Edge Davao Volume 12 Issue 222 | Tuesday, January 21, 2020

EDGEDAVAO Serving a seamless society

VOL.12 ISSUE 222 • TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2020

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A mother squeezes her son's cheeks as the boy refuses to receive anti-polio vaccine from a health worker during the first day of the third round of Sabayang Patak Kotra Polio campign at a health center in Bankerohan, Davao City on Monday. Lean Daval Jr

MOMENTUM, P9

FIRST ARREST

Man arrested for violating citywide total gun ban

By ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR.

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43-year-old man was arrested for violation of total gun ban implemented here after attempting to bring his gun in the city on Monday morning.

A 43-year-old man was arrested for violation of total gun ban implemented here after attempting to bring his gun in the city on Monday morning.

The Davao City Police Of�ice (DCPO) identi�ied suspect as Abdul Yasser E. Macusang, resident of Purok Mangga Maco, Davao de Oro .

Police report bared

that Macusang was arrested at the �ixed checkpoint in Barangay Licanan, Lasang conducted by the personnel of Bunawan Police Station and Task Force Davao around

9:00 a.m. of January 20.

According to the report, uniformed personnel in the checkpoint saw the caliber 40 pistol in the armrest of the box stor-

FIRST ARREST, P9

2 NEWS EDGEDAVAO

VOL.12 ISSUE 222 • TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2020

2,400 metric tons of trash in MisOr sent back to SoKor

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President Rodrigo Duterte delivers a speech as he joins the Cebuanos in celebrating the 40th Sinulog Festival at the Cebu City Sports Center Grandstand on Sunday night. PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

ixty container vans loaded with 2,400 metric tons of illegally shipped waste were shipped back to South Korea Sunday.

This shipment is part of the 5,000 metric tons of household waste and plastic shreds that arrived in the town of Tagoloan last July 2018.

The remaining trash will be re-exported on February 9, on board an international shipping vessel that was arranged by the South Korean government.

Three Korean of�icials of the consignee Verde Soko Philippines Industrial Corporation were charged for violating importation laws.

"Ang bansa natin ay hindi basurahan kung hindi isang bansang makapangyarihan na kayang magpalayas ng basura ng makapangyarihang bansa," said Bureau of Customs-10 district collector John Si-

mon.

Aside from the 5,000 metric tons, another 1,500 metric tons of similar waste materials were seized at the Mindanao Container Terminal. These were returned to South Korea last January 2019.

"We are asserting that we have dignity as Filipinos. Even if the Philippines is a developing country, but it does not give other countries the right to dump their garbage [in our country]," said Chinkie Golle, EcoWaste Coalition Davao City executive director.

The shipments were seized by BOC because it was misdeclared as "plastic synthetic �lakes." However, upon inspection of port authorities, the materials were found to be waste materials of mixed sizes, some even deemed as hazardous.

The remaining materials are expected to be shipped back to South Korea by Feb. 9.

avao City Water District advises customers of a water service interruption scheduled on January 23, 2020 from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM affecting some Brgy. Pampanga, Hizon, and Sasa areas.

Speci�ic affected areas are Belen Homes, Pampanga Executive Homes, Doña Asuncion Village, San Roque Village, Sto. Domingo Subds. 1 and 2, Don Lorenzo Homes, Model Homes, Doña Pilar Village Phases 1 and 2, Pal Village, Bolton Village, Southern Homes, Lougemar Village, and Manga Street.

DCWD needs to temporarily shut off water supply in the affected areas to give way to the tapping of the newly installed pipeline to DCWD’s existing pipeline for the mainline improvement at Rose Street to Camia Street in Doña Asuncion Village, Brgy.

Pampanga. Upon completion, this project will allow

for the accommodation of additional service connections.

On behalf of the DCWD management, General Manager Edwin V. Regalado asks for the understanding and cooperation of would-be affected customers and advises them to store enough water prior to the schedules. Water supply may be restored earlier if works go smoothly or later if unforeseen problems arise.

DCWD conducts �lushing after service works are completed. However, once water is restored, customers are advised to open all faucets and allow water to run for at least two minutes. Do not drink tap water immediately but if needed, boil water beforehand as safety precaution.

The general public may visit DCWD website (www.davao-water.gov. ph) and of�icial Facebook

GSIS extends GFAL loans for members D

Water interruption in some areas of Brgy. Pampanga, Hizon, Sasa

By MAYA M. PADILLO he Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) has extended the deadline in applying for GSIS Financial Assistance Loan (GFAL) until July 26 this year for the employees of the Department of Education (DepEd).

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“The request came from DepEd they said na lubog na sila sa private lending institutions, masyadong mataas ang interest rate. We came up with a program GFAL,” Deity Manampan, GSIS -Davao general manager told media in Kapihan sa Dabaw.

GFAL is a program that enables GSIS members to consolidate and transfer to GSIS their outstanding loan balance from lending institutions that charge

high interests. GFAL’s low interest and longer payment term yields higher take home pay for members and protects their future retirement bene�it.

GFAL, which was initially offered to public school teachers and employees of DepEd in May 2018 aims to improve their �inancial capacity and help them re�inance their outstanding loans with lending institutions.

Under GFAL the maximum loan amount is

P500,000 with a 6 percent interest rate per annum and six-year payment term through salary deduction.

If the amount of loan balance transferred to GSIS is lower than P500,000 borrowers may apply for the remaining credit as TopUp Loan for their needs.

GSIS introduced the Top-Up Loan to help GFAL borrowers augment their funds to defray for their other needs.

“At seguro na -realize ng mga government employees na nakakatulong because a lot of them ay naramdaman yung impact in the �irst wave na malaki ang kanilang take home pay,” Manampan said.

For CY 2019, GSIS was able to grant P68 billion to 165,929 government

employees. GSIS Davao’s GFAL granted to 4,319 government employees amounted to P1 billion.

Interested GFAL applicants from DepEd must be permanent government employees with outstanding loan from lending institutions, government, banks, or cooperatives accredited or recognized by their agency, have at least three years of periods with paid premiums and have no due and demandable loan account with GSIS. Manampan announced that all GSIS of�ices are open every Saturday for GFAL transactions, including conduct of a �inancial literacy seminar, which borrowers are required to attend prior to loan processing and approval.

tional submarine cable for N-1 contingency which will enable the transmission grid to withstand a major system disturbance with minimal disruption to the system between Negros and Panay islands.

Several interconnection projects are currently in the works, like the PhP 47.8 billion Stages 2 and 3 of the Cebu-Negros-Panay Interconnection Project which will establish a 230kV backbone to accommodate the transmission of excess power from Panay and Negros towards the rest of Visayas.

To address the growing demand in Boracay Island and provide additional capacity to support the ongoing developments, pre-construction activities are now underway for the PhP 8.5 billion Nabas-Caticlan-Boracay transmission line project.

The PhP 2.4 billion Panay-Guimaras 138kV trans-

mission line is also in the pre-construction stage.

To maintain the continuous transmission of power towards the major load centers in Mandaue and Mactan during N-1 condition, the PhP 1.9 billion Cebu-Lapu Lapu 230kV transmission line project is currently being undertaken, with survey and right-of-way activities ongoing. Another major interconnection is the PhP 19.8 billion Cebu-Bohol 230kV Interconnection Project, which, upon completion, will address overloading issues and enable sharing of power between the two islands, especially the growing demand in Bohol and will eventually form part of the Leyte-Bohol 230kV loop system.

To support the government’s vision to have a uni�ied Philippine grid, construction is ongoing for the PhP 51.7 billion

Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection Project, slated for completion in December 2020.

Other future interconnection projects of NGCP include the Batangas-Mindoro Interconnection Project, Laray-Cordova 230kV Transmission Line project, Bataan-Cavite Interconnection Project, Bataan-Pasay Interconnection Project, and the Palawan-Mindoro Interconnection Project “The only way to forward this vision of a fully interconnected and integrated transmission system is to keep investing in the transmission grid. These projects will greatly bene�it the country, energizing the entire archipelago even up to the farthest islands. This will also prepare the entire Philippine grid for the integration to the proposed ASEAN Power Grid,

WATER, P9

NGCP interconnection projects aimed at ONE Grid Philippines CSC 11 accredits Mati City

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n pursuit of its goal of building One Grid Philippines, power transmission operator NGCP continues to embark on major interconnection projects to realize this vision.

With over 7,600 islands in the Philippine archipelago, energizing and connecting major islands to the grid was a challenge that confronted NGCP when it took over from government.

Equipped with vision of a fully interconnected and integrated power grid, and access to state-of-the-art technology, NGCP is well on its way towards this goal.

Among the �irst interconnection projects completed by NGCP is the PhP 6.1 billion Cebu-Negros-Panay Stage 1 submarine cable component which increases the transfer capacity of the existing corridor. A second phase of this project is an addi-

NGCP, P9

employees association

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he Civil Service Commission has formally accredited the Association of City Employees for Solidarity of Mati, Inc. as the duly-recognized employees association in the local government unit of the City of Mati.

CSC 11 director Adams Torres personally presented to the more than three hundred members of the association their formal accreditation after Monday’s �lag ceremony.

Torres said that of the thousands of LGUs in the country, there are only about a little less than 1,000 employees associations recognized.

He urged other LGUs to follow what the City of Mati LGU did by supporting the creation of employees association so as to safeguard the welfare of the government employees especially

on dealing and/or negotiating with the LGU when it comes to bene�its due to the government employees.

ACES president Engr.

Zenaida Loon meanwhile thanked City of Mati Mayor Michelle Nakpil Rabat for the support given to the employees of the LGU as she urged the employees to reciprocate the strong LGU support by helping the elected of�icials in their desire to improve the delivery of basic government services to the people.

ACES was organized on November 4, 1997 and was initially known as the Association of Municipal Employees of Mati, Davao Oriental.

It now has 371 members and is headed by Engr.

Zenaida Loon as its president, Juliano Valles Jr. as

CSC, P9

VOL.12 ISSUE 222 • TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2020

NEWS 3

EDGEDAVAO

Green groups provide alternatives to WTE

By MAYA M. PADILLO

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Autism Society Phils. Davao City chapter president Uswaldo Parreñas (center), together with Autism Society Phils. Davao City chapter executive committee Febe Matthews (right) and Ricafe executive director

Imelda Rendon, talks about the organization’s efforts and advocacies while promoting Autism Week set on January 20 to 26 during this week’s Kapehan sa Dabaw at SM City Davao. Lean Daval Jr

reen groups in Davao City are providing alternative enforcement of an ordinance on waste management.

Identi�ied as better alternatives than establishing a Waste-To-Energy (WTE) facility in the city are establishments of more Material Recycling Facilities (MRFs) in barangays and malls, setting up of re�illing stations and promotions of green campaigns.

Ruel Kenneth Felices of Interface Development Interventions (IDIS) told media in Kapehan sa Dabaw that enforcement of an ordinance on solid waste management will be of great help to reduce wastes.

According to him, although, the city has crafted an ordinance on solid waste management, yet, it is not properly implement-

ed because only �ive barangays have complied it that include Brgy. Gumalang and Catalunan Grande.

“Based on the data of CENRO in 2019, 29 percent are residual wastes and big chunk of these are single-use plastics. With regards to the ordinance it is a great help to reduce this. Given the situation na napupuno na yung land�ill because of wastes and also some of the residual wastes ay nakikita natin sa oceans killing our marine animals it is of great importance na maipasa natin ang ordinance to save our enviroment and to lessen the production of wastes,” Felices said.

He said if solid waste management is enforced, the city won’t be needing the WTE. “Assuming na itutuloy

he House of Representatives has reaf�irmed its commitment to pass President Rodrigo Duterte’s priority measures to help sustain the administration’s legacy in providing the Filipinos a safe and comfortable life.

Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano made the statement on Sunday as Congress resumes its session this week.

Cayetano said top-billing the priority list are the three proposed departments -- Department of Disaster Resilience, Department of Overseas Filipinos and Department of Water.

Also included in the priority measures are the tax reform bills, which will help bankroll the administration’s “Build, Build, Build” program as well as the health and social services.

“Our colleagues have

committed to fast-track the passage of the creation of Department Resilience to better equip our country to respond to natural and man-made calamities as well as improve our rehabilitation efforts,” Cayetano said.

“We have good laws like the Universal Health Care, and Free Tertiary Education Act but we need to ensure that they are properly funded hence we need to pass all these tax measures,” Cayetano added.

House Majority Leader Martin Romualdez echoed the Speaker’s statement, noting that the House aims to pass the measures proposing the creation of three departments before the next adjournment in March.

“We aim to hit the ground running when ses-

House vows passage of vital bills to support PRRD legacy

Duterte invited to attend T US-Asean Summit in March

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resident Rodrigo R. Duterte is among the nine state leaders invited to attend the upcoming US Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Summit in Las Vegas on March 14, Malacañang bared on Sunday.

In a press statement, Malacañang said the invitation was extended by US President Donald Trump to Duterte and the other nine leaders of the regional intergovernmental organization.

The invitation was �irst conveyed during the Asean-US meeting at the Asean Summit and related summits in Bangkok last November.

The US reminded the leaders of the invitation through a letter dated January 9.

In the letter, Trump said the summit will “provide an excellent opportunity for us to broaden and deepen our cooperation on matters of great importance to the nearly one billion people in the United States and ASEAN nations that we have the privilege to repre-

awmakers will examine the botch bilateral agreement between Philippines and Kuwait on the Household Service Workers (HSWs) in today’s start of congressional investigation in aid of legislation and would focus on the alleged ‘fake’ autopsy conducted by Kuwaiti authorities on the remains of oversea Filipino worker Jeanelyn Villavende who was killed by her Kuwaiti employers three weeks ago.

TUCP Party-list Rep. Raymond Mendoza chairperson of the House of Representatives Committee On Overseas Workers Affairs (COWA) who will undertake the probe said the investigation in aid of legislation on the death of Villavende three weeks ago will start today (Tuesday, January 21), 1:30p.m., Nograles Hall, South Wing Annex, Batasan Complex, Quezon City.

“My committee will attempt to look at why the bilateral agreement between

Kuwait and the Philippine government forged by the two countries’ top of�icials last year was not binding and dishonored. Remember that this agreement was forged in the light of the death in Kuwait of another OFW Joana Demafelis on February 2018. Had this agreement was observed and worked out, Jeanelyn didn’t have to come home in a box,” said Mendoza.

Some of the key provisions the agreement provides are the non-con�iscation of mobile phone and passport deployed in Kuwait. The agreement mandates Kuwaiti government to provide important welfare and safety mechanisms to be afforded to OFW while working in Kuwait.

Mendoza said they would also look at the two autopsy reports made by the Philippines’ National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the Kuwaiti counterpart.

“It is a cause of grave

Probe on Kuwait OFW death today

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sent.”

“The American people and I hope to see you in the United States soon,” it read.

Trump has repeatedly invited Duterte to the US since April 2017.

The two leaders met for the �irst time during the 31st Asean Summit in Manila in November 2017.

In September 2019, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said Duterte and Trump had the same leadership “style”, which is why they share respect for each other.

Should Duterte accept Trump’s invitation, their meeting is expected to reaf�irm the longstanding alliance between the Phil-

ippines and US. Panelo said it is still unclear if Duterte accepted Trump’s invitation.

Trump’s invitation to Duterte came despite a recent US legislation banning entry of all Philippine of�icials linked to the arrest and continued detention of Senator Leila de Lima.

Panelo, however, explained that it is still on the part of the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to determine “whether there is information credible enough to demonstrate a wrongful detention of the senator.”

The travel ban imposed on de Lima’s alleged jailers

DUTERTE, P9

Interface Development Interventions, Inc.’s Ruel Kenneth Felices (left) along with Kim Fabular of Ecoteneo, and Caile Dayrit of SEAD says during this week’s Kapehan sa Dabaw at SM City Davao that waste produced by

GREEN, P9

HOUSE, P9

Dabawenyos is continuously increasing because of nonpractice of proper waste segregation. Lean Daval Jr

4 ECONOMY EDGEDAVAO

VOL.12 ISSUE 222 • TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2020

BI sets new record revenue haul with P11.9B for 2019

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he Bureau of Immigration's revenue collection in 2019 reached a record P11.9 billion as of December 31, the agency said.

According to a statement released by the BI on Sunday, Commissioner Jaime Morente said that the bureau's income has increased steadily in recent years. Last year's total was P9.2 billion. “[M]ore foreign visitors naturally results in more income from immigration fees for the government.

This contributes signi�icantly to government coffers and may be used for major improvement projects for our country,” said Morente, citing reports that the number of foreign visitors to the country reached eight million.

The Department of

Big-time oil price rollback set this week

A hawker sells hats and sunglasses to beachgoers at Sasa Ferry wharf in Brgy. Sasa, Davao City over the weekend. Lean Daval Jr

Gov’t targets 22% poverty level A in Mindanao by 2022: MinDA

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he government targets to bring down the poverty level in Mindanao from 35% at present to 22% at the end of the Duterte administration in 2022, Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) Assistant Secretary Romeo Montenegro said.

Montenegro said there had been noted improvements in the poverty levels across different areas of Mindanao under the Duterte administration.

He attributed this to the implementation of more government infrastructure projects and increased investments entering the island.

Mindanao comprises six regions – Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, Caraga, Davao, Northern Mindanao, Soccsksargen, and Zamboanga Peninsula.

Investment in�low in Mindanao has grown tenfold from 2010-2019 at

P50 billion to a P60 billion annual average, compared to P5 billion to P6 billion annual average in�low from 2001 to 2010, according to Montenegro.

“Our infrastructure, in the last half of Duterte administration, there has been a signi�icant improvement in the poverty situation and making us comfortable in terms of working hard towards reaching our target of reducing and bringing down poverty incidence in Mindanao from its current level,” he said.

But he admitted that much needs to be done in improving the logistics network but added Mind-

anao had already seen “encouraging improvements” as the government poured more funds to develop road connectivity and expand thoroughfares.

Montenegro attributed much of Mindanao’s growth to the rapid expansion of the services sector, particularly malls, hotels, property development, real estate projects and manufacturing.

He believed the exponential growth of manufacturing was due to the improved power situation and better logistics network, boosting the island’s agricultural productivity.

He said they are expecting the agricultural sector to register positive growth for 2019 largely because of the improved connectivity.

“With the improvement of major road connectivity in various areas of Mindanao, particularly in areas deemed to be the production sites for some of the commodities, it is quite in-

The workers group the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) is calling for a minimum of 25% hazard pay to an estimated 2,000 employees working in banks, restaurants and hotel establishments in Tagaytay City which are located within the Taal volcano eruption danger zone and to an estimated 1,000 journalists composed of reporters, cameramen, assistant cameramen, photographers, researchers and drivers covering the eruption and the evacuation of thousands of residents within the high risk areas.

TUCP President Raymond Mendoza says “hazard is a dangerous phenomenon, substance, or

human activity or condition that may cause loss of life, injury, disease or other health impacts, property damage, loss of sources of livelihoods and services, social and economic disruption, or environmental damage.

According to him, hazard pay is a cash compensation to employees given on top of their basic salary for rendering duty work under extraordinary conditions and circumstances that result in death, serious injuries, sickness and disease, and handicap or debility”, such as the Taal volcano eruption.

“All employees including rank-and-�ile, supervisors and managers working in business estab-

lishments such as banks, hotels, restaurants, casinos, and spas among others located within the 14-kilometer danger zone particularly along the strips in Tagaytay City have the right and are entitled to a minimum 25% hazard pay of the their daily basic pay,” TUCP president and TUCP Party-list Rep. Raymond Mendoza.

“Reporters, cameramen, assistant cameramen, cab drivers, and photographers who are covering the Taal volcano eruption and are working in the declared danger zone also have the same right and are similarly entitled to hazard pay whether they are under talent contract, or permanent, regular, contracual, season-

Tourism had set its target of foreign visitors to the country in 2019 at 8.2 million.

On December 27, the eight millionth visitor to the Philippines was welcomed at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

Morente also attributed the bigger total to the BI's efforts at modernization and simplifying its procedures.

The Immigration bureau is an attached agency of the Department of Justice. It regulates and monitors the entry and exit of foreigners and Filipino citizens in the country. The bureau issues special work permits to foreigners, decides on deportation cases, and investigates, arrests and detains foreigners violating immigration laws.

teresting to note also that Mindanao’s agri-performance is expected to move upwards,” he said.

He said MinDA chair Emmanuel Piñol wants to focus on developing the poorest provinces in Mindanao, particularly that of BARMM, out of poverty through the agency’s initiative on “peace, prosperity, and poverty” alleviation.

“His target is to work towards making improvement in these bottom provinces because if we see improvement in terms of quality of lives by facilitating investments and attracting investments especially in agri-related projects and complementing this with necessary infrastructure then the agricultural-driven transformation in the rural communities in Mindanao, especially in these poorest provinces can be a major breakthrough for the island,” he said. (Antonio L. Colina IV/MindaNews)

al, directly or agency-hired, freelance or independently contracted,” Mendoza said.

Mendoza said working under the extraordinary dangerous situations caused and the exposure to risk to the elements brought by the Taal volcano phreatic eruption Sunday last week are suf�icient conditions for these workers to provided with hazardous duty pay.

TUCP spokesperson Alan Tanjusay clari�ied that although there is no prevailing law, policy, or department orders in the country that regulates employers from giving their employees with hazard pay, it is imperative upon business owners and em-

TUCP calls for 25% hazard pay for reporters, banks, hotel and restaurant employees in Taal danger zones

TUCP, P10

big-time oil price rollback is to welcome motorists this week.

Four oil companies announced they are cutting prices of diesel, gasoline, and kerosene starting Monday morning.

Shell, Seaoil, Cleanfuel, and Petro Gazz said they will slash diesel prices by PHP1.70 per liter.

Seaoil and Cleanfuel are giving bigger rollback on prices of gasoline at

PHP0.90 per liter, while Shell and Petro Gazz at PHP0.85 per liter.

Only Seaoil and Shell said they are slashing prices of kerosene by PHP1.65 per liter.

Majority of the oil players are expected to follow suit on Tuesday.

According to the Department of Energy, diesel and kerosene prices were down for two consecutive weeks. (PNA)

Asia shares camp on high ground, oil up on Libya shutdown

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sian shares neared a 20-month top on Monday as Wall Street extended its run of record peaks on solid US economic data and lashes of liquidity from the Federal Reserve.

Oil prices jumped as oil�ields in southwest Libya began shutting down after forces loyal to Khalifa Haftar closed a pipeline, potentially reducing national output to a fraction of its normal level.

Early turnover in Asian shares was light with US stock and bond markets closed for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Paci�ic shares outside Japan �irmed 0.1 percent, after notching its highest close since June 2018. Japan's Nikkei added 0.2 percent to be near its highest in 15 months.

Australia's main index scored another all-time peak and South Korea was near its best level since October 2018. E-Mini futures for the S&P 500 edged up 0.1 percent.

Eyes will be on US corporate earnings with Net�lix Inc , Intel Corp and Texas Instruments Inc set to report this week, while central banks in the European Union, Canada and Japan hold policy meetings.

Sentiment was supported by the relentless run of record highs on Wall Street. Only 3 weeks into the new year, the S&P 500

has gained just over 3 percent and the NASDAQ almost 5 percent.

Ray Attrill, head of foreign exchange strategy at National Australia Bank, suspects the strength on Wall Street owes much to the Federal Reserve's decision in September to rein in rising repo rates by �looding markets with cash.

"The relationship between the size of the Fed's balance sheet, now some 11 percent bigger than where it was in late September, and the performance of US risk assets is uncanny," he said, noting the balance sheet had just hit a three-month top of $4.18 trillion.

Analysts at BofA Global Research noted global stock market capitalisation had ballooned by $13 trillion since its September lows and the S&P was only 5 percent away from marking the biggest bull run in history.

"We stay irrationally bullish until peak Positioning and peak Liquidity incite a spike in bond yields and a 4-8 percent equity correction," they said in a note.

The Fed's buying binge on Treasury bills has kept bonds bid even as stocks surged and economic data stayed healthy. Yields on 2-year notes are dead in line with the overnight cash rate at 1.56 percent, compared to 2.62 percent this

ASIA, P10

VOL.12 ISSUE 222 • TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2020

EDGEDAVAO

ECONOMY

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DOF wants to make sugar sector globally-competitive

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Government System Insurance System (GSIS) general manager Deity Manampan announces during the Kapehan sa Dabaw at SM City Davao on Monday the extension of deadline in applying GSIS Financial Assis-

tance Loan (GFAL) until July 26, 2020 for employees of the Department of Education (DepEd) and the GSIS Program for Restructuring and Repayment of Debts (GSIS-PRRD) until September 30, 2020. Lean Daval Jr

PEZA eyes 5-10% growth in investment pledges in 2020

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hilippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) Director General Charito Plaza targets a 5 to 10-percent growth in investment pledges this year after the agency recorded a decline in approvals in 2019.

Plaza said there are big-ticket projects that are applying for incentives in PEZA, such as China’s Panhua Integrated Steel Industry and Canada’s North Star Argo Industrial Company which is looking for agricultural economic

zones for cacao, avocado, mango, and raspberry plantation.

“There are many pending applications for expansions of existing locators and new investments who are waiting for CITIRA (Corporate Income Tax

and Incentives Rationalization Act) that will be passed,” she said in a text message to reporters over the weekend.

Plaza added investment pledges could still head higher than this year’s target if an investor-friendly CITIRA is passed.

In 2019, investment approvals in PEZA declined by 16 percent to PHP117.54 billion from PHP140.24 billion in 2018.

Number of projects registered with PEZA went

up by 2.1 percent to 540 projects last year from 529 projects a year ago.

In a speaking engagement last week, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said he hoped to see the CITIRA to be passed into law by March.

Under the CITIRA, the government aims to rationalize �iscal incentives in all investment promotion agencies in the country.

It will reduce corporate income tax to 20 percent from the current 30 percent over 10 years. (PNA)

event for the year as it opens its doors of good fortune to investors and partners. It will be held at the lobby entrance of the company’s �irst iconic project, Aeon Towers.

Enjoy a special oneday throwback price promo upon purchase of a condo unit. Watch a Lion Dance show at 3pm and catch the mascot appearance of Mickey and Minnie Mouse. Discover what your cards have in store

for you this year with free Tarot Reading consultation at the venue.

Guest and investors will also get a chance to know more about Aeon Luxe Properties and its projects through a business presentation by one of its sales representatives. Raymond Nonato, Branch Head-Business Manager of Philippine Business Bank (PBB), which will soon be occupying a commercial space

at Aeon Towers, will also be giving a short talk at the event.

For more details, call (082) 287- 4291 loc 105 or email viasales@aeonluxe.com.ph.

Stay up to date on Aeon Luxe events and projects. Visit www.aeonluxe.com.ph. Follow Aeon Luxe on Facebook http:// www.facebook.com/AeonLuxeDVO, Twitter @ AeonLuxeDavao and Instagram @aeonluxedvo.

the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines.

AirAsia Philippines CEO Ricky Isla said, “AirAsia is proud to have the best pilots in the country and we will strive to train more young cadets with our partner Omni Aviation Corporation. Through the ‘Dare to Fly! The Allstars Cadet Pilot Program’, we invite Filipinos to dare to dream with AirAsia.”

Interested applicants are required to register

via the QR code shown below and answer a free eligibility test. Applications are open to Filipino citizens who are 21 to 28 years of age and are college graduates of any course.

The application period commences today until 20 February 2020.

One thousand successful applicants will qualify based on the eligibility test results and 300 applicants will proceed to

the �inal stages of the selection process. These include further assessment tests to measure applicants’ cognitive and psychomotor skills.

Corresponding fees of succeeding tests in the selection process are to be shouldered by the applicant.

Those who pass the tests in the selection process will be invited for a �inal interview which will

Chinese New Year Celebration at Aeon Towers

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avao-based property developer Aeon Luxe Properties, Inc. welcomes the Chinese New Year with an Open House event on Saturday, January 25, 2020, 3pm to 6pm at the Aeon Towers Lobby, J.P. Laurel Avenue, Bajada, Davao City. Delight in CNY festivities as Aeon Luxe kicks off the Year of the Rat with a bang.

The Open House will be Aeon Luxe’s �irst big

AirAsia now accepting applications for the ‘Dare to Fly! The allstars cadet pilot program’

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irAsia today of�icially opened applications for the Dare to Fly! The Allstars Cadet Pilot Program to select and train aspiring young pilots.

A partnership between AirAsia and Omni Aviation Corporation, the program provides successful cadets with up to two years of technical and leadership training, with the aim of reaching the competencies required by

AIR ASIA, P9

ssistant Secretary Antonio Joselito Lambino II said the Department of Finance (DOF) wants to learn more about the sugar industry and understand their concerns to make it globally-competitive.

“That’s the goal, that we’re able to compete with our neighbors,” Lambino told reporters during his visit at the mill district here on Friday, together with Senator Cynthia Villar.

The two of�icials were hosted by Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) Board Member Emilio Yulo III and the of�icials of Asociacion de Agricultores de La Carlota y Pontevedra Inc. (AALCPI) led by president Roberto Cuenca.

Negros Occidental produces almost 60 percent of the country’s sugar output.

Villar, who chairs the Senate committee on agriculture, reiterated the need for the sugar industry to be globally-competitive since the imports liberalization will take place in just a matter of time.

Given the global competition, Villar said the industry should also focus on the developmental aspect funded under the Sugar Industry Development Act (SIDA).

However, since the PHP2-billion allocation under the law has not been fully utilized, the funding

has been reduced by the Department of Budget and Management to PHP500 million this year, she said.

Villar pushed for the creation of the national sugar program to be supervised by the Department of Agriculture to ensure that the industry development fund will be fully utilized.

SIDA or Republic Act 10659, which was enacted in 2015, aims to promote the competitiveness of the sugarcane industry and maximize the utilization of sugarcane resources, and improve the incomes of farmers and farmworkers, through improved productivity, product diversi�ication, job generation, and increased ef�iciency of sugar mills.

Of the PHP2 billion annual fund, PHP1 billion is allocated for infrastructure for farm-to-mill roads; PHP300 million for credit; PHP100 million for scholarships: PHP300 million for block farm of the land reform bene�iciaries; and PHP300 million for shared facilities program.

In November last year, the Senate unanimously approved Resolution 213 urging the Executive Department not to pursue the planned liberalization of the sugar industry to safeguard the welfare of sugar farmers and industry workers in more than 20 provinces in the country. (PNA)

DO Unibank said Monday it would issue P5 billion in �ixed bonds to diversify funding sources as it grows lending activities.

The minimum investment is set at P100,000 with increments of P50,000 and will have a tenor of 2.5 years, the country’s biggest bank in terms of assets told the stock exchange.

Offer period will run

from Jan. 20 to Jan. 24 with the issue date targeted for Feb. 3, BDO said.

The bond issuance is part of the P100 billion program approved by the BDO Board in August 2018, the bank said.

The sole lead arranger and bookrunner for the issue is HSBC while BDO Unibank, BDO Private Bank and HSBC will be the selling agents, the statement said.

BDO to issue P5B in fixed bonds

B

Billionaires richer than 60% of the world's population: Oxfam

T

he world's billionaires have doubled in the past decade and are richer than 60 percent of the global population, the charity Oxfam said Monday.

It said poor women and girls were at the bottom of the scale, putting in "12.5 billion hours of unpaid care work each and every day," estimated to be worth at least $10.8 trillion a year.

"Our broken economies are lining the pockets of billionaires and big business at the expense of ordinary men and women. No wonder people are starting to question whether billionaires should even exist," Oxfam's India head Amitabh Behar said.

"The gap between rich and poor can't be resolved without deliberate inequality-busting policies," Behar said ahead of the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, where he will represent Oxfam.

Oxfam's annual report on global inequality is tra-

ditionally released just before the forum opens on Tuesday in the Swiss Alpine resort.

It had some astonishing statistics.

"The 22 richest men in the world have more wealth than all the women in Africa," it said.

If the world's richest 1 percent just paid 0.5 percent extra tax on their wealth for 10 years, it would equal the investment needed to create 117 million new jobs in elderly and child care, education and health, Oxfam said.

Oxfam's �igures are based on data from Forbes magazine and Swiss bank Credit Suisse, but they are disputed by some economists.

The numbers show that 2,153 billionaires now have more wealth than the 4.6 billion poorest people on the planet.

Women and girls are burdened in particular because they are most often

BILLIONAIRES, P9

6 VANTAGE EDGEDAVAO

EDITORIAL

VOL.12 ISSUE 222 • TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2020

Equally deserving

The previous year’s best and brightest in sports will be feted anew by the Philippine Sportswriters Association(PSA).

It is the PSA membership which comprises the chronicler of sports in the country. Each passing year, the PSA names the top performing athletes, association and of�icials as a tribute for providing the country a source of pride and happiness.

For 2019, sporting heroics came like ashfall, covering the entire sporting landscape with sterling performances that put the country on top of many sporting battles, in particular the 30th edition of the biennial Southeast Asian Games held in Manila.

The country’s athletes propelled the red, white and blue to the overall championship of the Games—the �irst since 2005.

The 1,115-strong Philippine contingent delivered a total of 149 gold medals, 117 silvers, and 121 bronzes from the 56 sports played in the 11-day competitions, held in three major clusters within Luzon.

The numbers were the highest ever tallied by the country since it began competing in the SEA Games in 1977, and more than enough for

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NEILWIN JOSEPH L. BRAVO Managing Editor

MAYA M. PADILLO Senior Reporter

KENNETH IRVING K. ONG ATHENA JILLIAN BRAVO NIKKI GOTIANSE-TAN MEGHANN STA. INES FERINA SANTOS Lifestyle

LEANDRO S. DAVAL JR. Photography

ARMANDO B. FENEQUITO JR. CHRISTIAN JAY H. RAFAL DR. MAURO L. PUYOD CHA MONFORTE Layout/Cartoons Cartoonist Correspondent Columnists: MA. TERESA L. UNGSON • EDCER C. ESCUDERO • AURELIO A. PEÑA • ZHAUN ORTEGA • BERNADETTE “ADDIE” B. BORBON • MARY ANN C. QUISIDO • LEANDRO DAVAL SR.,TRIA • NIKKI GOTIANSE-TAN NICASIO ANGELO AGUSTIN • EMILY Columnists: ANTONIO V.“ADI” FIGUEROA • HENRYLITO D. TACIO •B.JOHN CARLO • MUJAHID NAVARRA ••FRED C. LUMBA • DENNIS R. GORECHO ZEN CHUA • CARLOS MUNDA Economic Analyst: ENRICO •“GICO” G. S. DAYANGIRANG • JONALLIER GREGORIO G. DELIGERO VIDA MIA VALVERDE • HAROLD CAVITE M. PEREZ

OLIVIA D. VELASCO D. MARATAS RICHARD C. EBONA OLIVIA D. VELASCO JASPERSOLANI V. BACSAL General Manager Finance Advertising Specialist VP Operations General Manager JOCELYN S. PANES Director of Sales

the Philippines to clinch the overall championship for just the second time in 42 years.

It is therefore only �itting that the PSA will hand a rare collective recognition of the entire delegation as its Athlete of the Year awardee.

The decision to do so is the best decision to make under the circumstances where you have big names like Olympics-bound Hidilyn Diaz, EJ Obiena and Carlo Yulo along with world women’s boxing champion Nesthy Petecio winning gold medals as expected.

However, there are also lesser known athletes who stamped their class in the Games and deserved to won the top recognition too.

There’s also Pinoy life-saving sur�ing hero Roger Casugay who is also equally deserving.

So to settle the debate, everyone in the team is just as valuable.

Now for the ‘good problem’, how would the PSA �it 1,115 in one stage?

Kidding aside, hats off to every deserving Pinoy athlete. You made this country mighty proud.

SOLANI D. MARATAS Finance

CAGAYAN DE ORO MARKETING OFFICE MANILA MARKETING OFFICE RICHARD C. EBONA LEIZEL A. DELOSO | Marketing Manager Unit 6, Southbank Plaza Velez-YacapinProduct Sts. Development officer Cagayan de Oro City Address: No. 18 Purok 4B, Madelo Street, Lower Bicutan, Taguig City Tel: (088) 852-4894 Mobile number: +63 947 265 2969(smart); +63 916 955 8559(globe)

EDGEDAVAO

VOL.12 ISSUE 222 • TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2020

VANTAGE POINTS

7

DENNIS R. GORECHO PINOY MARINO RIGHTS

ASSERTING ONE’S RIGHT IS NOT INSUBORDINATION Asserting one’s right is not tantamount to insubordination in dismissal cases.

This was the principle used by the Supreme Court when it ruled that the seafarer was illegally dismissed in Transglobal Maritime Agency, Inc. , v. Vicente Chua, Jr. ( G.R. No. 222430, August 30, 2017).

While at the port of Mailiao, Taiwan, the seafarer and his four (4) companions left the vessel for shore leave from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. When they returned at around 11:40 p.m., the ship captain was infuriated. Four days later , the ship captain called the seafarer and the others, and were served with a written reprimand regarding the incident.

However, they refused to sign and acknowledge receipt of the reprimand and, subsequently, the vessel’s logbook entry on the matter. Thereafter, the seafarer and the others disembarked and returned to the Philippines.

In their complaint for illegal dismissal, the seafarer stated that he and his companions returned later than

their shore leave because of a problem with their contracted vehicle. They immediately went to the ship’s of�ice to return their passports and documents. However, the ship captain was furious and asked to explain their tardiness. The seafarer also alleged that they declined to sign the written reprimand for it contained falsehoods.

The employers argued that seafarer was dismissed for a just cause since his refusal to sign the written reprimand is a clear act of insubordination and disrespect towards superior of�icers.

The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the seafarer as it noted that the seafarer’s arguing and misbehaving when he returned after his shore leave was not suf�iciently established.

Insubordination or willful disobedience, as a just cause for the dismissal of a seafarer, necessitates the concurrence of at least two requisites: (1) the seafarer’s assailed conduct must have been willful, that is, characterized by a wrongful

and perverse attitude; and (2) the order violated must have been reasonable, lawful, made known to the seafarer, and must pertain to the duties which he had been engaged to discharge.

A willful or intentional disobedience of such rule, order or instruction justi�ies dismissal only where such rule, order or instruction is (1) reasonable and lawful, (2) suf�iciently known to the seafarer, and (3) connected with the duties which the employee has been engaged to discharge.

By virtue of the POEA contract, the seafarer is indeed bound to obey the lawful commands of the captain of the ship, but only as long as these pertain to his duties.

The Supreme Court opined that there is no relevance to the order to sign the documents in the seafarer’s performance of his duty as a seafarer.

The pieces of evidence presented are insuf�icient to establish that the seafarer’s refusal was characterized by a wrongful and perverse mental

attitude rendering his act inconsistent with proper subordination.

The seafarer had explained that he refused to sign the written reprimand for he maintained that the same contained falsehoods for he maintained that he had an explanation for his late arrival.

In termination cases, the employer bears the burden of proving that the dismissal of the employee is for a just or an authorized cause. Failure to dispose of the burden would imply that the dismissal is not lawful.

In order to discharge this burden, the employer must present substantial evidence, which is de�ined as that amount of relevant evidence which a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to justify a conclusion, and not based on mere surmises or conjectures.

Under the “two-notice rule,” an erring seafarer is given a written notice of the charge against him and is afforded an opportunity to explain or defend himself.

Should sanctions be imposed, then a written notice of penalty and the reasons for it shall be furnished the erring seafarer.

It is only in the exceptional case of clear and existing danger to the safety of the crew or vessel that the required notices are dispensed with; but just the same, a complete report should be sent to the manning agency, supported by substantial evidence of the �indings.

In case of an illegal dismissal, either there is no valid ground or he was not afforded due process under the “two-notice” rule, a seafarer is entitled to receive from his employers his salaries for the unexpired portion of his employment contract not merely his salaries for three (3) months for every year of the unexpired term Atty. Dennis R. Gorecho heads the seafarers’ division of the Sapalo Velez Bundang Bulilan law of�ices. For comments, please email info@sapalovelez. com, or call 09175025808 or 09088665786).

ANTONIO V. FIGUEROA FAST BACKWARD

GOV. DUTERTE’S WATERWORKS DREAM As secretary of the Department of General Services, Gov. Vicente G. Duterte’s principal plan was to improve and extend the waterworks system of Davao City, enough to supply a burgeoning population by 1986. He �irst conceived the idea while governor of Davao Province.

This was contained in the September 1966 report of the Overseas Technical Cooperation Agency of Japan which sent a survey team that year to study the water sources of the Davao Metropolitan Waterworks System (DMWS), now Davao City Waterworks District.

The survey team gathered data of the Sibulan and Davao River water systems from April 19 through April 30, 1966, and was composed of Shinichi Matsushita, Haruji Makita and Tsukasa Hirabayashi of Kubota Waterworks Construction, Ltd., Shoichi Inagaki of Overseas Technical Cooperation Agency, and Takayuki Tange of Nihon Suido Consultants Co., Ltd. The team visited the Provincial Capital on April 18 but failed to meet Gov. Paciano Bangoy. Instead, acting Gov. Crescencio P.

Lascuña and waterworks superintendent Vicente Franco welcomed the visitors. The Japanese also met with vice mayor Manuel C. Sotto, city engineer Samuel Dumlao and �ire department chief Isidro L. Palacio. On May 1, the team showed the result of the study and survey to provincial of�icials.

The study team reported that by 1986, with the city having reached a projected population of 500,000, the daily maximum water supply requisite of 63,600 cubic meters. As it was, there was a shortage of supply even if the P45-million Sibulan Water System, started in 1958 and still undergoing construction, was completed.

The project delay was due to pipes and �ittings from Germany that did not comply with speci�ications.

The report also suggested that a separate construction program was “most urgently necessary” to meet the water demand. The Japanese concluded: “[W]e recommend construction of an independent system to take water from the Davao River… which holds no advantage of geographical position, the con-

struction work will be �inished within such a short period as two years. The greatest possible attention should be paid by everyone concerned to the actualization of this Davao River plan that would be the key to solve future water problems of the city.”

At the time, the DMWS, renamed as such in 1933, was getting its water supply from Malagos, roughly 28 kilometers from the city proper, had an elevation of over 370 meters, and covered a range of around 350 hectares. Estimates placed the amount of water supplied by the source reached only 504,000 gallons per day and supplemented by �ive artesian wells. Still, the addon reached only 3,000 cubic meters daily.

The troubled state of the water supply was re�lective of Duterte’s ambition to provide the city with an ef�icient and reliable waterworks program. Given the status quo, water sourced from Malagos was good, but the supply produced by the wells had high iron content.

Time-worn six-inch pipelines used as distribution lines also reduced the �low of

water to 370 gallons per day.

Even if the waters from the two sources were mixed, the result was not �it for drinking.

Consequently, “most of the houses are equipped with water tanks, made of tin plates, which collect rainwater from roofs for drinking uses and such big consumers of water as factories, hotels, of�ices, etc. are pumping water from their own artesian wells.” During this time peddlers were already selling good water to consumer they sourced from Dumoy, Toril district.

To help address the water shortage, the National Waterworks Sewerage Authority (NWSA), based on the Japanese survey team report, also undertook several initiatives.

First, it obtained water from an eight-meter-high dam, completed in 1959, about 12 kilometers away from the mouth of Sibulan River. The source had a minimum discharge of 55,000 gallons per minute at the intake, producing satisfactory water.

Second, in Catalunan, a sedimentation basin constructed in 1965 at an el-

evation of over 85 meters above sea level with a 1.3 million gallons in capacity.

This was linked to the Malagos pipeline but was sadly abandoned. Third, NWSA mapped out a water conveyance pipeline covering a distance of 35.7 kilometers from the Sibulan dam using an 18-inch diameter tube that passed through Catalunan to the city proper. About 19.7 kilometers of the undertaking had yet to be executed.

Fourth, in 1962 a pumping station was installed alongside the Talomo River near the Catalunan sedimentation basis; it had a pumping capacity of 1,000 gallons per minute but, sadly, it was left idle. And, �ifth, at Madapo Hills, a 350,000-gallon reservoir was built; it was situated on the northwest sector of the city. To augment this, the NWSA had broached the plan to construct another tank with a capacity of 1,000,000 million gallons.

Overall, if the facilities were connected to Sibulan Water System, the expected volume of water conveyed to the city would be 7,300 gallons daily or 27,600 cubic meters per day.

8

EDGEDAVAO

VOL.12 ISSUE 222 • TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2020

HEALTH

SUGAR: PUBLIC ENEMY NO. 1

By HENRYLITO D. TACIO

F

ilipinos have a sweet tooth.

If it’s not sweet, the tendency is that only very few would eat it. This is the reason why most Filipino dishes are heaped or covered with sugar – from biko to halo-halo. A party is not complete without sweet pasta and sliced hotdogs; we’re referring to Filipino-style spaghetti.

Perhaps you may be wondering how much grams of sugar are there in those Filipino delicacies. A serving of three banana cues in one stick can contain as much as six grams or a teaspoon and a half of sugar, according to the website of FWD Life Insurance Public Company Limited.

That’s only for a starter. Two-medium sized puto may contain �ive grams or almost one and a half teaspoon of sugar.

Two tablespoons of banana ketchup may contain up to three grams of sugar.

To cook biko for eight people, it needs a cup of brown sugar. This means that for every 2” by 1” of this “sinful snack,” you get 20 grams of sugar. What about halo-halo? A bowl of this famous Filipino “innovation” from a fast food chain contains 19 grams – or almost �ive teaspoons of sugar.

A party is not a party without soft drinks, right?

Now, can you imagine eating 16 sugar cubes at one sitting? If you answer negatively, you’re wrong.

You may have been doing it without you knowing it.

In fact, that 16 sugar cubes are a little less than what is contained in a 20-ounce bottle of cola.

There’s no data as to how much sugar an average Filipino adult consumes. But studies have shown that sugar consumption per capita in the country reached an all-time high of 26.6 kilograms in 1996 and an alltime low of 11.4 kilograms in 1962.

According to statistics released by UN Food and Agriculture Organization

(FAO), sugar consumption per reached 19.3 kilograms in 2013. But that is still high. When compared to country’s main peers, sugar consumption per capita in China amounted to 6 kilograms, 12.3 kilograms in Indonesia, and 8.80 kilograms in Vietnam.

“Almost all sugar produced in the Philippines is consumed locally,” the Philippine Star reported.

Roughly 50% of those produced are used in industry, 32% by households, and the remaining 18% by institutions.

“Sugar was once a luxury ingredient reserved for special occasions,” wrote Tiffany O’Callaghan, an editor in the Opinion section at New Scientist.

“But in recent years it has become a large and growing part of our diets. If you eat processed food of any kind, it probably contains added sugar. You can �ind it in sliced bread, breakfast cereals, salad dressings, soups, cooking sauces and many other staples. Lowfat products often contain a lot of added sugar.”

As bad as it gets Just like salt, eating too much sugar is doing us no good. As a matter of fact, sugar is being touted as public health enemy number one: as bad if not worse than fat, and the major driving force behind obesity, heart disease and type II diabetes. Some researchers even contend that sugar is toxic or addictive.

It is no wonder why health bodies are waging “a war on sugar.” The Geneva-based World Health Organization (WHO) wants people to cut sugar consumption radically. In the United States,, doctors and scientists are pressing food companies to reduce sugar and be more open about how much they add.

In the United Kingdom, a group called Action on Sugar has just launched a campaign to ratchet down sugar.

But is sugar really that bad?

Sugar, used to be called as “white gold,” is the generalized name for a class of chemically-related sweet-�lavored substances, most of which are used as food. They are carbohydrates, com-

posed of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. There are various types of sugar derived from different sources.

Simple sugars are called monosaccharides and include glucose (also known as dextrose), fructose and galactose.

The table or granulat-

ed sugar most customarily used as food is sucrose, a disaccharide (in the body, sucrose hydrolyses into fructose and glucose). Other disaccharides include maltose and lactose.

Chemically-differe n t sub-

stances may also have a sweet taste, but are not classi�ied as sugars. Some are used as lower-calorie food substitutes for sugar described as arti�icial sweeteners.

Diabetes Mounting evidence suggests that �looding your system with sugar-sweetened beverages – such as soft drinks, fruit drinks, iced tea and sports drinks – may increase your risk of diabetes.

A recent study published in the journal Diabetes Care examined more than 310,000 patients and found that those who drank 1-2 servings of the sweet stuff a day were 26% more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than those who drank it once a month or not at all.

“The reason is twofold: Loading up on sugar-sweetened beverages tends to lead to weight gain, which is a risk factor for diabetes,” writes Dr. Jacob Teitelbaum, author of Best Sugar Addiction Now! “Previous studies

have found that those who toss back high-calorie drinks tend not to cut calories elsewhere from their meals. Second, sugar-loaded drinks deliver a quick rush of sugars to your body, which over time can lead to insulin resistance and in�lammation.”

Gary Taubes, in an article which appeared in The New York Times, noted: “In 1924, Haven Emerson, director of the institute of public health at Columbia University, reported that diabetes deaths in New York City had increased as much as 15-fold since the Civil War years, and that deaths increased as much as fourfold in some U.S. cities between 1900 and 1920 alone. This coincided, he noted, with an equally signi�icant increase in sugar consumption — almost doubling from 1890 to the early 1920s — with the birth and subsequent growth of the candy and soft-drink industries.”

Eating an excessive amount of fat isn’t the only thing that increases your risk of heart disease. “A diet rich in sugar can also hurt your heart,” points out Emily G.W. Chau, an American health journalist. In fact, some studies found that sugar plays a direct role on the health of your ticker.

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that people who took in more than 17.5% of their calories from added sugars were 20%-30% more likely to have high levels of triglycerides, a type of fat that’s found in your blood. When you consume more sugar than you need for energy, the excess sugars form triglycerides, which are then stored in fat cells.

The same study found that people who got 25% or more of their calories from added sugars were more than 3 times more

likely to have low levels of HDL (the good cholesterol that helps prevent plaque buildup by carrying cholesterol from your arteries to your liver where it is then excreted) than those whose diets included less than 5% sugar. Both high triglycerides and low HDL levels contribute to atherosclerosis – the hardening of your arteries – a condition that increases your risk of heart disease, stroke, and heart attack.

Depression, behavioral disorders Those who eat diets rich in sugar are most likely to be depressed. Studies have shown that there is a direct link between mood and blood sugar balance.

All carbohydrate foods are broken down into glucose and your brain runs on glucose. The more uneven your blood sugar supply the more uneven your mood.

People who were diagnosed with schizophrenia and ate a sugar-heavy diet were more likely to be hospitalized in a 2-year follow-up period, according to a research published in the British Journal of Psychiatry.

“Behavioral disorders, in general, are affected by massive swings in sugar,” explains Dr. Teitelbaum.

“When you eat a lot of sugar , your blood sugar levels shoot way up and then go way low. These �luctuations drive your metabolism and mood nuts . And when someone is schizophrenic, he already has a hair-trigger.”

Cancer may be triggered, too, if you eat too much sugar. “The sugar-cancer connection is compelling and scary,” says Connie Bennett, author of Sugar Shock!, pointing to in vitro studies that show cancer cells feed on sugar to fuel their growth and proliferation.

“Researchers call them

SUGAR, P10

VOL.12 ISSUE 222 • TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2020

EDGEDAVAO TRAVEL

Spaghetti.

Fried rice or rice toppings, the ideas are endless when it comes to what you can do with rice.

Noodles and soup in a rice cooker’s bowl.

Photo by Md GolamMurshed.

The rice cooker.

Photo by Katherine Chase.

White sauce pasta, also easily done in a rice cooker.

THE RICE COOKER

AN ASIAN NOMAD’S BEST FRIEND

THE WORLD is changing, and we’ve got technology to thank for it.

Digital nomads, location-independent people who use technology to perform their jobs, are growing even more.

Travel isn’t only for the rich. Travel is the way of life for these digital nomads not because they can afford it, but because travel is made affordable with the currency their earning—and spending.

I wrote about a series of stories about digital nomadism and how it worked last year.

Today is a tribute to what fuels man—food. Food is an integral part of human life. Whatever we do for a living, we can’t go on without eating.

Whether you’re a travelling writer, an architect or a farmer,

never a day goes by without rice, especially if you’re Asian.

Coming from the Philippines, the staple companion of almost every meal is rice. Modernization has allowed us a faster and more convenient way to cook rice, and that’s through the invention of the rice cooker.

Wikipedia says that a” rice cooker or rice steamer is an electronic kitchen appliance designed to boil or steam rice.

It consists of a heat source, a cooking bowl, and a thermostat.”

Ranging from around PHP 500 to PHP 2,000—rice cookers are a must in every Filipino home. It makes life easier, and you can do more things while you wait for your rice to cook.

It’s affordability, convenience and portability make the rice cooker as common as

rice in most homes where there is electricity. And the purpose of me saying this is that as an Asian digital nomad, moving from one city to another or from Southeast Asian country to another, I find comfort in rice cookers.

Whether I’m staying in a lux apartment villa in Indonesia or going off-grid in a basic hut near a secret surf spot, rice cookers make it easy for me to cook whole meals.

The secret of being able to extend your travels is to cook your food. Most of the time, eating outside costs more.

Sometimes, it’s not an option, especially if you’re living kilometres away from the nearest town. You’ve got to learn how to cook your food if you want to survive in this world—unless you never plan to leave the

city.

Digital nomads rarely bring their pots and pans or cooking equipment. Sometimes, all you’ll have is the rice cooker, or sometimes, that’s all the time you’ll have. It takes a tremendous amount of skill, patience and forbearance (for the smoke) if you’re going to go all basic and cook on an open fire.

Starting a fire is hard, and it’s a skill I haven’t learned yet.

Aside from rice, I’ve been able to cook all sorts of different kinds of pasta in a rice cooker. It was easy to make al dente pasta. The original method of using a pot to boil water takes a lot more time (for me back then), so the rice cooker was more convenient, especially if you’re just cooking for one or two.

Want to make the sauce?

Empty the rice cooker and place the cooked pasta on another dish, for use later.

Heat up the rice cooker, once heated, add some oil and add your favourite ingredients like onions, butter and seasonings plus whatever sauce you want on your pasta.

Once cooked, you can dump in the cooked pasta and voila!

You’re ready to serve your dish. You can also try cooking breakfast food in a rice cooker, think of it as a frying pan except you’re using a bowl. You can fry eggs, sunny-side up or even make a frittata.

The possibilities are endless, and I know, I’m probably late to the rice cooker game, but maybe someone out there hasn’t tried yet and now is the perfect time to do it. Travel wise!

EDGED

A2 INdulge!

TRAVEL

IHG (InterContinental Hotel Group) celebrated the official opening of InterContinental Phuket Resort with a weekend of spectacular festivities to celebrate the luxury brand debut on Phuket island.

InterContinental Phuket Resort is located on Kamala Beach, between Millionaire’s Mile and the Amanpuri headland, the most exclusive area on the stunning west coast of Phuket. Inspired by Phuket’s natural landscape, the beachfront resort features a collection of 221 elegant rooms and villas with panoramic view of the Andaman Sea and surrounded by pine forests.

The resort is a visual and architectural showcase of Thai heritage designed by awardwinning Bangkok-based Habita Architects. Inspired by “Traibhumikatha”, the oldest Thai text which sets out an explanation of heaven, Habita Architects used the estate as a canvas to illustrate the recurring concept of “Heaven on Earth”.

Through their paintings and sculptures, iconic Thai artists were commissioned to re-interpret the Traibhumikatha from personal perspectives. Mr. Komkrit Teptian, a local artist renowned for his Giant Twins sculpture that was prominently featured at Bangkok Biennale 2018, was commissioned to create a series of statuary arts that reflect Thai beliefs and culture about heaven and earth.

Another highlight is a series of mural paintings depicting life in Old Phuket Town by Dr. Khan Payungphan, a local art-

INTERCONTINENTAL PHUKET RESORT HERALDS A CONTEMPORARY ERA OF THAI HOSPITALITY

ist and a Fine Arts professor at Phuket Rajabhat University.

“As a tribute to our unique Thai identity, the resort crystallizes the essence of local culture and distinctive style of heartfelt service. InterContinental Phuket Resort a destination for memorable experiences. It is a social enclave for the island’s most vibrant entertainment, gourmet, wellness experiences with a relentless focus on environmental sustainability and local community,” said Bjorn Courage, general manager of InterContinental Phuket Resort.

Offering stunning sunset views, the expansive Club InterContinental® Lounge is a sanctuary for discerning guests. The signature lounge

features unobtrusive butler service, a second-floor beach vista frontage, tasteful dining

areas with al fresco settings as well as a large private sundeck and infinity pool. Other resort facilities include five swimming pools with breath-taking views, a well-equipped Fitness Centre, tennis court and Planet Trekkers Kids Club for multigenerational recreation.

Jaras, the signature modern Thai fine-dining, celebrates sustainably sourced products from the island’s fishermen and farmers. Pinto restaurant offers international gourmet cuisine in a family setting, taking

inspiration from Old Phuket Town and quirky shophouse eateries. Pine is an upscale barefoot beach bar and lounge offering the best sunset view in Phuket. Here, Sawan Beans and Leaves Bar serves handpicked wild grown teas from Chiang Mai, single origin small batch roasted coffee from local farmers and the finest chocolate made from organic Thai cacao.

The resort’s masterpiece, Heavenly Pavilion Lounge is inspired by the mythical Himmapan Forest with its

whit flow crea this the Inte whic to m exce men the men flow day uniq trian com mas trea with vice HA skin ucts In

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ite and silver tones, Monta wer chandelier and sculpted atures. Located within s surreal structure stands Sati Spa and Wellness®, an erContinental Phuket spa, ich enhances the journey mindfulness. Sati Spa offers eptional signature treatnts specially designed with guests in mind. From treatnts featuring customized wer scents based on guest’s of birth to the world’s first que application of Khit ngle pillow to enhance the mfort and benefits of Thai ssage. The spa offers eight atment rooms, a Duet Suite h Jacuzzi and full sere nail salon. Sati Spa uses RNN’s natural body care, n care and home spa prods from Thailand. n celebration of its grand

ENTERTAINMENT

MICHELLE DEE IS THE GOODWILL AMBASSADOR OF AUTISM SOCIETY PHILIPPINES MISS PHILIPPINES WORLD 2019 Michelle Dee has been named a Goodwill Ambassador by the Autism Society Philippines.

On her Instagram Sunday, the 23-year-old beauty queen revealed she is another step closer to fulfilling her dream of making the Philippines autism-inclusive.

“Was just announced as the new Goodwill Ambassador of @ autismphils. My heart is full and I’m so grateful for the trust,” the Kapuso celebrity wrote in the caption of her photo wearing an all-green outfit.

“With everything that we’ve done and to everything we’re about to do, cheers to a brighter and more inclusive Autism-Ok nation,” she added.

The Autism Society Philippines is a non-profit organization dedicated to the well-being of Filipino families and individuals who live with autism spectrum disorder.

Michelle has been outspoken about her autism awareness advocacy, having two brothers with autism.

Michelle finished the Miss World 2019 pageant in the Top 12. Toni Ann-Singh of Jamaica emerged as the winner.

ANTHONY ROSALDO NAMED BEST MALE SINGING PERFORMER BY NCCAA ANEW

opening, InterContinental Phuket Resort has curated the ultimate Wellness Escape for those who wish to be amongst the first to experience the new luxury sanctuary. Enjoy exclusive offer of 20% off any of Sati Spa and Wellness® “Detox & Wellness Packages” for stays from 1 January – 31 March.

The multi-day detox and wellness packages can be individually tailored to combine treatments with outdoor yoga, mindful practices, healthful dining, as well as multi-sensory fitness experiences designed to promote health and wellbeing long after you depart InterContinental Phuket Resort.

For more information, visit https://phuket.intercontinental. com/special-offers or email icphuket.info@ihg.com for reservations.

KAPUSO SINGER Anthony Rosaldo won the Best Male Singing Performer Award during the National Customers’ Choice Achievement Awards (NCCAA) held on Friday evening.

This is the second time that the Clash Season 1 finalist won the prestigious award.

“Truly honored and humbled to have received this award for 2 consecutive years. Maraming salamat NCCAA for your efforts in recognizing artists in the entertainment industry,” he wrote in an Instagram post on Saturday.

“Awards like this inspire us to always do better and

believe that hard work really pays off!” he added.

He dedicated his award to God, his family, GMA-7 Network, GMA Artist Center, GMA Music and his supporters.

The 24-year old singer’s “Maghintay Ka Lamang” was the theme song of GMA-7’s Koreanovela Sky Castle.

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EVENT TECH TRAVEL

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222 21, VOL.12 VOL.12 ISSUE ISSUE 216 219 • TUESDAY, • FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 14, 2020

SYKES CAPS OFF 2019LINE ASNEW TOP BPO EMPLOYER IN PH NORWEGIAN CRUISE ELIMINATES SINGLESONY INTRODUCES GP-VPT2BT USE PLASTIC BEVERAGE BOTTLES ACROSS FLEET WIRELESS SHOOTING GRIP MULTINATIONAL business process outsourcer and industry pioneer SYKES cemented its position as the best BPO and contact center employer in theCruise Philippines NORWEGIAN by ending with a total of nine Line, the2019 innovator awards from cruise both on localtravel and interin global BUILDING the national bodies., with a award-giving 53-year growing lineuphistory of camSYKES’ recent accolade of breaking boundaries, eras andmost accessories was beingsingle-use named BPO Comis now plasdeveloped forthemodern pany of the Year by the 2019 Asia tic beverage bottle free creators, Sony today Leaders Awards for thethe second across its fleet. has announced new year in abrand row. The award recogGP-VPT2BT wireless The announced last nizes and promotes shooting grip. companies Ideal year that it partnered withfor committed to driving and improvmany different types JUST Goods, Inc., which ening thethe business process outsourcof content creation abled Cruise Line to replace ing industryfrom inplastic the country.

It is ranging vlogs all single-use waterto dedicated to recognizing travel photography / bottles across its 17-shipworldfleet, class skills, thinking, innovation, videography tomost simple beginning with its recent creativity, anduse, execution everyday the across new the ship, Norwegian Encore. full spectrum ofoptimum BPO is functions. grip offers The achievement one of the Onesustainable of theand awards’ main criteria stability comfort latest steps forward for judging is the presence of combined cablefor Norwegianwith Cruise Line.a In high-performance work culture free and a 2018, connectivity the Company eliminated and environment that fosters emreliable moissingle-use dust plasticand straws across ployee engagement and continuture its fleetresistant and privatedesign. destinaous improvement, an aspect Compatible with aofvariety tions, and as a result thiswhich SYKES exemplifies. of Sony’s latest digitalitcamermost recent initiative, will wemillion recognize our as,“In theSYKES, GP-VPT2BT connects replace over six singleemployees aswater our greatest assets, easily via Bluetooth, allowing use plastic bottles every and through our various engagecreators to simply aim and is year.

In addition, the brand ment weinterfering ensuresingle-use that they shootprojects, without working to eliminate work, and grow not only as cableslearn, or exposed inputs.

The plastic shampoo and condiemployees but as responsible new grip includes athis useful tilt tioner bottles later year.citizens.

We are proud tofor have been feature that allows flexible These efforts are driven by able to provide alternative vertical angle viable adjustment as the Company’s Sail & Sustain employment opportunities towhich Filiwell as the ability to switch Environmental Program, pinos and hopeto to self-shooting continue makfrom normal is its commitment to minimize ing a difference in society,” mode with ease.

Additionalwaste to landfills, reduce said its

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SYKES Team at the 2019 Asia Leaders Awards receives the BPO Company of the Year for the 2nd consecutive year.

Starting its operations here in 1997, SYKES is the first multinational contact center to operate in the country. It is also the first BPO company the Philippines to actor andinactivist Jaden Smith expand operations Metro and family, JUST outside takes an inManila, the to first contact novativeopening approach sourcing center in Cebu inthe 2003.

SYKES is and packaging world’s most avalued recognized industry leader in resource - water.

The exceptional customer carefocuses and revolutionary company support.

It is a leading on an impact model, provider taking of multichannel demand generation into consideration both how the and customer engagement services water is sourced and packaged. for Global 2000spring companies and JUST is 100% water in a widely considered to be thecarton top plant-based carton.

The BPO in the due tomateits is made of Philippines 82% renewable diverse offerings supportive rials – the paperand carton is made work Through its from environment. trees grown in responrecent acquisitions of companies sibly-managed forests and the focusing innovative business cap and on shoulder are made services, SYKES expandedplastic. its offrom a sugarcane-based ferings to provide It is refillable andend-to-end recyclable.business to its clients—from JUSTsolutions has a global presence demand generation to self-service with bottling facilities in Glenn support, artificial intelligence and Falls, NY; Ballymena, Northern robotic automation.

This Ireland;process and Ballarat, Australia, move not only puts SYKES at the thus allowing the company to forefront of digital transformation meet demand around the world but it alsoshipping allows thewater company without fromtoa future-proof its enterprise single production source.while JUST bolstering country’s case effias takes carethe to use the most the world’s premiere outsourcing cient shipping options available. destination.

For more information about For more information Norwegian Cruise Lineabout ships employee at SYKES,orvisit the and theirlife itineraries, to book website a cruise,https://www.sykes.com/ please contact a travel philippines/ Facebook professional,and callofficial 888-NCLpage athttps://www.facebook.com/ CRUISE (625-2784) or visit SYKESPHofficial/. www.ncl.com.

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John Sneed, SYKES Senior Vice President and General Manager.

Being a multinational contact center company with over 22 years of experience in the local BPO industry, SYKES is the trusted partner of some of the world’s biggest brands and industry leaders. This allows SYKES to provide employment opportunities to people from various disciplines and career backgrounds. With the company’s emphasis on digital transformation, has diversified its CO2SYKES emissions rate, increase employment opportunities sustainable sourcing and to invest inartificialwheel intelly,include hascareers an adjustment initemerging technologies. ligence, data digital can be loosened tightened “This is a analytics, veryorspecial andmarsocial media and informatoketing, allow for seamless operavery proud moment for us,” tion technology.

Moreover, SYKES tion cameras of different saidwith Harry Sommer, president implements a comprehensive sizes The gripof and and chiefweights. executive officer talent retention strategy that proalso includes a flip button, inNorwegian Cruise Line.

“As motes work-life balance, supports dicator light and lock we switch, a leading cruise line, are

personal and professional growth and encourages employees to get involved in enriching communities. This holistic approach to talent retention impressed the awards committee composed of business executives, foreign diplomats, and local government officials.

SYKES has also been recognized in other notable local and international industryawards and has been named as Top Employer of the Year by the 10thAsiaCEO Awards, of thesuch Top Workplacthrilled one to make an impact es Asia by the single-use 2019 Asia Corpobyineliminating beverrate Excellence and changed Sustainability and be quickly agecan bottles across our fleet.

Awards, which awarded into tripod by simply exIt’sajust one of also the ways we John are Sneed, Senior Vice President panding the portion, working tobottom preserve our oceans of Area Shared enabling easy stable,and handsand theOperations destinations we visit.

Services as one of the free shooting.

While this is just theOutstanding beginning Leaders in Company The GP-VPT2BT Wireless of what weAsia, andBPO others can do, of by the South East Shooting Grip will2019 be availwethe areYear incredibly committed

Asia Business Awards (SEABA), and one of the Top 10 IT/BPM Companies in Cebu by the Cebu IT/BPM Organization (CIB.O).

The 2019 Asia Pacific Stevie Awards, which recognizes innovation in the workplace, also commended SYKES with the Silver Winner Award for Innovation in Internal (Corporate) Events for its 20th Year Celebration and he Bronze Winner Award for Excellence in Innovation in Business Product & Service Industries. to our Sail & Sustain program SYKES received the Merit Award and believe wholeheartedly in for Communication from theInternal importance of preserving the Philippine QuillWe Awards, our17th natural resources. will which recognized company’s continue to strivethe towards makefforts to build brand affinity ing environmentally conscious with their employees the decisions to benefit through our earth.” #SYKESer multi-channel brand Envisioned and founded by campaign.

American rapper, songwriter,

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UP AND LAUNDRY FURNITURE A2A1 ABOUTa silly method but for EJ and

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FIRST ARREST... FROM1

EDGEDAVAO Serving a seamless society

age of his vehicle which prompted authorities to stop him and inspect his pick-up.

The suspect failed to present an authority to travel �irearms here since the city government is implementing the suspension of Permit to Carry Firearms Outside Residence (PTCFOR).

It also added the Macusang did not also present

any documents such as License to Own and Possess Firearms and LTOPF during the inspection.

The suspect was immediately brought to Bunawan Police Station. His �irearm and his vehicle was placed under police custody for proper �iling of charges.

The police is now preparing charges against Macusang for violation of the

Republic Act 10591 or the “Comprehensive Firearms and Ammunition Regulation Act”.

The city implemented a one-year total gun ban after PNP chief Lt. Gen. Archie Gamboa approved the request of Mayor Sara Z. Duterte for the suspension of PTCFOR after the implementation of Martial Law in Mindanao expired last December 31, 2019.

page (www.facebook.com/ davaowater) for the latest water service updates.

They may also call the Central Information Unit /

Call Center through the 24hour hotline 235-DCWD (3293) and press “4” on their phone dial for the latest daily water updates

or contact 0927-7988966, 0925-5113293, and 09084410653 for any matters pertaining to DCWD services. (Vena Del S. Calago)

Account Executives

promoting power sharing and optimization of generation capacity within the region,” NGCP stated.

NGCP is a Filipino-led, privately owned company in charge of operating, maintaining, and devel-

oping the country’s power grid, led by majority shareholders Henry Sy, Jr. and Robert Coyiuto, Jr.

Marketing Assistant

vice president, Jovelyn Lugo as secretary, Sheryll Ann Cahambing as treasurer, Engr. Christine Mae Saco as auditor, Annebelle Uyan as business manager, and

Jonathan Morales as public information of�icer.

The Board of Trustees is meanwhile headed by Dashiel Indelible Jr. as chair, Lucio Pequiro as vice chair,

Anna Marie Sabido as secretary, and Jerry Andante, Jim Dua, Yza Marundan, and Felicisimo Macado as board of trustees. (CIO MATI)

was part of the amendments to the State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Section of the budget program introduced by US Senators Richard Durbin and Patrick Leahy before the document was signed

by Trump on Dec. 20, 2019.

The section titled “Prohibition on Entry” provides that the US Secretary of State “shall apply sub-section (c) to foreign government of�icials about whom the Secretary has credible information have been involved in the wrongful imprisonment of… Senator Leila de Lima who are arrested in the Philippines in 2017.”

The subsection (c) referred to is the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act of the

United States that authorizes the US to sanction foreign government of�icials deemed as violators of human rights.

Duterte blocked the entry of three US senators -Durbin, Leahy, and Edward Markey -- for supporting the entry ban and calling for de Lima’s release.

Panelo said the President arrived at the decision to remind other countries that they cannot dictate upon the Philippines, which is an “independent and sovereign state.”

He has repeatedly denied that de Lima was “wrongfully imprisoned” because she was accorded due process.

Despite efforts of Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel “Babes”

Romualdez to justify de Lima’s detention to the US senators, Panelo said the latter refused to listen and were determined to include the provision on the entry ban.

Panelo said he personally reached out to US Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim after the senators introduced the provision banning the entry of Filipino of�icials involved in de Lima’s detention.

De Lima has been detained at the Philippine National Police Custodial Center at Camp Crame in Quezon City since February 2017 due to her supposed involvement in the rampant narcotics sale inside the national penitentiary during her stint as justice secretary. (PNA)

sion resumes on Monday.

Time to roll up our sleeves once again and work double time on vital legislative measures. The Speaker made a clear instruction to pass these bills,” Romualdez said.

“We hope to vote soon for second reading approval the proposed law creating the Department of Filipinos Overseas and Foreign Employment to keep an eye on the safety and protection of overseas

Filipinos, including seafarers and household service workers, Department of Disaster Resilience to create a primary agency responsible for leading the national effort before, during and after disasters, the Department of Water Resources to avert water crisis, and other bills,” he added.

Romualdez vowed to work harder for another remarkable performance of the House by approving Duterte’s legislative agenda

aimed at making the life of Filipinos more comfortable.

“We are committed and inspired to work harder, smarter and more ef�iciently this year,” said Romualdez.

Before the Christmas break, Romualdez said the House of Representatives processed a total of 900 measures or an average of 28 measures per day during the 32 session days.

(PNA)

care givers that keep "the wheels of our economies, businesses and societies moving," Behar said.

They "often have little time to get an education,

earn a decent living or have a say in how our societies are run," and "are therefore trapped at the bottom of the economy," he added.

"Across the globe, 42

percent of women cannot get jobs because they are responsible for all the caregiving, compared to just 6 percent of men," Oxfam �igures showed.

determine the �irst batch of aspiring cadet pilots to be enrolled in the Dare to Fly! The Allstars Cadet Pilot Program beginning March 2020.

The program aims to

produce at least ten cadet pilots for its �irst batch.

AirAsia will advance partial training costs for Allstars (AirAsia employees) who are accepted into the program. Successful

graduates of the program will be given an opportunity to work with AirAsia, the world’s best low-cost airline for 11 consecutive years as awarded by Skytrax.

WATER... FROM2 NGCP... FROM2 CSC... FROM2

DUTERTE... FROM3

HOUSE... FROM3

BILLIONAIRES... FROM5 AIRASIA... FROM5

is in need of

Accounting Clerks Qualifications: • BS Accountancy / Accounting Technology Graduate or any business related courses • Male/Female • Can work with minimum supervision • With or without experience

Qualifications: • BS Marketing Graduate or any related courses • Male/Female • With pleasing personality • With or without experience and willing to be trained

Qualifications: • BS Marketing Graduate or any related courses • Male/Female • With pleasing personality • With or without experience and willing to be trained

Social Media Lead Qualifications: • Candidate must be creative and enjoys social media • Experience in creating social media post for news, business and organization • Good command of English • Experience in graphic design is a plus Send your application letter and resume to: Ella P. Tingzon HR/Admin Supervisor Edge Davao Review Publishing Inc. Door 14 ALCREJ Bldg., E. Quirino Avenue, Davao City or email at edgedavao@gmail.com or ella_tingzon@yahoo.com

GREEN... FROM3

ang WTE while we have the ordinance ang possibility is we will be importing basura from other countries and that is the same thing of dumping garbage of other countries here in the Philippines,” Felices added.

He cited the efforts of different schools like the Ateneo de Davao University (ADDU), University of Southeastern Philippines (USEP), and the University of Immaculate Conception (UIC) that are banning the use of single-use plastics in their respective institution.

“We have private individuals that are pushing for the reduction of wastes sa kanilang mga households like practicing urban container gardening that addresses the threat of food security, and utilizes discarded plastic materials and biodegradable wastes.

Ito yung nakikita namin na programa ngayon sa Davao City,” he said.

The group also mentioned better ideas such as establishments of more MRFs in various barangays

and business establishments as solutions to the waste problems in the city.

Felices cited NCCC’s Go Green campaign that encourages shoppers to limit the use of single-use plastics and Bioskin’s re�illing stations for shampoos and lotions and Bambuhay that advocates shifting to reuse and renew sustainable products as best practices to address wastes.

“Bioskin has re�illing stations kung gusto mong bumili ng lotions or/shampoos, you can bring with you your containers and have them re�illed. Bambuhay is producing bamboo straws na puwedeng makatulong at alternative instead of using plastic straws,” Felices said.

Kim Fabular, program of�icer of Ecoteneo said there is a clear problem on the WTE-incineration that the city government of Davao has already invested in.

“We know that they are going to set this up near an elementary school that elevates the hazards of incin-

eration. There is no question that burning wastes is really bad,” Fabular said.

She said based on their research the wastes Davao City is producing majority are wet materials and therefore it cannot produce the energy that the government is saying because WTE facility would need like 10,000 tons of plastic wastes and the city is not capable of producing such.

“Nasa 6,000 tons lang tayo. Mas maraming biodegradable ang pumupunta sa land�ill because of the more problematic issue that is hindi po tayo nag segregate. However, there is a reckoning because our land�ill is too full and we have reached our maximum limit and there is a clear mismanagement in our wastes because it is not segregated,” she said.

The group is urging Dabawenyos to get down to the serious business of practicing proper solid waste management by segregating so that less waste goes to the land�ill.

concern because it was apparent that there is an attempt to whitewash the case and cover up the brutal death by making it appear Jeanelyn died of a mere physical injuries,” Mendoza said.

The committee will also assess the current government efforts to repatriate

OFWs in some parts in the Middle East amid rising tension in the region caused by US-Iran faceoff following the killing of an Iranian military of�icer Qasem Soleimani and several others in Baghdad on January 3 this year.

Con�irmed invited resource persons who will

attend the hearing are from the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), the Filipino recruiter of Villavende, and the NBI among others.

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Gamboa on Duterte seeing his ‘sincerity’: There’s more to prove

N

ewly-designated Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Police Lieutenant General Archie Francisco Gamboa on Monday said he takes as a challenge the remarks of President Rodrigo Duterte saying that he had seen the sincerity of the police of�icial.

Speaking to reporters in Camp Crame, Gamboa said he already met with the Chief Executive and Interior Secretary Eduardo Año after the President announced that he will be the new head of the police force.

"Alam mo 'yung sinabi ni Presidente that you have proven your sincerity, it's actually an evaluation but requires a continuing action on my part, meaning to say, I take it as a challenge

ASIA... FROM4

time last year.

The string of mostly solid US data has underpinned the dollar, particularly against the safe-harbor yen. The dollar stood at 110.18 yen on Monday, having hit an 8-month peak of 110.28 last week.

The euro was stuck at $1.1093, while sterling

that I saw in you, your sincerity," Gamboa said.

"Di ko sinabing tapos na 'yun, na na-gain ko na 'yung trust niya. There's more to come, there's more for me to prove that indeed showing sincerity to the President, to the government and to all Filipino," he added.

Gamboa said he is honored for Duterte's expression of trust and con�idence over his capacity to lead the PNP. According to Gamboa, Duterte wants him to focus on eliminating illegal drugs in the country and cleansing the police force from rogue cops.

"Marami siyang directive but generally, if we compress it... it will dealt to the vigorous anti-drug campaign and then cleansing the PNP..."

Gamboa said.

idling at $1.3000 after poor British economic news fanned speculation about a cut in interest rates.

Against a basket of currencies, the dollar had �irmed to 97.624 and away from the recent trough of 96.355.

Spot gold stood at $1,557.75 per ounce, hav-

For his part, Gamboa said he wants every member of the PNP to be most respectful to the rule of law and everything that it stands for, especially during the conduct of police operations.

"There shall be no individual or unit action outside of the justice system under any circumstances. Everything shall be above-board and compliant with the requirements of due process, human rights, transparency and public accountability," Gamboa said.

Gamboa belongs to the Philippine Military Academy "Sinagtala" Class of 1986, the same PMA class of former PNP chiefs Ronald dela Rosa and Oscar Albayalde.

Gamboa is set to retire on September 2.

ing hit a 7-year top earlier this month of $1,610.90 at the height of Iran-US tensions.

Concerns about a cut in supply from Libya sent oil prices higher.

Brent crude futures rose 79 cents to $65.71 a barrel, while US crude jumped 67 cents to $59.21.

TUCP... FROM4

ployers’ management prerogative to give hazard pay to their employees considering the extraordinary cricumstance in performing their duties and responsibilities.

“On other hand, employees can directly approach and request their

employers to provide them with hazard pay,” said Tanjusay.

In public sector, police, military, �iremen, rescuers, including volcanologists and personnel from the Philippine Institute for Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) are automatical-

ly entitled to hazard pay in view of Civil Service Commission regulation and subsequent agency memorandum giving government personnel hazard pay ranging from 5% to 27% of their basic pay after rendering 50% of the total working hours of the month.

‘glucose guzzlers.’”

While it’s not proven that sugar fuels cancer growth in the body, it is a known fact that obesity – a likely effect of eating too much sugar – increases your risk of developing a number of cancers, and that both sugar and insulin fuel cancer-cell growth.

“We were surprised to realize that changes in our metabolism caused by dietary sugar impact on our cancer risk,” said Dr. Custodia Garcia-Jiminez at the University Rey Juan Carlos in Madrid. “We are now

investigating what other dietary components may in�luence our cancer risk.

Changing diet is one of easiest prevention strategies that can potentially save a lot of suffering and money.”

A number of other studies indicate a strong relationship between sugar consumption and an increased risk of cancer.

The University of Minnesota researchers looked at more than 60,000 patients over 14 years and found that people who drank two or more soft drinks a week had an 87% higher

risk of developing pancreatic cancer.

“If God hadn’t meant for us to eat sugar, he wouldn’t have invented dentists,” said Ralph Nader, an American activist and author. But Luc Tappy, a physiologist at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland, disagrees: “You cannot live without essential fats. You cannot live without protein. It’s going to be dif�icult to have enough energy if you don’t have some carbohydrate.

But without sugar, there is no problem. It’s an entirely dispensable food.”

82% of possession and made a staggering 1005 passes in their �irst game under Setien.

The former Real Betis coach is known for his devotion to the possession-based style of play Barca became renowned for under Johan Cruyff and perfected under Pep Guardiola, but Granada, who beat Barca 2-0 in September, proved stubborn opponents.

The visitors even came close to taking the lead when Cameroonian Yan Brice Eteki struck the post in a rare foray forward but they eventually caved in after Sanchez picked up a second yellow card and was dismissed for hauling down Messi.

Messi had come closest to scoring for Barca with two powerful yet inaccurate shots either side of halftime but he

made no mistake when Arturo Vidal dragged the ball into his path in a slick passing move engineered by substitute Riqui Puig.

Twenty-year-old Puig was rarely given a look in by Valverde but he was given his �irst league appearance of the season by 61-year-old Setien, who has pledged to honour the club's tradition of giving young, home-grown players a chance.

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11

DLSU forward looms as PBL D League top pick

A

Roger Federer celebrates his first round win.

Roger is rust-free

M

ELBOURNE -- Roger Federer showed no sign of rust despite a lack of match practice ahead of the Australian Open as he launched his bid for a record-extending 21st Grand Slam title by hammering Steve Johnson, 6-3 6-2 6-2, in the �irst round on Monday.

Playing his �irst competitive match since losing to Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas in the ATP Finals in November, the 38-yearold broke his opponent’s serve early in each of the three sets and closed out the match when Johnson hit a return long.

Unlike his main rivals, third seed Federer, who won his last Grand Slam in

2018 at Melbourne Park, opted out of the inaugural ATP Cup in Australia to spend more time with his family before launching his 22nd season on Tour.

In his pre-tournament news conference on Saturday, Federer talked about the importance of getting off to a fast start and he did that against the American, who has not won a set in his three meetings against the Swiss.

“I just haven’t played proper matches in many, many weeks, and a lot of guys, probably 95% of the guys, are coming here with matches,” Federer told reporters.

“For me really the �irst three rounds are key to

get going, to get used to the pressure, stay calm, when to save breakpoint or 30-all points or whatever it may be, or just to stay calm if you’re down a set and a break or whatever it might be.

“This is sort of the unknown that can be a little bit scary at times. But today there was none of that because I broke early each set and was able to get on a roll, play freely after that ... I felt like I had the game under control.”

Federer broke the American in his �irst service game to go up 3-0 and never looked back.

Despite blustery conditions, Federer served superbly from the start

and hit winners at will against Johnson, who is ranked 75th in the world, and he was as ruthless under the closed roof at the Rod Laver Arena after play was interrupted by rain.

He faced just a single breakpoint in the entire match, hitting 10 aces and 30 winners.

“I just think I have to be careful. Round-byround, point-for-point mentality,” added Federer.

A six-time champion at Melbourne Park, Federer will take on the winner of the match between French quali�ier Quentin Halys and Filip Krajinovic of Serbia in the second round.

FRED C. LUMBA

MA looks poised on selecting Jamie Malonzo as the �irst pick of the PBA D-League Draft.

Owning the top pick for the fourth straight year, the Titans set their sights on the former Portland State Viking and De La Salle Green Archer to headline the draft on Monday at the PBA of�ice in Quezon City.

AMA �irst got the �irst pick in 2017, using it on another La Salle alumnus, Jeron Teng, who has eventually become a key player for Alaska in the PBA. Last year, the Titans took former Saigon Heat star Joshua Munzon, and he scorched the D-League with multiple 30-point games as well as starring in domestic and international 3x3 play.

Munzon is part of the Gilas Pilipinas Men pool for the FIBA 3x3 Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

12 teams to play in Aspirants Cup

AMA is one of 12 teams that con�irmed their participation in the �irst conference of the D-League season, the Aspirants Cup. La Salle, playing under the EcoOil banner, will also �ield in a team in the said tournament.

In fact, 11 of the participating teams in the Aspirants Cup are collegiate squads.

Also joining are Wang’s-Letran, UST-Builders Warehouse, Mapua, Centro Escolar University, San Sebastian, Far Eastern University, Diliman College, Technological Institute of the Philippines, and Enderun.

Only Marinerong Pilipino will play in the season-opening conference as a club.

The Skippers (Marinerong Pilipino) will take the second pick of the Monday, while CEU-Scorpions will choose third overall.

(PNA)

Messi gives new Barca coach first win

B

ARCELONA - Barcelona may have a new coach but Lionel Messi remains their unquestionable talisman after guiding the Spanish champions to a nervy 1-0 win at home to Granada in La Liga on Sunday in Quique Setien's �irst game in charge of the club.

The Argentine struck the only goal in the 76th minute, �iring into the bottom corner to complete a well crafted team move shortly after the visitors had defender German Sanchez sent off.

"Messi did what he has done his entire life," said Setien of Barca's all-time top scorer, who proved the difference on a blustery evening at Camp Nou. "He has done this so

many times in games like this, games when you cannot �ind a way through, things aren't going for you and you are lacking inspiration, but he always conjures up something special.

"We made a few moves like this in the �irst half but it didn't come off but when the ball falls to Messi you know there's a very high chance it will go in."

The victory took Barca back to the top of La Liga on 43 points after 20 games, ahead of second-placed Real Madrid on goal difference.

Barca, who sacked Ernesto Valverde last week despite being La Liga leaders and winning the last two titles by considerable margins, enjoyed

MESSI, P10

SPORTS KEN

BRGY. GINEBRA TOP FAVORITE IN ALL-FILIPINO By virtue of its impressive 4-1 win over the Bolts in the Governors’ Cup championship, the Gin Kings automatically lined themselves up as the league’s top pick in the next conference – the Philippine Cup. Coach Tim Cone clinch his third title out of four �inals appearances against the same valiant team, copping the last with a 105-93 convincing triumph in Game 5.

The league’s winningest mentor has now been able to squeeze the best out of his men, carefully maneuvering them like the German war general Rommel.

In this series, there were two outstanding performers

that I could picked out without demeaning the total contribution of the other Ginebra players: Japeth Aguilar’s all-around play and Stanley Pringle’s intelligent playmaking and scoring.

The son of Peter Aguilar, also a former Ginebra 6’6” forward and a national player himself, Japeth has developed into an authoritative big forward-center capable of defending the fortress, scoring in and out of the perimeter when necessary and a strong inside offensive threat, muscling his way against the enemy.

Pringle, acquired in a trade from Northport, has found his home.

Cone is using him effective-

ly where Stanley excels best – short and long jumpers, inside penetration and timely assists.

Pringle’s presence has afforded LA Tenorio from being saddled the yeoman’s job of solely orchestrating the Gin’s offensive forays and gives the latter enough breathing time.

Picked as the Finals MVP which he richly deserves, Japeth’s herculean talents were exposed to the fore in this series against Meralco whose American player Allen Durham was adjudged Best Import for the third time.

Whether you noticed or not, the 6’9” center from Sasmuan, Pampanga was all over the place swatting shots, putting in slam

dunks, tossing in short jumpers, and aggressively boxing out, thus motivating his teammates to work harder and give no quarters to the opposition.

Japeth was also careful not to foul out as he had done in the past. He has completely matured in his outlook. I hope he brings home the MVP eventually.

Cone has a deep bench, that you’ll have to agree.

His backcourt rotation includes – aside from Tenorio and Pringle – Scottie Thompson and Joe Devance with reserve big boys Raymond Aguilar and Capiral as subs for either Greg Slaughter and Japeth in the 4 & 5 positions and sniper Jeff Chan, Aljon Mariano, Art dela Cruz and

former MVP Mark Caguioa in the small forward.

But he will not like Brgy.

Ginebra to be rated as the top pick in the All Filipino because Cone knows every other team will gang up on his squad to prevent the Gin Kings from emerging champion anew.

It’s actually the logical consequence of having won the Governors’ Cup championship.

This prominence puts Cone’s the primary target of the opposition.

Of course, let us credit Meralco and its coach Norman Black for displaying a spartan attitude against a Ginebra blitzkrieg all throughout the series.

We were entertained, weren’t we?

12 SPORTS

EDGEDAVAO

SAME RESULT

VOL.12 ISSUE 222 • TUESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2020

SJ Knights repeat over Tigers in MPBL finals Rematch S

an Juan Knights romped Davao Occidental Tigers, 84-65, in their highly anticipated �inals rematch.

The Knights took control of much of the �irst half, opening a 43-17 lead with four minutes left in the half.

The Tigers tried to bounce back in the second half, drawing to within eight, 57-65, with 6:05 left in the game, but the Knights answered with the game-deciding 13-0 run to up the lead back to 21.

“Siyempre, nagulat kami sa maagang lamang, pero lumaban kami sa depensa, sa dikdikan. Naka-match kami, naka-execute at gumana ang depensa namin (Of course, the early lead surprised us but we fought back in defense. We’re able to match, executive and our defense worked),” said coach Randy Alcantara after the win.

Orlan Wamar put up 15 points, two rebounds, and two assists off the bench for San Juan, whose league-best record is now at 23-3, stretching its lead over Manila for the Northern Division top seed to a full game.

Yvan Ludovice and Mark Yee each had 14 markers for Davao Occidental, which fell to 21-4, with the latter achieving a double-double with

14 rebounds.

Meantime, Aaron Jeruta put the University of San Agustin Gym into frenzy as he scored the winning basket for Iloilo, which survived Zamboanga, 60-58, in a crucial MPBL Lakan Season game on Saturday night.

Jeruta, who struggled all game long scored on a layup against the defense of Robin Roño with 12.4 seconds left to break the 58-all deadlock.

“Aaron will always be Aaron. Sa wakas. Ilang game nang gigil na gigil siya. Sa wakas naman ay nabigiyan siya ng (Finally. He was longing for that opportunity. Finally, he was given a) chance for that bucket,” said coach Eric Gonzales on Jeruta’s game-winner.

Zamboanga still tried to steal the road win, but Anton Asistio and Santi Santillan mis�ired in their three-point attempts as time expired.

Alfrancis Tamsi led Iloilo, which zoomed to the �ifth spot in the Southern Division at 16-10, with 17 points, three rebounds, and one steal.

Rey Publico added 14 points and nine rebounds.

Santillan made 15 markers, �ive boards, and one block for Zamboanga, which slipped to the sixth seed at 16-11. (PNA)

John Wilson delivered 14 points, seven rebounds, and two steals for San Juan as the Knights rose to 23 - 3.