Manila Standard - 2017 March 05 - Sunday

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VOL. XXXI • NO. 23 • 5 SECTIONS 20 PAGES • P18 • SUNDAY, MARCH 5, 2017 • www.thestandard.com.ph • editorial@thestandard.com.ph

ABU DEATH TOLL INCREASES TO 12

By Francisco Tuyay

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ECURITY forces killed 10 Abu Sayyaf members, including two relatives of its leader Radullan Sahiron, and injured an undetermined number of other rebels, during close quarter clashes in Patikul, Sulu, the military reported Saturday.

Col. Cirilito Sobejana, commander of Joint Task Force Sulu, said the slain ASG members, including Sahiron’s two close relatives, were pinned down by heavy

gunfire during a two-hour encounter at the outskirts of Barangay Igasan in Patikul town 9 a.m. Friday.

Sobejana said the clash actually started at dawn Friday as ground

troops pressed their pursuit of more than a hundred bandits behind the beheading of 70-year-old German hostage Jurgen Kantner in the jungles of Igasan village.

The killing of 10 bandits brings to 12 the number of slain terrorist after three days of sustained military operations against the notorious group while government casualties were placed at 18 wounded of which the military official said were non-life threatening.

“Joint Task Force Sulu troopers are relentlessly pursuing the withdrawing ASG members. Troops are supported with strike helicopters,

artilleries and armor assets,” Sobejana stressed.

He added that all killed ASG were confirmed and that their names were in his possession.

Military units in Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi are conducting intensified operations against the bandits in the wake of the beheading of German Juergen Kantner last Feb. 26. Around 31 hostages are believed to be still in the clutches of the terrorist group.

Three days after Kantner was beheaded last Sunday, military forces killed two bandits while three others were wounded.

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BUSINESS/ C2

FILIPINOS GET NEW COOLING SOLUTION FOR HOT SUMMER

GADGETS / D3

CEBU STUDENTS WIN SMART TECH TOURNEY

WORLD / B4

UK CINEMA-GOERS ASKED TO BECOME REAL-LIFE 007S

REALITY OF WAR. Wounded soldiers arrive at the Camp General Teodulfo Bautista Station Hospital in Jolo, Sulu after battling Islamist militants around Patikul town who were behind the beheading of German hostage Jurgen Kantner. AFP

US REPORT DIMMED BY CRITICISM OF TILLERSON

By John Paolo Bencito MALACAÑANG on Saturday reiterated the government’s commitment to uphold human rights after the US State Department released its annual global human rights report which criticized the Philippines for the rights situation in the country.

But the contents of the report

were overshadowed by criticism of US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson who did not give the traditional fanfare associated with the report which was largely completed during the Obama administration.

Tillerson wrote a brief preface to the report which surveys the rights record of 199 countries, including the Philippines, but there was no event to mark the report’s launch

and the State Department provided only an anonymous “senior administration official” to respond to reporters’ questions.

Asked why the secretary did not appear in public or before a camera to reaffirm this commitment, the official pointed to his testimony at his confirmation hearing in January.

At this hearing, the former oil

executive said US leadership “requires moral clarity” and that “American values are our interests when it comes to human rights and humanitarian assistance.”

But he added: “It is unreasonable to expect that every foreign policy endeavor will be driven by human rights considerations alone, especially when the security of the American people is at stake.”

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DUTERTE VOWS TO SACK MORE OF HIS APPOINTEES

By John Paolo Bencito

THE CHIEF HAILS THE FALLEN. President Rodrigo Duterte salutes Private First Class Oshin Rosala who was killed in a fight with communist rebels in Misamis Oriental.

Duterte conferred a posthumous medal on Rosala which was accepted by his mother.

Malacañang Photo

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PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte vowed to crack down on corruption in government and pledged to fire even his own appointees who are tainted with corruption.

“In the coming days, I’m going to fire additional people whom I have appointed in government. There are many of them, I’m still trying to figure out how it was done,” Duterte told soldiers in Cagayan de Oro City on Friday.

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“This is my warning to those in the government: whether you are a director or [career executive service officer] or [even] civil service eligible, I’m telling you stop it.

At least for six years while I’m still sitting in office,” he said.

“Corruption will stop and it will stop.

I am telling you I will put a stop to it,” he added.

The night before Duterte made the same warning and urged businessmen to Turn to A2

PSG HEAD RETURNS TO MORO WARZONE

By Florante S. Solmerin THE commander of the Presidential Security Group is set to be seeing action again in war-torn Mindanao as he is strongly being groomed to lead the Army’s 1st Infantry Division based in the Zamboanga region, military sources said Saturday.

The sources said current PSG commander Brig. Gen. Rolando Bautista is being readied to replace First Infantry Division commander Maj. Gen. Gerardo Barrientos who reaches the mandatory retirement age of 56 in March.

Bautista is a member of the Philippine Military Academy “Sandiwa” Class ’85 while Barrientos belongs to PMA “Matikas” Class of 1983.

Before he was appointed commander of President Rodrigo Duterte’s personal security detail, Bautista was commander of the 104th Infantry Brigade of the 1stID which is responsible for Basilan Turn to A2

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ABU...

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Sobejana said ASG leader Radullan Sahiron and sub-leaders Hatib Hajan Sawadjaan and Almuher Yadah were in the group of 120 bandits during the fight with elite army scout rangers and troops from the Army’s 32nd Infantry Battalion under the 1st Infantry Division.

There were no reports whether Sahiron and his two sub-commanders were also hit during the confrontation, he added.

Sobejana said troops are conducting mapping operations at the battle site possibly to recover the bodies of the slain Abus even as they try to pursue bandits who scampered in different directions after the fight.

Ground troops positions surrounding the encounter site has mobilized interdiction units to trapped the fleeing bandits while attack helicopters conducted air strikes to trapped the terrorists.

Sobejana said artillery fires were also directed at the bandits backed by armored tanks intended to fortify the ranks of ground troops directly engaged in the battle with the rebels.

At least 14 battalions of soldiers are currently deployed in various parts of Sulu, Basilan and Tawi-Tawi hunting down the forces of evil.

Meanwhile, Muslim lawmakers have said the fight against ASG must be intensified even as they condemned the beheading of Kantner.

Anak Mindanao party-list Rep. Sitti Djalia Turabin-Hataman, the chairperson of the House committee on Muslim affairs, said even Isnilon Hapilon fled Basilan and migrated to Lanao del Sur because of the heightened coordination and support extended by the locals and their leaders to the military.

Hataman said their people will continue to work together to address the culture of fear and impunity in which the ASG thrives by providing law enforcement agencies with the necessary information to stop the acts of terror.

She said the acts of terrorism perpetrated by the ASG must stop.

House Deputy Speaker Bai Sandra Sema, Tawi-Tawi Rep. Ruby Sahali, Sulu Rep. Munir Arbison, Lanao del Sur Reps. Mauyag Papandayan and Ansaruddin Adiong echoed TurabinHataman’s condemnation of the ASG’s cruel act.

They stressed that ASG should cease from claiming they are Muslims because their barbaric acts are anti-Islam.

“These acts of terrorism are not in accordance with Islamic religion or way of life to which we, as representatives of our people here in the Philippines belong,” Sema said.

“We are making this statement lest the rest of the country and the world would perceive our people to consent to, encourage, or support such brutal barbaric acts done not only to a foreigner but to any innocent person,” Papandayan said.

“We call on all Muslims to pray to Allah so that the Bangsamoro Homeland will be protected from the effects of these evil acts of terrorism.

We are also requesting our non-Muslim brothers and sisters to pray for us as we lead our people in attaining peace in our homeland,” the Muslim lawmakers said. With Maricel Cruz

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CHINA NO THREAT, BEIJING MAINTAINS

HINA will always resort to dialogues to peacefully resolve territorial disputes, particularly in the South China Sea, a spokesperson for the annual session of the 12th National People’s Congress said on Saturday.

“We call for peaceful settlement of the territorial disputes and maritime interest. We believe that the differences can be resolved by dialogue,” Fu Ying, spokesperson for the 5th Session of the 12th NPC which will open on Sunday, said in a press conference.

Fu, meanwhile, announced that China would increase its defense budget by seven percent in 2017 from last year’s RMB954.3 billion yuan ($146 billion).

The military budget of China, the world’s second largest economy, is 1.3 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) which grew 6.7 per-

PSG...

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and Sulu, the main lairs of the terrorist Abu Sayyaf Group.

While commander of the brigade, Bautista was also concurrent commander of the Joint Task Group Basilan which is under the Joint Task Force “Zambasulta” (Zamboanga, Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi). The same task groups also exist in the other mentioned provinces where handful of terrorist groups operate.

Just like other senior military officers during the Aquino administration, Bautista’s rise in the hierarchy was stalled by “militics” (military politics) because of his links to one of the many coup attempts during the administration of the late former President Corazon Aquino, mother of former President Benigno Aquino III. But Bautista’s career recovered quickly after the last Aquino administration and was rewarded with meritorious promotion when Duterte restored the military’s Board of Generals (BOG) which vets and recommends promotions to the general staff.

Bautista is set to be replaced in the PSG by Duterte’s senior military adviser Col. Lope Dagoy (PMA “Hinirang” Class ’87), who also spent most of his military career in Mindanao, particularly the Eastern Mindanao Command (Eastmincom) based in Davao City.

cent year-on-year to 74.41 trillion yuan, or US$10.83 trillion in 2016.

“We must be capable of safeguarding our sovereignty and interests. We should be prepared for intervention from outside forces,” Fu said.

She made the announcement on China’s defense budget increase few days after US President Donald Trump said he would propose a $54-billion hike on US military budget.

Fu, however, allayed fears that China will be a threat to security in the South China Sea which is being partly claimed by the Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, Bru-

nei, Taiwan and Indonesia.

“China will not cause harm to any country. If other countries insist that China is a threat to navigation is misleading. We uphold international law. China is a not a threat,” Fu stressed.

The United States has recently expressed concerns over the freedom of navigation following reports that China has set up military bases in the reclaimed islands in the South China Sea. In July last year, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled in favor of the Philippines on its arbitration case filed against China’s historical nine-dash line claim that covers huge part of the disputed territory.

The case was filed during the time of former President Benigno Aquino III and the arbitration judgment came out a month after he stepped down in June last year. China refused to accept the verdict.

Under President Rodrigo Duterte, the Philippines has revitalized its relations with China after Duterte decided to temporarily shelve the ruling to allow direct talks with Chinese leaders led by President Xi Jinping.

The renewed relations had in fact resulted in US$24 billion investment pledges and funding brought by President Duterte from his four-day visit in China in October last year.

President Duterte’s trip has also prompted China to reopen Scarborough Shoal to the Filipino fishermen.

Fu said China would continue to open its door to the world and offer its perspective and solutions as what President Xi emphasized in his speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland last month.

“China must work harder to communicate with the world and inform them what is happening in China,” she said. PNA

NO TO GINA. Consumer advocate Rodolfo Javellana of the United Filipino Consumers Coalition shows a petition opposing the confirmation of Environment Secretary Regina Lopez during a news forum in Quezon City. Manny Palmero

DUTERTE...

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help in the fight against corruption by discouraging the corrupt practices in their transactions with government offices.

“Help me minimize or do away with corruption. I support you, but you have to help me. You have to be assertive.

Don’t give,” he told members of the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry and other business groups in Cebu.

He was referring to paying off government workers to avoid or to go around the red tape in government processes.

He also urged Cebuano businessmen to identify corrupt government officials every time they attempt to extort money for government services.

Among the government agencies he mentioned in his speech were the Bureau of Customs, Bureau of Immigration and Bureau of Internal Revenue, all of which have been tainted with allegations of corruption over the years.

US...

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When asked his view of the President Rodrigo Duterte’s war against drugs during his confirmation hearing in January, Tillerson said he needed to first see “the facts on the ground” before commenting.

Tillerson during his January confirmation hearings said the US and the Philippines have a longstanding friendship and that it was important to keep that in perspective when engaging with the Philippines. “They have been an ally. We have to ensure that they stay an ally,” he said.

The annual “Country Reports on Human Rights Practices” does not have any legal status. The United States continues to supply weapons and foreign aid to many of the countries criticized every year.

But hundreds of US diplomats in missions around the world contribute to what they see as a major tool for informing and lobbying policymakers and encouraging rights activists at home and abroad.

Malacañang, meanwhile, insisted it is not the policy of the Philippines to tolerate vigilante-style killings.

“The Philippine government is firmly committed to upholding human rights. Vigilante or extrajudicial killings are unlawful and are therefore not sanctioned. The government condemns such practice,” Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella said in a statement.

“These are not to be confused with the government’s war on illegal drugs, which is an urgent and critical domestic matter. An emerging narco state impinges on every Filipino citizen’s right to live in peace and should be dealt with firmly, in conformity to the country’s established human rights principles and in accordance with the rule of law,” he added.

The President has ordered the appropriate law enforcement institutions to take decisive legal steps to ensure accountability, the Palace official said.

“We will arrest, investigate, prosecute and punish the scalawags in uniform, while also pursuing reform in these institutions so that they can more effectively conduct this noble crusade,” Abella said.

“We hope the international community will support us in this effort,” he added.

News

SENATORS TO PNP CHIEF: FIND DOCTOR’S KILLERS

By Joel E. Zurbano

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ENATORS on Saturday urged Philippine National Police chief Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa to go after the persons responsible in the killing of Dreyfuss Perlas, a barrio doctor gunned down in Lanao del Norte on March 1.

“Bato should make it his personal mission to find the killers of Dr. Perlas. As a government scholar himself, he should find it not hard to empathize with the familiar story of a Iskolar ng Bayan foregoing private practice for the happy but hardship post of serving the people,” said Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto.

“As one who had spent most of his career in the hinterlands, Bato should be the first to know that rural deployment, while challenging, should not be paid with one’s life. Doctors take the famous oath to do no harm. But for them to carry out their duty, government should see to it that the rule—Do not harm doctors— is followed as well,” he added.

Only one in three slots in the government’s Doctor to the Barrios program was filled in 2015 and 2016, raising calls in the Senate to make the program’s incentives more attractive to lure more physicians to rural practice.

Recto revealed that of the 946 DTTB available slots in 2015 and in 2016, the Department of Health managed to recruit only

320 doctors in both years.

Because one DTTB physician is assigned per town, the implication therefore is that 626 low-income municipalities, and millions of their residents, were deprived of medical services for lack of takers, Recto said.

Recto noted that despite aggressive recruitment by the DoH, there were only a few takers for what is seen as a hardship post that pays P56,000 a month.

Senator Risa Honteveros, for her part, said Dr. Perlas was the latest victim of the culture of killing and impunity that has engulfed the country.

“We have few enough bright young doctors who are willing to serve in the provinces. I urge the authorities to identify his killers and bring them to justice,” she said.

Perlas was a 31-year-old physician who had been working under the Doctors to the Barrios program, and was assigned in Lanao del Norte.

Perlas was shot on Wednesday night while riding his motorbike in Barangay Maranding Annex.

He was rushed to Lanao del

Norte Provincial Hospital but was declared dead upon arrival.

One of his fellow batchmates said that Perlas had the opportunity to return to his home province of Aklan, but chose to stay in Lanao del Norte even after his contract expired three years ago.

Hontiveros said the culture of death had reached the health sector.

“No one is safe anymore. Even those who are silently and selflessly working for the promotion of universal healthcare are not spared from an assassin’s bullet,” she said.

The senator urged the health community to express their strong indignation against the killing of Perlas.

“The current climate of violence under the Duterte government poses a serious threat to the people’s access to public health, and a mortal danger to the lives of health workers. We cannot allow this climate to continue unchanged,” Hontiveros said.

DoH officials, asked by Recto during last year’s budget hearing why they were having a hard time filling DTTB slots, cited “unattractive pay” and “the desire to undergo further training” as main reasons mentioned by those they were trying to recruit.

Recto, in a statement, urged the DoH to revisit the “benefits package” for the program, which is a lynchpin in the government’s move to increase doctors’ presence in poor areas.

But to guarantee a steady

supply of doctors, Recto said the government may have to “infuse more incentives” into the medical scholarship program being run by the DOH, “by making it at par with what cadets at the Philippine Military Academy and Philippine National Police Academy get.”

“If taxpayers are spending P2.5 million to produce one PMA graduate, why can’t we spend the same in training future surgeons?” Recto asked.

Recto has been advocating for the “expansion and institutionalization” of DoH’s medical scholarship program.

He said the attractive package for future MDs could be included in his “One Town, One Doctor” bill, in which government will choose one medical student scholar per town—on the condition that when he becomes a doctor, he will go back to his town to serve for four years.

“In short, this is a ‘galing sa bayan, tungo sa bayan’ scheme of producing doctors. We pick from among the town’s best and brightest, finance his medical studies, and when he becomes a doctor, he repays it by serving his own people,” Recto said in his statement.

And while the doctor is doing his mandatory four-year community service, another bright young student from the same town starts medical schooling so that there will be a replacement after four or five years, Recto explained.

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SUNDAY, MARCH 5, 2017 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

DIGGINGS AT DAYTIME STOPPED IN METRO THE government started Friday implementing a policy prohibiting diggings and other road works at daytime to further ease traffic in Metro Manila.

“To avoid traffic snarls and bottlenecks caused by ongoing road diggings and excavations in Metro Manila, we have agreed that such road works should be done at night when traffic is expected to be lighter,” said Thomas Orbos, acting chairman of the Metro Manila Development Authority.

Orbos on Friday gave the go-ahead to the Department of Public Works and HIghways to resume its road reblocking in Quezon City but on condition it would be conducted from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m.

The reblocking will take place along the southbound lanes of Mindanao Avenue (from Mindanao Avenue Bridge to Tandang Sora Avenue); Commonwealth Avenue (from Don Jose Street to San Simon Street), and Quirino Highway (from Mindanao Avenue to Bernardino Street).

Traffic will also be affected along the westbound lane of Congressional Avenue Extension because of the road works in front of Shell Gasoline Station-Miranda Gate area.

Orbos permitted the road works to be conducted from March 3 to 6.

The ban of road works at daytime followed the MMDA meeting with officials of the departments of Transportation, and Public Works and Highways to further improve the flow of traffic in the National Capital Region.

Under the policy, road repairs and rehabilitations on major thoroughfares must be done by contractors around 10 p.m. to make sure that the road will be passable to motorists by 5 a.m. the next day.

To do this, the government agencies will be requiring contractors to use quick dry cement on the road works to be able to meet the one-day curing period. Joel E. Zurbano

DUTERTE COUPLE SEIZED BY 5 GUNMEN

By Francisco Tuyay

VERTICAL FARMING. A vendor along Session Road in Baguio City shows during the weekend high-

end agricultural practices, like the art of producing strawberry in vertically stacked layers, like in a skyscraper, used warehouse, or shipping container. This is among the features in the city’s month-long Panagbenga Baguio Flower Festival. Dave Leprozo Jr.

WOUNDED TROOPS GET FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE

ESSENTIAL NUTRIENT. In celebration of Women’s Month, some 70

pregnant join Saturday the milk grant activity at Batasan Hills Super Health Center in Quezon City for donations of milk, which contains lots of nutrients essential for growing babies and children. Manny Palmero

JOLO, Sulu—President Rodrigo Duterte arrived in Sulu Friday to extend financial assistance to soldiers who were injured during an encounter with the Abu Sayyaf Group.

The President arrived in Jolo around 3 p.m. and proceeded to Camp Teodulfo Bautista Station Hospital to visit the soldiers and personally hand over financial support.

Duterte pinned the Wounded Personnel medal to each of the 11 woundedin-action troops confined here in Camp Teodulfo Bautista.

Last Wednesday, soldiers from the Philippine Army clashed with members of the Abu Sayyaf in a firefight at around 4:30 p.m. in Indanan, Sulu, wounding 11 government troops.

Among the wounded infantrymen during Wednesday’s clash were Sgt.

Marvin Oliveros, Pfc. Mac Allen Balderama, Pfc. Antonio Agliam Jr., Cpl. Julios Dupagan, Cpl. Robert Esperon, Cpl. Camilo Vertido, Pfc. Willam Reboya, Cpl. Erlie Gallebo, Sgt. Renato Geverola, Pfc. Joselito Begnalen, and Cpl. David Mark Antonly Leyno.

Few hours before the President’s arrival in Jolo, another group of soldiers had an encounter with the Abu Sayyaf in Patikul, Sulu, injuring 16 from the government side.

They are 2nd Lt. Rupert Cariaga, Pfc. Jayson Pendon, Cpl. Igzel Mercado, Cpl. Rogelio Bacnat, Pfc. Urselito Villarito, Pvt. Ruben Mutia, Pvt. Jerry Selgas, Pfc. Rolando Gamueta Jr., Cpl. Benjie Albarracin, Cpl. Al-Rashid Tiamwat Jr., Pvt. Christian Leopoldo, Pvt. Morris Perez, Pvt. Julius Castillion, Pfc. Arvin Langi, Cpl. Bernardo Ortiz Jr., and Pvt. Mark April Asistin. PNA

A MAN with the same family name as President Rodrigo Duterte and his wife were kidnapped by still unidentified armed men at their residence in Zamboanga del Norte Friday night.

Sr. Supt Rogelio Alabata, spokesman of the Police Regional Police Office, in his report identified the victims as Mr. Jose Duterte, 62, and his wife Jessica Barazon-Duterte, 52, resident of Sitio Tabuk, Barangay Sta. Maria, Siocon in the province.

The couple, engaged in coconut farming, were resting in their residence when at least five armed men barged into their house, forcibly took them away and herded them to a waiting motorized boat and sped to a still unknown destination.

Police and the military are on a chase for the kidnappers, officials said.

Witnesses told police there were two watchmen outside while the Duterte couple were taken away by the gunmen.

Police are looking into reports the armed men were wearing police uniforms at the time of the kidnapping.

Meanwhile, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon said they have yet to verify if the Duterte couple were indeed related to President Duterte.

He stressed, however, there were several Dutertes in the country but were not related to each other.

“They [the kidnapped Dutertes] may not be related to President Duterte,” Esperon said.

Alabata said an immediate investigation and hot pursuit operation by Siocon police and the Army’s 13th Special Forces were taking place to possibly track down the kidnappers and eventually rescue the victims.

The kidnapping incident occurred barely three months after Abu Sayyaf bandits forcibly snatched 70-year-old German Jurgen Kantner and his partner Sabine Merz after they intercepted their 50-footer yacht while sailing off the coast of Sabah last November.

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SUNDAY, MARCH 5, 2017 Francis S. Lagniton, Issue Editor mst.daydesk@gmail.com

News

DUTERTE TO CONSIDER REVIVING PEACE TALKS

By John Paolo Bencito

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RESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte on Saturday discussed the possibility of reviving the stalled peace talks with the Communist Party of the Philippines but has laid down three “requests” before any negotiation can proceed.

Speaking at the wake of two soldiers who were killed in an encounter with NPA rebels on Feb. 27 and 28 in Misamis Oriental, the president said that he is willing to talk in pursuit of peace, but asked for the sincerity of the rebels leading the longest communist insurgency in Asia.

“I’m ready as long as we communicate well. I’m ready to resume the ceasefire again, but this time I want it to be sincere. Back then, there was a ceasefire but my soldiers were killed.

I’m ready to resume the ceasefire again as long as it is working towards peace,” the President told reporters in Cagayan de Oro City.

When asked on the future of the peace talks, Duterte said that his plans would include three requests to the rebel group: a genuine ceasefire done in sincerity, the release of all soldiers and civilians being held captive by the NPA, and a stop to NPA extortion activities.

“They have to release all police-

men, army, everyone from the government. They should release them all. Second, they should stop asking for revolutionary tax. Third, they should stop asking for things.

They’re burning a lot of things now and we’ll never meet each other half way if that’s the case.”

After three soldiers were killed in Bukidnon last Feb. 3 sustaining 76 gunshot wounds between them—or each soldier getting at least 24—Duterte insisted that he can’t continue talking about peace with the communists if they continue to exhibit hate.

“There would be ceasefires here and there, but my soldiers are getting killed. And these soldiers that were killed were shot 73 times, 73 wounds.

That’s what I disliked the most. How can you do that to a Filipino?”

Duterte said.

“You know, that indicates hatred. If they continue being like that, you are

full of hate, then we cannot talk about peace. There’s something inside you, there is hate. How can it be possible na that we will talk if that’s inside your heart? Isang bala lang,” he added.

Duterte said he feels very deeply about the turmoil, adding that no one would win in this kind of war.

“It pains me to see Filipinos fighting against fellow Filipinos. I just want peace,” he said.

“For me, no one will win. If we Filipinos fight against fellow Filipinos, nobody wins. The nation, the Philippines loses,” he added.

Peace Process Secretary Jesus Dureza on Saturday, meanwhile, said that he has yet to receive instructions from Duterte on the possible resumption of peace talks.

He, however, clarified the President is not imposing any conditions for the talks to resume. He said these were just the President’s “wishes.”

FIERY SHOW. Visitors enjoy watching the ‘Tribu Kamindanawan’ as they perform a Fire Dance number at the Crocodile Park in Davao City. Lino Santos

NOTHING WRONG WITH JAIL STRIP-SEARCH—PANELO PRESIDENTIAL legal counsel Salvador Panelo said he sees nothing wrong with inmates being stripped while they are searched for contraband at the Cebu provincial jail.

At the same time, however, Panelo said the photos should not have been made public.

“Personally? If we are talking about security, it was a necessary move,” Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo told state-run dzRB radio.

Panelo said that the strip-search may have violated the prisoners’right to privacy.

“They should have been more careful that the naked bodies of the prisoners would not be exposed in public. They should also be careful that the photographs of the naked prisoners would not be released in public,” the President’s lawyer said.

“That’s what they should be more careful about because they are already violating a person’s privacy. But if it was just in jail and they are just the ones doing the search and seeing them, I think it’s okay for security purposes,” he added.

Photos showing hundreds of prisoners in a Cebu jail sitting naked while being searched for contraband have triggered intense criticism amid possible violations of their rights.

Photos released by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency and provincial police showed the inmates sitting naked and cross legged in neat rows on the concrete quadrangle, illuminated by spotlights, as armed police guard them.

The inmates of the Cebu provincial jail were woken before dawn on Tuesday,

herded into the jail’s quadrangle and forced to strip while anti-drug agents, police and military searched their cells.

Commission on Human Rights Commissioner Gwendolyn Pimentel-Gana had said that her office will investigate the raid, which was led by officials of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.

Gana cited the United Nations Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, which state that “intrusive searches, including strip and body cavity searches, should be undertaken only if absolutely necessary.” John Paolo Bencito

'DE LIMA TIRADES WON'T SWAY PEOPLE' NO AMOUNT of propaganda can divert the people’s attention to the plight of Senator Leila de Lima, Malacañang said Saturday, even as they accused the jailed senator of using the absence of a gag order to tarnish the reputation of the President while in prison.

Defending the Justice Department’s request for a Muntinlupa court to issue a gag order against President Rodrigo Duterte’s top critic, Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo said that it’s high time to let the courts do the talking and stop De Lima’s continued tirades and plaints of alleged political persecution against her.

“Yes, because De Lima is using that medium to besmirch the reputation of the President. She cannot do that,” Panelo told state radio dzRB. Panelo shared the opinion of prosecutors from the Justice Department when asked if De Lima’s lawyers were conditioning the minds of the public with their remarks on the senator’s drug cases.

“That’s what they’re doing. They should just let the courts to try her case. Let the judicial process run its course,” he added.

Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella, meanwhile, urged De Lima’s camp to respect the gag order should it be granted by the court.

“The sub judice rule is a timehonored doctrine. Should the court grant the motion, we expect all parties to abide by it to preclude any undue pressure to the judge hearing the cases or any influence that may condition the minds of the public on the merits of the case,” Abella said.

The Justice Department earlier asked the Muntinlupa City RTC to issue a gag order preventing all parties from discussing the cases filed against Senator Leila de Lima in public.

Citing the sub judice rule, a case under judicial consideration may not be discussed in public, particularly in the media.

De Lima continues to issue regular, daily handwritten statements coursed through her staff despite being imprisoned since Feb. 24, similar to the ones employed by the late Senator Benigno Aquino Jr. Since she was detained, De Lima had remained defiant against Duterte, as she drums up international support for her cause.

Panelo told De Lima to stop sending handwritten messages from her detention cell at Camp Crame and just “accept reality and the truth that she created the rut she is now in.”

“De Lima cannot get the public sympathy in any way she can,” Panelo said.

“There is an overwhelming sentiment that she needs to get arrested for her crimes—there is an overwhelming support for the President on his drive against her ...

Kahit anong gawin niya she will not succeed,” Panelo said.

De Lima and several others are facing charges for violating several provisions of the Comprehensive Dangerous Act of 2002, particularly for allegedly directing narcotics trade inside the New Bilibid Prison.

John Paolo Bencito

US TO SUSPEND FAST-TRACKING OF VISAS TO IMMIGRANTS

WASHINGTON—The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services said Friday it will suspend premium processing for all H-1B visa petitions from April 3 and it may last up to six months.

The department wants to “reduce overall H-1B processing times” by halting premium processing, according to a press release on its website.

The H-1B is a non-immigrant visa in the United States under the Immigration

and Nationality Act. It allows US employers to temporarily employ foreign workers in specialty occupations.

Under the current system, a company that is sponsoring a potential employee or current employee’s H-1B petition may fill out a form to expedite the processing of that petition. After paying an additional $1,225 fee for this service, USCIS responds typically in 15 calendar days, whereas standard H-1B peti-

tions may take anywhere between three and six months to receive a judgment.

For Silicon Valley companies, many of which employ large numbers of H-1B holders, this move could signal that waiting times for approval may get much longer, said a report from the Verge multimedia website.

Up to 85,000 H-1B visas are issued annually, but demand has far outstripped supply in recent years, according to the report. PNA/Xinhua

MEALTIME.

Tourists watch scores of crocodiles being fed by a caretaker at the Crocodile Park in Davao City.

Lino Santos

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Opinion

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PESO: ASIA’S UGLY DUCKLING OF THE YEAR

EDITORIAL

SPECTACLE

N

By Ditas Lopez and Cecilia Yap SPARE a thought for the Philippine peso.

While other Asian currencies have strengthened against the dollar this year, the peso has hit a more than 10-year low and remains locked out of the party. Some analysts say that’s because investors are spooked by simmering allegations that President Rodrigo Duterte was involved in unlawful killings and corruption in his former post, which he denies.

Duterte’s spokesman Ernesto Abella said in a text message Friday that the moves in the exchange rate have been driven by expectations the US Federal Reserve will raise interest rates. The peso is down 1.3 percent this year, while the Korean won leads the pack of Asian currency gainers, rising 4.5 percent.

It could get worse for the peso before it gets better. Technical indicators suggest its decline will continue after it breached a support level of 50 versus the dollar last month. The peso touched 50.395 on Friday, its weakest since September 2006.

Overseas funds have sold net $122.1 million of Philippine equities this year, wiping out the $83.4 million inflow seen through 2016, exchange data compiled by Bloomberg show.

“You have a whole bunch of political developments recently that when you put it all together, people outside will probably say ‘wait, let’s be cautious here,’” said Joey Cuyegkeng, a Manila-based senior economist at ING Groep NV. “I expect some recovery in sentiment once all these political concerns are addressed, but it will take a while.”

Further pressure could build in the coming days, with the Senate due on March 6 to open an inquiry into fresh allegations by a retired policeman that Duterte headed a group that carried out extrajudicial killings when he was mayor of the southern city Davao.

The 71-year-old president has also been accused of illegally amassing 2 billion pesos ($40 million), and political opponents say he is attempting to quash dissent after Leila de Lima, a senator critical of Duterte, was arrested on drug-trafficking charges. The now suspended war on drugs launched after he came to power last year has also drawn international condemnation and claimed thousands of lives.

Duterte has retained a high popularity rating domestically. Since he enjoys immunity as president, any allegations into illegal wealth and disclosure failures would need to be raised at an impeachment trial in Congress, which is controlled by his allies.

“There’s clearly some concern,” said Gareth Leather, a senior economist at Capital Economics Ltd. in London, referring to the political developments. The deterioration in the current account over the past year may have undermined the peso as well, he said by phone. “There’s more than just politics at play here.”

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Director Zeno Abenoja in December said the current-account surplus is forecast to narrow to $800 million this year from

incident clearly amounted to cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment of prisoners. Human Rights Watch, meanwhile, said international standards prohibited searches that intimidated or unnecessarily intruded upon a prisoner’s privacy.

Where, then, do we draw the line between enforcing order and protecting people’s—even prisoners’—basic human rights?

The sight of rows upon rows of naked prisoners conjured ugly thoughts of concentration camps where prisoners were no more than bodies, worse, numbers.

Nobody denies the need to curb the drug menace, specifically when it breeds corruption in places that are supposed to rehabilitate people who have violated the law. But there must be a more decent way.

This latest stunt is an apt metaphor for what is going on in the country: People are naked, helpless and vulnerable, completely under the control of state agents who do whatever they please, in the name of some so-called good but through methods that are tyrannical, questionable, and just plain wrong.

OT long ago, inmates of the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center became known the world over. They had a series of viral videos—with several million views— showing them dancing to popular tunes.

It was refreshing to see prisoners making good use of their time. There were healthy, worthwhile things to do in jail, and learning choreographed dance steps was one of them.

The same prison facility is in the spotlight again these days—but for reasons less upbeat.

Circulating on the internet are photos of prisoners of the CPDRC sitting cross-legged and naked on the floor of the prison gymnasium. The inmates were ordered to take their clothes off before being gathered and made to sit on the concrete floor.

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency conducted the search in its attempt to look for drugs and other contraband in the compound.

PDEA Region 7 director Yogi Ruiz said they decided to use this search method because he did not want to risk his agents’ safety in the event inmates hid weapons or started riots.

The PDEA spokesman in fact said the stripping was upon the orders of the provincial governor.

And indeed the search turned up 80 cellphone units, laptops, bladed weapons, P90,000 cash, and 19 sachets of suspected shabu from the cells of over 3,000 inmates. The warden has been sacked after the discovery of these items.

Human rights groups protest.

Amnesty International said the

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DISCO MUSIC: ANTHEM OF THE LIBERAL MOVEMENT POP GOES THE WORLD JENNY ORTUOSTE

IT FLOURISHED in the 1970’s until the early ‘80s, got a bad rap that’s totally fabricated and unjustified, and should be revived to bring a troubled world back on its boogie feet.

I’m talking about disco, the music that brings to mind lighted dance floors,

mirror balls, and slicked-back hair. With roots steeped in funk, soul, pop, and salsa, disco grew to become one of most popular genres of the ‘70s, along with R&B and funk.

The music conquered the world, giving rise to Euro disco, Italo disco, and

other variants.

In the Philippines, it merged with Filipino folk music, kundiman, pop, and light jazz to create “Manila sound.” The Hotdogs led the way with “Manila” (the theme song of balikbayans), “Bongga Ka ‘Day,” and “Annie Batungbakal”— “sa

disco siya ang reyna!” Meanwhile, no party or school program is complete without VST and Company and their “Disco Fever,” “Awitin Mo Isasayaw Ko,” “Tayo’y Magsayawan,” and “Rock Baby Rock.” The Boyfriends contributed Turn to B2

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UNDERMINING DEMOCRACY OUTSIDE THE US

ASTRONOMY IN POP SONGS

By Francis Wilkinson PRESIDENT Donald Trump’s approach to democracy, conflicted at best, is settling into a familiar groove. Attacks on the news media, the scapegoating of vulnerable minorities and periodic assaults on the concept of truth, as well as on specific facts, have become hallmarks of his administration.

Donald Trump

At the same time, democracy has gotten a few licks in as well.

Trump obediently retreated from his Muslim ban at the direction of the courts, and his White House has been leaky, a boon to the free flow of information.

But it remains unclear whether the Republican Congress and other key US institutions have the resiliency and will to repel Trump’s attacks, including the continuing stonewalling on we-don’t-knowwhat-exactly regarding Russia.

(Trump’s sudden aura of competence after his speech to Congress was undermined a day later by a welltimed leak on how Attorney-General Jeff Sessions appeared to mislead the Senate under oath about his Russia contacts.)

The effect of Trump on societies with weaker democratic institutions is also unknown. But the very existence of a would-be authoritarian thrashing around the American government, forever threatening to break free of institutional constraints, sends a jarring message around the world.

The New York Times published a story on Wednesday about “antiSoros” forces in Europe being emboldened by Trump’s election.

Substitute the word “democracy” for the name of the financier and opensociety enthusiast George Soros, and the story still holds.

In Soros’s native Hungary, the Trumpian prime minister, Viktor Orban, has for years been undermining democratic norms and institutions, badgering opponents and bludgeoning the independence of the news media. He is using this hour of authoritarian ascendance to step up his attacks on groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch as “foreign agents financed by foreign money.”

Last week in Hungary, an Amnesty spokesman told EUObserver, “The government accused Amnesty of producing fake reports and of inciting migrants to break laws.”

“Fake” reports and law-breaking immigrants. There’s something vaguely familiar about those themes, isn’t there? In a speech earlier this week, Orban said Hungary’s economic success depends on the nation’s “ethnic homogeneity.”

Hungary’s tide of “illiberal democracy” long preceded Trump’s election. Orban’s most recent reign atop Hungarian politics—he’s been there before—began in 2010.

“What we’ve seen is a weakening of democratic institutions around that part of the world for maybe a decade now,” said Jan Surotchak, Europe director of the International

By Pecier Decierdo BACK IN 2005, British singer-songwriter Katie Melua released the single “Nine Million Bicycles.” In the second stanza of the song, Melua uses a reference to a cosmological fact to drive her point home: “We are 12 billion light years from the edge/ That’s a guess, no one can ever say it’s true/ But I know that I will always be with you.”

It was a lovely song, and to no one’s surprise it reached the top of the charts in the UK. But its popularity was the reason why many scientists took issue with the fact that the science was wrong. One British cosmologist, Simon Singh, even wrote an op-ed in no less than The Guardian to criticized what he called Melua’s “bad science.” In the op-ed, Singh pointed out that scientists in fact know how old the universe is—it’s 13.7 billion years old.

Furthermore, that number is not just a guess but an estimate that was derived from the careful methods of science.

Singh reminded the reader that while there are many things about the universe that still remain a mystery to us and are yet to be solved by scientists, the age of the universe is not one of them. The science writer said it’s regrettable that such a lovely and popular song contains a misconception that can spread to the public.

To her credit, Melua’s response to Singh’s criticism was one of convivial apology for the error. With the help of Singh, Melua re-recorded the song so that the lines in question ended up being: “We are 13.7 billion

DISCO...

From A1 “Sumayaw Sumunod,” “Araw-araw Oras-Oras,” and “Dance With Me.” As a genre, disco is inclusive, open, and explorative. Sexuality is a common theme, and the freedom of expression it fostered in its heyday made it a favorite of the male gay community in the US. Dr. Tim Lawrence, who teaches at the University of East London, calls disco a “phenomenon” in a 2013 journal article.

Lawrence says the culture that arose around the music was “commonly ridiculed, yet [it] was often progressive and continues to inform the contemporary, thanks to its innovations within DJing, remixing, social dance, and sound system practices.”

He points to disco’s “queer potential— or its potential to enable an affective and social experience of the body that exceeded normative conceptions of straight and gay sexuality.” He notes that “the social dances that preceded disco—most notably the waltz, the foxtrot, the Lindy Hop (or jitterbug), the Texas Tommy, and the Twist—were, to varying degrees, patriarchal and heterosexist” because dance partners were supposed to be of opposite sexes and men were expected to take the lead.

Disco also spoke of race equality and feminism. The genre’s musicians were primarily black. Many of the songs were performed and written by women, with lyrics that empowered and uplifted women, such as Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive” (1978).

Republican Institute, a Washingtonbased NGO that promotes democracy worldwide.

Kenneth Wollack, president of the National Democratic Institute, a kind of Washington doppelganger of Surotchak’s IRI, has been in the business of promoting democracy worldwide for more than three decades. He isn’t convinced that this US president represents a democratic departure. “I think it’s way too early for people to be making judgments,” Wollack said in a telephone interview.

Wollack points out that concerns about President George W. Bush’s commitment to global democracy movements—as a candidate Bush had disparaged “nation-building”— were quickly rendered moot after Bush launched full-scale wars under the banner of democracy.

Trump’s evolution could similarly surprise. Democracy promotion, Wollack said, is now deeply woven

light years from the edge of the observable universe/ That’s an estimate with well-defined error bars/ And with the available information/ I predict that I will always be with you.”

By re-recording the song, Melua and Singh not only got great publicity, they also educated the UK public about the true age of the universe and the methods of science.

Astronomy is a favorite source of references for writers, poets, and songwriters. There is no surprise there. Anyone who has looked up into a starry sky or has stared at the loveliness of a full moon can relate to the urge to wax poetic in the face of such grandeur.

Furthermore, anyone who has studied even a bit of astronomy knows that the goings on in outer space can be such a treasure trove of metaphors for poetry and songwriting.

Nowadays, there is no shortage of pop songs talking about celestial objects. However, most of them simply use the words ‘star’ or ‘moon’ for a quick rhyme or trivial metaphor.

Those songs themselves might be lovely, like Frank Sinatra’s “Fly Me To The Moon” or Ed Sheeran’s “All Of The Stars,” but as songs about astronomy they are not interesting.

More interesting are songs that find a way to use facts about the heavens in order to express a facet of human experience. For example, in Liannne La Havas’ soothing song “Unstoppable,” the singer compares the long range of the gravitational force on satellites to the long reach of the love between her and her loved one. In “Bless The Broken Road” by Rascal Flatts, the singer compares the people who broke his heart to northern stars that

lead him to the person he’s meant to be with.

Filipino artist Reese Lansangan has a cute song entitled “A Song About Space” that is, well, all about space.

One of my absolute favorite is by the folk singer-songwriter Peter Mayer, whose discography is a constellation of excellent scientific references sung to folksy hymns. In “Blue Boat Home,” he compares the Earth to a boat in space, and we humans voyagers in space. The entire song is simply beautiful, but one line in particular reveals Mayer’s grasp of the science: “Sun my sail and moon my rudder/ As I ply the starry sea / Leaning over the edge in wonder / Casting questions into the deep.”

In the first line, Mayer does two things.

First, he reinforces the sailing metaphor by comparing the Sun and Moon to parts of a boat. Second, he expresses scientific facts in a poetic way. As a ship’s sail allows it to be pushed forward, the Sun’s gravitational force is what makes the Earth “ply the starry sea.”

As a boat’s rudder allows it to be steered and gives it stability, the Moon is thought to make the Earth’s orbit and rotation more stable.

So my challenge to all of the artists and creative people reading this: The next time you want to come up with a metaphor to express some aspect of human drama, try to learn a bit of astronomy. Not only can it make your composition more beautiful, it might even give you a metaphor you might not find elsewhere.

Donna Summer’s “Love to Love You Baby” (1975), with its simulated orgasmic moans, is credited as being the first expression of female sexual desire in music.

Disco, then, was a groovy tool in the arsenal of social justice warriors fighting for equality of all kinds in line with the hippie values of love, peace, and freedom. Some surmise that it was this liberalness of the music and its culture, and its associations with excessive fashions, drugs, and promiscuity that led to the infamous disco backlash ushering in the genre’s abrupt decline.

On July 12, 1979, an estimated 55,000 people gathered in Chicago’s Comiskey Park for “Disco Demolition Night” an anti-disco demonstration led by a couple of rock-station DJs. Thousands of record albums, brought in by spectators in return for a discount on entrance tickets, were piled on a baseball pitch and burned. By Sept.

22, there were no disco tunes in the US Top Ten Chart. That event is now called “the night disco died.”

But disco didn’t die.

Though most of disco’s proponents remain the older generations who remember its glory days, today’s music fans are rediscovering it.

This is especially true in the Philippines, where disco is a staple of oldies parties and school programs.

Erika, an 18-year-old centennial (another term for Generation Z) appreciates disco, although she says, “It’s not my not favorite genre.” She remembers performing school dances to disco numbers when she was in a Makati City elementary school.

It’s a far cry from the kind of music she

prefers, but she says, “I can’t hate on it. How can you hate on something whose sole purpose is happiness, to bring people together, to make them dance? That’s why it exists in the first place.”

Quite a few musicians and music fans must feel the same way, because megahit “Uptown Funk” (2014) by Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars is totally disco. Officially it is under the funk genre, with a nod to EDM and the Minneapolis sound, but its electrofunk flavor owes a lot to early ‘80s dance music that overlaps the disco era.

“Get Lucky” (2013) by Daft Punk featuring Pharrell and Nile Rodgers is so disco it wears glitter and rhinestones. In its music video, guitarist Rodgers wears dreadlocks that look like Rick James’ mop ‘do in his video for “Super Freak” (1981).

References to disco have also been popping up more frequently in popular culture. In The Martian (2011), the book written by Andy Weir and turned into a successful film in 2015 starring Matt Damon, astronaut Mark Watney bewails the fact that he is stranded on the planet Mars with only his captain’s disco music archive to entertain him. It’s a laugh at the expense of the genre, but any publicity, even the bad kind, is still good.

A good music genre can’t be kept down.

Even when ridiculed and mocked, disco loves all, embraces all, and will always keep our souls funky and movin’ to the beat.

Democrats around the world can’t help but take note that the pillar of democracy has gone wobbly. Aspiring dictators have no doubt noticed, too. into the fabric of international relations, especially for the US. “Every US embassy around the world has democracy as part of its agenda,” he said.

Incubating and sustaining democratic institutions is a tough task, however. Democracy doesn’t always take. And it doesn’t always thrive even when it does take.

Hungary is one of many examples

Decierdo is resident astronomer and physicist for The Mind Museum.

Dr. Ortuoste is a California-based writer.

Follow her on Facebook: Jenny Ortuoste, Twitter: @jennyortuoste, Instagram: @jensdecember

of democratic backsliding. Certainly the regime of Russia’s Vladimir Putin qualifies.

Nowhere is democracy so firmly rooted as in the US, which has been a wellspring for democratic impulses around the world. Perhaps the confidence of Wollack and others is well-founded. But Trump represents a concussive break from a democratic pattern that has not only flourished in the US but reverberated, to the benefit of Americans and others, around the world.

US commitment to foreign engagement can vary with the demands and resources of the era. But questions about the US’ commitment to its own democracy are something strange and new.

Democrats around the world can’t help but take note that the pillar of democracy has gone wobbly.

Aspiring dictators have no doubt noticed, too. Bloomberg

PESO:...

From A1

the $2.5 billion estimated for 2016 because imports are growing.

Economic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia said on Friday the peso’s decline isn’t a cause for alarm, and that a weaker currency benefits families of overseas workers, exporters and outsourcing companies. “Our central bank is doing a great job in managing the currency and managing the sharp fluctuations,” Pernia said.

The peso will be 50.6 to the dollar by the end of September, according to the median estimate in Bloomberg surveys of analysts. Bank of the Philippine Islands, the country’s second-largest lender by assets, forecasts the slide to continue to 52.50 by the end of the year.

Political developments “might be the catalyst to drive the dollar-peso higher,” said Alan Cayetano, Manila-based head of foreign-exchange trading at the bank.

“For now, market sentiment seems negative.” Bloomberg

World SECRET UBER SOFTWARE STEERS DRIVERS FROM STINGS SAN FRANCISCO, United States—Uber on Friday acknowledged the use of a secret software program to steer drivers away from trouble, including sting operations by local authorities to catch lawbreakers.

In the latest in a streak of damaging news for the ridesharing giant, Uber came forward about its “Greyball” software after a New York Times report which said the program aimed to deceive authorities in markets around the world.

According to an Uber statement, the tool was used in cities where it was not banned from operating, and the main intent was to protect drivers from disruption by competitors using the smartphone application to interfere instead of summon legitimate rides.

“This program denies ride requests to fraudulent users who are violating our terms of service,” an Uber spokesperson said in an email reply to an AFP inquiry.

“Whether that’s people aiming to physically harm drivers, competitors looking to disrupt our operations, or opponents who collude with officials on secret ‘stings’ meant to entrap drivers.”

Uber said the program was used in locations where drivers feared for their safety, and “rarely” to avoid law enforcement.

The New York Times report, which said Greyball was used in several countries, cited interviews with current and former employees whose names were cloaked.

According to the report, the program raised ethical and potential concerns, and had been a closely guarded secret in Uber’s toolbox as it expanded around the world, clashing with regulators and traditional taxi groups. AFP

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TRUMP DEFIANT AMID NEW RUSSIA TIES W

ashington—An avalanche of new revelations about ties between Donald Trump’s aides and Russia forced the White House back on the offensive Friday, overshadowing a presidential weekend trip to Florida and his well-received major speech.

Before arriving at his Mar-a-Lago resort for the fourth time in five weeks, Trump accused his political foes of conducting “a total witch hunt” into links with Moscow, which he denies.

The angry accusation came as Attorney-General Jeff Sessions—a close Trump confidant and the US government’s top law enforcement official—was forced to recuse himself from any Russia-related inquiries.

After Sessions told senators under oath that “I didn’t have—did

not have communications with the Russians,” journalists uncovered he had actually met the Russian ambassador twice in the months before taking office.

The meetings have raised red flags for Democrats, who have called for Sessions to resign and be investigated for perjury.

Trump said he had “total” confidence in Sessions, who “could have stated his response more accurately” but “did not say anything wrong.”

Trump lashed out at leading Sen-

ate Democrat Chuck Schumer.

Trump tweeted an old picture of the senator with Russian President Vladimir Putin along with the caption: “We should start an immediate investigation into @SenSchumer and his ties to Russia and Putin. A total hypocrite!”

He later demanded a “second investigation” into House Democrat Nancy Pelosi.

Since US intelligence took the unprecedented step of publicly accusing Russia of trying to swing the November election in Trump’s favor, questions have swirled about whether some in Trump’s campaign colluded with Moscow.

Trump has repeatedly denied any personal ties to the Kremlin, and his aides have variously denied or played down contacts with Russian officials.

But it has now emerged that a slew

of associates aside from Sessions and already fired national security advisor Michael Flynn met Moscow’s envoy to Washington, Sergey Kislyak, before Trump took office.

US media reported that advisors JD Gordon and Carter Page met Kislyak and, separately, that Flynn and Trump’s son-in-law and senior White House aide Jared Kushner met Kislyak at Trump Tower in New York last December.

Sessions’ own meetings with the envoy took place much earlier, in July and September, just as accusations of Russian interference in the election were mounting, according to The Washington Post.

According to officials, US intelligence agencies and the Federal Bureau of Investigation continue to investigate just how and how much Moscow intruded into US politics. AFP

EAST LIBYA STRONGMAN LOSES OIL EXPORT TERMINAL BENGHAZI, Libya—The forces of eastern Libya’s military strongman Khalifa Haftar have lost control of a key oil export terminal they had seized last year, a spokesman conceded on Saturday.

Col. Ahmad al-Mismari said rival forces had overrun the main airfield in the oil port of Ras Lanuf and identified them as Islamists of the Benghazi Defence Brigades.

An array of forces, most of them loyal to the UN-backed government in Tripoli, have been involved in efforts to oust Haftar from the oil ports, whose seizure enabled him to pose a major challenge to its authority.

But the Tripoli government denied any involvement in the renewed offensive on the oil ports, condemning it as a “military escalation.”

The forces involved in the latest assault are a mixture of Islamist militias, eastern tribes opposed to Haftar and members of the Petroleum Facilities Guard which controlled the ports before Haftar’s takeover.

“The attackers were armed with modern tanks and a radar to neutralise our air force,” Mismari said. “But the battle is ongoing. The situation in the Oil Crescent remains under control.” AFP

FRANCE’S FILLON SUFFERS NEW BLOWS PARIS—French presidential candidate Francois Fillon suffered new blows to his scandal-hit campaign Friday, while veteran conservative Alain Juppe stood ready to replace him in the race.

Fillon’s spokesman and campaign manager quit and the leader of a small centrist party confirmed it was withdrawing its backing over an expenses scandal.

Pressure has been building on the rightwing former prime minister, who turned 63 on Saturday, since he revealed this week that he is to be charged over allegations he paid his wife Penelope hundreds of thousands of euros for fake parliamentary jobs.

The 71-year-old Juppe, also an ex-premier and a one-time foreign minister, was beaten by Fillon in the conservative primary in November after beginning the contest as a clear favourite.

Juppe has kept a low profile since.

Far-right candidate Marine Le Pen has taken the lead in opinion polls and centrist Emmanuel Macron has also benefited from Fillon’s woes. AFP

Policemen with dogs take part in a parade to mark the 100th anniversary of the Belarusian police in Minsk on March 4. AFP

JACKMAN SLICES AND DICES ONE LAST TIME AS WOLVERINE LOS ANGELES, United States—After eight movies over 17 years, Hugh Jackman has returned for his final hurrah as Wolverine in “Logan,” an edgier, darker take on everyone’s favorite hairy, metal-clawed mutant anti-hero.

Jackman, 48, had agreed with director James Mangold that if he was going to reprise his iconic role as the cigar-chomping loner one last time,

it should be the first R-rated outing in the “X-Men” franchise aimed at a more adult audience.

“Hugh and I didn’t want to do it if we couldn’t do something very different,” Mangold said at a preview in Los Angeles of Twentieth Century Fox’s 2017 slate.

“We both felt like we had made the last movie and we also felt like... there’s a slew of comic book-themed films, su-

perhero movies—whatever you want to call them—and I, for one, am feeling kind of an exhaustion watching them, generally.”

“Logan,” which takes place more than 50 years after the events of “X-Men: Days of Future Past” (2014), sees Wolverine/Logan aging, weary and vulnerable.

Sporting an unkempt gray beard, he drinks his days away on the Mexican

border, picking up black market drugs to treat the dying Professor X, played for a seventh—and also final—time by acclaimed British thespian Patrick Stewart.

Logan is snapped abruptly out of his torpor when a mysterious woman begs him to protect a young girl – a stunning debut by English-Spanish newcomer Dafne Keen, 11 – who has powers remarkably like his own and is being pursued by dark forces.

More of a blood-spattered road movie than a traditional superhero film, the latest installment earned its R rating mainly because of the unrelenting, visceral violence which plays out from the opening scene.

It is expected to take $65 million over the weekend to top the domestic box office and $170 million worldwide.

Jackman, a versatile Golden Globe and Tony Award-winning performer as comfortable in stage musicals as blockbusters, has long been open about the fact that “Logan” would be his last Wolverine movie.

“He’s a warrior. He’s billed as a weapon, a killing machine, really. But as we say in the movie—it’s a quote from ‘Shane’—there’s no living with a killing.

There’s a cost to violence,” Jackman told journalists at a screening in New York.

AFP

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World

/ Joyce Pangco-Pañares, Issue Editor

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CHINA HIKES DEFENSE SPENDING BY 7% B

EIJING—China will raise defense spending “around seven percent” this year as it guards against “outside meddling” in its disputed regional territorial claims, a top official said Saturday, in an apparent reference to Washington.

Just days after US President Donald Trump outlined plans to raise American military spending by around 10 percent, a spokeswoman for China’s parliament told reporters that future Chinese expenditures will depend on US actions in the region.

“We call for a peaceful settlement through dialogue and consultation (of the territorial disputes). At the same time we need the ability to safeguard our sovereignty and interests and rights,” spokeswoman Fu Ying said at a press conference ahead of the rubber-stamp parliament session. “In particular, we need to guard against outside meddling in the disputes.”

The annual press briefing came a day ahead of Sunday’s opening of the National People’s Congress (NPC).

Fu did not specify what “meddling” she was referring to, but Beijing’s increasingly assertive stance towards its claims in the South China Sea and East China Sea have stirred alarm in the region and prompted criticism from Washington.

The planned spending increase is in line with last year, when the government said 2016 outlays would increase by 6.57.0 percent.

The 2016 figure marked the first time in six years that spending growth did not rise into double figures.

China is engaged in a decades-long build up and modernization of its oncebackward armed forces as it seeks military clout commensurate with its economic might.

But its military capabilities remain modest compared to the United States, Fu said, adding that concerns about the country’s military buildup are unwarranted.

“China has never caused harm to anyone, to any country,” she said.

But recent reports that Beijing may be militarizing artificial islands in the South China Sea have raised concerns in Washington, which has long argued China’s activities in the region threaten freedom of navigation through the strategically vital waterways, sending ships and aircraft to pass close to the growing islands.

Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Taiwan have contested Beijing’s claims.

Recent satellite imagery indicates China is completing structures intended to house surface-to-air missiles on a series of such artificial landmasses, the Washington think-tank Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative said last week. AFP

THAI KING’S AIDE JAILED FOR ROYAL DEFAMATION BANGKOK—A senior aide to Thailand’s new King Maha Vajiralongkorn has been jailed for five and a half years for royal defamation and other offenses, police said, the latest secrecy-shrouded downfall of a palace official.

The verdict, handed down by a military court on Friday, comes less than two weeks after the palace sacked the king’s deputy chief of staff Chitpong Thongkum for behaving “in a way that brought about distrust and caused severe damage to the royal family.”

Palace affairs are often difficult to penetrate in Thailand, where harsh defamation laws shield the royal family from scrutiny and make any discussion of the monarchy extremely sensitive.

Media must heavily self-censor when reporting on the royal family.

In addition to violating the royal insult law, Chitpong was also convicted of “committing theft in state offices” and breaching medical and cosmetic laws, according to a police statement. AFP

NOKOR HITS POSSIBLE US TERROR LISTING SEOUL—North Korea warned Saturday the US will “pay dearly” if it puts Pyongyang on a terror list over the killing of its leader’s half-brother, as a suspect in the murder claimed he was the victim of a conspiracy.

Kim Jong-Nam, 45, was poisoned in Malaysia last month with VX, a nerve agent so deadly that it is classed as a weapon of mass destruction.

The dramatic killing at Kuala Lumpur airport prompted an international probe, lurid stories of North Korea’s Cold War-style tradecraft and a bitter war of words between Malaysia and Pyongyang.

South Korean and Japanese media, citing diplomatic sources, have since reported that the US has been mulling placing the North back on its terror list, which includes Iran and Syria.

“The US will keenly realise how dearly it has to pay for its groundless accusations against the dignified” North if it puts it back on the terror list, the regime’s foreign ministry spokesman told state-run newswire KCNA. AFP

Japan’s Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko are greeted as they walk through the Ngo Mon Gate in the central city of Hue, Vietnam’s former imperial city, on March 4. Akihito and his wife are on their first visit to Vietnam, the latest in a series of trips to former battlegrounds. AFP

UK CINEMA-GOERS ASKED TO BECOME REAL-LIFE 007S LONDON—British film icon James Bond has entertained audiences for over five decades, but now the country’s foreign intelligence agency is asking cinema-goers to become spies themselves.

MI6 on Friday unveiled a 58-second advertisement—entitled “But She Could”—that will be shown in cinemas from Monday as part of a recruitment drive to attract budding spies from diverse backgrounds.

“I want everyone to know that, regardless of background, if you have the skills we need and share our val-

ues, there is a future for you in MI6,” said agency chief Alex Younger as he unveiled the advertisement.

“I want people to see our advert and know there is a place for them in our team,” Younger added.

Younger has previously blamed Bond for creating a stereotyped image of a British spy, and is keen to employ more female agents.

He said the fictional spy gave a “misleading portrayal” of MI6, and that Bond would “have to change his ways” to survive in the modern agency. AFP

JORDAN HANGS 15 CONVICTS AT DAWN AMMAN—Jordan hanged 15 death row prisoners at dawn on Saturday, its information minister said, in a further break with the moratorium on executions it had observed between 2006 and 2014.

Ten of those put to death had been convicted of terrorism offences and five of “heinous” crimes including rape, Mahmud al-Momani told the official Petra news agency.

All were Jordanians and they were hanged in Suaga prison south of the capital Amman.

King Abdullah II had said in 2005 that Jordan aimed to become the first Middle Eastern country to halt executions in line with most European countries.

Courts continued to hand down death sentences but they were not carried out.

But public opinion blamed a rise in crime on the policy and in December 2014, Jordan hanged 11 men convicted of murder, drawing criticism from human rights groups. AFP

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Business

Ray S. Eñano, Editor / Roderick dela Cruz, Issue Editor business@thestandard.com.ph

ACCOR SUPPORTS SUSTAINABLE SEAFOOD ACCORHOTELS Philippines, a part of AccorHotels, the worldleading travel and lifestyle group and digital innovator with over 4,000 hotels and residences has expressed its commitment to the sustainable seafood initiative.

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HOME DEVELOPER.

P.A. Properties chairman Romarico Alvarez (right) and president Jonathan Lu

PROPERTY DEVELOPER EXPANDS TO MEET PH HOUSING SHORTAGE A 2.7-hectare inheritance in 1993 became the foundation of a property development company that has now provided 25,000 affordable, high-quality homes to Filipino families.

“P.A. Properties was established in 1993 from a four-hectare lot in San Pedro, Laguna that my father—Pelayo Alvarez—inherited from his parents.

He gave the 1.3 hectares to farmer tenants and we developed 2.7 hectares into our first project called St. Joseph Village at the height of real estate boom,” says Romarico Alvarez, chairman of P.A. Properties, a leading first home provider in the southern fringes of Metro Manila.

The 200 units at St. Joseph Village were sold out in less than four months, encouraging P.A. Properties to build more projects in Laguna and later in other parts of Luzon.

After developing 39 housing subdivision projects and 25,000 housing units, P.A. Properties now has 423 employees, 2,500 in-house sellers and 1,000 brokers and indirectly employs thousands more. The company positions to expand to other parts of Luzon with a mission to fill the large housing gap of 5.7 million units, says P.A. Properties president Jonathan Lu. “We cater to the Filipino families. We provide affordable first homes to families and we intend to continue this mission. We will remain affordable, because this is where the demand is,” says Alvarez, who graduated with an Accounting degree from the University of San Juan de Letran.

“We have 7 million to 8 million OFWs [overseas Filipino workers]. They left the Philippines, because they wanted to provide a home for their families,” says Alvarez, adding that P.A. Properties

will continue to play its role of providing homes, and not just pieces of investments that other companies try to develop.

Lu, who is also an accountant, says P.A. Properties has made its mark in the housing sector by building beautiful and high-quality homes at affordable cost and at a quick pace. “Our chairman wants us to be known as a developer that delivers on 4Ms – mabilis, matibay, maganda at mura,” says Lu. Alvarez says the company completed the construction of 1,500 units in 2016 and aims to complete another 3,000 units this year. “In the next five years, we aim to construct 5,000 to 10,000 units. The more houses we construct, the more Filipino families will realize their dream of having a home,” says Alvarez.

He says P.A. Properties is best known for enabling first-home buyers achieve their dreams of owning a place of abode that they can call their own and be proud of.

PA Properties has lined up several housing community projects in the Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon) region and Central Luzon.

Citing the emergence of mega-urban centers and the increasing population and economic activities in the fringe areas of Metro Manila, Lu says the company’s 20-year experience in catering to individuals and families seeking to own their first homes gave the company a “certain degree” of competency and proficiency in terms of knowing exactly the needs and wants of the “countryside market”.

He says P.A. Properties is in a good position to deliver quality yet affordable housing units and communities in the country’s fast growing areas.

“Countryside developers [like us] could more than comply with the task of creating quality and affordable housing communities side by side with the emergence of mega city environments outside of the megalopolis,” he says.

“Our role is critical in helping the government address the country’s ever-increasing housing

backlog,” he says.

Lu cites the efforts of housing agencies—specifically Pag-Ibig Fund that has allocated more than P50 billion for housing loans for its members nationwide— to provide available funding support to address the housing shortage.

“Likewise, banks and other financial institutions have steadily provided the much needed financing support and lower interest rates for qualified home buyers,” Lu says.

P.A. Properties had focused mainly on building and developing housing communities in Laguna and Cavite until 2010.

Alvarez, seeing the expansion of major road arteries and accessibility of other provinces in Calabarzon following the completion of South Luzon Expressway link to Southern Luzon Arterial Road, led the company in landbanking activities in the area. This opened up property developments in Lipa City and Calamba.

PA Properties also opened subdivisions in Bulacan, Pampanga and Tarlac as North Luzon Expressway linked up to Subic-Clark-tarlac Expresway and Tarlac–Pangasinan–La Union Expressway.

Alvarez says to help first-time home buyers from low and middle-income families, PA Properties keeps the prices of its housing units within the Pag-Ibig Fund support bracket.

Projects of P.A. Properties start from P400,000 up to P3 million. Lu says demand for this segment remains strong, as the Philippine population continues to increase and the economy grows.

Alvarez attributes the steady growth and brisk sales to the quality and affordability of the company’s housing units.

“We always make sure that our homebuyers will have a sense of pride in their home ownership decisions and in the end be grateful that they decided to acquire their homes from us,” he says.

PA Properties broke ground for their latest projects in Bulacan, Pampanga, Laguna and Turn to C2

The group is comprised of five hotels in the Philippines including Raffles Makati and Fairmont Makati, Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila, Novotel Manila Araneta Center and Mercure Manila Ortigas.

Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila hosted the one-day workshop where stakeholders including environmental groups, hotels and restaurants, government and non-governmental organizations have come together to discuss the roadmap on how to have sustainable seafood in the Philippines.

The different stakeholders identified the gaps at each stage of the fisheries supply chain including the need for rigorous documentation of fish catch, and country-specific standards in the processing of seafood.

This is in addition to key priorities in conserving seafood resources such as proper ecolabelling, appreciation of the seasonality of certain species, enforcement of labor laws concerning fishers’ welfare, more affordable methods for monitoring fishing vessels, and complete registration of fishers and boats.

The sustainable seafood used was sponsored by Meliomar, a seafood-processing and export c o m p a ny fo c u s i n g o n t h e development and trade of highquality sustainable seafood.

“AccorHotels Philippines is committed to supporting Sustainable Seafood and assuring our diners that an ever-increasing percentage of the seafood served in our hotels is sourced from nonendangered fisheries,” says Adam Laker, area general manager of AccorHotels Philippines.

SOLAR PANELS GET CURVED TO PRODUCE MORE POWER

By Alena Mae S. Flores

SOLAR technology is growing at a fast pace and local solar energy provider GreenHeat, together with partner Sun Man, is introducing The Curve, the latest in renewable energy solutions.

Taking inspiration from the curves in nature, Curve is a flexible, durable, ultra-thin, highly adaptable solar panel that can be integrated into surfaces where regular panels are not compatible.

Green Heat Corp., one of the leading solar providers in the Philippines, is looking at putting up 6.5 megawatts of solar rooftop projects this year as it introduces the latest

technological breakthrough in the industry.

Green Heat director Glenn Tong said around 70 percent of the solar rooftop projects lined up this year would be located in Metro Manila with some of the projects already carrying The Curve solar panels.

He said the company installed a total of 4.2 MW of solar rooftop projects last year.

Tong said The Curve panels are the latest in solar power solutions, which has many advantages over conventional solar panels.

He said while the newly-developed product was more expensive than the conventional solar panels, Green Heat made “prices equal to the traditional” by absorbing the extra cost.

“The Curve is a flexible, durable, ultra-thin,

highly adaptable solar panel that can be easily integrated into surfaces where regular panels are not compatible,” he said.

Tong said because it is lightweight, The Curve solar panels can be applied to surfaces that cannot handle conventional panels. The Curve weighs only 7.5 kilograms while conventional panels weigh 27 kilograms.

He said The Curve can also physically adjust to structures like arches and domes, which is possible through its Flexicell technology.

“Installation is also easier because The Curve requires no drilling of holes on rooftops which in turn doesn’t produce leaks, owing to its unique roof bonding technology,” Tong said.

Business

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SUNDAY, MARCH 5, 2017 business@thestandard.com.ph

FILIPINOS ABROAD EMBRACE FRANCHISING FILIPINOS working in Singapore were exposed to business ideas and investment opportunities in the Philippines at the third leg of the Smart World Negosyo Caravan.

The event was staged by PLDT Global Corp., through Smart World, the international brand of the PLDT group that provides products and services to Filipinos living and traveling overseas.

This was done in partnership with the Philippine Franchise Association, The Gl oba l Fi l i pi no I nves to rs Singapore and the Department of Trade and Industry.

“We hope that the success stories of our featured entrepreneurs will inspire them to start planning for their future and investing in the right business,” said PGC vice president and group head for global operations John Palanca.

Be Your Own Boss! A Smart World Negosyo Caravan was held on Jan. 14, 2017 in AIA Tampines, Singapore.

Business experts and franchisors flew in to give Singapore-based Filipinos tips and insights on different franchise opportunities.

“This is our way of providing our overseas Filipinos with a viable option when they return home and decide to start a business in the country,” said Palanca.

The event featured talks onOperational Efficiency: How to Effectively Manage Your Business

by James Melon, country manager for PLDT Singapore; and Tapping Opportunities in a Growing Economy

by Glenn Penaranda, commercial counselor of PTIC-Singapore.

Sherill Quintana, PFA director for South Luzon and president of Oryspa, presented the overview of opportunities in Philippine Franchising; Federico Moreno, president of Xcess Salon, shared his learnings on How to Become a Successful Entrepreneur; and Dana Cuneta, strategic planning consultant of Francorp Philippines, gave tips on How to Invest in the Right Franchise.

“PFA has always been in the forefront in promoting entrepreneurship through franchising while advocating wise franchise investments through the seminars that we conduct,” said Quintana.

“We are happy to partner with PLDT Global because overseas Filipinos are a top priority in our efforts to educate the public on wise franchise investments.”

DEVELOPER...

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Metro Manila last year. The company is looking at expanding further in Laguna, Batangas, Cavite and Bulacan.

The company recently topped off three condominium buildings (Las Sargas, El Montalvo and Las Palmas) within the San Jose Residencias project in Sta. Rosa, Laguna and another one (Garnet) in East Residences Ortigas in Pasig City.

The company also launched the eighthectare, 900-unit St. Joseph Richfield in Santa Rosa City and the 30-hectare, 3,000-unit St. Joseph Homes in Cabuyao.

Apart from single detached units, PA Properties delivered several condominium units in Las Asturias, La Frontera and Las Sargas buildings at San Jose Residencias in Sta. Rosa, Laguna; Sapphire building at East Residences Ortigas in Pasig City; Sycamore building at The North Grove in Caloocan City; and Waterpark building at One Metropolitan Place in Pasay City.

Lu says to support the expansion of the company, P.A. Properties is preparing a five-year strategic plan, including tapping the capital market and initial public offering. The company also plans to team up with foreign companies to bring the latest technology in residential construction.

“We are proud of this achievement considering that these units and houses mostly catered to the middle- to low-income families who play a very vital role in the country’s improving economy,” says Lu. Roderick T. dela Cruz

FILIPINOS GET NEW COOLING SOLUTION FOR HOT SUMMER

E

DGARDO Vazquez, a Filipino inventor and entrepreneur, promotes the misting system to protect Filipinos from the scorching temperature, with the onset of the hot dry months in March.

“Because of climate change, we will have a hot summer. If you got it so cold in January and February, then you can get it so hot starting March. With a heat index of over 40 degree Celsius, you can get a heat stroke already. Even animals such as dogs, chicken and hogs suffer from heat stroke. That’s why we want to promote the misting system in the Philippines,” Vaquez says in an interview in his workshop in Makati City, where he tinkers with his tools to develop new products.

“Orchids and other plants in greenhouses are also very sensitive to temperature. The only thing that can address the problem of high temperature is misting,” says Vazquez, a 65-year-old innovator who developed the VazBuilt modular housing technology in the early 1990s.

Vazquez and his son Gardo believe that Misty Kool—a patented misting system with a timer that lowers outdoor temperature by 3 to 5-degree Celsius—is the best cooling solution outdoors, not only for Filipino households, but also for various industries such as livestock, poultry, vegetable production and floriculture.

“We want to help improve the environment. The main objective is to make people understand what it can do, and its health benefit.

The fan is being used now in restaurants and open spaces, but I feel it can do more justice in the agribusiness. It can also be beneficial in the poultry and hog sector, because the heat of summer can be detrimental to chicken and pigs,” says Vazquez.

“Even mushroom farms are now using the misting system,” he says.

Vazquez offers the technology in two forms—a line machine and electric fan-type unit that can produce Baguio-like breeze instantly. The father-and-son tandem, together with distributor-partners, have already sold about 300 units of Misty Kool, which cost P35,000 plus tax for the electric fan type. Vazquez says the local product costs less than a tenth of foreign brands, which are being sold for as much as P500,000.

Misty Kool, according to Vazquez, is a misting system that sprays ultra-fine microns of water that can cool off any area. It conserves energy while offering an air-cooling effect and repels flying insects, dust, smoke and pollen.

“We are now looking for distributors to bring Misty Kool units across the country to protect Filipinos from the heat of summer,” says Vazquez.

Vazquez says both the line and electric fan type Misty Kool systems can be used to generate cool breeze at patios of homes, open spaces of restaurants, hotels and resorts, gardens, concert grounds, golf courses, sports venues, public areas and open areas of government offices, churches and hospitals.

He says aside from cooling the open areas, the misting system also controls the spread of dust and insects. “Mists also serve as air filter

Filipino inventor Edgardo Vazquez and prevent flies and mosquitos from flying anywhere.

Vaquez hopes to bring the Misty Kool units to more areas such as the resort islands of Boracay and Palawan and the high-temperature provinces of Cagayan, Isabela, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur and Nueva Ecija.

“We are getting calls from a lot of resorts. They always go for the electric fan type Misty Kool, but when they see that it is working pretty well, they shift to the higher budget line system,” he says.

“Eventually, we want to bring Misty Kool to other Asian countries such as Papua New Guinea, Vietnam and Cambodia,” he says.

“So far, we don’t have any [defective] returns from the units we sold. What we get are referrals. Those who try to copy our product cannot come close to what we have produced. We have a superior product—designed by Filipino and patented in the Philippines—that is the only misting system with a timer, which is important so that the ground will not get wet from the mist,” he says.

Vazquez says Misty Kool is different from other products because it has an oil monitor and programmable timer.

The electric fan type Misty Kool consists of a high-pressure misting fan, 41-liter water tank, heavy-duty wheels with locking mechanism, programmable timer, automatic switch-off feature, oil indicator and automatic water pump. A unit can cover a spray area of 85 square meters.

“This is a Filipino-designed product for the benefit of the Filipino families and industries,” says Vazquez. Roderick T. dela Cruz

SARDINES MAKER CONTINUES TO INVEST AS DEMAND REMAINS STRONG MEGA Global Corp., a leading manufacturer of canned products, continues to command market leadership in sardines, posting an 18-percent sales growth in 2016 from a year ago.

The said growth was driven by the strong demand for Mega Sardines, Mega Tuna and Mega Prime, especially in the Visayas region and in modern trade accounts.

“We are pleased with the company’s current market share, which continuously posts double-digit growth year-onyear. For the past months, we’ve already boosted our presence in supermarkets, market stalls and sari-sari stores nationwide. We’ll be continuing these efforts as we target a 28-percent sales growth this year,” says Mega Global president and chief executive William Tiu Lim during a national sales conference at Prime Hotel in Quezon City.

As Mega Global aims to boost its market share, investments are focused heavily on optimizing operations in fishing, marked by 12-hour catching-

Mega Global Corp. president and chief executive William Tiu Lim to-canning process, which ensures the high-quality and freshness of the products.

He says as a part of the company’s

plans for 2017, manufacturing and distribution operations will be improved with the inclusion of a new warehouse, office building, manufacturing plant

and fishing vessels.

Apart from these developments, the company also leverages more on its strong brand equity of being the leading sardines brand, as certified by AC Nielsen, and a distributor of world-class and delicious canned products.

It will be introducing new variants for Mega Sardines and Mega Tuna, and will be producing a more extensive lineup of canned vegetables and fruits, and other packed goods.

“All our new products that will come out will be better than what there is now. We will launch these products with our brand ambassadors like Liza Soberano, who recently reinstated her partnership with us, as well as Marian Rivera, who both personify what the brand is all about,” Tiu Lim says.

Mega Global has more than 3,500 employees, who are one with the company’s goal in extending innovative, high-quality and delicious canned products in the country. It also exports to 36 countries worldwide.

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SUNDAY, MARCH 5, 2017

BEERMEN LOOK LIKE PHILIPPINE CUP CHAMPIONS

By Reuel Vidal

I

NEVITABLE. Defending champion San Miguel Beermen continue their unstoppable march to the 2017 Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup throne when they try to finish off pesky Barangay Ginebra San Miguel tonight.

Leading the best-of-seven 2017 Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup championship series three victories to one, the Beermen look destined to annex the crown with another victory.

The Beermen moved within a game of annexing their third consecutive Philippine Cup crown when they posted a masterful Barangay Ginebra guard Sol Mercado (center) grabs the arm of San Miguel Beer counterpart Marcio Lassiter (left) as they battle for ball possession.

Barangay Ginebra court general LA Tenorio (5) tries to dribble past San Miguel Beer defender Chris Ross.

94-85 wire-to-wire victory over the same Ginebra squad last Friday, March 3 at the Araneta Coliseum.

The Beermen exploded out of the starting blocks Friday posting an 11-0 run at the outset. The Beermen continued to wax hot from the outside drilling 11 three pointers in the first half alone to hike their advantage to 55-34 at halftime.

The Beermen posted their biggest lead of 26 points, 60-34, early in the third. They then relaxed too soon. Barangay Ginebra chipped away at the San Miguel lead relentlessly to close the gap.

Ginebra came closest when Aljon Mariano picked off a wayward pass intended for an inattentive Arwind Santos. The ball sailed past Santos whose head was turned. Mariano recovered the ball, dribbled the length of the court to score on an unmolested layup to cut the gap to just seven points, 92-85, with 1:17 left to play, as 17,000 fans inside the coliseum roared to their feet.

That was as close as the Gin Kings would get. Time ran out on Ginebra before June Mar Fajardo glided to the hoop on a Euro step to score on a layup to finalize the count, 94-85.

Before the game an emotional Fajardo received his fifth Best Player of the Conference award which tied the record of another San Miguel Beer legend in Danny Ildefonso. Fajardo shared the award with his entire squad as every Beermen in uniform went to the center court to accept the Best Player trophy.

Back in the game Fajardo threw his weight around inside the paint to score 20 points, collect 13 boards, three assists and two blocks in 38 minutes of burn. Marcio Lassiter finished with 20 points.

Chris Ross knocked down five triples to finish with 17 markers (on five-of-nine shooting from threepoint distance), nine assists, four boards and one steal in 40 minutes.

Not wanting to give every award to Fajardo the broadcast panel gave Ross, instead of Fajardo, the Player of the Game award.

Ginebra big man Joe Devance, limping around the court on a sore foot which needed injections before

the game to allow him to play, was the only player who stepped up for the Gin Kings. He finished with 22 points and six rebounds.

LA Tenorio and Japeth Aguilar each chipped in 12 points. Chris Ellis added 10 markers, all in the first half.

With Fajardo demanding doubleand even triple-teams inside the paint, the San Miguel Beer outside shooters were left open around the perimeter. They waxed hot from the outside with 15 triples. In contrast, the Gin Kings were abysmal from three-point distance with 5-of-22 shooting from three-point territory.

The Beermen look to be fully recovered from a disappointing exit in the semifinals of the 2016 PBA Governors Cup where they were eliminated by same Ginebra squad.

Ginebra appeased its legions of hungry fans after it went on to win the crown last conference after beating the Beermen in the semifinals.

Ginebra won its first PBA title after eight years of futility.

All that looks to be water under the bridge with the Beermen poised to formalize their rise to the throne of the 2017 PBA Philippine Cup with a victory over Barangay Ginebra today.

PACIO WANTS TO FOLLOW FOLAYANG’S FOOTSTEPS JOSHUA Pacio wants to be just like his role model and teammate, ONE Lightweight World Champion Eduard Folayang.

The 21-year-old Benguet, Philippines, native witnessed first-hand how Team Lakay’s elder statesman Folayang rose above poverty, and endured a tumultuous period of uncertainty in his mixed martial arts career before becoming one of the brightest superstars and most beloved titleholders in ONE Championship.

“Before he got the belt, he went through a lot of ups and downs in his career. He was beaten and was knocked out twice, but I saw the fight still burning in him,” Pacio said.

“Now, he still goes to the gym and tries to get better and better every day. He taught me a lot about life and its spiritual side, and he taught me positive attitudes that will bring me up in my career.”

Following a disappointing loss last year Pacio will carry all of his hero’s guidance and wisdom with him as he starts his campaign to title contention.

At ONE: Warrior Kingdom on Saturday, March 11, Pacio will square off against former ONE Strawweight World Champion Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke at the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.

The bout takes place in his opponent’s former stomping grounds where Amnuaysirichoke made a name for himself on the national Muay Thai scene. The veteran Amnuaysirichoke has had over 300 professional Muay Thai fights, and ultimately became a three-time Lumpinee Champion.

Pacio is fully aware of his opponent’s striking prowess, but his standup game is nothing to sneeze at either. The Team Lakay product has an extensive background in wushu and Muay Thai, as well as a formidable ground game that he has put on display numerous times inside the cage. With that in mind, the young prodigy feels particularly confident.

“Of course I have the advantage in wrestling and grappling. I can strike with him, but I have a lot of respect for his striking game.

He is a three-time Lumpinee champion, so I respect him a lot,” the Filipino said.

“I will push myself, I will do well, and I will do everything to win this fight, because it is a very important fight. It does not matter if it is a decision, a submission, or a knockout.”

Joshua Pacio, on top, pounds opponent Rabin Catalan mercilessly. ONE Championship

Republic of the Philippines Office of the President

Republic of the Philippines Office of the President

Republic of the Philippines Office of the President

PDEA Bldg., NIA Northside Road, National Government Center, Barangay Pinyahan Quezon City 1100, Philippines www.pdea.gov.ph

PDEA Bldg., NIA Northside Road, National Government Center, Barangay Pinyahan Quezon City 1100, Philippines www.pdea.gov.ph

PDEA Bldg., NIA Northside Road, National Government Center, Barangay Pinyahan Quezon City 1100, Philippines www.pdea.gov.ph

PHILIPPINE DRUG ENFORCEMENT AGENCY BIDS AND AWARDS COMMITTEE

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reuelvidal@yahoo.com

PHILIPPINE DRUG ENFORCEMENT AGENCY BIDS AND AWARDS COMMITTEE

PHILIPPINE DRUG ENFORCEMENT AGENCY BIDS AND AWARDS COMMITTEE

INVITATION TO BID

INVITATION TO BID

INVITATION TO BID

PROCUREMENT OF 753 UNITS TACTICAL HELMETS Bid Ref. No. 2017-11C

SUPPLY, DELIVERY, AND TESTING OF 689 UNITS MODULAR TYPE VESTS Bid Ref. No. 2017-11B

PROCUREMENT OF 17 UNITS MOBILE PHONE DIGITAL FORENSICS Bid Ref. No. 2017-06

1. The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), thru its Bids and Awards Committee (BAC), intends to apply the sum of EIGHTEEN MILLION EIGHT HUNDRED TWENTY FIVE THOUSAND PESOS (P18,825,000.00) through General Appropriations Act (GAA) for CY 2017 being the Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) to paymentsunder the contractfor the PROCUREMENT OF 753 UNITS TACTICAL HELMETS. Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected during bid opening.

1.

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), thru its Bids and Awards Committee (BAC), intends to apply the sum of FIFTY-FIVE MILLION ONE HUNDRED TWENTY THOUSAND PESOS (P 55,120,000.00) through General Appropriations Act (GAA) for CY 2017 being the Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) to payments under the contract for the SUPPLY, DELIVERY, AND TESTING OF 689 UNITS MODULAR TYPE VESTS. Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected during bid opening.

1.

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), thru its Bids and Awards Committee (BAC), intends to apply the sum of TWENTY SIX MILLION EIGHT HUNDRED SIXTY THOUSAND PESOS (P26,860,000.00) through General Appropriations Act (GAA) for CY 2017 being the Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) to paymentsunder the contractfor the PROCUREMENT OF 17 UNITS MOBILE PHONE DIGITAL FORENSICS. Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected during bid opening.

2. The PDEA - BAC now invites bids for the PROCUREMENT OF 753 UNITS TACTICAL HELMETS. Delivery of the goods is 180 calendar days upon receipt of Notice to Proceed.

Bidders should have completed, within three (3) years from the date of submission and receipt of bids, a contract similar to the Project. The description of an eligible bidder is contained in the Bidding Documents, particularly, in Section II. Instructions to Bidders.

2.

The PDEA - BAC now invites bids for the SUPPLY, DELIVERY, AND TESTING OF 689 UNITS MODULAR TYPE VESTS. Delivery of the goods is 180 calendar days upon receipt of Notice to Proceed. Bidders should have completed, within three (3) years from the date of submission and receipt of bids, a contract similar to the Project. The description of an eligible bidder is contained in the Bidding Documents, particularly, in Section II. Instructions to Bidders.

2.

The PDEA - BAC now invites bids for the PROCUREMENT OF 17 UNITS MOBILE PHONE DIGITAL FORENSICS. Delivery of the goods is 60 calendar days upon receipt of Notice to Proceed. Bidders should have completed, within three (3) years from the date of submission and receipt of bids, a contract similar to the Project. The description of an eligible bidder is contained in the Bidding Documents, particularly, in Section II. Instructions to Bidders.

3.

Bidding will be conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using a nondiscretionary “pass/fail” criterion as specified in the 2016 Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act (RA) 9184, otherwise known as the “Government Procurement Act.”

3.

Bidding will be conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using a nondiscretionary “pass/fail” criterion as specified in the 2016 Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act (RA) 9184, otherwise known as the “Government Procurement Act.”

3. Bidding will be conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using a nondiscretionary “pass/fail” criterion as specified in the 2016 Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act (RA) 9184, otherwise known as the “Government Procurement Act.” (i) Bidding is restricted to Filipino citizens/sole proprietorships, partnerships, or organizations with at least sixty percent (60%) interest or outstanding capital stock belonging to citizens of the Philippines, and to citizens or organizations of a country the laws or regulations of which grant similar rights or privileges to Filipino citizens, pursuant to RA 5183.

4. Interested bidders may obtain further information from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and inspect the Bidding Documents at the address given below during office hours (8:00 am to 5:00pm).

5. A complete set of Bidding Documents may be acquired by interested Bidders on February 16, 2017 from the address given below and upon payment of the applicable fee for the Bidding Documents, pursuant to the latest Guidelines issued by the GPPB, in the amount of twenty five thousand pesos (PhP25,000.00).

(i)

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

4.

Interested bidders may obtain further information from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and inspect the Bidding Documents at the address given below during office hours (8:00 am to 5:00pm).

5.

A complete set of Bidding Documents may be acquired by interested Bidders on February 16, 2017 from the address given below and upon payment of the applicable fee for the Bidding Documents, pursuant to the latest Guidelines issued by the GPPB, in the amount of fifty thousand pesos (PhP50, 000.00).

The Invitation to Bid and Checklist of Requirements may be downloaded from the website of the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) and PDEA Website at www.pdea.gov.ph, provided that Bidders shall pay the applicable non-refundable fee for the Bidding Documents not later than the submission of their bids.

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

4.

Interested bidders may obtain further information from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and inspect the Bidding Documents at the address given below during office hours (8:00 am to 5:00pm).

5.

A complete set of Bidding Documents may be acquired by interested Bidders on February 16, 2017 from the address given below and upon payment of the applicable fee for the Bidding Documents, pursuant to the latest Guidelines issued by the GPPB, in the amount of twentyfive thousand pesos (PhP25,000.00).

The Invitation to Bid and Checklist of Requirements may be downloaded from the website of the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) and PDEA Website at www.pdea.gov.ph, provided that Bidders shall pay the applicable nonrefundable fee for the Bidding Documents not later than the submission of their bids.

The Invitation to Bid and Checklist of Requirements may be downloaded from the website of the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) and PDEA Website at www.pdea.gov.ph, provided that Bidders shall pay the applicable nonrefundable fee for the Bidding Documents not later than the submission of their bids.

6. The PDEA-BAC will hold a Pre-Bid Conference on March 1, 2017, 10:00 a.m. at PDEA Main Conference Room, NIA Northside Road, National Government Center, Quezon City 1100 which shall be open to prospective bidders.

6.

The PDEA-BAC will hold a Pre-Bid Conference on March 01, 2017, 9:00 a.m. at PDEA Main Conference Room, NIA Northside Road, National Government Center, Quezon City 1100 which shall be open to prospective bidders.

6.

7. Bids must be duly received by the BAC Secretariat at the address below on or before March 14, 2017, 10:00 a.m. All Bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount stated in ITB Clause 18.

The PDEA-BAC will hold a Pre-Bid Conference on March 1, 2017, 11:00 a.m. at PDEA Main Conference Room, NIA Northside Road, National Government Center, Quezon City 1100 which shall be open to prospective bidders.

7.

Bids must be duly received by the BAC Secretariat at the address below on or before March 14, 2017, 9:00 a.m. All Bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount stated in ITB Clause 18.

7.

Bids must be duly received by the BAC Secretariat at the address below on or before March 14, 2017, 11:00 a.m. All Bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount stated in ITB Clause 18.

Bid opening shall be on March 14, 2017, 10:00 a.m. at PDEA Main Conference Room, NIA Northside Road, National Government Center, Pinyahan, Quezon City 1100. Bids will be opened in the presence of the bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address below. Late bids shall not be accepted.

8. Interested bidders may obtain further information from the BAC Secretariat c/o Ms. Aroceli E. Sonido or Mr. Arvin E. Sadullo at the PDEA Compound, NIA Northside Road, National Government Center, Quezon City from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PMonly, Mondays to Fridays starting February 16, 2017 at Tel No. (632) 920-8082. However, any queries relative to the contents of the bid documents and the project requirements can only be made by bidders who purchased the bid documents not later than Ten (10) days prior to the Submission and Opening of Bids.

9. PDEA reserves the right to reject any and all bids, declare a failure of bidding, or not award the contract at any time prior to contract award in accordance with Section 41 of RA 9184 and its IRR, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

10. For further information, please refer to: Ms. Aroceli E Sonido or Mr. Arvin E Sadullo PDEA-Logistics Management Service PDEA Compound, NIA Northside Road, National Government Center, Quezon City Tel No. (632)920-8082

Bid opening shall be on March 14, 2017, 11:00 a.m. at PDEA Main Conference Room, NIA Northside Road, National Government Center, Pinyahan, Quezon City 1100. Bids will be opened in the presence of the bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address below. Late bids shall not be accepted.

8.

Interested bidders may obtain further information from the BAC Secretariat c/o Ms. Aroceli E. Sonido or Mr. Arvin E. Sadullo at the PDEA Compound, NIA Northside Road, National Government Center, Quezon City from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM only, Mondays to Fridays starting February 22, 2017at Tel No. (632) 920-8082. However, any queries relative to the contents of the bid documents and the project requirements can only be made by bidders who purchased the bid documents not later than Ten (10) days prior to the Submission and Opening of Bids.

8.

Interested bidders may obtain further information from the BAC Secretariat c/o Ms. Aroceli E. Sonido or Mr. Arvin E. Sadullo at the PDEA Compound, NIA Northside Road, National Government Center, Quezon City from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PMonly, Mondays to Fridays starting February 16, 2017 at Tel No. (632)920-8082.However, any queries relative to the contents of the bid documents and the project requirements can only be made by bidders who purchased the bid documents not later than Ten (10) days prior to the Submission and Opening of Bids.

9.

PDEA reserves the right to reject any and all bids, declare a failure of bidding, or not award the contract at any time prior to contract award in accordance with Section 41 of RA 9184 and its IRR, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

9

.PDEA reserves the right to reject any and all bids, declare a failure of bidding, or not award the contract at any time prior to contract award in accordance with Section 41 of RA 9184 and its IRR, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

10. For further information, please refer to:

(Sgd) JESUS A. FAJARDO, MMOAS Deputy Director General for Administration Chairman, Bids and Awards Committee (MS-MAR.5, 2017)

Bid opening shall be on March 14, 2017, 9:00 a.m. at PDEA Main Conference Room, NIA Northside Road, National Government Center, Pinyahan, Quezon City 1100. Bids will be opened in the presence of the bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address below. Late bids shall not be accepted.

10. For further information, please refer to:

Ms. Aroceli E Sonido or Mr. Arvin E Sadullo PDEA-Logistics Management Service PDEA Compound, NIA Northside Road, National Government Center, Quezon City Tel No. (632)920-8082

(MS-MAR. 5, 2017)

Ms. Aroceli E. Sonido or Mr. Arvin E. Sadullo PDEA-Logistics Management Service PDEA Compound, NIA Northside Road, National Government Center, Quezon City Tel No. (632)920-8082 (Sgd) JESUS A. FAJARDO, MMOAS Deputy Director General for Administration Chairman, Bids and Awards Committee

(MS-MAR. 5, 2017)

(Sgd) JESUS A. FAJARDO, MMOAS Deputy Director General for Administration Chairman, Bids and Awards Committee

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

C4

Sports

SUNDAY, MARCH 5, 2017 Riera U. Mallari, Editor / Reuel Vidal, Issue Editor / Randy Caluag, Issue Editor

sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

Olympic weightlifting silver medalist Hidylyn Diaz looks forward to testing her mettle at Test of Will

DIAZ UP TO TEST OF WILL CHALLENGE Members of Southwoods team whoop it up after sealing the final score that put them ahead of the field in the premier Championship Division. Lino Santos

S’WOODS SCORES 3-PEAT IN RECORD FASHION

By Randy Caluag

D

AVAO CITY—The Manila Southwoods came up with its lowest output of 120 yesterday (Saturday) at the Apo Golf course but still emerged champion for the third straight time in the 70th Philippine Airlines (PAL) Interclub Golf here.

Enjoying a considerable 24-point lead going into the fourth and final day of the annual golfing tourney, there was no need for the defending Southwoods squad to go spectacular in the fourth and final day at the dreaded, tree-lined Apo course.

Nonetheless, the quartet of Jun Plana (33), Tom Kim (30) Kristoffer Arevalo (29) and Jett Sajulga (28) still delivered steady performance worth 120 points for a fourday aggregate of 547 to all but seal the victory in record fashion in the premier Championship Division.

The champion in 2015 in Cebu and last year in Pampanga recorded the biggest winning margin of 44 points in the history of what is regarded as the unofficial team golf championship.

“I have so much respect for Canlubang. It’s just very fortunate we had a great day yesterday. We had a great day yesterday and they didn’t have a good day so I think that’s where the tournament was won,” said Southwoods non-playing skipper Thirdy Escano.

Escano was referring to their record-breaking 156-point output, anchored by Japanese teen Yuto Katsuragawa’s six-under-par 66, on the third day at the wide and well-manicured Palos Verdes layouts that virtually scuttled the opposition for good.

“But if they (Canlubang) also played well yesterday, it would’ve been a closer fight.”

Canlubang’s Dodong Saragoza and Gido Mandanas had similar 32 and Marco Olives and Carlo Villaroman had 25 apiece for the day’s score of 114 points and tournament total of 503 points.

“I got to prepare a better team next year because I know Canlubang will not allow this to happen again next year,” added Escano, who revealed that they are putting together a young, fighting team when the annual golf pilgrimage goes to Cagayan de Oro next year.

Golfing Tradition

More than 80 local teams and from overseas participated in the tournament‘s various divisions that include the elite Championship, Founders, Aviators, Sportswriters, Friendship and International.

Founded 70 years ago, the Philippine Airlines Interclub is the country’s oldest, largest and most prestigious golf team competition - widely acknowledged as the national golf clubs championship of the Philippines.

The PAL Interclub’s stature derives from two factors: the high level of competition - it is a showcase for the country’s best golfing talent - and the strong team spirit and fellowship among its players.

From the start, the PAL Interclub has been about gathering golf aficionados from across the country and overseas for an annual reunion, where they could renew old friendships and gain new ones.

Participants return year after year, not so much as to win the championship - though that is a principal goal - but to bask in the warmth of fellowship and tradition.

There are no grand prizes in the PAL Interclub. There is only the knowledge and honor that one has competed with some of the best golfers in the land. This, plus the remarkable camaraderie among its players and its hallowed history of over 60 years, has imbued the PAL Interclub with a unique character and made it an enduring institution of Philippine golf.

Today, the tournament looks ahead to its centennial edition with certitude of a seasoned golf professional, proud of its past and confident of its future.

The beginning

Early in 1947, Leopoldo Rovira, then PAL Assistant Traffic and Sales Manager, arrived in Cebu City on one of his inspection trips. On the night after his arrival, Maj. Ramon Zosa, who was Cebu station manager, rounded up a group of Rovira’s intimate

Kristoffer Arevalo does a body english following a putt in the final hole. Lino Santos

friends for a get-together party.

Among those who showed up were Buenaventura Veloso, then PAL personnel manager, and Ben Gaston of Bacolod City, then a personal friend of Col. Andres Soriano, PAL’s founder.

Rovira first broached the idea of bringing together golfers from all over the Philippines to compete in an annual interclub tournament. He explained, with fiery conviction, that such a tournament would go a long way in promoting the spirit of camaraderie among golfers.

PAL accepted the idea and a “PAL trophy” worth US$1000.00 was bought from the United States.

The first Interclub tournament was held in 1948 at Wack-Wack Golf and Country Club. The Wackers, victorious, won the distinction of being the first recipient of the prestigious trophy.

Since then, only six teams have held the PAL trophy in 65 years. With Jonathan Gesmundo

OLYMPIC silver medalist Hidilyn Diaz has been invited, along with other national athletes, to try the second Test of Will urban fitness challenge slated on March 25-26 at Glorieta Activity Center in Makati City.

Organized by high performance sportswear label Under Armour, the event sets out to celebrate human performance through intense functional training challenges for the most determined athletes, goal-getters and fitness aspirants.

Diaz, who won a silver in the weightlifting competition of last year’s Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, recently signed up with Under Armour as is newest ambassador.

“I’m very happy to be part of the Under Armour family. It is a very powerful brand to be associated with and it just fits my personality as an empowered woman,” said Diaz, who said she will try the different challenges in the Test of Will.

She won’t be an official participant just like the other invited national athletes, who only want rate their strength and endurance after doing the challenges.

Participants will compete in a fourminute circuit consisting of Burpees, One Arm Thruster, TRX Rows and Sandbag Throw.

An official competitor will be scored based on the maximum number of repetitions they can achieve within 60 seconds. The highest scoring man and woman of the national heats from each respective country will win an all-expense paid trip to compete in the regional finals, happening in Kuala Lumpur on May 6.

This year’s overall champion of the regional finals will walk away with S$2,500 cash prize, or around Php 88,000.00.

“The Test of Will is for everyone and anyone with the determination and discipline to train and compete,” said Michael Binger, CEO of Triple Pte Ltd, exclusive distributor of Under Armour in Southeast Asia.

“Last year, we witnessed champions crowned from the most unexpected individuals. The event epitomizes the might of the determined and the spirit of the underdogs, something which Under Armour stands for.”

Overall male and female winners of the Test of Will 2016, Jet Ng and Zoe Pond-McPherson shared the following tips for this year’s challenges.

“When you feel good, you will perform better. So, train hard, eat well, get enough rest, and make sure you feel as comfortable as you can be on that day.” said Ng. “You will be pitted against many other athletes who have trained hard for their goals. Your ability to focus on that day will be as important as your fitness level.” said Pond-McPherson.

The Test of Will 2017 Philippines National Heats is now open for registration.

PH STARTS SELECTION OF PLAYERS FOR MARTIAL ARTS GAMES

Philippine Sports Commission ({PSC) Butch Ramirez (3rd from left) assured Chief of Mission Monsour Del Rosario (4th from left) and assistant Chief of Mission Raymund Lee Reyes (2nd from left) his support to the Philippine delegation that will do battle in the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games slated in September in Turkmenistan.

With them is POC administrative officer Liza Ner.

THE Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) Task Force for the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (AIMAG) began meeting with various sports association officials to discuss the formation of the Philippine delegation.

TheTask Force, headed by AIMAG chief of mission Monsour Del Rosario and assistant chief Raymund Reyes, have laid down the criteria for selection of athletes.

The criteria include consideration of the results of recent games participated in by the candidate players, analysis of possible competitors, their training pro-

gram and objectives or medal goals.

The Philippines will compete against at least 40 countries 21 sports disciplines in the 5th AIMAG slated in September in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan.

The sports event on tap are chess, bowling, dancesport, muay thai, taekwondo, tennis, weightlifting, 3-on-3 basketball, cycling (track), equestrian (jumping), wrestling, billiards, kickboxing, jiujitsu, kuresh, athletics (indoor), football (futsal), aquatics (short course swimming), belt wrestling, sambo and traditional wrestling.

Del Rosario, secretary-general of the

Philippine Taekwondon Association, is also working closely with the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) headed by chairman Butch Ramirez.

“We want a more successful participation and we are thankful that the PSC is fully supportive of our delegation. We will make our country proud,” said the former taekwondo Olympian and Asian champion.

The coordination meeting with the various heads of the National Sports Associations (NSAs) was divided into three days with first two to being held at the

at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex in Manila and the third at the University of Life-PSC Compound in Pasig City.

Among the active participants in the three-day meeting were combat sports like Pearl Managuelod, secretary-general of the Muay Association of the Philippines (MAP), headed by his father Gen. Lucas Managuelod.

MAP, being a member of the Olympic Council of Asia, will also administer the forming of the kickboxing team in coordination with the newly-formed Kickboxing Alliance of the Philippines.

D1

SUNDAY, MARCH 5, 2017

Jimbo Gulle, Editor

Roger Garcia, Issue Editor

LGUs

mslocalgov@gmail.com

EAGLE FOUNDATION GETS PRIVATE BOOST

T

HE Philippine Eagle Foundation believes that saving the population of the Philippine Eagle is not a lost cause, after all.

The private sector is being tapped to assist and provide the necessary logistical and technical support to PEF through its Philippine eagle adoption program.

Currently—through the foundation’s partnership with Phoenix Petroleum Philippines, an oil company based in Davao—they hope to accomplish more in their captive breeding efforts to augment the population of the species.

PEF’s conservation breeding program, cooperative artificial insemination techniques and breeding of natural pairs in order to contribute to the species’ population are among the methods currently being employed.

Phoenix Philippines Foundation, Inc. of Phoenix Petroleum Philippines, one of the leading private companies that support the foundation’s captive breeding efforts, takes pride in the Philippine Eagle and its significance in keeping a healthy and balanced ecosystem.

“We fully support the Philippine Eagle Foundation in its efforts to protect and save our majestic national bird,” said Phoenix Petroleum president and CEO Dennis Uy. PEF executive director Dennis Salvador, meanwhile, airs his group’s call for more private companies like Phoenix to join in this noble mission of protecting our national bird from extinction.

Phoenix’s adopted Philippine eagle, named after the company, is a natural pair to the female eagle “Marikit.”

They have been paired for about seven years now. They are one of the four natural pairs at the Philippine Eagle Center. The pair has laid eggs in the past breeding seasons, but they were infertile.

Philippine eagle Phoenix as part of a natural pair has a crucial role in the efforts to augment the dwindling population of the species.

The PEF team is hopeful that in the next breeding season Phoenix and his pair can finally produce their first fertile egg.

Philippine Eagles are monogamous birds—they keep only one partner for life. Finding their pair takes time both in the wild and in captivity. At the PEC, pairing attempts are done in an introduction cage about 40 feet high. It has a partition in the middle to avoid the eagles from harming each other in the process.

Philippine eagles are highly territorial and show aggression to each other if they are not compatible.

“Once an eagle finds a suitable female eagle for him, he will court her by giving her twigs. It’s like giving roses to us humans,” said Rai Gomez, PEF Education administrator. “Once the pair successfully copulates, they are able to lay an egg. It takes 56 to 60 days to hatch an eagle.”

The PEF is hopeful for the success of every natural pair in the Philippine Eagle Center. Through the participation of corporations like Phoenix Petroleum, the PEF is able to look after the needs of the eagles in captivity by providing for their food, medicine, shelter and veterinary care.

VIZCAYA STRUCTURES ‘NATIONAL TREASURES’

By Ben Moses Ebreo BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya—The National Museum has declared two timeworn structures in the province as National Cultural properties of the country.

These structures are the Dampol Bridge in Dupax del Sur town and the old Provincial Capitol building situated in this town.

The Dampol Arch Bridge, built

by Spanish Dominican friar Fr. Francisco Rocamora in 1818, was considered as one of the very few remaining historic landmarks in the southern part of Nueva Vizcaya The two centuries old structure is a single-arched brick bridge that spans the Abanatan creek which divides Dupax Sur and Dupax Norte towns.

The early Isinay tribe, with other indigenous groups living in the old ‘Ituy’ area, built the bridge.

Native hands crafted the red-colored brick from an old adobe workshop near the Dominican church of San Vicente Ferrer in Dupax when Fr. Rocamora was its vicar.

The bridge connected the two Dupaxes to nearby towns and facilitated the transport of people and products for trade in horse-driven carts during the earlier period.

Earlier, attempts to widen the narrow bridge through the Department of Public Works and Highways was met by protests from the Isinai tribe because of its historical and cultural value.

ACADEME LAUDS TRO ON RCOA Scan this icon to view the PDF

'PHOENIX,' the Philippine eagle adopted by Phoenix Philippines Foundation Inc., has become the partner of 'Marikit' for over seven years now, but they have not produced eaglets yet.

QC, DSWD SIGN PACT TO BUILD HOUSES FOR PWDS QUEZON City Mayor Herbert Bautista and Social Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo recently signed a joint memorandum of understanding for the development of a housing project to benefit primarily, residents living with disabilities or people with disabilities (PWDs) in Barangay Escopa III. According to Secretary to the Mayor Tadeo Palma, the city government has already poured in P30 million for land development as he announced during the formal signing rites that the 36 housing units are scheduled for turnover by the end of May this year.

Taguiwalo, meanwhile, de-

Local Gov’t Units

scribed the joint undertaking as “a good example of public-private partnership.”

“What we have here at Escopa is a small paradise for persons with disabilities,” Taguiwalo said.

Gawad Kalinga represented during the occasion by GK-QC head Justine Cruz, was tapped to undertake the development and construction of the housing project, which will be known as Bistekville 18.

Bautista urged the housing program beneficiaries to take good care of the houses that will be awarded to them. “Sana huwag naman ninyong ibenta ang mga

titulo,” the city mayor said.

Bistekville 18, will be established on a portion of the National Vocational Rehabilitation Center in Barangay Escopa III. The property will be designed to yield about 130 two-story housing units with floor area measuring 21 square meters each. An initial 36 units are now under construction.

As provided for under the partnership agreement, Quezon City has been tasked to oversee the land development, to include site clearing and construction of roads, drainages and retaining walls and rip-rap and in the development of open spaces.

The city has also been tasked to assist in the social preparation and in the selection of beneficiaries.

The DSWD, on the other hand, shall act as the lead agency in the selection of qualified beneficiaries and in the resolution and arbitration of disputes relative to beneficiary selection.

Gawad Kalinga shall oversee the provision of the housing component.

The city government also facilitated the relocation of non-PWD or able families from Barangay Escopa to the National Housing Authority-designated resettlement site in Pandi, Bulacan.

TOWARDS the end of 2016, hundreds of power customers aired their grievances over what they saw as unreasonable and unrealistic rules emanating from a government ruling that requires industrial and commercial customers to forcibly sign up with a Retail Electricity Supplier, or RES, by Feb. 26, 2017.

Hundreds in attendance reiterated apprehensions that there was very little time for them to secure a Retail Supply Contract, or RSC, with an RES before the deadline, in accordance with the new ruling imposed under Retail Competition and Open Access or RCOA. Per the Energy Regulatory Commission and Department of Energy resolutions, these previously captive customers should by then have switched to the contestable power market by the cut-off date.

Ateneo de Manila University and San Beda College Alabang, in a joint statement, recently expressed satisfaction and relief following the Supreme Court's recent ruling imposing a temporary restraining order on the recent rulings and policies by the ERC and DoE affecting RCOA. Both schools said they are encouraged the SC declared their joint petition as “successfully establishing a clear, legal right to the TRO,” as they seek to uphold the spirit of Epira, or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001, which protects the freedom and the rights of all power consumers.

Ateneo de Manila University president Fr. Jose Ramon Villarin SJ said: “ADMU believes that our government and ruling bodies should ultimately seek to protect our basic, constitutional right to freedom of choice. And this right should extend to all electricity consumers.

19TH PAWIKAN NEST FOUND IN DAVAO’S CLEANERGY PARK

A worker of Aboitiz Cleanergy Park in Davao cleans the nest of a hawksbill turtle or pawikan, the 19th nest found in the park in three years.

THE Aboitiz Cleanergy Park welcomed the 19th critically endangered hawksbill turtle or pawikan nest on its property since 2014, and its third for the year.

This comes barely two weeks after the discovery of the park’s first and second pawikan nests for 2017.

Located in Punta Dumalag, Davao City, the park is an eight-hectare outdoor biodiversity park managed by the Aboitiz Foundation and Davao Light. It showcases urban-based habitat conservation and biodiversity management.

It is one of the few identified nesting sites of the pawikan, and is home to 66 other species.

The latest pawikan nest was discovered last Feb. 8 during an inspection of the park’s foreshore lease area. It contained pawikan eggs, which were transferred by Davao Light team members to the park’s hatchery.

A female pawikan is known to lay eggs three to five times in two-week intervals during mating seasons (barring no unnecessary disturbances), and the eggs’ incubation

period is expected to last between 50 to 60 days.

Prior to the discovery of the third pawikan nest, the park’s first and second pawikan nests for 2017 were discovered last Jan. 10 and 25, respectively.

“We are happy to welcome the latest batch of pawikans to the Aboitiz Cleanergy Park,” said Maribeth L. Marasigan, Aboitiz Foundation first vice president and chief operating officer.

“We will ensure that they continue making the Aboitiz Cleanergy Park their breeding ground and sanctuary

by creating surrounding communities that are safe, sustainable, and empowered.”

The Aboitiz Cleanergy Park is also a haven for various species of trees, birds and fishes.

In 2016, the Aboitiz Foundation stepped up its conservation campaign with “#BetterWorld for the Pawikans,” a drive to raise funds for the protection and preservation of the hawksbill turtle in Punta Dumalag, one of the last few remaining natural habitats for this turtle specie.

LGUs

SUNDAY, MARCH 5, 2017 D2 Standard Manila

TODAY mst.daydesk@gmail.com

D

AUSSIES VOW SUSTAINED MINDANAO AID

AVAO CITY -- Over the years, Mindanao “has been one of the priorities of our development cooperation in the Philippines,” Australian Ambassador to the Philippines Amanda Gorely declared recently.

“And given it’s the economic growth, we remain committed to sustain our support programs for Mindanao in education, livelihood, peace and stability,” Gorely added in a recent visit.

The ambassador said the Australian government acknowledges the opportunities to expand their bilateral engagement in other key areas in the Philippines such as trade and investment.

Trade ties between Australia and the Philippines are valued at approximately AU$3.982 billion per annum. More than 280 Australian companies have an established presence in the Philippines and have created 40,000 jobs.

The total size of the Australian investment in the country is estimated at AU$10 billion covering a multitude of sectors and contributing to knowledge sharing and economic growth.

In Mindanao, Australia works with local governments, local organizations and NGOs to support programs in education, technical vocational training, peace building and disaster risk management.

The Australian Ambassador was in Davao City to lead the launch of “Australia in Davao” promotions.

The Australian Embassy collaborated with partners in Davao to offer a series of events to celebrate the long-

Republic of the Philippines Department of Health CENTRAL OFFICE BIDS AND AWARDS COMMITTEE requeSt for exPreSSIon of IntereSt Procurement of conSultIng ServIceS for the SyStem develoPment and exPanSIon of the Integrated lIcenSIng InformatIon SyStem reI-cS-goP-2017-008 1.

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The Department of Health (DOH), through the General Appropriations Act of 2017 intends to apply the sum of Ten Million Philippine Pesos (PhP 10,000,000.00) being the Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) to payment under the contract for the Procurement of Consulting Services for the System Development and Expansion of the Integrated Licensing Information System. Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected at the opening of the financial proposal.

The DOH now calls for the submission of eligibility documents for the Procurement of Consulting Services for the System Development and Expansion of the Integrated Licensing Information System under REI-CS-GOP-2017-008. Eligibility documents of interested consulting firms must be duly received by the COBAC B Secretariat on or before March 13, 2017, 9:00 A.M. at COBAC Conference Room, G/F Building 6, Department of Health, San Lazaro Compound, Sta. Cruz, Manila. Applications for eligibility will be evaluated based on a non-discretionary “pass/fail” criterion.

Interested bidders may obtain further information from COBAC Secretariat, COBAC Conference Room, G/F, Building 6, Department of Health, San Lazaro Compound, Sta. Cruz, Manila and inspect the Bidding Documents at the address given above during 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Monday to Friday.

Manila

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The DOH reserves the right to reject any and all bids, declare a failure of bidding, or not award the contract at any time prior to contract award in accordance with Section 41 of RA 9184 and its IRR, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

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The Department of Health (DOH), through the Continuing Appropriations of 2016 and General Appropriations Act of 2017 intends to apply the sum of Fifty Two Million One Hundred Thousand Philippine Pesos (PhP52,100,000.00) being the Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) to payments under the contract for the Procurement of Servers under IB No. 2017-149. Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected at bid opening.

The DOH now invites bids for the procurement of the above-captioned project.

Delivery of the Goods is required within the period specified under SECTION VI. Schedule of Requirements. Bidders should have completed, within two (2) years from the date of submission and receipt of bids, a contract similar to the Project, equivalent to at least fifty percent (50%) of the ABC. The description of an eligible bidder is contained in the Bidding Documents, particularly, in Section II. Instructions to Bidders.

Bidding will be conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using a non-discretionary “pass/fail” criterion as specified in the 2016 Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act (RA) 9184, otherwise known as the “Government Procurement Reform Act”.

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

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Interested bidders may obtain further information from the COBAC Secretariat, Ground Floor, Building 6, Department of Health, San Lazaro Compound, Rizal Avenue, Sta. Cruz, Manila and inspect the Bidding Documents at the address given above during 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM, Monday to Friday.

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The DOH will hold a Pre-Bid Conference on 13 March 2017, 10:00 AM at the COBAC Conference Room, Ground Floor, Building 6, Department of Health, San Lazaro Compound, Rizal Avenue, Sta. Cruz, Manila, which shall be open to prospective bidders.

Construction/Expansion of Control Building and other Facilities Compliance to Environmental Requirements

4

Fire Protection System Project

TO ALL INTERESTED PARTIES:

5

Acquisition of One (I) Airborne LIDAR Equipment

Notice is hereby given that on 12 December 2016, applicant National Grid Corporation of the Philippines ( NGCP) filed an Application seeking the Commission’s approval of its capital expenditure program for the calendar years 2017- 2020, including therein a prayer for the issuance of provisional authority.

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Construction of NGCP’s Hangar at Mindanao

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Procurement of Gimbal Camera for Airbus AS 350 B3 Helicopter

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Procurement of Sling Cables for Helicopters

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Tower Perimeter Fences

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Electronic Security Access Door System

11

Installation of Security Surveillance System

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Installation of Security Radio Communication System

13

Construction of a Multi-Level Parking Structure

14

Replacement of Fire Protection System at NGCP Main Building

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Replacement of Centralized Air Conditioning System at NGCP Main Building

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Construction of Generator Set Building and Purchase of 1.5 MVA Standby Generator Set

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Replacement and Acquisition of Tools, Furniture, and Equipment

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Physical Security Enhancement Project

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ITD Infrastruscture and Equipment

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Procurement of ICT Project

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Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)- Phase 3 Project

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

In the said Application, NGCP alleged the folIowing: The Applicant 1.

NGCP is a corporation created and existing under the laws of the Philippines, with principal office address at NGCP Building, Quezon Avenue corner B.I.R. Road, Diliman, Quezon City. It is the concessionaire which assumed the power transmission functions of the National Transmission Corporation (TRANSCO) pursuant to R.A. 9136, otherwise known as the: “Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001” (EPIRA). It may be served with notices and other processes of this Honorable Commission through its counsel at the address indicated below.

2.

Pursuant to R.A. 95111, NGCP was granted the franchise to operate, manage and maintain, and in connection therewith, to engage in the business of conveying or transmitting electricity through a high-voltage back-bone system of interconnected transmission lines, substations and related facilities, system operations, and other activities that are necessary to support the safe and reliable operation of the transmission system2 and is authorized to charge its customers at the rates approved by the Honorable Commission.

3.

This Application is filed pursuant to paragraph d, Section 9 of the EPIRA, which direct· the transmission operator to seek prior approval from the HonorabIe Commission of any plan for expansion or improvement of its facilities in the pursuit of its mandate to construct, install, finance improve, expand, rehabilitate and repair the nationwide transmission system and the grid.

11.

The total CAPEX program are as follows: Projects

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NGCP has the legal mandate to ensure the non-discriminatory, reliable and high- performance operation of the transmission system; including a secured, reliable, and efficient management of the high-voltage grid of the Philippines.

To perform such functions, NGCP submits to the Honorable Commission, for its approval, its CAPEX program for CY 2017-2020, together with their respective justifications.

2017-2020 Php Mn

Beyond 2020 PhP Mn

1. Grid Expansion and Reliability

71,869.08

23,881.70

2. Operations and WESM Support

15,056.66

0.00

3. Non-Network

2,428.88

0.00

4. Other Projects

192.10

0.00

89,546.72

23,881.70

Total

To provide the Honorable Commission an overview of the costs of the projects, NGCP hereby submits the 2017 2020 Total CAPEX attached as Annex “E.” Justifications for the Issuance of Provisional Approval

A. Grid Expansion and Reliability Projects

12. To reiterate, NGCP is required under paragraph d, Section 9 of the EPIRA to seek prior approval from the Honorable Commission of any plan for expansion or improvement of its facilities in relation to its authority a d responsibility to construct, install, finance, improve, expand, rehabilitate and repair the nationwide transmission system and the grid .

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One of the core mandates of NGCP is to improve and expand its transmission facilities3, and to ensure and maintain the reliability, adequacy, security, stability and integrity of the nationwide electrical grid4 to guarantee that grid meets: forecast demand, system reliability, demand market requirements, and capacity of new generators. Thus, NGCP is seeking approval for the following new projects:

13. Along with its responsibility for the planning, construction and centralized operation and maintenance of its high voltage transmission facilities, it is indispensable for NGCP to ensure a reliable and high-performance operation of the transmission system.

Grid Expansion and Reliability Projects 1

Relocation of Steel Poles along Hermosa - Duhat 230kVT/L

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Mariveles - Hermosa 500kV Transmission Line Project

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North Luzon Substation Upgrading Project

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South Luzon Substation Upgrading Project

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Luzon Voltage Improvement Project - 3

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Luzon Voltage Improvement Project - 4

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Cebu-Negros-Panay (CNP) 230kV Backbone Project Stage 3

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Panitan - Nabas 138kV Line 2 Project

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Tagbilaran 69kV Substation Project

WHEREFORE, NGCP most respectfully prays this Honorable Commission to:

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Visayas Voltage Improvement Project

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Baloi-Kauswagan-Aurora 230kV Transmission Line Project (Phase 2)

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Immediately ISSUE an Order provisionally authorizing the implementation of the proposed CAPEX projects; and

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Mindanao Substation Rehabilitation Project

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Mindanao Substation Upgrading Project

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Grid Replacement of Primary Equipment Project

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Grid Replacement of Secondary Equipment Project

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Line Tools & Equipment Acquisition Project

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Line Equipment & Structure Installation Project

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Line Structure Replacement Project

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Spares Acquisition Project

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Acquisition of Test and Measuring Equipment Project

A copy of the compilation of the Detailed Project Discussion for the projects under Grid Expansion and Reliability Projects is attached as Annex “A.”

14. Thus, to avoid distribution of operation and non-compliance with its mandate under the EPIRA as the transmission operator, it is imperative that the implementation of the proposed CAPEX projects be immediately approved .

15. In support thereof, NGCP submits the judicial affidavit of Engr. Darryl Lon A. Ortiz, Head of the Business Strategic Development and Regulatory Management Division of NGCP attached as Annex “F.” PRAYER

Operations and WESM Support Projects

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Telecom Access and Remote Management Component Replacement

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Power Supply and Auxiliary Equipment Replacement

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Infra and IT Support Facilities Replacement

Bid opening shall be on 27 March 2017, 9:00 AM at the COBAC Conference Room, Ground Floor, Building 6, Department of Health, San Lazaro Compound, Rizal Avenue, Sta. Cruz, Manila. Bids will be opened in the presence of the bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address above. Late bids shall not be accepted.

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SCADA/EMS Facilities Replacement

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SCADA Expansion-Added Interfaces/RTU’s and Monitoring Points

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Telecom Access for Added Locations, Subscribers & Application Points

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Fiber Optic and Microwave Radio Expansion

The DOH reserves the right to reject any and all bids, declare a failure of bidding, or not award the contract at any time prior to contract award in accordance with Section 41 of RA 9184 and its IRR, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

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Cyber Security

For further information, please refer to:

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Network Synchronization System

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Network and Facilities Management System and IT Support Facilities

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EMS Enhancements

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Network Disturbance Monitoring Equipment & Power Quality Analyzer

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Real-Time Monitoring and Control Equipment for Distribution Utilities and Monitoring Equipment for Generators

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Expansion- Installation of New Metering Facilities

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NGCP Station Service - Installation of Metering Facilities

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Rehabilitation and Upgrade of Metering Assets

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Relocation of Metering Facility to the Prescribed Connection Points

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Programmed Replacement of Ageing Metering Assets

APPROVE, after notice and hearing, the proposed CAPEX projects.

NGCP prays for other equitable relief.

The Commission has set the said Application for determination of compliance with the jurisdictional requirements, expository presentation, Pre-trial Conference, and presentation of evidence on 24 March 2017 at two o’clock in the afternoon (2:00 P.M.), at the ERC Hearing Room, 15th Floor, Pacific Center, San Miguel Avenue, Pasig City.

All persons who have an interest in the subject matter of the instant case may become a party by filing with the Commission a verified Petition to Intervene at least five (5) days prior to the initial hearing and subject to the requirements under Rule 9 of the 2006 Rules of Practice and Procedure, indicating therein the docket number and title of the case and stating the following:

B. Operations and Wi SM Support Proiects 8.

NGCP as the Transmission Service Provider, System Operator and Metering Service Provider (MSP) is required to operate the power system in accordance with the Philippine Grid Code (PGC) and the Wholesale Electricity Market (WESM) Rules. As such, it must fully comply with the requirements of the provisions of the PGC, the WESM Rules, and the WESM Metering Manual and Guidelines. Thus, NGCP proposes the implementation of the following operation and compliance programs:

Teleprotection Equipment Replacement

(MS-MAR. 5, 2017)

A copy of the compilation of le Detailed Project Discussion for the projects under Other Projects is attached as Annex “D.”

I. Capital Expenditure (CAPEX) Program for CY 2017-2020

Fiber Optic and Microwave Radio Equipment Replacement

(SGD) MA. CAROLINA V. TAIÑO, CPA, MGM, CESO IV Assistant Secretary of Health COBAC – B Chairperson

D. Other Proiects 10. Lastly, these projects involve the wood poIe and the associated asset replacement program of sub-transmission assets that were reverted to NGCP’s Regulatory Asset Base pursuant to Table 5.4 of the 3rd RP Final Determination dated 22 November 2010.

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Notwithstanding the absence of the Final Determination for the 4th RP, NGCP is mandated to ensure and maintain the quality, reliability, adequacy, security, stability and integrity of the nationwide grid. Hence, NGCP seeks authority from this Honorable Commission for the immediate implementation of various capital expenditure projects.

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COBAC-B Secretariat Department of Health San Lazaro Compound Sta. Cruz, Manila Tel. Nos. 651-7800 local 1625 to 1627; 1650 to 52 Facsimile No.: 741-9775; 740-6830

A copy of the compilation of the Detailed Project Discussion for the projects under Non-Network Projects is attached as Annex “C.”

4.

NGCP’s Final Determination for the Third Regulatory Period (3rd RP) covering calendar years 2011 to 2015, as approved by the Honorable Commission in ERC Case No. 2009-180RC has already ended in December 2015 and under the Rules or Setting Transmission Wheeling Rates (RTW ), the Final Determination for the Fourth Regulatory Period (4th RP) covering calendar years 2016 to 2020 shall commence immediately thereafter. However, NGCP has yet to undergo its regulatory reset for the 4th RP as it is still awaiting the Honorable Commission’s position paper to guide NGCP in the submission of its 4th RP Application.

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Bids must be duly received by the COBAC-B Secretariat at the address below on or before 27 March 2017, 09:00 AM All Bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount stated in ITB Clause 18.

Non-Network Projects

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A complete set of Bidding Documents may be acquired by interested Bidders on 06 March – 27 March 2017 from the address above and upon payment of the applicable fee for the Bidding Documents, pursuant to the latest Guidelines issued by the GPPB, in the amount of Fifty Thousand Philippine Pesos (PhP50,000.00) It may also be downloaded free of charge from the website of the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) and the website of the Procuring Entity, provided that Bidders shall pay the applicable fee for the Bidding Documents not later than the submission of their bids.

C. Non-Network Projects 9.

To support in fulfilling of its mandate discussed above, NGCP seeks the approval of following similarly significant and indispensable projects:

2

(MS-MAR. 5, 2017)

InvItatIon to BId Procurement of ServerS IB no. 2017-149

A copy of the compilation of he Detailed Project Discussion for the projects under Operations and WESM Support Projects is attached as Annex “B.”

Refurbishment of ODCmC, Establishment of DDCmCs and Acquisition of Geospatial Precision Data-Capture Equipment

(SGD.) MA. CAROLINA V. TAIÑO, CPA, MGM, CESO IV Assistant Secretary of Health COBAC B Chairperson

Republic of the Philippines Department of Health CENTRAL OFFICE BIDS AND AWARDS COMMITTEE

AMR System Upgrade

1

For further information, please refer to: COBAC B SECRETARIAT Department of Health 2nd Floor, Building 6, San Lazaro Compound, Sta. Cruz, Manila 1003 Tel. No. 651-7800 Loc. 1625 – 1627; Telefax No. 711-6061 Website: www.doh.gov.ph;

Procurement of Spares

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ERC CASE NO. 2016-197 RC

Bidding is restricted to Filipino citizens/sole proprietorships, cooperatives, and partnerships or organizations with at least sixty percent (60%) interest or outstanding capital stock belonging to citizens of the Philippines.

The contract shall be completed within one (1) year and eight (8) months upon issuance of Notice to Proceed (NTP).

ni based in the region, the Ambassador will be hosting a reception at the recently opened Australian-themed restaurant Bondi and Bourke.

The Australian government had invested AU$92 million over five years to support to Basic Education Assistance in Muslim Mindanao (BEAM-ARMM) which has trained over 12,000 teachers, established over 800 learning centers, and provided technical and vocational skills to 11,000 out of school youths.

The Australian-funded Provincial Road Management Facility recently rehabilitated 170.2 kilometers of roads and helped maintain 161.7 km of roads in Davao including seven provinces in Mindanao to help improve access to markets, health facilities and schools.

The total investment for the road maintenance and rehabilitation projects amounted to P655 million.

Procurement of Testing Equipment

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NATIONAL GRID CORPORATION OF THE PHILIPPINES Applicant.

Bidding will be conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using nondiscretionary “pass/fail” criterion as specified in the IRR of R.A. 9184.

8.

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IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION FOR THE APPROVAL OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF CAPITAL EXPENDITURE PROGRAM FOR CALENDAR YEARS 2017-2020, WITH PRAYER FOR THE ISSUANCE OF PROVISIONAL AUTHORITY

Applicable Experience (40 %) Qualification of Personnel (40 %) Current Workload (20 %)

The Procuring Entity shall evaluate bids using the Quality-Cost Based Evaluation Procedure (QCBE). The Procuring Entity shall indicate the weights to be allocated for the Technical and Financial Proposals. The criteria and rating system for the evaluation of bids shall be provided in the Instructions to Bidders.

Republic of the Philippines

San Miguel Avenue, Pasig City

The COBAC shall draw up the short list of consultants from those who have submitted Expression of Interest, including the eligibility documents, and have been determined as eligible in accordance with the provisions of Republic Act (RA) 9184, otherwise known as the “Government Procurement Reform Act”, and its Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR). The criteria and rating system for short listing are:

7.

standing partnership with Mindanao, and with the city of Davao.

Gorely, together with Australian Senior Trade & Investment Commissioner Elodie Journet, was the event’s keynote speaker.

Meanwhile, The Australian Trade & Investment Commission (Austrade) will conduct an Australian Food and Wine Appreciation Class for students of the Institute of International Culinary and Hospitality Entrepreneurship (IChef).

Dairy Australia scholars, as well as representatives from Meat and Livestock Australia and food importers will be on hand to share their knowledge and expertise about Australian fresh produce, dairy, red meat and wine.

IChef has worked with Workskills Australia to offer training programs suitable for an Australian apprenticeship and traineeship pathway.

To honor the Australia Global Alum-

TODAY ENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION

A complete set of Bidding Documents may be acquired by interested Bidders on March 06 to April 10, 2017 from the address above upon payment of applicable fee for the Bidding Documents, pursuant to the latest Guidelines issued by the GPPB in the amount of Ten Thousand Philippine Pesos (PhP10,000.00).

a) b) c)

Australian Ambassador Amanda Gorely (left) meets with Mindanao Development Authority Secretary Datu Abul Khayr Dangcal Alonto.

Standard

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

5.

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

I.

The petitioner’s name and address;

II.

The nature of petitioner’s interest in the subject matter of the proceeding and the way and manner in which such interest is affected by the issues involved in the proceeding; and

lll.

A statement of the relief desired.

All other persons who may want their views known to the Commission with respect to the subject matter of th case may file their Opposition or Comment thereon at any stage of the proceeding before Applicants rest their case, subject to the requirements under Rule 9 of the 2006 Rules of Practice and Procedure. No particular form of Opposition or Comment is required, but the document, letter, or writing should contain the following: 1) 2) 3)

The name and address of such person; A concise statement of the Opposition or Comment; and The grounds relied upon.

All such persons who wish to have a copy of he Application may request from Applicants that they be furnished with the same, prior to the date of the initial hearing Applicants are hereby directed to furnish all those making such request with copies of the Application and its attachments, subject to the reimbursement of reasonable photocopying costs. Any such person may likewise examine the Application and other pertinent record filed with the Commission during the standard office hours.

WITNESS, the Honorable Chairman JOSE VICENTE B. SALAZAR, and the Honorable Commissioners ALFREDO J. NON, GLORIA VICTORIA C. YAP-TARUC, JOSEFINA PATRICIA A. MAGPALE-ASIRlT, and GERONIMO D. STA. ANA, Energy Regulatory Commission, this 28th day of February 2017 at Pasig City

ATTY. NATHAN J. MARASIGAN Chief of Staff Office of the Chairman and CEO

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An Act Granting the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines a Franchise to Engage in the Business of Conveying or Transmiting Electricity Through High Voltage Back-bone System or Interconnected Transmission Lines, Substations and Related Facilities, and For Other Purposes; ld, Section 1; Section 9 d, EPIRA; Section 9, c, EPIRA; (MS-MAR. 5 & 13, 2017)

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

Gadgets & Games

CEBU STUDENTS WIN SMART TECH TOURNEY

D3

SUNDAY, MARCH 5, 2017 rumallari@thestandard.com.ph

Another achievement of the “5x Dual Camera Zoom” is a state-of-the-art optical image stabilization.

OPPO'S 5X DUAL CAMERA ZOOM LAUNCHED

Smart has been visiting different schools all over the country to inspire students to create meaningful mobile and digital innovations. Among the speakers are SWEEP Awards alumni like Chino Atilano (far left), a native of Tawi-Tawi who now runs his own technology company.

M

ETRO Manila may be considered the country’s technology hub, but a national competition for innovative student projects is seeing more and more winners coming from the provinces.

In the latest round of the SWEEP (Smart Wireless Engineering Education Program) Awards for Innovation and Excellence, a team from University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) in Cebu won the grand prize for developing a mobile and web application called BloodSeeker, which connects those in need of blood with potential donors.

The students took home P300,000, while their school got a P150,000 grant from Smart Communications.

In its 13-year run, the annual SWEEP Awards has had 10 grand prize winners from the provinces, with Wesleyan University Philippines in Nueva Ecija and Bulacan State University each producing two champion teams.

Changing the world

“We are happy to get a lot of outstanding submissions from students in the provinces, as it is SWEEP’s mission to promote innovation not just in Metro Manila, but all over the country,”said Stephanie Orlino, head of Smart’s education program.

The SWEEP Awards was launched in 2004 to provide college students with the platform to create mobile and digital innovations that solve consumer pain points. It is an initiative under SWEEP, a long-running collaboration between Smart and the academe which aims to raise the standards of engineering and information technology (IT) education in the country.

Because of SWEEP, Smart was cited last year by international magazine Fortune as one of 50 companies that have “changed the world.”

Promoting a culture of innovation in PH schools

Greg Gabison, dean of the USJ-R College of Information, Computer, and Communications Technology, said the SWEEP Awards has had a “big impact” on the culture of innovation in the university.

“You can see that students are more motivated and inspired to come up with great ideas and tackle social or business issues,” he said.

USJ-R students first joined the SWEEP Awards in 2015, with a team placing third in the final judging.

The following year, four teams from the university made the Top 10, out of 230 entries from 52 schools all over the country.

Improving projects via mentorship

Gabison said the SWEEP program contributed to the USJ-R students’ improved performance. “I have to take my hats off to the SWEEP mentoring process. If you check out the original ideas for our projects, you’d find that these were a bit different.

The mentoring process added a lot of ideas and increased the viability of the projects.”

As it was calling for entries to the competition, Smart held workshops in different schools all over the country to teach students how to build a business model, how to make a value proposition, and how to make an effective pitch to judges and potential investors.

When the entries were trimmed down to the final 10, Smart brought all student finalists to Makati City for a boot camp. There they were introduced to technical and marketing mentors who taught them the importance of knowing their market and checking out competitors, as well as how to guard against fraud.

HITACHI CONVENTION. Johnson Controls-Hitachi Air Conditioning Products Phils. Inc. recently handed out awards to top-selling and outstanding distributors and retailers, as well as unveiled their exciting new products during the recent dealers convention, an event connecting hundreds of certified Hitachi dealers with top company executives and other industry stakeholders at the SMX Convention Center in Mall of Asia recently. Highlighting the dealers’ convention was the awarding ceremony, where Hitachi recognized dealers that provided exceptional service to the company. Also unveiled was Hitachi’s new Inverter Air Conditioners, which utilize a revolutionary Full Inverter DC Inverter technology that combines three inverters—compressor, fan motor and module—packed in one clever solution. All three components work together efficiently, providing higher EERs that deliver the desired cooling comfort, while consuming less power. Leading the event were VIPs (from right) Hamasako, Takahiro—General Manager of Taiwan Hitachi Co. Ltd.; Louis Lien—CEO of Johnson Controls-Hitachi Air Conditioning Phils. Inc.; Yokoyama, Hidenori—President of Taiwan Hitachi Co. Ltd. & Chairman of Johnson Controls-Hitachi Air Conditioning Phils. Inc.; Paul Chen—General Manager of Taiwan Hitachi Co. Ltd.; Ko, Chung-Hsin—General Manager Taoyuan Factory Taiwan Hitachi Co. Ltd.; and Kuo, Wen-Cheng— General Manager Taoyuan Factory Taiwan Hitachi Co., Ltd.

HOME CREDIT, CIC FORMALIZE AGREEMENT HOME Credit, a Prague-based consumer finance company that helps customers avail of smartphones, appliances and other gadgets through installment, recently formalized its partnership with state-run Credit Information Corporation, with the sharing of its Philippine credit database to CIC now underway.

Home Credit Philippines’ data sharing, which will happen in stages, is in compliance to Republic Act 9510, which requires banks, finance companies and other credit facilities such as utility companies to submit data related to their clients’ credit history to the CIC. HCPH was one of the very first companies to become compliant.

In a simple recognition ceremony held at the CIC office in Makati, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) chair Teresita J. Herbosa, who also serves as CIC Ex-Officio Chairperson, underscored the key role that non-bank institutions such as Home Credit play in promoting greater financial inclusion in the country.

“Our work gets easier because of [com-

panies such as] Home Credit Philippines, one of the leading compliant entities submitting their credit database, who from the very start had nothing but the spirit of cooperation and partnership with the CIC,” chair Herbosa said.

“We’re pioneers in the field of credit registry, and Home Credit is a pioneer in terms of the financing business in PH, especially considering the demographics of their borrowers. Many of them are younger people, and these are the ones who we expect will be full-fledged users of our system,” Herbosa added.

Credit Information Corporation (CIC) President and CEO Jaime P. Garchitorena remarked that “Home Credit has a lot to do with the confidence that we have in moving the CIC forward, [since they were] one of the first organizations to engage with us.

They have played a huge role in providing alternative methods for giving credit, which gives opportunities to people who are not yet included in the system.”

“The fact that a very successful institution

such as Home Credit is willing to engage with us shows that the CIC has a firm place in expanding the realm of credit, not just as a business, but in making credit accessible to anyone,” Garchitorena said.

For its part, HCPH CEO Annica Witschard remarked that “in every country that Home Credit is in, we firmly believe in the importance of having a system in place to promote financial inclusion, and ensure that more and more people are given access to financial tools.”

“CIC’s work in creating a unified credit database will surely be beneficial for everyone, most of all ordinary Filipinos, and we hope that this can develop as quickly as possible, and that the data gathered from all of these sources is as good as possible,” Ms. Witschard added.

As the number of the unbanked or financially excluded remains high, non-bank institutions, with their use of alternative data, a more liberal framework for lending, and more points of access, is seen to have a big role to play in making sure that more Filipinos

AT THE largest gathering of the smartphone industry held in Barcelona, Spain, mobile technology brand OPPO unveiled the world’s first periscope-style dualcamera technology for smartphones called the “5x Dual Camera Zoom.”

The groundbreaking technology, which made its debut at the Mobile World Congress, is also the first-ever lossless 5x dual camera zoom that captures images of similar quality to snaps from digital cameras.

“The ‘5x Dual Camera Zoom’ has opened up yet another realm of possibility in terms of smartphone photography, and is a reflection of our dedication to delivering on what our customers want and need—to take beautiful and clear pictures,” said OPPO Vice President and Managing Director of International Mobile Business Sky Li. “Our 5x Dual-Camera Zoom will again set yet another technological standard that others will emulate,” Sky added.

Breakthrough technology

OPPO’s latest breakthrough technology for smartphones, which took almost a year to develop, re-designs current standards of dual-camera solutions that can only achieve a 2x zoom.

By matching the 3x optical zoom to a proprietary image fusion technology, OPPO came up with the first-ever lossless 5x dual camera zoom that captures landscapes, portraits, and close-ups with the same depth and vividness of images from digital cameras.

The “5x Dual Camera Zoom’s” design takes inspiration from a submarine’s periscope. A 90-degree angle shift on the telephoto lens gives space for a deep zoom, while a periscope-style prism gives the light a 90-degree path for the light entering the camera. The periscope-style prism then sends the image through the telephoto lens when the user zooms in on a subject or object.

The periscope design also keeps the 5x dual camera module at only 5.7mm thick, which is 10 percent thinner than a smartphone’s typical 2x optical zoom lens.

Another achievement of the “5x Dual Camera Zoom” is a state-of-the-art optical image stabilization (OIS), which OPPO applied directly to the telephoto lens.

This approach is a departure from the method used by other manufacturers who use optical image stabilization on the wide-angle lens.

By allowing both the prism and telephoto lens to intelligently sense vibrations, the new OIS technology eliminates vibration-caused blurs and ensures clarity at full 5x zoom. The all-new OIS solution also improves the performance of previous generations by 40 percent while its prism mechanism dynamically adjusts its angle at precise increments of 0.0025 degrees.

Leader in mobile photography

The introduction of pre-installed beautification feature in smartphone cameras was OPPO’s first breakthrough in mobile photography. The beautification feature is now a standard configuration in every Android phone. Beautify 4.0, the latest iteration of the beautifying app, is installed in devices like the F1s.

In 2016, OPPO introduced the camerafocused “Selfie Expert” F-series. The second phone in the series, the F1 Plus is the first device to sport a 16 megapixel front camera. That same year, OPPO and Sony co-developed the customized 1/2.8-inch IMX398 sensor with a big f/1.7 aperture for its R9s model.

Smartphone giant on the rise

CIC president Jaime Garchitorena (right) with HCPH CEO Annica Witschard (center) and SEC Chair Teresita Herbosa have access to financial services. According to a recent survey by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, up to 86% of Filipino households do not have bank accounts, which is often a requirement for many loans.

A report by German market research firm GfK revealed that as of July last year, OPPO is the Philippines’ second bestselling smartphone brand. OPPO achieved this feat despite being in the country for less than three years.

Global market intelligence firm International Data Corporation also reported that OPPO is the world’s fourth bestselling smartphone brand for two years now.

D4

SUNDAY, MARCH 5, 2017 Riera U. Mallari, Editor rumallari@thestandard.com.ph

Gadgets & Games

GLOBAL TECH INNOVATIONS TO MARKET YOUR BRAND W

E are almost nearing the end of a dynamic decade that has seen increasingly fast advancement in technology. Innovations continue to appear and push the boundaries of branding, marketing, and the retail space. If you are a brand manager or you own a brand that seem to need that extra marketing kick this year, then consider these five tech innovations for your brand this year.

There is an app for that!

With smartphones figuratively attached to virtually every person in any demographic, it is time to tap into mobile apps, if you still haven’t done so. There is practically a mobile app for everything, and young people love to use them. So, creating an app for your brand allows it to be more user‐friendly and personalized, especially if your brand caters to millennials, largely referred to as the mobile-‐first generation. Moreover, being available through mobile significantly increases your brand’s visibility and reach.

Keep it (virtually) real!

Everyone knows what virtual reality or VR is. It is probably one of the new buzzwords of the past year the momentum of which has carried on to 2017. VR is not just for video games and trippy shorts for killing time. Exploring the vast realms of VR opens up a plethora of immersive marketing possibilities for your brand. You simply have to use the VR technology that is already available and apply it to your messaging. Popular campaigns that have made use of this include Mercedes’ 360 virtual drive that lets users take a spin in a convertible on California’s Pacific Coast Highway and Merrell’s Trailscape that simulates a hike with optic motion capture.

Let ‘em hear it

Customized in—store music and messaging have already become a branding trend. With all the visual stimulation and overkill that swarm consumers nowadays, creating more impactful consumer experiences that result in better brand recall means having to go beyond pure sight. Sound plays a big role in how people perceive your retail space and what feelings they will associate with your brand.

The best solution is to go for a curated sound that is customized for your specific theme, through both hardware and music choices. A good example of customized audio technology is the AudioWAV Music System by local tech company AudioWav Media or, simply, WAV. It is an all-in-one music player that also remotely controls multiple speakers

Four—star hotel Picasso makes use of a custom scent wafted throughout its interiors to greet guests with a distinct and pleasant aroma, courtesy of WAV Global’s Atmospheric Branding solutions.

and equalizers, synchronizing all your devices and operating them through unified software that only plays a curated choice of music to fit your brand.

for marketing campaigns.“It’s a win-‐win for both consumer and brand,” says Hinolan.“Clients who go for the sensory route always see a spike in foot traffic and brand loyalty because the consumUse the smell of success ers remember positive experiences and Building off visuals and audio, better familiarity when interacted with the next step is to add another key in this way.” element—scent. With scent diffusing technology, you can create a distinct Make senses of it all aroma for your brand that will not only Now, like all great unifying causes, add to recall but also trigger specific combine everything and make your feelings with your consumers. Studies branding initiative a multi-‐sensory from Tulane University and University approach.Sensory technology has of Notre Dame reveal that scent mar- been created to directly target and keting can “amplify consumer spend- stimulate different senses (hearing, ing, attract customers, and create seeing, smelling) to create a deeper memorable brands.” This is because and lasting brand impression.

75 percent of emotions and reactions The ideal multi-‐sensory tech stimare triggered by smell. ulates the different senses all together A major player in the scent tech field, in a unified system that is complemenWAV’s CEO and President Caloy Hinolan tary to every brand message that you champions the use of sense association want to convey. Visuals come from

customized TVs, LED signage, and even tablets for an interactive touch.

Multi-‐channel speakers and customized audio messaging sets the feel of your space. The finale comes through scent, with a distinct custom aroma that seals the deal.

WAV has pioneered a harmonious multi-‐sensory tech ecosystem in Asia using proprietary hardware and software that is tailor-‐made for every industry. Already among the industry leaders making use of mobile marketing and synced hardware and software, WAV is expecting to expand and offer even better tech solutions and innovative equipment through their P2.6-‐billion Initial Public Offering this March.

Surely, technology and its solutions will continue to change, but with these essential tools in your catalog, you won’t be left behind.

SAMSUNG FACEBOOK VIDEO APP FOR TV IS HERE SAMSUNG Electronics announced today that the new Facebook video app for TV is available on Samsung Smart TVs, including its 2017 QLED TV lineup and the app will be available on all of its 2015, 2016, 2017 Smart TV models.

Further solidifying its role as the global leader in TV, Samsung is the only TV manufacturer that will support the app at its launch.

“It is a pleasure to bring the world’s social network to Samsung Smart T V users, as well as continue to see the value of Samsung Smart TV, as a platform, growing,” said Sangsook Han, Vice President of the Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “We will continue in our innovation on various fronts, including technologies and partnerships, to make sure our consumers can enjoy a wider variety of services.”

The new Facebook video app for TV is a new way to enjoy Facebook videos on a bigger screen.

Through the app, users can watch videos shared by friends or Pages they follow, top live videos from around the world, and recommended videos based on their interests.

To access the app, users can simply log into their Samsung Smart Hub and download the application. Following a prompt for a one-time Facebook login, they can begin enjoying and discovering new content.

Earlier this year, Samsung announced its elevated Smart TV offerings, which focus on a unified, simple user experience tailored to address consumer pain points. With the new features, users will be able to control all devices connected to their TV via one source, the Samsung One Remote. Additionally, users can now enjoy their favorite live T V programs and video - ondemand services directly on TV with a simple click on Smart View mobile app.

This enhanced Smart Hub platform was rolled out on the company’s new QLED TV lineup at CES 2017. Among its many standout features, the QLED TV lineup includes dramatically revamped color performance, and was the first technology in the world to be verified by one of Europe’s largest technicalscientific associations Verband der Elektrotechnik ( VDE) for reproducing 100% color volume.

For more information on Samsung’s QLED TV lineup and smart innovations, please visit http://news.samsung.com.

LENOVO K6 NOTE PROMISES ENDLESS FUN, ENTERTAINMENT

By Paul Duran

Lenovo K6 Note

SEARCHING for a phone that can keep up with today’s fast-paced digital lifestyle? Well, look no further as Lenovo’s latest smartphone can certainly deliver.

Launched recently at the Society Lounge Restaurant in Makati, the all-new Lenovo K6 Note promises endless fun and entertainment in the palm of the hand and comes with a pretty enticing price tag.

Featuring a massive 4000 mAh battery, a blazing Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 64-bit 1.4GHz octa-core processor, enhanced 4G LTE connectivity and smooth 4GB RAM performance is a power-

packed phone that will hit the shelves at an attractive P11,999.

Take share-worthy photos with the Lenovo K6 Note’s 16MP rear camera with Phase Detection Auto Focus (PDAF) for sharp details and vivid colors, while its Lithium-polymer battery gives users enough battery capacity to stream all their Spotify playlists and Netflix videos all day.

Also, enjoy an immersive audio experience with Dolby Atmos, which complements the Lenovo K6 Note’s 5.5-inch full HD IPS display.

“We want to bring the modern Filipino smartphone user infinite entertainment everywhere with the Lenovo K6 Note through its

outstanding pro-mode camera features, Dolby Atmos speakers and a long-lasting battery,” said Lenovo Mobile Business Group country manager Dino Romano.

The Lenovo K6 Note sports a sleek, all-metal unibody design in sophusticated dark gray, gold, and silver versions.

Get a free Bluetooth audio headset when you purchase the Lenovo K6 Note at Lenovo stores and authorized dralers nationwide.

Buyers can also enjoy financing options such as six months zero interest via credit cards or low monthly payments via Flexi Finance through selected dealers.

For more info visit their website at www.lenovomobile.com.ph

Dino Romano, country manager of Lenovo mobile Business Group

E1

SUNDAY, MARCH 5, 2017 Isah V. Red, Editor

/

Young Life

Bernadette Lunas, Issue Editor isahred@gmail.com.ph

THE GREAT DISCONNECT Panagbenga Hotties

By Bernadette Lunas

5 THINGS THAT ADDED COLOR TO PANAGBENGA 2017

M

OBILE phones are arguably the greatest invention of our generation. This piece of battery-operated gadget helps us connect with people even in places farthest from us. Yet, despite of the bridge it has built for us to communicate with both strangers and loved ones, it has also created a wall that separates us from real human interaction.

It’s like a double-edged sword, so to speak.

It has become a usual scenario to see family, friends and couples who are together but their faces buried on the mobile devices. They are together, there is close physical contact, they are within speaking and hearing distance—but there is no actual communication.

A photographer from North Carolina, USA decided to show how we are so dependent on our smartphones that they have already consumed us and taken us away from our loved ones and the opportunities to interact—physically—with one another.

Eric Pickersgill released his project, titled “Removed” which is a series of photos of people staring at their hands, as if holding a mobile device. The subjects posed with gadgets, which have been "edited out" or physically removed before the photo was taken. The resulting images show a lonely scene wherein people opt to look at their devices instead of engaging in human connection or enjoying their surroundings.

The sadder thing: these images happen around us on a daily basis—you are even probably guilty of it.

In his project statement, Pickersgill said he became inspired to do the series after observing a family having breakfast in New York, all of whom on their phones but the mother.

“Mom doesn’t have one (phone) or chooses to leave it put away. She stares out the window, sad and alone in the company of her closest family,” shared Pickersgill.

He added, “It was one of those moments where you see something so amazingly common that it startles you into consciousness of what’s actually happening and it is impossible to forget.”

The 29-year-old photographer admitted of doing the same thing and as he and his wife would frequently turn their backs on each other to coddle their “small, cold, illuminated devices every night.”

The black and white photographs represent reenactments of scenes that happen daily: a couple in bed, mother and daughter sitting on a sofa, a family around a dining table, a group of friends. They are all in close proximity to each other but they are not talking, not interacting.

It is sad that we are living in a world where we’d rather communicate with an inanimate object. We are together, we are connected, but at the same time, we are alone in our own bubble.

Maybe it’s high time that we put our phones down and be in the moment. Stop asking your friends to “like” your photos on Facebook and instead tell them, face-to-face, how much you adore whatever it is you’d rather put a virtual thumbs up on.

BAGUIO City was in full bloom once again as it celebrated its 22nd Panagbenga Flower Festival. About two million locals and tourists flocked to the major streets of the city during the festival’s two-major events: Street Dance Competition and Grand Float Parade.

But the colorful blooms and the lively performance of the dancers weren’t the only highlights of the month-long affair.

Young Life was there to witness these five cool things that you probably didn’t know happen at the flower festival.

Sizzling hunks paraded on the street

Photos of four well-sculpted men in bahag went viral on social media faster than you can say Panagbenga. The crowd roared when the “Panagbenga Hotties” paraded on the streets, and we can’t really blame them, not at least when these men are showing off their washboard abs, toned arms and pretty face. Suffice it to say, it was a steamy day in Baguio City.

DISCONNECTED. American photographer Eric Pickersgill shows through his photo series titled 'Removed' how people have become dependent and addicted on mobile devices that we often forget to have actual human interaction.

All black and white photos by Eric Pickersgill (www.ericpickersgill.com)

Scan this icon to view the PDF

A band of Pikachus arrived

The ultra cute Pikachu also came to the flower festival to Turn to E2

HAPPY FEET

DREAMY HUES AND YEEZY BOOST Keds's classic sneaker styles now come in sweet pastel colors

The adorable Pikachu

WOMEN who love footwear in dreamy hues or those who are tired of the usual white sneakers would love the play on pastels of Keds’s latest collection. The American shoe brand brings a feminine touch to its classic sneaker styles.

Keds Kickstart Mono, Tournament Mono, Ace Leather Mono and Double Decker Retro Court Mono now comes in light blue color.

Kickstart Mono, Triple, and Ace Leather pairs are also now avail-

able in pale peach; while Metallic Champion now comes in elegant rose gold. A shade of light grey touches Keds Tournament Mono, Triple Mono, Ace Leather and Kickstart Mono.

Go to keds.com.ph to know where you can get a pair or two. *** Sneakerheads rejoice as Kanye West and adidas finally announced the release of Yeezy Boost 350 V2 in white/core black/red—and it will be available in the Philippines.

The Yeezy Boost 350 V2 has an upper com-

Say 'yes' to adidas and Kanye West's newest Yeezy Boost

posed of white and black Primeknit with a subtle contrasting off white streak, mirrored ‘SPLY-350’ mark, distinct center stitching, and heel tab. It also boasts of a semi-translucent rubber outsole Turn to E2

Young Life

E2

SUNDAY, MARCH 5, 2017 isahred@gmail.com

FUNNY

5FromTHINGS...

E1 the delight of Pokemon and nonPokemon fans. And there wasn’t just one, not two, not three Pikachu—but a bunch lined up in two. At the end of the line, an odd-looking Pikachu (with smaller eyes) added a whole load of cuteness and quirkiness to their segment.

TWEETS

ABOUT THE OSCARS

T

HE 89th Academy Awards on February 26 was going on smoothly until disaster struck at the tail end when the winner of Best Picture was wrongly announced.

Miss International 2016 Kylie Verzosa

Kylie took a selfie

Without a doubt, Miss International 2016 Kylie Verzosa’s beauty overshadowed the colorful flowers on her float. While the Baguio City-born beauty queen was parading, she took out her phone and took a selfie with the crowd. The resulting image? Pretty as expected. Check it out on her Instagram account @kylieverzosa.

In case you didn’t know, Warren Beaty and Faye Dunaway wrongly announced the winner of the final award for the night was the Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone-starrer La La Land. However, as the producers and cast of the musical film were on stage, producer Jordan Horowitz declared that it was actually Moonlight that won Best Picture.

“This is not a joke, 'Moonlight’ has won Best Picture,” Horowitz said while holding up the card proving his announcement.

It was an awkward moment when the producers and cast of Moonlight also went on stage, and the people from La La Land were forced to hand their trophies to the real winners.

The said Oscars scenario was rather familiar, as in December 2015, host

Steve Harvey mistakenly announced the winner of the Miss Universe 2015, naming Miss Columbia Ariadna Gutierrez Miss Universe when it was actually Miss Philippines Pia Wurtzbach who won.

Well, much like that talked-about pageant night, the Twitter-verse had a field day when a plot twist happened during the showbiz's most prestigious award ceremony. Most of the tweets talked about history repeating itself, Harvey finally having a time off thanks to this new major blunder, and La La Land getting a dose of its own medicine when it offered a false happy ending that broke many of the viewers’ hearts.

Here are some of the funniest tweets about that Oscar blunder from people around the world.

Jollibee and the whole gang

Jollibee brought his squad

With or without the viral Valentine’s Day commercials, Jollibee is truly a hit among Filipinos of all ages.

At the Panagbenga Festival, Pinoys’ favorite bee led the fastfood chain’s competing float; he even brought his squad: Mr. Yum, Popo, Hetty and Twirlie, and the gang took #squadgoals photos with the crowd.

Bow down to Queen Cersei

Westeros in Baguio

Winter came to the already cold City of Pines when the characters from the hit HBO series Game of Thrones arrived.

Tyrion, Jaime, Littlefinger, Cersei, Sansa, Arya led the pack complete with “direwolves” and Unsullied army. On board their float, on the other hand, were Jon Snow, King Tommen Baratheon and Daenerys Targaryen. Text and photos: Bernadette Lunas

DREAMY...

From E1

and TPU sidewalls creating a striking effect while providing superior traction, as well as midsole that utilizes adidas’s innovative BOOST technology to create a durable, shock-resistant, responsive sole.

Check out adidas.com/KANYE to see the full list of adidas retail locations.

BULLETIN BOARD

FIT AT 89

STUDENTS and faculty members of Far Eastern University (FEU) lined up for an early exercise.

The fitness movement is part of the university’s 89th founding anniversary celebration, with the theme “One Brave Team.”

The said activity aimed to encourage the entire FEU community to embrace a fit and healthy campus lifestyle, which would then help them further propel the university to greater heights. The weeklong anniversary also showcased academic lectures and dynamic activities that promoted holistic development of students.

Other highlights of the anniversary celebration were the annual Tamaraw Food Fest, Institute of Tourism and Hospitality Management’s TamBev Festival, Sulyap by the Institute of Architecture and Fine Arts, and Institute of Nursing’s Dean Felicidad Elegaldo Memorial Lecture.

Bulletin Board is a space for school and university events and other anouncements.

FEU students and faculty members celebrate the university's 89th founding anniversary by participating in an early fitness movement

Showbiz

TRENDING PINOY COVERS OF

‘VERSACE ON THE FLOOR’

By Nickie Wang

H

ALLE Berry shared a clip showing her glamorous feature as she strips of her Versace gown and jumping into a pool.

Take note, the post-Oscars video is in slow motion and Bruno Mars’s hit “Versace on the Floor” is playing in the background.

Kris Lawrence The R&B singer effortlessly delivered his rendition of the popular song during a live performance on Wish 107.5. Lawrence received overwhelming praises from netizens for his powerful and on-point performance of Bruno Mars’ mega hit.

The “Wishclusive” video, uploaded on YouTube on Feb. 20, already garnered more than half two million views as of this writing. And with his highly lauded performance, he’s now being called the country’s Bruno Mars.

“Versace on the Floor” is definitely a worldwide hit that even Hollywood stars have been caught humming the sensual ditty. The song is part of the Mars’s third studio album 24K Magic and serves as the first promotional single when it was released in November.

Rolling Stone describes the song as a shimmery ode to the champagne flutes and rose petal-romance of Philly soul bands like the Stylistics while it distractingly borrows from the 90s sound of Selena’s “Dreaming of You” and Michael Jackson’s “Man in the Mirror.”

But to everyone who’s got hypnotized by the LSS-inducing song, it is nothing but the anthem of 2017, and no song has come close to challenge it thus far. Without a doubt “Versace on the Floor” has taken the entire music world by storm. And of course when we talk about global trends, Pinoy would definitely come up with their own version of any hit.

Here’s a list of local “Versace” covers that immediately became viral as soon as they hit the World Wide Web:

SUNDAY, MARCH 5, 2017

E3

'ONE KOREA IN MANILA':

K-POP CONCERT FOR PEACE

Boy band B1A4 onstage during the "One Korea in Manila" concert last Thursday

FANS thought Psy’s “Gangman’s Style” was already the show’s finale, but the rest of the acts that graced the stage of Mall of Asia Arena joined the Korean pop superstar again for a powerful finale. And as expected, that sent thousands of fans into frenzy.

A total of seven major acts including CNBlue, SHINee, BTOB, BAP, B1A4 and AOA joined forces for a major Korean pop concert held on March 2 at the Mall of Asia Arena. The show was dubbed 2017 Global Peace Concert -- One Korea in Manila.

The touring K-Pop spectacle was a concert for a cause. It sought global support for the unification of North and South Korea.

Zeus Collins While most local singers have come up with their version of the Bruno Mar’s hit, the Hashtags member did something different but equally entertaining.

Zeus uploaded a dance cover of the song on his Facebook page on Saturday. The video easily became viral with over a million views and more than 21,000 shares in a day. His followers could not get enough of it. They have nothing but good words and praises for the dancer.

Makisig Morales His rendition of the sensual ballad has garnered more than a million views on YouTube since it was uploaded a week ago.

The former Super Inggo has found a way to reconnect with his fans. Via his YouTube channel, he performs any song requested by his followers. And you bet, “Versace on the Floor” was a fan request before it became a trending video.

Rising pop act BTOB bringing the house down

Due to the ongoing hostilities and unrelenting North Korean nuclear aggression, a civic-led movement spearheaded stronger calls for an end to the post-war schism that persisted in the Korean peninsula for more than 70 years.

Known as the One K Global campaign, this civic movement is made up of 850 domestic NGOs including Action for Korea United (AKU).

AKU produced, released and distributed a campaign song “One Dream, One Korea,” which was sung by 28 top K-pop artists. It also staged a unification-themed concert in Seoul in September 2015 at the Sangam World Cup Stadium. Initially drawing attention from young South Koreans, the campaign is seen expanding globally.

Kristel Fulgar Also on Facebook, the former Goin’ Bulilit cast member uploaded a stripped-down version of the hit single. It was viewed more than a million times and shared by thousands within just 24 hours. As of this writing, the original video has more than 4 million views.

This is not the first time Fulgar came up with a trending video. She’s been known off late for doing an acoustic version of popular songs.

Popular band SHINee makes everybody up on their feet

CROSSWORD PUZZLE Sunday, March 5, 2017

ACROSS 1 Furry tree-dweller 6 Juicy pears 11 Chancy 15 Rundown places 20 Cuzco builders 21 Constructed 22 Stadium hoverer 24 Chicago airport 25 Tire features 26 Play banjo 27 Maurice’s thanks 28 Enticed 29 Lustrous fabric 31 Aptitudes 33 Merger or buyout 34 Dalai Lama’s city 35 Bothering 37 Special-interest grps.

39 Monastic title 41 Tax-form ID 42 Loses hair 43 Patch locale 44 Kilo system 46 Recipe meas.

50 MD assistants 51 Senor’s house 52 Tiresome one 53 Moby Dick foe 56 Entourage 58 Musical note 59 Searches deeply 61 Delightful 62 Crawled out of bed 63 Forgoes 66 Went to court 67 Maiden-name indicator 68 Horseshoe Falls locale 70 Not sm. or med.

71 Downright 73 Farthest 76 Monsieur’s summer 77 Jahan was one 79 Oscar’s cousin 80 Cutlass kin 82 Fix the roof 85 Bank employees 88 Funny 92 Dorm climbers 94 Pub pints 95 — — cloud in the sky 97 Weep over 98 More wacky 101 Jeweler’s weight 103 Wrestling coup 104 Microwave features 107 Previous 108 Monk’s hood 109 Wooer 112 Extinct birds 113 Feverish chill 115 Sweethearts 117 Variety of lettuce 118 What Muses do 120 Bushels 121 Fiesta cheers

122 124 125 126 128 129 131 133 134 135 139 141 143 145 147 148 150 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160

Potter’s oven Daisy — Scragg Comedian — Laurel Mutinous ones Prefix for “trillion” Dine at home (2 wds.)

LAX overseer Dentist’s grp.

Stare at Prize winners NASA rocket Fruit pastry Avowed Stings Whiskey type Overdo a role Extraterrestrial TV deletion Support a church Pack rat Not real Pry bar Put up alfalfa Greek goddess Romantic meeting Bronte or Dickinson

DOWN 1 Hug’s companion 2 Saloon sign (2 wds.)

3 Keen 4 Puts cargo aboard 5 Opposite of liabilities 6 Air rifle pellets 7 Offers more money 8 Tornado warnings 9 Stuck to 10 Bill, briefly 11 PC maker 12 Feather an arrow 13 Hardens bricks 14 Community gym site 15 Sand — 16 “Nah!” 17 Cherry cordial 18 Urge 19 Hardtop 23 Filched 30 First P.M. of India 32 Juniors 36 Avoid cancellation 38 Leafed through 40 Country addrs.

43 Hardy green 44 Go-getters 45 Auric’s creator 46 Detective, often 47 Censure angrily 48 Rocks 49 Leaning tower town 51 Small bay 52 Smurf’s hue 54 Unreturnable serves 55 Sugar source 57 Jarrett of NASCAR 58 Love at first —

60 64 65 69 72 73 74 75 78 79 81 83 84 86 87 89 90 91 93 96 98 99 100 102 103 105 106

Banana oil, e.g.

Ga. neighbor Rents a rental Moving around Deadlocks Kapitan’s command (hyph.)

Speaker pro — Hi-tech scan Start of a bray Earthenware jar Go on stage IV x XIII St. Ahead of time Grumpy moods Kind of card Dawn goddess Dwindle Tea cakes The Plastic — Band Ardor Jason’s vessel State of being nonaligned Floors Physics particle Ego companions Swabs

108 110 111 114 115 116 119 123 124 127 128 129 130 131 132 134 135 136 137 138 140 142 144 146 149 151

Assemble in sequence Pac-10 team Lasso WNW opposite Did a garden chore Distort Sedaka and Diamond Ticks off Folly Clobbered Become ragged In a weird way Quick-witted Kind of healer Posh hotel lobbies Orchard Grinding tooth Hawthorne town Fountain in Rome Iron alloy Connors adversary Far East nanny Blow gently Frisky Distinct period Mosquito —

E4

Showbiz

SUNDAY, MARCH 5, 2017 Isah V. Red, Editor / Nickie Wang, Issue Editor isahred@gmail.com

GLOBAL STAGE

FILIPINO TEEN SINGER ENTHRALLS

ELLEN ADARNA

‘THE VOICE USA’ JUDGES

OPENS UP

By Nickie Wang

P

ERHAPS the most interesting buzz in the country today is Ellen Adarna’s failed relationship with Presidential son, Sebastian “Baste” Duterte. For one, theirs is something that catches attention with people hearing a lot of different versions on why they didn’t end up together.

COSMO GIRL. Ellen Adarna confesses to Cosmo Magazine why she and Presidential son, Baste Duterte, headed for Splitsville.

In an interview with Cosmo Magazine, the 28-year-old actress opened up about her breakup with the young Duterte. Although she did not elaborate why they headed for Splitsville, she maintained that she had some realizations so she decided to accept the fate of their relationship. They called it quits before Christmas last year.

While their relationship is over, Ellen still considers Baste as her best friend. And if the time comes she would be in another relationship, she will let people know.

“My life is an open book. And if I have a love life, hindi ko naman itatago ‘yun. It’s something that should be celebrated. Love is a good thing,” she says.

Ellen earlier admitted that her breakup with Baste was a weird one.

The latter just sent her a text message then they both decided to end it there. Ellen has since moved on yet still has an open communication with Baste, as what most showbiz folks would put it, “as friends.”

“We broke up several times, and then ‘yung final straw – ‘yung final breakup talaga na hindi kami nag-usap for maybe a month – ang dami kong realizations. Kung babalikan ko siya, makakatulog ba ako sa gabi nang maayos? I don’t want that. And I don’t deserve that kasi binibigay ko naman lahat ‘pag nagmahal ako,” she narrates.

Meanwhile, in an interview with News5, the young Duterte revealed that he and Ellen became an item and their affair overlapped with his relationship with current partner Kate Necesario, whom he’s been with for more than four years now.

In what appeared to be just a jest, Baste responded to the question as to how he and Ellen got into an intimate relationship despite having a steady partner, “Alam nilang dalawa eh. Pumayag naman sila, anong magagawa ko? (Both of them knew. What can I do if they both gave their consent).”

With her personal life now out in the open, Ellen is keener on discussing her affairs. She also discusses people’s misconception about her being “liberated.”

“The biggest misconception about me is that I’m promiscuous.

I’m very free-spirited. People think that I just give it to random guys, but it’s something I only do with someone I have feelings for. When I date someone, sinasabi ko, if I’m drunk, we will not have sex. Only when we’re sober,” she reveals.

AFTER MISS UNIVERSE,

WHAT’S NEXT FOR PIA WURTZBACH? BEFORE she relinquished her crown in January, former Miss Universe Pia Wurtzbach announced that she’s going to be in New York more often being the MUO’s ambassador. She has also officially signed a management contract with IMG, the modeling agency that owns the world’s most prestigious beauty pageant.

As her career continues to flourish, the 27-yearold beauty queen will also sit as one of the judges in the upcoming season of Asia’s Next Top Model.

Wurtzbach posted on Instagram a photo of her posing with a black t-shirt with Asia’s Next Top Model printed on it. In the caption she said, “Catch the season premiere of @asntm on April 5 as I judge to find Asia’s Next Top Model.”

Her inclusion in the hit reality modeling

competition started out as a rumor when Wurtzbach was photographed in Singapore in December. It was the same time when people speculated that she’s dating Karting Champion Marlon Stockinger.

The new season will be hosted by Cindy Bishop, Yu Tsai will sit as the show’s creative director, and model mentor Cara G. McIlroy will join Wurtzbach as part of the judging panel.

Meanwhile, three Filipino models are competing in Cycle 5 of the hit show: Jennica Sanchez, a 20-year-old graduate of Fashion Design and Marketing; Anjelica Santillan, 22, an aspiring flight attendant; and Maureen Wroblewitz, 18, a Filipino-German model who recently moved to the country.

Pia Wurtzbach will sit as one of the judges in the top-rating reality modeling show, "Asia's Next Top Model"

The next singing sensation: Fil-Am Anatalia Villaranda during 'The Voice USA's" blind audition

ON THURSDAY, a YouTube video featuring the blind audition of sixteen-yearold Anatalia Villaranda became the top trending video on the popular video sharing site with more than a million views since it was uploaded on Feb. 27.

Villaranda, a four-chair turner in the premiere episode of The Voice USA’s latest season, is the latest talk of the town after she covered Bruno Mars’s “Runaway Baby” as her audition piece.

The teen singer, who hails from California, is a fullblooded Filipino. Her mother is originally from Bacolod and her father is from Manila.

After her one-and-a-half minute performance, one of the highlights of the premiere episode, Grammyaward winning singer Gwen Stefani said she feels like she has an opportunity to share her experience with someone like Anatalia. She commented on her personality and passion for music.

Meanwhile, Adam Levine gushed, “The greatness that she has is something you can’t teach.” Blake Shelton, on the other hand, commented that he wants to make Villaranda ‘s hometown be known for her talent alone.

In the end, the teener chose R&B singer Alicia Keys who said Villaranda is more than just a voice.

“This is more than just a voice. This is an artist who is unafraid to express yourself (sic). I would like you to look in your heart and see how important it is for you to be on my team,” Keys exclaimed.

This isn’t the first time Villaranda joined a reality singing contest in the U.S. She also auditioned in the final season of American Idol.