Manila Standard - 2016 December 29 - Thursday

‘Nina’ damage exceeds P5b

VOL. XXX • NO. 320 • 4 SECTIONS 20 PAGES • P18 • THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016 • www.thestandard.com.ph • editorial@thestandard.com.ph

RIZAL’S RHYTIDECTOMY.

Members of the National Historical Commission give a sweeping face-lift for the monument of Jose Rizal at the sprawling bayside Luneta Park in time for tomorrow’s 120th anniversary of his execution by firing squad on grounds of rebellion, sedition and conspiring against the Spanish government. Norman Cruz

TYPHOON “Nina” (international name: “Nock-Ten”) caused at least P5.3 billion in damage to crops and P83.4 million in infrastructure in Marinduque and Oriental Mindoro, disaster officials said Wednesday.

The powerful typhoon also displaced 132,908 families or more than 600,000 people from 785 barangays, forcing

them to seek shelter in 145 schools, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said.

Tens of thousands remained in evacuation centers Wednesday morning.

Some P29.8 million worth of food and non-food assistance and P1.17 million in medicine and medical supplies have been distributed to typhoon victims. Next page

Robredo’s rating dips —survey More Pinoys dissatisfied with her work

By John Paolo Bencito and Rio Araja

V

ICE President Leni Robredo’s net satisfaction rating fell 12 points in the latest Social Weather Stations opinion poll conducted shortly after she left the Cabinet on Dec. 4.

The survey, conducted from Dec. 3 to 6, found that 58 percent of 1,500 respondents nationwide said they were satisfied with Robredo’s performance, as against 21 percent who were dissatisfied and 20 percent who were undecided.

While she retained a “good” net satisfaction rating, Robredo saw her +49 score in the previous SWS survey fall to +37.

Despite the lower rating, Robredo thanked Filipinos for their “continued trust and support.”

Next page

STEEP DROP. Vice President Leni Robredo’s net satisfaction rating drops—in just three months—by 12 points this December based on the latest Social Weather Stations polls. From +49 percent in September, Robredo’s rating was down to +37 percent as shown in the survey conducted from Dec. 3 to 6, 2016. Manny Palmero

’Cracker blast injuries Duterte hits out at anti-drug war priests Pearl A. Gajunera high despite info drive ByandF.Rey E. Requejo

By Macon R. Araneta A TOTAL of 90 firecracker-related injuries have been recorded as of Wednesday, Dec. 28, Health Secretary Paulyn Ubial said.

In a press conference, Ubial said that of the 90 cases, 89 are blast injuries from firecrackers while one is considered a case of ingestion. She said 58 percent of the cases were caused by the illegal piccolo firecracker.

Of the firecracker injuries, 69 were children. Twenty-one suffered eye injuries. Most victims were male.

The department has been monitoring firecracker-related injuries since Dec. 22 as part of its #IwasPaputok campaign.

While the number of fireworkrelated injuries increased from 70 last Dec. 26 to 90 two days later, the figure was still 39 percent lower compared to the 147 reported for the same period last year.

Most of the injuries have been recorded in Metro Manila.

“No less than 45 of the 89 cases or 50 percent of all cases comes from NCR [Metro Manila]. The next region with the highest is Next page

MAKING READY. Orthopedic surgeon Mark Anthony Arias shows the medical tools used for cutting bones of firecracker victims at the government’s Jose Reyes Memorial Medical Center as the Department of Health gets ready for the New year emergency calls. Norman Cruz

Zika-infected 16-year-old gives birth to healthy baby A PREGNANT woman aged 16 and infected by the Zika virus gave birth to a healthy and normal child before Christmas, Health Secretary Paulyn Jean RosellUbial announced on Wednesday.

“We have one who delivered [her baby already], the one in Las Piñas, and the baby is healthy and normal,” Ubial said.

She said of the 52 Zika cases,

only four or seven percent were women who had been pregnant at the time of infection.

She said her department was monitoring the mother and her baby despite her having been declared safe from the lingering effects of the mosquito-borne virus.

“Our patients are still under close surveillance and monitoring Next page

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DAVAO CITY―President Rodrigo Duterte again slammed the Catholic Church for criticizing his campaign against illegal drugs and for portraying him as the prime suspect in the alleged summary killings in the country.

Duterte, who spoke in front of village officials on Tuesday night, said the Church must remind the public to stop using illegal drugs and submit themselves to authorities instead.

He said the primary role of the Church was to educate and guide the people to the right path.

“There are about four million addicts and they are all slaves

of illegal drugs. Religion should guide them,” Duterte said.

He made his statement even as high-profile inmate Jaybee Sebastian was transferred to the headquarters of the National Bureau of Investigation due to threats to his life.

Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II refused to give details on who was threatening Sebas-

government officials to stop their corrupt practices in a speech during the gift-giving to barangay officials in Davao City at the Almendras Gym Tuesday where he also once more raked over the coals of the Catholic Church for criticizing his campaign against illegal drugs.

De Lima on a spot amid Senate probes THE Senate was off to a tumultuous start in the 17th Congress as the leadership of Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III was tested by a fracas triggered by hearings on extrajudicial killings that have been on the rise since President Rodrigo Duterte took office in late June.

The President’s political nemesis, Senator Leila de Lima, pushed to investigate the killing of thousands of suspects in Duterte’s war on illegal drugs, but the hearing quickly turned to his record as Davao City mayor, when a selfconfessed hitman, Edgar Matobato, tagged him as the mastermind

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behind the dreaded Davao Death Squad, believed to be responsible for the death of more than 1,000 people—suspected criminals, political opponents, and personal enemies--between 1998 and 2008.

This was old ground for De Lima, who had unsuccessfully investigated Duterte when she led the Commission on Human Rights and when she was Justice secretary under the Aquino administration.

After presenting Matobato on Sept. 15, De Lima was voted out as chairwoman of the committee on justice and human rights by 16 of her colleagues. She was replaced by Senator Richard Gordon, an independent, who was

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Star Wars’ Princess Leia dies at 60

THE RED LIGHT. President Rodrigo Duterte warns all

By Macon R. Araneta

tian, but said he had already ordered an investigation. “[Sebastian was transferred] upon the request of his counsel and his wife,” Aguirre said.

Duterte said the recent bombing at the Santo Niṅo church in Midsayap, North Cotabato, was a result of drug addiction.

He said the police, the military

more sympathetic to the President.

Most of De Lima’s colleagues in the Liberal Party stood by her, except for Senator Joel Villanueva, who was indicted for malversation, graft and falsification of public documents in the pork barrel scandal when De Lima headed the Department of Justice.

Live radio and TV coverage exposed the public to bickering within the Senate, even among those belonging to the same political party, such as Senators Alan Peter Cayetano and Antonio Trillanes IV. Both had run unsuccessfully for the vice presidency, with Cayetano running alongside Next page Duterte.

LOS ANGELES―After decades of fast living that her fearless “Star Wars” character Princess Leia would have struggled to keep up with, Carrie Fisher died Tuesday following a massive heart attack. She was 60.

The American actress, bestselling author and screenwriter―who suffered from many addictions she later turned into writing gold―was a member of Hollywood royalty, both on screen and off.

Born in Los Angeles in October 1956, the daughter of actress Debbie Reynolds and singer Eddie Next page

Carrie Fisher

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De Lima...

From A1 Both members of the Nacionalista Party, Cayetano and Trillanes traded insults on several occasions over the alleged involvement of Duterte in the summary executions.

At one point, Trillanes even turned the microphone off while Cayetano was grilling Matobato.

Trillanes later used a privilege speech to seek a Senate investigation into the Davao Death Squad and Duterte’s alleged involvement in the summary executions in Davao.

Taking the side of De Lima, Trillanes also called Gordon a lackey of Duterte and accused him of leading a cover-up.

In the end, Gordon said his committee found no basis for the claim that the summary killings of drug suspects were state-sponsored.

He also said the DDS was “a media creation” whose existence was not proven during the hearing, virtually clearing Duterte of the Davao killings.

In his committee report, Gordon also recommended the filing of charges against Trillanes and De Lima for their behavior during the hearing.

During the hearings, Gordon had accused De Lima of “material concealment” of information that Matobato had been charged by the National Bureau of Investigation for the 2002 kidnapping with ransom of Pakistani national Sali Makdum.

This prompted a denial from De Lima and a demand for an apology that was never given.

“Since no apology is forthcoming, I am walking out,” De Lima said. She left the Senate floor, an act Gordon attributed to “cowardice.”

The hearing in October was then suspended after dragging on for 13 hours.

The 17th Congress also saw suspension orders served, first on Senator JV Ejercito and then on Villanueva.

But before Christmas, the Sandiganbayan acquitted Ejercito of graft charges over the alleged diversion of P2.1 million in city funds to purchase high-powered firearms for the local police.

The anti-graft court’s Fifth Division, comprised of Associate Justices Roland Jurado, Rafael Lagos and Maria Theresa Arcega, granted Ejercito’s demurrer to evidence¸ noting the absence of evidence to prove firearms supplier HK Tactical Defense System Inc. enjoyed any special advantages.

Ejercito had gone on leave even if the Senate leadership had not imposed his suspension as the Ombudsman had ordered.

Later in the year, the Ombudsman ordered Villanueva dismissed from government service over his alleged involvement in the pork barrel scam when he was still a congressman.

Ombudsman Conchita CarpioMorales said Villanueva was guilty of grave misconduct, serious dishonesty and conduct prejudicial to the interest of the service.

Villanueva, who garnered the second most number of votes in the senatorial race last May, served as a party-list representative for Citizens’ Battle Against Corruption (CIBAC) from 2001 to 2010.

The Ombudsman directed the Senate President to carry out the dismissal order, but the Senate adopted the opinion of its legal office, which said that the Office of the Ombudsman cannot order the dismissal of a senator.

Duterte...

From A1 and even the communist rebels had told him that the person behind the Christmas Eve bombing was a drug personality.

“The bombing was a drug-related incident,” Duterte said.

He said while the Church people continued to point its fingers at him, they were failing to realize that more fingers were being pointed at them.

“It is about time that I show[ed] you the true color of religion. Not [everything it] say[s] is true,” he said.

Zika-...

From A1 because, as we all know, this is a very new phenomenon in our health system,” Ubial said.

The Zika virus disease is known to cause birth defects such as microcephaly and other brain deformities in newborn children.

Ubial said that as of Dec. 28 her department had recorded 52 confirmed Zika cases nationwide. The ages of those infected ranged from seven to 59 years old and 65 percent were female.

The 59 cases compare with the 33 cases announced by the department on Nov. 15.

The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said about six percent of the babies in the United States born to mothers with the Zika virus had birth defects. Macon Ramos-Araneta

News

China in muscle-flexing mode B EIJING―An aircraft carrier in the Pacific and a newly upgraded combat aircraft: China’s military is showing off its newest equipment less than a month before the swearing-in of US President-elect Donald Trump, who has raised tensions between Beijing and Taipei.

China views self-ruling Taiwan as part of its territory awaiting unification, by force if necessary, even though the two sides split in 1949 after a civil war.

With its escort warships, the Liaoning was in the South China Sea on Monday, according to the Taiwanese defense ministry which monitored the carrier’s passage off its shores.

The maneuvers were preceded by exercises on “refueling and confrontation in flight”, according to the official news agency Xinhua.

“The threat from our enemy is increasing day by day,” Taiwan’s defense minister Feng Shihkuan said Tuesday during a promotion ceremony for generals.

In recent days state media announced that the country’s only aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, was on its way to the Pacific for the first time, while a new fighter, the FC-31, had its debut flight test.

They are the latest steps in the years-long build-up of China’s military, as Beijing seeks greater global power to match its economic might and asserts itself

more aggressively in its own backyard, but the timing raises questions about its intentions.

The show of strength comes after Trump broke four decades of US policy by accepting a phone call from Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, even though China objects to any official contact between its foreign partners and leaders of Taiwan.

Robredo’s...

founder and chief executive officer Reginald Lewis of the multibilliondollar TLC Beatrice.

Nicolas Lewis, 74, who was born in Sorsogon, Sorsogon, supported Robredo in the May vice presidential race, and had called for the resignation of President Rodrigo Duterte for his bloody war against drugs.

Blogger, singer and dancer Mocha Uson also hit out at Robredo over her US vacation trip at the height of typhoon “Nina” battering Bicol province.

But a netizen, a certain Claudia Gomez, however, said bloggers must stop amplifying the issue because Christmas is a time for people to spend quality time with their loved ones.

“Why are you overreacting? If she wants to spend her holidays with her family and sister in the US, there’s nothing wrong with that. Everyone’s entitled to spend the holidays with their family, same as you and everyone else,” Gomez replied in Uson’s comments section.

She said the Vice President cannot

stop a typhoon, and that Camarines Sur Gov. Miguel Villafuerte and Naga Mayor John Bongat were already on top of the situation.

The same survey saw the net satisfaction rating of Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III staying “good,” but slipping seven points from +37 in September to +30 in December.

Some 33 percent were satisfied with House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez’s performance for this quarter while 23 percent were dissatisfied, yielding a “moderate” +10 net rating that was 13 points down from his “moderate” score of +22 in September.

Similarly, Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno’s net rating stayed “moderate,” although down 10 points from +26 in September to +16 in December.

The SWS survey showed President Rodrigo Duterte had a net satisfaction rating of +63 or “very good,” just one point lower than his September +64 score.

The fourth quarter net public satisfaction poll has a ±3 percent sampling error margin.

tors to assess needs on the ground in the aftermath of the storm, and possibly collaborate on aid delivery,” said Oxfam acting Country Director Dante Dalabajan.

“Oxfam recognizes the government’s leading role in responding to the needs of typhoon survivors. We are ready to provide support if needed and requested,” he added.

Typhoon “Nina” reportedly killed at least four people, and left 19 missing from a boat that sank off the coast of Batangas province, some 80 kilometers south of Manila.

The typhoon brought strong winds and heavy rains, cutting power and communication lines. In the province of Catanduanes alone, Gov. Joseph Cua said up to 70 percent of electric posts were knocked down. The government hopes to restore electricity

by New Year.

Senator Grace Poe on Wednesday urged public utility companies to help restore essential services in areas affected by the typhoon.

Poe, chairperson of the Senate public services committee, said the much-

needed assistance from companies such as Meralco, PLDT, Smart and Globe is crucial to help restore power in affected areas and aid the government in extending relief.

Their support, the senator added, is vital in enabling residents to contact their loved ones.

“I urge our public utility companies to make this part of their corporate social responsibility efforts which would be most timely and meaningful to our kababayans now more than at any other time,” said Poe. The NDRRMC reported that 114 areas in Regions IV-A (Calabarzon), IV-B (Mimaropa) and V experienced power interruptions since Dec. 25, the day the typhoon made landfall in Catanduanes province. Eleven power lines in the said regions are still cut off. Communications in several provinces were also affected, the NDRRMC said.

The Energy department assured the public that power will be restored in all areas affected by the typhoon by January. Macon Ramos-Araneta, Alena Mae Flores, PNA

staff work and was reviewed by Malacañang already, but other Cabinet members were saying that we will implement it or the President will sign it by next year because of the very late proposal that came from the DoH,” said Ubial.

“So the industry has already produced the fireworks and firecrackers that it would be difficult if these will be stored, so it will be dangerous also,” she added.

Despite rising number of firecracker injuries, the Department of Labor and Employment has allowed more establishments in the country to sell and manufacture pyrotechnics and firecrackers after complying with the general labor and occupational safety and health standards.

The government fears that the number of firectacker injuries would rise as many people still continue to buy the illegal firecrackers, especially the banned “piccolo” which is the main cause of injuries among children.

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III, however, said a thorough assessment showed that 319 manufacturers of pyrotechnics and firecrackers were found to be compliant with labor and safety standards.

The Labor Department earlier lifted work-stoppage orders on 174 firecracker manufacturers, following a nationwide order to stop operations following the recent explosions in a fireworks factory in Bulacan that killed five people and injured 30 others On Wednesday, the city government of Makati said it will reimpose a total firecracker ban in barangays Bangkal, Pio del Pilar and Magallanes, the communities near the West Tower condominium where a petroleum pipeline leak was discovered in 2010.

Mayor Abigail Binay reminded residents and business owners in the

three barangays to strictly observe the ban.

Carlo Arcilla, director of the National Institute of Geological Sciences—College of Science in University of the Philippines, had warned that returning residents of the condominium in Barangay Bangkal remain in danger of contracting lung cancer due to benzene contamination and the polluted ground water caused by the leak in 2010.

He said roughly 400,000 liters of leaked petroleum products remain underground contaminating the soil and water beneath Bangkal.

It was Arcilla who led the discovery of the leak in the 117-kilometer long pipeline.

Experts said benzene, a component of products from coal and petroleum, is found in gasoline and other fuels and used in the manufacture of plastics, detergents, pesticides, and other chemicals. They added exposure to high levels of benzene can cause drowsiness, dizziness, unconsciousness, and death.

Binay also urged members of the Liga ng mga Barangay to make a recommendation to the City Council to pass an ordinance imposing a citywide ban on the sale of firecrackers and other pyrotechnic materials beginning 2017.

“We want a safe, injury-free celebration as we usher in the New Year.

I urge Makatizens to do away with dangerous noisemakers and opt for safer alternatives, such as horns and trumpets, especially for young children,” she said.

The mayor also called on all barangay captains to strictly enforce a 1994 ordinance prohibiting the sale of any kind of firecracker to minors aged 15 years old and below throughout Makati. With Vito Barcelo and Joel E. Zurbano

From A1

“We assure you that we are listening to your voice so we can serve you better,” she said in a statement.

“Through the Angat Buhay, the Office of the Vice President’s poverty alleviation program, we are determined to continue our mission to uplift the lives of the poor and the marginalized,” she added. The SWS survey came weeks ahead of Robredo's visit to New York that drew severe criticisms.

Opinion columnist Carlos Munda of mindanation.com said, “Bicolandia’s favorite daughter Leni Robredo is cozying up to her new found BFF [bestfriend forever] Loida Lewis in New York City.”

He wrote Robredo “is in New Yawk safely huddled in the comforts of a billionaire’s apartment overlooking Central Park.”

Munda was referring to philanthropist and community leader Loida Nicolas Lewis, a Filipino-American businesswoman and widow of

‘Nina’...

From A1 The provinces of Catanduanes and Camarines Sur, where “Nina” made its first and second landfall, bore the brunt of the typhoon.

Assessments of the full extent of the damage were underway as the typhoon made its way out of the Philippines on Tuesday night after making eight landfalls. The NDRRMC has asked international NGOs and the private sector to wait for the results of the government’s assessment of damage and needs before offering aid to avoid duplication.

Oxfam and its local NGO partners —the Citizens’ Disaster Response Center and the Humanitarian Response Consortium—have sent teams to Catanduanes and Camarines Sur to conduct joint assessments with the government.

“Along with our partners, we are closely coordinating with the national government, local authorities, UN agencies and other humanitarian ac-

’Cracker...

From A1 Region 6 with 10 percent or 11 percent of the total cases and followed

by Calabarzon or Region 4-A with 10 percent of the cases,” said Ubial.

In the National Capital Region, she said Manila City leads the list with the most number of injuries or 40 percent of the total NCR injury list, followed

by Quezon City with 27 percent, and Mandaluyong City.

In Region 6 or Western Visayas, 30 percent of the reported firecracker injuries come from Bacolod, 20 percent from Bago City, and 20 percent from Iloilo City.

Ubial urged the public and local government units to use safe merrymaking instruments, alternative noise makers such as torotot (horns) or car horns. She said they can also play loud music or resort to street parties and street dancing.

She also called on local government units to organize community fireworks displays to minimize household or individual use of firecrackers.

She said they have already talked to officials from Marikina City, who said the city would likely hold a community fireworks display as its residents welcome 2017.

Last year, the DoH recorded a total of 932 firecracker-related injuries between Dec. 21, 2015 and Jan. 5, 2016.

There was also one death due to massive injuries from an exploding Goodbye Philippines firecracker.

The DoH has already submitted a draft Executive Order to President Rodrigo Duterte that seeks a shift from individual household use of firecrackers to a community fireworks display.

Duterte, however, deferred signing the after some industry groups lobbied against it.

“The EO has undergone complete

“We need to maintain combat vigilance at any time.”

The demonstration of China’s naval capacity comes amid mounting concern on the mainland about the momentum of Taiwan’s independence movement, worries fueled by Trump’s suggestion that he would consider recognizing the self-ruled island as an independent nation.

Nevertheless, it is “impossible to say whether the timing is intended to send a signal to Trump,” said Bonnie Glaser, a China expert at the Washingtonbased Center for Strategic and International Studies.

“I’m more inclined to see this as an inevitable development and possibly a long planned exercise.”

Beijing has a long way to go before it can claim military superiority over Taiwan’s main protector Washington, which has 10 aircraft carriers in service and a network of naval bases all around the globe, said David Kelly, research director of Beijing-based consulting firm China Policy.

For China, the presence of the Liaoning is above all “symbolic” and aimed at its “domestic audience,” Kelly said.

For now, experts say the People’s Liberation Army Navy would have little hope of countering the smaller but technologically superior US-backed Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, let alone the US Seventh Fleet. AFP

Ilocano teener wins award, praises from Mrs. Obama

By Sara Susanne D. Fabunan AN ILOCANO teenager based in the United States has received recognition for a film he produced and has been praised by US First Lady Michelle Obama at the White House.

Rafael Bitanga, 16, a native of Laoag City and a Grade 10 student of Kodiak High School in Alaska, met Mrs. Obama over his award-winning film about the Exxon Valdez Oil spill in 1989 from the National Arts and Humanities Youth Program.

“We have a young man Rafael Bitanga who is here all the way from Kodiak, Alaska,” Mrs. Obama said in her speech during the awarding ceremony that was reported in the ABS-CBN official website.

“A few years ago, Rafael and his family came to the United States from the Philippines like so many young people who’ve immigrated to this country.”

Mrs. Obama acknowledge Bitanga’s hard work in school and he and his family’s success in quickly adapting to life in the United States.

“Rafael worked hard in school and quickly established himself as a leader and as a role model,” Mrs. Obama said.

Star Wars’...

From A1 Fisher became an international star overnight with the release of “Star Wars” in 1977.

Leia was the tough rebel princess in a white dress with a strange hairdo and blaster guns, who was unafraid to stare down the villainous Darth Vader.

Six years later in “Return of the Jedi,” she became a sex symbol in a barely-there metal bikini―but remained the tough heroine, killing her slug-like gangster jailer Jabba the Hutt by choking him with the chain he used to hold her captive.

The blockbuster space saga is now part of pop culture legend and a worldwide fan favorite. Fisher was back in the spotlight after reprising her iconic role in 2015’s “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”

She was returning Friday from the London leg of a tour promoting her headline-grabbing memoir “The Princess Diarist” when she collapsed 15 minutes before landing in Los Angeles, where paramedics and hospital staff were unable to revive her.

“It is with a very deep sadness that Billie Lourd confirms that her beloved mother Carrie Fisher passed away at 8:55 this morning,” family spokesman Simon Halls said in a statement to AFP on behalf of Fisher’s daughter.

Tributes began pouring in soon after news of her death spread on social media, led by “Star Wars” co-stars Mark Hamill―Luke Skywalker in the saga―who initially tweeted that he was “devastated” and had “no words.”

“It’s never easy to lose such a vital, irreplaceable member of the family, but this is downright heartbreaking,” he said later. “Carrie was one-of-a-kind who belonged to us all―whether she liked it or not.”

“Star Wars” creator George Lucas called Fisher “extremely smart; a talented actress, writer and comedienne with a very colorful personality that everyone loved.”

The legendary filmmaker Steven Spielberg described her as “a force of nature, of loyalty and of friendship” while Walt Disney Company chief Bob Iger said she was “a true character who shared her talent and

“And through the Baranov Museum and Film Intensive, he both became a filmmaker and a photographer and even established his photography business to help support his family.”

The Baranov Museum is a historical museum that offers film workshops for students in the United States.

During the awarding ceremony, Bitanga was accompanied by his film instructor Maria Acemah as a representative of the Baranov Museum’s Summer Intensive Film Class.

Bitanga said he was honored to have met and talked to the First Lady.

“Michelle Obama advised me to go to school and finish college,” he said.

He then advised his fellow Filipinos not to lose hope and to keep working hard to be successful.

“Don’t be afraid,” Bitanga said.

“Just know that if you keep working hard you’ll get to places like the White House where I went to. You just need to work hard―that’s the only way.”

Bitanga will soon take a vacation in his hometown in the Philippines, where he will share his experience.

her truth with us all.”

Steeped in Hollywood excess from an early age, she was the product of the four-year marriage between Reynolds, best known for her role in “Singin’ In The Rain,” and Fisher.

The relationship, and the happy home in Beverly Hills, came to an end when Fisher left Reynolds for her close friend, the actress Elizabeth Taylor.

The early 1980s were marked by problems with alcohol, drugs and depression for Fisher, who appeared in a number of critical flops, including “Under the Rainbow” (1981) and “Hollywood Vice Squad” (1986).

She was widely praised for her performance in the hit 1989 comedy “When Harry Met Sally,” but began to turn her back on acting in favor of writing.

She became known for her searingly honest semi-autobiographical writing, including her best-selling debut “Postcards from the Edge,” which she turned into a film of the same name in 1990 starring Meryl Streep and Shirley MacLaine.

A talented screenwriter, Fisher has revised numerous scripts, including “Sister Act” (1992), “Outbreak” (1995) and “The Wedding Singer” (1998).

She gave various interviews over the years about her diagnosis of bipolar disorder and addiction to prescription drugs and cocaine, which she admitted using on the set of “The Empire Strikes Back” (1980).

Asked by Vanity Fair in 2006 how she persuaded “Star Wars” director George Lucas to give her the part of Princess Leia, she said: “I slept with some nerd. I hope it was George.”

She “took too many drugs to remember” who it was, she added.

She also discussed being treated with electro-convulsive therapy, in which small electric currents are passed through the brain, to trigger brief seizures and treat depression.

In her first agony aunt column for the British The Guardian newspaper in June, the actress promised to “provide solicited advice, based on a life filled with pratfalls and accidents.”

Fisher told her readers that the addictions, heartbreak and mental illness she had endured amounted to a “fair share of challenging and unhappy experiences.” AFP

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Ex-solon of N. Ecija indicted by Ombudsman

By Rio N. Araja THE Office of the Ombudsman on Wednesday indicted exNueva Ecija governor Aurelio Umali over a P15-million pork barrel fund scam.

In a 38-page resolution, Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales ordered the filing of four counts of graft and three counts of malversation against Umali before the Sandiganbayan.

Also included in the complaint were Janet Lim Napoles, now detained at the Correctional Institute for Women in Mandaluyong City for serious illegal detention; agriculture officials Renato Manantan, regional executive director, and Narcisa Maningding, accountant, and private individuals Anita Tansipek and Corazon Bautista of the Samahan ng mga Manininda ng Prutas sa Gabi Inc. Ombudsman investigators found Umali and the other respondents liable for the anomalous use of his Priority Development Assistance Fund in 2005.

Umali, a former Nueva Ecija’s District 3 representative, was accused of facilitating the mishandling of his P15-million pork barrel fund for the acquisition of irrigation pumps and fertilizers.

The agricultural implements were supposed to benefit his constituents in Laur, Gabaldon, Bongabon, Santa Rosa, General Natividad and Cabanatuan City.

Apart from the criminal indictment, Umali and Manantan were found guilty of grave misconduct, gross neglect of duty and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service and were ordered dismissed from the service.

They were also meted the accessory penalties of perpetual disqualification from holding public office and forfeiture of retirement of benefits.

“In case of separation from the government service, the penalty shall be convertible to a fine equivalent to respondents’ one year salary,” the Ombudsman said.

In 2005, Umali identified and endorsed the Samahan ng mga Manininda ng Prutas sa Gabi Inc. and Masaganang Ani Para sa Magsasaka Foundation Inc. as nongovernment organization-partners.

TEMPORARY SHELTER. Hundreds of fire victims from the ranks of informal settlers in

Barangay Pinyahan in Quezon City are transiently protected at the barangay covered court after losing their homes to a huge fire (inset) Tuesday night, with Mayor Herbert Bautista planning to relocate 1,000 informal setller-families from the barangay. Manny Palmero

Passage of funds ‘an era of budget credibility’

By John Paolo Bencito

U

NLIKE in the past administrations, there won’t be any abuses to the budget after President Rodrigo Duterte vowed the enactment of the P3.35trillion national funds for 2017 would be “an era of budget credibility.”

“This budget will start to give flesh and bone to my promise of real change. Anchored on my administration’s 10-point Socioeconomic Agenda, it is designed to bring equitable opportunities for inclusive growth,” Duterte said in his Budget Action Message to Congress.

“The year of budget credibility has also started. Unlike in the past where the budget was vul-

nerable and open to abuse, this 2017 budget ensures spending will be kept within the boundaries of the law. What you see in the Gaa, is what the government will spend,” he added.

Duterte also asked government officials and employees to resist meddling by politicians in the implementation of projects.

“Accordingly, I hereby direct all agency heads to exercise po-

litical will and avoid any trace of influence from other branches of government in the implementation of programs, activities and projects,” he said The 2017 budget, under scrunity by some legislators who claimed there were porklike items in next year’s spending program, would run to hundreds of millions of pesos and some were “craftily hidden in many agencies.”

The budget had been allegedly circumvented by the executive when former President Benigno Aquino III and his budget chief Florencio Abad who reportedly designed the Disbursement Acceleration Program.

The two are facing charges in connection with the funding scheme as well as the use of the Priority Development Assistance Funds in the previous

administration.

Witnesses against accused pork barrel scam mastermind Janet Lim Napoles as well as officials of the Commission on Audit, who presented a truckload of documents, had linked nearly 200 congressmen and senators to the possible misuse of the PDAF. The President reminded all government agencies that any increase in appropriations and new budgetary items should carry with them “corresponding increases in the respective outputs and improved outcomes of the agencies concerned.”

“As we are poised to implement the 2017 national budget on the first working day of 2017, I call on my fellow public servants to extend their more than 100-percent commitment in making this budget a tool for genuine change,” he added.

Eisma’s appointment 1,000 families may be relocated

By Rio N. Araja welcomed by solon

By Maricel V. Cruz A HOUSE leader on Wednesday welcomed the appointment of a new administrator of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority while calling on the leaders of the Freeport to work double time in helping President Rodrigo Duterte address the unabated smuggling problem.

“We expect them to work according to their mandate and what has been ordered by President Duterte to stop smuggling which can increase revenue collection and provide better services to our people,” said Deputy Speaker and Batangas Rep. Raneo Abu. Abu shared SBMA Chair-

man Martin Diño’s statement the Freeport would have “an excellent working team” following the appointment of lawyer Wilma Eisma as Freeport administrator.

“Now we can really move forward at Subic in our goal to raise investments and revenues, eliminate smuggling and stamp out corruption,” Abu quoted Diño as saying.

Eisma replaces former administrator Roberto Garcia and brings to Subic her experience as manager for corporate affairs of Philip Morris and Fortune Tobacco Corp.

She is expected to take over her post next week in what Diño describes as “a great start to a new year in our effort to turn Subic into an anchor of national growth.”

QUEZON City Mayor Herbert Bautista plans to relocate 1,000 informal settler-families after a huge fire hit Barangay Pinyahan Tuesday night.

He said the city government’s housing department and National Housing Authority are closely coordinating with one another to find a relocation site for the victims of fire that razed a slum community on Nia Road.

“Personally, I do not want them to go back to that place anymore because of a creek, first and foremost.

It is no longer safe for them to stay in that area. Secondly, it is where the dengue-carrying mosquitoes hide and breed. There could be [a possibility of] tetanus infection in that area, and that children could be

affected,” he said.

He maintained the 1,000 families displaced by the fire must not be allowed to return to the fire site.

“So for me, they should no longer go back and that they need to be relocated to a safe place, a place where children could have a better future and improved lives,” he said.

The fire that reached Task Force Delta started at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, and was put out at 7:47 p.m.

It left a 74-year-old woman dead and three persons injured.

“If the residents would insist to go back, the disaster risk reduction and management council has agreed to put up bigger roads in that place so that when there is an emergency case, it would be much easier for the firefighters to put off the fire,” Bautista said.

Naia ramps 11, 12 now open to traffic

By Vito Barcelo THE Ninoy Aquino International Airport Expressway Ramps 11 and 12 are now open to vehicular traffic that will connect Naia terminals 1,2 and 3 from Cavitex and Skyway and will cut travel time by 40 percent, the Department of Public Works and Highways said.

Public Works Secretary Mark Villar said the Naia Expressway Ramps 11 and 12 were expected to complement the Naia Expressway Christmas Lane and the ex-

isting Naia expressway road network, which already connected Macapagal Boulevard and Pagcor Entertainment City to Naia Terminals 1, 2, and 3 and Skyway.

“The opening of ramps 11 and 12 will cut travel time by at least 40 percent. Considering the flight cancellations due to Typhoon ‘‘Nina’’ and the expected number of passengers using our airports at the height of the holiday season, we want to make sure all possible opportunities are maximized to ease traffic flow,” Villar said.

LUCKY AMULET. Charms for the upcoming Year of the Rooster, which falls on Jan. 28 in 2017, are on

display for customers along Ongpin Street in Manila’s Chinatown district. Chinese old hands say the Rooster—being the sign of dawn and awakening, triumph and success—can only be achieved at the price of hard work and patience in 2017. Ey Acasio

Groups ask SC to stop ERC-DoE regulations

By Rey E. Requejo THE Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Ateneo De Manila University, San Beda College (Alabang) and mall owner Riverbanks Development Corp. joined forces in filing a petition with the Supreme Court on Tuesday to question regulations recently issued by the Department of Energy and the Energy Regulatory Commission.

In a new 126-page petition filed by former Ombudsman Simeon Marcelo and past Philippine Bar Association president Rodel Cruz of Cruz Marcelo & Tenefrancia, the petitioners asked the High Court to immediately put a stop to the implementation of the new regulations that compel power consumers with a monthly average peak demand of 1 Megawatt (MW) to abandon their current power supply contracts and enter into new contracts with any of the 23 suppliers chosen by the ERC to supply the contestable market.

Named respondents to the suit are DoE Secretary Alfonso Cusi, ERC Chair Jose Vicente Salazar and incumbent ERC Comissioners Alfredo Non, Gloria Victoria Yap-Taruc, Josefina Patricia Asirit and Geronimo Sta. Ana. The petition came amid controversy rocking the ERC where Chairman Jose Vicente Salazar has been dragged into a controversy involving corruption for alleged rigged bidding in the procurement office of the agency.

The petitioners questioned the ERC Resolutions authored by Salazar and other Commissioners and DoE Circular that seek to deprive electricity consumers of their basic constitutional right to freedom of choice.

The assailed regulations are: • DoE Circular No. DC201506-0010 titled “Providing Policies to Facilitate the Full Implementation of Retail Competition and Open Access in the Philippine Electric Power Industry;” • ERC Resolution No. 5, Series of 2016 titled “A Resolution Adopting the 2016 Rules Governing the Issuance of Licenses to Retail Electricity Suppliers and Prescribing the Requirements and Conditions Thereof;” • ERC Resolution No. 10, Series of 2016 titled “A Resolution Adopting the Revised Rules for Contestability” and • ERC Resolution No. 11, Series of 2016 titled “A Resolution Imposing Restrictions on the Operations of Distribution Utilities and Retail Electricity Suppliers in the Competitive Retail Electricity Market.”

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Opinion

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Adelle Chua, Editor

EDITORIAL

What’s entertainment

I

T IS a relief that the Metro Manila Development Authority is offering better movies for Filipino viewers in this year’s festival. In doing so, we veer away from the yearslong practice—nay, torture —of having only commercial movies that feature big names and little else.

This year, the viewing public can choose from several independent films in various genres. If social media were to be a gauge, the response has been good. Viewers especially those on Christmas break

among friends and acquaintances, to see this or that movie because this or that cinema may just pull it out for its weak showing.

The call should extend beyond the holiday festival.

We have often lamented the sorry state of local entertainment.

Too often, we get carried away with celebrity, focusing on the pursuits of movie stars instead of on the quality of the entertainment they give us. We have also seen entertainment as a cheap excuse to escape our present realities, refusing to see that art—as cinema is—should mirror our struggles as a society, reflect our inner fears

have taken the time to flock to theaters and line up for the movies. Thus far, there have been no complaints about the lack of luminosity even as the usual big names have been excluded in the festival.

Of course, running movies in cinemas is still primarily a business. We have heard about “threats” to pull out the less lucrative movies from the big malls. It may be true that the cinema operators see no moral obligation to show a specific kind or quality of films; their motivation is first and foremost the revenue that the movies would bring in.

As a result, there were calls and requests made on social media,

and conflicts, and offer us varying views of the world we live in.

And how commercial producers have exploited this to the hilt!

Did not one producer, notorious for several titles of poorly made, shallow or maudlin movies, say it was a waste that Filipinos would not get to spend their Christmas bonus on her movies that have always brought happiness to their children?

There is no shortage of vision, talent and willingness among local artists. What this year’s festival reminds us is that quality entertainment is still possible—if we demand it.

DUTY CALLS FLORENCIO FIANZA

Fast and furious

ters and made art we grew up with. They gave life and breath and color to characters of our fantasies and imaginings. The resonance comes from remembering the feelings we felt watching the movies, listening to the music. It’s largely a mixture of emotion and nostalgia for the past.

Generation Xers take these losses hard because they belong to the first generation to have home video. Popping in that Betamax or VHS cassette, one could watch Star Wars over and over, memorizing the scenes and dialogue.

Princess Leia stood out as a character because she was strong and brave and a woman. How many children and teenagers, feeling helpless or unrecognized, felt empowered and confident after watching the princess/senator take a blaster and calmly rescue herself and comrades who had

ANOTHER year is ending.

How time flies!

By the end of this year, many lives will again be ruined because people insist on celebrating the coming of the New Year with the unsupervised use of firecrackers which are basically explosives. We really have to start recognizing firecrackers for what they are —explosives—the use of which is dangerous to those who are not trained. Even trained soldiers get into accidents sometimes. How much more untrained civilians?

Let us all try to celebrate and enjoy the coming of the New Year safely. *** The year 2017 promises to be fast and furious for the nation. The administration of President Duterte has lined up a lot of programs: Charter Change, the death penalty, huge infrastructure projects, peace deals with the CPP/ NPA, MILF, MNLF, release of so-called political prisoners and lest we forget, the continuing war on drugs.

Another project that hit the news although not in any spectacular fashion but equally important was a plan to amend RA No. 4200, otherwise known as the anti-wiretapping law. This is a law that ostensibly protects the public from unwarranted intrusion of government and other entities from violating guaranteed civil liberties. This law has ironclad provisions that prohibits any intercepted communication from being used as evidence in court. The law however, allows law enforcement agencies to go to court for authority to tap communications—but this is rarely done due to the lack of trained law enforcement personnel who can tap modern communications.

Tapping landline telephone conversations is not commonly done anymore because everybody uses cell phones and the internet. Besides, there are certain limitations that this window provides.

For instance, what if the one

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Losing Leia AFTER suffering a massive heart attack while on a plane from London to Los Angeles, writer and actress Carrie Frances Fisher died four days later on Dec. 27, prompting a worldwide outpouring of grief from family, friends, and fans.

In the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, Fisher played the iconic Princess Leia of the Star Wars franchise, a role she reprised 40 years later in another SW episode, The Force Awakens (2015).

While she continued acting and performing throughout her life, she also made a name for herself as a writer—a novelist, memoirist, playwright, and script doctor (she was good at writing dialogue and helped

polish the scripts of Sister Act, Lethal Weapon 3, The Wedding Singer, and the Star Wars prequels, among many other works, mostly uncredited).

Her latest book, The Princess Diarist, released last November, is a memoir of her experiences on the Star Wars set, based on the diaries she kept during the time. In it she reveals having a short affair with her co-star Harrison Ford, who was then 34 to her 19.

Fisher’s sudden death rekindled interest in her works—the paperbacks of her other memoirs Wishful Drinking and Shockaholic, and her debut novel Postcards from the Edge, are now out of stock on Amazon. She was candid in print and interviews about her drug use and bipolar disorder, quipping, “You know how they say that religion is the opiate of the masses? Well, I took masses of opiates religiously.”

“Writing in a way saved me,

kept me company,” she declared. “I did the traditional thing with falling in love with words and reading books.”

Fisher’s portrayal of Princess, later General, Leia Organa as a strong warrior-woman made her

She was witty, funny, sexy, honest, and above all, gloriously true to herself.

a feminist icon. When told of a father who said he could not let his daughter watch her “slave Leia in the gold bikini” scene— “What would I tell her?” she replied, “Tell her that a giant slug captured me and forced me to

wear that stupid outfit, and then I killed him because I didn’t like it. And then I took it off. Backstage.”

She was witty, funny, sexy, honest, and above all, gloriously true to herself. The rules Fisher lived by were simple: “Be kind. Don’t hurt other people.”

The expression of grief over her passing is similar to that offered upon the deaths of the many artists who died this year. Some of the other notable artists we lost in 2016: Harper Lee, Umberto Eco, Richard Adams, writers; David Bowie, Prince, George Michael, musicians; Alan Rickman, Alan Thicke, actors.

Why are so many upset over the passing of Carrie Fisher and these other personalities whom we only know from the art they created that became part of mainstream popular culture? For one, it’s because these people portrayed charac-

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IT’S not yet New Year’s finance, Benjamin Diokno Eve, but the Department of as secretary of budget and Health and the police have management, Vitaliano Agulisted more than 50 cases of irre as secretary of justice, firecrackers and pyrotech- Leonor Brioness as secretary nics injuries, and one case of of education, Wanda Teo, poisonous ingestion of fire- secretary of tourism, Salvacrackers. dor Medialdea as executive Despite calls for a nation- secretary, Emmanuel Piñol wide ban on firecrackers as secretary of agriculture, and pyrotechnics, PNP Chief and former members of the Ronald dela Rosa tells us that Communist Party of the it might be difficult because Philippines Judy Taguiwalo, President Duterte is also secretary of social welfare thinking about the manufac- and development, and Rafael turers and peddlers of such Mariano, secretary of Agrarproducts. ian Reform.

Is it now a choice between The Cabinet, I think, those engaged in a dangerous would be better off without business, or public safety? Gina Lopez of the DepartWhat priorities! ment of Environment and Despite this apparent lu- Natural Resources. nacy that accompanies the The problem of the Presicoming of 2017, I wish one dent as I see it is that he had and all a blessed New Year. no deep bench of Cabinet *** members to choose from.

If I were to grade President Thus, he must rely on his Duterte’s first six months in friends when he was city office, I would give him a mayor, or his former classpassing grade of 7.5 percent, mates. Unfortunately, this a rating he’s used to anyway was also the problem of BS when he was in school.

Aquino who relied on his It’s a grade good enough, friends, classmates and other all things considered after allies. six years of BS Aquino’s re*** gime of incompetence, lack Andrea Domingo, chairof empathy and compassion, person of gaming regulaselective justice and vindic- tor Philippine Amusement tiveness. and Gaming Corp., has But in his obsession with announced that the gamhis war against illegal drugs, ing license that used to be crime and corruption, Mr. Philweb’s is now up for public Duterte was not able to give bidding. I believe that there’s priority to poverty and job- only one that can qualify for lessness which continue to it—Philweb itself. stalk the land, principally in Philweb has a new chairMindanao where he comes man, Greggie Araneta, who from. b o u g h t It’s prefrom former Philweb cisely poverty and chair man, joblessness It’s a rating the Roberto V. that gave Ongpin the President is used birth to the latter’s total s e p a r a t i s t to, anyway. shares for movement s P2.5 bilof the Moro lion. OngNational pin divested Liberation his entire Front of Nur Misuari and the shareholdings after President splinter group we know as Duterte tagged him, unfairly the Moro Islamic Liberation so, I believe—as an “oligarch Front, and likewise MILF’s that must be destroyed.” breakaway group like the Bobby Ongpin is not an Bangsamoro Islamic Free- oligarch. In fact, he sufdom Fighters, and the terror- fered during the BS Aquino ist group Abu Sayyaf in Sulu. regime, for being a friend of I understand why the Presi- the former First Gentleman. dent feels he needs to focus He was sued left and right. on the drug menace. This Philweb is the only one indeed involves the future that can qualify for the ligeneration, and the country cense to operate e-games, may descend into being a which cannot be accessed at narco-state. Still, his meth- home nor offices, but only ods have occasioned discom- with some 280 e-Games opfort among many here in the erators licensed by Pagcor country and abroad. He must itself. Those operators have realize that he cannot end the P1.8 billion in investments. menace simply by restoring Philweb has extensive expethe death penalty. rience in being Pagcor’s serIt is ironic that President vice provider.

Duterte would now pivot to Some 6,000 workers from China even at the expense of Philweb and e-Games operaour decades-old economic and tors nationwide will be afmilitary ties with Washing- fected. This is what Ongpin ton. The biggest drug suppli- has been concerned about. ers come from China. It’s the He expressed interest in doChinese triad that has been nating to Pagcor his shares, responsible for all those shabu which the agency could use laboratories found nationwide. to build rehabilitation centers Still, President Duterte for drug addicts. But Pagcor earns the grade of 7.5 if only did not agree. for his dedication and comJust for the record, Ongpin mitment. effectively lost P22.5 billion.

Next year, though, the Still, he looked at his loss President must address all philosophically, saying it our other problems. Only was all part of business. this can real change be expe*** rienced.

The Philippine National *** Police reported that while The Duterte Cabinet, on common crimes like robthe other hand, gets a 6.5 bery and rape have decreased from me. It is generally in- since the start of the Duterte competent and lacking in administration, incidents of professionalism. murder have increased as the The only members of the government intensified its Duterte Cabinet we can all war on illegal drugs.

No wonder there is now a rely on are Carlos “Sonny” Dominguez as secretary of climate of fear.

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The long and winding road

TO THE POINT EMIL P. JURADO

I give him a 7.5

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016

OVERSIGHT DANILO SUAREZ BEFORE the year ends, let us revisit House Bill No. 599, “An Act Mandating the Construction of the QuezonBicol Expressway (QuBEx).”

I refiled this bill during the start of the 17th Congress and, in its present form, is a consolidation of the previous bills of Hon. Aleta Suarez of Quezon and Hon. Scott Davies Lanete of Masbate, which were deliberated upon by the House Committee on Appropriations and Committee on Southern Tagalog Development during the 16th Congress.

In the 2009 Global Competitiveness Report by the World Economic Forum, the Philippines only ranked 98th among

133 countries in terms of quality and quantity of infrastructure. It further explained the positive correlation of investments in infrastructure and economic growth.

Linking the provinces of Bicol, Quezon, Aurora, Quirino, Isabela, and Cagayan through a superhighway would help cut travel time and improve trade.

The delivery of basic services would also be easier and faster.

Furthermore, this can decongest Metro Manila through availability of better jobs in the provinces.

By virtue of Republic Act No. 6957, and as amended

by Republic Act No. 7718 or the “Build-Operate-Transfer” (BOT) Law, the QuBEx shall be financed, constructed, operated, and maintained by a grantee, offeror, consortium, or proponent. This road shall start from Malicboy, Quezon

and end in Sorsogon. Its link to the South Luzon Expressway (SLEx) Toll Road 4 (TR4) in Lucena City shall be constructed by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Engineering District. At the same time, the DPWH shall be the lead implementing agency for this Act. From the 15th to the 16th Congress, this bill has undergone so much delay, mostly due to the incompetence and political opposition of the previous administration. Now that we are on the 17th Congress, we cannot help but review the progress of the bill. Unfortunately, we have not received any good news yet—neither from the Toll Regulatory Board (TRB) nor the DPWH, the two biggest resource agencies during the previous joint committee hearings.

With the approval of the 2017 National Budget, where the sec-

ond biggest allocation (P443.76 billion) goes to infrastructure, we are curious on how the budget of the DPWH will be spent given its past record on poor spending.

The next six years is expected to be the “Golden Age of Infrastructure.” President Duterte plans on building more public infrastructure like roads, railways, bridges, and structures.

However, these plans would only remain as such if the responsible agencies would not double their efforts.

It has been a long and winding road. We cannot wait for too long so we call on the public officials who are in charge to set things straight immediately. We have already done our part. It is now the Executive’s turn to make things happen.

Happy New Year to all! Let us all look forward to a better year.

Trump’s 180-degree turn on China policy

By Noah Feldman THE US-China relationship is ending 2016 on its most ominous note in years. President-elect Donald Trump has questioned the one-China policy that has been the default American position and angered mainland China by taking a congratulatory call from Taiwanese president Tsai IngWen. China has reciprocated with barely veiled aggression, adding visible anti-aircraft systems to the artificial islands it has dredged out of the South China Sea and seizing an underwater American drone from under the nose of a US warship.

The big question for 2017 is whether the two sides will let the relationship unravel further. Will their cool war become more “war” and less “cool”?

Until now, the rival strategic interests of China and the US have been mitigated by shared economic interests.

But economic cooperation can quickly end over disagreements on currency and trade— reducing the Sino-American relationship to raw, zero-sum geopolitical competition.

Neither nation’s leader can easily avoid this looming conflict; they both face domestic pressure. Trump made campaign commitments to change the dynamic with China, and President Xi Jinping is under pressure to show that his “Chinese dream” is progressing. The most likely outcome is substantial

Fast...

From A4 being investigated is a high government official? Knowing our judicial system, which seems to change every time a new government gets into power, it is doubtful if this can be done.

There are currently many people who have very fat bank accounts because the antiwiretapping law has protected them from criminal prosecution. The law must only protect innocent communication. The law must not protect criminals and corrupt public officials from using the internet, for instance, to plan criminal activities. This is true on the matter of electoral fraud.

There are now many elected officials in government who cheated their way into office.

And although electronic manipulation is easy to prove with simple forensic examination of the computer machines used, the electoral system makes it difficult because of rigid pro-

Losing...

From A4 come to rescue her? How many young girls realized they could lead as well as a male, or even better, after seeing Leia fearlessly head the Rebel Alliance in their attempts to end the tyranny

worsening of relations between the world’s last superpower and its fastest-rising rival.

Given this longstanding background tension now coming to the fore, what’s remarkable about US policy toward China over the past two decades is its moderation. As China has been transformed from a second-tier power into the major challenger to the political order of the Pacific region, the Bush and Obama administrations have responded cautiously.

The reasons for this moderation have been complex and varied. One leading explanation is the view that China’s economic growth poses no problem for the US, because rising global wealth is not a zero-sum game. China-US trade was mostly seen in classically liberal, free-trade terms: It made everybody better off by offering low-priced goods to American consumers and jobs for Chinese.

But the main reason for moderation is surely that both President George W. Bush and President Barack Obama judged that there wasn’t much they could do about China’s rise and the enhanced negotiating power that comes with it—especially while China remains the single largest nonUS holder of Treasury debt.

Militarily, both Bush and Obama maintained the traditional hub-and-spokes security relationship with various Pacific nations, in effect containing China without using that

provocative word.

Trump sees things very differently. He depicts China’s growth as illegitimate, caused by unfair currency policy rather than the export of goods at rock-bottom prices. He is already demonstrating that he believes he can change the negotiating calculus by revisiting the traditionally accommodating US position.

Meanwhile, Trump seems fairly unconcerned about China’s regional geopolitical ambitions. On the campaign trail, he criticized the US treaty obligation to defend Japan and called on Japan to pay more for US troops stationed there.

That’s a 180-degree turn from the recent US approach.

Bush and Obama basically welcomed China’s economic growth, but were wary of the nation’s increasing military strength. Trump seems suspicious of China’s economic progress but unworried about its geopolitical influence.

How China will respond depends very much on Xi Jinping’s perception of his nation’s economic and strategic interests—and his own political objectives. China’s exportdriven economy cannot afford a trade war with the US. Holding vast amounts of US debt is a form of leverage, to be sure; but it also means China can’t afford to push the US into a position where its bonds fall sharply in value. Trump’s history of bankruptcy is an extra reason for Chinese caution on this front.

Bloomberg

cedures.

I know a group that has made hundreds of millions of pesos since 2010 by charging exorbitant fees to manipulate elections with the connivance of corrupt Comelec officials.

These people are difficult to prosecute because of the antiwiretapping law. The current Ombudsman wants the relaxation of some provisions of the law, but this does not go far enough. It should be that anyone who intends to commit serious crime and uses cellphones and the internet to plan these crimes should not be protected by the law. The law should allow all intercepts by anyone to be used in court. Why protect criminals? It should be the interest of the state, not of the criminals, that is paramount.

The plan of the government to release so-called political prisoners as demanded by the CPP/NPA is raising eyebrows in the Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces.

This is not only because it seems to be one sided: PNP and

AFP personnel who are in jail for doing their duty are not being given the same treatment.

Why release only the NPA militants convicted of waging revolutionary war against the government and not do the same to uniformed personnel who believe that they too were only doing their duties.

Luis Jalandoni, a top official of the National Democratic Front, says in a statement that he believes that the New People’s Army should not be disbanded after a peace deal is signed with the government especially in the areas where land reform has not been implemented thoroughly because of the resistance of hacenderos. No statement coming from the government, on whether it agrees or not with the statement of Mr Jalandoni, was issued.

Also, during the observance of the founding anniversary of the CPP/NPA, Secretary Silvestre Bello, together with other senior officials of the government, attended the celebration complete with a cadre of CPP/

NPA uniformed personnel with their firearms displayed for the whole country to see. This is the first time as far as I know that this has ever happened.

It might be understandable and even expected for those high government officials of government coming from the NDF to attend the anniversary celebration. That Secretary Bello and others were there, however, is a little disconcerting. What is the message that they are trying to convey to the public, especially to the PNP and the AFP? These officials although they are trying to negotiate a peace deal must be careful and be sensitive to the sentiments of the PNP and AFP especially those families who also lost their loved ones in combat against the CPP/ NPA. Their actions may backfire if not handled carefully.

Right now, it is important that these officials manage perceptions carefully so as not to telegraph the wrong message. We all want peace but let us do it right.

Happy New Year!

of the Empire?

While playing Leia wasn’t Fisher’s only achievement, it was she who gave body and voice and movement to Princess Leia, who embodied the dreams of many people around the world for decades, and for that she will be missed and always remembered.

Fisher knew she was inextricable from the character she played, and she accepted it: “I’ve totally embraced it. I like Princess Leia.

I like how she was feisty. I like how she killed Jabba the Hutt.

That’s my favorite thing she did.”

As we bid farewell to Carrie Fisher and 2016, Happy New

Year, everyone, and let us hope that 2017 will be better for us all.

May the Force be with you.

At the same time, Xi has committed himself, and the Chinese Communist Party, to a nationalist domestic strategy. Given the inevitable decline of economic growth in China from its worldhistorical heights, only nationalism promises to shore up the party’s legitimacy.

The nationalist imperative will matter especially to Xi if he decides to try to stay in power longer than 10 years, thus breaking the norm developed by two decade-long cycles of Chinese politics. If he does, he will need a still stronger nationalist rationale to justify the deviation.

Given all this, it’s reasonable to expect Xi to show strength against Trump through symbolic military aggressions— like the anti-aircraft batteries in the Spratly Islands and the underwater drone stunt. That plays better with the Chinese domestic audience than economic responses.

If that happens, Trump will have to reconsider the question of China’s military stance. He could reply with cheap talk. Or he could adopt something like the Obama approach—putting US F-22 fighter jets in Australia.

The danger of military escalation is not small. The danger of economic escalation isn’t either. For all the talk about Vladimir Putin and Russia, Trump’s presidency may well come to be defined by his relations with China.

Dr. Ortuoste is a Californiabased writer. Follow her on Facebook: Jenny Ortuoste, Twitter: @jennyortuoste, Instagram: @jensdecember

News

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

MMDA to open private roads

By Joel E. Zurbano MORE private and government properties will be opened to motorists to further ease traffic in the National Capital Region, Metro Manila Development Authority acting chairman Thomas Orbos said.

Ayala Land Inc., according to Orbos, agreed to the plan of the Inter-agency Council on Traffic to open Vertis North in Quezon City in February for light vehicles passing from the northbound leg of Edsa going to North Avenue and Balintawak.

The move would ease traffic on the portion of the national highway by allowing private motorists to pass through Vertis North instead of traversing Edsa.

Orbos said one lane will be available to motorists, but they have to create a path through the center island so that vehicles can enter and make a U-turn going to Balintawak.

Private vehicles can also now enter the Veterans Memorial Medical Center if they want to go to the North Luzon Expressway.

The MMDA chief said an access road will also be opened between Quezon Avenue and North Avenue stations of Metro Railway Transit-3 to provide an alternate route for motorists going to Trinoma.

Another access road in the area of South Superhighway near the Magallanes station of the Philippine National Railways will be opened next year for motorists going to Cubao in Quezon City.

Last week, the MMDA opened for private and light vehicles a portion of Edsa near Sen. Gil Puyat Avenue to be used as alternate route of motorists going to Jupiter Street.

The MMDA also allowed motorists to pass through in three government facilities—the Bonifacio Naval Station in Taguig City, and VMCC and Camp Aguinaldo, both in Quezon City.

Orbos said the government is expecting to reduce at least 200 vehicles per hour when these government facilities and private commercial areas are opened to public and private motorists.

“We are hoping that all of these measures would be able to alleviate the worsening traffic congestion,” Orbos said.

TRAUMA-FREE. Members of environmental and animal welfare groups hold a special ‘Pet-A-Thon’ at the Quezon City Memorial Circle to discourage the public from using firecrackers which can agitate pets. Manny Palmero

Rody wants to abolish anti-mendicancy law

By John Paolo Bencito

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RESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte said he wants to repeal the Anti-Mendicancy Law of 1978 which bars children from begging, including caroling during the Christmas season.

“One of the things I really hate [about the law] is that this caroling is being prohibited.

Do not believe that it should be disallowed. I intend to repeal that law. It’s not good,” the President said.

“Why can’t we get a free pass? While it’s Christmas, the children who are singing carols are gone because it’s prohibited. I cannot see the rationale of the anti-mendicancy law,” he added.

The law, enforced through Presidential Decree No. 1563, aimed to eradicate widespread street begging in the country.

Duterte’s pronouncement contradicted that of Social Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo, who called on the public to refrain from giving alms as this encourages kids to roam the streets and endangers their lives.

“The Department and its attached agencies continue to advocate the Anti-Mendicancy Law that penalizes anyone

who gives alms to mendicants or street kids. This Christmas season will not be an excuse for its implementation,” Taguiwalo said.

“Let us make this Christmas season a safe season for street kids and discourage them from continuing mendicancy where they can seriously injure themselves by jumping from one public utility vehicle to another or by tapping the windows of privately-owned vehicles,” the Social Welfare chief added.

Taguiwalo has called on local government units, especially at the village level, to coordinate closely in discouraging kids from begging on the streets.

She said village officials should instead hold activities that promote street children’s physical and mental health, such as making lanterns and other Christmas decors, singing, dancing, and art contests.

“This way, the community becomes a part of the solution,” Taguiwalo said.

Labor groups hit DO 30 ‘endo’ deal

By Vito Barcelo

COMPASSION. Social Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo joins in the distribution of relief goods to victims of Typhoon ‘Nina’ in Pili, Camarines Sur.

MIAA holds outreach program for indigents THE Manila International Airport Authority will hold today a medical mission and donation of lost and found clothing and other items for less fortunate individuals and indigent residents from six barangays near the vicinity of the airport.

In a memorandum signed by MIAA assistant general manager for security and emergency services Elenita Fernando, the donation of 100 boxes of clothing, shoes, bags and other items will be conducted at the Airport Police Headquarters situated near the Ninoy Aquino International Airport around 8 a.m.

Fernando said the MIAA also requested the assistance of Dr. James Dy, president and chief executive officer of

the Chinese General Hospital and Medical Center, to arrange personnel who will provide medical and dental treatments.

The event is in line with MIAA’s Memorandum Circular 07-M series 2010 and the agency’s Corporate Social Responsibility to have Community Outreach Program for the less fortunate or indigent individuals.

“Memorandum Circular 07-M establishes guidelines and procedures for disposition of lost and found items which stated that after the lapse of the six months retention period, clothing, shoes, bags, and toiletries, among others, shall be donated to charitable institutions and or MIAA-sponsored outreach programs,” Fernando said. Joel E. Zurbano

THE labor group Trade Union Congress of the Philippines has slammed the Labor Department’s proposed new Department Order-30 which was intended to eliminate the “endo” or end of contract and contractualization scheme of unscrupulous employers.

TUCP vice president Luis Corral scored DO-30 as a tactic to deceive workers into thinking that the illegal work arrangements have been abolished, when these were merely renamed as “seasonal and project” workers.

“The proposed DO 30 will not end endo but will still perpetuate the evil practice that President Rodrigo Duterte wanted to stop,” Corral said.

“Under the new department order, all the necessary or directly related jobs or functions in a company’s business cannot be contracted-out. However, the DO

also allows seasonal and project employees to continue to be nonregular workers,” he added.

Instead of prohibiting contractualization, the Labor department has encouraged seasonal and project-based employees.

“Instead of regular workers who become trained and who acquire expertise, who develop corporate loyalty and have institutional memory, our workforce will be populated by short-termers who can barely meet the barest needs of their dependents, let alone themselves,” Corral said.

Associated Labor UnionsTUCP spokesperson Alan Tanjusay urged Duterte not to approve the proposed DO 30.

“There will be no repeat employers for these workers. Instead, employees who will be forever seasonal or project status will be drifting from job to job and that is if they are lucky,” Tanjusay said.

PFA: Police must seize illegal fireworks The president of the Philippine Fireworks Association has called on relevant agencies, particularly the National Police, to intensify their interdiction efforts against smuggled fireworks which pose a clear, present, and verifiable danger to public health, safety, and security.

PFA head Joven Ong sought the help of PNP for renewed vigor in apprehending those selling illegal fireworks, most especially the dreaded Piccolo which accounts for 57 percent of all the fireworks-related injuries recorded by the Department of Health.

In an open forum during a recent Fireworks Safety Seminar that the PFA conducted, several stakeholders asked why they were having a hard time getting permits when illegal fireworks were openly being sold in Divisoria in Manila.

This call was promptly answered by

the PNP Firearms and Explosives unit which vowed to focus their operations on Divisoria, the preferred dumping site of smugglers for illegal fireworks such as the highly dangerous Piccolo.

“This is what is saddening, the illegal fireworks sellers are openly selling while some legal fireworks companies have a hard time securing permits from the local government units,” Ong said.

Ong lauded efforts of the Bureau of Customs to apprehend illegal fireworks coming into the country.

“This is the first time that I know of that a Bureau of Customs Commissioner has actually made a memo directing all ports to be more vigilant in apprehending illegal importations of fireworks. For this, the fireworks industry is grateful,” he said. “[But] the illegal fireworks are already

here. What needs to be done is for these smuggled fireworks to be confiscated, the importers and distributors to be apprehended at the soonest possible time before these cause more injuries that will be blamed on the legal fireworks industry,” he added.

Ong appealed to Interior Secretary Ismael Sueno to come out with a circular giving permits to those wishing to sell legal pyrotechnics.

“There are some local government units who are wary of giving out permits to sell in their respective areas. We pray that these mayors will find it in their hearts to allow the legal fireworks entities to sell so that the consuming public can have an option where they can buy safe and legal pyrotechnics. It is more dangerous when people cannot buy legal pyrotechnics and end up buying from illegal fireworks sellers whose products are substandard in quality,” he said.

Sports Singha chief is Asian Tour patron SENTOSA—Santi Bhirombhakdi, President of Singha Corporation Co., Ltd., has accepted an invitation by the Asian Tour to become a Tour Patron.

The 70-year-old Santi, who is an avid golfer, has been credited as one of the key driving forces for the growth and development of golf in Thailand through his involvement with the game which began over 30 years ago.

Singha Corporation sponsors the domestic All Thailand Golf Tour and supports leading Thai professional golfers including Thongchai Jaidee, Boonchu Ruangkit and Kiradech Aphibarnrat as well as the nation’s leading female golfers.

In addition, Khun Santi has endorsed the group’s sponsorship of multiple Asian Tour golf tournaments held in the Kingdom for over the past 20 years, which has contributed towards Thailand’s strong stature in the game.

Several of nation’s top golf courses associated with Santi, such as the Santiburi Samui Country Club and Singha Park Khon Kaen Golf Club, have been host venues of Asian Tour tournaments.

This season, a total of 14 Thai golfers finished in the top-60 of the Asian Tour’s final Order of Merit to secure full playing rights for the upcoming 2017 season. Top Thai stars Thongchai and Kiradech will end 2016 in the world’s top-100 ranking—statistics that enforce Thailand’s strength in the game.

Asian Tour Chairman Jimmy Masrin said, “The Asian Tour is privileged that Khun Santi has graciously agreed to become an Asian Tour Patron. It is wonderful news for us as he has passionately supported and driven the growth of golf in Thailand and Asia through Singha’s involvement in the sport.

“The emergence of Thai golfers on the Asian Tour and global golf scene did not happen by chance. It can be largely attributed to the great efforts that Khun Santi has put into the game. We are grateful he has accepted our invitation to become a Patron of the Asian Tour.

Through this ambassadorial role, we will seek Khun Santi’s expertise, views and knowledge with the intention to positively impact the growth of Asian golf in the years to come.”

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016 sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

OKC, Westbrook cool off Heat

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OS ANGELES—The seemingly unstoppable Russell Westbrook produced his 15th tripledouble of the season Tuesday to propel the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 106-94 NBA victory over the Heat in Miami.

Westbrook’s 52nd career tripledouble was his 30th of 2016—a total spanning the latter part of last season.

He joined Oscar Robertson as the only players to notch 30 triple-doubles in a calendar year— furthering his chances of match-

ing Robertson’s 1961-62 feat of averaging a triple-double over an entire season.

“He’s a unique player,” Thunder coach Billy Donovan said of Westbrook, who reeled in a rebound to wrap up a triple-double with 6:40 remaining in the third quarter.

He finished with 29 points, 17 rebounds and 11 assists.

“When you see him going up above guys to get rebounds, it’s really remarkable,” added Donovan, who noted that Westbrook’s rebounds, all of them on the defensive end, ignited the Thunder’s offense.

“That was 17 times where we could generate a fast break just through him,” Donovan said. “(Westbrook) has it, the team sees it, and now we can get out and run.”

Oklahoma City had a 16-4 advantage in fast break points and

outscored Miami 58-32 in the paint.

Westbrook connected on 11 of 22 shots from the floor and seven of 10 from the free throw line.

But Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said the lasting impression left by Westbrook was the way he gave it all he had for all 37 minutes he spent on the floor.

“From my perspective, some of the most impressive plays he made were diving in front of our bench, taking the charge at the end when they were up 12,” Spoelstra said.

“Every single possession is the

Jackson, Buss split

Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder goes up for a lay up against the Miami Heat at American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida. AFP

Durant blasts NBA, defends referees LOS ANGELES—Kevin Durant is no fan of the NBA’s lategame officiating reports, even when they confirm his impression of referee errors.

The league’s most recent “Last Two Minutes” officiating report said that Durant was fouled on the final play of his Golden State Warriors’ onepoint loss to the Cavaliers in Cleveland on Christmas Day. No foul was called when the Cavs’ Richard Jefferson’s foot made contact with Durant, who

ended up sprawled on the floor unable to connect on a potential game-winning shot.

But at team training on Tuesday, Durant chastised the NBA for throwing the refs “under the bus” with the after-the-fact reports that can’t affect the result of a game.

“Just move on,” Durant said.

“Don’t throw the refs under the bus like that. Now the next game, that group of refs, whoever it is, they’re going to come out ... try to get everything right

and perfect without just going out there relaxing and trying to make the right call.”

Durant joined the chorus of players who have suggested ditching the reports, which were designed by the league in a bid for transparency on officiating.

The report on Sunday’s game also said that Cavs superstar LeBron James should have been assessed a technical foul for hanging on the basket rim after a massive dunk.

But Durant, and Golden State coach Steve Kerr, said the Warriors’ inability to close out the game after holding a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter couldn’t be laid at the refs’ door.

“What about the first quarter, second quarter, third quarter?” Durant said of the reports.

“They should get rid of them.

Refs don’t deserve that.

“They’re trying their hardest to get the play right, then you look at the play in slo-mo and say it’s wrong.” AFP

Perpetual LOYAL rips record

In this aerial handout photo from Rolex, Australian supermaxi yacht Perpetual LOYAL competes in the Sydney to Hobart race at sea off the Australian coast. AFP

SYDNEY—Australian supermaxi Perpetual LOYAL smashed the race record by almost five hours to take line honours at the gruelling Sydney to Hobart race Wednesday, after eight-time winner Wild Oats XI retired.

LOYAL, a long-time rival of favourite Wild Oats, put to bed her failure to finish the past two races when the 100-footer arrived at Hobart’s Constitution Dock in a record time of 1 day 13hrs 31mins 20secs.

“This is one for the true believers,” owner and skipper Anthony Bell told reporters at Hobart’s Constitution Dock after the yacht powered to the finish line at 20 knots.

“I don’t think anyone expected us to do well in this race, the bookies certainly didn’t.

“We raced one hell of a race,” he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

His boat manager Brad Kellet told the organsiers LOYAL had pushed Wild

Oats to its limits.

“Someone had to crack,” he said.

“That’s not our weather, it’s Wild Oats’ weather, but we put ourselves in a great position, so that when Oats retired, we had enough of a lead over the V70s and Scallywag to win.”

The new finish time for the 628-nautical-mile (1,163-kilometre) event was four hours and 51 minutes faster than the previous record of 1 day 18hrs 23mins 12secs set in 2012 by Wild Oats.

New Zealand’s Volvo 70 Giacomo— which hopes to be crowned overall winner, the handicap honours for the vessel that performs best according to size—finished second with a time of 1 day 15hrs 27mins 5secs.

“It was a bit of a downwind race, so it suited us,” said wine owner Jim Delegat.

“Still, we’re pretty surprised, it’s not often that a 70-footer can do this, get second over the line.” AFP

Russian officials acknowledge doping conspiracy NEW YORK—Russian antidoping officials have acknowledged a massive doping conspiracy in their country, but still reject claims of government involvement in the affair that rocked world sport, The New York Times reported Tuesday.

“It was an institutional conspiracy,” Anna Antseliovich, the acting director general of Russia’s national anti-doping agency, told the newspaper in an article datelined from Moscow.

However, Antseliovich and others interviewed continued to reject the characterization of the doping scheme as “statesponsored,” telling the Times that top government officials

most important possession to him.

“It’s a great lesson to our young guys. What defines greatness is consistency.”

Rockets ease past Mavs In a testy all-Texas tussle, the Houston Rockets used a 16-0 scoring run in the second quarter to take control en route to a 123107 victory over the Mavericks in Dallas.

With the win, the Rockets have swept all four of their regular-season games against the Mavericks for the first time since the 1997-98 campaign. AFP

were not involved.

Investigator Richard McLaren said in a new report for the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) this month that more than 1,000 Russian athletes in some 30 sports took part in a plan for Moscow sports ministry officials to use banned drugs at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, the 2012 London Summer Games and other global events.

Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko told TASS news agency on December 9, when the report was released, that McLaren’s claim of an “institutional conspiracy” had not been proven.

Nevertheless, the allegations were another body blow to Rus-

sian sport, which was still trying to shrug off the damage from McLaren’s initial findings and the exclusion of its track and field athletes from international competition.

The affair reverberated through the 2016 Rio Olympics and has continued to be felt as winter sports events such as next year’s bobsleigh and skeleton world championships and biathlon and speed skating World Cup stops have been withdrawn from the country.

McLaren, a Canadian lawyer, issued his first report in July, detailing an elaborate scheme to manipulate drug tests at the 2014 Sochi Games and saying it

involved the Russian sports ministry and FSB security service.

“Ms. Antseliovich, who has not been directly implicated in the investigations, said she was shocked by the revelations,” the Times wrote. “She and others emphasized that the government’s top officials were not involved.”

And Vitaly Smirnov, the 81-year-old veteran sports official drafted this year by Russian president Vladimir Putin to oversee reforms, was less than conciliatory in his comments to the newspaper.

“From my point of view, as a former minister of sport, president of Olympic committee—we

made a lot of mistakes,” the Times quoted Smirnov as saying.

But he also referred to the revelations of therapeutic use exemptions (TUE) that allowed some high profile Western athletes in an array of sports to use banned drugs—which came out via documents hacked by the “Fancy Bear” group.

Smirnov indicated he believed the documents showed Western competitors received favorable treatment from global anti-doping authorities.

“Russia never had the opportunities that were given to other countries,” he told the newspaper.

“The general feeling in Russia is that we didn’t have a chance.” AFP

NEW YORK—New York Knicks president Phil Jackson and Los Angeles Lakers president and co-owner Jeanie Buss said Tuesday they have ended their fouryear engagement.

Jackson, who has won a record 13 NBA titles as a player and coach, announced on his Twitter page Tuesday night that the two had decided to split.

“With mutual love and respect we have decided to end our engagement,” his tweet said. “With the nature of our professional obligations and the geographic distance between us, sustaining the relationship has been difficult.

“We have shared many wonderful moments through the years and we expect to remain supportive of each other in the future. PJ/JB” Buss later retweeted Jackson’s tweet, adding: “Nothing but love and respect for this man.”

Jackson and Buss, daughter of late Lakers owner Jerry Buss, began dating after Jackson became coach of the Lakers in 1999. They had been together for more than a decade before they announced their engagement almost four years ago.

Jackson inked a five-year deal to become the Knicks’ president in March 2014, charged with turning around the flagging fortunes of the franchise. AFP

Mighty Mite’s son holds free tennis clinics MEL Ampon, son of Filipino tennis legend Felicismo “Totoy” Ampon, will conduct a series of clinics for junior players at various clubs in Metro Manila to honor the memory of his father and at the same time inspire the youth and help in the development of the sport.

“I’m putting up this series of clinics to honor the memory of my father,” said Ampon, the 1974 All Student singles champion and a former Davis Cupper who is currently the head pro of Northwestern University in the US. “I also want to show the young players that through hard work, right attitude and determination, they can achieve their goals.”

Dubbed the PPS-PEPP Mel Ampon Free Tennis Clinic, the four-stop circuit will kick off at the Olivarez Sports Center in Sucat, Parañaque tomorrow (Thursday, Dec. 29) and Friday. The posh Alabang Country Club in Muntinlupa will host the next stop on Jan. 2, 2017 before the Manila Polo Club in Forbes Park and the Valle Verde Country Club in Pasig stage the last two on Jan. 3 and 4, respectively.

The event is presented by Palawan Pawnshop Palawan Express Pera Padala, organizers of the biggest age-grouper and Open tournaments in the country, and backed by Ann Rhomberg, Babolat, Technifibre, Slazenger, Asia Traders Corp. and Philta and the host clubs.

National coaches and former Davis Cuppers have also confirmed their participation to support the project, which is open to all junior players in intermediate, advance and elite levels.

For details, call Bobby Mangunay, PPS-PEPP regional age-group tennis event organizer and Sports Program Development director at 0915-4046464.

Ampon, now 60, has 30 years of competitive tennis with experience as a teaching professional. He has also offered to help in the development of the sport here.

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

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

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016

Sports

Paolo Wong (left) and teammate Ira Alido react after the former missed an eagle-putt on No. 4.

Phoenix rises from ashes

By Jeric Lopez

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NE for the books.

In one of the most epic comebacks in league history, Phoenix Petroleum erased a 26-point, fourth-quarter deficit and rallied to squeak past GlobalPort, 101-99, in jaw-dropping fashion in the 2016-17 Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City last night.

In what could be the best game of his career, veteran forward Mark Borboran tipped in the game-winning basket off a Simon Enciso miss with six seconds remaining to give the Fuel Masters

the lead, 101-99, as they completed their remarkable comeback from the deep hole they fell into.

Borboran finished with a seasonhigh 23 points and eight rebounds to lead the fight for Phoenix.

Terrence Romeo jacked up a triple to try and salvage the game for GlobalPort but it went astray, allowing Phoenix to complete one of the greatest comebacks the league has ever seen, right in the last playdate of the year.

The Fuel Masters improved to 4-3 for a fourth-place tie after this second straight victory, while the Batang Pier slipped to 3-3.

The Fuel Masters finished the game on a spectacular 40-12 storm in the game’s last 11 minutes in shocking GlobalPort.

GlobalPort was comfortably ahead by 23 big points, 84-61, entering the fourth period and by 26 points, 87-61, after Nino Canaleta’s triple with 11:49 remaining and it seemed that it was bound for

an easy finish and victory was already in its bag.

But in one of the PBA’s most stunning rallies, the Fuel Masters refused to lose and orchestrated that furious rally that allowed them to miraculously claw their way back in the game.

Key players JC Intal and Willie Wilson returned for Phoenix after missing the team’s last game due to minor injuries.

The Batang Pier waxed hot late in the second canto, ending it with a 16-5 barrage following a 37-all standoff to build a double-digit lead, 53-42, at the turn.

Romeo’s game-high 32 points and nine assists went to waste as his team suffered that huge meltdown in the fourth where it got

outscored, 40-15, by Phoenix.

Following yesterday’s games, the league will take a weeklong break and action resumes on Jan. 6 with the Batang Pier taking on the Bolts at 4:15 p.m. and the Beermen facing Blackwater at 7 p.m. at the Mall of Asia Arena.

The scores: PHOENIX 101—Borboran 23, Wright 19, Enciso 14, Intal 9, Baguio 7, J. Wilson 7, Alolino 6, Torres 5, Lanete 5, Caperal 4, Hayes 2, W. Wilson 0.

GLOBALPORT 99—Romeo 32, Pringle 15, Pennisi 12, Quinahan 10, Pessumal 10, Canaleta 8, Mamaril 4, Maierhofer 4, Cortez 4, Aban 0.

Quarterscores: 20-22, 42-53, 61-84, 101-99

Kawasaki Team’s San Andres bags 9th Rider of Year crown KAWASAKI JBS Motocross Team’s Kenneth San Andres, fresh from his victory in the 2016 FIM Asian Supermoto Championship, formally earned his 9th Rider of the Year title during the National Motorcycle Sports and Safety Association (NAMSSA) Gala Awards Night on Tuesday at the The Brewery At The Palace, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig.

San Andres extended his dominance all the way to the Asian scene last month as he ruled the Production Class of the Asian Supermoto Championship Round 3 at the Bayanihan Park in Clark, Angeles City, Pampanga.

Prior to this, in the local NAMSSA 2016 National Motocross Development Program at the Speedworld MX Circuit, SM Bicutan, San Andres clinched his Rider of Year crown by dominating both the Pro Open and Pro 125 classes of the circuit.

The many-time motocross awar-

dee of the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA), is backed by Kawasaki Philippines, Motorad WRD Racing, Taichi Suit, Pirelli Tires, Motul PH, Bell Helmet, Troylee Design, Protaper, GoPro, Leatt, GAME OVER, Foilacar Industries, R33 Car Exchange, Kia Global, Halrey, R&E , JM Stickers, ProPipe, JBS Motorcycle Parts & Accessories.

“I thank God, my family, my team and supporters for this great blessing,” said the Valenzuela City native. “The challenge to be the best never stops, especially now when there are several up-and-coming riders slowly making their presence felt in the local circuit. I accept their challenge in 2017.”

Kenneth’s father/coach Junjun San Andres made it a doubletime triumph for the family after clinching the 2016 PH NAMSSA Veteran’s Championship.

In what could be San Andres’ most important win in 2016, he cruised

to victory in the Asian Supermoto’s seven-rider production class that was sprinkled with a couple of Asian riders and top locals that included Raniel Resuello and Moymoy Flores.

But San Andres would not be denied as he kept his aggressive driving all throughout the Supermoto course, which was a mixture of paved and rough roads.

“It was a great experience indeed.

This was the first time I’ve tried supermoto to represent our country, together with Raniel Resuello and Moymoy Flores, and to be in rivalry with other top riders in asia, I really enjoyed the race. It’s something new for me,” said San Andres, who was not able to join the first two rounds in Australia and Indonesia.

“After all the trials, I’m really blessed to be still the Rider of the Year and the leading champion of motocross. My success is for people who believe in me,” said San Andres.

Kenneth San Andres of Kawasaki JBS Team (second from left) holds his Rider of the Year award and is joined by (from left) NAMSSA president Macky Carapiet, girlfriend AJ Victoriano and Lester Codog of Foilacar Industries.

Filipino jins like chances in coming Southeast Asian Games

By Peter Atencio OFFICIALS of the Philippine Taekwondo Association are upbeat of the country’s chances in the coming 2017 Southeast Asian Games.

Medals won in three international meets in 2016 have inspired the PTA to prepare early for various tournaments leading to the biennial meet.

Over 100 jins have been select-

ed for the national training pool, and around 32 elite bets are now in the priority list of the Philippine Sports Commission.

“Meron tayong around 100 athletes kung saan tayo puwede bumunot ng players for different competitions next year. Napakadami ng competitions natin next year,” said national head coach Igor Mella in a radio interview.

The Filipino jins will be sent first to the Asian junior and cadets’ com-

petitions this April and May. Then, another set of jins will be at the world championship of sparring in Korea from June 22 to 26.

Next up is the Korean Open in July, before a selection of nine jins will be headed to the 2017 SEA Games in August.

Mella added that this series of competitions will help them choose the national jins, who will go to qualifiers for the the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.

He said it will be a challenge to send athletes to the SEA Games, considering that the organizers have limited entries per country, which is 3 out of 5 in male sparring, 3 out of 6 in female division, and 3 out of 6 events in poomsae.

The last time around, the Philippines finished second overall in the 2015 SEA Games with a 3-3-3 gold-silver bronze medal tally, 2 golds behind top notcher Vietnam.

In 2016, the Philippines had a

good showing with Kirstie Elaine Alora qualifying to the Rio Olympics where she finished 8th overall out of 16 entries.

Pauline Lopez showed the way for host Philippines in a 1-1-1 gold-silver-bronze medal haul in the Asian Taekwondo Championships at the Marriot Hotel.

Team Pilipinas also earned a gold in the World Poomsae and a bronze at the World Juniors’ Sparring Championships.

Alido, Wong set pace with 62 IRA Alido and Paolo Wong stumbled at the finish to mar an otherwise solid start, carding a six-under 62 under the four-ball format to wrest a two-stroke lead over three other pairs in the sixth NGAP National Doubles Amateur Golf Championship at Camp Aguinaldo Golf Club in QC yesterday.

Alido and Wong sizzled early in the best-ball, birdying the first two par-5s in impressive fashion then stringing up five straight birdies linking both nines, only to falter with a bogey on the last par-5 (18th) of the flat par-68 layout and settled for that 62.

Still their pair of 31s proved enough to net them the Group I lead in the 54hole tournament sponsored by the PLDT Group, the MVP Sports Foundation, Smart and Metro Pacific Investment Corp. for the needed momentum going to today’s (Thursday) tougher aggregate format, which requires consistency from both players.

The final round of the season-ending event of the National Amateur Golf Tour will be played under the two-ball foursome, according to the organizing National Golf Association of the Philippines.

While the Alido-Wong wavered at the finish, siblings Jolo and Jonas Magcalayo banked on a fiery windup to fire an eagle-spiked 64 and tie the Raymart Tolentino-Carlo Villaroman and Ryan MonsalveLanz Uy tandems at second.

The Magcalayos birdied the par-3 17th and eagled the last hole to move in early contention in the annual event hosted

by CAGC featuring the country’s top and up-and-coming amateurs.

Tolentino and Villaroman actually took the early lead with three straight birdies but bogeyed the next two to reel back. They birdied Nos. 8, 10 and 12 but bogeyed Nos. 16 and 17 before matching the Magcalayo’s eagle on 18th to bounce back.

Perpetual tossers eye twice-to-beat advantage DEFENDING juniors’ champion Perpetual Help is eyeing no lessthan a twice-to-beat advantage when it resumes its campaign in the 92nd NCAA volleyball tournament in January next year at the Filoil Flying V Center in San Juan City.

The Junior Altas are currently tied with the Arellano University Braves at second on 3-1 (winloss) records and should go all out when they tackle the San Sebastian Staglets on Jan. 11, Lyceum of the Philippines University Junior Pirates on Jan. 13, Jose Rizal Light Bombers on Jan. 20 and the Braves on Jan. 25.

All the Las Pinas-based spikers need to achieve it is to finish in the top two after the singleround elimination.

Perpetual Help coach Sandy Rieta said they used the Holiday Season to train and prepare for their last four games.

“We spent the Christmas break to practice because we’re determined to finish in the top two at least,” said Rieta in Filipino.

The Junior Altas are seeking a third straight championship and ninth overall, which is second only to the Staglets’ 15 crowns. They hit a snag though early in the season when they absorbed a heartbreaking 2325, 25-19, 25-23, 21-25, 15-17, to the Emilio Aguinaldo Brigadiers on Nov. 29 for the former’s only loss thus far.

Interestingly, EAC, the runner-up the last two seasons, is unbeaten in five outings and an elimination-round sweep would propel it straight to the best-ofthree finals while reducing the Final Four to a stepladder semis.

If it happens, the No. 2 team after the elims still gets the twice-to-beat advantage, which is what Perpetual Help is now striving for. Peter Atencio

Govt aims to cut jobless rate to 3% B3

Business

Ray S. Eñano, Editor Roderick T. dela Cruz, Assistant Editor business@manilastandardtoday.com extrastory2000@gmail.com THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016

B1

November govt spending jumped

By Gabrielle H. Binaday

T

HE government incurred a budget deficit of P19.1 billion in November, as expenditures jumped 33 percent, outpacing the 18-percent growth in revenue collection,

This brought the total budget shortfall in the first 11 months to P235.2 billion, the Bureau of Treasury said Wednesday.

Data showed the November deficit was a reversal of the P6billion budget surplus recorded in the same month last year. It was also wider than the P2.3-bil-

lion deficit recorded in October, according to the latest cash operations report of the Treasury.

The 11-month deficit also escalated from the P46.5-billion shortfall posted in the same period in 2015.

Netting out debt interest payments, the government posted a

primary surplus of P400 million in November.

Revenue collection increased 18 percent in November to P209.2 billion, bringing the 11-month tally to P2.03 trillion.

The Bureau of Internal Revenue collected P156.8 billion in November, up by 20 percent from a year ago. BIR collections grew 9 percent year-onyear to P1.45 trillion in the first 11 months.

“Adding back P500 million in tax refunds further increase the collection to P157.3 billion. Inclusion of tax refunds heightens the year-to-date total to P1.5 trillion for an increase of 10 percent

over the previous year,” the Treasury said.

The Bureau of Customs posted a 15 percent year-on-year increase in November collections of P40.2 billion. Customs raised P361.7 billion in 11 months, up by 10 percent from a year earlier.

Treasury collections also jumped 35 percent year-onyear in November to P4.2 billion, bringing its total haul in 11 months to P95.3 billion.

Collections from other offices (non-tax) declined 22 percent to P6.5 billion in November, with the cumulative collection reaching P107.2 billion in 11 months.

Government spending esca-

lated 33 percent in November, the fastest in nearly two years, or after the 35-percent spending growth in April 2015.

Expenditures hit P228.4 billion in November, or P56.9 billion higher than P171.4 billion in the same month a year ago.

Government spending in November brought year-to-date expenditures to P2.265 trillion, up by 14 percent from P1.992 trillion in the same period last year.

Debt interest payments in November grew 34 percent year-onyear to P19.6 billion, leading to a cumulative of P285.4 billion, or 1 percent-lower than a year ago.

PSE COMPOSITE INDEX Closing December 28, 2016

8300 7840 7380 6920 6460 6000

6,840.44 188.24

PESO-DOLLAR RATE

43.00 45.40 46.60

P49.815

49.00

CLOSE

HIGH P49.790 LOW P49.770 AVERAGE P49.813 VOLUME 288.30M

P430.00-P661.00 LPG/11-kg tank P35.40-P44.10 Unleaded Gasoline P25.75-P29.32 Diesel

OPRICES IL TODAY

P28.50-P36.85 Kerosene

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Wednesday, December 28, 2016

F OREIGN E XCHANGE R ATE Currency

Unit

REMITTANCE AGREEMENT. M. Lhuillier teams up with Security Bank for a credit-to-bank remittance agreement which allows M. Lhuillier to utilize Security Bank’s cash management facility, DigiBanker Interbank Fund Transfer. Shown during the ceremonial signing are (seated, from left) M. Lhuillier division manager for financial services Cecilia Lumapas and president Michel Lhuillier, Security Bank first vice president for corporate banking Louie Maloles and first vice president for transaction banking Dennis Joy Ejercito.

DOTr approves Subic-Manila railway project

P20.75-P21.75 Auto LPG

US Dollar

Peso

United States

Dollar

1.000000

49.8120

Japan

Yen

0.008514

0.4241

UK

Pound

1.227500

61.1442

Hong Kong

Dollar

0.128886

6.4201

Switzerland

Franc

0.972763

48.4553

Canada

Dollar

0.736648

36.6939

Singapore

Dollar

0.689465

34.3436

Australia

Dollar

0.717800

35.7551

Bahrain

Dinar

2.655267

132.2642 13.2797

Saudi Arabia

Rial

0.266596

Brunei

Dollar

0.687096

34.2256

Indonesia

Rupiah

0.000074

0.0037

Thailand

Baht

0.027777

1.3836

UAE

Dirham

0.272301

13.5639

Euro

Euro

1.045600

52.0834

Korea

Won

0.000828

0.0412

China

Yuan

0.143802

7.1631

India

Rupee

0.014712

0.7328

Malaysia

Ringgit

0.223414

11.1287

New Zealand

Dollar

0.688000

Taiwan

Dollar

0.030988

34.2707 1.5436

By Darwin G. Amojelar THE Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority said Wednesday it secured the green light from the Transportation Department to include a P100-billion elevated railway and expressway project from Subic Freeport to the port of Manila among priority projects.

SBMA chairman Martin Dino said the 100-kilometer multimodal elevated railway and expressway project would greatly relieve port and traffic congestion in Metro Manila and increase cargo transit in Subic Port, which was currently oper-

ating at only a third of its rated capacity of 600,000 twenty-foot equivalent unit containers.

Dino said the construction of the project could be completed in 48 months. He said he would ask for Malacañang’s approval to have the project included for financing under the PhilippineChina Framework of Cooperation.

Dino also said his team was already working on increasing Subic Bay Port’s capacity for new container terminals 3 and 4 by an additional 600,000 TEUs. He also welcomed the appointment of lawyer Wilma Eisma as

SBMA administrator, saying the Freeport now had “an excellent working team.”

“Now we can really move forward at Subic in our goal to raise investments and revenues, eliminate smuggling and stamp out corruption,” Dino said.

Eisma replaced former administrator Roberto Garcia and brought to Subic her wide management experience. She is expected to take over the post next week in what Dino described as “a great start to a new year in our effort to turn Subic into an anchor of national growth.”

This developed as the new

win-win tandem vowed to promote Subic as a major alternative gateway for international cargos.

Dino, who was appointed by Malacañang in September, said there were “no more roadblocks to a wide-ranging reform in Subic, because now we can truly say we have an excellent working team.”

He said President Rodrigo Duterte was expected to name the remaining members of the SBMA board, the policy-making body, so the Freeport “can move rapidly and urgently in seeking new investments and building much-needed infrastructure.”

Source: PDS Bridge

Power producers want to keep ERC's mandate

By Alena Mae S. Flores RCD LAND’S AWARD. RCD

Land Inc. president and chief executive Roland Delantar receives honorable Asia Pacific Entrepreneurship Award 2016 for property development industry Philippines given by Enterprise Asia. APEA Philippines honored 20 entrepreneurs representing the Philippines for their entrepreneurial achievements.

Aboitiz completes GNPower purchase ABOITIZ Power Corp. has completed the acquisition of a 66.1 percent effective beneficial ownership interest in GNPower Mariveles Coal Plant Ltd. Co. and 40 percent interest in GNPower Diningin Ltd. Co. The completion move followed the recent approval of the Philippine Competition Commission and Board of Investments.

“BoI approved the acquisition of GNPower Mariveles on November 21, 2016. On December 19, 2016, PCC approved the acquisition of the target companies. Following receipt of the BoI and the PCC approval, the parties completed the acquisition on December 27, 2016, Philippine time,” Aboitiz Power said in a disclosure Wednesday.

Aboitiz Power unitTherma Power Inc. earlier signed agreements to acquire the interests held by affiliated investment funds of The Blackstone Group L.P in World Power Holdings L.P. and Sithe Global Power L.P. in the two power plants. Alena Mae S. Flores

BSP deposit auction undersubscribed

Closing DECEMBER 28, 2016

47.80

IN BRIEF

THE Philippine Independent Power Producers Association expressed hope the Energy Regulatory Commission will remain the energy sector’s regulatory body, exercising its mandate under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act. PIPPA issued the statement in the wake of the ongoing impasse involving the ERC, following the one-month leave of ERC chairman Jose Vicente Salazar on Dec. 5.

Salazar went on voluntary leave to accommodate an investigation launched by the National Bureau of Investigation and the Commission on Audit over irregularities allegedly exposed by late ERC director Francisco Jose Villa Jr. “With respect to the current investigation on alleged anomalies, PIPPA believes that it will be conducted with due process and resolved expeditiously,” the group said.

PIPPA is an association of 28 companies engaged in power

generation. Collectively, PIPPA’s members have 13,549.4 megawatts of grid installed capacity or 82.8 percent of the country’s total and serve millions of Filipinos in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

It said the power industry was recognizing and supporting the initiatives and reforms being implemented by the commission in furthering ERC’s institutional integrity, capabilities and efficiency.

PIPPA said it trusted that the ERC would continue to focus on much-needed industry reforms, particularly the implementation of mandatory contestability which is set for February next year.

Mandatory contestability requires customers with a monthly demand of one megawatt to choose their own suppliers by February.

“Mandatory contestability is a new and exciting phase in the electric power industry. The industry is hopeful that the ERC is on top of its implementation,” said PIPPA managing director Anne Estorco Macias.

THE P180-billion worth of term deposits offered by Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas on Wednesday was undersubscribed due to seasonality and some cautiousness from market players.

Data showed that total tenders for the weekly volume of P180-billion reached just P148.839 billion. The week-long P30-billion worth of deposits remained oversubscribed, luring total tenders of P37.806 billion.

However, the 28-day P150billion deposits attracted total bids of just P111.033 billion and Bangko Sentral opted to award only P110.168 billion.

“It was clear from the beginning and the market knows this that any bid outside the corridor will not be accepted. Please recall that IRC was designed to guide market rates closer to the policy rate. Throw away bids send black noise and those cannot be useful in guiding market rates,” Deputy Governor Diwa Guinigundo said in a statement Wednesday.

Julito G. Rada

Exchange of old bills extended until March

By Julito G. Rada THE Monetary Board, the policy-setting body of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, extended by three months the deadline for the exchange or replacement of old banknotes with the New Generation Currency bills, from Dec. 31, 2016 to March 31, 2017.

Bangko Sentral Deputy Governor Nestor Espenilla Jr. said in a news briefing the extension was the board’s answer to the “public’s clamor for more time to exchange or replace the old banknotes” which were in circulation since 1985.

Espenilla did not specify which particular sectors were clamoring for the extension of the replacement deadline.

“Most of the NDS currencies have already been replaced and a small amount is still circulating in the system,” Espenilla said.

Latest data showed that as of Nov. 30, about 8.86 percent or 295.7 million pieces of the 3.34 billion banknotes in circulation were NDS or old banknotes.

In value terms, 2.4 percent or P23.3 billion of the P979.9 billion banknotes in circulation were NDS bills.

By contrast, during the announcement of the NDS demonetization process in endDecember 2014, 21 percent of banknotes in circulation were old bills. In value terms, 20.4 percent or P184.3 billion were NDS.

B2

Business

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016 extrastory2000@gmail.com

Market surges; ALI tops gainers MPIC unit hikes S stake in toll roads tocks surged Wednesday on window dressing in the last trading week of 2016 and following the release of upbeat US economic data.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index, the 30-company benchmark, jumped 188 points, or 2.8 percent, to close at 6,846.44. This also reduced losses this year to 1.5 percent.

The broader all-share index also gained 79 points, or 2 percent, to settle at 4,150.17, on a value turnover of P3.5 billion. Advancers outnumbered losers, 119 to 58, while 47 issues were unchanged.

Seventeen of the 20 most active stocks ended in the green, led by developer Ayala Land Inc. which jumped 5.1 percent to P31.70 and conglomerate

Hong Kong was up 0.4 percent in afternoon trade on the market’s first working day since the Christmas break, while Shanghai slid 0.4 percent by the close.

Chinese investors have endured a tough year during which bonds, shares and currency have all slumped. Shanghai is heading for its largest drop in five years.

The thin trading volume is expected to continue in Asian markets during the last week of a volatile 12 months.

Investors have displayed resilience in the face of shocks such as the Brexit vote and Donald Trump’s US presidential win, helping to weaken the yen and propel Japan’s Nikkei to 12-month highs.

“The environment isn’t bad, but with some foreign investors away on vacation, there are few

Aboitiz Equity Ventures Inc. which advanced 4.9 percent to P70.90.

Meanwhile, Tokyo shares ended flat Wednesday despite Toshiba’s second straight double-digit plunge, in quiet Asian trading before the New Year, while US crude oil finally ended a winning streak.

Stock in the troubled Japanese conglomerate plummeted more than 20 percent as the company said it may book a one-time loss of several billion dollars over its US nuclear business.

On a quiet day for the region,

participants and the market lacks momentum to push prices beyond recent highs,” Chihiro Ohta, a Tokyo-based senior strategist at SMBC Nikko Securities, told Bloomberg News.

Australian shares rose one percent, the most in three weeks, after a long holiday weekend to continue a pre-Christmas rally albeit on low volumes.

Seoul ended the day 0.9 percent down as a political crisis dragged on while Singapore was 0.4 percent up in afternoon trade.

US crude prices drifted lower, with the US benchmark contract down slightly Wednesday to finally snap a wining streak ahead of US energy inventory data released Thursday. On Tuesday, US oil prices finished at $53.90 a barrel, their highest level of the year.

With AFP, Bloomberg

By Darwin G. Amojelar METRO Pacific Tollways Development Corp. said Wednesday it raised its stake in the operator of North Luzon Expressway, SubicClark-Tarlac Expressway and Manila-Cavite Expressway.

Metro Pacific Investments Corp. said in a disclosure to the stock exchange MPTDC acquired 53,200 Tollways Management Corp. common shares from Egis Road Operation S.A., representing 14 percent of the total issued and outstanding capital stock of

MANILA STANDARD BUSINESS DAILY STOCKS REVIEW WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2016

VALUE

NET FOREIGN BUYING/(SELLING), PHP

FINANCIALS 3.55 39,000 47.95 20,500 88.9 1,075,870 112 1,187,820 1.4 38,000 38.3 90,700 9.5 500 16.08 700 18.44 35,400 6.6 20,000 0.71 530,000 0.57 1,773,000 72.45 811,000 0.78 36,000 14.22 33,500 54.5 20,060 239.8 62,400 125 10 33.8 97,800 196 355,910 1,642 5 74.75 11,950

135,520 982,665 95,560,771 131,946,377 52,370 3,464,855 4,750 11,282 651,834 132,239 345,910 1,009,200 58,762,351 27,760 476,100 1,095,360.50 14,977,984 1,250 3,304,095 70,283,931 8,210 895,811.50

690,260 -13,756,650 50,827,339 3,438,070 -25,690.00 -23,831,566.50 -191,335.50 -12,428,400 -1,681,560 9,117,267 35,302.50

42.3 4.5 0.81 1.25 19.2 0.184 97 11.24 15.98 22.75 21.3 59 90 119 1.85 6.4 11.94 11.04 6.11 7.04 4.98 21.2 67.6 16.5 6.03 1.52 194 69 2.62 28.2 24 14.5 266.6 3.2 9.8 11.62 2.1 5.62 1.35 69.6 4.96 225 4.8 2.7 11.28 4.16 0.14 1.4 157.5 4.32 1.28 31.5 1.05

INDUSTRIAL 43.5 1,114,300 4.6 3,187,000 0.83 373,000 1.26 217,000 20.2 6,900 0.194 90,000 98.5 220 11.24 6,480,200 16.2 2,438,400 23.3 2,763,000 22 2,900 60 31,670 90 440 120 1,150 1.85 24,000 6.41 84,500 12 21,100 11.18 2,224,900 6.24 497,800 7.24 3,908,600 5.1 5,761,000 21.75 2,018,100 67.8 18,040 16.5 1,500 6.08 304,700 1.55 176,000 200 444,860 69 770 2.62 8,000 28.5 1,554,900 25 984,600 14.66 61,400 266.6 151,850 3.21 5,664,000 9.8 1,370,100 11.62 5,000 2.14 1,185,000 5.63 717,100 1.37 51,000 69.7 731,190 5.05 57,200 225 30 4.95 3,146,000 2.7 4,000 11.3 2,431,200 4.16 17,000 0.14 920,000 1.43 100,000 164 740,840 4.59 12,000 1.32 6,937,000 31.5 200 1.12 109,000

48,315,705 14,740,270 306,110 271,760 138,823 17,100 21,543 73,296,696 39,219,812 62,888,900 62,510 1,899,100 40,048.50 138,460 44,400 542,607 252,906 24,852,226 3,101,525 28,151,390 29,254,540 43,329,280 1,223,582 24,750 1,848,087 271,910 88,650,559 54,458 21,230 44,300,030 24,521,660 905,686 40,816,914 18,701,980 13,747,684 58,100 2,521,670 4,065,869 69,720 50,977,821 286,397 6,750 15,109,910 10,970 27,524,800 70,760 128,940 141,430 120,289,440 52,460 9,213,680 6,300 118,600

16,735,245 882,600 -584,948 3,606,140 -229,600 116,960 -135,720 646 -3,535,416 -769,317 3,621,971 8,406,450 2,983,450 442,742 -6,600 450,289 26,758,727 -9,343,530 -3,405,540 197,754 -6,257,720 66,750 -1,903,914 1,278,980 -2,901,594 48,355,254 50,506 1,219,200 16,052,434 63,106,803 -6,695,810 -

0.4 67.85 12.5 1.11 5.9 0.285 715 8.38 12.68 8.16 5.59 0.18 1,220 5.45 68 1.1 7.68 12.7 6.3 3.49 0.037 1.13 1.9 92.5 2.45 627 1.22 261 0.28 0.25

HOLDING FIRMS 0.42 10,560,000 70.9 1,289,000 12.72 3,068,400 1.19 12,000 6 228,400 0.305 310,000 732 277,420 8.5 251,200 13.1 2,797,400 8.16 123,700 5.59 5,600 0.18 40,000 1,230 116,455 5.5 37,900 69 1,796,760 1.16 9,842,000 7.72 1,305,500 12.7 3,387,400 6.5 31,173,100 3.49 3,000 0.037 7,200,000 1.13 1,000 1.91 525,000 95.75 209,730 2.45 2,000 657 151,970 1.22 104,000 262 8,900 0.28 500,000 0.25 110,000

4,478,650 90,710,175.50 38,976,108 13,890 1,364,708 92,050 201,798,025 2,130,525 36,250,722 1,014,238 31,304 7,200 142,932,185 208,430 123,887,782 11,471,000 10,076,604 43,668,782 200,896,664 10,470 266,500 1,130 998,500 19,995,319 4,900 98,957,060 126,880 2,328,548 140,400 27,500

8,263,124 3,016,192 -3,755,745 963,430 9,539,294 -7,200 96,242,265 -195,250 42,805,233.50 -23,600 1,302,768 -6,068,896 29,802,875 9,762,141 12,914,680 -

NAME

OPEN

HIGH

LOW

CLOSE

AG FINANCE ASIA UNITED BANK PH ISLANDS BDO UNIBANK BRIGHT KINDLE CHINABANK CITYSTATE BANK COL FINANCIAL EAST WEST BANK FILIPINO FUND FIRST ABACUS MEDCO HLDG METROBANK NTL REINSURANCE PB BANK PHIL NATL BANK PHIL STOCK EXCH PHILTRUST RCBC SECURITY BANK SUN LIFE UNION BANK

3.35 47.9 87.95 107.3 1.32 38 9.5 16.34 18.4 6.64 0.65 0.56 72.2 0.77 14.2 54.7 244 125 33.85 196 1,642 75

3.7 47.95 89 112 1.4 38.3 9.5 16.34 18.44 6.64 0.71 0.58 72.5 0.78 14.22 54.7 244 125 33.85 198.8 1,642 75

3.35 47.9 87.95 107.3 1.32 38 9.5 16.08 18.4 6.6 0.63 0.56 72.1 0.77 14.2 54.5 239.8 125 33.75 195.3 1,642 74.75

ABOITIZ POWER AGRINURTURE ALLIANCE SELECT ALSONS CONS ASIABEST GROUP BASIC ENERGY BOGO MEDELLIN CEMEX HLDG CENTURY FOOD CIRTEK HLDG CNTRL AZUCARERA CONCEPCION CONCRETE A CONCRETE B CROWN ASIA DAVINCI CAPITAL DEL MONTE DNL INDUS EEI CORP EMPERADOR ENERGY DEVT FIRST GEN FIRST PHIL HLDG HOLCIM INTEGRATED MICR IONICS JOLLIBEE LIBERTY FLOUR LMG CHEMICALS MANILA WATER MAXS GROUP MEGAWIDE MERALCO PEPSI COLA PETRON PHINMA PHINMA ENERGY PHX PETROLEUM PHX SEMICNDCTR PILIPINAS SHELL PRYCE CORP PUREFOODS RFM CORP ROXAS HLDG SHAKEYS PIZZA SPC POWER SWIFT FOODS TKC METALS UNIV ROBINA VICTORIAS VITARICH VIVANT VULCAN INDL

42.75 4.7 0.83 1.25 19.98 0.195 100 11.3 16.04 22.8 21.3 59 92.95 155 1.85 6.46 11.98 11.06 6.31 7.04 4.98 21.35 67.6 16.5 6.06 1.52 195 71.1 2.71 28.5 24 14.5 266.6 3.33 9.94 11.62 2.1 5.62 1.39 69.7 5 225 4.8 2.8 11.32 4.17 0.141 1.4 158 4.33 1.33 31.5 1.1

43.55 4.8 0.83 1.27 20.35 0.195 100 11.4 16.44 23.3 22 60 93 155 1.85 6.46 12 11.28 6.31 7.25 5.1 21.75 67.95 16.5 6.08 1.55 200 76.3 2.71 28.65 25 14.92 269.8 3.33 10.2 11.62 2.14 5.76 1.39 69.8 5.06 225 4.95 2.8 11.4 4.17 0.141 1.44 164.1 4.6 1.42 31.5 1.12

ABACORE CAPITAL ABOITIZ EQUITY ALLIANCE GLOBAL ANGLO PHIL HLDG ANSCOR ATN HLDG A AYALA CORP COSCO CAPITAL DMCI HLDG FILINVEST DEV FJ PRINCE A FORUM PACIFIC GT CAPITAL HOUSE OF INV JG SUMMIT LODESTAR LOPEZ HLDG LT GROUP METRO PAC INV MJC INVESTMENTS PACIFICA PRIME MEDIA PRIME ORION SAN MIGUEL CORP SEAFRONT RES SM INVESTMENTS SOLID GROUP TOP FRONTIER UNIOIL HLDG ZEUS HLDG

0.41 68.5 12.5 1.11 6 0.3 715 8.4 12.68 8.2 5.59 0.18 1,220 5.5 68 1.11 7.79 12.8 6.4 3.49 0.038 1.13 1.9 93.5 2.45 628 1.22 261.2 0.285 0.25

0.435 71 12.72 1.19 6 0.305 734 8.5 13.1 8.22 5.59 0.18 1,230 5.5 69.1 1.19 7.79 12.94 6.5 3.49 0.038 1.13 1.91 95.95 2.45 657 1.22 262 0.285 0.25

8990 HLDG A BROWN ARANETA PROP ARTHALAND CORP AYALA LAND BELLE CORP CEBU HLDG CEBU PROP B CENTURY PROP CITYLAND DEVT CROWN EQUITIES CYBER BAY DOUBLEDRAGON EMPIRE EAST EVER GOTESCO FILINVEST LAND GLOBAL ESTATE IRC PROP MEGAWORLD MRC ALLIED

7.8 1.05 2.03 0.39 30.8 3.11 4.98 6.3 0.55 1.37 0.15 0.55 38 0.68 0.124 1.54 0.98 1.24 3.56 0.128

7.8 1.05 2.12 0.41 31.7 3.15 5.05 6.33 0.56 1.43 0.154 0.57 38.2 0.69 0.125 1.55 1 1.25 3.6 0.132

7.63 1.03 2.02 0.385 30.3 3.11 4.98 6.3 0.54 1.36 0.15 0.55 37.8 0.68 0.124 1.51 0.98 1.23 3.48 0.127

VOLUME

NAME

OPEN

HIGH

LOW

CLOSE

VOLUME

VALUE

NET FOREIGN BUYING/(SELLING), PHP

PRIMEX CORP ROBINSONS LAND ROCKWELL SM PRIME HLDG STA LUCIA LAND SUNTRUST HOME VISTA LAND

3.3 25.15 1.54 27.9 1.06 0.9 4.82

3.33 25.6 1.54 28.4 1.07 0.9 4.88

3.27 25 1.54 27.85 1.05 0.8 4.79

3.29 25.6 1.54 28.35 1.07 0.84 4.85

244,000 420,600 137,000 6,297,800 3,942,000 5,138,000 2,142,000

802,160 10,710,155 210,980 177,377,490 4,166,900 4,260,580 10,394,290

-4,546,850 21,971,040 260,400

2GO GROUP ABS CBN ACESITE HOTEL APC GROUP APOLLO GLOBAL ASIAN TERMINALS BERJAYA BLOOMBERRY BOULEVARD HLDG CALATA CORP CEBU AIR DFNN INC FAR EASTERN U GLOBE TELECOM GMA NETWORK GOLDEN HAVEN HARBOR STAR IMPERIAL A INTL CONTAINER IPM HLDG ISLAND INFO ISM COMM JACKSTONES LBC EXPRESS LEISURE AND RES MACROASIA MANILA JOCKEY MELCO CROWN METRO RETAIL MLA BRDCASTING NOW CORP PACIFIC ONLINE PAL HLDG PAXYS PHIL RACING PHIL SEVEN CORP PHILWEB PLDT PREMIUM LEISURE PRMIERE HORIZON PUREGOLD ROBINSONS RTL SBS PHIL CORP SSI GROUP STI HLDG TRAVELLERS WATERFRONT

7.6 43.3 1.34 0.48 0.04 10.52 5.35 5.97 0.062 2.3 92 8.2 950 1,465 6.17 15.74 2.66 15 68.6 9.09 0.201 1.31 3.52 14.98 4.01 2.38 2 3.87 4.1 17.3 2.38 11.06 5.02 2.77 8.99 135.4 10.6 1,328 1.16 0.445 37.8 72.5 5.85 2.52 0.96 3.43 0.33

7.65 44.5 1.35 0.48 0.041 10.56 5.6 6.15 0.063 2.41 93 8.49 950 1,487 6.22 15.96 2.79 15 71 9.09 0.208 1.32 3.52 15.86 4.1 2.4 2 3.88 4.15 17.3 2.5 11.2 5.16 3.08 8.99 136 10.9 1,354 1.17 0.455 38.15 72.9 5.85 2.56 0.97 3.56 0.33

7.6 43.25 1.34 0.48 0.04 10.52 5.35 5.9 0.061 2.25 91.7 8.15 950 1,459 6.15 15.74 2.6 14.6 68.6 9.05 0.201 1.3 3.52 14.98 3.91 2.37 2 3.8 3.96 17.3 2.38 11.06 5 2.76 8.99 135 10 1,315 1.16 0.445 37.4 72.1 5.7 2.52 0.95 3.4 0.33

SERVICES 7.63 44 1.35 0.48 0.04 10.56 5.6 6.15 0.062 2.29 93 8.42 950 1,485 6.16 15.92 2.67 15 71 9.09 0.205 1.3 3.52 15.86 4.06 2.37 2 3.86 4.06 17.3 2.41 11.2 5.16 3.08 8.99 135 10.56 1,354 1.17 0.455 38 72.6 5.72 2.55 0.97 3.47 0.33

43,100 6,900 202,000 10,000 20,100,000 6,100 25,000 1,777,700 7,790,000 7,942,000 98,100 87,300 520 44,240 259,800 45,500 7,848,000 9,500 774,130 511,000 9,070,000 1,084,000 2,000 16,300 1,169,000 29,000 200,000 6,291,000 7,563,000 1,100 839,000 11,000 2,700 11,000 100 3,330 1,809,900 43,990 2,631,000 810,000 1,193,800 333,470 157,800 311,000 2,627,000 904,000 20,000

328,445 302,045 270,700 4,800 809,800 64,292 137,315 10,832,290 482,780 18,157,850 9,093,228 729,742 494,000 65,522,665 1,601,184 718,560 21,029,480 138,972 54,651,351.50 4,644,670 1,860,860 1,410,600 7,040 244,962 4,675,920 68,810 400,000 24,272,170 30,617,780 19,030 2,046,530 121,750 13,552 30,770 899 450,002 19,039,620 59,272,420 3,071,960 362,500 45,252,270 24,207,058.50 917,363 791,860 2,532,270 3,160,450 6,600

-40,000 -4,674,280 2,059,020 -1,783,922.50 2,872,425 1,117,650 -24,466,239.50 20,400 137,800 -1,165,440 -400,000 -20,213,530 -9,321,330.00 2,760 -216,440 -126,300 15,640,265 -278,460 -3,392,610 22,429,452 -57,224 -127,330 1,763,020 -1,241,680 -

ABRA MINING APEX MINING ATLAS MINING BENGUET A BENGUET B CENTURY PEAK COAL ASIA HLDG DIZON MINES FERRONICKEL GEOGRACE LEPANTO A LEPANTO B MANILA MINING A MANILA MINING B MARCVENTURES NICKEL ASIA NIHAO ORNTL PENINSULA PETROENERGY PHILODRILL PX MINING PXP ENERGY SEMIRARA MINING

0.0033 2.71 4.99 2.22 2.19 0.49 0.46 11.92 2.9 0.265 0.193 0.196 0.012 0.012 2.44 7.7 2.85 1.04 4.01 0.012 8.64 3.35 130

0.0033 2.71 5.1 2.22 2.19 0.49 0.475 12.5 2.99 0.265 0.195 0.196 0.012 0.012 2.44 7.84 2.89 1.05 4.18 0.012 8.72 3.4 131

0.0032 2.7 4.98 2.22 2.18 0.485 0.46 11.3 2.86 0.26 0.193 0.195 0.011 0.012 2.36 7.69 2.73 1.02 4 0.012 8.62 3.34 130

2,153,600 264,910 3,420,620 62,160 21,850 131,600 490,450 1,712,930 12,129,270 403,850 1,190,160 542,110 20,000 2,400 887,540 6,555,231 160,000 225,300 128,380 48,000 3,539,089 2,590,880 46,041,884

-115,960 -117,050 -24,320 -2,640,010 -182,000 -452,410 1,279,130 32,990.00 326,160 7,529,761

ABS HLDG PDR AC PREF B2 ALCO PREF B DD PREF FGEN PREF G GLO PREF P GMA HLDG PDR GTCAP PREF B PF PREF 2 PNX PREF 3B SMC PREF 2C SMC PREF 2D SMC PREF 2E SMC PREF 2F SMC PREF 2H SMC PREF 2I

44 540 103.1 104.3 121 539.5 5.9 1,020 1,030 115 80.55 76 78.2 79.5 77.2 77.2

44 540 103.1 104.8 121 540 5.94 1,020 1,030 115 80.9 76 78.2 79.5 77.2 77.2

44 540 102.5 104 121 538.5 5.9 1,020 1,028 115 80.55 76 78.2 79.5 76.55 77.2

PREFERRED 44 8,300 540 750 103 7,900 104.8 100,010 121 140 540 11,120 5.9 318,000 1,020 1,000 1,028 12,700 115 100 80.6 15,700 76 1,000 78.2 20,000 79.5 2,500 76.55 243,220 77.2 150

365,200 405,000 813,740 10,402,011 16,940 5,992,175 1,880,540 1,020,000 13,060,100 11,500 1,266,949.50 76,000 1,564,000 198,750 18,629,598 11,580

365,200 -1,803,520 364,148 -

LR WARRANT

2.12

2.18

2.1

WARRANTS 2.14 202,000

429,840

-

ALTERRA CAPITAL ITALPINAS MAKATI FINANCE XURPAS

8.94 3.74 2.9 7.35

9.29 3.92 2.9 7.7

8.94 3.57 2.9 7.32

9.11 3.87 2.9 7.5

3,044,826 1,403,880 5,800 21,189,683

873,480 -9,366,378

FIRST METRO ETF

110.4

112.8

110.4

489,236

-

MS

PROPERTY 7.67 1.04 2.09 0.4 31.7 3.13 5.05 6.33 0.55 1.36 0.154 0.56 38.2 0.69 0.125 1.51 1 1.25 3.48 0.131

119,600 378,000 14,111,000 2,870,000 8,059,700 790,000 40,000 1,300 3,875,000 643,000 1,700,000 4,688,000 256,800 514,000 600,000 17,382,000 867,000 743,000 23,005,000 1,970,000

922,760 391,310 28,934,640 1,147,200 251,317,510 2,470,270 200,600 8,196 2,128,210 881,330 257,150 2,600,770 9,761,350 349,720 74,800 26,769,220 862,490 918,480 81,537,260 255,560

128,055 0 -44,381,945 140,990 -232,600 230,455 335,920 -4,275,950 -50,375,630 -

TRADING SUMMARY

SHARES

FINANCIAL

6,240,330

INDUSTRIAL

59,170,494

HOLDING FIRMS

75,732,610

PROPERTY SERVICES

101,050,821 85,878,590

MINING & OIL

695,904,359

GRAND TOTAL

1,027,496,384

MINING AND OIL 0.0033 670,000,000 2.7 98,000 5.06 676,000 2.22 28,000 2.18 10,000 0.485 270,000 0.46 1,060,000 12.38 142,300 2.86 4,181,000 0.26 1,550,000 0.195 6,110,000 0.195 2,780,000 0.011 1,700,000 0.012 200,000 2.39 371,000 7.82 838,800 2.86 56,000 1.04 219,000 4.18 32,000 0.012 4,000,000 8.69 407,500 3.34 773,000 130.4 353,030

SME

333,200 363,000 2,000 2,816,500

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS 112.8 4,360

VALUE 1,662.86 (up) 28.40 384,143,355.55 FINANCIAL INDUSTRIAL 10,723.84 (up) 229.67 849,767,203.85 HOLDING FIRMS 6,997.64 (up) 209.47 1,056,068,981.37 PROPERTY 3,045.01 (up) 76.91 SERVICES 1,290.47 (up) 29.99 630,969,331.07 MINING & OIL 11,855.13 (up) 34.81 423,577,085.18 PSEI 6,846.44 (up) 188.24 82,745,248.716 All Shares Index 4,150.17 (up) 79.57 3,453,405,897.59 Gainers:119 Losers: 58; Unchanged: 47; Total: 224

TMC. TMC is engaged in the operations and maintenance of tollways, facilities, interchanges and related works.

Prior to the transaction, MPTDC owned 174,800 TMC shares, representing about 46 percent of the issued share capital of TMC. Upon completion, MPTDC will own 228,000 TMC shares, representing about 60 percent of the issued share capital of TMC. The purchase price for the acquired shares was paid in cash.

Egis of France now owns 20 percent of TMC, while the government owns the other 20 percent.

MPTDC is a whollyowned subsidiary of Metro Pacific Tollways Corp., the toll road unit of MPIC. Both boards of MNTC and TMC earlier approved the merger, with MNTC as the surviving corporation that will operate NLEx, SCTEx and Cavitex.

MNTC is the concessionaire of both NLEx and SCTEx projects. It is also one of the original proponents for the Connector Road Project linking North Luzon Expressway and South Luzon Expressway.

SM gets 18 awards for energy efficiency

By Alena Mae S. Flores THE SM Group received 18 awards for energy efficiency initiatives, which generated around P500 million in savings to the group.

SM Group was one of the awardees of the Don Emilio Abello Energy Efficiency Awards for 2016 given by the Energy Department.

SM malls and offices were conferred energy efficiency awards, including a hall of fame award for outstanding and pioneering contributions to energy efficiency. SM has put in place energy efficiency projects which included but were not limited to solar rooftop projects.

The Don Emilio Abello Efficiency Awards is spearheaded by the department in recognition to outstanding companies and energy managers who have undertaken energy efficiency and conservation programs to achieve substantial savings in their energy consumption.

The SM awardees included Cyber Makati 1 (hall of fame) and SM City Iloilo, SM City North EDSA (Annex), The Podium, Mall of Asia and Cyber Makati 1 (outstanding awards).

Outstanding energy manager awardees were Melchor Nocomora for Cyber Makati 1, Franklin Crisostomo for Mall of Asia, Danilo Laxamana for The Podium, Daryl Pascual for SM City North EDSA (Annex) and Gino Jan Babao for SM City Iloilo.

Special awards were also given to One eCom Center, Cyber Makati 2 and SM Corporate Offices while awards of recognition were bestowed on SM City Baguio, SM City North EDSA, SM General Santos and SM Corporate Offices.

Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said this year’s awardees were worthy of emulation because of their contribution to the common good and environmental protection.

Business

B3

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016 extrastory2000@gmail.com

Govt aims to cut jobless rate to 3%

By Gabrielle H. Binaday

T

he government wants to cut unemployment rate in the country to 3 percent within the six-year term of President Rodrigo Duterte.

National Economic and Development Authority director-general Ernesto Pernia told Manila Standard the target was to “definitely” pull down unemployment rate to 3 percent.

Unemployment rate, or the percentage of jobless Filipinos in 2016, dipped to 5.5 percent in 2016, the Philippine Statistics Authority said Wednesday.

Final results of the Labor Force Survey conducted

by PSA showed that annual unemployment rate

dropped 0.8-percentage point from 6.3 percent declined to 18.3 percent this year from 18.5 percent work. recorded in 2015. in 2015. Neda said earlier underemployment “Even more important [is] to bring down This translated to about 2.39 million Filipinos was prevalent among those working in private underemployment rate from the current 18 percent, who were unemployed this year. households and those employed in family business. perhaps cutting it by half,” Pernia said.

“Of this number, 77.7 percent belonged to age Pernia said the administration aimed to bring Pernia, however, said his estimates were still group 15 to 34 years wherein those in age group down the underemployment rate to 9 percent before subject for further studies and computation.

15 to 24 years comprised 48.4 percent and those in the end of the Duterte administration in 2022.

Neda deputy director-general Rosemarie Edillon the age group 25 to 34 years, 29.3 percent,” PSA Underemployment rate refers to the percentage of said the focus of the government was to reduce the said. employed individuals desiring for more hours of underemployment rate.

The participation rate in the labor force was recorded at 63.4 percent of the 68.1 Manila million of population over 15 years old.

Standard “This is equivalent to about TODAY PHILIPPINE DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION 43.2 million economically active population comprising either the employed or unemployed persons,” PSA said.

NOTICE OF LOSS Underemployment rate also Notice is hereby given of the loss of the following provisional receipt forms: Serial Number From To 3651 3700 9351 9400 9501 9750 9851 9950 9951 10000 10001 10050

ONLINE TUTOR. 51Talk founder and chief executive Huang Jiajia (left) visits a home-based

teacher on a recent trip to the Philippines. During the visit, Jiajia had a chance to talk with one of 51Talk’s online English students who thanked him for setting up 51Talk. The student can now speak English well. 51Talk has 8,000 Filipino online English teachers nationwide.

51Talk is the number one online English education platform in the world, delivering intensive one-on-one immersive lessons to students in China.

BoI approves housing project

By Othel V. Campos THE Board of Investments approved the application of Schmidt Konstruktion Systems Corp. as a new domestic producer of modular housing components.

The P13.7-million project met the requirements under the current Investment Priorities Plan.

Economic and low-cost housing, both horizontal and vertical, is among the preferred activities listed in the IPP. This covers the development of economic and low-cost housing and the manufacture of modular housing components.

“The company, classified as a small and medium enterprise augurs well with the administration’s efforts to put the SMEs at the front and center, generating further employment opportunities for our countrymen,” said Trade Secretary and BoI chairman Ramon Lopez.

Lopez said with the government’s 10-point socio-economic agenda in full swing, the department expected more SME registrations in the future as the incoming IPP planned to expand the coverage of industry sectors to scale up productivity of SMEs with innovationdriven growth models.

The approved project involves the manufacture of modular housing components preferably using indigenous materials. These include roof/framing systems, wall/partition systems, flooring systems, door/window systems and finishing/ceiling systems.

The locally-owned company started operations in November 2016 with 53 people in its payroll.

It is expected to supply wall and system requirements for houses intended for typhoon Yolanda victims in the Visayas in partnership with related government housing agencies, local government units and non-government organizations.

IRRI’s golden anniversary: a tribute EVERY year in modern times is marked by centenaries or golden anniversaries of wellknown events and institutions. The year that is about to end is no exception. One of the celebrated institutions that have marked their golden anniversaries in 2016 is the International Rice Research Institute. IRRI has done remarkable work on the world’s most widely consumed cereal and I don’t want its golden anniversary to pass into history without contributing a little tribute to the many that it has received since July, the month in 1966 when it was founded.

IRRI is one of four institutions established over the years, with the support of Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN to conduct research and development work on the world’s four most common staples. There are international research institutes for corn (in Mexico), potatoes (India) and wheat.

IRRI was established on the basis of funding commitments from two of the world’s wealthiest foundations—the Rockefeller Brothers Foundation and the Ford Foundation. The decision to locate the IRRI facilities in Los Baños was made with UP Los Baños research cooperation in mind. Its first director, Dr. Vernon Chandler, is probably the bestremembered of the directors who have headed IRRI in the last 50 years.

It was not long before IRRI announced its first research breakthrough. That was the now-legendary IR-8, a rice strain developed from a combination of a Taiwanese strain and an Indonesian strain. IR-8 was designed to cope with the age-old Asian cultural problems of water logging during the typhoon season and proneness to tillering. IR-8 was said to have ushered in the Green Revolution. The Philippine government was overjoyed that the

rice research breakthrough was achieved in the Philippines.

But IRRI did not stop with IR-8. It went on to develop a succession of miracle rice strains, each new one better than the last. The other IRRI-developed rice strain that achieved the greatest success and recognition was IR-36, developed several years after IR-8.

IRRI proved to be a victim of its enormous success. After IR-8, IR-36 and a few other strains inbetween, the world – and this country—stopped being amazed by IRRI’s successive research breakthroughs. People here and abroad came to take IRRI and its achievement capabilities for granted.

With less fanfare, IRRI continues to soldier on in its still-impressive Los Baños facilities. In the world of agricultural research—and particularly research on rice —IRRI remains a powerful force.

Thoughtful Filipinos are bound to ask, despite all the rice-culture breakthroughs achieved by IRRI: why is Philippine agriculture still so unproductive and why is the Philippines still one of the world’s top rice importers? Why do IR-8 and the Green Revolution appear to have gone for nought?

For the answer, one must not look to the unsound, inconsistent and unsustained policies of the Philippine government towards the agricultural sector in general and the rice industry in particular. IRRI can only produce research breakthroughs; governments have to make good use of the breakthroughs.

Carry on with your fine work, IRRI. By no means have you ceased to be appreciated.

Best of luck for your next 50 years.

10101 10201

10150 10250

10251 10301 10651 10701 11451 11701 12301 12351 14051 14101 14451 14501 14701 14951 15001 15951 17801 17851 19101 19251

10300 10650 10700 11350 11650 12050 12350 14050 14100 14450 14500 14550 14750 15000 15950 17200 17850 17900 19200 19300

19301

19350

19351 19401 19501

19400 19500 19550

Serial Number

From 24801

To 24850

24851 24901 24951 25001 25101 25151 25201 27001 27051 27101

24900 24950 25000 25100 25150 25200 27000 27050 27100 27150

27151 27301 27351 27401 27451

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Missing Series Number of Booklets Pieces From To 3658 3700 1 43 9374 9400 1 27 9501 9750 5 250 9851 9950 2 100 9951 10000 1 50 10006 10006 1 40 10009 10013 10016 10016 10018 10050 10101 10150 1 50 10201 10203 1 38 10206 10206 10209 10210 10214 10214 10220 10250 10284 10300 1 17 10301 10650 7 350 10662 10700 1 39 10701 11350 13 650 11451 11650 4 200 11701 12050 7 350 12336 12350 1 15 12351 14050 34 1,700 14051 14074 1 24 14101 14450 7 350 14451 14478 1 28 14501 14550 1 50 14701 14750 1 50 14956 15000 1 45 15001 15950 19 950 15951 17200 25 1,250 17801 17850 1 50 17851 17884 1 34 19101 19200 2 100 19251 19251 1 11 19276 19280 19292 19296 19304 19310 1 35 19315 19317 19319 19320 19328 19350 19357 19400 1 44 19401 19500 2 100 19519 19519 1 1 Missing Series Number of Booklets Pieces From To 24815 24816 1 23 24822 24822 24831 24850 24852 24900 1 49 24913 24950 1 38 24957 25000 1 44 25001 25100 2 100 25121 25122 1 2 25152 25200 1 49 25201 27000 36 1,800 27026 27050 1 25 27051 27100 1 50 27101 27103 1 49 27105 27150 27151 27300 3 150 27320 27350 1 31 27351 27400 1 50 27414 27450 1 37 27451 27454 1 46 27459 27500 27502 27550 1 49 27552 27555 1 48 27557 27600 27601 27624 1 47 27628 27650 27651 27800 3 150 27801 27801 1 32 27805 27806 27809 27809 27823 27850 27851 27862 1 49 27864 27900 27951 28400 9 450 28501 28800 6 300

Serial Number From To 19601 19650

19701 20251 20351 20401 20501 20551 22001 22051 22151 22201 22251

20150 20300 20400 20500 20550 22000 22050 22150 22200 22250 22300

22301 22351

22350 22400

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22901 23651 23701 24351

23650 23700 24300 24400

24401

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24451

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24551 24601 24651 24701

24600 24650 24700 24750

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Serial Number

From 28851 29751 29801 30401 30501 30551

To 29750 29800 30350 30500 30550 30600

30601 31301 31351 31401

31300 31350 31400 31450

31451 32001 32101

31700 32050 32150

32201 33001 33051 34601 34651

32300 33050 34500 34650 34700

34701 40251 40801 41001 42751 43051 46001 52001 72701 76251

34750 40300 40900 42000 43000 44000 48000 52250 72850 76350

Missing Series Number of Booklets Pieces From To 19603 19603 1 32 19615 19615 19621 19650 19701 20150 9 450 20251 20300 1 50 20386 20400 1 15 20401 20500 2 100 20520 20550 1 31 20551 22000 29 1,450 22002 22050 1 49 22051 22150 2 100 22152 22200 1 49 22201 22250 1 50 22251 22271 1 49 22273 22300 22301 22350 1 50 22351 22351 1 49 22353 22400 22401 22850 9 450 22851 22885 1 35 22887 22900 14 22901 23650 15 750 23651 23693 1 43 23701 24300 12 600 24352 24353 1 3 24391 24391 24401 24401 1 16 24410 24420 24439 24439 24448 24450 24460 24461 1 28 24467 24467 24476 24500 24510 24510 1 28 24520 24521 24526 24550 24554 24600 1 47 24609 24650 1 42 24652 24700 1 49 24701 24701 1 49 24703 24750 24751 24751 1 49 24753 24800 Missing Series Number of Booklets Pieces From To 28851 29750 18 900 29754 29800 1 47 29801 30350 11 550 30401 30500 2 100 30501 30502 1 2 30551 30551 1 48 30554 30600 30601 31300 14 700 31301 31347 1 47 31351 31400 1 50 31401 31427 1 49 31429 31450 31451 31700 5 250 32001 32050 1 50 32101 32101 1 31 32104 32110 32128 32150 32201 32300 2 100 33036 33050 1 15 33051 34500 29 1,450 34640 34650 1 11 34651 34654 1 36 34669 34700 34716 34750 1 35 40251 40300 1 50 40801 40900 2 100 41001 42000 20 1,000 42751 43000 5 250 43051 44000 19 950 46001 48000 40 2,000 52001 52250 5 250 72701 72850 3 150 76251 76350 2 100

Consequently, all of the forms described above have been cancelled effective immediately. All transactions for which those provisional receipts were issued shall not be honored.

Persons in possession of the provisional receipts are requested to promptly notify this office and to take the necessary measures to prevent the improper or fraudulent disposition or use of the same and surrender said provisional receipts to PDIC.Those who have been issued provisional receipts bearing serial numbers as hereinabove identified are called upon to personally validate with PDIC the status of their payments.All communications may be made thru PDIC’s Public Assistance Department at telephone numbers(632) 841-4630/(632) 841-4631 (for Metro Manila) and 1-800-888-7342 (toll free, for outside Metro Manila) or thru e-mail address pad@pdic.com.ph.

(SGD) MA. ANA CARMELA L. VILLEGAS OIC, Receivership & Liquidation Sector

E-mail: rudyromero777@yahoo.com (MS-DEC. 29, 2016)

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

B4

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016

Business

Toshiba shares fall by 20% on write-off

Vietnam expands over 6% V IETNAM’S economy expanded more than 6 percent for a second year, defying a regional slowdown to remain one of the world’s best performers as manufacturing rose.

Gross domestic product increased 6.68 percent in the fourth quarter from a year earlier, up from 6.56 percent in the previous three months, the General Statistics Office said in Hanoi Wednesday. The economy grew 6.21 percent in 2016, compared with the median estimate of 6.3 percent in a Bloomberg survey.

“Although there has been no breakthrough in GDP growth in 2016, it was still a success as the figure is relatively high and stable,” Nguyen Bich Lam, director of the GSO, told reporters in Hanoi.

He blamed the tempered growth on fragile global economic conditions, a punishing regional drought and a toxic leak in

central Vietnam that devastated the local fishing and tourism industries earlier this year.

Vietnam ranks among the world’s fastest-growing economies as its exports remained resilient to a global trade slowdown that’s hurting Singapore and China. Companies setting up plants in the country, such as Samsung Electronics Co., are transforming the nation into a manufacturing hub for electronics goods, including smartphones. The Asian Development Bank forecast Vietnam’s economic growth at 6.3 percent in 2017.

The Southeast Asian nation has increasingly become a regional magnet for private investment, especially in its growing manu-

DOTr wasting time amid airport chaos THE Department of Transportation could end up again as the government’s most incompetent agency.

With the traffic snarl a regular feature in the metropolis, the department has failed to come up with the basic solution to ease commuters’ woes.

Six months into the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade has not acted with urgency to alleviate the traffic congestion in major urban centers in the country.

Airport congestion is also worsening, compounded by increased tourism arrivals. Air travel is supposed to be the most convenient way in and out of our country as an archipelago. But with the current condition of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, “convenient” might not be the most appropriate way to describe this route. Currently ranked the fifth worst airport in Asia in a recently conducted survey, Naia has certainly seen better days. Passengers now are at a tipping point in terms of both the airport’s capacity and their patience.

The country’s main gateway is designed to receive an optimal capacity of 30 million travelers per year. Its maximum capacity, meanwhile, is 35 million. From 2014 to 2015, the number of passengers that went through Naia’s terminals increased by seven percent to 37 million. This means at the peak of the “tanim-bala” issue, the airport has already exceeded its maximum capacity.

The numbers this year will be more overwhelming.

Terminal congestion leads to long queues while in the process of checking in or retrieving baggages—a major annoyance for most passengers. Runway congestion, however, causes more serious problems. Most flights are either forced to wait before taking off or circle the air space for half an hour or so before landing because the runway is simply not equipped to accommodate more aircraft at this time. The foreign minister of Japan recently fell victim to the congestion when his flight had to be diverted to the Clark Airport after circling Naia.

The government early this year, though, decided to move forward with the rehabilitation and upgrade of the airport’s four terminals to address the sad state of air travel in the country.

The National Economic and Development Authority cleared the proposed P75-billion Public-Private Partnership tender for the Naia project back in September. But the DOTr is taking its sweet time in releasing an invitation to bid, or the terms of reference for the project.

Two new proposals, one from Ramong Ang’s San Miguel Corp. for a new airport in Bulacan, and the other from a group that includes Henry Sy’s Belle Corp. for a reclamation and airport construction project in the bay area of Cavite, have sidetracked the agency. These are unsolicited proposals that would take several years to vet, process and implement.

Belle and Solar Group’s All-Asia Resources and Reclamation Corp. proposed to build a new international airport, seaport, economic zone and mixed-used real estate development off the coast of Sangley Point in Cavite worth up to $50 billion.

Ang, meanwhile, offered to build a new airport in Bulacan province, a revision of its 2014 proposal for a $10-billion airport on a reclaimed land in Manila Bay. If the DOTr decides to prioritize these over the already approved Naia improvement plan, Filipinos and tourists are in for another decade of dreadful air travel.

At its peak operating condition, Naia can perform 40 take-offs and landings per hour. The proposed project seeks to increase the frequency and make the process more efficient by improving the runways and upgrading air traffic control equipment. The airport’s current state makes it virtually impossible to add more flights, adversely affecting the tourism and business sectors. This limitation presents a loss of potential revenue and opportunity for the whole country.

President Duterte has included the improvement of transportation system in its to-do list. But if it is truly concerned about the way our country is negatively perceived abroad, and sympathetic to the plight of travel-weary Filipinos, it has to make good on its promises.

The people at the DOTr have spent three months twiddling their thumbs. This Christmas season is as good a time as any to present our kababayans with something that might be conceivable within the next several years. It’s time to start the ball rolling on the Naia project.

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

A street vendor sells fruits carried on her bicycle in downtown Hanoi on December 21, 2016. AFP

facturing and consumer sectors.

Analysts have hailed it has a bright spot in the region.

Neighboring Thailand, once the star of Southeast Asia, has by contrast seen its economy stagger under a military junta.

“Vietnam is in a sweet spot right now,” said Frederic Neumann, cohead of Asian economic research at HSBC Holdings Plc in Hong Kong. “Strong growth will persist in the next several years. It is continuing to gain market share in exports and even giving China a run for competitiveness. Foreign companies continue to invest in

Vietnam to take advantage of its highly competitive labor and low cost. The outlook is bright and it is one of the standout economies in Asia.”

Manufacturing gained 13.61 percent in the fourth quarter from a year earlier, fastest pace this year, Ha Quang Tuyen, head of GDP department at the GSO, said at a briefing on Wednesday.

Exports rose 8.6 percent in 2016, imports gained 4.6 percent, according to GSO. Vietnam posted a trade deficit of $300 million in December. It had a trade surplus of $2.68 billion for 2016.

Retail sales rose 10.2 percent in 2016. Disbursed foreign direct investment climbed 9 percent to a record $15.8 billion this year.

Pledged FDI increased 7.1 percent.

An analysis published by the World Bank earlier this month said strong domestic demand and export-oriented manufacturing gave the country’s economy a favorable outlook.

It also hailed low inflation rates, which the government said Wednesday were kept below its target five percent.

AFP, Bloomberg

TOKYO―Toshiba shares dived more than 20 percent Wednesday in their second straight double-digit plunge, as the company said it may book a one-time loss of several billion dollars over its US nuclear business.

The stock price dropped by 20.42 percent to 311.60 yen, the largest fall allowed for a single day, about 30 minutes after the opening bell, as the company failed to ease investor worries over the potential risk. It finished the session at that level.

On Tuesday the Tokyobased conglomerate said in a statement that costs linked to the acquisition last year by its US subsidiary of a nuclear service company would possibly amount to “several billion US dollars, resulting in a negative impact on Toshiba’s financial results.”

The exact figure of the potential write-down is still being worked out, Toshiba president Satoshi Tsunakawa told reporters after the announcement, apologizing for “causing concern.”

The company statement suggested the figure would be released soon, citing an end-ofyear deadline for settling the valuation of the nuclear deal.

The announcement came after Toshiba shares closed nearly 12 percent lower on Tuesday on media reports about the potential loss.

Analysts said uncertainty was fueling investor anxiety.

“Concerns have yet to be cleared away as they said they didn’t know the figure,” Yukihiko Shimada, senior analyst at SMBC Nikko Securities, told AFP. AFP

(5) 3 Others (indicate the nature and amount of the accounts lodged)

OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR

Circular No. 934 Series of 2016

Subject: AMENDMENTS ON THE TREATMENT OF OTHER COMPREHENSIVE INCOME IN THE COMPUTATION OF BASEL III RISK-BASED CAPITAL Pursuant to Monetary Board Resolution No. 2167 dated 01 December 2016, the following amendments to the Appendices of the Manual of Regulations for Banks (MORB) and Manual of Regulations for Non-Bank Financial Institutions (MORNBFI) and the Financial Reporting Package are approved as follows: Section 1. Part II Qualifying Capital of Appendix 63b/Appendix Q-46 to Section X115/Subsection 4115Q.1 (2008-4116Q) of the MORB/ MORNBFI on the Risk-Based Capital Adequacy Framework for the Philippine Banking System is hereby amended as follows: “Part II. Qualifying Capital

“Regulatory adjustments to CET1 capital xxx” Section 2. Financial Reporting Package for Banks (FRP)/ Simplified Financial Reporting Package for Rural and Cooperative Banks (Simplified FRP).

1. The Manual of Accounts section under the Financial Reporting Package/Simplified Financial Reporting Package for Banks is hereby amended to read as follows: Manual of Accounts “xxx “Equity Accounts “xxx “8. Other Comprehensive Income “xxx “(c) Cumulative Foreign Currency Translation – xxx “xxx

xxx Section A. Domestic Banks CET1 Capital 3. CET1 capital consists of: a. Paid up common stock issued by the bank that meet the eligibility criteria in “App.63b/App. Q-46 Annex A” xxx g. Other comprehensive income (1) Net unrealized gains or losses on available for sale (AFS) securities3; and (2) Cumulative foreign currency translation; (3) Remeasurement of Net Defined Benefit Liability/(Asset); (4) Gains/(Losses) on Fair Value Adjustments of Hedging Instruments; and (a) Cash Flow Hedge; and (b) Hedge of a Net Investment in Foreign Operations

“(ii) Exchange differences arising on a monetary item that forms part of a reporting bank’s net investment in a foreign operation denominated in the functional currency of the foreign operation. “(d) Remeasurements of Net Defined Benefit Liability (Asset) – This refers to remeasurements of the net defined benefit liability (asset) made in accordance with PAS 19 “Employee Benefits”. “(e) Net Unrealized Gains/(Losses) on Fair Value Attributable to Changes in Own Credit Risk of Financial Liabilities Designated at Fair Value Through Profit or Loss – This refers to gains/(losses) resulting from change in the fair value of financial liabilities designated at fair value through profit or loss where such gains/(losses) are attributable to changes in the bank’s own credit risk as provided under PFRS 9. (For early adopters of PFRS 9 on the classification of financial liabilities) (df) Others - This refers to Other Comprehensive Income that cannot be appropriately classified under items (a), (b) and (c) to (e) above.

“9. Appraisal Increment Reserve xxx

(5) Others (indicate the nature and amount of the accounts lodged) xxx” h. Minority interest xxx 2. Report Schedule xxx Section B. Branches of Foreign Banks “CET1 capital 10. CET1 capital shall be comprised of: xxx e. Other comprehensive income (1) Net unrealized gains or losses on available for sale (AFS) securities3; and (2) Cumulative foreign currency translation;

The revised reporting templates for the Balance Sheet under the FRP and Simplified FRP, attached as Annexes A and B, respectively, shall take effect as of end-March 2017.

Pending the specific guidelines on the availability and submission of the revised FRP/Simplified FRP, items (d) and (e) of Other Comprehensive Income account shall continue to be reported as “Other Comprehensive Income - Others”.

Section 3. Effectivity. This circular shall take effect fifteen (15) calendar days following its publication either in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.

(3) Remeasurement of Net Defined Benefit Liability/(Asset);

For the Monetary Board:

(4) Gains/(Losses) on Fair Value Adjustments of Hedging Instruments; and (a) Cash Flow Hedge; and (b) Hedge of a Net Investment in Foreign Operations

(Sgd.) AMANDO M. TETANGCO, JR. Governor

23 December 2016

LGUs LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS

Jimbo Owen Gulle, Editor Roger M. Garcia, Assistant Editor jimbo.gulle@gmail.com mslocalgov@gmail.com THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016

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‘NINA’S’ WRATH. The damaged portion of Virac Airport in Catanduanes that was hit by Typhoon ‘Nina’ on Christmas Day will cost the government P5 million to repair it, airport officials said Tuesday. Still, the rest of the airport is back in full operation. Eric Apolonio

5th congressional seat in Ecija eyed

By Ferdie G. Domingo SAN JOSE, Nueva Ecija—A bill creating a fifth congressional district in Nueva Ecija, which was filed in the House of Representatives during the previous Congress, has been revived.

This after second district Rep. Micaela Salvador-Violago filed a bill reapportioning the two cities and six municipalities in the second congressional district into two legislative districts.

Violago refiled the proposal filed in 2013 by her husband, former three-term congressman Joseph Gilbert Violago.

At present, the second congressional district comprises the cities of San Jose and Muñoz and the municipalities of Carranglan, Llanera, Lupao, Pantabangan, Rizal, and Talugtug.

In Salvador-Violago’s proposed bill, San Jose and the towns of Carranglan, Lupao and Talugtug will make up the second district, while a fifth congressional district will be created from Muñoz, Llanera,

Pantabangan and Rizal.

Violago said the rising population of the province necessitates the reapportioning of its legislative districts.

Since 1987, the lawmaker said Nueva Ecija’s population had increased to over 1.9 million as of May 1, 2010, with a 2.1-percent annual growth rate as determined by the Philippine Statistics Authority.

Violago said it is imperative for Congress to carry out the reapportioning to meet the increasing socioeconomic demands of the province.

A few years back, former provincial board member Joseph Ortiz also proposed the additional congressional district by redistricting the four existing ones, although Congress has the sole power to create new congressional districts.

Ortiz stressed the province could add up to three new legislative districts since under existing laws, a congressional district could be carved out of an area with a population of at least 250,000.

Manila to gain big slice of Solar City

By Sandy Araneta

T

HE city government of Manila stands to gain a huge tract of high-value land in the soon-to-be-built Solar City urban center in Manila Bay, aside from the billions of tax revenues it will earn yearly, Manila Mayor Joseph “Erap” Estrada said on Wednesday.

Under its joint venture agreement with Manila Goldcoast Development Corp., the city will own 35 hectares of the 148 hectares of land to be reclaimed for the multibillion-peso project, Estrada said.

“The reclamation of 148 hectares will create for the city of Manila an expanse of land, which can complement the development plans for our urban renewal program,” he said.

With virtually no available space left for future development within Manila’s land area

of 42.88 square kilometers, Estrada noted the Solar City parcel will create a new community and tourism center that will be beneficial to the city government and the city’s residents.

In a letter to Undersecretary Lloyd Christopher Lao of the Presidential Management Staff, Secretary to the Mayor Edward Serapio said Manila will get five hectares of “saleable” land and an additional 30 hectares of parks and open space between the Cultural Center of the Phil-

ippines and the Intramuros area.

“We foresee the need of such an expanse of land for tourism and leisure-oriented projects, particularly because of its proximity to CCP and the tourist belt of Manila,” Serapio pointed out.

A portion of the reclaimed land, he added, will provide vehicle access from Macapagal Avenue to Quirino Avenue, which will lessen traffic congestion in the area.

“The reclaimed land, once completed and developed, will create at least 250,000 jobs and generate hundreds of billions of new investments,” Serapio said.

It will also contribute substantial income to the local and national government in the form of real estate taxes, value added taxes, and income taxes among others, he added.

Once PRA issues a Notice to Proceed, Serapio said the reclamation will commence and would be finished in 18 months,

followed by the construction of the cruise ship terminal and other vertical structures.

Solar City is a state-of-theart, tourism, commercial and residential district to be built on three reclaimed islands where business centers, residential and commercial properties, and tourism facilities, including an international cruise ship terminal, will be put up.

Manila and MGDC, which won the contract to build Solar City in 1991, made an agreement to form a consortium to reclaim and develop the reclamation project on April 17, 2012. They then signed a joint venture agreement with the Philippine Reclamation Authority on June 7, 2012, which was subsequently ratified by the City Council.

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources issued Solar City an environmental compliance certificate on Nov.13, 2014.

Cauayan City health office gets facelift Fire guts Red Cross IN LINE with its disaster response advocacy and ongoing rehabilitation program in provinces battered by calamities, BDO Foundation, the corporate social responsibility arm of BDO Unibank, has renovated the Cauayan City Health Office I in Cauayan City, Isabela.

The province was one of several areas affected by Typhoon “Lando” in 2015.

The inauguration and turnover of the rehabilitated structure was led by BDO North Eastern Luzon area head Rene Gongora, BDO Foundation program director Rose Espinosa, and BDO Isabela-Cauayan branch head Neil Guimmayen, who recommended the rural health unit to the foundation.

Local government officials represented by Cauayan City Mayor Bernard Faustino Dy, Vice Mayor Leoncio Dalin, and city health officer Dr. Bernadynn Bengie Reyes accepted the improved health center on behalf of the city.

Working with local government and health officials, BDO Foundation refurbished the health office’s facilities, offices, clinics, consultation rooms, treatment rooms and breastfeeding area.

building in Olongapo

BDO Foundation has collaborated with local government and health officials to rehabilitate the Cauayan City Health Office I in Isabela, which was damaged by Typhoon ‘Lando’ last year.

A play area for children, complete with books and toys, as well as a waiting lounge for the elderly were constructed.

The foundation also improved the health center’s birthing clinic, an

initiative that supports the United Nations Millennium Development Goal for maternal healthcare.

The rehabilitation of the health office helps improve the delivery of healthcare services to under-

privileged patients. Because of the project, Cauayan’s residents have better access to nutritional, dental, laboratory, consultation, birthing, maternal and child care services.

OLONGAPO CITY—A fire of still undermined origin razed the old Philippine Red Cross building at the disputed Olongapo Civic Center Complex Sunday morning.

The fire started at 3 a.m. and destroyed important Red Cross files and documents that were being kept in the facility. It was put out an hour and a half later, PRC officials said.

Red Cross officials, however, suspect a possible arson since the building was unmanned and its power connection already cut off before the fire. They are also wondering why police and fire authorities were taking so long to file an official report regarding the cause of the fire.

“The fire incident to us is highly suspicious, both as to the timing and the circumstances obtaining prior to the fire,” said PRC secretary general Oscar Palabyab.

Olongapo Senior Fire Officer 2 Salvador Espares said the department has yet to complete its investigation.

The PRC building was constructed in the 1970s near the site of

the former public hospital and functioned as the agency’s Blood Bank and Chapter offices before moving in to its new building on Magsaysay Avenue three years ago.

It was the only structure left standing in the complex after nearby buildings had been demolished to give way to the development project of SM Prime Holdings Inc. “The City Government had earlier asked us to vacate the premises as it has committed that area to the SM Group,” Palabyab explained. “We have been in the premises for a long time and have taken good care of the premises ever since.”

“While we constructed a new building in Magsaysay Avenue in Olongapo City, our local chapter is still operating and using the old building for our operations. We are therefore resisting the move to relocate us to another place, which is not even ready nor available. The growing population of the city needs the space to augment the services offered by our local chapter,” he added.

Jaucian: ‘Harsh policies’ at LTFRB led to colorum PUVs

By Butch Gunio BALANGA, Bataan—Rodolfo Jaucian, the relieved National Capitol Region Director of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board, on Wednesday explained his side on

alleged corruption charges that led to the firing of over 40 LTFRB personnel two weeks back.

In an exclusive interview, Jaucian told Manila Standard the LTFRB Central Office’s “very harsh and confiscatory policy” on the renewal of expired public util-

ity vehicle franchises forced PUV owners and drivers to operate as “colorum” or without permits.

The agency denied petitions for the extension of the validity of expired franchises even if it lapsed for just one day, said Jaucian, who visited a friend in this

city for Christmas.

He said the LTFRB Central Office realized its mistakes and accepted petitions for franchise extensions, “but sadly limited it to jeepneys only, neglecting other modes of transportations like taxis and UV express service.”

Jaucian explained he granted the PUV operators’ motions to accept the late filing of their applications to extend the validity of their permits, “based on their individual merits and to correct the injustice done to them.”

He also called “a blatant lie”

the reported allegation of the existence of a “ghost” database at the bureau. The other database, Jaucian said, is a backup file “that was used in the computerization and issuance of certificates of public convenience and stickers.”

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LGUs

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016

CV chief cop to press drug fight P

By Brenda Jocson

HILIPPINE National Police Director General Ronald dela Rosa has designated a “mistah” to lead the relentless campaign against illegal drugs in Cagayan Valley.

STILL CHRISTMAS. A soldier of the Philippine Army in Eastern Visayas gives a gift basket to a resident in Barangay Emilda Palapag, Northern Samar, while his comrades sing

Christmas carols as they toured the rural communities on Sunday, Dec. 25. The soldiers were demonstrating ‘the spirit that is the measure of the vitality of our nation and men,’ an Army statement said. Mel Caspe

Mining firm plays Santa to Typhoon ‘Lawin’ victims TUGUEGARAO, Cagayan— Australian copper and gold miner OceanaGold Philippines Inc. played Santa Claus to at least 500 typhoon victims here, extending relief operations in the province.

OceanaGold, which runs the Didipio mine in Nueva Vizcaya province, brought Christmas gifts to indigenous families in Enrile and Solana towns. Many of them lost their houses and livelihood

IN BRIEF 1 killed, 1 hurt in Atok shooting ATOK, Benguet—A 32-year-old man died while his 31-year-old drinking companion was injured after an allegedly drunken police officer shot at them inside their home at Sayangan, Paoay here on Sunday night.

Police identified the fatality as Abraham Pacalso Atiwag, while his injured companion was Jerry Buyagawen Oriani, 31. The suspect was named by elements of the Atok Municipal Police Station as PO3 Rizaldy Banatao Banna, 32, who is assigned to the Atok Municipal Police Station and is currently residing in Baguio City.

Initial investigation showed Banna was patrolling the area when he chanced upon Atiwag and Oriani drinking at their home. A heated altercation ensued and Banna pulled his gun at the victims, but barangay officials in Sayangan and witnesses claimed the policeman was also under the influence of liquor as he repeatedly shot his firearm at the victims.

Atiwag and Oriani were rushed to Atok District Hospital but the former passed away several hours later. Dexter A. See

Marital fight leads to man’s suicide NOVELETA, Cavite—A construction worker committed suicide by hanging himself inside his home after arguing with his wife, who threatened to separate from him and take their children with her, police said Wednesday.

Joemar de Leon, of Barangay San Rafael 4 here, was found dead in the kitchen hanging from an insulated cable wire by police investigators, who responded to a call from a concerned citizen, officer on case, PO2 Rommel G. Lachica said. Benjamin Chavez

during the onslaught of Super Typhoon “Lawin” last October.

David Way, OGPI general manager, said they conducted their gift-giving operations in Lawin Norte in Enrile and Furagi in Solana town where typhoon victims needed the most help.

OceanaGold “is always ready to extend assistance to the needy” especially the typhoon victims in Cagayan prov-

ince, which was hardest hit by “Lawin,” Way added.

“We are privileged to have the opportunity to help. We are one with the provincial government of Cagayan in their efforts to swiftly normalize the lives of the people who were heavily affected by the typhoon,” he said.

OceanaGold was one among the earliest responders for relief assistance to the typhoon-affect-

ed families in Cagayan, including Peñablanca town. The company also sent its Emergency Response Team to clear debris and felled trees on the roads.

OceanaGold’s ERT earned a special recognition, the Kalasag Award, from the Office of Civil Defense in Region 2 for its excellence in disaster risk reduction and management, its humanitarian efforts in local and

national emergency responses, and its efforts in mitigating climate change.

In 2014, OGPI sponsored a P3.3-million housing village for victims of Typhoon “Yolanda” in Bantayan, Cebu.

OceanaGold also distributed P4 million worth of gift packs to residents of Barangay Didipio in Kasibu, Nueva Vizcaya and 29 neighboring villages. Brenda Jocson

Del Rosa has designated Chief Superintendent Eliseo Rasco as regional police director, who said he will intensify the campaign against illegal drugs in Region 2.

Rasco also assured residents that police operations will be mounted only against those who are really involved in the criminal enterprise.

Dela Rosa and Rasco were classmates or “mistah” in the Philippine Military Academy’s Sinagtala Class of 1986.

“The war on illegal drugs in Cagayan Valley will continue without pause and it will be intensified for while there are illegal drug dealers, pushers and users,” Rasco said during his assumption on Tuesday.

“Mistah, wage a relentless campaign on illegal drugs in your AOR [area of responsibility],” Rasco quoted Dela Rosa as saying when he paid a courtesy call to the national police chief upon being assigned to Region 2.

Rasco replaced Chief Superintendent Gilbert Soza, who now heads the Directorate for Integrated Police Operations for Northern Luzon, a two-star rank position.

Rasco spent most of his career with the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, and is known as a top-notch investigator with vast knowledge and experience as a veteran intelligence officer and an outstanding field operator.

Osorio Elementary gains new classroom building TRECE MARTIRES, Cavite —All the students of Osorio Elementary School finally have enough classrooms for them through a school building donated by SM Foundation.

The new two-story school building has four fully-furnished classrooms with 200 student arm chairs, four teacher’s desk sets, 16 wall fans, eight blackboards, four wall clocks and four washrooms with water closets.

Osorio Elementary is one of the biggest schools in Trece Martires City, with 1,641 students.

With the new school building, the average class size is reduced to 48 students per classroom from the previous 62 students per class. The building will be dedicated to Grade 5 students.

“Our desire is for every child to have a properly furnished classroom, where they can learn and achieve their dreams,” said Linda Atayde, SM Foundation The Osorio Elementary School building is the 79th school structure nationwide built by SM Foundation. executive director for Education Programs.

“Now it is easier for both building our need for new class- rio ES principal Amanda Erni. for this school building with four teachers and students. With this rooms has been met,” said Oso- “Thank you, SM Foundation, fully-furnished, well-ventilated

classrooms that will boost the students’ learning capacity and ability.”

The Osorio ES building is the 79th school building built and donated by SM Foundation nationwide.

SM is committed in uplifting its host communities wherever SM operates, Atayde said, as in Cavite alone, SM Foundation supports 171 college scholars and 24 technical-vocational scholars in two “tech-voc” schools.

The Foundation has also conducted nine farmers’ trainings in Cavite, benefitting 978 farmers, and has conducted more than 50 medical missions in the province.

It has also renovated and refurbished the health center in Indang and Heneral Uno, as well as the Philippine National Police Academy and Nausog Sick Bay in Cavite City.

The Foundation has also renovated and refurbished the Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo Hospital, General Trias Medicare Hospital, and the Cavite Federation of Senior Citizens offices.

Global Pinoy program brightens Christmas for OFWs

By Macon Ramos-Araneta malls across the country.

DIANE REYES spent the last six years working in Japan as a teacher, but this year, she finally spent Christmas with her family.

The holidays have become even more enjoyable for Reyes and hundreds of overseas Filipino workers as SM Global Pinoy and BDO held its “Pamaskong Handog para sa Global Pinoy” as a special Christmas treat for them and their beneficiaries at SM Supermalls nationwide.

Giving OFWs like Reyes and their families a special day to celebrate a uniquely Filipino Christmas celebration, SM Global Pinoy and BDO worked with SM Supermalls and The SM Store to stage a variety show and celebrity appearances exclusively for them in 10 SM Super-

“The Pamaskong Handog Para sa Global Pinoy is really for our modern heroes and their families, because it’s not every year that they get to experience Christmas here,” said Glenn Ang, senior vice president for Operations of SM Supermalls and program director of SM Global Pinoy.

“We want to them to experience the unique Filipino Christmas to make their homecoming memorable and truly heartwarming,” Ang added.

OFWs were also treated to a free movie day at select SM Cinemas nationwide, a 10 percent discount at all branches of The SM Store and a 5 percent discount at any branch of SM Appliances.

OFW families also got a

chance to win prizes and giveaways from Jollibee, SM Foodcourt, Watsons, Toy Kingdom, SM Markets, Taal Vista Hotel, SM Storyland, Sky Ranch, and SM by the Bay Amusement Park.

SM Global Pinoy “has always recognized the valuable contributions of the country’s seafarers and other OFWs to the country, which is why the program was launched,” Ang said.

John Arnold Corcuera, a nurse who had worked in the Middle East, expressed his joy for being an SM Global Pinoy member.

The program has made it easier for OFWs to spend some precious time with their family because of the perks and privileges, he said.

“My experience as a member of Global Pinoy is the best. This

isn’t present in other malls, only at SM, and we feel very special whenever we get into a Global Pinoy center,” Corcuera said.

OFW beneficiaries also shared their experience with the remittance services of BDO. “Their service is fast. We will continue to use them because we get a lot of privileges,” said Regina Montalbo of Tierracon Homes of Caloocan City, who receives remittances through her BDO Kabayan Savings Account.

She was one of the winners of SM Gift passes from BDO. BDO has always been at the forefront of serving OFWs and their families through BDO Kabayan Savings Account, and various activities that cater to the needs of OFWs, said Genie T. Gloria, senior

vice president of BDO Remittance.

BDO treated OFW families to a day of fun and entertainment by bringing their endorsers to the Pamaskong Handog event. For instance, Piolo Pascual was at SM Consolacion Cebu, Xian Lim at SM City San Pablo, and Maine Mendoza at SM Novaliches.

Kim Chiu was at SM City Cabanatuan and SM City Marilao, Enrique Gil at SM City Rosario, Angeline Quinto at SM City Batangas, Richard Poon at SM City Cagayan de Oro, JC Santos at SM City Sta. Rosa, and Jona Viray at SM City Iloilo.

“It has always been BDO’s commitment to address the remittance needs of OFWs, and we make this possible through BDO Kabayan Savings Account,” Gloria said.

Standard

TODAY

IN BRIEF Air strike kills 22 civilians in Eastern Syria BEIRUT―Air strikes carried out by unidentified aircraft killed at least 22 civilians, including 10 children, in a village held by the Islamic State group in eastern Syria, a monitor said Wednesday.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the civilians were from two families at Hojna in Deir Ezzor, which borders Iraq and is the country’s second biggest province after Homs.

The oil-rich province of Deir Ezzor is almost totally under IS control and has been regularly targeted by a US-led military coalition.

The only part of the eastern province outside of IS control is its capital, which is also named Deir Ezzor and is held by forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

IS has carried out a series of attacks across Europe and has been targeted by military offensives on several fronts in Syria and Iraq, where it declared an Islamic “caliphate” in 2014.

In Syria, IS is targeted by warplanes of the US-led coalition as well as Turkey, the Syrian regime and its ally Russia in the northern province of Aleppo, Deir Ezzor and its stronghold of Raqa. AFP

False bomb alert triggered in Bangkok BANGKOK―Facebook sparked fear -- and anger -- among Thailand’s social media users after its Safety Check feature triggered a false bomb alert in Bangkok.

The check-in feature allows users to signal to friends that they are safe after an event in their area such as a terror attack or natural disaster.

But it appeared to misfire late Tuesday, creating an alert called “The Explosion in Bangkok” that said a blast in the capital had been confirmed by “multiple sources”.

The page gave no other details about the incident but linked to articles about a bombing in Bangkok in August 2015 which killed 20 people.

After numerous city residents marked themselves as safe, the alert was deactivated around an hour later at 10pm, leaving netizens relieved but also frustrated over the false alarm.

“Facebook issued false news that has destroyed Thailand’s image,” wrote Thai user Prasit Silhanisong.

“It’s close to the New Year and now tourists might not come,” he added, calling on the social media giant to apologize.

Facebook swiftly defended the algorithm, saying the alert was activated by reports of small explosives that a protester had thrown near Government House earlier on Tuesday.

The incident, which caused no injuries or damage, was covered in the local press.

“Safety Check was activated yesterday in Thailand following an explosion,” a Facebook spokesperson said in a statement to AFP, adding that a “trusted third party” had confirmed the incident. AFP

India train derailment kills two NEW DELHI―At least two people died and 28 were injured Wednesday after a train derailed in north India, close to the site of a previous rail accident that killed 146.

The incident happened in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh state, when more than a dozen coaches of an express train derailed.

Local government officials at the accident site said some coaches had crashed into each other and turned sideways after coming off the tracks.

“We can confirm two deaths and injuries to at least 28 persons, who are admitted at different hospitals around Kanpur,” Zaki Ahmad inspector general of Kanpur police told AFP. “The incident happened around 5:30am. There were passengers, other than the 28, who’d received minor injuries and left after receiving first aid,” he added.

India’s railways minister Suresh Prabhu said senior department officials had already rushed to the accident spot.

“Immediate medical help being provided to the injured. Mobilized resources, directed all concerned to ensure rescue and relief,” Prabhu said on Twitter.

“Thorough investigation will be carried out to ascertain the cause,” he added. AFP

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

World

Manila

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016

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Korean Air to clamp down S EOUL―Korean Air said Wednesday it would let its crew use stun guns more aggressively and put more male staff aboard flights to clamp down on violence, after an incident involving an unruly passenger.

South Korea’s flag carrier said it was tightening security after 1980s US pop singer Richard Marx lashed out at the company on social media for its handling of the incident.

Until now, the use of stun guns or tasers has been limited to situations where there was an “imminent threat to the lives of passengers and crew or to safe navigation”, said airline spokesman Nathan Cho. But “regulations on the use of stun guns or tasers will be changed to allow crew members to use them more aggressively”, he added.

The airline will also put at least one male crew member on every flight, buy new ropes to tie down unruly passengers quickly and step up crew training in mock-up cabins.

Korean Air’s 700 male attendants account for only one tenth of its flight attendants.

Marx said last week he had to step in to help “clueless and illtrained” crew restrain a violent passenger on a flight from Hanoi to Seoul’s Incheon Airport.

Local television footage showed a male passenger flailing, punching and spitting as female crew members and other passengers struggled to hold him down and tie him to his seat with a rope.

Marx posted photos on Twitter and Facebook taken by his wife,

TV host and model Daisy Fuentes, which showed the passenger grabbing a female flight attendant by her hair and another crew member pointing a taser.

Fuentes said the all-female crew did not know how to use the taser nor how to secure the rope around the man and “never fully got control of him”.

Marx said the fiasco lasted four hours until he stepped in along with other male passengers.

South Korean police are investigating and have sought an arrest warrant for the passenger, identified as a 34-year-old heir to a South Korean cosmetics company.

He consumed two and half shots of whiskey during the flight, Korean Air said, but added they have no information on whether he had drunk alcohol before boarding.

The airline was at the center of a notorious “nut rage” incident in 2014 that triggered a national uproar.

Korean Air heiress Cho HyunAh, who was company vicepresident at the time and sitting in first class, became enraged when a flight attendant served her some nuts in a bag rather than on a plate.

She lambasted the chief steward over the behavior of his cabin crew and ordered the Seoul-bound flight, that had just left the gate in New York, to turn back so he could be ejected. AFP

TRADITION. People take part in a traditional carbide shooting, intended to scare off evil spirits, on December 27, 2016, in Kampen.Carbide shooting is a tradition in some parts of the southern, northern and eastern regions of the Netherlands, usually taking place on or around New Year’s Eve. The event consists of placing a piece of carbide and some water in a milk can fitted with a small hole, putting the can’s lid on, waiting for a chemical reaction and placing a flame at the hole, causing the lid to shoot off with an explosion. AFP

Israel seen pushing for more homes JERUSALEM―An Israeli committee is on Wednesday to discuss issuing permits for more settler homes in annexed east Jerusalem, despite a landmark UN resolution demanding an end to such activity.

The Ir Amim NGO, which monitors settlement building, said the planning committee could approve permits for 618 housing units in the mainly Palestinian eastern sector of the city.

It would mark the first such approvals since Friday’s UN Security Council vote demanding a halt to Israeli settlement building in Palestinian territory.

The resolution, which passed after the United States took the rare move of abstaining, infuriated Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who lashed out at President Barack Obama and vowed not to abide by it.

Jerusalem deputy mayor Meir Turjeman, who also heads the committee, has reportedly also spoken of seeking to advance plans for some 5,600 other units at earlier stages in the process.

On Tuesday he told AFP there were no plans to call off discussions in response to the UN vote.

The hundreds of building permits were on the agenda before the resolution was passed.

“We’ll discuss everything that’s on the table in a serious manner,”

he said.

And on his Facebook page, Turjeman said: “I’m not concerned by the UN or anything else trying to dictate our actions in Jerusalem.

“I hope the government and new US administration will give us the momentum to continue and make up for the shortage created over the eight years of the Obama administration,” he said of settlement construction.

Israel has already taken diplomatic steps in response to what it calls the “shameful” resolution, which received the support of 14 Security Council members and a US abstention.

On Tuesday, the foreign ministry said it was “temporarily reducing” visits and work with embassies of nations that voted for it.

On Christmas Day it summoned ambassadors of countries that voted for the resolution while Netanyahu met US ambassador Daniel Shapiro on Sunday.

Security Council members such as Russia, China and Britain are key to Israeli diplomacy or trade and some analysts suggested the measures being taken were more symbolic than substantive.

Washington is Israel’s most important ally and provides it with more than $3 billion per year in defense aid.

By declining to use its veto, the

US enabled the adoption of the first UN resolution since 1979 to condemn Israel over its settlement policy.

Even as Israel reacted with fury, US Secretary of State John Kerry was preparing to offer a “comprehensive vision” of how to revive the stalled Israeli-Palestinian peace process in a speech on Wednesday.

“We haven’t given up on this and we don’t think the Israelis and Palestinians should do either,” State Department spokesman Mark Toner told reporters.

Obama’s administration has been frustrated with settlement building in east Jerusalem and the West Bank, which Israel occupied in 1967.

Israel later annexed east Jerusalem in a move never recognized by the international community.

Settlements are built on land the Palestinians view as part of their future state and seen as illegal under international law.

Some 430,000 Israeli settlers live in the West Bank and 200,000 Israelis live in east Jerusalem, which Palestinians see as the capital of their future state.

US President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office on January 20, has signaled he will take a softer line on Israeli settlement building by promising to move the US embassy to Jerusalem. AFP

ANNOUNCEMENT Starting January 01, 2017, ABS-CBN Convergence will also offer ABS-CBNmobileBidaKa Plan 499: ABS-CBNmobileBidaKa Plan 499 Monthly Service PhP499 Fee (MSF) Plan Package • 2GB for internet surfing • 200MB for iWant TV access • Unlimited texts to ALL networks • Unlimited call to ABS-CBNmobile Lock-in Period 12 months Subscription SIM only Toll Rates • Calls made from ABS-CBNmobile Plan to other mobile network providers or landline (based on prevailing rates) • International Call & Text (based on prevailing rates) • Internet-P1/MB or based on SKU promo if available Apply through accredited ABS-CBNmobile agents. Please see flyers for details.

(MS-DEC. 29, 2016)

OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT NATIONAL HOUSING AUTHORITY Invitation to Bid The National Housing Authority (NHA), through the Corporate Budget approved by the NHA Board for the year 2016 intends to apply the sum of the Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) to payment for the contract: Ref. No.

Project

Procurement of 2016 Gift Certificates -12for CY 2016 201 (Re-bid)

ABC/ Source of Funds (P) 3,000,000.00 (Corporate Receipts)

Duration (c.d.)

Work Description

7 c.d.

(Delivery Period)

Delivery of Gift Certificates for CY 2016 to all NHA Officers & Employees As Well As Other Public/ Private Agencies/Offices Rendering Services to the Authority

Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected at bid opening.

The NHA now invites bids for the above-cited project. Delivery of the Goods is required within the duration herein cited upon receipt of Notice to Proceed.

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 non-discretionary pass/fail criterion as specified in the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act 9184 (RA 9184), otherwise known as the “Government Procurement Reform Act”.

A complete set of Bidding Documents shall be issued only to bidders/ authorized official representatives or employees of the bidder who can show proof of a duly Notarized Authority to secure bid documents for the specific Project and Official Company ID upon submission of a Letter of Intent (LOI) and upon Cash Payment of non-refundable fee of P3,000.00 for Ref. No. 2016-12-201 at the NHA-BAC 2 Secretariat-Office, 2nd Floor NHA Main Building, Diliman, Quezon City starting on December 29, 2016. For further information, the NHA BAC 2 Secretariat may be reached at Tel/FAX No. 928-8272.

The NHA will hold a Pre-Bid Conference on January 6, 2017 at 10:00 a.m. at the Southern Luzon & Bicol Area Management Office (SLB)Conference Room, Annex Building NHA Main Complex, Elliptical Road, Diliman, Quezon City, and shall be OPENED only to all interested parties who have purchased the Bidding Documents.

Bids must be delivered at the on SLB-Conference Room, Annex Building NHA Main Complex, Elliptical Road, Diliman, Quezon City on January 20, 2017, not later than 10:00 a.m. All bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount as stated in BDS. Bid opening shall follow immediately after the deadline of submission of bids at the same venue. Bids will be opened in the presence of the Bidders representative/s to attend at the above-stated address. Late bids shall not be accepted.

The NHA 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.

COMFORT WOMEN. Two South Korean former “comfort women”, who were forced into sexual slavery for Japanese soldiers during World War II, attend a demonstration in front of the Japanese embassy in Seoul on December 28, 2016. Protesters marched from the Japanese embassy to the Foreign Ministry in Seoul on the first anniversary of the signing of a controversial deal between Seoul and Tokyo on resolving a long-running row over the comfort women issue. AFP

(SGD) AR. SUSANA V. NONATO Chairperson Bids and Awards Committee 2 (MS-DEC. 29, 2016)

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

Cesar Barrioquinto, Editor

C4

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016

World

Abe, Obama in joint visit to Pearl Harbor P EARL HARBOR―The leaders of wartime enemies America and Japan made a poignant joint pilgrimage to Pearl Harbor Tuesday, issuing symbolic declarations about the power of reconciliation and warning against the drumbeat of conflict.

Seventy-five years after Japanese pilots brought war to idyllic Hawaii and dragged the United States into World War II, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe offered his “sincere and everlasting condolences.”

Abe and US President Barack Obama paid homage to the more than 2,400 Americans killed on December 7, 1941, delivering a wreath of peace lilies and standing in silence before a shrine to those lost on the USS Arizona -roughly half of all those killed.

Abe’s visit is a high-profile mark of contrition by a leader for whom Japan’s wartime past is of-

Pilgrimage hailed but Japan wary of future

ten a sensitive domestic issue.

“We must never repeat the horrors of war,” he said. “What has bonded us together is the power of reconciliation, made possible through the spirit of tolerance.”

Obama -- who last May made a solemn pilgrimage to Hiroshima, the target of a US nuclear bomb that effectively ended the war -- issued remarks that rang with history and America’s current hypercharged politics.

“I welcome you here in the spirit of friendship,” he told Abe. “I hope that, together, we send a message to the world that there is more to be won in peace than

in war, that reconciliation carries more rewards than retribution.”

“Even when hatred burns hottest, even when the tug of tribalism is at its most primal, we must resist the urge to turn inward,” Obama said against the backdrop of the USS Arizona.

“We must resist the urge to demonize those who are different.”

Meanwhile, in Tokyo, cabinet minister Masahiro Imamura offered prayers at the Yasukuni war shrine that has been a flashpoint for criticism by countries that suffered under Japanese aggression in the first half of the 20th century.

“I reported about work to the gods and prayed for our country’s peace and prosperity,” he said, according to the Asahi Shimbun daily, stressing that the visit had “nothing to do with” Abe’s trip to Pearl Harbor.

Those honored by the controversial shrine include senior military and political figures convicted of war crimes.

In 1941, the legendary Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto maneuvered six aircraft carriers to within 385 kilometers of Oahu and unleashed two waves of dive bombers.

The US Pacific fleet, formerly Japan’s main rival in the region, lost 21 warships and 328 planes.

After Pearl Harbor, the US Congress declared war on Japan. Three days later, Japan’s European ally Nazi Germany declared war on the United States in turn.

“Here at Pearl Harbor, America’s first battle of the Second World War roused a nation,” Obama said.

“Here in so many ways, America came of age.”

Three quarters of a century on, he added, the alliance between the United States and Japan “has never been stronger.”

Only five of the USS Arizona’s crewmen are still alive. While the memorial remains a tourist draw, in Hawaii -- Obama’s home state -- the divisions of war have given way to a shared present. AFP

TOKYO―Japanese on Wednesday hailed a historic visit by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to Pearl Harbor, praising his message of reconciliation with the United States but wary of the future after Donald Trump takes office.

Interest in Abe’s visit to the site of Japan’s December 7, 1941 attack that drew the US into World War II has been high, with many favourbly comparing it to President Barack Obama’s journey this year to Hiroshima.

Both visits were highly choreographed and in their remarks -- Obama in Hiroshima and Abe in Hawaii -- neither apologized or even explicitly said their countries carried out the respective attacks.

But despite the careful words, the symbolism of their standing together again, this time at Pearl Harbor, was clear to most in Japan.

National broadcaster NHK provided live coverage of their joint address around 7 am Japan time (2200 GMT Tuesday).

It was delivered after the two men visited the memorial to the battleship USS Arizona, sunk in the surprise Japanese attack 75 years ago this month.

Kuniyoshi Takimoto, 95, a former navy aircraft mechanic on a carrier that took part in the attack, praised Abe’s words.

“It was a beautiful message that deeply reflected the sentiment of both American and Japanese people,” he told AFP. But Takimoto, while satisfied with Abe’s words, was also critical of his hawkish policy to expand the role of Japan’s military, including enabling combat missions abroad.

“The beautiful message has a catch,” he said.

Shizuhiko Haraguchi, 95, a former Japanese sailor whose unit also took part in the attack, said it was moving to see the two together at the symbolic site.

“Watching that, I was overwhelmed,” he told TV Asahi.

The focus on Abe’s visit was slightly upstaged by one of his own cabinet ministers, who visited the controversial Yasukuni war shrine in Tokyo just hours after Abe went to Pearl Harbor.

Masahiro Imamura, minister in charge of the reconstruction of northern Japan after the massive 2011 tsunami, was quoted by public broadcaster NHK as saying the timing of his visit was “a coincidence”.

But it may indicate some conservative frustration at Abe’s decision to avoid visiting Yasukuni after his last trip there three years drew international criticism.

At Pearl Harbor Abe was also aiming to highlight the significance of close military and economic relations between the two nations, as Trump prepares to assume power amid major questions about his policies, several Japanese media outlets said.

Trump, during his campaign, accused Japan of not paying its fair share in supporting the military alliance, and suggested Tokyo could even develop its own nuclear deterrent.

Abe’s speech also expressed Japan’s deep appreciation for US aid to rebuild the nation after World War II. It was designed to engage the US public who supported Trump, said commentator Takashi Ryuzaki. AFP

Palm oil is facing similar raps in Africa LIBREVILLE, Gabon―Its lower cost has made it popular in commercial food production, but after being blamed for deforestation in Asia, palm oil plantations are now getting a similar rap in Africa.

The sheer scale of land required is having an impact in Gabon, Cameroon and the Congo Basin, environmentalists say.

With financing coming from American, European and Asian agri-businesses, palm bunches are cultivated then cut from trees and sent to factories where oil is extracted by hot pressing.

But the production process accelerates deforestation, contributes to climate change and threatens fauna and flora in vulnerable areas, opponents argue.

However the companies say that palm oil is not only less expensive than soya or sunflower oil but requires much less land to produce and provides much-needed jobs.

Gabon -- where forest covers 80 percent of the territory -- is feeling the brunt.

Brainforest and Mighty, two environmental groups, investigated the activities of Olam, an agri-business from Singapore, which said it has planted 58,000 hectares of palm trees in Gabon.

“It is estimated that Olam has deforested 20,000 hectares in its Gabonese concessions of Awala et Mouila since 2012,” the groups said in a report released in mid-December.

“Investigators on the scene witnessed and filmed bulldozers knocking down huge trees en masse.”

Olam said palm trees had been planted on 25,000 hectares of land which had previously been forested, but that this had been “highly logged and degraded secondary forest” and represented just 0.1 percent of Gabon’s forests.

In response to the report Olam published advertisements touting the almost 11,000 jobs it has created, the 1,100 hectares of food crops planted and 251 kilometers of roads built.

But the impact appears wider. In their report, the environmental groups expressed fears that the Congo Basin, considered the lung of Africa, could go the same way as forests in Sumatra, Indonesia and on Borneo.

“A few decades ago, these places were almost entirely covered with forests, a paradise for orangutans, rhinos, elephants and exotic birds. Today, only 20-30 percent of the forest cover exists.”

The report was released in Libreville when an environmental film festival honored the French documentary “Et Maintenant Nos Terres” (And Now Our Land).

Its directors, Julien Le Net and Benjamin Polle, chronicled how villages in Cameroon and Senegal were being affected by what they called “land grabs” by multinational companies.

In southwest Cameroon 244 farmers have filed a trespassing complaint against a company that intends to plant 20,000 hectares of palm trees.

Hearings in the case against Sustainable Oils Cameroon, formerly a subsidiary of American company Herakles Farms, were postponed after reports of unrest in the area in November. AFP

CHRISTMAS BALL. Participants dance during a Christmas ball in Saint Petersburg on December 27, 2016. Cadets of the Naval Academy and of the Suvorov Military School and students of Academy of Vaganova of Russian Ballet gathered for their first ball in the Saint George Hall of the Mikhailovsky Castle. AFP

Hong Kong’s cats offer insight into the city’s past HONG KONG―Busy traffic, loud noise and constant passers-by? Not a problem for these cats.

Four-legged “assistants” can be found perched in certain shops across Hong Kong, keeping a nonchalant eye on business while the city does its nonstop bustle past their storefronts.

Their presence has inspired Dutch photographer Marcel Heijnen to make them the subject of a book and recent exhibition -- capturing their unique characters in some of the city’s most traditional neighborhoods.

The pictures show cats of all shapes and colors: masters of their domains

whether on sacks of goods, atop counter tops, or almost blended into displays.

“Well, they’re very chilled, They’re very zen. They see people coming in and out every day, they have trucks unloading, people walk around with boxes, they’re very unfazed, they sit on top of everything,” said Heijnen.

None are as famous as Hong Kong’s celebrity shop cat -- Cream Brother.

The British Shorthair has nearly 200,000 followers on Facebook and draws masses of fans, including when his shop closed in 2016.

He is also behind several books, has starred in advertising campaigns and has

his own “Cream Bro” foundation that helps less fortunate felines. Now somewhat semi-retired, he still has regular visitors.

“I think he is a very special cat, very handsome, very cute,” says Solid Ng, a bank teller who visits him twice a week at home.

Such fame was unexpected, says his owner Ko Chee-shing, but it’s a life that came naturally to the former convenience store cat.

“His character is really like a star. He would sit down and let you photograph him. Everyday there were hundreds of people coming to our store to take photos of him, he would stand up and pull

a cute face, or just sleep and let people take pictures of him.”

For Heijnen, the photographs also point to a nostalgic pause in a constantly changing city.

“I think the uniqueness in the photographs is that it captures the background,” he said, while a favorite subject sat on boxes piled on goods in the background.

“So it’s not just about cats, it’s about the stores and in many of my photos you see that… 90 percent of it is the store and the cat is very small. And these are very traditional stores, they’re very timeless. These photos could have been taken in the 60s.” AFP

Life

Isah V. Red, Editor Bernadette Lunas, Writer isahred@gmail.com THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016

HEALTH & WELLNESS

D1

Seasoned theater actor Len Ag Santos-Siasoco (second from left) receives her ‘Lifetime Achievement in Theater’ award in this year’s Aliw Awards

Ballad of two resilient theater persons

ENDING NOT

By Mars Cavestany

L

ENAG SANTOS has been my friend for such a long time. Distance, both physical and metaphorical, could have easily relegated our relationship at arm’s length, but social media bridges all gaps and engenders proximity all the time, in all levels, and at all costs. It is, suffice it to say, the best companion piece to friendship.

Needless to say, many commonalities in our shared life experiences BEFORE, not to speak of our constant updating and involving one another NOWADAYS, has drawn us closer and deeply more attached to each other even perhaps till afterlife as real soul-mates do anyway. Our crisscrossing lives seem like a ballad of two resilient theater persons ending not.

Time was when we ‘lived’ theatre day in, day out.

Onstage — we breathed life on the various roles we played out, parrying critics and wallowing in the luxury of plaudits and adulation indulged by the rather select coterie of Teatro Pilipino resident artists of the Cultural Center of the Philippines during the Marcos regime, under the artistic direction of the late national artist, the one true genius of the Filipino theatre—Rolando S. Tinio.

Backstage — almost throughout a decade, we collaborated as part and parcel of an acting ensemble working on weekends with three shows in a row staged “en repertoire,” meaning, alternating in-two languages (English and Filipino). We were like childhood playmates eternally tittle-tattling and giggling away at tales intimated and secrets traded (including sexual fantasies and conquests) but always guffawing our hearts out until some of the oldies quiet us down so they can catch sleep between morning, afternoon and early evening performance breaks. But most often than not, we were outsmarting one another in boggle, scrabble and other word games, and that exclusively for actors only “name that character and play” antics with which we regaled ourselves, quoting stychomythies and famous lines of this and that character from such and such immortal play inasmuch as we had the rare exclusivity and now almost impossibly unsustainable (under present conditions and budget constraints) feasibility and plausibility of working purely on the classics of world dramatic literature.

But certainly we we’re happy working our ass off and keeping our passions alive. From time to time we crossed mediums, guesting on TV and shooting films and commercials apart from doing all sorts of commercial gimmicks, which we did swimmingly and got paid handsomely, too.

With the theatre serving as our eternal common battleground—that in so many words, was our so-called “status

quo ante bellum,” literally meaning status before the war.

By war, I refer rather poetically to our essential likeness, that is, we are both battling with our present respective set of debilitating illnesses. It is also the metaphor with which we race with life and rage against the “sea of troubles” confronting us. Yet, without self-applauding, our lives have proven to possess that ineffable quality that allows people to be knocked down by obstacles yet strike back stronger than ever, in each our own way.

For instance, just sometime in the past week, as I almost routinely slipped out of my hospital gown following an almost my fourth bout with angioplasty-cum-stenting, my partner drove me back home to normal everyday uneventful living under the watchful eye of my beloved Australian Carer-Nurse and my two ever-loyal dogs so happy to be reunited with their master as if I had been away too long when in fact it was just for a day or two. The first that greeted me on my FB was a worrying account of Len where she posted about her latest hospitalization which, as everyone close to her knows, is one too many to count any more.

How many times have they conducted huge fund-raising concerts to help Len’s immediate family defray staggering costs, the last featuring a virtual coup de theatre monologues from actors dabbling as visual artists selling their original works to donate to Len who altogether sold her own produce of arresting paintings, again all marked for hospital bills. No small wonder, Len’s FB is fraught with eternal gratitude’s for the endless outpouring of friends’ well wishes and financial OPM’s (ohpromise-me). No doubt, Len (and her devoted partner, Technical/Lighting Director Shax Siasoco) accept any and all kinds of gratuity with such dignity and graciousness and people are simply touched by their unconditional love and untiring faith in each other.

What personally amazes me about Len is her uncanny knack for and prodigious feat in documenting her every day ordeal distinguished by such elephantine photographic memory and humor, plus systematic organization/ sequencing of events that boasts her skillful stage management prowess she picked up from working with the great Tinio before she became a full-pledged thespian. Put together, her FB accounts not to mention our long messenger ex-

changes verily make for a novel of survival, buoyancy and redemption full of riveting tales of a courageous woman, an accomplished actress-indefatigable mother and wife turned-prolific painter who shall never be defeated by the monstrosity of her combined sicknesses and indisposition. Len’s story-telling becomes all the more remarkable in light of the fact that she is largely homebound, literally seated 24/7 on her portable, self-propelled wheel chair, debilitated by God-awful, one-too-many illnesses.

Well I know her prodigious memory in learning kilometric lines but to be able to repeat doctor’s prognosis like a medical book is something my mind refuses to engage in. It’s bad enough that I go through this and that kind of bodily pain, some reaction to a new medicine and things like that, but I leave all that to the discharge notes which are always written by my attending doctors extensively and to the letter.

In the case of Len, she alone will “educate” anybody about everything she undergoes. Maybe it’s therapeutic for some patients like Len to be perpetually talking about her illnesses— principally for the elucidation of all and sundry. When all is said and done, people don’t truly know, nor do they fully understand the nature of the illnesses.

So I give Len the last say.

Over all, she mentions that this year alone, she’s been brought to the hospital six times. This gave me a bit of a laugh because it matches the same number of times that I came in and out of the hospital in 2016. Of course the first thing that comes to mind is to compare how long it has been since I knew her to have been sick and how lucky she is to have survived all her attacks—the strong and resilient superwoman that she is, in more ways than one.

My own battle is thoroughly different of course. Would you believe I’ve been HIV-positive for almost 17 years?

If I hark back to the original question (we refer to this as taning in Filipino) I forced out of the very first obviously inexperienced young doctor who was

tasked to spill the beans, so to speak.

As mad as Lear, I literally coerced him to tell me truthfully how many years he opines I have left. With downcast eyes and trembling voice, he said I’ll be lucky if I lived for seven more years.

Methinks now, I swear, should I see that doctor ever again, I will be the first to sweetly whisper it in his ears. “Well you were wrong, doctor. The better to arm yourself more with the sweeping giant strides and developments in prevention and cure of HIV-AIDS.” On the record, I have heard of people living positively for more than 25 years. I’m on my 17th “still hale and hearty year,” which means if I beat or match that, I’ll die at 72, which is more than enough bonus for me.

Going back to Len, lately we have been drawing our zest for life from each other. “Cest la vie, la vie” We would mouth the lines of that immortal Boy Noriega, Filipino classic full length play, Bayan-Bayanan about the travails of migrants like me dealing with our diasporic woes.

Our souls have sallied forth to higher dimensions, eternally needling each other what not to eat and how not to get more bloated, comforting each other “never give up” as a way of reinforcing each other’s steadfastness even in the face of insurmountable financial problems.

I know the great difference between us now is simply that I am surrounded with comfort and I never ever had to worry about medical bills. The sad reality back home is that despite recent Herculean government efforts to reduce costs, spiraling prizes are so oppressive. Here Down Under, because of our government-subsidized scheme for disability pensioners like me, we are entitled to sizeable discounts off the commercial rates. And in the past two years, it’s been declared totally free. Medicines for HIV are absolutely free, nil, nada. Isn’t that great?

So whatever Oz dollars left after I pay my bills, bills and bills, the rest go to my other signs of unsteady health such as chronic heart disease, Type 2 Diabe-

tes, obstructive sleep apnea, and gout.

Don’t ask me for Len’s own list. The first time I made a mistake of asking her was the last time I’d ever listen to such long unimaginable list.

The good news is, I am, in more ways than one, “functionally cured,” except that science or God have not miraculously allowed for the discovery of the most-awaited cure for HIV. I live blissfully and contentedly with the fervent hope that I shall be the first person ever cured of HIV without having to lead to AIDS. Meantime, the big ask is, what about Len? Len, as always and forever, shall be up and about. To me she is destined to wake up time and again to tell every bit of her delectable story.

The other bigger news is, hey, Teatro Pilipino and Bulwagang Gantimpala guys (Len, of course, has associated herself with every up-and-running theater group in Metro Manila), let’s all cheer our fellow theater artist a resounding HURRAH, a HUGE CONGRATULATIONS, and MORE ACCOLADES please to the one and only LENAG SANTOS SIASOCO. Just last 30th November, I was beside myself with joy. I couldn’t be more proud for my friend to have been awarded the famous ALIW Awards – “Lifetime Achievement in Theater”.

I’m afraid I can’t pay tribute to you my friend with the strokes of a brush with which you inspiredly, unstoppably, create visual arts so prolifically. But words are all I have and I have strung them together herewith to offer as a garland of my undying love.

As well, I doff my hat to you, and salute you dear Len, not to offer this as a tribute of sorts that bespeaks of extinction. Quite the contrary, my friend Lenag Santos Siasoco shall live on, and on, and on...

(The author, is a PhD scholar in theatre arts and founding Artistic Director of Filipinas-PETALS Community Theatre Ensemble, operating in NSW, Australia)

Life

D2

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016 isahred@gmail.com

Is your LPG fake?

H

EY moms! Did you know that like designer bags, signature clothes and perfumes, there’s one item that’s being faked and passed off as authentic by illegal retailers? This item, which your family uses every day, is none other than your LPG cooking gas. The tank and logo might look like the real deal but if you look closely, you’ll soon realize that you and your family have just been duped.

Before we give you tips on how to spot a fake LPG, let’s first talk about the dangers of using fake LPG gas.

According to experts from Isla LPG Corp. (ILC), the leading LPG solutions company carrying the brand Solane, fake LPG tanks can be defective and using them can pose a host of dangers for your family. They can cause gas leaks, safety concerns, and even loss of lives. Often, illegally refilled tanks may cause explosions and fires in business establishments and households.

So it’s important to make sure you are using authentic LPG so your family’s safety is not compromised.

Don’t be tricked by illegal refillers.

Here are some ways to spot fake LPG tanks: Illegal LPG tanks are dilapidated and tarnished. Legitimate LPG manufacturers know the importance of

maintaining the quality and integrity of their LPG tanks. For example, real Solane LPG tanks are in good condition – not rusty, they are free of dents or holes, and they carry the mandatory markings such as the Bureau of Philippine Standards (BPS), weight of the tank, and the brand of the company.

The cylinder date should not be expired as stated by the requalification date, which is the date when the cylinders must be thoroughly checked.

Illegal LPG tanks are underfilled. Illegally refilled cylinders are underweight because it failed to undergo the weight checks by the calibrated scales of the authorized government agency. At Solane, the standard 11kg LPG goes through weight checks using calibrated scales from the authorized government agency.

Illegal LPG tanks are sold in illegal locations. Consumers should watch out

for illegal retailers who sell underfilled and dilapidated LPG cyclinders without the Standard Compliance Certificate (SCC) given by the Department of Energy. Legal LPG stores must prominently display their SCC in a strategic location within the store so it can easily be seen by the customers.

Illegal LPG tanks bear fake seals. New safety cap and seals with serial numbers are important markers of a genuine Solane LPG tank.

To check if your LPG is authentic, visit Solane’s Facebook page (www. facebook.com/Solane.PH) and click “Solane Tank Checker” found on the left side of the page. Enter the serial number to verify if the LPG came from a legal Solane dealer.

Solane also provides store locators so consumers know the nearest showrooms in their area. True to their commitment to providing safer homes for Filipino households, Solane also performs the Timbang Challenge and 7-point safety check free off charge upon delivery of LPG by the hatid-bahay rider. These exclusive services are offered to LPG home delivery customers.

To locate a Solane store near you, visit www.solane.com.ph/storelocations/ or call (02) 887-5555 for Metro Manila or text 0918-8875555 nationwide.

Keep your family safe by learning how to spot fake LPG tanks with the help of these tips from Isla LPG Corp.—the makers of Solane

Best time with your furbabies YOU can give extra special thought to what your devoted and affectionate pets will enjoy and benefit from.

Here are a few good reasons why Bow & Wow is the go-to place for pet parents everywhere: 1. For the first-class cuddlers, a

cozy place of their own to get away from it all.

Among the top product picks is the Midwest Quiet Time Orthopedic Bed. The quality line of overstuffed, extra thick, orthopedic pet beds and sofas from MidWest is manufactured

Dogs will love Doggy Delirious treats, which come in Peanut Butter, Pumpkin and Cheesy flavors.

with the quality and care discerning buyers have come to expect; all of the MidWest beds are washable with material, stuffing and stitching that last.

MidWest beds keep pets warm when the weather is cold, and cool throughout summer.

2. Rewarding treats that taste good.

Purebites Cat Treats are freeze dried to lock in the aroma, texture and freshness furry felines crave. The treats are 100 percent pure and rich in nutrients. The Doggy Delirious dog treats are all natural and made with human-grade ingredients.

3. Sniff and cuddle with them all you want after each pampering session.

Cloud Star Buddy Wash is made with pure, all-natural ingredients and botanical extracts. It provides dogs a soothing, healing, non-irritating bathing experience. On the other hand, the Earthbath Shampoo is a gentle 2-in-1 conditioning shampoo for cats. It is pH-balanced for mildness. The luxurious shampoo contains the finest blend of natural cleansers, supple conditioners, and aloe vera.

4. For the fashion-forward furbabies who never fail to catch everyone’s attention.

Butter Dog Wear is a line of casual wear and accessories for dogs that look snug and cute on your pooches. Another useful wearable item for your dog is the Outward Hound Fun Fish Lifevest.

It features the ‘safety’ orange highvisibility colors, reflective accents, adjustable side release buckles and dual grab handles. The Fun Fish Life Jacket is designed to keep your pup safe in the water—and looking cute to boot. The product find is perfect for pool parties and trips to the beach. The adjustable straps ensure the perfect pup fit.

Clean your pet using Earthbath Totally Natural Pet Care shampoo that’s available in (from left) Eucalyptus and Peppermint, Mediterranean Magic, Oatmeal and Aloe Vera with Vanilla and Almond, Hypoallergenic, and Puppy Shampoo variants.

5. Say goodbye to boredom, and hello to fun playtime with your very best friend.

Check out innovative items like the Outward Hound Lucky Dog Slots interactive, treat-seeking doggy fun item.

It keeps your pup engaged and playing longer. The product is made with durable food-safe plastic and has three treat chambers A delightful product for your Kitty is the Kong Active Puzzle Cat Toy that promotes healthy exercise and fulfills a cat’s instinctual desires to chase, hunt and capture.

Watch the full video of Bow & Wow’s gift suggestions on the YouTube page: bow & wow the all-natural

pet store (www.youtube.com/watch? v=DwRbj5xYk3k).

Visit Bow & Wow now and let your pets reap the benefits of safe and durable products as well as the most nourishing pet eats.

Bow & Wow stores are located on the 6th level of Shangri-la Plaza, lower ground level of Greenbelt 5, 2nd level, alfresco of Robinsons Magnolia, ground level Excelsior, Eastwood City, 2nd level Ayala Center Cebu, and ground level of Ayala Malls Solenad 3 Nuvali.

E-mail marketing@bowandwow. com.ph for inquiries, or call up (02) 637-8888. You may also visit www.bowandwow.com.ph.

Road safety camp in Pandacan SUPPORTING the UN Decade of Action for Road Safety, Shell implements programs on road safety in countries where road accidents and fatalities are regarded as significant issues. In the Philippines, Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation, through its social development arm, Pilipinas Shell Foundation Inc. (PSFI), has been conducting road safety camps since 2007, benefitting over 2,500 school children all over the country.

With the primary goal of spreading awareness about road accidents, proper road conduct, and significance of safety, PSFI is continuously conducting road safety camps for early education of school children on road rules and regulations in partnership with the Department of Education, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority, Manila Traffic and Parking Bureau, Philippine National Police Highway Patrol Group, Boy Scouts of the Philippines, Bureau of Fire Protection, Transportation Development

Regulatory Office, MaintPro Consultancy, and local communities.

Pilipinas Shell staged its 5th Road Safety Camp for the Pandacan community in Manila recently, at the Carlos P. Garcia High School where 145 students, ages 11 to 13 years old, participated in fun activities and informative lectures. A group of teachers was also trained by PSFI as road safety mentors. An interactive booth was conducted by transport management students from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines. The teacher-mentors are expected to continue the road safety advocacy by conducting their own road safety activities in their respective schools.

Shell, one of the global energy leaders actively promoting smarter use of fuel, energy efficiency, driver education and sustainable mobility, hopes that through its efforts in making safety as everyone’s priority, road accidents and fatalities will no longer be issues of significant concern all over the world.

Students of Carlos P. Garcia High School learn the significance of road safety during informative leactures which Pilipinas Shell staged in partnership with government and non-government agencies

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016

AARON ECKHART

uses science to evict demons

A

CCLAIMED actor Aaron Eckhart teams up with talented Carice Van Houten in the chilling horror movie Incarnate.

The horror begins when 11-year old Cameron (David Mazouz) alarms his single mother Lindsay (Houten) when he experiences isolating himself on the floor of his dark room, speaking in ancient languages and displaying other symptoms of demonic possession.

Alerted to the situation, Vatican representative Camilla (Catalina Sandino Moreno) recruits A non-believer who drinks, smokes and prefers to think of his work as “eviction” rather than exorcism, Ember sets up shop with high-tech assistants Riley (Emily Jackson) and Oliver (Keir O’Donnell). Strapped into a lifesupport system, he enters Cameron’s subconscious mind, where the demon holds the boy captive in an imaginary dream world by appealing to his deepest desire: to be reunited with his estranged father Dan (Matt Nable).

Driven by tragic events in his own traumatic past, Ember engages in a fierce battle with the crafty spirit.

Ever mindful that the demon, known as “Maggie,” travels from one victim to the next through physical contact, Ember knows that his desperate attempt to save Cameron’s soul could make him the demon’s next host. A chilling supernatural horror tale that unfolds at the intersection of family dysfunction, modern science and the spirit world, Incarnate offers a fresh take on the enduring exorcism subgenre.

Directed by Brad Peyton and written

Actor Aaron Eckhart plays scientist-turned exorcist in “Incarnate,” a supernatural horror film directed by Brad Peyton

by Ronnie Christensen, Incarnate ponders on exorcism without a priest.

“I wanted to write an exorcism movie that you hadn’t seen before. Usually it’s based on holy water and people saying ‘I compel thee,’ but I thought, ‘How cool would it be to take somebody who wasn’t a cliché priest and have him go into the victim’s mind to fight the demon on that battlefront?” Christensen says.

Eckhart has successfully combined rugged leading-man looks with the chameleon-like talents of a character actor in a career encompassing such varied fare as The Dark Knight, indie

drama In the Company of Men, and contemporary satire Thank You for Smoking.

Incarnate offered the versatile actor yet another challenge. “I thought ‘Wow, it’d be interesting to play a guy who doesn’t really have anything to live for except this one task, trying to kill the demon that destroyed his family,’” he recalls. “I also liked that Ember’s in a wheelchair, damaged and disheveled, and that he’s a smoker and drinker initially — a gruff guy who says whatever he wants.”

Ember’s outward appearance

notwithstanding, Eckhart sees him as a hero. “I look at my character as a first responder,” he says. “Ember has the kind of personality where he’d put himself in burning buildings or get himself in front of a wildfire. He has that devil-may-care attitude allowing him do the kinds of things that other people just won’t do. He’s clean cut, he’s studly, he can fight — just the opposite from when he’s in the chair. For me, it was fun to play both sides.”

Incarnate opens Jan. 4 in cinemas from Pioneer Films.

Trailer link https://youtu.be/ KeyPw6n1Ey0

Miss Universe bets swing in Siargao THE first batch of 12 Miss Universe 2016 delegates recently visited Siargao Island, regarded as the country’s surfing mecca, as part of the pageant’s promotional tour around the country’s top tourist spots.

The contestants were hosted for lunch by the triple-A Siargao Bleu Resort and Spa, the Provincial Government of Surigao del Norte headed by Governor Sol Matugas, the First District Congressional Office under Congressman Bingo Matugas, the Department of Tourism-Region 13, and Siargao government and private stakeholders.

Miss Philippines Maxine Medina led the 12 candidates who visited the famed Cloud 9 surfing spot in General Luna town, acclaimed as the world’s eighth best surfing site by the CNN Go travel portal.

She was joined by Miss

BEAUTIES OF THE UNIVERSE. Miss Universe 2016 contestants in Siargao as part of the promotional tour of the annual pageant

CROSSWORD PUZZLE Thursday, December 29, 2016

ACROSS 1 Salsa go-with 6 Regular routine 11 Tar’s reply 14 Samples 15 Port near Kyoto 16 Hawaii’s Mauna — 17 Squirrels away 18 Wide valleys 19 Wheel nut 20 Harebrained 22 Billy Goats Gruff foe 24 Towered over 28 Firefly, e.g.

29 Night flight (hyph.)

30 Light bender 32 Track postings 33 Ticked off 35 — out (withdraws) 39 Curved molding 40 Bled or fled 41 Perfume bottle 42 It would curl your hair 43 Comes down to earth 45 Black as night 46 Copper alloy 48 Threshold 50 Fenced 53 Big rodeo town

54 Shoreline indentation 55 Swimming stroke 57 Courtroom fig.

58 Asimov or Hayes 60 Drive forward 65 Sugarloaf locale 66 Arrow part 67 Sister’s girl 68 Itch 69 Roused up 70 — box DOWN 1 Highest degree 2 JFK successor 3 Spanish hero El — 4 Laugh syllable 5 Turn to bone 6 Surfer slang 7 Mighty — — oak 8 Cotton unit 9 Tina Turner’s ex 10 Preferences 11 Ration 12 “— Accomp’ny Me” 13 Ancient Rome’s emblem 21 Not e’en once 23 Wiping out 24 Lose stature?

25 Blocky heel 26 Viper 27 Favor 28 Buy at auction 30 Thinks ahead 31 Rip apart 34 Retirement nest eggs 36 1492 vessel 37 Bet acceptor 38 Furtively 43 Fictional collie 44 Burger side 47 Where rods and cones are

49 Urbana 11 50 Pepys’ book 51 Free 52 John of “Crocodile Rock” 53 Private hoard 55 “Elder” statesman 56 Torment 59 Boar’s mate 61 Halfway 62 Canadian prov.

63 Green prefix 64 “— It Be”

USA Deshauna Barber, Miss Myanmar Htet Htet Htun, Miss Korea Jenny Kim, Miss China Li Zhenying, Miss Vietnam Ngo Tra My, Miss New Zealand Tania Dawson, Miss Japan Sari Nakazawa, Miss Indonesia Kezia Roslin Cikita Warouw, Miss Thailand Chalita Suansane, Miss Australia Caris Tiivel, and Miss Malaysia Kiran Jassal.

The ladies tried their hand in surfing and described the island’s pristine charm as “paradise-like”.

Situated by the Pacific seaboard off Surigao del Norte in northern Mindanao, Siargao is composed of nine municipalities.

Its other tourist spots include Magpupungko Rock in Pilar, the 4,000-hectare mangrove forest and Sugba Cove in Del Carmen, Bucas Grande Island in Socorro, and a host of powdery beaches, scuba diving sites, waterfalls, skimboarding spots and scenic viewpoints.

Sari-Sari caps pioneer year, welcomes 2017 with hottest shows DESPITE being one of the newest entertainment channels in the country, Sari-Sari is capping its pioneer year by providing viewers more of its unique and original content.

It is fast becoming the channel of choice for those who appreciate refreshingly exceptional Filipino entertainment. Some of the original titles that captivated audiences in 2016 include: Class 3C Has A Secret, Barrio Kulimlim, Dalawang Gabi, Frenemies in Love, Mariposa, The Mysterious Case of Ana Madrigal, From the Beautiful Country, Wives of House No. 2, and Where is Franco?

Sari-Sari ‘s latest offering, 10 Signatures to Bargain with God, features young talents Shy Carlos and AJ Muhlach. The story revolves around Risa (Shy Carlos), a career-driven 21year old Junior Account Executive in an Advertising Firm who was living her dream until she was diagnosed with stage 4 brain cancer. She makes an unusual bargain with God and in the process, reconnects with her loved ones and strives to secure their signatures as part of her bargain.

Proof of the audiences’ affirmation of Sari-Sari is the upward trend in its viewership. Kantar Urban & Rural Panels reports a hefty 72 percent increase in viewership from June to September this year.

In August it placed 27th on the pay TV channels rankings. In October, it ranked sixth in Filipino entertainment.

Sari-Sari viewership and original content are expected to continue its momentum with its offerings for 2017.

Here are some of the engaging shows that are expected to captivate audiences in the New Year.

Ha-Pi House A home away from home for five single half-Pinoys and -Pinays, born and raised overseas, who came to the Philippines to discover their Pinoy roots. Stars are Fabio Ide, Ali Khatibi, Prince Stefan, Empoy Marquez, Candy Pangilinan, Katarina Rodriguez, Phoebe Walker, and Karen Toyoshima Red Envelope Seven persons, seemingly at random, receive a red envelope which contains a note with a Latin word referring to one of the seven deadly sins. Find out what connects them to the deadly sins, and why these would lead to their untimely demise. Stars are Meg imperial, Ping Medina and Alwyn Uytingco Class 3C Has A Secret 2 The dreadful game of death continues as the new school year opens. More secrets, more lies, and more deaths await YOU...Luna Levech enters Laketon Academy to exact revenge on her ex-bestfriend Denise Villaverde. Little does she know that she is about to be trapped into a deadly game by no other than the sole survivor Ash Flores.

With this, expect more thrilling and intriguing viewing experiences in the entertainment horizon with SARISARI in 2017

Isah V. Red, Editor Nickie Wang, Writer isahred@gmail.com THURSDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2016

ISAH V. RED

G

MA Network continues to win big in various award-winning bodies, this time around dominating the 3rd IndingIndie Short Film Festival Awards with 39 citations.

Receiving this year’s Inding-Indie Film Festival Golden Screen Award Lifetime Achievement Award for Global Entrepreneur was GMA Network Chairman and CEO Felipe L. Gozon.

GMA 7 also emerged as this year’s Pinakamapanuri at Pinaka Pinagkakatiwalaan sa Larangan ng Pagbabalita.

A number of GMA News personalities were also recognized during the awarding ceremonies held on Dec.10 at SMDC Light Mall Activity Center in Mandaluyong.

24 Oras anchor Vicky Morales was awarded Most Trusted Media Personality of the Decade.

Jessica Soho was conferred the Asian Excellence Award for Most Trusted and Best Broadcaster.

Recognized as well were 24 Oras anchors Mike Enriquez and Mel Tiangco with special award Most Trusted Media Personality.

Also given the Most Trusted Media

GMA Network DOMINATES 3RD INDING-INDIE SHORT FILM FESTIVAL

GMA Network Chairman Atty. Felipe L. Gozon is conferred with the Golden Lifetime Achievement Award for Global Entrepreneur

Piolo invites you to have your

EYES CHECKED

“24 Oras” anchors Iya Villana, Vicky Morales, Mike Enriquez and Mel Tiangco

Tom Rodriguez

Jose Manalo

Alden Richards

Personality honors was Balitanghali Weekend anchor Mariz Umali and senior reporters Steve Dailisan and Mav Gonzales.

Meanwhile, recipients of Outstanding TV News Personality award were senior reporters Emil Sumangil and John Consulta.

As the country’s top news program, GMA’s flagship newscast 24 Ora brought home three awards—Most Trusted TV News Program, Huwarang Programa sa Sining at Media, and Most Trusted TV News Program for Asian Excellence.

Wish Ko Lang was chosen Best Public Service TV Program of the Decade along with Wowowin, while its host, Willie Revillame was named Best Public Service TV Personality.

I-Witness, Front Row, and Reporter’s Notebook were voted Pinakamahusay at Pinakamagandang Panoorin sa Kasaysayan ng Dokumentaryo.

Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho was named Huwarang Programa ng Taon.

Eat Bulaga was recognized as P inakamag andang Programa sa Kasaysayan ng Telebisyon sa Buong Asya.

Maynila was the Pinakamagandang Panoorin ng Dekada award.

A l s o winning

Willie Revillame

big that night were GMA News TV programs State of the Nation with Jessica Soho (Pinakamapanuri at PinakaPinagkakatiwalaang Programa ng 2016); Reel Time (Pinakamahusay at Pinakamagandang Panoorin sa Kasaysayan ng Dokumentaryo); I Juander (Huwarang Programa ng Taon); and Biyahe ni Drew (Most Outstanding Travel Show).

Several Kapuso personalities were also recognized this year.

Pambansang Bae Alden Richards was awarded Pinakamagiliw na Artista ng Taon.

Pepito Manaloto’s Nova Villa and Encantadia’s John Arcilla were given the Golden Choice AwardBayani ng Pinilakang Tabing award. #Like host and Someone to Watch Over Me’s Tom Rodriguez was named Huwarang Artista ng Taon.

Encantadia’s Sanya Lopez was awarded as Huwarang Artista ng Taon para sa mga Kabataan.

Meanwhile, two of GMA’s talented leading men Ruru Madrid and Jak Roberto received the “Huwarang Artista sa Pilipinas award.

Unang Hirit co-host Hiro Peralta, meanwhile, received the Golden Screen award Pinakamagiliw na Artista ng Kabataan” while Sunday Pinasaya and Eat Bulaga host and Hay Bahay mainstay Jose Manalo was recognized as Pinakahuwarang Komedyante ng Taon.

On the other hand, Asia’s Romantic Balladeer Christian Bautista won the Asian Excellence Award for Most Outstanding Male Performer in the Philippines.

Completing the list of Kapuso winners were Papa Marky (Best Radio DJ of the Year) of Barangay LS FM and Meg Siasoco (Best Supporting Actress – Short Film category) of GMA Network’s Program Support Department.

Now on its third year, the Inding-Indie Short Film Festival honors film, TV, radio, and the actors and directors who freely express their views and emotions through art.

HAVE you had your eyes checked? Top actor Piolo Pascual reminds everyone to go for an eye check up as part of the educational campaign of Crizal®, one of the flagship brands of Essilor, the world’s leading ophthalmic optics company.

The campaign, Create Beautiful Moments, features Piolo actively encouraging the public to have their eyes checked as he believes that beautiful moments in life deserve the clearest vision.

The campaign was launched via an online video where it generated millions of reach.

The video shows the actual patients’ eye check up with a visual image of the top actor comes alive standing in front of the patients’ clearest vision. The video can be seen at Essilor’s Philippines official YouTube channel, at http://youtu.be/E6BiMaz5gc.

“Protecting healthy eyes is as important as correcting vision problems,” explains Essilor General Manager, Dr. Emelita Roleda. “Through the Create Beautiful Moments campaign, we can educate the public on the value of healthy eyesight, for everyone to realize that it need not take a missed moment to have a reason to visit your eye doctor.

Everyone should have an eye check up at least once a year.”

It’s a viewpoint that Piolo agrees with. “Eye exams are important to create great Essilor brand ambassador Piolo Pascual

moments,” he remarks.

“Take care of your eyesight and enjoy each and every moment in your life.”

A visit to your optometrist will reveal more just your current prescription.

Your eye doctor can also determine what preventive actions you should take against permanent damage and can even provide great insights into your general wellbeing. Aside from checking how well your eye muscles work, the optometrist can also gauge if you are suffering from any ailment that can affect your eyesight and your overall health, including diabetes and glaucoma.

Your vision dictates both how you see life and how you live it. Regardless of age and physical health, routine eye check-ups are vital to keep your eyes healthy and stay focused on life’s moments.

Crizal® allows Filipinos to live life more clearly with its line of Anti-reflective lenses. Whether prescription, for outdoor activity, indoor use or part of a digital lifestyle, these lenses filter and deflect harmful UV and blue light, lowering the risk of eye fatigue and preventing long-term vision damage. Crizal® lenses are available at leading optical shops and through eye care professionals nationwide.

For more information, visit Essilor’s website at www. essilor.com.ph.