Manila Standard - 2019 April 29 - Monday

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Pinatubo emitting ‘unusual’ smoke

By Jess Malabanan

earthquake [on April 22],” said Phivolcs in a statement posted on social media.

Philvolcs, however, said the steam activity may have been caused by rock slides.

The generation of dust clouds, blown by winds, was verified by a team of volcanologist who

CLARK FREEPORT—The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology is keeping a tight watch on Mount Pinatubo following reports of “unusual” smoke emitting from different areas near the volcano’s summit.

“The Department of Science and Technology-Phivolcs is closely monitoring 24/7 the Pinatubo Volcano. So far, the Pinatubo volcano seismic monitoring Next page network has not detected any changes in the condition of the volcano after the magnitude 6.1

VOL. XXXIII • NO. 74 • 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P18 • MONDAY, APRIL 29, 2019 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com

ACTING UP? The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology allays fears of Mt.Pinatubo eruption althought it is keeping a tight watch on the volcano following reports of “unusual” smoke emitting from different areas near the volcano’s summit after the magnitude 6.1 eathquake and a series of aftershocks that jolted Luzon on April 22, 2019.

Power rate hikes capped

Central Luzon Navy needs more warships to patrol WPS—solon Senators order ERC to look into suffers brunt of plant shutdowns quake damage

By Rio N. Araja and Nat Mariano

THE 6.1 magnitude earthquake that rocked Luzon Monday did half a billion pesos in infrastructure damage, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said Sunday.

In its 6 a.m. report, the NDRRMC said Central Luzon was the hardest hit, suffering P222.6 million in damage to schools, and P200 million in damage to roads and bridges.

This represented 83 percent of the total damage of P505.9 million done to more than 300 structures in Metro Manila, the Ilocos, Central Luzon and Calabarzon.

The quake killed 18 people, including nine in a flattened supermarket in Porac, Pampanga.

Meanwhile, the Department of Science and Technology said a group of researchers from the Philippine Normal University, De La Salle University, and Technological University of the Philippines have developed earthquake-proof desks for kindergarten students.

The desks are called LAMESA or Life-Saving Automated Mesa to Endure Seismic Activity.

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THE Philippine Navy needs more warships to guard the country’s 200mile exclusive economic zone in the West Philippine Sea against potential foreign threats, Surigao del Sur Rep. Johnny Pimentel, a member of the House national defense and security committee, said Sunday.

“The Philippine Navy has to establish a credible presence there—in terms of combat ships—if we are to discourage foreign seaborne threats, including poachers,” he said amid reports that several hundred Chinese vessels have been seen around Pagasa Island and that Chinese fishermen were stealing giant clams from Philippine waters.

“The reality is, the Navy lacks battle-ready ships. This is why we are having difficulty enforcing our sovereign rights over our EEZ there,” he Next page said.

FRUITFUL TRIP.

President Rodrigo Duterte and daughter Veronica disembark from the plane upon arrival in Davao City on Saturday, April 27, 2019, after what the Palace says is a productive visit to China. Duterte’s visit yielded 19 deals worth $12.16 billion.

PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO

Louvre to host Da Vinci exhibit PARIS—Later this year, the Louvre in Paris will host an exhibition of masterpieces by the Italian painter Leonardo da Vinci to mark his death 500 years ago in France.

Next page

By Macon Ramos-Araneta and Rio N. Araja

M

EMBERS of the Senate committee on energy have agreed to impose a P6 per kilowatt-hour ceiling on power rate increases, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said Sunday.

In an interview with radio dzBB, Gatchalian, chairman of the energy panel, a cap on power rate increases was among the policies his committee agreed upon, after holding hearings on the country’s power supply situation.

During last week’s hearing, Gatchalian said, the senators said a lack of policies was the cause of the problems hounding the energy sector.

Gatchalian said the committee also ordered the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to investigate power generation companies for possible collusion, after a series of plant shutdowns caused power interruptions in Metro Manila and nearby provinces.

The energy committee supported the construction of more power plants, raising the penalties for unreliable power suppliers and better regulation to ensure a sufficient supply of electricity.

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TUCP bats for P710 wage hike in Metro THE Trade Union Congress of the Philippines, the largest labor union, said Sunday it will be seeking a 710-peso-a-day across-the-board wage increase for the workers in the National Capital Region to lift more Filipinos out of poverty.

The group, led by its president Raymond Mendoza and other union officers,

are expected to file this latest wage-hike petition before Metro Manila’s Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board at 9 a.m. today, April 29.

If the union’s petition is approved, it will bring the minimum wage in Metro Manila to P1,247 per day, and that will Next page

Bishop to youth: Avoid phone addiction CEBU CITY―The apostolic nuncio of the Vatican to the Philippines on Sunday asked the Filipino youth participating in the six-day National Youth Day to free themselves from cellphone addiction and find peace in silence.

Archbishop Gabriele Giordano Caccia hailed the relevance of mobile phones to

the youth, but said when “one becomes a slave to the phone, you lose your freedom.”

“The mobile phone is a great help. It’s a progress. It’s nice that everyone knows how to use it... When the mobile phone is dragged, communication is reduced to Next page

WASTE NOT... Maintenance man waters the plants along Agham Road in Quezon City unmindful of the fact that Angat Dam, which supplies 96 percent of potable water in Metro Manila, is nearing its critical low level. Authorities call for conservation measures. Manny Palmero

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PH decries Sanfo bid for US aid cut

By Nat Mariano

T

HE resolution of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors condemning the Duterte administration’s war on drugs is an interference in the Philippines’ judicial process and sovereignty, the Palace said Sunday.

Last week, the Board of Supervisors of the city and county of San Francisco approved a resolution calling for a congressional hearing to push for the withdrawal of financial aid to the Philippines.

US House Resolution 233, authored by Rep. Jackie Speier, called for the immediate release of opposition Senator Leila de Lima while Senate Resolution 142, authored by Senator Edward Markey, called on the administration to drop all charges against Rappler and its CEO and executive editor Maria Ressa.

But Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo slammed the supervisors of the

US western city, saying the Board only “believe the false narratives as well as bogus statistics... fed by biased news agencies.”

“The resolution is a toxic and unacceptable intrusion into our legal processes and an outrageous interference with our country’s sovereignty,” Panelo said in a statement released early Sunday morning.

“Like some US Senators, the San Francisco Supervisors have either developed amnesia or have not outgrown their colonial mentality,”Panelo said.

“They should be shaken from their stu-

Power...

would not be affected.

The decrease in the amount of rainfall due to the El Niño phenomenon and high water needs of residents in Metro Manila and the nearby provinces have been blamed for the water shortage since March, it said.

Pagasa recently said El Niño is forecast to stay until June, and not until May as earlier predicted.

Angat Dam provides 97 percent of the Metro Manila’s supply of potable water .

Last week, the National Water Resources Board said the dam’s water elevation could dip to as low as 173.13 meters by end of May. The dam’s minimum operating level is at 180 meters.

From A1

Also on Sunday, the state weather bureau reported that the water level in Angat Dam, Bulacan, dipped below its critical level.

The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) said Angat Dam’s water level plunged to 179.97 meters, below the minimum level required for normal operations.

Despite this, the weather bureau said water supply for the two private water concessionaires of the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System

Pinatubo...

From A1

went to Sitio Pasbul, Barangay Camias, Porac, Pampanga on April 24.

Residents near the volcano have observed poor to zero visibility shortly after the earthquake, apparently brought by ash fall at Barangays Sta Fe, San Marcelino, Yangil and Banawen in San Felipe, Zambales. Similar events have been noticed in Brgys. Nabuclod in Floridablanca and Brgys. Inararo and Camias both in Porac, Pampanga.

“These observationd wertr relayed to us after the earthquake that raised concerns on the effect of temblor on the volcano,” Phivolcs said.

TUCP...

From A1

benefit employees across-the-board, TUCP spokesman Alan Tanjusay explained.

“We are not hitting President Duterte or the government with this [wage hike petition], we are just telling the decision makers there is an urgent need to raise wages so that people can live decently,” Tanjusay said.

“It seems that some government economists have set the poverty threshold very much lower than what it should be.”

Tanjusay says the government considers a family consisting of five members who have a total monthly income of

Navy...

From A1

“Our naval warfare service should at least be as formidable as Indonesia’s, which has three fleets of larger and faster ships, including submarines.”

The University of the Philippines’ Institute of Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea earlier lamented that Chinese fishing vessels around Panatag Shoal were illegally harvesting giant clams that were originally sown by Filipino marine biologists for restocking.

Panatag, or Scarborough Shoal, is chain of mostly submerged reefs and rocks about 198 kilometers west of Subic Bay. “It is unfortunate that the Philippine Navy’s top three warships are least 50 years old, and one of them is out for repair,” the Surigao del Sur lawmaker said.

He was referring to the BRP Gregorio del Pilar, BRP Ramon Alcaraz and the BRP Andres Bonifacio – all decommissioned US Coast Guard patrol boats acquired by the Philippines through America’s Excess Defense Articles Program.

Del Pilar, the Navy’s flagship, is being restored after it ran aground last year at Hasa-Hasa Shoal in the West Philippine Sea off Palawan.

The Navy under the Duterte administration has already ordered two new missile-armed frigates worth some P18 billion, including P2 billion for their weapons systems and munition.

The first frigate is due for delivery by March 2020, while the second one is due

The April 22 earthquake, left damages to private and government infrastructure including Chuzon Supermarket in Porac town that left more than a dozen of people pinned to death, according to Pampanga Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) headed

by Angie Blanco.

The quake killed 18 people, including at least nine in a flattened supermarket in Porac Pampanga.

It also did P505.9 million in damage to more than 300 structures in Metro Manila, the Ilocos, Central Luzon and Calabarzon, with Central Luzon bearing the brunt of the damage.

Phivolcs said there were no signs of volcanic unrest following the April 22 earthquake.

P10,481 as “out of poverty.”

But he says his group will call on the wages board to factor in the recent developments such as the inflationary spikes in the prices of food and other basic goods in setting “realistic wages.”

The minimum wage for the employees in Metro Manila is currently at P537 per day.

The TUCP is also set to file separate wage hike petitions in other regions. Petitions may be filed with the wage boards in Cebu and Davao within the week, Tanjusay said.

“We are still computing what the right amount should be in the other regions,” he said.

The labor group has traditionally filed its wage hike petitions in time for the celebration of Labor Day. PNA

to arrive in 2021.

“The two frigates are a definitely a good start, but sadly, they won’t be enough. Indonesia has at least eight frigates, among other warships,” Pimentel said.

“The next Congress should see to it that the Navy gets all the new funding needed to acquire more warships in the years ahead,” he said.

He called “sad” the Navy’s lack of warships, despite the country’s vast territorial waters and extensive coastline requiring round-the-clock protection.

Pimentel said decades of domestic insurgency have caused succeeding governments to build up the Army at the expense of the Navy and the Air Force.

Under international law, the Philippines enjoys sovereign rights over the country’s EEZ for the purpose of exploring, exploiting, conserving and managing natural resources, whether living and nonliving, of the seabed and subsoil and the superjacent waters and with regard to other activities for the economic exploitation and exploration of the zone.

“We need more warships to protect our strategic maritime interests, including those in our EEZ,” Pimentel said.

On Sunday, Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. continued his word war with critics on social media who have hit his refusal to act on Chinese poaching in Scarborough Shoal.

“If this clam issue ends up with China GRANTING us PERMISSION and even help to save the clams—thereby eroding our victory in the Hague—I will tear out your genitals with pliers,” Locsin said on Twitter,

por and wake up to the fact that the Philippines had long ceased to be a colony of the United States and will never be a vassal to it.”

Panelo said the cases against De Lima, Ressa and even Senator Antonio Trillanes IV were justified by the existing laws.

“The cases are being tried before our local courts, which belong to a separate and independent branch of the government. They have been afforded their rights to due process,” Panelo said.

“Their criminal prosecution is anchored on their transgressions of our laws and it has absolutely nothing to do with their being critical of the Administration. Other harsher critics do not face any criminal complaint simply because they have not violated any law but [are] just exercising their freedom of speech.”

Panelo then “informed” the Board that the supposed extra-judicial killings or the deaths arising from drug-related killings are “absolutely not state-initiated nor

sponsored.”

“Proof of which is the death of scores of policemen coupled with the serious injuries to hundreds of others,” Panelo said.

He also mentioned the dismissal and prosecution of a Manila police officer for killing an epileptic in a false drug raid and the conviction of three Caloocan police officers for the killing of a teenager, stressing the Duterte administration “does not tolerate police abuse.”

Panelo said the few anti-Duterte personalities were turning to foreign politicians or international human rights groups who either unwittingly or ignorantly lend a hand to the detractors pretended patriotism and politically motivated advocacy.

He said the Duterte administration’s critics and detractors were turning to international groups who were vulnerable to misinformation and gullible to untruthful narrations, as they “fail in convincing the majority of the Filipinos of their ped-

dled falsities against the President.”

In early April this year, the Palace hit back at five US senators for appealing the same concern to the Philippine government.

Panelo said the US lawmakers had no “business” dictating to the country what to do with suspected criminals, telling them they should have sent someone to have an independent probe in the country or formally write the concerned Philippine agencies.

Since February 2018, De Lima has been detained following her criticism of the war on drugs. She was detained for allegedly benefiting from convicted crime lords when she was still the Justice secretary.

Ressa and her news site Rappler are facing several cases including libel and tax-related charges amid their critical reportage on the government.

Trillanes, on the other hand, remains a vocal critic of the administration.

Central...

From A1

QUAKE-RESILIENT DESKS. Called Life-Saving Automated Mesa to Endure Seismic Activity or LAMESA, the desks have been developed by a team of researchers from the Philippine Normal University, De La Salle University and Technological University of the Philippines. DOST

Bishop...

From A1

simple contacts. But it is not [just] contact, it needs to communicate, Caccia said in his 20-minute homily during the closing mass of the National Youth Day 2019 at the Cebu City Sports Center.

Caccia made his statement even as the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines president on Saturday again asked for forgiveness for the Church pastors’ abuses, especially the sexual molestation of children.

Asked about the abuses, Davao Archbishop Romulo Valles, before delegates to the National Youth Day 2019 forum held in Cebu City, said: “We bow in shame, we beg for forgiveness.

“We continue to say: We are so sorry and beg for forgiveness from the Lord and from those this hurt and wrongdoing has been done.”

Caccia called on the young pilgrims of the Filipino youth meeting organized by the Roman Catholic Church in the Archdiocese of Cebu “not to be afraid of silence.”

“It’s necessary to take care of one’s own interiority and listen to one’s conscience. Carve out spaces of silence.

Don’t be afraid of silence, of being alone.

But take some time [to be] alone, he said, quoting Pope Francis.

without specifying the target of his ire.

“Putrefaction ang ina niyo. Just leave things alone you idiotesses,” he said.

On Tuesday, he told a social media user to “shut up about the clams” because remarks on it could compromise Manila’s victory in a Hague-based arbitration court that invalidated Beijing’s sweeping claims to the waterway.

President Rodrigo Duterte and Chinese leader Xi Jinping last week agreed to resolve the maritime row through “peaceful, diplomatic” means, Philippine Ambassador to China Chito Sta. Romana said.

On Sunday, the Palace touted Duterte’s four-day visit to China for the 2nd Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation as “highly successful.”

In a statement hours after the President arrived in his hometown in Davao, Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo said the President’s participation in Beijing’s forum paved the way for the signing of several business agreements that will provide employment for Filipinos.

“The Chief Executive witnessed the signing of 19 business agreements, covering a wide range of areas of investments such as in energy, infrastructure that includes tourism-related facilities and internet connectivity, agriculture, and training of Filipinos sojourning in China,” Panelo said.

According to Panelo, the 19 deals were estimated at $12.165 billion, which will generate more than 21,000 jobs for Filipinos. Duterte previously met with the leaders of Philippine and Chinese business conglomerates in manufacturing, energy, steel, and infrastructure industries.

“LAMESA combines technology with capacity building in terms of knowledge and infrastructure to best address such probable disaster, particularly in educational institutions,” the DOST said in a statement.

The table top is made of steel and coated with epoxy paint for durability.

It also has a storage bin with a sliding door for keeping lighting devices, food and water supplies for up to nine kindergarten pupils.

“LAMESA is equipped with an accelerometer, a device that senses motion, which feeds seismic measurements to a Wi-Fi-enabled microcontroller. This microcontroller then simultaneously triggers the actuator which causes the table top to fold 16 degrees upward,” the DOST added.

The Papal Nuncio said the “truth lives within the person and only in inner silence can the voice of conscience be grasped and distinguished from the voice of selfishness and hedonism, which are different voices.”

“So the first step to reach peace is to start [it] with silence, he added.

The head of the apostolic nunciature in the country also prodded the youth pilgrims to spend time in silence alone, without the mobile phone.

“I invite you. Every day, put a timer in the mobile phone for 10 minutes alone, in the room, or in open until your phone rings, he said.

“And listen to yourself the voices of conscience. Think what is life. What is supposed to be done? What is just and what is wrong.

He reminded the youth of St. Teresa of Calcutta’s expression on silence that the “fruit of silence is prayer, the fruit of prayer is faith, the fruit of faith is love, the fruit of love is service, and the fruit of service is peace.”

The “substituto” of Pope Francis here in the Philippines was joined by Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma, Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines president, Archbishop Romulo Valles, and around 20 more bishops and hundreds of members of the clergy in the closing mass attended by 12,000 delegates.

On Saturday, the delegates started to gather at the biggest sports center here for the final activities of the youth meet that was started with a holy mass and commitment rite and recitation of the Divine Mercy Chaplet and Eucharistic adoration. The youth also took to confessions and spiritual advises from priests who were around.

The young delegates were also exposed to different religious orders and congregations in a vocation jamboree, with vocation animators explaining to them the life in the seminary and convents.

Caccia led other bishops and clergy in a dialogue with the youth on Saturday night, with the youth delegates throwing critical questions pertaining to the Filipino community and the young sector of society, event youth facilitator Frankel Margallo said.

Ronald Manlangit, a delegate from a parish in Carcar City, Cebu, told the Philippine News Agency the delegates did not return anymore to their respective parishes and foster families on Saturday, as the grand festival night concluded with a “youth jam,” which was finished at 3 a.m. on Sunday.

The youth stayed at the CCSC for the dawn rosary and slept on the ground to wait for the 6:30 a.m. closing mass.

Rev. Fr. Andrei Ventanilla, the event’s steering team facilitator, thanked the delegates for attending the youth day. PNA

Louvre...

powerful Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman.

He has never confirmed or denied the report.

Prince Badr was appointed to head the kingdom’s culture ministry in a government shakeup in June.

Saudi Arabia and the neighboring United Arab Emirates are very close allies who are both engaged militarily in the war against rebels in Yemen.

Mohammed bin Salman (known as MBS) is also a close confidant of Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Zayed who along with Macron opened the Louvre Abu Dhabi in 2017, the first foreign institution to carry the name of the great Paris museum.

The painting’s disappearance comes as MBS’s international reputation has taken a battering over the murder of dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Istanbul, in which he denies any involvement.

Artprice, the leading art market information service, said clerics from Sunni Islam’s leading authority the Al Azhar university in Cairo told MBS the painting could not be displayed on religious grounds.

Jesus is seen as a prophet within Islam, which prohibits any physical depiction of God. But the picture portrays him as a saviour and thus a deity.

‘Nothing by Leonardo’ Many art experts remain unconvinced of the painting’s authenticity.

“Certain details are very telling,” said Jacques Franck, a specialist in da Vinci’s technique, pointing to the poor depiction of a finger and other elements that are “anatomically impossible”. AFP

From A1

But the work that in recent months has been the intense focus of scrutiny by the media and da Vinci specialists, may not be on show.

In 2017, “Salvator Mundi” was sold at auction by Christie’s as a work by da Vinci for a record $450 million. But it has not been displayed in public since, triggering doubts about its ownership, its whereabouts and its authenticity.

The painting, a portrait of Jesus, was to go on display at the Louvre Abu Dhabi in September last year. But its unveiling was postponed by the museum without any explanation.

The Louvre Abu Dhabi has kept tightlipped about the identity of the buyer, saying only that the emirate’s Department of Culture and Tourism had “acquired” it.

And the mystery has further deepened ahead of a visit by Italian President Sergio Mattarella who will join France’s President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday on a trip to the Loire Valley to mark the anniversary of da Vinci’s death there in 1519, at the age of 67.

“The Louvre has asked the Department of Culture and Tourism in Abu Dhabi for the painting to be given on loan,” a Louvre spokesperson told AFP. “But we have not yet had any reply.”

Proscribed by Islam?

According to the Wall Street Journal, the buyer of the picture was Saudi prince Badr ben Abdallah, acting in the name of

News

MONDAY, APRIL 29, 2019

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Metro cops told: Take part in absentee voting NATIONAL Capital Region Police Office director, Major Gen. Guillermo Eleazar on Sunday urged Philippine National Police personnel assigned in Metro Manila to exercise their right to suffrage by participating in the absentee voting for the May 13 mid-term elections.

“While it is true that PNP serves and protects our countrymen so they may peacefully exercise their right to vote, most of our policemen disregard their own rights to suffrage,” Eleazar said in a statement.

“It is the very reason that I would like to encourage all policemen, especially those who come from their hometowns in the provinces, that every vote counts and your votes are equally significant,” he added.

The absentee voting for PNP and other law enforcers will be held from April 29 to May 1.

He said the PNP takes advantage of the absentee voting in order to maximize the deployment of policemen and utilize all its resources in securing peace and order during the actual date of elections.

“I exhort all policemen to vote and vote wisely. Our country deserves good leaders and we will be able to attain this by exercising our right to suffrage wisely,” Eleazar said.

He said Commission on Elections (Comelec) Resolution 10443 provides that members of the PNP are entitled to avail of absentee voting, provided, they are duly registered voters and temporarily assigned in places where they are not registered, in the course of undertaking their public functions and duties.

Eleazar earlier said 15,000 police personnel will be deployed in Metro Manila to “maintain our anti-criminality efforts.”

He ordered the five police district directors in the metropolis to monitor political developments in areas where election-related violence occurred in the past. PNA

Health-tourism summit debuts in Calabarzon

By Macon Ramos-Araneta THE Department of HealthCALABARZON held the first “Health in Tourism Summit” to make the region a safe and healthy tourism destination.

Regional Director Eduardo Janairo said this could be realized by providing health regulations and enforcing safety standards among Tourism Related Establishments.

He said appropriate trainings, orientations sand advocacy activities related to health and safety in tourism were provided to all the participants in the summit.

“We need to ensure that general standards of health, safety and hygiene in all hotels, resorts and leisure parks must be enforced and implemented accordingly for the safety of both foreign and local tourists,” said Janairo.

He said the ‘HiT Program’ is part of their goal “Towards CALABARZON Prime” - to generate awareness on tourism programs in collaboration with government agencies, local government units, non-government organizations that will provide an efficient and effective health care delivery system that will cater to the health needs of TREs in the region.

The program intends to create and maintain a database of TREs in the region, assess the establishments according to the set of health and safety standards, provide technical assistance to TREs and advocate to local chief executives for the implementation of existing laws related to the health and safety of tourists in the country.

According to Janairo, the HiT program will also include vermin control and disinfection, health service provider networks, ensure the availability of medical clinics and medical emergency responders, putting up of health signages in hazardous parts and areas, provision of safety buoys and lifeguard tower/post.

“All these components will be put in place through collaboration with LGUs, other government agencies and stakeholders including the provision of water testing facilities both for drinking and recreational water facilities, garbage and sewerage disposal program, emergency response training, paramedics, ambulance driving and lifeguards.”

MEET AND GREET. Leyte (1st Dist) Representative and Tingog Party List 1st Nominee Yedda Marie K. Romualdez (center) assisted by Cebu 6th District Congressional Candidate Lolypop Ouano (left standing) shakes hand with more than 300 Barangay officials of the 6th District of Cebu during the meet and greet and campaign sortie at Ouano Compound in Mandaue City, Cebu.The strong leadership of Ouano and his brother Board Member Jonkie Ouano together with Barangay officials pledge support for the Tingog Party List in coming May 13 2019 election. Ver Noveno

Gaming tycoon suffers another legal setback J

By Rey E. Requejo

APANESE gaming tycoon Kazuo Okada, who was recently ordered arrested by a regional trial court over charges of embezzling corporate funds, has suffered another legal setback after the Department of Justice threw out the perjury cases he filed against the chief executive adviser of Tiger Resort Leisure & Entertainment Inc., which operates the posh Okada Manila in Paranaque City.

In a resolution, the DOJ dismissed the perjury cases filed by Okada firm Aruze Phils. Manufacturing Inc against the chief executive adviser of TRLEI, the owner of Okada Manila, who accused the former of falsely claiming to manufacture light emitting diode (LED) strips for the hotel and casino resort company.

The DOJ through the Las Pinas City Senior Asst. Prosecutor Donald Macasaet ruled that the elements of perjury were absent in the statements made by TRLEI executive Dindo Espeleta against APMI when he filed TRLEI’s estafa complaint against APMI. The perjury case was filed originally at the Paranaque City prosecutor´s office but the Paranaque prosecutor inhibited, prompting the Department of Justice to assign the Las Pinas City prosecutor to the case.

APMI sued Espeleta for three counts of perjury for claiming in the TRLEI estafa case filed against APMI that it made false representations when it entered into a deal to supply TRLEI with LED strips for outdoor use in the Okada hotel casino.

Among others, Espeleta, who was in charge of the LED project for TRLEI, accused APMI of making it appear that it was the manufacturer of the LED strips when it merely engaged another company, J and J Phils., to supply the LED strips.

APMI, in its complaint for perjury against Espeleta, said the TRLEI executive knew beforehand that APMI was just buying the LED strips from another supplier and lied at least thrice in his estafa case about it.

But Macasaet, in his resolution, said although Espeleta made the claims in his affidavit and before the court where he filed the estafa case, a key element of perjury was absent—wilfully making a false statement.

“The requirement that the respondent [Espeleta] made willful and deliberate assertion of falsehood is lacking,” said Macasaet in his resolution dated April 15, 2019.

Citing a Supreme Court ruling, Macasaet said “a false statement of a belief is not perjury.”

Macasaet said Espeleta “was able to establish that his assertions” in the estafa case against APMI were “based on belief and conviction” and after an examination of

Kazuo Okada

APMI’s corporate papers.

Macasaet´s resolution said “a reading” of APMI´s amended articles of incorporation confirmed Espeleta´s claim that manufacturing LED strips for outdoor use ¨was never mentioned as the primary or secondary purpose of the corporation.”

Espeleta´s claims, Macasaet said, “proceeded from his examination of the corporate papers” of APMI. “In other words, there is no falsity that can be attributed” to Espeleta, the resolution said.

Email messages presented by APMI against Espeleta as evidence, “to put it bluntly, are not clear of their import in proving perjury,” said Macasaet.

The claim by APMI that Espeleta or TRLEI knew ahead that APMI did not manufacture LED strips “is based purely on conjectures and does not have a leg to stand on.”

HAGGLE AND HUDDLE. Reelectionist Senator Nancy Binay went around Commonwealth Market and talked to market goers and sellers.

Contributed Photo

Catholic couples tapped for PH-wide green project

By Rio Araja THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources is partnering with a Catholic movement—Couples for Christ—for a project seeking to plant one million trees under the government’s expanded national greening program.

Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu said a partnership with non-government organizations is “vital” to achieving the goals of program.

“We are glad that an organization such as the CFC, a church-based organization, is helping us in our goal to protect the environment by taking part in the ENGP,” he said.

The DENR-CFC partnership was formalized through a memorandum of agreement signed by Cimatu and CFCPhilippines president Michael Ariola.

Under the arrangement, the CFC has committed to contribute to the national reforestation effort by planting one million forest tree seedlings from 2019 to

2021, and maintaining and protecting the planted seedlings during that period.

The DENR is tasked to give technical assistance to CFC in terms of identifying the forestlands where the seedlings will be planted, conduct survey, planning and mapping, and identify the suitable tree species that should be planted in the areas concerned.

The ENGP is the continuation of the previous National Greening Program, and was signed under the Executive Order 193 in 2015.

Red-linked party lists sued before poll body

By Priam Nepomuceno THE country needs more people like Angela O. Aguilar who will surface to expose truth about the so-called progressive groups with links to the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army terrorist movement.

Thus spoke Major Gen. Antonio Parlade of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict after learning of Aguilar’s petition before the Commission on Elections calling for the cancellation of the registration of a number of partylist groups linked to the CPP-NPA. “We need more Aguilars to tell their story. We need more former rebels like Father Balweg, whom the NPAs silenced, to expose the true colors of these Kamatayan Bloc and the politicians who are supporting them. We need more to speak about these crook politicians kowtowing with the Kamatayan (Makabayan) bloc and its armed NPAs that perpetuate their selfish agenda rather than national interest,” Parlade said on Sunday.

Named in the petition, docketed as SPP 19-006 before the Comelec on April 26, were the Makabayang Koalisyon ng Mamamayan (MAKABAYAN), Bayan Muna, Anakpawis, Kabataan, Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT), General Assembly Binding Women for Reforms, Integrity, Equality, Leadership, and Action (GABRIELA), with senatorial aspirant Neri Colmenares as the lone individual respondent.

In her petition, Aguilar cited the Comelec’s motu propio powers under the Republic Act 7941 or PartyList System Act’s Section 6, Paragraphs 2 and 5 as reference.

The Party-list System Act, which was passed in 1995, allows the Comelec to cancel the registration of any group, which among others, “advocates violence or unlawful means to seek its goal” and “violates or fails to comply with laws, rules or regulations relating to elections.”

The CPP-NPA is listed as a terrorist organization by the United States, European Union, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the Philippines.

Parlade said Aguilar’s petition is very timely and should serve as a wake-up call for Filipinos long tired of the insurgency being foisted upon them by the communist rebels.

“It’s about time. Like I said, one of these days the people will wake up and slap them with anything they can get hold of, including filing of cases for all the crimes they have committed against humanity.

We just don’t realize it but this 50 years of communist protracted war has killed around 60,000 Filipinos.

Some former cadres even place the estimate of those they have killed at 80,000,” the NTF ELCAC official added. PNA

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Opinion

MONDAY, APRIL 29, 2019

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

The end of an era THERE was a time when Pasay City was synonymous with the name Cuneta. After all, it was ruled by Pablo Cuneta for 41 years as mayor, from 1947 to 1998, interrupted only twice when he lost to Jovito Claudio in 1967 and when he voluntarily stepped down in 1986 as the Cory Aquino administration started appointing officers-in-charge to replace local government officials.

But that was eons ago and the political scenery of Pasay city has dramatically changed. In fact, some old-time city denizens even regard the Cunetas as distant memories.

And this perception of the Pas-

Can the Cunetas ever stage a comeback in Pasay?

ayeños seems to manifest in the forthcoming elections. If the results of the survey conducted by The Center is proven to be accurate come May 13, it would take more than the Cunetas’ political history and the showbiz appeal of one its family member to seriously mount a comeback.

With her overwhelming lead over Cesar Cuneta, brother of showbiz personality Sharon Cuneta (Pablo’s children by her second wife, Elaine), Emi Calixto-Rubiano has reportedly slowed down on her campaign sorties in the city except for the usual KBL (Kasal, Binyag, Libing) commitments.

Adelle Chua, Editor

EDITORIAL

In The Center’s pre-poll survey, Calixto-Rubiano, incumbent congressman of the city, who is gunning for the mayoralty post, swapping positions with her brother, Mayor Antonio, showed what seems to be an insurmountable 67-percent lead over Cuneta, gaining the approval of 79 percent of the respondents as against the latter who garnered 12 percent.

Other mayoralty candidates aside from Rubiano and Cuneta who figured in the The Center’s survey were lawyer Edward Togonon (3 percent), lawyer Tin Ching (1 percent) and JT Trindad (1 percent).

The Center’s survey also showed that incumbent Mayor Tony Calixto who is on his third and last term as City Chief Executive will definitely be the city’s next representative with about 90 percent of the respondents saying they will vote for Calixto to be their representative when the 18th Congress opens in July. As in the mayoralty election, the elder Calixto is merely going through the motions of the political campaign as those running for the same position could only come up with single-digit preferences, e.g., Efren Alas (4 percent), Elmer Mitra (2 percent), Pete Ordiales (1 percent) and Metel Gebolinga (0.5 percent).

Some 4 percent said they have not decided yet whom to vote for mayor while only 2.5 percent are undecided when asked for their preference in the congressional elections.

It was a bit close in the vice mayoralty elections with reelectionist Vice Mayor Boyet del Rosario posting a 63-percent preference over the 29 percent given to Richard Advincula who appears to be the only serious challenger for the position. Bong Tebelin and Armand Magbanua both posted 1%.

What was then billed to be a close

T

No big achievement

HOSE of us who have had to suffer through a severe water shortage during a brutally hot summer are somewhat mollified to learn that Manila Water, the private concessionaire for Metro Manila’s east zone, has been fined P534 million and been compelled to put up a P600 million fund to develop a new water source, after it failed to meet its contractual obligations to supply tens of thousands of households and establishments with continuous water service.

We are also encouraged by a statement from Manila Water’s parent company, Ayala Corp., that the penalties will not be passed on to consumers.

“I think it's best we pay the fine.

It would not be passed on to consumers, we will have to absorb it as a company and we move forward from here,” said Ayala Corp.

President Fernando Zobel de Ayala said during the company's annual stockholders' meeting.

"We have had this problem, we’re dealing with it, we have to get through it and come out a stronger company at the end," Zobel added.

The fines, the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) says, will be paid in the form of deductions from the bills of for Manila Water’s customers, and could kick in by June.

But while the imposition of fines is a good first step, it is a far cry from closure for millions of customers who continue to suffer from Manila Water’s failure to this day. Manila Water likes to point out that it has restored water service to at least eight hours a day on the ground level to 99 percent of its customer base—as if this were an achievement for which it can take pride.

Are we supposed to be thankful that our faucets trickle out water during a third of the day, and that we have to scramble after midnight to collect water for the two-thirds of the remaining day? Would the president of Ayala Corp., we wonder, be happy with this in his household? Are eight hours a day of water dribbling from our faucets a worthy measure of success? It might be—in a

Third World country.

Also, how much exactly, does the P500 million in fines translate to per person? The company says it services close to 7 million people. A fine of P500 million divided by so many users if a paltry P71 a person. Is that really sufficient or fair, for a company that posted profits of P6.5 billion, and whose parent company realized a net income of P31.8 billion in 2018? Would not any of us gladly have paid P71 extra to make sure we had continuous water service 24 hours a day?

And we have not even begun to count the cost of businesses that had to stop operating because they could not do so without an adequate water supply, which Manila Water had pledged to provide in its concession agreement.

The MWSS, as the state regulator, needs to address these issues—and make sure none of this Third World supply nonsense befalls any of us again— before it can claim to have made progress in dealing with the recent water crisis. And Manila Water really should stop pointing to its “eight-hours-a-day to 99 percent of its customers” statistic as a sign of progress. Because it really isn’t.

Turn to A5

OAV THIS is my first time to witness the conduct of overseas voting by our kababayans in a foreign land.

As of this writing, only some 8 percent of registered voters have actually cast their ballots in Taiwan. Oldtimers at the Manila Economic and Cultural Office here say that turn-out and interest during mid-term elections is generally lower than when candidates contest the presidency of our country.

Also, it is a very Filipino trait to exercise whether right or duty when deadline nears. Look at the filing of income taxes, when most take their sweet time until the last day of filing.

Cramming is always the norm.

MECO maintains three offices in the whole island of Taiwan: Taipei the capital to serve the northern part and where our administrative, trade, tourism and main labor office is located; Taichung to serve the central part, and Kaohsiung for the south. In all three offices, overseas absentee voting has been held since April 13, to last until election day in the Philippines. As directed by the Comelec, we open our voting centers even on Sundays and holidays, Maundy Thursday and Good Friday included.

Halfway through the voting period, with just 15 days to go before May 13, only some 8 percent of the registered voters have cast their votes.

Before they enter the designated polling center, voters are asked to watch a Comelec-supplied instructional video to make sure that they are well-informed about the manner of voting, this being the first time automated voting machines are being used here.

In our Taipei office, there is a giant video wall where the Comelec video is shown and where voters are asked to first view the instructions. In the Taichung and Kaohsiung branches, there is a television monitor where the same is shown.

Thereafter, the prospective voter is ushered into the voting center, at the

lobby on ordinary days, and inside the main hall during non-working days.

Cell phones and cameras are not allowed inside the voting center.

There they are asked for an ID where they have both photograph and signature, and this is compared to the Comelec-authorized voter’s book of registry.

The next step is to get the ballot from the chair of the BEI, where the voter is asked to inspect the ballot given to certify that this is an unused ballot, with no markings whatsoever on the ovals beside the candidates or party-list names.

Having inspected the ballot and agreeing that it is a clean and unmarked ballot, they then proceed to the actual voting booth. After finishing

Cramming is always the norm.

their ballot, they proceed to the auto automated voting machine where they feed their ballot covered by the Comelecsupplied folder to ensure that nobody sees who they voted for.

A receipt is then printed once the machine receives and reads the ballot. The same is inspected by the voter before he or she inserts this paper trail proof inside the ballot box.

We have had thus far a couple of problems, but after investigation by the supervisors, it was found out that these likely were due to the voter’s mistakes.

In one, he complained that a vote was erroneously credited to a candidate he did not vote for. It turned out that he may have shaded the wrong oval corresponding to his candidate. He said he was for a candidate whose name began with an A but the same was credited to another with the same beginning letter.

In another, a voter loudly protested that she voted for 12 senatorial candidates but only 9 names were credited in the receipt. It turned out she did not follow instructions. She shaded only Turn to A5

Review: ‘An Illustrated History of the Philippines’ POP GOES THE WORLD JENNY ORTUOSTE WHY don’t Filipinos speak Spanish?

How did the short-lived British occupation cripple Spain’s hold on the archipelago? And what factors contributed to the rise of the ‘trapo’ (traditional politician)?

It’s all in ‘Illustrated History of the Philippines’ written by historian Ray Canoy. What makes this unlike other

history books is that it has interesting and informative photos and illustrations that enhance the content.

This book is impressive both in content and appearance. The front cover is a collage of iconic photographs, and almost every inside page is illustrated with carefully selected images. The layout is attractive. Colored sidebars set off information, and a detailed timeline from c.

55,000 B.C. to 2018 provides a valuable chronology of the development of our people and nation.

The text is in simple language, written well in an engaging yet scholarly

manner. The book, after all, is a sort of beginner’s guide to the country. It covers the Sundaland subcontinent all the way to the presidency of Rodrigo Duterte and the Nine-Dash Line conflict.

Dr. Canoy’s his choice of topics present the Filipino community as one shaped by cultural influences from several world civilizations.

I particularly appreciated the section about trading nations in Southeast Asia that were influenced by the Hindu-Buddhist culture of India. Canoy refers to the Srivijaya and Majapahit as ‘thalassocraTurn to A5

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

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Opinion

MONDAY, ARPIL 29, 2019

Toward water security

Highway peeves

A statement by the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System THE Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System Board has sanctioned Manila Water Company, Inc. with a total of P1.134 billion—a P534.050 million fine and additional P600 million fund for development of new water supply source—in connection with the water shortage that occurred last March in the areas serviced by the concessionaire.

This was jointly announced by MWSS Chairman Franklin J. Demonteverde and Administrator Reynaldo V. Velasco as the MWSS Board unanimously approved the recommendation of MWSS Regulatory Office on the imposition of appropriate penalties on Manila Water relative to its failure to comply with Article 10.4 of the concession agreement.

The Resolution was signed by Board Chairman Franklin Demonteverde, Vice Chairman and MWSS Administrator Reynaldo Velasco together with members Melchior I. Acosta Jr, Mariano C. Alegarbes, Merly M. Cruz, Jose R. Hernandez, Valeriano F. Pasquil, Melanie Sia-Lambino and Elpidio J. Vega.

The additional penalty of P600 million has also been imposed on Manila Water to be allocated in the funding of new water source.

Manila Water President Ferdinand M. dela Cruz said he will abide by the decision of the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) to pay a financial penalty upon the recommendation of the MWSS Regulatory Office (RO) declaring that the East Zone concessionaire should be penalized under Section 10.4 of the Concession Agreement for its inability to meet its service obligations to provide 24/7 water supply to its consumers.

Last March 26, Resolution No. 2019052 that unanimously adopted by the MWSS Board directed the MWSS-RO to study the appropriate penalties to the East Zone concessionaire.

The penalties are aside from Manila Water’s self-imposed penalty amounting to P500 million that provided financial relief to its customers affected by the water shortage.

The water crisis that proved costly to Manila Water highlighted the lack of strategic preparedness notably on the realistic allocation of water supply to Manila Water, the development of new water supply sources and the much improvement of the Angat-Ipo-La Mesa tunnel and conveyance system.

“The water shortage was an eyeopener, and sad to say, the new MWSS Board inherited this lingering problem having assumed office only in February 2017. We are on a catch up mode and it’s only this administration under President Rodrigo Duterte that we have seriously put on track a realistic and doable water security roadmap to ensure adequate water supply,” said Velasco.

Manila Water’s unapproved proposals during Aquino administration As part of its official report to the President on the water crisis, the MWSS has zeroed in on the root cause of the

water supply problem that led to water shortage last March.

Based on Manila Water’s comprehensive report submitted to MWSS, as early as 31 March 2012, Manila Water proposed to MWSS, under then Administrator Gerardo Esquivel, a water system facility for the East Zone that in 2019 would have a raw water supply of 2222 MLD to address a demand of 1705 MLD plus a buffer of 23% for peak demand. However, Administrator Esquivel rejected the proposal and approved a water system facility for the East Zone that in 2019 would have a raw water supply of 1636 MLD for a demand of 1408 MLD (assuming a 12% NRW) with zero buffer for peak demand.

The previous MWSS administration under President Benigno Aquino III insisted that the non-inclusion of a buffer on water demand will be a “more tariff sensible decision” considering its expectation of a new water source within five to six years.

There were also proposals from Manila Water for two projects that will add extra raw water supply of around 275 MLD, the 100-MLD Rizal Province Water Supply Improvement Project (RPWSIP) and the Tayabasan River Water Supply Project. But these were also rejected by the past MWSS administrator through a letter dated 13 August 2013.

Esquivel insisted that “even without these two proposed projects, raw water supply of both concessionaires will be sufficient up to 2019 considering the expected operation of the Kaliwa Dam.” It is noteworthy that through efficient efforts of the Duterte administration, the Kaliwa Dam Project was only signed last November 2018.

Manila Water then issued a statement addressed to former administrator Esquivel that it is “cutting away significant programs for building and maintaining the water systems in the East Zone.”

Manila Water also warned the former administrator that “Because of this, our ability to fulfill our service obligations to our customers will be severely compromised and impaired.”

Then, on 19 May 2016, barely two months after PNoy stepped down from office, Esquivel reversed his disapproval of the 100 MLD RPWSIP and authorized Manila Water “to undertake the procurement for RPWSIP’s additional 50 MLD through direct negotiation,” considering the delay in the implementation and expected completion” of the Kaliwa Dam project. The RPWSIP involves the use of water from Laguna Lake and includes the Cardona Water Treatment Plant. The delayed approval

by MWSS of the 100-MLD RPWSIP gave Manila Water no margin of error in the implementation stage, which became a necessity because of the delay in the implementation and completion of the Kaliwa Dam project. Cardona Water Treatment Plant is now operating at 50 MLD, which will increase to 100 MLD by August this year.

MWSS during the Duterte administration PDDG Reynaldo V. Velasco (Ret.) was appointed Administrator of the MWSS on 20 February 2017 replacing Mr. Gerardo Esquivel who also held the post of Chairman of the Board. The present Chairman is Atty. Franklin Demonteverde with Atty. Patrick Ty serving as MWSS Chief Regulator.

Administrator Velasco began his stewardship of MWSS under heavy constraint because of impending water supply problems.

A study by UP-NEC in 2011 which was the basis of the MWSS Water Security Infrastructure Roadmap 2016-2037 showed that existing water supply would be insufficient to meet projected demand.

Without buffer, the supply-demand projection showed that by 2021, supply would be unable to meet demand.

As the only way to solve the water supply problem, MWSS under the new administration found it imperative to break away from the very cautious posture of the past leadership in not undertaking identified infrastructure projects.

MWSS management recognizes that water problems will persist and they underscored the necessity of pursuing vigorously water infrastructure projects.

The road ahead for water security plan In a related development, Velasco said that he will recommend the issuance of an Executive Order by President Duterte as he has initiated the drafting to fast-track the water security roadmap of the Duterte Administration for Metro Manila and its serviced areas.

With the concurrence of the MWSS Board, the water agency has crafted a short, medium and long water security roadmap that will provide potable and sustainable water supply in the next 5, 10 and even 50 years with at an increase of at least 1,518 MLD by 2022.

Being fast-tracked under the new water security roadmap are the following projects: 150 MLD Putatan (2019); 100 MLD Cardona (2019); 188 MLD Sumag (2020); 50 MLD Rizal Wellfield (2020); 80 MLD Calawis Wawa (2021); 100 MLD Putatan 3 (2022); and 250 MLD Lower Ipo. These, aside from the 600 MLD Kaliwa Dam projects whose implementation was began in 2017 and is expected to be completed in 2023.

According to Velasco, to complement the New Water Security Roadmap (2019-2022), there is the urgent need to fast track the completion of Aqueduct 6 and Tunnel 4, both started during the Duterte Administration by the present MWSS Board and Management. The two projects are expected to be operationalized by January 2020.

MWSS also expects to complete by June 2022 Aqueduct 7 and Tunnel 5 which are now on stream to provide another 1,600 MLD to flow towards La Mesa. The completion of these aqueducts and tunnel system will optimize the flow of excess water from Angat to La Mesa Dam.

Review: ‘An...

“Even though the monarchy had instructed missionaries to teach Spanish to the natives ever since the earliest years of the colony, there was never a point when more than 10 percent of the nonEuropean population spoke Spanish, or read a basic text comprehensible to the average adult.

“This was largely the result of missionary attitudes that emphasized religious instruction in the different languages of the archipelago.” In other words, there was a disconnect between Spanish colonial policy and the Church’s agenda.

The book is divided into eight chapters. The first is the ‘Introduction: Defining the Philippines,’ and is an overview.

Chapter 2, ‘The Community as a Boat’ looks at regional prehistory and early Philippine history to 1500 A.D. Chapter 3, ‘The State as a Convent,’ deals with the colonial experience under Spain from 1500 to 1800.

Chapter 4, ‘Imagining a Nation’ is about the Philippine Revolution, the first Philippine Republic, and its defeat by the U.S., 1800 to 1910. Chapter 5, ‘The Trials of ‘Benevolent Assimilation’,’ tells of the country under American rule, 1901 to 1950.

Chapter 6, ‘Showplace of Democracy in Asia,’ deals with events from 1946 to 1972, while Chapter 7, ‘The New Society and its Aftermath,’ examines the Marcos era up to the Aquinos, from 1970 to 1992. Chapter 8, ‘New Forms and Challenges,’ relates developments from 1986 to the present.

The book ends on a note of warning about systemic ills and our weaknesses as a people, but also points to our country’s resilience, “resource base, a skilled and cooperative workforce, and a beautiful natural environment” along with “plenty of social capital,” assets that will help us find “new forms for old challenges.”

Born in Cebu, Canoy obtained his BA Mass Communication degree from the University of the Philippines-Cebu and his MA History from the University of Cincinnati. His PhD History is from Indiana University. He taught European History as an associate professor at the University of Oklahoma until 2013.

in Pasay City, Ed Malay, director of The Center and former Public Relations and Media Adviser of Former President Fidel V. Ramos, said it would have been different if it were the Megastar who ran for Mayor, but still there is more to running for Mayor than just bank on show business popularity.

Malay said that there’s a lot of difference between showbiz appeal and political mass appeal and if the Cunetas want to return to the politics of Pasay City, they will have to start

investing in it once the smoke of the 2019 poll season dissipates.

Establishing a political network all the way down to the grassroots takes time and even three years may not be enough. Malay pointed out that candidates in the 2022 polls will have to do more in terms of being one with the people especially with the kind of political demographics in Pasay City.

But maybe, the Cunetas could still stage a comeback. But again, maybe not at this point in time.

From A4

cies’ (states with predominantly maritime dominions) rather than ‘empires’, as those of us of a certain age were taught to call them.

We associate the word ‘empire’ with a realm on land and “power over territory,” but the seaborne states exerted “systems of influence over people and labor”, which is a more apt description of how they functioned.

Canoy adds that scholars refer to the early political entities in Southeast Asia as a ‘mandala polity,’ from the Sanskrit word for a ritual circle representing the universe. In mandalas, relationships were “hierarchical” with “suzerains and tributaries” but often non-exclusive (a vassal could deal with more than one overlord) and based on the “customary and personal” rather than the “legally codified, feudal.” For me, this information alone is worth the price of the book.

And there is much more to learn in here.

A conundrum Dr. Canoy solves for me is why Filipinos never adopted Spanish as a language, as did the people of other Spanish colonies. He explains:

The end of...

From A4

race for the mayoralty position turned into a dud as the none of the candidates could even come close to the campaign machinery of the Calixtos.

It was previously claimed that voters may be attracted to the drawing power of artist Sharon Cuneta but this did not come about for the simple reason that the drawing power of the Megastar is not transferable.

In analyzing the electoral exercise

An Illustrated History of the Philippines

by Jose Raymund Canoy (John Beaufoy Publishing, 2018) is available at National Bookstore. Call (02) 8888-627 or buy online at nationalbookstore.com. / FB and Twitter: @DrJennyO

A5

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

THE impetus for what I hoped to be a road trip adventure was a rare family reunion with my father’s side of the family in Camarines Sur. While planning the trip, memories of a horrendous 17-hour Holy Week trip from Manila to Naga City a few years ago gave me the idea to book an overnight stop-over in a decent place somewhere half way. Thanks to a little online research I was able to book an overnight stay in a fairly decent resort in Pagbilao.

We left our home Wednesday morning and was delayed in the usual EDSA traffic and some moderate volume in SLEX. Five and half hours later, thanks to the guidance of my navigation app, we arrived at our destination, though two hours delayed, just in time for lunch. The place had a nice Mexican theme, and I was pleasantly surprised that there were no holiday crowds to spoil the mood. Overall the beach, pool, facilities, and food were not that great but good enough for a little family bonding and rest.

When we checked out at 8 am the resort staff warned us of heavy traffic along the highway going to Bicol. Ok, as expected, its Holy Thursday and the rush to the provinces is at its peak. Sure enough, as we hit the main highway, we slipped into bumper to bumper traffic moving at EDSA-pace during rush hour.

Thinking that there may be some accidents or busy intersections causing the slow down, this should just be an hour or so delay just like my daily drive from Makati to Ortigas Center. An hour went by then two, and we only travelled 3 kilometers! The opposite lane had no vehicles passing, a very bad sign. Motorcycle groups tried weaving their way through the jam, as they usually do, but because of idiotic drivers forcing a counterflow, everything was at a standstill for at least an hour, and we hadn’t even left Pagbilao.

When we finally reached the zigzag road, the traffic eased a bit. The forest scenes of Quezon National Park were refreshing but this would only be a short break from what would be the worst highway traffic jams I have ever lived through, and in my more than 40 years of driving history, I’ve gone through some of the worst.

Traffic aides were too few and were helpless. They were totally unprepared. This happens every year and should have been anticipated by the local governments of Quezon, most especially Pagbilao and Atimonan. The carmageddon in this short stretch became a punishing six-hour crawl! Unbelievable! A chaos due to heavy volume, stupid drivers, and poor traffic management.

We arrived at our Naga city des-

OAV From A4

a small portion of the oval, when in the audio visual instructions, and even when she took her ballot, the election officer clearly told her to shade the entire oval.

Angrily, she said Comelec should have provided reading glasses, as she forgot her spectacles. Oh well. *** Meanwhile, the all-too-important presidential elections in Taiwan are coming up January 25 next year. Whoever wins begins his or her four-year term in May of 2020.

The two major parties (Taiwan has an established two-party system, although minor parties exist, and independents can run as well) are now gearing up for their selection process, called party primaries.

In the administration Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), also labelled the “green” party, the incumbent, Pres.

Tsai Ing-wen is being challenged by her former Premier and former Tainan mayor, William Lai. The latter has maintained the need for their selection system via a primary

tination at around 9pm, 13 hours more than what should only have been a five-hour drive from Pagbilao. Some relatives who took the bus had to endure 23 hours from Manila to Naga City. Totally unacceptable!

The next day, Good Friday, we pushed on to Albay to fetch my parents and go on a scenic drive to the Mayon Skyline and the coastal route via Tabaco—Tiwi on the way back to Naga. Despite landslides from recent typhoons, the roads were in very good condition and the views were breathtaking. I highly

Unbelievable!

recommend this route but travel in daylight.

Easter morning, we left Naga City for the long drive back to Manila. Traffic was generally light except for the usual slowdown in Gumaca, Quezon. At a normal pace we made it back home in 10 hours.

There are many learnings when one travels and this one had many: Local governments must enforce Memorandum Circular 2007-01 prohibiting tricycle and pedicab operations along national highways.

They are a serious traffic hazard endangering the lives of road users.

Local governments must anticipate the heavy volume of traffic during long holidays and plan traffic enforcement operations to manage traffic flow.

Drivers of all types of vehicles, two-wheel, three-wheel, four-wheel or more must always follow traffic regulations and observe road courtesy. But how many of licensed drivers actually know these regulations?

The behavior of half of the drivers in the Pagbilao-Atimonan carmageddon shows that half of these drivers should not have been given licenses in the first place. We see this in the daily traffic jams of Metro Manila. There is something terribly wrong with how the LTO issues drivers’ licenses. There should be a congressional review on how drivers are being educated and being given the privilege to drive a motor vehicle.

Our road networks are strategic national assets that will drive economic growth outward to the provinces. The mobility of people and goods affects the velocity of economic development. Building more and better highways is great, but we need to align the behavior of all road users to maximize utility, convenience, and ensure safety.

The government must rebuild our national railway systems as a viable alternative for transporting food, goods and people. A new railway system will create a new ecosystem of industries and a new artery for sustained progress.

instead of giving in to the incumbent who was elected in 2016.

In the rival Kuomintang (KMT) also known as the “blue” party, there are several wannabes vying to champion the party’s fate, after an astounding upset in the November 2108 mid-term elections where they won a huge majority of the mayoralty and magistrate seats.

Of late, no less than billionaire Terry Gou, the chair and CEO of the giant Foxconn Group, or Hon Hai Electronics, makers of Apple and other electronic products, has announced his desire to be president of Taiwan.

Speculation also swirls around Mayor Han Kuo-yu, who was elected in November of 2018, and upset two decades of DPP rule in the southern port city. Mayor Han has played coy about his ambitions, which our MECO political officer likens to then Mayor Duterte’s disavowals of a presidential run in 2015.

And then again, independent Taipei City Mayor Ko Wen-je, a medical doctor who successfully won re-election for a second term last November 2018, is likewise being watched as a potential “third force” candidate by observers of the political scene.

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Hold departure order issued vs. Acierto, six others

By Rey Requejo A MANILA City court has issued a hold departure order against former police official Eduardo Acierto and six others who have been charged with drug charges over the smuggling of billions worth of shabu.

Upon the request of government prosecutors, the Manila City Regional Trial Court Branch 35 issued the HDO, directing the Bureau of Immigration to prevent the accused from leaving the country.

Judge Ma. Bernardita Santos has set no bail for the arrest of the accused as drug importation charges are non-bailable under the law.

Aside from Acierto, also covered by the HDO are former Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency Deputy Director for Administration Ismael Fajardo; importers Chan Yee Wah alias KC Chan and Zhou Quan alias Zhang Quan; consignees Vedasto Cabral Baraquel Jr. and Maria Lagrimas Catipan of Vecaba Trading; and Emily Luquingan.

Another accused, former Customs Intelligence Officer Jimmy Guban, was already taken into custody of the National Bureau of Investigation on April 17.

BI records showed that Acierto and Fajardo are still in the country. Acierto last left the country in April 2017 while Fajardo in May 2015.

The court also issued earlier a warrant of arrest against all eight accused.

Acierto surfaced recently in a press conference with select media outfits and linked President Rodrigo Duterte’s former adviser Michael Yan in the illegal drug trade in the country.

The indictment of Acierto and company was kept confidential by the DOJ as it tapped NBI agents to silently operate and arrest them during the Holy Week break.

However, the resolution indicting the accused was leaked to an online news outfit before Holy Week, jeopardizing the manhunt operations.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra has ordered an investigation on the leakage to determine who was responsible for it.

GOOD DOGS ALL.

An elderly scavenger man pushes his kariton (cart) surrounded by his ever loyal dogs along Quezon Avenue in Quezon City on Sunday.

Revoli Cortez

Suspected drug leader killed in Bacolod buy-bust P27,000 worth of shabu to the undercover cop during Sunday’s sting operation.

Aside from the big sachet of shabu, police also seized 101 sachets of the prohibited substance with an estimated value of P2.7 million.

On Friday, a suspect was killed while eight others were arrested in various antidrug operations conducted by the police in the cities of Bacolod and Silay in Negros Occidental.

The fatality, Ronillo Morillo, a highvalue target in Silay City, was shot by operatives after he fired at them during a buy-bust in Purok Sampaguita, Barangay E. Lopez.

Maj. Rollie Pondevilla, chief of the Silay City Police Station, said Morillo distributed drugs not only in Silay but also in the neighboring towns. With PNA

By Francisco Tuyay

A

SUSPECTED drug ring leader was killed while his live-in partner was arrested during a buy-bust operation in Bacolod City Sunday morning.

Initial police report identified the slain supposed drug syndicate leader as 44-year-old Leoner Jalandoon, a high value target in the regional police watchlist in the government’s drug war in the Visayas.

The arrested live-in partner of Jalandoon was identified as Janine Cruz, 18, resident of Sitio Sibucao in Bacolod City.

The buy-bust happened at Estrella Subdivision Barangay 6 in Victorias City on Sunday morning A report from the Police Regional Of-

fice -Western Visayas showed Jalandoon in a shootout after the suspect noticed that he was transacting with an undercover policeman.

Col. Romeo Baleros, director of Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office, said operatives employed precautionary measures since Jalandoon was considered “armed and dangerous.”

The slain suspect was supplying shabu to contacts in both Negros Occidental and Panay Island, Baleros added.

The suspect attempted to sell

SUMMER COOLER.

Kids enjoy a refreshing dip in an inflatable pool to beat the summer heat in Parañaque City.

Lino Santos REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES REGIONAL TRIAL COURT NATIONAL CAPITAL JUDICIAL REGION BRANCH 115, PASAY CITY

REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES REGIONAL TRIAL COURT NATIONAL CAPITAL JUDICIAL REGION BRANCH 115, PASAY CITY IN THE MATTER OF PETITION FOR RECOGNITION OF FOREIGN JUDGMENT OF JOYCE PEREZ CASTANARES, Petitioner,

IN THE MATTER OF PETITION FOR RECOGNITION OF FOREIGN JUDGMENT OF JOYCE PEREZ CASTANARES, Petitioner,

-versus-

-versus-

CIVIL CASE NO. R-PSY-19-00415-CV FOR: Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgment

DAIYU IKEDA and PHILIPPINE STATISTICS AUTHORITY, Respondent.

x-----------------------------------------x

ORDER

A verified petition for “Recognition of Foreign Judgment between Joyce Perez Castanares and Daiyu Ikeda” filed by petitioner, through counsel, praying that an Order be issued granting the petition and recognize the Foreign Judgment of Divorce between Joyce Perez Castanares and Daiyu Ikeda, a Japanese National and directing the Philippine Statistics Office (PSA) to annotate the Recognition of Divorce on the National Indices of Marriages or in the Certificate of Marriage between the parties if the same was registered in the PSA. In her petition, petitioner alleges that she is a Filipino and with resident address at #71 St. Joseph, Barangay 201, Pasay City; that on January 22, 2013, she was married to Daiyu Ikeda in Ota Ku, Japan; that their union was not blessed with any children; that on June 14, 2016, Ikeda obtained a decree of divorce which was approved and certified by the City Government of Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan; that the report of divorce Ikeda obtained effectively rendered their marriage terminated and capacitating Ikeda to remarry; thus, petitioner prays for that, the foreign divorce validly obtained by Daiyu Ikeda be judicially recognized in the Philippines, petitioner can remarry under Article 26, 2nd paragraph of the Family Code.

Finding the petition sufficient in form and substance, notice is hereby given that the hearing of the petition is on May 16, 2019 at 2 p.m. All parties interested may appear and show cause why the said petition should not be granted. Let the copy of this Order be published in a newspaper of general circulation once a week for three consecutive weeks at the expense of the petitioner.

Likewise, let copy of this Order be furnished the Office of the Solicitor General, the trial prosecutor of this court, and the Civil Registrar, National Statistics Office.

SO ORDERED. Pasay City, Metro Manila, March 27, 2019.

(Sgd.) FRANCISCO G. MENDIOLA (MStandard - Apr. 15, 22 & 29, 2019) Presiding Judge

CIVIL CASE NO. R-PSY-19-00415-CV FOR: Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgment

DAIYU IKEDA and PHILIPPINE STATISTICS AUTHORITY, Respondent.

Angara wants aggressive immunization campaign x-----------------------------------------x

ORDER

REELECTIONIST Sen. Sonny Angara has called for a more aggressive immunization campaign to ensure that life-saving vaccines reach as many Filipino children as possible.

“We need to be more aggressive in ensuring that every Filipino child receives vaccines to protect them against preventable illnesses. We have to make sure that our immunization program reaches even the hardest to reach child,” Angara said.

A verified petition for “Recognition of Foreign Judgment between Joyce Perez Castanares and Daiyu Ikeda” filed by petitioner, through counsel, praying that an Order be issued granting the petition and recognize the Foreign Judgment of Divorce between Joyce Perez Castanares and Daiyu Ikeda, a Japanese National and directing the Philippine Statistics Office (PSA) to annotate the Recognition of Divorce on the National Indices of Marriages or in the Certificate of Marriage between the parties if the same was registered in the PSA. In her petition, petitioner alleges that she is a Filipino and with resident address at #71 St. Joseph, Barangay 201, Pasay City; that on January 22, 2013, she was married to Daiyu Ikeda in Ota Ku, Japan; that their union was not blessed with any children; that on June 14, 2016, Ikeda obtained a decree of divorce which was approved and certified by the City Government of Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan; that the report of divorce Ikeda obtained effectively rendered their marriage terminated and capacitating Ikeda to remarry; thus, petitioner prays for that, the foreign divorce validly obtained by Daiyu Ikeda be judicially recognized in the Philippines, petitioner can remarry under Article 26, 2nd paragraph of the Family Code.

Finding the petition sufficient in form and substance, notice is hereby given that the hearing of the petition is on May 16, 2019 at 2 p.m. All parties interested may appear and show cause why the said petition should not be granted. Let the copy of this Order be published in a newspaper of general circulation once a week for three consecutive weeks at the expense of the petitioner.

Likewise, let copy of this Order be furnished the Office of the Solicitor General, the trial prosecutor of this court, and the Civil Registrar, National Statistics Office.

The senator issued the statement after the United Nations Children’s Fund reported that at least 2.9 million children in the Philippines remained unvaccinated, making them vulnerable to potentially deadly infections like measles, rubella and polio.

According to UNICEF, measles immunization coverage in the country has declined to 73 percent in 2017 from 88 percent in 2013. Last year, the immunization coverage further went down to less than 70 perNOTICE OF DISSOLUTION cent, or way below the 95 percent required for FEI FAN FOOD PHILIPPINES (FFFFPC) CORP. population immunity.

Notice is hereby given that the Amended Articles of Fei Fan Food Philippines The UN agency cited public hesitancy, vaccine (FFFFPC) CORP. with the TIN of 008-132-974-000, shortening the term of its existence and thereby dissolving the said corporation as of July 16,2018 a Balance stock-outs, lack of properly trained health workSheet showing that no creditors thereof will be affected by such dissolution, have been ers and accessibility of hard-to-reach areas as the filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All persons having claims against the corporation are required to present the same at its principal office at #2 South AA main reasons why many Filipino children have st. Brgy. Paligsahan Quezon City for immediate settlement. failed to get immunization.

This announcement will serve as a notice to all parties concerned of the legal Angara said the government needs to step up dissolution of the said corporation. its information campaign on the benefits of vacciSO ORDERED. Quezon City. Philippines. April 22, 2019 nation program to include the use of door-to-door Pasay City, Metro Manila, March 27, 2019. approach in far-flung areas to provide parents FAYE MARIE ARELLANO - MARTINEZ FRANCISCO G. MENDIOLA Corporate Secretary with personalized(Sgd.) immunization information.

(MStandard - Apr. 15, 22 & 29, 2019) Presiding Judge Macon Ramos-Araneta (MS-APR. 29, MAY 6 & 14, 2019)

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

Gatchalian: Be transparent on China loans

By Macon Ramos-Araneta SEN. Sherwin Gatchalian, chair of the Senate economic committee, admonished the Department of Finance to be transparent on the Duterte administration’s loan agreements with China to allay fears the country might fall into a “debt trap.”

Malacañang earlier announced that more than $12 billion worth of new investments and trade deals were sealed during President Rodrigo Duterte’s visit to China last week.

The investments China committed during the Belt and Road Forum cover infrastructure, energy, petrochemical and industrial park projects, which are expected to create more than 21,000 jobs for Filipinos.

“We are happy with this $12-billion because this is an additional investment but they should also be transparent and upload in the website of the DOF the transactions and the investments that will enter our country,” he said.

“Are these loans? Grants? (We need to know) because there are senstive matters like oil exploration and the West Philippine Sea,” Gatchalian added.

Gatchalian said he also talked to members of the government economic team on the need to institute measures to ensure Filipino workers will not be at a disadvantage with the influx of Chinese workers amid Beijing-funded projects.

Reelectionist Senator Nancy Binay, for her part, stressed that Filipino construction workers must be prioritized for jobs under the administration’s Build, Build, Build projects..

“We hope that before they sign any contract, it should be made clear that our Filipino construction workers should be 100 percent prioritized,” Binay said.

In the supplemental guidelines for the issuance of Special Working Permits to those applying for jobs in the Philippines, foreigners are not allowed to work as construction workers, cashiers, waiters, janitors, household workers, carpenters, garbage collectors, security guards, and warehouse caretakers, among others.

“The agreement to accommodate Chinese construction workers in the Philippines is unfair and disadvantageous to local workers,” Binay added.

CYA

Sports

Daarol, Echon eye top finish in PPS Liloy JANE Echon and Russel Daarol set out as the top favorites but both face tough tests in the premier side of the PPSPEPP Liloy national age-group tennis circuit, which got going yesterday (Sunday) at the Liloy Tennis Club in Zamboanga del Norte.

Echon seeks to hurdle her first two matches with ease to build some kind of momentum in an expected clash with Faith Regencia in the 18-U division with the latter bracing for a final clash with Angel Repaja in the 16-U category of the Group 2 tournament presented by Dunlop.

Daarol, on the other hand, shoots for a “double” in the boys’ side of the weeklong event serving as the second of a series of tournaments making up the Mindanao swing of a busy summer circuit, the long-running talent-search put up by Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala headed by president/CEO Bobby Castro.

But like Echon, Daarol will be hardpressed to come out on top given the depth of the competing field with RJ Cagatan, Penshoppe Erquita and Aidree Pan out to stop in 16- and 18-U plays of the tournament sanctioned by the Unified Tennis Philippines made up of Palawan Pawnshop-Palawan Express Pera Padala, Cebuana Lhuillier, Wilson, Toby’s, Dunlop, Slazenger and B-Meg. Keen competition is also seen in the lower age-group brackets with Pete Bandala and Rose Mesiona headlining the 10-U division, Eri Domiguez and Mesiona along with Bandala and Andrei Tan in the 12-U group; and Jalia Elumba and Yvonne Cuevas along with Cagatan, Erquita, Marc Fernandez and Andrei Omos in the 14-U sections.

Meanwhile, Sindangan, also in Zambo del Norte, will host the next stop on May 2-5 with action shifting to ZDN capital Dipolog the following week before the circuit winds up in Oroquieta, Misamis Occidental on May 8-11.

Listup for all tournaments is ongoing. For details, call PPS-PEPP Sports Program Development director Bobby Mangunay at 0915-4046464.

HK dominates Subic Bay triathlon

By Lito Cinco IT WAS a complete domination.

There is no other way to describe the overpowering performance by Hong Kong in the spring and super sprint races at the Subic Bay Freeport as HK entries swept the top three places in both the boys’ and girls’ sides in the junior elite sprint distance and took the gold in both divisions in the super sprint race.

Local entries, however, managed to steal some of the day’s glory in the twoday Subic Bay International Triathlon as Cebuano Matthew Hermosa shocked the opposition with his second-place finish in the super sprint even as another HK entry took the bronze medal, while Lady Samantha Corpuz from La Union sprang her own surprise with her thirdplace podium finish in the distaff side behind two HK entries.

“Hong Kong showed us how good its triathlon developmental program is.

HK has been producing very good junior triathletes, who can even match up against the mighty Japanese at the Asian level. We should be able to emulate this and adopt a similar program for our young triathletes,” said Triathlon Association of the Philippines President Tom Carrasco Jr. Jason Ng Tai Long Hardcastle, Nicholas Tang Cheung Sing and Philip Chenaux Repond completed a sweep of the top three places in the sprint junior elite, clocking 56.46, 57.11, and 58.34, respectively, with the tandem of Hardcastle and Sing leaving the others behind right from the start of the 750m swim leg that was followed by a 20K bike and a 5K run legs.

“I was not really pressured at all. I think I could have even done a sub 16 in the run leg if I pushed myself, but I was confident because I know I am in good form,” said Hardcastle after the race sanctioned by both the International Triathlon Union and the Asian Triathlon Confederation and supported

by SBMA, the POC, and the PSC.

A7

MONDAY, APRIL 29, 2019 sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

Petron, F2 start PSL title duel

P

ETRON and F2 Logistics are set to write another chapter in their storied rivalry when they clash in the Philippine Superliga Grand Prix best-of-three finals showdown starting tomorrow (Tuesday) at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan.

But expect emotions to Cocolife, Hotel Sogo fly as Lindsay Stalzer is and Data Project.

Games Tuesday (Filoil Flying V Centre) tipped to go all out in a bid The comely Stalzer is 4:15 p.m.—Cignal vs PLDT to spoil the championship arguably one of the best 7:00 p.m.—Petron vs F2 Logistics parade of her former team foreign players ever to in this prestigious womplay in the country. en’s club league bankShe steered Foton to a rolled by Asics, Mueller, Mikasa, Senoh, pair of titles before joining fellow AmeriTeam Rebel Sports, Bizooku, UCPB Gen, can Hillary Hurley in leading Petron to the

finals of the 2017 Grand Prix. Although they came up short against the Cargo Movers, Stalzer and the Blaze Spikers stormed back the following season to finally clinch the crown.

Stalzer was left unsigned in the off-season as the Blaze Spikers opted to tap their former imports Katherine Bell and Stephanie Niemer this year, prompting her to join the Cargo Movers as replacement to American-Italian Becky Perry.

And now, she’s sharing the same court with the Blaze Spikers again. Only this time, they’re on the opposing ends of the court.

“Actually, I was pretty confident that we could make it this far. But obviously,

the hardest challenge is still ahead of us.

Playing against Petron in the finals would be the biggest challenge for this team,” said Stalzer, adding that she’s extra motivated to assert her mastery against the same team whom she led to the title.

“Of course, there’s an extra motivation because it’s against my former team, because they haven’t been beaten yet this season. Let’s see. It’s going to be a very interesting series.”

With Stalzer joining fellow former Most Valuable Player awardee Maria Jose Perez of Venezuela, the Cargo Movers had a rollercoaster campaign in the classification, the quarterfinals and the semifinals.

UST1 wins women’s BVR crown

Tournament committee members for the Classic Cup met one last time recently to make sure all preparations are in place for the event on Monday at Forest Hills. In photo (from left) are Luigi Avancena, Jun Dalandan, Jun Arceo, Eric Tensuan, Raffy Garcia, Jing Paraiso, Lito Tanjuatco and Raymond Bunquin.

Ateneo guns for Classic Cup ‘4-peat’ ATENEO goes for a record “four-peat” as it clashes with rival La Salle in the annual Classic Cup golf tournament slated on Monday at the Forest Hills Golf Club in Antipolo City.

The Eagles have won the last three stages, including a close battle—just 10 points separated them from the Archers— last year at the Orchard.

The road to victory this year, though, would be tough for either school as Forest Hills’ Nicklaus and Palmer courses are difficult and demanding even to the best

pro and amateur golfers.

“I believe there will be excitement as no one holds an advantage at Forest Hills,” said club general manager Raymond Bunquin, who will be one of the spearheads for La Salle.

Ateneo would surely rely on its top guns especially middle- to senior-level age groups, where it got the most points just like in 2018.

“Hopefully, we can also tap contenders among our younger golfers. What we want is to create a balanced team,” said Lovell

Gopez, head of the Ateneo Golf Foundation.

To spice up the affair, there will be hole-in-one prizes courtesy of GAC (car), Emirates (airline ticket), Casino Filipino (betting chips), Miura (golf set) and Silicon Computers (GPS Tracker).

For further inquiries, contact Mary Ann Suetos of AGF at 09273907287 or Cathy Yuson of La Salle Golf at 6370200/ 09189200827 or visit the LSGC website (www.lasallegolf.org) and Facebook page (www.facebook.com/LaSalleGolfClubPhilippines).

Del Rosario coasts to 14-shot romp PAULINE del Rosario turned in her worst round in three days – a 71 that still netted the former Ladies Philippine Golf Tour Order of Merit champion a whopping 14-stroke victory over Daniella Uy in the ICTSI Royal Northwoods Ladies Classic in San Rafael, Bulacan last Friday.

Though she fell short in matching Princess Superal’s record 16-shot victory at Tagaytay Highlands last year, the lopsided triumph was enough to herald Del Rosario’s return to the top of the LPGT ladder after a string of mediocre finishes following a swing change in her buildup for the LPGA Tour Q-School this August.

Virtually securing her first victory since racking up four wins in a dominant rookie season in 2017 with 66-67 after 36 holes at the Royal Northwoods Golf Club, Inc., Del Rosario just went through the motions in the last 18 holes, gunning down three birdies against two bogeys as she checked on her swing, short game and putting more than checking on her rivals.

She finished with a 12-under 204 and pocketed the top purse of P350,000 out of the total prize pot of P1.5 million in the 54-hole championship, which served as the eighth leg of a record 13-stage circuit

Pauline del Rosario marks her return to form with a runaway triumph at Royal Northwoods

put up by ICTSI. “I just made sure there would be no repeat of a Thai victory this time,” said Del Rosario, referring to Thanuttra Boonraksasat’s come-from-behind win over Superal in the sixth leg at Manila South-

woods last month where she wound up joint 10th.

The Filipina ace also groped for form and settled for a share of seventh at the Manila Golf Ladies Masters two weeks ago but finally found her range, rhythm and touch with brilliant six-under and five-under cards in the first two rounds at Northwoods.

She said needs to toughen up for the Tagaytay Midlands Challenge next month before the former Philippine Ladies Amateur Open championship heads back to the US to resume her training for the LPGA elims under swing coach Patrick Leahy.

Uy, meanwhile, sustained a bogey-free 70 Thursday with three birdies in the first seven holes but the former Junior World titlist wavered at the finish, bogeying four of the last 10 to finish with a 73 although she still claimed runner-up honors with a 218 worth P185,000 in the event organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc. Boonraksasat, on the other hand, failed to keep the momentum of her three-birdie backside binge in the second round for a 69 as she sputtered with three bogeys and a double-bogey in a birdie-less 77. She ended up third at 219.

350 jins vie in ASEAN taekwondo tourney THREE HUNDRED and 50 athletes Poomsae starting on May 4. at 12 noon. Philippine Sports Commisfrom eight countries will see action in the Kris Wiluan, president of the ASEAN sion chairman William Ramirez has 14th ASEAN Taekwondo Champion- Taekwondo Federation, will be the spe- also been invited grace the opening rites ships on May 4-5 at the SM Mall of Asia cial guest during the opening ceremony along with other top PSC, Philippine Music Hall in Pasay City.

Olympic Committee and Organized by the PhilMVP Sports Foundation ippine Taekwondo Assoofficials. ciation, the prestigious inThe two-day event is ternational event will see sanctioned by the ASEcampaigners from BruAN Taekwondo Fednei, Cambodia, Malaysia, eration and supported by Myanmar, Singapore, MVPSF, Smart, PSC, Timor-Leste, Vietnam POC, Meralco, PLDT, and host Philippines vie SM Mall of Asia and in Kyurugi (free sparring) Milo. and Poomsae (forms).

The Filipinos, who Competition will be have always managed to conducted among male perform well in internaand female Senior, Junior tional taekwondo chamand Cadet fighters in free pionships, hope to put up sparring and individual, Mary Angeline Alcantara (right) is one of the Philippines’ top entries in the an impressive showing pair and team events in junior women’s division. before their compatriots.

DUMAGUETE CITY—University of Santo Tomas 1’s Babylove Barbon and Gen Eslapor rallied from a set down to outlast Perlas’ Bea Tan and Dij Rodriguez, 17-21, 21-14, 15-12, and claim the women’s crown in the BVR On Tour: Dumaguete Open Saturday night at the Rizal Boulevard sand court here.

After yielding three match points, high-flying Barbon delivered the championship-clinching drop shot to complete a perfect, 5-0, campaign with Eslapor in front of a jam-packed crowd.

In an all-Air Force men’s final, Ranran Abdilla and Jessie Lopez won their third straight title this year following a 21-13, 21-14 conquest of Mike Abria and Jade Becaldo.

It was Barbon’s first BVR on Tour leg title since joining forces with Sisi Rondina in ruling the Manila Open last August. Barbon, a native of Quezon, Bukidnon, later won her first-ever UAAP championship with Rondina the following month.

The BVR on Tour resumes on Tuesday with the fourth leg to be held at the Capitol Beachfront in Lingayen, Pangasinan as paft of the annual Pistay Dayat celebration.

In the semifinals, Barbon and Eslapor carved out a 21-16, 21-13 victory over University of Negros Occidental-Recoletos alums Erjane Magdato and Alexa Polidario, to arrange a title duel with Tan and Rodriguez, who ended Smash Bacolod’s Bianca Lizares and Jennifer Cosas’ four-match winning run with a 21-14, 21-13 win in the other pairing.

Dumaguete assistant city administrator Dinno Depositario, who represented Mayor Felipe Antonio Remollo, handed out the trophies to the winners in the beach volleyball circuit’s second visit to the Negros Oriental capital.

Aussie,...

From A8

Manlangit, Pimco Pimentel, Dickson Yu; Male 40-44, Julius Hibrada, Roldan Calda and Hendry Fritz Co; and Male 45-49, Romulo Rosell, Alan Choachuy.

Sunrise Events General Manager Princess Galura thanked the City of Naga as well as the Province of Cebu for hosting the Olympic and the Sprint triathlon events.

She said another big winner is the local triathlon community which now has another distance to compete in. The 5150 and Sprint triathlons are perfect for those trying the sport for the first time and those who have been absent from the sport awhile and who wish to compete again. They are also for graduates of the Alaska IRONKIDS races who want to continue to compete in the sport.

“The triathlon community is like a family. So now we are trying to grow that family. There are many who want to join our events but may feel that they cannot handle the 70.3 distance,” said Galura.

The Sunrise Events GM said the two distances will prepare aspiring triathletes for the longer, more daunting distances.

“As organizers we want them to be ready. We don’t want them to join if they are not fully prepared. If they join distances they cannot handle they may be a danger to others as well as themselves,” she said.

Sun Life Financial Philippines said they partnered with Sunrise Events and the city to promote a healthy lifestyle through fun activities as well as help people achieve lifetime financial security. Sun Life Financial in the Philippines offers a wide range of services that include Life Insurance, Accidental Insurance, Pension Plans, Education Plans and Mutual Funds.

Riera U. Mallari, Editor; Reuel Vidal, Assistant Editor sports@manilastandard.net; sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

A8

MONDAY, APRIL 29, 2019

Nuggets edge Spurs, advance to 2nd round; Raptors win LOS ANGELES—Nikola Jokic had a triple-double and Jamal Murray tallied 23 points as the Denver Nuggets punched their ticket to the second round of the NBA playoffs with a 90-86 game seven win over San Antonio.

Serbian Jokic finished with 21 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists while Murray, of Canada, floated in several clutch baskets with the game on the line as the host Nuggets won their first game seven in over four decades.

The last time the Nuggets were victories in a deciding game was May 1978 when they beat the Milwaukee Bucks in the playoff quarter-finals.

Murray said everybody played a role in helping them get the series victory on Saturday.

“We are hooping and winning games,” said Murray. “We haven’t gone this far in a while.

“We were able to close it out and it was an amazing effort from the team all around.”

The second-seeded Nuggets advance to play the fourth-seeded Portland Trail Blazers in the second round. Game one is Monday in Denver.

The Nuggets led wire-to-wire Saturday but had to sweat it out at the end as the Spurs fought back to make it close.

San Antonio were at times their own worst enemies. In the closing seconds of game seven, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich walked part way onto the court and yelled at his players to foul but they ignored him.

Popovich didn’t get the foul and the Nuggets were able to run the clock down and hold on for the series clincher.

“He didn’t hear anybody cause he didn’t foul,” said Popovich of LeMarcus Aldridge, who was the closest of the five players to the ball. “I think both teams sent basketball back in the first half. I was surprised people stayed.”

This is the first time a Popovich-coached team has lost consecutive seasons in the first round.

Rudy Gay had 21 points, DeMar DeRozan and Bryn Forbes scored 19 each and LaMarcus Aldridge had 16 points and 11 rebounds for seventh-seeded Spurs.

Forbes hit a three-pointer before DeRozan made one of two free throws with 70 seconds left to make it 88-84.

Forbes dunked after a Denver miss to make it a two-point game with 52 seconds left.

Murray, of Toronto, drained a floating 14-footer make it a four-point lead, and Torrey Craig blocked DeRozan’s drive to the basket with 28 seconds left.

“I am extremely happy and proud of my guys,” said Nuggets coach Michael Malone. “This was a really hard-fought series. If we played them 20 times it would be 10-10. I love our grit and toughness tonight. We never lost our composure.”

Leonard powers Raptors In a second round East series opener, Kawhi Leonard scored a career playoff best with 45 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as the Toronto Raptors defeated the Philadelphia 76ers 108-95.

Pascal Siakam added 29 points and seven rebounds for the Raptors and Kyle Lowry added nine points and eight assists. JJ Redick had 17 points for the 76ers.

Joel Embiid chipped in with 16 points and eight rebounds, while Tobias Harris had 14 points and 15 rebounds. Ben Simmons also had 14 points with nine rebounds, James Ennis had 11 points and Jimmy Butler had 10.

The Raptors led by as many as 19 points and took an 11-point lead into the fourth quarter.

Leonard’s 14-footer had the Raptors leading by 18 with 7:06 remaining. The lead reached 20 on Leonard’s jumper with 4:17 to play. AFP

Sports

Nikola Jokic (left) of the Denver Nuggets is guarded by Lamarcus Aldridge of the San Antonio Spurs in the fourth quarter during Game 7 of the first round of the 2019 NBA Western Conference Playoffs at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. AFP

PH harvests 10 golds in Arafura Games’ opener D

ARWIN, Australia—Lora Micah Amogius and John Lloyd Cabalo led the charge of Filipino bets as they became double gold winners late Saturday night, highlighting the Philippines’ 10-gold medal haul in Day 1 of the 2019 Arafura Games here.

Amogius captured gold medals in the 13-14 100m backstroke and the 200m individual medley in swimming, while Cabalo topped the men’s 400m run and the men’s 4x100m relay in athletics to emerge as the first two double gold medalists in the Philippine campaign supported by the Philippine Sports Commission and Standard Insurance.

The 13-year-old Amogius clocked one minute, 10.53 seconds in the 100m backstroke, about two seconds ahead of second placer Taila Jane Wilkinson of Western Australia (1:12.19).

The Davao City lass also ruled 200m IM with a time of 2:33.63, three seconds adrift of Wilkinson in the event held at the

Parap Swimming Pool.

Over at the Marrara Sporting Complex, the 18-year-old Cabalo also won in dominating fashion in the 400m run, crossing the finish line at 50.73 seconds, two seconds ahead of Blair Andrews of Northern Territory (52.08) and Joseph Salmon of Northern Territory (52.34).

The National University standout teamed up with Joviane Calixto, Jason Buenacosa, and Romel Bautista to win the 4x100m relay with a time of 43.49 seconds, beating entries from Northern Territory and Malaysia.

The Philippines won six more golds to go along with 12 silvers, and six bronze medals in an eventful first day for the

country in the multisports competition, which is making a return after an eightyear hiatus.

Also winning the gold Saturday were Ivo Nikolai Enot (13-14 men’s 100m backstroke) in swimming, and Abigail Manzano (women’s 3,000m steeplechase), Nicko Caparoso (men’s 3,000m steeplechase), Bruce Fernia (men’s javelin throw), Jessel Lumapas (women’s 400m run), and Mark Anthony Casena (men’s triple jump) in athletics.

Amogius, who also captured the silver in the 200m freestyle medley Saturday, shattered her personal marks in winning the two golds.

“I’m really happy and I broke all my times. I’m very, very happy and honored to swim for the Philippines because it’s my country and I’m proud to be a Filipino,” said Amogius, a Batang Pinoy standout who also won one gold and one silver last year in the BIMP-EAGA Friendship Games. AFP

Nadal positive even after loss

TCC CHAMP. Korean Kim Joo Hyung (right) receives the huge The Country Club Invitational trophy and the facsimile of a check worth P1.5 million from TCC president Jose Eduardo Alarilla after ruling the TCC Invitational recently, becoming the youngest winner at 16 of the annual event also known as the Don Pocholo Razon Memorial Cup.

BARCELONA—Rafael Nadal shrugged off any suggestion of a French Open crisis of confidence, insisting he had enjoyed a “positive week” in Barcelona despite a dispiriting semi-final exit at a tournament he has won 11 times.

The Spanish great slumped to a 6-4, 6-4 loss to Dominic Thiem on Saturday, just a week after he had been dethroned as Monte Carlo Masters champion by Fabio Fognini, also at the semi-final stage.

Saturday’s win was Thiem’s fourth on clay over Nadal who had never previously lost in the semis at Barcelona.

With just four weeks to go until the start of Roland Garros, where he is the defending champion and an 11-time winner, 32-year-old Nadal says he has finally come to life on his favourite surface.

“It’s been a very positive week,” the 17-time Grand Slam winner said. “I came from a lot of low moments in Monte Carlo.”

“Today was the first day I felt really confident on the clay, it’s my best match on the surface this year. My confidence is back thanks to this week.

“I really believe that I’ve made improvements. This is a good base to try and achieve my goals for the next couple of weeks.”

Austrian third seed Thiem, who was defeated by Nadal in the 2018 French Open final, saved three break points in the final game on Saturday to deliver his upset win.

However, he did not want to call the success his best ever on the dirt. AFP

Ilonggo runner tries to smash 2 Palaro marks

By Peter Atencio DAVAO CITY—An Ilonggo runner may attempt to surpass up to two national junior records when action starts in the 2019 Palarong Pambansa here.

Eighteen-year-old Vince Buhayan will try to do this when the athletics’ meet fires off with 16 gold medals at stake today at the University of the Philippines Sports Complex in Davao City.

The 5’11” Buhayan is stepping out of the shadows of former rival Veruel Verdadero, whose effort was not recognized last year as a Philippine record when he clocked 10.55 seconds in the secondary boys’ 100-meter dash for technical reasons.

Buhayan, who is seeing action for Western Visayas, will make his bid in the afternoon finals if he makes it past the morning heats.

Verdadero, who represented Southern Tagalog region in 2018, won’t be around to challenge Buhayan since he is now a college student at the National University in Manila and has gone on to break two national marks in the relays during the 2018 ASEAN School Games.

Buhayan, who settled for the silver behind Verdadero with his 10.88 seconds, could surpass the seven-yearold mark of Daniel Noval, who did it in the Thai Open in 10.74 seconds.

So far, Buhayan has managed to clock 10.6 seconds in the regional eliminations and is expected to find opposition from Al Ryan Labita of the National Capital Region.

Labita may have improved after joining the ASEAN School Games last year in Kuala Lumpur after he and members of the national junior team, which included Verdadero, reset the 400-meter relays mark with a time of 3:18.45.

And the century dash won’t be the only focus of Buhayan’s efforts during the weeklong meet as he will also try to make his marks in the 200-meter dash, the 400-meters and, maybe, even the 800-m run.

Buhayan may also make his presence felt in the relays as well, possibly with a record-breaking effort with his teammates.

Aussie, Kiwi fastest in Sun Life triathlon

By Reuel Vidal NAGA CITY, Cebu—Sam Betten of Australia and Amelia Watkinson of New Zealand led from start to finish to rule the Sun Life 5150 Triathlon Cebu while Gian Taylor and Denver Dayonot won their categories in the Go For Gold (GFG) Sunrise Sprint held yesterday April 28, 2019 at the Boardwalk here in this city.

Even bigger winners are this City of Naga as well as the entire province of Cebu.

Mayor Kristine Chiong said the city’s tourism industry will benefit from being showcased before a global audience as

well as the income generated by the visitors who participated in the event.

Additionally, the event galvanized the city’s populace in putting its best foot forward as host of the event. Holding the race brought positivity and unity to the community which is recovering from a tragic landslide just last year according to the mayor.

Cebu Province reinforced its image as an island tourism destination with the holding of another world class event within its boundaries.

Betten submitted a time of 1:59.32 to rule the men’s category of the race. Alex Polizzi (2:03.55) came in second; Mitch Robbins (2:05.34) took third; while Dan

Brown (2:27.21) was fourth. All four men are from Australia.

Watkinson finished with a time of 2:06.44 to rule the women’s category easily. Anna Eberhardt of Hungary (2:14.51) took second; while Manami Iijima of Guam (2:16:16) was third.

In the Go For Gold (GFG) Sunrise Sprint Taylor won the 12-17 males category. Renzo Mar Pahaganas was second while Jericho Auguis was third.

Other winners were: Male 18-24, Dayonot with King Charles Espanol at second; Male 25-29, Dandy Maturan; Male 30-34, Dennis Rey Rentillosa, Sherwin Dichos; Male 35-39, Jayran Turn to A7

Sam Betten

Business

IN BRIEF

Subic power plant faces further delay

REDONDO Peninsula Energy Inc. may put on hold the development of a 660-megawatt coal-fired power until 2020 due to construction issues, an official said over the weekend.

RP Energy is a joint venture among Meralco PowerGen Corp., Therma Power Inc. of the Aboitiz Group and Taiwan Cogeneration International Corp.

“The management of RP Energy have engaged a consultant and the consultant’s recommendation is to stabilize the slope first. Issues like this with geological conditions is very tricky. In fact, one of the recommendations I believe, is to let it rest for one rainy season and that’s rainy season up to 2020,” said Aboitiz Power chief operating officer Manny Rubio said.

“There’s a hill behind the site, that’s the one that’s moving, not the site itself.

We just want to make sure we protect ourselves from that geological condition once we make a decision on putting up the plant,” he said.

Once the solution is approved by the board, construction can be started on stabilizing the slope. Alena Mae S. Flores

Ayala plans big industrial park for Chinese locators

By Jenniffer B. Austria

M

AJOR property developer Ayala Land Inc.plans to build a 200-hectare industrial park for Chinese investors to take advantage of the influx of investments from the second-biggest economy in the world.

PH eyes e-vehicle favors from Korea

THE Philippines will push for concessions on electric vehicles (e-vehicles) during meetings on the proposed Philippine-South Korea Free Trade Agreement.

Trade Undersecretary Ceferino Rodolfo said the Philippines wanted a more forward looking agenda for the FTA or beyond the concessions asked for Philippine agricultural products.

“We told the other camp that we that can help them develop the market here and build the needed infrastructure if they would be able to assemble EV here,” he said.

The Philippines is interested in helping Korea build a battery production hub in the Philippines, where local companies can supply nickel for the electric batteries and copper for cars and vehicles.

Rodolfo noted that manufacturing electric motors were easier than manufacturing internal combustion engines.

Unlike ICE, electric motors need only four parts to build while a motor vehicle requires over a thousand parts.

Othel V. Campos

Ayala Land president and chief executive Bernardo Vincent Dy said the company was in the process of acquiring a large track of land in Central Luzon to serve as the country’s first PhilippineSino industrial park.

Dy said Ayala Land was set to form a joint partnership with a Chinese investor for the planned industrial park. The property company plans to launch the industrial park next year.

“We are still in the process of securing the site for this project,” Dy said.

He says the industrial park aims to attract Chinese companies engaged in light industries and manufacturing.

Ayala Land earlier teamed up with a Chinese company for a tile manufacturing facility within the company’s Alviera mixed-use estate development in Porac, Pampanga. The tile manufacturing plant will cater to the demand of the local and export markets.

The Ayala Group continues to engage China on the multiple front, recognizing the nation’s growing influence over the past decade in reshaping global business and trade.

The conglomerate also noted China’s influence in the Philippines was growing as the Durterte administration became friendlier with Beijing.

“This is evidenced through the influx of Chinese tourists in the past two years, increased presence of Chinese business and inflow of Chinese buyers and its subsequent impact on the real estate

market,” parent Ayala Corp. said earlier.

President Duterte’s recent state visit to China netted the Philippines $12 billion (P633 billion) worth of investments.

Ayala Corp. said it had increased its investments with Chinese investors as a result.

Aside from planned Philippine-Sino industrial park, the Ayala Group through several subsidiaries have forged several joint venture partnerships with Chinese investors.

The group’s AC Motors has started to work together with Chinese automobile manufacturers, such as Volkswagen China and Maxus.

In the telecommunications sector, Globe Telecoms Inc. deepened its partnership with Huawei and the two are exploring piloting 5G technology in the Philippines.

Ayala Corp. and its subsidiaries, meanwhile, are launching a new venture capital fund with at least $150 million to invest globally in new technologies that

DoE warns power firms amid outages

THE Department of Energy warned power generators it will not tolerate activities that amount to anti-competitive behaviour or non-compliance with the reportorial requirements during outages.

“Considering the strict mandate to ensure reliability, quality and security of supply of electric power under EPIRA (Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001), DoE shall not tolerate activities which amount to anti-competitive behavior or non-compliance with said law and its issuances,” the agency said in a directive to power generators.

The DoE issued the order in the wake of the yellow and red alerts and the power outages experienced by power consumers this month.

The directive ordered power generators to ensure regular operation of their respective power generating facilities.

“In case of unexpected shutdown or derating of the generating facility... power generator shall within 24 hours from actual outage submit a report to the DOE,” it said. Alena Mae S. Flores

INLIFE TOP AGENTS FETED. Hundreds of Insular Life agents and agency leaders nationwide gather at The Fort for their annual awards night held at the Shangri-la, Taguig City. InLife executive chairman Nina Aguas, president and chief operating officer Mona Lisa de la Cruz and senior executive vice president Raoul Antonio Littaua (fifth, seventh and second from left, respectively) join the 2018 top awardees during the Awards Program. The top agents were feted by InLife in a space-themed celebration called “Ad Astra per Aspera” (to the stars through hardship) in recognition of the group’s achievements in the past year.

Private economists expect inflation to slow down in 2019 and next year

By Julito G. Rada PRIVATE sector economists see inflation further slowing down this year and in 2020 on the back of a more stable food supply and lower global crude oil prices, according to the results of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas survey conducted in March 2019 and released over the weekend.

Relative to the December 2018 survey results, the mean inflation forecast for 2019 decreased to 3.3 percent from 4.1 percent, while the mean inflation forecast for 2020 fell to 3.4 percent from 3.8 percent.

Meanwhile, the mean inflation forecast for 2021 stood at 3.4 percent.

“Analysts expect inflation in 2019 and 2020 to settle within the target range, with downward pressures seen to dominate the risks to the inflation outlook,” Bangko Sentral said.

“Possible downside risks to inflation include the implementation of the rice tariffication law, which is expected to improve domestic rice supply and stabilize prices, and lower global crude oil prices,” the regulator said.

Key upside risks to inflation, meanwhile, are seen to come from adverse weather conditions such as El Nino, volatile global oil prices and foreign exchange market, possible policy rate cut by the central bank, higher domestic demand due to the upcoming midterm elections and school enrollment, and higher electricity rates.

Based on the probability distribution of the forecasts provided by 21 out of 26 respondents, there is an 81-percent probability that the average inflation for 2019 will settle between the 2-percent to 4-percent target range, while there is a 16.1-percent chance that inflation will rise beyond 4 percent.

Ray S. Eñano, Editor Roderick T. dela Cruz, Assistant Editor business@manilastandard.net extrastory2000@gmail.com MONDAY, APRIL 29, 2019

B1

Dennis Uy, Chinatel sign investment deal worth $5.4b

By Darwin G. Amojelar UDENNA Corp. and Chelsea Logistics Holdings Corp. of Davao-based businessman Dennis Uy signed a $5.4-billion investment agreement with China Telecommunications Corp. to develop and operate as the country’s third major telecommunications player.

The signing of the investment agreement reiterated the group’s commitment to take up the challenge of providing better telecommunications services in the country.

Udenna, Chelsea, and Chinatel earlier committed to invest P279 billion ($5.4 billion) in Mindanao Islamic Telephone Co. Inc., which on November 7, 2018 was declared as the provisional New Major Player by the National Telecommunications Commission.

“This is a historic occasion,” said Udenna chairman Uy. “This is another step forward in realizing Udenna’s vision to improve the lives of Filipinos. Everything that we do is about making lives better not just for this generation, but for the next generation. And that is happening here. Thank you to our partners and to all for being a part of this journey,” he added.

Chinatel welcomed the partnership, saying it aimed to promote collaboration by advancing the availability of new and emerging technologies.

The landmark investment agreement solidified the Philippine government’s commitment to improving the country’s telecommunications industry through the entry of a new telco operator that would challenge the dominance of the two giant incumbents amid persistent calls from consumers for improved services.

Mislatel committed to invest P150 billion in its first year of operations.

In terms of Internet speed, the group committed to provide 27 megabits per second in its first year, and 55 mbps in five years.

The company plans to cover 84 percent of the population in five years and 34 percent in its first year of operation.

Ayala eyes more renewable projects in Vietnam

By Alena Mae S. Flores NINH THUAN, Vietnam—AC Energy Inc., a unit of conglomerate Ayala Corp., plans to build more renewable projects here after recently completing a 330-megawatt solar farm, one of the biggest in Southeast Asia, in partnership with the BIM Group.

The solar farm, comprising of three facilities with installed capacities of 30 MW, 250 MW and 50 MW, respectively, is the first project under BIM/AC Renewables, the renewable energy development platform of AC Energy and the BIM Group.

“Vietnam is one of the Ayala group’s focus in renewable energy investments... We are very excited about Vietnam. We have already invested in the water sector here. This is a very large and meaningful investment for us and

we want to continue more investments with the BIM Group particularly in the energy group,” said Ayala president and chief operating officer Fernando Zobel de Ayala.

The BIM/AC Renewables solar farm, which sits on over 300 hectares of land, is one of the largest in Southeast Asia. It is equipped with the latest technology to ensure efficient operations.

It is expected to generate 545 million kWh of renewable energy annually and generate income and jobs for the province of Ninh Thuan.

“I want to mention the importance of local partnerships and how happy we have been, also with BIM Group. There is no way, I think, that a foreign group can come to an area like this and tackle the kind of challenges that you have without a local partner,” said Ayala.

The inauguration and ceremonial

switch-on held on April 27 was led by Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, Ninth Thuan Provincial Party Secretary Nguyen Duc Thanh, Ninh Thuan Chairman of People’s Committee, Luu Xuan Vinh, Ayala and BIM Group chairman Doan Quoc Viet.

“We needed a partner who had a problem-solving mindset... who tried to find solutions in mind and AC was that, we couldn’t find a better partner... We’ve been very happy with them,” said BIM Group deputy chairman Doan Quoc Huy. Construction of the $294-million solar project, which started in January last year, took 14 months and employed approximately 2,000 workers throughout the construction phase. Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. was the sole lender, providing non-recourse project financing of $232 million.

Solar Philippines opens 150-MW plant in Tarlac RENEWABLE energy developer Solar Philippines said over the weekend its 150-megawatt Tarlac solar power project started supplying the Luzon grid.

Solar Philippines president Leandro Leviste said in a statement over the weekend the Tarlac solar farm at full capacity of 150 MW could help address the Luzon grid’s power shortage, which in recent days ranged from 100 to 200 MW. Leviste said the additional supply meant averting rotating blackouts for up to 500,000 households, bigger than the entire residential demand of Tarlac.

“We are inspired to think that our actions are making a tangible difference for the Philippines, and

will intensify our efforts to bring low-cost solar energy to every Filipino,” said Leviste.

Unscheduled and forced shutdowns of power plants have resulted in rotating blackouts and red and yellow alerts this month.

These plant outages are also expected to push up electricity rates.

Solar Philippines’ Tarlac solar project is currently the largest generation facility of its kind in the country.

The project has an approved power supply agreement with Manila Electric Co. at P2.9999 per kilowatt-hour, making it the lowest cost plant in the Philippines and the lowest in Southeast Asia.

Leviste said the entry of lower

priced solar was timely and appropriate. Wholesale Electricity Spot Market prices typically go up and exceed P7 per kWh during the dry months. WESM is the country’s trading floor of electricity, where prices go up when demand is high and the supply is tight.

To keep costs low, the Tarlac project uses panels manufactured at Solar Philippines’ Batangas facility, the first Filipino factory.

Leviste earlier said the solar project would be “the first in the Philippines at a lower cost than coal, the first with battery storage for 24-hour power, and the first to demonstrate that renewable energy as mid-merit and even base load.” Alena Mae S. Flores

VETERANS BANK’S ADVOCACY. Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana (extreme left) receives the guidon from BGen (ret) Restituto Aguilar (extreme right), chief of the Philippine Veterans Affairs Office’s Veterans Memorial and Historical Division, at the conclusion of the Veterans Bank Freedom Trail that kicked off the month-long commemoration of the Bataan Death March’s 77th anniversary. Witnessing the symbolic turnover are Philippine Veterans Bank chairman Roberto De Ocampo (second from left) and PVAO administrator Ernesto Carolina.

B2

Business

MONDAY, APRIL 29, 2019 extrastory2000@gmail.com

Market eyes 1 quarter earnings st

By Jenniffer B. Austria

T

HE Philippine equity market is expected to remain largely in a sideways movement or within a rangebound level as the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange Index continues to attempt to go back to the 8,000-point level.

Analysts said market’s movement would continue to be dictated by developments overseas, including the trade negotiations between the United States and China.

Talks between the world’s two largest economies are set to resume in Beijing this week to be followed by another round in the US on the following week.

Meanwhile, online brokerage firm 2TradeAsia.com expects volatility within the four-day trading week this week, or a few days before the senatorial elections.

The market index this week is expected to trade between 7,800 and 7,950.

The first-quarter earnings season will come into play as investors take position on companies that are expected to perform well this year.

The PSEi last week gained 0.4 percent to 7,868.28, while the broader All Shares Index rose 0.4 percent to P4,856.35.

Except for industrial and services, all other sub-indices ended in the green, led by property which climbed 2.7 percent, mining and oil which advanced 0.8 percent, holding firms which added 0.5 percent and financial which rose 0.1 percent.

Foreign investors were net buyers for the week by P3.4 billion, while the average daily value traded stood at P6.7

million from the previous week’s P6.8 billion.

Weekly top price gainers were JG Summit Holdings Inc., which advanced 5.3 percent to P64.60; Aboitiz Power Corp., which climbed 4. percent to P37.40; and LT Group Inc., which gained 3.8 percent to P16.02.

Weekly top price losers were Manila Water Co Inc., which declined 6 percent to P22.50 after the company was slapped with more than P1 billion in penalty by Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System; Globe Telecom which lost 5.3 percent to P1,766; and DMCI Holdings Inc., which fell 5.2 percent to P11.38.

Wall Street stocks rode strong US growth data and solid corporate earnings to another record-setting session on Friday, while the euro skidded to a near two-year low against the dollar amid angst over the European economy.

Oil prices also retreated as US Presi-

dent Donald Trump revived a call for Opec to boost production.

Both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq finished at records for the second time this week as official data estimated US first-quarter growth at 3.2 percent, much above analyst expectations and an improvement on the 2.2 percent growth in the final quarter of 2018.

Adding to investor cheer has been a deluge of first-quarter earnings reports that have generally topped expectations.

While there have been a handful of disappointments, “earnings have gone very well,” said Gregori Volokhine of Meeschaert Financial Service, adding one downside of the improved US data for stocks could be a revival of talk that the Federal Reserve will shift course from its current dovish posture.

The S&P 500 shook off early weakness and finished up 0.5 percent at 2,939.88, an all-time high. With AFP

MANILA STANDARD BUSINESS WEEKLY STOCKS REVIEW STOCKS

APRIL 22-26, 2019 Close Volume

Value

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

MEDCO Holdings Metrobank Natl. Reinsurance Corp.

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

58.65 134.00 83.45 2.17 1.30 26.8 18.94 11.58 4.73 7.89 0.59 1.41 780.00 0.500 75.75 0.98 13.46 21.50 51.30 58.95 110.3 175.5 26 180.5 1830.00 60.50 1.13

37,390 10,037,790 10,769,720 59,000 215,000 801,900 177,100 677,200 413,000 1,100 9,000 26,000 730 57,405,000 13,322,400 3,393,000 168,700 1,200 1,446,880 22,790 320 12,760 101,800 1,207,970 10 11,190 64,000

FINANCIAL 2,190,877.00 1,341,428,694.00 888,279,883.00 129,660.00 278,960.00 21,107,375.00 3,351,002.00 7,835,160.00 1,935,450.00 8,713.00 5,310.00 36,460.00 581,050.00 31,466,335.00 1,011,952,883.00 3,470,880.00 2,275,902.00 25,820.00 76,357,404.00 1,343,238.50 35,375.00 2,315,416.00 2,613,305.00 216,401,117.00 18,300.00 681,326.50 72,320.00

Aboitiz Power Corp.

Agrinurture Inc. Alliance Tuna Intl Inc. Alsons Cons.

Basic Energy Corp.

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

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

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

Pepsi-Cola Products Phil.

Petroenergy Res. Corp.

Petron Corporation Phinma Corporation Phinma Energy Phoenix Petroleum Phils.

Pilipinas Shell Pryce Corp. `A’ RFM Corporation Roxas and Co. Roxas Holdings SFA Semicon Shakeys Pizza SMC Food and Beverage SPC Power Corp.

Swift Foods, Inc. TKC Steel Corp.

Universal Robina Victorias Milling Vitarich Corp.

Vivant Corp.

Vulcan Ind’l.

37.4 16.14 0.88 1.39 0.245 16.30 2 15.36 110 28 68.4 45 1.95 5.85 5.99 10.740 15.9 9.40 7.39 1.56 21.7 78.5 28.55 2.4900 11.48 12.46 1.790 303.00 52.50 3.4 10.50 22.5 15.02 22.05 0.202 384.00 6.08 1.24 4.42 6.21 9.04 1.44 12.08 45 5.1 4.80 1.72 2.12 1.29 12.78 114.9 6.9 0.128 0.99 142.1 2.5 1.37 16.00 1.20

5,811,000 1,725,500 45,335,000 538,000 3,810,000 5,400 35,383,000 860,400 1,000 422,100 1,870 362,100 568,000 110,600 48,600 21,335,400 2,357,700 3,533,800 19,149,000 27,000 4,739,300 706,470 538,500 47,703,000 13,194,000 1,361,700 1,402,000 4,805,910 54,740 105,000 64,000 6,086,400 10,659,100 11,718,300 2,170,000 720,080 141,500 5,971,000 321,000 10,569,800 9,600 85,184,000 294,400 825,000 655,200 427,000 94,000 125,000 683,000 1,294,400 1,714,720 686,300 2,120,000 2,761,000 2,955,630 1,664,000 17,963,000 1,100 5,761,000

INDUSTRIAL 214,507,510.00 28,124,846.00 39,179,000.00 755,090.00 920,660.00 87,114.00 67,976,450.00 13,213,304.00 109,734.00 11,964,860.00 128,205.00 16,311,815.00 1,109,620.00 618,580.00 277,583.00 234,192,468.00 37,580,250.00 32,882,999.00 141,113,804.00 42,920.00 104,882,795.00 56,254,195.00 15,775,810.00 127,775,900.00 150,951,486.00 17,053,620.00 2,518,800.00 1,455,066,186.00 2,737,275.00 372,030.00 652,172.00 138,495,450.00 157,941,304.00 257,068,050.00 437,180.00 274,508,466.00 869,109.00 7,361,440.00 1,465,460.00 67,055,775.00 87,246.00 123,946,980.00 3,519,342.00 37,164,630.00 3,314,172.00 2,049,490.00 157,260.00 270,380.00 870,570.00 16,368,716.00 196,237,871.00 4,780,832.00 271,910.00 2,731,080.00 430,355,732.00 4,160,380.00 25,396,970.00 17,600.00 6,835,520.00

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

Forum Pacific GT Capital House of Inv. JG Summit Holdings Jolliville Holdings Keppel Holdings `B’ Lodestar Invt. Holdg.Corp.

Lopez Holdings Corp.

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

MJCI Investments Inc. Pacifica `A’ Prime Media Hldg Prime Orion Republic Glass ‘A’ San Miguel Corp `A’ Seafront `A’ SM Investments Inc. Solid Group Inc. South China Res. Inc. Top Frontier Transgrid Wellex Industries Zeus Holdings

0.610 55.00 14.96 0.78 6.50 18.46 1.370 1.400 895 1251.00 7.59 11.38 14.84 0.255 860 6.74 64.60 5.5 6.3 0.495 5.09 16.02 0.550 4.57 3.39 0.0400 1.120 2.840 2.64 174.00 2.39 931.00 1.34 0.92 270.000 431.00 0.2430 0.345

92,994,000 4,727,730 30,260,600 1,579,000 28,900 84,400 15,775,000 2,064,000 2,002,150 10 1,493,100 19,488,600 1,676,000 2,630,000 1,113,340 83,400 6,832,160 51,100 65,000 675,000 7,282,900 5,603,200 247,000 137,050,000 6,000 29,700,000 54,000 2,868,000 7,000 1,284,110 1,000 671,440 188,000 5,919,000 25,800 1,260 14,540,000 44,300,000

HOLDING FIRMS 56,193,180.00 259,848,952.50 444,937,892.00 1,202,760.00 188,500.00 1,578,362.00 21,861,860.00 2,890,170.00 1,369,842,075.00 12,510.00 11,283,679.00 229,024,652.00 25,001,368.00 644,650.00 954,821,660.00 542,554.00 440,706,746.50 293,502.00 413,780.00 338,255.00 37,145,948.00 88,791,482.00 140,840.00 607,416,530.00 20,310.00 1,164,600.00 60,210.00 8,256,150.00 18,460.00 226,089,597.00 2,390.00 631,575,480.00 250,990.00 5,615,350.00 6,904,000.00 546,148.00 3,571,290.00 14,912,250.00

8,745,300 1,414,000 6,000 466,000 3,873,000 86,354,600 3,204,000 5,133,000 105,200 33,671,000 168,000 169,000 17,120,000 70,000 4,735,600 4,963,700 4,512,000 420,000 65,651,000 9,124,000 8,000 140,162,400 34,218,000 19,704,000 2,591,000 1,270,000 400 1,851,000

PROPERTY 122,468,850.00 1,076,220.00 61,436.00 911,710.00 3,002,380.00 4,146,792,655.00 7,937,990.00 22,110,340.00 665,263.00 16,975,745.00 138,650.00 154,860.00 4,100,790.00 27,250.00 51,089,622.00 125,772,415.00 2,228,380.00 52,500.00 99,876,020.00 11,999,900.00 35,820.00 781,060,151.00 11,636,800.00 34,762,320.00 1,265,315.00 540,100.00 18,120.00 4,485,650.00

8990 HLDG A. Brown Co., Inc. Anchor Land Holdings Inc. Araneta Prop `A’ Arthaland Corp.

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

DM Wenceslao Double Dragon Empire East Land Ever Gotesco Filinvest Land,Inc. Global-Estate Keppel Properties Megaworld MRC Allied Ind. Phil Infradev Phil. Estates Corp.

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

14.760 0.77 11.18 1.940 0.800 48.500 2.43 4.35 6.32 0.510 0.83 0.910 0.237 0.390 11.080 25.4 0.490 0.125 1.52 1.32 4.86 5.55 0.340 1.7500 0.5000 0.440 45.30 2.48

APRIL 15-17, 2019 Close Volume

Value

58.65 132.00 83.00 2.22 1.28 26.5 19 11.6 4.52

22,110 4,279,290 5,887,420 306,000 34,000 467,700 81,600 1,718,300 325,000

1,295,941.00 563,421,832.00 479,120,046.00 676,980.00 43,900.00 12,466,635.00 1,546,114.00 20,233,176.00 1,482,840.00

0.61 1.43 820.00 0.470 78 0.97 13.56 21.95 50.95 58.5 110.1 183.5 26.3 180 1810.00 61.50 1.13

13,000 66,000 250 700,000 4,788,450 1,633,000 276,700 635,800 5,981,030 3,600 30 4,780 9,200 464,740 610 24,880 31,000

7,930.00 91,680.00 205,085.00 325,650.00 373,120,543.50 1,493,160.00 3,767,134.00 13,924,140.00 309,073,952.50 208,812.50 3,303.00 864,369.00 239,885.00 82,811,656.00 1,098,500.00 1,533,795.00 35,050.00

35.95 16.4 0.95 1.42 0.248 15.90 1.88 16.1 108.2 28.8

2,070,500 1,215,200 25,019,000 1,100,000 2,900,000 21,400 47,887,000 6,012,600 100 122,000

74,366,285.00 19,860,274.00 24,762,590.00 1,553,360.00 709,780.00 341,818.00 89,223,360.00 94,580,476.00 10,820.00 3,557,200.00

46 1.96 5.25 5.5 11.240 15.9 9.53 7.38 1.68 22.3 80.35 29.85 2.9000 11.34 12.66 1.820 304.00

291,300 620,000 7,800 71,900 3,397,800 4,211,000 7,610,400 233,700 5,000 3,726,600 160,570 73,000 28,186,000 7,371,800 1,825,300 585,000 2,520,110

13,565,850.00 1,203,520.00 40,902.00 411,735.00 39,215,126.00 67,311,338.00 74,125,566.00 1,698,069.00 8,380.00 82,299,080.00 13,008,215.50 2,190,225.00 79,731,720.00 82,557,128.00 23,086,704.00 1,055,950.00 774,120,300.00

3.73 10.68 23.95 14.78 21.3 0.200 379.00 6.35 1.25 4.55 6.54 9.04 1.54 12.00 45.6 5.19 4.79 1.7 2.18 1.35 12.8 113.8 7.1 0.128 1.04 152 2.6 1.46 17.00 1.18

175,000 13,000 1,296,200 2,469,100 6,851,200 1,870,000 443,670 32,500 41,978,000 573,000 4,502,100 8,300 202,680,000 783,200 2,348,500 574,300 207,000 381,000 571,000 1,876,000 879,400 4,850,250 1,237,000 1,030,000 2,209,000 1,734,870 28,000 24,027,000 100 5,077,000

639,790.00 133,752.00 30,377,700.00 36,685,878.00 145,226,970.00 358,160.00 167,636,834.00 202,211.00 53,400,900.00 2,584,870.00 29,299,034.00 75,151.00 308,656,800.00 9,308,404.00 108,682,140.00 2,990,282.00 991,070.00 625,010.00 1,247,720.00 2,538,690.00 11,254,360.00 543,332,768.00 9,061,726.00 131,880.00 2,248,220.00 264,823,565.00 72,500.00 36,914,870.00 1,700.00 5,946,780.00

0.570 55.00 14.98 0.79 6.50 19 1.400 1.430 900

7,610,000 2,304,670 39,949,400 1,364,000 488,000 156,200 4,826,000 1,838,000 977,220

4,221,850.00 130,829,345.50 597,124,042.00 1,045,820.00 3,172,000.00 2,969,990.00 6,776,440.00 2,619,810.00 884,253,250.00

7.6 12.00 14.98 0.240 862 6.80 61.35 5.07

1,591,800 8,021,500 1,247,700 640,000 442,170 193,100 2,663,220 3,000

12,118,617.00 96,007,454.00 18,630,210.00 153,020.00 380,710,940.00 1,349,460.00 165,683,996.50 15,210.00

0.51 5.19 15.44 0.580 4.48 2.75 0.0390 1.110 2.920

994,000 2,090,000 8,457,000 725,000 124,530,000 10,000 27,400,000 197,000 3,054,000

497,380.00 10,864,675.00 132,766,384.00 401,070.00 558,910,250.00 27,500.00 1,056,100.00 219,130.00 9,054,840.00

175.90

1,080,910

190,773,251.00

930.00 1.36 0.97 269.000 440.20 0.2430 0.330

396,030 20,000 7,521,000 5,690 7,690 1,440,000 74,550,000

368,966,995.00 26,840.00 7,280,390.00 1,511,092.00 4,362,818.00 345,880.00 25,984,100.00

13.200 0.78 11.10 1.950 0.780 47.000 2.49 4.26 6.5 0.510 0.85 0.920 0.240 0.385 11.060 24.85 0.510 0.124 1.51 1.35 4.86 5.69 0.350 1.9200 0.5100 0.415

11,415,000 486,000 29,400 111,000 6,855,000 69,483,200 4,213,000 578,000 24,200 65,217,000 231,000 263,000 7,170,000 1,850,000 4,257,000 4,656,300 3,986,000 10,000 25,323,000 6,543,000 35,000 49,423,200 65,420,000 20,240,000 1,604,000 350,000

148,751,188.00 371,360.00 330,488.00 209,680.00 5,557,140.00 3,263,828,760.00 10,397,440.00 2,476,370.00 153,751.00 32,863,720.00 188,450.00 236,480.00 1,741,550.00 712,350.00 46,601,226.00 114,065,250.00 1,999,455.00 1,240.00 38,427,430.00 8,854,650.00 169,960.00 285,188,697.00 22,219,800.00 37,975,040.00 808,905.00 146,800.00

2.45

3,773,000

9,276,710.00

STOCKS

APRIL 22-26, 2019 Close Volume

APRIL 15-17, 2019 Close Volume

Value

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

24.50 2 3.04 40.90 1.8 7.05 0.740 7.370

12,307,400 998,000 1,539,000 29,648,300 17,310,000 2,344,200 462,000 15,694,100

296,975,800.00 1,993,490.00 4,594,960.00 1,190,584,300.00 29,233,610.00 16,739,518.00 341,830.00 114,947,737.00

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

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

Manila Broadcasting Manila Bulletin Manila Jockey Metro Retail MetroAlliance A NOW Corp.

Pacific Online Sys. Corp.

PAL Holdings Inc. Paxys Inc. PH Resorts Group Phil. Racing Club Phil. Seven Corp.

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

SSI Group STI Holdings Transpacific Broadcast Travellers Waterfront Phils.

Wilcon Depot

12.64 19 1.3 0.430 0.039 15.66 2.53 12.98 0.0700 81.6 7.03 5.37 6.95 2.06 13.26 890 1766 5.17 418.40 10.22 2.78 125.2 1.94 11.48 6.98 0.126 5.0600 3.04 15.74 3.75 0.84 21.60 16.00 0.580 4.75 3.43 1.84 2.330 4.32 10.20 3.1 4.29 8.45 118.00 3.18 1220.00 0.940 0.750 43.60 78.30 9.04 2.80 0.680 0.37 5.62 0.680 16.500

258,600 832,700 73,000 1,170,000 27,600,000 35,800 3,528,000 34,578,400 79,430,000 169,380 2,000 4,531,300 28,000 2,000 2,954,500 5,490 222,060 1,227,100 33,510 200 4,559,000 12,376,870 8,000 36,000 47,000 12,830,000 6,322,700 62,000 2,900 4,136,000 3,250,000 5,454,500 4,400 4,474,000 23,000 23,376,000 233,000 11,366,000 115,000 93,100 45,000 541,000 300 1,351,710 17,011,000 546,655 168,436,000 35,293,000 13,251,100 942,100 570,600 62,390,000 7,846,000 10,960,000 4,343,200 11,901,000 20,832,500

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

United Paragon

0.0020 1.33 2.87 12.00 1.5000 1.4200 2.68 0.290 8.05 1.530 0.255 0.112 0.113 0.009 0.0086 1.09 2.44 1.01 0.5900 0.9200 0.0120 0.0120 3.17 8.93 0.0110 3.1000 23.60 0.0070

MINING & OIL 1,725,000,000 3,297,400.00 11,007,000 15,006,600.00 217,000 614,400.00 88,600 1,065,576.00 244,000 314,660.00 21,000 28,390.00 1,964,000 5,283,190.00 1,620,000 470,450.00 40,000 321,162.00 29,631,000 44,872,840.00 7,280,000 1,821,790.00 4,780,000 537,190.00 350,000 38,690.00 88,000,000 735,900.00 33,000,000 283,100.00 323,000 346,160.00 4,469,000 10,847,730.00 877,000 872,700.00 409,000 236,050.00 698,000 634,350.00 339,500,000 4,074,900.00 220,400,000 2,645,000.00 2,028,000 6,358,430.00 45,791,400 404,391,727.00 110,600,000 1,319,500.00 69,000 214,710.00 3,861,900 91,660,450.00 24,000,000 167,800.00

ABS-CBN Holdings Corp.

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

18.5 96 475 497 97 104 474.8 5.1 950 959 95.9 1.01 100.1 990 1030 100 103 970 75 76.9 72.9 72 74 74.4 73.65 73.45 1.65

478,100 6,400 1,160 360 7,960 55,200 60 33,100 6,410 410 9,300 916,000 8,020 2,870 40 33,260 1,030 3,050 8,030 52,600 7,200 752,580 148,240 83,370 27,130 33,210 11,000

LR Warrant

1.920

479,000

SERVICES 3,315,340.00 16,028,844.00 92,920.00 491,350.00 1,096,800.00 551,654.00 8,822,790.00 441,924,060.00 5,650,690.00 13,877,991.00 14,071.00 23,568,149.00 191,670.00 4,110.00 38,603,096.00 4,886,100.00 400,786,565.00 6,376,148.00 13,759,010.00 2,044.00 12,917,110.00 1,541,594,749.00 15,350.00 402,126.00 330,910.00 1,620,390.00 31,445,503.00 184,350.00 44,216.00 15,482,070.00 2,721,840.00 117,311,995.00 66,720.00 2,685,890.00 109,250.00 80,394,960.00 419,590.00 26,707,610.00 489,660.00 941,709.00 142,540.00 2,194,980.00 2,475.00 161,775,419.00 51,564,630.00 671,885,185.00 164,514,680.00 26,458,050.00 580,893,400.00 73,953,603.50 5,098,177.00 168,995,890.00 5,270,920.00 4,093,150.00 24,414,875.00 8,085,040.00 351,820,184.00

PREFERRED 8,800,974.00 620,640.00 542,936.00 178,800.00 771,600.00 5,740,150.00 28,488.00 168,366.00 6,063,175.00 389,860.00 888,748.50 924,950.00 805,602.00 2,792,720.00 41,200.00 3,326,779.00 108,680.00 2,965,250.00 602,295.00 4,000,939.50 518,815.00 54,268,331.50 10,930,323.00 6,126,958.00 1,998,850.50 2,438,294.50 16,150.00 WARRANTS & BONDS 937,220.00 SME 13,000.00 23,649,832.00 30,396,350.00

Value

24.30 2 3.06 39.60 1.66 6.96 0.780 7.230

7,872,500 470,000 236,000 14,700,000 1,087,000 486,800 71,000 27,410,400

184,260,145.00 936,630.00 713,710.00 579,227,845.00 1,800,280.00 3,342,887.00 52,650.00 198,569,798.00

12.3 19.48 1.29 0.430 0.040 16.66 2.4 12.60 0.0730 83 7.03 5.16 6.80

69,900 339,100 49,000 710,000 45,400,000 200 1,138,000 37,603,100 156,050,000 674,910 1,000 1,460,400 2,000

883,988.00 6,635,960.00 64,250.00 300,050.00 1,809,500.00 3,332.00 2,656,880.00 453,920,352.00 11,558,930.00 55,830,822.00 8,008.00 7,567,965.00 13,600.00

10.40 890 1865 5.29 400.00 10.12 2.85 129

146,000 150 59,640 1,670,300 6,340 100 4,395,000 7,128,900

1,495,822.00 133,500.00 112,088,600.00 8,863,323.00 8,777,892.00 1,012.00 12,576,800.00 908,940,279.00

11.76 7.05 0.128 4.9500 2.98 15.2 3.69 0.84 21.70

600 38,600 7,360,000 2,967,100 87,000 86,700 2,024,000 6,780,000 1,727,400

7,052.00 272,612.00 934,110.00 14,702,449.00 259,910.00 1,326,892.00 7,439,440.00 5,902,600.00 37,594,040.00

0.600 4.79 3.41 1.78 2.440 4.38 10.06

7,259,000 11,000 3,795,000 96,000 21,009,000 262,000 62,200

4,406,310.00 52,310.00 13,010,680.00 165,900.00 50,442,500.00 1,123,230.00 621,983.00

4.58

69,000

306,050.00

119.80 2.87 1224.00 1.000 0.810 44.40 78.90 9.00 2.68 0.670 0.38 5.68 0.720 16.140

85,010 1,858,000 362,935 52,622,000 21,057,000 9,391,000 627,240 381,700 68,789,000 2,380,000 18,020,000 2,354,500 10,468,000 7,304,800

10,200,944.00 5,279,770.00 434,596,480.00 52,264,410.00 17,167,510.00 422,781,850.00 49,771,629.00 3,433,460.00 180,932,830.00 1,613,680.00 6,870,800.00 13,252,175.00 7,614,100.00 118,545,814.00

0.0019 1.29 2.81 11.00 1.4200 1.5900 2.7 0.290 8.18 1.530 0.255 0.118 0.123 0.008 0.0083 1.08 2.44 1.04 0.5800 0.9100 0.0120

939,000,000 6,186,000 845,000 6,500 29,000 51,000 2,290,000 420,000 10,700 13,329,000 10,990,000 4,930,000 40,000 4,000,000 20,000,000 383,000 6,975,000 125,000 510,000 3,785,000 16,100,000

1,789,500.00 8,067,760.00 2,406,590.00 73,662.00 37,150.00 64,090.00 6,210,420.00 121,950.00 86,467.00 20,248,630.00 2,806,710.00 582,190.00 4,830.00 32,800.00 166,000.00 417,800.00 16,802,850.00 127,690.00 295,490.00 3,408,420.00 193,800.00

3.12 7.00 0.0110 3.1000 24.30 0.0075

4,734,000 11,938,200 441,800,000 37,000 6,474,300 18,000,000

15,134,430.00 84,190,153.00 4,860,100.00 115,150.00 155,754,165.00 131,500.00

18.7 101.8 467.2

162,700 160 1,970

3,057,134.00 16,288.00 919,790.00

98 100.7

3,390 18,000

332,202.50 1,812,693.00

5.3 900 950 94.95 1 103 973

163,800 1,240 4,230 640 224,000 5,790 910

887,057.00 1,115,970.00 3,996,450.00 60,051.50 224,070.00 595,495.00 885,680.00

100.9

10,400

1,049,160.00

971 74.75 76 73 72.55 74.75 73.55 71.5 61.2 1.45

1,780 7,130 32,450 39,190 43,250 48,760 1,350 13,770 65,020 1,000

1,728,065.00 533,656.00 2,464,417.00 2,816,241.00 3,139,061.50 3,631,665.00 99,332.50 990,231.00 4,143,104.50 1,450.00

1.920

237,000

447,500.00

4.96 1.21

686,000 9,532,000

3,384,980.00 11,355,010.00

Makati Fin. Corp.

Italpinas Xurpas

2.6 5.15 1.16

5,000 4,551,600 26,063,000

First Metro ETF

117.7

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS 35,600 4,177,834.00

117.6

40,930

4,811,311.00

10 10 1

DOLLAR DENONIMATED SEC. 57,070 574,219.00 5,040 50,400.00 36,560 36,560.00

10.02 10 1

19,600 3,160 156,000

197,160.00 31,600.00 156,000.00

USD DMPL A1 USD DMPL A2 USD TECH B2

WEEKLY MOST TRADED STOCKS Abra Mining Oriental Pet. `A’ Oriental Pet. `B’ PremiereHorizon Megaworld Metro Pacific Inv. Corp.

Philodrill Corp. `A’ Abacus Cons. `A’ Manila Mining `A’ Ayala Land `B’

VOLUME 1,725,000,000 339,500,000 220,400,000 168,436,000 140,162,400 137,050,000 110,600,000 92,994,000 88,000,000 86,354,600

STOCKS Ayala Land `B’ I.C.T.S.I. Jollibee Foods Corp.

Ayala Corp `A’ Banco de Oro Unibank Inc. SM Prime Holdings Metrobank GT Capital Bank of PI Megaworld

VALUE 4,146,792,655.00 1,541,594,749.00 1,455,066,186.00 1,369,842,075.00 1,341,428,694.00 1,190,584,300.00 1,011,952,883.00 954,821,660.00 888,279,883.00 781,060,151.00

Aboitiz Group bullish on Veco and other units based in Cebu THE Aboitiz Group is optimistic its Cebu-based subsidiaries will deliver positive results in 2019 on the back of several key innovation projects to be implemented this year.

Visayan Electric Co. Inc., the country’s second-largest privately-owned distribution utility and a unit of Aboitiz Power Corp., plans to complete this year the 890-meter phase 3 of its underground distribution system.

The line will add to UDS Phase 1, which consists of work from the Cebu provincial capitol site to Fuente Osmeña, and Phase 2 which covers work onward to P. del Rosario Street.

“Aboitiz Power expects that its existing distribution utilities will continue to realize modest growth. It continuously seeks efficiency and improvements in its distribution utilities’ operations in order to maintain healthy margins,” said AboitizPower executive vice president Jaime Jose Aboitiz.

The second 170-MW unit of AboitizPower unit Therma Visayas Inc.’s baseload plant in Toledo City is also expected to come online next month.

This follows the launch of the power plant’s first 170-MW unit in April 6.

Meanwhile, the rehabilitation of the 153.1-MW Naga Power Plant Complex in Naga City is ongoing. Therma Power Visayas Inc., which owns and manages the plant complex, plans to rehabilitate six bunker C-fed power units within the facility and expects to complete the overhaul by the latter part of 2020.

Other Cebu-based businesses of the group are also gearing up for expansion.

CitySavings, the thrift arm of Aboitiz banking and financial services unit Union Bank of the Philippines, will venture this year into bancassurance with Insular Life.

AboitizLand, meanwhile, aims to maintain its foothold in Cebu with five ongoing residential projects.

The company is optimistic residential sales will pick up in 2019 as it plans to launch new phases at Amoa, AboitizLand’s 60-hectare mid-market residential development in Compostela, Cebu and Priveya Hills, a 60-hectare lots in Bacayan, Talamban, Cebu City. Jenniffer B. Austria

Globe, Smart both expand coverage of internet services

By Darwin G. Amojelar GLOBE Telecom Inc. said it expanded its GoWifi services to more sites around the country to provide access to user-friendly and cost-effective internet connectivity to more Filipinos.

GoWiFi as of March 2019 was accessible in 2,000 sites nationwide, up by 500 sites from the previous year.

The additional sites translated into 20,000 access points from 15,000 in 2018 and to about 18 million sessions per month.

Among the expansion areas that will be covered by GoWiFi within the year range from health and educational institutions to some of the biggest retail establishments.

Globe will rollout GoWifi in VRP Medical Center along Edsa in Mandaluyong City, Qualimed, Healthserve in Los Baños, Laguna, Emilio Aguinaldo College, St. Paul University, Cebu Doctors University, Araneta Center in Cubao, all branches of Robinsons Supermarket, and select branches of Robinsons Department Store Puregold and Shopwise.

Part of the existing areas already covered by GoWiFi are Ayala Malls, Megaworld Malls, SM Supermalls, Robinsons Malls, Ortigas and Co. and Starbucks. GoWiFi services are also available at major transport points such as the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Metro Rail Transit and Light Rail Transit stations.

Meanwhile, Smart Communications Inc. said it expanded its long-term evolution network coverage in Boracay to support sustainable tourism on the island.

To date, Smart has already deployed LTE technology to 83 percent of its Boracay sites. Of these LTE sites, 80 percent have been further upgraded to LTE-Advanced, which gives customers an even faster mobile data experience for better video viewing and mobile gaming, for example.

Business/World

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MONDAY, APRIL 29, 2019 CESAR BARRIOQUINTO, Editor mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Security high as Sri Lanka marks 1 week after attacks C

OLOMBO―Sri Lanka’s Roman Catholic leader on Sunday condemned the Easter attacks as “an insult to humanity” as the tense and grief-stricken country marked a week since suicide bombers hit three churches and three luxury hotels.

AFTER THE CYCLONE. Residents gather their belongings on April 27, 2019, in Fumbuni, 56km south of Comoros’ capital

Moroni, following the passage of Cyclone Kenneth. Thousands of people in the remote areas of storm-lashed Mozambique were homeless Saturday and bracing for imminent flooding, food and water shortages as Kenneth flattened entire villages. AFP

Trump, media in open war on annual dinner date WASHINGTON―It’s meant to be the annual Washington love-in, a dinner where White House journalists and the president yuk it up in a hotel ballroom.

But this Saturday, President Donald Trump stood up his dates.

Members of the White House Correspondents’ Association, or WHCA, were decked out in bow ties and gowns at the downtown Washington Hilton.

Trump, however, was 1,100 kilometers away in Green Bay, Wisconsin, for a rally with his baseball cap-wearing supporters.

As usual, he devoted portions of his speech―like most of his speeches―to haranguing the “fake news media” or “enemy of the people.”

“They are fakers,” he said of the media to a typically boisterous crowd. “I’ll tell you, you know what sucks? Their ratings suck because people don’t believe them.”

Back in Washington, the WHCA’s

IN BRIEF Going gets tougher for migrants

ARRIAGA, Mexico―Traveling through Mexico has become even more difficult for Central American migrants like Oscar Vialta and his family, frustrated by tighter immigration rules and a local population reluctant to give them shelter or support as they move toward the United States to try to improve their lives.

Vialta, 42, his wife and two children left Honduras at the beginning of April, joining a migrant caravan heading for the US border.

But when they arrived in Mexico, they ran foul of stiffer new regulations which have restricted them to Mexico’s southern states and prevented them from going further north to the border.

Their only legal hope is to be given a humanitarian visa.

“It would let us work and move on,” says a frustrated Vialta, “but when we arrived they gave us the runaround and all we got was lies.”

He and his family are waiting by the railway tracks in the southern town of Arriaga, planning to hitch a ride on a freight train known as “The Beast”.

Jumping on a freight train is many migrants’ means of getting north to the US border, despite the risks of falling off.

Some have been mutilated by the wheels as they tried to clamber aboard. AFP

At least 10 dead in Indonesia floods

JAKARA―At least 10 people are dead and eight are missing after days of heavy rain-triggered floods and landslides on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, authorities said Sunday.

Some 12,000 people have been evacuated while hundreds of buildings, bridges and roads have been damaged by the severe weather which affected nine districts or towns across Bengkulu province, officials said.

The waters have receded in some places but officials warned the full extent of the damage was not yet known and some areas were still cut off.

“The impact of this disaster may increase,” national disaster agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said, adding that several people were also injured in the flooding.

“Landslides and floods could happen again if rainfall is high,” he said.

A “secondary disaster” in the form of skin diseases and acute respiratory infection due to poor hygiene and a lack of clean water was possible, he added.

Aerial images showed swollen rivers that had burst their banks and inundated settlements in some parts of the province. AFP

president Olivier Knox told attendees he did not want to dwell on Trump―but called for a rejection of the president’s rhetoric.

“Fake news and enemies of the people are not punchlines, pet names or presidential. And we should reject politically expedient assaults on the men and women whose hard work makes it possible to hold the powerful to account,” he said.

Although there’s nothing obligatory about attending WHCA dinners, presidents have usually done so at some point during their time in office since the inaugural version in 1921.

Ronald Reagan was the last absentee in 1981 and he had a decent excuse: being recently shot in an assassination attempt.

Trump, however, has boycotted what he calls the “boring” and “negative” party for three years in a row—his entire presidency so far.

The gala used to be a glamorous affair

where hundreds of journalists, Hollywood celebrities and the president were entertained by a top-drawer comedian or other talent.

Now the celebs have drained away and this year even the comedian was missing.

A presidential historian, Ron Chernow, delivered the main speech instead, in which he criticized what he described as an “insidious” and “relentless campaign against the very credibility of the news media.”

Acknowledging that his speech was a shift from traditional headliners at the dinner, Chernow said: “We need them [comedians] now more than ever, during this surreal interlude in American life.”

Underlining the snub, Trump ordered staff, including chief press secretary Sarah Sanders—who appeared onstage in Wisconsin—to also refuse invitations. AFP

The Archbishop of Colombo, Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, held a private mass after cancelling all public services amid fears of a repeat of the bombings that killed 253 people.

A heavily-guarded vigil was held outside St Anthony’s Shrine in Colombo at 8.45am, the moment the bomber struck the church last week, killing dozens of worshipers.

“What happened last Sunday is a great tragedy, an insult to humanity,” the cardinal said in a chapel at his residence, where the mass was attended

by President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

“Today during this mass we are paying attention to last Sunday’s tragedy and we try to understand it,” he said calling for prayers for the victims.

“We pray that in this country there will be peace and co-existence and understanding each other without division,” he said.

The Sri Lankan military is still hunting Islamic State-linked jihadists and security across the country remains high.

At exactly 8.45am, the singing of hymns by scores of people outside St. Anthony’s church stopped and the bells tolled. The hands on the tower clock are stuck at the time of the blast.

“I come to this church every Sunday, it feels like my second home,” said Dharshika Fernando, 19, fighting back tears.

“It feels like people blasted my own home.”

Thousands of Sri Lankan troops remained on the streets, guarding churches and mosques for the symbolic day.

Security forces also carried out new arrests, a day after at least 15 people were killed in a raid on a jihadist hideout where suicide bombers blew themselves up.

Police said they arrested two “most wanted” Muslim suspects in connection with the Easter bombings, taking the total number in detention to more than 100.

Mohamed Saadik Abdul Haq and Mohamed Saahid Abdul Haq were on a list of six “most wanted” radicals issued on Thursday.

Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekera said the two were arrested in the central region of Nawalapitiya, about 125 kilometers (78 miles) east of Colombo on Saturday night.

President Sirisena said on Friday there are about 140 IS followers across the country who were still being hunted.

“We can and we will eradicate all of them very soon,” Sirisena vowed. AFP-

Crisis intensifies as Trump’s oil sanctions hit Venezuela exports WASHINGTON―US sanctions came into effect Sunday to block Venezuela’s economic lifeline of oil exports, in what Washington hopes will be a major blow in its fledgling campaign to topple leftist President Nicolas Maduro.

As of 12:01 am Washington time (0401 GMT), the United States will take action against anyone who deals with state-owned Petroleos de Venezuela, or PDVSA, or any entity in which the company holds at least a 50 percent stake.

It is among a volley of steps by President Donald Trump’s administration to oust Maduro and install opposition leader Juan Guaido, who is recognized by more than 50 countries, including most in Latin America.

Just Friday, the Trump administration said it would block any US assets of Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza, confirming it has no desire to negotiate with Maduro, a socialist firebrand who

REAL CARPIO SO

GREEN LIGHT

WE JUST won’t leave them alone.

Human resource practice maintains that giving feedback is essential. Feedback boosts employee performance. As a job characteristic, feedback makes an employee feel that his work is valued.

There is a perception that the company has genuine concern for his growth.

For a very long time, managers are compelled to give feedback “constantly, directly, and critically.” When performance is measured according to following of instructions or strict adherence to procedure, feedback is easy and simple. However, work of these nature is becoming extinct and irrelevant.

These are now relegated to and better performed by machines. Employees are now expected to take more initiative, to be more creative, and to acquire more skills. Feedback now is “telling people what we think of their performance and how they should do it better.” The key phrase is: “what we think.”

It is popular belief that we have blindspots. We have weaknesses that only other people can see. We do not see that our presentation, despite our effort, is lethargic. We tend to be overconfident of our performance. To correct this, we need people to do us a favor by pointing these out bluntly to us.

A Sri Lankan Christian devotee cries as she prays at a barricade near St. Anthony’s Shrine in Colombo on April 28, 2019, a week after a series of bomb blasts targeting churches and luxury hotels on Easter Sunday in Sri Lanka.

Church bells tolled mournfully at Colombo’s devastated St Anthony’s Shrine on April 28 as scores of Christians wept but defiantly prayed and lit candles for the victims of the horrific Easter bombings. AFP

presides over a crumbling economy but has withstood three months of intense pressure.

Until the crisis, Venezuela exported 500,00 barrels a day to the United States, its largest customer, with PDVSA omnipresent, if not highly visible, through ownership of the Citgo refining and gas station chain.

The United States has already moved to put Citgo under the control of Guaido, who appointed his own board.

Even though sanctions legally came into force Sunday, “the reality is that the oil trade between the United States and Venezuela has been absolutely limited and fallen sharply,” said Mariano de Alba, a Washington-based international law expert from Venezuela.

But the sanctions will still have an effect, with Washington vowing to enforce them against any foreign company with interactions in the United States—including the US financial system, which dominates the globe. AFP

Leave them alone Learning is likened to filling up a container. Every new skill we learn is an addition to this container of learning.

Depending on our nature of work and the industry we’re in, there are skills that are perceived to be essential to our performance. To be ahead of the pack, managers need to be aware of the latest management trends. In the academe, teachers need to learn online learning platforms. If we do not know, it is because nobody told us. Feedback is needed to make us aware of these learning gaps.

Excellence is a perennial buzzword. We study people who are perceived as excellent in their field. We distill, identify, and define what makes a person excellent. We believe that the excellence of one person can be transferred from one person to another. In most organizations, stories and myths are created around the founder or the benefactor. For lesser organizations, a popular business celebrity is often used a pre-defined standard.

Feedback is founded on these beliefs.

And these are false.

In “The Feedback Fallacy,” research shows that “telling people what we think of their performance doesn’t help them thrive and excel, and telling people how we think of they should improve hinder learning.”

Humans are unreliable evaluators of

other humans. Evaluations are inherently subjective. The results are only reflections of the evaluator’s opinions of what performance should be. They are only reactions to the performance based on the evaluator’s experiences. The use of a rubric or quantitative measure legitimizes this bias.

When we point out a person’s inadequacy, we believe that we are helping him. Ideally, a person acknowledges this and is expected to learn to fill this gap.

The end is to achieve or accelerate performance. However, research points out that pointing out a person’s inadequacy will not enhance learning. Focusing people on their shortcomings impairs it. Learning happens when “we see how we might do better by adding some new nuance or expansion to our own understanding.”

People learn most “when somebody pays attention to what’s working in us and ask us to cultivate it intelligently.” Asking people to get out of their comfort zones would put them automatically on survival mode. It does not work.

While we know excellence when we see one, it is difficult to identify what it is. It is often inseparable with the one demonstrating it. Every person has his own unique version of excellence. It can be cultivated; but is fake and unnatural, if imitated. We can “never help another person succeed by holding his performance

against a prefabricated model of excellence, giving his feedback on where he misses the model, and telling him to plug the gaps.”

When we rate a performance as poor, we are in reality saying that the performance does not fit our idea of a good performance.

When we tell people that they need to learn something to get ahead, we are actually saying that it worked for us, and it’ll work for them too. When we use a person as a standard or role model, we are saying that this is only one way to excellence, even if we are also not sure what it is.

Feedbacks are self-centered. According to the Harvard Business Review article, “Learning rests on our grasp of what we’re doing well, not on what we’re doing poorly, and certainly not on someone else’s sense of what we’re doing poorly.”

Let’s leave them alone.

Real Carpio So lectures at Management and Organization Department of the Ramon V. del Rosario College of Business of De La Salle University. He is an entrepreneur and a management consultant. He welcomes comments at realwalksonwater@ gmail.com. Archives can be accessed at realwalksonwater.wordpress.com. The views expressed above are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official position of DLSU, its faculty, and its administrators.

LGUs

Jimbo Owen Gulle, Editor lgu@manilastandard.net editor.lgustandard@gmail.com

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LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS

MONDAY, APRIL 29, 2019

Estrada lead grows in Manila

By Vito Barcelo

M

OST voters in Manila prefer incumbent Manila Mayor Joseph “Erap” Estrada to serve a third term in the May 13 elections, according to the latest Likely Voters Survey conducted from April 4-10 by Laylo Research Strategies.

The survey revealed that Mayor Estrada continues to maintain a comfortable lead over his rivals with a satisfaction rate of 39 percent. Former Manila Vice Mayor Isko “Moreno” Domagoso garnered 30 percent, while former Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim

was behind at 22 percent.

Respondents said they were satisfied with the performance of the former President and want Estrada to be their mayor for the next three years, citing improvement in the city government’s delivery of basic services

and lower crime rate.

With an estimated turnout of 982,281 registered voters in the midterm elections, Estrada, with a 9 to 11% margin over his closest rival, would have a victory of about 65,000 to 75,000 votes, Laylo Research added.

The successive noncommissioned surveys held in January and on March 9 to14 by the research firm also show Estrada consistently leading the surveys.

Political pundits said that the April 4-10 survey could be the deciding factor in the coming election and has stabilized the upperhand of the in-

cumbent mayor.

The survey outfit also listed who among the local officials is the most trusted, asking the respondents to choose among the seven mayoralty candidates.

The trust rating of Mayor Estrada is at 50 percent, while Lim got 48 percent, Moreno 29 percent, and the remaining are undecided.

Based on the gender of the voters surveyed, 41 percent of the female voters aged 18 to 34 will vote for Estrada, while 28 percent prefer for Moreno and 18 percent picked Lim.

30TH CENTENARIAN. Makati Mayor Abby Binay is all smiles as she presents a P100,000 check to Mrs. Andresa T. Caparos, the newest centenarian to be recognized by the city.

The mayor and Vice Mayor Monique Lagdameo, visited the centenarian at her home in Barangay Pembo on Friday. Born on February 19, 1919, Mrs. Caparos is the 30th awardee of the cash gift during the term of Mayor Abby. She was married to the late Buenaventura Caparos, with whom she had eight children. Her family has been living in Makati since 1975, and Caparos has been a Blu Card member since April 5, 2004.

Laus leaves legacy in San Fernando

By Romeo Dizon SAN Fernando, Pampanga—Even in death, Liberato “Levy” P. Laus or LPL, chairman of the Laus Group of Companies thought of the welfare of the city where he grew up and made his fortune until his untimely demise last Friday.

Laus, 68, together his with longtime pilot Eber Coronel and driver Wilfran Estaban, died when his $3.9 million Airbus helicopter with registry No RP C8098 crashed in a fishpond in Malolos City, Bulacan on their way to San Fernando, Pampanga.

Laus’ last project for the city was the dredging of the Federosa creek in barangay San Matias, Sto. Tomas to prevent flooding in the city for the coming rainy season, said Marni Castro, a non-government organization engineer and a very close friend of the tycoon.

Castro said they were supposed to conduct an aerial survey of the creek to collect geophysical data, including aerial photography on how to divert flood water straight to Manila Bay. However, Castro said the 6.1 earthquake Monday prevented them from doing the survey.

The engineer said he will continue the project not only for the memory of Laus, but also for the city.

Laus and Castro were together in the Save San Fernando Movement, a joint local government, business sector and NGO organization that sped up the early recovery of the city from the ruins of the Mt. Pinatubo eruption in 1991.

Laus’ remains now lies in state at the family residence at St. Dominic subdivision in barangay San Agustin, and were transferred to the Laus Event Center Monday before he is laid to rest after a Mass on Tuesday at 2 p.m at Sanctuario De San Fernando Memorial in the same village.

Prominent personalities and leaders of civic, businesses, and government organizations, including the Cabalen Sport and Sunday Club, gave their condolences to the Laus family in their moment of grief.

Mine firm pours over P1M for livelihood aid Uy vows to end House backs establishment of PUP-Cabiao Campus Jalosjos reign, Dapitan ‘suffering’

By Maricel V. Cruz

BELEN UY seeks to end the run of the Jalosjos family in Dapitan City and bring real progress to the metropolis in Zamboanga del Norte.

Uy, a businesswoman and former mayor of neighboring Dipolog City, said Sunday the Jalosjos has been in power for 24 years “but there is still no progress in Dapitan.”

Uy is up against reelectionist Rosalina Jalosjos, the wife of former congressman Romeo Jalosjos, who has been the mayor of Dapitan for six years now.

In a statement, Uy said Dapitan has been left behind by nearby Dipolog in terms of progress.

Uy said she also wanted to alleviate poverty in Dapitan by introducing new enterprises, putting up businesses, and giving jobs to the residents.

She said Dapitan became a city in 1963 but until now not a single big company, like fast-food chains and supermarkets, can be seen there.

This is compared to Dipolog, which now has five fastfood chains, a big supermarket, three car dealerships, and several banks.

“Because no businesses or companies are coming into Dapitan, residents can only work at the Jalosjos resort in Dakak or at city hall,” Uy said.

She expressed sadness that there is not a single bank in Dapitan, so the residents still need to go to other places just to open a bank account.

The worst of all, Uy added, is the lack of water supply in most areas in Dapitan, when the city is surrounded by rivers and seas.

Dapitan is where the Spaniards imprisoned national hero Dr.Jose Rizal before he was transferred and martyred in Bagumbayan in Manila.

Based on the Philippine Statistics Authority record, Dapitan is a 3rd class city that only earns half a billion pesos per year, despite being a tourist destination.

A NEW school may soon serve poor but deserving youth in Nueva Ecija as the House of Representatives has approved a measure on second reading that establishes a campus of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines in Cabiao town.

Rep. Magnolia Rosa Antonino of Nueva Ecija, principal author of House Bill 9017, said institutions of higher learning have grown in number sig-

nificantly over the years, and majority of these institutions are concentrated in highly urbanized cities and the more affluent provinces in the country.

Antonino, vice chairperson of the House Committee on Appropriations and member for the majority bloc of the Committee on Basic Education, said most expensive universities with wellequipped facilities are located in the National Capital Region and its adjoining cities and provinces.

“This situation effectively limits the educational opportunities available for the poor but deserving students in remote municipalities, like the Municipality of Cabiao, who cannot afford the prohibitive private tertiary education offered in those schools,” Antonino said.

Through her proposal, she said the PUP-Cabiao Branch shall provide refuge for students from poor families living in this part of the country.

CAGAYAN SLATE. The Grupo Pabaruen Ti Cagayan stands with President Rodrigo Duterte led by Cagayan Governor Manuel N. Mamba (Third from left), Vice Governor candidate Bobot Taruc, 2nd District Congressman candidate Darwin Sacramed, 1st District Congressman candidate Jojo Lasam Lara, and Tuguegarao City Mayor Jeff Soriano (right) at the Cagayan Sports Complex in Tuguegarao City, Cagayan on during the Grand Rally of PDP-Laban. Jessica M. Bacud

By Ben Moses Ebreo QUEZON, Nueva Vizcaya— FCF Minerals Corporation has released more than P1 million for its livelihood assistance program for villagers.

FCF operates the gold-molybdenum mining project in barangay Runruno in this town.

Ian Moller, the firm’s acting general manager for operations, said the livelihood assistance called Pondong Pangkabuhayan Program was rolled out through the Community Relations OfficeSocial Development Section since September last year.

“The recipient livelihood groups were carefully reviewed and evaluated based on their project proposals,” he said.

Moller said the assistance received by the livelihood organizations will be offered as loans to its members with low interest rates.

“In this way, their fund will further grow while their members are also benefiting with the loans they are getting. The terms of payment of four and five months and a year will depend on the kind of project that they will be pursuing,” he added.

Among the project proposals approved by the recipient livelihood organizations are piggery and tilapia production, sari-sari store, selling of used clothes, vegetable production, goat raising, soft broom making, ginger production, cow raising, rice retailing, sewing, and purchase of equipment for veggie chips production.

Goat farmers in Aurora, CL benefit from PCAARRD technologies

By Butch Gunio BALER, Aurora—Goat farmers from this province and nearby areas are benefiting from the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic, and Natural Resources Research and Developmentdeveloped technologies.

“My goat production improved by adopting scientific-based technologies from PCAARRD through Farmer Live-

stock School on Goat Enterprise Management [FLS GEM] trainings,” Nueno Villanueva told other goat farmers in sharing his success story during the second day of the FIESTA [Farms and Industry Encounters through the Science Technology Agenda] event featuring goat and meat products held at the capitol grounds on Friday.

Technologies such as artificial insemination, delivery protocol, different

feeding schemes, supplements for the various physiological stages of goat, farm machineries and implements, mastitis kit, test interval, and method for data milk collection, among others are being taught to farmers through FLS GEM. “I have been into goat farming since 1970 but only in the late 2000 has my production started improving after adopting science-based technologies,

which means better income for me,” Villanueva said.

Goat raiser Samuel Sardenia also shared: “I was able to send my children to school, built a house, and even bought a car. Technologies tremendously improved my goat production.”

About 300 goat farmers from the Aurora towns of Dingalan, Maria Aurora, Dipaculao, Casiguran, Dilasag, San Luis, and Baler heard the success stories.

Life

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Bernadette lunas, Issue Editor manilastandardlife@gmail.com @manilastandardlife @mStandardliFE monday, april 29, 2019

GOTTA LOVE SUMMER AT TOY KINGDOM

ays in the pool are more fun with inflatables, trendy floaters, and splashy pools available at Toy Kingdom.

Plunge into the cool waters in style with unique and vibrant inflatables like the Flamingo Island, Mega Unicorn Island, Camel Pool float, and Pop Rhino Ostrich floater. There are also trendy floaters inspired by kids’ favorite snacks: Popcorn Mat, Potato Chips Float, French Fries Float, and Hamburger Island.

Summer is also more fun with exciting pool parties with family and friends. Check out this Prism Frame Oval Pool Set that is easy to assemble and comes in a huge size for the entire family to enjoy.

Toy Kingdom also has other stylish swim essentials for kids such as Hydro Swim Glider set and Metallic Mermaid Tail for a more fun water adventure.

These amazing summer treats are available at Toy Kingdom Express outlets in The SM Stores and Toy Kingdom stores in most SM Supermalls.

Visit www.toykingdom.ph and follow ToyKingdomPH at Facebook for more updates.

Enjoy a family pool party at home with this Prism Frame Oval Pool Set.

Hamburger in the pool? This Hamburger Island got everyone’s cravings and floating needs covered.

Pop in the summer fun with this Popcorn Mat.

Escape from the dry and sandy deserts with this Camel Pool Float.

This Mega Unicorn Island brings whimsy into the water.

Live a life under the sea with Toy Kingdom’s Hydro Swim Lil Glider Set and Metallic Mermaid Tail.

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Life

C2

monday, apri apriL 29, 2019 manilastandardlife@gmail.com

T

HE sour and sweet flavors, when combined, will spark a perfect taste.

To husband and wife Jay Marc prieto and Kim Cudia-prieto, these flavors sum up their story—a journey with sour paths to reach the sweet victory.

The Australia-based couple has been married for eight years. Their love story started way back in the philippines while they were studying at CCA, Manila.

“It all started with the sweet taste of turon during our Filipino cuisine class which was during Level 6,” Kim recalled. “We had a mutual understanding at that time, then Jay asked me to taste and check the turon he was making.”

It was, for them, love at first bite.

She said she didn’t imagine that eventually Jay will be the “one.” There are a lot of differences between them and their personalities are opposite— Kim is an extrovert while Jay is the silent type. They were even competitors in classes. But a common love for food sparked romance between them and the rest is history.

“We are now more open to one another and have a deeper connection which was unimaginable before,” shared Jay. In 2008, the couple left the philippines for Australia to pursue their dreams. POWER OF TWO. Chef-couple Jay Marc and Kim Prieto spread Filipino flavors in Canberra, Australia through their restaurant Lolo and Lola.

Initially, the couple was only focused to pursue their careers as chefs. Nine years later, they opened their restaurant called Lolo and Lola, which is one of the only two Filipino restaurants in Canberra.

“We call ourselves as ‘self-proclaimed’ Filipino food ambassador here in Canberra,” Kim said. The couple is introducing Filipino flavors to the palate of Australians.

“Surprisingly, Canberrans aren’t afraid to try out new flavors,” said Jay. The couple shared that Lolo and Lola Kare-Kare was two years in the making. The idea started from an ensaymada that she offered to guests during her daughter’s second birthday party. One of the guests really loved it that she ordered four dozens to bring to another party. From there, the word spread.

The couple started delivering pastries door-to-door, then they joined the Sunday market. Eventually they had a food truck, until it progressed to become a full restaurant with a menu of Filipino staple dishes.

One reason for their food venture’s Tokwa’t Baboy success is their synergy and dynamics Chicken BBQ

Pinoy chef-couple flavors Aussie food scene

tartare, lobster salad, and jumbo shrimp Cocktail), and Fresh Oysters. Also on the menu are Crostini Sampler (tuna tartare, salmon, and crabmeat), Steak Crostini, and USDA prime Dry-Aged Salpicao.

Wolfgang’s Steakhouse’s line-up of specialty cocktails includes rum-based Lemongrass Mojito, the restaurant’s take on the classic gin pomelo Downtown Manila, Jalisco Spike for the

CCA Manila main campus is located at 287 Katipunan Ave., Loyola Heights, Quezon City. Call (02) 281-8566 for more information.

SIP

Wolfgang’s Steakhouse launches bar menu HAppy Hour at Wolfgang’s Steakhouse in Bonifacio Global City becomes much more delicious with the launch of its bar menu.

At the launch of the bar menu, guests in attendance got first dibs on Katsu Steak Sandwich—a USDA prime Filet Mignon Cutlet prepared Japanese-style served with potato chips and tonkatsu sauce, Truffle Fries topped with parmesan cheese, Seafood Taster (tuna

as a couple. It also helps that they created a comforting and welcoming vibe of a Filipino home in Lolo and Lola.

Soon, the restaurant was recognized by Australian Good Food Guide.

Lolo and Lola was awarded “Reader’s Choice – Best Filipino Restaurant in Australian Capital Territory 2019.”

The recognition serves as an indication that they are on their way to achieve their goal of spreading the popularity of Filipino food in Australia.

Kim shared, “The success and opportunities that we have right now are because of CCA. It has been there for us from the beginning and this is where we got the knowledge to succeed especially in working abroad. I still remember one of my chef instructors telling me treat ingredients with respect also, more importantly, to treat others with respect regardless where they come from.”

spice-seeking drinkers, and Overthyme which combines thyme, oregano, and strawberry with Botanist Gin and ginger beer.

Happy hour at Wolfgang’s Steakhouse is from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. to midnight. The restaurant is located at lower ground floor, One Bonifacio High Street, 28th Street, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City.

La + Tearia serves Shaved Milk Tea and Double Shaved Dairy.

Shaved milk tea

Wolfgang’s Steakhouse offers specialty cocktails and other alcoholic beverages.

Lemongrass Mojito

A new milk tea brand introduces a refreshing take on the favorite beverage: shaved dairy and tea fusions.

La + Tearia, a combination of the Italian word “latteria,” which means “dairy” and the English word “tea,” revolutionizes the milk tea game with Shaved Milk Tea, which starts at p89, and Double Shaved Dairy at p95.

The Shaved Milk Tea series aims to perfect brewed tea and dairy blends by combining familiar, well-loved flavors of Dark Chocolate, Thai Milk Tea, Strawberry, and Matcha with milk tea.

The Double Shaved Dairy series, on the other hand, offers a delicious Matcha with fusion of smooth iced milk ribbons milk tea and high quality flavors showered with complimentary toppings like fresh diced mangoes, beans, jams, belgian chocolate syrup, and sweet La + Tearia is located at Leon condensed milk.

Guinto St. Malate, Manila.

BITES

Bubbly chocolate

CADBURy Dairy Milk offers a new chocolate experience with bursts of bubbles inside the chocolate bar.

The new Cadbury Dairy Milk Bubbly is an aerated milk chocolate bar that combines the lightness of its texture and the richness of chocolate.

The Taste of Tokyo, a Japanese-style Katsu Steak Sandwich.

Fresh Oysters

Tuna Tartare Crostini

It’s now available at leading supermarkets and convenience stores at P70.45 for 50g and Cadbury Dairy Milk Bubbly P152.50 for 150g.

Entertainment

MONDAY, APRIL 29, 2019

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nickie.standard@gmail.com

Caviteño competes in Mr. Gay World 2019

By Eton Concepcion

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USINESSMAN and real estate practitioner John Jeffrey ‘Janjep’ Carlos, a 41-year-old Hotel and Restaurant Management graduate from Cavite State University will try to duplicate John Raspado’s win two years ago when he vies for the Mr. Gay World 2019 title in Cape Town, South Africa on May 5.

GMA...

From C4

Mental health advocate Janjep Carlos is representing the Philippines in the 2019 edition of Mr. Gay World happening in Cape Town, South Africa.

Carlos won the Mr. Fahrenheit 2019 search to gain an automatic berth to the Mr. Gay World contest. He will in the international tilt campaigning on his mental health awareness advocacy #IllnessTo Wellness.

He has recently partnered with Mental Health PH, an organization that promotes mental health awareness throughout social media, and had visited Cape Mental Health in South Africa, a mental rehabilitation facility catering to impoverished communities.

“Be informed. Reach out to people suffering from depression. Together we can turn this illness to wellness. I hope to carry my advocacy on the global level,” Carlos tried to convey.

“My vision is not just to live but to exist. I promise that I will give my best to represent my country well and to make my countrymen proud of me. I think I am the best representative of the Philippines because I always work hard on all the tasks I am committed with. I will also carry the hope of people with depression because I think depression is real. I will be needing, though, your much love and support in my quest at Mr. Gay World 2019,” Carlos added.

Mr. Gay World delegates will compete in formal wear, swimwear, and cultural costume and will be judged on how they could best help the LGBTQ community on social platforms.Jordan Bruno of Australia, a reality TV chef, and cookbook author is the reigning titlist. Mr. Gay World 2019 was moved from Hong Kong to South Africa following an announcement from the Chinese organizing company that they could not proceed from hosting the event in view of the clampdown on LGBTQ events by Chinese authorities.

Manila’s First Ever In-train TV Network PHAR Philippines launches TUBE, Manila’s first ever in-train TV network, which offers informative, entertaining, and inspiring content to the 1.3 million commuting public via 1000+ TUBE LED screens installed in the LRT-1, LRT-2, and MRT-3 lines.

TUBE not only features a real-time Passenger Information System with GPS-triggered alerts, TUBE also gives the riders an audio and visual treat with TUBE-exclusive content in the form of one-minute mini-episodes from a select roster of online content creators.

Included in the TUBE influencer line up are Michelle Dy, Micah Louisse, Carlo Ople, Jeremy Kruis, Air Lajada, Richie Zamora, Prince de Guzman, and Julz Savard. The mini-episodes cover a diverse range

TUBE Influencers Air Lajada and Micah Louisse, Ms. Gladys Basinilio of Starcom MediaVest Group, Mr. Prem Bhatia of PHAR Partnerships, and Host Karla Aguas.

of topics like lifestyle, grooming and style, travel, gaming, sports, and in the future, to name a few.

“TUBE is going to change the

CROSSWORD PUZZLE Monday, April 29, 2019

ACROSS 1 San — Padres 6 Big fights 10 Artificial, as pearls 14 Big computer key 15 Jump over 16 Author — Rice 17 Speed up 19 Invent a word 20 Cheerleader’s yell 21 Every one 22 Falcons’ town 24 Catty 26 Feeling low 27 Naval force 30 Mentor’s concern 34 “Hasta —!”

35 Bright crescents 36 Baseball’s Mel — 38 She, in Seville 39 Imported auto 40 Not mine 41 Watch 42 Type of knife 43 Housing choice 44 Let go 46 Victorian garment 47 Chatty alien of TV 48 Spell of indulgence 50 Opens a gift

54 Flair for music 55 Ginnie or Fannie 58 Skimmed through 59 Waker-upper (2 wds.)

62 Put cargo on board 63 Forbidden (hyph.)

64 Creepy 65 Tumult 66 Actor — Connery 67 Smooths DOWN 1 Treasured 2 Peruvian of old 3 Write on glass 4 Mild expletive 5 “As You Like It” hero 6 Universe 7 Rx writers org.

8 Actress Moreno 9 Rodeo hats 10 Building’s front 11 Unknown auth.

12 Army outfit 13 Warrior princess 18 He directed Marlon 23 Back muscles, briefly 24 Heroic tale 25 Glues

27 Brewery products 28 Desk-drawer item 29 Skirmish 31 No gentleman 32 Hoodlums 33 Piano exercise 35 Kitten’s comments 37 Quick pace 39 Baker’s containers (2 wds.)

40 Long ago 42 Lugosi of

“Dracula” 43 Forces 45 Supply of food 46 Stuff 49 Madonna role 50 WWW addresses 51 Fastidious 52 Dry watercourse 53 Kind of gin 55 Dawn, to a poet 56 Tart 57 Barely manages 60 Turkish official 61 Grassy field

rules of engagement as far as media consumption is concerned. With 1.3 million passengers commuting every day, TUBE rivals the major television

channels’ reach in the NCR. We work extensively with governments and transport operators in Asia and we can quite confidently say that TUBE is the best passenger information system we have seen. Sprinkle some cutting edge content creators and you have something special in the making.” Prem Bhatia, Managing Director Asia of PHAR Partnerships During the launch, there was a panel discussion on TUBE with Prem Bhatia Managing Director Asia of PHAR Partnerships, Gladys Basinilio Chief Growth Officer of Starcom MediaVest Group, and TUBE Influencers Micah Louisse, and Air Lajada. There were other TUBEfluencers like Ritchie Zamora who joined in the festivities and hosted the fun quiz bee.

Anchored by Bobby Nalzaro, with Alan Domingo and Cecille Quibod-Castro, Balitang Bisdak features comprehensive and in-depth delivery of news and information in Cebu and key cities and provinces in Central and Eastern Visayas.

GMA Regional TV also earned five awards at the 3rd Annual Aninaw Media Awards by the PHINMA University of Pangasinan’s Communication Arts Department.

North Central Luzon’s toprating local news program Balitang Amianan once again triumphed as this year’s Best News Program. Its anchor, CJ Torida, was conferred the Most Outstanding News Presenter of the Year (Male Category) award. He also won as the Most Popular TV Personality of the Year. Jasmin Gabriel-Galban was named as Most Outstanding News Presenter of the Year, while Russel Simorio took home the Best Field Reporter award.

“I congratulate all the winners from GMA Regional TV for continuing to excel on their craft,” says GMA Regional TV Vice President and Head Oliver Amoroso. “We, at GMA Regional TV, always say that local news matters.

These awards just validate how important regional newscasts are and how our regional viewers have continued to support us in all our unified news programs.”

Amoroso says that while most challenging, unifying newscasts has been the most rewarding experience for them in GMA Regional TV. “Balitang Amianan , our unified newscast that covers North Central Luzon, remains undisputed in the ratings game. Balitang Bisdak in Central and Eastern Visayas has already beaten its counterpart. Meanwhile, One Mindanao has narrowed the gap on the competition. And our pioneering unified Hiligaynon local news program, One Western Visayas, continues to dominate its timeslot—less than a year after its launch. We owe all our success to our loyal Kapuso viewers and the men and women who make up the whole GMA Regional TV. Rest assured that we will not rest on our laurels but continue to provide quality programs all over the Philippines,” he ends.

Very Wang...

From C4

“We are honored and grateful for this award as we see it as not only a recognition of the quality of our digital marketing work but more importantly an acknowledgment of our company’s continuing effort to enhance our services to our customers,” DMCI Homes Digital Unit Head Fritz Geremia said.

The redesigned website was launched in March this year to address the needs and concerns of both property hunters and unit owners.

DMCI Homes restructured its website by using the behavior of visitors, enhanced tools, and intuitive search functions to promote a more engaging user experience.

These features include a virtually live unit availability summary which gives users an idea on the current available units.

Geography-based targeting campaigns, meanwhile, show properties to visitors based on their preferred or current location.

Likewise, the Compare Properties feature has been further enhanced by allowing users to compare available units so they can choose the one that is the best fit for their needs.

DMCI Homes and other winners of the 2019 Asia-Pacific Stevie® Awards from the 29 nations of the Asia Pacific region are set to receive their awards on May 31 at the InterContinental Hotel in Singapore.

Entertainment

Nickie Wang, Issue Editor nickie.standard@gmail.com

C4

MONDAY, APRIL 29, 2019

VERY WANG

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NICKIE WANG

ROUNDBREAKING is nothing but a suitable word to describe ABS-CBN’s newest drama Sino Ang May Sala?: Mea Culpa, which premieres today.

Last week, Dreamscape invited members of the entertainment press to the screening of the series’ special cut, which some scenes, I guess, wouldn’t be shown on television. But before the event began, everyone panicked when the ground started moving. Apparently, a 6.1 magnitude tremblor was rocking parts of Luzon.

Everyone in ABS-CBN’s ELJ Building had to leave the complex and huddled outside, on the street in front of the PBB house. We couldn’t go home as well because of the traffic situation and since I live in a high-rise building, I was told that tenants were also asked to stay outside the condominium for a few hours. So, I just waited for an announcement. We waited for nearly two hours before we were told that it’s safe to return inside Dolphy Theater, the event’s venue.

Imagine watching an intense movielike series and still thinking about the quake, which could have triggered a strong aftershock that can be felt in the metro. But just five minutes into the crime drama, which stars Jody Sta. Maria and Bela Padilla and bold millennial actors Tony Labrusca, Kit Thompson, Sandino Martin, Ivana Alawi, and Ketchup Eusebio, I started to forget about the tremor. That’s how

Intense, well-acted crime drama begins telecast Lead stars Jodi Sta. Maria (right) and Bela Padilla battle for love and justice in 'Sino Ang May Sala,' which premieres tonight on primetime.

'Sino Ang May Sala' lead cast (from left) Ketchup Eusebio, Kit Thompson, Ivana Alawi, Jodi Sta. Maria, Bela Padilla, Tony Labrusca, and Sandino Martin pose for the cameras during the crime drama's grand media launch.

engaging the special cut was.

In Sino Ang May Sala?: Mea Culpa, Jodi plays Fina, a hardworking farmer who hopes to give her family a better future, and later on looks for and fights for her missing child. She clashes with

Bela, who plays a lawyer who covers up a crime.

Their real-life nightmare begins when Juris (Bela), Andrei (Tony), Gaylord (Sandino), Greco (Kit), Lolita (Ivana), and Bogs (Ketchup) travel to Baguio to

celebrate after passing the bar.

The road trip takes a disastrous turn that will compromise their future – they get into an accident that will separate Fina from her child, while Juris takes on adopting and raising the little girl.

Fox’s horror-thriller delves into demonic possessions HOME to the most popular series and Hollywood movies, FOX is about to delight viewers yet again with its newest must-watch.

Fox Networks Group Philippines is poised to give cinemagoers a good scare with its first-ever locally-produced horror film Maledicto, which unspools on Labor Day. Co-produced by Cignal Entertainment and Unitel, and directed by Mark Meily, Maledicto is a chilling tale that gets under your skin.

“Maledicto is a really big feat for FNG, being the first ever film we’ve produced locally, with an all-Filipino cast at that. With Maledicto under our belt, we’re hoping to elevate Filipino cinema to one of a Hollywood pedigree,” Senior Vice President and General Manager of FOX Networks Group Philippines, Jude Turcuato, shares his excitement for the upcoming film.

Cignal Entertainment President & CEO Jane Basas shares the same sentiment and says, “With Maledicto, we hope to offer a different flavor of horror to Filipino viewers who deserve a better and more exciting offering from this genre.

Aside from its unique and thought-provoking story, the audience will also be on the edge of their seats

with Maledicto’s Hollywood-level set production and special effects.”

Maledicto stars Tom Rodriguez as Father Xavi, a former psychologist who becomes a skeptical exorcist following the tragic death of his sister, Mara (played by Inah de Belen). He meets Sister Barbie (played by Jasmine Curtis-Smith), a young nun who has the gift of charism. Together, they face the case of Agnes (Miles Ocampo), a seemingly perfect teenager who starts manifesting demonic behavior that rocks the foundations of the church.

Other cast members include Eric Quizon, Martin Escudero, Franco Laurel, Nonie Buencamino, Liza Lorena, and Menggie Cobarrubias.

The lead actors have also expressed enthusiasm on being part of FOX’s first film, saying it was an opportunity to play roles that stray from the norm of romance and love teams. They have happily accepted the challenge, and are excited to bring the characters to life.

Turcuato adds, “We have always prided ourselves in creating original content that would speak to our audience on a personal level, and I feel that Maledicto will do just that because faith and belief are things that are innate in almost everyone. More than a horror movie, it is an invitation to look inside ourselves and assess what we truly believe in. We hope that this film will offer a fresh perspective.”

Inah de Belen plays a minor but pivotal role in summer hollow thriller, 'Maledicto.'

DMCI Homes website

GMA Regional TV’s newscasts, news personalities lauded anew GMA Regional TV, the regional arm of media giant GMA Network, kicked off 2019 by earning the nod of various awardgiving bodies for its quality programs and commendable personalities.

At the recent Gandingan 2019: The 13th UPLB Isko’t Iska’s Multi-media Awards by the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB), GMA Regional TV took home three awards.

Western Visayas local newscast One Western Visayas won as the Most Development-Oriented News Story for “GMA Regional TV Presents: Modern Day Heroes.”

At the same time, the newscast’s Bigyan ng Halaga emerged as the Most DevelopmentOriented Feature Story. Both stories were produced by One Western Visayas correspondent Zeny Grace Quilantang together with Video Journalist Rommel Porquia.

Launched in August 2018, One Western Visayas is GMA Regional TV’s pioneering Hiligaynon news program anchored by Atty. Sedfrey Cabaluna with Bacolod co-anchor and correspondent Adrian Prietos, and Iloilo coanchor Kaitlene Rivilla.

Meanwhile, for the second consecutive year, Balitang Bisdak correspondent Lou-Anne Mae Rondina was named Best Field Reporter.

“I am extremely honored to be receiving the Best Field Reporter,” Rondina said, adding that “I am sure each and every nominee for this award is as capable or if not more of this award.” Continued on C3

They keep their dark secret hidden in the grave up until construction unearths a rotting corpse. Because of the news, Fina gets her hopes up, starts to believe that her daughter is still alive, and embarks on a search for her.

The controversial case then sparks a dispute between the two mothers— Fina believes her daughter is with Juris, who, in turn, defends herself against the accusation in order to keep the child she has raised and come to love.

Does Fina stand a chance to obtain justice against the five successful lawyers? Will she ever be reunited with her daughter? How long will Juris and her friends hide the truth?

Also part of the Sino Ang May Sala?: Mea Culpa cast are seasoned actors Agot Isidro, Janice de Belen, Ayen Munji-Laurel, Jay Manalo, Allan Paule, and Boboy Garovillo. It is under the production of Dreamscape Entertainment and directed by Andoy Ranay and Dan Villegas. *** DMCI Homes bags gold in Stevie Awards Premier Quadruple A developer DMCI Homes has gained international recognition for its innovative website www.dmcihomes.com, winning the Gold Award in the Innovation in Business Information or Application Websites category of the sixth annual Asia-Pacific Stevie® Awards.

The Asia-Pacific Stevie® Awards, the only awards program to recognize innovation in business throughout the entire Asia-Pacific region, commended DMCI Homes for its website innovations, which were geared to improve user experience.

More than its enhanced design, engaging content, and interactive features, judges cited the easy access of information by users as a key element of the website as it is seen to benefit business in the long run by attracting more visitors to the portal. Continued on C3