Manila Standard - 2017 September 11 - Monday

TO MANY, MARCOS A HERO—DUTERTE PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte Sunday hailed late dictator Ferdinand Marcos as a hero to many Filipinos, brushing aside a history of corruption and rights abuses under the former strongman.

Duterte is stepping up efforts to rehabilitate the image of Marcos,

who was ousted in an army-back popular revolt in 1986 and died in exile, as the Marcos family and their allies prepare to hold celebrations Monday marking a hundred years since his birth.

The outspoken Duterte, who has previously hailed Marcos as

the country’s best-ever president, has declared the anniversary a holiday in Marcos’ home province of Ilocos Norte where his family still wields political power.

“He was a president. To the Ilocanos, he was the greatest president. Why do we have to debate on

that?” Duterte said late Saturday.

“As far as the Ilocanos [are] concerned, Marcos is a hero,” he added, calling criticisms of the former leader “hogwash” and “garbage.”

The view that Marcos was “a bad person” was not shared by all,

he said.

Duterte, who has himself faced accusations of major human rights abuses, is a friend of the Marcos family and has played a key role in bolstering their efforts to regain the top echelons of political power.

Marcos was accused of embezzling billions of dollars from state coffers, with anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International in 2004 naming him the second most corrupt leader of all time, behind Indonesian dictator Suharto.

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VOL. XXXI • NO. 209 • 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P18 • MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2017 • www.manilastandard.net • editorial@manilastandard.net

Teeners’ slays part of sabotage plot? DoJ asks

By Rey E. Requejo THE Justice department has ordered the National Bureau of Investigation to investigate the possibility that the spate of killings of teenagers was part of a grand plot to sabotage the Duterte ad-

ministration’s bloody war on drugs.

Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II said the NBI would focus on this angle in its ongoing investigations on the killings of Kian Loyd delos Santos, 17; Carl Angelo Arnaiz, 19; and Reynaldo de

Guzman also known as “Kulot,” 14.

“We have to determine if there are other motives other than killing of these teenagers because we can see a trend that is targeting teenagers. This has not happened before when the war

on drugs started,” Aguirre said in an interview.

The DoJ chief agreed with the observation of President Rodrigo Duterte that there seemed to be a deliberate effort to sabotage and discredit the war on Next page drugs.

Centenary. Workers arrange the table with an image of the late President Ferdinand Marcos made out of cupcakes, for a celebration to mark his 100th birthday in Batac, Ilocos Norte on Sept. 10, 2017. President Rodrigo Duterte on Sept. 10 hailed the late Marcos as a ‘hero’ to many Filipinos. Sept.11, 2017 marks what would have been Marcos’s 100th birthday. AFP

Cops took Carl—cabbie Bagcal says Arnaiz was caught alive

By Vito Barcelo and Bill Casas

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TAXI driver who claims he was robbed by 19-year-old Carl Angelo Arnaiz said the teenager was caught alive by bystanders and brought to a Caloocan City police station, contradicting police accounts that the boy died in a shootout on Aug. 18.

In a press conference late Sunday afternoon, taxi driver Tomas Bagcal said he sought the protection of a church group called Rise

Up for Life and for Rights, for fear that he might be also killed by the police, after his apartment was ransacked by unidentified men.

The taxi driver said it was Arnaiz who tried to rob him and even had his finger on the trigger of the gun but did not fire.

Bagcal said he chased the thief and cornered him near a street where tricycle drivers hung out. The drivers and a barangay watchman beat the suspect, but he managed to pacify them and bring Arnaiz to the Police Community Precinct 2 of the Caloocan City Police Station.

There the police asked for his birth date, his age, and the certificate of registration of his taxi.

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Trillanes’ 27 offshore accounts bared

By F. Pearl A. Gajunera and Macon R. Araneta DAVAO CITY—A wellplaced government official said Senator Antonio Trillanes had 27 bank accounts in 10 locations abroad after President Rodrigo Duterte said Saturday he would expose the senator’s hidden wealth.

The source said Trillanes had two time deposits in Shanghai, three in Beijing, two in Singapore, two in Australia, three in Hong Kong, three in New Zealand, four in the Cayman Islands, four in the British Virgin Island, two in Zurich and two in Geneva.

Trillanes immediately denied the allegations, brand-

ing them “fake news,” and said he would slap President Duterte’s face with certifications issued by the banks denying the existence of those accounts.

On Sunday, the official alleged that some of the time deposits are joint deposits with three different individuals, including Fabian Go, Next page

Sereno’s hold on high court ‘shaky’—solon

PH virtuoso wins a slot in Mozart U

By Rio N. Araja ORIENTAL Mindoro Rep. Reynaldo Umali, chairman of the House committee on justice, said Sunday Supreme Court Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno’s “shaky leadership” might have triggered the filing of two impeachment complaints against her.

By Christine F. Herrera A 27-YEAR-OLD Filipino classical violinist was among 200 aspirants from all over the world to audition for only four positions in the class of the French master violinist Pierre Amoyal at the renowned Universitat Mozarteum Salzburg in Austria.

Musical virtuoso Joaquin Maria “Chino” Gutierrez, who began his study of the violin at age 7 under the tutelage of Alfonso Bolipata, faced a panel of musical greats and chose to perform Chausson’s Poeme, a difficult Next page piece.

SCARRED AND SCARED. Taxi driver Tomas Bagcal shows scars of the wounds on his right hand, allegedly inflicted by Carl Arnaiz who allegedly held him up on the night of Aug. 18, 2017. Bernard Testa/Interaksyon

“Actually, when I browsed over the impeachment complaint, I can see the hand of the court itself,” he told dzBB radio.

At least five Supreme Court justices would testify in Congress, he said, adding such could be an indication that Sereno’s problem could have started “within the court” itself.

“The problem all began inside. That’s why I think there is a division even within,” he said.

Lorenzo Gadon, a lawyer who filed the second impeachment rap against Sereno, was able to obtain important dossiers to back his allegations.

“Attorney Gadon had the Next page

Ex-Marawi mayor tapped to deal with Maute

By Bill Casas Piece de resistance. A young Filipino classical violinist,

Joaquin Maria ‘Chino’ Gutierrez, was among the 200 aspirants from all over the world to dare audition to be able to get admitted to the renowned Universitat Mozarteum Salzburg in Austria. There were only four slots available that were eventually narrowed down to three in the class of the French master violinist Pierre Amoyal at Mozarteum.

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PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte on Saturday night confirmed he had allowed former Marawi City mayor Omar Solitario Ali to negotiate with the terrorist Maute group.

manilastandard.net

“He was commissioned by [Presidential Peace Adviser Secretary Jesus] Dureza. It was with the acquiescence, not expressly, by Secretary [Delfin] Lorenzana,” Duterte told reporters during his visit to wounded soldiers at Camp Evange-

lista in Cagayan de Oro City.

He made the statement even as Malacañang on Sunday defended the use of Australian soldiers to train the Armed Forces in their fight against the ISIS-inspired Maute Group in Marawi City.

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Smokers fight for rights A CONSUMER advocacy group on Sunday bewailed the growing discrimination against smokers and appealed for a fair enforcement of the new anti-smoking rules under Executive Order 26.

“Smoking is not an illicit activity under our laws. And smokers have rights too,” said Anton Israel, president of the Pro-Yosi group.

Israel said the EO, which is consistent with the Tobacco Regulation Next page

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MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2017

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IN BRIEF Centenarians’ fund: P189m for 2018 THE government has set aside P189.5 million in its 2018 budget to provide 1,895 Filipinos who are turning 100 next year with a P100,000 onetime cash grant, Makati City Rep. Luis Campos Jr. said Sunday All Filipinos reaching the age of 100, whether living here or abroad, are entitled to a 100,000peso gift, says the Centenarians Law of 2016.

“In recognition of their longevity, they will also receive a congratulatory letter from President Rodrigo Duterte,” Campos said.

The cash gift is separate from other rewards to be given by any local government unit, he said Rio N. Araja

Agency warns of new round of oil price hike THE Energy department warned Sunday that pump prices could increase by as much as P1 per liter this coming week due to the movements in the world oil market.

“The DoE observed that last week’s international oil trading may affect the domestic prices of gasoline, diesel and kerosene,” the agency said in a statement.

“Gasoline may increase by around P0.40 per liter, diesel may increase by around P1.05 per liter, and kerosene may increase by around P0.80 per liter,” the department said.

But it said its price-increase estimates might still change depending on the international oil trading activities on Friday, which would be accessed today. Alena Mae S. Flores

Trillanes’...

From A1 president of Granstar Finance and Development Corp.

In 2015, Manila Standard reported that Senate documents showed that Trillanes’ office was allocating P1.63 million a month to pay the salaries of 63 consultants, including Go. Go earlier denied that he had joint account with Trillanes.

A depositor, whose name was covered in the photos, tried to deposit at least $50 into each of the suspected bank accounts—four accounts before the UBS Bank Switzerland (Zurich Branch), Commerz Bank A.G. Bank (Zurich Branch), Deutsche Bank S.A. (Geneve Main Branch), Nova Scotia Bank (Toronto Main Branch), Habib A.G. Bank (Zurich Main Branch), DBS Bank (Alexandra Branch in Singapore) and ANZ Bank (Auckland Main Branch).

During a speech before the Mindanao Business Conference in Cagayan de Oro City, Duterte said he would soon expose Trillanes’ bank accounts abroad.

Trillanes said on Sunday he would issue a waiver of the bank secrecy law to disprove Duterte’s allegations.

Speaking in an interview with radio dzBB, Trillanes said he had initially demanded details of his alleged bank accounts after they were announced by the President in a news conference in Davao City.

“Okay give me the details, but I already got them in the blogs of Mocha Uson and Erwin Tulfo and another of their fake websites, which came out with fake news on my bank accounts in Hong Kong, Australia and America,” said Trillanes.

Trillanes said he would invite the Ombudsman as a factfinding body and the media to join him in going to the bank to inquire about his accounts.

After 9/11, New Yorkers on edge

I

T’S a typical late summer weekend in New York’s Times Square, and tourists from around the world are snapping pictures beneath the commercial hub’s iconic neon billboards—watched closely by a heavy contingent of police.

Four cruisers are parked in the middle of the busy intersection, and pedestrian zones have been surrounded by barriers to stop cars from ramming the crowd, a mode of attack favored by violent extremists in recent years.

“I don’t like to come to places like this,” says Sue Garcia, a massage therapist from Brooklyn. “Or anywhere where incidents have

happened repeatedly—the fear comes to mind.”

Fear of an attack. Fear of another 9/11, the deadliest terrorist assault in history, when almost 3,000 lives were extinguished, many in the rubble of the World Trade Center.

For New Yorkers who lost loved ones, narrowly survived or just witnessed the event, memories remain

fresh and old wounds are reopened on its anniversary.

And a perpetual state of high alert is the new normal.

Garcia, now 33, was a high schooler when the planes slammed into the Twin Towers. She saw them burn then collapse, and walked all the way home like hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers that day after metro services were suspended.

“I was there, I saw it over and over again, I don’t need to think about it,” she says.

But her mind always drifts toward the horrors of that day, whenever it is mentioned on TV, or even “when I hear an airplane: It is like the trigger to the thought. It has subsided over the years

Cops...

Ecija with more than 30 stab wounds in the body.

Police earlier said Bagcal executed two affidavits.

Bagcal’s revelations came as the government and the Catholic Church fought for custody over a witness who allegedly saw the killing of 17-year-old Kian Loyd delos Santos on Aug. 16, also in Caloocan City.

The 13-year-old witness and two other minors insisted on staying with the Diocese of Caloocan even after her father, Roy Concepcion, who was accompanied by police, tried to fetch her late Saturday.

Concepcion later had a change of heart and decided to stay at the Diocese office with his daughter, ending a two-hour standoff.

“All witnesses, if they are under the witness protection program, should go to the government,” Presidential Com-

munications Secretary Martin Andanar said in Filipino, during an interview on dzMM. “We understand that the Church, of course, is the holy refuge of every church member and even those who are not church members. But our Department of Justice is merely upholding the law and due process,” said Andanar.

Andanar did not say whether the government would seek custody of the witness again.

Delos Santos was killed in an alleged shootout with antinarcotics policemen last August.

The 13-year-old witness was among those called to the Senate to testify that Delos Santos was mauled by the officers, given a gun and told to run for his life before being shot to death.

Delos Santos was slapped and punched by one of three men when he refused to accept from them what looked like a

gun wrapped in a face towel, a 13-year-old girl said in a statement submitted to the Senate.

“No, no,” the witness quoted Delos Santos as saying to the three men in civilian clothes who seized him as he was on his way home in Barangay 160 in Caloocan City on the night of Aug. 16.

The three men turned out to be Caloocan police officers.

They claimed Delos Santos was a drug runner and they shot him when he fired at them with a .45cal. pistol.

But the testimony of the girl and that of another child, a 16-year-old girl, as well as CCTV footage showing the policemen dragging the boy to where he was shot, contradicted the police account.

An autopsy, moreover, showed Delos Santos had not fired a gun, and that he was most likely shot when he was down

on the ground.

Caloocan Bishop Pablo David said Saturday evening that the father of the 13-year-old witness had left the custody of the Philippine National Police and had sought the protection of the Church.

David said the witness and her siblings, two adults and four minors all in all, had sought the Church’s protection after giving testimony at a Senate hearing.

David had agreed, as long as the sibling’s legal guardians gave their consent.

The witness’ father had been in police custody because of an illegal-drugs charge and was unable to give his approval.

On Saturday, after the Public Attorney Office paid for Concepcion’s bail, he went to David’s office accompanied by a police officer and Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption members and handed over a let-

sabotage the Philippine National Police and its war on drugs.

The President also ordered the PNP leadership to investigate who could be behind such plot, which he attributed to narco-politicians and drug lords.

Aguirre announced that the parents of Carl have been placed under the coverage of the witness protection program.

The parents of Kian have already been provisionally covered by the WPP earlier while Aguire has also offered protection for the parents of De Guzman.

Acosta said her office is readying murder and torture charges against Caloocan policemen behind the killings of Carl and Kulot, who were together when they went missing last Aug.17 reportedly after be-

ing arrested for robbing a taxi driver.

The PAO chief bared that they were able to find a key witness to support the criminal complaint.

“This witness gave us very important information on what really happened to Carl and Kulot. So together with the testimonial evidence and physical evidence like forensic tests, we find basis to pursue murder and torture charges against these policemen,” she said.

De Guzman and Arnaiz were last seen together on the night of Aug. 17 while buying snacks in a convenience store near their residences in Cainta, Rizal.

Arnaiz was found dead with five gunshot wounds and bruises in Caloocan 10 days after they went missing, while De

Guzman’s body, on the other hand, was found in Nueva Ecija with 30 stab wounds and his head wrapped in packaging tape last week.

Kian, on the other hand, was killed by police during an antinarcotics operations in Caloocan City on Aug.16.

Earlier, the parents of Kian filed murder and torture charges before the DoJ against four Caloocan policemen involved in his killing—Chief Inspector Amor Cerillo, Police Officer 3 Arnel Oares and Police Officers 1 Jeremiah Pereda and Jerwin Cruz of Caloocan City police station 7.

The DoJ panel of prosecutors has already summoned the policemen and set preliminary investigation hearings on Sept.

14 and 21.

Vice President Leni Robredo

on Sunday urged policemen “not to let rogue cops ruin the Philippine National Police’s reputation.”

She called on members of the PNP to uphold the integrity of their institution amid controversies.

She also said she still believes there are more policemen “intent on fulfilling their duties.”

“We believe there are more good cops [than bad ones]. I call on them to save the institution,” she said.

Senator Paolo Benigno Aquino IV, meanwhile, called on PNP chief Ronald dela Rosa to issue a clear and unequivocal directive to the police force not to kill unarmed suspects and to stop the indiscriminate killing of minors.With Rio N. Araja and Macon Ramos-Araneta

The special anniversary concert is titled, “Poeme., and marks his 20th year of playing the violin.

“I began playing the violin when I was 7 years old,” Chino said. “I fell in love with it because of the way it sings. It is beyond words.”

After a lull of several generations, the legendary Mozarteum University in Salzburg, Austria, is once again admitting a Filipino musical virtuoso.

“I’m so excited to begin my studies there next month,” said Gutierrez, the 27-year-old violinist dubbed “a major talent” by the German music pedagogue Jens Ellerman.

Two years after he began his violin classes under Bolipata, Gutierrez won second place at the National Music Competition for Young Artists.

He made such an impact that he was invited to perform at the Cultural Center of the Philippines the following year under the baton of another Chino—Josefino “Chino” Toledo, who was then conducting for the Metro Manila Community Orchestra.

This was the young Chino’s orchestral debut, where he wowed the audience with his poignant rendition of Lalo’s “Symphonie Espagnole.” Two

years later, Chino won the top NAMCYA prize.

His passion for the craft brought him under the tutelage of the well-loved Filipino violinist Gilopez Kabayao.

Of Chino, Kabayao had this to say: “I had the privilege of having the young, brilliant Chino Gutierrez come to Iloilo for extensive coaching, and I can say with conviction that Chino is one of our most promising and exciting violinists who could be a big success in the international concert scene. A prodigy who could play difficult works at 7 or 8, and hailed as a young virtuoso at 16, he amazed me with his musical maturity, technical security, the mastery of his instrument and the passion to learn and perform the great works of the masters. He could practically play anything from the most virtuosic to the most classical, lyrical, romantic, contemporary styles.”

At the time, Chino had another passion. “My other love was mathematics,” he said. “But when the opportunity came and I had to make a choice, I chose music. I knew I could always do math at any age, but music— you have to immerse in it when you’re young.”

At 14, he left the Philippine

Science High School to take up formal schooling in violin studies at the renowned Hochschulefür Musik und Theater Münchenuder, or the state-run University of Music and Performing Arts in Munich.

His teachers there were none other than the exacting Jens Ellerman, Olga Voitova Bloch, and Christoph Poppen.

“I was taking violin lessons there while being enrolled at a public high school,” Chino said. “My parents went to live in Germany with me. The German government insisted on that since I was a minor at the time.

My mother even attended all my classes, just to give me a sense of security while being in a foreign land. It was like she was my classmate, too, you know, and she became friends with my classmates and my teachers. Once, she told our teacher that there was something awry with the way one of my classmates was playing, and it was only then that the teacher realized my classmate was using another violin, throwing all of us off the ensemble tonality we were trying to achieve. That’s my mom—she has developed quite an ear. Well, she was a ballet teacher in the first place. It was my dad who taught music.”

“On the other hand, the sending of Australian Defense Force members to assist our military forces forms part of the offer of Australia to train the Armed Forces of the Philippines.”

Duterte on Saturday visited the Camp Evangelista Station Hospital and conferred medals to 76 military personnel recovering from injuries.

He presented medals to the men who sustained injuries in the government’s fight to liberate Marawi City from the terrorist Maute group.

He also gave each of the

awardees a cellular phone, a cash gift and brand-new service firearms.

Duterte’s confirmation was made when asked specifically about Ali, who was included in the arrest order issued by the Defense department against people who have alleged links to the Marawi siege.

Ali is included in Duterte’s list of narco-politicians.

A month after the Marawi siege by the Maute group, police recovered P10 million worth of shabu from the house of the former mayor, who is

also accused as a financier of the Maute group.

Duterte said Ali had sent a message expressing his willingness to work with the government in resolving the Marawi crisis.

“He told me, ‘I’m better off working for you than putting me in prison,’” Duterte said.

He said that he met with Dureza and Lorenzana to talk about Ali’s offer.

“Then he proposed many things, mostly about talking peace to the Mautes or bargaining for the hostages,” Duterte said.

From A1 “I never executed any affidavit,” he said in Filipino.

But police officers insisted that he implicate Arnaiz’s 14-year-old companion, Reynaldo de Guzman, in the robbery as well, even though he said only one person robbed him.

Bagcal said he then saw Police Officers 1 Jeffrey Perez And Ricky Arquilita take Arnaiz in their patrol car to the scene of the holdup.

Another policeman—an Ilocano—got into his taxi, he said.

After the police released the robbery suspect, Bagcal said he heard a succession of shots.

The supposed shootout, he said, “was scripted.”

The taxi driver did not say if he saw De Guzman, who was found dead last week in Nueva

Teeners’...

From A1 “This appears to me as an effort to ultimately destroy our police force and of course the President,” he said.

Public Attorney’s Office chief Persida Rueda-Acosta, who is providing legal assistance to the parents of the three slain teenagers, also shared the view of Aguirre.

“It’s obvious already that there’s an agenda in these killings. They are sacrificing teenagers to pursue their agenda.

How could they stand doing that?” Acosta said.

In a speech last Friday, Duterte hinted that the spate of killings of Delos Santos, Arnaiz and De Guzman was meant to

Smokers...

PH...

From A1

From A1

Act of 2003, only restricts smoking indoors or in enclosed places while allowing smoking in open areas like sidewalks and parking lots.

“It is wrong and irresponsible to say that the EO imposes an absolute smoking ban. The restrictions are only for enclosed places,” Israel said.

“We recognize the responsibility of the state to protect non-smokers and minors from the harmful effects of secondhand smoke, but we also demand that the right of smokers to enjoy a legal product in a non-obstructive environment be respected,” Israel said.

Pro-Yosi praised the Department of the Interior and Local Government for saying that, although business establishments must have designated smoking areas, smoking in open spaces was also allowed.

Assistant Secretary Epimaco Densing said “the definition under EO 26 of public places where smoking is not allowed is very specific like hospitals, schools and markets whether open or close,” Assistant Interior Secretary Epimaco Densing said.

“But open spaces refer to sidewalks which are not covered. That’s where they are allowed to smoke.”

Pro-Yosi expressed hope that the DILG could clarify the issue further with local government units, which are tasked to enforce EO 26.

The group also appealed to the owners of malls, bars and restaurants not to declare their entire establishments as nonsmoking areas.

“At the moment, smokers are shying away from establishments which do not have designated smoking areas,” the group said.

“After playing two to three pages of the score, the panel asked me to stop. They thanked me for auditioning and I was led out of the audition room,” Gutierrez recalled.

“I thought I blew it. I wanted to protest. To be stopped on the third page only, before I could even plunge into the intricate difficulties of the piece that would have displayed the full range of my musical abilities, I was worried the panel was not happy with my performance.”

Gutierrez’s mother, who had joined him for the audition in Salzburg, tried to cheer him up by taking him on a city tour.

“She kept me busy the whole day. But by nightfall, we returned to the Mozarteum to check out the results. They had decided to fill up only three of the four slots—and, to our surprise and sheer joy, I got one slot,” Gutierrez told the Manila Standard in an interview.

Gutierrez’s audition piece will be the piece de resistance in his farewell concert on Sept.

23 at BDO’s Francisco Santiago Hall—before flying to Austria to enroll in the fall term.

Ex-Marawi...

From A1 “The Australians, for sometime now, have been providing technical assistance though their P3 Orion aircraft in the ongoing battle against the Daesh-inspired Maute Group still holed up in Marawi,” Presidential Spokesman Ernesto Abella said in a statement.

“Their assistance helps us increase our situational awareness of the battlefield and helps save lives.

but it is still there” she adds.

Or while waiting to meet her sister in Times Square, “The Crossroads of the World,” that symbolizes the spirit of New York.

Close calls Twice in recent years, catastrophe loomed. In May 2010, police discovered a car packed with explosives and primed for carnage.

In May, a mentally-ill exsoldier deliberately drove his sedan into 23 pedestrians, killed a young American tourist.

The episodes of anxiety described by Garcia are a burden borne by many New Yorkers.

For those directly affected, the anniversary of the at-

tacks are the “most dreaded date” of the year and posttraumatic stress can remain for an individual’s entire life, says Charles Strozier, a psychoanalyst and author of a book that documents the experiences of survivors and witnesses.

“There was a collective trauma, the sense of having been proven to be not invulnerable,” he says.

“To say that New Yorkers are still traumatized is an exaggeration. But they think about it, they are aware of it, they do have active fears just below the surface of consciousness about things like bombs in the subways,” adds the professor, who watched the destruction of the World

Trade Center from his office just off Union Square.

Many are also convinced that, even though recent terror attacks have focused on Europe, it is New York, the beating heart of the Western world, that remains the prime target.

Prime target “What better target, unfortunately, than NYC?” asks Tim Lambert, an IT consultant.

Then, as now, he worked on the southern tip of Manhattan near the WTC site.

The city, he says, is a “magnet for people from all over the world... It symbolizes the freedoms that we have, the money that we have. What better way to make a statement?” AFP ter demanding custody of his children.

David said he had no problem with the father’s request, and prepared to turn them over to him, but when they met— and after a call to his wife in the Middle East—Concepcion declared he would leave police custody and join his children under the church’s protection.

Police and the VACC and their lawyers tried to gain their custody, but later backed down when the father remained adamant.

David said he had agreed to offer Concepcion the church’s protection because the children seemed genuinely distressed that their father would remain with the police.

“Victims of crime should go to the police, but when the accused is a policeman, who should they go to?” the bishop said in Filipino.

To many,...

From A1 The dictator also oversaw widespread human rights abuses to maintain his control of the country and enable his plundering, with thousands of people killed or tortured, previous Philippine governments said.

This culminated in a popular revolt that toppled Marcos, sending him and his family fleeing into exile in Hawaii in 1986. He died in 1989.

No member of the Marcos clan has ever gone to prison and the family has made a stunning political comeback in recent years.

They have hosted various events in Ilocos in recent days showcasing the rule of their patriarch, including a Catholic mass and an event to unveil a plaque on Sunday at the family’s ancestral home in the city of Batac.

Batac resident Lita Lampitoc, 72, summed up the adulation, saying: “We are Ilocanos so we are all for Marcos.”

Asked about the opposition to Marcos, she said: “They do not know Marcos, we know Marcos. We don’t know anything about those angry at Marcos.” Bill Casas with AFP

Sereno’s...

From A1 documents authenticated. All of those or many [allegations] emanated from the Supreme Court. These were filed and submitted to us,” Umali said.

“What is surprising is, the Supreme Court allowed to [furnish the documents]. So you can see there is a [rift] at the Supreme Court. This will not augur well for the Supreme Court because while they can be independent in their own judgment, the leadership must not be divided.”

On Aug. 30 25 members of the House of Representatives endorsed the impeachment complaint filed against Sereno.

Gadon said Sereno committed betrayal of public trust over the Supreme Court’s “whimsical” and “excessive” purchase of the latest model of the Toyota Land Cruiser worth P5.1 million, and that she failed to declare “exorbitant lawyer’s fees” of $745,000 or P37 million.

Umali vowed to act swiftly on the impeachment cases against the chief justice.

“I don’t want to procrastinate. I don’t want to prolong the agony. I [always] try to resolve issues before me because I have other things to do which are equally important, except that this is a constitutional mandate. So we have to give priority to it,” he said.

News Poe seeks end to vanishing load credit

SENATOR Grace Poe will conduct on Wednesday a probe on consumers’ complaints against “vanishing prepaid cellphone load.”

Senate Bill No. 848 or the proposed Prepaid Load Protection Act seeks to prohibit telecommunication companies from imposing an expiration period on the validity of prepaid load and from forfeiting load credits.

“Our kababayans have long complained about vanishing load credits that they have not used yet,” said Poe, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Public Services.

Representatives from the National Telecommunications Commission, telecommunication firms Globe and Smart, and various consumer groups have been invited to attend the public hearing.

The measure, authored

by Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto, imposes penalties against telcos ranging from a fine of up to P1 million to revocation of license if they commit any of the following: Impose an expiration period on the validity of unused prepaid call and text cards; forfeit load credits stored on an active prepaid phone account via prepaid call and text card or electronic transfer; and refuse to give a refund to any prepaid subscriber whose load credits were forfeited without any valid cause.

Macon Ramos-Araneta

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2017

A3

‘200k unfilled govt posts’ T

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

HERE will be a total of 246,596 vacancies “on paper” in national government positions next year, Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto said.

Recto said only 1,214,137 are projected to be filled out of the 1,460,733 authorized positions for 2018.

He said some of the va-

cancies will have to be scrapped if they are redundant.

But he noted that crucial items such as those in the

Philippine National Police and the medical personnel of the Department of Health should be filled.

“In the PNP, although we will hire 10,000 next year, there will still be 14,599 vaccant slots,” he said.

Topping the list of agencies that will go on a hiring-spree next year is the Department of Education, which will open up 81,100 teaching slots beginning January. These are for

43,732 kindergarten and elementary teachers, 1,944 special education teachers, 35,192 junior high school teachers, and 232 for senior high school teachers.

The second biggest recruiter will be the Philippine National Police which will be authorized to create 10,000 entry-level Police Officers 1 positions.

Once hired, they will raise PNP’s uniformed personnel strength to 194,410, result-

GRANDPARENTS’ DAY.

Six-month old Zoe Ellise Gonzales with lola Pamela and lolo Enrico celebrate Grandparents’ Day at the SM Mall of Asia over the weekend.

Norman Cruz

Asean security banned from using cellphones WITH the heightened security preparation for the upcoming 31st Summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in November, security personnel have been banned from carrying and using their mobile phones while on duty.

Asean Security Task Force commander Police Director Napoleon Taas said all security personnel should remain focused while on duty.

He said policemen should not be distracted by the use of their cellular phones

while manning their posts to prevent any untoward incident from taking place.

“The directive is very clear: The use of cellular phones while on duty is strictly prohibited and anyone while on duty seen or caught tinkering with their

device will be held accountable, including their immediate supervisors and commanders,” Taas stressed.

He said numerous reminders have already been issued on the ban, especially during pre-deployment briefings.

ing in a 1:511 policeman to population ratio.

Recto said although other agencies will not create job items, they will be hiring to fill existing but vacant positions.

“Those involved in infrastructure, like the Department of Transportation and the Department of Public Works and Highways, will have no choice but to boost their technical staff to end talent shortage and project

delays,” he said.

Recto said the DPWH has 1,777 vacancies in its approved plantilla of 19,501 personnel.

The judiciary, Recto said, is also grappling with lack of judges and support personnel to dispose of heavy caseloads.

The Supreme Court and lower courts have total plantilla positions of 37,230 but only 25,154 are filled, leaving 12,076 vacancies.

Charge gencos, Paleco for Palawan outages SENATOR Sherwin Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Committee on Energy, vowed to pursue all possible legal remedies to hold accountable the parties responsible for the continuing power interruptions in many parts of Palawan.

Gatchalian has directed the National Electrification Administration to look into the liabilities of private generation companies and the Palawan Electric Cooperative whose inaction has led to the prolonged power putages which started since January.

He said the most glaring problem that has caused the pwer outages is the failure of the generation companies to deliver on their commitments.

“We can hold these gencos for breach of contract, and the Pa-

leco for possible mismanagement of the utilities,” said Gatchalian during a recent dialog with Palawan power stakeholders.

He stressed that the power supply of Palawan needs to be stabilized “as soon as possible.”

He took to task DMCI Power Corp. for its failure to deliver the 25-megawatt Guaranteed Dependable Capacity in its power supply agreement with Paleco.

The senator also asked NEA to require Paleco to submit a performance report on the three generation f irms which have existing power supply agreements with the electric cooperative.

“It is time for NEA to f lex its muscles in extracting info from Paleco,” he said. Macon Ramos-Araneta

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Opinion

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2017

EDITORIAL

Adelle Chua, Editor

The real saboteurs

I

NCREASINGLY under fire for a bloody war on drugs that has claimed the lives of teenagers, President Rodrigo Duterte last week accused politicians and drug lords of sabotaging his anti-narcotics campaign.

The recent killings apparently targeting the youth “should be viewed with suspicion and urgency,” a Palace spokesman said Saturday, referring to the deaths of Kian delos Santos, 17; Carl Angelo Arnaiz, 19; and Reynaldo de Guzman, 14.

As often is the case with this President, we are uncertain about what he truly means. Does he mean that there

are politicians who are capitalizing on these deaths and using them as an issue against him?

We have no issue with this interpretation, since we see this happening, particularly among senators belonging to the opposition Liberal Party, one of which went to the extent of taking witnesses into her custody—when this is clearly within the jurisdiction of the Justice department, through its witness protection program.

On the other hand, the more alarming interpretation of the President’s remarks is that he was clearing the police of responsibility for the killings, and blaming them instead on shadowy saboteurs who go around killing teenagers and pinning the deaths on policemen, just to derail Mr. Duterte’s anti-drug war.

Such a notion would be absurd, had it not come from the mouth of the President, who told his chief of police to examine the deaths more closely because he was being sabotaged.

Referring specifically to the 14-yearold De Guzman, who was found floating in a creek with 30 stab wounds and his face wrapped in packaging tape, the President declared this could not have been the work of police.

“That’s intentional,” he said in Filipino. “You know the police, they will shoot… but they wouldn’t wrap a suspect’s head—that is not the job of the police. It’s nonsense.”

With all due respect, what is nonsensical is to immediately rule out the possibility that police were involved without any evidence one way or another.

Is Mr. Duterte saying we should absolve the police of the killing of Delos Santos, as well, despite several eyewitness accounts that said they executed the boy?

We respectfully remind the President that it was also not the job of police to kidnap South Korean businessman Jee Ick-Joo, strangle him inside police headquarters in Camp Crame, cremate his body to get rid of the evidence, then still try to extort money from his widow by making her believe he was still alive. But they still did it.

If there is anyone sabotaging Mr. Duterte’s bloody war on drugs, it is the dirty cops who are having a field day because this President’s knee-jerk reaction is to clear them of any wrongdoing, regardless of the evidence.

In the realm of the probable

Congress and the purse strings BEFORE the appropriations committee took up the matter of the Commission on Human Rights budget, Chito Gascon already feared the worst. From his Facebook posts it was clear that he was not oblivious to the foreboding of a blow that Congress would deal the commission he chairs.

Still, he persisted in the belief that prudence and better judgment would prevail.

At least at this stage, good sense was dealt a severe beating. The appropriations committee, it has been reported, has decided to give the CHR zero budget. Unless all of its officials and employees are willing to work out of a sense of

civic-spiritedness, expecting no salary or remuneration, and willing to spend for maintenance and other operating expenses from their own pockets, then this would mean that Congress is poised on rewriting the national government’s organization chart, erasing from it the Commission on Human Rights.

But really, for all its posturing, Congress cannot deny the CHR its budget.

In the first place, unless the Constitution is amended in such wise as to eliminate the Commission, it is a body that enjoys constitutional status. True, it is not one of the so-called independent constitutional commissions— Commission on Audit, Commission on Elections and the Civil Service Commission— but the Constitution very clearly ordains the exist-

ence of the CHR. “There is hereby created an independent office called the Commission on Human Rights.” Section 18 of Article XIII also enumerates the powers and the duties of the Commission—none of which it is able to fulfill without a budget. No, denying the CHR a budget would be ultra vires on the part of Congress. It can reject any request for any increase in appropriation, but even if it is not minded to approve its budget, the Constitution provides a default setting: “The approved annual appropriations of the Commission shall be automatically and regularly released.” And if Congress should argue that there is nothing to release precisely because nothing has been approved, the argument can be made against Congress

There are contents of that purse that have been constitutionally apportioned. that the constitutional command that the CHR’s appropriation be “automatically and regularly released” binds Congress to grant it a budget sufficient for it to carry out its constitutionally assigned tasks.

It is true of course that Congress enjoys the “power of the purse,” but there are contents of that purse that have been constitutionally apportioned. The AFP has a constitutional man-

date, no matter that this is couched in general terms.

Should the members of Congress be sufficiently piqued by the Chief of Staff, they would still be unable to strip the AFP of its budget because the Legislature would, in effect, be making impossible compliance with the Constitution. The power of the purse is circumscribed by the Constitution, and where the fundamental law mandates that offices perform tasks, exercise powers and enjoy prerogatives, such amount as may be necessary to accomplish a constitutional assignment must be deemed obligatory on the part of Congress.

But really, what terrible wrong has the CHR done to merit this kind of reprimand from Congress, no matter that it may in fact be hardly anything more than sym-

bolic? It is controversial because it has entertained complaints against EJKs and caused the investigation of police officers and other law enforcers in connection with the aggressive campaign against drugs. In respect to the government’s relentlessness about eradicating substance abuse, I am in complete agreement, which does not mean that I concur with the means used —about which I have very serious reservations. But I equally concur in the actions of the CHR, for so has the Constitution directed it to do.

Why, it is asked, does the CHR cry out in vehement protest and spring into inquisitorial mode when an officer of the law is a suspect, and not when a criminal element, like an addict or a pusher or a coddler is?

THE successive killings of four young men, Kian de los Santos, Carlo Angelo Arnaiz, Reynaldo de Guzman, and Vaughn Dicang, whose bodies were found in different locations all in the space of some three weeks, bear striking similarities even from a layman’s observation.

Eerie similarities.

In the case of Kian, it could have been clear murder on the part of three policemen who took the “license to kill” in the event of violent resistance as pure license to murder an innocent person and use the same as a “trophy” in the war against drugs.

Similar killings may have indeed been done elsewhere, either by deranged police personnel or worse, vigilantes with a misguided sense of instant justice. Whether perpetrated by officers of the law without provocation or violent resistance from the suspects, or by vigilantes, the acts are criminal and ought to be investigated and prosecuted. Justice must be served.

Having said that, though, in the case of Kian de los Santos, the three policemen who participated in his apprehension followed by his killing have been placed in the slammer, and are soon to face charges for the gruesome murder of the young man. No less than the President met with the parents of Kian and assured them that justice will be done.

Some people clearly went overboard in trying to make the Kian killing a political cassus belli with intent to destabilize government. They failed.

Then a few days later, the body of Carl Arnaiz was found in a grassy sidewalk somewhere in Caloocan.

The young man was from Cainta,

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Chairman Emeritus, Editorial Board

Opinion

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2017

Justice for our democracy JUST more than a year after conducting what many perceived as the most efficient and credible elections in the country’s history, the Commission on Elections had been embroiled in a slew of controversy, the latest of which was a plea by a former congressman to investigate a Comelec commissioner for graft.

Former Biliran Rep. Glenn Chong last week formally asked the Office of the Ombudsman to probe Christian Robert Lim for his alleged “partiality” toward election technology provider Smartmatic-TIM. Chong, a known critic of the automated polls, said Lim had manipulated his colleagues and persistently called on embattled Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista to resign.

Bautista is himself fighting off allegations of corruption and amassing ill-gotten wealth lodged by his es-

tranged wife Patricia, who also accused Bautista of receiving referral fees and commissions from Smartmatic-TIM. A separate complaint meanwhile alleged that Bautista betrayed public trust for failing to adopt safeguards under the Data Privacy Act, or Republic Act 10173, which could have prevented the massive data breach of voter information and the hacking of the Comelec web site.

The ongoing electoral protest of former senator and defeated vice-presidential hopeful Bongbong Marcos has likewise set its sights on destroying the credibility of the automated elections that gave a narrow victory to Vice President Leni Robredo.

All these have resuscitated the efforts of the usual critics of the automated polls, and there seems to be an escalating and orchestrated smear campaign against the Comelec ahead of the 2019 midterm elections.

Of course, the attacks intentionally ignore the positive assessments of many

independent watchdogs that have affirmed the historic success and integrity of the past three automated elections. In particular, a special study commissioned by independent think tank Stratbase ADR Institute concluded that the 2016 automated polls was by far the best managed among all the previous elections.

The critics also ignore the sweeping approval ratings and overwhelming confidence on the automated polls from all parts of the country and across socio-economic classes.

For instance, a Pulse Asia survey found that a huge majority—89 percent—of the respondents agreed that results of the election were believable. This was in addition to other positive observations, such as on the speed of the release of the results and the orderliness of the conduct of the polls.

Thus, it appears that a nefarious political agenda is behind the coordinated attempt to discredit the polls and in the process bring the country back to the night-

mare of manual counting, a slow and tedious process that had historically been prone to widespread manipulation.

Providentially, the Supreme Court last week conclusively affirmed the authenticity and integrity of the 2016 polls, which is yet another authoritative affirmation of the very democracy that automation has always intended to strengthen. Sitting as Presidential Electoral Tribunal, the high court effectively “upheld … the integrity and credibility of the automated election system.”

The ruling arose from the court’s dismissal of the first cause of action in Marcos’s electoral protest, which sought to declare as unauthentic all the certificates of canvas used by both chambers of Congress when they declared Robredo the winner of the hotly contested race.

“Meaningless and pointless” is how the Supreme Court described the petition to nullify the integrity of the entire 2016 elections.

The debate surrounding the automated elections should easily resolved by

simply invoking the horrible memories of the manual system. The tedious and unbelievable delays in the vote canvassing of the old procedure allowed too many opportunities for election operators to cheat and manipulate the election results.

The cheating modes are well-known, from dagdagbawas, or vote padding and shaving, to ballot snatching, widespread voter disenfranchisement and violent tactics from private army goons.

Thus, to an ordinary Filipino, the swift and efficient conduct of the elections validated their participation in the political exercise. And for a country with a fragile democracy and a history so intertwined with the successful conduct of its elections, the Philippines needs to safeguard this newfound source of stability. In this way, every politically motivated attempt to discredit the automated elections should be exposed for what it really is, a regressive attack on our democratic electoral process.

Another way climate change might make hurricanes worse

By Faye Flam IN A recent talk about his new book, “Scale,” physicist Geoffrey West described climate change as a form of entropy—disorder that’s created as the price of all the order and creative energy pent up in cities. In this view, climate change is not, as some argue, just a euphemism for global warming. It’s a broader term that reflects the unpredictable, disorderly way global warming will affect the planet’s oceans and atmosphere.

In other words, we won’t be so lucky as to see a regular, incremental increase in the earth’s average temperature. Instead, we’re seeing rapid, erratic changes in weather patterns that people have counted on for centuries.

Consider one of the more interesting hypotheses about global warming: that it will cause the wind patterns that normally keep storms moving from place to place to slow down, causing prolonged downpours as well as droughts. It’s an idea that’s been cited in the peer-reviewed literature and featured in Scientific American, but like many exciting ideas in science, it’s still not universally accepted. Some are waiting for more evidence.

For people who’ve looked into the slowing of wind

In the...

From A4

Rizal. Several kilometers separate northeastern NCR from Caloocan in its west.

Police initially claimed that Arnaiz and a companion tried to rob a taxicab driver near the area where the body was found, and came out with not one, but two affidavits from the taxi driver with strange dissimilarities. The taxicab driver, as this is written, is missing.

The plot thickens. The Public Attorney’s Office sent its medico-legal experts to the area where the body was found, and strangely, the grass over which the “shooting” was done was hardly disturbed, indicating that there was

Congress...

From A4

While, philosophically, a human right is one that every person enjoys not because it is conferred by positive law but because it is a demand

circulation, however, Hurricane Harvey was a case in point. Part of the reason it was so destructive was because it got slowed down over Houston. The storm was caught between two high-pressure blocking systems shortly after it made landfall in Texas, so instead of rolling over the region, it got stuck for several days, dumping 50 inches of rain over an enormous area—a total of 19 trillion gallons.

The longer it lingered, the more rain fell; ultimately, some parts of the state saw a year’s worth of rainfall in less than a week.

Charles Greene, an atmospheric scientist at Cornell University, believes that warming in the Arctic led to a slowing down of a high-altitude, circulating wind known as the jet stream, which he argues contributed to Harvey’s lingering destruction. If that turns out to be the case, it portends more such events to come. He suspects recent droughts in the western United States may have been exacerbated by the same phenomenon, as a more sluggish jet stream allowed masses of dry air to get locked into place.

Why would global warming affect winds and storms? As Greene explains, warming isn’t happening in a uniform way.

The Arctic is warming faster than the earth’s temper-

ate zones, and so there’s less of a difference than there used to be between Arctic and mid-latitude temperatures. “These temperature differences are what drive atmospheric winds,” he said, which include the jet stream and a more northerly circulation pattern called the polar vortex. The polar vortex normally confines frigid air to the Arctic, and when it weakens, Arctic air can swing south and create unusually cold weather at lower latitudes.

The Arctic is warming faster than the rest of the planet because there’s a positive feedback loop at work. As reflective sea ice melts, it exposes dark ocean underneath, he said.

That means more of the sun’s energy gets absorbed into the oceans, driving yet more warming in a positive feedback system. In the fall, some of the ocean’s heat is released back into the atmosphere. That change in Arctic temperature alters the polar vortex, slowing and weakening it. That has coincided with an increase in the number of tropical cyclones and nor’easters.

In his view, the warming Arctic is also causing the jet stream to slow, and thereby allowing the formation of more “blocks” of high pressure to lock storms such as Harvey in place. He acknowledges, however that there isn’t

enough evidence yet to link cause and effect, or rule out natural variability.

Kevin Trenberth, climate scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado, says Greene and his colleagues have more work to do to demonstrate the links between Arctic melting, wind patterns and extreme weather. But there are already well-established links between global warming and storms.

Trenberth’s work focuses on the oceans, which are heating up along with the atmosphere. While the surface of the ocean has been slowly warming since the mid-20th century, the 1990s brought something new: Water started to warm up 700 to 2,000 meters below the surface. The increase is small, he said, but the total energy pent up under the surface is enormous. Normally, big storms churn up cold water from the depths, and this allows their energy to peter out. Now that there’s warmer water below the surface, there’s extra heat available, he said, and that can cause a storm to intensify and last longer.

And that’s not the only way global warming can lead to more destructive storms. It’s well understood that warmer air holds more moisture, which allows “Harvey’’ and other storms to pack more precipitation.

Warmer oceans also likely added fuel to this storm, and will continue to do so over the course of the century. The water in the Gulf of Mexico is 2 to 4 degrees warmer than it has been historically this time of year, said Greene. Warmer water allows storms to intensify fast, as ‘‘Harvey’’ did by going from Category 2 to Category 4 without hours. Now, Hurricane ‘‘Irma’’ seems to be doing the same thing as it heads toward Florida.

The arguments among scientists are for the most part not about whether global warming is contributing to extreme weather, but which consequences of global warming will wreak the most havoc. In his talk, physicist Geoffrey West explained that the kind of disorder associated with global warming is the price we pay for our ordered civilization. There’s no reason to be ashamed that it’s happened—or to deny it.

Better to look forward and realize it’s still possible to mitigate the damage, and to adapt. Bloomberg

no violent resistance, and the poor young man must have been killed elsewhere and the body dumped in Caloocan. No bullet slugs were found. Neither blood stains which do not get erased that easily on grass or sod.

Then, Reynaldo’s body was again, so strangely discovered in a creek in Gapan City, Nueva Ecija, more than a hundred kilometers from both Caloocan and Cainta several days later.

Not only was he gruesomely murdered, with 28 or so stab wounds indicating a slow death, but the poor teenager’s face was wrapped in plastic tape.

Surely not one who “resisted” arrest.

And almost at the same time, another young man’s

body was found on another creek, already in advanced state of decomposition, after having been reported missing by his family since the first of September. Another creek, this time in Baguio City.

The series of gruesome incidents, particularly the last three, those of Carl, “Kulot” and Vaughn following the “botched” political attempt to make the Kian murder a symbol of an “oppressive” government making its war on drugs as an “extrajudicial” killing spree, does make President Duterte’s pronouncement suspecting “sabotage” very possible.

No, not just possible, but very probable.

This is not to accuse, nor even suspect, the politi-

cians who tried to make a political cassus belli out of Kian’s murder by the police as capable of perpetrating such heinous, such sinister conspiracy with blood on their hands. Far from it.

This is to posit something in the realm of the probable.

What if drug lords and their protectors, still very much around, alive and kicking, saw the murder of Kian de los Santos and the initial state of revulsion by a shocked public as a means to “sabotage” (in the words of President Duterte), the publicly accepted war on drugs as a just war?

What if the drug lords and/or their protectors, some of them police officers themselves, retired or

resigned, found reason to thwart the war on drugs that was killing their lucrative business and ride on the crest of public anger over the Kian murder?

These drug lords have their tentacles all over the country, whether in Cainta, or Caloocan, or Baguio, or Gapan, or anywhere else in this land benighted by shabu.

And are they succeeding in their contra-guerra through sabotage. Even the Archbishop of Manila, the cautious and circumspect Cardinal Luis Tagle, has chimed in with an admonition that “killing is not the way to govern a nation.”

Think of it. Surely in the realm of the probable.

Vit Aguirre has a kingsize headache.

of practical reason that such a right be recognized in persons, for juridical and enforcement purposes, we have characterized as human rights violations those committed by agents of the State against citizens.

Offenses perpetrated by

criminal elements are treated as common crimes, and dealt with by the police as well as the prosecutorial service of the government.

There is absolutely no reason to treat the cases involving police, AFP personnel and officers and

other law enforcers who fall victim to crimes as any less heinous, reprehensible and condemnable than those crimes committed by law enforcers.

But crimes committed by the latter are treated as human rights violations and dealt

with accordingly by the CHR precisely because it is precisely the task of the Commission on be a citizens’ shield against the mail fist of State that has vast powers and means at its disposal! To include all offenses under the heading

Ambassador Del Rosario’s column will resume next week.

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Do we want more open-pit mines?

SOMETHING made me shiver in fear as I read the news that the inter-agency Mining Industry Coordinating Council will review the ban on open pit mining which was ordered by the former Environment Secretary, Gina Lopez. What worsened my anxiety was the announcement by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau that it has submitted a recommendation to the Environment Secretary, Roy Cimatu, to lift the ban on the basis of internationally accepted and legal mining methods.

Even assuming for argument’s sake that internationally accepted and legal methods will be used in creating more open pit mines in the Philippines, the fact will always remain that once mountains are lopped off and the earth is excavated, destroying everything that’s living in and around it to give way to some 50 or 60 stories deep of open-pit mines, no amount of rehabilitation or technology can bring them back. The open-pit mines will forever remain to be open pits—gaping holes that are unproductive and dangerous to all living things because the artificial lakes created by the open pits contain toxic mine tailings and acid water. But this, in fact, is still just a teeny weeny peek into the horrific scenario caused by open pit mines.

The reality is, because of the geographic configuration of the Philippines with more than 7,100 islands when the earth is excavated to create open pits for mining purposes, a water table is invariably hit, wasting the water in it. This is frightening because studies have shown that in 2030 there will be a global shortage of water.

Further, if one traces the history of open-pit mining in the Philippines, one will see the displacement of people and the impoverishment of communities because the land, the rivers and the seas got contaminated by metals, cyanide, sulfuric acid, even mercury. Add to this the many diseases that people contract because of the pollution and the volume of dust in the air.

Consider the following facts.

The Mining In Sipalay, Negros Occidental Industry where an openpit mine was Coordinating operated by the Maricalum Min- Council must ing Corporation, address these a labor dispute arose because questions. the company was not paying the mandated wages and benefits of its employees. The company’s operations ceased more than 20 years ago but it left the 60-storiesdeep open pit that it created. Four tailings spill incidents occurred between 1982 and 1996 destroying more than 1,000 hectares of agricultural lands and uprooting more than 1,200 families. The continuing erosion of the waste dump has greatly silted the Kalak-an river and caused air pollution. The spill area became barren and the rice lands where the waste water flowed are now completely unproductive.

In Hinalangon, Samar where Marinduque Mining Industrial Corporation operated an open-pit mine, the acid mine drainage contaminated the entire Taft river and the soil turning the area to a wasteland. The company stopped operations in 1992, leaving the government to spend P300 million for the rehabilitation of the site which, to this date, remains barren.

In Dansol, Pangasinan, after Acoje Mining created an open-pit mine with acid tailings, it abandoned the mines because the price of copper went down and it was no longer profitable to continue its operations. It left in its wake an acid open pit mine leaving the task of rehabilitation to government. In Sta. Cruz, Marinduque, the worst mining disaster happened in 1996 when the tailings of the open pit mines spilled contaminating the entire 27-kilometer stretch of the Boac river which used to be the source of fresh water by the locals. The erosion of the waste dump continues, spilling acid and toxic water. In Mogpog, Marinduque, the Consolidated Mines, Inc. directly dumped toxic tailings into the seas and mine wastes in mangrove forests destroying them. Because the price of copper went down, the company abandoned its operations leaving the task of rehabilitation, once more, to the government.

I could go on citing what open-pit mining has done to the environment and the Filipino people, especially the poor living in the rural areas where mining operates. We are perhaps the only country in the world that requires a mere two per cent excise tax as revenues from mining operations and offering mining firms certain tax holidays at that. After open pits are created, destroying our piece of the earth and leaving toxic wastes, who will be left to deal with them or at least maintain them so that the toxic and poisoned mine wastes will not spill into our the waters and the seas? By then the money earned by the mostly foreign-based mining firms will have been sent to bank accounts outside the country. Will the government earn enough from mining revenues to bring back lost mountains and forests, as well as, lost flora and fauna? Will the government have earned enough money to maintain open pits so they will not spill toxic waste into our lands, bodies of fresh water and seas? The Mining Industry Coordinating Council must address these questions.

Email: ritalindaj@gmail.com Visit: www.jimenolaw.com.ph of “human rights violations” would be to transform the CHR into some national super police force—which it clearly was never meant to be nor can reasonably be.

The Congressional power of oversight does involve the power to make budget-

ary decisions on the basis of an agency’s performance or lack of it. But it cannot entail the power of Congress to thwart the Constitution! rannie_aquino@csu.edu.ph rannie_aquino@sanbeda.edu.ph rannie_aquino@outlook.com

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World

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2017 Cesar Barrioquinto, Editor

North Korea talks eyed FRANKFURT―Germany would lend its weight to a diplomatic push to end North Korean nuclear weapons and missile development along the lines of a past deal with Iran, Chancellor Angela Merkel said Sunday.

“I would say yes immediately if we were asked to join talks,” Merkel told weekly newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung.

Talks between Iran and six world powers, sealed with a 2015 deal for Tehran to roll back its nuclear program and submit to inspections in exchange for some sanctions being rolled back, were “a long but important period of diplomacy” that had achieved a “good end,” she added.

“I could imagine such a format for the settlement of the North Korea conflict. Europe and especially Germany ought to be ready to make a very active contribution,” Merkel said. AFP

Asylum laggards warned FRANFURT―The countries that fail to take part in the quota scheme for assigning asylum seekers around the European Union could themselves be denied help in other areas, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Sunday.

“If there is no solidarity on migration, neither will there be in other areas― and that would be bitter for European cohesion,” Merkel told weekly newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung.

The chancellor’s comments read like a warning to eastern European countries, who receive billions of euros in net benefits from EU membership― unlike net contributor countries such as Germany.

Eastern governments last week reacted angrily to a court decision requiring them to accept a share of asylum seekers from overstretched Greece and Italy.

Hungary and Slovakia failed Wednesday in a challenge before the 28-nation EU’s top court, the European Court of Justice, to block the quota scheme agreed in Brussels two years ago. AFP

3 Rohingya killed by land mine COX’S BAZAR, Bangladesh―A suspected land mine planted near the Bangladesh border has killed three Rohingya villagers fleeing violence in Myanmar’s Rakhine state, a Bangladesh border official quoted a survivor as saying.

Border Guard Bangladesh commander Lieutenant Colonel Manzurul Hasan Khan told AFP that troops had heard the blast Saturday night about 100 meters from the border.

“We learnt from the injured survivor that they were four of them. The survivor said the other three died on the spot in an explosion―likely an antipersonnel mine,” Khan told AFP. He said border guards saw the survivor coming to the demarcation line with multiple injuries to his body and face. AFP

US anti-slavery visit illegal—Mauritania

VISIT. This handout photograph released by the Osservatore Romano shows Pope Francis visiting the Hogar San Jose school in Medellin on September 9, 2017. Nearly 1.3 million worshipers flocked to a mass by Pope Francis on September 9 in the Colombian city known as the stronghold of the late drug lord Pablo Escobar. AFP

NOUAKCHOTT, Mauritania―The West African state of Mauritania on Saturday attacked US anti-slavery campaigners to whom it had denied entry, saying their trip would have violated the law.

A dozen campaigners landed at Nouakchott airport on Friday for a week-long visit but were refused visas, a local anti-slavery NGO said earlier.

Slavery was officially outlawed in Mauritania in 1981 but remains entrenched in a hereditary system of servitude.

“We told the American embassy, which gave us the delegation’s program, that entry visas would not be issued because we consider the program to be in breach of Mauritanian law,” government spokesman Mohamed Lemine Ould Cheikh, who is also culture minister, told AFP. “There were no consultations with the [Mauritanian] authorities over the program, as is customary, and it consisted only of meetings with targeted parties who are working on a specific agenda,” Ould Cheikh said, without giving further details.

Slavery is ingrained in Mauritania.

Light-skinned Berber Arab Moors enslaved local black populations after settling in the vast, largely desert nation centuries ago. AFP

‘Boko Haram plot thwarted’ K

ANO, Nigeria―Nigeria on Saturday said it had foiled Boko Haram plans for a coordinated series of attacks across the country, as the army slammed claims of security failings and that the militants were resurgent.

The country’s intelligence agency, the Department of State Services (DSS), said it had disrupted “sinister plans... to cause mayhem and destruction” during celebrations for the recent Eid al-Adha festival.

“The plan was to conduct gun attacks and suicide bombing on selected targets in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Kano, Kaduna, Niger, Bauchi, Yobe and Borno states,” said DSS spokesman Tony Opuiyo.

The alleged mastermind of the planned attacks, identified as Husseini MaiTangaran, was arrested in the northern city of Kano on August 31, leading to the detention of a number of

others, he added.

Mai-Tangaran was described as a “well-known” commander in the Abu Mus’ab al-Barnawi-led faction of Boko Haram, which is supported by the Islamic State group in Syria and Iraq.

The DSS also said he was behind the November 2014 attacks on the Kano central mosque, which killed at least 120.

Nigeria’s security services often claim to have foiled major Boko Haram plots and made arrests but announcement of charges, prosecutions and convictions have been rare.

The most high-profile case currently in court is

that of Khalid al-Barnawi, a leader of the moribund Boko Haram offshoot, Ansaru, on charges of abducting and murdering a number of foreign workers.

However, revelations that Boko Haram may have been planning high-profile attacks during the Islamic festival could be taken as a sign of renewed confidence among the Islamist militants.

The Abu Mus’ab al-Barnawi faction has promised to hit government and military targets rather than civilians, who have borne the brunt of the violence since 2009.

Nigeria’s military and government maintain Boko Haram has become a spent force after more than two years of sustained counter-insurgency operations, including with neighboring Cameroon, Chad and Niger.

But continued attacks, particularly in hard-to-reach rural areas, suggest claims of outright victory are premature. AFP

‘IS holding 11,100 blank passports’ FRANKFURT―German authorities believe the Islamic State group holds some 11,100 blank Syrian passports that can be completed with any individual’s details, the eekly newspaper Bild am Sonntag reported Sunday.

Investigators have assembled a list of serial numbers of the blank passports and the authorities that issued them, the newspaper reported, citing confidential documents from federal police and the interior ministry.

The stolen passports are genuine identity papers that have not yet been filled out

with an individual’s details, making them a valuable tool for forgers.

In total, German security services are aware of some 18,002 blank Syrian passports stolen from Syrian government sites, including thousands held by groups other than IS. “Developments in connection with the refugee situation have shown that terrorist organizations are using the opportunity to infiltrate potential attackers or supporters into Europe and Germany undetected,” a spokeswoman for the BKA federal criminal police told

Bild am Sonntag.

Memberof the group behind a series of coordinated bomb and gun attacks in Paris that claimed 130 lives in November 2015 were found to have used fake Syrian passports.

However, “’Fake or altered passports are mostly used for illegal entry without further motives like carrying out a terrorist attack,” the spokeswoman said.

Some 8,625 passports checked by German migration authorities in 2016 turned out to be fakes according to the documents seen by Bild am Sonntag. AFP

SUMMER SPECTACULAR. Jo Champa attends The Brent Shapiro Foundation Summer Spectacular on September 9, 2017, in Los Angeles, California. AFP

UN chief: N. Korea crisis worst in years

FILM FESTIVAL. From left, Maisie Williams, Elle Fanning, Douglas Booth and Bel Powley attend the RBC-hosted ‘Mary Shelley’ cocktail party at the RBC House Toronto Film Festival 2017 on September 9, 2017, in Toronto, Canada. AFP

PARIS―UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, in an interview published Sunday, said the showdown over North Korea’s nuclear and missile program was the world’s worst crisis “in years” and had left him deeply worried.

“To date, we have had wars which have been initiated after a well thoughtout decision,” Guterres said in an interview published by the French Sunday newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche.

“But we also know that other conflicts have started through an escalation caused by sleepwalking.

“We have to hope that

the seriousness of this threat puts us on the path of reason before it is too late,” said Guterres, according to the French language account of the interview.

“It’s the most serious [crisis] that we have had to face in years,” he said, admitting he was “very worried”.

Guterres said the key question was to get North Korea to stop its nuclear and ballistic missile program and respect UN Security Council resolutions.

“But we must also maintain the unity of the Security Council at all costs, because it is the only tool which can carry out a dip-

lomatic initiative with a chance of success,” he said.

The United States wants the Security Council to vote on Monday to impose tougher sanctions against Pyongyang, despite resistance from China and Russia.

A US-presented draft resolution calls for an oil embargo on North Korea, an assets freeze on Kim, a ban on textiles and an end to payments of North Korean guest workers.

Diplomatic sources said Russia and China opposed the measures as a whole, except for the ban on textiles, during a meeting of experts Friday. AFP

Sports

A7

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2017 sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

Chua rolls 2671, paces BWC finals

N

ATIONAL bowler Kenneth Chua rolled a 12-game series of 2671 pinfalls to tow 33 other men’s aspirants into the second round of the 2017 Bowling World Cup (BWC) national finals which kicked off Saturday at Coronado Lanes (Starlanes).

The 25-year-old Chua, winner of the Philippine International Open last May who works at Smart Communications, finished his first-round performance with sizzling games of 237, 256 and

268 to pull away from veteran Raoul Miranda by 123 pins.

“I made some ‘equipment’ adjustments and it paid off with those three big games,” Chua said of his remarkable finish

which installed him as the early favorite among the 34 survivors from a field of 80 in the tough singles event.

Miranda, who competed in the International BWC in Shanghai, China last year, carded three big games of 274, 238 and 234 in his round.

With their scores carried over, Chua and company compete in another 12-game series today at Paeng’s Midtown Bowl in Ermita to determine the top eight finishers who will figure in the

quarterfinals, semifinals and finals on Wednesday, Sept. 13 at Paeng’s Eastwood Bowl.

The 48 lady qualifiers, led by Lara Posadas, Liza del Rosario and Liza Clutario, opened their bids with a 10-game series yesterday also at Coronado Lanes.

The men’s and ladies’ champions will earn the right to represent the country in the 2017 International Bowling World Cup set on November 4 to 12 in Hermosillo, Mexico.

Another Philippine kegler,

Jomar Jumapao of Cebu, came in third in Saturday’s opening round with 2521 pinfalls, followed by Merwin Tan (2468), Eric Luciano Aranez (2441), Jay R. Tan (2361) and veteran international campaigner Paulo Valdez (2326).

The other first round survivors and their scores in the men’s division follow: John Paul Genciana, 2297; Nicco Olaivar, 2296; Jules Pedrajes, 2285; John Paule Macatula, 2267; Angel Dilig, 2266; Ronnie

Mission accomplished for Universiade team

Javier, 2238; Jason Tubid, 2220; Lorenz Tugade, 2185; RJ Magana, 2163; Norman Lising, 2163; Scott Uy, 2160; John Christopher Dee, 2138; Wilson Sua, 2119; Ryan Romero, 2116; Joebert Buenafe, 2114; Jerry Bugtong, 2098; Allan Ablang, 2096; Francis de Leon, 2092; Raul Imperial, 2092; Don Evangelista, 2090; James Fajardo, 2089; Eduard Gella, 2089; Eugene Suarez, 2065; July Vargas, 2058; Jansen ‘Red’ Collantes, 2051; Boyet Delfino, 2048; and Erwin Cabaneros, 2040.

Menor...

From A8

Menor, who has had a series of solid starts in a number of tournaments, only to crumble under pressure and fade, this time fought back from six down off third round leader Rufino Bayron in regulation and held his own with the fire and grit of a veteran campaigner in the grueling playoff that bettered Frankie Miñoza’s victory over Miguel Tabuena in last year’s PGT Negros Occidental Classic that took five extra holes to finish.

It was indeed a bizarre ending to a tournament that had appeared headed to a runaway triumph after Bayron stormed four shots clear off Clyde Mondilla and Mars Pucay after the pivotal third round of the 72-hole championship organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc. But the championship flight, and the second-tolast group of Tony Lascuña, Jhonnel Ababa and Aussie DJ Loypur all bombed out at the challenging backside of the up-and-down layout, paving the way for the unlikely surge of Lertvilai, O’Toole and Menor.

Bayron actually held on to the lead with a 36 at the turn but lost his touch,

a martial arts sport, is of Chinese origin.

DAYS before the 29th Balangui played his heart Summer Universiade com- out but eventually succumbed menced in New Taipei to a two-set (5-0 and 5-0) deCity, the Philippines’ Head feat against Yuan. of Delegation Alvin Tai Regardless, FESSAP Lian revealed to a num- president David Ong was ber of sportswriters from elated over Balangui’s pothe national dailies of the dium finish. country’s chances to strike “The wushu medal – (a a medal in the so-called silver) – is a good addition “Olympics at the Univer- to our gold medal in men’s sity level” competitions. chess by Grandmaster Here’s what the youth- Wesley So during the 2013 ful-looking, business- Kazan Universiade and the man-cum-sportsman and silver medal won by Samphilanthropist Tai Lian, uel Thomas Harper Morthe Chair of the private- rison in men’s taekwondo ly-funded Federation of in the 2011 Shenzhen School Sports Associa- Universiade. really makes tion of the Philippines that us proud to be a Filipino sanctioned the Filipino watching our flag being athletes’ participation in hoisted during the awardthe Taipei Universiade, ing ceremony along with said: “I expect our athletes China (gold), South Korea to do well in golf, billiards (bronze) and the United and wushu. With a bit of States (bronze),” Ong said. luck, we may even strike a For his medal-winning medal in wushu.” feat, Balangui was picked Tai Lian knows where- to lead the Philippine delof he speaks, he being a egation during the closing wushu practitioner during ceremonies of the Taipei his prime.

Universiade on August 30.

It turned out that he was Supported by San a good forecaster, too. How Miguel Corporation and Officials of the FESSAP, led by David Ong, Alvin Tai Lian and Col. Ariel Querubin are shown during the opening-day parade of the Philippine prophetic Tai Lian was as Bestank Corporation, the team to the Summer Universiade in Taipei. the Philippines, indeed, se- Philippine delegation to cured a medal in the wushu the Taipei Universiade was competitions, courtesy of headed by Tai Lian, Angel the University of Baguio’s Ngu (flagbearer), retired Jomar Balangui.

Colonel Ariel Querubin first game under new coach their side of the two-division tournaDuring the semifinals of the (delegation general manBabes Castillo, turning back the ment organized by Sports Vision.

Games today men’s sanda-52-kilogram event ager), Danilo Madlansacay Lyceum of the Phl U Lady PiGorayeb steered the Lady 8 a.m. – UP vs at the Hsinchu County gym on (Delegation Official) and rates, 25-17, 25-16, 25-21, last Stags past the Jose Rizal U Lady San Beda (men’s) LIMA—The Internation- by the wayside during the August 28, the 19-year-old Bal- professor Robert Milton Sept. 3 with another triumph Bombers, 25-23, 25-22, 25-21, 10 a.m. – NU vs al Olympic Committee competition, reflecting angui whitewashed 18-year-old Calo (Preparation and in their 6:30 p.m. showdown but the Recoletos-based squad La Salle (men’s) opens a week of high-lev- the political difficulties South Plains College (Lub- Monitoring Committee with the Lady Stags to put them bowed to FEU, 17-25, 21-25, 4 p.m. – UP vs TIP (women’s) el meetings here Monday, in persuading voters that bock, Texas) bet Isiah Ray chair) and our most thankalongside the hot-starting Lady 14-25, making the match so cru6:30 p.m. – SSC vs preparing to rubber-stamp staging the Olympics is Enriquez of the United States, ful to the National SecreTams at the helm. cial given the single-round forNU (women’s) the award of the 2024 and worth the multi-billionwinning 5-0 and 3-0 for a 2-0 tariat composed of Cecil But Castillo will miss facing mat of the season-ending con2028 Olympics as the dollar price tag. decision that assured him of the Sarmiento, Annie Rodas, NATIONAL University guns counterpart Roger Gorayeb, ference of the country’s premier movement battles a fresh IOC President Thomas silver medal.

Antonio Quiza, Elena Go, for a share of the Group A lead the former’s predecessor at NU volley league backed by Mikasa wave of corruption rev- Bach first signalled pubThe finals were held on Joana Monteverde, Fides with Far Eastern University as who led the team last year’s and Asics. elations. licly that the double-award the last day of competi- Mariae Lim, Ann Janeth it clashes with San Sebastian as championship. The latter has Meanwhile, University of the For the first time since of an Olympics could be tions on Aug. 29 as Balan- Garcia, Kert Bryan Ocam- action in the Premier Volleyball said he will skip the game due to Philippines and Technological the awarding of the 1984 on the agenda in December gui and China’s Yuan Peng po, JC Clarito, Genie Vil- League Collegiate Conference personal reasons.

Institute of the Phl try to bounce Olympics, the usual frenzy last year, lamenting that the disputed the gold. lota, Kelly Rojas, Joseph heats up at the Filoil Flying V Assistant coach Clint Malazo back from their respective openof last-minute lobbying bidding process produced The odds were stacked Sy, Gladys Sia, and Eloisa Center in San Juan Monday. will instead call the shots for the ing game setbacks as they clash and politicking by rival bid “too many losers.” against Balangui as wushu, Guillermo.

The Lady Bulldogs won their Lady Stags, who tote a 1-1 card in at 4 p.m. in a Group B encounter. cities and heads of state As the bidding battle will be strikingly absent in for 2024 unfolded, and as Lima. the field thinned to leave In a historic move, the Los Angeles and Paris as IOC has brokered an agree- the last bids standing, the ment that will see Paris IOC’s determination to handed the 2024 Games lock in two high-quality with Los Angeles awarded cities for the next two 2028. summer games became IOC members are set apparent.

WITH more than 90 teams divided to greenlight the deal at Los Angeles and Paris, in different categories participating a meeting on Wednesday who have slick bids which in the LGR Season 4, teams played following 25-minute pre- emphasise a high-level on different venues and Anonymous, sentations by Paris and Los of venue readiness, both Northrack, Wednesday Group led the Angeles, the last two cities wowed the IOC’s Evaluweekend winners in thrilling fashion. left in the initial race for the ation Commission during Christopher Ferrer finished with 2024 Summer Olympics. back-to-back visits in May. 17 points, including the game-winThe formal ratification In July, the IOC anning bucket in the last two seconds, of the 2024-2028 deal will nounced it would award to propel Anonymous to a close mark the end of a mostly the staging rights for the 75-74 win over Don Papa in the good-natured bidding cam- 2024 and 2028 Olympics at Novice Division at the Northeast paign notable for the num- the same meeting in Lima.

Greenhills gym. ber of cities who withdrew With Los Angeles offered Jhester Rosales went a rebound from the race citing waning financial sweeteners to step away from finishing a doublepublic support and con- aside for Paris in 2024, the double, tallying 27 points and nine cerns over budget. fait accompli that will be rebounds, while Jay Cabelon conHamburg, Rome, Bu- inked this week was conJames Patrick Abugan has been a pillar of strength in rebounding for Nougat, one of the teams participating in the tributed 14. dapest and Boston all fell firmed on July 31. AFP On the same day, Northrack pulled Corporate Division of LGR Hoops Season 4. off a similar tight 77-75 win over YP4K in the Noephyte Division of this event sponsored by Rain or Shine, Titan, NBA Store, Gatorade, GM-candidate Haridas Pascua, Jona- with Michael Concio Jr. GM Darwin Laylo and Jeth Romy BTV, Golds Gym, Zarks Burger, than Jota and IM Chito Garma mainGarma, at 53 one of the oldest par- Morado also drew their match.

00-00-00-00-00-00 P0 M+ Bugsy’s, Kartilya, SYF and Ybalai. tained their share of the lead as draws ticipants in the tough, 12-player field, Reigning national junior champion Jerome Molano had a solid allmarked the sixth round of the Battle also split the point with top seed GM John Marvin Miciano was the day’s around game, finishing with 26 00-00-00-00-00-00 P0 M of GMs-National Chess Champion- John Paul Gomez. lone winner. points, none more important than ships at Alphaland Makati.

Pascua, Jota and Garma now have Miciano toppled IM Ronald Banhis go-ahead three-pointer in the last Pascua, who is hoping to become 4.5 points in six rounds in the tourna- cod to improve to1.5 points.

DIGITS 0-0-0-0 seven seconds. He also grabbed 11 the country’s next GM, settled for a ment organized by the National Chess Women’s division matches saw De rebounds. draw with IM Paulo Bersamina, while Federation of the Philippines, headed La Salle University standout BernaOver at the Golds Gym, Teledirect DIGITS 0-0-0 Jota, who is proving to be the tourna- by president Cong. Prospero “Butch” dette Galas outplay Michelle Yaon Wolfpack walloped Sitel 1, 75-65, as ment’s surprise package with a string Pichay and supported by the Philip- and Marie Antonette San Diego draw Collins Cardenas and Ian Sambasco of upset victories, halved the point pine Sports Commission. with Francoi Marie Magpily.

EZ2 0-0 combined for 47 markers.

By Graham C. Lim

NU Lady Bulldogs eye share of lead IOC prepares Paris, LA

award amid graft storm

Anonymous, Northrack lead LGR cage winners

Pascua, Jota, Garma keep share of national chess lead

LOTTO RESULTS 6/55 6/45 4 3 2

Sports

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

A8

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2017

Stephens marvels at journey to US Open glory NEW YORK—Worries didn’t end for Sloane Stephens after winning her first Grand Slam title Saturday at the US Open, recalling the fabulous photographs of past champions she admired along the hallways of Arthur Ashe Stadium.

“Everyone has the cutest photos on the wall in here with this trophy and that’s what I remember seeing most,” Stephens said. (See related story below) “So when I was taking my pictures I was worried about my boob sweat because I was like this is a picture they are probably going to use and I look terrible.”

Such natural, candid and comedic comments summed up the champion’s mood after her 6-3, 6-0 victory over fellow American and friend Madison Keys for a top prize of $3.7 million (3.07 million euros).

Stephens, who won only $310,000 this year after being sidelined for 11 months until July by a left foot injury, said her desire for more major titles was definitely fueled.

“Of course,” Stephens said. “Did you see that check that lady handed me?

Like, yes. Man, if that doesn’t make you want to play tennis, I don’t know what will.”

Asked if she felt bad about inflicting the first 6-0 final set in a US Open women’s final since 1976 upon her friend, Stephens noted Keys had a runner-up prize of $1.825 million.

“Bad for her? She was in the finals, too,” Stephens said. “Did you see the check she’s about to get? I’m sure she’ll be just fine.”

Told she made only six unforced errors in her 61-minute triumph, Stephens was thrilled and shocked.

“Shut the front door. I don’t think that’s ever happened to me before. Oh, my God. That’s a stat. Snaps for me,” Stephens said, snapping her fingers for emphasis.

Stephens has already made her mark in the US Open locker room, noting— “They already engraved my name on the locker. Like, hello. This is awesome.”

But she was unsure if she had “arrived” as a player.

“I don’t know if I have arrived or already arrived, been arrived,” she said. “But I do know I’m a US Open champion.” AFP

Sloane Stephens of the US returns the ball to compatriot Madison Keys during their 2017 US Open Women's Singles final match at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. AFP

Aces nail 3 win in a row rd

By Jeric Lopez

T

HREE in a row.

Refusing to falter after being outplayed through three quarters, Alaska powered its way in the payoff period to escape pesky Kia, 102-94, and keep its chances of making the quarterfinals alive in the 2017 Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum yesterday.

Calvin Abueva feasted in the paint, putting the Aces on his back with a monster doubledouble outing of team-highs 26 points, on 8-of-14 shooting, and 15 rebounds.

He got plenty of help as well as Buck Henton and Jvee Casio, who both hit critical

baskets in the final minute, each scored 20 markers for more firepower.

This third straight win was huge for Alaska as it remained in the hunt for a berth in the quarterfinals, improving to 3-6 after starting out the tournament with

six straight losses.

On the other end, the hapless Picanto was eliminated with its ninth straight loss and not a single win to show.

“Gigil lang kami talaga nu’ng first three quarters. Then nu’ng fourth quarter nakuha na namin yu’ng game namin,” said Abueva of Alaska’s performance.

Trailing throughout the first three quarters and early in the fourth, the Aces just needed two solid runs, one to get them back and another to win the game.

Down by 10 to open the fourth, Alaska muscled its way back, orchestrating a 14-2 run in the middle of the quarter

to take the lead, 87-84, after Abueva’s basket with 5:16 remaining.

Both teams then went to-totoe in the next few minutes, resulting in a 94-all deadlock entering the final minute.

But a go-ahead triple by Henton with over a minute left followed by a tough fadeaway from Casio in the next possession propelled the Aces to victory.

Ping Exciminiano and Chris Banchero provided more firepower from the backcourt, adding 14 and 11 more points, respectively, for the Aces.

Kia actually played its best game of the tournament, controlling the game for most part

PSC strengthens grassroots sports program

By Peter Atencio A PARTNERSHIP with the Department of Education and Department of Interior and Local Government is expected to strengthen the country’s grassroots sports program.

Philippine Sports Commission chairman William Ramirez said this as the government

sports agency dispatched instructors and sports science specialists to around four provinces in Northern Luzon last week.

“This will help strengthen and develop a strong pool of young athletes,” said Ramirez.

Numerous coaching clinics and seminars were conducted in the northern Luzon provinces of Abra, Kalinga, Ifugao and Isabela.

So far, many teachers from the public schools turned up and showed interest.

Around 200 took pary in Kalinga, validating the need to push for the scientific method of training student athletes.

Ramirez said with the clinics and seminar, a talent search for athletes below 18 years old can begin.

All four provinces are cur-

rently preparing their athletes to join a provincial meet this October and a regional meet in February.

The coming 2018 Palarong Pambansa is among the national meets that they are preparing for.

More seminars and clinics are set to be held this week in the provinces of Quirino and Quezon.

Menor scores breakthough in bizarre Splendido finish TAGAYTAY—Rene Menor literally broke through the hard way, wearing down Thai Pasavee Lertvilai in a record six-hole playoff and snaring the ICTSI Splendido Classic crown of the PGT Asia Tour at Taal Splendido here yesterday.

Menor, who matched Lertvilai’s closing six-under 66 to force a three-way playoff with American John Michael O’Toole at 12-under 276, hit his drive on the par-5 No. 10 into the hazard but found a big lift as the Thai drove outof-bounds.

He took a penalty shot but had a closer approach for his third shot while Lertvilai had

Rene Menor savors the sweet taste of a first championship.

to tee off again from the mound, enabling the unheralded local shotmaker to finish off the PGTA QSchool topnotcher with a scrambling par and annex his first-ever championship.

“I couldn’t believe I won,” said an overwhelmed Menor, who banked $17,500 for his tough feat that nearly tripled his combined earnings in a long winless spell on the local circuit “Actually, I didn’t even expect I would be able to come back and survive a long playoff duel.”

But he did as Lertvilai blinked and wound up with a bogey and settled for runner-up purse of $11,500 in the second leg of the PGT Asia Tour sponsored by ICTSI. O’Toole, who battled from eight down by shooting a course-trying record 64 in bogey-free fashion, bowed out right in the first playoff hole on No. 18, stumbling with his first bogey in the day.

He took home $7,000.

Four more trips back to the closing par-4 hole failed to produce a winner and the Menor-Lervilai duel had to be brought to No. 10 for the sixth playoff hole.

To A7

CASH INCENTIVES. Members of the national boxing team pose with ABAP chairman Manny V. Pangilinan and ABAP president Ricky Vargas after receiving their cash incentives for collecting five medals in the recent Kuala Lumpur Southeast Asian Games at the PLDT Main Offices recently. From left: Coaches Romeo Brin and Pat Gaspi, Mario Fernandez (silver), team manager Karina Picson, Eumir Felix Marcial (gold), coach Elias Recaido Jr., Charly Suarez (bronze), sports psychologist Marcus Manalo, Ian Clark Bautista (bronze) and John Tupas-Marvin (gold).

Nadal travels long road to reach 23rd slam final

NEW YORK—Rafael Nadal, once a mere childhood prodigy from the island of Mallorca, is on the brink of his 16th Grand Slam title entering Sunday’s US Open final.

The 31-year-old Spaniard will face South Africa’s Kevin Anderson in his 23rd career Slam final.

Nadal is a heavy favorite over the Slam finalist debutant even though he has not won a hardcourt event since 2014 at Doha, a run of 34 such events that includes eight finals appearances.

When Nadal reclaimed the world number one ranking last month, it was the first since in more than three years he had

topped the list.

And when Federer lost in the US Open quarter-finals to Juan Martin del Potro, Nadal was ensured of keeping the top spot, although he was also denied a first-ever US Open meeting with the greatest rival of his time in the process.

“Is good to be number one of the world again,” Nadal said when the Flushing Meadows fortnight began.

“It’s a good achievement after three years having some troubles. So just happy for that.

“Doesn’t matter if you are seeded one or seeded 20, for me always is special to play here in a tournament that I had

success, a tournament where I enjoyed a lot of good matches and I have a great connection with the crowd.”

It has been a long journey from his youthful days under his uncle Toni’s tutoring.

Nadal won an under-12 regional crown at age eight and by 12 had captured Spanish and European age-group junior titles.

By 15, he had turned professional and was facing such foes on the global circuit as South African Kevin Anderson, his opponent in Sunday’s final.

At 17, Nadal won his first match against Roger Federer. At 19, he won the 2005

French Open in his debut, the first of nine Grand Slam titles in 10 years he would claim on the red clay of Roland Garros, cementing a legacy as the greatest player ever seen on the surface.

It was early in his career when Nadal began his habit of biting the championship trophies he wins.

Nadal added Wimbledon crowns in 2008 and 2010, an Australian Open title in 2009 and completed the career Grand Slam in 2010 by defeating Novak Djokovic in the US Open final, becoming the youngest in the Open era (since 1967) to complete the four-event career sweep. AFP

but still, it wasn’t meant to be.

Geron Johnson led all scorers with a game-high 39 points to go with nine rebounds and seven assists for Kia in a near triple-double performance.

The scores: ALASKA 102 - Abueva 26, Henton 20, Casio 20, Exciminiano 14, Banchero 11, Thoss 4, Racal 3, Baclao 2, Cruz 2, Mendoza 0, Magat 0, Pascual 0, Galliguez 0, Enciso 0.

KIA 94 - Johnson 39, Paniamogan 12, Elorde 11, Yee 11, Khobuntin 10, Ballesteros 4, Celda 3, Jaime 2, Corpuz 2, Revilla 0, Camson 0, Salva 0.

Quarterscores: 23-27, 46-51, 67-77, 102-94.

Maroons stun Tigers in opener Games Wednesday (Araneta Coliseum) 2 p.m. UE vs FEU 4 p.m. UP vs Ateneo UNIVERSITY of the Philippines banked on a triple from Paul Desiderio in the last 1.4 seconds, lifting the Fighting Maroons to a 74-73 win over University of Santo Tomas and giving team a rare opening-day win Sunday in the 80th University Athletic Association of the Philippines men’s basketball tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena.

It was just the fourth time in 10 years that the Fighting Maroons have ever won their first game of the season.

“Sabi ko sa sarili ko, mahihiya pa ba ako, eh last shot na.

Sayang naman,” said Desiderio after the Maroons joined the Ateneo Blue Eagles and the National University Bulldogs in the early lead.

The Growling Tigers held the lead for the 11th and final time at 73-71, following Marvin Lee’s two charities off Gelo Vito’s fouls in the last 5.3 seconds.

When UP coach Bo Perasol called for a time afterwards, he gave instructions to let anyone who is open to shoot a three.

“We generated excitement again for the team with that last second shot of Paul,” said Perasol.

The 20-year-old Desiderio shot a game-high 17 points, had nine rebounds and made only 2 of 11 three-point attempts in that game.

Earlier, Chibueze Ikeh knocked in 18 points to lift the Blue Eagles to an 85-65 win over the Adamson Falcons.

J-Jay Alejandro made 14 points as the NU Bulldogs gave coach Jamike Jarin a rousing debut by turning back University of the East, 86-69.

Aljun Melecio banged in 29 points for the defending champion La Salle Green Archers, who stood their ground in the fourth quarter and held off a rallying Far Eastern University for a 95-90 win. Peter Atencio

More open power billing sought B3

Business

Ray S. Eñano, Editor Roderick T. dela Cruz, Assistant Editor business@manilastandard.net extrastory2000@gmail.com MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2017

Govt wants to build cell sites IN BRIEF

By Darwin G. Amojelar

T

HE government plans to build cellular towers in the countryside as a part of the national broadband project under the public-private partnership scheme.

Households saved more money in Q3

MORE Filipino households saved money in the third quarter this year compared with the previous quarter, results of the latest Consumer Expectations Survey conducted by Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas show.

The survey showed the percentage of households with savings increased to 36.8 percent from 35.8 percent in the second quarter. Respondents said they saved money for emergencies, education, retirement, health and hospitalization, business capital and investment and purchase of real estate.

“Almost two-thirds [65.8 percent] of household savers had bank deposit accounts while 42.4 percent kept their savings at home and 28.7 percent put their money in cooperatives, paluwagan, other credit/ loan associations, and as investment,” Bangko Sentral said.

Meanwhile, the percentage of respondents who reported that they could set aside money for savings during the current quarter declined to 43 percent from 44.9 percent for the second quarter 2017. However, the proportion of those that could set aside 10 percent or more of their monthly gross family income was higher at 40.3 percent from 38.6 percent for the second quarter. Julito G. Rada

TPB expects 12m tourists by 2022 THE Tourism Promotions Board is confident on achieving the target of attracting 12 million foreign tourists into the Philippines by 2022.

TPB chief operating officer Cesar Montano described the target as “achievable” despite the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and East Asia.

“The political tension in East Asia and in some parts of the EMEA [Europe, Middle East and Africa], though considered temporary, may last long enough to affect our global tourism outlook and optimism, but there are many other countries or foreign markets that can compensate for the slack and enable us to remain on track of hitting our 12-million target by 2022,” Montano said.

The target is more than double the 5.9 million foreign tourists that visited the Philippines in full-year 2016. “It means our foreign visitor arrivals must have a CAGR [compound annual growth rate] of at least 12.6 percent over the next six years,” Montano said.

Montano said China, Taiwan, Australia and the rest of Southeast Asia were among the most promising markets that could help raise the tourist volume.

“We are shifting our focus to other high-volume markets, particularly in the Asia Pacific, in anticipating any sudden or evolving changes in our current market mix or the regional tourism landscape,” Montano said.

NGCP restores Ormoc site NATIONAL Grid Corp. of the Philippines said it energized Ormoc High Voltage Direct Current Converter Station affected by the July 6 earthquake in Visayas.

NGCP said the energization of the Ormoc HVDC meant it could now allow power sharing between the Luzon and Visayas grids.

Testing and commissioning of the restored facility was completed on Sept. 7.

NGCP said restoration work involved moving several heavy equipment from different NGCP facilities in the country to replace damaged parts such as converter transformers and breakers, among others, according to the company.

“NGCP is pleased to report that with this energization, the Visayas grid can now import power from Luzon to augment the grid’s power supply requirements and relieve generation deficiency resulting from the unavailability of earthquake-affected Leyte geothermal plants.

NGCP assures the public that it is ready to conduct similar expedited restoration activities to ensure reliable power transmission services,” it said. Alena Mae S. Flores

ILLEGAL LPG REFILLING. A composite team from the Department of Energy-Visayas Field Office and the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group raided on Sept. 8 a liquefied petroleum gas refilling station in Mandaue City, Cebu following a tip of alleged irregularities in its operations. Members of the composite team inspect three bullet tanks (two of which with a 2-ton capacity and one 4-ton capacity); 40 50-kg cylinders; one 250-kg tank; four canister refilling machines; one sealing machine; 68,000 empty canisters; 16,000 LPG-filled canisters with an estimated value of P2.7 million; three air compressors; one sealer machine; and a van being utilized for the alleged illegal operations.

Ayala to develop renewable plants in Vietnam

By Jenniffer B. Austria AC Energy Holdings Inc., the power generation unit of conglomerate Ayala Corp., unveiled a plan to build renewable energy plants with a combined capacity of several hundreds of megawatts in Vietnam over the next two to three years.

AC Energy president John Eric Francia said the company was in talks with several potential partners in Vietnam to implement the strategy.

The company’s move to

look for potential renewable projects in Vietnam is part of its thrust to reach 2,000 MW of attributable capacity by 2020, with half coming from renewable energy projects.

Francia said while the company was open to all types of technologies, it was keenly interested in renewable energy.

He said Vietnam was offering positive investment opportunities.

“I believe that Vietnam market is growing double digit and my view there is

that it is in need of greater supply. They have no reserve margin with double digit growth, so it is in need of additional investment,” Francia said.

Francia said he was hoping that a deal would be finalized soon. “We are trying our best,” he said.

AC Energy currently has 1,300 MW of capacity, including 300 MW of renewable energy.

AC Energy recently acquired Bronzeoak Clean Energy and San Carlos Clean Energy.

Bronzeoak Philippines is one of the leading renewable energy developers, having built over 250 MW of solar and biomass projects.

AC Energy also entered into a development funding arrangement with UPC Renewables Asia Pacific Holdings Ltd. and UPC Renewables Asia I Limited in June for the development of small island power projects in Indonesia.

“That partnership should keep up busy looking for expansion,” Francia said.

“We are bidding out the feasibility study first,” PPP executive director Ferdinand Pecson said.

Pecson said the cell sites would be built under the National Broadband Plan-Accelerated Tower Build or Access project, a component of the broadband network of the Department of Information and Communication Technology.

Pecson said the government would hold a public auction for the installation of cell sites which would then be leased out to telco players.

DICT Secretary Rodolfo Salalima earlier said the national broadband network would require an investment of P77 billion.

The amount could reach as high as P200 billion, if the government needs to build its own infrastructure.

The DICT was originally looking at the existing assets of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines to accelerate the rollout of NBN project.

As the country’s sole power transmission operator, NGCP has existing fiber optic facilities that run across all three grids: Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

The fiber optic network is used primarily for internal communication purposes, particularly to enable real time communication between its facilities, and with genera-

DBP releasing P1.5b for modern jeepneys THE Department of Transportation is set to receive P1.5 billon from state-owned Development Bank of the Philippines for the initial implementation of the government’s Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program.

The two agencies will sign a memorandum of understanding Monday to jumpstart PUVMP, which aims to modernize PUV operations and professionalize the public road transport sector.

PUVMP aims to help the public road transport to transition into a high-quality public transport system with greater capacity, environment-friendly low carbon emissions and efficient operations via modernization of vehicles.

DBP developed the Program Assistance to Support Alternative Driving Approaches or Pasada which will offer responsive and reasonable financing for transport corporations and cooperatives to allow them to acquire new and passenger-safe PUVs. The bank will also assist the DOTr in the design, development and implementation of an automatic fare collection system for the public road transport sector.

Under the MOU, DBP shall advise and assist DOTr in developing a financing program for the PUVMP. It shall also make available loans to finance the acquisition of new PUVs to qualified prospective borrowers.

Transport cooperatives and corporations, registered with the Office of the Transport Cooperatives, can avail of the DBP Pasada and participate in the pilot phase of the program, which will finance purchase of public utility jeepneys, buses, mini buses and utility vehicle express units. Darwin G. Amojelar

Asean meetings to boost PH trade

By Othel V. Campos

PHILEX TREE PLANTING. Philex Mining Corp. planted over 48,000 different tree species and flowering plants in over half of the targeted number of hectares of land in the towns of Tuba and Itogon, the two municipalities hosting its gold-and-copper operations in Benguet province, for this year’s reforestation program. Padcal finance group manager Roselyn Dahilan (left) and Asterio Gonzales of the IT department do their share in the treeplanting activity by a roadside of Barangay Camp 1.

Finance taps DAP experts to review appeal of 26 closed mines

By Julito G. Rada THE Development Academy of the Philippines will assist the government in the review process for the 26 mines ordered closed or suspended by former Environment secretary Regina Lopez early this year, the Finance Department said over the weekend.

The DoF said the Min-

ing Industry Coordinating Council tapped the expertise of the academy to help in the implementation and management of the review process for the said mines.

Aside from handling the review, DAP will also be tasked to facilitate the procurement of duly-screened consultant/ experts who will comprise the members of the five technical review teams of the MICC

tors for and distribution utilities.

NGCP, which holds the 25-year concession contract to operate the country’s power transmission network, is comprised of Monte Oro Grid Resources Corp., Calaca High Power Corp. and the State Grid Corp. of China as technical partner.

The NBN plan is focused on accelerating investments in the country, mobilizing and engaging public and private sectors, connecting and increasing adoption and usage of technology tools and solutions across the Philippines.

The NBN project is expected to be completed in one year to three years.

A national broadband network project was scrapped in 2007 during the Arroyo administration, amid allegations of corruption in the awarding of a $329-million construction contract to Chinese telecommunications company ZTE Corp.

President Rodrigo Duterte, in his State of the Nation Address in July 2016, directed DICT to develop a national broadband plan to accelerate the deployment of fiber optic cables and wireless technologies to improve Internet speed.

The president approved the new plan in March.

It will serve as the data backbone for the national government portal and free public Wi-Fi.

that will assess various aspects of the mining operations under scrutiny.

The DAP will also identify an overall team leader who will ensure the “timely and efficient conduct of the review” as well as “consolidate and summarize the periodic and final reports” that the TRTs will submit, Finance Undersecretary Bayani Agabin said.

The five TRTs will look at the environmental, economic, social, legal and technical aspects of the mining operations.

The cost of the procurement of experts is estimated at P13 million. Each technical review team member will be paid P100,000 per mine site reviewed.

The DoF said 31 out of the 35 experts shortlisted by the

Department of Environment and Natural Resources confirmed their availability for the review process.

The secretaries of the DOF and DENR co-chair the MICC. Established in 1973, DAP is mandated to assist in the country’s development efforts in two ways: as change catalyst and as capacity builder.

TRADE Undersecretary Ceferino Rodolfo said Sunday the Philippines is expected to benefit from the renewed cooperation brought about by the Asean Economic Ministers meeting and dialog with East Asian trade partners China, Japan and South Korea.

“The economic work plan will set broader goals of building a stronger APT [Asean plus three] community in the long-run,” said Rodolfo, the Philippine lead for the 49th Asean Economic Ministers’ Meeting and Related Meetings in Pasay City.

Rodolfo said the Philippines could benefit from the APT cooperation initiatives with priorities given to e-commerce in moving the country towards a digital economy; supply chain connectivity; MSME development; and trade facilitation.

The development of the work plan can further assist the Philippines in its pursuit towards greater connectivity to the three trading partners.

Asean ministers noted the strong performance of trade and investment relations in 2016 between Asean and the three East Asian countries.

B2

Business

MONDAY,SEPTEMBER 11, 2017 extrastory2000@gmail.com

Metro Pacific’s toll unit aims to double revenues in 4 years

By Darwin G. Amojelar A TOLLWAY unit of Metro Pacific Investment Corp. expects to double revenues in four years, boosted by the completion of new expressway projects, a top executive said over the weekend.

“This year, we expect P1.46billon revenues and we hope to be able to double that in four years. So by 2020, we hope to be able to do P3.4 billion,” Metro Pacific Tollways South president and chief executive Luigi Bautista said.

Metro Pacific Tollways South handles the concession of all expressways in the south of Manila.

Bautista attributed the growth in revenues to the new and exist-

ing projects plus new road segments that would be opened in the coming years.

“And today, you will notice, traffic is really growing. We’re averaging about 140,000 transactions a day. When we took over in January 2013, the traffic number was about 90,000. And it continues to grow,” Bautista said.

Bautista also said MPCala Holdings Inc. was constructing the P35-billon Cavite Laguna Expressway, a four-lane, 47-kilometer closed-system toll expressway connecting Cavitex and South Luzon Expressway.

The expressway will start from Cavitex in Kawit, Cavite and end at the South Luzon ExpresswayMamplasan Interchange in Biñan, Laguna.

North Korea tension to weigh on market

By Jenniffer B. Austria

S

HARE prices are expected to trade sideways this week as investors stay on the sidelines amid the geopolitical tensions in the region caused by North Korea.

Philstocks Financial trader Justino Calaycay said investors in the equities market would keep watching developments overseas, as the US presents a resolution before the United Nations for further sanctions on North Korea.

“With risks still elevated as evidenced by the movement, or

the lack of it, in overseas markets Friday, the floor opens for another week of trades sans the degree of excitement that stirs optimism and translates to higher share prices – in general, that is,” Calaycay said.

“Markets will be watching action in the United Nations as

the US presents its resolution for further sanctions on North Korea.

China and Russia have voiced opposition to the move but kept some doors open for a possible support for the move, given certain conditions,” he said.

The expected increase in fuel prices this week could also push inflation rate higher in September from 3.1 percent in August.

Calaycay said given these scenarios, the PSEi, the 30-company benchmark index of the Philippine Stock Exchange, would face the challenge of keeping it above the 8,000-point level and breaking past the 8,100 line.

MANILA STANDARD BUSINESS WEEKLY STOCKS REVIEW STOCKS

SEPTEMBER 4-8, 2017 Close Volume

Value

AG Finance Asia United Bank Banco de Oro Unibank Inc. Bank of PI China Bank BDO Leasing & Fin. INc. Bright Kindle Resources Citystate Savings COL Financial Eastwest Bank Filipino Fund Inc. First Abacus I-Remit Inc. Manulife Fin. Corp.

MEDCO Holdings Metrobank Natl. Reinsurance Corp.

PB Bank Phil Bank of Comm Phil. National Bank Phil. Savings Bank Philippine trust Co. PSE Inc. RCBC `A’ Security Bank Sun Life Financial Union Bank Vantage Equities

4.61 59.55 127.70 103.50 36 4.17 1.43 10 16 30.35 8.58 0.68 1.69 895.00 0.700 86.45 0.91 13.06 25.50 60.15 88 115 236.6 53.8 243.4 1805.00 86.90 1.36

Aboitiz Power Corp.

Agrinurture Inc. Alliance Tuna Intl Inc. Alsons Cons.

Asiabest Group Basic Energy Corp.

Bogo Medelin C. Azuc De Tarlac Cemex Holdings Century Food Chemphil Conc. Aggr. ‘A’ Conc. Aggr. ‘B’ Cirtek Holdings (Chips) Concepcion Crown Asia Da Vinci Capital Del Monte DNL Industries Inc. Eagle Cement Emperador Energy Devt. Corp. (EDC) EEI Euro-Med Lab First Gen Corp.

First Holdings ‘A’ Ginebra San Miguel Inc. Holcim Philippines Inc. Integ. Micro-Electronics Ionics Inc Jollibee Foods Corp.

Liberty Flour LMG Chemicals Mabuhay Vinyl Macay Holdings Manila Water Co. Inc. Manila Wine Maxs Group Megawide Mla. Elect. Co `A’ MG Holdings Panasonic Mfg Phil. Corp.

Pepsi-Cola Products Phil.

Petron Corporation Petroenergy Res. Corp.

Phil H2O Pilipinas Shell Phinma Corporation Phinma Energy Phoenix Petroleum Phils.

Pryce Corp. `A’ RFM Corporation Roxas Holdings San Miguel ‘Pure Foods `A’ SFA Semicon Shakeys Pizza SPC Power Corp.

Swift Foods, Inc. TKC Steel Corp.

Universal Robina Victorias Milling Vitarich Corp.

Vivant Corp.

Vulcan Ind’l.

39.8 8.8 0.82 1.44 21.45 0.245 143.8 23.30 6 17.36 165 83 95 36 64.95 1.91 5.47 11.64 10.320 15.04 7.03 6.89 14.58 1.8 17.74 67.95 14.28 12.10 15.24 1.780 244.00 59.40 4.35 3.31 23.00 30.8 19.5 19.16 16.8 269.60 0.236 11.30 3 10.34 6.88 7.1 66.7 10.08 1.82 12.00 6.99 4.35 4.48 309 2.5 12.5 4.51 0.143 1.21 153.5 3.73 2.22 28.10 0.98

Abacus Cons. `A’ Aboitiz Equity Alliance Global Inc. Anglo Holdings A Anscor `A’ ATN Holdings A ATN Holdings B Ayala Corp `A’ Cosco Capital DMCI Holdings Filinvest Dev. Corp.

Forum Pacific GT Capital House of Inv. JG Summit Holdings Jolliville Holdings Keppel Holdings `A’ Lopez Holdings Corp.

Lodestar Invt. Holdg.Corp.

LT Group Mabuhay Holdings `A’ Metro Pacific Inv. Corp.

MJCI Investments Inc. Pacifica `A’ Prime Media Hldg Prime Orion San Miguel Corp `A’ Seafront `A’ SM Investments Inc. Solid Group Inc. South China Res. Inc. Transgrid Top Frontier Unioil Res. & Hldgs Wellex Industries Zeus Holdings PROPERTY 8990 HLDG Anchor Land Holdings Inc. A. Brown Co., Inc. Araneta Prop `A’ Arthaland Corp.

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

Double Dragon Empire East Land Ever Gotesco Global-Estate Filinvest Land,Inc. Interport `A’ Keppel Properties Megaworld

0.355 72.75 14.70 1.13 6.99 0.315 0.305 913 8.1 15.76 7.52 0.198 1110 8.05 73.50 5.26 5.35 6.89 0.92 17.5 0.430 6.76 3.22 0.0500 0.970 2.060 97.00 2.66 818.00 1.48 0.86 183.20 300.000 0.2800 0.1990 0.220

FINANCIAL 27,800,829.00 8,873,535.00 1,787,838,470.00 994,001,397.00 23,276,115.00 535,260.00 4,498,970.00 20,000.00 898,830.00 192,248,410.00 2,763,057.00 4,080.00 150,710.00 206,350.00 51,770,050.00 996,376,430.50 8,028,340.00 1,964,736.00 3,189,655.00 10,515,403.50 96,868.00 213,267.00 26,818,274.00 414,045,090.00 802,930,988.00 1,548,850.00 9,507,602.50 408,300.00 INDUSTRIAL 39,349,905 198,214,090.00 8,648,000 76,850,210.00 4,590,000 3,708,400.00 3,243,000 4,650,110.00 521,700 10,795,842.00 5,670,000 1,378,000.00 3,710 534,047.00 236,900 5,432,605.00 14,642,600 88,457,117.00 7,058,200 123,124,580.00 190 31,355.00 11,180 897,846.00 100 9,500.00 3,110,000 111,835,280.00 777,190 50,123,484.50 2,166,000 4,158,530.00 465,100 2,523,277.00 74,900 853,422.00 16,748,300 175,718,870.00 4,339,100 65,247,492.00 12,485,700 87,595,213.00 52,591,700 360,657,867.00 16,760,400 239,350,218.00 91,000 162,320.00 12,691,000 218,001,614.00 353,190 23,916,080.00 19,400 276,440.00 597,200 7,220,484.00 11,313,900 173,454,148.00 3,765,000 6,731,840.00 3,562,660 861,695,384.00 3,240 191,525.00 3,547,000 14,952,350.00 816,000 2,734,640.00 11,300 245,245.00 5,198,600 160,110,200.00 553,600 10,761,944.00 6,292,300 120,245,120.00 16,746,300 279,667,320.00 1,644,220 443,171,194.00 35,900,000 8,330,850.00 138,300 1,592,776.00 3,370,000 10,088,740.00 41,720,100 430,595,173.00 583,000 4,010,494.00 401,300 2,821,905.00 552,320 36,684,614.50 2,222,600 22,227,308.00 4,472,000 8,136,440.00 2,242,600 26,627,830.00 2,502,700 17,295,605.00 13,572,000 59,425,040.00 272,000 1,196,020.00 57,550 17,860,380.00 1,263,000 3,120,970.00 7,003,700 88,603,178.00 373,000 1,686,870.00 1,520,000 217,670.00 783,000 941,440.00 5,795,780 875,444,168.00 65,000 244,340.00 50,937,000 113,432,890.00 2,200 62,160.00 797,000 782,470.00 HOLDING FIRMS 10,670,000 3,756,450.00 4,997,830 367,932,288.00 50,536,600 719,566,924.00 168,000 188,250.00 82,000 569,318.00 8,220,000 2,569,250.00 36,120,000 11,016,500.00 1,073,730 983,358,260.00 11,922,200 96,613,478.00 32,668,000 507,943,860.00 161,200 1,214,273.00 740,000 147,850.00 888,865 991,909,955.00 190,300 1,527,012.00 5,225,330 382,056,368.50 22,000 111,366.00 58,000 311,500.00 4,171,300 28,519,716.00 10,404,000 9,509,280.00 12,145,100 216,213,318.00 21,350,000 9,173,350.00 134,322,200 890,170,687.00 5,000 16,100.00 362,630,000 18,304,160.00 105,000 107,140.00 1,970,000 4,050,940.00 835,990 82,037,154.00 31,000 83,050.00 1,493,830 1,224,002,005.00 3,272,000 4,839,840.00 18,000 15,480.00 50 9,160.00 8,130 2,437,764.00 450,000 126,000.00 4,600,000 906,390.00 10,180,000 2,266,230.00

5.250 6.80 1.22 2.420 1.050 43.200 3.82 5.34 4.92 5.94 5.99 0.510 1.30 1.550 0.231 0.495 43.5 0.690 0.154 1.52 1.88 0.99 4.10 5.27

4,844,100 64,600 69,547,920 799,000 23,904,000 43,777,100 3,738,000 24,600 9,507,400 300 3,000 61,141,000 2,683,000 3,602,000 197,400,000 4,947,000 1,495,000 6,035,000 2,980,000 94,859,000 76,563,000 21,522,000 9,000 253,932,800

5,611,100 149,220 13,975,290 9,591,230 648,900 132,000 3,193,000 2,000 56,100 6,293,200 324,300 6,000 91,000 230 70,101,000 11,423,300 8,368,000 149,400 123,500 173,900 1,100 1,930 113,250 8,068,760 3,303,370 860 109,510 298,000

25,597,812.00 436,228.00 45,363,920.00 1,918,860.00 25,196,960.00 1,876,843,420.00 14,077,570.00 131,043.00 46,898,969.00 1,782.00 17,190.00 31,788,370.00 3,553,010.00 5,458,680.00 46,491,030.00 2,456,785.00 66,205,485.00 4,204,530.00 456,160.00 144,973,250.00 143,139,840.00 20,772,560.00 36,900.00 1,300,619,080.00

AUGUST 29-31, 2017 Close Volume Value 4.41 59.45 127.10 105.90 36.05 3.96 1.35 10 16.1 30.4 8.10 0.68 1.65 895.00 0.710 87.6 0.98 13.16 25.50 60.50 88.5 117.7 238 51.3 250 1800.00 86.55 1.37

530,000 30,370 6,598,220 4,284,210 477,800 4,000 92,000 1,000 38,300 10,960,000 4,400 10,000 5,100 120 5,782,000 8,791,010 4,586,000 43,100 800 137,910 1,810 160 242,960 204,980 9,930,950 255 156,070 198,000

2,425,970.00 1,803,738.50 842,123,685.00 445,100,545.00 17,190,190.00 15,830.00 123,330.00 9,959.00 609,958.00 338,812,405.00 35,640.00 6,800.00 39,650.00 107,750.00 4,098,340.00 771,201,272.50 4,501,820.00 567,096.00 20,400.00 8,346,802.00 160,150.00 18,770.00 58,014,128.00 10,551,484.00 2,484,486,718.00 459,000.00 13,527,203.00 266,980.00

39.5 9.1 0.81 1.4 22.3 0.240 145 24.00 6 17.28

4,565,200 4,005,400 2,947,000 1,657,000 132,600 2,640,000 2,660 305,700 19,501,400 4,276,800

179,665,735.00 37,160,179.00 2,371,120.00 2,309,690.00 2,957,060.00 632,160.00 385,665.00 7,528,760.00 120,435,464.00 73,925,334.00

81.5

9,030

743,533.00

34 64 1.92 5.4 11.68 10.340 15.18 7.02 6.78 13.30 1.8 16.82 67 14.36 12.24 15.22 1.810 238.20 60.00 3.84 3.45 22.80 30.95

1,941,600 15,270 632,000 220,400 135,400 13,719,900 5,037,500 2,329,500 62,124,300 1,585,200 38,000 3,767,900 166,780 78,600 429,100 9,404,400 1,250,000 2,181,490 640 201,000 289,000 5,200 6,356,300

65,859,610.00 977,289.50 1,220,260.00 1,182,524.00 1,521,014.00 143,413,068.00 76,837,768.00 16,467,988.00 422,487,404.00 21,015,014.00 68,400.00 63,501,130.00 11,229,189.50 1,092,788.00 5,285,162.00 144,484,960.00 2,260,540.00 520,480,222.00 38,407.00 753,690.00 998,770.00 118,560.00 196,071,375.00

19.86 17.5 271.00 0.237 11.80 2.97 9.80 6.85 7.15 65.95 10.10 1.81 11.88 6.71 4.33 4.36 307.8 2.55 12.7 4.5 0.143 1.20 146.1 3.85 2.19 28.50 1.00

3,021,000 11,613,600 910,830 6,180,000 180,100 4,409,000 29,222,800 1,489,800 727,300 364,940 44,400 1,283,000 784,300 221,400 15,203,000 97,000 59,040 969,000 2,228,700 371,000 950,000 223,000 4,113,000 72,000 36,742,000 2,400 150,000

59,724,908.00 204,658,482.00 246,276,178.00 1,474,340.00 2,041,438.00 13,186,010.00 283,182,160.00 10,116,385.00 5,177,374.00 23,984,173.00 447,730.00 2,326,730.00 9,459,694.00 1,459,327.00 65,519,800.00 421,820.00 18,086,600.00 2,443,170.00 28,291,724.00 1,669,820.00 136,570.00 270,920.00 611,102,306.00 271,390.00 79,207,910.00 65,815.00 148,620.00

0.355 74.45 13.90 1.15 7.00 0.320 0.310 920 7.84 15.70 7.60 0.206 1118 7.97 71.80 5 5.4 6.76 0.93 17.72

6,610,000 28,984,080 30,279,100 468,000 123,600 1,530,000 60,000 1,175,530 22,894,700 18,183,300 1,019,000 520,000 437,705 36,300 4,170,150 12,200 50,000 3,878,400 4,555,000 3,922,500

2,334,300.00 2,125,059,791.00 416,005,832.00 515,790.00 865,133.00 478,350.00 18,600.00 1,061,586,795.00 183,771,394.00 282,317,890.00 7,744,578.00 215,310.00 493,518,835.00 281,339.00 297,657,511.50 61,320.00 270,000.00 27,038,546.00 4,243,060.00 69,175,876.00

6.35

49,844,500

321,345,870.00

0.0440 0.940 2.060 100.00 2.63 810.50 1.53

16,100,000 21,000 1,137,000 154,070 8,000 1,041,710 2,748,000

711,000.00 19,520.00 2,355,610.00 15,400,469.50 21,560.00 850,362,835.00 4,144,780.00

300.000 0.2800 0.2100 0.225

11,170 560,000 1,010,000 2,570,000

3,367,648.00 156,800.00 207,580.00 583,700.00

5.350 6.20 1.20 2.430 1.030 42.000 3.68 5.35 5.04 5.94

1,535,000 20,100 76,234,000 1,643,000 37,329,000 23,813,300 2,978,000 416,000 8,349,800 87,000

8,193,113.00 132,412.00 90,087,690.00 3,945,370.00 38,314,590.00 1,004,051,330.00 10,987,030.00 2,213,448.00 41,943,186.00 467,780.00

0.530 1.33 1.530 0.228 0.510 43.6 0.690 0.156 1.63 1.91 0.97 4.12 4.94

56,460,000 3,313,000 4,782,000 149,330,000 4,877,000 437,100 850,000 1,720,000 22,669,000 35,185,000 126,000 6,000 62,422,000

30,264,590.00 4,448,580.00 7,628,080.00 34,915,660.00 2,436,335.00 19,307,010.00 591,700.00 264,840.00 37,485,060.00 67,145,060.00 123,220.00 24,720.00 305,742,370.00

STOCKS

SEPTEMBER 4-8, 2017 Close Volume

MRC Allied Ind. Phil. Estates Corp.

Phil. Realty `A’ Phil. Tob. Flue Cur & Redry Primex Corp.

Robinson’s Land `B’ Rockwell Shang Properties Inc. SM Prime Holdings Sta. Lucia Land Inc. Starmalls Suntrust Home Dev. Inc. Vista Land & Lifescapes

0.330 0.5400 0.520 28.65 5.91 23.35 1.78 3.28 33.50 1.02 7.49 0.870 5.990

2GO Group’ ABS-CBN Acesite Hotel APC Group, Inc. Apollo Global Asian Terminals Inc. Berjaya Phils. Inc. Bloomberry Boulevard Holdings Cebu Air Inc. (5J) Centro Esc. Univ.

Chelsea DFNN Inc. Easy Call “Common” FEUI Globe Telecom GMA Network Inc. Golden Haven Harbor Star I.C.T.S.I. Imperial Res. `A’ IPeople Inc. `A’ IPM Holdings Island Info ISM Communications Jackstones LBC Express Leisure & Resorts Lorenzo Shipping Macroasia Corp.

Manila Broadcasting Manila Bulletin Manila Jockey Melco Crown Metro Retail NOW Corp.

Pacific Online Sys. Corp.

PAL Holdings Inc. Paxys Inc. Phil. Racing Club Phil. Seven Corp.

Philweb.Com Inc. PLDT Common PremiereHorizon Premium Leisure Puregold Robinsons RTL SBS Phil. Corp.

SSI Group STI Holdings Transpacific Broadcast Travellers Waterfront Phils.

Wilcon Depot

20.9 40.6 1.6 0.550 0.039 11.2 5.04 11.66 0.0740 109.7 9.28 10.56 7.75 3.23 970 2000 6.07 19.42 3.00 106 3.03 12.38 8.45 0.169 1.3500 2.93 15.7 4.50 1.48 12.04 19.48 0.560 2.38 9.2 4.17 2.500 11.04 5.11 3 8.25 170.00 10.30 1695.00 0.405 1.660 51.15 95.00 5.86 4.47 1.490 1.94 3.56 1.240 9.400

Abra Mining Apex `A’ Apex `B’ Atlas Cons. `A’ Atok-Big Wedge `A’ Benguet Corp `A’ Benguet Corp `B’ Century Peak Metals Hldgs Coal Asia Dizon Ferronickel Geograce Res. Phil. Inc. Lepanto `A’ Lepanto `B’ Manila Mining `A’ Manila Mining `B’ Marcventures Hldgs., Inc. Nickelasia Nihao Mineral Resources Omico Oriental Peninsula Res. Oriental Pet. `A’ Oriental Pet. `B’ Philex `A’ PhilexPetroleum Philodrill Corp. `A’ Phinma Petro Semirara Corp.

United Paragon

0.0028 1.75 1.71 5.57 13.68 1.8800 1.8600 1.29 0.385 8.60 2.650 0.275 0.185 0.199 0.011 0.0120 2.08 7.98 1.9 0.5400 1.1500 0.0120 0.0130 8.90 5.05 0.0130 2.6700 178.00 0.0080

ABS-CBN Holdings Corp.

Ayala Corp. Pref `B1’ Ayala Corp. Pref ‘B2’ Alco Preferred B DD PREF First Gen F First Gen G GLOBE PREF P GMA Holdings Inc. GTCAP PREF A GTCAP PREF B Leisure and Resort MWIDE PREF PCOR-Preferred A PCOR-Preferred B PF Pref 2 PNX PREF 3A PNX PREF 3B SMC Preferred B SMC Preferred C SMC Preferred D SMC Preferred E SMC Preferred F SMC Preferred H SMC Preferred I Swift Pref

40.55 525 521 106 105.2 107.3 115 516 5.79 1020 1025 1.05 108 1049 1119 1012 105 110 76 80.85 77 78.5 81.5 78.65 80.65 2.29

LR Warrant

2.600

Makati Fin. Corp.

Italpinas Philab Holdings Xurpas

3 4.4 5 6.06

First Metro ETF

121.5

USD DMPL A1

10.5

AUGUST 29-31, 2017 Close Volume Value

Value

300,950,000 76,689,000 12,894,000 600 19,026,600 16,178,400 647,000 3,211,000 29,358,300 6,780,000 2,000 675,000 13,897,600

91,703,000.00 42,578,040.00 6,599,300.00 17,190.00 108,479,408.00 375,450,515.00 1,155,950.00 10,284,610.00 1,257,458,630.00 6,880,320.00 13,497.00 587,630.00 82,904,528.00 SERVICES 554,900 11,276,308.00 248,300 10,122,820.00 1,469,000 2,358,580.00 43,339,000 24,083,770.00 83,600,000 3,370,800.00 1,500 16,764.00 80,000 402,804.00 68,233,200 791,287,110.00 48,930,000 3,593,440.00 2,269,980 245,990,809.00 30,500 283,804.00 13,691,900 144,309,142.00 556,600 4,280,609.00 1,000 3,230.00 1,220 1,183,400.00 153,750 308,781,805.00 1,127,300 6,854,470.00 2,432,400 45,460,688.00 22,783,000 65,308,160.00 4,515,720 475,112,847.00 64,000 195,520.00 72,900 898,422.00 1,494,200 12,611,631.00 20,640,000 3,502,600.00 535,000 721,700.00 235,000 705,150.00 60,600 949,728.00 3,022,000 13,722,030.00 12,174,000 18,321,420.00 25,774,100 303,982,614.00 74,900 1,447,896.00 226,000 127,010.00 795,000 1,895,940.00 42,063,400 388,497,420.00 7,660,000 32,335,000.00 20,345,000 49,946,780.00 26,600 293,456.00 86,200 444,353.00 28,000 82,610.00 26,100 212,325.00 858,130 146,398,639.00 10,212,500 107,321,670.00 436,700 752,964,665.00 3,510,000 1,400,950.00 67,376,000 234,226,910.00 12,640,110 630,522,266.00 5,005,600 466,847,715.00 372,500 2,184,311.00 21,304,000 97,469,140.00 34,400,000 51,232,960.00 1,821,000 3,332,540.00 4,648,000 16,167,050.00 79,716,000 100,866,080.00 43,728,000 405,803,166.00 MINING & OIL 3,103,000,000 8,434,600.00 28,693,000 49,683,640.00 3,670,000 6,280,030.00 4,074,800 21,646,901.00 3,000 41,052.00 39,000 72,750.00 18,000 33,220.00 17,519,000 22,313,590.00 900,000 505,300.00 84,200 745,357.00 52,065,000 137,555,880.00 48,330,000 12,972,300.00 45,330,000 8,337,600.00 36,130,000 7,192,350.00 405,300,000 4,406,800.00 55,900,000 656,600.00 4,417,000 8,940,450.00 70,072,200 547,300,791.00 528,000 995,150.00 922,000 490,160.00 13,230,000 15,409,010.00 639,200,000 8,295,400.00 275,100,000 3,819,500.00 3,071,500 27,156,645.00 55,654,000 269,264,730.00 705,100,000 9,087,900.00 556,000 1,354,020.00 2,208,420 386,684,958.00 56,000,000 443,700.00 PREFERRED 1,627,000 65,566,210.00 32,010 16,495,080.00 22,400 11,646,760.00 49,180 5,213,080.00 56,940 6,012,017.00 19,620 2,197,239.00 26,010 2,991,050.00 24,100 12,431,600.00 1,628,200 9,458,724.00 10,505 10,660,055.00 16,425 16,742,665.00 686,000 727,400.00 1,170 126,360.00 7,370 7,790,200.00 40 44,760.00 2,925 2,966,535.00 7,170 750,745.00 5,000 550,000.00 78,540 5,994,564.50 125,200 10,088,878.00 10,950 843,545.00 49,900 3,935,170.00 193,750 15,797,606.00 175,300 13,932,131.00 115,570 9,270,480.00 6,000 13,550.00 WARRANTS & BONDS 974,000 2,504,970.00 SME 2,000 6,000.00 3,552,000 15,504,870.00 265,400 1,155,309.00 16,371,100 100,360,662.00 EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS 28,710 3,480,037.00 DOLLAR DENONIMATED SEC. 11,050 116,213.00

0.285 0.6000 0.530

71,400,000 34,848,000 13,534,000

20,950,750.00 20,230,930.00 7,220,260.00

5.22 23.20 1.78 3.25 33.40 1.02 7.5 0.900 5.950

6,028,500 7,086,700 1,107,000 642,000 42,492,300 2,049,000 300 443,000 14,652,000

31,672,687.00 164,050,765.00 1,999,170.00 2,069,260.00 1,429,036,710.00 2,070,940.00 2,250.00 391,450.00 86,385,532.00

19.1 41.4 1.7 0.590 0.040 10.84 5.3 11.22 0.0760 108.3

283,600 81,000 432,000 15,451,000 42,000,000 200 13,000 66,370,100 46,490,000 730,440

5,517,682.00 3,362,910.00 734,260.00 9,023,580.00 1,317,470.00 2,168.00 68,710.00 733,761,254.00 3,545,180.00 78,938,090.00

10.24 7.90

10,949,400 452,400

114,441,044.00 3,669,877.00

970 2000 6.09 17.78 2.32 104.4 3.03 11.46 8.51 0.171 1.3800 3 15.8 4.60 1.47 10.60 21.15 0.560 2.4 8.89 4.29 2.400 11.06 5.19

600 145,870 610,600 1,390,900 1,382,000 3,437,250 66,000 30,500 1,066,200 6,900,000 408,000 106,000 5,600 4,477,000 7,402,000 1,765,400 27,800 35,000 154,000 23,906,000 8,463,000 2,934,000 12,200 51,300

291,000.00 292,277,380.00 3,719,139.00 24,199,154.00 3,248,380.00 358,336,105.00 198,740.00 376,920.00 9,084,097.00 1,185,650.00 552,360.00 314,930.00 87,150.00 20,569,860.00 10,970,790.00 18,627,856.00 580,630.00 19,600.00 374,000.00 216,724,686.00 36,073,120.00 7,000,940.00 134,844.00 266,452.00

170.00 10.12 1730.00 0.400 1.620 48.05 90.75 5.91 4.78 1.490 1.84 3.41 1.290 8.870

225,230 2,818,400 254,615 3,550,000 7,540,000 5,645,800 1,424,550 1,962,900 28,890,400 32,696,000 8,000 955,000 46,705,000 9,481,300

38,737,277.00 29,272,960.00 433,449,365.00 1,423,850.00 12,175,880.00 272,106,475.00 128,507,278.00 11,530,210.00 170,331,490.00 47,071,060.00 14,800.00 3,248,830.00 58,339,770.00 83,045,001.00

0.0029 1.66

873,000,000 29,421,000

2,449,400.00 50,122,210.00

5.14 13.68 1.8300 1.8100 1.23 0.400 8.70 2.570 0.275 0.183 0.193 0.011 0.0110 1.97 7.22 1.89 0.5600 1.1300 0.0130 0.0140 8.61 4.26 0.0130 2.5100 173.60 0.0082

1,274,800 1,300 37,000 74,000 2,474,000 3,400,000 19,200 39,052,000 3,010,000 10,390,000 350,000 84,800,000 30,300,000 705,000 20,965,000 123,000 1,102,000 1,419,000 443,800,000 109,300,000 1,465,200 25,772,000 280,900,000 51,000 4,689,960 11,000,000

6,446,917.00 17,808.00 67,920.00 135,470.00 2,960,330.00 1,350,350.00 167,315.00 100,716,390.00 828,400.00 1,892,040.00 67,580.00 908,500.00 363,300.00 1,381,640.00 152,422,835.00 233,640.00 603,770.00 1,584,780.00 5,555,000.00 1,606,800.00 12,830,676.00 111,979,910.00 3,537,300.00 128,850.00 811,568,436.00 90,000.00

40 516.5 520 106 105.7 107.2 112.3 516 5.82 1020 1020 1.06 108 1065

3,861,800 15,720 1,100 13,300 33,610 50 1,000 5,300 30,190,200 4,990 2,170 373,000 24,300 10,060

156,181,025.00 8,119,930.00 572,000.00 1,409,800.00 3,551,472.00 5,360.00 112,300.00 2,739,305.00 175,706,968.00 5,089,800.00 2,194,790.00 395,130.00 2,577,100.00 10,687,575.00

1016 104 112.9 77 80.1 77 79.95 81.75 79.5 80.3

1,050 9,890 60 13,370 64,290 3,640 7,100 28,150 16,000 13,400

1,066,800.00 1,029,702.00 6,774.00 1,028,895.00 5,200,570.00 280,280.00 567,645.00 2,301,020.00 1,272,000.00 1,076,020.00

2.630

1,029,000

2,686,900.00

2.7 4.09 5.09 5.79

1,000 1,815,000 72,800 8,238,900

2,700.00 7,543,650.00 361,706.00 46,808,532.00

120.2

17,350

2,093,166.00

10.6

1,880

19,919.40

WEEKLY MOST TRADED STOCKS Abra Mining Philodrill Corp. `A’ Oriental Pet. `A’ Manila Mining `A’ Pacifica `A’ MRC Allied Ind. Oriental Pet. `B’ Megaworld Crown Equities Inc. Metro Pacific Inv. Corp.

VOLUME 3,103,000,000 705,100,000 639,200,000 405,300,000 362,630,000 300,950,000 275,100,000 253,932,800 197,400,000 134,322,200

STOCKS Ayala Land `B’ Banco de Oro Unibank Inc. Megaworld SM Prime Holdings SM Investments Inc. Metrobank Bank of PI GT Capital Ayala Corp `A’ Metro Pacific Inv. Corp.

VALUE 1,876,843,420.00 1,787,838,470.00 1,300,619,080.00 1,257,458,630.00 1,224,002,005.00 996,376,430.50 994,001,397.00 991,909,955.00 983,358,260.00 890,170,687.00

The PSEi gained 0.8 percent last week to close at 8,022.75 on Sept. 8, while the broader all-share index climbed 0.9 percent to 4,763.30. The bellwether was also up 17.3 percent since the start of the year.

Except for the financial subsector which declined 0.9 percent last week, all other sub-indices ended in the green led by mining and oil which rallied 4.2 percent, industrial which rose 2.1 percent, property which gained 1.7 percent and holding firms which advanced 0.7 percent.

Foreign investors were net sellers by P1.09 billion last week. Average daily turnover declined to P6.8 billion from the previous week’s average of P8 billion.

Top gainers last week were Nickel Asia Corp. which jumped 10.5 percent to P7.98, Megaworld Corp. which rose 6.9 percent to P5.57 and Metro Pacific Investments Corp. which climbed 6.5 percent to P6.76.

Heavy losers included SSI Group Inc. which fell 6.5 percent to P4.47, Megawide Construction Corp. which dipped 4 percent to P16.80 and San Miguel Corp. which went down 3 percent to P97.

PPA’s income rises 20% to P5.58b STATE-RUN Philippine Ports Authority said net income rose 20.5 percent in the first seven months from a year ago, boosted by robust domestic and international trade.

Latest data from PPA showed that net income reached P5.58 billion as of end July, higher than P4.63 billion registered a year earlier. The figure also exceeded by 45.6 percent the income target for the period of P3.83 billion.

“The sustained positive outcome in shipping and trade at the ports, resulting from the country’s upbeat economic and business atmosphere and heightened domestic demand, continue to spark progression in PPA’s operational and financial performance,” PPA general manager Jay Daniel Santiago said.

PPA said revenues increased 7.4 percent in the seven-month period to P8.68 billion from P8.07 billion a year ago. The amount was also higher by 5 percent than the target of P8.26 billion.

Revenues, however, were dragged by the low collection from lay-up fees that sank 77.5 percent and storage fees that slid 8.5 percent.

Remittances from port operators International Container Terminal Services Inc., Asian Terminals Inc. as well as cargo-handling fees and port dues contributed the bulk of the revenues, growing by 12.8 percent, 11.4 percent, 12 percent and 11.2 percent, respectively.

FMI, which is purely a passive income on investment in Treasury Bonds and other temporary/short-term investments placed with the state-owned agency’s depository banks, posted a 34.73-percent hike with a total of P60.75 million, from against last year’s figure of P45.09 million.

Total expenditures, covering both operating and nonoperating expenses, amounted to P3.09 billion, down by almost 10 percent from the 2016 figure of P3.44 billion.

Darwin G. Amojelar

Business PH eyes increased ties with Russia

By Othel V. Campos THE Philippines has pushed for the expansion of trade relations with the Russian Far East during the recent 3rd Eastern Economic Forum held in Vladivostok, Russia, the Philippine Economic Zone Authority said over the weekend.

Peza deputy director general Theo Panga said the capital city of Vladisvostok would play a key role in generating investments to the Philippines because of its status as the emerging scientific and educational center in the Far East.

Vladivostok has the largest Russian port facing the Pacific ocean and is the main starting terminal for the Trans-Siberian portion of the Eurasian Land Bridge or the New Silk road.

“In keeping with President Duterte’s independent foreign policy, Peza has aggressively reached out to the Arab sheiks from the Gulf Cooperation Council states and Chinese tycoons from the mainland as potential sources of new foreign direct investments for the country,” he said.

Peza, to further diversify the country’s foreign direct investments mix, is exploring opportunities with Russian businessmen, especially from the Russian Far East, in tapping trade from non-traditional markets and new trading partners.

The Philippines has huge potentials in benefiting from the new trade routes, with Port Irene in Sta. Ana, Cagayan inside the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA) as the nearest seaport to Vladivostok.

“Our ecozones can also complement the Vladivostok free ports by hosting the Russian resident companies to set up manufacturing and logistics hub in the Philippines to enable them to penetrate our growing local economy and the much bigger Asean market,” Panga said.

MARY MARGARET QUE

GREEN LIGHT OPEN 24/7; free Wi-Fi, charging of telephone, use of restroom, personal hygiene supplies, a sandwich and drink during meal time, and probably even soccer on TV. Pets are welcome.

No membership required.

Welcome to what is described the coolest/hipster church, Iglesia de San Anton at Calle de Hortaleza, in the LGBT neighborhood of Chueca, Madrid.

We went to San Anton on our last day in Madrid.

We almost missed it. When we entered the church, the mass was near the end so we stayed at the back and had the opportunity to observe. I thought it would be like the other churches we visited, I was wrong.

Welcoming all 24/7 Compared to the other churches we had the opportunity to visit, San Anton is a bit cramped and small.

There are altars on the side, icons of various saints, petition boards and donation boxes. It houses the relic of St. Valentin. On the same side is a standee of Pope Francis. Its confessional box is only big enough for the priest to sit in, so rather than having the penitent on the side whispering to the confessor’s ear, he kneels in front and faces the priest. A long table by the door had brochures.

Near the altar were several people occupying the pews and attending mass.

B3

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2017 extrastory2000@gmail.com

More open power billing sought

By Alena Mae S. Flores

T

HE Energy Department wants distribution utilities and electric cooperatives to unbundle their power rates and put the bill deposit and its interest as a separate line item in the monthly bill.

Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi told reporters at the sidelines of the department’s investment conference in Cebu the move aimed to ensure transparency and easier refund of the bill deposit and its interest.

“Who has the burden of proof that you have a deposit and the amount of deposit you are entitled to? The burden of proof is with the consumer. You made your deposit and yet, when you have to get your deposit, the

burden of proof is yours,” Cusi said.

The bill deposit is an amount required from customers of all distribution utilities and electric cooperatives as a guarantee for payment of electric bills.

It is based on the customer’s estimated bill for one month or his load schedule provided upon application for electric service.

The bill deposit may be adjusted yearly based on the actual average monthly con-

Cusi sumption of the customer.

The bill deposit and its annual update are based on the provisions of the Magna Carta for Residential Consumers and the Distribution Services and Open Access Rules for Residential and Non-residential Consum-

ers, which Manila Electric Co. and other distribution utilities and electric cooperatives are implementing.

“This is part of making people informed of what they have and their rights are. We have instructed ERC (Energy Regulatory Commission) to require all DUs, ECs to put a line (item in the bill). How much is the deposit paid by the consumer,” the Cusi said.

Cusi wrote ERC last month to make the bill deposit transparent.

“Every month that you get your bill, you should know that you have a deposit and how much interest that you have earned... so that at the end of the day, when anybody would like to refund, there is no bur-

den of proof,” Cusi said.

Visayan Electric Co. president and Aboitiz Power Corp. executive vice president and chief operating officer Jim Aboitiz told reporters the company was willing to comply with the department’s proposal.

“It shouldn’t be a big deal for a utility group to do. It’s nothing special.

That information already exists. I think it should only be harder for ECs to do because their computer systems are outdated. The better ones will have an easy time, the lousier ones will have a hard time,” he said.

Aboitiz Power, along with partner Vivant Corp. owns Veco, the country’s second largest power distributor.

VIKINGS AWARD. Vikings Luxury Buffet Restaurant is conferred the Hall of Fame Award at the recent 20th Outstanding Filipino Retailers and Shopping Centers of the Year Awards organized by the Philippines Retailers Association. Vikings is also a three-time awardee (years 2013, 2015 and 2016) in the Food Retailer-Small Category Award. Charles Stewart Lee, director of the Vikings Group (second from left) receives the award from the organizers. With him are (left) Mars Chua, vice chairman and PRA President’s Award Proponent, and PRA vice president Rosemarie Bosch Ong (right), senior executive vice president and chief operating officer of Wilcon Depot Inc.

DA starts drafting fisheries road map

By Anna Leah E. Gonzales THE government will draw up a 10-year fisheries road map, Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol said over the weekend.

Piñol said the Department of Agriculture and stakeholders would convene next month to prepare for the development a road map that will identify the needs and priorities of the fishery sector.

He said the road map would pinpoint the problems and challenges in the fisheries industry and the required government interventions.

“While the Philippines ranks first among the countries of the world with the longest coastal lines at 39,284 kilometers, the country continues to import fisheries and aquatic products to fill the needs of the local market,” Piñol said.

He said among the biggest problems confronting the fisheries and aqua industries were the depleted freshwater fish sources because of overfishing and destructive fishing practices.

“This results in added pressure on the traditional fishing grounds in the coastal areas because of the need of people for more protein,” said Piñol.

He said the country also loses P3 trillion every year to illegal fishing, including poaching by foreign and more modern fishing fleets.

“Many of these poachers are now operating in the 25-million hectare Philippine Rise, formerly called the Benham Rise, which has been acknowledged by the United Nations as part of the continental shelf of the Philippines,” said Piñol.

A Church that is not quite but more than a church There were a few more people on well-worn but more comfortable armchairs occupying the other half of the church; some were participating in the mass while some just sat quietly. The ones on the armchairs are the homeless, with their assortment of bags and belongings that the San Anton welcomes.

Whether they want to attend mass, pray, or just rest and seek shelter, the homeless are welcome. During winter, they can sleep on the pews.

According to the Madrid Journal, the Iglesia welcomes about a thousand people a day. Most of them are destitute. Father Angel says it is the only church open 24 hours a day in the Western world. On some evenings, the church shows soccer games on the television screens that are normally used to broadcast Mass at the Vatican, Papal appearances and other religious shows. Food is served in the back pews.

Visitors can consult with medical volunteers. At San Anton, confession can be made via iPad for the poor of hearing.

Funding free dinners Fr. Angel Rodriguez, the head of Messengers of Peace, is considered an unconventional priest and known for his work for the poor. He blesses pets, cars, and while he cannot marry

people of the same sex, he blesses them. He took over the Iglesia de San Anton two years ago and turned it into a community center where believers and nonbelievers are welcome. Described as an innovator and a non-profit entrepreneur, he is the man behind Robin Hood.

Robin Hood is a minichain of four restaurants that are open to the public for breakfast and lunch, but closed for dinner. Its novel business model is not to steal from the rich, but rather to use revenues made by serving breakfast and lunch to paying customers to fund the cost of free dinner for the destitute. They feed up to 100 people chosen by the Social Services every night.

Inspired by Pope Francis, Fr. Angel believes that on top of receiving basic help, poor people need to regain a sense of dignity and purpose that is hard to achieve when eating in a soup kitchen. He said, “to get served by a waiter wearing a nice uniform and to eat with proper cutlery, rather than a plastic fork, is what gives you back some dignity.” Many of San Anton’s frequent visitors get to dine at Robin Hood and are amazed at the experience. The food is good, and they are even offered seconds. Robin Hood also attracts cooks

and waiters who once worked for regular establishments, even high-end hotels.

Rethinking what a church is At San Anton, we met Fr. Sr. Rosalia, O.P., a volunteer who has spent some time in the Philippines. We also met a Filipina at San Anton. She said she is not a volunteer. She is not homeless but is jobless; she is waiting for her work permit to be renewed before she can work again. In the meantime, she frequents San Anton.

We couldn’t dine at Robin Hood and it wasn’t the day Richard Gere was at San Anton but it was an inspiring visit. Iglesia de San Anton is an unconventional church that causes us to rethink what a church is and should be.

Dr. Mary Margaret Que teaches in the graduate programs of De La Salle University’s Ramon V. Del Rosario College of Business. She is also the managing director of ExeQ Consulting Service. She welcomes comments at mary.margaret.que@dlsu. edu.ph.

The views expressed here are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official position of DLSU, its faculty, and its administrators.

PRUDENTIAL ACCOLADE. Prudential Corporation Asia receives the prestigious Friend of Asean award at the Asean Business Awards 2017 on September 6 in a ceremony at Solaire Resort and Casino in Parañaque City—the second time the company has been conferred the accolade. Shown during the awarding rites are (fromleft) Eastspring Investments chairman Don Kanak, ANZ Philippines chief executive Anna Green, Asean Business Advisory Council chair Joey Concepcion and Bosch managing director Richard Walker.

Outlook on industrial output positive—Moody’s

By Julito G. Rada THE outlook on industrial production remains positive with the expected boost from the government’s robust capital expenditures, especially on infrastructure, Moody’s Analytics, a division of Moody’s Corp., said in a report over the weekend.

“While industrial production growth has eased through the first half of 2017, the medium-term outlook for the Philippines’ manufacturing sector remains bright. In large part, that reflects a likely pickup in capital expenditure, which should provide a boost to local manufactur-

ing,” Moody’s said.

“Domestic demand also remains on a solid footing, keeping food production buoyant, the largest component of the industrial production survey,” Moody’s said.

The Duterte administration aims to increase its fiscal expenditures on infrastructure projects under its ambitious “Build, Build, Build” program to further boost the economy, create more jobs and stimulate further economic activities nationwide.

The government aims to build airports, seaports, roads, highways, bridges, railways, and even a sub-

way in Metro Manila to alleviate traffic congestion in the capital region.

Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III earlier said the “Build, Build, Build” program would create multiplier effects.

Moody’s, however, expects the volume of industrial production in August 2017 to ease to 7.3 percent from 8.1 percent a month ago.

Earlier, the National Economic and Development Authority said average growth of the manufacturing sector in the first six months hit 10 percent, up from the average expansion of 9 percent a year ago.

Jimbo Owen Gulle, Editor jimbo.gulle@gmail.com mslocalgov@gmail.com

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LGUs

Use health centers, Manilenos reminded

LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS

By Bill Casas

Easier time to go up CAR

By Sara Susanne D. Fabunan

T

O BE able to maximize tours around the Cordillera Autonomous Region, the Tourism Promotional Board has officially opened a new flight from Clark, Pampanga to Bagabag, Nueva Vizcaya organized by Wakay Tours.

In an interview, Wakay Tours manager Joel Kataluña said the decision to shorten an almost wholeday travel from Manila to Bagabag to a 30-minute trip from Clark is to be able to showcase the tour-

ist destinations in Banaue, Sagada, Kalinga, and especially Kiangan.

“This flight gives vacationists the fastest way to visit CAR,” Kataluña said.

The 31-seater chartered plane run by Wakay costs

P4,900 one way, with light snacks included.

From Manila, vacationists and foreigners can take the bus going to Clark Airport for one hour, then take a chartered plane that flies 30 minutes to Bagabag Airport. From there, people can then take a 90-minute bus ride to Banaue.

“For an estimated three hours’ trip, you are already in Banaue,” Tourism attaché Susan del Mundo said.

Department of Tourism tour guide Maria Victoria Cometa said majority of guests have complained of the 10-to-14 hours it takes to travel from Manila to

the Cordillera provinces at their attractions.

“Aside from the long travel, there is no decent pit stop or even restaurant along the way to bring the guests to dine in; and driving around the zigzag and rough roads is a bit exhausting,” she added.

In some cases, Cometa said, most of the travel agencies that organize tours for foreign and local tourists offers a chopper to bring them to the north.

“We’ve been receiving complaints from our guests about the long travel, so they always opted to avail the travel agency’s chopper

service. And that’s more expensive than a commercial flight,” she said.

But the Cordillera is one of the most important regions in the Philippines owing to its rich Filipino culture and history, where some tribes are still practicing their traditions and rituals.

Kiangan in Ifugao province, for instance, has a very important role in the Philippine history, Cometa said.

Historically, Kiangan, Ifugao is the province where World War II officially ended when Filipino and American troops arrested Japanese General Tomoyuki Yamashita on September 2, 1945.

Then he was sent to Baguio, to sign an agreement officially ending World War 2. The general was later been executed in Laguna.

Yamashita was the one who led the Japanese troops to invade the Philippines in 1941.

“If you want to know more of the Filipino culture and history, visit the Cordillera Autonomous Region, particularly Kiangan Ifugao,” she said.

Kiangan established Yamashita’s surrender site and museum for generations to see the bravery of the Ifugao fighters and American troops during the Japanese invasion.

Erap eyes housing project in Baseco MAYOR Joseph “Erap” Estrada will put up another housing project in Baseco Compound, one of the city’s biggest urban poor communities, in pursuit of his vision of “slum-free” Manila.

Estrada said he is set to sign a partnership agreement with Tzu Chi Foundation Philippines Inc. for the construction of a mass housing project within the slum community that will initially benefit more than 100 informal settler families.

“As long as we can, every poor, homeless family, not only in Baseco but also in other poor communities here in Manila, will be provided with decent home. This is our vision, our dream—a ‘slum-free’ Manila,” Estrada said.

With housing as a fundamental human right, Estrada said it is only proper that government resources be used to alle-

viate the living conditions of indigent people.

“Everyone, especially the poor, should have access to a safe, secure and habitable home with freedom from forced eviction. It is the government’s obligation to guarantee that everyone can exercise this right to live in security, peace, and dignity,” said Estrada.

In their initial talks, Tzu Chi Foundation has agreed to work with the city government in putting up a new housing village in Baseco, an impoverished community in Port Area populated by close to 60,000 people.

The Taiwan-based group is the world’s biggest Buddhist humanitarian organization and has been in the Philippines for 22 years now doing various programs in disaster relief and rehabilitation, education, medicine, and environmental protection, among others. Bill Casas

DAY’S CATCH. The waters of Laguna de Bay have sustained the livelihood of small fishermen in Rizal and Laguna provinces and in Metro Manila for generations, such as these fishermen who bring their catch in for delivery to different markets. The lake produces 400,000 metric tons of milkfish and tilapia, supplying 70 percent of the fish needs of Luzon and parts of the Visayas. Manny Palmero

Tacloban ready for inspection teams for child-friendly award

By Robbie Pangilinan TACLOBAN City has been shortlisted for the Seal of Child Friendly Local Government and is ready for evaluators from the Council for the Welfare of Children to conduct a validation survey for the Presidential Award for Child Friendly Municipalities and Cities,

a recognition and audit system for local governmentinitiated programs benefiting children.

Tacloban is one of four Highly Urbanized City included in the nationwide SCFLG shortlist, along with Baguio, Davao, and Muntinlupa. Last year, the city got a 91 percent rating in the Child-Friendly Local Gov-

ernance Audit and was one of the 18 LGUs shortlisted nationwide for the SCFLG. Tacloban has a supplementary feeding program, which benefits 4,260 daycare children from 71 daycare centers around the city. It is implemented by the City Social Welfare and Development Office and lasts for a cycle of 120 days.

It is instrumental in the drop of malnutrition prevalence in the city.

“We also maintain a center for abused children along with a center for abused women, the only facility of its kind in Region 8 managed by an LGU, which offers psychosocial support and a temporary sanctuary for neglected and maltreat-

ed children,” said Tacloban City Mayor Cristina G. Romualdez.

Romualdez added that child-friendly desks were instituted in the barangays to render protection services benefiting children, while the City Health Office maintains a network of Health Centers which puts a premium on child healthcare.

Tanauan mayor helps CSC discuss HR in LGUs

By Roy Tomandao TANAUAN CITY, Batangas —In celebration of the 117th Anniversary of the Philippine Civil Service Commission, Tanauan Mayor Antonio C. Halili was honored to be one of the subject matter experts on the recent 2017 Local Executives Program last Tuesday at Taal Vista Hotel in Tagaytay City.

As the head of one of the distinguished local government units in Region IV-A in the field of Human Resources, Halili was invited by the CSC Regional Office III to talk about “Moving Forward to Achieving HR Excellence” and, therefore, inspire 600 attendees from Region 3 to appreciate and understand their critical roles and responsibilities as HR Champion in their respective organizations.

The mayor shared and emphasized the importance of being a leader by example to govern the people properly. He acknowledged the ever-hardworking employees of the LGU of Tanauan, whom he considered as one of the vital factors in the current success of the city.

Also present in the event was Jacqueline A. Landicho, 2017 Best HR Management Practitioner in Region IV and head of the HR Management and Development Office of the city government of Tanauan. She shared the LGU’s current practices that led to the achievement of numerous milestones specifically the Program to Institutionalize Meritocracy and Excellence - Human Resource Management (PRIMEHRM) Level II.

MAYOR Joseph Estrada on Sunday called on Manileños to patronize the health centers in their communities, which he said are well-equipped and funded to provide free primary healthcare services.

His call was aimed at reducing overcrowding and long lines at the six cityrun hospitals in Manila.

This year, Estrada has increased the budget of the city’s newly renovated 59 community health centers and 12 lying-in clinics to better serve its purpose: provide first aid, maternal and child healthcare, diagnosis of social diseases, and other basic health services to all the members of the community.

“We have a number of barangay health centers spread all over our 896 barangays with a full complement of professional, highly-trained doctors and medical staff.

They’re there to serve you,” he said.

As much as they want to accommodate all patients at the six hospitals run by the city government, Estrada pointed out there is a limit to the number of patients the hospitals could serve a day.

Citing a report submitted by Dr. Regina Bagsic, the overall coordinator of the Manila-run hospitals, Estrada said the number of admissions at the out-patient departments have been rising in the past few months.

“More and more patients are pouring in our hospitals. This is an indication that our free and quality medical and health services are efficient. But there’s a downside: Overcrowding and longer waiting time,” Estrada stressed.

To avoid these inconveniences, and to relieve the pressure on the city hospitals that should concentrate on more serious diseases, he appealed to the Manilenos to go to the nearest CHCs first for minor illnesses and other medical needs that could be handled well by the barangay health staff.

IN BRIEF 600 NPAs in Vizcaya is a hoax, says Abugan BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya—Provincial Police Director Senior Supt. Leumar U. Abugan on Sunday dismissed a widely circulated text message claiming 500 to 600 New People’s Army armed fighters “merged in Nueva Vizcaya coming from Visayas and Mindanao.”

“Hindi totoo yan. Me NPA pero di ganyan karami [That’s not true. There are NPAs but not that many],” Abugan replied after he was asked to clarify the text message claiming to have originated from “Chief of Police [Chief Inspector Alexander] Balut of Dupax del Norte Police Station.”

The text message advised people to shut their windows and stay indoors after 8 in the evening. LGU officials, however, appealed for calm as the situation in Nueva Vizcaya is now normal.

After learning of the skirmish between the NPA and the military in Kasibu, overseas Filipino workers who heard of the news were jittery for their relatives and friends in the area, following reports some families left their homes to avoid being caught in the crossfire. They in turn started texting and sharing news in social media. Abe Almirol

Pangasinan lauds model Boy Scout

Mayor Antonio C. Halili (second from left) receives the plaque of gratitude with OIC-HRMDO Jacqueline A. Landicho (second from right) from CSC Region III Director IV Nelson G. Sarmiento and Legal Services Division Chief lawyer Rosalinda T. Oliva in the 2017 Local Executives Program held Sept. 4 to 5 at the Taal Vista Hotel in Tagaytay City. Roy Tomandao

LINGAYEN, Pangasinan—The province has taken pride and commended a young Pangasinense scouter named Scout Gio M. Velano for winning the 2017 Search for Outstanding Boy Scouts of the Philippines Regional Level.

The young scouter will represent the entire Region 1 in the national level’s search for Ten Outstanding Boy Scouts to be conducted on Oct. 9.

In Provincial Resolution No. 954-2017 which was approved on Sept. 4 which was authored by Board Member Napoleon C. Fontelera, Jr and co-authored by BM Antonio F. Sison, it stated that Velano “represented what the scouting program aspires to achieve.”

The young scouter who is a Grade 11 student of Alaminos City National High School hails from Barangay Alos, Alaminos City.

As cited in the resolution, the scouter “has shown steadfast dedication and commitment to his role as boy scout representing the Province of Pangasinan and the Region, not to mention the full support and fitting guidance of his Outfit Advisor, Daniel C. Gallantes.” Dexter A. See

Life

Isah V. Red, Editor Bernadette Lunas, Writer isahred@gmail.com

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TWG celebrates life’s most precious moment

TAKE A SIP. Capture the magic and bliss of any wedding celebration with TWG Tea’s wedding collection featuring the Grand Wedding Tea in Caviar Tea Tin, Tea Scented Candles, and luxurious tea accessories.

F

OR the perfect wedding table adornment, TWG Tea, the world’s finest luxury tea brand, offers its exclusive wedding collection featuring the exceptional Grand Wedding Tea in Caviar Tea Tin, captivating Tea Scented Candles, and luxurious tea accessories for the joyous occasion. A true celebration of one of life’s most precious moments, this exquisite selection will enchant the senses with a decadent blend of luxurious flavours and aromas to last a lifetime.

An enduring favorite, TWG Tea’s Grand Wedding Tea is as tantalizing and mysterious as love itself. A breath-taking black tea that has been carefully blended with pure white blossoms, as fragrant as a bride’s bouquet, and a scattering of exotic fruits which lend their soft, honeyed sweetness to this intoxicating blend. Ideally paired with a meal or a sweet slice of wedding cake, this delightful cup perfectly complements a meal.

Love is in the air as TWG Tea trans-

forms the luxury of tea drinking into a breathtaking olfactory experience with the Perfume of Tea Collection, featuring the French Earl Grey Scented Candle, reminiscent of blue cornflowers dancing in the Provencal breeze, a delightful feast for the senses.

For the newly married couple that deserves the finer things in life, TWG Tea’s striking Rose Dome Teapots with filter and warmer are the perfect addition to wedded bliss. Memories will sweep over them as they pass the time

sipping the most exclusive tea blends from this artfully crafted teapot that boasts an in-built filter, and is finished with a polished metallic golden rose warmer. Envelope your guests with the elegant fragrance of bergamot combined with downy leaves of imperial white tea, from the White Earl Grey Scented Candle, presenting a romantic ambience of raw purity reminiscent of the couple’s love for each other.

A rhapsody of romance, TWG Tea’s wedding collection will enrapture with luxurious savours and sensations as precious as the moments they commemorate.

The Grand Wedding Caviar Tin Tea retails at P1,600; French Earl Grey Scented Candle and White Earl Grey Scented Candle, P2,500 each; Rose Dome Teapot, in White and Black, P9,000, all available in TWG Tea Salons & Boutiques (Greenbelt 5, Shangri-La Plaza Mall, Resorts World Manila, Central Square, and S Maison Conrad Manila).

The Grand Wedding Tea, a black tea blended with prure white blossoms and exotic fruits, is perfect when paired with a meal or a slice of wedding cake.

Chinese club wants to be best in Metro Manila

Enjoy all the meat and side dishes you can at KPUB Glorietta

KPub BBQ now in Makati KPUB BBQ, voted by Yahoo Philippines as the no.1 Korean Buffet in the Philippines with its meat-all-you-can concept, is now at the heart of Makati City. It is located on the rooftop of Glorietta 1.

KPUB now has a total of four branches, the other three are in BGC, Trinoma, and Cebu City. The Glorietta branch is the very first franchise of the chain.

Mompreneur Flor Brioso-Santos, an accountant by profession who has a string of businesses in varied industries, like fast food chain, fine dining restaurants, bakery, spa and wellness, and a beauty learning school, decided to be a franchisee of KPub driven by her observation that Filipinos love and are fascinated by everything Korean. “I think this is the perfect time for me to join Hallyu or Korean wave. The Filipinos’ enjoyment of Koreanovelas and K-Pop extends to their healthy and delicious cuisines as well,” Flor said.

K-Pub aims to serve food of the highest quality at affordable prices. All ingredients are imported from Korea and they make it a point to use only the best meats and produce for their dishes.

The best part is that the buffet is full-

service, meaning you need not stand up to get your food as courteous staff and crew dressed in K-Pop clothes will serve your food at your table and assist in cooking your meat on the tabletop grillers.

The Meat All You Can has four packages to choose from: Eat & Run for P499 is good for one hour; Eat & Run Level Up P699 for one hour with all meats from P499 plus additional food choices like cream dory bulgogi, japchae or saewoo (garlic butter shrimp); No Limits P899 with all meats from P499 and P699 plus additional food choices like marinated beef short ribs and Korean ice cream; and To the Max P999 with all meats from P699 and P899 with seafood plus additional food choices like salmon belly, salmon steak and fresh prawns.

An a la carte menu is also available with sodas, fruit shakes and Korean cocktails as well.

K-Pub Glorietta, with minimum seating capacity of 310 and expandable to 350, has four VIP rooms, with a huge video wall cum stage.

More entertainment will be placed soon for the diners to enjoy, which will include acoustic sessions.

ASHARK Club is the newest destination in the metro that combines the best in Chinese-Filipino cuisine, KTV enter entertainment and the finest event facilities in the country.

Located on the 2nd floor of Golden Phoenix Hotel at the MOA Complex in Pasay City, the sprawling club occupies 1,600 sqm. of floor space divided into an expansive din dining hall, four KTV rooms with modern sound systems and larger-than-life screens, as well as seven VIP and Confer Conference Rooms. It is currently top standard among all Chi Chinese clubs in the metro.

The club caters to dining enthusiasts, families big and small, companies in need of conference and event venues, wedding organizers or couples in search of a reception hall, and anyone looking to relax, unwind and enjoy the company of friends and a full leisure experience. The dining room can accommo accommodate up to 200 guests and would make an impressive venue.

Authentic Chinese cuisine.

Ashark Club takes pride in is the authenticity of its food. It flew in its very own team of culinary masters led by Chef Mike Cheng from Hong Kong who specializes in Cantonese cuisine.

Must try dishes include marinated ox shank, deep-fried juglans resia, assorted vegetables with salad, abalone with mixed dry seafood in thick soup, deep-fried pigeon, steamed red grouper with peanut oil, deep-fried pechay, sauteed snow diced beef with black pepper, marinated jelly fish with black vinegar, sauteed prawns with long jin tea, pan-fried lamb chop, polonchay with wanton in soup, and fried rice with salmon.

All dishes are meticulously prepared using spices and ingredients sourced from China.

Meanwhile, guests peruse the many dishes from an iPad complete with photos, description, and prices. They may also “fish” for their own meal at the big aquariums that house live prawns, crabs, lobsters and different kinds of fish.

High tech KTV/private room Ashark Club puts a five-star touch to the KTV experience

Chef Mike Cheng (middle) heads Ashark’s kitchen. With him are chefs Jack Xian and Tony Lu.

Clockwise: Deep Fried Pigeon, Assorted Vegetables on Ice, Fried Rice with Salmon, and Chilled Mango Sago with Pomelo

with well-appointed rooms with first-class, state-of-the-art audio and video equipment, including a touchscreen menu of songs and massive flat screen TVs. But that’s not all. Each room features a remote-controlled dining table, its own washroom, top-quality hardwood flooring, and plush coffee tables and leather lounge chairs. Stylish chandeliers gracefully hang inside the KTV rooms juxtaposed alongside beautiful paintings, wall decors, and other accessories. Light fixtures playfully change colors as one sings along.

An anteroom and a service window enable the restaurant staff to serve Ashark food and drinks without disturbing the fun.

Setting the bar Ashark Club takes its name from an actual live shark housed in the venue—a symbolism to fine food and an aggressively modern aesthetic.

The Club is open at 11 a.m. to 3a.m. the following day, Monday to Sunday.

For information or reservation call (02) 819-9988; or go to www.asharkclub.com, www.facebook.com/asharkclub, or instagram.com/asharkclub.

Life

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MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2017 isahred@gmail.com

THE JOYCE OF EATING JOYCE BABE PAÑARES

W

A cheesy affair

Homemade Queso Blanco Ingredients: 1 gallon whole milk 1/3 + 1/8 cup apple cider vinegar 4 teaspoons kosher salt Method: Step 1: In a large pot, slowly heat whole milk to 190 F degree. This should take about 20 - 25 minutes, go low and slow, stirring often.

Step 2: Incorporate 1/3 cup vinegar evenly. Turn off the gas, and let sit for 10 minutes. At this point curds are separating from the whey, which is becoming greenish and mostly clear. If whey remains very cloudy – add additional 1/8 cup vinegar and allow to set another 10 minutes.

Step 3: With a strainer ladle, gently remove the curds to a dampened cheese cloth-lined strainer placed over a bowl, salting as you add curd.

Step 4: Place the loose curd ball into cheesecloth. Press into cheese mold and drain for one hour.

Step 5: Flip cheese in mold. Press with sterile one lb weight (i.e. bottle full of water) for one hour. This may be served immediately, or you can continue pressing for up to 4 hours.

Refrigerate and tightly cover. This will last for up to 3 to 4 days.

HEN it comes to making cheese, the only limit is your imagination.

Take it from cheese expert Mark Todd, a consultant of the California Milk Advisory Board who has been holding lectures on cheese for 25 years now in 34 countries, including the Philippines.

“Do you know how many kinds of cheese are there? If you shake your head and answer no, you are probably correct. Nobody knows just how many kinds of cheese there are,” he said in a recent forum on the different kinds of California cheeses held in Quezon City.

“There are as many kinds of cheese as your imagination,” said Todd, who is also known as “The Cheese Dude.”

Unleash your inner “Cheese Dude” and create your own cheeses using Real California Milk.

For Mark Todd, the only limit to making cheese is one’s imagination.

Fresh cheeses are those that have not been aged or ripened, and retain much of the flavor of fresh milk. These include cottage cheese, cream cheese, mascarpone, mozzarella, and ricotta.

Soft and soft-ripened cheeses, on the other hand, include brie and camembert, while semi-hard or table cheeses are those that have been aged for only a few weeks to about a month or two, such as cheddar, edam, feta, and gouda. Dry jack (aged with a nutty flavor) and romano (with a sharp and piquant flavor) belong to the type of very hard cheeses that can be grated or crumbled.

At present, the United States accounts for 25 percent of all the cheese produced worldwide. California, in particular, produces 20 million tons of milk – more than the total volume produced by New Zealand.

“Why California cheese? Because you are assured of quality, consistency, value for money, and high safety standards,” Todd said.

Better yet, The Cheese Dude is urging Filipinos to try and create homemade cheeses using Real California Milk.

“The availability of California cheeses in most supermarkets gives you the convenience of adding more texture and flavor to your dish when you need it,” said Todd.

“However, in case you’re looking for a specific taste for your dish, you can experiment creating your own cheese using Real California Milk at home,” he added.

CMAB country representative Reji Retugal-Onal said dairy products made with Real California Milk are packed with flavor because they are produced by well-fed cows from family

farms in California.

“They are also filled with nutrients like protein, calcium, Vitamin D, and potassium that are needed by both children and adults, according to MyPlate, the US Department of Agriculture’s food guide,” she added.

At least 99 percent of the dairies in California, which is the number one producer of fluid milk in the US, are family-owned.

Indeed, Todd’s lecture calls to mind a quote of another American, the critic and anthropologist Clifton Fadiman: “Cheese is milk’s leap toward immortality.” We clink our milk glasses and raise our cheese forks to that.

For feedback, send comments to joyce.panares@gmail.com

World Barista Champion in Manila WORLD Barista Champion 2014 Hidenori Izaki recently visited the Philippines to judge the Latte Art Throwdown at the Coffee Project in Macapagal Blvd. Pasay City where baristas from all over the country showed their creativity and passion for coffee. The event, hosted by TV personality and foodie Xandra Rocha, was sponsored by Allegro Beverage, Victoria Arduino espresso machines, Jolly Cow Fresh Milk, Lotus Biscoff, and Coffee Project.

After the Latte Art Throwdown, Hidenori, the first ever Asian to win the premiere global barista competition from 60 countries, shared his experiences and journey in being a barista. “I kept competing as I am completely obsessed with [barista] competitions and attracted to how beautiful the coffee community is,” he said.

After the competition, Hidenori founded the Samurai Coffee Experience, a global coffee consulting company where he travels more than 200 days a year all over the world to educate people about coffee, conduct consultancy, professional barista training, coffee roasting and product development. On top of that, he also serves as a technical consultant for an espresso machinery company.

Hidenori started his coffee journey and honed his skills with Maruyama Coffee, a cafe chain and roasting company known worldwide for buying top auction lots of coffee, especially Cup of Excellence premium varieties. Maruyama is one of the most dominant coffee

Make lunch packs exciting by preparing them bento-style

Baristas from all over the country showcase their creativity in the Latte Art Throwdown.

companies in the world, having won the Japanese Barista Championship for five straight years.

Before going into barista competitions, Hidenori had his fair share of ups and downs. He was in and out of school; he also studied in England when he finally realized that he would need a formal education to thrive. During his time abroad, he was able to learn the English language while interacting with people from different backgrounds. All his experiences both in Japan and abroad made him culturally diverse, strongwilled and a passionate barista with an immeasurable thirst for coffee knowledge.

World Barista Champion 2014 Hidenori Izaki shares his experiences in being a barista.

This made him confident to compete on the center stage of the barista world which requires not only coffee mastery but also great communication and rapport with the judges and the audience.

“I was sure that I could communicate with people from different backgrounds and [it] helped me so much to get a more diverse point of view for who I am,” he shared while recounting how and why he decided to join the competition.

After two years of joining the said competition, he won and received the coveted World Barista Champion title in 2014 in Rimini, Italy.

“Hidenori opened the doors for many aspiring Asian baristas who compete in the global competitions. And that includes our very own Silvester Samonte who will compete later this year in Korea,” said Allegro Beverage Corporation President, Leo de Leon. Allegro is the preferred end-to-end coffee solutions provider in restaurants, hotel chains, and third wave coffee shops in the country. It is the exclusive distributor of world-class espresso machines like the Victoria Arduino which is used during the World Barista Championships.

In partnership with Nuova Simonelli, the leading manufacturer of espresso machines used in the competition, Fly Ace Corporation, the exclusive distributor of Lotus Biscoff biscuits and Jolly Cow Fresh Milk, and Coffee Project, the newest cozy coffee shop chain the country, Allegro put together this event to showcase the barista skills and passion of a true champion, facilitate and exchange of ideas, and educate the public about serving specialty coffee. After all, de Leon said, “Coffee is the nectar of the gods, the lifeblood of offices and a tonic drink for productivity.”

Prepare the tastiest-looking lunches with Daiso Japan

THE Japanese know it best: food can be an exciting adventure with bentostyle meals and a rich serving of tastes.

Every meal can transport you to any destination of their choice. Using only rice molds and a few touches of seaweed, you get to enjoy plates that will satisfy the tummy, as well as the eyes.

Meals to go become a surprise in itself that kids, and even kids at heart alike, can’t wait to untie their lunch packs and unravel the adventure of bento-style dining.

Once decided, you can proceed to the food containers section, which carries storage boxes of all sizes. You can easily match their personality and appetite with the items available on deck.

Visitors who want to go full-on Japanese can look for containers that fit your typical multicourse diet. You can pack in molded rice and their choice of meat alongside soups, pieces of nori and tsukemono (pickled vegetable) in Daiso Japan’s food packs.

The selection also works for kawaii-enPrepare your bento-tasty treats thusiasts looking for lunch sets, complete A true Japanese store stocks up on with cutleries and chopsticks, all for P88. all things bento. Implements to make Beginner bento makers will get beautiful food plates will reach new excited at the wide options available highs on the shelves of Daiso Japan. in store. You can take home bags of Moms, office diners, and aspiring food Daiso Japan’s nori puncher, slicers and stylists can take rounds in aisles of color- molds, and shape makers to Daisofy ful and varied patterns of lunch mats to your meals and make those Instagramget inspiration for their own bento styles. worthy lunch packs an everyday treat.

Daiso Japan offers implements to make beautiful food packs.

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2017

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OLITICS, the hunger for power, and corrupt government officials scrambling for mineral-rich territories spawned civil war in Africa and created conflict zones where the scale of destruction is unimaginable.

Hundreds and thousands of people have been slaughtered in military coups or emotionally destroyed through rape and gender-based violence or have been victims of unspeakable human rights violations.

The civilians who managed to survive the decimation were forced to flee to safety from rebels sowing terror in their regions, making up more than nine million refugees and internally displaced people without resources to form a new life. It is a suffering that knows no end.

The Last Face is brought to the screen by a group of filmmakers and actors who coincidentally all happen to be humanitarians in their own right and unquestionably this resonance was their motivation to work with the very difficult material.

The film is about the love affair between Dr. Wren Petersen (Charlize Theron), director of an international aid organization, and Dr. Miguel Leon (Javier Bardem), a relief-aid doctor.

Set against war-torn Liberia, Miguel and Wren must find a way to keep their relationship alive in extraordinarily difficult conditions battling their mutual passion for the value of life matched by the intensity of their diametrically opposed opinions on how best to solve the conflict

American actress Charlize Theron in a steamy scene with Spanish actor Javier Bardem in drama flick directed by Sean Penn

Charlize Theron, Javier Bardem in

‘THE LAST FACE’

that surrounds them.

Directed by two-time Academy Award® winner Sean Penn, The Last Face also stars Jared Harris, and celebrated French actors Jean Reno and Adèle Exarchopoulos.

An activist himself and champion of refugees, Javier Bardem co-produced and starred in Sons of the Clouds: The Last

Dennis and Jennylyn now more relaxed and open about their relationship MANY notice that unlike before, Dennis Trillo is now more open and relax about his relationship with Jennylyn Mercado. In fact, they don’t evade questions about it anymore and are open about their plans, like travels.

“That’s right,” he says. “Jen and I wish to fly to another international destination after my work in Mulawin vs. Ravena wraps up soon. I guess, this is the result if you’re really happy, right? Everything’s light.”

Does this mean they’re more serious with what they share right now?

“To be honest, I don’t want to use the term ‘serious.’ I prefer happy more. Being too serious is different from being happy. Jen and I are more on the happy side. I guess that’s exactly what’s happening to both of us now.”

Fans are curious if this happy state would eventually lead to marriage.

“Well, I think it’s possible considering how smooth-sailing our relationship is at present. It’s not a remote thing to occur. I guess that’s the next thing you’ll consider when you’re in a happy relationship!”

So, they’re already talking about tying the knots in the coming days?

“Hmmm…bits and pieces,” Dennis reveals. “But there’s no concrete plan yet whatsoever. We just enjoy every single day being together especially when we’re on a grand vacation. For now, that’s what works best for us.”

The handsome actor also expressed his desire to work with his lady love once again in a television show.

“Oh yes! Our last soap opera together was My Faithful Husband in 2015 and that was two years ago already. I think it would be nice to work with her again soon. I hope another good and challenging vehicle comes along for us to collaborate on.”

Working with Jennylyn is always a welcome treat for Dennis.

“She’s a good actress. Everyone knows it. That’s the primary reason why it’s always a challenging and fulfilling experience sharing the screen with her,” he ends. ******* After being given tribute by the Philippine Movie Press Club (PMPC) through its recently concluded Star Awards for Movies as Mga Ginintuang Bituin ng Pelikulang Pilipino, Nora Aunor and Vilma Santos expressed their openness to do a silver screen project once again after appearing in 1982’s T-Bird at Ako. “I see no problem with that. It’s an exciting thought actually. If there’s a good material that’s fit for the two of us, I’m more than willing to do it,” says Guy. “That’s true!” seconds Vilma. “Like T-Bird at Ako before. It was a nice material for us then. My prime concern is the script. It should be good. For one, we’re not getting any younger anymore. The story must complement our present stature now so that the viewers will patronize it!”

Their rivalry, the industry’s most enduring and long-standing, is kind of revived at this point especially since they also tied for the Star Awards’ most-coveted Best Actress plum (Aunor for Kabisera and Santos for Everything about Her). It can be remembered that the last time they tied for an acting trophy was in the 1990 Urian Awards. The Superstar was honored for her work in Bakit May Kahapon Pa? while the Star for all Seasons was cited for Pahiram ng Isang Umaga.

“For me, the rivalry is just okay. Over the years, it helped us to really hone our craft as thespians. Guy and I are friends, off-cam. Ever since, we’re okay. It’s only our fans who really fight,” avers Vi. “I hope there will be no issue between our respective camps because we tied for Best Actress. There should be no issue in the first place. I’m grateful that the PMPC recognized our work. It’s a huge honor sharing the award with my ‘Kumare!” Guy states.

For their continued success, the two movie queens extend their gratitude to their supporters.

“We’ve been here for five decades already. We’re so touched that until now, they’re still here to show their support and love for us. It’s what keeps us going!” Nora and Vilma say in unison.

Colony, a film documenting how the colonization of the Western Sahara has left nearly 200,000 people living in refugee camps.

The development process of getting the picture off the ground was just 13 months. Bardem, already on board, was speaking about actors to play opposite him in the role of Wren. First and foremost on the list happened to

be Charlize Theron, who apart from being an extraordinary actor is also a humanitarian who runs her own NGO that helps AIDS orphans in South Africa.

She was a perfect contrast, both physically and emotionally to Javier.

The Last Face opens exclusively in Ayala Malls Cinemas on Sept. 13.

NOTICE OF TRANSFER Be it known that effective 01 October 2017 TORM SHIPPING PHILS., INC., Cebu Branch new office address is 2nd Floor, CLI Building OSMEÑA Blvd., cor. Lapu-Lapu St., 6000 Cebu City Philippines Office transaction will remain until 29 September 2017 only at Park Centrale Bldg, Cebu IT Park Cebu City.

For updates you may reach us at 0917-3153012 and 0917-315 3018

Republic of the Philippines Province of Mountain Province MUNICIPALITY OF NATONIN INVITATION TO BID CLUSTER 1: ADM Projects 2017 1. The Municipal Government Unit of Natonin intends to apply the total amount of Eight MillionOne Hundred Ten Thousand Six Hundred Seventy Nine & 65/100 Pesos only (Php8,110,679.65) being the Approved Budget for Contract (ABC) to payments under the contract for “CLUSTER 1: ADM Projects 2017”. Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected at bid opening.

2. The Local Government Unit of Natonin now invites bids for “CLUSTER 1: ADM Projects 2017”. Required Completion of Projects is 120calendar days after the receipt of Notice to Proceed. Bidders should have completed a contract similar to the Project. The description of an eligible bidder is contained in the Bidding Documents, particularly, in Section II. Instruction to Bidders.

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

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

4. Interested bidders may obtain further information from the BAC Secretariat, LGU-Natonin and inspect the Bidding Documents at the address given below during office hour, Monday to Friday, before the opening of bids.

A complete set of Bidding Documents may be purchased by interested Bidders from the address below and upon payment of a non-refundable fee for the Bidding Documents in the amount of Ten Thousand Pesos (P10, 000.00) The LGU-Natonin will hold a Pre-Bid Conference on September 19, 2017 at the BAC Office, which shall be open to all interested parties.

5. Bids must be delivered to the address below on or before 1:00 PM, October 3, 2017. All Bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount stated in ITB Clause 18.

Late bids shall not be accepted.

6. Bid opening shall be at 1:30 PM of October 3, 2017 at the BAC Office Bids will be opened in the presence of the Bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address below.

7. The LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNIT OF NATONIN reserves the right to accept or reject any bid, to annul the bidding process, and to reject all bids at any time prior to contract award, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

8. For further information, please refer to:Bids and Awards Committee Secretariat Natonin, Mountain Province (SGD) REJUNATA M. BASBASAN BAC Chairman Contact Number - 09985341808 (MS-SEPP. 11, 2017)

(MS-SEPT. 11, 2017)

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

InvItatIon to BId for Procurement of ServIce ProvIder for food caterIng IB no. 2017-311

1. The Department of Health (DOH), through the General Appropriations Act of 2017intends to apply the sum of Twenty Four Million Nine Hundred Ninety Eight ThousandFour Hundred Philippine Pesos (PhP24,998,400.00) being the Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) to payments under the contract for the Procurement of Service Provider for Food Catering under IB No. 2017-311. Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected at bid opening.

2. 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 three (3) yearsfrom 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.

3. 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.

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

5. A complete set of Bidding Documents may be acquired by interested Bidders on 11 September – 03 October 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 Twenty Five Thousand Philippine Pesos (PhP25,000.00).

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

6. The DOH will hold a Pre-bid Conference on 19 September 2017, 10:00 A.M. at the COBAC Conference Room, G/F, Bldg. 6, DOH, San Lazaro Cmpd., Rizal Ave., Sta. Cruz, Manila, which shall beopen to prospective bidders.

7. Bids must be duly received by the COBAC-C Secretariat at the address below on or before 03 October2017, 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.

Bid opening shall be on 03 October2017, 9:00 A.M. at the COBAC Conference Room, G/F, Bldg. 6, DOH, San Lazaro Cmpd., Rizal Ave., 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.

8. 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.

9. For further information, please refer to: COBAC-C Secretariat Department of Health San Lazaro Compound, Rizal Avenue, Sta. Cruz, Manila Tel. Nos. 651-7800 local 1624 to 1627; 1649 to 52 Facsimile No.: 741-9775; 740-6830; 711-6061 (SGD) NESTOR F. SANTIAGO, JR, MD, MPHC, MHSA, CESO III Assistant Secretary of Health COBAC – C Chairperson (MS-SEPT. 11, 2017)

Republic of the Philippines Province of Mountain Province MUNICIPALITY OF NATONIN INVITATION TO BID CLUSTER 2: ADM Projects 2017 1. The Municipal Government Unit of Natonin intends to apply the total amount of Sixteen Million Two Hundred Fifty Five Thousand One Hundred One & 60/100 pesos only (Php16,255,101.60) being the Approved Budget for Contract (ABC) to payments under the contract for “CLUSTER 2: ADM Projects 2017”. Bids received in excess of the ABC shall be automatically rejected at bid opening.

2. The Local Government Unit of Natonin now invites bids for “CLUSTER 2: ADM Projects 2017”. Required Completion of Projects is 120calendar days after the receipt of Notice to Proceed. Bidders should have completed a contract similar to the Project. The description of an eligible bidder is contained in the Bidding Documents, particularly, in Section II. Instruction to Bidders.

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

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

4. Interested bidders may obtain further information from the BAC Secretariat, LGU-Natonin and inspect the Bidding Documents at the address given below during office hour, Monday to Friday, before the opening of bids.

A complete set of Bidding Documents may be purchased by interested Bidders from the address below and upon payment of a non-refundable fee for the Bidding Documents in the amount of Twenty Five Thousand Pesos (P25, 000.00) The LGU-Natonin will hold a Pre-Bid Conference on _September 19, 2017 at the BAC Office, which shall be open to all interested parties.

5. Bids must be delivered to the address below on or before 1:00 PM, October 3, 2017. All Bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount stated in ITB Clause 18.

Late bids shall not be accepted.

6. Bid opening shall be at 1:30 PM of October 3, 2017at the BAC Office Bids will be opened in the presence of the Bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address below.

7. The LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNIT OF NATONIN reserves the right to accept or reject any bid, to annul the bidding process, and to reject all bids at any time prior to contract award, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

8. For further information, please refer to:Bids and Awards Committee Secretariat Natonin, Mountain Province (SGD) REJUNATA M. BASBASAN BAC Chairman Contact Number - 09985341808 (MS-SEPP. 11, 2017)

Isah V. Red, Editor Nickie Wang, Writer isahred@gmail.com MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2017

GABBY

Senior actor Gabby Concepcion wins the prestigious Asian Star Prize for his role in "Ika-6 Na Utos'

CONCEPCION bags Asian Star Prize G

ABBY Concepcion won the Asian Star Prize at the 12th Seoul International Drama Awards on Sept.7.

Concepcion accepted the award at the KBS Hall in South Korea. The actor was recognized for his performance in GMA Network’s toprating Afternoon Prime series Ika-6 Na Utos.

He was the only Filipino actor to win the award this year.

Concepcion thanked the award-giving body for the recognition while dedicating the award to all his fans and supporters.

“I am deeply honored and overwhelmed to receive the prestigious Asian Star Prize. Thank you very much to Seoul International Drama Awards for this recognition. I also thank all my Filipino supporters as well as the Korean viewers for recognizing my talent. It is indeed a blessing and I will surely treasure this award,” the actor said.

Seoul International Drama Awards is an annual TV drama festival that celebrates the diversity and creativity of international scripted programming.

It aims to be a universal hub for exchanging TV dramas worldwide and drives diverse ideas for where the industry should go.

Organized by Seoul Drama Awards Organizing Committee and Korean Broadcasters Association, it strives to achieve the goals of continuous development of the Korean Wave, promotion of healthy participation in festivals and vitalization of tourism in Seoul.

The award-giving body is supported by The

Kapuso actor Gabby Concepcion in photo op with "Strong Woman Do Bong-soon" actress Park Bo Young

Ministry of Culture, Seoul Metropolitan Government, KBS, MBC, SBS, EBS, Corea Drama Production Association, Korean TV & Radio Writers Association and Korean TV Drama Producers Association.

Streaming forces music industry revolution THE record-breaking Music Matters 2017 presented by Tencent will see a huge focus on streaming and how the technology has permanently altered the industry.

The complex predictive algorithms behind the seemingly simple playlists are now enabling personalization, garnering unprecedented engagement and therefore, generating revenues in billions.

In its Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2017-2021 report, PwC predicted that Internet streaming will become the largest source of global recorded music sales in 2017 as revenues from services including Spotify and Apple Music surpass sales of CDs and vinyl records for the first time.

The report goes on to say that streaming revenues will rise an impressive 37 percent to $9.1billion in 2017, driven by further adoption of streaming around the world.

Streaming is one of the hot topics to be debated at All That Matters (ATM), Asia’s leading music, sports and entertainment industry festival, which is taking place until Sept. 13 at The Ritz-Carlton Millenia, Singapore.

Part of the award winning ATM festival and now in its 12th year, Music Matters 2017 boasts 12 keynotes, 35 speakers new to the event, plus a stellar line-up from the music industry’s glitterati including Cussion Pang (CEO, Tencent Music Entertainment Group), Lyor Cohen (Global Head of Music, YouTube), Hartwig Masuch (CEO, BMG),

Alex Zhu (CEO, Musical. ly), Charles Caldas (CEO, Merlin), Joshua Burke (Global Head of Music Sourcing, The Coca-Cola Company), Jeremy Wineberg (Co-founder, Heard Well), Norman Halim (Group CEO, KRU Music), Paras Sharma (SVP and GM, Viacom International Media Networks), T. Jay Fowler (Director, YouTube), Tom Windish (Senior Executive, Paradigm Talent Agency), and Will Page (Director of Economics, Spotify), attendees will have the opportunity to hear from, and pose questions to, some of the leading players who are driving the industry.

Streaming has led to the growth of the music industry in markets that were not necessarily viewed as profitable or mainstream in the past.

According to Charles Caldas, CEO at Merlin, the emergence and global growth of streaming services has created a truly global marketplace for its labels, regardless of where they are from.

“Not only are we seeing labels from the West discovering significant new audiences in South America, Asia and Russia, we are equally seeing labels in South America and Asia finding audiences in the West. We are only just starting to understand the impact of this global marketplace, but we feel strongly that for our labels, the streaming market is delivering revenues from previously untapped markets, and opening the market to new players in a way that is unprecedented in the music business,” he added.

According to the IPFI Global Music report, year-on-year streaming revenue saw a growth of 60.4 percent in 2016 driven by the 112 million users of paid music streaming subscriptions.

Growth in streaming more than offset a 20.5 percent decline in downloads and a 7.6 percent decline in physical music revenue over the same period.

Record companies have continued to fuel this revenue growth through ongoing investment, not only in artists, but also in the systems supporting digital platforms, which has allowed for the licensing of over 40 million tracks across hundreds of services.

Jasper Donat, co-founder & CEO of All That Matters organizer Branded, said, “The music business has recorded one of the most stellar comeback stories of all time and Music Matters will be celebrating its renaissance.

From almost zero to digital hero the music industry is driving the entertainment agenda, causing other media and entertainment industries to sit up and take notice.”

“The Music Matters conference is presented

by Tencent and this year showcases the game-changers in China plus the global streaming platforms that have driven growth alongside multinational brands,, we’ve got the entire music ecosystem covered and fully expect their cousins in sport, online entertainment and gaming to learn a lot from the music programme this year,” he added.

Courtside reporter is new Miss World Philippines Laura Victoria Lehmann was crowned Miss World Philippines 2017 at the Coronation Night at the Mall of Asia (MOA) Arena. The 24-year-old psychology major at Ateneo de Manila University and currently an ABS-CBN Sports+Action courtside reporter at UAAP basketball/volleyball games earned the judges’ nod (the longest list of judges ever assembled –19 – in one pageant) with her answer during the t Top 10 Question and Answer portion with 2013 Miss World Megan Young.

“What does she think of those who say that beauty pageants do not empower women?,’’ was what the former Bb. Pilipinas 2014 first runner-up picked among the questions and to which she answered, “To anyone who doesn’t believe in pageants, I would ask them to take a look at the girls up on our stage tonight—because we have lawyers, we have architects, we have women of substance who are here today not only because of what they look like, but also because of what’s in their hearts, what’s in their mind, and because they’ve brought forth beauty with a purpose. They’re helping represent the Philippines and become the best version of the Filipina, and for me that’s something only to celebrate.”

Teresita Ssen Wynwin Marquez, a Kapuso talent, nearly stole the thunder from the rest of the Top 10 finalists, arguably the most intelligent and articulate group ever selected in a national pageant, with a passionate “beauty with a purpose” answer to why she deserved the title Miss World Philippines.

Marquez, a 25-year-old, Management graduate of San Beda College, surely brought pride to her parents Alma Moreno and Joey Marquez after winning the first Reina Hispano Americana Filipinas 2017 title that will bring her to compete in Bolivia this year.

Lehmann will represent the country in the Miss

World 2017 pageant in Sanya, China on Nov.18.

A new crown drawn from the Philippines’ title “The Pearl of the Orient” was designed with Megan Young’s help.

Lehmann and Marquez earlier won the MultiMedia, and Miss Talent/Bench Beach Beauty fast track events, respectively, giving them an automatic entry into the top 15 semi-finalists. Lehmann also bagged the Miss Cosmo Skin special award while Marquez took home the Miss Savoy Hotel Boracay title.

Cynthia Thomalla, a 22-year-old, Tourism student and former Sinulog Festival Queen 2016, was named Miss Eco-Philippines 2017, another new title for the Miss World Philippines franchise under national director Arnold. L. Vegafria. Thomalla, a dead ringer for Hollywood actress Anne Hathaway, won the Top Model fast track, best in long gown, Miss Photogenic and Miss Blue Water Day Spa special awards, and will compete in India.

Sophia Senoren, a17-year-old, Generation East 2017 Grand Winner, who reacted in shock every time her name was called, won the new title as Miss Multinational Philippines 2017. Glyssa Perez and Zara Carbonell were named First and Second Princesses, respectively.

KC Montero, Carla Abellana and Iya Villania hosted The Miss World Philippines 2017 with guest performers Jay-R, Kris Lawrence, and Christian Bautista, with Miss World Organization president Julia Morley, reigning Miss World Stephanie Del Valle, Mister World 2016 Rohit Khandelwal and former Miss World Philippines beauties Gwen Ruais, Queenierich Rehmann, Valerie Weigmann and Hillarie Parungao in the audience. – Words and photos by Eton B. Concepcion

NEW QUEEN. Miss World Philippines 2017 Laura Lehmann (third from left) with her court Miss Eco Philip-

pines Cynthia Thomalla (second from left), Reina Hispanoamericana Filipinas Teresita Senn "Wyn" Marquez (third from right), Miss Multinational Philippines Sophia Senoron, and the runners-up