Manila Standard - 2018 March 14 - Wednesday

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VOL. XXXII • NO. 31 • 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P18 • WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14, 2018 • www.manilastandard.net • editorial@manilastandard.net

CRASH VICTIM. Members of the Iranian Red Crescent carry a casket with the body of a victim of a Turkish plane that crashed a day earlier in Shahre Kord in southwestern Iran. All 11 people on board the private plane died in the incident, following the crash in the Zagros Mountains during a flight from Sharjah to Istanbul. AFP

Amazon tocrash: prevent Choppers 11 Alexainfrom killed Iran,cackling 5 in NY TEHRAN—Eleven women died when a private plane crashed in Iran while flying the daughter of a prominent Turkish businessman and her friends home from a bachelorette party, officials and media reports said.

Meanwhile, in New York, five people have died after a helicopter owned by a tour group plunged into Manhattan’s East River.

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Du30’s palit ulo: Aguirre in place of Kerwin, Lim

By Rey E. Requejo, Macon Ramos-Araneta and Vito Barcelo PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has threatened to put Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II behind bars if selfconfessed drug lord Kerwin Espinosa and Cebunao businessman Peter Lim

are able to escape after the drug charges against them were dropped.

In a series of tweets while the Joint Command Conference in Malacañang was ongoing Tuesday night, Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque described how Duterte gave Aguirre the dressing down as he vowed to automatically review the dismissal order.

“PRRD to SOJ: Pag nakawala yan si Lim at Espinosa, sya ang ipapalit ko (PRRD to Secretary of Justice: If Lim and Espinosa escape, you will replace them),” Roque said on his Twitter account.

“PRRD: I will invoke my power of supervision and control and will review dismissal.”

Roque said Aguirre informed the President that he has just formed a new investigation panel to review the case.

Earlier in the day, Aguirre said Lim and Espinosa are not yet off the hook despite the dismissal of drug charges filed by the Philippine National PoliceCriminal Investigation and Detection Next page Group.

House divided over CJ Justice panel sues for time to fine-tune impeachment

By Maricel V. Cruz and Rey E. Requejo

T

HE House committee on justice will be unable to deliberate on the articles of impeachment against Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno on Wednesday as scheduled because of disagreements over what specific grounds to include in the document.

Amazon to prevent ‘Little black dress’ Alexa from cackling designer passes on, 91 PARIS—Hubert de Givenchy, the aristocratic French fashion designer famous for the “little black dress” and styling Audrey Hepburn and Jackie Kennedy, has died aged 91, his partner said Monday.

Givenchy set the template for ladylike chic in the 1950s and 1960s, dressing everyone from Princess Grace of Monaco to Jane Fonda.

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‘‘

(The Department of Justice prosecutors) absolved everybody.

It appears that we should change our lawyers.

—Senator Richard Gordon, following the dismissal of the drug charges against Cebuano businessman Peter Lim and self-confessed drug lord Kerwin Espinosa

“We have yet to finish the articles of impeachment because there are some disagreements on how many grounds we will include,” said panel chairman and Oriental Mindoro Rep. Reynaldo Umali. “The whole idea is to present it as comprehensive.”

The House justice panel was supposed to meet today (Wednesday) to approve the committee report on the finding of probable cause to unseat Sereno, as well as the articles of impeachment.

But Umali said the committee would need more time to come up with a “comprehensive” impeachment document that will support their findings that they indeed have a “very strong case” against Sereno.

He said the adoption of the committee Next page

DRONE SYSTEM. An unidentified military chaplain blesses ScanEagle Unmanned Aerial Vehicles during the turnover ceremonies Tuesday at the military air base in Manila. The United States on Tuesday gave the Philippines its first drone system which would help fight militants in strife-torn Mindanao as the allies hailed their ‘strong relations.’ AFP

PAF receives six US drones, beefs up anti-terror assets THE United States gave the Philippine air force on Tuesday its first surveillance drone system, as the two nations step up cooperation in the battle against jihadist militants.

Washington has been boosting its backing for Philippine counter-terror efforts since Islamic State supporters seized parts of the southern city of Marawi last year, sparking a deadly fivemonth battle.

The unmanned aerial vehicle system worth $13.2 million, including six drones, turned over to Philippine troops was the latest US military assistance.

“Assets like the ScanEagle will signifi-

cantly improve the [Philippine military’s] ability to detect terrorist activities, piracy activities, territory encroachment,” US Ambassador to Manila Sung Kim told reporters, referring to the drones.

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said the system, equipped with cameras and aircraft that can fly for 24 hours, would support operations against militants in the south.

The southern region of Mindanao is home to several pro-IS groups, including those that attacked Marawi in May last year in fighting that claimed more than 1,100 lives and reduced large parts of the city to rubble.

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Mass vaccination flawed, US scientist tells senators

By Macon Ramos-Araneta A US-BASED expert on dengue research said Tuesday he was “astonished and upset” with the mass vaccination program that administered the antidengue vaccine Dengvaxia to 800,000 children.

Dr. Scott Halstead, who served as senior advisor to the International Vaccine Institute of Seoul, South Korea, told the Senate hearing on the Dengvaxia controversy that he earlier recommended that blood tests should be done before the dengue vaccine was given.

He said patients should have been tested before administering Dengvaxia to exclude seronegatives, or those who had not been infected with dengue before.

“I made a suggestion that before Dengvaxia was given to everybody, there should be test. Everybody said ‘Ha ha ha’ that is impossible, nobody haas done that before.’ But I am sorry, that’s not ‘ha ha ha’, that’s possible,” the scientist told the Senate Blue Ribbon committee hearing Tuesday.

He also disclosed having a dialogue with Sanofi, the maker of Dengvaxia, to establish if the vaccine was safe for seronegatives.

“It was logical that they conduct a test and that test allowed them to separate the children who were seropositive and seronegative,” Halstead said.

Halstead said he nearly fell off his chair when Sanofi proposed that the vaccine only be given to those aged 9 Next page

DENGVAXIA FIASCO. Dr. Scott Halstead (right) of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland, Public Attorneys Office chief Persida RuedaAcosta and PAO Forensic Laboratory head Dr. Erwin Erfe testify before the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee hearing Tuesday on the Dengvaxia vaccine fiasco. Ey Acasio

Comelec girds for village, SK polls in May

By Joel E. Zurbano, Macon Ramos-Araneta and Rio N. Araja THE Commission on Elections said Tuesday it will continue its preparations to hold the Village and Youth Council elections on May 14 despite the move by the House of Representatives to postpone it.

The House Committee on Suffrage and Electoral Reforms voted 14-2 in favor of the bill postponing the elections in an attempt to give way for the proposed shift to the federal system of government initiated by President Rodrigo Duterte.

“The Comelec is taking this development in stride,” said Comelec spokesman James Arthur Jimenez.

“As with the previous postponements, the Comelec maintains that a law is needed to reschedule the Next page

PH, Kuwait slate labor deal talks

By Rey E. Requejo THE Philippines is hoping to forge a final labor agreement with Kuwait to provide strong guarantees on the safety and welfare of Filipino domestics working there when talks between the two sides resume in Manila this week.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano revealed that an eight-member Kuwaiti delegation will be in Manila from March 15 to 16 to resume negotiations.

“We are looking forward to the conclusion of this bilateral agreement that we hope will be a model document in terms of providing the necessary guarantees to ensure the safety and well-being of our household service workers in Kuwait,” Cayetano said.

This came after Cayetano and Labor and Employment Secretary Silvestre Next page

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WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14, 2018 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Go can’t make heads or tails on Senate run SPECIAL Assistant to the President Christopher “Bong” Go has received the endorsement of Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio for his possible run for the Senate next year.

“I am humbled by the endorsement of our beloved City Mayor Inday Sara.

The Dutertes, the father, the daughter are my inspiration and the example of being a true public servant,” Go said.

However, Duterte’s closest aide maintained it is still too early to talk about politics or his plan to run for an elected position since he’s still undecided.

Nevertheless, he thanked the presidential daughter for the endorsement of his perceived candidacy.

Go said the Dutertes are his inspiration and he is grateful to the President’s daughter for her kind words.

The Davao mayor said she knew Go since she was young and praised the man’s loyalty to the President for whom he worked for decades.

Aiza Seguerra quits NYC post

By Vito Barcelo FORMER child actor Aiza Seguerra has resigned as head of the National Youth Commission citing “a very personal reason,” Malacañang said Tuesday.

Seguerra said he met with President Rodrigo Duterte on March 5 and told him about his desire to quit her post.

Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque said the Office of the Executive Secretary had received Seguerra’s letter.

“I met with our dear President last March 5th to tender my resignation as NYC chairperson,” Seguerra said in a Facebook post.

“I coordinated with his office because I wanted to personally tell him my reason. Knowing how social media can exaggerate or twist the truth, I wanted to make sure that he’s going to hear it from me. He was very understanding and supportive of my decision.”

The former Eat Bulaga host was appointed in August 2016 with a term of three years. He campaigned for President Duterte during the 2016 elections.

Among Seguerra’s advocacies are lowering the number of teenage pregnancies and HIV cases among the youth.

He championed programs such as HIV awareness and youth representation in the government through the Sangguniang Kabataan.

He also opposed the postponement of the Sangguniang Kabataan elections.

PH,...

From A1 Bello III met at the Manila Hotel with foreign affairs and labor officials involved in the negotiations.

Cayetano said the Philippines should go beyond the usual approach in the negotiations with Kuwait, noting that bilateral labor agreements Manila had previously entered into with other countries look good on paper but could not be effectively implemented.

“President Duterte wants this agreement to be different from the other agreements we signed with other countries by making sure that whatever is written there will translate into real, actionable measures that will protect our kababayans from exploitation and abuse,” he added.

Cayetano admitted that the Philippines was earlier able to secure the commitment of Kuwait on several matters, including the minimum monthly salary of KD120.00 (about P20,800); rest hours of at least eight hours per day; possession of their passports and mobile phones; and limiting their work to only one household.

During the Manila Hotel meeting, Cayetano reiterated to the members of the Philippine negotiating panel the need to include more practical measures to make the proposed agreement more implementable.

Among the measures Cayetano earlier said he would want to see in the agreement would be payment of salaries direct to the bank account of Filipino domestic workers whenever feasible and a mechanism that would allow them to file their complaints directly with Kuwaiti authorities.

Cayetano said these measures should be in place before the government lifts the deployment ban that the President declared early this year in the wake of the reported widespread abuses of Filipino domestic workers. Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs Sarah Lou Arriola said the Kuwaiti delegation that will participate in the negotiations would be led by Ambassador Ghanim Saqer AlGhanim, Assistant Minister for Legal Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The other members of the Kuwaiti panel are from the Residence Affairs Department of the Ministry of Interior and the Public Authority for Manpower of the Ministry of Labor.

Post-Duterte, Bangsamoro draft law a goner, says MILF B

ULUAN, Maguindanao―The Bangsamoro Basic Law will be lost after the tenure of President Rodrigo Duterte, Moro Islamic Liberation Front Vice Chairman Ghazzali Jaafar said Tuesday.

“After President Duterte, the BBL is lost,” Jaafar told the House Committees on Muslim Affairs, Peace and Reconciliation and Local Governments represented by Tawi-Tawi Rep. Ruby Sahali, Zajid Mangudadatu (Maguindanao), Leopoldo Bataoil (Pangasinan), Teddy Bagilat (Ifugao) and Jesus Sacdalan (Cotabato).

Jaafar said Duterte had the political will and better understanding of the Bangsamoro question being a “political issue that called for a genuine political solution, which is now the BBL.” Sahali said the hearing here on Thursday was the fifth leg of a series of public consultation hearings on the BBL. The

joint Committees, she said, had conducted 15 prior meetings.

Jaafar found an ally in Bagilat who, despite being an occasional Duterte critic, said the BBL had “better chances of being passed now than in the previous administration.”

He said the employees of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao would be treated fairly in terms of benefits entitlement and preference for rehiring once the region was dissolved and replaced by a Bangsamoro Government.

“The BBL does not say who can be or who cannot be part of this government.

Everybody is welcome,” Jaafar said.

“Neither the struggle nor the BBL belong to me alone, neither does it belong to Murad, nor to Iqbal. They belong to you, the Bangsamoro people.”

Jaafar said the MILF forces were “not tired yet of waging the war in asserting their right to self-determination.”

But he was quick to add that the parties negotiating peace should “strengthen dialogue because dialogue has always been the strength of our forebears.”

He urged the lawmakers to “balance the matter concerning constitutionality with the general interest of achieving a solution to a political problem with the BBL [as the potential solution in sight].

“The BBL is a political solution to a political problem, Jaafar said.

“The people want to assert their right to self-determination. The government has asked for this peace negotiation but there has to be a BBL enacted into law,” Nash B. Maulana

House...

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report and articles of impeachment.

Last week, the committee voted 38-2 to find probable cause for the impeachment complaint.

Sereno on Tuesday lashed out at her critics for insisting that she resign instead of giving her day in court during an impeachment trial.

“The call for me to resign is not founded on reason but only on convenience,” Sereno told students at the University of Negros Occidental Recoletos in Bacolod City.

“Some [of my critics] don’t want to go through the right constitutional process of impeachment because it will hurt them. They want peace. But what is peace if there is no justice?” Sereno said. “Peace is not the absence of conflict; peace is the presence of justice.”

Sereno’s remarks came after judges and court employees called for her resignation during the nationwide “Red Monday’s” flag ceremonies.

Erwin Ocson, president of the SC Employees Association, cited as a grievance the alleged delays in the approval of workers’

promotions and benefits under Sereno’s leadership.

Sereno turned down the groups’ plea for her to make the “supreme sacrifice” of stepping down.

Sereno also said she was “very, very proud” of the judges of Negros Occidental regional trial courts, who said they will remain impartial as she battles ouster attempts.

The Negros Occidental Regional Trial Court Judges Association on Monday called for sobriety and prudence and urged their fellow judges to be non-partisan and allow due process to take its course.

Sereno, who is on indefinite leave, faces impeachment trial before the Senate once the House votes to transmit the impeachment complaint against her for trial.

She also faces a quo warranto petition before the Supreme Court, which seeks her removal on the basis of allegations that she was not qualified for the position when she was appointed in 2012. The Supreme Court has directed her to respond to the petition.

“Suffice it to say that the current status of the case against respondents Peter Lim et al does not mean that it is a final exoneration of their respective criminal liabilities. Under our present procedure in the DOJ, there are possible avenues to review this case, wither by a motion for reconsideration, or ultimately, by way of automatic review by my office,” Aguirre said in a statement.

The Justice secretary added that the complainant even has the option of challenging the DOJ’s resolution through a petition for review before the Court of Appeals, as in ordinary cases as provided by the Rules of Court.

Nonetheless, Aguirre said his office “has no hand nor say” on the resolution by the investigating panel of prosecutors that dismissed all charges against Lim and Espinosa for lack of probable cause.

He declined to tackle the merits of the case, saying it would eventually be the subject of an automatic review that he would resolve.

Under DOJ procedures, the secretary of Justice only decides on criminal charges once the cases are elevated to his office through a petition for review or automatic review in cases of dismissed drug charges.

However, Aguirre admitted that the dismissal of the charges against Lim and Espinosa—whom President Rodrigo Duterte had previously tagged in illegal drug operations in the country—would hurt the administration’s war on drugs.

“This dismissal is a slight bump on the war against drugs. It is likewise a wake-up call to all concerned that our efforts, from apprehension to resolution to conviction must be concerted and thorough,” he said, adding that

many drug cases are dismissed due to bungled investigation by law enforcers.

Aguirre vowed that the DOJ remains “committed to waging the war on drugs” despite the latest setback.

In its resolution dated Dec. 20, 2017 but released only Monday, the DOJ prosecutors faulted the PNP-CIDG for presenting weak evidence and the “inconsistencies” in the testimony of the lone witness, Marcelo Adorco, as reasons for dismissing the charges.

Adorco claimed in his affidavit that Lim had supplied narcotics in “staggering amounts” to Espinosa for more than two years.

But Assistant State Prosecutors Michael John Humarang and Aristotle Reyes held that Adorco’s claims were contrary to the “standards of human experience and the logical course of reality.”

The DOJ also cited as basis the complainant’s “failure to present any circumstantial evidence to prove respondents’ illegal drug transactions.”

Also cleared by the DOJ were inmate Peter Co, Max Miro, Ruel Malindangan, Jun Pepito and Lovely Adam Impal.

Former solicitor general Florin Hilbay said the dismissal of the charges against Lim and Espinosa was proof of the political nature of the war on drugs of the Duterte administration, which he termed as a “fake war.”

He compared the case to the drug case against detained Senator Leila de Lima.

“The DOJ was able to use basic requirements of corpus delicti and the need for credible witnesses in their case, matters that were conveniently dropped by the DOJ in Senator De Lima’s case. The amendment of the charges, the use of disqualified witnesses, dispensing with the need for evidence—these are all signs of political persecution in the case of Senator De Lima,” Hilbay said.

“Friends, allies, useful witnesses are exonerated, while political dissent[er]s are incarcerated on bogus charges,” he said.

The police, meanwhile, have filed an appeal of the DOJ decision, and officials of the CIDG have met with Aguirre regarding the automatic review of the case, said PNP spokesman Chief Supt. John Bulalacao.

“Immediately, the CIDG director met with SOJ Aguirre for the automatic review of the case and now, our investigations and the legal teams of the PNP will identify additional witnesses and are gathering pieces of evidence for the re-filing of the case,” Bulalacao told reporters Tuesday.

“This is just a temporary setback which saddened us just the same. We will pursue this case because we know that this is a major campaign of the government. These people are primary players and high value targets on illegal drugs so we have to find a way to resolve this case, as much as possible, to convict them,” he added.

Senator Richard Gordon, a Duterte ally, said Aguirre must explain why the DOJ dismissed the case.

“If that case is about drugs, Vit Aguirre should explain,” said Gordon, chairman of the Senate Blue Ribbon committee, which investigated Espinosa’s drug case.

“He absolved everybody. It appears that we should change our lawyers,” he added.

Gordon said other senators were also downhearted by the move of the DOJ to clear the drug trafficking case filed by the CIDG last year. He questioned why somebody who confessed to being a drug lord was cleared of drug charges.

Espinosa confessed to distributing drugs in the Eastern Visayan region and even named his alleged suppliers, which included Lim, during the Blue Ribbon hearing in September 2016. With PNA

PAF...

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Comelec...

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These new drones are to be used for reconnaissance missions in defense, humanitarian assistance and disaster response, Lorenzana said.

“With a number of security issues confronting our country today, there is a need to upgrade our nation’s armed forces,” Lorenzana said.

President Rodrigo Duterte had sought to loosen the Philippines’ 70-year alliance with the US in favor of closer ties with China and Russia.

His anger was partly driven by American criticism of his drug war, which has seen police kill thousands of people and prompted an International Criminal Court preliminary examination.

Relations have improved under US President Donald Trump, who has praised Duterte for his drug war but the Philippine leader has increasingly turned to Beijing and Moscow to boost one of Asia’s weakest armed forces.

Duterte last month canceled a deal to buy helicopters from Canada after Ottawa ordered a review over human rights concerns.

“Do not buy anymore from Canada and the US because there is always a condition attached,” Duterte said at the time.

The US embassy did not immediately respond to requests for comment on whether the drones implied similar rights concerns. AFP, with Francisco Tuyay

BSKE [Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections] 2018.”

In other developments: • Three senators said Tuesday there was no more time for the senators to tackle the supposed postponement of the May 14 Sangguniang Kabataan and barangay elections as they also were not supporting it.

“No time. No bill has been filed in the Senate postponing the barangay election,” Senate Minority Franklin Drilon said.

Senate Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III also said there was no more time to discuss the postponement. He said Congress had barely a week left to conduct hearings and approve it before the break.

Senator Bam Aquino slammed the move to postpone the elections, saying it would further delay the people’s chance to select their new leaders.

• The Interior Department on Tuesday expressed hope that the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections would push through on May 14.

In a statement, Interior Officer-in-Charge Eduardo Año said the elections would allow the public “to cleanse the ranks” of village officials.

• A youth group on Tuesday hit Congress for again postponing the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections.

Juan Carlo Tejano, Akbayan Youth chairman, questioned the House committee on suffrage’s vote postponing the elections.

According to Jimenez, the House Suffrage Committee vote, “as significant as it undoubtedly is, is merely the first step in the legislative process.”

Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III said the postponement of the elections was unlikely to be approved in the Senate.

Jimenez said he would not be surprised if the House would be able to pass a law postponing the village elections for the third straight time.

Meanwhile, Comelec employees expressed alarm over the series of election postponements since 2016.

“We, as election workers, cannot simply turn a blind eye to the chronic erosion of our democratic processes resulting from the frequent postponement of the election of leaders in the most basic unit of our society, the barangay,” the employees said in a statement.

They said government resources and the efforts of Comelec workers were being wasted because of the postponements.

But some lawmakers say the postponement of the May 2018 exercise would be a “costsaving” move.

President Duterte’s allies in Congress want to hold a plebiscite for the proposed new federal charter simultaneously with the May 2018 village and SK elections. But they find it more feasible to have it conducted in October of the same year.

report, which includes the articles of impeachment, will be scheduled for Monday or Tuesday next week.

“We will be ready by then. When we schedule that hearing, either on Monday or Tuesday, we [will be] ready to present the articles of impeachment,” Umali said.

The impeachment complainant, lawyer Larry Gadon, accused Sereno of “culpable violation of the Constitution, betrayal of public trust, corruption, and other high crimes” for her alleged lapses, including the alleged untruthful declaration of her wealth in the Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth.

The committee vice chairpersons, Reps. Vicente Veloso of Leyte, Doy Leachon of Oriental Mindoro, Henry Oaminal of Misamis Occidental, Arnulfo Fuentebella of Camarines Sur, and Strike Revilla of Cavite, composed the small working body tasked to draft the committee

Du30’s...

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Choppers...

From A1 The Bombardier Challenger 604, carrying Mina Basaran and seven of her friends from Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates to Istanbul, went down in southwestern Iran on Sunday. Three crew, all women, were also on board.

Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization said the plane crashed at 6:09 p.m. (1439 GMT) on Sunday after the pilot had asked to descend due to a “technical problem.”

The business jet went down in the Zagros mountains, about 400 kilometers south of Tehran.

The aviation agency said six of the eight passengers were Turkish citizens and the other two Spanish.

Iranian news agency ISNA reported the bodies of all 11 on board had been found by rescue teams. The remains were being brought down from the mountainside by helicopter to the Shahr-e Kord airport in the local provincial capital.

Turkish media reported that Mina Basaran, the 28-year-old daughter of business tycoon Huseyin Basaran, had spent several days in the UAE with friends, celebrating ahead of her wedding next month.

A graduate of Istanbul’s Koc University, she had since 2013 been on the board of her father’s company, Basaran Holding, and was reportedly being groomed as his successor.

There was no immediate indication as to the cause of the crash.

The red chopper, which is owned by tourism group Liberty, was carrying six people including the pilot when it crashed into the river near the upscale Upper East Side neighborhood shortly on Sunday.

“Five people are deceased,” a New York Police Department spokesperson told AFP, saying the dead were all passengers on the helicopter.

Following the crash, “the pilot freed himself, the other five did not,” Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro told reporters during an earlier press conference. AFP

‘Little...

From A1 His longtime partner, the former haute couture designer Philippe Venet, announced his death through the Givenchy fashion house, saying he had died in his sleep on Saturday.a “It is with huge sadness that we inform you that Hubert Taffin de Givenchy has died,” it said in a statement to AFP. With his perfect manners and old-school charm, the tall and handsome count was the very acme of French elegance and refinement.

But it was his 40-year friendship with his muse Hepburn, whom he met while she was making Billy Wilder’s Oscar-winning comedy “Sabrina” in 1953, that helped make him a fashion legend.

The narrow-collared suits and slim woollen dresses Givenchy designed for the gamine actress in “Funny Face” and “How to Steal a Million” made both of them style icons.

The black sheath dress Givenchy created for the opening scenes of “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” was perhaps the most famous “little black dress” of all time—even if fellow Coco Chanel is credited with inventing the garment.

“His are the only clothes in which I am myself. He is far more than a couturier, he is a creator of personality,” Hepburn once said of him.

“To dress a woman is to make her beautiful,” Givenchy once said. “In haute couture, we are cosmetic surgeons, erasing imperfections and refining the silhouette... for isn’t a couturier a magician of sorts, who creates illusion and perhaps beauty itself?”

Givenchy was one of the first big designers to use black models, and in 1986 used only black models for one collection. AFP

Mass...

From A1 and older, noting that this did not make sense.

What’s more crucial than age, he said, is the determination of a patient’s history of dengue infection before administering Dengvaxia.

“Two-to-5-year-olds and 9-year-old children are in the same immunological continuum. They are not two different categories,” he said, adding that the age limit should have been higher.

This also prompted him to write a paper on the matter.

“Sanofi’s allegation that 9 years was a safe year because there are some intrinsic difference between 9-year-olds and [those who are] younger, it simply did not fit the biology of the human species,” he said.

Halstead did not say which officials he had warned about the vaccine, but the P3.5billion Dengvaxia program was initiated by former Health secretary Janette Garin during the Aquino administration.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III suspended the implementation of the program following the disclosures made by the French giant manufacturer that Dengvaxia should not be given to seronegatives.

Halstead also said a test to identify seronegatives and seropositives has been available in the Philippines since the 1970s.

Testifying in the same hearing, Duque assured parents who lost their children allegedly to Dengvaxia and those who are currently battling the illness that they would get state assistance.

He also said they had sought an authorization from the Department of Budget and Management to allot the unused funds to support families affected by the Dengvaxia vaccine.

Senator Richard Gordon, chairman of the Blue Ribbon committee, said Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno had already approved the use of those funds to help those allegedly affected by the vaccine.

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WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14, 2018 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Chinese official defends drug drive

Napoles seeks scam case dismissal

By Vito Barcelo PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte found an unlikely ally from a Chinese top official who defended the former’s continuing war on drugs, after United Nations Human rights chief Zeid Ra’ad Al-Hussein issued a statement Duterte needed a psychiatric examination.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque welcomed Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang’s praise of Duterte after comments from the UN rights chief calling his behavior “disgraceful” and questioning the President’s mental stability.

“That basically should be the correct stand of all states. This is not because we have ties with China but because that is really the objective of the United Nations,” Roque said.

Roque said UN officials “cannot deal with elected leaders of member nations” in a manner that UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al-Hussein did.

Duterte’s drug war, along with his efforts to develop the Philippines’ economy, fight terrorism and improve people’s livelihoods have all “effectively protected and promoted the Philippine people’s fundamental rights to security and development,” Lu said.

“The achievements made by the Philippine government led by President Duterte on these fronts have won great approval and extensive support among the Philippine people,” he added.

The exchange of words between Duterte and UN chief was triggered by the President’s remark to feed to crocodiles UN rapporteurs.

Earlier, Roque said he doubted the President would actually do it.

“It’s an appropriate response. I don’t think he’s in a position to do it. Come on,” Roque said.

Roque gave assurances that despite the exchange of barbs between Duterte and Zeid, UN special rapporteurs were still welcome to visit and investigate the Philppines as long as they would be neutral.

UP prof challenges federalism proponents

By Macon Ramos-Araneta A UNIVERSITY of the Philippines professor Tuesday challenged proponents of federalism to include a provision that would prevent President Rodrigo Duterte from seeking a relection under a new form of government.

Speaking during the resumption of the Senate hearing on Charter Change, political science assistant professor Gene Lacza Pilapil said the new Constitution should bar Duterte from running for the same position to protect Philippine democracy.

Since federalism is beng sold by almost all its proponents supposedly fulfilling the need for sweeping changes to improve the country’s democracy, he challenged proponents of federalism from PDP-Laban to members of the House of Representatives and the Consultative Committee formed by Duterte to put their institutional design where the mouth was.

“Write down a provision banning the incumbent president to allay the valid fears of many Filipinos that this shift to federalism is part of the same script of the current president and his key allies to remain in power beyond his constitutionally mandated term limit under the 1987 Constitution,” said Pilapil.

He touted as good as his campaign promise to ride a jet ski to the Spratlys Duterte’s promise to step down in 2022 even if a federal constitution was passed.

“To make sure that in 2022 he does not tease the country for believing him in 2018 that he will step down once his term ends under the 1987 Constitution and not run again for president, institutionalize his promise to step down by constitutionally barring him to run in your proposed federal constitutions,” he said.

“Ban Duterte. Defend democracy,” Pilapil told the panel chaired by Senator Francis Pangilinan.

He noted that changing constitutions was a classic strategy of autocratic leaders elected in democracies but who later undermined their democracies.

By Maricel V. Cruz

RECOVERED ANIMALS. Millions of pesos worth of illegally smuggled imported animals are rescued at the Black Market in

Pasay City by the Environmental Crime Division of National Bureau of Investigation and Biodiversity Management of DENR and turned over to Parks and Wildlife. Photo shows an unidentified veterinarian treating the recovered 307 cockatoo, black-capped lory, red bird paradise, large fig parrot, wallaby, sugar glider and emu. Manny Palmero

SC asked to enforce ERC execs’ suspension

By Rey E. Requejo

HE Supreme Court has been asked to order the implementation of the suspension order against four Energy Regulatory Commission officials who had been found administratively liable for favoring Manila Electric Co.

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In a 17-page petition, the militant group Alyansa Para sa Bagong Pilipinas sought to nullify the temporary restraining order issued by the Court of Appeals last month enjoining the enforcement of the one-year suspension order issued last December by the Office of the Ombudsman against ERC commissioners Alfredo Non, Gloria Victoria Yap-Taruc, Josefina Patricia Asirit and Geronimo Sta. Ana. The petitioner also asked for the issuance of TRO or status quo ante order enjoining the CA’s ninth division from further acting on the case or nullifying the suspension order issued last December by the Office of the Ombudsman.

The ABP stressed the CA committed

error in stopping the one-year suspension order, which should have been immediately executory under the law.

“The Ombudsman’s decision in imposing the penalty of suspension for one year is immediately executor pending appeal. It cannot be stayed by the mere filing of an appeal to the CA,” the petitioner said, citing the Court’s ruling in Ombudsman vs. Samaniego.

“In this case, the public respondent committed or acted with grave abuse of discretion in issuing the assailed resolution granting a TRO against an appealable decision of the Office of the Ombudsman, when jurisprudence is clear on the matter and the principle as to the nature of such

Ombudsman decision is already settled. The assailed order was issued with grave abuse of discretion and was patently erroneous,” the petitioner added.

Petitioner also argued that the 60day TRO issued by the CA was an “encroachment on the rule-making powers of the Ombudsman under the Constitution, which grants the Office of the Ombudsman the authority to promulgate its own rules of procedure.”

“The Court of Appeals, even on terms it may deem just, has no discretion to stay a decision of the Ombudsman, as such procedural matter is governed specifically by the Rules of Procedure of the Office of the Ombudsman,” it said.

Besides, ABP said allowing the commissioners to return to their work in the ERC could influence the immediate resolution of the “midnight contracts.”

Records show the Ombudsman ordered the one-year suspension of the four petitioners after finding them “administratively liable for conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service, aggravated by simple misconduct and simple neglect of duty.”

Pimentel to friendly nations: Offer training courses SENATE President Aquilino Pimentel III on Tuesday called on friendly nations to offer training courses to the Philippine National Police to help improve the competence of the national police force, specifically their crime-solving skills.

Pimentel in particular is interested in securing assistance from “friendly” countries with highly-regarded police forces, such as the United States, Japan, the United Kingdom, and other members of the European Union.

“The country continues to suffer from ‘deaths under investigation’ without seeing suspects arrested, charged, and sentenced in court. If the PNP cannot improve itself, it should consider outside

assistance,” said Pimentel.

The Senate leader previously called out the PNP for its inability to solve crimes and the involvement of its members in perpetrating crimes.

Pimentel, who pushed for the passage of Joint Resolution No. 1, series of 2018, which increased the base pay of military, police, and uniformed personnel, is determined that the Filipino people get their money’s worth in the form of improved service from the police.

“We increased the salaries of policemen. We approved funds for training police officers. We made sure the PNP budget is sufficient. We want to see the PNP deliver on its end of the bargain.

Make us feel safe. Catch criminals. Solve crime,” he said.

The Senate President, who sponsored the NBI Modernization Law, last year proposed a VFA-style agreement to help train the PNP. Pimentel reiterated his proposal for foreign assistance to the PNP after criticizing their performance in a statement, saying, “…maybe we can bring in experts from truly professional police forces such as the Scotland Yard or the FBI [Federal Bureau of Investigation] to teach our policemen the basics of police work, respect for human rights, and how to obey the law.”

Macon Ramos-Araneta

DETAINED businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles has asked the Sandiganbayan Third Division for the dismissal of the graft and malversation charges filed against her in connection with the alleged P900-million Malampaya fund scam.

In a 21-page motion to quash submitted to the anti-graft court last Feb. 20, Napoles said the 97 counts each of graft and malversation of public funds filed against her should be dismissed because she was not a public official.

“This element can only be committed by a public officer charging administrative, judicial or official function. Not being public officers, herein accused could not possibly commit the acts that they are charged with,” Napoles, the alleged brains behind the multibillion-peso pork barrel scam, said in her motion.

“The charge of malversation is misplaced and absolutely baseless.

As defined, the accused cannot be made liable for malversation.

She is a private individual and the crime of malversation can only be committed by a public officer,” she added.

Also charged were Budget chief and incumbent Camarines Sur Rep. Rolando Andaya Jr. and former Agrarian Reform secretary and now Masui City, Lanao del Sur Mayor Nasser Pangandaman for violation of Section 3(e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act and malversation of public funds through falsification of public documents.

The respondents are accused of diverting P900 million from the Malampaya fund allocated by DBM to DAR between 2009 and 2010 and in the process using 12 Napoles-led non-government organizations as conduits to the fraud.

But Napoles said the Ombudsman “miserably failed to establish conspiracy” between her and her co-accused.

“Certainly, it would be perplexing for the accused to admit or face the charge, by not knowing how, when and where, during the span years, were the alleged ‘over criminal acts’ have been committed,” the motion read.

The prosecution stressed the allegations against Napoles and her kin were “clearly spelled out” in the case information, saying the charge sheets only needed to contain ultimate facts since other elements of the crime could be presented during the trial.

The prosecution said establishing conspiracy between the respondents in the charge sheets was also unnecessary since this will be presented as evidence.

“A conspiracy is proved by evidence of actual operation; of facts indicative of an agreement, a common purpose, a concerted action or concurrence of sentiments to commit the felony and actually pursue it. A statement of this evidence is not necessary in the information,” the consolidated opposition read.

DU30 to lead wrecking of smuggled cars

By Jessica M. Bacud

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE. Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada Tuesday hands over P5-

million financial assistance to Marawi Mayor Majul Usman Gandamra at Manila city hall to help the latter’s city rise from the ruins of a terrorist siege last year. Norman Cruz

TUGUEGARAO, Cagayan—President Rodrigo Duterte will be in the province today to personally witness the destruction of illegally imported luxury cars at the free port.

Lawyer Raul Lambino, Cagayan Economic Zone Authority administrator and CEO, confirmed that Duterte would be in Santa Ana in the far northern tip of the province.

“A total 14 luxury cars imported by First Cagayan will be wrecked during the visit of the President.

For these cars, he said First Cagayan “have (sic) not contested our order” when Ceza issued orders to seize and condemn the luxury vehicles.

“And when we issued order to seize this (sic) vehicles, they have not contested our order. They practically abandoned it (sic) already. So our decision of condemnation has become final and executory,” Lambino stressed.

Duterte had earlier said he would buy a new bulldozer for wrecking the imported cars in Ceza freeport.

Duterte said an Aston Martin was among the luxury cars imported through Ceza.

“I will purchase a new bulldozer and destroy all of them. No more imports,” Duterte said in a speech earlier in Tarlac.

Meanwhile, Lambino revealed they could not yet destroy more than 800 cars as the importers, Fenix Philippines, appealed to Ceza’s board.

“We have already made our decision to seize and condemn these vehicles, but they appealed [the] decision to the Ceza board, pursuant to our guidelines, so they are being represented by PECABAR Law Firm,” he said.

The partners of PECABAR Law Firm, according to their official website, are former Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, and other top lawyers Jesus M. Manalastas, Eleazar B. Reyes and Joseph B. Sagandoy.

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Opinion

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14, 2018

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Adelle Chua, Editor

EDITORIAL

Poor optics

Dust days

By Anne Chaeon MAZAR-I-SHARIF, Afghanistan— Suddenly all the heads in the stands at a stadium in northern Afghanistan turned and zeroed in on us.

It’s not that the event was forbidden for women, at least not formally. Simply, Afghan women do not attend buzkashi games—a full contact horseback sport where men play polo with the carcass of a headless goat or calf.

So would a woman, a foreigner at that, be able to attend a match? The question would even make the president of the northern buzkashi federation blush.

The crowd stirred as I walked through the stands, but as soon as the carcasses entered play the focus returned to the vast, dusty pitch on the edge of Mazar-i-Sharif in northern Afghanistan’s Balkh province.

Dust clouded the air as hundreds of hooves pounded the sandy field to the sound of leather whips cracking and neighing cries. The crowd moved between laughter and shouts as a musician belted out the names and exploits of the day’s riders like a football commentator to the rhythm of his dembera, a guitar-type instrument popular in Central Asia.

“Gulbuddin scored! He pockets 1,500 afghanis (22 dollars) and a telephoooooooonne!” he wailed.

The sound of rhythmic drum beats echoed as dust swirled and sweat coated the horses’ necks while the breath of the game’s history and legend unfolded, conjuring up images of Joseph Kessel’s epic novel “The Cavaliers”.

Captivated readers would later flock to Afghanistan as if on a pilgrimage to see the sport. Or was it because of the appeal of Omar Sharif, eyes lined with kohl at full gallop under the gaze of his father (Jack Palance), in the film adaptation—“The Horsemen”—by John Frankenheimer.

Looking back, I am not sure what preconceived images I had of Afghanistan when I arrived—dry, sheer mountains that felled the Soviets, sharp profiles of mujahideen sfighters and the abomination of the burka.

I envisioned seeing Afghan roses, perfumed and varied, everywhere including at checkpoints manned by ragged soldiers. But I also had foggy memories of watching the thundering hooves of the “Cavaliers” in the cinema.

What I like most about our job, really the most, is the incredible freedom it gives to satisfy curiosity -- to just pick up a phone and ask: “Hello, when can I meet you?”

An additional privilege here as a foreigner includes the ability to forgo the myriad restrictions placed on women who continue to be marginalized and barred from most public spaces.

It was under these circumstances that we were able to meet Haji Mohammad Sharif Salah—president of Balkh’s buzkashi federation—on a clear morning in November over a breakfast of tea and dried fruit in his garden in Mazar while observing his horses.

The mounts—stallions, known for their competitive spirit—can be worth tens of thousands of dollars and are objects of enormous care and attention, with many better fed than their groomers who brush and wash them with feverish devotion in a drought-hit country where showers are rare.

The president, donning a silk chapan —a gown similar to the coat worn by ex-President Hamid Karzai—and fingers bejewelled with rings of ruby and turquoise, was a charming host who came with a hand-copied poem in tow praising the glory of his horses.

After unfolding the poem, he began reciting a litany of the horses’ physical characteristics and things to watch out for.

“If he has three white legs, especially, keep going,” he explained, as he described horses that should be avoided.

As he read from the script, his chestnut stallion struck a pose in front of our photographers, Rateb Noori and Farshad Usyan, slightly raising one of his hooves like a dancer.

“He has style, it’s good”, gushed Salah, explaining that the horse was part of the family, like a child, before being hoisted onto a saddle on top of his mount standing at 1.85 m high.

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EGARDLESS of the legal issues involved, the recent dismissal of illegal drug charges against a kumpare of President Rodrigo Duterte, a confessed drug lord and eight others speaks poorly of the administration of justice.

The reason given by the panel of prosecutors for dropping the charges filed by the Philippine National Police against Peter Lim, Kerwin Espinosa and the eight others was the lack of probable cause.

The testimony of a respondent-turned-witness was deemed lacking in credibility, given the inconsistency in his account of events and the “improbability of his allegations.”

Not too long ago, PNP chief felt the need to defend the President, saying he did not know of Lim’s supposed illegal activities. He

said the President even ordered a case buildup against Lim after learning of his supposed links to the drug trade.

The PNP chief said even before Espinosa’s revelation that Lim was his source of illegal drugs, he had learned about the businessman’s alleged illicit activities from Espinosa’s brother, Kevin.

“Right away I told the President.

I told him, ‘Sir, your kumpare Peter Lim is a confirmed source of illegal drugs of Kerwin.”

A spate of headlines at the time suggested that unbeknownst to the President, it was all but certain that Lim was a drug lord.

Now, a year later, those charges have been dropped.

In political term, that’s just poor optics because it means any of the following possibilities.

One, in the worst possible scenario, these events suggest the President was protecting Lim after all.

Second, the dismissal of charges suggest that the PNP is particularly inept at seeing

TO THE POINT EMIL P. JURADO

arrests through to a conviction.

All the talk about case buildup is exposed as a sham that a panel of prosecutors can rip to shreds by citing the lack of probable cause.

A corollary and equally disturbing interpretation is that the government’s war on drugs is good only for street justice dished out to petty hoods and no good when it comes to convicting powerful drug lords through the courts.

But then again, even when a drug lord is convicted, we know what happens next. The drug lords continue doing business from the state penitentiary, protected by corrupt officials in the penal and justice system.

The government likes to say it is serious about prosecuting the war on drugs. We will believe it when they land a big fish, convict him in a court of law, and put him in a crowded jail cell like any other ordinary criminal, without the “usual” amenities of air conditioning, cellphones, computers, Internet access and, oh yes, illegal drugs.

Doomsday scenario for Sereno I MUST clarify what I wrote in yesterday’s column on why I honestly believe that the conviction and ouster of Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno is a foregone conclusion.

This is so because even judges of trial courts and employees are urging her to resign for obvious reasons. She violated the Constitution, and she lacks the rectitude or moral integrity for us to still trust her.

I would like to clarify that I attributed to Charles L. Black the words of former Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile, who will now head the prosecution in the Senate trial of Sereno.

It was a nine-page paper about impeachment rules and laws. Enrile wrote about what he thought of the impeachment trial of Sereno, taking off from the handbook written by Black.

Enrile pointed out after quoting Section 1 Article XI of the 1987 Constitution, on the Accountability of Public Officers, that the provision is clear and leaves no room for doubt that all public officers and employees must be at all times accountable to the people.

They must serve with utmost responsibility, integrity, loyalty and efficiency.

Enrile said that public officers must also act with patriotism and justice and must lead modest lives.

There are no ifs and buts about it.

Nigeria struggles to contain dramatic spread of deadly Lassa fever

By Sophie Bouillon NIGERIA is battling on two fronts against an unprecedented outbreak of Lassa fever, a cousin of Ebola, that has already killed 110 people this year.

Even as doctors are grappling to contain the threat, health watchdogs are struggling to understand why the deadly virus has spread so dramatically.

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control has confirmed 353 Lassa cases

since Jan. 1, compared with 143 cases for the whole of 2017.

But the possible reasons for this surge are many, said NCDC director Chikwe Ihekweazu.

“The harder you look, the more you find,” he said, citing a change in the virus’s environment, viral mutation —and better reporting of cases by the public in response to awareness campaigns.

Lassa fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic disease that can be transmitted to

humans from infected rat feces or urine.

Like the notorious Ebola—but thankfully somewhat less contagious —it can also be passed from one person to another via contact with infected bodily fluids.

Full protective gear for medical personnel is vital and isolation is essential.

Overstretched facilities A visit to the Lassa fever isolation ward at the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital in southern Edo State—the

Otherwise, they will be liable for removal from their offices for “betraying public trust.”

Enrile also quoted Section 10 of Article XI that if a public officer betrayed the public trust, he is liable to be removed from his position through impeachment.

The most damning of all in the impeachment of Sereno is Section 17 of Article XI of the Constitution, which requires public officials to, upon assumption of office and so often thereafter as may be required by law, submit a declaration under oath of his assets, liabilities and net worth. This declaration shall be disclosed to the public in a manner prescribed by law.

Thus, if Sereno upon assumption of office as professor at the UP College of Law did not submit all SALN as required by law, she did not only betray public trust. She also violated the Constitution. There are no ifs or buts about it.

Enrile said Section 1 and Section 17 of Article XI are mandatory and preemptory commands to be fulfilled by all persons concerned. No public officer or employee of the government, no matter how high his rank, no matter how vast his power, can cavalierly ignore these commands, much less disdainfully defy them.

With Enrile heading the prosecution panel against Sereno, she should be worried sick. Enrile, who was Senate President at the time of the impeachment trial of the late Chief Justice Renato Corona, knows very well the mechanics and the procedures of impeachment.

I wonder why Sereno is stonewalling and saying she will fight her impeachment.

The only reason I see is that she knows impeachment is a purely political exercise, and that there will be

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Opinion

ON A moonless night deep in the Malaysian rainforest, two men perched precariously on high branches use a smoking torch to draw thousands of bees from a treetop hive, braving the angry swarm to collect their prized honey.

The honey hunters, as they are known, are rag-tag groups of villagers who head to remote corners of the jungle every year in search of the rare nectar, hidden in towering tualang trees.

“This is the real thing,” said Abdul Samad Ahmad, 60, who has been harvesting honey in this way for more than 20 years.

“There’s a lot of nutrition in this honey. You can make it into medicine, for your cough or cold.”

Like New Zealand’s manuka honey, also hailed for its supposed medicinal qualities, Malaysian tualang honey is expensive, fetching 150 ringgit ($38) a kilo—a huge amount for people from poor, rural communities.

But the generations-old practice faces myriad threats, from environmental destruction and falling bee numbers to a lack of interest among the young.

The die-hard hunters remain optimistic—for them, there is no greater buzz than climbing trees 250 feet (75 meters) tall to gather honey made by bees gorged on sweet nectar from exotic jungle flowers.

‘Sting until your body is swollen’ The honey-collecting season in northern Malaysia’s Greater Ulu Muda forest runs from February to April, when giant honey bees arrive from other parts of Asia to make their hives in the trees that stretch high above the rainforest canopy.

On a recent trip, Abdul Samad and six others travelled far into the forest, boarding two small boats and sailing across a lake to reach a tualang. They nailed branches up its trunk a few feet apart to create a makeshift ladder, replacing old ones from the previous year.

As night fell, after layering up and donning thick jackets, the group lit vine roots twisted together to create a smoking torch.

They clambered up the tree, hitting the torch against the trunk as they approached a hive. A flood of embers showered below, and a team member called out to the bees: “Come down, black sweet, come down.”

A swarm of bees rushed out, chasing the sparks of light—granting the hunters precious moments to cut through the hive and fill a bucket with chunks of honeycomb.

The men worked through the night, slowly moving around the tree’s many hives and only stopping just before dawn, having collected 43 kilograms (94 pounds) of honey.

The hunters were stung numerous times but continued working, insisting they are used to the pain.

One of the group, Zaini Abdul Hamid, said he and his fellow hunters are not aware of any deaths resulting from the risky pastime, “but if you’re in the wrong place, at the wrong time, the bees will sting you until your body is swollen.”

Vanishing forests Demand for tualang honey exceeds its limited supply, and the bounty is split equally among the group, who sell it in their village or to dealers from out of town.

None of those on the recent expedition were younger than 45, with some in their 60s, and they said younger peo-

ple from their villages have no interest in taking up honey-hunting.

“They’re not brave,” said Mohamad Khairi Mohamad Arshad, while Zaini lamented that the younger generation “prefer to play with their gadgets—we asked them to come, but they’re not interested”.

The hunters said it was common to see four to five groups from a single village harvesting from tualang trees in the 1960s, but these days there are far fewer.

The number of bees in the Ulu Muda forest also appears to have fallen in recent years, with heavy logging regularly reported and some blaming the destruction of their natural habitat.

The problem may also be global.

Experts have long been sounding the alarm about declining honey bee populations worldwide, blaming climate change and disease as well as habitat destruction.

No comprehensive studies have been done on bee populations in Ulu Muda, but Makhdzir Mardan, a bee expert from Universiti Putra Malaysia, said that on an expedition into the forest in 1983 he had spotted 128 hives on a tree, while now you could expect to find 40 at most.

As they trekked deeper into the jungle, the honey hunters mourned the loss of the bees’ habitat, particularly the flowers they feed on.

“The places where the bees look for food are disappearing,” said Mohamad Khairi Mohamad Arshad, 50.

“If there aren’t a lot of flowers, then the bees will not come.”

Dead rats in jars of formaldehyde decorated the corridors of the small clinic. Inside the isolation ward, the temperature was stifling at above 40°C (104°F) degrees.

Kevin Ousman, who specializes in combating viral risks at the World Health Organization, spends his days reminding people of basic protection.

“Change your gloves!” Ousmane orders. “Throw away this water! Don’t put this bag on the floor.”

In front of the hospital, surgical gloves and syringes spill out of the trash bins onto the grass.

“Given the situation we’re living here, we are going right down to the basics,” Ousmane tells AFP as doctors come and go clad from head to toe in protective suits.

Family care A striking sight is that of relatives trying to care for their loved ones.

Many come wearing just flip-flops and a simple facemask when they visit a patient in the isolation ward.

“It’s a tradition in Africa for families to take care of their sick,” a WHO employee remarks. “But we have to put a stop to that, it’s much too risky.”

Wilson Oherein had heard only vaguely of Lassa fever before his wife contracted the disease, to die of it a few days ago.

Their three-year-old daughter was also contaminated by Lassa fever and she was being cared for in the isolation ward at Irrua.

Oherein usually spends his days at his daughter’s bedside and feeds her.

He also takes her soiled garments and washes them in a bucket. But this afternoon, he is resting in a half-finished building behind the hospital, with other family members of patients.

He is lying, exhausted, on a mat on the floor. “I will be fine,” he tries to convince himself, his forehead beaded with sweat. “I’m just anxious for my daughter and the mourning of my wife.

It knocks me down.” AFP

Nigeria...

Dust...

only such unit in a country of 190 million people—provides a snapshot of the practical difficulties in tackling the peril.

Before the unit was built in 2008, suspect blood samples were sent to South Africa for an accurate diagnosis—but when the results came back it was already too late, doctors say.

Despite its unique status, the Lassa facility, staffed by a dozen Nigerian employees and a handful of European tropical medicine specialists, is struggling.

In normal times, it treats just a couple of dozen patients each year.

But since the start of 2018, the unit has already admitted more than 150.

“Now we have just below 30 patients,” said director Ephraim Ogbaini-Emovon. “We never recorded this [in previous years]. Facilities are overstretched.” AFP

Horses have increasingly become symbols of power in Afghanistan, according to Louis Meunier, a talented French rider and admirer of Kessel who arrived in the country to work with an NGO in 2002, while nurturing dreams of buzkashi glory.

He may be the only foreigner—to my knowledge at least—to have played as an equal with a team of Afghans on the buzkashi pitch.

“The horse has become an object of speculation, a political tool to show strength,”he explained regretfully, as strongmen favour buying massive steeds meant to impress as “beasts of war.”

Get the goat To play buzkashi, a calf or goat must first be decapitated, eviscerated and filled with sand. The resulting carcass usually weighing in around 50 kilogrammes, that will be snapped up by a

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Shutdown?

Malaysia’s honey hunters defy angry bees to harvest treetop treasure

By Patrick Lee

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14, 2018

ernment-installed and privately managed (by an Ayala subsidiary at that) wastewater treatment facility is the biggest violation.

What is the solution to that violation?

Compel ALL erring establishments to connect to the wastewater treatment facility. Why the DENR regional officials and the local government units gave EECs and occupancy permits without ascertaining connection to the TIEZAowned and Ayala-operated facility is clearly an act of malfeasance and misfeasance. Throw the book against these officials as well as compel the private resort and restaurant owners to immediately connect.

That does not require a shutdown of the entire island, does it? A shutdown

would mean economic dislocation, never mind of the resort owners, but of their thousands of employees who will suddenly go hungry, along with their families.

Second violation: Many commercial establishments have encroached upon the long white beach, where easement requires a no-build zone of 30 meters from the shoreline, measured at high tide.

Solution: Bulldoze everything that violates the easement rules. No exceptions, whether big or small establishment. That again does not require a total shutdown, does it?

Third violation is the building of establishments on the wetlands in the middle of the island which serve as catch-basin for rainwater.

Again the solution is to demolish these properties. And that does not require a total shutdown of Bora, does it?

Another problem is the narrow road from north to south of the island. Not only has the local government allowed establishments to encroach upon what ought to be right of way for everybody,

but some supposed “private” landowners would not yield to government’s eminent domain.

As if they have title to their land, when in truth, only members of the Tirol family of which the acting SC chief, the erudite Antonio Carpio is one, possess land titles to their herencias. The rest only have tax declarations, which government, in the exercise of its right of eminent domain can always reclaim.

The others are in declared forest lands, and DENR regional officials have a lot of explaining to do on how said lands have become commercial.

Finally, there is a lack of storm drainage systems in parts of the island, such that when heavy rains fell last December, the island was flooded in kneedeep waters.

Then let government construct these soonest. Again, does the laying of drainage pipes require total closure?

Obviously not.

Let DENR, DILG, DoT and DPWH officials come up with a plan and timetable to immediately implement the solutions to the problems here enumerated, as well as whatever else they have realized too late, and only because President Duterte raised hell.

DILG and DENR must by now have a list of the erring establishments, so they can do their job of closure and demolition. DPWH can widen the single road in the island, pronto. And TIEZA, the infrastructure arm of DoT, should immediately construct the storm drain systems which I understand they have already bid out.

Meanwhile too, DILG and DENR along with TIEZA should immediately compel connectivity to the wastewater and sewerage facility installed therein for the last decade and more.

If needed, appropriate charges should be leveled against government officials, both national and local, who did not, willfully or not, discharge their duties under our laws.

Prospectively, both the executive and legislative branches must enact legislation that would remove our natural treasures, especially environmentally fragile islands, from the pure administrative control of local government units. Use the Subic and Clark templates for the sustainable development and administration of Boracay and other similarly-situated places, devolved from the stupidity, neglect, corruption, or all of the above, of LGUs. Would all these require a total shutdown?

Most certainly not.

senators who will vote for the dismissal of the case.

Sereno must be relying on Liberal Party Senators like Kiko Pangilinan, Frank Drilon, Bam Aquino and Riza Hontiveros, together with Antonio Trillanes and Leila de Lima who may just be allowed to participate in the process.

Still, their votes would not be enough.

Perhaps Sereno is hoping that there will be more to align themselves with her.

Another consideration is the quo warranto case filed her before the Supreme Court. This concerns her fitness as chief justice. She was found unfit and unqualified even as the Judicial and Bar Council kept her in its shortlist, from which President Benigno Aquino III picked her.

If the Court were to find her unfit and unqualified to be primus inter pares, that would certainly preempt the Senate trial. The questions is who will come first—the impeachment trial at the Senate or the Supreme Court decision on the quo warranto petition?

It looks like doomsday is coming. *** The biggest argument for a federal form of government has been the existence of political dynasties.

While there is a constitutional provision against dynasties, there has not been any enabling law enacted. For obvious reasons.

Now the consultative committee created by President Duterte to recommend amendments to the Constitution has voted to only regulate—not totally ban—political dynasties.

The recommendation covers only relatives within the second degree of consanguinity and affinity, to include incumbent officials, spouses, children, parents, grandparents, siblings, grandchildren and their spouses, parents-inlaw, siblings-in-law and their spouses and grandparents-in-law.

The matter of whether the regulation will cover domestic partners, mistresses or paramours was not taken up.

What makes this difficult to achieve is that Congress can choose to adopt or not adopt the recommendations.

Even the President himself has said he does not believe dynasties are bad,

per se. He has his own dynasty in Davao City.

I believe the anti-dynasty regulation will not pass the Congress wringer simply because Congress is populated by products of dynasties.

This is really a problem during elections. Voters become reliant on dynasties which have power and money.

It’s actually a vicious cycle. When prominent family members are elected, they take advantage of the poor who rely on their money.

Historically and culturally, Philippine society has always been tribal in character. All the more so in Muslim Mindanao.

A federal form of government will only enhance political dynasties. *** The restoration of the subpoena powers of the chief of the Philippine National Police and the chief of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group brings to fore several questions.

Can we trust that the police will not abuse its powers? The President’s war on illegal drugs is a testament to the brutality of the police when it comes to human rights and the rule of law.

mounted rider aiming to drop it in the “circle of justice”—after doing a lap of the field at a full gallop.

As they race toward the circle, fellow riders armed with whips rush their adversary as they attempt to tear away the prize. Their horses do not hesitate to join the melee, unleashing their hooves and teeth to cut a path through the stampede.

After a brief delay due to unseasonably warm weather, the first buzkashi kicks off in mid-November. About a week ahead of the game, we followed the horses’ groomers as the steeds trotted along in the blue dawn, lifting fine clouds of dust at the foot of the Hindu Kush, whose cliffs separate Mazar-iSharif from Kabul, via the Salang pass.

The youngest rider of the day, who was also one of the president’s sons, amused himself, making his father’s chestnut rear up into the backlight to please us.

The chief groomer—the wise Amir Khan—knows the horses well enough to be wary of them.

“O brother, these horses are evil!” he

exclaimed.

Before the game, the horses were led to the field in a slow trot, with no galloping allowed to keep their nerves steeled before the match.

Hundreds of horses were corralled into the pitch with their noses quivering in the air as they galloped, swallowing mouthfuls of dust while red ribbons tied to their manes to ward off bad luck waved in the wind.

In the quarry next to the field past the checkpoints, small groomers riding horses at a gallop dreamed of one day becoming a chopendoz—the renowned buzkashi riders—as they raced the steeds with their feet pressed forward in the stirrups while leaning back.

The stallions joined in the fracas, kicking and biting. It’s wild. Tough.

In front of the grandstands on the pitch, the riders approached, bare chested under their thick Afghan chapans tied like a Japanese kimono.

Their fleece pants are tucked into their boots of hardy leather with heels to keep riders snug in their stirrups as they lean toward the ground. Some

slide boards in their boots to guard their shins.

To add a bit of flair, riders wear their own headgear, ranging from turbans to traditional Afghan hats made of Astrakhan wool and even Soviet tank helmets made of grey nylon with their earpieces removed. Here, memories are long and forgiveness is scarce.

Falls are rare but blows frequent with riders and horses emerging from the three-hour contests battered, bruised and cut. When a rider is thrown to the ground into the madness of the scrum surrounding the carcass, the music cuts and the game comes to a brief halt.

The same does not occur should a rider come under a hail of whips, as there is no penalty for such behavior. I did see a referee attempt to interject during one such instance, but no one listened to him.

As the game continued, the president saw us enter and greeted us from afar, he knows we have honored his invitation and our promises to come back in the winter. In the stands, our presence no longer sparked any bewilderment. AFP

SO I SEE LITO BANAYO WE BUMPED into a tourism industry leader over the weekend at the Power Plant in Rockwell. He invited me for coffee, and thereafter poured out his well-considered views regarding Boracay and other tourism woes.

He could not understand why tourism officials have only one mantra in the raging Boracay environmental degradation issue, and that is to “close” Boracay for anywhere between two and six months. He even quoted a DoT undersecretary as saying that what the President wants is a shutdown of the entire island, while rehabilitation, particularly of its wastewater disposal facilities, or lack of it, is being addressed.

Two weeks ago, senators led by Nancy Binay, the chair of the tourism committee and Cynthia Villar, chair of the environment committee, among others, did an ocular of the beleaguered island and conducted a public hearing where both government agency top honchos and stakeholders of the island were heard.

Thereafter, Villar stated that what government, through the DILG, DENR and DoT should do is close down all establishments which have violated building and environment laws, but not shut down the entire island. A shutdown would punish both the violators and those which have connected to the island’s main sewer lines and have not encroached upon the shoreline’s nobuild zone.

But government agencies keep invoking the name of the President in saying “No, Boracay has to be shut down while rehabilitation is ongoing.”

Clearly, this is a misinterpretation of what the President wants done.

Senator Cynthia is right. Rehabilitation and enforcing the law does not require a total shutdown of Boracay.

Not only is such sweeping action unjust and unfair to those who have been following the laws; it is also downright unthinkable.

Even President Duterte will agree.

He just wants to protect and conserve the island. And wants the laws strictly enforced.

A logical mind would first ask: What are the violations? Most obviously, the discharge of effluents directly through storm-drain pipes instead of the gov-

Doomsday...

From A4

This would mean economic dislocation, never mind of the resort owners, but of their thousands of employees who will suddenly go hungry, along with their families.

News

A6

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14, 2018 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

DAR allocates P404-m fund for Zambo projects

Two militant solons push reforms on GSIS Law

By Rio N. Araja THE Department of Agrarian Reform has poured P404 million for development projects in Zamboanga Peninsula.

Secretary John Castriciones said the budget allocation will fund various rural infrastructure and livelihood projects in support of the sustainable rural development program of the Duterte administration.

“The Zamboanga Peninsula, whose residents consists mainly of farmers and fisherfolks, will greatly benefit from these infrastructure facilities. These will enhance the rural economy and in the process, create job opportunities,” he said.

The DAR chief, along with Undersecretary for Support Services Rosalina Bistoyong, recently led the turnover of the rural development projects worth P404 million in a certificate of land ownership award distribution ceremony for 997 farmer-beneficiaries.

“The certificates of land ownership are just the first step towards more support from the government. We will follow President Rodrigo Duterte’s national goal of improving the economic lives of our farmers by pouring various support services to farm communities,” he said.

The multimillion project included the rehabilitation and construction of 13 farm-tomarket roads, two communal irrigation systems, one 28.8 linear meter bridge, provision of potable water facilities, provision of rubber seedlings, fertilizers, swine production, provision of farm tools, construction of postharvest facilities and processing centers for abaca mat-weaving and other handicrafts.

“More than 10,000 agrarian reform beneficiaries will benefit from these projects. But not only our farmers, these [projects] would also directly benefit residents, around 23,000 households in Zamboanga peninsula,” Bistoyong said.

Two hurt as Cessna plane crash-lands

By Joel E. Zurbano A CESSNA 152-type plane with two persons on board crash-landed near the runway of Binalonan Airport in Pangasinan province, the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines reported on Tuesday.

CAAP chief information officer and spokesperson Eric Apolonio said the trainer aircraft, owned and operated by WCC Aviation, crashed in Barangay Linmansangan, a few seconds after takeoff around 7:30 a.m.

He added the agency immediately sent a team from Aircraft Accident Investigation and Inquiry Board led by investigators Rommel Ronda and Harry Panadero to conduct a probe at the crash site.

Initial investigation showed that the aircraft, a Cessna C152 series with registry number RP-C53, sustained 4o percent burn from the cabin to half of the aircraft’s empennage.

The plane’s flight instructor and a student pilot were rushed to the Sacred Heart Medical Center in Urdaneta due to 2nd degree burns.

Five months ago, another Cessna 152type plane, also with two persons on board, crash-landed at the mountains of Pantabang, Aurora.

The incident happened while the plane was on a cross-country flight that departed at Lingayen airstrip.

In October 2016, CAAP suspended the operations of all Cessna-172 aircraft of a La Union-based aviation school after one of its planes crashed in the province of Ilocos Sur killing two people.

The incident involved C-172M trainer aircraft with registration number RP-C7838 that crashed near Vitales Resort near Vigan, Ilocos Sur. Government rescue teams retrieved the bodies of the two plane crash victims—Capt. John Kaizan Estabillo and co-pilot Paola Vianca Robles—on the coastline of Santiago, Ilocos Sur.

ZUMBA TREAT. As part of the Women’s Month celebration, Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte treated employees of Quezon City Hall to a zumba session at the QC Hall grounds. Photo shows hundreds of women’s employees of QC hall joining the exercise. Manny Palmero

Lawmaker alarmed over reckless motorbike riders

By Maricel V. Cruz

A

PARTY-LIST lawmaker on Tuesday voiced concern over the increasing number of deadly accidents cause by reckless motorcyclists who turn public roads into racetracks that endangers not just themselves but other road users as well, including pedestrians.

Puwersa ng Bayaning Atleta partylist Rep. Jericho Nograles said that several highways, such as the Marilaque (Marikina-Laguna-Quezon) highway, Sumulong highway, the Nasugbu-Ternate Highway, Manila North Road and Aguinaldo Highway are being turned into weekend racetracks by motorcyclists who counterflow at high speed on no overtaking lanes.

“These so-called hyperbeasts are even proud of their stupidity that they even post their stunts on social media. Unfortunately, their reckless disregard for safety does not just endanger them and their crew but other motorists and nonmotorists as well. I know many cases of several cyclists being sideswiped by these motorcyclists,” Nograles, member of the House majority bloc, said.

“If they think that they are really good and skillful motorcyclists, they should go to legitimate racetracks. This is the right place to show-off and not on busy highways,” Nograles added.

He said what is more distracting are the noisy and ear-shattering mufflers of these motorcyclists who usually ride in big groups.

While he acknowledged how motorcycles contribute to ease traffic congestion in Metro Manila, Nograles said motorcycle riders have constantly been the top victim of road crash injuries and deaths since 2010 as studies show.

Citing its Global Status Report on Road Safety 2015, Nograles said the World Health Organization said that 53 percent of reported road traffic fatalities in the Philippines are riders of mo-

torized two- or three-wheeler vehicles.

Pedestrians make up the second biggest chunk of road user deaths at 19 percent, followed by drivers of four-wheeled vehicles at 14 percent and their passengers at 11 percent, Nograles added.

Similarly, data from the Department of Health, on the other hand, showed that 65 percent or 19,852 out of 30,412 recorded injuries and fatalities due to road accidents in 2015 involved people riding on motorcycles.

The DoH also noted a drastic increase on motorcycle riders being involved in road crash injuries since 2010, from 6,244 injuries to 19,852 injuries in 2015, said Nograles.

Given these figures, Nograles urged the Philippine National Police-Highway Patrol Group to launch a campaign against reckless motorcycle riders.

“The PNP-HPG could start by assigning policemen along highways, which are being used as regular routes for motorcycle riders especially during weekends,” he said.

He also urged organized motorcycle groups to promote safety and responsible driving among their members.

PCSO-STL sales hit P1.94b in February—Balutan PHILIPPINE Charity Sweepstakes Office General Manager Alexander Balutan announced on Tuesday that the February sales of Small Town Lottery hit P1,946,395,655, which is 4.13-percent increase from its P1,869,263,505.42 sales last month.

“We would like to attribute the increase in our STL revenues to the number of operating AACs and their PMRR [Presumptive Monthly Retail Receipt], and of course to the betting public who continues to support our lottery and number games,” said Balutan.

STL is a regular game by PCSO authorized by the national government through Section 1 of Republic Act 1169.

AACs are corporations or cooperatives duly registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission or with the Cooperative Development Authority, respectively that applied, been duly qualified and expressly authorized by the PCSO to conduct STL in a particular area.

Since the launch of STL in 2006, the earnings were fixed only from P4.7 billion

to P5 billion. That time, there were only 18 operating AACs. The PCSO Board studied why it was stuck to 18 AACs and found out that the system is controlled by big gambling lords.

“Ayaw nilang i-expand, dagdagan, o palawakin ang STL sa mga probinsya kung saan malakas ang jueteng at iba dahil talagang matatalo ang mga gambling lord na ito. Wala silang mapagkukunan ng pampayola nila sa mga inaalagaan nilang korap na opisyal para tuloy ang kanilang ilegal na gawain,” said Balutan.

In February 2017, PCSO launched its expanded STL. From 18 AACs, the Board approved 56 until the addition of even more AACs, hence it became 92. At present, there are 83 operating AACs. In May that same year, STL gained an average earning of more than P1 billion.

Year 2017 ended with STL making a history due to its record-breaking earnings at P15,750.895,045 with a 183.63 percent increase from the P6,462,304,820 in 2016. It opened 280,722 jobs as against

P173,861 jobs in 2016.

However, in November 2017, a notorious gambling lord in the country was quick to protest and said that the earnings should have been P5 billion to P6 billion.

“This gambling lord pockets P2.37 billion a month from jueteng and pares. With the expansion of STL operations, his area narrowed and his operations is slowly perishing,” said Balutan.

Sources were quick to speculate that the series of attacks made against the agency starting from PCSO Director Sandra Cam accusing the agency of having an extravagant Christmas party to AACs that should be terminated for not remitting correct PMRRs, had something to do with him losing his earnings in areas where STL are now operating legally.

In the past, there were police intelligence officials who said “whenever jueteng is raised and media sensationalizes, with the help of congressional investigations, this notorious gambling lord comes in with his candy-coated STL proposal.”

Boost farm mechanization—Angara SENATOR Sonny Angara has called on the government to strengthen its farmer training programs on technological advancements and utilization of new agricultural machineries to boost the productivity and income especially of small farmers.

Speaking during the Sugar Regulatory Administration’s 1st Philippine Sugarcane Farming Mechanization Expo, Angara said farming mechanization can increase land productivity by facilitating quality cultivation. He said it can improve our farmers’ livelihood and ultimately.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations had underscored how mechanization is a crucial input for agricultural crop production and yet, it has been historically neglected in the context of developing countries.

According to the Agricultural Training Institute of the Department of Agriculture, old age and limited education are some factors that make Filipino farmers less receptive to new farming technologies that can

boost yields.

Angara noted that under Republic Act 10659 or the Sugarcane Industry Development Act, planters/farmers of sugarcane farms should be trained to utilize appropriate agricultural machineries and equipment necessary for the efficient planting, cultivation, harvesting and handling of sugarcane.

The law also provides for a socialized credit facility to help sugarcane farmers who do not have the capability to purchase or maintain their own machineries and equipment.

“We should have ensured that there is enough fund to implement the Sugarcane Industry Development Act na tutulong sa paglago ng ani at pagtaas ng kita ng mga magsasaka,” Angara said.

The senator cited the latest labor force survey of the Philippine Statistics Authority which showed a decline in unemployment rate but an increase in underemployment rate—the proportion of those already working but still looking for more work. Macon Ramos-Araneta

DAY FOR RIVERS. Kids collect plastics along Estero De Magdeleno along Sta. Cruz in Manila that they can sell to a junk shop yesterday as the world celebrates the International Day of Action for Rivers and the International river day on Wednesday, March 14, 2018, where environmental advocates around the world lift their voices to demonstrate and demand improvements in the policies and practices in the care of rivers and to educate people on the threats facing our rivers, and to learn about better water and energy solutions. Norman Cruz

TWO militant lawmakers on Tuesday appealed to the Duterte administration to include in its legislative priorities the proposed revision of the Government Service Insurance System Act. ACT Teachers Party-list Reps. Antonio Tinio and France Castro said having the bill included in the legislative priority “will address the urgent and long-running concerns of government employees, many of whom public school teachers.”

“We strongly urge this administration to consider GSIS reforms as among its legislative priorities as this will ensure, after we are done finalizing the bill, its immediate calendaring for business of the plenary by the House leadership and approval by the House,” Tinio said.

Tinio headed the technical working group tasked to consolidate various bills that amends seeking the amend Republic Act 8291 or the GSIS Act of 1997.

The proposals contained in House Bill 471or An Act Strengthening the Government Service Insurance System and HB 59 which lowers the optional retirement age of public school teachers to 55 years old.

“We need to arrest and correct problems in the GSIS administration which had been gravely affecting GSIS members for so long such as fund mismanagement, poor recordkeeping, irregular remittances, inefficient collection, lack of transparency and outright abuse and corruption on the part of the GSIS, employer agencies, and their officials,” Tinio said.

HB 471 proposes amendments to the GSIS charter that will institutionalize members’ rights and employer agency’s responsibilities.

“Through this measure, we are seeking the imposition of stricter penalties on erring officials and the establishment of mechanisms that will prevent teachers and other GSIS members from shouldering the burden caused by the negligence and shortcomings on the part of their employer agencies and/or the GSIS management,” Castro said.

“To ensure transparency and as an efficient mechanism of raising the members’ pressing issues in the level of policy-making, the proposed measure will mandate the representation of a leading teaching or non-teaching organization accreditation by the Civil Service Commission,” she added.

Similarly, Castro batted for the passage of HB 59. “It is high time that the government heed teachers’ clamor for the option to retire at an earlier age.

They dedicate twenty, thirty years of their lives in the service of the nation by honing the minds and nurturing the hearts of our youth, in spite of receiving meager salaries, shelling out of their own pockets due to underfunded schools, working in cramped rooms and doing additional, usually unpaid, miscellaneous tasks. Public school teachers are without a doubt underpaid and overworked.” Maricel V. Cruz

‘Coco levy fund should be bigger’

By Macon Ramos-Araneta COCO levy fund should remain in a trust fund controlled by farmers but should be bigger through a P10- billion annual counterpart fund from the government, said Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto.

Recto noted that the original proposal provides that the Coconut Industry Development Fund will only use the P2 billion to P2.5 billion interest income from the coco levy trust.

“But why will they use only the coco levy fund? Why can the government give a counterpart fund?” asked Recto.

Because of this, he said the Senate version added a guaranteed budgetary support of P10 billion to the PCA on top of the trust income.

He also said the original proposal was for a “perpetual” rehabilitation of an industry in crisis. The bill mandates a 25-year timeframe.

“If the patient is in ICU, then the treatment must be immediate, and the assistance massive,” he said.

He said the trust will be invested in the safest instrument there is, the Republicbacked government securities.

He also said the original proposal called for a creation of a 13-personal Trust Committee, separate from the PCA, plus a multiagency ad hoc committee that will draft the “Coconut Industry Road Map.” “Why create so many bureaucratic layers and overlaps, when it can be done by an expanded and strengthened PCA, dominated by farmers, who will occupy six out of the 11 seats?” also questioned Recto.

The proposed expanded PCA, he said, breaks tradition by reserving majority of seats for farmer. He said the PCA will be the lead initiator of the Coconut Industry Roadmap, in which all stakeholders will participate. It will be empowered with the right to ratify the stewardship or disposal of coco levy assets.

Sports

A7

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14, 2018 sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

Greengold RB1 rules Breeders tilt CARMONA—The Manila Cockers Club Inc., the country’s cockfighting industry game changer, recently concluded its 49th 7-Cock Breeders Festival at the Cockers Arena, San Lazaro Leisure Park in Carmona, Cavite March 8, with breeder “Tata Rey” Briones of Spartan Grego Game Farm dominating the competition with his winning entry Greengold RB 1.

Eliminations were held from March 1 to 5, with the pre-finals set from March 6 to 7.

Briones became a member of the MCC in 2016, and is a consistent derby participant fielding at least two entries per event.

A publisher by profession, Briones is a three-time World Slasher Cup Champion, National Cockers Alliance Stagfighter of the Year, Gentlemen Cockers Association of the Philippines Stagfighter of the Year, and three-time Thunderbird Challenge Champion, among others. During the awarding ceremonies, Briones was joined by his farm manager Rod Advincula and the champion’s wife Lulu Briones.

The derby was evenly matched considering that other top-notch breeders such as Teng Rañola, Amado Bagatsing, Tony Espinosa, Atty. Felix Gatchalian, Hector Magpantay, and Gen. Katy Katigbak, were part of the fray.

This week, Manila Cockers Club presents the Mega 9-Cock Championship Derby on March 14 to 18 (Eliminations); March 19 to 20 (Semifinals); March 21 to 22 (Prefinals); and March 23 (Finals) at the Cockers Arena.

Entry fee is P8,888.00 with a derby weight limit of 1,900 kg–2,400 kg.

A guaranteed cash prize of P3 Million pesos will be given away, broken down as follows: Champion (P1.2M); Handler Gaffer (P150k); Runner-up (P300k); Prefinals Day 1 Prize (P250k); Prefinals Day 2 Prize (P250k); Any 8 (P150k); Any 7 (P250k); and Any 6 (P450k). For more information, visit website www. manilacockers.com.

Local aces upbeat in ICTSI golf CYNA Rodriguez and Princes Superal hope to build some momentum and boost their confidence heading to their Symetra Tour campaign as they lead the title chase in the ICTSI Tagaytay Highlands Challenge beginning today (Wednesday, March 14) at the Tagaytay Highlands Golf and Country Club.

Winless in the first four legs of this year’s Ladies Philippine Golf Tour, Rodriguez and Superal exude confidence on the eve of the P1 million event although they remain wary of the elite field, which includes a slew of Thai and Korean aces, in the 54hole championship sponsored by ICTSI. “I’m in top shape and playing with a high level of confidence,” said Rodriguez, who has trained and prepared hard for this tournament with a stint in Korea recently.

“I hope to win this one,” added the former three-time LPGT Order of Merit winner.

Superal is also due for a big win in the circuit she used to dominate, even as an amateur, with the former US Girls Juniors champion putting premium on shotmaking and iron play given the condition of the course.

“The course is tough—windy with tight fairways. But there’s a lot of names capable of winning this week but I’m confident and I hope to finally win again,” said Superal, who drew Rodriguez and Thai Jaruporn P Na Ayuttaya in the 8:20 a.m. flight.

While the two local aces are upbeat of their chances, Fil-Japanese Chihiro Ikeda has expressed guarded optimism as she guns for a follow-up to her victory at Eagle Ridge last month with a slight wrist injury.

Lubao hosts World U Golf Championship

Spartan Grego Game Farm owner Tata Rey Briones (center) receives his championship trophy from Manila Cockers Club President Dino Lazatin.

At right is the champion’s wife Lulu Briones.

De Ocampo 5 bounces back in NCRAA Game 2

P

ICKING up from where it left off in the closing stage of Game 1, De Ocampo Memorial College continued its big run on its way to scoring an easy 84-71 triumph that denied Olivarez College of winning the title in Game 2 of the Sta. Lucia Land-NCRAA 25th season at the Olivarez College Gym.

The Cobras, who fought back from 18 points down before losing in overtime in the first meeting, made sure they won’t fall behind big this time.

In fact, they dictated the tempo of the game for most part of the match all the way to pulling off a one-sided victory to level the series and set up a winner-takeall showdown on Friday.

“Pangatlong sunod na taon na kaming naglalaro sa finals. ‘Yung nakaraang dalawa, parati kaming second. Sana medyo mabago namin this year,” said DOMC coach Ronnie Dojillo.

Led by newly chosen Most Valuable Player Dahrell Caranguian and fellow Mythical Five member Jhonard Clarito,

the Cobras were able to break free from a tight contest in the latter part of the second period as the two joined forces in a big scoring run.

Caranguian and Clarito were joined in the Mythical Five by Vinny Begaso of Olivarez, Kurt Sunga of Philippine Merchant Marine School and Owen Graham of AMA University.

Surprisingly, Dojillo didn’t start Caranguian and Clarito, a ploy which worked wonders, to keep them fresh in the second quarter where the duo conspired with surprise starter Redel Fabro as the Cobras posted a 45-34 advantage at the half, a lead which they never relinquished until the final buzzer.

The rubber match is set on Friday at 10 a.m. at the Olivarez College Gym as the two protagonists are expected to bring in their supporters.

Caranguian finished with 23 points to lead all scorers.

Another surprised starter, Tyrone dela Cruz came away with 15 points, 10 of them happened in the fourth period.

Dela Cruz went onslaught in the fourth period as the Cobras dished out their venom in posting an 81-61 advantage, silencing the hometown Olivarez crowd.

The scores: DE OCAMPO (84)—Caranguian 23, de la Cruz 15, Clarito 12, Sabasaje 8, Macasling 8, Pascual 6, M Atabay 2, Gallardo 1, Manalang 0, Gutierrez 0, Montojo 0, Lescano 0.

OLIVAREZ (71)—Solis 15, Rabe 13, Begaso 13, Bermudes 11, Sunga 8, Geronimo 5, Navarro 3, Saguiguit 2, Sala 1, Almajeda 0, Completo 0.

Quarterscores: 23-23, 45-34, 64-50, 84-71.

Manila

Standard

LUBAO—All roads lead to the fastblossoming town of Lubao in Pampanga province for the 17th World University Golf Championship from May 16 to 19.

A total of 21 countries have confirmed their participation in the prestigious event organized by the Pineda-Cayabyab Federation of School Sports Association of the Philippines and sanctioned by the International University Sports Federation.

These countries are Argentina, Australia, China, Czech, France, United Kingdom, Germany, Hong Kong-China, Israel, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Netherlands, Nepal, New Zealand, Poland, South Africa, Switzerland, ChineseTaipei, and the United States of America and host Philippines.

“We’re ready and all excited to play host to the World University Golf Championship,” said Lubao Mayor Mylyn Pineda-Cayabyab following an ocular inspection of the Pradera Verde Golf and Country Club, the site of the golf competitions, and a visit to the Mayor’s office by the FESSAP National Secretariat last weekend.

“We’re happy to welcome some of the best university golfers from all over the world. We want to bring international sports exposure to Lubao while also promoting tourism in our country.

We look forward to affording the athletes and team officials a taste of Filipino hospitality during their stay in the province of Pampanga,” Mayor PinedaCayabyab said.

Mayor Pineda-Cayabyab, who has given her all-out support to the event, is proud that Lubao has been chosen to host such athletic achievement of world magnitude, being a small town with a population of just 160,838 as of January 2017.

As its mayor, Mylyn Pineda-Cayabyab has worked wonders for Lubao and its friendly people with her various accomplishments. Her passion to uplift the economic status of her constituents through livelihood programs has proven beneficial to the common people.

Republic of the Philippines Department of Education REGION IV-A CALABARZON Gate 2 Karangalan Village, Cainta. Rizal

TODAY

INVITATION TO BID PROCUREMENT OF ATHLETIC UNIFORMS FOR THE 2018 PALARONG PAMBANSA 1.

The DepED Region IV-A CALABARZON, through the GAA funds FY 2018 intends to apply the sum of Three Million Sixty Seven Thousand Five Hundred Seventy Pesos Only (Php3,067,570.00) being the Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC) to payments under the contract for the Procurement of various athletic uniforms and other materials. Bids received in excess of the ABC per Lot shall be automatically rejected at bid opening.

Lot I-various uniforms and materials --Php3,067,570.00

2.

The DepED Region IV-A CALABARZON now invites bids for the Procurement of various athletic uniforms & materials. Delivery of the Services is expected for the Contract duration. Bidders should have completed, within five (5) years from the date of submission and receipt of bids, a contract similar to the Project. The description of an eligible bidder is contained in the Bidding Documents, particularly, in Section II. Instructions to Bidders. Interested bidders shall bid on a Lot basis.

3.

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

Luisito Sta. Ana beat the competition as he navigated his Duke 200 through a challenging street course.

KTM holds 1st-ever Dukehana PH THE ready-to-race DNA of KTM motorcycles were put to test the brave and skillful motorcycle enthusiasts during the recent Dukehana in the Philippines at the Circuit Makati Parking Grounds.

Dukehana is a motorcycle time trial sport where riders compete to maneuver through a paved course restricted by traffic cones and other skilltesting obstacles in the shortest time. Participants’ riding skills were faced with challenges like reversals, 180-degree spins, 360-degree spins, parking boxes and figure 8s.

The fastest rider with the least number of penalties or who did not set any penalty was adjudged the winner.

The first-ever Dukehana in Manila was highly anticipated by everyone, including amateur and veteran motorcycle riders to test and challenge their skills.

BEST Center goes to Lipa City, 3 new venues SUMMER gets busier for the pioneering and award-winning BEST Center when it goes to Lipa City, Batangas in addition to its three other new venues for its basketball and volleyball clinics.

The Nestle Lipa Factory will host the Milosponsored volleball clinic from April 16 to 21, while the basketball clinic will be held from May 14 to 19 in its LF Events and Sports Center.

Interested students may call Maan Maravilla at 0917-717-2104, 0977 188-5424 and 045 7563000 for details and reservation.

The country’s first scientific sports clinic,

supported by Rain or Shine, Chris Sports and Sklz, will also bring its basketball coaches to the Our Lady of Guadalupe Minor Seminary at EDSA corner Bernardino St. Guadalupe Viejo, Makati for Levels 1 and 2 every Tuesday and Friday; and at the St. Patrick School at 43 General Avenue, Bahay Toro, Project 8, Quezon City for Preparatory Levels and Levels 1 and 2.

Basketball and volleyball clinics are also being offered at the International Christian Academy at Extra Ext. Fourth Estate Subdivision, Sucat, Parañaque for Levels 1 and 2 every Monday and Thursday starting April 2.

Luisito Sta. Ana beat the competition as he navigated his Duke 200 through a challenging street course to bag the title as overall Luzon leg champion of the first ever KTM Dukehana in the country. Other winners were Van Ruedas, second and Iraq Bauzon, third.

Aside from the Luzon leg, two more legs will be held for motorcycle riders in Mindanao and Visayas, respectively in Davao on April 28 and Cebu on June 2. The overall winner with the fastest time will represent the Philippines in the Dukehana Asia Finals before the end of 2018 and will compete against other Asian champions, including those from Thailand, China and Taiwan To join, visit your nearest KTM dealer or visit KTM PHILIPPINES official Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/KTMPHILIPPINES/ for further announcements.

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

4.

Interested bidders may obtain further information from DepED Region IV-A CALABARZON (BAC Secretariat) and inspect the Bidding Documents at the address given below during office hour at 8:00am to 5:00pm Monday to Friday.

5.

A complete set of Bidding Documents may be acquired by interested Bidders on November 10, 2017 from the address below and upon payment of the applicable fee for the Bidding Documents, pursuant to the latest Guidelines issued by the GPPB, in the amount of Five Thousand Pesos (Php5,000.00).

Note: For lot procurement, the maximum fee for the Bidding Documents for each lot shall be based on its ABC, in accordance with the Guidelines issued by the GPPB; provided that the total fees for the Bidding Documents of all lots shall not exceed the maximum fee prescribed in the Guidelines for the sum of the ABC of all lots.}.

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

6.

The DepED Region IV-A CALABARZON will hold a Pre-Bid Conference2 on March 16, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. to be held at the Director’s Office Conference Room, which shall be open to prospective bidders.

7.

Bids must be duly received by the BAC Secretariat at the address below on or before April 2, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. All Bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable fos and in the amount stated in ITB Clause 18.

LOTTO RESULTS

6/55 00-00-00-00-00-00 P0 M+ 6/45 00-00-00-00-00-00 P0 M 4 DIGITS 0-0-0-0 3 DIGITS 0-0-0 2 EZ2 0-0

Bid opening shall be on April 2, 2018 at the Director’s Office Conference Room. Bids will be opened in the presence of the bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address below. Late bids shall not be accepted.

8.

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

9.

For further information, please refer to: Ann Geralyn T. Pelias DepED Region IV-A CALABARZON Gate 2 Karangalan Drive, Cainta, Rizal 6477487 & 6474914 www.depedcalabarzon.ph (SGD) ANN GERALYN T. PELIAS BAC Chairman

2

May be deleted ill case the ABC is less than One Million Pesos (PhP1,000,000.00) where the Procuring Entity may not hold a Pre-Bid Conference.

(MS-MAR. 14, 2018)

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

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WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14, 2018

Sports

NLEX, Magnolia part ways in semis

By Jeric Lopez

Members of the Senate Defenders, led by Senators Sonny Angara and Joel Villanueva, are shown with UNTV president and CEO Dr. Daniel Razon after ruling the 6th UNTV Cup Season 6. With them are Senators Franklin Drilon and Juan Miguel Zubiri.

Senate Defenders win UNTV cage crown, P4M for charity Lampawog eyes strong Ronda finish SILANG, Cavite—Go for Gold Developmental team’s Jay Lampawog seeks to finish strong in the final four stages of the Ronda Pilipinas 2018 presented

by LBC with hopes of completing what he already considers a fairy-tale run.

Coming into the 12-stage race with little expectation, the 20-year-old Lampawog defied the odds and zoomed to third in the overall individual race when no one expected him to and is a clear favorite to win the MVP Sports Foundation Best Young Rider trophy.

The Go for Gold Developmental team has also ridden on the shoulder of Lampawog to zoom to second overall in the team race behind only the flying NavyStandard Insurance team.

“I feel I’m in a dream, I couldn’t believe that I’m up there with the best of Philippine cycling,” said Lampawog, a native of Villasis, Pangasinan. “My goal now is to finish strong and get myself confidence going home.”

It was truly a phenomenal performance for Lampawog, who has an aggregate clocking of 21 hours and 19.31 minutes for third overall behind only leader Ronald Oranza of Navy-Standard Insurance with 21:01:56 and another Navy bet and reigning back-to-back titlist Jan Paul Morales with 21:08:51.

Lampawog has outperformed former Ronda kings Santy Barnachea of Team Franzia and Irish Valenzuela of CCN Superteam as well as other contenders like national team mainstay George Oconer of Go for Gold’s main team, Army-Bicycology’s Cris Joven and last year’s runner-up Rudy Roque of Navy.

Thanks also to Lampawog, Go for Gold Developmental team has leapfrogged to No. 2 in the overall team race with an aggregate clocking of 82:52:24, behind only the heavily favored Navy-Standard with 82:19:52 and ahead of No. 3 Army-Bicycology with 83:10:47.

Lampawog’s coach, Eds Hualda, isn’t

F

ROM zero to hero.

The Senate Defenders completed an amazing journey from last place to champion Monday when they swept the Malacañang-Philippine Sports Commission Kamao, 8464, in the 6th UNTV Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

As expected, the troika of Gary Sevilla, Jeff Sanders and Marlon Legaspi shattered Malacañang’s defense time and again with their inside plays on the way to winning their first-ever title in grand fashion.

After a slow start, the Defenders buckle down to serious work, regaining the initiative behind the torrid shooting of Sanders and Legaspi, who finished with 20 and 17 points, respectively, in the event organized by UNTV president and CEO Daniel Razon.

“Though kalat ang opensa, ‘yung tat-

lo talaga ang pumukpok para makalayo kami,” said coach Mike Fermin. “From zero to champion kami, kaya special ito sa amin.”

Senators Sonny Angara and Joel Villanueva credited the team’s success to discipline and teamwork.

“We played as a team and I think that was the key,” said Angara, “Nakuha sa pagpupursige at sa pagtitiyaga.”

Fermin again credited the team’s defense, especially in the payoff period that saw them limit the Kamao to just

14 points while erupting for 25 points.

The Defenders won a cash prize of P4 million, which will be distributed to their three chosen charities – Kythe Foundation Inc, Tanghalang Mapagpala Immaculada Concepcion Inc, and Bahay Pangarap Inc. They won P500,000 for themselves, while the Kamao settled for P300,000.

Malacañang’s own charity will receive P2 million.

The Scores: SENATE 84—Sanders 20, Legaspi 17, Sevilla 15, Mangaran 11, Ng 7, Angara 7, Balboa 5, Villanueva 2.

MALACAÑANG-PSC 64—Besa 11, Go 10, Dela Cuesta 9, Luanzon 8, Jimenez 8, Javier 6, Ignario 6, Gadong 4, Garrido 2.

Quarters: 17-21, 39-34, 59-50, 84-64.

WITH an even playing field, Magnolia and NLEX know how pivotal every edge is in their best-of-seven semifinal series as they both go for a critical lead in the resumption of the 2018 Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup playoffs.

Deadlocked at 1-1, the pivotal Game 3 is scheduled today at 7 p.m. at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

After dropping Game 1 in heartbreaking fashion, the Hotshots regrouped and used their experience to equalize and avoid a scary hole.

Behind star guard Paul Lee’s offensive exploits, Star made sure it had no meltdown as it took Game 2 decisively last Monday night, 99-84.

At his best, Lee dropped 27 markers to ensure his team’s victory.

Despite being hot offensively the last time out, Magnolia coach Chito Victolero insisted that the key for his team to grab its first series lead is its play on the other side of the floor.

“We’ve made adjustments and we now need to continue using our strength which is defense,” said Victolero.

True enough, NLEX struggled shooting the ball the other night as its offense was mostly in disarray, no thanks to Magnolia’s defense.

The Road Warriors are now looking to recapture their form in hopes to once again gain the upperhand.

The Hotshots will have to carry their fight on without veteran Marc Pingris, who will now miss the rest of the season.

Pingris injured his knee late in Game 1 and after an MRI, it was revealed that he tore his ACL, prompting him to miss six to eight months of action.

Manila Rugby 10s returns for 30th staging

Escuela de Sophia is WVL U-13 winner

By Charles Dantes

By Peter Atencio

RUGBY enthusiasts, players and supporters are invited to participate in the coming Manila 10s 2018 International Rugby Festival this coming March 24 and 25 at the San Lazaro Leisure Park, Carmona, Cavite.

Tagged as the best social rugby tournament in the world, the rugby festival is expected to deliver heart-pounding and intense action as teams from different countries battle it out with their speed, strength and skill.

This will be the 30th Manila 10s International Rugby Festival and each year, the competition has continued to gather new fans and players to watch the sport.

Only handful of local teams participated in the inaugural tourney 1989.

Thirty years later, more than 36 teams from around the world are joining the Manila 10s.

To compensate for their lack of height and heft, Filipinos have turned to their skill, creativity and speed to win against much bigger opponents, explained Clair Barberis, the Chairperson of Manila 10s, during her and the organizers’ appearance at the PSA Forum at the Tapa King in Araneta Center, Cubao.

TWELVE-YEAR-OLD Felicity Sagaysay’s heads up plays in the first set carried Escuela de Sophia of Caloocan to a 25-10, 25-7 win over Colegio San Agustin-Makati Sunday at the St. Placid gymnasium of the San Beda University-Manila campus in Mendiola.

Sagaysay stuck hard with seven points and her efforts at the frontline allowed the Caloocan spikers to take the lead, 16-10, and eventually claim the 13-and-under crown of the 22nd Women’s Volleyball League Championships.

With her teammates stepping up in the second set, the Caloocan spikers moved away, 10-0, and when it was over, Sagaysay took home the MVP honors in their category.

“Tuluy-tuloy lang sila sa training nila. Nagbunga rin ang pinaghirapan nila. First time silang champion,” said coach Marco Antonio Gojol.

La Salle-Zobel wound up third after beating San Beda-Alabang, 25-14, 2325, 15-8.

In other encounters, Holy Family School of Quezon City ruled the the 13-under development level after stopping St. Paul College-Makati, 25-23, 25-23, with Marielle Llorente bringing home MVP honors.

School of the Holy Spirit-QC prevailed over Assumption, 25-23, 25-12, in the battle for third.

King’s Montessori School claimed the 18-under competition division crown after thwarting Arellano University, 25-18, 25-19, 19-23.

San Pedro Relocation Center National High School topped the battle for third after they won over Chiang Kai Shek College, 27-25, 21-25, 25-13.

CSA-Makati stopped Arellano University, 25-15, 25-19, in the fight for the 18-under development crown.

St. Dominic Savio bagged third place after finishing off HFS, 25-19, 26-24.

Clair Barberis, the Chairperson of Manila 10s, and Philippine Volcanoes’ David Feeney grace the PSA Forum. Charles Dantes

Other than the games that will be played on the event, Mixed Touch Rugby will be added to the mix. There will also be a Touch Clinic for the neophytes of the sport to learn the basics of rugby.

Admission to the the Manila 10s In-

ternational Rugby Festival is free. Free shuttle service is also offered to fans.

To know more about the Manila 10s, visit their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/manilanomadsrugbyclub and website www.manila10s.com.

Arellano crowned track champion

SAVED! Band Pineda of Generika keeps the ball alive as teammates Symone Hayden, Angeli Araneta and Darlene Ramdin rush to help in the Chooks to Go-Philippine Superliga Grand Prix at the Imus Sports Center Tuesday. Roman Prospero

ARELLANO University ruled the 4x400-meter relay to cap its reign for the third straight season in the seniors’ division of the 93rd NCAA track and field championship at the Philsports Oval in Pasig City Monday.

Coming into the finals with only the second fastest time after the trials, Christian Milano, Reynaldo Gimoto, Christian Traje and Billy Boy Endrina dished out their best to overcome the competition and clinch the gold in three minutes and 25.05 seconds.

The Chiefs garnered a total of 802.5 points to claim their third straight title, besting Mapua University and Jose Rizal University, which finished second and third place with 640.5 and 370 points, respectively, in the just concluded event organized by Frank Gusi of Perpetual Help.

Milano’s 400m hurdles gold as well

as triumphs by Aristeo dela Pena in long jump and John Carlos Corpuz in discus throw were among AU’s many sources of victories.

It was AU’s third seniors’ crown this season after it also reigned supreme in women’s volleyball and women’s badminton.

And this early, the Chiefs are now looking forward to winning a four-peat feat next year.

“We are now reaping the fruits of a reinvigorated program and hopefully, we will go for a four-peat next season,” said Peter Cayco, AU’s Management Committee representative.

In juniors’ section, San Beda took the crown as it amassed 647.5 points, besting Perpetual Help, which wound up second with 561.25 points, and last year’s titlist Emilio Aguinaldo College, which ended up third with 522.5.

IN BRIEF Hyundai’s auto sales nearly flat HYUNDAI Asia Resources Inc., the official distributor of Hyundai vehicles in the Philippines, reported a slight drop in sales in February to 2,649 units from 2,653 units year-on-year.

HARI president and chief executive Ma. Fe Perez-Agudo said the company remained optimistic that consumer demand for vehicles would continue sustain sales in 2018.

“February gives us a consistent start in 2018. This only shows the trust and commitment our customers have to our high-quality, best-in-class, and customerfocused products and services,” she said.

Hyundai sales un the first two months of 2018 hit 5,552, up 1.5 percent from 5,470 units on year.

The passenger car segment remains the main driver of sales, accounting for 4,002 units or almost 75 percent of the total units sold.

Hyundai Accent accounted for 2,363 units during the period. Sales of the Eon and Elantra units rose 1.8 percent and 88 percent, respectively. Othel V. Campos

PPA to remit over P3b in dividends STATE-RUN Philippine Ports Authority said on Tuesday it will remit over P3 billion in dividends, its highest contribution to the national coffers since 1986.

The dividend from 2017 also eclipsed by at least 30 percent all the dividends it remitted to the government at least in the last decade, including its record P2.158 billion in 2015.

PPA is mandated to remit 50 percent of its annual net income to the national government after it was granted fiscal autonomy during the term of the late President Corazon Aquino.

PPA general manager Jay Daniel Santiago the agency posted record-breaking figures due to the reforms implemented by the new administration.

“This is a clear manifestation that we are reaping the benefits of the reforms management implemented in the last two years, that include among others, reduction of documentary requirements, faster turnaround time of trucks and vessels in ports, and modernization of strategic ports,” Santiago said.

Darwin G. Amojelar

Business SteelAsia spending P80b to construct modern plants

By Othel V. Campos

S

TEELASIA Manufacturing Corp. is investing P80 billion on an integrated steel expansion program spanning three phases in over six years.

The first phase will cost about P25 billion to finance the construction of three greenfield plants, said SteelAsia chief executive Benjamin Yao. “We see stronger demand due to more infrastructure projects in the public and private sectors. We expand because there is market. There is opportunity for us to have our own steel industry in a short span of time,” Yao said in a news briefing in Makati City Tuesday.

He said the company would invest in

steel products not yet produced in the Philippines.

The first plant is a 1.2-million-metricton wire and rod mill in Concepcion, Tarlac that will cost P7.5 billion, while the second project is a P7.5-billion wire and rod plant in Compostela, Cebu with a capacity of 800,000 MT annually.

A third plant―the P10 billion section mill in Lemery, Batangas―will have the capacity to supply 500,000 MT of sections bars.

The three plants are expected to go onstream in three years or by 2020 and generate 3,000 full-time jobs.

SteelAsia vice president for corporate development Rafael Hidalgo said most of the downstream products that SteelAsia planned to produce would support the booming construction sector.

“However, wire rod which is an industrial product, is used to make nuts and bolts, springs, welding rods, screens and mesh wire, to cite a few. These products,

we still import from abroad, even the tiniest nail. We need to have the technology to produce these products so we could level up our industrialization,” Hidalgo said.

The country imports $2 billion worth of wire rods, section bars and billets annually, representing 60 percent of national demand of 7 million MT. Imported section bars reach 700,000 MT while imported wire rods average 600,000 MT a year.

SteelAsia said once the three-phase program was completed, its total capacity would reach 7 million MT of finished steel products and 4.3 million MT of billets for steel making, double the current 2.3 million MT. It said that in the medium term, it would stop selling steel scraps abroad and reuse them locally to produce billets for steel making.

The Philippines exports about 2 million MT of steel scraps abroad, while SteelAsia needs at least 3 million MT of billets as raw materials for steel making.

Meralco launches latest mobile app CIS Bayad Center Inc., a unit of Manila Electric Co., launched on Tuesday its latest mobile app that will make bill payments more convenient for Filipinos.

The app will complement Bayad Center’s over 12,000 payment locations nationwide and accept payments from an initial 30 billers.

“Everyone wants everything to be simple. The BC Mobile is just that. It puts together in one app all your payment needs... it sends you a reminder for your due dates, it shows you the nearest Bayad Center branches and authorized partners... No need to enroll in different online payment sites, because BC Mobile carries under its umbrella the string of billing partners, and the seal of service and reliability that Bayad Center offers,” said CIS Bayad Center marketing head Wendell Kristian Labre.

Bayad Center, the country’s premier payment solutions provider, created the breakthrough solution, extending its footprints to the rapidly growing mobile market. Alena Mae S. Flores

GMA KAPUSO-AIRASIA PARTNERSHIP. GMA Kapuso Foundation renews its partnership with AirAsia Philippines, ensuring the timely delivery of services to communities in need across the country. Shown during the signing of memorandum of agreement are (from second left) GMAKF executive vice president and chief operating officer Rikki Escudero-Catibog, AirAsia Philippines chief executive Capt. Dexter Comendador and GMAKF founder and ambassador Mel Tiangco, along with Air Asia flight attendants.

Corporate tax reform plan expected to hurt PH competitiveness—Fitch BUSINESS Monitor International, a unit of Fitch Group, said the government’s tax reform program will make the Philippines less competitive in attracting foreign investments.

BMI said in a report Tuesday foreign investments could slow over the near term as the proposed conditional corporate tax reduction and repealing of fiscal incentives could create uncertainties for businesses.

The Finance Department already submitted the second package of the government’s Comprehensive Tax Reform Program to Congress and the proposal is now being deliberated at the House of Representatives.

“While the proposed tax reforms in the second package would streamline the complex tax system, we believe it

will likely weigh on the country’s competitiveness, and create uncertainty for investors in the near-term,” BMI said.

The second package came after the first package was signed into law by President Rodrigo Duterte in December 2017. It aims to lower corporate income taxes and reduce fiscal incentives to investors to achieve the government’s objective of making the tax system more efficient and fairer.

Package two of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion proposes to gradually reduce the corporate income tax rate from 30 percent to no less than 25 percent, while modifying tax incentives for companies to make these “performance-based, targeted, time-bound and transparent”. Julito G. Rada

Ray S. Eñano, Editor Roderick T. dela Cruz, Assistant Editor business@manilastandard.net extrastory2000@gmail.com WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14, 2018

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Petron posted 30% increase in net profit to P14.1b in 2017

By Alena Mae S. Flores OIL refiner Petron Corp. said Tuesday consolidated net income jumped 30 percent in 2017 to P14.1 billion from P10.8 billion in 2016, driven by higher demand and strong performance of high-value segments.

“We were able to capture increased fuel demand with the robust growth in the Philippine and Malaysian economies. Underpinned by large-scale infrastructure projects, we see strong demand growth in both markets over the medium term and this bodes well for our business,” Petron president and chief executive Ramon Ang said in a statement.

Consolidated sales revenues grew 26 precent to P434.6 billion in 2017 from P343.8 billion in 2016, on higher volume. Operating income also increased 16 percent to P27.6 billion.

Petron said the strong revenues were driven not only by higher sales volumes, but also by a continued focus on high-value segments in the Philippines and Malaysia operations.

The country’s biggest oil firm sold 107.8 million barrels last year, up from 105.7 million barrels sold in 2016.

Consolidated retail volumes grew 8 percent as the company continued to expand in the highly competitive segment with more than 3,000 service stations during the year.

Petron said sales of high-margin products such as gasoline, Jet A-1 and lubricants grew at double digits in 2017.

Petron launched the first and only Euro 6 fuel in the Philippine market– Blaze 100 Euro 6 last year. Lubricants such as Blaze Racing also helped grow the business by 15 percent.

The company said sales would have been much higher if not for scheduled maintenance turnarounds in both the 180,000-barrel-per-day Bataan refinery and the 88,000-barrel-per-day Port Dickson refinery in Malaysia.

Petrochemicals such as propylene also provided good margins and additional revenue as volumes grew 9 percent.

“Even with our strong presence backed by our unmatched logistics and production capabilities, we are committed to invest more and help secure the country’s energy needs,” Ang said.

Neda committee endorses 3 infrastructure projects

By Julito G. Rada THE National Economic and Development Authority said Tuesday the Investment Coordination Committee-Cabinet Committee endorsed three high-impact infrastructure projects on flood control and traffic alleviation in Metro Manila.

Neda said in a statement the AmbalSimuay River and Rio Grande de Mindanao river flood control projects and the construction of 10 proposed priority bridges crossing Pasig-Marikina River and Manggahan Floodway of the Public Works Department were among the 75 flagship projects of the Duterte administration.

The Mindanao flood control projects will cost P39.2 billion, including the construction of various flood

management infrastructure such as dikes and floodgates along the AmbalSimuay and Rio Grande de Mindanao which are parts of the Mindanao River Basin, the second largest river basin in the country.

Meanwhile, the construction of the remaining 10 priority bridges crossing Pasig-Marikina River and Manggahan Floodway would cost P27.37 billion.

These bridges would help improve road transport network capacity and efficiency in Metro Manila by adding fix links and alternate routes, Neda said.

The approval of the construction of the first two bridges―the BinondoIntramuros and Estrella-Pantaleon Bridges―with a total cost of P5.98 billion was earlier confirmed by the Neda Board on Sept. 12, 2017. The first two

bridges will be funded by a grant from the Chinese government.

The ICC-CabCom, chaired by Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III and co-chaired by Economic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia, also approved the Rural Agro-Enterprise Partnership for Inclusive Development and Growt Project of the Department of Trade and Industry, which is geared towards improving productivity of micro, small, and medium enterprises and making them competitive in the local and global markets.

The project, with a total cost of P4.78 billion, intends to support 78,000 farming households by increasing on-farm and off-farm activities and generating employment opportunities in rural areas.

BoI approves P85.9-b investments of Solar Philippines

GENDER EQUALITY AT AYALA LAND. Ayala Land Inc. is one of the first Philippine companies and the first real estate firm in the world to receive the Edge Assess Certification in recognition of gender equality in its workplace.

Edge, or Economic Dividends for Gender Equality, is the leading global assessment methodology and business certification standard for gender equity. Receiving the from Australian Ambassador to the Philippines Amanda Gorely (right) are (from left) Ayala Land human resources and public affairs group head Elis Tanlapco and Ayala Land president and chief executive Bobby Dy.

THE Board of Investments said it approved the registration of eight solar projects of Solar Philippines Commercial Rooftop Projects Inc. worth P85.9 billion.

The agency said the projects were found to have successfully complied with the requirements under the Special Laws List of the current Investment Priorities Plan through the Renewable Energy Act of 2008.

“The firm is at the forefront of producing renewable and affordable energy to address the growing power requirements of the country with the manufacturing resurgence and infrastructure programs in full swing. By taking advantage of the tropical climate of the archipelago, Solar Philippines is not only producing energy through its solar farms but also producing its own solar panels as it aims to become one of the world’s largest solar panel manufacturers and exporters,” said Trade Undersecretary and BoI managing head Ceferino Rodolfo.

Solar Philippines is building an P18.99-billion solar photovoltaic solar facility known as the Iba-Palauig 2 Solar Project in Paluig, Zambales with a capacity of 140.64 megawatt peak or 140 MW for alternating current capacity. Commercial operation is scheduled to start in February 2020.

It is also constructing a P13.56-billion solar farm known as the Concepcion Tarlac 2 Solar Project in the city of Tarlac and municipality of Concepcion with a capacity of 293.76 MWp (200MWac).

The company is also constructing a P13.56-billion solar facility with the same power capacity in Balayan and Calaca towns in Batangas province which will be known as the Balayan Solar Power Project.

Commercial operations of the Tarlac 2 and Balayan projects are scheduled to start in January 2019 and February 2020, respectively.

Solar Philippines is putting up two solar facilities in Cavite province, includ-

ing the P8.64-billion Maragondon-Naic 1 Solar farm in a 168-hectare area within the towns of Naic, Maragondon and Indang and the P8.64-billion Marangondon-Naic Tanza 2 Solar project within a 168-hectare area between Naic and Tanza.

Each will have a capacity of 196 MWp (140 MWac). Both are slated to be operational by October 2018.

It also plans to build the P8.6-billion Sta. Rosa Nueva Ecija 2 Solar project in an area spanning 168 hectares within the towns of Sta. Rosa, Peñaranda and San Leonardo in Nueva Ecija province.

It will have a capacity of 193.536 MWp (140 Mwac), with formal operations expected to start January 2020.

Tarlac will soon have two solar facilities, including a P7.08-billion solar facility in Sta. Rosa and Concepcion towns. It is also constructing a P6.9billion solar farm in the city of Tarlac and municipality of La Paz. Othel V. Campos

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Business

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14, 2018 extrastory2000@gmail.com

Market down; Aboitiz Power rises

T

HE stock market retreated Tuesday in cautious trading as global trade tensions returned and markets look ahead to the release of crucial US inflation data.

The Philippine Stock Exchange Index lost 33.93 points, or 0.4 percent, to 8,419.57 on a value turnover of P6.6 billion. Losers beat gainers 123 to 84, with 52 issues unchanged.

MRC Allied Inc. fell 4.5 percent to P0.85, PXP Energy Corp., a unit of Philex Mining Corp., tumbled 7.2 percent to P13.70.

BDO Unibank Inc., the biggest lender in terms of assets, declined 2.5 percent to P149.50. Aboitiz Power Corp., a major power generator, rose 2 percent to P40.60.

A strong jobs report on Friday and Donald Trump’s decision to meet Kim Jong Un helped fuel a surge in global

equities at the end of last week, overshadowing US tariffs and fears of a trade war.

But concerns returned following comments from a European trade commissioner that the EU would “stand up to bullies” while Trump said he will look into cutting levies the bloc imposes on US goods.

The Dow and S&P 500 each fell, though the Nasdaq ticked up to another record high.

Attention is now on the inflation release later in the day, which will be pored over for an idea about the Federal Reserve’s timetable for hiking interest rates.

A strong reading could hit markets worried about the impact of higher borrowing costs on the investment environment.

“Equity investors are finding it difficult to ignore the gnawing concerns about trade wars and are adopting a de-

fense first strategy despite the (positive) jobs number,” said Stephen Innes, head of Asia-Pacific trade at OANDA. “Keep in mind the spotlight will be on US (consumer inflation) tonight, and it was only one month ago a surprise inflation print sent the market into a tailspin, so likely some caution ahead of the critical US inflation data. Overall investors remain very cautious as sentiment recovers.”

Asian markets swung in and out of positive territory through the morning and by the end Tokyo was up 0.7 percent.

Hong Kong fell 0.2 percent while Shanghai finished 0.5 percent lower.

Seoul added 0.4 percent and Singapore put on 0.3 percent but Sydney slipped 0.4 percent. Wellington and Taipei were both higher, while Bangkok and Jakarta fell.

“We need to brace ourselves for a possible impact in case that (inflation) turns

out to be higher than expected,” forex strategists at Mizuho Securities said in a commentary.

The dollar edged up but was still struggling against the yen as traders fret about the political future of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Finance Minister Taro Aso, who have both been sucked into a land deal scandal.

The controversy comes as dealers eye a wind-down of Japan’s crisis-era stimulus program, which is expected to put upward pressure on the yen, with some commentators saying the greenback could fall below 100 yen for the first time since 2016.

“The theme for 2018 is the risk of the dollar-yen breaking 100,” said Masashi Murata, a currency strategist at Brown Brothers Harriman in Tokyo.

The yen above that level “wouldn’t look excessive from the perspective of its fundamentals,” he told Bloomberg News. With AFP

MANILA STANDARD BUSINESS DAILY STOCKS REVIEW TUESDAY, MARCH 13, 2018

VALUE

NET FOREIGN BUYING/(SELLING), PHP

FINANCIALS 59.7 6,380 118.7 963,760 3.1 315,000 149.5 2,047,030 1.83 156,000 35.3 476,100 8.02 300 15.6 78,000 30.4 538,100 3.42 59,000 8.7 200 0.64 70,000 1.6 1,000 0.55 518,000 96 2,219,060 1.28 5,960,000 24.15 300 56.8 31,710 248.2 20,230 118.5 13,320 86.95 2,360 46.7 68,400 250 539,180 1,970 45 90.25 21,290

380,260 114,387,921 978,200 306,124,680 282,000 16,812,850 2,406 1,211,808 16,285,205 199,830 1,740 44,810 1,600 281,740 212,796,414.50 7,819,630 7,245 1,802,002 5,022,044 1,465,788 203,074 3,196,160 135,525,604 88,850 1,919,843

345,233 797,734 9,360 -116,490,016 9,701,245.00 249,550 3,932,425 -22,312,818 839,520.00 18,801.50 -1,248,992 392,485 -1,026,422 19,900 8,282.50

39.8 13.64 0.59 1.3 18.76 0.218 161 4.08 17.12 290 50.55 28.2 61.5 65 85 1.97 5.36 10.18 11.84 14.42 11.16 7.55 5.95 1.72 17 65.5 27.65 9.43 18.36 2.55 292.4 51.15 4.6 3.1 18.78 27.2 16.5 20.3 328.8 0.2 8.04 2.76 5.1 9.33 6.16 8.49 1.55 12.3 54.6 6.03 621 4.7 2.6 3.4 2.35 16.02 5.32 0.135 1.02 149.9 2.77 1.91 1

INDUSTRIAL 40.6 3,530,400 13.86 1,334,800 0.6 1,397,000 1.32 837,000 19.28 14,200 0.221 2,060,000 165.1 1,030 4.18 14,764,000 17.24 3,049,500 290 1,790 51.2 438,710 29 885,000 61.5 73,750 65 8,970 86.2 1,450 1.97 854,000 5.48 165,700 10.5 3,900 11.88 2,357,900 14.68 296,500 11.2 78,700 7.7 117,300 6.01 25,668,200 1.72 5,000 17.24 2,512,400 68.3 671,000 27.8 371,800 9.98 1,533,800 18.4 4,502,000 2.72 7,898,000 293 557,650 51.15 220 4.71 607,000 3.15 14,000 18.78 1,800 27.4 1,514,400 16.64 62,500 20.35 3,224,200 334 242,330 0.2 50,000 8.04 100 2.8 322,000 5.65 13,400,100 9.54 6,751,300 6.2 82,800 8.49 600 1.57 625,000 12.6 151,700 54.65 149,890 6.03 12,500 623 7,550 4.7 2,000 2.66 375,000 3.4 16,000 2.39 1,623,000 16.1 320,600 5.42 54,900 0.135 1,230,000 1.02 173,000 150 953,540 2.77 22,000 1.97 4,972,000 1.04 20,238,000

144,109,760 18,469,450 851,740 1,095,310 267,418 455,890 171,439 61,666,720 52,491,750 620,330 22,733,721.50 28,783,875 4,535,625 588,654 124,897 1,723,080 898,568 40,462 28,036,036 4,303,134 882,950 902,636 154,193,927 8,600 43,452,466 45,188,693 10,331,075 15,259,370 83,321,122 21,172,520 163,660,104 11,300 2,858,010 43,790 33,836 41,378,930 1,038,796 66,200,335 80,133,206 10,000 804 892,060 74,787,648 64,108,575 511,827 5,094 990,820 1,910,526 8,204,870 75,375 4,703,310 9,400 1,006,470 55,780 3,892,230 5,161,540 296,749 167,480 177,860 143,043,673 60,940 9,687,170 20,786,640

-35,983,105 196,810 -100 7,207,350.00 26,990,202 207,494 25,160 -15,375 51,000 36,720 4,472,290 3,169,372 -117,130 108,916 -22,446,193 -897,970 25,246,073.50 7,965,730 1,621,704 -37,110,266 337,200 -19,789,328 -2,862,120 -112,536 -7,858,675 -3,063,206 10,000 384,480 1,066,480 5,619,985.00 15,800 1,680,360 -175,597 579,465 52,080 -80,470 -278,778.00 -38,326,436 -494,500 10,280

0.31 76.1 14.66 0.96 7.79 0.65 0.66 1,039 2,232 7.28 13.5 7.58 5 0.205 1,325 7.23 67 5.47 0.7 5.47 20.35 0.38 5.59 0.046 1.66 3.38 2.72 145.5 2.57 967 0.8 1.82 730 284 0.25 0.214 0.233

0.3 75 14.4 0.91 7.4 0.63 0.66 1,028 1,489 7.24 13.42 7.35 5 0.196 1,312 7.12 65.8 5.47 0.66 5.35 19.52 0.355 5.5 0.043 1.17 3.1 2.52 142 2.57 955.5 0.8 1.75 648 270 0.238 0.201 0.219

HOLDING FIRMS 0.3 2,320,000 76 1,336,390 14.44 4,433,500 0.96 109,000 7.75 202,100 0.63 16,598,000 0.66 1,651,000 1,032 140,935 2,200 125 7.26 545,600 13.48 10,606,500 7.57 1,900 5 2,000 0.196 270,000 1,323 20,180 7.23 12,700 67 1,791,460 5.47 100 0.69 382,000 5.36 370,800 19.8 630,400 0.38 2,360,000 5.53 25,932,400 0.044 9,500,000 1.23 31,621,000 3.14 12,171,000 2.66 11,000 143 140,660 2.57 2,000 963 273,750 0.8 113,000 1.77 975,000 660 2,990 279 3,780 0.238 340,000 0.211 3,930,000 0.219 360,000

696,550 101,419,994.50 64,023,940 102,600 1,559,228 10,614,620 1,089,660 145,309,530 242,800 3,958,327 142,897,304 14,331 10,000 54,450 26,651,945 91,611 119,234,744.50 547 254,700 1,989,998 12,469,142 880,700 143,537,421 417,900 41,205,150 38,874,810 29,170 20,221,183 5,140 263,397,385 90,400 1,721,480 2,013,250 1,029,558 81,930 827,770 79,120

-2,381,816 -25,272,668 52,215 594,660 -46,224,470 11,160 34,930 9,105,710 -3,082,805 1,178,598 1,258,503 -7,519,024 18,150 -73,091,421 414,450 174,230 -461,929 -12,187,215 -80,000 -10,500 5,600 45,220 -

7.09 1.1 16.04 2.08 0.91 42.2 3.9 4.9 6.2 0.445 1.06 0.28 0.48 42.1 0.65 1.82 1.44 0.88 4.89

6.98 1.06 15.6 2.07 0.88 41.55 3.79 4.8 6.03 0.44 1.03 0.26 0.455 35 0.64 1.78 1.41 0.81 4.83

6,058,496 15,274,520 70,172 49,860 3,230,240 276,615,335 2,855,870 2,355,470 277,272 1,977,300 1,069,390 22,967,850 239,300 280,632,960 5,147,370 13,527,680 2,768,010 3,827,600 58,068,670

-1,389,960 40,690 -121,611,345 -30,440 207,810 57,623 -353,750 2,160 215,700 -25,072,535 -5,117,100 598,230 103,340 1,568,790 -3,969,320

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 MEDCO HLDG METROBANK NTL REINSURANCE PBCOM PHIL NATL BANK PHIL STOCK EXCH PHILTRUST PSBANK RCBC SECURITY BANK SUN LIFE UNION BANK

58.25 120 3.2 152.5 1.9 35.4 8.02 15.52 30.15 3.37 8.7 0.65 1.6 0.54 96.8 1.41 24.15 57 247.8 112 86 46.8 253.8 1,990 91

59.7 120 3.28 152.5 1.9 35.45 8.02 15.6 30.4 3.42 8.7 0.65 1.6 0.55 96.8 1.41 24.15 57 248.6 119 86.95 46.8 253.8 1,990 91

58.25 118 3.1 149.1 1.73 35.2 8.02 15.5 30.05 3.34 8.7 0.64 1.6 0.54 95.6 1.27 24.15 56.7 247.8 106.8 86 46.7 248.6 1,970 90

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 CONCRETE B 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 MABUHAY VINYL MACAY HLDG MANILA WATER MAXS GROUP MEGAWIDE MERALCO MG HLDG PANASONIC PEPSI COLA PETROENERGY PETRON PHIL H2O PHINMA PHINMA ENERGY PHX PETROLEUM PILIPINAS SHELL PRYCE CORP PUREFOODS RFM CORP ROXAS AND CO ROXAS HLDG SFA SEMICON SHAKEYS PIZZA SPC POWER SWIFT FOODS TKC METALS UNIV ROBINA VICTORIAS VITARICH VULCAN INDL

39.9 13.98 0.64 1.31 18.8 0.22 161 4.08 17.12 390 50.55 31.8 61.5 68 94.2 1.99 5.45 10.3 11.98 14.48 11.16 7.55 6 1.72 17.6 65.5 27.75 9.45 18.9 2.78 296 55.85 4.9 3.11 18.8 27.45 16.5 20.9 328.8 0.2 8.04 2.76 5.1 9.35 6.2 8.49 1.55 12.6 55 6.03 621 4.7 2.7 3.56 2.49 16.02 5.32 0.135 1.03 150 2.77 1.96 1.03

41.55 14 0.64 1.34 19.4 0.225 183 4.24 17.38 390 52 35 61.5 68 94.2 2.05 5.48 10.5 12 14.68 11.32 7.76 6.05 1.72 17.9 68.4 27.85 10 18.9 2.8 297 55.85 4.9 3.15 18.8 27.65 16.96 20.9 334 0.2 8.04 2.8 5.98 9.56 6.28 8.49 1.62 12.6 55 6.03 624 4.7 2.75 3.56 2.49 16.2 5.42 0.138 1.03 150.8 2.77 1.99 1.08

ABACORE CAPITAL ABOITIZ EQUITY ALLIANCE GLOBAL ANGLO PHIL HLDG ANSCOR ATN HLDG A ATN HLDG B AYALA CORP BHI HLDG COSCO CAPITAL DMCI HLDG FILINVEST DEV FJ PRINCE A FORUM PACIFIC 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 SOC RESOURCES SOLID GROUP SYNERGY GRID TOP FRONTIER UNIOIL HLDG WELLEX INDUS ZEUS HLDG

0.31 75 14.46 0.95 7.77 0.65 0.66 1,032 1,489 7.24 13.5 7.35 5 0.203 1,325 7.12 66.4 5.47 0.7 5.47 19.7 0.36 5.51 0.044 1.65 3.32 2.52 145.3 2.57 963.5 0.8 1.75 691 284 0.25 0.209 0.233

8990 HLDG A BROWN ANCHOR LAND ARANETA PROP ARTHALAND CORP AYALA LAND BELLE CORP CEB LANDMASTERS CEBU HLDG CENTURY PROP CITYLAND DEVT CROWN EQUITIES CYBER BAY DOUBLEDRAGON EMPIRE EAST FILINVEST LAND GLOBAL ESTATE IRC PROP MEGAWORLD

7.09 1.1 15.6 2.08 0.9 42 3.9 4.85 6.2 0.44 1.06 0.28 0.46 35 0.65 1.8 1.44 0.82 4.87

VOLUME

NAME

OPEN

HIGH

LOW

CLOSE

VOLUME

VALUE

NET FOREIGN BUYING/(SELLING), PHP

MRC ALLIED 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

0.89 0.46 0.53 4.3 35.2 20.7 2.02 3.26 36.35 1.03 22.7 0.82 6.38

0.94 0.49 0.54 4.3 35.2 20.85 2.02 3.26 36.35 1.03 23 0.82 6.49

0.84 0.455 0.52 4.2 34.05 20.4 1.97 3.23 35.6 1.01 20.3 0.82 6.36

0.85 0.475 0.54 4.23 34.05 20.85 1.99 3.23 35.7 1.02 21.35 0.82 6.49

732,915,000 46,470,000 3,142,000 2,209,000 7,700 1,486,000 169,000 20,000 4,470,500 629,000 360,200 10,000 6,620,600

648,185,250 22,102,900 1,656,520 9,387,530 268,305 30,893,720 334,940 65,050 159,748,450 641,550 7,772,595 8,200 42,728,946

6,348,480 14,250 71,600 27,775 12,551,950 107,120 -48,950,755 20,400 -151,350.00 -11,283,513

2GO GROUP ABS CBN ACESITE HOTEL APC GROUP APOLLO GLOBAL ASIAN TERMINALS BERJAYA BLOOMBERRY BOULEVARD HLDG CEBU AIR CENTRO ESCOLAR 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 LEISURE AND RES LORENZO SHIPPNG MACROASIA MANILA BULLETIN MANILA JOCKEY MELCO RESORTS METRO RETAIL 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

18.6 29.8 1.43 0.61 0.059 11.98 4.92 14.46 0.069 103 8.72 7.75 9 2.37 37 910 1,780 6.48 321.6 10.64 5.8 2.65 109.4 13.02 8.3 0.129 1.52 3.21 5.75 1.03 28.05 0.5 5.11 8.15 3.24 13 10.36 10.6 2.85 8.44 111.1 7.07 1,550 1.19 0.44 53.9 94.4 7.98 2.66 1.42 0.52 3.45 1.07 11.18

18.62 30 1.44 0.62 0.06 12 4.92 14.56 0.071 103 8.72 7.75 9 2.39 40.5 910 1,785 6.48 332 10.64 5.88 2.68 109.5 13.28 8.3 0.129 1.52 3.28 5.76 1.07 28.5 0.5 5.35 8.23 3.3 13 15.4 10.6 2.85 8.44 111.2 7.07 1,567 1.19 0.455 54 94.4 8.71 2.68 1.44 0.52 3.45 1.09 11.22

17.9 29.5 1.34 0.59 0.057 11.98 4.92 14.26 0.068 101.3 8.7 7.6 7.7 2.37 35 910 1,740 6.41 305 10.64 5.52 2.65 108.3 12.7 8.3 0.126 1.48 3.2 5.49 1.03 27.15 0.5 5.03 7.91 3.24 12.5 10.36 10.3 2.85 8.2 109.6 6.83 1,538 1.17 0.41 53.5 93 7.54 2.65 1.41 0.5 3.4 1.03 10.96

SERVICES 18 29.9 1.35 0.61 0.059 12 4.92 14.36 0.069 102.9 8.7 7.64 7.9 2.39 37.8 910 1,750 6.44 320 10.64 5.56 2.65 109 13.28 8.3 0.128 1.52 3.21 5.6 1.03 27.15 0.5 5.12 8.04 3.25 12.7 11.92 10.6 2.85 8.2 109.6 6.89 1,567 1.17 0.41 53.8 94 8.25 2.66 1.44 0.5 3.45 1.03 11.02

34,600 182,400 370,000 14,991,000 65,220,000 62,600 1,000 6,202,600 11,780,000 117,290 65,000 984,200 1,212,900 23,000 202,300 10 20,795 278,300 64,600 200 3,470,600 29,000 691,810 284,900 2,500 8,930,000 94,000 40,000 6,881,400 247,000 758,900 1,000 195,000 1,411,900 490,000 10,759,900 18,642,300 80,500 14,000 4,200 11,580 1,618,100 48,410 1,228,000 26,780,000 1,728,770 1,638,680 2,696,900 1,620,000 1,451,000 13,629,000 363,000 15,361,000 2,942,700

628,430 5,447,915 501,320 9,020,020 3,782,480 751,160 4,920 89,143,790 812,650 11,961,789 565,560 7,523,464 9,621,474 54,920 7,572,540 9,100 36,435,880 1,790,451 20,599,606 2,128 19,851,971 76,880 75,305,723 3,647,906 20,750 1,135,560 140,510 128,450 38,193,078 258,210 20,783,990 500 996,511 11,337,715 1,597,260 137,227,492 195,335,792 839,420 39,900 34,584 1,274,242 11,131,258 75,546,695 1,449,720 11,499,000 93,146,197.50 154,034,135.50 21,876,610 4,316,450 2,075,670 6,917,670 1,245,780 16,151,500 32,462,840

-13,020 9,760 40,800 17,929,772 2,873,707 17,420 327,185 -54,690 6,912,260 234,236 -414,984 -17,490,637 708,500 14,980 5,278,476 -3,393,865 2,052 4,016,259 159,510 -13,341,738 93,600,568 2,120 5,064 -558,296 276,061 -6,862,685 -41,290 246,000 36,933,246 8,302,046 -252,605 263,520 841,710 -228,710 -175,820 134,950 -5,669,500

10,591,200 8,305,180 508,200 11,640 418,290 524,850 10,823 13,221,570 38,950 357,160 53,670 267,900 18,800 506,660 8,184,078 1,488,850 27,800 452,300 140,100 176,800 101,870 2,271,702 169,607,340 56,318,485

-143,500 1,016,980 -9,720 80,180 3,461,128 -1,336 -35,984,638 -19,991,825

MS

PROPERTY 7.03 1.09 16.04 2.07 0.89 41.55 3.79 4.83 6.07 0.44 1.04 0.275 0.48 35.5 0.64 1.8 1.42 0.85 4.84

865,000 14,223,000 4,400 24,000 3,629,000 6,625,600 748,000 488,000 45,400 4,470,000 1,033,000 85,340,000 520,000 7,392,300 8,042,000 7,533,000 1,954,000 4,517,000 11,991,000

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

0.0034 1.72 4.9 1.67 1.71 0.3 7.22 2.54 0.24 0.149 0.153 0.0095 0.0094 1.45 6.41 1.26 0.45 0.012 0.013 0.013 2.3 6.1 14.76 33

0.0035 1.72 4.9 1.67 1.71 0.31 7.29 2.57 0.24 0.15 0.154 0.0096 0.0094 1.46 6.47 1.35 0.49 0.012 0.013 0.013 2.46 6.1 14.8 33.55

0.0031 1.67 4.86 1.66 1.68 0.3 7.19 2.51 0.227 0.149 0.153 0.0095 0.0094 1.42 6.25 1.2 0.45 0.011 0.012 0.013 2.3 6.03 13.5 32.85

MINING & OIL 0.0034 3,249,000,000 1.68 4,912,000 4.86 104,000 1.66 7,000 1.68 247,000 0.3 1,740,000 7.19 1,500 2.51 5,209,000 0.228 170,000 0.15 2,390,000 0.154 350,000 0.0096 28,000,000 0.0094 2,000,000 1.42 351,000 6.29 1,293,400 1.27 1,214,000 0.49 60,000 0.012 37,700,000 0.013 10,800,000 0.013 13,600,000 2.4 44,000 6.05 376,300 13.7 12,134,700 32.9 1,702,600

ABS HLDG PDR DD PREF FGEN PREF G GLO PREF P GMA HLDG PDR GTCAP PREF B HOUSE PREF A LR PREF MWIDE PREF PCOR PREF 2A PF PREF 2 SMC PREF 2B SMC PREF 2C SMC PREF 2D SMC PREF 2E SMC PREF 2G SMC PREF 2H SMC PREF 2I

29 102 110.8 508.5 6.35 1,009 101.5 1.06 108.3 1,035 991 76.5 79.95 75.1 77 76.55 75.1 77.1

29.2 102.1 110.8 509 6.4 1,009 101.5 1.06 108.3 1,035 991 76.95 79.95 75.1 77 76.55 75.1 77.2

28.05 101.5 110.8 508.5 6.15 1,009 101.5 1.06 108 1,035 991 76.5 79 75.1 77 76.55 75.1 77.1

PREFERRED 28.3 185,700 102 22,610 110.8 57,880 509 1,100 6.32 206,700 1,009 35 101.5 25,130 1.06 3,000 108 90 1,035 960 991 450 76.95 1,600 79 2,110 75.1 1,800 77 24,400 76.55 1,100 75.1 150 77.2 21,000

5,275,550 2,301,890 6,413,104 559,850 1,320,337 35,315 2,550,695 3,180 9,744 993,600 445,950 122,445 166,794.50 135,180 1,878,800 84,205 11,265 1,619,200

-924,940 507,500 1,309,688 -7,695 2,313

LR WARRANT

3.88

3.88

3.6

WARRANTS 3.65 1,392,000

5,145,010

-21,600

52,063,483 2,939,150 16,401,450

299,119 -180 -334,460

639,505

-

30,900

-

ITALPINAS PHILAB HLDG XURPAS

6.55 3.48 3.49

6.89 3.5 3.49

6 3.25 3.3

FIRST METRO ETF

128.9

129.3

128.5

USD DMPL A2

10.3

10.3

TRADING SUMMARY

SHARES

FINANCIAL

14,105,156

INDUSTRIAL

133,276,654

HOLDING FIRMS

129,350,215

PROPERTY

958,081,214

SERVICES

227,761,395

MINING & OIL

3,375,849,885

GRAND TOTAL

4,852,298,745

10.3

6.1 3.49 3.38

SME

8,132,500 879,000 4,851,000

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS 128.5 4,970 10.3

DDS

3,000

VALUE 2,189.20 (down) 24.31 826,873,254.90 FINANCIAL INDUSTRIAL 11,583.88 (up) 34.15 1,452,148,357.90 HOLDING FIRMS 8,438.52 (down) 12.50 1,151,208,609.44 PROPERTY 3,780.04 (down) 38.29 1,763.93 (down) 3.24 1,625,839,785.145 SERVICES MINING & OIL 11,304.68 (down) 1.22 1,158,659,450.77 PSEI 8,419.57 (down) 33.93 273,651,658.184 All Shares Index 5,067.16 (down) 16.82 6,560,449,374.68 Gainers: 84; Losers: 123; Unchanged: 52; Total: 259

SEC seeks full probe of anomalous 2GO audit

By Jenniffer B. Austria THE Securities and Exchange Commission has decided to conduct a fullblown investigation on the accounting anomaly involving 2GO Group, Inc..

An informed SEC source said the corporate regulator would start issuing show-cause orders against previous officials of 2GO and accounting firms RG Manabat & Co., the local unit of of KPMG, and SGV after finding evidence of possible violation of the Securities Regulation Code during a preliminary investigation conducted by the SEC. The source said a special fact-finding panel earlier formed to conduct the preliminary investigation on the case had been transformed into an investigative panel that would evaluate the case for the possible imposition of sanctions.

SEC chairperson Teresita Herbosa earlier said if the probe uncovered irregularities in the financial statements of 2GO, the publicly-listed company’s management and auditors might face a fine.

“It will not be less than P1 million.

And then there is probably a daily fine of P10,000 at least since the time it was discovered and your attention has been called that there has been really wrong accounting. So the penalties will run from that time,” Herbosa said.

The new management of 2GO, led by businessman Dennis Uy’s Udenna Corp. and SM Investments Corp., hired SyCip Gorres Velayo & Co. to conduct the review after taking over the logistics company April last year.

A special audit of 2GO’s financial statements showed the accounts in the previously audited financial statement required restatement “to ensure fair presentation of financial statements and establish accountabilities.”

The restated results showed that 2G0 had a significant decline in the 2015 net income to P109.131 million, or 90 percent lower than the profit of P1.08 billion it disclosed in the 2015 annual report.

Globe borrows from Mizuho to fund expansion

By Darwin G. Amojelar GLOBE Telecom Inc. said it borrowed money from a Japanese bank to partly finance capital expenditures this year.

Globe, a unit of Conglomerate Ayala Corp., said in a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange it signed P6billion and $20-million seven-year term loans with Mizuho Bank Ltd. “The loans shall be used to partially finance the company’s capital expenditures and general corporate requirements,” Globe said.

Globe earlier allotted between $850 million and $900 million in capital expenditures yearly until 2019 to further expand its mobile and broadband networks.

Globe spent around P42.5 billion or $844 million in capex last year to support the growing subscriber base and demand for data. The company spend about 82 percent of the budget for the data service needs of customers.

Globe to date has 37,517 base stations, with over 24,700 for 4G3, to support the service requirements of customers.

Globe posted a net income of P15.1 billion in 2017, down 5 percent from P15.9 billion in 2016, after increased investments in data network pushed non-operating costs and depreciation charges higher.

The 2-percent rise in non-operating expenses was largely due to the increase in interest expenses and spectrum amortization related to the acquisition of the telecommunication assets of San Miguel Corp.

Globe’s core net income, which excludes the impact of non-recurring charges, and foreign exchange and mark-to-market charges, also declined15 percent to P13.5 billion from P16 billion in 2016, with the full year impact of the San Miguel purchase.

Consolidated revenues amounted to P127.9 billion in 2017, up 6 percent from P120.59 million in 2016.

Globe’s mobile revenues increased 7 percent to P98.5 million from P92.3 million in 2016, driven by the mobile data revenue growth.

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Standard

World

TODAY extrastory2000@gmail.com

IN BRIEF Nepal probes deadly plane crash on runway KATHMANDU―Recordings show apparent confusion between the pilot and air traffic control over the runway approach at Kathmandu airport as Nepal Tuesday began investigating its deadliest plane crash in decades.

Aviation authorities said they had recovered the flight data recorder from the charred wreckage of the plane, which burst into flames after crashing into a football field near Kathmandu airport on Monday killing 49 people.

Witnesses have described how the USBangla Airways plane carrying 71 people abruptly changed direction moments before it crashed.

On Monday the airline’s chief executive Imran Asif said there had been a “fumble from the control tower” as the plane approached the airport’s single runway.

But airport manager Raj Kumar Chhetri told AFP it was too early to say what had caused the mountainous country’s deadliest crash since 1992.

“It is yet to be identified whether the pilot or air traffic control was wrong,” he said, adding the investigation would be carried out with Bangladesh. AFP

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14, 2018

UK points finger at Russia L ONDON―Britain will hold new emergency talks Tuesday into the brazen nerve agent poisoning of a Russian former double agent on its soil, after the US and NATO backed London in implicating Moscow in the assassination attempt.

As diplomatic tensions soar, Russia has denied the accusations of its involvement in the attack on Sergei Skripal and his daughter in southwest England on March 4.

British Prime Minister Theresa May told parliament it was “highly likely” Moscow was behind the poisoning, giving Russia until the end of Tuesday to answer the accusations, in comments that have stoked speculation Britain could call on its allies to mount a joint response.

Both the United States and NATO issued statements in support of London,

said Washington had “full confidence” in the British investigation, adding that it was “almost beyond comprehension” that a state would use such a dangerous substance on public streets.

“We agree that those responsible―both those who committed the crime and those who ordered it―must face appropriately serious consequences,” he told reporters.

“We stand in solidarity with our allies in the United Kingdom and will continue to coordinate closely our responses.”

May told British lawmakers that Moscow had previously used the group of nerve agents, known as Novichok, had a history of state-sponsored assassinations and viewed defectors such as Skripal as legitimate targets.

“The government has concluded that it is highly likely that Russia was responsible for the act against Sergei and Yulia Skripal,” she said.

as concern mounts over the use of what May described as a military-grade nerve agent developed by Russia.

Skripal, 66, and his daughter Yulia, 33, remain in a critical condition in hospital after being found unconscious on a bench outside a shopping center in Salisbury.

Emergency workers in biohazard suits have been deployed in the normally sleepy city, while some 500 people who may have come into minimal contact with the nerve agent were urged to wash clothes and belongings as a precaution.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson

The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) is inviting all interested bidders in its forthcoming public bidding for the Supply and Delivery of Four (4) Lots of Beer, Soft Drinks, Fruit Juices and Bottled Water for SOGs and Various Departments under ITB No. PB18-03-031COR. Brief Description

Delivery Schedule Approved Budget for the Contract (ABC)

deScrIptIon Supply and Delivery of Beer in Can

2

Supply and Delivery of Soft Drinks in Can

3

Supply and Delivery of Fruit Juices in Can

4

Supply and Delivery of Bottled Water

Please refer to Section VI (Schedule of Requirements) of the Bidding Documents for the project regarding the complete details of the schedule of delivery.

The total ABC is Ten Million Four Hundred Six Thousand Six Hundred FiftyNine Pesos and 60/100 (PhP10,406,659.60), VAT Exclusive, Zero-Rated Transaction.

lot no.

Source of Funds

deScrIptIon

aBc,vat-excluSIve, Zero-rated tranSactIon

1

Supply and Delivery of Beer in Can

Two Million Two Hundred Eight Thousand Pesos (PhP2,208,000.00)

2

Supply and Delivery of Soft Drinks in Can

Two Million Five Hundred Ninety-Eight Thousand Six Hundred Eighty Pesos (PhP2,598,680.00)

3

Supply and Delivery of Fruit Juices in Can

Six Hundred Seventeen Thousand Four Hundred Nineteen Pesos and 60/100 (PhP617,419.60)

4

Supply and Delivery of Bottled Water

Four Million Nine Hundred Eighty-Two Thousand Five Hundred Sixty Pesos (PhP4,982,560.00)

Corporate Budget for CY 2018

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

HILLARY IN JODHPUR. Former US politican Hillary Clinton walks out of Jodhpur Airport upon

her arrival in Jodhpur in the western Indian state of Rajasthan on March 13, 2018. AFP

secret and would leave exportreliant Taiwan vulnerable to Chinese influence.

“The defendants did not initiate attacks or cause bloody conflicts and it was an expression of democracy,” judge Chang Huei-li told the court as she upheld last year’s acquittal by a lower court.

She said protesters were reacting to flaws in the legislative process and the failure of lawmakers to reflect public opinion.

“Those who have power should listen to people’s voices and promote their welfare,” Chang said.

Taipei’s district court had ruled the protesters’ actions reflected their right to civil disobedience, clearing them on charges of incitement and interfering with public functions.

But state prosecutors appealed the decision, arguing a lack of legal precedent and consensus for using civil disobedience as a justification for breaking the law. AFP

Republic of the Philippines Department of Health CENTRAL OFFICE BIDS AND AWARDS COMMITTEE InvItatIon to BId procurement of varIouS druGS and medIcIneS 1.

IB No.

Name of Contract

ABC (PHP)

2018-096

Procurement of Calcium Carbonate

246,600,000.00

50,000.00

382,618,501.00

50,000.00

Procurement of Lipid-Based Nutrient Supplement (LNS) Small Quantity (≤20g) For 6-23 Months Children Procurement of Lipid-Based Nutrient 2018-098 Supplement (LNS) For Pregnant Women & Lactating/Postpartum Women

2018-097

241,948,500.00

50,000.00

37,352,275.00

25,000.00

2018-100 Procurement of Ferrous Sulfate + Folic Acid

628,832,700.00

75,000.00

2018-185

Procurement of Micronutrient Powder

239,481,750.00

50,000.00

2018-161

Procurement of Human Papillomavirus Vaccine (HPV)

250,000,000.00

50,000.00

2018-099

2.

3.

rhetoric, his hateful administration, any of his policies in my state, in my country,” said Norcross.

“It’s already been a waste of money to build eight prototypes that are not doing anything,” he added.

“People will find their way here,” he said as he walked in a procession featuring placards denouncing the wall plan and children in Mexican ponchos riding on their parents’ shoulders.

“I don’t know why he took so long to get here but I think he is realizing that this is the strongest point of resistance, here at the border and in the state of California,” protester Ali Torabei said.

After viewing the wall prototypes, Trump is scheduled to give a speech at a military base in Miramar and then head to Los Angeles for a Republican fund-raising dinner. AFP

Procurement of Vitamin A

The DOH now invites Bids from eligible Bidders for the procurement of the abovecaption projects. Delivery of the Goods is required as specified in Section VI. Schedule of Requirements. Bidders should have completed contracts similar to the cited projects as stated in the ITB. The description of an eligible bidder is contained in the Bidding Documents, particularly, in Section II. Instructions to Bidders.

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

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

4.

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

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

5.

The DOH will hold a Pre-bidding Conference and the Submission and Opening of Bids at COBAC Conference Room, G/F, Bldg. 6, DOH, San Lazaro Cmpd., Rizal Ave., Sta. Cruz, Manila on the schedule given below: IB No.

Name of Contract

2018-096

Procurement of Calcium Carbonate Procurement of Lipid-Based Nutrient Supplement (LNS) Small Quantity (≤20g) For 6-23 Months Children Procurement of Lipid-Based Nutrient Supplement (LNS) For Pregnant Women & Lactating/Postpartum Women Procurement of Vitamin A Procurement of Ferrous Sulfate + Folic Acid

2018-097 2018-098 2018-099 2018-100

6.

2018-185

Procurement of Micronutrient Powder

2018-161

Procurement of Human Papillomavirus Vaccine (HPV)

Activity (Date & Time) Pre-bidding Submission and Conference Opening of Bids

21 March 2018; 09:00 A.M.

03 APRIL 2018; 9:00 A.M.

Bid must be duly received by the BAC Secretariat at the address below on or before the date given above. All Bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount stated below: Form of Bid Security

(a) Cash or cashier’s/manager’s check issued by a Universal or Commercial Bank. (b) Bank draft/guarantee or irrevocable letter of credit issued by a Universal or Commercial Bank: Provided, however, that it shall be confirmed or authenticated by a Universal or Commercial Bank, if issued by a foreign bank. (c) Surety bond callable upon demand issued by a surety or insurance company duly certified by the Insurance Commission as authorized to issue such security. (d) Bid Securing Declaration

Amount of Bid Security (Not less than the required percentage of the ABC)

Two percent (2%)

Five percent (5%) No percentage required

Bid opening shall be at COBAC Conference Room, G/F, Bldg. 6, DOH, San Lazaro Cmpd., Rizal Ave., Sta. Cruz, Manila. Bids will be opened in the presence of the Bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the address above. Late bids shall not be accepted.

7.

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

8.

For further information, please refer to: COBAC-A Secretariat Building 6 Department of Health San Lazaro Compound, Rizal Avenue, Sta. Cruz, Manila Tel. Nos. 651-7800 local 1625 to 1627; 1650 to 52 Facsimile No.: 711-6061/740-6830

(MS-MAR. 14, 2018)

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

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

PAGCOR will hold a Pre-Bid Conference, which shall be open to prospective bidders.

The Department of Health (DOH), through the General Appropriations Act of 2018 intends to procure the following projects listed below: Cost of Bidding Documents (Php)

Protesters in California denounce Trump’s visit LOS ANGELES―Protesters marched and held rallies Monday ahead of President Donald Trump’s first official visit to California.

Nearly 200 people marched in downtown San Diego, which is on the border with Mexico, to denounce Trump and in particular his crackdown on immigration both legal and illegal.

California is the country’s most populous state and a Democratic stronghold.

Trump will arrive in San Diego at 11:30 am (1930 GMT) and then go to nearby Otay Mesa to view eight prototypes for the wall he wants to build on the border with Mexico.

Ariel Norcross, demonstrating Monday outside the Federal Building, carried a placard that read “No hate in the Golden State.”

“I don’t want him, his hateful

lot no.

1

The ABC for each of the four (4) lots are as follows:

Court upholds acquittal of ‘Sunflower’ activists TAIPEI―Taiwan’s high court on Tuesday upheld the acquittal of anti-China activists who occupied the island’s parliament in 2014, with the judge describing the protests as “an expression of democracy”.

Jubilant activists praised the decision, which they said was a defense of democratic freedoms at a time when Beijing is ramping up the pressure on the self-ruling island.

China sees Taiwan as part of its territory and is pushing for reunification, with Beijing signaling a harder line towards what it regards as a renegade province.

Thousands of people took to the streets in protest in March 2014 in what became known as the Sunflower Movement, with 200 people occupying the main chamber of parliament for three weeks.

The rallies were triggered by a proposed cross-strait trade pact that critics said had been made in

The prime minister added Britain had given Moscow until the end of Tuesday to disclose details of its development of the Novichok nerve agents program to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.

If there was “no credible response” it will conclude it was “an unlawful use of force by the Russian State against the UK”, she warned, and pledged to outline a “full range of measures” in response on Wednesday.

The Daily Telegraph newspaper reported on Tuesday that Britain was consulting allies in NATO about possibly invoking its Article 5 principle of common defence.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the incident was “of great concern” to the alliance.

“NATO is in touch with the UK authorities on this issue,” he added in a statement issued by his office Monday. AFP

InvItatIon to BId for the Supply and delIvery of four (4) lotS of Beer,Soft drInkS, fruIt JuIceS and Bottled Water for SoGS and varIouS departmentunder ITB No. PB18-03-031COR

Xi calls for ‘smooth’ Trump-Kim talks BEIJING―Chinese President Xi Jinping hopes “smooth” talks between North Korea’s leader and the presidents of the United States and South Korea can produce progress towards Pyongyang’s denuclearization, according to state media.

Xi made the remarks during a meeting Monday with South Korea’s national security adviser, Chung Eui-yong, who was in Beijing to brief Chinese leaders about his meetings with Kim Jong Un and Donald Trump last week.

Kim has agreed to meet with South Korean President Moon Jae-in late April in the Demilitarized Zone, while Trump and the North Korean leader could meet by the end of May. “We expect a smooth DPRK-ROK summit and DPRK-US dialogue,” Xi said, using the acronyms for North Korea and South Korea, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

Xi voiced hope that the talks will lead to “substantial progress” in the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and toward the normalization of relations between the countries involved.

The peninsula faces “an important opportunity for easing tension” and all sides should be “patient and cautious”, the Chinese leader said. AFP

B3

CESAR BARRIOQUINTO, Editor mst.daydesk@gmail.com

(SGD) ROGER P. TONG-AN, DMPA, MAN, RN Undersecretary of Health COBAC-A Chairperson

All particulars relative to Pre-Bid Conference, Detailed Evaluation of Bids, PostQualification and Award of Contract shall be governed by the pertinent provisions of R.A. 9184 and its IRR. The schedule of bidding activities is listed, as follows: Activities 1.

Issuance of the Bidding Documents

2.

Pre-Bid Conference

3.

Deadline for the Submission and Receipt of Bids

4.

Opening and Preliminary Examination of Bids

Date, Time and Venue March 14, 2018 (Wednesday) to April 3, 2018 (Tuesday) March 22, 2018 (Thursday), 10:00 a.m. @ Sixth (6th) Floor Corporate Lounge, PAGCOR Corporate Office, New World Manila Bay Hotel, M.H Del Pilar cor. Pedro Gil Sts. Malate, Manila April 3, 2018 (Tuesday) 2:00 p.m. @ Sixth (6th) Floor Corporate Lounge, PAGCOR Corporate Office, New World Manila Bay Hotel, M.H Del Pilar cor. Pedro Gil Sts. Malate, Manila April 3, 2018 (Tuesday) 2:00 p.m. onwards @ Sixth (6th) Floor Corporate Lounge, PAGCOR Corporate Office, New World Manila Bay Hotel, M.H Del Pilar cor. Pedro Gil Sts. Malate, Manila

Interested bidders may obtain further information from the Procurement Department (PD), acting as the BAC Secretariat, of PAGCOR and/or inspect the Bidding Documents at the Eighth (8th) Floor, PAGCOR Corporate Annex, Carmen Building, UN Avenue corner Maria Orosa St., Ermita, Manila, during office hours of PAGCOR from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

A complete set of Bidding Documents may be acquired by interested Bidders upon payment of the applicable fee for the Bidding Documents, pursuant to the latest Guidelines issued by the GPPB, based on the following schedules: Approved Budget for the Contract

Cost of Bidding Documents (in Philippine Pesos)

More than 500,000.00 up to 1 Million More than 1 Million up to 5 Million More than 5 Million up to 10 Million More than 10 Million up to 50 Million

1,000.00 5,000.00 10,000.00 25,000.00

Prospective bidders may also download the Bidding Documents free of charge from the following websites: www.pagcor.ph and www.philgeps.gov.ph and may be allowed to submit bids provided that bidders shall pay the applicable fee of the Bidding Documents not later than the deadline for the submission and receipt of bids.

Prospective bidders should present to PAGCOR’s Cashier located at the Sixth (6th) Floor, PAGCOR Corporate Office, New World Manila Bay Hotel, 1588 M.H. del PilarStreet corner Pedro Gil Street, Malate, Manila either the Payment Slip which may be secured from PD or a copy of this ITB in effecting payment for the Bidding Documents.

Bidders shall bear all costs associated with the preparation and submission of his bid, and PAGCOR will in no case be responsible or liable for those costs, regardless of the conduct or outcome of the bidding process.

Bidders should note that PAGCOR will accept bids only from those that have paid the applicable fee for the Bidding Documents.

All Bids must be accompanied by a bid security in any of the acceptable forms and in the amount stated in ITB Clause 18.

Bids will be opened in the presence of the bidders’ representatives who choose to attend at the venue of the bid opening. Late bids shall not be accepted.

PAGCOR assumes no responsibility whatsoever to compensate or indemnify bidders for any expenses incurred in the preparation of their bids.

In accordance with Government Procurement Policy Board (GPPB) Circular 062005 - Tie-Breaking Method, the Bids and Awards Committee (BAC)shall use a nondiscretionary and non-discriminatory measure based on sheer luck or chance, which is “DRAW LOTS,” in the event that two or more bidders have been post-qualified and determined as the bidder having the Lowest Calculated Responsive Bid (LCRB) to determine the final bidder having the LCRB, based on the following procedures: a) b)

In alphabetical order, the bidders shall pick one rolled paper.

The lucky bidder who would pick the paper with a “CONGRATULATIONS” remark shall be declared as the final bidder having the LCRB and recommended for award of the contract.

PAGCOR reserves the right to accept or reject any bid, to annul the bidding process, and to reject all bids at any time prior to contract award in accordance with Section 41 of RA 9184 and its IRR, without thereby incurring any liability to the affected bidder or bidders.

Please address all communications to the BAC thru PD, Eighth (8th) Floor, PAGCOR Corporate Annex, Carmen Building, UN Avenue corner Maria Orosa St., Ermita, Manila, Telefax Nos.: 708-0307 or 526-0573.

(SGD) RODERICK R. CONSOLACION Chairperson Bids and awards Committee (BaC) 1 (MS-MAR. 14, 2018)

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

LGUs

Jimbo Owen Gulle, Editor lgu@manilastandard.net editor.lgustandard@gmail.com

B4

LocaL government units

wednesday, march 14, 2018

28,000 fill arena in Malolos for PDP-Laban rally

Senate President and PDP-Laban party president Aquilino Pimentel III, assisted by partner Kathryn Yu, administers the oath of loyalty to over 28,000 new recruits of the ruling party (inset) beside host Malolos City Mayor Christian D. Natividad.

Orlan Mauricio

By Orlan l. Mauricio MALOLOS CITY—A record crowd of 28,000 filled the Malolos Sports and Convention Center to the rafters as barangay officials from all over Bulacan joined the nationwide bandwagon to take their oath as members of ruling PDP-Laban party on Monday.

Among the new recruits are 15 out of Bulacan’s 21 municipal mayors and the mayors of the province’s three component cities, led by three-termer Malolos City Mayor Christian Natividad—who is being eyed by ranking party officials as the next governor of Bulacan—along with incumbent 4th District Rep. Linabelle Villarica and former congressman Jonjon Mendoza of the 3rd District.

Natividad said the huge turnout resembled the record crowd that gathered at the same venue on April 13, 2016, when President Rodrigo Duterte held his “miting de avance” in the runup to the 2016 presidential elections.

That day, the whole stretch of McArthur Highway from the Bulacan State University up to the Centro escolar University became a parking lot on both sides of the road.

Natividad, who was instrumental in allowing the speaking tour of thenDavao Mayor Duterte in Malolos, said: “Bulacan province delivered the fourth biggest vote for Duterte’s victory in the 2016 presidential elections. This time, we will aim for a 90-percent approval for federalism form of government being pushed by the party leadership.”

Senate President and PDP-Laban President Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel led the mass oath-taking and pledge of allegiance at the jampacked convention center.

“We need to ensure the victory of all candidates of PDP-Laban, the party of President [Rodrigo] Duterte to assure the delivery and success of all government programs for the common good, especially the probinsyanos living in the countryside,” Pimentel appealed to Bulakenyos.

“To achieve our party’s objectives, we need to shift our form of government to federalism to decentralize the power of the president and give more autonomy to the regions and provinces in managing their resources, income and opportunities, unlike in the present setup where the lion’s share of benefits is concentrated in the National Capital Region,” he added House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez, the party’s secretary-general who was also at the event, said President Duterte won the 2016 election with four election promises: wars on drugs, criminality, and corruption, and a shift to a federal form from the present unitary form of government.

“The first three have already been accomplished, now in place and taking its course. The shift to federalism, patterned after the US model, takes a little longer but we must support it. Let’s help the President achieve his dream for a better governance,” Alvarez said.

The Senate President and Speaker were overwhelmed with the big turnout in the historic capital city of Bulacan, which coincided with the 36th anniversary of the PDP-Laban.

“It is so far, the biggest crowd we have gathered in a single party assembly since President Duterte was elected,” disclosed energy Undersecretary Donato Marcos, the PDP-Laban provincial chairman.

Outside the venue, thousands more joined the mass oath-taking through a huge video wall under an air-cooled 10,000-capacity dome tent built especially for the event, including two more giant-size video monitors to accommodate the overflow crowd inside the venue.

ROTARIANS CELEBRATE.

Rotary International District 3820 celebrated its 113th founding anniversary with a bang at the Alonte Sports Center in Biñan, Laguna. Pictured (from left) are District Gov. Ray Caparros of District 5220 in Modesta, California, District 3820 Gov. Lewi Tolentino, and Rotary Club Sta. Rosa Central past president and Laguna 1st District.

Rep. Arlene Arcillas (See story ‘In Brief’).

Roy Tomandao

Estrada warns vs swimming in ‘polluted’ Manila Bay

Japanese laud Makati’s first disaster academy

By Joel E. Zurbano

A

TeAM of Japanese experts on disaster risk reduction and management lauded the Makati City government for promoting a culture of readiness and for establishing the country’s first DRRM Academy at the University of Makati.

The academy was envisioned by Mayor Abigail Binay to become a training ground for disaster readiness not only for the Philippines, but for the entire Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

Delegates from the Yokohama Fire Bureau, Fire Academy and Crisis Management Office, and from Citynet Yokohama met with Binay last Thursday following the two-day capacity assessment they conducted on selected DRRM facilities of the city as well as the DRRM Academy.

In a letter sent through the delegation, Yokohama City Mayor Fumiko Hayashi

assured Binay of his commitment to share his city’s own experience and expertise in running the Yokohama DRR Learning Center to contribute to the development of a curriculum for Makati’s new academy.

“I feel strong respect [for] your leadership for implementing this great project,” Hayashi said.

Hayashi said his city and Makati have worked together as lead city and colead city of the Citynet Disaster Cluster since 2013. At the Citynet Colombo Congress held last year, both cities were reelected for the same positions for the next four years.

Binay thanked the international partners for lending their technical expertise and innovative practices in support of Makati’s efforts to promote a culture of readiness among residents and stakeholders.

“Makati gladly welcomes any form of assistance from our valued partners in the international community to raise our DRRM practices and strategies to international standards. We believe our openness to innovations for development will help solidify the foundations of a secure and resilient Makati and empower us to lead other cities and nations towards a sustainable future,” she said.

Binay said she hoped that soon, the DRRM Academy will be able to open its doors to the country’s Asean neighbors.

“The DRRM Academy has so much potential for institutionalizing the exchange of technology and ideas among the members of the Asean community,” she stated.

Rajah Buayan Mayor Zamsamin Ampatuan (right) turns over a World War 2 vintage .30-caliber machine gun and 60mm mortar to Brig.

Gen. Diosdado C. Carreon (left) of the Philippine Army’s 601st Brigade on Monday. 40th IB commander Col. Edgar L. Catu (center) and Rajah Buayan ABC President Datu Jack Ampatuan witness the turnover of 25 high-powered firearms. Mark Navales

‘Balik Baril’ program sees more firearms recovered

By Mark Navales RAJAH BUAYAN, Maguindanao— Twenty-five loose firearms—all but three being high-powered rifles—were turned over at the municipal gymnasium here Tuesday, as Mayor zamzamin I. Ampatuan declared that his town is peaceful.

The “Balik Baril Program” is symbolic of the culmination of the local peace process, Ampatuan said and locals turned over a .30-caliber machine gun, a 60mm mortar, an Ultimax light machine gun, and M16, M14, M79 and Barrett rifles.

“We have to continue this turning over of loose firearms. We should not wait for the full force of the law. Let us surrender the unlicensed firearms. This will be good for all of us. Let us think on how to live peacefully,” the mayor said.

Ampatuan encouraged everyone who has unlicensed firearms to “use your coconut (brains), return your loose firearms and we will give you coconut seedlings.”

Brig. Gen. Diosdado C. Carreon, commanding officer of 601st Infantry Brigade of the Philippine Army, said those who are returning their firearms

“are the law-abiding citizens. You may possess it, but you cannot bring it out.”

“During martial law, licenses to carry guns are suspended. Studies show that the root cause of violence in this area is because of so much loose firearms,” Carreon added.

During the recent two-day firefight between the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters and troopers of the Army’s 6th Infantry (Kampilan) Division in the nearby marsh town of Datu Saudi Ampatuan, the BIFF lost 44 soldiers and saw 26 wounded.

Mike Defensor joins PDP-Laban in QC

By Rio N. Araja VeTeRAN politician Mike Defensor has been sworn in as the new president of the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan party in Quezon City’s District 3.

District 1 Councilor Anthony Peter “Onyx” Crisologo said Defensor has joined the ruling party and took his oath before Undersecretary for Barangay Affairs Martin Diño, PDP-Laban Luzon chairman, and Quezon City Rep. Vincent “Bingbong” Crisologo, District 1 party president.

Defensor as part of the administration party “does not necessary mean he is running for any elective post” in the May 2019 elections, the younger Crisologo clarified.

“But one thing is for sure, he will support my dad,” the councilor said.

In 2010, Defensor ran but lost against current Mayor Herbert Bautista.

He was a former Quezon City councilor before becoming a congressman, environment secretary, and presidential chief of staff during the Arroyo administration.

He was one of the so-called “Spice Boys” in Congress, identified closely with thenPresident Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

The older Crisologo has confirmed his bid for the mayoralty in 2019 against last-term Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte, who earlier said the “next logical step” for her was to run for the city’s top post.

By Vito Barcelo MANILA Mayor Joseph estrada on Tuesday warned the public against swimming in Manila Bay to cope with rising temperatures, saying the polluted water body could pose serious health risks such as diarrhea, cholera, typhoid fever, and other illnesses.

The former President said there are public swimming pools in the city where Manileños can refresh themselves and avoid fecal bacteria. estrada observed that hundreds of people, not only residents of Manila, come in droves to frolic and take a dip in the Manila Bay and Baseco shore area to beat the rising temperatures.

The mayor has already ordered Manila Police District Chief Supt. Joel Napoleon Coronel to post police officers near Baseco and Manila Bay to warn people to stay out of the filthy waters.

Manila City Health Department head Dr. Benjamin Yson said they regularly test the water from Manila Bay and other beaches in the city to monitor the presence of fecal bacteria.

“When these bacteria show up, it usually means fecal pollution that could come from animal or human waste,” Yson said.

If a swimmer with an open wound comes in contact with these bacteria, it could cause diseases, infection or rashes, the doctor said. estrada said that fecal coliform bacteria enter the water bodies through direct discharge of raw sewage, septage, and untreated or partially treated wastewater from domestic sources.

“Please, avoid taking a dip at the Manila Bay or Baseco, it’s polluted. There are 16 public swimming polls in Manila and they are free to use,” estrada added.

In BrIef Padilla: Yes to federal, no to regional state BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya— Gov. Carlos Padilla here has expressed his support for a federal form of government, but rejected the province becoming part of a regional state in the country.

Padilla was one of the resource speakers during a recent forum on federalism sponsored by the provincial government at the St. Mary’s University in this town.

“If you are to ask me, it’s a ‘yes’ to federalism but ‘no’ to a regional state,” the governor said.

Though the present unitary form of government “is not perfect and not the best, we are still co-existing with each other because we are in a good relationship,” Padilla said. Ben Moses Ebreo

Qc to launch more solo parent programs QUezON City Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte showcased the city government’s programs for solo parents.

Belmonte said there are about 20 million solo parents in the country, of which 430,000 reside in Quezon City. Of that number, only 21,000 have registered with the QC Social Services Development Department.

The city’s programs for solo parents include a livelihood support program under the vice mayor’s “Tindahan ni Ate Joy” as well as several entrepreneurship programs, establishment of community college program, and access to health care.

Tindahan ni Ate Joy and women’s entrepreneurship programs are undertaken in partnership with Rags2Riches, Department of Trade and Industry, Sea Oil, Araneta Center, and Smart Foundation. Registered single parents can still avail all the programs brought

by Tindahan ni Ate Joy and sell their products in AliMall without paying rent for booths there. Rio N. Araja

rotary District 3820 marks 113th anniversary ROTARY International District 3820, led by District Governor Ma. Lewina “Lewi” Tolentino, recently celebrated its 113th founding anniversary with event host Rotary Club Sta. Rosa Central at the Alonte Sports Center.

The venue reverberated with cheers and exploded with colors and talents of the candidates of the Mr. and Ms. Rotary contest, which showcased gorgeous Rotarians from Areas 1, 2 and 3 of the district.

Rep. Arlene Arcillas, RC Sta. Rosa Central’s past president, said whoever would be adjudged Mr. and Ms. Rotary will embody what the organization is: committed, selfless and just. Roy Tomandao

Life

Bernadette Lunas, Issue Editor manilastandardlife@gmail.com @manilastandardlife

fashion and beauty

@mstandardLIFe wednesday, march 14, 2018

SWIMSUIT SEASON. Soak up the sun in stylish Floral Roll Top White Mix and Bikini White Mix swimwear from Marks & Spencer.

T

Ake a splash in stylish essentials you’ll need for the perfect poolside silhouette, including statement swimsuits, printed two-piece bikini, and a chic cover-up, among others.

Marks & Spencer presents its summer collection for 2018 composed of poolside pieces that are not only stylish, with seasonal tones and prints, but innovative as well, with technology features that make summer dressing easier than ever.

Women can enjoy any spontaneous beach outings or pool parties in swimwear pieces that fit like lingerie. Lingerie cups are built in across swimwear for guaranteed perfect fit, support, confidence, and comfort with the assurance from the expertise of the lingerie team.

In addition, M&S latest swimsuit releases come with the brand’s trademark Secret Slimming technology that utilizes concealed control panels and ultra-light microfiber fabric, which still offers as much control as traditionally heavier shapewear, for a sleek silhouette and comfort around the pool or beach.

The feminine designs are perfect for a more refined beach look and additional confidence boost. Classic color block swimsuits are given a contemporary twist from cut-out details to lace-up accents across the front. Meanwhile, vibrant tropical print swimsuits and necklines ranging from bandeau to sweetheart add a playful side to every beach look.

The M&S bikini selection comes with a variety of styles, including tankinis, plunging necklines, high neckline sporty styles, strapless bandeaus, multi-way straps, and classic triangle.

Men will definitely feel the fresh summer vibe while they frolic on the beach or grab a beer at the pool bar wearing colorful swim shorts. He can be adventurous to dive in with parrot print or with a striking turquoise, or match his lady’s swimwear blush outfit with the flame-colored swim shorts perfect for those picture-worthy couple shots.

These Peacock swim shorts for men are all about that fresh summer vibe

The latest swim shorts line is made using the innovative Quick Dry fabric that features an open structure helping guys stay dry and comfortable after a dip in the pool.

For days away from the water, M&S offers shirt cover-ups, elegant dresses, shirts, and culottes in seasonal colors, styles, and fabrics—primarily linen. visit Marks & Spencer stores to discover these new summer pieces that give you that summer confidence.

Shine and sparkle We’ve been seeing a return to glamour and glitter for a few seasons now. Dries van Noten dedicated his spring/summer ‘18 show to the Optimist, who he says is “a woman who knows the rules to break the rules, who’s addicted to fun and elegance.”

Meanwhile, designers Saint Laurent, erdem, Maison Margiela, and Rochas have shown that it’s time to get the heels back out and give in to the pull of sequins and glitter. Then there are the glittered slip dresses of Oscar dela Renta, the silver looks of Balmain, and the bedazzled bags of Chanel. And we’re beginning to see a real shift in evening wear.

With flashes of metallic on the runways, The SM Store presents its take on this shiny and sparkly trend.

Fashion Forum rolls out sparkling dresses and shiny metallic pieces, Parisian offers black heels and flats with sparkling glitters, and SM Accessories launches glittering minaudieres and statement jewelry.

This glamorous collection is available at The SM Store.

Yofie gladiator flats

Gold and silver bangles

Shining and shimmmering minaudieres from SM Accessories

Zip Up Palm Swimsuit

Horizon Swimwear Tankini Navy Mix and Horizon Swimwear Bikini with Lace Navy Mix

Stripe Popcorn Swimsuit

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High in shine and high in style in cold-shoulder dress from R&M Richards, glittered black clutch from SM Accessories, and black Parisian heels.

Life

C2

wednesday, march 14, 2018 manilastandardlife@gmail.com

Happy Skin Beauty’s Anti-Aging and Oil Control Series promise effortless and effective skin care in three steps.

Beauty regimens that have numerous steps don’t often benefit women with busy lifestyles

3-step skin care regimen

S

kin caring products, or those that claim to be, have never been as ubiquitous and accessible as they are today. Beauty routines also come in several different forms, from 3-step, 5-step, 7-step, to 10-step, and more.

Choices are good, but when you are offered too many options, it becomes much more difficult to find the one that works for you.

“We are all tired of having a drawer full of mistakes,” says Rissa Mananquil-Trillo. “The biggest pain point of Filipinas today is finding a regimen that’s quick, easy, and visibly effective so she can actually commit to it.”

Mananquil-Trillo and her partner in beauty Jacqe Yuengtian-Gutierrez of the cult favorite skin caring makeup label Happy Skin recently launched Happy Skin Beauty that offers products for effortless skin care regimen in three easy steps.

“Happy Skin pioneered skin-caring makeup, so it was a natural transition for the brand to get into skin care through Happy Skin Beauty. After all, the first step to perfecting your makeup look is by having good skin,” explains Happy Skin co-founder Yuengtian-Gutierrez. it took the homegrown cosmetics and, now, skin care brand three years to develop its full range of skin care that solves the top skin concerns of women—aging and oiliness—and features multitasking formulas, thus streamlining the regimen into three effortless and effective steps.

Happy Skin Beauty co-founders Jacqe Yuengtian-Gutierrez and Rissa Mananquil-Trillo

The Anti-Aging Series, which Happy Skin founders say is sourced from Japan, offers rich hydration and skin renewal, without the heaviness. The line harnesses the power of Fission technology that helps condition skin and improves dullness, Chardonnay extract that uses the power of Alpha Hydroxy Acids to remove dead skin cells, and Umbrella Pine extract that protects skin by activating the nrf2 compound naturally found in cells that generates powerful antioxidants.

To use Happy Skin Beauty’s AntiAging Series, start by washing your face with Hydrating Facial Wash, apply Time Reversing Serum, and finish the regimen using Regenerating Moisturizer.

For its Oil Control Series, the brand sourced its products from korea.

“This entire series was made to be very light on the skin, so you get the hydration you need without the excess grease,” shares Yuengtian-Gutierrez.

The Oil Control line comes with Salicylic Acid that helps shed off dead skin cells, Vitamin C that brightens skin, and Centella Asiatica extract that heals skin and promotes collagen production.

Begin your oil-controlling routine with Skin Smoothening Gel Facial Wash, followed by Mattifying Ampoule, and finished off with Oil Controlling Moisturizer.

Dive into a summer adventure

TechnoMarine’s Cruise Night Vision watch

keeP track of your wild summer adventures, exploring the wonders of the sea or a new destination, with a timepiece from TechnoMarine’s Cruise night Vision collection.

The perfect watch for deep and dynamic adventures, the Cruise night Vision is skillfully crafted for any activity in both land and sea. it has a super luminous feature on its indices and hands to allow the wearer to tell the time even underwater. it is water resistant for up to 200 meters, hence suitable for various underwater escapades, including recreational scuba diving.

Defined by bold and vibrant colors, the timepiece has silicone straps, metal dial, and a secure buckle clasp. it comes in a sleek 46mm stainless steel case with silicone cover.

The Cruise Night Vision is available at TechnoMarine stores in Greenbelt 3, Robinsons Galleria, Robinsons Magnolia, Shangri-La Plaza, SM City Cebu, SM Lanang Premier Davao, SM Mall of Asia, SM Megamall, TriNoma, and SM North Edsa.

va n i t y c o r n er

The Happy Skin Beauty Anti-Aging and Oil Control Series are now available at Happy Skin stores, select counters, happyskincosmetics.com, beautymnl. com, and zalora.com.ph.

As precious as diamonds CeLeBRATe the woman who breaks glass ceilings, the woman who takes care of her family, the woman who excels in her field, and the woman whose being makes the lives around her better. And there is no better way to show how precious she is than a piece of diamond jewelry. in celebration of the Women’s Month, My Diamond offers up to 45 percent discount on all its classic jewelry until March 31.

Get her a 14k white gold ring with 39 pieces of .97 carat diamonds or celebrate her accomplishments with a 14k white gold pendant with 10 pieces of .76 carat diamonds. Complement either one with a 14k white gold stud earrings each with a diamond center stone of .43 carats and 24 pieces side stones of .22 carat diamonds or an 18k white gold bracelet with 129 pieces of 1.24-carat diamonds.

My Diamond is also giving away a gift certificate for a full body massage at The Spa, the country’s leading relaxation, wellness and beauty center, for a minimum purchase.

Visit any My Diamond concept store at SM Megamall, Robinsons Place Manila, Festival Supermall, Glorietta 4, Greenbelt 3, Gateway Mall, SM Mall of Asia, SM Aura Premier, Lucky Chinatown Mall, Ayala Fairview Terraces, or SM Lanang Premier Davao.

Maybelline Matte Metallics

Matte and Metallic THe spotlight will definitely be on your lips when you wear Maybelline’s newest Matte Metallics creamy matte lipsticks.

Available in a collection of nine metallic earth tone-inspired shades, it features a comfortable creamy matte texture that promises to stay on your lips for hours on end. it gives off the right balance of tones that are both brilliant and muted in color, which are brought to life by sophisticated brushed metal textures in lavish metallic hues.

The Matte Metallics comes in warm shades, including Molten Bronze, Copper Spark, Copper Rose, and Hot Lava; bold and cool shades like Gunmetal and Serpentine; and light shades in Spiral Galaxy, Silk Tone, and Pure Gold.

You can wear this highly pigmented lipstick on its own or wear it on top of your favorite Maybelline matte lipstick for that added oomph.

Lipsticks under the Matte Metallics range are available at Maybelline counters nationwide for P299 each.

14k white gold ring

14k white gold stud earrings

My Diamond’s 14k white gold pendant

defined eyes

18k white gold bracelet

TRAnSFORM your eyes with easy-to-use Graphink Liner from Careline. Featuring long-lasting and water-based formula, this eyeliner defines eyes using its high-precision felt-tip applicator. it’s suitable for everyday use as it is smudge- and waterproof. no need to reapply throughout the day.

This eyeliner is available at beauty stores, drugstores, and supermarkets nationwide.

Careline Graphic-Ink Liner

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14, 2018

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nickie.standard@gmail.com

Netflix satisfies cravings for more ‘Santa Clarita Diet’ Vina Yapjuangco, Xander Ford (center), and Dr. Eric Yapjuangco

Simply Red...

From C4

A scene from the latest season of 'Santa Clarita Diet'

D

ESPITE her hunger for human flesh, his undead wife’s killer urges and her mom’s new lust for life (and taking it), Sheila, Joel, and Abby Hammond are fine. No, really. They are all A-OK. These Santa Clarita staples are just peachy. Everyone. Is. Fine. And that will become abundantly clear in Santa Clarita Diet Season 2, which launches globally on Netflix on March 23.

In Santa Clarita Diet, Joel (Timothy Olyphant) and Sheila (Drew Barrymore) are husband and wife realtors leading vaguely discontented lives in the L.A. suburb of Santa Clarita with their teenaged daughter Abby (Liv Hewson), until

Sheila goes through a dramatic change sending their lives down a road of death and destruction...but in a good way.

Picking up right where we left off, Season 2 of Santa Clarita Diet finds the Hammonds trying to adapt to Sheila’s

now-advanced undead state—even though she’s desperately working to hold on to her suburban lifestyle and not be defined as just another monster.

Unfortunately—while the family has become markedly better at murder— the number of missing people in Santa Clarita is starting to pile up and it’s no longer going unnoticed.

Meanwhile, the Hammonds are chasing the source of the virus so they can stop it from spreading and save humanity— which seems important. Through it all, Sheila and Joel are grounded by their unconditional love for one another.

Sure, being undead—or loving someone who is—isn’t always easy, but don’t all relationships have their challenges?

Marathon-worthy movies and shows EXPERIENCE the triumph of a young superstar athlete, the dread in an eerie house, the heat of competition, and more stories of wonderful women who are taking over your screen this month.

A not-to-be-missed spectacle is the Lifetime Original Movie, The Simone Biles Story: Courage to Soar. It premiered on International Women’s Day, March 8, at 10 p.m.. The biopic is about the superstar gymnast and her sacrifices and hard work that resulted in 19 Olympic and World Championship medals.

Catch other Lifetime Original Movies every Wednesday of the month at 9 p.m., starting with The Hunt for the I-5 Killer. Follow this true story as lead investigator Dave Kominek takes on a case—the rape and shooting of two women—which grows into a manhunt for a serial killer who operated along the Interstate-5 highway in 1981. Today, you’ll want to make sure all your doors are locked before you cuddle up to watch Tiny House of Terror. When Samantha Hastings moves out of her high-tech home into a tiny, isolated abode, she gets an unshakable feeling of being watched. Soon, her small space becomes her prison with no way out.

Premiering on March 21 is a reimagining of an ‘80s cult classic. The Watcher in the Woods sees a family move into an idyllic home by the woods. As strange occurrences start, they discover the home and the town’s dark past. Rounding out the month of Lifetime Original Movies is Bringing Ashley Home on March 28. The touching docudrama centers on Libba Philips as she puts her life on hold to find her missing sister, and help other troubled girls in need.

Other shows are all ready to entertain you this month, with a new season of reality series, MasterChef Canada, airing from Tuesday to Thursday at 8 p.m.. Then, new episodes of Idol Moms every Thursday at 9 p.m.; Unreal every Tuesday at

10 p.m.; and Making a Model with Yolanda Hadid on March 26 at 8:30 p.m..

Lifetime™ is available on SKYCable Ch 65 and Lifetime™ HD Ch 199; Cable Link Ch. 223; Dream Satellite Ch 28; Destiny Ch 44.

'Watcher in the Woods'

CROSSWORD PUZZLE Wednesday, March 14, 2018

ACROSS 1 Move with a great show of energy 7 Rural elec. provider 10 Without help 14 Parka 15 Sunflower yield 16 Dial 17 Extremely small 18 Heartache 19 Sasquatch cousin 20 Figure incorrectly 23 Food wrap 26 PM units 27 Rural structures 28 Ra’s symbol 29 Govt. agent 30 Word play 31 Rain slicker 32 Stage signal 33 In — (overdue) 37 Painters’ tools 39 Loam 40 Opening in the ice (2 wds.)

41 Sets for couch potatoes 42 AAA suggestion 43 Gives the go-ahead 44 — Paulo, Brazil

45 Footfall 46 Laissez- — 49 Yvette’s date 50 B-vitamin source 51 Singerless music 54 Giza’s river 55 Falstaff’s prince 56 Rich pastry 60 Town near Des Moines 61 Can. province 62 Wine with brandy 63 Have stamina 64 Orders at a restaurant 65 Ump’s call DOWN 1 Comic-book thud 2 Verse lead-in 3 Father’s lad 4 Capote 5 High school subject 6 Makes do with 7 Facing 8 Fat fiddles 9 Baldwin of films 10 Horizons 11 Patrick or Ryan 12 Jackpot game 13 Play awards 21 Dairy product

22 Seizes the throne 23 Brazilian dance 24 Video game pioneer 25 Happen again 29 Coal and kerosene 30 BYU locale 32 Snug-fitting necklace 33 Reach 34 Main artery 35 Ceremonies 36 Succumbed to

Mr. Sandman 38 Briefest 44 Processes ore 45 Goods provider 46 Newspaper edition 47 True inner self 48 Cays 49 Fridge maker 50 Marina sight 52 Yikes! (hyph.)

53 Thomas Hardy heroine 57 “Exodus” name 58 Tick off

Xander Ford’s major physical transformation, courtesy of plastic surgeon Dr. Eric Yapjuangco of The Icon Clinic, landed him on the top spot of Google Philippines’ most searched personalities in its male category.

As a result of his much talked about and impressive transformation which aired on ABS-CBN’s top-rating weekly magazine show, Korina Sanchez-Roxas’ Rated K, Xander instantly became a worldwide trending topic in almost every social media platform.

Dr. Yapjuangco, who is also known as Doc Yappy to his countless patients at The Icon Clinic whose lives he changed for the better because of the breathtaking transformations he created, performed chin augmentation and rhinoplasty as well as on-going skin care treatments such as Fractional Laser, Revlight, Gluthathione and Vitamin C injections to create Xander’s total transformation.

Xander bested the following personalities on the number one spot of Google Philippines’ most searched male personalities: Park Bo Gum, Park Hyung Sik, Gong Yoo, Linkin Park, Rowan Atkinson, Gilas Pilipinas, Jake Zyrus, Nam Joo Hyuk, and Kim Joo Hyuk.

“I am very happy for Xander and I am very proud of what he has achieved with his career so far,” says Doc Yappy.

“I hope and pray that he continue to aspire for his dreams because I know that his main motivation in life is to give his family a better life. I am honored that The Icon Clinic is instrumental in giving the confidence that drives him to work harder and be a better and happier person.”

If you think Doc Yappy could help you, visit www.TheIconClinic.com, email Doc Yappy at eric@theiconclinic. com, or contact 0920-9084266. *** Following the success of her first G Stuff Health & Wellness Seminar for this year held on Jan. 20, health advocate Gina Lopez held another — “Curing Cancer the Natural Way” – on March 10 at 8 Rockwell, Rockwell Center in Makati City.

Ching Roxas Camara shared how she won over cancer through the Gerson Therapy.

Sylvia Ordonez talked about a step by step food intake called the Macrobiotic Diet, which she followed religiously to become cancer-free.

Romblon native and true vegetarian Meriam Santos shared her experience with Herbal Healing and how she benefitted from to overcome cancer.

Dr. Albert Jo, a Naturopath who helped Lopez when she was diagnosed with cancer and assisted her successfully on her healing, talked about “Food Is

Your Medicine.” He is also the owner of Rapha Valley Place of Wellness in Salvador Benedicto, Negros Island Region.

Lopez also talked on skype with Dr. Brent Davis who customized the Beam Ray Programmes for her use on the beam ray, which has a very high rate of success with curing cancer.

Lopez also gave everyone a taste of Oxygen Food among other things— “we will have essential oils that helped, the brain food and gadgets for overall health.” Here’s where she zeroes in on the seminar’s goal: “to give you health alternatives — and take away the fear and stigma that cancer brings. I got happier and healthier… so there is absolutely a way through this maze towards health.” *** Social media personality Lloyd Café Cadena reveals tips on how to deal with heartbreaks and former loves in his first book (ABS-CBN Publishing or API) entitled Ex-Rated: ex—(noun) lubak, wrong turn, mistake, hayop.

The new book features Lloyd’s straight-out yet hilarious take on the right way to be unloved, the same way he presents his hit online videos and posts. He currently has close to 850,000 YouTube subscribers and 4.8 million Facebook followers who enjoy humorous anecdotes, memes, challenges, and short films he posts online.

Lloyd, who is one of Adober Studios’ content creators, delivers an engaging vibe in this self-help manual. According to his talent manager, Ely Concord III, it features relatable and realistic stories about getting through heartbreak the gradual way.

“In this book are all the Ex-Rated files that we usually experience. It contains real life stories of moving on and other painful experiences in our search for ‘the one,’ Ely wrote in the book’s foreword.

The latest API offering highlights the many reasons of heartbreaks, common breakup lines, the struggles of the one left behind, and the realizations later on.

Lloyd shares tips on what to do when faced with an ex such as saying no to haggard looks, practicing the art of ignoring, and pretending to be busy.

He also said that in order to fully recover from exes, it is important to veer away from places where old flames usually go, to avoid investigating on their current status, and to start loving oneself a little more.

The author, who is a Top YouTube Personality awardee in Influence Asia 2017, also shared his answers on some of the questions from his current radio program with DJ Kara Karinyosa and his thoughts on letters and stories from brokenhearted fans.

Discover the art of moving on from Lloyd in the new Ex-Rated: ex – (noun) lubak, wrong turn, mistake, hayop book, now available in leading bookstores nationwide for only P185.

Nickie Wang, Issue Editor nickie.standard@gmail.com

C4

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14, 2018

Discovering aspiring musical talents

Wishcovery’s Wishful 5: (clockwise) Carmela Ariola, Hacel Bartolome, Kimberly Baluzo, Princess Sevillena and Louie Anne Culala.

WISHCOVERY, Wish 107.5’s online singing competition enlists renowned hitmaker Jungee Marcelo, The Company’s Annie Quintos, and R&B artist Jay R as resident reactors, and another R&B star Kris Lawrence as host.

New episodes air every Saturday at 9 p.m. on the Wish 107.5 YouTube channel, which currently has 2.2 million-strong subscribers.

The first-ever Wishcovery grand winner will win Php 2 million worth of cash and contract, a house and lot, a brand-new car, a makeover package, and a round-trip ticket to New York plus a two-week extensive musical training.

From the original 20 singing hopefuls - collectively known as the Wishful 20, Wishcovery showcased weekly vocal battles on board the Wish 107.5 Bus. Scores were determined through a week-long powerviewing component (15 percent) and through the resident reactors’ cumulative scores (85 percent).

The original 20 were trimmed down to the four contenders who will vie in the grand finals on March 27 at the Smart-

Araneta Coliseum. Eliminated Wishfuls were given another chance to return for the competition’s wild card round for the fifth and final spot.

Before the finale, the Wishful 5— the moniker for Wishcovery’s grand finalists—had the opportunity to hold miniconcerts in their respective hometowns.

The show featured up-and-coming artists in their area, as well as established acts like Jireh Lim, Shamrock’s Marc Tupaz and Jayson Fernandez.

The event was broadcast via Facebook Live on Wish 107.5’s official Facebook page and was also hosted by Kris Lawrence.

Apart from the mini-concert, the Wishful 5 were also given the opportunity to grant the wishes of their chosen beneficiaries.

Meanwhile, to let the Wishers and their respective fans get closer to the Wishful 5, Wishcovery held a Live Chat via Wish 107.5’s Facebook page. With Lawrence on board, the Live Chat served as a fun and interactive platform wherein online audience were able to throw questions, ask for song wishes, and request for shout-outs from their favorite grand finalists.

Pia Wurtzbach is Gerald Anderson’s new leading lady KAPAMILYA actor Gerald Anderson gets a new leading lady in a new film that’s opening in cinemas nationwide.

The actor has developed into a veritable leading man to a lot of actresses in the Star Cinema lot since his days in Pinoy Big Brother (PBB) and as fellow reality-TV alum Kim Chiu’s love team.

Anderson has romanced some of Star Cinema’s leading ladies, including his rumored belle Bea Alonzo in How To Be Yours (2016).

Now, the actor is giving his peers in the industry reason to be shaky as he is paired with Miss Universe 2015 Pia Wurtzbach.

Fresh off the record-breaking success of The Revenger Squad, this is Wurtzbach’s second big-screen outing.

The film, titled My Perfect You, is also director Cathy Garcia-Molina’s new film project. Speaking with reporters, Wurtzbach and Anderson said the film marks back-to-back firsts for both of them – working with each other, and with Garcia-Molina.

“Kakaiba siya,” Anderson, 28, said of his role. “Look test pa lang namin, challenging na.”

Wurtzbach, also 28, said she was excited even before shooting started.

“Sana marami akong matutunan. Sabi nga ni direk kanina, ‘Aaalisin ko ‘yung pagiging Miss Universe mo.’

Game naman ako!” she said.

Wurtzbach added, “Napapanood ko na si Gerald noon pa lang, at alam kong magaling talaga siya. Na-tsachallenge ako na kailangan galingan ko, kasi ang galing niya!”

M o l i n a ,

meanwhile, said she wasn’t expecting instant chemistry between her lead stars, but at the press conference last ISAH V. RED Saturday, she said she was surprised that the two had developed during the course of the shooting a very good chemistry.

“Yes, that was really what I wanted to happen, not instantly but gradually,” the director said. “Every day, as we worked together, doon ko lang nakikilala kung sino sila. Every character was a work in progress. When we went along, that’s when we saw the magic. It just came out, naturally, in time.”

It seems the two lead stars have a good time playing each other’s character during the shoot of the movie and it shows in the trailer.

Do catch the film if you have the time, you might just fall in love with the new screen pairing of Star Cinema. Continued on C3 Gerald Anderson and Pia Wurtzbach team up in Star Cinema's newest big screen offering.

TAKEN DOWN. Billy and Coleen have removed some of their photos on their social media accounts including the ones, showing blurred out ( a photography technique) Ethiopian kids and a mother and a child in the background.

Billy and Coleen’s ‘PRE-WEDDING PHOTOS’ spark debate

By Nickie Wang

I

T’S true that a picture paints a thousand words that is why we have got a lot of things to learn about Billy Crawford and Coleen Garcia’s ‘prenup shoot,’ and one of them is that most Filipinos are quick to judge, too sensitive, and hilarious.

As soon as the photos taken in Ethiopia of the soon to be married couple reached the Internet, Billy and Coleen were bombarded with criticism.

Netizens took to social media calling the prenup shoot out for being distasteful, “politically incorrect,” and racist. Some even said they were offensive as they highlight the couple for their being “privileged whites” (or half-whites for that matter).

On Monday, the couple cleared the issue about using the women and kids in the photos taken by Metro Photos. In a joint statement sent to ABS-CBN, the couple said they were invited by Ethiopian Airlines to do the shoot in Ethiopia as part of a tourism campaign.

The photos were not yet the official prenup photos because they have yet another prenup shoot that will take place in the Philippines. It’s good to note that they already had a prenup shoot in Thailand and photos were released in January.

The couple explained that the photos were taken based on the suggestion of a local guide, who was present throughout the entire duration of the shoot and their leisure time in Ethiopia.

“He took us around and made suggestions for the shoot, such as including the priests of Lalibela in our photos because they want people to see. We based our layouts off of some of their suggestions,” they said.

The couple further said that the locals were so kind, warm and welcoming, and they loved meeting tourists. And as for the children showed in the photos,

Billy Crawford and Coleen Garcia released a joint statement, which served as an apology and explanation for their shoot in Ethiopia.

they were in the area and wanted to be part of the shoot, so their photographer decided to add them to the shot.

“We never forced anyone nor wanted to disrespect any race or culture. People in the Philippines felt disrespected and offended, but being there was a completely different feeling,” the couple added.

Ending their statement, the couple apologized for those offended by the photos, and admitted that there were lapses on their part. Billy cited that he grew up in a very diverse city (Roosevelt Island), and had experienced bullying and racism in his youth because of my being “an Asian.”

“Trust me, we meant no harm,” he said.

And yet, amid their apology and explanation, netizens still continue riding on the issue, perhaps trying to elicit

more comments and gain more followers for their social media posts.

A blogger pointed out that we got offended by Billy and Coleen’s photos in Ethiopia, but we didn’t get even a little slighted when Russian photographer Murad Osmann and his influencer wife Nataly Zakharova used the members of local tribe in Palawan as their background for their “Follow Me To” campaign on Instagram. In the photo, members of the tribe were not smiling, women’s bosoms were exposed, and men were half-naked. They were used as props, and yet Filipino netizens were drumbeating “proud to be Pinoy!”

We are a bunch of onion-skinned hypocrite, aren’t we? But at the end of the day, to each his own, that is why I’d rather see passion in those pictures of Billy and Coleen rather than see hate, cultural insensitivity and racism.