Manila Standard - 2017 October 11 - Wednesday by Manila Standard

DU30’S TRUST RATINGS DROPPED ‘FASTER THAN AVERAGE’ By Maricel V. Cruz

VOL. XXXI • NO. 239 • 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P18 • WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2017 • www.manilastandard.net • editorial@manilastandard.net

RAGING INFERNO. Wildfires engulf more ground Tuesday across California’s wine country as firefighters struggle to contain wind-whipped flames that have killed at least 10 people, torched more than 2,000 homes and businesses and sent more than 20,000 people fleeing for safety. At least 15 separate blazes burned in nine Northern California counties, prompting evacuations that included patients in threatened hospitals. (Story on A2) AFP

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte’s satisfaction ratings are dropping faster than those of his predecessors, Social Weather Stations president Mahar Mangahas said Tuesday. The latest SWS survey conducted from Sept. 23 to 27 showed Duterte’s satisfaction rating dropping 18 points from a “very good” 66 the previous quarter to a “good” 48. “I would say that the fall is a little bit faster than average, compared to past presidents…They all fall...It’s not something to be proud about yet. If he can continue and match the records of Cory [Aquino], [Fidel] Ramos, and Noynoy [Aquino], then it’s something to talk about, but it’s still only his second year,” Mangahas said on ANC’s Headstart. Mangahas said a rating of “good” signiﬁes that the leader is still enjoying a “honeymoon stage,” a phase which former President Benigno Aquino III enjoyed for three years. Next page

Duterte family probe set Ubial out as health chief, Palace regrets CA decision By Macon RamosAraneta and John Paolo Bencito THE Commission on Appointments on Tuesday rejected the appointment of Health Secretary Paulyn Ubial, who became the ﬁfth member of President Rodrigo Duterte’s Cabinet to fail to win conﬁrmation. The decision, reached through secret voting in an executive session, was announced during the CA plenary session. Senator Gregorio Honasan II, chairman of the commission’s health committee, said the panel had

reached “a difficult decision” to reject Ubial’s appointment, with 13 members voting against her confirmation. Ubial’s appointment had been opposed by several parties, whose allegations she denied. Interviewed by reporters after the confirmation hearing, a teary-eyed Ubial told reporters she cries easily because she’s fond of watching teledramas. She said she would abide by the CA decision as it was part of the constitutional process. Senate Majority Leader Next page

By John Paolo Bencito and Macon Ramos-Araneta

HE Senate Blue Ribbon committee recommended a lifestyle check on family members of President Rodrigo Duterte—including his son and son-in-law—amid allegations of corruption in connection with the smuggling of P6.4 billion worth of shabu that was discovered earlier this year.

CONFIRMATION REJECTED. The Commission on Appointments rejects Tuesday the appointment of Paulyn Jean B. Rosell-Ubial as Health secretary, the fifth Cabinet member to be rejected in the 17-month-old Duterte administration. Lino Santos

SC votes 9-6 to uphold De Lima’s arrest, continued detention By Rey E. Requejo and Macon RamosAraneta VOTING 9-6, the Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed for lack of merit the petition of Senator Leila de Lima seeking her release from detention and stopping her in-

dictment for trading in illegal drugs. During its en banc session, the Court instead upheld the validity of the warrant of arrest issued against her and her indictment before the Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court for allegedly taking part and beneﬁting from ille-

Senate panel pushes for ‘lifestyle check’

gal drug trade inside the New Bilibid Prison. In a decision penned by Associate Justices Presbitero Velasco Jr., the Court held that the RTC has exclusive jurisdiction over the drug charges against De Lima, even if her position has a salary grade higher than 27,

which is covered by the jurisdiction of the Sandiganbayan. “The exclusive original jurisdiction of the RTC over violations of RA 9165 is not transferred to the Sandiganbayan whenever the accused occupies a position classiﬁed as Grade 27 or higher, re-

gardless of whether the violation is alleged to have been committed in relation to the ofﬁce being occupied. The Sandiganbayan’s jurisdiction is limited to violations of the anti-graft laws and do not extend to violations of the drugs law,” the decision said. Next page

Davao City Vice Mayor Paolo Duterte and lawyer Manases Carpio, husband of Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte, were being linked to the illegal drug shipment that passed through the Bureau of Customs in May. In a 52-page draft committee report, Senator Richard Gordon wrote: “Personalities who, due to their close relationships to persons possessing high authority, are held to higher standards of accountability to the people precisely because of such close relationships. There are many examples that we are aware where rumors of

close relationships abound, regardless of the administration in power.” The draft report also said: “Perhaps this is an opportunity, in aid of legislation, to shed light into this area. In this administration, a similar pattern has emerged, with certain members of the First Family being linked to this sordid affair.” “Therefore, the committee decided to invite the personalities being mentioned, namely, Davao City Vice Mayor Paolo Duterte, and attorney Manases Carpio, and; request the NBI [National Next page

Hazing suspect back with ma from US Murder cases By Joel E. Zurbano, Rey E. Requejo and Bill Casas ONE of the suspects in the hazing death of UST law student Horacio “Atio” Castillo returned to the Philippines on Tuesday after weeks of staying in the United States and following

HE IS BACK. Aegis Juris Fraternity officer Ralph Trangia, one of the suspects in the fatal hazing of University of Sto. Tomas law student Horacio Castillo III, returns with his mother to the Philippines Tuesday from three weeks stay in Chicago, Illinois via Taipei where they had gone after Castillo’s death. Norman Cruz

By John Paolo Bencito PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday called on the Philippines’ allies to unite against the “criminal” mind of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, who

must “stop threatening the world.” “I hope that in the coming days we should stay together because [our allies] are also put in jeopardy,” said Duterte who visited the Australian Navy’s largest vessel, the HMAS Adelaide, twitter.com/ MlaStandard

By John Paolo Bencito

which is docked at the Port of Manila. “We reiterate our full support for our Australian friends, Americans and even Chinese, Malaysian to show to this one guy that he has to stop threatening the world.” Next page

facebook.com/ ManilaStandardPH

Dean Nilo Divina on Tuesday shrugged off the inclusion of his name in the criminal complaint ﬁled before the Justice Department in connection with the hazing conducted by Aegis Juris Fraternity members that resulted in the death of 22-year-old freshman law student Castillo. Next page

Govt insists HR concerns looked into MALACAÑANG on Tuesday insisted the government was addressing human rights concerns in the country, amid threats by European parliamentarians the country risked losing a preferential trade deal if it failed to immediately stop the killings and political persecution of critics. “The President [Rodrigo

PH allies urged to unite vs Nokor’s leader

a police search for him. Aegis Juris member Ralph Trangia arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport around 11:40 a.m. on board EVA Air ﬂight from the United States through Taipei in a connecting ﬂight. In other developments: • University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Civil Law

manilastandard.net

SEIZED DRUGS. Customs Commissioner Isidro Lapeña (center) turns over millions of pesos’ worth of seized illegal drugs to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, consisting of five parcels containing 10,000 grams of marijuana and a parcel of ecstasy, estimated to be worth P3 million, at the Central Mail Exchange Center in Pasay City. Norman Cruz

down by 8% despite drug war—PNP

THE Philippine National Police on Tuesday said the number of murder cases recorded across the country has dropped despite the bloody war on drugs. In the first eight months this year, the number of murder cases dropped 7.98 percent from the same period in 2016, the PNP said. The PNP’s Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management recorded 6,391 murder cases from January to August 2017, 554 cases less than the 6,945 recorded during the same period last year. Official government figures show a total of 3,811 drug suspects were killed in police anti-drug operations from July 1, 2016 to Aug. 29, 2017. PNP-DIDM director Augusto Marquez said theft is Next page

Missed your copy of Manila Standard? Call or text our Circulation Hotline at 0917-8848655 or email: circulation@manilastandard.net

News

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2017 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

No Filipinos hurt in US wildfires By Sara Susanne D. Fabunan NONE of the nearly 18,000 Filipinos in Napa Valley and surrounding counties has been reported among the 10 casualties of the wildfires raging in California’s wine country, the Department of Foreign Affairs said. In New York, visiting Foreign Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano said (Tuesday in Manila): “We express our sympathies to the loved ones of those who lost their lives and their homes as a result of the wildfires. “We pray that our kababayans and other residents in the affected areas be kept safe and their homes spared from the fires.” The Philippine Consul General in San Francisco Henry Bensurto Jr. said his office was closely monitoring the situation and coordinating with local authorities and the Filipino Community to check on the condition of Filipinos in the affected areas. The Consulate General reported that 15 separate fires had broken out and affected over 73,000 acres (29,500 hectares). The fires destroyed 1,500 structures and caused the evacuation of an estimated 20,000 residents. Smoke and ashes reached as far south as San Francisco and Oakland due to wind direction and gust. “We continue to reach out to Filipino community organizations in the affected areas, particularly in the Napa and Sonoma counties, to ascertain their condition,” Bensurto said. “We have also disseminated through our social media platforms the advisories issued by local and state authorities,” he added. AFP

Drug rings now use postal service By Joel E. Zurbano

RIMINALS still dared to smuggle illegal substance despite the current drug war in the country initiated by the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte.

After X-ray examination, Customs examiners placed the items under physical examination with the presence of the Anti-Illegal Drugs Task Force for confirmation of illegal substances, Lapeña said Based on the documents, the parcels, declared as food additives, apparels, handbags, and school supplies, were consigned to Mark Dinglasan of Barangay Hagdang Bato Itaas, Mandaluyong City; Joel Shila of SSS Village, Marikina City; Vicky Alvarez of Sto. Niño St., Marikina City; Kim Equipado of Barangay Maharlika, San Juan City; James Garcia; and Divino Peleo.

Authorities said the international drug syndicates were also using the Philippine postal system to transport contraband including cocaine, cannabis and party drug ecstasy. On Tuesday, Customs Commissioner Isidro Lapeña Jr. presented to members of the media the smuggled P3.2 million worth of illegal drugs his men assigned at the Ninoy

Aquino International Airport seized on separate occasions at the Central Mail Exchange Center in Pasay City. The contraband—five parcels of marijuana and one ecstasy parcel—were intercepted by Customs agents under the supervision of District 3 Collector Ramon Anquilan after X-ray machines showed image irregularities.

Duterte... From A1

tion of a lifestyle check on attorney Mans finds its way into the final committee report, my opinion is, it is an unreasonable recommendation mainly because it is based on “chismis” of Mr. Taguba and from the lies of Trillanes,” the mayor said, referring to Customs fixer Mark Ruben Taguba and Senator Antonio Trillanes IV. Nevertheless, Duterte-Carpio said that she welcomes the investigation by the Ombudsman “since this will allow us to answer accusations” against her family. “I also welcome a lifestyle check on my husband so that the issue is put to rest,” she added. She shot back at Trillanes, whom she accused of being a “paid troll.” “He is fishing for information with his lies and accusations. If indeed he is correct, why is he looking for evidence from us?” she said in Filipino. Malacañang declined to comment on the issue, saying that they will defer “to Vice Mayor Paolo Duterte and attorney Mans Carpio.” Amid allegations of involvement in widespread smuggling at the Bureau Customs, the vice mayor and Carpio appeared before Gordon’s

committee and denied links to the Davao Group and even its existence. Like the President, the two also rejected the challenge of Trillanes to sign a waiver to the bank secrecy laws to open ttheir bank accounts to public scruitny. The Blue Ribbon committee also recommended the filing of criminal charges against all officers of the Bureau of Customs Command Center. Gordon, however, did not recommend charges against Carpio and Duterte. A portion of the draft committee report noted that “no evidence was established to connect the two to the smuggling of drugs or other contraband through our Bureau of Customs.” Furthermore, the draft committee report has also recommended a lifestyle check on Taguba and Abellera as well 12 others allegedly involved in the delivery of the P6.4-billion shipment of shabu from China. “It is also recommended to our law enforcement agencies, as well as the Bureau of Internal Revenue, through the Secretary of Finance, and ultimately through the President of the Philippines, that the

following be further investigated, that their cases be more extensively pursued, and that they be haled to court, if warranted, for their participation in the smuggling of the 604 kilos of shabu into the country—especially looking into lifestyle checks of the persons mentioned…,” the draft report said. Gordon also sought the identification of “Tita Nanie,” Jojo Bacud, “Jack”, and Noel” mentioned by Taguba. Tita Nanie was the one who introduced Taguba to the Davao Group, allegedly led by the Davao City vice mayor. Jack, meanwhile, is the alleged middleman. During the hearing, Davao City Councilor Nilo “Small” Abellera Jr confirmed meeting Taguba and Jack at a restaurant in Davao City. He also admitted his close ties with Duterte but denied involvement in smuggling. Taguba said the Davao Group facilitated smuggled deliveries in exchange for grease money. He told the Senare hearings that he paid Abellera Jr. sometime last January in Davao City P5million “enrollment fee” so he could seek protection from the Davao city vice mayor.

of them all,” he told ANC’s Headstart. “He needs to maintain it for 2 more years before he can say he’s as popular as those others before him,” he said. “All the presidents, their ratings go down. I wouldn’t say that there has to be something violent that happens, but if there’s violence then that’s the worst—like these extrajudicial killings. That probably would not be that low if not for these things,” he added. Presidential Spokesman Ernesto Abella said it was too soon to make conclusions about what caused the drop in the President’s ratings. “There are several ways of understanding that. I think what we need is a little bit more time to make compara-

tive studies and analysis so that we can make a fuller comprehensive understanding of that report,” he said. Chief Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo said the killing of teenagers Kian delos Santos, Carl Arnaiz, and Reynaldo de Guzman triggered reactions from certain sectors of the public. Mangahas said, however, that the SWS has yet to analyze the data to see if the killings have affected Duterte’s ratings. “It could be everything. It could be North Korea—probably it’s not. But one mustn’t look at some specific event and say that’s the event, without some data there. I would say it’s everything, and probably the killings are the worst,” he said.

Former President and Pampanga Rep. Gloria MacapagalArroyo said there was nothing unusual in the President’s satisfaction and trust ratings. Arroyo said the same thing happened during her presidency. “The rise and drop in a President’s approval ratings are bound to happen in the course of his or her term. It is part of the territory. It reflects the pulse of the people at a particular time. A drop though does not mean erosion of public support but merely a sentiment on particular policies,” Arroyo said in a statement. Arroyo said the presidency is a tough job that the highest official of the land has to make decisions even if unpopular so long as it is for the benefit of the people.

media post by her son, which criticized the senator. “Perhaps, she should tell her son Karl not to comment because it’s bad that you’re doing your job in the government… and then there are bad comments on the other leaders of the country,” Pacquiao said. Ubial said her son was willing to make a public apology. “I’m sure my son does not want to jeopardize my confirmation,” she said. Party-list Kabayan Rep. Harry Roque had slammed Ubial for her flip-flopping on the Zika virus and the delay in the procurement of the dengue vaccine in favor of the pneumonia vaccine.

Hs also accused Ubial, as PhilHealth chairperson, of controlling internal affairs for her own benefit. He also complained about Ubial’s “excessive foreign travels” in her first few months in office. Ubial’s son Karl, had joined some of her official trips abroad, but Ubial said they personally shouldered the expenses. The Palace on Tuesday expressed regret over the decision. “We regret the Commission on Appointments’ non-confirmation of Department of Health Secretary Paulyn Jean Rosell-Ubial,” Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella said in a statement.

Bureau of Investigation] to include both personalities in the lifestyle checks being conducted.” But the committee ruled there was “no evidence to connect the two to the smuggling of drugs or other contraband through the Bureau of Customs.” Although Duterte and Carpio were summoned “on the basis of mere hearsay,” the committee “sought to accommodate the importuning of Senator [Antonio] Trillanes.” “The committee wanted to show likewise that there are no holy cows exempted from our processes,” Gordon said. “Implicating persons on mere hearsay was rigorously avoided. But, your committee did not hesitate to summon when a connection or implication was made of certain personalities, based on personal knowledge, even if the supposed personal knowledge was determined later to be a mistaken one,” he added. Sara Duterte-Carpio, for her part, scored the “unreasonable” draft resolution. “If indeed the recommenda-

Govt... From A1

Du30‘s... From A1

Duterte) is quite serious in addressing all of these matters,” Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella told a Palace news briefing. But Abella warned “there’s a lot of noise on the outside and—auxiliary noise” affecting the perceptions of foreign countries on the administration’s aggressive efforts to combat the drug menace. On Monday, a mission of international parliamentarians and civil society leaders urged Duterte to stop what it said was the extremely alarming number of drug suspects being killed in the campaign against illegal drugs and the administration’s aggressive efforts to silence its critics. The parliamentarians warned if the killings would not stop, the Philippines risked losing a preferential trade deal that allowed 6,200 of its products to enter the European Union duty free. “If the human rights standards are not upheld, then there may be consequences in the Philippines’ inclusion in the special trading instrument of the EU,” said German parliamentarian Arne Lietz. Lietz also called for an immediate stop to the killings, the release of detained government critics and a thorough investigation into the thousands of drug suspects killed as a result of the President’s drug war.

President Joseph Estrada had the shortest “honeymoon period,” which lasted only a year, if the numbers of former President Gloria MacapagalArroyo were not counted. Duterte had better satisfaction ratings than Estrada, but Mangahas said the same could not be said if his numbers are compared to former Presidents Aquino, Fidel Ramos and Corazon Aquino. “I could say that at least President Duterte has already exceeded Erap. He has not exceeded Ramos, he has not exceeded Cory, and definitely he has not exceeded PNoy because PNoy had the best

Vicente Sotto III, who had grilled Ubial last week about her travels abroad, sometimes with family members, said, “Smoking is dangerous to your health, like lying is dangerous to your confirmation.” Former Philippine Health Insurance Corp. interim president Hildegardes Dineros had earlier accused Ubial of lying when she said he resigned voluntarily, saying he was ousted upon her instigation. A PhilHealth employee, Marie Fe Francisco, also opposed Ubial’s confirmation,

accusing her of “grave abuse of power and usurpation of authority.” Francisco said she was among 150 PhilHealth employees who signed a manifesto against Ubial’s appointment, saying she violated their rights to due process when she arbitrarily suspended allowances and salary adjustments due to a notice of disallowance issued by the Commission on Audit. Ubial said that while it pained her to remove the compensation and allowances of PhilHealth employees, she had to follow the law. During the hearing, Senator Manny Pacquiao also questioned Ubial over a social

SC... From A1

concurred with the ruling were Associate Justices Teresita Leonardo-De Castro, Diosdado Peralta, Lucas Bersamin, Mariano del Castillo, Samuel Martires, Noel Tijam, Andres Reyes and Alexander Gesmundo. The six magistrates who dissented from the majority ruling were Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno, Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio and Associate Justices

Estela Perlas Bernabe, Marvic Leonen, Francis Jardeleza and Benjamin Caguioa. De Lima was accused of accepting drug money from prisoners when she was Justice secretary from 2010 and 2015. She is not entitled to bail and, if found guilty, could be sentenced to life in prison. The senator earlier said the Muntinlupa RTC had committed grave abuse of discretion in ordering her arrest when

she still had a pending motion to quash. She also said the case should have been filed before the Office of the Ombudsman, which has jurisdiction over officials with a salary grade of 27 or above. De Lima had a salary grade of 31 as Justice secretary. The Office of the Solicitor General, however, said that under the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act, the

• Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada on Tuesday ordered the Manila Police District to go after the 35 suspects in the death of Castillo. He tasked the police to hunt down the suspects to ensure justice was served to Castillo’s family.

“If there’s evidence, arrest them,” Estrada said after being briefed by MPD Chief Joel Coronel on the investigation of the case. “Let them face the court and answer the charges.” Trangia arrived with his mother Rosemarie who was

with him in Chicago. They were welcomed by airport security personnel and men from the Manila Police District. The Taipei Economic and Cultural Office earlier said Trangia flew to Chicago through Taiwan on a transit flight from Manila on Sept. 19.

The ruling came after Velasco earlier rejected the plea of De Lima for his inhibition due to alleged “conflict of interest” over his “prior actuations” in the case of convicted drug lord German Agojo, one of the witnesses against the senator in the drug cases. The eight magistrates who

Hazing... From A1 “I am sure it is baseless since I have not breached any law and have always discharged my functions as dean with utmost diligence,’’ Divina said.

“Some of the parcels which arrived at CMEC are from USA,” Lapeña said. He added the contraband were already turned over to the custody of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency for proper disposition. The consignees will be charged with violation of provisions of Republic Act 10863, or the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act and RA 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. In June, Airport and Customs operatives also intercepted in CMEC a package shipped from Canada containing marijuana worth more

Ubial... From A1

than P100,000. Four vacuum-sealed plastic pouches containing 343 grams of cannabis dried leaves were discovered in the parcel upon examination by authorities. Deandre Travis Johnson Cruz, identified as the claimant of the seized parcel, was brought to jail. Shabu, marijuana and ecstasy are the top three narcotics distributed in the streets and these prohibited substances are manufactured by Chinese, Taiwanese and Mexican drug syndicates. PDEA officials said the country’s drug problem could now be classified as national

security threat. The authorities vowed the government’s crackdown on drug dealing in the country would continue with the goal of catching protectors and financiers of the illegal drug trade. For his part, Manila International Airport Authority general manager Eddie Monreal ordered his men to be on alert in and outside the airport against illegal drug trafficking to discourage international and local drug syndicates from using the Philippines as a transshipment point or dumping ground for their illegal substances. With Vito Barcelo

12 more Caloocan cops charged for murder of Kian By Rey E. Requejo TWELVE more members of the Caloocan City police previously listed as “John Does” have been identified and included as respondents in the complaint before the Department of Justice, in connection with the killing of 17-year-old Kian Loyd delos Santos. Included in the complaint were PO2s Arnel R. Canezares, Diony B. Corpuz and Fernan C. Cano and PO1s Reynaldo Dan M. Blanco Jr., Silverio C. Garcia Jr., Ronald B. Herrera, Myrldon L.Yagi, Christian Joy G. Aguilar, Ceferino B. Paculan, J-Rossillini O. Lorenzo, Erwin C. Romeroso and Ferdinand R. Claro. The new respondents were part of the police team who conducted the anti-illegal drugs operation that led to the death of Delos Santos on Aug. 16. The Delos Santos family, assisted by the Public Attorneys’ Office, filed complaints for murder, torture, planting of evidence and violation of domicile under Article 128 of the Revised Penal Code

against PO3 Arnel Oares and PO1s Jeremias Pereda and Jerwin Cruz and their superior, Chief Insp. Amor Cerillo before the DoJ. The Delos Santos family cited the findings of the PNPInternal Affairs Service of the existence of conspiracy among respondents Oares, Pereda and Cruz in the complaint, adding the investigation showed that “excessive force” had been employed that resulted in Kian’s death. According to the family, the gunshot wounds sustained by the slain teenager also belied the claim of the respondents there was a shootout and that Kian fired at them first, prompting them to retaliate. It said Cerillo, as the supervisor of PCP 7 of the Caloocan police, was liable for the negligent acts of his subordinates resulting in the death of Kian. Cerillo, Cruz, Oares, and Pereda submitted their rejoinder affidavits during Tuesday’s hearing while the 12 other policemen have until Oct. 17 to submit counter affidavits.

Murder... From A1 the most prevalent crime this year, making up 32.65 percent of total index crimes within the same period. Marquez said murder only accounted for 8.41 percent of the total index crimes. The PNP has said peace and order has improved since it waged a stringent campaign against criminality. National Capital Region Police Office Chief Superintendent Oscar Albayalde on Tuesday said the deaths that have occurred under the Duterte administration are non-statesponsored murders, “bungled” police operations, and people taking advantage of the President’s campaign rhetoric, but not extrajudicial killings. In an interview in News To Go, Albayalde backed the PNP report that there are zero EJK cases in the country. He said that the deaths of teenage boys Kian Loyd delos Santos, Carl Angelo Arnaiz, and Reynaldo “Kulot” de Guzman are not considered EJKs but bungled police operations. Albayalde insisted that Arnaiz shot it out with police, who did not know he was a minor, even though witnesses said the 19-year-old boy was on the ground pleading for his life when two policemen shot him dead. A leftist group of farmers, the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas, meanwhile, questioned the PNP claim that there were no extrajudicial killings in the country.

PH... From A1

RTC has exclusive jurisdiction to try and hear drug cases, regardless of whether the accused is a public official or not. Solicitor General Jose Calida said the decision “further negates the erroneous perception that the government’s war on drugs is waged only against the unlettered and the underprivileged.” The Liberal Party expressed regret over the decision.

Duterte made the statement even as he expressed hope that the Marawi siege would end this week. He said the Philippines was suffering “from a severe case of terrorism.” “We’re coping. We hope that it would be finished in about one week. We have suffered casualties,” Duterte said. He also said China was the “only monkey wrench” in the “violent plans” of the North Korean leader. “China appears to be the only monkey wrench in the violent plans of Kim Un --- Un Jun --- I can’t even pronounce the g****** stupid name,” he told his foreign guests that included Australia’s Ambassador to Manila, Amanda Gorely and Assistant Defense Attache Gideon Scrimgeour. Referring to the North Korean leader as a small guy

“playing with dangerous weapons,” Duterte said he hoped that the situation in the region “would not deteriorate into something violent.” “There will always be consequences for all of us. Nuclear bombs, you know, can create devastation,” Duterte said. “And there will be chaos and hunger and an aberration in our systems of life.” Australia, the country’s top foreign donor for the Marawi crisis, has a long-standing defense cooperation program with Manila that deals with counterterrorism, maritime security and capability development assistance to the Armed Forces of the Philippines. The HMAS Adelaide, a landing helicopter dock ship accompanied by the smaller HMAS Darwin, a guided missile frigate is currently in the country for a five-day goodwill visit starting Oct. 10 as part of regional deployment by the Australian Defense Force to strengthen ties with countries in the region.

Red Mariñas, head of the Bureau of Immigration Port Operations Division, earlier told ABS-CBN News that the Interpol office in the US relayed to their office details of Trangia’s return to Manila. He said Trangia opted for a voluntary return after the gov-

ernment reportedly planned to revoke his passport after he was tagged in Castillo’s death. In a statement, the Justice Department said Trangia’s return was a welcome development in the case. It said it would assess if Trangia could be a potential witness.

“While he may be a suspect as of the moment, he could be a potential witness,” Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre said. “And for this reason, the DoJ offers to him and to his family the protection of our Witness Protection Program.”

News

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2017

FLU SHOT.

Makati City Mayor Abby Binay (right) beams as she is injected with a quadrivalent flu vaccine to kick off the citywide anti-influenza vaccination program for public school students and for city government employees on Tuesday at the Makati City Hall. Surrounding Binay are Makati Health Department officials and other city department heads. Manny Palmero

Palace: FDI will improve; PH invites Ireland to invest F By John Paolo Bencito and Sara Susanne D. Fabunan

OREIGN direct investments in the country will soon improve, Malacañang said Tuesday, after a significant drop in the influx of new investments was recorded in the first six months of the year.

Robredo camp stays confident in poll protest By Rio N. Araja THE camp of Vice President Leni Robredo on Tuesday remained unfazed by the claim of former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. that he would soon become vice president. “We stand by the credibility of the election of VP Robredo. Her victory has already been conﬁrmed by the PET’s (Presidential Electoral Tribunal) ruling that the automated election system used to count and canvass the votes was credible, and the election documents it generated were all genuine and authentic,” said Romulo Macalintal, Robredo’s lead counsel. Marcos saying he will “soon be the vice president” was a “mere front to conceal the futility of his election protest,” Macalintal said. He dismissed Marcos’ assertion that he would surely win in the recount of votes in Camarines Sur, Iloilo and Negros Oriental. “Once again, his assertion has no support,” Robredo’s lawyer said. “Marcos’ reliance on the so-called ‘undervotes’ where he believes he would make a substantial recovery only shows that he does not fully comprehend the nature of his election protest,” Macalintal said.

“Definitely,” Presidential Spokesman Ernesto Abella said, responding to questions if the country’s FDI figures will recover. Citing data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon said new investments declined by 90.3 percent in the first half of 2017 compared to the same period last year. “Especially so that the President has given his assurance that his whole intention is to finish his term,” Abella said, adding that President Rodrigo Duterte is keeping his promise of a “comfortable life” for

Filipinos that would extend beyond his term. “He’s in fact looking forward to beyond 2022, not for himself but for the rest of administration... for other administrations to come in order to bring in a decent life for the Filipino people,” he added. Meanwhile, the Philippines has invited Ireland to explore infrastructure development and other economic opportunities in the country. Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano conveyed the invitation to Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney during their bilateral meeting in New York. “Foreign Minister Coveney and I discussed real opportunities for economic cooperation for the Philippines and Ireland, and we are both looking forward to making this happen,” Cayetano said.

Cayetano discussed with Coveney the “Build Build Build” Program of the Duterte administration, and encouraged Irish companies to consider participating in the program. The secretary also cited the ongoing tax reforms, transparency, and other new economic policies that would make the Philippines attractive to Irish companies. Coveney mentioned real opportunities for economic cooperation between Manila and Dublin in the technological and medical industries, information and communications technology and software development, and food and nutrition. Ireland is seeking to expand its export markets, particularly in food products, as it produces 10 times more than what its population of 4.77

million people needs, Coveney said. With the European Union Free Trade Agreement, the Philippines could access the EU through Ireland, which is now the only English-speaking economy in the regional bloc following the United Kingdom’s exit, the Irish minister said. Joey Concepcion, the presidential adviser on entrepreneurship, meanwhile said it is only “a matter of timing” that FDIs will soon reap fruit, adding that commitments made by foreign investors could take some time to materialize. “On the foreign direct investments, of course, these are the long-term ones. They take time. So sometimes, the commitment is a commitment. There are always delays,” Concepcion said.

RJ Nieto, ‘Thinking Pinoy’ blogger, quits DFA job By Sara Susanne D. Fabunan A PRO-PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte blogger has voluntarily backed out of his contract as a social media consultant to the Department of Foreign Affairs, less than a week after being called to a Senate hearing on so-called fake news. Rey Joseph “RJ” Nieto announced Monday on his social media platform, “Thinking Pinoy,” that he has asked the DFA to terminate his contract, and that he would donate to charity at least P36,000 in salary he was supposed to get from his stint.

The DFA declined to comment on Nieto’s post. Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano, who has extended his trip to New York to almost a month, has not commented on his hiring of Nieto, barely two months since his appointment to the DFA. But a day after the Senate hearing, where Nieto was invited to be a resource person, the pro-Duterte blogger posted on his account that Cayetano called him to discuss the so-called “Cocoygate” and the hearing by the lawmakers. “Nanood pala kasi siya,

tapos sabi niya sa akin na magpahinga rin ako kasi nonstop ang schedule ko these past three weeks (Cayetano was watching the proceedings, then told me to rest because my schedule had been nonstop),” Nieto wrote on his blog. “Cocoygate” refers to Edward Angelo “Cocoy” Dayao, the web security consultant of the Presidential Communications Operations Office of the previous Aquino administration, and the discovery of the pro-Duterte bloggers that Dayao had something to do with the “Silent No More”

blog that is critical of the President and supposedly allied with the opposition “yellow” politicians. Nieto and another proDuterte blogger—Margaux “Mocha” Uson, now an assistant secretary under the Presidential Communication and Operations Office— were with Cayetano as official government delegates to the 72nd session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York from September 19 to 23. They were also with the government delegation during Cayetano’s official visit to Washington DC.

Gambala resigns as deputy Customs chief

IRANUN WEAVE. Asnaira Taruyan (right) and Bhaikan Kamsa, both 14-year-olds from Sultan Kudarat in Maguindanao, demonstrate the traditional weave for the Iranun malong, a tube skirt, during the Angat Dapat Social Fair on Monday at the SKCC lobby inside the ARMM compound in Cotabato City. Omar Mangorsi

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

DEPUTY Customs Commissioner Gerardo Gambala, whom Senator Panﬁlo Lacson has implicated in the corruption in the agency, tendered his irrevocable resignation on Tuesday. Customs Commissioner Isidro Lapeña told reporters at a brieﬁng in Pasay City that Gambala tendered his resignation a month ago, when Lapeña already assumed leadership of the agency after replacing Nicanor Faeldon. “I received it during my time, I think that’s during a month ago,” Lapeña said. Lacson had linked both Faeldon and Gambala, former soldiers and part of the so-called Magdalo mutineers during the term of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, as being involved in corruption, including the controversial “tara” system of payoffs at Customs and the safe passage of over P6 billion worth of the illegal drug “shabu” through the agency’s inspectors. According to Lapeña, Gambala indicated in his resignation that he wants to spend more time with his family.

21 LP solons rally behind Ombudsman via resolution By Maricel V. Cruz LIBERAL Party and other lawmakers aligned with the opposition have rallied behind Ombudsman Conchita CarpioMorales amid President Rodrigo Duterte’s threat of ﬁling an impeachment complaint against her. In House Resolution 1395, the 21 LP members who signed the resolution vowed to “preserve and protect the constitutional independence and integrity” of the Ofﬁce of the Ombudsman. The Liberal lawmakers were Reps. Francis Gerald Abaya of Cavite; Benjie Agarao of Laguna; Vicente Alcala of Quezon; Isagani Amatong of Zamboanga del Norte; Kaka Bag-ao of Dinagat Island; Bolet Banal of Quezon City; Kit Belmonte of Quezon City; Emmanuel Billones of Capiz; Gabriel Bordado of Camarines Sur; Raul Daza of Northern Samar; Raul del Mar of Cebu City; Cheryl Deloso-Montalla of Zambales; Christopher de Venecia of Pangasinan; Edgar Erice of Caloocan; Edcel Lagman of Albay; Jocelyn Limkaichong of Negros Oriental; Miro Quimbo of Marikina; Josephine Ramirez-Sato of Occidental Mindoro; Rene Relampagos of Bohol; Vilma Santos-Recto of Batangas; and Edgar Mary Sarmiento of Samar. Other non-LP signatories included Reps. Ma. Lourdes Acosta-Alba of Bukidnon, Rep. Tom Villarin of Akbayan, Rep. Strike Revilla of Cavite, Lawrence Fortun of Agusan del Norte, and Rav Rocamora of Siquijor.

Poe: P526m down drain via defective MRT LRVs

By Macon RamosAraneta

A TOTAL of P526 million in taxpayers’ money went down the drain in purchasing 48 China-made light rail vehicles or LRVs for the Metro Rail Transit system, which turned out to be overweight and incompatible with existing facilities, Senator Grace Poe revealed Tuesday. In a Senate hearing, Poe renewed her call for the government to run after former officials of the Department of Transportation who made a mockery of the ordeals of the riding public in the guise of MRT’s well-publicized capacity expansion. The Senate leadership has backed the filing of charges against former officials involved in the deal. “That money seemed to have been thrown away. So those involved here should be held liable,” said Poe. “Why are we prolonging the agony?” she also asked during the plenary debates on the DOTr’s proposed P70.4-billion spending program for 2018. A total of P526 million has so far been paid by the government to Dalian Corp., out of the P3.8-billion deal. But out of the 48 LRVs that were delivered, only 29 have a signaling system installed, and the Transportation department was still in the process of running tests on the trains. Also, all 48 trains weigh at least 49,000 kilograms each, way above the required 46,300 kg under the terms, the senator noted. The allowable tolerance limit should only be two percent or 926 kgs, she added. “It’s just common sense. You haven’t even filled it with passengers yet the train is already overweight and our rails might not be able to take it,” said Poe.

Opinion

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2017

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Adelle Chua, Editor

EDITORIAL

Changing words won’t ﬁx the problem

N A DAZZLING display of sophistry, a top ofﬁcial of the Philippine National Police said Monday there are no extrajudicial killings in the Philippines for the simple reason there is no death penalty. “There is no death penalty so there is no judicial killing,” said Insp. Gen. Alfegar Triambulo of the PNP Internal Affairs Service [IAS], speaking in Filipino. “If there is no judicial killing, there is no extrajudicial killing.” The correct term for killings during police operations is “homicides under investigation,” he added, noting that there are 2,000 of such cases that IAS is investigating. Meanwhile, PNP chief Director Ronald dela Rosa said he supported

the definition of extrajudicial killings under Administrative Order No. 35, which says these are “killings where the victim was a member of, or affiliated with an organization, to include political, environmental, labor, or similar causes; or an advocate of the said cause; or a media practitioner apparently mistaken or identified to be so.” The implementing guidelines for AO 35, issued by President Benigno Aquino III, says a person is considered the victim of extrajudicial killing if he or she is “targeted and killed because of the actual or perceived membership, advocacy, or profession; or the person(s) responsible for the killing is a state agent or non-state agent; and the method and circumstances of attack reveal a deliberate intent to kill.” Curiously, both definitions bring

down the number of extrajudicial killings as a result of the government’s bloody anti-drug war to zero, a suggestion that is so absurd that it seems almost surreal. This may help the administration in its war of words with human rights groups, but it doesn’t fix the problem of innocent people—most tragically, minors—being killed by the police in anti-drug operations. US jurisprudence defines an extrajudicial killing as “a deliberated killing not authorized by a previous judgment pronounced by a regularly constituted court affording all the judicial guarantees which are recognized as indispensable by civilized peoples.” An even simpler definition, accepted internationally, is that an extrajudicial killing is the killing of a person by governmental authorities without the

sanction of any judicial proceeding or legal process. Nobody is fooled by the semantics, however. Even the Palace admitted this week that the involvement of policemen in the killing of teenagers pulled down President Duterte’s satisfaction and trust ratings in the latest Social Weather Stations Survey. In the Third Quarter 2017 survey, SWS found that Duterte’s net satisfaction rating fell by 18 points, while his trust rating dropped by 15 points. Overall, however, many Filipinos are still satisﬁed with Duterte (+48 percent) and trust him (+60), the survey shows. It seems imperative, then, that the President not squander the faith in him by playing word games instead of actually acknowledging, then ﬁxing the problem of extrajudicial killings. TO THE POINT EMIL P. JURADO

No EJKs here DID I hear it right? Did the police really say there is no extrajudicial killing in the Philippines? Is this one of President Duterte’s jokes? Or are his ofﬁcials resorting to hyperbole again? It’s getting from bad to worse. I am talking about local and international criticism of the drug war. Just read the argument of the police and Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano in defense of the indefensible. The police and Duterte allies and supporters argue that there is no such thing as extrajudicial killings because we don’t have death penalty here. It does not follow. The premise is wrong. The death penalty is not judicial killing. When killings are done by violating human rights, they are deemed extrajudicial. Thus, when the police and administration ofﬁcials

Yeah, right.

Leila’s comeuppance LOWDOWN

JOJO A. ROBLES IT WAS Sun Tzu, the great Chinese war strategist, who said that if you wait long enough, you will see the bodies of all your enemies float down the river. This seems so apt in the case of jailed Senator Leila de Lima, who is now about to suffer the same fate of the people who crossed her when she was the all-powerful secretary of justice. And so it is that De Lima, who once had the power to go after all the perceived enemies of her former boss, President Noynoy Aquino, stays in jail, according to the Supreme Court. And this time, there is nothing De Lima can do to defy the high court’s order, unlike when she refused to allow Gloria Arroyo to leave the

country for medical treatment on the strength of a restraining order the tribunal had issued. Voting 9-6, the high court yesterday ruled that De Lima should be tried in a regular court by regular prosecutors for the drug cases that she is facing. The senator had come to the Supreme Court asking that she be prosecuted in the Sandiganbayan anti-graft court, by the Ombudsman, instead of in a Muntinlupa trial court by ordinary prosecutors, who in all likelihood worked under her before. De Lima has styled herself as the fiercest critic of President Rodrigo Duterte, whom she claims has taken her criticism of his administration personally. Once, De Lima was also supposed to have said that she never thought that Duterte could be so “vindictive,” forgetting that one of the most serious accusations against

her was how she was a most willing tool for the president who took vindictiveness to its highest level ever —Noynoy himself. But all of that was before

I, too, am happy that she stays in jail—if only to teach her a lesson on the temporal nature of political power.

De Lima was revealed to have actively participated in and abetted, according to the charges lodged against her, a thriving trade on illegal drugs that was based

inside the New Bilibid Prisons. After it became clear in a series of sensational Senate hearings that the neophyte senator was actually one of the enablers of Bilibid-based narcotics syndicates, her carefully cultivated reputation as a principled critic of Duterte came tumbling down. De Lima, despite her protestations that she was merely a victim of political persecution, became the highest government official linked to the drug trade. And now, she will stay in jail (or its country club version, anyway, the PNP Custodial Center in Camp Crame) until the charges against her have run their course, according to the decision of the highest court in the land. Oh, in case you’re wondering: It was during the time of De Lima that the legal lines separating the DoJ and the Ombudsman were

blurred to the point of near non-existence. In order to facilitate the filing of charges against people who held public office (like Arroyo, who became a Pampanga congresswoman in the hope that this would protect her from an avenging Noynoy), the two agencies signed a memorandum allowing “concurrent jurisdiction” of cases filed in either. Now this same method of more effectively pursuing a variety of charges against people that De Lima and Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales, her principal collaborator in the prosecution and persecution of cases Aquino wanted filed against his perceived enemies, is being used against Leila. The irony should not be lost on the senator, as she ponders her fate and writes those tortured and torturous handwritten letters from jail and continues to mark the days of her incarceration

via numbers posted on the door of her Senate office. Of course, if you listen to Leila’s supporters, you will never note even the slightest tinge of irony in their statements made in defense of their incarcerated idol. They seem impervious to how Leila is just following in the footsteps of those she had unjustly condemned during Aquino’s time, when she and Morales were the chief implementors of Noynoy’s unrelenting campaign of political vendetta. But things have a way of evening out in the end. And like those two bloggers who made wacky poses in front of Leila’s office, I, too, am happy that she stays in jail —if only to teach her a lesson on the temporal nature of political power. *** President Duterte promised a bank for overseas foreign workers. And now,

argue that we have a score of “zero” in EJKs, they assume we are stupid. Could the other 39 members of the United Nations be stupid not to know that EJKs are being committed here? There are those who claim that the honeymoon period is over and this is why the satisfaction ratings of President Duterte have declined. Others say the decline was self-inﬂicted. I say it’s because the people around the President do not think the people are discerning enough. But we are! Whether or not the decline in people’s satisfaction with the President is the start of the freefall is a matter of speculation. In an earlier column I said the President has enough time to rethink his bloody war on drugs. He must realize that the drug problem is not only an issue of peace and order. It is about poverty and health, too. Other countries have drug problems. But they don’t kill everybody they believe is involved in it. ***

Turn to A5

Rolando G. Estabillo Publisher ManilaStandard

Published Monday to Sunday by Philippine Manila Standard Publishing Inc. at 6/F Universal Re Building, 106 Paseo de Roxas, corner Perea St., Legaspi Village, Makati City. Telephone numbers 832-5554, 832-5556, 832-5558 (connecting all departments), (Editorial) 832-5554, (Advertising) 832-5550. P.O. Box 2933, Manila Central Post Ofﬁce, Manila. Website: www. manilastandard.net

ONLINE

can be accessed at: manilastandard.net

MEMBER

PPI

Philippine Press Institute The National Association of Philippine Newspapers

Former Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno Anita F. Grefal Baldwin R. Felipe Edgar M. Valmorida

Board Member & Chief Legal Adviser Treasury Manager OIC-Ad Solutions Circulation Manager

Ramonchito L. Tomeldan Chin Wong/Ray S. Eñano Joyce Pangco Pañares Adelle Chua

Managing Editor Associate Editors City Editor Opinion Editor

Emil P. Jurado

Honor Blanco Cabie Night Editor Romel J. Mendez Art Director Roberto Cabrera Chief Photographer

Chairman Emeritus, Editorial Board

Opinion Bloomberg editorial

No... From A4

AFP Chief of Staff Eduardo Año and PP Director General Ronald dela Rosa both think the country has so much democratic space that people are lacking in discipline. So would they rather have a despot? It would appear so. I say this is a cause for concern. Both the military and the police chief believe that we need a tyrant to instill discipline among the people. And both have the power to install somebody in the position, even without the consent of the people. Are we headed that way? *** The death of Washington Sycip is mourned by many. I join them, especially since I had the privilege of knowing him. I ﬁrst met Wash when he started SGV with his friend, Alfred Velayo. At that time, Wash’s father was chairman and president of China Bank and I would go to

Leila’s... From A4

Duterte has signed an order fulfilling that promise, with the creation of a new financial institution dedicated to the needs of the 10 million or so Filipinos toiling in foreign lands. The proposed OFW Bank, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Land Bank of the Philippines, has the potential to significantly lower the remittance costs of Filipinos overseas. Commercial banks and money-transfer companies, after all, have long feasted on the $30 billion or so sent

his ofﬁce when I was business editor of the Philippines Herald. Don Albino would talk about his children—David, Washington and Alexander. I became a close friend of David. The last time I saw Wash was when he was given a birthday party by Bobby Ongpin—his youngest-ever managing partner at age 26. Boby was my student in Ateneo High School. Wash became known for his charitable works and love of country. He was a nationbuilder. *** Speaking of Bobby Ongpin, his Alphaland Baguio Mountain Lodge, referred to as the Forbes Park of Baguio City, is almost ﬁnished. The place has all the amenities one can dream of. It also has a concrete perimeter fence. The site enjoys lush Benguet pine air. I love seeing the place even if I cannot afford to buy a home. home annually by OFWs, who have to shoulder exorbitant rates charged by these firms that send their money to their loved ones here. I also see the OFW Bank helping OFWs permanently returning home become entrepreneurs, especially by providing them with financial advice and loan facilities if they decide to put up small businesses where their particular skills and expertise can be maximized. Commercial banks, which are geared to service the needs of established businessmen, have not been very helpful to OFWs in this regard—and a dedicated bank can help a lot.

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Taking a taxi can be taxing

What economists can learn THE Swedish committee that awards the Nobel Prize in economics is famously slow and conservative: It has honored behavioral economist Richard Thaler because decades of experience have proven the value of his contribution. If only the laureate’s own profession were so responsive. Thaler has devoted his career to developing an idea that challenges orthodox economics—the fact that humans aren’t always rational, and don’t always act in their own best interests. Among other things, they lack self-control, they’re inconsistent in how they value things, they have an outsized fear of losses, and they overreact to bad news. Various businesses—payday lenders, car rental companies, video streaming services—have long exploited such psychological insights to take advantage of consumers. More recently, thanks to the efforts of Thaler and his collaborators, companies and governments around the world have tried to use them for people’s benefit. They’ve looked for ways to “nudge” people to save more for retirement, drive safely, go to better colleges and participate in free school-lunch programs. Yet decades on, and after a crash that brutally demonstrated the limits of the “rational actor” approach, macroeconomic theory has hardly moved. The mathematical models that guide policy in finance ministries and central banks are still based on assumptions that don’t fit the facts—on the idea, for instance, that people smooth out consumption over their entire lifetimes. Thaler notes in his latest book, “Misbehaving: The Making of Behavioral Economics,” that much more academic work is needed to illuminate vital questions facing policy makers: how to change tax systems to encourage investment; how to encourage people to spend more when higher spending is needed to support the economy; how to discourage borrowing when excessive debt threatens financial stability. These and countless other issues require subtler research, in the spirit of behavioral economics, into how people actually respond to changes in policy. Improving economics as a science will require economists to act more like scientists—rejecting models that don’t fit, relying more on experiments, and replicating findings to test their validity. Top journals should see it as part of their job to challenge the prevailing theories. And improving economics as a guide to policy requires, in addition, more skepticism. Economists and policy makers need to worry more about the assumptions that underlie their proposals, and not just about the math that yields answers once those assumptions are made. Thaler richly deserves his Nobel. If his prize nudges economics in the right direction, even better.

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2017

BACK CHANNEL ALEJANDRO DEL ROSARIO TAKING a taxi can be a stressful and taxing experience. At one time or another, a taxi passenger probably had an encounter with an abusive driver. Reports and horror stories of such incidents when riding a taxi have been reported to the Land Transportation Franchise and Review Board but to no avail. These incidents are a one-on-one encounter between passenger and driver. There are no witnesses and when reported to the police it becomes a case of he says she says. I have experienced such a taxing time with abusive drivers. Did I bring this on myself? I don’t think so. Once I get into a taxi I usually greet them a good morning or afternoon to set

the tone for a pleasant journey. Sometimes the driver responds to your greeting with a “good morning too, sir.” But often there is no response which signals this is going to be one stressful journey. True enough, this I know as an experienced commuter who only stopped driving because of those loose madmen on motorcycles on the road. When you hail a cab and the driver asks where you’re going and then demands an extra P100 for what he says is a trafﬁc congested route, do not get on. This is a telltale sign he’s going to take you for a ride you are not going to enjoy. I would rate myself considerate and in fact generous, usually giving a P20 tip even for short distances and P50 for longer trips. But I won’t allow myself to be a victim of downright extortion. Let me say that there some drivers who are

courteous and in fact nice to talk when trafﬁc is at standstill which is usual in this gridlocked metropolis. Many motorists complain about the lack of parking spaces in the city. But most streets, like the oftused Edsa, including Roxas Boulevard and Osmena Highway have become virtual parking lots during rush and peak hours. It is then comforting news that the Land Transportation Franchise and Review Board is going to impose stiffer penalties for abusive drivers. Under the new LTFRB rule, abusive public utility drivers will be subject to heftier ﬁnes. Some taxi drivers do not just subject their passengers to verbal abuse. We have read police reports of female passengers being robbed and raped by taxi drivers. A corresponding case of criminal negligence should be imposed for taxi operators and owners to make them

also accountable for not vetting the drivers they hire. A taxi driver himself told me that because of the big demand for drivers, some of them are hired without the required National Bureau of Investigation clearance. Oh, my God ! It isn’t just criminals loose in the streets. Some of them are behind the steering wheel! This piece isn’t to malign and portray taxi drivers as all abusive and criminals. But it simply warns passengers to be wary and careful when getting a cab. If a you’re a female, never ride in the front passenger seat. A woman is more vulnerable when she takes the seat beside the driver. This is particularly true when she’s wearing shorts or mini skirt. That’s a tempting invitation to acts of lasciviousness. The back seat is a better defensive position in case you see the driver keeps looking at you from his rear-view mirror and you sense he

could be up to something. To be fair, there are instances that show some good taxi drivers like the one who returned a bag containing cash and an expensive cell phone a passenger left in the back seat. May their tribe increase. One also has to understand the difﬁculties taxi drivers undergo in their daily job behind the wheel. Aside from the horrendous metro trafﬁc that reduces their income, they have to deal with the high boundary system of owners and taxi operators not to mention the increase in the price of gasoline and diesel fuel. Even if taxi drivers would like to opt for another job or profession, they can’t because of the scarcity of jobs in the market. But that’s no reason to take it out on your passengers who could be also dealing with life’s adversities but coping with it.

Washington SyCip, 96 VIRTUAL REALITY TONY LOPEZ MY FRIEND Washington SyCip, an American by force of circumstances (he was with the US Army in Manila to decipher secret Japanese codes during the war, using his talent with numbers and by name (he was named after Washington DC where his father was defending a case) but a Manila-born Filipino in heart and soul, died in his sleep as he was about to land on a Philippine Airlines ﬂight in Vancouver, Canada, Oct. 8, 2017. He was 96. As the youngest business editor of a daily in the 1970s, I had the opportunity to interact with Mr. Wash. He encouraged me and was generous with praise. He also liked my weekly BizNewsAsia and ordered copies when something was written about him. When he turned 90 in 2011, I wrote that Mr. Wash was the Philippines’ foremost management guru— founder of SGV & Co., the largest accounting and professional services ﬁrm west of the Mississippi. He also helped establish the Asian Institute of Management, the Philippine Business for Social Progress and the Management Association of the Philippines. He was the symbol of wisdom, strength and durability—qualities of successful enterprises. He was on the boards of many international and local corporations, but devoted more time in reducing poverty in his later years. He believed that democracy cannot work in an im-

poverished nation. Thus, he urged government to reduce food prices. His strategy toward reducing poverty was by increasing access to education, promoting entrepreneurship through microfinance, and improving health care. Addressing a dinner party on his 90th birthday, Wash expressed hope that “in the remaining years of this bookkeeper, we can still work together in the quest for a time when the water in every Philippine community can be drunk. Only then can our people really know the meaning of democracy.” Wash was the most respected bookkeeper and business guru. He founded the Philippines’ first truly multinational, SGV, once the largest professional services firm. He believed in Narayana Murthy of Infosys Technologies, that the future of the corporation lies in its value culture which includes fairness honesty, decency, transparency, accountability, happiness, humility, charity,and Wash’s personal favorite—integrity. Last July 27, 2017, SGV’s youngest and longtime chairman, Roberto V. Ongpin tendered a dinner in Wash’s honor. RVO related “a few vignettes, a few glimpses of the 15 years [he] spent with Wash. It was attended by five former finance secretaries and a who had been with SGV. Here is Bobby: Wash hired me when I was 26 years old, and he tells this story which I think is not true and we have a disagreement about it. He says that when he first interviewed me, I asked him, “How old are you?”

And he said, “Why?” “Because I want to know how long before it is I can take over from you.” You know, that’s just not true, but he just thinks it’s true. And you know, I was a young guy, I was in great awe of him. As a 26-year-old, he was a great guy and like a God to me, and I would ask him “How old are you?,” “How long before I could take the firm, take over the firm?” I just don’t do that, but as he claims I said that. I joined the firm late 1964, and I left when I was conscripted into the government in 1979, so I was with Wash for 15 years. What I am today is because of what Wash and SGV taught me. Wash had a very strong belief in meritocracy. Anybody, no matter what his background is, If you deserve it, merit the job, you’ll get it. I was appointed managing partner, in 1970s in my early 30s, and it’s great that it changed my life. I just want to say that SGV developed, has always had a culture of meritocracy. You have to work hard, you got to serve, and you will get what you deserve. And so, up to today, it’s a badge of honor to have worked for SGV. I think many of the CEOs and many CFOs now of most of our largest companies have worked for SGV and are proud of the fact that they worked for SGV. Our former Central Bank governor, Say Tetangco worked for SGV, and so many people here worked for SGV. I always thought that Wash SyCip was named after George Washington. Then shortly after I was with the firm, somebody

asked him, “Why is your name Washington?” He said, “My name is Washington, because my father was in Washington DC when I was born.” So, if his father had been in Buffalo or Peoria, Illinois, or Des Moines, you’d be called Buffalo SyCip! The years I spent at SGV were very difficult. I was at my young 30s as a Managing Partner, and most of my partners were in their 50s, 60s. And it was not easy, but you know, Fred Velayo was the original partner of Wash and they would always say “We’re the largest firm, accounting firm, west of the Mississippi” because most of the big accounting firms have headquarters in Chicago and New York but Westbrook we read them. At that time, as I remember the numbers, because we were the SGV group, we were the first true multinational company, because Wash started the T. N. Soong in Taiwan. We were in Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, and Jakarta. And I remember because I would spend half the month travelling, and it was hard. I would spend two days in every country, and spend half of the month in Manila. But we became a really powerful multinational. Just before I was conscripted in the government, I convinced Wash that we should go into the Middle East. And actually I spent one of the much time in the Middle East. I opened an office in Kuwait, in Bahrain, in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, in Dubai, and Abu Dhabi in the Emirates. And then I

was conscripted in the government and you know, that was the end of that. SGV represented eight of the big at that time eight accounting firms, worldwide. The only one that we did not have was Price Waterhouse. Price Waterhouse was with Cunanan. Wash was very keen, and actually so was I, with Arthur Andersen. Arthur Andersen had the culture which was most resembled SGV and in fact, I went to St. Charles, their training center, very impressive, and the managing partner was a fellow, Harvey Kapnick who was very very aggressive, and I spent a lot of time with them and he was always trying to convince me to join up but I told Wash, why should we join up with anyone with these Big Eight. Why should we marry one of them when we can sleep with all seven of them? Anyway, after I left the firm I was in London and Wash said, “Are you going to return to SGV” “I don’t think so” and he said, “Do you mind if I team up with Arthur Andersen” and I said, “No, I don’t mind, I’m not going back to the firm.” But I really always admired Arthur Andersen. Unfortunately it became a victim of the Enron disaster. And Arthur Anderson disappeared. One of the few things that Wash always encouraged me (to do) was to find the good guys. He would push me to go to the US twice a year to interview the best guys from the best business schools. He is not only a great man, he is a good man, and indeed a man for all seasons.

the trainors, with the hope that the technology transfer is propagated back home. The other MOU was with AGRIGAIA, which already has an upcoming project with Benguet State University on organic vegetable farming methods. They intend to expand into more demonstration farms, with Meco assisting in tying them up with state-owned agricultural colleges and universities. The NGO would also develop training modules in agriculture courses for Taiwan-based OFW’s. Think of better atis farms, or malunggay propagation, or okra and ampalaya, which can be exported. And vegetable propagation which would increase food supply for domestic consumption and eventually cut the cost of food. In a recent article I read, former agriculture secretary Willy Dar advocated developing an “entrepreneurial ecosystem

involving most if not all smallholder farmers (towards) accelerating modernization and industrialization.” The formula for the oftrepeated goal of inclusive growth through agri-preneurship is simple, according to Dar. It “consists of increasing productivity at the farm level; manufacturing or processing by agro-industrial firms and cooperatives; and tapping both the local and export markets.” I have always maintained, in this column and elsewhere, that there are two areas where the country can focus its efforts on the economy: Agriculture and tourism. The first because so many of our poor are fishermen and farmers; the second because of our natural beauty and our natural friendliness. At our representative office in Taiwan, we are taking some small steps towards contributing to what ought to be a concentrated national effort.

biznewsasia@gmail.com

Advancing food security SO I SEE LITO BANAYO LAST week, we used the Philippine atis and the Taiwan shir-jia, also called sikya, as an example of how technology and its proper use and propagation could assist Philippine agricultural production. The matter of agricultural productivity is very important in advancing food security for a population which continues to grow. For years and years we seem to have defined food security in terms of being able to produce our own rice requirements. Self-sufficiency in rice has always been the be-all and end-all of government’s agricultural policy. And yet it is in diversifying our product profile and increasing the incomes of our marginalized farmers

that the future of our agriculture must be shaped. Unless farm incomes increase, there will be less and less young people interested in farming. Not only is agriculture not “sexy” enough to the youth. As small farms presently are, they simply do not generate enough income to sustain basic needs let alone give them enough disposable income. The farmer slaves and scrimps, borrows and pawns practically everything to be able to send the son or daughter to become an OFW. The overseas worker phenomenon has become some kind of miracle cure for poverty so endemic. Sadly, the foreign contract worker again slaves, and whatever is left after sending sustenance to their families back in the Philippines, the paltry savings he or she is able to keep, is later invested in low-income generating economic activities, such as a tricycle, or a jeepney, or a small store.

Thus the cycle of disinterest in farming continues. This imperils the nation’s food production. On a macro level, the Philippines exports only 5 billion dollars of agricultural products, mostly bananas and pineapples, a little sugar, and coconut. On the other hand, we import some 10 to 11 billion dollars of farm produce each year. And where, pray tell do we get the wherewithal to ﬁnance the 6 billion dollar difference between exports and imports? Why, the “katas ng OFW” of course. Decades back, we broke up our big landed estates by legislation and distributed the land to tenants and farm workers, and we called this agrarian reform. Nothing wrong with that, except government it seems deﬁned reform as purely a matter of land distribution. Binigyan ng lupa ang magsasaka, pagkatapos, bahala na sila sa buhay nila.

Where the big estates (also referred to as “haciendas”) had economies of scale that generated enough capital to mechanize, the small landholdings had become diseconomies. Cooperative models, as in Israel’s “kibbutz”, or even neighboring Taiwan, were not replicated in our country. Farms became subsistence operations. Balik sa isang kahig, isang tuka. Were it not for the escape valve called overseas work, this country’s social volcano would have exploded long ago. Agrarian unrest and landlord exploitation in fact fuelled the unrest, mostly in Luzon, that was the Hukbalahap revolt right after the Japanese occupation. Many of our landlords just got their huge share of the farm output on the back of the labor of their “kasama” without attempting either farm modernization or social amelioration. Last Friday, the Manila

Economic and Cultural Ofﬁce signed two memoranda of understanding in the southern city of Kaohsiung. One was with the National Kaohsiung Marine University, which would develop aquaculture training course modules for OFWs working in Taiwan. Meco would allocate funds for the training, some form of scholarship so that interested OFW’s would learn technical skills in aquaculture that they could put to good use when they retire from their jobs here. Instead of the usual jeepney or sarisari store, both of which are fast becoming rendered obsolete by time, why not start with a small aquaculture farm? With the technology imparted and the management skills imbibed from the course, there is alternative livelihood. Likewise, NKMU is offering ﬁve scholarship grant slots for employees of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources. Training

News

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2017 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

MMDA mulls car-pooling scheme

IN BRIEF No classes in NCR in Asean Summit

By Joel E. Zurbano

THERE will be no classes in both public and private schools in the National Capital Region on Nov. 16 and 17, the Metro Manila Development Authority announced on Tuesday. This after members of the Metro Manila mayors agreed to suspend classes in all public and private levels to minimize traffic problems in time for the Association of Southeast Asian Nation Summit next month. “In support of the Asean Summit, we approve unanimously the suspension of classes on Nov. 16 and 17, Thursday and Friday,” said Herbert Bautista, Quezon City Mayor and MMC traffic committee chairman. The Council is the governing board and policy makingbody of the MMDA. Joel E. Zurbano

HE Metro Manila Development Authority is looking into the possibility of enforcing a car pooling or ride sharing scheme to ease trafﬁc in the metropolis, especially along Epifanio de los Santos Avenue.

This developed after MMDA officials led by its chairman Danilo Lim met with members of the Metro Manila Council at the agency’s central office in Makati City Tuesday where they discussed what additional traffic measures may be implemented to lessen the burden of motorists, as well as commuters using Edsa. The MMC, the MMDA’s

governing board and policy-making body, is composed of 17 mayors and other local executives in the National Capital Region. MMDA assistant general manager for planning Jose Arturo Garcia Jr. said the agency is now preparing a plan on how to implement the traffic measure dubbed as “Modified Carpooling Policy Along Edsa.” “We are preparing guide-

lines and mechanics but the basic here is to encourage the people to engage in car pooling,” said Garcia. He added that ride sharing has benefits because it would not only result in less traffic along Edsa but would also cut air pollution and is “economically effective.” Under the proposal, those engaged in car pooling would be exempted from the Unified Vehicular Volume Reduction Program, or the number coding scheme, which is presently being enforced by the MMDA. The number coding scheme means that vehicles are banned from major roads in Metro Manila from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., depending on the

last digit of their license plates. “If you have at least two companions inside your car, you are exempted from coding and you are allowed to use Edsa. If there’s only one [companion], you are covered by the normal procedure,” explained Garcia. There were also proposals coming from various sectors to prohibit cars with fewer than three passengers during peak hours of 7 to 10 in the morning, and 5 to 8 in the evening along Edsa. Two years ago, the MMDA came up with a mobile application allowing car pooling among friends in the social media or people living within the same area and going to

A 17-YEAR-OLD brother of Kapamilya actress Nadine Lustre took his own life inside their home in Barangay Talipapa, Quezon City Sunday at 7:45 p.m., according to the Quezon City Police District. In a spot report, the Criminal Investigation and Detection Unit chief, Supt. Rodelio Marcelo, identified the victim as Isaiah Lustre y Paguia, Nadine’s younger brother. The actress’ younger sister, Naoemi, was playing games at her iPad tablet inside her bedroom when she heard two gunshots coming from their comfort room at their house at 19 Hito Street, Silvina Village on Oct. 8 at 7:45 p.m. She went out of the room to check and saw Isaiah lying in a pool of blood. She called their brother Ezekiel, who sought the assistance of their neighbors, who took Isaiah to theManila Pacific Global Medical Standard Center. Isaia TODAY h, who was about to turn 17 on Oct. 13, was declared dead on arrival at the hospital by his attending physician, Dr. Ma. Therese Odilla S. Barasi, at 9:15 p.m. Rio N. Araja

Notice is hereby given that the estate of the late ANGELITO CALUZA DE GUZMAN was extrajudicially settled by and among his heirs as per affidavit executed on January 30, 2017 and entered as Doc. No. 301, Page No. 62, Book No. 116 Series of 2017 of the notarial registry of Atty. Mary Jean R. BernabeTonco, a notary public in Santa Maria and for the Province of Bulacan.

By Maricel V. Cruz

MARITIME POWER. President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday visited the HMAS Adelaide, the largest ship ever built for the Royal Australian Navy, which is in Manila as part of a regional deployment by the Australian Defense Force to strengthen ties with countries in Asia. Joining Duterte in his goodwill visit are Australian Ambassador to Manila Amanda Gorely, Assistant Defense Attaché Gideon Scrimgeour, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, Presidential Adviser on Military Affairs Arthur Tabaquero and AFP chief Gen. Eduardo Año. John Paolo Bencito

For fast ad results, please call

Advertising Department 832-5547

(MS-OCT. 4,11 & 18, 2017)

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES CITY OF CAVITE BIDS AND AWARDS COMMITTEE

NOTICE OF PUBLIC AUCTION The City Government of Cavite through its Disposal & Appraisal Committee, invites bidders to participate in the Public Auction for the sale of an “as is” basis, for the following; Item Qty Item Description Location Floor Price No. City Hall Demolition/Removal/ 262,330.74 1 1 Building Clearing of Samonte Existing Structure (Old Park, Cavite City Hall Bldg.) City Ground Floor = 868.21 sq.m. Mezzanine = 490.58 sq.m. Second Floor = 868.21 sq.m. TOTAL FLOOR AREA = 2,227 SQ.M.

will issue a notice of termination of contract to JC Tayag THE government will re- Builders Inc., operated by JC bid the allegedly anoma- Tayag, the main contractor of lous P800-million housing the government’s “Yolanda” projects intended for Yolanda housing project in Eastern victims, a National Housing Samar. Rep. Ben Evardone of Authority official told lawEastern Samar earlier makers on Tuesday. At a congressional hear- filed the resolution on the ing conducted by the joint controversy. “Procurement policies, House committees on housing and urban development land acquisition issues and and on good government the many permits and clearand public accountability, ances needed to start certain chaired by Reps. Alfredo Be- projects have been cited as nitez of Negros Occidental among the primary reasons and Johnny Pimentel of Suri- that slow down the implegao del Sur, NHA assist- mentation of the resettlement ant general manager Froilan projects,” Evardone said. In the same hearing, Kampitan said the rebidding Tayag denied anew that his of the contract was needed to fast-track the implementa- construction firm used subtion of the “Yolanda” housing standard materials and thus projects which said to have endangering the lives of the CYANconstruction MAGENTAfamilies YELLOW and BLACK victim of Super used substandard Typhoon “Yolanda.” materials. Tayag’s subcontractor “We just need to rebid it to a new contractor. We are Camilo Salazar accused his trying to locate some proper- principal of using substandard ties already that are available steel and bars for the construc[under the contract of JC Tayag tion of 2,000 housing units Builders Inc.,” Kampitan said for “Yolanda” victims in Balangiga, Hernani and Guiuan, during the hearing. Kampitan said the NHA Eastern Samar.

Ex-gov Padaca fined P4k for non-filing of SALN FORMER Isabela Isabela Gov. Maria Gracia Cielo Padaca was fined by the Sandiganbayan Second Division for failure to file her statements of assets liabilities and net worth for 2007 to 2010. In a decision dated last Sept. 27, the anti-graft body asked the former Commission on Elections commissioner to pay a fine of P4,000 as it found her guilty on all four counts of violation of the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees for failing to file her SALN during her term as governor. Padaca, through her lawyer Rogelio Vinluan, earlier asked the court to withdraw her earlier plea of not guilty on the charges, and later on pleaded guilty to the charges. “Upon being personally asked by the court, accused Padaca affirmed the manifestation of her counsel and declared that she understands the nature and cause of the accusations

against her. She therefore entered a plea of guilty to the charges,” the court decision stated. “Considering the voluntary plea of guilty of the accused, and conformable with the provisions of Section 11(a) of RA 6713, the court hereby sentences her to pay a fine of P1,000 in each of the four criminal cases aforementioned, or the total amount of P4,000,” it added. The anti-graft court’s Second Division chairperson Associate Justice Oscar Herrera Jr. penned the decision. Associate Justices Michael Frederick Musngi and Lorifel Pahimna concurred. Meanwhile, former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and now Pampanga representative got another reprieve after the Sandiganbayan cleared her in the plunder case involving P366 million in Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office intelligence fund, leaving the case with only one defendant.

In an earlier dated Oct. 4, the Sandiganbayan First Division also dismissed the case against former Commission on Audit Intelligence Fund Unit head Nilda Plaras. This leaves only former PCSO general manager Rosario Uriarte— currently detained at the National Bureau of Investigation custodial center—as the lone defendant. The Sandiganbayan based its decision on the Supreme Court resolution dated Aug. 23, 2016 ordering the termination of proceedings against Plaras, who went straight to the high court to contest the plunder charge. “While admittedly accused Plaras has never submitted to the jurisdiction of this Court, the issue on jurisdiction advanced by the prosecution is, however, mooted by the foreqoing pronouncements, which have effectively rendered the Court devoid of Information and proceedings in this case,” the resolution read. Maricel V. Cruz

TOTAL VOLUME OF CONCRETE 762.97 m3 The schedule of activities as follows: 1. Issuance of Bid Documents Multi Purpose Hall Building San Roque, Cavite City

Starting date:

2. Inspection of Items for Auction

Date/Time: October 16-18, 2017 9:00 am - 5:00 pm

3. Opening of Bid Multi Purpose Hall Building San Roque, Cavite City

Date/Time: October 23, 2017 10:00 A.M.

16-Oct-17

The City Government of Cavite reserves the right to accept or reject any bid, to declare the bidding a failure to annul the bidding process and to reject all bids at any given time prior to award of contract, without thereby incurring any liability to the bidders. Furthermore, the City Government of Cavite reserves the right to waive any minor defect or formality and to accept the proposal most advantageous to the government. (SGD) EDUARDO B. TAN Disposal & Appraisal Comm. Chairman ( M S - O C T. 11, 2 017 )

vehicles from major roads twice a week, In a tweet, dzBB reporter Manny Vargas said the proposed ‘twice-a-week number coding scheme,’ was junked by the MMC during the same meeting at the MMDA’s head office. Danny Lim, MMDA chairman, presented the scheme which the agency first announced in June this year. “We have more than 30 percent of vehicles na nagsama-sama dito sa less than five percent na road network. Napakahirap gumawa ng solusyon sa traffic kung padami ng padami ‘yung sasakyan mo at ‘yung kalsada mo ay ‘di naman nadadagdagan,” Lim said then.

NHA to rebid P800-m ‘Yolanda’housing project

Nadine’s brother kills self

NOTICE OF EXTRAJUDICIAL SETTLEMENT OF STATE

a common destination. The mobile app “Friend Trip” is a free gadget application which will allow Facebook users and those living within the same street, village, subdivision or compound to travel via as a group. The project was aimed to help ease traffic congestion and curb pollution in Metro Manila. The Friend Trip application only recognizes one’s Facebook friends so that he/ she never has to ride with strangers. It gives an option to users to have the MMDA record all their trips. Meanwhile, the MMC has junked the expanded number-coding scheme that would have banned private

SALUTE TO THE ELDERS. Navotas City crowned the fairest among scores of elderly Navoteñas as it culminated the celebration of the Elderly Filipino Week. Shown in photo are Mayor John Rey Tiangco, together with Vice Mayor Clint Geronimo, Federation of Senior Citizens Association of Navotas Inc. president Lucy Batto and Office of Senior Citizens’ Affairs chairman Linda Ramirez, donned the crown of Gandang Lola 2017 Cristina Gomez, 70, resident of Brgy. San Jose. Angelita Riello, 67, from Brgy. San Roque was named the 1st runner up; Corina Abello, 66, from Brgy. Bagumbayan South as 2nd runner up; and Esterlina Jardio, 67, from Brgy. North Bay Boulevard South as 3rd runner up. They also participated in a parade and opening program on Oct. 2; Gandang Lola Talent Presentation and Dalaw Kalinga on Oct. 3; Talakayan on Oct. 4; and Kwento ni Lolo, Kwento ni Lola storytelling contest on Oct. 5. Josef Feliciano, 71, president of OSCA Phase 2 Area 1, Brgy. NBBS was also recognized as one of the 2017 Sampung Ulirang Nakatatanda Awardees by the Coalition of Services for the Elderly. Andrew Rabulan

Drilon decries budget cuts in housing By Macon R. Araneta SENATE Minority Leader Franklin has proposed to use the “excess fats” in the proposed P3.77 trillion 2018 national budget to address the 1.2-million housing backlog in the country. During the interpellation of the budget of the housing sector on Tuesday, Drilon called the proposed P4.4 billion in 2018, which is 70 percent lower than its P15.3billion budget in 2017, an “injustice” to the housing sector. He lamented the huge cut in the housing sector’s capital outlay for next year. He emphasized that budgetary support is crucial in addressing “the poorest sector of our society” and the huge budget cut is the “wrong policy thrust.” “This is criminal neglect if we look at the budget of the housing sector,” Drilon warned. Senator JV Ejercito, who sponsored the budget of the National Housing Authority, cited the agency’s alleged low absorptive capacity as a reason for the decrease, as proposed by the Department of Budget and Management in the 2018 national budget. But Drilon disagreed with the justification as he noted that the absorptive capacity of the NHA is being blamed for the refusal by the economic managers to provide sufficient budget for the housing sector. “We should not let our people suffer from these alleged inefficiencies of a bureaucracy, which is even open to question.”

Sports THE HOARSE WHISPERER JENNY ORTUOSTE

Horse with auspicious name takes major race THE aptly-named Victorious Colt won top honors in the Philippine Racing Commission’s 2nd leg Juvenile Fillies and Colts stakes race held Oct. 8 at the Metro Manila Turf Club in Malvar, Batangas. The colt guided by Jesse B. Guce won wire-to-wire by six lengths. Despite being flanked by Facing Dixie for about a third of the race, Victorious Colt did not face stiff opposition but still came home with a few strokes of the whip down the stretch. 2nd Aphrodisiac, 3rd Bridgeofdriverkwai, 4th Miss American Pie, 5th Facing Dixie. Time: 1:24.4 (13-21’23-27) for 1,400 meters. Victorious Colt (Zap x Boogie to Seattle), a 2YO bay colt, is owned by EC de la Cruz and trained by DR de la Cruz. *** “If you’re going to do something, make the most of it.” These wise words were spoken by Penny Chenery, famed owner of the legendary racehorse Secretariat. She certainly lived those words. Chenery passed away last Sept. 16 aged 95, after cementing the reputation of her Meadow Stable/Meadow Stud racing and breeding operation, inherited from her father Christopher Chenery, with the success of her racehorses Secretariat and Riva Ridge. Both horses were inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame. These accomplishments also put trainer Lucien Laurin’s name in history books. In 1972, the then-3YO Riva Ridge won the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes while 2YO Secretariat won American Horse of the Year honors. In 1973, Secretariat became the first Triple Crown winner in a quarter of a century. Thanks to Penny’s decision to breed her mare Something royal to Bold Ruler, the world enjoyed the exploits of the mightiest prince of racing—Secretariat—the sport has ever known. A magnificent chestnut with a heart larger than normal, “Big Red,” as he was also called, is most remembered for his record-breaking 31-length win in the 1973 Belmont Stakes. His time for those 1-1/2 miles, 2:24 flat, broke the record by over two seconds and still stands as an American record on dirt. In that year’s Kentucky Derby, he ran each quarter faster than the last and set a still-standing track record at 1:59-2/5. Penny Chenery did not stand on her laurels as owner and breeder of two of the greatest racehorses in history. She advanced the role of women in racing, in 1983 becoming among the first women to be admitted as members of the Jockey Club. She served as president of the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders’ Association from 1976 to 1984. She also helped found the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation which saves retired horses from possible abuse, neglect, and slaughter. In view of these and other accomplishments, Arlington Park racetrack established in 2003 the annual “Penny Chenery Distinguished Woman in Racing Award.” Peace and farewell to an iconic personality of racing. May her service to the racing community serve as an example and inspiration to other horsepeople. *** Dr. Ortuoste is a California-based writer and researcher. Facebook: Gogirl Racing and Jenny Ortuoste, Twitter: @gogirlracing and @jennyortuoste -Jenny Ortuoste, Ph.D.

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2017 sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

NU, Far Eastern start title duel N

ATIONAL University seeks the first of two wins it needs for a record sweep as it faces Far Eastern University in the opener of the Premier Volleyball League Collegiate Conference Finals at the Filoil Flying V Center in San Juan today. The powerhouse Lady Bulldogs swept their group elims and the Arellano Lady Chiefs in their Final Four duel to reach the championship brimming with confidence against an FEU side that went through a grueling sudden death against Adamson to snare the other finals berth. Veteran Bernadeth Pons

returned to lead the Lady Tams’ bid against the Lady Falcons in rubber match late Monday, scoring 15 hits, including the matchclinching kill that sealed their 21-25, 25-20, 25-22, 25-18 win and a spot in the best-of-three title series of the season-ending conference of the league organized by Sports Vision.

But Pons, along with libero Kyla Atienza, will miss the series’ opener to anchor FEU’s campaign in the UAAP beach volleyball tournament, making the intact Lady Bulldogs the heavy picks in their 6:30 p.m. encou nter. “I won’t push for them to play because they also have beach volleyball commitments for the UAAP. It’s a challenge for us coaches and for the players who will fill in their spots,” said FEU coach George Pascua. A slew of players, however, have stepped up for

Games today

8 a.m. – UST vs NU (men’s) 10 a.m. – ADMU vs FEU (men’s) 4 p.m. – AU vs AdU (women’s) 6:30 p.m. – FEU vs NU (women’s)

the Lady Tams in their surge, including Czarina Carandang, Celine Domingo, Jeanette Villareal, Kyle Negrito and libero Ria Duremdes along with veteran Toni Rose Basas. But they will have to double their effort as they slug it out with a solid NU crew composed of Jaja Santiago, Risa Sato, Aiko Urdas, Jorelle Singh, Audrey Paran and ace playmaker Jasmine Nabor.

Meanwhile, FEU is actually shooting for a sweep of the PVL titles as its men’s team is clashing with a fancied Ateneo squad in their own side of the bestof-three finals at 10 a.m. UST and NU duel for third place in the men’s division at 8 a.m. while Adamson and Arellano face off in the battle for third in the women’s section at 4 p.m. Santiago is again expected to be NU’s main weapon with her towering frame, power and experience with the national team mainstay taking charge in the clutch in

powering the Lady Bulldogs past the Lady Chiefs, 25-17, 26-28, 17-25, 25-13, 20-18, in Game Two of their semis matchup last Saturday. “They (Lady Bulldogs) have been together for a long time already so their chemistry is already there. We just have to strengthen our blocking against Jaja (Santiago). NU’s strength is in their blocking and service. But I think we’ll be able to manage that,” said Pascua, whose wards placed second to the Lady Bulldogs in the group stage.

La Salle-Zobel crowned champ LED by sons of former and current PBA officials, De La Salle-Zobel underscored its status as one of the toughest 10-under squads in the country by winning two titles over the weekend. Drawing big games from Champ Arejola, son of GlobalPort governor and AirAsia executive Erick Arejola, Kieffer Alas, son of Alaska assistant coach Louie Alas, Kio Favis, son of former Coke mentor Binky Favis, and Daniel Sta. Maria, son of ex-La Salle player Adonis Sta Maria, La Salle first won the PAYA (Philippine Athletic Youth Association) crown last Saturday via a 54-31 win over Claret School at the Xavier gym. Also shining for the team were Darryl Valdeavilla, Ito Roberto, and Coby Almuete. Mentored by Kiane Baylon, Jhon Cabulong and Bryle Orog, DLSZ captured the Smart Breakdown Basketball Invitational title the following day after beating Xavier School, 76-62, at the Moro Lorenzo gym inside the Ateneo de Manila campus. Other members of the team that posted an average winning margin of 20 points were CP Miranda, Javi Dimayuga, Gian Casimiro, Rafael marquez, Christian Trozado, Karl Ortigas, Mat Arabon, Bruce Paraiso, Marcus Tamayo, Ryan Dolor and Julio Datinguinoo.

Members of De La Salle Zobel, led by Champ Arejola and Kieffer Alas, pose after completing a dream weekend, winning two titles—PAYA and Smart Breakdown Basketball Invitational.

St. Clare a win shy of Naascu basketball crown DEFENDING champion St. Clare College-Caloocan rode on the superb, all-around game of Aris Dionisio to overwhelm De Ocampo Memorial College, 101-79, and move to within a win of retaining the title in the NAASCU Season 17 men’s basketball tournament at the San Andres Sports Complex. The Saints took the fight out of the erstwhile unbeaten

Cobras with two long scoring splurges bridging the third and fourth quarters to clinch the win in the opener of their bestof-three title showdown. Dionisio, the Saints’ undisputed leader on both ends of the floor, threw his weight around with 27 points on 12-of-17 shooting and 13 rebounds in nearly 34 minutes. The 6’4” Dionisio, who earned MVP honors during St.

Clare’s successful title campaign last year, struck hardest with 11 second-quarter points to help the Saints take control of the game. Junjie Hallare, Paeng Rebugio and Mohamed Pare also put up big numbers for the Caloocan City-based Saints, who can wrap up the title with another victory in Game 2 on Thursday. Hallare added 20 points,

Rebugio contributed 15 points and Pare had 10 points and 14 rebounds for the Saints of NAASCU president Dr. Ernesto Jay Adalem and coach Jino Manansala. Dahrrel Caranguian carried the fight for De Ocampo with 22 points, followed by Raymart Atabay with 12 points. But no other player managed to score in double figures for De Ocampo, which stayed

in the thick of the fight until the opening minutes of the fourth quarter. The Ronnie Dojillo-mentored Cobras suffered their first setback after winning nine straight games in the elimination and semifinal rounds. Overall, St. Clare made 41 of its 77 shots for 53 percent compared to only 33-of 78 for 42 percent.

New faces rule final edition of Shell chess By Peter Paul Duran NEW faces ruled the final tournament of the Shell National Youth Active Chess Championship Sunday at the Mall of Asia Music Hall. This year’s event, the last of the tourney’s 25-year run, saw first time winners Jeth Romy Morado (Seniors) and Kylen Joy Mordido (Juniors) top their respective divisions in the national finals. David Rey Ancheta, meanwhile copped the coveted grand winner’s trophy in the kiddies category. Forty-eight top young chessers entered the games from the three legs held in Batangas, Cebu, and Cagayan De Oro. “Achievement po talaga ito,” said Morado, 17, adding it was his first time to enter the grand finals of the prestigious chess tilt and win it all as well. “Pinalad lang po talaga ako na manalo siguro.” The Grade 12 student from FEU finished the tournament with seven points off of six wins, a draw and a loss to take the trophy home with a slim margin over second placer Jethro Esplanada out of Cebu, whose loss to eventual third

placer Ahmad Ali Azote spelled the difference in their three-way tie at seven points. In the juniors’ division, technicalities weren’t needed as 15-yearold Kylen Mordido from Dasmarinas, Cavite was a clear winner with eight points (7W-0L-2D). She bested 15 other participants in her category for the top prize. Ancheta also finished with eight points to conquer the Kiddies’ division in the 9-round Swiss system tournament, where the Seniors’ winner took home a P30,000, while the Junior and Kiddies champions got P20,000 and P10,000 along with their trophies, respectively. The top female player also received P10,000 (17-20 age group), P5,000 (13-16) and P4,000 (7-12). The farewell tournament was Shell’s last grassroots chess tournament, since starting the program in 1992, producing Grand Masters such as Wesley So, Mark Paragua and Nelson Mariano II. The final edition of the tourney also became sentimental as participants brought memorabilia from the past tournaments in the last two and a half decades.

Champions of the 25th Shell National Youth Active Chess Champioship display their trophies. They are (from left) Kiddies’ Category Champion Rey David Ancheta, Juniors Champ Kylen Joy Mordido and Senior winner Jeth Romy Morado. Lino Santos

Make... From A8

‘A catastrophe’ The 30-year-old fivetime Ballon D’Or winner also heads into the game knowing that next year’s finals in Russia may be his final chance to emulate Diego Maradona by winning a World Cup. “A World Cup without Argentina and without Messi would be a catas-

trophe,” Argentina’s 1978 World Cup hero Mario Kempes said this week. “The only ones who would be happy if Messi doesn’t go to the World Cup would be Maradona fans.” The 2014 World Cup finalists face their moment of truth after a series of uninspiring performances that has left the footballing world scratching its head at how a squad bristling with so much attacking talent has found scoring so difficult.

Despite being able to call upon Messi, Sergio Aguero, Gonzalo Higuain, Paulo Dybala, Mauro Icardi and Angel Di Maria throughout the campaign, Argentina have only scored 16 times in 17 games. Last Thursday’s 0-0 stalemate with Peru in Buenos Aires was Argentina’s third consecutive draw. The Albiceleste have now scored only once in their past four qualifying games. AFP

Nino Jesus routs La Imaculada for Pasig cage plum NINO Jesus House of Studies is this year’s PAPRISAA (Pasig Private Schools Athletic Association) secondary basketball champion. NHHS overwhelmed La Imaculada Catholic School, 104-73, to capture the title in the championship game at the Barangay San Antonio gymnasium last Oct. 6. Handled by multi-titled coach Beaujing Acot, the Saints rattled off 14 unanswered points early in the third quarter to turn a close

contest into a rout. “It was a good game for both teams despite our winning margin. We’re lucky we managed to stop their outside shooters,” said Acot. “I would like to acknowledge the efforts of LICS and coach Joel Palapal for giving their best shot.” “It was a total team effort for NJHS. We worked hard for this fane and sacrificed a lot. To God be the glory,” added assistant coach Migs Geronimo.

Aside from Acot and Geronimo, the other members of the team are players: Jan Daniel Geronimo, Justin Ollesca, Allen Llanza, Russel Bagauisan, Llyod Mallari, Charles Palaspas, Robert Carbonell, Justin Fagarita, Andrie Concepcion, Migi Jacob, Kimuel Asio, Andres De Guia, Jonathan Gloria, Clarence Lubiano and Mark Frias. Meanwhile, NJHS will also team up with the Pinoy Youth Dreamers to represent the coun-

try in the sixth Asia Pacific Basketball Youth Cup in Singapore on Oct. 26 to 29. “We want to have the best talent available to represent us,” said Taj Chupungco-Celda, the sports director of NJHS. NJHS and PYD will represent the country as Team Pilipinas under the aegis of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas and Philippine Olympic Committee and Philippine Sports Commission.

ESPN anchor suspended over Cowboys boycott call LOS ANGELES—ESPN on Monday suspended anchor Jemele Hill for two weeks after the host of its “SportsCenter” program called for a sponsor boycott following remarks by Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. Hill was sanctioned after urging the public to put pressure on Jones and the Cowboys by shunning the NFL owner’s sponsors. The call came after Jones had warned that any player kneeling during the US National Anthem risked being left on the bench. “Change happens when advertisers are impacted. If you feel strongly about JJ’s statement, boycott his advertisers,” Hill wrote. The 41-year-old AfricanAmerican anchor had escaped with a warning last month after describing US President Donald Trump as a “white supremacist”. However, her latest comments drew a suspension from the network, which issued a statement saying Hill was in breach of social media guidelines. “Jemele Hill has been suspended for two weeks for a second violation of our social media guidelines,” the network said, referencing the earlier controversy. “She previously acknowledged letting her colleagues and company down with an impulsive tweet. In the aftermath all employees were reminded of how individual tweets may reflect negatively on ESPN and that such actions would have consequenc-

LOTTO RESULTS 6/55 00-00-00-00-00-00 6/45 00-00-00-00-00-00 4 DIGITS 0-0-0-0 3 DIGITS 0-0-0 2 EZ2 0-0

P0 M+ P0 M

Sports

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

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2017

Bombers edge Cards to reach Final 4 Games Thursday (The Arena in San Juan) 12 nn Arellano vs Perpetual Help (jrs) 2 p.m. Arellano vs Perpetual Help (srs) 4 p.m. CSB vs EAC (srs) 6 p.m. LSGH vs EAC (jrs)

By Peter Atencio

Barangay Ginebra coach Tim Cone and Meralco mentor Norman Black shake hands during the press conference promoting their teams’ Governors’ Cup Best-of-Seven Championship showdown. They are joined here by PBA Commissioner Chito Narvasa and players from both teams.

Deep PBA draft looms By Jeric Lopez

XPECT the upcoming 2017 Philippine Basketball Association Draft to be deep and full of talent.

Just last Monday, top dogs Kiefer Ravena and Jeron Teng, two of the country’s most soughtafter amateur players, shared that they are both pro-bound and are ready to take their talents to the country’s top pro league. “This is my dream all along. I want to follow my dad’s footsteps and play in

the PBA,” said Teng, who delivered two championships to La Salle in his storied stint there. Ravena, a two-time UAAP Most Valuable Player while playing for Ateneo, declared for the draft via his Twitter account, finally answering the queries on when he will turn pro. Standhardinger, Ravena

Most of the country’s top amateur stars have already declared for the pros, making the draft an interesting event. A month after Fili-

pino-German national player Christian Standhardinger applied for the draft, other top amateur prospects followed suit right away.

Rory sets sights high after winless golf year

Archers try to bounce back, battle Tamaraws

K I NGSBA R NS — Ro r y McIlroy has set himself three challenging career goals—including becoming the best “international” player ever—as he plots his comeback in 2018 following an injury-hit and trophyless year. The four-time Major champion, who has been dogged by a rib injury, finished in a disappointing tie for 63rd at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship on Sunday, meaning a first season without a title since 2008. His immediate goal arrives at the Masters in April, when he will attempt to become only the sixth player to complete the career Grand Slam of all four Major titles. Also on his career list is overhauling Nick Faldo to become the most successful European golfer ever and—perhaps most ambitious of all—he wants to surpass South African great Gary Player’s haul of nine Majors that make him the leading “international” golfer of all time. “The Grand Slam is the next reasonable goal on the agenda and then my goal is to become the best European Tour golfer ever and try and surpass Nick Faldo in that,” said McIlroy, aiming to return to competition early in the New Year. “Then, and if had a career goal, it would be the best international golfer ever as Gary Player has nine Majors so I would like to think I can get close to that tally. “Clearly, the Americans have dominated the world of golf for the last 100 years with Jack Nicklaus and Tiger (Woods) and Walter Hagen and all those guys but the next big goal is winning the Masters for the Grand Slam and then becoming the best European ever.” AFP

GETTING back on their feet will numbers than the Blue Eagles be the defending champion La Salle during their game. The Green Archers, who average Green Archers’ main concern at the start of the second round of the 80th a good 46.3 percent shooting, were University Athletic Association of actually playing well with their the Philippines men’s basketball 50 percent norm during the game against the Eagles, who however, tournament. The Archers, who are expected to still won despite their 39.44 percent work on their game, team chemistry shooting clip, way below thei r average of 4 4.2. and most of all their deLa Salle shares a 5-2 fense, face the Far EastGames Today record with the Adamern University Tamaraws (Araneta Coliseum) 2 p.m. UP vs UST son Falcons. at 4 p.m. today at the 4 p.m. FEU vs La Salle FEU, on the other Araneta Coliseum. hand, has a 4-3 slate “After the first round, there’s time to work on in third. Earlier, the University of the Philour game, team chemistry and defense,” said 6’8” La Salle center ippines Fighting Maroons meet UniBen Mbala after the Green Arch- versity of the East at 2 p.m. The Fighting Maroons have a 3-4 ers bowed to the Ateneo Blue Easlate in a tie with the National Unigles, 75-74, Sunday. Mbala, who is the top MVP can- versity Bulldogs, while the Warriors didate this season, felt they played are looking for their second triumph poorly even though they had better in eight outings. Peter Atencio

and Teng are projected by many to be the top three picks in the draft. Aside from those three marquee names, other top aspirants who already joined the draft are Fil-Ams Davon Potts from San Beda and Jason Perkins from La Salle. Athletic wingman Rey Nambatac from Letran and

Gilas Pilipinas cager Raymar Jose from FEU are also intriguing prospects. Notably missing from the batch is Bobby Ray Parks Jr. As of this time, Parks hasn’t declared for the draft and seems to be focused on bannering Alab Pilipinas in the Asean Basketball League.

FACEOFF. Filipino mixed martial arts star Eduard Folayang (left) and Vietnamese Martin Nguyen are shown during their faceoff at the Citi Garden Grand Hotel announcing their match, ONE: Legends of the World. Folayang is currently the ONE Lightweight champion who is slated to take on ONE Featherweight titlist Nguyen, known as ‘The Situ-Asian,’ on Nov. 10 at the Mall of Asia Arena. Folayang is determined to keep his title on home ground, while denying Nguyen a place in history as the organization’s first two-division World Champion. Lino Santos

La Salle dedicates table tennis UAAP triumph to Lariba FOR Ian Lariba. De La Salle needed three games to beat University of Santo Tomas and remain in the throne Monday night in the UAAP Season 80 table tennis tournament at the UP CHK Gym. After dropping the championship opener, 2-3, that ended a 14-game winning run, La Salle was able to bounce back in the next two

to beat the Tigresses via identical 3-1 scores to win the series, which it dedicates to former table tennis star and Olympian Lariba, who was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) last May and is still recovering in the hospital. Emy Rose Dael, who took over from Lariba, won her second straight MVP award, while giving Jamaica Sy and

Mardeline Carreon a grand send-off to their collegiate careers. De La Salle clinched its fifth women’s championship in the last six years. Rio Olympian Lariba was instrumental for the Lady Paddlers’ dynasty and was a part of coaching staff last season. Ateneo’s Joana Chen bagged the Rookie of the

Year honors. In the men’s division, National University won its first-ever men’s title, ending UST’s reign with a 3-1 victory in the Finals decider to annex the crown. NU defeated UST, 3-2, in the opener for the Tigers got a lifeline after scoring a 3-2 win Game 2. John Misal of the Bulldogs was named the season MVP.

It was a double celebration for NU as its boy’s team won a second straight championship after blanking UST in their do-or-die match, 3-0, with Stephen John Deiz emerging as MVP. The UST’s girls’ team, meanwhile, completed a perfect season capped by a 3-1 conquest of De La SalleZobel.

THE Jose Rizal University Heavy Bombers held the Mapua University Cardinals scoreless in the last two minutes to escape with a 62-58 win Tuesday at The Arena in San Juan. The Heavy Bombers kept Andrew Estrella from scoring thrice in the closing minutes, allowing them to formally claim the third seat in the Final Four semifinals in the 93rd National Collegiate Athletic Association men’s basketball tournament. Teytey Teodoro tallied 19 points for the Heavy Bombers as they picked up their 11th triumph in 17 matches, with still one game left in their second-round schedule. Jed Mendoza had 10 points, with his final basket in the last 2:32 giving the Heavy Bombers a muchneeded, six-point cushion, 62-56. Before this, John Ervin Grospe, who was sick with the flu, scored on a layup in the last three minutes shoving JRU to a 60-56 lead after Andoy Estrella hit two free throws to push Mapua closer, 56-58, with 4.30 minutes remaining. But the Bombers made up for their sour shooting and erratic offensive windup by limiting the Cardinals to just a basket in the final two minutes, courtesy of Laurenz Victoria, the rest of the way to seal the win. The win marked the return of Heavy Bombers to the Final Four after failing to make it last season. Coach Vergel Meneses, however, said he was not satisfied of his wards’ showing, as the Cardinals kept matters close in the final period. “I’m not happy with the win. They thought they can win this game only on offense. It was only in the last three possessions that we were able to stop them,” said Meneses, whose Bombers went on to post their fourth consecutive win. Earlier, the defending champion Malayan Red Robins banked on the baskets of Carl Lacap in the final minute to get past the JRU Light Bombers, 92-88, in the junior division. Lacap only had 13 points, but his jumper and triple in the last 5.8 seconds gave the Red Robins a six-point cushion, 91-85. Will Gozum led the Red Robins with 31 points and 13 rebounds, while Warren Bonifacio added 18 points and 15 rebounds. The Light Bombers drew 24 points from Kobe Caballero. The scores: First Game JRU 62—Teodoro 19, Mendoza 10, Sawat 9, Grospe 8, Lasquety 6, Bordon 4, Abdul Razak 2, Poutouochi 2, David 2, dela Virgin 0 Mapua 58—Orquina 14, Pelayo 11, Bunag 10, Victoria 8, Estrella 8, Raflores 6, Aguirre 1, Gabo 0, Jimenez 0 Quarterscores: 21-17; 3632; 52-47; 62-58

Make or break for Messi, Argentina QUITO, Ecuador—Lionel Messi and Argentina will be fighting for their World Cup lives on Tuesday as the South American heavyweights take on Ecuador aiming to avoid a humiliating failure to qualify for next year’s finals in Russia. The eyes of the football world will turn to Quito’s Estadio Olimpico Atahualpa to see if the once unthinkable prospect of a World Cup without Messi is to become a stunning reality.

The two-time World Cup winners head into the final round of South American qualifiers in sixth place, outside the top four positions which grant automatic qualification and trailing fifth-placed Peru, who occupy the playoff spot, on goal difference. Yet with only two points separating third-placed Chile (26 points) with seventhplaced Paraguay (24), any number of permutations are possible.

Argentina can simplify the equation for their nervous fans, however, if they manage to take all three points in Quito on Tuesday. A victory would guarantee they finish no worse than fifth place, putting them into a two-legged play-off against New Zealand they would be expected to win. But winning in the thin air of Quito, which is 2,850 metres (9,350 feet) above sea level, may be easier said than done.

The Argentinians have an abysmal record in away games against Ecuador, with their last victory in Quito coming in 2001. Since then in World Cup qualifying games, they have been beaten twice, in 2005 and 2009, before scraping a 1-1 draw in 2013. Barcelona star Messi also has a record of struggling in games at altitude, vomiting on the pitch during a draw in the rarefied air of Bolivia four Turn to A7 years ago.

Argentina’s Lionel Messi gestures at the end of the goalless 2018 World Cup qualifier football match against Peru in Buenos Aires on October 5, 2017. AFP

Petron: PNOC violating terms of lease contracts

Business

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

Tata to assemble vehicles in PH By Othel V. Campos

IN BRIEF

HE local partner of Tata Motors Ltd., India’s largest automotive company, said Tuesday it will fund the construction of an assembly facility in the Philippines to produce Tata commercial vehicles.

PAL set to fly Cebu to Bangkok

PHILIPPINE Airlines said it will mount a thrice-weekly service from Cebu to Bangkok starting Dec. 2. The airline led by tycoon Lucio Tan said the new fights would serve the route utilizing PAL’s 199-seater Airbus A321 which offers Business, Premium Economy and Economy classes of service. PAL said travelers from Thailand could connect to domestic destinations PAL flies to from Cebu, including Bacolod, Busuanga, Butuan, Cagayan, Caticlan, Davao, Camiguin, General Santos, Iloilo, Kalibo, Legaspi, Ozamiz, Puerto Princesa, Siargao and Tacloban. From Cebu, visitors may also take PAL flights to Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka, Seoul (Incheon), Singapore, Chengdu and Beijing (Peking). The airline recently launched fourtimes-a-week service from Clark to Basco, Batanes, which is part PAL’s development of Clark as a third hub of operations, following Manila and Cebu. PAL will open three new domestic routes out of Davao – to Zamboanga, Tagbilaran and Cagayan de Oro on Nov. 1. Darwin G. Amojelar

FDIs decline 38% to $307m

NET inflows of foreign direct investments fell 38 percent in July to $307 million from $493 million a year ago, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said Tuesday. Data showed that investments in debt instruments shrank in July to $105 million from $407 million a year ago, which outweighed the more than five-fold increase in net equity capital. “The surge in net equity capital to $131 million was due mainly to the increase in equity capital placements to $170 million, which more than compensated for the withdrawals of $39 million,” the Bangko Sentral said. Net FDI inflows in the first seven months hit $3.9 billion, or 16.5 percent lower than $4.7 billion recorded a year ago. Equity capital placements during the seven-month period came mainly from Singapore, the US, Japan, Hong Kong and the Netherlands. Julito G. Rada

BOI’S 50TH ANNIVERSARY. The Board of Investments recognize stakeholders during the 2017 Guinogulan Awards at the culmination of the agency’s 50th anniversary celebration at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City. Shown are Trade Undersecretary and BoI governor Nora Terrado (left) and BoI governor Napoleon Concepcion (right) with Meneleo Carlos (center), one of the awardees who received the Ginintuang Habi Award on behalf of all the private sector and industry association groups partners.

Market climbs to 8,400; peso falls to 51.44

Factory output increases 2.8%

FACTORY production recovered in August from a decline in July on higher output of construction-related materials, the National Economic and Development Authority said Tuesday. Results of the Monthly Integrated Survey of Selected Industries conducted by the Philippine Statistics Authority showed the volume of production index increased 2.8 percent in August, compared to the 3.5-percent slump in July. The value of production index also went up 2.4 percent in August, following a drop of 2 percent in July. Neda Undersecretary Rolando Tungpalan said the growth in manufacturing was expected to continue to improve in the fourth quarter, with construction products as the key drivers for the sector. “Sustained infrastructure development, translating to increase in public construction expenditure, is anticipated not only to increase the growth of the manufacturing sector but also to support the continuous growth of the economy,” he said. Julito G. Rada

Sunray bags solar energy deal

THE Energy Department granted Sunray Power Inc. the service contract to develop a 100-megawatt solar project at Clark Green City in Bamban, Tarlac. Sunray, an energy company which is 75-percent owned by Menlo Renewable Energy Corp., a whollyowned subsidiary of MRC Allied Inc., signed the solar energy service contract Monday. “In the service contract, the government authorizes SPI to explore, develop, and utilize solar energy resources within the designated area for a period of 25 years,” MRC Allied said in a disclosure to the stock exchange. MRC Allied has been expanding its renewable energy portfolio through a series of acquisitions. MRC Allied recently acquired a 15-percent stake in Leyte-based solar power producer Sulu Electric Power and Light Philippines for P255 million. The company also executed a memorandum of understanding with Uni Solar Inc. to develop solar energy projects in the country. Alena Mae S. Flores

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Tuesday, October 10, 2017

F OREIGN E XCHANGE R ATE Currency

Unit

US Dollar

Peso

United States

Dollar

1.000000

51.1640

Japan

Yen

0.008876

0.4541

Pound

1.314400

67.2500

Hong Kong

Dollar

0.128103

6.5543

Switzerland

Franc

1.020825

52.2295

Canada

Dollar

0.797003

40.7779

Singapore

Dollar

0.733460

37.5267

Australia

Dollar

0.775200

39.6623

Bahrain

Dinar

2.651465

135.6596 13.6434

Saudi Arabia

Rial

0.266660

Brunei

Dollar

0.730780

37.3896

Indonesia

Rupiah

0.000074

0.0038

Thailand

Baht

0.029958

1.5328

UAE

Dirham

0.272287

13.9313

Euro

1.174200

60.0768

Korea

Won

0.000875

0.0448

China

Yuan

0.150948

7.7231

India

Rupee

0.015302

0.7829

Malaysia

Ringgit

0.236407

12.0955

New Zealand

Dollar

0.706300

36.1371

Taiwan

Dollar

0.032929

1.6848 Source: PDS Bridge

STOCKS climbed to a new record high Tuesday, tracking the gains in other Asian markets and after the International Monetary Fund retained its strong growth forecast for the Philippines this year. The Philippine Stock Exchange index, the 30-company benchmark, peaked to 8,409.92 in the afternoon before closing slightly lower at 8,398.04 Tuesday, up 30 points, or 0.4 percent, from Monday. The heavier index, representing all shares, also gained 12 points, or 0.3 percent, to settle at 4,922.71, on a value turnover of P7.2 billion. Losers outnumbered gainers, 103 to 91, while 51 issues were unchanged. Eleven of the 20 most active stocks ended in the green, led by aviation com-

pany MacroAsia Corp. which jumped 9.2 percent to P16.94. Food company RFM Corp. advanced 3.3 percent to P4.70, while conglomerate SM Investments Corp. rose 2.3 percent to P940. The IMF said in its latest World Economic Outlook it was expecting the Philippine economy to grow 6.6 percent in 2017 and 6.7 percent in 2018. Meanwhile, the Philippine peso plummeted to 51.44 against the US dollar Tuesday, amid rising imports ahead of the holiday season. Daily turnover reached $929 million, up from the previous day’s $658 million. It was the local currency’s weakest level since it settled at 51.49 a dollar on Aug. 18, 2017, at the height of the

tensions between the United States and North Korea. ING Bank Manila senior economist Joey Cuyegkeng said the local currency weakened again after two successive weeks of strength versus the greenback. “Weakness of Philippine peso resumed after market had reflected acquisition-related inflows in late September while import demand for US dollar regained dominance in the exchange market,” Cuyegkeng said. “Relatively dovish comment from the central bank in the wake of an acceleration of inflation in September also allowed for some weakness,” he said. Analysts said the improving global economic outlook boosted the demand for the dollar which is the main currency for foreign trade.

In Asian markets, South Korean and Japanese traders sent shares rallying Tuesday as they returned from a long weekend while most other markets tacked on gains despite a soft lead from Wall Street. Investors started the week on a positive note Monday as they looked past a surprise drop in US jobs and bought into other positives from Friday’s employment report that indicated the world’s top economy is in rude health. Unease over US-North Korea tensions also eased as Kim Jong-Un’s regime did not launch, as some had feared, another long-range missile to mark Tuesday’s anniversary of the founding of the ruling party. Julito G. Rada with AFP, Bloomberg

Pilipinas Taj Autogroup Inc. said the new facility would make the Philippines a major assembly point of Tata commercial vehicles in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Pilipinas Taj president Cresencio Fernandez Jr. said the Filipino company would fund the assembly facility with technical support from Tata. “This is in line with our intention to participate in the PUV [public utility vehicle] modernization program. The program is a good venue for us to launch assembly operations and make Philippines the Asean hub for our SFC 407,” he told reporters in an interview. Pilipinas Taj is one of the more than 10 contenders that expressed interest to participate in the PUV Modernization Program. The company has its eyes set on creating the ﬁrst three of the four types of jeepneys that the government planned to implement under the program. It already created two prototypes for Class 1 and 2 using the Ace and Super Ace models of Tata that would be featured in the upcoming Philippine Autoparts Exhibition on Oct. 12 at the World Trade Center. Fernandez said the Philippine assembly facility would cover the production of three Tata commercial vehicles–the Ace, Super Ace and the SFC 407. These vehicles are commercial delivery units per-

IMF keeps growth forecast at 6.6% on better prospects

BoI reports investments up by 33%

By Julito G. Rada THE International Monetary Fund on Tuesday retained its 2017 growth forecast for the Philippines at 6.6 percent amid better prospects for the global economy that is expected to benefit the growth trajectories of most countries. Yang Yongzheng, IMF resident representative to the Philippines who replaced Shanaka Jayanath Peiris, said in an email to reporters the 6.6-percent growth forecast for 2017 was similar to what it released during the Article IV consultation held in the middle of this year. “We have retained the forecast as we see continued robust domestic demand driven by investment and consumption, and fiscal policy is supportive of growth,” Yang said. The IMF said in its World Economic Outlook for October 2017 the Philippines would continue to outperform other large economies in the Asean region. “In the Asean-5 economies [Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam], growth is expected to strengthen in 2017 to 5.2 percent (from 5 percent in April), partly because of stronger-than-expected external demand from China and Europe,” the IMF said. “Specifically, economic activity in 2017 is projected to expand by 5.2 percent in Indonesia, 5.4 percent in Malaysia, 6.6 percent in the Philippines, 3.7 percent in Thailand and 6.3 percent in Vietnam,” it said.

By Othel V. Campos

LNG HUB DEVELOPMENT. The Department of Energy unveils a plan to develop the domestic natural gas industry, and eventually transform the Philippines as the liquefied natural gas trading and trans-shipment hub in the Asia-Pacific region. Leading the first public consultation for the Philippine Natural Gas Regulation in Taguig City is Oil Industry Management Bureau director Rino Abad, who responds to inquiries from participants. The public consultation aims to inform stakeholders and to guide potential investors in the LNG industry.

Exports rose 9.3%, while imports jumped 10.5% in August BOTH exports and imports jumped in August from a year ago, on indication of strong third-quarter economic activities, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority show. The PSA said Tuesday merchandise exports increased 9.3 percent in August to $5.5 billion from $5 billion a year earlier, while imports climbed 10.5 percent to $7.9 billion from $7.2 billion. This means total external trade in goods increased 10 percent in August to $13.42 billion from $12.20 billion a year earlier, a signiﬁcant

improvement from 2.5 percent in July. As a result, the trade deﬁcit widened to $2.4 billion in August from $2.13 billion in the same month last year. Data showed the 9.3-percent rise in exports was driven by higher shipments of gold (up 186.7 percent); machinery and transport equipment (75 percent); electronic equipment and parts (up 71.3 percent); coconut oil (61.2 percent); metal components (22.6 percent); other manufactured goods (13.8 percent); and electronic products (3.5 percent). Exports to the United

fect for logistics and passenger transport. Pilipinas Taj vice president and general manager Arthur Balmadrid said that while company would import the power train and engines for the models that would be registered under the modernization program, “the rest of the parts should be locally-sourced.” Completely-knocked down imports, including other auto parts, come in 0 to 9 percent duty if registered under the Motor Vehicle Development Plan program of the Trade Department while completely build-up units carry 20-percent to 30-percent tariff. “That’s why we’re pushing for an all-Filipino assembly for this PUV program. We’re conducting trials for the three models until yearend so we can determine what local components we can adopt,” Balmadrid said. Pilipinas Taj is also coming up with a purely Filipino mini-van that will debut in early 2018. Almost the size of an L300, the mini-van can be custom-made to ﬁt the needs of the users. It can be ﬁtted as an ambulance, a passenger shuttle, a school service or a delivery van. Besides the Philippines, Tata Motors commercial vehicles are present across Asean markets including Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand with manufacturing facilities in Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia.

States reached $834.96 million, up by 7.4 percent from $777.14 million in August 2016. Shipments to Japan, however, tumbled 13.6 percent to $827.36 million. Total exports in the ﬁrst eight months grew 13.3 percent to $42.1 billion from $37.2 billion a year earlier. Meanwhile, the 10.5-percent growth in imports in August was traced to the positive performance of metalliferous ores and metal scrap (up 718 percent); organic and inorganic chemicals (27.6 percent);

mineral fuels, lubricants and related materials (23.8 percent); telecommunication equipment and electrical machinery (11.3 percent); iron and steel (10.9 percent); other food and live animals (9.7 percent); electronic products (8.3 percent); industrial machinery and equipment (6.2 percent); and transport equipment (2.2 percent). China was the country’s biggest source of imports with 16.9 percent share in August 2017. Imports from China declined 0.8 percent to $1.34 billion. Shipments from Japan increased 9.6

percent to $905.35 million. Imports in the ﬁrst eight months went up 8.2 percent to $59.2 billion from $54.7 billion a year earlier. National Economic and Development Authority Undersecretary Rolando Tungpalan said productivity-enhancing would help sustain the improving growth of Philippine trade. “To help enhance this trade productivity, it is important to follow through with reforms that will develop the country’s potential in digital trade and e-commerce,” Tungpalan said. Julito G. Rada

INVESTMENT pledges climbed 33 percent in the first nine months to P381.17 billion from P286.44 billion a year ago, the Board of the Investments said Tuesday. Trade Secretary and BoI chairman Ramon Lopez said the amount represented about 76 percent of the agency’s investment target of P500 billion for 2017. “In conjunction with our 50th anniversary, we’ve come up with an ambitious investment target of P500 billion by the end of this year, or ‘P500 billion for BOI@50’,” Lopez said Monday night during the 2017 Guinogolan Awards at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City. Data showed despite the significant growth, foreign investments slid 74.82 percent in January to September to P12.48 billion from P49.59 billion a year earlier. Domestic investments, however, continued to dominate investment pledges with a growth of 55.66 percent to P368.68 billion. Expected employment generation from 324 projects increased to 64,563 from 46,716 workers from 255 projects a year ago. Lopez said for the past five years, BoI’s average annual investment approval reached P398 billion.

Business

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2017 extrastory2000@gmail.com

Ayala, partner increase Alviera capex to P100b By Jenniffer B. Austria AYALA Land Inc. and joint venture partner Leonio Land Holdings Inc. have upgraded the capital spending for Alviera, a large-scale, mixed-use estate in Porac, Pampanga province, to P100 billion from P90 billion. Alviera general manager John Estacio said in a brieﬁng Tuesday the joint venture partners recently infused additional 700 hectares into Alviera, expanding the development to 1,800 hectares. Alviera will also have a new component—leisure and tourism well as the expansion of the industrial estate development. Estacio said Alviera was in talks with several foreign locators that would offer leisure projects, including medical tourism and other entertainment facilities. The estate recently signed an agreement with De La Salle Philippines to develop the 23-hectare La Salle Botanical Gardens. Envisioned as a world-class botanical center with a collection of at least 25 themed garden patches, the project draws inspiration from internationally-renowned gardens such as the Jardin Botanique de Lyon in France and the Kew Royal Botanic Gardens in London. Alviera is also set to open the second phase of the industrial estate development as a result of the 95 percent sales take-up of the ﬁrst phase of the Alviera Industrial Park.

Petron: PNOC violating terms of lease contracts By Alena Mae S. Flores

ETRON Corp. warned Tuesday that state-owned Philippine National Oil Co. could violate three lease contracts for seeking to nullify alleged “disadvantageous” clauses. Petron said in a statement PNOC was in breach of the lease contracts when it told the oil reﬁner in a letter to nullify binding renewal clauses ahead of expiration, threatening to jeopardize the oil company’s operations and the interest of small shareholders and other partners. Petron has existing lease agreements with PNOC on the

sites of its $3-billion reﬁnery in Bataan, 24 bulk plants and 67 gasoline stations. “It is Petron’s position that the lease agreements for the three properties and the renewal clauses therein are valid and binding. They are not in violation of any law nor manifestly and grossly disadvantageous to the government,” Petron, through its gener-

al counsel Joel Angelo Cruz, said in a letter to PNOC president and chief executive ofﬁcer Reuben Lista. Cruz said Lista’s letter “den(ied) without legal causes Petron’s contractual right to renew (and) constitute(d) fundamental breach of the three lease agreements.” Petron was responding to Lista’s letter asking the oil company to waive certain provisions of the lease agreements or submit remediation plans “so that the abandonment and clean-up of the sites may already be discussed and completed” before the expiration of the lease agreements in August next year. Petron said reports that Lista allegedly offered the properties cov-

MANILA STANDARD BUSINESS DAILY STOCKS REVIEW TUESDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2017

VALUE

NET FOREIGN BUYING/(SELLING), PHP

FINANCIALS 4.7 133,000 59.3 14,310 101.5 1,307,680 4.05 12,000 136.5 1,340,440 2.6 3,762,000 35.95 189,700 15.9 2,200 31.85 1,104,900 1.79 2,000 0.7 2,588,000 88 607,350 0.83 429,000 12.86 1,600 57.35 83,010 240 2,530 89.95 130 55.55 1,723,200 250.2 457,140 1,945 5 86.65 221,520 1.31 38,000

618,270 854,491 132,718,923 48,500 181,656,810 9,670,560 6,825,165 35,160 35,163,860 3,580 1,810,560 53,453,199 357,900 20,618 4,760,671 607,322 11,693.50 92,542,455 115,261,560 9,725 19,200,204 49,840

837,898 -12,041,658 40,500 99,258,623 -1,258,750 -11,758,445 0 -24,687,516 8,300 -4,413,811 -6,020,785 87,714,050 11,399,419 -

42 10.12 0.78 1.37 19.2 0.225 116 5.15 15.06 41.55 19.12 64.05 72 1.92 6.23 11.3 10.12 14.94 13.62 7.18 5.65 1.7 18.96 67 14.28 12.38 18.6 1.86 242 4.88 3.2 21.45 31.4 19.8 16.5 285.6 0.218 10.5 2.99 6.73 10.1 6.1 9.86 1.76 11.7 67 6.45 307.4 4.55 4.4 2.56 13.3 4.59 0.142 1.23 149.6 3.4 2.06 0.96

INDUSTRIAL 42 395,000 10.28 885,700 0.79 302,000 1.38 2,273,000 19.48 7,200 0.225 1,360,000 116 1,110 5.15 6,847,500 15.3 4,689,000 42.1 465,500 19.5 3,900 67.95 120 75 40 1.93 188,000 6.45 731,600 11.3 11,900 10.18 978,900 15 521,900 13.66 1,182,500 7.18 385,400 5.71 37,765,900 1.7 1,000 19 1,866,000 67.8 39,390 14.4 394,100 12.4 24,300 19.32 2,765,000 1.9 133,000 245 123,900 5.33 7,223,600 3.2 12,000 22.7 6,300 31.4 2,609,500 19.92 67,000 16.76 2,830,200 286 394,770 0.219 5,100,000 10.6 421,600 3 38,000 6.8 124,600 10.14 754,300 6.16 42,100 9.9 10,200 1.77 200,000 11.78 493,300 68 58,070 6.45 242,400 308 740 4.7 26,488,000 4.45 19,000 2.56 278,000 13.5 1,022,800 4.6 139,000 0.143 2,020,000 1.23 220,000 149.8 1,458,300 3.45 92,000 2.1 4,920,000 0.97 261,000

16,619,800 9,115,508 235,990 3,135,270 140,058 310,310 128,797 35,613,928 71,883,122 19,616,515 75,318 7,900 2,970 362,160 4,744,942 135,074 9,973,504 1 7,814,870 16,142,906 2,778,655 215,106,944 1,700 35,529,196 2,665,622 5,656,350 301,170 53,226,192 252,290 30,315,996 37,048,891 38,680 142,555 82,280,245 1,332,288 47,422,954 113,261,640 1,117,550 4,543,796 113,940 846,535 7,651,168 257,768 100,850 354,040 5,794,674 3,910,557 1,575,199 228,164 120,541,230 84,140 723,700 13,825,430 645,340 287,690 283,180 218,641,839 316,100 10,249,510 253,120

2,230,230 325,634 140,760 -21,420 -9,896,940 -52,956,964 753,710 40,500 ,027,800.0002 2,365,596 16,258 -2,034,977 -132,961,291 1,700 10,076,708 950,646 -146,338 14,353,940 15,304,710 36,728 6,435 43,051,720 622,780 -20,298,136 2,383,444 33,000 -63,000 975,288 571,136 -371,122 402,830 -218,890 33,852,000 9,595,258 -2,450,598 224,150 -103,980 39,770

0.345 74.6 16.64 1.05 6.9 0.37 0.375 1,029 8.45 15.7 7.65 5.06 1,200 7.64 77 4.74 0.84 5.53 18.02 6.87 0.053 1.19 2.17 101 915.5 1.43 282.2 0.27 0.19 0.218

HOLDING FIRMS 0.35 370,000 75.4 571,000 16.7 10,930,000 1.11 23,000 6.9 300 0.385 50,680,000 0.38 10,840,000 1,050 810,820 8.45 1,329,400 15.7 4,916,200 7.8 281,500 5.06 400 1,209 128,905 7.88 27,600 78 1,149,490 4.74 5,900 0.86 752,000 5.7 1,517,500 18.48 1,614,800 6.88 15,646,300 0.055 35,560,000 1.34 1,668,000 2.17 599,000 101.9 530,440 940 842,710 1.43 814,000 282.4 4,180 0.275 110,000 0.19 940,000 0.227 170,000

128,000 43,057,255 182,686,408 24,440 2,070 19,358,850 4,194,600 852,407,830 11,241,503 1 77,989,904 2,153,770 2,024 155,789,990 216,827 89,291,243.50 30,585 638,650 8,512,720 29,712,852 107,639,436 1,941,240 2,194,680 1,314,380 54,068,319 789,631,180 1,164,660 1,232,320 29,900 179,010 37,150

-6,750 32,122,679.50 16,170,532 -77,000 285,937,855 ,119,215.9996 17,147,720 -16,109,235 9,360,909 819,625 7,318,010 26,307,343 -374,370 1,515,471 111,221,930 -261,902 10,900

783,450 9,164,690 51,918 991,370 5,544,360 637,078,925 2,591,710 15,996,127 5,310 8,732,420 836,240 492,840 19,365,450 869,650 13,177,270 954,570 53,440 5,690,110 6,009,090 475,060 4,160 59,651,938 24,401,950 4,765,300 1,506,700

-520,380 -259,253,190 528,890 -152,400 121,890 362,380 5,200 -27,550 682,405 -832,920 14,800 1,206,790 -938,077 150,650 -13,800 19,200

NAME

OPEN

HIGH

LOW

AG FINANCE ASIA UNITED BANK PH ISLANDS BDO LEASING BDO UNIBANK BRIGHT KINDLE CHINABANK COL FINANCIAL EAST WEST BANK IREMIT MEDCO HLDG METROBANK NTL REINSURANCE PB BANK PHIL NATL BANK PHIL STOCK EXCH PSBANK RCBC SECURITY BANK SUN LIFE UNION BANK VANTAGE

4.61 59.75 101.9 4 134.4 2.57 36 15.9 32 1.79 0.69 87.95 0.84 12.96 57.4 240.2 89.95 48.9 248.2 1,945 86.65 1.32

4.7 59.75 101.9 4.05 136.5 2.65 36 16 32.4 1.79 0.71 88.5 0.85 12.96 57.5 241 89.95 55.55 254.2 1,945 86.8 1.32

4.46 59.1 101 4 134 2.45 35.95 15.9 31.6 1.79 0.69 87.8 0.83 12.86 57.3 240 89.95 48.45 248.2 1,945 86.5 1.31

ABOITIZ POWER AGRINURTURE ALLIANCE SELECT ALSONS CONS ASIABEST GROUP BASIC ENERGY BOGO MEDELLIN CEMEX HLDG CENTURY FOOD CIRTEK HLDG CNTRL AZUCARERA CONCEPCION CONCRETE A CROWN ASIA DAVINCI CAPITAL DEL MONTE DNL INDUS EAGLE CEMENT EEI CORP EMPERADOR ENERGY DEVT EUROMED FIRST GEN FIRST PHIL HLDG GINEBRA HOLCIM INTEGRATED MICR IONICS JOLLIBEE LMG CHEMICALS MABUHAY VINYL MACAY HLDG MANILA WATER MAXS GROUP MEGAWIDE MERALCO MG HLDG PANASONIC PEPSI COLA PETROENERGY PETRON PHIL H2O PHINMA PHINMA ENERGY PHX PETROLEUM PILIPINAS SHELL PRYCE CORP PUREFOODS RFM CORP ROXAS HLDG SFA SEMICON SHAKEYS PIZZA SPC POWER SWIFT FOODS TKC METALS UNIV ROBINA VICTORIAS VITARICH VULCAN INDL

42.3 10.36 0.79 1.38 19.48 0.225 116 5.2 15.76 41.8 19.12 65 72 1.93 6.8 11.5 10.12 15.04 13.7 7.27 5.65 1.7 19.02 67.85 14.3 12.38 18.6 1.96 244 5.05 3.24 21.45 31.55 19.82 17.18 287 0.221 11.3 3 6.76 10.14 6.15 9.9 1.77 11.96 67 6.51 307.4 4.55 4.4 2.68 13.56 4.65 0.142 1.3 150 3.41 2.08 0.97

42.3 10.38 0.79 1.38 19.78 0.238 116.4 5.27 15.92 42.35 20.5 67.95 75 1.93 6.8 11.5 10.24 15.04 13.82 7.27 5.74 1.7 19.3 67.85 14.6 12.4 19.5 1.96 245 5.45 3.24 22.85 31.7 20 17.36 288.2 0.221 11.38 3 6.84 10.22 6.16 9.9 1.78 11.96 68 6.56 310 4.7 4.45 2.68 13.7 4.65 0.143 1.31 150.4 3.45 2.12 0.99

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

0.35 74.6 16.86 1.05 6.9 0.37 0.375 1,029 8.45 15.92 7.8 5.06 1,209 7.65 77.6 5.65 0.86 5.6 18.34 6.88 0.057 1.22 2.18 101 918.5 1.44 290 0.275 0.192 0.218

0.35 75.5 16.88 1.11 6.9 0.395 0.395 1,060 8.47 15.98 7.8 5.06 1,210 7.88 78.7 5.65 0.86 5.75 18.5 6.9 0.057 1.39 2.2 102.3 950 1.44 296 0.275 0.192 0.227

8990 HLDG A BROWN ANCHOR LAND ARANETA PROP ARTHALAND CORP AYALA LAND BELLE CORP CEB LANDMASTERS CEBU HLDG CENTURY PROP CITY AND LAND CITYLAND DEVT CROWN EQUITIES CYBER BAY DOUBLEDRAGON EMPIRE EAST EVER GOTESCO FILINVEST LAND GLOBAL ESTATE IRC PROP KEPPEL PROP MEGAWORLD MRC ALLIED PHIL ESTATES PHIL REALTY

4.97 1.07 8.96 2.42 1.04 43.3 3.78 5.03 5.31 0.51 1.29 1.29 0.224 0.475 42.65 0.69 0.148 2.05 1.56 0.87 4.16 5.27 0.34 0.46 0.48

4.98 1.07 8.96 2.48 1.07 43.5 3.8 5.16 5.31 0.52 1.32 1.31 0.23 0.48 42.9 0.69 0.149 2.08 1.58 0.92 4.16 5.29 0.34 0.46 0.485

4.95 1.04 8.5 2.42 1.03 42.85 3.75 5.02 5.31 0.51 1.26 1.28 0.212 0.475 41.8 0.68 0.148 2.03 1.56 0.87 4.16 5.23 0.325 0.435 0.475

VOLUME

NAME

OPEN

HIGH

LOW

VOLUME

VALUE

NET FOREIGN BUYING/(SELLING), PHP

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

6.7 26.25 1.82 3.2 34.85 1.04 0.88 6.29

6.75 26.35 1.85 3.2 34.9 1.07 0.88 6.3

6.5 26.05 1.81 3.2 34.65 1.04 0.85 6.27

6.51 26.35 1.81 3.2 34.7 1.06 0.88 6.3

3,452,000 1,225,600 143,000 6,000 3,732,300 589,000 38,000 1,237,300

22,821,140 32,170,700 259,080 19,200 129,682,385 619,560 32,570 7,775,694

1,781,804 -7,433,830 186,430 -33,411,020 -3,349,259

2GO GROUP ABS CBN ACESITE HOTEL APC GROUP APOLLO GLOBAL BLOOMBERRY BOULEVARD HLDG CEBU AIR CENTRO ESCOLAR CHELSEA DFNN INC GLOBE TELECOM GMA NETWORK GOLDEN HAVEN HARBOR STAR IMPERIAL INTL CONTAINER IPM HLDG ISLAND INFO ISM COMM JACKSTONES LBC EXPRESS LEISURE AND RES LORENZO SHIPPNG MACROASIA MANILA BULLETIN MANILA JOCKEY MELCO RESORTS METRO RETAIL MLA BRDCASTING NOW CORP PACIFIC ONLINE PAL HLDG PHIL SEVEN CORP PHILWEB PLDT PREMIUM LEISURE PRMIERE HORIZON PUREGOLD ROBINSONS RTL SBS PHIL CORP SSI GROUP STI HLDG TRAVELLERS WATERFRONT WILCON DEPOT

20.1 40.6 1.72 0.54 0.058 10.3 0.072 107.5 9 9.93 7.71 2,070 6.1 18.9 2.7 2.88 106.8 8.39 0.16 1.36 3.2 15.64 4.3 1.25 15.8 0.56 2.8 7.48 4.23 17.58 2.41 11.06 5.09 167.3 9.64 1,695 1.53 0.395 54.15 106.3 6.3 4.24 1.58 4.15 1.18 8.55

20.15 40.6 1.72 0.57 0.059 10.48 0.073 109.3 9 10 8 2,082 6.1 19.4 2.7 2.9 106.8 8.4 0.162 1.36 3.2 15.64 4.3 1.3 17 0.56 2.89 7.64 4.25 17.8 2.41 11.06 5.09 168 9.64 1,712 1.53 0.4 55.1 106.3 6.3 4.3 1.65 4.18 1.18 8.57

19.86 40.5 1.67 0.54 0.051 10.3 0.071 107.5 8.99 9.59 7.7 2,066 6.06 18.72 2.44 2.88 106 8.35 0.159 1.36 3.14 15.64 4.12 1.24 15.72 0.56 2.79 7.46 4.21 17.5 2.37 11.06 5.05 167.3 9.43 1,685 1.5 0.395 53.75 102.5 6.03 4.11 1.58 4.07 1.12 8.35

SERVICES 19.86 40.55 1.7 0.56 0.052 10.34 0.072 109.1 9 9.7 7.9 2,074 6.06 19.1 2.48 2.89 106 8.38 0.159 1.36 3.18 15.64 4.15 1.3 16.94 0.56 2.83 7.46 4.25 17.5 2.37 11.06 5.09 168 9.45 1,712 1.5 0.4 53.95 103 6.13 4.13 1.62 4.18 1.14 8.37

75,600 23,300 516,000 4,275,000 433,180,000 3,740,100 4,450,000 99,170 16,600 4,636,500 10,300 24,465 619,600 180,700 7,016,000 47,000 1,023,260 193,100 3,580,000 237,000 5,000 6,400 984,000 302,000 12,680,200 31,000 939,000 7,080,500 624,000 3,500 427,000 500 5,200 670 1,026,800 91,900 1,145,000 8,800,000 2,047,320 971,860 58,400 1,613,000 23,471,000 1,661,000 25,587,000 8,443,000

1,506,692 945,095 865,830 2,372,360 23,839,070 38,834,250 318,450 10,802,026 149,370 45,357,421 79,687 50,719,600 3,774,289 3,472,060 17,570,300 135,460 108,786,050 1,620,694 569,820 322,320 15,840 100,096 4,123,770 380,440 209,115,438 40 17,360 2,662,890 53,077,546 2,641,180 61,410 1,018,010 5,530 26,296 112,480 9,713,610 156,833,540 1,734,210 3,476,250 111,230,720.50 100,442,199 357,682 6,731,540 37,877,610 6,845,810 29,344,280 ( 70,964,267(13

3,996 194,880 9,300 -6,099,048 5,027,038 306,907 22,129,360 -288,300 19,840 -5,780 32,466,337 236,190 63,000 ,906,746.0002 30,560,910 -16,910 16,800 525,328 80,240,230 266,880 20,997,783 -33,347,629 12,520 298,650 8,103,090 146,390 796,960.0002) ,294,487.9996)

ABRA MINING APEX MINING ATLAS MINING ATOK BENGUET A BENGUET B CENTURY PEAK COAL ASIA HLDG DIZON MINES FERRONICKEL GEOGRACE LEPANTO A LEPANTO B MANILA MINING A MARCVENTURES NICKEL ASIA NIHAO OMICO CORP ORNTL PENINSULA ORNTL PETROL A ORNTL PETROL B PHILODRILL PHINMA PETRO PX MINING PXP ENERGY SEMIRARA MINING UNITED PARAGON

0.0025 1.92 4.94 15.74 1.91 1.88 1.56 0.385 8.45 2.73 0.265 0.188 0.198 0.01 1.92 7.07 1.73 0.51 1.02 0.012 0.012 0.012 2.64 8.08 9 46 0.0079

0.0027 1.95 4.97 16.98 1.91 1.9 1.6 0.39 8.5 2.75 0.265 0.188 0.2 0.011 1.92 7.23 1.73 0.53 1.03 0.013 0.013 0.012 2.64 8.23 9.4 46.3 0.008

0.0025 1.83 4.9 15 1.85 1.85 1.55 0.385 8.31 2.63 0.255 0.181 0.196 0.01 1.89 6.8 1.7 0.51 1.01 0.012 0.012 0.011 2.64 8.03 8.4 45.4 0.0079

MINING & OIL 0.0025 170,000,000 1.83 23,882,000 4.9 225,000 16.48 5,400 1.86 59,000 1.9 68,000 1.57 1,989,000 0.39 70,000 8.38 6,100 2.64 6,625,000 0.255 80,000 0.182 12,050,000 0.2 970,000 0.011 24,000,000 1.9 1,257,000 6.8 8,672,300 1.72 47,000 0.53 19,000 1.02 395,000 0.012 176,500,000 0.013 700,000 0.011 39,100,000 2.64 1,000 8.22 1,477,300 8.7 35,301,200 45.4 719,500 0.008 11,000,000

439,400 44,823,760 1,102,960 83,914 110,650 127,650 3,126,250 27,250 50,958 17,725,120 20,700 2,198,720 191,200 243,100 2,380,160 60,597,755 80,030 9,750 402,880 2,169,800 8,600 452,100 2,640 12,074,665 317,467,765 32,914,645 87,200

3,100,820 -9,800 -4,610 -16,710 6,717,190 95,000 3,962,933 6,880 8,550,385 13,300,421.00 5,211,560 -

ABS HLDG PDR AC PREF B1 AC PREF B2 ALCO PREF B DD PREF FGEN PREF G GLO PREF P GMA HLDG PDR GTCAP PREF A GTCAP PREF B LR PREF MWIDE PREF PCOR PREF 2A PF PREF 2 PNX PREF 3A SFI PREF SMC PREF 2B SMC PREF 2C SMC PREF 2D SMC PREF 2E SMC PREF 2G SMC PREF 2H SMC PREF 2I

40.4 539.5 525 107.5 106 115.3 541 5.76 1,040 1,035 1.06 110 1,070 1,020 105 1.96 75.5 80.7 76 78.1 78.2 78.3 80

40.4 539.5 525 107.5 106 115.3 541 5.77 1,045 1,035 1.06 110 1,070 1,020 105 1.96 75.6 80.7 76 78.1 78.2 78.5 80.1

40.4 539.5 525 107.5 105.5 115.3 541 5.75 1,040 1,035 1.06 110 1,070 1,016 105 1.96 75.5 80.5 76 78.1 78.2 78.1 80

PREFERRED 40.4 32,700 539.5 10 525 100 107.5 5,100 106 13,080 115.3 7,000 541 20 5.75 368,200 1,045 10 1,035 540 1.06 97,000 110 1,000 1,070 15 1,016 940 105 1,100 1.96 1,000 75.6 2,010 80.6 46,010 76 3,010 78.1 18,500 78.2 150 78.1 99,750 80.1 600

1,321,080 5,395 52,500 548,250 1,385,030 807,100 10,820 2,121,634 10,425 558,900 102,820 110,000 16,050 955,160 115,500 1,960 151,756 3,709,807 228,760 1,444,850 11,730 7,809,795 48,010

-1,106,960 -1,229,534 -2,418,000 -8,010.00

LR WARRANT

2.51

2.52

2.42

WARRANTS 2.42 666,000

1,636,900

ITALPINAS PHILAB HLDG XURPAS

5.03 4.67 5.7

5.4 4.83 5.82

5.02 4.66 5.6

5.25 4.83 5.75

10,522,347 42,550 5,754,780

-250,776

FIRST METRO ETF

126.6

127.3

126.2

2,709,749

-1,262,236

PROPERTY 4.98 1.04 8.87 2.45 1.04 43.3 3.77 5.04 5.31 0.51 1.32 1.3 0.23 0.48 41.8 0.69 0.149 2.03 1.57 0.91 4.16 5.29 0.33 0.435 0.475

158,000 8,705,000 5,900 404,000 5,304,000 14,737,400 687,000 3,159,200 1,000 17,115,000 655,000 382,000 86,770,000 1,820,000 311,700 1,389,000 360,000 2,772,000 3,837,000 522,000 1,000 11,332,200 73,420,000 10,730,000 3,150,000

TRADING SUMMARY FINANCIAL

14,022,239

INDUSTRIAL

124,908,860

HOLDING FIRMS

143,025,393

PROPERTY

258,889,840

SERVICES

569,635,829

MINING & OIL

515,640,622

GRAND TOTAL

1,629,175,125

SME

2,013,600 9,000 1,008,100

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS 127.3 21,420

VALUE 2,017.06 (UP) 15.24 655,720,629.88 FINANCIAL INDUSTRIAL 11,097.08 (DOWN) 4.52 1,248,316,847.99 HOLDING FIRMS 8,626.28 (UP) 63.61 2,472,575,932.68 PROPERTY 3,869.18 (DOWN) 9.66 1,745.65 (UP) 0.94 1,043,565,475.87 SERVICES MINING & OIL 13,846.04 (DOWN) 172.31 1,230,165,394.441 PSEI 8,398.04 (UP) 30.66 498,959,972.273 All Shares Index 4,922.71 (UP) 12.79 7,168,334,898.53 Gainers: 91; Losers: 103; Unchanged: 51; Total: 245

ered by the expiring leases this early to interested new independent oil companies was a total disregard of the rights of Petron. Petron president Ramon Ang earlier said Petron’s expansion program had been affected by government’s threat of canceling the lease agreement on retail stations and bulk plants across the country. “Who will lend me if there is a threat of cancellation of my lease. That is bad for investors,” he said. Ang said Petron would not waive its rights under the existing lease agreement with PNOC. “We have an automatic renewal... We are willing to discuss... We are reasonable and agreeable to a fairness valuation but waiving any rights, not possible,” Ang said. He said that the lease agreement with PNOC when Petron was privatized aimed to entice foreign investors to acquire the oil reﬁner. “The company bought it based on contract of privatization, waiving it will put at risk billions of pesos of investments... Government came out with idea to invite foreign investors to come in,” Ang said.

Navasero back as chairman of Philab THE board of Philab Holdings Corp. announced Tuesday former chairman and chief executive Tom Navasero will reprise his same role in the company following the resignation of incumbent president and CEO Darlene Berberabe. The board said Navasero would again take on his role as chairman of the company. Berberabe has stepped down effective October 9 through a mutual agreement with the board. Philab cited that she was hired to run the DNA business on condition that the funds from the follow-on offering would have come into the company. Philab, however, deferred the offering to give new underwriter China Bank Capital Corp. ample time for due diligence. “We have been fortunate to have Lelen’s leadership and mentorship over the past challenging months. On behalf of the entire company, I would like to thank Lelen for her contributions in Philab. We will all miss her passion, leadership and integrity,” said Navasero. Navasero was the chairman until he stepped down at the helm of the company in June, citing health reasons. The board also announced that he is now in good condition to lead the company. ”I am very excited to rejoin the operating team of the company, and I look forward in executing new business strategies that we have in store,” Navasero said. “With decades of experience in the industry as our backbone, I believe that we are ready to tackle new challenges ahead of us, and the best is only yet to come.” Philab has been present in the life sciences and healthcare industry since his father, Hector Navasero, established Philab Industries Inc. in 1958. Philab supplies life science equipment, designs and builds laboratories, distributes in-vitro diagnostics tools and now invests on new business ventures focused on genomics.

Business/World

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2017 extrastory2000@gmail.com

‘North Korea hacked Seoul’s war strategy’

READY FOR EXPORT. This photo taken on October 9, 2017 shows a Chinese employee making stuffed dinosaur toys as they are prepared for export for the coming festive Christmas season at a toy factory in Lianyungang in China’s eastern Jiangsu province. AFP

SEOUL―North Korean computer hackers have stolen hundreds of classiﬁed military documents from South Korea, including detailed wartime operational plans involving its US ally, a report said Tuesday. Rhee Cheol-Hee, a lawmaker for the ruling Democratic party, said the hackers had broken into the South’s military network last September and gained access to 235 gigabytes of sensitive data, the Chosun Ilbo daily reported. Among the leaked documents was Operational Plans 5015 for use in case of war with the North and including procedures for “decapitation” attacks on leader Kim Jong-Un, the paper

Spain braces for showdown B ARCELONA―Spain’s worst political crisis in a generation comes to a head on Tuesday as Catalonia’s leader could declare independence from Madrid in a move likely to send shock waves through Europe.

Whether or not Carles Puigdemont will follow through on his threat to announce a full breakaway― defying the central government and Spanish courts―is still a mystery. At stake is the future of a region of 7.5 million people,

one of Spain’s economic powerhouses whose independence drive has raised concern for stability in the European Union. Puigdemont, a 54-yearold former journalist and life-long independence advocate, will address Catalan

lawmakers in an extraordinary parliamentary session beginning at 1600 GMT. Political leaders in Catalonia, Spain and Europe have urged Puigdemont to stand down and ease the country’s biggest upheaval since its transition to democracy in the 1970s. But the Catalan president says an independence referendum that took place on October 1 despite a court ban ruling it unconstitutional justiﬁes splitting from Madrid. Around 90 percent of those who cast ballots voted for independence but the poll was

poorly monitored and many Catalans opposed to secession simply stayed at home. Deputy prime minister Soraya Saenz de Santamaria warned on the eve of Puigdemont’s address that any secession declaration “will not go unanswered by the government”. The front page of Catalan daily El Periodico called Tuesday “the end of the road”. Catalan separatists have come under intense pressure both at home and abroad to halt plans to break away from Spain. On Monday evening, Ada Colau, the popular mayor of

Barcelona, warned a unilateral declaration of independence would put “social cohesion” at risk. The results of the referendum “cannot be an endorsement to proclaim independence but they constitute the possibility of opening a dialogue and international mediation”, she said. Pressure also came from the street itself, with hundreds of thousands of prounity demonstrators marching through Barcelona and Madrid at the weekend. Their slogan, “Basta!”, was simple: “Enough”.

Puigdemont vowed following the disputed referendum that he would declare independence in the coming days but he has a variety of hands to choose from. Short of declaring an outright split, the Catalan leader could play for time and call for dialogue, or back down outright from his secessionist demands. Madrid insists that any independence declaration would not change the legal reality that Catalonia is one of Spain’s semi-autonomous regions with laws governed by the national constitution. AFP

Murderer a high roller, a valium user WASHINGTON―Las Vegas mass killer Stephen Paddock was a compulsive player of video poker who took the anxiety drug Valium, CNN reported on Monday. The report gave new details about the background of the 64-year-old who, on October 1, gunned down 58 people and wounded almost 500 for reasons that investigators still have not been able to fathom. Paddock said in a 2013 court deposition that he was “the biggest video poker player in the world,” according to CNN, which obtained a copy of the 97-page document. The deposition has been turned over to the FBI, the

news network said. It was part of a civil lawsuit against the Cosmopolitan Hotel, where he slipped and fell on a walkway in 2011. “Nobody played as much and as long as I did,” Paddock said, adding that in 2006 he gambled on average “14 hours a day, 365 days a year.” “I’ll gamble all night,” he said, in what CNN called the ﬁrst account of his life in his own words. “I sleep during the day.” Paddock at times seemed to come off as arrogant and sarcastic during the deposition, according to CNN. When he gambled he rarely drank alcohol, his testimony said, because “at the

More than THIS second week of October began with sad news for the Asian Institute of Management and many members of the business community. Washington Z. Sycip, born 30 June 1921, passed away on the 7th of October 2017 while on a connecting ﬂight. It is unsurprising that Wash passed away while in the middle of something. He was never one to simply mark time. He was constantly prodding those around him to do more, and especially to do more to help the country and the world. I remember he used to remind all of us at AIM that his retirement from SGV meant he could work with AIM full-time. Mission Wash, as he is fondly known to those of us who have had the great privilege of working with him, is probably best known for having founded Sycip, Gorres, Velayo & Co. (SGV). Perhaps less known but more far-reaching are his involvement in the founding of the Asian Institute of Management (AIM) and the Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP). It makes sense that Wash was instrumental in the founding of three seemingly radically different organizations. He was always involved in both business, policy and development. Throughout his life, Wash championed the role of management and business in the economic development of the Philippines and Asia. That SGV came to be can be traced to a conversation Wash had with his father after he

stakes I play, you want to have all your wits about you, or as much wit as I have.” In another development, the sheriff of Las Vegas Joseph Lombardo told reporters Monday that a security guard who was injured by Paddock was in fact shot six minutes before the gunman opened ﬁre on the crowd. Security guard Jesus Campos was previously hailed as a hero and credited with stopping the assault on the concert crowd by turning the gunman’s attention to the hotel hallway. The new revelation raises questions about why police could not locate Paddock sooner―and indeed why he ended his attack. AFP

PERFORMANCE. A Mapuche activist performs during a march for the Mapuche resistance in Santiago on October 9, 2017. AFP

was reunited with his family following the end of the Japanese occupation of the Philippines. In the biography “Only a Bookkeeper”, Wash quotes his father’s advice concerning where to turn his sights: “Son, there’s a lot of work to be done here with reconstruction.” Wash, who then had a lucrative job waiting for him in New York, decided to stay. To the question of what to do next, his answer was clear: “At the time, the big companies were British firms. Those firms were all Caucasians, and they had a fairly general policy that partners were Caucasians. From my viewpoint I was as good as anyone and should not be subjected to discrimination in my own country.” This drive not just to get things done but to stand for something was a trait that would continue to define Wash and all of the organizations he helped found Values Those who know Wash and have worked closely with him will likely repeat the same things about what he stood for. He believed in education. SGV’s early partnership with Arthur Andersen was at least in part cemented by the American company’s belief in a formal education program for its staff. This belief in constantly learning something new led to his involvement in the founding of the Asian Institute of Management, which became the first school to offer an MBA in Asia. Wash believed in hard work. Many of those who worked in SGV tell tales about how he was always one of the earliest at work and one of the latest to leave work. In fact, Wash continued to come in early to work on his many involvements even after his formal retirement. Wash believed in not wasting time or resources. Wash was Chairman of the AIM Board of Trustees when I was CFO of AIM. Our meetings were precise and to the point. To our

discussions, he brought an eagle eye and a sharp mind. While his questions were pointed, my experience with him was that he would always eventually listen to reason. Wash is often described as honest to a fault. He demanded an unyielding integrity. He used to say: “If there is one – and only one – message I would like you all to remember for the rest of your lives, it is this: Be a person of integrity!” Legacy In the later part of his life, Wash’s most abiding passions had to do with a fight for education, integrity (especially of managers and public servants), and the development of Asia. To all of these things, he brought not only his personal resources but his influence and his network of friends and supporters. While it is easy to say that Wash had confidence and courage, it is important to understand that

quoted Rhee as saying. Rhee, a member of parliament’s defense committee, could not be reached for comment but his office said he had been quoted correctly. The report comes amid heightened fears of conflict on the Korean peninsula, fueled by US President Donald Trump’s continued threats of military action against Pyongyang to tame its weapons ambitions. In his latest tweet over the weekend, Trump reiterated that diplomatic efforts with North Korea have consistently failed, adding that “only one thing will work”. Citing Seoul’s defense ministry, Rhee said 80 percent of the leaked documents had yet to be identified. AFP

‘Violated’ after the encounter LONDON―British actress Romola Garai said she felt “violated” following a meeting with Harvey Weinstein in his London hotel room when she was 18 in which he was in a bathrobe, the Guardian newspaper reported on Tuesday. Garai, best known for her role in “Atonement”, said she had already been hired for a part but was told to audition privately with the Hollywood mogul because “you had to be personally approved by him.” “Like every other woman in the industry, I’ve had an ‘audition’ with Harvey Weinstein,” she told the paper. “So I had to go to his hotel room in the Savoy and he answered the door in his bathrobe. I was only 18. I felt violated by it,” the 35-year-old actress added. Garai said that once she was in the room the two had a brief discussion about ﬁlm but she felt “belittled” by his “abuse of power.” “The point was that he could get a young woman to do that, that I didn’t have a choice, that it was humiliating for me and that he had the power.” She said she had not previously raised the incident because ﬁlm business insiders would be “shocked I even thought it was an issue.” AFP

he was very much the businessman. His letter to Fred Velayo encouraging him to come back home ends with this exhortation: “… make up your mind – be your own boss – and come to virgin territory!” Wash had that amazing ability to both see the big picture and pick up on small details. At the Asian Institute of Management, we always saw Wash as both an optimist and a pragmatist. In many ways, AIM was the embodiment of his belief in the Asian future. Wash was able to see AIM grow to be one of the best business schools in Asia Paciﬁc. He was to oversee the Institute grow and struggle. At the end, he was able to see the Institute embark upon its current path, one that strikes out into the territory of the future one that acknowledges the important role business and entrepreneurs have on economic development and one that embraces learning about the best tools available. Today, as I write this, I imagine him looking at us from the other side of the veil, still asking about goals and performance and progress. In my mind’s eye, I see him looking at AIM’s new school, the School for Innovation, Technology and Entrepreneurship (SITE). I like to think that he would look at all of AIM’s new initiatives to grasp the future, at the programs on entrepreneurship, innovation and data sciences. I like to think he would look at these programs and give us that quiet nod and smile. Rest in Peace, Wash. We will do our best to live up to your example. For more information on AIM’s new programs, please go to www.aim.edu. Readers can email Maya at integrations_manila@ yahoo.com. Or visit her site at http:// integrations.tumblr.com. For academic publications, Maya uses her full name, Maria Elena Baltazar Herrera.

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

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2017

LGUs

Renewed quest for Cordillera autonomy backed

LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS

By Dexter A. See

NEW PUBLIC LIBRARY. Parañaque Mayor Edwin Olivarez and City Librarian Cisette Ricardo inaugurated Monday the new four-story public library and museum of Barangay Sto. Niño. The library has over 10,000 books in the main collection and donations from private individuals, a sizable Filipiniana section, periodicals, and local history and archives. Located along Col. E. de Leon Street in Sto. Niño, the library also houses a cafe, a children’s corner, a function room, computers for public use and free internet access. Assisting Olivarez during the simple inauguration (inset photo) are Parañaque Rep. Eric Olivarez, City First Lady Janet Olivarez, barangay chairman Johnny Co, and city councilors.

BAGUIO CITY—The Philippine Institute of Development Studies supports the renewed quest for autonomy by the Cordillera Administrative Region because it has the legal framework to stand on vis-à-vis the planned shift from presidential to federal form of government being advocated by the present administration. Dr. Rosario Manasan, PIDS public finance expert, said the quest for regional autonomy as enshrined in the 1987 Constitution “is aligned with the present administration’s bid to change the form of government to federal.” “Autonomous regions can exist within established federal states like in countries that have that form of government, so Cordillerans can proceed with their quest for autonomy,” she said. Autonomy and federalism are both anchored on decentralization and the devolution of resources from the national to the local governments, the PIDS

QC ‘SUP’ law passed By Rio N. Araja

UEZON City Mayor Herbert Bautista has approved an ordinance passed by the 36-member city council setting conditions for special use permits or SUPs for the operation of transport terminals and garages.

City Ordinance No. 2589 will complement the policies of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority pursuant to the amended implementing rules and regulations of the

Quezon City Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance. “In order to complement the regulatory actions of the MMDA, such as the nose-in nose-out policy, as well as to protect the inter-

est, public safety and general welfare of the commuting public, there is a need to prescribe conditions for the issuance of SUPs to transport companies,” the ordinance read. Among the conditions were that only public utility vehicles or PUVs owned by the transport companies shall use the terminal, and that PUVs shall have the appropriate body markings of the owning transport company together with the garage address.

The measure ordered the transport companies not to park any of their PUVs outside the terminal or garage and public streets, and the transport companies shall not use the terminals/garages for any other purpose other than to park their PUVs. In case the transport company is sold, the new owner shall apply for a new SUP to operate, and; the SUP shall be automatically revoked upon the enactment of a law or issuance of

an executive order prohibiting the existence or operation of a terminal or garage in the area. The city council reserves the right to revoke any SUP over habitual or gross violation of traffic laws, rules and regulations committed by the transport companies or their drivers. Meanwhile, Bautista on Monday spearheaded the launch of a free highspeed Wi-Fi connection at City Hall. Bautista graced the

IN BRIEF

‘FAKE NEWS IS NOT NEWS.’ Officers

Pangilinan grandson battles depression

of the Negros Press Club were among the 300 participants who led the signing of the covenant against disinformation and misinformation in the seminar on ‘Let’s Get Real on Fake News’ at the University of Negros Occidental-Recoletos in Bacolod City. This is the second to the last of the scholastic series organized by the Philippine Press Institute with support from Nickel Asia Corp., in collaboration with the local press club. The final leg will be in Dumaguete City.

A GRANDSON of Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan is suffering from severe depression, his family said Tuesday, after learning of the recent killing of Horacio Castillo, a law student who died from hazing following a botched initiation. The family of Robert Louis Pangilinan—a former fraternity member himself—has filed charges of attempted murder against 16 Tau Gamma Phi members, all currently enrolled at Adamson University, where Pangilinan is a third year Hospitality Management student and a member of the basketball team. Robert was repeatedly threatened and bullied by the fratmen, who had recruited him in 2016 on promises that they would stop bullying him. He was depressed that he would meet the same fate as Castillo even if he had already left Tau Gamma Phi, the Pangilinans said.

Navotas fetes elders in weeklong salute NAVOTAS has crowned Cristina Gomez, 70, the fairest among all elderly Navoteñas as it ended its celebration of the Elderly Filipino Week on Oct. 6. Mayor John Rey Tiangco, together with Vice Mayor Clint Geronimo, Federation of Senior Citizens Association of Navotas, Inc. president Lucy Batto and Office of Senior Citizens’ Affairs chairman Linda Ramirez, donned the “Gandang Lola 2017” crown to Gomez of Barangay San Jose. Angelita Riello, 67, from Barangay San Roque was first runner up. Corina Abello, 66, from Barangay Bagumbayan South, and Esterlina Jardio, 67, of North Bay Boulevard South came in second and third, respectively. Josef Feliciano, 71, president of OSCA Phase 2 Area 1, Brgy. NBBS was also recognized as one of the 2017 Sampung Ulirang Nakatatanda Awardees by the Coalition of Services for the Elderly. Jun David

6 Cavite cities, 14 towns ace DILG test GENERAL TRIAS CITY—Six out of seven cities and 14 out of 16 towns in Cavite have passed the Good Financial Housekeeping criteria for year 2017 of Department of the Interior and Local Government based on the list of awardees released last October 6. The cities of General Trias, Imus, Bacoor, Dasmariñas, Trece Martires and Cavite City passed the criteria thru compliance with accounting and auditing standards, rules and regulations. The municipalities of Noveleta, Alfonso, Amadeo, Carmona, Indang, Kawit, Magallanes, Maragondon, Mendez, Naic, Rosario, Silang, Ternate and Gen. Mariano Alvarez also passed the bar set by the DILG. “This is the joint effort of all the local officials in Cavite,” Noveleta Mayor Dino Reyes Chua said. “Without them we can’t make this possible, to pass and win the prestigious award. Congratulations to all of us the winners.”

Bill filed to put up safety office in all ARMM towns A LAWMAKER from the first district of Lanao del Sur has filed a bill with the Regional Assembly of Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao to mandate a Public Order and Safety Office or POSO in every city and municipality in the region.

Assemblyman Amenodin U. Sumagayan said the bill, titled the Public Safety Act, aims “to strengthen the protection of the people of the ARMM.” The “high crime rate, drug abuse, threat of violent extremism and the Marawi conflict, born out

of terrorism” in the region prompted Sumagayan to author the bill. He noted that at present, no office provides centralized control on crises in the ARMM’s local government units. “They depend heavily on national agencies, in terms

of peace and order, such as the Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines. This makes the LGUs helpless or less prepared to cope with situations that endanger the public,” the assemblyman said. Ayunan Amenodin Sumagayan Gunting Al Hadj

Oral health campaign for Mimaropa elderly

Bataan steps up zero-rabies bid ORANI, Bataan—Bataan’s zero-rabies target is in line with the highest Human Development Index ranking campaign of the provincial government, Vice Gov. Cris Garcia said Monday. “Death by rabies is unnecessary. We want long life expectancy in the province in line with the highest HDI ranking thrust. as we envisioned through the leadership of Gov. Abet Garcia,” the vice governor said as the provincial government observed World Rabies Day at the municipal hall here. HDI is a composite index of life expectancy, education, and per capita income indicators, which are used to rank areas into four tiers of human development. For the past two years, Bataan has placed fifth and sixth in the national ranking, but the provincial government is aspiring for the top spot. Butch Gunio

launch with the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co., represented by public sector head Dennis Magbatok. He was joined by Vice Mayor Josefina Belmonte and city councilors. “The public can now enjoy free Wi-Fi access when they visit the Quezon City Hall,” Bautista said. The city also recognized its outstanding public school teachers and schools during the World Teacher’s Day Gawad Parangal at the Quezon Memorial Circle.

official stressed, and for local governments “to have greater control of resources primarily geared toward the development of the host communities.” The absence of the form and design of the proposed federal government is the primary hindrance why the shift to federal is not being aggressively pursued by advocates, Manasan noted, as the most frequently asked question from the public is how the county will be divided into federal states. She said the shift to federal will also take time—as much as 10 years—because the federal and state constitutions must be crafted first. Among the issues that must be addressed by federalism advocates, Manasan said, include the payment of the existing national debt, the distribution of the employees of agencies who will be displaced from the central government and their reassignment to the federal states, and the provisions on the equalizing provisions for less developed regions.

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

FARMERS’TRAINING. Ninety graduates were added to the roster of Kabalikat sa Kabuhayan Rural Farmers Training as they completed a 12-week program in Barangay Lanit, Jaro, Iloilo City. The training, conducted in partnership with Harbest Agribusiness Corp., was an opportunity for farmers to learn the latest techniques in vegetable farming from soil preparation to fertilizer utilization and suitable harvest methods. Other program partners are SM City Iloilo, SM Supermarket, Department of Education, Department of Agriculture, Department of Social Welfare and Development and the local governments of Barangay Lanit, Jaro and Iloilo City.

THE Department of Health Mimaropa regional office has launched the “Ngipin Para Kay Tatang at Inang” or NgiTI, an oral health campaign for the elderly in line with celebration of the Elderly Filipino Week. DOH Regional Director Eduardo C. Janairo said free dentures were given to the elderly to kick off the program during a ceremony at the Romblon State University in Odiongan, Romblon on Oct. 7. “This is also our way of express-

ing our gratitude to our elderly for their sacrifices in safeguarding our generation by keeping us safe and healthy as we also give them health and protection as they enjoy a more productive journey through life,” said Janairo. The initial recipients were given priority and selected by their local government units from the list of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program or 4Ps of the Department of Social Welfare and Development, he added. The regional office allocated P750,000 for the 50 dentures given out.

Life FASHION & BEAUTY

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

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2017

In Good Company NOW IN MANILA T

HESE are exciting times in fashion as Singaporebased fashion label In Good Company opens at The SM Store Makati.

MODERN AND CONFIDENT.

In Good Company brings to the country its Capsule 11 collection, including this Oswald Crepe Playsuit.

In Good Company is a label that is characteristically modern and quietly confident. Designed to form the building blocks of an adaptable wardrobe, the label reinterprets timeless silhouettes with clever detailing to create non-seasonal pieces for effortless, everyday style. With signature tailoring and draping with surprising details, the collection always aims to put new twists of modernity on classic silhouettes. It is the go-to label for real and wearable clothes and quirky accessories that the modern woman can ‘build’ into many looks, and essentially, get many wears from. The Singapore-based fashion label incorporates a signature style of tailoring and draping techniques into stylish, contemporary pieces that are fuss-free to wear, style, and care for. It is a unique take on modern contemporary looks for the modern Filipina. Premium Fashion Retail Designs Inc. is excited to introduce this innovative brand to the Philippine fashion scene. The brand opens in Manila with the latest collection—Capsule 11, which goes beyond elevated basics to present pieces that experiment with modern tailoring and draping techniques. “We’ve

Singapore-based fashion label, In Good Company opens its first store in Manila, located at L2, The SM Store Makati.

always worked a lot with fabric manipulation, but this collection presents an even higher technical finesse. We explored new shapes and draping techniques that create more movement and dimensionality, as well as new hardware such as oversized grommets, hanging ties, and d-rings that give the capsule a modern utilitarian look, in an ultra-wearable way,” says Sven Tan, creative director and co-founder of In Good Company. The collection injects sharp, modern, fluid silhouettes with technical detailing

and visual panels; almost recalling technical constructions of the ‘80s and ‘90s, albeit a distant reference incorporated into modern silhouettes and lines. The new collection offers a new generation of workwear that breaks down formal dress codes; redefining and refining casualwear to interchange easily as workwear, going from office hours to off-duty days. Capsule 11 accessories look to the constellations and hyper-nature for inspiration. New graphic compositions of pop-color Turn to C2

Life

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2017 isahred@gmail.com

PRE-HOLIDAY COLLECTION

Penshoppe’s latest collection

—Everyone Can Make A Bold Statement T HE definition of “fashion statement” has evolved into an expression of personal style that makes the wearer the true highlight. Penshoppe’s Pre-Holiday 2017 collection, Generation Now, gives anyone the opportunity to create his or her signature bold fashion statement with full confidence.

Penshoppe’s Generation Now collection is packed with pieces that are easy to mixand-match to fit your style, wherever it may fall in the fashion spectrum. Take to the streets in trendy velvet and distressed denim pieces; throw on a sleek parka over a pink slip dress for the perfect masculine-feminine approach. Add an edgy touch to everyday fashion by pairing a pullover with silver hardware detail with distressed denim. Penshoppe’s Generation Now campaign also introduces supermodel Bella Hadid as the newest addition to Team Penshoppe—the brand’s roster of international endorsers, including Sandara Park, Mario Maurer, Cameron Dallas, Lucky Blue Smith, and Kaia Gerber. Bella personifies the collection, as it perfectly complements her personal style—relaxed, cool, and a mix of sexy and sporty. Penshoppe’s Pre-Holiday 2017 Collection, Generation Now, is now available in Penshoppe stores nationwide. Check out the campaign at www.penshoppe.com or through the official Penshoppe app available on iOS and Android.

Model Bella Hadid is the face of Penshoppe’s Pre-Holiday 2017 Collection, Generation Now, which is composed of relaxed, cool, sexy, and sporty pieces that are easy to mix and match.

The Aivee Clinic CEO Dr. Z Teo (left) and Medical Director and CEO Dr. Aivee Teo (right) with Merz Asia Pacific CEO Lawrence Siow

BEAUTY FEAT

Top prize for Aivee Clinic THE Aivee Clinic won the top prize at the Merz Aesthetics Golden Record Awards. The Aivee Clinic received the Ultherapy Golden Award for the Asia Pacific Region, and Number 1 Ultherapy User in the Philippines at the Merz Aesthetics Golden Record Awards in July. This is the second year the clinic has won the regional category, emerging as the top Ultherapy user among countries including Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, and India. Aivee Clinic’s Medical Director and President Dr. Aivee Teo and CEO Dr. Z Teo flew to Bali, Indonesia, for the “Merz Aesthetics: Achieving Balanced Outcomes for Patients” event to receive the recognition. The occasion was also graced by other top Ultherapy partners from different markets. Founded by Dr. Aivee Teo, The Aivee Clinic is a leader in dermatology and aesthetic enhancement in the Philippines, known for premium patient service and cutting-edge technology. At the Golden Record Awards, The Aivee

Clinic was acknowledged for having the most number of treatments in the region, likewise increasing skill and experience in terms of Ultherapy use. Through the significant contributions of The Aivee Clinic and other partner clinics across the region, Ultherapy was also able to achieve a milestone of providing 1 million treatments for clients worldwide this year. Merz Aesthetics first presented the Golden Record Awards in 2016 to encourage its partners across the world to keep ensuring that patients receive only the authentic Ultherapy treatment. Ultherapy is a US-FDA approved non-invasive procedure that lifts and tightens the skin on the brows, under the chin, neck, and chest. It uses focused ultrasound technology to target the foundational layer of the skin and stimulate the production of new collagen. For more information, visit www. ultherapy.com, www.merzaesthetics. com. or @UltherapyPH on Facebook and Instagram.

In Good... From C1

Company matches the neo modern aesthetic and minimalist environment of the retail space. The latest store reflects bold, graphic lines that aim to create a thoughtful retail experience linking product stories and creative collaborations in a seamless shopping experience. The brand is excited to bring to life In Good Company’s modern, independent spirit in this latest retail concept. Prices range from P3,885 to P8,985 for tops, P2,885 to P5,485 for necklaces, P6,985 to P9,985 dresses, P3,885 to P9,485 for bottoms, and P7,485 to P9,985 for jackets.

ceramic balls and geometric bars are suspended through precise calculations of balance and physics. While in others, abstract florals take bloom in resin or looped frills of ribbon flower tassels. All the necklaces are hand assembled and finished with hand stitches. Filipinas will now have the chance to shop for this cutting-edge brand at its latest global expansion in SM Makati. The brand philosophy that defines In Good

AS THE official makeup sponsor for New York Fashion Week (NYFW) since 2009, Maybelline continues to inspire Filipinas by making catwalk to sidewalk makeup looks happen. For the NYFW Spring/Summer 2018 show, the creative inspiration takes a different turn with a ‘makeup-first’ approach gracing the runways. Commencing in just a few days, there’s a lot to be excited about on the latest runway-inspired makeup trends brought to Filipinas by Maybelline New York. “We are excited as Maybelline Philippines participates in this global partnership bringing the hottest makeup trends from New York accessible to every Filipina. This yet signals our commitment to empower and inspire Filipina beauty and fashion mavens to make it happen,” said Cary Co, marketing director for Maybelline Philippines. The Maybelline Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2018 started on Sept. 7 with the amazing works of famous designers such as Jason Wu, Rochambeau, and Bibhu Mohapatra, among others. With inspiring personalities showcasing their work, many women (and men) are all eyes and ears to the makeup and fashion trends NYFW has

MAKE-UP TRENDS

Trendiest and Hottest

Maybelline Philippines is sending Jigs Mayuga, Maureen Wroblewitz, and Kryz Uy to the New York Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2018 show

in store for them. Filipinas can look forward to an exciting and fun-filled NYFW experience as Maybelline Philippines sends its very own NYFW correspondents:

Maybelline ‘IT’ Girl and AsNTM Season 5 winner Maureen Wroblewitz, celebrity makeup artist Jigs Mayuga, and beauty and fashion vlogger Kryz Uy to the shows.

From ugly duckling to Swan at La Jeunesse LA JEUNESSE Aesthetic Lifestyle Center can transform you into a beautiful swan with its holistic approach in dealing with its patients’ needs. La Jeunesse is a new player in the market, but the person behind the company is highly regarded in the industry, as she has a proven track record of building strong, reliable, and efficient brands. Naicie Lee Salamagos, a registered nurse by profession, has been in the beauty industry for more than a decade. She’s behind many established aesthetic centers not just in the metro but also in other parts of the country—from the construction, to the machines to be set up and even to the doctors to be hired to make the center credible. Working as a consultant taught Salamagos the secrets of the trade and the collaborations she had with different people from the business and beauty sectors made her realized the strengths and weaknesses of the industry, which she is a part of. In 2013, she put up her own in Basco, Batanes and used the knowledge she gained while working with other professionals in the market. Then, two years ago, Salamagos finally made up her mind and opened her second branch in MOA Complex. La Jeunesse Aesthetic Lifestyle Center, aims to provide a total, multidimensional service under a new holistic approach. “I have witnessed how clinics and

Naicie Lee Salamagos performs a treatment to a patient of La Jeunesse Aesthetic Lifestyle Center

doctors tried and did their best to deliver the desired output of their clients and patients, however, achieving the wishes of clients seem impossible, not because the treatments are not effective, it is because of the attitude towards the treatment. Beauty can be achieved overnight only if the right treatment program is properly designed,” Salamagos said. “It’s a destination for a definite lifechanging look and lifestyle. So when a client starts with a program, that is carefully

planned and designed for each client, it is guaranteed to be 100 percent effective. We give you more than you expect. It’s like, when you get out of the center after completing the program, you look 10 years younger.” La Jeunesse is on 4th Level Two ECom Center, Mall of Asia Complex, Ocean Drive, Pasay City. For more inquiries, contact lajeunesselifestyle@ gmail.com, (02) 8748888, or 09172438000.

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2017

CLASSIC. The late Mark Gil as Sid Lusero in Mike de Leon's digitally restored film, "Batch 81."

WO relevant and timely films highlight the Quezon City International Film Festival, or QCinema. The first is a classic movie about the lives of young neophytes striving to enter a Greek lettered fraternity through a difficult hazing process and the other is an animated film that takes viewers’ into an artist’s intricate and creative mind.

This year, festival aficionados will be treated to “throwback experience” with the comeback of Mike de Leon’s digitally restored Batch 81, and the advance Philippine premiere of biographical animated drama Loving Vincent. Dubbed as the world’s first fully painted feature film, Loving Vincent is originally filmed as a live action film and then painted — frame by frame — by more than 100 artists. It takes place a year after van Gogh’s suicide. Meanwhile, Batch 81, which most film critics refer to as one of the “best Filipino classics” and “a metaphor for the Martial Law,” tells the story of the vicious cycle of brutality in a fraternity—the harsh initiation new members go through—as seen from the main character’s eyes, Sid Lucero (played by Mark Gil). The film bookends the 10-day film fest. “Its vast repertoire is a halo-halo menu of the best new foreign films, Asian films, restored classic, best of regional films, gender-aware works, and other works re-

Timely films at QCinema flective of our customs, settings and people,” said Quezon City Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte during the festival’s media launch last week. “Entering its 5th year, QCinema must cease the opportunity to take the lead in unifying indie ﬁlmmakers to make Philippine cinema shift to the next level as a potent force in the world cinema,” the government ofﬁcial added. Belmonte was glad to present this year’s films chosen to the part of the Circle Competition, the festival’s main section, eight films were chosen and they are: Dapol Tan Payawar Na Tayug 1931 (The Ashes and Ghosts of Tayug 1931) by Christopher Gozum; Dormitoryo by Emerson Reyes; Balangiga:Howling Wilderness by Khavn de la

Cruz; Kulay Lila Ang Gabi Na Binudburan Pa Ng Mga Bituin by Jon Steffan Ballesteros; Medusae by Pam Miras; Neomanila by Mikhail Red; The Chanters by James Robin Mayo; and The Write Moment by Dominic Lim. In this section, each film received P1 million worth of production grants and the filmmakers are given the rights to retain ownership of their works. For the QC Shorts roster, the films included are: Anya Iti Nagan Mo? (What is Your Name?) by Ice Idanan; Babylon by Keith Deligero; Gikan Sa Ngitngit Nga Kinailadman (From the Dark Depths) by Kiri Dalena; Kun’ Di Man by Phyllis Grae Grande; Link by Mike Esteves; Love Bites by Carl Joseph Papa; Pixel Paranoia by Epoy Deyto; and Si Astri

Maka si Tambulah (Asti and Tambulah) by Joseph Vincent Suarez. “Five years ago, we started with just a vision, but look at where we are now. It only took political will and a whole lot of people that really believed in what we really wanted to do. But today, QCinema has become a launch pad for the career of this generation’s indie (film) geniuses,” the government official added. She also underscored QCinema’s partnership with Film Development Council this year to expand its reach. At the same time, the film fest will also allocate space for classic titles that have been digitally remastered by ABS-CBN Film restoration Group. QCinema runs from Oct. 19 to 28 in cinemas in Quezon City.

Ylona has arrived

Former PBB housemate Ylona Garcia takes center stage as she headlines a solo concert at Music Museum

YLONA Garcia, MOR Pinoy Music Awards’ Female Artist of the Year, is ready to make her mark on the Philippine concert scene with her very ﬁrst solo major concert, Arrival: Ylona Garcia,” on Oct. 21 at Music Museum. The Filipino-Australian singer, who also won MOR’s “LSS Hit of the Year” award for the “O Pag-ibig” song collaboration with Bailey May, is all set to showcase her exceptional vocals for an exciting concert produced by Star Events and Aqueous Entertainment. The 15-year old singer and songwriter rose to fame in 2015 because of her bubbly personality and great singing voice which viewers loved in ABS-CBN’s hit reality program Pinoy Big Brother 737, and she successfully went on to become the show’s second teen big placer. Now, the Kapamilya teen star is expected to bring the house down in this much-awaited musical production

CROSSWORD PUZZLE Wednesday, October 11, 2017

ACROSS 1 Fragrant shrub 6 Lucy Lawless role 10 Pinnacle 14 On top of 15 Baking-powder ingredient 16 Cats do it 17 Wallpaper, etc. 18 Zip 19 Performed an aria 20 Frees from blame 22 Malaria symptom 23 Staff member 24 Blue expanse 26 Poet Maya — 30 Mall booths 33 Borscht veggies 34 Swedish actress — Olin 35 Disdainful snort 37 Occupation 38 Making a bow 40 Tarzan’s mate 41 The “I” 42 Wearing boots 43 Trail user 44 Rush 46 Brash songster 48 Tolstoy’s name 49 Wynonna or Naomi 50 Des Moines

locale 53 Declamatory 59 Harsh criticism 60 Right, on a map 61 Nimble 62 Bone-dry 63 Think on 64 Short letters 65 Fumbler’s word 66 It runs on runners 67 Date DOWN 1 Put cargo on board 2 Wild goat 3 Bonkers 4 Bard’s river 5 Breakfast foods 6 “Stately pleasure-dome” site 7 Make happy 8 Art-class model 9 Piling up 10 Mineral analyses 11 Motor’s sound 12 Cafe handout 13 Perimeter 21 Grande or Bravo 25 RV haven 26 Up to the task 27 Horse sound 28 Italian seaport 29 Summer, to

Pierre 30 Actor — Howard 31 Army wear 32 Less nuts 34 Slangy hat 36 Bunch of sheep 38 Math statements 39 Hither and — 40 Derrick arm 42 Fr. holy woman 43 Fire plug 45 Quenches 46 Protruded 47 “Much — About

Nothing” 49 Politico — Jackson 50 In that case (2 wds.) 51 Kitchen staple 52 Lengthwise threads 54 Transport 55 Stravinsky or Sikorsky 56 Big town 57 Lagers 58 Perchance

that follows the success of her first digital One Music PH concert held last year. She is slated to perform cuts from her debut album, My Name is Ylona Garcia, released in 2016 by Star Music, as well as surprise performances that will uncover the ASAP BFF5 member’s versatility in music. Alexa Ilacad, Krissha Viaje, Inigo Pascual, Bryan Chong, Janah Zaplan, and other surprise guests will be joining Ylona for this momentous evening. Tickets are priced at P2,650 (VIP), P2,350 (patron), and P1,600 (balcony). For inquiries, call Music Museum at 721.6726, SM Tickets at 470.2222 or log on to smtickets.com. For more information, visit Starmusic.ph or follow Star Music’s official social media accounts at Facebook.com/ starmusicph, or @starmusicph on Twitter and Instagram.

Daring film on OFWs with a strange twist BALATKAYO is about Filipinos working in other countries with the stereotypical dreams of giving their families better lives. In this one written by Jason Paul Laxamana who directed the Pista ng Pelikulang Pilipino hit 100 Tula Para Kay Stella and directed by Neil Tan, the flurry of sex video scandals involving the youth and at times media celebrities served as the jump off point for the film. In the story James Robert who plays a teenager whose parents are working abroad gets tangled in a video sex scandal prompting his ( mother (Aiko Melendez) to come home to settle the problem, while ( his father (Polo Ravales) ignores it and carries on an affair with a fellow OFW (Nathalie Hart). Robert agreed to be photographed nude frontally with his female co-actor, but I don’t think the MTRCB will allow it to be part of the film. So, what you will see in theaters tomorrow could be a sanitized version. “Relatable ang mga eksena, mama-drama pero natural ang pagkakasulat ni Laxamana at makakatohanan ang “execution” ni direk Neal Tan, says the

spokesman of the film company that produced Balatkayo. He continued that the very hot scenes between Robert and co-star Kristine Barreto could pull in the crowd. According to an insider, Robert was wearing a condom when he was acting in the sex scene with Barreto. The sex scenes are not exclusive to Robert and Barreto. Polo Ravales and Nathalie Hart who plays two Filipinos overseas carrying on an illicit affair have their share of hot intimate scenes. The movie was shot in Singapore, Dubai, and Abu Dhabi. But, the audience will certainly watch out for Aiko Melendez whose performance as Gov. Emilia in Wild Flower has made a strong impact among Filipino movie fans. “Please watch the film,” Melendez tells the members of the movie press. “You will like it.” Balatkayo opens in theaters today from BG Productions International of Baby F. Go Regal Films Inc. is distributing the film in the Philippines. There will be screenings, too, in Singapore, Hongkong, ABU Dhabi, Dubai, and Bahrain.

Rico Barrera and Aiko Melendez, cast members of the brave and daring film, "Balatkayo."

PRETTY IN HANBOK. Kapuso

sweetheart Heart Evangelista wearing a traditional Korean dress for her role in the primetime romcom, "My Korean Jagiya."

Isah V. Red, Editor Nickie Wang, Writer isahred@gmail.com WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2017

Heart’s A-1 PR makes her an

EXCEPTIONAL CELEBRITY

d Alexander

an (left) an Allan Guzm ar g Ed " as iy d by her "Jag elista flanke Heart Evang

OT many female stars as big as Heart EvangelistaEscudero manifests an exceptional ability to mingle with just about anybody, of any socio-economic status, political afﬁnity, or religion. That’s what makes this pretty star of My Korean Jagiya in a class all her own and at a level that is nonpareil.

At the recent opening of the uppity fashion stare at Greenbelt 5, CH Carolina Herrera, it was revealed that she is the brand’s ambassador in the Philippines. And, why not, after all, the actress has been rubbing elbows with the fashion’s biggest names in Paris, including those that parlay the most expensive leather goods in the world. Didn’t you know that Singaporean author Kevin Kwan himself said that Heart’s painted Hermes bags is a must have. For someone who doesn’t know the TV/movie star personally to say that he must have found Heart’s painted bags really extraordinary and something to collect. Kwan is the author of Crazy Rich Asian that is now the basis for a ﬁlm with the same title in production in Hollywood. Kwan’s statement of Heart’s painted bags appeared in an article on Nymag.com entitled “What to Buy to Look Like: A Crazy Rich Asian,” “When it comes to luggage, old-money CRAs (Crazy Rich Asians) love Globe-Trotter, though preferably handed down from their grandparents rather than something brand new. For new-money CRAs, it’s all about a customized Goyard or Hermès weekend bag handpainted by Heart Evangelista, who’s a Filipino actress and accomplished painter. Then, of course, they’ll post about all the fabulous places they’re going on their Instagram, which should have at least 100,000 followers.” (Underscoring by the columnist) Believe it or not, Heart is also in the Top 10 Hermes Instagram Accounts To Follow according to spottedfashion. com. She joins socialites and models all over the world in the list who possess a collection of Hermes bags. And she’s at no. 2 (2. Love Marie Ongpauco Escudero Love Marie Ongpauco Escudero, also known as Heart Evangelista, is an actress from the Philippines. She is an avid collector of Hermes bags and also paints on them. She had an exhibition once showcasing her paintings, check out the #lovemariehandpaintedbags to see her painted designer bags. She even met Hermes executive Michael Coste who invited him to see the secret garden on a Paris rooftop.) Wow. That’s really something. And none among her peers in the industry has come close. Here’s a bit of good news, My Korean Jagiya shows strong performance on her timeslot, and seems the new show on the other network is having a hard time knocking it off from the ratings game. Something that can make Heart smile along with co-star Alexander Lee and husband Senator Chiz Escudero. *** Fans of My Korean Jagiya, Let’s Fight Ghost, and My daughter, Geum Sa-weol will have the chance to sing-along with the shows’ respective theme songs as GMA Records makes it available worldwide. “My Jagiya”, the theme song of GMA’s primetime series My Korean Jagiya, was performed by Janno Gibbs with Denice Barbacena. Janno wrote the said song now available on iTunes, Spotify, Amazon and other digital stores worldwide.

Kiko Matos is a user

Lee (right)

ISAH V. RED

Meanwhile, James Wright’s “Mahal Na Nga Kita”, from the Koreanovela Let’s Fight, Ghost! which airs from Monday to Friday is from his latest album Just Wright which also contains the song “My Destiny” used as the theme song of the Philippine TV adaptation of Korea’s top-rating program My Love from the Star. Just Wright is available at Astroplus, Astro Vision and via www.Lazada.com, and also available on digital format via iTunes, Spotify, Amazon and over 160 digital stores worldwide. From T.O.P. comes the single “Alaala” the theme song of the Koreanovela My daughter, Geum Sa-weol. The program airs before Let’s Fight Ghost, on GMA. The song is included in T.O.P.’s self-titled debut album available on CDs and on digital format worldwide. *** Madeline Jordan Reantaso Villegas or fondly called “Magic,” recently celebrated her 18th birthday with a grand, coming out party given by her parents, Ariel and Girlie Villegas. Held at Bali Gardens in Las Pinas City, the event was attended by Magic’s family, relatives, classmates and close friends. An only child, Magic was named after her dad’s NBA hard court hero (Michael Jordan). She is a third year Tourism major at De La Salle University in Cavite. Her parents are both based in UAE. Her dad is the F&B head at Holiday Inn Express in Dubai, while her mom works as Senior Coordinator in Quality Service at Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council. Magic looked radiant that night wearing elegant white and gold gowns made by her uncle, Wilson Reantaso.

DEBUTANTE. Magic Villegas with her loving parents Ariel and Girlie

Kiko Matos with Manila Natures Link President Andy Lugtu

“I AM a user,” controversial actorturned-Mixed Martial Artist Kiko Matos admitted in an interview. He said it is the reason why he manages to shoot for indie films 24 hours, hit the gym, and play MMA. It is a secret that Matos will gladly reveal. “I am a user. A user of LifeOil,” says the Filipino-Portuguese actor who became popular after his highly publicized “bigwasan” match with actor Baron Geisler last year. This match also encouraged him to go into Mixed Martial Arts. Matos learned about Malungai LifeOil from a friend. He took the capsules while training for his debut fight in August against Billy Jack Magana Sanchez for the Universal Reality Combat Championship (URCC). “Di siya nakapalag sa lakas ko at siya mismo nagsabi na nahirapan siya sa akin,” recalls Matos, who attributes his victory to his extensive training and LifeOil. Malungai LifeOil is the world’s first and only product developed from pure moringa oleifera (malunggay) seeds and leaves. The potent gel capsule is

all natural and is packed with vitamins, minerals, essential amino acids, and phytochemicals. Being in oil form makes it easier for the body to absorb it. LifeOil has high levels of chlorophyll, which cleanses the organs, delivers oxygen to all the tissues, and encourages the growth of good aerobic intestinal bacteria. It is extremely alkalizing which makes the body more resistant to disease. The chlorophyll in LifeOil also helps ﬁght heart disease, stroke, cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, diabetes, dengue fever, kidney failure, perinatal conditions and other health problems. “Kaya ako tumatagal at malakas kasi user ako ng LifeOil. Kaya masigla at gumanda ang katawan ko,” adds Matos, who recently starred in a Cinemalaya entry with Sharon Cuneta, Ang Pamilyang Hindi Lumuluha. Kiko admits living clean all his life. “Sa amin ako ang nagpapakain ng alaga naming baboy at hindi ko yun ikinahihiya dahil diyan namin kinukuha ng nanay ko ang daily living allowance namin at pagpapaaral sa kapatid ko,” shares Kiko. –Robbie Pangilinan