Edge Davao 7 Issue 205

VOL. 7 ISSUE 205 • WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2014 - JANUARY 3, 2015

P 15.00 • 20 PAGES

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EDGEDAVAO Serving a seamless society

LET’S GET LOUD. A vendor blows on a gigantic hornpipe that he is selling to attract customers at Agdao Public Market in Davao City yesterday. Hornpipes (“torotot”) has become the leading alternative noisemaker to firecrackers after the city strictly implemented City Ordinance 060-02, Series of 2002, or the Firecracker Ban, 12 years ago. Lean Daval Jr.

GROWTH IN 2015

NEDA 11 sees higher GRDP

By CHENEEN R. CAPON

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crc@edgedavao.net

ATIONAL Economic Development Authority (NEDA) 11 regional director Maria Lourdes Lim expects an increase in Davao Region’s economic growth this year.

Lim said NEDA’s latest estimated Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) from first to third quarter of 2014 reached 7.2 per-

cent. This is higher than the regional plan target of 7 percent 2014 and 6.3 percent economic growth posted last year.

“We are expecting almost the same economic growth that will be within the range of 6.8 percent and 7.5 percent by the end of the year,” Lim said.

If this projection happens, this will be the third

time the region will surpass its target growth.

Lim said based on GRDP estimates, the growth economic drivers are financial intermediation at 15.9 percent growth; construction at 14.2 percent; real estate, renting, and business activities at 12.4 percent; trade at 9.7 percent; and manufacturing at 8.5 per-

cent.

Lim said the services sector, which grew by 6.6 percent in 2013, will be the major contributor in order for the region to achieve the 7.2 percent 2014 economic growth.

Under the tourism industry, NEDA 11 recorded an increase in the tourist arrivals by 3.04 percent

FGROWTH, 11

INSIDE EDGE OSCAR IS BOXING’S MAN OF THE YEAR SPORTS page 15

2 THE BIG NEWS EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 7 ISSUE 205 • WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY, DEC. 31, 2014 - JAN. 3, 2015

RIZAL’S DAY. An elderly woman passes by the statue of Dr. Jose Rizal at Rizal Park in Davao City yesterday. Dabawenyos, led by some government officials and dignitaries, commemorated the National Hero’s 118th anniversary of martyrdom yesterday by offering wreaths at his monument. Lean Daval Jr.

DCPO to intensify inform campaign

By ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR. abf@edgedavao.net

T

HE Davao City Police Office (DCPO) will intensify its information and education campaign in every barangay in the city as part of its crime prevention program for 2015.

In an interview, DCPO spokesperson Senior Inspector Milgrace C. Driz said that this campaign will help the DCPO establish good relationship with the communities.

Driz said having a good relationship with the people in the barangays will not only assist them in crime solution

but also in prevention.

She said that the cooperation of every people is the key to implement the law in the community that will make them live peacefully.

“Kung wala man guy cooperation ang atong katwhan, dili gyud nato ma implement ang tong balaod (If we do not have the cooperation of the public, we cannot implement our laws well),” Driz said.

“As law enforcers we need the cooperation and good relationship to our

FDCPO, 11

DOH drive against firecrackers heats up

By ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR. and FUNNY PEARL A. GAJUNERA

T

HE Department of Health (DOH) 11 urged the people in the region to celebrate their New Year by not using firecrackers that will endanger their lives.

In a statement, the DOH said its personnel are ready to heal the explosion wounds caused by firecrackers but they cannot cure the future of those who will be injured.

DOH 11 ‘Iwas Paputok’ campaign head Dr. Ricardo B. Audan told Edge Davao that the people should celebrate

the New Year without using any explosions.

“We can make noise through alternative ways of merrymaking,” Audan said.

He said the region has not recorded any firecracker-related casualty based on their monitoring since December 21.

His team in Southern Philippines Medical Center (SPMC) will still monitor the situation until January 4 next year.

Meanwhile, the Police

Regional Office (PRO) 11 ordered all the police units in the region to confiscate all imported firecrackers and pyrotechnics being sold in the market.

In a statement, PRO 11 regional director Chief Superintendent Wendy Rosario said imported firecrackers are considered illegal under Republic Act 7183 or “An Act Regulating the Sale, Manufacture, Distribution, and Use of Firecrackers and other Pyrotechnic Devices.”

del Norte.

“Responders could not immediately repair the damaged tower yesterday because of the strong current of the water and there were several roads in that area that are not passable,” Dagooc said.

Quoting an NGCP advisory, Dagooc said it was not possible to restore power Tuesday due to the volume of work needed to replace the damaged tower.

“Affected places are

Surigao City including 20 towns of Surigao del Norte. Five towns in Surigao del Sur such as Carrascal, Cantilan, Madrid, Carmen and Lanuza,” he said.

He said the towns of RTR, Tubay and Jabonga, Cabadbaran City and Butuan City in Agusan del Norte were also affected.

Meanwhile, in Surigao City, the skies have cleared and trips going to different islands have resumed

P

‘Seniang’ causes blackouts in 3 Caraga provinces

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ROPICAL storm Seniang toppled a transmission line of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines causing power outage in three provinces of Caraga Region.

The outage started around 7:00 a.m. Monday after a flash flood caused a steel tower of NGCP in Barangay Balangbalang in Remedios T. Romualdez (RTR) town in Agusan del Norte to collapse.

Seniang, the last storm

to hit the country this year, made landfall over Hinatuan in Surigao del Sur at around 3:45 a.m.

Monday.

An advisory sent to MindaNews 1:30 p.m.

Tuesday by Engr. Sergio Dagooc, general manger of Siargao Electric Cooperative and Dinagat Electric Cooperative said power is yet to be restored in Surigao del Norte including Surigao City, several towns in Surigao del Sur and a large part of Agusan

F’SENIANG’, 11

Rosario also ordered the police to confiscate “picollos” – the firecracker usually used by children which has been the frequent cause of blast injuries every Christmas and New Year because it has no fuse.

“Let us end the piccolo menace in the market,” he said.

Rosario also ordered the police to charge violators who will be caught selling the illegal firecracker in the market.

Bomb explodes in Zambo City

OLICE arrested three persons implicated in an improvised bomb explosion late Monday in this city.

Senior Superintendent Angelito Casimiro, city police director, said Tuesday that the suspects were arrested in follow-up operations they launched following the incident.

Casimiro said no one

was killed or wounded when an improvised bomb exploded around 8:50 p.m. Monday at the Princess massage parlor and videoke bar along Tomas Claudio Street downtown.

He said the suspects were positively identified by witnesses.

“We cannot still determine the affiliation of

FBOMB, 11

VOL. 7 ISSUE 205 • WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY, DEC. 31, 2014 - JAN. 3, 2015

EDGEDAVAO

NEWS 3 2 ‘MNLF members’ nabbed for extortion

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LUCKY 13. A roadside fruit stand along Monteverde Street in Davao City makes brisk sales of 13 different varieties of round-shaped fruits a day before New Year’s Eve. Filipinos believe that serving 13 different

varieties of round-shaped fruits during the Media Noche will bring good luck to their families for the incoming year. Lean Daval Jr.

MILF decommissioning to start in January 2015

By CHENEEN R. CAPON

T

crc@edgedavao.net

HE Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) will start the gradual decommissioning of the weapons of its troops in different camps in Mindanao in January next year.

Speaking in Monday’s Kapehan sa Dabaw at SM City Davao Annex, lawyer Al Julkifli, a member of the legal team assisting the Philippine government, said the Independent Decommissioning Body (IDP), a third party group with seven members, will first complete the inventory on the weapons owned by the MILF’s Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF).

The decommissioning will then start with a symbolic turn-over ceremony of weapons to the third party Independent Decom-

missioning Body (IDP) early next year.

Julkilfi said the government has already finetuned the members of IDB. It has a mixed membership, with one member each from Turkey, Brunei Darussalam, and Norway and four from the Philippines.

The IDP will validate and verify BIAF members, arms and weapons and develop and implement the process of decommissioning – a process seen by the government as helping conflict-affected areas reach a state of normalcy.

As defined in the Annex on Normalization, decommissioning is the gradual and phased process through which MILF forces and weapons are put beyond use. It includes the

Flooding caused by ‘Seniang’ renders Malaybalay waterless

P

OTABLE water supply in most areas serviced by the Malaybalay City Water District was cut off from late afternoon Monday to around mid-morning Tuesday after the dam at Kibalabag Creek was submerged due to flooding caused by tropical storm Seniang.

MCWD services 22 of the city’s 46 barangays.

The 22 barangays are in the poblacion and along the national highway.

In an advisory Monday, Romeo Lapiceros, executive assistant to City Mayor Ignacio Zubiri said floodwaters rose two meters above the dam’s surface and that water supply could only be restored once the water level went down.

Zubiri urged the public to “store water while the problem is not yet restored.” Water supply however was restored around 9:00 a.m. Tuesday in Airport Village, the city’s biggest residential site.

At around 5a.m. Tuesday, water supply was restored in Barangay Kalasungay although at low pressure.

MCWD general manager Juanito Aroa Jr. told dxDB on Tuesday they could not distribute water as the flooding also submerged the intake box at Kibalabag Creek.

Aroa said the city government had sent heavy equipment to the area to do dredging.

FFLOODING, 11

transition of the BIAF to a peaceful civilian life.

Normalization, on the other hand, is the process through which communities affected by the four-decade armed conflict in Mindanao can return to peaceful civilian life and pursue sustainable livelihoods free from fear of violence and crime.

The Philippine government (GPH) and the MILF have also agreed to form task forces that will assess the needs, plan appropriate programs, and undertake the necessary to transform the six identified and acknowledged MILF camps.

The MILF camps that will be transformed during the process of normalization are Camp Abubakar as-Siddique in Maguindan-

ao, Camp Bilal in Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur, Camp Omar ibn al-Khattab in Maguindanao, Camp Rajamuda in North Cotabato and Maguindanao, Camp Badre in Maguindao, and Camp Busrah Somiorang in Lanao del Sur. “The military will be deployed in these areas, and to achieve the goal of transforming these camps into productive community the government intends to infuse livelihood and economic intervention,” Julkifli said.

He also said the Department of Agriculture (DA) and other agencies have already conducted surveys in these areas and some of their livelihood programs have already been rolled out.

YEAR-END MESSAGE. Philippine Press Institute (PPI) president Jesus Dureza gives an inspirational message and holiday greeting to members of media during Philippine Information Agency’s Davao media

WO alleged extortionists belonging to an “MNLF” group preying on assortment of moneyed businessmen such as contractors, miners, and banana growers in Davao del Norte and Compostela Valley were arrested by combined CIDG and police forces last December 27 at their residence in Maco, Compostela Valley.

Police Chief Inspector Francis Sonza, Davao del Norte provincial officer of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, identified the arrested suspects as Rodino Cabrasan, 49, and his brother Alex Cabrasan, 39, both residing at Purok 2, Barangay Bucana, Maco.

The two were arrested on the strength of warrant of arrest earlier issued by Regional Trial Court Tagum Branch Judge Virginia Tahano-Ang. Taken from their possession were .45 caliber pistol, an improvised rifle, and several rounds of ammunition.

Sonza said the CIDG had been informed of the alleged extortion activities of a group

claiming to belong to Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) when several businessmen came forward to the police last November 2014.

He said in interview Monday that while the cases of the two were put on inquest proceedings, the CIDG is still at press time verifying the suspects’ claim that they belong to the MNLF. He said the group has been engaging with their extortion activities for some time now, and based on the victims’ complaints the group asked businessmen for P20,000 to P25,000 one-time payment before the monthly revolutionary financial support to the MNLF would start.

The CIDG-coordinated arresting team was composed of elements from Davao del Norte Philippine Public Safety and Support Group led by PSI Jetnand Carillo, Highway Patrol Group led by PSI Pedro Campomanes and from Maco Municipal Station led by PCI Pablito Odias. [Cha Monforte, Correspondent]

Security beefed up in Tagum jails after warden’s abduction

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HE Davao del Norte Provincial Police Office has beefed up security in two provincial jails located in Tagum City while prison guards at the state penal colony in Tanglaw, BE Dujali town have been placed on red alert following the abduction of a provincial jail warden by a band of New People’s Army members last December 23.

In an interview last Monday, Davao del Norte provincial police director Senior Superintendent Samuel Gadingan said he has deployed police officiers to secure the adjacent Compostela Valley and Davao del Norte provincial jails in Barangay Mankilam even as the police forces in the entire province have been on heightened alert since De-

cember 22 as directed by the PNP national command for the Christmas and New Year holidays.

Gadingan also said the provincial and municipal police forces are on full alert and ready for the coming New Year revelry.

In a separate interview, Davao Prison and Penal Farm (more commonly called by its old name DAPECOL) OIC prison superintendent Gerardo Padilla said he put the custodial prison guards on red alert status following the advisory of the intelligence community after Compostela Valley provincial warden Jose Mervin Coquilla was abducted by NPA members on December 23 in Panabo City. [Cha Monforte, Correspondent]

year-end get together at the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) regional office on Monday night. Lean Daval Jr.

4 SUBURBIA EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 7 ISSUE 205 • WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY, DEC. 31, 2014 - JAN. 3, 2015

Emulate Rizal, Zambo mayor urges the youth M

AYOR Ma. Isabelle Climaco-Salazar on Tuesday said National Hero Dr. Jose Rizal is worth emulating by the students and the younger generations of this city.

Salazar issued the statement as she led a simple but meaningful ceremony as this city joined the nation in observing the martyrdom of Rizal.

The ceremony, held at the Rizal Shrine in front of City Hall, was participated in by multisectoral groups.

“Rizal’s life and works is something for you young students to emulate,” Salazar said.

The activity started with a flag raising and was followed by floral offering by the par-

ticipants.

The activity marks the day when the Spanish soldiers executed Rizal in Bagumbayan, which is now known as the Luneta Park.

Salazar urged the Zamboangueños to have “the courage, to be brave, and to be strong to face life,” citing this city like any other places in the world has its own problems.

Salazar also led the participants in honoring the police, military, and firefighters, whom she said are “the heroes of today” because they respond to any eventuality and emergency to keep this city safe.

“Thank you very much for keeping Zamboanga City safe,” she said. (PNA)

South Cotabato remains malaria-free, says IPHO

H

EALTH authorities in South Cotabato are pushing for the province’s declaration next year as a malaria-free area.

Jose Barroquillo, malaria program coordinator of the South Cotabato Integrated Provincial Health Office IPHO), said Monday they have not recorded a single case of malaria in the province this year, sustaining its clean record in the last three years.

He said they are targeting to maintain such status in 2015 to facilitate the area’s declaration as malaria-free by the Department of Health and the

World Health Organization (WHO).

The IPHO and the DOH have not recorded a single indigenous case of malaria in any part of the province since 2011.

According to the DOH, a province may be declared as malaria-free if it sustains zero incidence of indigenous case of the disease for five consecutive years.

“We will double our efforts (in 2015) to safeguard the province from the intrusion of new malaria cases,” he said.

Barroquillo said the IPHO’s disease surveillance

FSOUTH, 11

CONTEMPLATION. A woman stands in front of the statue of Dr. Jose Rizal in Davao City, perhaps contemplating on how the National Hero’s life is relevant in our country today. Lean Daval Jr.

Lanao del Norte provincial road project breaks ground T

HE latest Provincial Road Management Facility (PRMF) project for Lanao del Norte had its groundbreaking ceremony in December this year.

Governor Khalid Q. Dimaporo led the groundbeaking of this infrastructure project funded by the Australian Government through its PRMF which is the Magpatao-San

Isidro-Upper Baroy-Sta Cruz-Salong Road, this province.

The road is 16.7 kilometers long and comprised of two road sections that connect four municipalities.

The Australian government is investing P19.3-million while the provincial government of Lanao del Norte has allotted P2.3 million as cash

counterpart in the road rehabilitation project.

PRMF has provided Capacity Development (CapDev) programs for the Lanao del Norte local government unit (LGU) since it became a recipient-province in 2012. The assistance given by PRMF to the province now amounted to P18.4-million and has resulted in significant governance reforms particularly

FLANAO, 11

DavOr, 10 others given Gawad Kalasag Award

T BLACKED OUT. A family in Sasa, Davao City cooks under candle and flashlight on Sunday night after the area experienced a short blackout – despite the assurance of the Davao Light and Power Company that it has enough power supply for the holidays. Lean Daval Jr.

in local roads management, procurement, internal audit, human resource management, and financial management.

Local roads are key components of the road networks in the Philippines. They support the local movement of people and goods within, to and from communities, production areas and markets.

HE Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (RDRRMC) in Davao Region granted 11 disaster councils, schools, and rescue groups the Gawad Kalasag award based on their readiness and response capabilities.

The Gawad Kalasag (Kalamidad at Sakuna Labanan Sariling Galing ang Kaligtasan award) is given to individuals, non-government organizations, private sector and government organizations in recognition of their initiative in helping the government uplift the standard of disaster management in the country.

The award was given during simple rites at the

Pinnacle Hotel in Davao City.

Retired Brigadier General Loreto Rirao, director of the Office of Civil Defense 11 and chair of the RDRRMC, led the ceremony and cited the awardees this year.

“They are worthy of emulation, the basis of which others may learn,” Rirao said of the awardees.

Franz Irag, operations staff of the RDRRMC 11, said top awardees included Davao City as the outstanding disaster risk reduction and management council for highly urbanized areas; Tagum City disaster risk reduction and management council and the Island Gar-

FDAVOR, 11

5 ECONOMY

EDGEDAVAO VOL. 7 ISSUE 205 • WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY, DEC. 31, 2014 - JAN. 3, 2015

Phl urged to reinforce IP rights ahead of trade pact with EFTA T

HE Philippines is being urged to strengthen its intellectual property rights as the country enters negotiation to have free trade agreement (FTA) with European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members which include Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.

In an interview, Swiss Embassy of Manila Deputy Head of Mission Raoul Imbach said one of areas of concern of EFTA in entering a trade pact is the presence of strong intellectual property rights.

“Intellectual property is important. We deal in very high-tech products whether in pharmaceutical or in mechanical.

That’s one area we would need ask (the Philippines) to reinforce,” Imbach said.

He said that having strong intellectual property rights in the country will give assurance that

EFTA technologies and brands entering the local market are highly protected.

He said the first round of negotiation between EFTA and the Philippines will start by March next year.

Imbach said the Philippines targets to conclude the negotiation before the term of President Benigno Aquino ends in 2016.

Among Southeast Asian countries, only Singapore has an existing FTA with EFTA. Aside from the Philippines, other ASEAN members like Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, and Indonesia are also negotiating free trade pact with EFTA. According to Imbach, once EFTA and the Philippines succeed with the trade negotiation, local sectors of agriculture, fisheries, handicrafts, and IT will benefit highly.

(PNA)

TOYS ‘R’ CHEAP. A man browses through a collection of affordable toys on display at a roadside stall along San Pedro Street in Davao City yesterday. Lean Daval Jr.

6 THE ECONOMY EDGEDAVAO

VOL. 7 ISSUE 205 • WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY, DEC. 31, 2014 - JAN. 3, 2015

Oil prices drop

NEW CRANES. Measuring more than 60 meters high with a reach of more than 50 feet towards the water, the new quay cranes of ICTSI’s Baltic Container Terminal have a capacity of more than 60 tons. They arrived at the Port of Gdynia on 7 December aboard the vessel Zhen Hua 8.

ICTSI Polish receives 2 new quay cranes

B

ALTIC Container Terminal (BCT), International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI)’s container terminal in the Port of Gdynia, Poland, recently received two new quay cranes (QC), further boosting BCT’s status as a key port in Eastern Europe and in the Baltic region.

ICTSI is an international operator of common-user container terminals serving the global container shipping industry. ICTSI is the largest port operator in the Philippines and has a port-

folio of 29 container terminal operations in 21 countries across six continents.

Measuring more than 60 meters high with a reach of more than 50 feet over the water, BCT’s new QCs have a capacity of more than 60 tons. They arrived in Gdynia on 7 December aboard the vessel Zhen Hua 8.

“It is certainly a very important date in the history of the BCT. Not only will the new cranes replace the old ones damaged two years ago, they will also increase our vessel han-

FICTSI, 11

O

IL prices went down Monday as markets worried that global supply would surpass demand.

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported Wednesday that U.S. crude stockpiles added 7.3 million barrels to 387.2 million barrels of the prior week ended Dec. 19, the highest level since June.

Stockpiles at Cushing, Oklahoma, the deliv-

ery point for U.S. crude, gained 1 million barrels to 28.8 million barrels.

There was no sign that producers would cut production in response to the slump.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) decided to maintain its collective output quota at 30 million barrels a day at the Nov. 27 meeting in Vienna, Austria.

Saudi Oil Minister Ali

Philippine Army, including 2014 Philippine Military Academy honor graduate 2nd Lieutenant June Galima Corpuz died in an ambush last November 2, 2014 while conducting routine patrol to secure construction workers in Sitio Mompol, Libug Village in Sumisip town.

Considered an elusive dream in the past, the improvement of Basilan Circumferential Road with an entire length of 133 kilometers connecting almost all municipalities of Basilan has reduced travel time from five hours to two hours while travel for

the improved length of 44 kilometers of two hours was cut short to 30 to 45 minutes.

“The people of Basilan have witnessed the new meaning of peace and development because of the road project and in due time, they shall realize the national government’s vision for inclusive growth for the province,” Singson said.

The road is expected to facilitate the transport of major products that include copra and rubber as well as improving the peace and order situation in the area. (DPWH)

Basilan road almost finished A

CCELERATED implementation of the Department of Public Works and Highways’ (DPWH’s) road development project in the Province of Basilan has further trimmed down to three kilometers the remaining concrete paving activities for the Basilan Circumferential Road Project.

Secretary of Public Works and Highways Rogelio L. Singson said the newly paved road section for Basilan Circumferential Road is now at 44 kilometers based on the latest monitoring re-

port submitted by project manager Madsmo Hasim of the DPWH Saudi Fund for Development-assisted Mindanao Roads Improvement Project.

The completed concrete paving works is part of the 47-kilometer construction/improvement project for the Basilan Circumferential Road costing P1.567 billion.

Singson said the administration of President Aquino is committed to finishing the total length of the circumferential road for the island province.

Six members of the

Al-Naimi said last week that as the largest producer of OPEC, his country would seek to maintain its market share.

“Whether it goes down to US$ 20, US$ 40, it is irrelevant, “ AlNaimi told the Middle East Economic Survey when asked what price would prompt OPEC to cut output.

Russia Energy Minister Alexander Novak said recently that crude

output from Russia, the world’s largest crude producer, will be similar to this year’s 10.6 million barrels a day next year.

Light, sweet crude for February delivery lost US$ 1.12 to settle at US$ 53.61 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange,while Brent crude for February delivery decreased US$ 1.57 to close at US$ 57.88 a barrel. (PNA/Xinhua)

Long holiday boosts Boracay tourist arrival

T

HE long holiday break proved favorable for Boracay as visitors, both foreign and local, came in droves to spend the Christmas holidays there.

In a radio interview over a local radio station here, Felix delos Santos of Malay Tourism Office said the number of tourists who visited the island doubled during the long Christmas break, causing the beach front to be overcrowded.

Arrivals are seen to swell further with the coming of the New Year as many tourists, both foreign and local, flock to the island to witness the yearend celebration there.

De los Santos said tourist

arrivals in the island were affected by the travel ban issued

by China to its people which rendered cancellations of hotel bookings in the island and the threat caused by Typhoon Ruby, nevertheless, from January up to the first two weeks of December, visitor arrivals have already reached the 1.4 million mark.

The province of Aklan is targeting 1.5 tourist arrivals this year.

Leading in the list of foreign tourist arrivals in the island for the period, according to De los Santos, are the South Koreans followed by the Chinese and the Taiwanese nationals. (JCM/VGV PIA6 Aklan)

VOL. 7 ISSUE 205 • WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY, DEC. 31, 2014 - JAN. 3, 2015

EDGEDAVAO

THE ECONOMY 7

Investor confidence growing for Bangsamoro I

NVESTOR confidence in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), which will be replaced by the Bangsamoro government “early next year,” has never been as bullish as this year.

The growing interest from foreign and domestic investors was largely attributed to the strides made in the peace process between the Government of the Philippines (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), which unfolded on a bright note this year with the signing last March 27 of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB).

The CAB, the final peace agreement between the government and the MILF, was sealed after 17 years of negotiations that spanned four presidents (Fidel Ramos, Joseph Estrada, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and Benigno S Aquino III).

Investments come in trickles for the impoverished Muslim region during those dark periods, until the recent years, when the GPH-MILF peace process made significant inroads brought about by the absence of deadly skirmishes on the ground, thanks to the effective role of the International Monitoring Team (IMT), headed by Malaysia which is also the third party facilitator in the talks.

Since 2012, there have been no armed skirmishes between government and MILF forces, although there were recorded cases of complaints from both sides such as the uncoordinated massing or movements of troops.

With stability on the ground, the peace panels were able to focus on the negotiating table, initially sealing the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro on October 15, 2012, the document that committed both parties to create the Bangsamoro government to replace the ARMM. Thereafter, investor confidence in the ARMM, the core territory of the proposed Bangsamoro region, notably started to gain ground, which was also coupled, to some extent, by the governance reform initiatives of Mujiv Hataman, who was appointed

by Aquino as acting governor in December 2011 and who won a three-year mandate in the 2013 elections.

As of December 20, 2014, the ARMM’s Regional Board of Investments (RBOI) registered investments worth P3.867 billion, an unprecedented feat in the impoverished region’s 25-year history, which is more than double the figure recorded in 2013.

“This latest investment may prove that investments in the ARMM is not a flash in the pan or a freak phenomenon but may have staying power provided relative peace and order prevail in the region with the com-

bined beneficial effects of the peace process and good governance initiatives by the regional government,” said Ishak Mastura, RBOI chair.

He noted that investing in the ARMM “is becoming a trend,” citing the investments recorded each quarter since last year.

In 2013, the RBOI registered investments amounting to P1.463 billion, a 157 percent increase as compared to 2012’s P569 million.

Registered investments in the ARMM from 2012 to date were mostly in agribusiness, renewable energy and mining.

Based on its record for 2014, among the registered investments include the Pax Libera Mining Inc. (P495 million) and Darussalam Mining Corp (P192.87 million) in Languyan, Tawi-Tawi; Bangsamoro Oil and Fuels Corp.

(Php 85.85 million) in Parang, Maguindanao; and Al Mujahidun Agro-Resources and Development, Inc. (P570 million) in Ampatuan Maguindanao.

The RBOI also registered Lamsan Power Corp. (P921 million) in Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao; Green Earth Enersource Corp (P366 million), a subsidiary of Agumil Philippines, Inc., in Buluan, Maguindanao; and Philippine Trade Center (P486 million) in Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao, among others.

Mastura expressed hopes the interest of investors in the ARMM will continue in the coming years.

Next year, the RBOI hopes to also approve investments in biomass power generation, an oil depot in Tawi-Tawi and agricultural plantation investments such as banana, oil palm and buckwheat or soba noodles, he said.

For his part, Hataman, who expressed support to the creation of the Bangsamoro government, believed that the institutional reforms they initiated helped attract investors to the region, aside from the positive strides in the GPH-MILF peace process.

During his recent State of the Region Address— probably his last since the Bangsamoro government will replace the ARMM “next year”—he noted that the region has accumulated a total of P5.4 billion since 2012.

“We were able to change the negative perception on the region,” he said, noting ARMM has redeemed itself from being labeled a “failed experiment into a working government and an emerging place of growth.”

Next year, the RBOI hopes to also approve investments in biomass power generation, an oil depot in Tawi-Tawi, agricultural plantation investments such as banana, oil palm and buckwheat or soba noodles, Mastura said.

(Bong S. Sarmiento/MindaNews)

MAPPED OUT. Zamboanga City Rep. Celso Lobregat shows a map of the 39 barangays in North Cotabato that are part of the proposed Bangsamoro territory during a recent public hearing on the Bangsam-

oro Basic Law in Midsayap, North Cotabato. Beside him is North Cotabato Gov. Emmylou Talino-Mendoza. Mindanews File Photo by Keith Baacongco

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EDGEDAVAO

VANTAGE

VOL. 7 ISSUE 205 • WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY, DEC. 31, 2014 - JAN. 3, 2015

EDITORIAL Reaping the benefits of peace

O

NCE again we in Davao City are meeting the New Year peacefully, literally and figuratively. This will be the 14th year that firecrackers are banned in the city, and while for some that means a boring celebration, to most of us it means there will be no cowering in fear as there will be no explosions going on around us.

There will also be little or no injuries due to firecrackers, quite unlike other areas where hospitals are overloaded at this time of year with people missing a finger or two, or even an arm, because they taught the mini-explosives are harmless.

Dabawenyos are also proud that other local goverment units of the country have seen the light and are following the example of Davao City.

The New Year is also a season for hope since all indications are pointing to better prospects for the economy. Mindanaoans are especially optimistic because of the impending completion of the peace process between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). Having signed a historic peace agreement last year, government is now completing the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL)

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which will establish autonomy for the Moro people and finally end decades of conflict in Mindanao. This, in turn, is giving businesses reason to consider Mindanao as a major investment area, with its rich natural resources, good weather, and more than competent labor force.

There will be spoilers, of course, particularly from sectors that want to propagate prejudice and hate instead of equality and brotherhood. But these voices are becoming less and less prominent, and the number of those who listen to them are dwindling as they realize that the peace deal is one of the best things to have happened to Mindanao – and the entire country – in a long while. What we are seeing are more people willing to work for peace and prosperity, those who know the road will be difficult but certainly more than worth the trek.

And so as we bid 2014 farewell we look forward to a prosperous 2015, armed with the resolve that we will build Mindanao into a better island region so that our children and their children will reap the benefits of peace.

ANTONIO M. AJERO Editor in Chief

NEILWIN JOSEPH L. BRAVO Managing Editor

AGAPITO JOAQUIN JR. Associate Editor

KENNETH IRVING K. ONG ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR. CHENEEN R. CAPON BAI FAUZIAH FATIMA SINSUAT AMBOLODTO Reporters MEGHANN STA. INES AQUILES Z. ZONIO NIKKI GOTIANSE-TAN LEANDRO S. DAVAL JR. FUNNY PEARL GAJUNERA Lifestyle Photography CHA MONFORTE JOSEPH LAWRENCE P. GARCIA Correspondents ARLENE D. PASAJE Contributing Photographer Cartoons MUNDA • HENRYLITO TACIO • MA. TERESA L. UNGSON • EDCER C. ESCUDERO AURELIO A. PEÑA • MARY Columnists: CARLOS MA. TERESA L. UNGSON • EDCER C. ESCUDERO • AURELIO A. PEÑA • ZHAUN ORTEGA • BERNADETTE “ADDIE” B. ANN “ADI”• C. QUISIDO • LEANDRO B. DAVAL SR., • NICASIO ANGELO AGUSTIN • VIDA MIA VALVERDE • Economic Analysts:• ENRICO BORBON MARY ANN “ADI” C. QUISIDO • LEANDRO B. DAVAL SR., • NIKKI GOTIANSE-TAN • NICASIO ANGELO AGUSTIN EMILY “GICO” G. DAYANGIRANG • JONALLIER PEREZENRICO “GICO” G. DAYANGIRANG • JONALLIER M. PEREZ ZEN CHUA • CARLOS MUNDA EconomicM. Analyst:

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VOL. 7 ISSUE 205 • WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY, DEC. 31, 2014 - JAN. 3, 2015

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The power of perseverance

W

HEN he was six years of age, Ray Charles lost his eyesight. His mother told him, “Ray you’ve lost your sight, but you haven’t lost your mind. You can still create a productive life for yourself.”

To a young, poor, blind child, the possibilities didn’t seem too bright. But as Ray thought about what he really wanted to do with his life, he dreamed of becoming a recording star. He did – and he received countless awards for his music including winning 12 Grammies and was inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Hollywood actor Sylvester Stallone had been turned down a thousand times by agents and was down to his last $600. Some producers read the script he himself wrote about a boxer. A few were interested to buy it but he wanted to star in the film adaptation. Finally, he found a company that would produce “Rocky.” It won an Oscar for Best Picture and an acting nomination for him!

Ray Charles and Sylvester Stallone have one thing in common: both persevered.

“Perseverance is failing nineteen times and succeeding the twentieth,” British actress Julie Andrews once said. Richard M. DeVos has the same view: “If I had to select one quality, one personal characteristic that I regard as being most highly correlated with success, whatever the field, I would pick the trait of persistence. Determination. The will to endure to the end, to get knocked down seventy times and get up off the floor saying, Here comes number seventy-one!”

Jacob Riis offers this statement: “When nothing seems to help, I go look at a stonecutter hammering away at his rock perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it. Yet at the hundred and first

N

VANTAGE POINTS

blow it will split in two, and I THINK ON THESE! know it was not that blow that did it, but all that had gone before.”

Kevin Sorbo, known for his television commercials in the United States, under- Henrylito D. Tacio stood this well. henrytacio@gmail.com “You have to persevere,” he said. “You have to do it. I have insecurities.

But whatever I’m insecure about I don’t dissect it, but I’ll go after it and say, ‘What am I afraid of?’ I bet the average successful person can tell you they’ve failed so much more than they’ve had success. I’ve had far more failures than I’ve had successes. With every commercial I’ve gotten, there were 200 I didn’t get.

You have to go after what you’re afraid of.”

The phenomenal Bjorn Borg agrees: “My greatest point is my persistence. I never give up in a match. However down I am, I fight until the last ball. My list of matches shows that I have turned a great many so-called irretrievable defeats into victories.”

“If you want to get somewhere,” wellknown speaker Norman Vincent Peale once said, “you have to know where you want to go and how to get there. Then never, never, never give up.”

Remember Sir Winston Churchill? History records showed that it took him three years getting through eighth grade because he had trouble learning English. It seems ironic

that several years later, the Oxford University asked him to address its commencement exercises.

Churchill arrived with his usual props.

A cigar, a cane, and a top hat accompanied Churchill wherever he went. As Churchill approached the podium, the crowd rose in appreciative applause. With unmatched dignity, he settled the crowd and stood confident before his admirers. Removing the cigar and carefully placing the top hat on the podium, Churchill gazed at his waiting audience. Authority rang in Churchill’s voice as he shouted, “Never give up!”

Several seconds passed before he rose to his toes and repeated: “Never give up!” His words thundered in their ears. There was a deafening silence as Churchill reached for his hat and cigar, steadied himself with his cane and left the platform. His commencement address was finished.

“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up,” Thomas Edison pointed out. “The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.” He was talking from experience: he tried almost 10,000 times before he succeeded in creating the electric light.

Sometimes, we fail what we want to do in life because we aim so high. We want to be a star, although we can only be a tree. But being a tree doesn’t mean that you will not a star in your own right. If you are a tree, be the best tree of all trees.

Famous American humorist Mark Twain reminded: “Stars are good too. I wish I could get some to put in my hair. But I suppose I never can. You would be surprised to find how far off they are, for they do not look it. When they first showed last night I tried to knock some down with a pole, but it didn’t reach,

which astonished me. Then I tried clods till I was all tired out, but I never got one. I did make some close shots, for I saw the black blot of the clod sail right into the midst of the golden clusters forty or fifty times, just barely missing them, and if I could’ve held out a little longer, maybe I could’ve got one.”

B.C. Forbes declared: “History has demonstrated that the most notable winners usually encountered heartbreaking obstacles before they triumphed. They won because they refused to become discouraged by their defeats.”

Take the case of Sir Edmund Hillary, the first man to climb Mount Everest. On May 29, 1953, he scaled the highest mountain then known to man-29,000 feet straight up. He was knighted for his efforts. He even made American Express card commercials because of it!

However, until we read his book, “High Adventure,” we don’t understand that Hillary had to grow into this success. In 1952, he attempted to climb Mount Everest, but failed. A few weeks later a group in England asked him to address its members. Hillary walked on stage to a thunderous applause. The audience was recognizing an attempt at greatness, but Edmund Hillary saw himself as a failure.

He moved away from the microphone and walked to the edge of the platform. He made a fist and pointed at a picture of the mountain.

He said in a loud voice, “Mount Everest, you beat me the first time, but I’ll beat you the next time because you’ve grown all you are going to grow… but I’m still growing!”

How true, indeed, were the words of Booker T. Washington: “Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as the obstacles, which he has overcome while trying to succeed.”

Rizal and the sickness called ‘indolence’

OW over a century since Dr. Jose P. Rizal was executed at Bagong Bayan in Luneta on December 30, 1998, let us be refreshed on one of the ways he championed our honor and integrity.

In the latter half of the 19th Century a debate broke out on the nature and disposition of our forefathers, the natives, whom the colonial rulers called “indios” and disparaged as backward and lazy.

On one side were the Filipino intellectuals of the time; on the other, the Spanish colonial authorities. The issue: “The Indolence of the Filipino.”

As was his wont, Dr. Rizal confronted the issue in an essay of the same title, befitting his role as an articulator of his generation’s nationalist sentiments. ***** Curiously, he addressed the issue not so much to deny the charge of indolence, as many vigorously did, but sought to turn the table against the Spaniards by confirming it.

In effect he said, “Of course Filipinos are indolent! How can they be otherwise? With all the abuse and mistreatment they have been subjected to, any people would become indolent!”

He clarified the word “indolence” as meaning sluggish or lazy as a result of illness; he was a doctor and he knew whereof he spoke. He explained how the illness develops; how it debilitates one subjected to repeated indignity and abuse; and how it ultimately weakens the will, making the victim appear indolent or lazy. But in fact, he is merely ill.

THE WORM’S EYEVIEW

BY MANNY VALDEHUESA His behavior is caused by the ravages of illness.

To place the issue in context, he recounted how before the Spaniards came and imposed colonial rule Filipinos were among the most creative and productive of Asians, commercially active and adventurous, producing wares that were much in demand abroad. ***** He traced how Ferdinand Magellan and Pigaffeta witnessed and chronicled the prolific craftsmanship and output of Filipinos—describing how ships from India, Siam (Thailand), and other places would sail in to be loaded in Cebu with gold, silver, and other goods from the islands.

He cited Spanish, Dutch, Portuguese, and other chroniclers who marveled at the masterful Filipino shipbuilders, miners and jewelers, weavers of silk and cotton and pina textile, farmers and fisherfolks, craftsmen and warriors, even distillers in their many barangays.

He quoted Morga and other witnesses who described the paraus and vintas and large vessels that plied Philippine seas, some so large they had a hundred rowers on each side. And he referred to the great alliances Filipinos had with Indonesia and outlying peoples, helping them quell revolt or liberate

their islands from pirates. (Our memory of this was refreshed only a year ago when the issue of Sabah as a possession of the Sultan of Sulu surfaced—a gift of territory for helping quell rebellion there ages ago.)

We owe Rizal for portraying the true nature and character of Filipinos in their original state—when they were free and unspoiled by alien strictures and demands, a people with boundless industry, creativity, and resourcefulness. ***** In his inimitable style, he told of how colonial abuse damaged the character of our simple folk, how the Spanish Regime dehumanized trusting people even as it appropriated the latter’s produce and services as “tribute,” treating them as little more than slaves or beasts of burden.

It was a scathing indictment of colonial exploitation—of imperious masters pushing the limits of citizen patience, of seemingly petty habits like taking long siestas while “indio” domestic workers fanned them, of their control of all facets of life, and of their levying all sorts of taxes.

Centuries of that drained the Filipino’s self-esteem and confidence, Rizal wrote.

Ultimately, it discouraged him from doing or producing anything that fed his master’s covetousness or intensify his sense of entitlement to anything an indio produced.

“Who would work, let alone work hard,” he wrote, “knowing that at harvest time his crop would only fatten the executioner?”

They also had to render compulsory labor to

maintain roads and other public works. And as if these were not bad enough, one had to respond to demands of spoiled señores and señoras, señoritos and señoritas, who reveled in having muchachos and muchachas at their beck and call. ***** No less devastating to the Filipino’s psyche was the narrow-mindedness of friars who urged him to devote more time to spiritual rather than “material” pursuits. Simple people were told to eschew “material” undertakings such as working their mines, engaging in commerce, operating their looms—and instead look to heaven to save their souls!

Rizal would lament: “The friars were preparing Filipinos for death as their only consolation in life!” Dispirited and weakened, indolence ailed them. Colonial maltreatment turned them sluggish and made them regress to a backward state.

But what Rizal didn’t point out in this essay was that while indignity weakened the spirit of the Filipino of the time, it laid the premise for his ultimate awakening and defiance against colonial rule.

Manny is former UNESCO regional director for Asia-Pacific; secretary-general, Southeast Asia Publishers Association; director, development academy of Philippines; member, Philippine Mission to the UN; vice chair, Local Government Academy; member, Cory Govt’s Peace Panel; awardee, PPIUNICEF outstanding columnist. He is president/national convenor, Gising Barangay Movement Inc. valdehuesa@gmail.com

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NEWS

EDGEDAVAO VOL. 7 ISSUE 205 •WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY, DEC. 31, 2014 - JAN. 3, 2015

‘Seniang’ batters Misamis Or

H

EAVY rains and strong winds spawned by tropical storm Seniang destroyed bridges, flooded roads and trapped 60 climbers in a remote mountain in Claveria town as the weather disturbance slammed across Misamis Oriental province on Monday.

Misamis Oriental Gov. Yevgeny Emano said a state of calamity was declared as Seniang” continued to batter 15 towns in the eastern section of the province.

Emano said they were concerned over the plight of the mountaineers who contacted the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (PDRRMC) to say they could not come down from Mt. Lumot because the Cevoleg River had overflowed.

He said attempts to rescue the mountaineers were hampered by strong winds

and heavy rains that triggered a landslide in barangay Aposakahoy in Claveria blocking the only road that leads to the mountain.

“We have advised them to back track from where they started and hunker down for the night,” he said.

The mountaineers, who came from Cebu, Davao, General Santos, Iligan and Cagayan de Oro cities, were on their annual yearend mountain climb called “Kamras” on the 2,320-meter Mt. Lumot, where Cebu Pacific flight 387 crashed in February 1998.

Dumping 20 millimeters of rain, Seniang triggered a flashflood that damaged the bridge in barangay Mambuaya, Balingasag town in Misamis Oriental Monday morning.

Edmundo Pacamalan Jr., Misamis Oriental PDRRMC chief said they have to suspend all traffic between Cagayan de

Oro and Butuan City until the bridge can be fixed.

Pacamalan said the Tagoloan River also spilled into its banks forcing the evacuation of over 1,500 families.

He said 15 workers at Dole Philippines’ banana plantation in Sta. Ana, Tagoloan were also trapped because of the rising floodwaters.

Winds of 95 kilometers per hour beached cargo ship M/V Arowana 3 in Zone 1, Barangay Luz Banzon in Jasaan town, also in Misamis Oriental, the Office of Civil Defense in Region 10 reported.

OCD Region 10 information officer Titus Velez said the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines suspended five flights of Cebu Pacific and two flights of Philippine Air Lines servicing the Laguindingan (Misamis Oriental)-Manila route. (Froilan Gallardo/MindaNews)

SENIANG’S FURY. Vehicles try to negotiate a flooded part of the highway in barangay Lemon in Butuan City, December 28, 2014. Tropical storm Seniang has brought heavy rains across Mindanao since last week.

MindaNews photo by Erwin Mascarinas

VOL. 7 ISSUE 205 • WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY, DEC. 31, 2014 - JAN. 3, 2015

Growth... FFROM 1 as of the first quarter of 2014.

Domestic travelers (including balikbayans) account for 92 percent of total visitor arrivals.

Foreign tourist arrivals achieved the biggest growth of 39.97 percent due to the increased marketing effort and participation to international travel fairs.

“American, Japanese, Koreans, and Chinese accounted for the foreign arrivals,” Lim said.

The stable peace and order and development of tourism infrastructure also boosted tourist arrivals in the region.

The growth in the infrastructure development will also be a key contributor in attaining the 7.2 percent or higher economic growth in 2014, Lim said.

She said five major projects were completed as of June 2014, namely: Cateel irrigation project in Davao Oriental worth P256 million, upgrading of Lacson-La-

manan-Inayangan-Megkawayan Road in Davao City worth P179 million; Compostela-Cateel Road in Davao Oriental worth P168 million; and upgrading of La Union-Mt Hamiguitan Road in San Isidro, Davao Oriental worth P147 million.

The construction of various infrastructure projects in typhoon Pablo-affected areas in the provinces of Compostela Valley and Davao Oriental were completed such as 98 projects of elementary school buildings worth P437.5 million; seven projects of secondary building worth P83.7 million; river bank protection and bridge projects worth P96 million.

Lim said this growth in the infrastructure and construction sector will continue next year because of the commissioning of different coalfired power plants that are expected to supply more than enough power for the region.

He explained the city government owns and operates the water source at Kibalabag Creek, and MCWD only buys water from it for distribution to consumers.

Kibalabag Creek supplies 70 percent of the city’s potable water consumption.

As of 6:00 p.m. Monday, only the water treatment plant in Barangay Sumpong was operational “but has limited production capacity,” the MCWD said.

Concessionaires, however, may get water from the MCWD facility in Sumpong.

It said there was “low pressure” to “no water” in the following areas: Poblacion barangays 1 to 11, barangays Casisang, San Jose, Aglayan, Linabo, Sumpong, Kalasungay, Laguitas, Managok and Dalwangan.

Tomas Taga, chief of the Malaybalay City Government Water Supply System confirmed Tuesday they had to limit the volume of water for treatment in the reservoir after the dam was submerged.

Taga said the transmission pipe from the reservoir to MCWD sustained a six-inch hole on Dec. 26, or even before the onslaught of Seniang. He added only two inches of the hole was left for repair so far.

He said the resumption of normal water supply would depend on the weather. As of 11:00 a.m.

Tuesday it was still raining in Malaybalay.

The city government releases 180 liters per second to MCWD on normal days, Taga said.

But due to the problem and turbidity caused by

heavy rains they can only release 140 lps, he added.

Aroa confirmed via telephone the release of water from the city government as of 6a.m. Tuesday.

“But it is not enough.

We released water but it is insufficient or low pressure in most areas. With the rate there are still areas like in Barangay San Jose and the BLISS area where there is no water supply,” he added.

Floods caused by Seniang also forced the MCWD to close filtration system in Barangay Kalasungay due to turbid water from Bag-as and Lumayagan creeks.

It likewise shut down its supply from Dalwangan due to turbid water from Lalawan Creek.

In 2012, typhoon “Pablo” reduced the city’s water supply by about 50 percent due to damaged pipelines.

Households got water supply from fire trucks that went around the barangays.

Aroa said he had proposed years ago to the city government to install a coagulation system at the treatment facility in Kibalabag Creek so that they can distribute water even if during floods that cause turbidity.

He said coagulation can eliminate turbidity and keep the water safe for human consumption.

Malaybalay residents voiced their disappointment on the “lack of information” about the shortage of water supply on Facebook. (Walter I. Balane and H. Marcos C. Mordeno/ MindaNews)

Flooding... FFROM 3

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DCPO... FFROM 2 communities,” she added.

Driz said the DCPO will deploy mobile patrols in every corner of the city to provide police visibility that will make criminals think twice.

She said the DCPO will also assign foot patrols in every barangay with the barangay police auxiliaries paid by the city government.

The auxiliaries also help the police in maintaining the law and order of the city.

Driz admitted that there was a spike in the crime rate in the city in 2014 but she explained that it was not due to lower police visibility but because other crimes have been included in the police reports such as traffic violations, reckless imprudence resulting in homicide or physical injuries, and special laws such the violence against women and their children and juvenile justice law.

She said despite the volume increase, the crime solution efficiency also increased.

DCPO’s third quarter data recorded 2,255 index crimes from the period of July to September, compared with the second quarter from April to June of this year which had 2,011. This reflected a 10.82 percent increase from the previous quarter, or an additional 244 crime incidents recorded.

Compared with last

year’s record of the same period, there was a 52.19 percent increase, from 1,078 to 1,177.

Index crimes include murder and non-negligent manslaughter, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny (theft), and motor vehicle theft.

The DCPO report showed that most crimes reported were robbery, snatching, theft, swindling or estafa, and physical injuries.

The DCPO also recorded an increase in the non-index crimes in the city, with 2,911 or a 19.51 percent increase from the previous quarter’s 2,343.

There was a 67 percent increase from last year’s record or 1,955 additions of the previous year’s 956 record.

Non-index are the special laws which are violated such as anti-smoking law , anti-violence against women and children, anti-child abuse law, land transportation code (no plate no travel policy and speed limit), illegal possession of firearms , and illegal gambling.

Records show that of the total 5,166 crime volume of the third quarter, there was a 2,749 crime solution or 53.21 percent.

There were 939 cases in the index crime solved and 1,810 non-index crimes solved.

team has been closely monitoring various malaria-endemic barangays in the province to avert any outbreak of the disease.

“We are not taking any chances that’s why we trained our local counterparts in detecting malaria cases to effectively contain its emergence and spread,” he said.

Barroquillo said their anti-malaria operations are centered in villages located in the boundaries of South Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat provinces that were earlier considered endemic to the disease.

He said no new cases of malaria emerged in these areas since they intensified their campaign three years ago.

“From 587 cases in 2004, we were able to reduce our malaria incidence

to two in 2010 and zero since 2011,” he said.

The last recorded malaria outbreak in the province was in 2007 when local health personnel detected 80 confirmed cases in Barangay Bacdulong in Lake Sebu town.

The IPHO partnered with the WHO and the Global Fund to contain the malaria incidence in the area through massive information and education campaign as well as the distribution of around 2,000 treated mosquito nets.

“Our health workers are doing their best. They traverse rivers and walk long hours to far-flung communities to extend anti-malaria health services.

We have to thank them for this,” Barroquillo added.

(PNA)

den City of Samal DRRMC for outstanding component cities with IGACOS to represent in the national level; Kapalong Municipal DRRMC as the most outstanding municipal DRRMC; Davao Oriental DRRMC as the most outstanding provincial DRRMC. He said the RDRRMC 11 also acknowledged private volunteer organizations like the Davao Fire and Rescue

Services of Davao City and the Ranger Volunteer and Dream 166 all based in Mati City, Davao Oriental.

Irag said the disaster preparedness and readiness of the San Pedro College, Panabo National High School, and Rocamora Rabat Elementary School in Mati City, Davao Oriental were also given due recognition. (PIA 11-Joey Sem G. Dalumpines)

South... FFROM 4

DavOr... FFROM 4

NEWS 11 Bomb... FFROM 2 the group,” he said when asked if the suspects are members of the Abu Sayyaf.

Chief Insp. Edilberto Alvarez, Police Station 11 deputy chief, identified the arrested suspects as Marcel Jumadil, 35, and Jumadan Dassan, 40, both of Barangay Malimbaya, Indanan, Sulu; and Alshirif Sabdani, 41 of Barangay Sapa, Tandubas, Tawi-Tawi.

Alvarez said first to be arrested was Jumadil, who was seen driving a motorcycle on a counter flow direction along Tomas Claudio Street near the blast site.

The police official said Dassan and Sabdani were arrested in Barangay

Baliwasan in a follow-up operation based on information obtained from Jumadil.

Casimiro said the post-blast investigators have yet to determine the type of improvised bomb used as the motive of the incident.

The Princess massage parlor and videoke bar lies next to the Deluxe massage parlor and videoke bar where two improvised bombs exploded one after the other last November 9.

A member of the local police’s explosive ordnance demolition team and the K9 named “Diego” were wounded during the earlier explosions. (MindaNews)

Tuesday, according to Geoffrey Gervo, station commander of Philippine Coast Guard-Surigao.

At least 824 passengers and 111 rolling cargoes and vehicles were stranded in two seaports in Surigao City since yesterday until late morning Tuesday.

The city government and provincial government of Surigao del Norte gave free meals to the stranded passengers.

On Monday, 202 families sought refuge in different evacuation centers in Surigao City, according to Annette Villaces, the city information officer who also serves as secretary to the local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

No casualty was reported in Surigao City as Seniang exited Mindanao. (Roel N. Catoto/MindaNews)

These roads are major LGU assets, and provide immediate and sustained economic, and social benefits if properly maintained.

They facilitate better accessibility, mobility, local economic growth, and sustainability.

Lanao del Norte is one of three new PRMF partner provinces. The PRMF is a governance reform program supported by the Australian Government in partnership with the Government of the Philippines, through the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG).

Australia is a long-standing Philippine Government development partner, and the country’s largest bi-lateral donor.

Also present during the groundbreaking rites were vice governor Cristy Atay, Mayor Allan Lim of Lala town, DILG-Lanao del Norte repesentative, Lanao del Norte PRMF office personnel, PRMF-LDN head Dondon Almonacid, Provincial Engineer Marietta Borrillo, and officials from the barangay, municipal, and some from the provincial, as well. (VNL-PIO/ PRMF-LDN/PIA-10 LDN)

dling capacity significantly.

It is another step towards serving large ocean ships in Gdynia,” says Krzysztof Szymborski, CEO of the Baltic Container Terminal.

The QCs are part of a PLN 200 million (USD 58 million) investment program, which was initiated back in 2012. Co-funded by the European Union and the Infrastructure and Environment Operational Program, the investment covers the purchase of reloading equipment including railway gantry cranes, straddle carriers and container trailers. It also involved the surface replacement of storage yards and the roll-

out of specialized terminal IT systems.

The cranes were supplied and manufactured by Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Co. Ltd. Each crane can service 19-bay wide container vessels, which in practice are ships with 13,000 TEU capacities.

Meanwhile, retrofitting of the BCT railway terminal has also been carried out in coordination with the Management Board of the Gdynia Port Authority. The expansion will facilitate the simultaneous servicing of full length trainloads. The investment program will increase BCT’s overall capacity by 50 percent.

‘Seniang’... FFROM 2

Lanao... FFROM 4

ICTS... FFROM 6

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EDGEDAVAO VOL. 7 ISSUE 205 •WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY, DEC. 31, 2014 - JAN. 3, 2015

Call: 224-0733 • Tionko St., Davao City

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VOL. 7 ISSUE 205 • WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2014 - JANUARY 3, 2015

EDGEDAVAO

Mesa Filipino Moderne opens in SM City Davao

By Neilwin L. Bravo

Photos by Lean Daval Jr.

THEY say great dining comes with the backing of a great name.

Could be just a myth but there are solid proofs that the formula works. Take Mesa Filipino Moderne for example. That restaurant is associated with its owners Senator Kiko Pangilinan and movie star Sharon Cuneta.

When Mesa Filipino Moderne first opened its branch at SM Lanang Premier, it likewise helped that one of Davao’s revered names in business is behind it— the Escandors.

Mesa Filipino Moderne has mastered the art of Pinoy cuisine and with Davao’s rich food bounties, it was just a matter of time before

Mesa became a favourite dining address for Dabawenyos families on weekends, and gatherings by friends and associates on any weekday.

The fusion of Davao’s fresh takes from the farms and markets and the flavors of Mesa’s cuisine left an imprint on the palate to most locals and guests, and coupled with excellent service

MESA A4

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HOME AND DESIGN

An initial render of the one bedroom model unit at The Urban Hive by Eco-Dwellings.

About Atelier Almario

INTERIOR DESIGN in the Philippines is growing in leaps and bounds. On the cusp of it are Sisters Ivy and Cynthia Almario, the powerhouse tandem behind the Atelier Almario, two of the country’s leading interior designers. The duo boasts of numerous renowned interior projects such as the Astoria Boracay, Romulo Café in Jupiter Makati, Thai At Silk in Serendra and several residential designs to name a few of their ambient and impressive high profile projects.

The sisters lived in California for 15 years before returning to the Philippines and setting up their interior design studio. While in the States, Ivy worked as a junior designer for different firms while Cynthia worked with a design firm that did interiors for five-star hotels and resorts which they developed great work ethics and passion for work and exposing them to creating luxurious and elegant spaces. Their vibrant and ingenious per-

sonalities exude great rapport and complement their partnership which identifies them as design chameleons.

A perspective of the modern-looking Urban Hive condominium.

Quoting from an interview in the past, “We design using a whole gamut of genres and periods, from traditional, transitional, contemporary, Asian fusion, modern, you name it, we do it.” Their “impactful” designs, attention to details, quality of work and craftsmanship has leveled them up to the forefront of commercial as well as residential design.

Bringing their edgy designs to Mindanao, the sisters are exclusively

Atelier Almario: Ivy and Cynthia Almario. commissioned as the in- the units. Having created spirational interior de- exquisite interior projects signers to spruce up the in the past, Atelier Almaone-bedroom and two- rio will definitely use their bedroom model units of expertise of space orgathe soon-to-be developed nization, meticulousness medium rise residential and furniture placements community development, and proportionalities to The Urban Hive Palms, showcase reachable satisa modern condominium faction and comfort. complex composed of The one-bedroom unit seven six-storey mod- will feature a hip, young, ern residential buildings light and modern tropiwith a central activity cal feel. Its design will center. Their main objec- embody Florida-style detive is to bring about the sign quintessential to the best design solutions and youthful vibe of young its full potentials for the professionals and even well-thought-out plans of newlyweds as their target

market. Atelier Almario’s eye for aesthetics will incorporate innovative living spaces and make spaces look bigger than usual.

Apart from the crisp, clean and relaxed onebedroom unit, the sisters will also design the twobedroom unit which will feature Modern Contemporary ambience with a fusion of Mindanaoan details. Being a bigger unit Ivy reveals that the two-bedroom unit will be designed more for a the small family. Aside from producing their own space-saving pieces for the model units, the sisters are also looking into sourcing out Mindanaoan pieces to highlight Davao’s culture.

“Although we cannot show yet the final look of the spaces, we are confident and excited to bring to Davao, through Eco-Dwellings, the full potential of the units of The Urban Hive through the soon-to-be-launched model units,” beams Cynthia.

The Eco-Dwellings showroom will give clients firsthand experience and design ideas of the luxurious model units on the 1st quarter of 2015 and will be located at Eco-Dwellings Inc., Ground Floor, Filandia I.T. Center, Quirino Ave. corner Jacinto Extension, Davao City.

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FOOD

HAPPY NEW YEAR, royalties! Another year, another opportunity to live the life that we have always wanted. Make time to learn new things and experiment – especially inside the kitchen. Explore the many possibilities of creating your signature dish and never let the moment go!

To begin the new year, here are some kitchen tricks that you may find useful. Sometimes, we tend to commit the same mistakes thus making the whole process stressful.

The kitchen should be a happy place; a wonderland of flavors, colors and sizes!

Always crack an egg on a flat surface! We tend to crack these delicate babies on the edge of a bowl or with a utensil. Instead of

cut down your preparation time.

doing so, try cracking it on a falt surface. You not only avoid unwanted shells but

Shake up for a salad dressing! Instead of throwing that almost empty jar of jam, add some oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Give it a good shake and drizzle over your greens or even your grilled fish. The sweetness of the jam compliments with the other ingredients thus giving you a delightful new level of flavor.

Thick and rich soup minus the slurry? Add biscuits! A trick I learned from my mom, instead of slurry, add blitzed or pounded biscuits to make the soup thicker and rich.

Personally, I use digestive cookies. If biscuits is not for you, then you can use rice powder. Fry rice grains, pound and use – makes a great vinaigrette thickener too.

ALWAYS test a batch before doing the whole!

This is a major saver. Not only applicable for cakes and cookies but more so with stuffed dishes. Fry some lumpia, embotido or relyeno fillings and taste.

Adjust seasoning and whathaveyou’s.

When roasting chicken, salt it and then chill it.

This helps in drying th skin and keeping it crisp when cooked. Chill it uncovered for a day and see the difference. Before roasting, add herbs and aromatics for a more delicious and fragrant chicken.

Runny-yolked egg is best for pasta, rice and even pizza! If you want your egg well done, this trick is not for you. However, if you want to thicken your pasta sauce (carbonara) or have a bowl of rich rice or a rich and creamy pizza, try adding malasado eggs into your dishes and viola!

So, what’s your kitchen hack?

Make #TheRoyalChef your Thursday habit! Follow and tag me on instagram (herroyalheiress) for your delicious pics and food finds!

December 31, 2014

ENGLISH ONLY PLEASE Derek Ramsey, Jennylyn Mercado PG 13

12:40 | 3:00 | 5:20 LFS

FENG SHUI 2 Kris Aquino, Coco Martin PG 13

12:30 | 2:45 | 5:00 LFS

MY BIG BOSSING'S ADVENTURE Vic Sotto, Ryzza Mae Dizon GP

R-16

12:25 | 2:45 | 5:05 LFS

THE AMAZING PRAYBEYT BENJAMIN Vice Ganda, Richard Yap PG 13

12:40 | 3:00 | 5:20 LFS

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EDGEDAVAO

EVENTS

MESA A1

and homey ambiance, the restaurant made its mark in no time.

Hence, the need for another branch.

With the Escandors also cooking up its ambitious real estate project The Matina Enclaves down south of the city, it’s about time they open one Mesa branch around the area.

On December 20, Mesa Filipino Moderne SM City Davao branch opened its doors in simple yet heartwarming in-

auguration and blessing.

Bishop George Rimando presided over the blessing of the restaurant while Escandor Group of Companies president Glenn Y. Escandor with wife Michelle, mother Violeta and brother Gerome cut the ceremonial ribbon of the new branch witnessed by close friends and associates.

Mesa serves a wide variety of items from appetizers to soups, main dishes to grill items, choice meat and seafood complemented with a selection of desserts and coupled with specialty drinks. In contrast to others, substantially all items are prepared daily inside the restaurant’s kitchen facility using high quality and fresh ingredients based on innovative and authentic regional recipes.

Celebrate the New Year at the Mesa Filipino Moderne at SM City Davao in Ecoland or at the SM Lanang Premier in Lanang, Davao City.

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Festivals all year round Tinalak Festival

Kadayawan Festival

Text and Photos by Henrylito D. Tacio

A

FTER the boom and crack of New Year’s Day, the Philippines then stages a barrage of frenzied festivals and celebrations. In the provinces of Cebu, Iloilo, and Aklan, the New Year’s Eve revelry that kicked off at midnight carries over until the third week of January in a series of Mardi grass-like festivities – the Sinulog in Cebu, the Ati-Atihan in Aklan, and the Dinagyang in Iloilo.

Sinulog, Cebu City’s fiesta of fiestas, is a century-old tradition whose prayer-dance is harmonized to the beat of drums and shouts of “Pit Señor! Viva Sto. Niño!” The Ati-atihan is a celebration in honor of the Sto. Niño with revelers don colorful costumes and paint their bodies black and dance to the distinctive beat of “Hala bira!” around the town.

Dinagyang Festival is a spectacular event in the province of Iloilo where people in unique costumes dance all day and night to commemorate the Christianization of the natives and also to honor the Holy Child Jesus.

Baguio City comes alive during the whole month of February as it celebrates Penagbenga Festival, a popular tourist attraction that showcases the grand parade of flowers and rich cultural traditions in the city. This celebration is marked with the elaborate floral designs, street dancing, grand fireworks

Sambuokan Festival

display, and other weekly activities that include local art shows and beauty pageants.

In Marinduque, the annual observance during the Lenten Season is marked by the folk-religious festival of Moriones which has become a foremost tourist attraction of the province. The festival relives the miraculous restoration of Longinus’ (a Roman centurion who speared the crucified Christ) sight through a dramatic play. For an entire week, religious devotees parade on the streets of Boac, Gasan, and Torrijos with their intricately designed Moriones costumes of painted masks, helmets, and tunics.

The month of May has two famous festivals: the Pilillan Carabao on the 14th in Bulacan and Pahiyas on the 15th in Sariaya, Lucban and Tayabas, Quezon. The highlight of the Pahiyas is a procession along the streets where all houses are decorated with agricultural harvest (such as fruits, vegetables, rice grains, rice stalks, beautiful flowers and ferns) and with native “pahiyas” (decor) called “kiping,” a wafer of rice with various colors.

A roast pork festival may sound kind of strange, but during the Parada ng Lechon in Balayan, Batangas every June 24, fancy-dress porkies are paraded around the town before the animals are roasted and everyone sits down to eat.

The festival coincides with the feast of John the Baptist, the

patron saint of the city.

Mindanao is the most culturally diverse island in the country where people of different languages, tribes, and races meet. As a melting pot of different cultures, it creates a more distinct culture which is not present in other island groups in the country. It’s no wonder the festivities of each province, city, and town differ from each other. Here are some of the most colorful ones: Kadayawan, which started in 1988, is touted to be Mindanao’s festival of all festivals.

It honors Davao’s artistic, cultural and historical heritage, its past personified by the ancestral “lumads” (natives), its people as they celebrate on the streets, and its floral industry as its representatives parade in full regalia in thanksgiving for the blessings granted on the city.

General Santos City in South Cotabato has to pay proper homage to the city’s number one industry through the Tuna Festival. The weeklong celebration features different events and activities focusing on the tuna industry of the province.

Mati, the lone city of Davao Oriental, is known for Sambuokan, which is celebrated every October. Sambuokan comes from a Mandaya word “buok,” which means “in one” or “united.” It is a way of the people of Mati to celebrate the bounty of what God has given

Tuna Festival

Bansaulog Festival to them and the progress of the city.

In the month of July, Koronadal City in South Cotabato comes alive with the celebration of the Tinalak Festival, named after a woven cloth popularized by the province’s T’boli tribe.

The province of Bukidnon has come up with Kaamulan, which comes from the Binukid word “amul” which means to gather. It is a gathering of Bukidnon tribes for a purpose such as “Datuship,” a ritual, a wedding ceremony, a thanksgiving festival during harvest time, a peace pact, or all of these put together.

Zamboanga City is known for its Zamboanga Hermosa Festival. This regatta with a difference sees the native boats called “vintas” in races,

alongside a whole host of landbased activities in veneration of Nuestra Señora Virgen del Pilar.

Even small towns in Mindanao have their own festival.

On the town’s anniversary, September 18, sleepy Bansalan of Davao del Sur wakes up as it celebrates Bansaulog Festival, the municipality’s anniversary. It comes from two words: “bansa” (from the name of the town) and “saulog” (which means “celebration” in local dialect).

Even during the Christmas season, Filipinos still have way of observing certain festivals.

From a lamp-lit procession, the annual celebration of Lantern Festival in San Fernando, Pampanga has become a major attraction during the Christmas season. A stunning

display of lights and color happens during the festival night of lanterns in San Fernando as the designers of each “parols” (lanterns) compete for the biggest and most dynamic interplay of each creation during the five-minute show.

All these festivities end with Binirayan Festival, which is celebrated in San Jose, Antique from December 28-30.

It is a festive commemoration of an episode in the history of the Filipino race through colorful pageants acted on the beaches of Maybato in San Jose and Malandog in Hamtik. The festival is also an occasion of reunion with families, relatives and friends of homecoming Antiqueno expatriates.

Indeed, it’s more fun in the Philippines – with all these festivals throughout the year!

SPORTS DAVAO 14 EDGE Sports

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Kiefer settles for 11th in Fencing Grand Prix H

ALF-PINAY Lee Kiefer stumbled in the quarterfinals and settled for 11th place in the recent FIE Torino Women’s Foil Grand Prix.

Arianna Errigo (ITA) won the initial Grand Prix of the FIE season, retaining her no. 1 world ranking by defeating teammate Elisa Di Francisca in the finals. In the top-8, Errigo defeated Jeon Hee Sook (KOR) 166, Anita Blaze (FRA) 15-4 and then in the finals posted a 15-7 score over Di Francisca.

Kiefer, daughter of a Filipina physician from Davao, led the way for the United States with an 11th place finish. Kiefer made her way to the top16 with victories over Anne Sauer (GER) and

Jacqueline Dubrovich (USA) before falling in the round of 16 to Malgorzata Wojtkowiak (POL) 11-10.

The London Olympian Kiefer from Lexington, Kentucky reached the podium for the first time at a Senior World Cup with her silver medal finish in St. Maur, France earlier.

The bronze medalists were Anita Blaze (FRA) and Adelina Zagidullina (RUS) Italy took the top 2 spots and had 4 fencers in the top 10 as Martina Batini and Valentina Vezzali took 9th and 10th for Italy.

Other US fencers earning FIE points were Margaret Lu (24th), Jacqueline Dubrovich (27th), Sabrina Massialas (32nd), Nicole Ross

(47th), and Jessie Laffey (61st).

Russia placed 4 fencers in the top-16 while host Italy placed 6 in the top-16. No other country placed multiple fencers in the top-16 but fencers from Germany, Korea, France, Hungary, Poland and the USA were represented.

In the team event, the United States, seeded 6th, lost in the top-16 top Japan 23-22. After their loss, the USA defeated Mexico (45-20), Canada (37-30), and China (4435) in the placement rounds to take 9th.

Italy won out the event, posting a commanding 45-35 victory over Russia in the final, which was the closest any team got to Italy all day.

Lee Kiefer

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Oscar is boxing’s Man Of The Year O

SCAR De La Hoya looked anything but comfortable at a questionably timed, poorly run, news conference he called in Las Vegas on May 3.

It was held in a ballroom at the MGM Grand, only hours before Floyd Mayweather Jr. was to meet Marcos Maidana.

Undercard fights were going on while De La Hoya spoke to the media en masse for the first time since being released from a rehabilitation clinic.

Richard Schaefer was running Golden Boy Promotions, and if the media that met De La Hoya that day had been polled, it would have been unanimous in Schaefer’s favor about which man was best suited to run the company.

In a month, De La Hoya would be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame as a tribute to his brilliance as a fighter.

But since his retirement following a 2008 battering from Manny Pacquiao, he’d been anything but brilliant as a promoter.

He was in and out of rehabilitation, seemed disinterested in the business aspects of boxing and played a key role in the nonsensical feud with

Top Rank that threatened to further erode the sport’s remaining credibility with the world at large.

Nearly eight months later, though, it is a very different De La Hoya. He is decidedly in charge of his company. He won a staredown with Schaefer and regained control of the company he founded, invested millions in and which bore his nickname.

He took the first steps toward détente with Top Rank, mending fences with its CEO, Bob Arum.

He repaired relations with HBO, which in early 2013 had booted Golden Boy from its airwaves. Given that 14 of the 15 most widely viewed nonpay-per-view fights in the U.S. in 2014 were on HBO, it was a prudent decision to end that dispute as soon as possible.

And he immediately began campaigning for the best fights to be made, fights his customers demanded, once he was firmly back in charge.

For that work, and much more, De La Hoya is the Yahoo Sports Boxing Man of the Year in 2014.

The year wasn’t a great one for the sport from a business standpoint. Pay-per-view

Oscar De La Hoya sales were down dramatically.

None of the major bouts hit a million sales, or seriously threatened the mark, and fights involving stars such as Mayweather, Pacquiao, Miguel Cotto and Sergio Martinez came in significantly under projections.

Unlike 2013, when Showtime and HBO went head-tohead with spectacular shows on an almost weekly basis, the quality of the events was far more uneven in 2014.

Efforts by both De La Hoya and Arum to make major bouts were compounded by

the roadblocks thrown up by the abstruse Al Haymon, the powerhouse manager/adviser whose contract with his fighters gives him the ability to approve opponents.

Given that Haymon is believed to be working on putting together some sort of deal

with NBC for fights in 2015, he wasn’t too interested in having De La Hoya throw his charges into difficult challenges.

Yet, despite it all, De La Hoya kept working. He made himself more accessible than he’d ever been as he preached for the best to fight the best.

LEVELAND Cavaliers bosses are questioning first-year NBA coach David Blatt’s ability to motivate players, ESPN reported on Monday.

Citing unnamed league sources, the US-based sports telecaster’s website reported that there is concern about how much players are listening to Blatt, a 55-year-old American who guided Russia to 2012 Olympic bronze and Maccabi Tel Aviv to a Euroleague crown before being hired by the Cavaliers last June.

Blatt arrived weeks before four-time NBA Most Valuable Player LeBron James left Miami to return to his home region club in the quest of bringing a major sports crown to Cleveland, which has not had such a champion in half a century.

The Cavaliers are 18-12 but lost 103-80 at home Sunday to Detroit, which has lost 23 of 30 games, and 127-98 to Atlanta two weeks ago.

Some things are clearly out of Blatt’s control. Cleve-

land is without injured Australian guard Kyrie Irving, absent with a sore left knee, and Brazilian big man Anderson Varejao, who is out for the remainder of the season after surgery on a torn Achilles tendon.

Asked Sunday if he was concerned he might be losing control of the team, Blatt replied: “I’m not concerned about that at all. I’m concerned with how we are playing.”

James, who turns 30 on Tuesday, has assumed a leadership role since his arrival and made his unhappiness clear after Sunday’s loss.

“We’re not a very good team,” he said. “As far as on the court, we’re still trying to find our way as well. We’ve won some good games. we’ve lost some games. But right now, we’re just not very good in every aspect of the game that we need to be to compete every night.”

Player substitution patterns were questioned early in the season as Blatt tried to work with different align-

ments to find combinations that worked. The Cavaliers had to become accustomed to each other after bringing in James and star big man Kevin Love from Minnesota to join Irving and the rest of the roster.

The latest struggles follow injuries but still leave James and Love in search of answers.

“I can’t tell you what it was,” Love said. “We need to play better in front of our home crowd. It’s just unacceptable.”

Blatt says the team needs to adjust to the injuries.

“We lost some pretty important players,” Blatt said Sunday. “You have to be more determined and more competitive and fight your way through that or else this happens. It’s not an excuse. it’s just an explanation.”

The ESPN report said various players have not paid attention to Blatt during timeout huddles, instead preferring to communicate with former NBA player Tyronn Lue, a Cavaliers assistant coach.

with a turnaround jumper with 3:27 remaining in the fourth quarter.

While the Bulls went silent, the Pacers scored 20 points in a row at one stretch, with Lavoy Allen’s layup midway into the final period putting Indiana in front and Luis Scola’s

basket putting the Pacers ahead 86-83.

Butler sank a 3-pointer with just over a minute remaining to put the Bulls back on top and C.J. Watson missed a baseline 3-pointer at the buzzer that would have won the game for Indiana.

Chris Copeland came off the bench to lead Indiana’s six double-figure scorers with 17 points, netting 13 of them in the fourth quarter.

The Pacers slid to 1121, 11 1/2 games behind the pace-setting Bulls in the Central division.

Cavs face coaching woes C

COACHING WOES. Despite Lebron James’ leadership, the Cavaliers need to face the grim reality of coaching problems.

J

IMMY Butler scored 27 points and grabbed nine rebounds and the Chicago Bulls held off a late rally to beat Indiana 92-90 for their seventh consecutive NBA victory.

Spanish star Pau Gasol added 20 points while Derrick Rose contributed

Bulls get seventh straight W

17 on Monday despite 5-of20 shooting for the visiting Bulls, who improved to 229, two games behind Toronto for the best record in the Eastern Conference.

The Bulls nearly squandered a 21-point lead with a sluggish fourth quarter in which they were outscored

25-11.

A 3-point play by Chicago’s Mike Dunleavy, who pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds, put the Bulls ahead 75-54 late in the third quarter, but Chicago missed an unprecedented 17 shots in a row until Gasol broke the futility streak

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