Manila Standard - 2016 September 22 - Thursday

DU30 EXPANDS LIST: 40 JUDGES, MORE DRUG LORDS

VOL. XXX • NO. 222 • 4 SECTIONS 20 PAGES • P18 • THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016 • www.thestandard.com.ph • editorial@thestandard.com.ph

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday said he had a one-page list containing the names of Chinese drug lords, adding it was his “thickest-ever” third list of the drug lords operating in the country.

He said there were 40 judges in the list.

“With regard to our Chinese friends, there’s one page here … judges there are about 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 … 40, distributed all around,” Duterte said in a speech in Camp Elias Angeles in Pili, Camarines Sur.

He also said there was no need to impose Martial Law to fight illegal drugs in the country.

But he said if he were already President when the illegal drug trade inside the national penitentiary was discovered, he would have declared Martial Law. Duterte made his statement even as National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr. on Wednesday defended Duterte’s push for federalism in the Next page

‘Leila nixed drug plan’ Witnesses: Cronus shelved in favor of an NBP inmate

By Christine F. Herrera

P

ALACE executives and then Justice Secretary Leila de Lima preempted a police operation to enable a favored drug lord to raise enough money to bankroll De Lima’s senatorial bid, witnesses told a congressional hearing Wednesday.

The deputy chief for operations of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, Dir. Benjamin Magalong, said Oplan Cronus, put together by the CIDG and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, was supposed to isolate drug lords operating in the New Bilibid Prison.

The original plan was squashed, with De Lima, Bureau of Corrections chief Franklin Bucayo; Chief Supt. Reginald Villasanta, then executive director of the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission; and Chief Supt. Marcelo Garbo Jr. of the Next page

Sebastian: De Lima’s fair-haired inmate?

By Maricel V. Cruz

ACCUSING FINGER. Convicted kidnapper Froilan Trestiza, commander of the Batang City Jail group inside the New Bilibid Prison, accuses former Bureau of Corrections chief Rafael Ragos and a ‘consultant’ of Senator Leila de Lima of extorting money from him so he would not be thrown to a faraway prison complex during a hearing at the House of Representatives. In the same hearing, PNP deputy chief for operations Director Benjamin Magalong and high-profile inmate Noel Martinez also testify regarding the proliferation of drug syndicates inside the NBP. Manny Palmero/Ey Acasio

UN tapped Solons urge De Lima: Face the music to look into drug slays

By Macon RamosAraneta and Rey E. Requejo SENATOR Leila de Lima on Wednesday urged the Department of Foreign Affairs to invite United Nations Special Rapporteur on summary executions Agnes Callamard to look into the rising number of extrajudicial killings in the country.

Official figures show that as of Sept. 14, 3,173 suspected drug pushers or users were killed Next page

SENATOR Leila de Lima should face her accusers “for her own good” at congressional hearings where she is being accused of taking millions of pesos from drug lords operating inside the national penitentiary, President Rodrigo Duterte’s chief legal counsel said Wednesday.

“Senator Leila de Lima should appear before the House investigation,” Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo told the Manila Standard in an interview.

On the second day of marathon hearings at the House on Wednesday, high-profile inmates linked De Lima, a former Justice secretary, to the illegal drug trade inside the national penitentiary, which was used to raise money for her

campaign to become senator.

Asked about the possible charges that may be filed against De LIma, Panelo said that possible graft raps can be filed but he left the final determination to Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre III, who is leading the presentation of evidence at the House.

“If she does not attend to the House probe, she already admits by her silence all the charges against her,” Panelo said.

Gabriela Rep. Emmi de Jesus on Wednesday said De Lima faces criminal charges if she is found liable for the proliferation of drugs inside the New Bilibid Prison.

At a Quezon City news conference, De Jesus said those responsible for the proliferation of drugs

inside the national penitentiary must be held accountable.

“No one is above the law, not even De Lima,” she said.

The women’s party-list representative welcomed the congressional inquiry in aid of legislation into De Lima’s supposed link to the drug trade at the NBP, she said.

“As long as there’s a comprehensive investigation to ensure the authenticity and genuineness of evidence, and that there is no violation of the process, we will appreciate it [probe], especially if the objective is to ferry out the truth,” she told the Manila Standard.

Congress must not only single out the drug proliferation at the national penitentiary only at the Next page

Task force saves trader from ASG A BUSINESSWOMAN who was abducted by armed men in Sirawai, Zamboanga del Norte, on Monday had been rescued in Sulu, the Joint Task Force Sulu said Wednesday.

“Troops of the 35th Infantry Battalion rescued kidnap victim Martina Yee in Sulu this morning,” the task force said.

Major Felimon Tan Jr., spokesman of the Western Mindanao Command, confirmed the rescue.

Meanwhile, Armed Forces Chief Ricardo Visaya, who was confirmed by the powerful Commission on Appointments on Next page

WHEN she was still Justice secretary, Senator Leila de Lima frequented the New Bilibid Prison compound several times since January 2013 to visit bigtime drug dealer Jaybee Sebastian, an inmate told lawmakers Wednesday.

During the second day of the House inquiry on the proliferation of drugs at the national penitentiary, witness Noel Martinez said Sebastian, a fellow inmate, sought his assistance to raise funds for the senatorial bid of the former Justice chief.

Martinez described Sebastian as the Sigue-

Sigue Commando commander and chairman of the NBP’s Presidyo Side maximum security compound.

Martinez said it was January 2013 when De Lima started to see Sebastian at his office in the NBP. Next page

WHO IS HE? In this file photo snapped on July 20, inmate Jaybee Sebastian, convicted of carnapping and sentenced to up to 20 years imprisonment, is taken out from a PNP bus during an inspection of the Bureau of Corrections in Muntinlupa City by Director General Ronald dela Rosa. Danny Pata

Arms deal with Russia eyed THE Philippines may acquire military equipment and technology from Russia to boost its campaign against terrorism, transnational crimes and the threats to it in the disputed South China Sea, Foreign Affairs said Wednesday.

The department said officials from the Russian Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation briefed the Philippine officials who visited Moscow on the different aspects of possible military cooperation between the

Philippines and Russia, including the acquisition of Russian military equipment and technology.

The FSMTC is a federal agency under the Office of the President of the Russian Federation.

It is responsible for control and oversight in the military-technical cooperation between the Russian Federation and foreign countries.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay Jr. said the acquisition of modern military equipment Next page

Plans for extra powers sought

By Maricel V. Cruz and Macon Ramos-Araneta

MARTIAL LAW REMEMBERED. Thousands of students walk out of their classes in Metro Manila and

troop to Mendiola Bridge near Malacañang to mark the 44th anniversary of the declaration of martial law by then President Ferdinand Marcos and urge President Rodrigo Duterte to bring his promised ‘change’ to the education sector by taking quick action against tuition increases. Danny Pata

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BOTH chambers of Congress are separately asking transport authorities to submit details of their plans and projects to be covered by the emergency powers sought by the executive department.

“We have to make sure their plans are detailed, the scope well-

defined, time-bound, transparent and, more importantly, will have direct impact to address the traffic emergency,” Senator Grace Poe, chairman of the Senate committee on public services, said during a hearing Wednesday.

In the House of Representatives, leaders demanded the Department of Transportation Next page

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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Angelina Jolie files for divorce from Brad L

OS ANGELES—Angelina Jolie has filed for divorce from Brad Pitt and is seeking custody of their six children, spelling the end for “Brangelina,” one of Hollywood’s highest-profile celebrity couples.

The 41-year-old Jolie filed legal documents on Monday citing irreconcilable differences with Pitt, 52, and listing their date of separation as September 15, according to entertainment news websites TMZ and People.

“This decision was made for the health of the family,” Jolie’s

Chamber dares EU to sue over 'killings' AN OFFICIAL of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Wednesday dared the European Union and the United States to file cases against President Rodrigo Duterte for the alleged summary killings resulting from his war on illegal drugs.

If they think that there are really extrajudicial killings... please come out with the cases and let’s go after whoever is involved, if there is such a thing,” PCCI honorary chairman and chief operating officer Donald Dee told GMA News.

Member countries of the European Union last week called for a strict monitoring of the alleged human rights abuses in the Philippines and a stop to the summary killings following Duterte’s statements on his war on illegal drugs.

But Duterte on Tuesday hit back at the EU. “I read the EU condemnation to me yesterday, I will tell them F**** you!” Duterte said on national television.

Since June 30, when Duterte took office, more than 3,500 people have been killed in police operations and attacks by unidentified assailants.

John Paolo Bencito

UN...

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since July 1, the start of President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on illegal drugs. Of these, 1,138 were killed in police operations, while 2,035 were victims of extrajudicial or vigilante killings.

“The average number of persons killed daily for the past two and a half months is 42.3. By any standard, the statistics are alarming and staggering. And judging from both official and media sources, there is no showing that we will soon experience a downtrend in the figures,” De Lima said.

De Lima filed Senate Resolution No. 153 urging the DFA to invite Callamard to look into the spate of extrajudicial killings and sum-

DU30...

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country and at the same time denied the chief executive was planning to declare Martial Law. He also denied that the administration was planning a “constitutional dictatorship” for Duterte.

A transcription of Duterte’s speech provided by the News and Information Bureau under the Presidential Communications Office named the Chinese drug lords as Fu Juju, Kan Fu Chong, Fu Chan Jiang, Wang Jang Din, Wang Jan Pin, Jiang Shin Zhu and

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Wednesday, vowed to crush the terrorist group Abu Sayyaf and free its 16 hostages before he leaves the service in December.

Visaya is set to retire on Dec. 8, when he reaches the compulsory retirement age of 56.

lywood power couple second to none, so famous they were known simply by their combined first names.

“I am very saddened by this, but what matters most now is the well-being of our kids,” people quoted Pitt as saying in a statement.

“I kindly ask the press to give them the space they deserve during this challenging time.”

The A-listers wed in France in August two years ago, but have been a couple since 2004 and have six children together, three of whom are adopted.

Jolie is seeking physical custody of the children, with visiting rights for Pitt, according to TMZ, which said she was not seeking spousal support.

Pitt came into the public eye 25 years ago with a much-talked-about shirtless debut as eyecandy in the hit movie “Thelma and Louise”—and went on to become a household name in Hollywood.

A three-time Oscar nominee for his acting, he took home a golden statuette for best picture in 2014 as a producer of “12 Years A Slave.” AFP

“In January 2013, one morning, Jaybee called me and said Secretary Leila de Lima was coming over to visit him at his office in the afternoon,” said Martinez, reading out his sworn affidavit before the House justice committee.

“When I went there sometime in the afternoon, Secretary De Lima was there, leaders of different groups of inmates were also there and each of them was introduced to me and to Secretary De Lima,” he added.

Martinez claimed that a “centralized” drug trade at the NBP was instituted when several groups within the NBP were organized to raise funds for De Lima upon the orders of Sebastian.

In return, Martinez said Sebastian promised to extend “protection and special treatment” to those who sold drugs to raise funds for De Lima.

Martinez, commander or “bosyo” of the Genuine Ilocano Group, said he didn’t want his group getting involved and recommended to Sebastian people who could peddle the drugs outside the prison.

Martinez said that during the last months of 2013, Sebastian told him that De Lima would see him again at the prison.

“And true enough, she arrived at his office,” Martinez said in Filipino.

“In all instances that Secretary De Lima had gone to the shelter of Jaybee, we let Jaybee and Secretary De Lima talk in private after

we ate. In some instances, on the other hand, Secretary De Lima’s driver, Jonel Sanchez, was the one visiting Jaybee to collect the money,” Martinez said.

Martinez also said Sebastian later confessed that De Lima and Sanchez were no longer on good terms.

“Alias Makoy was the one going to Bilibid to collect the money,” the witness said, but did not specify any date when the visits happened.

In his affidavit, Martinez also mentioned that former Bureau of Corrections director Franklin Jesus Bucayu had demanded P500,000 from him, through a certain “Colonel Elly.”

Martinez said he managed to produce P300,000 for Col. Elly, who then demanded money from Martinez every week.

In his affidavit, Martinez said he is one of the so-called Bilibid 19 who were transferred from the NBP to the National Bureau of Investigation following a raid at the penitentiary in December 2014.

Also on Wednesday, Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez extended immunity to four more witnesses of the Justice Department, who would testify on the proliferation of illegal drugs at the NBP during De Lima’s tenure as Justice secretary.

During the second day of the House justice committee hearing, panel chairman and Oriental Mindoro Rep. Reynaldo Umali announced Alvarez has already granted the request of the four witnesses to be granted immunity from suit for any incriminating matter that they may bring up during their testimonies.

“May I just inform the body that the grant of immunity to other witnesses has been approved and signed by the House Speaker,” Umali said.

The four who were granted immunity were NBP inmates Jojo Baligad, Froilan Trestiza and Hans Anton and Justice Department employee Jesusa Francisco.

On Monday, Alvarez approved the grant of immunity to six other witnesses including high-profile NBP inmate Herbert Colanggo and convicted kidnapper and former police officer Rodolfo Magleo.

The Presidential Security Group said Wednesday it is investigating Sanchez, one of its former members before he became a security aide for De Lima. On Tuesday, Colanggo had tagged Sanchez as De Lima’s bagman.

PSG commander Brig. Gen. Rolando Bautista said Sanchez, who is confined to barracks, is being investigated, while the group’s spokesman, Lt. Col. Michael Bautista, said they were ready to present Sanchez before the congressional probe if he is subpoenaed.

Shortly after being relieved, Sanchez was assigned to be the security aide of Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, before he returned to his mother unit in the Philippine Air Force.

Sanchez’s wife is also a member of the Presidential Security Group.

At Wednesday’s hearing, Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers called on private companies to donate state-of-the-art signal jammers to the Justice Department to stop drug lords from doing business from inside the NBP. With John Paolo Bencito

mary executions amid the campaign against illegal drugs.

“Unless a third-party investigator comes in, there is reason to believe that we may not be able to ferret out the whole truth behind the killings, and to serve complete justice to the victims and the Filipino people,” she said.

The former Justice secretary also noted that multilateral organizations, such as the United Nations and the European Union, have expressed grave concerns over the drug-related killings in the country, and urged the government to put a stop to them.

She cited local and international media reports about how the socalled war on drugs is being carried out, especially in light of the large number of extrajudicial killings and summary executions.

On Sept. 15, the European Parliament said that while it agrees that drug trafficking and abuse in the Philippines remain a serious and national concern, it is likewise alarmed by the high numbers killed during police operations in the context of an intensified anti-crime and anti-drug campaign.

She said the EP urged the Philippine government to put an end to the current wave of extra executions and killings, launch an immediate investigation into them and adopt specific, comprehensive policies and programs, in full compliance with national and international organizations and respect for human rights.

At the end of the recent Asean Summit, US President Barack Obama said the US will not back down on its opposition to human

rights abuses in the war on drugs.

In June 2016, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned the administration’s apparent support for extrajudicial killings.

De Lima, who was ousted as chairman of the Senate committee on justice after she began her investigation into the extrajudicial killings, again cited her witness, Edgar Matobato, a former hitman with the Davao Death Squad, who said President Duterte had ordered the deaths of hundreds of drug suspects when he was still mayor of Davao City.

“This call for a speedy and impartial investigation is justified by the perception that our local institutions of law enforcement and justice, including domestic mechanisms of accountability of public officials, appear to be either inadequate, compromised or weak,” the senator said.

attorney Robert Offer said in a statement circulated to US media.

“She will not be commenting at this time, and asks that the family be given their privacy during this difficult time.”

Two of the world’s biggest stars, Pitt and Jolie formed a Hol-

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a certain Diana Lagman who resides in Pampanga.

Asked for clarification on the names and the drug list, Communications Secretary Martin Andanar said he would first have to ask the President. “[Duterte] keeps the records close to his chest. I will ask [him] once I see him,” he said.

Duterte said he would give copies of his drug list to the military and the police.

During his speech in Camp Tecson in Bulacan last week, Duterte said at least 1,000 politicians and public officials were included in his final drug list. John Paolo Bencito and Sandy Araneta “Our goal is no more hostages and the Abu Sayyaf will be crushed,” Visaya told reporters.

He said a one-third of the Army was going after the 400-member Abu Sayyaf.

A Catholic Church leader on Wednesday described the Abu Sayyaf as one of the most violent jihadist groups and called its

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and technology from Russia would ensure security at sea, carrying out rescue operations and the exchange of information and experience between the two countries.

“One of the most pressing challenges in the region is keeping a stable, predictable and peaceful maritime order, particularly in the South China Sea,” Yasay said.

China has rejected The Netherlands-based UN arbitration court’s ruling that its claim over most of the South China Sea has no basis. members “practical atheists.”

Cotabato Archbishop Orlando Cardinal Quevedo told a gathering of the world’s religious leaders that the Abu Sayyaf were atheists waging war in the name of God. But he said one could not wage war in the name of God. Florante S. Solmerin, Macon RamosAraneta and Vito Barcelo

Yasay said the Philippines recognizes the importance of the South China Sea “as one of the main arteries of global trade, adding the countries in the region navigate through its disputed waters.

“Therefore, we all have a legitimate stake in maintaining peace and security in the region through peaceful means and the rule of international law,” Yasay said in his speech.

Philippine Ambassador to Russia Carlo Sorreta and Defense officials met with Russian Chief of the First Department of Military Sergey Buganov and FSMTC officials in Moscow to explore possible military cooperation. Vito Barcelo

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submit a concrete list of projects to be covered by the emergency powers sought by the executive branch to address the worsening traffic congestion in Metro Manila and in neighboring provinces.

At the same time, they said they

'Leila...

payola” out of the proceeds of the drug trade and P1 million every From A1 time there was a concert or event at the NBP. The lawmakers, led by Umali National Capital Region Police Office taking over the National Bili- took turns in asking Magalong as bid Prison raid on Dec. 15, 2014,” they did not understand why the Magalong told House committee on CIDG and PDEA were dropped at justice chaired by Oriental Mindoro the last minute.

But Aguirre said the NBI raid Rep. Reynaldo Umali.

Villasanta was chief of PAOCC was all for show.

The real intention was for the faunder the office of Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. during the vored drug lord Jaybee Sebastian [to control] the multibillion drug trade previous administration.

Magalong and PDEA were ex- in the NBP. Sebastian indeed made cluded from the NBP raid that a killing because he had a heyday netted the isolation of high value for eight months from Dec.15, 2014 inmates known as Bilibid 19, most when his competitors were herded of whom were big time drug lords, away and were isolated,” Aguirre including foreign nationals who ran said.

Aguirre asked Magalong and drug syndicates inside and outside PDEA to execute an affidavit on of NBP. But Magalong said some drug what transpired during the preparation of Oplan Cronus. lords were left behind.

Magalong said he would be willWe felt bad because it was our mandate to conduct the raid and ing to execute an affidavit. Borja then we were dropped at the last said the PDEA would do the same.

The testimony of Colangco and minute. Didn’t they trust us? Oplan Cronus was supposed to isolate convicted for kidnapping former high-value inmates to get rid of the Chief Inspector Rodolfo Magleo worsening drug trade in the NBP that De Lima was collecting but others were left out,” Magalong drug money was corroborated by five more high-value inmates in said.

Justice Secretary Vitaliano Agu- Wednesday’s hearing.

Magleo on Tuesday said De irre II and other inmates said the raid was meant to ease out the com- Lima was paid P10 million by Sepetition to allow drug lord Jaybee bastian to effect the transfer of BiliSebastian to lord it over the multi- bid 19, Sebastian’s drug syndicate competitors, to allow Sebastian to billion drug trade in the NBP. Only drug-sniffing dogs or ca- monopolize the drug trade inside nines of the PDEA were tapped to the maximum security prison.

While De Lima personally asparticipate in the raid,” said PDEA lawyer Roselyn Borja. “We were sured Colangco that his transfer to requested to let our canines join the the NBI was “temporary,” Colangoperations in the early morning of co said his stay lasted eight months, allowing Sebastian to control the the raid.”

The NBP raid was held around 4 drug trade for that long.

Chief Presidential Counsel Sala.m. of Dec. 15, 2014, according to another drug lord, Herbert Colang- vador Panelo on Wednesday raised co, who was among the Bilibid 19 doubts about De Lima’s motive for that was taken away from the maxi- interfering in the planned raid on mum security prison and brought to the NBP. I think she should explain that,” the National Bureau of InvestigaPanelo said. “Why did she stop tion prison.

We felt bad because we had several the raid? There is something fishy, top level meetings and I even volun- something is rotten in the state of teered to then Secretary De Lima to Denmark,” he said.

Magalong said that he was surbe the ground commander and all she could tell me was, ‘You just wait, prised and admittedly, dismayed, when on Dec. 15, 2014, he found out Benjie’,” Magalong recounted.

Magalong said it was Bucayo that the top-secret Bilibid raid was who told him the CIDG and PDEA conducted without their presence.

Among those who conducted were no longer part of the operation.

Aguirre said Magalong’s revela- the raid, where De Lima was seen tion had strengthened the criminal wearing cowboy outfit, were Marand civil charges to be filed against celino Garbo, among the generals that President Duterte tagged as a De Lima.

Aguirre also said they have a “narco-general.”

Panelo said Magalon was “a very paper trail of drug money that amounted to billions in an account credible witness.”

He has no axe to grind against her that would be confirmed by the An[De Lima] and he has no political ti-Money Laundering Council.

We are glad about General Mag- interest,” he said.

Umali on Wednesday said allowalong’s revelation. That would double the strength of our case to be ing Aguirre to question witnesses filed against Senator De Lima be- during the hearing was not a violacause now we know why the CIDG tion of House rules.

Secretary Aguirre is not the lawand PDEA were kept out of the loop during the raid,” Aguirre said. yer of the witness. He is the Secre“This could help in making our case tary of Justice who conducted this against Senator De Lima and other investigation,” he said.

Umali also said Aguirre’s quespublic officials an airtight case.”

Magalong said Villasanta, Garbo tioning was not unprecedented and Bucayo were classmates at the since it happened before in a Senate hearing wherein then Justice SecrePhilippine Military Academy.

They were not part of the original tary Leila De Lima grilled Benhur group that planned Oplan Cronus. Luy, principal whistleblower in the But it turned out they dropped us at pork barrel scam.

He added that this is how conthe last minute,” Magalong said.

De Lima, Colangco said, was gressional inquiries should be conpart of the raid and in fact, he made ducted.

The Oriental Mindoro represena last minute appeal to her when tative further noted that the first day they were already at the NBI. Colangco said he felt betrayed of the proceedings was “well-mansince he was giving De Lima P3 aged and very orderly.”

John Paolo Bencito, PNA million a month in monthly “PR

Solons... time of De Lima as Justice secretary, “but also even after De Lima’s term,” she said.

Senators allied with De Lima remained silent on the testimony of witnesses who linked her to the drug trade in hearings before the House.

Senate President Pro Tempore Franklin Drilon, also national vice chairman of the Liberal Party, refused to be interviewed.

Another LP stalwart, Senator Francis Pangilinan, told the Manila Standard that he cannot give any comment because he has not been following the House proceedings because he had other things to do.

Drilon, Pangilinan and De Lima ran under the LP ticket in the May elections.

On Tuesday night, Drilon and Pangilinan, along with Senators Risa Hontiveros and Paolo Benigno

Aquino IV, issued a statement saying they were deeply saddened by De Lima’s removal as chairman of the Senate justice committee.

“Elementary courtesy dictates that we as members of the majority bloc of the Senate should have been consulted. The concerns of our colleagues could have been addressed if there was an opportunity for a dialogue. No consultation or dialogue took place.

“We recognize the removal of Senator Leila de Lima as chair of the Committee on Justice and Human Rights as a political reality.

“Having said that, our alliance with the majority has always been based on the reforms that we believe will propel our nation to greater economic, political and social heights. We will continue to pursue these agenda. As long as we believe that these reforms can be achieved, we will remain with the majority,” the statement read. John Paolo Bencito, Macon Ramos-Araneta, Sandy Araneta and Rio N. Araja

will not allow blanket and excessive powers which may be misused and abused by unscrupulous transportation officials.

During the hearing Wednesday conducted by the House committee on transportation, the panel chairman and Catanduanes Rep. Cesar Sarmiento, called the attention of DOTr Secretary Arthur

Tugade for failing to present any document before the panel on the specific parameters of the proposed emergency powers.

“What exactly do you want to do in the next 28 days?” Sarmiento asked. “We are asking you [DOTr] to define the scope of the crisis because clear problems will demand clear solutions.”

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News IN BRIEF Digong sets Vietnam trip PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte will visit Vietnam, one of the Philippines’ allies, from Sept.

28 to 29, Malacañang said Wednesday.

Palace sources said Duterte will also visit China and Brunei in October, and later Peru for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, before making a side trip to San Francisco to meet the Filipino community there.

During the Philippines’ hosting of the Apec summit last year, it and Vietnam signed a strategic partnership agreement to boost cooperation in several areas, including defense and maritime security.

China’s growing assertiveness in the South China Sea has led to a growing cooperation between Manila and Hanoi who claim certain areas in the South China Sea, as do Taiwan, Malaysia, Brunei and China. John Paolo Bencito

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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Deal with ‘Dutertists,’ Esperon tells plotters

By Sandy Araneta

N

ATIONAL Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon Jr. has downplayed alleged plans of certain groups to oust President Rodrigo Duterte from the presidency.

“If there is, they have to reckon with the 91-percent supporters of the President. We are not worried,” Esperon told the Kapihan sa Manila Bay, Café Adriatico on Wednesday.

Esperon said: “What is to worry about, [Edgar] Matobato?

He has 15 issues that are wrong.

He is not even a Cafgu (the Citizen Armed Force Geographical Unit). We have reports. But we do not want to be very over suspicious.

“Are they basing their destabilization on Matobato? It’s so shallow. Are they basing it on the [extrajudicial killings] is-

sue? We will come up with a report. Give us time [to announce the report].”

He added: “Don’t believe that we are like having a 1986 revolution. This is just the beginning.

Will the ouster plot succeed?

Their basis [of ouster moves] are all lies.

“We are not looking at political [personalities]. We are focusing on criminals. We are not afraid [of destabilization].”

Esperon also asked: “Why is it that before Matobato went to the [Senate] hearing he had already an interview with New York Times newspaper? Who is trying to destabilize? We are

not suspecting [any group]. But there are those who have interests.”

Esperon refused to confirm or deny whether the “yellowtards” or the Liberal Party were part of the plot to destabilize the government, saying security authorities would come out with a report soon.

Several Filipino-Americans are reportedly planning to oust President Duterte from office, a Malacañang official said Monday, citing information from New York.

In a radio interview, Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar said a

fellow Cabinet member who was in New York was told that some Filipino-Americans want Duterte out by January 2017.

While Andanar said the ouster plot seemed unlikely, given that Duterte received a 91-percent trust rating early in his presidency, he also blamed the media for the kind of news that reaches foreign shores.

“If you have all of this news going around internationally, it does not help,” he said.

Duterte has been under fire, both locally and internationally, for the extrajudicial killings being linked to his campaign against illegal drugs.

Comelec ends SK poll work THE Commission on Elections has stopped all activities pertaining to the 2016 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections.

In Comelec Resolution No. 10164, the Commission en banc suspended the preparations including the conduct of public biddings and procurements for election paraphernalia.

“Now, Therefore, under the circumstances, the Commission on Elections in the exercise of prudence, has resolved, as it hereby resolves, to suspend, effective September 9, 2016, all activities including biddings and procurements, in connection with the October 31, 2016 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections,” part of the Resolution said.

Earlier, the poll body was able to print 411,000 ballots until Aug. 26 before finally stopping the printing due to clear indications of election postponement. The ballots are intended for Agusan del Norte and Agusan del Sur. With this, Comelec Spokesperson James Jimenez said that the Comelec was preparing for the reopening of voters’ registration, which is set to start next month.

“We are now preparing for the Barangay and SK elections in 2017. Our field offices are gearing up for the resumption of the voters’ registration in October,” he said in a statement.

Last week, the Senate and the House of Representatives have passed on final reading their respective versions of the bill postponing the October 31st elections to October 2017.

Jimenez added that they were just waiting for Congress to pass a law officially moving the village and youth polls to October next year.

“We are only waiting for the law on the postponement to be signed. The Commission is ready to register an estimated additional five-million voters starting October,” he said. PNA

MORE NAMES COMING. President

Rodrigo Duterte shows soldiers of the 10th Infantry Division in Compostela Valley a thick document supposedly bearing the names of more people, including seven Chinese drug lords.

Malacañang Photo

Binay urges timely action vs Zika Bello:

By Macon Ramos-Araneta ALARMED by the six new cases of Zika virus in the country, Senator Nancy Binay said urgent and coordinated action was necessary from Congress, the Department of Health, the national government, and local government units in order to combat the spread of the disease.

She noted that the World Health Organization declared the global Zika virus outbreak a public health emergency of international concern.

“We have already recorded six new cases so far this year, must we wait for the virus to

spread before we take action?” Binay asked, citing the need for coordination to inform the public that the Zika virus threat in our country is serious.

“We need to give them enough information to protect them from this ailment,” said Binay.

In her Senate Resolution No. 136, Binay stressed that it is “the duty of the State to protect and promote the right to health of the people.”

“There is an imminent threat of local and cross-border transmission of Zika virus infection in the country that calls for urgent and coordinated action from Congress, the

DoH, national government and local government units to adopt an action plan to prevent the spread of Zika virus, enhance early detection and monitoring of Zika virus, and increase awareness of Zika virus through education, information and communication campaigns,” Binay said.

The DoH announced on Tuesday that six more persons have contracted Zika virus, bringing the number of recorded cases of the virus in the country to nine. Of the nine cases, six were females; six out of nine came from Iloilo, one came from Cebu and one from Laguna. All new cases also had no history of travel to other countries.

Ask your party, Binay tells Robredo

By Joel E. Zurbano THE camp of former vice president Jejomar Binay on Wednesday criticized Vice President Leni Robredo following her statement she was disappointed over the government’s “slow” construction of resettlement houses for victims of Super Typhoon “Yolanda” that

hit the country in 2013.

“She has also been reported as requesting an audit. If the vice president is interested in quick answers, may we suggest that she ask her running mate Mar Roxas and ex-Budget chief Butch Abad. Both of them were given major roles by the previous administration in the “Yolanda” rehabilitation program. We hope that aside from quick

answers, they give honest answers as well,” said Binay’s spokesman Joey Salgado.

Roxas served as the secretary of the Department of Interior and Local Government while Abad was the Budget secretary in the administration of President Benigno Aquino III, who endorsed the candidacy of the Roxas-Robredo tandem in the May 9 presidential elections.

DepEd deprived kids of Math, Science tools

By Macon Araneta

INSPECTION. Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office General Manager Alexander F. Balutan (2nd from right) inspects the PCSO Satellite Office at the Lung Center of the Philippines in Quezon City where patients go to avail of the agency’s Individual Medical Assistance Program (IMAP). With him are (from left to right) PCSO’s Rubin Magno (Charity Assistance Department Manager), Dr. Larry Cedro (Assistance General Manager for Charity Sector), and Manuel Fraginal Sr. (Executive Assistance VI, Office of the General Manager). Joseph Muego

MILLIONS of schoolchildren have been deprived of Science and Math equipment due to the Department of Education’s failure to procure them for the past two years despite the budget allocation for them, according to Senate Minority Leader Ralph Recto.

“Public schools do not only lack Science and Math teachers, they also lack Science and Math equipment as the Department of Education [DepEd] “scored back-to-back failures” in buying instructional materials for these subjects,” he said Wednesday.

He described the fiasco as “an unmitigated disaster and representative of DepEd’s low absorption of funds” which “I

hope will be corrected soon enough by the current DepEd leadership.”

The senator said DepEd was given P2.56 billion in 2014 to buy 49,623 packages of Science and Math equipment for distribution to 38,622 schools.

The next year, it was allocated P4 billion for 33,070 more packages to be issued to the same number of schools.

“But 2015 ended with DepEd failing to buy a single piece. It failed to spend a single centavo,” he said.

Recto said the “same ineptitude was evident” in the purchase of computers, with DepEd failing to buy a total of 43,544 “computer packages” worth P7.46 billion in 2014 and 2015.

Truce holding

By John Paolo Bencito NEARLY a month after the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte and communist rebels reopened peace talks abroad, the government’s chief negotiator Silvestre Bello III has reported no major clashes nor incidents between the two sides.

But no sooner had Bello finished his sentence than the Communist Party of the Philippines’ armed wing, the New People’s Army, accused the 31st Infantry Battalion troops of the Armed Forces of undertaking what it described as offensive operations in far-flung barangays of Sorsogon.

The rebels claim this violates the government’s declared unilateral truce.

Bello said he is optimistic a bilateral agreement will be reached and put in place once the second round of peace negotiations is resumed on Oct. 4 to 10, also in Oslo, Norway.

“It is indicative of the sincerity of both parties in the [peace] process which augurs well for peace,” Bello said of the lull in the fighting.

Both parties agreed to submit drafts for the formal bilateral ceasefire agreement when the negotiations resume next month.

“Hopefully, this will ripen to a bilateral and permanent ceasefire and finally the end of hostilities,” Bello said.

President Duterte earlier restored a unilateral and indefinite ceasefire on the eve of the formal resumption of the peace talks with the National Democratic Front last month to create a favorable condition for the negotiations.

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Opinion

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

EDITORIAL

Adelle Chua, Editor

After the noise

T

HESE days, all eyes are on the House of Representatives where high-profile convicts and former law enforcement officials talk about the corruption that supposedly took place in the maximum security compound of the national penitentiary. Everybody and his neighbor have an opinion about the protagonists and whether the witnesses are even credible to begin with.

Last week, the nation was abuzz about a supposed member of a vigilante group— led by the President, no less—that played god with the lives of its victims. The Senate investigation also gave us a peek into

the animosity between certain lawmakers, convincing us that, indeed, there are no permanent friends in politics—just permanent interests.

We have lost track of how many congressional investigations there have been, supposedly in aid of legislation. We have seen how many a probe—with the accompanying drama, sleaze, and raw emotion—has generated attention from street dwellers to corporate executives. ‘Schadenfreude’—the pleasure derived from witnessing the misfortune of others—is never more at play than when Filipinos are glued to their television or other devices, following hearings as they would a sappy movie or a long-running show.

Across various administrations, however, the results have been the same.

The interest reaches sensational proportions, but the hype eventually wanes. The hearings end but hardly anybody bothers to read the report that comes out of it—if a report ever really gets written at all. It is unlikelier still for anyone to follow what laws or amendments to laws arise from the hearings, of if any actual court cases are filed as a result of them.

Then again, these are the first hearings conducted during an administration that ran and won on the promise of real change. We cannot anymore control the repercussions of the testimonies, but we can be vigilant about what happens after all the noise has died down. And then perhaps the lawmakers will take it upon themselves to follow through— that is, after all, still a part of their job.

DUTY CALLS FLORENCIO FIANZA

Traffic Management 101

2 good men LOWDOWN

JOJO A. ROBLES THERE are witnesses and there are really good witnesses. And in the last two hearings of the House of Representatives, some of the latter category are starting to rise head and shoulders above the rest, in terms of credibility and the potential value of their testimony.

But first, let’s separate the convicted chaff from the credible grain. I happen to share Senator Panfilo Lacson’s view that the convicts paraded by the Department of Justice to relate tales of lurid, sensational and corrupt behavior by Senator Leila de Lima and other justice and prison officials can’t really be trusted.

Lacson, who spent decades as

a top policeman before starting a second career as a politician, believes that the convicts may be telling the truth in Congress.

But their credibility can’t really be all that high or they wouldn’t be in jail to begin with.

The grant of legislative immunity by the House committee on justice to the convicts presented by Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre for the duration of their testimony could also have loosened their tongues and made them susceptible to fabricating stories, as De Lima herself has already alleged. For instance, I wonder how much of the exuberant account given by convicted robber Herbert Colangco before the panel isn’t embroidered with lies, since Colangco considers himself a performing artist who required the presence of his talent manager while he testified.

On the other hand, the first hearing last Tuesday also pro-

duced the testimony of National Bureau of Investigation agent Jovencio Ablen Jr., whom Lacson gives high marks for credibility. And yesterday’s second hearing came up with a gem in

troversial driver-bodyguard Ronnie Dayan, received money from NBI deputy director Rafael Ragos. Ablen’s detailed and vivid testimony explained how he was able to see De Lima herself at the door of her house in Paranaque City while Dayan was receiving the cash from Ragos at the gate.

Lacson approved of the way The testimonies Ablen recalled the dates and of Ablen and times, the license plates and other details of the handoff of Magalong are money from Ragos, who gave millions to De Lima through clearly the most twice, according to the credible presented Dayan NBI agent’s recollection. And when Ablen recalled how he was so far against De designated by Ragos (who was Lima. concurrent officer-in-charge of the Bureau of Corrections) as the conduit for the cash raised by the convicted drug lords, he the form of the narration of PNP won praise from Lacson again Director Benjamin Magalong. for his forthright testimony.

It was Ablen who narrated Ragos, who my sources told how De Lima, through her con- me is a longtime friend and

associate of De Lima and who introduced Dayan to her, “appears to be hiding something,” Lacson said. But the testimony of Ablen convinced the senator that there is enough basis to charge De Lima criminally in a proper court of law. *** Yesterday, Magalong appeared before the House justice committee and explained the strange case of how he conceived of a plan to end the illegal drug trade run by prominent inmates inside the national penitentiary—only to be left out of the high-profile raids that De Lima started conducting at the prison some years back. Magalong, who was head of the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, narrated that his was not the only agency involved in the planning of “Oplan Cronus” kept out by De Lima; the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency was told Turn to A5

ONE of the most important agendas of the Duterte administration is traffic management.

As we can see, however, the President seems to have chosen to leave the matter to his top lieutenants while choosing personally to tackle the issue of drugs and crime.

This is as it should be. Traffic, after all, is a local concern.

In spite of the belief of some quarters that solutions can be found from simple observations, traffic management is a lot more complicated in a place like the National Capital Region. The problems are enormous and daunting.

All these are already known but worth mentioning again.

The NCR is 622 square kilometers in area populated by 12 to 13 million people. It has a road system of only 5,000 kilometers more or less and 2,101,148 registered vehicles as of 2013.

This figure does not even include the nearby cities, municipalities and provinces.

The land use of the NCR region is also highly mixed which is a nightmare to traffic planners. We know that many of the causes of traffic congestion—lack of infrastructure, inordinate number of vehicles, unreliable public transportation and the lack of discipline of the motoring public. One of the first things that the public heard from the Duterte administration was that it would take about three years before the public can feel any improvement. To many, this is obviously too long.

Besides, how did they arrive at three years? What the public wants is immediate relief from the punishing daily gridlock.

This relief is something which, in all honesty, the government cannot realistically give considering the magnitude of the problem that it inherited from the incompetent Aquino administration.

Transportation Secretary Art Tugade has now taken it upon himself to solve a problem which is, although local in nature, has been elevated to become a national concern.

Now, why would anybody in his right mind do that? Why not simply let the Metro Manila Development Authority do its job and just help out? I met Art Tugade during a round of golf in Clark when he was still Turn to A5

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Opinion TO THE POINT EMIL P. JURADO

To where is Duterte leading us?

I’M JUST wondering: Who rehabilitation facilities could are these Filipinos in the be. It does not just mean United States set to destabi- building structures. It also lize and possibly oust Presi- means hiring specialists to dent Duterte? And why? man the centers. This transWhat gives these traitors to lates to billions of pesos. their native land the right to I know for a fact that out of try to destabilize and try to 100 drug dependents rehabilioust President Duterte when tated, 25 eventually return to they are no longer Filipinos, their addiction. technically speaking?

I believe it’s time for PresiI’m not discounting the dent Duterte to face reality. fact that things like these His war against illegal drugs have a tendency to escalate can only diminish the drug into something dangerous trade, not eradicate it. for a sitting president. But do *** they mean they’d rather have We mark the proclamation Vice President Leni Robredo, of Martial Law at midnight rather than Duterte, lead the of Sept. 21. I think, however, country? My gulay, I’d rather that we should not only recall have Duterte, warts and all, the dark days. Yes there were than go back to the days of in- dark days—but there were competence and hypocrisy of also bright ones.

BS Aquino.

Lest I am mistaken for What has Mr. Duterte done glossing over Martial Law to merit ouster? His war on atrocities, we should not fordrugs, criminality and cor- get that Martial Law broke ruption? Allegations of sum- the backbone of the commumary killings and human nist insurgency and the Musrights violations? All these lim secessionist movement. still have to be proven.

I say to these people, forI believe that as a whole, give but don’t forget. FilipiD u t e r t e ’s nos have war on drugs forgiven, has made the but not forpeople begotten the lieve once atrocities of Are we on our again in govthe Japanese ernment and way to Martial Law in World in their lead- or a revolutionary War II. I ers to keep saw with my government? them safe. own eyes This is how famivalidated by lies of susrecent poll pected guersurveys that rillas were say President enjoys 91-per- beheaded by the Japanese. cent trust ratings. This con- But, we, Filipinos have forfirms that in people’s minds, given Japan.

Duterte is the leader they deSanta Banana, hadn’t Marserve and want. cos imposed Martial Law, the *** communist insurgents would In the same vein, while I have brought real trouble into would rather have Duterte as the country. president, I am also wonderNote that most of those reing where he is leading us. calling the dark days of MarIn fact, I am beginning to tial Law were members of the have a sense of deja vu espe- communist movement themcially since he proclaimed a selves and their supporters.

“National Emergency on AcMartial Law also had its count of Lawless Violence.” golden days. It started the reI felt that was one step away naissance of arts and culture from a declaration of Martial with the former First Lady Law or a revolutionary gov- Imelda Marcos, which placed ernment. the country in the map. In And now we discover that 1976, she helped build the hundreds, if not thousands, luxury hotels we now have of politicians, uniformed men in Manila, Pasay and Makati. and celebrities are in the drug These gave impetus to foreign trade. Will Duterte take that tourism. The Miss Universe step? Or won’t he? pageant was held here.

The President is seeking I am saying all these for the to extend his war on illegal record. Most media people drugs for another six months. have been products of antiThis is an admission that Marcos and anti-Imelda rethe war on drugs cannot be gimes, forgetting that Martial achieved with the ordinary Law also had its good points. powers of a president. *** I recall Duterte’s promise I have always considered upon assumption of office September as the most sigthat he would resign if he nificant month in my over 66 is not able to eradicate the years as a journalist. Martial drug menace in three to six Law gave me the opportumonths. That promise keeps nity to found and organize ringing in my ears. the KBP or Kapisanan ng I have always believed that mga Brodkaster sa Pilipinas, the drug problem is multi- a self-policing body which faceted. Going after all drug remains relevant and vibrant lords, financiers, protectors, today. It was also the start of pushers and addicts who also 365 Club of which I am the become dealers is just one only living founder and now part of solution. The more dif- chairman emeritus. ficult part is the rehabilitation The 365 Club in fact, of drug dependents marks its 44th anniversary The government is only re- this coming Saturday, Sept. alizing this now, finding out 24 at the Holiday Inn Suites how costly the building of in Makati City.

2 good...

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by De Lima to send only its K-9 unit and not to bother asking its human operatives to participate.

Magalong told the committee that he and his men were really angry about being kept out of the raids, renamed “Oplan

Galugad” and headed by De Lima herself. He testified that he met with De Lima several times after he presented his “Cronus” plan, asking when the justice department intended to implement it and offering himself up as ground commander of the operation, only to be told to wait repeatedly.

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016

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Gaming that is fair, gaming that is fixed MINORITY REPORT DANILO SUAREZ THE President announced the appointment of retired Police Director Jose Jorge Corpuz as the new Chairman of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office and retired Marines General Alexander Balutan as the new general manager. The appointment comes as part of the President’s campaign against illegal gambling and corruption in the PCSO. Whether we like it or not, gaming has evolved into a way of life for some Filipinos. Recognizing the necessity to regulate gambling as means to protect bettors, and the State, as well as to direct the financial benefits to the government, Former President Ramos implemented the state lottery, lotto 6/42 under PCSO. The minimum cost per ticket of the 6/42 is P10.00. Jueteng prevailed despite 6/42 because bettors could place less than P10.00. Further refinements to the efforts towards addressing

the illegal numbers game led to the creation of Small Town Lottery, “STL” in 2006.

Based on how the game is played, the difference between jueteng and STL is that the latter adopts transparency in the winning results. There is no transparency in jueteng. This lack of transparency should discourage jueteng, yet jueteng persists. One reason is, according to the President, in the 10 years of STL operations, STL became a front for jueteng in some areas. Currently, the STL covers only 38 percent of the country. Therefore, the remaining 62 percent remains vulnerable to non-regulated number games that implicate loss in government revenues and the continued proliferation of illegal gambling in these areas.

Aside from STL being a jueteng front, another transparency issue is bet collectors supposedly do not remit their collections and end up pocketing the money. In fact, the country is losing P20 million a day due to PCSO syndicates. Because of these issues, the President considers the abolition of the PCSO, the most corrupt gov-

ernment agency as he said.

Still, he is open to studying it.

But if the agency fails to prove that they can prevent corruption, the President himself will recommend the abolition of the agency.

We cannot deny that the PCSO is a revenue-generating agency. To date, it has funded multiple government projects and has helped numerous underprivileged Filipinos. STL profits alone are a substantial source of income for the government. From February 2006 to August 2010, STL generated P9.5 billion in gross receipts.

In 2011, it generated P4.6 billion for the government. These revenues (30 percent of net sales) from the STL operations are shared among four entities: PCSO (7.5 percent), city or municipality (10 percent), province (five percent), and police (five percent). This source of income of the government should be preserved and protected.

At present, STL employs 180,000 to 200,000 employees nationwide. As most of these employees completed only grade school or high school education, finding a stable job in

a competitive market is impossible. If we expand the coverage of STL, it can become one of the biggest employers in the country. If we are able to give jobs to the least qualified, they will not resort to drug pushing and illegal numbers game. Hence, this is in line with the present administration’s two-fold agenda against illegal drugs and illegal numbers game.

Despite the corruption issues attached to the agency, we should not disregard the proven benefits of PCSO to our country. We have to differentiate a “gaming that is fair” from a “gaming that is fixed.” The 10-year period since the implementation of the STL brought to surface the vulnerabilities both in the STL and the PSCO that lead to abuse and corruption. But for as long as corruption will end, and the agency will continue to benefit the government and the Filipino people, then continued operations by PCSO is justifiable.

I am hopeful that the President will learn the lessons taught by the past 10 years and implement order to achieve gaming that is fair.

Saving our ship: A global response to refugees and migrants

By Ban Ki-moon PERHAPS no issue on the global agenda is more susceptible to manipulation by grandstanding demagogues than refugees and migrants. “Us” versus “them” is a timeless if irresponsible unifier, used throughout history to obscure our common humanity by those with dangerously self-serving interests. The difference now is that more people are on the move than ever before, and in an era when storylines spread with viral speed, we see xenophobia rising and too often erupting into violence.

This week’s United Nations Summit for Refugees and Migrants represents a breakthrough at a breaking point.

With so many shrill voices dominating the debate, governments from around the world are responding in measured tones that can yield real results if promises are kept.

The Summit marks the firstever gathering of top leaders to discuss refugees and migrants.

It will adopt a groundbreaking consensus agreement: the New York Declaration. Fittingly, that document honors a city renowned for its vibrant diversity, symbolized by the Statue

Traffi c...

From A4 the bossman there. He gave me the impression that he is an executive who does not shy away from responsibility. He looked like someone who would relish a challenge. We can commend him—but what a struggle it would be.

It is now over a hundred days of the Duterte administration and we have yet to see a firm plan on how the government will solve the problem. Yes, there have been pronouncements about upcoming projects here and there but none on how to improve travel time throughout the metro area. Improving travel time is after all the only gauge of whether traffic in the NCR is indeed improving.

Why is this so? My best educated guess is that our traffic planners, if there are any, simply do not know where to begin The testimonies of Ablen and Magalong are clearly the most credible presented so far against De Lima. And taken together with the tales told by the convicts, they create a clear narrative of De Lima’s alleged involvement in the illegal activities at the national penitentiary that were allowed by

of Liberty standing tall at the New York Harbor. Most importantly, the Declaration sets a principled and pragmatic approach for addressing the challenges of people on the move while upholding our most cherished values.

The stakes are high. There are 244 million migrants in the world. More than 65 million people are now forcibly displaced. Half of them are children. Refugees running for their lives too often face grave dangers on their journey to safety. When they arrive, many suffer discrimination and even detention. Facing difficulties in a mobile world, they often travel farther in search of safety and stability. But legal pathways are scarce, and unscrupulous smugglers take advantage, charging exorbitant sums for a risky chance to escape.

Wars are lasting longer and refugees are finding it harder to return home—with the length of displacement in some cases stretching across generations. Contrary to prevailing impressions, the vast majority of refugees are not in rich countries; 86 percent are in the developing world. And the poorer countries hosting refugees do not receive nearly

enough help. Last year, United Nations humanitarian appeals received barely more than half the funds that were sought.

Resettlement options are also a fraction of what they should be. Nearly a million people were identified as needing resettlement in 2015, but just over 100,000 received it.

The challenges are enormous —but we should not forget the benefits. With the right approach, refugees and migrants can bring benefits to both their adoptive societies and their home countries. This well-documented upside should not be lost in the debate.

The New York Declaration should be seen in the wider context of new and ambitious international efforts to improve conditions where people live so they are not forced to leave. Central to this is the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, our global plan for peace and prosperity on a healthy planet. We are also pushing to prevent and resolve conflicts—and to sustain peace once the guns fall silent.

The Summit will feature testimony from those directly affected. I am especially looking forward to meeting again with an extraordinary young woman

I first encountered last month at the Olympic Games in Rio. Yusra Mardini is Syrian— but she competed on the new refugee team established for athletes who, like millions of other people around the world, have been forced out of their homelands.

Before she swam in races, Yusra was in a race to save lives.

Last year, she left Syria on an overcrowded boat. When its engine died, she dove into the Aegean Sea and started pushing the vessel, along with a few other swimmers among the group. It took a gruelling three hours to reach the shore. They arrived exhausted—but they had proven the power of human solidarity to ferry us to safety.

Humanity is together in one boat. Stoking fear, blaming the ‘other’ or scapegoating minorities will only increase the dangers for all.

Wise leaders understand that we should instead endeavour to save everyone, optimize the contributions of each, and steer our common ship to our shared destination: a future of opportunity and dignity for all.

or quite simply do not know how. Knowing and understanding what traffic is all about is key to being able to find some solutions to the traffic gridlock. What is traffic? To many of us, it is the gridlock. That is why the term “na traffic ako” is one of the overused phrases in the metro area. Traffic is the consequence of land use and transport. It is the interaction of the two that creates traffic. For example, people take a journey to go to work from their homes to the factories where they work. Others travel for leisure or go to school. The most important travel is the journey to work and this is best illustrated in Edsa. The government seems to believe that if it can decongest Edsa, then the battle is won.

There is more to our traffic woes than Edsa, of course, but Edsa is the main battle ground.

There is an unreliable MRT car-

rying about 600,000 passengers daily—if everything is going well. There are the 4,000 buses that operate like jeepneys, the ubiquitous jeepneys and lest we forget, the tricycles. Edsa is the showcase of the government’s inability to plan effectively. The MRT should have been allowed to go straight to Monumento in Caloocan instead of ending in Trinoma. Instead of lessening the trips going to Edsa, additional trips will have to be made to go the Trinoma station to continue the trip to Taft Avenue and vice versa.

And yet, nobody in the transport industry seems to notice the idiocy of the situation.

If only the government can guarantee the reliability of the MRT, many things can be done to decongest the road. The jeepneys can be taken out for instance together with many of the buses. Still, MMDA can still remove some jeepneys and

buses plying Edsa and reroute them to other areas.

Everyone is looking for the miracle solution even if there is none. Nobody seem to want to go back to basics in order to achieve some traffic relief. We have to permanently clear all streets and sidewalks to maximize our roads. Manila Mayor Estrada has been doing this in Manila but this has to be sustained and made permanent – and not for press releases only.

The promise of three years is much too optimistic given that there is nothing in the horizon that the public can see that will have a dramatic effect.

Campi, the association of CAR manufacturers has already estimated that by 2018, about 500,000 new vehicles will be hitting our roads. Art Tugade is therefore in for the fight of his public life. Still, if anyone can do it, he probably can. I wish him well.

corrupt government officials who received millions in bribe money over several years.

And Congress has its work cut out for it, over and certainly way above linking De Lima to the crime gangs that have made the national penitentiary a walled Las Vegas, as one convict-witness described it. Our lawmakers

need to ensure that the shenanigans inside Bilibid are stamped out and never allowed to happen again, through better-crafted laws that will prevent corrupt enforcers and executives from making a mockery of the jail time served by convicted felons.

Of course, the erring officials of the Aquino administra-

tion who allowed the NBP to become the epicenter of criminal activity that it has become should also be prosecuted and jailed. And if they are reunited in the penitentiary with the convicts that they made money out of, in exchange for looking the other way, then justice will truly be served.

Mr. Ban is the secretarygeneral of the United Nations.

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DSWD seeks P130-b fund T

By Macon Araneta

HE Department of Social Welfare and Development on Wednesday presented to senators a proposed budget of P129.8 billion, 14 percent higher than its current budget.

During a hearing, Senator Loren Legarda, chairperson of of the Senate committee on finance, lamented how the agency failed to spend P4 billion during the administration of former President Benigno Aquino III. Legarda also questioned why some of the agency’s programs needed to go through the local government units as was done during the Aquino administration instead of going straight to 4Ps beneficiaries.

Pledging reforms in her agency’s disbursement processes, Social Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo said the proposed CCT budget includes an allotment of P49.4 billion for cash grant and another P23.4 for the rice allowance program.

She said that out of the current 4.4 million 4Ps beneficiaries, only 3.1 million are entitled to a monthly rice allocation of 20 kilos starting next year.

Taguiwalo said that the 1.3

BUDGET HEARING. Social Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo tries to explain to Senator Loren Legarda why the department failed to spend funds in the previous administration and coursed government aid to politicians as she presented the DSWD’s budget for 2017. Lino Santos million families are not qualified because their monthly income is already P500 to P1,000 above the poverty threshold.

But Taguiwalo later agreed to include excluded families in its rice subsidy program and convert the amount allotted for the government’s rice subsidy program into an outright cash grant, instead of a monthly rice allocation, as ordered

by President Rodrigo Duterte.

“There is an average of P1,500 per month, and on top of that there are 20 kilos of rice per household

that will be given by the government [under its conditional cash transfer program],” Taguiwalo had earlier said.

“This is to ensure that the beneficiaries will be able to send their children to school as long as they are enrolled within the 4Ps program.”

The Duterte administration has already earmarked an additional P23.4 billion for the rice subsidy program for 4Ps beneficiaries next year on top of the P49.4-billion budget for the CCT for 2017.

The funds are lodged un-

der the P130-billion proposed budget requested by the DSWD next year.

Several lawmakers had earlier proposed to remove the rice subsidies promised by Duterte as an addition to the monthly stipend received by the 4Ps beneficiaries, saying the additional grant could be used to send more children to school or for medical checkups.

Taguiwalo said her department was now formulating a mechanism to clean up the list of dole recipients with a nationwide evalua-

tion coming up “to see who should be included and excluded” from the program.

She also allayed the fears of beneficiaries who had been identified to have improved their income that they would continue to receive their regular cash grants but the department will have to validate this figure by meeting with the families.

Further assessment will be undertaken to ensure that appropriate interventions will be developed to sustain their improved status.

Make peace, not war, Ping tells embattled Leila SENATOR Panfilo Lacson advised embattled Senator Leila de Lima to make peace instead of picking fights with senators after she accused him of “doublespeak” after he agreed that there is sufficient evidence to file a case against her based on the statements of witnesses in the House hearing.

“If you are embattled, it would be much better if you do not quarrel with others. Or, at the very least, you should be quiet if you cannot find an ally,” Lacson said when told that De Lima said she was aghast at his supposed propensity for doublespeak.

Lacson had earlier said he was amused by what she was going through because he also experienced severe harassment in 2010 when he was being implicated in the double murder of publicist Salvador “Bubby” Dacer and his driver Emmanuel Corbito in November 2000.

“I only expressed my opinion. And then she says it is doublespeak,” Lacson said.

“Her appreciation was wrong about what I said of the hearing. I was referring to the degree of harassment on me.”

Lacson said he has nothing to do with De Lima’s fight outside the Senate since it is not within the control of senators.

But Lacson stood by his statement, saying there was probable cause to charge her in court, which could also lead to the issuance of a warrant of arrest against her.

“Based on the affidavits that I read and other pieces of evidence once the preliminary investigation against her is concluded at the [Department of Justice], we will see that probable cause exists, hence a warrant for her arrest will [likely] be issued,” Lacson said.

Lacson said it would only be doublespeak if he says he believes the testimonies of witnesses against De Lima are are incredible if he really thinks they are credible.

“She got it all wrong. When I said I was laughing at what she is going through now,

Re p u b l i c o f t h e Ph i l i p p i n e s PROV I N C E O F M A R I N D U Q U E Capitol Boac, Marinduque O FFI C E O F B I D S A N D AWA R D S C O M M I T T E E INVITATION TO BID Supplying various heavy equipment for the Rehabilitation/Repair and Maintenance of Provincial Road, PEO, Boac, Marinduque The Marinduque Provincial Government, through the 20% Development Fund CY 2010,2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 Purchase of Construction Engineering Equipment (Reprogrammed) intends to apply the sum of THIRTEEN MILLION SEVEN HUNDRED THOUSAND PESOS (P13,700,000.00) being the Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) to payments under the contract for Supplying various heavy equipment for the Rehabilitation/Repair and Maintenance of Provincial Road, PEO, Boac, Marinduque. Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected at bid opening.

The Marinduque Provincial Government now invites bids for Supplying various heavy equipment for the Rehabilitation/Repair and Maintenance of Provincial Road, PEO, Boac, Marinduque. Delivery of the Goods is required ten (10) working days upon receipt of contract. Bidders should have completed, within two (2) years from the date of submission and receipt of bids, a contract similar to the Project. The description of an eligible bidder is contained in the Bidding Documents, particularly, in Section II. Instructions to Bidders.

Bidding will be conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using a non-discretionary “pass/fail” criterion as specified in the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act (RA) 9184, otherwise known as the “Government Procurement Reform Act”.

Bidding is restricted to Filipino citizens/sole proprietorships, partnerships, or organizations with at least sixty percent (60%) interest or outstanding capital stock belonging to citizens of the Philippines, and to citizens or organizations of a country the laws or regulations of which grant similar rights or privileges to Filipino citizens, pursuant to RA 5183 and subject to Commonwealth Act 138.

Interested bidders may obtain further information from the Provincial Government of Marinduque and inspect the Bidding Documents at the Office of the Bids & Awards Committee, Capitol Compound, Boac, Marinduque from 8:00am to 5:00pm, Monday to Friday.

A complete set of Bidding Documents may be purchased by interested Bidders upon payment of a nonrefundable fee from the Office of the Bids & Awards Committee, Capitol Compound, Boac, Marinduque from 8:00am to 5:00pm, Monday to Friday for the Bidding Documents in the amount of Php25,000.00.

It may also be downloaded free of charge from the website of the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) and the website of the Procuring Entity, provided that Bidders shall pay the nonrefundable fee for the Bidding Documents not later than the submission of their bids.

The Marinduque Provincial Government will hold a Pre-Bid Conference on September 29, 2016, 10:00 AM at Office of the Bids & Awards Committee, Capitol Compound, Boac, Marinduque, which shall be open to all interested parties.

Bids must be delivered to the address below on or before October 11, 2016, 10:00 AM at Office of the Bids & Awards Committee, Capitol Compound, Boac, Marinduque. All Bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount stated in ITB Clause 18.

Bid opening shall be on October 11, 2016, 10:00 AM at Office of the Bids & Awards Committee, Capitol Compound, Boac, Marinduque. Bids will be opened in the presence of the Bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address below.

Late bids shall not be accepted.

The Marinduque Provincial Government reserves the right to accept or reject any bid, to annul the bidding process, and to reject all bids at any time prior to contract award, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

For further information, please refer to: ALMA C. TIMTIMAN BAC Head Secretariat Office of the Bids and Awards Committee, Capitol Compound, Boac, Marinduque (042)-332-0722 www.marinduque.gov.ph (SGD) BARON JOSE L. LAGRAN BAC Chairman ( M S - S E P T, 2 2 , 2 016)

I wasn’t referring to the credibility of evidence being presented against her now but the degree of harassment that was thrown against me,” Lacson said.

Lacson said he felt all alone at that time and he practically had nobody on his side except his family, but De Lima still has her Liberal Party allies supporting her.

“Her fight is outside [the Senate]. She already has her hands full. Is she opening another front?” Lacson asked reporters. “If that’s the case, then bring it on. I’m not one to back down from her. But I really want to avoid that.

“I hope it will not reach that point because we want to focus on our legislative work. We want to put a closure on the [extrajudicial killings] investigation. Put a closure on the ethics investigation. Then focus on our legislative work,” said Lacson, alluding to the ethics complaints against De Lima.

Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III said a second ethics complaint has been

filed against De Lima Tuesday night.

Sotto, chairman of the Senate committee on ethics and privileges, said he has yet to read the second complaint but he said it came in the form of a letter and hand-delivered to the committee office Tuesday night.

“It’s from a different complainant. I haven’t seen it. The committee just informed me that somebody came over last night with a new complaint,” Sotto told reporters.

He said the committee will discuss the new complaint along with the amended complaint earlier filed by lawyer Abelardo de Jesus, who based his case against De Lima on the President’s revelations. He said they will tackle the two ethics complaints next week.

“That is the reason we are still [discussing] the issue of whether we have jurisdiction or not. Hopefully by next week, I’m sure all the members have already read their copies of the amended complaint,” Sotto said. Macon Ramos-Araneta

BF: Burn ‘colorum’ PUVs

By Joel E. Zurbano FORMER Metro Manila Development Authority chairman and now Marikina City Rep. Bayani Fernando said Wednesday that one of the solutions to Metro Manila’s traffic problem is to burn illegal public utility, locally called colorum, vehicles.

Fernando, vice chairman of the House Committee on Transportation, urged the government to rationalize the issuance of franchise to all public utility vehicles.

“All PUVs must be given franchise... the jeeps, buses and UV Express. The truth is we lack in public utility vehicles, but the problem is dispatching, and that is why we created the organized bus routed dispatching. The secret of all transport companies is the effective dispatching,” said Fernando in a meeting with reporters in Makati City.

Upon issuance of franchise, Fernando said, “You will no longer become colorum. But first strike, your vehicle will be burned and from there, you will get another franchise before you can get a [new] unit.”

He explained that “If you did not burn it, that will return to the street. You have the right to own but you should not use it. As I see it, they will just be recurring problems. It’s exasperating already. Because we are too kind.”

Fernando, who was chairman of the MMDA during the time of then President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, said he is set to formally file a bill on the matter soon.

The MMDA is mandated under Republic Act 7924, the law creating the agency, to go after colorum and out-of-line vehicles.

MMDA officials admitted that colorums, out-of-line Asian Utility Vehicles and undisciplined drivers of public utility vehicles

are among the “culprits” that caused heavy traffic along Epifanio de los Santos Avenue.

They added there are also groups of AUV drivers using handheld radios to inform or communicate their members to avoid apprehension.

In recent operations in Quezon City, Caloocan City and Pasay City, a composite team from different government agencies apprehended more than 50 vehicles and among the drivers that were caught are active members of the police force and a traffic enforcer of the MMDA. Under the Joint Administrative Order issued by the Land Transportation Office and Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board: Operators of colorum buses will be fined P1 million for the first offense, P200,000 for trucks and vans, P120,000 for sedans, P50,000 for jeepneys, and P60,000 for motorcycles.

Regional ‘Bilibid’ urged

By Maricel V. Cruz A PARTY-LIST lawmaker on Wednesday asked a panel in the House of Representatives to consider the proposal to regionalize the national penitentiary, similar to the jail being planned in Nueva Ecija.

At the congressional hearing conducted by the House committee on justice on the illegal drug trade in the New Bilibid Prison Wednesday, Ako Bicol party-list Rep. Alfredo Garbin urged the Department of Justice to develop comprehensive strategies on jail management.

“I will strongly recommend to the committee on justice that part of the committee recommendation after we finish this investigation for the govt to start strategize decongestion of the national penitentiary,” Garbin said.

He also proposed to “regionalize and decentralize

national penitentiary [intended to] dissolve organized gang and drug/criminal syndicates.”

Garbin also urged Congress “to pass a law exempting prison guards from career services and make them confidential employees so that DoJ can remove them anytime they commit dereliction of duties or violations of law.”

This develop as House Minority Leader and Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez expressed that Congress will be able to plug the loopholes in the existing laws to address the proliferation of drug syndicates at the NBP. Suarez said that the testimonies of NBP inmates before the House committee on justice opened Pandora’s Box. “We look forward to the outcome of House Resolution 105 calling an investigation in aid of legislation on the proliferation of drug syndicates at the National Bilibid Prison.

IN BRIEF BI arrests KR fugitive A KOREAN fugitive who hid in the country for more than 14 years to evade prosecution for swindling a compatriot of more than P65 million was finally caught in Taguig City, the Bureau of Immigration said.

Li Tae Young was arrested by operatives from the BI fugitive search unit at his house at the AFPOVAI Subd., Western Bicutan, Taguig City, according to officer-in-charge commissioner Al Argosino.

A report from the South Korean embassy said Young was employed as financial team leader of the Hana Bank between February 2000 and May 2001 when he embezzled funds totaling US$1.457 million belonging to a client.

The Korean is also an overstaying and undocumented alien as his passport already expired 11 years ago and was not renewed. Young is the subject of an outstanding arrest warrant issued by a district court in Seoul in 2002, he said.

The Korean fugitive hid in the Philippines since March 28, 2002 when he last arrived here as a tourist.

Contraband auction set THE Bureau of Customs is expected to earn more than P17 million in revenue from the auction of seized illegally imported goods in Manila and Cagayan de Oro. Up for bidding are 52 containers of seized illegally imported motorcycles, used bicycles, truck and car spare parts on September 30, according to the BoC statement.

Several vehicles are also up for auction including one used Hummer; Chrysler; used Apprilla Motorcycle and used assorted trucks and bicycles.

Other goods include truck head and parts; two container vans of Glyphosate and a shipment of personal effects, polyester shaggy rugs, and Alusign-brand aluminum composite panel.

More farm loans pushed PARTY-LIST Reps. Michael Romero and Enrico Pineda have filed a bill that will increase penalties for banks that do not comply with loanable allocations under Republic Act 10000 or the Agri-Agra Reform Credit Act of 2009.

Romero, of the 1Pacman partylist, said Section 6 of RA 10000 mandates all banking institutions, government and private, to allocate at least 25 percent of their total loanable funds for agriculture and fisheries credit of which at least 10 percent should be made available for agrarian reform beneficiaries.

“But records from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas showed that the total combined loanable allocations of banks for agriculture and agrarian reform beneficiaries are way below what is required under the law,” he said.

He noted that most banks do not allocate the loanable funds for agriculture and agrarian reform beneficiaries because of perceived risk to qualified borrowers and instead pay the penalties under the said law.

Under the bill, the BSP will impose administrative sanctions and other penalties for non-compliance from 0.5 percent under the existing law to 2.5 percent of non-compliance and under compliance.

Of the penalties that will be collected, 90 percent will be allocated between the Agricultural Guarantee Fund Pool and the Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. according to the needs of the agri-agra sector while the remaining 10 percent will be used to cover administrative expenses of the BSP.

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

Sports

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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016 sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

Fielding to play key role in PAL golf meet

INTERNATIONAL REGATTA CHAMP. The Standard Insurance Centennial Sailing Team, representing the Philippines, defended its cham-

pionship during the recent DBS Marina Match Racing International Regatta, handily beating 11 other international teams in Singapore. Similar SB 40 yachts were sailed at Marina Bay, Singapore. The SEA Games gold medalist team is now preparing for the coming China Coast Regatta in Hong Kong, China Cup in Shenzhen, China and the Volvo Hong Kong to Hainan Regatta aboard the highly competitive Standard Insurance Centennial TP52 Class racing yacht. Shown in the photo is team captain Ridgely Balladares (right), with Andrew Tam, Singapore Sailing CEO. From left are team members Teodorico Asejo, Rommel Chavez, Richly Magsanay, Joel Majarito and Harry Kim Lumapas.

Del Potro vows to be fit for Davis net finale BUENOS AIRES—Injuryplagued Juan Martin del Potro said on Tuesday that he expects to be fit for Argentina’s “dream” Davis Cup final in November after the thrilling victory over holders Great Britain.

Argentina have been finalists four times in the past 10 years and will attempt to win their first Davis Cup when they travel to Croatia from November 25 to 27.

“We managed to fulfil our dream to qualify for the final,” said the world-ranked 64 del Potro, who is still feeling his way back after a series of wrist injuries pushed him to the brink of retirement.

“We have a united group, we talk a lot. It went perfectly for us,” added the 27 year old on his arrival back in Buenos Aires, saying that “I have enough time to prepare (for the final).

“Now it’s time to rest and to have a general medical examination. I am still not at my best level, even if the last few months were some of the best moments in my career.”

Argentina—whose Davis Cup charge is spearheaded by del Potro— defeated Great Britain 3-2 in Glasgow at the weekend, while the Croats booked their berth in the final with a 3-2 win over France.

Victory for the Argentines would cap a return to form for del Potro, who took silver at the Rio Olympics after losing to Andy Murray in the final—but got his revenge on Friday when he beat the Scot in a rubber lasting over five hours. AFP

FIELDING will play a major role this year as the Philippine Airlines Ladies Interclub, which tees off on Oct. 4 at chilly Camp John Hay in Baguio, is now set over four days with each player to play just two rounds.

Patterning the tournament to the Seniors division, PAL made a change in the format, making team skippers think more about fielding unlike in the past when one team can go full steam ahead each day.

Eight players make up a team and four will play in a day with only the top three scores counting as Manila Southwoods-Masters shoots to extend its unprecedented reign in the centerpiece Championship Division to six.

Pauline del Rosario, a talent many see as ripe for the pros, will be spearheading SW-Masters, which will miss the services of Abegail Arevalo, last year’s individual champion in Bacolod, next month because of studies in the United States at San Jose State.

Mikhaela Fortuna and Sofia Chabon, a pair of talented teen-

Tiger is greatest of all time, says PGA Tour chief Finchem M IAMI—PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem believes Tiger Woods is the greatest golfer ever to play the sport, ranking his achievements ahead of Jack Nicklaus despite winning fewer majors than “The Golden Bear.”

Finchem, who is preparing to head into retirement, said former world number one Woods had played a transformative role in the history of the sport similar to the effect Michael Jordan had in the NBA. “He’s the only living player to win 79 times, and only one player has ever won more,” Finchem

said of Woods.

“He’s the only active player to have won 14 majors, and only one player has won more,” he added.

“I love Jack Nicklaus beyond belief, but I have to put Tiger down as probably the greatest player to ever play, and the way he did it and his domination at a time when you’re

bringing more and more good players along, is incredible.

“It lifted all boats. I always refer to it as kind of like Michael Jordan in the NBA. He just lifted boats and brought in so many new fans to the game and changed it.”

Woods is preparing to make his comeback in California next month after missing the past year with a niggling back injury.

The 40-year-old trails Nicklaus’s haul of 18 majors by four and is widely seen as a longshot to surpass the 76-year-old’s tally.

Bright future Meanwhile, Finchem, who is stepping down at the end of the

year after 22 years as PGA Tour Commissioner, said he is optimistic about the global health of his sport.

“It’s a really, really exciting time for the sport. There’s so much potential out there, more than ever. The global nature of the sport that we just saw manifested in the Olympics is out there in front of us to take advantage of,” said Finchem, speaking ahead of this week’s Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club, Atlanta.

“The quality of the young players coming up today is so much different than 20 years ago in terms of, not just their capability of playing, but their unbelievable focus on reaching fans, communi-

Akari lights up Adamson’s campaign AKARI, the country’s top lighting and technology brand, will renew its support to the Adamson University men’s basketbell team as they aim to soar higher in the UAAP Season 79.

With the guidance of new head coach Franz Pumaren, the AdU basketball team is predicted to be the dark horse among the competitive participating universities of the UAAP. “We remain steadfast in backing up the AdU basketball team in their quest for a UAAP championship,” said Russell Balbacal, Akari Lighting and Technology sports director. “Coach Franz

Pumaren is a multi-titled coach and seasoned basketball player.

We trust that he has prepared the AdU basketball team both physically and mentally.” Akari and AdU’s confidence in Franz Pumaren can be owed to his stellar credentials both in the collegiate and pro ranks.

This is the third year that Akari is supporting Adamson’s basketball and volleyball teams as part of the brand’s youth development and sports program. Other than the UAAP, Akari also supports the university’s scholarship projects to reinforce the company’s The AdU basketball team is predicted to be the dark horse among the competitive participating universities of the UAAP. commitment to education.

48 players brace for Shell chess grand finals FORTY-EIGHT players, including the leading junior players and a slew of rising stars, gear up for a fierce showdown in three divisions in the Shell National Youth Active Chess Championships grand finals slated Oct. 1 to 2 at SM Megamall in Mandaluyong.

The elite field, which sur-

vived the gruelling five-stage regional elims, makes its final build up for the big event, a nine-round Swiss system tournament sponsored by Pilipinas Shell with time control of 20 minutes with five time-delayed mode (Bronstein system).

While the Big City bets remain the early favorites, those

from the provinces are raring to prove their worth as they gun not only for cash prizes and trophies but also bragging rights as champions of the country’s longest talent search that has produced some of the country’s top grandmasters, including GMs Wesley So, Mark Paragua and Nelson Mariano II, among others.

Keen competition is seen not only in the kiddies, juniors and seniors divisions but also in the female category, which features 15 finalists who slugged it out with their male counterparts in their respective regional elims of the circuit sanctioned by the National Chess Federation of the Philippines.

Wroclaw World Bridge Games France China

The winners: Open Teams Netherlands (Sjoert Brink, Simon de Wijs, Bas Drijver, Bob Drijver, Bauker Muller, Bart Nab) Monaco Poland Women’s Teams USA (Lynn Deas, Beth Palmer, Kerri Sanborn, Janice Seamon-Molson, Sylvia Shi, Tobi Sokolow)

agers who have had a lot of international success, are the other big guns playing for SW-Masters.

The others in the roster are Annika Guangko, Claire Ong, Andrea Pineda, Serafina Kim and the veteran Lora Roberto.

Cebu Country Club and Del Monte will again try to unseat the Carmona-based lasses, with Cebu CC also to miss the services of its top performer last year, Lois Kaye Go, who is also in the US on a golf scholarship.

But that doesn’t mean that Cebu CC doesn’t pack a punch as sisters Irina and Junia Gabasa and Japanese nationals Riko and Ryoko Nagai take the cudgels for CCC. Mark Kim Hong, Catrina Martinez, Jyra Mae Wong and Crystal Faith Superal-Neri are the others completing the Cebu CC roster.

Del Monte, however, will be parading a relatively unknown team that is being groomed for future success even as a total of 32 teams will be seeing action in four total divisions counting the Founders, Sportswriters and Friendship brackets.

Cornell (New Zealand) Anna Kowalska-Marek Keyzad Anklesaria- Tyran (Poland) Sunit Chokshi (India) Fantoni-Nunes: New Seniors Teams Hearing before CONI USA Women’s Pairs (Bob Hamman, Hemant Hila Levi-Adi Asulin I have steadfastly followed Lall, Zia Mahmood, Chip (Israel) up the progress and the deMartel, Jeff Meckstroth, Marina Polipovic-Ni- velopment on the complaint Reese Milner) kica Sver (Croatia) versus my favorite players France Ling Gu-Tao Zhou (China) whom I admired.

Denmark Seniors Pairs On July 19, 2016, FulMixed Teams Goran Sellden-Bjorn vio Fantoni and Claudio Netherlands Wenneberg (Sweden) Nunes have appealed to (Aida, Jansma, Jan, John Caruthers-Joseph CONI (Italian Olympic Jaansma, Richard Ritmei- Silver (Canada) Committee) against the jer, Magdalena Ticha) Badal Chandra Das- sentence of the FIGB Russia Aloke Sadhu (India) (Italian Bridge FederaBulgaria tion) Tribunal, issued on Mixed Pairs March 19, 2016 and pubOpen Pairs Igor Khazaranov-Maria lished on April 11, 2016 Sabine Auken-Roy Lebedeva (Russia) Welland (Germany) Marta Sikora-Adam The hearing before Ashley Bach-Michael Walczynski (Poland) Coni (Italian Olympic

Committee) will be held (3rd stage). on October 4th, 2016 On October 4, 2016 In Italy, the sports trials the hearing before CONI have three stages of pro- (Italian Olympic Comceedings: 1st -Federal Tri- mittee) will be held. bunal; 2nd-Federal Court of Appeals; 3rd-CONI. In particular, FantoniNunes’ appeal to CONI asks; On March 19, 2106, the Italian Federal Tribunal -primarily that the decidecided a 3 years ban for sion of the appeal court on each player. 1st stage) 10th of June, confirming the sanction described on On April 29, 2016, Fan- 19th of March, is annulled. toni and Nunes submitted a previous appeal but, on -secondly, to reject all June 18, the Federal Court previous decisions made of Appeals rejected their and to restart the examinarequests. (2nd stage). tion of the case, following the right law principles.

On July 19, 2016, Fantoni and Nunes submitComments to: sylvia. ted an appeal to CONI. alejandro@yahoo

cating. They handle themselves so well. The next 25 years are going to be awesome.”

Finchem said he believed golf’s return to the Olympics—which was marred by withdrawals of several top male players—could also help grow the game.

“You have about 85 countries where the governments invest money in sports but only in sports that are on the Olympic program,” Finchem said.

“Those are 85 countries that haven’t had government funding before, and now they’re getting it.

How are we leveraging that to help grow the game globally?” AFP

Abad, Madis eye age-group tennis repeat DANNA Abad and Tenielle Madis set out for another twinkill in the Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala regional age group tennis tournament as they banner the field in the Pikit leg at the Pikit Tennis Club in North Cotabato starting Thursday.

Abad swept the girls’ 16- and 18-andunder titles in last week’s stop at Mlang with the top Davaoena netter upbeat of her chances for a repeat in the Group 4 tournament sanctioned by the Philippine Tennis Association and hosted by the local government unit of Pikit in line with its 67th founding anniversary.

“We thank PPS-PEPP and Philta for recognizing Pikit’s juniors and grassroots tennis program and this event will further boost the development of the sport here, particularly for our youth from as young as six to 16 years old,” said Vice Mayor Muhyryn Sultan-Casi, whose office oversees the province’s junior tennis program.

Madis, on the other hand, hopes to flash the form she dished out in dominating the Gen. Santos City and Mlang legs with the 10-year-old rising star from Mlang installed as the player to beat in the 10-unisex and 12-U categories of the tournament sponsored by the country’s leading pawnshop, remittance and claim center Palawan Pawnshop and presented

by Slazenger.

Jilian Manangking, Jonn Nadela, Thea Tobias and Joanne Gornes are expected to dispute the girls’ 14-U crown while Jefferson Alqueza, Lordrens Pacheco, Ronnel Aboy and Arnel Retonio head the boys’ 18-U cast in the four-day event backed by Asiatraders Corp., exclusively distributor of Slazenger, the official ball.

LOTTO RESULTS

6/55 00-00-00-00-00-00 P0 M+ 6/45 00-00-00-00-00-00 P0 M 4 DIGITS 0-0-0-0 3 DIGITS 0-0-0 2 EZ2 0-0

Sports

Riera U. Mallari, Editor Reuel Vidal, Assistant Editor sports@thestandard.com.ph sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

A8

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016

Eagle lifts Aussie rookie past local aces AUSSIE Fredrick Park bucked the rainsoftened fairways and greens—and a long delay—with an eagle-2 on No. 12 as he fired a three-under 69 to sneak past local aces Elmer Salvador and Frankie Miñoza at the start of the ICTSI Tournament Players Championship at Wack Wack East yesterday.

A rookie pro who has had a string of mediocre finishes in eight legs on the Asian Development Tour, including a missed cut stint at ADT Aboitiz Invitational here last month, found himself on top of the elite field after that solid shot from 185 yards on the par-4 12th and a birdie on No. 15, finishing the tough backside in three-under.

He actually blew a two-under card after seven holes with back-to-back bogeys from No. 8 coming out of an hour-long rain stoppage but the southpaw fought back with gutsy pars and then came through with that eagle before gunning down two birdies against a bogey in the last three holes.

For a while, early starters Salvador and Miñoza stood atop the leaderboard with a pair of 70s but settled for joint second at the end of the long day in the opener of the P3.5 million championship serving as the closing leg of this year’s 16-stage circuit sponsored by ICTSI. Salvador, gunning for a second victory in the last three legs of this year’s circuit organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc., stumbled with a closing bogey before the downpour while Miñoza flashed vintage form to put himself in early contention on a course where he nailed his second Philippine Open crown in 2007.

“I had a good start but struggled from Nos. 8 and 10. When I finally regained my rhythm and bearing, I came up short on No. 18 and made a bogey. Sayang. I could’ve gained a share of the lead,” rued Salvador, who hit three birdies against a bogey in the first four holes, rammed in another birdie on No. 7 to go three-under but bogeyed the next three holes.

Still, the 70 put Salvador on track for another shot at the crown after snapping a year-long title spell with a one-shot win over Jay Bayron at Splendido three weeks ago and posting a joint third place finish at Central Azucarera de Tarlac Open at Luisita last weekend.

Miñoza upstaged fancied Tony Lascuña, who turned in a 71, in the featured flight that included Jay Bayron, the two leg winner who shot himself in the foot with a bogey-riddled 78, leaning on backto-back birdies from No. 2 to match Salvador’s 35-35 card.

Local aces Elmer Salvador (right) and Frankie Miñoza (left) trail Australian Fredrick Park at the start of the ICTSI Tournament Players Championship at Wack Wack East Wednesday.

Bolts defeat Enforcer th again, claim 4 seed

By Jeric Lopez

A

FTER bucking a sketchy first half, Meralco stepped it up when it mattered most in the waning minutes as it tripped Mahindra again, 104-99, this time in a playoff to lock the No. 4 seed and claim the last twiceto-beat incentive in the coming quarterfinals of the 2016 Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup Wednesday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Allen Durham poured in a game-high 34 points on top of seven rebounds to lead the way for the Bolts.

With the game hanging in the balance, the

Bolts suddenly turned the tide in their favor, erecting a key 18-5 surge in the middle of the payoff period to turn a 78-84 deficit into a 96-89 lead, with 2:19 remaining after a triple from Jared Dillinger.

They never looked back even as the Enforcer threatened towards the end, inching to within just two, 101-99, with 17.3 ticks left after three freebies from Nino Canaleta.

But that was Mahindra’s last hurrah as Meralco closed it out in the final seconds.

“We came out with more energy in the second half. It was a tough game and we were able to grind it,” said Meralco coach Norman Black.”

Since these two teams will also be paired against each other in the quarterfinals, it is like a virtual best-of-three series with Meralco now gaining the upperhand as it is a win away from the semifinals.

It just needs to repeat against the Enforcer in the

ones, who finished burly down the stretch to take the crucial triumph.

James White led Mahindra with a team-high 22 points, but only managed nine in the second half as he faded in the clutch.

The scores: MERALCO 104—Durham 34, Dillinger 22, Amer 16, Newsome 12, Faundo 7, Hodge 4, Hugnatan 4, Al-Hussaini 2, Nabong 2, Alapag 1, Uyloan 0, Caram 0.

MAHINDRA 99—White 22, Ramos 20, Taha 16, Canaleta 10, Revilla 10, Yee 10, Ballesteros 6, Digregorio 5, Jaime 0, Agovida 0, Bagatsing 0, Guinto 0, Paniamogan 0.

Quarterscores: 26-29, 4153, 69-71, 104-99

Maroons halt losing streak

Mighty Sports boasts of ‘homecourt advantage’ SINGAPORE—Mighty Sports Apparel Philippines will be playing with a “homecourt advantage” at the 2016 Merlion Cup basketball tournament, which reeled off yesterday at the OCBC Arena.

Filipino expatriates, volunteers in the Basketball Association of Singapore which organized the tournament, said news of the participation of the Mighty Sports Apparel team from Manila has spread like wildfire among Filipinos in this city state.

Mighty Sports was scheduled to play the Seoul Samsung Thunder in the second of two games scheduled last night.

The Merlion Cup is making a comeback after a 20-year hiatus under the aegis of the BAS. Mighty Sports, which is supported

by HC Technology Pte. Ltd., Huishi International Group Co. Ltd., Cebuana Lhuillier and Scratch It, hopes to make it two in a row after winning the 2016 William Jones Cup tournament in Taiwan last July.

Other teams playing in the Merlion Cup are the Kinmen Kaoliang Liquor, Singapore Slingers, Westports Malaysia Dragons, and Shanghai Sharks, which is owned by former NBA superstar Yao Ming.

The team will face the Malaysia Dragons on Friday.

Mighty Sports is bannered by naturalized Filipino former Gilas center Marcus Douthit and PBA veteran Joseph Yeo, and imports Antwain Spencer, Alford Thornton and big man Hamady N’Dyiaye.

quarterfinals to advance.

“Mahindra’s playing well this conference and we expect another tough game in the next one. We’re not expecting any less,” added Black.

Dillinger came off the bench to have a strong showing, scoring 22 points, including four triples on 50 percent shooting, for the Bolts.

It was a game of spurts as both teams tasted significant leads through out. Mahindra led in the first half and early parts of the third and fourth periods and Meralco was ahead in the latter part of the third frame. It came down to the final 12 minutes wherein the Enforcer carried a 73-69 edge.

However, the Bolts were the

By Peter Atencio

Mahindra’s Paolo Taha loses the ball to Meralco’s Jonathan Uyloan in a PBA playoff game won by the Bolts, 104-99.

JET Manuel and Dave Moralde sank their charities in the endgame, sending the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons to an emotional 75-71 victory over the University of the East Red Warriors on Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

Fans from the gallery wept and whooped it up with members of the team as the Fighting Maroons finally won again after six straight setbacks last season and three more losses this year in the 79th University Athletic Association of the Philippines men’s basketball tournament.

The 6-foot Manuel, who top-scored for 17 points with Paul Desiderio, broke a 71-

Perlas routs Laos by 147 points MALACCA—A merciless Perlas Pilipinas showed up in the second day of the SEABA Women’s Championship.

The Filipinas toyed with a listless Laos squad, which they beat black and blue, 179-32, at the Bukit Serendit Indoor Stadium Wednesday here.

It was a fitting followup win by the Filipinas after their 6943 demolition of Singapore on Tuesday.

So unforgiving were the Filipinas, that they pressured their rivals from start to finish, forcing Laos to a huge 51 turnovers.

This led to 82 points for the Blackwater Women-backed Per-

las Pilipinas, whose defense also held Laos without a field goal in an eight-minute stretch of the second period.

Head coach Patrick Aquino explained the rationale of the team’s no-letup performance despite the huge skills’ advantage they had over their rivals.

“It’s a preparation for the next few games. It’s more of bringing the confidence level of the girls. It’s also a good time to rest the starting unit for the big games ahead, while on the other hand, taking a conscious effort at looking at the quotient system, dahil baka magkaroon ng triple-tie, we’ll never know,”

said Aquino.

Eight Perlas Pilipinas players finished in double figures with Jack Animam scoring a careerhigh 28 points and pulling down a personal best 17 rebounds as she was able to use her size advantage to the hilt against Laos.

Animam hit 14-of-17 from the field.

Camille Sambile contributed 26 markers followed by Janine Pontejos, who chipped in 19.

Mainstays Allana Lim, Cindy Resultay and Amby Almazan each tallied 18 points, while Afril Bernardino added 16. Team captain Raiza Dy had 12 points in 11 minutes of action.

all tie with his two charities off Paul Varilla’s foul.

Their first win, which halted a nine-game losing streak dating back to last season, meant a lot to the Fighting Maroons, who went into a frenzied celebration after Moralde converted his two freebies in the last 17.3 seconds off Edison Batiller’s foul for the final tally.

Coach Bo Perasol, who got a big hug from an ecstatic Desiderio after Moralde’s last charity conversion, reflected on the memories of the bonfire that took place at the UP Sunken Garden two years ago. The impromptu festivities came after they beat the Adamson Falcons at the end of the first round that season, celebrating the end of the Maroons’ 27-game losing

skid in 2014.

“I do understand the first time UP won two years ago.

They celebrated with a bonfire.

We do understand that we’re struggling. Now, I have guys here who have been consistent despite the fact that we lost three games,” said Perasol.

The Warriors, who are winless after four games, missed an opportunity to pull even again Manuel’s charities went in.

They turned the ball over after Mark Olayon bungled a perimeter shot from the right side.

“We believe that the we can make it. It was big hump that we needed to get over.

So we’re going to enjoy this win,” said Manuel.

Olayon showed the way for UE with 15 points, while Batiller had 14.

Bombers fight Stags; Knights face Generals a 9-8 (win-loss) slate, JOSE Rizal UniverGames today Letran, last year’s titlesity faces off with (The Arena, San Juan) San Sebastian, while 10 a.m.- EAC vs Mapua (jrs) holder, is at No. 6 with Letran tackles Emilio 11:45 a.m.- Jose Rizal vs San an 8-9 record, while San Sebastian (jrs) Sebastian and EAC are Aguinaldo College 2 p.m.- Jose Rizal vs San Sebastian (srs) breathing down their with hopes to end their lost campaign on a 4 p.m.- Letran vs EAC (srs) necks with 7-10 and 6-11 marks, respectively. bright note in the 92nd All four are looking to just gain NCAA basketball tournament at experience as they regroup and start The Arena in San Juan City.

Already out of it all, the Bombers their preparations for next season.

“This is still a young team and and the Stags battle each other at 2 p.m., while the Knights and the Gen- we are looking forward to adderals meet at 4 p.m. with an eye of ing a few more players to fill in for things that we’re missing this salvaging some measure of pride.

Jose Rizal is currently at fifth with year,” said Letran coach Jeff Napa.

Market rises; Megawide up B2

Business

Ray S. Eñano, Editor Roderick T. dela Cruz, Assistant Editor business@manilastandardtoday.com extrastory2000@gmail.com THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016

B1

S&P keeps investment rating

By Julito G. Rada

G

LOBAL debt watcher Standard & Poor’s on Wednesday affirmed the “BBB” investment-grade credit rating it gave to the Philippines on May 8, 2014 with a stable outlook.

“In addition, we affirmed our ‘axA/axA-2’ Asean regional scale ratings on the Philippines,” S&P Global Ratings said in a statement.

“The ratings on the Philippines reflect our assessment of its lower middle-income economy and rising uncertainties surrounding the stability, predictability and accountability of its

new government,” S&P said.

“Offsetting these weaknesses is the Philippines’ strong external position, which features rising foreign exchange reserves and low and declining external debt,” it said.

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said the Philippines’ ability to keep its credit rating well with-

in the investment grade scale, which transcended change in political leadership, was a testament that the country’s economic gains have been built from deeply rooted structural and sound policy reforms over the years.

“Through continued conduct of sound monetary policy and prudent bank supervision, as well as efficient management of the country’s external accounts, the BSP will help make sure these economic gains are further enhanced moving forward,” Tetangco said.

Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said the continued investment-grade rating gave the new government greater resolve to “transform the economy into a

truly inclusive one by pursuing, among others, a tax reform plan that seeks to generate enough revenues to grow the middle class, energize the corporate sector and raise investments in human capital and social protection to drastically reduce poverty incidence.”

S&P cited the Duterte administration’s 10-point plan to reduce poverty, promote a “law abiding society” and achieve peace settlements with separatists in Mindanao.

The administration also seeks macroeconomic stability guided by orthodox fiscal, economic and development policies.

S&P said President Rodrigo Duterte’s strong focus on

improving “law and order,” which allegedly resulted in numerous instances of extrajudicial killings since he came to power, could undermine respect for the rule of law and human rights.

“When combined with the president’s policy pronouncements elsewhere on foreign policy and national security, we believe that the stability and predictability of policymaking has diminished somewhat,” S&P said.

It said uncertain conditions in export markets and inadequate infrastructure mainly in transportation and energy were the main downside risks to growth outlook for the Philippines.

IN BRIEF Ayala sells BanKo stake

BANK of the Philippine Islands, the fourth-largest bank in terms of assets, said it completed the acquisition of BPI Globe BanKO Inc., the first mobile phone-based savings bank in the country, from Ayala Corp. and Globe Telecom Inc. BPI said in a disclosure to the stock exchange the transaction was completed Wednesday, or more than a year after the plan was announced on Aug. 27, 2015.

“All the conditions involving the said transaction have been completed and/or provided for by the parties,” BPI said.

BPI Globe BanKO was a joint venture between Ayala Corp., Globe Telecom Inc. and BPI. The three companies an agreement last year to turn over full ownership of BPI Globe BanKO to BPI. BPI said the agreement would result in BPI Globe BanKO becoming a wholly-owned unit.

BPI said it would increase its stake in Globe BanKO by buying the shares of Globe and Ayala Corp. representing 40 percent and 20 percent.

BPI previously owned 40 percent.

Julito G. Rada

Energy reviews FiT

THE Energy Department plans to tap funding from foreign donors or agencies to pay for the feed-in tariff of renewable energy developers, instead of passing it on to consumers.

“There is no FIT until we have found another source of funding. It should not be passed on to consumers, that’s what the Secretary [Alfonso Cusi] means,” Energy spokesman Felix William Fuentebella told reporters at the sidelines of the Senate energy committee hearing on renewable energy.

The National Transmission Corp. is presently collecting P0.124 per kilowatt-hour from all power consumers under the FIT-Allowance Fund, a line item in the power bill.

Fuentebella said the department had yet to identify the fund sources, but the facility might work similar to the previous Oil Price Stabilization Fund.

OPSF was implemented during the 1970s and 1980s to absorb the oil price differences in the market and mitigate the impact on consumers.

Fuentebella said the agency was looking at international institutions for the funding which could be in the form assistance or grants.

Alena Mae S. Flores

PH-FINLAND TRADE. The Board of Investments and Finnish Business Partnership Program of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland organize a seminar called ‘Bridging Business Between Philippines and Finland’ at the BOI Penthouse in Makati City. The seminar cum business matching activity aims to connect as many local companies to do business with Finnish companies through trade, joint venture partnerships, investments, sub-contracting and/or outsourcing. Shown is Trade undersecretary for industry promotions Nora Terrado (left) while in a discussion with Hannu Virtanen (right) of Arctic Forests Products Inc., honorary consul general Ramon Ilusorio (second from left) and Lanie Dormiendo of BOI.

BSP considering Japan’s policy stimulus BANGKO Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. said Wednesday the latest move

by Bank of Japan to launch a 10year interest rate target to fight deflation will be one of the major factors the Monetary Board will consider in its policy meeting today.

“The Bank of Japan review of its policy framework and the subsequent ‘yield curve targeting’ wherein BoJ said they would anchor the 10-year yield to zero and the inflation rate target overshooting are seen as signals that further negative rates are to come in the future,” Tetangco said in a text message.

Japan’s central bank took an unexpected step, launching a 10-year interest rate target to step up its fight against deflation, following an internal review of existing measures that failed to achieve 2-percent inflation in a promised two-year time frame.

BoJ also said it would start targeting 10-year interest rates and committed to keep them around zero as part of a new policy framework aimed at stoking inflation.

“After BOJ, market is now looking to see what Fed will announce later tonight. We will include these in our policy rate discussion this week,” Tetangco

said. The Federal Open Market Committee is set to meet Sept.

21 to 22.

British bank Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corp. said it was expecting Bangko Sentral to maintain the current policy settings Thursday on strong economic growth and low inflation environment.

The Philippine economy grew 6.9 percent year-on-year in the first half, near the upper bound of the Duterte administration’s target range of 6 percent to 7 percent this year.

The growth was driven by election-related spending, strong domestic demand and investments. Experts, however, said

the tapering effects of electionrelated expenditures would impact growth in the second half.

Inflation rate averaged 1.5 percent in the first eight months, below the government’s official target range of 2 percent to 4 percent for 2016.

HSBC said that despite significant outflows from the equity market over the past month to the tune of $310 million that weakened the peso, most excess liquidity in the financial market came from the domestic banking sector.

“As such, there is no need for a response from monetary policy,” HSBC said.

Julito G. Rada

Infra spending posted sluggish growth in July

By Gabrielle H. Binaday

TOP TAX PAYER. The city government of Santa Rosa, Laguna recognizes Toyota Motor Philippines Corp.

as the top tax-paying manufacturer during the 12th Lion Awards for Business. The prestigious award is given to top taxpayers among businesses entities that contribute to Santa Rosa’s robust fiscal performance. Shown receiving the trophy is TMP first vice president Rommel Gutierrez (second from left) from Laguna First District Rep. Arlene Arcillas, Santa Rosa City mayor Danilo Fernandez and Santa Rosa City vice mayor Arnold Arcillas.

INFRASTRUCTURE spending posted a sluggish growth in July, the first month in office of the Duterte administration, data from the Budget Department show.

The Budget Department said in a disbursements report that infrastructure and capital spending grew 1 percent or P400 million in July to P38.7 billion from P38.3 billion recorded in the same month in 2015.

Disbursements by the Public Works Department increased P5.9 billion from completed road infrastructure activities and convergence programs.

This was offset by lower disbursements by the Defense Department and the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao.

Capital expenditures of the Defense Department dropped in July because of the one-off payment

under the Armed Forces of the Philippines modernization program for the FA-50 aircraft acquisition project in July 2015.

“For the second semester this year, the projects under the AFP modernization program are still in various stages of procurement, while some are still for evaluation relative to the priorities of the new administration,” the Budget Department said.

The implementation of a number of local infrastructure projects in ARMM are still ongoing after experiencing delays in procurement due to the election ban, the Budget Department said.

“The impact of this, however, was tempered by the increase in other capital expenditures of agencies which include the repair and rehabilitation of school facilities by the DepEd and some capital outlays of the SUCs [state universities and colleges],” the agency said.

DENR to close 12 more mines

By Anna Leah E. Gonzales THE government is set to shut down 12 more mines, after an audit allegedly discovered inadequate mining practices in these sites, an Environment official said Wednesday.

Environment Undersecretary and head of mining audit team Leo Jasareno said twelve mining companies were recommended for suspension after the audit. He said Environment Secretary Regina Lopez would identify the companies Monday.

“Based on the initial review, 12 are recommended for suspension but we are still reviewing that. Remember that the process is [that] the audit team will report and then we will review,” he said.

“These companies have inadequate social development efforts, inadequate mining practices and some have environmental violations. Majority of these companies are nickelproducing,” Jasareno said.

He said the agency was also finalizing the results of the audit of the remaining 18 mining companies.

“The final report will be announced by the secretary on Monday,” Jasareno said.

Environment Secretary Regina Lopez also said more than 10 mining companies would be suspended due to several violations.

“More than 10 mines will be suspended. We’re gonna discuss it with our scientists,” Lopez said.

“There are a lot of violations.

We want to be strict on the violations because in Canada, one violation and you’re finished.

Here in our country, it’s okay,” she said.

PSe comPoSite index

Closing September 21, 2016

8300 7840 7380 6920 6460 6000

7,675.42 3.70

PeSo-dollar rate

Closing SEPTEMBER 21, 2016 48.00 46.00 45.00

P47.890

44.00

CLOSE

43.00

HIGH P47.680 LOW P47.920 AVERAGE P47.803 VOLUME 701.500M

P392-P620.00 LPG/11-kg tank P35.70-P42.50 Unleaded Gasoline

oPriceS il P today

P24.84-P28.27 Diesel P28.50-P36.85 Kerosene Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Wednesday, September 21, 2016

F oreign e xchange r ate Currency

Unit

US Dollar

Peso

United States

Dollar

1.000000

47.8550

Japan

Yen

0.009834

0.4706

UK

Pound

1.298900

62.1589

Hong Kong

Dollar

0.128922

6.1696

Switzerland

Franc

1.021346

48.8765

Canada

Dollar

0.758323

36.2895

Singapore

Dollar

0.734376

35.1436

Australia

Dollar

0.755600

36.1592

Bahrain

Dinar

2.655126

127.0611

Saudi Arabia

Rial

0.266688

12.7624

Brunei

Dollar

0.731689

35.0150

Indonesia

Rupiah

0.000076

0.0036

Thailand

Baht

0.028771

1.3768

UAE

Dirham

0.272279

13.0299

Euro

Euro

1.115700

53.3918

Korea

Won

0.000896

0.0429

China

Yuan

0.149891

7.1730

India

Rupee

0.014931

0.7145

Malaysia

Ringgit

0.241721

11.5676

New Zealand

Dollar

0.731200

Taiwan

Dollar

0.031924

34.9916 1.5277 Source: PDS Bridge

B2

Business

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016 extrastory2000@gmail.com

Market rises; Megawide climbs S

TOCKS rose slightly Wednesday, after the Bank of Japan announced adjustments to its monetary policy, spurring a surge in Asian shares.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index, the 30-company benchmark, picked up 3 points to close at 7,675.42 Wednesday.

It was also up 10.4 percent since the start of the year.

The heavier index, representing all shares, also gained 6 points, or 0.2 percent, to settle at 4,570.34, on a value turnover of P7.4 billion. Advancers outnumbered losers, 105 to 82, while 54 issues were unchanged.

Twelve of the 20 most active stocks ended in the green, led by MRC Allied Inc. which

soared 10.8 percent to P0.237.

Infrastructure firm Megawide Construction Corp. climbed 4.8 percent to P14.94, while cement producer Cemex Holdings Philippines Inc. gained 3.5 percent to P11.90.

Meanwhile, Asian stocks traded higher after the Bank of Japan’s decision. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.6 percent to 139.48 as of 1:44 p.m. in Tokyo from an advance of 0.2 percent shortly before the BOJ announcement.

Japan’s Topix index jumped

1.9 percent, while the yen weakened 0.8 percent to 102.51 against the dollar. The authority kept its policy rate at minus 0.1 percent and said the monetary base target, which previously had been set at annual increases of 80 trillion yen ($781 billion), may now fluctuate in the short term as policy makers seek to control the yield curve.

“We’re seeing a knee-jerk reaction to the BOJ decision but this could reverse depending on what we get tonight from the Fed,” said Nicholas Teo, a trading strategist at KGI Fraser Securities in Singapore. “It seems the BOJ didn’t go full force in its move to further ease monetary policy. Its a very safe move, choosing to reserve some of their bullets as they wait for the Fed’s next moves.”

Attention now turns to the US central bank’s review later on Wednesday, with futures traders seeing a 22 percent chance of an interest-rate increase.

Global markets have oscillated amid an uptick in volatility the past two weeks, with concern mounting that monetary authorities are becoming less committed to stimulus amid persistently mixed economic data. A report Tuesday showed US new-home construction fell more than projected in August, representing a pause after a spell of strong gains.

“With US data pretty mixed at the moment, there’s a lack of consensus among Fed policy makers whether to raise rates,” said Chris Green, the Auckland-based director of economics and strategy at

First NZ Capital Group Ltd. “The focus of investors will be on the tone of the Fed statement.”

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index increased 0.6 percent, Taiwan’s benchmark gauge climbed 0.4 percent and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index advanced 0.3 percent. Thailand’s SET Index added 1 percent and South Korea’s Kospi index rose 0.2 percent.

The Shanghai Composite Index was little changed, while Singapore’s STI Index fell 0.2 percent and New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 Index declined 0.5 percent.

Futures on the S&P 500 Index increased 0.2 percent. The US equity benchmark index rose less than 0.1 percent on Tuesday, paring earlier gains of as much as 0.6 percent. With AFP, Bloomberg

MANILA STANDARD BUSINESS DAILY STOCKS REVIEW WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2016

52 Weeks

Previous

High Low

STOCKS

Close

75.3 124.4 107 56.5 2.49 17 30.45 10.4 0.92 2.6 890 1.01 100 1.46 30.5 91.5 137 80 361.2 57 180 1700 124 3.26

66 88.05 88.1 45.45 1.97 12.02 19.6 6.12 0.74 1.02 625 0.225 78 0.9 17.8 62 88.35 52 276 41 118.2 1200 59 2.65

Asia United Bank 48.25 Banco de Oro Unibank Inc. 111.50 Bank of PI 104.10 China Bank 38.4 BDO Leasing & Fin. INc. 3.84 COL Financial 16.6 Eastwest Bank 20.85 Filipino Fund Inc. 6.80 First Abacus 0.7 I-Remit Inc. 1.91 Manulife Fin. Corp.

615.00 MEDCO Holdings 0.970 Metrobank 85.8 Natl. Reinsurance Corp. 0.9 PB Bank 13.9 Phil. National Bank 56.80 Phil. Savings Bank 95.9 Philippine trust Co. 260 PSE 271 RCBC `A’ 36.1 Security Bank 250 Sun Life Financial 1430.00 Union Bank 73.20 Vantage Equities 1.47

47 5 1.46 2.36 15.3 89 148

35.9 1.11 1.01 1.86 7.92 40.3 32

20.6 85 36 65.8 2.97 4.14 21.5 21.6 11.96 9.13 11.8 31.8 109 20.75 15.3 9.4 0.98 241 79 3.95 4 74 33.9 90 13.26 293 0.62 5.25 12.98 15 2.65 7.03 3.4 4.5 6.3 7.34 1450 3.28 0.315 2.18 234 5.28 1.3 2.17

15.32 20.2 10.08 29.15 1.5 1.5 10.72 9.55 9.04 6.02 8.86 20.2 71.5 13.86 13.24 5.34 0.395 173 34.1 2.3 1.63 33 23.35 17.3 5.88 250.2 0.335 3.87 8.45 10.04 2.09 3.03 1.95 1 4.02 5.9 801 1.55 0.138 1.02 152 4.28 0.640 1.2

Aboitiz Power Corp.

45.6 Agrinurture Inc. 3.27 Alliance Tuna Intl Inc. 1 Alsons Cons.

1.65 Asiabest Group 16.82 Bogo Medelin 52 C. Azuc De Tarlac 185.90 Cemex Holdings 11.5 Century Food 16.86 Conc. Aggr. ‘A’ 120 Cirtek Holdings (Chips) 23.8 Concepcion 57 Crown Asia 2.11 Da Vinci Capital 6.18 Del Monte 11.88 DNL Industries Inc. 11.740 Emperador 7.08 Energy Devt. Corp. (EDC) 5.93 EEI 7.94 First Gen Corp.

24.8 First Holdings ‘A’ 71.3 Ginebra San Miguel Inc. 12.40 Holcim Philippines Inc. 16.58 Integ. Micro-Electronics 6.19 Ionics Inc 2.200 Jollibee Foods Corp.

248.60 Liberty Flour 50.00 LMG Chemicals 1.94 Mabuhay Vinyl 4.37 Macay Holdings 29.45 Manila Water Co. Inc. 29.6 Maxs Group 28.45 Megawide 14.26 Mla. Elect. Co `A’ 312.60 MG Holdings 0.265 Pepsi-Cola Products Phil. 3.15 Petron Corporation 10.40 Phinma Corporation 11.56 Phinma Energy 2.21 Phoenix Petroleum Phils. 6.00 Phoenix Semiconductor 1.57 Pryce Corp. `A’ 3.47 RFM Corporation 4.21 Roxas Holdings 3.45 San Miguel ‘Pure Foods `A’ 223 Splash Corporation 3.1 Swift Foods, Inc. 0.167 TKC Steel Corp.

1.71 Universal Robina 184.8 Victorias Milling 4.65 Vitarich Corp.

2.59 Vulcan Ind’l.

1.27

0.59 59.2 30.05 2.16 7.39 3.4 3.35 823.5 911 10.2 84 3.35 4.92 0.66 1455 7.5 76 9.25 0.85 17.3 5.53 9.66 0.0670 2.31 1.61 84.9 3.5 974 1.66 1.39 390 156 0.710 0.435 0.510

0.44 48.1 20.85 1.6 6.62 0.225 0.23 634.5 260 7.390 12.8 2.6 2.26 0.152 837 5.3 49.55 4.84 0.59 12 4.2 3 0.030 1.23 0.550 59.3 1.5 751 1.13 0.93 170 80 0.211 0.179 0.310

Abacus Cons. `A’ Aboitiz Equity Alliance Global Inc. Anglo Holdings A Anscor `A’ ATN Holdings A ATN Holdings B Ayala Corp `A’ BHI Holdings Inc. Cosco Capital DMCI Holdings F&J Prince ‘A’ Filinvest Dev. Corp.

Forum Pacific GT Capital House of Inv. JG Summit Holdings Lopez Holdings Corp.

Lodestar Invt. Holdg.Corp.

LT Group Metro Pacific Inv. Corp.

MJCI Investments Inc. Pacifica `A’ Prime Media Hldg Prime Orion San Miguel Corp `A’ Seafront `A’ SM Investments Inc. Solid Group Inc. South China Res. Inc. Transgrid Top Frontier Unioil Res. & Hldgs Wellex Industries Zeus Holdings

0.385 76.30 16.36 1.27 6.11 0.365 0.365 855 1200.00 8.27 11.88 6.05 7.81 0.202 1458 6.35 78.50 8.09 0.82 16.62 6.9 3.1 0.0360 1.180 2.020 82.00 2.28 668.00 1.26 0.97 188.10 220.000 0.3150 0.2100 0.275

10.5 1.99 1.75 0.375 41.4 5.6 5.59 1.44 1.48 0.201 0.69 10.96 2.22 2.1 1.8 5.94 0.180 27 8.54 31.8

6.74 0.65 1.2 0.192 30.05 3.36 4.96 0.79 0.97 0.083 0.415 2.4 1.15 1.42 1.27 4.13 0.090 23 2.69 22.15

8990 HLDG A. Brown Co., Inc. Araneta Prop `A’ Arthaland Corp.

Ayala Land `B’ Belle Corp. `A’ Cebu Holdings Century Property Cityland Dev. `A’ Crown Equities Inc. Cyber Bay Corp.

Double Dragon Global-Estate Filinvest Land,Inc. Interport `A’ Megaworld MRC Allied Ind. Phil. Tob. Flue Cur & Redry Primex Corp.

Robinson’s Land `B’

7.400 1.28 2.650 0.270 38.000 2.9 5.12 0.600 0.980 0.163 0.600 58.7 1.01 1.84 1.13 4.66 0.214 34.00 3.55 31.00

High

Low

FINANCIAL 48.3 48.1 111.30 110.00 106.80 104.00 38.05 38 3.85 3.71 16.66 16.24 21.4 20.9 6.80 6.80 0.7 0.7 1.87 1.85 620.00 600.00 1.040 0.970 86.4 85 0.92 0.92 14 14 57.50 56.80 95.95 95.95 320 255 272 270 36 35.3 251.6 244.6 1435.00 1420.00 73.30 73.10 1.46 1.45 INDUSTRIAL 45.6 45 3.29 3.19 1.03 0.97 1.63 1.58 17.28 16.22 52 52 180.00 173.00 11.98 11.64 16.98 16.8 121.9 121 24 23.85 56.9 56.9 2.12 2.08 6.3 6.01 12.2 11.9 12.120 11.700 7.19 7.08 5.96 5.89 7.98 7.86 25 24.8 72 71.5 12.90 12.68 16.62 16.50 6.2 6.19 2.200 2.150 249.40 246.00 50.00 50.00 1.95 1.95 4.38 4.25 27.95 26.05 30 29.5 28.8 27.85 15 14.26 315.00 312.60 0.260 0.260 3.2 3.18 10.52 10.12 11.60 11.54 2.22 2.21 6.00 5.96 1.62 1.54 3.6 3.47 4.20 4.19 3.27 3.27 223 222 3.1 3.09 0.172 0.166 1.73 1.70 187.1 184.2 4.67 4.65 2.65 2.47 1.28 1.28 HOLDING FIRMS 0.390 0.380 78.40 75.60 16.40 16.16 1.21 1.20 6.20 6.12 0.365 0.360 0.365 0.365 860.5 855 1200.00 1002.00 8.45 8.27 11.98 11.86 6.39 6.39 8.00 7.81 0.210 0.200 1463 1440 6.35 6.26 78.80 77.80 8.09 8 0.84 0.8 16.7 16.6 7 6.86 3.09 3.09 0.0360 0.0350 1.190 1.190 2.020 2.010 82.50 80.60 2.28 2.27 670.00 656.50 1.27 1.24 0.97 0.97 188.10 188.10 222.000 208.200 0.3200 0.3150 0.2000 0.1980 0.275 0.275 PROPERTY 7.410 7.350 1.30 1.28 2.660 2.600 0.285 0.265 38.850 37.900 2.95 2.9 5.1 5.1 0.6 0.580 1.020 1.000 0.170 0.162 0.600 0.590 58.6 57.55 1.02 1.01 1.87 1.85 1.14 1.13 4.71 4.56 0.241 0.208 36.00 35.00 3.84 3.6 31.20 30.15

Close

%

Net Foreign

Change Volume

Trade/Buying

48.3 110.50 105.10 38.05 3.85 16.66 21 6.80 0.7 1.86 600.00 1.000 85.8 0.92 14 57.50 95.95 255 272 35.8 251 1420.00 73.20 1.46

0.10 -0.90 0.96 -0.91 0.26 0.36 0.72 0.00 0.00 -2.62 -2.44 3.09 0.00 2.22 0.72 1.23 0.05 -1.92 0.37 -0.83 0.40 -0.70 0.00 -0.68

7,600 989,520 1,480,530 70,300 515,000 11,400 591,000 1,000 10,000 120,000 790 5,494,000 4,906,230 100,000 51,500 7,590 200 16,140 230 192,600 467,520 195 465,610 56,000

45.2 3.25 0.97 1.62 16.8 52 173.00 11.88 16.94 121.9 24 56.9 2.09 6.07 12.2 11.700 7.08 5.91 7.87 24.95 71.9 12.90 16.60 6.2 2.180 248.00 50.00 1.95 4.38 27.85 29.8 28 14.94 315.00 0.260 3.2 10.46 11.60 2.21 6.00 1.62 3.52 4.19 3.27 223 3.1 0.170 1.71 186.4 4.65 2.48 1.28

-0.88 -0.61 -3.00 -1.82 -0.12 0.00 -6.94 3.30 0.47 1.58 0.84 -0.18 -0.95 -1.78 2.69 -0.34 0.00 -0.34 -0.88 0.60 0.84 4.03 0.12 0.16 -0.91 -0.24 0.00 0.52 0.23 -5.43 0.68 -1.58 4.77 0.77 -1.89 1.59 0.58 0.35 0.00 0.00 3.18 1.44 -0.48 -5.22 0.00 0.00 1.80 0.00 0.87 0.00 -4.25 0.79

1,424,000 429,000 4,114,000 1,992,000 3,100 10 1,000 33,067,300 1,803,300 220 1,191,500 3,490 227,000 423,300 137,500 5,395,300 5,961,200 3,522,200 517,700 3,467,800 231,630 3,800 760,800 929,700 850,000 253,460 700 5,000 11,000 4,100 1,776,200 625,400 5,434,600 179,240 540,000 76,000 6,076,300 20,500 148,000 623,600 468,000 164,000 86,000 3,000 17,070 6,544,000 9,060,000 180,000 1,560,630 56,000 20,805,000 40,000

0.390 78.40 16.22 1.21 6.12 0.365 0.365 860 1199.00 8.39 11.98 6.39 7.98 0.210 1450 6.26 78.30 8.09 0.8 16.62 6.86 3.09 0.0350 1.190 2.010 82.50 2.27 656.50 1.26 0.97 188.10 222.000 0.3200 0.2000 0.275

1.30 2.75 -0.86 -4.72 0.16 0.00 0.00 0.58 -0.08 1.45 0.84 5.62 2.18 3.96 -0.55 -1.42 -0.25 0.00 -2.44 0.00 -0.58 -0.32 -2.78 0.85 -0.50 0.61 -0.44 -1.72 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.91 1.59 -4.76 0.00

11,000 787,490 2,460,300 41,000 4,400 1,750,000 20,000 712,690 20 1,306,100 9,675,600 2,000 2,552,700 130,000 61,825 4,100 1,544,890 563,600 1,316,000 14,184,200 40,701,000 3,000 3,700,000 40,000 829,000 57,770 3,000 411,630 59,000 324,000 20 5,660 3,040,000 520,000 360,000

7.380 1.29 2.640 0.285 38.750 2.91 5.1 0.590 1.000 0.170 0.600 57.55 1.01 1.86 1.14 4.6 0.241 36.00 3.64 31.20

-0.27 0.78 -0.38 5.56 1.97 0.34 -0.39 -1.67 2.04 4.29 0.00 -1.96 0.00 1.09 0.88 -1.29 12.62 5.88 2.54 0.65

88,700 1,415,000 782,000 2,220,000 10,709,600 1,767,000 3,700 3,199,000 57,000 21,200,000 986,000 326,710 2,481,000 5,012,000 62,000 35,620,000 358,720,000 2,100 3,850,000 2,105,000

313,875.00 -55,929,440 69,850,759.00 1,338,110.00 -169,932.00 -11,066,855.00 6,800 -148,850.00 -100,000.00 -161,415,185.00 -138,399.00 401,760.00 -27,100.00 1,483,585 -63,407,058.00 -8,140,415.00 14,725,255.00 48,000.00 -47,100.00

24,910,852.00 -7,480,590.00 -174,114 12,540.00 6,119.00 -9,081,170.00 5,016,132.00 4,924,869.00 -2,869,053.00 28,065,350.00 1,214,754.00 3,366,480.00 -2,102,420.00 -377,770.00 -10,983,508.00

22,139,110.00 -8,450,000.00 2,007,468.00 1,649,458.00 191,200.00 -24,122,044.00 -185,640.00 -598,600.00 92,380.00 3,745,140.00 -80,420.00 10,068,846 -13,990.00 -637,900.00

5,175,372.00 -7,001,926.00

7,300.00 46,979,865 5,995.00 4,556,903.00 -15,941,094.00 336,065.00 -6,329,775.00 16,286,412.00 -478,928.00 4,005,834.00 -103,262,078.00

52 Weeks

Previous

High Low

STOCKS

2.29 4.9 21.35 1.06 1.62 8.59

1.6 3.1 15.08 0.69 0.83 5.73

10.5 66 1.44 1.09 14.88 15.82 0.1430 5.06 99.1 12.3 2.6 7.67 4 1700 2720 8.41

1.97 35.2 1 0.63 10.5 8.6 0.0770 2.95 56.1 10.14 1.6 4.8 2.58 830 1600 5.95

1.97 119.5 7 5.8 12.5 0.017

1.23 102.6 3.01 4 8.72 0.011

0.8200 2.2800 5.93 12.28 3.32 2.53 3.2 95.5 1 2.46 15.2

0.041 1.200 2.34 6.5 1.91 1.01 1.95 3.1 0.650 1.8 6

1.040 6.41 18 185 22.9 3486 0.760 2.28 46.05 90.1

0.37 3 8.8 79 4.39 2748 0.435 1.2 31.45 60.55

11.6 0.85 10 0.490 1.9

7.59 0.63 5 0.315 1.14

0.0098 5.45 17.24 25 0.330 12.7 1.19 9.5 4.2 0.48 0.420 0.440 0.022 0.023 8.2 49.2 4.27 1.030 3.06 0.020 7.67 12.88 10.42 0.040 420 9

0.0043 1.72 6.47 9.43 0.236 6.5 0.85 5.99 1.17 0.305 0.2130 0.2160 0.013 0.014 3.240 18.96 2.11 0.365 1.54 0.012 5.4 7.26 2.27 0.015 115.9 3.67

70 553 525

33 490 500

515 8.21 111 1060

480 5.88 101 997

78.95 84.8

74.5 75

1.34

1

6.98

0.8900

12.88

5.95

130.7

105.6

-983,136.50 -176,731,165.00

-162,376.00

-111,298.00 81,200.00 5,644,785.00 596,710.00 343,610.00

-8,243,112.00 -437,330.00 6,461,020.00 -90,168,930.00 1,379,000.00 354,700.00 -28,652,070.00

Close

Rockwell Shang Properties Inc. SM Prime Holdings Sta. Lucia Land Inc. Suntrust Home Dev. Inc. Vista Land & Lifescapes

SHARES

FINANCIAL

16,556,408

INDUSTRIAL

121,340,720 88,801,991

PROPERTY

488,275,721

SERVICES

205,150,461

MINING & OIL

182,137,011

GRAND TOTAL

1,110,311,536

1.62 3.32 27.85 1.07 1.020 5.270

Low

1.69 1.63 3.35 3.32 28.05 27.50 1.07 1.04 1.040 1.010 5.370 5.230 SERVICES 2GO Group’ 7.3 7.2 7.11 ABS-CBN 49 49.4 49 Acesite Hotel 1.29 1.3 1.29 APC Group, Inc. 0.560 0.580 0.560 Asian Terminals Inc. 11 11.3 11.3 Bloomberry 5.67 5.80 5.52 Boulevard Holdings 0.0960 0.1000 0.0950 Calata Corp.

3.41 3.53 3.4 Cebu Air Inc. (5J) 117.5 118.9 117.5 Centro Esc. Univ.

10.1 10.1 10.1 Discovery World 2.4 2.62 2.38 DFNN Inc. 6.74 7.00 6.50 Easy Call “Common” 3.00 3.00 3.00 FEUI 945.5 970 950 Globe Telecom 1994 2022 1998 GMA Network Inc. 6.26 6.34 6.25 Golden Haven 14.12 14.20 14.08 Harbor Star 1.75 1.77 1.70 I.C.T.S.I. 82 83.5 79.65 Imperial Res. `A’ 19.34 19.48 19.00 Imperial Res. `B’ 146 156 156 IPeople Inc. `A’ 11.7 11.7 11.58 IP E-Game Ventures Inc. 0.0100 0.0100 0.0099 IPM Holdings 9.24 9.27 9.15 Island Info 0.255 0.255 0.250 ISM Communications 1.4100 1.4300 1.4000 Jackstones 3.45 3.65 3.45 Leisure & Resorts 4.21 4.54 4.25 Liberty Telecom 2.26 2.46 2.30 Lorenzo Shipping 1.10 1.10 1.10 Macroasia Corp.

2.46 2.46 2.32 Manila Broadcasting 21.10 21.05 21.05 Manila Bulletin 0.600 0.600 0.600 Manila Jockey 2.15 1.99 1.99 Melco Crown 4.6 4.6 4.45 Metro Retail 5.60 5.60 5.50 NOW Corp.

3.490 3.820 3.500 PAL Holdings Inc. 5.64 5.65 5.63 Phil. Racing Club 8.6 8.66 8.66 Phil. Seven Corp.

148.00 181.00 148.00 Philweb.Com Inc. 6.30 6.48 6.29 PLDT Common 1734.00 1739.00 1706.00 PremiereHorizon 0.415 0.420 0.415 Premium Leisure 1.060 1.060 1.030 Puregold 44.00 44.50 44.00 Robinsons RTL 80.00 79.85 78.50 SBS Phil. Corp.

5.89 5.95 5.94 SSI Group 2.93 3.04 2.94 STI Holdings 0.610 0.620 0.610 Travellers 3.39 3.48 3.39 Waterfront Phils.

0.355 0.365 0.360 Yehey 5.690 5.490 5.200 MINING & OIL Abra Mining 0.0038 0.0039 0.0038 Apex `A’ 2.82 2.89 2.75 Atlas Cons. `A’ 4.03 4.18 4.03 Atok-Big Wedge `A’ 11.20 11.16 9.63 Basic Energy Corp.

0.218 0.218 0.218 Benguet Corp `A’ 2.1900 2.19 2.1 Century Peak Metals Hldgs0.56 0.58 0.56 Dizon 8.48 8.50 8.22 Ferronickel 0.840 0.840 0.830 Geograce Res. Phil. Inc. 0.270 0.275 0.270 Lepanto `A’ 0.204 0.205 0.202 Lepanto `B’ 0.210 0.227 0.215 Manila Mining `A’ 0.0110 0.0110 0.0110 Manila Mining `B’ 0.0110 0.0110 0.0110 Marcventures Hldgs., Inc. 1.64 1.65 1.64 Nickelasia 6.38 6.52 6.37 Nihao Mineral Resources 2.95 2.98 2.91 Omico 0.5100 0.5100 0.5100 Oriental Peninsula Res. 0.9600 0.9900 0.9500 Oriental Pet. `A’ 0.0110 0.0110 0.0100 Petroenergy Res. Corp. 4.11 4.20 4.03 Philex `A’ 8.59 8.59 8.57 PhilexPetroleum 3.09 3.34 3.15 Philodrill Corp. `A’ 0.0110 0.0120 0.0110 Semirara Corp.

114.20 117.20 114.20 TA Petroleum 3.11 3.18 3 PREFERRED ABS-CBN Holdings Corp. 49 49.5 48.95 Ayala Corp. Pref `B1’ 531.5 531 531 Ayala Corp. Pref ‘B2’ 540 535.5 531.5 DD Pref 105.4 105.5 104 FPH Pref C 505 505 505 GLOBE PREF P 545 541 541 GMA Holdings Inc. 6.01 6.05 6.02 MWIDE PREF 112.6 113.9 112.6 PCOR-Preferred A 1099 1120 1099 PCOR-Preferred B 1184 1184 1180 PNX PREF 3A 104 110 105 PNX PREF 3B 115 114.9 144.9 SMC Preferred B 77.5 78 78 SMC Preferred C 81 81 81 SMC Preferred D 78 78 76.1 SMC Preferred E 80.3 78.8 78.8 SMC Preferred F 80 80 80 SMC Preferred G 79 79.05 79 SMC Preferred H 78 78.2 77.8 SMC Preferred I 78 78 77.65 Swift Pref 2.03 1.9 1.9 WARRANTS & BONDS LR Warrant 2.400 2.680 2.330 SME Alterra Capital 2.68 3.01 2.56 Italpinas 4.65 4.74 4.64 Xurpas 13.66 14.3 13.72 EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS First Metro ETF 126.7 126.8 126

TRADING SUMMARY HOLDING FIRMS

High

Close

%

Net Foreign

Change Volume

Trade/Buying

1.65 3.35 27.70 1.06 1.040 5.250

1.85 0.90 -0.54 -0.93 1.96 -0.38

142,000 62,000 11,988,700 -47,901,560.00 2,161,000 208,000.00 579,000 20,412,700 -43,978,571.00

7.24 49 1.29 0.560 11.3 5.52 0.0990 3.43 118.4 10.1 2.61 6.99 3.00 952 2010 6.30 14.20 1.71 80 19.00 156 11.7 0.0100 9.23 0.255 1.4100 3.6 4.47 2.44 1.10 2.32 21.05 0.600 1.99 4.55 5.58 3.810 5.63 8.66 181.00 6.30 1716.00 0.420 1.060 44.05 79.10 5.94 2.96 0.620 3.4 0.360 5.480

-0.82 0.00 0.00 0.00 2.73 -2.65 3.13 0.59 0.77 0.00 8.75 3.71 0.00 0.69 0.80 0.64 0.57 -2.29 -2.44 -1.76 6.85 0.00 0.00 -0.11 0.00 0.00 4.35 6.18 7.96 0.00 -5.69 -0.24 0.00 -7.44 -1.09 -0.36 9.17 -0.18 0.70 22.30 0.00 -1.04 1.20 0.00 0.11 -1.13 0.85 1.02 1.64 0.29 1.41 -3.69

653,400 30,600 22,000 913,000 500 10,037,400 76,860,000 1,360,000 280,580 2,000 80,000 292,800 2,000 1,300 87,430 15,600 61,800 1,107,000 1,089,850 1,200 10 15,700 45,300,000 460,900 14,840,000 250,000 36,000 5,896,000 3,655,000 5,000 17,000 100 2,000 10,000 4,879,000 1,502,200 5,820,000 1,600 100 20,180 1,204,700 146,420 1,500,000 8,433,000 1,843,500 979,550 33,300 3,693,000 5,594,000 336,000 280,000 127,700

0.0038 2.89 4.11 11.16 0.218 2.1800 0.58 8.46 0.840 0.270 0.203 0.227 0.0110 0.0110 1.65 6.38 2.92 0.5100 0.9600 0.0110 4.20 8.59 3.19 0.0120 117.00 3.18

0.00 2.48 1.99 -0.36 0.00 -0.46 3.57 -0.24 0.00 0.00 -0.49 8.10 0.00 0.00 0.61 0.00 -1.02 0.00 0.00 0.00 2.19 0.00 3.24 9.09 2.45 2.25

41,000,000 295,000 193,000 900 20,000 6,000 244,000 400 3,149,000 1,450,000 4,260,000 75,000 21,700,000 86,100,000 101,000 7,788,100 54,000 145,000 301,000 4,400,000 52,000 379,400 2,519,000 6,100,000 755,550 175,000

38,000.00 63,580.00 498,720.00

49 531 531.5 104 505 541 6.05 112.6 1120 1184 110 114.9 78 81 76.1 78.8 80 79 78.2 77.65 1.9

0.00 -0.09 -1.57 -1.33 0.00 -0.73 0.67 0.00 1.91 0.00 5.77 -0.09 0.65 0.00 -2.44 -1.87 0.00 0.00 0.26 -0.45 -6.40

5,800 600 2,000 189,410 1,000 12,820 50,400 95,650 450 350 10,000 120 10 50,000 22,700 3,200 1,000 51,800 61,410 1,215,000 9,000

68,600.00

2.530

5.42

1,720,000

2.95 4.74 14

10.07 1.94 2.49

5,710,000 106,000 2,212,500

126.7

0.00

2,000

-3,919,210.00 9,020.00 -280,110.00 1,518,773.00 -781,600.00 -225,540.00 10,248,593.00 99,780.00 136,000.00 21,258,850.00

-6,342,250.50

25,844.00

694,540 72,200.00

611,160.00 -3,539,804.00 -124,220.00 2,270,180.00 197,556.00 -23,000,140.00 -1,060.00 -38,163,165.00 -69,277,500.50 -4,973,620.00 1,796,670.00 -210,790.00

17,250.00 138,400.00

-947,100.00 -21,420.00 -465,639.00

139,917.00 272,920.00 21,637,373.00

3,106.00

-54,860.00 -1,534,990.00

VALUE 1,855.09 (up) 1.10 959,168,357.70 FINANCIAL INDUSTRIAL 11,939.70 (up) 32.74 1,507,218,485.095 HOLDING FIRMS 7,605.94 (down) 6.67 2,035,757,763.50 PROPERTY 3,429.04 (up) 15.67 1,522.61 (down) 11.60 1,313,369,471.40 SERVICES MINING & OIL 10,864.58 (up) 172.16 1,371,338,090.951 PSEI 7,675.42 (up) 3.70 157,777,785.2626 All Shares Index 4,570.34 (up) 6.79 7,392,730,766.809 Gainers: 105; Losers: 82; Unchanged: 54; Total: 241

SMIC selling P20-b bonds

By Jenniffer B. Austria SM INVESTMENTS Corp., the holding family of tycoon Henry Sy, said Wednesday it plans to issue up to P20 billion worth of fixed-rate bonds before the end of the year.

SMIC said in a disclosure to the stock exchange its board of directors approved a fixed-rate bond program with a principal amount of P50 billion under the three-year shelf registration facility of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

“Initial issuance under this program is expected later this year in the amount of P15 billion with an over subscription option of up to P5 billion,” the conglomerate said.

Its board of directors also authorized SMIC management to negotiate and finalize the terms and conditions, including pricing, tenor and any increase in issuance amount.

SMIC chief finance officer Jose Sio early this month said the conglomerate was filing for a P50-billion shelfregistration to raise funds for “investment purposes,” particularly to support the capitalization of subsidiaries and finance the expansion of noncore businesses.

Sio said the conglomerate planned to issue bonds with tenor of seven and 10 years.

SMIC is one of the country’s largest publicly listed companies with core investments in banking, and property development Outside these core businesses, the group also has investments in retail, mining and tourism-oriented developments.

PLDT launches new mobile application

By Darwin G. Amojelar PLDT Group said Wednesday it launched a new mobile application to meet the needs of Filipinos working abroad.

The mobile app, called SmartLife Global, offers carefully curated digital content such as Philippine movies, music and news that enable Filipinos overseas to stay in touch with families in the Philippines.

The app also features relevant services such as easy bills payment for utilities and load sharing for families in the Philippines.

“Smartlife Global provides Filipinos abroad with a lively digital connection to home,” PLDT chairman and president Manuel Pangilinan said.

SmartLife Global, delivered through international marketing and operations unit PLDT Global Corp., is initially available in the US, Canada, the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Malaysia, Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam, Guam and Australia.

SmartLife Global is free upon download. Users can enjoy a 30-day trial period during which they have unlimited access to local news and free access to a rich library of Filipino movies, concerts, original Filipino music and premium magazines.

After 30 days, users can extend their usage for only $2.99 per month for music and $4.99 per month for movies and concerts.

Business

B3

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016 extrastory2000@gmail.com

Duterte tests hotlines; Sensitive labor issues

AGRILINK EXPO SPONSOR. Univet Nutrition and Animal Healthcare Co. signs a contract with Foundation for Resource Linkage and Development as a major sponsor of Agrilink Trade Expo, slated on Oct. 6 to 8 at the World Trade Center in Pasay City. Shown during the contract signing are (from left) Unahco’s sarimanok poultry feeds division head Fe Marie Colico, FRLD president Antonio Roces, Unahco president and chief operating officer Ricardo Alba, Dahlia Napenas and Unahco marketing director Clint Escondo.

Franchisers decry high mall charges

By Othel V. Campos

A

GROUP of franchisers on Wednesday asked the government to rationalize the rental fees charged by shopping malls from entrepreneurs.

The Association of Filipino Franchise Inc. said both members and non-members expressed concern over the high rental rates that doubled in the last few years.

“Most of the concerns of business people are rent. We have engaged Senator Sherwin Gatchalian to help us create a law that will monitor rents in malls,” AFFI chairman Armando Bartolome said Wednesday in a pre-event briefing for the upcoming 15th Franchise and Business Expo.

The group said from P15,000 per sixsquare-meter space a few years ago, the

rent paid by a tenant at a shopping mall now reached P30,000 a month.

Lease represents about 15 percent to 18 percent of a small company’s operational expense, the group said.

Other malls and grocery stores also charge a specific percentage from the sales of the tenant, it said.

The business group expressed hope that by the first quarter of 2017, a draft legislation would be passed to support their cause.

It said one good development was a proposal to work with Property Company of Friends Inc. for a structure that could be a community mall where tenants would be given good rates.

AFFI said despite the high rental rates, the group was optimistic of generating up to P150 billion in combined sales in fiscal year ending September 2017.

Total sales of the group in fiscal year ending September 2016 reached P107 billion, or 13.8 percent higher than P94 billion in 2015.

Employment by group members also increased 14 percent to 213,569 people from 187,434 a year ago.

The group now has 188 members. AFFI members with global presence include Aquabest, Crystal Clear, Eat Bulaga, Figaro, Fiorgelato, Goto King, Lay Bare, Mang Inasal, Potato Corner, Julie’s Bakeshop, Binalot, Ferino’s Bibingka, NASA Water, Reyes Hair Companyy International, Adobo Connection and Aquasuisse.

Among members, Potato Corner has the highest overseas market penetration rate with 119 branches worldwide.

Bartolome noted the increasing number of franchisors in the food category with 55 percent of the total members, with the rest belonging to the non-food category.

AFFI said in the food sector, 45 percent were located at in-line stores, 33 percent in kiosks while 22 percent were stand-alone shops. In the non-food sector, 59 percent were in services and 41 percent in retail.

ABS-CBN MoneyGram sees remittances rising

By Julito G. Rada building stores in Ayala malls

By Darwin G. Amojelar ABS-CBN Corp. said Wednesday it teamed up with Ayala Malls to build the first “experience store” at Trinoma mall in Quezon City.

ABS-CBN president and chief executive Carlo Katigbak said the “experience store” was the start of a strategic and longterm partnership between ABSCBN and Ayala Malls. The store is set to open next year.

“Expect big things to come when media and retail converge to provide viewers and shoppers with the best in entertainment and retail,” he said.

The country’s largest media and entertainment company plans to open its first experience store in 2017.

The “experience store” allows visitors to be a part of the shows they follow and play the roles they always wanted to play. Also to be showcased is ABS-CBN’s wide assortment of merchandise that allows customers to own a piece of the Kapamilya stories they follow.

The company’s experience store is a part of the company’s rapidly expanding consumer business, which now accounts for P17 billion in annual revenues, or 4 percent of total revenues.

ABS-CBN’s consumer business is generated from three types of businesses, including subscription, ticketed experiences and durable goods.

The subscription business covers cable and broadband provider Sky, The Filipino Channel and ABS-CBNmobile.

MONEYGRAM Philippines, the local unit of Nasdaq-listed Moneygram International, expects a 3 percent to 4-percent growth in remittance business this year on sustained inflows from overseas Filipino workers.

MoneyGram Philippines country manager Alex Chan Lim told Manila Standard the company was following the projection made by Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas about a 4-percent growth in remittances this year.

“We don’t deviate from them because they are the ones who know. We have majority of the Filipinos in the Middle East,

which is a major source of remittances,” Lim said at the sidelines of a news briefing in Makati City. “So far, remittance business is doing good.”

Latest data from Bangko Sentral showed that money sent home by overseas Filipinos fell 5.4 percent in July to $2.13 billion from $2.253 billion a year ago, the biggest decline in eight months since the 6.2-percent fall in November last year.

“I believe that remittances will continue growing especially because of the approaching Holiday season where overseas Filipinos usually send more money to their relatives in the Philippines,” Lim said.

Lim said the 12,000 locations nationwide were enough for MoneyGram to capture a major share of the market.

“It is not about adding locations.. In Moneygram we have extra [efforts],” Chan said.

He said Moneygram was one of the “major ones” in the business.

Moneygram, through the Moneygram Foundation, teamed up with Black Pencil Project for the School in a Box Program.

Moneygram International turned over a donation worth P1 million to the Black Pencil Project, to provide school supplies to marginalized children from indigenous communities.

NOT many like President Rodrigo “Rody” Duterte.

The new chief executive has drawn criticisms, and praises as well, here and abroad for his war against drug lords and users. But few Filipinos have not yet realized that Rody is reaching out to the population through the government’s newlylaunched hotlines—911 for emergencies and 8888 for complaints against government agencies and officials.

These hotlines, especially 8888, can be good for the business community because it provides businessmen a vehicle to report abuses, corruption and irregularities. Transacting with government agencies should not be the ordeal it has always been. Businessmen have always deserved better treatment from government, whether in the national or local level.

The verdict is still out on these hotlines. But if we are to believe President Duterte’s words that he meant business when he said he would stop corruption, then the national hotlines should deserve the benefit of the doubt.

Skeptics have been quick to point out kinks in the national hotlines project. Telecommunication companies, for instance, say they may charge a fee for the use. They argue that the fee will discourage pranksters from making a mockery of the service, and if telcos can show the fees will be used for system and logistics maintenance purposes, then maybe the public should pay for the service initially as an interim policy.

The Duterte administration has a real chance to prove that its anti-corruption drive will produce results–and in the process save enough money to allocate a budget for the maintenance of 911 and 8888 lines. It’s a change that businessmen will always welcome.

The President’s hotline, or 8888, for receiving complaints is aimed against fixers, scalawag officials and poor government services. The hotlines will simply ask callers or complainants to identify the government employee and agency and give out the details of their complaint and proposed solutions.

The hotlines effectively become a vehicle for empowering the public by having a platform to participate and be involved.

Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. and Globe Telecom Inc. may initially be reluctant to Mr. Duterte’s unified Nationwide Emergency and Citizens Complaint Hotline Numbers.

As soon as the system gets a critical mass, however, the telecom companies will soon realize the merits of the hotlines. These can even level the playing field, promote business transparency and promote good governnance.

The Office of the Cabinet Secretary and the Department of the Interior and Local Government paved the way for the hotline project, with the support of the newly-created Department of Information and Communications Technology, the National Telecommunications Commission, the Foundation on Crime Prevention, the Civil Service Commission and the Presidential Action Center.

‘Endocs’ takes center stage The yearly Philippine Business Conference has a different menu this year. Labor issues, after a long time, are expected to dominate the upcoming 42nd PBC on October 12 to 13, 2016 amid the controversy surrounding the end-of-contract scheme, after Mr. Duterte raised a concern on the issue.

Philipppine Chamber of Commerce and Industry honorary chairman Donald Dee has provided a glimpse on the next PBC— the labor issues at hand will be contentious,.

Dee, who is also president of the Employers’ Confederation of the Philippines, said the win-win solution offered by the Trade Department on the end-of-contract scheme needed some tweaking.

“We support that proposal in a way but we are not for the removal of end-of-contract system. Somehow, Secretary (Ramon) Lopez must know that we should at least compromise on certain aspects of the proposal,” he said.

Dee warned the issue could potentially be blown out of proportions by militant labor groups if not handled properly.

“Right now, we are talking within our ranks, (not) only with the Trade and Labor Departments and the service providers. We need to come up with a solution the soonest possible time or yet we may have to include that in the list of resolutions during the next PBC,” he said.

Dee said service providers could not take the full responsibility of providing for entire compensation of a workforce of a principal or client-company since their resources were also limited.

Dee said the only way service providers or manpower agencies could afford to give the complete compensation package was to increase their service fees to 30 to 40 percent, “which will only render their services and perhaps, even existence, uncompetitive.”

“What we can do is for us all to follow labor regulations,” Dee said.

The Trade Department last week offered a “win-win” solution to the labor problem by repealing end-of-contract schemes and striking a stronger relationship between manpower agencies and the companies they serve.

Lopez said companies may directly hire employees of service providers and deploy some for a certain premium to enable them to enjoy the full benefits of workers.

E-mail: rudyromero777@yahoo.com or business@thestandard.com.ph or extrastory2000@gmail.com

Duterte administration’s fiscal balancing act EVERY sound tax program is designed to achieve the most feasible balance between three socio-economic objectives, namely the financing of the operations of the government, the promotion of a progressive system for taxation and the maintenance of a growth-friendly business climate. The national budget (the proposed General Appropriations Act) for 2017 represents the Duterte administration’s attempt to achieve that balance.

Achieving a desirable balance between the three objectives has never been easy and is bound to prove difficult for the Duterte administration. Making desirable changes in one policy often results in unwanted and unexpected outcomes from the other policies. Any changes have to be sure-footed and well-thought-out.

Three agencies are in the frontline where

the Duterte administration’s proposed fiscal program is concerned. They are the Department of Finance (headed by Carlos Dominguez III), the National Economic and Development Authority (headed by Dr. Ernesto Pernia) and the Department of Budget and Management (headed by Dr. Benjamin Diokno). Both Dominguez and Diokno are members of the Neda Board.

Any changes in the Duterte administration tax program—increases or decreases in existing taxes on income, increases or decreases in existing excise taxes, widening or narrowing of the incidence of existing taxes, introduction of new income or excise taxes—are bound to have an impact on whether the tax system will yield revenue sufficient to finance the government’s operations, on whether the tax system will be characterizable as progressive or regressive and on whether businessmen’s and workers’ attitudes will be positively or negatively affected.

As a rule, taxes on income are to be preferred because, being based on income levels, they take more money from the

wealthy than from the poor. And excise taxes are to be avoided because they fall equally heavily on the poor and on the Forbes Park folk. But fiscal policymakers have to face a pair of realities in tax administration in a developing-world setting. One reality is that income taxes can be evaded, while excise taxes are inescapable. The other reality is that excise taxes take more, proportionally speaking, from the poor than from the rich.

Since it is poised to go on a spending spree—lots of big non-PPP infrastructure projects, doubling of soldiers’, policemen’s and other government employees’ salaries and better and more widely distributed social services— and wants to ease up on the taxation of incomes, the Duterte administration needs much revenue in order to be able to properly finance the proposed P3.350trillion national budget. Toward that end, it has proposed changes in existing income and excise taxes and additions to the list of excise-taxable products.

To compensate for the revenue that will

be lost due to the lowering of income and corporate taxes, Secretaries Dominguez, Pernia and Diokno have agreed on the introduction of taxes that will impact more heavily on the expenditures of the lower income groups. This, on the one hand, will be rendering the tax system less progressive with its proposed income-tax reductions and on the other hand it will be rendering the system more regressive with its higher and new excise taxes. And at the back of it all is the need to keep the national budget deficit-free and to safeguard the debt ratios that did much to earn the Philippines the credit-rating upgrades of recent years.

The Duterte administration has a very tough fiscal balancing job ahead of it. Will it be able to achieve the budget balance while keeping the economy on the path of much-improved growth performance? Or will its tax program prove to be a case of bad fiscal engineering?

We will know soon enough.

E-mail: rudyromero777@yahoo.com

Ray S. Eñano, Editor business@manilastandardtoday.com extrastory2000@gmail.com

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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016

Business

BoJ overhauls monetary policy T OKYO―Japan’s central bank unveiled an overhaul of monetary policy on Wednesday, pledging to double down on its attempts to stoke inflation and kickstart the torpid economy.

After a hotly anticipated meeting, the Bank of Japan said it would set a target for 10-year government bond yields, aiming to push them higher, while holding off a further cut in interest rates into negative territory.

It also loosened its annual asset-buying target―a key feature of its more than three-year-old policy―saying it could instead fluctuate to give it flexibility while focusing on keeping bond

yields steady.

The bank also pledged continue monetary easing as needed until it hits and stabilizes inflation at its 2.0 percent target.

“The fact that it pledged to keep the current policy until it achieves its 2.0 percent inflation target can be interpreted as expansion of easing policy,” said Yasuhide Yajima, chief economist at NLI Research Institute.

The announcement―hours

before the US Federal Reserve wraps up its latest meeting―appeared aimed at critics of the BoJ, including banks and insurance companies that have been hit by its negative rate policy.

Negative rates are meant to encourage lending to people and businesses by effectively charging banks to keep excess reserves in the BoJ’s vaults. But commercial lenders have complained they are eating into their financial results.

The central bank said it would lift controls on maturities of the bonds it buys under the huge assetpurchase plan―there are concerns that the bank is running out of government bonds that it can buy.

Bank stocks rallied in response to the BoJ’s announcement, with Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index surging nearly two percent by the close.

The yen plunged―good news for exporters―after the announcement. Easing measures tend to knock the yen as it suggests more of the currency will be floating around the financial system.

The dollar jumped to 102.64 yen from around 101.66 yen earlier Wednesday.

Wednesday’s adjustments came as the bank released an unprecedented report card on its own policies, which are a cornerstone of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s growth drive, dubbed Abenomics.

In its review, the bank blamed its failure to hit its inflation target on a drop in oil prices, a sales tax hike at home in 2014 that dented spending, and trouble in overseas economies.

Still, the bank said its policies have “transformed peoples’ perception of inflation and... led to a rise in inflation expectations.”

Some were sceptical of the BoJ rating itself, as doubts grow about the likelihood of Abenomics reviving the economy.

“A review done by the people concerned tends to be rather lenient and may not be objective,” Credit Suisse analyst Hiromichi Shirakawa said before the report. AFP

Air China, Lufthansa okay joint venture FRANKFURT―German airline Lufthansa and Air China said on Tuesday they had signed a deal to jointly operate all the groups’ connections between Europe and China.

“The Chinese aviation market is one of the most important growth markets worldwide. We want to profit from this growth together,” Lufthansa chief executive Carsten Spohr said in a statement.

The Chinese flag carrier and Lufthansa, Europe’s largest airline, have had a joint venture in their sights since signing a memorandum of understanding in 2014.

The move is “another major step of Air China’s globalization strategy,” chairman Cai Jianjiang said.

Added to Lufthansa’s other co-operations, including with Japan’s ANA and Singapore Airlines in Asia, and United Airlines and Air Canada in north America, the joint venture means around half of the German giant’s long-haul flights are now covered by such agreements.

The two groups plan to coordinate their schedules, offer common fares and improve their offers to corporate clients and frequent flyers under the arrangement.

As well as Lufthansa itself, the deal covers subsidiaries Austrian Airlines and Swiss International Airlines.

Passengers traveling into Europe from China will be able to connect through the Lufthansa group’s hubs in Frankfurt, Zurich and Vienna, while the two firms promised “additional routes in China” with Air China and via codesharing for those travelling in the other direction. AFP

Shoppers cross the street beside the Ginza shopping district in Tokyo on September 21, 2016. Japan’s central bank unveiled an overhaul of monetary policy on September 21, pledging to double down on its attempts to stoke inflation and kickstart the torpid economy. AFP

Big China lender to list shares HONG KONG―Postal Savings Bank of China is set to raise $7.4 billion in its Hong Kong initial public offering, which is expected to be the world’s biggest flotation this year, reports said Wednesday.

The listing is also poised to be the biggest since Chinese internet giant Alibaba floated in New York in 2014, raising $25 billion.

But the $7.4 billion valuation misses the company’s previously hoped-for $8.1 billion mark as analysts say demand for the stock is tepid.

PSBC will sell 12.1 billion shares at HK$4.76 ($0.61) each when it floats on the Hong Kong exchange on September 28, according to Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter.

That comes in at the lower end of the bank’s original price range, which valued the shares between HK$4.68 and HK$5.18.

Analysts attribute the lukewarm interest to the recent flat performance of large Chinese financial firms on Hong Kong’s bourse.

“In the last year or so, most of these big financial firms on their debut at best went up five percent, and a lot of them are still trading underwater,” financial analyst Jackson Wong told AFP. “A lot of investors don’t see an explosive upside from this,” said Wong, associate director of Hong Kong-based Simsen Financial group, referring to PSBC’s listing.

The majority of the bank’s shares will go to cornerstone investors.

PSBC is China’s fifth-largest lender with 40,000 branches― more than any other bank in the country―and around 70 percent in rural areas.

Founded in 2007, it provides basic banking services to farmers and agricultural business owners, and it is the only financial institution present in some of the country’s most remote regions.

According to the latest figures, PSBC’s total assets reached 7.7 trillion yuan ($1.15 trillion) by March. Its net profit rose 11 percent year-on-year in the first quarter to 12.48 billion yuan.

Previously completely stateowned, PSBC raised 45.1 billion yuan by selling a 16.92 percent stake to 10 strategic investors in December, valuing the firm at $40.6 billion.

Among the buyers were e-commerce giant Alibaba’s affiliate Ant Financial, and Tencent, another internet behemoth. AFP

Airbnb raises market share in France despite terror attacks AIRBNB Inc. gained market share in France, the world’s most visited tourist destination, despite a string of terrorist attacks that depressed summer bookings at traditional hotels.

The San Francisco-based company’s apartment-sharing website drew 3.6 million travelers to France in June, July and August, 86 percent more than a year earlier, it said in a statement on Tuesday. Travel across France fell this summer in the aftermath of deadly attacks that shook Paris and Nice, even as the European soccer champion-

ship drew hundreds of thousands of fans to games held throughout the country.

Budget travelers are flocking to digital platforms and bucking traditional travel patterns, which tend to dip following security threats. Terrorist attacks in Paris in November and the seaside resort of Nice in July claimed more than 200 lives. Fears of renewed incidents have depressed hotel occupancy, which dropped to a summer low of 63.7 percent in August, compared with 90 percent a year earlier, according to data provider STR.

Hotel reservations in the area around Nice plunged as much as 30 percent after the killings there, the French government said in July.

The world’s biggest travel companies are scrambling to compete with new market entrants that appeal to young, webfocused consumers. France’s largest hotel operator Accor SA has made it a priority to defend itself against digital competitors and said in April it’s buying upscale Airbnb rival Onefinestay for 148 million euros ($165 million).

Airbnb gained market share even as strikes by civil servants and walkouts by airline and rail workers disrupted travel in the country. Traffic at Paris Charles de Gaulle airport slipped for a fourth consecutive month in August, the first time that has happened since the global financial crisis roiled travel markets in 2009.

Terrorism concerns are keeping away Chinese, Japanese and US tourists in particular, Air France-KLM Group said on Tuesday. Bookings from these nationals fell as much as 10 per-

cent in the first eight months of the year, the Paris-based airline said.

After France, Airbnb served the highest number of guests in Italy and Spain this summer.

The UK posted the biggest gain, with stays almost doubling after the referendum to leave the European Union depressed the value of the pound and made trips cheaper for foreigners, the company said.

Airbnb’s overall guest arrivals to homes in Europe rose 74 percent to 16 million, it said.

Bloomberg

Huge diamond mine opens in Canada’s far north

A view of the open pit at at the De Beers’ new diamond mine in Gahcho Kué, Canada in the Northwest Territories on Sept. 19, 2016.

AFP

YELLOWKNIFE, Canada― De Beers officially opened one of the world’s largest diamond mines on Tuesday near the Arctic Circle in Canada’s remote far north.

The Gahcho Kue mine is situated in the outback some 280 kilometers (174 miles) northeast of Yellowknife, the capital of the Northwest Territories.

“It’s the largest diamond mine brought into production in the last 13 years and it’s the biggest outside South Africa,” De Beers chief executive Bruce Cleaver told AFP in an interview at a ceremony christening the new mine.

“So this is very significant for us.”

Headquartered in Johannesburg, De Beers owns a 51 percent stake in the mine, whose name is derived from a term for “big rabbit” in the local indig-

enous Chipewyan language.

The global diamond company’s Canadian partner Mountain Province Diamonds controls the remaining ownership stake.

Discovered in 1995, the deposit located near the Arctic Circle took more than $1 billion to develop.

The open-pit mine is accessible only by air except for a few months in winter when trucks can travel across ice roads.

It is expected to produce 54 million carats of rough diamonds over its operating lifetime, by 2028, and employ 530 workers who must be flown in from communities further south for twoweek work rotations, according to De Beers.

The search for diamond-rich kimberlite formations underground is costly and finds are rare, Cleaver said.

“It’s also very difficult to bring a new diamond mine into production on time and in the budget,” he added.

Finding a rich deposit, setting up the mine and bringing it on stream “is very rare these days,” he said.

The Gahcho Kue mine is the sixth to open in Canada in the last two decades, making the country the world’s fifth-largest diamond producer in terms of volume and third in value, with more than $1.5 billion in annual exports.

Cleaver predicted that “consumer demand for diamond jewelry is set to see continued medium to long-term growth.”

However, production is waning.

Last December, De Beers halted operations at its Snap Lake mine adjacent to the new Gahcho

Kue mine and put it up for sale.

It may be shuttered if no buyers come forward.

Another of its mines in Ontario province, meanwhile, is scheduled to close in the next three years.

Diamond sales to consumers have been hampered by an economic slowdown in China and ongoing turmoil in global financial markets, falling two percent in 2015 to $79 billion.

This sluggishness is expected to continue over the next decade, according to a forecast published last week by De Beers, which is owned by mining giant Anglo American and the government of Botswana.

The United States, China, India and Japan have traditionally provided the largest markets, buying up around 73 percent of diamonds sold each year. AFP

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016

C1

LGUs LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS

PAINTERLY. Less well-known than the Mayon Volcano, these hills roll so beautifully in Legazpi City in Albay.

Makati celebrates regional fashion THE city government of Makati through its Museum and Cultural Affairs Office will stage the Kasuotang Pilipino fashion show on Friday at 6 p.m. at the Glorietta 2 Activity Center.

Makati Mayor Abby Binay expressed full support for the annual event, which promotes local designs from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

“It enables the people, especially the youth, to appreciate the place of Filipino fashion in our cultural heritage. Makatibased fashion designers can also display their ingenuity and distinctive style,” Binay said.

The MCAO hosts the event during “Linggo ng Kasuotang Pilipino” or Philippine Fashion Week in collaboration with the Liga ng mga Barangay and Ayala Malls.

“The beautiful creations of talented Makati-based designers are modeled by city officials, senior citizens and friends from the international community and the private sector,” it said.

Kasuotang Pilipino 2016 will showcase the creations of 14 designers from Makati. They are Therese Andaya, Albert Andrada, Niño Angeles, Ronaldo Arnaldo, Joel Bautista, Janet Castro, Noel Crisostomo, Frankie

de Leon, Luis delos Santos, Albert Figueras, Jinggo Inoncillo, Kaye Morales, Raymund Saul and Val Taguba.

Luzon-inspired clothes will be modeled by wives of diplomats, namely, Eloisa Klecheski, wife of the deputy chief of mission, US Embassy; Anjana Hasper, wife of the charge d’affaires, German Embassy; Souddavone Khaykhampithoune, wife of the ambassador, Embassy of Laos; Monthip Upatising, wife of the ambassador, Royal Thai Embassy; Sylvia Tay-Van Remoortele, wife of the ambassador, Royal Belgian Embassy; Dr. Kieu Phung, wife of the ambassador, Royal Danish Embassy; and Wang Qi Jessen, wife of the ambassador, European Union Embassy.

The other models for Luzon are Councilors Virgilio Hilario Jr. and Concepcion Yabut; barangay captains Michael Infante, Fernando Bolo, Restituto Cajes and Martin John Pio Arenas; Joy Gaviola; Dr. Rosario Duque; Dwayne Samarista and Ryan Barcelo.

The Visayan designs will be modeled by Rose Sibug, Anita Bay, Elizabeth Faculin, Milagros Misa-Gueco, Leilani Canullas,

Munti gets 2nd ISO certification M

UNTINLUPA City has been recognized for quality management and an exemplary sanitation program.

BRS Rim of the World Operations conferred the second ISO 9001:2008 on Quality Management to the city government,

the Ospital ng Muntinlupa, and the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Muntinlupa on September 19 at Muntinlupa City Hall in Putatan.

By Roy Tomandao

LAGUNA—New and established artists painted wall murals during the Coffee Festival in SM City San Pablo and SM City Calamba on the theme “coffee” or a “coffee shop experience.”

The event allowed shoppers to join and paint, or take memora-

ble selfies with friends until the end of the month.

SM City Calamba partnered with Guhit Pilipinas while SM City San Pablo collaborated with the Pableños Group of Artists by Sinkul Culture and the Arts Association in creating the massive coffee mural.

Coffee shops are major indicators of economic progress

Next page

share for the cause of peace,” he pointed out.

During his term as President, Estrada said, he extended the hand of peace to various elements, particularly Muslim secessionist rebels fighting the government.

“However, the kind of peace I offered was peace under One Government, One Flag, One Country—the kind of peace that will truly bring us together as Filipinos,” he said.

In celebration of the National Teachers Month, Estrada earlier praised those in the teaching profession as the “real superheroes,” recognizing the crucial role they play in molding the youth into responsible and peace-loving citizens of the country.

The mayor said the teacher’s welfare is foremost in his heart so he raised their monthly allowance from P2,000 to P3,000.

Last April, he distributed computer tablets with installed instructional materials to some 11,000 teachers of Manila.

requirements for the certification and passed the surveillance audit on its processes and activities conducted by BRS in July.

Mayor Jaime Fresnedi encouraged government employees to continue providing excellent services for the people.

Next page

Artists put coffee on canvas Nick takes over MM

Erap to teachers: Be peace builders MANILA Mayor Joseph “Erap” Estrada on Tuesday called on Manila public school teachers to continue being “active agents of peace-building.”

Teachers not only develop the youth’s academic skills but also instill in their young minds the keeping of peace and avoidance of conflicts, Estrada told a forum on “The Struggle for Just and Lasting Peace” held by the Manila Public School Teachers Association (MPSTA) at the city hall.

Estrada has consistently supported President Rodrigo Duterte’s advocacies, particularly his campaign against drugs, criminality and terrorism. He earlier called on the President to press on with his anti-terror campaign following the bombing of Davao City by the Abu Sayyaf Group.

Estrada said teachers in Manila “represent the best of the Manileño.”

“They excel as educators, as advocates of students and teachers rights and welfare, and as responsible citizens doing their

ISO 9001:2008, often used by private companies as a benchmark of organizational operation excellence, is the world’s leading quality management standard that describes the procedures an organization follows to achive its objectives.

The local government met the

PERKY. An artist depicts his favorite beverage at the SM Coffee Festival.

and coffee shops are now the new watering places of people. Laguna’s thirst for the beverage is slaked in various coffee shops including global brands like Starbucks in SM City Calamba.

More photos of the coffee art mural are on the Facebook and Instagram pages of SM City San Pablo and SM City Calamba.

OVER 10,000 kids in 20 schools in the Metro and Greater Metro Manila areas are joining interactive activities and games as Nickelodeon’s “Nick Takes Over Your School” program until this month.

Now on its 13th year in the Philippines, the program offers pupils a different learning experience to boost their selfesteem with the theme, “Shout It Out Proud.”

“Nick Takes Over Your School” brings a half-day packed with fun-tertainment activities. There will be exciting booth activities from Nickelodeon’s partners, as well as visits from everyone’s favorite Nickelodeon characters such as SpongeBob SquarePants and Patrick Star.

“We, at Nickelodeon, believe in the importance of encouraging kids to develop a positive self-image and grow into loving and competent individuals. With this in mind, we carry out various initiatives such as ‘Nick Takes Over Your School,’ in hopes of making a positive impact in their lives,” said Dinna Zaratan, Philippine country manager of Viacom International Media Networks.

The program injects play in learning through physical and mental challenges that promote sportsmanship and team spirit, along with a good dose of its signature green slime that is Nickelodeon’s badge of honor.

This year’s theme, “Shout It Out Proud,” teaches self-conNext page

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LGUs

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016

DoT pushes PH destinations T

HE Department of Tourism on Monday opened the Philippine Tourism Showroom at the lobby of the new DoT building on Gil Puyat Avenue in Makati City.

The showroom showcases the country’s key destinations, culture, and local products to boost foreign and local tourist arrivals this year, the department said.

Among the local products available at the showroom are Marikina bags and shoes, knotted rosaries by Caritas Manila, fashion accessories and a variety of Filipino delicacies.

DoT Undersecretaries Katherine de Castro and Alma Rita Jimenez hosted the opening, which was attended by educators, students, travel agency owners, and entrepreneurs.

“We’ve opened showrooms in different parts of the Philippines and it’s only fitting that we have one in our DoT office,” De Castro said.

De Castro added that DoT wants to attract more arrivals from India, Korea and Malaysia and from new markets France, Germany and Russia.

The showroom is open on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Tourist attractions in the National Capital Region will be featured until September 30.

Visitors may book flights on Cebu Pacific and Air Asia at the showroom soon. PNA

Negros launches Buglasan website THE Buglasan festival’s promotions committee will launch a website for the event during the 7th Tourism Educators Congress at the Negros Oriental Convention Center in Dumaguete City tomorrow, September 23.

The committee has commissioned a web developer to create the site, which will be managed by the Provincial Tourism Office.

Committee Chairman Rafael Duhaylungsod said the website, www.buglasanfestival.com, will update Oriental Negrenses here and abroad on the festival slated for October 14 to 23.

This will also entice tourists to come to province and participate in the 10-day festivity.

Duhaylungsod said the website will post pictures of the activities as well as the profiles of the candidates for this year’s Ms. Negros Oriental ti-

tle and the eight entries in the Buglasan Festival of Festivals competition.

The website will also post the winners of various competitions in the Buglasan Festival.

Apart from this, the team is also planning to incorporate live streaming on the website similar to “Facebook Live.”

Duhaylungsod said the website “will allow our friends abroad and in the provinces, those who cannot attend the festival, to be part of this activity.”

He added that the website is similar to those other local government units have set up for their festivals, such as Sinulog in Cebu and Dinagyang in Iloilo.

Apart from the website, the committee will also strengthen their presence in social media since it is a powerful tool for event promotions. PIA

COMPASSION. Leyte 1st District Rep. Yedda Marie Romualdez, in partnership with the Department of Health, gives a wheelchair to Vincent Megonios, 25, a cerebral palsy victim of Barangay 84 in San Jose,Tacloban City. Ver Noveno

Miss Universe bets to visit Davao City next year THE Department of Tourism confirmed Monday that Davao City will still host pre-pageant activities in the Miss Universe 2017 contest.

Tourism Undersecretary for Administration and Special Concerns Katherine de Castro said

Miss Universe candidates will visit Davao City, the hometown of President Rodrigo Duterte, despite security concerns after an explosion occurred on September 2 which caused 15 deaths and 69 injuries.

“We have talks not just with

the PNP but also with the Armed Forces of the Philippines and everybody’s on board before it was a once a month meeting but as the pageant nears we will meet twice a month,” De Castro said.

“We are assured of security, even when we go to Davao,”

she added.

Cebu, Palawan and Vigan are also set to host Miss Universe prepageant activities, but DoT is still considering Bicol and Iloilo.

“We will squeeze in all the provinces we can,” De Castro said, to boost local tourism.

The Miss Universe Organization is expected to reveal the host and performers on the coronation night by the end of September.

The pageant will be held on Jan. 30, 2017 at the Mall of Asia Arena. PNA

Bataeña 2nd in nursing exam

By Rio N. Araja

By Butch Gunio BALANGA—The provincial government of Bataan gave recognition to a Bataan Peninsula State University nursing graduate who ranked second in the Nurse Licensure Examination.

Gianna Kalilah Roman was a beneficiary of the Iskolar ng Bataan program of the local government.

Roman was given a token of appreciation on Monday during the capitol’s flag raising ceremony.

She got score of 86.60 in the NLE. She is among the 48 newly registered nurses produced by BPSU. “Her achievement is also a testament of BPSU’s vision to provide quality education. In this particular achievement, it is worth citing the concerted efforts of BPSU Balanga officials particularly in the College of Nursing and Midwifery,” BPSU president Dr. Greg Rodis said earlier.

“She serves as an inspiration to students in the six campuses of the university,”Rodis added.

The university gave Roman a certificate of recognition for her achievement.

BPSU has been producing board topnotchers in engineering, education, nursing and midwifery.

SPED centers in QC schools

EMBARKING. Bounty Agro Ventures Inc.’s Tacloban business center employees, led by manager Edwin Arevalo, donate a state-of-the-art banca to Typhoon ‘Yolanda’ survivors through its Sagip program.

voice that’s raring to shout out some self-love!

At the program’s first stop, From C1 kids shouted out what makes fidence and encourages kids to them unique individuals. embrace their individuality. It “I am weird and mysterious rouses kids to find their inner and I’m happy to share that

I am like this, because I can comfortably do what I want to do,” said Xavier Alejandrino, 10. Alejandrino added that he finds inspiration to be comfortable with who he is by watching the lead characters in Nick-

Ben Farrales will be modeled by Councilor Nemesio Yabut, Jr.; barangay captains Benhur Cruz, Jeline Olfato and Maribel FriasVitales; kagawads Saira Margarita Nepomuceno and Susannah Patricia Infante; Olive Caray, Geraldine dela Rosa, Dr. Dalisay Brawner, Vissia Marie Aldon, Dr. Amelia Paje, Engineer Reynaldo Paredes, Jimmy Bacamante, Rolando Medina, and Lollie Mara.

Last year, some 12 Makati-

based designers featured their signature styles at Kasuotang Pilipino through traditional costumes in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

In 2000, the first Kasuotang Pilipino fashion show was presented in Makati City, in line with Proclamation 241 signed in 1993 by former President Fidel Ramos mandating the observance of the “Linggo ng Kasuotang Pilipino” every September.

Nick...

Makati...

From C1 Carmen Hachero, Lourdes Lacson, Zenaida Lumang, Marsha Santos, Ana Montinola, Peachy Sacasas-Alimurong (1981 Bb. Pilipinas International), Simplico Ramon Misa, Ernesto Rodriguez, Ferdinand Quirante, Enrique Villamin and Pascual Eslava.

Mindanao-themed pieces by

elodeon shows such as “Henry Danger” and “The Fairly Odd Parents.”

To find out where Nick Takes Over Your School takes place, visit the Nickelodeon Asia Facebook Page.

Munti...

From C1 Fresnedi said he aims to raise the standard for public service in Muntinlupa a notch higher.

In relation to this, Barangay Poblacion was commended by the DOH-NCR for its programs on sanitation and environmental protection.

The department adjudged

QUEZON City Mayor Herbert Bautista is pressing for the setting up of special education centers in each of the city’s 146 public schools to provide children with special needs wider access to education and other services.

“We have to make sure that the city’s public schools dedicate a special classroom for SPED classes,” Bautista said, to provide children with special needs an equal playing field with ordinary children in fully developing their abilities, talents and interests.

The Division of City Schools reported that only 44 public elementary and 13 secondary schools offer a special education program. Its elementary schools have 3,106 SPED enrollees, while its high schools have 350.

The expansion of the city’s SPED Program is part of the QC’s Public Health Modernization Program that provides constituents with better health care services.

The city maintains a Special Children’s Board formed in 2010 to protect and promote the well-being of special children. the local barangay as winner in the 8th Regional Search for Barangay with Best Sanitation Practices. The agency recognized the unrelenting efforts to showcase best practices in sanitation, specifically in water supply, sanitary toilet facilities and other local initiatives.

Brgy. Poblacion received a P150,000 cash incentive from DOH-NCR to fund future development programs.

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK Manila

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World

TODAY

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016

Syrians slam UN chief’s swan song D

AMASCUS--Damascus accused UN chief Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday of flouting the United Nations’ charter after he told world leaders it was responsible for the most civilian deaths in Syria’s war.

“The words of Ban Ki-moon today on Syria are far removed from the provisions of the UN charter, which need to be respected by (the person) who occupies the role of secretary general,” Syria’s foreign ministry

said in a statement published by the official SANA news agency.

“The United Nations has failed in its role of finding solutions to international problems and has not succeeded in resolving any conflict,” the ministry said.

Ban on Tuesday used his farewell address to the General Assembly in New York to urge world leaders to end Syria’s devastating conflict.

He blamed all sides for killing innocent people, but “none more so than the government of Syria, which continues to barrel bomb neighborhoods and systematically torture thousands of detainees.”

The UN said it was suspending humanitarian convoys in Syria a day after aid trucks were hit by

air strikes near second city Aleppo late Monday, killing around 20 civilians.

Ban denounced the “sickening, savage and apparently deliberate attack,” which US officials say was carried out by either Russian or Syrian warplanes.

Both Syria and Russia denied they were behind the raids that struck the convoy.

Now in its sixth year, the war in Syria has killed more than 300,000 people and forced millions from their homes. AFP

Turkey jails 45 students ANKARA—A Turkish court jailed 45 students Tuesday over a 2012 protest against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at an Ankara university when he visited to celebrate a satellite launch, state media reported.

The students were convicted of violating laws on meetings and impeding public officials in their work after they demonstrated against Erdogan’s visit to Middle East Technical University (METU).

The court in the capital Ankara sentenced each of the students to 10 months imprisonment, state-run news agency Anadolu said.

Police used tear gas and water cannon during the clashes with protesters in December 2012 when Erdogan visited the campus to watch the launch of a Turkish earth observation satellite into orbit aboard a Chinese rocket via a video link.

The clashes caused huge controversy, with the opposition accusing the authorities of using heavy-handed tactics against a relatively minor demonstration.

Aykan Erdemir, a former lawmaker from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), who criticized the government at the time, attacked the decision to jail the students.

“It is sad to see that prison sentences continue to be the main response of the Turkish government to student criticism and protests,” Erdemir told Agence France Presse, noting that the government had recently released 38,000 convicts to relieve pressure on Turkey’s overcrowded prisons.

Erdogan was prime minister at the time of the protest and became president in August 2014, extending his domination of the country.

In June 2013, he survived one of the biggest challenges to his rule when opponents, many of them students, took to the streets nationwide during weeks of protests against the Turkish strongman.

During the hearing, lawyers for the defendants insisted that the students had not committed any crimes and called for their acquittal, Anadolu reported. AFP

Islamists shine in Jordan polls AMMAN—Jordanians voted Tuesday in an election that could see opposition Islamists re-emerge as a major parliamentary force in the key Western ally.

Polling stations closed at 1700 GMT, after the electoral commission extended voting by an hour in major cities including Amman because of the “great crowds” of voters.

The focus will be on turnout and the performance of the Islamic Action Front, the political arm of Jordan’s Muslim Brotherhood.

The IAF is expected to clinch about 20 seats in the 130-member parliament, which would make it the largest opposition force.

The Phenix Center pollsters had said 42 percent of those eligible planned not to vote, reflecting a general lack of enthusiasm for a parliament with limited powers to affect government policy.

But others, such as 19-year-old Baraa Zeidan -- who was voting in his first election -- cast ballots enthusiastically.

“I chose the party that wants to represent me,” said the student. “I hope they will step up and solve our problems with transport, employment and the education system.”

The vote comes as Jordan wrestles with the spillover of wars in Syria and Iraq and the burden of hosting hundreds of thousands of refugees.

The kingdom is a member of the US-led coalition battling jihadists in both neighboring countries and was the target of a June 21 suicide bombing claimed by the Islamic State group that killed seven border guards.

King Abdullah II can appoint and sack the country’s military and intelligence chiefs, senior judges and members of parliament’s upper house without government approval. AFP

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Republic of the Philippines Province of Bataan City of Balanga BIDS AND AWARDS COMMITTEE OFFICE Section I. Invitation to Bid Republic of the Philippines Philippine Rural Development Project Invitation to Bid for the NEW CONSTRUCTION OF BARANGAY SAN ANTONIO-PARANGSAYSAIN Farm to Market Road Identification No. PRDP-IB-R003-BAT-001-000-000-2015 Loan No. 8421-PH September 22, 2016 1.

The Government of the Philippines (GoP) has received a Loan from the World Bank towards the cost of Philippine Rural Development Project and it intends to apply part of the proceeds of this Loan to payments under the contract for the New Construction of Barangay San Antonio-ParangSaysain Farm to Market Road/PRDP-IB-R003-BAT-001-000-000-2015.

2.

The province of Bataan, implementing partner of the Department of Agriculture, now invites bids for the New Construction of Barangay San Antonio-Parang-Saysain Farm to Market Road. Completion of the Works is required by 393 calendar days. Bidders should have completed, within the last five (5) years, a contract similar to the Project. The description of an eligible bidder is contained in the Bidding Documents, particularly, in Section II. Instructions to Bidders.

3.

Bidding will be conducted in accordance with relevant procedures for open competitive bidding as specified in the IRR of RA 9184 (R.A. 9184), with some amendments, as stated in these bidding documents and is open to all bidders from eligible source countries as defined in the applicable procurement guidelines of the World Bank. The contract shall be awarded to the Lowest Calculated Responsive Bidder (LCRB) who was determined as such during post-qualification. The Estimated Project Cost for this project is One Hundred Fifty-Seven Million Five Hundred Seventy-OneThousand Pesos (Php 157,571,000.00).

4.

Interested bidders may obtain further information from the Bids and Awards Committee Office of the Provincial Government of Bataan and inspect the Bidding Documents at the address given below from 8:00am to 5:00pm, Mondays to Fridays.

5.

A complete set of Bidding Documents may be purchased by interested Bidders from September 22, 2016 to October 21, 2016 from the address below and upon payment of a non-refundable fee for the bidding documents in the amount of Five Thousand Pesos (PhP5,000.00).

It may also be downloaded free of charge from the website of the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) and the PRDP website (http://www.daprdp.net) provided that bidders shall pay the non-refundable fee for the Bidding Documents not later than the submission of their bids.

As part of the transparency measures being instituted by the Department of Agriculture (DA) the bidders can virtually visit the site of the above-described subproject at http://www.daprdp.net where geotagged base photographs on 50 meter interval and track are viewable. The DA, however, requires that all potential contractors who will be awarded contract under the project shall have undergone geotagging training provided by the PRDP Project Support Office.

ANTI-CHINA. Hong Kong police arrested six people Wednesday over death threats to antiestablishment lawmaker Eddie Chu (center) who is advocating more autonomy from China, with reports saying some of the suspects have triad links. AFP REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES REGIONAL TRIAL COURT NATIONAL CAPITAL JUDICIAL REGION OFFICE OF THE EX-OFFICIO SHERIFF QUEZON CITY PHILIPPINE BUSINESS BANK INC, Mortgagee, -versusFRE NO. 11310 THE CHUAN CHOW SOY AND CANNING COMPANY INC., Mortgagors. x-----------------------------------------------------x

6.

The Provincial Government of Bataan will hold a Pre-Bid Conference on October 11, 2016 at 10:00 AM at the Conference Room, Provincial Governor’s Office, Bulwagan ng Bayan, Capitol Compound, Balanga City, Bataan which shall be open to all interested parties.

7.

Bids must be delivered on or before October 24, 2016 at 10:00 AM at the Office of Bids and Awards Committee, Capitol Compound, Balanga City, Bataan. All bids must be accompanied by a Bid Securing Declaration or bid security in the amount of Php3,152,000.00 in the form of Cash, certified (Cashier’s or Manager’s) Check or in the form of Bank Guarantee issued by a universal or commercial Bank.

Bids will be opened in the presence of the bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address below. Late bids shall not be accepted.

TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF TITLE NO. RT-123769 (146243) Registry of Deeds-Quezon City A parcel of land (Lot 25, of the consolidation-subdivision plan Pcs-2351, being a portion of consolidation-subdivision of Lots 19,21, 22, 23 and 24 of Block 120 described on plan Psd-1650 and Lot 18-A of plan Psd-7189, GLRO Rec. No. 3563), situated in the Dist. of San Francisco del Monte, Quezon City. Bounded on the N., by Lot 24 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the E., by Lots 27 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the S., by Aguilar Street; and on the W., by Lot 23 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; xxx containing an area of THREE HUNDRED EIGHTEEN SQUARE METERS (318) more or less.

8.

The Provincial Government of Bataan reserves the right to accept or reject any bid, to annul the bidding process, and to reject all bids at any time prior to contract award, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

9.

For further information, please refer to: (SGD) ENGR. ENRICO T. YUZON Chairman, Bids and Awards Committee Office of the Bids and Awards Committee Provincial Capitol Balanga City, Bataan

TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF TITLE NO. RT-75109 (146242) PR-1923 Registry of Deeds-Quezon City

(MS-SEPT. 22, 2016)

NOTICE OF EXTRA-JUDICIAL SALE OF REAL PROPERTY UNDER ACT 3135 (AS AMENDED) UPON extra-judicial petition under ACT 3135, as amended by ACT 4118 and pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Deed of Real Estate Mortgage executed on DECEMBER 14, 2015 by THE CHUAN CHOW SOY AND CANNING COMPANY INC, - 41-43 Aguilar St., San Francisco Del Monte Q. City/No. 041-043 Aguilar St. Brgy., Brgy. Bungad Project 7. San Francisco Del Monte, Quezon City, Mortgagor in favor of PHILIPPINE BUSINESS BANK, INC. Mortgagee, to satisfy the mortgage debt in the amount of Php91,987,093.33 as of JULY 15, 2016 inclusive/exclusive of interest, penalties, attorney’s fees and other charges together with all the lawful fees and expenses of foreclosure sale, the Ex-Officio Sheriff of the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City and/or his duly authorized Deputy Sheriff, hereby announces that on September 29, 2016 between the hours of 9:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. at the Office of the Clerk of Court & Ex-Officio Sheriff, Regional Trial Court, Hall of Justice, Bldg., Elliptical Road, Diliman, Quezon City, will sell thru public auction to the highest bidder for cash, in Philippine Currency, the following described real property/ies with all the improvements existing thereon, to wit: TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF TITLE NO. RT-79504 (146249) Registry of Deeds-Quezon City A parcel of land (Lot 31, of the consolidation-subdivision plan Pcs- being a portion of consolidation of Lots 19,21,22, 23 and 24 of Block 120 described on plan Psd-1650 and Lot 18-A of plan Psd-7169, GLRO Rec. No. 3563), situated in the Dist. of San Francisco del Monte, Quezon City. Bounded on the N. by Lot 30 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the E., by Lot 37 (Road) of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the S. by Aguilar Street; and on the W., by Lot 29 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; xxx containing an area of THREE HUNDRED FORTY SEVEN SQUARE METERS (347) more or less.

TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF TITLE NO. RT-75110 (146248) PR-1929 Registry of Deeds-Quezon City A parcel of land (Lot 30, of the consolidation -subdivision plan Pcs-2351, being a portion of consolidation of Lots 19,21,22,23 and 24 of Block 120 described on plan Psd-1650 and Lot 18-A of plan Psd-7189, GLRO Rec. No. 3563), situated in the Dist. of San Francisco del Monte, Quezon City. Bounded on the N., by Lot 29 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the E., by Lot 37 (Road) of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the S., by Lot 31 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; and on the W., by Lot 27 of the consolidation-subdivision plan. xxx containing an area of THREE HUNDRED FOUR SQUARE METERS (304) more or less.

TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF TITLE NO. RT-75111 (146247) PR-1928 Registry of Deeds-Quezon City A parcel of land (Lot 29 of the consolidation-subdivision plan Pcs-2351 , being a portion of consolidation of Lots 19, 21 , 22, 23 and 24 of Block 120 described on plan Psd-1650 and Lot 18-A of plan Psd-7189, GLRO Rec. No. 3563), situated in, the Dist. of San Francisco del Monte, Quezon City. Bounded on the N., by Lot 28 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the E., by Lot 37 (Road) of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the S., by Lot 30 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; and on the W., by Lot 26 of the consolidation-subdivision plan. xxx containing an area of THREE HUNDRED FOUR SQUARE METERS (304) more or less.

TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF TITLE, NO. RT-123770(146246) Registry of Deeds-Quezon City A parcel of land (Lot 28 of the consolidation-subdivision plan Pcs-2351 , being a portion of consolidation of Lots 19, 21 , 22, 23 and 24 of Block 120 on plan Psd-1650, and Lot 18-A of plan Psd-7189, GLRO Rec. No. 3563), situated in the Dist. of San Francisco del Monte, Quezon City. Bounded on the N., by Lot 37 (Road) of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the S. by Lot 29 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the W., by Lot 26 of the consolidation-subdivision plan. xxx containing an area of THREE HUNDRED THREE SQUARE METERS (303) more or less.

TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF TITLE NO. RT-79505 (146245) Registry of Deeds-Quezon City A parcel of land (Lot 27 of the consolidation-subdivision Pcs2351, being a portion of the consolidation of Lots 19, 21 , 22, 23 and 24 of Block described on plan Psd-1650 and Lot 18-A of plan Psd-7189, GLRO Rec. No. 3563), situated in the Dist. of San Francisco del Monte, Quezon City. Bounded on the N., by Lot 26 on the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the E., by Lots 30 and 31 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the S., by Aguilar Street; and on the W., by Lot 25 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; xxx containing an area of THREE HUNDRED TWENTY SQUARE METERS (320) more or less.

TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF TITLE NO. RT-123716 (146244) Registry of Deeds-Quezon City

A parcel of land (Lot 24, of the consolidation-subdivision plan Pcs-2351, being a portion of consolidation of Lots 19, 21,22,23 and 24 of Block 120 described on plan Psd-1650 and Lot 18-A of plan Psd-7189, GLRO Rec. No. 3563), situated in the Dist. of San Francisco del Monte, Quezon City. Bounded on the N. by Lot 37 (Road) of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the E., by Lot 26 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the S. by Lot 25 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; and on the W, by Lot 22 of the consolidation subdivision plan, xxx containing an area of THREE HUNDRED SQUARE METERS (300) more or less.

TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF TITLE NO. RT-79503 (146241) Registry of Deeds-Quezon City A parcel of land (Lot 23, of the consolidation-subdivision plan Pcs-2351, being a portion of consolidation of Lots 19, 21, 22, 23 and 24, Block described on plan Psd-1650, land Lot 18-A of plan 7189, GLRO Rec. No. 3563), situated in the Dist. of San Francisco del Monte, Quezon City. Bounded on the N., by Lot 22 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the E., by Lot 25 of the consolidation subdivision plan; on the S., by Aguilar Street; an on the W.,

by Lot 21 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; xxx containing an area of THREE HUNDRED SIXTEEN SQUARE METERS (316) more or less.

Republic of the Philippines NUEVA ECIJA UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Cabanatuan City 044-463-0228 www.neust.edu.ph INVITATION TO BID The Nueva Ecija University of Science and Technology through the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC) invites Contractors registered with and classified by the Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB) to apply for eligibility and if found eligible, to bid for hereunder contract: 1.

2.

TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF TITLE NO. RT-123715 (146240) Registry of Deeds-Quezon City A parcel of land (Lot 22, of the consolidation-subdivision plan Pcs-2351, being a portion of consolidation-subdivision of Lots 19, 21 , 22, 23 and 24 of Block 120 described on plan Psd-1650 and Lot 18-A of plan Psd-7189, GLRO Rec. No. 3563), situated in the Dist. of San Francisco del Monte, Quezon City. Bounded on the N. by Lot 37 (Road) of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the E., by Lot 24 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the S. by Lot 23 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; and on the W, by Lot 20 of the consolidation subdivision plan, xxx containing an area of THREE HUNDRED SQUARE METERS (300) more or less.

3.

4.

TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF TITLE NO. RT-79506 (146239) Registry of Deeds-Quezon City A parcel of land (Lot 21, of the consolidation-subdivision plan Pcs-2351, being a portion of consolidation of Lots 19, 21, 22, 23 and 24, Block described on plan Psd-1650, land Lot 18-A of plan 7189, GLRO Rec. No. 3563), situated in the Dist. of San Francisco del Monte, Quezon City. Bounded on the N. by Lot 20 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the E., by Lots 23 of the consolidation subdivision plan; on the S. by Aguilar Street; an on the W. by Lot 18 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; xxx containing an area of THREE HUNDRED FIFTEEN SQUARE METERS (315) more or less.

TRANSFER CERTIFICATE OF TITLE NO. RT-123771 (146238) Registry of Deeds-Quezon City A parcel of land (Lot 20, of the consolidation-subdivision plan Pcs-2351, being a portion of consolidation of Lots 19,21,22,23 and 24 of Block 120 described on plan Psd-1650 and Lot 18-A of plan Psd-7189, GLRO Rec. No. 3563), situated in the Dist. of San Francisco del Monte, Quezon City. Bounded on the N. by Lot 37 (Road) of the subdivision plan; on the E., by Lot 22 of the consolidation subdivision plan; on the S. by Lot 21 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; and on the W, by Lot 19 of the consolidation subdivision plan. xxx containing an area of THREE HUNDRED SQUARE METERS (300) more or less .

All sealed bids must be submitted to the undersigned at the aforesaid office on the above stated date and time.

Interested parties are hereby enjoined to investigate for themselves the title to the said property/ies and the encumbrances thereon, if any there be.

In the event that public auction should not take place on said date due to fortuitous event or if the same be declared a non-working holiday, it shall be held on October 6, 2016 at the same time and place without further notice.

Quezon City, Metro Manila, September 2, 2016.

(Sgd.) PEDRO L. BORJA Sheriff IV (Sgd.) GREGORIO C. TALLUD Clerk of Court VI and Acting Clerk of Court & Ex-Officio Sheriff WARNING: It is absolutely prohibited to remove, deface or destroy this.

Notice of Sheriff’s Sale on or before the date of the auction sale under penalty of the law Copy Furnished;

ATTY. NINO CHRISTOPHER R. PURA A parcel of land (Lot 26, of the consolidation-subdivision plan 3/F PBB Corporate Center Pcs-2351 , being a portion of consolidation of Lots 19, 21 , 22, 23 350 Rizal Ave. cor. 8th Ave. and 24 of Block 120 described on plan Psd-1650 and Lot 18-A of Grace Park, Caloocan City 1403 plan Psd-7189, GLRO Rec. No. 3563), situated in the Dist. of San Francisco del Monte, Quezon City. Bounded on the N., by Lot 37 THE CHUAN CHOW SOY AND CANNING COMPANY INC, (Road) of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the E., by Lots 28 41-43 Aguilar St. San Francisco Del Monte Q. City 1105 and 29 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; on the S., by Lot 27 of the consolidation-subdivision plan; and on the W., by Lot 24 of the No. 041-043 Aguilar St. Brgy., Brgy. Bungad Project 7, San Franconsolidation-subdivision plan. xxx containing an area of THREEcisco Del Monte, Quezon City, 1105 HUNDRED SQUARE METERS (300) more or less.

(MS-Sept. 8, 15 & 22, 2016)

5.

6.

Name of Project Location Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) Contract Duration Source of Fund Cost of Bidding Documents Name of Project Location Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) Contract Duration Source of Fund Cost of Bidding Documents

: :

PROPOSED AGRICULTURE LABORATORY BUILDING NEUST Gabaldon Campus, Gabaldon, Nueva Ecija

: : : :

PHP 16,316,000.00 210 Calendar Days GAA 2016 P25,000.00

: :

PROPOSED GYMNASIUM EXTENSION, LEFT WING, PHASE II NEUST Sumacab Campus, Sumacab Este, Cabanatuan City

: : : :

PHP 1,803,113.10 150 Calendar Days Special Trust Fund P5,000.00

Name of Project Location Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) Contract Duration Source of Fund Cost of Bidding Documents

: :

PROPOSED GYMNASIUM EXTENSION, RIGHT WING, PHASE II NEUST Sumacab Campus, Sumacab Este, Cabanatuan City

: : : :

PHP 1,803,113.10 150 Calendar Days Special Trust Fund P5,000.00

Name of Project

:

Location Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) Contract Duration Source of Fund Cost of Bidding Documents

:

REINFORCED CONCRETING OF FLOORING CLOSED GYMNASIUM NEUST Sumacab Campus, Sumacab Este, Cabanatuan City

: : : :

PHP 1,381,065.35 90 Calendar Days Special Trust Fund P5,000.00

Name of Project Location Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) Contract Duration Source of Fund Cost of Bidding Documents

: :

PROPOSED COVERED WALK NEUST Sumacab Campus, Sumacab Este, Cabanatuan City

: : : :

PHP 3,973,056.65 45 Calendar Days Special Trust Fund P5,000.00

Name of Project

:

Location Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) Contract Duration Source of Fund Cost of Bidding Documents

:

PAINTING OF COLLEGE OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY BLDG., GRIDS I-K/1-7 NEUST Sumacab Campus, Sumacab Este, Cabanatuan City

: : : :

PHP 673,346.15 90 Calendar Days Special Trust Fund P1,000.00

Bidding will be conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using non-discretionary “pass/fail” criterion as specified in the Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act 9184 otherwise known as the “Government Procurement Reform Act”.

Bidding is restricted to Filipino citizens/sole proprietorships, organizations with at least seventy five percent (75%) interest or outstanding capital stock belonging to citizens of the Philippines.

Prospective bidders are required to present to the BAC original copies of the following documents for authentication and issuance of Bid Documents: 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

Valid and Current Mayor’s permit/Municipal License Valid Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB) License DTI Certificate of Business Name Registration/SEC Registration Certificate Certificate of PhilGEPS Registration Certificate of BIR Registration Statement of all ongoing government and private contracts, including contracts awarded but not yet started, if any, whether similar or not similar in nature and complexity to the contract to be bid 7. Audited financial statements, stamped “received” by the BIR or its duly accredited and authorized institutions, for the immediately preceding calendar year, showing, among others, the total and current assets and liabilities 8. Computation of Net Financial Contracting Capacity (NFCC) 9. Tax Clearance Certificate The BAC will issue bidding documents only to bidders declared by the BAC to be eligible for the bidding upon payment of a non-refundable fee for the Bidding documents stated above.

The schedule of the bidding activities is as follows: Activities

Schedule

1. Advertisement/Posting

September 22-29, 2016

2. Issuance of Bid Documents

September 22 to October 12, 2016 BAC Office, 2nd Floor, AD Bldg., NEUST Gen. Tinio St., Cabanatuan City

3. Pre-bid Conference

September 30, 2016, 9:00AM NEUST President’s Office Conference Room, Gen. Tinio St., Cabanatuan City

4. Submission of Bids

October 12, 2016, 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM NEUST President’s Office Conference Room, Gen. Tinio St., Cabanatuan City

5. Opening of Bids

October 13, 2016, 9:00 AM NEUST President’s Office Conference Room, Gen. Tinio St., Cabanatuan City

6. Post Qualification

October 14, 2016, 10:00 AM NEUST President’s Office Conference Room, Gen. Tinio St., Cabanatuan City

Bids must be delivered on or before the deadline for the submission of bids and it must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount stated in the Instruction to Bidders. The bids shall be opened in the presence of the bidders or their duly authorized representatives. Late bids shall not be accepted.

The participating bidders/contractors should have completed a similar project with the value of at least 50 % of the ABC, and have key personnel and equipment (Listed in the Eligibility Forms) available for the prosecution of the contract. The BAC will use non-discretionary pass and fail criteria in the eligibility Check/Screening as well as the examination of the bids. The BAC will conduct post qualification of the lowest calculated bid.

The Nueva Ecija University of Science and Technology reserves the right to accept or reject any Bid to annul the bidding process, and to reject all Bids at any time prior to contract award, whether thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

Approved by:

(MS-SEPT. 22, 2016

(SGD.)ENGR. ERNESTO A. DELA CRUZ BAC Chairman Email : neustmain@yahoo.com NEUST Gen. Tinio Street, Cabanatuan City 3100 Telefax No. 044-6003594/044-4630226

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016

Pilot killed in spy plane crash WASHINGTON—A US pilot was killed and another injured after they ejected from a U-2 spy plane on a training mission in rural California, the Air Force said Tuesday.

The plane crashed around 9:00 am local time (1600 GMT) shortly after takeoff in an unpopulated area in Sutter, north of state capital Sacramento, the Air Force said.

The service had initially said both pilots ejected safely, but later confirmed one was killed.

The plane was assigned to the 1st Reconnaissance Squadron at Beale Air Force Base, the facility said on Facebook.

Beale spokesman Airman Tristan Viglianco said it was not immediately known if the pilot had died during the dangerous eject procedure or after.

U-2 spy planes came to the world’s attention during the Cold War, when one of the secret reconnaissance planes piloted by Gary Powers was shot down over the Soviet Union.

The Air Force still has 33 U-2s in service, five of which are two-seat trainers.

With a maximum altitude of 70,000 feet (21,300 meters,) the U-2 was initially designed to fly out of reach of Soviet air defenses. AFP

30 countries to ratify Paris accord UNITED NATIONS—At least 30 countries will on Wednesday formally join the Paris agreement on climate change, moving it closer to reality, according to the United Nations.

The global body said 30 states would submit their ratification at the UN General Assembly including Latin American heavyweights Argentina, Brazil and Mexico.

Other countries include Bangladesh, Singapore, Thailand and major fossil fuel power the United Arab Emirates.

The Paris accord, sealed late last year in the French capital, commits countries to make plans to keep global warming at no more than two degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels to try to avoid the worst effects of climate change.

To take effect, 55 parties responsible for at least 55 of global emissions of greenhouse gases must join the accord.

As of Tuesday, 29 parties behind 40 percent of emissions have given their consent, according to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

The agreement received a major boost earlier this month when China and the United States, the two largest emitters, jointly acceded to the deal during a summit between Presidents Barack Obama and Xi Jinping. AFP

World

50 countries to take in refugeees U

NITED NATIONS—US President Barack Obama on Tuesday urged countries to “welcome the stranger in our midst” at a summit that drew pledges from 50 countries to take in 360,000 refugees.

Speaking at a US-led refugee summit at the United Nations, Obama praised Germany and Canada among other countries for opening up their doors to those fleeing the war in Syria and other conflicts.

“We are facing a crisis of epic proportion,” Obama said.

“We cannot avert our eyes or turn our backs. To slam the door in the face of these families would betray our deepest values.”

Some 50 world leaders took part in the summit, but their participation was conditional on making new commitments to address the world’s largest refugee crisis since World War II. “Collectively, our nations are roughly doubling the number of refugees that we admit to our countries to more than 360,000 this year,” Obama announced.

In particular, seven countries -- Romania, Portugal, Spain, Czech Republic, Italy, France, Luxembourg -- committed to resettle or admit at least 10 times more refugees than in 2015, according to US officials.

While the new pledges would allow more asylum-seekers to rebuild their lives, it represented a fraction of the 1.1 million refu-

gees who are in need of resettlement in 2016, according to the UN refugee agency.

Countries also boosted financial contributions to UN appeals and international humanitarian organizations by about $4.5 billion over 2015 levels.

The pledges included funds to ensure access to schools for one million refugee children and enabling one million refugees to work legally.

The summit was held a day after the 193 UN member-states adopted a global plan to confront the refugee crisis. Rights groups dismissed the plan as falling far short of the needed international response.

A record-breaking 65 million people are on the move worldwide, including 21 million refugees fleeing the war in Syria and other conflicts.

Now in its sixth year, the war in Syria has displaced nine million people while more than four million have fled to neighboring countries.

The Obama administration itself has said it will raise the number of refugees entering the United States to 110,000 next year, up from 85,000 this year.

REGAL. Lupita Nyong’o poses on arrival for the premiere of Disney’s “Queen of Katwe” in Hollywood, California on Tuesday. AFP

Pope, faith leaders hold day of prayer UPBEAT. Kyle Brandon O’Quinn attends the Bounce Sporting Club Celebrates Its 5th Anniversary at Bounce Sporting Club on September 20, 2016 in New York City. AFP

NY Philarmonic streams on Facebook NEW YORK—The New York Philharmonic is taking a new step to bring a greater audience --- it is streaming its season’s first concert on Facebook.

The leading US orchestra said that Wednesday night’s concert will be live on Facebook, the first time it has streamed its opening gala which is a major New York social event and fund-raiser.

The concert will remain on Facebook, YouTube and the Philharmonic’s website for 45 days.

The musicians will perform Antonin Dvorak’s “New World Symphony,” one of the best-

In an apparent swipe at US presidential candidate Donald Trump, Obama said the refugee crisis was a “test of our common humanity, whether we give in to suspicion and fear and build walls.”

Trump has controversially proposed building a wall on the US border with Mexico to keep out undocumented migrants.

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, whose country has taken in more than 30,000 Syrian refugees since December, said the refugee crisis posed a challenge but also “an opportunity,” vowing “there is more to come.”

After admitting one million refugees last year, Germany pledged to continue welcoming those in search of refuge.

“I believe we cannot allow ourselves to stop here.

We must finally get ahead in tackling this crisis,” German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said.

Chancellor Angela Merkel’s party suffered electoral setbacks this month in the face of a surge of anti-migrant parties.

Obama pointedly noted in his address that “the politics can be hard” for leaders who open up to refugees and migrants. AFP

known modern orchestral works which was originally commissioned by the New York Philharmonic.

The Czech composer wrote the 1893 piece as he explored the United States and took inspiration from its musical heritage including African American spirituals and American Indian traditional songs.

For the Philharmonic’s upcoming season, its 175th, the orchestra has reached out to hundreds of musical groups across New York City including in schools and religious groups to ask them to inter-

pret the “New World Symphony.”

More than 70 groups from each of New York’s five boroughs have so far joined the “New World Initiative,” in which they will perform at sites across the diverse city.

“This project beautifully achieves one of my aspirations for the New York Philharmonic: to be not just an orchestra that happens to be in New York, but an orchestra that is New York’s orchestra in a very meaningful way,” music director Alan Gilbert, who is leading the Philharmonic for his last season, said in a statement. AFP

ASSISI—Pope Francis said Tuesday the world “thirsts for peace” after praying with faith leaders for an end to religious fanaticism and indifference to the plight of war victims.

“We do not have weapons” to end wars and stop those who commit violence in the name of God, the Argentine pontiff told religious heads from across the globe gathered in the central Italian medieval town of Assisi.

But “as religious leaders, (we) are duty bound to be strong bridges of dialogue, creative mediators of peace,” he said, as fighting resumed in Syria and several people died in a second day of bloody violence in DR Congo.

“We never tire of repeating that the name of God cannot be used to justify violence,” and must cast off “the heavy burdens of distrust, fundamentalism and hate,” he told an open-air ceremony as

the sun set.

The annual World Day of Prayer event, established by John Paul II 30 years ago and held in the hill-side town, aims to combat extremism in the name of religion and the persecution of people for their faiths.

The pope had held one-on-one talks with leaders including the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, the Orthodox Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew I and Din Syamsuddin, chairman of Muhammadiyah, Indonesia’s second largest Islamic organization.

He also sat down with Rabbi David Rosen from the American Jewish Committee and Koei Morikawa, the Supreme Head of the Tendai Japanese school of Mahayana Buddhism.

He had earlier bemoaned the coldness of those who turn a blind eye to refugees as easily as changing the channel on the television.

The 79-year-old pontiff had arrived amid tight security for lunch with the leaders and a group of refugees, including Syrians and Palestinians, an Eritrean, two Nigerian women and a 23-year-old from Mali who fled crisis-torn Libya for Sicily by boat.

The leaders had prayed separately in locations across the town before coming together in the square in front of the Basilica of Saint Francis to read out messages of peace.

Twenty-seven candles were lit for 27 war-hit countries, from Iraq to Myanmar, Syria and Yemen, before a minute’s silence.

“Islam is a religion of peace,” Syamsuddin said, adding that it was “the responsibility of us Muslims to work together to show the real face of our faith” and distance it from those who perpetrate violence in the name of Islam. AFP

Life

Isah V. Red, Editor Bernadette Lunas, Writer isahred@gmail.com

WELLNESS & ENVIRONMENT

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016

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TREE-PLANTING PROJECTS

for national greening initiatives

I

N support of the DENR’s National Greening Program (NGP), Republic Cement has reforested over 700 hectares in different communities situated near its facilities from 2013 to 2016 that has led in the stewardship of these areas in partnership with six upland People’s Organizations.

Over 400 families living in these communities have benefited from the livelihood for the care and maintenance of these reforestation areas and from the fruit-bearing trees and intercropped plants grown in the areas.

Republic Cement strengthens its drive for environmental responsibility with the conduct of nationwide greening initiatives. The efforts are part of the company’s recently introduced iSTAND4 program, its commitment to CSR and sustainability leadership.

Such is the company’s active par-

ticipation in the NGP, which seeks to plant 1.5 billion trees in 1.5 million hectares across the country to attain sustainable human development and ecological security.

“Responsible stewardship of our natural resources has always been at the heart of our operations,” said Renato Sunico, president of Republic Cement and Building Materials, Inc. “Reforestation activities are an integral part of our environmental program and reflect our support of the country’s sustainability goals.”

Republic Cement joins the country in restoring the health of mangrove forests in Bayug Island in Iligan (top) and participates in DENR’s National Greening Project by reforesting over 700 hectares in different communities near the company’s facilities (bottom).

To complement these initiatives in the upland areas, Republic Cement has also partnered with the local environment offices for the rehabilitation of mangrove forests in coastal areas in Visayas and Mindanao where they have operations. Its Danao and Iligan plants worked hand in hand with stakeholders, including the local barangay councils to plant a total of

20,000 red mangrove propagules.

Supporting the government’s Mangrove Reforestation Program, the activity aims to restore the health of the mangrove forests located in Brgy. Dancar in Cebu City and Bayug Island in Iligan City that were devastated by typhoons Sendong and Yolanda.

As part of its Luzon greening initiatives, Republic Cement’s Teresa plant

and Makati head office joined the Rizal provincial government’s bamboo planting activity in celebration of the province’s 115th anniversary. Planting young bamboo plants along the Paenaan River, the project aims to regulate water levels and control soil erosion in the area while providing potential food source and handicraft raw materials for the local community.

Total beautification and rejuvenation experience FROM today till Saturday, Beauty and Wellness Manila 2016 will bring together top companies in an amazing showcase of personal care and wellness products and services at the SMX Convention Center Manila, SM Mall of Asia Complex.

“The Philippines is gaining recognition for manufacturing beauty products and providing excellent yet affordable wellness and medical services. We want to be able to showcase that in this event and connect these manufacturers with potential distributors as well as build their brand to end-users,” shares Jing Lagandaon, COO of Global-Link MP Events International, Inc. (GLMP), organizers of the show.

“Beauty and Wellness Manila is about having the visitors experience for themselves the latest beauty products, world-class equipment, and most rejuvenating wellness treatments. There will be a lot of innovative brands at the show so people really have a lot to look forward to,” she adds.

Beauty and Wellness Manila promises visitors an opportunity to experience solutions for ageless and glowing skin, learn from technical experts, get exclusive freebies and discounts, witness the art of nail painting, consult with fitness experts, participate in personal development workshops, and feel good through therapies and organic solutions for your face, skin and body.

GLMP also partnered with the Chamber of Cosmetics Industry of the Philippines to put together special activities to add on to the sourcing and networking opportunities at the show, such as Manila Business

“With the demand for beauty, health and wellness solutions on the rise, I am calling all affiliates and advocates to join us in accepting this challenge and opportunity. Together, let us grow and strengthen this market,” shares Siliman S. Sy, president of The Chamber of Cosmetics Industry of the Philippines.

Beauty and Wellness Manila 2016 will be held co-located with Hotel

Suppliers Show, Manila International Travel Expo Series.

Entrance to the show is free. To pre-register and learn more about the other things to look forward to, visit www.globallinkmp.com/beautyandwellnessmanila. To inquire about exhibiting opportunities, email jara.lauzon@globallinkmp.com.

SNAPSHOT ALEXANDRA COUSTEAU EXPLORES APO ISLAND OCEANA Senior Advisor Alexandra Cousteau explores the amazing marine life in Apo Island, including this endangered green sea turtle.

Apo Island in Dauin, Negros Oriental is known as the model of marine protection where the collaboration among the community, NGOs, academe, and government agencies has led to the protection of the marine resources for around 30 years. Danny Ocampo

Ji Hyeon Baek and Miss Korea Beauty 2014 Myeongseon Kim are proud users of Dr. Labella products

Summit: Beauty and Wellness Edition (daily seminars; inspirational stories and guides to start your own retails business); Business Matching Sessions; Beauty Watch (IPL skin lifting; laser and facial treatments; micro-blading and embroidery tutorials; free cosmetics and skin analyzers; and exclusive discounts on aesthetics); Salon-on-the-go (nail art sessions; organic hair care solutions; franchise opportunities; and, online marketing services); Body Retreat (consultations with health, nutrition and fitness gurus; trial massage, therapies and self-development prac-

tices; and organic food supplements); and many more.

Whether you are searching the trendiest brands or curious about the latest services out in the local and global market, this is definitely the place to be at. Some representatives from the beauty, health and wellness sectors include: Korea Trade Center, Cosmetigroup International, Createch Wellness/Karada, Oracle Aesthetic Clinic, Bloom Concept, Ever Bilena, Zen Institute, Vietura Aesthetic Lifestyle, Refinette Cosmetics, MixExpert Manila, Sante International and many more.

Life

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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016 isahred@gmail.com

Meditate to health,

W

HAT do Oprah Winfrey, Paul McCartney, Michael Jordan and Lebron James have in common?

success and happiness

They’re all incredibly successful, hard-working and geniuses in their field, but many people don’t know that they all practice meditation. Oprah said that meditation has made her “1,000 times better.” Jordan and James, both famous athletes, practice meditation to sharpen their focus and improve concentration.

Steve Jobs, founder of Apple, was a well-known meditation practitioner. Biographer Walter Isaacson wrote, “Your intuition starts to blossom and you start to see things more clearly and be in the present more. Your mind just slows down, and you see a tremendous expanse in the moment. You see so much more than you could see before. It’s a discipline; you have to practice it.”

Meditation is the process of reflecting on your mind. When you start looking inside yourself, you will be able to change and improve yourself and thus, tap into so much unrealized potential. At Ortigas/Makati Meditation Center, you can look back on your mind and improve your life and career. Through the “subtraction” method you can discover the original nature of the mind.

The human mind is like a stack of pictures that you have stored in your mind and body. These “pictures” are the accumulation of your past experiences which have formed your pattern of thinking and habits. The pictures stored in your mind contain emotions, thoughts and attachments to people, places and material things.

They have created their own world in your mind. Because the world in the human mind is not “real,” you can throw them away. This method is systematic and scientific. It is not about suppressing your mind and experiencing temporary comfort. It helps you to eliminate the roots of

how to empty your mind, your inner power grows, which allows you to control your mind in any situation you can possibly face. You will always be positive and the quality of your life will dramatically improve.

The effects of this meditation have been scientifically verified. An extract from the academic paper “The Effects of the Meditation Program on the Brain Function of University Students” published in the Journal of the Completion Education Society stated this: “After the mind subtraction meditation, the university students’ brainwaves became stable and their brain quotient enhanced. Therefore, their concentration and thinking ability have improved. Their resistance to stress from internal and external environmental factors has enhanced.”

Likewise, meditation has positive effects on the brainwaves. Therefore, it gives people who practice the method mental stability.

This meditation was established in South Korea in November 1996.

Currently, there are more than 340 meditation centers all over the world and more than 500,000 people have practiced the method of subtraction to cleanse the mind and body to become the truth.

In the Philippines, the centers in Ortigas and Makati are open from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m., seven days a week. Those who would like to get more information about meditation, register for the free seminar conducted at Ortigas Meditation Center (AIC Gold Tower, F. Ortigas Jr., Pasig) or at Makati Meditation Center (Classica Tower 2, 114 H.V. Dela Costa St.) For more information, visit OrtigasMeditation.org and MakatiMeditation.org.

AT PEACE. Mind subtraction meditation method is a process of emptying one’s mind that results in many benefits such as mental stability, happier outlook in life, and improvement of quality of life among many others. your human mind, completely. When you empty your mind through the subtraction method, your mind and body will become lighter and freer.

You will find the true happiness within you.

At Ortigas/Makati Meditation Center, professional instructors guide practitioners with the subtraction method and always check their meditation progress in order to help them throw away their thoughts.

Most of the practitioners feel the changes in their minds in two to three weeks after they practice the subtraction meditation.

Once the noisy and complicated state of mind is subtracted, you can feel calm, light and comfortable. You will be able to control the negative emotions that engulf you. You can discover yourself sincerely smiling at the colleagues you used to feel uncomfortable around.

You will even feel happy in the morning when you wake up. Your work performance improves along with your concentration as the useless thoughts disappear from your head. You will find yourself free from stress. You can recover your confidence and get to know yourself much better. You will be able to understand people much better, therefore, the relationships with people naturally improve and conflicts will be solved. With the awareness of

Oriental secrets to vigor and vitality MATSTONE Horizontal Slow Juicer again showed the power and health benefits of juicing fruits and vegetables during the recently held World Food Expo (WOFEX) 2016 in Pasay City.

At the food expo, Matstone Horizontal Slow Juicer demonstrated its vaunted efficiency and effectiveness in blending a variety of fruits and vegetables that bring vigor and vitality to Filipinos. No less than Dr. Andrew Kim, a doctor of Oriental Medicine and other non-Western modes of medical treatment and made famous through his “The New Life Health and Wellness Center,” introduced several beverages through the Matstone Horizontal Slow Juicer.

In his presentation at the Matstone booth inside the sprawling SMX Convention Center, Kim introduced two juice recipes guaranteed to bring out renewed energy and strength.

The first drink, “Summer Festival,” is a concoction that mixed pineapple, watermelon and turmeric. According to Dr. Kim, pineapple is

supposed to bring energy, reduces inflammation of joints and muscles, and prevents cancer of the mouth, throat and breast while helping boost our immune system.

Watermelon, on the other hand, is known to be rich in citrulline and folate, helps reduce high blood pressure, cleans the kidneys and fights cancer. Then turmeric is touted to amplify blood circulation and body temperature, says Dr. Kim, and even protects brain cells. It also protects a healthy inflammatory response and eases aches and pains while promoting soft, smooth, glowing skin and fights fine lines and wrinkles to delay the effects of aging.

“Pineapple is really a wonder fruit that’s fun and effective to mix with

Matstone Horizontal Slow Juicer efficiently and effectively blends fruits and vegetables

Dr. Andrew Kim (third from left) creates two juice concoctions using Matstone that bring out renewed energy and strength

other fruits and vegetables.

It’s not only a good summer fruit but has its own health benefits as well,” he shared.

The other drink he showed to the Matstone guests was his “Green Energizer” drink, from basil, malunggay, pineapple and ginger.

Basil, he said, boosts the heart rate and blood flow, sharpens the m e m o r y,

promotes healthy eyes and improves the immune system. malunggay (Moringa Oleifera), he pointed out, is a plant he calls “plant of many wonders” because of its natural health benefits. It increases energy and endurance, helps normalize blood sugar levels, maintains healthy cholesterol levels, protects the heart, strengthens the immune system, prevents headaches and migraines, fights cancer, promotes good night’s sleep and has high Potassium levels that’s three times higher than bananas. Of course, pineapple and ginger have their own health benefits that perfectly complement the health-giving powers of basil and malunggay.

He even said that many Koreans have already realized malunggay’s many wonders so whenever Koreans visit the Philippines, they always bring malunggay with them to plant back home.

“There is no doubt that juicing will remain to be an effective method to keep ourselves healthy. With Matstone Horizontal Slow Juicer, you don’t need to spend your hard-earned money to buy juice drinks that are commercially made. You can now make your own at the comforts of your home and can even try to make your signature recipes of mixing fruits and vegetables that will bring health and vitality not just to you but your family, friends and loved ones,” explains Kim after his presentation.

New Zika self-test kits launched PHILAB Industries Inc. will soon launch a self-test kit that will help detect Zika Virus at first sign of symptoms.

Hector Thomas Navasero, Philab president and chief executive officer, said the company hopes to launch the test kit before the year ends.

“We are now in the last stages of securing a certification from the Food and Drug Administration,” Navasero said.

According to Navasero, the selftest kits will empower patients and individuals in far flung communities

because time is a resource too valuable for the sick.

“The self-test kit will yield result within 20 minutes. If it is positive, then the patient should go to the hospital so proper medication can be administered by the doctors,” he said.

Zika virus is a mosquito-borne infection that increased the number of children being born with unusually small heads—identified as microcephaly— in Brazil.

Recently, the Department of Health has confirmed six cases of Zika virus

infection in the country; the most recent is in Iloilo City — a 45-year-old lady. The five other cases have been detected since 2012.

Despite the increase in reported cases, the World Health Organization (WHO) is yet to determine the exact incubation period.

WHO said the symptoms are similar to other arbovirus infections such as dengue, and include fever, skin rashes, conjunctivitis, muscle and joint pain, malaise and headache. These symptoms are usually mild and last for two

to seven days.

Health experts said the virus is primarily transmitted to individuals through the bite of an infected mosquito, mainly Aedes aegypti in tropical regions.

WHO noted that the Aedes mosquitoes usually bite during the day, peaking during early morning and late afternoon/evening. This is the same mosquito that transmits dengue, chikungunya and yellow fever.

Sexual transmission of Zika virus is also possible. Other modes of trans-

mission such as blood transfusion are being investigated.

Recently, Philab launched the country’s first ever self-test kits meant to detect Dengue virus among patients.

The Dengue self-test kit is a two-inch plastic strip that contains chemicals that react to N-S1 protein. N-S1 protein is present among individuals infected by the Dengue virus.

Meanwhile, the Zika self-test kits will soon be made available to drug stores nationwide at less than P200 per test kit.

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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016 isahred@gmail.com

CELEBRITY CHEFS. The

driving force in the avant garde food movement Chef Heston Blumenthal and famous chef-cumauthor Anthony Bourdain (inset)

T

HE unique program Heston’s Dinner in Space follows the adventures of Chef Heston Blumenthal and his team as they work closely with the UK Space Agency, ESA and NASA, attempting to revolutionize the previously limited world of space food.

Challenged by British Astronaut Tim Peake, Heston creates seven dishes that remind Tim of home, helping to combat the emotional impact of the astronaut’s journey. In one of the biggest challenges of his career, Heston goes one step further to create the firstever ‘dinner party in space’. Tim goes on a nostalgic journey of his childhood with every bite as Heston provides much-needed comfort food and creates the quintessential cup of tea – the first to be sipped in outer space.

Follow Heston’s trials and tribulations behind creating meals that can be consumed outside of the Earth’s atmosphere, culminating in an out-ofthis-world dining experience where his creations are eaten live on the International Space Station.

Catch Heston’s Dinner in Space every Monday at 8:05 p.m. on TLC. Also set to feature on TLC this month

is Parts Unknown Season 6.

The one-hour weekend lifestyle series follows world-renowned chef, writer and broadcaster Anthony Bourdain as he travels the across the globe to uncover little-known areas of the world and celebrate diverse cultures by exploring food and dining rituals.

Known for his curiosity, candor, and wit, Bourdain takes viewers off the beaten path of tourist destinations - including some war-torn parts of the world - and meets with a variety of local citizens to offer a window into their lifestyles, and occasionally communes with an internationally lauded chef on his journeys.

It’s a whole new series of the same good food and lifestyle finds on Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown 6 9 p.m. every Tuesday.

Community ambassadors in 5th UNTV Cup ANGELICA Alita, Bb. Pilipinas 2016 First Runner-up, was the only rose among the thorns in the PNP Team the PNP Responders during the launch of the 5th UNTV Cup basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

Alita, who is predicted to return next year and grab one of Bb. Pilipinas titles, was invited to act as “Community Ambassadress” of the Philippine National Police (PNP), one of the 13 teams formed from various government agencies taking part in the

annual charity basketball tournament.

Police Community Relations Group Command Group led by PCRG Director PSSupt Gilberto DC Cruz guided the PNP Responders for the said tournament.

The 21-year-old Alita, a former ABSCBN “My Girl” finalist, was easily the star of the UNTV Cup opening ceremony along with the popular twosome Senators Sonny Angara and Joel Villanueva from the Senate Defenders team. “I am thrilled to be a

part of this sports event and I did not know that Senators Sonny and Joel play basketbal,” said the “Star Magic” talent, model and chef.

The 13 competing teams of the 5th UNTV Cup are defending champions Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Cavaliers, PNP Responders, Metro Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Blackwolves, National Housing Authority (NHA) Builders, Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) Firefighters, Judiciary Magis,

Beauty queen Angelica Alita flanked by cagers from PNP and other government agencies in the annual charity basketball tournament held at the Mall of Asia Arena

CROSSWORD PUZZLE Thursday, September 22, 2016

ACROSS 1 Meatloaf serving 5 Author — Binchy 10 Did the crawl 14 HI or AK, once 15 Kate’s sitcom friend 16 Leaf juncture 17 Herr von Bismarck 18 Mention 19 Tax shelters 20 Mind reader 22 Tiaras 24 Goal 25 Observe 26 Comply (2 wds.)

30 Futile 34 Nerve network 35 Zero 37 Egad!

38 Sooner than anon 39 Big green parrot 40 Female rabbit 41 Mme. Gluck of opera 43 Cruller cousin 45 Rustler’s target 46 Conference part 48 Shore leave 50 Photo 51 Rock’s — Leppard

52 Glen Campbell title city 56 Proper 60 Turkish official 61 Nash of humorous poems 63 Goddess’s statue 64 Obscure 65 Wishing undone 66 Famed lioness 67 Q.E.D. part 68 Makes smooth 69 Bulrush or cattail DOWN 1 Pull over 2 Tolerates 3 Bohemian 4 Heavy fabric 5 Xylophone kin 6 Waugh or Baldwin 7 Brownie 8 Were rivals 9 Most uncanny 10 In a catty way 11 Became frayed 12 Sandler or Arkin 13 Muddle 21 Rush off 23 Mate’s comeback 26 Circle sizes

27 “Uncle Miltie” 28 Gossip tidbits 29 Jack London venue 30 Mover’s rental (hyph.)

31 Where to get down 32 Wear jauntily 33 Like watermelons 36 Pentagon VIP 42 Road surface 43 Tampers with 44 News 45 Beefier

47 49 52 53

Sequel’s sequel Put money on Hand signal Disney CEO Bob — 54 “Wool” on clay sheep 55 Water, to Juana 56 Manage for oneself 57 Groundless 58 Proboscis 59 More than willing 62 Uproar

Malacañang Kamao, Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) Furies, House of Representatives Solons, Department of Justice (DOJ) Justice Boosters, Ombudsman Graftbusters, Bureau of Customs (BOC) Transformers and the Senate Defenders.

Each of these UNTV Cup team choose a beneficiary or a charity to support with their winning prizes.

Senators Angara and Villanueva used to find time to play some basketball in mini-friendly tournaments at the Senate.

Angara played for the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons while “Tesdaman” Villanueva was a member of the UST Growling Tigers that won the 56th & 57th UAAP Season.

Senators Bam Aquino and Win Gatchalian were also part of the Senate Defenders, with Senate Minority Leader Ralph Recto as playing team manager. Senator Manny Pacquiao withdrew from joining the team due to restrictions in his contract in the PBA league as playing coach of Mahindra.

A UPC (Uniform Players Contract) prohibits any PBA player from joining other tournaments.

The Senate Defenders chose the NGOs Kythe Foundation which helps hospitalized children with cancer and other chronic illness, Bahay Pangarap Foundation for street children in Pasay City and Share an Opportunity Philippines, which works with children, families and communities to overcome poverty and injustice, as beneficiaries.

The 5th UNTV Cup games are telecast over UNTV Channel.

Eton B. Concepcion

‘Let’s give Harvey a chance’ –Teo TOURISM Secretary Wanda Teo is counting on the sense of forgiveness of President Rodrigo Duterte and the Filipino people, as well, to accept Steve Harvey to emcee the Miss Universe pageant in Manila.

Teo admitted that Duterte expressed hesitations on the likelihood that Harvey would host 2016 Miss Universe coronation night scheduled for Jan. 30, 2017 at the Mall of Asia Arena.

The Department of Tourism (DOT) chief said she explained that Harvey is in a five-year contract to emcee the pageant.

Harvey has been vocal in expressing his apologies for his mistake of announcing Miss Colombia as the winner before he realized that Bb. Pilipinas Universe Pia Wurtzbach was adjudged the 2015 Miss Universe.

“Miss Universe Pageant is four months away. That’s more than enough time to assuage President Duterte about his hesitation on Mr. Harvey’s hosting the event. I’ve known him for many years as our Davao City Mayor with a big heart for well-meaning people like Mr. Harvey, who did not hesitate to correct his mistake,” Teo said.

In an interview on DZMM with Castro, Teo also pointed Noli de Castro out, “I will personally speak with the President and may even ask the help of Pia to convince him to give Mr. Harvey the chance he deserves.”

She went on to say, “The reigning Miss Universe, our very own Pia Wurtzbach has the magnanimity to appreciate the way Mr. Harvey stepped up to redeem himself. I’m counting on the same sense of forgiveness and class-act among Filipinos.”

In the Miss Universe Organization Facebook page, a photo of Wurtzbach and Harvey is posted showing the questionand-answer portion of 2015 Miss Universe, captioned “#TBT to the night that changed my life.

Steve Harvey, let’s do it again and changed someone else’ life.”

Meanwhile, Teo clarified that the DOT is leaving to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to address the problem of homelessness that one news reporter said may be “eyesore” during the Miss Universe events.

“I do not consider homeless and street dwellers as mere eyesores.

They are rather a manifestation of the tragic poverty that the Duterte Administration is addressing right now, through the DSWD and housing agencies,” Teo stressed.

She assured the DSWD under Sec. Judy Taguiwalo would implement humane and longlasting programs and projects to uplift the lives of poor Filipinos in the streets.

The previous DSWD administration was condemned for hauling street dwellers and billeting them to a resort outside Metro Manila for the duration of Pope Francis’ visit and the APEC Summit last year.

Isah V. Red, Editor Nickie Wang, Writer isahred@gmail.com

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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016

Showbiz

A

FTER creating Philippine cinema history by winning the prestigious Golden Lion for Best Film at the recent Venice Film Festival, Lav Diaz’s Ang Babaeng Humayo once again created a buzz among movie critics, this time, at the film’s North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).

Lorenzo Esposito of Cinema Scope said, “If there’s someone who thinks that The Woman Who Left is a minor Lav Diaz film—because it’s the second one this year, or because, at 227 minutes, it’s “short” for him—let’s say up front that this is one of his best.”

Ben Nicholson of Cine Vue, meanwhile, gave the Cinema One Originals and Sine Olivia-produced film four out of five stars and even described lead star Charo Santos’ performance as Horacia as “incredible” and “magnetic.”

Charo, upon her arrival in Toronto, shared in an interview how happy she is for director Lav

Diaz with the Golden Lion win.

“It makes me feel proud and very happy for Lav Diaz. He really deserves this. When we talked in March, we said we would only make a movie. We are just going to have fun. But this is more than just having fun. This is a great adventure, and really, a most unforgettable moment,” Charo said.

Cinema One head Ronald Arguelles, who is one of the producers of the film, is also ecstatic with the unexpected win.

“We are just very happy already that we won the Golden Lion. It’s an achievement itself.

We didn’t expect that a small film could win

the award,” he said.

Ronald was among the team who joined Lav, Charo, and John Lloyd Cruz at the Venice Film Festival where he described the internationally acclaimed director as a film “rock star.”

Ang Babaeng Humayo, with the international title The Woman Who Left, tells the story of Horacia (Charo Santos), a woman seeking revenge after being convicted for decades for a crime she didn’t commit.

The film, which marks the movie comeback of former ABS-CBN president and CEO, and now chief content officer Charo, was originally produced to open this year’s Cinema One Originals independent film competition.

With this landmark achievement, Ronald hopes the Golden Lion award win can leverage Cinema One’s business as it aims to produce more films like Ang Babaeng Humayo.

“We have a worldwide distributor for our films, Films Boutique. The Golden Lion honor will definitely help them sell, and hopefully, we can produce more films. We can now attract big

filmmakers to do a film with us,” he shared.

Ronald also confirmed that the local cinema exhibition is already in the works, but they have yet to finalize the playdates.

Aside from Lav’s cinematic masterpiece

by Lav and Charo’s critically acclaimed performance, viewers can also look forward to the provocative performance of actor John Lloyd Cruz as Hollanda, a transgender prostitute.

In an interview in TV Patrol, John Lloyd gave a glimpse of his character.

“She dresses like a woman. But she has not undergone surgery. In the story, Hollanda is changed by Ma’am Charo’s character.”

He also recounted his Venice Film Fest experience and shared what an emotional moment it was for him.

“I was trying my best to not cry. But I couldn’t help but be really emotional. For me, it’s a defining moment for Philippine cinema.

We were also approached by the jury during the after party and they were telling us how the film affected them.”

Charo Santos-Concio at the Toronto International Film Festival

FROM VENICE TO TORONTO

Critics applaud

‘Ang Babaeng Humayo’

A scene fr om the acc la victed for decades fo imed Lav Diaz film ab r a crime sh e didn’t co out a woman seekin mmit g revenge after bein g con-

‘Wong Kids’ in Manila

Using a mix of action-driven storytelling, puppetry, and visual magic, ‘The Wong Kids’ transports its audience into the far reaches of the galaxy

“WORTH cheering for,” and “Exuberantly imaginative adventure for children,” the New York Times wrote of The Wong Kids in the Secret of the Space Chupacabra Go! The Ma-Yi Theater Company, a well-known Filipino-Asian fixture in New York, brings the merry romp to Manila at the Cultural Center of the Philippines’ Little Theater.

Dragons, robots, frogs and even rocks, fly, gobble up things and speak, and wonder of wonders, help the Wong kids overcome bullying and their childhood insecurities.

“A must see… filled with imagination, spontaneity, comedy and heart, it is both moving and hilarious,” is the Times Square Chronicles’ review of playwright Lloyd Suh’s work.

Song, dance, some acrobatics, great original music, playground sets flown in by Philippine Airlines— there’s never, ever, a dull moment in this fast-paced, three-ring-circus.

Tanghalang Pilipino’s Actors Company veterans shift to

speaking English with their talent intact: Aldo Vencilao, Blanche Buhia, Aika Zabala, Jonathan Tadoian, Marco Viaña, and Juliene Mendoza.

Music lovers will delight to the sounds and songs by Shane Rettig. The sets are by Meredith Ries, costumes by Mio Infante, and lighting by Barbie Tantiongco.

Best of all is Ralph B. Peña’s direction—clever, funny, original!

Ma-Yi Executive Director Jorge Z. Ortoll is himself a well-known former stage actor in Manila.

The Wong Kids in the Secret of the Space Chupacabra Go! is presented in association with Tanghalang Pilipino and Philippine Airlines with the support of Stage Craft International. It runs until Sept. 25, with shows at 10 a.m., 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. at the CCP Little Theater.

For inquiries, contact CCP Marketing 832-3704/3706 or Tanghalang Pilipino at 832-1125 loc.

1620-1621.