Edge Davao 5 Issue 242

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VOL.5 ISSUE 242 • FRIDAY - SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 08-09, 2013

Serving a seamless society

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Indulge

The Rise of the Snake

Science Page164 Page /Environment Save sea creatures with WWF’s EnviroPop! app

Is this war now?

READY FOR THE SNAKE. A worker paints a Chinese symbol at the Chinese Friendship Arc along Sta. Ana Avenue. The Friendship Arc will be turned over today to the city government in time for the start of the 3-day Chinese New Year celebration. Lean Daval Jr.

Laglagan na!

Drug courier falls Tip from unknown informant leads to arrest

By EJ Dominic Fernandez

Sports

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Ateneo faces Emar

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he arrest of a pusher who was in the act of transporting illegal drugs from Cotabato Davao City may indicate that syndicates are betraying each other, according to the Davao City Police Office (DCPO).

Toril police station commander Chief Inspector Angel Sumagay-

say said in a television interview that they were able to nab one Kader Kuting Labao, a resident of Limbo, Sultan Kudarat, because of a text message from an unknown informant.

Kader was arrested at 5:30 pm Tuesday in barangay Sirawan, Toril

Leptospirosis cases reach 28 W ith one more fatality, leptospirosis cases in Davao City have reached 28, including four deaths, from the January 21 floods to February 7.

City Health Office chief, Dr. Josephine Villafuerte, bared the information midway during yesterday’s iSpeak press

FDRUG COURIER,11

4 deaths recorded

forum that one more victim had died. She had received a call from the CHO on the matter She did not identify the fatality, for obvious CRACKDOWN. Barangay captain Amilbangsa T. Manding of Brgy. 23-C inspects one of the alleys where illegal drugs trade reasons, saying only that was reportedly rampant before the recent campaign to eradicate the problem in his area, the Mini Forest along Quezon Blvd.,

FLEPTOSPIROSIS,11

Davao City yesterday. Vice Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte gave Manding 48 hours to eliminate drug dependence in his barangay.

Lean Daval Jr.

2 THEBIGNEWS

EDGEDAVAO VM Duterte cites defect of Juvenile Justice Law

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PARTNERSHIP FOR TYPHOON PABLO VICTIMS. The city government of San Fernando in the province of Pampanga and Philippines’ AirAsia joined forces to help victims of Typhoon Pablo in Davao where relief goods composed of canned foods,

assorted clothes, personal hygiene kits and sacks of rice were shipped from Clark International Airport for distribution to affected families. AirAsia us the first airline to open the Clark-Davao route.

P17M for Phase 2 of cemetery rehab

By EJ Dominic Fernandez and Che Palicte

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HE second phase of the Wireless Cemetery rehabilitation work will start by the end of February on a budget of P17 million, according to the City Economic Enterprise (CEE) office, which means people who have buried their dead there must act accordingly.

Gerardo Castillo, officer-in-charge of cemetery operations of the CEE, said during the iSpeak press forum at the city hall building yesterday that the construction of the second phase will start within 45 days from

In 2012

AVAO City Vice Mayor Rodrigo R. Duterte took potshots anew at the Juvenile Justice Law, saying it has no provision for the after-arrest procedure for children in conflict with the law.

Speaking before 4,000 members of the League of Councilors of the Philippines at the SMX-Convention Center, Wednesday, he stressed that a minor must be put behind bars once he commits a major crime regardless of his age.

Duterte said that while imprisonment is a punitive action for adults as a form of retribution for a major offense, a minor offender is simply set free to his family, despite a grave offense.

“This child is simply out on the streets because of a dysfunctional family. Giving him up again to the same dysfunctional family would only prompt him to go out to the streets again and commit

another crime,” he pointed out.

Duterte said lawmakers should have crafted the mandatory provision of funds under the Juvenile Justice Law for the creation of correctional institutions where youth offenders could reflect on their offenses and then reform.

“The crafters of the law could have provided one to two-billion pesos to establish correctional institutions and prescribe the time for the child to spend in the correctional facility, where the stay could run from one to two years,” he said.

Duterte said the law remains silent on what to do after a crime is committed by a minor.

He said the author of the Juvenile Justice Law should have worked or served first with a local government in order to have a good grasp of the problem involving minor offenders. [PIA 11/Joey Sem G. Dalumpines]

Group urges youth to continue fight against cybercrime law

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leader of Kabataan Partylist has urged the youth to remain steadfast in opposing the controversial Cybercrime Prevention Act or Republic Act 10175.

Bai Ali Indayla, second nominee of Kabataan Partylist, issued the call Wednesday before 100 youth and students assembling at the Freedom Park, Davao City.

“The youth must courageously be at the forefront of the fight to junk the repressive cybercrime prevention law.

It is the vital role of the youth as catalyst for social change,” she said in an interview.

The youth group led a protest rally to call for participation in the campaign to abolish the cybercrime law, noting that the Supreme Court’s (SC) decision to extend indefinitely the temporary restraining order (TRO) manifested that “through militant and united action, victory can be achieved.”

The TRO extension was issued Tuesday, a day before the end of the 150-day stay order issued last October, following protests and 15 petitions filed with the high tribunal.

The petitioners have

January 15.

Castillo called on people with dead relatives and friends buried in the cemetery to exhume their dead before the start of construction, saying we need to clear all the niches and tombs in the area, which is why they should go to our office or the cemetery for more information.”

“This way, they will be able to witness the exhumation themselves because we know how important the remains of their dead are in the Filipino culture,” Catillo said.

“This way, there won’t be

any trouble during exhumation, so that not only the dead will have peace, but also the living who will be there.”

According to program of the City Engineers Office, there will be 940 units of niches and 8,148 ossuaries to be constructed in the area.

“Because the cemetery is already 110 years old, certainly, there will be dead bodies which may not be claimed anymore,” Castillo said, adding, “which is why we will make sure that unclaimed skeletons

will be wrapped in black plastic bags and placed in a temporary bone area with their names if ever someone claims them.”

During phase one of the rehab, some 3,000 bodies were exhumed, 1,368 of which were placed in the ossuaries, according to Castillo, who added, “based on the recommendation of the office, the next cemetery that will be rehabilitated will be the one in Toril Lubogan, the biggest public cemetery in Davao City with a total area of eight hectares, followed by the one in Panacan.”

top among the cases, with 659 as reported to the IGDD,” Canson said, adding that the least were unjust vexation and legal advice which got one reports each.

She added that sexual or physical violence are not the only forms of abuse against women and children, it may also be in the form of economic deprivation or political persecution which affects more than 60 percent of Filipino women

who are peasants, workers, indigenous women, urban poor and overseas Filipino working women.

“Millions of women can’t find work; thousands of them are forced to leave their children and families to work in foreign countries. Three women were murdered in 2012 because of their political beliefs,” she added.

Canson noted that violence against women

PCL CONVENTION. Vice Mayor Rody Duterte addresses the delegates during the Philippine Councilors League Convention held at SM Lanang Premier’s SMX Convention Centre in Lanang, Davao City Wednesday evening. Lean Daval Jr.

Over 1,000 VAWC cases

FGROUP, 11

By Che Palicte

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ver 1,000 cases of violence against women and children (VAWC) were reported to City Mayor’s Integrated Gender and Development Division (IGDD) in 2012.

This was bared by Gabriela chairperson emeritus Lyda Canson at the weekly Ispeak forum at the city hall building of Davao yesterday. Exactly 1,015 cases of violence were reported in 2012.

“Economic abuse was

FIN 2012, 11

EDGEDAVAO

SUBURBIA

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2 suspects in vice mayor killing charged P

olice in North Cotabato filed on Thursday murder complaints against two of the alleged killers of Kabacan vice-mayor Policronio Dulay.

Sr. Insp. Rodel Calo, head of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Team (CIDT) North Cotabato, identified the suspects as Jomar Pulindao Utala, 26, and Batong Magalib, both residents of Barangay Madidis in Datu Paglas, Maguindanao.

Of the two, only Utala was arrested and was placed under the custody of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) in Kidapawan City.

Calo said Utala was apprehended last week during a highway check in Kabacan town for carrying unlicensed ammunition from a .45 caliber pistol. He was immediately locked at the Kabacan Jail.

Authorities, however, found out Utala has fit to the description given

previously by a lone witness to the Dulay’s killing.

Without delay, Calo said they asked the witness to confirm if it was Utala that pumped bullets into Dulay’s chest on Jan. 11.

The witness, a worker in one of the establishments in Kabacan town, claimed he was just few feet away from where Dulay was killed. Calo said the other suspect was also identified by the witness when he was shown photos of few most wanted persons who could possibly execute the killing. Magalib, allegedly the driver of the getaway vehicle, is still the subject of their manhunt After gathering the needed information, the CIDG-led Task Force Dulay, filed the necessary charges against the two.

Calo said much has yet to be done to identify the mastermind in the killing.

Last Jan. 11, Dulay was set to board his motorcycle parked outside a department store in Po-

COCO LUMBER. A worker in Barangay Cogonon, New Bataan in Compostela Valley cuts lumber from coconut trees felled by the recent Typhoon Pablo. [MindaNews /Erwin Mascarinas]

blacion, Kabacan, when the suspect shot him thrice on the chest and

stomach.

They fled immediately and headed towards Pikit

325 school kids in 2 Pablo-hit brgys get gifts from Tagum Cooperative

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hristmas ended late in January this year for 325 public schoolchildren in typhoon Pablo-hit barangays of Busaon, Tagum City and Sta. Cruz, New Corella in Davao del Norte when Tagum Cooperative handed them gift-laden bags.

A total of 150 schoolchildren in Busaon Elementary School and 175 in Sta. Cruz Elementary School each received a knapsack loaded with two pencils, two notebooks, one eraser, one solo set of crayon, one grade pad, one hand towel

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motive in the killing since Dulay, a reelectionist, has no known enemies.[PNA]

SouthCot gets P93 million to energize remote villages

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he national government has approved an additional grant and two pieces of under- trators of both schools, we can still continue with wear during the gift-giving to assist schoolchildren our studies with the help of P93 million to South sortie of Tagum Coopera- to go on with their studies of Tagum Cooperative)” Cotabato province to fund the energization this year tive on January 15 and on as their families had been Pereyras said in her talk. of several remote commuJanuary 30, respectively. affected by the wrath tyIn the gift-giving nities in Lake Sebu town.

Added to their load of phoon Pablo. sortie in Busaon, Pereyras South Cotabato (2nd gifts was a pair slippers It shelled out about brought along with her District) Rep. Daisy that Tagum Cooperative P65,000 to purchase the members of the Board of Avance-Fuentes said she also gave to each of them gift items duly approved Directors Monica L. Salido, was informed by the Deon top of the small amount by the members of the Merriam R. Baluyo, Fe J. partment of Budget and of cash prizes handed to Board of Directors under Adlawon, and Tagum Co- Management (DBM) that the quick kid who came the helm of Tagum Coop- operative General Manag- it has endorsed the fundout fast in responding to erative Board of Director er Biogen Yagong. ing and implementation games.

Chairperson Norma R. PeLeading the gift-giving this year of the proposed Tagum Cooperative reyras. in Sta. Cruz, Pereyras was electrification projects in went out of its way dis“Luyo sa nahitabo, accompanied by members 30 sitios of Barangay Ned tributing gifts to the two makapadayon kita sa of the Board of Director in Lake Sebu.

She said the projects typhoon Pablo-hit baran- pag-eskwela sa tabang Salido, Baluyo and Albert gays in response to ap- sa Tagum Cooperative. M. Omega. [Tagum Coop- would be implemented under the national govpeals of school adminis- (Despite what happened, erative] ernment’s expanded Sitio Electrification Program (SEP).

“This is on top of the of the undivided Cotabato the supply!” he wrote for Quevedo said in his con- P40 million that was earempire, founded the paper the 60th anniversary of gratulatory message. marked for the province as part of the Oblates of the Mindanao CROSS five “All these achieve- this year for sitio electrifiMary Immaculate (OMI) years ago. ments are due to God who cation,” Fuentes said. mission in Mindanao.

Sixty-five years later, guides and enables all She said the P93 milTan especially thanked the paper sells for P10 per human efforts. Whatever lion grant for Barangay the paper’s readers and piece, and is\ getting most has been accomplished Ned’s electrification will advertisers for helping it of its income not from the flow from a vision of reli- be sourced from the govsurvived for 65 years. circulation but from ad- gious faith that has to be ernment’s 2012 savings On its editorial for this vertisements. engage with the burning week’s issue, the paper Based in Cotabato City, issues of the day in the while the P40 million will said that aside from main- the paper has a rich re- political, economic, social, come from the area’s regtaining its circulation and pository of events in the [and] cultural fields. That ular electrification allotreadership, a major factor Autonomous Region in vision of faith includes ment for this year.

Fuentes earlier said for its survival could have Muslim Mindanao and Re- respect for human dignibeen its ”having continu- gion 12 or Southwestern ty and justice, respect for the project involves the ally espoused the intrinsic Mindanao. other religions, respect for installation of transmisvalues of integrity, credi“As the Mindanao integrity and truth. This sion lines that will conbility and commitment to CROSS celebrates its 65th vision is the guiding light nect Barangay Ned to the the community.” anniversary, it can look of the Mindanao Cross,” he province’s power grid.

In 1950, Cotabato back with pride at its added.

She said it also covers Archbishop Orlando Que- achievements: its numerQuevedo, former pres- the installation of power vedo, then an altar boy, re- ous national journalistic ident of the Catholic Bish- lines within the project called that the paper sells and media awards, its con- ops’ Conference of the area and in the identified for 10 centavos per copy. tributions to the education Philippines, lauded the household-beneficiaries.

“If I sold all my [50] of the reading public, its OMI for their vision of the The project would be copies I would earn P25, promotion of dialogue and role of the Catholic paper implemented by power in those days a lot of mon- harmony between peoples in the context of other re- distribution utility South ey for a first year high of various religions, [and] ligions, particularly Islam. Cotabato I Electric Coopschool boy. Thank God, the its fostering of lasting and [Bong S. Sarmiento/Min- erative, which handles the demand quickly overran just peace in our region,” daNews] province’s electrification

Mindanao’s oldest Catholic paper turns 65 he Mindanao CROSS, the oldest running Catholic weekly newspaper in Mindanao, turned 65th years old Wednesday.

Eva Kimpo-Tan, The Mindanao CROSS editor-in-chief, said “The Little Paper With a Big Cause” is looking forward to play a bigger community role in the coming years especially with the positive development in the Mindanao peace process.

“We will continue to be involved in explaining and clarifying things especially in relation to the Bangsamoro issue while we maintain our Catholic character,” she told MindaNews.

Copies of The Mindanao CROSS from a donated printing press first hit the streets on February 6, 1948. Oblate missionary Fr. Gerard Mongeau, who became the first bishop

highway after the killing, reports said. Authorities have hinted politics as the

projects under the SEP. The national government had tapped local electric cooperatives as the main implementers of SEP, with the Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Electrification Administration (NEA) as supervising agencies.

Last year, NEA allocated a total of P6.27 billion for the implementation of SEP, with P3.7 billion coming from its 2012 budget and P2.57 billion from the national government.

Fuentes said they had identified Barangay Ned as priority beneficiary for the SEP to complement with the ongoing implementation of various development projects in the area.

Barangay Ned is the biggest barangay in the municipality of Lake Sebu with a total land area of 21,246.27 hectares or approximately 46 percent of the entire town.

The village, which hosts several coal mining projects and agribusiness production areas, has remained without electricity due to its inaccessibility and distance to the power transmission lines.

The remote location and inaccessibility of the barangay has hampered the development of infrastructure and delivery of services.

A number of diesel-powered generator sets were operating in some parts of the area but they only serve around 100 households and were considered unstable due to the rising cost of fuel.

[Allen V. Estabillo/MindaNews]

EDGEDAVAO 4 SCIENCE/ENVIRONMENT Save sea creatures with WWF’s EnviroPop! app VOL.5 ISSUE 242 • FRIDAY - SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 08-09, 2013

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hether you’re an anemone-loving Clownfish, seagrass-grazing Dugong or acrobatic Spinner Dolphin – you’re still susceptible to cyanide puffs, dynamite blasts and a host of deadly marine threats.

The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Philippines needs your help to fight undersea hazards through EnviroPop, a digital application that entertains and educates users about the need to address the impacts of marine pollutants.

Launched by WWF-Philippines and AppLabs Digital Studios on Wednesday, 6 February 2013, EnviroPop is the first puzzle application that allows users to rescue endangered species from a host of sea hazards like cyanide bottles, dynamite sticks, oil drums, PET bottles, and trawl nets.

Your goal is to clear the sea of these threats to save six WWF characters – Bobby theButanding,

Clara the Clownfish, Doogie the Dugong, Gary the Grouper, Pattie the Pawikan and Dolly the Dol-

phin.

Players have one minute to eliminate threats by tapping and swiping on three or more hazards across the screen. The more hazards eliminated, the higher the score.

The app, the first in the WWF global network, also arms players with ample knowledge of WWF’s

priority species plus the impacts of pollutants plus unsustainable fishing practices on marine biodiversity.

Says Honey Carmona, WWF-Philippines Individual Donor Program Officer, “One of the highlights of EnviroPop is Enviropedia, an interesting repository of information that kids

and turnover to TESDA. TESDA, on the other hand, will recruit and train workers to manufacture them into arm chairs.

JFC for its part, committed itself by pursuing its advocacy of promoting the strengthening of the educational system in our country, including providing P2 million fund to cover the expenses for the manufacture of the said arm chairs by TESDA trainees and workers.

The DepEd, with the assistance of Jollibee, will then identify the beneficiary schools of the said arm chairs.

DENR secretary Ramon Paje said that the DENR initiated the

move so that illegal logs confiscated will not be available anymore to bidders for reason that sometimes those who win in the bidding come from the camps of the illegal loggers themselves.

He added that the project is timely, adding that “the one among those who will seat in the arm chair could be the future president of our country.”

Paje stressed that the primary beneficiaries of the project as such were the underprivileged sectors who were greatly affected and victimized by illegal loggers.

He also said that the school chairs will be written with old sayings about values that will

contribute to the learning and development of the school children and will be distributed in the coming school opening on June 13 of this year.

DepEd secretary Armin Luistro, on the other hand, said that DepEd will pay off the DENR by mobilizing its students to plant 1 billion native trees nationwide in support of the greening program of our country.

TESDA secretary Joel Villanueva said that the novelty and relevance of the project will help in providing skills development of TESDA trainees and workers who will generate income through projects like this.

[PNA]

and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA).

He noted such outlook from PAGASA is consistent with international models that also project above-normal temperature in Southeast Asia and other parts of Asia during the period. ”Our discomfort from warmer-than-usual temperature is expected to be more frequent,” he said.

PAGASA expects the February-March 2013 pe-

riod to be marked by prevalence of cold fronts propagating eastward aside from possible occurrence of cold surge. Cold front is “the boundary along the leading edge of a cold air mass that is pushing out a warm air mass,” noted PAGASA. The agency also projects the prevailing cool northeast monsoon to gradually weaken “until its termination in March 2013.” Easterly winds will

afterwards prevail most of the time in the country during April and May, PAGASA continued. ”Around May, we’ll possibly begin experiencing downpours as the country’s rainy season starts around such time,” Lucero noted. PAGASA further reported near-normal to above-normal rainfall can be generally expected in the Philippines in the coming months. [PNA]

and grown-ups will enjoy reading.”

More importantly, EnviroPop provides a mechanism for players to donate to WWF-Philippines. EnviroPop’s full version is available for download on iTunes for only $0.99 (roughly Php 40.00). Proceeds will go to WWF-Philippines marine

conservation programs.

“The Philippines sits at the apex of the Coral Triangle, the world’s epicenter for marine life.

With millions of Filipinos depending on the sea for food, livelihood and ecotourism – it’s imperative that we prioritize marine conservation,” concludes Carmona.

DENR, Tesda lead in addressing TV5 launches shortfall of public school chairs Project Life Boat-e

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hree key government agencies linked together Wednesday with Jollibee Food Corporation (JFC) in addressing the problem of shortage of school arm chairs.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), Department of Education (DepEd) jointly signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with JFC in the production of chairs for the underprivileged schools in the country.

Under the agreement, illegal logs confiscated by the DENR will be converted into lumber

PAGASA eyes warmer temperature until May

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uthorities expect the country to heat up until May this year and it’s not just because of frenzy over the forthcoming mid-term polls. ”Temperature during the period will probably be warmer than usual,” said Anthony Lucero, Officer-in-Charge of the Climate Information, Monitoring and Prediction Section under State-run Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical

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V5 Davao is launching a special project that responds to the present time that calls for everyone to be environmentally-aware and disaster-ready.

Project Life Boate, aims to stir awareness on waste management through recycling of plastic bottles; disaster Risk Management through the barangay’s preparedness program; Barangay programs competitiveness.

It also is also seen as a potential livelihood avenue for communities in Davao villages which will be the Kapatid Network’s partner in the implementation of the project.

The target communities MatinaPangi, Talomo, MatinaAplaya, BagoAplaya, Matina Crossing, Los Amigos, Calinan, Lizada in Toril—the same villages that are frequently experiencing flood.

In June 30, the villages of MatinaPangi and Talomo were the hardest hit by the flood that killed more than 30, most of them children.

“The Project Life Boat-e is inspired by the prototype life raft being used by many flood victims themselves.

TV5 believes that if all barangays in Davao will have the capability to rescue and protect the residents through the availability of improvised raft boats, like the Life Boat-e, more lives will be saved during water calamities,” said TaynaMiclat, station manager of TV5-Davao.

Project Life Boat-e hopes to help and support flood-prone communities build their own life rafts or boats that can be used during floods. Rafts can only carry about 6-8 people while makeshift rafts or boats can carry as much as 20 people.

Communities are then asked to collect empty plastic bottles which will be turned into life rafts.

“These barangays will also be encouraged to build plastic boats to sell to barangays in other cities or municipalities. Or those who have the knowhow on how to make the plastic boats will be asked to assist in training other barangays to multiply the number of participating barangays to the project,” the project paper said.

With this, Miclat said, the flood-prone villages will “standby life raft and/or boat made of plastic bottles to save lives and properties in case of floods.”

“This also calls for a collective effort from all the members of the community. The participation of everyone—from mothers, the youth, and everyone—is needed,” she said.

Along with the project, TV5 will also be conducting trainings on disaster and risk reduction to be spearheaded by PLDT and Coast Guard. Also supporting the project are SMART, Phoenix, Jaycees-Kadayawan and Kiwanis.

EDGEDAVAO

THE ECONOMY 5 Car importers, manufacturers project 11% growth in 2013

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gainst the backdrop of renewed investors confidence and strong macroeconomic fundamentals, the car importer and manufacturer groups were optimistic to sustain the 11 percent growth that the automotive industry has recorded in 2012.

“The economy is doing well. This is a good sign for the auto industry. The year 2012 was a good one and I believe, 2013 is another good year,” CAMPI President Rommel Gutierrez said as he expressed his

“conservative estimate” that the industry would grow between 10 – 11 percent during the year.

For her part, Ma. Fe Perez-Agudo, President of ADVIL, said “we project an increase on our sales from between 10 – 20 percent and I hope that Filipino consumer spending will remain favorable.” ADVIL sold a total of 28,000 cars in 2012.“We project there will be higher demand for new vehicles in 2013. We are looking forward to exciting models to come out during the year,” she add-

WINNER. Bank of the Philippine Islands has won for the 6th time the Best Domestic Bank for the Philippines category in the 2012 Triple A Country Awards for Southeast Asia, given by The Asset. The Asset Triple A Awards are Asia’s defining recognition for excellence in the industry and well Into its second decade.

This reputation has been built upon the stringent methodolo-

ed.

This was echoed by Mr. Gutierrez who said that “in anticipation for more demands, CAMPI plans to increase its output and that new car models will be introduced to the market this year.

Speaking during the first Usapang AAP held at the AAP headquarters in Greenhills on Thursday, both Agudo and Gutierrez batted for more consistent and transparent government policy to help sustain the growth of the industry. [PNA]

gy, combined with the rigorous approach to the selection of the winners of the coveted Triple A. The awards are adjudicated

by The Asset’s Board of Editors. The award was received by Senior Vice President and Head of Global Banking Head, Antonio V. Paner.

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THE ECONOMY

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EDGEDAVAO

2012 net income Day-to-day banking transactions BPI placed at P16.3 billion made easier thru ‘UCPB Connect’ T

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he United Coconut Planters Bank (UCPB), one of the leading providers of financial products and services to public and private institutions in the country, reaffirms its commitment to provide excellent customer service and further enhance day-to-day banking transactions through UCPB Connect, an online facility meant to provide banking flexibility and convenience to clients.

UCPB Connect is a stateof-the-art technology that allows clients to access the bank’s services 24 hours a day for seven days a week and perform essential banking transactions such as paying bills, transferring funds, viewing balances

or ordering checks even at the comfort of their own homes, offices or anywhere else that has access to the internet.

The bank further enhances this platform by adding the UCPB Mobile Phone Banking Service on its UCPB Connect facility allowing consumers to perform banking transactions with complete ease and convenience through their mobile phones.

“Mobile phones are now an integral part of modern living. Phones have become a necessity to keeping everyone connected with their family, friends and colleagues despite everyone’s busy schedule. We, in UCPB, want our clients to always enjoy this “always

connected” lifestyle when it comes to their banking transactions. And with mobile internet, we can fulfill our commitment to deliver excellent service and bring the bank closer to our clients,” said Erica Diago, UCPB Product Manager.

To ensure security of the accounts from online threats, UCPB Connect is equipped with a two-factor authentication feature which double-checks if the true owner of the account is the one performing the transaction.

UCPB clients with or without an existing UCPB Connect account are encouraged to avail of this Mobile Phone Banking Service.

For UCPB Connect accountholders, enrolling for the

Mobile Phone Banking Service comes easy by sending the registration for the service using their existing account. Non-account holders, meanwhile, can visit the bank’s website at www. ucpb.com to create a UCPB Connect account as a first step to avail the service.

Successful registrants could download the UCPB Mobile Banking App from the Apple App Store for iPhone users, while Java Phone users could visit the link provided in the text message that confirms the successful registration.

For more information on the bank’s online and mobile banking services, customers may log on to www.ucpb.com or may also call (02) 811-9111.

he Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) posted strong business volume and revenue growth in 2012 as the Philippines likewise grew at a faster pace compared to other Asean economies. BPI’s unaudited net income for full year 2012 reached P16.3 billion, a 27% increase over the P12.8 billion posted in 2011. This translated to a Return on Equity of 17.5% and a Return on Assets of 1.9%.

Total resources reached P985 billion or 17% higher than the previous year as the Bank’s core businesses remained solid. Deposits expanded by a healthy 18% to P802 billion while assets under management was P743 billion or 11% higher, bringing total intermediated funds to P1.5 trillion.

The net loan portfo-

lio increased by 16% to P527 billion as all markets sustained double digit growths: 17% for both the consumer segment and the middle market/SMEs, and 12% for the top tier corporates. Asset quality continued to improve with its 30-day NPL ratio down to 1.46% from last year’s 1.87%.

Net interest income rose by 6% as the average asset base went up by P64 billion. Net interest margin had a slight 10 bps contraction as spreads were challenged following the 100 bps cut in policy rates last year as well as the non remuneration of banks’ reserve requirement deposits with the BSP. Non-interest income was 25% better mainly due to higher trading gain on securities sold, other operating income, and fees & commissions.

Tattoo@Home Broadband offers the ‘power of FREE’

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ATTOO@Home again introduces another first in the broadband industry by offering subscribersFREE unlimited landline to mobile calls to Globe and TM. This is on top of the FREE monthly service fee and FREE Globe NDD already offered before, making it now the best value-for-money broadband bundle.

“Tattoo@Home has always espoused that an internet connection is an enabler for greatness, especially for the whole family. This is why we need to make broadband as accessible as possible to ev-

eryone. Why ask people to pay double for two services --- landline and home internet --- that run on the same line? ” says Jurist Gamban, Head of Tattoo@Home Broadband.

Gamban further explains that the landline is the lifeline of any household and it serves as a reliable link between working parents and their children.

It connects them to the househelp and the nannies who look after their kids.

However, the cost of calling a mobile phone from a landline has prevented this lifeline to be used as often as necessary.

IN DEMAND. A high school student fits a suit he will be using for their upcoming Junior and Senior Prom, at a gown and suit rental establishment along E. Quirino Avenue last night. The services of establishments in the gown and suit rental business are in demand during the love month due mainly to successive activities in schools such as JS Prom and Valentine’s Day. Lean Daval Jr.

7 Nationwide production of mushroom pushed EDGEDAVAO

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AGRITRENDS

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multi-purpose cooperative founded in Pangasinan is pushing for increased mushroom production nationwide to ensure sufficiency of this product and enable the country to save on foreign exchange.

Buenaventura Abalos, chairman of the board of the Balikatan Multi-Purpose Cooperative with head office in Barangay San Angel, Rosales in Pangasinan, said his group has now members as far as some areas in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

Abalos said the cooperative is set to build a P23-million mushroom processing plant in Rosales and expects the Department of Agriculture to provide 70 percent of the cost at P16.1 million.

The rest of the cost at P6.9 million or 30 percent will be bankrolled by the cooperative as its equity.

Abalos said Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala has already approved the project which is expected to be realized shortly if not after the election. He said in order to achieve food sufficiency in mushroom, the country must have a modern mushroom processing plant.

The plant will have among others such as

drying facilities as well as for canning and a modern laboratory for the production of mushroom spawns. The spawns would be disseminated in

various parts of the country to drum up interest of Filipino households in mushroom raising.

Initially, members of the Balikatan multi-pur-

pose cooperative produces oyster mushrooms that could be raised in a dry place in any part of the home, using only farm wastes such as hay, saw dust, leaves of trees and others.

He said the processing plant is expected to be the most modern mushroom processing plant throughout the country that will supply the increasing demands for mushrooms of the Filipinos.

“We will make the

country self-sufficient in mushrooms in a few years so that we will no longer depend on imported mushrooms,” said Abalos, noting that the canned mushrooms being sold in malls and supermarkets are coming from China.

Statistics shows that to date, the country is importing P2 billion worth of mushrooms from China when in fact the Filipinos, by working together in their spare times, can

produce their own mushrooms, he added.

Abalos and members of his cooperative are now also conducting seminars and training on mushroom culture in various parts of the country in their bid to transfer technology to as many households in urban and rural areas.

“We must empower the Filipino households so that they can produce their own food at home,” Abalos said. [PNA]

He said since Secretary Alcala took hold of the DA, he introduced several innovations in the farms to boost harvest for the country to achieve its targeted rice sufficiency.

The DA is now giving farm tools and machinery, like irrigation pumps, tractors and threshers to farmers on an 85 to 15 per cent cost-sharing basis, from 50-50 ratio during the past few years, so farmers can use these in their farms and increase their harvests.

Confirming that the Philippines scored a bumper rice harvest in 2012, Gonzales said that Dubai is only one of the countries in the Middle East lined up to accommodate glutinous rice produced by Filipino farmers.

Glutinous rice is soft and is often used as alternative to flour, thus it costs double than the ordinary rice being sold in the market, said Gonzales.

He said while the country is eyeing to export rice, the DA at the same time is promoting less family rice consumption by discouraging people not to overfeed themselves.

The normal rice consumption per person per year is supposed to be only 60 to 70 kilos but at present, each Filipino is averaging 120 kilos a year.

There are other alternative sources of carbohydrates needed by the body other than rice, he said, pointing out camote or sweet potato, banana, cassava and others which have the same food nutrient as rice.[PNA]

Philippines to export glutinous rice in 2013

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n official of the Department of Agriculture (DA) has assured that under normal circumstances, the Philippines will not only be sufficient in rice but will also be exporting part of its harvest to the Middle East before the end of this year.

Eduardo Gonzales, technical director for regulation and research, said targeted to be first exported by the end of this year is the glutinous rice called Basmate set to be initially shipped to Dubai.

Gonzales confirmed previous statements of Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala that the Philippines will not only be sufficient in rice but will also be joining the ranks of rice exporting countries this year.

8 VANTAGEPOINTS

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EDGEDAVAO

Finding Australia’s best wine ( 1st of two parts ) Special Feature

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Pooled Editorial

This war against drugs

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AVAO City police chief Ronald Dela Rosa has hurled one word at those involved in illegal drugs, whether as users, or pushers: War! Last week’s incident, in which a policeman involved in the illegal drugs trade was shot dead during a buy-bust operation, had prompted Dela Rosa’s declaration to go all out in the fight against illegal drugs in Davao.

Since his bold declaration, two pushers have been arrested. The latest to fall was a drug courier from Cotabato who was caught in possession of shabu at a checkpoint in Toril yesterday.

Alright, the war is just beginning and Dela Rosa hopes to get his message across quick. But what he has in mind is not the small-time type in which success is measured by just a mere packet of shabu and a few suspects placed behind bars. There certainly are more of these dregs of society out there than just those nabbed at checkpoints.

It used to be that Davao City was the most dangerous place for drug users and pushers. Dela Rosa needs to bring back that tag.

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The war against drugs will have to actively involve certain barangays where notorious drug dealers perpetrate their illegal activities. Dela Rosa has singled out Barangay 23-C as among the hotspots of the illegal drugs trade in the city. It is ironic that this barangay is located in the heart of the city where one of the biggest police stations is located -- in Sta. Ana. If the police are dead serious about this war, Dela Rosa needs to multiply his dedication and rub it off on his men.

Illegal activities sometimes happen under the noses of our cops. Let us not forget that Davao’s vaunted iron fist stance against illegal drugs in particular, and crime in general, as a means of promoting peace and order has keyed the surge in the city’s economy.

Only recently, the City Treasurer’s Office cited the city government’s peace and order campaign as instrumental in keying the upswing of the city’s revenues.

That makes this war very crucial. If we fail in this campaign, we will lose the momentum we are enjoying now.

ANTONIO M. AJERO Editor in Chief

ALBERTO DALILAN Managing

NEILWIN L. BRAVO Sports and Motoring ARLENE D. PASAJE Cartoons

RAMON M. MAXEY Consultant

KENNETH IRVING K. ONG Creative Solutions

GREGORIO G. DELIGERO Associate

LEANDRO S. DAVAL JR. • JOSEPH LAWRENCE P. GARCIA Photography

EJ DOMINIC FERNANDEZ • CHE D. PALICTE Reporters

ANTHONY S. ALLADA • AQUILES Z. ZONIO Staff Writers

Columnists: MA. TERESA L. UNGSON • EDCER C. ESCUDERO • AURELIO A. PEñA • ZHAUN ORTEGA • BERNADETTE “ADDIE” B. BORBON • MARY ANN “ADI” C. QUISIDO • LEANDRO B. DAVAL SR., • NIKKI GOTIANSE-TAN • NICASIO ANGELO AGUSTIN • EMILY ZEN CHUA • CARLOS MUNDA Economic Analyst: ENRICO “GICO” G. DAYANGIRANG • JONALLIER M. PEREZ

SOLANI D. MARATAS Finance

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By TIFFANY HOY

he race is on to select the best of the best of Australian wine at the Sydney Royal Wine Show this week -- with the pick of the bunch headed for China’s most sophisticated cellars and dinner parties.

This year’s competition attracted 2,345 entries across different classes, representing nearly every wine region in Australia.

After four days of intense tasting, the judges will decide the winners of 37 trophies and medals for each class, with the national ‘best of shows’ to be announced on February 14.

“I think because this wine show is open to all wine regions in Australia, and we do get all wine regions exhibiting, we’re going to see the best that Australia has to offer -whether it’s Margaret River Cabernet or Chardonnay, Barossa Shiraz, McLaren Vale Shiraz, Hunter Valley Semillon, Yarra Valley Pinot and Chardonnay, sparkling wine from Tasmania -- we see all these great wines come through the show.

“We do see the full range that Australia makes, and if they’re good enough, they’ll get rewarded,” Chairman of Judges Iain Riggs told Xinhua.

At stake for the winemakers is the right to display a gold, silver or bronze medal on their label, making it easier for new drinkers to pick out the gems in the crowded wine market.

“Out of 2,400 entries, only 4 percent or 5 percent will get gold medals. It’s a very exacting and rigorous task, reviewing all these wines,” said Riggs.

“It’s a bit like a stamp of approval: the wine has been through a very strict process of getting to the top and is the best that we can find,” he added.

Each wine is judged without labels to ensure impartiality, and the judging room is kept at a cool 20 degrees Celsius to keep the wine from getting too warm and obscuring subtle nuances of flavor.

As head judge, Riggs will lead five panels of industry experts to examine and grade each entry in the 79 judging classes.

“Australian winemakers and consumers really are looking for wines of finesse and balance, and I think this will flow out to all parts of the world -- China in particular,” said Riggs.

China is fast becoming Australia’s largest wine export partner, with Australian reds a particular hit with the Chinese palette.

France, Spain, Chile, Australia and Italy are currently the major sources of China’s wine imports, accounting for 82 percent of the total.

In the first half of 2012, China Customs reports that the nation imported 200 million litres of wine -- valued at 1. 11 billion U.S. dollars.

EDGEDAVAO

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Obama’s dicey license to kill

ast night, NBC News investigative reporter Michael Isikoff published a revelatory article based on an undated 16-page Department of Justice “white paper,” representing the arguments contained in classified memos produced by the Obama administration that describe the criteria that must be met before the administration plans the killing of a U.S. citizen.

Who would have surrendered such a sensitive document about the president’s “kill list” to NBC News?

It’s a valid question, and a little bit silly at the same time. Not to diminish the intrepid reporting of Isikoff — who should be made the grand marshal of the next Tournament of Roses Parade for his scoop — but Washington often leaks in directions to further stoke policy fires that are already burning. (See this taxonomy of leaks compiled by Stephen Hess.)

Such a Washington fire has been burning for many months, with Congress demanding that the Obama administration explain its targeted killings of U.S. citizens. Yesterday, before the Isikoff story broke, 11 senators sent the president a formal request that any and all legal opinions devised by the White House about the targeting of citizens be forwarded to the Judiciary and Intelligence Committees.

This request makes the senators, or members of their staffs, prime suspects of the leak. Isikoff’s story does not discourage that interpretation. He reports that the leaked white paper was given to “members of the Senate Intelligence and Judiciary committees in June by administration officials” and that a “source with access to the white paper, which is not classified, provided a copy to NBC News.”

Like any good journalist, Isikoff squirts ink in the water to help camouflage a possible source by quoting the boilerplate outrage of the deputy legal director of the ACLU about the white paper. The ACLU has sued the administration for the memos, Isikoff reports, leaving the care-

COMMENTARY

By JACK SHAFER

ful reader to speculate that perhaps the ACLU obtained the white paper and gave it to him.

The timing of the leak inspires further speculation. President Obama’s nominee for CIA director, John Brennan, goes to Capitol Hill on Thursday for his confirmation hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee. Depending on how you torque it, the leaked white paper arguably gives drone-architect Brennan a little breathing room by blunting the demands for the classified documents. That’s the sentiment behind a statement issued by Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) today, in which she says the white paper (and other documents and briefings) have allowed the Intelligence Committee, which she chairs, “to conduct appropriate and probing oversight into the use of lethal force.” Or, the leak could enrage other senators who feel that the administration hasn’t been sufficiently candid with them, and prompt them to draw Brennan and the administration into a memo showdown. As Josh Gerstein reported yesterday in Politico, Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), a member of the Intelligence Committee, had previously promised to press Brennan on the targeted killing policy.

If Wyden decides to make good on the promise, he has plenty of ammunition. The leaked white paper, titled “Lawfulness of a Lethal Operation Directed Against a U.S. Citizen who is a Senior Operational Leader of Al Qa’ida or An Associated Force,” cannot and should not be read as the complete operating instructions for the kill list. But it portrays an administration prepared to justify the killing of U.S. citizens on gut feelings. Here’s the language from the white paper, emphasis added: [I]t would be lawful for the United States to conduct a lethal operation outside the United States against a U.S. citizen

who is a senior, operational leader of alQa’ida or an associated force of al-Qa’ida without violating the Constitution or the federal statutes discussed in this white paper under the following conditions: (1) aninformed, high-level official of the U.S. government has determined that the targeted individual poses an imminent threat of violent attack against the United States; (2) capture is infeasible, and the United States continues to monitor whether capture becomes feasible …

Who are these “informed, high-level officials”? What constitutes a determination? What is an “imminent threat of violent attack”? “Infeasible”? Isikoff highlights other squishy language in the white paper, noting that it fails to define such crucial terms as “recently” or “activities” when arguing that an informed, high-level official can determine when a targeted American has been “recently” involved in “activities” posing the threat of a violent attack. U.S. Judge Colleen McMahon similarly objected to the administration’s lack of rigor last month, as Isikoff notes, in her ruling to a lawsuit filed by the New York Times and the ACLU. The administration, she wrote, has discussed the killings “in cryptic and imprecise ways, generally without citing … any statute or court decision that justifies its conclusions.”

If the white paper accurately describes how the administration adds a U.S. citizen to the kill list, the Intelligence Committee would be wise to ask Brennan if the Sept.

30, 2011, targeted killing of U.S. citizen Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen conformed to these standards. It probably doesn’t. As my colleague Mark Hosenball reported in an Oct. 5, 2011, Reuters piece, “officials acknowledged that some of the intelligence purporting to show Awlaki’s hands-on role in plotting attacks was patchy.”

If U.S. citizens can be whacked based on hunches, suspicions, belief and patchy fragments of intelligence by unnamed, high-level officials, let Brennan say so. Or assign him to write a more explicit white paper defending the policy.

The knots of development

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hy are so many poor countries stuck with huge economic problems? Why, for example, are there so many unemployed young people in Egypt – 41 percent of 19-24 year-olds?

The poor state of British housing can help answer these questions.

By developing world standards, the British housing system works quite well.

In Egypt, it takes 77 bureaucratic procedures in 31 offices, and between six and 14 years, to get legal approval for construction of a new house, according to the 2012 doctoral dissertation of Abdel Hamid El Kafrawy of the University of Glasgow. The result: housing is in chronically short supply and 65 percent of the population live in unregistered and untaxed buildings.

For a rich country, though, the UK does remarkably badly. Construction has been inadequate, at half the modest target rate set by the government in 2007. The relatively few new houses and apartments which are built are mostly relatively small – new American houses have almost three times as much floor space and new French houses have 45 percent more, according

( 1st of two parts ) OPINION

By EDWARD HADAS to a 2009 study by the British Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment. And rental and mortgage payments for these under-sized living quarters take a higher share of income in the UK than almost other developed country.

There is no simple explanation of what’s wrong. Rather, many strands are knotted up into one big mess. The list of problems include: a government-mandated decline in the supply of inexpensive “social” housing; the common belief of most politicians and current and wouldbe homeowners that house prices should always rise faster than national income; a property tax system which reflects that ultimately self-destructive desire; irresponsible lending practices; asphyxiating planning rules; high land prices which encourage builders to think small; and a shortage of skilled craftsmen.

A strong dictatorship could try to resolve all these issues with a series of de-

crees: ordering more construction, allocating housing, importing craftsmen, setting rents and so forth. However, no government could manage to do all that well, even if it did not have to worry about dissatisfied citizens. In a democracy, where such worries are paramount, substantial changes are all but impossible. While almost everyone in Britain agrees that more, larger and cheaper houses are desirable in principle, homeowners do not want the value of their own properties to fall and few people welcome new construction in their neighbourhoods.

British housing is not the only example of a knotty problem in a highly developed economy. U.S. medical care is expensive and the results are not particularly impressive. Spanish unemployment rates are far too high. Tax codes everywhere are unnecessarily complex. In every case, the causes are complicated and cures seem to be beyond reach. A near universal desire to improve the system cannot overcome the resistance to each potential change – and many strands have to be untwisted for any substantial improvement.

9

Another blog post that won’t make any money Analysis

By RYAN MCCARTHY

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t’s been a strange and daunting decade for print journalism — it’s now an even stranger time for web journalism. We’ve become accustomed to reading headlines like BuzzFeed’s recent $19 million fund raising, followed by news of buyouts for veterans at the New York Times. This kind of zero sum flow of media resources from print old guard to the young online folks has started to feel inevitable — it’s not even clear that media reporters still care about the NYT. All of this would be more comforting if the media business were headed to some cushy new world. Evangelists have long held up the web as the savior of the news business, the future of TV and the ideal for the self-expression business. They could be right. But all that digital triumphalism ignores web media’s basic economic dilemma: we’re simply producing far too much of it than is economically justified.

The dirty secret about the web media business is that there’s a massive oversupply problem. Everyday, content creators are producing more journalism, more think-pieces, more interactive graphics, more photo galleries, more tweets, more slideshows, more videos, more GIFs, and more deviously socially-optimized Corgi listicles. All of that is being distributed via more channels on more devices. This creates more supply for display ads, web media’s favorite and still growingrevenue generator. All that supply, however, drags down ad prices.

In a November report titled “The Share of Time Versus the Share of Ad Spend Fallacy” Bernstein Research’s Todd Juenger laid out this conundrum.

The share of time we spend online has increased by nearly 40 percent in the last 3 years. Meanwhile ads, measured in the CPMs, or the cost of a thousand views, are getting cheaper.

Here’s Juenger: Internet publishers (including social media services) continue to add inventory faster than marketers can use it. Every time Facebook introduces some new form of advertising unit, it adds billions of new impressions of supply. Unless ad demand keeps up with supply, CPMs will fall even further Things are even worse when you factor in the booming mobile web. Jason Del Rey reported last year that mobile traffic is soaring for online publishers, while mobile ads are being sold for a fraction of the price of typical online ads. This is all, as Frederic Filloux put it, “economically absurd: in a ‘normal’ world, when audiences rise, advertising reaches more people and, as a result, rates rise.” Juenger puts it this way: web ad dollars are simply “a function of marketer demand”, not the amount of time we spend on the web.

How is the media business dealing with this supply problem? There are a few newish approaches. You can, as BuzzFeed is trying to do, build ads that people actually seem to like — which, as Tom Gara wrote, makes it a bit of a “people-heavy, old school” business.

BuzzFeed’s strategy is a bit like the socalled native-ads that recently got the Atlantic in trouble running a glowing op-ed about Scientology.

Or you could mimic the structure of Facebook, Tumblr and Twitter and change the elemental unit of publishing from pages to streams, as Anil Dash has suggested. Ads, in this case, appear on streams of content, rather than on static web pages. (Reuters is maybe, possibly trying something similar, perhaps coming soon). Then, of course, you could simply charge people to see your content. This has worked better than anyone expected for the New York Times, where subscription revenue, including print, is now higher than ad revenue.

10 NATION/WORLD Nation briefs

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Historic

hilippine President Benigno Aquino will next week make a historic visit to the stronghold of the country’s main Muslim rebel force in an effort to push forward peace talks, his office said on Thursday.

Aquino’s trip on Monday to the outskirts of the 12,000-member Moro Islamic Liberation Front’s (MILF’s) main base in the country’s south will be the first peace mission there by a president since the insurgency began in the 1970s.

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WB: Good economy ‘new normal’ for PHL

EDGEDAVAO

Willingness

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he Philippines and Germany on Thursday signaled their willingness to move their relations forward after it was stunted by years-long airport terminal dispute.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario and his German counterpart Guido Westerwelle, in a meeting in Manila, vowed to resolve the terminal row in a timely manner and not to let the issue affect bilateral ties between the two countries.

Wireless

Internet access, weather information and other data services may be coming soon to remote rural areas as the Department of Science and Technology works on plans to deploy a new wireless data communication standard using unused broadcasting frequencies called “TV white space” (TVWS) or frequencies officially assigned to broadcasters but remain unused.

DOST Information and Communications Technology Office head Luis Casambre said data can ride on TVWS - the unused TV frequencies in the VHF and UHF bands - to deliver needed data to farflung areas.

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stable economy is “the new normal” for the Philippines, the World Bank’s top Philippine official said, as he lauded the Aquino government for successfully implementing reforms. The Philippine economy has consistently improved for more than two years, World Bank Country Director Motoo Konishi said, highlighting the stellar 6.6-percent growth in 2012.

“Macroeconomic stability—-the low inflation, large current account surpluses, a market-based exchange rate—is now the new ‘normal’ for the Philippines,” he said.

Robust growth, Konishi said, was propelled

Blamed

hilippine President Benigno Aquino III conceded that the maritime row between Manila and China had taken a toll on tourist arrivals in the Philippines but added this did not stop the overall growth of tourism during his administration.

Listing some of the gains of his administration, Aquino said the Department of Tourism (DOT) managed to more than double the number of tourist arrivals logged during the previous administration-although it was a little short of its 4.6-million target last year.

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A general view is seen of Bonifacio Global City central business district in Taguig City Metro Manila. The capital of the Philippines is in the throes of a property boom described as the best in two decades, reflecting the increasing confidence in an economy that only recently began shedding its image as one of the region’s basket cases. [Reuters]

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by stronger government finances, a continuous surge of remittances and an expansion in construction. “[B]ut perhaps most of all, the nation and the world have confidence in the Aquino administration,” Konishi said.

“This is great news, amid all the turmoil around the world,” he added. Economic improvements during the Aquino administration, Konishi said, show that “strong leadership at the top with a persistent focus on good governance can result in higher growth.”

“If maintained and deepened, it holds the promise of inclusive growth—growth that would bring greater good

to more people, in particular the poor,” Konishi said. The Philippines, however, should continue to address the challenge of inclusive growth, the World Bank’s Philippine chief said.

“And what I mean by inclusive growth is creating jobs. The lesson from other countries is that jobs drive inclusive growth,” Konishi said.

This, as he noted that 10 million Pinoys are either unemployed or underemployed at present while another 1.1 million enter the labor force every year.

“The domestic job market in the formal, services, manufacturing, industries and jobs abroad are not enough to absorb

so many people getting into the labor force,” Konishi said.

He therefore urged the government to ramp up the performance of all other sectors of the economy “particularly agribusiness and agriculture” to address joblessness.

The challenge is more urgent in Mindanao, Konishi said, noting the jobs contribute to highly needed “social cohesion” in the conflict-ridden region.

“The need for good jobs—jobs that raise real wages or bring people out of poverty —is an overwhelming challenge,” he said. “Everything we do must contribute to job creation,” Konishi noted.

[Yahoo!]

metre (three feet) reached parts of the Solomons, and Vanuatu and New Caledonia also reported rising sea levels, before a region-wide tsunami alert was lifted.

Sirens were heard in Fiji, locals said. “Chaos in the streets of Suva as everyone tries to avoid the

tsunami!!” tweeted Ratu Nemani Tebana from the Fiji capital.

The waves reached as far away as Japan, which was hit by a huge tsunami in March 2011 that killed more than 19,000 people.

Japan’s Meteorological Agency reported a 40-centimetre tsunami

hitting Hachijo Island about 290 kilometres (180 miles) south of Tokyo, while 20-centimetre waves reached the main islands of Kyushu and Shikoku and smaller waves were recorded on Honshu.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center cancelled its regional alert for Pacific-island nations at 0350 GMT, about two and a half hours after the powerful quake struck at 0112 GMT near the Santa Cruz Islands in the Solomons.

Australian and US monitors said a tsunami wave measuring 91 centimetres washed into the town of Lata, on the main Santa Cruz island of Ndende.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said the wave appeared to have travelled 500 metres inland, inundating Lata’s airstrip as well as surrounding villages, flattening many traditional houses. [AFP]

Solomon Islands quake sparks Pacific tsunami

major 8.0 magnitude earthquake jolted the Solomon Islands Wednesday with small tsunami waves buffeting Pacific coasts, leaving at least five people dead and dozens of homes damaged or destroyed.

A quake-generated wave of just under one

Largest

ilipinos are the largest Asian minority group in California today. They also rank second only to Indians for having the least poor and least low-income community members among all Asians in the state. But they also have the lowest admission rates in the University of California system.

These are some of the findings of a comprehensive new study of the Asian American community in California, “A Community of Contrasts: Asian Americans and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders, 2013,” by the Asian American Center for Advancing Justice, a coalition of several Asian American advocacy groups.

Aerial view of islets in the Solomon Islands chain. A major 8.0 magnitude earthquake has jolted the Solomon Islands with small tsunami waves buffeting Pacific coasts, leaving at least five people dead and dozens of homes damaged or destroyed. [AFP]

World today Serious concern

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hina has expressed serious concern after North Korea stepped up its bellicose rhetoric and threatened to go beyond a third nuclear test in response to what it sees as “hostile” sanctions imposed after a December rocket launch.

“China is extremely concerned by the way things are going. We oppose any behaviour which may exacerbate the situation and any acts which are not beneficial towards the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula,” said Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying.

Investigating

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hina’s Foreign Ministry said on Thursday the government was investigating a complaint from Japan that a Chinese navy vessel aimed a type of radar normally used to aim weapons at a target at a Japanese navy ship in the East China Sea. “The relevant Chinese departments are currently conducting an earnest, solemn investigation into these reports to verify them,” ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a daily news briefing.

Peacekeepers

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he UN is considering sending peacekeepers to Mali, following a proposal from Paris which said that French forces have killed hundreds of Islamist rebels but are still coming under attack.

After announcing plans to start withdrawing its 4,000 troops from Mali in March, France called for a peacekeeping force to take the baton, the French ambassador to the UN said after closed Security Council talks on the crisis.

Burned alive

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young mother accused of sorcery was stripped naked, doused with petrol and burned alive in front of a crowd including schoolchildren in Papua New Guinea, reports said on Thursday.

The woman, named

by The National newspaper as Kepari Leniata, 20, was reportedly tortured with a branding iron and tied up, splashed with fuel and set alight on a pile of rubbish topped with car tyres.

Young mother

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nine-year-old Mexican girl has given birth and authorities are looking for the presumed father, who is 17, officials said.

The girl was not seen by doctors during her pregnancy and was almost in labor when she arrived at the hospital, said Enrique Rabago, director of the Occidente General Hospital where the child gave birth in the town of Zapopan.

EDGEDAVAO

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Live streaming presscon between Manila, Davao media a success U

NKNOWN to the organizers, the 2013 Philippine Development Forum ended with a vote of confidence for Davao City’s business process outsourcing (BPO) industry through the conduct of a live streaming press conference between Davao-based and the Manila-based media.

Finance Secretary Cesar V. Purisima, Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Corazon Soliman, World Bank Country Director Motoo Konishi and Mindanao Development Authority Secretary Lualhati Antonino served as panelists of the press con-

ference which was held at The Marco Polo Davao, but which was broadcast live in the World Bank office in Manila.

Through live streaming, the Manila-based media were asked to throw in the first two questions which were answered live by the panelists in Davao without any technology glitch at all.

While many international conferences have been held in the city, this may well be the first time that a joint press conference between Metro Manila and Mindanao was held live.

The availability of good internet connection in the city shows why Davao is one of the top BPO areas

that have become a favorite among BPO providers next to Metro Manila and Cebu. Various BPO companies, both voice and nonvoice, have offices in the city.

This was the second time that the PDF had been held in the city, the first was in 2005.

“Mindanao is one of the focused areas for the PDF which was held here in the city primarily to give the partners a chance to get a feel of Mindanao,” Purisima said. No less than Konishi commented that Davao City is a lot better than other areas in the Philippines. [Lovely A. Carillo]

to clear their names,” Sumagaysay said.

Sumagaysay said a case has been filed with the city prosecutor’s office against Kader for violation of Republic Act no. 9165 Section 5 which prohibits the “Sale, Trade, Administration, Dispensation, Delivery, Distribution and Transportation of Dangerous Drugs and/or Controlled Precursors and Essential Chemicals” and Section 7 which prohibits “Possession of Dangerous Drugs.”

According to po-

lice sources, Kader is a known drug pusher in Parang and Kabakan, Cotabato.

Sumagaysay also quoted Senior Superintendent Ronald dela Rosa, DCPO director, saying, “This is the first time we have intercepted illegal drugs from Cotabato through the highways.”

Sumagaysay said, “I hope people who are concerned and are against illegal drugs would give similar information to authorities because this will help us greatly in catching drug

the treatment for leptospirosis.

CHOP district A has documented the most leptospirosis cases with seven, followed by Talomo North with five, Buhangin with four, District B with three and Agdao, Baguio, Marilog, Toril and Tugbok each with one case.

Talomo North, District A and District B each had one fatality, however, just yesterday morning; reports came in that one more fatality was recorded in District A. Leptospirosis comes from the virus leptospira which is carried by rats whose urine may get to the water from the floods which may enter the human body through wounds of persons.

According to the Department of Health (DOH) Health Advisory, the signs and symptoms of leptospirosis are fever,

chills, severe headache, muscle pain, having red eyes, skin turns yellowish, urine has tea like color, and having less urine excretion.

Also included in the advisory is that, if a person has these symptoms for two days, especially if that person got wet from the flood, then that person must consult the nearest health center or hospital to ensure that the virus can be treated.

Villafuerte said, “If leptospirosis is treated late it will become fatal.”

In the DOH Health Advisory, some of the ways to prevent leptospirosis is to avoid getting wet in floodwaters; avoid stepping in dirty water; wear boots when stepping walking in floods or dirty water; clear the house of rats by cleaning up garbage; and consistently clean the entire house and its surroundings.

Drug courier...

FFROM 1 while he was transporting illegal drugs to Davao City from Cotabato.

Sumagaysay said the informant “gave us complete information describing the time of transport, the vehicle, the color of the shirt and even the short pants.”

“This means drug syndicates are betraying each other and will soon be killing each other, because giving out information to the authorities is one of the last resorts of people who are involved in the illegal drug trade

Leptospirosis...

FFROM 1 the cause of death was leptospirosis. “I just now received information that there is one more death, but I can’t give away the name yet.”

“The CHO usually documents about 100 cases of leptospirosis every year, but this time, due to the floods from January 21 to February 7, we have already documented 28 cases,” she added.

She said that the CHO continues to focus on case finding, especially on myaglia, fever, rashes and jaundice; disseminate health advisories for the barangays regarding signs and symptoms of leptospirosis and where to seek consultation and treatment; give advisories to hospitals regarding the increase in incidence of leptospirosis following the flooding; and provide available antibiotics for prophylaxis, which is

Mayor Sara Duterte delivers the welcome address to some 4 thousand councilors from different areas in the country during this year’s first quarterly National Executive Officers and National Board Meeting of the Philippine Councilors league held at SMX Convention Center of SM Lanang Premier in Lanang, Davao City Tuesday night. Lean Daval Jr.

Group...

FFROM 2 q u e s t i o n e d , among others, the constitutionality of the cybercrime law and the inclusion of libel among the cybercrime offenses, which they argued will suppress freedom of speech and expression in the internet.

Indayla said with the SC’s latest decision,

In 2012...

the petitioners against the cybercrime law “gained a big leap to continue the call to junk it,” adding that the youth will not stop amid the TRO extension and that they will continue their fight until the law will be totally abolished.

Also a petitioner, the National Union

of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) said in a Feb. 5 statement, “Let us continue protesting and pounding on government’s doors until this law and everyone who sought to foist it on us are relegated to where they rightly belong – the garbage heap.” [Lorie Ann A. Cascaro/MindaNews]

aims to protect the rights of women from violence to be cranked up a billion-fold.

“Even if there are laws enacted aimed at protecting women and children, such as RA 9262 or the Anti-VAWC Act, there are still cases that show that the laws are not followed and surprisingly the number of victims has increased,” Lindo explained.

She added that they will be launching on February 14, which is the 15th anniversary of the first ever Vagina Monologues in the Philippines and that the event will be spearheaded by Gabriela, New Voice Company and Gabriela Women’s Party.

Lindo explained that it will be a dance protest with the theme -- Strike, Dance and Rise -- and the Philippines will be the venue to show how strong is the cohesion among Filipino women, in solidarity with women from other countries.

She added that One Billion Rising will be distinguished by synchronous dancing of women in factories, schools, farms, streets, communities, marketplaces and many other places to a unique Filipino rhythm and choreography that will mobilize hundreds or thousands of women, men and children who are one with the struggle to uphold, respect and assert women’s rights.

FFROM 2 has taken new dimension with the increasing number of Filipinos having access to internet because of the so-called ‘incidences of electronic violence’ where young girls and women were the most affected.

“The increased access is making technology an important resource for victims of violence and it may increase danger for the victims of abuse,” she said, adding that victims who do not know how to safely navigate technology can increase the risk of further abuse on them.

Meanwhile, Dr. Jean Lindo, chairperson of Gabriela, presented their global campaign ‘One Billion Rising’ which

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VOL.5 ISSUE 242 • FRIDAY - SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 08-09, 2013

Heat cool Rockets M

SPORTS

13

James, Wade combine for 63

IAMI (AP) -- On a night when the Miami Heat allowed more than 11 points over their season average, and against a team that has made scoring look amazingly easy over the last couple weeks, three plays in the final minute made all the difference.

And all were on the defensive end.

Mario Chalmers and Udonis Haslem each took a charge in the final 46 seconds, Dwyane Wade blocked a 3-point try by James Harden to essentially seal the outcome, and the Heat held off the Houston Rockets 114-108 on Wednesday night. ‘’We held them to 108,’’ Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. ‘’That team can score.’’

The Rockets, who scored 140 points and tied an NBA record with 23 makes from 3-point range

on Tuesday night against Golden State, have averaged 118.5 points in their last six games. Harden, who led all scorers with 36 points, scored 16 in the fourth quarter alone for the Rockets, who rallied from what was a 17-point deficit in the second half to make it a one-possession game.

But they never got closer.

Chalmers stepped in front of Harden to draw an offensive foul with 46 seconds left, and Haslem took one against James Anderson with 18 ticks remaining and the Heat hanging onto a three-point lead.

Wade blocked Harden’s shot with about 11 seconds left, and the Heat escaped with their 20th home win in 23 tries this season. ‘’We had a tough run scoring the basketball,’’ said Harden, who added

12 rebounds and seven assists. ‘’We even got stops, but the big plays where we needed to make a play, they got stops - so that was the difference in the ballgame.’’

The Heat offense played a role as well, naturally.

LeBron James scored 32 points on 11 for 18 shooting, and Wade added 31 points and eight assists. Shane Battier scored 12, Norris Cole added 10 and Haslem - starting for Chris Bosh, who missed the game with the flu grabbed 13 rebounds for Miami.

Houston got a 15-point, 14-rebound night from Omer Asik and 15 more points from Patrick Patterson. Jeremy Lin and Chandler Parsons each scored 13 for the Rockets, who were 9 for 25 from beyond the arc, one night after their record-tying show against the Warriors.

R

4:30 a.m. with three categories – 4K, 8K and 12K. Entry fee is P300 for 4K and P350 for both 8K and 12K. Cash prizes will be awarded to the top three finishers for both male and female categories.

Organizers expect over 1,000 runners to

take part in the run.

Registration is now ongoing at the Adidas in Gaisano Mall and Home Square Furniture. The run is hosted by DCHS Batch 90 in coordination with the Vantage Sports Promotion of Kenneth Sai. (PNA)

‘Year of the Snake’ Run on Sunday

unning enthusiasts will be treated to a “good luck” run this Sunday with the staging of the Year of the Snake Run beginning and ending at the Davao Central High School.

The multi-distance footrace will be fired off at

Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade shoots against Houston Rockets center Cole Aldrich (31) during the first half of an NBA basketball game on Wednesday in Miami. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

14

SPORTS

VOL.5 ISSUE 242 • FRIDAY - SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 08-09, 2013

EDGEDAVAO

PHILHEALTH NATIONWIDE RUN DAVAO

Target: 6,000 runners 5,600 runners in Socsargen leg

By Neil Bravo

O

PHILHEALTH RUN. Filbert Bryan Sollesta, Philhealth Davao Region Division Chief, explains the mechanics of the 2013 Philhealth Nationwide Run during the weekly DSA Forum at Dexter’s Pizza Stadium. (Lean Daval)

Street Child World Cup tryouts set

T

he Philippine Street Child football team will be scouring the countryside to find new members to the team set to compete in the 2014 Street Child World Cup in Brazil.

Craig Burrows, the PSCWC head, announced the staging of nationwide tryouts including Davao City within the year.

Guesting before the weekly Davao Sportswriters Association (DSA) Forum at Dexter’s Pizza Stadium, Burrows said he believes that a national team should involve the entire country paving the way for the PSCWC to conduct the search for future national team members to the provinces and key cities in the country.

“We are sending a national team in Rio in 2014 and we are here to get you involved,” he said.

The Philippines won the consolation round or the Shield trophy in the Street Child World Cup in South Africa in 2010 beating Brazil in a tightly-fought contest.

“The Brazilians are searching for revenge,” Burrows quipped after the unheralded squad beat the Brazilians in the initial staging of the tournament serving as a buildup event of the quadrennial FIFA World Cup. The SCWC is an international football competition open to players aged 14 to 16 who have

STREET CHILD WORLD CUP. Craig Burrows of the Philippines Street Child World Cup team says they want kids to win in life not just football as he announces the tryouts for the national team for the Street Child World Cup in 2014 during the DSA Forum. (Lean Daval)

lived on the streets at one point in their lives.

The Shield trophy, the only award given out in the event apart from the championship crown, was given to the Philippine team for their hardearned 2-1 win over host South Africa in Durban.

Teams from South Africa and the Philippines were entered in the event along with United Kingdom, Brazil, Ukraine, Tanzania, Nicaragua and eventual champion, India.

The Philippines finished 5th out of 8 nations in the event that aims to raise awareness

for homeless children worldwide.

The Filipinos’ SCWC bid faltered in the beginning as they suffered losses to UK (2-4) and Tanzania (0-2) in the elimination round. They, however, bounced back in the consolation round by beating Brazil, 6-2, and South Africa.

Burrows is set to talk to local authorities and non-government organizations for their possible involvement in the program.

“We want the young people to win in life, not just football,” he added.

(Neil Bravo)

rganizers of the nationwide Philippine Health Insurance Corporation or PhilHealth Run 2013 slated on February 17 are eyeing some 6,000 runners to join the ‘simul’ run’s Davao leg.

Filbert Bryan Sollesta, Division Chief at Philhealth Davao Region, announced yesterday during the weekly Davao Sportswriters Association (DSA) Forum at Dexter’s Pizza Stadium the race’s target which could mean bigger contribution to the promotion of mother and child care.

“We are looking to reach 6,000 and at the moment we have already registered 1,800 runners,” Sollesta said.

The Davao leg will start and end at the SM Parking C at Quimpo Boulevard. The race will have categories in 3K, 5K, 10K and 18K for men and women. Categories for 3K are Kiddies, Stduents and Adults.

The race aims to raise more funds for the Southern Philippines Medical Center children cancer patients under the Kids of Hope program. In 2012, the Philhealth run raised P1.4 Million for Kids of Hope while the nationwide charity raised some P5 Million.

“We are way within target,” said Sollesta.

Cash prizes are u for grabs in the race while the fastest 18K and 10K finishers will receive round trip tickets to respective destinations courtesy of Philippine Airlines.

Meantime, around 5,600 runners coming from various parts of Region 12 are ex-

pected to join the Koronadal City leg.

Joy Lizada, PhilHealth Region 12’s senior social insurance officer, said Wednesday they increased the region’s previous target of 5,000 runners or participants for the event due to the rising support from various sectors in the last several weeks.

As of Wednesday, she said a total of 4,403 runners have already signed up for the annual run’s five categories and hundreds more have signified to enlist in the coming days.

“Region 12’s assigned quota was only for 5,000 runners but we requested our central office to allow us to open 600 additional slots so we can accommodate more participants,” Lizada said in a media forum.

Region 12, which is also known as the Soccsksargen Region, comprises the provinces of South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani, North Cotabato and the cities of General Santos, Koronadal, Tacurong, Kidapawan and Cotabato.

PhilHealth Run 2013 mainly intends to highlight mother and child protection in the country.

It will be staged simultaneously in 18 key areas nationwide, specifically in the cities of Manila, Dagupan, Tuguegarao, Malolos, Laguna, Batangas, Legazpi, Iloilo, Cebu, Tacloban, Zamboanga, Cagayan de Oro, Davao, Koronadal, Marawi, Butuan and in Clark, Pampanga. (with report from Allen V. Estabillo/ MindaNews)

goals each so far in the 12-team tournament that opened last weekend.

The Orangemen will meet M7 United, which has two draws after Matchday 1, in the morning matches before clashing with Davao Crocodile FC (1 win, 1 draw) in the afternoon session.

Instatech (2-0-0) will try to keep pace with Solido when it stakes its record against Intangibles FC (0-2-0) and M7

United. Other matches in the morning pit Agila FC against Davao Crocodile FC, Tough D FC against KMMPC, Belisario Futbol against Real Davao FC, and FilChi-Amoc United against De Boerderij.

Matches in the afternoon are De Boerderij against Belisario Futbol, Tough D FC against FilChi -Amoc United, Real Davao FC against Davao Agila FC, and KMMPC against Intangibles FC.

Solido faces M7 Utd, Crocs

By Neil Bravo

C

o-league leader Solido FC face dangerous foes on Sunday at the resumption of the Davao Football Community League at the Davao Crocodile Park field.

Solido, sharing the top spot with Instatech Dragons with two wins in as many outigs, will once again be banking on mainstays Pablo Garcia, Kokoi Arrieta and Jay Miguel who notched one

EDGEDAVAO

VOL.5 ISSUE 242 • FRIDAY - SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 08-09, 2013

Who the

SPORTS

15

can save Lakers?

Kobe Bryant could be back to his machine gun role as the Lakers have lost Pau Gasol to injury in addition to their two other bigs in Dwight Howard and Jordan Hill.

E

L SEGUNDO, Calif.

(AP) -- Pau Gasol was diagnosed with a torn plantar fascia in his right foot Wednesday, indefinitely sidelining the 7-foot Spaniard at a key point in the Los Angeles Lakers’ belated rally to get in playoff position.

Gasol felt a pop in his foot Tuesday night late in the Lakers’ 92-83 victory over the Brooklyn Nets. An MRI in Boston revealed the injury.

The Lakers (23-26) are losing Gasol right when their mostly miserable season is starting to improve with six wins in seven games, including three straight on their longest road trip of the season. Los Angeles also played the last three games without All-Star center Dwight Howard, who has a torn labrum in his right shoulder, and top backup big man Jordan Hill is out for the season with an injured hip. ‘’I’m hoping to recover asap so I can be back with the team and keep fighting until the end of the season,’’ Gasol tweeted.

Gasol will fly to Los Angeles on Thursday to be examined by team physician Steve Lombardo and foot specialist Kenneth Jung. The Lakers announced they will give a timeline for Gasol’s return after the examination, but the in-

jury conceivably could keep Gasol out for several weeks or more if he undergoes surgery to repair the damage.

Gasol has been bothered by tendinitis in both knees and fasciitis for at least two months, hindering his progress since shortly after new coach Mike D’Antoni took over.

The four-time All-Star big man also missed five games in January with a concussion, and Gasol largely has been coming off the bench for the Lakers since then.

Gasol is averaging a career-low 13.4 points per game and 8.0 rebounds while playing in just 36 of the Lakers’ 49 games.

The Lakers finish their seven-game road trip with three games in four days, starting Thursday in Boston and concluding Sunday in Miami. Rookie center Robert Sacre is available to D’Antoni, and Howard isn’t certain when he’ll return from an injury that’s troublesome, but likely manageable.

Salary cap-strapped Los Angeles could sign a replacement for Gasol after getting a disabled player’s exception last week for Hill, who had season-ending hip surgery. But the pool of available free-agent big men is awfully thin, including Lakers retreads such as Troy Murphy and Brian Cook.

16 SPORTS

VOL.5 ISSUE 242 • FRIDAY - SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 08-09, 2013

EDGEDAVAO

ESCANDOR CUP

Ateneo faces Emar in semis

By Neil Bravo

T

ITLE favorite Ateneo de Davao University is just a breath away from a finals stint. That one breath could mean treading a dangerous path on Saturday against an ambitious Emar squad.

The Blue Knights face off with Emar in one of the semifinals clashes in the Passerelle Division of the 1st Emilio D. Escandor Memorial Cup basketball tournament at the RMC Gymnasium.

Match time is 11:00 am followed by the battle for third place in the Mini Division between Holy Child School of Davao against University of the Immaculate Conception at 12:30 pm.

The other Passerelle semifinals match will pit Holy Child School of Davao against a streaking Ford Academy side at 2:00 p.m.

“The matches this S a t u rd ay are very crucial.

Expect a very close semifinals matches.

No team wants to lose in those match-ups that’s why everyone can expect this to be

BITING THE FAKE. Francis Gabriel Escandor of Ateneo fakes off his defender in this bit of action in the 1st Emilio D. Escandor Cup. (TRMH Photo)

very close,” said Tournament Director Jek Melendres.

According to Melendres, the organizing Royal Mandaya Hotel is cons i d -

erseeding the top teams in the Escandor Cup to the forthcoming Royal Mandaya

ing

Hotel Cup. “We might be seeding the semifinalists although nothing is concrete yet,” Melendres said.

Emar was supposed to be forced to default their match against Ateneo as some of its mainstays are playing in the PRISAA National Games in Pangasinan but reconsidered as they aim to get automatic seeding to the RMH Cup.