Manila Standard - 2018 February 22 - Thursday

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Big haul: Cousins of ugliest animal SYDNEY— More than 100 rarely seen fish species were hauled up from a deep and cold abyss off Australia during a scientific voyage, researchers said Wednesday, Next page VOL. XXXII • NO. 11 • 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P18 • THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018 • www.manilastandard.net • editorial@manilastandard.net

PH seeks protection for workers in Kuwait

By Sara Susanne D. Fabunan

P

HILIPPINE officials are headed to Kuwait on Thursday to seek greater protection for migrant workers after a diplomatic row over the alleged mistreatment of Filipinos in the Gulf state.

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III told reporters Wednesday one of his deputies would lead the delegation, which is also due to stop in Saudi Arabia and Qatar to urge reforms.

Topping the list are demands that Filipino workers be allowed to keep their cellphones and passports, which can be confiscated by employers.

The trip comes after President Rodrigo Duterte last week announced a deployment ban for Filipinos planning to work in Kuwait.

He was responding to the murder of a Filipino maid whose body was found stuffed in a freezer in Kuwait this month.

Duterte’s ban sparked a diplomatic flap between the Philippines and the Gulf state as he alleged that Arab employers routinely raped their Filipina workers, forced them to work 21 hours a day and fed them scraps.

Kuwait has invited Duterte for a visit but he has yet to respond.

Authorities say some 252,000 Filipinos work in Kuwait, many as maids. They are among over two million employed in the region, whose remittances are a lifeline to the Philippine economy.

“We are going to Kuwait tomorrow, Saudi Arabia and then on to Qatar to ensure that our overseas Filipino workers have sufficient protection,” said Labor Undersecretary Ciriaco Lagunzad, who will lead the delegation.

“We are afraid that because of the decision of the President to have a deployment ban, our overseas Filipino workers in Kuwait might be affected,” he added.

Lagunzad said Duterte had ordered the team to ensure that the passports of Filipino workers are deposited with the Philippine Embassy.

Duterte also wanted Filipinos to have access to cellphones so they can call for help in case of abuse, Lagunzad said.

Next page

Clooneys against gun violence, pledge $500k NEW YORK―Hollywood star George Clooney and his human rights lawyer wife Amal on Monday pledged $500,000 to help fund a student march on Washington, giving a huge boost to what is considered an unprecedented youth mobilization against gun violence.

The “March for Our Lives” is scheduled to take place on March 24, with sister rallies planned across the country demanding that the US Congress come up with effective legislation to address the epidemic of gun violence in the United States.

It comes after a 19-year-old armed with a semi-automatic rifle killed 17 people at a high school in Parkland, Florida, last week, and is being organized by surviving students.

The teenagers, who have grown up with mass shootings at US schools, have vowed to make the tragedy a turning point in America’s deadlocked debate on gun control.

“Amal and I are so inspired by the courage and eloquence of these young men and women from Stoneman Douglas High School,” ClooNext page ney said in a statement.

POOLSIDE BEAUTIES.

American-born volleyball star Michele Gumabao from Quezon City (right) and Australian-Filipino Catriona Elisa Grey, the Queenslandborn candidate singer and model-turned-beauty pageant title holder from Oas, Albay during the press presentation Wednesday of 2018 Bb. Pilipinas candidates at the poolside of the Novotel in Quezon City. Sonny Espiritu

Palace rejects US intel: Du30 not an autocrat

By Vito Barcelo

Floirendo arrest order out—Sandigan PROTECTING OFWS. Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello announces Wednesday a

mechanism to avert violations of rights of overseas Filipino workers in Kuwait. Bello tells a news conference at the DoLE office in Intramuros a negotiating team will go to Kuwait headed by Labor Undersecretary Claro Arellano, Philippine Overseas Employment Administration officer-in-charge Aristodes Ruaro, and POEA legal research OIC John Rio Bautista regarding a memorandum of understanding with Kuwait. Norman Cruz

Court asked to tag CPP-NPA terrorists

By Rey E. Requejo THE Department of Justice on Wednesday formally asked the Manila City Regional Trial Court to declare the Communist Party of the Philippines and its armed wing, the New People’s Army or the Bagong Hukbong Bayan, as terrorist or outlawed organizations.

The DoJ, through Senior Assistant State Prosecutor Peter Ong, filed the 55-page petition seeking to declare CPPNPA as terrorist groups pursuant to Section 17 of Republic Act No. 9372 or the Human Security Act of 2007 following the collapse of the peace talks with the communist rebels.

Meanwhile, PNP chief DirectorGeneral Ronald dela Rosa supported the justice department’s move to declare the Communist Party of the Philippines and New People’s Army as terrorist organizations.

“They had it coming,” dela Rosa told reporters.

He said the torching of equipment by the NPA prevented development in provincial areas and kept people poor.

With a terrorist tag, Dela Rosa said authorities’ hunt for the communist movement’s members would be simpler and quicker.

Ong explained that if granted, this would allow the government to seek clearance from the Court of Appeals to engage in wiretapping activities against the communists, as well as apply for a freeze order on, and examination of, the bank accounts and assets of the CPPNPA leaders and identified members.

The DoJ cited several incident of atrocities and terroristic acts that the groups committed over the years to support the petition of the government.

These include 12 incidents in 2017 Next page

By Maricel V. Cruz THE Sandiganbayan issued an arrest warrant Wednesday against Davao del Norte Rep. Antonio Floirendo Jr. on graft charges filed against him by Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez.

In a statement, Floirendo accused Alvarez—once his longtime friend—of abusing his power as speaker to malign him with “malicious intent.”

The anti-graft court recommended bail of P30,000.

In September 2017, the anti-graft court indicted Floirendo on graft charges over the joint venture agreement between his family’s Tagum Agricultural Develop-

ment Co. and the Bureau of Corrections that Alvarez said enabled Tadeco to use the land owned by the Davao Penal Colony at a low price that was disadvantageous to the government.

Floirendo insisted that the agreement was valid.

“All things considered, the filing of the case will reveal that the more than threedecades-old Bucor-Tadeco deal, which benefits thousands of inmates and their families and has provided livelihood to thousands of residents and workers, is valid and legal,” Floirendo said.

On Jan. 15, the Ombudsman affirmed Alvarez’s graft charges against Floirendo Next page

Pinoy KFR in Malaysia foiled; 10 nabbed TEN suspected Islamic militants who were trying to establish a Malaysian cell of a Philippine kidnap-for-ransom group have been arrested in Borneo island, police said Wednesday.

The alleged extremists, mostly Filipinos, are also accused of trying to help fighters linked to the Islamic State (IS) group travel to the Philippines to join up with militants there, they said.

The southern Philippines has long been a pocket of Islamic militancy in

the largely Catholic country. A long siege in Marawi, the country’s main Muslim centre, sparked fears IS was seeking to establish a foothold in the region.

Malaysian police made the arrests in January and early February in Sabah state on the Malaysian part of Borneo, not far from the southern Philippines. Borneo is a vast island shared between Malaysia, Indonesia Next page and Brunei.

A PALACE spokesman on Wednesday rejected a US intelligence assessment that President Rodrigo Duterte was an autocarat and a regional threat to democracy.

“The World Threat Assessment, which identified President Duterte, including the ruling Thai officials and Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Sen as among regional leaders who threaten democracy and human rights, is myopic and speculative at best,” Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque said in a statement.

“For one, President Rodrigo Duterte is no autocrat... He adheres to the rule of law and remains loyal

‘‘

Next page

They had it coming.

—PNP director-general Ronald dela Rosa, endorsing the terrorist tag on Reds

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Rappler reporter takes the rap

House set to wrap up Sereno hearing

By Vito Barcelo and Rey Requejo

By Maricel V. Cruz

MALACAÑANG admitted on Wednesday that President Rodrigo Duterte felt uncomfortable with Rappler reporter Pia Ranada with her style of questioning, but said Rappler could continue to cover the Palace beat and publish their stories, whether critical or not against the Duterte administration, Presidential Communications and Operations Office Assistant Secretary Ana Marie Banaag said.

In a radio interview, Banaag said Ranada could still cover Malacañang because all the events were being telecast live by the PTV4 and she was free to attend the press briefings of Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque.

“While Ranada is a member of the Malacañang Press Corps, she is not allowed to conduct interview with the President or ask questions if there are any event inside Malacañang,” Banaag said.

For his part, Spokesperson Harry Roque clarified Malacañang did not bar Ranada to cover the Palace but the Rappler because of the order of the Security and Exchange Commission to stop operation since it was controlled by foreigners and violated the constitutional restriction on foreign ownership of mass media.

In a related development: • The Department of Justice has backed the decision of Malacañang to bar online news outfit Rappler from covering events of President Duterte in the Palace, saying the move is not illegal.

Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II stressed there was no violation of press freedom under the 1987 Constitution committed by the Office of the President over the incident.

“No, that was not a violation of such right. There is such a thing as proper accreditation as you know very well in your profession,” Aguirre said in an interview.

“Media men should comply with all requirements,” he added.

HE House committee on justice hearing the impeachment complaint filed against Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno is expected to decide if there is probable cause to remove her by the end of this month.

According to him, freedom of the press—while constitutionally protected—has its limits.

“Freedom of the press is not absolute.

People also have the right to be protected from fake news,” Aguirre explained.

• The Commander of the Presidential Security Group said Rappler reporter Ranada should have been grateful the PSG personnel who stopped her at the Malacañang gate did not hurt her after she “bullied” him with questions.

But Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said the PSG had “no right to harm Rappler’s people.”

“That remark is uncalled for and really off the mark. Whatever Rappler’s offense, the PSG [has] no right to harm Rappler’s people [or] threaten them,” the defense chief said.

PSG chief Brig. Gen. Lope Dagoy had said he disapproved of how Ranada on Tuesday, Feb. 20, pressed a PSG officer on duty to explain who gave the order to ban her from Malacañang grounds.

In a later text to Ranada, Dagoy said, “It was good that my soldier did not hit you when you were bullying him.”

“Ranada can’t be prohibited from acting as a journalist and continue to write stories (on) anything what she wants on the internet because that’s covered by the freedom of the press and freedom of expression,” Roque said.

“What was dissolved was the corporate entity that owns Rappler, but individually, the journalists, because they’re Filipinos, are free to exercise their profession” President Duterte’s spokesperson said.

Court...

From A1 such as the ambush-slay of four policemen in Davao del Sur; the ambush of Army soldiers assisting in relief operations to victims of Tropical storm “Urduja” in Northern Samar; the ambush in Tikalaan, Talakag town, Bukidnon that killed a four-month old baby girl and policeman; and the attack on the Presidential Security Group convoy in Arakan, Cotabato.

These series of attacks by the NPA angered President Rodrigo Duterte and publicly tagged the group as terrorist.

In its petition, the Justice department stressed that the CPP-NPA were organized for the purpose of engaging in terrorism and, in fact, have been committing acts that fall under the R.A. 9372.

Also cited in the petition was the purging activities of the CPP dubbed as “Kadena de Amor, Takip Silim, Kampanyang Ahos, Operation Missing Link, Zombie, Olympia” aimed at cleansing its ranks of government infiltrators.

It also accused the groups of being insincere in finding peaceful solutions to the decades-long insurgency problem in the country.

“From the foregoing, respondents CPP and NPA are merely buying time by deceiving the Philippine government in entering into peace talks, while their main purpose is to mobilize all their forces in preparation for the ‘people’s war’ aimed at overthrowing the duly constituted authorities, seizing control of the Philippine government and imposing a totalitarian regime,” the petition stated.

Pinoy...

From A1 Seven of those detained were Filipinos, including several senior members of Philippine extremist group Abu Sayyaf which has been behind the kidnappings of numerous foreigners, Malaysian national police chief Mohamad Fuzi Harun said in a statement.

“Early information obtained from the 10 suspects caught in Sabah revealed an attempt

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“By end of February, we will wrap up the probable cause hearings. We only have one scheduled hearing left, [and that will be on] February 27,” the panel’s chairman, Oriental Mindoro Rep. Reynaldo Umali, told a radio interview.

He made the statement even as a suspended lawyer on Wednesday asked Solicitor General Jose Calida to initiate proceedings that would challenge Ser-

PH...

From A1 About 10-million Filipinos work abroad and their treatment abroad is often a political issue at home.

Another team of labor officials said on Wednesday they would conduct negotiations with Kuwait next week on a deal to protect Filipino workers.

“Hopefully we can finalize the memorandum of agreement and by first or second week of March, we will have the signing by the Kuwaiti and Philippine governments,” said Claro Arellano, another labor undersecretary.

Kuwait on Wednesday granted the Philippines’ request to extend until April 22 its amnesty for overstaying Filipino workers, Ambassador to Kuwait Renato Villa said.

Villa said that Kuwait extended the deadline to give countries more time to repatriate more illegal workers who wanted to go home.

There are 10,800 Filipinos believed to have overstayed their visas or who have run away from their employers.

The DFA said out of the total number, only 3,000 Filipinos have so far applied for amnesty.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano said the extension of the deadline was a “positive gesture” by the Kuwaiti government.

The amnesty extension buoyed the hopes of hundreds of frantic Filipino workers who think they would not be accommodated in the last remaining repatriation flights to Manila. The undocumented workers, who trooped to the embassy on Tuesday afternoon, were assured by Villa that there were no reasons to be worried as the amnesty extension will now allow them to be included in the repatriation.

Villa said the Embassy has processed 3,801 travel documents for workers since the amnesty period began and has so far repatriated 1,796.

He said more than 2,000 more workers will be repatriated in the next few days.

On Tuesday, the DFA flew home some 580 workers via Cebu Pacific and Philippines Airlines.

After April 22, the government of Kuwait will enforce its crackdown on illegal workers or aliens.

Under the amnesty program, all overstaying migrant workers will be allowed exit without suffering fines or penalties.

Illegal workers, on the other hand, will be given the chance to process their documents so they can stay in the country legally.

The DFA said workers returning to the Philippines from Kuwait include those who have overstayed or escaped from their employers, as well as those reported to have been abused.

Also on Wednesday, the DFA said the female Filipino worker, Norisa Manambit, who was found comatose in a Kuwait hospital after she went missing in Saudi Arabia, could be a victim of human trafficking.

In a statement of the DFA said it is now tracking down and investigating Manambit’s original employers in Saudi Arabia,

Floirendo...

From A1

eno’s claim to the top post at the Supreme Court.

In a two-page letter dated Feb. 21, 2018, Eligio Mallari, who leads a group that unsuccessfully tried to have Sereno impeached, asked Calida to initiate quo warranto proceedings to challenge Sereno’s claim to the post.

According to the rules of court, the government can initiate quo warranto proceedings against a person who usurps, intrudes into, or unlawfully holds or exercises a public office.

But Sereno’s lawyer said the quo warranto petition filed by Eligio Mallari, whom the Supreme Court barred from practicing law, was nothing but a scrap of paper that would not see the light of day.

“As president of Vanguard of the Philippine Constitution, Mr. Mallari should know what the Constitution says on the removal of an impeachable officer,” Josa Deinla said.

“The Chief Justice, being the fifth highest official of the land, can only be removed through an impeachment proceeding, and not through a quo warranto proceeding.

“We cannot help but view this latest ignorant attempt as part and parcel of the grand plan to harass, malign and humiliate the Chief Justice to force her to resign because her detractors know that the impeachment complaint lodged against her is baseless and contains allegations which are not even grounds for impeachment.”

The committee on justice has so far conducted 14 hearings on whether there is probable cause to oust Sereno, an appointee of President Benigno Aquino III, based on the complaint filed by lawyer Larry Gadon.

Sereno has not attended the committee’s hearings.

Umali said his panel’s hearing on Feb. 27 would be the 15th and last hearing on the determination of probable cause

her agency in the Philippines and her host country.

“The embassy is also looking at the human trafficking angle since [she] was originally bound for Saudi Arabia,” DFA for Office of Public Diplomacy Executive Director Charmaine Aviquivil said.

Relatives of Manambit, 36, discovered her location and condition through a Facebook post by a Filipino nurse in Kuwait.

The nurse posted a video in hope that Manambit’s relatives would learn of her situation.

“Embassy teams are also coordinating with hospital personnel on her medical condition and, following standard procedure, her eventual repatriation after treatment,” Aviquivil said.

In the Senate, Minority Leader Franklin Drilon urged the government to strictly implement the Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act, noting there were 185 deaths recorded in Kuwait alone in the last two years.

He said the full implementation of our labor laws would have prevented, or at least minimized, the number of deaths and abuses among our overseas Filipino workers.

“The government should mull over the ways for full and strict implementation of our labor laws,” he said.

The former labor secretary was appalled at the rising number of deaths and abuses among Filipino workers.

Drilon said that imposing a deployment ban would only serve as a stop-gap measure.

He warned against the proliferation of illegal recruiters and scalawags who would try to go around the law to send workers to countries where there is an employment ban.

The law says “the deployment of overseas Filipino workers should only be in countries that have existing labor laws or are signatories to international conventions protecting migrant workers, or have bilateral agreements with our government for the protection of OFWs.” “Should this particular provision of the law been strictly implemented, maybe the 185 deaths of OFWs would not have happened,” Drilon said.

Cebu Pacific on Wednesday airlifted and brought to Manila a total of 396 Filipino workers, in line with its commitment to President Duterte to help with the repatriation.

Cebu Pacific corporate communications director Ma. Rosario Lagamon said the Airbus A330 aircraft arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport-Terminal 3 around 9 a.m. to bring home the largest number of Filipino workers repatriated from Kuwait.

“This is the largest group of OFWs flown on a single flight from Kuwait by any airline,” she said.

Lagamon said the humanitarian flight was commanded by Capt. Mark Semon and his co-pilot First Officer Mark Leoven Meliton.

She added a 10-man cabin crew led by Carmencita Pimentel was also on board to assist the OFWs during the flight. With Macon Ramos-Araneta, Joel E. Zurbano and AFP

India telco eyed to enter PH market

by denying the latter’s motion to reverse his Sept. 4, 2017 indictment before the Sandiganbayan.

Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales denied Floirendo’s motion to submit more evidence to back his claim he was not in a conflict of interest situation when Tadeco signed the joint venture agreement with the Bureau of Corrections.

In his counter-motion, Alvarez said Floirendo only rehashed his arguments already found without merit by the Ombudsman in its original September 2017 order.

The Ombudsman found probable cause to charge Floirendo for violation of the AntiGraft and Corrupt Practices Act, for having a pecuniary interest in his banana company while in public office.

The Ombudsman said Floirendo owned P7.5 million worth of Tadeco shares when Tadeco renewed its JVA with BuCor for the lease of 5,308.36 hectares of land at the Davao Penal Colony.

Tadeco converted the land into a banana plantation.

Alvarez said in his complaint that Floirendo was the sitting representative of Davao del Norte in 2003 when Tadeco and BuCor renewed the JVA for 25 years.

Alvarez laughed off Floirendo’s accusation that the issuance of an arrest warrant against him was a result of Alvarez’s “abuse of power and arrogance.”

“Rep. Antonio Floirendo should stop complaining about the issuance of an arrest warrant against him by the Sandiganbayan for graft charges in connection with the Bureau of Corrections and Tadeco deal, which is clearly grossly and manifestly disadvantageous to the government,” Alvarez said.

by the Abu Sayyaf terrorist group to set up a cell in Sabah,” he said.

One of those arrested was a 39-year-old believed to have received orders from a senior militant leader in the southern Philippines to bring IS members from the city of Sandakan in Sabah to join militant groups.

Another suspect was a 27-year-old identified as a senior member of the Abu Sayyaf leadership based in the Philippines.

The other three detained were Malaysians, police said. Officials did not disclose the sus-

pects’ identities.

Malaysia has rounded up numerous suspected militants in recent times as fears grow that the influence of the IS group could encourage extremists to launch attacks in the Muslim-majority country.

Abu Sayyaf, originally a loose network of militants formed in the 1990s with seed money from Osama bin Laden’s Al Qaida network, has splintered into factions, with some continuing to engage in banditry and kidnappings. AFP

By Vito Barcelo PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte says he is considering making India the third telecommunications player in the Philippines to break the duopoly of two telecommunications companies here that has frustrated consumers for years.

According to reports, the Philippines provides one of the slowest telecommunications service in the Asia-Pacific.

But Duterte said India had shown interest in investing in telecommunications in the Philippines, and that he had invited them to apply.

“There’s a new application from an Indian company. India is also interested to enter into the telecoms industry,” Duterte said during the induction of the new directors of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce Inc. in Malacañang on Tuesday.

“I invited them during my talks with the businessmen of India during my official visit.”

Duterte also vowed to protect Indian investors in the Philippines from extortionists and corrupt officials. He assured

Palace...

From A1 to the Constitution. An autocracy is not prevalent, as they would like everyone to believe,” Roque said, commenting on the report produced by the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

“We view this declaration from no less than the intelligence department of the United States with some concern, knowing that at least in one case the International Court of Justice has found the US guilty of interference in the affairs of a domestic state,” he said, citing the case of Nicragua versus the United States of America.

Roque said Malacañang and even President Duterte will take the report seriously.

“Our media are still able to broadcast and print what they want—”fake news” included.

Our judiciary and the courts are functioning as usual. Our legislature remains independent and basic services are still being delivered,” Roque, in a statement.

He said there is no revolutionary government or nationwide martial law in the Philippines, which US intelligence officials are saying that the President might declare or impose.

Clooneys...

From A1 “Our family will be there on March 24 to stand side by side with this incredible generation of young people from all over the country,” he added.

“In the name of our children Ella and Alexander, we’re donating $500,000 to help pay for this groundbreaking event. Our children’s lives depend on it.”

The pledge from the Clooneys, one of the biggest A-list couples on the planet, who announced the birth of their twins in London last June, comes after other celebrities have called for greater gun controls since the Florida shooting.

“We want to express extreme gratitude for the amazing donation that George Clooney and his family have made,” tweeted the Never Again account representing survivors of the Florida shooting.

“We are overwhelmed with the support, and we can’t wait to march.”

Big...

From A1 including a cousin of the “world’s ugliest animal” Mr Blobby.

Scientists spent a month last year on a vessel off the country’s eastern seaboard surveying life lurking up to 4.8 kilometers below the surface, using nets, sonar and deep-sea cameras.

Over 42,000 fish and invertebrates were caught, some of which are potentially new species with scientists gathering in the Tasmanian capital Hobart this week to examine them more closely.

They include blob fishes, which are cousins of Mr Blobby, who was voted the world’s ugliest animal in 2013 by the Ugly Animal Preservation Society and became a global media sensation.

against Sereno.

During the last hearing, Umali said his panel was expected to tackle Sereno’s psychiatric records and her alleged hand in delaying the issuance of an arrest warrant against former Justice secretary and now Senator Leila de Lima who is detained over illegal drug charges.

Umali said the actual voting of the committee members on the probable cause would take place at another date.

As soon as the committee finds probable cause against Sereno, the House will transmit the Articles of Impeachment to the Senate, where the senators will sit as prosecutors in an Senate Impeachment Court.

Gadon accuses Sereno of “culpable violation of the Constitution, betrayal of public trust, corruptio, and other high crimes” for her alleged lapses, including her allegedly untruthful declaration of wealth in her Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth.

them that their deals with the government would be “very simple and trouble-free” and asked them to report any agency taking too long to process their documents.

“Now, if you are here in business, you have the will, you have the determination to make it good, but my concern is to make it very simple for you to deal with the government,” Duterte said.

The FICCI started from a group of Indian businessmen drawn together in the spirit of brotherhood to establish ties with their homeland with the sincere desire to help integrate Indian businessmen with their Philippine counterparts.

Organized and registered in 1951, the organization is one of the oldest Indian Chambers outside India.

Duterte said the government will make available a new frequency to a new telecoms player to promote competition. He said interested parties could discuss their proposal with government officials.

“I have opened up the third frequency for telecoms. If you are the representative there, you can always go to them and discuss business, he said.

“While it is true that the administration uses and maximizes social media to promote government messages and accomplishments, members of the political opposition and other cause-oriented groups use the same media platform to advance their agenda,” he said.

“We have to understand the use of social media has become an important part of the daily lives of Filipinos. It is therefore foolhardy not to tap social media as a tool when the technology exists for free,” Roque said.

“I don’t know of any government in the free world which does not use the Internet and social media to promote its agenda. This is very true especially in the case of the US. This latest intelligence assessment is a classic case in point,” he added.

But Duterte critic Senator Antonio Trillanes IV said the US intelligence assessment of Duterte was “fair,” given the recent signs of a “creeping dictatorship.”

“If they’re sensitive enough, they should look at it as some form of a warning shot that he’s nearing that red line because domestically he’s pushing boundaries because he’s popular enough to do that,” Trillanes told the ANC news channel.

The US Congress is deadlocked on the gun debate, accomplishing nothing even after last October’s killing of 58 people by a gunman in Las Vegas who had amassed 47 firearms to commit the worst mass shooting in recent US history.

The White House says President Donald Trump is supportive of efforts to improve background checks for gun purchases, but many want far more deep-seated reforms.

The students organizing the March 24 rally say they are fed up “waiting for someone else” to take action to stop the US epidemic of mass school shootings, and are demanding a “comprehensive and effective bill” in Congress to address gun violence.

“Politicians are telling us that now is not the time to talk about guns,” their mission statement said. “Every kid in this country now goes to school wondering if this day might be their last. We live in fear.

“Change is coming. And it starts now, inspired by and led by the kids who are our hope for the future. Their young voices will be heard.” AFP Blobby, from the psychrolutidae family, was discovered off the coast of New Zealand in 2003 and affectionately named by the scientists who found it.

Other species unearthed during last year’s voyage included bioluminescent cookie-cutter sharks with razor-sharp serrated teeth, a haul of frightening lizard fish, and graceful tripod fish, which prop themselves on the sea floor on long fins waiting for food to drift within reach.

Scientists have previously revealed they also came across an unusual faceless fish, which has only been recorded once before by the pioneering crew of HMS Challenger off Papua New Guinea in 1873.

Museums Victoria ichthyologist Martin Gomon said the gathering in Hobart was the first systematic attempt to examine life at abyssal zone depths anywhere along Australia’s vast coastline. AFP

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Strict monitoring of private ports, airstrips for illegal drugs sought

DoH to ask Du30 to allow them to use P1.16-b refund

By Maricel V. Cruz

H

THE chairperson of the House committee on dangerous drugs on Wednesday called for a strict monitoring of private ports and air strips which could be used as entry points for illegal drugs.

Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, panel chairperson, said illegal drugs could be transported in private aircraft, helicopters, and boats especially during the wee hours, when law enforcement authorities are not around.

“Privately owned aircraft, helicopters, and boats are also being used to transport illegal drugs so the Philippine National Police, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency and the National Bureau of Investigation should also monitor them,” Barbers said.

“In fact, we should always keep an eye on them because they are capable of making big shipments of illegal drugs,” he added.

While these places are privateowned, he said, Congress can come up with a policy that will make private property owners accountable in case of possible violations of the government’s aggressive campaign against illegal drugs.

Barbers said he already made the same recommendation to the Department of Transportation during previous committee hearings in the House.

In a related development, Barbers said private resorts and other tourist spots should also be subjected to thorough screening for illegal drugs.

He said both local and foreign tourists might be using illegal substances considering that most of these places are located away from the crowd and therefore could go unnoticed.

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

EALTH Secretary Francisco Duque III on Wednesday said he will appeal to President Rodrigo Duterre to allow them to use the P1.16billion refund from Sanofi Pasteur to help the victims of Dengvaxia which allegedly caused the death of 40 children.

Sanofi Pasteur is the giant French pharmaceutical firm that manufactured the controversial Dengvaxia administered to almost a million Filipino children.

Testifying during the 6th Blue Ribbon committee hearing on the Dengvaxia controversy, Duque said he would write a letter to the Office of the President and the Senate and the House of Representatives.

But committee chairperson Senator Richard Gordon reminded Duque that the use of this fund would require congressional approval.

Duque told the Senate panel the refund will be used to help the families of those who were vaccinated with Dengvaxia. He said the allocation will be used to buy

medical kits and multi-vitamins to boost the immune system of those who received Dengvaxia.

The medical kits will contain insect repellant, fever medicines, thermometer and soap that complements the insect repellant, among others.

Appearing for the first time in the Blue Ribbon committee hearing, an emotional Public Assistance Office chief Persida Acosta said the number of fatalities allegedly from dengvaxia had reached 40.

She disclosed that the families of the three latest victims coming from Nasugbu, Batangas; Pampanga and Marikina, went to their office on Tuesday and sought assistance regarding the fate that struck their families. She also said the bodies of the three children will be

autopsied.

At one point, Acosta asked Gordon that she be allowed to show her presentation detailing the results of their investigation which included the findings on their examination of the vicfims’ bodies, but she was stopped by the senator.

Acosta, however, bewailed “the pattern” for all the fatalities from Dengvaxia, saying they all suffered multiple organ obstruction.

She said that within the next 24 hours, 48 hours, 72 hours, there was already internal bleeding and their brains, intestines, lungs and ofher organs were drowned in their own blood.

The parents and other relatives of children who have been administered the controversial anti-dengue vaccine were likewise emotional when they showed up in the hearing. Some of them even carried the framed photos of their children who died after they were given the vaccine.

Gordon afforded them the opportunity to question former and incumbent health officials on the circumstances that led to the implementation of Dengvaxia and the assistance they can get for the medical treatment their children who fell ill after being vaccinated.

Students seek release of IRR for free tuition law

SENATOR Grace Poe wants free Internet and clean sanitary facilities for passengers in land transportation terminals, pit stops, stations and rest areas all over the country.

“An efficient and functional interprovince transport system is essential to ensuring that Filipinos travel safety,” she said.

“This bill seeks to further improve the travelling experience of Filipinos,” she said in filing Senate Bill No. 1695,” as she cited a totally gratifying travel experience with the wifi.

In particular, she said rest stops are indispensable for those travelling by land, as they provide a brief pit stop for travelers and bus drivers.

She said this is especially important for Filipinos who travel more than eight hours.

The bill mandates owners, operators or administrators of transportation terminals, stations, stops and rest areas to cooperate with the Department of Information and Communications Technology in the installation of hardware and necessary facilities to ensure the provision of free internet to the passengers.

Poe noted the existence of Republic Act No. 10929 or the Free Internet Access in Public Places Act, which creates a “Free Internet Access Program” in all public places in the country.

She said the measure also tasked the provision of free and clean sanitary facilities for passengers.

The Department of Transportation will conduct random inspections to ensure compliance by establishments.

The establishments are prohibited from collecting fees from passengers for the use of the restroom facilities.

Violators will be fined with P5,000 for each day of violation.

Macon Ramos-Araneta

Allowances for persons with work-related disabilities hiked

By Rio N. Araja

STUDENTS from various colleges and universities on Wednesday stormed the Commission on Higher Education in Diliman, Quezon City to demand the release of the implementing rules and regulations of Republic Act 10931, or the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education.

“Six months have already passed, but CHED has not yet come up with the law’s IRRs,” Shara Mae Landicho of the Kaisa-University of the Philippines youth group told the Manila Standard.

She raised concerns over the uncertainty if students shall be covered

by RA 10931 due to lack of budget allocation, or the absence of it.

She called on CHED officer in charge Prospero de Vera III to heed their appeal.

“No more alibis, release the IRRs now,” she said.

“They could not make us blind forever. The fate of millions lie in the transparency and sincerity of the ChEd to provide universal access to college education for all Filipino youth as the law claims to provide,” she added.

Landicho is also the convenor of Free Eduk Watch, a coalition of campus groups forwarding free, accessible and quality education for all and “to end the atmosphere of uncertainty and continued spreading of a false sense of security.”

According to the youth group, along with the Samahan ng Progresibong Kabataan, CHED earlier announced only 23 of the 118 community colleges were accredited and would benefit from Republic Act 10931.

The passing of the entrance and retention policies, and finishing the undergraduate degree a year after the prescribed period were few of the many restrictions promulgated in RA 10931.

“These restrictions run smack against the very name of the law which profess to provide universal access but discriminates against community colleges that the CHED allowed to exist in the first place. Why are they making the poor students pay for their neglect?” Landicho asked.

She said the University of the Philippines students were yesterday joined by the other students from the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila at Universidad de Manila.

Poe wants free Internet, clean restrooms in terminals, stops

By Vito Barcelo INDIAN TRADERS. The new Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce (Phil.), Inc. Board of Directors take their oath before President Rodrigo Roa Duterte during a ceremony at the Malacañan Palace on Feb. 20, 2018. Presidential Photo

CA defers confirmation of Teehankee as WTO envoy ON THE motion of opposition Senator Risa Hontiveros, the Commission on Appointments on Wednesday deferred the confirmation of Ambassador Manuel Teehankee as the country’s permanent representative to the World Trade Organization in Geneva, Switzerland.

During the confirmation hearing of the powerful bicameral committee, Hontiveros cited Teehankee’s conviction of usury by the Geneva Police Court having been found guilty of paying his Filipino domestic worker a measly 12 percent of Geneva’s minimum wage.

She sought for clarification from Teehankee on reports submitted by the Geneva Forum on Philippine Concerns, a non-government organization for migrant.

The Geneva Forum earlier wrote the

senator to inform her of the case. The letter stated that the nominee refused to pay overtime benefits to his former employee, while making her work very long hours.

The CA’s own profile and investigation report also mentioned the said case. According to the NGO, Teehankee did not appeal the decision and was sentenced to 60 days on probation and fined 400 Swiss francs in 2014.

Hontiveros made the motion to defer in order to give all the members time to study the points raised by the Geneva based NGO during yesterday’s hearing that confirmed some ambassadors under the Department of Foreign Affairs and some ad interim appointments of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

The government had implemented a ban on OFW deployment to Kuwait because of the failure to institute measures to protect our overseas workers.

“While the government has taken steps to protect our OFWs from abuse, here we are considering a go-signal to the deployment of a Philippine representative who was found guilty of a crime that violated an OFW’s rights,” she said.

“I’d like the members of the CA to thoroughly study this case involving Ambassador Teehankee and give ample time to study this complaint from our OFWs in Geneva,” urged Hontiveros.

“We are duty-bound to uphold no less than the security and welfare of our overseas Filipinos,” she added.

Macon Ramos-Araneta

THE Employees’ Compensation Commission has raised the allowance of persons with work-related disabilities from P575 to P1,000 per month, the Department of Labor and Employment said.

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said the carer’s allowance is a supplemental pension provided to pensioners in the private and public sector who suffer from work-connected permanent partial and permanent total disabilities.

In a statement, Bello said that the initiative is in line with ECC’s mandate to upgrade benefits and to add new ones, subject to the approval of the President of the Philippines.

“The increase in the Carer’s Allowance is the Commission’s way of ensuring that the package of benefits and services it provides will remain relevant and meaningful,” the Labor secretary said.

Bello said the increase will contribute to the over-all effort to prevent or alleviate poverty, vulnerability, and social exclusion towards improving the quality of life of workers and their families.

Go after syndicates, not minors—Kiko IN RESPONSE to PNP chief Ronald ‘Bato’ dela Rosa’s plan to impose a nationwide curfew for minors, Senator Kiko Pangilinan said the PNP should instead run after the syndicats victimizing the minors, and not the minors themselves.

Why are police anti-crime efforts almost always focused on children? Should not PNP chief Bato focus on the syndicates exploiting children? It is a crime to use children, especially for crime, just as it is a crime for parents to neglect their children.

Going after the children instead of the syndicates is condoning poor and sloppy police work.

Even in the example he gave, of the drug lord in Davao City who uses children playing online computer games to distribute illegal drugs, shouldn’t the drug lord be blamed and arrested instead?

He also wondered if the children are the only ones that the police can go after and punish while syndicates go scot-free.

PARENTS AND VICTIMS. Parents of the victims of dengue vaccines brought portraits of their children as

they attend the Senate public hearing on the 3.5-b Sanofi dengue vaccines that had been administred by the DoH to 280,000 students without the vaccine passing through the WHO pre-qualifiation requirerements during the hearing held at the Senate on Wednesday In Pasay City. Lino Santos

A4

Opinion

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Adelle Chua, Editor

EDITORIAL

Doesn’t look good from here

Heaven and hell

By Gohar Abbas

WAKHAN CORRIDOR, Afghanistan—My heart sank as the soldier pressed the button on my camera, deleting the photos inside. Now I would have to return home completely empty-handed. If I would make it out at all, for I was not at all sure of the soldiers’ intentions.

I had been stuck at this small settlement in Pakistan’s northernmost corner for three days. I had grand plans —to hike to one of the most remote places on earth, the Wakhan Corridor, a forbidding valley fenced in by some of the world’s highest mountain ranges. It had captured my imagination since childhood and after much lobbying and planning, my bosses finally allowed me to go on the trip.

When I got here, the last human encampment before the brutal hike up to the Corridor that was once part of the ancient Silk Road trade route, I was stopped by the soldiers manning a checkpoint here. They needed to verify my identity with their superiors in the city of Gilgit (where I had already been relentlessly questioned about my identity by Pakistan’s various intelligence agencies). But their communication equipment wasn’t working, so I was stuck.

As I whiled the time away, I interviewed a group of Kyrgyz traders whom I knew from their summer trips to Hunza valley, where I grew up 30 kilometers to the south. If the soldiers didn’t let me go any further, I consoled myself, at least I would have a story on barter trade in the region. But now even that was going to pieces, as the soldier deleted the pictures I took for that article.

I thought about protesting, but then decided against it—these were Pakistani soldiers in a remote border post, where photography is not allowed.

They had taken everything out of my backpack and laid the contents on a table, photographing them—my shoes, socks, underwear, cigarettes. God only knew what they were planning for me. I was scared and mentally prepared for anything.

So imagine my surprise when the soldier in charge handed me back my now-empty camera. “You can’t take pictures here. But you can take all you want in Wakhan.” My heart leaped... ...And then came the catch.

Although I knew the way and had all the provisions I needed, the soldiers told me I couldn’t go alone, I needed to find a guide among the local traders.

Which would present a challenge considering the weather.

Earlier in the day dark clouds wrapped around the Irshad Pass, at 16,300 feet (4,968 meters) the gateway to Wakhan, and snow began to fall. The locals consider an October snowfall a bad omen because most of the deadly accidents on the pass have happened in October. That group of Kyrgyz traders whom I interviewed had left the previous day and the traders were guessing at which place they would be hit by an avalanche in the same casual manner that men elsewhere would discuss which player of a football team would score at which point in the match.

“Drop it, it’s stupid to go now, it’s an October snowfall,” the traders told me when I asked them to go with me.

Finally I found one who was a distant relative of my wife and who agreed to come along for 300 dollars.

Snow was falling and the traders shook their heads as we took off for Irshad—me, the trader Afzal Baig, and a horse carrying our provisions. After years of imagination and months of lobbying, I was finally on my way.

Childhood dream I had dreamed of seeing Wakhan ever since I was a little kid, growing up in Hunza valley, in northern Pakistan.

My father and grandfather would tell me: “it is where we come from,” and my imagination would fly to the narrow valley jutting out of Afghanistan’s northeastern edge.

But imagine was all I could do— he Wakhan Corridor is one of the most remote places in the world, bordered by three of Asia’s highest mountain ranges—the Hindu Kush, Turn to A5

T

HOSE who produce the news are generally advised to avoid, at all costs, being in the news.

It did not seem to apply to Rappler reporter Pia Ranada who was held at Gate 2 of Malacañang Tuesday morning. She was told she was no longer authorized to cover Palace events.

Rappler’s certificate of registration had been ordered canceled by the Securities and Exchange Commission amid allegations it is effectively owned and controlled by a foreign entity.

After much confusion, Ranada was told she could come in and attend the press briefing by Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque. At the briefing, she questioned Roque about the decision to bar her given that Rappler’s case was still on appeal and that the SEC ruling was not final and executory.

Roque and the rest of the presidential family branded a Rappler report as “fake news.” For several minutes, the reporter and the spokesperson argued about this charge, after which Roque’s temper seemed to flare.

He was not the only one miffed.

The Presidential Security Group said Ranada should be thankful she was not hurt when she “insulted” the officer who initially prevented her from entering the Palace grounds.

“Huwag ninyo ganunin. Sumusunod lang sa orders ‘yan. Mabuti nga di kayo sinaktan. Pasalamat kayo hindi kayo sinaktan sa pagbabastos na ginawa ‘nyo.

Pambabastos ‘yun,” said Brigadier General Lope Dagoy.

He was referring to Corporal Marc Anthony Cempron, stationed at Gate 2 of Malacañang, who told Ranada that the order to bar her came from “higher ups.”

Dagoy was offended that microphones were thrust onto Cempron’s mouth while cameras

reeled. Next time this happens, he said, “I will ban you from the whole Malacañang complex.”

If President Duterte ever had sound reason to prevent Ranada’s organization from entering the Palace, he just lost the battle even before he or his minions could explain themselves. Actuations of Palace officials showed the move was spiteful, impulsive, illadvised, even arbitrary. Look at how it was just enforced without any warning. How different Palace officials had different reasons and demeanor. How Malacañang would probably react now that the incident is being cited as an attempt to curtail press freedom.

Now more than ever, the Duterte administration has to avoid behaving petulantly when confronted by journalists about the way it governs, and the way it responds to criticism. Who then would still believe Mr. Duterte when he claims he respects the freedom of the press and believes in upholding the truth?

TO THE POINT EMIL P. JURADO

Where will they strike next?

DURING the last days of the fivemonth siege of Marawi City, when it was known that government forces were winning against Islamic Stateinspired Maute and Abu Sayyaf Groups, there were already reports that the terror groups were not giving up their plan to set up a caliphate on the island of Mindanao.

We already heard about jihadist recruiting young Moros and offering them P20,000 to P30,000 each, plus firearms.

Just how the jihadists got hold of so much money is no secret. The terrorists also robbed homes when they entered Marawi City.

Of course, there is funding coming from the Middle East, coming through Indonesia and Malaysia, carried by jihadists both Moro and foreign.

The reported target cities were Cotabato and Iligan.

Now comes the chief of the country’s main Muslim rebel group, warning the government that jihadists loyal to the ISIS will target another Mindanao City.

Moro Islamic Liberation Front chairman Murad Ibrahim, who must know what is going on, said conditions are still ripe for another siege.

According to my source from Cotabato City, the recruitment takes place in madrasas, or the theology schools for young Muslims. They get indoctrinated on fundamentalism and radicalism.

This is the real reason the President insists on extending martial law in Mindanao.

Just when and where the jihadists will strike is anybody’s guess.

Jihadists’ recruitment is reportedly ongoing.

A cat-aclysmic crisis SHANGRI-LA the Fort Manila learned a hard lesson in customer engagement after they showed a lack of compassion toward stray cats in their area.

What made matters worse for them from a public relations point-of-view was that they flubbed their initial communications about their cat control program.

Cat lovers all over the country were dismayed to learn that a group of strays in the area—the “BGC cats”—that were cared for by the Bonifacio Global

City community disappeared from their cate 11 cats that had been wandering in and out of their premises,” according to regular haunts the night of Feb. 13.

In a Feb. 15 meeting with Cara Wel- Shang’s official statement.

It wasn’t until a massive public outcry fare Philippines, an animal welfare nonon social media, that included netizens making one-star reviews of Shangri-La The Fort on Facebook, that the hotel revealed the alleged relocation area of the cats. Cara launched a hunt for the cats, How we treat so far they are unsuccessful in findanimals is a reflection of but ing any of them. what kind of people we Shang also said that 12 of the cats were adopted by hotel personnel, but up are. to now they haven’t shown pictures that this is indeed the case.

The fate of the cats is uncertain, and we have only the hotel’s word for it that they profit, the hotel admitted that they hired were indeed “relocated” and rehomed. a company called Pestbusters to “reloTurn to A5

*** The Duterte administration has finally awakened to the fact that the island paradise of Boracay has degraded the environment.

Now there is an attempt to revitalize tourist sites like the Subterranean River National Park, a Unesco World Heritage Site. Its ceiling and caves are said to have darkened from the presence of too many tourists.

Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Roy Cimatu said this was because of the carbon.

DENR warned that El Nido would go the way of Boracay because it has exceeded its carrying capacity. The number of tourists hit 200,000 last year.

The DENR is now cracking down on establishments that do not comply with regulations. But this did not start yesterday. The situation was due to the utter negligence of government over so many years. I blame the local government of Malay, Aklan and the DENR itself.

Establishments in other tourist destinations better shape up. *** I can understand President Duterte’s frustration over what our overseas Filipino workers go through when they leave their families only to face risks in other countries.

But Mr. Duterte should also remember that abuse happening to OFWs is the exception, not the rule.

It is also the fault of our embassies and labor attaches who neglect our OFWs. The Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Labor and Employment should do something about this.

In the first place, there is a reason Filipinos go out of the country and look for jobs elsewhere. *** As a lawyer, I cannot agree with the Supreme Court decision that there will be no more Maria Clara 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

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Opinion Heaven...

From A4

the Karakoram and the Pamir. It is so distant that you can only reach it during a few months in the year, when snow has

melted from the passes that guard the way in; it is so remote that most people living there have never even heard of the Taliban, a key player in their country for more than 20 years.

Ancestors of all Wakhi people, like me, once came from this inhospitable land that today is home to some 12,000 souls.

So whenever I heard about the mythical Wakhan Corridor, I always wondered what it was like.

Part of the pull was because, as a Wakhi, I am a minority in Pakistan, the country where I was born and grew up, and I often cannot relate to the people and the customs around me -- from interactions with women to the drinking of alcohol.

When I was a child, I didn’t feel the difference that much because everyone in Hunza and the surrounding towns are Wakhis, a people scattered around the Pamir Mountains in Tajikistan, Afghanistan, China and Pakistan. Everyone spoke Wakhi, everyone practiced the Ismaili version of Islam.

But once I went to college in Karachi, the differences were hard to miss. At home, boys and girls studied together (according to our tradition, if you have a boy and a girl and only enough money to educate one of them, educate the girl), the girls didn’t have to cover their hair, women and men prayed together in prayer halls, there were no muezzin calls to prayer, and we would drink homemade alcohol.

But now the muezzin woke me up in the morning, there were no girls in my classes, the ones on the street had their hair covered, I could only pray with men in mosques, alcohol was strictly forbidden. I felt like I was in a different country.

So I longed to see the Wakhan Corridor, where I felt I would belong. As a child, I would see traders from Wakhan all the time -- they would come down to Hunza when the pass was open to trade their yaks and sheep for food and whatever else they needed.

Families like mine would always buy something from them because we all knew they were poor and we wanted to help. A yak bought from the traders would be slaughtered in October and the meat would last an extended family of around 15 until March.

When I became a journalist after college in Karachi, professional interest added to personal curiosity -- Wakhan was such a remote part of Afghanistan and so different from the parts that the outside world usually heard about, it was a journalist’s dream to write about it.

My quest to get there seemed to get a boost in 2016, when I was visiting family in Hunza and traders told me that there were Chinese troops in Wakhan. That was my way in—a genuine news angle. But when I suggested it to my boss, she broke the bad news to me—since AFP had a bureau in Kabul, they had first dibs on writing about something in Afghanistan.

Luckily for me, the security situation in the surrounding area meant that our Kabul team couldn’t get to Wakhan from the Afghanistan side. My bosses in Islamabad were also concerned about security and safety, as the way to Wakhan was so treacherous, but I reassured them: “I know the area, I am Wakhi, I speak the language, I will get there without any problems,” I told them. “It will make for a great story.”

Eventually all office logistics were worked out and I got the go-ahead, but it was November -- the Irshad Pass was closed, so I would have to wait until it opened again the following summer.

In 2017, the pass opened a month later

A cat-aclysmic...

From A4

because of heavy snowfall and avalanche danger. So I set out on my journey at the end of September. I thought I’d be gone for two weeks.

The hard way home As Afzal Baig and I started our trek toward Irshad, the snow got heavier and heavier with each step, so we had to camp for the night at the base of the pass. We woke up at five in the morning.

The snow showed no signs of slowing down as we started our uphill climb to Irshad.

Afzal took the lead, followed by his horse, and I was at the back. You could only see a few steps in front of you and the melting snow on my sunglasses was making matters even worse. But at heights like that, snowblindness is a very real and painful possibility, so you keep your glasses on.

We were way behind schedule and only reached the top of Irshad at nightfall. There was no safe place for us to spend the night, so we had no choice but to start our descent on the steep slopes of the other side in the dark. I was acutely aware of the traders’ warnings of the curse of an October snowfall with each step.

We climbed down for another eight to nine hours in the dark until we found a place that we felt was safe from avalanche danger. We set up our tent, but the relentlessly-falling snow kept collapsing it, so we decided to sleep in turns -- one would sleep while the other looked after the tent.

The next day we walked for almost fifteen hours, taking two short breaks -- one for noodles and one for cigarettes. I cursed the shopkeeper in Islamabad who sold me a parka and boots made in China -- both were supposed to be waterproof and both were completely drenched, leaving me shivering in the cold.

The second night, I tried to dry my shoes and socks in the fire and ended up burning both. So the morning after I started out on our trek wearing plastic bags for socks to try to avoid the water seeping through my burnt boots. It was in that sorry state that we finally reached the Wakhan corridor.

“I am home,” I thought to myself as a few locals came toward us, and the hardship of the journey melted away like a bad dream.

Savage beauty Four women came toward us. At first we shook hands and they were formal, but as soon as I started speaking Wakhi and they realized I was one of them, they kissed me on the hand and surrounded me, peppering me with questions. “How are the people on the other side, what is happening, how are your parents, have you brought us plastic buttons?”

While the Wakhan men leave to go on trading missions in the summer, the women spend their entire lives here.

So a stranger showing up, even a semiWakhi-stranger like me, is a celebration in an otherwise harsh and monotonous existence. I would spend hours talking to them about anything and everything— people traveling in cars, food cooked in machines or without using a fire (not using a fire to cook something is a complete mystery to them). Make-up is nonexistent there, but the women use buttons as decorations and occasionally will buy jewelry from passing traders.

With no link to the outside world, Wakhan is like heaven and hell mixed up in one. The scenery is intoxicating—the snow-capped mountains all around, the red grass, the hundreds of yaks, the silence.

But as beautiful as the surroundings are, as hard life is in a place where it is below freezing for more than 300 days a year.

The houses—usually made of mud or yurts—are spaced far apart from each other—about three kilometers—and each house has land the size of a small village.

That makes it easier to keep one’s cattle —and each household has several heads of yaks, goats and sheep—separate from the others. AFP

pretty special—they’ve saved at least one person from committing suicide.

A post from two days ago at the Cats of BGC Facebook page (@bgccatsph) tells the story of someone who wanted to end it all on Nov. 5 last year. In the throes of depression, this student went to the BGC area to enjoy one last day.

While there, first one, then two, then a swarm of cats surrounded the student, rubbing their furry bodies against their legs. For the first time in six months the student smiled and felt a bit better, but still they stuck to their grim decision.

Returning the next day to look for the same cats, the student found another batch of cats but these also approached with the same friendliness. That finally lifted the dark veil.

“Yung pag-rub ng katawan nila sa legs ko yung nagpaduda sa desisyon kong tapusin na ang lahat,” said the student. “Yung mga pusa ang nagbukas ng mata ko na there are creatures or people out there who wants to appreciate someone even if they are flawed.

Kaya eto ako, grateful sa mga pusa ng BGC sa 2nd chance na binigay nila sa akin.”

Now that’s one more reason among many to nurture the BGC cats colony.

Among Buddhism’s Four Immeasurables are loving-kindness and compassion. The first wishes that all sentient beings [creatures with consciousness, that can suffer and feel pain] without exception, be happy; the second, that all sentient beings be free from suffering.

How we treat animals is a reflection of what kind of people we are.

What made the public even angrier was that when the issue broke, the hotel’s statements sidestepped the matter.

Fellow journalists told me they tried to contact Shang’s corporate communication group but they were ignored.

Finally, Shangri-La The Fort’s general manager John Rice apologized in a statement posted to their Facebook page yesterday, saying that they are “truly and deeply sorry for the current situation regarding the cats of BGC.” Animal abuse is punishable under the Animal Welfare Act of 1998 (Republic Act 8485). Animals should be treated with compassion because it is the right thing to do. This is where where Shangri-La The Fort fell short in this instance. They might have seen the cats as pests ruining their business, perhaps by annoying customers, being underfoot and in the way, or spraying pee. I don’t know what they had against the cats aside from that they were straying into hotel premises.

But what Shangri-La The Fort did not realize then, but I hope they do now, is that compassion and concern for other people, animals, and the environment is good for business. Good practices attract customers. Bad practices turn off or even offend customers and potential customers.

Here’s another thing—animals are important and contribute to man’s survival on earth. Not only as part of the ecosystem, but as beings that can form Dr. Ortuoste is a writer and commurelationships with people. Witness the strong bond between animal lovers and nication consultant. FB: @DrJennyO, and their pets. And the cats of BGC are Twitter: @jennyortuoste

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018

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mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Amping up the Armed Forces OVERSIGHT DANILO SUAREZ I WAS one of the principal authors of RA 7898, or the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ Modernization Act, which was enacted in 1995. This was amended in 2012 by RA 10349, or the Revised AFP Modernization Program.

As one of the principal authors of this law, I am not satisfied by how it is currently being implemented, particularly with respect to the procurement of necessary technologies to advance our country’s military capabilities.

On Monday, the Senate probed the Philippine Navy’s controversial acquisition of two frigates, and the alleged intervention of Special Assistant to President Bong Go to the said deal. The Frigate Acquisition Program is one of the key components of the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ modernization program.

In the timeline of events relating to the FAP obtained by the Philippine News Agency, and through the senators’ inquiries during the hearing, it was revealed that the first stage of project bidding was conducted in December 2013. Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers was identified as the lowest bidder; however, it was declared to be non-compliant to the project’s financial requirements in March 2013. Therefore, the second lowest bidder, Korean-company, Hyundai Heavy Industries was declared by the Department of National Defense Bids and Awards Committee as the winning bidder in June 2016. The Notice of Award was sent by DND Secretary Delfin Lorenzana to Ki Yeong Sung of HHI, with a corresponding contract price of P15.7 billion. The contract agreement was signed in October 2016

by Secretary Lorenzana, Major Mar-

lon Dayao, then Commodore and new Navy Chief, Vice Admiral Robert Empedrad, Kisun Chung (Executive Vice President, HHI), and Jae R. Kim (Senior Sales Officer, HHI).

In early 2017, the project was stalled in the Critical Design Review Stage because the parties could not agree on the supplier of the Combat Management System, which serves as the warship’s “brain”. HHI decided to install the CMS of fellow South Korean company, Hanwha Systems because as per the contract, it had the sole decision on what system will be installed in the frigate. However, Philippine Navy insisted on installing the CMS from Tacticos Thales of Netherlands because it is recognized as a “proven

National security should have no price tag.

technology,” which is being used by 23 foreign countries in over 172 ships.

Due to the delays in the project, and alleged insubordination to Secretary Lorenzana, then Navy chief Vice Admiral Ronald Mercado was relieved from his position.

It was revealed in the Senate hearing that an additional $14 million (P700 million) must be allocated should the DND push for the installation of the Tacticos Thales CMS to the two frigates.

I would recall that during the deliberations of the AFP modernization law, I insisted that the decision to buy should be a purely military decision.

However, it seems that there have

been some lapses in their acquisition process through the years. We should revisit the law and allow the Congress to participate in the deliberations.

This way, we can ensure that thorough evaluation of systems and costs will be considered. After all, Congress will be approving the budget. We would be remiss in our duty if we were to hand over a hefty budget without proper justification from its proponents.

Another law of equal importance is House Bill No. 5027, or “An Act Prescribing a Mandatory Retirement Age for All Members of the AFP and the PNP,” which is pending in the House Committee on National Defense and Security. This bill seeks for the extension of the mandatory retirement age of all uniformed personnel of the AFP and the PNP from “56 years old or after completion of 30 years of active service”, to “60 years old, or after completion of 35 years of active service”. The extension of their terms of service will provide a longer term for Return on Investment for the government, which spent a substantial amount for the schooling and further training of these officials as they rose through the ranks. Furthermore, it provides fair opportunity for promotion and encourages competence among our uniformed personnel.

National security should have no price tag, as well as the lives of our soldiers. We should continue to support and strengthen our armed forces to ensure the security and safety of our people. Capacity-building and modernization of the armed forces play a vital role in national security.

Let us be inspired by the words of General George S. Patton, a senior officer of the US Army during the World War II. He said, “No bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making some other poor dumb bastard die for his country.”

Philippine Rise DUTY CALLS FLORENCIO FIANZA OUR newfound friend China named five geographical features within the Philippine Rise. China did this while waging a highly successful charm offensive on President Duterte. There is a word to describe this—duplicitous.

In spite of this, however, our government will be sitting down with Chinese officials in Manila to discuss joint exploration of our exclusive economic zone in the West Philippine Sea. At what point will the government do the right thing and start calling a spade a spade? The one person in the country who is responsible for the current state of foreign policy directions is President Duterte himself. For better or for worse, he has singlehandedly brought a monumental shift in our foreign policy direction.

To think that this was one area he hardly talked about during the presidential campaign. What he discussed extensively were criminality, the stalled peace talks, federalism, constitutional amendments and corruption. He hardly uttered a word on foreign policy because this is not one area of his known expertise.

But from the day he assumed office, he made known his dislike of the United States and anything western. At one point, he called the US lousy. He has also immediately drifted toward China and Russia. There were arms donations from both countries and lately, the President said that he wanted to buy more sophisticated weapon systems from both countries.

In the two visits of the President to China, he brought home pledges of investments and concessional loans in the billions of dollars and if realized, will keep our economy running for many years to come.

Some critics,å however, question the lack of transparency of these Chinese loans. It appears that the shift is not only in the military but also in

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stereotype in rape cases.

The Supreme Court made this observation as it acquitted two men accused of raping a woman in Davao City in February 2009.

“Today we cannot just be stuck with the Maria Clara stereotype of a demure and reserved Filipino woman. We should stay away from such mindset and accept the realities of a woman’s dynamic role in society today, she who has over the years transformed into a strong and confidently intelligent and beautiful person willing to fight for her rights,” said the decision.

might turn out to be better than the system that our police are so used to. I can perfectly understand however, why not all are looking forward to the China trip. After all, as the joke goes, every Filipino has a cousin in California.

The speech of the President to a gathering of Filipino Chinese businessmen last Monday, was very revealing.

He made several pronouncements that should be crystal clear to one and all.

He expressed his profound admiration of Chinese President Xi. He also gave us an idea of his philosophy on war. He said that he will never enter a war that he cannot win. This shows his healthy respect for the Chinese military and rightly so. The problem is that there is no one that I know of in the country who is advocating a war with China.

What some people are saying is that the country should assert our rights more forcefully in the diplomatic arena.

Countries after all, must abide by some accepted norms of international conduct. Otherwise, these countries will lose face and credibility internationally.

He also said that for the Philippines to solve its money problems, that China should make the country a province of China, like Fujian. The media said that he said this as a joke.

But even if it was said as a joke, the President as the leader of the country should not have said it. He emphasized however, during that speech that the Philippine rise is ours. We also said that the Scarborough shoal is ours but the Chinese are already there. We even named the area as West Philippine Sea but with no effect.

Naming the Benham Rise as Philippine Rise and not recognizing the Chinese names given to those five geographical features will also probably will not change anything. The President even endorsed the Chinese military build-up in some of the reclaimed atolls in the South China Sea as defensive in nature against the United States and not for us.

Why he had to say that, only he knows but it will not do our position with regard to Pagasa any good. He might also have overlooked the fact that we have a binding defense treaty with the US which the country is bound to honor. Thanks to the President also, the Chinese have completed their scientific study on the rise. We are now patrolling it to prevent others from entering the area. We cannot seem to grasp a major strategic aim of China which is oil. Oil to the Chinese is the single most important resource to be able to wage a protracted war. China’s current oil sources can be interdicted. That is why it must have oil sources that it can protect at whatever cost. I grant that President Duterte has the welfare of the country at heart. But whatever reasons he has for his infatuation with China, he must level with the people. This cannot just be because the US is lousy. The people are intelligent enough to understand his reasons if what he is doing is beneficial to the country and will even support him enthusiastically.

“More often than not, where the alleged victim survives to tell her story of sexual depredation, rape cases are solely decided based on the credibility of the testimony of the private complainant,” said Justice Samuel Martirez.

This decision of the Supreme Court is viewed as an abandonment of the women’shonor doctrine established in the 1960 rape case of Herminiglda Domingo.

The Martirez decision effectively reverses the ruling of the Regional Trial Court and the Court of Appeals which found the two guilty.

I disagree because there seems to be no correlation between the fact that the prosecution failed to establish beyond reasonable doubt the guilt of the accused and the women’s-honor doctrine.

No doubt, if only to protect a woman’s honor, complainants often do not tell the court openly that they were raped. This is the “Maria Clara stereotype.”

I cannot follow the logic why Filipinas openly admit that they had been raped with the failure of the prosecution to prove the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt.

I maintain that the stereotype prevails. *** President Duterte says he would stop swearing. Actually he promised this some time ago, but he kept on cursing just the same.

Actually, many people love him for this.

That’s his style.

I like his style. He is so different from the other presidents we knew.

law enforcement. For years, part of the police Senior Officers Executive Course was a trip to the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the US where the students undergo additional seminars and a visit to the FBI field office in Los Angeles.

There are reports however, that this year, there will be no US trip. Instead, the trip will be to China. Some students are grumbling because they were looking forward to the US trip and the 10year tourist visa that goes with it. Now, they will be going to China where they will need translators and go through a system that is totally new to them.

This is not inherently bad because exposure to new police techniques

The President hardly ever mentioned foreign policy during the campaign.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Cimatu: DENR has 50% grant to help biz build sewage works

By Rio N. Araja ENVIRONMENT Secretary Roy Cimatu on Wednesday urged owners and operators of tourist spots nationwide to plan for their sewerage and septage systems to avoid their areas from suffering the fate of the world-famous Boracay Island in Aklan.

Cimatu said many major tourist attractions, such as several towns along Batangas’ Taal Volcano protected landscape region and Palawan, are examples of places that might need the help of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources with their sewerage systems.

“Let us not wait until it is too late,” he said.

Under the national septage and sewerage management plan, cities and first-class municipalities could avail of a 50-percent grant from the national government to help build their sewerage system.

“We need to put in the investment in the sewage systems of these places now while we still can so that these places can avoid the problems facing Boracay today.

It is better to build sewage treatment facilities now than face a catastrophe later,” Cimatu said.

He called on local government units to take advantage of the government grant immediately.

House panel OKs Islamic banking, finance measure

By Maricel V. Cruz THE House committee on ways and means late Tuesday approved a bill seeking to organize and regulate Islamic banks in the country.

The bill, authored by Rep. Amihilda Sangcopan of AMIN Party-list and Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, recognizes the role of Islamic banking and finance in generating opportunities for greater financial inclusion, especially for the underserved Muslim population.

The committee, chaired by Quirino Rep. Dakila Cua, tackled Section 14 of the bill, which provides for tax neutrality.

It mandates neutral tax treatment between Islamic banking transactions and conventional banking transactions.

The bill mandates the Bureau of Internal Revenue to implement policies and guidelines to make tax neutrality conducive to the growth of Islamic banking and finance. The BIR is further given the power to modify applicable taxes on Islamic banking transactions.

“The nature of Islamic banking transactions is that if you don’t apply tax neutrality, it would entail the client double taxation,” said the bill’s authors.

Arroyo, the former President, said Section 14 should be amended to instead authorize the BIR to craft implementing rules and regulations.

Sangcopan appealed to the BIR and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to consider that Islamic banking is part of the country’s commitment to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations economic blueprint.

She pointed out that relative to other member states, the country’s progress on the matter is lagging, as only Laos and the Philippines do not have Islamic banking.

“The grant is there, but there are no takers because there are no benefits for them. We must keep in mind that we are doing this for the environment, and for the benefit of the people,” he said.

The DENR said many tourism hotspots nationwide are neither in cities nor in firstclass municipalities, and Cimatu said the agency is willing to help them in building cleaner areas.

“We really need to think of how we can help these local government units build their own septic and sewerage systems, instead of relying on the local water suppliers to do this, which might pass the construction costs on to the people’s water bills,” he added.

For the longest time, Boracay has been hounded by the problem of businesses and residents discharging waste water, including untreated sewage, into open bodies of water, which eventually reaches the sea, the department said in a statement.

The waste water from households and commercial establishments must be channeled to a sewage treatment plant to be cleaned before being released to the environment.

In the case of Boracay, the DENR estimated about 17.5 million liters of waste water is generated in the island every day. Only about half of this volume is treated properly, while the other half is discharged untreated.

THANKS TO YOU. The Bureau of Internal Revenue has unveiled its 2018 tax campaign theme and logo ‘Salamat Sa’Yo’ to officially kick off its drive to collect P2.039 trillion this year. BIR Commissioner Caesar R. Dulay led the group during the flag-raising ceremony at the BIR National Office in Diliman, Quezon City. It was replicated at the same time in all offices of the BIR, a first in the history of the tax agency, where all its revenue personnel wearing the official ‘one look-one feel’ blue T-shirt were in attendance.

Cops seek extortionists posing as PDEA agents

By Joel E. Zurbano

T

HE National Capital Region Police Office and the Southern Police District are investigating a group of men posing as government agents and conducting antidrug operations in Metro Manila.

The group, all wearing black Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency uniforms and using two sports utility vehicles in their “operations,” reportedly arrests suspected drug dealers and dependents who are later released in exchange for money.

On Sunday night, one of the vehicles used by the so-called PDEA operatives was found abandoned in Makati City, following a foiled operation in the nearby city of Taguig. The authorities also found firearms and communication gadgets inside the vehicle.

SPD spokesperson Jenny Tecson said Makati City police station operatives found the abandoned Toyota Hilux, with registration plate number UGQ-317, around 8 p.m. at the corner of Lansones and Mabolo streets in Barangay Comembo.

Recovered inside the vehicle were two mobile phones, two Baofeng two-way radios, one .30-cal Carbine rifle with one magazine loaded with 14 rounds of ammunition, one .45-cal Glock-Astra 30 pistol, handcuffs, three sling bags, a gun holster and pistol case, a car key, and a spare vehicle plate with number NZI-593.

The authorities also discovered four plastic sachets of the illegal drug shabu and 296 pieces of counterfeit P1,000 bills inside the abandoned SUV. Tecson said the vehicle was found minutes after the Taguig City police station responded to a complaint that a group of armed men on board two vehicles were acting suspiciously in Barangay Ususan.

SPD reports showed that around 6:45

p.m. of Feb. 18, a barangay official went to the Taguig City police to report the suspicious vehicles—a Toyota Hilux and a Mitsubishi Montero, using the same NZI-593 plate number found in the other SUV— parked along Tomasa Avenue corner General Luna Street.

Video footage taken by a closed-circuit television camera installed by the Barangay Security Force showed the two vehicles parked with at least seven men on board. The group was also seen carrying long firearms.

One of the armed men alighted, introduced himself as a member of PDEA, and returned immediately to board one of the vehicles, which then sped off towards the direction of Makati.

The responding policemen chased the vehicles and coordinated with the Makati City Police Station in searching for the armed men.

It was learned that the group’s modus operandi was to arrest individuals suspected to be engaged in drug dealing, and then extort money from the suspects in exchange for their freedom.

Fr. Edwin A. Gariguez

Catholic arm handed out P26m in aid last year

THE Catholic Church, through NASSA/Caritas Philippines, has released a total of P26 million from its local funds under Alay Kapwa to a number of disasters and emergencies in 2017.

Fr. Edwin A. Gariguez, NASSA/ Caritas Philippines’ executive secretary, said: “The amount and the vastness of the contribution our Alay Kapwa solidarity fund has provided are a testament to how fast we can gather our resources and extend assistance to the most in need dioceses.”

Since Camarines Sur is now open for for our STL. What is important is to acTHE Philippine Charity Sweepstakes The most recent humanitarian crises Office is currently evaluating five more bidders, Balutan said the agency will make complish our mission set by the President Caritas is supporting are the ongoing Authorized Agent Corporations either for sure it won’t be open for long so as not to to eradicate jueteng and all forms of ilMarawi City response, worth P22 milsuspension, cancellation, termination, or sacrifice the revenue of the province and legal numbers game through STL. We are lion, and the Mayon Volcano eruption revocation of their authority to play the create a vacuum for opportunists and ille- so much focused on this goal and we will with an initial aid of P5 million.

Small Town Lottery, general manager gal operations to take advantage of and get do it,” he said.

As a network, Gariguez said they On Feb. 5, the PCSO board permanently back into the numbers game.

Alexander Balutan said on Wednesday. have implemented programs in the “I am not intimidated by the vilifica- terminated and canceled the authorization “We are looking into these five AACs most remote communities, highly that are possibly violating provisions con- tion campaign in the media against our of Evenchance Gaming Corp. to play the vulnerable populations, and, in some tained in the STL Implementing Rules and STL. All we have to do is accept the fact STL in Camarines Sur pursuant to Board instances, under the most challenging that we have not yet perfected the system Resolution No. 0024 series of 2018.

Regulations,” said Balutan.

CYAN MAGENTA conditions. YELLOW BLACK “The figures provide us a glimpse of Manila Standard our capacity, as the national social action TODAY arm of the Catholic Church, to respond readily to the needs of our dioceses. These are also showing how we have developed in terms of competence and efficiency to implement and manage multi-donor responses,” the priest added.

A GRADUATING pharmacy stu- camp—the first part was on the reIn addition to the local funds, NASdent of the University of San Car- gional level for Luzon, Visayas and SA/Caritas Philippines’ overall hulos in Cebu City won this week the Mindanao last month—covered manitarian response portfolio in 2017 national level portion of the New editorial, news, and feature writing, totaled P267 million from the Caritas York Times Collegiate Journalist as well as literature where the stuInternational’s confederation and othTraining Camp Award at the South dent journalists were asked to write er funding mechanisms.

Palms Resort in Panglao, Bohol. on haiku, metered and free verse The amount assisted more than Tai Ching Kate C. Recede, cur- poetry, as well as fiction.

69,000 families or 348,000 individurently the news editor of her univerThe news writing and editorial als affected by disasters and emergensity publication Today’s Carolinian, parts were heavily slanted on the cies, Gariguez said. went home to Minglanilla, Cebu economy, according to some of the The Catholic Church, however, is This is to inform the public that LORNA CILLAN-SILVERIO, whose richer and with a certificate of rec- participants. only complementing the efforts of the picture appears above, has been perpetually enjoined by the Regional ognition from the sponsoring news The judges—from the New York government and other organizations, Trial Court of Makati from acting or representing herself as a stockholder, organization.

Times itself—were Carolyn Ryan the priest said. director, and/or officer of PILIPINAS DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION Others who made the top five (feature); Alison Mitchell (news); “We do not wish to be doing the work were, in order Trish Ditan (Universi- Sam Dolnick (literature); and (“PDC”), and/or from performing or exercising control, management and/ of the government especially. We fully ty of the Philippines Manila), second; James Dao (editorial). or administration of PDC and of all its assets/properties. recognize that our role is only to provide Richard Sy (Xavier University in CaRecede, first of three offspring of additional assistance. However, we cangayan de Oro City); Elisha Abu (De Ponciano Recede of Batangas and Also perpetually enjoined are Andre J. Basa, Felicissima Santos, not close our eyes to the pressing and La Salle Manila); and James Linyaw the former Mary Jane Cabie, is the NeliaSilverio-Dee, Demer Layan, and all persons claiming under them severing needs of our people. Where (UP Diliman). grandniece of Manila Standard and/or acting for or in their behalf. others fail, we do our share,” he added.

The topics in the two-part training night editor Honor Blanco Cabie.

PCSO poised to strip 5 AAC firms of right to operate STL

NOTICE TO THE PUBLIC

Any transactions made by the foregoing persons, and/or all persons claiming under them and/or acting for or in their behalf will not be honored by PDC. Anyone dealing with them shall be considered as their co-conspirators, accomplices, and accessories and thus, will be dealt with accordingly.

For inquiries or clarifications, please contact Kapunan & Castillo Law Offices at Telephone Numbers: (632) 846-6247 to 51 or email at kapunanlaw@kapunanlaw.com.

(MS-FEB. 22,25 & 28, 2018)

USC student wins coveted NYT Journalist Training Camp Award

Harringtons ‘Uncover the Unique’ auction set Feb. 24 HARRINGTONS Lifestyle Auction and Showroom is inviting the public to join “Uncover the Unique,” an auction showcasing rare, one-of-a-kind pieces from different parts of the world, on Feb. 24 at the Harringtons Showroom inside the HMR Compound at Km. 21, East Service Road,

South Super Highway in Sucat, Muntinlupa City.

As the best-kept secret in the South of Manila for unique furniture and one-of-akind vintage collectibles, Harringtons is a haven for art and design enthusiasts.

Since its inception, the auction has risen

to become one of the most trusted premier lifestyle galleries and auction houses in the Philippines.

Unlike Harringtons’ regular auctions with 220 lots, this auction will be auctioning off close to 300 lots with many items that will be auctioned off at “no reserve” prices.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018 sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

Oroquieta to host PSC’s Batang Pinoy

Dormitorio rules 7-Eleven bike tourney

By Peter Atencio NATIONAL team member Ariana Thea Dormitorio ruled the women’s division of the 40-km course of the 7-Eleven Trail Series 2018’s crosscountry mountain bike last Sunday at the Timberland Heights in San Mateo, Rizal.

The 22-year-old Dormitorio reached the finish line in one hour, 24 minutes and 58 seconds, beating Melissa Jane Jaroda and Avegail Rambaon.

Dormitorio said she found the course quite fast, considering the tough competitions put in place, with Diamond-rate steep sections providing challenges after the uphill route taken by the 2,500 participants.

“It’s really a fast-pace race course and I’m happy to be able to compete here,” said Dormitorio.

The race course, which finishes with an uphill route to the Glades’ area, offered challenging climbs and descents, most of which are technical, single track trails.

EJ Flores ruled the men’s side in 1:18.32, with Jigo Mendoza and Jake Aldrin Rivera settling for second and third places, respectively.

Familiarity with the route allowed Flores to take the charge right away.

“Kabisado talaga naming ‘yung ruta.

Araw araw kaming nag-eensayo dito sa Timberlands. Siguro and advantage ko ay ‘yung sa technical, sa rocks,” said Flores, who added the sunny weather made the ride more enjoyable, unlike last year when it rained.

The competition is considered the biggest and most anticipated single-loop cross-country race in the country.

The course was stitched together using the favorite routes of local riders and trails that are usually inaccessible on private land.

The bikefest was held with the support of CLiQQ, Selecta, San Miguel Beer, Fox, City Blends, Hotta Rice, Volvic and Pocari Sweat.

Cagers rout QC Capitals Games Today: (Batangas City Coliseum) 7 p.m. – Navotas vs Valenzuela 9 p.m. – Parañaque vs Batangas

THIS time, Muntinlupa made sure it won’t disappoint its hometown crowd.

The Angelis Resort-backed Cagers had a blazing start, then held tougher down the stretch in handing over the first loss on the Quezon City Capitals-Royal Manila, 103-87, late Tuesday night.

A sea of blue packed the Muntinlupa Sports Complex all anticipating of a home win for the Cagers, who were denied a victory in their home court in their first game here about a month ago.

Pari Llagas and the rest of the Cagers made sure they will be up to the task.

The 6’2” frontliner from University of the East finished with 21 points and provided the inside presence the Cagers needed in picking up their fourth consecutive win and becoming the first team to deal the Capitals their first loss in the tournament put up by Senator Manny Pacquiao with former PBA MVP and 40 Greatest member Kenneth Duremdes serving as commissioner.

Muntinlupa has now forged a tie for second to third places with its victim.

Team Czech Republic clebrates after winning the men’s quarterfinals playoffs ice hockey match between Czech Republic the United States during the Pyeongchang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at the Gangneung Hockey Centre in Gangneung. AFP

Czechs knock USA out of Olympic ice hockey G

ANGNEUNG, South Korea—Undefeated Czech Republic knocked the United States out of the Olympic men’s hockey tournament Wednesday, advancing to the semi-finals with a tension-packed 3-2 shootout victory.

American dreams of a first gold medal since 1980 were shattered as Petr Koukal scored the only goal in a penalty shootout while Czech goaltender Pavel Francouz blanked five US sharpshooters.

“It was our dream before the tournament to go this far, but I really hope it’s not the end,” Francouz said. “We can go farther if we keep playing really good as a team.

“We haven’t had any easy games in the tournament. That has made us stronger.”

In search for their first gold medal in 20 years, the Czechs advanced into a Friday matchup against the winner of a later quarter-final between the Olympic Athletes from Russia and Norway.

“We know we have a tough game in front of us,” Czech captain Martin Erat said. “We have to play our own style and focus on ourselves.”

In the shootout, Koukal faked and when US goaltender Ryan Zapolski moved, flipped the puck past him on the decisive shot.

“I’m so happy it was a goal,” Koukal said. “It’s a big moment for me. I know the Czech people are so happy.”

Huge disappointment The sudden ending left the Americans stunned after battling through the game and a 10-minute scoreless over-time.

“It’s a huge disappointment because we were right there,” US captain Brian Gionta said.

Zapolski was gutted as well.

“It’s tough to go that way in an Olympic tournament,” he said. “In that situation it really can go either way and it just didn’t go our way. We competed as hard as we could. We battled to the end.”

Former NHLer Jim Slater, whose shorthanded breakaway equalised for the Americans in the second period, was dismayed as well.

“Disappointed. Frustrated. I feel pretty empty right now,” Slater said. “To

Cheerleading tilt on ESPN5

The NCC is the biggest private school-based network in the Philippines, as multiple collegiate and HS organizations are all represented in the competition.

200 Chevron PH employees join Amcham ScholaRUN ALMOST 200 employees of Chevron Philippines Inc., marketer of Caltex fuels and lubricants, recently joined the 7th Amcham ScholaRUN, an annual fundraising initiative of the American Chamber of Commerce Foundation Philippines Inc., held at Central Park, SM Seaside Complex, Pasay City.

Around 3,000 participants,—consisting of employees from ACCFPI member

lose at the Olympics that way is pretty tough.

“We thought we were good enough to challenge for a gold medal.”

While the NHL’s top stars are absent for the first time since 1994 over money and injury issues, no drama was lacking on a day when four teams ensure playing for a medal and four are sent home empty handed.

“I’m very proud of how we competed, how we played and how we represented our country from the start of the tournament to the end,” US coach Tony Granato said.

Olympic goals leader Ryan Donato scored his fifth of the event 6:20 into the first period, but Czech defenseman Jan Kolar equalised 8:52 later on a blue-line slapshot and defenceman Tomas Kundratek gave the Czechs a 2-1 lead in the second period before Slater’s equaliser.

There were thousands of empty seats, with some whole lower-level sections vacant in the half-full arena.

Other quarter-finals Wednesday will match two-time defending champion Canada against Finland, a medallist in four of the past five Olympics, and undefeated Sweden against Germany. AFP

companies—gathered at 5 a.m. to raise funds for AmCham Scholars for 2018.

“Chevron has been a partner of Amcham Foundation for ScholaRun since its inception. This is a perfect employee wellness engagement activity with the family and at the same time comes with a purpose by funding the scholarship program of the foundation,” said Atty. Raissa Bautista, Manager—Policy Government

Employees of Chevron Philippines after the fund-rasing fun run

and Public Affairs, CPI. ACCFPI has been giving scholarships to high school, college and vocational students in Metro Manila and nearby provinces. Through the support of member companies, scholars are given free tuition fees, uniforms, subsistence allowances, school supplies and project fees, up until their OJT and employment assistance.

To date, the program has already helped about over 2,000 scholarship youth graduates secure employment. A number of former-scholars are now employees of reputable Filipino and American firms.

“It started as a concept idea to raise funds to get more scholars. It has become a trademark of the American Chamber of foundation. A lot of people have worked very hard to put this event together. It’s quite an event by having around 3,000 runners and I feel very proud. The presence and participation of our partners creates electricity and popularity to the event; which goes a long way towards helping us fund more and more scholars,” said Edwin Feist, President of the American Chamber of Commerce.

ESPN5, the long-term collaboration between TV5 and ESPN, will present the exclusive live coverage of the National Cheerleading Competition scheduled this Feb. 27 and March 1 to 2 at the Mall of Asia Arena.

This will mark the very first time that the country’s biggest cheer and dance competition will be telecast live as it happens.

This year’s edition of the NCC covers the Cheerleading, Dance and Drumline championships and will be held in three phases, namely the Cheer Camps non-competition events, the Regional Qualifiers in Bicol, Visayas, Mindanao and the National Capital Region and the Nationals final round.

Unlike the University Athletic Association of the Philippines, which covers only eight schools or the National Collegiate Athletic Association, which has 12 member schools, the NCC covers a much bigger spectrum of participants. The biggest private school-based network in the Philippines, as multiple collegiate and HS organizations are all represented in the competition.

Last year, 150 schools consisting of over 3,500 athletes competed in the NCC’s Dance, Cheer, and Drumline competitions. This year promises to have a similar or even bigger number of participants in what promises to be a more exciting competition up ahead.

As part of its coverage, ESPN5 will have a live coverage of the National Dance and National Drumline Championships on Feb. 27, as well as the All-Girl Cheerleading Championships scheduled for March 1 and the Co-Ed Cheerleading Championships on March 2.

All three events will be live streamed on ESPN5.com, while the March 1 and 2 events will start airing on Aksyon TV. There will also be a two-hour highlights’ episode on TV5 on March 3 from 2 to 4 p.m.

THE Mindanao leg of the Batang Pinoy finally pushes through in Oroquieta City, Misamis Occidental this March, after Philippine Sports Commission Chairman William Ramirez, Oroquieta City Vice Mayor Lemuel Acosta and Misamis Occidental Governor Herminia Ramiro signed a memorandum of agreement yesterday in Sinacapan, Misamis Occidental officially awarding the games’ hosting rights to the province and city.

Ramirez expressed his appreciation for the cooperation of Oroquieta City.

“We are happy to come to Oroquieta for the Batang Pinoy. The City has developed a lot since I lived here years ago and we are heartened to see that along with this economic upsurge is sports development,” Ramiro in her speech thanked the PSC for entrusting her province with the hosting chores of Batang Pinoy.

“This is a chance not only to show the progress of our province showcase our our natural bounties but also to connect with our peers in the Mindanao region,” Ramiro said.

The host province and city showed their readiness to the PSC and the media in a brief update presented by Cristy Sapnot, Misamis Occ Provincial Athletic Complex Manager.

Some 200 volunteers are set to be trained to assist in the event and almost 300 police personnel to be deployed to secure all venues.

The Mindanao leg will see 19 sports played in the same number of venues.

An estimated 4,000 participants will be coming to Oroquieta City to vie for a total 1,074 medals from March 6 to 12.

Batang Pinoy Mindanao leg was postponed twice last year for security concerns.

Ramiro confidently assured every one of the safety in their province.

Oroquieta Mayor Jason Almonte was represented by Acosta, who cited the importance of sports in the character building of the youth and congratulated everyone in advance “for hosting the best ever Batang Pinoy.”

Opening ceremonies will be on March 6 at the Misamis Occidental Provincial Athletic Complex.

Carbonilla, Padilla capture Ozamiz tennis crowns ASLAN Carbonilla and Judy Padilla fashioned out a pair of emphatic victories to share top honors in the 12-andunder play of the Palawan PawnshopPalawan Express Pera Padala Ozamiz leg age-group tennis tournament at the Ozamiz City Tennis Club last Monday.

Carbonilla, from Maramding, Lanao, lived up to his top billing by dropping just three games, capped by a 6-0, 6-2 romp over Vince Bering in the finals while local bet Padilla trampled Angel Denopol, 6-2, 6-1, in her side of the championship in the rainhit Group 2 tournament sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop and presented by Slazenger.

The two rising stars, however, fell short of their respective bids in the higher 14-U category as Tubod, Lanao’s Brent Cortes foiled Carbonilla, 6-4, 6-4, and Grace Gupit, also from Tubod, stunned Padilla, 6-4, 7-6(6), in the five-day event circuit backed

by Asiatraders Corp. and Dunlop as official ball.

“Though they failed to complete a twinkill, Carbonilla and Padilla succeeded in creating an impact with their brand of play which we hope to enhance through our year-long, nationwide circuit,” said Palawan Pawnshop president/CEO Bobby Castro.

Padilla actually came away with two titles as she teamed up with Denopol to edge Guia Bandolis and Jedidah Gupit, 8-6, in the 14-U doubles finals. Other winners were Marie Anghag-Carmeville Gervacio and Andrei Cuevas-Vince Serino (18-U); Nash Agustines-JC Sonsona (14-U) and Janus Rosales-Kyne Solis (10-U).

LOTTO RESULTS

6/49 00-00-00-00-00-00 P0.0 M+ 6/42 00-00-00-00-00-00 P0.0 M+ 6 DIGITS 00-00-00-00-00-00 3 DIGITS 00-00-00 2 EZ2 00-00

Sports

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

A8

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018

Kia’s Mark Yee encounters a GlobalPort triple-team, headed by Sean Anthony and Julian Sargent, in a PBA Philippine Cup game won by the Batang Pier, 108-91.

Valenzuela back in Ronda Pilipinas hunt IRISH Valenzuela has joined CCN Superteam with hopes of reclaiming the title he last won five years ago in the Ronda Pilipinas 2018 presented by LBC slated March 3 to 18 from Vigan, Ilocos Sur to Filinvest, Alabang.

Valenzuela, the 30-year-old 2013 Ronda king, said he has worked hard in the last five months to get back into competition shape after missing the last three editions of the annual event considered the country’s biggest cycling race.

The proud son of Tabaco, Albay is eyeing to join Santy Barnachea of Team Franzia and Jan Paul Morales of NavyStandard Insurance as the most titled riders in Ronda.

Barnachea was the inaugural winner in 2011 and won it again in 2015, while Morales topped the last two stagings.

“I’m just focused on winning the Ronda again,” said Valenzuela, who booked his spot in the main race via the first of two qualifying events in Tarlac City last November.

Valenzuela will be joining forces with grizzled veteran Warren Davadilla, a two-time winner in the fabled Marlboro Tour, and Julius Mark Bonzo, whose father Romeo and uncle Modesto were former Tour champions that should make CCN a team to watch out for.

Also part of the squad were Jemico Brosio, Sherwin Carrera, Marven Aleonar, Juan Carlos Barrios and Jeffson Sotto in this race also supported

by MVP Sports Foundation, CCN, Petron, Versa.ph, 3Q Sports Event Management, Inc., Boy Kanin, Franzia, Standard Insurance, Bike Xtreme, SH+, Guerciotti, Prolite, Green Planet, Maynilad, NLEX Cycling, Lightwater, LBC Foundation and PhilCycling.

A cool P1 million will be at stake in this 12-stage race that will be jumpstarted by the 40-kilometer Vigan criterium Stage 1 on March 3 and the 155.4km Vigan-Pagudpud Stage 2 the next day.

Also on tap are the 223.5km Pagudpud-Tuguegarao Stage 3 on March 5, 135.2km Tuguegarao-Isabela Stage 4 on March 6, 179.4km Isabela-Nueva Ecija Stage 5 on March 8, 111.8km Nueva Ecija-Tarlac Stage 6 on March 9, 31.5km Individual Time Trial Stage 7 and 42.14km Team Time Trial Stage 8 both in Tarlac on March 10 and 11.

GlobalPort boosts bid for PBA quarterfinals

By Jeric Lopez

F

ACING a must-win situation, GlobalPort rose to the occasion in the payoff quarter and took care of business, annihilating Kia, 108-91, to boost its chances for a berth in the quarterfinals in the 2018 Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum yesterday.

Sean Anthony and Kelly Nabong both had monster games for the Batang Pier as they scored a game-high of 21 points each with the former grabbing eight rebounds and the latter hauling 13 boards.

Equally as impressive was Stanley Pringle, who filled out the stat sheet with 15 points, eight rebounds and five assists for more help.

GlobalPort improved to 5-5 to tie Barangay Ginebra for sixth and seventh places in the standings. More importantly, the Batang Pier improved their hopes of ending up in the Top 8.

To clinch a berth in the quarters, what the Batang Pier need now is to win their last assignment against Phoenix on March 2.

The Batang Pier unleashed an ava-

lanche in the second period to dictate the direction of the game.

GlobalPort emphatically uncorked a 12-0 blast midway the second period to suddenly turn a 32-all deadlock into a 44-32 spread after Nico Elorde’s jumper with 3:15 left before halftime.

At the turn, the lead stood at 11, 51-40, for the Batang Pier.

However, Kia did not make it easy for GlobalPort at all in the second half as it showed some life late in the game, even threatening to steal the game away.

The Picanto had a huge run to start the fourth, dropping an 18-6 run to start the period and turn an 11-point

BALANCING ACT. Pamela Lastimosa of Sta. Lucia Realty appears to be balancing the ball on her head in the Chooks to GoPhilippine Superliga Grand Prix Tuesday at the Bacoor Sports Complex. The Lady Realtors overcame a slow start and sluggish reception to escape with a nailbiting 21-25, 25-21, 23-25, 25-15, 15-7 victory over Generika-Ayala.

Roman Prospero

San Miguel Beer’s Fajardo is PSA’s Mr. Basketball JUNE Mar Fajardo is expected to cast a giant shadow over next week’s staging of the SMC-Philippine Sportswriters Association Awards Night at the Maynila Hall of the Manila Hotel.

The San Miguel Beer big man will be bestowed the Mighty Sports Mr. Basketball award during the Feb. 27 rites presented by MILO and Cignal TV for another dominant PBA season last year, which saw the 6’10” Cebuano pride romp off with an unprecedented fourth straight MVP trophy.

Fajardo became the first-ever player to win the league’s highest individual award four consecutive seasons—and only the third in history to emerge a four-time MVP after legends Ramon Fernandez and Alvin Patrimonio.

This will also be the fourth straight

time the oldest media organization in the country is honoring the 28-year-old center for excellence in basketball.

Last year, Fajardo further established his claim as the biggest name in Philippine basketball today after steering the Beermen to a record-tying three straight Philippine Cup championships that allowed the fable franchise to become only the second team in PBA annals to bring home the June Bernardino Perpetual trophy after TnT Katropa.

The former no. 1 pick out of University of Cebu also proved his worth by leading Gilas Pilipinas to a sweep of the Southeast Asian Basketball Association Championship, and then suited up for the national team in its FIBA Asia Cup campaign despite suffering a strained calf muscle prior to the ballclub’s

departure for Beirut, Lebanon.

Previous players hailed as Mr. Basketball include Calvin Abueva and Terrence Romeo.

Volleyball players Dawn Macandili and Marck Espejo as well as well as golfer Clyde Mondilla are also recipients of special awards during the affair that has the Philippine Sports Commission as major sponsor and backers in the Philippine Basketball Association, Mighty Sports, Globalport, Rain or Shine, and Smart.

Macandili, adjudged second Best Libero during the 2017 Asian Women’s Volleyball Championships here, will be handed the Ms. Volleyball title, while Espejo is Mr. Volleyball on account of him winning a fourth UAAP MVP trophy after steering Ateneo to a third straight championship.

deficit into a slim 85-84 edge briefly with under eight minutes left.

Still, that proved to be short-lived as GlobalPort got its second wind and responded with a decisive 14-2 counter surge to restore command and take a 98-87 cushion with 3:56 remaining after Julian Sargent’s basket.

Two minutes later, Sargant once again struck and connected with a triple to close the deal and put GlobalPort ahead for good, 103-88, with only 1:41 remaining.

The eliminated Picanto fell further down to 1-9 with only a game left in its conference.

Reden Celda led Kia with a team-high 20 points.

The Scores GLOBALPORT 108—Anthony 21, Nabong 21, Pringle 15, Sargent 12, Teng 7, Grey 6, Flores 6, Gabayni 6, Guinto 6, Juico 4, Elorde 2, Araña 2, Taha 0.

KIA 91—Celda 20, Gabriel 17, McCarthy 14, Camson 12, Jamon 9, Corpuz 5, Tubid 5, Sara 4, Cabrera 3, Yee 2, Lastimosa 0, Galanza 0, Khobuntin 0, Ababou 0.

Quarterscores: 23-26, 51-40, 78-67, 108-91.

Support for Vargas, Bambol swells

By Peter Atencio SUPPORT for the candidacies of Ricky Vargas and Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino has swelled even further, now with 27 out of the 43 national sports associations backing their bids for the presidency and chairmanship, respectively, of the Philippine Olympic Committee on Friday.

Sepak takraw chief Karen Caballero, one of the sports leaders openly supporting Vargas and Tolentino, said this yesterday following the lapse of the deadline in the filing for candidacy.

“Today, it is safe to say that there are 27 [who] signed. Mainly, it’s those who are supporting the election that will happen on Friday,” said Caballero during a presentation at the Valle Verde Country Club.

Caballero, one of the seven NSA heads, who are vocal about their leanings, said they felt the need for change in the POC. She appeared with ABAP executive director Ed Picson, gymnastics’ Cynthia Carrion, football’s Mariano “Nonong” Araneta, weightlifting’s Monico Puentevella, Richard Fernandez of shooting and Robert Bachmann of squash.

Picson said the identities of NSAs, who have signed the petition, will be known on Friday as they have requested for privacy at the moment.

“Petition says that everyone should follow the rule of law and the court order is specific that there should be elections on the 23rd,” said Picson, who put down worries that Vargas and Tolentino will not be allowed to run and be disqualified again.

He said the General Assembly has not approved the resolutions brought to them last Monday by the POC Executive Committee after meeting last Friday.

The resolution says that top officials of national sports associations who have been active members of the POC for two consecutive years are eligible for election for president and chairman. It was also ruled by the execom that a member must have attended around 50% of their meetings to qualify as an “active member.”

Perpetual shoots for 2 volley titles Games today (Filoil Flying V Center) 1 p.m.- Letran vs Perpetual Help (Game 2 Jrs) 4 p.m.- Arellano U vs Perpetual Help (Game 3 Men’s)

PERPETUAL Help seeks a double victory as it goes for the men’s and juniors’ championships against Arellano University and Letran, respectively, today in the 93rd NCAA volleyball tournament at the Filoil Flying V Center in San Juan City.

The Altas pulled off a 26-24, 2520, 23-25, 25-16 victory in Game 2 Monday over the Chiefs, who took the opener, 12-25, 25-21, 19-25, 26-24, 15-9, Friday, to knot their series at one win apiece and forge a deciding duel at 4 p.m.

The win should give the Las Pinasbased school momentum, but Perpetual Help coach Sammy Acaylar thinks it’s going to be a pretty even match up.

“I’ve been in a situation like this before and I’ve learned that anything can happen,” said Acaylar, who is seeking to steer his team to an 11th title that will put them as the league’s second most titled team behind Letran’s 14.

Warren Catipay, playing his last season, starred in Game 2 as he dished out a match-best 40 excellent sets allowing Ridzuan Muhali, rookie MVP Joebert Almodiel and Ronniel Rosales to flourish and finish with 15, 13 and 13 points, respectively.

The Altas are also seeking to sustain their defense against Christian dela Paz, who they held to just seven points after exploding for 24 in Game 1.

UP plays National U, eyes solo lead UNIVERSITY of the Philippines seeks holds the top of the table via goal the solo lead when it plays National difference.

University today in the UAAP men’s The Maroons are coming off a 1-1 football tournament at the Rizal Me- stalemate with the Tamaraws last morial Stadium.

Sunday.

The Fighting Maroons hope to NU has been solid in the past two maintain their unbeatmatches after openen run in the 4 p.m. ing the season with two Matches today: match with the danstraight defeats.

(Rizal Memorial Stadium) 9 a.m. – UE vs DLSU (Men) gerous Bulldogs.

The Bulldogs, who 2 p.m. – AdU vs FEU (Men) In other fixtures, Far are tied with the Red 4 p.m. – NU vs UP (Men) Eastern University and Warriors at four points Adamson University in fifth spot, held the collide in a duel of last-placed teams at Growling Tigers to a goalless standoff 2 p.m., while De La Salle and Univer- before finally winning via a 1-0 decisity of the East take the pitch at 9 a.m. sion over the Falcons.

With three wins and a draw to FEU has drawn its last two matches show, UP is currently level with and is hoping to get the needed full idle University of Santo Tomas at points against Adamson, which has yet 10 points, but the España-based side to score a win this season.

IN BRIEF

Investors swarm BSP’s weekly offering THE P110-billion worth of term deposits offered by Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas in its weekly auction remained oversubscribed Wednesday due to investors’ strong demand for the seven-day, 14-day and 28-day instruments.

Data showed total tenders reached P130.47 billion, exceeding the weekly volume of P110 billion.

The week-long deposits worth P50 billion attracted total tenders of P53.36 billion and fetched a weighted average accepted yield of 2.81 percent.

The P40-billion 14-day instruments lured total bids of P46.76 billion, while the monthlong deposits amounting to P20 billion attracted total tenders of P30.35 billion.

The Bangko Sentral raised the total volume of term deposits in the auction on Feb. 21 to P110 billion from P80 billion on strong demand. Julito G. Rada

Business

Concepcion allots P1b for expansion CONCEPCION Industrial Corp. is spending close to P1 billion this year to expand the business and create new solutions for the comfort and well-being of Filipino consumers after posting P13.9 billion in gross sales in 2017, up 13 percent from 2016.

CIC president and chief executive Raul Joseph Concepcion said the company would allot about P900 million for 2018, 2019 and 2020.

The three-year fi nancial guidance will fund projects to expand the capacity of existing plants and create a new facility for refrigerator manufacturing in 2018.

“We need to expand, otherwise we will be overtaken by technology and left behind by competitors,” he said.

The company earmarked P80 million for innovation-driven initiatives with the creation of a new research and development hub—Cortex Technologies Corp. Othel V. Campos

3 oil firmsviola ted Train enforcement THE Energy Department found three companies that violated administrative rules when they failed to post announcements of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion Act on their stations.

“There are penalties for LPG (liquefi ed petroleum gas), they did not post,” Energy Assistant Secretary Leonido Pulido III said.

He said the department was still validating data submitted by the oil fi rms regarding their compliance to the TRAIN Law. There were previous allegations that some oil companies implemented higher excise tax on old inventories instead on new stocks.

“It (data submitted by the oil fi rms) looks correct. But we found three that violated the administrative rules, there is a requirement for posting in the stations,” he said.

Alena Mae S. Flores

THE Philippine Competition Commission said it is mulling over proposals to increase the mandatory notification threshold for mergers and acquisitions to more than P1 billion amid numerous requests from private companies and legislators.

PCC chairman Arsenio Balisacan said the possible hike in notification on threshold was a part of a series of policy enhancements the agency was undertaking for the year.

“The draft for the adjustment of the P1-billion notification threshold is expected to be proposed to the commission by the first half of the year,” Balisacan said during a forum on competition policy organized by the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines Wednesday.

BEST CARD OFFERING. RCBC Bankard reaps another international accolade for its credit card products, this time during the 5th International Finance Magazine Awards. IFM is a London-based, world renowned publication that serves as a source of information, analysis and insights for the global finance community. RCBC Bankard chief finance officer and senior vice president Eugenio Fernandez (right) receives the Best Card Offering-Philippines award from Finance Asia in Singapore.

ERC resumes duties, approves new plants

By Alena Mae S. Flores

T

he Energy Regulatory Commission resumed its work, issuing certificates of compliance and provisional authorities to power generation companies to help ensure adequate supply during the dry months.

“It is imperative for a generation company to secure a COC or a PAO from the ERC prior to its commercial operation.

The ERC recognizes the need for the immediate issuance of the COCs and PAOs to GenCos [geration companies] in order to ensure a reliable and sustainable power supply especially that there is an upsurge in power demand during the summer months,” ERC Chairperson Agnes Devanadera said.

Energy Undersecretary Redentor De-

PCC head of legal team Gian Camacho said the threshold hike was not yet final, but the commission was willing to entertain suggestions of any kind to help the agency’s mandate prosper.

“P1 billion is too low for other jurisdictions like cross-border mergers that involve many companies,” Camacho said.

The PCC said among the other policy updates would be the enforcement of the leniency program in April 2018, the forbearance program in July and the inspection order in May. The leniency program grants to an entity immunity from suit or reduction of fine in exchange for the voluntary disclosure of information for a competition case while the commission may also exercise forbearance or preferential treatment on entities that may assist the body in attaining its objectives.

Neda pushes for free trade deal with US

By Julito G. Rada THE Philippine government is seeking stronger trade relations with the United States amid the upbeat trade performance in 2017, Economic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia said.

Pernia, in a presentation before the US-Philippines Society Board of Directors meeting, highlighted the intention of the Philippines to keep its current trade surplus with the US in positive territory and further improve trade between both countries.

“We have a positive trade balance with the US, and we want to keep it that way,” Pernia said.

Pernia said there was a need to discuss and explore more free trade agreements with the

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018

B

By Jenniffer B. Austria

PCC studies plan to increase threshold for merger review

By Othel V. Campos

business@manilastandard.net extrastory2000@gmail.com

Ayala Land hikes stake in Malaysian property firm

IC may put net worth cap on insurance firms THE Insurance Commission is studying the possibility of putting a cap of P900 million on the net worth requirement of insurance companies in the country, a high-ranking offi cial of the Insurance Commission said.

Deputy commissioner Ferdinand George Florendo said in a briefi ng majority of insurance companies had already complied with the previous limit of P550 million and that those who failed to comply were issued a cease-anddesist order.

“Under the Insurance Code, there are scheduled increases of P550 million in 2016, P900 million in 2019, and in 2022 it is going to be P1.3 billion net worth requirement. For the last increase which is the P550 million, most of the companies have already complied... ,” Florendo said.

“Currently, what the industry is requesting is for IC to look at the possibility of reviewing the requirements of the IC code... so that it would not be as burdensome to the local players,” Florendo said. Julito G. Rada

Ray S. Eñano, Editor Roderick T. dela Cruz, Assistant Editor

US to foster investment opportunities.

“Even though we already have a Trade and Investment Framework Agreement with the US, it is still important to establish an FTA to gain access for more exports from the Philippines to the US market,” Pernia said.

He identified food production, agriculture, renewable energy and services as sectors that could be further explored to improve trade and investment opportunities between the two countries.

Pernia said opening up more sectors to foreign investments and amending the Public Service Act to engender competition and improve ICT infrastructure would open more trade opportunities in education, telecommunications, transportation and construction.

lola said earlier there were concerns that the power plants would not be available to sell to the grid in the absence of COCs from the ERC following the suspension of its four commissioners in December. Delola said this would now be addressed with the grant of the 60-day temporary restraining order against the suspension of the four commissioners.

“It’s a blessing that the four commissioners are still there, at least for the next 60 days, so they can resolve pending cases,” Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, head of the Senate committee on energy, said.

The Office of the Ombudsman served a one-year suspension on four commissioners of ERC in December .

The TRO provided a 60-day reprieve to the ERC to fully function as a collegial body to approve new requests and renewals of COCs. The ERC said it issued COCs to the third unit of the circulating fluidized bed coal-fired power plant of Panay Energy Development Corp. with 150-MW ca-

pacity located in Barangay Ingore, La Paz, Iloilo City and Silay Power Plant of Silay Solar Power Inc. with 25-MW capacity in Barangay Rizal, Silay City, Negros Occidental.

The regulator also issued provisional authorities to operate to Palm Concepcion Power Corp.’s coal-fired power plant (Unit 1) with 135 MW capacity at Sitio Puntales, Barangay Nipa, Concepcion, Iloilo; 2Nickel Asia Corp.’s Surigao diesel power plant with 10.944 MW capacity in Quezon, Surigao City.

It also issued provisional authorities to EDC Siklab Power Corp.’s Gaisano Balasan Solar Rooftop Project with 0.6144 MW in Balasan, Iloilo and Gaisano Oton Solar Rooftop Project with 0.6144 MW in Oton, Iloilo; EDC Bago Power Corp.’s Bago Solar Rooftop Project with 1.0304 MW at Gaisano Mall, Luna St., Barangay Luna La Paz, Iloilo City; and SMC Consolidated Power Corp.’s Limay Power Plant (Unit 2) with 150 MW capacity in Barangay Lanao, Limay, Bataan.

PROPERTY developer Ayala Land Inc. said it raised its stake in MCT Bhd of Malaysia to 72.31 percent at the end of the mandatory takeover offer Monday.

Ayala Land said in a disclosure to the stock exchange unit Regent Wise Investment Ltd. received acceptances for 295,277,782 millions shares, equivalent to 22.12 percent of MCT’s total outstanding shares.

RWIL launched an unconditional mandatory takeover offer when it purchased an additional 7.24-percent stake in MCT which increased its shareholding to 50.19 percent.

RWIL offered to purchase MCT shares held by minority investors at 0.88 ringgit per share, which represented an 4.8 percent premium to the stock’s onemonth volume weight average price before the takeover offer was announced.

Ayala Land first invested in MCT in 2015, a move that enabled it to enter Malaysia and become a key player in the Malaysian real estate market.

It initially acquired a 9.16-percent interest in MCT through a private placement with $43 million (P1.9 billion).

Ayala Land’s stake in MCT went up to 32.95 percent in the same year after it entered into call option agreements with the two founders and majority shareholders of the Malaysian firm.

MCT Bhd, established in 1999 as a construction company, is now a property development company specializing in mixed-use projects that include retail, office, hotel and mid- to affordable residential units.

Ayala Land head of strategic land bank management Margarita Dy said in a recent interview the company planned to expand the residential offerings of MCT in various areas.

“We plan to grow it and that is why we consolidated control. What we intend to do there is similar to what we did here in Ayala Land which is to expand their exposure across different geographical areas,” Dy said.

“We will focus on Klang Valley areas so we can grow the business faster,” she said. Klang Valley is centered in Kuala Lumpur and includes adjoining cities and towns in the state of Selangor.

PAL defers plan for P20-b Terminal 2 expansion

By Darwin G. Amojelar FLAG carrier Philippine airlines said Wednesday its proposal to build a P20billion passenger terminal at the former Nayong Pilipino complex has to “take a back seat” after a “super consortium” submitted an unsolicited bid to rehabilitate and expand Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

“We are still in discussion, but I think when the consortium takes over, they will have work with Pagcor [Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.]. So, it will be in the back seat at the moment,” PAL president and chief operating officer Jaime Bautista said.

Pagcor owns the former Nayong Pilipino complex which is being eyed by PAL as the expansion site of Terminal 2. PAL exclusively uses Terminal 2 for its passengers.

PAL earlier submitted a proposal to the government to build a new passenger terminal, which could handle 12 million to 15 million passengers per year and would have aerobridges capable of serving 12 to 17 wide-body and single aisle jets.

The proposed annex building will rise on a 16-hectare area adjacent to Naia Terminal 2, comprising of the nowdefunct Philippine Village Hotel at the former Nayong Pilipino complex.

PAL said earlier it was expecting to start construction of the new terminal by December 2020 and begin its operation

by July 2021.

PAL’s move to defer the planned new passenger terminal came after the Naia Consortium submitted a P350-billion rehabilitation and expansion proposal for the country’s main airport.

The consortium’s members are

Aboitiz InfraCapital Inc., AC Infrastructure Holdings Corp., Alliance Global Group Inc., AEDC, Filinvest Development Corp., JG Summit Holdings Inc. and Metro Pacific Investments Corp.

The proposal involves expanding and interconnecting the existing terminals of Naia, upgrading airside facilities and developing commercial facilities to increase airline and airport efficiencies, enhancing passenger comfort and experience and improving public perception of Naia as the country’s premier international gateway.

The project is divided into two phases. Phase 1 includes improvement and expansion of terminals in the current Naia land area, while Phase 2 involves the development of an additional runway, taxiways, passenger terminals and associated support infrastructure. The group proposed a 35-year concession period.

GLOBAL CRYPTO HUB. Bangkok-based

Global Crypto Hub opens its Philippine office at Jollibee Plaza in Ortigas Center to provide people training on a different kind of cryptocurrency.

Global Crypto Hub also launched its very own digital token – Userum, a utility coin that will be primarily used for the various types of cryptocommunity events.

At the launching are (from left) Joff Paradise, cryptopreneur; Shahin Pilli, founder of Global Crypto Hub; and Jagdish Pandya, co-founder of Global Crypto Hub.

B2

Business

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018 extrastory2000@gmail.com

Market falls; Golden Haven jumps

S

TOCKS fell Wednesday to end a five-day advance, following overnight losses on Wall Street as prospect of higher interest rates kept investors on edge.

The Philippine Stock Exchange index, the 30-company benchmark, shed 109 points, or 1.3 percent, to close at 8,613.65, as four of the six major sectors declined. Despite the loss, the bellwether was still up 0.6 percent this year.

The heavier index, representing all shares, also lost 7 points, or 0.2 percent, to settle at 5,122.17, on a value turnover of P9.5 billion. Losers outnumbered gainers, 128 to 82, while 46 issues were unchanged.

Five of the 20 most active stocks ended in the green, led by memorial park developer Golden Haven Inc. which

surged 50 percent to P261 and oil explorer PXP Energy Corp. which jumped 18.9 percent to P18.

Stephen Innes, head of Asia-Pacific trading at Oanda, said: “US equity markets fell overnight on the back of higher US Treasury yields which are providing investors with more income than dividends on the S&P 500 Index.”

However, “while the prospect of higher interest rates will keep investors on edge, it’s not like we’re returning to double-digit levels,” Innes said.

He said even a rise in key US 10-year yields to 3.25 percent was “unlikely to kill the equity market rally as the benefits from fiscal stimulus should continue to feed through the markets. Investors are banking on much higher returns from equities than bonds again in 2018.”

Meanwhile, Hong Kong led Asian markets higher Wednesday as traders

brushed off a retreat on Wall Street, with attention turning to the release later in the day of minutes from the Federal Reserve’s most recent policy meeting.

Trading floors have calmed down since the wild volatility that greeted the start of February, which was caused by concerns about the impact of higher US interest rates and Treasury bond yields.

While New York’s three main indexes ended in negative territory on Tuesday, Asian dealers were in upbeat mood, helping the dollar recover from recent losses against the yen and hold its own against the euro and pound.

Hong Kong surged 1.5 percent in the afternoon, boosted by energy firms after a recent run-up in oil prices, and further chipping away at the more than nine percent losses during a torrid week earlier in February.

Tokyo’s Nikkei ended 0.2 percent higher.

Sydney gained 0.1 percent, Singapore put on 1.1 percent and Seoul was up 0.6 percent. Wellington climbed 1.3 percent and Taipei returned from a week-long Lunar New Year break to jump 2.8 percent.

Shanghai remained closed for the holidays.

The Fed minutes will be closely pored over for clues about the views of policy board members as US inflation edges up, wages improve and Donald Trump’s tax cuts come into play.

On oil markets both main contracts edged down on Wednesday after a recent series of gains as the dollar edges higher, while analysts say the output cap led by OPEC and Russia is helping to mop up the global glut that hammered prices in previous years. With AFP

MANILA STANDARD BUSINESS DAILY STOCKS REVIEW WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2018

VALUE

NET FOREIGN BUYING/(SELLING), PHP

FINANCIALS 59.5 19,010 121 1,834,600 3.7 137,000 150 2,665,930 1.77 294,000 35.6 111,700 8.5 2,000 15.36 6,300 27.95 671,900 3.7 227,000 8.74 14,400 0.67 10,000 1.63 102,000 895 210 0.53 634,000 98.5 2,760,670 1.61 8,880,000 13.3 1,000 24.7 14,800 57.95 23,060 239.6 14,280 103 1,160 85.35 330 46.5 224,300 257 674,260 1,940 55 90 8,630 1.2 92,000

1,113,810.50 222,961,699 508,500 401,602,696 497,970 3,992,915 17,000 96,350 18,811,605 820,920 127,772 6,680 167,140 191,500 339,720 269,336,911 14,697,580 13,300 359,065 1,335,407 3,407,910 119,480 28,165.50 10,436,715 171,391,338 106,700 776,912 110,440

-5,816.50 -55,090,952 -102,840,341 469,035.00 6,701,740 -6,030 -191,500 20,528,613 584,350 -5,320 451,506 2,151,000 -4,808,030 -5,002,332 223,290.50 4,840

39.15 12.84 0.58 1.28 18 0.215 105.1 4 15.9 187.7 50.95 19 61.5 55.5 1.89 5.35 10.3 11.54 14.34 11 7.5 5.51 1.79 15.38 62.15 28.75 9.91 18.6 2.08 282 46.75 4.07 27.4 17.32 19.28 327 0.19 8.25 2.71 4.6 9.3 5.9 8.24 1.56 12.5 57.55 5.9 628 4.74 3.39 3.57 2.27 16.22 5.45 0.13 1.04 145.5 2.74 1.84 1.36

INDUSTRIAL 39.15 2,442,000 12.9 1,141,300 0.6 257,000 1.29 459,000 18.08 350,200 0.215 3,680,000 107.5 60 4.02 3,936,000 16 2,914,300 190.8 2,120 51.8 650,080 19 9,700 62 133,870 57 1,470 1.9 243,000 5.4 10,200 10.56 12,800 11.64 5,140,700 14.6 221,900 11 1,616,400 7.56 232,500 5.52 3,264,500 1.79 9,000 15.4 2,743,800 62.95 47,520 29.5 147,200 10.08 119,700 19.02 2,793,000 2.08 2,838,000 282 442,680 47.2 60 4.07 92,000 28.25 1,391,800 17.48 162,700 19.6 2,362,000 330 185,930 0.191 1,910,000 8.25 25,400 2.72 6,392,000 4.67 66,000 9.36 990,600 5.91 92,600 8.3 60,000 1.6 207,000 12.8 230,900 58.1 108,810 6 136,000 644 68,780 4.81 53,000 4.12 5,883,000 3.57 197,000 2.39 6,912,000 16.5 1,826,900 5.46 79,300 0.13 1,220,000 1.04 384,000 146.2 3,259,870 2.74 25,000 1.89 3,907,000 1.53 32,858,000

96,612,450 14,745,390 153,530 590,520 6,389,904 799,870 6,378 15,938,130 46,629,382 403,593 33,575,237.50 186,194 8,233,451 81,923 461,470 54,732 133,788 60,007,442 3,207,790 17,781,478 1,757,164 18,039,928 16,110 42,398,792 2,980,431.50 4,264,975 1,193,519 53,179,470 6,023,730 125,695,768 2,821.50 374,440 38,823,965 2,838,238 46,166,308 61,313,704 363,330 213,092 17,453,460 307,790 9,271,179 548,148 495,000 327,600 2,932,986 6,306,749 817,711 44,121,695 253,760 25,705,330 727,420 16,467,770 30,347,148 432,673 159,000 404,260 480,461,642 69,200 7,266,970 50,151,190

-41,897,000 4,561,256 -10,440.00 -67,970 5,754 -2,910,660 9,827,184 2,375,106.50 9,225 25,438,990 729,966 -445,984 769,861 -13,704,272 -3,296,384 799,157.50 20,380 196,456 -9,690,048 1,193,220 1,820,258 -15,352,425 -52,244.00 -8,759,058.00 15,922,148 98,800 1,872,420 1,166,651 48,000 -180,970 -2,021,938 -357,054 4,761,005 95,740 -7,708,690 -7,100 2,015,044 1,644 -20,730 3,400 -150,535,561 33,710 -285,910

0.305 76.35 15 1.07 7 0.63 0.65 1,088 7.49 14 7.62 1,360 7.27 76.4 4.91 0.69 5.43 22.9 0.33 5.9 0.042 1.15 3.46 2.9 145.5 2.57 1,000 1.71 281 0.244 0.189 0.192

0.295 74.05 14.7 0.92 6.88 0.6 0.61 1,071 7.42 13.66 7.46 1,347 7.27 74.55 4.81 0.67 5.26 22.25 0.33 5.82 0.04 1.13 3.3 2.56 143.9 2.57 985 1.64 276 0.236 0.178 0.187

HOLDING FIRMS 0.3 190,000 74.8 1,036,850 14.86 8,248,900 1 2,166,000 6.9 5,000 0.6 16,871,000 0.62 3,199,000 1,080 337,190 7.49 439,000 13.82 3,858,300 7.5 399,900 1,360 105,540 7.27 50,900 74.55 1,647,480 4.91 6,000 0.69 857,000 5.3 1,049,200 22.4 2,343,000 0.33 10,000 5.85 50,303,900 0.04 21,100,000 1.14 116,000 3.43 10,929,000 2.56 33,000 145 446,310 2.57 8,000 985 411,200 1.69 1,262,000 281 4,370 0.238 290,000 0.189 280,000 0.187 2,090,000

56,350 77,806,912 122,632,628 2,168,490 34,628 10,283,920 1,988,960 364,258,005 3,272,134 53,342,920 2,995,508 143,320,240 370,043 123,829,579.50 29,260 574,690 5,576,789 52,394,950 3,300 294,374,182 850,500 131,570 37,331,160 85,490 64,650,018 20,560 407,433,385 2,110,480 1,220,906 68,680 51,260 396,050

-17,852,477 35,482,250 970 49,280 101,952,815 1,138,393 -7,658,116 6,925,340 363,500 -14,685,180 1,532,293 -5,578,980 8,753,328 8,000 10,170 143,520 25,169,348 -48,377,300 -8,330 44,644 -3,650 -

7.06 1.01 16.86 2.18 0.88 45.8 3.71 4.55 6 0.44 1.08 1.09 0.24 0.49 35.9 0.65 0.135 1.85 1.33 0.74 4.88 0.39

6.8 0.95 15.9 2.14 0.86 44.7 3.69 4.4 5.7 0.425 1.08 1.05 0.232 0.465 35.4 0.63 0.135 1.83 1.3 0.7 4.71 0.36

10,898,892 10,868,900 643,144 1,074,290 948,560 513,676,570 2,793,470 6,871,470 2,086,080 2,041,700 7,560 369,380 1,488,180 2,717,950 8,086,780 84,440 24,300 13,163,920 3,376,480 214,470 186,390,420 81,595,350

-1,458,716 68,650 -8,250 -322,500 -5,920 9,351,305 -22,170 -1,723,080 840,822 124,600 23,600 -56,750 259,490 1,022,570 -919,570 -101,828,150 600,600

NAME

OPEN

HIGH

LOW

CLOSE

ASIA UNITED BANK PH ISLANDS BDO LEASING BDO UNIBANK BRIGHT KINDLE CHINABANK CITYSTATE BANK COL FINANCIAL EAST WEST BANK FERRONOUX HLDG FILIPINO FUND FIRST ABACUS IREMIT MANULIFE MEDCO HLDG METROBANK NTL REINSURANCE PB BANK PBCOM PHIL NATL BANK PHIL STOCK EXCH PHILTRUST PSBANK RCBC SECURITY BANK SUN LIFE UNION BANK VANTAGE

58.5 121.3 3.76 152 1.7 36.05 8.5 15.42 27.65 3.85 8.7 0.65 1.64 925 0.54 98.4 1.65 13.3 24.35 57.6 237 103 85.35 46.9 249.8 1,940 90.45 1.2

59.5 123 3.76 152.1 1.79 36.1 8.5 15.42 28.7 3.85 9.2 0.67 1.64 925 0.55 98.5 1.71 13.3 24.8 58 240 103 85.35 47 257 1,940 90.45 1.21

58.15 121 3.7 150 1.67 35.45 8.5 15.2 27.35 3.6 8.7 0.65 1.62 895 0.53 96.75 1.6 13.3 23.15 57.6 237 103 85.35 46 249.2 1,940 90 1.2

ABOITIZ POWER AGRINURTURE ALLIANCE SELECT ALSONS CONS ASIABEST GROUP BASIC ENERGY BOGO MEDELLIN CEMEX HLDG CENTURY FOOD CHEMPHIL 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 LIBERTY FLOUR LMG CHEMICALS 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 AND CO ROXAS HLDG SFA SEMICON SHAKEYS PIZZA SPC POWER SWIFT FOODS TKC METALS UNIV ROBINA VICTORIAS VITARICH VULCAN INDL

39.9 13 0.6 1.29 19.18 0.215 105.1 4.08 16 189 51.75 19.2 62 58 1.92 5.36 10.58 11.74 14.4 11 7.7 5.54 1.79 15.66 62.15 29 9.99 18.84 2.1 285.6 46.75 4.07 27.6 17.6 19.9 330 0.191 8.48 2.75 4.7 9.35 5.93 8.24 1.6 12.68 57.6 6 634 4.74 3.8 3.78 2.3 17 5.48 0.131 1.06 151.5 2.75 1.87 1.39

40 13 0.6 1.3 19.62 0.221 107.5 4.1 16.1 190.8 52 19.5 62.55 58 1.93 5.4 10.58 11.78 14.6 11.06 7.7 5.54 1.79 15.68 63 29.5 10.08 19.2 2.2 286 47.2 4.07 28.3 17.6 19.94 330.8 0.191 8.48 2.76 4.7 9.42 6.19 8.3 1.6 12.8 58.1 6.08 651.5 4.82 4.95 3.8 2.5 17.06 5.48 0.131 1.1 151.5 2.78 1.9 1.64

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

0.305 75.4 14.88 0.94 6.99 0.62 0.64 1,071 7.44 13.74 7.62 1,357 7.27 76 4.81 0.67 5.43 22.3 0.33 5.9 0.041 1.13 3.46 2.9 143.9 2.57 995 1.7 276 0.236 0.178 0.19

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 MEGAWORLD MRC ALLIED

7.05 0.99 15.92 2.14 0.88 45.8 3.7 4.47 5.87 0.44 1.08 1.07 0.238 0.49 35.7 0.65 0.135 1.83 1.31 0.7 4.86 0.385

VOLUME

NAME

OPEN

HIGH

LOW

CLOSE

VOLUME

VALUE

NET FOREIGN BUYING/(SELLING), PHP

PHIL ESTATES PHIL REALTY PRIMEX CORP PTFC REDEV CORP ROBINSONS LAND ROCKWELL SHANG PROP SM PRIME HLDG STA LUCIA LAND STARMALLS SUNTRUST HOME VISTA LAND

0.32 0.5 4.52 32.55 20 1.96 3.22 36.4 1 16.44 0.81 6.59

0.32 0.52 4.74 32.55 20.2 1.96 3.23 36.6 1.02 23.65 0.82 6.59

0.3 0.495 4.52 32.55 19.96 1.9 3.19 35.4 1 15.54 0.81 6.36

0.3 0.52 4.72 32.55 20.1 1.93 3.2 36.2 1.02 23 0.82 6.5

1,350,000 4,365,000 4,302,000 500 1,352,300 2,409,000 532,000 7,800,100 297,000 3,891,100 3,000 9,239,300

412,650 2,198,990 20,171,030 16,275 27,134,925 4,624,470 1,704,660 281,716,850 301,720 80,653,322 2,440 59,834,466

-148,050 -397,000 323,300 5,968,733 1,407,080 -34,434,975 -163,666 -31,885,822

2GO GROUP ABS CBN ACESITE HOTEL APC GROUP APOLLO GLOBAL ASIAN TERMINALS BLOOMBERRY BOULEVARD HLDG CEBU AIR CHELSEA DFNN INC DISCOVERY WORLD EASYCALL FAR EASTERN U GLOBE TELECOM GMA NETWORK GOLDEN HAVEN GRAND PLAZA HARBOR STAR IMPERIAL INTL CONTAINER IPEOPLE 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 PAXYS PHIL RACING PHIL SEVEN CORP PHILWEB PLDT PREMIUM LEISURE PRMIERE HORIZON PUREGOLD ROBINSONS RTL SBS PHIL CORP SSI GROUP STI HLDG TRANSPACIFIC BR TRAVELLERS WATERFRONT WILCON DEPOT

17.8 32 1.31 0.425 0.059 11.58 14.02 0.066 100 8.25 8.22 2.59 45.55 960 1,850 6.24 174 11.12 5.65 2.95 110 13.68 8.3 0.136 1.54 3.27 15 3.94 1.04 28.3 0.53 4.73 8.34 3.49 17.5 16.7 10.24 11.9 2.85 8.2 108.3 6.71 1,594 1.19 0.34 51 95 6.05 2.82 1.46 0.58 3.56 0.92 11.02

17.8 32.4 1.35 0.44 0.063 11.58 14.28 0.069 101.8 8.25 8.4 2.59 48 960 1,850 6.28 261 11.12 5.76 3.18 111.4 13.68 8.31 0.136 1.54 3.3 15.4 3.95 1.07 28.65 0.53 4.82 8.49 3.49 18.38 17.3 10.24 11.94 3.15 8.2 109.8 6.71 1,594 1.2 0.35 51.5 95 6.05 2.84 1.49 0.59 3.68 0.95 11.1

17.52 32 1.31 0.425 0.059 11.58 14 0.066 99.95 7.73 8 2.42 44 960 1,790 6.18 171 11.12 5.4 2.93 109.9 12.82 8.3 0.133 1.46 3.27 14.34 3.82 1.02 27.7 0.53 4.51 7.91 3.44 17.22 15.02 10.02 11.42 2.82 8.2 108.3 6.5 1,553 1.18 0.34 50.95 94.1 5.9 2.8 1.45 0.52 3.55 0.9 10.82

SERVICES 17.52 32.4 1.35 0.44 0.06 11.58 14.1 0.066 100.2 7.81 8 2.42 45.5 960 1,790 6.18 261 11.12 5.6 3.05 109.9 12.84 8.31 0.133 1.47 3.3 14.34 3.95 1.07 28.55 0.53 4.7 7.91 3.44 17.22 15.06 10.04 11.8 3.1 8.2 108.4 6.69 1,572 1.18 0.34 51 94.75 6 2.83 1.48 0.53 3.55 0.93 11

88,600 33,900 65,000 720,000 468,690,000 100 16,138,400 23,780,000 190,870 9,751,300 174,200 81,000 212,300 5,205 36,025 589,000 523,180 500 11,128,300 94,000 500,540 4,800 19,000 13,110,000 615,000 28,000 8,800 1,098,000 425,000 2,097,000 9,000 346,000 6,965,400 837,000 2,300 87,889,100 3,200 23,100 349,000 3,000 100,920 833,100 93,965 1,641,000 570,000 542,100 249,160 123,700 471,000 9,999,000 84,898,000 356,000 4,331,000 4,580,900

1,567,324 1,093,685 85,420 307,250 28,381,810 1,158 227,440,802 1,583,440 19,242,404.50 76,726,467 1,414,303 197,840 9,720,635 4,996,800 64,860,945 3,681,286 116,701,306 5,560 61,815,165 290,270 55,219,726 62,340 157,740 1,751,910 911,540 91,730 130,212 4,257,210 440,130 59,395,695 4,770 1,626,580 56,670,197 2,886,000 40,058 1,410,632,288 32,440 272,282 1,031,660 24,600 10,934,849 5,506,362 147,861,190 1,952,740 194,500 27,672,541 23,600,827 737,653 1,326,690 14,636,020 46,545,080 1,266,070 3,978,420 50,242,784

23,820 -4,300 -230,600 80,982,616 68,000 3,977,077.50 -5,181,432 -462,465 -4,977,600 -44,682,280 981,928 626,375 8,672,042 124,950 -3,360 116,580 18,018,635 22,310 -7,899,600 -23,810 -12,877,726 6,144 119,000 -18,600 0 -89,900 -15,183,520 -1,183,320 -8,294,221.50 -11,071,089 236,060 794,130 -532,510 -99,300 -35,347,536

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

0.0025 1.75 4.91 19 1.67 1.7 0.305 7.28 2.37 0.248 0.147 0.153 0.0091 1.5 6.35 1.41 0.87 0.013 0.012 0.012 2.4 6.5 15.74 36.3 0.0068

0.0026 1.85 5.02 19 1.67 1.7 0.31 7.46 2.4 0.248 0.147 0.153 0.0091 1.5 6.41 1.41 0.9 0.013 0.012 0.012 2.4 6.7 18 37.45 0.0068

0.0024 1.72 4.91 17.5 1.66 1.67 0.305 7.26 2.35 0.214 0.146 0.152 0.0091 1.43 6.25 1.37 0.87 0.012 0.012 0.011 2.32 6.43 15.44 36.05 0.0067

MINING & OIL 0.0025 267,000,000 1.85 28,587,000 4.91 389,000 18.98 27,200 1.67 38,000 1.7 1,066,000 0.305 170,000 7.26 32,700 2.36 1,189,000 0.221 3,840,000 0.146 4,740,000 0.153 1,040,000 0.0091 14,000,000 1.47 475,000 6.25 2,097,400 1.4 39,000 0.89 35,000 0.012 14,400,000 0.012 22,700,000 0.012 127,000,000 2.33 177,000 6.45 1,005,600 18 37,780,000 36.95 1,285,000 0.0067 3,000,000

659,000 50,979,740 1,943,990 508,684 63,130 1,797,620 52,350 238,222 2,823,330 861,130 692,980 159,020 127,400 695,830 13,232,489 53,820 30,830 177,900 272,400 1,507,500 417,330 6,492,106 630,033,622 47,349,735 20,200

-68,290 -34,800 166,660 14,770 2,720,468 -36,000 47,400 1,855,194 2,713,416 -1,629,485.00 -

ABS HLDG PDR AC PREF B1 DD PREF FGEN PREF F FGEN PREF G GMA HLDG PDR GTCAP PREF A GTCAP PREF B HOUSE PREF A LR PREF PCOR PREF 2A PF PREF 2 SMC PREF 2B SMC PREF 2C SMC PREF 2D SMC PREF 2H SMC PREF 2I

31.8 510.5 104 104 111 6.04 1,006 1,002 101.8 1.05 1,034 1,000 77.2 80.05 76.3 79.15 78.05

32 514 104.2 104 111.5 6.18 1,006 1,009 101.9 1.05 1,034 1,000 77.2 81.5 76.3 79.15 78.05

31.6 510 103.6 103.5 111 6.04 1,005 1,000 101.8 1.03 1,034 999 77.2 80 76.3 78 78.05

PREFERRED 31.6 52,400 514 22,500 104.2 5,140 103.5 150 111.5 145,650 6.18 1,833,700 1,005 9,005 1,009 35 101.9 11,570 1.05 894,000 1,034 300 999 2,400 77.2 1,230 80 48,250 76.3 1,000 78 880 78.05 500

1,672,360 11,564,925 535,068 15,575 16,239,950 11,331,866 9,054,030 35,190 1,177,973 938,680 310,200 2,398,000 94,956 3,864,078 76,300 68,674.50 39,025

-175,560 422,652 -2,400,082.50 -

LR WARRANT

2.38

2.4

2.27

WARRANTS 2.29 110,000

252,840

14,340

56,440,908 1,195,330 4,209,740

364,227 3,880 -1,297,480

14,459,537

-

9,888

-

MS

PROPERTY 7 0.97 16.5 2.15 0.86 45 3.69 4.46 6 0.425 1.08 1.09 0.238 0.465 35.85 0.64 0.135 1.83 1.31 0.72 4.72 0.385

1,561,900 11,229,000 39,500 500,000 1,097,000 11,385,100 755,000 1,547,000 350,600 4,760,000 7,000 349,000 6,330,000 5,730,000 226,900 132,000 180,000 7,177,000 2,570,000 306,000 39,157,000 217,760,000

ITALPINAS PHILAB HLDG XURPAS

7.4 4.09 3.87

7.5 4.09 3.87

6.85 3.85 3.69

FIRST METRO ETF

131.9

132.1

130.6

USD DMPL A2

10.3

10.3

10.3

TRADING SUMMARY

SHARES

FINANCIAL

20,904,438

INDUSTRIAL

111,926,845

HOLDING FIRMS

136,081,558

PROPERTY

348,799,771

SERVICES

759,346,9098

MINING & OIL

533,001,069

GRAND TOTAL

1,919,591,145

6.9 3.85 3.8

SME

7,987,700 306,000 1,116,000

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS 130.6 109,950 10.3

DDS

960

VALUE 2,218.96 (down) 23.24 1,297,832,948.21 FINANCIAL INDUSTRIAL 11,322,02 (down0 148.84 1,554,762,559.341 HOLDING FIRMS 8,766.68 (down) 96.12 1,888,220,596.251 PROPERTY 3,903.49 (down) 54.67 1,745.44 (up) 7.04 1,330,098,630.995 SERVICES MINING & OIL 12,330.06 (up) 316.51 2,617,498,200.045 PSEI 8,613.65 (down) 109.05 761,258,769.28 All Shares Index 5,122.17 (down0 7.62 9,526,024,044.39 Gainers: 82; Losers: 128; Unchanged: 46; Total: 256

IMI increasing capital to P3b for expansion

By Jenniffer B. Austria INTEGRATED Microelectronics Inc., a unit of Ayala Corp., said Wednesday it is increasing its authorized capital stock to P3 billion from P2.45 billion to support expansion.

IMI said in a disclosure to the stock exchange its board approved the capital hike to P3 billion consisting of 2.8 billion common shares and 200 million preferred shares, both with par value of P1 each.

The proposed capital hike will be presented to stockholders for approval during the company’s annual meeting on April 13, 2018.

IMI said this would provide the company additional capital for business development initiatives and operational expenses.

IMI earmarked $75 million for 2018 capital expenditures, up 14.8 percent from $65.3 million it spent in 2017, primarily to support the expansion of its Philippine and overseas operations.

Under the plan, IMI will spend P2.39 billion to purchase additional machineries and equipment and P600 million to construct a new manufacturing facility in Serbia, new buildings and facilities and other building improvements in facilities in Bulgaria, the Philippines and Czech Republic.

Another P180 million will be allocated for costs associated with the maintenance of plant and other facilities and P300 million for investments in IT infrastructure.

Spending for this year’s capital expenditures will primarily come from the planned P5 billion stock rights offering.

IMI reported a net income of $34 million in 2017, up 21 percent year-on year while revenues jumped 29 percent to hit a record high of $$1.09 billion.

IMI is among the leading global manufacturing solutions providers in the world. Share price of IMI ended lower by 0.42 percent to P19.02 Wednesday.

Pryce’s 2017 profit climbed 29% to P1.25b

By Alena Mae S. Flores PRYCE Corp. said Wednesday net income climbed 29 percent in 2017 to P1.248 billion from P966 million in 2016, driven by the liquefied petroleum gas business.

Pryce said in a disclosure to the stock exchange revenues jumped 37 percent to P9.226 billion in 2017 from P6.722 billion the previous year.

Sales volume of LPG grew 11 percent to 210,000 metric tons in 2017 from 189,000 MT in 2016.

The company said it was optimistic of achieving 15-percent sales growth and 20-percent net income growth that would bring it to P1.55 billion this year, on the back of expansion projects and the implementation of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion law.

“Despite this modest volume growth, revenues were up 37 percent because of the sharp increases in LPG contract prices during the year,” the company said.

LPG contract prices averaged $491 per metric ton in 2016, or $145 metric ton higher than the 2016 contract price of $346 per metric ton.

Pryce said sales volume grew in the Visayas and Mindanao regions, where demand was more concentrated on fuel for household cooking.

Sales in Visayas and Mindanao grew 22 percent versus four percent in growth in Luzon.

The company said sales of LPG including cylinders and accessories reached P8.656 billion and accounted for 94 percent of revenues.

Industrial gases accounted for 4 percent of revenues at P391.498 million, while real estate sales and sales of pharmaceutical products accounted for the balance.

Pryce said the company would continue its expansion, which was started two years ago and would increase storage capacities of marine terminals and to bring the products closer to the markets.

The company said it would expand all its seven import terminals to enable each one to accommodate at least one shipload of 2,500 MT cargo.

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

Business/World

Manila

Standard

TODAY

Dementia linked to chronic boozing

Racist faces murder verdict FRANKFURT―A German court is on Wednesday due to sentence a Swedish convicted killer-dubbed “the laser man” for using a laser-scoped rifle to target immigrants―for the murder a Jewish woman.

John Ausonius, 64, has already received a life prison term in Sweden for a six-month shooting spree in 1991-92 in which he killed an Iranian student and wounded 10 other immigrants.

The convict was extradited to Germany in late 2016 to face trial in one additional murder, of 68-year-old Jewish Holocaust survivor Blanka Zmigrod in Frankfurt in 1992.

German prosecutors are seeking a life sentence, pointing to the severity of the crime to justify exceeding the usual maximum term of 15 years on the grounds of protecting society.

The verdict for Ausonius, Manila Standard who denies the woman’s murTODAY der, was to be announced at 1330 GMT in the Frankfurt court.

Born as Wolfgang Alexander Zaugg in Sweden to a German mother and a Swiss father, he was reportedly bullied at school, rejected his foreign origins and later developed a strong hatred for immigrants.

He would dye his dark hair a lighter shade and wear blue contact lenses to appear like a “real Swede”, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung has reported.

He obtained Swedish citizenship as a young adult and changed his name twice, finally to Ausonius after a Roman poet.

Norwegian mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik, speaking at his Oslo trial for the 2011 killings of 77 people, mentioned the “Lasermannen” or “laser man” as a figure who shared the same goals. AFP

B3

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018 CESAR BARRIOQUINTO, Editor mst.daydesk@gmail.com / extrastory2000@gmail.com

The

PARIS―Chronic heavy drinking for Pes is a major risk factor for all types and of dementia, especially the early Ser HERITAGE GARDEN. onset of the disease, according to a This photo taken on study published Wednesday in The February 20 shows the Lancet Public Health. garden area in Sunder Researchers examining more Nursery, a 16th-century than 57,000 cases of early-onset heritage garden complex dementia in France found that near the Indian Unesco well over half were either alcosite Humayun's Tomb in Bid hol-related, or accompanied by New Delhi. AFP The an additional diagnosis of alcoAp hol abuse. nec Overall, alcohol use disorders Bid were associated with a three-fold rec higher risk of all types of dementia. we II a Alzheimer’s and other forms Bid of dementia are said to be premafail ture before the age of 65.

(RA Previous research was inconBid clusive on the effect of alcohol sixt on cognitive health. citiz Fili Some studies have show a posInte sible benefit of light-to-moderate Do drinking, while others have found CYAN MAGENTA BLACK searcher at Oxford University’s that YELLOW heavy drinking boosts the risk Future of Humanity Institute. of dementia.

The report details a plausible The World Health Organization Ac scenario in which an office-cleandefines “chronic heavy drinking” to ing SweepBot fitted with a bomb bel as more than 60 grams of pure alcoinfiltrates the German finance Tho hol―six or more standard drinks― Go ministry by blending in with other a day for men, and in excess of 40 pay machines of the same make. grams per day for women. AFP The The intruding robot behaves Co normally―sweepbid Manila ing, cleaning, clearPetitionNOTICE for change OF DISSO Bid Standard ERRORS & of first name ing litter―until its TODAY Ma Notice is hereby given that A from ANGELINA hidden facial recogPHILIPPINES “AMV” – Branchthe O OMISSIONS Pplace R of E business C I O atSRm. A 210 De201 Vi nition software spots ISABELITA toBrgy. 667, Del Pilar Street, Ermita, the the minister and clos- In Classified Ads section PRECIOSA was an application for dissolution with not Exchange Commission, effective Oc filed by Preciosa es in. must be brought to our The Resurreccion “A hidden explo- attention the very day the at a Any person Ponsones at thehaving City claim aga is requested to present inca sive device was trig- advertisement is published.

Civil Registry, Manilathe same Baseco, Manila; Attention: MarteP under Doc. No. 76; For gered by proximity, immediate settlement.

We will not be responsible Page No. 17; Book killing the minister No. 11; of 2018 will serve ThisSeries announcement and wounding nearby for any incorrect ads not by Notary ofPublic Atty. concerned the legal dissolution a operations of the Company. staff,” according to reported to us immediately.

Rogelio Bolivar. the sci-fi storyline.

“This report has Notice to the Public Republic of the Philippines imagined what the of Ilocos Sur Pvt. Ltd. Philippine world could look SeedWorks InternationalProvince Representative Office with address at of 1775 Gov. Municipality Narvacan like in the next five San Luis Rd., Puypuy, will COMMITTEE file its BIDSBay, ANDLaguna AWARDS to 10 years,” O hEi- petition for the withdrawal of its license to operate to the Securities and Exchange Commission INVITATION TOafter BID geartaigh said. AFP

Experts warn against ‘malicious use’ of AI

PARIS―Artificial intelligence could be deployed by dictators, criminals and terrorists to manipulate elections and use drones in terrorist attacks, more than two dozen experts said Wednesday as they sounded the alarm over misuse of the technology.

In a 100-page analysis, they outlined a rapid growth in cybercrime and the use of “bots” to interfere with news gathering and penetrate social media among a host of plausible scenarios in the next five to 10 years.

“Our report focuses on ways in which people could do deliberate harm with AI,” said Sean O hEigeartaigh, Executive Director of the Cambridge Centre for the Study of Existential Risk.

“AI may pose new threats, or change the nature of existing threats, across cyber-, physical, and political security,” he told AFP. The common practice, for example, of “phishing”―sending emails seeded with malware or designed to finagle valuable per-

sonal data―could become far more dangerous, the report detailed.

Currently, attempts at phishing are either generic but transparent―such as scammers asking for bank details to deposit an unexpected windfall―or personalized but labor intensive― gleaning personal data to gain someone’s confidence, known as “spear phishing”.

“Using AI, it might become possible to do spear phishing at scale by automating a lot of the process” and making it harder to spot, O hEigeartaigh noted.

In the political sphere, unscrupulous or autocratic leaders can already use advanced technology to sift through mountains of data collected from omnipresent surveillance networks to spy on their own people.

“Dictators could more quickly identify people who might be planning to subvert a regime, locate them, and put them in prison before they act,” the report said.

Likewise, targeted propaganda along with cheap, highly believable fake videos have become powerful tools for manipulating public opinion “on previously unimaginable scales”.

An indictment handed down

by US special prosecutor Robert Mueller last week detailed a vast operation to sow social division in the United States and influence the 2016 presidential election in which so-called “troll farms” manipulated thousands of social network bots, especially on Facebook and Twitter.

Another danger zone on the horizon is the proliferation of drones and robots that could be repurposed to crash autonomous vehicles, deliver missiles, or threaten critical infrastructure to gain ransom.

“Personally, I am particularly worried about autonomous drones being used for terror and automated cyberattacks by both criminals and state groups,” said co-author Miles Brundage, a re-

Philippines now primarily an exporter of labor UP UNTIL the 1960s the world trading system consisted almost entirely of exportsand imports of merchandise. Countries sold to and bought from one antoher processed or unprocessed goods made from flora, fauna and mineral resources. As a part of that structure,the Philippines maintained a foreign trade system that consisted of exports and imports of merchandise.

After the 1960s, two game-changing alterations took place in the structure of international trade.

They both involved a shift in the pattern of exports and imports. Now it was services—brainpower and brownpower—no longer merchandise, that was being exported and imported.

The first game-changer was the establishment of Opec (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries), which, because of the greatly enhanced price—setting capability it gave them, sharply increased the petroleum-exporting countries’ earnings from their oil and gas exports. The petrodollar suddenly became a powerful currency, and the countries that had them—OPEC’s members—now had the wherewithal with which to embark upon ambitious economic development program.

The Middle Eastern countries—Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Kuwait—now needed hundreds of thousands of foreign workers to construct their infrastructure project and industrial plants. And so was born this country’s bagong bayan, the overseas Filipino worker (OFW).

To be sure, the millions of Filipinos, men as well as women, wo have gone to work in the Middle Eastern coutnries and other OPEC members are not the original OFWs, nor have their Philippinesbound remittances been the first funds that this country has received from Filipinos working overseas. Those honors belong to the Filipinos who, after the colonization of the Philippines by the United States, went to Hawaii and the Western and Southwestern states—traces of a Filipino presence have been found even in Louisiana—to find work and earn money for the folks back home.

But the ‘Saudi phenomenom’ was something else altogether. Millions of Filipinos and Filipinas— professionals, engineers and other technical people and ordinary workers—have found work in Saudi Arabia and the other Middle Eastern countries and have generated earnings that they have then remitted to their families in this country.

(MS-FEB.22 & MAR. 1, 2018)

(

March 31, 2018.

Stan (MS-FEB. 8,15 & 22, 2018) THE MUNICIPALITY OF NARVACAN, through its Bids and A (BAC), invites contractors registered with and classified b Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB) to bid for the hereund

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES Name of Contract NATIONAL FOOD AUTHORITY Location Regional Office 10 Baloy, Cagayan de Oro City Brief Description

: Improvement/Concreting of Farm t and Bridges (Cluster I) : Barangays Codoog, Estancia, Lan San Antonio, Sucoc, Narvacan, Iloco : Removal Obstructions, Roadway Exc Preparation, Aggregate Sub-Base Provision of Pipe Culvert, Stone Protection and Embankment FOR THE PROCUREMENT OF SECURITY SERVICES Approved Budget for FOR NFA-REGION 10 FOR THE PERIOD COVERING the Contract (ABC) : P 42,000,000.00 APRIL 1, 2018 TO JANUARY 2021 Contract1,Duration : 360 Calendar Days Source Fund its Corporate : R.A. 8240 (FY 2015) The NATIONAL FOOD AUTHORITY (NFA) Regional Office 10 of through Operating Budget for 2018, intends to apply the sum of Thirteen Million Five Hundred Forty Seven Thousand Forty Prospective bidders should possess a validNine PCAB License Pesos and 30/100 (P13,547,049.30) being the yearly Approved for the Contract (ABC) earmarked contract,Budget have completed a similar contract with a value of at InvItatIon to Bfirst Id forof the Procurement of SecurIty Shave ervIceS for Lto regIon Iv-a and to be applied to payments for the the three (3)-year contract for the Procurement of Security(listed in the ABC, and key personnel and equipment available for the1,prosecution of the contract.

TheCY BAC will use Services for NFA Region 1.

10 for period April 1, 2018 to January 2021 as follows: Thethe LAND TRANSPORTATION OFFICE, REGIONAL OFFICE NO. IV-A, through the Check/Screening 2018 General Appropriations pass/fail Act intendscriteria to applyin thethe sumEligibility of FOURTEEN MILLION NINE as well a NO. OF SECURITY APPROVED BUDGET FOR THE Examination of NINE Bids.

The BAC will conduct post qualificatio EIGHTY PESOS AND ELEVEN CENTAVOS PROVINCE HUNDRED EIGHTY THREE THOUSAND CONTRACT (ABC)(ABC) (Php) (PHP 14,983,089.11)GUARDS being thecalculated Approved Budget for the Contract to payments under bid.

INVITATION TO BID

Economists regard those remittances as national income from exports of labor. In 2017, the OFWsremitted an estimated $22 billion to this country.

And let us not forget the approximately 250,000 Filipinos who man the world’s oil tankers, cruise ships and other vessels. They, too generate very substantial service-export earnings. the contract for PROCUREMENT OF SECURITY SERVICES FOR LTO REGION IV-A with 1.

MISAMIS ORIENTAL 31 3,454,181.27 Specific Identification Number received excess of the ABC shall be All particulars Bids relative to inEligibility Statement and Screeni 2.

BUKIDNON 33 LTO-RIVA-2018-01.

4,472,499.64 The other game-changing alteration in world automatically rejected at bid opening.

Pre-Bidding Conference, Evaluatio 3.

CAMIGUIN 10 Performance Security, 1,258,268.52 trade that I cited earlier is represented by foreign and Award of Contract governed by the pe 4.

LANAO NORTE 18 Qualification 2,264,912.03 2. The LAND TRANSPORTATION OFFICE, REGIONAL OFFICE NO. IV-Ashall now be invites bids of RA 9184 and its Implementing and Specific Regulations (IRR) for PROCUREMENT OF SERVICES FOR LTO REGIONRules IV-A with 5.

MISAMIS OCCIDENTAL 15SECURITY 2,097,187.84 companies like Texas Instruments and Intel, which Delivery of the Goods and/or Services is required TOTAL Identification Number LTO-RIVA-2018-01.

107 13,547,049.30 are leading members of the world electronics for a period of Ten (10) MonthsThe which shall startof upon effectivity of NOTICE PROCEED. schedule BAC activities are asTO follows: Bidders should have completed, within FIVE (5) YEARS from the dateopening. of submission and Bids received in excess of the aforesaid yearly ABC shall be automatically rejected at bid industry. Encouraged by the various incentives receipt of bids, a contract similarBAC to the Project.

The description of an eligible bidder is contained Activities / Schedule The NFA now invites the bids for Procurement of Security Services for NFA Region 10 for the period in the Bidding Documents, particularly, in Section II. Instructions to Bidders.

1. Issuance of Eligibility Documents – February 02-22, 2018 granting programs of the Philippine government, April 1, 2018 to January 1, 2021. Performance of services and the supply of goods incidental thereto are- February 02 2. Issuance & availability of Bidding Documents 3. Bidding will be conducted through open competitive bidding procedures using a nonthese companies began establishing, in the 1970s, necessary for the duration of ordiscretionary as may be“pass/fail” otherwise required under the 3. Pre-bid Conference February 09, 2018 – 2:30 P criterion as specified in contract. the 2016 Revised –Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act (RA) 9184, otherwise known as the “Government 4.

Receipt and Opening of Bids (includes submission Bidders should have completed, within the immediate last three (3) years from the date of submission and plants for the production of semiconductors, Procurement Reform Act”.

Check) Februar of Eligibility andeligible Eligibility receipt of bids, a contract similar to the project subject of this bid. The Requirements description of an bidder as -- 2:30 microcircuits and other electronic products PM Bidding is restricted to Filipino in citizens/sole proprietorships, partnerships, or organizations with well as the definition of a ‘similar contract’ is contained the Bidding Documents, particularly, in Sections 5. Bid Evaluation – February 23, 2018 leastBid sixtyData percent (60%)respectively. interest or outstanding capital stock belonging to citizens of the components.

II and III, Instructions to Biddersat and Sheet, 6.

Post Qualification – February 26, 2018 Philippines, and to citizens or organizations of a country the laws or regulations of which grant 7. Approval of BAC The Texas Instruments plant is located in similar rightscompetitive or privileges tobidding Filipino citizens, pursuant toResolution/Issuance RA a 5183.

Bidding will be conducted through open procedures using non-discretionary “pass/ of Notice of Award – February 27, 2018 fail” criterion as specified in the 2016 Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of – Republic Act28, 2018 the Baguio area, whose climate is ideal for 4. Interested bidders may obtain further information from the LAND TRANSPORTATION OFFICE 8. Contract Preparation and Signing February (RA) 9184, otherwise known asREGION the “Government Procurement Reform Act”.

IV-A and inspect the Bidding Documents at the address given below from 8:00 AM to 9.

Approval of Contract – March 01, 2018 manufacturing operations of a delicate nature.

5:00 PM. 10. Issuance of Notice to Proceed – March 2018 Bidding is restricted to Filipino citizens/sole proprietorships, partnerships, or organizations with at2,least The operations of what has come to be known 5. or Aoutstanding complete set ofcapital Bidding stock Documents may be acquired by interested starting and January sixty percent (60%) interest belonging to citizens of the Bidders Philippines, to The BAC will issue prospective bidders Eligibility Forms and Bi 30, 2018the fromlaws the address below in theofamount TWENTY FIVE rights THOUSAND PESOS (PHP citizens or organizations of a country or regulations whichof grant similar or Narvacan, privileges to as the semiconductor industry consists in raw at the Office of the BAC Chairman, Ilocos Sur, up 25,000.00).

Filipino citizens, pursuant to RA 5183. of a non refundable amount of P 25,000.00 to the Municipal T materials and components being shipped to this may also be downloaded free of charge Ilocos from theSur. website of the Philippine Government Narvacan, Interested bidders may obtain ItElectronic further information from NFA Regional Office 10 and inspect the Bidding Procurement System (PhilGEPS) and the website of the Procuring Entity, provided country by companies like Texas Instruments Documents at the address given below during 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Mondays to Fridays except that Bidders shall pay the applicable fee for the Bidding Documents than theholidays: submission The Local Government Unitnot oflater Narvacan reserves the right to for assembly with semiconductors and other of their bids. bids, declare a failure of Bidding, or not to award the contract NFA Regional Office 10 nd whatsoever compensate indemnify bidders electronic products. Upon completion of the 6. The LAND TRANSPORTATIONresponsibility OFFICE, REGIONAL OFFICE to NO. IV-A will hold or a Pre-Bid 2 Floor NFA Building, incurred in the preparation of their on February 2, 2018, 2:00 PM at LTO Regional Office No. bids.

IV-A Conference Baloy, Cagayan de OroConference City production process—or, more accurately, the Room, Old City Hall Compound, B. Morada Avenue, Lipa City, which shall be open to prospectivemay bidders.

A complete set of Bidding Documents be acquiredFebruary by interested Bidders from February 22, 2018 02, 2018 assembly process—the finished products are to March 18, 2018 during 7.office hours and March 19, 2018 (8:00 A.M – 12:00 NN) from the address Bids must be duly received by the BAC Secretariat at the address below on or before February shipped out to the head offices or branches of (SGD.) ELEUTERIO G. INES below and upon payment of the fee All forBids themust Bidding Documents the amount ofofTwenty Five 14,applicable 2018, 1:00 PM. be accompanied by ainbid security in any the acceptable Chairman in the stated in free ITB Clause 18.

Thousand Pesos (Php25,000). forms It mayand also beamount downloaded ofBAC charge from the website of the Philippine Texas Instruments and other electronic products NOTED: Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) and the NFA website, provided that Bidders shall Bid opening shall be on February 4, 2018, 2:00 PM at the Conference Room, LTO Regional companies. Only the labor of Filipino workers is pay the applicable fee for the Bidding Documents not later than the of Lipa theirCity. bids.Bids will be(SGD.) Office No. IV-A, Old City Hall Compound, B. submission Morada Avenue, opened ZURIEL S. involved in the entire operation. Thus, what we in the presence of the bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address below. Late Munici The NFA will hold a Pre-Bid Conference 1:30 o’clock in the afternoon of March 5, 2018 at the bids shall not beat accepted. have here is another instance of export income Conference Room, 2nd Floor, NFA Building, Baloy, Cagayan de Oro City which shall be open to prospective 8. The official time for the purposes of the aforesaid schedule of activities shall be in accordance bidders. from services, not shipments of merchandise.

The with LTO Region IV-A Office Bundy Clock.

Manila PetitionNOTICE for change OF DISSOLUTION Bids must be duly received by the BAC Secretariat at the address below on or before 12:00 noon of Standard approximately ERRORS 52 percent export 9.

TRANSPORTATION OFFICE, REGIONAL OFFICE NO. IV-A reserves the right to & of Philippine of first name TODAY March 19, 2018. All Bids mustThe be LAND accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in reject any and all bids, declare a failure of bidding, or not award the contract at any time prior to is hereby given that A MILLION VOICES trade that is attributed to semiconductors and fromNotice ANGELINA the amount stated in ITB Clause 18.

Bid opening shall with be at 1:3041o’clock in and theitsafternoon March 19, contract award in accordance Section of RA 9184 IRR, without of thereby incurring PHILIPPINES “AMV” – Branch Office with principal OMISSIONS nd Pplace R be E business C I O atSRm. A 210 De2018 liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

Floor, NFA Building, Baloy, Cagayan de Oro City. Bids will be opened in Conference related products must, accordingly, adjusted of Villa at Bldg.

1153 M.H. Room, 2 any ISABELITA toBrgy. 667, Del Pilar Street, Ermita, will be theManila presence of filing the bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address below. Late bids shall 10. For further information, please refer to: In Classified Ads section to reflect the fact that the rawPRECIOSA and was anmaterials application for dissolution with Securities and not the be accepted.

CELSO C. CULIS, Head, BAC Secretariat Exchange Commission, effective October 01, 2016. filed by Preciosa components for manufacture must the be brought to our of such products CECILE M. and MANGERON, Sec. a failure of bidding, or not award the contract The NFA reserves the right to reject any all bids,BAC declare Resurreccion

Land Transportation Office, Regional Office No. IV-A are not madeattention in thisthecountry. at any time prior to contract award in accordance with Section 41 of RA 9184 and its IRR, without thereby Any person having claim against this company very day the Ponsones at the City

J.C. Abadilla Memorial Building, Old City Hall Compound is requested totaken present at Blk 14 649 to the affected incurring anyBrgy. liability bidder or bidders.

B. Morada Avenue, Lipa City Summing advertisement up, a very sharp change has Civil Registry, Manilathe same is published.

Baseco, Manila; Attention: MartePocholoLacson, for

Telephone No. (043), 756-6731 No. 76; For further information, please refer to

Telefax No. (043) 702-6968 place, during We thewilllast decades,under in theDoc. structure immediate settlement. not beeight responsible Page No. 17; Book BEVERLY M. NAVARRO (SGD) FRANCISCO P. RANCHES JR., CESO VI of Philippineforexport trade. proud exporter 11; of 2018 will serve as ThisSeries announcement a notice to all Asst. Regional Director/BAC Chairman any incorrect ads Once not aNo. RSEIO/RBAC TWG by Notary Public Atty. concerned of the legal dissolution and cessation of the of products like sugar, copper concentrate, coconut NFA Regional Office 10 May be deleted in case the ABC is less than One Million Pesos (Php1,000,000) where the Procuring Entity may not reported to us immediately. operations of the Company.

Bolivar. hold a Pre-Bid Conference Baloy, Cagayan de Oro City oil and Alhambra-brand cigars, thisRogelio country is now Telephone Numbers: (088) 855-2721; (08822) 73-2215, primarily and exporter of labor.

Fax Number: (088) 855-2723 NOTICE OF DISOLUTION Has it been a felicitous change?

Decidedly yes.

Notice to the Public Email Address: nfa_r10@yahoo.com Republic of the Philippines Province of Ilocos Sur Notice is hereby given that the Board of Directors of GLOVE CONSULTANTS, Just look at the international reserves.

SeedWorks International Pvt. Ltd. Philippine 3

(MS-FEB. 2, 2018)

3

(MS-FEB.22 & MAR. 1, 2018)

E-mail:

Representative Office with address at of 1775 Gov. Municipality Narvacan San Luis Rd., Puypuy, will COMMITTEE file its BIDSBay, ANDLaguna AWARDS romero.business.class@gmail.com petition for the withdrawal of its license to operate to the Securities and Exchange Commission INVITATION TOafter BID March 31, 2018.

Standard – Feb. 22, 2018 (MS-FEB. 8,15 & 22, 2018) THE MUNICIPALITY OF NARVACAN, through its Bids and Awards Committee (BAC), invites contractors registered with and classified by the Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board (PCAB) to bid for the hereunder contract: Name of Contract Location

(MS-FEB. 2, 2018)

(MS-JAN. 19, 26 & FEB. 2, 2018)

: Improvement/Concreting of Farm to Market Roads and Bridges (Cluster I) : Barangays Codoog, Estancia, Lanipao, Rivadavia,

INC. (hereinafter referred to as the “CORPORATION”) in a Meeting of the Board (Sgd.) ENGR. DIOCANO D. ALOJADO, JRof the of Directors held on 27 November 2013, approved shortening of the term Regional Corporation for which the Corporation isAssistant to exist to a periodDirector/ up to 30 June 2014, which resolution was duly ratified by the affirmative vote of the stockholders owning BAC-10 Chairman and representing at least two-thirds (2/3) of the outstanding capital stock of the CORPORATION at the stockholders’ meeting held on the same day.

By: The Board of Directors (SGD.) THOMAS GLUCKMAN (SGD.) ANDREW GLUCKMAN (SGD) LORNA U. TAN (SGD.) MARITONI Z. LIWANAG (SGD.) ARNIDA VELASQUEZ CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES)

LGUs

Jimbo Owen Gulle, Editor lgu@manilastandard.net editor.lgustandard@gmail.com

B4

thursday, february 22, 2018

LocaL government units

QC turns over P400m in tax shares to 142 barangays

Sorsogon dads declare island off limits to coal power plants

By Rio N. Araja

By Alena Mae S. Flores

QUeZON City Mayor herbert Bautista has released a total of P400 million in real-property tax shares to the city’s 142 barangays for the fourth quarter of 2017.

The city government gave P22.3 million to District 1, P26.4 million to District 2, P57.7 million to District 3, P84.9 million to District 4, P99.5 million to District 5, and P109.2 million to District 6, Bautista said.

The barangays with the highest shares are Loyola heights with P7.1 million, followed by Pasong Putik with P3.5 million, Socorro with P2.8 million, South Triangle with P2.1 million, and Fairview with P1.8 million.

The mayor ordered the Barangay Operations Center and City Treasurer’s Office to release the funds.

The barangays are expected to utilize the funds for their infrastructure improvements, local development and livelihood, and other projects.

Liga ng mga Barangay president Ricardo Corpuz said added the funds shall also be utilized by the barangays for their programs on gender and development, senior citizens, persons with disabilities and children.

“All these programs are included in our annual budgets. All of our constituents must benefit from our shares of the real property tax,” he said.

The provincial government of Sorsogon has issued a resolution promoting renewable energy and disallowing coal-fired power plants in a bid to become a clean energy province.

The provincial board recently approved Provincial Resolution No. 323-2017, declaring Sorsogon as an environment-friendly clean energy province to protect and preserve its environment.

“The province of Sorsogon shall, on the other hand, strive to develop and utilize clean and renewable energy to support economic growth and on the other hand, veer away from activities that are destructive to the environment and harmful to the Sorsoguenos’ health and livelihood such as coal-fired power plants,” it said.

The resolution stated that all government offices in the provinces shall not issue any permit, authorization, endorsement, or support for development of coal-fired power plants within Sorsogon, citing the hazardous effects of coal to both the environment and the health of its residents.

Its provincial capital, Sorsogon City, has also confirmed its own support for this initiative through Resolution No. 384, Series of 2017, authored by City Councilor edwin Divina signed in December.

The city resolution commits the city as a “clean energy city free of coal-fired power plants” and also prohibits any office to issue permits supporting the development of coalfired power plants.

Sorsogon City has embarked on the Climate Change Project with the help of the United Nations habitat and the Sorsogon City Model has earned the Climate Adaptive and Disaster Resilient Awards citation from the Climate Change Commission.

Sorsogon, considered a transshipment corridor for Visayas and Mindanao, is frequently hit by strong typhoons and storm surges, and the city recognizes its vulnerability to the effects of climate change.

Sorsogon Province already hosts the 140-megawatt Bacon-Manito Geothermal Project of energy Development Corp.

In BrIef Navotas opens new justice hall NAVOTAS City Mayor John Rey Tiangco led the inauguration of the city’s hall of Justice yesterday.

“The judiciary is now more accessible to all Navoteños,” Mayor Tiangco said of the new hall, located on A. Ignacio Street in Barangay Daanghari.

During the inaugural Tiangco, was accompanied by Rep. Toby Tiangco, Supreme Court Administrator Jose Midas Marquez, Vice Mayor Clint Geronimo, city council, barangay council, city department heads and members of the national and local judiciary.

In his speech, Tiangco took note of the amiable relationship between the judicial bodies in the city and the local government that resulted in positive receptions and meaningful collaborations.

“The establishment of the hall of Justice will pave way for easier access and faster transactions within the judicial system. Through this, we expect that justice for all our constituents will be served swiftly,” he said. Jun David

GROUNDBREAKING. The VRP Medical Center in Mandaluyong City recently launched its new Tower Building beside its newly

designed hospital. Present at the groundbreaking rites Wednesday were (from left) Mandaluyong City Mayor Carmelita ‘Menchie’ Abalos, Mandaluyong Rep. Alexandria ‘Queenie’ Gonzales, VRP Medical Center Chairman Emeritus Irma P.E. Potenciano, Department of Health-NCR Assistant Regional Director Dr. Ma. Paz Corrales, and VRP Medical Center president Virma Vergel de Dios. Manny Palmero

Makati to hand out free civil documents

By Joel E. Zurbano

R

eSIDeNTS of Makati City will get copies of birth certificates and other civil documents for free from Feb. 26 to Feb. 28 in line with the city government’s observance of the Civil Registry Month.

Mayor Abigail Binay said the city’s Civil Registration Office will be issuing for free one certified true copy each of the civil registry certificates of birth, marriage, death, as well as certificate of no record on file to residents and other qualified beneficiaries.

“I encourage our dear Makatizens, and even those who are non-residents but were born or married in Makati, to take advantage of the free service.

Individuals with relatives who died in Makati can also get a copy of the death certificate of their loved one for free,” said Binay.

Last year, the City Council passed City Ordinance 2017-023, suspending the collection of local fees imposed for the processing and issuance of certified true copies of certificates of birth, marriage, death, and certificate of no record on file for a number of days as determined by the mayor, during the annual celebration of the civil registration month.

“Since last year, we have allotted three working days for the initiative since we want to accommodate more people as far as practicable, especially those who have less in life. This will

Palayan opens one stop service center for OFWs in Central Luzon

2nd Likhandula festival unwraps The Arts Research and Training Institute in Southern Tagalog Inc. (Artist, Inc.), in cooperation with the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, will hold the 2nd Likhandula International Arts exchange and Collaboration on Feb. 26 to March 3 at the University of the Philippines in Los Baños, Laguna, in celebration of the National Arts Month.

Likhandula Arts exchange and Collaboration is an arts festival celebrating its namesake manual that has served generations of different artists, educators, and members of the community.

The festival became an avenue for artists to collaborate in the creation of new relevant material for their own communities, and to exchange ideas and practices in arts production, creative pedagogy, and shaping communities.

Beauty queen files raps vs cop-dad MISS Philippines earth 2016 Imelda Bautista Schweighart has filed a case for child support and violation of the AntiViolence Against Women and their Children Act of 2004 against the father of her son, Police Inspector Christopher Dulagan, Man of the World-Philippines 2016.

Schweighart was accompanied by her mother Beth Bautista and lawyer Stephen Guerrero in the preliminary hearing at the Philippine National Police Internal Affairs Service office in Camp Crame, Quezon City.

Dulagan “made up excuses” to not appear in the preliminary hearing, Guerrero said. Robbie Pangilinan

help them get the necessary records that they can use for employment, enrollment in school, and for other purposes, free of charge,” the mayor said.

The city chief executive also noted that the theme “Rehistradong Pamilya, May Libreng Isang Kopya” crafted by the Philippine Statistics Authority, “#napapanahongCRVS (Civil Registration and Vital Statistics),” underscores the importance of updated and accurate civil registry records in the planning and implementation of government programs.

The city ordinance entitles the qualified requesting party to one free copy of a civil document from the Civil Registry Office of Makati (for local use only; not PSA/NSO copy). The regular fee will apply for succeeding copies.

The requested document will be released after three working days from filing of application.

Present at the cutting of the ceremonial ribbon to open the Palayan City OSSCO are Mayor Adrianne Mae Cuevas, Nueva Ecija Gov. Czarina Umali, former governor Aurelio Umali, POEA Administrator Bernard Olalia, and Alloy MTG Group Director engineer Isaac David.

PALAyAN City, Nueva ejica’s capital, is shedding its image as a sleepy backwater into becoming one of the most progressive cities in Central Luzon.

It aims to be the business process outsourcing and information technology capital of Nueva ecija, as well as the center for multiple government services that assist all constituents of the province.

Built by the Malayisan infrastructure conglomerate Alloy MTD, the new Palayan City Business hub has begun operations, and recently inaugurated the Philippine Overseas employment Administration’s One Stop Shop for Overseas Filipino Workers or OSSCO. The Government Center is part of

the P1.5-billion Palayan City Business hub. It also includes a business process outsourcing center and a 75room hotel.

Under the Palayan City OSSCO, 14 government agencies are all under one roof, ready to service OFWs, Mayor Adrianne Mae Cuevas said.

It is designed with full air-conditioned facilities, Wi-Fi services, and enough seating capacity so that OFWs will have all the comfort as they process their documents.

Migrant workers in Northern and Central Luzon can now do their paper work at the OSSCO instead of travelling to Manila. It can accommodate as much 350 people in an air-conditioned environment without them having to wait in long queues.

500 ex-drug users get jobs on MRT line 7 QUeZON City Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte on Wednesday said at least 500 former drug dependents have been provided with work at the ongoing construction of the Metro Rail Transit line 7.

More former drug personalities who surrendered and completely recovered are now being processed by the city government for other job and livelihood opportunities, she said.

“We’re quite proud of them because they persevered to change their ways. And this is what we have been trying to prove—all people indeed deserve a second chance,” she added.

The former drug users were hired through an agreement signed between the Quezon City Anti-Drug Abuse Advisory Council, which Belmonte ichairs, and the conglomer-

ate San Miguel Corp.

SMC through its subsidiary Universal LRT Corp. BVI was chosen by the Department of Transportation to build the 22.8-kilometer, P62.7-billion MRT line 7 project to take at least three years to finish.

The 500 ex-drug dependents were among the 2,000 drug surrenderers who completed the community-based drug rehabilitation program of the QC anti-drug council and were subsequently taken out of the drug watch lists, the vice mayor said.

“We are really thankful to the private sector.

They are really supportive,” she said.

About 16,000 have surrendered to QCADAAC and the Quezon City Police District through the Oplan Tokhang of the Philippine National Police. Rio N. Araja

Former beauty queen Imelda Schweighart is flanked by her mother Beth Bautista and lawyer Stephen Guerrero as she presents her complaint at the PNP IAS headquarters in Quezon City (See story at ‘In Brief’).

Life

bernadette Lunas, Issue Editor manilastandardlife@gmail.com @manilastandardlife

household

@MstandardLIfe thursday, february 22, 2018

C1

Factors to consider in choosing a

condo unit

LUCKY LOCATION. Greenhills in San Juan City, where One Wilson Square rises, is identified by feng shui practitioners as the belly of the dragon.

A

shift in lifestyle choices and the increasing number of real estate developments are driving the trend towards vertical living. People, especially those working in the metro, opt to live in condominium units for their accessibility and amenities. there are several factors to consider in choosing a condo. But if you want to live harmoniously, considering feng shui principles can help guide you before making the final decision.

Feng shui, which means “wind-water,” helps in achieving harmony between energy and space within a given environment. it also offers a sensible and practical way of creating nurturing spaces that make you feel good and inspired.

Keep these insights in mind while exploring your condo options.

Mind the site. for feng shui practitioners, one of the most auspicious sites for a residential building is within the “belly of the dragon.” it is a place that’s higher than plains but below strong winds, striking a balance between wind and water. symbolically, the belly is considered the center of the dragon—a place of sustenance and nourishment. People living in the area are in the good position to prosper, accumulate wealth, and attract luck.

Check the unit. A unit located on the higher level is highly associated with good fortune because you get a lighter energy when there are fewer condo units encumbering your space. Also, natural light is more available on top floors, bringing more positive energy. ideally, go for units that are shaped regularly and evoke balance. hallways and elevators should be wide enough and obstruction-free as these are considered internal gateways of energy.

Feel the flow. Feng shui stresses the importance of organizing spaces

Where can your 1000 pesos

take you?

finAnciAl experts have long observed that filipinos often overlook the need to save and invest. Most of us rely on active income for daily expenses, bills, other necessities, recreation, and impulse buys.

But what if you had an extra 1000peso bill every month? how would you use it? Where would you spend it? for a new tube of lipstick, perhaps? Or, maybe, for a dinner with friend at a sought-after ramen house?

Why not invest it? there is huge benefit to saving up, especially for the proverbial rainy days. But more traditional means such as bank deposits are not the only ways to make your money grow. investing is a way to help you grow your money, making it generate what is called passive in-

BDO’s executive vice president and head of trust and investments Group. “the key is finding the right investment that you are comfortable with and equally important is to find the right partner who can guide you in making the right decisions.” in its mission to help filipinos find ways to fulfill their dreams, BDO has launched a financial program that makes investing easier, and more accessible. the BDO’s Easy investment Plan provides solutions to concerns of the common investor such as affordability and finding the right investment as there are options from several types of Uitfs that are suitable to different investment time horizons. the EiP is a good way for beginners to test

Hallways should be wide and obstruction-free as these are considered internal gateways of energy

so that positive energy flows and circulates. space should be properly divided but sans barriers that restrict the stream of energy. Open, uncluttered areas are endorsed because cramped corners trap stagnant energy which begets negativity and malaise as it prevents life to flow freely.

One property that thoughtfully planned every space is One Wilson square by federal land inc., one of the country’s prime real estate developers.

Rising in Greenhills, san Juan city, identified by feng shui practitioners as the belly of the dragon, One Wilson square is close to the intersection of

Edsa and Ortigas. its strategic location brings residents minutes away from top-notch schools as well as Greenhills’ shops, restaurants, and entertainment hubs. located at the corner of Ortigas and Wilson streets, it provides easy access to Quezon city, Manila, Mandaluyong, Makati and the Pasig areas.

Every unit in One Willson square has a deck that opens up to the horizon. this residence also features amenities for every facet of life—there’s a space for families’ relaxation, fitness, gatherings, spaces for business, and a patch of green to commune and reflect.

Feng shui stresses the importance of properly dividing spaces without barriers to let positive energy flow and circulate freely.

There are several investment tools that suit a person’s current financial condition

come, through interest or assets that increase in value. this means that your money is working for you in the long-term and in safeguarding your future. there are several investment tools to consider, including stocks, bonds, and Unit investment trust funds or more popularly known as Uitfs. to find out which type of investment suits you, it is important to take stock of your current financial condition to gauge how much liquidity you have on hand, how much risk you are willing to take and how long you can afford to stay invested to generate returns. if you’re just starting to build your wealth through investments, you can even start small, with as little as P1,000 per month. “smart investing is a way to increase your opportunities for financial growth and security. smart investing creates bigger wealth over longer periods of time,” says Ador Abrogena,

the waters as it starts with affordable investment amounts as small as P1,000 per month. these investments are entrusted to the capable hands of professional fund managers employing the best, tried and tested investment principles and who keep constant watch over these funds. it is offered with the ease and convenience of being linked to your BDO savings account for investment, at the time and frequency of your choosing with no extra effort on your part. You can also withdraw your contributions anytime without penalty 30 days after it has reached the regular minimum investment amount of the particular fund. there are a number BDO Uitf options available through the BDO EiP, including short to medium and longterm investment options for different types such as money market, bond, and equity funds in both Philippine peso and Us dollars.

Life

C2

thursday, february 22, 2018 manilastandardlife@gmail.com

7 appliances

that could help you live a healthy life ImProVIng your life at home could be a challenging endeavor, hence it pays to have the right partner, and in this case, the right appliances that provide the solutions you need.

Eat home-cooked meals

Binibining Pilipinas 2018 candidate Sarah Margarette Joson and AXA chief of Retail Propositions Alok Roongta (left) and AXA Philippines chief of Commercial Business Ninoy Rollan and Michele Gumabao (right)

Beauty and financial

T

literacy

o EnSurE that they are not only confidently beautiful, but confidently literate in finance as well, 40 Binibining Pilipinas 2018 candidates recently attended a brief financial literacy talk at AXA Philippines.

The candidates were warmly welcomed by top executives of AXA Philippines during a courtesy call at the corporate offices of the leading global insurer and its non-life insurance subsidiary, Charter Ping An. AXA Philippines chief of retail Propositions Alok roongta, chief of

Rastelli

Commercial Business ninoy rollan, Charter Ping An director robert yu, head of Partnership Emmanuel Que, and head of Commercial underwriting Edwin Salvan greeted the candidates, which included michele gumabao, Sarah margarette Joson, Karen gallman, Henna Kaizelle Cajandig, Stephanie

Joy Abellanida, Angelica Corbe, and Ena Velasco, among others.

The highlight of the event was the awarding of insurance coverage certificates to the candidates, who now enjoy full personal accident, medical reimbursement, and travel insurance benefits, be it here or abroad.

For 10 years now, Charter Ping An has been the official insurance provider of the prestigious beauty pageant, providing the contestants full personal accident insurance coverage for the duration of the competition.

Sauté or sear in high and low temperature with Philips Electric Pressure Cooker, whose easy to control cooking progress lets you cook all kinds of food with different settings.

Its easy-to-clean detachable inner lid design allows you to pressure cook with various direct menu buttons (Soup, risotto, rice, Steam, meat/ Poultry, and manual) Create a healthy pasta using Philips Avance noodle maker, which lets you create your own authentic and healthy noodles with all kinds of fresh ingredients. or make a nutrient-rich smoothie using Philips Avance Collection Blender, whose powerful motor can handle just about anything— from fruits and vegetables to ice.

Look presentable

Ditch that cheap razor which only gives you unclean shave and a few skin bumps for a Philips Aquatouch Wet and Dry Electric Shaver which glides smoothly over the curves of your face.

Try out a new look using Philips 9-in-1 Face, Hair and Body Trimmer that has nine tools to trim and style your facial hair, clip your mane, and groom your body. It has self-sharpening blades with a battery life of up to 70 minutes.

Philips Electric Pressure Cooker

Philips Aquatouch Wet and Dry Electric Shaver

Philips 9-in-1 Face, Hair and Body Trimmer

Philips Avance Collection Blender

Care for your clothes

It is true that the way your outfit looks says a lot about the way you live your life. make sure you always have crisp clothes in the closet using Philips EasyTouch Plus garment steamer, whose large steam plate lets you steam more efficiently.

For garments that you can and prefer to iron, use Philips PerfectCare Azur that comes with optimalTEmP Technology that combines steam and temperature for faster ironing.

Philips Avance Noodle Maker

De Adorno

XSEED’s educational program ensures that children develop critical and analytical thinking

Designery

Schema

Perch Interior Furnishing

La Maison

Exceeding the traditional way of teaching

Different home furnishing brands under one roof roBInS Design Center, a go-to hub for home and architecture needs in Pasig City, introduces several design brands and showrooms featuring unique finishing materials and latest trends in home decors.

Rastelli offers a wide range of kitchen and wardrobe accessories that will add a touch of class to the kitchen.

De Adorno is known for simplicity, function, and appeal, a fine furniture manufacturer and interior design company that hails from Pampanga.

Designery showcases customized

wallpaper, canvas, stickers, and decorative panels that add a dramatic focal point to your wall decor.

Harver Hill offers chic accessories for the home, entertaining, dining, as well as art and design.

La Europa Ceramica is a leading importer of European and Asian floor and wall tiles and a direct distributor of ToTo sanitary wares and accessories.

La Maison houses high-end home finishing decor pieces.

Perch Interior Furnishing is a trusted local supplier of high quality, made-

to-order furniture and imported modern-classic and contemporary furniture.

Schema brings the art of metal weaving in a beautiful and innovative collection.

Spectrum by Larry’s houses quality products like fabrics that can completely change a room’s aesthetic.

Robins Design Center is located at #31 Meralco Avenue, Pasig City across the Ayala Malls the 30th. Contact them at (02) 696-5952 or visit www.robinsdesigncenter.com for more details.

gloBAlly, students need to become more adept to thrive in the 21st century workplace. Jobs are now demanding, aside from knowledge, problem solving, critical thinking, and communication skills.

Fortunately, this demand is being met with a more innovative approach to education.

Since 2016, XSEED, an education and technology company with headquarters in Singapore, has been helping educators in the Philippines shift their teaching methods with a comprehensive teaching and learning program. In 2017, it saw exponential growth with 30 primary schools in luzon adopting the XSEED program.

XSEED’s unique “Five Step learning Process” ensures that children develop critical and analytical thinking skills by replacing traditional “chalk and talk” teaching methods. The program comprises over 10,000 comprehensive, researched teaching plans to help XSEED-trained teachers uncover and share each concept, step-by-step.

The said teaching plans guide teachers on how to teach each concept—setting a clear aim aligned with a learning outcome, conducting an activity, analyzing the experience, applying it in everyday life, and finally assessing what children have learned.

Schools adopting the XSEED method see marked improvements in problemsolving, creativity, collaboration, and communication in English. A 2014

study showed that XSEED children outperformed their peers in non-XSEED schools by up to 20 percent on an average across grades and even more on items requiring mastery of higher-order inference and reasoning skills.

The program benefits the children by enhancing curiosity, confidence, and thinking skills—the very skills they need to excel in the 21st century. recently, educators and school administrators from around the country attended an XSEED forum to gain a deeper understanding of the program.

The group learned about the impact of the program in over 3,000 schools across eight countries in South and Southeast Asia and the middle East.

“We wanted to introduce XSEED to more educators in the country who are also seeking to dramatically improve the quality of teaching and learning in their classrooms,” said XSEED Education founder and chairman Ashish rajpal.

He added, “We believe that they will see the intrinsic value of the program for their students, and are confident that with this program we can help Filipino students become more prepared for all of their future opportunities.” over one million children learn through the XSEED method, through more than 75,000 re-skilled teachers.

With an increasingly global footprint, XSEED has gained a reputation as one of the exciting new international education companies today.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018

C3

nickie.standard@gmail.com

Simply Red...

From C4

From left: GMA Network SVP for News & Public Affairs Marissa Flores, President & COO Gilberto Duavit, Jr., GMA News Pillar & RGMA President Mike Enriquez, Chairman & CEO Felipe Gozon, and EVP & CFO Felipe Yalong

MIKE ENRIQUEZ renews ties with GMA Network

M

ULTI-AWARDED news anchor and radio host Mike Enriquez is looking forward to more years of ‘Serbisyong Totoo’ after renewing his contract with GMA Network on Feb 13.

Present during the contract signing were GMA Network Chairman and CEO Felipe L. Gozon, President and COO Gilberto R. Duavit, Jr., EVP and CFO Felipe S. Yalong, and SVP for News and Public Affairs Marissa L. Flores.

Enriquez, who is also the president of RGMA Network, shared how he still looks forward to working with the leading broadcast company in the coming years.

“Tuloy-tuloy lang ang pagbibigay ng Serbisyong Totoo lalo na sa panahon ngayon na marami pang mga pagbabago na magaganap sa GMA. Kaya exciting na nakapirma na naman tayo ng kontrata dahil marami pa tayong proyektong gagawin,” he said.

GMA’s top management, in turn,

Secrets...

From C4

Young and newly married, the two had to ask the late Pasay City Mayor Pablo Cuneta and wife Elaine, the sister of Helen, to accompany them and explain their decision to her parents.

“They were so mad at me. Right after the wedding, that was the only time I was allowed to visit her, to formally court her. I would visit her three times a week. We didn’t stay in the same house until our January 1971 wedding, which was 14 months after our Batangas nuptial.”

Sotto said that for 49 years, the love and dedication he has for Gamboa never faltered. He said that his wife’s happiness is always above everything else.

But just like any relationship, theirs also had its ups and downs. He said it takes hard work to have a long-lasting marriage and that they never to go to sleep with unresolved issues between them.

The senator also said it pays to listen and to know when to compromise.

“Always go for the give and take, but it’s better if the man will be more understanding than the woman because they go through different phases in their lives. Things change when they get

recognized Enriquez’ unmatched competence, both in his work as a broadcast journalist and as an executive in the Network.

“Si Mike, if I recall correctly, siya na ang pinakamatagal na TV newscaster dito,” Gozon shared. “Palagay natin dito sa GMA ay siya na ang pinakamagaling na TV newscaster at radio anchor. Ang pinaka importante sa lahat, ang integrity at fairness ni Mike whether on cam or off cam, ay unquestionable,” he added.

Enriquez, who is the only Asian and only Filipino so far to win the Best Newscaster Award in the Asian Television Awards, coanchors GMA’s flagship news program, 24 Oras, and hosts the investigative public affairs program Imbestigador. He is also

pregnant and start having kids. Men should always support and give leeway to women.”

Sotto believes that “a happy wife is a happy life”. “I try my best to make her happy. She takes care of me but it has always been about her. If she’s happy, then I’m happy. She’s my everything.

In my 69 years, we are together for 49 years. She is my life.”

Aside from their love and devotion toward each other, the television host/ politician also regards their Catholic faith for the success of their marriage.

He said having God in the center of their relationship not only strengthened them as a couple, but also stirred their family to the rightful direction.

He also recognized his wife’s patience, love, dedication and understanding. He said Gamboa is not just a good actress, but also the best homemaker. “They ask me how I balance things? I don’t.

I weave them together. I don’t go out at night. I make sure to have breakfast and dinner at home. But more than that, it’s all because of Helen. She’s the glue holding us together.”

The Senator said his marriage to Gamboa is comparable to her classic dish, Sinigang na Baka.

“Kumpleto! May gulay, may sabaw at may beef. Masarap at puwede pang maanghang. All the elements are there for a good food, just like my marriage,” he ended.

CROSSWORD PUZZLE Thursday, February 22, 2018

ACROSS 1 Pouches 5 Work clothes 10 Tiny room 14 Break ground 15 Not edited 16 Tune for a diva 17 Munitions 18 Devoutness 19 “Kon- —” 20 Gossipy paper 22 Made slower 24 Bad tennis serve 25 Ms. Lupino 26 Stuck 30 Of no value 34 Rust component 35 Use the oven 37 Minstrel’s instrument 38 Barnyard animal 39 “That’s obvious!”

40 Checkbook amt.

41 Was very thrifty 43 Stodgy one 45 Metal thread 46 Sombrero gowiths 48 Bacon servings 50 Alphabet ender 51 1960s Chairman 52 Tacks on 56 Unrumples 60 Pore over a

book 61 Soak in the tub 63 Bard or minstrel 64 Jurist — Warren 65 Inner fire 66 International money 67 Contrived 68 Central points 69 Plummet DOWN 1 Falling-out 2 Soprano — Gluck 3 Item for a barber 4 High, as a river 5 Mars neighbor 6 Tennyson heroine 7 Playing card 8 Kooks 9 Salon employee 10 Jeer 11 Mr. Satie 12 Admire 13 Reclined 21 Above, to a bard 23 Fruit cooler 26 Buenos —, Argentina 27 Elizabethan buccaneer 28 “Iliad” writer 29 Extinct birds 30 Groom’s attendant

31 Pianist — Blake 32 Brenda of old comics 33 Competitor of Graf and Hingis 36 Leo mo.

42 As if in a trance 43 Horse’s “lunchbox” 44 Complains peevishly 45 Yelled 47 Kind of pal 49 — Tome 52 Linoleum

measurement 53 Fruit tree 54 Auditioner’s aim 55 Indian garment 56 Basketball throw 57 Sightseeing trip 58 The good guy 59 Layover 62 Six-pointers

heard on Super Radyo DZBB’s programs – Saksi sa Dobol B, Super Balita sa Umaga Nationwide, and Imbestigador sa DZBB. Enriquez has been constantly recognized for his work by various awardgiving bodies. Some of his recent awards include the Most Innovative Male TV Newscaster at the 3rd Global Innovative College (GIC) Innovation Awards for Television; Best AM Radio Anchor at the 7th People Management Association of the Philippines (PMAP) Makatao Awards for Media Excellence; and Best Male Anchor at the 7th EdukCircle Awards. Enriquez is also an Anak TV Makabata Hall of Famer, having been voted as Makabata Star in a span of seven years.

Loisa Andalio and Ronnie Alonte

The Kapuso Network reigned supreme across all day parts in NUTAM. In the morning block, GMA recorded a 42.3 percent people audience share versus ABS-CBN’s 35.4 percent.

GMA’s afternoon line-up, which garnered 47.3 percent, was way ahead of rival network’s 36.8 percent.

Continuing well into the evening block, the Network maintained a leading share of 41.5 percent as against competition’s 41.2 percent.

The Kapuso Network similarly dominated all time blocks with bigger margins in both Urban Luzon and Mega Manila, which respectively account for 76 and 59 percent of all urban viewers in the country.

In Urban Luzon, GMA registered a total day people audience share of 49.2 percent, besting ABS-CBN’s 32 percent.

Likewise in Mega Manila (with official data from Jan. 1 to 20), the Kapuso Network upheld its strong showing with 51.9 percent total day people audience share while ABSCBN only managed to get 28.5 percent.

Well, ABS-CBN has a different story altogether. And its ratings provider seems to be giving the network different figures allowing the network to claim leadership as well. *** A new love team is making Kapamilya audience thrills as teen stars Loisa Andalio and Ronnie Alonte teach viewers the importance of humility and sacrifice in “Wansapanataym Presents: Gelli in a Bottle (Sunday nights, 6:30 p.m.).

Gelli (Loisa), a young lady often ridiculed for her physical appearance finds a way to make herself beautiful through a genie who she summons from a magical bottle.

However, not content with having only three wishes, Gelli wishes to be as powerful as the genie so she could have all her desires as she pleases.

Her wish of becoming powerful gets granted, but to her surprise, she gets locked inside the magical bottle and can only escape once a person wishes for her freedom --- just like a genie.

With the spell cast on her, she meets Robin (Ronnie), a young man who luckily finds the magical bottle along the street. Believing that he is the person who will set her free, Gelli demands Robin to spend his last wish on her to bring her back to normal. But her inherent selfishness makes Robin mad, pushing him to resist Gelli’s plea.

This is an interesting drama that should make young ambitious women think twice before wishing anything for their own selfish gains. *** ABS-CBN Corporation, the Philippines’ largest media and entertainment network, has named Olivia de Jesus the new Chief Operating Officer (COO) of ABS-CBN Global Ltd., the organization that oversees all international subsidiaries of ABS-CBN and manages its global flagship brand, TFC (The Filipino Channel).

De Jesus takes over her position from Rafael Lopez who has retired. Lopez will continue to be engaged by

Miguel Tanfelix and Bianca Umali

the company as Executive Adviser to the President and CEO of ABS-CBN Corporation.

As COO, De Jesus will provide the leadership and vision necessary to grow the Global business. She will drive strategy formulation and establish initiatives to expand the company’s product lines and markets. She will effectively manage the company’s regional business operations, product management, content creation, support functions and corporate services to ensure that financial strength and operating efficiencies are achieved.

Prior to her appointment, De Jesus held a variety of positions of increasing responsibility in ABS-CBN. As Managing Director of North America since 2007, De Jesus effectively managed a diverse content, experience and service portfolio, making the region the consistent dominant contributor to ABS-CBN Global’s consolidated growth. Under her leadership, crossfunctional teams launched successful initiatives that have been adopted globalwide such as TFC@theMovies, One Kapamilya Go event, Lifestyle Network Global, Myx TV, Adobo Nation among others. These led to new revenue streams, garnered industry awards and solidified ABS-CBN‘s position as a leading and thriving global brand.

Most recently, De Jesus also spearheaded the development of innovative content for the emerging global Filipino millennial market through projects such as TFCU Talks, the reality travel show, Discovering Routes, and the very successful 1st Cinematografo International Film Festival in San Francisco.

Since joining ABS-CBN in 1996, De Jesus has held other positions such as director for marketing communications at the international division, head of Manila operations at ABS-CBN Global, managing director at Creative Programs Inc. and global head of Content Strategy.

Prior to joining ABS-CBN, De Jesus was an award-winning senior creative at McCann-Erickson and Saatchi & Saatchi in the Philippines.

De Jesus has been very active in the community as managing director of ABS-CBN North America. She served as board director and treasurer for the Asian American Advertising Federation (3AF) from 2008 to 2011. She was named among the Filipina Women’s Network’s (FWN) 100 Most Influential Filipinas in the U.S. in 2012. She still serves as Vice Chairman of the Board for ABS-CBN Foundation International, the non-profit philanthropic arm of ABS-CBN. De Jesus completed an Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School in 2015. She graduated at the University of the Philippines, Diliman with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication.

Nickie Wang, Issue Editor nickie.standard@gmail.com

C4

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2018

Secrets to an enduring marriage Sweet looking Atasha is a beauty queen in the making, a future Miss Universe maybe.

Tito Sotto and Helen Gamboa are celebrating 49 years of strong marriage.

OFTENTIMES, people think it is difficult to maintain a happy and lasting relationship in show business and politics because of the long work hours and the demands of their jobs.

But Senator Vicente “Tito” Sotto is one living proof that it is possible to have a successful career and family life.

Sotto and wife, seasoned actress Helen Gamboa, will celebrate their 49th wedding anniversary in September.

The Eat, Bulaga! host said that it does not feel like they’ve been together for almost five decades.

“We still laugh together, we enjoy doing things together and I think we are both aging pretty well. God gave me a special gift in Helen,” the senator said.

Sotto and Gamboa’s love story started in 1967. She was a beauty queen and a movie star while he was a recording artist and record producer.

During that time, Sotto and his band were tapped by a movie director to appear in one of Gamboa’s big screen projects. He said upon meeting her, it was love at first sight. “Low batt agad ako. I knew then and there that I want to be with her.”

But there was a problem. Brought up by strict parents, the young Gamboa was not allowed to date anyone or even accept suitors. Sotto persisted and even made up stories just to visit her on the set of her movie or at home.

“She was very difficult to court because her mom was always with her. Sometimes I’ll pretend that she had to record a song just to talk to her.

I courted her secretly and it took us more than a year to finally have mutual understanding,” he said.

In September 1969, the couple decided to elope. The plan was to get married in secret in Sto. Tomas, Batangas then return Gamboa to her family home before the crack of dawn. But because of a sick judge and a late night surprise visit to a church, they weren’t able to get back to Manila in time. Continued on C3

With his boy-next-door looks and apparent interest in basketball, people think Andres can be a matinee idol just like his dad.

Are the MUHLACH TWINS ready for showbiz?

Jollibee and the Muhlach family doing the “isa pa, isa pang Chickenjoy” dance.

By Nickie Wang

O

NE of the perks of being Aga Muhlach and Charlene Gonzales’s children, apart from becoming famous without exerting too much effort, is that you skip those awkward teenage years and go straight to looking camera ready almost all the time.

This, we have observed when Andres and Atasha joined their parents in an event held over the weekend.

Already armed with good genes and a healthy network, we wonder if the 16-year-old twins are ready, or would be interested in following in their parents’ footsteps.

“I’m not sure yet. But I do enjoy doing commercials at the moment,” the tall and dashing Andres told the press during the Jollibee Chickenjoy event.

It’s easy to understand the lad’s response as according to Charlene, showbiz has never been discussed within their household.

“Right now I’m more focused on my studies because I made a commitment to myself and to my parents that I would finish school first,” the young Muhlach added.

For Atasha, on the other hand, if she would be given a chance, she’s willing to dip her toes into acting one day. But just like her twin brother, she wants to finish her studies before deciding whether she’d give showbiz a try or not.

“Whatever happens, we want to finish school first. Maybe I can try acting in

Network war rages on, Kapuso claims victory in January

the future,” Atasha chimed.

The twins’ response only brought smiles on Aga and Charlene’s faces as they confirmed that their children made a promise to them about prioritizing their education above anything else.

“I’m not going to stop them if they want to be in showbiz, I will just let them decide on their own. But for now, it’s our call,” Aga asserted.

During the Jollibee event, Atasha and Andres shared the limelight with their famous parents talking about their fondest Jollibee memories as children.

Couple Aga and Charlene, on the other hand, shared their experience as Jollibee endorsers as they talked about their bonding moments as a family, too.

The event also witnessed how glad the Muhlachs to talk about the latest Chickenjoy TV commercial, which brings another side of their family to the fore. In the ad, which started airing in January, Aga reminisces key moments in his life as he remembers how the fast food chain product has been a huge part of their family bonding moments through the years.

Strong Philippine Cinema delegation at 68th Berlinale SUPPORTED by the Film Development Council of the Philippines, Filipino filmmakers and films are wellrepresented this year at the Berlin International Film Festival with films in competition and filmmakers participating in the Berlinale Talents and Co-Production Market.

Lav Diaz’s Ang Panahon ng Halimaw (Season of the Devil) is an official entry to the Main Competition while Babylon directed by Keith Deligro is competing at Berlinale Shorts.

Manila Scream Expanded by Roxlee is also featured at the Forum Expanded Section. Meanwhile, four participants are at Berlinale Talents - Pam Reyes, Anthony Falcon, McRonald Nacario, and Leeroy Lee. Bradley Liew and Bianca Balbuena’s Motel Acacia is also featured at the Co-Production Market.

“Once again, Philippine cinema is recognized and represented at this prestigious Festival. It makes us proud that the efforts and talents of our filmmakers are affirmed by the international audience,” said Chairperson and CEO Liza Dino.

Director Lav Diaz, winner of Silver Bear Alfred Bauer prize at the 2016 Berlinale, comes back with a 234-minute film, this time, a Filipino Rock Opera that shows the life in a remote village in the Philippines during the Martial Law. Director Keith Deligero’s, Babylon is a 20-minute short film about two young girls who travel through time to assassinate a small town dictator to revise history but ended up with a weird mixed-up adventure with a talking chicken, a videoke machine from the future, a set of violent triplets and prank calls from the ‘90s.

Meanwhile, Manila Scream Expanded combines recent short films by Philippine underground filmmakers Roxlee, Manila Scream, Yours Trolley, and Slicing Art. The film and its maker and protagonist take us on an idiosyncratic journey through the streets of Manila. It is set to screen today and on Feb. 23.

FDCP will be hosting the Philippine Night in Berlin tomorrow in celebration of the Filipino delegates and as opportunity to interact and network with international film commissions, festival programmers, and distributors.

The 68th Berlin International Film Festival runs until Feb. 25 in Germany.

ISAH V. RED

'My Korean jagiya,' which stars Heart Evangelista (center) was one of the top-rating Kapuso shows in January.

SO THE ratings war between the Kapuso and Kapamilya networks is a never-ending story with each of them claiming leadership, but of course each claim is based on each other’s favored survey entity.

In January, GMA Network claimed triumph as it said, based on Nielsen TV Audience Measurement, it posted a strong start for 2018 in the nationwide television ratings competition securing the top spot anew.

For the full month of January (with Jan.21 to 31 based on overnight data), GMA registered winning numbers in the National Urban Television Audience Measurement (NUTAM) with an average of 43.7 percent total day people audience share, beating ABS-CBN’s 38.6 percent.

Continued on C3

From left: Direk Bradley Liew, FDCP Chairperson and CEO Liza Diño, Joel Saracho, awardwinning Producer Bianca Balbuena and DMs Boongaling at the Berlinale.