hawaii and many other states, its weekly infection rate has risen dramatically of late.

The new surge led the school districts in Pacific Grove and Berkeley to reinstate their indoor mask mandates, while an outbreak at a Northern California long-term healthcare facility had sickened 26 residents and 10 staff members by Monday.

Some Northeastern school districts have also revived their mask mandates, including those in Philadelphia and Providence, Rhode Island.

However New York, which was once the US epicenter of the pandemic, doesn’t seem likely to follow suit. The city is dealing with another surge in cases, but Mayor Eric Adams has all but ruled out bringing back a citywide mask mandate unless hospitals get inundated again. Dazio

By Raul Montemayor

R

ice has become a hot issue anew following pronouncements by presumptive President Bongbong Marcos that he will push for a review and amendment of the Rice Tariffication Law. To recall, in March 2019, RTL removed the National Food Authority’s (NFA) control over rice importation and allowed unimpeded imports by the private sector.

The country’s economic managers—RTL’s principal proponents— were quick to defend the law. They claimed that it has lowered rice prices, curbed inflation, provided additional support to farmers, and reduced government losses. They have further warned that any backtracking on RTL would negate actual and future gains in poverty reduction, malnutrition and food security.

Are these officials giving us the real and complete picture about RTL? Or, are they cherry picking— citing only data that support their position—while concealing crucial information that indicates serious defects in the law?

Consider the retail prices of rice.

As they claim, rice prices really dropped by as much as P7 per kilo from their peak in 2018. But this was not solely due to RTL. Even before the law took effect in March 2019, prices had already gone down by P3.50 per kilo with the arrival of emergency imports that were approved by government in late 2018.

Our economic managers are being intellectually dishonest by limiting their comparison to prices in 2018, knowing that prices then were abnormally high due to the rice crisis. They must be aware that prices during the first three years of RTL practically matched, on the average, prices during the more normal years of 2016 and 2017. But they do not divulge this fact, because it will mean that consumers did not fare better under RTL and that the promised cheaper rice—resulting from unbridled imports—did not truly materialize.

The economic managers are no different from a storeowner, who hoodwinks his buyers with a 50 percent mega-sale after secretly doubling his selling prices. They cannot escape culpability for the rice crisis in 2018 either. It was their cabal within

the NFA Council that repeatedly rejected requests from NFA management to replenish agency stocks with imports, until the agency ran out of rice and prices got out of hand. Then they used the crisis to justify the speedy passage of RTL. And when rice prices went down, they heralded the success of the law in solving a problem that they themselves actually created.

Their assertion that RTL reduced rice-based inflation is also highly misleading. Zero inflation in rice merely means that prices have not changed relative to a previous period.

Even with zero inflation, consumers are not better off, because they are still paying the same high prices for rice as in 2016 and 2017.

In fact, the poor are worse off under RTL. The law stopped NFA from selling P27 per kilo regular rice in public markets. Importers in turn elected to bring in the more expensive premium grades of rice, which gave them a higher profit margin.

Poor consumers now have no choice but to pay P10 more per kilo to get regular rice from commercial traders.

RTL defenders trumpet the P40 billion in tariff collections that were earmarked for farm machineries, seeds, credit, and training under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF), and for cash transfers to rice farmers.

This is just one side of the picture.

RTL opened up the domestic market to excessive imports and precipitated a severe fall in palay prices, causing at least P66 billion in losses to rice farmers. According to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), between 2019 and 2021, the gross value of palay production (including harvests kept by farmers for family consumption) decreased by P92 billion!

Moreover, only about half of all rice farmers qualified for, and benefitted from, RCEF and related sup-

port programs. On the other hand, the drop in palay prices hurt all farmers, irrespective of their farm sizes and location.

Farmers were therefore net losers from RTL, while consumers gained almost nothing. How could this happen when, as monitored by PSA, wholesale prices declined, presumably because of the influx of cheap imports? The answer is simple— importers and middlemen did not pass on the savings to consumers and instead pocketed the gains for themselves! In the National Capital Region alone, the average margin between wholesale and retail prices increased by over P2 per kilo during the RTL period.

Still, RTL advocates boast that palay output reached a record high of 19.96 million tons in 2021. True, but this is merely 3.5 percent better than the erstwhile record of 19.3 million tons achieved in 2017. Between 2017 and 2021, our population—and correspondingly our rice requirement—grew by some 7 percent. Today, we are actually less food secure and even more reliant on imports.

Rice productivity did improve to an average of 4.1 tons per hectare during the first three years of RTL. However, this is only 3.7 percent better than in 2016-2018. We are still a long way off from the 5-ton per hectare target, which is deemed necessary for our farmers to compete against imports.

The value of these alleged advances in output and productivity during the first three years of RTL just about equals the billions poured into the rice sector from RCEF and other support programs. Meaning, we went through a lot of trouble just to get our money back.

Even government did not significantly curtail NFA’s losses despite limiting the agency to buffer stocking. Indeed the agency incurred only P9.6 billion in losses in 2021, or 38 percent lower than in 2020.

But there is no mention of the years when losses were higher. Overall, during RTL’s first three years, NFA lost a total of P41.87 billion—bigger than its cumulative losses of P36.8 billion from 2016 to 2018.

Government subsidies to the NFA between 2019 and 2021 also doubled

to almost P64 billion, from only P28.5 billion during the three years preceding RTL’s enactment.

While RTL may have ended the alleged rigging of import contracts by some past NFA officials, corruption has simply moved elsewhere. Unscrupulous private importers have been misdeclaring and undervaluing their shipments with impunity, possibly in connivance with some Bureau of Customs personnel. In the process, government has lost an estimated P10 billion in foregone tariffs.

RTL’s believers warn about a repeat of the 2018 rice crisis, if the law is repealed or amended. In reality, RTL has unnecessarily tied the hands of government and compromised its ability to address market disruptions. Who will bring in rice when it becomes prohibitively expensive for the private sector to do so, now that NFA has been banned by RTL from importing? How can NFA legally sell rice to poor consumers, if RTL allows the release of buffer stocks only during calamities and emergencies? Can government legally stop imports from coming in during harvest months, when RTL expressly prohibits any form of quantitative restriction on rice imports?

Sadly, some of our top government officials have gone to the extent of spreading half-truths to defend RTL. While they may have the best of intentions, they are doing a great disservice to the Filipino people by hiding the truth and deluding the incoming administration into thinking that there is no need to amend the law.

These same people are now pointing to a looming food crisis arising from the Ukraine war and its impacts on fuel and fertilizer prices.

Should we believe them? Are they exaggerating the situation to ingratiate themselves with the next administration and make it appear that only they know best how to address the crisis?

We can fault those who mislead us repeatedly. But if we continue to give credence to their half-truths and deceptive claims, we should blame only ourselves if the wrong remedies are applied.

Raul Montemayor is the National Manager of the Federation of Free Farmers

US to end Russia’s ability to pay international investors A Russian default this time will likely have little-to-minimal impact on the global economy, Auslander said, since Russia has been cut off from global financial markets for months now and investors have been expecting a default. Biden officials have made similar statements.

reported from Los Angeles.

ASHINGTON—The US will close the last avenue for Russia to pay its billions in debt back to international investors on Wednesday, making a Russian default on its debts for the first time since the Bolshevik Revolution all but inevitable.

The Treasury Department said in a notification that it does not plan to renew the license that allowed Russia to keep paying its debt holders through American banks.

Since the first rounds of sanctions, the Treasury Department has given banks a license to process any dollar-denominated bond payments from Russia. That window expires at midnight on May 25.

There had already been signs that the Biden administration was unwilling to extend the deadline. At a press conference heading into the Group of Seven finance minister meetings in Koenigswinter, Germany last week, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the window existed “to allow a period of time for an orderly transition to

take place, and for investors to be able to sell securities.”

“The expectation was that it was time-limited,” Yellen said.

Without the license to use US banks to pay its debts, Russia would have no ability to repay its international bond investors. The Kremlin has been using JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup as its conduits to pay its obligations.

Jay Auslander, a prominent sovereign debt lawyer who previously litigated other debt crises like the one in Argentina, said at this point most of the institutional investors in Russian debts have likely sold their holdings, knowing this deadline is coming. Those who are still holding the debts are either distressed debt investors or those willing to wait to litigate it out over the next few years.

“The majority who wanted out have gotten out. The only issue is finding buyers,” he said.

The Kremlin appears to have foreseen the likelihood that the US would not allow Russia to keep paying on its bonds. The Russian Finance Ministry prepaid two bonds on Friday that were due this month to get ahead of

serious human rights violations in Xinjiang and called for a transparent investigation,” her ministry said.

“Human rights are a fundamental part of the international order and Germany is committed to protecting them worldwide,” Baerbock said.

“I think it’s important that these accusations, which have been known for a long time, are addressed by the Chinese side, and I made that very,

very clear in this morning’s discussion,” she added.

Germany’s Economy Minister Robert Habeck called the latest reports of internment, mistreatment and forced labor of Uyghurs “particularly shocking.”

“Internationally there needs to be a clear response and further investigation of this,” he said in a statement.

Habeck said Germany for years

had shied away from looking too closely at the problematic human rights record of its close trading partner, but that the country’s new center-left government was taking a different approach.

Germany would scrutinize environmental, social and human rights aspects when considering German companies’ requests for loan guarantees for their invest-

ments in China, he said.

“We will also examine very closely Chinese firms’ takeover bids in Germany,” he added, saying one recent offer was prohibited while another was withdrawn by the company after questions were raised.

The US ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, echoed the concerns.

She tweeted: “Horrified by the

By Ken Sweet & Fatima Hussein The Associated Press

W

the May 25 deadline.

The next payments Russia will need to make on its debts are due on June 23. Like other Russian debt, those bonds have a 30-day grace period—which would cause default by Russia to be declared by late July, barring the unlikely scenario that the Russia-Ukraine war would come to an end before then.

Investors have been almost certain of Russia going into default for months now. Insurance contracts that cover Russian debt have priced an 80 percent likelihood of default for weeks and rating agencies like Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s have placed the country’s debt deep into junk territory.

Russia has not defaulted on its international debts since the 1917 Revolution, when the Russian Empire collapsed and the Soviet Union was created. Russia defaulted on its domestic debts in the late 1990s during the Asian Financial Crisis, but was able to recover from that default with the help of international aid.

A Russian default this time will likely have little-to-minimal impact on the global economy, Auslander said, since Russia has been cut off from global financial markets for months now and investors have been expecting a default. Biden officials have made similar statements.

Once it defaults, the next likely step would be for Russia to turn to US, British or European courts to argue that it was forced into default by circumstances beyond its control— a concept in finance known as force majeure—in an effort to restore its standing in global financial markets.

It may be difficult to win that argument, however, Auslander said, due to the fact that Russia got cut off from financial markets because it chose to invade Ukraine.

Sweet reported from New York.

Xinjiang Police Files, which spotlight China’s mass incarceration of Uyghurs and other ethnic and religious minorities.”

Thomas-Greenfield also said that Bachelet and her office “must take a hard look at these faces and press Chinese officials for full, unfettered access—and answers.” Associated Press writer Frank Jordans in Berlin contributed to this report.

A14 Thursday, May 26, 2022

BILL FOR OWWA’S COVID AID TO OFW HITS P29B

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

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HE government spent over P29 billion to provide aid to overseas Filipino workers (OFW) who were affected by Covid-19 in the last two years.

Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Administrator Hans J. Cacdac said in a virtual press conference on Wednesday that they got the funding from the national government to help pandemicaffected OFWs. Of the P29-billion amount, the bulk or P20 billion was spent for accommodations, while P8 billion was used for transportation. Less than a billion pesos was spent for food.

As of May 24, 2022, OWWA said the government was able to assist a total of 1,023,126 OFWs. Cacdac thanked the national government for providing them the amount, which allowed OWWA to keep its trust fund intact.

The trust fund represents the consolidated contributions of OWWA’s members.

“The President was concerned with using the OWWA

@jearcalas

T

HE country’s meat imports in January to April rose by almost 10 percent on an annual basis to nearly 350,000 metric tons (MT), latest Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) data showed.

BAI data showed that meat imports during the four-month period were 30,814.584 MT higher than the 319,076.632 MT recorded volume in the same period of last year.

BAI data showed that higher pork and chicken meat imports drove the double-digit growth rate in the overall volume of imported meat products during the reference period.

The country’s pork imports in January to April expanded by a fifth to 186,220.071 MT from 154,464.325 MT in the same period of last year, based on BAI data. Pork imports accounted for 53.2 percent of the total meat imports during the four-month period.

BAI data showed that imports of pork cuts and pork bellies, which accounted for about half of the total pork imports, reached 91,371.825 MT. Imports of pork cuts and pork bellies benefited from the lower pork tariffs rates implemented by the government to boost domestic supply amid lackluster domestic pork production due to African swine fever (ASF) devastation.

BAI data showed that imports of pork cuts and pork bellies grew by almost 47 percent from last year’s 62,205.169 MT. The country’s chicken meat imports increased by 4.3 percent to 102,200.44 MT from last year’s 97,980.735 MT driven by higher purchases of chicken cuts and mechanically deboned meat (MDM), based on BAI data.

BAI data showed that the country’s chicken cuts imports rose by 20.68 percent year-on-year to 11,464.955 MT while imports of chicken MDM grew by 21.04 percent on an annual basis to 65,598.803 MT. Meanwhile, BAI data showed

By Andrea E. San Juan

T CACDAC

trust fund so he ordered [Labor] Secretary [Silvestre] Bello and DBM (Department of Budget and Management) to provide us with an emergency repatriation fund, which usually has allocated budget of P100 million each year,” Cacdac explained.

He said the budget was further increased during the pandemic.

“In fact, this year, it is P11.5 billion. So we are very thankful to the Office of the President and the members of Congress and Secretary Bello for the budgetary support from the national government coffers,” Cacdac said.

Cacdac said the OWWA trust fund currently stands at P18.3 billion.

PHL’s Jan-April meat imports up almost 10%

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

PCCI, biz groups: New PPA order hurts logistics sector

that the country’s imports of beef, buffalo meat, lamb meat, duck meat, and turkey meat contracted year-on-year during the fourmonth period.

Beef imports fell by 5 percent to 47,762.802 MT from last year’s 50,354.339 MT while buffalo meat imports declined by 13.12 percent to 13,383.832 MT from 15,406.646 MT last year, based on BAI data.

BAI data showed that duck meat imports plunged 67.27 percent year-on-year to 17.309 MT while turkey meat imports declined 64.5 percent on an annual basis to 223.769 MT. Lamb meat imports fell 7.63 percent to 172.993 MT from 187.298 MT last year, based on BAI data.

Recently, the Department of Agriculture (DA) reverted the validity of sanitary and phytosanitary import clearance (SPS-IC) for imported meat products to 60 days, arguing that problems hounding the global supply chain have already eased.

Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar issued administrative order (AO) 11 that revoked his earlier order of extending the 90-day validity of SPS-IC for imported meat.

Dar cited the better global Covid-19 situation as the reason behind the revocation of his earlier orders extending SPS-IC validity for imported meat.

He earlier issued AO 2 series of 2022 that maintained the 90-day SPS-IC validity until revocation “due to the chain issues and logistical difficulties brought about by the global Covid pandemic.” (Related story: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2022/02/01/ da-extends-anew-validityofsps-ics-of-meat-imports/) “The current global Covid situation has subsided in many parts of the world, resulting in an easing of the supply chain and logistical restrictions,” Dar explained in AO 11 dated May 23.

“DA AO No. 2 Series of 22 ... is hereby revoked; thus, returning the SPS validity of imported meat back to sixty days,” he added.

HE Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), along with other business groups, strongly called for the immediate revocation of an order by the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) that they say threatens the transport and logistics industries and the economy.

The business groups also urged the Office of the President and the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) to look into the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA)’s issuance of Administrative Order 04-2021, saying it could negatively impact business and the country’s recovery.

In a news statement on Wednesday, PCCI said, “PPA’s order was already outside its mandate and only duplicates the functions of the Bureau of Customs (BOC).”

Furthermore, PCCI said, quoting the business groups’ concern, “PPA did not conduct consultations with the concerned stakeholders prior to the issuance of the policy, which clearly violates the Ease of Doing Business Act.” PCCI President George T. Barcelon said that PPA should cancel the order and invite all concerned

stakeholders to a dialogue to address the issue.

“We are supposed to streamline our processes and not add burden by having redundant policies. How would we be able to attract investors and create ease of doing business if our policies are confusing,” Barcelon said.

The new policy enables PPA to implement the Trusted Operator Program-Container Registry Monitoring System (TOP-CRMS) and Empty Container Storage Shared Service Facility (ECSSSF), projects to track real-time movement of containers from the time of entry, discharge, return and storage, and re-export.

A fee of P4,900, exclusive of 12-percent value-added tax (VAT) per tagged container, will be charged for TOP-CRMS, which is a considerable amount, especially

for the micro, small, and medium enterprises, the business groups said.

However, PCCI said in its statement, this measure is also being implemented by BOC through Administrative Order 08-2019, which institutionalized a container monitoring policy supplemented by the Electronic Tracking of Containerized Cargo (E-TRACC).

The group explained that not all containerized cargo passing through international ports fall under the authority of PPA, such as those administered by the Cebu Ports Authority, Cagayan Economic Zone Authority, Poro Point Management Corporation, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, Phividec Industrial Authority, and Regional Ports Management Authority.

Furthermore, the PCCI said, the throughput of the Port of Manila (POM) and Manila International Container Terminal (MICT) is only 68 percent, which means that at least 32 percent of the total container traffic in Philippine ports is outside the jurisdictional control of PPA. “This effectively usurps the authority of other independent port authorities and debunks the claim in the general description of the project that 98 percent of all container traffic goes through POM and MICT,” added PCCI.

Barcelon explained that consumers and businesses will ultimately be burdened by additional logistics costs due to the ad-hoc charges from using the system, and inefficiency in cargo flows. The process of tagging and untagging the tracking device on the containers, it explained, spells additional time and truck trips.

According to PCCI, The country’s ports authority is reportedly set to spend P980 million to implement TOP-CRMS and ECSSSF. The business groups that signed a joint manifesto with PCCI are: Philippine Exporters Confederation (Philexport), Supply Chain Management Association of the Philippines (SCMAP), The Alliance of Concerned Truck Owners and Organizations, Alliance of Container Yard Operators of The Philippines, Association of International Shipping Lines, Inc., Confederation of Truckers Association of The Philippines, Federation of Filipino Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Inc., United Port Users Confederation of the Philippines, Inc., Customs Brokers Federation of the Philippines, Philippine Association of Meat Processors Inc., Philippine Liner Shipping Association (PLSA), Philippine Multimodal Transport and Logistics Association, Inc. (PMTLA), and Philippine Ships’ Agents Association (PSAA).

7TH VP-ELECT Vice President-elect Sara Zimmerman Duterte-Carpio’s hands are raised by Senate President Vicente Sotto III and Speaker Lord Allan Velasco as she is proclaimed by the joint session of Congress on Wednesday (May 25, 2022). Story on page A1, “Congress proclaims BBM, Sara winners”.

BERNARD TESTA

Navy’s PHL Fleet moves to new site in Subic

By Rene Acosta

@reneacostaBM

T

HE Navy’s Philippine Fleet occupied its new home at the former Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Philippines (HHIC-Phil) Shipyard in Subic on Tuesday.

The Fleet, which had been based in Cavite, made a symbolic docking of its BRP Antonio Luna (FF151) in its new base through the help of the Navy’s Offshore Combat Force and Naval Installation and Facili-

ties (NIF)-Zambales, Naval Installation Command.

The event, led by Fleet commander Rear Adm. Nichols Driz, jumpstarted the operationalization of the Naval Operating Base (NOB) Subic, which will serve as the new home of the Fleet where Navy’s capital vessels will have a safe and sustainable berths.

The transfer followed the recent approval of the lease agreement for the Philippine Navy (PN) to occupy the northern portion of the former HHIC-Phil shipyard which spans

around 250 acres of the site’s total of more than 700 acres.

The Navy’s acquisition of the strategic harbor ideal for large fleet ships was pushed through the collaborative efforts of the Department of National Defense, the Office of the Executive Secretary, the Department of Finance, the Department of Budget and Management, the Department of Justice, Bases Conversion and Development Authority and Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority.

The activation and subsequent

operationalization of NOB Subic is in line with the Navy’s scaled-up maritime operations to support the needed base services of the deep draft vessels such as Jose Rizal class frigates, Del Pilar class patrol ships and Tarlac class landing docks.

The newly activated base will house select fleet marine units, maintenance and replenishment facilities that will enable the fleet to sustain the operational requirements of the current and future capital vessels.

Companies

Editor: Jennifer A. Ng

Thursday, May 26, 2022

B1

3 telco tower firms to get fiscal incentives–FIRB

T

By Bernadette D. Nicolas

@BNicolasBM

he Cabinet-level Fiscal Incentives Review Board (FIRB) has approved the grant of perks to three telecommunications tower companies for its nationwide rollout of fiber optic network for high speed broadband services.

The Department of Finance (DOF) said these three telcos—SkyTowers Infra Inc., Frontier Tower Associates Philippines Inc. and Transcend Towers Infrastructure Philippines Inc.—which have a combined total project cost of P78.2 billion will get the same incentives package given to Converge ICT Solutions Inc. but on the condition that all their towers will be built in areas that lack service.

The applications for incentives of these three tower companies were endorsed by the Board of Investments.

The tax incentives given to these telco companies include 4 years of income tax holiday (ITH), followed by 5 years of enhanced deductions, and 11 years of duty exemption on importations of capital equipment, raw materials, spare parts, or accessories from the date of registration, unless otherwise extended in the Strategic Investment Priority Plan (SIPP).

The SIPP will determine the priority industries, projects, and activities that can be granted fiscal incentives by the government under the Corporate Recovery and

Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Act. “The approval of these projects is urgent, given the current gap in the number of towers needed to service our population,” FIRB Secretariat head and Finance Assistant Secretary Juvy Danofrata said in a statement. “We are optimistic that these approved applications will pave the way for our country to finally have improved connectivity and more quality service.”

Danofrata told the BusinessMirror that the Converge project was the biggest in terms of investment value that was granted by tax incentives by the FIRB so far since the enactment of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act (CREATE) last year.

Through Converge’s P150.6billion fiber broadband rollout project, it is expected to fulfill its performance commitments, such as providing better and cheaper internet access in the country’s unserved and underserved communities, and strengthening interconnectivity in these areas where the connection is normally slow and unsteady.

“We expect Converge to deliver on its performance commitment of faster and cheaper Internet access in remote localities as this will not only address our pain points with regard to connectivity but also provide more employment opportunities to our people in rural areas,” said Finance Secretary and FIRB Chairman Carlos Dominguez III. To date, the FIRB has so far approved and granted incentives to 11big ticket projects with a combined investment capital of P368 billion.

These projects involve cement manufacturing activities, construction of mass housing units, shipbuilding, rail operations of a subway, and communications infrastructures.

CREATE expanded the FIRB’s powers and functions to include approval of the grant of tax incentives to registered business enterprises.

The FIRB is tasked to review and approve fiscal incentives for projects with a total investment capital of more than P1 billion. The granting of tax incentives to projects amounting to P1 billion and below is delegated to investment promotion agencies.

SEC approves Balai ni Fruitas IPO

By VG Cabuag @villygc

T

he Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved the initial public offering (IPO) by Balai ni Fruitas Inc., a spinoff company of food and beverage kiosk operator Fruitas Holdings Inc. The company is targeting to raise as much as P309.38 million from the share sale.

In its May 24 en banc meet-

ing, the agency also approved the company’s registration statement covering up to 1.49 billion common shares.

Balai ni Fruitas will offer to the public up to 325 million primary common shares priced at up to 75 centavos each. The offer will also include up to 50 million secondary common shares currently held by selling shareholder Fruitas Holdings, plus an overallotment option of up to 37.5 million common shares.

The shares will be listed on the Small, Medium, and Emerging Board of the Philippine Stock Exchange Inc. (PSE).

Net proceeds from the sale of the primary shares of about P220.4 million, will be used for store network expansion, commissary setup and introduction of new concepts and potential acquisitions.

Meanwhile, assuming the oversubscription option is fully exercised, the selling shareholder can net up to P65.6 million from the sale of

the secondary shares.

The IPO will run from June 17 to 21, with listing on the PSE scheduled for June 29, according to the timetable the company submitted to the SEC. Balai ni Fruitas is a wholly owned subsidiary of listed food and beverage kiosk operator Fruitas Holdings. The company offers coconut-based beverages and desserts across three brands, Buko ni Fruitas, Fruitas House of Desserts and Balai Pandesal.

Spectrum Cebu Pacific adds more domestic flights energizes Bulacan factory

T

he solar power arm of the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), Spectrum, has energized Alphatech Development Corp.’s first solar-powered facility in Bulacan.

The 856.80 kilowatt-peak (kWp) solar rooftop project at Alphatech’s manufacturing plant in Guiguinto, Bulacan is expected to generate approximately 1,125,835 kWh of clean energy every year and will allow the company to save about P3.3 million in energy costs annually.

The solar power facility will be able to reduce its carbon footprint by an estimated 802 metric tons, which translates more than 82,000 trees planted and 3,194,070 kilometers reduced in vehicle travel per year.

“Today’s inauguration is a huge win for our company and our community.

I’ve laid out the challenge to our company’s leadership team to seek ways to drive environmental sustainability in our day-to-day operations, and this is a major step in that direction,” Allan Keith G. Castro, Alphatech Senior Vice President, said during the inaugural ceremony. Alphatech is a unit of Plastimer Group of Companies, a provider of plastic products and services in the country. Lenie Lectura

BusinessMirror file photo

B

UDGET carrier Cebu Pacific has restored 100 percent of its pre-pandemic domestic capacity, enabling more Pinoys to fly across its “widest Philippine network.”

Cebu Pacific Chief Commercial Officer Xander Lao said the carrier added more flights across its seven hubs, namely: Manila, Cebu, Clark, Cagayan de Oro, Davao, Iloilo and Kalibo.

Last month, Cebu Pacific resumed more direct flights from its Visayas and Mindanao hubs, specifically to Calbayog, Surigao, Puerto Princesa, and Legazpi from Cebu; and to Bohol,

Cagayan de Oro, Iloilo, and Zamboanga from Davao.

“We take pride in operating the most flights across our largest Philippine network and we are happy to keep providing more convenient options for our passengers. We recently resumed more flights from our hubs in the Visayas and Mindanao, so locals there will no longer need to connect to Manila to fly to their favorite domestic destinations,” Lao said.

The additional flights are seen to boost both passenger and cargo operations of Cebu Pacific.

Today, Cebu Pacific operates close to 350 flights per day.

“We are confident that our continuous ramp-up, coupled with our lowest fares, will ensure there is a Cebu Pacific flight for every Juan, for whatever purpose they may have for travel – be it for vacation, business, or to visit family and friends,” Lao said.

Cebu Pacific operates the widest domestic network in the Philippines covering 34 destinations, on top of its 14 international destinations. Its 76-strong fleet, one of the youngest in the world, includes two dedicated ATR freighters. Lorenz S. Marasigan

PLDT broadband unit aims to hike sign-ups

BusinessMirror file photo

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

T

he home broadband arm of PLDT Inc. is looking to connect a million new fiber customers in 2022 with a ranking official “striving” to “overachieve” numbers beyond the target for the year.

During a media roundtable discussion, PLDT SVP and Head of Consumer Business Jeremiah Dela Cruz said the group is “on track” to meet its target of recording 1 million net adds to its fiber business this year.

“We’ve seen demand remain strong and when you look at market penetration sitting at 20 percent, there is a huge opportunity to connect up more and more families to our fiber network,” he said.

PLDT Home added 213,000 new fiber-to-the-home subscribers in the first three months of the year, pushing total fiber-to-the-home customers to a market-leading 2.6 million.

The business vertical ended March with a total subscriber base of 3.1 million, including non-fiber broadband customers.

“Eight out 10 Home customers now access the internet through our extensive fiber network, which has passed 15.5 million homes. As of end-March, PLDT’s fixed broadband service covered 62 percent of the total cities and municipalities nationwide. More Filipinos will be connected to our fiber network as our rollout again gathers momentum after being slowed down by Typhoon Odette and the Omicron surge,” Dela Cruz said.

PLDT Home offers fiber broadband service in 72 of the Philippines’s 82 provinces and aims to reach five more before 2022 ends. If that goal is achieved, Home will be in 76 percent of all municipalities by the end of this year.

“Our goal this year is to positively impact the lives of 4 million more Filipino so they could continue to work, play and study better at home,” Dela Cruz said.

PLDT earlier this month raised its capital expenditure guidance to P85 billion from a range of P75 billion to P80 billion to support updated requirements for its home broadband and data center businesses.

B2

Companies BusinessMirror

Thursday, May 26, 2022

Rockwell to expand footprint in Luzon, Visayas this year

L

By VG Cabuag

@villygc

opez-led property developer Rockwell Land Corp. said it expects its recovery to continue this year with the launch of new projects in different parts of the country.

During the firm’s annual stockholders’ meeting, Rockwell Chairman Manuel M. Lopez said its expansion in key locations of the country such as in the Visayas and in Pampanga, is part of its strategy of expanding its footprint to “better manage the cyclicality” of its business.

“We continue building on our progressive pace and look forward to more projects in the pipeline this

year,” Lopez said. “Growing our footprint in Visayas will be the 2.8-hectare Rockwell IPI in Cebu, in partnership with International Pharmaceuticals Inc. We also launched Rockwell Center Bacolod—a 30-hectare development that is set to be the next preferred mixed-used business district in Western Visayas.”

In Pampanga, the company has formed a joint venture with the

Nepomuceno family to develop tracts of land in Angeles City, which will have mixed use facility and a Power Plant mall, the first branch outside of Makati.

“Our growth story endures as we move toward more bountiful times.

This year, we will expand our reach in Makati, Cebu and Bacolod, and soon, set foot in Iloilo,” Rockwell President Nestor J. Padilla said.

Padilla said Rockwell IPI Cebu will form a community with residential towers, workspaces, and a retail area while Rockwell Center Bacolod will be twice the size of its first Rockwell Center in Makati.

“This master-planned community brings together the design vision of Proscenium’s architect, Carlos Ott, and the architect of multiple Rockwell projects, Jun Rodriguez,” he said.

The neighborhood will be com-

prised of residential areas, commercial spaces and a much-awaited Power Plant Mall.

“To start off the community, the Rockwell Business Park, launched this year, offers commercial lots for investors, poised to gain returns similar to the bustling Makati business district. Residential lots will also soon launch towards the end of 2022,” Padilla said.

He said the company’s first venture in Iloilo will be marked by The Vantage at Iloilo. Residential and office spaces within the 1.3-hectare development will have wide open views.

“Its ideal location in the center of the city makes it accessible to major establishments and institutions,” he said.

Other projects slated for launch include Edades West, a new premium residential tower at the flagship Rockwell Center in Makati City.

Strong performance of units boosts AGI profit

A

lliance Global Group Inc. (AGI), the holding firm of businessman Andrew Tan, said its income for the first quarter rose 67 percent to P5.4 billion from last year’s P3.2 billion, as most of

its business returned to almost prepandemic levels.

Consolidated revenues grew at a slower rate by 18 percent to P37.5 billion from last year’s P31.8 billion.

“AGI continued with its impres-

sive growth momentum in the first quarter of the year as the overall improvement in mobility has allowed all our businesses to perform further closer to pre-pandemic levels, boosting revenues of our lifestyle malls, hotels and our quick service restaurants. This upturn is reflective of the underlying strength in domestic economy, just waiting to be unleashed,” Kevin Andrew L. Tan,

the company’s CEO, said.

AGI’s operation include real estate developer Megaworld Corp., liquor maker Emperador Inc., the de-listed gaming and hotel operator Travellers International Hotel Group Inc. and fast food restaurant operator Golden Arches Development Corp., which owns the master franchise of McDonald’s in the Philippines. VG Cabuag

mutual funds

May 25, 2022

NAV

One Year Three Year

Five Year

per share Return*

Y-T-D Return

Stock Funds ALFM Growth Fund, Inc. -a

211.32

6.01%

-6.75%

-4.98%

-9.34%

ATRAM Alpha Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a

1.4143

14.34%

-3.98%

-1.87%

-15.02%

6.74%

-10.41%

-7.46%

-9.89%

ATRAM Philippine Equity Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 2.9175

Climbs Share Capital Equity Investment Fund Corp. -a 0.7239 1.94%

-8.04% n.a.

-4.31%

First Metro Consumer Fund on MSCI Phils. IMI, Inc. -a 0.6764 -1.11%

-7.88% n.a.

-12.26%

First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund,Inc. -a

8.08%

-4.08%

-2.36%

0.7096

13.34%

-6.43%

-5.6%

-13.81% n.a.

-15.97%

4.7769

First Metro Save and Learn Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a MBG Equity Investment Fund, Inc. -a

79.35

PAMI Equity Index Fund, Inc. -a

43.4086

-15.46%

-7.83%

6.73%

-5.56%

-3.53%

-9.8%

Philam Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a

452.91

5.63%

-5.53%

-3.65%

-9.54%

Philequity Dividend Yield Fund, Inc. -a

1.3077

23.34%

0.02%

0.12%

-3.58%

Philequity Fund, Inc. -a

33.1643

7.86%

-4.75%

-2.47%

-9.38%

Philequity MSCI Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a

0.8566

8.13%

-6.05% n.a.

-9.01%

Philequity PSE Index Fund Inc. -a

4.4938

7.76%

-4.88%

-2.92%

-9.41%

Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a

748.13

7.32%

-4.97%

-2.99%

-9.7%

Soldivo Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a

0.6745

-10.38%

6.1%

-9.98%

-5.69%

Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Equity Fund, Inc. -a 3.3868

6.32%

-7.49%

-4.27%

-10.3%

Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Stock Index Fund, Inc. -a

0.8532

7.23%

-5.22%

-3.21%

United Fund, Inc. -a

6.46%

-5.41%

-2.14%

-8.7%

3.1383

-9.41%

-9.67%

Primarily invested in Peso securities (units) Philequity Alpha One Fund, Inc. -a

1.0816

Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a

912.22 n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.

9.22% n.a. n.a.

-6.98%

Exchange Traded Fund (shares) First Metro Phil. Equity Exchange Traded Fund, Inc. -a,c

101.0157

8.01%

-4.7%

-2.56%

-9.38%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities (shares) ATRAM AsiaPlus Equity Fund, Inc. -b

$0.9435

Sun Life Prosperity World Voyager Fund, Inc. -a $1.5169

-23.47%

-0.43%

-0.6%

-16.25%

-12.54%

6.25%

5.71%

-17.85%

Balanced Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities (shares) ATRAM Dynamic Allocation Fund, Inc. -a

1.5561

-3.17%

-2.65%

-8.03%

ATRAM Philippine Balanced Fund, Inc. -a

2.1388

1.75%

-2.26%

-1.93%

-6.25%

4.15%

-0.85%

-0.25%

-5.17%

First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund Inc. -a 2.5519

-3.05%

First Metro Save and Learn F.O.C.C.U.S. Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a 0.1991

8.44% n.a. n.a.

NCM Mutual Fund of the Phils., Inc. -a

2.69%

-0.19%

1.9057

0.03% -1.31%

PAMI Horizon Fund, Inc. -a

3.495

1.04%

-1.57%

Philam Fund, Inc. -a

15.6617

1%

-1.81%

-1.36%

-7.03%

Solidaritas Fund, Inc. -a

1.9988

3.25%

-2.14%

-1.36%

-5.78%

-7.17%

Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 3.3744 2.81%

-4.13%

-2.19%

-7.48%

Sun Life Prosperity Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a

-3.58%

-1.79%

-8.02%

0.8777

8.87%

-4.74%

-5.5%

Primarily invested in Peso securities (units) Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2028, Inc. -a

0.9134

-2.78%

Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2038, Inc. -a

0.8485

1.84%

-5.04% n.a.

-10.16%

Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2048, Inc. -a

0.8382

3.02%

-5.36% n.a.

-2.82% n.a.

-10.25%

-7.72%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities (shares) Cocolife Dollar Fund Builder, Inc. -a

$0.03376

-11.04%

-2.62%

-1.03%

-11.02%

$0.9477

-15.98%

-0.08%

-0.34%

-11.19%

PAMI Asia Balanced Fund, Inc. -b

Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Advantage Fund, Inc. -a $4.0783 -11.73% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Wellspring Fund, Inc. -a,2 $1.0431 -11.63%

3.61%

3.76%

-15.07%

-0.02%

0.76%

-12.97%

Bond Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities (shares) ALFM Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a

372.63

0.4%

2.22%

ATRAM Corporate Bond Fund, Inc. -a

1.8883

-1.44%

0.04%

0.18%

0.19%

Cocolife Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a

3.2295

0.15%

2.11%

3.39%

-0.45%

2.1872

-3.15%

0.3%

0.83%

-2.86% -0.62%

Ekklesia Mutual Fund Inc. -a

2.3%

-0.45%

First Metro Save and Learn Fixed Income Fund,Inc. -a 2.4109 -0.98%

2.04%

1.7%

Philam Bond Fund, Inc. -a

4.2199

-5.77%

1.21%

0.77%

-4%

Philam Managed Income Fund, Inc. -a

1.3102

-0.95%

2.89%

2.67%

-0.67%

Philequity Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a Soldivo Bond Fund, Inc. -a

3.8791

-2.45%

2.25%

2.24%

1.0065

-2.01%

2.93%

1.68%

-2.11%

Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.1374

-1.76%

2.61%

2.73%

-1.57%

Sun Life Prosperity GS Fund, Inc. -a

-2.56%

1.81%

2.04%

-1.83%

1.6989

-2.19%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities (shares) ALFM Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a

$482.14

ALFM Euro Bond Fund, Inc. -a ATRAM Total Return Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -b

-0.45%

1.9%

1.9%

Є213.14

-2.93%

-0.45%

0.23%

-3.12%

$1.071

-8.96%

-2.94%

-0.9%

-11.04%

First Metro Save and Learn Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $0.0245 -5.41%

-1.52%

-1.2%

-0.32%

-5.77%

-13.64%

-5.38%

-3.32%

-11.45%

$2.2432

-9.74%

-0.58%

0.28%

-10.48%

$0.0608606

-3.06%

1.29%

1.29%

-2.3%

Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Abundance Fund, Inc. -a $2.7898 -11.14%

-2.35%

-1.25%

-12.72%

PAMI Global Bond Fund, Inc -b

$0.9057

Philam Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a Philequity Dollar Income Fund Inc. -a

Money Market Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities (shares) ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a

131.76

1.26%

First Metro Save and Learn Money Market Fund, Inc. -a

1.0625

1.04%

1.64% n.a.

Sun Life Prosperity Peso Starter Fund, Inc. -a,1

1.52%

2.22%

2.48%

1.3237

2.32%

2.51%

0.43% 0.45%

0.62%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities (shares) Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Starter Fund, Inc. -a $1.0631

0.59%

1.2% n.a.

0.24%

Feeder Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities (units) ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund Inc. -a

42.9886 n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.

Sun Life Prosperity World Equity Index Feeder Fund, Inc. -a 1.2061

-1.92% n.a. n.a.

-12.78%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities (units) ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund Inc. -a

$0.8467

-15.33% n.a. n.a.

a - NAVPS as of the previous banking day. b - NAVPS as of two banking days ago.

c - Listed in the PSE.

-12.71%

d - in Net Asset Value per Unit (NAVPU).

1 - Renaming was approved by the SEC last July 8, 2021 (formerly, Sun Life Prosperity Money Market Fund, Inc.).

2 - Adjusted due to stock dividend issuance last November 25, 2021.

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

www.businessmirror.com.ph

PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

May 25, 2022

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

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

118,005 416,026,403 386,796 135,475,216 1,809,450 2,700,104 67,506,614 13,680 50,924 197,640 171,240 210,080 101,417,516.50 14,825,459 941,510 48,050 176,130 1,558,945 195,520

104,880 -145,426,048 1,000 -21,630,488 551,110 -2,301,329 -39,425,787.50 54,740 135,300 -27,373,891 -79,986 -1,445,325 195,520

INDUSTRIAL AC ENERGY 6.98 7 7.05 7.05 6.95 7 16,812,100 117,577,827 ALSONS CONS 0.99 1.01 0.99 1 0.99 0.99 112,000 111,650 30.7 31 31 31.1 30.6 30.7 872,800 26,882,230 ABOITIZ POWER BASIC ENERGY 0.37 0.375 0.38 0.38 0.36 0.37 16,030,000 5,976,800 19.84 20 19.7 20 19.7 20 161,400 3,204,016 FIRST GEN 67 68.4 67.8 68 66.8 67 39,420 2,668,037 FIRST PHIL HLDG MERALCO 340 345 351.4 351.4 340 340 262,140 89,809,708 18.4 18.44 17.5 18.58 17.5 18.44 836,500 15,349,572 MANILA WATER PETRON 3.19 3.2 3.21 3.25 3.2 3.2 1,757,000 5,633,610 4.83 4.99 5 5 5 5 4,000 20,000 PETROENERGY PHX PETROLEUM 9.15 9.88 9.99 10 9.03 10 7,500 73,364 SYNERGY GRID 12.62 12.64 12.7 12.78 12.52 12.64 3,714,500 47,086,892 18.22 18.3 18 18.3 18 18.3 112,700 2,046,726 PILIPINAS SHELL SPC POWER 13.08 13.1 13.12 13.18 13.1 13.1 127,900 1,677,742 1.79 1.8 1.8 1.81 1.78 1.8 32,228,000 57,801,740 SOLAR PH 4.69 4.76 4.76 4.8 4.55 4.76 411,000 1,958,740 AGRINURTURE AXELUM 2.35 2.4 2.36 2.39 2.35 2.39 173,000 412,880 21.25 21.65 21.7 21.7 21.25 21.65 1,500,100 32,513,245 CENTURY FOOD DEL MONTE 13 13.18 13.2 13.2 13 13.18 107,700 1,405,192 7.26 7.27 7.29 7.32 7.27 7.27 332,800 2,421,407 DNL INDUS 18.4 18.48 18.52 18.78 18.3 18.48 1,836,800 33,791,356 EMPERADOR SMC FOODANDBEV 61 61.5 61.5 61.5 61 61.5 48,380 2,974,800.50 0.49 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.49 0.49 665,000 327,445 FIGARO COFFEE ALLIANCE SELECT 0.59 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.59 0.59 75,000 44,400 FRUITAS HLDG 1.06 1.09 1.07 1.11 1.06 1.09 12,373,000 13,333,560 106 108 105.8 108.1 105.8 108 12,790 1,359,766 GINEBRA JOLLIBEE 209 210.4 208 211.4 207.6 210.4 300,510 63,179,032 1.19 1.2 1.17 1.2 1.16 1.2 2,551,000 3,014,910 KEEPERS HLDG LIBERTY FLOUR 18.74 24 24.05 24.05 24.05 24.05 75,600 1,818,180 MAXS GROUP 5.62 5.67 5.65 5.68 5.6 5.68 1,500 8,485 0.12 0.128 0.12 0.12 0.12 0.12 100,000 12,000 MG HLDG MONDE NISSIN 15.78 15.9 15.9 16.04 15.62 15.78 15,439,600 246,299,756 7.5 7.7 7.5 7.5 7.5 7.5 17,800 133,500 SHAKEYS PIZZA ROXAS AND CO 0.53 0.55 0.55 0.57 0.52 0.53 2,249,000 1,215,110 ROXAS HLDG 1.1 1.2 1.13 1.13 1.07 1.09 496,000 535,160 0.1 0.103 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 1,210,000 121,000 SWIFT FOODS UNIV ROBINA 103.7 104 105 105.8 103.7 103.7 671,560 70,038,997 0.61 0.63 0.64 0.64 0.63 0.63 157,000 99,440 VITARICH VICTORIAS 2.53 2.82 2.83 2.83 2.83 2.83 10,000 28,300 CEMEX HLDG 0.71 0.73 0.73 0.74 0.71 0.72 1,287,000 931,010 12.66 13.38 12.66 12.66 12.66 12.66 1,200 15,192 EAGLE CEMENT EEI CORP 3.59 3.6 3.6 3.61 3.58 3.59 391,000 1,406,790 5.3 5.35 5.25 5.35 5.16 5.35 2,038,100 10,702,210 HOLCIM 4.33 4.38 4.42 4.44 4.3 4.38 333,000 1,444,950 MEGAWIDE PHINMA 19.9 19.92 19.9 19.92 19.9 19.92 85,400 1,699,540 0.72 0.75 0.73 0.73 0.72 0.72 68,000 49,360 TKC METALS VULCAN INDL 0.84 0.85 0.85 0.86 0.83 0.85 562,000 472,280 1.8 1.83 1.8 1.8 1.8 1.8 35,000 63,000 CROWN ASIA LMG CORP 3.6 4.34 4 4 3.6 3.6 71,000 259,530 MABUHAY VINYL 5 5.37 5.4 5.4 5.39 5.39 2,200 11,859 17.96 18 18 18 18 18 4,300 77,400 CONCEPCION GREENERGY 1.65 1.67 1.69 1.69 1.63 1.67 12,375,000 20,561,640 6.85 6.9 6.95 6.95 6.9 6.9 156,000 1,076,705 INTEGRATED MICR IONICS 0.59 0.61 0.61 0.61 0.6 0.6 80,000 48,200 PANASONIC 6.11 6.27 6.1 6.2 6.1 6.2 3,000 18,550 1.06 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1 1.1 1,000 1,100 SFA SEMICON CIRTEK HLDG 2.9 2.91 2.84 2.91 2.83 2.9 477,000 1,370,580

4,228,164 -56,730 -11,268,655 25,900 -1,268,242 -2,464,437 -16,510,818 3,998,734 762,520 6,437,672 406,028 -106,110 -140,120 -531,690 -243,780 9,180 -620,607 27,148,118 -1,502,317 381,053 -3,787,548 -30,680 94,873,494 327,490.00 -29,039,897 -609,280 -229,950 5,250 -477,390 -77,400 1,691,990 -

HOLDING & FRIMS

ABACORE CAPITAL AYALA CORP ABOITIZ EQUITY ALLIANCE GLOBAL ANSCOR ATN HLDG A ATN HLDG B COSCO CAPITAL DMCI HLDG FILINVEST DEV GT CAPITAL JG SUMMIT LODESTAR LOPEZ HLDG LT GROUP MABUHAY HLDG METRO PAC INV PRIME MEDIA SOLID GROUP SM INVESTMENTS SAN MIGUEL CORP TOP FRONTIER WELLEX INDUS

43.7 122.7 10.12 94.85 27 7.15 50.95 7.01 16.5 18.3 56 20.2 90 80 2.09 3.43 0.61 198.5 2,300

1.29 660.5 47.15 10.32 9.02 0.435 0.435 4.65 9.04 6.87 499.8 51 0.52 2.98 8.65 0.32 3.78 1.71 0.84 838 102.9 108.4 0.27

43.9 123.4 10.26 96.3 27.1 7.16 51 7.2 16.96 18.58 57.15 20.3 91 80.3 2.15 3.49 0.63 199.2 2,400

1.3 663.5 47.8 10.38 9.2 0.445 0.5 4.66 9.05 7 500 51.1 0.59 2.99 8.73 0.33 3.83 1.74 0.87 847 104 114.8 0.275

43.7 123 10 92.55 27 7.23 50.4 7.2 16.98 18.2 56 20.2 92 80 2.1 3.42 0.61 199.8 2,302

1.23 660.5 46.95 10.36 9.1 0.46 0.43 4.66 8.88 6.86 508 50.05 0.61 2.98 8.79 0.325 3.83 1.72 0.9 830 105 110.1 0.275

43.75 124.8 10.32 96.3 27.1 7.23 51.5 7.2 17 18.76 57 20.2 93 80 2.15 3.45 0.61 199.8 2,302

1.29 669.5 47.8 10.46 9.1 0.46 0.43 4.66 9.05 6.86 508.5 51.25 0.61 2.99 8.83 0.325 3.85 1.74 0.9 847 105 114 0.275

43.7 122.7 10 92.55 26.8 7.16 50.25 7.2 16.96 18.08 55 20.2 90 79.3 2.01 3.42 0.6 198.5 2,300

1.22 660.5 46.2 10.24 9.1 0.435 0.43 4.57 8.84 6.86 499.4 50.05 0.52 2.98 8.64 0.32 3.78 1.68 0.81 830 102.7 110 0.275

43.75 122.7 10.26 96.3 27 7.16 51 7.2 16.96 18.58 57 20.2 90 80 2.09 3.43 0.61 199 2,300

1.29 660.5 47.8 10.32 9.1 0.435 0.43 4.66 9.05 6.86 500 51 0.61 2.98 8.65 0.32 3.78 1.74 0.89 847 104 114 0.275

2,700 3,372,340 38,100 1,421,280 67,100 375,800 1,322,860 1,900 3,000 10,800 3,100 10,400 1,115,900 185,360 462,000 14,000 290,000 7,830 85

59,456,000 155,610 916,200 7,401,100 900 1,020,000 20,000 335,000 21,225,400 500 167,920 1,807,310 50,000 221,000 7,736,400 200,000 17,228,000 690,000 229,000 188,470 170,000 1,170 70,000

74,845,120 103,150,150 43,378,180 76,207,902 8,190 452,900 8,600 1,546,890 189,953,397 3,430 84,365,301 92,018,497.50 27,200 658,600 67,799,470 64,200 65,393,240 1,178,730 193,310 158,157,410 17,633,503 132,939 19,250

PROPERTY ARTHALAND CORP 0.56 0.57 0.54 0.57 0.54 0.57 100,000 56,110 ANCHOR LAND 4.91 6.89 6 6 6 6 1,100 6,600 28.2 28.3 27.75 28.35 27.75 28.3 7,983,800 224,494,860 AYALA LAND AYALA LAND LOG 4.02 4.05 4.05 4.12 4.01 4.05 294,000 1,190,040 16.2 17.2 16.5 16.5 16.2 16.2 8,600 141,570 ALTUS PROP ARANETA PROP 1.6 1.63 1.64 1.65 1.51 1.63 1,502,000 2,400,170 AREIT RT 40.05 40.55 39.95 41.5 39.7 40.05 1,891,600 76,750,000 0.8 0.82 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 221,000 176,800 A BROWN CITYLAND DEVT 0.69 0.71 0.71 0.71 0.71 0.71 20,000 14,200 0.091 0.093 0.096 0.096 0.091 0.093 35,130,000 3,197,100 CROWN EQUITIES CEB LANDMASTERS 2.72 2.76 2.78 2.78 2.72 2.76 83,000 226,640 CENTURY PROP 0.41 0.415 0.41 0.42 0.41 0.42 110,000 45,200 2.58 2.59 2.53 2.58 2.5 2.58 5,276,000 13,522,650 CITICORE RT DOUBLEDRAGON 8.04 8.05 8.34 8.34 8.03 8.05 12,378,600 99,403,823 1.66 1.67 1.66 1.69 1.66 1.67 2,171,000 3,634,350 DDMP RT 6.87 6.88 6.88 6.88 6.88 6.88 15,000 103,200 DM WENCESLAO EMPIRE EAST 0.22 0.228 0.22 0.228 0.22 0.228 200,000 44,400 0.275 0.28 0.26 0.295 0.26 0.275 54,270,000 14,995,800 EVER GOTESCO FILINVEST RT 7.33 7.43 7.39 7.5 7.33 7.33 3,603,200 26,726,643 0.98 0.99 0.99 1.01 0.99 0.99 2,183,000 2,165,720 FILINVEST LAND 0.88 0.89 0.89 0.89 0.88 0.89 219,000 193,270 GLOBAL ESTATE 8990 HLDG 10.12 10.5 10.1 10.5 10.1 10.5 155,700 1,617,840 0.92 0.94 0.91 0.94 0.9 0.94 158,000 144,440 PHIL INFRADEV CITY AND LAND 0.76 0.77 0.78 0.78 0.76 0.77 185,000 143,280 MEGAWORLD 2.73 2.75 2.77 2.77 2.73 2.73 4,678,000 12,834,130 0.219 0.22 0.223 0.225 0.22 0.22 4,170,000 921,910 MRC ALLIED MREIT RT 16.78 16.88 17 17 16.76 16.88 2,022,800 34,229,678 0.35 0.36 0.35 0.35 0.35 0.35 810,000 283,500 OMICO CORP PHIL ESTATES 0.395 0.42 0.4 0.42 0.395 0.415 180,000 74,400 PRIMEX CORP 2.09 2.15 2.21 2.3 2.07 2.15 486,000 1,049,800 7.12 7.25 7.2 7.29 7.11 7.12 4,773,300 34,393,145 RL COMM RT ROBINSONS LAND 18.46 18.5 18.44 18.66 18.4 18.46 629,500 11,621,448 0.246 0.247 0.244 0.246 0.244 0.246 560,000 137,550 PHIL REALTY ROCKWELL 1.29 1.36 1.38 1.38 1.28 1.28 10,000 13,340 SHANG PROP 2.5 2.59 2.51 2.51 2.51 2.51 4,000 10,040 2.78 2.93 2.85 2.85 2.85 2.85 10,000 28,500 STA LUCIA LAND SM PRIME HLDG 36.9 37 38 38 36.8 37 10,593,200 395,254,770 0.55 0.62 0.55 0.55 0.55 0.55 216,000 118,800 SOC RESOURCES SUNTRUST HOME 0.98 1 0.97 1 0.96 1 89,000 86,300 VISTA LAND 2.41 2.42 2.43 2.45 2.4 2.41 2,149,000 5,201,890

SERVICES ABS CBN 9.75 9.8 9.8 9.8 9.61 9.8 78,500 765,195 GMA NETWORK 11.98 12 12.04 12.06 11.8 11.98 882,600 10,538,106 0.35 0.375 0.35 0.35 0.35 0.35 10,000 3,500 MANILA BULLETIN MLA BRDCASTING 7.56 9.79 9.8 9.8 9.8 9.8 200 1,960 2,536 2,544 2,514 2,544 2,502 2,544 43,655 110,612,900 GLOBE TELECOM 1,941 1,950 1,925 1,961 1,925 1,950 155,670 303,347,995 PLDT APOLLO GLOBAL 0.044 0.045 0.045 0.046 0.044 0.045 118,900,000 5,346,200 25.45 25.5 26 26.25 25.4 25.5 28,065,600 721,460,515 CONVERGE DFNN INC 3 3.09 3 3.12 3 3.09 65,000 199,610 4.55 4.58 4.6 4.65 4.48 4.55 20,086,000 91,492,440 DITO CME HLDG 1.4 1.42 1.34 1.42 1.34 1.4 5,397,000 7,488,070 NOW CORP TRANSPACIFIC BR 0.295 0.3 0.295 0.305 0.295 0.295 2,680,000 798,500 6.86 7.19 7.3 7.3 6.86 7.19 7,500 52,977 2GO GROUP ASIAN TERMINALS 13.32 13.34 13.34 13.4 13.34 13.34 3,500 46,750 1.52 1.53 1.56 1.56 1.51 1.54 310,000 470,580 CHELSEA CEBU AIR 46.8 47 47 47.5 46.5 47.05 59,600 2,798,940 INTL CONTAINER 210.6 211.4 211 213.8 210 210.6 1,534,220 323,808,292 23.15 24.75 24.75 24.75 24.75 24.75 1,300 32,175 LBC EXPRESS LORENZO SHIPPNG 0.63 0.65 0.93 0.93 0.65 0.65 40,000 26,820 4.84 4.85 4.87 4.98 4.85 4.85 349,000 1,696,040 MACROASIA 0.93 0.95 0.91 0.93 0.91 0.93 12,000 11,040 METROALLIANCE A PAL HLDG 6.05 6.2 6.05 6.2 6.05 6.2 8,400 51,315 0.82 0.83 0.8 0.84 0.8 0.83 163,000 133,080 HARBOR STAR BOULEVARD HLDG 0.089 0.09 0.095 0.095 0.087 0.09 277,070,000 25,225,460 DISCOVERY WORLD 1.73 1.8 1.7 1.8 1.7 1.8 21,000 37,130 0.42 0.445 0.42 0.42 0.42 0.42 330,000 138,600 WATERFRONT CENTRO ESCOLAR 6.51 6.85 6.85 6.85 6.85 6.85 100 685 0.345 0.35 0.34 0.345 0.34 0.345 130,000 44,250 STI HLDG BELLE CORP 1.27 1.3 1.26 1.3 1.25 1.3 172,000 220,840 BLOOMBERRY 6.4 6.42 6.36 6.48 6.36 6.4 1,806,900 11,578,062 1.32 1.33 1.33 1.33 1.28 1.32 2,855,000 3,714,160 LEISURE AND RES PH RESORTS GRP 1.16 1.17 1.25 1.28 1.14 1.17 8,458,000 10,022,700 0.41 0.415 0.42 0.42 0.405 0.415 9,250,000 3,780,350 PREMIUM LEISURE PHILWEB 3.58 3.59 3.6 3.67 3.46 3.58 2,589,000 9,240,670 ALLDAY 0.405 0.415 0.415 0.415 0.405 0.405 4,170,000 1,705,400 5.31 5.37 5.3 5.45 5.3 5.31 1,116,500 5,953,614 ALLHOME METRO RETAIL 1.43 1.44 1.42 1.44 1.42 1.44 226,000 323,490 32.5 32.7 32.3 32.7 32.25 32.55 264,900 8,619,625 PUREGOLD ROBINSONS RTL 51.75 51.8 52.3 52.3 51.55 51.8 328,890 17,036,717 PHIL SEVEN CORP 52 53 54.5 54.5 53 53 244,780 13,338,371.50 1.33 1.34 1.32 1.34 1.3 1.33 3,586,000 4,757,900 SSI GROUP WILCON DEPOT 26.75 26.85 27.25 27.4 26.55 26.75 682,900 18,343,825 0.214 0.226 0.216 0.216 0.213 0.213 1,080,000 231,490 APC GROUP 6.85 7 7 7 7 7 3,000 21,000 IPM HLDG MEDILINES 0.69 0.7 0.71 0.71 0.69 0.69 3,184,000 2,215,670 0.425 0.43 0.44 0.44 0.425 0.425 1,570,000 674,450 PRMIERE HORIZON

MINING & OIL ATOK 7 7.3 7.15 7.5 7 7.3 348,000 2,545,014 1.59 1.6 1.64 1.66 1.59 1.6 1,507,000 2,425,790 APEX MINING ATLAS MINING 6 6.06 5.98 6.08 5.95 5.96 39,600 236,577 6.89 6.9 7.23 7.23 6.78 6.9 91,000 619,126 BENGUET A BENGUET B 6.83 6.9 6.77 6.8 6.75 6.8 178,200 1,208,680 CENTURY PEAK 2.75 2.8 2.69 2.8 2.69 2.8 740,000 2,058,910 4.21 4.5 4.31 4.31 4.21 4.21 8,000 34,240 DIZON MINES FERRONICKEL 2.56 2.57 2.6 2.6 2.54 2.57 821,000 2,096,680 0.173 0.174 0.175 0.175 0.174 0.174 420,000 73,130 GEOGRACE LEPANTO A 0.134 0.135 0.136 0.136 0.135 0.135 4,890,000 661,480 MANILA MINING A 0.0094 0.0096 0.0095 0.0095 0.0095 0.0095 16,000,000 152,000 0.0095 0.0099 0.0097 0.0097 0.0097 0.0097 2,000,000 19,400 MANILA MINING B MARCVENTURES 1.64 1.65 1.69 1.69 1.59 1.64 4,957,000 8,137,500 0.92 0.96 0.94 0.96 0.92 0.96 122,000 114,340 NIHAO NICKEL ASIA 6.89 6.9 6.97 7 6.8 6.89 5,396,600 37,232,161 ORNTL PENINSULA 0.75 0.78 0.73 0.75 0.72 0.74 512,000 373,320 4.5 4.55 4.58 4.58 4.49 4.5 322,000 1,457,380 PX MINING SEMIRARA MINING 33.4 33.5 32.9 33.55 32.4 33.5 4,853,100 161,368,900 13.34 13.5 13.1 13.5 13.02 13.5 49,200 655,030 ACE ENEXOR 0.011 0.012 0.011 0.011 0.011 0.011 400,000 4,400 ORNTL PETROL A ORNTL PETROL B 0.011 0.012 0.011 0.011 0.011 0.011 20,000,000 220,000 0.009 0.0092 0.009 0.009 0.009 0.009 26,000,000 234,000 PHILODRILL PXP ENERGY 4.78 4.8 4.8 4.99 4.77 4.8 45,000 215,380

PREFFERED HOUSE PREF B 97.5 101 100 100 100 100 170 17,000 HOUSE PREF A 98.9 100.9 99 99.2 99 99.2 360 35,672 500.5 505 505 505 505 505 50 25,250 AC PREF B1 BRN PREF A 105 105.5 105 105 105 105 500 52,500 47 47.25 47 47.3 47 47.3 4,200 197,460 CEB PREF CPG PREF A 101 102 101 102 101 102 380 38,430 DD PREF 99.8 100 99.7 99.8 99.65 99.8 49,360 4,924,966 108.9 109 109 109 109 109 8,960 976,640 EEI PREF B GTCAP PREF A 990 1,008 995 995 995 995 520 517,400 1,005 1,035 1,035 1,035 1,035 1,035 5 5,175 GTCAP PREF B JFC PREF B 966 990 990 990 990 990 100 99,000 MWIDE PREF 2A 93.8 98.95 93.7 93.7 93.65 93.65 360 33,719 99.85 100.2 99.85 99.85 99.85 99.85 50 4,992.50 MWIDE PREF 2B MWIDE PREF 4 97.5 99.7 98 99.7 96.6 99.7 2,010 196,656 99.9 100.4 100.4 100.4 100.4 100.4 400 40,160 PNX PREF 3B PNX PREF 4 970 988 988 988 988 988 50 49,400 PCOR PREF 3A 1,061 1,069 1,061 1,069 1,061 1,069 1,515 1,607,535 1,086 1,100 1,100 1,100 1,100 1,100 120 132,000 PCOR PREF 3B SMC PREF 2F 76.5 77.85 77 77 77 77 500,000 38,500,000 77.3 78.75 78.75 78.75 78.75 78.75 505,000 39,768,750 SMC PREF 2I SMC PREF 2J 74.55 75.1 75.2 75.2 75.2 75.2 20 1,504 TECH PREF B2C 52.5 55 52.5 52.5 52.5 52.5 200 10,500

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS ABS HLDG PDR 9.32 10.2 9.32 9.32 9.32 9.32 69,300 645,876 GMA HLDG PDR 11.6 11.68 11.6 11.68 11.5 11.6 15,000 174,128

WARRANTS TECH WARRANT 0.53 0.56 0.54 0.56 0.53 0.56 53,000 28,410

29,251,940 -48,351,525 -2,666,205 37,816,806 13,610.00 30,301,448 -25,030,439 -36,310,832.50 -652,640 -13,135,394 -22,258,640 22,427,650 -4,119,240 -54,101,910 -37,060 8,200 -19,138,450 16,410 -4,200 -388,420 -98,833,069.00 28,430 1,087,000 3,123,938 -1,787,170 -11,110 25,740 -3,294,030 17,084,872 2,798,631 2,393,152 2,641,490 -3,664,390 39,218,710 66,526,655 -85,500 -189,650,250 6,130 -8,713,410 -159,700.00 -60,000 -37,520 -12,781,494 -14,730 -9,400 1,800 -2,949,439 -38,840 -10,650 -230,250 -8,400 -4,322,424 -47,190 -4,081,415 -6,294,733 15,345 1,910,470 -7,151,290 27,950 -38,400 12,780 -23,037 1,219,520.00 974,910 3,040 22,673,295 788,990 77,175,140.00 -46,894 9,000 -

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES

CTS GLOBAL HAUS TALK ITALPINAS KEPWEALTH MERRYMART XURPAS

0.82 0.98 0.79 2.58 1.57 0.29

0.83 1.06 0.8 2.79 1.58 0.3

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS FIRST METRO ETF

101.4

101.5

0.83 1 0.8 2.58 1.63 0.28

0.85 1.06 0.8 2.58 1.65 0.3

0.81 0.96 0.79 2.58 1.58 0.27

0.82 1.06 0.8 2.58 1.58 0.3

7,333,000 424,000 260,000 1,000 1,011,000 4,380,000

6,080,090 426,750 207,280 2,580 1,614,140 1,257,300

196,200 -33,719 () 10,440 381,800 9,720 -

103 103 101.2 101.3 8,940 906,885 369,105

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Banking&Finance

Dutch govt offers export credit insurance to NMIA

By VG Cabuag

S

@villygc

AN Miguel Corp. on Wednesday said it received its support P740-billion New Manila International Airport (NMIA) project in Bulacan following the approval of the Dutch government of an export credit insurance for the project’s land development phase.

The approval comes after more than a year of “rigorous” review of the project’s long-term environmental and social impact mitigation measures to ensure that the multi-billion project is done with sustainability in mind and aligned with the country’s climate ambitions.

San Miguel’s share price closed last Wednesday at P102.80, down P2.20 from the previous close.

The Dutch government, represented by Atradius Dutch State Business (DSB), extended the export credit insurance to Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V., to cover its 1.5-billion euro contract for land development works at the airport project site in Bulakan, Bulacan.

San Miguel’s Bulacan airport project is the largest in Boskalis’s over 100-year history. It is also the largest export credit agency insurance policy granted in the 90-year history of Atradius. San Miguel President and CEO Ramon S. Ang thanked the Dutch government for its support to the Bulacan airport, a project seen to catalyze sustainable economic growth for the Philippines.

“This is a significant milestone not only for San Miguel and the NMIA project, but for the entire country. With this, we are closer to our dream of having a world-class, future-ready and sustainably-built international gateway, proudly built

by Filipinos for the Philippines,” Ang said. “This also validates our work with Boskalis to ensure that this project is done right and will provide long-term economic, environmental

and social benefits to our host communities and Bulacan province.”

The San Miguel CEO also said he’s “very pleased that all the hard work with a large team of experts has been successfully completed.”

Boskalis CEO Peter Berdowski was quoted in a statement as saying that San Miguel worked intensively with Atradius DSB for more than a year “to ensure that the construction of the new airport will take place in a socially responsible manner.”

“In collaboration with Atradius DSB, the Dutch embassy, we succeeded in developing a broadly supported plan with an eye for the local community and the preservation of biodiversity,” Berdowski added.

According to San Miguel, a group of experts from the conglomerate, together with Boskalis and four consultancy firms, conducted an extensive environmental and social impact assessment in accordance with the highest international standards.

This process also included the conduct of impact analyses and compensation packages for adverse effects of the project.

“This shows that the airport project and our environmental and social mitigation plans are not only sound, but robust and strong, given they can pass not only international standards but the exacting requirements of the Dutch government. It is another testament to the ability of Filipinos to be world-class,” Ang said.

The San Miguel CEO vowed to “continue to work with Atradius, the banks, experts, national and local government and all stakeholders to ensure we will build this project in a sustainable manner and in compliance with the highest international environment and social standards.”

The airport project will feature four parallel runways, a terminal and an interlinked infrastructure network that includes expressways and railways.

BusinessMirror

B3

Neda, Ibon agree PHL debts very far from Sri Lanka level

T

By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

HE National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) and local think tank Ibon Foundation Inc. both believe that the Philippines is not a “Sri Lanka,” a country that recently defaulted on its debts.

In a virtual briefing at the Kapihan sa Manila Bay on Wednesday, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua said Sri Lanka is a different economy from the Philippines. Chua emphasized the country has strong macroeconomic fundamentals and still enjoy a favorable credit rating.

Meanwhile, according to nongovernment group Ibon, Sri Lanka’s external debt of $56 billion is around 69 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) of $81 billion while the Philippines’s external debt is at $106.4 billion or 27 percent of the country’s $394-billion GDP. Ibon also said Sri Lanka’s population of 22 million is just a fifth of the Philippines’s 110 million.

“Super malabo [Philippines’s chances of becoming a Sri Lanka] because we are two different countries,” Chua said. “We have strong macroeconomic fundamentals; our credit ratings are the highest ever. In fact, we can borrow very cheaply. We have done all the reforms needed to secure our future. We have to continue that and not reverse any of them.”

LandBank bankrolls WTE plant

T

Editor: Dennis D. Estopace • Thursday, May 26, 2022

ALAVERA, Nueva Ecija—Land Bank of the Philippines (LandBank) announced it has granted loans in 2013 and 2018 totaling P1.15 billion under the bank’s Renewable Energy Program (REP) to a waste-to-energy power plant in this province.

This, the state lender said, was extended to help Green Innovations for Tomorrow Corp.

(GIFTC) in its bid to establish a This May 17, 2022, photo courtesy of the Land Bank of the Philippines biomass power plant that would shows men at the rice husk-fueled power plant in Talavera, Nueva Ecija, generate electricity for house- operated by Green Innovations for Tomorrow Corp. The facility recycles holds in the province. around 480,000 kilograms of rice husks per day and can supply electricity According to LandBank, the to around 6,480 households. Photo courtesy OF Land Bank of the Philippines company has carried out an ecosignificantly decreasing agricultural waste nomical and sustainable solution to address in the town. More importantly, the energy the problem of agricultural waste in this corporation helps reduce the emission of province—recognized as the “rice granagreenhouse gases, while preserving the ry” of the Philippines—by converting rice country’s natural resources by manufachusks as biomass into renewable energy. turing a renewable energy source.

With rice production as the major source LandBank President and CEO Cecilia C. of livelihood in this palay-producing town, Borromeo said through the statement the large volumes of rice husks are regularly lender “fully supports projects that harness being disposed of or burned in open fire, the potential of renewable and alternative posing both environmental and health energy resources.” hazards to the community.

“We will continue to work with develThe state lender said part of the loan it opment partners in preserving our enviextended to the company bankrolled the ronment and promoting climate change construction of GIFTC’s biomass power adaptation,” Borromeo added. plant in 2016, which is currently operatThrough LandBank’s REP, the state-run ing at a capacity of 10.8 megawatts eleclender aims to finance the development tric (MWe). of renewable energy sources and increase The rest of the loan was allocated for the access to reliable, clean and sustainable reimbursement of cost utilized for warepower to help mitigate the effects of global houses, dormitories and other structures, warming and climate change in the country. replacement or repair of power plant parts, Eligible borrowers such as electric cooppermanent working capital, including the eratives, local government units, governacquisition of rice husk. ment-owned and controlled corporations “LandBank was the first financial instiand government agencies may borrow up tution that believed in GIFTC’s vision for to 90 percent of the total cost of the project. a sustainable future for our town, and for Cooperatives, associations and private the whole country,” GIFTC Assistant Chief borrowers categorized as single proprietorOperating Officer Martin O. Vendivil was ships, partnerships, or corporations may quoted in LandBank’s statement as sayalso borrow up to 80 percent of the total ing. “We wouldn’t be where we are now if project cost under the Program. it weren’t for their assistance.”

Term loans for working capital and projThrough the services of a grid operator, GIFTC’s biomass power plant can supply ect preparation are payable up to five years electricity to an estimated 6,480 housewith a 6-month grace period on principal holds in selected municipalities and cities payment, while loans for capital expendiin Nueva Ecija, including other areas in ture are payable based on the borrower’s neighboring provinces. cash flow up to 15 years, with a 3-year grace The GIFTC power plant consumes period. The interest rate shall be based on around 480,000 kilograms of rice husks the prevailing market rate but not lower per day bought from rice mills in the area, than 5 percent per year.

Chua said the pandemic is the primary culprit for the surge in Philippine debt. Before Covid-19, the country’s debt-to-GDP level was only at 39 percent, which he said, was a testament to the Philippines’s ability to manage its fiscal resources.

The debts the country had to secure allowed the government to respond to “unprecedented times” and, thus, “required unprecedented borrowings.” These were spent on securing vaccines and providing subsidies to both households and firms during the pandemic.

“We have a very strong economy that can bring down that debt level.

And we also need to manage our fiscal resources and raise revenues,” Chua said. “Raising revenues [will] primarily [be] driven by making the economy grow stronger, then supported by tax policy and administration measures. So that is how over the medium term we will bring down our debt levels.”

Ibon Foundation Executive Director Jose Enrique A. Africa said that while pundits are quick to judge the incoming administration’s ability to

be fiscally prudent, due to the “Marcos dictatorship-driven Philippine economic and foreign debt crisis of the 1980s,” the country has not reached the point of default.

According to Africa, this is largely due to remittances from Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) and the business process outsourcing (BPO) sector that provide the Philippines with a steady supply of foreign exchange.

A steady stream of foreign exchange was supplied through remittances, which reached $31.4 billion in 2021, and BPO revenues amounting to $27 billion. Foreign investment, Ibon said, has also reached $10.5 billion and helps prevent the country from being affected by foreign exchange swings.

“The immediate triggers of its [Sri Lanka] debt crisis were the loss of foreign exchange earnings from the collapse of tourism and exports upon Covid-19, and then the spiking of global fuel and food prices when the Ukraine-Russia conflict erupted,” Africa said. “Cuts in imported inputs choked domestic agricultural and industrial production, caused shortages and power failures and made prices soar.”

However, Africa warned that despite this, the Philippines remains a backward pre-industrial economy. There are millions of Filipinos working abroad because there isn’t enough work in the country for them, he added.

Africa further explained there are BPO revenues because so many of the Filipino “youth provide their labor cheaply in this no-value-added work for want of any Filipino high-

technology industries to go into.” He said foreign investors use the foreign exchange to pay for their low valueadded import-intensive operations.

“What are the lessons to be learned from Sri Lanka? So-called free market globalization policies, such as what the IMF [International Monetary Fund] has been peddling, won’t develop the national economy,” Africa said. “Many and grandiose infrastructure projects give an endorphin rush but won’t be enough to develop domestic agriculture and manufacturing—and certainly not under an obsolete globalization policy regime.”

He explained that in the case of the Philippines, it’s also worth asking: “Is maintaining a supposedly strong macro financial situation an end in itself? Or does thinking it actually straitjackets the country’s development?”

Africa added that more people “should be perplexed that despite many years now of claiming fiscal and financial stability, the economy is still underdeveloped, joblessness is still widespread, and poverty is still entrenched.”

Last week, a report from Bloomberg News published in the BusinessMirror stated that Sri Lanka fell into default for the first time in its history due to an economic meltdown, which has already “prompted mass protests and a political crisis.”

Credit rating agencies such as Fitch Ratings recently downgraded Sri Lanka to “restricted default.”

(Read the story here: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2022/05/20/srilanka-falls-into-debtdefault-for-1sttime-ever)

Envoys&Expats BusinessMirror

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Thursday, May 26, 2022

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Australia marks Friendship Day 2022 with PHL senior government officials

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MBASSADOR of Australia Steven J. Robinson AO hosted this year’s Philippines-Australia Friendship Day in the presence of top government officials.

Former Philippine president and Pampanga Second District Representative Gloria MacapagalArroyo, former secretary of foreign affairs Delia Albert, Bangko Sentral Governor Benjamin Diokno, Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra, National Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, National Security Adviser Secretary Hermogenes Esperon Jr., Assistant Foreign Affairs Secretary Nathaniel Imperial, and Armed Forces of the Philippines’s Chief of Staff General Andres Centino joined Robinson in the festivi-

ties on May 19 in Taguig City.

The commonwealth’s envoy said; “We are celebrating the depth of the friendship and partnership between Australia and the Philippines, which has stood firm throughout good times and bad—including especially the events of the past year. I am confident the Australian tradition of mateship, which admirably aligns with the [Filipino spirit of bayanihan, will still] form the bedrock of the mutual support we provide each other.”

The Philippines is one of Australia’s longest-standing bilateral

relationships, according to the latter’s embassy in Manila. Its first consulate-general in the Philippine capital was established on May 22, 1946, the date of which is now yearly celebrated as Friendship Day of the two countries.

“We are very pleased to be one of only five countries with an annual friendship-day celebration; in our case, on May 22, as set out in Presidential Proclamation 1282,” said Robinson. “This is an opportunity to [commemorate] our strong links each year.”

Both nations cooperate closely across a range of areas, including defense, counterterrorism, law enforcement, education, and development.

Australia is the third-largest source of official development assistance, or ODA, to the Philippines, with AU$84 million (P3.15 billion) in 2020 and 2021 strategically deployed to support local pandemic response and recovery plans.

ROBINSON (back row, center) with luminaries from the Philippine government

Saudi Arabia donates for health facilities, pandemic response T

HE Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) facilitated the official turnover of two sets of donations, in cash and in-kind, from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, through the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KS Relief) by way of the Department of Health (DOH), on May 19.

The donation is part of the kingdom’s commitment in securing and distributing aid to the victims of the Marawi siege, as well as in working with the Philippines in responding against the pandemic.

The cash aid amounting to $1.5 million aims to support the development of health facilities in Marawi City, Lanao del Sur; particularly, the installation of medical equipment and training of medical personnel.

The in-kind donation worth $1.7 million comprised of medical and personal protective equipment such

AMBASSADOR Alqahtani (second from right) receives the certificate of appreciation from Undersecretary Vega (center). DFA-OPCD/MARIA VANESSA UBAC

as surgical and nonsterile surgical gowns, KN95 and surgical masks and nitrile gloves, on top of 53 ventilators that arrived weeks ago. They have been partially distributed to

their identified recipients, aimed to support the response measures of the Philippine government against the health crisis.

In turn, the DOH awarded a

certificate of appreciation to the Saudi Arabian Embassy and the KS Relief for their general contributions in improving local Covid-19 response operations and emerging infectious diseases-testing capacities.

Acting Secretary of Foreign Affairs Lourdes Yparraguirre, Ambassador Hisham Alqahtani, Health Undersecretary Leopoldo Vega, Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary for Middle East and African Affairs Alfonso Ver, Assistant Health Secretary Romeo Ong, and KS Relief Director Dr. Abdullah Saleh Almoallem graced the event. It was also attended by Dr. Shalimar Rakiin, chief of the Amai Pakpak Medical Center—a beneficiary of the donation. Representatives from the DFA, the DOH, and the Saudi Arabian Embassy in Manila were likewise in attendance.

US, Japan augment aid for post-‘Odette’ recovery

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N May 21, United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Assistant to the Administrator (AA) Sarah Charles announced on behalf of the American people an additional P400 million ($8 million) in assistance to aid the recovery of millions of Filipinos affected by Typhoon Odette (international name Rai).

The amount brings to P1.4 billion ($29.2 million) the total amount of funding the US government has given through USAID to assist the Philippines in responding to the immediate needs of typhoon survivors.

Over the weekend, Charles, who leads USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance, also distributed shelter supplies in Barangay Caridad in Pilar, Surigao del Norte. She met with local-government officials, and heard updates from USAID partners on the ground. “[We continue] to support people most affected by…’Odette,’ the world’s worst cyclone event of 2021,” said the USAID official. “The US is pleased to provide this additional assistance to meet the recovery needs of individuals and families in the areas hardest hit by [the howler]...We will continue to work with our partners in the Philippines

JAPAN’S donation in Bohol

and across the region to help communities prepare for such disasters and build greater resilience.”

With the additional assistance, USAID partners will provide emergency maternal- and child-health services, repair damaged health centers, extend protection services for vulnerable persons, support the livelihoods recovery for farmers and fisherfolk, and help households in rebuilding their homes in safe areas.

Since December, USAID and partners Action Against Hunger, Catholic Relief Services, the World Food Programme, and the International Organization for Migration have provided food, emergency cash, water, hygiene supplies, and other relief items to people affected by the typhoon across the southern Philippines, and helped over 8,000 families rebuild their homes.

The US government works year-

round to help communities nationwide prepare for, and be extra resilient to natural disasters. Its embassy said it will continue to partner with the Philippines to better respond to natural disasters, and support Filipinos in recovery efforts.

Since 2010 the US, through USAID, has provided more than P17 billion ($351 million) in disaster-relief and recovery aid, as well as boosted the disaster-risk reduction capacity of more than 100 cities and municipalities in the Philippines.

Japan ensures food security

MEANWHILE, on May 17 in Balilihan, Bohol, Minister Masahiro Nakata attended the official turnover of 3,333 bags of rice donation from Japan to families affected by ”Odette,” under the framework of the Asean Plus Three Emergency Rice Reserve (APTERR).

Also present were Social Welfare and Development Undersecretary Felicisimo Budiongan, National Food Authority Administrator (NFA) Judy Carol Dansal, APTERR Secretariat General Manager Choomjet Karnjanakesorn and Department of Agriculture-Region VII Director Joel Elumba. Governor Arthur Yap of Bohol received the rice donation on behalf of

the affected families.

At the ceremony Nakata cited that Japan remains as the biggest contributor of APTERR rice in the Philippines.

He expressed pleasure to witness firsthand the rice distribution, and hoped it will be a source of revitalization to affected families.

Nakata affirmed that his country looks forward to adding more fruitful endeavors to the Japan-APTERR-NFA partnership’s long list of achievements: “Together, we will overcome any challenge and rise above each storm to attain regional food security.”

APTERR is a regional cooperation started in 2012 to strengthen food security, poverty alleviation and malnourishment eradication among its member-countries. In the Philippines, several thousand tons of stockpiled rice from Japan under APTERR were distributed to thousands of victims of recent strong typhoons.

In 2020 Japan also provided 425 metric tons of rice to communities affected by the Taal Volcano eruption.

Last year 2 metric tons of precooked rice were distributed to families affected by Covid-19 in Quezon City and the City of Manila, as well as select parts of Bulacan and Cavite under APTERR.

Strong defense accord with Brunei reinforced

HIS Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah (right) receives the Philippine contingent led by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana (fourth from left). BORNEO BULLETIN/DFA

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ANDAR SERI BEGAWAN—Bilateral relations between the Philippines and Brunei Darussalam received a major boost for reaffirmation and moving forward with the three-day official visit to the sultanate of Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana from May 16 to 18.

Ambassador-designate to Brunei Darussalam Marian Jocelyn R. TirolIgnacio accompanied Lorenzana in his call with His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah, Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan.

During the call, the Philippines extended its appreciation to the sultan for the active involvement of Brunei Darussalam in the International Monitoring Team and the Interna-

tional Decommissioning Body in the Philippines. The delegation apprised His Majesty on the country’s gains in the establishment of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao in 2019.

Lorenzana also met with Minister of Defense II Yang Berhormat Pehin Datu Lailaraja Major General (Ret.) Dato Paduka Seri Haji Awang Halbi bin Haji Mohd Yussof. Both sides identified key initiatives for bolstering the close defense relations between the Philippines and Brunei Darussalam, and discussed current initiatives in Asean to forward the regional security agenda, with a focus on natural-disaster response and postpandemic recovery.

Euro-Pinoy visual-arts exposition commences

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RAB the chance to be mesmerized with the wonders of water in all its forms, as an exhibition of the best and distinctive paintings, prints, photography and sculptures is currently captured in “Ebb and Flow: Return to Nature” at the Yuchengco Museum in Makati City.

European and Filipino artists have come together to show the beauty of water, its importance, and what happens when water, and the life that it sustains, are nurtured or are ruined.

Curated by César Caballero, the exhibition also features works by Kizel Cotiw-an, Fara Manuel Nolasco, Ann Pamintuan (all three from the Philippines), Ramon and Romania Diaz (Philippines and Italy), Louis Dumont (Belgium), Henri Etéve (France), Jeanette Kamphuis (Sweden), Radha Makitalo (Finland) , René Reitier (Germany), and Viviana Riccelli (Italy).

The exhibition is part of the Viva Europa 2022 cultural festival, which aims to highlight shared European cultural heritage with Filipinos. It is also in celebration of the founding of the European

Union. It coincides with the EU Green Week from May 30 to June 5, and the lead-up to the UN Oceans Conference in Lisbon on June 27 to July 1.

EU Ambassador to the Philippines Luc Véron, the museum’s chair Yvonne Yuchengco, and curator César Caballero inaugurated the exhibition, which will be open until the end of May. Véron said that the title of the exhibition is an invitation “to meditate on life. [There’s no] life without water.

Yet, as we sailors know very well, water is indomitable. Our planet is blue, yet man cannot conquer the ocean. We are just its humble servants.”

Caballero described the exhibition as a “gathering, once again, of multidisciplinary artists from the Philippines and several European countries maintaining connections on vital and important questions for life, and the transcendental coexistence of the identity of communities and their individuals.”

He emphasized the need for diversity and uniqueness of each citizen, and the need to respect people’s beliefs and decisions.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Parentlife BusinessMirror

Let’s discover our child’s digital world: Part I I

HAVE heard a great deal of concern from parents that their children’s screen time has increased because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

I have experienced the same thing with my 12-year-old boy Marcus. In the beginning, I would always emphasize the negative effects of playing computer games and the like. Later on, after my son was adamant to use various facts and ways to “enlighten” his mom, I began to be more open. Let me share how I transformed my view and even now use screen time as one of my socio-emotional learning (SEL) tools in dealing with children.

I realized the first step is information and the second is protection. New data from cybersecurity specialist Kaspersky revealed that Filipino children are extremely interested in video content right now.

Statistics from the company show that the top five applications young Pinoy kids are spending time most on are YouTube (26.46 percent), TikTok (16.75 percent), Facebook Messenger (16.07 percent), the popular game Roblox (13.67 percent), and Facebook (9.11 percent).

Kaspersky reviewed anonymized data such as search queries, the most popular Android applications and web site categories provided voluntarily by Kaspersky Safe Kids users to explore the most popular children’s interests between January to March 2022.

The search activity of children is the best indicator of their interests. With this data, parents are given a better understanding of their children’s current favorite subjects and passions.

Kaspersky Safe Kids is a module in select Kaspersky products, and is also a standalone multi-platform solution used by parents to protect children from undesirable content. It also allows the cybersecurity company to collect anonymous statistics about children’s online activities for which filtering is suggested. Every year, data gathered from Kaspersky Safe Kids is analyzed to find out the interests of the children and how they are adapting in the digital world.

The rest of the favorite apps of Filipino kids for the first quarter of the year are Google’s Chrome browser (6.39 percent), YouTube Kids (3.54 percent), Netflix (3.08 percent), the first-person shooter game Call of Duty (2.56 percent), and the mobile online battle arena game Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (2.37 percent).

“As one of the world’s most active digital citizens, it is no surprise that Filipino children are enthusiastic explorers of the digital world themselves. Having not gone back physically to school since the pandemic, I understand the majority of these kids are relying on the Internet not just for study but also for play and entertainment, most likely because of remote learning blues. We encourage parents to stay informed and commit to sitting down with their kids extensively as it’s an effective way to keep their children responsible and safe digital citizens,” said Sandra Lee, managing director for Asia Pacific at Kaspersky.

Globally, YouTube still ranked first at 31.6 percent, followed by TikTok at 19 percent, WhatsApp at 18 percent, Roblox (7.5 percent) and Chrome closes the top five (7.3 percent). Roblox’s closest competitor,

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

• Thursday, May 26, 2022

Fun adventure to infinity and beyond SHERIFF Woody, Andy’s favorite pull-up cowboy doll and the leader of the group...Buzz Lightyear, the space ranger...Bo Peep, the porcelain doll...Hamm, the piggy bank...Forky, the recycled fork toy. These are among the well-loved “living” toys families have come to know and love from Pixar-Disney’s iconic Toy Story blockbuster franchise that kids of all ages can now find in the Miniso X Toy Story collection.

The Miniso X Toy Story Collection brings together the Japanese lifestyle retailer for the young and the nostalgic talking toys from Disney-Pixar in a fun collaboration for new generation.

The 1995 iconic movie Toy Story was the first PixarDisney collaboration on a feature-length computeranimated film that made childhood classics toys come to life, like Mr. Potato Head, Etch-A-Sketch and toy soldiers on the big screen.

The Miniso X Toy Story collection features fashionable yet functional creatively cool items. These include gadget accessories such as mouse pads and earphones; accessories such as bucket hats and caps; sling and tote bags; coin purses, keychains and other novelty pieces.

Conveniently shop and collect these Miniso X Toy Story items in-store or online via shop.minisoph.com.

RELIVE the infinity and beyond fun with Woody and the gang in Miniso x Toy Story Blind Box Collection.

MINISO X Toy Story Alien and Lotso Jelly Sling bag.

Brawl Stars, lost a little in popularity and took only 4.8 percent. Interestingly, YouTube Kids, a special app for children, is not very popular, with a share of only 2.1 percent.

From the statistics of children’s requests in Kaspersky Safe Kids, among the images that emerged were: 1. ANIME: Among Japanese cartoons, children are most interested in Naruto, which chronicles the life of a noisy and restless teenage ninja; and My Hero Academia, which is about a boy born without superpowers in a world where superpowers have become commonplace, but who still dreams of becoming a hero.

2. BLOGGERS: These are opinion leaders for many children and are watched and imitated, helping many kids to learn about the world and find friends among like-minded people. Below, we highlight a few of the most popular, based on children’s search queries. It is important to note that almost all bloggers also have accounts on several popular social networks, so they can be viewed on other platforms (Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, Snapchat, etc.).

■ Sssniperwolf—a popular blogger who shoots entertaining content on a variety of topics, focusing on humorous sketches or challenges.

■ Nikocado Avocado—calls himself the “King of the Mukbangs.” Mukbang is a style of video where the blogger eats a lot of food in front of the camera and chats with viewers. It may seem strange at first, but such sessions often discuss popular news or highprofile topics.

■ Piper Rockelle—lives in Hollywood and shoots various entertainment content, challenges, and talks about her life.

■ Michou—a popular French blogger who films a wide variety of entertainment content. These can be reactions to other videos, pranks, various joint viewing of programs, and other options.

■ Brent Rivera—shoots a variety of content, such as pranks, experiments or challenges, stories about his life, as well as different collaborations with other bloggers.

Next week, let me share my tips on how to flip or utilize our children's digital world toward learning 21st century learning skills. ■

LISTEN to your fave music with Miniso x Toy Story earphones.

Athletes, parents call for culture change in sports SCALES should be banned from children’s gyms.

Parents should be permitted to watch. Rules of acceptable behavior should be posted on gym walls with a toll-free line to report violations.

They may sound like basic safety precautions for children in sport, but they don’t exist on a blanket scale in Canada. Amid what Sport Minister Pascale St-Onge has called a safe sport “crisis,” many current and former athletes say the country is long overdue for a cultural overhaul.

More than 1,000 athletes from gymnastics, boxing and bobsled/skeleton have called for independent investigations into their sports in recent weeks, and former gymnast Amelia Cline filed a proposed classaction lawsuit last week against Gymnastics Canada and six provincial federations.

The plaintiffs allege abuse dating back to 1978, claiming the organizations created a culture and environment where the abuse could occur and failed to protect the athletes, most of them minors, in their care. St-Onge has said she’s received complaints about abuse, maltreatment or misappropriation of funds

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leveled against at least eight national teams, including rugby and rowing. The outpouring of stories has prompted conversations, shared experiences and suggestions for fixes.

Ciara McCormack was the soccer player who first publicly accused Canada’s under-20 women’s coach Bob Birarda of inappropriate behavior; he pleaded guilty in February to four sexual offenses involving four different people.

She said parents “have to have access to their children’s training environments.” Few gymnastics facilities permit parents to watch.

McCormack also believes nondisclosure agreements involving misconduct should be eliminated, and making it mandatory to educate athletes and parents about what abuse looks like and how to report infractions. She also suggested an athlete-led organization with a hotline and disciplinary procedures—similar to that of teachers or medical practitioners—where cases of misconduct are recorded and accessible. “[National sport organizations] have taken

advantage of having all the power and all the resources with the result being an immense amount of harm, and I think its crucial that athletes are given power, resources and a voice in the system from children as rec athletes all the way up to national team athletes,” McCormack told The Canadian Press. “It’s long overdue.”

Kim Shore, a former gymnast and mom of a former gymnast, said she’d like to see bathroom scales banned from gyms. Gymnasts have said the public weigh-ins have left them with serious emotional scars years later around body image.

She also suggested an offenders registry. Several national sport organizations, including Skate Canada and Athletics Canada, have suspended coaches and athletes listed on their web sites. But there’s plenty of holes, including the inability to track coaches at the grassroots or even the provincial level. Coaches who are suspended or permitted to leave quietly from a club, province or national team can often simply move to another—or even another sport.

In her 32-page proposed class-action lawsuit,

Cline alleges that she suffered numerous injuries during training, including back and neck injuries, and fractures in her wrist, hand, fingers and toes. She alleged her coach, Vladimir Lashin, overstretched her hamstring to the point it tore away from her pelvis.

Cline told The Canadian Press that staff at B.C. Children’s Hospital knew her by name.

“It’s kind of telling when they say, ‘Oh, it’s you again, you’re back,’” said Cline, who quit the sport at age 14 and is now 32.

Lashin did not respond to a request for comment.

He coached Canada’s national team for the 2004 Athens Olympics. Gymnastics Canada appointed him national coach and high-performance director of the women’s artistic program in 2009. He resigned in 2010.

Sport Canada announced this week that its new Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner (OSIC) will be operational as of June 20. The office will receive and address individual complaints of violations of the University Code of Conduct to Prevent and Address Maltreatment in Sport. AP

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Sun Life strengthens efforts to aid business owners

‘Italy by Design’, the ultimate event for Filipino designers, garners huge success

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HE recently concluded “Italy by Design” virtual event caused great enthusiasm among design professionals in the Philippines. The extraordinary set of speakers from Italy and the Philippines and the presence of leading Italian designers and brands presenting their collections, design ideas and professional experiences, lead to a vital exchange of perspectives and visions that will definitely prove a valid asset in the times to come.

The event was organized by the Italian Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines in partnership with the United Architects in the Philippines, the Infrastructure Construction Focus Group, the Philippine Institute of Interior Design and the Design Center of the Philippines with the contribution of media partners such as The Manila Times, Business Mirror and Focus Philippines.

Some of the speakers included Italian Ambassador Marco Clemente; ICCPI President Sergio Boero; UAP National President Armando Eugene De Guzman III; Executive Director of Design Center Philippines Rhea Matute; Philippine Institute of Interior Design (PIID) President/Chairman Ivy Almario; Ecotecture Creative Director, Architect Liza Morales; Italpinas Development Corporation (IDC) Chairman & CEO Architect Romolo Nati; Politecnico di Milano Design Department Associate Professor, Anna Barbara; Formitalia Luxury Group CEO, David Overi; HABITS Design Studio President, Innocenzo Rifino. The aim of this unique initiative

was to connect the two worlds of design and create a permanent collaborative setting focusing on the world of design, including modern and sustainable architecture, interior and furniture design as well as industrial design. While UAP’s President De Guzman explained the various sub-sectors and initiatives of their organization, architects like Liza Morales and Romolo Nati explained how they used sustainable and green design in their work in various projects in the Philippines.

The important relationship of happiness and interior design was underlined by PIID Ivy Almario who told the audience how, due to the pandemic, living spaces had become an extremely important factor for our wellbeing and how interior designers had to rethink their role in creating a psychologically positive and happy environment. Formitalia presented their unique furniture brands like Formitalia Glamour, Tonino Lamborghini Casa and Aston Martin with their unique lines and materials which will be on show during the “Salone del Mobile” in Milan in June. Their story about how, for 20 years,

they create value in real estate projects by using their luxury interior concepts and project branding was truly inspiring and, as David Overi said, he hopes to see a potential “Tonino Lamborghini Residence” materializing soon also in the Philippines. Further, Professor Anna Barbara talked about the significance of the concept of design in Italy and how design thinking impacts everyday’s reality through the way we do things and the way we see the world.

The Design Center of the Philippines, part of DTI, elaborated on their initiatives to help designers in their professional evolution while Innocenzo Rifino from HABITS Design Studio told us how he became an industrial designer and how this profession could become an important role also in the Philippine setting in the future. The event can be re-viewed on the Facebook page of the Italian Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines and more information can be obtained by writing to info@iccpi.org.ph.

PHILIPPINES-AUSTRALIA FRIENDSHIP DAY FESTIVAL AT SM. Australian Ambassador Steven J. Robinson AO (center) led the opening of Experience Australia at SM Megamall recently in celebration of this year's Philippines-Australia Friendship Day. Joining him at the launch of the three-day food, retail, study and travel festival were (from left): SM Hypermarket president Arnold Daluz, Australian Embassy Political, Economic, and Public Diplomacy Counsellor James Yeomans, SM Supermarket president Jojo Tagbo, Savemore Market president Genevieve Manalad, Australian Embassy Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner Christopher Lim, SM Supermalls president Steven Tan, and Australian Embassy Deputy Head of Mission Richard Sisson. During the launch it was announced that hundreds of favorites from Coles, one of Australia’s largest supermarket chains, are now exclusively available in select SM Supermarket, SM Hypermarket, and Savemore branches.

IVFC Founder shortlisted in Rotary’s humanitarian award 2022

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RETIRED program and systems analyst Edward I. Agdeppa was recently selected as one of 14 shortlisted candidates out of 37 entries, out of whom five finalists will be selected to vie for said coveted int’l. award.

This was relayed by Liza V. Elorde, Gov. of Rotary Int’l. District 3810 RY 2019-2020, who nominated him. This with the goal of honoring an individual whose extraordinary public service exemplifies the Rotary ideal of “Service Above Self.”

Agdeppa’s novel teaching strategy to reach out to poor and vulnerable young learners caught the attention of Rotary Club’s search for “THE ONE International Humanitarian Award 2022.”

In hindsight, Agdeppa is a member of Balintataw Film & Theater Arts(BAFTA) where he used to act and design the poster, stage sets of the company. Artistic directors Mars Cavestany, PhD, and film director George Vail Kabristante are incharge of BAFTA. This was at the UNESCO–Philippine Center for International Theater Institute under its Executive Director CecileGuidote-Alvarez, founder of Phil. Educational Theater (PETA), and RamonMagsaysay (RM) awardee in Communication and Public Service.

Gudote-Alvarez has a teaching pedagogy called DREAMS (Development, Rehabilitation,Education, in the Arts, Media & Sciences) to help access free

equal educational opportunities to PWDs and socially- challenge children and youths.

Agdeppa eventually founded “I-Volunteer Filipino Children” (IVFC) and put up his own non-formal pilot learning center in reading and mathematics to supplement his remedial and intervention classes in the poor communities of North Fairview.

He adapted BAFTA’s blueprint that appropriates creative theater as an instructional tool for young learners and the DREAMS’ teaching pedagogy that won Guidote-Alvarez the coveted annual “Int’l. UNESCO Artist for Peace” award based in Paris.

Through the years, Agdeppa’s customised teaching pedagogy both in-person and online multiplied as far as some depressed areas in Pag-asa, Quezon city, Rodriguez, Rizal, Sinait, Ilocos Sur, etc.

Offered for free, his initiative was succssfully actualized in large measure with the participation of like-minded humanitarians, e.g; the LGUs down to the barangay level, parents, teachers and teacher aides, social workers, psychologists, students on practicum, etc.

Eventually, his pathbreaking initiative paid off amply as shown in awards won by his pupils locally and abroad.

Last year, three of his pupils representing IVFC respectively bagged the gold award at theBig Bay Bei (BBB) Heat Round; the DOST Youth Excellence in Science (Yes) Awards; and the Ad Achievement Awards.

This year, Agdeppa’s pupils bagged at least 3 Gold Awards conducted namely by: Future Intelligence Students Olympiad

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O help business owners understand the essentials of tax management, Sun Life Philippines recently held a webinar entitled “Effective Tax Planning” with the former president of Tax Management Association of the Philippines, Atty. Benedict Tugonon, at the helm.

Women business owners were also engaged through a webinar entitled “Women Mean Business: Breaking Barriers and Forging Success.” Featured in the event were Shoppertainment Live, Inc. Co-founder and CEO Hiyasmin Beri-Soyao, WILCON Depot, Inc. SEVP-COO Rosemarie Bosch Ong, Ever Bilena Cosmetics, Inc. Chief Sales and Marketing Officer Denice Sy, and Jeron Travel & Tours Corp. CEO Chal Chang Lontoc-Del Rosario.

“Even before the pandemic began, Sun Life was already active in engaging business owners, in a bid to help them secure their businesses financially through insurance and investments,” Sun Life Chief Client Experience and Marketing Officer Carla Gonzalez-Chong said.

Sun Future Proof is a two-pronged program that brings together financial education and financial solutions. With this combination, business owners can be more resilient in facing challenges in the future.

Meanwhile, the Business Owner Insurance Packages (BIP) are product combinations designed to address the financial needs of entrepreneurs both for their business and personal goals. The options include BIP

SUN Life Chief Client Experience and Marketing Officer Carla Gonzalkez-Chong Emergency Fund + Lifetime Protection, BIP Health Protection, BIP Education Fund, BIP Key Employee Protection, BIP Partner/ Shareholder Protection, BIP Retirement Fund, and BIP Estate Protection.

“We have seen many success stories among business owner clients who were able to use their insurance and investments to protect their businesses especially at the height of the pandemic,” Gonzalez-Chong said. “Sun Life hopes to replicate these stories for more of Filipino entrepreneurs, so they can achieve their financial goals.”

Visit https://sunlife.co/TalkToAnAdvisor.

CPI donates 635 doses of Moderna vaccines to PH Red Cross

AT TURNOVER RITES, FROM LEFT: Michael Balbuena, Business Development Office Manager (PRC), Mark Abrigo, Health Services Manager (PRC), Raissa Bautista, Senior Corporate Affairs Advisor of Chevron Philippines Inc. and Arlita Narag, Corporate Affairs Manager of Chevron Holdings Inc.)

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HEVRON Philippines Inc (CPI), marketer of the Caltex brand of fuels and lubes, and Chevron Holdings Inc. (CHI), recently donated 635 vials of Moderna vaccines to Philippine Red Cross (PRC) as part of their commitment to help in the fight against COVID-19.

The vaccines, which could serve as primary shots or booster doses, are expected to benefit more than 12,000 individuals.

The donation comes in the wake of a recent OCTA Research pronouncement saying that the Philippines may experience another surge by May or June, similar to what other countries are experiencing now.

“The Philippine Red Cross will continue to exert efforts in giving COVID-19 vaccines to more Filipinos in order to reach herd immunity. We’re grateful to Chevron for this donation as this will surely help us administer more doses to protect the community against COVID-19,” said Mark Alvin Abrigo, Manager for Health Services at Philippine Red Cross.

The PRC recently ramped up its vaccination efforts through the deployment of Bakuna buses in different areas throughout the country. To date, the PRC has already administered a total of 1,013,731 COVID-19 primary doses and 67,059 booster doses. It is now also administering COVID-19 vaccines to kids aged 5 to 11 years old.

“Chevron has a long-standing partnership with the PRC with regular contributions to relief and rehabilitation efforts in times of disasters and calamities.

We are hopeful that this donation can help in getting more Filipinos protected against COVID-19,” said Raissa Bautista, Senior Corporate Affairs Advisor of Chevron Philippines Inc. “Chevron has always valued health and safety. While the pandemic situation in the country right now seems to be getting better, we would like to encourage everyone to remain vigilant and to continue observing health protocols and getting vaccinated and boosted against COVID-19,” said Arlita Narag, Public Policy and Corporate Affairs Manager, Chevron Holdings Inc.

Security Bank is PH’s Best for High-Net-Worth clients

S EDWARD I. Agdeppa Int’l.; Int’l. Kangaroo Mathematics CompetitionPreliminary; 2nd Math-Inic National Vedic Mathematics Challenge National Top Scorer; and another Int’l.

Champion Award from PUTNAM Cup which is actually an equivalent to gold.

Additional sets of 5 Silver Awards were bagged by his pupils conducted namely by: Phil. Int’l. Mathematical Olympiad , Heat Round Silver; Math Without Borders, Spring Silver; Future Intelligence Students Olympiad Final Silver; Math Without Borders Winter Silver; and Silver Award- Level Line Word Star Mathematical Olympiad Challenge-Philippines (WSMOC). One pupil bagged a Bronze from Final Bebras Challenge Final.

Agdeppa’s YouTube link is at: https:// youtu.be/BAd464FmqQ-c.

ECURITY Bank Corporation (PSE:SECB) was recognized by premiere finance magazine, Asiamoney at the 2022 Asiamoney Asia Private Banking Awards as the Philippines’ Best for High Net Worth (HNW) Clients.

Asiamoney cited the robust and solid growth of Security Bank’s wealth management business over the past several years, both in terms of assets under management (AUM) and customer base with AUM increasing by 19% and customer base to the 6900th mark in 2021.

Security Bank launched its wealth management suite in 2017 and offers clients a comprehensive and consolidated view of their investment portfolios across various asset classes. This award is the second consecutive recognition of the bank’s HNW Clients’ performance.

“Its performance in 2021 is impressive, given the chaotic global events that unfolded over the course of the year. Neither the USChina trade tensions, Federal Reserve rate hikes in Washington nor the pandemic disruptions of 2020 and 2021 slowed down the bank’s profit strategies,” said Asiamoney.

“As we continue to grow, we continue to invest in what matter to our customers, ensuring their needs are fulfilled and they are satisfied with our services. Clients continue to laud the real-time market information sent through SMS as this ensures that their hard-earned wealth is

well taken care of,” says Binky Mirabueno, Wealth Management Head.

To further promote service differentiation, wealth clients were given personalized digital cards that identify them as preferred customers and they are given priority access to premium services and to trading advice. The Bank also innovated its digital platforms to provide high-quality customer experiences that allowed clients to design their portfolios according to their needs and aspirations.

“Service differentiation is a key factor to our continued triumph in being named as Best Bank for High-Net-Worth clients in the Philippines. This recognition is proof that we are on the right track to fulfill our goal of becoming the most-customer centric bank in the Philippines,” says Executive Vice President and Branch Banking Head, Leslie Cham In growing its client base and AUM, Security Bank’s wealth management business leverages the strengths of the Bank’s core businesses. These include the Bank’s branch network reach and the product offerings from Treasury, the Trust and Asset Management Group, stock brokerage through SB Equities, and investment banking services through SB Capital.

To know more about Security Bank’s recent awards you may visit www. securitybank.com/awards or its Facebook page www.facebook.com/SecurityBank.

Editor: Anne Ruth Dela Cruz

Health&Fitness BusinessMirror

Awareness, recognition are keys to heading off mysterious hepatitis

By Rory Visco

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Contributor

n April, the World Health Organization (WHO) noted an acute hepatitis case whose origin is unknown and afflicted children below 16 years of age. This prompted the conduct of liver transplant procedures in many countries.

Initial cases were pegged at 163, with presence in the United Kingdom, Spain, Israel, the USA, Denmark, Ireland and other European countries. This grew further to 450 worldwide, reported the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, with 11 deaths recorded in Indonesia, Palestine and the United States.

What’s alarming is that this form of hepatitis is reportedly caused by the adenovirus and it is believed that some of these children tested positive for adenovirus with SARS-CoV-2.

Acute Hepatitis: its causes They can be both infectious and non-infectious types of hepatitis, said Dr. Juliet Sio-Aguilar, a Pediatric Gastroenterologist, a former Professor of Pediatrics at UP Manila and an active consultant at St. Luke’s Medical Center, during the 100th episode of the TV UP “Stop Covid Deaths” webinar organized by the University of the Philippines, UP Manila NIH National Telehealth Center and UP-Philippine General Hospital.

The infectious ones are the hepatotropic viruses like Hepatitis A, B, C, D, and E, and the non-hepatotropic ones like bacteria, fungi,

parasites, adenovirus, dengue and sadly, the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes Covid-19.

The non-infectious ones are substance-related (alcohol, drugs, toxins), immunologic like autoimmune hepatitis, and ischemic or vascular.

She said this mysterious hepatitis began showing up as early as October last year, with majority of cases in Europe, while the US was also hit with 109 children across 25 states reported to have contracted hepatitis of unknown origins. Afflicted mostly are children below 16 years old, with fever, jaundice, pale stools, vomiting, diarrhea, respiratory and elevated liver enzymes as among the symptoms. The children tested of Hepa A to E, while among the associated viruses include adenovirus and SARS-CoV-2.

So how does the Philippines respond?

Dr. Sio-Aguilar said in responding to this mysterious hepatitis, there is a need to raise awareness about it, where recognition of the clinical symptoms is most important. So far, WHO’s Working Case Definition has identified two definitions linked to the mysterious hepatitis: someone with acute hepatitis (nonHepatitis A to E), or 16 years old

and younger since October 2021; and the epidemiology-linked, one who has acute hepatitis of any age who is a close contact of a probable case since October 2021.

“Just like any infectious disease, it is crucial to emphasize the adherence to general risk mitigation and infection control strategies like regular handwashing, respiratory hygiene, avoid contact/exposure with sick individuals and increased host resistance, essentially the same strategies in dealing with Covid-19,” she said.

Vaccination against adenovirus is also available but very limited to US military personnel and not the general public and contains live adenovirus Type 4 and Type 7, but comes in the form of tablets for easier convenience so it can be taken orally. Another strategy is to make sure that the liver, she said, is not stressed by increasing host resistance through vaccination against Hepatitis A and B, proper diet and exercise and avoiding hepatotoxic drugs or agents.

In the Philippines, the Hepatitis B three-dose vaccination coverage is about 74 percent as of 2020 according to the Department of Health.

And despite the pandemic, the coverage was not much affected, except for the National Capital Region, which was the pandemic epicenter in the country.

Dr. Sio-Aguilar emphasized that the cause of the mysterious hepatitis is still under investigation but it may be closely linked to the adenovirus. She pointed out as well that young children with a median age of two years of age are the most susceptible, where “fulminant hepatic failure,” or severe acute liver failure in someone with no preexisting liver disease may require immedi-

ate liver transplant so recognition is crucial. Other important strategic responses for the general public remains to be strict adherence to risk mitigation through infection control measures and increased host immunity.

Learn from the pandemic to prevent another pandemic Dr. Eternity D. Labio, a gastroenterologist, hepatologist and head of the Liver Unit at the Makati Medical Center, said the learnings in the world’s pandemic warning system can be used to prevent another pandemic from happening. To prepare us for the next one, a global action plan has to be prepared to prevent future health emergencies. “We have learned the hard way that these diseases know no borders, and that none of us is safe until all of us are safe.”

What’s sad, however, is that millions are still infected with Hepatitis B, undiagnosed and undertreated, and only 30 percent know that they are infected, Dr. Labio said. “The liver is a silent organ, most patients have no symptoms, and only 15 percent are seen by a doctor and even less receive treatment.”

Dr. Labio reiterated that combatting Hepatitis B infections and consequences in the Philippines is through a safe and effective vaccine, regular screening of the liver, and effective anti-viral treatment to reduce the risk of cirrhosis and liver cancer. Likewise, for Hepatitis C, Dr. Labio said it can be cured through screening and testing, and should be treated since management is simple, while eliminating it requires a collective effort. “Everyone should be proactive and be an advocate of eliminating hepatitis in the Philippines.”

Exposure to secondhand smoke increases risk of getting lung cancer

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on-smoking adults who are exposed to secondhand smoke (SHS) at home or at work have a 25 to 30 percent increased risk of developing lung cancer and other tobacco related diseases.

Secondhand smoke is the combination of smoke when smokers burn tobacco products such as cigarettes, bidis, and water papers and the smoke they exhaled.

Tobacco kills more than 8 million people each year, according to the World Hea lth Organization. Meanwhi le, around 1.2 million people die each year due to their exposure to secondhand smoke, while 7 million die annually from the direct use of tobacco.

Women with babies are at risk

HealthJustice Philippines, a nongovernment organization that works for the reduction of tobacco related diseases in the country, reiterated the

warnings of public health experts that exposure to secondhand smoke is very dangerous for pregnant women and nursing mothers.

Studies have shown that pregnant mothers who are exposed to secondhand smoke are more likely to have negative outcomes for their unborn babies. Their babies are at risk of having complications like lower birth rates, weaker lungs compared to other babies, increased susceptibility to sudden infant death syndrome and birth defects such as cleft lip and/or cleft palate.

Pregnant women who are exposed to secondhand smoke are at risk of having babies with reduced birth weight.

Their maternal milk production is less in smokers compared with non-smokers, and the production decreases as the number of cigarettes smoked per day increases.

“What is more worrisome is that secondhand smoke exposure causes sud-

den infant death syndrome [SIDS] to otherwise healthy infants,” said former Health Secretary Dr. Jaime Galvez Tan.

SIDS

According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, SIDS is the sudden, unexplained, unexpected death of an infant in the first year of life. SIDS is the leading cause of death in otherwise healthy infants.

Likewise, women who smoke during pregnancy increases the risk for SIDS. Infants who are exposed to SHS after birth are also at greater risk for SIDS. Chemicals in SHS, it added, appear to affect the brain as it interferes with the regulation of infants’ breathing.

Infants who die from SIDS have higher concentrations of nicotine in their lungs and higher levels of cotinine (a biological marker for secondhand smoke exposure) than infants who die from other causes, the US CDC stressed.

TMC Clark conducts medical mission in Pangasinan

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total of 3,551 residents received free health-care services from the partnership campaign of The Medical City (TMC) Clark and the Municipality of Bayambang in Pangasinan.

The campaign tagged as “Grand Komprehensibong Serbisyo sa Bayan kasama si The Medical City Clark” is a medical and dental mission that was held at Saint Vincent Ferrer Prayer Park.

In full force in its first community service since the pandemic, TMC Clark brought its pool of volunteer doctors, nurses, and support staff onsite from various departments making the event a success for the 77 barangays of Bayambang who benefited from the healthcare services.

The three-day event gave free consultations and services on dental, eye, ear, nose, and throat (ENT), neurology,

Leading the pack of volunteers for the medical and dental mission in Bayambang, Pangasinan, is TMC Clark’s Medical Director, Dr. Jose Ranilo Paule. Residents of the 77 barangays in town availed of the free consultation, surgeries, and medicines for the three-day activity.

To prevent the occurrence of SIDS and protect their children, parents are encouraged not to smoke during pregnancy, not to smoke or allow smoking in your home or around your baby, and, place the baby on his or her back for all sleep times—naps and at night.

Galvez Tan, a trustee of HealthJustice Philippines, added that SHS also causes acute respiratory infections, middle ear disease, more severe asthma, respiratory symptoms, and slowed lung growth. With this, he appealed for the adoption of stringent smokefree policies in public or workplaces to protect pregnant and nursing women and their children from the harms of secondhand smoke exposure.

The former health secretary emphasized that this is necessary given that there is no safe level of exposure to SHS tobacco smoke due to the more than hundred toxic chemicals that harm the human body. Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

maternal, and pediatric care. Meanwhile, specialists performed surgery consultations and free minor surgeries such as excision of soft tissue masses or cysts, and incision and drainage procedures. TMC Clark’s surgeons also performed circumcision procedures on male children.

Held last April, TMC Clark gave free medical check-ups, surgical services, and medicines, while its partner, the Municipality of Bayambang fulfilled the role of providing logistics services, coordination with the municipal health office and other health-care providers, arrangement of the venue, and gathering patients for the activity.

“As we finish our very first medical mission in Bayambang, Pangasinan, we commit to offer more services in our future community services here, and in the areas that we serve in North and Central Luzon,” Jean Morales-Guanzon, TMC Clark’s Customer Relations and Allied Services Manager, said.

Thursday, May 26, 2022 B7

Health care is now an essential benefit for employees–survey

By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

W

ith the pandemici nduced econom ic disruptions, we are grateful to have a source of livelihood.

However, we should also look closely at how the time we spend at work is properly compensated by our employers.

Filipino workers now want their companies to provide essential, no-frills salary and benefits that will help them address their current needs and secure their future.

In PhilCare’s Survey of Filipino Workers 2021, respondents were asked to rank 11 items that employees would consider more important in their work now than before the pandemic.

Salary (62 percent answered “much more important”), financial stability of the employer (58 percent), and the company’s health-care program (56.9 percent) emerged as the top 3 essential items.

Career development

On the other hand, career development, learning and skills training, and organizational values were considered among the least essential during the pandemic.

“Aside from the assurance that they will continue to receive their salaries, the notable change in Filipino workers’ perspective about work benefits is that they consider health care among the most essential assistance they can get from their employers. Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, health programs at work were considered more of a ‘nice to have’ benefit. Filipino workers seem to have realized from the pandemic that they won’t be able to earn unless they remain fit and healthy for work,” noted PhilCare President and CEO Jaeger Tanco.

Tanco added that employees now see how important it is that the companies they work for continue to thrive and grow despite economic uncertainties.

Knowing how challenging it is to lose work during the pandemic, workers are now much

more invested in ensuring that the businesses they work for continue to operate or else, they also lose their means of livelihood.

The top 3 important benefits for employees based on PhilCare’s survey prove to be as important to employers because each points out the necessity for companies to ensure business continuity.

Business continuity

Here are initiatives employers may consider in order to promote business continuity: Incor porate sust a inable practices. Many businesses were forced out of business during the pandemic because of the rigidity of their leadership and operations model. Businesses can be made sustainable by adjusting its operations even in uncertain times Adopting technologies that allow for remote work and management proved effective to maintain operations despite pandemic-related mobility restrictions. Your business should be on the lookout for other sustainable practices that can help future-proof your business.

Have a bigger purpose. With the shift in market preference for businesses that operate with a purpose and not solely for profit, businesses that contribute to the development of society are seen to engage their markets better. They are also seen to pivot easily into new ventures that still create value for their stakeholders, especially their customers and employees.

Promote employee retention by creating distinct employee experience. While employee perks such as throwing pizza parties or having sleeping pods at the workplace may be seen as factors that make your workplace distinct, having benefits that address the real needs of their employees would contribute to a more pleasant experience at work.

Based on the results of the PhilCare Survey, strategic and relevant employee benefits such as health-care assistance could be more impactful for the employees.

MTek opens new unit to produce test kits for Covid, other illnesses

By Roderick L. Abad Contributor

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ANILA Healthtek Inc. (MTek) has launched its new subsidiary called Gen Amplify Technologies Inc. (GTI) to bring health-related tools closer to the Filipinos amid the ensuing pandemic and other viral challenges affecting people and even the hog industry.

It will manufacture and distribute high-quality, accurate kits and devices used for diagnostic testing for communicable and non-communicable diseases, including the Philippine-developed GenAmplify Coronavirus 2019 (Covid-19) RTPCR test kit and MTek’s Biotek-M Dengue Aqua Kit, a gold medalist at the 46th International Exhibition of Inventions in Geneva, Switzerland, in 2018.

GTI will also market the GenAmplify African Swine Fever PCR Detection Kit. The company is, likewise, looking at sourcing from foreign manufacturers quality rapid diagnostic kits in response to current needs of the country.

Cheap, available for all

ACCORDING to GTI CEO lawyer Marlo Destura, the firm’s main objective is to make diagnostics products both affordable and ac-

cessible to all.

“The cost of molecular diagnostics is currently very prohibitive in the country. As clinicians’ partners in deliver ing muchneeded tools to make precision diagnostics and deliver personalized treatments, we must always strive to find ways of fulfilling this,” he said.

One strategy the company is eyeing is to help expand the services of specialized Covid laboratories that have sprung nationwide during the health crisis by including testing for other diseases.

“There are more than 200 molecular diagnostic laboratories in the country which already have PCR machines that we can tap.

If we can utilize all of them, this would significantly lower the cost of testing in the country and will also reduce the timeframe and inconvenience for families,” Destura said.

MTek is a private research and technology company with a robust diagnostic technology pipeline.

With support coming from the Department of Science and Technology, the company is equipped with state-of-the-art manufacturing tools and is approved by the Food and Drug Administration to manufacture molecular diagnostic tools in the Philippines.

Sports

BARAQUIEL, MONDILLA SNATCH 2ND ROUND LEAD S UNSHINE BARAQUIEL pulled ahead in a spirited duel for the lead that kept on changing hands until she hit a clutch birdie on No. 15 to save a second 71 and Chanelle Avaricio hobbled with closing bogeys for a 73 in the second round of the International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) Splendido Taal Challenge on Wednesday in Laurel, Batangas.

Baraquiel took command with a 35 start as first round leader Avaricio grappled with her driver and putter and flubbed short par-putts that led to a 38. But the latter regained the lead with a fiery three-birdie binge from No. 10, only to yield it with bogeys in the last two holes.

That enabled Baraquiel to snatch a one-stroke lead at 142, moving 18 holes away from nailing her second career victory after scoring a breakthrough under wicked conditions at Tagaytay Highlands last November.

“I gave myself a lot of opportunities for birdies but I missed a couple of three-footers and another three-footer for par,” said Baraquiel, who rebounded from a bogey start with birdies on Nos. 2 and 6 to wrest control as Avaricio dropped two strokes on the par-4 No. 4 and bogeyed the next.

Avaricio birdied the seventh for the second straight day and reclaimed the top spot with those string of birdies to launch her backside drive, only to stumble at the finish for a 38-35 and a 143 in a tie with amateur Mafy Singson.

She also rued her shaky driving but hoped to regain her rhythm in the last 18 holes and get back on the winning track in the fifth leg of the Ladies Philippine Golf Tour (LPGT).

“I struggled with my driving and failed to get up-and-down on most holes,” said Avaricio, who scored back-to-back wins at Hallow Ridge and Caliraya before getting foiled by Chihiro Ikeda at Mount Malarayat two weeks ago.

“I have to make sure my drives are good and if not, hopefully I could make my up-and-down game,” Avaricio added.

Baraquiel is also putting premium on driving, which she believes would give her better option to attack the greens.

“I need to keep the ball in play and leave myself in position so I can be aggressive on some holes,” Baraquiel said.

six birdies for a 30-33.

“It was near-perfect,” was how Mondilla described his round that also featured three straight birdies from No. 4 and two closing birdies.

Rupert Zaragosa’s 64 posted in the 2015 Splendido Classic, however, remains the course record since play in this week’s P2 million event put up

by ICTSI is held under winter rules.

But the amiable Luisita-backed Del Monte ace isn’t after the marks, having posted a record of his own with a 64 in winning the ICTSI Calatagan Invitational in 2016. With a whopping 14-under 130 aggregate, the 2019 Phl Open winner at The Country Club moved two rounds away from pocketing the top P360,000 purse in this third leg of this year’s Philippine Golf Tour.

But the big lead comes with the big pressure and Mondilla, who used a 2-iron off the mound and a seven-iron from 170 yards to eagle the 534-yard No. 10 from seven feet in one of the late flights, vows to deliver with a stronger performance in the last two days.

“Actually, I feel the pressure more now that I’m in control. I would’ve preferred to be the one in pursuit,” said Mondilla, who marked his strong runnerup finishes at Luisita and Caliraya with final round rallies. “So I need to face the challenge and play better.”

Lascuña had long left the clubhouse before Mondilla came in with the former nurturing hopes of getting a clear shot at the crown after a 68 built around a superb closing frontside 33.

Though 36 holes remain in the Pilipinas Golf Tournament Inc.organized event, Lascuña’s 137 left him with too big a deficit to overcome with Tabuena slipping to joint third at 138 with Guido Van der Valk, who carded a 70, after failing to sustain a 66 start with a 72.

“I missed a lot of chances at the back,” said Lascuña, who missed out on the first two par-5s which he both birdied in a 69 start Tuesday. “But I kept telling myself just to be patient and the putts would drop in time.”

MONDILLA SURGES UP FRONT CLYDE MONDILLA used a nearimpeccable all-around game to produce a nine-under 63 as he threatened to blow the stellar field with a huge seven-stroke lead over Tony Lascuña after 36 holes.

An eagle-birdie backside start drove Mondilla past Miguel Tabuena and the former Philippine Open champion bucked a mishap on No. 12 with another birdie on the 17th to stay at the helm then pulled away by ripping the frontside of the softened Splendido Taal Golf Club layout with

SUNSHINE BARAQUIEL plays consistently on Wednesday while Clyde Mondilla waxes hot with nine-under 63. ROY DOMINGO

BusinessMirror

T

Pahiyang Magic IS there really such a thing as a lucky shirt? Lucky shoes?

Rituals that bring good luck?

Some people wear a timeworn shirt or dress, a certain pair of shoes, favorite socks when watching ball games, or else they think the results won’t go their way. Others need to pass through a prescribed route to get to their destination (the playing arena, what else?). Quite a few bring lucky objects with them, pray certain prayers, go through certain rituals that they carry out in secret.

| Thursday, May 26, 2022 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

BOLDEN: THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY

tion career. He played for Cleveland Cavaliers and was a candidate for the US national team.

Reyes said it’s no wonder Bolden was able to become Indonesia’s naturalized player in no time.

“In our country, it takes time to naturalized a player—a foreigner needs to get the blessings of the House of Representatives and Senate before the President finally signs it to become a law,” he said. “Unlike in other countries, naturalizing a foreigner is just an easy and quick process.”

Gilas has had two naturalized player—former NBA players Marcus Douthit and Andray Blatche—and the third, six-foot-11 Ivorian Ange Kouame, was Baldwin’s choice.

Kouame was stricken off the SEA Games roster because of his commitment with Ateneo in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines championship. TNT Tropang Giga’s Moala Tautuaa took his place.

SBP ACCEPTS BLAME, PBA STRESSES FULL SUPPORT TO GILAS

MARQUES BOLDEN holds his ground in Indonesia’s gold medal match with Kiefer Ravena and Gilas Pilipinas. COURTESY ANTARA

By Josef Ramos

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ARQUES BOLDEN was on national team Head Coach Chot Reyes’s short list of potential naturalized American players who he would have wanted to reinforce Gilas Pilipinas for the International Basketball Federation World Cup that the country is hosting next year.

But it turned out Bolden was “the one that got away.”

Indonesia got to Bolden first and the result was devastating for the Philippines at the recent Vietnam 31st Southeast Asian Games.

Bolden scored 18 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked two shots, a stat line that reflected little of what his worth was for the Indonesian team that shocked Reyes and his wards, 81-85, in the gold medal match last Sunday in Hanoi.

“We were really looking at Bolden as soon as they appointed me last February [as Gilas head coach],” Reyes told BusinessMirror in a chat at the Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi close to midnight Sunday. “But Indonesia got him first.”

Serbians favored in Manila Masters OPSEED Ub Huishan NE of Serbia aims to silence the home fans on Day 1 of the 2022 Chooks-to-Go Manila Masters as the team eyes back-to-back titles to open the International Basketball Federation (Fiba) 3x3 World Tour 2022.

After claiming the Utsunomiya Opener in memorable fashion, Ub made an early statement to reinforce their credentials that they are the

B8

team to beat at the Ayala Malls Manila Bay on May 28 and 29.

The Serbs top Pool A, which also features Zavkhan MMC Energy (Mongolia) and Cebu Chooks (Philippines).

Ub is favored to progress with Utsunomiya Opener MVP Strahinja Stojacic even meaner and nastier than when last seen, while his partner Dejan Majstorovic remains one of the

All these because they want to nudge fate a little, tug at Lady Luck’s skirt a tad harder, and get a go signal from the heavens that things will work in their favor, and they’ll win the game.

These are pahiyang, taken from the Tagalog root word hiyang that means “suited, compatible or agreeing.”

Pahiyang thus are a set of rules that people formulate so they go with the flow, move with the prevailing forces of the universe and dance to the music of the spheres, so to speak.

The desired result: their moves are in harmony with “what should be,” or what they want it to be.

Simply put, pahiyang is superstition—but personalized superstition because each person makes his or her own pahiyang. It could range from maintaining a seating order while watching games to delaying trips to the comfort room mid-game to not watching the game at all because one feels he or she is going to jinx it. I forget now which player I interviewed in the past that confessed his grandma would make him put some garlic in his supporters for good luck (do they still use them now?).

In the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons’ 36-year quest for a University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) basketball championship, UP fans—myself included—have used up

Reyes does know his basketball with his choice of Bolden—and so does Rajko Toroman, who nurtured and coach the original Gilas Pilipinas program until he was replaced by Reyes. The Serbian then found his place in Indonesia, which proved that the Philippines is no longer invincible in Southeast Asia.

Reyes was named back to the Gilas Pilipinas program last February— also replacing Tab Baldwin who’s now focused on the Ateneo Blue Eagles—

and one of his first order of business was to look for a naturalized player.

“We were looking for a 6-foot-10 [above] young player who has the size and skills to make an impact—that’s why Bolden was one of them,” said Reyes, adding that also on the list were 6-foot-10 Noah Vonleh of the Brooklyn Nets and 7-footer Dakari Johnson of Oklahoma City Thunder.

Bolden, 24, is 6-foot-10, with a legitimate National Basketball Associa-

THE Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) will remain supportive of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) despite the debacle at the SEA Games.

“We, the PBA, will remain ‘all out’ supportive and helpful to the SBP [about] what they need,” PBA Commissioner Willie Marcial told BusinessMirror on Wednesday, stressing that the league will continue lending players to the national team and tinker with its schedule to suit the international basketball calendar.

The SBP, on the other hand, apologized after the debacle in Hanoi that saw the men’s team and 3x3 squads failing to retain the gold medal. Only the women’s 5x5 team was able to keep the gold medal despite losing to Malaysia in its final match.

“We at the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas share the disappointment of our Filipino basketball fans and take full responsibility with the results of our 31st Southeast Asian Games campaign,” SBP president Al Panlilio said in a statement on Wednesday.

“We apologize we fell short and were not able to give our teams better support that they needed to retain the gold,” he added.

Panlilio offered no excuse but guaranteed to bounce back.

“We learned a valuable lesson. We will bounce back and reclaim our spot to stay ahead,” he said.

MEDAL PRESENTATION

great clutch shooters in the event.

But Ub should get an early test against in-form Cebu Chooks, which will be boosted by an army of passionate fans. The Filipinos broke a long drought for the Philippines on the pro circuit with a victory at the Super Quest event in Manila.

Their chances of upsetting Ub rests on Mark Tallo and Mike Harry, who were dynamic in that triumph and need to produce something similar at their favored half-court in Manila.

“It’s going to be a tough group for Cebu but it’s also going to be a learning experience,” Chooks-toGo president Ronald Mascariñas said. “But both Cebu and Manila Chooks have been training with Ub and Liman here for the past week.

Hopefully, the lessons they learn from the Serbians will be of great help come the Manila Masters.”

Pool B is highlighted by a blockbuster between No.2 seed Antwerp (Belgium) and No.7 seed Sansar MMC Energy (Mongolia).

and discarded lots of lucky tops, lucky bottoms and lucky shoes. None of them worked from 1986 to 2021.

This year in Season 84, they finally did. Coincidentally, 2022 like 1986 is another Tiger Year and also another election year. In 1986, a “child,” 17-year-old Benjie Paras came from San Beda to be UP’s Big Man. In 2022, Big Boy Carl Tamayo came to UP from National University and made a big difference. Could UP’s drought-ending, dynasty-breaking win over Ateneo on a Friday the 13th have been written in the stars?

Of course, No. 13 JD Cagulangan who produced and engineered all the eight points that UP needed to overcome Ateneo’s five-point advantage with just a few ticks left in overtime, gutted it out that historic night. Of course, CJ Cansino, who coolly banked a three-pointer to equalize and send the game to overtime, played his role in history. Of course, everyone on the team played their respective roles according to script in the Book of Fate. But ask the fans, and they’ll admit they did their own pahiyangs.

One diehard, Josh Buenaventura, made sure he replicated all the things he did for Game 1, which the Maroons won. He wore the same shoes, stopped for gas at Buendia, drove through Starbucks for coffee, took the Skyway and passed through NAIAX, parked at the same spot, had a Mentos candy just before the game and sat in

Vietnam 31st Southeast Asian Games silver medalist Alexis Sy, a BPI Unibanker, presents her medal and iconic Saola stuffed toy to Ayala Corporation President and CEO Fernando Zobel de Ayala, Public Affairs Group Head Rene Almendras and Strategic Human Resources Advisor Paco Milan during a simple ceremony at the company’s headquarters recently. Alexis and the pioneering batch of #AtletangAyala garnered six medals from the SEA Games—Pia Bidaure, Abby Bidaure and Phoebe Amistoso (gold medal, archery women’s team recurve); Nat Perez (silver, fencing men’s foil lndividual) and Noelito Jose Jr. (silver, fencing men’s epee Individual); Sy (silver, bowling women’s singles); and Jasmine Alkhaldi (silver women’s 4×100 medley relay and bronze women’s 100 m butterfly). Ayala Corp. through Ayala Center for Excellence in Sports supports national athletes by offering full-salaried employment opportunities at part-time hours, free access to the worldclass training facilities of the Ayala Vermosa Sports Hub and free enrollment in a selection of courses at De La Salle University.

the same seat, never leaving it once.

1986 team captain Joey Mendoza declined to share a good luck message to the team for Game 2 because “the last time I did that, we didn’t make it,” Joey said. Benjie Paras answered the same thing when asked to send good vibes to the 2022 Maroons. “Baka maudlot. After the series na lang,” Benjie texted.

In fact, the Tower of Power confessed his pahiyang in this championship was not to watch the game. “Game 1, I was in Tanay for a shoot. The signal was bad, so I could not watch the game. Nanalo. Game 2, I watched the game on TV. Natalo. In Game 3, we all stayed away, Andre and Kobe (his sons) just monitored the scores online. Ayon, nanalo! At the same time I was also supporting the team in prayers. That’s all I could do,” he sighed.

Now after three bonfires (two at UP Diliman and one at UP Los Baños), a non-stop succession of victory parties from nowheretogobutUP, sponsors Palawan Express; Robinsons Supermarket, TopBreed and Handyman; STATS and Januarius Holdings Inc. and the UP Diliman Chancellor Fidel Nemenzo plus several TV and Zoom interviews and fan engagements, the UP Fighting Maroons are out of the bubble, back in their homes with their families and in the history books.

The pahiyangs will be back in Season 85.