BusinessMirror October 06, 2021

IMF vows fair review of ‘Doing Biz’ reports

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HE International Monetary Fund (IMF) has vowed to conduct a thorough, objective and timely review of the irregularities in the Doing Business reports for 2018 and 2020.

In a statement on Tuesday, IMF spokesman Gerry Rice said the IMF Executive Board recently met with representatives of the law firm WilmerHale in the ongoing review and will soon meet with Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva on the issue.

WilmerHale was the law firm that raised issues on the World Bank’s Doing Business 2018 report. Georgieva, meanwhile, was the IMF official implicated in the report released by the law firm.

“The IMF Executive Board met today with the representatives of the law

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firm WilmerHale as part of its ongoing review of the matter raised by WilmerHale’s investigation of the World Bank’s Doing Business 2018 report.

The Executive Board will also meet on the matter soon with the Managing Director as part of this process,” Rice said. “The Executive Board remains committed to a thorough, objective, and timely review.”

WilmerHale’s report stated that Georg ieva wa s “t he responsible person at the Bank to ‘ensure’ that China’s reforms were acknowledged in the report.”

Efforts to do this included changing the methodology used in the report to “boost China’s score” and “make specific changes to China’s data points” to improve its ranking.

Georgieva denied these allegations

in the WilmerHale report.

“I disagree fundamentally with the findings and interpretations of the Investigation of Data Irregularities as it relates to my role in the World Bank’s Doing Business report of 2018. I have already had an initial briefing with the IMF’s Executive Board on this matter,” Georgieva said in September.

Earlier, the Anti-Red Tape Authority (Arta) was set to create a technical working group (TWG) tasked with developing methodologies or criteria for the localized Doing Business (DB) report.

Arta Director General Jeremiah Belgica raised the proposal in a recent meeting of the Ease of Doing Business (EODB) and Anti-Red Tape Advisory Council, which it approved as well.

The TWG will be led by Arta Deputy Director General for Operations

Ernesto Perez and will be composed by the members of the said council.

Crafting a “more personalized and localized” version of the DB report, Belgica said, will bode well for the EODB efforts of the government agencies.

The anti-red tape agency is also eyeing to launch a Report Card Survey, which seeks to measure the EODB compliance of government agencies.

Arta will coordinate with the Civil Service Commission and the Philippine Statistics Authority in rolling out the new initiative.

The move to localize the DB report followed the World Bank’s (WB) announcement that it would discontinue the survey after finding “data irregularities” due to potential manipulation.

Cai U. Ordinario

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BRAIN DRAIN HITS PHL GAME DEVT INDUSTRY

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad

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HE local game development sector is expected to further flourish despite the pandemic, but the socalled brain drain may pose some risks to the industry’s talent pool.

At a recent virtual event during the Cebu Creative Entertainment Week, Game Developers Association of the Philippines (GDAP) President James Lo said the increasing adoption of remote work has allowed more talents to seek job opportunities outside the country.

“Some of our talents get hired outside the country and they move to other companies,” he

School Principal Sonia Padernal demonstrates the reconfigured face-to-face learning setup with teachers acting as students at the Dagat-Dagatan Elementary School in Navotas City. The school has allotted two classrooms for such mode of teaching instructions in the future even in the midst of the pandemic. NONOY LACZA

By Cai U. Ordinario

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@caiordinario

NFLATION may have slightly eased in September but Filipinos should still brace for higher commodity prices on account of more expensive oil products, according to local economists and the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda).

See “Oil,” A2

@Tyronepiad

said. “I’m starting to feel this [brain drain] already. It [brain drain] is very serious in my opinion.”

Brain drain is a phenomenon whereby highly skilled professionals emigrate usually due to more favorable job opportunities.

Lo was referring to the outsourcing segment of the industry, which has 4,000 full-time employees as of 2020 data. This portion—which has been growing in the past five years—accounts for most of the sector while the remainder comprises the original intellectual property (IP) game developers, he said.

See “Game,” A2

MICE events for vaccinated parties pushed

By Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo @akosistellaBM

Special to the BusinessMirror

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USINESS meetings and conferences can be held safely, according to event organizers and venue operators, as long as participants are vaccinated.

Peggy E. Angeles, executive vice president of SM Hotels and Conventions Corp. (SMHCC) told the BusinessMirror, “We need to kickstart the MICE [meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibits] business,

even at reduced capacity for social distancing, as long all staff and all participants/attendees are fully vaccinated.”

She added, “Just like in hotels, those given the Safety Seal [should] be allowed to increase capacity.”

Government on Tuesday said it has issued safety seal certificates to some 43,000 establishments.

(Related story on page A4.)

SMHCC has over 38,000 square meters of leasable space in its SMX Convention Centers and trade halls.

Angeles said their convention centers

“practically have no revenues,” adding, “reservation fees and other deposits [for canceled events] were reimbursed to the organizers.”

Marisa Nallana, board director of the Asian Federation of Convention and Exhibition Associations, echoed Angeles, saying MICE events can be held safely, “as long as organizers are strict and make sure the visiting public follow protocols set in and out of the venue.”

She likewise underscored, “Most MICE organizers, venue operators and their staff are vaccinated.”

Revenue losses from canceled events

The former president of the Philippine Association of Convention and Exhibition Organizers and Suppliers (Paceos) added, “Once MICE is declared open, vaccination as requirement and maybe easy tests which we can coordinate with DOH [Department of Health] may be implemented. The objectives are to bring back confidence to attend MICE events, and See “MICE,” A2

PESO exchange rates n US 50.7440 n japan 0.4575 n UK 69.0778 n HK 6.5164 n CHINA 7.8412 n singapore 37.4053 n australia 36.9822 n EU 58.9747 n SAUDI arabia 13.5303 Source: BSP (5 October 2021)

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Wednesday, October 6, 2021

BusinessMirror

BSP gets more leeway to keep rates low as Sept inflation eases

By Bianca Cuaresma @BcuaresmaBM

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ITH inflation slightly easing in September, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has been afforded more space to keep its record-low monetary policy rates accommodative to support the recovery of the local economy.

In his statement after the Philippine Statistics Authority’s (PSA) inflation print announcement on Tuesday, BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno reiterated his policy guidance of keeping interest rates low for as long as possible.

“The BSP stands ready to maintain its accommodative monetary policy stance for as long as necessary to support the economy’s sustained recovery to the extent that the inflation outlook would allow,” Diokno said.

Inflation in September hit 4.8 percent.

Game. . .

Continued from A1

The job opportunities outside the country have become “more accessible” amid the digital shift, he said, noting this was not the case prior to the pandemic. Lo explained that the “logistical barrier” had “limited” the talents before to the local job offerings.

“We are talking about fresh graduates having opportunities to work for different countries outside of the Philippines, which can provide them better pay sometimes or something else,” he explained.

With this, the GDAP official highlighted the need to develop a company

While this is still above the annual target range of 2 to 4 percent, it is a deceleration from the 4.9 percent print in the previous month. It also sits at the lower end of Diokno’s forecast range of 4.8 to 5.6 percent for the month.

The governor also said the upward pressure on inflation, such as weather disruptions, global oil prospects, and continued impact of the African Swine Fever (ASF), are supply-side shocks that are best addressed by non-monetary policy interventions.

“The return of inflation to the target range is highly contingent on the successful implementation of these supply measures,” the governor said.

The BSP chief also said the risks to the inflation outlook remain tilted towards the upside for the remaining months of 2021, but remain broadly balanced for 2022 and 2023.

The governor expressed confidence

that monthly inflation will decelerate to within the target range by the end of the year.

ING Bank economist Nicholas Mapa said the BSP is expected to keep policy support for “ just a bit longer” to help provide enough lift for escape velocity from the prolonged downturn.

“The latest inf lation reading gives the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas [BSP] a little more space to maintain its accommodative stance. Pressure has been building on the BSP to hike prematurely but the surprise inf lation print helps the Central Bank justify its current stance,” Mapa said.

Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation (RCBC) economist Michael Ricafort also said he expects the BSP to keep its rates accommodative.

“For the coming weeks or months, any further monetary policy accommodation measures, especially any further

cut in large banks’ reserve requirement ratio [RRR], remain possible, especially if inflation stabilizes further,” Ricafort said.

While easing policy rates at this juncture is off the table, Ricafort said cutting the banks’ RRR could be one of the BSP’s responses to the recent heightened restrictions in Metro Manila, as the economy needs all the support measures that it could get at this time.

The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), meanwhile, said keeping interest rates at this level will become “more and more difficult” for the BSP. “The real policy rate has been negative for 15 months already. This was made possible without any severe trade-offs so far given the accommodative stance of the Federal Reserve. But with the US central bank gradually becoming hawkish, keeping interest rates at this level will become more and more difficult,” BPI said in a research note.

“Something else will adjust if the policy rate is kept at 2 percent, and most likely that will be the exchange rate,” it added.

culture that allows the employees to improve their skills.

“It’s not just money [only]. Some people are not money-motivated—it is all about learning...what environment allows them to learn more. It is very important for companies to communicate that,” he pointed out.

At the same time, he stressed the need to ramp up training efforts to make sure the supply of talents do not run out.

Lo said it is crucial to tap the talents not only in Metro Manila but also those in the countryside to widen the talent pool.

demand for game development amid the pandemic as mobility restrictions prompted the public to look for source of entertainment.

“The market is looking for games and entertainment, especially during the pandemic when people are stuck at home and have nothing to do in terms of entertainment. They cannot go out, so they do this as an escape to entertain themselves,” he said.

Citing reports, Lo noted that the outsourcing revenues rose to $150 million last year from $24.1 million in 2015.

Revenues generated by original IP game developers, meanwhile, reached $1.38 million last year, but Lo said the

figure is “inaccurate” as many studios declined to declare earnings. He noted there are 400 local game studios and around 100 Filipino games published in the digital marketplace.

Lo, referring to Newzoo data, also said the global game development sector registered $174.9 billion in revenues last year, which is more than what the film ($100 billion) and music ($20.6 billion) industries booked for the same period amid the pandemic.

This year, Newzoo forecasts that the global games market will rake in $175.8 billion, half of which will be accounted for by the AsiaPacific region, with China seen as the main contributor.

Established in 2007, GDAP is a 50-member trade association with the purpose of promoting and developing a sustainable local game development industry. The group created a road map in 2014 which seeks to secure a new flagship client, gain a flagship studio and create a Triple-A games or those games with big production and marketing budgets.

Market demand The GDAP chief observed the growing

Mice. . .

Continued from A1

communicate that MICE is safe.”

Revenue loss of the MICE industry may have widened to “a minimum of 70 percent,” Nallana estimated, as Covid-19 wreaked havoc in the country since 2020. MICE events in the National Capital Region are still prohibited, while venues are not allowed to operate.

Data from the Department of Tourism (DOT) showed in 2019, the average expenditure per local delegate for international events was P14,822.34, while foreign delegates spent $2,177.67 per capita. For national events, each delegate spent P10,042.13. The country hosted only 72 events in 2019, languishing behind Thailand (162 events), Singapore (149), and Indonesia (92), per the International Congress and Convention Association.

Preparing for a comeback

The DOT in 2018 had launched an ambitious MICE Roadmap, designed to make the Philippines a major events destination by 2030. It targeted an increase in the gross value added (GVA) of the MICE industry to P1.4 billion in 2030 from P415.3 million in 2013 and lift MICE revenues to some P25 billion by 2030 from P4.6 billion in 2016.

The DOT also aims to increase the total number of usable space for exhibitions to over 170,895 sq m by 2030 from some 71,000 sq m in 2017.

Paceos helped in the formulation of the road map. “[We’re] looking at 2022 as preparation for the [MICE] comeback in 2023 or 2024,” said Nallana. A major concern for MICE is travel.

“We still have very limited international travel into the country or none at all. With our Covid numbers on the high side, and protocols, coming over for a physical event is a big challenge.”

She noted, “Given the situation, most organizers pivoted to virtual [events], though not profitable. This is to maintain presence. Collaboration with other international organizers and associations are happening. Focus now is to keep close with exhibitors and clients, [with] visitors as well. Communities are formed to keep in touch and share ideas.”

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Oil. . .

Continued from A1

On Tuesday, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported that inflation eased to 4.8 percent in September from the 4.9 percent posted in August. However, this remained higher compared to the 2.3 percent posted in September 2021. (See: https:// businessmirror.com.ph/2021/10/05/inf lation-eases-to-48-in-sept-on-lower-transport-food-costs/) Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick T. Chua admitted to the BusinessMirror that as oil prices continue to increase, it becomes a bigger threat to higher inflation in the Philippines because the country remains a net food and oil importer.

“The higher [oil prices reach] the more concern [it is for the economy] as we are importers,” Chua told the BusinessMirror. “[However], we have the policies in place to counter that.”

Chua said these policies, including EOs (Executive Orders) 133 and 134 have helped stabilize pork prices. The government adopted EOs 133 and 134 in May 2021 to help increase the supply of pork in the country amid its shortage due to the African Swine Fever.

These interventions increased the minimum access volume (MAV) for imported pork, and imposed a temporary reduction of pork tariffs, respectively.

To help augment fish supply in the approaching closed fishing season, the Department of Agriculture issued a Certificate of Necessity to Import (CNI) with a maximum importable volume of 60,000 metric tons of small pelagic fish such as galunggong, mackerel, and bonito for wet markets, he added.

Chua stressed that government will also proactively monitor the supply and demand of fish and immediately issue supplemental CNIs as necessary.

Housing, utilities, fuels up Based on PSA data, National Statistician Claire Dennis S. Mapa told the BusinessMirror that inflation for Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels have been increasing both for all income households and the bottom 30-percent income households.

Inflation for Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels for all income households at 3.8 percent in September was the highest since February 2019.

For the poorest Filipinos or the Bottom 30 percent, inflation for Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels reached 3.4 percent in September, the highest since August 2019.

The increase in inflation for this commodity group was mainly due to more expensive electricity and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) prices.

For all income households, inflation for electricity shot up to 9.2 percent in September from only 6.6-percent inflation in August 2021 while LPG inflation surged to 19.7 percent in September 2021 from 17.6 percent in August 2021.

For the bottom 30-percent income households, Mapa said electricity increased to 8.3 percent in September 2021 from 6.6 percent in August 2021 while LPG recorded an inflation of 19.8 percent in September 2021 from 17.7 percent in August 2021.

Further, Mapa said that for the poorest Filipinos, the price of kerosene also increased inflation for Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels. Kerosene prices increased 21 percent in September from 18.2 percent in August.

“The contribution of housing and utilities to inflation has also expanded as electricity rates continue to rise. Energy companies have adjusted their costs as a response to global oil prices and Peso depreciation,” BPI’s Global Markets analysis stated.

While oil prices are not expected to hit $100 per barrel this year, Former University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P) School of Economics Dean Peter Lee U said the recovery of economies as well as mobility in other countries will drive up demand for oil and increase its price.

This is expected in the short term since, U said, the heating needs in countries that experience winter will increase demand for oil in the coming months.

For the long haul, U said, the demand for oil will largely depend on how well countries are able to recover from the pandemic.

“Depends on how strong global economic recovery goes which in turn depends on the pandemic,” he told this newspaper. “Hitting 100 [dollars per barrel] might be a stretch though for this year.”

However, UnionBank Chief Economist Ruben Carlo O. Asuncion told the BusinessMirror high oil prices in the international market are already affecting local pump prices.

Apart from the reasons cited by U, Asuncion noted the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) still did not reach an agreement to increase oil supply, despite a clamor on account of the recovery of countries from the pandemic.

Asuncion said if Opec does not decide to increase global oil supply, high oil prices will likely persist until next year, at least in the first quarter.

“If Opec does not adjust current supply levels, this scenario [high oil prices to persist in January to March 2022] is very likely. Something [we do] not need as we try to recuperate from this pandemic,” Asuncion said.

Food inflation eases Meanwhile, Neda said food inflation decreased to 6.5 percent in September from 6.9 percent in August, due to slower inflation rates in rice, fish, and meat.

Rice inflation recorded zero growth, following the issuance of Executive Order 135. Likewise, fish inflation decelerated to 10.2 percent from 12.4 percent.

Meat inflation decreased to 15.6 percent from 16.4 percent, as pork inflation declined to 36.4 percent from 39 percent.

Moreover, month-on-month meat inflation continued to decline at -1.6 percent, suggesting some price stabilization following the implementation of EOs 133 and 134.

Meanwhile, inflation for the bottom 30-percent income households at the national level slowed down to 5 percent in September 2021, from 5.3 percent in August 2021. In September 2020, it was posted at 2.8 percent.

The country’s average inflation for this particular group of consumers from January to September 2021 was registered at 4.9 percent.

“The downtrend in the inflation for the bottom 30-percent income households during the month was primarily due to the slower annual increase of the transport index at 4 percent, from its double-digit annual growth rate of 10.4 percent in August 2021,” PSA said.

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Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

A4 Wednesday, October 6, 2021 A3

Tugade says offshore investments, all his wealth legitimately acquired

By Lorenz S. Marasigan

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@lorenzmarasigan

ransportation Secretary Arthur P. Tugade clarified on Tuesday that all his wealth were legitimately acquired, saying that he will be transparent and honest in answering questions and acquisitions “in appropriate forums and manner.”

He said the offshore investments mentioned in the Pandora Papers, which were made public on Monday, are “a matter of public record.”

“The subject offshore investments in Solart Holdings was a personal financial move that was established long before I joined government,” Tugade said.

The transportation chief explained that Solart Holdings was organized in 2003 to hold a portion of his family’s cash assets.

“Having some of our family’s savings invested in Solart Holdings was our legitimate attempt to grow our financial portfolio like what any astute and judicious entrepreneurs would do to diversify their

investments. We decided to have a portion of our savings invested outside the Philippines, which is valid and legal,” he said.

Tugade also said that this “has consistently been disclosed” in his Sworn Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net worth (SALN) under “Personal Properties-Intangible” particularly, as “Offshore Investments” from 2012 to 2020.

In the said period, the account barely moved, he added.

“As an appointed public servant, I have taken an oath to uphold transparency, honesty, integrity and good governance. These are cherished values that I personally believe in, and I have made it a lifelong commitment to sustain and carry around myself,” Tugade said.

He added: “Wala po akong tinatago, at sasagutin ko ang anumang paratang at katanungan in appropriate forums and manner.”

The Pandora Papers, the largest leak on offshore holdings of

the wealthiest politicians and businessmen in the world, made headlines on Monday.

Rappler, in partnership with the Philippine Investigative Journalism Center and the International Consortium of Investigative Journalism, reported that Tugade appeared in the Trident Trust Group’s records which stated that Solart Holdings is “expected to have assets worth $1.5 million [P75 million] in the form of cash, bonds, and securities from the business income of private corporations under the Perry’s Group of Companies.”

This, Rappler reported, was not reflected on Tugade’s SALN since 2012, and that his offshore investments amounted to roughly P57 million.

Separately, Transportation Assistant Secretary Goddess Hope O. Libiran branded in an open letter the Rappler article as “false, misleading, and downright de-

famatory.”

“We take strong exception and will not take lightly this apparently well-oiled and orchestrated effort to malign and discredit the good image and reputation of Secretary Tugade and his family,” she said.

Tugade is being endorsed by the PDP-Laban as part of its senatorial slate.

“We give emphasis to the fact that whatever Secretary Tugade has is a product of his decades of hard work and perseverance, which are exemplified by his no-nonsense leadership, character and untarnished credibility,” Libiran said.

She added the camp of Tugade would exhaust all legal means to make matters straight.

“Consider this as a stern warning and an assertion that our lawyers will exert all necessary effort, to the fullest extent of the law, to find those behind the malicious and irresponsible publication of this report,” she said.

Comelec lists 7.9-M new voters for 2022 polls

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round 8 million new voters have registered with the Commission on Elections (Comelec) for the upcoming May 2022 national and local polls.

In a news briefing during the fifth day of the filing of Certificate of Candidacy (COC) last Tuesday, Comelec spokesman James Jimenez said they were able to tally 7,994,821 newly registered voters.

This is nearly twice the 4-million target new registrant of the poll body. The figure is expected to further increase with the resumption of the voter registration on October 11, 2021, after the end of the COC filing on Friday.

The voter registration will last until October 30, 2021, and will be open from Mondays to Fridays, 8 am to 5 pm, except on its last day, which will fall on a Saturday.

Comelec extended the voter registration beyond September 30, 2021, upon the appeal of some groups and lawmakers to offset the long period of its suspension due to pandemic lockdowns in previous months. Samuel P. Medenilla

Aklan PCG rescues 2 distressed fishermen

By Rene Acosta @reneacostaBM

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he Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) reported on Tuesday that its station in Aklan rescued two fishermen amid the onslaught of tropical depression “Lannie,” even as the Philippine National Police ordered its commanders to prepare their respective disaster response teams in areas threatened and affected by the bad weather.

Vincent Cunihar and Sonny Tayco were rescued by PCG personnel from a distressed motor banca amid strong winds and big waves in the waters between Sta. Fe, Romblon and Nabas, Aklan.

The PCG said the motor banca left Barangay Colong-Colong, Ibajay, Aklan, at around 4 a.m. on Sunday for a fishing venture into the waters of Sibuyan Sea. As it sailed home on Sunday, the watercraft encountered en-

gine trouble that caused it to drift toward the vicinity waters between Sta. Fe, Romblon and Nabas, Aklan.

The PCG Station Aklan immediately deployed its search and rescue (SAR) team upon receiving the distress call from the two fishermen.

PNP chief General Guillermo Eleazar directed commanders at police regional offices in Western Visayas and Mimaropa to prepare their respective disaster response teams in anticipation of the effects of Lannie.

The PNP is at the frontline of disaster preparedness and response, with policemen being tapped in the conduct of preemptive evacuation, search and rescue and distribution of relief goods to the affected population.

According to the state weather bureau Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGA-

SA), Lannie is expected to bring moderate to heavy rains over Western Visayas and Mimaropa, while light to moderate, at times, heavy rains is expected in Calabarzon, Bicol region and Mindanao.

PAGASA said Lannie is expected to leave the Philippine Area of Responsibility by Thursday.

Eleazar appealed to the public to follow instructions of law enforcers and local chief executives to ensure their safety amid the weather disturbance.

“I would like to remind the public to immediately heed the advice of your respective localities should they require preemptive evacuation because this is for your own safety. In the event of the establishment of evacuation centers, our police personnel should continue to strictly enforce minimum public health standards among evacuees to curb the spread of Covid-19,” he said.

Govt begins negotiations for procurement of 90-M coronavirus shots for next year

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

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he government has finally started its negotiations for the procurement of an additional 90 million novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19) vaccine doses for next year.

T h e Na t i o n a l Ta s k Fo rce Against Covid-19 (NTF) chief implementer Carlito Galvez Jr. said he has already coordinated with the Department of Finance (DOF) to initiate negotiations for bulk purchase with several vaccine manufacturers.

“We are negotiating with four to five manufacturers to sign non-binding term sheets to lock-

in the allocations of 90 million doses starting the first quarter [of 2022],” Galvez said.

T he vaccine czar said the brands, which they picked is based on the evaluation of the Vaccine Expert Panel.

Galvez earlier said the additional doses would be used as booster shots for those, who are already fully vaccinated against Covid-19.

The Department of Finance (DOF) allocated P45 billion multilateral funding for the said procurement.

The government-planned acquisition of additional Covid-19 jabs is part of the updated National Vaccination Program (NVP) to be presented by the NTF to

the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) for approval.

The vaccine czar said among the highlights of the new NVP its report on the emergence of different Covid-19 variants and reformulated Covid-19 boosters shots.

The new NVP will also contain a review on the safety and efficacy of different vaccines, current vaccine global supply, vaccine rollout, results and development of first wave vaccine procurement.

Galvez said they negotiated for the delivery of 140 million to 160 million Covid-19 vaccine doses before the end of the year.

BBM assumes PFP chairmanship Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP) President and South Cotabato Governor Reynaldo S. Tamayo (left) swears in former Senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. as member and chairman of the party. PFP commemorated its third anniversary as a national political party on Tuesday.

DOJ review panel shifts focus on PDEA case folders, presses for more inputs

By Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

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HE Department of Justice (DOJ) review panel on drug cases is now scrutinizing the records submitted for review by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) pertaining to its more than 100 anti-illegal drug operations.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra made the disclosure after the panel wrapped up its review of the 52 anti-illegal drug operations by the Philippine National Police (PNP) where deaths occurred and recommended the investigation by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) of some 154 policemen for possible criminal liability.

Guevarra said that since the panel has finished the review of the 52 drug cases from the PNP, it would now focus on reviewing the 107 PDEA case folders.

“Actually we have scrutinized these case folders from the PDEA, but we need to get more substan-

tial information. That’s where we are going now,” the justice chief stressed.

Meanwhile, DOJ Undersecretary Adrian Ferdinand Sugay said the NBI is now establishing whether there is sufficient evidence to file murder or homicide cases against the more than 150 policemen involved in 51 antiillegal drug operations where deaths occurred.

“When it comes to criminal liability, which is the subject of the DOJ’s ongoing review and the ones referred to the NBI, if it would be seen that there was intent to kill the illegal drugs suspect, they might be charged with murder or at the very least homicide,” Sugay said in a forum.

Of the total 52 case folders, involving 154 policemen forwarded to them by the Philippine National Police-Internal Affairs Service (PNP-IAS), 51 of these were drugrelated operations.

The remaining one case was not drug related and did not result in

death.

Sugay said based on what the review panel was able to establish, there were policemen who did not follow the police protocol during these anti-drug operations.

Aside from the report of the panel, Sugay said, the NBI could also use the information available in the case folders submitted by the PNP-IAS such as the reports of the Scene of the Crime Operation (SOCO) teams, results of paraffin and ballistic tests and the initial investigation reports.

“So if based on this evidence, if the NBI thinks that the case would progress further, they could file the complaint against these erring police officers with the DOJ’s National Prosecution Service,” he added.

But if there are cases that would require further investigation, Sugay said these could be done by the NBI. The PNP-IAS earlier found administrative liability against these police officers.

A4 Wednesday, October 6, 2021

Economy BusinessMirror

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

43,332 biz establishments secure Safety Seal Certifications to boost consumer confidence

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By Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

ver 43,000 businesses nationwide have been issued with Safety Seal Certifications (SSC), an assurance to the public that health protocols are in place in their establishments amid various quarantine restrictions.

Through the joint efforts of the Department of Health (DOH), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Department of Tourism (DOT), and Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), a total of 43,332 public and private

establishments have been issued Safety Seal Certifications as of 1 October 2021. The SSC program indicates the compliance of establishments to the minimum public health standards (MPHS) set by the government.

“The implementation of the Safety Seal Program is a very

laudable initiative that highly reinforces our country’s response to combat Covid-19. As we gradually reopen our economy, it is important to ensure that our people are safe, and adherence to Minimum Public Health Standards is one vital key to this aspect,” said Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III. Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said the certification program is indeed beneficial to the country’s recovering economy as it boosts the confidence of consumers in going out and patronizing businesses in the new normal with the assurance that a business establishment is compliant with health protocols.

Lopez encouraged more businesses to adopt the seal as an effective measure in curbing the spread of Covid-19 infections.

“Businesses can do their share in the fight against the pandemic

and create a healthy space for consumers to transact their purchases and for employees to gainfully and safely earn a living,” Lopez added.

Interior Secretary Eduardo M. Año, on the other hand, told owners of establishments, especially those in areas under strict quarantine restrictions, to apply for a SSC. “Applying for a Safety Seal is not mandatory. However, business establishments are highly encouraged to apply since this will also help them attract customers which eventually lead to increased sales and profit,” he pointed out.

Since its implementation in May 2021, a total of 85,731 applications were received by the issuing agencies as reported by the Safety Seal Technical Working Group (TWG); 50.54 percent or 43,332 applications were approved, while 11.50 percent or

9,858 applications were either denied or referred to appropriate agencies. The remaining percentage represents those that are still in the inspection process.

“I commend and congratulate the establishments that have taken the lead in securing their Safety Seal Certifications.

This will build confidence that their respective companies are committed to ensuring the health and safety of their stakeholders and workers,” said Labor Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III. Pursuant to the DOH-DILG-DOLEDOT-DTI Joint Memorandum Circular (JMC) 21-01, Series of 2021, otherwise known as the Implementing Guidelines of the Safety Seal Certification Program, a business establishment is eligible to apply for a Safety Seal given that it is duly registered, adopting the Staysafe. ph or any other local government unit (LGU)—mandated digital contact tracing application, and most importantly, strictly following and implementing the MPHS set by the government.

Likewise, DOT reached out to tourism establishment owners to take this step.

“The Safety Seal Certification program bodes well with the DOT’s priority to ensure the health and safety of both tourists and tourism workers. That being said, I am encouraging all tourism establishments to apply for a Safety Seal, strictly comply with the health and safety guidelines, and have all their employees vaccinated. Let us continue to make travel fun and safe for all,” said Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat.

The Safety Seal TWG assures the public that the government continuously exerts the best efforts with a whole-ofgovernment and whole-of-society coordination in support of the Inter-Agency Task Force against Covid-19’s (IATF) Prevent-Detect-Isolate-Treat-Reintegrate (PDITR) strategy.

Moreover, they urged the public to be more informed of various ways to keep safe from Covid-19 and its variants, following the announcement on the new classification framework advocating the principles of 3C’s (Closed, Crowded, and Close Contact) Strategy. This framework employs Alert Level Systems that shall determine, among others, the protocols and allowable operational capacity of business establishments per city/municipality.

Since September 16, Metro Manila is classified under Alert Level 4. This implies that establishments and/or activities classified as high-risk for transmission shall not be allowed to operate.

PHL gets P1.9-B Covid response donation from US

By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

T

he Philippines has received at least P1.9 billion worth of donations from the US government to boost the country’s Covid-19 response.

National Task Force Against Cov id-19 (N TF) chie f implementer Carlito Galvez Jr. said a part of the donation is intended to boost the country’s cold-storage facilities for Covid-19 vaccines.

“The US saw we lack freezers in geographically isolated areas,” Galvez said during the public address of President Duterte last Monday.

With the said donation, Galvez said the government was able to secure 42 freezers, which they could deploy in municipalities.

NTF earlier said the lack of the necessary cold-storage facilities in some parts of the country hamper the inoculation drive in those areas since some vaccine brands need to be stored in below freezing temperatures.

In a Viber message, Galvez said the donation from US would also be used to improve the government’s capacity for conducting testing, logistics, specialized training and demand communication support.

The government is currently ramping up its vaccination drive to reach its target of administering 100 million Covid-19 vaccine doses by the end of the year.

As of October 3, 2021, Galvez said they have already administered 48 million Covid-19 doses to over 24.58 million Filipinos nationwide, of which, 22 million are now fully vaccinated.

Galvez said they are aiming to vaccinate 80 percent to 90 percent of the country’s over 100 million population before the 2022 elections in May, which he said could become a “superspreader event” for Covid-19 infections.

“So our plan, Mr. President, in our vaccination is to complete the vaccination before February [2022], which is the election period so that just in case there will be violations [of minimum health standards] at least most of the people are already vaccinated,” Galvez said.

DICT and Baguio City ink pact for buildup of innovation hub

By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

T

he Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) and Baguio City are jointly developing the National Government Data Center (NGDC) and the Digital Transformation Center (DTC) Innovation Hub in the north.

The NGDC aims to provide faster and reliable data exchange among agencies at a lower cost. It will also result in greater efficiency as data centers serve

as a fundamental aspect of an e-government system.

The DTC, on the other hand, upgraded Tech4ED Centers wherein the department holds various ICT skills and literacy trainings. It will serve as a dedicated area for the conduct of trainings, and as coworking spaces to develop the capacities of Filipinos to enable them to participate in the digital economy.

“This partnership seeks to enhance the ICT upskilling efforts and strengthen the ICT entrepreneurship ecosystem in Baguio City. Our goal had always been to build a better investment environment for the ICT industry, to ensure abund ant job oppor tunities for our workers, and to create more thriving local economies across the country,” DICT Secretary Gregorio B. Honasan II said.

The two new infrastructures, which will be jointly designed and managed by both government sectors, will help accelerate digital transformation while building human capital, Honasan added.

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

TheWorld BusinessMirror

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

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Rural Alaska at risk as Covid-19 surge swamps faraway hospitals T

ANACROSS, Alaska—One Alaska Native village knew what to do to keep out Covid-19. They put up a gate on the only road into town and guarded it round the clock. It was the same idea used a century ago in some isolated Indigenous villages to protect people from outsiders during another deadly pandemic—the Spanish flu.

It largely worked. Only one person died of Covid-19 and 20 people got sick in Tanacross, an Athabascan village of 140 whose rustic wood cabins and other homes are nestled between the Alaska Highway and Tanana River.

But the battle against the coronavirus isn’t over. The highly contagious Delta variant is spreading across Alaska, driving one of the nation’s sharpest upticks in infections and posing risks for remote outposts like Tanacross where the closest hospital is hours away.

The Covid-19 surge is worsened

by Alaska’s limited health care system that largely relies on hospitals in Anchorage, the biggest city. It’s where the state’s largest hospital, Providence Alaska Medical Center, is overwhelmed with patients and was the first weeks ago to declare crisis-of-care protocols, meaning doctors are sometimes prioritizing care based on who has the best odds of survival.

Since then, 19 other health care facilities in Alaska, including Anchorage’s two other hospitals and Fairbanks Memorial, have also entered crisis care mode, something overtaxed facilities in other states have had to do, including Idaho and Wyoming.

“Even though we live here, we’re concerned about Anchorage and

Fairbanks,” said Alfred Jonathan, a Tanacross elder. “If somebody gets sick around there, there’s no place to take them.”

While Alaska has contracted with nearly 500 medical professionals to help over the next few months, the ramifications are dire for those in rural Alaska if they need higher levels of care—for Covid-19 or otherwise—but no beds are available.

Somet i mes t hose pat ients get lucky and get transferred to Fairbanks or Anchorage. Other times, health care staff are on the phones—in some cases, for hours—looking for a bed or facility that can provide specialty treatments like dialysis.

One patient who couldn’t get dialysis at Providence died, hospital spokesperson Mikal Canfield said.

Dr. Kristen Solana Walkinshaw, the hospital’s chief of staff, said she knew a patient in an outlying community who needed cardiac catheterization and died waiting.

Options in Seattle and Portland, Oregon, also are being overloaded. One rural clinic finally found a spot for a patient from interior Alaska in Colorado.

Health officials blame the hospital crunch on limited staffing, rising Covid-19 infections and low vaccination rates in Alaska, where

Briones leads rites honoring teachers; top tutors hailed Continued from A10

“Our teachers and learners are really our treasure for their innovations and passion, even amid the pandemic. These recognitions for them inspire us at DepEd to continuously support their careers and dreams,” Briones said.

Shortlisted from over 8,000 nominations around the world, Teacher Bryant Acar from LapuLapu City, Cebu and Teacher Michelle Rubio from Sorsogon City earned a place in the Top 50 of the Global Teacher Prize, a prestigious awards body that aims to recognize the efforts of teachers and their impacts not only inside the classroom but also in their communities.

Apart from the recognition, the winner of the Global Teacher Prize will also receive $1 million in prize.

Teacher Acar of Science and Technolog y Education CenterSenior High School (STEC-SHS), not only helped his students thread the difficulties of online learning during the pandemic but also provided opportunities

for his students to be scientists.

Traveling for 16 kilometers a day just to attend his class, Acar built a make-shift laboratory in his school and trained students who became winners of different national and international science competitions.

“The essence of a teacher is to guide, motivate, inspire and transform students so they can be a better version of themselves. We are in dire need to produce students who are not only competent but persons with character. Teaching creates a gold mine of other professions in the world and this is a gargantuan task we must strive to achieve,” Acar said.

Mea nwh i le, Teac her Rubio of C a l ao E lement a r y Sc hool created a “ Techno-classhome,” a nd t u r ned her c a r i nto a “Reading Car” where she would take reading lessons and broadcast t hem on Facebook.

She a lso pioneered “Resor t for L ea r ning ,” where a pa r t of t he school is decorated w it h beach decorat ions a nd a mini l ibra r y w ith an Inter net connection to suppor t d ist a nce lea r ning.

Angie Cleary, a registered nurse, cares for Joyce Johnson-Albert as she receives an antibody infusion while lying on a bed in a trauma room at the Upper Tanana Health Center on September 22, in Tok, Alaska. Johnson-Albert was optimistic but also realistic. “I just hope the next few days I’ll be getting a little better than now,” Johnson-Albert told a reporter on the other side of a closed, sliding glass door to the treatment room two days after testing positive for Covid-19 and while receiving an antibody infusion. “It’s just hard to say. You can go either way.” AP/Rick Bowmer

61 percent of eligible residents in the conservative state are fully vaccinated. According to data collected by Johns Hopkins University, one in every 84 people in Alaska was diagnosed with Covid-19 from September 22 to September 29, the nation’s worst diagnosis rate in recent days.

Officials say medical workers are exhausted and frustrated with what feels like a no-win effort to combat misinformation about Covid-19 being overblown and vaccines being unsafe. Some say it could have long-term effects— further shaking confidence in vaccines and treatments for other illnesses and making the longstanding pre-pandemic challenge of recruiting health care workers to the remote state more difficult.

Medical workers “describe the emotions of: ‘You hear a code is happening, someone is passing away,’” said Jared Kosin, president and CEO of the Alaska State Hospital and Nursing Home Association.

“That is devastating. You never want to lose a patient. But in the back of your mind, you’re thinking, ‘OK, another bed is now available that is critically needed.’ And how do you balance those emotions?

It’s gut-wrenching.”

In Tanacross, elders are encouraging people to get vaccinated, especially with facilities strained.

The village is in a sprawling, sparsely populated region of eastern Alaska where the vaccination rate is under 50 percent.

Jonathan, 78, tells villagers that Covid-19 is here, and like the Delta variant, is going to develop in other ways.

Those who “didn’t get vaccinated? Gosh, we’re afraid for them,” said Jonathan, who recently led a crew clearing dead and dying trees to reduce wildfire fuel and provide wood to heat homes.

His wife, Mildred, helped guard the gate into the community this year. Those restrictions ended this summer as the pandemic seemed to be improving. Now, she says she’s tired of outsiders calling their friends in Tanacross to scare them, claiming there are problems with the vaccines.

“I got both my shots, I’m alive and nothing’s wrong with me,” she said before piling bags of sanitizer, masks and nitrile gloves into her Prius to deliver throughout town.

A laska, hailed early in the pandemic for working with tribal health organizations to distribute vaccines widely and quickly, was

“To all the teachers out there continue innovating and doing extraordinary things that would help our learners cope with this pandemic. Never be discouraged.

Look at the positive side of every situation and use it as our stepping stones to continue doing our mission as educators. Our learners need us to give hope for their future,” Rubio shared.

In the Global Student Prize category, Ancelmo Catalla, a Senior High School student in Quezon Science High School, also joined the Top 50 finalists out of 3,500 nominations across 94 countries.

A wide reader as a child, Ancelmo is editor-in-chief of his school’s official student paper, The Velocity, and a budding social entrepreneur. He aims to dedicate his possible $100,000 winning to building mini-libraries for remote public schools.

“Honestly, it is very taxing to keep being excellent amid the Covid-19 pandemic. But as a scholar of the people, I have to serve— and part of my service is to keep learning so that the taxes that the people pay do not go to waste.

What keeps me going is knowing the fact that I have to study not just

25th in the US for the percentage of its total population inoculated, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.

At hospitals, care “has shifted,” said Dr. Anne Zink, Alaska’s chief medical officer.

“The same standard of care that was previously there is no longer able to be given on a regular basis,” she said. “This has been happening for weeks.”

In rural Alaska, six Indigenous villages, including Tanacross, rely on the new Upper Tanana Health Center in the hub community of Tok, about a two-hour drive from the Canadian border. The staff treats who they can and moves those with more serious needs to Anchorage or Fairbanks, said Jacoline Bergstrom, executive director of health services for the Tanana Chiefs Conference, a consortium of 42 Athabascan villages spread over an area of interior Alaska nearly the size of Texas.

Emergency plans are in place to house people overnight if hospital beds aren’t available right away, clinic director Joni Young said.

They’re usually f lown because it’s a three-hour drive from Tok to Fairbanks and about seven to Anchorage.

“If for some reason, we can’t medevac out, we’ve been preparing since the beginning to help our patients if we need to,” Young said. “We’ve got cots before, stored here, and we have another building that we lease that we could use to separate Covid patients.”

The staff is putting in overtime, with nurses taking Covid-19 questions from callers and working weekends. They need to hire two urgent care registered nurses, but few have applied.

Joyce Johnson-Albert lay on a bed at the health center with an IV in her arm. She was vaccinated but got a breakthrough infection, she suspects from a hunting camp.

“I just hope the next few days, I’ll be getting a little better than

now,” Johnson-Albert said as she received a monoclonal antibody infusion, given at the onset of Covid-19 to lessen symptoms.

“It’s just hard to say. You can go either way.”

Registered nurse Angie Cleary is grateful the clinic offers the infusion treatment.

“However, I feel worried some days where we’re not sure when we’ll get more,” Cleary said. “For example, we’re down to, I think, five doses right now, and we could get more tomorrow or it might not be until next week. That’s one of the concerns we have living out here, is like, when are we going to get our next shipment?”

They’re also battling misinformation about the pandemic.

Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy has faced criticism for not mandating masks and not endorsing vaccines as fully as some would like. He has encouraged people to get shots but said it is a personal choice. Others have accused him of pushing vaccines and peddling fear.

Providence hospital employe es a re h av i n g a h a rd t i me with the harsh rhetoric, Solana Walkinshaw said. One staffer got spit at leaving work, the chief of staff said.

“We still have people who are Covid-denying as they’re being intubated, or family members who are Covid-denying as they’re saying on an iPad, saying goodbye to their loved one,” she said.

Daisy Northway of the Tok Native Association knows how hard it is to advocate for vaccinations, saying she’s “talked till I’m blue in the face” trying to convince one of her sons.

The Athabascan elder said she urges people to get the shots but in a way that lowers the political fervor.

“We need to say, ‘Get vaccinated’ in such a manner that it’s helpful and not being criticizing for their beliefs,” she said. AP

for me and my family, but also for the community,” Ancelmo shared.

The selection committee or the “Prize Judges” will select 10 finalists out of the 50 on October 2021.

From there, one winner per category will be chosen. The announcement and awarding of the winners will be in November 2021.

Claudeth Mocon-Ciriaco

A6

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

TheWorld BusinessMirror

IMF gets briefing on probe into China rankings at World Bank T

www.businessmirror.com.ph

China flies 56 warplanes toward self-ruled Taiwan

W

ASHINGTON—The International Monetary Fund said Monday its board of directors has been briefed by attorneys from the law firm whose investigation found that current IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva and other officials pressured World Bank employees to alter data affecting the business rankings of China and other nations.

The IMF said the 190-nation lending agency’s board of directors met with representatives of the WilmerHale law firm as part of an ongoing review of the issues raised by the firm’s investigation into the World Bank’s “Doing Business 2018” report.

The Doing Business report evaluated a country’s tax burdens, bureaucratic obstacles, regulatory system and other business conditions, and its rankings was used by some governments to try to attract investment.

The IMF said in a statement that the board would soon meet with

Georgieva as part of its review of the matter. The statement said the IMF’s board “remains committed to a thorough, objective and timely review” of the issues raised by the report.

The investigation prompted the World Bank to end the annual Doing Business reports. The report found that Georgieva, then the chief executive of the World Bank, and other senior World Bank leaders had pressured the bank’s economists to improve China’s 2018 ranking at a time when she and other officials were attempting to persuade China to support

In this September 6, file photo, Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, delivers a speech during the opening ceremony for the Floating Office where a high-level dialogue on climate adaptation takes place in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The International Monetary Fund said on October 4, that its board of directors has been briefed by attorneys from the law firm whose investigation found that Georgieva and other officials pressured World Bank employees to alter data affecting the business rankings of China and other nations. AP/Peter Dejong

a boost in the World Bank’s funding resources.

The incident has led to calls for Georgieva to resign from the IMF’s top job. It has also served to underscore complaints that China has too much influence over global financial institutions.

Georgieva has denied all wrongdoing. “Let me be clear. The conclusions are wrong. I did not pressure

anyone to alter any reports,” she said in a statement issued after the report came out last month.

Georgieva said she was looking forward to meeting with the IMF board to brief them on her actions.

T he controversy is coming ahead of the annual meetings of the IMF and World Bank, which w ill take place next week in Washington. AP

Japan’s new PM Kishida, Biden agree to cooperate on China, North Korea T OKYO—Japan’s new Prime Minister Fumio Kishida held his first talks as Japanese leader with President Joe Biden and confirmed they will work to strengthen their alliance and cooperate in regional security in the face of growing challenges from China and North Korea.

Kishida, who was elected by Parliament and sworn in Monday, told reporters that Biden reassured him of the US commitment to defend the Japanese-controlled East China Sea island Senkaku, which China also claims and has escalated coast guard activity in the area.

B id e n pro v id e d “a s t ron g statement about US commitment for the defense of Japan, including...Senkaku,” K ishida said, adding that the two leaders also reaffirmed they would tackle together the “challenges facing neighboring regions such

as China and North Korea.”

Kishida supports stronger Japan-US security ties and partnerships with other like-minded democracies in Asia, Europe and Britain, in part to counter China and nuclear-armed North Korea.

Kishida has also pledged to beef up Japan’s missile and naval defense capabilities.

Kishida on Monday acknowledged the need to continue dialogue with China, an important neighbor and trade partner, but said that “we must speak up” against China’s attempt to change the status quo in the East and South China Seas.

The two leaders confirmed their commitment to work toget her towa rd ac hiev ing t he “free and open Indo-Pacific” vision of partnerships among the regional democracies as a counter to China’s increasingly assertive activity, Kishida said.

Holding his first talks as prime minister with the US president serves “a first step toward lifting the Japan-US alliance to even higher levels,” Kishida said.

The 20-minute phone talks Monday started with Biden congratulating Kishida on taking office. The leaders agreed to call each other by their first names, Joe and Fumio, and agreed to meet for their first in-person talks at an early date.

Later Monday, Kishida held online ta l ks w ith Austra lian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, agreeing to strengthen their security and economic ties bilaterally and as part of the Quad alliance, which also includes the United States and India, to promote the regional peace and stability, Japan’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

K ishida expressed his support of a newly launched security partnership among Australia,

Britain and the United States, or AUKUS. He and Morrison reaffirmed their firm objection to what’s seen as economic overbearing by China and unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the regional seas, the ministr y said.

Kishida, 64, had been known as a moderate in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party but won the party’s leadership last week after a hawkish turn on security and taking a more conservative stance on gender equality and other issues, apparently to win over inf luential conservatives in the party.

He succeeds Yoshihide Suga, who resigned after only one year in office after seeing his support plunging over his handling of the virus and insistence on holding the Olympics—seen as highhanded and ignoring the public’s concerns. AP

Japan counts on Asian market to help shift to green energy

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OKYO—Japan is focusing on its neighbors in Asia as it hopes to take a leadership role in the growing push to reduce emissions, having earmarked $10 billion to help the region speed up the move away from fossil fuels.

The Economy and Industry Ministry hosted the first “Asia green growth partnership” meeting Monday, bringing together more than 20 nations, including Thailand and India, as well as the US, Australia and countries in the Middle East.

“There are a variety of energy transition pathways in each country. It is most effective to make efforts according to each country’s economic, social and energy situ-

ation and technological capabilities,” said Hiroshi Kajiyama, the outgoing minister, with the Cabinet reshuffle being held about the same time as the meeting.

He stressed the importance of various options, “such as nuclear power, hydrogen and ammonia, to promote energy transitions in a realistic way.”

The meeting was held online because of Covid-19 restrictions.

Japan hopes it will be an annual gathering, with the goal of helping nations meet the Paris accord on climate change. The goal of the Paris accord is to cap global temperature rise at 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 Fahrenheit) by 2100.

A ministry official told The Associated Press the effort to get

Asia on board helps Japan’s energy transition in the long run because that would mean a bigger market in that sector, which Japan sees as critical. Asian nations will be free to develop their own solutions, he said, speaking on customary condition of anonymity.

The minister’s statement that there is no “single pathway to carbon neutrality” echoes the views of the International Energy Agency, based in Paris, which also took part in Monday’s meeting.

China was invited but is not taking part, citing the recent national holidays.

Japan has among the world ’s highest per capita emissions, although experts say it holds potential in making a shift to

renewable energy because of its natural environment and technological prowess.

Japan remains more than 80 percent dependent on fossil fuels but ranks third in the world in solar power generation capacity after China and the US, according to IEA data.

Experts are warning the world continues to heat up, despite various nations’ emissions targets.

Last year, Japan pledged to become carbon neutral, achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

Resou rce - poor Japa n includes nuclear power in its energ y mi x plans, although some nuclear plants remain off line after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster. AP

A IPEI, Ta iwa n— C h ina flew 56 fighter planes toward Taiwan on Monday in the largest show of force on record, continuing the three days of sustained military harassment against the self-ruled island.

The first sortie of 52 planes included 34 J-16 fighter jets and 12 H-6 bombers, among other aircraft, according to Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense.

Later, four more Chinese J-16s f lew toward the southwestern part of Taiwan’s air defense identification zone—a buffer outside a country’s airspace.

The Taiwanese air force scrambled its fighter planes and monitored the movement of the Chinese warplanes on its air defense system, the ministry said.

China claims democratically ruled Taiwan as its own territory, to be brought under its control by force if necessary. It refuses to recognize the island’s government and has increasingly sought to isolate the independence-leaning administration of President Tsai Ing-wen.

Experts have called the flights and other military maneuvers by Beijing gray zone warfare, or any type of military action short of direct combat. Many say they do not believe the display of force and aggressive rhetoric, much of which is repetitive, will lead to war.

“We are very concerned that China is going to launch a war against Taiwan at some point, even though the threat may not be imminent at this point,” Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu said in an interview with the Australian Broadcasting Corp. broadcast on Monday.

Taiwan and China split during a civil war in 1949, and Beijing opposes Taiwan’s involvement in international organizations.

Taiwan announced on September 23 that it had applied to join the Comprehensive and Progressive

Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, a week after China submitted its own application to join the trade pact.

Starting last Friday, on China’s National Day, the People’s Liberation Army sent 38 warplanes into the area and 39 aircraft on Saturday, previously the most in a single day since Taiwan began releasing reports on the flights in September 2020. China sent an additional 16 planes on Sunday.

The latest maneuvers by the Chinese air force bring the total to 814 flights.

In Washington on Monday, W hite House Press Secretar y Jen Psaki said: “We remain concerned by the People’s Republic of China’s provocative military activity near Taiwan, which is destabilizing, risks miscalculations and undermines regional peace and stability. We urge Beijing to cease its military, diplomatic and economic pressure and coercion against Taiwan.”

In response to a similar statement over the weekend from the US State Department, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs had said that the US selling weapons to Taiwan as well as ships navigating the Taiwan Strait were “provocative action that harmed US-China relations.”

“China will take all necessary countermeasures and resolutely crush any ‘Taiwan independence’ plot,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said in a statement Monday night.

The latest f lights have come in separate groups with daytime and nighttime incursions. The nighttime f lights are of note, ana lysts say, because they’re more challenging due to reduced visibility.

“They have the kind of confidence to operate at night,” said Chen-Yi Tu, a researcher at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research in Taiwan. AP

Australia won’t welcome foreign tourists until 2022

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ANBERR A, Australia— International tourists won’t be welcomed back to Australia until next year, with the return of skilled migrants and students given higher priority, the prime minister said on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Australia was expected to reach the vaccination benchmark on Tuesday at which the country could begin to open up: 80 percent of the population aged 16 and older having a second shot.

Last week, he outlined plans to allow vaccinated citizens and permanent residents to fly overseas from November for the first time since an extraordinarily tough travel ban took effect in March last year.

But Morrison on Tuesday said that after Australians, the next priority would be skilled m ig ra nts a nd inter nat iona l students enter ing Austra lia before tourists.

Australian immigration has been at its lowest since World War II because of pandemic restrictions. The pandemic has also had a disastrous effect on Australian universities that rely heavily on fees paid by international students. The education sector fears that students will enroll in other countries unless Australia opens its border to them soon.

“The next priorities are skilled migrants that are very important for the country and who are double vaccinated, as well as students who are coming and returning to Australia for their studies,” Morrison told Seven Network television.

“We will get to international visitors as well, I believe next year,” Morrison added.

The Australian Tourism Export Council, which represents a sector that made 45 billion Australian dollars ($33 billion) a year from international tourists before the pandemic, wants international visitors to return

by March.

Australia is racing to inoculate its population as an outbreak of the more contagious Delta variant that began in Sydney in June continues to spread.

Victoria state on Tuesday reported a national record 1,763 new local infections. Australia’s second-most populous state also reported four Covid-19 deaths.

The previous national record of 1,599 infections in 24 hours was set by New South Wales when its outbreak peaked on Sept. 10.

Hospitalizations peaked in Australia’s most populous state in mid-September.

New South Wales leads the other states in vaccination rates and Sydney’s airport is expected to be the first to reopen to vaccinated travelers. AP

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EU drug regulator OKs Pfizer vaccine booster for 18 and older

A

MSTERDAM—The European Union’s drug regulator gave its backing Monday to administering booster shots of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for people 18 and older.

The European Medicines Agency said the booster doses “may be considered at least 6 months after the second dose for people aged 18 years and older.”

The agency’s human medicines committee issued the recommendation after studying data for the Pfizer vaccine that showed a rise in antibody levels following boosters given around 6 months after the second dose in people from 18 to 55 years old.

The agency also said it supports giving a third dose of either the Pfizer-BioNTech or the Moderna vaccine to people with severely weakened immune systems at least 28 days after their second shot.

The agency said its decision came after studies showed that an extra dose of the vaccines increased people’s ability to produce antibodies against the virus that causes Covid-19 in organ transplant patients with weakened immune systems.

“Although there is no direct evidence that the ability to produce antibodies in these patients protected against Covid-19, it is expected that the extra dose would increase protection at least in some patients,” the agency said in a statement.

The EMA recommendations go to the European Commission

for approval and then to health authorities in all 27 EU nations, whose national health authorities decide on vaccination strategies.

Some countries already have begun administering booster shots.

Numerous studies have shown that the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines remain strongly protective months after people receive their second dose, dramatically cutting the risk of hospitalization and death.

The World Health Organization’s chief had urged wealthy nations not to use booster doses this year, saying there is no scientific data that proves the shots are necessary. He said Covid-19 vaccines would be put to better use in developing countries, where many people still have not received their first vaccine shots.

The United States government launched a campaign last month to offer boosters of Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine to millions of Americans even as federal health officials stressed the real problem remains getting first shots to the unvaccinated.

P f i zer -BioN Tec h sa id i n a statement that they “do not expect the introduction of booster doses in the United States and the EU, if authorized, to impact the existing supply agreements in place with governments and international health organizations around the world.”

The coronavirus pandemic has killed at least 4.8 million people around the world. AP

Biden eager to get out of DC, push benefits of spending plan

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A SHINGTON—President Joe Biden is shifting strategy to sell his ambitious social spending plans by traveling outside Washington and courting Democrats who have complained they felt left out of the process.

With his agenda in jeopardy on Capitol Hill, Biden on Tuesday will visit the Michigan district of a moderate Democratic lawmaker who has urged him to promote his proposals more aggressively to the public. Back in Washington, negotiations continue on a pair of bills to boost spending on safety net, health and environmental programs and infrastructure projects.

While there is cautious optimism about recent progress, no deal had been struck to bridge stark divides between moderates and progressives in the Democratic Party on the size and scope of the package.

In recent weeks, as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi worked unsuccessfully to secure passage of the bills, Biden stayed in Washington to cajole lawmakers and work phones.

Now, he’s trying to put the public focus on popular components of the bills rather than the inside-the-Beltway debate over their price tag.

The president will appear with Democratic Rep. Elise Slotkin when he visits a union training center in Howell, Michigan, a reflection of the importance of securing moderates’ votes. Next to Biden, the Democrats with the most on the line over the shape and success of his spending plans are House members from swing districts whose reelections are essential if his party is to retain control of Congress.

Democratic legislators have warned that Biden’s bold ideas are getting lost in the party’s infighting and procedural skirmishes over the legislation.

“We must communicate to the country the transformative nature of the initiatives in the legislation,” Pelosi said in a letter to lawmakers ahead of Biden’s trip.

The visit to Slotkin’s district, narrowly carried by Republican Donald Trump in 2020, is part of

the sales effort.

Slotkin supports a bipartisan $1 trillion infrastructure bill that has passed the Senate but prefers passing it in the House before negotiating the broader $3.5 trillion package of social programs. She has indicated that she may vote to approve the broader bill sooner if it is fiscally responsible and can make a difference for families, her aides said, but she is not a guaranteed yes—which she planned to tell Biden on Tuesday.

“To be honest, it was hard for me to understand why leadership decided in the first place to tie the two bills together,” Slotkin recently told The Detroit News. “That’s not how we normally operate. It’s not my preference.”

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Monday that after Biden spent considerable time in recent days deep in the messy negotiations over the bills, “now it’s also important to remind people, as the sausage-making has been kind of the dominant storyline for the last few weeks, what this is all about. Why he’s fighting so hard for it.”

Biden last week postponed a trip to Chicago, where he had planned to promote coronavirus vaccine mandates and work in a pitch for his agenda, in order to stay in Washington and lobby lawmakers. He’s rescheduled that trip for Thursday, and more travel is expected in coming days.

The uptick in travel is meant to build public support for a wide range of initiatives packaged under the imprecise slogan of “Build Back Better.” A series of crises, from Afghanistan to Covid-19, along with the convoluted legislative process have hampered the White House’s ability to promote the massive package or even say definitively what will be in the final version.

Polling suggests that elements in the bill such as expanded childcare opportunities and infrastructure projects are popular with large parts of the public. But even some of the White House’s closest allies have worried that the West Wing has not done enough to sell it. AP

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

A7

‘Pandora Papers’ ignite new calls for tax haven scrutiny

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ASHINGTON—Calls grew Monday for an end to the financial secrecy that has allowed many of the world’s richest and most powerful people to hide their wealth from tax collectors.

The outcry came after a report revealed the way that world leaders, billionaires and others have used shell companies and offshore accounts to keep trillions of dollars out of government treasuries over the past quarter-century, limiting the resources for helping the poor or combating climate change.

The report by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists brought promises of tax reform and demands for resignations and investigations, as well as explanations and denials from those targeted.

The investigation, dubbed the Pandora Papers, was published Sunday and involved 600 journalists from 150 media outlets in 117 countries.

Hundreds of politicians, celebrities, religious leaders and drug dealers have used shell companies or other tactics to hide their wealth and investments in mansions, exclusive beachfront property, yachts and other assets, according to a review of nearly 12 million files obtained from 14 firms located around the world.

“The Pandora Papers is all about individuals using secrecy jurisdictions, which we would call tax havens, when the goal is to evade taxes,” said Steve Wamhoff, director of federal tax policy at the leftleaning Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy in Washington.

The tax dodges can be legal.

Gabriel Zucman, a University of California, Berkeley, economist who studies income inequality and taxes, said in a statement one solution is “obvious”: Ban “shell companies— corporations with no economic substance, whose sole purpose is to avoid taxes or other laws.” “ The legality is the true scandal,” activist and science-fiction

author Cory Doctorow wrote on Twitter. “Each of these arrangements represents a risible fiction: a shell company is a business, a business is a person, that person resides in a file-drawer in the desk of a bank official on some distant treasure island.”

The more than 330 current and former politicians identified as beneficiaries of the secret accounts include Jordan’s King Abdullah II, former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair, Czech Republic Prime Minister Andrej Babis, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, Ecuador’s President Guillermo Lasso, and associates of both Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Some of those targeted strongly denied the claims.

Oxfam International, a British consortium of charities, applauded the Pandora Papers for exposing brazen examples of greed that deprived countries of tax revenue that could be used to finance programs and projects for the greater good.

“This is where our missing hospitals are,” Oxfam said in a statement. “This is where the paypackets sit of all the extra teachers and firefighters and public servants we need.”

The European Commission, the 27-nation European Union’s executive arm, said in response to the revelations that it is preparing new legislative proposals to enhance tax transparency and reinforce the fight against tax evasion.

The Pandora Papers are a follow-up to a similar project released in 2016 called the “Panama Papers” compiled by the same journalistic group.

The latest bombshell is even more expansive, relying on data

leaked from 14 different service providers doing business in 38 different jurisdictions. The records date back to the 1970s, but most are from 1996 to 2020.

The investigation dug into accounts registered in familiar offshore havens, including the British Virgin Islands, Seychelles, Hong Kong and Belize. But some were also in trusts set up in the US, including 81 in South Dakota and 37 in Florida.

The document trove reveals how powerful people are able to deploy anonymous shell companies, trusts and other artifices to conceal the true owners of corrupt or illicit assets. Legally sanctioned trusts, for example, can be subject to abuse by tax evaders and fraudsters who crave the privacy and autonomy they offer compared with traditional business entities.

Shell companies, a favored tax evasion vehicle, are often layered in complex networks that conceal the identity of the beneficial owners of assets—those who ultimately control an offshore company or other asset, or benefit from it financially, while other people’s names are listed on registration documents. The report said, for example, that an offshore company was used to buy a $4 million Monaco apartment for a woman who reportedly carried on a secret relationship with Putin.

While a beneficial owner may be required to pay taxes in the home country, it’s often difficult for authorities to discover that an offshore account exists, especially if offshore governments don’t cooperate.

A Treasury Department agency working on new regulations for a US beneficial ownership directory has been debating whether partnerships, trusts and other business entities should be included. Transparency advocates say they must or else criminals will devise new types of paper companies for slipping through the cracks.

International bodies like the G-7 group of wealthiest nations and the Financial Action Task Force have begun initiatives in

recent years to improve ownership transparency, but the efforts have moved at a modest pace.

Pointing to the secrecy behind many of the tax dodges, some critics are calling for a global wealth registry that would make sham investments in shell companies public, embarrassing politicians or celebrities worried about their reputations.

In the US, the House passed legislation this summer that would require multinational corporations to publicly disclose their tax payments and other key financial information on a country-bycountry basis. Anti-money laundering and corporate transparency measures were tucked into legislation funding the Defense Department; it has yet to be implemented by the Treasury Department.

The Biden administration is also pushing for US banks to be required to report customers’ account information to the IRS as part of the $3.5 trillion economic and social spending package before Congress. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and other officials say it’s an important way to prevent tax dodging by wealthy individuals and companies, but it has raised fierce opposition from banking industry groups and Republican lawmakers, who maintain it would violate privacy and create unfair liability for banks.

Tax havens have already come u nder con siderable sc r ut i ny this year.

In July, negotiators from 130 countr ies ag reed to a globa l minimum ta x of at least 15% to prevent big mu ltinationa l cor porations from minimizing ta xes by shifting profits from high- to low-ta x jurisdictions such as Bermuda and the Cayman Islands. Details of the plan by the Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development have yet to be worked out; it’s supposed to take effect in 2023.

And while the plan would cover huge multinational corporations, it would not include the shell companies and other entities behind the schemes described in the Pandora Papers. AP

Haiti to UN Security Council: Help us handle gang violence

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EW YORK—Haiti’s top diplomat implored the U N Sec u r it y Cou nc i l on Monday for help tackling gang violence and crime, saying the existing UN political mission needs to pivot toward strengthening security and law enforcement institutions in the crisis-wracked country.

“It’s vital to take account of the new realities that the country is facing and that the mandate is adjusted accordingly,” Foreign Minister Claude Joseph told the council after a summer of calamities in the Western Hemisphere’s poorest country.

President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated in July. A magnitude 7.2 earthquake killed over 2,200 people and damaged or destroyed tens of thousands of homes in August. US border patrol agents’ treatment of Haitian migrants massed at the southern US border sparked outrage last month.

Meanwhile, Haiti has been contend i ng w it h esc a l at i ng gang-related killings, kidnappings and turf wars. The UN says

gang violence has forced 19,000 Haitians from their homes in recent months, with many living in makeshift shelters and unsanitary conditions.

Haiti’s National Police have been working to follow recommendations that UN policing experts made this summer, the UN’s Haiti envoy, Helen La Lime, told the council. But she said the force is “over-stretched and under-resourced.”

Haiti’s government “must implement a more holistic approach to addressing gang violence,” La Lime said.

Joseph, in turn, said officials need the UN’s Haiti mission to focus on supporting the government’s efforts in “security stabilization and the protection of civilians.” He didn’t list specifics.

The mission’s mandate, which is up for renewal this month, currently includes promoting police professionalism and supporting a national strategy to reduce violence. It also has a number of other goals, such as advancing electoral reforms.

T he Secur it y Counci l deployed a full-f ledged peacekeeping mission in Haiti after a devastating 2010 earthquake. It was replaced in 2017 by a police mission, which was then replaced by the smaller political mission in 2019.

Joseph also appealed for the international community’s support on technical, financial and other matters.

Council members said Haiti needs continued support to find its way forward, though some also emphasized the country’s own role in doing so.

“It is ultimately up to the Haitian people themselves to bring the country out of his plight,” Chinese deputy A mbassador Geng Shuang said. He compared years of international aid efforts to giving someone a blood transfusion or oxygen that “has proven to be neither markedly effective nor sustainable.”

He and Russian deputy Ambassador Dmitry Polyanskiy also criticized the expulsion of more than 2,300 Haitian asylum-seekers along the US border. Thousands

of others were allowed into the US temporarily to pursue their claims to stay.

Images of US border patrol agents on horseback corralling the migrants stirred an outcry, the resignation of Washington’s special envoy to Haiti, an investigation, and a visit to Haiti and apology last week from a top American official. “ We are dismayed by the decision to forcibly return to Haiti those who cobbled together the tota lit y of their means to leave Haiti in search of better lives for their children,” Polyanskiy said.

US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield didn’t mention migrants or the border during her remarks to the council.

Joseph, the Haitian foreign minister, ca l led t he images from the border “ horrific” and called for the migrants to be treated “with dignity and humanity.” He went on to note the US apologies, praise President Joe Biden’s response and thank Mexico for its efforts to address migration issues. AP

A8 Wednesday, October 6, 2021 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

editorial

Preventing the spread of water-borne diseases

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he magnitude of the country’s sanitation problems and lack of clean water supply was revealed recently by the Philippine Statistics Authority. In its report, the country’s statistics agency disclosed that water-borne diseases killed at least 14 Filipinos daily from 2010 to 2019 (See, “PSA: 14 Pinoys die every day from water-borne diseases,” in the BusinessMirror, October 4, 2021). The report also indicated that vector-borne diseases—those caused by parasites, viruses and bacteria that are transmitted by vectors, such as insects—killed an average of 3 Filipinos daily in the past decade.

Water-borne diseases, such as typhoid and paratyphoid fever, bloody diarrhea, cholera, viral hepatitis, and leptospirosis killed 53,066 Filipinos in the past decade. Of the water-borne diseases monitored by the PSA, bloody diarrhea was the deadliest as it caused a total of 37,622 deaths in the past 10 years. These diseases are transmitted through water contaminated with human or animal waste.

The PSA said vector-borne diseases—dengue and malaria—killed a total of 12,062 Filipinos in 10 years. Of the vector-borne diseases monitored by the agency, dengue was the deadliest as it accounted for 11,832 deaths. Malaria, which was considered by the World Health Organization as the deadliest vector-borne disease, killed 230 Filipinos during the period. WHO said poorly designed irrigation and water systems, inadequate housing, poor waste disposal and water storage, deforestation and loss of biodiversity may be contributing factors to the most common vector-borne diseases.

The Philippines would need to expand its investments in the water and sanitation sector to improve access to better water resources, prevent deaths and meet the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) on water supply and sanitation by 2030. The National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) noted that only about 44 percent of households in the country have individual connection to a proper and fully reticulated waterworks system. The remaining 56 percent would have to fetch water from communal pipes, springs or wells up to 250 meters away (See, “PHL has to invest P1.1T until ’30 for water, sanitation,” in the BusinessMirror, September 16, 2021).

The Neda also noted that only 18 percent of Filipinos have access to septage management services, while 13 percent have access to a sewerage system. Over 4 million Filipinos still practice open defecation. These conditions expose Filipinos to higher risks of acute bloody diarrhea, cholera, typhoid fever, and other waterborne diseases.

To meet the SDG on water supply and sanitation, the Philippines would have to invest over P100 billion annually from 2020 to 2030.

This investment must be made if policy-makers want to prevent deaths caused by water-borne and vector-borne diseases. Lawmakers should also consider the recommendation of the Philippine Water Supply and Sanitation Master Plan launched in September by the Neda to create an apex water body that will help address the “fragmented” water supply and sanitation sector.

Deaths caused by water-borne and vector-borne diseases are preventable, particularly if measures that will ensure people’s access to clean and safe drinking water and sanitation facilities are in place.

Access to better water resources, according to WHO, will boost economic growth and contribute greatly to poverty reduction. This is also the best way to prevent the spread of infectious diseases.

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Recognizing partner institutions through the SSS’ Balikat Ng Bayan Awards Aurora C. Ignacio

All About Social Security

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he culminating activity of SSS’ 64th Anniversary was the Balikat ng Bayan Awarding Ceremonies, which was held last September 30 via our official Facebook page. Through this virtual activity, we bestowed recognitions to our institutional partners in providing social security protection to our valued members, employers, pensioners, and other stakeholders.

Instituted in 1995, the Balikat ng Bayan Award is a tribute given by the Social Security System to honor employers, banks, media, accreditation partners, etc. for the execution and delivery of SSS services and programs. Aptly named Balikat ng Bayan, it connotes the mutually beneficial partnerships that helped SSS realize breakthrough performances in the areas of benefits and loan releases, membership coverage, collection efforts, promotional campaigns, and fund enhancements. The recognition is a manifestation of how SSS acknowledges and values its partnership with these groups in pursuit of its corporate mandate.

Since then, this has been become one of the highlights of SSS anniversary celebrations for the past

26 years.

As social gatherings are not yet allowed for health and safety reasons due to the current pandemic, we decided to conduct the Awards ceremony virtually for the first time.

For 2021, we had a total of two categories, including two special citations, for a total of six awardees. The awards were conferred on employers and organizations that excelled in their respective categories for the past year in terms of compliance with the Social Security Law, accurate and timely submission of reports, as well as their active participation in SSS programs.

For the Top Employer Categories, employers must satisfy the following minimum requirements: n must be a regularly-paying

employer, both for contributions and loan remittances; n must be covered by the SSS not later than 2015; n must be submitting their collection lists online; and n must be registered in the SSS web facility.

Conferred for the Top Employer Awards are the following: n EVA Airways Corp.—for Small Account Category. n Makilala Medical Specialists—for Medium Account Category. n BDO Unibank, Inc.—for Large Account Category.

For the Best Media Partner, the criteria were based on their compliance with the Social Security Law in terms of regular remittance of contributions and loans of employees.

They must have also provided segments/reports/documentaries and interviews about the SSS that should have a big impact on society in terms of significance to social security, labor practices, and workers’ concerns, as well as adherence to journalism standards in terms of balance, accuracy, and fairness.

For this year, the Best Media Partner went to BusinessMirror (Philippine Business Daily Mirror) while special citations were awarded to Bulgar (Sison’s Publishing House, Inc.) and DXRD-Davao City (Swara Sug Media Corp.).

The plaques that were awarded

to our winners were designed by the late Dr. Antonino Raymundo, a well-renowned and respected Filipino sculptor. Circular in shape, the plaque signifies the SSS’ vision of universal coverage, while the encircling cord represents the System’s stability and commitment to its mandate.

The map of the Philippines depicts the efforts of the System to bring its services closer to its members.

On this note, I commend all our awardees for their commitment to advance the welfare of their employees by complying with the SSS Law and for adapting to the digitalization initiatives of SSS and promoting them to their employees. My deepest appreciation also goes out to all our partner-institutions who have continuously shown us their support and cooperation through the years.

Lastly, I hope that our current and future partners will continue to provide our private-sector workers the social security protection they deserve by staying committed to their responsibility as employers and partner-institutions of SSS in the coming years.

Again, congratulations to all our awardees!

Aurora C. Ignacio is SSS president and chief executive officer.

We welcome your questions and insights on the topics that we discuss. E-mail mediaaffairs@sss. gov.ph for topics that you might want us to discuss.

Ex-Facebook employee bringing sharp criticisms to Congress

By Marcy Gordon | AP Business Writer

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ASHINGTON—A former Facebook data scientist has stunned lawmakers and the public with revelations of the company’s awareness of apparent harm to some teens from Instagram and her accusations of dishonesty in its fight against hate and misinformation. Now she is coming before Congress.

Frances Haugen has come forward with a wide-ranging condemnation of Facebook, buttressed with tens of thousands of pages of internal research documents she secretly copied before leaving her job in Facebook’s civic integrity unit. Haugen also has filed complaints with federal authorities alleging that Facebook’s own research shows that it amplifies hate, misinformation and political unrest, but the company hides what it knows.

After recent reports in The Wall Street Journal based on documents she leaked to the newspaper raised a public outcry, Haugen revealed her identity in a CBS “60 Minutes” interview aired Sunday night. She insisted that “Facebook, over and over again, has shown it chooses profit over safety.”

The ex-employee challenging the social network giant with 2.8 billion

users worldwide and nearly $1 trillion in market value is a 37-year-old data expert from Iowa with a degree in computer engineering and a master’s degree in business from Harvard. She worked for 15 years prior to being recruited by Facebook in 2019 at companies including Google and Pinterest.

Haugen is set to testify to the Senate Commerce subcommittee on consumer protection at a hearing Tuesday.

The panel is examining Facebook’s use of information from its own researchers on Instagram that could indicate potential harm for some of its young users, especially girls, while it publicly downplayed the negative impacts. For some of the teens devoted to Facebook’s popular photo-sharing platform, the peer pressure generated by the visu-

ally focused Instagram led to mental health and body-image problems, and in some cases, eating disorders and suicidal thoughts, the research leaked by Haugen showed.

One internal study cited 13.5 percent of teen girls saying Instagram makes thoughts of suicide worse and 17 percent of teen girls saying it makes eating disorders worse.

“And what’s super tragic is Facebook’s own research says, as these young women begin to consume this eating disorder content, they get more and more depressed,” Haugen said in the televised interview. “And it actually makes them use the app more. And so, they end up in this feedback cycle where they hate their bodies more and more.”

As the public relations debacle over the Instagram research grew last week, Facebook put on hold its work on a kids’ version of Instagram, which the company says is meant mainly for tweens aged 10 to 12.

The senators are eager to hear from Haugen.

“I look forward to asking her follow-up questions about why Facebook hasn’t taken action to fix problems on its platforms, even

when its own internal research reflects massive problems,” Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., a member of the subcommittee, told The Associated Press on Monday. “I want to discuss how Facebook’s algorithms promote harmful and divisive content, and how much Facebook really profits off of our children.”

At issue are algorithms that govern what shows up on users’ news feeds, and how they favor hateful content. Haugen said a 2018 change to the content flow contributed to more divisiveness and ill will in a network ostensibly created to bring people closer together. Despite the enmity that the new algorithms were feeding, Facebook found that they helped keep people coming back—a pattern that helped the social media giant sell more of the digital ads that generate most of its revenue.

Haugen’s criticisms range beyond the Instagram situation. She said in the interview that Facebook prematurely turned off safeguards designed to thwart misinformation and incitement to violence after Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump last year, alleging that contributed See “Ex-Facebook,” A9

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

How Putin’s advisers convinced him to take climate risks seriously

By Evgenia Pismennaya, Yuliya Fedorinova & Ilya Arkhipov Bloomberg Opinion

A

fter years of publicly dismissing climate change, President Vladimir Putin is finally prodding officials to take the threat it poses to Russia’s economy more seriously.

The shift in thinking means the Kremlin is likely to come to the COP26 climate change summit in Glasgow in November with proposals to synchronize its efforts to measure carbon emissions with those in Europe, according to four people familiar with the plans. While the moves hardly amount to the kind of ambitious new emissions-reduction target for Russia that western capitals were hoping for, it’s a significant step for Putin as the leader of one of the world’s largest hydrocarbon producers, who until recently belittled climate issues.

Officials say the new approach is being driven by a belated realization the European Union, Russia’s largest trading partner, is serious about implementing carbon border regulations that will likely compel Russian companies to pay for excess emissions in key industries. The Kremlin also sees climate issues as among the few areas of possible cooperation with the US and Europe after years of worsening relations.

Russia’s delegation at the summit will focus on topics including standards for calculating CO2 emissions and the absorption capacity of its enormous forests, as well as a proposal to rate nuclear power as “green” energy for carbon accounting purposes, two of the people said.

Russia is the fourth largest greenhouse-gas polluter, dumping about 5 percent of all carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year. Nearly 90 percent of all energy Russia consumes comes from carbon-heavy sources, above the global average of about 80 percent, and an accelerated deployment of renewables could save the country as much as $11 billion a year by 2030.

At US President Joe Biden’s online climate summit in April, Putin stuck to his unambitious emissions targets, leaving Russia as one of the few Group of 20 countries not to aim for net zero. The base-case scenario of a 2050 carbon strategy the Russian government is preparing assumes an 8.2% increase in emissions over the next three decades and counts on a doubling of the estimated absorption capacity of its forests to more than compensate for the rise.

“Russia is not trying to become the leader of the green agenda,” Irina Pominova, head of climate and green energy at the government-backed Center for Strategic Research, said in an interview in Moscow. “It is rather adapting itself to the global process of energy transition and decarbonization.”

That’s still a far cry from two years ago, when Putin mocked efforts to switch to renewable energy by raising concerns about the impact of wind turbines on birds and worms. In December 2019, despite scientific consensus on humanity’s role, he told reporters that “nobody really knows the causes of climate change.”

The Kremlin has a lot at stake.

Putin built his political power base on reviving post-Soviet Russia as an “energy superpower” and relies on oil and gas sales for 35% of the state budget. Whole regions of the world’s biggest country depend on oil and coal production for employment, with few if any alternatives.

While Russia sees huge potential gain from melting Arctic ice that’s allowing increased cargo traffic along the Northern Sea Route linking Asia and Europe, the same global warming costs its economy billions of dollars in infrastructure damage each year as thawing permafrost across Siberia puts buildings, roads and pipelines in danger.

Bank of Russia Governor Elvira

Russia is the fourth largest greenhouse-gas polluter, dumping about 5 percent of all carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year. Nearly 90 percent of all energy Russia consumes comes from carbon-heavy sources, above the global average of about 80 percent, and an accelerated deployment of renewables could save the country as much as $11 billion a year by 2030.

Nabiullina underlined the threat at an industry conference September 17, saying the regulator had moved from “neutrality” on green issues to pressing financial institutions and companies to take account of climate risks.

Not everyone in Russia’s policy circles is on board. While the EU’s carbon goal is “ideologically” green, it’s unclear if it will significantly impact the climate, said Maxim Medvedkov, Russia’s former chief World Trade Organization negotiator who’s now an adviser at the government-backed WTO Expertise Center in Moscow.

“The EU is deprived of resources— and we are sitting on them,” he said.

“Is it wise to give up this advantage?”

Russia “needs to put serious measures in place” to compete on the global market for low-carbon goods and services, said Jonathan Elkind, Senior Research Scholar at Columbia University’s Center on Global Energy Policy. “To date, it has not been clear whether the new, climate-friendly statements from Moscow are just rhetoric, or something more serious.”

Russia ratified the 2015 Paris climate agreement two years ago, but took little action until Putin ordered the carbon strategy’s development last June. He signed a climate law in July creating a framework for green projects and development of carbon trading.

Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin warned Russia’s biggest metals and mining companies in September that they may face a domestic carbon tax. Putin urged development of solar power stations and green hydrogen as a new fuel at his annual economic forum in Vladivostok last month.

Climate is high on Putin’s agenda now, two people close to the Kremlin said. Officials including Mishustin and Sberbank chief Herman Gref played a role in the evolution of his views as Putin saw major companies increase their focus on ESG policies, one of the people said.

At a December 2019 meeting of Putin’s civil society council, one adviser, Ivan Zassoursky, warned him that St. Petersburg, the president’s hometown, is threatened by climate change. Led by Zassoursky, the council’s environmental committee urged a “technological transformation” of Russia’s economy as part of a new state climate policy in a report this year.

The Kremlin took Biden’s appointment of former US Secretary of State John Kerry as his climate envoy as a signal of its growing importance in international policy, the four people said. Putin, who spoke to Kerry during his visit to Moscow in July, responded by naming political heavyweight Anatoly Chubais as his special representative on sustainable development.

While policy is heading in the right direction, Russian authorities view the climate agenda as a way to help defuse political difficulties and “overcome sanctions” by attracting foreign investment, said Vladimir Chuprov, leader of Greenpeace Russia’s Energy Program.

Wednesday, October 6, 2021 A9

Music and myths of the mermaids Dennis Gorecho

Pinoy Marino Rights

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E grew up with legends and myths about creatures, divine beings and gods, including those where water plays an important role.

Mysteries and myths of the ocean became interesting topics during an episode of the annual Boses ng Marino Online Karaoke Challenge as part of the 26th National Seafarers Day (NSD).

One of these mythical creatures of various legends and lore are the mermaids or merfolks known to be half human and half fish.

Some legends depict mermaids as vixens who seduce sailors to their death with their songs, and drag them down to their underwater sea palaces. The siren voices of mermaids are so unearthly many believe they can drive men to madness.

Their gifts brought misfortune, and, if offended, the beings caused floods or other disasters. To see one on a voyage was an omen of shipwreck.

In the film Pirates of the Caribbean, mermaids have been known to gather in Whitecap Bay for hundreds of years, thereby striking terror in the heart of sailors and pirates alike.

Through songs, they lure their prey before dragging them to the depths of the Bay to devour them. The mermaids must defend against Blackbeard and his crew as they attempt to capture a live mermaid to harvest

the mermaid’s tear demanded by the Fountain of Youth ritual.

Little Mermaid is the main character of the 1837 Danish fairy tale of the same name by Hans Christian Andersen. It is the story of a mermaid named Ariel, who dreams of becoming human and falls in love with a human prince named Eric. In the song “Poor Unfortunate Souls” popularized by the Disney animation, the sea witch Ursula uses the song to seduce Ariel into trading her voice for the chance to temporarily become human.

In the Philippines, Dyesebel is Mars Ravelo’s mermaid comics character who took on a journey to trace her origins. She was disowned by the sea when she found out that she was the daughter of a merman (also the prince of the sea) and a human.

She then began her adventure and explored the human world.

Sightings of mermaids are normally downplayed with arguments that these are are slow-moving, blubbery sea cows called dugongs or manatees.

Music plays a special role in Filipino seafarers’ life, whether at sea or on land.

The sea cannot stop the seafarers

In the Philippines, Dyesebel is Mars Ravelo’s mermaid comics character who took on a journey to trace her origins. She was disowned by the sea when she found out that she was the daughter of a merman (also the prince of the sea) and a human. She then began her adventure and explored the human world. in mastering the art of vocal mimicry from contagiously belting out songs like the infamous “My Way.” It is an understatement to say that karaoke is a central part of pop culture of Filipinos, including seafarers whether on board or in between contracts.

Karaoke is the clipped compound of Japanese kara (empty) and okesutora (orchestra) that is an interactive entertainment in which an amateur singer sings along with recorded music (or a music video) using a microphone.

Karaoke is indeed a favorite past time of Filipino seafarers, which serves as one of the coping mechanisms aboard international and domestic shipping vessels to address stress and boredom.

Away from his family and working on board vessels sailing non-stop for weeks or months, the Filipino seafarer is physically, mentally and emotionally stressed.

Constantly exposed to fluctuating temperatures caused by variant weather changes of extreme hot and cold as the ships cross ocean boundaries, the risks of him getting ill, injured or killed are high.

Before the Covid-19 lockdowns, Pinoy seafarers and maritime students converge along Kalaw Street in

Manila to show their singing prowess through a weekly show facilitated by volunteers.

Due to the pandemic, the Boses ng Marino was again held as an online jamming session this year instead of the NSD traditional contest in Kalaw, under two categories, students and professional seafarers.

NSD organizers had to forego the usual sunset environmental concert dubbed Harana by the Bay of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) symphony band that pays homage to the oceans and seas to keep our Filipino seafarers safe in their voyage.

Harana was an exclusively nocturnal practice that gained popularity in the early part of the Spanish period that was widely practiced in many parts of the Philippines with a specific romantic style of music.

President Fidel V. Ramos issued on July 9, 1996 Proclamation 828 declaring August 18 as NSD to give due recognition to the vital role of Filipino seafarers towards the development of the Philippines as a maritime country.

The Stella Maris Philippines was tasked to coordinate with the public and private sector in activities related to the celebration of the said event.

Later, Proclamation 1094 was issued in 1997 by President Ramos, which moved NSD to every last Sunday of September every year.

This year’s 26th NSD was held on September 26.

The Sunday masses during the NSD all over the country were offered to the Filipino seafarers.

Lawyer Dennis R. Gorecho heads the seafarers’ division of the Sapalo Velez Bundang Bulilan law offices. For comments, e-mail info@sapalovelez.com, or call 0917-5025808 or 0908-8665786.

2 win medicine Nobel for showing how we react to heat, touch

By David Keyton & Maria Cheng Associated Press

S

TOCKHOLM—Two scientists won the Nobel Prize in medicine on Monday for their discoveries into how the human body perceives temperature and touch, revelations that could lead to new ways of treating pain or even heart disease.

Americans David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian separately identified receptors in the skin that respond to heat and pressure, and researchers are working on drugs to target them. Some hope the discoveries could eventually lead to pain treatments that reduce dependence on highly addictive opioids. But the breakthroughs, which happened decades ago, have not yet yielded many effective new therapies.

Julius, of the University of California at San Francisco, used capsaicin, the active component in chili peppers, to help pinpoint the nerve sensors that respond to heat, the Nobel Committee said. Patapoutian, of Scripps Research Institute at La Jolla, California, found pressure-sensitive sensors in cells that respond to mechanical stimulation.

“This really unlocks one of the secrets of nature,” said Thomas Perlmann, secretary-general of the committee, in announcing the winners. “It’s actually something that is crucial for our survival, so it’s a very important and profound discovery.”

Ex-Facebook. . . continued from A8

to the deadly Jan. 6 assault on the US Capitol.

After the November election, Facebook dissolved the civic integrity union where Haugen had been working. That, she said, was the moment she realized “I don’t trust that they’re willing to actually invest what needs to be invested to keep Facebook from being dangerous.”

Haugen says she told Facebook executives when they recruited her that she had asked to work in an area of the company that fights misinformation, because she had lost a friend

The committee said their discoveries get at “one of the great mysteries facing humanity”: how we sense our environment.

The choice of winners underscored how little scientists knew about that question before the discoveries—and how much there still is to learn, said Oscar Marin, director of the MRC Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders at King’s College London.

“While we understood the physiology of the senses, what we didn’t understand was how we sensed differences in temperature or pressure,” Marin said. “Knowing how our body senses these changes is fundamental because once we know those molecules, they can be targeted. It’s like finding a lock, and now we know the precise keys that will be necessary to unlock it.”

Marin predicted that new treatments for pain would likely come first, but that understanding how the body detects changes in pressure could eventually lead to drugs for heart disease, if scientists can figure out how to alleviate pressure on blood vessels and other organs.

Richard Harris, of the Chronic Pain and Fatigue Research Center at the University of Michigan, also said the new laureates’ work might help design new pain medications, but noted the field has long been stalled.

He said that because pain also includes a psychological component,

simply identifying how it is triggered in the body isn’t necessarily enough to address it. Still, he said Julius’ and Patapoutian’s work would likely help doctors better treat pain that is caused by things like extreme temperatures and chemical burns.

“Their discoveries are giving us the first inkling of how this type of pain starts, but whether it’s involved in many chronic pain patients remains to be seen,” he said.

Still, Fiona Boissonade, a pain specialist at the University of Sheffield, said the Nobel laureates’ work was especially relevant for the one in five people globally that suffer from chronic pain.

Such pain—including from arthritis, migraines and chronic back problems—“is a huge medical problem, and it’s quite poorly treated across the board,” she said. “Their research may lead us to identify new compounds that are effective in treating pain that don’t come with the devastating impact of opioids,” which have spawned a crisis of addiction in the US. In keeping with a long tradition of difficulties in alerting Nobel winners, Julius said he was awakened by what he thought was a prank phone call shortly before the prize was announced.

“My phone sort of bleeped, and it was from a relative who had been contacted by somebody on the Nobel Committee trying to find my phone number,” he said from his home

in San Francisco, where it was the middle of the night.

It was only when his wife heard Perlmann’s voice and confirmed it was indeed the secretary-general of the committee who was calling, that he realized it wasn’t a joke. Julius said his wife had worked with Perlmann years ago.

Julius, 65, later said he hoped his work would lead to the development of new pain drugs, explaining that the biology behind even everyday activities can have enormous significance.

“We eat chili peppers and menthol, but oftentimes, you don’t think about how that works,” he said.

The Nobel Committee tweeted a photo of Patapoutian in bed with his son while he watched the announcement on his computer.

“A day to be thankful: this country gave me a chance with a great education and support for basic research. And for my labbies and collaborators for partnering with me,” Patapoutian, who was born in Lebanon, tweeted.

When the team made the discovery in 2009, “we were of course so excited and literally jumping up and down. It was something we were looking for for years,” Patapoutian said at a news conference.

Patapoutian is paid by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, which also supports The Associated Press’ Health and Science Department. Julius is an HHMI trustee.

to online conspiracy theories.

Antigone Davis, Facebook’s head of global safety, faced a barrage of criticism from senators on the Commerce panel at a hearing last Thursday. They accused Facebook of concealing the negative findings about Instagram and demanded a commitment from the company to make changes.

Davis defended Instagram’s efforts to protect young people using its platform. She disputed the way The Wall Street Journal story describes what the research shows.

Facebook maintains that Haugen’s allegations are misleading and insists there is no evidence to support the premise that it is the primary

cause of social polarization.

“Even with the most sophisticated technology, which I believe we deploy, even with the tens of thousands of people that we employ to try and maintain safety and integrity on our platform, we’re never going to be absolutely on top of this 100% of the time,” Nick Clegg, Facebook’s vice president of policy and public affairs, said Sunday on CNN’s “Reliable Sources.”

That’s because of the “instantaneous and spontaneous form of communication” on Facebook, Clegg said, adding, “I think we do more than any reasonable person can expect to.”

By coming forward, Haugen says she hopes it will help spur the gov-

ernment to put regulations in place for Facebook’s activities. Like fellow tech giants Google, Amazon and Apple, Facebook has for years enjoyed minimal regulation in Washington.

Separately Monday, a massive global outage plunged Facebook, Instagram and the company’s WhatsApp messaging platform into chaos, only gradually dissipating by late Monday Eastern time. For some users, WhatsApp was working for a time, then not. For others, Instagram was working but not Facebook, and so on.

Facebook didn’t say what might have caused the outage, which began around 11:40 a.m. EDT and was still not fixed more than six hours later.

A10 Wednesday, October 6, 2021

PHL bans UK beef imports on mad cow disease outbreak

T

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

@jearcalas

HE Philippines has temporarily banned the importation of beef from the United Kingdom after London confirmed an outbreak of classical mad cow disease, dealing another blow to food manufacturers’ raw material supply.

The Department of Agriculture (DA) issued Memorandum Order (MO) 60, dated October 4, authorizing the temporary ban on the importation of live cattle, meat and meat products derived from cattle from the United Kingdom.

The MO took effect immediately, resulting in the temporary suspension of the processing and issuance of sanitary and phytosanitary import clearance (SPS-IC) for cattlerelated products from the United Kingdom.

Based on the document signed

by Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar, all beef shipments from the United Kingdom en route to the Philippines shall be allowed to enter the country provided that the

slaughter and production date of the product is on or before August 31, 2021.

The DA based its ban on the report of the United Kingdom to the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) last month, confirming an outbreak of classical bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in a farm in Somerset, South West England.

“Classical BSE is a zoonotic disease which may pose a risk to consumers due to its link with the variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) in humans,” Dar said in MO 60, which was made public on Tuesday.

During a normal situation, a closure of the United Kingdom beef

supply would not make a dent in the country’s overall beef supply since it only accounts for about 2 to 4 percent of the annual total beef imports.

However, the temporary import ban on United Kingdom beef came at a time that Brazil, the country’s largest source of beef imports, is also banned from exporting beef to the Philippines.

Beef imports from the United Kingdom last year reached 4,115.829 metric tons (MT), based on Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) data. Brazil, on the other hand, exports about 45,000 MT of beef products to the Philippines annually.

‘Very high risk’

THE Philippine Association of Meat Processors Inc. (PAMPI) said the import ban on United Kingdom beef was expected since it recorded a classical BSE outbreak, which it noted, “poses very high risk to both animal and human health.” “[The United Kingdom] ban will impact mainly our beef fat requirements, but not as much, but given that Brazil is still suspended by our DA as of today, the impact of new bans/restrictions

imposed on other country sources is magnified,” PAMPI told the BusinessMirror.

“What we expect is that the DA & BAI should already lift the ban on Brazil beef because it involves only atypical BSE which, according to experts and the OIE, doesn’t really affect animals and humans. Brazil beef accounts for about 40 percent of our beef imports, and for some processors up to 70 percent of their raw mat requirements,” the group added.

Last month, the Philippines slapped a temporary import ban on Brazilian beef products, including live cattle, after the Latin American country reported an outbreak of Atypical BSE. BAI data showed that half of the annual beef imports from the United Kingdom are beef fat. BAI data also showed that beef imports from the United Kingdom have been constantly growing, with import volume in the January to August period this year reaching 4,429.458 MT, eclipsing the full-year import volume last year.

Beef fat is a flavor enhancer used by meat processors in producing beef-based products like hot dogs, canned meat loaves and corned beef.

WTO REVISES OUTLOOK: BETTER MERCHANDISE TRADE GROWTH IN 2021

By Tyrone Jasper C. Piad @Tyronepiad

T

HE World Trade Organization (WTO) upgraded its world merchandise trade growth outlook to nearly 11 percent for this year, shrugging off supply chain concerns amid the resurgence of economic activities in the first half.

In a recent statement, the WTO said the global merchandise trade volume is now anticipated to book 10.8-percent growth this year, which is better than the previous prediction of 8 percent in March.

This figure is seen dwindling to 4.7 percent next year. However, the new figure is still higher than the 4-percent forecast earlier. The intergovernmental organization noted that “growth should moderate as merchandise trade approaches its pre-pandemic long-run trend.”

“Supply-side issues such as semiconductor scarcity and port backlogs may strain supply chains and weigh on trade in particular areas, but they are unlikely to have large impacts on global aggregates,” WTO stressed.

To recall, a global chip shortage has affected several sectors, including the automotive industry.

The lack of vessel space amid the container imbalance, meanwhile, has resulted in shipment delays across the world, impacting both the production and distribution of finished goods.

While WTO sees overall increase

in trade this year, it noted the uneven growth across the economies, especially because some developing regions are below the global average.

For example, Asian imports are projected to grow by 9.4 percent while least-developed countries will see a decline of 1.6 percent.

“Trade has been a critical tool in combatting the pandemic, and this strong growth underscores how important trade will be in underpinning the global economic recovery,” WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said. “But inequitable access to vaccines is exacerbating economic divergence across regions.”

“The longer vaccine inequity is allowed to persist, the greater the chance that even more dangerous variants of Covid-19 will emerge, setting back the health and economic progress we have made to date,” she stressed.

As such, she urged the WTO members to have quicker vaccine production and distribution to make economic recovery sustainable.

WTO also revised its global gross domestic product outlook to 5.3 percent from 5.1 percent previously.

The figure is expected to slow down to 4.1 percent in 2022.

As of July, the Philippines registered a total trade of $106.097 billion, which is higher by 25.8 percent than last year’s $84.32 billion, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.

Broken down, imports grew by 30.2 percent to $63.7 billion while exports improved by 19.7 percent to $42.39 billion in the first seven months.

Senator Tolentino: GPPB ‘root cause’ of Pharmally mess E

Briones leads rites honoring teachers; top tutors hailed

By Butch Fernandez @butchfBM

S

EN. Francis Tolentino is moving to amend Republic Act 9184 to restore congressional oversight over the Government Procurement Policy Board (GPPB), which he described as the “root cause” of the multibillionpeso mess in pandemic-related purchases now being investigated by the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee.

In remarks at the 10th Senate hearing on Tuesday, Tolentino noted that GPPB was able to “mangle, dissect, and usurp the powers of Congress” by issuing 21 implementing rules and regulations (IRR) over the years for the Government Procurement Law, or Republic Act 9184.

“It is the only agency that was able to issue so many IRRs for a single law,” he added.

The senator pointed out that the most controversial of this is the Common Use and Services (CUSE) categorization that the GPPB used at will and which spawned many anomalies, including the series of transactions flagged in the 2020 Commission on Audit report on the Department of Health, particularly P62-billion in deficiencies in pandemic fund use and inventory management.

In earlier Senate hearings, it was noted that the CUSE was used before to allow the entire bureaucracy some economies of scale by allowing a single entity like the Procurement Service of the Department of Budget and Management (PS-DBM) to buy in bulk usual office supplies like paper, pens, paper clips, which other government agencies can then buy from it at much lower prices.

The CUSE was not intended to be used for sensitive items like the pandemic-related products, which are unique to the Health department.

By categorizing even pandemic-related items—personal protective equipment and test kits, or items that should have been procured directly by the agencies that need them and which have expertise for vetting them like the Department of Health—the “CUSE” tag attached to the PPEs needed by the DOH allowed the latter to outsource bidding to the controversial PS-DBM. The PS-DBM, which senators noted had no expertise to check sensitive products like PPEs and test kits, went on a procurement spree, using the “urgency” lent by the Bayanihan law, to award a series of negotiated contracts to the low-capital startup Pharm a l ly Ph a r m ace ut ic a l Cor p. that the Blue R ibbon is investigating.

Senators have openly aired suspicion that Pharmally, which is not a manufacturer, simply used its inf luence and “connections” to bag billions in contracts for supplies that are being investigated for possible “overpricing” or for being expired or substandard.

In all, Pharmally bagged P11 billion in contracts from PSDBM, out of the total P42 billion unilaterally transferred to it by the DOH from its pandemic fund budget.

Earlier hearings heard Pharmally officials admitting they got funding to cover the cost of the initial deliveries of PPE items from Davao businessman Michael Yang, former economic adviser and friend of President Duterte. Yang has disowned any business interest in Pharmally.

DUCATION Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones has commended the resilience and innovativeness of teachers noting these are crucial factors in ensuring that “we will continue to perform our mandate of delivering quality education” for the nation’s children.

Briones said that this year’s World/National Teachers’ Day theme “Gurong Filipino: Katuwang sa Hamon, Kasama sa Pagbangon” emphasizes the importance of teachers in nation building despite the challenges brought by the pandemic.

“In this worthwhile endeavor, your Department of Education [DepEd] will earnestly look for more ways to support and match your efforts in your respective schools and communities,” Briones said.

Guided by the Basic EducationLearning Continuity Plan (BE-LCP), the DepEd, she said, has diligently provided assistance to teachers during this extraordinary situation through enabling policies and comprehensive programs.

In the meantime, Briones assured the teachers they have undertaken steps to further provide more benefits to them, such as additional salary grades and opportunities for professional growth.

“We are determined to widen the reach of these initiatives so that we can truly achieve our shared goal of educating every Filipino child and it is our hope that you will continue to walk with us in this purposeful journey. May you remain happy, healthy, safe, and strong amidst all their unprecedented challenges,” added Briones, herself a teacher for decades before becoming DepEd chief.

Honorees

ON Tuesday, the DepEd recognized the outstanding achievements of two public school teachers and a student journalist after making it to the Top 50 of Global Teacher and Student Prize 2021.

Continued on A5

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

No.

24/7 BUSINESS PROCESSING INC. 14/f Capella Bldg., L-3&4 B2, Asean Drive Filinvest, Alabang, City Of Muntinlupa XI, JINHAO Mandarin Speaking Customer Service Representative 1.

Brief Job Description: Responding promptly to the inquiries to ensure customer satisfaction PHUNG THI QUYNH Vietnamese Speaking Customer Service Representative

2.

Brief Job Description: Responding promptly to the inquiries to ensure customer satisfaction VU THI THUONG Vietnamese Speaking Customer Service Representative

3.

Brief Job Description: Responding promptly to the inquiries to ensure customer satisfaction

4.

Brief Job Description: Handling inbound and outbound service support calls

5.

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

LIU, BIN Marketing Staff Mandarin Speaking 6.

Brief Job Description: Monitor, review and report on all marketing activity and result.

LIU, XINGGUANG Marketing Staff Mandarin Speaking 7.

Brief Job Description: Monitor, review and report on all marketing activity and result.

LIU, XINGLEI Marketing Staff Mandarin Speaking 8.

Brief Job Description: Monitor, review and report on all marketing activity and result.

LIU, ZHICHAO Marketing Staff Mandarin Speaking 9.

Brief Job Description: Monitor, review and report on all marketing activity and result.

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

ALLSECTECH MANILA, INC. 3rd Floor, Market! Market! Mall, Bonifacio Global City, City Of Taguig

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Vietnamese Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Vietnamese Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficient in reading, writing and speaking in mandarin

10.

Brief Job Description: Provides language translation support to the transition/ transformation, invoice and all the related documents

15.

11.

Brief Job Description: Assist internal and external customers with questions related to payments

HIN LY CHANH Mandarin Speaking Online Payment Specialist 12.

Brief Job Description: Assist internal and external customers with questions related to payments

LY CHUC HONG Mandarin Speaking Online Payment Specialist 13.

Brief Job Description: Assist internal and external customers with questions related to payments

Brief Job Description: Provides customer service in foreign language, taking phone calls, answering to customer inquiries through emails, and solving customer issues

KARIKALAN, DEIVEKARAJAN Power Supply Installation Manager Brief Job Description: provide support on technical matters issued by the Regional Center

FANG, SHENGMING Customer Service Representative Mandarin Speaking 17.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Analyze the productivity of the marketing plans and projects, recommend to senior management Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Analyze the productivity of the marketing plans and projects, recommend to senior management.

18.

19.

20.

21.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Analyze the productivity of the marketing plans and projects, recommend to senior management

22.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 23.

Basic Qualification: Knowledge of an additional language (Spanish, German, Italian, French, etc) Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Good oral and written communication skills and mandarin, atleast 6 months related experience in the same field.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Good oral and written communication skills and mandarin, atleast 6 months related experience in the same field.

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

Basic Qualification: Good oral and written communication skills and mandarin, atleast 6 months related experience in the same field.

24.

25.

26.

31.

32.

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

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

CHEN, YUSHENG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

KE, LIANQING Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

LI, JINGBO Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

PHAM QUANG DAT Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

SUSANTI Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

WANG, QIAOBIN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

ZHANG, JINKUN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

ZHENG, HEDONG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

ZHU, XUJIAN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read, and write Chinese language

34.

35.

36.

DEBBY KUSNANDAR Customer Service Assistant Team Leader-Indonesian Speaking 27.

Brief Job Description: Delegate different customer service duties to team members to ensure a faster and smoother flow of operation through division of labor MARSELINA PRISILIA STACY POMANTOW Customer Service Assistant Team Leader-Indonesian Speaking

28.

Brief Job Description: Delegate different customer service duties to team members to ensure a faster and smoother flow of operation through division of labor SAE-PAN, ARUNEE Customer Service Assistant Team Leader-thai Speaking

29.

Brief Job Description: Delegate different customer service duties to team members to ensure a faster and smoother flow of operation through division of labor

37.

38.

39.

40.

41.

42.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent leadership and interpersonal skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered SEON, JIHYANG Customer Service Officer-Korean Speaking

43.

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered GABGAEW, KHATCHARAPHON Customer Service Officer-Thai Speaking

44.

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered KULPAISARN, THAKSIN Customer Service Officer-Thai Speaking

45.

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered HO LE KHANH TIEN Customer Service Officer-Vietnamese Speaking

46.

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and leadership skills

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and leadership skills

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered PARK, SUNGAE Customer Service Officer-Korean Speaking

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

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

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered CHOURNG, SAMBATH MANITH Customer Service Officer-Khmer Speaking

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

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered SRI WAHYUNI SANCAKA Customer Service Officer-Indonesian Speaking

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

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered SHELVYANA NAWANGWULAN Customer Service Officer-Indonesian Speaking

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

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered SELLY Customer Service Officer-Indonesian Speaking

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

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered RIEKA ULI BORU SAMOSIR Customer Service Officer-Indonesian Speaking

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

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered IRAWATI Customer Service Officer-Indonesian Speaking

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

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered FILIA INGRIT DAHAMATE Customer Service Officer-Indonesian Speaking

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

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered CLORA OCTAVIANI Customer Service Officer-Indonesian Speaking

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

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered ASRIANI TARUK LABI Customer Service Officer-Indonesian Speaking

Basic Qualification: Master’s degree

Basic Qualification: Knows how to recommend potential products or services to management by collecting customer information and analyzing customer needs

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered ANDREW GOMOS SIAGIAN Customer Service Officer-Indonesian Speaking

33.

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

Brief Job Description: Help in development and implementation of customer service policy ALDILA PUTRI Customer Service Officer-Indonesian Speaking

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

APRICUS TECHNOLOGY INC. 8/f Aguirre Building, 107 Aguirre St. Legaspi Village, San Lorenzo, City Of Makati

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

ALL OUT MULTI-MEDIA SOLUTIONS CORP. Unit 2302-a West Tower, Pse Centre, Exchange Road, Ortigas Center, San Antonio, City Of Pasig

30.

ANOC99 CORPORATION 5/f To 10/f Ayala Malls Manila Bay Building D., Macapagal Blvd. Cor. Aseana Street, Tambo, City Of Parañaque

Basic Qualification: Analyze the productivity of the marketing plans and projects, recommend to senior management Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Excellent writing, reading, listening and talking in Italian language. Preferably with prior experience of at least 1 year in similar BPO stuff.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION MATASUTH, THAWAT Customer Service Manager-Thai Speaking

AMUSETECH BUSINESS OUTSOURCING 2/f Rivergreen Residences, 2217 Pedro Gil St., 096, Bgy 880, Santa Ana, City Of Manila

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 customer needs.

No.

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

ALSTOM TRANSPORT CONSTRUCTION PHILIPPINES, INC. 4/f U-2c One E-com Center, Moa Ocean Drive, Brgy. 076, Pasay City

ACSTREAM MANAGEMENT INC. 2204b/2206, 22/f Pbcom Tower, Ayala Avenue, Bel-air, City Of Makati

DANG THUC NGHI Mandarin Speaking Online Payment Specialist

Brief Job Description: Manage Korean customer queries and complaints

PAPARO, SANDRO Bilingual Italian Analyst

16.

ACCENTURE, INC. 7f, Robinsons Cybergate Tower 1, Pioneer St, City Of Mandaluyong EKUALA, ANTONIO MUNECONGO Sw/app/cloud Tech Support Analyst

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing Korean and English

14.

8 STONE BUSINESS OUTSOURCING OPC 5-10/f Tower 1, Pitx Kennedy Road, Tambo, City Of Parañaque

QI, HONGFA Customer Service Representative Mandarin Speaking

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin

66 A-IDEA CONSULTING INC. Rm. 404 Caeg Building, Dela Rosa St., Pio Del Pilar, City Of Makati HU, YELONG Chinese Customer Officer

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION LEE, SE-YEON Customer Service Representative

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered HOANG HAI LAM Customer Service Officer-Vietnamese Speaking

47.

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered NGUYEN NGOC Y NHI Customer Service Officer-Vietnamese Speaking

48.

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered PHAM THI THU THAO Customer Service Officer-Vietnamese Speaking

49.

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Excellent leadership and interpersonal skills Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

A11

BusinessMirror

A12 Wednesday, October 6, 2021

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION VO PHAM BICH PHUONG Customer Service Officer-Vietnamese Speaking

50.

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered PRISKILLA SETIAWATY ANDRELIS Customer Service Team Leader-Indonesian Speaking

51.

Brief Job Description: Delegate different customer service duties to team members to ensure a faster and smoother flow of operation through division of labor YUDO IMMANUEL Customer Service Team Leader-Indonesian Speaking

52.

Brief Job Description: Delegate different customer service duties to team members to ensure a faster and smoother flow of operation through division of labor YEO MUM YEE Customer Service Team Leader-Malaysia Speaking

53.

Brief Job Description: Delegate different customer service duties to team members to ensure a faster and smoother flow of operation through division of labor SOMNAK, PREEMPITCHA Customer Service Team Leader-Thai Speaking

54.

Brief Job Description: Delegate different customer service duties to team members to ensure a faster and smoother flow of operation through division of labor NGUYEN HUY DUY Customer Service Team Leader-Vietnamese Speaking

55.

Brief Job Description: Delegate different customer service duties to team members to ensure a faster and smoother flow of operation through division of labor CHANATONG, PRAKOBIT Marketing Officer-Thai Speaking

56.

Brief Job Description: Monitoring, analyzing and managing a monthly advertising campaign via Google ad words DO MANH THANG Marketing Team Leader-Vietnamese Speaking

57.

Brief Job Description: Provides leadership for the team to come up with marketing strategies (digital or offline) that are aligned with the business goals VO KHANH HOANG Marketing Team Leader-Vietnamese Speaking

58.

Brief Job Description: Provides leadership for the team to come up with marketing strategies (digital or offline) that are aligned with the business goals BUI THI DIEU ANH QA Trainer-Vietnamese Speaking

59.

Brief Job Description: Preparing and implementing quality assurance policies and procedures ADITA RUTH PRATIWI Senior Customer Service Officer-Indonesian Speaking

60.

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered ERNES TESIA GOUW Senior Customer Service Officer-Indonesian Speaking

61.

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered LIDYA KOSASIH Senior Customer Service Officer-Indonesian Speaking

62.

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered SUPARMANTO Senior Customer Service Officer-Indonesian Speaking

63.

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered PHAM MINH QUANG Senior Customer Service Officer-Vietnamese Speaking

64.

Brief Job Description: Handling phone calls involving selling, pacify and good service rendered GOUW EDWINA Senior Telesales Marketing Officer-Indonesian Speaking

65.

Brief Job Description: Proactive selling of products to both existing and new customers in order to achieve and exceed weekly, monthly and annual sales revenue targets and other performance targets MEESAWAT, PRATHITTA Senior Telesales Marketing Officer-Thai Speaking

66.

Brief Job Description: Pro active selling of products to both existing and new customers in order to achieve and exceed weekly, monthly and annual sales revenue targets and other performance targets ASNI TARUK LABI Telesales Marketing Officer-Indonesian Speaking

67.

Brief Job Description: proactive selling of products to both existing and new customers in order to achieve and exceed weekly, monthly and annual sales revenue targets and other performance targets PANPHUAK, JAKKRIT Telesales Marketing Officer-Thai Speaking

68.

Brief Job Description: Pro active selling of products to both existing and new customers in order to achieve and exceed weekly, monthly and annual sales revenue targets and other performance targets NGUYEN DO NHAT THANG Telesales Marketing Officer-Vietnamese Speaking

69.

Brief Job Description: proactive selling of products to both existing and new customers in order to achieve and exceed weekly, monthly and annual sales revenue targets and other performance targets

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

No.

70.

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and leadership skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and leadership skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and leadership skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: proactive selling of products to both existing and new customers in order to achieve and exceed weekly, monthly and annual sales revenue targets and other performance targets PRASERTSRIKUL, BENJAPORN Telesales Marketing Team Leader- Thai Speaking

72.

Brief Job Description: Create good relationship with team members and motivate them to put in their best to work in order to achieve maximum result

ZHANG, TING Mandarin Bookkeeper 73.

Brief Job Description: Maintaining accurate books on accounts payable and receivable

CHEN, KE Chinese Speaking Cognos Developer 74.

Brief Job Description: Coordinate with all customers, analyze test queries, and analyze client issues

LUO, YUEQIN Chinese Speaking Cognos Developer 75.

Brief Job Description: Coordinate with all customers, analyze test queries, and analyze client issues

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 TANG, YANG Chinese Speaking Cognos Developer 76.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent data collection and analysis skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

77.

78.

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

79.

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills 80.

81.

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills

CENIZAL, CHRISOSTIMO DELA FUENTE Logistic Supervisor 82.

Brief Job Description: Proof head ESIT and revised translated materials.

Translate messages simultaneously or consecutively into specified languages orally or by using hard sign message content LEE, ANDREW STUART Logistic Supervisor

83.

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

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills

Brief Job Description: Strategize for contingency planning and risk mitigation and schedule project deliverables, support development of division protocol and polices

84.

Brief Job Description: Proof of Head ESIT and revised translated materials. translate messages simultaneously or consecutively into specified languages orally or by using hard sign message content TJEN SUI LING Bahasa Indonesian Language-manager Fund Management

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

Brief Job Description: Managing clients; meeting investors to discuss investment strategies

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills

EBEN GUYSEP MATUNRI Bahasa Indonesian Language-officer Customer Service

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

85.

Brief Job Description: Initiate conversation to uncover customer needs

No.

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills

86.

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

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking reading and writing in mandarin

87.

88.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products / excellent mandarin communication skills

89.

90.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products / excellent mandarin communication skills

91.

92.

93.

94.

95.

96.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance management or any business course Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Degree holder. Must fluently speak and write Thai language to cater foreign markets Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Shall answer incoming phone calls from Chinese clients and troubleshoot customer technical problems with computer software

Basic Qualification: Must be fluent in Chinese language (writing and speaking) Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Must be fluent in Chinese language (writing and speaking) Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Must be fluent in Chinese language (writing and speaking) Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Must be fluent in Chinese language (writing and speaking) Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Creating forms for bridges, foundations, beams and staircases

LIU, ZHAOYAN Trestle And Steel Fabricator Brief Job Description: Fabricate and assemble sheet metal product

ZHAO, FUQIANG Trestle And Steel Fabricator Brief Job Description: Fabricate and assemble sheet metal product

ZHAO, FUWANG Trestle And Steel Fabricator Brief Job Description: Fabricate and assemble sheet metal product

Basic Qualification: Experience in bridge formworks installer / fluent in Chinese and English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Experience in trestle and steel fabricator/fluent in Chinese and English Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Experience in trestle and steel fabricator/fluent in chinese and english Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Experience in trestle and steel fabricator/fluent in chinese and english Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

COUNTRYWIDE TRAVEL & TOURS CORP. 2/f Rfc Mall, Alabang-zapote Road, Pamplona Tres, City Of Las Piñas

BHOGAL, HARPARTAP SINGH Hindi Speaking Technical Support 97.

Brief Job Description: Accurately process and record call transaction using a computer and designated tracking software

KULWINDER KUMAR Hindi Speaking Technical Support 98.

Brief Job Description: Accurately process and record call transaction using a computer and designated tracking software

RUBY Hindi Speaking Technical Support 99.

Basic Qualification: Fluent in Mandarin and English language both in written and verbal, must familiar in financial management

Basic Qualification: fluent in mandarin and English both in written and verbal., must familiar in financial management.

Brief Job Description: Shall answer incoming phone calls from Chinese clients and troubleshoot customer technical problems with computer software

LI, SIPING Bridge Formworks Installer

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

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

Basic Qualification: Can handle work pressure

CHINA ROAD AND BRIDGE CORPORATION Unit 2605, 2607, 2608, & 2609, High St. South Corporate Plaza, Tower 1, 9th Avenue Corner 26th St., Bonfacio Global City, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products / excellent mandarin communication skills

Brief Job Description: Shall answer incoming phone calls from Chinese clients and troubleshoot customer technical problems with computer software

YANG, LIZHI Chinese It Support Specialist

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products / excellent mandarin communication skills

Brief Job Description: Shall answer incoming phone calls from Chinese clients and troubleshoot customer technical problems with computer software

XUE, YONGMING Chinese It Support Specialist

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products / excellent mandarin communication skills

Brief Job Description: Initiate conversation to uncover customer needs

TAN, TING Chinese IT Support Specialist

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products / excellent mandarin communication skills

JINDAKUL, BENJATHIP Thai Language-officer Customer Service

JIA, HONGYU Chinese IT Support Specialist

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products / excellent mandarin communication skills

Brief Job Description: Must ensure their funds reporting requirements are met

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

CAPSLOCK INC. 7th & 8th Flr. Y Tower Bldg., Coral Way Drive Cor. Macapagal Ave., Brgy. 076, Pasay City

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

Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products / excellent mandarin communication skills

Brief Job Description: Supporting the finance manager and executives with projects and tasks when required MARTIN FEBRIANTO Bahasa Indonesian Language-officer Fund Management

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Strong supervisory and leadership skills with a proven ability to motivate and manage a team

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION GABRIELLA FARAH HANAFI Bahasa Indonesian Language-officer Finance

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

BIG PHILIP HEAVY EQUIPMENT CORPORATION Unit 25-c, Cleveland The Asia World City, Don Galo, City Of Parañaque

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

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills

Brief Job Description: Strategize for contingency planning and risk mitigation and schedule project deliverables, support development of division protocol and polices

YANG, LIN Chinese Speaking IT Project Associates

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

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills

Brief Job Description: Strategize for contingency planning and risk mitigation and schedule project deliverables, support development of division protocol and polices

LI, RUNTING Chinese Speaking IT Project Associates

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills

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

Brief Job Description: Strategize for contingency planning and risk mitigation and schedule project deliverables, support development of division protocol and polices

LI, DAN Chinese Speaking IT Project Associates

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

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

Brief Job Description: Coordinate with all customers, analyze test queries, and analyze client issues

DU, SHENG Chinese Speaking IT Project Associates

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills

Brief Job Description: Coordinate with all customers, analyze test queries, and analyze client issues

ZHAN, MINGXIN Chinese Speaking Cognos Developer

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Excellent communication and presentation skills

AXISCOVE INC. Unit 1 & 3 14/f Sshg Law Center Sycip Law Center, 105 Paseo De Roxas, San Lorenzo, City Of Makati

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

Basic Qualification: Possess program/project management skills

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

ASK ASIA SOLUTIONS INC. 1608 16/f New World Manila Bay Hotel, 1588 M. H Del Pilar Cor. Pedro Gil Sts., 076 Bgy. 699, Malate, City Of Manila

Basic Qualification: Thorough understanding of social media and web analytics

Basic Qualification: Possess program/project management skills

Brief Job Description: proactive selling of products to both existing and new customers in order to achieve and exceed weekly, monthly and annual sales revenue targets and other performance targets NGUYEN THI YEN THANH Telesales Marketing Officer-Vietnamese Speaking

71.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION NGUYEN THI BICH NGOC Telesales Marketing Officer-Vietnamese Speaking

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Brief Job Description: Accurately process and record call transaction using a computer and designated tracking software

HONG, SUNGTAE Korean Customer Service Representative 100.

Brief Job Description: Monitor customer die longing in order to fulfill the forecast properly

Basic Qualification: Strong (verbal and writing) communication skills with an ability to build relationship in Indian/ Pumjabi Hindi speaking Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Strong (verbal and writing) communication skills with an ability to build relationship in Indian/ Pumjabi Hindi speaking Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Strong (verbal and writing) communication skills with an ability to build relationship in Indian/ Pumjabi Hindi speaking Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient Indonesian, Mandarin, Chinese and any other multi-lingual language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

DAXIFA CORPORATION Mpire Center 93 West Avenue, Project 7, Bungad 1, Quezon City

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

WANG, QIANG Mandarin Speaking Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: Ability to communicate fluently in mandarin Chinese with customers

Basic Qualification: Bachelor’s degree in accounting, finance management, r any business course

101.

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

DEXIN 999, INC. Red Hotel No. 345, Edsa Cor. Don Carlos Revilla St., Barangay 147, Pasay City

Basic Qualification: Degree holder. Must fluently speak and write Thai language to cater foreign markets Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Delivering excellent customer services & managing the needs of customer through phone calls and emails

CAI, WEI Mandarin Customer Support Representative 102.

Brief Job Description: Support customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

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

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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, WENJUN Mandarin Customer Support Representative

103.

Brief Job Description: Support customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

SU, YANFEN Mandarin Customer Support Representative 104.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

Brief Job Description: Support customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

105.

Brief Job Description: Manage incoming and outgoing calls, chats and emails.

116.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin.

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

106.

Brief Job Description: Investigate user problems and prepare reports for developers.

Basic Qualification: Excellent speaking, writing and reading in Chinese Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

EASTERN GOLD CORPORATION 503, Nueva St, , Binondo, City Of Manila

CAI, MUBIN Marketing And Sales Agent 107.

Brief Job Description: Researches and develops various marketing strategies for products and services and implements marketing plans and works to meet sales quotas

Basic Qualification: can contributes information, ideas, and research to help develop marketing strategies; can help to detail, design, and implement marketing plans for each product or service being offered.

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

CAI, YANGYANG Marketing And Sales Agent 108.

Brief Job Description: Researches and develops various marketing strategies for products and services and implements marketing plans and works to meet sales quotas

Basic Qualification: can contributes information, ideas, and research to help develop marketing strategies; can help to detail, design, and implement marketing plans for each product or service being offered.

TAN MEI TENG Mandarin Accounts Staff 117.

DUAN, KAI Marketing And Sales Agent 109.

Brief Job Description: Researches and develops various marketing strategies for products and services and implements marketing plans and works to meet sales quotas

118.

LI, XIAOBING Marketing And Sales Agent 110.

Brief Job Description: Researches and develops various marketing strategies for products and services and implements marketing plans and works to meet sales quotas

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

SHEN, LIPING Senior Marketing Specialist 111.

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.

119.

SUN, SHUXIA Senior Marketing Specialist 112.

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.

120.

121.

122.

123.

124.

113.

Brief Job Description: Overseeing business strategies for Business Development Division MASUGI, TOMOHARU Vice President Of Internal Unit Division

114.

Brief Job Description: Managing the daily operations and revenue generation of the company

126.

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

128.

ENEOS PHILIPPINES CORPORATION 23/f Tower One & Exchange Plaza, Ayala Ave., Bel-air, City Of Makati INOUE, SAORI Vice President For Business Development Division

125.

127.

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

Basic Qualification: Has an experience in dealing with executive level of documents

129.

130.

Brief Job Description: Responsible in answering customer question about product and services of the company

CHAN ZI LING Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing various customer issue

DENG, HAILANG Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing various customer issue

DICH CHI QUAY Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing various customer issue

FANNY KOU PING YEE Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing various customer issue

JIANG, LANG Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing various customer issue

KENNY LAI VUI CHUNG Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing various customer issue

LI, XUHENG Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing various customer issue

LIN, JIANZHONG Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing various customer issue

QIN, DONG Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing various customer issue

WEI, YULING Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing various customer issue

ZHANG, CHUANJUN Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Responsible for managing various customer issue

ERIC SHEN Customer Service Representative 131.

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

Brief Job Description: A customer service representative supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints, They’re the front line of support for clients and customers and the help ensure that customers are satisfied with products, services, and features.

FLY ASIAN INTERNATIONAL CORPORATION Eighty One Newport Blvd., Newport City, Va, Brgy. 183, Pasay City

PAN, KUAN-YU Marketing Consultant (Mandarin Speaking Clients) 115.

Brief Job Description: Studying company profile and operations to understand its marketing needs. Implementing a marketing strategy according to objectives and budget.

Basic Qualification: Preferably, 6 months experience with the above position. Can multi-task and keen to details. Any nationality who can speak and write Chinese fluently.

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

No.

133.

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

Basic Qualification: Proficiency in English Mandarin and other multilingual language

134.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficiency in English Mandarin and other multilingual language Salary Range: Php 90,000 - Php 149,999

Basic Qualification: Have patience and ability to remain calm in stressful situation

GAN, LEYI Chinese Speaking Customer Service Representative 135.

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

HE, HANMEI Customer Service Representative 132.

Brief Job Description: A customer service representative supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints, They’re the front line of support for clients and customers and the help ensure that customers are satisfied with products, services, and features.

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

WANG, LONG Customer Service Representative Mandarin Speaking 136.

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

YAN, YIQING Customer Service Representative Mandarin Speaking 137.

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

Basic Qualification: Have patience and ability to remain calm in stressful situation Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have patience and ability to remain calm in stressful situation

ZHANG, XIANJIN Customer Service Representative Mandarin Speaking 138.

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

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have patience and ability to remain calm in stressful situation

ZHANG, XIANXIN Customer Service Representative Mandarin Speaking 139.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have patience and ability to remain calm in stressful situation

140.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have patience and ability to remain calm in stressful situation Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Must be a College graduate; Can prepare product or service reports by collecting and analyzing customer information; Can contribute to team effort by accomplishing related results as needed; Can manage large amounts of incoming calls

141.

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

Basic Qualification: Must be a College graduate; Can prepare product or service reports by collecting and analyzing customer information; Can contribute to team effort by accomplishing related results as needed; Can manage large amounts of incoming calls Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customers questions about services or products/ excellent Mandarin communication skills 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 customer 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 customer 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 customer 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 customer needs Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Assist/Help customers; Give customers information about products and services.

Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products/ Excellent Mandarin communication skills.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products/ Excellent Mandarin communication skills.

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

HASKONING PHILIPPINES, INC. U-62 6/f Legaspi Suites, 178 Salcedo St., San Lorenzo, City Of Makati HANSEN, TORBEN BJERG Project Manager 142.

Brief Job Description: Prepares and implements project specific construction management documentation

Basic Qualification: Minimum bachelor’s degree in civil engineering Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

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

WEN, YUTONG Mandarin Information System Analyst 143.

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

Basic Qualification: Proven experience as a Mandarin Information System 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

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Must be a College graduate; Can prepare product or service reports by collecting and analyzing customer information; Can contribute to team effort by accomplishing related results as needed; Can manage large amounts of incoming calls

Brief Job Description: Assist/Help customers; Give customers information about products and services.

ON LE DINH Chinese Speaking Customer Service Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have patience and ability to remain calm in stressful situation

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

NONG THI THUY HANG Chinese Speaking Customer Service Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have patience and ability to remain calm in stressful situation

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

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: Have patience and ability to remain calm in stressful situation

Basic Qualification: Must be a College graduate; Can prepare product or service reports by collecting and analyzing customer information; Can contribute to team effort by accomplishing related results as needed; Can manage large amounts of incoming calls

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

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have patience and ability to remain calm in stressful situation

Brief Job Description: A customer service representative supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints, They’re the front line of support for clients and customers and the help ensure that customers are satisfied with products, services, and features.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

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

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Have patience and ability to remain calm in stressful situation

Brief Job Description: A customer service representative supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints, They’re the front line of support for clients and customers and the help ensure that customers are satisfied with products, services, and features.

YANG, ZUPENG Customer Service Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficiency in English Mandarin and other multilingual language

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

WANG, XU Customer Service Representative

GATEWAYSOLUTIONS CORP. Unit 2306 Antel Global Corporate Center, Julia Vargas Ave., Ortigas Center, San Antonio, City Of Pasig

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent management, decision-making, and problem-solving skills

Basic Qualification: Preferably, 6 months experience with the above position. Can multi-task and keen to details. Any nationality who can speak and write Chinese fluently.

FUWEALTH SERVICES INC. 18/f Techzone Bldg., 213 Sen. Gil Puyat Ave., San Antonio, City Of Makati

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

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

Brief Job Description: Responsible in answering customer question about product and services of the company ROPIN Mandarin Supervisor

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: can contributes information, ideas, and research to help develop marketing strategies; can help to detail, design, and implement marketing plans for each product or service being offered.

Brief Job Description: Responsible in answering customer question about product and services of the company QUAH GAR LOON Mandarin Customer Service

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: can contributes information, ideas, and research to help develop marketing strategies; can help to detail, design, and implement marketing plans for each product or service being offered.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

FRONTIER POINT MANAGEMENT SOLUTIONS INC. 29/f Techzone Bldg., Sen. Gil Puyat Ave., San Antonio, City Of Makati

DIGIVIRTUAL TECH CORPORATION 7/f Ba Lepanto Bldg., 8747 Paseo De Roxas, Bel-air, City Of Makati CHENG, YIDONG Mandarin Speaking Computer Support Specialist

Brief Job Description: Studying company profile and operations to understand its marketing needs. Implementing a marketing strategy according to objectives and budget.

A13

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION WONG, WAN-CHUNG ABE Marketing Consultant (mandarin Speaking Clients)

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

DIGICHROM INC. Unit 2602 & 2603 26/f Pbcom Tower, 6795 Ayala Ave., Bel-air, City Of Makati TIN NHUT BINH Mandarin Speaking Customer Service Representative

No.

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

WANG, ZHEN Mandarin Operating System Supervisor 144.

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

Basic Qualification: Proven experience as a mandarin operating system 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

HEIGH IT SOLUTIONS AND SERVICES CORP. 20/f Zuellig Bldg., Makati Ave. Cor. Paseo De Roxas, Urdaneta, City Of Makati

BusinessMirror

A14 Wednesday, October 6, 2021

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION KAM LOONG SHENG Multilingual Customer Service Representative

145.

Brief Job Description: Responsible in assisting customers on products and services of the company LIM YEE ENN Multilingual Customer Service Representative

146.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

Brief Job Description: Responsible in assisting customers on products and services of the company

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Proficiency in English, Mandarin and other multilingual language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficiency in English, Mandarin and other multilingual language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

HIKVISION SINGAPORE PTE. LTD. PHILIPPINES BRANCH 37th/f Joy Nostalg Center, Adb Avenue, Ortigas Center, San Antonio, City Of Pasig

147.

GUO, WANG Sales Manager Brief Job Description: Setting individual sales targets with the sales team

Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin language, college degree Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

148.

Brief Job Description: Optimize CRM campaigns & newsletter based on performance and engagement data

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking reading and writing in Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

INVECH TREASURE PROCESSING CORPORATION 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th Floor, Six West Campus Mckinley West, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig LI, QI Mandarin Customer Support Representative 149.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

LIN, SANHUI Mandarin Customer Support Representative 150.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

ZHAO, JIUFEI Mandarin Customer Support Representative 151.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

ZHOU, WEI Mandarin Customer Support Representative 152.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

ZOU, YANFANG Mandarin Customer Support Representative 153.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in MANDARIN/FUKIEN and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in MANDARIN/FUKIEN and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

154.

Brief Job Description: Create and manage product in conjunction with marketing strategies to Swedish consultant.

JUNG, YOORI Korean Customer Service Representative 155.

Brief Job Description: Create and manage product in conjunction with marketing strategies to Korean customer service representative KANG, MIN JI Korean Customer Service Representative

156.

Brief Job Description: Create and manage product in conjunction with marketing strategies to Korean Customer Service Representative LEE, YOUNGIL Korean Customer Service Representative

157.

Brief Job Description: Create and manage product in conjunction with marketing strategies to Korean Customer Service Representative PARK, YEON SOOK Korean Customer Service Representative

158.

Brief Job Description: Create and manage product in conjunction with marketing strategies to Korean customer service representative SONG, HOJUN Korean Customer Service Representative

159.

Brief Job Description: Create and manage product in conjunction with marketing strategies to Korean Customer Service Representative SONG, OSU Korean Customer Service Representative

160.

Brief Job Description: Create and manage product in conjunction with marketing strategies to Korean customer service representative YANG, SEONGMIN Korean Customer Service Representative

161.

Brief Job Description: Create and manage product in conjunction with marketing strategies to Korean Customer Service Representative

JARDINE SCHINDLER ELEVATOR CORPORATION 20th Floor, Insular Life Fcc Tower 1, Alabang, City Of Muntinlupa

Brief Job Description: Leads a team of technical experts and directs field quality excellence programs of the company

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

LIU, WEIWEI Strategic And Facilitation Officer 163.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in MANDARIN/FUKIEN and at least college level with related BPO experience.

164.

Brief Job Description: Your primary function is to help the company and it’s Chinese clients to generate more income for the company

165.

166.

167.

Brief Job Description: Developing executing and governing marketing communications concepts and programs for engaging various stakeholders as per the business strategy and working closely with business representatives marketing and sales for ensuring concepts and programs at business level.

YANG, JINYUN Chinese Speaking Business Development Associate 168.

Basic Qualification: With at least 10 years extensive experience as VP handling after sales Salary Range: Php 90,000 - Php 149,999

181.

Basic Qualification: Bachelors or master degree in communication , journalism, public relations or related re 5+ years background in a similar position . Strong understanding of BI and marketing mix and solid ATL and BTL exp sales experiences; preferably fluent in Hebrew language and fluent English language.

Brief Job Description: Developing, implementing sales strategies, client service, plan and analyzing sales data

Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products / Excellent Mandarin communication skills

169.

CHAI, KUN Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider

182.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

170.

CHEN, WAN-YU Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider

183.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

171.

CHEN, XIYA Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider

184.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

172.

CHEN, ZHIXIANG Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider

185.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

173.

CHENG, YE Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider

186.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

174.

FANG, QINZHEN Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider

187.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

175.

GAO, ANLEI Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

176.

HE, CHANGJUN Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 177.

HU, HAO Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

SHU, QINKANG Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider

SUN, GUANGXU Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

188.

SUN, JIASEN Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

189.

TIAN, YUYONG Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

190.

WANG, CHENG Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

191.

WU, TIANCHEN Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

192.

XING, LIJIAN Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

193.

YAN, ZHIBO Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Mandarin

QU, MINGZHE Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin

QIU, YANG Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin

LUO, FA Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin

LIU, WANCHUN Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin

LIU, TONGCHENG Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

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

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin

LIU, NA Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

Basic Qualification: Extensive experience in accounting and finance Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999

HUANG, LEI Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

MEGA-WEB TECHNOLOGIES INC. 6,7,8,9,10,11/f Met Live Bldg., Edsa Cor. Macapagal Blvd., Brgy. 076, Pasay City

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: At least College Graduate speak and write fluently (Korean & English)

180.

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

MARKETCLUB INC. 41/f Gt Tower International, Ayala Ave. Cor. H.v. Dela Costa St., Bel-air, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: At least college graduate speak and write fluently (Korean &English)

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin

HUANG, HONGBING Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

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

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: At least College Graduate speak and write fluently (Korean & English)

Brief Job Description: Oversees the entire finance and human resources department

YANEV, VALENTIN YANKOV Hebrew Marketing And Communications Manager

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: At least college graduate speak and write fluently (Korean &English)

179.

Basic Qualification: Must be fluent in Chinese language Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

M AND J SOLUTIONS PROVIDER INC. Ub 111 Paseo De Roxas Bldg., Paseo De Roxas, San Lorenzo, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: At least College Graduate speak and write fluently (Korean & English)

Brief Job Description: Provides guidance to section managers on specific objectives

HOSHI, SEIICHIRO Vice President For Finance And Administration

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: At least College Graduate speak and write fluently (Korean & English)

Brief Job Description: Conducting research and marketing strategies to develop areas of the business

HAYASHIDA, MINORU Vice President (After Sales)

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: At least college graduate speak and write fluently (Korean &English)

178.

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

KUBOTA PHILIPPINES, INC. 232, Quirino H-way, Baesa 6, Quezon City

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

Basic Qualification: at least college graduate preferably 6 mos. to 1 year marketing consultancy exp. speaks and write fluently (English)

Basic Qualification: Engineering graduate.

5-10 years of significant professional experience as technical director or similar capacity in the same field of industry

No.

KING-MERCHANT BUSINESS TRADING INCORPORATED Unit 2505-f, The Finance Centre 26th St., Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in MANDARIN/FUKIEN and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

JDB MANAGEMENT AND CONSULTANCY CORP. 107 T & D House, Magallanes St., 069, Bgy. 655, Intramuros, City Of Manila

Basic Qualification: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

J-NA ALLOUT TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS CORP. 3/f Lipams Bldg., #48 President Avenue, Bf Homes, City Of Parañaque

LEVEN, NILS ERIK Consultant

TEO KOK LI Technical Director 162.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

LIU, JIAXI Mandarin Speaking Marketing Specialist

INQUICK SERVICES INC. Unit 606 6/f Itc Bldg., 337 Sen. Gil Puyat Ave., Bel-air, City Of Makati GIANG MUOI Mandarin Speaking Marketing Officer

No.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

194.

YANG, CHEN Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Mandarin

195.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin

196.

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

ZHAN, ZHIJIANG Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin

ZENG, JIANPENG Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider

197.

ZHANG, JUNYUAN Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading, and writing in Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

198.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION ZHANG, WANGCHENG Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

199.

ZHANG, YU Mandarin Speaking Customer Relations Service Provider Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling service support calls

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin

200.

Brief Job Description: To troubleshoot, maintain and monitor the computer system MA, CHAOLONG Mandarin Technical Support

201.

Brief Job Description: To troubleshoot, maintain and monitor the computer system

220.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in mandarin

221.

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

MINDSCAPE CREATIVES INC. Unit 19-o, Burgundy Corporate Tower, 252 Sen. Gil Puyat Ave., Pio Del Pilar, City Of Makati CHEN, SHUHANG Mandarin Technical Support

No.

222.

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin

223.

224.

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

MOA CLOUDZONE CORP. 4th-11th Flr. Nexgen Tower, C4 Rd. Edsa Ext., Brgy. 076, Pasay City

202.

203.

204.

205.

206.

207.

208.

209.

210.

211.

212.

213.

214.

215.

216.

217.

218.

219.

MA, WENTAN Chinese Customer Representative Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries CHEN, JINYIN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires CHEN, TANGFU Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

FENG, JINFENG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries GUO, YINTAO Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries HOANG THI NHUNG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries HU, SHENGBIN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires HUANG, FEI Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires HUANG, JUNFENG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries JIAO, DOUDOU Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries LAN, GEMING Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries LE ANH DUNG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires LI, BO Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires LI, CONGJUN a.k.a. EH7022726 Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires LI, XIAOLI Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries LI, XIDONG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries LIU, FANGZHU Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries LIU, MANSHUANG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries

Basic Qualification: Able to speak, Read, and Write Chinese language

225.

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

226.

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

227.

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

228.

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

229.

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

230.

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

231.

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

232.

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

233.

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

234.

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

235.

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

236.

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

237.

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

238.

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

239.

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

240.

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

241.

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

242.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION LIU, WEI Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries LUO, XIAO Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries MA, BINGTANG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires MAI THI LIEN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries MU, JUNXIAN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires NJEULONG, YVAN TEDDY Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries PENG, LIYAN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries QIN, YI Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries SHI, QI Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries SHUAI, HONGMEI Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries SU, XU Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires TEMBUH, ALAIN KUSHINE Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires TIAN, ZHIYUAN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries TU, JINGWEI Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries WANG, YONGCHAO Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries WU, WEIHUANG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries XU, BING Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries XUE, QING Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries YE, YIHAN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries YIN, JINSHEN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries YU, FENG-JUI a.k.a. YU, CHIH-MIN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries

ZHANG, JUNJIE Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries

ZHANG, KAIQIANG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

A15

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Able to speak, Read, and Write Chinese language

No.

243.

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

244.

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

245.

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

246.

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

247.

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

248.

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

249.

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

250.

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

251.

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

252.

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

253.

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

254.

Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries ZHANG, QING Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries ZHANG, XIJUN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires.

ZHENG, JIAYI Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries ZHENG, JIEWEN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries ZHI, LIFU Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries ZHU, ZHENDONG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries ZHUANG, ZHENHUI Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquiries LI, WEIHUA Chinese Customer Specialist Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires

PANG, JUNREN Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Customer Service

ZHANG, DAKUN Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Customer Service

ZHANG, HONGRUI Customer Service Representative Brief Job Description: Customer Service

AMATO, ANTONIO Pods Operations Consultant 255.

Brief Job Description: Manage parts inventory specifically on service ability and turn-over and to oversee and guide our logistics operations

VYSLOBODSKA, OLHA Global Project Management Office Lead 256.

Brief Job Description: Perform the market account lead role for north America and ensure mature partnership is established to facilitate that continuous improvement is implemented to drive value to the business

257.

258.

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

CHEN, GUILIN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

DENG, YANAN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

GAO, BING Chinese Customer Service 259.

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

260.

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

LIU, JIBIN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

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

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: 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: With experience in working with Hevy, Procurement and Inventory Management, preferably in CAT products Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

Basic Qualification: At least 3 years operational experience in ISIT service management Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

NEW ORIENTAL CLUB88 CORPORATION Sky Garage Bldg., Aseana Avenue, Entertainment City, Tambo, City Of Parañaque

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

Basic Qualification: Able to speak, Read, and Write Chinese language

NESTLE PHILIPPINES, INC. Rockwell Center 31, Plaza Drive, Poblacion, City Of Makati

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

ZHANG, LIANGPING Chinese Customer Service

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

MONARK EQUIPMENT CORPORATION OF THE PHILIPPINES 13, Calle Economia, Bagumbayan, Quezon City

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

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

261.

LUO, HENG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Customer support and data base services Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

BusinessMirror

A16 Wednesday, October 6, 2021

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

262.

263.

264.

265.

266.

267.

268.

269.

270.

271.

272.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

QIAO, HONGKAI Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

SONG, CHENG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

SUN, ZHUANGZHI Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

WANG, BO Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

WANG, HAISHEN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

XU, JINGJING Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

XU, SHUXIANG Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

XUN, XIAOYU Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

ZHANG, TONGHAI Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

ZHU, ZHENGXIN Chinese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

SHERRY SEPTIANY Indonesian Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

LY CONG PHUNG Vietnamese Customer Service 273.

Brief Job Description: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills MAI DUY KHANH Vietnamese Customer Service

274.

275.

276.

277.

278.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

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

NGUYEN THI XUAN Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Managing incoming calls and customer service inquires

NGUYEN TUAN DUNG Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

NGUYEN VAN NGHIA Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

PHAM NGUYEN BAO NGOC Vietnamese Customer Service Brief Job Description: Customer support and data base services

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills

279.

Brief Job Description: Identify and assess customer needs to achieve satisfaction

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION WANG, YUNIAN Mandarin Speaking Data Analyst

280.

Brief Job Description: Perform audit on data and resolve business related issues for customer base.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Good oral and written communication skills in Mandarin.

281.

YANG, HAIJUN Marketing Executive (Chinese Client) Brief Job Description: Collaborate with managers in preparing budget

Basic Qualification: College graduate; fluent in Mandarin and English

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

282.

ZAKIR Marketing Consultant Brief Job Description: Assisting marketing department

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills

PHILHOTEL MANAGEMENT INC. 9630, Kamagong St., San Antonio, City Of Makati

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

283.

CAI, XIAOMI Chinese Marketing Manager

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

BROSE, MICAH WILLIAM Asia Pacific Security Director 284.

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills

HARYONO Senior Director For Analytics And Insights Philippines 285.

286.

287.

288.

289.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

290.

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

Brief Job Description: Answering inquiries, resolving problems, fulfilling requests and maintaining data base.

LI, WENWEN Chinese Customer Service Representative 291.

Brief Job Description: Answering inquiries, resolving problems, fulfilling requests and maintaining data base

SHENG, CHONG Chinese Customer Service Representative 292.

Brief Job Description: Answering inquiries, resolving problems, fulfilling requests and maintaining data base.

SHENG, PU Chinese Customer Service Representative 293.

Brief Job Description: Answering inquiries, resolving problems, fulfilling requests and maintaining data base.

SHI, KUN Chinese Customer Service Representative 294.

Basic Qualification: Excellent in Chinese Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Answering inquiries, resolving problems, fulfilling requests and maintaining data base

JIANG, GAOZI Chinese Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: Able to speak, read, and write Chinese language

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills

Brief Job Description: Answering inquiries, resolving problems, fulfilling requests and maintaining data base

GUO, XIAOYING Chinese Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: Customer support and data base services

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

Brief Job Description: Answering inquiries, resolving problems, fulfilling requests and maintaining data base

GUO, HUOBAO Chinese Customer Service Representative

Basic Qualification: Customer support and data base services

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

Brief Job Description: Answering inquiries, resolving problems, fulfilling requests and maintaining data base

CHEN, XIAODI Chinese Customer Service Representative

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

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

Brief Job Description: Help P&G Philippines identify opportunities through advanced analytics, market/consumer/behavioral insights to accelerate brand, portfolio and market profitable growth.

CAI, MEIQUE Chinese Customer Service Representative

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills

298.

Basic Qualification: Knowledge in marketing.

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

Basic Qualification: Has a proven record turn-around & accelerate business by influencing strategies behind application of Analytics & Insights, including Indonesia and Japan.

Brief Job Description: Answering inquiries, resolving problems, fulfilling requests and maintaining data base

XIANG, BOLIN Chinese Customer Service Representative 295.

Brief Job Description: Answering inquiries, resolving problems, fulfilling requests and maintaining data base

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos1year customer service experience Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos1year customer service experience Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in english, preferably 6mos1year customer service experience Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos1year customer service experience.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos1year customer service experience Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos1year customer service experience.

Brief Job Description: Answering inquiries, resolving problems, fulfilling requests and maintaining data base

ZHUANG, WENBIN Chinese Customer Service Representative 300.

Brief Job Description: Answering inquiries, resolving problems, fulfilling requests and maintaining data base

BELL, STEPHEN JOHN Senior Vice President And Senior Payment Lead 301.

Brief Job Description: Define and implement the bank’s payment hub strategic roadmap initiatives

FITRI DIANA Customer Relation Representative (mandarin Translation) 302.

Brief Job Description: Handle service support calls, emails and chats related to inquiry from clients and/or customers through Mandarin to English translation LU, TIEN-HAO Customer Relation Representative (mandarin Translation)

303.

Brief Job Description: Handle service support calls, emails and chats related to inquiry from clients and/or customers through Mandarin to English translation LU, YA EN a.k.a. LU PEI-LING Customer Relation Representative (mandarin Translation)

304.

Brief Job Description: Handle service support calls, emails and chats related to inquiry from clients and/or customers through Mandarin to English translation YEW JING KIT Customer Relation Representative (mandarin Translation)

305.

Brief Job Description: Handle service support calls, emails and chats related to inquiry from clients and/or customers through Mandarin to English translation

306.

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

Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos1year customer service experience.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos1year customer service experience Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos1year customer service experience Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos1year customer service experience Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Adept on banking with wide exposure to product, operations, IT and various payment schemes.

Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

Basic Qualification: Through extensive and fluency in Mandarin language and characters Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Through extensive and fluency in Mandarin language and characters Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Through extensive and fluency in Mandarin language and characters Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Through extensive and fluency in Mandarin language and characters Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

HARTONO LIM Bahasa Indonesian Language Head Of Departmenttrader Brief Job Description: Managing clients; compile odds and trading prices for all markets

Basic Qualification: Bachelor’s degree in business marketing and other relevant courses.

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

SHANGHAI ELECTRIC POWER CONSTRUCTION PHILIPPINE CORPORATION Unit 2703-d, 27/f West Tower, Psec Exchange Road, Ortigas Ctr., City Of Pasig

HSIUNG, CHIEN-KAI Project Manager 307.

Brief Job Description: Lead the planning and implementation of project; manage project budget and develop full scale project plans

Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin and English language both in written and oral; must be familiar with planning and installing; with administrative and reporting skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

SHEVRONE INC. Unit No. 2c, Floor No. 4/f, Zone 10, Barangay 76, District 1, Pasay City CHEN, BIN Chinese Speaking Customer Service Representative 308.

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

CUI, JIARUI Chinese Speaking Customer Service Representative 309.

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

LIU, PENGFEI Chinese Speaking Customer Service Representative 310.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos1year customer service experience

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

SHANG SOFTWARE SOLUTIONS, INC. 11/f Pbcom Tower, Ayala Avenue, Salcedo Village, Bel-air, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos1year customer service experience

Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos1year customer service experience.

SEEKTOP SERVICE MANAGEMENT INC. 25/f Alphaland Corporate Tower, 7232 Ayala Ave. Extn. Cor. Malugay St., Bel-air, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: College graduate, fluent in English, preferably 6mos1year customer service experience.

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

SECURITY BANK CORPORATION Security Bank Centre Bldg. 6776, Ayala Avenue, San Lorenzo, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

Basic Qualification: COLLEGE GRADUATE, FLUENT IN ENGLISH, PREFERABLY 6MOS-1YEAR CUSTOMER SERVICE EXPERIENCE

Brief Job Description: Answering inquiries, resolving problems, fulfilling requests and maintaining data base

ZHU, JIANBO Chinese Customer Service Representative 299.

Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

Brief Job Description: Answering inquiries, resolving problems, fulfilling requests and maintaining data base.

ZHANG, SHIJIE Chinese Customer Service Representative

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

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills

Brief Job Description: Manage the overall security program for Asia Pacific business units

297.

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

Basic Qualification: With more than 10 years training and experience in executive protection and security in P&G working areas esp. in Asia and Pacific.

Brief Job Description: Answering inquiries, resolving problems, fulfilling requests and maintaining data base.

YUAN, WEIJIANG Chinese Customer Service Representative

PROCTER & GAMBLE PHILIPPINES, INC. 10f Seven/neo, 5th Ave., Crescent Park West, Bonifacio Global City, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Brief Job Description: Develop marketing strategies and generate new business leads

Basic Qualification: College graduate and fluent in English

PROCTER & GAMBLE PHILIPPINES BUSINESS SERVICES, INC. 11th Flr. Seven Neo Bldg., 5th Ave. Crescent Parkwest, Bgc, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills

296.

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

PHIL. YAMEEN TRADING INC. Unit No. U-8 Flr. No. 3/f Baclaran Bagong Milenyo Plaza Bldg., F.b. Harrison St., Barangay 076, Pasay City

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION XIONG, CAIZHEN Chinese Customer Service Representative

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

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills skills

Basic Qualification: Knowledgeable in computer application with good oral and written communication skills

No.

PARANAQUE ONLINE PALENGKE INC. 305 Mtf Building, Dr. A Santos Ave., San Isidro, City Of Parañaque

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

NOONA BUSINESS CONSULTING SERVICES INC. 10th & 31st Floor Ore Central Tower, 9th Ave. Cor. 31st St., Bgc, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig HUANG, LICHUN Mandarin Customer Service Representative

No.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

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

MA, ZHIWEI Chinese Speaking Customer Service Representative 311.

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

Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products / Excellent Mandarin communication skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products / Excellent Mandarin communication skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products / excellent mandarin communication skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products / Excellent Mandarin communication skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS No.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION ZHAO, ZUOLI Chinese Speaking Customer Service Representative

312.

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

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

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products / Excellent Mandarin communication skills Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

SIEMENS ENERGY, INC. 15/f Nex Tower, 6786 Ayala Ave., San Lorenzo, City Of Makati

WADE, TREVOR Chief Executive Officer 313.

Brief Job Description: Responsible for the planning, monitoring and reporting of power plant performance and the safety, environmental and quality management of SEI services.

Basic Qualification: More than 20 years of extensive managerial experience in multinational companies, preferably dealing with Siemens Global projects.

314.

Brief Job Description: Records accounts payable and accounts receivable

326.

LASCIARREA, UGO Vp-human Capital 327.

315.

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

Basic Qualification: Bachelor’s degree in finance, accounting or any related field of study

329.

316.

Brief Job Description: Responsibly maintain and enhance relationship with premium players, monitor sales performance and handle guest’s claims and issues

Basic Qualification: Must have lived, studied and worked in Korea for at least 10 years and is accustomed to its culture; must naturally speak and write Korean language

330.

317.

Brief Job Description: Book tickets, reserve accommodation, and organize transport arrangement.

331.

LEI, LEI Mandarin Travel Coordinator 318.

Brief Job Description: Book tickets, reserve accommodation, and organize transport arrangement.

WANG, LEI Mandarin Travel Coordinator

319.

Brief Job Description: Book tickets, reserve accommodation, and organize transport arrangement.

YE, YANG Mandarin Travel Coordinator

320.

Brief Job Description: Book tickets, reserve accommodation, and organize transport arrangement.

332.

333.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

XIE, XIN Mandarin Customer Support Representative 334.

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: Passionate about travel and tourism, able to speak mandarin Chinese.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

XIE, LIFANG Mandarin Customer Support Representative

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: Passionate about travel and tourism, able to speak mandarin Chinese

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

WU, ZHIJUN Mandarin Customer Support Representative

Salary Range: Php 60,000 - Php 89,999 Basic Qualification: Passionate about travel and tourism, able to speak mandarin Chinese

Brief Job Description: Researches and develops various marketing strategies for products and services and implements marketing plans and works to meet sales quotas

WANG, KUI Mandarin Customer Support Representative

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

Basic Qualification: Passionate about travel and tourism, able to speak mandarin Chinese.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

XU, ENQIANG Mandarin Customer Support Representative 335.

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

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints

TOP ACCESS INFINITY INC. 27th Floor The Curve Building, 32nd Street Bgc, Fort Bonifacio, City Of Taguig

LIN, RENXIONG After Sales Operational Associate 321.

Brief Job Description: An After Sales Operational Associate works in a retail setting and reports to an operations manager.

Basic Qualification: Fluent in mandarin speaking, preferably graduate in China or at least graduate in prestigious school in the Philippines, knowledgeable in Chinese corporation.

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

TOPAZBLITZ INC. Unit No. Unit 2c, Flr. No. 4/f, One E-com Center Building Bldg., Ocean Drive St., Mall Of Asia Complex Subd., Zone 10, Barangay 076, District 1, Pasay City

FANG, YULIN Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk 322.

Brief Job Description: Enters customer and account data and keeping and maintaining information confidential

JU, WENFENG Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk 323.

Brief Job Description: Enters customer and account data and keeping and maintaining information confidential

SUN, HONG Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk 324.

Brief Job Description: Enters customer and account data and keeping and maintaining information confidential

WANG, XING Chinese Speaking Data Entry Clerk 325.

Brief Job Description: Enters customer and account data and keeping and maintaining information confidential

Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customers questions about services or products/ excellent Mandarin communication skills

XU, SHIYAO Mandarin Customer Support Representative 336.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

XU, YANGCHENG Mandarin Customer Support Representative 337.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

ZHANG, FUYONG Mandarin Customer Support Representative 338.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products/ excellent mandarin communication skills

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

ZHU, HENGJIAN Mandarin Customer Support Representative 339.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products/ excellent Mandarin communication skills

ZHUO, XIAOFEN Mandarin Customer Support Representative 340.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Proficiency in handling customer questions about services or products/ excellent mandarin communication skills

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE Basic Qualification: Able to make good food consistently even in a busy kitchen Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proven experience in training, talent management, experience in strategic planning and implementation

342.

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION

GUO, JIE Chinese IT Specialist Brief Job Description: Maintain the operation of electronic device

343.

CHIM THI MAI Vietnamese Customer Support Representative 341.

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

HE, LINCAN Chinese IT Specialist Brief Job Description: Maintain the operation of electronic device

Salary Range: Php 150,000 - Php 499,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in MANDARIN/FUKIEN and at least college level with related BPO experience.

344.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: can contributes information, ideas, and research to help develop marketing strategies; can help to detail, design, and implement marketing plans for each product or service being offered.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in MANDARIN/FUKIEN and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in MANDARIN/FUKIEN and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in MANDARIN/FUKIEN and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in MANDARIN/FUKIEN and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Brief Job Description: Maintain the operation of electronic device

KWON, SEUNGWOO Bilingual Technical Support Specialist 345.

Brief Job Description: Works with customer/employees to identify computer problems and advises them on the solution.

XU, YU Bilingual Technical Support Specialist 346.

Brief Job Description: Works with customer/employees to identify computer problems and advises them on the solution.

347.

348.

349.

GUO, YONGPENG Chinese Language Customer Service Staff Brief Job Description: Deal with and help resolve customer complaints

ADITYA KRISTIANTO Indonesian Language - Customer Service Staff Brief Job Description: Deal with and help resolve customer complaints.

NGUYEN DUY CUONG Vietnamese Language - Customer Service Staff Brief Job Description: Deal with and help resolve customer complaints.

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

LI, JIE Curriculum Development Consultant For Grade School 350.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: 300 vacancy/college graduate with experience in maintain gaming devices, fluent in Mandarin and English speaking Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Excellent in writing, reading and speaking in bilingual languages Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent in writing, reading and speaking in bilingual languages Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

Basic Qualification: Proficient in speaking, reading and writing in Mandarin Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent in Indonesian language.

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Excellent in Indonesian language.

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

Brief Job Description: 1. Work closely with Grade School Chinese language teachers and the Integrated Chinese Dept. Head 2. Research and incorporate current trends and data 3.

Update training documents

Basic Qualification: 1. Must be a college graduate of Education or any Chinese and culture course or any other related course.

2. At least 1 yr experience in education 3. Knowledgeable and updated in Chinese language education and culture

XUSHENG TECHNOLOGY CORP. Flr. No. 1-5 Bldg., No. 0050 F.b. Harrison St. Cor. Williams And Roberts St., Zone 4, Barangay 013, District 1, Pasay City DU, QIANG Mandarin Speaking Technical Support 351.

Brief Job Description: Deals with hardware and application support queries and issues reported to the support desk ZHANG, JIYONG Mandarin Speaking Technical Support

352.

Brief Job Description: Deals with hardware and application support queries and issues reported to the support desk

Basic Qualification: Fluent in Mandarin Speaking Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Fluent in Mandarin Speaking Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999

YFT DOCUMENT FACILITATION SERVICES Room No. C-06 23/f Tower 6789, 6789 Ayala Ave., Bel-air, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Basic Qualification: 300 vacancy/college graduate with experience in maintain gaming devices, fluent in Mandarin and English speaking

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

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in MANDARIN/FUKIEN and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

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

XAVIER SCHOOL, INC. (ALSO KNOWN AS KUANG CHI SCHOOL) #64, Xavier St., Bgy. Greenhills, City Of San Juan

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in MANDARIN/FUKIEN and at least college level with related BPO experience.

Basic Qualification: 300 vacancy/college graduate with experience in maintain gaming devices, fluent in Mandarin and English speaking

WISHLAND SOFTWARE TECHNOLOGY INC. 28/f Techzone Condo Corp., 213 Buendia Ave., San Antonio, City Of Makati

Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in Mandarin/Fukien and at least college level with related BPO experience.

PHAN VAN TUE IT Specialist

QUALIFICATION AND SALARY RANGE

VPC CORPORATE SOLUTIONS INCORPORATED 11/f 100 West, Sen Gil Puyat Ave. Cor., Washington St., Pio Del Pilar, City Of Makati

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

ZHANG, MIN Marketing Specialist 353.

Brief Job Description: Provides information & Recommendations Option and Course of Action

Basic Qualification: Proficient on Microsoft office suite, adobe creative suite and CRM CMS software, excellent written and verbal and written skill for foreign clients with marketing background Salary Range: Php 30,000 - Php 59,999 *Date Generated: Oct 5, 2021

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.

Basic Qualification: Able to speak and write in VIETNAMESE and at least college level with related BPO experience.

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

ATTY. SARAH BUENA S. MIRASOL REGIONAL DIRECTOR

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

TREASURE CUISINE INCORPORATED 2/f Oceanaire Condo., L7 B Central Business Park, Barangay 76, Pasay City

No.

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

TIME TURNER TRAVELS CORPORATION Unit 25d 2/f Zeta Ii Bldg., 191 Salcedo St., San Lorenzo, City Of Makati GAO, HUI Mandarin Travel Coordinator

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

MENG, DA Mandarin Customer Support Representative

TIGER RESORT, LEISURE AND ENTERTAINMENT, INC. Okada Manila, New Seaside Drive, Entertainment City, Barangay Tambo, City Of Parañaque CHA, YONGHUN Executive Host, Premium Marketing Business Development

Brief Job Description: Supports customers by providing helpful information, answering questions, and responding to complaints.

LI, KUN Mandarin Customer Support Representative

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: Provides executive-level leadership and guidance to the organization’s operations and develops various strategies towards human development.

FANG, HONG Mandarin Customer Support Representative

SPEEDWELL INC. Unit No. 2-c, Flr. No.4/f, One E-com Center Building, Ocean Drive St., Zone 10, Barangay 076, District 1, Pasay City VU MANH HUNG Chinese Speaking Customer Service Representative

Brief Job Description: Responsible for handling all food related concerns and taking care of food preparation needs

A17

ESTABLISHMENT / ADDRESS

TREVI FOUNDATIONS PHILIPPINES INC. U-2301 88 Corporate Center, 141 Valero Cor. Sedeno Sts., Bel-air, City Of Makati

328.

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

NAME OF FOREIGN NATIONAL , POSITION AND BRIEF DESCRIPTION XIANG, YUAN Chinese Chef

Salary Range: Php 500,000 and above

SKYLUSTER TECHNOLOGY, INC. 26/f Pbcom Tower, 6795 Ayala Ave., Bel-air, City Of Makati VAN VINH BINH Mandarin Finance Specialists

No.

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

VERTEX DIGITAL ENTERTAINMENT TECHNOLOGIES, INC. 1439 Adriatico Cor. Sta. Monica St., 072, Bgy. 669, Ermita, City Of Manila

Companies BusinessMirror

Editor: Jennifer A. Ng

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

B1

Jollibee starts tender offer for $600-M senior notes

By VG Cabuag

J

@villygc

ollibee Foods Corp. (JFC) on Tuesday said it has started the tender offer for its Singapore-listed, $600-million guaranteed senior perpetual securities it issued in January 2020.

The announcement of the tender offer, which started on October 5 and will last through November 3 at 4 p.m. London time, was made by the company’s unit Jollibee Worldwide Pte. Ltd. (JWPL) at the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Ltd. The said tender offer is conditioned on the settlement and listing of up to 12 million cumulative, non-voting, non-participating, non-convertible, redeemable, pesodenominated perpetual preferred shares concurrently being offered

by Jollibee at the Philippine Stock Exchange.

A portion of the proceeds of about P12 billion, will be used to partially buyback the said Singapore-listed

securities, which Jollibee’s parent firm will extend to JWPL to partially fund the tender offer.

“Once the issuance of the preferred shares and the partial buyback of the guaranteed senior perpetual capital securities are completed along with other actions related to financing and financial management,

by December 2021, JFC expects to have fewer debt obligations, more distributed financial maturities over the next few years, lower foreign exchange risks and better leverage and debt servicing ratios,” the company said.

“All these actions will support JFC in maintaining its capability to

finance its profitable growth, which is forecast to accelerate in the next few months and years, as the JFC Group plans to accelerate its worldwide store expansion in 2022 and onward.”

Jollibee’s flagship brand, meanwhile, is crossing over from mainly Filipino diners to local consumers across Europe, the Middle East and Asia with 11 new stores in the first half and more openings pipelined for the next few months.

“As many parts of the world continue opening up, especially in the Europe, Middle East, Asia, and Australia Region, consumers look for new and unique moments to bond with their family and friends. We’re glad that consumers in these markets have warmly welcomed Jollibee,” said Dennis Flores, president of Jollibee for Europe, Middle East, Australia and Asia.

“We are also delighted to see that the love for Jollibee and our worldfamous Chickenjoy has no borders as more and more local customers patronize our products. Jollibee hopes to continue bringing more people from all walks of life to bond

over our great tasting food at superb value for money.”

Jollibee opened two new branches in the United Kingdom, in the center of Reading on Broad Street and in Leeds. It also recently opened its first store in Madrid, Spain to thousands of customers waiting in line during opening day.

The company plans to open 50 stores in Europe in the next five years, focusing on UK, Italy and Spain.

In the Middle East, Jollibee opened new restaurants at the Villaggio Mall and City Center Mall, both in Doha, Qatar and also at the Riyadh Gallery Mall in Saudi Arabia.

In Jollibee Riyadh Gallery Mall, locals comprised a quarter of customers on opening day and grew to almost half of customers on its second day.

For its expansion plans in East Asia, Jollibee opened two new stores in Hong Kong through its franchisee.

One is in Causeway Bay, the second most expensive shopping street in the world; and the other is in Wanchai Road, a popular district with over 600,000 workers, shoppers, and commuters.

Firms told to ensure steady fuel supply

By Lenie Lectura @llectura

T

he Department of Energy (DOE) wants oil companies to keep a steady supply of their fuel products amid a possible supply deficit in the fourth quarter.

Energy Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi reminded oil firms to comply with Executive Order (EO) 134 which requires oil companies and bulk suppliers to maintain a sufficient minimum inventory of petroleum.

EO 134 indicated that the fuel inventory must be “in the amount sufficient to ensure a continuous, adequate and stable supply of petroleum products, should domestic and international events, such as, but not limited to terrorist attacks, armed conflicts in the Middle East and in other regions whence the Philippines draws or secures its petroleum supply, threaten or restrict the supply of

More IPOs scrapped as investors turn cautious

M

ore initial public offerings (IPO) are being pulled as investors turn cautious in the face of choppy markets and a glut of deals.

At least eight companies in Europe, including health-care property company Icade Sante SAS, have put plans on ice over the past month.

In New York, wellness platform Better Being Co. and investment software firm Allvue Systems Holdings Inc. scrapped offerings, while TPG-Backed Novotech Health last month said it wouldn’t pursue a Hong Kong IPO. A raft of listings coming to market in recent weeks means investors have become picky about where they put their money.

Equity markets worldwide have also turned volatile in the past month amid soaring energy prices, faster inflation and a debt crisis at China Evergrande Group. Bloomberg News

petroleum to the Philippines.”

“I am directing all oil companies in the country to ensure adequate supply, and come up with plans to mitigate possible price hikes of oil products in the coming months,” Cusi said.

He reminded oil firms to comply with the Minimum Inventory Requirements (MIR) under Department Circular No. 2003-01-001.

The circular states that all oil companies, except refiners operating in the country, and bulk suppliers maintain a minimum inventory equivalent to 15-days worth of petroleum products’ supply, except for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG).

Oil refiners are required to maintain an MIR equivalent to 30-days worth of supply, consisting of petroleum crude oil and refined petroleum products.

Also a 7-day’s worth of supply must be maintained for LPG. Pump prices went up again for the

sixth consecutive week. Oil firms increased gasoline prices by P1.45 per liter, diesel by P2.05 per liter and kerosene by P2.05 per liter effective October 5.

The latest price increase resulted in year-to-date adjustments to stand at a total net increase of P16.55 per liter for gasoline, P15 per liter for diesel, and P12.7 per liter for kerosene.

According to the DOE-Oil Industry Management Bureau (DOEOIMB), the latest global oil market developments are responsible for looming oil price increases.

Demand in the fourth quarter is seen to reach as much as 103 million barrels of crude oil per day (mbpd), while supply is currently only at about 103.22 mbpd, the DOE said.

Also, the absence of any additional supply from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) would contribute to supply deficit.

From August to December 2021,

OPEC will be enforcing an increase of only 400,000 barrels per month which is expected to even out the supply-demand balance by the end of 2021. The DOE also said a potential deal with Iran has not progressed under the Biden administration. The continued sanctions against Iran remove as much as two to three million barrels of crude oil per day from the world market. The Iran deal is foreseen to be resolved sometime in the second quarter of 2022.

The continued sanctions against Venezuela take away a potential supply of about one to two million barrels of crude oil supply per day from the global market.

“The DOE will continue to closely monitor global oil supply and price movements. As always, we are working with the downstream oil industry players to ensure that all mechanisms to protect our consumers against the impact of such developments as much as possible,” Cusi said.

Meralco joins UN Global Compact

T

he Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) became the latest Filipino organization to join the United Nations Global Compact last May. The UN Global Compact, which was launched in July 2000, encourages stakeholders worldwide to align their strategies and operations to the pact’s Ten Principles, which are anchored on sustainable and socially responsible policies on the improvement of universal human rights, labor rights and freedoms, environmental consciousness, and anti-corruption efforts.

“Meralco is pleased to announce that we have joined the United Nations Global Compact initiative—a voluntary leadership platform for the development, implementation, and disclosure of responsible business practices,” said Meralco President and CEO Ray C. Espinosa.

“With this announcement, we are proud to become part of a global coalition committed to taking responsible business action to build the world we all want.”

Meralco joins a growing com-

Meralco President and CEO Ray C. Espinosa formalizes the power utility’s commitment to the United Nations Global Compact. Contributed Photo

munity of over 15,000 public and private entities from more than 170 countries that have signed the UN Global Compact, currently the world’s largest corporate sustainability initiative, driven by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs are 17 interconnected aspirations that serve as a blueprint for a universally sustainable future by the year 2030.

Meralco’s participation in the pact reflects the Company’s profound

commitment to the achievement of the UN SDGs. As the country’s leading electric distribution utility, Meralco greatly contributes to the achievement of SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), by providing access to fairly priced, accessible, reliable, and green energy.

Moreover, through its corporate sustainability programs aimed at “Powering the Good Life”—Meralco strongly advocates and supports other SDGs: SDG 1 (No Poverty), SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 5 (Gender Equality), SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), SDG 13 (Climate Action), SDG 15 (Life on Land), and SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals).

“Identifying where and how our work impacts the SDGs has been instrumental for us in defining and prioritizing the areas which allow us to make a transformational difference in the lives of those we serve,” said Espinosa.

FPH executive lands in ‘Modern Governance 100’ global leaders’ list

A

senior executive of Lopez-led First Philippine Holdings Corp. (FPH) has been recognized by a United Statesbased governance, risk and compliance (GRC) company as one of the world’s top 100 GRC leaders for driving FPH’s efforts toward greater diversity, sustainable practices, and sharper insights for company leadership.

Diligent Corp. (Diligent), a leading GRC software-as-a-service or SaaS company, announced in its website that Agnes de Jesus, the chief sustainability officer of FPH, is one of the honorees in Diligent’s list of “Modern Governance 100” global leaders of 2021.

De Jesus received the honor under the “ESG [environment, social and governance] and Diversity Trailblazer” category for her role in the accomplishments of FPH and its subsidiaries in environment and human rights protection, promoting gender diversity and equality, and in recognizing the rights of indigenous people on top of preserving their cultural heritage.

She won the recognition, based on the nomination coming from the Center for Social Responsibility of the University of Asia and the Pacific.

Diligent is the leading GRC SaaS company, serving more than one million users from over 25,000 organizations around the globe. Its modern GRC platform ensures that boards, executives and other leaders have a holistic, integrated view of ESG data, audit, risk, information security, ethics and compliance across the organization.

FPH is a conglomerate with a long history and a strong advocacy to fight adverse and destructive climate change. As part of its advocacy, FPH later on declared in 2016 that it will not build, develop, or invest in any power plant that runs on coal, a fossil fuel with intensive content of carbon dioxide whose release to the atmosphere contributes significantly to adverse climate change.

FPH’s advocacy explains why its energy arm First Gen Corporation prioritizes the use of clean and renewable energy to run First Gen power plants. Today, First Gen stands out as the country’s clean energy leader with a total installed

Agnes de Jesus capacity of 3,492 megawatts.

De Jesus was appointed to her current FPH post in 2014. Prior to her current position, she served as senior vice president for environment and external relations and concurrent compliance officer of First Gen subsidiary Energy Development Corporation, the Philippines’ biggest vertically integrated geothermal company with a pure renewable energy portfolio of assets consisting also of wind, hydro, and solar power plants.

Under the leadership of Chairman and CEO Federico R. Lopez, FPH drew up last year the conglomerate’s new mission: “Forging collaborative pathways for a decarbonized and regenerative future.”

With the new nine-word FPH mission, the conglomerate shifted its advocacy beyond sustainability to collaborative regeneration.

The new FPH mission’s call for collaboration also recognizes the urgency of the message in the latest assessment of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The IPCC said in its latest report that, in order to reverse the destructive impact of climate change, Earth needs a sustained, rapid and large-scale reduction in carbon emissions—a task that no one company can achieve.

In support of the mission, therefore, FPH and de Jesus have been engaging outside groups—rating agencies, banks, civil society organizations, among others—for their support or collaboration in the campaign against climate change, as well as in achieving a decarbonized and regenerative future.

B2

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

Companies BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Food service industry sales seen falling 13%

S

By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

@jearcalas

ales of the country’s food service industry this year may decline by 13 percent to $7.436 billion, the lowest in 7 years, as consumers remain hesitant to eat out due to the threat of more transmissible Covid-19 variants, an international agency said.

The United States Department of Agriculture-Foreign Agricultural Service in Manila (USDA-FAS Manila) projected that Philippine food service industry sales would drop by $1.111 billion from last year’s $8.547 billion.

In a Global Agricultural Information Network report published recently, USDA-FAS Manila projected that the local food service industry would record lower sales for the second consecutive year due to the pandemic.

“With the spread of the Delta variant of Covid-19, people are hesitant to return to restaurants.

Recent lockdown measures to con-

tain the pandemic have triggered further losses on on-premises sales,” the USDA-FAS Manila said.

“To date, abrupt changes in government regulations continue to impact dine-in and events, severely affecting the food service sales and delaying the recovery of food and beverage stores. Moreover, some owners closed establishments due to low foot traffic while others converted some hotels into quarantine facilities.”

The Gain report showed that sales across all sectors of the food service industry may decline this year, which include full-service restaurants, limited-service res-

taurants, cafes and bars and kiosks.

USDA-FAS Manila projected that sales from the full-service restaurants may plunge by 20 percent year-on-year while the income of limited-service restaurants and cafes/bars may decline by 10 percent and 15 percent, respectively. Sales of stalls and kiosks could decline by 15 percent year-on-year.

“Lacking close coordination of the government with the private sector, lockdowns continue to surprise food and beverage establishments, leading to losses,” it said. “Abrupt implementation of government restrictions, such as checkpoints, quarantine passes, curfew, and liquor bans created logistical problems and low foot traffic.”

USDA-FAS Manila estimated that sales of full-service restaurants this year could fall to $1.134 billion from $1.418 billion last year while revenues of limited-service restaurants may drop to $4.285 billion from $4.761 billion.

“Cafes and bars declined the most in the food service industry, dropping 57 percent in 2020. Small gatherings and meetings continue to be avoided, resulting in an estimated 15 percent sales decline

in cafes and bars in 2021,” it said.

“Based on interviews, Post estimates the coffee industry to perform better than bars.”

USDA-FAS Manila said sales of street stalls and kiosks will go down to $1.099 billion from $1.221 billion last year.

“Since most street stalls and kiosks are in shopping malls and public transportation hubs, affected by reduced foot traffic in public areas and lower consumer spending. Stores explored lower franchise fees, home deliveries, and resellers.”

Food and drink e-commerce sales, however, would rise by 40 percent this year to a record $302 million from last year’s $216 million last year.

“Due to the continued apprehension of consumers to dine in, more owners of establishments have shifted to online delivery platforms, drive-throughs, and curbside pickups to help cushion declining sales,” it said.

“E-commerce, marketing efforts, and mobile food delivery platforms [Grabfood, Lalafood and Food Panda], increased online food and beverage sales by 216 percent last year.”

Tesla ordered to pay $137M over racism in rare verdict

T

esla Inc. lost a case against a Black former elevator operator and must pay an unprecedented $137 million in damages for having turned a blind eye to racial taunts and offensive graffiti the man endured at the electric carmaker’s auto plant in Fremont, California.

Owen Diaz, a former contract worker who was hired in 2015 via a staffing agency, was subjected to a racially hostile work environment, a federal jury in San Francisco decided Monday. The award is among the most significant verdicts of its kind.

“I believe that’s the largest verdict in an individual race discrimination in employment case,” said David Oppenheimer, a clinical professor of law at Berkeley Law. “Class actions are of course in a different category.”

Tesla’s vice president of people, Valerie Capers Workman, sent an internal email late Monday that the company subsequently published in a blog post on its website titled “Regarding Today’s Jury Verdict.”

Workman wrote she was “at the defense table for Tesla every day during the trial because I wanted to hear firsthand what Mr. Diaz said happened to him.” The post said that “the Tesla of 2015 and 2016 (when Mr. Diaz worked in the Fremont factory) is not the same as the Tesla of today.”

Diaz’s case marks a rare instance in which Tesla, which typically uses mandatory arbitration to resolve employee disputes, had to defend itself in a public trial.

The company almost never loses workplace arbitrations, though it was hit with a $1 million award in May in a case brought by another ex-contract worker that was similar to Diaz’s.

The trial could embolden shareholder activists who have pushed Tesla’s board, so far without success, to adopt more transparency about its diversity goals and use of arbitration to resolve complaints regarding sexual harassment and racial discrimination. Tesla’s annual meeting is scheduled for October 7.

In court, Tesla argued that it never intended to disregard the rights and safety of African-American workers placed by the staffing agency at the plant and that all incidents reported by Diaz were

investigated and resolved.

In her closing arguments to the jury, Tesla attorney Tracey Kennedy said “Mr. Diaz’s story simply doesn’t make sense” in light of his encouragement to his son and daughter to take up jobs at the company. She also said Diaz’s claims weren’t supported by the evidence.

J. Bernard Alexander III, a lawyer for Diaz, told jurors that “as opposed to a zero-tolerance policy, Tesla had a zero-responsibility policy.”

Sleepless nights

The “n-word” was “pervasive and virtually everywhere,” Alexander said. He finished his closing remarks by citing some phrases from “The Hill We Climb,” a poem

by Amanda Gorman, the 23-yearold poet who moved the nation at the inauguration of President Joe Biden in January. “Being American” is about stepping into the past and “how we repair it,” Alexander said.

Diaz himself testified that be suffered “sleepless nights” and weight loss as he lost his appetite.

“Some days I would just sit on my stairs and cry,” he told the jury.

The jury’s award included $6.9 million for emotional distress and $130 million in punitive damages, according to Diaz’s other attorney, Larry Organ. Tesla is the world’s most valuable automaker with a market value of around $783 billion.

Organ said he hopes the ruling encourages Tesla do so “some reevaluation” so none of its other Black workers have to endure similar treatment. “ T he jur y verdict sends a message to one of the wealthiest companies in the world that it must treat all its employees with dignity and respect,” he said.

Organ was also on the legal team representing Melvin Berry, a Black former worker who won the $1 million arbitration award over claims that the company failed to stop his supervisors at its Fremont plant from calling him the “n-word.”

Tesla faces yet another case making similar accusations that is proceeding as a class action in California state court in Oakland.

The case is Diaz v. Tesla Inc., 17-cv06748, Unitd States District Court, Northern District of California (San Francisco). Bloomberg News

mutual funds

October 5, 2021

NAV

One Year Three Year Five Year

per share Return*

Y-T-D Return

Stock Funds ALFM Growth Fund, Inc. -a

222.31

12.63%

-2.72%

-3.71%

-2.15%

ATRAM Alpha Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a

1.6117

49.95%

5.78%

2.89%

22.75%

15.62%

-6.48%

-6.57%

-2.07%

Climbs Share Capital Equity Investment Fund Corp. -a 0.7427 9.92%

ATRAM Philippine Equity Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 3.0682

-5.02% n.a.

-8.62%

First Metro Consumer Fund on MSCI Phils. IMI, Inc. -a 0.7756 14.4%

-0.77% n.a.

4.58%

First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund,Inc. -a

5.0476

First Metro Save and Learn Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a MBG Equity Investment Fund, Inc. -a

97.29

19.33%

0.32%

-1.39%

2.15%

0.7471

13.18%

-2.26%

-5.39%

-5.53% n.a.

-4.49%

16%

PAMI Equity Index Fund, Inc. -a

45.7658

15.73%

-0.86%

-2.37%

-2.29%

Philam Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a

477.92

12.48%

-0.72%

-2.83%

-2.25%

Philequity Alpha One Fund, Inc. -a,d

1.1004

23.81% n.a. n.a.

0.28%

Philequity Dividend Yield Fund, Inc. -a

1.254

24.4%

1.28%

-0.66%

7.34%

Philequity Fund, Inc. -a

34.9595

18.22%

-0.18%

-1.22%

0.55%

Philequity MSCI Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a

0.8894

13.72% n.a. n.a.

-2.58%

Philequity PSE Index Fund Inc. -a

4.7013

16.41%

-0.13%

-1.69%

-1.88%

786.6

16.5%

-0.05%

-1.71%

-1.87%

Soldivo Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a

0.7112

16.46%

-4.39%

-4.89%

-1.07%

Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Equity Fund, Inc. -a 3.6411

17.16%

-2.18%

-2.77%

0.47%

-0.4%

-1.87%

-2.17%

-0.56%

-1.07%

-1.05%

0.09%

-1.23%

Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a

Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Stock Index Fund, Inc. -a 0.8978 16.07% United Fund, Inc. -a

3.2836

16.28%

-3.77%

Exchange Traded Fund First Metro Phil. Equity Exchange Traded Fund, Inc. -a,c

105.654

16.51%

-1.77%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ATRAM AsiaPlus Equity Fund, Inc. -b

$1.1424

7.72%

4.77%

4.54%

-5.03%

Sun Life Prosperity World Voyager Fund, Inc. -a $1.7696

16.83%

10.85%

11.05%

5.79%

Balanced Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ATRAM Dynamic Allocation Fund, Inc. -a

1.6713

7.62%

1.25%

-1.5%

0.16%

ATRAM Philippine Balanced Fund, Inc. -a

2.2144

8.09%

0.97%

-1.32%

-3.11%

First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund Inc. -a 2.6501

10.42%

2.57%

0.21%

0.88%

First Metro Save and Learn F.O.C.C.U.S. Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a 0.1987 NCM Mutual Fund of the Phils., Inc. -a

1.9681

14.92% n.a. n.a.

7.15%

3.11%

0.61%

PAMI Horizon Fund, Inc. -a

3.6794

6.14%

2.59%

-0.64%

-2.92%

Philam Fund, Inc. -a

16.4798

6.35%

2.5%

-0.68%

-2.72%

Solidaritas Fund, Inc. -a

2.0625

-1.37%

7.67%

0.89%

-0.61%

Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 3.58

9.88%

0.26%

-1.2%

0.19%

Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2028, Inc. -a,d 0.9844

5.06% n.a. n.a.

-3.74%

Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2038, Inc. -a,d 0.9076

9.15% n.a. n.a.

-4.38%

Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2048, Inc. -a,d 0.8966

10.95% n.a. n.a.

-3.91%

Sun Life Prosperity Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a

14.29%

2.86%

0.9131

0.32%

-1.38%

0.3%

0.05%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Cocolife Dollar Fund Builder, Inc. -a

$0.0379

-2.72%

2.91%

1.03%

-3.07%

PAMI Asia Balanced Fund, Inc. -b

$1.0619

2.5%

2.98%

2.37%

-6.03%

Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Advantage Fund, Inc. -a $4.6711 12.65%

8.32%

7.72%

3.51%

Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Wellspring Fund, Inc. -a $1.2042 5.56%

4.78%

4.02%

0.17%

Bond Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a ATRAM Corporate Bond Fund, Inc. -a

373.08

1.25%

2.99%

2.42%

0.53%

1.928

-1.22%

1.26%

0.11%

1.46%

Cocolife Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a

3.2419

1.23%

3.35%

4.17%

0.82%

Ekklesia Mutual Fund Inc. -a

2.2522

-1.85%

2.04%

1.29%

-2.01%

First Metro Save and Learn Fixed Income Fund,Inc. -a 2.4307 -0.95%

3.17%

1.67%

-0.92%

Philam Bond Fund, Inc. -a

4.447

-4.08%

5.09%

1.31%

-3.95%

Philam Managed Income Fund, Inc. -a

1.3174

0.36%

3.99%

2.62%

-0.3%

Philequity Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a

3.9723

0.37%

4.66%

2.39%

-0.72%

Soldivo Bond Fund, Inc. -a

1.0306

-0.91%

5.39%

1.66%

-1.24%

Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.1979

0.28%

5.05%

2.74%

-0.26%

-0.62%

4.32%

2.08%

-0.89%

Sun Life Prosperity GS Fund, Inc. -a

1.7394

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a

$488

1.97%

3.08%

2.09%

ALFM Euro Bond Fund, Inc. -a

Є220.26

1.45%

1.1%

0.76%

0.82% 0.47%

ATRAM Total Return Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -b

$1.1938

-3.5%

2.11%

1.15%

-6.72%

First Metro Save and Learn Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $0.026 -1.52%

1.59%

0.71%

-2.26%

PAMI Global Bond Fund, Inc -b

$1.0299

-5.14%

0.09%

-1.42%

-5.51%

Philam Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a

$2.4884

-0.12%

5.06%

1.71%

-2.03%

Philequity Dollar Income Fund Inc. -a

$0.062841

2.37%

3.4%

2.04%

0.87%

Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Abundance Fund, Inc. -a $3.1418 -1.36%

2.93%

0.51%

-2.54%

2.55%

0.75%

Money Market Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a

130.79

1.25%

2.95%

First Metro Save and Learn Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.0555 0.97% n.a. n.a.

0.71%

Sun Life Prosperity Peso Starter Fund, Inc. -a,1 1.3108

1.07%

1.54%

2.73%

2.55%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Starter Fund, Inc. -a $1.0589

0.91%

1.55% n.a.

0.5%

Feeder Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities Sun Life Prosperity World Equity Index Feeder Fund, Inc. -a,d 1.3026

28.3% n.a. n.a.

15.32%

Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Global Multi-Asset Income Fund Inc. -a,d

$0.98

4.26% n.a. n.a.

0%

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

1 - Renaming was approved by the SEC last July 8, 2021 (formerly, Sun Life Prosperity Money Market Fund, Inc.).

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

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Banking&Finance

Enough money to retire?

I

have been asked by many different people how much money they need to be able to retire. This column will be more applicable to middle income people; but, even within this group, there is no one universal answer.

There are several factors to consider namely: the lifestyle you want to maintain; your personal health condition; the family you need to support; the assets you have; and, your stage in life.

First is you already have a pretty good idea of what you spend to maintain your lifestyle: from the food you eat, your living conditions, the luxuries you indulge in and all your other expenses. You need to take into account that once you retire not only will the cash flow from your employment stop but other perks and allowances will also end. These perks would include your car plan and gasoline allowance, club membership and dues paid for by the company, medical plan, insurance coverage and so on.

Second is your state of health. If you have a lot of maintenance medications these could add up. If you need to have a regular medical checkup or see the doctor for treatment, know how much all of these will cost not just now but moving forward through the years.

Is your health condition something temporary like a broken arm, or is it something that will probably deteriorate over time like cancer?

Third is the required support for your family. Are you providing for your ageing parents? Do you have school age children? Does your spouse work or are you the sole provider? In case of emergency expenditures, can one of your relatives help or you are on your own? Can you stop supporting some relatives that are simply taking advantage of your generosity? How much longer did you need to support your children until they finish school and find a decent job?

Fourth is taking into account the assets you have, particularly those that have high value either when you sell them and realize a capital gain or making money out of these assets through the form of rental income, interest, dividends or royalties. As much

Finex free enterprise George S. Chua as possible, you should not eat up into the principal amount but just use the recurring income from these assets.

Nevertheless, if you really don’t have any options left, try do draw down only enough of the capital to sustain you till the end.

Finally your stage in life will determine the strategy you need to find out if you have enough money to retire.

If you are still very young, you need to take into account your remaining life span, it will not be pleasant if you outlive your retirement nest egg. If you are middle aged, you will probably still have kids finishing college and parents who are already old and retired that you need to look our after. This is the stage where you are financially sandwiched by the older generation and the younger generation. If you are already in your senior citizen stage, your kids have probably finished college and have a job and most likely one or both your parents have passed away, of course it should be a great joy and privilege if your parents are still around.

Once you have assessed your financial requirements, you need to have a cash flow source to match the outflow.

For example, if you calculate your needs, including some allowance for contingencies, to be P50,000 a month, your need to have all your cash flow sources must at least match that. The sources would come from your SSS pension, interest income, rental properties and investments.

Obviously, if you fall short, you don’t have enough money to retire and you just have to retire another day.

The views and comments of the author are his own and not of the newspaper or the Financial Executives Institute of the Philippines. Comments may be sent to georgechuaph@yahoo.com.

BusinessMirror

Editor: Dennis D. Estopace • Wednesday, October 6, 2021

Treasury awards less than half of reissued T-bonds offering

T

By Bernadette D. Nicolas

@BNicolasBM

HE Bureau of the Treasury only awarded less than half of its P35-billion offering for reissued 7-year Treasury Bonds (T-bonds) as rates spiked with the September inflation figure going beyond the higher end of the central bank’s target.

The Treasury only awarded P15.578 billion on Tuesday’s auction, which was oversubscribed with total submitted bids amounting to P52.79 billion.

The rates fetched by the tenor averaged 4.207 percent, jumping by 38.1 basis points from 3.826 percent in the previous auction.

With a remaining life of 6 years

and 10 months, the debt paper is set to mature on August 12, 2028. Its coupon rate is at 3.75 percent.

Inflation eased to 4.8 percent in September, slightly lower than 4.9 percent in August. While it is within the range of monetary authorities’ projection of 4.8 to 5.6 percent, the previous month’s rate exceeded the 2 percent to 4 percent targeted by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) for the year.

“Partial award as rates significantly moved following the September inflation print. While lower than August and market forecast, inflation is much higher than the high end of the BSP target,” National Treasurer Rosalia V. De Leon said.

Moving forward, De Leon said they expect investors would seek higher rates given that the BSP expects inflation this year to average

J

By Bianca Cuaresma @BcuaresmaBM

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TATE-owned LandBank of the Philippines announced last Tuesday it slashed lower its sale price on its property in Payatas, Quezon City.

The state-owned lender said in a statement it recently sold to the Quezon City Government its 96,169-square-meter property covering 157 parcels of land in Barangay Payatas for P209 million, which is P48 million less than the original offer of P257 million.

LandBank said it expects this price reduction to pave the way for

“When the ruling party picked Kishida, they were voting for the status quo,” economist Masamichi Adachi at UBS Securities said. “I have my doubts about what they’re pitching as new policies.”

The Nikkei 225 fell for a seventh straight day amid a global selloff in technology shares and China Evergrande Group’s debt woes, but some investors pointed fingers at the new premier’s ideas about redistributing wealth.

‘Kishida shock’

some 1,500 families to own the land they have been living in for over four decades.

According to the lender, the Quezon City Government will implement a direct sale program to award the land, wherein families will pay for the area they are occupying at P3,000 per square meter. A studio unit of 21-square meter land would fetch a price of P63,000.

Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) revealed that as of August 1, 2015, a total of 79,762 or 61.2 percent of the barangay’s household populace of 130,333 belonged to the voting population or those aged 18 years and over. There were

more female voters (40,111 or 50.3 percent) than male voters (39,651 or 49.7 percent), the PSA said.

“As a universal bank with a social mandate, we are committed to supporting our local government partners in providing affordable housing and other basic necessities to their constituents,” LandBank President and CEO Cecilia C. Borromeo was quoted in the statement as saiyng.

Quezon City Mayor Maria Josefina “Joy” G. Belmonte expressed gratitude to LandBank for agreeing to enter into negotiations with the City Government on efforts to sell the land to its dwellers.

THE hashtag “Kishida Shock” trended on Twitter as the Nikkei plunged, at one point falling the most since June. Earlier in the day, the country’s new trade minister, who headed the education ministry in the last cabinet, added to voices putting distance between the Kishida administration and the Abenomics program that drove Japanese economics for nearly a decade.

“We won’t be beholden to Abenomics,” Koichi Hagiuda told reporters. “We need to reconfigure our policies so that they not only benefit large corporations, but also small and medium-sized businesses as well.” Suzuki said the Kishida administration was considering tax breaks for companies that raise pay, a benefit that already exists for a small sliver of businesses. Past governments mainly relied on using the bully pulpit of the prime minister’s office to browbeat companies into raising wages, to little avail.

But on the key policy areas, Suzuki’s ideas sounded a lot like Abenomics in slightly different language. He said the administration would focus on bold monetary policy, nimble fiscal policy and a growth strategy, essentially the same outline as the three arrows that former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe prescribed for the economy.

Heavily rewarded

ALTHOUGH the BOJ’s bond-buying and aggressive monetary easing has been criticized in some corners as widening the wealth gap because it rewards stock owners so heavily, Suzuki suggested the administration wants the bank to stay the course.

He said the Kishida government wants Governor Haruhiko Kuroda and his colleagues to continue aiming for their 2% inflation target and to keep deciding policy independently.

Any retreat from the BOJ on easing would be disastrous for Japan’s finances, given its enormous debt burden.

On the debt, Suzuki repeated Aso’s mantra that Japan is in a severe financial situation and needs to keep the market’s trust. He said the government isn’t considering changing the sales, which was hiked in 2019. Bloomberg News

Scrutiny intensifies on Fed Nat Re feted for corporate governance after revelations of trading T

T

HE Federal Reserve is coming under greater scrutiny from inside and outside its walls following revelations about market trading by senior officials in 2020 as the coronavirus forced the central bank to leap to the rescue of the U.S. economy.

Days after Bloomberg News first reported trades made last year by Vice Chair Richard Clarida, the Fed said late Monday that its internal watchdog will review whether actions by “certain senior officials was in compliance with both the relevant ethics rules and the law.” “We welcome this review and will accept and take appropriate actions based on its findings,” the Fed said in a statement.

The announcement came the same day Senator Elizabeth Warren called on the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to investigate whether the transactions violated insider trading rules.

Told subsequently of the Inspector General’s probe, Warren said “Good, they should. The SEC should also open an investigation. This is serious.”

An SEC spokeswoman declined to comment on Warren’s request, as did a Fed spokeswoman.

Clarida traded between $1 million and $5 million out of a bond fund into stock funds one day before Chair Jerome Powell issued a statement flagging possible monetary-policy action as the pandemic worsened, his 2020 financial disclosures show. Two regional Fed chiefs also recently announced their departures after details emerged about their trading activity last year.

Powell, who is waiting to learn if President Joe Biden will nominate him for a second term, had already opened an internal examination of the central bank’s ethics rules. Warren is opposed to his reappointment, citing his record regulating Wall Street. Bloomberg News

at a rate beyond its target.

How this would impact the Treasury’s fundraising for the rest of the year, De Leon pointed to the government’s buffer as “strong.”

“We have strong cash buffer to allow us to reject if we find bids unacceptable.”

For this month, the Treasury is aiming to raise P200 billion from the local debt market. This year, the national government programmed to borrow a total of P3.1-trillion, most of which is expected to be raised through domestic sources.

The government borrows to meet its spending requirements as well as to finance its budget deficit.

As of end-August this year, the national government’s outstanding debt has hit a new record-high of P11.64 trillion, up by more than a fifth from P9.62 trillion a year ago.

LandBank sells 23.7-acre Payatas property at lower price

Japan touts ‘new capitalism’ but new Finance chief sounds like predecessor APANESE Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki said the nation’s incoming government will seek a new type of capitalism that helps tackle wealth inequality, but on questions around the sales tax, debt and the central bank he sounded like the official he replaced a day earlier.

“I’ll be seeking to bring about a new form of capitalism that creates a virtuous cycle of growth and wider wealth distribution,” Suzuki said at his inaugural news conference last Tuesday, a day after succeeding long-serving finance chief Taro Aso. Suzuki’s boss, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, came into office this week dangling the promise of a new type of capitalism that would redistribute wealth.

Economists said it’s too soon to determine whether the ideas were a re-branding of old policies ahead of national elections this month or something more consequential.

B3

HE National Reinsurance Corp. of the Philippines (Nat Re) announced it was recently recognized by the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD) with two awards for its good corporate governance practices, which the ICD said are based on the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) “corporate governance scorecard,” or ACGS. Nat Re was named one of the country’s top 15 insurers regulated by the Insurance Commission (IC) out of a total of 119 ICregulated companies.

In a statement, Nat Re President and CEO Allan R. Santos expressed being honored “to be recognized for our adherence to the region’s highest corporate governance standards.”

Santos added the firm strives “to achieve our business goals while staying compliant with the law, meeting the highest ethical standards and being guided by our company principles.”

Nat Re, the country’s national reinsurer, and the other insurance firms were assessed by the ICD based on their performance on the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) principles. The

OECD principles are: rights of shareholders; equitable treatment of shareholders; role of stakeholders; disclosure and transparency; and, board responsibility.

According to NatRe, the ACGS is a “globally-benchmarked scoring system used for assessing the corporate governance performance of Asean-listed companies.”

“Its goal is to improve the corporate governance standards and practices of publicly-listed” firms and insurance companies, it added.

The IC, with its initiative to raise the bar of corporate governance practices in the insurance industry, mandated the adoption of the ACGS by all insurance companies and mutual benefit associations.

For publicly-listed companies such as Nat Re, the ACGS serves as a useful diagnostic tool to guide improvement of corporate governance standards, the insurer said. For Nat Re’s foreign investors, the scorecard’s methodology, adopted by companies across six Asean-member nations, provides comparable information to form part of their investment decision-making process, Nat Re explained.

Nat Re said its corporate governance practices have also been recognized in the region.

Earlier this year, LandBank also launched a financing project in the city, saying it will fund the purchase of modern jeepney units set to benefit 500 drivers in Novaliches, Quezon City.

This is through the approval of a P68-million loan to the Novaliches Development Co-operative for the procurement of 32 modern jeepney units.

The project will be financed under the bank’s program for public utility vehicles. The project expects brandnew, modern public utility jeepneys would ply the routes of Novaliches in Quezon City to Malinta in Valenzuela City, and vice versa.

Long-time banker named EastWest board member

L

ISTED lender East West Banking Corp.

(EastWest Bank) announced it has appointed a new member to its Board of Directors, effective end-September this year.

In a statement last Tuesday, the bank said it has included Jerry Ngo Filipino-Singaporean banking and finance professional Jerry Ngo to its Board of Directors, following the retirement of Director Nelson M. Bona.

The bank said Ngo has 20 years of extensive experience in key positions in the Asian region, as well as considerable experience in digital and finance consultancy.

He served as chief financial officer and board director at Indonesian investing firm Saratoga Investama Sedaya.

Before that, he was the institutional banking head and executive director for ANZ Bank Indonesia, and served as managing director for Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia at Standard Chartered Bank.

He also held various roles in product management, sales and operations in Manila, South Korea and Singapore while in Citibank.

The new EastWest official received his MBA from the University of Chicago-Booth School of Business, completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School and earned his Master of Management from the University of San Jose-Recoletos in Cebu City.

Ngo currently serves as a consultant for the Filinvest Development Corp., the managing director and founder of regional consultancy firm Ora et Labora Capital Partners, and the vice-chairman for Asia at Canary Wharf, London-headquartered financial services firm Delta Capita Group Ltd., which provides digital financial solutions to customers around the world.

“It is his vast experience and knowledge in technology, corporate governance across numerous industries in banking, private equity, and investments which led EastWest to appoint Ngo as one of its Directors of the Board,” Jonathan T. Gotianun, EastWest Chairman, was quoted in a statement as saying.

“We also express our utmost gratitude to Bona for his contributions to and guidance of the bank and wish him all the best in his retirement,” Gotianun added. Bianca Cuaresma

B4

Show BusinessMirror

Wednesday, October 6, 2021 • Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Britney Spears thanks #FreeBritney fans a�ter dad’s removal HER ISSUES

THE actress is said to be having health issues but are these problems connected to her allegedly being pregnant. The actress is in a long-term relationship so it is not surprising.

What is kind of surprising is how the alleged pregnancy is being kept a secret. Some observers say it is probably because the actress is not all that young so there could be some problems with the pregnancy and she is making sure everything is OK before making an announcement. If she is indeed pregnant, this is not the actress’s first baby but it is been a while so it is understandable that it is a lot to take in.

Her partner is reportedly very supportive. Showbiz projects would have to take a back seat for now, until the actress is ready.

L

OS ANGELES—Britney Spears thanked fans who have called for years to #FreeBritney for major changes in the conservatorship that has long controlled her life and money.

Spears’ identical posts on Twitter and Instagram on Monday were her first public comments on the case since a judge suspended her father as conservator of her estate last week, a move she had long expressed hope for. “#FreeBritney movement...I have no words... because of you guys and your constant resilience in freeing me from my conservatorship...my life is now in that direction!!!!!” Spears said in the posts, along with a brief, wordless video of herself. “I cried last night for two hours cause my fans are the best and I know it...I feel your hearts and you feel mine...that much I know is true.”

Spears has not been freed from the conservatorship entirely. The legal arrangement that has been in place since 2008 remains, minus her father, but it may be terminated at a November 12 hearing.

While fans constantly search for cryptic comments on her conservatorship in her Instagram posts, the singer rarely writes directly about it on social media.

Her attorney Matthew Rosengart has vowed to pursue an investigation of her father, James Spears, and his handling of the conservatorship even now that he has been removed.

James Spears’ attorneys said there were no grounds for his removal, that his actions were always based on his daughter’s best interest, and that his suspension is a “loss for Britney.” AP

Today’s Horoscope

By Eugenia Last

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Jeremy Sisto, 47; Amy Jo Johnson, 51; Britt Ekland, 79; LeBron James Jr., 16.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Evaluate your life, what you’ve done, what you want to do and how best to achieve your goals. Turn your attention to making your dreams come true. Map out a plan, and put one foot in front of the other until you feel the peace that comes with living life your way. Be true to yourself, and everything else will fall into place. Your numbers are 3, 17, 19, 23, 34, 42, 44.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Draw on your experience and what you know to get what you want. Call on those you trust to come through for you without supervision. Say what’s on your mind, and explore avenues that fit your qualifications. ★★★

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Make “steady and ready” your motto. It’s essential to stick to a path and show responsibility if you want others to take you seriously. Consistent behavior will mark the sign of a leader and encourage others to look up to you. ★★★

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Get out and share your sparkling personality with others. You’ll attract attention, and if you use your words wisely, you will gain support and respect moving forward. Offer suggestions and help to your peers and friends, and good things will happen. ★★★★★

DRAYBERS FRONT MAN MITOY YONTING LOOKS FOR FRESH TALENT IN ‘POPINOY’

BY PAULINE JOY M. GUTIERREZ

PHOTO BY ADRIAN SWANCAR ON UNSPLASH

JEALOUS BF

THE actor is said to be jealous of his girlfriend’s leading man in a project. Does he have reason to be? Yes, the actor’s girlfriend and her leading man seem to be close but that is mainly because they have known each other for a while.

Perhaps the actor is jealous because his GF’s leading man is young and very attractive. The actor is quite attractive, too, but he is older than his presumed rival. Perhaps the actor needs to be told about an open secret: his girlfriend’s leading man is gay and while he doesn’t broadcast it to the world, he is not hiding it either. It is one of those things everybody knows—in their circles, at least. Also, the actor has nothing to worry about. His girlfriend is very much in love with him.

MOVING ON

SO this famous couple just announced their separation and everybody just assumed the guy cheated. Why? Because he is rich and everybody knows wealth is attractive. But recent sightings seem to prove that the wife is the one with someone new in her life. What reportedly happened between the couple is that they just fell out of love with each other. The wife was quite young when they became a couple and the guy swept her off her feet. No one knows if the husband has found a new love. For now, they just see the wife seeming to have the time of her life.

NOT RICH, JUST COMFORTABLE

EVERYBODY wonders how and why the celebrity is able to wear the latest in designer clothing and accessories when she is technically an actress but is actually an influencer, meaning she gets paid to say she likes certain brands but not as much as she would be if she was the endorser. The celebrity was recently the subject of blind items saying some of the stuff she has been wearing are fakes. If you know the cost of the items the celebrity has been wearing, they run to the hundreds of thousands. Neither the celebrity nor her husband has not had a major project in years and while they are financially comfortable, they are by no means that rich.

THE Draybers lead vocalist and The Voice of the Philippines first-season winner Michael “Mitoy” Yonting looked to his past and onto the future in an ongoing talent search.

In the TV5 talent search PoPinoy, he recently joined actress-performer Maja Salvador, R&B artist Jay-R, and musical theater performer Kayla Rivera in the panel of judges and mentors, together with hosts Maine Mendoza and Paolo Ballesteros. Produced

by TV5 blocktimer Cignal TV in collaboration with Archangel Media and telecommunication brand TnT, PoPinoy hopes to discover the next Filipino pop sensation.

As a headhunter, Mitoy took part in the rigid selection of boy bands and girl groups during the OPM Rock Night episode, where talents performed renditions and covers of OPM favorites including top hits from rock bands Imago, Eraserheads and Rivermaya.

“It was an honor to be a part of the show and be able to judge alongside some of the most popular stars in the country,” said Yonting, adding that there’s plenty of potential in the pool of performers.

Known for his rock baritone, the 51-year-old singer was first discovered after competing in the 1990s TV singing competition “Ikaw at Echo,” a segment of the noontime variety show Eat Bulaga! on GMA where he competed as a voice-a-like of Air Supply’s Russell Hitchcock.

His rise to fame came after winning The Voice of the Philippines, after which he became part of the Philippine Ballet Theatre’s two-night concert called Sayaw at Serye in 2013. He was also a supporting act for Lea Salonga’s concert series, titled Playlist, which ran from December 2013 to January 2014.

Yonting and Salonga performed a medley during the concert.

participants also get a chance to speak directly about their personal struggles, as well as their development in finding ways to collaborate effectively as one unit.

Further in the competition, viewers will have access to more content on Colours that focuses on the aspirants’ journey: “POpinoy UpClose,” a chat-musical with interviews featuring those who have advanced to the Top 10, which premiered on July 9; and the “Journey to the Finish,” which will feature a more intimate look on each of the top 3 girl and boy groups that will premiere on October 9.

“We are proud of this collaboration with TNT and Archangel Media. Our vision to promote and showcase the best of our new Filipino talents is now being realized with PoPinoy. We’ve always believed that our country is a repository of world-class talents who have been acknowledged not only here in our country, but around the globe. This is what we envision for these young men and women of PoPinoy as they make their own impact in the world of entertainment,” said Sienna Olaso, Cignal’s vice president for Channels and Content Management.

MITOY YONTING

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Monitor what’s going on around you. Problems at home will leave you confused if you are too close to the situation. Don’t show anger or upset; remain calm, and you will find it easier to manipulate the outcome. Choose love over discord. ★★

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Set the pace. Speak up, be brave and back your words with action.

Keep your circle small, and execute your plans with precision. You will accomplish plenty if you stay on track. Refuse to let a personal matter interrupt your goals. ★★★★

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Concentrate on your responsibilities, and map out a plan to ensure you use your time and energy wisely.

Your discipline and hard work will not go unnoticed.

You’ll get a clue on how to navigate yourself into a prime position. ★★★

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Don’t get bogged down by your to-do list. Take a systematic approach to knock off one chore after another.

Rewarding yourself for your time, effort and patience will ensure that you don’t fall behind or give up. ★★★

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Think matters through; don’t take on more than you can handle. Home improvements will end up costing more than anticipated. Be innovative, and you’ll find a way to cut corners. You are overdue for a change.

Share your plans with someone special. ★★★

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): You’ve got some good ideas. Don’t hold back; reiterate what you want to do, and you’ll find out quickly who is supportive and who isn’t. Handle those you live with carefully, or someone will take advantage of you. ★★★★

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Be a good listener, and you’ll find out information that will help you avoid getting into something questionable. Say little, and keep everyone guessing until you are ready to reveal your next move. Secrecy is in your best interest. ★★

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): An exaggerated opinion someone has will interfere with your plans. Look beyond what’s right in front of you, and you’ll know what to do to avoid getting involved in someone’s plan. Do your own thing, regardless of what others do. ★★★★★

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): You are on the right path. Do your research, and stick to a plan you can afford. Verify what’s required to reach your goal without interference. Take care of details personally, and you won’t be disappointed. Selfimprovement is favored. ★★★

‘MORE THAN A TALENT SHOW’ MORE than a talent show, PoPinoy also chronicles the journey of the contestants as a group act before they set foot onstage and show off their performing prowess in the grand finals. The

BIRTHDAY BABY: You are intelligent, diligent and well-liked.

You are persuasive and innovative.

‘undercover’ BY ROGER MILLER The Universal Crossword/Edited by David Steinberg

ACROSS 1 Metal pieces on some belts 6 Scheme 10 Drops the ball 14 Lock horns 15 City near Lake Tahoe 16 Italy’s shape 17 Alex Trebek’s closing line on Jeopardy! (In this clue’s answer, see letters 1 to 4) 20 It’s a mess 21 ___ brat 22 Mortarboard attachment 23 Classic Father’s Day gift 24 Scatter 25 Pool temperature tester 26 Method for determining an artifact’s age (...letters 4 to 7) 32 Earthy pigment 33 Dads 34 Egg on 38 38, for a 19x2 rectangle 39 Supersized 41 Slip through the cracks?

42 Sometimes-green drinks 43 Big fuss

44 Rude look 45 “I’m doing it no matter what!” (... letters 2 to 5) 49 “This means ___!”

52 Sweet potato 53 Brazilian Carnival city, briefly 54 Public relations concerns 56 Coin that may feature the Vitruvian Man 57 One keeps a beaver busy 60 2019 film whose secret agent protagonist becomes a pigeon, and a theme hint 63 “If all ___ fails...”

64 Monopoly card 65 Message with a “To:” line 66 Stink to high heaven 67 Almost forever 68 Leaves for lunch?

DOWN 1 Lip 2 Turkey ___ (fall run) 3 Like a tacky sweater 4 Group such as Outkast 5 Washington post 6 Aspiring doctor’s track, informally

7 8 9 10 11 12 13 18 19 24 26 27 28 29 30 31 35 36 37 39 40 44 46 47 48 49

Impose, as a tax Unified Hare’s fabled opponent Flows back It’s for the birds Drive in Beverly Hills Pizzazz Broad smile Sign of boredom Certain way to go to a party Jacket 4,840 square yards Perlman of Cheers Lion, tiger or bear Cook’s garment Zest Bring in the sheaves Start of an idea Duel tool Put on hold Levine of Maroon 5 Moe, Curly and Larry Light or dark loaves Members of an ancient Celtic religion “Dear” ones More sensible

50 51 55 56 57 58 59 61 62

Easily sufficient Poker ploy Nerd Fall garden?

Watch face China setting Pinochle combo The Matrix hero Name within “human”

Solution to today’s puzzle:

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Image BusinessMirror

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos

• Wednesday, October 6, 2021

Handling pandemic burnout

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ALK to any recruiter and they would tell you that more and more applicants are asking if their organization has work-fromhome arrangements. This pandemic has shown that organizations can really adopt alternative working arrangements, especially for parts of the business which do not necessitate being in the office.

But working from home also comes with its own disadvantages, one of which is burnout.

The World Health Organization (WHO) defined burnout in 2019 as a “chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.” With the pandemic probably lasting until next year, people working from home are starting to feel the toll of juggling home responsibilities, work demands, lack of social interaction, Zoom fatigue, and the threat of being infected. Add to that the expectation that since you are at home, you are always on and are expected to reply to e-mails well beyond the regular working hours. And then you feel guilty for not answering because you feel you owe it to your manager for being considerate in allowing you to work from home. All of these contribute to burnout.

Symptoms of burnout include lack of concentration in your work, easily getting irritated or angry at minor inconveniences, detachment from colleagues and friends, being stressed out, and even being absent from work even if you work from home.

All these indicate disengagement from anything related to work and, if not mitigated, can lead to low productivity or even termination. And if you think that working from home saves you from burnout, think again. More and more people are getting burned out even if they work from home.

When you start experiencing these symptoms, what can you do? Below are some things to consider.

Start with your own well-being. When we talk about well-being, the Hebrew word shalom somehow encapsulates what well-being is all about—being at peace with yourself and that health, prosperity and peace of mind and spirit be upon you. People managers are beginning to put a premium on the well-being of their team because they know that this is the foundation of their team’s productivity.

More organizations are also developing and

implementing programs to promote the well-being of their employees in a bid to increase efficiency and engagement.

You can start your own well-being program by making sure you take care of your health—both physical and mental. Eat healthy and ensure you have vegetables and fruits in your diet, sleep for at least

eight hours so that your body is rejuvenated for the day’s workload, and find time to exercise. As to your mental health, do not feel guilty for taking breaks and blocking off time. If machines need time to rest to function properly, how much more for you? You need to take care of your body so that it’s one less thing you need to worry about.

After you have appraised yourself and your wellbeing, you need to understand where your stress is coming from and then lessen it. You might not be aware of this but constantly checking the news will stress you out, especially given the news nowadays.

If you need to get updates, do so for a certain period during the day which will not compromise your work or other activities. Sometimes, your stressors are people who unceremoniously dump their negativity on you. Be aware of these people so you can avoid them, or, if you need to interact with them, limit your time with them.

Sometimes, being at home can make you feel like you have all the time to do things. Add to that the pressure to do well because you cannot get fired because it is difficult to look for new work at this time.

But also remember that you need to be realistic with yourself and what you can and cannot do. Take stock of your workload and then talk to your manager if you need to. If the workload cannot be helped, look for opportunities to streamline your workload to have more free time for yourself. Take those opportunities to refresh yourself or even learn a new skill to do your work faster.

You might also want to look at your calendar and then block off times for your own work. If your organization has a calendar function, set those times in the calendar for people to know that you are doing something during certain times. And when people ask if they can invite you to a meeting, ask about your involvement in the meeting and learn to say no when your presence is not really needed. You can ask for highlights of the meeting or ask someone to give you the gist of the meeting, so your time is not wasted. The most important thing you need to learn is to say “no” to meetings which do not contribute to your personal or professional growth.

Take a leave and then activate your support network if you can. You can always take a day or two to regroup and vent out to trusted friends. A new environment or a change of perspective might be beneficial in alleviating some of the stress and give you a renewed passion to do your work. Trusted friends can also tell you things you might need to change to be better at what you do and thrive.

If things go awry, you might also want to seek professional help. Most organizations already have a peer support group where you can have a safe environment to vent out and seek help. There are a number of groups offering online counselling. Take advantage of those offerings if you need to.

Being burned out does not always mean your work is really exhausting, or that you are in the wrong profession. Sometimes, it means taking the time to take care of yourself. So, when you feel burned out, it is your body telling you to pause and evaluate how you can overcome those challenges. n

Can healthy people who eat right and exercise skip the Covid-19 vaccine? The short answer is no

By Richard Bloomer University of Memphis I’M a fitness enthusiast. I also adhere to a nutrientdense, “clean” eating program, which means I minimize my sugar intake and eat a lot of whole foods for the purpose of optimizing my health.

You might wonder how effective such a diet and exercise plan would be in the fight against Covid-19, since some have suggested—without supporting evidence—that vaccination may be unnecessary if a detailed wellness lifestyle is closely followed.

As a research scientist who has studied nutrition for close to 20 years, I have watched the wellness community’s response to the Covid-19 vaccines with great interest. While eating right can favorably impact the immune system, it is not reasonable to expect that nutrition alone will defend against a potentially lifethreatening virus.

MY EXPERIENCE WITH NUTRITION SCIENCE MY lab group at the University of Memphis studies the effect of food and isolated nutrients on human health. In January 2009, we conducted an initial study of a stringent vegan diet. We enrolled 43 men and women who were allowed to eat as much plant-based food as desired, but drank only water, for 21 days.

The results demonstrated improvements in many variables related to cardio-metabolic health, such as blood cholesterol, blood pressure, insulin and C-reactive protein—a protein that increases in response to inflammation. We have since completed multiple human and animal nutrition studies using this dietary program.

My lab’s research has resulted in some 200 peerreviewed scientific manuscripts and book chapters specific to nutrients and exercise, and the interaction between these two variables. The results of our work, as well as that of other scientists, clearly demonstrate the power of food to favorably impact health.

For many individuals, a positive change in eating habits results in such an improvement in clinically relevant measures like blood cholesteroland glucose

that doctors can sometimes reduce or eliminate certain medications used to treat high cholesterol and diabetes. In other cases, these measures improve but the patient still requires the use of medications to control their disease. This tells us that in some situations, a great nutrition program is simply not enough to overcome the body’s challenges.

NUTRITION AND OTHER WELLNESS APPROACHES DO MATTER Although certain natural products have been discussed as treatments for Covid-19, little emphasis has been placed on whole food nutrition as a protective measure. I think this is unfortunate, and I believe strengthening our immune system with the goal of battling Covid-19 and other viral infections is of great importance.

And the evidence tells us that a nutrient-dense diet, regular exercise and adequate sleep can all contribute to optimal immune function.

Regarding nutritional intake, a recently published study using a sample of health-care workers who contracted Covid-19 noted that those who followed a plant-based or pescatarian diet had 73 percent and 59 percent lower odds of moderate to severe Covid-19, respectively, compared to those who did not follow those diets. Although interesting, it’s important to remember that these findings represent an association rather than a causal effect.

While people can use nutrition to help shore up their immune system against Covid-19, diet is only one important consideration. Other variables matter a great deal too, including stress management, nutritional supplements and physical distancing and mask-wearing.

But to be clear, all of those elements should be considered tools in the toolbox to help combat Covid-19—not a replacement for potentially lifesaving vaccines.

VACCINES ARE NOT PERFECT, BUT THEY SAVE LIVES I FIND it interesting that nearly all parents

understand the importance of having their kids vaccinated against serious illnesses like mumps, measles and varicella. They do not expect that certain foods, or a nurturing environment, will do the job of a vaccine.

Yet, when it comes to Covid-19, this thought process is abandoned by some who believe that a healthy lifestyle will substitute for the vaccine, without seriously considering what the vaccine actually does to provide protection against the virus—something that a healthy lifestyle alone simply cannot do.

When contemplating whether to receive the Covid-19 vaccine, consider the following: All medications have risks, including things as seemingly benign as aspirin. Hormonal contraception— something used by millions of women every month—is thought to cause an estimated 300-400 deaths annually in the US. The same is true for cosmetic surgery, Botox injections and other elective procedures.

Many people are willing to accept the low risks in those cases, but not with those involving the Covid-19 vaccines—despite the fact that the risk of serious complications or death from Covid-19 far outweighs the low risk of serious adverse events from the vaccines.

No lifestyle approach, including strict adherence to a holistic, nutrient-dense diet—vegan, plantforward or otherwise—will confer total protection against Covid-19. The vaccines aren’t perfect either; breakthrough infections do occur in some cases, though the vaccines continue to provide robust protection against severe illness and death.

I encourage people to do all they can to improve the health and functioning of their immune system, naturally.

Then, seriously consider what additional protection would be gained from vaccination against Covid-19. When people make decisions based on the latest science—which is always evolving—rather than on emotions and misinformation, the decision should become much clearer. THE CONVERSATION

Singapore’s cult-fave dumpling now in Manila

THIS may not be the sort of dumpling that tickles the palate but we’re pretty certain this bit of news will delight many. The cult-fave Dumpling Bag, which has become an icon among Singapore’s functionally stylish, is finally here in Manila, now exclusively available at Beyond The Vines in Shangri-La Plaza (www.facebook.com/ shangrilaplazaofficial).

Often spotted on people walking along the fashionable Orchard Road especially during the pandemic, this new must-have bag from Singapore-based functional and sustainable design studio Beyond The Vines comes with a distinct dumpling-like ruching, hence the name.

Made with lightweight water-resistant nylon, this packable bag is spacious enough to fit daily necessities.

It’s designed with handles of two lengths so it can be carried as a handbag or a messenger bag, whichever is more comfortable.

The Dumpling Bag also has more practical features like elastic opening, a large flap pocket, and a D-ring for attaching keys. First introduced in 2019, this new must-have is currently available in nine colors from versatile ones like black and khaki, to more playful hues like terracotta and sage, and in four sizes: XS, Micro, M and XL. Aside from the Dumpling Bag, Beyond The Vines at the Shang—the brand’s only branch in the Philippines— also has womenswear, other bag designs and lifestyle products that offer the same level of comfort and aesthetic.

PHOTO BY AYO OGUNSEINDE ON UNSPLASH

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B6 Wednesday, October 6, 2021

BSP Governor Diokno to keynote CTB Convention

Mondelez recognizes top schools, volunteers of Joy Schools project

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NE of the best things about community outreach programs is their ability to bring people together. Programs that aim to be inclusive are those that are able to drive innovation and growth.

The Joy Schools program of snacks company Mondelez Philippines is one such example. Started in 2011, it is celebrating 10 years this 2021. In this time it has reached 5,378 children through a 9-month feeding program; 19 schools nationwide for at least 2-years of adoption; achieved 10,800 volunteer hours through company employees; and touched the lives of 24,739 students through various other intervention programs.

As an inclusive program, the celebration of the Joy Schools’ 10 years would not be complete without recognizing the people who made each day of its decade possible: The Schools and Teachers it has adopted.

As such, Mondelez Philippines held an awarding ceremony to thank and recognize three schools who made the most impact on its students through the program.

“The Joy Schools is our flagship community program in the Philippines and in Southeast Asia. Through it we aim to provide interventions on nutrition and active play, to promote the well-being of our adopted students. More importantly we aim to help level the playing field for public elementary students, so that they receive nutrition and support that equip them for a brighter future,” explains Atty.

Joseph Fabul, Corporate and Government

Affairs Country Manager of Mondelez Philippines. He continues, “These programs could not have been possible or successful without the collaboration of the schools we adopted and their teachers. They implement and monitor our feeding program, and they make the most of the sports equipment, laptops, and WIFI devices we provide for the students. While we have invested as much as P40 million in the program in the past decade; the time, passion, and energy of our schools and teachers have contributed much more to its success.”

Top Three Joy Schools Awarded

WHILE 19 schools have been adopted by the Joy Schools thus far, three were recognized during the ceremony held with long-time program partner the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) and the Department of Education – Paranaque Division. These awarded schools were P. Zamora Elementary School in Pasay City, Balara Elementary School in Quezon City, and Don Galo Elementary School in Parañaque City.

“As Mondelez Philippines’ partner in the Joy Schools implementation these many years, we supported them in identifying schools who have not only implemented the program well but made the most of the resources provided to them to extend and strengthen their impact,” shares Elvin Ivan Uy, PBSP Executive Director. “For Padre Zamora we saw how they made the most of the vegetable garden materials

and learning given to them to supplement their school feeding program. For Balara Elementary and Don Galo Elementary, it was their ability to ensure the feeding program continued despite the pandemic.

From a previous daily feeding in school, they were able to efficiently implement the new weekly pick-up of vegetable kits by parents of the students. For these reasons, we are honored to call these schools our partners in the Joy Schools program with Mondelez Philippines.”

Volunteers of the Decade Awarded

THE schools and the teachers of our Joy Schools program made a difference every day for the students. In addition, the people who gave life and spirit to the program were our own people, the volunteers from Mondelez Philippines,” adds Atty. Fabul.

“We also celebrate the contributions of our people in sharing their time, resources, and enthusiasm with the Joy Schools through our volunteer activities.

They brought happiness and fun to the students through 18 events held in the past 10 years. Specifically, we commend 10 volunteers who have participated in more than 50% of these events. They are our Volunteers of the Decade, and they are as much a part of our program success as our schools and teachers.”

Starting October 2021, the program will commence a weekly vegetable pack distribution for 300 students and their families.

The Manila Hotel reopens dining outlets

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ANGKO Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Benjamin E. Diokno will keynote the annual convention of the Chamber of Thrift Banks (CTB) to be held virtually on October 12 to 14, 2021. With the theme “Thrift Banks: Moving Forward to the Next Normal”, this year’s convention aims to further prepare its member thrift banks to cope with the changes and evolution in the industry brought about by the health crisis that has razed the country for the past nineteen months.

According to CTB President Cecilio D. San Pedro, “The ongoing pandemic has accelerated customer demand for digital solutions as customers now expect an allround service anytime and anywhere. There is a need for the sector to strengthen its platforms, security, and service channels for the benefit of its clients and to support the digitalization thrust of the BSP and of the national government.”

CTB is the umbrella organization of the country’s thrift banks.

Known in 1974 as the Chamber of Savings and Development Banks, it was organized primarily “to provide an institutional medium through which the members can collectively assist and cooperate with one another, with other members of the banking sector, and with the National Government and its instrumentalities, more particularly the Central Bank of the Philippines (now known as the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas) to promote, develop, expand and strengthen the role of savings and loan associations, private development banks and savings and

BSP Gov. Benjamin Diokno mortgage banks (otherwise known as thrift institutions), in the accumulation of savings, enhancement of trade, commerce, industry and agriculture, and in the economic development of the county.”

On November 20, 1996, the Chamber was officially registered with the SEC as the Chamber of Thrift Banks (CTB). CTB currently has 41 member-banks nationwide, with more than 2,600 branches that include the so-called “branch-lites” or micro-banking offices (MBOs) that bring financial access points even to underserved or unbanked populations.

October 2021 civil service exams defered

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HE Civil Service Commission (CSC) deferred the conduct of the Fire Office Examination (FOE), Penology Officer Examination (POE), and Basic Competency on Local Treasury Examination (BCLTE) scheduled on 10 October.

In its advisory, the CSC said that the decision is in light of the still unstable situation brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The total number of affected examinees nationwide is at 13,930.

The FOE and POE are civil service examinations resulting in a second level eligibility. Passers of the FOE are conferred the Fire Officer Eligibility, which is specific and appropriate for second level ranks in the fire protection service and other functionally related services. Passers of the POE are conferred the Penology Officer Eligibility, which is specific and appropriate for second level ranks in the jail management and penology and other functionally related services. The appropriateness of these eligibilities does not include ranks under the Philippine National Police.

Meanwhile, the BCLTE is part of the Standardized Examination and Assessment for Local Treasury Service Program of the Department of Finance. The civil service eligibility resulting from passing the BCLTE is called Local Treasurer Eligibility.

It is a second level eligibility, which is only appropriate for appointment to Local Treasurer and Assistant Local Treasurer positions, and to positions under the Financial Services that do not require practice of profession and are not covered by Bar/Board or special laws.

PCPPI strengthens support for DepEd’s Brigada Eskwela

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HE Manila Hotel’s two restaurants, Lobby Lounge and the famed Café Ilang-Ilang, are now open to serve dine-in guests under Metro Manila’s current community quarantine restrictions. The reopening of both outlets will enable guests to enjoy great food, their well-loved dishes, connect and meet with their colleagues and friends while maintaining social distancing in spacious dining areas.

The Manila Hotel is equipped with fresh air dampers that circulate fresh outdoor air sanitized by air micro filters into the outlets, so guests are assured that cleaner and better air quality is circulated within the indoor dining set-up. Social distancing is also strictly implemented, with enhanced cleaning, regular disinfection, and safety protocols also in place.

The Lobby Lounge is the perfect spacious venue for meetings and meetups offering free Wi-Fi for diners.

Already dressed in festive décor to bring some much-needed joy and a spirit of hope in these trying times, the lounge is also a great place to have a filling meal from breakfast to dinner. It

has also adopted the bestselling items from the hotel’s signature Chinese restaurant, Red Jade. Guests can enjoy Local Delights like Kare-Kare, Crispy Pata, and Sinigang na Salmon, among others, and feast on chow mien, dim sum basket, and the crispy Lechon Macau paired with Yang chow fried rice. Drinks, cocktail of the month, and snack staples including the Filipino High Tea, Merienda Especial, are also featured in the menu.

For people who have missed the plethora of international and local food selections at Café Ilang-Ilang, the beloved restaurant brings together Italian, Filipino, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and even certified Halal dishes under one roof for an Eat-All-You-Can feast. Add to that the popular carving station that normally features Lechon and the US Roast Beef; the Churrasco station where you can have choice meats and seafood grilled for you while you wait; and the Cold Station with seafoods, cold cuts, and salads galore.

The Dessert Station is always the sweet last stop where guests can delight in the artisanal ice cream in various flavors;

Puto Bumbong and Bibingka; fresh fruits and cakes; and so much more.

Although sitting capacity is still limited for now, both The Manila Hotel’s Lobby Lounge and Café Ilang-Ilang are eager to welcome guests. Under the IATF guidelines for GCQ Alert Level 4 for Metro Manila, The Manila Hotel is only allowed to accept fully vaccinated guests between 18 to 65 years old until further notice; it continues to implement standard safety protocols in line with the DOH and IATF guidelines.

The Lobby Lounge operates from 9am to 9pm, weekdays and 9am to 3pm on weekends. Café Ilang-Ilang serves lunch at 11:30AM and dinner at 5:30PM. For more information regarding reservation and buffet rates, please call our hotline numbers at (02) 85270011 or 0998-9501912. You may also email restaurantrsvn@themanilahotel.com or check and book online via www.manilahotel.com.ph.

For updates and promos, please follow The Manila Hotel on Facebook (@TheManilaHotel) and Instagram (@ themanilahotel).

EPSI-COLA Products Philippines Inc. (PCPPI)—the exclusive manufacturer of PepsiCo beverages in the country— continuously supports the Department of Education (DepEd) in ensuring that every Filipino student has access to high-quality education amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

PCPPI recently participated in DepEd’s annual Brigada Eskwela which ran from August 3 to September 30, 2021. Spearheaded by the company’s volunteerism arm, Bukluran Council, it turned over connectivity equipment, school supplies, and hygiene kits to partner schools. The company aims to ease the conduct of blended learning schemes this school year.

“We are committed to helping DepEd in keeping the education system accessible and equitable for all. As we recognize the role of education in molding our youth, we want to ensure that this is continued even during the pandemic,” said Vivian Cheong, PCPPI’s Chief

Human Resource, Corporate Affairs, and Communications Officer.

PCPPI adopted 24 schools across the country, an addition of six schools from last year. The beneficiary schools belong to communities that host the company’s various manufacturing plants and offices. These include Manila, Muntinlupa, Mandaluyong, Batangas, Pampanga, La Union, Cagayan Valley, Bicol, Leyte, Bacolod, Iloilo, Cebu, Zamboanga, Cagayan De Oro, and Davao.

The company also ran virtual seminars on disaster preparedness in five schools, and produced information materials and held virtual workshops on WASH (water, sanitation, and hygiene).

PCPPI has been actively supporting Brigada Eskwela since 2018. It is the exclusive manufacturer of well-known beverage brands like Pepsi-Cola, Mug Root Beer, 7-Up, Mirinda, Mug, Gatorade, Tropicana, Lipton, Sting, Premier, Milkis, and Aquafina.

BusinessMirror

Editor: Tet Andolong

Wednesday, October 6, 2021 B7

PropTech creates a transformational impact in the real-estate industry

By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes

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HE recent launching of the PropTech consortium came at the most appropriate time as it will provide the solutions facing the local real-estate industry, and at the same time propel it to bigger growth in the coming years.

“It is well-placed to address the challenges facing the industry such as design, finance, environmental impact among others,” International Finance Corp.

(IFC) Philippines country head JeanMarc Arbogast said in his speech during the launch via Zoom of the PropTech Consortium of the Philippines.

He said IFC Philippines has always been supportive of PropTech consortium’s objectives because it always believes in the power of technology to transform societies for the benefit of the majority.

PropTech Consortium of the Philippines is a collaboration between different sectors and industries aiming to uplift the societal quality of life by integrating sustainable, smart, resilient, and innovative technologies into real estate.

Through its Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies (EDGE) standard and with property technology (Proptech) gaining ground in the country, Arbogast said iFC can scale up the design to achieve a green and resilient transformation.

“EDGE can unlock the huge development in developing green energy of housing projects in the country,” he said.

With EDGE-certified homes, the IFC said a project will get bigger value and develop to be a better brand. It also enables developers to select the right solutions in a given climate to ensure quality and the protection of the environment.

In his keynote address, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said the

Via Verde is the first grid-connected, solar-powered community of low-cost houses in the Philippines. IFC.org

Emma M. Imperial, cofounder, PropTech Consortium of the Philippines

creation of the consortium is definitely a recognition that this is an exciting development for the industry. “This is an exhilarating development for PropTech Consortium as this signals the inevitable march of the industry towards the digital age,” he said.

Dominguez pointed out that he has been a long-time advocate of digital transformation because digitalization has introduced changes for the benefit of the majority. By going digital, he stressed the real-estate industry will be able to reach out to a bigger number of digitally empowered citizens. “The policies created by the Duterte administration will create a resilient, connected and progressive real-estate industry,” he underscored.

On her part, Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Agnes Devanadera de-

The Century Pacific Tower has all the rating standards to make it a real green building such as the Leadership in Engineering and Environmental Design (LEED)

scribed the creation of the PropTech consortium as a “stroke of genius” as it is a response to the times calling for digital transformation and mitigating the impact of climate change.

The call for digital transformation is a response to the call of the times to confront the challenges caused by the pandemic.

She said property and energy go together as homes are using a lot of energy especially in these times. “They have a symbiotic relationship that indicates one can’t move without the other,” she said.

On her part, PropTech Consortium of the Philippines Cofounder Emma M. Im-

perial said in her speech that PropTech will promote sustainable and resilient property development in the country.

“Property innovation is what we need to improve the standards of living of the Filipinos,” she said.

She recalled that her journey in the use of technology which started in 2011 was met with doubts and criticisms regarding her idea of incorporating solar solutions to the affordable housing market. “I indeed walked the less traveled road overcoming numerous roadblocks along the way,” Imperial, also president and CEO of the country’s first PropTech developer, Imperial Homes Corp. (IHC) stressed.

Nevertheless, Imperial carried on buoyed by the overwhelming support from organizations and institutions locally and globally. Moreover, the positive response of the market bolstered the company’s passion to pursue technology integration on their property developments. In 2018, IHC introduced Connovate, an innovative high-performance concrete panel technology providing fast construction, resilient, sustainable and eco-friendly homes.

Imperial said the two innovative solutions delivered quality life standards both in reduced bills 30 percent to 70 percent while Connovate offered countless savings from speed of construction, maintenance and home repairs and even medical expenses from its molds-free properties.

Imperial cited the vital role of technology in facing the challenges of Covid-19.

She said their housing and digital tech-

nology such as cutting-edge software applications helped them bounce back.

“We became a proud recipient of the Advance IFC EDGE certificate; also, the IFC Building Resilience Index [BRI] model to the world for affordable housing. We also became the first recipient of Green Financing,” she said.

“PropTech will recalibrate the realestate industry towards digital advancement to create more modern, applicable, and efficient methods, processes, and policies. It will create a transformational impact on properties, environment, finance, government, economy, homebuyers, and developers bridging gaps and boosting growth and progress in the real-estate industry.”

Finally, she urged members of the consortium to adopt the Whole of Nation, Whole of government approach, transcend politics and foster greater synergy to battle climate change, promote sustainable and resilient properties that will make for a better Philippines.

Other participants in the virtual event included Marcelino Mendoza, chairman of the Organization of Socialized and Economic Housing Developers of the Philippines; Carlo Luis Rabat, president of the National Home Mortgage Finance Corp.; Sylvester Wong, vice president of Asia Pacific Cities, AECOM; Ricardo Lagdameo, president of Damosa Land; Raymond Rufino, chief executive officer of NEO; John Januszczak, President and CEO of UBX; and Dr. Justo Ortiz, vice chairman of the Union Bank of the Philippines.

Modern entrepreneurs share tips on how to live, work, succeed from home

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ORKING from home used to be a fantasy for most. Not anymore.

It comes with a slew of predicaments: the need for a reliable Internet connection to prevent untoward interruptions; the constant search for Zoom-worthy backgrounds for never-ending discussions that could’ve just been e-mailed; the gasp for open and safe spaces for quick breathers; and so on and so forth.

Running a business remotely adds up to the myriad of challenges the modern entrepreneur faces. Some of the country’s most inspiring business persons who have transformed themselves and their businesses share their secrets to success.

Rhoda Campos-Aldanese, Beauty Scout founder “Managing a business from home can be challenging as the work-and-homelife balance is disrupted. Aside from thinking about how to gain exponential growth, we now have to navigate as well that sense of imbalance. It is really important to think of wellness. You need to keep your mind sharp and your body fit as well. It’s good to be in an environment that enables you to live and work well.”

Kris Lawrence (from left), Champ Tailors Inc. cofounder, Rhoda Campos-Aldanese, Beauty Scout founder, Winston Llamas, Wilbros Entertainment Inc. president and Wholemart Philippines CEO

Winston Llamas, Wilbros Entertainment Inc. president and Wholemart Philippines CEO “As an entertainment and concert company, our concerts and events got shut down when the pandemic hit. So we had to focus on other possible areas, such as international talents acquisition.

Whatever the situation is, always look

at the bright side. Instead of giving up and closing down, we were able to pivot and focus on other things.”

Kris Lawrence, Champ Tailors Inc. cofounder “During the early stages of the pandemic, I was live-streaming and doing Zoom concerts. I also endorsed fash-

ionable PPEs, or essential fashion, for a garments factory, which eventually got shut down. But my friends and I decided to ‘save’ the factory. That’s how Champ Tailors was born. Today we create exportquality merchandise. It’s important to look for partners who complement your strengths. Also, build your own, personal sanctuary.”

These modern entrepreneurs gamely shared their ex periences and ex pertise at a recent v irtual roundtable discussion brought by SM Development Cor p. (SMDC), which a lso launched SMDC ’s newest proper t y that caters to the needs of people work ing from home.

SMDC ICE Tower Residential-Offices (RESO) will offer “spaces for success” and will soon rise at the MOA Complex. It’s a modern development that promotes balance, according to Danny Juric, who was also part of the panel as director of Plus Architecture. The Australia-based firm handled several WeWork projects and was tapped to design ICE Tower RESO. SMDC ICE Tower RESO provides 844 units in two-bedroom, one-bedroom and studio configurations. Each space

is designed to meet the needs of a person working from home with fiber-optic technology, 100 percent-backup power system and emphasis on natural light and ventilation.

SMDC’s new residential-office development also comes with fully-equipped meeting rooms, board rooms and other collaborative corners. A spacious function hall can host a company event or a product launch. There are designated working spaces as well that are made comfortable yet professional.

SMDC ICE Tower RESO is the latest addition to the continuously growing MOA Complex, which remains one of the best areas for property investment in Metro Manila.

This innovative property concept— the first of its kind in the MOA complex whose value has been experiencing tremendous growth will enjoy a widened market base with both the residential and office markets, said Roy Amado Golez Jr., director of Research & Consultancy at Leechiu Property Consultants Inc., who was part of the panel as well.

For more information on SMDC’s ICE Tower RESO, visit https://smdc.com/properties/ice-tower/.

Sports

Malditas eye US training camp for Asian Cup campaign in ’22

BusinessMirror

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| Wednesday, October 6, 2021 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

TIGER’S FIRST KILL 25 YRS AGO TODAY L

By Tim Dahlberg The Associated Press

AS VEGAS—Davis Love III was in contention, as if anyone cared. He played before a handful of mostly silent fans who couldn’t help but notice the ruckus unfolding a few holes ahead as Tiger Woods made his way through the back nine on what would become an historic Sunday in sports.

“Bring it on home Mr. Woods,” the well lubricated shouted from the hillsides as Woods surged into contention in the Las Vegas Invitational, a tournament that was suddenly the hottest ticket in town.

“Tiger, Tiger, Tiger,” they chanted as they strained, jostling one another to get a glimpse of the greatness to come.

It was 25 years ago this week, and golf was about to change forever.

At the age of 20, Woods was already a phenom. Earlier in the year he had won his third straight US Amateur, then turned pro to a “Hello, world” campaign by Nike that made him a millionaire before he ever hit a shot for pay.

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HERE’S the star and the second fiddle. And then there’s that third fiddle.

“I am here to help the team and do my job. I am not after the spotlight nor any individual awards,” Magnolia big Ian Sangalang told BusinessMirror on the eve Monday of Game Three of the Hotshots-Meralco Bolts semifinals series.

“I am happy with the huge role and the minutes given to me and every time I play, I am not thinking about myself,” he said. “My approach is just to be positive.”

Sangalang has slowly earned the reputation as Magnolia’s “Silent Operator” especially in the Philippine Cup. He averaged 17.91 points, 7.27 rebounds and 1.18 assists in the elimination round but has yet to lure attention from teammates Paul Lee and now, transferee Calvin Abueva.

Tigermania was brewing but Woods hadn’t really had his official coming out party yet. That would require a win, something he hadn’t been able to do in four tournaments since making his pro debut in Milwaukee.

Still, four shots back going into Sunday was close enough to bring an extra 10,000 fans who would never have considered going to a golf tournament any other time to the foothills on the edge of Las Vegas. They believed, even if some of Wood’s fellow pros were a little miffed at the attention given a player not even able to gamble legally in the city’s casinos.

“Everything has been Tiger, Tiger,” an exasperated Fred Funk said earlier in the week after an opening 62 put him atop the leaderboard but barely got a mention in the morning newspaper. ”They kind of forget about everyone else out here.”

On this day no one else really mattered. Not Fred Funk. Certainly not Ronnie Black, who held the final round lead and will forever hold a historical footnote in golf.

I was following Woods as he moved into contention, covering the

tournament for The Associated Press.

He would shoot 63 in the second round, despite a second shot from well right of the 16th fairway that went into the water on the par-5 hole.

He yelled a profanity to no one in particular as he watched the ball disappear.

In a sign of things to come, Woods simply overpowered the TPC Summerlin course on the weekend.

He eagled the third hole in his final round, and on the ninth hit a 6-iron into green of the par-5 hole while playing partner Keith Fergus hit two drivers and was still short.

Fans had never seen anything like it before. Woods was crushing drives into places his fellow competitors didn’t even have on their yardage books.

A new era in golf had suddenly arrived. The fans didn’t need any encouragement to hop aboard.

As Woods surged into the lead on the back nine Sunday, I walked just behind him, taking in scenes unlike any I had ever seen in golf.

Polite applause had been replaced by raucous yelling and fans ran after each

Sangalang at ease “If they do not notice me, that’s fine as long as I am playing and helping my team,” the 6-foot7 Sangalang, the 2013 second overall rookie pick behind No. 1 Greg Slaughter, said. “I’m not going to waste my opportunities in helping my team.”

Sangalang and Abueva, the leading candidate for the Best Player of the Conference award, were teammates when the San Sebastian Stags won the 2009 National Collegiate Athletic Association title.

“I’m really happy about what’s happening to Calvin [Abueva]. He works so hard each day, and he deserves everything,” he said. “He’s now my teammate and it’s good we’re together. If the people notice him

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Raymond Yu, they are supporting my bid,” Yap, 39, told BusinessMirror.

Yap is hoping to join Paul Artadi, his teammate at University of the East, who is seeking a third term as councilor also in San Juan’s First District. Artadi retired playing for Blackwater in 2014.

Don Allado, who last donned a Purefoods jersey in 2015, is again trying to win a council seat in District 2. He lost in the previous elections.

All three are running under

One game at a time

EXPECT new strategies on Wednesday in Game Two of the best-of-seven Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) All-Filipino semifinals in Bacolor, Pampanga. But simple they must be.

In a protracted struggle, it pays to simplify matters.

Always remember that in a war of long-haul proportions such as the race-to-win-four playoffs, each game has its own unique character. It need not be complicated by tactics too technical to handle.

Coaches should just go with the flow. Bear in mind that the other side will always have its own distinctive

TIGER WOODS poses with Ballys’ Jubilee dancers Windi See (left) and Gracie Martinez after winning his first pro tournament at the Las Vegas Invitational in Las Vegas in October 6, 1996. AP

shot toward the next, trying to get in position for a glimpse of the young phenom.

A 12-foot birdie putt tied Woods for the lead on the par-3 14th hole, and as we walked to the 15th tee, the ropes could barely contain people who reached out to touch Woods or plead for him to toss a golf ball.

“Can’t you see we got a little something going here?” caddie Mike “Fluff” Cowan admonished one overly eager fan who demanded Woods’s ball as the scrum moved to the 15th tee.

Woods and Love would need extra holes to settle things on this day, but the coronation of Woods would not wait any longer. After hitting an iron safely on the green on the first playoff hole, he watched as Love airmailed his short iron into the back bunker. When Love couldn’t get it up and down, Woods

had the first of what would become 82 PGA Tour wins.

The win paid $297,000, and came with a Masters invitation for 1997. Woods posed on the 18th green with two scantily clad showgirls and the oversized check, with no hint of the scandalous things that would forever link him to Las Vegas later in his career.

“It’s been an unbelievable experience,” Woods said. ”It’s just like winning the Amateur, though. I really can’t say what it means until I think about it more.”

Six months later, Woods won his first green jacket in a runaway, his first of what would be 15 major championship wins. He would go on to become the greatest player of his time, and arguably the greatest of any time.

It all started when he hit the jackpot in Las Vegas.

as Magnolia’s ‘Silent Operator’ that much, I am happy for him.”

Sangalang was instrumental in leading Magnolia to an 8-3 win-loss record in the eliminations and also helped his squad sweep Rain or Shine in the quarterfinals.

Magnolia, won Game One, 88-79, on Sunday, is gunning for a 2-0 advantage over Meralco in Wednesday’s Game Two of the race-to-four series set at 6 p.m. at the Don Honorio Ventura State University gym in Bacolor, Pampanga.

Sangalang expects nothing but an aggressive Bolts side.

“It’s going to be another

grinding game,” Sangalang said.

“We expect Meralco to go all out,” he said.

Meralco’s veteran head coach Norman Black said they couldn’t afford to go down 0-2 in the series.

“Game Two is very crucial because we can’t afford to go down 0-2. So we just have to play much better [than Game One],” Black said. “We must get rebounds much better and cut down on our turnovers because they led to a lot of easy points for the Hotshots.”

TNT Tropang Giga, meanwhile, goes for a 2-0 lead over San Miguel Beer in the other semifinals series at 3 p.m. Josef Ramos

THE spotlight’s not on Ian Sangalang but he’s churning in big numbers for the Hotshots.

Yap running for councilor of San Juan WO-TIME Most Valuable Player James Yap became the latest Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) player to join the political fray in San Juan after he filed his certificate of candidacy on Tuesday morning for a council seat in the city’s First District.

And in the event that the 17year PBA veteran wins, he’ll still be playing for Rain or Shine.

“I got Commissioner Willie’s [Marcial] permission and also those of team owners Terry Que and

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the PDP Laban Party of fellow basketball player Francis Zamora, who is seeking a second term as mayor. Zamora, a 6-foot-5 center, won two University Association of the Philippines titles with De La Salle and also two crowns for Welcoat in the defunct Philippine Basketball League.

He was drafted by Sta. Lucia in 2001 but was unsigned.

Yap averaged 7.40 points and

style of achieving success. Each game will constantly be a study in motion One dribble at a time.

One shot at a time.

One game at a time.

Thus, in today’s skirmishes at the DHVSU Gym, both Magnolia and TNT Tropang Giga enjoy a onegame advantage over Meralco and San Miguel Beer, respectively.

That’s virtually nothing, actually.

Although it’s nice to be always ahead, winning the first salvo is hardly a factor. In fact, it can even be considered as meaningless as a jab, a graze, as in boxing. It can even lull you to sleep, falling into complacency and forgetting about the bigger mission: Win the championship.

In its aim today to make it two in a row, Magnolia has to lean anew on the terrific trio of Paul Lee, Ian Sangalang and Calvin Abueva. They are the brick wall backbone to contain Meralco’s phalanx of solid soldiers in Chris Newsome, Mac Belo and Rey Hugnatan.

Back to his beastly ways, Abueva anchored Magnolia’s 88-79 Game 1 win over Meralco, getting ample support from Sangalang and Lee, who scored 18 and 17 points, respectively.

“It’s really different having Calvin on the floor,” said Magnolia Coach Chito Victolero of Abueva.

1.80 rebounds in the Philippine Cup eliminations in Bacolor, Pampanga.

Magnolia eliminated his team in the quarterfinals.

He is expected to fly to Urbino, Italy, on Friday to be with his family.

“I need to visit my wife and my kids because I will be very busy in the next few months,” he said.

Yap has two kids with Italian wife Michela Cazzola—five-yearold Michael James and three-yearold Francesca.

Yap said he expects an extension of his three-year contract with Rain or Shine that expires at the end of this season. Josef Ramos But it’s a different story altogether in the SMBTNT clash.

In winning Game 1, the Tropang Giga got fabulous performances from their Fab Four of Poy Erram, Troy Rosario, Jayson Castro and Roger Pogoy. Mikey Williams, coach Chot Reyes’s sensational rookie, even unwrapped a hidden talent of ably orchestrating play as he unselfishly abandoned his point-production prowess.

Still, the Beermen, behind most of the way, behaved like champions that they really are, missing to steal a victory when Marcio Lassiter bungled a dribble-drive-and-shoot attempt that allowed the Giga to escape with an 89-88 squeaker.

That wasn’t the cup of tea of Lassiter, who is famously known to sink closers with his thrilling pull-up jumpers from afar.

But as I said, that’s just one game. The journey on the long and winding road has barely taken its first step.

THAT’S IT Jake Ayson is right. By being together in their ongoing LPGA Tour golf campaign in America, Yuka Saso, Bianca Pagdanganan and Dottie Ardina are glued by the magic of Pinoy bonding that will eliminate boredom, loneliness and even discrimination. Cheers!

JAMES YAP will be trying his hand at local politics.

HE national women’s football team is eyeing a training camp in preparation for its coming campaign in the Asian Football Confederation Asian Cup. “The groundwork for the US trip has to be done,” head coach Marlon Maro said, “because face-to-face training is impossible to conduct in the country given the government strict policy and requirements with regard to Covid-19 cases.”

Maro said the players, known as Malditas, need to return to the field the soonest considering the tournament that serves as a qualifier for the 2023 Fifa Women’s World Cup will be in three months from January 20 to February 2 in India.

“We can’t train face-to-face here because the government’s clear in its stand that unless the general population is vaccinated, we can’t do normal things,” Maro said. “And we can’t wait for that moment because we’re playing in January.”

Maro bared his plans for the team in Tuesday’s online session of the Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum where he was joined by Assistant Coach Rose Ton Barinan and midfielder Rocelle Mendano.

Maro said the training camp will be in Irvine, California.

“At the moment, that still hangs in the balance as other players and some members of the coaching staff have yet to secure their respective US visas,” he said.

The visa section of the US Embassy in Manila is only accommodating emergency visits to America.

Maro said the Philippine Football Federation is seeking the help of its US counterpart for the players and coaches’ visas.

The team is coming off a successful campaign in the Asian Cup qualifiers in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, where it topped Group F. The top five teams in the AFC Cup will advance to Australia for the World Cup.

Predators-Knights duel highlights PCAP’s third conference 2nd-round action

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By Rick Olivares

HE San Juan Predators lock horns with the Iloilo Kisela Knights for the first time since the finals of the Wesley So Cup as the second round of the Professional Chess Association of the Philippines (PCAP)-SMC-Ayala Land Premier Cup gets going on Wednesday.

Iloilo defeated San Juan to rule the second conference of the PCAP’s maiden season.

The Kisela Knights finished the first round of the third conference with a 10-0 record and although the slates were wiped clean for the second round that includes eight guest international and local squads, all matches are expected to be contested closely.

While Iloilo fielded the same lineup throughout the season— minus their import—San Juan added International Master Rolando Nolte to its roster.

Nolte will play Board 2 with Grand Master Oliver Barbosa switching to Board 1 from the homegrown boards.

Iloilo finished third in the All-Filipino Cup then took the Wesley So Cup. San Juan, on the other hand, finished fourth in the All-Filipino and second in the Wesley So Cup. Each time, the Knights had their number when it counted the most.

In other key matches in the first matches of Wednesday evening’s online double header, Laguna battles Negros, Pengcheng (China) tackles Penang (Malaysia), Bangkok collides with Singapore, Davao faces Philippine National Paralympic Team, Pampanga takes on the Sunrays Junior squad, San Juan battles Negros and Camarines meets Caloocan.

The matches can be viewed on PCAP and the teams’ Facebook pages.