Edge10 issue86 August 1 2017

VOL. 10 ISSUE 86 • TUESDAY, August 1, 2017

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DEADLY DRIVING

One dead, 3 injured as car rams 2 motorcyles

EDGEDAVAO Serving a seamless society

STRESS-FREE. A couple watches as a father carries his young son on his shoulders while walking at the beachfront near Magsaysay Park in Davao City on Monday where a modern port of the P39 billion joint-venture agreement between the city government of Davao and Mega Harbour Port and Development Corporation supposedly will be constructed.

Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio terminated the agreement last week. Lean Daval Jr.

By Angie Saveron

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lements of the Buhangin police station in Davao City under Chief Inspector Jack Tilcag on Monday �iled a case of reckless imprudence resulting to homicide against a 22-year old resident of Barangay Communal who drove her van straight into two motorcycles that stopped under the traf�ic light, leading to the death of one of the riders and serious

injuries to three others.

Investigators at the police station told reporters that the driver, identi�ied as one Rhea Jane Panares,22, was under the in�luence of liquor when she drove her van against the traf�ic and drove straight into the two motorcycles that heeded the traf�ic sign to stop.

(The �irst time a certain Rhea Panares was in the news

was when she was identi�ied as marketing coordinator of the famous Malagos Garden Resort. She was guest of a media forum to discuss the Malagos chocolate museum).

Facebook accounts indicated that Panares came from a drinking party and that she allegedly drove without a driver’s license. The van that she was driving is registered under the

agreement with Mega Harbour may have arose from the realization that the contract “was not in the best interest of the city of Davao.”

“One consideration is that

it will become counter-productive to a city that is doing its best to decongest traf�ic,” said Capt.

Ronald Go, DCCCI president at the Kapehan sa Dabaw. “Imagine the impact of big trucks (cir-

name of Donna Mae Panares.

The incident occurred early Sunday morning in front of the Francisco Bangoy International Airport along Carlos P. Garcia Highway, otherwise known as the Diversion Road.

The impact of the collision was such that the van dragged the motorcycles 10 meters more before it stopped.

DEADLY, 10

Mega Harbour deal unfavorable T

he president of the Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry said on Monday that Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio’s termination of the P39billion joint venture

culating in the proposed Mega Harbour area) to the traf�ic.”

He said that the other consideration that may have led to the termination was the ef-

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EDGEDAVAO Sports

FAST AND FINEST Tan, Onahon, Coloma top Yamaha GP Davao Leg

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VOL. 10 ISSUE 86 • TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017

BACK TO UNIT. President Duterte personally checks the condition of Police Officer Alfredo Basabica Jr. after the latter was presented to the President at the Tactical Operations Group (TOG)-11 Headquarters in Davao City on Sunday. PO1 Basabica, a member of 2nd Platoon of the Davao Oriental Provincial Public Safety Command in

Aliwagwag PPSC Patrol Base in Cateel, Davao Oriental, was taken by members of the New People’s Army while on board a passenger bus on his way home along Kilometer 26 of Barangay Panansalan in Compostela town, Compostela Valley Province last July 11. ROBINSON NIÑAL/ PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

Davao inmates take first NPA releases police officer to Duterte step to college education

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t was a just a dream, but now 70 inmates of the Davao City Jail, mostly facing drug-related cases, �inally take the �irst step to a fouryear college course under the College Education Behind Bars.

They are the successful passers of the entrance examination given by the stateowned University of Southeastern Philippines (USP).

The curriculum of USP will be used for only two courses offered – Bachelor of Science in Agri-Business and Bachelor of Science in Computer Technology.

The College Education Behind Bars is a partnership of the USP and the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) to secure the future of the inmates when they are released from prison.

Jail Sr. Insp. Roberto Got-

ico, chief of Community Relations Services of BJMP 11, said the 70 passers, 35 female and 35 male inmates, were among the 320 who wanted to pursue college and took the entrance examination. The 320 are either high school graduates or college levels. Few of them are college graduates who wanted to earn a second course.

Next week, Gotico said they will start a bridging program and security orientation in preparation for their college education. “They need the bridge program because some of them graduated �ive or 10 years ago. This is a refresher for them,” Gotico said in an interview Monday.

Gotico said the courses are free of tuition. The students will only pay for the miscellaneous fees just like the regular students of USP.

Under the partnership, BJMP provides for the security and the area for the building inside the jail compound.

The students are provided with school uniform and school materials. The P5 million worth building and facilities like audio-visual and computer rooms were put up through the auspices of Social Entrepreneurship Institute president Dr. Alland Mizell.

Gotico said each student is provided with a laptop.

“This is just part of our (BJMP) social gains. Just to help the community, Gotico said when sought why BJMP is doing this for the inmates given that they have nothing to do inside the jail. There are a total of about 3,000 inmates at Davao City Jail.

Along with this College Education Behind Bar program, BJMP in partnership

with the Department of Information and Communication Technology (DICT), launched on Saturday afternoon the technology-assisted learning platform for Davao City Jail inmates.

Gotico said the technology-assisted learning called Tech4ED is an initiative of the DICT aimed at empowering and transforming communities. This will create an inclusive, integrated and equitable education, employment and entrepreneurial opportunities in different centers nationwide, Gotico said.

DICT is also seeing their detention as an opportune time to learn new things and get them updated with ICT. A total of 10 women inmates will initially bene�it the program. They will undergo Basic Digital Literacy Pro-

he number of Maute Group members left in Marawi City is down to about 30 to 40 �ighters as government forces continue to track them down relentlessly, Defense Secretary Del�in Lorenzana said Monday.

“They (Maute Group terrorists) are just a handful; I think they are down to only 30 to 40 �ighters but don’t dis-

count them as these are good �ighters and we are still taking casualties. In fact, we had one killed and nine wounded some three days ago and yesterday (Sunday)... Clearing operations are still ongoing,” he added in Filipino.

Lorenzana stressed that ongoing operations, the socalled house-to-house and room-to-room �ighting, is very

dif�icult and dangerous.

Troops are doing these tasks very carefully in order to avoid the Maute Group’s practice of using hostages as shields to avoid causing needless casualties to civilians.

As of this posting, the number of Maute Group terrorists killed was placed at 491, with 114 government troops slain and 45 civilians

executed.

Also recovered were 584 high-powered weapons while some 1,723 civilians were rescued.

Fighting in the area has been raging since May 23, when government forces made a botched attempt to arrest Abu Sayyaf leader and ISIS “emir” Isnilon Hapilon.

(Priam F. Nepomuceno/PNA)

The rebel New People’s Army on Friday released PO1 Alfredo Basabica Jr. in Baganga, Davao Oriental.

Basabica, 26, was held captive for 17 days.

He was on his way to Davao City when he was captured by the NPA around 4 p.m. on July 11 in Compostela town, Compostela Valley province.

Basabica was met by his parents and his �iancee Princess Dacuycuy, whom he was supposed to marry last Saturday (July 29).

The release came in the midst of the government’s termination of the peace talks with the communist group.

President Rodrigo Dute-

NPA, 10

Former fighter braves bullets to save lives

T DND chief: Maute group down to 30-40 fighters T DAVAO, 10

rte earlier cited various reasons for the termination, including the ambush of members of the Presidential Security Group (PSG) and of Police Of�icers in Negros Oriental.

However, despite the cessation of peace talks, the Front Committee 25 of the NPA requested to release their Prisoner of War (POW) to President Duterte.

The Of�ice of the Special Assistant to the President of Secretary Christopher Bong Go, facilitated the release of Basabica and even transported the police of�icer from the area of the release.

Two days after his re-

he Marawi crisis has become a major test of its people’s character.

Although most of the city’s residents have �led to safer ground, there are those who have chosen to stay behind and risk their lives to help those who have been caught in the cross�ire.

Among them is Ali Asgar Solaiman, a member of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and a native of Marawi.

Solaiman is among dozens of MILF members who now serve as volunteers of the Joint

Coordination, Monitoring and Assistance Center (JCMAC).

The JCMAC was created through the “Peace Corridor” initiative which aims to a provide a safe and secure zone for civilians �leeing the con�lict, as well as a reliable space where humanitarian assistance can pass through.

The Peace Corridor is under the oversight of the GPH-MILF peace implementing panels.

Since the Peace Corridor opened on June 4, Solaiman and his MILF comrades have

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VOL. 10 ISSUE 86 • TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017

Peace education pushed as antidote to extremism

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MADE IN DAVAO. Lawyer Heraclio Malaki III, together with Nabunturan Independent Film Exhibition (NABIFILMEX) festival director lawyer Karen Santiago-Malaki, promotes the upcoming Cinema Rehiyon 9 in Nabunturan

on August 22to 29 during Kapehan sa Dabaw at the Annex of SM City Davao on Monday. Cinema Rehiyon is a flagship program of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) Cinema Committee. Lean Daval Jr.

part from restoring the physical facilities and infrastructure lost in the siege of Marawi, a Maranao educator urged the country’s education of�icials to make the rebuilding effort an opportunity to revisit the education curriculum.

Dr. Nagasura T. Madale, a cultural anthropologist, said it is important to strengthen peace education and start it among the young to prevent, in the longer term, the growth of violent extremism especially in areas of the country vulnerable to inroads by Islamic Statelinked militants.

“Educational institutions must teach the concept of peace and non-violence as an alter-

native option to resolve con�licts,” emphasized Madale, a retired professor at the Mindanao State University.

He cited as an instance that as a result of the Marawi siege, there is a need to “manage the relations between and among Maranaos, Maranaos and non-Maranaos, and Maranaos and the broader society.”

Interviewed Saturday in the sidelines of the International Conference on Marawi Post-Con�lict Reconstruction here, Madale explained that the effort at fostering inter-cultural understanding among the various peoples of Mindanao and the rest of the country “must be boosted

he leader of the in�luential 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) welcomed the decision of the Moro National Liberation Front to defer the submission of another Bangsamoro law and instead will push for a change in current system of the government to federalism.

In a statement issued Monday, OIC Secretary General Dr. Youssef Al Othaimeen lauded the “cooperative and accommodating position declared by the Moro front last July 19 that it will no longer submit a draft new autonomy law to avoid complications and it will contribute directly to the fast tracking of federalism.”

Randolph Parcasio, peace panel chair of the MNLF’s Nur Misuari faction, said ear-

lier that they have decided to instead focused their effort to help the Duterte administration to rewrite the constitution following series of meetings with the national government.

Parcasio said the MNLF-Misuari faction will incorporate all the provisions of the peace deals with the government along with the results of the nine-year-old tripartite review process for the creation of a new Bangsamoro autonomy government here in Mindanao.

The move is in parallel with the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL), which was drafted and submitted last month to President Duterte by the Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC).

The new version of the

Unions ask Duterte T to save TADECO JVA ‘Our future depends on contract’-workers

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wo big labor groups have appealed to President Rodrigo Duterte, asking support for the continuance of the joint venture agreement (JVA) signed by the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) and the Tagum Agricultural Development Co., Inc. (TADECO) in order “to save our jobs and our families’ future.”

In an open letter, the Solidarity of Landless Workers of Davao (SOLAWORD) and the Southern Mindanao Federation of Labor (SMFL), with a com-

bined membership of 12,000 Tadeco laborers, begged the President to save the employment of “the very same people whose lives you promised to protect and alleviate from the shackles of hopelessness.”

The labor groups, both headed by Samuel T. Cardenio as president, appealed for the consideration of the plight of workers who will stand to lose their jobs in case the accord is cancelled and the import such “heartless” move will have on their families.

Parojinog siblings now in PNP HQ

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zamiz City Vice Mayor Nova Princess Parojinog and her brother, Reynaldo Jr., have �inally arrived at the PNP Custodial Center in Camp Crame, Quezon City at 10: 30 a.m. Monday.

The siblings left Ozamiz around 7 a.m. aboard a Philippine Air Lines �light and arrived at NAIA Terminal 3 around 8:45 a.m.

The two were quickly escorted to a heavily-escorted PNP coaster bus which transported them to the PNP headquarters for the usual booking procedures.

Nova and Reynaldo Jr. are the daughter and son of Ozamiz City Mayor Reynaldo Parajinog who was killed along with his wife Susan, and 13 others during an alleged encounter inside the family’s residence in San Roque Lawis early Sunday morning.

The late mayor was earlier

named by President Rodrigo Duterte as one of the country’s drug-lords and narco-politicians.

As this developed, PNP head Director General Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa said more narco-politicians will be tracked down and neutralized by the police.

Case build is now ongoing for these individuals, he added.

The PNP chief also clari�ied that the operation against Parojinog is a legitimate one as he stressed that the latter was not targeted for liquidation along with his 14 cohorts.

Dela Rosa added that he wanted the mayor alive but the latter’s group tried to put a �ight, forcing PNP operatives to �ire back.

He also warned individuals or groups cornered by police not to resist so the situation will not turn bloody. (Priam F. Nepomuceno/ PNA)

Recently, the House of Representatives under Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez, a lawmaker from the �irst district of Davao del Norte, ordered an inquiry into the BuCor-TADECO deal for being disadvantageous to the state and expressed support its rescission following the release of separate �indings from other government agencies declaring the contract as null and void.

Citing the good management and globally recognized best practices of TADECO and the agreement’s impact on the

economy of Davao del Norte, the laborers asked the President to adopt “corrective measures” rather than support any effort to abrogate the JVA, which has also been instrumental “in improving our town and the surrounding provinces.”

The open letter also requested the chief executive, which the workers called ‘Tatay Digong,’ “to please come to our aid and help the workers who will automatically lose their jobs and whose families will

UNIONS, 10

PEACE, 10

OIC welcomes support of MNLF’s for fedralism

OIC, 10

SPOT CHECK. A mallgoer goes over the photographs on display at ongoing Philippine Rivers and Lakes exhibition at the Annex of SM City Davao on Monday.

Lean Daval Jr.

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BSP chief eyes more forex liberalization B

Davao Agri Trade Expo (DATE) 2017 chair Engr. Wilfred Teves (right), together with Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (DCCCII) president Captain Ronald Go (center) and DATE partner Mindanao Alliance of Dairy Industry Stakeholders Association (MADIS) president Isidro Albano,

provides details of the upcoming DATE 2017 slated on September 21 to 23 at SMX Convention Center in Davao City during Kapehan sa Dabaw at the Annex of SM City Davao on Monday. DATE is the biggest agri expo in Mindanao. Lean Daval Jr.

angko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Nestor Espenilla Jr. vows further foreign exchange liberalization to help address rising �inancing requirements of the domestic economy.

Espenilla said bank lending continues to be robust but noted that these �inancial institutions cannot suf�iciently fund increasing needs, thus, the need to also support the local currency debt market.

“We believe this is a crucial component to sustain the economy’s growth momentum,” he said.

Espenilla said monetary of�icials also bid to develop the domestic debt market due in part to the developments in the foreign exchange market.

To date, the peso is trading its near 11-year low to a greenback at around 50-level.

Espenilla said daily peso-dollar trading volume averages to around USD600 million to date but cited that when the central bank started to collect data, the volume reaches to more than USD1

billion.

“For transactions to be happening in the unregulated parallel markets, this has got to change,” he pointed out, thus, the needed reforms.

The central bank chief said the reforms he intends to pursue aims to make foreign exchange transactions “more risk-based but transparent.”

He said that “notwithstanding the waves of liberalization that the BSP has announced in the past, we recognize that the foreign exchange market today remains restrictive, dif�icult, opaque, shallow.”

“It is a throwback to time when fx (foreign exchange) was scarce and reserves were meager and market con�idence was very low,” he said.

“Today, it’s an entirely different picture. To preserve those kinds of rules in a market that is rapidly growing is to impede the growth of market itself. It simply adds to cost of doing business and just creates a bigger and bigger black market,” he said.

(PNA)

he Department of Agriculture, in partnership with Philippine Center for Entrepreneurship (PCE)-Negosyo, has urged farmers in Davao Region to become agripreneurs through participation in a coaching and mentoring program for Agriculture, dubbed as Kapatid Agri Mentoring Program (KAMP) .

GO-Negosyo, a pilot project of Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), sealed its partnership with DA for this year’s KAMP implementation.

Kapatid Mentor Me is a 12-week coaching session for micro and small entrepreneurs. Mentees for the program will be selected from farmers’ cooperatives by the respective of�icials of DA. DA 11 director Ricardo Oñate Jr. said the program is timely since there is a need for the farmers to embrace change and they will no longer be mere producers of raw materials but they can market their own products and improve their income as well.

“As we promote value

chain and market-oriented agriculture, it’s time for our farmers to be transformed into agri-entrepreneurs,” Oñate adds.

He said the mentorship program is an indication that the business success is not actually exclusive but more inclusive and once shared, more people can bene�it.

“That is why mentoring is essential for them [farmers].

We need to improve their practices, teach them techniques and introduce them to agricultural technologies and instill in their minds on how to become successful agripreneurs,” Oñate stressed.

The launching of the program expects to match agri-enterprises with big companies and eventually upscales Agri micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

Agriculture is one of the sectors that they want to equip and empower because as an agricultural country, it has all the resources and market for crops and other agri products. (Cherry Mae Palicte/PNA)

Nograles vows to prioritize budget for wage increase OIC urges farmers:

With government workers as beneficiaries Become agripreneurs H T ouse Appropriations Committee Chair and Davao City Congressman Karlo Nograles has said his panel would prioritize the approval of the proposed budget for the third tranche of the wage increase for government workers as provided in the fourth round of the Salary Standardization Law (SSL).

Nograles said that for 2018, a total of PhP55 Billion has been allotted to cover the wage increase in compliance with SLL4, and anotherPhP24 Billion for the additional increase on the take home pay of the government’s uniformed personnel as promised by President Duterte.

“The P55 Billion salary adjustment package was incorporated in the personnel services (PS) allocation of each government agency covered by the SSL4. Another PhP24 Billion was allotted under the Miscellaneous Personnel Bene�it Fund (MPBF) for the base pay increase for military and police and uni-

formed personnel. We will make sure that these allocations will be given utmost priority,” Nograles said.

“This is solid testament that President Duterte is a man of his word. He matches his words with action. Hindi siya puro boladas at yabang lang,” Nograles added.

Nograles said that in anticipation of the enactment of the precedent-setting Rightsizing Law which was certi�ied urgent by President Duterte and approved last week on 3rd and �inal reading by the House of Representatives, some PhP10 Billion fund was also allotted for its initial implementation.

Nograles, primary author of the proposed rightsizing law, said that despite the opposition of some members of the House of Representatives, his panel is inclined to approve its proposed funding as he expects the president to sign it into law before year end.

According to Nograles, his committee will be swift but prudent in scrutinizing

President Duterte’s Php 3.767-Trillion expenditure program for 2018.

He stressed that his panel will conduct a performance audit on all government agencies so that they could determine if the funding allotted to them in 2017 were put to good use.

Revenue collecting agencies like the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Bureau of Customs (BoC) will be also grilled so that his panel can make an intelligent assessment on whether the government can realistically raise enough money to fund the President’s “reform and transform” budget.

“The appropriations committee and the House of Representatives will de�initely exercise its sworn duty to determine the absorptive capacity of our government agencies. We must make sure that every penny of our people’s taxes are spent well and truly bene�its our people,” Nograles said.

Nograles warned that agencies with abysmal per-

formance would be put under the microscope especially with the imminent enactment of the Rightsizing Law. “We cannot keep on funding agencies that are perennial underperformers,” Nograles noted.

Nograles noted that, as constitutionally mandated, education and human resource development programs will get the lion’s share from the budget, followed by the national “Build, Build, Build” infrastructure modernization blueprint which is also expected to create jobs and other related bene�its for the people.

“Government is like a human body. It needs blood.

In this case, crucial and equitable �inancing must pass through all major and minor artery and vein down to each and every part of service to the people. When one or two services are improperly �inanced, unimplemented or neglected, the government suffers and people feel the pain,” he explained.

panies and �inancial institutions,” said Emmanuel Geslani, recruitment and migration expert in a statement.

He believed that good communication skills are Filipino workers’ strengths why host countries preferred them.

“There is also demand from wealthy Chinese who want their children to be exposed to Filipina

HSWs who can speak and write in English,” Geslani added.

At the same time, he noted that the salary of some PHP100,000 per month, is also an encouragement since majority of Filipinos working abroad are looking for better salary “In addition the possible salary of PHP100,000 or the equivalent of USD

2,000 is very attractive for many OFWs,” Geslani added.

It was reported that China is looking to hire some 100,000 Filipino workers, according to the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).

The OFWs will be deployed in �ive cities including Beijing, the country’s capital and Shanghai. (Ferdinand G. Patinio/PNA)

Expert: OFWs may likely see employment in China Pump prices up Tuesday

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he recruitment industry has lauded the possible opportunity for Filipinos, particularly household service workers, to work in China.

“The recruitment industry welcome the possibility of deploying HSWs to China due to the existing large market of foreign workers or expatriates working for many international com-

L

ocal oil �irms are set to raise prices as early as 6a.m. Tuesday (August 1, 2017).

As of this posting Monday, companies that gave notice of price hikes included Shell with bioethanol impact gasoline to go up by 35 centavos per liter, diesel 40 centavos and kerosene

by 40 centavos per liter.

Eastern Petroleum will hike the price of gasoline by 35 centavos per liter and diesel by 50 centavos per liter.

Phoenix Petroleum will increase the price of diesel by 50 centavos per liter and gasoline by 35 centavos per liter.

(PNA)

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Compensation system for GOCCs suspended

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resident Rodrigo Duterte has issued an executive order suspending the Compensation and Position Classi�ication System and the Index of Occupational Services (IOS) Framework for government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCC).

In EO No. 36, which was signed

by Duterte last Friday, the President said there was a “need to further study and review the compensation of GOCCs and eliminate excessive, unauthorized, illegal, and/or unconscionable allowances, incentives, and bene�its.”

“The GCG (Governance Commission for GOCCs) �inds that there are compelling reasons to revisit and/or reevaluate the CPCS under

ALL SET. Workers assemble tents which will be used for this year’s Kadayawan sa Davao agri-trade fair at the parking area of SM City Davao on Monday. Lean Daval Jr.

AirAsia’sCreateCamp opens search for online storytellers

DOF commits to assist O in Ormoc rehabilitation

grabs!

MANILA, 28 July 2017 – AirAsia is looking for young aspiring individuals with creative talents and skills in videography and photography to be part of the airline’s �irst-ever social media reality search called #AirAsiaCreateCamp.

AirAsia Philippines CEO Captain Dexter Comendador said, “I believe we are the �irst in the Philippines to launch a social media reality contest where participants will undergo rigid bootcamps across four destinations in the country to learn about travel, photography, and videography.”

“CreateCamp aims to develop and empower young Filipino talents by providing mentorship programs, technical know-how, and support.”

The CreateCamp search is open to any individual of Filipino nationality, 18 to 25 years old, and residing

in the Philippines. Participants are required to submit a 60-seconder video as of�icial entry. For more information please visit, www.airasiacreatecamp.com. Deadline for submission is on August 17.

Participants will be narrowed down to �ive �inalists after the initial judging period based on creativity, originality, and quality of storytelling.

The �ive �inalists will travel to Bohol, Palawan, Tacloban, and the Cordillera region and shall undergo series of workshops over a month long period as part of the second phase of the competition. Their �inal entries will be up for public voting.

The grand winner will receive over 1million pesos worth of prizes composed of AirAsia Philippines �lights, Apple Macbook Pro 13, Sonny camera, fully sponsored three days two-night stay at Amorita Resorts in Bohol, and will become an of�icial member of the AirAsia Storytellers community.

rices of widely-used goods and services likely dipped anew last month owing to stable food prices and lower electricity rates, the latest estimate of the Department of Finance (DOF) revealed today.

Based on the DOF’s Economic Bulletin dated July 26, 2017, the country’s in�lation may have slightly slowed to 2.7 percent in July from 2.8 percent June, but jumping from the 1.9 percent logged in the same month last year.

Finance Undersecretary Gil Beltran said in his report to Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III that the increase in consumer prices likely moderated after the rate of index heavyweights food and non-alcoholic beverages remained steady last month.

The DOF has estimated that prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages clocked at 3.5 percent last month, matching the rate logged in June, but higher compared to 2.7 percent registered in the same month in 2016.

Beltran, who is also the DOF’s chief economist, further explained that power costs likewise dropped during the month compared to the previous year.

In the �irst four weeks of July, Manila Electric Company’s (Mer-

alco) rate per kilowatt hour (kWh) for an average of 200 kilowattsper-month consumption declined to P8.25 from P8.61 a year ago, but higher than P8.18 in June.

However, M eralco’s generation charge per kilowatt jumped to P3.94 last month from P3.86 in June, but the latest �igure is cheaper than the P4.06 price saw in the same month last year.

“In�lation rate this month (July) is likely to moderate to 2.7 percent on the back of stable food prices. Year-on-year, power rates also declined,” Beltran said.

“Continuing benign in�lation will enable the economy to sustain rapid economic growth and hurdle volatilities in the world economy with relative ease,” he added.

In July, indices alcoholic beverages and tobacco may have rose by 6.7 percent from 6.2 percent in June, health to 2.5 percent from 2.3 percent, and transport from 2.3 percent to 2.8 percent.

Meanwhile, prices of housing, utilities and fuels likely decreased to 1.7 percent from 2.1 percent, furnishings, household equipment to 2.0 percent from 2.1 percent, communication to 0.1 percent from 0.2 percent as well as recreation and culture from 1.0 percent to 0.9 percent.

ver one-million pesos worth of prizes, trips, and mentorship program are up for

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he Department of Finance has committed to help fund the rehabilitation of Ormoc City, which was devastated by a magnitude 6.5 earthquake earlier this month.

In a report to Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III, Executive Director Helen Habulan of the Municipal Development Fund Of�ice (MDFO) said an initial estimate provided by Ormoc City Mayor Richard Gomez placed the amount needed for the rehabilitation efforts at P1 billion.

Habulan said the DOF will �inance the reconstruction of Ormoc City’s water source and main pipes that were damaged during the quake, the evacuation efforts and the resettlement

of three barangays affected by the landslides and aftershocks.

“Mayor Gomez will ask the City Council to convene for the required Resolution, then we wil proceed immediately for appraisal to establish the �inal amount of loan assistance,” Habulan said in her report to Dominguez.

“Included in the �inancing are the acquisition of heavy equipment which the city needs for its extensive rehabilitation and acquisition of the necessary materials for the resettlement of affected families,” she added.

Habulan also reported that the MDFO and Ormoc city of�icials led

by Gomez are already validating and �inalizing details on the amount covered by the loan and its amortization schedule.

The MDFO will also send a team to Ormoc to conduct a �ield validation after the of�ice receives the resolution of the city council (Sangguniang Panlungsod) on the loan request, Habulan said.

According to Habulan, the MDFO has placed Ormoc City’s net borrowing capacity at P3.2 billion with no existing loans on record, which makes the city fully capable of repaying its obligations.

The MDFO administers the Municipal Development Fund (MDF), a special revolving fund that was

established for relending to local government units (LGUs) to enable them to tap funds from local and international sources for the implementation of their respective development projects.

A magnitude 6.5 quake hit Ormoc last July 6, with close to 300 aftershocks recorded. It was the strongest to hit Ormoc in recent years, killing two persons and injuring about 100 others.

The quake also destroyed over 500 houses and damaged 62 others in 12 mountain barangays of the city. The supply of water and electricity to the city were also cut off and are now being fully restored.

(DOF)

prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages clocked at 3.5 percent last month, matching the rate logged in June, but higher compared to 2.7 percent registered in the same month in 2016.

Beltran, who is also the DOF’s chief economist, further explained that power costs likewise dropped during the month compared to the previous year.

In the �irst four weeks of July, Manila Electric Company’s (Meralco) rate per kilowatt hour (kWh) for an average of 200 kilowattsper-month consumption declined to P8.25 from P8.61 a year ago, but higher than P8.18 in June.

However, Meralco’s generation charge per kilowatt jumped to P3.94 last month from P3.86 in June, but the latest �igure is cheaper than the P4.06 price saw in

the same month last year.

“In�lation rate this month (July) is likely to moderate to 2.7 percent on the back of stable food prices.

Year-on-year, power rates also declined,” Beltran said.

“Continuing benign in�lation will enable the economy to sustain rapid economic growth and hurdle volatilities in the world economy with relative ease,” he added.

In July, indices alcoholic beverages and tobacco may have rose by 6.7 percent from 6.2 percent in June, health to 2.5 percent from 2.3 percent, and transport from 2.3 percent to 2.8 percent.

Meanwhile, prices of housing, utilities and fuels likely decreased to 1.7 percent from 2.1 percent, furnishings, household equipment to 2.0 percent from 2.1 percent, communication to

0.1 percent from 0.2 percent as well as recreation and culture from 1.0 percent to 0.9 percent.

In�lation on clothing and footwear (2.1 percent), education (2.1 percent), and restaurant and miscellaneous services would likely remain at their same levels compared to the previous month.

Finally, the average price of diesel in Metro Manila among the “big three” oil companies increased to P30.13 per liter last month from P29.7 in the previous month, and P27.55 registered in the same month last year.

Meanwhile, average price of gasoline in the �irst four weeks of July slightly dropped to P43.28 per liter from P43.6 June, but higher compared to P39.88 a year before.

Inflation seen likely to dip anew in July

P

rices of widely-used goods and services likely dipped anew last month owing to stable food prices and lower electricity rates, the latest estimate of the Department of Finance (DOF) revealed today.

Based on the DOF’s Economic Bulletin dated July 26, 2017, the country’s in�lation may have slightly slowed to 2.7 percent in July from 2.8 percent June, but jumping from the 1.9 percent logged in the same month last year.

Finance Undersecretary Gil Beltran said in his report to Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III that the increase in consumer prices likely moderated after the rate of index heavyweights food and non-alcoholic beverages remained steady last month.

The DOF has estimated that

EO No. 203 and institute an interim measure for affected GOCCs at the meantime,” Duterte said in his directive.

EO No. 203, which was signed in March 2016 by then President Benigno Aquino III, approved the current CPCS that served as the basis for the computation of GOCC employees’ compensation, bonuses and incentives.

In the interim, Duterte ordered that GOCCs covered by the Salary Standardization Law (SSL) shall adopt, as their compensation framework, the Modi�ied Salary Schedule under EO No. 201 (s.

2016), as well as the allowances and bonuses provided therein.

(PNA)

Inflation likely dips anew in July

P

7 SUBURBIA EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 10 ISSUE 86 • TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017

SK guv honors‘fallen hero’

I An itinerant fish vendor is joined by his family as he does his rounds in Barangay Kalasungay, Malaybalay City, Bukidnon on Sunday. MIndaNews photo by WALTER BALANE

SULAN, Sultan Kudarat -- Gov. Pax Mangudadatu said the sacri�ices of a soldier to help liberate Marawi Ctiy from the hands of terrorist will not go unnoticed.

Mangudadatu led of�icials of Sultan Kudarat and the Army’s 33rd Infantry Battalion in honoring a soldier who paid the ultimate sacri�ice while �ighting in Marawi City.

Lt. Colonel Harold Cabunoc, chief of the 33rd IB based in President Quirino, Sultan Kudarat, said Mangudadatu led the of�icials in honoring PFC John Bernaldez, 28, who died in a �ierce encounter with Maute terrorists in Marawi City on June 26.

“It is my honor to salute

the heroism of PFC Bernaldez, a son of Sultan Kudarat,” Mangudadatu said during the necrological services for the fallen soldiers on Sunday. ”The people of the province will never forget the sacri�ices of our soldiers who have died for the country,” he added.

The governor also handed over cash assistance to the parents OF Bernaldez, whose remains was brought to the provincial capitol for public viewing and necrological services.

Bernaldez was laid to rest Sunday.

Cabunoc said his unit has assisted the family in rendering appropriate honors for the fallen hero. (EOF/PNA)

Habib: From ASG to civilian life P16M for Napolcom new

C

OTABATO CITY, (July 28). While Mindanao is generally peaceful, there are areas on the island mired with a long history of terrorism. Civilians and law enforcement of�icers both suffered from violence causing fear and anxiety to entire communities.

Properties were destroyed and lives of people were disrupted. The atrocities were perpetrated by lawless individuals including teenagers – some have joined the bandits, or terror groups, as young as 9 years old. Many of these bandits and terrorists, however, have quietly returned to the fold of the law.

For instance, more than 80 members of Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) in Basilan province recently surrendered to the government and have renounced their previous activities. One of them is 18-year-old “Habib.”

Raised in Tipo-Tipo, Basilan, Habib became involved with the ASG at a young age. He was a 14-year-old Grade 4 pupil when some members of the ASG asked him to buy food in the public market until it became his daily routine before going to school and after classes.

“Inuutusan ako ng mga Abu sa Baguindan na bumili sapalengke, araw -araw na yun, hanggang sa hindi na ako pinauwisa amin,” Habib said. With regular access to the ASG’s camp in Brgy. Baguindan in Tipo-Tipo, he became a full-�ledged member of the group. The

ASG’s Baguindan camp was recently overrun by government troops.

Habib said ASG members receive a monthly allowance, but it did not prevent him from leaving the group. “Sa loob ng kampo, ‘pag single binibigyan ng P5,000 kada buwan, ‘pag pamilyado naman P10,000 - hindi na mahirapan maghanap ng pera,” Habib added.

Habib is the �ifth of eight siblings. His father died when he was six and his mother went overseas to work when he became an ASG member. “Wala na akong tatay, wala rin dito ang nanay ko, ang mga kapatid ko nag-asawa na, kaya mas okay na sa akin sumali sa ASG,” Habib said.

Habib recalls many experiences inside the camp during his four years as a member of ASG. He was generally assigned as an errand boy who helps in the day to day needs of the combatants - he buys food, he cooks, and he helps in the preparation of weapons before an operation.

He was once assigned to abduct a female hostage from Tipo-Tipo proper.

“Kung may mga kini-kidnap, dadaan ng Zamboanga, may tao na mag aantay sa port pa lang ng Zamboanga, tapos iba naman may maghihintay sa Isabela. Pagdating ng Isabela ididiretso sa Lamitan, saka pupunta ng Tipo-Tipo. At kami naghihintay sa Baguindan,” he said.

When asked how ASG

members treat the victims, Habib said: “Nung ako ang sumundo sa babaeng na-kidnap, gusto ko siya patakasin kasi kawawa lang, pero sinabihan ako ng mga matatanda kong kasama na kapag pinatakas ko, ako daw ang papatayin ng grupo.”

Habib, along with his young peers, also witnessed ASG leaders beheading hostages inside their camps. He added that the group’s leaders would �irst ask for volunteers among them to do the beheading.

“Maraming beses na ako nakakita ng pinupugutan na hostage kapag walang mabigay na ransom, kasi kapag may pupugutan na kailangan namin manood lahat, magagalit ang commander kapag hindi namin pinanood,” Habib explained.

“Kung magpapakita ka ng awa sa kanila (hostages), o ng takot sa mangyayari, ikaw ang pagdidiskitahan nila (ASG leaders),” he narrated.

He said the commanders, especially the senior ones, would usually do the beheading when hostages cannot pay for their ransom money. Habib said he was also assigned in combat against government soldiers in 2016 in Baguindan. “Kapag may baril ka, matapang ka.”

Habib said he led a violent life full of uncertainty until he yearned for a decent and peaceful life as a civilian. “Gusto ko tu-

makas pero hindi ko alam paano kasi natatakot din ako,” he added. He said he saw an opportunity to escape during his last participation in an encounter against government troops in Baguindan last year.

“Pagkatapos ng gyera sa Baguindan, yun na yung pagkakataon na naisip ko na tumakas at sumuko,” he said. “Pagod na kasi ako sa buhay sa loob ng kampo, gusto ko ng mag-aral, nami-miss ko na ang mga kapatid ko, gusto kong lumabas na hindi natatakot at kailangang magtago,” he said teary-eyed.

When he �inally reached home, he saw his mother has just gone back home for good. “Ang saya saya ko nung nakita ko nanay kona nasa bahay na, kasama ang mga kapatid ko,” he said. “Kaya sumuko na talaga ako para mas maging maayos ang buhay namin lalo na andyan na ang nanay ko.”

He said he wants to go back to school and become a policeman. “Pag nakapagtapos na ako gusto ko maging pulis para ako naman ang po-protekta sa taga Basilan laban sa mga Abu Sayyaf,” he said smiling.

Today, Habib is one of the returnees who underwent psychosocial interventions, debrie�ing, dialogue with the military and government of�icials, and a brief course on farming to help them reform and start a new life. (Bureau of Public Information)

AMP SIONGCO, Maguindanao -- The Army’s 6th Infantry “Kampilan” Division on Monday awarded bronze cross medals to two brave soldiers, one of them a woman, for their �ight against Islamic militants in Maguindanao.

The awardees were Privates Kayce Abuan and Jonirick Sultan, both members of the Army’s

6th Field Artillery Battalion (6FAB), and have been promoted one rank higher.

They were actively involved in the artillery and ground offensives against outlawed Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters in Datu Salibo, Maguindanao.

Major Rosa Ma. Cristina Rosete-Manuel, executive of�icer of 6th Field

Artillery Battalion, Lt. Col. Edgar Delos Reyes, a senior staff of the Army’s 6th Infantry Division, pinned the awards to the soldiers.

During the operation where Abuan and Sultan took turns in feeding artillery to launchers, the Army neutralized 19 BIFF members responsible in the series of harassments against government forc-

es in Mamasapano, Shariff Aguak and Datu Salibo towns, all in Maguindanao.

Manuel said three other artillery personnel, Privates Ronelo Zarsuelo, Jess Mar Diasnes and Regio Nhel Allado, were promoted one rank higher.

All of them belonged to a team manning and operating 105 howitzer cannons. (EOF/PNA)

Army honors‘cannoners’in fight vs BIFF C

regionalofficeinKoronadal

T

he National Police Commission (Napolcom) set aside some P16 million for the development of its new regional of�ice in nearby Koronadal City.

Veronica Hatague, Napolcom Region 12 director, said Monday they have started the preparatory works for the construction of the of�ice building at the Prime Regional Center (PRC) site in Barangay Carpenter Hill, Koronadal City.

A statement released by the city government said the project, which features a modern design, is targeted for completion in two months.

Napolcom-12 has been leasing an of�ice space at the second �loor of the Marbel Top Commercial Building at the corner of Alunan Avenue and Jose Abad Santos Street in Koronadal City.

“The site of our new regional of�ice was donated by the city government of Koronadal,” the of�icial said.

She said they signed a memorandum of agreement with the local government, through City Mayor Peter Miguel, for the donation of the lot.

The PRC compound presently hosts over a dozen regional of�ices, among them the Depart-

ment of Education-12, Department of Agriculture-12 and National Economic and Development Authority-12.

The city government acquired and developed the PRC site to provide an area for the of�ices of various regional line agencies and units of Region 12.

Koronadal City is the regional administrative seat and center of Region 12, which is also known as Soccsksargen.

The region comprises the provinces of South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani and North Cotabato, and the cities of General Santos, Koronadal, Tacurong, Kidapawan and Cotabato.

The construction of the new Napolcom-12 regional of�ice is expected to further boost and improve its operations and services.

Napolcom Commissioner Rogelio Casurao, who earlier visited the site, said the regional of�ice in Koronadal City is the agency’s third regional facility in the country.

Casurao, who is Napolcom vice chair and executive of�icer, said they approved the construction of the project in response to President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s directives to prioritize Mindanao in development initiatives.(AVE/ PNA)

rmy and police personnel arrested Sunday three suspected members of the New People’s Army (NPA) in Maasim town, Sarangani Province.

Chief Insp. Canieso Golwingon, Maasim police chief, identi�ied the suspects as Jojo Kolahing alias Bunso, Jasmin Atong Sambra alias Tata, and Raymond Mansia Damon alias Gab, all alleged members of the NPA’s Front 73.

He said the three were arrested in a house at Purok Riverside, Barangay Kablacan at around 2 p.m.

The police of�icial said they earlier received a report regarding the presence of Kolahing at the house of one Lonicito Pason, a resident in the area.

Kolahing, who is facing murder charges in Tacurong City, is included in the list of most wanted persons in Region 12.

Golwingon said the immediately coordinated the matter with the Army’s 27th Infantry

Battalion and decided to launch the operation.

“The information was positive and we found the suspect along with two other persons there,” he said.

Recovered from the suspects were two hand grenades, a caliber 45 handgun, three handheld radios, a solar, combat shoes and several “subversive documents.”

Golwingon said they are currently determining the possible involvement of the suspects in previous attacks staged by NPA rebels in parts of Sarangani.

He speci�ically cited the cases of harassment and burning of passenger buses, van and heavy equipment in the municipalities of Maasim, Kiamba and Maitum or Makima area these past several months.

The suspects, who are now detained at the Maasim municipal station lockup, will be charged with violation of Republic Act 10591 for the recovered handgun and explosives.(AVE/ PNA)

3 NPA rebels nabbed in Sarangani

A

8 VANTAGE EDGEDAVAO

EDITORIAL

I

VOL. 10 ISSUE 86 • TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017

Making a stand

t’s not that Mayor Sara Duterte did not trust the judggment of her father, President Rodrigo Duterte, on the joinnt venture agreement for the multibillion-peso coastline development project which the latter approved during his tenure.

It’s just that she trusted her judgment more.

Mayor Inday had just terminated the JVA with Mega Harbour Port and Development Corporation which would have given Davao City’s coastline a vastly new industrialized look. Not only that, the potential economic bene�its that would come with it. That, afterall, is a P40 billion deal.

The reckoning point of the decision to terminate the JVA is the overwhelming environmental issues that come with the project. In the wisdom of the city government, there is more collateral damage than economic gains in proceeding with the proj-

EDGEDAVAO

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ect. According to Mayor Inday, the decision was arrived at after about more than a year of careful review and study of the available documents and after weighing out the intentions of the project against its commercial viability, legal and social implications, and the project’s possible effects to the environment.

She believes the 214-hectare reclamation project was not consistent with the development and environment policies and positions of the city. Instead of the mega deal, the city is bent on pushing forward highly sustainable projects, both commercially and environmentally, as its policy direction and de�inition of genuine economic growth.

The decision should not be interpreted as a disrespect to the President. Rather, it is a hallmark of strong leadership and independence.

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EDGEDAVAO

T

he plan to build a railway system in Mindanao was �irst hatched in 1899 but the submission of a serious study on the concept did not happen until in 1922 after American P.J. Wester, an agricultural advisor, made a study on the feasibility of the Mindanao railway system.

Due to �iscal de�iciency given the huge appropriation involved in the undertaking, the plan was archived. In 1937, on the year Davao was elevated to a city, the railway plan was again revived, but like in the previous attempt to put it on track, the project was again shelved.

In the 1937 Five-Year Road Program made of Marcial Kasilag, commissioner for Mindanao and Sulu, he explained the reason for the cancellation of the envisaged railroad system that would have linked Davao City to the port of Cagayan, Misamis Oriental.

The report, which saw print in the September 1937 issue of The Journal of American Chamber of Commerce, enumerated the issues needing to be addressed to ensure the proposed project would work ef�iciently when �inally put in operation.

Among the concerns were the power source needed to operate the wagons, supplemental roads connect-

I

n the 3-part series of HIV (“HIV: From death sentence of lifetime treatment”), there are some information which I left out and did not include. It’s not because I have forgotten them; the reason is that I omitted them because I didn’t want to break the �low of the story.

HIV stands for human immunode�iciency virus. It attacks the immune system, the body’s natural defense against illness. The website of Avert (www.avert. org) gives this basic information: “The virus destroys a type of white blood cell in the immune system called a T-helper cell, and makes copies of itself inside these cells. T-helper cells are also referred to as CD4 cells. As HIV destroys more CD4 cells and makes more copies of itself, it gradually breaks down a person’s immune system.”

If HIV is left untreated, it may take up to 10-15 years for the immune system to be so severely damaged it can no longer defend itself at all. “However, the speed HIV progresses will vary depending on age, health and background,” Avert points out.

HIV is spread through the exchange of body �luids like high viral load like cerebral �luid, amniotic �luid, blood, semen, cervical and vaginal secretions and breastmilk. It is transmitted by sexual intercourse, blood and blood products, shared needles, and mother-to-child.

Most of those infected with the virus got it through sexual intercourse, “the insertion and thrusting of the penis, usually when erect, into the vagina for sexual pleasure, reproduction, or both.”

But that’s what vaginal sex is all

VOL. 10 ISSUE 86 • TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017

VANTAGE POINTS

Railroad as 1937 casualty

ing to the railway system, availability of transports that bring passengers and cargoes to and fro the railroads, and the introduction of fast boats that service the Cagayan-Manila route on time.

Commissioner Kasilag, the country’s �irst registered civil engineer and the father of National Artist for Music Lucrecia Kasilag, reported: “It is understood that this proposed railroad will utilize for its power the great potential energy stored in the Maria Cristina Falls in Lanao province and in the Polangui river �lowing between the provinces of Bukidnon and Davao.

Should this railway project be carried out it will have to be supplemented by roads as feeders, and our �ive-year program will have to be revised to avoid the construction of roads paralleling the railroad and thus prevent the destructive competition for traf�ic, such as now exists between the railroad companies and the motor truck transportation companies operating in the islands of Luzon and Cebu. If this proposed railroad is constructed, it will necessarily require as its complimentary service the operation of fast boats between Manila and Cagayan, Oriental Misamis, so that the time of travel between Manila and Cagayan de Misamis could be reduced to about 24 hours, and in con-

FAST BACKWARD Antonio V. Figueroa junction with the proposed railroad, the travel between Davao and Manila can be accomplished within 30 hours.”

To compensate for the setting aside of the Mindanao railway project, the commissioner still managed to include in the short-term program several road projects that would become signi�icant contributors to the development of Mindanao during the liberation years.

The list of projects, mainly roads, with relevance to Davao region included the following: Known as Project No. 11, this proposed interprovincial road would serve as the shortest connecting link from

Davao City to the port of Iligan, between the provinces of Lanao and Bukidnon, traversing terrains suited for corn, fruit trees, coffee, cacao and cattle-raising.

On the other hand, Project No. 23, a proposed road connecting the east coast of Davao with the provincial capital by way of Compostela and Camanza (Montevista), then a municipal district on the Davao-Agusan inter-provincial road, was designed to develop the extensive agricultural land around Compostela and the Cateel River valley.

The project dubbed as Project No. 24, meanwhile, was a proposed coastal road connecting the municipalities of Cateel and Baganga on the east coast of Davao. It was complemented by Project No. 25, a proposed road on the east coast of the gulf of Davao linking with the Davao-Agusan interprovincial road at Tagum (now a city) and serving the municipalities of Pantukan, Lupon and Mati (now a city).

Three other proposes roads of import were listed in the �ive-year agenda. The Project No. 26 was a proposed road serving as short link between the Davao-Agusan and the Davao-Bukidnon interprovincial roads and would help develop the interior region of northwest Davao.

Project No. 27, on the other hand,

was an undertaking designed as an interprovincial road between Davao and Bukidnon provinces, starting from Guianga, Davao City, and connecting with the Bukidnon-Cotabato interprovincial road. This was conceived to provide a direct route from Davao City to the port of Cagayan, in Misamis Oriental.

Meanwhile, Project No. 28, an interprovincial road between Bukidnon and Cotabato, starting from the �inished road at Mailag, Bukidnon, and connecting with Kabakan, a municipal district of Cotabato, was devised to link with the completed Cotabato-Davao interprovincial road.

But there were other Davao initiatives of note that were also proposed under the �ive-year road program.

Among the key projects were the construction of the Talomo Bridge (near Coca-Cola plant), the Davao Waterworks Reservoir and Silting Basin, the Suspension bridge over Digos River (near Caños Hospital), and the Governor Generoso Bridge at Bankerohan.

While most of these projects were executed, the advent of war and the Japanese invasion of Davao affected their completion. Further aggravated by the aerial bombs that destroyed Mindanao, these public works resembled ruins when the city was liberated.

is infectious when injected into a human where the virus can bind to T cells and start to replicate. The human T-cell is a very speci�ic host cell for HIV. When a mosquito feeds on a person with HIV in his or her blood, the HIV enters the insect’s gut, which does not contain human T cells. The virus thus has no host cell in which to replicate and it is broken down by the mosquito’s digestive system.”

There are several ways you can avoid getting HIV. The Department of Health recommends ABCs: abstinence, be faithful, and condom. “Correct and consistent use of male and female condoms during vaginal or anal penetration can protect against the spread of sexually transmitted infections, including HIV,” WHO claims.

Male circumcision – the removal of all or part of the foreskin of the male sexual organ – also helps. According to WHO, circumcision “reduces the risk of heterosexually acquired HIV infection in men by approximately 60%.”

The advanced HIV infection or latestage HIV is called AIDS, which stands for Acquired Immune De�iciency Syndrome. “AIDS is not a virus but a set of symptoms (or syndrome) caused by the HIV virus,” Avert explained. “A person is said to have AIDS when their immune system is too weak to �ight off infection, and they develop certain de�ining symptoms and illnesses. This is the last stage of HIV, when the infection is very advanced, and if left untreated will lead to death.”

Being infected with HIV is no longer a death sentence these days. “There is effective antiretroviral treatment (ART) available so people with HIV can live a normal, healthy life,” Avert said. “The earlier HIV is

diagnosed, the sooner treatment can start – leading to better long term health.”

A 2011 trial has con�irmed that if an HIV-positive person adheres to an effective ART regimen, the risk of transmitting the virus to their uninfected sexual partner can be reduced by 96%.

However, in order to be treated, you need to know if you have HIV. And you get to know that only if you undergo HIV testing. “Testing for HIV and other sexually-transmitted infections is strongly advised for all people exposed to any of the risk factors,” the World Health Organization (WHO) said in its website. “This way people learn of their own infection status and access necessary prevention and treatment services without delay.”

However, all HIV testing services must follow the 5 principles recommended by WHO: consent (informed), con�identiality, counselling, correct test results, and connection (linkage to care, treatment and other services).

“One of the hardships faced by many newly-diagnosed individuals is the information and access on vaccinations (e.g. pneumococcal, in�luenza vaccines, etc.) many of whom I do not exactly know where to go and does not have the �inancial capacity to pay for such vaccines,” wrote Alvin Cloyd Dakis, a registered nurse, in an article published in “Health and Lifestyle.”

Some vaccines reportedly cost from P2,000 to P4,500. “Many of those newly-diagnosed (who are dominantly young) just �ind it hard to comply,” Dakis wrote. “I hope that such services will also be made available especially to those who are indigents or students.”

The specter of HIV

about. There are other forms of penetrative sexual intercourse; these include anal sex (penetration of the anus by the penis), oral sex (penetration of the mouth by the penis or oral penetration of the female genitalia), �ingering (sexual penetration by the �ingers), and penetration by use of a dildo (especially a strap-on dildo).

The routes of HIV transmission are well-known, but unfounded fear continues concerning the potential transmission by other means, such as casual contact in a household, school, workplace, or food-service setting. So far, there are no scienti�ic evidence to support any of these fears have been found.

However, there are some practices that increase the likelihood of contact with the blood of an infected person like sharing toothbrushes or razors. As much as possible, avoid sharing these personal necessities to others.

HIV cannot be transmitted through casual contact for the virus dies easily when exposed to sunlight and air. “Body �luids with suf�icient viral load must enter another person’s bloodstream for infection to occur,” the Manila-based Health Action Information Network (HAIN) explains.

You cannot get HIV from kissing (as long as you don’t bite each other while kissing, causing some wounds). “A protein saliva in human saliva keeps HIV from infecting while blood cells,” points out “The Medical Advisor: A Complete Guide to Alternative and Conventional Treatments.”

“The protein attaches itself to white blood cells and protects them from infection.”

Despite this fact, people are still ad-

THINK ON THESE!

Henrylito D. Tacio

amant. Better safe than sorry, they say.

However, HAIN gives this assurance: “To get HIV through kissing, you need to imbibe 32 liters of an infected person’s saliva. That would be enough saliva to �ill up the gasoline tank of six-by-sick truck. And the transfer should happen in one kissing session!”

If a used needle can transmit HIV to another person, what about the bite of a mosquito which has bitten an infected person? In “Scienti�ic American,” Dr. Laurence Corash, chief medical of�icer of Cerus Corporation, provides the following explanation: “Mosquitoes do not provide HIV with the T-cells the virus needs in order to replicate.

The AIDS virus (HIV) on used needles

9

10 NEWS DEADLY... FROM 1

The fatality was identi�ied as Jonathan Torres Movera, 44, who died as a result of injuries after he was dragged by the van.

The other victims are Stephanie Clare Torres Movera, 19, Jonathan’s daughter, Carlo Mark Agbayani, 34 and Alma Agbayani, 60, who are now in critical but condition at the Southern Philippines Medical Center.

Jonathan is a nephew of

Antonio M. Ajero, editor of this paper.

Additional charges of multiple serious physical injuries were �iled against Panares.

Investigation showed that Panares had just come from a party with friends from the Club Echelon in the �ifth �loor of Gaisano Mall.

A source at the Buhangin police station said their investigator is still working on the case.

fect on the environment. “The project is bound to block major waterways (between Davao City and Samal Island).”

Go said the fact that the contract mandates the city to provide 500 hectares for the project with Mega Harbour coming up with 200 hectares was also not advantageous.

“But in the end, after looking at some things that were previously not considered, it showed that the project was not in best interest of the city,” said Go. Go clari�ied that he was no privy to the basis behind the mayor’s decision and based his appreciation of the issue on concerns previously raised.

In a statement released by its president Engr. Victor S. Songco, Mega Harbour said the mayor’s decision to terminate the joint-venture agreement unilaterally and arbitrarily came was a shock.

Part of his statement reads: ‘We never saw it coming. All the while we thought that we were all on the same page in trying to improve the lives of the marginalized in those 10 coastal barangays – involving some 4,000 families.

In a press release, Mega Harbour said the country’s biggest and most ambitious port project that everyone awaits to see getting started ends up being quashed instead when all is set for it to rise and take shape.

It added the story of the Davao Coastline and Port Development Project – is now being reduced to a mere memory of a historic vision – as it takes only a daughter to thumb down what her father and predecessor has proudly propped up.

“We cannot stand for this” was the astute reply of Mega Harbour Port and Development Inc. that, just a little over a year ago, had signed the project’s contract with then Davao City Mayor and now Philippine President Rodrigo R. Duterte.

That Joint Venture Agreement (JVA) signed on June 21, 2016 is legally supported by the Sangguniang Panglungsod of Davao City through Resolution No. 02788-16 and Ordinance No. 0515-16. It was also signed and sworn to by then Mayor Duterte.

“Since then, we wasted no time and immediately undertook to comply with the prescribed procedures, as well as additional requirements, imposed by the City Government of Davao in order to implement the Project,” states the July 27 letter of Mega Harbour president Engr. Victor S. Songco to

incumbent Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio.

“We (Mega Harbour) presented the Project to the Regional Infrastructure Development Committee. We submitted additional documents.

We agreed to an increase in the local government’s land share.

We undertook to develop an area for about 4,000 informal settlers along coastal roads and redevelopment of coastal barangays (allocating P1.19 billion for redevelopment works, including roads and open spaces),” Songco’s letter points out.

We also secured investments (capital and technical) from various local and foreign companies, in addition to investing and expending capital of our own, in order to �inance and execute the P39-billion project,” the letter adds.

Hence, Mega Harbour has begun implementing the initial phases of the project as reported in its letter updates of February 14 and March 6, 2017.

“We are deeply concerned, even seriously alarmed, by your letter dated July 19, 2017, informing us that you have ‘come to a �inal decision not to further proceed’ with the Davao Coastline and Port Development Project. Particularly surprising is the July 25, 2017 press statement, wherein you supposedly informed the public of your decision to ‘terminate the joint venture agreement’ pertaining to the project.

“If we are to believe the press statement released by your of�ice, the reason for your unilateral and arbitrary decision to terminate the JVA was borne out of ‘weighing out the intentions of the project against its commercial viability, legal and social implications, and the project’s possible effects to the environment’, he said.

“This is why we wonder why the mayor has to engage in this publicity when she has not been directly involved or has allowed to be comprehensively briefed on the project not only

by Mega Harbour but should have joined the brie�ing with the NEDA Regional Infrastructure Development Committee and the Davao City Council. This is unfair and unreasonable,” Songco’s letter adds.

The letter cited those meetings as where the committee and the council were presented the project’s masterplan to make these blighted areas “a model for urban renewal and holistic community development—a showcase to the world of uplifting the life of the Filipino people. Thus, the project is socially sound”. (JKL)

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EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 10 ISSUE 86 • TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017

NOBLE UNDERTAKING. Rotary Club of North Davao president Ariel Potian (left), Rotary Club of Waling-waling incoming president Marilou Baarde (center) and outgoing president Elisa Evangelista-Lapiña announce the

forthcoming staging of the organization’s Grand Bloodletting at Gig Oca Robles Seamen’s Hospital in Agdao, Davao City on August 5 during Kapehan sa Dabaw at the Annex of SM City Davao on Monday. Lean Daval Jr.

lease, Basabica was formally presented and turned-over to President Duterte in Davao City.

Ka Rene of the NPA’s Front 25 said they were scheduled to release Basabica earlier but ongoing military operations prevented them to.

Basabica, according to the release order of the National

Democratic Front of the Philippines, was released for his acts and conduct while under detention and during investigation. He has been observed to have exhibited remorse for his offenses and has voluntarily desisted from committing further crimes against the people and the revolutionary forces. (PCO Davao)

gram which offers basic computer operations, sustainable e-learning platforms such as Alternative Learning System (ALS) modules and English

language pro�iciency. After completing the program, they will serve as IT laboratory assistants for the next classes of fellow inmates.(PNA)

braved sniper �ire and helped in the successful retrieval of 282 civilians trapped in the con�lict zone.

Solaiman shared that the Marawi crisis has become a “very emotional” issue for him after witnessing the horrors of death and destruction in his hometown.

“I could not hold back my tears when I saw the dead bodies of people I knew and the heavily damaged houses,”

he said.

“But in the name of the Bangsamoro, and in the name of humanity, we didn’t mind risking our lives to save our brothers and sisters,” he added.

The armed con�lict in Marawi, he stressed, should be “a lesson and the reason” why the GPH-MILF peace process must be pursued with renewed vigor. (Sonny Mendoza Jr./PNA

wallow in abject poverty.”

“Mr. President,” the letter, which carried the signatures of the union of�icers and directors, added, “we appeal to you to eliminate any possible harm that

may affect our jobs as he lies of thousands of people depend on [the JVA]. Like all Filipinos, we dream of a better future for us and our families—and we trust that you share our dreams as well.”

BBL was crafted by members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), MNLF-Yusoph Jikiri faction, and the representatives of the government.

The BBL is part of the implementation process under the peace deal between the government and the MILF. The bill aims at creating a new Bangsamoro region with a parliamentary-form of government.

The new set-up will replace the current Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Armm).

Under the present peace agenda of the Duterte administration,

the MILF and MNLF-Misuari faction would come up with a separate documents that will serve as the foundation of a new Bangsamoro government.

The move was made after Misuari, the MNLF founding-chairperson, declined to be part of the BTC. Misuari, who is facing several criminal charges for his alleged involvement in the 2013 Zamboanga siege, has remained at odds with the MILF leadership after its founding members broke away with the MNLF. (PNA)

in order to increase our society’s collective capacity to address the phenomenon of extremism and radicalism.”

Madale’s proposal echoes the sentiments of the Bishops-Ulama Conference (BUC), a key institution for dialogue in Mindanao, and Defense Secretary Del�in Lorenzana, a retired soldier.

In a recent statement, the BUC and its dialogue partners said “peace education is one best antidote to violent extremism.”

“Rebuilding Marawi means restoring broken relationships among peoples and the key institutions for fostering interand intra-faith dialogue, and inter-cultural understanding,” the statement read.

“For us, rebuilding Marawi is about cultivating a society that embraces social, cultural, political and religious diversity… (and) a national community that is respectful of the aspirations of various peoples,” the statement further read.

“I believe in the need to rebuild relations,” Lorenzana said in his keynote address.

Bringing normalcy In a message read for her, Education Secretary Leonor Magtolis Briones told conference participants that “more than just repairing and rebuilding classrooms,” the challenge for the Department of Education (DepEd) is “how we can bring back normalcy to our students’ lives.”

“Education must continue (as) education cannot wait,” Briones said.

Briones added that the agency is now in the thick of preparing for the eventual reopening of classes in war-torn Marawi “once the go ahead has been given.”

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She is con�ident the agency’s ‘Adopt-A-School in Marawi’ initiative, students “are able to come to class with books, and pencils, and paper, and more than just a roof over their heads.”

DepEd assistant secretary Resvee Escobido said that as a result of the continued �ighting, some 14 schools have sustained damages, all accounting for about 203 classrooms.

Total cost to rebuild these infrastructure and restore its related facilities is estimated to be P2.3 billion, Escobido added.

House support for rebuilding Cagayan de Oro Rep. Maximo Rodriguez assured the conference participants, mostly coming from the Maranao civil society community, that the House leadership is committed to supporting the needs of Marawi’s reconstruction.

Rodriguez disclosed that part of the �inancial requirements for the effort will be contained in a supplemental budget being drawn at the House.

Apart from Rodriguez, some other current stalwarts of the so-called Mindanao bloc in the House attended the conference: Bukidnon Rep. Malou Acosta-Alba, Iligan City Rep. Frederick Siao, and Deputy House Speaker Ferdinand Hernandez of South Cotabato.

Rodriguez said the Mindanao bloc will ensure the funds for rebuilding are made available through the necessary legislative actions.

Lorenzana said the rebuilding effort may be “slow and painstaking” and might need more than P20 billion which is the budget committed

by President Duterte, so far. (Ryan Rosauro / MindaNews)

INdulge!

VOL. 10 ISSUE 86• TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017

TRAVEL

EDGEDAVAO

Chasing wild dolphins in EARLIER THIS MONTH, I had the pleasure of being invited by Sir Diego Tautho and his wife, Tonette, to join Ridge to Reef, a Davao-based environmental consultancy group, for dolphin watching in Mayo Bay in Davao Oriental. For most of us, it’s Dahican that first comes to mind when we hear Davao Oriental. Dahican beach is actually part of the larger body of water that is called Mayo Bay. Partnering with the local government, local academic body and Amihan sa Dahican, we were scheduled for the dolphin watching very early on a Wednesday morning.

Call time was 4:00am so we had to be in Dahican a day in advance.

Being a believer of maximizing every opportunity, I invited the group to go surfing in the afternoon we arrived.

The weather and waves were perfect for learning how to surf.

We ended up surfing until the sun had set.

It was dark when we arrived back at Surf Village Hostel, one of the places I’ve most recently call home in Dahican. We ended the day with an almost seafood feast of garlic butter shrimps, grilled fish and lots of lechon manok.

Morning came and we were all so excited to see dolphins up close in the wild!

It’s not my first time to see dolphins in the wild. Back when I was in grade school, the family would travel by

MAYO BAY TOP: Arriving a day early meant that we could go surfing.

LEFT: Despite the cloud cover, Dahican’s sunrise is always a breathtaking sight to behold. It was better seeing in from the middle of the sea though!

land from Davao City to Albay in Bicol. The whole trip would take us three days and two nights on the road plus RoRo rides from Surigao to Leyte and then to Bicol.

During these RoRo rides across Surigao to Leyte, we would often see dolphins swim beside the barge for a few minutes before they would disappear under the waves. It was always during the early morning hours too. We rarely saw dolphins in midday and seldomly during late afternoon.

The barges we rode were huge since they needed to ferry both passengers, private and commercial vehicles (and sometimes livestock in them) to and from the islands.

I would always stay

at the top deck where I could smell all the ocean breeze that I wanted to. Looking down on the ocean’s surface, the dolphins would seem small and distant. I’d always wanted to jump down and swim with them but I never got to do that. Never on a moving barge that wouldn’t stop for you to play with dolphins.

Fast forward, around almost 10 years later, I have another opportunity to live a dream of mine and see dolphins up close! I was thinking that I could even swim with them if ever we saw one that day.

When hoping to see animals in the wild, it would always be a hit or miss.

We wouldn’t want feeding wild marine life just to be assured of witnessing them in their natural habitat.

Doing so would cause more harm than good and disrupt the fragile ecosystem. Case in point: the whale sharks in Oslob which have developed unnatural feeding behavior and don’t continue the supposed natural migration patterns to other feeding grounds because they’re being fed where they are.

From Dahican beach, we jumped in

two boats to accommodate our group. The smaller boat acted as a spotter or a lookout and went ahead. The sun was still about to rise, sadly it was quite cloudy so the sun had a lot of cloud cover. Even so, it was still a breathtaking and serene sight as the beach of Dahican grew smaller and smaller until all we could see was a speck of white.

The ocean in front of us, Mayo Bay, grew larger and larger. This was facing the Pacific Ocean already so the current and waves were much more noticeable than when you were swimming in Da-

hican. We sailed the left area of the bay, if you were facing the Pacific Ocean, a part of Tarragona already.

It was a little over an hour and we passed

by Kanak Reef and another gnarly surf spot that was a river mouth, I was ecstatic because I’ve never ventured this far from Dahican on a boat before.

Still, no dolphins in sight.

Most of our companions were peacefully dozing off in the boat. How they could manage to sleep with the ocean breeze in their hair and the loud hammering sound of the boat’s engine is a complete mystery to me. I was too excited to be asleep!

Catch a sneak peek of the dolphins by watching a short clip of them on my Facebook page: Millennial Mermaid and don’t forget to read next week’s continuation of this story!

EDGEDAVAO

A2INdulge!

TRAVEL

VOL. 10 ISSUE 86• TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017

y n i a r a g n i v i v Sur

G N O H G N O KSOJOURN

A rainy view from my room.

EVERY TIME I VISIT HONG KONG for the summer season, all I expect is the hot sun, humid weather and non-stop excursions around one of Asia’s most vibrant cities. Alas, this time, my summer excursion was dampened by rain throughout my entire Hong Kong stay.

Sadly, this meant that many of me, and travel buddy, Otoi’s plans of galavanting at the parks, museums and outdoor street markets went down the drain as who would want to get their fabulous clothes and shoes wet right? But all was not lost as we found ways to survive the rainy day blues.

Shop and eat at Harbour City Since we were billeted at the fabulous Marco Polo Hong Kong Hotel, Hong Kong’s largest shopping complex, Harbour City, is just at our hotel’s doorstep. With over thousands of stores selling electronics, clothing, shoes, bags, and everything in between, one can literally get lost in the many corridors of Harbour City.

Japanese brand fans will love the LCX section of Harbour City located at the upper floor of its Cruise Terminal Wing.

This is where one can find many of the latest trends in Japanese fashion and accessories. And just when I though that Hong Kong’s biggest mall cannot get any bigger, Harbour City recently opened its Cruise Terminal Extension which will soon house many new restaurant concepts offering a spectacular 270-degree view of Victoria Harbour.

When you get tired from all the shopping, why not drop by one of the many hundreds of

restaurants that are located all around Harbour City, some of which are flagship restaurants in Hong Kong as well as some sporting Michelin Stars. The choices are endless.

Hong Kong underground Need to go beyond Harbour City? The Star Ferry terminus is located just a short covered walk from the back entrance of Marco Polo Hong Kong. For just a coupe of Hong Kong dollars, one can get across to Central on Hong Kong Island with the added bonus of breathtaking on-the-water-views of the harbour.

For days when the rain gets really bad, then Hong Kong’s massive MTR mass transit system is the solution. With massive stations located underground dotting territory, the tunnel systems are a great way to escape the rain.

In fact, the Tsim Sha Tsui station in Kowloon, has so many underground corridors, it is easy to get from one building to the next just by following where the stations exits are. You can get from Harbour City to virtually any of the malls located along Nathan Road without getting wet just by going underground.

Just chill and relax Sometimes when the it rained really hard, we just had to step back and just wait for the rain to

With a view like this, who woud want to leave Marco Polo Hong Kong’s comfortable room?

Enjoying some rain-free time at the Marco Polo Hong Kong.

Egg tart anyone?

Lost in Hong Kong’s MTR labyrinth of tunnels.

stop. Luckily though the Marco Polo Hong Kong gave us a harbour view room which provides a spectacular vista of Hong Kong Island and Victoria Harbour.

Afternoon tea, which is perfect for the colder weather, can be enjoyed at the hotel’s Continental Club Lounge making rained-out afternoons pass easier thanks to de-

licious scones, pastries (Marco Polo Hong Kong’s famous egg tarts included) and soothing warm tea. Wines and various cocktails can be enjoyed from six in the evening up.

Rain may be a downer especially when you are travelling, but Hong Kong does have many ways for urban travellers to to still have fun.

VOL. 10 ISSUE 86• TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017

7

ENTERTAINMENT

Jack Kelly and Katherine Plumber.

July 26, 2017 only

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INdulge! A3 #GlobeLive9WTNewsies cast on stage.

things to look out for in Disney’s Newsies

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12:00 | 2:30 | 5:00 | 7:30 | 10:00 LFS

EXTRA, EXTRA! Globe LIVE and 9 Works Theatrical’s production of Disney’s Newsies is bringing in rave reviews and packed audiences, and those who haven’t seen it still have time to catch what many are calling a dazzling and spectacular show.

“Globe Live and 9 Works Theatrical have created a triple-threat extravaganza that rivals some of the best local productions seen in recent memory,” from Broadwayworld.com.

Newsies is a Broadway musical based on a 1992 Disney film. It is loosely based on the real-life 1899 newsboy strike in New York City, where a group of boys initiated a strike hoping to improve how the child labor force of newspaper hawkers were compensated.

“Newsies is one of Broadway’s most difficult shows to produce because it demands its actors to be able to sing, dance, and act.

We were able to pull it off with 19 out of 19 rave reviews and the loudest cheers and standing ovations for every performance. It’s a show that’s not to be missed,” shares Sr. Advisor for Creative Marketing & Multimedia Businesses, Joe Caliro.

Here are seven things to look out for in Newsies: 1. The David and Goliath story

their presence felt with every instrument they play, making the audience want to dance and clap along.

Newsies is based on a historic strike in New York City, where a group of young boys demanded fair wage from Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst, two of the country’s biggest newspaper publishers.

The outcome of the strike, both in history and in the musical, encourages viewers to fight for what’s right, no matter how big the foe. This happened on 21st of July, which marks the 118th anniversary of the newsboys’ strike, making this performance of Newsies all the more special.

2. The unforgettable music The inspiring story was delivered through the catchy songs, developed by the awardwinning composer Alan Menken, who also created the music for The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Hercules, and many more. Newsies won a Tony Award for Best Original Score, and Globe LIVE did it justice by curat-

ing a stellar cast led

by Gian Magdangal as strike leader Jack Kelly, Danielle Chopin as journalist Katherine Plumber, Jef Flores as Davey, and Pinky Marquez as performer Medda Larkin. Of course, the rest of the cast performed just as well, hitting the right notes while dancing and acting. Don’t miss out on the infectious “Seize the Day” and “King of New York”!

3. The unbelievable dancing When they say Newsies is one of the most difficult shows to produce, they weren’t kidding. The Broadway production also won a Tony Award for Best Choreography, which isn’t surprising considering it combines ballet, hiphop, tap, jazz, gymnastics, and more. To prepare the cast, Globe LIVE established Training Ground, a series of sessions with choreographer PJ Rebullida, where the cast took singing, dancing, and acting training to become triple-threats.

Watch the series online at go.globe.com. ph/newsies.html.

4. The live orchestra The singing, acting, and dancing is accompanied by a live orchestra, which makes the show an even more electrifying watch. The band is hidden at the back, but they make

5. Jack Kelly and Katherine Plumber’s love story Every story has a love angle and in Newsies, it’s between Kelly and Plumber. Besides striking against the country’s top publishers, Kelly is also pursuing Plumber, a smart and beautiful woman from an established family. Sparks fly between the two of them and the audience can’t resist swooning every time.

6. The gorgeous set Globe LIVE and 9WT created a breathtaking set at the outdoor amphitheater of the Globe ICONIC Store, where the large cogs and three-level scaffoldings could be moved around between scenes. This was the perfect setup for the actors, who maximized the stage with their pirouettes and backflips. We used projection mapping to create the classic turnof-the-century NYC backdrop, which adds authenticity and feel to the set.

7. The cheering audience At the start of the show, Caliro entered the stage to encourage the audience to cheer and have fun instead of just politely clapping (after all, it’s outdoors!). The result? The audience went wild after each number, creating a fun and vibrant atmosphere that redefined the Filipino theater experience.

Those who haven’t seen Globe LIVE and 9 Works Theatrical’s Newsies can still catch up as it is on its last run this weekend. Don’t miss out on the chance to seize the day!

A4INdulge!

ENTERTAINMENT

EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 10 ISSUE 86• TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017

Alexander Lee is Heart Evangelista’s Ai-Ai delas Alas still a Kapuso leading man in My Korean Jagiya

AFTER MONTHS OF ANTICIPATION, GMA Network is proud to announce that Alexander Lee is Heart Evangelista’s leading man in My Korean Jagiya.

Alexander is a professional actor in Korea and former member of the boy band U-Kiss. He bagged the coveted role of Jun Ho in My Korean Jagiya which is the first and original Kapuso series partly shot in Seoul, South Korea. Aside from him, several Korean actors will also play important roles in the primetime soap.

The former K-Pop idol said he is very excited on his latest project with GMA 7, “I’m really glad to finally work with GMA again after so many years. I remember the last time was when U-Kiss performed in Walang Tulugan with the Master Showman and Party Pilipinas. I had really good memories with

GMA because they were very kind, friendly and caring.”

Alexander said he did not think twice about accepting the role because he is thrilled to return to the country and to finally work with Heart.

“First, when I heard the word “GMA”, I was already confident that it would be a good project.

Afterwards, knowing

that Heart Evangelista would be in it, it won my heart completely! Of course, it was a tough decision to give up all my current work here in Korea for this project, but I’m definitely sure it will be worth it. After seeing the project proposal, I was really excited because it is very meaningful. I personally really love the cultural

exchange between the Philippines and Korea. It would be a never-beforeseen project so I decided to join,” said Alexander.

The production team of My Korean Jagiya recently went to Seoul to tape important scenes for the drama series.

Heart, meanwhile, revealed that working with Alexander is a breeze, “He is so easy to work with and as time goes by, we are more comfortable with each other. He is really a good actor. And I’m so excited for everybody to get to know him and see the show.”

Completing the allstar cast of My Korean Jagiya are Janice de Belen, Ricky Davao, Iya Villania, Edgar Allan Guzman, Valeen Montenegro, Frances Makil, Jinri Park, Myke Salomon.

Under the helm of award-winning director Mark Reyes, catch Alexander and Heart in My Korean Jagiya soon on GMA Telebabad.

PHILIPPINE COMEDY QUEEN AI-AI DELAS ALAS remains a Kapuso as she renewed her exclusive contract with GMA Network today, July 24.

Present during the contract signing were GMA Chairman and CEO Atty. Felipe L. Gozon; GMA Entertainment TV Senior Vice President Lilybeth G. Rasonable; GMA Vice President for Drama Productions Redgie Acuña-Magno; GMA Vice President for Corporate Affairs and Communications Angela Javier Cruz; and GMA Senior Assistant Vice President for Alternative Productions Gigi Santiago-Lara.

Also in attendance was Rowena Salido of Asian Artists Agency, Inc. “God is so great and good. Ako pa rin po ay isang Kapuso. Binigyan ako ng chance ni Lord na maging Kapuso ulit. So nandito po ulit ako. Thank you sa lahat ng bosses namin sa GMA,” shared Ai-Ai during her contract renewal attended by the network’s top executives.

Ai-Ai revealed that she is thankful to GMA for their continuous trust and support all these years, “Kasi di ba dito naman talaga ako nag start. Parang coming home ulit.

Siyempre mahal nila ako at binibigyan nila ako ng work.”

Aside from Sunday Pinasaya, Ai-Ai said she will have a new show together with Bossing Vic Sotto and an upcoming soap.

Meanwhile, Atty. Gozon said he is delighted that Ai-Ai continues to stay with GMA 7, “Si Ai-Ai ay tinatawag natin na balikbayan. Alam naman niya kung nasaan ang puso niya ngayon. Para sa atin, she is always welcome. I for one, talagang pinapanood ko ang mga shows ni Ai-Ai.” Rasonable, on the other hand, said that she is very happy and proud that Ai-Ai is still a Kapuso, “Mahal namin si AiAi. We welcomed her back a few years ago. At hanggang ngayon ay napakaganda ng relationship ng GMA at ni AiAi. We love her and we love having her here in GMA.”

11 COMPETITIVE EDGE EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 10 ISSUE 86 • TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017

ConTREEbuting through planting for a greener tomorrow. Volunteers from Davao Light and Power Co., Inc plant seedlings of Molave and fruit bearing trees in their commitment for a sustainable environment not only for today but also for the future generation.

earns P13.3 Bn in 1H Davao Light holds annual tree BDO ‘17 Core earnings up 16% planting at the Cleanergy Park B

I

t was a green day for the employees of Davao Light and Power Co., Inc. as they held a tree planting activity last July 15, 2017 at the Cleanergy Park in Sitio Punta Dumalag, Matina Aplaya, Davao City.

Around 370 Davao Light Team volunteers participated in the tree planting activity, which is simultaneous with the other business units across the entire Aboitiz Group in the Philippines.

The volunteers were composed

mostly of employees from Davao Light, team members from the AboitizPower Distribution IT Group based in Davao, and some members from the Institute of Integrated Electrical Engineers.

The participants planted a total of 3,360 mix of mangrove propagules and seedlings of Molave and fruit bearing trees. This is part of the 11,500 target trees to be planted within the year.

Some of the volunteers also

did a coastal clean-up where a total of 20 sacks of trash were gathered.

“The Aboitiz Way has always emphasized the core value of Responsibility, not just in our work, but equally important how we interact with our surroundings.

A-Park trees will not only help combat climate change, but also provide livelihood opportunities for our community stakeholders.” said Davao Light’s EVP and COO, Engr. Rodger Velasco in his

speech, which he quoted from the message of the President and CEO of the Abotiz Group Erramon I. Aboitiz.

The Aboitiz’s annual tree planting activity aims to plant a total of 9 Million trees by year 2020. Davao Light together with the Aboitiz Group will continue to drive change for a better world by creating endeavors supporting the communities where it serves and its environment.

to put up Ipad classrooms in all Holy Child Campuses in Davao.

“So that teachers will create change in terms of teaching our students,” Velasco added.

The Ipad classroom is already established and this will be utilized by the students starting August. In each campus there will be 40 ipads available for students. The cost for this project was described as minimal.

“We are very blessed and very happy because Switch gave

us discounts,” said Velasco.

The training of the teachers for the Ipad classroom was conducted this year’s summer vacation. They were trained on how to effectively use the Ipad, what applications they will be using in subjects like math, science and English.

“For now we still using the English as a medium of instruction but Apple mentioned that soon they will have an application that will teach mother

tongue to the students, “Velsco added.

The school looks forward to an improvement of learning by the students and they wanted to change the perception of the people that these gadgets are not only used for games and entertainment but for learning as well. The school also looks forward to an increase in the number of students in the early childhood program now that this program is available.

First PH Ipad classroom launched by Holy Child

By Angie Saveron

I

n partnership with Apple and Switch, the Holy Child College of Davao launched the �irst Ipad classroom in the Philippines for an early childhood program on July 29, Saturday.

The pupils who will bene�it from this program are those in pre-school, grades one, two and three.

According to Engr. Chrystella Suzette I. Velasco, Holy Child ITE Dean and academic head, it is the advocacy of the school

Globe promotes bike commuting

G

lobe Telecom is encouraging bike commuting among its employees as an alternative mode of transportation and reduce carbon footprint.

In a statement Monday, Globe said its Bike2Globe program seeks to create public awareness on the bene�its of biking to the environment.

It added the company believed that the use of bicycles can reduce both noise and air pollution making it a better alternative to cars.

“It is Globe Telecom’s advocacy to reduce our impact to the environment and support a low carbon future to address climate change. We want to extend that to our stakeholders, primarily our employees, and one of the easiest and most effective ways to do it is by promoting the use of bikes,” Raymond Martin Aguilar, Globe Head

for Operational Risk Management and Business Operation, said.

Bike2Globe also supports the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 13 (UN SDG 13) on Climate Change as well as UN SDG 11 on making cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable through access to affordable and sustainable transport.

For those without their own bikes, Globe will provide several e-bikes which employees can use when they have work-related errands around the area.

E-bikes are equipped with an electric motor and pedal power which can be manually used when battery runs out.

Bikes are also an affordable and ef�icient mode of transportation as they do not emit harmful chemicals to the environment. (ABP/PNA)

DO Unibank, Inc. (BDO) posted P13.3 billion in net income in the �irst six months of 2017, primarily driven by an expansion in loan portfolio, growth in low-cost deposits and higher recurring fee-based service income.

Excluding the extraordinary items from the consolidation of newly acquired subsidiary BDO Life last year, this represents a strong 16% growth in core earnings.

The Bank’s core businesses delivered solid numbers, with customer loans increasing by 17% to P 1.6 trillion while total deposits rose to almost P2.0 trillion, supported by the 17% jump in low-cost CASA deposits, now comprising 73% of total deposits. As a result, net interest income went up by 22% to P38.6 billion.

Meanwhile, non-interest income amounted to P23.2 billion driven by fee-based service income. On a comparable basis, fee-based income rose by 13%. Insurance premiums advanced by 17% to P4.6 billion, while Trading and forex gains declined 21% to P2.6 billion from P3.2 bil-

lion a year-ago.

Operating expenses increased by 20% on the Bank’s aggressive drive to grow its core business along with investments in new markets.

Excluding extraordinary items and the consolidation effects of ONB and BDO Life, operating expenses would have risen by only 14%.

The Bank prudently set aside provisions of P2.9 billion even as asset quality remained benign with gross non-performing loan (NPL) ratio steady at 1.3%, and NPL cover at 137%.

Following a successful P60 billion (USD1.2 billion) stock rights offer in January 2017 and retained earnings from pro�itable operations, the Bank’s capital base expanded to P289 billion, with Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) and Common Equity Tier 1 Ratio at 15.7% and 14.0%, respectively.

Looking ahead, BDO will continue to leverage on its robust business franchise and build on its key initiatives to capture new growth opportunities and solidify its market leadership.

THE IPAD TURN-OVER. for the first First Ipad Classroom for Early childhood program at Holy Child College of Davao. Received by the principals of each Holy Child campus in Davao City.

EDGEDAVAO

12 HEALTH

VOL. 10 ISSUE 86 • TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017

Yes, Hepatitis B can be treated TEXT AND PHOTOS by HENRYLITO D. TACIO

I

nfection of hepatitis B affects one-third of the world’s population. In the Philippines, one out of ten harbors the disease.

This makes the country as having one of the world’s highest carriers of the virus.

And despite several educational campaigns conducted by government health agencies and various organizations, a lot of Filipinos still don’t know that there are now available treatments for the chronic disease.

“I would hear patients telling me that they were told that there is no medicine for hepatitis B and that it is a deadly disease,” recalled Dr. Jane D. Ricaforte-Campos, a liver and gastrointestinal disease specialist at the Medical Center Manila.

“Since 1997, a lot of oral anti-viral medicines and a more potent anti-viral with immune-modulatory effects have become available to patients who have met the criteria for treatment.”

Dr. Ricaforte-Campos shared the information of her three male patients who lost the virus completely after completing a year of treatment. “One of these patients was a seafarer and was able to return to board the ship after a year of therapy,” she said.

It must be recalled that 50 out of the 142 overseas Filipino workers who were deported from the Middle East last year were found to be carriers of the hepatitis B virus (HBV), according to a Saudi-based medical association.

“I remember vividly the facial expression of my patients having been denied the opportunity to work abroad simply because they are carriers,” Dr. Ricaforte-Campos wrote in Vital

Signs. “Although this may sound disappointing, I always emphasize to them that they should not lose hope because the chance to get hired will depend on the phase of infection.”

A recent survey conducted in various countries in Asia showed that ignorance is fueling the spread of HBV in the region. “Ignorance helps the transmission of the disease and the survey �inds this ignorance results in people giving up on the chance of proper treatment,” said Dr. Nancy Leung, an expert on the disease and associate professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong’s department of medicine and therapeutics.

“They don’t think it’s important to be treated because they don’t have symptoms.”

HBV carriers are at risk of developing liver cirrhosis and liver cancer if they are not vaccinated or given the proper treatment.

In 1998, Senator Rene Cayetano was diagnosed of carrying the hepatitis B virus (HBV). But it was not four years later that alarming symptoms started to appear. The lawmaker would feel tired despite having enough sleep and his skin gradually turning yellow.

As the disease threatened to develop into cancer, friends, family, and even members of the senator’s staff volunteered to donate part of their livers to save his life. In 2003, the entire family went to the United States, where the senator underwent a successful liver transplant operation at the University of Southern California University Hospital.

But in June 24, 2003, Cayetano passed away, succumb-

ing to abdominal cancer, which was diagnosed by doctors three months after his successful liver operation. Doctors diagnosed the cancer as having come from his previous liver.

The word hepatitis simply means “in�lammation of the liver”. Oftentimes, doctors use it to refer to the diseases caused by hepatitis viruses. If a physician tells a patient, “You have hepatitis,” he means that the person has a viral disease caused by a virus that attacks the liver, and not necessarily that he has an in�lamed liver.

So far, medical scientists have discovered six different kinds of hepatitis: A, B, C, D, E, and G. A different virus causes each of these. Five types cause disease in the liver while one (hepatitis G) lives in the blood without causing any apparent illness. All �ive disease-carrying viruses are responsible for more than 98 percent cases of viral hepatitis.

Unknowingly, “hepatitis viruses cannot live outside a cell,” points out Professor John S. Tam, of the Department of Microbiology at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. “They only come alive when they are given the right conditions such as the necessary nutrients from inside a cell. At room temperature, they do not last very long - maybe 10 minutes. Once the blood dries, infectivity decreases.”

Like most hepatitis viruses, HBV is all too easy to catch. It is more common than the human immunode�iciency virus (HIV) and far more infectious: HBV is 50-100 times more infectious than HIV. But hepatitis B is not transmitted casually. The virus can-

not be spread through sneezing, coughing, hugging or eating food prepared by someone who is infected with HBV, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Also, you cannot get HBV from mosquitoes. Prof.

Tam explains: “All viruses which are transmitted by a mosquito must go through a replication before suf�icient viruses is available for infection. HBV do not grow in mosquitoes.”

Ninety percent of the people who get hepatitis B recover spontaneously with their body’s defenses. “The remaining 10 percent who maintain the infection for six months or longer and who do not produce an effective antibody response are considered chronic carriers,” explains Dr. Ernesto Domingo, a national scientist who is a liver specialist.

Hepatitis can be acute (short-lived) or chronic (lasting at least six months). “Acute hepatitis can produce anything from a �lu-like illness to fatal liver failure,” explains The Merck Manual of Medical Information. “Hepatitis A and C often produce very mild symptoms or none at all, and may go unnoticed, whereas B and E are more likely to produce severe symptoms. Co-infection of hepatitis B and hepatitis D may make the symptoms even more severe.”

Though much less common than acute hepatitis, chronic hepatitis can persist for years, even decades. “In most people, it is quite mild and does not cause signi�icant liver damage,” the Merck manual informs. “In some people, though, continued in�lammation slowly damages the liver, eventually producing cirrhosis

(severe scarring of the liver), liver failure, and sometimes liver cancer.”

“Hepatitis B virus is the most common cause of liver cancer around the world,” says Professor Mei-Hwei Chang, chairman of the Department of Pediatrics at the National Taiwan University Hospital in Taipei. “Although hepatitis C virus is the most prevalent cause of liver cancer in some countries where HBV infection is not prevalent, HBV is still the most prevalent cause worldwide.”

The HBV may be found in blood, semen, vaginal �luids, tears, and saliva. It is transmitted the same way as HIV. That is, through sexual intercourse (vaginal, oral, or anal), use of contaminated needles, unsafe blood transfusion, and from mother to child.

Most people who get HBV �ight off the infection by themselves, but the HBV antibodies “will be present in their blood for the rest of their lives,” writes Dr. Alan Berkman, author of Hepatitis A to G: The Facts You Need to Know About All The Forms of This Dangerous Disease.

Most people who are infected with HBV don’t show any symptoms of the disease, so “many people are surprised when they go to donate blood to learn that at one time in the past they had the virus.”

“Only a blood test can con�irm for sure if a person has hepatitis B or not,” wrote Dr. Philip S. Chua in his newspaper column. “After a person is exposed to the HBV, it takes about 4 weeks (range: 1-9 weeks) for the blood test to show if a person has acquired the HBV infec-

tion or not.”

After exposure to HBV, the symptoms, if they occur, will manifest on the average of 12 weeks (9 to 21 week range).

“Only 70 percent of patients will have symptoms, the 30% will be symptom-free although infected,” Dr. Chua said. “Adults are more likely to show clinical symptoms than children.”

What are the signs? “Sometimes, people infected with HBV have what looks like the �lu, with symptoms including loss of appetite, nausea and vomiting, fever, and weakness,” Dr. Berkman writes. “They may also develop symptoms more directly related to their livers: abdominal pain, dark urine, jaundice.” Jaundice is the yellow discoloration of the skin and the whites of the eyes.

As there are several stages of hepatitis B, there are also several treatments. “Oral anti-virals are good in suppressing the virus with insigni�icant side effects, but has to be taken daily for an inde�inite period of time,” Dr. Ricaforte-Campos said. “Long-term treatment can result to the development of resistance to the initial drug requiring addition of another oral anti-viral or shifting to a more potent drug with low resistance rate but obviously at a higher cost.”

Interferon-alpha is an example of a potent anti-viral with immune-modulatory effects.

An injectable, it is “given once weekly for one year” and “is a suitable option particularly for patients who are in the reproductive age group and wanting to undergo treatment for a �inite duration.” This treatment has “systemic side effects which are tolerable and manageable.”

Date: August 01, 2017

KALAHI-CIDSS NATIONAL COMMUNITY DRIVEN DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM Office of the Barangay Sub-Project Management Committee Barangay: Sta. Fe Municipality: Caraga Province: Davao Oriental INVITATION TO BID FOR WORKS CONTRACT (For Advertisement, Posting and Personal Delivery)

The community of BARANGAY STA. FE, through its Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) invites interested contractors to apply for eligibility and to bid for the Sub-project that received assistancefrom the DSWD KALAHI-CIDSS National Community Driven Development Program (KC-NCDDP).

Name of Community Sub-Project: UPGRADING OF 757.0 LN.M. BARANGAY ROAD WITH 265 LINEAR METER CONCRETING Contract Package No. 1A Interested bidders are requested to submit their offered price for the contract indicated below: Items

Items of Work/Description of

No.

Work

Qty

Unit

100

Clearing and Grubbing

3,785.00

sq.m.

102 (2)

Surplus Common Excavation

3,109.33

cu.m.

103 (3)

Foundation Fill Pipes Culverts and Drain Excavation Embankment (Selected Borrow)

5.50

cu.m.

16.38

cu.m.

2,509.36

cu.m.

105

Subgrade Preparation

3,785.00

sq.m.

201

Aggregate Base Course

818.50

cu.m.

311

PCCP Pipe Culvert Installation (36 mm Dia.) Stone Masonry Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) TOTAL

159.00

cu.m.

14.00

ln.m

9.50

cu.m.

1.00

lot

103 (6) 104 (2)

500 (1A) 505 (6) B.5

NEWS 13

EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 10 ISSUE 86 • TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017

Unit Cost

Total

P

Amount in Words:

Prospective bidders should have experience in undertaking a similar project within the last two (2)years with an amount of at least 50% of the Bid Amount. The Eligibility Check/Screening as well as the Preliminary Examination of Bids shall use non-discretionary “pass/fail” criteria. Postqualification of the lowest calculated bid shall be conducted.

We will only accept an offered price that is fixed and is not subject to any adjustment. Bid shall be valid for a period of sixty (60) days from the date of submission.

Bidding documents may be obtained from the Barangay Sub-Project Management Committee (C/BSPMC) Office starting August 01, 2017.

A pre-bid conference will be held at the Barangay Hall on AUGUST 08, 2017; 9:00am.

The bid shall include the following documents: • Form of Bid • Financial Proposal Sheet (using the ITB as a Price Schedule/Bill of Quantities) • Valid license issued by the Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB) • Statement of all on-going and completed government and private contracts • Statement on the availability of key personnel and equipment • Bid security in the form of Cash, cashier’s check, manager’s check, or bank guarantee equivalent to two percent (2%) of the bid price • Authority of the signatory (For Corporations and Cooperatives) • Construction Schedule and S Curve • Manpower Schedule and organizational chart • Construction Methods • List of key personnel for the project • List of key equipment for the project • Site Visit Certificate for Works (issued by the BSPMC • Omnibus Sworn Statement (Affidavit) • Other document required in the instruction to bidders (if any) All bids must be received on August 15, 2017; 9:00am and will be opened in public in the presence of bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the following address: Kalahi CIDSS-NCDD Program Barangay Community Project Management Committee Barangay Hall Barangay Sta. Fe, Municipality of Caraga Province of Davao Oriental The community reserves the right to reject any bid or waive any defect or formality. The lowest calculated and responsive bid shall be used as the criterion in the selection of the contractor. The community will not reimburse any expenses related to the preparation of bids.

(SGD). CELISA GUIMEO Chairperson, Barangay Sub-Project Management Committee Date of Publication of ITB: August 01, 2017 Date of Posting and Issuance of ITB: August 01, 2017 Start: August 08, 2017 End: AUGUST 15, 2017 Note: 1. Local Government officials and those directly involved (BSPMC Chairperson, BAC & PT) in the procurement, up to the 1 st degree of consanguinity or affinity are disqualified from participating as “suppliers/contractors” within the area of coverage of this sub-project.

2. Attorney-in-fact thru SPA is not allowed for sole proprietorship to sign this document. For corporations, the signatory shall be a person authorized thru a Board Resolution.

3. For suppliers/contractors/service providers, please use ball pen in filling up this form, otherwise, it will nullify this ITB if used as a Price Schedule/Bill of Quantities.

ERRATUM In the July 26, 2017 edition of Edge Davao, In the matter of the petition for cancellation of the second registered live birth certi�icate of DAPHNE MARIE PABROA TADLE with registry number 8524413 had certain error inadvertently printed.

The name of DAPHNE was misspelled as DAPNE. Our sincere apologies.

The Editors

EDGEDAVAO Serving a seamless society

is in need of

4 REPORTERS Submit application letter and resume to: Mr. Antonio M. Ajero, Editor-in-Chief or Mr. Jimmy K. Laking, Associate Editor Edge Davao Review Publishing Inc. Door 14 ALCREJ Bldg., E. Quirino Avenue, Davao City Or email at edgedavao@gmail.com

14

EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 10 ISSUE 86 • TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017

EDGEDAVAO PARTNER ESTABLISHMENTS Serving a seamless society

Advertise with

EDGEDAVAO Serving a seamless society

Tel No. 082.221.3601/224.1413 Email: edgedavao@gmail.com marketing@edgedavao.net

Advertise with

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VOL. 10 ISSUE 86 • TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017

EDGEDAVAO

SPORTS 15

PH wins U18 Pony World Series

HISTORIC. The Philippines became the first team from Asia to win the Under 18 Pony World Series title.

T

he Philippines, represented by Team Manila, downed defending champion Central Hemet Xplozion, 7-1, to win the 2017 Pony International 18-U Girls Softball World Series crown at the Diamond Valley Park in the Valley-Wide Recreation District in Hemet, California.

Alma Tauli, 16, had �ive strikeouts and in

six

innings

of

work.

Nichole Padasas, an 18-year-old player from Adamson who played in the 2015 Big League World Series, hit a solo home run in the second and Christine Bautista hit another home run in the fourth.

Khrisha Cantor earlier drove in Bautista and Shaina Cama-

cho to put Team Manila ahead in the �irst.

“The girls deserve the win because we were able to keep our composure and were not intimidated by the defending champions so our errors were limited,” said head coach Ana Santiago.

It is the �irst win in the tournament by a team from Asia, according

to Rodolfo Tingzon Sr., founder of Pony in the Philippines.

The Big City Softbelles also won the crown in the 2012 Big League 18-U World Series. The Manila Batters were backed by Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada, International Container Terminal Services, Inc. and Mike and Lilli Khan and Larry Sy of Sunspring.

PH’s GM Barbosa 7th in World Open

T

he 45th Annual World Open held from June 29-July 4, 2017 at the Philadelphia Marriott Downtown, 1201 Market St., Philadelphia.

GM Oliver Barbosa landed in the top ten of the prestigious World Open, considered as one of the top chess events in the United States with a large prize fund in a Swiss tournament.

Barbosa tied for seventh place, making it the highest place so far achieved by a Filipino chess player in the Open. He scored 6.5 points and had a chance to be the overall champion when he got paired against the eventual winner, Tigran Petrosian, namesake of the for-

mer

world

champion.

Before the last round, Barbosa played and won against fellow Filipino GM Julio Sadorra. Barbosa said it was a tough game between the two, and they �inished the game at 4 p.m.The long game worked against Barbosa since the last game was to start at 4:30 p.m. It was only then that he had a lunch break and didn’t have time to prepare for his opponent. “I had a wrong choice of the opening and entered his favorite line,” Barbosa said.

Petrosian told him that he had time to prepare and was able to scout his lines.

Barbosa nevertheless said that he was proud in landing the best place

among Filipinos in such a big tournament, and was surprised to �ind himself contending for the World Open title even without much preparation for the tournament. He said he didn’t feel any pressure because he didn’t feel compelled to think about the prize money in the tournament unlike when he was playing in the Philippines. Barbosa together with GM Mark Paragua has a job in New York training students. He said, “Kahit self-supporting po ako dito, important pa in po na clear ang mind habang naglalaro.”

Sadorra �inished with 6.0 points and was tied for 16th place. IM Angelo Young won $5000 by placing �irst in the category

prize for those rated 22002299. IM Rolando Nolte tied for second and won $400 in the category prized for those rated 2300-2499.

In the Under 2200 section, Filipino Ramon Manon-og Jr. of New York, originally from Kidapawan City, North Cotabato tied with Martin Hansen of Florida and James Lee Richardson of Virginia to win $7000 each. Manonog, 32. has always played in the World Open but this was the �irst time he won a big prize. He attributes his win to the combination of studying hard and listening to the advice of strong players. He said he learned from fellow New Yorkers GM Barbosa and GM Paragua. (Philboxing. com)

Biado pockets gold in World Games F ilipino ace Carlo Biado defeated Great Britain’s Jayson Shaw, 11-7, in the 9-ball men’s pool �inals to pocket the country’s �irst-ever gold medal in the quadrennial World Games in Wroclaw, Poland on Saturday (Sunday morning in Manila).

Biado tied the match at 7-all count after winning the 14th rack. Then he never looked back by taking the next �ive racks enroute the coveted title.

“Just �inished in World Games Wroclaw 2017 as a “Gold medalist” champion in Men’s 9 ball. First I just want to thank God for everything.

To my family and supporters.

This is my �irst time to play in World Games and it’s my honor to represent our country Philippines,” the 33-yearold San Juan, La Union native said in his facebook account.

“Thanks to my sponsor, Predator Cues, Philippine Sports Commission,” added Biado, a habitue of Star Billiard Center.

It shall be recalled that Dennis Orcollo won bronze medal during the World men’s 9-ball in 2014 edition in Cali, Columbia.

Biado and Orcollo, both honed their skills playing the star-studded Bugsy Promotions.

On the road to the �inals, Biado toppled Joshua Filler of Germany, 11-5, in the Roundof-16, Mieszko Fortunski of Poland, in the quarter-�inals and Japan’s Naoyuki Oi, 11-7, in the semis to arrange a titular showdown with Shaw.

Shaw toppled Taipei’s Ko Pin-Yi, 11-6, in the other semis pairing.

Meanwhile, Filipina Chezka Luy Centeno yielded to China’s Han Yu, 9-3, during their playoff for the bronze.

The 18-year-old pride of Zamboanga City, the 2016 Amway eSpring International Women 9-ball Championship Champion held in Banqiao Gymnasium in New Taipei City, also bowed to China’s Chen Siming, 6-9, earlier in the semi�inals.

Siming will play Korea’s Ga Young Kim for the women’s 9-ball gold.

Biado and Centeno will see action in the upcoming 29th Southeast Asian Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on Aug. 19-30.

16 EDGEDAVAO Sports

VOL. 10 ISSUE 86 • TUESDAY, AUGUST 1, 2017

FAST AND FINEST Tan, Onahon, Coloma top Yamaha GP Davao Leg

YAMAHA GRAND PRIX. Intense racing action during the 2017 Yamaha GP Davao Leg at the SM City Davao carpark in Ecoland last Sunday. Athena Jillian Bravo

By ATHENA JILLIAN BRAVO

C

arlos Tan, Ephraim Onahon and Vingie Coloma topped the 2017 Yamaha Grand Prix Davao Leg at the SM City Davao carpark on Sunday.

Carlos Tan topped the 130 Open Underbone ruling the race over Coloma (second) and Samoga (third).

Tan later came back to rule the Sniper 150 MXI over Jay Obedencia (second) and Jay-R Daguio (third).

Onahon topped the 150 Open FI besting Daguio who placed �irst runner up and Chriss Samoga who �inished second runner-up. Coloma won the 160 AT Open beating Onahon who placed second and Joe Gonzales in third.

Joel Buguin won the 115 Vega Force class besting Jay-E Lampano (second) and Arthel Dingding (third).

Gilmar Coloma won the Sniper Underbone over Mark Resada (second) and J. Galleros (third) while Kenneth Coronel won the Sniper AT FI over Chester Lampano and Ren Alfarero.

Now on its 8th year, the 2017 Yamaha Grand Prix One Make Race kicked off its season opener last Jan. 28 at Robinson’s Novaliches.

Aside from the bragging rights, race winners got cash prizes.