Opinion BusinessMirror
A6 Wednesday, November 26, 2014
Editor: Alvin I. Dacanay
editorial
Pacquiao and the national economy
H
ARDLY anyone in the Philippines would think that Manny Pacquiao’s one-sided victory over American boxer Chris Algieri in Macau on Sunday would have any bearing on the Philippine economy. However far-fetched that may seem, there is, in fact, a connection. Pacquiao’s tremendous boxing skills, courage, honesty and generosity to all, including his adversaries, are qualities that people all over the world respect and admire. The global public, particularly the American public, demonstrated their admiration and respect in many ways—extremely high pay-per-view hits for his fights; candidates for high public office soliciting his endorsement; his huge popularity, not just among boxing fans, but among people from all walks of life. These responses somehow translate into admiration for us as a people, as well as into the readiness of foreigners to participate in the joys of our communities and the bounties of our economy. They add, not subtract, to the number of tourist arrivals, for instance; they add, not subtract, to the number of investors in our economy. By the same token, one would have no difficulty assessing the impact of the behavior of our public officials on the perception of other members of the international community. One does not have to be a swami to know that people abroad must be appalled by the brazenness of our officials in plundering the national coffers and their insensitivity to the people’s needs, while professing their deepest fidelity to the constitutional provision that “sovereignty resides in the people, and all government authority emanates from them.” Decent human beings everywhere can hardly be expected to want to be associated with people who bring shame to their country and dishonor their fellow citizens. So it is that individual behavior has an effect on national welfare. Where should we look for exemplary behavior? Obviously, not in the field of public service, which has been taken over by those serving only themselves. Perhaps, in the field of business, where we have businessmen doing well, not just in making money, but in discharging their social responsibility? Sadly, however, their number is overwhelmed by those lacking in vision and determination, ever on the lookout for government support. There is only fear here, no daring. If there are those in other sectors of our society that cuddle heroes, or prospective heroes, to rejuvenate our sociopolitical economy, let them come forward and be recognized. For the moment, as we see it, our saviors are likely to come from the field of sports. Boxing, golf, football, basketball, swimming and especially boxing, where Pacquiao is already inspiring many young men to excel—these are the places where character is built, where honesty is valued, where individual and collective excellence is recognized. These are the fields of human activity that are likely to produce those individuals who are likely to bring honor to our country.
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Supporting documents for death-benefit claim Susie G. Bugante
All About Social Security First part
D
EPENDING on the circumstances of the death of a Social Security System (SSS) member, there are certain supporting documents that are required to be presented by the beneficiary-claimant. If the member died in the Philippines, the main supporting document is the death certificate of the deceased member, which is issued by the Local Civil Registrar (LCR) or the National Statistics Office (NSO). This certificate should be attached to the funeral grant and death-benefit claims. In the absence of a death certificate, a certification of non-availability that is issued by the LCR or NSO, together with the certification issued by the parish or the cemetery administrator, may be submitted. If the member died in a sea mishap, there are many possible situations: 1) If the member’s body was re-
covered, whether he or she was listed on the passenger manifest or not, a death certificate registered with the LCR or NSO will suffice as a supporting document. 2) If the member’s body was not recovered, but his or her name is on the passenger manifest, any of the following may serve as supporting documents: a) Marine protest issued by the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and the passengers’ manifest issued by the shipping company; b) Certification from the shipping company, the PCG or the InterAgency Task Force created by the President, plus an undertaking ex-
ecuted by the claimant in the form prescribed by the SSS, and other documents to establish affiliation, compensability and benefits. In the absence of such certification, there are other remedies that a claimant can take. 3) For a member whose body was not recovered and whose name does not appear on the passenger manifest, the claimant may execute an undertaking in the form prescribed by the SSS; present other documents to establish affiliation, compensability and benefits; and any three of the following: a) Certification from the employer that the victim-member has not reported for work from the time of the accident up to the filing of the claim, if the member was employed; or certification from the barangay chairman and a relative that it is common knowledge in the village that the victim-member died in the accident, if unemployed; b) List of passengers compiled by the Department of the Interior and Local Government and duly certified by the chairman of the Inter-Agency Task Force, where the name of the victim appears; c) Certification from the shipping company stating that it has recognized the validity of the claim filed
Is Google going back into China? Adam Minter
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BLOOMBERG VIEW
EARLY five years after grandly pulling out of China due to hacking and censorship concerns, Google may be looking to return. According to reports that emerged late last week, the search giant hopes to open a local version of its Google Play mobile-application (app) store in order to tap the world’s largest mobile-phone market. From a business standpoint, the decision would seem to be a wise one. Android is the most popular mobile operating system in China, and in the absence of Google Play, homegrown app stores have developed into a multibillion-dollar business poised for more growth. Google, which developed Android, is clearly anxious to get a cut of those profits. But for Google, operating in China has never been a simple business matter. Prior to the company’s decision to enter China in 2006, the company’s leadership was heavily conflicted by requirements that Google censor search results in accordance with government guidelines. The decision to leave in 2010 wasn’t any easier. But once it was made, Google Co-founder Sergey Brin defended the move on both ethical and business grounds, even telling the German newspaper Der Spiegel that he didn’t feel that Google was
sacrificing long-term opportunity in China by leaving: “If you adopt that point of view, then you would agree to completely arbitrary limitations and distortion. If you take the point of view that you have to be friendly with the Chinese government and [it] can make arbitrary demands of you, then you can’t really run a business. I really don’t think that is a practicable way to proceed.” This raises an obvious question: If China wasn’t practicable four years ago, what makes Brin and Google
think it is now? In fact, in the four years since Google withdrew, the Chinese government’s efforts to control the Internet have only become more overt and heavy-handed. Relative to 2010, more foreign sites are blocked by China’s so-called Great Firewall, while China’s own state media report that more than 2 million Chinese are employed to “monitor” the Internet on the mainland. In just the last year, the Chinese government has imposed strict content and nation-of-origin guidelines on Chinese streaming-video sites. Last week the government blocked thousands of additional foreign sites in advance of a global Internet conference being hosted in Wuzhen. That easily mocked affair was attended mostly by Chinese companies and officials. But anyone who would dismiss Beijing’s ambitions should remember that China now has more Internet users than the United States has people. The Chinese government is keen to leverage that demographic fact to demand a bigger role in regulating an Internet “governed by all of us,” in the words of Premier Li Keqiang, who attended the conference. Though China remains vague about the kind of influence it is seeking globally, it certainly envisions a situation where the desire of governments to control content trumps the free
on behalf of a particular victim or that it has recognized the fact that the victim was aboard the ship during that particular trip; d) Affidavit of at least two people stating that they saw the deceased actually boarding or actually onboard the ship on the ill-fated voyage; e) Duplicate copy of tickets filed by the shipping company, if any; f) Any proof that can be presented to show that the victim was actually aboard the ship on its ill-fated journey. There are still other circumstances of death, such as those in times of disaster and if the member died overseas. I will discuss them in my next column in order to guide affected claimants on the needed documents to submit when filing their benefit claims. To be continued next Wednesday
For more information, call the SSS 24-hour call center at (632) 920-6446 to 55, Monday to Friday, or send an e-mail to member_relations@sss. gov.ph. Susie G. Bugante is the vice president for public affairs and special events of the SSS. Send comments about this column to susiebugante.bmirror@ gmail.com.
flow of information that Google’s founders embrace. According to the Wall Street Journal, Google is seeking Chinese partners for a Chinese version of the Play store. That might help win over Chinese officials still smarting from Google’s denunciation of Beijing’s Internet policies. But it won’t insulate Google from the very same censorship issues it faced in 2010. In recent years, for instance, the Chinese version of Apple’s iTunes store has obeyed government orders to remove anticensorship apps and content that references the Dalai Lama. Blaming a similar sellout on its Chinese partners is hardly going to help Google in the realm of public opinion. Nor is there any guarantee that Google Play will be able to steal market share away from established players like Qihoo—or that the Chinese government has any intention of letting them compete without interference. Indeed, if Google does choose to return to the mainland, no one should be under any illusion about the rules under which the company will be forced to operate. At least, in the eyes of its leaders, China’s “arbitrary limitations” on foreign Internet companies have worked just fine since 2010—and they’re not about to be eased for Google or anyone else.