BusinessMirror September 19, 2019

NO CARRYOVER TERMS ON MALAMPAYA

By Lenie Lectura

@llectura

E

NERGY Secretary Alfonso Cusi declared on Wednesday that his office would not extend the exploration contract of the Malampaya consortium under the same terms.

“There is no such thing as extension. I cannot agree [to] just extending the same terms. If I am going to extend it on the same terms and conditions, I will not because ang sinasabi ko nagbago, pag-aari na ito ng Pilipinas. Nabayaran na natin so ang facility na ito, atin na [what I’ve been saying is that things are

different now, this is now property of the Philippines. This facility has already been paid for, so it’s ours now],” said Cusi.

What could be possible, he said, is the crafting of new contract terms that will be beneficial to the country. “I have to study what is good for our country. The facility will be owned by the country. The landscape changes.”

One possible amendment to the contract is the conduct of an auction to determine the next contract operator. “That’s an option. We can hire a new operator. Whatever will be good for us,” said Cusi.

The Malampaya deep water

gas -to-power project was developed and is operated by Shell Philippines Exploration BV (Spex), with a 45-percent stake on behalf of joint-venture partners Chevron Malampaya Llc., also with a 45-percent stake, and PNOC-EC (Philippine National Oil Co.-Exploration Corp.), which holds the remaining 10 percent.

The consortium was awarded a license to conduct exploration activities under Service Contract (SC) 38, which is set to expire in 2024. The existing contract allows for a maximum of 15 years of extension, Spex Managing Counsel Kiril Caral had said.

See “Malampaya,” A2

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business news source of the year DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

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A broader look at today’s business

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Thursday, September 19, 2019 Vol. 14 No. 344

High oil prices to ‘hurt’ slide in inflation–Neda H

By Cai U. Ordinario

@caiordinario

IGH oil prices, the expected offshoot of the knocking out by drone attacks of a big part of supply from Saudi Arabia, would likely “hurt” the downtrend in inflation this year, the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) said, as energy officials gave assurances of a still-stable inventory and of contingencies being laid out while the situation is being tracked.

Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia told reporters on the sidelines of the Neda budget hearing on Wednesday that he hoped inflation would slow to 1.4 percent this year.

With the recent attack on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities, however, there could be some uptick in inflation. Still, Pernia said, the impact would be temporary.

“I think it is going to be resolved

sooner. It’s not going to be a long crisis,” Pernia said. “That’s really going to hurt our downward, downtrend inflation. We were hoping that inflation would go further down.”

Pernia said the Neda has not

“The government is trying to have a strategic supply that we can use in case of emergency. We have been working on it. There are just some obstacles that we are working on, including the storage facilities.”—Cusi

yet done any simulations on the impact of the oil issue on inflation because it may only be a temporary issue.

Local economists like Calixto V. Chikiamco told the BusinessMirror that the Saudi attack would likely cause a short-term price increase but it will depend on the duration of the tensions.

T

@BNicolasBM

See “Citira,” A2

PESO exchange rates n

Rene E. Ofreneo

laborem exercens

I

n a conversation with former Sen. Joey Lina, host of Sagot Ko Yan television program, Agriculture Secretary William Dar said that he and his team are working feverishly, 24/7, to address the rice/palay price turbulence spawned by the disastrous rice tariffication law.

It looks like the good secretary needs more than 24 hours a day to manage not only the rice/palay issue but also the other urgent problems plaguing a sinking agricultural sector. GDP-wise, the sector now accounts for a lilliputian 8 percent. And yet, the sector still employs a quarter of the labor force—over 10 million. These workers and their families constitute the poorest and the most vulnerable in Philippine society.

Continued on A7

SMC gets green light for Bulacan airport, setting up equity fund

By Bernadette D. Nicolas

HE chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee said the structural adjustment fund under the proposed Corporate Income Tax and Incentives Rationalization Act (Citira) is not really needed, as its passage will not result in job losses.

Under the House-approved version of the Citira bill, Albay Rep. Joey Salceda noted that P500 million shall be appropriated annually, in addition to any adjustment fund under the budget of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), for cash grants and support programs for displaced workers firms that may displaced by rationalization of fiscal incentives.

Another P500 million shall also be appropriated annually to provide targeted trainings to displaced workers or affected firms.

“I don’t even think we need it [adjustment fund]. That presupposes job losses,” he said. “I don’t think they will make good on their threat [to transfer to other countries once the incentives are rationalized].”

Finance Undersecretary Karl Kendrick Chua also stood pat on the government’s pronouncement that there is “no threat of job destruction or loss.” The measure, Chua said, is estimated to create at least 1.5 million jobs.

Mounting problems in a shrinking agri sector

See “Oil prices,” A8

‘Citira fund for job losses not needed’

P25.00 nationwide | 6 sections 48 pages | 7 days a week

By Lorenz S. Marasigan

S

Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia shares a light moment with Sen. Juan Edgardo Angara at Wednesday’s Senate hearing on the proposed 2020 budget of the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) and its attached agencies. SENATE PRIB PHOTO

Renminbi transactions rise 74% in first half

By Bianca Cuaresma

R

@BcuaresmaBM

ENMINBI transactions are on the rise, and are expected to increase further following the appointment of Bank of China Manila as the designated clearing bank for RMB business in the country.

According to the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT), the total amount of RMB cleared in the Philippines from January to June 2019 was RMB 127.4 billion, an

increase of 45.3 percent compared to the first half year of 2018.

In terms of transactions, the total number of RMB clearing activities is up to 12,116 items, an increase of 73.9 percent compared to last year.

RMB transactions are projected to grow, with a local clearing bank in place, as more Chinese tourists, traders, and investors, along with their Filipino counterparts, grow more confident in using the currency.

“This new facility will help drive the currency’s use for payments and investments, further

promoting cross-border settlements, trade financing, project investments, and loans. Ultimately, this projected surge in financial activity will foster the shared development of both countries,” said Deng Jun, country head of Bank of China Manila.

Bank of China Manila has been designated as the clearing bank for RMB business in the Philippines following the memorandum of understanding signed by the People’s Bank of China and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

See “Renminbi,” A8

@lorenzmarasigan

AN Miguel Corp. (SMC) plans to set up a private equity fund to assure banks and other financing institutions that the company has the capacity to repay its future loans for the construction of the $15-billion Bulacan International Airport.

To initially set up the private equity fund, SMC will put in about $5 billion in equity, which represents roughly 30 percent of the project cost, Ramon S. Ang, the company’s president, explained.

“The shareholders of San Miguel will come up with new equity—private equity capital—so that the banks will be assured of our capacity,” he said. The group is looking at Chinese and American banks for the loan facility.

Ang noted that his group might be able to secure suppliers’ credit, “which removes the problems.”

“We received a proposal from one big company—a Fortune 500 company—that offered to finish the project and finance the operations for 15 years after,” he said.

He did not elaborate.

Notice to proceed

Wednesday saw the Department of Transportation (DOTr) issuing the notice to proceed to SMC for its

$15B The cost of building the Bulacan airport on a 2,400-hectare property in Bulakan, Bulacan. It will have four runways, eight taxiways and three passenger terminals

$15-billion Bulacan International Airport unsolicited proposal, which was roughly four years and two administrations in the making.

“This is our single largest contribution to the Philippine economy, and our biggest investment in the country, thus far,” Ang said. “Airport development is very important, and with this, our vision is set to become a reality.”

He noted that the aerotropolis, which will have a capacity of 100 million passengers annually, is expected to contribute roughly P900 billion per year to the Philippine GDP by 2025, as it is envisioned to “fuel trillions of dollars in economic activity.”

To be built on a 2,400-hectare property in Bulakan, Bulacan, just north of Metro Manila, the airport will have four runways, eight taxiways and three passenger terminals.

US 52.3370 n japan 0.4841 n UK 65.4422 n HK 6.6909 n CHINA 7.3806 n singapore 38.0937 n australia 35.9241 n EU 57.9632 n SAUDI arabia 13.9536

See “SMC,” A8

Source: BSP (18 September 2019 )

News

BusinessMirror

A2 Thursday, September 19, 2019

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‘Unified’ rules for processed meat sought amid ASF scare Continued from A8

Pampi told the BusinessMirror that more LGUs have issued their own guidelines to prevent the entry of ASF in their areas. However, the group noted that some of these guidelines included the banning of pork products, which affected their members.

Rex Agarrado, Pampi spokesman, said provinces that banned pork-related products, such as Cebu and Negros Occidental, may now be experiencing a shortfall in the supply of processed meat products.

Proposals “We earnestly request that unified national guidelines be adopted immediately to ensure that individual LGUs do not enforce rules that are inconsistent or contradictory,”Pampi said in its letter dated September 16, a copy of which was obtained by the BusinessMirror.

The letter was signed by Pampi President Felix O. Tiukinhoy Jr. and Vice President Jerome D. Ong and was sent to Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar, Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque, Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez and Interior Secretary Eduardo M. Año.

Under Pampi’s proposed guidelines, processed meat products that do not contain pork as raw material or ingredient,

Malampaya. . .

Continued from A1

The DOE may not decide to extend SC 38 under the same terms and conditions since the government can operate the gas facility after the contract expires. PNOC-EC has been tasked to conduct a study on the possible scenarios once SC 38 expires in 2024.

The study will determine the gas facility’s life term; if it will be commercially viable and more beneficial to the national government for PNOC-EC to operate the gas facility; if drilling an additional source with 1,000 megawatts (MW) of capacity east of the Malampaya project is more feasible.

“That’s also possible,” Cusi replied in Filipino when asked if PNOC can take over.“Sila ang may-ari

should be “allowed unrestricted movement and distribution in all provinces.”

These products include corned beef, beef hot dogs, chicken nuggets, chicken hot dogs, among others.

“Upon demand, LTO [license to operate] and/or Certificate of Product Registration issued by the FDA [Food and Drug Administration] to the manufacturer to be shown to quarantine authorities, should suffice,” the Pampi proposal read.

Domestic trade of processed meat products containing pork as ingredient should not be hampered if these are heat-treated or fully cooked and abide with international guidelines of meat processing to inactivate the ASF virus.

“The OIE [World Organisation for Animal Health] has ruled that the ASF virus is inactivated by heat at 56 degrees Celsius for 70 minutes or 60 degrees Celsius for 20 minutes,” the document read.

The proposed guidelines require Pampi members to adhere to internationally accepted standards in processing meat and inactivating the ASF virus:

■ Cooking canned meat products at 116 degrees Celsius for at least 60 minutes;

■ Hot dogs are processed or smoked to a core temperature of at least 72 de-

nun [They own it after all].”

Spex, the local unit of energy giant Royal Dutch Shell, had said the gas could be depleted sometime in 2027, depending on demand. It also cited the possibility of a gas supply until 2030 with oil and gas prospects near the Malampaya deepwater gas-to-power project.

“That again is something that we’d like to ascertain by engaging a third party, PNOC, to determine ano ba talaga ang maiiwan [what will remain]. What is really the inventory? How certain are we [that we’re given the right] information.

We also asked Spex. I have to be certain because when we make a decision we want to make sure that the basis is correct.”

Takeover not a good idea

The possibility of a government takeover is not a

grees Celsius for over one hour; ■ Hams and bacon being cooked to a core temperature of at least 72 degrees Celsius over one hour; and ■ Smoked pork sausages are cooked to a core temperature of at least 72 degrees Celsius for at least 40 minutes.

Also, meat processors will be asked to present pertinent documents, such as the veterinary health certificate of the exporting country and the sanitary phytosanitary import clearance issued by the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) to prove that raw materials used in meat processing are sourced from ASF-free countries.

Sen. Juan Edgardo M. Angara assured available funding Wednesday to contain the deadly ASF. Angara affirmed at least P1 billion has been set aside as Quick Response Fund in the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) annual budget.

The senator suggested that the DA “should now break the glass of this emergency fund” to immediately implement the department’s containment protocol against a disease acknowledged to be threatening a key food source that, Angara adds, also “contribute P280 billion to the economy annually.”

According to Angara, the ASF, if left unchecked on time is sure to trigger a calamity. “This ASF is by all accounts a calamity. It may not have the dramatic footage that typhoons create, but in terms of damage to livelihood, and the households affected, it is just as damaging.”

For available funding to sustain antiASF measures, Sen. Franklin M. Drilon said the DA can tap the P20-billion National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund, also called the Calamity Fund, in the General Appropriations Act for 2020.

Under this fund, he said “the DA was assigned P1 billion in QRF, which by their nature, should have been forward-deployed to these agencies.”

The senator recalled that just last September 10, the Department of Budget and Management released P82.5 million to the DA to carry out measures to “arrest and abate” the spread of ASF. At the same time, Angara noted that 35 percent of that amount (P32 million) will be spent to boost security screening measures at the international airports, and P28 million to laboratory testing of meat and meat products.

Angara acknowledged that it is“good that [government is] strengthening [the country’s] quarantine curtains, but what we lack are funds to fight ASF on the

good idea, according to Sen. Sherwin T. Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Committee on Energy.

“Personally, I am not confident the government can operate it properly. We have a bad history of operating projects, if you look at MRT, LRT and the airports,” he had said.

Another thing to consider is PNOC-EC’s technical capability to operate the gas project, added the lawmaker. Gatchalian was also informed by Spex that it was seeking to extend its contract to 2030 because it wants to explore other potential areas near SC 38 in hopes that these could yield more natural gas and extend the life of the Malampaya gas facility until 2030.

“We heard that Shell is willing to explore more around that area. In fact, there are three or four potential areas around SC 38 and that will eventually extend the same quantity.

That is only a briefing to us by Shell, but we also want to understand how that will affect the LNG [liquefied natural gas] terminal, knowing there are now new prospects. Because if I am the LNG terminal, why would I import if there is still [gas] by 2030. My $2-billion [investment] will be sleeping,” said Gatchalian.

Shell had planned to pursue an LNG project in the Philippines. Last December, the company said it would rather explore for more oil and gas exploration instead of putting up an import terminal for LNG. The Malampaya gas facility fuels the following gas plants: the 1,000-megawatt Santa Rita, the 500-MW San Lorenzo, the 1,200-MW Ilijan, 97MW Avion and the 414-MW San Gabriel. It has been providing a stable supply of energy, meeting 40 percent of Luzon’s power needs.

ASF fund

ground especially now that local governments have been fully mobilized.”

“But if the ASF epidemic will worsen, and will down many farms, and some financial aid for those stricken is needed, then this can be included in the 2020 budget,” Angara added.

The senator also another “point of interest” the ASF outbreak has generated and that both Congress and the executive branch should look into: “how to strengthen our food biosecurity and food safety measures.”

The senate, he said, “is open to suggestions from our friends in the DA.”

Task force Chaired by the President and with the DA as vice chairman and lead agency, the NATF is initially composed of Secretaries Carlos G. Dominguez III (Finance), Teodoro L. Locsin Jr. (Foreign Affairs), Año, Francisco Duque (Health), Roy Cimatu (Environment), Lopez, Delfin Lorenzana (Defense), Wendel Avisado (Budget), Arthur Tugade (Transportation), and National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) Undersecretary Ricardo Jalad.

After receiving on September 9 the confirmatory test results from the OIE reference laboratory in Pirbright, England, the DA Crisis Management Team

Citira. . .

Continued from A1

Asked why a structural adjustment fund was included in the bill despite officials’ pronouncements that Citira will not result in job losses, Salceda cited the so-called precautionary principle.

Chua said the Department of Finance did not include a structural adjustment fund in its original proposal because it is certain the measure will create, not cut, jobs.

In a separate interview with the BusinessMirror, Chua said, “In fact, we did not propose it. Congress proposed it because [lawmakers] wanted to be super sure and cautious,” he said.

Finance officials explained to lawmakers that

(CMT) on Swine oriented all the DA regional directors in Luzon (Regions 1, 2, 3, 4A, 4B, 5, and Cordillera Administrative Region) on the ASF and provided them guidelines on how to manage, contain and control the disease. They were tasked to communicate the same to their respective provincial city and municipal LGUs through their veterinary officers.

Dar also instructed other DA regional directors in Visayas and Mindanao to submit their respective disaster management plan to prevent the possible spread of ASF in their areas.

The DA plans to meet with concerned governors and their respective veterinary officers to align the LGU’s local issuances and corresponding actions vis-à-vis national guidelines by the expanded CMT for a concerted effort with the NATF. During that meeting, the DA will present a geographic zoning plan to adjust government response to the developing situation on the ground and effectively prevent further spread of ASF in other parts of the country.

The DA also requested the NDRRMC to immediately operationalize and open a line of coordination between the DA and its relevant agencies with the LGU’s respective DRRMCs for quick response on the ground.

the DOLE has existing programs for those who may be affected by the Citira bill. “So we said, why create a new fund? There are existing programs for the workers but since they want it, it’s okay,” he said.

As part of the structural adjustment fund, P15 billion shall also be appropriated for the development of infrastructure surrounding and within the areas of localities of special economic zones and free ports to be affected

by Citira.

The Citira bill or Package 2 of the Comprehensive Tax Reform Program seeks to attract more investments to the Philippines by lowering the CIT to 20 percent by 2029, from the current 30 percent.

In exchange, the Citira bill will overhaul tax perks granted to investors.

www.businessmirror.com.ph

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briefs PERNIA CITES DISTINCTION BETWEEN NAIA, C.I.A. REHAB PLANS THE proposal to rehabilitate the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) cannot be patterned after the Clark International Airport in Pampanga, according to the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda).

Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Ernesto M. Pernia told reporters on the sidelines of the Neda budget hearing on Wednesday that the Naia project has an Operation and Maintenance (O&M) and rehabilitation component.

The Clark International Airport, on the other, involves the operation and maintenance of the existing and the proposed new passenger terminal buildings.

“It cannot be strictly the same because its not just pure O&M. It’s O&M plus rehabilitation,” Pernia said.

The Naia Consortium proposal, Pernia said, is up for discussion at the next Investment Coordination Committee (ICC) Cabinet Committee (Cabcom) meeting, with the proposed augmentation of the Davao and the Panglao airports. Cai U. Ordinario

HOUSE PANEL ENDORSES MALASAKIT CENTER BILL FOR PLENARY THE House Committee on Health on Wednesday endorsed for plenary approval a substitute bill institutionalizing the Malasakit Center in all government hospitals in the country.

The unnumbered bill seeks to create a one-stop shop, dubbed as Malasakit Center that will house desk representatives from the Department of Health, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Philippine Health Insurance Corp.

(PhilHealth), and the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office.

The bill, which is one of the priority measures of the Duterte administration, is expected to complement the objectives of the Universal Health Care law.

The measure aims to serve Filipinos not covered by the PhilHealth. Jovee Marie N. Dela Cruz

COALITION REAFFIRMS VOW FOR EARLY BUDGET PASSAGE

THE leader of the House party-list coalition has reaffirmed his group’s “no pork, no parking, no delay” policy in the passage of the 2020 P4.1-trillion proposed national budget.

Deputy Speaker Michael Romero, president of the 54-strong Party-list Coalition Foundation, said the bloc would help the leadership to achieve this policy for the 2020 budget deliberations to prevent a repeat of the notorious 2019 national budget delay.

“We can no longer afford to lose P77 billion per month because of the economic slowdown triggered by the delayed implementation of the national budget. It has become imperative for us to make sure that each day of the coming year’s government operations is covered by the provisions of the 2020 General Appropriations Act,” said Romero in a news statement. Jovee Marie Dela Cruz

BusinessMirror

Editor: Vittorio V. Vitug • Thursday, September 19, 2019 A3

Taiwan hails court’s verdict on PCG men in ’13 Balintang Channel shooting incident

By Recto Mercene @rectomercene

& Joel R. San Juan @jrsanjuan1573

T

HE Republic of China (Taiwan) said it welcomes a Manila court’s guilty verdict of all the accused personnel of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) who figured in the shooting of the Guan Da Xing No. 28 fishing vessel at the Balintang Channel on May 9, 2013.

The Regional Trial Court in Manila City on Wednesday found the eight guilty of homicide in connection with the fatal shooting.

In a 32-page ruling, Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 15 Presiding Judge Eduardo Ramon Reyes held that the accused failed to show “extenuating circumstance” to prove that the killing of Hong Shi Cheng was legally justified.

“With the accused conspiring, with intent to kill, killed victim Hoh Shi Cheng with no legal justification duly proven, the moral certainty that produces conviction of the accused for homicide in an unprejudiced mind had been satisfied,” the ruling stated.

Sentenced to a minimum of eight years to a maximum of 14 years imprisonment for violation of Article 249 of the Revised Penal Code (RPC) were PCG Commanding Officer Arnold Enriquez de la

Cruz, Seaman 1st Class (SN1) Edrando Aguila, Mhelvin Bendo II, Andy Gibb Golfo, Sunny Masangcay, Henry Solomon; SN2 Nicky Renold Aurello; and Petty Officer 2 Richard Fernandez Corpuz.

They were also ordered by the court to pay the heirs of the victim the amount of P50,000 in civil indemnity and P50,000 as moral damages.

During their arraignment the PCG officers entered a plea of not guilty, claiming they were only forced to fire at the Taiwanese fishing vessel Guang Da Xing No. 28 in self-defense after it tried to ram the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) ship and refused to stop for boarding inspection despite repeated warnings.

The accused PCG officers also claimed that the Taiwanese were poaching in the country’s territorial waters at the time of the incident and were trying to flee when accosted by the BFAR patrol ship.

The Balintang Channel incident had temporarily severed the ties between the Philippines and Taiwan and led the latter to stop the issuance of working visas to Filipinos.

The government, on the other hand, sent an envoy to Taiwan to apologize to the family of the Taiwanese fisherman.

The trial court held that the prosecution was able to establish the intent

to kill on the part of the accused PCG officers with the use of high-velocity firearms while they were chasing the fishing vessel of the victim.

The trial court also noted that the Taiwanese fishing vessel was riddled with bullets and that the slugs found in the boat matched the firearms recovered from the PCG vessel.

“With the accused conspiring, with intent to kill, killed the victim Hong Shi Cheng with no legal justification duly proven, the moral certainty that produces conviction of the accused for homicide in an unprejudiced mind has been satisfied,” the trial court pointed out.

The trial court noted that the affidavits of the accused clearly showed their participation and collective responsibility in the death of Hong.

“They reveal a unity of purpose and concerted action evidencing their conspiracy to kill him,” the trial court said.

The trial court has allowed the PCG officers to remain out on bail pending appeal of their case.

“The Government of the Republic of China [Taiwan] welcomes the court verdict in the case of the Guan Da Xing No. 28 shooting incident at Balintang Channel,” the Taiwan Economic Cooperation Office (Teco) said in a news statement.

“Per evidence presented by the

Philippine prosecutors, it was clear that the PCG officers were guilty of the crime of homicide, as well as blatantly disregarding applicable international law, which is universally accepted by the global community, including the Philippines,” Teco said.

“Taking into account the ancient proverb that ‘a close neighbor is more important than a brother who is far away,’ Taiwan and the Philippines have long been important close neighbors. Today, the long-awaited justice in this shooting incident was served, but it was a hard and a bitter experience for both countries,” the statement added.

Teco said both countries “have to move on from this tragic incident, and determine how to further enhance the bilateral relationship between our two countries.”

In 2015, Manila and Taipei signed a Fisheries Law Enforcement Agreement that has helped boost bilateral cooperation in fisheries law enforcement matters. Since then, annual technical meetings are held between both sides to avoid any conflict again in the future.

“May the verdict in this case serve, not only as a symbol of justice, but also a testament to the solid relationship and deep mutual trust between Taiwan and the Philippines,” Teco said.

A4

TheBroa

Business

Thursday, September 19, 2019

Death penalty: Deterrent or dil I

By Rene Acosta, Jovee Marie dela Cruz, Bernadette Nicolas and Joel R. San Juan

F two former police chiefs had their way, there would be a channel on free TV airing live how the state wields its power over life and death.

Now members of the Senate, Panfilo M. Lacson Sr. and Ronald M. dela Rosa, approve of public viewing of the killing of a deathrow convict. But while Dela Rosa favors death by musketry, Lacson is averse to it. Still, the two believe that showing the killing of a convicted criminal would lead to a decrease in heinous crimes. And they seem confident death penalty would be reinstated under the Duterte administration.

But while this is yet to be scheduled for debate in the 18th Congress, the polarizing effect of death penalty on Philippine society is already felt inside and outside the House of Representatives and the Judiciary.

Recent memory

PHILIPPINE society’s most recent memory of the death penalty was 20 years ago, seven days before Valentine’s Day of 1999, in the persona of Leo P. Echegaray.

Echegaray became the first Filipino to be executed via lethal injection after capital punishment, abolished in 1987, was reinstated in 1994 during the term of President Joseph Estrada via Republic Act (RA) 7659 or the Death Penalty Law. Echegaray, a house painter, was executed five years after he was convicted in 1994 for statutory rape. The case was filed by his then 10-year-old stepdaughter who claimed she was raped several times by Echegaray.

The Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Quezon City in 1994 sentenced him to death.

In a unanimous decision issued on June 25, 1996, the Supreme Court rejected Echegaray’s petition to reverse the ruling issued by the Quezon City RTC. In his plea, Echegaray maintained his innocence of the crime.

He said the accusation against him was concocted and strongly motivated by greed over a certain lot situated at the National Housing Authority’s (NHA) Madrigal Estate Housing Project in Barangay San Antonio, San Francisco del Monte, Quezon City.

Echegaray was referring to the maternal grandmother of his victim, Asuncion Rivera.

Rape case

ECHEGARAY accused Rivera of brainwashing his stepdaughter to file a rape case against him so that if he is meted out a death sentence, the title to the said property will be consolidated to her favor.

The subject property is coowned by Echegaray and the livein partner of Rivera, based on NHA records.

Thus, Echegaray tried to persuade the Supreme Court to believe that Rivera fabricated the rape charge in order to eliminate him from being a co-owner so that the live-in partners would have the property for their own.

However, the High Tribunal, then headed by Chief Justice Andres D. Narvasa, gave weight to the testimony of the victim over Echegaray’s claim, paving the way for his execution.

Estrada green-lighted Echegaray’s execution hoping it would serve as a deterrent to heinous crimes, despite pleas and calls from the religious sector and human-rights advocates to stop the execution.

However, then Deputy Speaker for Mindanao Daisy Avance-Fuentes reported that a record-high 3,164 cases of rape were reported to the police in 1999, or 131 more than the number recorded in 1998.

Avance-Fuentes said that in 1999, around nine women were raped each day.

“Ironically, that was the year when we started hauling off rapists to the lethal injection chamber,” she was quoted in the Today newspaper article of January 30, 2000.

Still, how a lethal injection snuffed out the life from Echegaray as he lay on a bunker at the National Penitentiary wasn’t publicly shown. He was pronounced dead by prison officials at 3:19 p.m. on that Friday, 329 days before a new millennium.

Policy origin

THE reinstatement of the death penalty in 1994 came just seven years after a general State policy against it was enshrined in the 1987 Constitution.

However, Article III, Section 19 of the 1987 Constitution did not abolish per se the death penalty, Muntinlupa Rep. Rozzano Rufino B. Biazon explained. Biazon said the article gave Congress the power to impose the death penalty for compelling reasons, involving heinous crimes.

Thus was RA 7659 (An Act to Impose the Death Penalty on Certain Heinous Crimes, Amending for that purpose the Revised Penal Laws, as amended, other Special Penal Laws, and for other purposes) passed.

By 2002, RA 9165 (An Act Instituting the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002) repealed RA 6425 (Dangerous Drugs Act of 1972) and imposed the extreme penalty of death for illegal drug traffickers and their cohorts.

However, the Thirteenth Congress during the administration of President Gloria Arroyo enacted, in 2006, RA 9346 (An Act Prohibiting the Imposition of Death Penalty in the Philippines) and repealed RA 8177 (An Act Designating Death

by Lethal Injection), RA 7659, “and all other laws, executive orders and decrees, insofar as they impose the death penalty.”

Biazon’s proposal

BIAZON, one of the authors of a bill seeking to re-impose the death penalty, said that up until 2006, the Philippines was just one of a handful of countries in the world that impose the death penalty as capital punishment for criminals found guilty beyond reasonable doubt.

He said that intense lobbying from various interest groups led by the Roman Catholic Church succeeded in changing the mindset of legislators.

According to the lawmaker, the passage of RA 9346 became a statement of the Philippines to the international community that the country is abandoning death penalty to punish criminals found guilty of committing heinous crimes.

In his House Bill (HB) 741, Biazon said the impunity by which criminals carry on with their “dastardly acts makes it appear as if we are not a nation of laws.”

“We are confronted almost every day by reports in the tri-media of children still learning how to walk being raped or of senior citizens who are in their twilight years being bludgeoned to death right in their very own homes,” he said.

“These barbaric acts are, more often than not, committed by perpetrators under the influence of drugs. Such crimes leave wailing parents, sons, daughters, brothers, sisters and their relatives who are scarred and traumatized for the rest of their lives crying and de-

‘Life should not be destroyed just in the hope that other lives might be saved. There may be truth to such argument but the fear of dying is also a strong motivation to hinder an individual from doing a certain type of activity such as selling illegal drugs to people.”

—Muntinlupa Rep. Rozzano Rufino B. Biazon manding for justice,” Biazon added.

When asked if his office has statistics on the cases of crimes, the lawmaker said the data came from the Philippine National Police (PNP).

Deterrent vs criminals

BIAZON said it has always been argued that there is no evidence that the death penalty serves as a deterrent to deadly criminals.

“Hence, life should not be destroyed just in the hope that other lives might be saved,” he said.

“There may be truth to such argument but the fear of dying is also a strong motivation to hinder an individual from doing a certain type of activity such as selling illegal drugs to people.”

Another argument against the death penalty is that imprisonment is sufficient punishment for those who commit crimes and are convicted, Biazon said, adding that it is even argued that reform is possible when a convict experiences incarceration.

“Considering that the Constitution grants Congress the flexibility to impose death penalty under certain circumstances and based on the current wisdom of the times, it is best to once again restore the penalty of death for crimes under RA 9165,” he said.

“This is to put back into the consciousness of those involved in the illegal drugs trade that the ulti-

mate punishment of death awaits them should they continue with their nefarious acts.”

Barbers’s bill

IN filing House Bill 2026, Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace S. Barbers said the alarming rise of heinous crimes in the country calls for the re-imposition of capital punishment.

“Crimes disturb the order of society,” Barbers said. “The death penalty is said to be the strongest deterrent society has against such crimes.”

The lawmaker said his proposal aims to restore order and adequately punishes criminals, saying the death penalty also serves as retribution for victims and their families.

“Since the government has the highest interest in preventing heinous crimes, it should use the strongest punishment available to deter unlawful acts—the death penalty,” he said.

“If criminals charged guilty of committing heinous crimes are sentenced to death and executed, potential criminals will think twice before committing crimes for fear of losing their own life.”

For Oriental Mindoro Rep. Paulino Salvador C. Leachon, the reinstatement of the death penalty is one of the major thrusts of the Duterte administration.

Leachon’s proposal

IN filing his HB 3128, Leachon pushed to impose the death penalty for the heinous crime of treason, aggravated rape, plunder and certain grave violation of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.

“There is a need to effectively carry out death penalty for criminals who do not give value to the life and security of their fellow countrymen, to serve as a deterrent against the commission of heinous crimes and to bring justice to the victims of such crimes,” he said.

“It is thus imperative for Congress, in the exercise of its mandate, to take every conceivable step to protect the honor and dignity and the very life of each lawabiding Filipino citizen, to impose the death penalty for the heinous crime of treason, aggravated rape, plunder and certain grave violation of the Dangerous Act,” he added.

During the 17th Congress, the House passed on third and final reading a bill reinstating the death penalty for drug-related offenses.

The bill, however, remained unacted upon because the Senate refused to take it up.

Militate vs poor

A DECADE ago, former Chief Justice Artemio V. Panganiban issued a dissenting opinion insisting that RA 7659 was unconstitutional for failure to comply with the requirements of “heinous” and “compelling reasons” prescribed by the Constitution.

In the same opinion, Panganiban expressed belief that RA 7659

seemed to militate against the poor, the powerless and the marginalized.

He based his opinion on the profile of 165 death convicts submitted by the Free Legal Assistance Group (FLAG), the group that offered legal services for the said convicts.

Of the 165 convicts that the group surveyed, 21 percent were then earning between P200 and P2,900 monthly; while approximately 27 percent had salaries between P3,000 and P3,999 monthly.

Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority revealed that the minimum wage in 1999 for nonagriculture workers was between P117 and P223.50 daily; up from the P115 daily to P185 daily rates in 1997.

Those earning above P4,000 monthly are exceedingly few: 7 percent were earning between P4,000 and P4,999; 4 percent had salaries between P5,000 and P5,999; 7 percent were earning between P6,000 and P6,999 ; those earning between P7,000 and P15,000 comprise only 4 percent, while those earning P15,000 and above were only 1 percent.

In terms of occupation, most of the death convicts were workers in the agricultural, construction, transport and service sectors or vendors.

In terms of education, most of the death convicts were either elementary or high-school graduates, while none of them use English as their medium of communication.

Almost half of the death convicts speak and understand Filipino.

‘Crimes disturb the order of society. The death penalty is said to be the strongest deterrent society has against such crimes.”

—Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace S. Barbers

aderLook

sMirror

Editor: Dennis D. Estopace | Thursday, September 19, 2019

A5

ilemma in PHL’s war vs. crime? tal punishment as a factor for their economic growth.

“If they have economic growth, it’s not because they have death penalty,” she said. “Singapore is just small, hence, relative to the Philippines, it is manageable.

Its location is also strategic, that is why it is a hub.”

Moreover, Singapore’s justice system is also way better than the Philippines and their leaders also lead by example.

“For example, people who are violating traffic rules are really caught and fined. I think they really do not need death penalty because the people are already afraid of violating the rules because they know that they can be fined and be caught. I think that is…why we [Filipinos] follow traffic rules in Singapore and not when we go back to the Philippines,” she explained.

In terms of addressing jail congestion in the country, she said she would have been okay with the pardoning system. However, she got concerned especially after the controversy on Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA) broke out, starting with the foiled release of convicted rapist and murderer Antonio Sanchez, a former mayor of Calauan, Laguna.

Sanchez was supposed to be released supposedly after earning enough GCTA credits, which will be deducted from jail time.

SATORI13 | DREAMSTIME.COM

IBON’s opposition

“Although I would like to still have faith in our justice system, the problem is justice is still prorich whatever side we look at. I believe death penalty will not solve the many problems in the country.”—De La Salle University economics professor Maria Ella C. Oplas

Push start

THE move to reinstate death penalty for heinous crimes, especially those related to drugs as well as plunder, took its cue from President Rodrigo Duterte.

In the President’s fourth State of the Nation Address, he said he is “aware that we still have a long way to go in our fight against this social menace.”

This is the reason “I advocate the imposition of the death penalty for crimes related to illegal drugs. Our citizens have begun to do their part in the war against drugs, and through the barangay formation of anti-drug councils, and also actually surrendering bricks of cocaine found floating in the sea into our islands. I call this responsibility,” Duterte said.

“However, the drugs will not be crushed unless we continue to eliminate corruption that allows this social monster to survive.”

While Congress has yet to define and identify the crimes which the death penalty would cover and how the execution would be carried out, Lacson and Dela Rosa already have formulas, albeit differing ones.

Lacson wants capital punishment to cover crimes involving the following: illegal drugs; piracy; bribery; parricide; murder; rape; kidnapping and serious illegal detention; arson; plunder; terrorism; human trafficking and arms smuggling, for which he favors lethal in-

jection as the means of execution.

Firing squad

DELA ROSA said he wants the execution to be carried out by firing squad, which he considers the best method if the objective of the government was really to instill fear among criminals and big-time drug offenders.

It was under dela Rosa’s helm of the PNP where the anti-illegal drugs campaign was initiated, and which is now being sustained by the leadership of Police General Oscar D. Albayalde. The anti-drugs drive remains among the thrusts of the Duterte government.

Lacson agreed with dela Rosa that a firing squad would deliver the most chilling effect, noting that when Chinese drug trafficker Lim Seng was executed by musketry in Fort Bonifacio in 1973, crimes involving drugs totally disintegrated, but he said a firing squad would be too “brutal.”

Dela Rosa’s proposal is to carry the firing squad in a plaza and have it covered live by the media.

System imperfections

GIVEN that the death penalty has to go through full deliberations by Congress, Albayalde said the focus of the PNP is how to address the imperfections of the justice system, wherein law enforcement is at the forefront.

He said the PNP must help ensure that it would be “guilt-free,”

or has done its job properly when a convict is sent to death row. And one way of doing it is to make sure that convicts are really guilty of the crimes that were committed, he added. This is the reason internal cleansing is being stepped up in the organization.

Albayalde declines to cite his preferred manner for carrying out capital punishment, deferring to what the law would dictate. But being in a civilized country, he believes that lethal injection would be enough.

He agrees that having a law imposing death penalty would be a crime deterrent.

No solution

FOR De La Salle University economics professor Maria Ella C. Oplas, reimposing the death penalty is not the solution to the country’s problems.

Oplas said it does not help that the justice system is flawed.

“Although I would like to still have faith in our justice system, the problem is justice is still prorich whatever side we look at,”

Oplas said in a text message to the Business­Mirror. “I believe death penalty will not solve the many problems in the country.”

But should there be a death penalty, she said she is fine with having this imposed on rapists.

“Because rape is a psychological problem. You have a problem psychologically if you can rape. I think that is the most gruesome thing you can do to another person,” she said.

Nonetheless, she said it would be better for the government to focus on implementing other solutions, such as addressing poverty, often the root cause for people to commit crimes. “[The government] should encourage investments so that there would be employment opportunities because if people are employed, crimes will be lessened,” she said.

“This is because they now have the means to live decently.”

Small, manageable

WHILE rich countries like Singapore impose death penalty, Oplas doesn’t see the imposition of capi-

“The reality that the country’s justice system doesn’t treat the poor fairly and justly is more than enough reason to oppose the proposal.

The courts system will tend to let influential elite political and economic interests off easy, including from capital punishment, while coming down hard on the poor, including many innocent poor. The country’s unreformed justice system and its institutions are the worst conditions for deciding whether an alleged criminal lives or dies.”

—Jose Enrique A. Africa, IBON Foundation Inc. executive director

MEANWHILE, Jose Enrique A. Africa, executive director of nonprofit IBON Foundation Inc., said they oppose the revival of death penalty in any form.

“The reality that the country’s justice system doesn’t treat the poor fairly and justly is more than enough reason to oppose the proposal. The courts system will tend to let influential elite political and economic interests off easy, including from capital punishment, while coming down hard on the poor, including many innocent poor,” Africa said. “The country’s unreformed justice system and its institutions are the worst conditions for deciding whether an alleged criminal lives or dies.”

Africa agreed with Oplas that criminality in general, including heinous crimes, will only be reduced by improving socioeconomic conditions and not by just imposing severe penalties.

“Proponents argue that capital punishment will have a deterrent effect. Even if this were true, it still doesn’t mean that it should be used because whether that’s enough reason for the State to willfully take a life is still a moral and ethical matter.

But even that argument is not really well-established and is questioned by scientific studies and many criminology experts,” he said.

Religious beliefs

IN the event that the death penalty is re-implemented, judges are expected to hand them down on convicts who deserve capital punishment even though it goes against their religious or political beliefs.

This is because, in a ruling issued by the Supreme Court in October 1995, it remanded to the sala of then Manila RTC Branch 47 Presiding Judge Lorenzo B. Veneracion—for him to impose the penalty of death—the case of Henry Logarto and Ernesto Cordero whom he found guilty of the crime of rape with homicide.

The two were found responsible for the rape and killing of 7-year-old Angel Alquiza, whose body was found on August 2, 1994, wrapped in a sack and yellow table cloth tied with a nylon cord floating along Delpan Street in Binondo, Manila.

Instead of imposing the capital punishment against Logarto and Cordero, Veneracion merely imposed reclusion perpetua, which drew criticism from the families of the victim as well as various anticrime groups.

Veneracion argued that he has no right to send convicts to death as “it’s only God who can do that.”

The case was elevated to the SC for consideration, which ruled that Judge Veneracion erred in not imposing the corresponding penalty for the crime.

The Court emphasized the need for judges to strictly obey the rule of law, “which forms the bedrock of our system of justice.”

It said that laws would become meaningless if judges are influenced by their religious or political beliefs in exercising their duties.

“While this Court sympathizes with his predicament, it is its bounden duty to emphasize that a court of law is no place for a protracted debate on the morality or propriety of the sentence, where the law itself provides for the sentence of death as a penalty in specific and well-defined instances,” the SC pointed out.

“A government of laws, not of men, excludes the exercise of broad discretionary powers by those acting under its authority. Under this system, judges are guided by the Rule of Law, and ought ‘to protect and enforce it without fear or favor,’ resist encroachments by governments, political parties, or even the interference of their own personal beliefs,” the High Tribunal further explained.

Compelling reason

A WELL-POSITIONED member of the SC who begged off from being named, however, expressed belief there is a compelling reason to restore capital punishment.

He explained that the country’s penal system works on the deterrence angle, thus, the re-imposition of the death penalty would certainly be in light with such objective.

“Yes, there is a compelling reason. The drug problem which is widespread—that is a social problem, more than a criminal problem,” the magistrate said.

The magistrate said the illegal drug trade is one of the compelling reasons for the restoration of the death penalty.

He said he was among the judges who convicted to death several individuals who committed heinous crimes.

The SC member said it was wrong to say that the death penalty is anti-poor considering that there were “ spoiled brats” who were also then convicted and sentenced to death.

The magistrate cited the sensational case of Maggie de la Riva, who was abducted and raped on June 26, 1967, at Swanky Hotel in Pasay City by four individuals all belonging to affluent families.

On February 6, 1971, the SC sentenced her four assailants to death via electric chair.

“It’s really a matter of law enforcement going after these people; and prosecution that follows after that will always succeed if there is evidence,” the magistrate said.

Law enforcers manufacturing evidence against an accused should not be used as a reason to oppose the re-imposition of the death penalty, according to the magistrate.

“It is easy to detect for an experienced judge if the evidence is fabricated,” the magistrate said.

Abandonment option

SPEAKER Alan Peter Cayetano said the lowering cases of crime in the country could influence the House of Representatives to abandon the call to re-impose death penalty for heinous crimes related to illegal drugs.

However, Cayetano urged all groups opposing death penalty to “pray and work hard” on the proposal that would make crime rates to continuously go down.

Cayetano also assured the public of a healthy debate on the measure in the 18th Congress, saying all stakeholders would be “given enough time to speak on the issue.”

A6 Thursday, September 19, 2019 • Editor: Angel R. Calso

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

editorial

Govt must annihilate this disastrous pest

T

he Duterte administration should look into the possible collusion between Bureau of Customs (BOC) officials and large steelmakers because the government is losing hundreds of billions of pesos due to unabated smuggling at the ports, especially steel, according to Buhay Rep. Lito Atienza. He said lost tax revenues rooted in corruption could be enough to fund the country’s social services and infrastructure projects. (See, “P200B lost every year to unabated smuggling at the ports—lawmaker,” in the BusinessMirror, September 16, 2019).

Atienza can’t fathom why the BOC is reluctant to adopt the pre-shipment inspection of all cargo vans coming into the country. “Obviously, the government—the BOC and the Department of Finance—don’t want to know what is inside the container vans. They are merely dependent on the declaration of importers. Industry analysts say that a minimum of P200 billion is lost every year due to unabated smuggling,” he said.

The lawmaker said the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act was signed four years ago, but the pre-inspection provision specified in Section 440—that container vans should be inspected at their ports of origin—remains unimplemented. “They [vans] should be cleared at the port of origin before shipment. When the Duterte administration came in, we expected that it would be implemented, but until now, nothing has changed. Obviously, the DOF is not keen on its implementation.”

Atienza said there are around 12,000 container vans coming into our ports everyday. Only a small fraction gets inspected, while the rest are allowed to come in, with some even using the green lanes, which is tantamount to giving smugglers a holiday.

The new tax measures approved recently by the House are not needed if the BOC collects the right amount of duties and taxes, the lawmaker said, adding: “Instead of introducing new tax reforms to raise revenue for the government’s social services and infrastructure programs, the government should be looking into the issue of smuggling at BOC.” Smuggling at the ports should have no chance flourish because our Customs officials know how smugglers operate: One method involves misdeclaration of imported items. Another is by undervaluing the shipment. Misclassification is also a form of tax and duty evasion, which is carried out by erroneously classifying the imported goods. Unfortunately, smuggling is still rampant despite the President’s recent move of firing scores of Customs officials.

Dante Jimenez, chairman of Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission, earlier confirmed that they are investigating the importation documents submitted by big steel manufacturers that bear signs of import “misdeclaration.”

He said the PACC is probing into the real declared value of the imported billets over the past 10 years because during those times the steelmakers declared lower amounts of duties and taxes.

The PACC said imported steel billets from several countries displayed big discrepancies in terms of size, description and volume, showing possible misdeclaration, thus, improper taxes paid. Giving no details, the PACC said it is preparing tax evasion cases against a big steel manufacturer and some BOC officials suspected to be involved in smuggling.

As Atienza pointed out, smuggling costs the government hundreds of billions in lost revenues. But beyond monetary losses, this scourge affects everybody because it can also destroy local industries, and hence people’s livelihood.

Worse, the profits derived from smuggling only go to corrupt officials and crime syndicates. This gives the bad guys money to run their criminal activities. The government must use its vast powers to annihilate this chronic pest, before it can cause catastrophic economic and social damage.

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King dollar John Mangun

OUTSIDE THE BOX

I

T is true that we need more “financial literacy.” But it should be much more than “what is life insurance?” and “why can’t most local mutual funds outperform the stock exchange index?”

Of course, I sound like—and I am —a cranky old man when I talk about the all-pervasive ignorance about money and the markets. But this is the Internet age when the sum total of all human knowledge is available to almost everyone instantly.

For example, “Why don’t we return to the ‘Gold Standard’ where currency is backed by gold?” The US dollar was never backed by gold, except in some transactions between governments. Until 1973, “foreign official holders” of dollars could use US dollars to buy gold from the US government.

The Mint Act of 1792 allowed holders of both gold and silver bullion to exchange for gold and silver coins at a price fixed by the government. The Coinage Act of 1873

limited that exchange to only gold.

The Gold Standard Act of 1900 allowed ordinary people to exchange gold for dollars from the government. There never truly was a “Gold Standard for Dollar” but a “Dollar Standard for Gold.”

While a person could exchange $20 paper for a $20 gold coin, because the government fixed the price, there was no difference in value between holding a gold coin or a paper dollar.

Of almost equal ignorance is why the US dollar is the international reserve currency and why it will stay that way long into the future.

“Money” started this way: A few thousand years ago a poultry farmer needed a worker and offered to pay him in chickens. But after a month, the worker had several dozen live

While all the experts are blaming slow global growth on the “Trade War,” the reason is much simpler.

There is a shortage of dollars because money is flowing to the US because of its higher interest rates and because the “higher dollar” is decreasing US exports.

The US dollar is the lifeblood of global trade and, therefore, the global economy. That is not going to change anytime soon. chickens and more eggs than he could eat. He asked his boss to give him a paper that said, “Redeemable for two live chickens.” Now the worker could take that paper to the baker and exchange it for bread. While the exchange rate between “two chickens” and bread might go up and down, at least you knew that the poultry farmer would always redeem the paper for two chickens. That is the “Chicken Standard.”

New Zealand has a $1.6-billion trade surplus with China/Hong Kong. New Zealand has a $1.6-billion trade deficit with Germany.

New Zealand will not accept payments for its goods in Chinese renminbi because Germany will not accept renminbi from New Zealand to

pay for German imports. So which currency do you think all three countries will accept for payment because all three can use that currency for trade with all other nations?

New Zealand and China—and many other countries—have set up currency swap agreements to exchange payments in one currency for equivalent amounts in the other.

But most of these are lopsided, favoring one side or the other. Vietnam has a $20 billion trade deficit with China and its currency is worthless any place outside of Vietnam. The Philippines has a $450-million trade surplus with Mexico, but where are we going to spend Mexican pesos?

While all the experts are blaming slow global growth on the “Trade War,” the reason is much simpler.

There is a shortage of dollars because money is flowing to the US because of its higher interest rates and because the “higher dollar” is decreasing US exports. The US dollar is the lifeblood of global trade and, therefore, the global economy. That is not going to change anytime soon.

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

Israel heads into unknown as Netanyahu’s election gamble fails

B

By Amy Teibel | Bloomberg Opinion

enjamin Netanyahu’s gamble to hold elections for a second time this year backfired after a stunning deadlock left Israel rudderless and convulsed by a new wave of political turmoil.

The inconclusive race against his centrist rival, former military chief Benny Gantz, was a blow for Israel’s longest-serving prime minister. At best, he’ll be returned to office badly weakened at a time when Israel’s diplomatic and security challenges are mounting and the Trump administration prepares to present its Middle East peace plan. At worst, he’ll be forced from power and rendered more vulnerable to prosecution on corruption charges.

With 35 percent of ballots counted as of 7:09 a.m., Netanyahu’s nationalist Likud was running slightly ahead of Gantz’s centrist Blue and White, with 28.1 percent of the vote to 26.6 percent. But the partial results showed neither party has the backing of 61 of parliament’s 120 lawmakers, leaving each to reach out to potential governing partners.

The political horse-trading will be feverish in coming days as Netanyahu and Gantz jockey to line up the most support. There’s also pressure for their parties to join forces in a national unity government, a move that might require

Netanyahu to step aside or be forced out.

Presidential tap

After a near-final tally is released on Thursday, President Reuven Rivlin will consult with the various parties to see whom they recommend to form the next government. Coalition talks could take as long as six weeks.

Netanyahu engineered the revote after failing to form a coalition following the April 9 election. With his political survival at stake, he launched a rancorous campaign that painted liberals and Israeli Arabs as bogeymen, and appealed to his nationalist base by vowing to annex West Bank territory the Palestinians want for a state.

But these tactics, which worked for him in the past, fell short this time. The leader of the Joint List of Arab parties, Ayman Odeh, said the venom galvanized Arab voters to go to the polls. Poised to become parliament’s third-largest faction, the Joint List said it will sit down with Gantz to see if they can cooperate. The Arab parties represent

about 20 percent of Israel’s population but historically have been left out of governing coalitions because they reject Israel’s identity as the Jewish state.

Former Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman, an on-again, off-again Netanyahu ally, is in a good position to become kingmaker. Liberman’s objection to military draft exemptions for ultra-Orthodox Jewish men led to the collapse of coalition talks after the last election, and his tough stand resonated among voters on both left and right in a country where conscription is, otherwise, compulsory.

He’s been the most vocal champion of a national unity government that freezes out the ultra-Orthodox.

Netanyahu defiant

A defiant Netanyahu told cheering supporters at Likud headquarters in Tel Aviv that he would enter into negotiations with prospective coalition partners to form “a strong Zionist government” and block the formation of a “dangerous, anti-Zionist government” that would rely on the support of the Joint List. The crowd chanted, “Bibi, king of Israel,” and “We don’t want unity.”

Political newcomer Gantz ran a clean-hands campaign that, while lackluster, resonated with voters desperate for an alternative to Netanyahu. The prime minister has been in office since 2009, and served

a first term in the 1990s before being unseated by another former military chief, Ehud Barak.

Gantz stopped short of declaring victory but told a cheering crowd that “polarization and divisions are behind us, and unity and reconciliation are ahead of us.” He vowed to work toward a national unity government, but has repeatedly said he won’t team up with Netanyahu while he faces corruption allegations.

The prime minister says the accusations were cooked up by left-wing opponents in cahoots with a press biased against him. Before coalition talks collapsed in May, he was promoting new legislation that would grant him immunity from prosecution as long as he’s in office. If Netanyahu loses this election fight, that option will fade and he’ll become more legally vulnerable.

In early October he’s scheduled to plead his case before Atty. General Avihai Mandelblit, who will decide whether to press bribery and fraud charges. Netanyahu is accused of accepting about $200,000 in gifts from wealthy friends and trying to win sympathetic press coverage by shaping rules to benefit media moguls.

The political uncertainty dovetails with renewed confrontations with Iran and its proxies in Syria, Lebanon and the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, and the expected release of the See “Israel,” A7

Opinion BusinessMirror

www.businessmirror.com.ph

Alternative energy sources badly needed

Wise and prudent with money

Conversion and prudence

Msgr. Sabino A. Vengco Jr.

Alálaong Bagá

Val A. Villanueva

Businesswise

T

he attack on Saudi Aramco’s oil production infrastructure accentuates the susceptibility of the world’s oil supply to sabotage. Even the billions of dollars spent on security could not guarantee that these oil facilities would be safe from, ironically, lowly drones that knocked out more than 5 percent of the global oil supply.

The result of the attack was as swift as its execution. On Monday, US crude oil prices soared $5.61per barrel, or 10.2 percent, to $60.46 barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the international standard, jumped $7.84 per barrel, or 13 percent, to trade at $68.06 per barrel.

Such brazen attack also shows how fragile the global economy is.

The market is now being tested on how it can deal with unexpected and costly disproportionate warfare.

This also makes it imperative for the oil market to not only factor in the supply loss, but also place high-risk dividend moving forward.

The Philippines is more vulnerable. It heavily relies on imported crude oil to power its industries, the main mover of its economic growth.

Demand for petroleum products was up by 1.4 percent in volume in 2018, with import bill leaping 32 percent in value amid efforts by crude oil exporters to limit output and raise prices. According to the Department of Energy, the country’s imports for petroleum products reached 168.8 million barrels last year from 166.5 million barrels in the previous year.

Crude oil accounts for the bulk of the country’s energy supply. At the moment, coal, geothermal, wind and solar energy and other alternative energy sources cannot yet approximate the role of imported oil in moving the country’s economic wheel. It would be ideal if, in the near term, these energy sources could at least halve the contribution of imported crude or the country could extract oil either offshore or onshore within its boundaries.

That the country needs to be selfsufficient in sourcing out its energy demand is an understatement. The attack on Saudi Aramco makes it clearer that we are at the mercy of these oil exporters.

Several energy projects are in the pipeline, but these are expected to be operational two to four years down the road. First Gen Corp., for instance, is negotiating with various gas suppliers and buyers, having chosen Japan’s JGC Corp. as its engineering, procurement and construction contractor for its liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal project in Batangas City. First Gen is in talks with them for short-term supply contracts for the period 2021 to 2023.

But there’s one project that can supply the country with clean energy on short notice…if it is allowed. The LNG project of Energy World Corp.

(EWC) in Pagbilao, Quezon, is almost complete. It remains dormant because it has not been permitted to tap into the existing transmission grid in the area. For years, the company has been seeking government’s help in securing approval to tap into other private firms’ existing transmission grid in the area, to no avail. The company is locked and

Israel . . .

continued from A6

Trump administration’s Middle East peace plan. Israel’s political paralysis has already held up the presentation of the plan, which is facing an uphill struggle five years after IsraeliPalestinian peace talks stalled.

US President Donald J. Trump has been one of Netanyahu’s most

There’s one project that can supply the country with clean energy on short notice...if it is allowed. The LNG project of Energy World Corp. in Pagbilao, Quezon, is almost complete. It remains dormant because it has not been permitted to tap into the existing transmission grid in the area. loaded to add to the country’s energy requirement if and when it is cleared to do so, while it is building its own transmission line.

EWC Chairman Stewart Elliott said in the company’s yearly report that the plant wi ll be operational by late 2021. This only means that the company is confident that its substation currently undergoing construction is near completion. Just the same, if the company were allowed to tap into the existing transmission grid, it could readily contribute to the country’s energy needs.

According to my sources, EWC’s LNG Pagbilao’s project has been trapped in a bureaucratic quagmire or stymied by a group that may be adversely affected by its implementation.

This has effectively caused the country to miss out on a valuable project that is expected to beef up the country’s power requirement now that the Malampaya gas reserves are about to run out.

The LNG hub terminal, the first of its kind in the Philippines, can process 3 million metric tons of LNG per annum, which is sufficient to generate up to 3,000 MW of gas-fired power plants, and even up to 6,000 MW of power when its second tank currently being constructed becomes operational. The project costs over $750 million of direct investment in the Philippines, and has created over 800 direct jobs during the construction period.

Undoubtedly, the country must buckle up to address the long-term effects of the Aramco attack. Helima Croft, global head of commodity strategy at RBC Capital Markets, said the incident could prove a “game changer” for the dynamic in the Middle East.

“We contend that …the drone attacks on Saudi Arabia’s all-important Abqaiq processing facility (which has processing capacity of more than 7 [million barrels a day]) and the 1.5 mb/d Khurais oil field represents a game changer in the escalating Iranian regional standoff,” Croft wrote in a Saturday research report titled: “Saudi Arabia/Iran Crisis Guide Update: This is Your Wake Up Call...”

The Philippines cannot just sit idly by as the threat of escalation of hostilities between Iran and Saudi Arabia could spell doom to global markets.

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

fervent allies, showering him with political gifts, such as moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem and withholding funds from the Palestinians. Ahead of April’s election he recognized Israeli sovereignty over a section of the war-won Golan Heights—but that wasn’t enough to help Netanyahu over the top this time. With assistance from Michael S. Arnold, Ivan Levingston, Gwen Ackerman, Yaacov Benmeleh and Benjamin Harvey

Thursday, September 19, 2019 A7

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oney matters, being important for our salvation. Proper use of money and wealth can help gain real treasure in heaven. The gospel reading (Luke 16:1-13) gives us at first a perplexing but deeply instructive parable about money management.

Ingenuity in view of tomorrow The story by Jesus about the rich man, probably an absentee landowner, with a clever manager or steward must be understood within the context of ancient Palestinian usage. The manager had been caught squandering his master’s property, and given already his notice of termination, he must weigh his options. Not strong enough to dig as a laborer and ashamed to beg for his sustenance, he saw that he had to take action to ensure his future when he would no longer be a steward. He must have friends who would welcome him and support him then. Considering his incapacities and possibilities, he assured himself of the goodwill of his master’s debtors in the future by foregoing of his commission at present.

The steward had the authority to represent his master in making loans, leasing, collecting fees and debts, etc. And much like the traditional tax collector, he had the right to earn for himself in each transaction a commission, similar to an added interest to the principal.

Although, one was not supposed to collect interest on loans to a fellow Israelite (Exodus 22:25; Leviticus 25:36; Deuteronomy 23:19ff ), a way around the law was found in the condition that the borrower was not destitute and under no compulsion, hence not exploited, when imposed with interest. In an accepted legal procedure, the clever manager apparently was reducing the interests, his commissions, on the oil and wheat transactions for his master.

The manager exhibited an enterprising attitude. If he had been caught swindling his master earlier, when faced with the crisis of his own making, he acted prudently the second time around. Learning his lesson, he acted legally this time and proceeded swiftly to carry out an effective move toward the solution to his problem. Jesus lauded His prudence regarding His commissions, not any cheating on His part, and wished that “the children of light” were as enterprising. This sort of prudence is echoed in a saying of Jesus attached to the parable: “Make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth, so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.” Put therefore into good use the wealth of this world and reap an eternal reward: share with others, give alms, support charitable causes, help the poor, etc. The followers of Jesus should be no less wise and ingenuous in the use of money for the sake of the kingdom.

Clearly with money and material wealth comes responsibility and accountability. If you could not be trusted concerning the goods of this world, how much more would you be untrustworthy with eternal gifts. If we are dishonest with small matters, we would be

dishonest in greater matters. If I am unreliable with things belonging to another, how can I be given any for my own? Jesus is asserting that His disciples’ manner of dealing with material wealth very well reflects their capacity for the more important matter of eternal life.

Lack of discipline in the use of the former may well disqualify us from enjoying the latter.

Alálaong bagá, the final words of Jesus in connection with the parable is a major principle reminding us that one cannot serve two masters: one cannot serve both God and money. The other Sunday we heard Jesus teaching that unless one gives up everything in his life he cannot be His disciple; we are to prefer nothing to Jesus (Luke 14:26). Here we begin to understand what He meant when He said we have to renounce all we possess in order to become His disciple (Luke 14:33). We are to serve and trust God only; we cannot serve and put our trust in mammon. We must be wise and prudent in using money “sacramentally,” that is, as a means among others to express the love of God for all of us.

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

Mounting problems in a shrinking agri sector Dr. Rene E. Ofreneo

LABOREM EXERCENS Continued from A1

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eeks after his appointment, Secretary William Dar had to oversee the culling of over 7,400 pigs due to the African swine fever outbreak in Rizal, Bulacan and Quezon City. The “ber” months of 2019 are likely to be pork-less. They do not bode well for the country.

And yet, there are equally pressing problems on other agricultural fronts. In a dialogue with Dar on September 11, a group of farmer leaders and agricultural researchers led by Dr. Ted Mendoza of the UP Los Baños and the Integrated Rural Development Foundation raised the following concerns: First, the never-ending crisis of the coconut industry. The country’s coconut farmers have been reeling from the low, low prices that they have been getting from the traders: P3 to P4 for a whole nut, and P12 to P15 for a kilo of copra. At these prices, a hectare of coconuts can earn a farmer at the most P5,000 quarterly. Some coconut farmers in the “interior” lands have already stopped harvesting coconuts because of the added cost of transport.

Second, the never-ending crisis of the sugar industry. The Philippines is now a major sugar importer. Sugar farmers and planters denounce the adverse impact of sugar import liberalization and the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion tax on sugar-based products. They also complain that they have been losing from the low sugar recovery rate that the 30, or so, sugar mills in the country have been declaring.

Third, the never-ending crisis facing the producers of other agricultural crops, such as vegetables in the Cordillera, tobacco in the Ilocos region, abaca in the Bicol region, rubber in Mindanao, and so on, because of missing government support, weak rural infrastructures and lack of processing facilities. The coastal fishing communities are also at a loss regarding the declining fish catch due to the destruction of the mangroves and other breeding areas, overfishing, poaching and illegal practices by the big commercial fishing boats, and, yes, fishing in Philippine waters by the Chinese and other foreign fishing vessels.

Mendoza sums up the major “sins” committed by the government, past and present, in agriculture: Insufficient investment in irrigation and critical rural infrastructures, which are often damaged or destroyed by landslides and flash floods; missing R&D in support of the sector; low support for credit, marketing and postharvest assistance to small farmers; nonimplementation of the various modernization programs, including the Agricultural Fisheries and Modernization Act of 1996; widespread degradation of the soil due to poor soil conservation and non-adoption of good environmental practices; narrow implementation of the agrarian reform law, which has been focused mainly on the transfer of land to agrarian reform beneficiaries (neglecting in the process the task of transforming the beneficiaries to become organized and productive farmers); and the absence of industry-agriculture linkages.

In addition to the foregoing, Rene Pamintuan, a concerned logistics expert, bewails the absence of an integrated human resource development program for the farming population. Paging Department of Education, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, and Commission on Higher Education!

He also asks: Why is the Department of Agriculture (DA) trying to develop a registry of traders and millers, and yet, there is no registry of farmerproducers and the products they are producing?

What then can be done?

The Integrated Rural Development Foundation, which opposed the rice tariffication law in 2018 and which was among the first to alert the nation on the woeful situation of the palay farmers in the posttariffication months, listed some “doables” for consideration of the new DA secretary and the Duterte administration. For brevity’s sake,

Incidentally, Neda-PIDS, the government institution that pushed for the rice tariffication law, predicted the likely adverse impact of the law on the palay farmers. And yet, Neda-PIDS failed to come up with the safety nets and transition measures needed to soften the tariffication’s impact.

these are summarized as follows: One, agricultural development requires an integrated approach, not a piecemeal or por piraso policy intervention. The rice tariffication law is an example of the latter. The proponents of the said law simply opted for trade liberalization without addressing the adjustment and transition challenges that the palay farmers have had to face. The law provides for the distribution of hybrid seeds and agricultural machinery, and yet, the agencies mandated to do the distribution are not even ready for this task. And it is after the injury has been inflicted on the palay farmers that the government is now talking about the importance of delivering credit assistance and setting up safety nets for the affected palay farmers.

Incidentally, Neda-PIDS, the government institution that pushed for the rice tariffication law, predicted the likely adverse impact of the law on the palay farmers. And yet, NedaPIDS failed to come up with the safety nets and transition measures needed to soften the tariffication’s impact.

In its 2017 to 2018 Economic Monitor, Neda-PIDS wrote that under tariffication: “...the impact on domestic rice prices could be profound. Domestic prices will eventually converge with world prices plus tariff [under the status quo, the difference is a whopping 66 percent of the wholesale level]. Given that rice is the country’s dominant crop, millions of farmers will be affected...”

Second, the government should abandon the aimless and mindless liberalization program that the government technocrats, in supposed compliance with the World Trade Organization, are trying to promote for the sector. Globalization is war. It requires Team Philippines to get its act together and to do some strategizing, such as transforming winners into real winners and the vulnerables into survivors and eventually winners. The Philippines should learn from the United States, European Union and China, all of which are prepared to support their domestic

agricultural producers by providing needed assistance and even intervention in the agricultural trading and production systems. As a former EU agriculture minister put it, agriculture is not just a sector to be nurtured and protected; it is part of their culture, history and civilization.

Third, the government should make up its mind—should it put the small farmer at the center of agricultural development, or should it rely on big agribusiness corporations as the leaders in agricultural transformation? If it is the former, then the early pronouncement of Dar on the need to transform the small farmer into an “agripreneur” makes sense.

The problem is that the needed transformation programs, such as an integrated human resource development, integrated support system and value chain upgrading for smallfarmer development are not in place.

Fourth, the country needs to preserve its eroding and thinning agricultural land. A just and inclusive land use law is clearly a must.

Widespread land conversions must stop. In fact, many are wondering if the palay production crisis shall be used by the urban land developers and mall builders as an opportunity to “bank” more lands for nonagricultural purposes. A National Land Use Plan, focused on the preservation of the country’s remaining agricultural land, should be enacted by a reformminded Congress—now!

Fifth and finally, the government should institutionalize food security/agricultural sovereignty as the overall guiding framework in programming agricultural policies at the community, municipal, provincial and regional levels. As it is, the Philippine food system is clearly broken—broken by the aimless and mindless liberalization program, broken by the trading-importation operations of the smugglers and cartels, and broken by the lack of support to the country’s own food producers.

What then is food security/agricultural sovereignty? A 2002 Rome Declaration by an NGO/CSO Forum put it as follows: “Food sovereignty is the right of peoples, communities and countries to define their own agricultural, labor, fishing, food and land policies, which are ecologically, socially, economically and culturally appropriate to their unique circumstances. It includes the true right to food and to produce food, which means that all people have the right to safe, nutritious and culturally appropriate food and to food-producing resources, and the ability to sustain themselves and their societies.”

A8 Thursday, September 19, 2019

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‘Unified’ rules for processed meat sought amid ASF scare ₧78M

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By Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas @jearcalas & Butch Fernandez @butchfBM

HE country’s top meat processors urged the government to issue unified national guidelines for the transport of processed meat products after their shipments were disallowed in some provinces due to the African swine fever (ASF) scare.

The Philippine Association of Meat Processors Inc. (Pampi) made this appeal after submitting to Cabinet Secretaries the unified guidelines it proposed to resolve the

disruption in the local processed meat trade.

Relatedly, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said it will, through the Bureau of Animal Industry

Emergency fund the DA will use for biosecurity and quarantine operations, disease monitoring and surveillance, upgrading of laboratories, capacity building and other disease control measures

(BAI), spend a P78-million emergency fund to effectively manage, control, and contain the threat of ASF. The fund will prioritize biosecurity and quarantine operations, disease monitoring and surveillance, upgrading of laboratories, capacity building and other disease control measures.

Agriculture Secretary William D. Dar on Wednesday said the National ASF Task Force (NATF) will also convene to flesh out interagency coordination, in partnership with concerned local government units (LGUs) and the private sector.

The BusinessMirror earlier reported that processed meat products, such as hot dogs and bacon, from big firms like San Miguel Food and Beverage, CDO Foodsphere Inc. (CDO) and Pampanga’s Best, were disallowed in some Luzon provinces.

Some LGUs barred processed meat products following the DA confirmation that the dreaded ASF struck hog farms in Rizal and Bulacan.

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Duterte certifies ₧4.1-T budget bill as urgent

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RESIDENT Duterte certified as urgent on Wednesday the P4.1-trillion 2020 General Appropriations Bill in a bid to ensure its timely passage and prevent a repeat of the delay in the passage of the 2019 budget.

In separate letters to Senate President Vicente Sotto III and House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano, Duterte said there is a need to certify

the money measure as urgent “in order to address the need to maintain continuous government operations following the end of the current fiscal year.”

The President also cited the need to expedite the funding of various programs, projects and activ ities for F Y 2020, and to ensure budgetar y preparedness that will enable the government to effectively perform its Consti-

tutional mandate.”

This comes weeks after budget deliberations in the House were temporarily stalled as dozens of lawmakers requested to restore or increase public works funding for their districts.

Nonetheless, Cayetano has since given assurances that the 2020 budget will be pork-free and that there will be no delay in the passage of the budget.

The House expects to end debates on the budget this week.

Plenary deliberations on the budget will run until September 20.

The House is sticking to its original target date—before lawmakers take a recess on October 4—to pass the proposed national budget, then transmit it to the Senate for its own deliberations on October 8.

Bernadette D. Nicolas

Renminbi. . .

Continued from A1

TROPICAL DEPRESSION “NIMFA” ESTIMATED AT 745 KM EAST NORTHEAST OF BASCO, BATANES LOW PRESSURE AREA VICINITY OF STO. TOMAS, LA UNION SOUTHWEST MONSOON AFFECTING CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN LUZON AND WESTERN VISAYAS as of 4:00 pm - September 18, 2019

As an RMB clearing bank, Bank of China Manila will enable local financial institutions to transfer RMB funds and participate in China’s foreign exchange market, security market, and bond market.

It will also help local banks expand their product scope and provide better convenience for clients and investors looking to enter the Chinese financial market, increase their RMB asset holdings, or diversify their investment portfolios.

Foreign direct investments may see an upturn as well with the increased international use of RMB through the clearing bank, the Bank of China official said.

“We are keen on fully taking on our role as a bridge between the Philippines and China by better facilitating RMB liquidity management and enhancing cross-border capital flows,” Deng said.

“This, in turn, will attract quality Chinese direct investors who can contribute to the Philippines’s economic development by creating more job opportunities and raising the competitiveness of domestic firms.”

In October last year, 13 Filipino banks and the local branch of the Bank of China established the Philippine RMB Trading Community (PRTC) in the country.

SMC. . .

Continued from A1

It also has provisions for future expansion to sport six runways and to accommodate 200 million passengers per year. “It will help raise tourism levels to 30 million annually, similar to Thailand; generate over a million direct and indirect jobs, revive local industries and give rise to new ones, accelerate exports, and help our country attract more foreign investments,” Ang said.

The construction of Bulacan Airport coincides with the future rehabilitation and modernization of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) and the expansion of the Clark International Airport—the two air hubs that currently serve air travel to and from the Philippine capital.

For Transportation Secretary Arthur P. Tugade, introducing more airport options to the market will result in better services and lower costs.

“Let it be a battle of commercial benefit and the riding public will benefit from it,” he said.

Aside from the airport facilities, SMC will also build a dedicated toll way to improve accessibility to the air hub. The company also plans to construct a railway system connecting the airport to the future Metro Rail Transit (MRT) Line 7.

Ang said the company hopes to break ground for the Bulacan International Airport within the year, as it starts the public bidding for the construction works of the airport. SMC targets to complete the project within five years.

RISKS, GAINS OF POGO OPERATIONS BOTH HIGH, SAYS HOUSE LEADER

By Bernadette D. Nicolas @BNicolasBM

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OUSE Ways and Means Committee Chairman and Albay Rep. Joey Salceda said on Wednesday they are weighing the risks that may come with either allowing or banning Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (Pogos) in the country.

In a Palace press briefing, Salceda said they need to determine the correct strategy in dealing with Pogos besides taxing them properly because this will definitely pose a systemic risk, which may include a possible glut in residential office space if their operations are ordered to stop.

The highest risk of an immediate stop to Pogo operations, said Salceda, is the“glut especially in office and residential condominiums [where renters] paid 12 months advance.” If the following year finds no one to take these up—“it has 440,000 workers so presumably, that’s 10 each divided by two times 10 square meters. So more or less, 1 million square meters of residential office space,” that would deal the property sector a big blow, he said.

While they have yet to assess the risks, Salceda said letting Pogo operate in the country is “high risk, high return for the economy.”

“What is the risk? Are you willing to take it [if ] 11 million square meters of condominiums are suddenly empty? Suddenly empty and you did not prepare for it”Now, they acquire condos more than BPOs. So they have high return, high risks,” he explained.

Oil prices. . .

Continued from A1

Chikiamco said if the situation does not worsen, the increases in oil prices would be contained given Saudi Arabia’s 90-day reserve and the reported increased oil production from Russia to plug the temporary supply disruption.

“The US has millions in barrels in strategic oil reserve, which they can, if they decide to, release to contain supply shock,”Chikiamco said.

“It’s the growing tension between US-Saudi and Iran that is fueling the uncertainty and rise in oil prices.”

Based on data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), electricity, gas and other fuels has a weight of 7.435 in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) using a 2012 base year.

Political economist Maria Ella C. Oplas of the De La Salle University said progress on the efforts to address the situation will determine the increase in inflation.

“Oil prices are market-driven. We expect supply to go down because of the attacks in Saudi. Definitely, we should be ready for oil price increase depending on the damages,” Oplas said.

DOE: Supply enough

The Department of Energy (DOE) assured the public of uninterrupted fuel supply in the market after the drone attacks on Saudi Aramco’s facilities, but warned that pump prices could go up next week.

“There is no supply problem. If there are concerns on supply, they should not be worried,” said Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi at Wednesday’s Kapihan sa Manila Bay. The DOE would like to assure the public, he added, that “the inventory we have is sufficient to keep the economy running.”

The country relies heavily on imported fuel.

With this, any price adjustment in local pump price reflects global oil price movements. “We don’t see a problem in supply. The problem here is the impact on prices. As to the rise in prices, we are dependent on the world oil market,”Cusi explained in a mix of English and Filipino.

On Friday, even before the attack, Cusi noted, “we saw in the world market [the increase in oil prices] because of world demand.

We may feel that next week,” he said.

The DOE, he said, is closely monitoring developments in the international markets until

However, Salceda said it is likely that Pogos will not stay for long because of China’s policy against gambling. “Enjoy while it lasts and prepare when they go,” he said.

In order to monitor the risk from Pogo, he said the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) must include Pogo under the Services sector in the computation of gross domestic product.

He explained Pogo is only captured through its consequence; but as an industry, it’s not included in the income accounts.

He also said he requested Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin E. Diokno to make a separate account of service exports for Pogo.

But in terms of returns, Salceda pointed out that at present, Pogos are now breaching 1 percent of GDP and pay higher wages than businessprocess outsourcing firms (BPOs).

Meanwhile, Finance Undersecretary Karl Kendrick Chua said Pogos which still refuse to settle tax liabilities of their workers will be padlocked.

In a statement on Sunday, the Department of Finance has ordered the Bureau of Internal Revenue to shut down tax-dodging Pogos due to the “slow pace” of collections of withholding income taxes from Pogos despite the issuance of 130 letter-notices to firms with combined liabilities worth P21.6 billion. “...We have an existing administrative regulation called Oplan Kandado. If you refuse to pay your proven liabilities repeatedly, then we will apply the Oplan Kandado fairly to anyone who doesn’t comply,” he said.

the last trading day on Friday to fully assess any impact on the prices.

Prior to the weekend drone attacks, Cusi said world oil prices were already escalating. “But after the drone attack, the price in the market went up by 7 percent to 9 percent. Yesterday, it was more than 3 percent. Today, we just heard the good news that Saudi Aramco was able to restore and production will be back. We hope the price will not misbehave anymore and offset the first two days of spike.”

‘Monitor inventory’

Laban Konsyumer Inc. (LKI), meanwhile, reminded the DOE to strictly monitor the oil companies’ inventory. “They should comply with the minimum inventory requirement of 30 days for crude oil and 15 days for finished products and seven days for liquefied petroleum gas [LPG],” said LKI President Victor Dimagiba in a text message.

Oil companies said they continue to closely monitor the situation in Saudi Arabia and the world markets. They also assured the DOE of continuous supply of fuel to the public.

They adjust their pump prices every Tuesday.

Still, the DOE is preparing for contingency measures to address possible adverse impact on pump prices and petroleum supply.

Cusi said the planned oil importation, possibly from Russia is being reviewed.

“The government is trying to have a strategic supply that we can use in case of emergency.

We have been working on it. There are just some obstacles that we are working on, including the storage facilities. It takes time before it is completed but government is working on that strategic reserve,” he said.

The DOE chief added that agency experts are ready to meet with Chinese authorities to discuss a possible joint exploration to find more petroleum reserves.

“We will be meeting with the Chinese counterpart [to start that process]. The DFA [Department of Foreign Affairs] is the one doing the scheduling. The DOE [is] ready with our steering committee. We are ready with our technical working group,” said Cusi.

On Monday, the DOE said it will meet local representatives of oil companies this week to discuss ways to deal with the possible adverse impact on pump prices of the drone attacks on Saudi Aramco’s facilities, described as the single worst massive disruption to oil markets.

With a report by Lenie Lectura

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In the ad material of Notice of filing of Application for Alien Employment Permits published on September 3, 2019, the Company name and address of Messrs. Chen, Yinhua, Wang,Xuanbo, Liu, Qiulong should have been read as CENTURY PEAK CEMENT MANUFACTURING CORP. Located at U-1403/140 14F, Equitable Bank Tower, 8751 Paseo De Roxas, Bel-Air, Makati City, Metro Manila 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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Companies BusinessMirror

Thursday, September 19, 2019

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AGI to do another round of buybacks

By VG Cabuag

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@villygc

ndrew Tan’s holding firm Alliance Global Group Inc. (AGI) is doing another round of its buyback program, this time worth about P2.5 billion.

AGI on Monday said its board has approved the new share buyback ex-

ercise, which will run for 12 months beginning September 23.

“We continue to pursue a share buyback because we believe in our stock’s underlying value, which is backed by our strong franchises across all our business segments, years of profitable operations, and continued expansion thrust,” Kevin Andrew L. Tan, the company’s CEO, said.

AGI recently completed its share repurchase activity of up to P5 billion which began on September 20, 2017. The exercise, normally done by listed companies to increase the

value of their shares, ran for 24 months, during which period the company bought back a total of 309-million shares, accounting for about 3 percent of its pre-buyback issued and outstanding shares.

“The share buyback is also EPSenhancing [earnings per share] and should improve our share values moving forward,” Tan said.

The company said it will repurchase shares using cash and book them as treasury shares.

“The buyback program shall be

implemented in an orderly manner and should not adversely affect the company’s and its subsidiaries’ prospective and existing projects,” it said in the company’s disclosure.

AGI had attributable net income of P8.1 billion in the first half of the year, almost flat from last year’s figures. Revenues rose 15 percent to P82.8 billion. AGI earlier said it will spend some P410 billion in capital expenditures during 2020 through 2024. The amount is exclusive of this year’s budget of P85 billion.

Around 73 percent of the group’s five-year capex will be spent for Megaworld Corp.’s residential development projects, as well as the aggressive build out of its offices, malls and its homegrown hotel brands.

Another 15 percent of the capex will be allocated for Travellers International Hotel Group Inc., Tan’s gambling arm, which is expected to undertake the development of its next integrated resort and casino called Westside City in Entertainment City in Parañaque.

Eyeglass lens firm Hoya Lens Philippines invests $15.8M in Batangas plant

By Elijah Felice E. Rosales @alyasjah

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ITY OF TANAUAN, Batangas—Eyeglass lens firm Hoya Lens Philippines Inc. (HLPH) and its manufacturing arm have invested $15.77 million for their plant to boost their output, as they eye to exploit the country’s growing demand for ophthalmic products projected to reach nearly P2 billion by next year.

In an interview with reporters, EHS Lens Philippines Inc. (EHS Lens) President Alberto M. de los Reyes Jr. said the additional $15.77 million invested in its manufacturing plant

here puts total investments in this Batangas facility at $96.3 million since operations began in 2013.

HLPH purchases its lenses from Thailand and EHS Philippines, but is eyeing to source all of its prescription lenses from the local manufacturer.

De los Reyes said the new investment was utilized by the firm to obtain additional equipment intended to improve its monthly output. At present, EHS Lens has a production capacity of 1.8 million units of stock lens and 850,000 units of prescription lens.

With new machines set to arrive over the next months, EHS Lens can soon manufacture 1.2 million units

of prescription lens monthly, de los Reyes said.

This is what HLPH will be capitalizing on to increase its market share in the Philippines. HLPH is the country’s second leading eyeglass lens supplier with a share of 10 percent, in a market estimated to be valued P1.9 billion by next year, executives said.

HLPH Managing Director Jennifer E. Reyala said the firm is eyeing to source all product ranges of its prescription lens from EHS Lens by first quarter of next year.

“Currently, our high-end products, like Lifestyle and Mystyle progressive lenses, are being imported

from our Hoya global RX laboratory in Thailand. By sourcing these lenses locally, we can shorten the delivery time to our customers to four to five working days, from a previous eight to 10 working days if imported,” Reyala said in a separate statement.

De los Reyes said utilization of equipment in the production of prescription lenses is at 80 percent, and EHS Lens sees this hitting 95 percent as a result of the additional investments, creating about 400 new jobs in the process.

Meanwhile, HLPH is set to introduce to the Philippine market the Seiko Sensity and Seiko Polarized lenses by the fourth quarter to expand its

product lineup. Combined sales from the two models is estimated at P22 million annually.

EHS Lens owns and manages a 3.4-hectare lens manufacturing plant in this Batangas town 107 kilometers south of Manila operated by over 2,000 workers, mostly Filipinos with only three foreign nationals (Japanese).

Apart from supplying the domestic demand, EHS Lens exports 99 percent of its lenses, mostly Seiko brands, to corporate customers in the United States, Europe and Asia.

It makes the world’s thinnest polarized lenses, bulk of which are shipped to the US and Europe.

With a higher monthly output, the manufacturer is seriously considering to heighten its export of Hoya lenses to Europe, particularly the United Kingdom, France and the Netherlands. According to de los Reyes, the Philippine Economic Zone Authority in March granted EHS Lens additional two years of tax break after its expiry in February. The fiscal incentive was given to the manufacturer after it was certified as doing pioneer activity.

Based on records from the Philippine Statistics Authority, exports of spectacle lenses declined 1.45 percent to $272.17 million last year, from $276.18 million in 2017.

B2

Companies BusinessMirror

Thursday, September 19, 2019

DSAP to Congress: Higher tax on distilled spirits could backfire T

www.businessmirror.com.ph

CoCo, top Taiwanese milk-tea brand, to open 5 new PHL stores by year-end

T

By Cai U. Ordinario

@cuo_bm

HE Distilled Spirits Association of the Philippines (DSAP) accepts the proposed higher taxes on distilled spirits as proposed by Congress, but with a caveat.

In a statement, the DSAP expressed concern that taxing distilled spirits too much would cut revenues and tax yields for the government.

Given that products like wine are “highly inelastic”—which means increasing prices will lead to decreases in consumption—any increase in taxes to be inputed in its price will dampen the appetite for the product and cut government tax yields.

“Between 2017 and 2018, the price of alcoholic beverages and tobacco products have increased by 20 percent while no other major house-

hold expenditure had increased by 7 percent,” DSAP President Olivia Limpe-Aw said.

“The effects of these are decreased consumption of alcoholic beverages that seem to be decreasing at a higher rate from down 3.4 percent in 2017 to down 5.1 percent in 2018,” she added.

In its position paper submitted to the Senate Committee on Ways and Means, DSAP also said “a more progressive move” would be to impose an ad valorem tax of 15 percent—what Distilled Spirits started with in 2012

DSAP this will also even out the playing field not only across categories but also across price ranges. Sparkling wines, it said, can benefit from a relaxation on specific tax rates.

“The DSAP is requesting the committee to look into the practice of taxation on net retail price since this was shown to be a tedious process that penalizes manufacturers on retailer margins,” DSAP said.

Under the current tax rates provided by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Revenue Regulation No. 17-2012, distilled spirits are slapped with a specific tax of P22.50 per proof liter and an ad valorem rate of 20 percent of net retail price.

The Department of Finance is proposing an increase in specific tax rate per proof liter to P40, from P22.50 per proof liter in 2020.

There will also be yearly escalations of P5 until January 1, 2023, where the increase will be 7 percent of previous rate annually.

It also looks to increase ad valorem

rates to 25 percent from 20 percent of net retail price without any escalation from year to year.

Meanwhile, DSAP said approved House Bill 1026 proposes an increase in specific tax rate per proof liter to P30 for 2019 from P22.50 in 2018.

There will also be yearly escalations of P5 until January 1, 2023 where the increase will be 7 percent of previous rate annually.

It also looks to increase ad valorem rates to 22 percent from 20 percent of net retail price without any escalation from year to year.

“A move to the tax structure in House Bill 1026 will see top brands suffer an average of 25.65-percent excise tax against market retail price. This, however, is something that the industry will have to do best to live with. The DOF version, however, would bring the tax burden up to an average of 31.22 percent of retail price for the top brands in the country,” Limpe-Aw said.

Starmalls changing its name to Vistamalls

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ILLAR-LED Starmalls Inc., the shopping mall operator, is changing its corporate name and stock symbol at the Philippine Stock Exchange.

In a disclosure, the company said it secured approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to change its name to Vistamalls Inc. The company still has to announce its new stock symbol.

Starmalls is the commercial unit of property developer Vista Land and Lifescapes Inc., and was folded into the company in 2016.

It was supposed to be delisted from the PSE but those plans changed after Vista Land officials decided that the shopping mall operator should remain a listed company as it can raise funds on its own to support its growth and other projects.

Most Starmalls shopping centers are located in populous areas where public transportation is available such as those in Alabang in Muntinlupa and on Shaw Boulevard in Mandaluyong.

The latter, previously known as Manuela, was one of the pioneer shopping centers in that area.

The Starmall brand caters to the broader C market, while the Vistamalls serve the upper A and B market where Vista Land already has properties such as its midmarket subdivisions depending on the location.

The company reported a net income growth of 6 percent during the six months of the year ending June to P1.25 billion, from last year’s P1.18 billion.

Rental income grew 16 percent to P3.24 billion, from last year’s P2.8 billion due to the increase in occupancy and rental rates of the existing malls, and additional gross floor area of the new commercial assets.

Finance income plunged to just P8 million, from last year’s P132 million due to the lower cash balance that yields interest for the period.

Operating expenses increased by 17 percent to P1.59 billion, from P1.36 billion last year due to the increases in depreciation,occupancy expenses and outside services for the period. Finance costs rose 33 percent to P175 million, from P132 million last year due to a lower capitalization for the period as more investment properties have been completed. VG Cabuag

OBISTRO Foods Inc. (TFI), the operator of CoCo Fresh Tea & Juice in the Philippines, is eyeing to cap the year with five more stores given the domestic market’s strong demand for Taiwan’s favorite milk tea.

“By end of 2019, we’re looking at 40 stores in total,” TFI General Manager Larry Evans Tan told the BusinessMirror in an interview during the kickoff of their threeday CoCo Chill Camp event held at the Fashion Hall of SM Megamall in Ortigas on Tuesday.

Since it first opened in Eastwood back in 2015, CoCo now has 35 outlets nationwide. The upcoming branches in the pipeline will be located in Metro Manila, Cebu and Cavite. For next year, TFI plans to open 15 to 20 additional stores. The company is looking at other growth areas of Iloilo, Davao, Bicol, Bacolod, Subic, Bulacan and Cagayan de Oro. Without divulging the exact amount of their investment, the top executive said the expansion aims to bring the brand closer to Filipinos because it really befits their taste and preference.

“We’re very confident with investing in bringing CoCo to the

mutual funds

Philippines because we see that the brand is really something that really suits this market,” Tan said.

“We’re doubling our stores every year, and that is because more and more people are asking for stores to be [near them]. So we’re trying to be as accessible as possible to our customers.”

CoCo is a top player in the Filipino milk-tea craze, thus making the country one of the strongest markets for the brand worldwide.

In fact, one cup of it is sold every four minutes via delivery alone.

Another proof of its market dominance is its recent People’s Choice Award for Favorite Milk Tea brand from Our Awesome Planet and World Food Expo Philippines.

For these reasons, TFI held the Camp for the first time to engage Filipinos. “We’ve seen how well CoCo was received by Filipinos. The CoCo Chill Camp is our way of showing our loyal fans and supporters that we feel their love. And so we want to give them back the happiness that our drinks have brought to their lives, by giving them an experience that’s uniquely created for them,” Tan said of the event, which is ongoing until September 19. Roderick L. Abad

September 18, 2019

NAV One Year Three Year Five Year Y-T-D

per share Return* Return Stock Funds ALFM Growth Fund, Inc. -a 257.79 2.42% -1.29% -0.01% 2.22% ATRAM Alpha Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 1.5564 8.48% 3.73% 1.18% 8.02% ATRAM Philippine Equity Opportunity Fund, Inc. -a 3.9798 1.53% -2.5% -1.65% 1.97% Climbs Share Capital Equity Investment Fund Corp. -a 0.9688 8.35% n.a. n.a.

7.52% First Metro Consumer Fund on MSCI Phils. IMI, Inc. -a 0.8574 3.74% n.a. n.a.

4.47% First Metro Save and Learn Equity Fund,Inc. -a 5.4453 4.9% 0.29% 0.07% 3.26% First Metro Save and Learn Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,6 0.8739 5.11% -3.72% n.a.

4.45% MBG Equity Investment Fund, Inc. -a 118.13 2.64% n.a. n.a.

1.69% PAMI Equity Index Fund, Inc. -a 52.2373 6.54% 0.76% n.a.

6.12% Philam Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 542.83 6.46% -0.3% -0.1% 5.46% Philequity Dividend Yield Fund, Inc. -a 1.313 4.83% 0.56% 0.99% 4.7% Philequity Fund, Inc. -a 38.6352 5.84% 1.38% 0.94% 5.47% Philequity MSCI Philippine Index Fund, Inc. -a,3 1.0365 n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.

Philequity PSE Index Fund Inc. -a 5.3066 7.54% 1.24% 1.88% 7.01% Philippine Stock Index Fund Corp. -a 885.91 7.57% 1.12% 1.8% 6.94% Soldivo Strategic Growth Fund, Inc. -a 0.9112 7.07% 0.19% n.a.

5.95% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Equity Fund, Inc. -a 4.2892 5.69% 0.87% 1.08% 5.67% 1.08% n.a.

6.68% Sun Life Prosperity Philippine Stock Index Fund, Inc. -a 1.018 7.15% United Fund, Inc. -a 3.7113 5.99% 2.74% 2.32% 6.01% Exchange Traded Fund First Metro Phil. Equity Exchange Traded Fund, Inc. -a,c,2 118.805 7.92% 1.91% 2.85% 7.28% ATRAM AsiaPlus Equity Fund, Inc. -b $0.9633 -4.2% 2.47% -1.16% 3.68% Sun Life Prosperity World Voyager Fund, Inc. -a $1.2975 -0.04% 8.08% n.a.

17.4% Balanced Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ATRAM Dynamic Allocation Fund, Inc. -a 1.6531 n.a.

-2.97% -2.82% 0.12% ATRAM Philippine Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 2.2925 3.54% -1.07% -0.09% 3.77% First Metro Save and Learn Balanced Fund Inc. -a 2.6604 5.69% 0.42% -1.24% 4.61% Grepalife Balanced Fund Corporation -a 1.3511 2.63% n.a. n.a.

3.59% NCM Mutual Fund of the Phils., Inc. -a 1.9607 6.79% 0.85% 1.1% 6.38% PAMI Horizon Fund, Inc. -a 3.7932 7.78% -0.18% 0.36% 7.48% Philam Fund, Inc. -a 16.9993 7.99% -0.1% 0.29% 6.86% 2.151 4.67% 0.52% 1.42% 3.95% Solidaritas Fund, Inc. -a Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Balanced Fund, Inc. -a 3.8862 6.35% 0.61% 0.85% 6.43% Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2028, Inc. -a,d,4 1.0215 n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.

Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2038, Inc. -a,d,4 1.0116 n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.

Sun Life Prosperity Achiever Fund 2048, Inc. -a,d,4 1.0089 n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.

Sun Life Prosperity Dynamic Fund, Inc. -a 0.9857 5.43% 0.2% 6.94% 0.19% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Cocolife Dollar Fund Builder, Inc. -a $0.03833 9.23% 2.13% 2.35% 8.58% PAMI Asia Balanced Fund, Inc. -a $0.9918 1.84% 2.47% -0.69% 8.55% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Advantage Fund, Inc. -a $3.7606 2.38% 5.92% 2.94% 13.66% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Wellspring Fund, Inc. -a $1.111 3.72% 3.56% n.a.

10% Bond Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a 353.89 3.71% 2.21% 2.28% 3.03% ATRAM Corporate Bond Fund, Inc. -a,1 1.9155 3.18% 0.06% 0.07% 3.03% Cocolife Fixed Income Fund, Inc. -a 3.0832 5.23% 5.33% 5.26% 3.6% Ekklesia Mutual Fund Inc. -a 2.2049 4.04% 1.21% 2.03% 3.56% First Metro Save and Learn Fixed Income Fund,Inc. -a 2.3341 5.26% 1.35% 1.58% 5.85% Grepalife Fixed Income Fund Corp. -a P 1.6079 1.78% -1.22% 0.29% 2.78% Philam Bond Fund, Inc. -a 4.287 10.04% 0.5% 1.81% 9.37% Philequity Peso Bond Fund, Inc. -a

3.7429 7.95% 1.41% 1.66% 6.42% Soldivo Bond Fund, Inc. -a 0.9491 6.53% -0.26% n.a.

6.5% Sun Life of Canada Prosperity Bond Fund, Inc. -a 3.0176 9.11% 2.04% 2.61% 9.1% Sun Life Prosperity GS Fund, Inc. -a 1.6697 8.78% 1.49% 2.13% 8.43% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities ALFM Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $464.53 4.37% 1.89% 2.83% 3.6% ALFM Euro Bond Fund, Inc. -a Є220.09 3.24% 1.3% 1.54% 3.49% ATRAM Total Return Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -b $1.1944 6.64% 1.97% 2.48% 6.1% 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 $1.7161 0.9% -1.65% 0.51% 1.53% PAMI Global Bond Fund, Inc -a $1.0938 6% -0.27% -1.25% 5.55% Philam Dollar Bond Fund, Inc. -a $2.4068 11.01% 1.99% 3.63% 10.87% Philequity Dollar Income Fund Inc. -a $0.0600188 5.55% 1.88% 2.04% 5.3% Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Abundance Fund, Inc. -a $3.7606 29.91% 7.27% 6.68% 30.94% Money Market Funds Primarily invested in Peso securities ALFM Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 124.57 4.04% 2.62% 2.06% 3.05% First Metro Save and Learn Money Market Fund, Inc. -a,5 1.0212 n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.

Philam Managed Income Fund, Inc. -a 1.2365 5.45% 2.3% 1.4% 4.62% Sun Life Prosperity Money Market Fund, Inc. -a 1.2541 3.9% 2.8% 2.18% 2.86% Primarily invested in foreign currency securities Sun Life Prosperity Dollar Starter Fund, Inc. -a $1.0324 2.21% 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."

The World BusinessMirror

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

Oil stabilizes as Saudi output restoration calms market fears

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il stabilized on signs Saudi Arabia is quickly restoring production following a debilitating weekend attack, after two tumultuous days in which it surged the most on record and then pared almost half of that gain.

Brent edged higher on Wednesday after tumbling Tuesday as Saudi Aramco said it had revived 41 percent of capacity at a key crude-processing complex days after a devastating aerial attack that wrecked vital equipment and rocked global energy markets. The global crude benchmark was back to about $65 a barrel after jumping to near $72 in reaction to the disruptions.

The Aramco announcement followed conflicting media reports about the pace and probable duration of the state-owned company’s efforts to repair the damaged Abqaiq facility. Despite the kingdom’s reassurances at a media briefing in Jeddah, crude remained almost 8 percent higher than the pre-attack price.

The question of how the US and Saudi Arabia will respond to the attacks, which Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has blamed on Iran, still hangs over the market. The Pentagon is preparing an assessment on who was responsible for the strike and hopes to make it public, a US defense official said. Saudi Arabia will show evidence of Iran’s involvement in the strike, state television reported.

“The market is certainly setting itself up for a surprise, considering they aren’t really pricing in that geopolitical risk premium at the moment,” said Daniel Hynes, a senior commodity strategist at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. in Sydney.

Abqaiq is now processing about 2 million barrels a day and should return to pre-attack levels of about 4.9 million barrels by the end of September, Aramco Chief Executive Officer Amin Nasser said on

Tuesday. Two-thirds of production has been restored and the kingdom sees full recovery in 10 days, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told South Korean President Moon Jae-in, according to a statement from the president’s office on Wednesday.

Adding to the bearish sentiment, the American Petroleum Institute reported a 592,000-barrel increase in stockpiles for the week ended September 13, according to people familiar with the data. That compares with analyst expectations for a 2.25-million barrel drop. If confirmed by government data due Wednesday, it would break a four-week streak of declines.

Brent for November delivery rose 33 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $64.88 a barrel on the ICE Futures Europe exchange at 7:31 a.m. in London. It tumbled by 6.5 percent Tuesday after surging 14.6 percent on Monday.

West Texas Intermediate for October delivery was down 8 cents, or 0.1 percent, at $59.26 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The US benchmark’s discount to Brent for the same month was $5.72 a barrel.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Tr u m p s a i d h e s a w n o r e a s o n t o allow refiners to dip into the nation’s emergency reserves. “I don’t think we need to. Oil has not gone up very much,” Trump told reporters on Tuesday aboard Air Force One. “There’s a lot of oil in the world.“ Saudi Aramco is firing up idle offshore oil fields—part of its cushion of spare capacity—to replace some lost produc tion, a person familiar with the matter said. Some customers are being asked to accept different grades o f c r u d e . T h e k i n g d o m’s d o m e s t i c i nve n to r i e s a re s u f f i c i e n t to c ove r about 26 days of expor ts, according to consultant Rystad Energy A/S. Bloomberg News

Air quality in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta now worst in the world

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he air quality level in Singapore turned unhealthy ahead of the Formula 1 race this weekend, while Kuala Lumpur was ranked among the world’s most polluted cities, as wind from neighboring Indonesia continued to sweep in ash and smoke from illegal burning of forests and farmland.

Authorities canceled schools for nearly one in seven Malaysian children as the haze worsened across the country, while dozens of flights in Southeast Asia were delayed or canceled because of poor visibility at airports.

A thick layer of smoke and ash from illegal burning to clear land for plantations mostly in Indonesia has blanketed parts of Southeast Asia in the past two weeks, causing air traffic disruptions and thousands of people reporting acute respiratory illness.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo has ordered a crackdown against individuals or companies responsible for the hot spots as they revive fears of a repeat of 2015 when a total of 2.6 million hectares of land was affected, costing Indonesia $15.7 billion in economic losses.

Air pollution

Kuala Lumpur and Kuching in Malaysia, Singapore and Jakarta had the worst air quality in the world among major cities, according to IQAir AirVisual pollution data.

Singapore’s pollutant standard index rose to at least 112 on Wednesday afternoon according to official figures, a level deemed as unhealthy by the citystate’s National Environment Agency.

The agency advised residents to reduce prolonged or strenuous outdoor physical exertion, while those with chronic lung or heart disease should avoid such activities.

Hot spots status

The total number of hot spots in Indonesia fell to 2,719 on Wednesday from 2,984 on Tuesday, with Sumatra accounting for 1,425 fires and Kalimantan 732 hot spots. The wildfires have affected 328,724 hectares of forest and farmland this year, data from the National Disaster Mitigation Agency show.

Weather forecast

There may be some relief for authorities

battling the hot spots in Riau and Sumatra as Indonesia’s weather bureau forecasts some showers in the next three days. The wet weather is forecast to persist in the northern Southeast Asian region in the next few days, while dryness may persist in the southern regions, according to Asean Specialized Meteorological Centre. The hot spots activities in Sumatra and Kalimantan are likely to continue under the prevailing dry conditions.

Flight cancellations

The haze continue to cause air traffic disruptions, with dozens of flights from three airports in Samarinda, Sampit and Berau in Kalimantan in Indonesia canceled on Wednesday because of reduced visibility, according to AirNav. Several flights to Penang International Airport, north of Kuala Lumpur, were delayed or canceled as the haze clouded visibility at Malaysia’s third-largest airport, according to Malaysia Airports.

Malaysia and Indonesia spar

Environment ministers from Malaysia and Indonesia have traded blame on the haze situation with Kuala Lumpur offering help to put out the forest fires. Malaysian ruling party leader Anwar Ibrahim, who’s widely expected to be the country’s next prime minister, said companies must be held responsible for costs of haze. He said the menace was an ecological warfare and Malaysia must feel outraged about it.

Singapore’s Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources said the country has offered technical firefighting assistance to Indonesia and is prepared to deploy them if requested.

Schools shut

Nearly 1,500 schools have closed across Malaysia as haze conditions worsened, affecting more than 1 million students, according to a statement from the country’s education ministry.

Singapore’s education ministry said earlier it would consider closing schools when the air quality turns “hazardous,” at or above 300 PSI. As of 2 p.m. local time Wednesday, official air quality scores across the island ranged from 112 to 128, according to the National Environment Agency. Bloomberg News

Thursday, September 19, 2019

B3

Fed likely to cut rates a second time as economic threats loom

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ASHINGTON—The Federal Reserve looks poised to cut interest rates for a second time on Wednesday to help extend the economic expansion in the face of global weakness, President Donald J. Trump’s trade war with China and geopolitical risks such as the attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities.

The modest rate cut the Fed announced in July—its first in more than a decade—left its benchmark short-term rate in a range of 2 percent to 2.25 percent. It also raised expectations that it would follow with up to three additional quarter-point rate cuts this year.

Most economists have since scaled back their forecasts for further rate cuts this year to one or two beginning Wednesday. A resumption of trade talks and a less antagonistic tone between Washington and Beijing have supported that view.

So has a belief that oil prices will remain elevated, that inflation might finally be reaching the Fed’s target level and that the US economy remains sturdy.

Ye t n o o n e , p e r h a p s n o t e ven t he Fed , i s su re of how interest rate polic y w i l l unfold i n com i ng mont hs. Too m a ny u ncer t a i nt ies e x i st , not ably

t he outcome of t he t rade wa r.

Trump has meanwhile kept up a stream of public attacks on the central bank ’s policy-making, including referring to Powell as an “enemy” and the Fed’s policymakers as “boneheads.” Despite a still-solid job market and brisk spending by consumers, the president has insisted that the Fed slash its benchmark rate aggressively—even to below zero, as the European Central Bank has done—in part to weaken the US dollar and make American exports more competitive.

No one expects the Fed to go anywhere near that far. Chairman Jerome Powell has said that the policy-makers remain focused on sustaining the expansion and keeping prices stable without regard to any outside pressures.

At a news conference Powell will hold on Wednesday, he will likely be asked about the risks

facing the economy, including the attacks on Saudi oil production facilities, which sent oil prices surging and could raise inflation expectations.

The Fed is also monitoring the global slowdown, especially in Europe, and Britain’s effort to leave the European Union. A disruptive Brexit could destabilize not just Europe but the US economy, too.

US inflation, which has long been dormant, has begun to show signs that it is reaching the Fed’s 2-percent target and might remain there.

If the Fed’s policy-makers conclude that inflation will sustain a faster pace, it might give them pause about cutting rates much further.

The most serious threat to the expansion is widely seen as Trump’s trade war. The increased import taxes he has imposed on goods from China and Europe— and the counter-tariffs other nations have applied to US exports— have hurt many American companies and paralyzed their plans for investment and expansion.

In recent days, the Trump administration and Beijing have acted to de-escalate tensions before a new round of trade talks planned for October in Washington. Yet most analysts foresee no significant agreement emerging this fall in the conflict, which is fundamentally over Beijing’s aggressive drive to supplant America’s technological dominance.

Balanced against a possible truce in the trade war are events that could undercut the economy,

from a strike at General Motors to the attack that has temporarily reduced Saudi Arabia’s oil production. The Trump administration says Iran is behind the attack, raising already high US-Iran tensions.

So far, most economists say the temporary loss of Saudi production won’t end up hurting the US economy, primarily because there remains plenty of global supply.

“Higher oi l pr ices are not the big economic deal that they have been in decades past,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics.

On Wednesday, in addition to announcing its decision on rates, the Fed ’s policy-makers will update their forecasts for economic growth, unemployment, inf lation and interest rates over the next three years before Powell ’s news conference.

The case for a rate cut is by no means overwhelming. The job market is essentially healthy, and wages are rising. Last week, the government reported that retail sales rose in August. An index of consumer sentiment produced by the University of Michigan has rebounded.

Still, the course of the trade war, along with other unknowns like the outcome of Brexit, will likely be the biggest factor in the Fed’s decision-making.

“They have to react to policies that can change with the speed of a tweet,” said Diane Swonk, chief economist at accounting firm Grant Thornton. AP

U.S. lawmakers seek to ramp up pressure on Hong Kong

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nited States lawmakers say they are moving forward with attempts to pressure Hong Kong’s government over its treatment of protesters by threatening the territory’s special trading status.

“It is my belief that it is long overdue for the United States and the free world to respond,” Sen. Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican, said on Tuesday at the opening of a hearing of the bipartisan Congressional-Executive Commission on China.

Rubio is sponsor of the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2019, which would allow sanctions on Chinese officials and require annual assessments of whether the city is sufficiently autonomous from Beijing to continue its special trading status. Similar legislation has been introduced in the House with bipartisan support.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jim Risch said the bill would get quick review by the committee beginning Wednesday and move onto the Senate floor with the support of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

“The aspiration is everybody wants to move this bill and so we’re going to do our best to move it as quickly as we can,” said Risch, an Idaho Republican.

Revoking Hong Kong’s special trading status could devastate the city’s economy, making it a crucial point of leverage. Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam warned on Tuesday that any sanctions would only complicate the problems in the city, which has been wracked by protests since June.

“It is time we put the Chinese government on annual notice that further erosion of autonomy or a crackdown in Hong Kong will cause the city, and by extension, mainland China, to lose its special economic and trade arrangement with the United States,” said Rep. Jim McGovern, a Massachusetts Democrat, who is chairman of the commission.

McGovern is sponsoring separate legislation, the PROTECT Hong Kong Act, which would prohibit US companies from exporting crowd control equipment and munitions such as tear gas and rubber bullets to Hong Kong. He predicted that Congress would pass his measure, as well as the human-rights measure.

“I believe, and I can probably give you assurances, that we will do that,” McGovern told a panel of witnesses which included activists from Hong Kong.

China’s foreign ministry pushed back on Wednesday: “We urge the US and other sides to stop interfering in China’s affairs and we would like to warn certain people that any attempt to disrupt Hong Kong by soliciting foreign support will not succeed,” Ministry Spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters in Beijing.

Activists testify

The activists who testified found a receptive audience for their pleas that the US should act to support the pro-democracy movement.

“I hope that historians will celebrate the United States

Congress for having stood on the side of Hong Kongers, the side of human rights and democracy,” said Joshua Wong, a prominent student leader of the city’s 2014 Occupy movement.

Denise Ho, a pro-democracy activist, singer and actress who also testified, said Hong Kong is at the front line of “a global fight for the universal values that we all cherish.”

The Hong Kong protests started in opposition to legislation allowing extraditions to mainland China and widened into a broader movement against Beijing’s increasing grip on the city. They show no signs of stopping anytime soon, even after Lam scrapped the bill on September 4.

“I uphold this principle of accountability, but at the moment it is all for us to see that Hong Kong is undergoing a very difficult situation,” Lam said on Tuesday at a regular media briefing before a meeting of the city’s Executive Council. “And sanctions or punishment are not going to help lift Hong Kong out of this very difficult situation.”

Rep. Chris Smith, a New Jersey Republican, said he expected that his Hong Kong measure would get a committee vote on September 25. Rep. Eliot Engel, a New York Democrat, said the eventual bill would be some form of the SmithRubio legislation. “We are going to

do something for sure,” Engel added. “We have to do something.”

Both the House and Senate bills have bipartisan support. The White House hasn’t formally weighed in on the legislation.

President Donald J. Trump has called on the Chinese government to handle the protesters “in a very humane way” but hasn’t delivered any extended remarks on the situation. Bloomberg News

B4 Thursday, September 19, 2019

SM Cinema launches newest Director’s Club branch at The Podium

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M Cinema officially launched its newest Director’s Club branch at The Podium Mall with evil clown Pennywise among the first to experience the elevated movie-watching experience it offers.

Pennywise, the soul-hungry clown from the movie series based on Stephen King’s It enjoyed watching It: Chapter 2 at Director’s Club at The Podium Mall while having unlimited popcorn and seated in extra comfortable La-Z-Boy seats.

Now perched at the top floor of The Podium Mall are three Director’s Club theaters with a combined total of 144 seats that offer premium cinema experience to urbanites and yuppies who wish to unplug from their busy city life luxuriously.

With Director’s Club’s first-class facilities combined with up-to-date technology, SM Cinema give its patrons a movie experience beyond the usual.

Moviegoers now 9watch crystal-clear motion pictures with deep, well-defined

and true-to-life colors with the cinema’s Christie laser projection system. Crisp and rich sound resonate in the intimate 48-seater theater through its Dolby surround sound system. And to ensure that viewers never miss a scene while watching movies, theater seats are equipped with push buttons that automatically signal for the in-house butler service. For a relaxed

and extra comfortable movie-watching experience, Director’s Club is fixed with plush leather La-Z-Boy seats. To top the whole experience off movie tickets come with unlimited popcorn and bottled water.

SM Cinema’s official food concessionaire Snack Time also offers a special menu at Director’s Club. The premier theater will offer wine pairings soon.

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HERE are more reasons to smile for Ayala Corporation’s employees and their families! MetroDental, the Philippines’ largest chain of Dental Clinics, is now an official dental provider for Ayala Corp. offering Ayala’s employees and dependents a wide variety of dental services such as General Dentistry, Cosmetic Dentistry, Implant Dentistry, Pediatric Dentistry, Invisalign and more.

The official signing ceremony for this

Joy~Nostalg Manila celebrates a decade of Filipino hospitality

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Joy~ Nostalg Group CEO, Jacinto Ng, Jr. with Miss Saigon’s original cast members Isay Alvarez and Robert Seña

Joy~ Nostalg Group CEO, Jacinto Ng, Jr., Joy~Nostalg Leisure Development Group’s Chief Operating Officer Dennis Tan, and Joy Nostalg Manila’s General Manager Antoine Weinstein together with the Room Sales and Events Team

N intimate crowd of over 100 guests, partners, and friends from the media came together to join the team and executives of Joy~Nostalg Hotel & Suites Manila to mark the hotel’s 10th year anniversary last September 9.

The hotel first opened its doors to the public in 2009, offering comfortable living with its expansive fully furnished suites for both shortterm stays and long staying guests.

In September 2017, the property rebranded to the Joy~Nostalg Hotel & Suites Manila, partnering with multinational hospitality management group AccorHotels.

The exclusive modern Filipino themed event featured delectable food and live music entertainment by original Miss Saigon cast membersIsay Alvarez and Robert Seña who performed the songs Hahabol-Habol, September, and a medley of Miss Saigon and Broadway songs.

"Tonight, we welcome and thank all partners for their continuing support and all the guests we have served with passion for the last 10 years. Thank you for your trust, thank you for the loyalty, and thank you for giving us the chance to serve you every day," General Manager Antoine Weinstein said.

As part of the hotel’s month-long celebration, Joy~Nostalg Hotel & Suites Manila is offering a special room and food and beverage promotions for the whole month of September.

More Filipinos look for worry-free online hotel bookings

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RAVELOKA, an online booking platform, introduces its newest marketing campaign - Tita T, an embodiment of everyone’s favorite and most knowledgeable member of the Filipino family.

“Tita T is a campaign that aims to boost the confidence of Filipinos to book their travel needs, particularly accommodations, online. There are only a few reputable online travel platforms that can provide them what they need at the tap of their fingers. Traveloka is one of them, continuously innovating to provide Filipinos the best experience and more accessibility when it comes to booking their hotels online,” said Miguel Capistrano III, Country Market Manager for Accommodations of Traveloka Philippines.

Tita T or Tita Traveloka is that globetrotting tita who enjoys the fancy things in life yet at the same time is always on the lookout for value for her money.

Ayala Corp. teams up with MetroDental for employees’ dental health

Traveloka would be the go-to app for Tita T, whenever she books her hotels. It’s safe and secure, offers a variety of payment options, and, has timely deals that gives discounts on her bookings.

Founded in 2012, Traveloka, the number one technology solution in South

East Asia that provide all your travel needs.

It's available online or as a downloadable app on the Google Playstore and the Apple App Store.

In photo, Miguel Capistrano III is joined by certified tita travelers and influencers Camille Co, Shari Poquiz, and Jackie Go.

partnership took place at Tower One & Exchange Plaza on August 7. In photo, seated from right to left are: Mr. Paolo F. Borromeo - President and CEO, AC Health, and Group Head, Corporate Strategy and Development; Mr. John Philip S. Orbeta Chief Human Resource Officer and Group Head, Corporate Resources; Mr. Rene J. Buenaventura - Vice Chairman, Equicom Group; and Ms. Leen G. Chua - President, MetroDental.

Save the Children Philippines calls for intensified clean up drive to abate dengue

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AVE the Children Philippines calls for urgent clean up actions in schools and households as deaths due to dengue reached more than 1,021 with 400 of them are children aged 5-9.

The epidemiology bureau of the Department of Health confirmed that cases of dengue have reached 249,332 between January 1 to August 24, 2019, mostly affecting children 5 to 14 years old. The breakdown of the most affected children are as follows: 0-4 years old: 38,768, 5-9 years old: 56,550, 10-14 years old: 49,040, 15-19 years old: 37,850.

Atty. Albert Muyot, chief executive officer of Save the Children Philippines said children are the most vulnerable to dengue fever because they are exposed to

mosquitoes carrying the virus when they are playing outside or at school.

“We are appealing to parents, carers, and teachers to be on the lookout for possible breeding grounds of dengue mosquitoes at home and in schools and immediately clean them up and conduct fogging,” said Muyot.

The group is launching an urgent information campaign in the next three months through nationwide radio and social media asking families to be vigilant and step up efforts to protect children from the potentially deadly virus. It is also strengthening coordination with schools and local communities across the program offices in Caloocan, Malabon and Navotas as well as communities in the Region IV-A and Region X.

Feel confident, go for Kämpfortis Golf

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AMPFER is German for fighter. Fortis is strength in Latin. A fighter is strong, determined and has the heart of a champion.Golf is a game of focus, flexibility and discipline.

It demands perfection in every single swing. Kämpfortis Golf is a premium golf apparel brand from Seattle, Washington, USA. Our products are designed to make golfers feel confident about their game.

Kämpfortis Golf offers different categories from golf shirts, caps, arm sleeves, ball markers, bags and balls. All our golf shirts have FLEX DRY fabric technology, made with a combination of polyester, elastane and spandex for maximum movement and flexibility.

It also has a moisture system that keeps golfers cool and dry at all times. Kämpfortis Golf is now available at GO SPORTS – Festival Supermall Alabang to know more about Kämpfortis Golf visit our website at www.kampfortis.com. Like us on Facebook

@KampfortisGolf follow us on Instagram @ kampfortisgolf.

Insular Life launches a "woman-specific" health insurance with VUL product

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NSULAR Life recently launched a new and female-specific product that can be customized according to the preference of the customer, making it the first of its kind in the market.

Called "SheCares", this product combines life insurance, investment and health insurance into one plan. It is also customizable which means that the product allows the insured the option to choose which lifestyle and life stage health covers she wants to be included in her policy, such as women-specific cancer, or all types of cancers, heart attack, and stroke.

"The beauty of having a customizable product like this is that our clients are not tied up to paying for health coverage that they don’t even need or want in the first place. With SheCares they can now chose the health coverage that fits their lifestyle, life stage or even their medical concerns," said InLife President and CEO Mona Lisa B. Dela Cruz, in a product launch and press briefing held recently.

SheCares can be issued to women between 20 to 60 years old with health riders until 70 years old. The benefits can be acquired until age 99 for as long as there is fund value. As a VUL

product, part of the premium goes to growing the fund in the various portfolios under the management of InLife.

“With SheCares, our women-clients may cash-in on the accumulated fund value in the future. No other insurance product like this is in the market,” Dela Cruz said.

“We are happy that the IC has found our latest offering to be in order,” said InLife Executive Chairman Nina D. Aguas. “This is a significant milestone to us because this is our first product under our Sheroes program.”

The InLife Sheroes program is part of Insular Life’s broader strategy to empower Filipino women to achieve a better life through it four support areas of: financial literacy, health and wellness education, women-specific solutions and connection to business and social networks.

“As a Filipino financial institution we will contribute to the financial inclusion agenda for women in our country. We will provide protection and risk mitigating solutions to women along with investment opportunities. Our aim is to help Filipinas survive the loss of income or an unforeseen event,” said Ms. Aguas.

Editor: Jun Lomibao • mirror_sports@yahoo.com.ph

WITH one putt, Suzann Pettersen celebrates the decisive point for Europe and a career packed with 21 victories worldwide, two majors and four winning Solheim Cup teams. AP

Sports BusinessMirror

Thursday, September 19, 2019

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RETIRING ON TOP THE WINNING SHOT IN THE SOLHEIM CUP? YES, IT STARTS THERE. THAT PUTT SHE MADE FROM JUST OUTSIDE 6 FEET ON THE 18TH GREEN AT GLENEAGLES WAS THE MAIN REASON SUZANN PETTERSEN SHOULD BE THE ENVY OF ANYONE WHO HAS COMPETED AS LONG AND, AS WELL AS THE FEISTY NORWEGIAN.

S THE weeklong Olympic tournament starts July 25 and ends a few days before Roger Federer’s 39th birthday. AP

FEDERER TO DECIDE SOON ON TOKYO OLYMPICS PLANS

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ENEVA—Roger Federer plans to decide “in the next month or so” whether he will play at next year’s Tokyo Olympics.

Federer said Tuesday his 2020 schedule is set through Wimbledon, which ends July 12.

The weeklong Olympic tournament starts July 25 and ends a few days before his 39th birthday. “I guess I’m going to be deciding on the Olympic Games in the next few weeks, hopefully in the next month or so,” he said. Speaking ahead of the Laver Cup team competition he co-owns, Federer said he is “very excited about the prospect” of Tokyo.

“I just have to see how is the family, how is my body doing,” Federer said in an interview broadcast by Swiss public television.

Federer is a four-time Olympian. He met his wife at the 2000 Sydney Games and twice carried Switzerland’s flag at opening ceremonies. “It’s been such a special event for me,” he said.

Federer won doubles gold with Stan Wawrinka at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and silver in singles at the 2012 London Games, played at Wimbledon. He missed the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics because of injury.

To play in Tokyo, Federer would likely have to get a wild-card exemption from the International Tennis Federation. He has not played the required amount of Davis Cup games to be eligible by right. US Open champion Rafael Nadal, meanwhile, will start his 2020 season on the opposite side of Australia to Novak Djokovic and Federer when he leads Spain in a group-stage qualifier in the new Association of Tennis Professionals Cup team competition.

Spain was drawn into Group B with Japan and Georgia and will play in Perth on Australia’s west coast, where the US team, Daniil Medvedev’s Russia team and Italy will also be competing in Group D. Nadal collected his 19th major title, moving within one of Federer’s record for men, when he held off Medvedev 7-5, 6-3, 5-7, 4-6, 6-4 in a US Open final that lasted nearly five hours.

Nadal remained at No. 2 in the rankings, behind Djokovic, and Medvedev moved up to career-best No. 4.

Djokovic’s Serbia squad was drawn into Group A along with France and South Africa in one of two groups based in Brisbane on Australia’s east coast, along with Australia, Germany, Canada and Greece in Group F. No. 3-ranked Federer’s Swiss team will open in Group C against Belgium and Britain in Sydney, where Group E— containing Austria, Croatia and Argentina—will also be based.

There are five spots still open in the 24-country tournament which starts in the three cities on January 3 and will double as the season-opening event for the men’s tennis tour.

Eight teams from the six-day group stage will advance to the knockout rounds, which will continue in Sydney until January 12.

The ATP says all players in the top 10, and 27 of the top 30 players in the rankings, have committed to playing in the ATP Cup. The Australian Open, the first major of the season, is set to start January 20 in Melbourne. AP

The Associated Press

UZANN PETTERSEN achieved one of the rarest feats in golf. The winning shot in the Solheim Cup? Yes, it starts there. That putt she made from just outside 6 feet on the 18th green at Gleneagles was the main reason Pettersen should be the envy of anyone who has competed as long and, as well as the feisty Norwegian.

No one had ever faced a moment like this in the 15 previous editions of the Solheim Cup—the final shot on the final hole, all the other matches concluded, one putt to determine who wins, even if Pettersen didn’t know the score until she was mobbed by her teammates.

“Can you ask for more?” Pettersen said when it was over and Europe had the cup.

And then she got a little more.

She retired.

Pettersen didn’t tell anyone beforehand because even she didn’t know. Whether it was an impulsive decision—and it sure sounded like one—is irrelevant. With one putt, she celebrated the decisive point for Europe and a career packed with 21 victories worldwide, two majors and four winning Solheim Cup teams. In an ageless sport where no one really retires, Pettersen walked away a winner, her last shot the most important of her career. “She went out the way we all would like to,” Judy Rankin said on Tuesday.

Rankin was in Scotland as the lead analyst for Golf Channel.

Her lasting impressions were the quality of the putt, which started outside the hole and broke gently to the right, and the image of Pettersen holding one-year-old son Herman.

“It doesn’t get more perfect,” Rankin said.

Retirement is never easy in golf, and only a select few

manage to pull it off.

Jack Nicklaus stumbled into a graceful exit in 2005. After playing his final Masters without fanfare—he finished on a Friday on No. 9—Nicklaus was at Saint Andrews on a corporate trip that spring when he mentioned he would play the British Open for the last time, and that would be his last major. The Royal Bank of Scotland produced a 5-pound note with his image.

His final crossing of the Swilcan bridge was stirring. His birdie on the final hole was typical.

Lorena Ochoa abruptly retired in April 2010 when she was No. 1 in the world, wanting to start a family. She played twice more at her Ladies Professional Golf Association event in Mexico at the end of 2010 and the end of 2012.

They are among the exceptions.

Seve Ballesteros lost his health and his magic, and 12 years after his record 50th victory on the European Tour, he tearfully announced his retirement in 2007 at a somber news conference at Carnoustie.

Dottie Pepper was in tears when she announced her retirement at the 2004 US Women’s Open after playing hurt for so long the game felt like a job.

“The decision is usually made for you,” Pepper said Tuesday.

Pettersen decided on her own.

“This is a perfect closure—the end for my at least Solheim career, and a nice ‘the end’ for my professional career. It doesn’t get any better,” she said at the winning news conference, prompting the room to break into applause.

“I’m closing it down tomorrow, and what more can I say? I’m done.” Adding to the moment was that Pettersen never imagined being at Gleneagles with her name stitched on a golf bag.

Catriona Matthew, known as “Beany” because her brother could never pronounce her name as a boy, first picked the

38-year-old Pettersen as a vice captain. And then she approached Pettersen in the summer and suggested she practice in case she was needed to play.

Pettersen was a captain’s pick, and a curious one at that. She had to sit out the last Solheim Cup in 2017 with a back injury. She had a baby the following year. She played four tournaments this year, making only one cut.

And then she delivered in the biggest way.

There was an element of redemption, too. In her previous Solheim Cup, Pettersen was made to look like a villain in Germany in 2015 when Alison Lee scooped up her golf ball after missing a birdie attempt, only for Pettersen to point out it was never conceded. Europe won the hole and the match. Pettersen, while within the rules, was seen to be lacking sportsmanship.

It drew even more attention when the Americans rallied from a four-point deficit on the final day to win.

Pettersen brought a ferocious personality to her golf, especially at the Solheim Cup. In her Solheim debut in 2002, she rallied from 5 down with five holes to play to earn a half-point against Michele Redman, and was so caught up in the moment she dropped an F-bomb on NBC. She could be hard on herself and those around her. She was at times an intimidating presence.

When it was over, she never looked so content—with her son in her arms on the 18th green, with her hands on the Solheim Cup trophy, at home Tuesday during an appearance on Golf Channel where she ended the interview by thanking US fans for endless support in “making my career what it’s been.”

“As much as she’s had the ability to get under everyone’s skin, I didn’t see anyone who wasn’t happy for her,” Rankin said. “It was the same with everybody Sunday night. Every single person I came across was wishing it could happen that way for them.”

No longer the villain, she left as a hero.

Russia sending 29 athletes to worlds on neutral team

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OSCOW—The suspended Russian track federation is sending a team of 29 competitors to the world championships in Qatar, where they will compete as neutral athletes.

High jumper Mariya Lasitskene is the only reigning world champion among the group announced by the federation Tuesday. Lasitskene has jumped a world leading 2.06 meters this season but has failed to clear 2 meters at four of her last five events.

Other medal contenders include Sergei Shubenkov, the 2015 world champion in the 110-meter hurdles, and high jumpers Mikhail Akimenko and Ilya Ivanyuk.

Many Russian athletes with past doping bans were not cleared to compete, including race walker Elena Lashmanova, the world leader in the 20-kilometer event this year. Lashmanova is a former Olympic gold medalist, as is Anna Chicherova, another athlete who was not allowed to go.

With 29 Russian neutral athletes, there will be 10 more than at the last world championships two years ago. The squad includes 16 women, compared to just seven in 2017.

Russia has been suspended from international track and field since 2015 over widespread doping, but 131 athletes have since been cleared to compete as neutrals. They must present evidence of thorough drug testing to a panel set up by track’s world governing body, the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF).

Athletes from the neutral team do not wear national colors and if one wins a gold medal, the IAAF anthem is played. AP

HIGH jumper Mariya Lasitskene is the only reigning world champion among the group. AP

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Thursday, September 19, 2019

US Olympic sports respond to sexual, financial issues

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HE United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) said it is cooperating with government inquiries after it was reported American agencies were conducting a widespread investigation into the country’s sports organizations.

The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the investigations, reported that the US Justice Department is pursuing multiple criminal investigations into sexual abuse in Olympic sports organizations.

Other probes have been launched into potential financial and business misconduct throughout the US Olympic system. The inquiries follow in the wake of the sexual abuse case against former national gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar.

According to the The Wall Street Journal, federal prosecutors have spoken with potential witnesses about alleged abuse and misconduct in Olympic sports organizations, including USA Gymnastics and USA Taekwondo.

The USOPC has announced that it will introduce a five-year strategic plan as it faces up to the challenges presented by a string of recent sex-abuse scandals.

Nassar, 55, was given an effective life sentence by a Michigan court for sexually abusing dozens of young female gymnasts entrusted to his care. He is also serving a 60-year sentence for a federal child pornography conviction. New Chief Executive Sarah Hirshland and Chairman Susanne Lyons acknowledged the shortcomings of the USOPC at their annual address to the national governing body’s Assembly last week.

One focus of the investigation appears to be on “failures” in the Olympic system to respond to signs of widespread child abuse, The Wall Street Journal added.

It said prosecutors have already received documents from the US Center for SafeSport in response to a grand jury subpoena. The center is the organization formed in 2017 to handle sex-abuse cases in the Olympic world.

Insidethegames

Spo BRACING FOR DISASTER

Business

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apanese Government Minister Kazuyoshi Akaba has called for increased collaboration between central and local authorities to help prepare for potential natural disasters.

Akaba—appointed Japan’s Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism minister last week—made the claim following a recent typhoon in the country.

It raised concerns for the Tokyo 2020 Organizing Committee with just 10 months to go until the city hosts the Olympic Games.

The typhoon hit Tokyo on the same day as the Ready Steady Tokyo karate test event. Akaba warned greater collaboration is required to avoid authorities acting separately in their efforts to prepare for and respond to potential disasters.

“Once a disaster occurs, minimizing damage is the most crucial task of politics,” Akaba said, according to The Japan Times.

“We have to work on disaster prevention and reduction, from the standpoint of protecting the lives of people.

“The state, and prefectural and municipal governments should proceed with anti-disaster measures efficiently by setting priorities and making full preparations,” he added.

Special budgets have reportedly been provided by the government for emergency measures related to natural disasters.

Tokyo 2020 official Yasuo Mori claimed earlier this month that organizers of next year’s Olympic Games are fully prepared for the impacts of any typhoon.

Mori was in attendance at the karate test event when the typhoon struck.

The deputy executive director of Tokyo 2020’s Games operation’s bureau, insisted

MASCOT REVEALED 2022 Winter Paralympic Games mascot Shuey Rong Rong is revealed during a ceremony at the Shougang Ice Hockey Arena in Beijing

on Tuesday. AP

the Organizing Committee would be ready to tackle any possible effects should a typhoon occur during the Games.

Akaba reportedly vowed to work to ensure accommodation and transportation

operated smoothly throughout the duration of next year’s Olympic and Paralympic Games. The minister expressed hope the standard would satisfy athletes, officials and spectators.

“I hope foreigners visiting Japan for the Tokyo Games will think that ‘it’s a good country and I want to come here again,’” Akaba reportedly said.

Abaka took up his role after cabinet

reshuffle by Prime Minister Shinzō Abe last week. Former athlete Seiko Hashimoto was confirmed as Japan’s new Olympics Minister as part of the reshuffle.

A senior doctor at the Japan Medical Association (JMA), meanwhile, has criticized the scheduling of next year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo and warned heatstroke will be the “biggest risk” during the event.

Kimiyuki Nagashima, a member of the JMA Executive Board, told Agence FrancePresse that humidity in the Japanese capital during the Games would also be a problem for athletes and spectators.

The potential for extreme heat and humidity at Tokyo 2020 presents a considerable hurdle for organizers, who have received praise from the International Olympic Committee and others in their preparations for the Games.

The Olympics are due to run from July 24 to August 9, when temperatures could hit as high as 40 degrees celsius.

Nagashima said it was the wrong time to hold the Games as the Japanese summer is “generally speaking not a suitable place” for sports events.

More than 50 people died in the city in July, while 95,137 people were admitted to hospital suffering from heatstroke between May and September in 2018.

Some athletes had heatstroke during the Tokyo 2020 rowing test event last month.

Tokyo hosted the Olympics in 1964, an event which was moved to October to combat the summer temperatures.

“My personal opinion as an individual is that sporting events should be held in a comfortable environment,” Nagashima said.

Insidethegames

orts

sMirror

Asian cruise for ace in Highlands Cup

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FOUR-NIGHT Asian cruise for two will be staked as hole-in-one prize when the Highlands Ladies Cup holds its 14th edition on October 5 at Tagaytay Midlands Golf Club.

The Royal Caribbean/Baron Travel is putting up the SingaporePort Klang-Phuket-Singapore package for ace on No. 17 of the rolling layout.

If nobody scores a hole-inone, the Asian cruise prize will be raffled off among the participants, according to the organizing Tagaytay Highlands Ladies Chapter (THLC).

Over 150 players are expected to see action in the annual18hole tournament, backed by W Group, Auto Nation Group and Pacific Online as Diamond sponsors, which will have a shotgun start and will be played under the System 36 scoring format.

Registration is ongoing with fee pegged at P3,500 for members and P4,500 for nonmembers, inclusive of green fee, cart, lunch, giveaways and raffle stub.

For details, call Midlands Golf Services at 0917-886-5226 (members) and Analaine Blas at 0966-713-5199 (nonmembers).

Also up for grabs are prizes for the top finishers in various divisions, including the centerpiece ladies division and the men’s Classes A, B, C and seniors category.

The event also serves as a fundraiser for the Sisters of Mary boys’ and girls’ town complex in Silang, Cavite, as part of THLC’s social commitment.

PSC vows 2020 Paragames support

Thursday, September 19, 2019

LASCUÑA, ABABA UP

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ONY LASCUÑA and Jhonnel Ababa churned out a pair of 67s on opposite nines as the Davaoeños wrested control on hostile turf for a one-stroke lead over Ira Alido and Aussie Jack Lane-Weston at the start of the International Container Terminal Services Inc. (ICTSI) Del Monte Championship at Del Monte Golf Club in Manolo Fortich, Bukidnon, on Wednesday.

Out to make up for his playoff setback to local ace Reymon Jaraula at Pueblo de Oro over the weekend, Lascuña bucked a bogey on No. 7 with four birdies in the last 10 holes to match Ababa’s five-under par round, a bogey-free card he spiked with two birdies in the last four holes at the frontside of the tight layout that bedeviled the games of the home bets.

“Got my iron game and putting going. I got a bit careless on No. 7 and made a bogey but regained my rhythm after I birdied No. 10,” said Lascuña, the former three-time Philippine Golf Tour (PGT) Order of Merit champion out to end a two-year title spell in the circuit organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments Inc. Ababa, who missed joining the playoff cast at Pueblo by just one stroke, put in a flawless round in hot, humid conditions but rued his missed eagle chances on the three par 5 s that he birdied with solid driving

and superb iron game.

“It was kind of perfect but had some lapses in judgment and blew my eagle chances on Nos. 6, 9 and 14,” said Ababa, the winningest player on PGT Asia with four victories but winless on PGT this year.

Reigning Philippine Open champion Clyde Mondilla and Paul Miñoza both holed out with birdies on the ninth to card 71s as they emerged the best-placed players from the host province at 18th, four behind the hot-starting Lascuña and Ababa.

But most pretournament favorites lived up to the hype with strong starts, among them Alido, who continued to dish out big games after a fifth-place effort at Aboitiz and a joint third finish at Pueblo.

He shot a 68, firing three birdies at the front then negating a bogey mishap on No. 12 with birdies on Nos. 14 and 18. Lane-Weston, meanwhile, put himself in early contention after a joint 25th effort at Pueblo with strong finishes on both nines.

He birdied four of the last five at the back for a 33 then recovered from bogeys on Nos. 2 and 5 with three birdies in the last four to join Alido at second.

Juvic Pagunsan, who sparked a lot of talks for another title romp after a last-minute list-up, served notice of his title bid with three

Beermen eye semis berth in Macao tilt S

TONY LASCUÑA is back in the title hunt after a playoff loss as Jhonnel Ababa hopes a solid start could lead to a big finish. ROY DOMINGO

birdies in the first 11 holes.

But he found Del Monte’s closing holes a lot more challenging, settling for a bogeybirdie-bogey-birdie game from No. 13 for a 69 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. Jaraula, who came into the event oozing with confidence following a breakthrough win, blew a one-under card after nine holes

with three straight bogeys to open his backside bid on a course he calls home. He birdied No. 14 but dropped another stroke on the difficult par-4 17th to fall to joint 36th with a 74.

From chasing a second straight crown, the 27-year-old Jaraula is now running after a spot in the final 36 holes of the P2.5 million championship sponsored by ICTSI with only the top 40 plus ties to advance to the weekend play.

MAROONS NIP BULLDOGS B R R B

U

P

HILIPPINE Sports Commission (PSC) Chairman William Ramirez committed the agency’s full support to the 2020 Asean Paragames which the country is hosting in January next year.

From January 18 to 25, the country will welcome an estimated 2,500 athletes, coaches and officials in the Paragames, that will be staged after the 30th Southeast Asian Games set from November 30 to December 11 this year.

Ramirez said that the PSC has committed a P100-million funding to the Philippine Asean Paralympic Games Organizing Committee.

“We will support them because, like the SEA Games, this is also a national commitment” said Ramirez, adding that they also informed the Philippine Paralympic Committee, headed

by Michael Barredo, that they want to see them finally hold their election next year.

“Good governance of sports associations is important, and the PSC will use its supervisory and visitorial rights on these associations to make sure that proper management is in place since public funds are being given to them,” Ramirez said.

This is the second time the Philippines is hosting the multisport games for differentlyabled athletes after 2005, when the country also hosted the SEA Games.

UNIVERSITY of the Philippines’s Kobe Paras finds a tough customer in National University’s RJ Minerva. NONOY LACZA

NIVERSITY of the Philippines (UP) dealt National University (NU) another heartache as the Fighting Maroons escaped with an 80-79 victory in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines Season 82 men’s basketball tournament on Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

It was the second straight game that the Maroons labored at crunchtime to snare their third win against a loss for solo second spot.

Kobe Paras continued to provide stellar numbers with 25 points that went with six rebounds and two assists.

Bright Akhuetie had 19 points and 12 rebounds, while Javi Gomez de Liano added 17 points on 5-of-7 shooting from beyond

the arc.

“The difficult part of trying to rev up your team when you go up against a 0-3 team is them thinking that they can just go past that particular team. NU is a lot, lot better that their 0-4 slate,” UP Coach Bo Perasol said.

“If you’re going to get into the margin of losses, I think that’s going to be a record now,” Perasol added.

The Bulldogs lost by one point to the Adamson University Soaring Falcons and De La Salle Green Archers. NU came close to ironing out a breakthrough win, but blew away the chance and knelt to University of Santo Tomas in overtime, 74-83.

The Fighting Maroons were no different as the Bulldogs showed signs of resilience only to fall short.

UP raced to a 14-point lead in the second quarter and even had

a comfortable 78-71 advantage with 2:12 remaining.

But NU rallied highlighted

by Dave Ildefonso’s triple that pegged the score at 80-79 with 11.6 left in the game.

John Lloyd Clemente had his eye on a jumper but his shot went off the mark at the buzzer.

Ildefonso had 25 points, five rebounds and two assists, while Issa Gaye tallied 13 points and 13 boards.

Adamson University, meanwhile, delivered the killer blows in the fourth to subdue University of Santo Tomas, 78-71.

Filipino-Peruvian Valandre Chauca led a 13-0 run with a little more than two minutes remaining to complete the Soaring Falcons’ comeback.

Chauca top scored with 18 points, 11 he made in the final quarter, as the Falcons tied the Growling Tigers with a 3-2 record.

‘LET STUDENTS WATCH SEA GAMES’

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EPUTY Speaker Mikee Romero (1-Pacman Party-list) urged the Department of Education (DepEd) and Philippine Southeast Asian Games Organizing Committee (Phisgoc) to allow students to watch the grandest regional sports festival for free.

Romero, who is taking part in the biennial meet being a member of the national polo team, said the Phisgoc should allot a portion where students—especially those from Tarlac and Pampanga—could cheer not only for Filipinos but also for other athletes.

“We have state-of-the-art athletics and

swimming centers but it will look ugly if there are no student-cheerers,” Romero said.

Being a former amateur basketball “godfather,” Romero knows how crowd support can make impact in the country’s allout bid to reproduce the Miracle of 2005.

Having been in so many memorable battles before, Romero believes in the magic of crowd support.

“We did it 14 years ago so I see no reason why we can’t duplicate our golden achievements during the 23rd SEA Games.

With President Duterte’s total support and

crowd support, I’m confident we can do it again,” said Romero, who is one of the founding directors of the Philippine National Federation of Polo Players.

The biennial meet is set from November 30 to December 11 with the opening set at the Philippine Arena in Bulacan, while the closing ceremony is at New Clark City in Capas, Tarlac.

The last time the country hosted the biennial sporting event, the Philippines collected 113 gold medals—26 ahead of perennial champion Thailand.

Romero, who bankrolled the national basketball team that lorded it over during the 2007 Ratchasima Games in Thailand, said DepEd officials should also cooperate in this endeavor since the country’s honor is at stake in this event.

“Instead of adding burden to their parents, let us allow students to watch and cheer for our athletes,” Romero said. “Let them feel the spirit of SEA Games.”

The secondary venue will be Subic while the tertiary venue will be Metro Manila and other nearby cities, including Tagaytay City.

Benefit run for farmers up in Puerto Princesa, Narra in Palawan

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UERTO Princesa City is organizing a benefit run to help farmers suffering from the plummeting palay prices.

The event, organized by Yamang Bukid Farm-Palawan, is set on September 28.

Proceeds of the run will go to the Palawan Center for Appropriate Rural Technology (PCART) and a farmers’ association in Narra, Palawan’s rice granary where palay farm-gate prices have plunged

to as low as P7 per kilo.

The 5-kilometer event is dubbed “Takbo para sa mga Magsasaka [Run for the Farmers],” according to Hope Alas, tourism officer of Yamang Bukid Farm.

“This is for the farmers all over the Philippines. We have been running for other causes but we haven’t had one for our farmers who have toiled so much so we can put food on our tables,” Alas said.

The event coincides with Yamang Bukid Farm’s Fifth Agros Farmers’ Festival which will be held at Barangay Bacungan on the same day of the event.

The 42-hectare tourism destination in Barangay Bacungan has been known for employing former illegal loggers as farm workers, teaching them sustainable agriculture, and environmental protection and conservation.

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The run will start from Bacungan proper, traversing an uphill paved road that ends at the Yamang Bukid Farm welcome marker in Purok (Community) Candes III. Each ticket costs P350, inclusive of singlet and race bib.

For registration and ticket inquiries, interested runners and partners may call mobile phone numbers 0907-237-7258 or 0967-544-3928 or e-mail yamangbukidfarm@gmail.com

DEPUTY Speaker Mikee Romero wants students to watch the grandest regional sports festival for free.

AN Miguel Beer eyes an outright semifinals berth in the East Asia League Terrific 12 as it battles no less than defending champion Ryukyu Golden Kings at the end of the group stage Thursday at the Tap Seac Multisports Pavilion in Macao.

The Beermen and the Golden Kings tangle in the main game at 7 p.m., needing no less than a victory to avoid any quirks of the quotient system and advance to the Final Four of the tournament featuring some of the top commercial ballclubs around Asia.

The most successful franchise in Philippine Basketball Association history seized the top spot in Group B after demolishing a gutsy Shenzhen Aviators team, 90-76, to the delight of the partisan Filipino crowd at the venue.

Governors’ Cup import Dezmine Wells exploded for 29 points while Terrence Romeo finished with 17 points, including back-to-back three-pointers late in the game that took the fight out of the Aviators.

The Beermen pulled off the victory despite playing without injured starters June Mar Fajardo (ankle) and Marcio Lassiter (knee), along with Alex Cabagnot (flu). Big man Kelly Nabong will only arrive in time for the game against the Golden Kings after attending to a personal matter in the US. The rousing win by San Miguel somehow made up for the losses absorbed by Blackwater Elite and the TnT Katropa in their respective group. The Elite, playing without starters Mike DiGregorio (flu) and rookie Bobby Ray Parks (Achilles injury), along with big man Rabeh Al-Hussaini, fell against the Seoul SK Knights in Group A action, 93-77, while the Katropa, minus Troy Rosario, Don Trollano, and Brian Heruela, came up short against former NBA player Lance Stephenson and the Liaoning Flying Leopards, 96-91, in Group D. The setback left the Katropa and Elite in a must-win game in their final assignment in the group stage. Blackwater faces the Chiba Jets next, while the Katropa will be up against Niigata Albirex Basketball.

Only the top team in each group will advance to the crossover semis, with the two winning sides at the end of the Final Four disputing the championship and the $150,000 prize money.

The Beermen are aware they have their hands full against the defending champions, who are battling the Aviators in their debut game as of presstime. But Chris Ross, who finished with 11 points, six rebounds, five assists, and six steals, said San Miguel, seeking to complete a rare grand slam this season, is up to the challenge.

“We’re looking forward to what the rest of the tournament has for us,” he said.

D-LEAGUE SEMIS ON

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ECHNOLOGICAL Institute of the Philippines (TIP) and Marinerong Pilipino put their history aside when the Philippine Basketball Association Developmental League Foundation Cup semifinals begin on Thursday at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.

Partners in the 2018 Foundation Cup that led to a semis trip, the Engineers and the Skippers are now foes as they are set to slug it out in Game One of the best-of-three affair at 3:30 p.m.

“Poetic. Marinero-TIP last conference,” TIP Head Coach Potit de Vera quipped. “With that partnership, we made it all the way to the playoffs. It’s going to be interesting. It’s going to be fun.”

The Engineers have been nothing short of impressive this conference, clinching the two-seed in Group B with their 5-1 card before maximizing their win-once edge over Black Mamba in the quarterfinals.

But they will be in for a tough challenge as they will face the Skippers, undoubtedly Group A’s top dogs, which have been unscathed so far with seven straight wins behind the leadership of Eloy Poligrates.

The former pro has been on a tear with averages of 23.8 points, 3.7 assists, and 3.0 rebounds, making him the frontrunner for the Conference MVP honors.

BRT Sumisip Basilan-St. Clare, meanwhile, renews its rivalry with Centro Escolar University in Game One of their own best-of-three series at 1:30 p.m. The Saints are in the midst of a seven-game winning streak, the last of which a 180-117 drubbing of Hyperwash last Monday that paved the way for their entry into the penultimate phase.

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Thursday, September 19, 2019

North Korea’s fans celebrate during the World Cup Group H qualifying match between North Korea and Lebanon at the Kim Il Sung Stadium in Pyongyang recently.

AP

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DILEMMA IN KOREA

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By John Duerden The Associated Press

EOUL, South Korea—South Korea’s soccer association is unsure whether its World Cup qualifier against North Korea next month will take place in Pyongyang or on a neutral ground.

The Seoul-based KFA said it hadn’t yet received any information from its counterpart in Pyongyang regarding logistics for the Group H match, which would be a first competitive meeting between the national men’s teams in the North Korean capital. North Korea hosted South Korea for an international friendly there in 1990.

North Korea nominated Pyongyang as the host venue for the October 15 game after the Asian qualifying draw was made in June.

The KFA said it sent an “additional letter” to the Asian Football Confederation on Monday to see where North Korea stands on the match.

With the two countries still technically at war because 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty, a meeting in the 50,000 capacity Kim Il Sung Stadium would be symbolic, particularly as the two countries have expressed their intention to submit a joint bid for the 2023 Women’s World Cup. South Korea’s women’s team played in Pyongyang in an Asian Cup qualifier in 2017 and traveled to the northern capital via Beijing. The KFA is hopeful that the men’s squad can travel straight across the Demilitarized Zone that divides the two countries.

“When North Korea tells us where to pick up our visa, then we’ll prepare accordingly,” the KFA said. “We have also submitted to the unification ministry a list of items we need to take to North Korea.”

It is possible that the game will be played in a neutral country, with the South Korean media reporting that Beijing is an option. During qualification for the 2010 World Cup, North Korea opted to host games against South Korea in Shanghai.

North Korea sits on top of Group H with two wins from its opening two games in the second round of Asian qualification, including a win in Pyongyang against Lebanon. South Korea has played only one game so far, winning 2-0 in Turkmenistan.

In Yaounde, Cameroon, former African soccer leader Issa Hayatou will help organize some of the continent’s top tournaments.

The Cameroon sports ministry says it has appointed

Protests renewed vs Super Cup in Saudi Arabia

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Hayatou, who was Fifa’s interim president in 2015-16, as a special adviser to the organizers of competitions it will host, including the 2020 African Nations Championship and the 2021 African Cup of Nations.

Hayatou left top-level soccer when his 29-year presidency of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) ended in 2017 with an election loss to Ahmad Ahmad of Madagascar.

Cameroon was stripped of hosting this year’s African Cup

by CAF, which cited poor preparations. The decision was widely seen as a riposte to Hayatou. With CAF in turmoil and Ahmad implicated in financial corruption by French investigators, Fifa has sent Secretary-General Fatma Samoura from Zurich to run the Cairo-based organization.

The 73-year-old Hayatou has retained honorary membership of the International Olympic Committee and attended meetings in June in Lausanne, Switzerland.

OME—Amnesty International and the journalists union for Italian state TV RAI have written a joint letter to the presidents of Juventus and Lazio asking the clubs not to the play the Italian Super Cup in Saudi Arabia because of the country’s human-rights record.

The letter sent Tuesday states that “despite a big media campaign put forth by the Saudi government to validate a country working on reforms, the human-rights situation remains extremely worrisome. While the ban on women driving was abolished and the institute of the ‘male guardian’ for which every personal and public choice regarding women was reformed, the activists who promoted those campaigns are languishing in prison.”

Amnesty and the RAI union also protested over last season’s Super Cup, which was played in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The Italian league has a contract with Saudi Arabia to play three Super Cups in the country over five years.

Serie A says the plan is to play this season’s game in Saudi Arabia in either December or January, with a date likely to be agreed on later this month. The league had no comment on the letter from Amnesty and the RAI union, which was not sent to Serie A. Italian politicians and human-rights activists also objected to last season’s game being played in Saudi Arabia, citing the assassination of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.

But the match went ahead at a sold-out King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in front of more than 61,000 fans, including many women who were only allowed into Saudi sports stadiums a year earlier for the first time to watch soccer matches.

Juventus beat AC Milan 1-0 in last season’s match in January. The annual match pits the Serie A champion against the Italian Cup champion. AP

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God of boundless grandeur

EAR God, we praise You for Your everlasting love and we pray: God, make us a joyful people. Expand our hearts and our vision to be one with Christ’s all-inclusive and unconditional love. Strengthen Your Church for the work of worship and prayer, reconciliation and justice. Help us to support and inspire young people in their vocational search especially those whose inclination is toward religious life. May God bless us and firmly establish the hope of the resurrection within us. 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

REELING: HERE’S TO EARLY AUTUMN IN TOKYO D4

Thursday, September 19, 2019

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Japan Fiesta 2019 THE Embassy of Japan has announced Japan Fiesta 2019 on November 9 and 10, at the SMX Convention Center, SM Aura Premier, Taguig City. The event is organized through the cooperation of the members of the Japan Fiesta Council, such as the Embassy of Japan in the Philippines, Japan National Tourism Organization Manila Office, the Japan Foundation, Manila, the Japanese Association, Manila Inc. and Primer Media Inc. The Japan Fiesta 2019 is the first event of its kind and expected to be the flagship event in Manila to promote friendship between Japan and the Philippines. This event aims to foster a deeper mutual relationship between the peoples of Japan and the Philippines by experiencing many facets of Japan.

The event will feature Japanese culture, tourism and cuisine, among others, and promote the best of Japan to Filipinos. Artists and performers who enjoy popularity in the Philippines and Japan will join the event to provide entertainment and added attraction.

Tourist hot spot Barcelona sees a spike in mug�ings

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ARCELONA, Spain—Robberies involving violence or intimidation have spiked sharply in Barcelona, one of Europe’s most attractive summer vacation destinations, Spanish police officials said.

Officials from the regional police force for Catalonia said muggings or street robberies that include the threat of violence have increased 30 percent since the beginning of the year compared to the same period in 2018 in the popular Mediterranean city that draws nearly 16 million visitors a year.

Those attacks, often targeting tourists, have sometimes hit foreign officials.

This week the Afghan ambassador to Spain was knocked to the ground by a group of thieves who took his watch, injuring his leg. Also this month a Federal Bureau of Investigation agent on vacation had his watch stolen in the center of Barcelona.

In June, a South Korean official died from injuries received when she was knocked to the ground when a thief riding a motorbike tried to snatch her purse. Police Director Andreu Martínez said on Wednesday that police were working to halt

the crime wave that had “generated a heightened perception of insecurity.”

The US Embassy issued an advisory to warn tourists of “petty theft schemes that have included acts of violence, such as aggressive thefts of jewelry, watches and purses.”

With its beaches, cuisine and architectural delights, Barcelona, a city with a population of 1.6 million residents, draws 12 million foreign tourists a year and another 4 million from within Spain.

Barcelona has long been considered a safe city, except for a persistent problem of pickpockets who target the large number of foreigners flooding the city each summer.

But what was once a silent hand reaching into the pocket or purse of an unsuspecting victim has now turned aggressive. It appears that thieves have begun to work in groups and use force to extract the property of victims.

Police did not say what they believe the rise in violent crime is due to.

But some locals point to the several thousand underage migrants, mostly from Morocco and

Algeria, who have arrived to Spain without their parents in recent years and their fears have been a focus of right-wing parties.

Police statistics indicate that 12 percent of those minors have committed a crime that employed violence or the threat of violence since arriving to the region of Catalonia.

Albert Batlle, the head of security for Barcelona’s town hall, has said that these minors should be returned to their families.

But the regional chief for social affairs, Chakir el Homrani, has maintained it is more of a social problem and that “we have dehumanized the collective of unaccompanied minors” by associating them with criminality.

Police officials complain about light punishments for petty theft, where even repeat offenders are often allowed to pay a fine instead of doing jail time for thefts of less than €400 ($443).

Police said that arrests for violent robberies have increased by 80 percent this year. But that of those 1,627 arrested individuals, only 159, or 9.7 percent, were kept in custody until trial. AP

San Francisco’s iconic cable cars to shut down for repairs SAN FRANCISCO—San Francisco’s iconic cable cars will stop running for 10 days starting Friday while they undergo the final repairs in a three-year restoration project of the gearboxes that propel the world-famous system up the city’s notoriously steep hills.

Shuttle buses will run along the three cable car routes where historic cars typically travel at a steady 9.5 miles (15 kilometers) per hour, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency said Wednesday.

The agency says it needs to get the manually operated cable cars off the streets to rehabilitate the gearboxes that power the system that started in the 1890s.

The gearboxes spin the 30-foot (9-meter) tall wheels that pull the 12 miles (19 kilometers) of steel cables under San Francisco to lift the city’s 40 cable cars up steep hills.

The shutdown is sure to disappoint some of the tourists visiting the city next week. Long lines typically snake around several sites where riders can

hope on, despite each car’s capacity of 60 people. The city says 7.5 million passengers ride the cable cars each year.

“We thought it was really lovely—part of the experience” of San Francisco, said Adrienne Hollifield, 68, of Black Mountain, North Carolina, just after she and two relatives stepped off a cable car. “We walked all the way up, but coming back on that, that will be a real problem, I think.”

Her cousin, Bruce Goldberg, 65, of Hawaii’s Big Island, said Hollifield and her sister-in-law Libby Smith had the cars on the must-do list for the trip.

“Oh yeah, yeah, they insisted. I’m like the tour guide, because I used to live here, but they said, ‘We’ve got to go on the cable cars,’” he said.

“I kind of know that occasionally stuff happens on the cable cars and they’ve got to deal with it, because they’re really old technology,” Goldberg said. “They’re all run from a pulley in, like, one place. They were talking about redoing that system for many years.”

The work is part of a $6 million upgrade project that started in 2017 to repair the four heavy equipment gearboxes that have been in service since 1984. The fourth gearbox controls the Hyde Line, the master cable that controls all cable cars going in and out of the cable car barn. Without it

operating, cable cars can’t enter or return from service.

San Francisco’s cable cars were named a National Historic Landmark in 1964 by the US Interior Department’s National Park Service. The cost is $6 for each ride or $14 for an all-day pass.

Seniors and the disabled pay $3. AP

The British Council launches artist grants THE first round of the British Council’s “Connections Through Culture” mobility grant to promote arts and cultural exchange between the United Kingdom and Southeast Asia is now accepting applications. The call for application was launched on August 26, and is open until September 26. The grant is a first-of-its kind project to spark innovative ways for participants from six Southeast Asian countries and the UK to collaborate through the arts.

Connections Through Culture is a bilateral grants program designed to seed exciting cultural exchanges between artists and arts organizations, and nurture cooperation and long-lasting relationships between the UK and six Southeast Asian countries: Malaysia, Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines.

Following similar initiatives in China and Taiwan, artists, arts professionals and art group representatives from the six the Southeast Asia countries and the UK are eligible to apply for the mobility grant valued from £2,500 to £5,000. Artists from the Southeast Asia and the UK may use the grants for self-directed travel to meet with specialists, peers in the field and potential collaborators in the United Kingdom and in Southeast Asia between January and March 2020.

Successful grantees will be announced on October 28. Applicants from the Philippines can find further information at bit.ly/2lSB9Ty. The British Council (www.britishcouncil.org) is the UK’s international organization for cultural relations and educational opportunities, working with over 100 countries in the fields of arts and culture, English language, education and civil society.

This past year, the British Council has reached over 75 million people directly and 758 million people overall including through broadcasts, publications and online. The organization makes a positive contribution to the countries it works with—changing lives by creating opportunities, building connections and engendering trust.

Founded in 1934, the British Council is a UK charity governed by Royal Charter and a UK public body. More information is available at www. britishcouncil.org.

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Thursday, September 19, 2019

Entertaining BusinessMirror

This chicken and couscous dish is a winning weeknight dinner

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BY AMERICA’S TEST KITCHEN The Associated Press

By Eugenia Last

CELEBRITIES BORN ON THIS DAY: Kevin Zegers, 35; Alison Sweeney, 43; Jimmy Fallon, 45; Trisha Yearwood, 55.

a

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Do your part and get things done. Don’t give anyone room to criticize you for not pulling your weight. Be responsible and you’ll feel good about what you’ve accomplished. Help those counting on you without complaining. ★★

b

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Listen to advice offered, but when it’s time to decide, rely on what makes the most sense to you. A change in the way you feel about someone or something will dictate how you move forward. ★★

c

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Stick to the rules, no matter what others do. Taking a risk won’t pay off. Use your energy wisely and you will discover that planning can be the most important part of whatever venture you choose to pursue. ★★★★★

d

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Take a look at your choices and head in the direction that draws you most. Sometimes it’s good to break routine and to try something you’ve never done. Exploring unfamiliar territory will lead to personal growth. ★★★

SPANISH-STYLE CHICKEN AND COUSCOUS

e

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Don’t worry about what others are doing. Do your part and take your responsibilities seriously. Avoid making personal changes that aren’t necessary. Take care of your health. Doing what’s best for you will be satisfying and rewarding. ★★★

Servings: 4 Pressure cook total time: 1 hour Slow cook total time: 2 hours, 40 minutes

Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Using highest sauté or browning function, heat oil in multicooker for five minutes (or until just smoking.) Place half of chicken, skin side down, in multicooker and cook until browned, five to seven minutes; transfer to plate. Repeat with remaining chicken; transfer to plate.

Today’s Horoscope

HAPPY BIRTHDAY: Make plans and follow through. A change of location or learning something new will help you make a decision that will improve your life. Taking on new responsibilities will help to stabilize your life and your mindset. A lifestyle change will give you the push you need to break old habits and embark on a new and healthier routine. Your lucky numbers are 2, 7, 18, 21, 24, 36, 47.

URSTING with the aromatic flavors of saffron, chorizo and garlic, this chicken and couscous dish is a winning weeknight dinner. When developing this recipe, we started with classic chicken and rice, but found that the rice was not cooking at the same rate as the chicken in the multicooker, we ended up with either stubbornly crunchy rice or egregiously overcooked chicken.

Since tasters loved the Spanish flavor profile of the dish, we went in search of a different grain that would work in tandem with the chicken.

A few tests revealed that couscous was the crowd favorite, and it couldn’t have been simpler: Couscous doesn’t require cooking at all, just soaking, which meant we could add it to the pot after pressure or slow cooking and allow it to simply absorb the ultraflavorful cooking liquid.

If using the slow cook function, begin checking the chicken’s temperature after one hour and continue to monitor until it is done.

4 (12 ounce) bone-in split chicken breasts, trimmed Salt and pepper 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and chopped �ine 4 ounces Spanish-style chorizo sausage, cut into 1/4 inch pieces 4 garlic cloves, minced 1/8 teaspoon sa�fron threads, crumbled 1/2 cup chicken broth 1 1/2 cups couscous 1 cup frozen peas, thawed 2 teaspoons lemon juice 3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

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Add bell pepper, chorizo, and 1/4 teaspoon salt to fat left in multicooker and cook until bell pepper is softened, three to five minutes. Stir in garlic and saffron and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Stir in broth, scraping up any browned bits. Nestle chicken, skin side up, into multicooker, adding any accumulated juices.

■ To pressure cook: Lock lid in place and close pressure release valve. Select high pressure cook function and cook for 17 minutes. (If using instant pot, decrease cooking time to nine minutes.) Turn off multicooker and quick-release pressure. Carefully remove lid, allowing steam to escape away from you.

■ To slow cook: Lock lid in place and open pressure release valve.

Select low slow cook function and cook until chicken registers 160°F, one to two hours. (If using instant pot, select high slow cook function.) Turn off multicooker and carefully remove lid, allowing steam to escape away from you.

Transfer chicken to serving dish and discard skin, if desired. Tent with aluminum foil and let rest while preparing couscous.

Stir couscous, peas and lemon juice into multicooker, cover, and let sit until couscous is tender, about five minutes. Add parsley and fluff couscous gently with fork to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with chicken. ■

Quite the birthday celebration TODAY, September 19, marks a very special day for one of the most popular names in Yellow Cab: Charlie Chan— the Charlie Chan pasta, to be exact.

Now, the fast-service restaurant dedicates the entire day to pay tribute to one of its well-loved dishes that perfectly blends both sweet and savory flavors in one unique plate. As a treat, Yellow Cab is giving pasta fans a chance to join in the celebration with an exciting promo that will surely give them their fill of this crowd-pleaser.

For today only, fans can buy one large Charlie Chan pasta at its original price of P339 and then get one regular serving for only P19. Indulge the taste buds as fans enjoy a very generous

serving of juicy chicken strips, fresh shiitake mushrooms, and crunchy roasted peanuts mixed in a one-of-akind spicy oriental sauce. This limited offer is available for dine-in, takeout, delivery and curbside pick-up transactions nationwide “September 19 is all about honoring our favorite Charlie Chan pasta. We are excited by all the positive feedback we’ve received from our customers about our unique dish, and are delighted to give them this chance to celebrate with us by having them enjoy this bestseller at a special price,” said Charlene Sapina, marketing head of Yellow Cab Pizza Co. (www. yellowcabpizza.com).

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Check out your options before you make a move.

Refuse to let anyone put you in a precarious position that can have a detrimental effect on you physically. Set your pace and stick to what works best for you. Handle romance sensibly. ★★★★★

g

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): If someone applies force, walk away. Take the time you need to consider your next move. It’s better to be cautious than to appease someone by doing something that isn’t right for you. Focus on personal growth, not joint efforts. ★★

h

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Check out the latest trends and set your own style.

Live life to suit what you want, not what someone else wants for you. Change is only good if it results in positive improvement. ★★★★

i

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Don’t take a risk. You’ll feel far better using your energy to get into tip-top shape or to make a conscious effort to save money, not spend it. Don’t let anyone talk you into buying something you don’t need. ★★★

j

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Look at the possibilities and make the most of an opportunity. You have what it takes to get ahead if you are persistent. A personal change will bring you closer to someone who will bring out the best in you. ★★★

k

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Don’t get emotional or let your guard down. Keep your thoughts and plans to yourself until you have worked out all the details. If you let others get involved in your business, it will end up costing you more than anticipated. ★★★

l

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): You don’t have to prove yourself to others. Follow your heart and do what pleases you. A positive change will improve your status, reputation and the way you live life moving forward. ★★★★ BIRTHDAY BABY: You are insightful, caring and helpful.

You are opportunistic and steadfast.

‘bust a move’ BY SOPHIA MAYMUDES The Universal Crossword/Edited by David Steinberg

ACROSS 1 One of 16 in chess 5 Pointed remarks 10 Actress Hatcher 14 Easternmost four-letter state 15 Ancient public space 16 Sent packing 17 Amy Klobuchar, for one (last 3 letters +...)

19 Asian desert (...first 2) 20 “Pen” lead-in 21 “___ girl!”

23 ___-of-war 24 Open declaration (last 3 +...)

27 Sauce on a gyro (...first 2) 29 Bad ___ (2016 Mila Kunis film) 30 Spotify’s 2018 debut: Abbr.

32 Be silent, in music 33 Pro’s opposite 34 Like some pitchers 37 Mass book (last 3 +...)

40 Scented bag (... first 2) 43 Ladybugs, e.g.

45 Greek P 47 Pacific island country 50 Bit of horse food

51 Young Frankenstein character 52 Nonsense (last 4 +...)

55 Final song at a concert, often (...first 4) 57 ___-de-France 58 Like a good flan 59 Fish eggs 60 Flavorful lemon part 62 Do a headspin, say, or what four of this puzzle’s black squares do?

67 Failures bruise them 68 Lather, ___, repeat 69 Pick up 70 Northern Nevada city 71 In a strange manner 72 “Holy smokes!”

DOWN 1 “Wonderful” juice brand 2 Tuna type 3 “___ some, lose some” 4 “Haven’t heard anything yet” 5 Saint Peter’s and others 6 A long time ___ 7 Palindromic cuff type 8 2000s fashion dolls 9 December 25 visitor

10 11 12 13 18 22 24 25 26 28 31 35 36 38 39 41 42 44 46 47 48 49 51 53

Game with a “freeze” variety Delightfully unusual Admonish “That’s cool” Clean air org.

Story you may need a ladder to get to Regal competitor Va-va-___ (exciting quality) Swanky hotel chain Scrubs actor Braff One-named soccer legend The Thin Man’s best friend?

It lets you into any room The King and I setting Put out, as a candle Therefore An Avenger Applaud It may contain iron Big name in big pharma Claim Rests atop Manny the Mammoth’s movie franchise Book, in Spanish

54 56 61 63 64 65 66

Deodorant choice Silent agreement General on a menu It’s seen but not heard: Abbr.

Pester Top-secret org.

Finale

Solution to yesterday’s puzzle:

Thursday, September 19, 2019

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Here’s to early autumn in Tokyo REELING

TITO GENOVA VALIENTE

titovaliente@yahoo.com

I

AM in an Ozu mood, with the days becoming like a series of autumn afternoons. That was his last film—An Autumn A�ternoon, a film that has been called “one of cinema’s fondest farewells.

But if the master filmmaker’s works have always been elegiac, my autumn is more celebratory. I am going back to my favorite city in my favorite season: Tokyo in autumn.

The gift of the season comes to me through an unexpected invitation from 32nd Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) and the Japan Foundation Asia Center. The letter bears a heading in bold “Personal Invitation For.” It says: “It is our great pleasure to invite you as our ‘Invited Press’ to participate in the 32nd TIFF.” Explaining the invite, the communication states: “Following last year, TIFF and the Japan Foundation Asia Center have initiated the ‘Film Culture Exchange Projects.’ This includes various subprojects that are all designed to deepen ties between Japan and other Asian countries.”

The invitation offered to Asian journalists to the TIFF “is one of initiatives of the Film Culture Exchange Projects, which aims to encourage people exchanges and networking opportunities among Asian film professionals, key figures, including representatives of film festivals, journalists and film critics in Asia.”

My first experience of TIFF in 2015 afforded me a view of a very organized film concourse, from the arrival at the airport to the on-time gala opening, press conferences, invitational lunches and dinners, and film screenings. Having lived in Japan for many years, this did not surprise me in general. The fact though that this punctuality and subtle rigor was happening in the domain of cinema and art was no less than awesome.

It was, however, the last event I attended which took my breath away: a screening of Akira Kurosawa’s They Who Step on Tiger’s Tail. Any Kurosawa work is magic enough but for the theater to be preceded by a Kabuki performance of Kanjincho, upon which the film was based, made the whole night mesmerizing and memorable. Aside from the famous Kabuki play, the film was partly based also on the older Noh work, called Ataka. The geographical location of the Noh theater piece had implication on the “o-bento” (food) box given to guests (audiences are allowed to eat during a Kabuki performance). The mushroom in the meat dish came from Ataka, and the overall color and

motif of the tray on which the food was laid out was colored by the season of autumn.

For this year, I am ready to be starstruck again, as I was in 2015, when Helen Mirren took on the red carpet with the grandeur and theatricality of a great actress—with both hands raised, the inner part of the palms facing and framing her face.

As early as August, it was announced that Zhang Ziyi was going to head the jury. The presence of the actress in Japan is interesting because she was the one selected by Rob Marshall to play the lead role of the geisha in Memoirs of a Geisha. The role earned her the ire of Chinese authorities who, it was said, felt slighted that a Chinese actress would play the role of the submissive woman in the context of the abuse of Chinese women in two wars of the Chinese against the Japanese. From the side of Japan, it was said that the film industry felt strange to be told that there was no Japanese actress big enough to play such an iconic and much misunderstood Japanese character.

This year’s opening film is Tora-san, Wish You Were Here. The film from legendary director Yoji Yamada has been completed in time to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Japan’s most beloved comed film series, Otoko wa Tsurai yo (It’s Tough Being a Man). The series is a holder of a Guinness World Record for longest-running film series starring the same lead actor, Kiyoshi Atsumi. This film is the first to be released since 1995, following the untimely death of Atsumi.

On October 31, TIFF will be holding the gala premiere of the Japanese film Talking the Pictures, directed by Masayuki Suo. The filmmaker is noted for having produced compelling films like Shall We Dance? and I Just Didn’t Do it.

Will Robert de Niro and Al Pacino be around when TIFF screens The Irishman? The film, which also stars Joe Pesci, will close the festival on November 5. It is directed by Martin Scorsese, on his first-ever Netflix project. The film is described as an epic saga of organized crime in postwar America. It is expected that the Netflix film will do events that will create buzz similar to what the company did for Roma, Netflix’s Oscar-winning 2018 film.

For its 32nd edition, the TIFF also announced that its Crosscut Asia section will carry the title “Fantastic Southeast Asia.” This will focus on Southeast Asian genre films, from thrillers to romantic horrors, reflecting regional characteristics in the region. This sixth edition of the section has been programmed in collaboration with the Japan Foundation Asia Center.

The 32nd TIFF will take place from October 28 to November 5 at Roppongi Hills and other venues in Tokyo. All the events will take place within the splendor of autumn, way before the chill of winter. Caught in between the busy events are the condolences of those who were shocked with the death by fire in Kyoto of many members of the Kyoto Animation Studio. Some say it was a case of arson. ■

OPENING the 32nd Tokyo International Film Festival (TIFF) is Tora-san, Wish You Were Here from legendary director Yoji Yamada.

‘THE TWO POPES’ FROM NETFLIX THIS DECEMBER

THE Gift lead actor Alden Richards (center), together with his costars Mikee Quintos (fourth from left), Thia Thomalla (second from left), Ysabel Ortega (left), and Martin del Rosario, celebrated Kadayawan Festival via a Kapuso Mall Show in The Atrium, Gaisano Grand Citygate, in Buhangin, Davao City, on August 23.

CELEBRATING the Higalaay Festival in Cagayan de Oro City on August 31 were Beautiful Justice star Gabbi Garcia and One of the Baes’ Rita Daniela and Ken Chan.

GMA Regional TV marked a star-studded August THE month of August was filled with fun and excitement as GMA Regional TV, the regional arm of leading broadcast company GMA Network, brought some of the country’s most sought-after stars to various cities and provinces in the regions to give viewers an experience of a lifetime.

In Davao, the festive fever of Kadayawan Festival was highlighted by Alden Richards who, together with his The Gi�t costars Mikee Quintos, Thia Thomalla, Ysabel Ortega and Martin del Rosario, joined the Dabawenyos in celebrating one of the Philippines’s biggest festivals via a Kapuso Mall Show in The Atrium, Gaisano Grand Citygate, in Davao City on August 23.

The following day, the cast was welcomed by locals and tourists when they toured the city aboard the Kapuso Float for the Pamulak Kadayawan Float Parade. The event was documented live by GMA TV 5 Davao in Pamulak sa Kadayawan: A GMA Regional TV One Mindanao Special Coverage. Fans everywhere were also able to witness the parade as it was streamed live on www.gmaregionaltv.com.

Prior to that weekend, Bihag stars Jason Abalos and

Mark Herras already treated their fans to a mall show in Gaisano Mall Toril on August 18. Also that day, Love You Two’s Gabby Concepcion, The Better Woman stars Derek Ramsay and Andrea Torres, and Rita Daniela and Ken Chan of the upcoming prime-time series One of the Baes celebrated with Dabawenyos at The Annex Event Center, SM City Davao.

On August 31, Rita and Ken graced another major mall show during the Higalaay Festival in Cagayan de Oro City with one of Beautiful Justice’s lead stars, Gabbi Garcia. The popular love team were also the highlight of the Tuna Festival at General Santos City with Edgar Allan Guzman the following day.

Derek and Andrea were also all over the country as they graced three more mall shows last month, namely, in SM City Lucena (August 19), Vista Mall Bataan (August 24), and in Robinsons Place Pavia, Iloilo (August 31).

Meanwhile, Hanggang sa Dulo ng Buhay Ko stars Rayver Cruz, Kim Domingo and Kris Bernal also held a Kapuso Mall Show at CSI Mall Tayug in Pangasinan on August 17.

The cast of GMA’s Prima Donnas (Aiko Melendez,

Katrina Halili, Wendell Ramos, Sofia Pablo, Jillian Ward and Althea Ablan) also bannered the activities in Robinsons Place Pangasinan. Meanwhile, the men of Dahil sa Pag-ibig, Pancho Magno and Benjamin Alves, turned out to amuse the Bicolanos in SM City Legazpi.

On August 24, GMA Regional TV Vice President and Head Oliver Amoroso served as one of the judges at the Miss Cagayan de Oro 2019 held at The Atrium of Limketkai Center. Together with him as judges were Tonton Gutierrez, fashion designer Renee Salud, and Mutya ng Pilipinas-Asia Pacific International 2018 Sharifa Akeel, while Gabby Eigenmann cohosted the coronation night.

“August has been a fun and hectic time for GMA Regional TV. We had the relaunch of our regional newscasts while bringing our various Kapuso stars in different places all over the country. Our Kapuso in the regions should look forward to more activities with our Kapuso stars because there will be more shows lined up for them. This is our way of thanking them for their continued support to GMA. We hope to see them again soon,” concludes Amoroso.

STARRING Anthony Hopkins and Jonathan Pryce, from Fernando Meirelles, the Academy Award-nominated director of City of God, and three-time Academy Awardnominated screenwriter Anthony McCarten, The Two Popes is an intimate story of one of the most dramatic transitions of power in the last 2,000 years. Frustrated with the direction of the church, Cardinal Bergoglio (Pryce) requests permission to retire in 2012 from Pope Benedict (Hopkins).

Instead, facing scandal and self-doubt, the introspective Pope Benedict summons his harshest critic and future successor to Rome to reveal a secret that would shake the foundations of the Catholic Church.

Behind Vatican walls, a struggle commences between both tradition and progress, guilt and forgiveness, as these two very different men confront elements from their pasts in order to find common ground and forge a future for a billion followers around the world. From Netflix, The Two Popes comes to audiences this December.

Envoys&Expats

www.businessmirror.com.ph | Thursday, September 19, 2019 E1

Envoy enhances Vietnam’s engagement with PHL as ‘trusted friend, reliable partner’

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By Recto L. Mercene

@rectomercene

IETNAM’S Ambassador to the Philippines Ly Quoc Tuan was only three years old when the war between his country and America erupted.

Ly was 14 when the conflict ended, leaving behind a nation devastated, with the countryside and rice fields strewn with land mines. The once-verdant forests were stripped of their green cover—no thanks to the notorious “Agent Orange.”

According to its embassy in the Philippines’s web site, Vietnam has since undergone a period of “renovation and international integration.”

To encapsulate its positive message: “The material and spiritual life of the people constantly are improving; social safety and order are preserved. Vietnam has set up cooperative relations with most countries and regions in the world, is actively implementing the foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, peace, cooperation and development, diversification, multilateral relations, active and positive international integration.”

One of Vietnam’s many spectacular achievements is its role of being a net exporter of Asia’s staple, rice. The expanses that once were witnesses to battlefields have now yielded life-sustaining crops that are not only enjoyed by its populace, but by tho se within the Asean region.

‘Rice’ of Vietnam

ASKED how its people were able to achieve this feat of feeding themselves despite the many obstacles along the way—like the blockade imposed by the Americans after the war—Ly has a simple explanation.

“You asked me a common narrative. Vietnam and the Philippines have a similarity: two countries that have wet rice plantation. We have sent experts to the International Rice Research Institute to study rice plantation.”

He said Vietnamese farmers have since learned scientific ways of rice farming, techniques and technologies from the said institution and others.

“Now, we are a net rice exporter.

We often export about 4 million tons a year. In 2016 we exported 4.8 million tons to the world, in 2017 we did 5.5 million and, in 2018, did 6 million tons, including to the Philippines,” confirmed the Vietnamese emissary.

According to Ly, rice fields in Vietnam can churn out about 5 tons of palay per hectare, the land area tilled by an ordinary Vietnamese farmhand. He said the arable tract is almost the same as those given to Filipinos.

However, the envoy pointed out a stark contrast between his country and its neighbor to the east: the northern part is being supplied by water from the Red River Delta, while that of the south is from the Mekong River Delta. But, to some extent, he said Vietnamese farmers are able to adapt to a four-crop rotation for a given hectare per year, while Filipinos do only three.

He proudly stated: “For a long time, my government has built our irrigation systems for the peasants.

They enjoy it for free.”

“And…” the envoy emphasized,

“we do not charge farmers for the use of water.”

Ly was, however, quick to point out that Vietnam experiences only about 12 to 13 typhoons per year, while the Philippines is subject to the range of 24 and 25 howlers annually. His country is also a continuous landmass, with plenty of flat areas ideal for rice propagation, and a copious supply of water from the two great river systems.

The list of differences between the two Asean countries only starts from there.

Vietnam’s highest representative to the Philippines said natural calamities are also a factor to the crops our local farmers plant.

In his talks with Sens. Aquilino L. Pimentel III and Cynthia A. Villar, as well as former agriculture secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol, Ly was told that in the future, the Philippines could be self-sufficient in rice production.

“The rice tariffication law could improve the Filipino farmers’ yield,” he surmised.

(Israel’s Ambassador Rafael Harpaz told him Tel Aviv is helping the local tillers gain more production per hectare by providing them with high-yield rice seeds.)

Aside from rice, Vietnam also exports about 1.42 millions tons of coffee bean in 2017, and 1.88 mil-

lion tons of Arabica coffee in 2018, earning the country $3.2 billion and $3.54 billion, respectively.

It has also emerged as an important electronics exporter, with electrical and electronic products overtaking coffee, textiles and rice to become the country’s top export items. Electronics giant Samsung is Vietnam’s largest exporter, and has helped the country achieve a trade surplus for the first time in many years.

‘Doi moi’

VIETNAM’S upward trajectory is a given, knowing that its people are determined to chart their own futures through consistent application of know-how and ability to rely on their own.

Its top envoy to the Philippines volunteered their secret of not solely relying on rice imports since 1975: “My people have gone through the worst, were very poor, and experienced poverty, [Their] burning wish is to make ends meet. We have tried very hard to become a strong nation and a wealthy people.

“Our policy is nothing but to ‘bring food to the people, [and] bring clothes to the people.’ That’s a policy we’ve been doing since we started our independence in 1945, and since the unification in 1975.’”

Ly opined of our countrymen: “They are very hardworking; [maybe it just has to do with] the proper application of technology for better yields.”

On top of Vietnam’s nationwide movement to enable the populace to get the country on its feet and make it on a par with developed countries following the war, he shared Vietnam’s “mantra” that embodies its unified efforts at reform, termed as doi moi.

“Our reform is very fundamental, which was introduced in 1986.

Since then, it has helped transform the Vietnamese into lower middleincome citizens.”

He said when the war was over in 1975, Vietnam was a country in shambles, their economy shattered and “our country was in a very difficult position.”

“We had poverty issues. And if you remember, we also battled a blockade. We had no other way, but to stand up for ourselves.”

Faced with difficulties, Ly said his nation was very determined at that time to change. “We had to save our lives. In short, we cannot have other foreign assistance. So for over 40 years, I think that reform is one fundamental reason that made Vietnam very well-developed.”

Continued on E2

Envoys& BusinessMirror

E2 Thursday, September 19, 2019

PHL role, support to Vietnam cited

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mbassador Ly Quoc Tuan recently lauded the Philippines’s contribution and support to Vietnam’s development.

The envoy said that over the last seven decades, Hanoi has ac h ie ve d e conom ic prog res s made possible through cooperation w ith par tners, including the Philippines. “ T hose achievements cou ld not have been possible w ithout the va luable suppor t and cooperation from countr ies and organizations which Manila is par t of,” Ly said in his speech at the recent celebration of his countr y’s Independence Day. “Taking this opportunity, I would like to thank you once again

for the friendship and assistance that your countries and organizations have rendered to Vietnam in our development process,” the diplomat added.

Hanoi is Manila’s 12th-largest trading partner, 13th-largest export market and 10th-largest import supplier in 2018.

Data from the Department of Foreign Affairs show that Philippine exports to its Southeast A sian neighbor amounted to $943.78 million, while its imports totaled $3.04 billion. Aggregate trade is at $3.98 billion.

AMBASSADOR Ly Quoc Tuan (right), with Papal Nuncio Arch. Gabriele Giordano Caccia (left) and Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Ernesto C. Abella during the Vietnam Independence Day reception. PNA/JOYCE ROCAMORA

At the reception, Ly also mentioned the 43 years of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the Philippines, branding the latter as “friend and strategic partner.”

“I believe that our solid foundation of friendship, mutual respect and shared goals will serve as the engine driving our strategic partnership to move forward,” he remarked, as he offered a toast for the “further consolidation of friendship and cooperation” between the two nations.

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Ernesto C. Abella, who was present at the event, spoke of the two countries’ “natural friendship.” “ Today, we are proud to have Vietnam as a strategic partner, a distinction we have conferred on only two partners, and the only one we have within our Asean family,” Abella averred.

PNA/Joyce Ann L. Rocamora

Envoy enhances Vietnam’s engagement with PHL as ‘trusted friend, reliable partner’ Continued from E1

Accompanying these was Vietnam’s foreign policy: “That we are a friend to the international community, and also a trusted member.”

The purpose of this policy, according to the ambassador, was to lure much-needed foreign investments, as his countrymen tried to establish a friendly environment to attract foreign investors.

“Foreign direct investments [FDI] have helped us develop our economy,” Ly revealed.

He added his country increased its international integration by joining the economic mechanisms, such as: the World Trade Organization, the Asean, “and now we are working with 10 other nations about the ratification of all original signatories of the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership, aligning with the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, a proposed free-trade agreement between the 10 Asean member-states, with its six FTA partners.”

Ly stated that last year, Vietnam’s gross domestic product growth rate was about 6.9 percent, “and we are able to maintain at 6.8 percent from 1986 to 2006, and at 6.1 percent between 2008 and 2018.”

Multifaceted relations

OUR conversation touched on the aspect of trade. Ly admitted that the Department of Trade and Industry and its Vietnamese counterpart, the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI), listed many commodities that flow between the two countries.

These include computer spare parts, fertilizers, garments, food and foodstuff, as well as electronic spare parts from the Philippines, while they export rice, cement, steel, construction tiles, and, likewise, food items.

“Filipinos like freshwater fish from Vietnam,” the ambassador said, which contribute to the strong trade activity between the two countries.

“When I arrived [in the Philippines], the trade volume [being exchanged] was $3.2 billion in 2016; $4.5 billion in 2017; $4.72 billion in 2018; and for the first six months of 2019, $1.8 billion,” he volunteered.

These days, Ambassador Ly is focused on promoting Vietnam in other fields, as he recently accompanied a delegation from the MTI,

while organizing trade promotions and business matching every six months. In those confabulations, he invited Filipino businessmen to visit Vietnam.

Following the exposure of their economy to FDI, Ly said Filipino tycoon Ramon S. Ang introduced the Philippines’s beloved beer brand to his country in 1993.

“San Miguel has been very famous since 1993. Everyone, after working hours, sits in a local bar with a bottle in hand.”

He added that the Ayala Corp. have also inaugurated a $263-million solar-battery factory in Ninh Thuan province, Vietnam, last April, while Gokongwei-owned JG Summit Holdings Inc. has invested factories to produce tea drink and to cooperate in a tea plantation there.

There are at least seven Filipino companies placing monies in Vietnam, the diplomat revealed. For one, Aboitiz Corp. is looking at hydropower investments.

Ly then added that both governments’ relations are steadily growing. “There are high level exchanges and meetings between the two countries’ leaders, ministers and secretaries.”

The envoy said their Prime Minister, H.E. Nguyen Xuan Phuc, met President Duterte twice in 2017, while their president, H.E. Tran Dai Quang, talked with his Philippine counterpart during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in Da Nang in November 2017. Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc met with Duterte again in Singapore last year, and this year, in Bangkok.

He said there are regular meetings between Hanoi and Manila’s secretaries and ministers, which included the ninth meeting in March 2019 for the Joint Commission for Bilateral Cooperaion.

In defense relations, Secretary Delfin N. Lorenzana visited Vietnam in March 2019, while their four-star Army General and Defense Minister Ngo Xuan visited Manila in October 2017.

Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh

“ASIDE from education, we also engage in tourism. People-to-people connections have been developing very well,” Ly shared.

A few weeks back, he invited a group of Vietnamese performers and brought them to New Era University and introduced them to about 500 students to learn more about Vietnam’s traditional music and culture.

The Vietnam vision

THE author interviews Ambassador of Vietnam to the Philippines Ly Quoc Tuan.

Vietnam has been aggressively promoting, since 2017 in Manila and Cebu, its cultural attractions with various performances, where Filipinos were also invited to display their talents.

Ly noted the brisk tourist exchanges since last year, as 148,000 Filipinos visited his country, while 40,000 Vietnamese came over to the Philippines. He said a number of his countrymen have enrolled in Philippine schools to learn the English language.

“In fact, I brought my sevenyear-old grandson here to attend classes so he can pick up English.

He’s a natural...he speaks well.”

For a Filipino tourist prospecting to visit Vietnam for the first time, the diplomat recommends a four-day trip by train from North to South, (from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City).

“Along the way, you will see the world famous Ha Long Bay. Move down south to Hue, Vietnam’s former imperial capital, which is similar to China’s Forbidden City and is now a Unesco Heritage Site.”

(From 1802 to 1945, Vietnam was ruled by the Nguyen Dynasty, a powerful family who had its capital in Hue [pronounced as “hwhey“] for more than 100 years. They would become the last ruling family of this sort in Vietnam, since the emperor abdicated in 1945 in favor of the new communist government being set up in Hanoi under their leader, Ho Chi Minh.)

Ly also suggests traveling further down to Da Nang, once the large military base that has been converted into a commercial hub.

“We renovated [that coastal city]. It is now a civilian airport near a 30-kilometer long beautiful

beach. It is very romantic there, with Japanese, Chinese and Vietnamese cultures mixing together,” he recalled wistfully.

“There are also lots of Europeans and Americans enjoying the quiet place with friendly people.

You can pedal your bike slowly through the old street and view the 300-year-old houses.”

At the end of the train journey, the ambassador said one would reach Ho Chi Minh City, now a financial center of the country.

Further down will be the famous Mekong Delta provinces. “There, you will see the rice plantations and the Mekong River that feeds the fields. When the rainy season comes, farmers start sowing the seeds. After three months, they come back to harvest the golden grains of palay.”

Hanoi is being served via Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific and AirAsia. The first two have direct flights to Hanoi capital and Ho Chi Minh City.

Here in the Philippines, Ly had visited some provinces, such as Pangasinan, Batangas and Cavite, and the cities like Puerto Princesa, Davao, Iloilo, Bacolod, and Iligan, since his arrival two years ago.

He dropped by Marawi City shortly after the civil war there had ceased.

“I visited ground zero shortly after battle stopped, and went back again after five months. Vietnam donated rice to the locals through the Department of Social Welfare and Development.”

About the Philippines, he had this to say: “It is an interesting country; Filipinos are hardworking and friendly people,” and admitted developing a liking for

local food fare, such as lechon and turon.

The diplomat and some delegates from Vietnam were also wowed by inasal (barbecued chicken on a stick): “I was escorting my friends then to one of the heritage restaurants in Intramuros, where I introduced them to famous Filipino food. We enjoyed the cultural performances there too, such as the Filipino dances,” he added.

Barack and ‘bún chà’

THE freshness of Vietnamese food is well known. Ly attributes such as his compatriots’ ability to have their own backyard garden for a continuous supply of vegetables and herbs.

The ambassador highly recommends their spring rolls, sticky rice and rice noodle soup. He also hopes that tourists will try their hands on bún chà, a Vietnamese dish of grilled pork and noodles, served with grilled fatty pork (chà) over a plate of white rice noodles (bún) and herbs, with a side dish of dipping sauce.

He happily recalled former US President Barack Obama’s enjoyment of the delicacy with a bottle of beer in his hand during his visit to Hanoi.

“Since then, that restaurant became very famous and crowded.”

Ly was referring to the instance when the ex-US leader dined with celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain at a family-run restaurant, Bun Cha Huong Lien. (Hordes of tourists have since tried out the nowfamous “Obama Combo,” which is basically a bowl of traditional bún chà, paired with some deepfried Hanoi-style spring rolls and a bottle of Hanoi beer.)

THE Asian nation’s strategic plan to proceed to producing higher value products and services, Vietnam, likewise, has its vision set for 2030 and 2045. “ T hat ’s the mega nationa l plan in electricity, water, organization, city development... ever ything. That’s the way we do it,” Ambassador Ly revealed.

This long-range plan, he noted, aims to decentralize the Vietn a mese gover n me nt to g ive more liberty to the provinces to have their own future vision, “ based on the gover nment’s, and their own.”

He noted that the trade war between China and the US might benefit Vietnam, as well as the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, in anticipation of some businesses moving their manufacturing from these global giants to the smaller nations. “ Yes, t here a re ma ny facto r ies t hat w i l l relocate in Vietna m, but I t h in k t hat, look ing at t h at p h e no m e no n , t h e r e w i l l be businesses f rom C h ina wh ic h w i l l go to [us], t he Ph i lippines, a nd ot her cou nt r ies.”

The diplomat continued, “I see this as a very good opportunity for [our] economy, since we have more foreigners coming to do business in Vietnam. But in the long run, we also have to keep an eye on this,” he added, alluding to the probable ill effects of the trade rift.

“For instance,” he warned, “the relocation of business away from China could be a way for them to avoid ta xes or levies in [the mainland]. They could choose to relocate to Vietnam due to lower tariffs” Ly said Vietnamese authorit ies a re awa re of t hese t a xdodging schemes. As such, their authorities will tr y to visit ever y factor y that relocates from China, to make ensure “ever y product originates from Vietnam, and not China. That’s the way we are tr ying to do now.”

“O vera l l,” t he Viet na mese a mbassador conc luded, “[t he state of ] our bilateral relations is growing very well,” as he then reminded its official establishment on July 12, 1976.

Ly joined his country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs 35 years ago. His various postings included Hong Kong, the US and the Czech Republic before his current one in the Philippines, which commenced in 2017.

&Expats

envoys.expats.bm@gmail.com | Thursday, September 19, 2019 E3

ASEAN IN FOCUS

PHL joins Timor-Leste fact-finding mission

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ILI—The Philippine delegation for the Asean Political Security Community (APSC), led by Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Policy Enrique A. Manalo, arrived in this Timor-Leste city to join codelegates from other Asean memberstates for a three-day fact-finding mission and related activities on September 3.

The fact-finding mission’s primary objective was to evaluate and assess the political security situation in Timor-Leste, in relation to the latter’s bid for accession to the Asean. The country submitted

its application to join the regional bloc in 2011.

Philippine Permanent Representative to Asean Ambassador Noel Servigon, Department of Foreign Affairs-Office of the Undersecretary

FOREIGN Affairs Undersecretary for Policy Enrique A. Manalo (second from left) participates in a senior officials-leaders’ meeting. DILI PE

for Policy Special Assistant Rommel A. Romato, Deputy Permanent Representative to the Asean Noel M. Novicio and DFA Office of Asean Affairs Director Frank M. Olea joined Manalo in the activities.

The Asean delegations were divided to attend the Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM) Leaders and the Committee of the Permanent Representatives to Asean.

Former Timor-Leste President

Jose Ramos-Horta, Prime Minister Taur Matan Ruak, President of National Parliament Arao Noe de Jesus da Costa Amaral and President Francisco Guterres Lu-Olo separately met with the SOM lead-

ers to discuss Timor-Leste’s willingness to join the Asean.

The Asean delegates met with Timor-Leste’s Foreign Minister Dionisio Babo Soares, who presented the foreign policy direction of the country and answered questions regarding Timor-Leste’s projected contribution to the Asean, especially in the regional security setting.

The delegates also discussed with former Timor-Leste President Xanana Gusmao, Minister for Legal Reforms and Parliamentary Affairs Fidelis Magalhaes, Minister of State of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers Hermenegildo A. Pereira, and Minister of Defense and Acting Minister of Interior Filomeno da Paixao de Jesus.

The assessment of the Economic Community and Sociocultural Community Pillars are scheduled to follow. DFA

The Hague-based Asean committee stages business forum PHL Embassy-Brunei conducts

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HE HAGUE—Ambassador to the Netherlands Jaime Victor B. Ledda and the Asean Committee in The Hague composed of Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam organized the Asean Business Forum (ABF) on June 24.

The Asean Committee in the Hague cohosted the forum with Dutch employers’ federation VNONCW, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands. Minister of Foreign Affairs Deputy Vice Chairman Guido Landheer delivered the opening remarks and moderated the interactive discussion with the Netherlands Business Councils from the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.

More than 130 Dutch entrepreneurs, Asean representatives of companies and chambers of commerce members attended the event, which was coordinated by Thailand

CHAIRMAN of the Asean Committee in The Hague and Ambassador to the Netherlands Jaime Victor B. Ledda (standing). THE HAGUE PE

as the current Asean chair.

Under the theme, “Advancing Partnership for Sustainability: Business Opportunities in Asean” which focused on Dutch–Asean cooperation, Ledda spoke about “Asean Integration in Services,” where he highlighted the increasing significance of intra-Asean trade and investments

in services’ as an important pillar of the Asean Economic Community.

In 2017, the region attracted $135.6 billion of foreign direct investments, 66.9 percent of which went into the services sector.

The ABF held three breakout sessions, namely “Connectivity,” “Innovation” and “Sustainability.” Philip-

pine Trade and Investment Center (PTIC) in Brussels Trade Counselor Benedict Uy spoke in “Connectivity,” where he presented opportunities in the information-technology business-process outsourcing industry. Senior economic officials of the four Asean member-states spoke about Asean free-trade agreements, Asean creative economies and Asean innovation.

The Philippine Embassy in The Hague and the PTIC hosted the Country Information Market Networking during the event. As it maximized visitor traffic from the participants, the Philippine team provided useful information on the economy, infrastructure development, trade, services and investment opportunities, all anchored on “building value together” as the hallmark of the Philippines’s doing business with its partners. DFA

Cambodia offers Filipino community in Indonesia does a fiesta free Khmer language classes for Filipinos

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HNOM PENH—The Philippine Embassy launched its free basic Khmer language classes for Filipinos in Cambodia on March, with the first session attended by 33 Philippine expats.

The language-training program aimed to help new overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) adjust to life in Cambodia by equipping them with basic communication skills to interact with the locals in a meaningful way, as well as the confidence to uphold their rights and welfare in the workplace.

The classes covered situational conversations relating to introductions, food, counting, transportation, shopping, names of days and months, among others.

They also touched on Cambodian culture and traditions, as it facilitated the process of familiarization and being accustomed to the local setting.

“The language training is in line with the embassy’s stakeholders engagement activities for the Filipino diaspora in Cambodia. We hope that more OFWs will avail of this free course to help them adapt to their new environment,” Ambassador to Cambodia Christopher B. Montero said. DFA

THE 2019 Pinoy Fiesta logo (left); Ambassador to Indonesia Leehiong T. Wee delivers his opening remarks. JAKARTA PE

PERMANENT Representative to the Asean Elizabeth P. Buensuceso delivers her opening remarks (left photo); Philippine Mission to the Asean booth. JAKARTA PE

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AKARTA—The Filipino community in Indonesia, in cooperation with the Philippine Embassy in Jakarta, rolled out the “2019 Pinoy Fiesta: Atin Ito” event in April at the embassy grounds.

The two-day event manifested Filipino bayanihan in a true Filipino fiesta spirit. It highlighted Philippine culture and traditions, such as songs, dances, games and food: lechon, halu-halo, dinuguan, puto and balut, among others. About a thousand Filipino community members in Indonesia attended

In his opening remarks, Ambassador to Indonesia Leehiong T. Wee acknowledged the unity and camaraderie of the Filipino community in Indonesia, led by the Organizing Committee Chairman Betty Abalos, who shared their time, talent and treasures in this festive event. Wee took pride in the professionalism and accomplishments of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Indonesia who are accountants, auditors, engineers and teachers who are respected by their Indonesian and foreign employers, as well as colleagues.

He also emphasized that the event is a celebration of the annual National Heritage Month established by the National Commission on Culture and the Arts not only in the Philippines, but also for OFWs around the world.

Amazed at the turnout of Filipinos during the event, Permanent Representative to Asean Ambassador Elizabeth P. Buensuceso mentioned that the Philippines is the only Asean country allowed by Indonesia to purchase land for two chanceries.

She also invited the Filipino community to the Philippine Mission. DFA

skills, language training

AMBASSADOR Christopher B. Montero delivers his congratulatory message to the graduates. BRUNEI PE

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ANDAR SERI BEGAWAN—The Philippine Embassy in Brunei Darussalam conducted a two-day seminar on Filipino language at its chancery on August 17, with the graduation ceremony of the third batch of graduates of the basic computer-training course and basic baking course at the Cosmopolitan College of Commerce and Technology campus the following day.

In partnership with the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, the embassy organized a two-day seminar on Filipino language. University of the Philippines Diliman-Department of Filipino and Philippine Literature Assistant Professor Eilene Antoinette G. Narvaez served as resource speaker.

The seminar on the first day focused on “Ortograpiyang Pambansa,” which discussed the history and current practice of Filipino, as well as the rules and guidelines on its proper grammar and usage.

On the second day, Narvaez presented “Teaching Filipino as a Second Language,” and provided useful tips on engaging with students for a better

learning of the Filipino language.

The activity was attended by about 100 Filipino teachers based in Brunei, most of whom served as volunteers of the weeklong Filipino Language and Cultural Enhancement Program held annually in the embassy. It provides young Filipinos, ages five to 17, with the opportunity to further enhance their knowledge of Filipino culture and language, and boost their sense of nationalism.

In his closing remarks, Ambassador to Brunei Christopher B. Montero acknowledged the valuable contributions of Filipino teachers in Bruneian society. He underlined the critical role they play in encouraging young Filipinos to embrace their Filipino culture and identity.

The OFWs expressed their gratitude to the embassy for the opportunity to learn new skills, broaden their knowledge, and enhance their confidence in their workplaces.

For his part, Montero encouraged the graduates to continuously learn and enhance their skills, with the goal of eventually returning to the Philippines. DFA

2nd PHL-Indonesia business consultation, fellowship held

CONSUL General Oscar Orcine (center, in barong Tagalog) with Indonesian businessmen and trade officials. MANADO PCG

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ANADO—The Philippine Consulate General conducted the second PhilippineIndonesia Business Consultation and Fellowship late in August, where North Sulawesi traders, travel agents and trade officials discussed cooperative measures.

Participants of the twin-event resolved to take full advantage of the potentials of air connectivity between Davao and Manado in Indonesia, as well as the maritime connectivity between Davao and Bitung.

Garuda Indonesia Airlines has announced that it is set to open air services between Davao and Manado, while Philippine-based Reefer Express

Lines has completed a trial voyage between Davao and Bitung, in preparation for regular fortnightly operations. Businessmen representing interests in fisheries, canning, agriculture, tourism, construction, food and beverage, cement, petroleum and other products attended the event.

As a highlight of the meeting, the consulate general presented the Mindanao Macroeconomic Performance in the areas of agriculture, economic accounts, tourism and trade performance. Manado PCG also disclosed the top exports of Mindanao and identified specific Philippine products with accreditation in Indonesia, which are ready to be sold in local markets. DFA

Envoys&Expats BusinessMirror

E4 Thursday, September 19, 2019

www.businessmirror.com.ph

MINDANAO MONITOR

Rota de Galleon should earn nod as global heritage–Mexican envoy

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By Manuel T. Cayon | Mindanao Bureau Chief @awimailbox

AVAO CITY—What’s buried deep in the history textbooks of the Philippines and Mexico is a forgotten page, but one with a significant contribution to what could be the world’s first face of globalization.

The Manila-Acapulco galleon trade once flourished for 250 years, which began in the late 16th century and linked the two countries together. It brought spices and porcelain from this side of the world, in exchange for silver and other mined metals of Latin America.

But more important, the galleon trade involved round trips of Spanish galleon ships per year, which involved “the exchange of culture and tradition that shaped us as a nation, with common colonial history,” Ambassador of Mexico to the Philippines Gerardo Lozano told the BusinessMirror during the celebrations of his country’s national day early this month.

“New generations of Filipinos and Mexicans may not be totally aware of this Manila-Acapulco trade, but that may be the first representation of globalization in the world. That effort was not only important in terms of exchange of merchandise, but also [that] of culture, tradition and some other elements.”

Since 2015, both countries nominated the Manila-Acapulco Galleon Trade Route to the World Heritage List of the Unesco. Spain backed this move with a suggestion of a “tri-national nomination of the Archives on the ManilaAcapulco Galleons in the Unesco Memory of the World Register,” according to an Internet crowdsourcing web site.

Lozano revealed both countries’ efforts to have the United Nations

(UN) dedicate the 8th of October each year as “Day of the Galleon.”

“The objective of this UN recognition is for people to know the importance of this trade between the two countries, and for [our] people to have a better knowledge and appreciation of the importance of the Rota de Galleon.”

Mexico Day in Davao

IN the Philippines, Mexico underscored the importance that their local governments have been playing in Philippine political affairs, when it held the National Day of Mexico celebrations in Davao City.

It was the first in the history of the Mexican Embassy in the Philippines to hold the celebrations of its independence day, which transpired 209 years ago, outside the national capital.

That point in history also marked the end of the Galleon Trade.

“When we held the National Day in Mexico in Davao, it was in response to the new reality in international relations. Some years ago, international relations were managed from the capital. [Recently, we had] to recognize the important role played by local governments,” Lozano explained.

In 2019, for instance, Lozano had already traveled three times to this southern seaport to explore collaborations with the city, and was able to discuss various matters with Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio.

“We recognize that in this mo-

SCENES at the recent Mexico Day celebration in Davao City, led by Ambassador Gerardo Lozano. Acting Mayor Sebastian “Baste” Duterte and Honorary Consul Dr. Malou G. Monteverde joined him at the offering of the toast for the furtherance of the excellent bilateral relations between Mexico and the Philippines. Kent Capute/Davao City Information Office

ment, Davao is carrying a very dynamic situation—thanks to the political and economic developments in your country. No one can also deny the city’s importance as

the hometown of the President,” Mexico’s envoy said.

The event was marked with songs and revelry, presentation of different kinds of tacos, wine and

Mexican food. More important, a toast was offered for the continued bilateral relations of the two countries.

Mexico also appointed a local

business leader, Dr. Malou G. Monteverde, as its honorary consul, whom Lozano lauded for her untiring efforts to promote enhanced relations between his country and this city.

Japan envoy witnesses MILF arms decommissioning A

MBASSADOR of Japan to the Philippines Koji Haneda attended a ceremony for the decommissioning of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) combatants and weapons in Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao.

President Duterte and Bangsamoro Transition Authority Interim Chief Minister Al Hadj Murad Ebrahim also attended the ceremony, along with other Philippine government officials.

Of the 40,000 MILF combatants who will be decommissioned through normalization process, 1,060 attended the ceremony, while 920 collected weapons were displayed. Representatives of the decommissioned combatants received socioeconomic assistance from the chief executive during the ceremony.

Forty motorcycles were provided to support the joint peace and security teams (JPST). They were displayed with the message: “From the people of Japan.”

Other pieces of equipment provided by the said country to the Independent Decommissioning Body have been utilized for the purpose.

According to its embassy in Manila, Japan will continue to support the Philippine peace process by strengthening transport capacities and providing equipment, including 10 JPST stations and 25 vehicles, as well as improving the livelihood of the people in the Bangsamoro region.

OFFICIALS from the governments of the Philippines and Japan, led by President Duterte and Ambassador Koji Haneda, were on hand for the recent decommissioning of Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) combatants and weapons.