BusinessMirror September 18, 2019 by BusinessMirror

OIL PRICES’ INFLATION IMPACT FLEETING H

A GAS pump attendant fills a media vehicle at a gas station in Santiago City, Isabela, on Monday. Oil companies are being called to a meeting with the Department of Energy (DOE) this week to discuss the situation arising from the massive disruption to Saudi Arabia’s supply by an unprecedented drone attack on a major oil facility of the kingdom. CEASAR M. PERANTE

IGHER international oil prices could cause commodity prices to spike in the Philippines but this will be temporary, according to the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) and local economists. In an interview on Tuesday, Neda Undersecretary for Policy and Planning Rosemarie G. Edillon told the BusinessM irror that the agency is still in the process of running the numbers, as the Department of Energy is rushing contingencies in the aftermath of the drone attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities. Edillon said the Philippines has other trade partners who can supply it with oil, so any uptick in oil prices and inflation may be temporary at this point.

“We’re expecting the US will actually step up. So if they can step up production [the impact will] just [be] temporary,” Edillon said. “It also depends on the response of the US with respect to their production and with respect to the political response.” In a Facebook post, the Ateneo Center for Economic Research and Development (Acerd) estimated that with higher oil prices, a 1.1-percent inflation in September would be in order. Inflation in September will still be low given that inflation peaked in September 2018 and the decline in rice prices due to rice tariffication will counter any increase in oil prices. Acerd Director Alvin P. Ang told the

B usiness M irror it would be difficult to say whether high oil prices will continue to affect inflation given that geopolitics was a greater factor in why this has happened. “Let’s hope that things settle down internationally and diplomatically. Remember we are entering the cold months when oil prices are seasonally higher,” Ang said. “The faster the international community addresses this issue the better for everyone.” Former Dean of the School of Economics of University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P) Peter Lee U said the impact on inflation may be minimal if the oil supply disruption will last for only a few weeks. See “Oil prices,” A2

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A broader look at today’s business

Wednesday, September 18, 2019 Vol. 14 No. 343

‘Faster growth to slash current account gap’ A

By Bianca Cuaresma & Cai U. Ordinario

@BcuaresmaBM @caiordinario

FTER recording deficits in recent months, the Department of Finance (DOF) said the current account balance of the Philippines is expected to “normalize” on the prospects of faster economic growth in the coming months. “The current account level will normalize as the country’s economic growth recovers and the [expansion] of imports of capital goods resumes,” the DOF said in an economic bulletin

released on Tuesday. The country’s current account is the balance of exports and imports of goods, services and income balances. It is usually largest and most

consistent part of its balance of payments, or the summary of an economy’s transactions with the rest of the world. After years of being in the surplus

1.03%

The Philippine current account deficit vis-a-vis GDP (or $1.74 billion) in the first semester, from 2.36 percent of GDP (or $3.76 billion) in the same period in 2018. territory, the Philippines’s current account was in deficit territory in recent years due to the government’s drive to ramp up infrastructure spending. In the first semester, the Philippine current account deficit improved to 1.03 percent of GDP (or $1.74 billion), from 2.36 percent of GDP (or $3.76 billion) in the same period in 2018. See “Growth,” A2

House nixes ‘dysfunctional’ GIE tax–Salceda

See “GIE tax,” A8

PESO EXCHANGE RATES n

No greater love than to give one’s life for the helpless Teddy Locsin Jr.

FREE FIRE Speech delivered by Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro L. Locsin Jr. in celebration of the 2019 International Humanitarian Law Day, September 9, 2019.

ENIOR Deputy Executive Secretary Michael Ong, Undersecretary Ricardo David of National Defense, Mr. Boris Michel of the International Committee of the Red Cross, honorable guests, colleagues in the government and the uniformed services, ladies and gentlemen, Good morning. Continued on A6

US grains body asks PHL to be transparent in ASF update reports By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

HE chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means on Tuesday reiterated the lower chamber’s rejection of a “dysfunctional” tax regime based on gross income earned (GIE) under the proposed Corporate Income Tax and Incentives Rationalization Act (Citira). Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda, the panel chairman, said while the lower chamber is willing to give a reduced corporate income tax (CIT) rate as an incentive for qualified business enterprises, it firmly rejects the existence of a dual tax structure—GIE for those with incentives and CIT for the rest. Salceda noted that the reform of the GIE is a central feature of the proposed Citira. “The GIE is the mother of abusive transfer pricing, which resulted in P296 billion in taxes lost to abusive firms.”

P25.00 nationwide | 5 sections 38 pages | 7 DAYS A WEEK

‘BINABOY NILA KAMI’ Marikina Mayor Marcy Teodoro (right) personally facilitated on Tuesday, September 17, 2019, the collection of water samples at the Marikina River for testing. Joining him in collecting samples are the City Health Office, Disaster Risk Reduction Management Team and the River Parks Authority. Asked for his reaction on the scores of dead pigs—suspected to have been downed by African swine fever—that were thrown, apparently by out-of-town entities, into Marikina’s river, Teodoro told the BusinessMirror, “Binaboy nila kami [They disrespected us].” PHOTO COURTESY OF MARIKINA MAYOR’S OFFICE

@jearcalas

ASHINGTON,D.C.—The United States Grains Council (USGC) has encouraged the Philippines to be always transparent in disclosing information about its African swine fever (ASF) outbreaks in order to keep the confidence of its trade partners, particularly American grain exporters. Data gaps—especially between the declared number of affected hogs and the demand for feeds— are bound to show up, it added, citing the case of China. It did not elaborate on whether it had basis to suspect anything amiss in Philippine government actions thus far. USGC Senior Director of Global Programs Cary Sifferath said holding back information about the ASF, as China is suspected to have done, could cost the exporters’ trust in the Philippine government. Being transparent on government efforts in eradicating the ASF would ensure predictability

in trade between the Philippines and its trade partners, Sifferath pointed out. “It would help [that the Philippines] is transparent [with its ASF outbreaks]. The [Chinese] government is trying to keep [its ASF outbreaks] a secret, [announcing] that it is only [present] in this area,” he told Filipino reporters at USGC’s headquarters here on Monday. “The more transparent [the Philippine government] can be, the better [for trade and business],” he added.

‘No comment’—D.A.

IN Manila, the Department of Agriculture (DA) refused to comment on the USGC statement. In a phone interview on Tuesday, DA Spokesman Noel Reyes told the BusinessMirror that Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar was not likely to comment on the statement. “No comment. That’s how we handle ASF,” Reyes said. “I think he will not dignify that. Why the need? What for?”

US 52.2620 n JAPAN 0.4834 n UK 64.9721 n HK 6.6842 n CHINA 7.3937 n SINGAPORE 38.0143 n AUSTRALIA 35.8726 n EU 57.5091 n SAUDI ARABIA 13.9332

See “ASF,” A2

Source: BSP (17 September 2019 )

A2 Wednesday, September 18, 2019

News

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DOLE: Govt ready to repatriate OFWs in KSA

By Samuel P. Medenilla

@sam_medenilla

HE Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said it is ready to repatriate at least 50,000 overseas Filipino workers (OFW) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) if the situation worsens following the attack on the world’s largest oil processing facility in the Arab country. As of Tuesday, however, DOLE officials said there is no need to pull out the OFWs in KSA as they remain safe for now.

Citing reports from the labor attaches in KSA, Labor Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III said no OFWs were harmed in the attack on the

state-owned Saudi Aramco oil facilities. “So far, no reports of OFWs injured or negatively affected by the attack and no work disruption was reported. Our Philippine Overseas Labor Offices in Al Khobar, Riyadh, and Dammam are also on top of the situation to check on the conditions of our OFWs,” Bello said. On Saturday, Saudi officials reported Houthi rebels in Yemen used drones to bomb Saudi Aramco oil facilities, where there are employed OFWs. Bello said government officials in KSA have already put in place a contingency plan in case the security situation in the Arab country worsens.

The plan includes the repatriation of OFWs in the affected region, as well as providing them with alternative employment opportunities in Jordan and Oman. Despite the attack, Bello said the deployment of OFWs to KSA will continue in the absence of any recommendation to the contrary from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA). “We are coordinating with the DFA on the development of the situation for constant assessment. But we are ready for any eventual repatriation to ensure the safety and security of OFWs, or help them secure employment in the other

ADB President Nakao resigns; election set By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

SIAN Development Bank (ADB) President Takehiko Nakao has announced his intention to step down from his position at the Manila-based multilateral development bank effective January 2020. Nakao took over the reigns of the ADB from former ADB President Haruhiko Kuroda in April 2013. Nakao was given a fresh five-year mandate as ADB President in November 2016. ADB, in a statement on Tuesday, said Nakao’s replacement will still be done through an election to be conducted in accordance with an open, transparent and merit-based procedure. “Although my term remains as I was reelected on November 24, 2016 for the five-years term, I feel

BuCor chief. . . Continued from A8

Meanwhile, Malacañang also urged on Tuesday BuCor officials to “study” the revised implementing rules and regulations (IRR) completed by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to guide authorities on the proper implementation of the GCTA law. “We hope that the revisions and corrections made in the instrument would address the inaccuracies, as well as the loopholes of its earlier version which generated confusion among the officials in implementing the law, and the corresponding backlash of the public against them,” said Panelo. Moreover, Panelo also pointed out that the revised IRR also made it “very clear and categorical” that persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) who were convicted of or charged with heinous crimes shall not be entitled to any sentence deduction based on GCTA under Republic Act 10592.

1,000-plus convicts out there

MEANWHILE, more than 1,000 heinous crime convicts have yet to heed the order of President Duterte for them to surrender following controversies surrounding their release from prison due to a misapplication of Republic Act 10592 or the expanded GCTA law. Justice Undersecretary Mark Perete said a total of 692 out of the 1,914 PDLs have voluntarily surrendered as of September 17 and are now in the custody of the Bureau of

SOT bill. . .

Continued from A8

DOLE earlier said it expects to wrap up consultations for its SOT bill by October or November. Benavidez, however, clarified the extension will not only apply to employers but also to labor groups. “Once we collate the inputs from the sector, we are planning to meet with the economic managers [to get their inputs],” Benavidez said.

Business concern IN a SMS, Employers Confederation of

this is a good time to ask someone with fresh ideas and strong commitment to development to succeed me,” Nakao said. “I announce my resignation now, so that the institution can have a smooth transition of presidential administrations,” he added. On Tuesday, the Japan Times posted a story stating the Japanese government is recommending Japan’s former Vice Finance Minister for International Affairs Masatsugu Asakawa to replace Nakao at the ADB. Nakao said he is satisfied with his work at the ADB. In more than seven years that Nakao was at the helm of the bank, the ADB has expanded its operations and merged the Ordinary Capital Resources (OCR) and concessional lending operation of the Asian Development Fund (ADF).

Corrections (BuCor). The President gave the heinous crime convicts, who were believed to have been prematurely released, until Thursday (September 19) to turn themselves in or face warrantless arrest or even a shoot-to-kill order if they resist arrest. “As of 8:20 a.m. September 17, 2019, 692 pre-maturely released PDLs on account of Republic Act 10592 have surrendered and [they] are now in BuCor’s custody,” Perete said. The 692 makes up about 36 percent of the total number of 1,914 PDLs covered by the order of the President. On September 4, President Duterte said he was giving the 1,914 prematurely released PLDs 15 days or until September 19 to surrender. He threatened that the PNP would hunt down those who fail to comply and they could be subject of his shoot-to-kill order. Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said on Monday the government would start making warrantless arrests after Thursday because these PDLs failed to finish serving their sentence. “You have not completed your sentence so there is reason, legal basis to have you arrested because that is a continuing offense. Each minute, each hour, each day that you refuse to turn yourself in is a continuing commission of an offense and for that reason law enforcement agencies may arrest you even without a warrant,” Guevarra warned. Guevarra said the government through the Office of the Solicitor General is ready to defend its decision to exclude heinous crime convicts from benefiting from the expanded GCTA in case such question is raised in court. the Philippines (ECOP) President Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr. said they have submitted their position on the matter to DOLE. The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) said it was among the groups seeking more time to submit inputs on the SOT bill. “The new version is a much improved version than the previous one submitted to Congress...but there are some issues that needs modification,” PCCI Chairman George T. Barcelon told the BusinessMirror in a phone interview. Among the provisions they may want to be tweaked is on the joint solidarity liability of employers with their service providers, Barcelon said.

The ADB said new lending and grants expanded from $14 billion in 2013 to $22 billion in 2018, while more advanced technologies were incorporated into projects. Under Nakao’s leadership, the ADB also launched Strategy 2030 and the release of new knowledge works including ADB’s 50 years’ history book. “I am announcing my resignation with a deep sense of satisfaction and gratitude. With support from staff, board members and member governments, we have achieved many things.”

Electing a new President

IF the ADB board of governors elects Asakawa, he will be the 10th President of the Manila-based multilateral development bank. Japan is hoping to retain the presidency of the ADB, the Japan

Divorce. . .

Continued from A8

The Commission on Filipino Overseas, represented by Ivy Miravelles, supports Bill 67 “to fullfill the mandate of the Constitution on the fundamental equality of men and women.” A vast majority or 91 percent of thousands of migrant Filipino women suffer from a bad marriage, the group said. Luz Frances Chua of the Catholics for reproductive health said the divorce law should be enacted and warned critics not to mix religion with secular matters. “Religion should not be a barrier for us to pass a divorce law as our laws and governance are based on secular standards, not religious

Growth. . .

Continued from A1

“Maintaining good fundamentals by keeping both the budget deficit and current account manageable, keeping interest rates at the level that sustains the volume of investments, and allowing the exchange rate to maintain its competitive level will allow the country to sustain economic growth in the medium-term,” the DOF said. Broken down, primary income balance—earnings by the Philippines from placements abroad less the earnings by other countries from local placements—rose by 72.3 percent to $2.53 billion from $1.47 billion. Secondary income balance—remittances less the incomes of expatriates remitted abroad —also grew by 0.91 percent to $13.31 billion, from $13.19 billion.

Fitch’s projection

E A R LIER t his yea r, Fitc h sa id t he countr y’s cur rent account is e x pected to rema in in def icit, at about 2.4 percent of GDP

Times said. T he position of ADB President has always been held by a Japanese since it was established in 1966. ADB presidents are nominated f rom A DB’s reg iona l members for a five-year term, and elected by the ADB goard of governors. As of December 2018, the ADB has grown to include 68 members—of which 49 are from within Asia and the Pacific and 19 outside the region. In terms of the voting powers, regional member countries account for 65.04 percent, while non-regional members have 34.96 percent. Japan and the United States have equal voting power of 12.756 percent each, followed by China with 5.442 percent; India, 5.352 percent; and Australia, 4.917 percent.

standards,” she said, adding: “Absence of divorce law violates the constitutional guarantee of the separation of church and state…” She said “divorce is an important option for abuse women to stop the cycle of violence.” She added: “By not allowing divorce, we are complicit in the abuse, in the prolonging of the abuse of married women, since nullity is difficult to obtain and prohibited for those who cannot afford it.” She said many abused wives can resort only to separation through Article 36 of the Family Code, “due to the difficulty of proving if a husband is psychologically ill and due to varying judicial interpretations of what constitutes psychological illness.” in 2019, due to wea k e x por t per for ma nce. “We expect imports to rise somewhat in the second half of 2019 with the passing of the budget,” said Fitch, adding that it expects “subdued” export performance and generally strong import growth in 2020, and 2021 will keep the current account in deficit of between 2.5 percent and 2.6 percent of GDP. Exports contracted by about 0.5 percent in the first half of 2019 compared to the 1.1-percent hike recorded in the same period last year. Data also showed that trade in goods balance dropped to 13.91 percent of GDP in the first semester of the year, from 14.68 percent of GDP a year ago. The DOF said this was largely due to the decline in capital goods imports. The agency said slower capital formation also led to slower GDP growth in the first semester. GDP growth reached 5.6 percent in the first quarter and 5.5 percent in the second quarter. Average GDP expansion in the January-to-June period is at 5.5 percent.

areas,” Bello said. Yemen’s Houthi rebels launched drone attacks on the world’s largest oil processing facility in Saudi Arabia and a major oil field last Saturday, sparking huge fires and halting about half of the supplies from the world’s largest exporter of oil. The attacks were the latest of many drone assaults on the kingdom’s oil infrastructure in recent weeks, but easily the most damaging. They raise concerns about the global oil supply, and likely, will further increase tensions across the Persian Gulf amid an escalating crisis between the United States

ASF. . .

Continued from A1

This newspaper tried to contact Secretary Dar but he could not be reached as of press time. Reyes explained that they were already onboard a plane to Butuan City.

Vietnam’s example

MEANWHILE, USGC’s Sifferath held up as good practice Vietnam’s promptness in reporting to the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) updates on its ASF outbreaks. To date, Vietnam has culled over 4.7 million hogs, while China has culled about 1.17 million pigs since the Asian countries were struck by ASF, according to the latest monitoring report of the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Foreign analysts and local industry players believe that China is withholding information and figures about the extent of the damage by ASF to its domestic hog industry. Dutch bank Rabobank forecasts that China would lose 50 percent of its pig herd, which it estimated to be at 360 million heads, by yearend due to ASF. Sifferath said if a country opts to withhold details about its ASF outbreaks, the situation on the ground, such as pork and feed price movements, would eventually show a clearer picture of the impact of the disease. “You can keep it a secret but pork prices will start going up if there’s no live hogs that would actually meet the demand. Feed production will go down and feed companies will start to notice it,” he said. “So, those things are going to show up whether you hide it or not. From what I’ve seen in China and Vietnam, it’s a 90 percent to 95 percent death loss, so, I do not know how you could hide dying pigs,” he added. Sifferath revealed that some of their business partners in the Philippines have been telling them that ASF reached the country as early as March. “When I was in the Philippines in March, people were already telling me that they thought the Philippines had already the ASF,” he said. “And then now I saw that 70 percent of the samples sent to the United Kingdom tested positive, which means [ASF] did not just pop up in the last two weeks. It’s been there for a while,” he added.

$20-B sales

THE pork industry is an important economic sector for the US. The US-based National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) noted that more than 60,000 American pork producers earn a total

Oil prices. . . Continued from A1

U said the impact of high oil prices on inflation will largely depend on“how high and how long the price spike will last.” He said he is not that updated on the extent of the damage given that the Saudi government is still assessing the situation. For his part, UA&P Dean Cid Terosa said higher oil prices will certainly impact on prices given that Saudi Arabia is a major oil supplier. It can also be noted that the Philippines is a net oil importer. Terosa, however, agreed that the length of time needed to respond to the situation will determine the impact of the incident on oil prices and commodity prices in the country. “There will be an upward pressure on prices given that Saudi Arabia is a major supplier of oil. Also, the last quarter of the year often shows greater demand around the world. This will

and Iran over its unraveling nuclear deal with world powers. The attacks resulted in “the temporary suspension of production operations” at the Abqaiq oil processing facility and the Khurais oil field, Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said in a statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency. The fires “were controlled,” the statement said, and no workers were injured. The fires led to the interruption of an estimated 5.7 million barrels in crude supplies, according to the statement, which said part of that would be offset with stockpiles. With a report by AP

annual gross income of more than $20 billion from the sale of 115 million hogs. The NPPC noted that the US pork industry supports about 550,000 jobs. These jobs range from pork producers and meat processors to transport and Main Street businesses. US exports of pork and pork-related products amount to over 2.2 million metric tons annually. The US is considered the world’s third -largest producer and consumer of pork. The USGC develops export markets for US barley, corn, sorghum and related products, such as distiller’s dried grains with solubles (DDGS) and ethanol. Sifferath said the USGC exports corn, sorghum and DDGS to the Philippines for animal feed purposes. USGC data showed that the US exported 192,000 metric tons of corn, 1,200 MT of sorghum and 170,000 MT of co-products, including DDGS, to the Philippines in market year 2017 to 2018. Sifferath said it is probable that there could be a slowdown in the Philippines’s importation of DDGS, a by-product of ethanol production, due to ASF outbreaks. The US also imports a number of products from the Philippines, including food items. Last year, the US imported $12.6 billion worth of Philippine goods, 8.4 percent higher the figure recorded in 2017. The top import categories last year were electrical machinery, animal or vegetable fats and oils, knit apparel, and optical and medical instruments. The ASF outbreaks in the Philippines started on July 25, nearly a month before the government formally announced that a “mystery” disease is killing hogs, according to Manila’s notification to the OIE. Based on its notification, 536 hogs died due to ASF, while the government culled 7,416 heads to control the spread of the highly contagious hog disease. In the notification, which was submitted last September 9, the Philippines said it received on August 30, the results of the confirmatory tests which confirmed that ASF killed hogs in seven areas. Testing of pig blood samples done by the Animal Disease Diagnostic and Reference Laboratory in the Philippines on August 16 revealed that ASF was responsible for the deaths of the animals. Manila then tapped The Pirbright Institute, an OIE reference laboratory, for confirmatory tests. The institute found that 14 out of the 20 blood samples were positive for ASF. The Philippine government said in its notification that the event is “continuing” and committed to submit weekly follow-up reports to the OIE. With a report by Cai U. Ordinario in Manila

further put pressure on existing supply and contribute to an increase in prices,” Terosa said. Meanwhile, UnionBank Chief Economist Ruben Carlo Asuncion told the BusinessM irror that inflation is expected to increase in the coming months but not because of the oil supply shock arising from the attack on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities. Instead, the increase in inflation, Asuncion said, will likely come from seasonal sources. If there would be an impact on commodity prices, he said, it may be “subdued.” He noted that the Philippines sources its petroleum requirements largely from the United Arab Emirates. Department of Energy data showed that only 12 percent of the country’s oil requirements come from Saudi Arabia, he said. Based on data from the Philippine Statistics Authority, electricity, gas and other fuels has a weight of 7.435 in the consumer price index using a 2012 base year. Cai U. Ordinario

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Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Wednesday, September 18, 2019 A3

AFP chief: It’s now Lorenzana’s call on telco deal By Rene Acosta

@reneacostaBM & Butch Fernandez

@butchfBM

UTGOING Armed Forces Chief of Staff Gen. Benjamin Madrigal Jr. on Tuesday said he would accept Defense Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana’s decision on the fate of a memorandum of agreement (MOA) that the former signed with the Chinese backed telecommunications company Dito Telecommunity. The top military official, likewise, asserted that the defense chief was neither bypassed nor blindsided following the signing of the accord. The MOA, signed last week at Camp Aguinaldo between the military and representatives of Dito, or known formerly as Mislatel, allows the telecommunications company to set up “relay” and “line” stations inside military camps or installations, raising security concerns from certain sectors since the firm is partly owned by a Chinese company.

‘Electronic Trojan horse’

SENATE President Pro Tempore Ralph G. Recto warned against an “electronic Trojan horse” in citing the potential backlash of allowing China telecom to install com-

munication towers in restricted Philippine military camps. Voicing concerns that Department of National Defense (DND) top officials appeared to be “clueless” that main military camps will be penetrated by Chinese telcos, the senator suggested that the defense chief should rethink the idea and act accordingly. “If the Secretary of DND was left clueless about the China Telecom-AFP deal in his own backyard, then maybe it is time to install a radar system in his office,” Recto recommended in a statement on Tuesday. Recto added, “If this deal can f ly stealthily under the nose of the man responsible for our nation’s defense, then it raises anew vulnerability of our borders from intruders.”

The Senate President Pro Tempore pointed out that the project to allow a Chinese telco to install towers inside the restricted Philippine military camps “should have been cleared at the highest level due to its security implications.” According to Recto, there are serious security concerns that must be addressed, noting that these China telco installation inside AFP camps could “morph into embedded listening devices.”

Proper procedure

“IT is his prerogative,” Madrigal told military reporters on Tuesday when asked about the possibility of Lorenzana’s canceling the agreement. The chief of staff granted what may be his last interview with reporters covering the defense beat since he is scheduled to retire this month. Madr iga l insisted he did not by pass the defense secretar y since it is nor ma l that papers, inc lud ing ag reements, wou ld have to be sig ned by him first before t he y wou ld go up to Lorenzana’s office for his signing , a nd t his procedu re was fol lowed in the case of the arrangement w ith Dito. Lorenzana, who was abroad and would be back by September 20, said he had not seen the agreement yet, and would look into it when he comes back, although the DND had already raised concerns, “not over the agreement,” but for the planned setting up

“The MOA will have to be approved by SND [secretary, national defense]. But before the secretary of defense, I have to sign it before it goes up to the SND. It could not be that it will go up first to SND and then return it to me for signing.” —Madrigal

of private telecommunications facilities with Chinese backings inside camps. The DND had earlier raised similar concerns over the planned setting up of Chinese-run Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) near military camps, especially in Metro Manila, saying their operations could be easily converted into spying activities. Chinese firms have also put up plans to develop areas in the country that have strategic military importance. Dito was the third phone company that had been accredited by the government after Smart and Globe companies. “The MOA will have to be approved by SND [secretary, national defense]. But before the secretary of defense, I have to sign it before it goes up to the SND. It could not be that, it will go up first to SND and then return it to me for signing,” Madrigal said.

“So I signed it first, and then it goes up to the secretary…and allegedly, his words were not investigation, but he will look into and scrutinized it before he signs. It means, he will do his own diligence before signing the document,” he added. The chief of staff said the militar y is open to any invest igat ion over t he ag reement since some had been calling for an investigation, including Sen. R isa Hontiveros. A statement from Dito that was forwarded by Military public affairs office chief Col. Noel Detoyato said that firm will comply with all government requirements as a “Filipino company.” “Please note that when we signed the agreement, we understood that it was not yet final, and subject to approval with the Secretary of National Defense. It is important for the public to know that this agreement is similar to agreements that the AFP have signed with Globe and Smart,” the statement said. “We want to assure the public that Dito has a cyber-security plan, as approved by NTC, and that the company will always protect the national and cybersecurity interests of the Philippines. This cyber-security plan is a requirement for the third telco and we are unaware if it has been required of the two other major players,” it added. Dito said it is ow ned 40 per-

cent by Chinatel. “We have enough laws that cover espionage and other national security. While it may be legal for them [Chinese] to give information to their government, it is illegal to do so in the Philippines,” the company said about its Chinese partners.

Security implications

THE Senate President Pro Tempore pointed out that the project to allow a Chinese telco to install towers inside the restricted Philippine military camps “should have been cleared at the highest level due to its security implications.” According to Recto, there are serious security concerns that must be addressed, noting that these China telco installation inside AFP camps could “morph into embedded listening devices.” He warned that the China telco project is like “letting an electronic Trojan horse into our camps.” The senator suggested that this project “should have been subjected to third party expert study.” Recto reminded that “this is the clean bill needed before the project can be greenlighted.” At the same time, the senator advised that before the AFP brushes aside well-meaning reservations about this project, “it should note that citizens are merely using its talking points against the planned lease to Chinese companies of three islands off the northern tip of Luzon.”

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

The World BusinessMirror

Editor: Angel R. Calso

Oil market gripped with uncertainty over lost Saudi Arabia production

IL markets are grappling with uncertainty over how long it will take Saudi Arabia to restore output after the devastating attacks that knocked out 5 percent of global crude supply. As state oil producer Saudi Aramco grows less optimistic that there will be a rapid recovery after the strikes that cut the nation’s output by half, investors are looking for clarity on just how bad it could be. Initially, it was said significant volumes could begin to flow again within days but Saudi officials later told a foreign diplomat they face a “severe” disruption measured in weeks and months. Brent crude traded just shy of $69 a barrel after jumping the most on record on Monday. “ T here’s been a rea l sh if t in understanding how quick ly that lost production is going to come back online,” Ann Berr y, a partner at Cornell Capital Llc.,

said in an inter v iew on Bloomberg T V. “ T he original reaction wa s t hat 10 0 percent wou ld come back ver y quick ly, now the outlook is going to be a lot more conser vative than that.” T he worst ever sudden disruption to global oil supplies continues to reverberate as geopolitical risk premiums jump on concern over instability in the Middle East and a potential retaliation against Iran, which the United States has blamed for the strikes. Traders may not have fully priced in the impact of the supply losses, according to Citigroup Inc. The attacks, which damaged one of the Saudis’ flagship fields

and a key processing complex, triggered one of the wildest bouts of trading seen in oil markets, with Brent futures rising 19 percent in a matter of seconds at the open on Monday before posting their biggest ever single-day advance. It was a more subdued start to trading on Tuesday, with both Brent and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures edging lower. State-run producer Saudi Aramco lost about 5.7 million barrels a day of output on Saturday after 10 unmanned aerial vehicles struck the Abqaiq facility and the kingdom’s second-largest oil field in Khurais. Full recovery might not happen before the end of the year, keeping 1 million to 2.5 million barrels a day offline, according to Citigroup. Saudi crude inventories are in “more critical situation” than initially thought, the bank said. While Aramco is still assessing the state of the Abqaiq plant and the scope of repairs, it currently believes less than half of the plant’s capacity can be restored quickly, said people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be

identified because the information isn’t public. Saudi Aramco is firing up idle offshore oil fields—part of its cushion of spare capacity—to replace some of the lost production, one person said. Aramco customers are also being supplied using stockpiles, though some buyers are being asked to accept different grades of crude oil. The kingdom has enough domestic inventories to cover about 26 days of exports, according to consultant Rystad Energy A/S. Customers are also preparing to tap strategic reserves if needed. President Donald J. Trump authorized the release of oil from the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve, while the International Energy Agency (IEA), which helps coordinate industrialized countries’ emergency fuel stockpiles, said it was monitoring the situation. T he Japa nese gover nment on Tuesday said it was ready to cooperate w ith the IEA to release reser ves if necessar y, follow ing a similar statement from South Korea. The disruption surpasses the

loss of Kuwaiti and Iraqi petroleum output in August 1990, when Saddam Hussein invaded his neighbor. It also exceeds the loss of Iranian oil production in 1979 during the Islamic Revolution, according to the IEA. The market was relatively calm on Tuesday after the previous day’s fireworks, when Brent surged by almost $12 a barrel, before settling just above $69 for the biggest one-day percentage gain since the contract began trading in 1988. Brent futures were 22 cents lower, or 0.3 percent, at $68.80 a barrel on the ICE Futures Europe exchange as of 2:38 p.m. in Singapore, while WTI slipped 0.9 percent to $62.34 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent is trading at $6.66 premium to WTI for the same month. If Abqaiq “takes months to come back online we could see Brent move into the $70 to $80 per barrel range,” Vivek Dhar, an analyst at Commonwealth Bank of Australia, said in a note. “A retaliatory attack against Iran could see oil prices spike even higher.”

Supreme leader says Iran won’t negotiate with US

RAN won’t negotiate with the United States on any level neither in New York or anywhere else, the Islamic Republic’s supreme leader said. “Sometimes they say negotiations without any precondition and sometimes with 12 conditions,” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in comments published by semiofficial ISNA news agency on Tuesday. “Such statements either come from their disheveled policies or are a ploy to confuse the other side.” Talks with the US would amount to victory for US President Donald J. Trump’s so-called maximum pressure policy, Khamenei said. Trump hasn’t ruled out a possible meeting with Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani when both are in New York this month for the annual United Nations General Assembly. Trump tweeted on Sunday that the “Fake News is saying that I am willing to meet with Iran, ‘No Conditions’ That is an incorrect statement [as usual!].” But officials including Secretary of State Michael Pompeo and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin have told reporters publicly that Trump is willing to take a meeting with no conditions. The US administration’s “maximum pressure” stance against Iran is focused on imposing sanctions and isolating the country over its nuclear ambitions and malign activities in the region. Bloomberg News

Bloomberg News

Taiwan loses biggest Pacific ally as Solomons embraces China

ELLINGTON, New Zealand—Taiwan has lost its largest ally in the Pacific after the Solomon Islands confirmed on Tuesday that it is switching diplomatic allegiance to China, and observers say other Pacific nations may soon follow. The switch has geopolitical significance that will be felt as far away as Washington because the Solomon Islands are located directly between Australia and the United States, and were the site of fierce battles during World War II. Alex Akwai, a spokesman for Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, said the government’s caucus took a poll on Monday, with 27 lawmakers voting in favor of switching allegiance to China and six abstaining. He said the Cabinet then voted unanimously in favor of the change. Akwai said the Taiwanese Embassy in the capital, Honiara, had lowered its f lag on Tuesday. Embassy staff declined to comment. Taiwanese President Tsai Ingwen said it will close the embassy and recall all technical and medical staff stationed there. “ We s i nc e re l y re g re t a nd strongly condemn their government’s decision to establish diplomatic relations with China,” Tsai said. China, meanwhile, said it welcomed the Solomon Islands into its Pacific family. “C h i n a h i g h l y c o m m e n d s the decision of the Solomon Islands’ government to recognize the one- China principle and sever t he so - ca l led d ip lomatic ties w ith the Taiwan authorities,” Foreign Ministr y Spokesman Hua Chuny ing said in a statement. China considers Taiwan to be part of its territory and wants to bring the island back into its fold. Taiwan split from mainland China during a civil war in 1949 and set up a rival government to the victorious Communists in Beijing.

IN this November 24, 2018, photo, ships are docked offshore in Honiara, the capital of the Solomon Islands. The Solomon Islands switched diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China on Monday, becoming the latest country to leave the dwindling Taiwanese camp. AP/MARK SCHIEFELBEIN

Most countries recognize Beijing today, and China has been ratcheting up diplomatic and economic pressure to woo the remaining ones since Tsai took office in 2016. With a population of 660,000, the Solomon Islands were easily Taiwan’s largest remaining ally in the Pacific. Its economy relies on agriculture, fishing and forestry, and the country has a wealth of undeveloped mineral resources. Now only 16 countries worldwide continue to recognize Taiwan, including five small Pacific nations. Of those, the Marshall Islands and Palau have close ties with the US and are unlikely to switch allegiance anytime soon. But experts say Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu could soon switch. US Republican Sen. Marco Rubio sa id t he US shou ld n’t stay silent. “The Solomon Islands has officially become the latest nation to bow to Chinese gov’t pressure and sever ties with Taiwan,” Rubio tweeted. “The US and Int’l com mu n it y mu st pu sh bac k against Beijing’s bullying and efforts to isolate #Taiwan.” James Batley, a researcher at the Australian National University and a former Australian high commissioner in the Solomon Is-

lands, said the move didn’t come as a surprise. “ T he sense in Solomon Islands is that there are significant resources on of fer here from China, and they want to move with the times and on the side of histor y,” he said. But he said the Solomons needs to be careful not to get into serious debt to China, particularly as, even before the switch, it was looking to take out big loans to fund infrastructure projects, including a hydroelectric dam. He said Taiwan had promised the Solomons a new stadium for when it hosts the 2023 Pacific Games, and that the Solomons may now look instead to China for help. Professor Anne-Marie Brady, an expert on China at the University of Canterbury, said the blow to Taiwan wasn’t as big now as it might have been in the past. She said that’s because Taiwan has managed to forge unofficial relations with dozens of countries and the European Union as part of a more pragmatic approach to its diplomacy. She said the Solomon Islands may also benefit from being able to better balance its relations with a number of larger countries, including China, the US, Australia and New Zealand. AP

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NOTICE OF FILING OF APPLICATION FOR ALIEN EMPLOYMENT PERMIT (AEP) Notice is hereby given that the following employers have filed with this Regional Office application/s for Alien Employment Permit/s. Name and Address of Company/Employer

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A6 Wednesday, September 18, 2019 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

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editorial

Helping sugar sector become competitive

HE previous two crop years have been the most difficult for the Philippine sugar industry despite the enactment of a measure in 2015 that sought to improve the sector’s competitiveness. From a record high output of 2.5 million metric tons in crop year 2016-2017, raw sugar output declined to 2.083 MMT the next crop year. The figure dropped further to 2.072 MMT in the last crop year ending August 31, according to data from the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA). The drop in output was attributed mainly to the contraction in total plantation area, as planters opted to shift to other crops. The change in weather pattern also made it more challenging for planters to increase production. For instance, rains could reduce the sugar content of the canes, while El Niño would destroy the crop. The El Niño episode this year destroyed some P300 million worth of sugarcane crops in Negros Occidental, alone. All these things happened to a sector that had been given support by Congress in the form of Republic Act (RA) 10659, or the Sugarcane Industry Development Act of 2015. The law sought to improve the competitiveness of the sugarcane sector through mandated programs and appropriations. Sida is composed of five main programs: Human Resource Development Program; Research, Development and Extension Program; Block Farm Program; Socialized Credit under the Farm Support and Farm Mechanization Program; and Infrastructure Support Program. RA 10659 mandates that the national government should allocate P2 billion for the implementation of the five programs. Since Sida was enacted, however, funds allocated for the programs have been drastically cut. From P2 billion given to the SRA in 2016, the amount was slashed to P1.5 billion in 2017, P1 billion in 2018 and P500 million in 2019 (See, “Senators vow to increase budget for sugarcane law,” in the BusinessMirror, August 16, 2019). The reason given by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) is that the SRA was not able to fully utilize the initial P2 billion given to them. Sen. Cynthia A. Villar, chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Food, had committed during a public hearing that she will push for an increase in the Sida budget of the SRA. We urge lawmakers to go beyond this by helping the SRA remove the bottlenecks that impede the full implementation of Sida. The law was intended to boost the competitiveness of Filipino sugarcane farmers, but three years after it was implemented, it hardly made a dent in improving the sector’s productivity. The Philippines is not as competitive as its Asean neighbors, such as Thailand and Indonesia, which can produce the sweetener more efficiently. Data from the United States Department of Agriculture showed that the yield of Thai farms can reach as much as 75 MT per hectare. The average cane per hectare harvested by Filipino planters was lower at 52 MT in the last two crop years. We call on Congress and the DBM to make sure that laws that seek to boost the competitiveness of the local farm sector, such as Sida, will get higher allocation in the years to come. While sugar is not widely consumed as rice, it is a key ingredient in the manufacture of food items. Giving planters the means to produce sugar more efficiently will stabilize the price of food items and will help boost the Philippine manufacturing industry. Since 2005

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No greater love than to give one’s life for the helpless Teddy Locsin Jr.

FREE FIRE Continued from A1

HIS year’s national observance of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) Day celebrates the milestone 70th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions.

The Conventions became the core of International Humanitarian Law. They were crafted in the aftermath of the Second World War, which quickly followed the First. It came to the same conclusion: the only progress modern times had brought was faster, slicker, more destructive weapons— yet, longer wars without the slightest diminution in cruelty and with far greater toll in civilian lives. Between the wars, someone made the still compelling argument that the only possible amelioration lay in more extensive use of poison gas. It was quicker; it did its work from a distance and, therefore, involved less personal cruelty and sadistic pleasure on the part of the perpetrators; less degradation and suffering for their victims. Since then it’s gotten worse—the Vietnam War, napalm and Agent Orange; the Central American counterinsurgency wars involving the decimation of poor peasants; the still ongoing postcolonial African World War; and, of course, the Middle Eastern holocaust—where little Yazidi Christian girls were matter-of-factly burned in iron cages, for failing to show pleasure at being gang-raped by smelly jihadi. Indeed, throughout the past 70 years, the world saw suffering on a scale and with such sadistic cruelty unseen since Tamerlane and Hitler. Civilians continue to bear the brunt of war, with estimates of civilians killed or crippled varying between 50 percent and up to 90 percent of casualties. Oddly, comparatively fewer soldiers are getting killed; and yet, that’s equally their job as killing. Protective armor is now standard uniform, reserved only for those with the means to kill; resolutely denied those powerless to stop them. Even the precision of drone warfare has not spared the innocent from hitherto unimaginable terrors that have driven them crazy beyond cure, studies show. The good news is there are no more baffling 19th century dynastic entanglements and secret alliances with their clockwork precise and unalterable railroad schedules to war. Some of that survived into the Cold War in mutual defense agreements, not all of them well known. But outside the nuclear powers, armed conflicts have become simpler to start,

near impossible to contain, harder than ever to end—and really easier to understand: it is us or them; better them than us; forget trying to reason with them. They’ll listen to one reason only: our submission to their abuses. One thing that’s stayed the same is the balance of mutual destruction. This has kept nuclear states well protected and at peace because…well, mutual destruction…. There will never be war among China, the United States and Russia; though plenty around them just like in the Cold War. The only novelty is the presence of violent non-state actors that are— for all deadly intents, purposes and means—the same as states but with more wherewithal to hurt. It is harder for states to tax for defense than it is for non-state actors to traffic drugs, weapons and people for aggression. Their aim is to erase the legitimacy of states by demonstrably defeating the defining role of states: their first and foremost obligation to protect the innocent against the guilty, the law-abiding against the lawless; forcing publics, as in Latin America, to choose only between criminal syndicates which are for all practical purposes terrorist non-state actors. A world without states is like a world without string: chaos. There have been no significant advances in weaponry except, perhaps, speed, volume and firepower. And again, the countries that account for these advances do not suffer from them: it is the countries that cannot account for these advances that are the victims. The rich make the weapons deadlier, and, thanks to economies of scale, more plentiful and cheaper. So it behooves the makers to go for volume. The great German Chancellor Angela Merkel explained this at the last Munich Security Conference. She complained of US demands that the European Union share the burden of European defense that the US alone has been carrying. But that, she said, means we must build a European defense industry. And that means we must be allowed to sell arms abroad because domestic demand is quickly filled and never depleted—there will never again be a war in Europe. And Bosnia is out of their system: been there, done that; there were pluses and minuses; let’s move on. There are other ways of ethnic cleansing.

It is in this context that it behooves theinternationalcommunity—weapons making and selling states, and their victims together—to share the responsibility of keeping the spirit of International Humanitarian Law and the Geneva Conventions alive. Especially in the Age of Terror when those conventions are observed at great peril to public safety; yet, not observing them discredits states and makes the case for terrorism. But, in general, the problem is this: the weapons making and selling states are never blamed by international civil society because it is composed mostly of people who come from those states, and the selling states are so impregnable they need not resort to extraordinary measures of social control. So the blame is persistently laid squarely on the weak countries of the victims whose governments are their customers. The IHL theme for this year, “Protecting the Defenseless in Times of Armed Conflict,” is especially apt given the true facts. The defenseless can’t afford body armor, which is included as a bonus for those who can afford the modern weaponry to use against the defenseless. I refer especially to vulnerable sectors—women and children—the sexual diversion of combatants; mayhem is not an easy job. And, of course, persons with disabilities who are good for target practice—I mean, the choice is the crutch or an M-16 or Kalashnikov. So it was only logical in the circumstances for the IHL Ad Hoc Committee to prioritize the need to keep the latter alive and unharmed. It would be odd if soldiers on any side—and that includes non-state actors with state capabilities—were to be included in the Committee’s concerns. But don’t hold your breath: murderers are humans, too; and they have rights like due process. That’s why I had to get us out of the ICC pronto. That woman was on a roll. On the part of the Philippine government, the commitment to International Humanitarian Law is well-established in history; although this sterling record has been cast in the shade, and is today disparaged by those who are—either actually on the payroll of non-state actors or should be, for the great service they render to protect them and advance their interests. For all intents and brutal purposes, criminal organizations from Isis to Sinaloa are state actors with state capabilities and, often far, more financial resources and everything money can buy. Governments had to napalm tens of thousands of acres of Mexican poppy fields and it still hasn’t stopped the steady narcotization and increasing anarchy of Mexico and the Central American states. Hence, the Wall but with wide open gateways to the US market as mandated by Nafta. Our own city of Marawi fell to one such group when it was attempted to serve a warrant on its leader for drug trafficking. It took our boys

six months to take back Marawi in door-to-door fighting. To be sure, we left the city looking like Swiss Cheese but, hey, how else? It took the entire Western Alliance six years to take back Raqqa—they flattened it. Time and again I’ve said at the UN: the best protection of human rights—which today are mostly violated by non-state actors with more wherewithal than states—lies in materially and legally empowering legitimate states, members of the United Nations no less, to protect the law-abiding, and to defeat the lawless by any means necessary to achieve that purpose. In desperate circumstances, one might understandably be tempted to adopt the means employed by non-state actors. It is silly to pretend those means are not used by the most advanced states whose civil societies denounce those means only when availed of by lesser states in desperation. On top of which, advanced states can apply unconventional means with more precision and, therefore, circumspection. And then, of course, there’s legislation. Indeed, we are celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Philippine Act on Crimes against International Humanitarian Law, Genocide and Other Crimes Against Humanity. Early this year—guess what?—a member of the Maute-Isis terrorist group was convicted in court of violations of IHL, which underscores our effective enforcement of international humanitarian domestic law. In recognition of our country’s responsibility to lay the foundation for future generations to reap the dividends of humanitarianism… No, not peace but humanitarianism; keeping the peace is out of our hands; it’s in the hands of those who break the peace. In that recognition, the DFA, together with the IHL Ad Hoc Committee, has embarked on an infomercial project in the hope—against all experience—that what past generations never learned, the millennial generation will understand and take to heart. I believe that. The young, if kept away from the old who recruit child soldiers, are better than us. We sincerely thank the International Committee of the Red Cross, the Swiss Embassy, Silver Machine Digital Communications, and Star Magic, including a national heartthrob, Piolo Pascual, for their support in the production of this infomercial. In closing, let us remember that peace is out of the hands of peacemakers; it is entirely in the hands of lawbreakers who have attained a level of organization far superior to poor states like mine. But what lies with us, what is within our self-control, is decency. How we fight, how we protect, how we defeat our enemies with arms when we are attacked with arms; with the truth when we are attacked with lies; always and ever—constitutions mandate— with victory in mind and heart, See “Locsin,” A7

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Wednesday, September 18, 2019 A7

Coming Soon: A world-class Online servicing is the way to go international airport in Bulacan Aurora C. Ignacio

All About Social Security

Susan V. Ople

SCRIBBLES

T was an animated, friendly yet frank discussion between Bulacan’s local leaders and the head of the country’s biggest conglomerate, San Miguel Corp., about the company’s biggest project: the New Manila International Airport. Bulacan Governor Daniel Fernando and Vice Governor Wilhelmino Sy-Alvarado led a team of mayors and vice mayors to visit SMC vicechair, president and chief operating officer, the visionary Ramon S. Ang, who was clad in a simple blue-collared shirt and black pants. Whatever formalities melted away once the man known in political, social, and business circles as RSA entered the dining room and welcomed everybody with a big smile. The meeting held on Tuesday (September 17) at SMC’s executive dinning hall gave an opportunity for local leaders to raise the concerns of their constituents. Over a bowl of tinola soup, the discussions focused on the synergy between San Miguel Corp. and Bulacan local government units to ensure that the airport project will not result in more floods and massive dislocation of affected residents. Bocaue Mayor Joni Villanueva, the sister of Senator Joel Villanueva, sought an assurance that local officials would be given a concrete and comprehensive presentation on the airport project that they can share with their constituents. The businessman-philanthropist assured local officials that relevant information materials are forthcoming and that San Miguel’s communications team is also preparing a video that would answer many of the questions that most Bulakenyos may have in mind. According to Ang, the airport project cannot prosper unless the flood situation in Bulacan is sufficiently addressed. He said dredging of Bulacan waterways, including the frontage of Manila Bay, will be a continuing project for the next 50 years, and the construction of a coastal road that would also serve as a spillway will keep the high tide away from coastal communities. “What the national government has not been able to do—which is to stop the flooding in Bulacan—we will now handle as part of the airport project,” Ang said. He also assured the mayors that relocation sites for affected residents would come with individual housing units, a school for the kids, and access to jobs and livelihood programs. “We will take care of them,” the businessman assured the mayors. Why did he choose Bulacan as the site of a world-class international airport? Ramon Ang cited the good relations that he has with then governor and now Vice Governor Willy Alvarado. “His strong leadership made this project possible,” Ang said. He also paid tribute to the political will and decisiveness of President Duterte who wanted a world-class airport built for all Filipinos to be proud of. The New Manila International Airport will stand on roughly 2,500 hectares of land in Bulakan,

Locsin. . .

continued from A6

refusing anything less; and whatever else needs doing. But let us do it with decency. This is not to be confused with misplaced compassion; but just decency. We recognize it as what we don’t see in our enemies. Decency is not a utopian ideal. It’s been practiced for the past 138 years by the International Red Cross. We will fight when we must; we should not hesitate. Delay grows the evil threatened. Talk is useless with those deafened by the sound of their

Bulacan. Mayor Vergel Meneses, who shares a passion for basketball with RSA, looks forward to the start of the P735-billion project considering the number of jobs and business opportunities it would provide to his constituents. The flatness of Bulacan’s terrain and easy access points to and from Metro Manila would make the international airport a convenient and safe landing strip. It would have four parallel runways and a passenger capacity of over 100 million, three times the design capacity of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. RSA estimated the initial number of workers needed to be at least 200,000. He said that San Miguel is also looking for several hectares of land to build its construction office, a staff-house, a private hospital and school for the airport workers. Bulacan Governor Daniel Fernando said the provincial government can offer some available locations to choose from. That there is constant communication and constructive dialogue between Bulacan’s leaders and San Miguel Corp. will lead to the smooth implementation of the vast airport project. Both parties agreed that San Miguel and the provincial government of Bulacan will jointly implement the necessary flood control projects, including the much needed dredging of Bulacan waterways. Environmental issues would also be jointly addressed. Observing San Miguel’s COO up close, I think that he is inspired to work hard and deliver because of his understanding that true wealth comes with service to the country. His humility and kindness in dealing with people regardless of their station in life gives everyone who listens to him enough reason to hope for a brighter future. In a speech before the graduating class of his alma mater, Far Eastern University, which granted him a doctoral degree, Ramon Ang had said: “What is the key to my happiness? Allow me to share with you what I have armed myself with in dealing with people: Be a man of your word. Know how to keep a secret. Work harder than anybody else. Be decisive. Be a risk-taker. Nothing is impossible. Believe in a bigger purpose.” It is to this visionary and his world-class Philippine conglomerate that we now entrust the building of the best and most modern airport that every Filipino had long been dreaming of. Carry on, RSA. The historic province of Bulacan is behind you. Susan V. Ople heads the Blas F. Ople Policy Center and Training Institute, a nonprofit organization that deals with labor and migration issues. She also represents the OFW sector in the InterAgency Council Against Trafficking.

own gunfire. But it lies with us— in the most difficult and perilous tasks and times ahead—to always… always…be decent…toward our fellow human beings; especially the weakest among them. For it is they who most deserve— they who have the greatest claim on us to protect them. There is no obligation to protect the strong; There is a morally and therefore rationally compelling duty to risk our safety and lives—we who are able to save them. Therein lies the highest nobility of people. No greater love than to give one’s life for the helpless. Thank you.

HE entire Social Security System (SSS) ranks are still high from the anniversary program held last Thursday with Finance Secretary and Social Security Commission Chairman Carlos G. Dominguez III, represented by Finance Assistant Secretary Antonio Joselito G. Lambino, as keynote speaker. Fifteen employers, organizations, and individuals that significantly contributed to the pursuit of the System’s mandate were recognized in the Balikat ng Bayan Awarding ceremony. The SSS management accepts the challenges posed by Dominguez to improve the quality and performance of its investments, and to use modern digital tools to reduce overhead expenses and to serve its members better. With the rapid expansion of the economy, primarily driven by the “Build, Build, Build” program under the current administration, coupled with an improved business outlook, SSS is positive that its investments will earn better this year. In terms of using online ser-

vices, SSS has started its electronic channels years back. Today, it has six electronic channels accessible to members, namely: (1) SSS web site—My.SSS; (2) SSS Mobile App; (3) Self-Service Express Terminal (SET); (4) Interactive Voice Response System (IVRS); (5) Text-SSS and (6) Contribution payments through electronic facilities. Utilizations of these facilities have increased by 8 percent or a total of 10.54 million transactions compared to the January to June 2018 data. For instance, My.SSS web site registered users in 2019 increased by 24 percent or 7.57 million from 6.12 million in 2018. On the other, SSS mobile downloads as of June 2019 spiked at 1.93 million or 1,125.4-percent

increase since its launch in April 2018 with only 157,499 registered users. Text-SSS was used 579,163 times as against 356,584 times last year or a 62-percent increase in the frequency of use. Electronic payment of contributions also increased to 20,484 from 8,113, a 152-percent increase since its launching in December 2015. Users of the SET reached 1.75 million from January to June 2019. When members go to branches now, they will be diverted to SET for simple transactions like checking contributions. The IVRS recorded a total number of 620,330 calls, a drop from the 754,135 in January to June 2018, perhaps due to shift to online inquiries of members. All paying employers—396,686 from January to June 2019—are all Web-registered. Since we launched the Real-Time Posting of Contributions in 2018, employers are required to be Web-registered to be able to pay for their employees’ contributions. However, there is still much to be done. Out of the 14.95 million paying members of SSS in January to June 2019, only 37 percent or 5.49 million individual members are registered on the web site as of June 2019. Similarly, out of 37.16 million transactions from January to June 2019, 26.63 million or 72 percent were over-the-counter, while only

10.54 million or 28 percent were done through electronic facilities. The targets for 2020 have been identified. We will increase the number of Web-registered members to 8 million or an increase of 3 million from the 5.49 million Web-registered individuals as of June 2019. Alongside this, we will increase Web transactions to 32.2 million from the 10.54 million online transactions in the first six months of 2019. Among other commitments for 2020 are additional 3 million downloads of the SSS Mobile app, and to eliminate use of checks for SSS disbursement of benefits through PESONet and other thru-the-bank programs. A standard layout of branches with expanded e-Centers will also be created that will be piloted in 33 branches nationwide. These branches will be equipped with expanded e-Centers. There is much work to be done. But we are confident that with cooperation from our members and other stakeholders, SSS will continue to connect and protect with its anytime, anywhere service made possible through its electronic channels. 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.

India is dangerously close to becoming an also-ran By Mihir Sharma Bloomberg Opinion

NDIA’S government will shortly find itself at a fork in the road. Will it choose globalization and export-oriented growth? Or will the isolationists in the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party win, and keep India out of a giant Indo-Pacific trading bloc? This weekend, New Delhi hosted negotiators for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership —from the 10 members of Asean as well as Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea and China—in the hope that it could swing last-minute safeguards for some of its producers. Indian officials have stalled RCEP’s progress as much as they could, and the others are now losing patience. One way or another, the deal will have to be concluded by November, when the leaders of the 16 RCEP countries will meet in Bangkok. Malaysia’s Mahathir Mohammed, not a man known for patience, said in June that the other countries could go on without India, if necessary. Many in New Delhi, even within the commerce ministry, would be relieved to see that happen. The belief that India has “lost” in most of its trade agreements is pervasive

here. Influential lobbies tied to the country’s laggard producers are happy to remind officials how trade deficits soared with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations after a free-trade agreement was signed some years ago, for example. And there has always been a strong isolationist wing within the Hindu nationalist BJP—right-wing ideologues don’t just want India out of RCEP; they would prefer existing agreements with Japan, Korea and Asean be renegotiated, if not abandoned. Of course, India can only be said to have “lost” if you ignore the considerable gains to consumers from cheaper imports. Once upon a time, Indian households had to worry constantly about high and variable prices of cooking oil. That’s no longer a concern, thanks to imports of palm oil from Indonesia and Malaysia, in spite of the steep duties permitted by the Indo-Asean free-trade agreement. And when producers’ lobbies complain about losing market share to Southeast Asia, they merely underline how uncompetitive Indian industry has become. There is, in fact, a far better reason than any of these for India to feel doubtful about RCEP, and it’s

geopolitical more than economic. For Beijing, the trading bloc is just another method to ensure that the People’s Republic embeds itself as the hub of Asia’s economic geography. That’s not something anyone in India is comfortable with. India runs a massive trade deficit with China, of course; but, even more than that, officials here are conscious that concluding RCEP in the middle of the Sino-US trade war would be a boost to Beijing. The problem is that all options for New Delhi are unappetizing. If only there was a large and comprehensive alternative to the RCEP that excluded China—but, of course, President Donald J. Trump has killed the Trans-Pacific Partnership, leaving Beijing in control of the future of Asian trade. In the end, though, it’s hard to see how India would be best served by turning its back on RCEP. In spite of his pro-trade rhetoric at places like Davos, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has started putting up tariff walls in recent years, as early attempts to boost Indian competitiveness failed to show quick enough results. This turn to protectionism needs to be reversed, if India has any hope of employing the millions of young people graduating its

schools every year. It’s true that signing a sweeping free-trade agreement would be a significant change in direction for a government that is most comfortable speaking a 1970s-vintage language of import substitution, industrial policy and protective tariffs. But Indian negotiators have already moderated their demands considerably. New Delhi has made it clear that it would be satisfied with a two-track agreement that keeps some walls up against Chinese imports, while opening up to the other RCEP countries. I’m still hopeful that, come November, Modi’s signature will be on this agreement. If nothing else, it would be a massive humiliation on the international stage for him to stand aside as all the other leaders of the Indo-Pacific come together to declare a new era is dawning. So much of Modi’s domestic popularity is wrapped around the carefully constructed myth of his international importance, that this might be seen as an unacceptable political hit. At least that’s what we should hope the calculations within New Delhi’s corridors of power are—because, if not, then India is condemned to long decades of being an also-ran on trade and growth.

Trump’s suggestion of Iran strike raises bipartisan alarm By Josh Wingrove & Daniel Flatley Bloomberg Opinion

ONALD J. TRUMP risks a political backlash if he retaliates against Iran over a weekend strike on Saudi Arabian oil facilities after campaigning on promises to withdraw the US from foreign wars. Trump tweeted Monday that the US is “locked and loaded,” raising bipartisan alarm after the weekend attack that halved Saudi oil production. Speaking later to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said: “It’s certainly looking that way at this moment,” and “we pretty much already know” who did it. US security officials met on Monday morning. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has blamed Iran, though Riyadh is stopping short of directly doing so. Iran denied involvement. Trump said diplomacy with Iran isn’t exhausted and that Pompeo will be heading to Saudi Arabia. The prospect of a strike on Iran in retaliation for an attack that didn’t target Americans or even a country with which the US has a defense treaty is proving divisive in Washington.

Trump said the US is prepared for any conflict, but that Saudi Arabia would need to play a significant part in any action. Saudi Arabia’s popularity is at a nadir over the prolonged war it has fought in Yemen that has killed thousands of civilians and the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the kingdom’s Istanbul consulate earlier this year. Congress voted in April to cut off military support for Saudi Arabia over the Yemen war, a legislation that Trump vetoed. Sen. Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, said on Monday that Trump should consider attacking Iranian oil refineries, but Sen. Mitt Romney, a Utah Republican, said direct US intervention would be “a grave mistake.” Before he was president, Trump expressed skepticism of US military action on behalf of Saudi Arabia. “Saudi Arabia should fight their own wars, which they won’t, or pay us an absolute fortune to protect them and their great wealth-$ trillion!” he said in a 2014 tweet. But his tweet on Sunday indicated that he’s waiting for the kingdom to tell the US what it wants to do.

Trump adopted the slogan “America First” during the 2016 campaign, and vowed to withdraw from foreign wars. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Monday that defense officials had briefed Trump about the situation on Monday, and that Esper spoke with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman and Iraqi Defense Minister Najah al-Shammari over the weekend. “The United States military, with our interagency team, is working with our partners to address this unprecedented attack and defend the international rules-based order that is being undermined by Iran,” Esper tweeted. Marc Short, the chief of staff to Vice President Mike Pence, earlier downplayed the prospect of US military action. “I think ‘locked and loaded’ means several things. One thing that it means is that America today under this president is far better prepared to handle these sort of events because we’re now a net exporter of oil,” Short said in an interview on Fox Business Network. “We know that Iran has been trying to instigate attacks against Saudi Arabia for some time.”

Senators’ views

CHRIS COONS, a Democrat and member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Monday morning that military action against Iran may be warranted, depending on information gathered by US intelligence services. “My hope is that the president will consult with his generals, his diplomats, his advisers, will look hard at the intelligence,” Coons said in an interview on Fox and Friends, a show the president often watches. “Iran is one of the most dangerous state sponsors of terrorism. This may well be the thing that calls for military action against Iran if that’s what the intelligence supports.” But Coons faced criticism from liberals for his remarks, and a Democratic colleague, Hawaii Sen. Brian Schatz, said on Twitter: “There is no imminent threat and the US military is not authorized to retaliate on behalf of another country.” Most of the vetoes Trump has issued during his presidency were of bipartisan resolutions regarding Saudi Arabia, and every time Congress has failed to muster enough votes to override his veto.

A8 Wednesday, September 18, 2019

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Ex-Manila warden named new BuCor chief

By Bernadette D. Nicolas @BNicolasBM & Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

RESIDENT Duterte has named ex-Manila City jail warden Gerald Bantag as the new Director General of the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor). Bantag will replace Nicanor Faeldon, who was sacked earlier this month for “disobeying” Duterte’s

order not to allow the release of nearly 2,000 heinous crime convicts supposedly eligible under the Good

692

Number of prematurely released PDLs who have surrendered as of 8:20 a.m. of September 17—or about 36 percent of the total number of 1,914 PDLs covered by Duterte’s Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA) law. In a statement on Tuesday, Malacañang confirmed Bantag’s

appointment, saying he was designated by the President “based on his professional competence and honesty.” “The Palace is behind the President’s decision and is confident that DG Bantag will continue the Administration’s campaign against corruption as he spearheads reform initiatives in the Bureau,” said Presidential Spokesman and Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador S. Panelo. Prior to his appointment to the BuCor, Bantag was serving as the

regional director of Bureau of Jail Management and Penology-Mimaropa (Mindoro, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan). In 2017, however, Bantag was relieved from his post as Manila City jail warden after the Parañaque City Regional Trial Court issued a warrant of arrest against him for 10 counts of murder over the bomb explosion at the Parañaque City Jail. Ten inmates, including two Chinese nationals, died because of the explosion inside the jail in August 2016.

Bantag, who was the warden of Parañaque City Jail when the blast happened, was also injured from the blast. Bantag was also relieved from his post then along with seven night-shift personnel. In a statement in 2016, Parañaque Deputy Chief of Police Supt. Wilson Doromal said the inmates wanted to discuss the issue on the transfer of detention cells, adding that the inmates were armed with a pistol, a balisong (knife), while another carried a grenade. See “BuCor chief,” A2

DOLE extends SOT bill deadline DPWH acts By Samuel P. Medenilla @sam_medenilla

HE coalition of the country’s largest labor groups, Nagkaisa, issued a unified opposition to some salient points of the Security of Tenure (SOT) bill crafted by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), even as employers sought, and got an extension for submitting their inputs on the draft. In its position paper submitted to DOLE on September 13, Nagkaisa said it found the SOT bill unacceptable because of a provision in its Section 2, which amended Article 106 of the labor code, allowing contractual arrangement. “We find the language of the first four paragraphs of Section 2

TROPICAL DEPRESSION “NIMFA” ESTIMATED AT 640 KM EAST OF BASCO, BATANES LOW PRESSURE AREA ESTIMATED AT 95 KM WEST OF IBA, ZAMBALES SOUTHWEST MONSOON AFFECTING CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN LUZON AND WESTERN VISAYAS as of 4:00 pm - September 17, 2019

[Article 106 Contracting Arrangement] pregnant to interpretation that can easily be subjected to abuse,” Nagkaisa National Chairman Jose Sonny Matula said in the statement. Among the changes introduced by DOLE’s SOT bill directly stipulates that specific jobs or services may be contracted out except for “core business activities unless in cases of seasonal and project work arrangement.” It defined core business as an activity or function that is an integral part of the principal line of business of the contractee. The revision also allows the Labor Secretary to issue appropriate rules on contractualization in consultation with the National Tripartite Industrial Peace Council.

Nagkaisa maintained that fixedterm employment should generally be banned.

New extension

LABOR Assistant Secretary Benjo M. Benavidez earlier confirmed they already got the position paper of some labor stakeholders before the deadline for such last August. But during the budget hearing at the Senate on Tuesday, he said they decided to defer anew the date for finalizing their draft SOT version to accommodate the request of some employer groups. “We initially gave them until August to submit inputs, but the employers requested for an extension [of the submission period],” Benavidez said. See “SOT bill,” A2

ABUSED SPOUSES, KIDS to prevent, FOCUS OF 1ST HEARING curb dengue on natl roads ON PHL DIVORCE BILL

HE Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has implemented intervention works to “prevent and control” a dengue outbreak along national roads and construction campsites, a Cabinet official said on Tuesday. Public Works Secretary Mark A. Villar said his group has “cleaned, cleared, de-silted, and unclogged culverts and canals with a total of 4.5 million linear meters in 2018 and 2.4 million linear meters from January to June 2019 in different areas nationwide.” “Addressing this mosquito-borne viral infection requires a collective effort and that’s why we in the DPWH are doing all the necessary actions to ensure that communities along national roads, bridges, and construction sites are safe from the risk of dengue by clearing and declogging open canals, drainages, inlets, gutters, and box culverts on an average of two to three times a year,” Villar said. He added that aside from this, the agency helped in rehabilitating Manila Bay, dredging 1.4 million cubic meters of waste materials, debris and sediments in the National Capital Region (NCR), Regions 3 and 4A. The public works department, under a presidential order in 1996, is mandated to help prevent stagnant water in canals and major water arteries, to ensure construction sites will not serve as breeding grounds for mosquitoes, and to provide proper drainage of streets to mitigate flooding and formation of mud and water puddles. To ensure its implementation, Villar also issued a memorandum to all regional directors and district engineers, reiterating the need for strict compliance with the conduct of dengue preventive measures in their jurisdictions. Lorenz S. Marasigan

GIE tax. . .

Continued from A1

The Citira, or House Bill 4157, which was passed on third reading last September 13, removes the perpetual 5-percent tax on GIE. Under the bill, it will strive to encourage investors and locators to reapply after the five-year or seven-year period, to qualify for another five years of incentives. Locators will need to relinquish their incentives, including the 5-percent tax on GIE paid in lieu of all local and national taxes, if the Citira bill is applied to them. Under the proposal, they are given up to five years to surrender their tax perks. “Data clearly establishes that the abuse of transfer pricing has resulted in tax leakages of P295.8 billion from 2011 to 2017. This has principally been enabled by the coexistence of two different tax bases—the GIE and the corporate income tax, or CIT,” said Salceda. “This duality has provided legal

By Recto Mercene

@rectomerce

SENATE committee opened on Tuesday hearings into pending proposals to legalize divorce in the Philippines, an initiative described by the panel chairman as “history in the making.” The Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality invited resource speakers to hear the pros and cons of the issue that remains highly controversial and divisive in a predominantly Catholic nation that counts many citizens as suffering from a bad union. The Philippines remains the only country in the world that denies divorce, a fact that advocates of divorce attribute to the clout of the Catholic Church, which continues to fight hard to enforce its views on the sanctity of marriage. In her opening statement, Sen. Risa Hontiveros, panel chief, said: “This is history in the making. We are in the process of making history by crafting a policy to make dissolution of marriage available to all Filipinos who want second chances in love, to rebuild their families and start all over again.” The initiative is embodied in several bills, among them Senate Bill (SBN) 67, to amend Executive Order 209, otherwise known as the Family Code of the Philippines; SBN 288 and 356, “an act instituting absolute divorce and dissolution of marriage”; and SBN 504, “an act recognizing the civil effects of Church annulment decree.”

cover for abusive transfer pricing through the undue manipulation of a firm’s cost structure to minimize tax payment—the net taxable income for most corporations including small and medium enterprises that pay the regular corporate income tax rate of 30 percent, and the GIE for firms that received the special rate of 5 percent of GIE as a tax incentive—presently enables firms to shift income, costs, and expenses to reduce their tax payments,” he added. According to Salceda, removing the GIE is an “essential and inseparable part” of Citira, as it will improve the effectivity of the deductionsbased incentives that encourage job creation, infrastructure, research and development, and workers’ training, and use of domestic products. He said removing the GIE also corrects abusive transfer pricing, improves fairness especially for serviceoriented firms, and simplifies tax administration. “Removing the GIE follows a global trend against base erosion and profit shifting [BEPS]. The removal of the

The hearing invited some women who want a divorce law in place to end their and their children’s suffering. A psychologist was also invited to explain the ill effects of a bad marriage and its related consequences to the parties involved. There were also representatives from the religious sector, who expectedly expressed their abhorrence to ending a marriage sanctioned by heaven. Some of those at the hearing were abused and battered women who could barely control their emotions, crying openly while relating the harrowing details of the physical violence inflicted on them regularly by wayward husbands. One of them stressed that children suffer the trauma of the husband’s abuses. However, these battered women said they remain in marriage because of the absence of divorce law. One said that it is only the poor parents and their children who suffer most the physical, mental and psychological abuses of abusive spouses because, unlike the rich, they have no means to avail themselves of the loopholes in the law to end their marriage by annulment. The resource person who opposed divorce or annulment told the committee that “marriage is made by God and could not be violated.” The solution, he told the committee, is to solve the underlying problem of a bad marriage, instead of resorting to legal separation. The anti-divorce camp also pointed to several passages in the bible on the sanctity of the marriage vows.

See “Divorce,” A2

highly dysfunctional GIE will make the Philippines more compliant with the Inclusive Framework on BEPS, as prescribed by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which currently has 130 member-economies, excluding the Philippines,” he added. The lawmaker said the removal of the GIE is part of the House’s efforts to promote Philippine membership to the framework, as the country’s exclusion in international tax fairness and transparency mechanisms risks make the Philippines a “pariah” in international taxation. “The existence of the GIE unfairly favors certain industries over others. GIE is unfavorable to those with high gross margins, such as service-oriented firms with virtually no cost of goods sold. GIE unfairly disadvantages firms whose main source of revenue is jobcreation—such as voice business process outsourcing companies—because they do not spend on raw materials. There is undeniable inequity in a system that disincentivizes job creation,” Salceda said. Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

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Ombudsman clears five SBMA officials on Diño complaint By Henry Empeño Correspondent

UBIC BAY FREEPORT—The Office of the Ombudsman dismissed for lack of merit a complaint filed against five senior officials of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority two years ago by former SBMA Chairman Martin Diño. In a decision approved by Ombudsman Samuel Martires, the antigraft body cleared the respondents and ruled that they acted only in accordance with the law. C lea red of t he c h a rges of grave misconduct, serious dishonesty, gross ignorance of the law and grave abuse of authority/ oppression were SBMA Senior Deputy Administrator Ramon Agregado, Deputy Administrator for Finance Antonietta Sanqui, Treasury Department Manager Myrna Caseja, Accounting Department Manager Emilia Canonizado and Budget Department Manager Editha Marzal. Diño, who is now undersecretary at the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), filed the complaint against them on July 19, 2017, in connection with his claim for salary as SBMA chairman. According to the Ombudsman’s records, Diño claimed that he “never received his salary/compensation except [for] per diems on regular board meetings he attended.” Diño also contended that his claims for salary were rejected by the respondents despite several oral requests. The SBMA officials, however, denied the charges and averred that under the law it was not Diño who was the real plantilla officer, but the SBMA administrator who also serves as chief executive officer. Under this setup, they added, the SBMA issued a salary only to the

SBMA administrator and paid out only per diems to the SBMA chairman based on the latter’s attendance at board meetings. In coming up with the ruling, the Ombudsman noted that Diño’s only basis to justify his demand for salary was Executive Order (EO) 673 signed in 2007. This order, signed by then-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, fixed the salary of the SBMA chairman to be the same as that of the SBMA administrator and amended Section 1 of Arroyo’s EO 340, which reorganized the SBMA Board of Directors and split the SBMA chairman position from that of the administrator. The Ombudsman pointed out that “when EO 24, series of 2011 was issued, it repealed EO 340 together with EO 673.” It added that under EO 24, which was issued by then-President Benigno S. Aquino III in 2011, the SBMA chairman cannot receive salary equivalent to that of the SBMA administrator because it would be “over the limit for the maximum annual compensation for members of the Board of Directors of GOCCs [governmentowned and -controlled corporations], such as SBMA.” “Based on the foregoing, respondents acted only in accordance with EO 24. They did not transgress or violate any law or established rule that would render them administratively liable,” the Ombudsman said. It added that, “since no forbidden act or unlawful behavior was exhibited by respondents, all administrative charges against respondents shall fail.” The respondents said they collectively expressed relief on learning of the favorable Ombudsman ruling last month. “We have long awaited this good news. This only affirmed our innocence,” one of the respondents said.

Ceza chief suspends ops of fintech locators amid investment scam probe By Elijah Felice E. Rosales @alyasjah

HE Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (Ceza) on Tuesday suspended the operations of all its registered financial technology (fintech) locators to make way for an investigation of a Chinese cryptocurrency firm allegedly involved in an investment scam. Ceza Chief Fintech and Cryptocurrency Business Officer Mike Gerald C. David said the agency is issuing a directive temporarily preventing its fintech locators from operating in Metro Manila. Fintech firms registered with the Ceza are authorized to do business in the nation’s capital as they await the completion of their facilities in Santa Ana, Cagayan. “…Because of what has transpired, we are…suspending the operations of all our licensees in Manila, the core operations in Manila, just so to put some sort of a freeze and talk to them,” David said in a news briefing. The moratorium was put in place in light of state investigation on Chi-

nese cryptocurrency firm Golden Millennial Quickpay Inc. Ltd. The company and Grapefruit Service Inc., its authorized service provider, are under investigation for allegedly being involved in an investment scam that make use of fintech systems to dupe unsuspecting investors. Based on latest records, there are 25 principal licensees and 15 regular licensees permitted by the Ceza to operate in its soon to rise fintech hub in Cagayan. Of these 40 licensees, three firms—Golden Millennial Quickpay, Liannet Technology Ltd. and Asia Premier International Ltd.— are doing business in Metro Manila, as they await their transfer to the Cagayan fintech hub once it is completed. Golden Millennial Quickpay and Asia Premier are located in Pasig City, while Liannet is situated in Taguig City. “Meanwhile, while we are building, [as we have] already began building the facilities in Cagayan, we are allowing them to temporarily operate here, but not the full operations. As in, back end [operations only].

@joveemarie

HE House of Representatives will create a joint technical working group (JTWG) with the Senate to fast-track the approval of the Duterte administration’s priority measure creating a department for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano said the JTWG will be created to thresh out all the issues concerning the creation of the new department. “We’re hoping that the Department Overseas Filipinos and Foreign Employment will not be cure all, but will be giant step in the right direction,” he said. Cayetano said the two chambers are targeting the completion of the joint JTWG’s report by November. “The target is for Congress to pass the measure by December and have it signed by the President on the same month,” Cayetano said. In filing his House Bill 2, Cayetano said the government must work together to attend the needs of Filipinos in distress. Cayetano said OFWs are called “modernday heroes,” feted for the remittances they send every year. In 2018 alone, he said

Perhaps, they can start marketing, customer service, but the core exchange operations are not allowed,” David explained. “Now, what we are saying is you are not even allowed in any form in Manila while all of this is happening. Since the construction of the building is soon arriving anyway and we are looking at around mid-next year for its completion, I think it is just fair that everyone just tally up, submit everything that we need, be compliant, until we send you out in the zone,” he said. In a separate statement, Ceza Administrator and Chief Executive Officer Raul L. Lambino said he is certain “there is no single Filipino citizen who was defrauded by this alleged investment scam.” He argued the agency’s fintech locators only operate here, but all of their transactions are offshore. “Likewise, Ceza does not allow its licensees to conduct business activities, or offshore virtual currency exchanges, in any foreign country like China that prohibits such business activity,” the Ceza chief added.

Lambino warned violation of these terms and conditions are grounds for automatic cancellation of license to operate. Further, the licensee will face appropriate legal action if they are found to break the standards set out by the Ceza, he said. Last week authorities, led by Bureau of Immigration agents, raided the headquarters of Golden Millennial Quickpay to arrest 277 Chinese nationals reportedly behind a scam that cost victims in China millions of dollars. According to David, just 106 of the 277 arrested possess a Ceza working visa, or the permit to work in a firm registered with the agency. He disclosed there are over 1,000 foreign nationals, mostly Chinese, granted at present with the Ceza working visa in, yet another proof of how the President Duterte’s rise to power resulted in the influx of Chinese tourists and workers in the Philippines. Last year, revenue collected by the Ceza tripled to P706.51 million, from P233.06 million, which the agency attributed to fees paid by locators, most of which are fintech firms.

Purefoods and Monterey meats ‘safe for consumption’ nationwide

N light of recent news that several provinces have started issuing total bans on the entry of live and processed pork products from various parts in Luzon, San Miguel Foods assured the government and the public that its products are absolutely safe to eat and not affected by the African swine fever (ASF). These products should, therefore, be made available nationwide for consumers to continue to enjoy, a news statement issued by San Miguel Foods assured. It is important to note, though, that ASF does not affect humans and, therefore, does not pose any risk to human health. It is a viral disease

impacting only pigs, not people, and cannot be transmitted through contact with pigs, or pork. Nevertheless, the statement added, San Miguel Foods follows the strictest animal health and biosecurity protocols. Its chilled, frozen and processed pork are produced from company-controlled hog breeding, growing, slaughtering and manufacturing facilities. Its refrigerated and canned meats are cooked with heat above 70 degrees, thereby destroying harmful viruses, including ASF. Meanwhile, all hogs are fed with sanitized feeds from our B-MEG plants using raw materials that

Congressional body to fast-track creation of OFW department By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

Wednesday, September 18, 2019 A9

OFWs’ personal remittances accounted 9.7 percent of the gross domestic product and cash remittances from OFWs have amounted to $28.9 billion in addition to remittances in kind or in the form of investments that migrant Filipino workers send in the country. According to Cayetano, there are an estimated 10.4 million OFWs worldwide. Currently, there are five major agencies vested with their respective mandates on overseas employment, namely the Department of Labor and Employment, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), the Commission on Filipino Overseas and the Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs of the DFA. “However, the absence of a single agency to address foreign employment concerns has made it difficult for the government to focus on the needs and demands of migration in general and of OFWs in particular,” he added. Cayetano said the department should be established to serve as the umbrella agency to specifically address all issues and concerns of OFWs, as well as their families to afford them full protection, promote their full and just employment and mitigate the social costs back home.

For their part, House Majority Leader Martin Romualdez and Tindog Party-list Rep. Yedda Marie Kittilstvedt-Romualdez, authors of the proposal creating the department, said the absence of a single agency to address foreign employment concerns had made it difficult for the government to focus on the needs and demands of foreign Filipino employment, in general, and of OFWs, in particular. “The lack of coordination among these agencies and redundancy of work lead to confusion among our OFWs and compromises the services to be rendered to our modernday heroes. Despite the existence of agencies to protect Filipinos abroad, numerous problems and challenges confront OFWs and their families: illegal recruitment, employer abuse, sexual abuse, inadequate benefits, inefficient and ineffective delivery of services to OFWs, lack of representation of the OFW interests in the agencies that are supposed to protect and promote their rights, among others,” the majority leader said. The party-list representative, meanwhile, said there is a pressing need to establish an agency that would manage, harmonize and strengthen existing policies and programs to address the needs of foreign Filipino employment.

are checked for contaminants that may affect food safety. Hog growing farms, meanwhile, are kept separate from breeding animals in order to minimize cross contamination and break potential disease cycles, while animal health programs are preventive in nature and are centered around biosecurity, disinfection and vaccination. Regular surveillance for diseases through laboratory testing of blood and tissue samples are done to detect any incidence of disease, develop prevention and control measures before each instance develops into an outbreak situation. Currently, the statement

said, adding test for ASF using polymerase chain reaction and had not detected positive reactors in any of San Miguel farms nationwide. San Miguel Foods added that its slaughter plants are constantly monitored by the National Meat Inspection Service. Each hog is inspected before slaughter, while each carcass is certified as disease-free before delivery to meat shops and distributors. Furthermore, the statement said, San Miguel Foods guaranteed that it fully complies with government guidelines on Good Animal Health Practice, Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point and Good Manufacturing Practice.

Arenas joins call to stop Manila Bay land reclamation projects By Jonathan L. Mayuga

@jonlmayuga

EPUTY Speaker Rose Marie “Baby” J. Arenas has added her voice to the growing clamor to stop land reclamation in Manila Bay. Speaking during a forum dubbed “Horizon of Heritage: A Forum on the Culture, Heritage, Wildlife and Tourism of Manila Bay” at the Manila Yacht Club on Tuesday, Arenas called on Congress to pass a law that will specifically ban and criminalize further reclamation in Manila Bay. Arenas had authored and filed House Bill 3169, or “An Act Declaring Manila Bay as Heritage Asset Free From Any and All Forms of Further Reclamation and Providing Penalties Therefore.” The bill seeks to declare Manila Bay, in its entirety, not only a national historical landmark but a heritage site that is protected and fully owned by the government “with management policies based on preservation of an ecosystem and rights-based, people-centered development framework.” “It is my firm belief that by declaring the entire Manila Bay as a cultural heritage, we will be able to deliver the message in the simplest, loudest and clearest manner, that it is a crime to reclaim it. Manila Bay Area belongs to the Filipino people and must remain in public hands,” Arenas said. Organized by an international ocean con-

servation advocacy nongovernment organization Oceana Philippines, the forum gathered environmentalists and conservation advocates who are opposed to proposed land reclamation activities in Manila Bay. Oceana Philippines stiffly opposes land reclamation, also called dump-and-fill, which it says cause massive destruction in the country’s coastal and marine ecosystems. Environmental lawyer Gloria Estenzo-Ramos, vice president of Oceana Philippines said the forum highlights the fact that there’s now a proposed measure that seeks to protect Manila Bay from destructive development. She said the forum also paves the way for stronger collaboration among various stakeholders to oppose land reclamation. “There will be a stronger collaboration among stakeholders. There will be a series of activities, to rally a support to protect Manila Bay. There will be online petitions to stop land reclamation in Manila Bay. All land reclamation, should be in fact be, criminalized,” said Ramos. In her brief message, the lady legislator from Pangasinan said despite the clamor to stop further reclamation in Manila Bay coming from stakeholders, such as fisherfolks, coastal communities, civil society, the Church, concerned local government units, Congress and no less than President Duterte himself, the Philippine Reclamation Authority seems bent on moving forward with its reclamation projects this year.

DBM disburses ₧212.9 million for shelter resettlement, ₧166.5 million for tec-voc program

HE Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has released P212.9 million to the National Housing Authority (NHA) for its resettlement program. In a news statement issued on Tuesday, the DBM said the fund released on

Monday will cover the NHA Resettlement Program, which provides new settlements for families living in danger areas, such as waterways or riverbanks, railroad tracks, sidewalks, and those displaced from sits earmarked for government infrastructure projects.

In a bid to minimize the impact of dislocation, the in-city resettlement approach is being adopted by the government with an option for an off-city resettlement. On July 30, 2019, the DBM has also released P55.9 million for the

same purpose. Meanwhile, the DBM has also disbursed P166.5 million for the implementation of the Training for Work Scholarship Program (TWSP). The DBM said in a separate statement they disbursed the amount to the Technical Education and

Skills Development Authority-Central Office on Monday, September 16. The TWSP, which was launched in May 2006, is directed toward filling up skill gaps and job requirements of priority industries and sectors with high employment demand.

It is also geared toward improving the reach of quality Technical Vocational Education and Training to the grassroots and encouraging technical-vocational institutions to offer programs that cater to in-demand industry requirements. Bernadette D. Nicolas

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In the ad material of Notice of filing of Application for Alien Employment Permits published on August 28, 2019, the Nationality of Ms. Tika Lailiawati under PIXELBOX MANILA CORP. should have been read as Indonesian and not as published. If you have any information / objection to the above mentioned application/s, please communicate with the Regional Director thru Employment Promotion and Workers Welfare (EPWW) Division with Telephone No. 400-6011.

ATTY. SARAH BUENA S. MIRASOL REGIONAL DIRECTOR

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Phoenix Petroleum inks accord with SG firm for Brunei venture By Manuel T. Cayon

@awimailbox Mindanao Bureau Chief

AVAO CITY—A Singapore subsidiary of Phoenix Petroleum Philippines signed a partnership agreement with another Singaporean company to expand its operation in Brunei Darussalam, tapping the latter’s refinery in Brunei to produce and distribute the Phoenix-branded liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). A company statement said PNX Petroleum Singapore Pte. Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Phoenix Petroleum Philippines Inc., recently signed the partnership with Singapore-based Hengyi Industries International Pte. Ltd. (HYII) “for an LPG offtake venture in Brunei.” The partnership “essentially means that Hengyi will be the

producer or will be the resource of the LPG and Phoenix will be the buyer of the future production,” the company said. It added that the gas will be used to supply the Philippines and Vietnam. HYII maintains a refinery in Brunei. Phoenix said the partnership agreement was a strategic move to strengthen its network.

The agreement will allow Phoenix “to offtake LPG from Hengyi Brunei refinery’s future production.” The agreement was expected to start within the year following Phoenix’s acquisition of PNX Conqueror, the company’s first pressurized LPG carrier with a 2,500-ton capacity, along with a long-term charter of Chelsea, another large pressurized vessel with 4,600-ton capacity, in preparation for the venture. The agreement was signed by Phoenix Petroleum Singapore Pte. Ltd. Director Henry Albert Fadullon and HYII Director Chen Lian Cai. “As we continue to expand the brand internationally and establish strong connections with complementary businesses from neighboring countries, we are relentless in forging ties with companies like HYII to be able to provide quality products and services to more and more communities,” Fadullon said. The company said the proximity

of the Philippines and Brunei was likely to improve the Philippines’s overall supply situation “as Brunei would only need a day to deliver its supply to the country.” The venture would beef up Phoenix’s petroleum source from its usual suppliers from China, Vietnam, Korea and Middle East. Since early this year, Phoenix Petroleum subsidiaries have been growing its LPG business. In March, Phoenix LPG Philippines Inc. (PLPI) launched the “Sarap Pala Magluto” nationwide campaign for Phoenix Super LPG and started opening Phoenix Super Hubs in different parts of the Philippines, it added. Phoenix Energy International Holdings Pte. Ltd., meanwhile, recently entered the Vietnam LPG market through the establishment of Phoenix Vietnam Pte. Ltd., the company said. The latest LPG venture in Brunei was expected to support Phoenix’s LPG expansion in both the Philippines and Vietnam, it said.

Aboitiz arm prepared to take over 2 airports By Lorenz S. Marasigan @lorenzmarasigan

VEN while the government has yet to launch the competitive challenge for the unsolicited proposals, Aboitiz InfraCapital Inc. is ready to take over the airports in Laguindingan, Misamis Oriental, and Panglao, Bohol, as it anticipates to win both deals sometime in the next few months, according to a ranking company official. Cosette V. Canilao, the company’s COO, said the group is already preparing dedicated teams that will “immediately take over” the two airports should it win the Swiss Challenge for the airports of Laguindingan and Bohol. “The Dublin Airport Authority will be our partner in operating airports. We’re preparing the team so that if our proposals have been approved…we have the organization to immediately take over,” she said in a chance interview, adding that her group “hopes” the process to conclude for both airports within “early 2020.” Currently, the Department of

Facebook says central banks have nothing to fear from Libra

Ayala Land Premier selling ₧26.7-B F luxury project at QC-Pasig border By VG Cabuag @villygc

UXURY developer Ayala Land Premier (ALP) is selling a P26.7-billion, two-tower project in Parklinks, an estate to be jointly developed by the Ayala and Lucio Tan groups at the border of Quezon City and Pasig. Parklinks North Tower was launched with a total value of about P12.7 billion. To date, it has sold close to 70 percent of its available inventory. It was launched in November last year. The South Tower, on the other hand, will have a total value of P14 billion, and will have a total of 313 units. “We still have to get our license for the South Tower but it will come out

in the next few weeks,” Mike Jugo, ALP managing director said. The North Tower will be completed in 2025 and the South Tower in 2027. Jugo said that at some point the company will sell units of the two towers at the same time. From a starting average price of about P280,000 per square meter, units within the North Tower are now valued at more than P320,000 per square meter, marking a 15-percent increase in value. Parklinks North Tower will rise 55 floors over Parklinks, a 35-hectare, master-planned, mixed-use and sustainable estate envisioned to be the greenest urban community in Metro Manila. With half of the total area dedicated to parks and open spaces, it will feature an interconnected network of

four sprawling parks that will maximize access to green open spaces amid an animated urban landscape. The joint venture will invest P53 billion on the estate’s development over the next 10 years. Parklinks Towers will be the only residence in Parklinks with a direct retail connection to Parklinks Mall and the River Esplanade. Set to open in 2023 along C5, the five-story premium lifestyle Parklinks Mall will provide 51,000 square meters of leasable space. It will have a sports center, an entertainment zone with six cinemas, office spaces, and a diverse mix of retail and dining options. On the other hand, the River Esplanade will be an open civic park with riverside dining establishments. Parklinks North Tower offers a

total of 280 units with one- to fourbedroom configurations. Ranging from 70 to 306 square meters, units are priced from P22 million to 120 million. Apart from its standard units, the tower offers a limited selection of special residences. The fourbedroom sky villa, with only nine available units of this type, offers a rare residence on the highest floors with an expanded living and dining experience, as well as a master suite almost as large as a one-bedroom unit. The three-bedroom horizon villa, with only two units of this type, is an expansive bi-level unit with a sizable veranda located on the 45th and 46th floors. Parklinks North Tower is expected to commence unit turnovers by the third quarter of 2025.

PARTNERS FOR CONSUMERS Manila Electric Co. signed power supply agreements—forged through competitive selection process (CSP)—with First Gen Hydro Power Corp., Phinma Energy

Corp. and South Premiere Power Corp. (SPPC) for the supply of 500 MW mid-merit capacity for five years starting December 2019. Meralco President and CEO Ray Espinosa said, “The resulting prices from the CSP are significantly lower than average generation cost today and are expected to save consumers P4.4 billion annually for the next five years.” Meralco’s Espinosa (fifth from left) is joined by (from left) Jose Ferlino P. Raymundo of SPPC; Herman B. Timoteo of Phinma; Elenita D. Go, SPPC general manager; John Eric T. Francia, Phinma president and CEO; Mario Marasigan, DOE director for Electric Power Industry Management Bureau; Victor Emmanuel B. Santos Jr., First Gen Hydro President and chief operating officer; Ronnie L. Aperocho, Meralco Senior vice president and head of Networks; Dennis Michael P. Gonzales, First Gen Hydro Power Corp. vice president; and Victor S. Genuino, Meralco first vice president and head of Customer Retail Services and Corporate Communications.

Transportation (DOTr) is reviewing the 42.7-billion unsolicited proposal for the development of the Laguindingan Airport in Misamis Oriental, which has already been revised to reflect the government’s policy on airport development. Aboitiz InfraCapital’s unsolicited offer for the operations and maintenance of the Bohol-Panglao International Airport was recently submitted to the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) Investment Coordination Committee (ICC) for review and approval. Canilao said her group is confident about the government’s timelines, given that a number of processes have taken their course. “We’re hoping for the soonest possible time that our projects will be approved, and I think that’s what the government wants as well,” she said. Aside from the two regional airport proposals, Aboitiz InfraCapital is part of the Naia Consortium, a group of seven Filipino conglomerates that submitted an unsolicited offer to develop the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia).

ACEBOOK Inc. is once again defending Libra— this time against fears that the envisioned cryptocurrency could replace sovereign currencies from the US dollar to the euro and threaten central banks’ control over money creation. David Marcus, the executive leading the project, posted a series of tweets the same day members of the Libra Association met with regulators convened by a G-7 working group in Switzerland. He argued that creating Libra isn’t the digital equivalent of printing US dollars or minting new euros. The simple existence of Libra, he says, doesn’t create new value. Facebook ’s cr y pto plans, unveiled in June, have faced intense pushback from regulators all over the world. One of the biggest concerns is that the new digital currency will be used by smugglers, drug dealers and terrorists. Another is that the social-media giant, which has run afoul of regulators over user data in the past, should not be trusted to handle sensitive financial information. Facebook has said repeatedly it would be just one of many companies managing the new currency. “Recently there’s been a lot of talk about how Libra could threaten the sovereignty of nations when it comes to money,” Marcus tweeted. “Libra will be backed 1:1 by a basket of strong currencies. This means that for any unit of Libra to exist, there must be the equivalent value in its reserve,” he tweeted. “As such there’s no new money creation, which will strictly remain the province of sovereign nations.” Currency competition is yet another sticking point for wary regulators. In a follow-up call after Marcus’s tweets, Christian Catalini, the lead economist inside Facebook working on Libra, declined to say whether or not the issue came up during Monday’s meeting. But he did say that this element of Libra is one of many that are “mis-

understood or not correctly interpreted.” “All of the design of Libra is really around being a complement of fiat [currencies], not a substitute,” he said. Libra does not yet exist, and Facebook has pledged that it will not launch until regulators are appeased. It hopes to start the currency sometime in 2020. The concern from regulators is that giving over the control of currency creation to Facebook—or any private company—would strip governments of one of their greatest assets: monetary policy. The response from central banks has varied from active engagement as in the case of Singapore, to China considering its own equivalent. In a blog post from July on Harvard Law School’s forum for “corporate governance and financial regulation,” three professors who wrote a paper about regulating Libra argued that it posed a threat to sovereign governments. “Once Libra becomes well established in some countries, national governments will lose control of their money supply and lose monetary policy as a tool of economic expansion or contraction,” the post reads. “They will also lose the capacity, in times of severe uncertainty, to impose capital controls to prevent capital flight. All of these changes may well prove highly destabilizing to the entire global financial system.” Catalini disagrees. He says that even for countries whose currency is not part of Libra’s reserve, there is little fear of Libra replacing local tender because of how the digital coin will be used. Its main purpose, Catalini says, is to help with payments that include lots of fees or burdens, like cross-border money transfers. It will be less useful for day-to-day commerce, he added. “It’s unlikely that Libra will be used locally because the local currencies have better properties” for local commerce, he said. Bloomberg News

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PSE STOCK QUOTATIONS

September 17, 2019

Net Foreign Stocks Bid Ask Open High Low Close Volume Value Trade (Peso) Buy (Sell) FINANCIALS

BDO UNIBANK BANK PH ISLANDS CHINABANK CITYSTATE BANK EAST WEST BANK METROBANK PBCOM PHIL NATL BANK PSBANK RCBC SECURITY BANK UNION BANK BDO LEASING COL FINANCIAL FERRONOUX HLDG IREMIT MEDCO HLDG MANULIFE PHIL STOCK EXCH SUN LIFE VANTAGE

137.4 93 25.7 6.17 11.92 68.3 20.8 46.05 57.4 27.35 199.9 59.6 2.03 18.5 5.38 1.26 0.44 756 179.6 1830 1.1

138.8 94 25.75 7.85 11.96 68.5 22.45 46.55 58 27.5 200 59.65 2.14 18.6 5.4 1.32 0.455 780 180 1840 1.14

142 94.35 25.85 6.07 12 70 21 46.55 57.5 27.3 203 59.6 2.14 18.5 5.54 1.26 0.45 780 180 1821 1.14

142.4 94.35 26 7.95 12 70 21 46.9 57.5 27.8 203.2 60.5 2.14 18.5 5.54 1.42 0.455 780 180 1830 1.14

137.4 91.75 25.75 6.07 11.9 68.2 21 46 57.4 27.3 199.8 59.5 2.14 18.5 5.35 1.26 0.45 755.5 180 1821 1.14

137.4 93 25.75 7.95 11.96 68.3 21 46.05 57.4 27.5 200 59.6 2.14 18.5 5.4 1.27 0.455 755.5 180 1830 1.14

2897700 1794120 282300 1000 153900 2390770 200 52000 200 10900 1147940 20320 1000 400 259500 388000 20000 110 310 210 1000

405580685 168195456.5 7277120 7292 1836002 164527761.5 4200 2408985 11481 298150 230918573 1212920 2140 7400 1400514 510090 9050 83350 55800 383880 1140

INDUSTRIAL

-172430814 58024306.5 -3036600 470576 -75499548.5 -511260 -5030214 -680655 539 4500 9000 1140

ALSONS CONS ABOITIZ POWER BASIC ENERGY FIRST GEN FIRST PHIL HLDG MERALCO MANILA WATER PETRON PETROENERGY PHINMA ENERGY PHX PETROLEUM PILIPINAS SHELL SPC POWER VIVANT AGRINURTURE BOGO MEDELLIN CNTRL AZUCARERA CENTURY FOOD DEL MONTE DNL INDUS EMPERADOR SMC FOODANDBEV ALLIANCE SELECT GINEBRA JOLLIBEE MACAY HLDG MAXS GROUP PEPSI COLA SHAKEYS PIZZA ROXAS AND CO UNIV ROBINA VITARICH CONCRETE A CONCRETE B CEMEX HLDG DAVINCI CAPITAL EAGLE CEMENT EEI CORP HOLCIM MEGAWIDE PHINMA TKC METALS VULCAN INDL CHEMPHIL CROWN ASIA LMG CHEMICALS MABUHAY VINYL PRYCE CORP CONCEPCION GREENERGY INTEGRATED MICR IONICS SFA SEMICON CIRTEK HLDG

1.3 39.95 0.241 25.9 81.8 370.2 21.95 5.31 4.31 2.65 10.76 34 7.23 16.1 15.78 90.5 16.8 14.1 6.04 9.07 7.19 90.6 0.7 49.5 230 8.21 13.88 2.05 11.86 1.79 167.8 1.26 72.55 77.2 2.67 5.9 15.48 10.1 13.66 19.06 9.01 1.15 1.27 112 2.01 4.99 3.4 5.12 32 2.45 8.56 1.55 1.08 10.3

1.32 40 0.245 26 82 372 22 5.32 4.5 2.66 11 34.05 7.25 16.94 15.94 107.7 17.5 14.16 6.14 9.18 7.2 91 0.71 49.9 230.6 8.5 13.98 2.06 11.96 1.81 168.5 1.27 75.9 80.45 2.68 6.12 15.5 10.18 13.68 19.08 9.19 1.17 1.28 115.5 2.09 5.01 3.52 5.23 32.2 2.46 8.57 1.62 1.12 10.36

1.3 40 0.245 26 81.8 372 22.3 5.42 4.45 2.84 11 35.45 7.25 16.1 15.86 108.9 17.26 14.18 6.05 9.19 7.2 92.5 0.71 49.9 223.8 8.3 14.1 2.05 12.26 1.77 167.4 1.3 75.45 77.15 2.77 5.86 15.48 10.46 13.64 19 9.15 1.14 1.32 115.5 2.09 5 3.41 5.25 32.5 2.45 8.51 1.6 1.12 10.28

1.31 40.15 0.248 26.2 82 372 22.3 5.49 4.5 2.92 11 35.45 7.25 16.1 15.96 108.9 17.5 14.22 6.05 9.2 7.2 92.5 0.71 50 230.6 8.33 14.26 2.12 12.26 1.82 169 1.3 76 80.5 2.77 6 15.5 10.46 13.68 19.36 9.19 1.2 1.33 115.5 2.09 5 3.52 5.25 33 2.47 8.7 1.62 1.12 10.64

1.3 39.35 0.24 25.95 81.7 367.8 21.95 5.3 4.45 2.64 10.76 33.9 7.22 16.1 15.74 108.9 17 14 6.04 9.07 7.18 90.6 0.7 48 223 8.2 13.86 2.01 11.86 1.77 167.4 1.27 75.45 77.15 2.66 5.86 15.42 10.1 13.56 18.94 9.1 1.12 1.27 115.5 2.08 4.99 3.4 5.1 32 2.37 8.51 1.55 1.1 10.18

1.31 40 0.245 26 82 372 22 5.31 4.5 2.65 11 34 7.25 16.1 15.92 108.9 17.5 14.1 6.04 9.18 7.2 91 0.71 49.5 230.6 8.33 13.98 2.05 11.86 1.8 168.5 1.27 76 80.5 2.68 6 15.48 10.1 13.68 19.06 9.19 1.17 1.27 115.5 2.09 4.99 3.52 5.12 32.2 2.46 8.57 1.62 1.12 10.3

26000 1524200 1170000 2558800 101940 95760 540200 4375700 6000 54188000 29300 1285200 45200 2500 247500 10 22700 466100 28500 350500 233200 62220 304000 28100 563060 9300 112600 8977000 537500 116000 295980 5714000 380 250 3502000 9600 286200 63100 389700 1775100 12000 987000 4650000 2900 60000 5000 20000 37400 127500 14587000 314800 160000 118000 1114600

33830 60871690 283440 66533845 8338521 35524710 11898390 23496257 26920 149057830 319588 44,269,720( 327330 40250 3942874 1089 391342 6565600 172330 3213623 1676627 5667158 215680 1390650 128945846 77318 1576594 18426170 6438206 206630 49789981 7344970 28794 19388 9436790 57104 4433398 643768 5312926 33781418 109630 1139380 5965490 334950 125150 24960 68170 191487 4086920 35587040 2706193 249150 131140 11591822

ABACORE CAPITAL ASIABEST GROUP AYALA CORP ABOITIZ EQUITY ALLIANCE GLOBAL AYALA LAND LOG ANSCOR ANGLO PHIL HLDG ATN HLDG A ATN HLDG B COSCO CAPITAL DMCI HLDG FILINVEST DEV FJ PRINCE A FORUM PACIFIC GT CAPITAL HOUSE OF INV JG SUMMIT JOLLIVILLE HLDG LODESTAR LOPEZ HLDG LT GROUP MABUHAY HLDG METRO PAC INV PACIFICA PRIME MEDIA REPUBLIC GLASS SOLID GROUP SM INVESTMENTS SAN MIGUEL CORP SOC RESOURCES TOP FRONTIER WELLEX INDUS ZEUS HLDG

0.88 13.4 903.5 54.25 12.56 3.5 6.9 0.77 1.21 1.24 6.84 9.06 13.52 4.5 0.23 890 5.83 74.95 5.43 0.495 4.56 14.2 0.62 5.05 0.038 1.35 2.98 1.28 1000 172.5 0.85 225 0.229 0.24

0.89 13.7 905 54.75 12.6 3.51 7.03 0.79 1.22 1.25 6.86 9.1 13.7 4.63 0.24 898 6.23 75.25 5.9 0.52 4.57 14.3 0.66 5.06 0.039 1.36 3.09 1.29 1007 172.6 0.88 244 0.23 0.245

0.89 13.88 907 54.45 12.7 3.6 6.95 0.78 1.24 1.23 6.87 9.12 13.5 4.63 0.242 907 5.83 74.35 5.39 0.52 4.5 14.44 0.64 5.09 0.039 1.37 3.15 1.29 1015 171.1 0.84 228 0.236 0.25

0.9 13.88 913.5 54.8 12.7 3.61 6.95 0.81 1.24 1.25 6.87 9.12 13.7 4.63 0.242 917.5 6.27 75.25 5.9 0.53 4.57 14.44 0.66 5.09 0.039 1.43 3.15 1.29 1018 174.7 0.88 244 0.236 0.25

0.86 13.4 899 53.6 12.44 3.45 6.9 0.78 1.21 1.23 6.77 9.05 13.5 4.63 0.242 889.5 5.83 72.75 5.39 0.5 4.5 14.22 0.64 5.02 0.038 1.35 3.15 1.29 999.5 171.1 0.84 225 0.229 0.249

0.89 13.7 905 54.75 12.56 3.51 6.9 0.79 1.22 1.25 6.84 9.1 13.68 4.63 0.242 898 6.23 75.25 5.9 0.52 4.56 14.3 0.66 5.05 0.038 1.36 3.15 1.29 1000 172.6 0.88 244 0.229 0.249

12333000 25900 265070 775350 1709600 2332000 20000 640000 321000 42000 215100 6450600 68400 11000 10000 89670 12400 1785070 8000 547000 1031000 1880000 158000 9646600 10000000 878000 21000 41000 190145 78060 278000 2310 20000 1050000

10828640 -132900 349340 239320425 -48430840 42367807.5 8580399 21445162 -3092346 8256050 -898520 138086 504260 390470 51700 1458960 -416188 58,676,954( 25,411,298.9996) 933406 -2740 50930 2420 80709425 586415 72460 133614664 49413894.5 47149 274180 4690780 -22740 26960714 -371664 102590 48640695 -8990368 385000 1223750 66150 3150 52890 191248685 -31554520 13473580 1583330 242280 537260 -434250 4650 2360 261760 -27500

HOLDING & FRIMS

5800355 7230 58179540 577899 6223352 -2782770 -3892617 4500 1403680 -65878 6,542,704.9997) 1610 20560 647594 -108900 -292783 -896611 174046.5 -102240 702480 72012404 -613484 3409600 -612418 5325526 -179500 -770160 1670390 447796 -2569728 -17327544 -75630 78336 -1043575 13619470 -1681515 10500

PROPERTY

ARTHALAND CORP 0.96 0.97 0.91 0.98 0.88 0.97 19618000 18673800 -47050 AYALA LAND 48.8 48.95 49.3 49.4 48.8 48.8 14082600 690962665 -43252225 ARANETA PROP 1.9 1.94 1.86 1.96 1.86 1.96 4000 7640 BELLE CORP 2.16 2.18 2.18 2.18 2.16 2.16 403000 873860 -758850 A BROWN 0.82 0.84 0.84 0.85 0.8 0.82 4167000 3413780 CITYLAND DEVT 0.84 0.87 0.88 0.88 0.84 0.87 40000 33830 21840 CROWN EQUITIES 0.218 0.226 0.219 0.219 0.218 0.218 90000 19660 CEBU HLDG 5.9 6.1 5.89 6.1 5.89 6.1 5400 32244 CEB LANDMASTERS 4.79 4.8 4.78 4.8 4.75 4.79 1070000 5120370 3798170 CENTURY PROP 0.55 0.56 0.56 0.57 0.55 0.55 10691000 5951070 -586000 CYBER BAY 0.395 0.4 0.395 0.395 0.395 0.395 300000 118500 DOUBLEDRAGON 21.3 21.5 21.6 21.6 21.2 21.3 190100 4057285 -254005 DM WENCESLAO 9.53 9.57 9.38 9.53 9.36 9.53 457800 4318597 -132827 EMPIRE EAST 0.455 0.46 0.46 0.46 0.46 0.46 10000 4600 FILINVEST LAND 1.63 1.64 1.66 1.66 1.62 1.63 4446000 7262780 -539490 GLOBAL ESTATE 1.24 1.25 1.25 1.25 1.24 1.24 610000 760390 250000 8990 HLDG 15.24 15.26 15.26 15.26 15.24 15.26 402800 6142890 3406926 PHIL INFRADEV 1.52 1.53 1.55 1.57 1.51 1.52 3324000 5122050 -185150 CITY AND LAND 0.74 0.76 0.76 0.76 0.73 0.76 63000 47000 MEGAWORLD 5.13 5.14 5.2 5.21 5.1 5.14 8614500 44266328 16426170 MRC ALLIED 0.315 0.32 0.315 0.32 0.31 0.32 2210000 696200 PHIL ESTATES 0.445 0.45 0.445 0.445 0.445 0.445 160000 71200 PRIMEX CORP 2.03 2.06 2.04 2.06 2.02 2.06 195000 397280 10200 ROBINSONS LAND 25.2 25.3 25.3 25.3 25 25.2 2574000 64507625 289000 PHIL REALTY 0.385 0.395 0.39 0.39 0.39 0.39 40000 15600 ROCKWELL 2.37 2.39 2.37 2.37 2.37 2.37 34000 80580 SHANG PROP 3.22 3.35 3.37 3.38 3.31 3.35 60000 200710 STA LUCIA LAND 2.47 2.48 2.44 2.48 2.44 2.48 461000 1139930 SM PRIME HLDG 35.3 35.4 34.5 35.4 34.1 35.4 11214500 389592920 -28504600 STARMALLS 5.65 5.66 5.63 5.66 5.61 5.66 66000 371705 10754 SUNTRUST HOME 0.92 0.94 0.92 0.93 0.92 0.92 119000 109770 VISTA LAND 7.65 7.66 7.66 7.69 7.62 7.66 2537000 19424711 -13405807 SERVICES ABS CBN 19.58 19.6 19.88 19.9 19.6 19.6 284600 5639062 GMA NETWORK 5.26 5.27 5.27 5.33 5.27 5.27 146500 772994 MANILA BULLETIN 0.45 0.465 0.445 0.445 0.445 0.445 30000 13350 GLOBE TELECOM 1950 1970 1931 1970 1931 1970 35570 69546970 9210095 PLDT 1169 1179 1175 1179 1167 1179 36375 42736850 8315975 APOLLO GLOBAL 0.047 0.049 0.047 0.049 0.047 0.049 4200000 198000 DFNN INC 5.81 6.27 5.72 5.8 5.72 5.8 1900 10884 IMPERIAL 1.88 1.89 1.88 1.88 1.88 1.88 25000 47000 ISLAND INFO 0.11 0.112 0.112 0.112 0.11 0.11 1000000 110720 -106240 ISM COMM 5.27 5.28 5.29 5.39 5.21 5.28 3245000 17128170 -203559.9997 NOW CORP 3.32 3.33 3.45 3.49 3.3 3.33 3118000 10490520 730340 TRANSPACIFIC BR 0.36 0.365 0.36 0.365 0.355 0.36 6920000 2487850 79200 PHILWEB 3.27 3.28 3.35 3.37 3.27 3.28 860000 2833430 -217840 2GO GROUP 10.06 10.1 10.3 10.3 10.1 10.1 14800 150730 ASIAN TERMINALS 18.26 19.76 18.26 18.26 18.26 18.26 100 1826 CHELSEA 7.04 7.09 7.05 7.15 7.01 7.04 505700 3558297 83752 CEBU AIR 91.1 91.2 91.5 91.5 91.05 91.2 194060 17697526.5 -8294202.5 INTL CONTAINER 132.9 133.3 134 136.8 131.9 133.3 745260 99021432 -19058950 LORENZO SHIPPNG 0.91 0.94 0.93 0.94 0.93 0.94 226000 211860 MACROASIA 19.52 19.54 19.8 19.8 19.5 19.54 804100 15729490 10064562 METROALLIANCE A 1.19 1.2 1.15 1.21 1.15 1.2 85000 101760 METROALLIANCE B 1.23 1.4 1.28 1.28 1.02 1.05 35000 39280 PAL HLDG 8.11 8.15 8.15 8.15 8.15 8.15 1200 9780 HARBOR STAR 1.67 1.68 1.79 1.79 1.68 1.68 2295000 3916030 25500 ACESITE HOTEL 1.6 1.69 1.67 1.7 1.6 1.69 117000 193780 -30420 BOULEVARD HLDG 0.056 0.057 0.056 0.057 0.056 0.057 6750000 384140 7410 DISCOVERY WORLD 2.02 2.05 2.08 2.08 2.05 2.05 90000 185390 GRAND PLAZA 9.82 10.94 9.86 9.86 9.86 9.86 500 4930 WATERFRONT 0.68 0.69 0.69 0.69 0.68 0.68 249000 169370 FAR EASTERN U 890.5 915 890.5 890.5 890.5 890.5 8600 7658300 IPEOPLE 9.23 9.44 9.26 9.26 9.23 9.23 1800 16659 STI HLDG 0.69 0.7 0.71 0.71 0.69 0.7 105000 73340 BERJAYA 2.47 2.49 2.46 2.47 2.46 2.47 118000 291410 BLOOMBERRY 11.02 11.18 11.04 11.2 11 11.18 1343900 14,869,570( 6,110,345.9999) PACIFIC ONLINE 2.73 2.83 2.83 2.9 2.73 2.73 47000 132110 LEISURE AND RES 3.28 3.3 3.32 3.33 3.29 3.29 454000 1496540 MANILA JOCKEY 3.35 3.45 3.45 3.46 3.35 3.46 18000 61110 PH RESORTS GRP 4.73 5 5.04 5.04 4.73 4.73 1300 6180 504 PREMIUM LEISURE 0.71 0.72 0.73 0.73 0.71 0.72 2315000 1651350 -1036350 TRAVELLERS 5.47 5.48 5.46 5.48 5.46 5.47 730600 3995311 -103382 METRO RETAIL 2.5 2.52 2.52 2.56 2.5 2.52 301000 757920 -113890 PUREGOLD 42.3 42.5 42.8 42.8 42.3 42.5 663200 28183200 -6111945 ROBINSONS RTL 79 80 80 80.5 79 79 468380 37472451 -21518714 PHIL SEVEN CORP 135.6 135.7 137 137 135 135.7 1940 262619 136555 SSI GROUP 2.8 2.81 2.93 2.93 2.76 2.8 1373000 3889840 1032090 WILCON DEPOT 16.42 16.44 16.4 16.46 16.4 16.44 1903700 31,293,528( 11,916,511.9998) APC GROUP 0.65 0.66 0.57 0.65 0.57 0.65 53782000 33634460 -39460 EASYCALL 10.24 10.26 10.3 10.3 10.22 10.26 72500 744020 30780 GOLDEN BRIA 426 432 435 435 435 435 10 4350 IPM HLDG 4.99 5 5.03 5.03 5 5 6100 30605 PRMIERE HORIZON 0.55 0.56 0.57 0.59 0.56 0.56 16618000 9441990 -216940.0001 SBS PHIL CORP 9.09 9.35 9.35 9.35 9.35 9.35 1100 10285 MINING & OIL ATOK 11.92 12.28 12.46 12.46 12 12.46 5200 62492 APEX MINING 1.23 1.24 1.24 1.25 1.22 1.24 2771000 3410650 -27190 ABRA MINING 0.0016 0.0018 0.0017 0.0018 0.0017 0.0018 61000000 103900 -59500 ATLAS MINING 2.56 2.6 2.57 2.57 2.55 2.56 51000 130120 CENTURY PEAK 2.67 2.7 2.68 2.68 2.68 2.68 531000 1423080 DIZON MINES 7.74 7.96 8.01 8.01 7.75 7.97 93100 725429 -4800 FERRONICKEL 1.79 1.8 1.8 1.83 1.77 1.8 66800000 120730460 30910140 GEOGRACE 0.22 0.226 0.227 0.227 0.22 0.226 550000 122240 8920 LEPANTO A 0.11 0.112 0.112 0.112 0.11 0.11 140000 15520 LEPANTO B 0.109 0.111 0.111 0.111 0.109 0.109 530000 58290 MANILA MINING A 0.0098 0.011 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 75000000 750000 MANILA MINING B 0.011 0.013 0.014 0.014 0.011 0.013 53500000 640900 MARCVENTURES 1.18 1.2 1.18 1.2 1.18 1.2 219000 258460 -1180 NIHAO 1.11 1.13 1.14 1.14 1.11 1.13 24000 27160 NICKEL ASIA 4.09 4.1 4.25 4.27 4.07 4.1 18174000 75585890 464810 OMICO CORP 0.485 0.5 0.495 0.495 0.495 0.495 20000 9900 ORNTL PENINSULA 0.92 0.93 0.89 0.93 0.88 0.92 1704000 1549120 PX MINING 3.97 3.98 4.02 4.02 3.97 3.98 591000 2358140 -624900 SEMIRARA MINING 23.35 23.4 23.9 23.9 23.05 23.4 797400 18541930 -11950490 UNITED PARAGON 0.0064 0.0066 0.0067 0.0067 0.0064 0.0066 4000000 26300 ORNTL PETROL A 0.012 0.013 0.012 0.013 0.012 0.012 26800000 324000 ORNTL PETROL B 0.012 0.013 0.012 0.012 0.012 0.012 900000 10800 PHILODRILL 0.011 0.012 0.011 0.011 0.011 0.011 300000 3300 PHINMA PETRO 9.1 9.2 9.65 10.2 8.88 9.2 3207000 30107132 -726822 PXP ENERGY 12.68 12.7 12.7 13 12.52 12.7 1172400 14956868 64100 PREFFERED HOUSE PREF A 97.35 97.4 98 98 97.4 97.4 18220 1775000 AC PREF B1 504.5 505 500 504.5 500 504.5 2020 1010090 AC PREF B2 502 504.5 500.5 500.5 500.5 500.5 200 100100 ALCO PREF B 101.2 102 102 102 101.2 101.2 2160 220160 DD PREF 101.8 102 101.6 101.8 101.6 101.8 29210 2973145 2952825 SMC FB PREF 2 990 997 997 997 997 997 10 9970 FGEN PREF G 107 108 108 108 108 108 70 7560 GTCAP PREF B 960 970 980 980 970 970 1740 1688300 LR PREF 0.99 1 0.99 1 0.99 1 2437000 2412640 495000 MWIDE PREF 100.2 101.9 101.9 101.9 100.3 101.9 3390 340521 PCOR PREF 2A 998 1020 998 998 998 998 30 29940 PCOR PREF 3A 1030 1049 1050 1050 1050 1050 10 10500 PCOR PREF 3B 1062 1075 1080 1080 1062 1062 70 74780 SMC PREF 2C 77.6 78.85 78.9 78.9 78.8 78.85 17500 1380119 SMC PREF 2D 75.05 75.9 75.05 75.05 75.05 75.05 2100 157605 SMC PREF 2H 75.05 76 75.1 75.1 75.05 75.05 7000 525450 SMC PREF 2I 75.5 76.5 76 76.95 76 76 28760 2185794.5 -

PHIL. DEPOSITARY RECEIPTS ABS HLDG PDR GMA HLDG PDR

18.7 5.08

18.78 5.11

18.64 5.11

18.78 5.15

18.62 5.08

18.78 5.08

45100 157500

841362 804570

WARRANTS LR WARRANT

1.66

1.7

1.71

1.65

1.66

18000

29870

ITALPINAS 6.8 KEPWEALTH 11.2 MAKATI FINANCE 2.4 XURPAS 1

6.84 11.24 3.22 1.02

7.13 13 - 0.98

7.3 13.18 - 1.02

6.72 11.06 - 0.97

6.84 11.2 - 1

3247400 3889700 - 10567000

22715475 46567136 - 10619500

432593 236392 21420

FIRST METRO ETF

118.8

SMALL & MEDIUM ENTERPRISES

EXHANGE TRADE FUNDS 118.6

119.8

118.5

118.8

5400

641194

www.businessmirror.com.ph

AC Energy bares road map to 2,000 MW of RE by 2025

By Lenie Lectura

@llectura

C Energy Philippines Inc., formerly Phinma Energy, on Tuesday presented strategic priorities aimed at meeting its goal to reach 2,000 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy (RE) by 2025. During the company’s annual meeting held in Makati City, AC Energy President Eric Francia said the company will embark on a transformational journey in the next few years. “Our vision for AC Energy Philippines is to be the leader in RE in the country. Our goal is to reach 2,000 MW of renewables by 2025,” he said. “AC Energy Philippines aims to return to a positive bottom line immediately by 2020, as well as double its capital and generation capacity, and increase thermal availability by over 20 percentage points.” The RE investments may reach $2 billion. To achieve this, the company will

strengthen the company’s balance sheet via a combination of share swap and a stock rights offering in order to finance future expansion projects, including greenfield and brownfield. “In order to capture growth opportunities and compete effectively, we propose to increase the company’s balance sheet and capital base. We look forward to increasing the company’s authorized capital stock,” said Francia. Subject to regulatory approvals, the company will create 16-billion additional shares to implement its growth strategies. Francia said this will be utilized for the planned share swap and stock rights offer-

Alpha Aviation Group inaugurates $11-M simulator center, A320 FFS 2.0

L A R K FR EEPORT— A n $11-million simulator training center expansion project that houses four additional simulator bays, including a brand-new Airbus A320 full flight simulator (FFS) version 2.0, were inaugurated by the Alpha Aviation Group (AAG) here on Friday. Bhanu Choudhrie, founder and director of C&C Alpha Group, noted a growing demand for commercial pilots, adding, “that is why we are committed to an ambitious expansion plan to ensure world-class facilities where as many cadets can learn to fly and the industry demand can be met.” In his welcome remarks at the event, Choudhrie also said “the Asia-Pacific [Apac] airline industry is growing at a remarkable rate, with [the region] predicted to have 3.9 billion passengers by 2037.” He said, “greater demand means more planes, and more planes require more commercial pilots—645,000 more worldwide by 2038, with a third of those required across Apac.”

Choudhrie said AAG was established 13 years ago and has trained over 900 pilots from over 40 countries. He said in an industry in which just 3 percent of the world’s pilots are women, AAG has been up to about 20 percent female cadets. He recalled that having established the company with just one simulator, “today we proudly launched our sixth,” the most of any pilot training provider in the Philippines. “But success isn’t just about the numbers, it’s about supporting the whole economy,” he said. “It is about developing local talents to benefit regional airlines and industries. And it is about empowering young people by unlocking lifechanging opportunities,” he added. “This, I believe, is the true marker of a growing success,” Choudhrie said. Choudhrie said the brand-new flight simulator will become an invaluable asset for the more than 300 students currently enrolled at AAG, and those who will come after them. Ashley Manabat

GM walkout brings factories and warehouses to a standstill

ETROIT—More than 49,000 members of the United Auto Workers went on strike Monday against General Motors (GM), bringing more than 50 factories and parts warehouses to a standstill in the union’s first walkout against the No.1 US automaker in over a decade. Workers left factories and formed picket lines shortly after midnight in the dispute over a new four-year contract. The union’s top negotiator said in a letter to the company that the strike could have been averted had the company made its latest offer sooner. The letter dated Sunday suggests that the company and union are not as far apart as the rhetoric leading up to the strike had indicated. Negotiations continued Monday in Detroit after breaking off during the weekend. But union Spokesman Brian Rothenberg said the two sides have come to terms on only 2 percent of the contract. “We’ve got 98 percent to go,” he said Monday. Asked about the possibility of federal mediation, President Donald J. Trump, said it’s possible

if the company and union want it. “Hopefully they’ll be able to work out the GM strike quickly,” Trump said before leaving the White House for New Mexico. “Hopefully, they’re going to work it out quickly and solidly.” Wall Street did not like seeing the union picketers. GM shares closed Monday down 4.2 percent to $37.21. On the picket line Monday at GM’s transmission plant in Toledo, Ohio, workers who said they have been with the company for more than 30 years were concerned for younger colleagues who are making less money under GM’s two-tier wage scale and have fewer benefits. Paul Kane, from South Lyon, Michigan, a 42year GM employee, said much of what the union is fighting for will not affect him. “It’s not right when you’re working next to someone, doing the same job and they’re making a lot more money,” he said. “They should be the making the same as me. They’ve got families to support.” AP

ing. FTI consultants will help the company determine the size for the offering. “We expect part of that will be used for share swap. We are going to propose infusing certain onshore assets from AC Energy into AC Energy Philippines, or Phinma Energy. The payment of Phinma for these assets will be taken from part of the 16-billion shares that will be created. He said they are also recommending a stock rights offering, so it is “partly an opportunity for other shareholders to catch up from dilution resulting from this share swap. We will raise fresh funds that we will use for new greenfield and brownfield investments, mostly for RE.” The details will be presented to the board for approval on October 9. If approved, the company will proceed with the regulatory filings. “It takes three to six months to get approval. We’re targeting early next year, first quarter to second quarter, for the actual launch of the stock rights offer,” said Francia. With an increased capital base,

MUTUAL FUNDS

the company can move forward to invest in strategic assets, and consolidate key operating and developmental assets, such as SLTEC (South Luzon Thermal Energy Corp.) and RE pipeline.  “Consolidating the ownership of SLTEC will enable the company to withstand market volatilities and compete for the long term,” he said. SLTEC is a joint venture of AC Energy, Phinma Energy and Marubeni Corp.’s Axia Power Holdings Philippines Corporation. The company stressed it will make significant investments in the RE space to help government achieve its RE output target of 35 percent by 2030. “We have a 2025 vision: 5,000 MW of renewables, of which 2,000 MW would come from the Philippines. Right now, Phinma has 62 MW attributable capacity. Of which, 54 MW is wind and 8 MW of geothermal. AC Energy roughly has under 100 MW. Roughly 150 MW of renewables will be the starting base for AC Energy Philippines,” he explained.

September 17, 2019

NAV ONE YEAR THREE YEAR FIVE YEAR Y-T-D PER SHARE RETURN* RETURN STOCK FUNDS ALFM GROWTH FUND, INC. -A 260.06 3.35% -1.01% 0.28% 3.12% ATRAM ALPHA OPPORTUNITY FUND, INC. -A 1.5703 9.37% 4.04% 1.44% 8.99% ATRAM PHILIPPINE EQUITY OPPORTUNITY FUND, INC. -A 4.0351 2.99% -2.05% -1.26% 3.38% CLIMBS SHARE CAPITAL EQUITY INVESTMENT FUND CORP. -A 0.9735 9.17% N.A. N.A. 8.05% FIRST METRO CONSUMER FUND ON MSCI PHILS. IMI, INC. -A 0.8637 4.6% N.A. N.A. 5.24% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN EQUITY FUND,INC. -A 5.4844 5.21% 0.53% 0.33% 4% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN PHILIPPINE INDEX FUND, INC. -A,6 0.881 6.13% -3.46% N.A. 5.29% MBG EQUITY INVESTMENT FUND, INC. -A 117.88 2.25% N.A. N.A. 1.48% PAMI EQUITY INDEX FUND, INC. -A 52.6567 7.39% 1.03% N.A. 6.97% PHILAM STRATEGIC GROWTH FUND, INC. -A 547.14 7.29% -0.03% 0.19% 6.29% PHILEQUITY DIVIDEND YIELD FUND, INC. -A 1.3245 5.82% 0.86% 1.26% 5.62% PHILEQUITY FUND, INC. -A 38.9523 6.76% 1.66% 1.22% 6.33% PHILEQUITY MSCI PHILIPPINE INDEX FUND, INC. -A,3 1.0437 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. PHILEQUITY PSE INDEX FUND INC. -A 5.3499 8.41% 1.51% 2.18% 7.89% PHILIPPINE STOCK INDEX FUND CORP. -A 893.17 8.45% 1.4% 2.11% 7.81% SOLDIVO STRATEGIC GROWTH FUND, INC. -A 0.9228 8.5% 0.62% N.A. 7.3% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY PHILIPPINE EQUITY FUND, INC. -A 4.3314 6.66% 1.2% 1.44% 6.71% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY PHILIPPINE STOCK INDEX FUND, INC. -A 1.0263 8.01% 1.35% N.A. 7.54% UNITED FUND, INC. -A 3.7364 6.75% 2.97% 2.59% 6.73% EXCHANGE TRADED FUND FIRST METRO PHIL. EQUITY EXCHANGE TRADED FUND, INC. -A,C,2 119.7391 8.77% 2.18% 3.16% 8.12% ATRAM ASIAPLUS EQUITY FUND, INC. -B $0.974 -3.17% 2.84% -1.05% 4.83% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY WORLD VOYAGER FUND, INC. -A $1.3039 0.68% 8.26% N.A. 17.98% BALANCED FUNDS PRIMARILY INVESTED IN PESO SECURITIES ATRAM DYNAMIC ALLOCATION FUND, INC. -A 1.667 0.81% -2.7% -2.56% 0.96% ATRAM PHILIPPINE BALANCED FUND, INC. -A 2.31 4.29% -0.82% 0.16% 4.56% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN BALANCED FUND INC. -A 2.6718 6.16% 0.56% -1.1% 5.06% GREPALIFE BALANCED FUND CORPORATION -A 1.3563 3.02% N.A. N.A. 3.99% NCM MUTUAL FUND OF THE PHILS., INC. -A 1.9687 7.2% 0.99% 1.26% 6.81% PAMI HORIZON FUND, INC. -A 3.8162 8.37% 0.02% 0.57% 8.13% PHILAM FUND, INC. -A 17.0868 8.49% 0.07% 0.49% 7.41% SOLIDARITAS FUND, INC. -A 2.1602 5.13% 0.66% 1.58% 4.4% SUN LIFE OF CANADA PROSPERITY BALANCED FUND, INC. -A 3.905 6.82% 0.77% 1.07% 6.95% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY ACHIEVER FUND 2028, INC. -A,D,4 1.0269 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. SUN LIFE PROSPERITY ACHIEVER FUND 2038, INC. -A,D,4 1.0171 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. SUN LIFE PROSPERITY ACHIEVER FUND 2048, INC. -A,D,4 1.0149 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DYNAMIC FUND, INC. -A 0.9916 6.14% 0.4% 0.5% 7.58% PRIMARILY INVESTED IN FOREIGN CURRENCY SECURITIES COCOLIFE DOLLAR FUND BUILDER, INC. -A $0.03823 9.07% 2.04% 2.32% 8.3% PAMI ASIA BALANCED FUND, INC. -A $0.995 2.97% 2.58% -0.7% 8.9% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR ADVANTAGE FUND, INC. -A $3.776 2.95% 6.07% 3.03% 14.13% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR WELLSPRING FUND, INC. -A $1.1142 4.08% 3.66% N.A. 10.32% BOND FUNDS PRIMARILY INVESTED IN PESO SECURITIES ALFM PESO BOND FUND, INC. -A 353.7 3.69% 2.2% 2.29% 2.98% ATRAM CORPORATE BOND FUND, INC. -A,1 1.9148 2.94% 0.04% 0.13% 2.99% COCOLIFE FIXED INCOME FUND, INC. -A 3.0813 5.26% 5.31% 5.25% 3.53% EKKLESIA MUTUAL FUND INC. -A 2.1995 3.71% 1.13% 2.01% 3.3% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN FIXED INCOME FUND,INC. -A 2.3317 5.2% 1.31% 1.52% 5.74% GREPALIFE FIXED INCOME FUND CORP. -A P 1.6078 1.78% -1.23% 0.31% 2.77% PHILAM BOND FUND, INC. -A 4.2925 10.18% 0.54% 1.97% 9.51% PHILEQUITY PESO BOND FUND, INC. -A 3.7398 7.87% 1.38% 1.61% 6.33% SOLDIVO BOND FUND, INC. -A 0.9469 6.14% -0.33% N.A. 6.25% SUN LIFE OF CANADA PROSPERITY BOND FUND, INC. -A 3.0093 8.84% 1.95% 2.56% 8.8% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY GS FUND, INC. -A 1.6641 8.44% 1.38% 2.07% 8.07% PRIMARILY INVESTED IN FOREIGN CURRENCY SECURITIES ALFM DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. -A $464.36 4.35% 1.88% 2.83% 3.56% ALFM EURO BOND FUND, INC. -A Є220.04 3.19% 1.29% 1.54% 3.47% ATRAM TOTAL RETURN DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. -B $1.1961 6.82% 2.02% 2.53% 6.25% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. -A $0.0258 4.03% 1.06% N.A. 4.03% GREPALIFE DOLLAR BOND FUND CORP. -A $1.7158 0.78% -1.65% 0.51% 1.51% PAMI GLOBAL BOND FUND, INC -A $1.0933 5.91% -0.28% -1.26% 5.5% PHILAM DOLLAR BOND FUND, INC. -A $2.4068 10.95% 1.99% 3.62% 10.87% PHILEQUITY DOLLAR INCOME FUND INC. -A $0.0599917 5.54% 1.86% 2.03% 5.25% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR ABUNDANCE FUND, INC. -A $3.1408 8.39% 1.02% 2.9% 9.36% MONEY MARKET FUNDS PRIMARILY INVESTED IN PESO SECURITIES ALFM MONEY MARKET FUND, INC. -A 124.58 4.09% 2.62% 2.07% 3.06% FIRST METRO SAVE AND LEARN MONEY MARKET FUND, INC. -A,5 1.0208 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. PHILAM MANAGED INCOME FUND, INC. -A 1.2353 5.3% 2.26% 1.38% 4.52% SUN LIFE PROSPERITY MONEY MARKET FUND, INC. -A 1.2539 3.91% 2.79% 2.18% 2.85% PRIMARILY INVESTED IN FOREIGN CURRENCY SECURITIES SUN LIFE PROSPERITY DOLLAR STARTER FUND, INC. -A $1.0324 2.23% N.A. N.A. 1.62% 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 - ADJUSTED DUE TO CASH DIVIDEND ISSUANCE LAST JANUARY 29, 2018. 2 - ADJUSTED DUE TO STOCK DIVIDEND ISSUANCE LAST JUNE 5, 2018. 3 LAUNCH DATE IS JANUARY 3, 2019. 4 - LAUNCH DATE IS JANUARY 28, 2019. 5 - LAUNCH DATE IS FEBRUARY 1, 2019. 6 - RENAMING WAS APPROVED BY THE SEC LAST OCTOBER 12, 2018 (FORMERLY, ONE WEALTHY NATION 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."

Economy BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Wednesday, September 18, 2019 B3

Big 3 oil firms corner half of PHL market By Lenie Lectura

@llectura

HE so-called Big Three oil firms cornered 50.2 percent of the country’s petroleum product market share at end-June this year, data from the Department of Energy (DOE) showed. “The major oil companies [Pe-

tron Corp., Chevron Philippines and Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp.] got 50.2 percent market share of the total demand,” said the DOE in its Oil Supply/Demand Report 1H 2019 posted online. Petron led the race with a market share of 24.67 percent,

followed by Shell w ith 17.93 percent. Chevron came in third with 7.6 percent. Other players, such as PTT Philippines Corp., Total Philippines, Seaoil Philippines Inc., TWA Inc., Phoenix Petroleum Corp. Liquigaz, Prycegas, Micro Dragon, Unioil Philippines, Isla Gas, Jetti, Eastern Pe-

troleum, Petrotrade, South Pacific, Marubeni, SL Harbour, Rockoil, RK3 Int’l., Insular, ERA 1, High Glory, Warbucks, Perdido, Golden Share and Filoil Logistics Corp., as well as end users who imported directly most of their requirement, captured 49.8 percent of the market. Phoenix Petroleum is fourth in

the list with 7 percent. Seaoil came in next with 4.8 percent. In the LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) market, oil refiners captured 29.3 percent, while the bigger share of 70.7 percent was credited to other players. The same data showed that Petron’s share was 29.05 percent

House sets probe into POGO operations By Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz @joveemarie

OUR lawmakers filed late Monday a resolution urging the House of Representatives to look into the operations of the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO), amid allegations that the booming business has led to the influx of unregistered foreign workers and government revenue losses as a result of nonpayment of income taxes to the government. In House Resolution 337, lawmakers asked Congress to conduct an investigation on the allegations of unregistered foreign workers, nonpayment of income taxes relative to POGO, and the related issues on the effective implementation of Section 25, 1997 NIRC (National Internal Revenue Code), Immigration Rules and Regulations, and the Labor

Palay production to go down 4.3% this year–PSA By Cai U. Ordinario @caiordinario

HE country’s palay (unmilled rice) production is seen declining 4.3 percent this year, data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed. PSA data showed that as of August 2019, palay production is expected to drop to 3.057 million metric tons (MMT) in August and September period this year. This is lower than the 3.196 MMT posted in the same period last year, and the 3.064 MMT posted in July 2019. “Harvest area may decline by 91.45 thousand hectares from its level during the same period of 2018 of 824.8 thousand hectares,” PSA said. However, PSA said yield per hectare may increase to 4.17 MT in 2019 from 3.88 MT in 2018. Data showed that 64 percent of the standing crop in 1,564.53 thousand hectares were at various stages. Around 24.6 percent were at vegetative stage, while 11.4 percent were at maturing stage. Of the 733.34 thousand hectares of standing crop level in 2019, PSA said around 84.54 thousand hectares or 11.5 percent have been harvested. “As for the farmers’ planting intentions for the period October to December 2019, about 915.72 thousand hectares or 48.1 percent of perceived area have been actually planted,” PSA said. Earlier, PSA said farm-gate palay prices fell to a six-year low by the end of August, a period when rice harvest usually declines significantly. Data released by the PSA showed palay prices declined by 27.4 percent to P16.68 per kilo as of the fifth week of August in 2019 from P22.98 per kilo in the same period of last year. This is the lowest since the fifth week of May 2013 when dry palay farm-gate prices averaged P16.71 per kilo. PSA data, however, showed that wholesale and retail trade of wellmilled rice continue to decline. The average wholesale price of well-milled rice declined to P38.77 per kilo in the fifth week of August, a 14.9 percent decline from the P45.55 per kilo level in the same period in 2018.

Code of the Philippines due to the unprecedented influx of foreign workers for the POGO Industry. Authors of the resolution are Minority Leader Bienvenido “Benny” Abante Jr., Deputy Speaker and Cibac Party-list Rep. Eduardo Villanueva, Muntinlupa Rep. Rozzano Rufino Biazon and Manila Rep. Manuel Luis Lopez. The lawmakers said an investigation is needed to study the amendments to current laws and to allow the government to effectively regulate the industry and to ensure that the government is able to properly collect revenues from its operations. “The inquiry was long overdue given the numerous issues that have surfaced regarding the POGO industry,” Abante said. “The fact that we cannot even accurately account for these workers is troubling. If we have problems with regard to their

documentation, then we will definitely have issues properly determining revenue collection,” said Abante. The lawmakers, citing Department of Labor and Employment figures, said there are 138,000 foreign workers in the Philippines, mostly Chinese nationals employed by POGOs. Of this 83,760 have special work permit, and 54,240 have alien employment permits, which as of date, has not been verified by the Bureau of Internal Revenue. Moreover, Abante said that aside from the revenue losses, he and other lawmakers were disturbed by reports that POGO hubs have been established in what Defense Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana referred to as strategic locations. Philippine defense installations near Chinese online casinos include Camp Aguinaldo, the Philippine National Police headquarters in Camp Crame, the Air Force head-

quarters in Pasay City, the Philippine Army headquarters in Taguig City, the Philippine Navy headquarters on Roxas Boulevard and Sangley Point in Cavite. “What kind of possible threats do these POGO hubs near our defense installations represent? These and other concerns are what we want to address in an inquiry,” said Abante. Finance Assistant Secretary Antonio Joselito G. Lambino II said earlier this month that the Department of Finance (DOF) estimates around P2 billion worth of personal income taxes are not being collected from POGO workers on a monthly basis. “Our estimate is that P2 billion a month is not being collected from personal income taxes and that is why an interagency task force has been formed by the DOF in order to make sure who is here in the country working in the sector,” Lambino said.

DOTr sticks to November deadline for completion of Sangley retrofitting By Lorenz S. Marasigan

@lorenzmarasigan

ESPITE recent typhoons, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) is confident of completing the development of the Sangley Airport in Cavite this November, a deadline set by no less than President Duterte. In a media advisory, Transportation Assistant Secretary for Procurement and Project Implementation Giovanni Lopez said his group is now 72 percent complete in retrofitting the Sangley Airport for commercial flights and general aviation. Broken down, he said, the passenger terminal building is at 70 percent completed, while the apron development is at 80 percent, and hangar at 70 percent. Already, the transport department has completed the

asphalt overlay for the airport’s runway. “We are confident that we can finish all of these by the last week of October,” he said, noting that construction works “remained unhampered” despite the inclement weather. The 24/7 construction works for the Sangley Airport started in June, when Duterte demanded the quick delivery of an alternative airport for the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) within the fourth quarter of 2019. The government is developing Sangley as a general aviation hub to decongest Naia by transferring the general aviation operations to Cavite. While this initiative is being implemented, the transportation department is looking to implement an unsolicited proposal

DENR chief says he’s ready to address garbage woes hounding Pasig River

NVIRONMENT Secretary and concurrent Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission (PRRC) Chairman Roy A. Cimatu vowed to address the garbage problem hounding the Pasig River and its tributaries. Cimatu recently met with the officials and employees of the PRRC, whose leadership was transferred to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources by virtue of Executive Order 90 signed by President Duterte. The EO emphasized the need to centralize the national government’s rehabilitation efforts for the Pasig River and Manila Bay, hence the changeover. The PRRC has earlier welcomed Cimatu’s chairmanship and believes that the new brand of leadership will further support the commission in achieving its mandate of restoring the Pasig River to its historic glory, with no garbage in sight and teeming with all kinds of aquatic life “All the esteros should be cleaned and all those garbage na nasa ilalim ng tubig ay maalis [garbage at the river bed should be removed],” Cimatu said in a news statement. Cimatu asserted his objective to remove all garbage in the rivers and esteros in Metro Manila, which, he said, has made the people’s lives mis-

erable for the longest time. He said the garbage problem at the Pasig River could have been avoided with the implementation of the garbage law. He said enforcing the garbage law—Republic Act 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 which provides for a systematic, comprehensive, and ecological solid waste management program in the country will address the problem, noting that disposing of garbage is the responsibility of the government. The PRRC has already removed more than 30 million kilograms of solid waste since 2012 through resettlement and daily clean-up activities in the Pasig River and its 47 identified tributaries. However, Cimatu said there is still much work that needs to be done. “It is a very complex and big project that we are in. The problem is here. There’s no backing out in this. Let’s continue. Even how many years it will take, we will do this,” he said. The official noted the importance of rehabilitating Pasig River as part of the “Battle for Manila Bay,” which aims to rehabilitate historic water body. Cimatu said that around 3,000 tons of garbage had been retrieved in Manila Bay so far. Jonathan L. Mayuga

for the development of the airbase to an international commercial air hub. For one, the local government of Cavite has proposed to develop Sangley Airport by expanding its capacity to 130 million passengers per year through a P552.02-billion investment. The proposal also includes the construction of four runways and the provision for mass transit systems and new roads. Key to its approval is the funding source, by which, the Cavite government intends to fill by listing P200 billion worth of bonds. Should the proposal be rejected past endJune, the government will entertain a similar private sector, offer from All-Asia Resources and Reclamation, which proposed to spend $12-billion to build the Philippine Sangley International Airport.

DBM: NCA utilization from January to August at 92% to ₧1.802 trillion By Bernadette D. Nicolas

@BNicolasBM

TILIZATION rate of Notice of Cash Allocation as of endAugust reached 92 percent, or P1.802 trillion, out of P1.961 trillion in NCAs released for the period, data from the Department of Budget and Management showed. NCAs refer to the disbursement authority issued by the DBM to cover the cash requirements of the operations, programs and projects of government agencies. The utilization rate from January to August this year is also higher compared to the 86 percent, or 1.811 trillion worth of NCAs, used out of P2.116 trillion in NCAs released to the national government agencies for the same period last year. While the utilization rate as of end-August this year is higher than last year’s, the total NCAs used as of August this year were lower by P9.510 billion. A higher NCA utilization rate shows the capacity of line agencies to timely disburse their allocated funds and implement their programs and projects. Moreover, line departments also achieved a utilization rate of 89 percent. This is equivalent to P1.303 trillion of the P1.457 trillion in NCAs released for them for January to August this year. Meanwhile, the NCA utilization rate for Budgetary Support to government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs) also reached 95 percent, while the allotment to local government units (LGUs) were virtually fully utilized at 100 percent. For Budgetary Support to GOCCs, a total of P98.79 billion worth of NCAs were used out of P103.94 billion. As for allotment to LGUs, P399.95 billion worth of NCAs were used out of P400.25 billion released. As of end-August, unused NCAs amounted to P159.37 billion.

of the total LPG demand, while among the other LPG players, Liquigaz got the biggest market share with a 21.6-percent share. This was followed by South Pacific Inc. with a share of 16.4 percent. Next were Isla Gas and Prycegas with shares of 12.9 and 10.6 percent, respectively.

Capitalize on Indonesia’s nickel ore export ban, MGB tells local miners By Jonathan L. Mayuga

@jonlmayuga

HILIPPINE nickel-mining companies should “capitalize” on the opportunity of increasing their share in the global market with Indonesia’s nickel ore export ban starting in January, regulators said. Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) Acting Director Wilfredo Moncano said those slapped with suspension orders are encouraged to step up corrective measures for them to be able resume operations. Of the 26 large-scale mining operations that were slapped with closure or suspension orders, 19 are nickel mines. Of the 26, 13 companies—all of which are operating nickel mines—have filed their appeal to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), while 13 others have appealed directly to the Office of the President. Out of the 13 in the DENR, he said three have resumed operations, while the rest are still doing corrective action. According to Moncano, the report of Indonesia’s nickel ore export ban is “encouraging” and said he expects the price of nickel to go up. “Right now the price of nickel has already gone up. Perhaps because of the reduction of supply. It’s all part of the law of supply and demand,” he said. However, the mining official said, he is worried that buyers of nickel will insist on high-grade nickel ores. The Philippines only produces low-grade nickel ore. According to Moncano, the MGB is waiting for companies to do corrective measures and report their compliance. “Once we validate that they have satisfied the corrective measures, then we will recommend the lifting of the suspension orders,” he said. “On the part of the company, they should expedite the action on the corrective measure and on our part, we will expedite the validation process,” Moncano said. Currently, the Philippines can only supply around 24 million wet metric tons (WMT) of nickel ore. But these are mostly lower-grade ranging from 1.2 percent to 1.4 percent. Indonesia produces high-grade nickel ore of up to 1.7 percent, which has higher demand. China is the single largest consumer of nickel used to produce steel. Moncano said it will require all suspended mines to resume operation to capitalize on the expected supply gap with the imposition of the nickel ore export ban by Indonesia. He said the lifting of the suspension orders depend largely on how fast the mining companies can institute corrective action as ordered by the MGB. If the companies can do the corrective action and submit the report that they have completed the corrective measure, that will be the time the MGB will send a team to verify the veracity of the companies’ report.

B4 Wednesday, September 18, 2019

The Podium: A Celebration of Vibrant Philippines-Singapore ties

HE Podium was opened by Madam Halimah Yacob, President of the Republic of Singapore, during her State Visit to celebrate the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Singapore and the Philippines. An architectural masterpiece and strategically located in the heart of the Ortigas Business District, The Podium Complex is redefining the city skyline with its sleek, sophisticated design and innovative green initiatives. The multiawarded development comprises three components: The Podium Mall, The BDO Corporate Tower and The Podium West Tower. Keppel Philippines Properties, a subsidiary of Keppel Land, holds a 40% stake in The Podium, while BDO, a member of the SM Group, hold the remaining stakes. "Today, we mark the completion of The Podium development, comprising an expanded Podium mall and an office tower, which is envisioned to serve the growing demand for prime office spaces of the Ortigas Center. The Podium project clearly demonstrates the shared optimism of

Keppel and BDO on the growth prospects of the Philippines retail and office sector as economic growth and domestic demand remain strong," Teresita Sy-Coson, Chairperson of BDO, said in her speech. Developed in phases, Phase One of The Podium comprises The Podium retail mall, which was opened in 2002. Phase Two retail mall commenced operations in 2017. Construction of The Podium West Tower started in 2015 and was completed in May 2019. The total net leasable area of The Podium development is about 140,000 sqm, comprising of 50,000 sqm of retail space and about 90,000 sqm of office space. The Podium has a 2,000 sm garden wall, the largest vertical green wall in the country with over 6,500 plants, which provides a green lung to the propertys environment. In recognition of its sustainable features, The Podium was awarded the LEED Gold Mark (Core & Shell) pre-certification by the US Green Building Council, and is the first building in the Philippines to receive the provisional Green Mark Gold Award by the Building and Construction Authority of Singapore.

The Singaporean President is welcomed by Teresita Sy-Coson, Chairperson of BDO Unibank (third from left); Dr. Lee Boon Yang, Chairman of Keppel Corporation (third from right); Hans Sy, Chairman of the Executive Committee, SM Prime (second from right); and Loh Chin Hua, CEO of Keppel Corporation and Chairman of Keppel Land (second from left). A joint project between the Philippines BDO Unibank, Inc. and Singapores Keppel Land Limited, The Podium complex showcases the strong ties, shared expertise, and successful collaboration between Philippine and Singapore industry leaders. The official opening of The Podium, comprising an expanded Podium mall and the completion of The Podium West Tower, is one of the highlights of President Halimahs State Visit to commemorate the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Singapore and the Philippines. Also shown in photo are Nestor Tan, President and CEO of BDO Unibank (far left); and Tan Swee Yiow, CEO of Keppel Land (far right).

2019 Asian Art Biennial announces artists list

HE 7th edition of the Asian Art Biennial, organized by the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts and co-curated by artists Hsu Chia-Wei from Taiwan and Ho Tzu-Nyen from Singapore, will open on October 5th. The exhibition will feature a wide selection of artworks, including paintings, installations, video works, performances, and workshops by 30 artists and collectives from 16 countries. Titled “The Strangers from Beyond the Mountain and the Sea”, the 2019 edition of the Asian Art Biennial will focus not only on the encounters between insiders and strangers, but also explore complex human entanglements through nonhuman elements. The curatorial concept is further explained by curator Hsu Chia-Wei: “We are living in the Age of the Anthropocene,

a geologic time period proposed in recent years to refer to the dominant influence of human activities on the climate and environment. This has led to critical reflections on anthropocentrism - the point of view that humans are the only, or primary, holders of moral standing”. The artists participating in the 2019 Asian Art Biennial are as follows: Korakrit ARUNANONDCHAI & Alex GVOJIC (with boychild) (Thailand/ USA), Antariksa (Indonesia), Zuleikha CHAUDHARI (India), Charles LIM (Singapore), Shilpa GUPTA (India), Roslisham ISMAIL/a.k.a ISE (Malaysia), Guo Fengyi (China), CHIANG Kai-Chun (Taiwan), CHIU Chen-Hung (Taiwan), HO Rui An (Singapore), Snow HUANG/ Against Again Troupe (Taiwan), JIANDYIN(Jiradej MEEMALAI and Pornpilai MEEMALAI ) (Thailand),

Hiwa K (Iraq), LEE Ufan (Korea), LIU Chuang (China), LIU Yu (Taiwan), Open Contemporary Art Center (Taiwan)+Lifepatch (Indonesia), PARK Chan-Kyong (Korea), Timur SI-QIN (Germany), Gilad RATMAN (Israel), Tcheu SIONG (Laos), Wukir SURVADI/ Senyawa (Indonesia), TING ChaongWen (Taiwan), Ming WONG (Singapore), Maya WATANABE (Netherlands/ Peru), WANG Si-Shun (China), Yuichiro TAMURA (Japan), WANG Hong-Kai (Taiwan), YEE I-Lann (Malaysia), and Sawangwongse YAWNGHWE (Burma). The exhibit will be from October 5th until February 9th, 2020. A series of events and seminars will also be held throughout the exhibition. Please visit the museum or the biennial’s official websites for further information: https://www1. asianartbiennial.org/2019/.

IABC recognizes PNB group with four Quill awards

HE International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) recognized Philippine National Bank (PSE: PNB) and its life insurance affiliate, Allianz PNB Life Insurance, Inc., with four awards during the 17th Philippine Quill Awards held at the Marriott Hotel in Pasay City. The Lucio Tan-led bank was cited for its internal electronic newsletter, PNBlog, which won an Award of Merit in the Publication category. Released monthly, PNBlog helps keep over 8,200 PNB employees across the globe informed about the developments in the bank. It is a costefficient and environment-friendly way of disseminating news and updates to PNB’s widespread employee base.

Meanwhile, Allianz PNB Life bagged three awards. The company won two Awards of Merit for its “Day of Courage” event (Special and Experiential Events category) and its “Dare 2B Fit” campaign (Employee Engagement category). Its “Project Sanlahi” received an Award of Excellence (Corporate Social Responsibility category). The Philippine Quill is the country’s most prestigious awards program in the field of business communication. It has been bestowing the seal of approval to the most reputable organizations and corporations in the nation for almost two decades, emphasizing the use of excellent communication to achieve business goals, and to make a difference in society.

By Anne D’innocenzio

The Associated Press

EW YORK—That LeBron James jersey could get a little more expensive. Companies that make clothing and shoes for the National Basketball Association (NBA) players are in the crosshairs of President Donald J. Trump’s escalating China trade wars. So, the question is, will American fans of sports stars like Los Angeles Lakers’ James be willing to pay higher prices for the gear? The stakes are high as US sales from sports licensed merchandise including NBA items rang up $21 billion last year, according to Licensing International, a trade group. Sales on NBAStore.com rose 15 percent during the 12-month period through August, according to the league. And many of the sports brands ranging from Adidas to Puma rely on China for at least some of their sourcing. Moreover, experts worry China could impose penalties on Western brands who sell there at a time when business in that country is exploding. Some also believe US fans might turn to counterfeit merchandise if they don’t want to pay higher prices. “When you raise prices on legitimate goods, you encourage the production of illegitimate goods,” said Steve Lamar, executive vice president of The American Apparel and Footwear Association, a trade group. “We’re definitely seeing pressure on brands. We’re just waiting for the other basketball shoe to drop.” Until now, consumers were largely spared from higher prices in Trump’s previous round of import taxes. That has changed. Starting September 1, the US government began collecting 15 percent on $112 billion in Chinese imports, on a wide array of merchandise, including basketball jerseys, basketball shoes, basketballs and even hoops. Higher tariffs are set to hit another batch of Chinese products—$160 billion worth on December 15 and include other sports products, according to the American Apparel and Footwear Association. President Trump tweeted Wednesday that planned tariff increases on another $250 billion in Chinese imports, which would include sports bags, would be delayed until October 15, from October 1. Tariff increases are set to go from 25 percent to 30 percent. Many sporting goods companies, including Adidas, Under Armour and Spalding declined to comment on how their business is being affected by the China trade wars. But like many companies, sport brands have been diversifying their sourcing away from China to factories in Vietnam and Bangladesh for the last several years even before escalating tensions between the US and China. Under Armour has been working for several years to reduce sourcing in China. “With current tariffs, we actually are not being affected very much at all,” Patrick Fisk, president and chief operating officer at Under Armour told CNBC last week. “We only have 10 percent of what comes into the US from China. So the current state, we’re OK.” Puma announced earlier this year a new multiyear partnership that will make the international sports brand an official marketing partner of the NBA.

CHINA CRISIS Sports BusinessMirror

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ednesday, September 18, 2019 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

THE tensions between the US and China come as many sports brands have been digging deeper into China where basketball is a massive business and the National Basketball Association’s fan base is exploding through social media.

“Our sector in China has been very strong. We’ve been growing 15 percent every quarter,” says Puma US CEO Bjoern Gulden, noting it’s the fastest growing market ahead of the US and Europe. But he added, “Tariffs and trade wars are not good for the market. It carries uncertainty.” Puma has been moving its sourcing out of China over the past two years and now the country accounts for 20 percent of its overall production. Still, Gulden says costs are going up, and he’s

not sure whether the company will have to raise prices. Gulden and others believe that the top end of the market may be less vulnerable than the lower end. For customers who buy sneakers ranging from $150 to $250, an increase may not hurt sales, but that could be a different story for customers who buy shoes in the $60 to $70 range, he said. Still, he says no one “has an appetite for higher prices.” The tensions between the US and China come as many sports brands have been digging deeper into China where basketball is a massive business and the NBA’s fan

base is exploding through social media. The good news is that American brands including Nike who sell there say business remains strong and they haven’t seen consumers in China pull back because of the strain. “We have not seen any impact on our business to-date and we continue to see strong momentum as we enter fiscal year 2020, “ Mark G. Parker, chairman, CEO and president of Nike told analysts during a conference call following its fiscal fourth quarter earnings in June. It reported revenue growth in China up 21 percent this past fiscal year. Nike says it produces about a quarter of its product

in China for the globe. However, its exposure in terms of product produced in China to North America is “relatively modest.” There’s a silver lining for sportswear makers to Trump’s trade war with China, however. Puma’s Gulden says that the company is using the same factories in China that used to produce merchandise for the American market for the Chinese market. Previously, factories outside of China produced goods for China. Now, Puma can stay on top of trends faster. “You are much quicker. No duty. No freight, “ Gulden added.

Popularity of NBA in China creates endless options B CHAMPS ARE HOME

Spain team captain Rudy Fernandez holds the trophy as he and the team exit a plane on arrival at Barajas airport in Madrid on Monday. Spain beat Argentina to capture the Fiba Basketball World Cup in Beijing. AP

EIJING—Kobe Bryant went to China for the first time in 1998, making the trip to Beijing to help operate an instructional basketball clinic for about a dozen kids. The local coaches working with him didn’t know a lot about the game. Barely anyone noticed that a National Basketball Association (NBA) player was in town. Basketball wasn’t a big deal in China. And then everything changed very quickly. The footprint of the NBA has grown at an extremely rapid pace over the last two decades in China, where more than 500 million people watched games last season and where one new streaming deal alone will pump $1.5 billion into the league’s coffers over the next five years. “When I first came here, I never thought the game in China would get to be this big,” Bryant said. “But it has. And it’s not going to stop.” The possibilities seem endless. Could there be an NBA team in China despite the travel that would be involved? Might there be two-way player contracts between the NBA and the Chinese Basketball Association? What about the NBA constructing a team to play in China or the Chinese sending a team for a full season in the US? Farfetched as all that may sound, keep in mind that 20 years ago no one envisioned the NBA-China relationship to be this big—or that it would keep growing after Yao Ming’s run with the Houston Rockets ended eight years ago. The NBA has academies in China now, and the Chinese national team returned to the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas this year. “It’s a good question,” Golden State Coach Steve Kerr said. “I think the next step will probably come when the next Yao Ming comes. That would take it to a new level, more Chinese players to reach the NBA and make an impact.” The marriage between the NBA and the world’s most populous country is stronger than ever. NBA officials say more than 300 million Chinese people play the game and 40 million are registered to play the 2K video game. Thousands showed up this summer just to watch the sons of Dwyane Wade and LeBron James play exhibitions with the rest of their high-school teammates. A trade war is happening between the US and China, political tensions are escalating between the countries and it could impact the products of the league’s business partners. But the game itself continues to thrive. “I think sports transcends politics and I hope the NBA can continue to connect fans globally,” Dallas

Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said. “I don’t have any reason to think our relationship won’t continue to be positive.” Nothing seems to be able to derail the NBA’s popularity. The team that the US sent to the World Cup in China didn’t feature the NBA’s biggest stars, yet drew sellout crowds for each of its first six games. US Coach Gregg Popovich was begged for autographs and selfies everywhere he went. “We’ve known for a long time how big basketball has become in China, of course, but all over the world,” Popovich said. “It’s an international deal now. There are so many great players in so many countries. It’s not a secret.” Stars like James, Stephen Curry, and James Harden have a trip to China on their annual schedules—and when Wade, the recently retired guard who has a lifetime contract with Chinese shoe company Li-Ning, visited this summer one of his events had to be halted after about 10 minutes because the mall where it was happening was overflowing with people. Donovan Mitchell of the Utah Jazz has been to China twice this summer, once to promote his brand, the second time for the World Cup with USA Basketball. He sees it becoming an annual stop for him, too—and believes there is no ceiling for the game globally. “Man, I couldn’t tell you,” Mitchell said. “I think it’s going to be even bigger and it’s not going to be just China. It’s going to be many more countries. The [relationship] between the NBA and China has been huge since I was a kid and it can only take off from there...because the passion and love is so strong.” It’s not a one-sided relationship; China sees reason to invest in the NBA. Joe Tsai, the cofounder of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, agreed this summer to buy the remaining 51 percent that he didn’t already own of the Brooklyn Nets and Barclays Center from Mikhail Prokhorov in deals worth about $3.4 billion. In 2016, Lizhang Jiang, a businessman from Shanghai, bought 5 percent of the Minnesota Timberwolves, a stake he sold earlier this year. China also takes immense pride in players like Klay Thompson wearing Chinese brands on the court. (Thompson has a 10-year deal with Chinese shoe company Anta for a reported $80 million.) And China sent its national team to NBA Summer League this past July primarily to get ready for the World Cup, but also for exposure on the NBA stage. “I think it’s good for our players and good for the team,” China Coach Li Nan said of playing in Las Vegas. “I think it’s good for everyone.” The NBA has opened three basketball academies in China and has seen very quick success with academies in Asia and Africa. The international influence on the league was more present this past season than ever. The NBA MVP, Giannis Antetokounmpo, is from Greece. The rookie of the year, Luka Doncic, is from Slovenia. The most improved player, Pascal Siakam, is from Cameroon. The defensive player of the year, Rudy Gobert, is from France. The All-NBA center, Nikola Jokic, is from Serbia. AP

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Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Archers on target for SEAG golds

6 Liyab bets make PHL eSports team

IX Liyab bets received the call up for the inaugural eSports games in the 30th Southeast Asian Games where six gold medals are at stake. Liyab’s whole Arena of Valor (AoV) squad will banner the country’s bid with Caviar “EnDerr” Acampado taking one of two berths in the StarCraft ll event. The AoV team—skippered by Kevin “Gambit” Dizon with Jervan “Bents” de los Santos, Jeremiah “1717” Camarillo, Lawrence “Rubixx” Gatmaitan and Miguel “Miggie” Banaag—topped the final qualification for the Games. “It’s a dream come true for me and the whole team. If you asked me a few years ago [if] we would compete in the Southeast Asian Games, I would say no right away. But here we are. Hopefully we will not fail expectations,” Gambit said. Joining the AoV squad is EnDerr who will lead the Philippines’s bid in StarCraft ll. Just like the AoV squad, EnDerr reigned supreme in the final scrimmages. Liyab is the professional eSports team of Globe in partnership with Mineski. “We always believed that Liyab has the potential to make it big in the SEA Games. While it’s a new sport, we believe the national team has a good chance to win medals for the country,” Nikko Acosta, Globe SVP for Content Business Group and Product Management, said.

Hatch, Jean-Pierre Khouzam and Jaden Olson also made it after topping their respective events in the recent Philippine Swimming National Open at NCC. Also joining the cast are Rian Tirol, Desirae Mangaong, Jazlynn Pak, Joy Rodgers, Miranda Renner and Australian siblings Georgia and Thomas Peregrina. Rule, Gebbie and Deiparine possess high potentials for the gold medals following their performances in the Fina world championships. Rule, an all-American from the University of Texas in the US NCAA, shattered five Philippine

records in the world championships in Gwanju, South Korea, last month. The 24-year-old made the Olympic Selection Time (OST) B-cut in the women’s 200-meter butterfly. Gebbie, whose father hails from New Zealand, also reset the national record in the men’s 100-m free in the worlds with a time 49.94 seconds to surpass the OST B standard of 50.3 seconds. Deiparine, meanwhile, is looking to turn both silver finishes in the 50-m and 100-m breaststroke during the 2017 SEAG in Kuala Lumpur into golden performances this time.

HE Philippine archery team will feature a solid core of promising athletes in the 30th Southeast Asian Games the country is hosting from November 30 to December 11. Armed with a mix of young talents and veteran smarts, National Coach Clint Sayo said the chief objective of the squad is to end a four-year gold medal drought in the recurve and compound events. Asian Games bronze medalist Paul Marton de la Cruz, Youth Olympic Games gold-medal winner Gabriel Moreno and Olympian Jennifer Chan will be on target for the elusive gold medals. De la Cruz will lead the men’s compound team together with Johan Olano, Roberto Badiola and Arnold Rojas, while Moreno banners the four-man recurve squad along with Florante Matan, Jayson Feliciano and Carson Hastie. The women’s recurve squad is composed of Kareel Hongitan, Pia Bidaure, Phoebe Amostoso and Gabrielle Monica Bidaure, while Chan, Andrea Robles, Rachelle Ann de la Cruz and Abbigail Tinugduan comprise the compound team. According to Sayo, these archers are definitely capable of winning medals for the country. “As much as possible, we want to achieve the best results,’’ said Sayo, a gold medalist in the 1997 Games in Jakarta. The men’s compound team of Earl Benjamin Yap, Ian Patrick Chipeco and Delfin Anthony Adriano won the country’s last gold medal in the Games in Myanmar 2013.

“It’s a lot of a learning lesson for us. We’ll have a post tournament assessment. The planning starts now,” Panlilio said. First on the drawing board, according to Panlilio, is to move on from the tragic stint in China and focus on developing the next set of players for 2023. “As far as the team in concerned, we could have done better. That’s something we need to assess with four years to prepare, the right framework to perform better in front of our fans here in the Philippines,” he said. Gilas Pilipinas lost all its games in China

to wind up at the bottom of the 32-nation championship with a 0-5 record. “It’s done. We should assess very carefully about what happened and learn from that and look forward to 2023,” Panlilio said. “We must see an improvement in 2023.” Panlilio said that besides focusing on a strong finish in 2023, the task as host will be as daunting. Panlilio said he will be meeting with his counterparts from Japan and Indonesia in November to get the ball rolling for the hosting chores. Ramon Rafael Bonilla

SAMAHANG Basketbol ng Pilipinas President Al Panlilio doesn’t want a repeat of the horrible China stint.

GOLDEN MISSION

REMEDY RULE is one of the country’s top bets in the Games.

HE Philippine swimming team has the tools to finally end the country’s hunger for a gold medal in the Southeast Asian Games. Filipinos who donned the national colors in the recent Fina World Championships—Nicole Oliva, Luke Gebbie, Remedy Rule and James Deiparine—will lead the 27-member national squad in ending the drought in the 30th SEA Games the country is hosting from November 30 to December 11. Also on the Philippine team for the aquatics

competitions at the Fina-approved New Clark City Aquatics Center in Capas (Tarlac) are Olympians Jessie Khing Lacuna and Jasmine Alkhaldi, and homegrown Jerald Jacinto and Rafael and Miguel Barreto. The Philippines has failed to win a gold medal ever since multiple winner Miguel Molina retired after the 2009 SEA Games in Lao PDR. Former Palarong Pambansa standouts Xiandi Chua, Maurice Sacho Ilustre, Youth Olympian Roxanne Yu, Rosalee Santa Ana, Chloe Isleta and Thanya de la Cruz are also on the team. Alberto Batungbacal, Jonathan Cook, Jarod

HOOPS BRASS FOCUS ON 2023

PORTS patron Manuel V. Pangilinan wants to assemble a team to the 2023 Fiba World Cup in earnest following the country’s dismal performance in the recent tournament in China. Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) President Al Panlilio echoed Pangilinan’s directive, saying he doesn’t want a repeat of the horrible China stint when the country cohosts the championship with Japan and Indonesia.

“There is no perfect time to pick up the right players but now,” Pangilinan said. As principal host, the Philippines gets an automatic slot in the worlds. “Just because we’re included as the host, we should not prepare?” he said. “There’s this tendency that the team takes it easy. We should take it seriously. It’s more of pressure on us because we’re playing before our countrymen.”

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UVIC PAGUNSAN seeks to set another Philippine Golf Tour (PGT) record as he shoots for a fifth victory against a field toughened up by a number of foreign aces when the P2.5 million International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) Del Monte Championship fires off on Wednesday at the Del Monte Golf Club in Manolo Fortich, Bukidnon. Pagunsan became the first player to rack up four straight wins by dominating the Bacolod, Negros, Iloilo and Riviera stops of the 10th season of the country’s premier circuit before returning to his base in Japan Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) Tour where he posted a runnerup finish and a ninth-place effort in Hokkaido and Fukuoka, respectively, last month. That should make him the player to beat in the 72-hole championship sponsored by ICTSI with the smooth-swinging Asia’s former No. 1 looking for a record fifth crown against practically the same field he bested in the Visayan swing of the circuit and at Riviera in harsh conditions. Tony Lascuña also won four legs to reign as PGT Order of Merit champion in 2016 but Pagunsan made it a record feat by winning four straight with another championship looming large given his form, confidence and skills that continued to be the envy of the other pros aiming to make it big someday. They include Reymon Jaraula, who had looked forward to wearing the hunted tag after nipping the veteran Lascuña on the second playoff hole to nail his maiden victory at Pueblo de Oro last weekend until Pagunsan confirmed his entry into the seventh

Wednesday, September 18, 2019 C3

JUVIC IN THE HUNT

leg of the circuit organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments Inc. Pagunsan is expected to come up with a strong start after drawing an early tee time with Elmer Salvador and Rufino Bayron at 7:20 a.m. on the first hole, while Jaraula to start six flights behind at 8:30 a.m. in the company of Richard Sinfuego and Rene Menor. But a host of others are also raring to go and foil the fancied Negrense, including the homegrown bets ready to cash in on their familiarity with the tight, tree-lined mountaintop layout and fuel their respective title drive in the event backed by Custom Clubmakers, Meralco, Champion, Summit Mineral Water, K&G Golf Apparel, BDO, Sharp, KZG, PLDT and MY Shokai Technology Inc. Proud Del Monte son Clyde Mondilla, for one, is out to redeem himself from a number of mediocre finishes after humbling a slew of foreign aces and the country’s top guns to snare the Philippine Open crown at The Country Club last April. “I’m so excited to get going and Juvic’s

presence adds up to the challenge,” said Mondilla, who vowed to use an attacking kind of game on a course he’s too familiar with. “I’ll attack even the tight par-4s since I know where to place my shots here.” Focus will also be on the likes of Noel Langamin, Magno Arancon and Leonard Lofranco, former mainstays of the Del Monte squad in Interclub tournaments, along with other young guns seeking to score a tour breakthrough, led by Ira Alido, and tour veterans seeking redemption following a string of failed bids, including Jay Bayron, Michael Bibat, Jhonnel Ababa and Salvador. Thai Kammalas Namuangruk, the lone foreign entry to finish in the Top 10 at Pueblo, is also back for a shot at the crown won by American Nicolas Paez last year with compatriots Tawan Phongpun and Pachara Sakulyong boosting the cast that also drew the likes of American Lexus Keoninh, Peter Stojanovski of Macedonia, South African Luke Trocada, American Sean Talmadge, Park Jun Sung of Korea and Dutch Guido van der Valk, winner of this year’s PGT kickoff leg in Cebu.

MERMAIDING: EXTREME SPORT I NTERNATIONAL and local dive experts and world record holders will gather for the first-ever Philippine Dive Expo (Phidex) set from Friday to Sunday at the Conrad Hotel in Pasay City.

Organized by the Department of Tourism under Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat, Phidex will feature worldclass divers, marine conservationists, environmentalists and international dive buyers, influencers, and underwater photographers and videographers who will share their expertise, present innovative ideas, network with leading dive operators and lend their knowledge about sustainable diving practices with key stakeholders in the Philippines. Two of the guests who will deliver talks are Guinness World Record holders Faisal Jawad Hashim from Kuwait and Ahmed Gabr from Egypt. Scuba diver Faisal Jawad Hashim has the fastest 10-kilometer scuba dive in the world at five hours and 24 minutes, a feat especially astounding considering he is a paraplegic. Gabr, on the other hand, has made the deepest dive at an astounding 332.35 meters deep (1,090.4 feet). This is a double record, one for Deepest Scuba Dive, and another for Deepest Scuba Dive in Sea Water. He achieved

Cool Smashers stake clean card

REAMLINE puts its long unbeaten run on the line sans two key players while PacificTown Army and Motolite try to keep their own streak going against struggling rivals in the second round eliminations of the Premier Volleyball League Open Conference at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan on Wednesday. The Cool Smashers will be without injured Alyssa Valdez for the second straight game while Jia Morado has joined the national pool’s campaign in the inaugural Asean Grand Prix in Thailand serving as part of the Filipinas’ buildup for this year’s 30th Southeast Asian Games. But the defending champions remain formidable with Michele Gumabao, Jema Galanza, Risa Sato, Celine Domingo and Pau Soriano, and libero Kyla Atienza in harness and Kyle Negrito taking over the playmaking chores in their bid to stretch their romp to 10. Creamline swept BaliPure in three last September 7 but the Water Defenders seek to pounce on Valdez and Morado’s absence in pursuit of a key victory that would keep them in the race for at least the fourth and last semifinal berth in the season-ending conference organized by Sports Vision. The Lady Troopers, meanwhile, bounced back strong from a shutout loss to the Cool Smashers last September 4, beating the Chef’s Classics Red Spikers, the Water Defenders and the Air Force Jet Spikers in three to wheel back into contention with a 5-3 card. The veteran-laden Army side remained at fifth but its three-game run put the Lady Troopers closer to fourth running Petro Gazz (5-2), BanKo-Perlas (6-3) and Motolite (6-2) heading to the final phase of the elims of the all-Filipino tournament backed by Mikasa, Asics and KFC.

this feat in Dahab, Egypt, in September 2014. Two more speakers, Odessa Bugarin (Philippines) and Yolanda Yao (China), are professional mermaids and certified instructors. Bugarin holds four national records in competitive freediving, while Yao has starred in the first-ever all underwater mini-movie Mermaid’s Fantasy. Mermaiding as a sport requires the use of special fins that encompass the thighs down to the toes. Professional mermaids,

or occasionally water ballerinas, require special diving and breathing training, which is why many experts consider mermaiding an extreme sport.

CHINA’S Yolanda Yao, a professional mermaid and certified instructor, has starred in the first-ever all underwater mini-movie Mermaid’s Fantasy.

NIVERSITY of Santo Tomas (UST) shoots for solo second with University of the Philippines (UP) trying to keep abreast of the field in University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 82 men’s basketball action on Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City. The Growling Tigers pulled off a thrilling 87-74 overtime win over the National University (NU) Bulldogs last Sunday to claim their third win in four games. On that same day, the Fighting Maroons (2-1) booked a nail-biting 83-82 victory over the Adamson University Falcons, a match that also went to an extra period. The two teams, running behind league-leading Ateneo (4-0), swap

THAT’S ALL

Misplaced anger

JUVIC PAGUNSAN is the first player to rack up four straight wins by dominating the Bacolod, Negros, Iloilo and Riviera stops of the 10th season of the country’s premier circuit.

Forest Hills makes move; Sta. Elena stays ahead

OREST Hills cashed in on its local knowledge and came away with victories in Classes A and C as Sta. Elena kept the overall lead with a runner-up finish in Class B after the penultimate leg of the 2019 Champion Women’s Golf Association (WGAP) Circuit at Forest Hills’ Nicklaus and Palmer courses in Antipolo recently. Fernando Air Base, likewise, lined itself up for a crack at the hotly-disputed crown on its very first try with a second place effort in Class A, while three others stayed in the title hunt to guarantee a spirited, down-to-the-wire battle when the circuit winds up its eight-stage circuit at Sta. Elena on October 7. Sta. Elena hiked its total output to 16 points but Fernando Air Base closed in with 15 points and Villamor stood just behind with 14 points. With its strong showing, Forest Hills kept its title-retention drive going with 13 points, while Tagaytay Highlands stayed in the hunt despite going scoreless at Forest Hills, its 11-point total just five behind Sta. Elena heading to the final round of WGAP Circuit 2019 organized by the WGAP and presented by Champion and Hana products. Cecilia Tan and Corazon Atienza flashed their familiarity with the rolling layout and shot 36 and 35 Stableford points, respectively, while Yun Haeng Cho and Jonah Ilagan carded identical

34 points as Forest Hills assembled a 139 to dominate Class A with a five-point romp over Fernando Air Base, which drew 36 points from individual champion Terry Fasol. Villamor, led by Stella Patruno’s 35 points, came in third with a 124 followed by Sta. Elena (123), Tagaytay Highlands (115), Camp Aguinaldo (107) and Canlubang (106). The host team also ruled Class C with a 145 behind Evelyn Alcantara’s 38 points, a pair of 36 points from Natividad Toribio and Mary Ang and 35 points from Marissa Obsuna for a huge 13-point victory over Villamor, which pooled a 132 led by Mary Ann Reyes’s 35 points, with Camp Aguinaldo finishing third at 127 powered by individual winner Robie Ann Ramirez’s 41 points. Wack Wack placed fourth with 117 followed by Sta. Elena (116), Orchard (103), Fernando Air Base (100) and Tagaytay (91). Aguinaldo, with Ma. Cecilia Madriaga firing 39 points and Janeth Agripa, Mencie Millonado and Marie Ann Ortinez adding 37, 36 and 28 points, respectively, topped Class B with a 140, five points ahead of Sta. Elena, whose 135 total was led by individual titlist Jenny Ligones’ 35 points. Villamor wound up third with a 128 followed by Tagaytay (119), Forest Hills (112), Orchard (111) and Canlubang (106).

Tigers take on Falcons, Maroons face Bulldogs opponents as UST guns for its fourth win against Adamson University (2-2) at noon and UP hoping to stay close as it battles listless NU (0-3) in the first game at 10:30 a.m. Far Eastern University and De La Salle highlight the day’s triple-bill at 4 p.m. with both teams hoping to break loose from a 1-2 won-lost deadlock. Rookie Rhenz Abando shone the brightest for the Growling Tigers when he hit clutch baskets en route to his 21 points, six rebounds and two assists. UST Coach Aldin Ayo considers

Adamson University as a tough foe considering that Coach Franz Pumaren implements a solid system. “There’s no change for them because their system is in place. That’s the beauty of having a good system, they are always ready to compete,” Ayo said. The Fighting Maroons also had to dig deep against the Soaring Falcons. Reigning Most Valuable Player Bright Akhuetie sank two free throws with 2.8 seconds left to help State U survive a resilient Adamson University side.

Now up against NU which dropped three games that could have gone the other way, Bo Perasol of UP wants his Maroons to avoid complacency. “You know how strong they are in those three games. They could have easily been 3-0 right now,” Perasol said. “But like us, they’re trying to build character. So they’re a very dangerous team. It’s just that they haven’t had the luck in the last three games they had.” Kobe Paras debuted for the Fighting Maroons with 20 points that went with six rebounds. Ramon Rafael Bonilla

‘SHORT BUT SWEET’ SUPERLIGA T

HE Philippine Superliga (PSL) Invitational Conference kicks off on Tuesday with a “short but sweet” format that aims to boost the country’s campaign in the 30th Southeast Asian Games. Instead of a regular schedule that takes at least two months to finish, the season-ending Invitational Cup will only run until October 17 or just a little over three weeks. PSL President Dr. Ian Laurel told Tuesday’s

Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum at the Amelie Hotel in Manila they are looking at only 10 playing dates for the tournament. The eight teams will be divided into two pools for the eliminations with the top 4 teams advancing to the knockout semifinals—1 versus 4, and 2 versus 3—before heading into the onegame championship. “We need to finish the Invitational before November because by that time, focus will be

AL MENDOZA alsol47@yahoo.com

on our country’s hosting of the SEAG Games,” said Laurel of the biennial event scheduled from November 30 to December 11. “This will be the shortest but sweetest conference for Philippine Superliga,” said Cignal HD star Rachel Ann Daquis, who graced the forum with PSL administrative director Ariel Paredes, venue director Gino Panganiban, ESPN5’s Diana Garcia and representatives of the other teams.

The competing teams are Cignal HD, Foton, PLDT and Sta. Lucia in Pool A, and defending champion and newly crowned All-Filipino titlist F2 Logistics, Petron, Generika-Ayala and Marinerang Pilipina in Group B. “Even if it’s a short tournament, I’m sure these teams want to end their year by winning this crown,” Laurel added in the forum presented by San Miguel Corp., Braska Restaurant, Amelie Hotel and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.

COME to think of it: We are angry for the wrong reason/s. We ended up disastrously in the just-ended Fiba World Basketball Cup and, worst, instead of just being factual, we chose to reduce ourselves as being a bunch of evasive and unrealistic—pardon the brutality—idiots. Practically, all of us. We don’t really need rocket scientists to unlock the puzzle, riddle, or mystery on why we were beaten black and blue in China. We lacked preparation? Come on. Even if we prepared for, say, one year or even two years, the result will still be the same: We will never win in the World Cup. Why? Yes, we consume couple of years of training, giving us, maybe, the cohesion and chemistry needed to perform better. But will the years of training also give us that one major component to win the championship, let alone games that might earn us at least a bronze medal—if not an ego massage? And what’s that component again if not height? Of course, training will not add height to our players. Never. Because height is the endproduct of nature. And genes, jerk. We will never have might in this goddamn game because we don’t have the goddamn height. We are not simply anatomically tall, period. God looked the other way when he was distributing height to mankind. Sorry about that, Boss. Thus, we are merely whipping boys, perennially, in the World Cup, where only the naturally tall and hefty kind from Europe, Americas and even Africa rule. Is that hard to comprehend? We only have misplaced anger because we continue to stubbornly avoid facing the music. Acceptance, buddy, acceptance. Look at Gregg Popovich, the coach of Basketball USA. Immediately after his team got booted out in the quarterfinals by France, he accepted his defeat without ifs and buts. He could have easily pinned the blame on the absence from his team of such National Basketball Association (NBA) superstars like Steph Curry, James Harden and LeBron James. But no. Instead, Popovich, with chin up, said: “There are no ‘other guys’ in my team. These are my 12 guys who are here. They all played their best. I’m proud of them.” America’s NBA cream of the crop elected to stay home, enjoying their two-month summer with their family before plunging to NBA action again starting October. It cost the US the world crown it had won back-to-back, nosediving to seventh place this year for its worst finish in the quadrennial meet But Popovich was not angry. Neither were the American fans, who respected the position taken by their living legends in the NBA. Do you know that America treats the Worlds as a mere second fiddle to the Olympic Games? And take this: American TV networks do not carry live the entire Worlds games. So, expect the US to come in full force in the 2020 Olympics. This early, if America had the “Dream Team” in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, expect America’s “Redeem Team” to strut its wares in Tokyo next year. The Yanks always know where to vent their anger. THAT’S IT I raise a glass to Ateneo’s Thirdy Ravena’s gemstone gesture to gift University of Santo Tomas’s Rhenz Abando with two pairs of basketball shoes. I guess it’s the first time this has happened in Philippine basketball: a player presenting a precious present to his rival. If I may, I’ll call it Thirdy’s MVP act of a lifetime. MVP here meaning Most Valuable Present. The league will host the second leg of the Southeast Asian Grand Prix from October 4 to 6, where teams from Vietnam and Thailand, among others, will see action in Santa Rosa. Laguna. The Philippine team is in Thailand for the first leg of the Grand Prix set from September 20 to 22. To give the Philippine team a final tune-up for the SEA Games, the PSL will also stage the Super Cup on November 5, 7 and 9 where the nationals will be pitted against a university team from Japan and two selections made up of Superliga players. ESPN5 will air all matches of the Invitational Conference on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, the SEA Grand Prix and PSL Super Cup.

Sports

SAEID MOLLAEI training for next year’s Olympics without a guarantee he can compete. AP

BusinessMirror

| Wednesday, September 18, 2019 mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph Editor: Jun Lomibao

JUDO CHAMP IN HIDING D USSELDORF, Germany—Saeid Mollaei has been in hiding since he left the Iranian judo team last month, saying he had been ordered to withdraw from the world championships on political grounds. Now he’s training for next year’s Olympics without a guarantee he can compete. Mollaei was the defending world champion, and Israel’s Sagi Muki is his biggest rival for the gold medal. There was one problem—Iran has a policy of boycotting all competitions against Israelis, even if that means an athlete’s training was all for nothing. Mollaei told The Associated Press he was ordered to lose a preliminary bout against a Russian in order to cover up the reason for his withdrawal. When he refused and won, he received more intimidating calls from senior officials. “For once, I decided to live as a free man for myself, and prove to the world that I am a brave man,” Mollaei said in a recent interview in Germany, where he’s living in an undisclosed location. “I did this for my human soul. For myself. I wanted to practice and compete with freedom, with peace of mind,” said Mollaei, speaking in Persian. “I didn’t want to worry about whom to compete with and whom not to compete with. I’ll compete with anyone, to honor

WINNING PUTT!

the Olympic charter.” In the end, Mollaei lost a bronze-medal bout and didn’t face Muki, who won gold. The International Judo Federation (IJF), which is supporting Mollaei, said he received demands to withdraw from an Iranian deputy sports minister, embassy staff and the head of the Iranian Olympic Committee. Mollaei’s likeliest route to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics is now the International Olympic Committee’s team for refugees. The IJF is helping him but said he will need refugee status from the United Nations. So far, adapting to life in Germany is hard. “Even the clothes you can see on me [are gifts]. I had nothing when arrived in Germany. I just decided to come and I came,” he said. “I had a lot of gifts from friends and this is how I live now, with the help of a few friends and the IJF. I’m still waiting to see what will happen later, how I can compete, but obviously from the very beginning of my arrival here in Germany I started my training. Where and how I will compete later, I don’t know, yet.” Mollaei said he has not asked for asylum in Germany. Instead, he is living on a visa issued when he competed in German club events, and is cautious about security. Powerfully built, with broad shoulders, Mollaei speaks softly and chooses his words carefully.

Suzann Pettersen celebrates after holing a putt on the 18th green to win the Solheim Cup for Europe against the US at Gleneagles in Auchterarder, Scotland, on Sunday. It turns out the final putt of Pettersen’s career as the 38-year-old from Norway announces her retirement from professional golf. AP

“Even when I want to contact my family I do it through a friend in Tehran because my family is under surveillance and I can’t talk about many issues,” he said. “I don’t have much contact with any of my friends.” Mollaei told the AP he had been given similar orders to avoid Israeli competitors on three previous occasions. The last time was in February, when he failed to appear for the medal ceremony at a competition in France because it would mean sharing the podium with Muki. “Almost all Iranian athletes have received such orders when it is linked to Israeli athletes,” he said. Iranian officials have said Mollaei was somehow manipulated into leaving the team, and that he would be welcomed if he returned home. He is skeptical, pointing to an Iranian letter to the IJF in May pledging to comply with Olympic nondiscrimination rules. At the time, it was hailed as a signal Iran would end its sports boycott of Israel.

“I can assure you that they didn’t comply with the Olympic Charter. So how can we trust them?” Mollaei said of Iran’s sports officials. Mollaei’s break with the Iranian authorities comes at a time when activists are using sports to defy government demands. Female Iranian activists have campaigned for years to be allowed to attend sports stadiums, particularly for men’s soccer games, and staged protests at last year’s World Cup in Russia. Last week, Iranian news outlets reported 29-year-old soccer fan Sahar Khodayari had died after setting herself on fire upon learning she could spend six months in prison for trying to sneak into a game. Mollaei expressed sympathy for Khodayari and other female campaigners. “I wondered why this happened, why Iranian women can’t freely live like other girls, and enjoy sports and enjoy watching sports,” he said. “I don’t know what’s going on, and why such difficulties should only happen to Iranians and the Iranian sport community. “I don’t know what to say. I’m just sad and disappointed. I just hope that one day the girls and athletes in my country can live freely and can enjoy life.” AP

Saudi firm linked to pirated sports broadcasts

ONDON—Leading soccer organizations say a Saudi Arabia-backed satellite company is “without question” behind pirated match broadcasts that steals content from Qatar’s beIN Sports, intensifying a sports dispute linked to the Persian Gulf diplomatic standoff. The conclusion was reached in a joint statement by Fifa, UEFA, the English, German and Spanish leagues, and the Asian Football Confederation after they commissioned a report into the operations of the beoutQ channels, which have been accused by beIN Sports of illegally pirating its broadcasts of soccer matches and other sports.

The soccer organizations say “the report confirms without question that beoutQ’s pirate broadcasts have been transmitted using satellite infrastructure owned and operated by Arabsat.” The latest public criticism of Saudi Arabia-backed satellite broadcaster Arabsat follows a long struggle by the soccer rights holders to stop beoutQ bootlegging games. Since 2017, the Saudis have been leading a regional economic and diplomatic boycott of Qatar over accusations that Doha supports extremism. Qatar denies the claims. Arabsat has not previously responded to requests for comment. AP

Sovereign God

EAR God, Your majesty spreads across the Earth. In hope we pray: oh God, help us. Open pathways for opportunity to those who are seeking meaningful employment and may they find good pay for their labor. Give grace and strength to emergency aid workers and all who are rebuilding their lives following storm and hurricane damage. Bring an end to the wars in Syria and the Middle East. May God bless us with the peace of Christ and strengthen our hearts in love. Amen. GIVE US THIS DAY SHARED BY LUISA LACSON, HFL Word&Life Publications • teacherlouie1965@yahoo.com

Editor: Gerard S. Ramos • lifestylebusinessmirror@gmail.com

Life BusinessMirror

‘HANDMAID’S TALE,’ ‘MRS. MAISEL’ GUEST STARS CAPTURE EMMYS D3

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Amazon’s Ring doorbell cameras cause concern BOSTON—Amazon-owned doorbell camera company Ring is facing questions from a United States senator over its partnerships with police departments around the country. Sen. Edward Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat, sent a letter on Thursday to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos raising privacy and civil liberty concerns about Ring cameras that are capturing and storing footage of US neighborhoods. Markey is seeking more information from Bezos about Ring’s video-sharing agreements with lawenforcement agencies. The lawmaker says he’s also alarmed that Ring

may be pursuing facial recognition technology that could flag certain people as suspicious. Ring says it’s reviewing the letter. Many police agencies have said the partnerships with Ring’s crimefocused social network serve as a digital neighborhood watch. Critics complain it turns neighborhoods into places of constant surveillance and creates suspicion that falls heavier on minorities. The Washington Post reported last week that more than 400 police agencies have signed agreements with Ring since the company began the partnerships last year. AP

SONY EXPANDS LINEUP IN G LENS SERIES ELECTRONICS giant Sony has announced its newest two APS-C zoom lenses in the G Lens series for its E-mount lineup, including the E 16-55mm F2.8 G standard zoom lens and the E 70-350mm F4.56.3 G OSS super-telephoto zoom lens. With the announcement, Sony’s versatile E-mount system now features a total of 54 lenses. Along with the two newly launched APS-C mirrorless cameras (Alpha 6600) and (Alpha 6100), Sony’s APS-C range has been further strengthened, offering creators the ability to capture the desired moment with Sony’s advanced technologies in compact and lightweight camera bodies. Sony’s “One Mount” solution for both APS-C and full-frame cameras provide creators an extreme amount of versatility for all of their photography and video needs. “We are extremely committed to building our E-mount lineup, in both full-frame, as well as APS-C,” said Dai Tanaka, director of digital imaging, Sony Electronics Asia Pacific. “We will continue to drive innovation in all aspects of imaging, empowering all creators to capture and create like they’ve never been able to before.” The 16-55mm (24-82.5mm in 35mm equivalent focal length) APS-C standard zoom with a constant F2.8 aperture offers excellent G Lens image quality with outstanding all-around performance. This lens is ideal for professionals, as well as enthusiasts to capture landscapes, portraits and everyday snapshots. Meanwhile, the new E 70-350mm F4.5-6.3 G OSS super-telephoto zoom lens with optimized optical and mechanical design provides excellent G Lens image quality throughout the image area, right out to the maximum 350mm (105-525mm in 35mm equivalent) focal length. High optical performance is combined with the convenience and mobility of a compact, lightweight design even with 5x zoom. It also includes built-in optical image stabilization which adds even further stability and convenience to this versatile super-telephoto zoom that is ideal for landscape and wildlife photographers. More information about the newest APS-C zoom lenses in the G Lens series is available at www.sonyasia.com/electronics/camera-lenses.

EU competition chief hints at new data rules for tech firms

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By KELVIN CHAN The Associated Press

ONDON—The European Union’s powerful competition chief indicated on Friday that she’s looking at expanding regulations on personal data, dropping an initial hint about how she plans to use new powers against tech companies. Margrethe Vestager said that while Europeans have control over their own data through the EU’s world-leading data privacy rules, they don’t address problems stemming from the way companies use other people’s data, “to draw conclusions about me or to undermine democracy.” “So we may also need broader rules to make sure that the way companies collect and use data doesn’t harm the fundamental values of our society,” Vestager said in a speech in Copenhagen. Vestager spoke days after she was appointed to a second term as the EU’s competition commissioner. She was also given new powers as an executive vice president to shape the bloc’s digital policies.

The Danish politician earned a reputation as the world’s most powerful technology regulator after issuing multibillion-dollar penalties to Silicon Valley tech giants, including Apple and Google. She is currently investigating Amazon over whether it is exploiting data from independent merchants for an unfair advantage. With her new powers to make “Europe fit for the digital age,” Vestager appears ready to build on the EU’s General Data Privacy Regulation—tough new standards for personal data that took effect in 2018. Vestager said she was concerned about how online platforms “manipulate the way we see the world, in ways that we often don’t even notice,” which could affect how people make decisions. Data is becoming more important to how people “think and act,” Vestager said. She didn’t identify specific companies that could be targeted, but her comments signal that she’ll keep up the pressure on the US tech giants. “When a few companies control a lot of data about us,” Vestager said, “that can also help them influence the choices we make.” n

A different way to touch lives JUST how far can your P1,000 GCredit take you? For two mothers, it helped provide the means to make ends meet for a time when they were grappling with their own personal hardships. Iona Ison and Judy Moreno are two women who have found the purpose of GCredit, a revolving credit line of GCash, in their daily lives since they started using the service last year. A mother of four, Iona recalled that her family took to the app when they were short on cash after her husband lost his job. Meanwhile, Judy used the service to make ends meet when she landed a new job as a senior supervisor a few months ago. “There was a time in our lives that we were really struggling financially. GCredit really helped keep us afloat when we were in dire need,” Iona said. Both mothers were approved with a P1,000 initial credit line through the GCash app and have been consistently building up their scores with the mobile digital platform since. From buying diapers and medicine to load transactions, both women said they now use GCredit almost daily as it “serves a purpose” for their family. With GCredit being as “good as cash,” both mothers use GCredit when they need the extra money or use it as a revolving fund. “My family uses GCredit regularly, especially on those desperate moments. We use it to buy groceries and school supplies of the kids. It helps cover a lot of our expenses for the house,” Judy said. While it is one of the newer services on the platform, GCredit has already touched the lives of individuals and their families, including Iona and Judy. GCash launched GCredit to provide practical and convenient credit option for its users. It is a credit line that users can avail for QR-based physical payments and digital services, such as online shopping and bills payment, among others. While it is similar to a credit card, GCredit makes it easier for more Filipinos to have access to credit without the extensive documentary requirements and long lines. GCash Head of Lending Geena Alindato said GCredit is one of the cornerstones of GCash’s push toward financial inclusion that embrace the ordinary Filipino. “Delivery of basic financial services through a convenient and easy platform is our goal here at GCash. And we are glad to offer GCredit, an easy and necessary credit service needed by many Filipinos without the hassle,” said Alindato. Both Judy and Iona highlighted GCredit’s low interest rates, which starts at 5 percent but can be reduced if it is paid early as it is prorated. To avail of GCredit, users simply have to build up their GScore, which is basically the credit scoring system that GCash built to determine the creditworthiness of clients. The higher the GScore is, the lower rates they get. Alindato noted that with GCredit, Filipinos can avoid the pitfalls of loan sharks or even pawning their valuable items just to make ends meet.

Pet Corner BusinessMirror

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Missing Persian cat reunites with family a�ter 3 years

ONIA, Michigan—A flea-ridden Persian cat so weak she could barely stand was rescued from a residential garden in Ionia and reunited with her family in Grand Rapids after three years apart, an Ionia County animal control officer said. Violet was found in Ionia on August 6. She was covered in maggots, flies and fleas, the Ionia SentinelStandard reports. Ionia County Animal Control Director Carly Quinn took Violet to a vet who was able to identify the 10-year-old because she was microchipped. It took more effort to track down her humans 30 miles (50 kilometers) away. Drew Potter adopted Violet from the Humane Society in 2012, but his contact information on the chip was outdated. Quinn persisted and found him on Facebook after a few hours. The reunification of Potter and Violet was “beautiful,” Quinn said. Potter doesn’t recall the exact date, but Violet went missing some time in 2016, he said. Potter said he gave Violet to his daughters as a gift when his family was going through a separation. But suddenly, Violet disappeared. The girls tried to track her down. Potter suspected she was stolen or escaped. “It was just a hard time for us,” Potter said. “We got through it like we do. It’s just strange when something like this happens. Life is just so different now than when we lost her. She brought back a lot of memories I had forgotten about it.” He said his daughters, now ages 21 and 11, were in tears when they learned Violet had been found. Potter called finding Violet a “blast from the past.” Potter said he wishes he knew where Violet has been in the intervening years, but he appreciates having her now. “It’s just one of those things where you’ve got to appreciate what you got,” Potter said. AP

Today’s Horoscope By Eugenia Last

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Taraji P. Henson, 49; Harry Connick Jr., 52; Virginia Madsen, 58; Scott Patterson, 61. HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Let the past be your barometer. Don’t lose sight of what happened and who let you down. You have more options than you realize. Be clear when it comes to what you want and who you want to associate with. Choose wisely, and the changes that occur will bring you the rewards you desire. Your lucky numbers are 5, 18, 21, 28, 36, 42, 49.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Don’t let emotions get in the way. Size up what’s at stake and how much you can accomplish. If you stay focused on what’s important instead giving a playby-play account of what you are doing, you will avoid unnecessary interference. ★★★

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Listen, compare and be willing to make reasonable changes. An emotional situation will arise with one of your peers if you share too much personal information. Look for options that won’t jeopardize your reputation or make you feel uncomfortable. ★★★

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Cover all aspects of a situation necessary to ensure you do a decent job. Observe what others are doing and avoid letting anyone tamper with your affairs. A change will turn into a learning experience. Be careful what you wish for. ★★★★★

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Take time to figure out how you can make things better at home. A look at your relationships with loved ones will help you redefine how you restructure your everyday routine. Accommodating someone you love will pay off. ★★

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Take a close look at your relationships with others, and consider who brings out the best in you and who doesn’t. Draw the line with anyone who is unpredictable or urges you to make poor choices. Be honest and cut ties. ★★★★

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Don’t hesitate to make subtle changes to the way you look or how you live. Doing your most to be your best will make an impression and attract people eager to work alongside you. Romance is highlighted. ★★★

MID-PLAINS COMMUNITY COLLEGE STUDENTS NOW HAVE THERAPY DOG NORTH PLATTE, Nebraska—Students returning to Mid-Plains Community College campuses in Nebraska will find a new tool to help with their emotional health—and she’s furry. The college has added Shenzi, a black Labrador puppy, as the college’s therapy dog to help those going through a personal tragedy or loss. The college says Shenzi’s work began this month with the return of students for a new fall semester.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

SHELTER HOPES FACIAL RECOGNITION APP WILL FIND PETS

NORFOLK, Virginia—An animal shelter in Virginia says it’s hoping to harness the power of facial recognition to reunite missing pets with their owners. News outlets report the Norfolk Animal Care and Adoption Center is joining a growing list of shelters using Finding Rover, an application created in 2012 that takes facial recognition software most commonly used on humans and puts it to work on dogs and cats. The shelter will add photos of animals in its care to the app and local owners of missing pets are encouraged to do the same. The app then scans for matches. The app creator previously told outlets that during tests, the software proved 98 percent effective with front-facing photos. He did note that the app is limited to the number of pets in its database. AP

Shenzi’s handler, Holly Andrews, says the pup is taking over the role that had belonged to Nestle, the college’s therapy dog for the previous five years. Nestle died in January after a battle with cancer. The college has its main campuses in North Platte and McCook, and satellite campuses in Broken Bow, Imperial, Ogallala and Valentine. Shenzi will be available to students at all locations at various times. AP

Woman upset over her dog being dyed by groomer LAKE WORTH BEACH, Florida—What would you do if your beloved furry member of the family went to the salon for some pampering—and emerged from the salon having had way too much what should have been a good thing? Well, a Florida woman got a colorful but unwanted surprise when she picked up her dog from a grooming session. The Palm Beach Post reports Graziella Puleo’s Goldendoodle named Lola was scheduled for a buzz cut and teeth cleaning recently at a Lake Worth grooming center. When Puleo picked up the dog, its eyebrows and tail were shaved and dyed neon green, and its ears were neon pink. The dog’s underside was left pink from the close cut, which caused an infection that had to be treated by a vet. Amore’s Pet Salon Dog Grooming Day Care Boarding Spa owner Raquel Adams says they thought Lola was “missing something” and wanted to “beautify” the dog. Adams says the dyed areas could be easily trimmed with scissors. AP

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Keeping up shouldn’t be your concern. Do what feels comfortable and suits your budget. Letting someone else’s expectations be your guide will lead to disappointment. Satisfy your needs and set goals that are reasonable, and satisfaction will be yours. ★★★

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Put greater emphasis on how you feel, and fit better health and diet practices into your everyday routine. If you look and feel your best, it will encourage you to do your own thing.★★★

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SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Watch what others do and listen to what they say. Someone will misinterpret or lead you astray, causing conflict with a friend, relative or peer. Don’t let emotions intervene in your communication. ★★★★ CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Avoid getting into heated discussions that can cause unwanted personal change. Stay focused on your personal papers, finances and legal matters. Refuse to let an emotional plea sway you from doing what’s right. Stick to the script you prepared. ★★

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Don’t show anger or act impulsively when dealing with joint ventures. Protect against insult or injury and focus on positive change that will bring you greater stability. Take time out to rejuvenate and to rethink the best way to move forward. ★★★★★

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): A financial gain looks promising. Make personal changes that will offset some of the problems or situations you want to put behind you. Use your imagination, and you will come up with an idea that will lead to success. ★★★ BIRTHDAY BABY: You are hardworking, diligent and ambitious. You are creative and persuasive.

‘let’s get loud’ BY NEVILLE FOGARTY The Universal Crossword/Edited by David Steinberg

ACROSS 1 Relish containers 5 Caribou’s cousin 10 Sci-fi vehicles 14 Wild way to run 15 Composer Copland 16 “Nick at ___” 17 Game show with a loud “Strike” sound effect 19 Cut, or cut sound 20 Shade-tolerant bloomers 21 Program such as The Allusionist 23 Sticky secretion 24 Going around in circles 25 Establishes 28 Graf who won five US Opens 31 Silly, to a Brit 34 Hits lightly 36 Wee hour 37 Game with Wild cards 38 Meal where you hear the loud sizzle of batter 40 Sch. whose students get a discount at Monticello 41 Feed, as a fire 43 Duct ___

44 45 47 49 51 55 57 59 60

Come apart, as a rope Take for ransom Parkinson’s drug Pet that’s illegal in California Saying Astronaut Gus Array of resources Cleaning cloths Very loud, in music...or a hint to the starred answers’ initials 62 Arthur who won the Open Era’s first US Open 63 Shopping list components 64 Whoop ___ 65 Damon of The Martian 66 Past or present 67 Interior designer Berkus DOWN 1 Aladdin villain 2 Really impress 3 Some tomatoes 4 Way up a slope 5 Rudolph of Bridesmaids 6 Big lugs 7 Catan resource 8 Progresso products

9 Funds, as a scholarship 10 Turn out the light? 11 March Madness round with especially loud crowds 12 Redding of soul 13 Six mos. after March 18 Fallon predecessor 22 Simple song 24 Paving supply 26 One of Hank Aaron’s record 2,297: Abbr. 27 More than 50 percent 29 Bean paired with pecorino 30 “Possibly” 31 When many parks close 32 The “A” of NSAID 33 Unruly cafeteria event with loud students 35 “Monk” force, briefly 38 Nightmare sources, perhaps 39 ___ Speedwagon 42 Israeli diet? 44 What an opening shot often does 46 Make money 48 Say “No thanks” 50 Twitch chat symbol, informally

52 53 54 55 56 57 58 61

“Sweet Love” singer Baker Spectrum Avoid a big wedding Metric mass measure Tabula ___ 24-hr. cash dispensers Increase Star Wars villain Kylo ___

Solution to yesterday’s puzzle:

Show BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

BLIND SPOT BRUCE C.

EMBARGO

A LOT of people were wondering why, during a recent big event, there were very little updates on social media. They wanted to see updates from stars and members of glam teams. Alas, there was none. Apparently, the stars and glam team members were forbidden from posting anything on social media until a day or two after the event. Whoever thought of trending the event days after it happened should be fired. It would have been nice to see updates from the official accounts and the stars themselves. Nobody understands, even now, why it happened. As a result, many fans were deprived of seeing their favorites in real time. Even after the event, some of the stars became lazy to post anything.

FRENEMY LUKE KIRBY poses in the press room with the award for outstanding guest actor in a comedy series for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards last September 15. AP

JANE LYNCH added to her four previous Emmys for series, including Glee and Hollywood Game Night, with her bravura guest appearance as a 1950s comic in The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. AP

‘Handmaid’s Tale,’ ‘Mrs. Maisel’ guest stars capture Emmys L OS ANGELES—A trio of Emmy-honored actors are winners again for their guest performances in TV series, joined by an awards newcomer. Bradley Whitford and Cherry Jones received trophies for their The Handmaid’s Tale roles at Sunday’s creative arts Emmy ceremony. Jane Lynch and Luke Kirby won on the comedy side, both for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Game of Thrones led with 10 Emmys in technical and other categories at the two-night weekend ceremony, which is the precursor to the main Emmy Awards that will air September 22 on Fox. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel was the top comedy series winner, with six awards. Jones, who previously won for 24, heaped praise backstage on fellow nominee Phylicia Rashad (This Is Us), calling it “absurd” that Rashad has yet to win an Emmy despite four nominations, and saluted Cicely Tyson, nominated for How to Get Away with Murder. “I got to tell Ms. Tyson tonight that watching The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman is one of the things that made me want to be an actress, and I tell her that every time I see her and she always rolls her eyes,” Jones said. Whitford has an Emmy for The West Wing and one for Transparent—the latter for guest actor in a comedy,

making him the first actor to win comedy and drama guest star Emmys. In his acceptance speech, Whitford struck a political note as he thanked Margaret Atwood for the titular novel that is the basis of the dystopian The Handmaid’s Tale. Atwood is “giving us perspective in this disorienting moment as we are inundated and undermined by a misogynistic, radical, right-wing ideology,” he said. “She understands three things: Despair is not an option. Our children can’t afford it. Action is the antidote to despair.” Lynch, who added to her four previous Emmys for series, including Glee and Hollywood Game Night, said she based her portrayal of a 1950s comic on the women she grew up watching. “I went right to the source: Phyllis Diller, Totie Fields, Moms Mabley,” Lynch said. “Back then, in order for a woman to be in comedy, she had to have a gimmick. Usually that meant cracking wise about her own looks, her bad body, how she can’t hold on to a man, but these women did it with such panache and style and such self-possession, and they inspire me.” Kirby, who played Lenny Bruce on The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, has also appeared in The Deuce and Rectify.” The British marital comedy State of the Union won

the Emmy for best short-form comedy or drama series, with short-form acting honors going to its stars, Chris O’Dowd and Rosamund Pike. Leaving Neverland, which details two men’s allegations that pop star Michael Jackson sexually abused them as children, was honored at Saturday’s ceremony as best documentary or nonfiction special. Before his 2009 death, Jackson denied repeated, similar allegations against him, and his estate has denounced the documentary. Among other awards presented: n Animated program: The Simpsons: Mad About the Toy. n Character voice-over performance: Seth MacFarlane, Family Guy: Con Heiress. n Host for a reality or competition program: RuPaul, RuPaul’s Drag Race. n Unstructured reality program: United Shades of America with W. Kamau Bell. n Documentary or nonfiction series: Our Planet. n Commercial: “Dream Crazy,” Nike. n Music composition for a limited series, movie or special (original dramatic score): Hildur Gudnadottir, Chernobyl: Please Remain Calm. nMusic composition for a series (original dramatic score): Ramin Djawadi, Game of Thrones: The Long Night. AP

Wrestlemania comes to Manila By Ed Uy IT’S been a long three years for wrestling fans, but the wait is finally over as the WWE make its muchawaited return to the Philippines. The squared circle is once again set as Wilbros Live presents “WWE Live Manila” this September 20 at Smart Araneta Coliseum. The show will be headlined by two Wrestlemania XXV rematches: Roman Reigns against Drew McIntyre in a Street Fight, and WWE Champion Kofi Kingston defends his title againt Daniel Bryan. For the past year Drew McIntyre has been obsessed with ending Reigns’s career and will stop at nothing to put the Big Dog down. Reigns has been the target of McIntyre’s assaults following his return from a four-month battle with leukemia and despite Reign’s victory at Wrestlemania, the fiery Scot has been relentless is his assaults. Will a noholds-barred street match finally put an end to this vicious rivalry? This year has also been Kofi Kingston’s, who is out to defy all odds to become the first African-born WWE Champion in history, as well as WWE’s

THE Big Dog Roman Reigns defends his yard against Drew McIntyre at WWE Live Manila

30th Triple Crown and 20th Grand Slam champion. He has also proven to be a fighting champ, defending his title from the likes of Kevin Owens, Dolph Ziggler and Samoa Joe. But his biggest nemesis remains to be Bryan, the man he defeated for the championship at Wrestlemania.

Kingston’s rise as WWE Champion came as an unexpected welcome, something Bryan, the once WWE Universe crowd-favorite, simply cannot stand. Making their return to Manila are Charlotte Flair and Kevin Owens. Charlotte saw action here three

years ago, successfully defending her women’s title against Sasha Banks, while Owens won over both Sami Zayn and Seth Rollins in a triple-threat match. Although the final matches have yet to be revealed, the other WWE Superstars initially included in the lineup are Asuka, Elias, The New Day Xavier Woods and Big E, Shinsuke Nakamura, Rusev, Bayley, Carmella, and many more, although the final matches have yet to be revealed. “WWE Live Manila” is presented in partnership with Wilbros Live, a leading concert and live events promoter in the Philippines. “Wilbros Live is thrilled to bring WWE Live back to Manila this year,” said Winston Llamas, executive producer of Wilbros Live. “We are excited to return to Manila where the passionate WWE Universe can see their favorite WWE Superstars live,” said Chris Marsh, vice president and general manager of WWE Asia Pacific. “Our fans can look forward to experiencing another action-packed night of family-friendly entertainment that will create lifelong memories. Tickets to “WWE Live Manila 2019” are available at all Ticketnet outlets nationwide and via www.ticketnet.com.ph.

THE aspiring singer comes from a rich family and she’s kind of show business royalty. She has talent but hasn’t had a big break. She is part of a group that includes a power couple. The aspiring singer and the actress, who’s the girlfriend of the actor, are very good friends—or so it seems. But when the actress’ back is turned, the singer reportedly says not-sogood things about her. The singer seems to resent the fact that her enemy is a big star and she is not. She also resents the actress for getting endorsements, conveniently forgetting that she is a bigger star who did not need her parents’ connections to make it in the business. The aspiring singer is so full of resentment that she forgot these things. She overlooked the fact that the actress started from scratch and whatever she has now is proof of her hard work.

ATTITUDE

THE actress has had big breaks but she’s never quite made it big, whereas those who are younger and more experienced than her are bigger stars. She hasn’t had a project in a while and it’s not because her management has neglected her. On the contrary, she has been offered a couple of projects, both of which she refused. Her management feels that the actress feels the projects are beneath her. The actress, in truth, is confident that her boyfriend, who comes from a rich family, will marry her and she won’t ever need to work again. Unlike many stars who went into show business to fulfill their dreams, the actress is intent on finding a rich husband. She used to have a very rich boyfriend but he left her. This time, she hopes to be lucky.

SKELETONS

THE designer used to be one of the country’s most promising in his field until something happened that made him leave in disgrace. He tried to rebuild his life abroad and was relatively successful, even if he had to step on a few toes along the way. So he came back semi-triumphant—until stories started trickling out about what he really did to survive, and that includes allegedly cheating his business partner of the latter’s life savings. He’s been dressing celebrities and socialites, many of whom still believe in his talent. However, netizens were shocked to see that one of his recent designs seemed to have been knocked off from an international designer’s. Someone has already pointed it out and if people were to judge the designer based on what he’s done in the past, then he’s in trouble.

CIGNAL TV LAUNCHES ONE PH, 24/7 ALL-FILIPINO NEWS CHANNEL THE country’s No.1 Pay TV provider, Cignal TV launched recently the latest addition to its exclusive lineup of news channels, One PH. The all-Filipino news channel is the third Cignal channel under the One branding, complementing One News, the English-language news channel and its sports channel One Sports. “One PH furthers our commitment to deliver reliable news and public affairs programs that matter most to Filipinos,” says Sienna G. Olaso, Cignal TV vice president of channel management. “True to our goal to be ‘Ang Boses ng Pinagkakaisang Pilipinas,’ One PH will be home to news programs that inform and educate, talk shows that inspire and entertain, and public service programs that will provide our fellow Filipinos a venue where they can seek help for their problems,” Olaso added. One PH’s programming block will be headlined by news and commentary programs, such as One Balita, the noontime daily news program that gives you a quick rundown of the day’s biggest stories, covering national, Metro and police stories hosted by Raffy Tulfo and Jamie Herrell. Veteran journalists Cheryl Cosim and Jove Francisco join forces in “Sa Totoo Lang” to give insightful commentary on the biggest news stories of the day, and interview news makers and political players. Make your weekday evenings more interesting with veteran journos Ed Lingao, Patrick Paez, Lourd de Veyra, Melvyn Calderon, Manny Mogato and Jove Francisco as they talk about the day’s top headlines in “Wag Po.” In need of advice? Chinkee Tan and Christine Bersola-Babao will teach you how to manage your finances in Mag-Badyet Tayo!. Inay Ko Po! is a new show by moms for moms, hosted by millennial moms Jennica Garcia and Pat Fernandez. As they say, “There’s no business like showbusiness,” and entertainment industry veteran Cristy Fermin will make sure you are always updated with the latest happenings in the local entertainment scene in Cristy Ferminute, as well as the juiciest blind items as she teams up with Lolit Solis and Mr. Fu in Take It Per Minute. Finally, for sports and motoring enthusiasts, you can catch all the exciting highlights with Zaldy Perez in Isport Lang, get motoring tips from Mike Potenciano and Lindy Pellicer in Turbo Time, and ride with Jay Taruc in the first weekly motorcycle show Ride Radio. These and other news and public affairs programs are on One PH, the 24-hour news service on Cignal TV.

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Who gets your digital assets— heirs or hackers? A BANK or brokerage can’t just take your money when you die. If you don’t have a will or other estate plan, the laws of your state determine who gets the value in those accounts. Your digital assets are a different story. Your online photos and videos, frequent flyer miles, cryptocurrency and other digitally stored files may well disappear without a trace if you don’t make a plan to pass them along. Conversely, some stuff you may prefer to shut down or keep private—e-mails and texts, social-media accounts, dating app profiles— could be shared or hacked, unless you take steps to secure the information. MAKE A LIST ESTATE planning experts recommend creating an inventory of your online accounts and digital files, along with your login ID, passwords, the answers to any security questions and what type of twofactor authentication, if any, is in use. (Two-factor authentication is often a code that’s texted or e-mailed to you or generated using a smartphone app.) Start with a list of your devices—smartphones, tablets, laptops and desktop computers—and their passwords, along with passwords to any important apps (such as that code generator). Then inventory the other electronic records you use, own or control. DECIDE WHO GETS WHAT SOME assets can’t be passed down. When you buy a book or song online, for example, you’re typically only buying a license that expires when you do, says Ray Radigan, head of private trust at TD Bank in New York. One workaround is to set up a family account that allows you to share your digital bounty now and after you die. Many travel providers also insist in their “terms and conditions” that rewards aren’t your property, but their actual policies vary. Many airlines, for example, will transfer frequent flyer miles to the appropriate heirs, says Karin Prangley, senior vice president at financial services firm Brown Brothers Harriman in Chicago. Some companies, including Google and Facebook, allow you to designate someone to handle your account when you die. Others simply close or deactivate accounts when they learn of a death. Searching for the company name along with the phrase “what happens to my account when I die” can turn up its policies. Once you decide what you want to happen with each type of account or digital asset, write down your wishes. You can leave these instructions and the relevant login credentials in a letter, stored with your other estate planning documents, which can be given to the person you want to carry out those wishes: your digital executor. APPOINT YOUR ‘DIGITAL EXECUTOR’ YOUR digital executor could be the same trusted person who settles the rest of your estate, or you might want to choose someone who is more techsavvy. Talk to the person first to ensure they’re willing and then let them know how to access the documents they’ll need, says Jason Largey, senior estate planning strategist at Personal Capital in Denver. Your digital executor should be named in your will or living trust, estate planning experts say. Depending on state law, your attorney may need to add additional language to your documents to address the disposition of your digital assets. SET A DATE TO REVIEW YOUR PLAN TECH evolves fast. Remember floppy disks and Myspace? If not, consider that 10 years ago, nobody had an iPad or an Instagram account. Meanwhile, biometrics, including fingerprint scans and facial recognition, are already replacing passwords and other login credentials. Your digital assets, and how you access them, are likely to change even faster than your financial and physical property, Prangley says. She makes it a point to review and update her digital estate plan annually, at the same time she’s updating her passwords. “It’s something I do like spring cleaning, once a year,” she says. AP

‘Do you mind?’ SUI GENERIS CARLO ATIENZA

biblisko@gmail.com

E were having lunch at this themed restaurant when I saw a rotary dial telephone straight from the 1970s. This made me think of a time when people were not slaves to their screens but instead were free to do their activities without having to surreptitiously look at their mobile phones from time to time. The telephone might have found a way to be wireless but it has found another way of keeping us tethered in a way that is invisible and seemingly unbreakable. And the sad part is we have created and fortified that connection to our own detriment. We have become so distracted with our gadgets from what is happening around us, to the extent we walk around commenting on a post or messaging someone while walking or driving. Here is another brand of a zombie apocalypse—people mindlessly walking around with their eyes glued to their screens oblivious to the people around them, carelessly bumping and tripping over each other. We have become so engrossed in our gadgets that instead of us managing them, these devices are managing us. We have mindlessly given control to machines, rather than us controlling them, and it did not happen overnight. It became little things which added up into habits and soon enough, it has become second nature for us to check new messages and notifications which, when taken in total, adds up to time wasted instead of doing something productive and beneficial to your personal or career growth. To avoid these little habits from piling and wasting your time, you need to be mindful. Being mindful means you are present in the moment and are aware of what you are doing, rather than becoming a passive spectator to events happening around you. It is a deliberate and conscious effort to do activities based on what you expect to accomplish. This does not mean avoiding all activities without an objective, but rather being clear on what you hope to achieve with a task or an activity. A lot of times, we get caught up in doing what others do that we end up just following the herd and we get caught up in a cycle which we did not want in the first place. Being mindful is actively steering your life in the direction you want and not be controlled by anyone or

One example of being mindful is how you spend time with your loved one. Do you purposely set aside a time to spend with them and focus on them entirely? Or, do you tinker with your phone or do other things when you are with them? Mindfulness means focusing on what you want to accomplish and being aware of other distractions, but keeping these in check because you deliberately want to deepen your relationship. anything else. One example of being mindful is how you spend time with your loved one. Do you purposely set aside a time to spend with them and focus on them entirely? Or, do you tinker with your phone or do other things when you are with them? Mindfulness means focusing on what you want to accomplish and being aware of other distractions, but keeping these in check because you deliberately want to deepen your relationship. It is not setting a date and eating out, only to spend a majority of the time checking social media or work notifications. As in the case of a personal relationship, being mindful of your partner goes a long way in establishing trust, building your relationship, and responding to their needs and wants. This goes the same for any relationship—be it personal or professional. If you are not mindful of the other person’s interests and how they respond to you, it will become difficult for you to convince them to work with you or support you. Being mindful of how they react to what you are saying will help you communicate better because as soon as you know how they are reacting, you can adjust what you are saying or solicit their feedback before being wholly dismissed. You will miss out on clues from their body language if you are not mindful of how they react. I used to work with a manager who would clear her throat before speaking whenever she was not sure of what to say or when she was agitated. And we knew she was already stressed out when she kept clearing her throat even when it was not yet her turn to speak. There was a time I was sitting beside her and she began to clear her throat incessantly. She was getting

anxious about the new program being rolled out and its effect on her team. I helped her make sense of how the new program would actually benefit her team, and how the new program would lighten her team’s load and help her focus on other tasks. I may not have worked with her before but after that incident, she became more affable to me and we helped each other out whenever we could. If I were not mindful, I would have missed the opportunity of learning from her vast experience in HR. Another advantage of being mindful is the ability to regulate your emotions. Understanding where the other person is coming from will help you separate the emotion from what they are saying, and you can validate what the real issue is and address this. It becomes more difficult when you are dealing with a hysterical person you do not know. Being mindful helps you check your own emotions so you do not react negatively to the emotional outburst, but instead validate what the other person’s issues are by asking follow-up questions so you can figure out what they are actually trying to say and address those issues properly. It takes a great deal of self-restraint to do this, but it helps in resolving issues to the root cause, rather than addressing the outburst alone. When we are mindful, we take an active participation in our lives rather than overreacting, letting things happen, or be swayed by any fad which comes our way. We focus on our tasks and activities deliberately and purposively because we know it will benefit us in the long run. And when something unexpected comes our way, we know better than to be affected, because we know we can take steps to rise above it and strive to be the best person we can be. n

Dennis Uy wins EY Asean Entrepreneurial Excellence Award in Singapore DENNIS UY, chairman and president of Udenna Corp., has received the Asean Entrepreneurial Excellence Award from EY Singapore’s 2019 Entrepreneur of the Year, the world’s most prestigious business awards program for entrepreneurs established by Ernst & Young Global Ltd. The highly coveted honorary award is presented by EY Singapore’s EOY program to successful Southeast Asian businessmen that have helped develop economies and communities in the region. Since the inception of the Udenna Corp. in Davao City in 2002, Uy has gone on to become one of the nation’s leading businessmen. Udenna is the parent company of Uy’s venture into

distribution and retail of petroleum products through Phoenix Petroleum. Phoenix is now the only homegrown brand among the top 4 international industry players. He also got into shipping and logistics via Chelsea Logistics and Infrastructure Holdings Corp., which has become the biggest shipping and logistics company in the Philippines. Udenna has since expanded and diversified its portfolio to include property development, education, food, gaming, tourism, infrastructure and retail. Dito Telecommunity Corp., majority of which is owned by Udenna and Chelsea, was recently chosen to operate as the new major telecommunications service provider in the

country by late 2020. In the wake of such success, Uy has helped support numerous advocacies through the Udenna Foundation and Phoenix Philippines Foundation. Through these foundations, Udenna has been able to provide financial and medical assistance to soldiers in Marawi City and their families, grant scholarships to their employees and their children, organize relief operations in times of natural disasters, and embark on several environmental projects. “Dennis’s entrepreneurial story is truly outstanding,” said Max Loh, Singapore managing partner, Ernst & Young Llp. “His impact extends beyond job creation through

his portfolio of companies to charity-driven ventures through the Udenna Foundation and Phoenix Philippines Foundation, bringing to life how successful corporates can contribute to the society and help build a better working world— and in his case, in the Philippines.” The EY Entrepreneur of the Year program was launched in 2002 to honor people who have created successful business ventures. It is the leading business award in Singapore, as well as the first and only truly global entrepreneurial awards program. Among the things the awardgiving body considers when selecting winners include entrepreneurial spirit, strategic direction, community impact and personal integrity.

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E2 Wednesday, September 18, 2019

LAMUDI’S REAL ESTATE CONFERENCE 2019:

Understanding real estate in the age of disruption and digitalization Amor Maclang

FIRST DIBS IN REAL ESTATE

REMEMBER the discussion surrounding tapas and sangria with my good friend Bhavna Suresh when the Eureka moment happened for me. Why don’t we call it “The Outlook!” Bhavna said, “I love it!” And the rest is history. Conversations surrounding real estate can happen at any place and any time: when there is new construction happening in the business district, when an up-and-coming developer plans to change the skyline with a proposed development, or even when investors are comparing the value of property acquired a decade ago with a property they are eyeing today. However, it is rare for all facets of real estate to be represented in one venue, with conversations ranging from taking sustainable action to digitalizing real estate marketing and exploring the sharing economy. This led to the inception of Lamudi’s The Outlook’s Real Estate Conference, a panel discussion where representatives of today’s property developers and other

professionals related to the real-estate industry gather to share their ideas and perspectives on conversations that steer the industry forward. This October 17, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Lamudi will gather the voices that shape the Philippine real estate’s future at the Makati Shangri-La for a day to network and collaborate.

Every topic deserves a voice

NOW that there is more demand for wellness real estate, developers are moving towards more sustainable developments. The Outlook Conference would be remiss if it did not discuss “Taking Sustainable Action: Addressing Climate Change Through Real Estate” to spark conversation about the integration of sustainable efforts in urban

LAMUDI Philippines Inc. President and CEO Bhavna Suresh

planning. The discussion aims to identify various approaches to real-estate developers and leaders use to address climate change and direct the Philippines toward a greener and more sustainable future. “New-Age Customer Experience: Transforming Real Estate Marketing in the Age of Disruption,” a topic that focuses on the technological innovations directing the real-estate industry forward, will provide creative insights into the disruptive marketing that makes each development attract even the most discerning property seeker. In this modern age, it is important to prioritize customer experience as the main driver of innovation, with property seekers judging the amenities that come with each building is just as important as the price range it falls in. The changing market demands, of course, call for fresh and evolved sales strategies. This is the focus of “Fresh Per-

spectives: Mapping Evolving Real Estate Sales,” where the discussion will tackle the identification of emerging business models, strategies, and cutting-edge developments that have received a favorable response from customers who have changing needs and wants. What makes this a well-rounded discussion is the presence of prominent figures from all over the country, highlighting the developments that reshape not just Luzon, but also the Visayas and Mindanao to reach global standards. The Philippines has a particularly interesting take on the sharing economy, and in the last decade, freelancers and small businesses have been the main drivers in the sector’s growth. This is the focus of the discussion “Paradigm Shifts: Exploring the Sharing Economy in Philippine Real Estate,” which will discuss the way the local landscape welcomed coliving and coworking solutions in response to changing lifestyles,

providing accessible living arrangements that solve the transportation problems in a heavily congested Metro, and affordable and trendy office setups in the most soughtafter parts of the city. The Outlook Conference will also tackle “Changing Face: Uncovering Alternative Ways to Invest in Real Estate,” a discussion that focuses on different real-estate investments, including REIT, which opens the doors for income-generating investments. In a digital landscape, there is a bigger room for investors to start on their portfolio at a young age, but not before they are equipped with the tools of the trade shared by industry leaders and major developers. Contributing to the discussions are the names that lead the way in real-estate development: Jose Soberano III of Cebu Landmasters, Cary Lagdameo of Damosa Land, Jelmer Ikink of MyTown, and Cathy Saldaña of PDP Architects are some of the key personalities who will be present on October 17 together with Financial Inclusion Specialist/Advocate Gay Santos, Meralco’s Ma. Cecilia Domingo, Solana Land’s Carlo Valerio, Kalibr’s Paul Rivera, Philippine Daily Inquirer Property’s Tek Samaniego, and Kahon.ph’s Nick Padilla.

The Outlook Conference: A gathering of ideas

THE real-estate industry is shifting in response to the needs of the market. Though it is in the hands of the developers to build developments, it is not enough to simply build without a vision and without looking into the demand. Lamudi created The Outlook Real Estate Conference as an avenue for discussion and collaboration, where each panelist can discuss the next big idea that the whole industry can benefit from. The Outlook 2019 culminates with a gala night, The Philippine Buyers’ Choice Property Awards, where those who have made the most impactful contributions to the real--estate market will be given recognition on November 14, 2019, also at the Makati Shangri-La.

A revitalized self-contained community Solviento Villas continues to take shape

RENTVILLE International Community, a project of Filinvest Prestige, will offer a new village experience as it transforms into a self-contained master-planned community. Filinvest Prestige is a luxury real-estate developer that complements sophisticated lifestyles with specifically-crafted living spaces and leisure concepts. Its project portfolio range from residential properties like Bahia, Banyan Crest, Banyan Ridge, and very recently, Brentville; mid-rise condominiums which include Amalfi, Arista; to high-rise condominiums like Fortune Hill, La Vie Flats and The Signature. “The new Brentville design strives for a more timeless feeling for residents. Its contemporary architecture gives off a light and airy character with clean lines and neutral palette,” explained Juan Seriña, from Brentville’s award-winning design consultant, H1 Architecture. “We want to give our residents a space that fosters community, while seeking for a quiet and peaceful lifestyle. This is evident in the new Village Front, clubhouse, and the many green open spaces where they could congre-

gate with their neighbors or follow through with their workout routines.” Brentville has made key upgrades to provide residents a well-balanced and lush suburban life. The new entry markers signify the changes being introduced to Brentville. The main entryway is now lined with shade trees and has a lush landscape. The main village gates have also undergone a major face-lift and a new color scheme. Further enhancing the lifestyle component of the community is the Village Front’s new retail development designed by H1 Architecture and landscaped by AECOM. In keeping with Filigree’s commitment to sustainable green living—lush, open spaces and walkable areas will be well integrated into the modern design. Residential clusters under Brentville will include The Meridien, Sunshine Palace, West Parc and Woodmore Spring. Prominence II will have townhomes and singledetached homes while The Arborage at Brentville offers residential properties. The community is home to Brent International School and is within convenient distance from lifestyle

malls, universities, hospitals and other medical establishments. Residents can unwind, bond with family and friends or pursue active lifestyles as Brentville’s existing development offers well-crafted facilities and amenities, such as the main pool, infinity pool, kiddie pool, basketball court, tennis court, playground and jogging trail. Brentville is located strategically right after Mamplasan Exit, allowing residents to enjoy life away from highly congested urban areas while having fast and easy access to Metro Manila’s central business districts. It is a 10-minute drive from the garden business district of Metro South, Filinvest Alabang, and a 20-minute drive from Makati City via Skyway and the South Luzon Expressway. With all these planned development projects, future residents can look forward to a comfortable and delightful life in a revitalized and modernized Brentville International Community that offers life’s pleasures to their doorstep. www.brentville.com

GRACIOUS way of suburban living continues to take place south of Metro Manila in the bustling area of Bacoor, Cavite, with the nonstop development of Solviento Villas—a pioneering house-and-lot community by GeoEstate Development Corp. and New Pacific Resources Management (NPRM). Solviento Villas is the maiden residential offering within the 17-hectare master-planned Solviento estate, which will create a rare atmosphere of safe, secure, convenient and well-planned daily living at value-for-money investment for today’s Filipino families and upwardly mobile individuals. With the sold-out Phase 1 of Solviento Villas by the end of 2018, GeoEstate has just launched Phase 2 of the community in March this year. To date, less than 50 of the available inventory of 155 units of the latest phase remain, according to Edwin Siongco, vice president for sales and marketing of GeoEstate. “We are pleased that the market continues to appreciate the inimitable proposition that Solviento Villas offer—the modern conveniences of city living within the traditional atmosphere of a suburban village,” he explained. Siongco said that most of their buyers, if not all,

are end-users who are upgrading their residence from nearby villages in the South or from Metro Manila. “This is proof of a still underserved market of Filipinos homeseekers who want a place where they can take root and enjoy a stable future.” Investment potential is still a big factor for buyers, but in the case of Solviento Villas, it is an investment that they can enjoy at present while still acting as a store of value for the future. “Solviento is the kind of community where parents can leave their home behind for future generations knowing that it will still serve its purpose well,” added Siongco. The 212-unit Solviento Villas Phase 1, which was sold-out in only eight months, is currently under fullswing construction and will be welcoming its very first residents by middle of next year. Phase 2 is poised to follow suit as construction is scheduled to commence by early next year. The time is now to call Solviento Villas home, for those who aspire for the increasingly rare way of life that genuinely nurtures dreams and a secure future. www.solviento.com.ph

sMirror

Editor: Tet Andolong

AYALALAND SHARES PROVEN STRATEGIES TO ACHIEVE CARBON NEUTRALITY

IN 2018, UP-AyalaLand Technohub, an early adopter of renewable energy avoided tCO2e emissions equivalent to the emissions from 2,985 passenger vehicles driven for one year.

YALA Land Inc. (ALI) is committed to achieving netzero carbon emissions in its malls, offices and other commercial properties by year 2022. Given its current trajectory, the property firm expects to offset 70 percent of its greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions by year-end. Cor porate entities are the world’s largest emitters of greenhouse gases (mainly carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and ozone) that cause global temperatures to rise. Although the Philippines is not among the world’s top

emitters, it is highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. ALI has been leading the movement toward sustainability in the Philippines by minimizing its carbon footprint. Achieving “net-zero carbon” or becoming “carbon neu-

tral” is a good metric of how successfully the company is able to offset its GHG emissions.

ALI’s proven strategies

HAVING measured its carbon emissions since 2008, ALI has a clear understanding of where exactly in its operations its emissions are coming from. Using this knowledge, the company has identified strategies that are targeted, impactful and sustainable. Then and now, ALI follows four strategies to achieve carbon neutrality: avoid emissions through passive cooling and sustainable architectural design; reduce fuel and energy use; shift to renewable energy (which has minimal to zero emissions); and enhance carbon stock in our carbon forests through assisted natural regeneration to offset emissions. The property firm continues to

grow, and it refines its strategies accordingly. While its carbon forests continue to expand in coverage, more of ALI’s commercial properties are shifting to renewable energy where available. These properties qualify as “contestable customers,” as they consist of facilities with a monthly average demand of at least 1,000 kilowatts, giving them the option to choose their own retail electricity suppliers and energy source.

Conscious consumption

ALI’S carbon forests are nurtured through volunteers mobilized by partner nongovernment organizations. As of 2018, 42,057 new native trees have been planted, with an 80-percent to 100-percent survival rate across the sites. By protecting existing trees, soil, and vegetation in the sites, ALI enhances the capacity of these forests to continue absorbing carbon dioxide

from the atmosphere. Aside from the carbon forests, ALI’s renewable-energy patronage has also significantly reduced its carbon emissions. To date, ALI’s malls and offices have avoided 84,642 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e) from the shift to renewable energy, alone. This is equivalent to the emissions produced by 16,303 passenger vehicles driven for a year. (Source: Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies Calculator, the United States Environmental Protection Agency) As of last count, UP-AyalaLand Technohub, an early adopter of renewable energy and ALI’s top consumer of electricity, avoided 15,497 tCO2e emissions in 2018 alone (equivalent to the emissions from 2,985 passenger vehicles driven for one year). Meanwhile, Ayala Malls Vertis North and Tutuban Properties Inc., also run-

ning on renewable energy, avoided a combined total of 10,168 tCO2e emissions (or the same amount of emissions from 906,115 gallons of diesel consumed).

Active partner in climate action

UNDER the Paris Agreement, the Philippines targets to cut its overall GHG emissions by 70 percent by 2030. ALI’s carbon neutrality initiative and its earlier deadline of 2022 directly contribute to the national goal and the global effort to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius by 2030. Achieving this goal will lower the risk of natural disasters— droughts, typhoons, storm surges, among others—to which the Philippines is vulnerable. This is a concern consistently ranked very high across ALI’s stakeholder demographics, based on the latest materiality survey conducted in 2018.

ARB launches its latest office in Alabang

A MICHAEL ESCAMILLA (from left), senior manager, Colliers International Phils.; Ieyo de Guzman, deputy managing director, Colliers International Phils.; Jet L. Ilaga, executive director-real estate management services, Colliers International Phils.; Chikara Nakajima, Hankyu Hanshin Properties Corp. Philippine representative; Atty. Mark Bayquen, cluster head-joint venture, land acquisition and project documentation, PA Properties; and Alvin Alquinto, headproperty management, PA Properties

PA-Hankyu partners with Colliers International

T’S simply a case of a strong organization partnering with another strong company to deliver exceptional services and a memorable customer experience. PA Properties-Hankyu One, Inc. (PA-Hankyu), a joint venture between Laguna-based property developer PA Alvarez Properties and Development Corp. (PA Properties) and Japanese real-estate giant Hankyu Hanshin Properties Corp. (HHPC), signed an agreement with Colliers International Philippines for the management of Idesia Dasmariñas Phase 1, a P1.3billion 11-hectare master-planned community with residential and commercial components. “The partnership with Colliers International Philippines is an exciting step toward redefining quality living by providing worldclass property management services,” shared Atty. Mark Anthony Bayquen, Cluster PA Properties cluster head-joint venture, land acquisition and project docu-

mentation. “As a global leader in real-estate services, Colliers International Philippines is the perfect choice for this undertaking. They have deep knowledge and expertise in property management which should prove to be extremely valuable for our current and future customers. By leveraging Colliers’ strength, PAHankyu One remains committed to property success by creating communities where homes are built to the highest standards and families enjoy tasteful amenities designed to create a balanced life for its residents.” Idesia Dasmariñas is the flagship project of the joint venture. The 37-hectare Idesia Dasmariñas township is a master-planned community that will cater to urbanites; start-up, growing or middle-income families; and those who seek to upgrade their total community living. Apart from affordable, yet attractive dwellings, they will get to live in a property

that preserves the original greenery of the site, plus the addition of more trees and flowering plants. “Idesia Dasmariñas represents the essence of quality living and provides us a glimpse of nextgeneration communities. It is a significant addition to the city of Dasmariñas and Colliers is honored to have been selected as the company’s partner for the property upkeep and village management of Idesia,” shared Engr. Jet Ilaga, executive director, real estate management services of Colliers International Philippines. On top of managing the relationship between residents and PAHankyu One, the Colliers team will handle all matters and concerns pertaining to the administration of Idesia Dasmariñas including the adoption of measures and recommendations for its improvement. It will also oversee the efficient functioning of Idesia utilities, maintenance and other areas relevant to the operations of the village.

RB Call Facilities Inc., established in 2016, continues to expand its operations in the Philippines after seeing its potential as a business location. The leading business-process outsourcing (BPO) partnered with top full-service real-estate firm, KMC, in acquiring their three-floor office at the Southpark Corporate Center in Alabang. ARB has experienced exciting growth over the past three years. With over 20,000 square meters of leased office space, they now have over 2,500 employees, averaging 300 new hires per month. Responding to the expansion, Chief Operating Officer Stephen Picciotto shared that ARB has been actively locating outside Metro Manila for a wider business footprint. Through KMC’s help, they were able to “get into new buildings early” for their new offices. “KMC was ideal in finding the perfect space. They have always been diligent in providing us with various location options,” Picciotto said. “When we informed them of our plans to expand outside the highly congested Central Business Districts of Metro Manila, Alabang was one of the top recommendations.” Office accessibility is an important consideration in picking the locations, because ARB values the time of their talented work force and traveling from the south of the Metro can be time-consuming. Aside from its Alabang office, ARB recently expanded into Bacolod City, and the company is now focused on next wave cities in the Philippines. Picciotto emphasized how KMC has also been instrumental in their expansion in the capital of Negros Occidental, where they

now have 11,000 sq m of space.

nature of their work.

Fresher approach to BPO offices

ARB with a heart

IN contrast to traditional BPO operations, ARB has been insistent in making better workplaces as the company continues to expand. Picciotto stated that it has been a top priority to make people feel comfortable at work. The BPO took the time out to conduct a study and found out that 50 percent of their employees were commuting from Cavite and Laguna. To ease the struggles of commute, Picciotto believes that Alabang is the most ideal area to attract talented employees currently spending hours in traffic to get to the central Metro locations. With a people-centric mindset, ARB has translated this consideration in workplace design. With a mix of functionality and aesthetically pleasing art, Picciotto has managed to customize the design of their new space to cater to the convenience and needs of its people given the high-pressure

THE leading BPO firm is seeking to rebrand the overall perception toward the industry. ARB leads in promoting corporate social responsibility and is building its image as an advocate for learning in the Philippines. A R B Chi ldren’s Char itable Foundation commonly referred to as “ARB Cares,” is their nonprofit arm, which is creating ripples in the Philippine education system. In support of the sector, they started multiple programs including a “Shoebox Project” that allows them to donate supplies to various schools in carefully packaged blue and white boxes. They have also donated over 50 computers to local schools. Finding value in the advocacy, Picciotto has seen that the employees have invested both time and effort in promoting the social responsibility, as they often go directly from a work shift to the CSR event.

BusinessMirror E1 | Wednesday, September 18, 2019 • Editor : Tet Andolong

UNIQLO Westgate Alabang

UNIQLO PHILIPPINES OPENS FIRST ROADSIDE STORE IN WESTGATE ALABANG By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes

@brownindio

APANESE clothing colossus Uniqlo wants to develop a stronger presence in the Philippine market. With a huge presence in major malls in Metro Manila, Uniqlo recently launched its first roadside store in the Philippines located in Westgate Development Filinvest City, Alabang in Muntinlupa City, 22 kilometers south of Manila. “Uniqlo Philippines embraces a new Uniqlo business model by transforming from mall only business to newer various types of store for rapid expansion. Uniqlo Philippines aims to boost the vitality of the local area by becoming a lifestyle and cultural hub, and a driver of local economic development and prosperity. The first roadside store in the Philippines aims to closely engage with the local community by improving convenience for customers, and attracting new and sustainable businesses to the area.” Masayoshi Nakamura, chief operating officer of Uniqlo Philippines said in recent interview. “We intend to follow the successful step of putting up Uniqlo roadside stores outside Japan, like Korea, Taiwan and Thailand,” Nakamura added. Nakamura also recognized the potential of the Philippines as a location of other roadside stores because of Uniqlo’s huge success that has appealed across generations of Filipinos. In Japan, Uniqlo has 800 stores of which 400 are off road stores. Geraldine Sia, Uniqlo Philippines cochief operating officer, said Filinvest provided vital support by providing them the space

for the store. “We appreciate very much the effort of Filinvest for making this project possible,” she said. “We were looking for the best site and we decided the best choice is Alabang,” she added. Filinvest granted the leases to Uniqlo Philippines. Further, she said Uniqlo Philippines decided to open roadside because it provides convenience and parking level area to the store. With a shopping space of 1,518 square meters, Sia said Uniqlo Westgate Alabang operates from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. everyday. The store carries a full range of Uniqlo LifeWear items for men, women, kids and babies for an exceptional one-stop shopping experience the whole family can enjoy. Moreover, it includes a parking lot for Uniqlo customers, which is carefully designed to ensure enough space and accessibility for needs—families with children, elderly people and people with disabilities. Uniqlo Westgate Alabang is situated at Alabang-Zapote Road in Westgate Development Filinvest City. Uniqlo continues to open large-scale stores in some of the world’s most important cities and locations, as part of its ongoing efforts to solidify its sta-

STORE interior

IN celebration of the Uniqlo Westgate Alabang opening, a sake barrel-breaking ceremony was held. In photo are Asuka Sakaguchi, Uniqlo Philippines area manager (from left); RJ Pajanustan, Uniqlo Westgate Alabang store manager; Masayoshi Nakamura, Uniqlo Philippines chief operating officer; Geraldine Sia, Uniqlo Philippines cochief operating officer; and Yusuke Kuroda, Uniqlo Philippines head of store operations.

tus as a global brand. Today the company has more than 2,000 stores in 22 markets, including Japan. In alphabetical order, the other markets are Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, Denmark, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Netherlands, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, United Kingdom and United States. In addition, Uniqlo established a social business in Bangladesh together with the Grameen Bank in 2010, and today there are several GrameenUniqlo stores in Dhaka. Meanwhile, Uniqlo Philippines worked with local designers led by Dan Matutina for the design of its flagship store in Ayala Center in Makati Center.

Entrepreneur

E4 Wednesday, September 18, 2019 • Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug

BusinessMirror

Tech ecosystem propels SME biz growth in PHL

By Rizal Raoul S. Reyes

@brownindio

Contributor

LLICE CHEW and Brylle Uytiepo are among the new breed of millennial entrepreneurs who believe technology has enabled them to level the playing field and pursue business growth. Chew, owner of Empanada Nation, told the BusinessMirror in a recent interview that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) can be competitive without the need to invest in expensive infrastructure. “When one of our branches experienced a dip in sales, we decided to deploy Grab Food service. It was a positive move as that branch achieved a growth in sales because it was able to reach out to more clients,” she said, She established Empanada Nation in 2009 by opening a store at Scout Rallos in Quezon City. Right now, Empanada Nation has six branches and plans to open four more branches in the country, the majority which are company-owned, while the rest are franchisees. Basically, the business grew by word of mouth when people grew to like their products. Moreover, the introduction of Grab Delivery helped a lot boosting sales with more deliveries to customers. Chew also learned to select their target markets properly. By introducing budget meals with an average price of P150, Empanada Nation was able to capture their market

composed of workers from the business-process outsourcing industry and office workers. The graduate of hotel and restaurant industry management graduate from the De La Salle UniversityCollege of Saint Benilde (DLSU-CSB) admitted that the food business is full of challenges, especially in the routine handling of inventory which requires closer monitoring. “You need to be hands on in running the business,” she explained. Before opening Empanada Nation, Chew worked for three years in the hotel industry and rice trading business. Slowly but surely, Chew said Empanada Nation is growing, even as she also said she experienced the ups and downs when she tried to operate a kiosk, “We realized later that our niche is in the restaurant business offering varieties of Ilocano dishes. “We learn from our mistakes,” she said. Uytiepo, on the other hand, who is also a graduate of culinary arts at DLSU-CSB, believes the right training, a millennial mindset and use of technology are critical factors to expand their Liezel’s La Paz Batchoy.

BRYLLE UYTIEPO is confident he can run Liezel’s La Paz Batchoy with his new ideas.

ELLICE CHEW, owner of Empanada Nation, believes technology can level the playing field for SMEs.

It was an easy transition for Uytiepo as he grew up exposed in the family’s business since he was a kid. “Entrepreneurship has been in my DNA since I was a young boy and I was exposed to the business since it opened 10 years ago,” he said. Being a millennial, Uytiepo was quite open in the use of technology to make the business more efficient and productive. “When Grab approached us to offer their food delivery service, we immediately signed with them,” he said. Right now, Liezel’s La Paz Batchoy has four branches located in Ermita, Iloilio, Parañaque and the Parañaque Integrated Terminal Exchange. He also credits DLSU-CSB for teaching the skills to run the business. “The [school] taught me to be a marketer, especially in the culinary business,” he said. Meanwhile, Grab Philippines President Brian Cu said he is aware that technology plays an important role in helping SMEs expand. “At Grab, we recognize technology as a force for good and continue to level the playing field so that SMEs can grow. Through our super app services like GrabFood,

GrabExpress and more, SMEs now have access to millions of users through an online storefront, efficiency in logistics costs and incremental revenue,” Cu said. To help local businesses thrive and succeed, Grab also aims to put at least 1,000 SMEs on the map. This will allow businesses to be discoverable in-app so that consumers and driver-partners can easily locate them on Grab related transactions. Anyone can nominate local businesses by filling out a form at the booth or by simply replying to Grab’s social-media channels. “We are opening our doors to more SMEs in the Philippines who wish to be part of Grab’s ecosystem. Our goal is to tap more local businesses and help them reap the benefits of our connected super app services, which has already empowered thousands of entrepreneurs and enterprises to date,” Cu added. “We have always been inspired by the power of technology when used for good, and we at Grab would like to harness that asset to empower more Filipinos to live better lives everyday, “ he said.

Troika launches Web app Qarabao for MSMEs

HE troika of Mike Tiongson, Roy Nepomuceno and Cookie Enriquez are believers in the potential and capability of the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). With their backgrounds in technology, marketing and product development, they have joined forces to develop a product that could be harnessed by the 99.6 percent of the 1.39 million local registered businesses in the country. The result was the development of Qarabao, a Web application that will provide assistance to perform the heavy lifting for the MSMEs in their daily business operations. Tiongson, chief executive officer of Qarabao, told reporters during the recent launch held in San Juan City that business owners face a lot of challenges in their everyday activities exacerbated by the fact these entrepreneurs also have to reckon with scaling their operations in an efficient and effective way. In their interaction with clients, Tiongson observed the MSMEs have unsystematic and disorganized inventory systems, ineffective processing methods and dearth of time in their operating hours to handle orders. Moreover, they thought they could not resolve all these issues unless they will shell out a huge amount of money to equip them with the digital tools and enhance their operations. “Our response is to develop Qarabao so it can help MSMEs to automate their business processes and operations,” Tiongson said. After engaging Filipino business owners from different industries about their concerns and needs, the founders led by Tiongson and their specialized team of programmers, customer service managers, content creators, user interface/user

PHOTO shows Mike Tiongson (from left), Qarabao chief executive officer; Roy Nepomuceno, chief technology officer; and Product Manager Cookie Enriquez. RIZAL RAOUL S. REYES

experience designers, developed an online ecosystem to simplify the lives of these entrepreneurs by optimizing key business processes in three easy steps: Presenting accurate and organized inventory 24/7; Helping create and track orders, and manage customer details; and Providing the setup for streamlined systems for ordering and receiving payments. Qarabao currently supports multiple payment channels: credit or debit card, online payments, bank deposit or transfer, over-the-counter payments—through partners, such as PayPal, PayMaya and Coins.ph, and with cash on delivery soon to follow. Fully integrated shipping options will soon include Lalamove, Shippo and Fleet.ph. Further down the line, Zoom Courier and Xpost will also be integrated into the platform. Aside from enabling the digital capabilities of the MSMEs, Tiongson pointed out that Qarabao also wants to encourage Filipinos to venture into entrepreneurship to promote economic inclusivity in the country. “We found that many Filipinos are intimidated by the idea of even

starting a business. We want to change this and empower every Filipino to follow their business dreams. We built Qarabao so that more Filipino entrepreneurs would have access to innovative tools that would help build their businesses which, in turn, would be a boon to our country’s economy,” Tiongson said. A mobile platform would also be launched this year. “After a little more than a year in development which included three months of beta testing and detailed customer feedback, Qarabao recently launched it with the goal of being able to simplify the processes that come with managing businesses on a day-to-day basis,” Nepomuceno, Qarabao’s chief technology officer said. “It was important that we built a system that would be easy for Filipinos with no tech background to learn to use and trust. From the get-go, we aimed to challenge the idea that learning to optimize your business would include a steep learning curve—so when you experience Qarabao, you’ll see that it’s tidy, timely, and convenient for the business owners to use

and so reliable that their customers will keep coming back,” he added. For its initial salvo, Qarabao launched its Standard Plan for P490 per month, which includes Inventory Tracking, Order Management, Multiple Payment Channels, Shipping Management, Customer Relationship Management, and Reports and Analytics. Cookie Enriquez, product manager said that their prime objective is to make it affordable for MSMEs and fledgling entrepreneurs. “It only costs P16 a day to use Qarabao. We also have zero transaction fees, which means that we do not take from the sales earnings of the business owner.” She added, “In the coming months, we will release new plans that include campaign management, e-commerce chatbot and web site services. Many customers have been asking for a point-of-sale system, so that’s in Qarabao’s development pipeline as well,” Enriquez said. Aside from the Standard, Qarabao also offers the Plus and Premium packages. The Plus package works best for online sellers on social media and other marketplaces, and would like to put up their own virtual storefront without heavy competition from other brands. Meanwhile, the Premium package, is designed for sellers who have both online and offline stores, and would like a centralized platform for operating their business. “We’ve tried to cover as much as we can in terms of challenges being encountered by Filipino merchants. We’re really listening to their feedback and implementing them in the application,” Tiongson, whose professional experience revolves mainly around digital marketing, product management and project management, said. Rizal Raoul S. Reyes

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Digitization and fintech to boost SME access to finance–ADB report

OLICY-MAKERS should look into digitization and financial technology, or fintech, as potential solutions to the lack of access to finance of small and mediumsized enterprises (SMEs), according to a recent report released by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The ADB’s latest “Trade Finance Gap, Growth, and Job Survey” found that the global trade finance gap this year remains at around $1.5 trillion and is rising. It also found that SMEs and women-owned firms face greater challenges accessing finance. It said SMEs account for 37 percent of trade finance demand received by the banks surveyed and that 45 percent of SME loan proposals are rejected, higher relative to mid-sized and larger-sized firms (39 percent) and multinational corporations (17 percent). Among SMEs initially rejected that sought alternative financing, 47 percent were unable to find anything appropriate. A slightly higher percentage of firms use informal (18 percent) rather than formal financing alternatives (16 percent), while the take-up of digital finance as an alternative is negligible (below 1 percent). Women-owned firms find it even more difficult to access finance. Among women-owned firms surveyed, the average rejection rate of their proposals was 44 percent compared with 38 percent for male-owned firms. Once rejected, women-owned firms were less likely to seek alternative finance—whether formal or informal. However, there is growing optimism that fintech and digitization are potential solutions to bridge the trade finance gap, particularly for SMEs, said the report. “There is still no evidence showing that technology reduces the trade finance gap, but 86 percent of banks surveyed say they are preparing to service more SMEs using technology,” it said. But there are challenges to technology’s uptake by banks, including high cost of technology adoption; lack of global and established standards, laws, and rules for digital finance; lack of expertise in technology because it is too complicated and fast moving; and too many platforms.

To realize technology’s potential to close the trade finance gap, the report recommends putting a basic legal and institutional framework in place. “Governments need to adopt laws—preferably common laws— on digital trade and more broadly e-commerce,” it said. “The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law has developed model laws that governments should consider and adopt. Until firms and banks have legal grounds to transact digitally, technology will not materially reduce gaps.” Moreover, to make information on individual SMEs accessible in an ocean of meta-data, the Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) should be adopted globally, it suggested. “The LEI, overseen by over 70 financial regulators worldwide, verifies who is who, and who owns whom. This would facilitate the KYC [know your customer]/AML [anti-money laundering] process, also identified in the survey as a major impediment to closing the trade finance gap. In the Philippines, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said it is currently pursuing various financial inclusion initiatives to assist small borrowers, acknowledging that lack of access to credit remains a big obstacle to MSME development and sustainability. BSP Governor Benjamin E. Diokno, in a recent speech at a meeting of MSMEs and small exporters, said these programs include, building a strong and reliable credit information system; supporting laws on financial inclusion; providing surety cover for SME bank loans; boosting interoperability among banks; and promoting electronic retail payments. Diokno said that in February last year, the BSP issued one of its most pivotal policies for financial inclusion—Circular 992, which outlines the framework for Basic Deposit Accounts (BDA). By easing financial and documentary requirements, the BDA aims to encourage account ownership among the country’s unbanked and low-income population, and provide them an entryway into the country’s financial ecosystem.

CGBP sets special training program for new managers

ANAGERS play a critical role in motivating and engaging their employees. To successfully guide the new managers to take the big leap in their career, the Center for Global Best Practices (CGBP) will launch a special training entitled, Manager Effectiveness Program to be held on Wednesday and Thursday, on October 9 and 10, 2019 at the Manila Marriott Hotel, Pasay City, Philippines. (Check www.cgbp.org, for a complete list of best practices programs, including Strengthening Mental Toughness for Leaders and Managers, Best Practices in Business and Government Protocol, How to Structure Salaries, Wages and Benefits, Best Practices in Strategy Execution, How to Build a Working Board and many more). The two-day program is for tenured managers who want to sharpen their skills, for supervisors and children of owners who are being honed to take on a managerial position to provide them the right skills, mindset and attitude to be more successful in their careers and to be productive in their jobs. The training will also showcase a compilation of best practices on how to lead your team effectively and efficiently to achieve your organizations goal—in a Philippine setting and beyond. Attendees will also be provided with valuable insights, and practical tips that can help your new managers to prevent rookie mistakes that can be costly to your organization. The program will feature Ramon

M. de Leon, former managing director of Ayala Corp. Under the Office of Lead Director for Infrastructure, he seconded to the various Ayalaowned subsidiaries to help in the corporate transformation of Globe Telecom, Manila Water, IMI and BPI Family Bank. He is a sought-after facilitator and lecturer with over 30 years of experience in the areas of Human Resource Management, Labor and Employee Relations, Quality and Productivity, Leadership and Motivation, Change Management and Organization Development. He regularly conducts various training and lectures on highly specialized topics which has benefited many local and international organizations to help them grow their people and businesses successfully. Registration is open to the general public. CGBP is also accredited by the Civil Service Commission. Attendees from the government can earn points for their career advancement and are exempted from the P2,000-limit when attending training conducted by the private sector based on Department of Budget Management’s circular 563 dated April 22, 2016. Interested participants are encouraged to avail themselves of the early registration savings and group discount for three or more registrants. Preregistration is required. For inquiries, you may call lines in Manila (+63 2) 842-7148/59 and (+63 2) 556-8968/69, and in Cebu (+63 32) 512-3106 or 07]. This program is CPD-Accredited. Accountants attending this training will earn points.