Manila Standard - 2019 June 6 - Thursday

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VOL. XXXIII • NO. 112 • 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P18 • THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Quick caucus Visayas lawmakers flex muscles for Romualdez averts Senate ‘tug of war’

By Maricel V. Cruz

By Macon Ramos-Araneta TO thwart the looming “tug of war” over committee chairmanships, members of the so-called super majority in the Senate listed their preferred committees during a dinner-meeting in the Dasmariñas residence of Senator Manny Pacquiao in Makati City Wednesday.

“We just made lists but it looks like Senate President [Vicente Sotto III] has fixed the problems on the committees,” said Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri, speaking in Filipino.

Senator Joel Villanueva described the gathering as quick.

“SP (Senate President) talked about the Senate, its tradition and culture and the importance of independence. Also respect,” said Villanueva.

Also present in the meeting were Zubiri, Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto, Villanueva, and Senators Sherwin Gatchalian and Grace Poe and outgoing Senators Loren Legarda, Gregorio Honasan, and reelected Senators Juan Edgardo Angara and Nancy Binay.

Newly-elected Senators Ronald dela Rosa, Francis Tolentino, Christopher Go, Imee Marcos and returning Senators Bong Revilla and Lito Lapid were also present.

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THE Visayan Bloc on Tuesday agreed to vote for a common candidate for speaker of the incoming 18th Congress, hinting that Leyte Rep.-elect Martin Romualdez will likely be their bet for the House’s top post.

In a closed-door meeting presided by Negros Occidental Rep. Albee Benitez, convenor of the organization of congress-

men from the Visayas, the lawmakers agreed to meet again next month to choose whom to support in the speakership race.

“The Visayan Bloc has demonstrated how unity works in the pursuit of a common legislative agenda for the Visayas region. Unanimity in purpose will be our way of choosing the next speaker,’’ Benitez told reporters.

He said the “Visayan Bloc members vowed to take a united stand in choosing

who will lead the Lower House in the next Congress.”

Romualdez on Wednesday said he remained committed to advancing the constitutional reforms during the next Congress to sustain the country’s economic growth.

Romualdez, a lawyer and president of the Philippine Constitution Association, said the incoming House leadership must Next page

Ferdinand Martin Romualdez

Dogs guard airports to keep ASF in check

Sin tax hike will make Filipinos healthier—DOH

Agri chief seeks luggage inspection

LAST RITES.

Vietnamese officials, in this photograph taken on May 27, 2019, are spraying disinfectant on a dead porker at a farm in the capital Hanoi before burying it in an isolated quarantined pit in efforts to stop the spread of African swine rever. Millions of pigs have been killed as ASF has cut through China and beyond. AFP

By Joel E. Zurbano and Butch Gunio

T

HE Department of Agriculture has started sending trained sniffing dogs to airport terminals to prevent the entry of meat contaminated with African swine fever.

By Macon Ramos-Araneta THE approval by Congress of a bill to impose higher excise taxes on cigarettes will make the Philippines one of the healthiest countries in Asia by 2040, Health Secretary Francisco Duque said Wednesday.

He said the new law would fulfill President Rodrigo Duterte’s twin goals of keeping all Filipinos healthy and providing the sick quality and affordable health care.

“This is not a rocket science. When the prices of cigarettes and alcohol are higher, it is harder especially for the youth to buy these very harmful products. We can only reduce consumption by making these ‘sin’ products less affordable to consumers.”

He said revenues from sin taxes provide the much-needed financing to help reform the health sector, deliver PhilHeatlh coverage to poor Filipinos, scale up the Department of Health’s non-communicable disease prevention services and extend help to the country’s tobacco farmers.

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On Tuesday, Secretary Emmanuel Piñol made a surprise visit to quarantine personnel at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2 and came with sniffing canines.

Piñol inspected and observed how his men from the Bureau of Animal Industry handled the monitoring of luggage of incoming passengers from countries affected by ASF. He said he would provide some 45 meat sniffing dogs in major airports in the country to prevent the entry of fresh, frozen, cooked or uncooked animal meat and its processed meat coming from the affected regions.

Piñol said the entry of different plants and soil without phyto-sanitary permit are also not acceptable and he alerted fisheries personnel to be more alert on the smuggling of endangered species.

He directed quarantine officials and personnel to be more vigilant and coordinate closely with Bureau of Customs personnel who will help determine which pieces of Next page

Rody, rest of PH mark Eid’l Fitr

Hybrid polls in lieu of Smartmatic VCMs

By Nat Mariano and Macon Ramos-Araneta AS MUSLIMS throughout the world celebrated the end of the holy month of Ramadan, President Rodrigo Duterte urged Filipinos to become “instruments of love, sacrifice, respect and selfless service.”

In his message to celebrate Eid’l Fitr, Duterte said the Filipinos were joining their the Muslim brothers and sisters across the globe in observing the holy commemoration.

He said Eid’l Fitr, or the Festival of Breaking the Fast, is “a solemn occasion that binds the Muslim community together.”

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THE Department of Information and Communications Technology wants an “automated manual counting” system for the 2022 elections so the winning candidates will be known five hours after the polling precincts close, Acting Secretary Eliseo Rio Jr. said Wednesday.

He said his department is now

NTC to telcos: Open CPs post lock-in THE National Telecommunications Commission has released guidelines that mandate the unlocking of mobile phones by subscribers after the expiration of their lock-in period with mobile network operators.

This allows mobile phone subscribers to switch from one wireless service pro-

Toy story: A tale of techno evolution BREAKING THE FAST. Filipino men, women and children of the Islamic faith participate in the religious holiday at the Quirino Grandstand in Manila’s Luneta Park—the Eid al-Fitr—celebrated by Muslims worldwide as the end of Ramadan, the holy month of fasting, the conclusion of the 29 or 30 days of dawn-to-sunset fasting during the entire month. Lino Santos

studying how to speed up the manual counting at the precinct level, remove the need to tally votes on blackboards and lessen the number of board of canvassers.

“Hybrid po more or less. Automated yung manual counting, ibig sabihin pinabilis ng teknolohiya yung pagbilang,” Rio told Dobol B sa News TV. Next page

EMERYVILLE, United States—Before it made “Toy Story” in 1995, the longest video Pixar had ever created lasted just five minutes. It didn’t have an art or a screenplay department, and had fewer than 20 people on its payroll.

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vider to another.

“Mobile phone and device users, after having complied with the terms and conditions of the subscription agreement within the agreed lock-in period and are the absolute owners of the mobile phones or devices, should have the option of Next page

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News

THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019

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PH foregoes air travel for ‘climate’ events

By Rey E. Requejo FOREIGN Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. on Wednesday said the Philippine would no longer attend official climate change conferences that would require air travel.

Locsin made the statement after President Rodrigo Duterte himself expressed no interest in taking another stronger stand against climate change and even questioned the rationale of participating in international talks about the matter when no entity could enforce the laws governing climate.

“Following Duterte’s answer to UN’s plea for yet another stronger stand against climate change—which he branded as more hot air—I am rejecting all official participation in climate change conferences requiring air travel,” Locsin said in a Twitter post.

“We’ll just vote Yes to radical proposals.

No more talk,” the top diplomat stressed.

Duterte earlier said he once had a roundtable discussion with United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres where he expressed his misgivings about climate change conferences.

“I said to the body: Let’s stop kidding each other or else we are just wasting the time and the money of the people coming back and forth to these conferences, which has not improved a bit since we started to talk about it as it was maybe the noisy scientists,” the President had said.

In 2015, the Philippines, along with almost 200 countries, committed to cut down the global greenhouse gas emission.

According to Duterte, the agreement could be a farce, particularly if developed countries would not honor their obligations under the pact.

Nonetheless, the President was convinced by his Cabinet members to sign the Paris Agreement on Climate Change in 2017.

HUDCC chief urges COA to allow fund diversion

H

OUSING and Urban Development Coordinating Council chairman Eduardo del Rosario said Wednesday that he would appeal to the Commission on Audit to allow the transfer of P5 million worth of Marawi rehabilitation funds to pay for a 2018 Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca.

Del Rosario, who also chairs Task Force Bangon Marawi, made this remark after the COA tagged the fund transfer as “not among the authorized expenses” in the agreement signed between the Office of the President and the HUDCC. In its audit report, COA said the HUDCC diverted the P5 million worth of Marawi rehabilitation funds to the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos.

The amount was taken from the P500million fund of the OP, which it allocated to HUDCC for Marawi City rehabilitation projects, it added.

“We are writing an appeal to COA not to disallow this vital transaction, and besides, the P5 million was properly dispensed by NCMF,” Del Rosario said in a message to reporters.

He insisted that the Hajj pilgrimage, which he described as “part of the social healing process,” is also part of the over-all rehabilitation of war-torn Marawi City.

“Hajj is a solemn obligation and wish of every Muslim. It is so important to them that social healing is envisioned in the process,” he said.

Del Rosario noted that a raffle was con-

ducted to select internally displaced persons (IDPs) who were “luckily picked” to join the Hajj pilgrimage.

“We sponsored IDPs who were then living in the evacuation centers and transitional shelter,” he added.

Under the deal, he said the NCMF will facilitate the processing of travel documents, payment of airfares and billeting while the IDPs stay in Saudi Arabia for a month.

Hajj, one of the five pillars of Islam, is the pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia, which every adult Muslim must make at least once in his or her lifetime.

On Tuesday, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said he may consider asking the HUDCC to explain the P5 million it diverted to NCMF. Panelo warned that if the COA audit report is true, then HUDCC could face raps for technical malversation. PNA

Energy chief: Speed up CSP bidding for power deals ENERGY Secretary Alfonso Cusi has affirmed the recent Supreme Court decision mandating the Competitive Selection Process in the public bidding of power supply agreements.

“All affected power industry players must catch up and push under the CSP, those stalled supply agreements for the next 23 years,” he said.

The Supreme Court decision maintained that “all Power Supply Agreement (PSA) applications submitted by Distribution Utilities (DUs) to the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) on or after 30 June 2015 shall comply with the Competitive Selection Process” was welcomed by the DOE.

Cusi said that the government will ensure the compliance of all affected parties in the energy sector to the SC ruling, with the DOE taking the lead in prodding industry stakeholders to expedite the CSP bidding of stalled power supply PSA applications of Meralco and other distribution utilities.

The Energy chief has emphasized that the High Court’s ruling is a nod to the DOE’s “longstanding conviction on the fundamental role of the CSP as a mechanism to ensure transparency and fair competition in the procurement of our power supply. It was designed to protect the consuming public from power rate spikes, passon charges, and avert predatory practices.”

Cusi reiterated the government’s respon-

sibility to uphold and protect the right of the Filipino people to receive the full benefits of the country’s liberalized electric power industry, as envisioned by the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA).

He again underscored the wisdom of the EPIRA in providing for the deregulated and demonopolized generation and distribution of power as a means to “yield the delivery of the best services at the least cost to our consumers.”

Consultative meetings with the concerned stakeholders are already under way, with the DOE also requiring all Distribution Utilities to submit annual supply demand projections to demonstrate the sufficiency of their supplemental power supply levels in the coming years.

luggage contain meat and meat products through their X-ray machines.

“The ASF threat is real, we have to protect our farmers from virus like this,” said Piñol.

Sniffing dogs are now seen roaming airport terminals to detect contaminated or unsafe meat inside the luggage of arriving air travelers.

BAI director Ronnie Domingo said they are going to ask passengers to surrender the meat they would be bringing in into the country or face penalties.

If caught, violators of the meat quarantine protocol are liable for penalties of P50,000 or up to P200,000.

Imported meat products will be allowed in the country if the importers have secured phyto-sanitary permit from the port of origin, otherwise the meat will be confiscated, and will be condemned.

The prohibitions extended to bringing in plant and animal products without sanitary and phyto-sanitary permits.

In September and October last year, cases of pork meat products contamination were recorded in Korea and Japan through dumplings and hotdogs products.

BAI said an outbreak of the virus can affect the 40 million plus live hogs or pigs in the Philippines and can destroy the P2-billion swine industry.

To safeguard against the epidemic, BAI personnel and Port of NAIA officials initiated briefings and information dissemination to Customs NAIA frontliners of Terminals 1, 2

and 3 to strengthen the vigilance against the African swine fever.

Port authorities in Subic Bay, meanwhile, have confiscated some P600,000 worth of meat products that recently arrived from China, one of the countries affected by ASF. Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority Chairman Wilma T. Eisma said the meat shipment was seized after authorities learned it was shipped from Guangzhou, China.

“It was immediately flagged by the quarantine officer from the Department of Agriculture, and then the Bureau of Customs confiscated the shipment,” Eisma said.

She said the confiscated meat will be immediately destroyed, as recommended by the Bureau of Quarantine Services, with the Bureau of Animal Industry disposing of it at the expense of the consignee.

Eisma said the Port of Subic has been on the lookout for pork products after the government called for strict monitoring in all ports to prevent the entry into the country of pork products contaminated with ASF. Jerome Martinez, manager of the SBMA Seaport Department, said the Chinese meat products were shipped in a refrigerated van aboard MV Hansa Altenburg, a container ship that arrived in Subic on May 27.

The container van was declared to contain 2,385 packages of “food items” that were consigned to a trading corporation based in Makati City.

Martinez said the meat shipment had a dutiable value of P591,817.90.

He added that the confiscated meat will be injected with chemicals and then buried underground.

The World Organization for Animal health (OIE) has declared ASF to be a highly-contagious hemorrhagic viral disease affecting domestic and wild pigs.

Experts say that while ASF and classical swine fever (CSF) may have similar signs, the ASF virus is unrelated to the CSF virus.

The Food and Drug Administration last week ordered the recall and seizure of imported pork meat products from countries suspected to be affected by the ASF virus.

These are China, Hungary, Latvia, Poland, Romania, Russia, Ukraine, Vietnam, Zambia, South Africa, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Mongolia, Moldova, and Belgium.

In Vietnam, millions of pigs have been culled as African swine fever cuts through China and beyond, devastating global food chains, with pork prices expected to soar from the food markets of Hong Kong to American dinner tables.

Outbreaks have been reported in Vietnam, Mongolia, Cambodia, Hong Kong and China— the world’s biggest pork producer and consumer.

Experts warn it could take years to contain the hog-killing virus given the differing biosecurity standards on commercial pig farms and backyard smallholdings across Asia.

Checkpoints, sniffer dogs and strict import bans have been deployed in a desperate bid to control its spread.

But the disease has already hit most provinces in China, reducing pork production by 30 percent according to some estimates.

Beijing’s official statistics say around 1million pigs have been killed since the first outbreak in August last year—but that is widely considered to be an underestimate.

Live pig prices are up by around 40 percent year-

on-year in China, and pork imports from Europe, Canada and Brazil into the country are climbing.

Beef and poultry exports are also on the rise as suppliers scramble to fill the deficit in a region where pork is the staple protein—fried, grilled, boiled and eaten by tens of millions each day in noodle bowls and rice dishes.

Some Asian consumers have already started paying more for pork.

And America is also soon expected to feel the pinch—likely around Christmas when people buy holiday hams.

“The price impact will be sizable,” said Christine McCracken, senior animal protein analyst at Rabobank, speaking from the US. She estimates that 200 million pigs could be culled in China—more than half the swine population in the country, which supplies around 50 percent of the world’s pork.

Losing that many pigs could cause global pork supplies to dip by eight percent, McCracken said.

Nguyen Van Duoc poured his life savings into raising pigs, one of hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese smallholder farmers bearing the brunt of the virus, which is not infectious in humans but has no cure or vaccine.

His herd of 36 was culled after swine fever was detected at his backyard farm on the outskirts of Hanoi.

“Our family is devastated,” said Duoc, who borrowed thousands of dollars to get started.

“We relied on income from the pigs for my kids’ schooling,” the 50-year-old said after his animals were killed and dumped into a burial pit.

Along with China, Vietnam has been the worst hit by swine fever, but the country exports very little of its pork. With AFP

Toy story:...

From A1

Quick...

From A1

A lot has changed in the past 24 years for what is now the world’s largest animation studio.

And the saga of the beloved toy gang led

by Woody and Buzz Lightyear—the fourth installment of which is soon to hit screens around the globe—is the perfect guide to that transformation.

Today, Pixar has 1,247 employees, and with each new film it has modernized its RenderMan computer program, bringing its animated images closer and closer to reallife accuracy.

“Plastic was our friend—it was the only material our program handled well,” Bill Reeves, technology supervisor and Pixar employee since 1986, said at a presentation about the original movie at the studios in Emeryville, just outside San Francisco.

Production designer Bob Polly recalled at the event how in the first two installments of the saga, animating human characters was especially difficult.

“Over the years, we’ve improved. The tools are better and I think we’ve reached a point where they’re much more attractive and less strange,” said Polly, who began working at Pixar in 1993.

The clearest example is Andy, the toys’ young owner in the earlier films.

From the first movie to the third, the change in his animation is radical: the latest version of Andy has life-like hair and facial expressions, and much more realistic movement.

Bret Parker—who joined Pixar in 1996 and has worked on the animation of Woody, Buzz and many other characters over the four films—said she loves the early movies even if their graphics now look somewhat outdated.

“Sometimes I say to myself, ‘If only we had this technology that we have now, we would have made them richer, more complete,’” she told AFP. Rain is another example—the fourth film opens in a storm that seems remarkably real, far from the rough renderings of a downpour in the first movie. AFP

Dela Rosa, Tolentino and Go, all members of the ruling PDP-Laban, had met earlier with Sotto, but there were no details of what they discussed.

Senator Aquilino Pimentel III, president of the ruling Partido Demokratiko PilipinoLaban, did not attend.

Other members of the supermajority bloc who were also absent from the meeting were Senators Richard Gordon, Cynthia Villar, JV Ejercito and Panfilo Lacson.

Villar said she could not go because of a prior appointment, but said the Nacionalista Party was represented by Marcos.

Lacson had earlier informed the group that he could not make it due to his birthday celebration.

Newly-elected Senator Pia Cayetano is abroad.

None of the minority bloc were there.

Independent Senators Grace Poe and Francis Escudero were also a no-show.

Sotto and the other senators have not yet

released the chairmanships of the Senate committees based on the choice of the senators who were present in the dinner meeting.

Tolentino had earlier aired his desire to take over the chairmanship of the Blue Ribbon committee from Gordon. The latter, however, said he would not give up his committee, citing the “equity of the incumbent.”

Poe, incumbent chairperson of the public service committee, has also aired her desire to head Gordon’s committee.

Three senators—Gatchalian, Villanueva and Marcos—wanted to have the education committee since Escudero’s term will expire on June 30.

Villar said she wants to keep the chairmanship of the agriculture and food committee and the environment and natural resources committee to continue her advocacies.

Lacson said he is ready to turn over the chairmanship of the public order and dangerous drugs to Dela Rosa as he will succeed Honasan, who is also among the graduating senators as chair of the defense committee.

Earlier, six senators whose terms end this month bid their colleagues goodbye Wednesday, the last day of the 17th Congress, even as

Sotto highlighted the chamber’s achievements and its independence from the other branches of government.

Leaving the Senate are Senators Loren Legarda, Escudero, Honasan, Antonio Trillanes IV, Paolo Benigno Aquino IV and JV Ejercito, with the last two failing to win reelection.

Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon, vice president of the Liberal Party, acknowledged Sotto for having been fair to the minority.

“We were not treated differently... (we were treated) just like the majority. What was important, we were respected as the minority. No bills were railroaded. Our role as the minority was respected,” Drilon said.

Lacson noted that in all his 15 years in the Senate, best camraderie among the senators happened under Sotto’s leadership.

“In all my 15 years in the Senate, this batch is above par in camaraderie, both majority and minority, regardless of some tense moments on the floor,” Lacson said.

“I attribute this atmosphere mostly to the leadership style of SP Sotto, and I am not trying to be generous to him when I say this,” he added.

Dogs...

From A1

Hybrid...

From A1 “Ang [concern] lang namin is paano pabibilisin yung manual counting, paano i-automate yun na makikita ng tao yung pagbilang ng each and every ballot.

“Of course yung manual counting natin dati umaabot ng araw, papakita namin dito na puwede yung manual counting na mabilis. It can be done in five hours.”

Rio said they will present a prototype of the hybrid system to the public and submit it for the consideration of the Commission on Elections, where the DICT serves as chairman of its advisory council.

Rio says manual counting may be dated, but it removes doubt on the transparency of vote transmission, especially amid the questions on the performance of poll technology provider Smartmatic in the past elections.

“Yung transparency ang isang bagay

kung bakit yung tao ngayon ay nagdududa sa Smartmatic... ang isang problema yung pagbilang nung ating mga pagboto ay machine na. Nagdedepende na tayo sa machine na ito yung bilang niya. Doon siguro puwede tayo makapag-improve sa sistema,” Rio said.

The hybrid system is also cheaper, according to Rio, adding selling all the old vote-counting machines of the Comelec at half the price could already shoulder the cost of the new system.

Rio said the system could lessen congestion by removing the clustered precincts and return to the old concept where each precinct only had around 200 to 500 registered voters.

The DICT study comes after President Rodrigo Duterte, in a speech before the Filipino community in Japan, urged the Comelec to get rid of Smartmatic, which has been supplying the country’s automated election system since 2010, and get a “fraudfree” contractor.

NTC...

From A1 changing between compatible wireless service providers, giving the consumer greater freedom and flexibility while increasing incentives for service providers to improve and innovate,” the NTC said in Memorandum Circular 01-05-2019 dated May 31.

Public telecommunications entities (PTEs) must post on their websites their policy on mobile phone or device unlocking.

For postpaid subscribers, PTEs, upon request, shall unlock mobile phones or provide the necessary information on unlocking to mobile device users after the completion of their prepaid service contracts, device financing plan, or payment of early termination fees.

Notice to prepaid customers may occur at the point of sale, at the time of eligibility, or through a clear and concise statement of the policy on the PTE’s website. PNA

Sin tax...

From A1 President Rodrigo Duterte signed the UHC program into law last February to ensure a better, healthier life for Filipinos, which is in line with his agenda to build a healthier nation.

The reforms provided under the UHC Law, Duque said, will ensure health insurance coverage and expand benefit packages particularly for outpatient consultation and medicines for all Filipinos.

But the government funds are not enough to fulfill the financing requirements beginning 2020. He said this was the need for the new sin tax increase.

Dr. Antonio Dans of the UP College of Medicine said calculations show that the increase would ensure there would be no more rise in the total number of smokers in the country until at least 2022.

This was echoed by former PhilHealth director Anthony Leachon who said raising the taxes on cigarettes is known to be one of the most effective measures to lower smoking prevalence.

Dans said multiple studies have shown that the top 10 causes of death as listed by the Philippine Statistics Authority are all linked to smoking cigarettes, a deadly product.

The use of this deadly product, Leachon said, has led to debilitating disease and even death for many Filipinos.

Dans and Leachon, the lead conveners of the Sin Tax Coalition, have been leading health advocates in the call to stop smoking and calling on lawmakers to raise sin taxes to address the funding shortfall in the implementation of UHC. They commended lawmakers who have stood their ground in putting the health and welfare of the Filipino people above any interests, particularly in a product that causes nothing but harm to users and non-users alike.

Senator Juan Edgardo Angara, chairman of the Senate ways and means committee, which heard the bills on the proposed increase in cigarette taxes filed by Senators JV Ejercito, Sherwin Gatchalian and Manny Pacquiao asserted that the tax increase would be crucial in bridging the P62-bilion funding gap for the first year of UHC implementation.

As one of the principal authors of the Tobacco Tax Increase, Pacquiao said he was overjoyed that their efforts have finally paid off.

“I am confident that this measure will curb the population of smokers and eradicate, if not reduce, its harmful impact on the health of our citizenry,” he said.

He said aside from the health benefits, the law would also generate additional revenues that will fund the UHC implementation. A revenue of P15 billion is expected the year following its implementation and P140 billion until 2023.

Visayas...

From A1 continue to support President Rodrigo Duterte’s efforts to amend the Constitution.

Benitez said Romualdez was the only candidate for speaker to represent a congressional district in the Visayas.

He said Romualdez had a long and excellent track record of being a public servant and a legislator.

“Romualdez has a track record of consensus building,” said the outgoing chairman of the House committee on housing and urban development.

Romualdez is also president of the LakasChristian Muslim Democrats. He was the House Independent Bloc of the previous 16th Congress.

Romualdez holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Government from the Ivy League school in Cornell University and a Certificate of Special Studies in Administration and Management from Harvard University.

He also earned his Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of the Philippines.

Benitez said the Visayan Bloc membership in the next Congress was expected to increase from the current 41 to at least 47 members coming from various political parties and party-list organizations.

While former Speaker and Davao Del Norte Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez is Visayan-speaking, a Visayan lawmaker who refused to be named said “he [Alvarez] is perceived not to be sympathetic to the plight of Visayans.”

The three other candidates: Reps. Lord Allan Velasco of Marinduque, Alan Peter Cayetano of Tauguig and Aurelio Gonzales of Pampanga represent congressional districts in Luzon.

Benitez said the selection criterial will be released to members before the Visayan Bloc’s next meeting in July.

Rody,...

From A1 “The entire Filipino nation joins them as they offer prayers of praise and thanksgiving as well as demonstrate the virtues of Islamic faith in accordance with the teachings of Allah through the Quran,” he said.

Opposition Senator Leila De Lima said she hoped the meaningful occasion should prompt the government to expedite its longdelayed rehabilitation of the war-torn Islamic City of Marawi.

Senate Majority Leader Migz Zubiri said the Muslims have endured a month-long test of sacrifice but have faithfully shown their resolve and steadfastness as they practice one of the pillars of Islam.

Rormer Senate Presdent Aquilino Pimentel III says he prays that the values extolled in Ramadan, such as self-sacrifice, self-restraint, forgiveness, charity, and unity will not be forgotten on the celebration of Eid’l Fitr.

Senator Grace Poe said the month of daily fasting is not only a sacred duty, but a powerful teaching to remind us of our shared obligation with all faiths to aid those who live in suffering and poverty.

Senator Loren Legarda said Eid’l Fitr has become a familiar occasion even to our Catholic-dominated nation.

Senatoor Win Gatchalian said they were joining in the festivities marking the end of Ramadan and celebrating the passage of the Islamic Banking Act in the Senate.

News

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THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Loren says she won convincingly in Antique poll

Roll out ‘Kadiwa’ stores for school supplies—Imee SENATOR-ELECT Imee Marcos on Wednesday called on the Department of Trade and Industry and LGUs to roll out Kadiwa stores for school supplies in cooperation with traders to help poor families send their children to school.

“Libre ang mag-aral sa public schools, pero hindi libre ang school supplies. Madalas, ang presyo ng school supplies hindi kaya ng mga mahihirap nating kababayan. Hindi rin lahat ng LGUs, kayang magbigay ng libreng school supplies sa mga nangangailangan,” Marcos said.

“Every year, the DTI releases its SRP for school supplies to keep prices at affordable levels. But still, prices are often higher than the SRP. So I am appealing to the DTI and our LGUs to also initiate Kadiwa stores for school supplies together with traders to help keep prices of school supplies affordable for low-income families struggling to send their children to school,” Marcos explained.

Marcos appealed to traders and retailers not to jack the prices of school supplies beyond the SRP. “Mas maganda sa negosyo ang tamang presyo—mas maraming mamimili, mas lalago ang negosyo, nakakatulong pa tayo sa tao, ” Marcos said.

As a long-term solution to ease the burden of parents every school opening, the senator-elect renewed her call on government to remove the value added tax (VAT) on basic commodities including school supplies.

“Removing the VAT on school supplies is a sound investment on our youth together with the free tuition and the 20 percent discount on transportation fares for our students,” Marcos said. “Kinabukasan ng bayan ang kabataan. Kung mas konti ang gastos, mas maraming makakapagaral, mas uunlad ang ating bayan,” she said. Rey E. Requejo

22 job fairs nationwide set June 12 IN COMMEMORATION of the 121st anniversary of the Proclamation of Philippine Independence on June 12, the Department of Labor and Employment is holding 22 Trabaho, Negosyo, Kabuhayan (TNK) job and business fairs in 16 regions throughout the country.

An initial 70,000 vacancies will be offered by 560 participating employers, as reported by the Bureau of Local Employment.

Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III advised jobseekers to visit any of the job and business fairs slated in their areas to facilitate their search for employment, as numerous employers are gathered in just one venue.

Bello also urged jobseekers to be ready with the following application requirements: resume or curriculum vitae (bring extra copies for multiple job applications); 2 x 2 ID pictures; certificate of employment for those formerly employed; diploma and/or transcript of records; and authenticated birth certificate.

The 2019 Independence Day job and business fairs will be held at the following venues: National Capital Region— San Andres Sports Complex, Malate, Manila; Cordillera Administrative Region—Sky Zone, Porta Vaga Mall, Upper Session Road, Baguio City; Region 1—Nepo Mall, Dagupan City; Candon Civic Center, Candon City, Ilocos Sur; Union Christian College, San Fernando City, La Union; Region 2—People’s Gymnasium, Tuguegarao City, Cagayan; Region 3—Ayala Malls, Harbor Point, Subic Freeport Zone, Zambales; Region 4A—Pavilion Mall, Biñan City, Laguna; Liwasang Aguinaldo, Kawit, Cavite; MIMAROPA—San Jose, Occidental Mindoro; Odiongan, Romblon; Region 5—Robinsons Place, Naga City; Region 6—888 Premier Mall, Bacolod City; Region 7—Cebu City Sports Complex/Abellana National School; LapuLapu City; Lamberto L. Macias Sports and Cultural Center, Dumaguete City; Region 8—Provincial Covered Court, Catbalogan City, Samar; Region 9— KCC Mall de Zamboanga, Gov. Camins Ave. Zamboanga City; Region 10— Atrium, Limketkai Center, Cagayan de Oro City; Region 11—NCCC Mall Buhangin, Km. 7, Tigatto Road, Buhangin, Davao City; Region 12—Trade Hall, SM City Gensan, General Santos City and CARAGA–PLGU Training Center, Capitol, Butuan City The 2019 Independence Day is observed with the theme, “Kalayaan 2019 Tapang ng Bayan, Malasakit sa Mamamayan.”

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

SENATE CAUCUS. Senate President Vicente Sotto III leads veterans and neophytes during a meet-and-greet dinner hosted by Senator Emmanuel Pacquiao. Conspicuously absent from the caucus which tackled plum committee posts among other issues were reelected Senators Cynthia Villar and Aquilino Pimentel III. (Story on A1)

No immediate SC relief on provincial bus ban T

By Rey E. Requejo

HE Supreme Court has deferred taking action on the petitions filed by lawmakers from Bicol seeking immediate relief in their bid to stop the controversial policy of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority banning provincial buses on EDSA. Although the petitions filed by AKO Bicol party-list Reps. Ronald Ang and Alfredo Garbin Jr. and Albay 2nd district Rep. Joey Salceda were included in the agenda of the SC justices when they resumed regular session on Tuesday after a two-month decision-writing break, the magistrates opted to defer action on their plea for temporary restraining order.

Instead the SC reset the deliberation on this case to their regular session on June 25, an SC insider revealed.

Requesting anonymity due to lack of authority to speak for the Court, the source said that the justices did not see the urgency to act on the petitions filed by the partylist representatives and Salceda last April 29 and May 27, respectively, and on their plea for issuance of a temporary restraining order (TRO) that would stop the implementation of MMDA’s Regulation No. 19-002.

The source said the tribunal has not even moved yet to require the MMDA to answer the petitions and file its comment.

The MMDA earlier opted to suspend the implementation of the ban and hold further consultation with stakeholders, but has not set the date when the ban will be enforced.

The petitions specifically sought to strike down the assailed measure, which the MMDA and the Metro Manila Council took to ease traffic in Metro Manila’s main thoroughfare, for violating the 1987 Constitution and existing laws.

They cited the lack of “consultations with the public regarding the issue and should have heard the sides of the owners, bus operators, and especially the passengers that will be greatly affected with the implementation of the said regulation.”

The group also alleged that the regulation that has affected thousands of passengers from the provinces was void from the beginning and should have not taken effect simply because it is an exercise of police power that the MMDA and MMC do not possess.

They said that police power is a legislative act, which means the ban on pro-

vincial buses and closure of bus terminals along EDSA necessitated enactment of ordinances by individual local government units that have police power under the Local Government Code of 1991.

The petitioners also said that the regulation was an invalid exercise of such authority as it is not reasonably necessary to achieve the purpose of solving perennial traffic problems in the metropolis.

They cited the annual average daily traffic in 2017, which showed that an average of 367,738 vehicles traverse EDSA daily, with 67 percent or 247,527 of these vehicles being private motor vehicles (with 60 percent-70 percent or an average of 148,516 to 185,645 private motor vehicles per day are single occupancy vehicles) while city buses, plying along EDSA with an average of 12,000 units daily and only around 3,300 provincial buses.

The AKO Bicol officers further argued that the planned closure of provincial bus terminals would violate Public Service Act and related laws that require public utility operators to maintain their own terminals as requisite for their franchises.

They also told the Court that the MMDA ban on provincial buses on EDSA was an unwarranted encroachment of the authority of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board to issue, amend and revoke certificates of public convenience to public utility vehicles.

‘PH needs clean, healthy environment for schools’ SAVE the Children Philippines called for a clean and healthy environment in schools and communities to protect children from diseases and premature deaths due to air pollution.

The group raised the issue at the World Environment Day on June 5, citing around seven million people die every year across the world due to health problems caused by air pollution, 600,000 of them are children.

Lawyer Albert Muyot, chief executive officer of Save the Children Philippines said learners spend an average of five to eight hours in schools, facing health risks from air pollution.

As classes opened last Monday, majority of children will be in schools for five days and will be exposed to air

pollution and other health risks, said Muyot.

“Young learners have fragile bodies and exposure to tiny, invisible airborne particles from dirty air pose serious risks to their health,” said Muyot.

Save the Children’s End of Childhood Report 2019 ranked the Philippines 104th in the 176 list of best and worst countries to be a child due to high number of teenage pregnancy, malnutrition and child deaths before reaching five years old.

The report said malnutrition among Filipino children remains high at 33.4 percent—or 3.8m—children under five years not getting enough daily nutrition.

It added that nearly three per cent- or— or 322,000—of children in the country

die before their fifth birthday from preventable causes.

“Millions of children who lack daily nutrition are more susceptible to illnesses including pneumonia, bronchitis and asthma due to air pollution and face the risk of dropping out of schools,” said Muyot. These children also face devastating and life-long health risks as air pollution can affect the development of their lungs, brain and other organs, he added.

Last year, the Philippines recorded the 3rd highest number of deaths due to air pollution with 45.3 deaths per 100,000 individuals, next to China as first and Mongolia as second. “Save the Children Philippines makes sure children have a healthy start in life,” said Muyot.

NEWLY-ELECTED Antique Rep. Loren Legarda yesterday said that she won her case on the residency issue in election registration board in Pandan Municipal Trial Court in the said province.

The outgoing senator said she even won in the Comelec and in the provincial Comelec on the night of her proclamation.

“I won the elections by a huge mandate of 199,187 while all the opponents put together could not even reach half of my votes,” said Legarda.

“My landslide lead is over 130,000,” added Legarda, who served as senator for 15 years.

She said tne nullification case filed against her by former Antique Gov. Exequiel Javier whom she defeated in the last congressional race in the province during midterm elections last May was dismissed many times.

“Grateful that I am loved by many,” further stated Legarda who exlressed her gratitude for all the blessings, including winning in the last elections.

Citing Legarda’s failure to satisfy the residency requirement, Javier filed a petition for revocation and nullification of Legarda’s proclamation.

In a six-page petition filed on May 16, Javier asked the Commission on Elections en banc to set aside the May 14 proclamation of Legarda by the provincial board of canvassers and stop her from taking her oath of office.

“It must be noted that the petitioner has filed a petition to deny due course and/or cancel the certificate of candidacy of the respondent for member [of the] House of Representatives, and the same has not yet been resolved with finality by the honorable commission,” said Javier.

Du30 wants quick passage of ROTC Bill for Grades 11, 12 PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte is keen to have mandatory Reserve Officers Training Corps for Grades 11 and 12 as soon as possible, a spokesperson of the Department of National Defense said Wednesday.

“We can recall that reviving mandatory ROTC was one of PRRD’s thrusts during his first SONA (State of the Nation Address) and he made it a priority of his administration. The intention of the President is to put mandatory ROTC back at the soonest possible time,” Arsenio Andolong said.

In a letter to Senate President Vicente Sotto III dated June 3, Duterte urged the Senate to certify the immediate passage of Senate Bill No. 2232, which institutionalizes ROTC in senior high school.

“Pursuant to the provisions of Article VI, Section 26 (2) of the 1987 Constitution, I hereby certify to the necessity of the immediate enactment of Senate Bill No. 2232,” Duterte said in his letter to Sotto.

The President said the measure is expected to “restore basic military and leadership trainings for the youth in order to invigorate their sense of nationalism and patriotism necessary in defending the State and to further promote their vital role in nation-building.”

On May 20, the House of Representatives voted 167-4-0 to approve on third and final reading its version of the ROTC measure, House Bill 8961.

Under House Bill 8961, ROTC training would apply to “all students in Grades 11 and 12 in all senior high schools in public and private educational institutions” and shall be a requirement for graduation.

CHR lauds House for passing HR measure

By Rio N. Araja THE Commission on Human Rights on Wednesday lauded members of the House of Representatives for the approval of the Human Rights Defenders Protection bill.

“We welcome with jubilation and gratitude this positive development,” lawyerspokesperson Jacqueline Ann de Guia said in a statement.

“It reflects the commitment of our legislators to human rights as they accord legal protection to those championing for it.

We look forward to the same expression of support from the Senate,” she added.

Congress “overwhelmingly” passed House Bill No. 9199 “with no opposition nor abstention.”

“The recent socio-political climate has been hostile toward human rights defenders. The community faces demonization, stigmatization and various threats and harassment. Some even culminated to

killings. This move from the lower house provides a wave of fresh hope for the human rights community that continue to steadfastly pursue the human rights cause amidst these challenging times,” De Guia said.

She believes the “legal” measure shall provide concrete protection, ensure a system that would enable prosecution of those that would do harm or commit violations, and “more importantly,” help prevent human rights violations and abuses.

“We hope that the bill will progress expediently given the urgency of the matter. Prioritizing the welfare and rights of the human rights defenders extends to the protection of the most vulnerable sectors, which they serve,” she said.

Last June 3, the House of Representatives ongave its nod to the bill with 183 legislators voted yes and with no other lawmaker voting no or abstaining from the vote.

FLIPPED. Traffic enforcers look at a 14-wheeler truck loaded with iron scrap after it

flipped over as the driver made a U-turn at the corner of Moriones Street and Road 10 in Tondo, Manila on Wednesday, June 5. No one was reported hurt in the incident that caused heavy traffic in the area. Norman Cruz

A4

Opinion

THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Celebrate victory, not defeat THE fight for speakership, notably among three lawmakers—Martin Romualdez, Lord Allan Velasco, and Alan Peter Cayetano—reminds me when then Rep. Manny Villar sought me out to seek my advice on his bid to become Speaker during the Erap Estrada presidency.

Till now, I have been wondering why he took time to invite me for lunch at the Spices Restaurant at the Peninsula Hotel when all I could tell him was what I know as a journalist, having covered Congress.

In any case, all I could tell Villar were three things.

While we celebrate defeats, we don’t care about victories. It’s clearly our fractured sense of values.

First, the House of Representatives was at that time as it is today, com composed of several blocs—the opposition, the majority, the minority, the partylist groups, and a group known at that time as the “Young Turks” composed of noisy young congressmen who grouped themselves together to comprise the swing vote.

Second, the party-list bloc that usually complains of being regarded as second-class citizens in the House deprived of what they claim to be their share in House perks and benefits, who can become another swing vote as they

are in the present 17th Congress. They usually have a leader who speaks for them, comprising a bigger bloc today.

And third, knowing that you, Manny Villar, are a rich man with sufficient means, some characters in Congress will be asking for money. I told Manny that this is his lookout and he should be ready to answer their demands.

After that meeting, Manny went on to become the House Speaker, and on to become even the Senate President. The rest is history, as they say.

If any of the candidates for Speaker would ask for my piece of advice, I would offer the same, knowing the sentiments of members of the House. It all boils down to attention, fair treatment and money. *** On June 14, the surviving relatives of some 1,400 Ilocano and Igorot casualties who died in the little-known Battle of Bessang Pass, or as recorded in the annals of the Armed Forces of the Phil Philippines, the Battle Among the Clouds because it was an uphill fight for the members of the guerilla movement at the border between Benguet and Ilocos Sur, will mark the 78th anniversary of that battle that culminated in the surrender of General Tomiyuki Yamashita, commander of the Japanese Imperial Forces that occupied the Philippines for close to four years.

The motley group of surviving relatives will gather at the shrine of that battle at Cervantes town in Ilocos Sur put up by then President Fidel V. Ramos in memory of that glorious victory of Filipino guerillas against well-equipped and well-armed Japanese soldiers that had the advantage of higher ground after they retreated to the Cordilleras when American forces under Gen. Douglas MacArthur started landing all over the Philippines to liberate the country from Japan.

If I’m passionate about the Battle of Bessang Pass, it is because both my late

Adelle Chua, Editor

EDITORIAL

T

No time for tokens

HE world commemorated World Environment Day Wednesday. It’s a campaign to raise awareness on various environmental issues that confront the globe today.

Since 1974, when it was first observed, WED has touched on numerous environmental issues—marine and air pollution, overpopulation, global warming, sustainable consumption, small-island population, wildlife crime.

In recent days, more issues have emerged: the fate of small-island nations and others most vulnerable to climate change, new-normal weather patterns, the lasting consequences of single-use plastics, conservation of imperiled species, and the struggle to move away from coal as a "cheap" source of energy and toward renewable ones.

Governments, corporations, nongovernment organizations, academic institutions and community groups from as many as 143 countries have participated in such events. Here at home, Proclamation No. 237, issued in 1988, declared the month of June as Philippine Environment Month.

Events scheduled by various groups

are meant to raise the people's awareness of issues and make them develop habits and take concrete steps toward doing their bit for the environment.

Then again, we don't really have to be reminded by calendar activities about how important it is, first to be aware, and more importantly to take action in one's sphere to achieve specific goals.

For instance, recent news about other countries' trash making their way to the Philippines have made us indignant at both the senseless and insulting act. Indignant social media users made their opinions known, and eventually the government shipped back the containers of waste that had been sitting on a landfill for several years.

Portrayals of the effects of using plastic containers have also stirred awareness and action, even as the consequences have yet to be realized.

Who would not take note of one foot

of plastics covering the entire Metro Manila, or dead sea animals turning up ashore with plastic in their bellies?

Yet these are the consequences of the things we have been used to doing throughout our lifetime.

We have also heard about young people walking out of their classrooms to demand action from their local government to do something about mitigating climate change. Indeed, no matter the global pacts or articulated national policy, everything happens— or doesn't happen—at the local and community levels. It is also at these levels that the stories are more compelling, more real.

In the end, commemorations such as the World Environment Day serve their purpose, but it is up to the people to consume the accurate information that they should act upon. In the end, all boils down to the age-old dilemma of balancing today's needs while leaving some for the future generations, not just of people but earth-dwellers.

It's a global calendar day, certainly.

But WED is also a deeply personal reminder to every individual about how in the earth's very long timeline, we are all specks, and we must tread respectfully as we pass.

Turn to A5

The minority report THE 17th Congress was a fruitful and eventful term. We unveiled and probed issues, both chronic and short-term.

The courageous pursuits for truth, transparency, and accountability led to many significant reforms in the government, not just in policy-making but also in program implementation. The collective action of the legislative has contributed to the growth we are experiencing today. Of the 28 common legislative agenda approved at the start of the 17th Congress, 22 of them were accomplished by the House of Representatives while the remaining 6 are pending in the respective Committees.

As this Congress comes to an end, I would like to acknowledge the indispensable contributions of my senior deputy, other deputy members and the rest of the Minority family in our legislative feats for the past three years.

The Minority was instrumental in the investigation and resolution of issues and controversies that beset the government and the country. Early on, we were active in investigating the proliferation of illegal drugs and drug syndicates in the Bilibid prison, and strongly recommended accountability from the involved personalities. We also called for the intensification of the Small Town Lottery operations to curb illegal gambling. The PCSO, in response, has reported expansion of its operations along with the increased employment of cabos and cobradores in STL. We are confident that the PCSO has also been cooperative with our uncompromising stance on reviewing STL applicants with strict scrutiny.

The Minority also actively participated in the deliberations of the now enacted TRAIN law and remained watchful of its impact per year of implementation. We have repeatedly called for programs that could cushion the negative effects of TRAIN to the consuming public, and sought the corresponding compliance of government agencies to timelines especially in the Build, Build, Build program which the TRAIN seeks to finance, and the efficient revenue collection of the Bureau of Internal Reve-

nue and Bureau of Customs. As a result of our persistence, Republic Act No. 11213, also known as the Tax Amnesty Act, was passed and signed in 2018.

Meanwhile, revenue collection of the BIR and BOC are still being monitored for compliance. To improve collection, we have reiterated implementation of the Attrition Law. Hopefully, we will see the Attrition Law implemented soon to aid this administration in its drive against corruption.

These honorable men and women stood with me amid all issues that surrounded the legitimacy of the House Minority bloc.

During budget deliberations, we were vigilant in assessing the performance of each agency, as against their corresponding budget proposals. We invoked the power of the purse to ask for the commitment of our government agencies in expediting and resolving delayed projects, and the elimination of underspending. Agencies eventually responded, and we remain firm and incessant in calling out those agencies whose performance are lagging behind. For numerous times, the Minority has also sought for the amendment of the procurement act due to various issues that stem from its implementation.

I am proud to say that I have good and competent legislators in the Minority. These honorable men and women stood with me amid all issues that surrounded the legitimacy of the House Minority bloc. We have been called many names, but our accomplishments speak for themselves. We remained true to our vision of becoming a constructive Minority—we give credit where it is due, and call the administration’s attention when necessary, and always with a view to providing solutions.

Fortunately, some members of the Minority will still be in the 18th Congress. I am confident that our shared views, advocacy, policies and other legTurn to A5

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POGO: Boon or bane IF WE are to believe the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation, it seems the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations or POGO is the biggest blessing to dawn upon the local gaming industry.

With revenues reaching P7.365 billion in 2018, POGO's income account for more than 10 percent of Pagcor’s total earnings of P67.85 billion, which increased by more than 18 percent from its 2017 income.

However, the Department of Labor and Employment paints a different scenario. According to Labor Secretary Bebot Bello, the government is losing P22 billion in income taxes that should have been collected from foreigners employed by POGO operators

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

Board Member & Chief Legal Adviser Treasury Manager Head—Ad Solutions Circulation Manager

Allegations abound that corrupt Pagcor personnel and officials have been making a killing in ‘fixing’ the fees that POGO operators must pay. in the country.

An inter-agency task force com composed of the DOLE, Bureau of Immigration, and Pagcor disclosed that offshore gaming in the country employs over 76,000. More than 82 percent of these are foreigners, of which over 56,000 are Chinese workers employed in the POGO. The Chinese POGO workers reportedly earn 10,000 yuan or P78,000 monthly.

While Bello may be right in saying the government should run after the unpaid taxes of these foreign POGO workers, the government should also be looking into the manner by which these POGO workers were hired and even their nature of work.

In its website, Pagcor lists a total of 57 accredited POGO, all of which are allowed to have 10 service providers each. These service providers include (a) Customer Relations Service Provider; (b) Strategic Support Provider; (c) IT Support Provider; (d) Gaming Software Platform Provider; (e) Live Studio and Streaming Provider; and (f) Special Class of BPO (business process outsourcing).

So, if there are 57 accredited POGO, we would have a maximum of 570 service providers or a total of 627 online gaming-related companies. And assuming each would employ a maximum of 50 Chinese workers each, which is relatively high as Turn to A5

Rolando G. Estabillo Publisher Ramonchito L. Tomeldan Chin Wong/Ray S. Eñano Joyce Pangco Pañares Adelle Chua

Managing Editor Associate Editors News Editor Opinion Editor

Emil P. Jurado

Honor Blanco Cabie Night Editor Jimbo Gulle City Editor Roberto Cabrera Chief Photographer

Chairman Emeritus, Editorial Board

Opinion

THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019

Presidential suggestion no way of bringing it back.

There are a lot of quarters edging the government to reopen mining to the fullest but so far, the government has not agreed. Certainly, the government is losing revenue on account of its refusal to restart full mining operations including the much despised open pit mining. In the end, the government will have to weigh whether the revenue that will be derived from the mining companies is more important than the destruction to our environment. It is understandably a difficult decision to make but so far, Secretary Roy Cimatu and the Presi-

dent has not agreed. *** The second thing that Duterte did was to make a presidential suggestion to the Commission on Election to replace Smartmatic as the election provider. The President said this in his speech to the Filipino community during his recent third trip to Japan. He told the Comelec to look for a more reliable provider which was, for all intents and purposes, saying that Smartmatic could not be trusted to insure fair and honest elections.

Since the President is the repository of all intelligence reports, he must have very strong reasons for making the suggestion. He did not accuse the Comelec directly of corruption but that is basically what he did when he asked why Smartmatic seem to have a stranglehold on the Comelec by always winning the bidding.

Usually, when the President makes a suggestion, it is usually an order. Yet, the initial reaction by the Comelec thru its spokesman James B. Jimenez was lukewarm. He said that the suggestion was well taken but there is a law which necessitates bidding. Of

course, he came back later saying the Comelec is now studying how to sell the Smartmatic voter counting machines.

Regardless of the reasons of the Comelec, the strongest reason why Smartmatic should be dropped is that it is foreign-owned and -managed.

There is a law that prohibits foreigners from participating in any shape or form in our elections. Why the Comelec has chosen all these years to rely on a foreign-managed company to be our election provider is hard to understand. Comelec should be the first one to encourage Filipino managed companies to upgrade their capabilities to be able to participate in the bidding so that if something goes wrong, they could be held accountable. Foreigners however, can easily disappear as it has been happening in many cases.

But if the Comelec chooses to find ways not to comply, that will be their own lookout. We know what happens to subordinates who do not follow presidential suggestions regardless of whether an agency is independent or not. President Duterte must know something that he is not saying about the conduct of automated elections. If he again raises the issue in his forthcoming State of the Nation Address next month, the Comelec should really start moving.

For its part, the Comelec has been vouching for the integrity of our automated elections. Yet, credible questions have been raised by competent people who know and understand how our automated election works. These questions have never been answered satisfactorily by Comelec and Smartmatic for that matter.

The two most important issues here right now is the order of the President to replace Smartmatic so that the conduct of the next presidential elections will be unquestionably fair and honest. The other is for our elections to be an all Filipino affair devoid of any foreign participation. 2022 is three years away. There is ample time for the change, if the Comelec really wants it. If not, it will again dilly dally until time will run out and Smartmatic will again be back on the saddle come 2022.

next Congress. Let me also give honor and thanks to the late Hon. Ciriaco Calalang and the late Hon. Rodel BatoFrom A4 cabe, who, during their lifetime, have islative actions will be pursued further made significant strides in legislation by these dedicated public officials who and were actively involved in the hearwill be continuing their service in the ings and debates.

On June 30, I will be taking my oath of office as Governor of the Province of Quezon. Rest assured, dear readers, that we will continue to engage in relevant conversations of national interest.

Mabuhay kayong lahat. Maraming salamat po.

MIDWAY into his term, the approval rating of President Duterte is still going up. He seems to have the uncanny ability to say and do things that the public approves at the right time.

Over the last few weeks, the President did two things that can only enhance his favorable rating among Filipinos. First was his directive to send back the Canadian trash that has been stuck with us ever since its arrival in 2014. Today, only 69 vans containing trash remain and were the ones returned to Canada. Somehow, 40 of the container vans containing trash were disposed in the province of Tarlac.

If it were not for the decisiveness of the President, the trash would still be here because the Canadian government was taking its own sweet time to take back the trash. We had to recall some of our diplomats to Canada and a presidential order to speed up the return of the garbage even if the Philippine government will have to shoulder freight expenses. With that, things started to move faster. The garbage is now on its way to Canada.

This is not the first time that the country’s environment has been damaged that somehow can be traced to Canada.

In March 1996, Marcopper, a mining company located in the island of Marinduque which was owned by a Canadian corporation, basically destroyed Marinduque’s environment. The dam containing mine tailings burst and destroyed the Makulapnit-Boac river system. In spite of repeated appeals to restore the environment, nothing was done up to this day. The Canadian company simply left the country.

The moral of this story is that there are indeed compelling reasons why mining was stopped by the Duterte administration. Give the mining companies a blank check and the environment will be destroyed in no time at all. There is really no such thing as responsible mining which will not eventually damage the ecosystem. Once a mountain disappears, there is really

2022 is three years away. There is ample time for the change, if the Comelec really wants it.

The minority...

Celebrate...

From A4

elder brother, Desi, who later on became an associate justice of the Court of Appeals, and Willie, who later on became manager of the Manila International Airport, fought in that battle.

Desi, as company lieutenant of “F” Company of the 121st Infantry of the guerilla movement in the North, the USAFIP-NL (United States Armed Forces in the Philippines-Northern Luzon), led the assault leading to the surrender of Yamashita, who later on was executed in Los Baños, Laguna for the crime of genocide after the rape of Manila. Desi was awarded by the AFP a Silver Star for heroism and bravery beyond the call of duty. My other brother, Willie, got a Purple Heart for getting wounded in that battle.

The cost of that glorious victory was some 1,400 lives of both Ilocano and Igorot soldiers. My brother Desi used to tell me during one of his furloughs to Bangar, La Union, that Igorot guerillas did not exhibit fear during battle, charging enemy frontline.

The irony of it all is that while we celebrate defeats like the Fall of Bataan and the Fall of Corregidor on April 9, called Araw ng Kagitingan or Day of Valor, we don’t celebrate glorious victories in Philippine history such as the Battle of Bessang Pass.

Only two presidents deemed the Bessang Pass victory worthy of celebration—the late strongman Ferdinand Marcos, who himself was a veteran of Bataan and a guerilla leader of the 14th Infantry of USAFIP-NL as a major, and Ramos, who had ordered the construction of the shrine commemorating the victory, himself a veteran of the Korean War and Vietnam War. I consider the fact that while we celebrate defeats, we don’t care about victories. It’s clearly our fractured sense of values.

There had been many Ilocanos who

were chiefs of the AFP, and now members of the Cabinet. Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, an Ilocano, should revise history and urge President Duterte to celebrate June 14 as a day of victory.

Only Duterte can do it. Why not, Mister President? The Ilocano nation will be grateful to you forever. *** It’s unfortunate that the Senate did not consider the appeal of Leyte Rep. Yedda Marie Romualdez for the Senate to give priority to the passage of the proposed Department of Disaster Resilience before it sine die adjourned, considering that we are now in the rainy season.

During the rainy season, we can expect the normal, one cyclone after another, to hit the Philippines, and the usual disasters and calamities like landslides and people getting killed, not to mention earthquakes and aftershocks.

Yedda Romualdez, now Tingog partylist Rep.-elect, was one of the principal sponsors of the bill which was passed by the House on third and final reading.

The DDR would guarantee a unity of command, science-based approach and full-time focus on natural hazards and disasters.

While the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council had been devolved, there is need for unity of command and focus since the DDR would provide leadership in the continuous development of strategy and systematic approach to disaster prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response and rehabilitation, and anticipatory adaptation strategies, measures, techniques, and options.

One of my advocacy has always been one body responsible for the three “RE”—Rescue, Relief and Rehabilitation—all concentrated in one single government agency. *** Despite his foul utterances, his lewd and obscene language, his vulgar and rude ways, especially his rants against priests and bishops, and even on God,

people seem to have trust and satisfaction on what Duterte is doing.

The rise of his popularity and the fact that his favorite senatorial candidates made it to the Magic 12 circle of winners attest to the fact that the greater majority of Filipinos like Duterte.

Initially, I found it difficult to reconcile him with the “excellent” satisfaction and trust ratings he’s been getting from the two mainstream poll surveyors—Social Weather Stations and Pulse Asia.

The way I see it is that the majority of Filipinos find in Duterte the President they have long wanted to have, unlike the usual prim and proper presidents we had been getting. Duterte amuses them, and the people like that.

Most importantly, they like to hear things done differently from what othre presidents had been doing. And the people like him to do things that they themselves would like to be done.

There are, however, his unfilfiled promises, like the end of the drug menace once and for all and his vow to end corruption.

In his war against illegal drugs, I still believe that Duterte is going about it the wrong way, treating the illegal drug menace like it’s a peace and order problem, which it is not. It’s a health care issue which needs the rehabilitation of some 6 to 8 million drug addicts nationwide, not 3 to 4 million as earlier reported.

Thus, while there is still a big demand for illegal drugs, smugglers who are allied with syndicates and cartels continue to smuggle drugs through Customs.

And if Duterte will not change tactics, the drug menace, I am afraid, will continue even beyond his term.

As for his war on corruption, Duterte in fact, has made it a big joke, exempting his friends and allies, and at times even promoting them. Now, who will believe him. www.emiljurado.weebly.com

A5

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Leaders of the PH insurance industry The life insurance companies with the highest net income in 2018 were Philam Life (P9.8 billion) and Sun Life (P6.8 billion).

FWD Life Insurance Corp. and the Philippine-Italian joint venture THE insurance industry arguably Generali Life Assurance Philipis one field that requires the stron- pines Inc. were the companies with gest capitalization and the best the highest paid-up capital. The management. Reason: the industry figures were P2.3 billion and P2.2 is regularly called upon to settle billion, respectively. claims for loss or damage—after On the non-life insurance side of very large ones—in exchange for the Insurance Commission's report, fractional amounts known as pre- the five leading companies were miums. Thus, to thrive, let alone Coyuito-owned Prudential Guarsurvive, an insurance company antee and Assurance Inc., Yuchengneeds to be wellco-owned capitalized and Malaya well-managed.

InsurThe report subThe companies ance Co. mitted recently have been the leaders Inc., Meby the Insurance trobank Commission to the of the Philippine affiliate Secretary of Fi- insurance industry for Charter nance—his imme- a considerable time, Ping An; diate superior—on mainly because they co-owned the performance Pioneer of the Philippine have been strongly Insurance insurance industry capitalized and welland Surein 2018 reflects the managed. ty Corp., financial strength a n d and managerial Ay a l a capability that incontrolled surance companies need to get to BPI/MS Insurance Corp. the top of the industry. The famMalayan Insurance wrote P10.1 ily names underpinning the status billion worth of gross premiums and and performance of the leading was the champion in that regard. But insurance companies are names in terms of net premiums written well known in the Philippine busi- the leader was Prudential Guarantee ness community, such as Ayala, with an almost P5.2 billion total.

Yuchengco, Coyuito and Ty. In the total-assets area, Malayan The Insurance Commission re- Insurance was the no. 1 with assets ported that on the life side of the totaling P34 billion. insurance industry, the top five Net worth—what remains in a companies in 2018 in terms of to- company after it has paid all its obtal assets were Philippine Ameri- ligations—is a key measure of the can Life and General Insurance strength and stability of an insurCompany (currently known as ance company. At end 2018, StanPhilippines-Canadian-controlled dard Insurance Co. Inc. and PhilipSun Life of Canada [Philippines] pine First Insurance Co. Inc. were Inc.; mutual company Insular Life of the five non-life insurance comAssurance Co. Ltd.; Philippine- panies with the highest net worth.

French Joint Venture Philippine The companies cited have been AXA Life Insurance Corp.; and the leaders of the Philippine inBank of the Philippine Islands surance industry for a consider(BPI)-Philam Life Assurance able time, mainly because they Corp. Inc. Philam Life had total as- have been strongly capitalized sets of P246 billion, and Sun Life and well-managed. Barring any P222 billion. extraordinary industry developThe no. 1 life insurance com- ments, particularly in the number pany in 2018 in terms of premium and caliber of the players, the income was Sun Life; it generated industry leadership picture preP37 billion worth of premium; Pru sented by the Insurance CommisLife Insurance Corp., a British sioner in his latest report is likely company, received premiums total- to remain virtually unchanged in ling P22 billion. the foreseeable future.

POGO:...

From A4

people from an IT company I interviewed said she cannot imagine an IT-support company employing 50 personnel, we would only come up with 31,350 Chinese workers at the most.

So, what really are the job description of those 76,000 POGO workers? Why were these POGO operators issued alien employment permits by DOLE and the BI? Of course, these couldn’t be done without the facilitation of some corrupt Pagcor personnel or officials.

In fact, allegations abound that corrupt Pagcor personnel and officials have been making a killing in “fixing” the fees that POGO operators must pay.

One case cited was that of a POGO operator which was granted license in June 2017. According to insiders, the POGO operator's arrears amounting to $1,800,000 were mysteriously written off after a lawmaker allegedly lobbied on its behalf with his fraternity brother in Pagcor.

According to insiders, the operator’s liability arose from its unpaid monthly guaranteed fee since June 2017 of $150,000 a month which Pagcor charges its POGO operators. In January 2018, insiders added, Sohu, which has yet to operate by then, appealed to Pagcor to waive its its arrears, which the gaming regulator denied.

By June 2018, the operator was reportedly forced by Pagcor to settle even for the equivalent of one month of its total obligation which was then running to more than $2,000,000, so that it could be allowed to renew its license, to which the operator obliged. By that time, to reduce its monthly obligation to Pagcor, the operator shifted to Sportsbetting, which is charged only $40,000 a month.

In September, Pagcor again reminded the operator of its unpaid obligation, which, including its previous arrears, now runs to more than $2.2 million.

But in December, the operator’s previous arrears were written off mysteriously. A Pagcor official tried to justify the operator’s reduced obligation by citing its shift to Sportsbetting. This, however, does not hold water as Sohu only shifted to Sportsbetting in June last year.

It seems someone is making money here and that the online gaming appears to be only serving as a front for illegal activities.

These allegations could validate rumors that corruption is flourishing in the online gaming industry.

So, would a P7 billion additional income offset the billions of pesos the government has been losing on this online gaming operation?

Income from the online gaming could be beneficial to the country especially since the government has been wanting for funds for its unprecedented infrastructure program. But only if it is run properly.

A6

News

THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

COA calls Sy-Alvarado’s attention on waste disposal

By Rio N. Araja

T

HE Commission on Audit has called the attention of Bulacan Gov. Wilhemino Sy-Alvarado regarding the improper disposal and irregular collection of hazardous and infectious wastes from seven local hospitals.

It raised concerns that the patients, medical and non-medical staff and even the public could face health risks.

In a 2018 annual audit report, state auditors said the provincial government’s Bulacan Medical Center, Rogaciano Mercado Memorial Hospital, Emilio Perez Memorial Hospital, Baliuag District Hospital, San Miguel District Hospital, Calumpit District Hospital and Gregorio del Pilar District Hospital violated Republic Act 8749 or the Philippine Clean Air Act, Republic Act 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act, and the Department of Health Manual on Health Care Management.

“Hazardous and infectious wastes generated by seven district hospitals were not regularly collected from six months to one year, thus exposed

hospital patients, health workers, and the general public to the danger of human wastes, infectious diseases, and other toxic wastes,” the report read.

COA called out the Bulacan Medical Center, Rogaciano M. Mercado Memorial Hospital and Emilio G. Perez Memorial District Hospital for improper bagging and storage, and piling up several months’ heaps of uncollected hospital waste.

The Baliuag District Hospital, San Miguel District Hospital and Calumpit District Hospital had been lauded for their efforts to implement an organized handling and storage of hospital wastes, CoA still warned them for non-collection for at least six months.

On the other hand, the Gregorio del Pilar District Hospital was cited for its “organized dis-

Manila

Republic of the Philippines StandardENERGY REGULATORY COMMISSION

TODAY

12.

The estimated cost of the proposed project is PhP6,384.783 Mn, with an implementation period of 27 months for the conduct of the Desktop, System & Feasibility Studies and Hydrographic Survey; and 60 months for the development of the Mindoro Backbone.

13.

The Palawan-Mindoro Interconnection Project - Stage 1 is exhaustively discussed in the ERC Documentary Requirements for Palawan-Mindoro Interconnection Project (Stage 1) attached as Annex “A”.

San Miguel Avenue, Pasig City

IN THE MATTER OF THE APPLICATION FOR THE APPROVAL OF THE PALAWAN-MINDORO INTERCONNECTION PROJECT (STAGE 1), WITH PRAYER FOR PROVISIONAL AUTHORITY

posal of hospital waste” in color-coded bags, but state auditors called the hospital management’s attention for the lack of a suitable space for temporary storage.

State auditors blamed the provincial government for designating the solid waste management to the general services office, instead of giving the assignment to the Bulacan environmental and natural resources office.

“The audit team believes that these conditions were caused partly, by the fact that no office or department in the Provincial Government of Bulacan was specifically charged with the functions of overseeing that solid waste and hospital waste management are implemented,” CoA said.

The management of the seven hospitals were ordered to comply with the Department of Health’s manual on hospital operations, while the provincial’s general services officer was required to consider the procurement of separate service providers for the hauling and disposal of waste per hospital, instead of just one for all hospitals currently provided by a single firm.

ERC CASE NO. 2019-022 RC

Justifications for the Issuance of Provisional Approval NATIONAL GRID CORPORATION OF THE PHILIPPINES,

14.

NGCP is proposing to implement the Project to provide adequate, reliable and affordable power supply in Palawan. The main power system of Palawan is composed of a 305 km long 69 kV transmission corridor and is vulnerable to grid outages. The energy requirement of the island is being supplied by the more expensive bunker and diesel power plants and unless interconnection is immediately implemented, the increasing demand of Palawan will remain highly reliant on subsidies in taming the true cost of generation from oilbased power plants.

15.

This Project is also in support to the government’s direction of interconnecting off-grid areas into the main grid.

16.

NGCP is filing for the immediate issuance of a provisional authority to immediately conduct the Desktop, System & Feasibility Studies and Hydrographic Survey of the Project which are important steps to establish the appropriate connection scheme. Also, it can be noted that project involves the development of long transmission facilities and thus, preconstruction activities should commence as early as possible.

17.

In preparation to the implementation of Palawan-Mindoro Interconnection, the Calapan-San Jose 230 kV Transmission Line Backbone is urgently necessary. More importantly, this project component is crucial to adequately and reliably serve the forecasted demand in the southern part of Mindoro island.

18.

In support of this Application, NGCP submits the Judicial Affidavit of Engr. Eufemio C. Buluran, Jr., Regional Transmission Planning Manager, Luzon System Planning Division, Transmission Planning Department of NGCP attached as Annex “B”.

Applicants. x - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -x

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING TO ALL INTERESTED PARTIES: Notice is hereby given that on 18 March 2019, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) filed an Application dated 11 March 2019, seeking the Commission’s approval of the Palawan-Mindoro Interconnection Project (Stage 1), with prayer for provisional authority.

The pertinent portions of the said Application are hereunder quoted as follows: 1.

2.

NGCP is a corporation created and existing under the laws of the Philippines, with principal office address at NGCP Building, Quezon Avenue corner B.l.R. Road, Diliman, Quezon City. It is the concessionaire, which was granted the rights and obligation to construct, install, finance, manage, improve, expand, operate, maintain, rehabilitate, repair, refurbish, and replace the Transmission Assets pursuant to R.A. 9136, otherwise known as the “Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001” (EPlRA). It may be served with notices and other processes of this Honorable Commission through its counsel at the address indicated below.

Pursuant to R.A. 9511,1 NGCP was granted the franchise to operate, manage and maintain, and in connection therewith, to engage in the business of conveying or transmitting electricity through a high-voltage backbone system of interconnected transmission lines, substations and related facilities, system operations, and other activities that are necessary to support the safe and reliable operation of the transmission system2 and is authorized to charge its customers at the rates approved by the Honorable Commission.

3.

This Application is being filed pursuant to, Section 9 (d) of the EPIRA which directs NGCP to submit any plan for expansion or improvement of its facilities for approval by the Honorable Commission. Hence, NGCP seeks authority from the Honorable Commission for the immediate implementation of the herein described capital expenditure projects.

4.

Palawan is the largest province in the Philippines in terms of total area of jurisdiction. It is known for its white beaches, clear water, amazing biodiversity, underground river, among others. Its exceptional beauty has gained prominence here in the country and abroad.

5.

Unfortunately, the province is suffering from daily rotational blackouts. Distribution franchise operator blames the prolonged power trip-offs on the inability of its 3 independent power producers (IPPs) to stabilize the energy supply, particularly during summer when demand peaks3.

6.

In November 2018, President Rodrigo Duterte, while visiting Puerto Princesa for the Subaraw Biodiversity Festival has made a directive for the upgrading of the source of energy for the Island of Palawan4.

7.

The best, and long-term solution for the inefficient power supply, is the interconnection of the Island of Palawan to the Luzon Grid via the Mindoro grid.

8.

Thus, NGCP proposes the immediate approval of the proposed Palawan-Mindoro Interconnection Project - Stage 1 (Project). This Project will serve as a preparatory stage for the interconnection of the Palawan Islands to the Luzon Grid.

9.

The Project involves the following scope:

(i)

Desktop, System & Feasibility Studies and Hydrographic Survey

• • • •

Determine the feasible routes for the proposed submarine cable interconnection; Assess engineering risks along the possible cable routes; Identify parameters and methods for the design and implementation of the submarine cable laying; and Determine other factors that should be considered in the detailed design of the project.

PRAYER

Development of Calapan-San Jose 230 kV Transmission Line Backbone and San Jose 230 kV Substation As the interconnection of Palawan to Luzon Grid is via the Mindoro Island, it is necessary to establish a 230kV transmission backbone in Mindoro Island that will be designed for the longterm power requirements of both islands.

10.

11.

Provide Adequate and Reliable Transmission Facility in San Jose, Occidental Mindoro to meet the forecasted demand;

b.

Generation potentials in Occidental Mindoro; and

c.

Provide interconnection link to Palawan and Visayas Islands

With the interconnection, Palawan can already source adequate and reliable power supply, and access to a more competitive generation sources in the Luzon grid. Also, with a reliable transmission backbone, Palawan may export power through the development of renewable power in the province. Further, this will fulfill the government’s direction of interconnecting off-grid areas to the main grid. Lastly, this will prepare the country to the planned ASEAN power grid interconnection.

Immediately ISSUE an Order PROVISIONALLY AUTHORIZING the implementation of Palawan-Mindoro Interconnection Project - Stage 1; and

2.

After notice and hearing, APPROVE the Application for the implementation of the Palawan-Mindoro Interconnection Project Stage 1.

The Commission has set the Application for determination of compliance with the jurisdictional requirements, expository presentation, Pre-trial Conference, and presentation of evidence on the following dates and venues: Date and Time

Venue ERC HEARING ROOM, 17 June 2019 (Monday) 15th Floor Pacific Center Building, San Miguel at at two o’clock in the Avenue, Ortigas Center, afternoon (2:00 P.M.) Pasig City SEASONS HOTEL AND 19 June 2019 CENTER (Wednesday) at ten o’clock CONVENTION Km. 238 Airport Road, in the morning (10:00 A.M.) San Roque Occidental FILIPINA HOTEL CALAPAN 20 June 2019 M. Roxas Street, (Thursday) at ten o`clock in Barangay Sto. Nino, the morning (10:00 A.M.) Calapan City 5200 Oriental Mindoro

Particulars Jurisdictional and Expository Presentation for Luzon.

Expository Presentation

Expository Presentation

BEST WESTERN PLUS IVYWALL Rizal Avenue Extension, Expository Presentation, Puerto Princesa, Palawan ERC HEARING ROOM, th 16 July 2019 15 Floor Pacific Center Pre-Trial Conference and Building, San Miguel (Tuesday) at at two o’clock Evidentiary Hearing in the afternoon (2:00 P.M.) Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City 04 July 2019 (Friday) at ten o`clock in the morning (10:00 A.M.)

All persons who have an interest in the subject matter of the instant case may become a party by filing with the Commission a verified Petition to Intervene at least five (5) days prior to the initial hearing and subject to the requirements under Rule 9 of the 2006 ERC Rules of Practice and Procedure, indicating therein the docket number and title of the case and stating the following: 1)

The petitioner’s name and address;

2)

The nature of petitioner’s interest in the subject matter of the proceeding and the way and manner in which such interest is affected by the issues involved in the proceeding; and

3)

A statement of the relief desired.

All other persons who may want their views known to the Commission with respect to the subject matter of the case may file their Opposition or Comment thereon at any stage of the proceeding before Applicant rests its case, subject to the requirements under Rule 9 of the 2006 ERC Rules of Practice and Procedure. No particular form of Opposition or Comment is required, but the document, letter, or writing should contain the following:

This backbone development has the following benefits: a.

1.

NGCP prays for other equitable relief.

The Feasibility Study would establish the most feasible submarine cable link between Palawan and Mindoro. The system studies on the other hand will cover the selection between HVAC system and HVDC system as well as the establishment of the optimal transmission capacity based on the available technologies. These activities will be undertaken through hiring of consultancy services. (ii)

The seven suspects were caught gambling “cara y cruz” along the POLICE confiscated more than P1 river side service road near Magnomillion worth of shabu from seven lia Street in Barangay Rizal around individuals whom they caught in il- 4:45 p.m.

The suspects’ arrest was made legal gambling in Makati City late in response to a text message inTuesday afternoon.

The suspects were identified as forming that an Illegal gambling Anthony Ordoñez, 18; Arris Magar- session was in progress involving zo, 20; Jonathan Dionisio, 28; Ce- one alias Tonet and his cohorts.

The group is allegedly notorious ferino Fulgar, 29, and Regie Baradia, 51, all residents of Barangay Rizal, in the area.

The suspects are now detained Makati City; Khin William Santiaat the Makati City jail and will be go, 19, of Barangay Pembo, also in for illegal gambling and CYAN YELLOW BLACK Makati City, and Quilben JakiriMAGENTA Pa- charged checo, 23, of Barangay Lower Bicu- violating Republic Act 9165 (Dangerous Drugs Act) before the city tan, Taguig City.

Found in their possession were prosecutors office.

“We thanked the people who intwo pieces of ice plastic bags and one small heat sealed plastic con- formed us about this illegal activity. taining 165 grams of shabu, two Police are working 24/7 to protect the weighing scales, two pieces of city against criminals and violators of P1,000 bill, 23 pieces of P100 bill, city ordinances,” said Simon.

Meanwhile, Southern Police four pieces of P50 bill and seven District director Eliseo Cruz compieces of P20 bills.

“The illegal drugs confiscated mended Simon and his men led by weighs 165 grams all in all with Chief Inspector Judge Rowe Donastreet value of P1.2 million,” said to for the arrest of the suspects and Makati City police station com- the recovery of the prohibited substance that worth large of money. mander Rogelio Simon.

By Joel E. Zurbano

WHEREFORE, premises considered, NGCP most respectfully prays that this Honorable Commission:

The primary goals of the Desktop Study are the following: • Assess the risks in the study area; • Describe the landing sites for the proposed submarine cable interconnection; • Present information that may impact the survey and actual implementation of the proposed interconnection; • Present information that may affect system maintenance; • Summarize the survey, installation and operational permits to be required; and • Define the boundaries of the area to be surveyed.

While, the Hydrographic Survey aims to obtain the following results:

Over P1m worth of shabu seized by police in Makati

1)

The name and address of such person;

2)

A concise statement of the opposition or comment; and

3)

The grounds relied upon.

All such persons who wish to have a copy of the Application may request from Applicant that they be furnished with the same, prior to the date of the initial hearing.

Applicant is hereby directed to furnish all those making such request with copies of the Application and its attachments, subject to the reimbursement of reasonable photocopying costs. Any such person may likewise examine the Application and other pertinent records filed with the Commission during the standard office hours.

WITNESS, the Honorable Chairperson and CEO AGNES VST DEVANADERA, and the Honorable Commissioners CATHERINE P. MACEDA, ALEXIS M. LUMBATAN, and PAUL CHRISTIAN M. CERVANTES, Energy Regulatory Commission, this 21st day of May 2019 in Pasig City.

The proposed Project interconnection will have the following components:

1

2 3 4

An Act Granting the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines a Franchise to Engage in the Business of Conveying or Transmitting Electricity Through High Voltage Back-bone System or Interconnected Transmission Lines, Substations and Related Facilities, and For Other Purposes; Id, Section 1; Source: https:/ /www.rappler.com/nation/169095-palawan-daily-power-outages; Source: https:/ /www.rappler.com/nation/216411-duterte-eyes-big-players-end-palawanblackouts (M S-M AY 3 0 & J U N E 6 , 2 019)

UNHURRIED RECONSTRUCTION. International Committee of the Red Cross president Peter Maurer laments during a press conference in Manila on Tuesday what he calls the ‘painfully slow’ reconstruction of Marawi City, flattened in a war with Islamic militants, which he says is causing discontent. AFP

Groups oppose Capuyan’s appointment to head NCIP VARIOUS groups have opposed the appointment of (ret.)

Col. Allen Capuyan to head the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples.

The Sandugo Movement of Moro and Indigenous Peoples for Self-Determination said Capuyan formerly headed the national secretariat of the national task force to end local communist armed conflict, the presidential adviser for indigenous peoples’ concerns in 2018, and the commander of task force Gantangan, a special group formed by the Armed Forces of the Philippines “specifically to set up Lumad paramilitary groups in Mindanao” as part of a counterinsurgency program, that was behind the killings of many Lumad leaders opposing the entry of mining companies and agro-corporations in their ancestral lands.

“Capuyan played a major role

in the reign of terror in Mindanao.

Now as head of the NCIP, he can legitimize further militarization and terrorize indigenous peoples communities nationwide,” the group’s statement read.

“Capuyan’sappointment is very timely now that China funded projects are being railroaded in areas of the indigenous peoples communities. As NCIP chief, retired colonel Capuyan can easily coerce communities to approve a fake free prior and informed consent for the construction of the Chico River Water Pump project in Pinukpok, Kalinga and the Kaliwa Dam project in General Nakar, Quezon and Tanay, Rizal. These projects are strongly opposed by the affected local residents and IP communities,” the movement said.

Last May 27, President Rodrigo Duterte named Capuyan as the NCIP chairperson. Rio N. Araja

Panelo to DOJ: Recover P60m MALACAÑANG has directed the Department of Justice to take steps to recover the P60 million in ad placement fees paid to broadcaster Ben Tulfo’s Bitag Media by the Department of Tourism then headed by his sister Secretary Wanda Teo. Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo told reporters on Tuesday that the DOJ “will have to do something about it” as Tulfo refused and continued to refuse to return the ad money involving a transaction flagged by the Commission on Audit.

“The Palace always wants that laws are not only enforced but are obeyed to its fullest extent. As we said there are no sacred cows in this government, friends or allies,” Panelo said.

But Panelo had no time line on when the money should be returned. “[It] depends on the DOJ, because it’s their call, they will have to do something legally about it,” Panelo said.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra, replying to questions, said he had not received a formal directive to this effect.

The controversy stemmed from a 2017 COA report, released in April 2018, which showed that state-run People’s Television Network paid P60.010 million to Bitag Media Unlimited Inc. for the airing of DoT advertisements on Tulfo’s program Kilos Pronto.

Another report from state auditors said that Teo might be held liable for graft due to alleged conflict of interest over the ad buy.

It was Teo’s lawyer Ferdinand Topacio who claimed that the Tulfo siblings would return the money. After his announcement, Teo quit as Tourism chief.

Sports

A7

THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019 sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

National U, La Salle set Headstart title rematch

Raptors think outside box to beat Warriors OAKLAND—Toronto Raptors coach Nick Nurse dug out a defensive scheme his own players hadn’t seen in the NBA before to shut down the league’s top-scoring defending champion Golden State Warriors.

So when players say they never know what Toronto might do next in the NBA Finals, they mean it.

Nurse used a Box and One defense late in game two Sunday, leaving Fred VanVleet to guard Golden State star guard Stephen Curry. The Warriors’ NBA-best attack fell silent, even though the Raptors lost and the bestof-seven series level at 1-1.

“Everybody is making fun of me about it, right?” Nurse said Tuesday.

“I was just trying to come up with something to stop them.”

Golden State’s DeMarcus Cousins said he hadn’t seen the ploy since middle school. Toronto’s Kyle Lowry said he had never seen it in the NBA. And Curry called it “janky” without even being sure what it meant, saying he hadn’t seen it since college days.

“That’s a little Southern North Carolina slang I just pulled out of my back pocket,” Curry said. “It sounds right. I don’t really know what the true definition is.

“It was obviously innovative and unexpected in terms of defense you haven’t seen in a while. But we’ll be prepared for what they throw at us going forward in this series. Just got to be able to adapt.

“That’s pretty much what the finals is about at this stage, where you have to expect to see literally anything and a lot of desperation in certain moments.”

The strategy, a zone defense with fleet VanVleet tight on Curry, was a spur of the moment move.

“We were having trouble getting our defense set up. We were having trouble at the basket. We were having trouble with the rhythm of the game,” Nurse said.

“Usually you do it when the game is funky and there’s a bad rhythm and maybe you can change it just by slowing them down, stopping some of their cutting or whatever.”

It did, even if Nurse literally had to draw his own players a picture of what to do. AFP

Head Coach Steve Kerr and Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors during practice and media availability as part of the 2019 NBA Finals at Oracle Arena in Oakland, California. AFP

Durant still out, Klay doubtful in Game 3 O

AKLAND—Injury-hit Golden State will not have Kevin Durant or Kevon Looney for Wednesday’s third game of the NBA Finals while guard Klay Thompson remains questionable for the defending champion Warriors.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr updated the injury list Tuesday ahead of the matchup at Oracle Arena, which comes with the best-of-seven title showdown against Toronto deadlocked at 1-1.

The Warriors seek a third consecutive NBA crown and their fourth in five seasons while the Raptors are in the finals for the first time in their 24-season history.

Thompson, averaging 19.5 points in the playoffs, is listed as day-to-day for game three after an MRI exam Monday showed him with a mild left hamstring strain.

“From the progress I’ve made these last two days, I’m very encouraged that I’ll be able to go out there tomorrow night,” Thompson said.

“It will be a game-time decision. For me personally, it would be hard to see me not playing. Hopefully I’ll feel much better tomorrow and be a go for tip-off.”

Thompson left Golden State’s 109-104 victory Sunday at Toronto with 7:59 to play with hamstring tightness.

“He says he’s feeling well and a lot better than yesterday and thinks he’ll be ready to go,” Kerr said.

“What we’ll have to determine is if that’s a risk. If there’s a risk we’d rather you have the next couple days.”

Thompson is content to leave the decision in the hands of trainers and medical staff, not wanting to risk an injury that could take him out for the remainder of the finals.

“I would do anything I can to be out there, but it’s all in their hands. If there’s any pain, it will be a no-go just because of the position we’re in,” Thompson said.

“This could be a longer series, so there’s no point in trying to go out there and reaggravate it and potentially keep myself out of the whole entire finals instead of just one game.”

Durant still improving Durant, this year’s top playoff scorer for Golden State with 34.2 points a game and Most Valuable Player in the past two NBA Finals, has been out for nearly a month with a right calf injury.

Kerr has said the superstar forward must take part in a practice before playing and that while he missed Tuesday’s workout he would take the court at the team’s training facility.

“Kevin is going to get on the floor at the practice facility later,” Kerr said. “He’s out for tomorrow but improving.

“Kevin won’t play tomorrow. He’s ramping up his exercise routines and workouts.”

Warriors reserve forward Looney, averging 7.2 points and 4.6 rebounds in the playoffs, is done for the finals after an MRI Monday showed Looney with a fracture of the cartilage connecting the right ribs to the sternum.

“Looney is out for the series,” Kerr said.

“It’s not going to be anything bad long term. But it’s going to keep him out the rest of the series. Fortunately it won’t affect him in the future but it’s a big loss for us.”

Resiliency will be key DeMarcus Cousins, who only returned last week after six weeks out with a torn left quad, will play a lot of minutes with Looney out.

“He’s going to be huge for us the rest of the series,” Warriors guard Stephen Curry said. “He’s reminding people of how special of a talent he is and how versatile he is. It’s only going to continue to improve as the series goes on.”

Kerr also said 2015 NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Andre Iguodala, who was bothered by a nagging leg injury in game two, will play Wednesday.

“A lot of guys showed that resiliency in game two. It’s going to have to continue for us to get three more wins,” Curry said. AFP

Best Center still accepting cage, JK.com, Adamson rule Summer Gland Slam volley enrollees THE award-winning Best Center is still accepting enrollees to its basketball and volleyball classes at the Ateneo College covered courts until today.

Nic Jorge, founding president of the Basketball Efficiency and Scientific Training Center, said the classes which started last Monday will last until June 15.

The sessions are scheduled on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from 8 to 11:30 a.m.

Basketball classes are in Preparatory Level and Levels 1, 2, 3 and 4. Volleyball classes are from Levels 1 to 3.

The Best Center, an Olympism awardee by the Philippine Olympic Committee and is in the Hall-of-Fame of the Philippine Sportswriters Association, is sponsored by Milo and supported by Rain or Shine, Chris Sports and SKLZ. For details, contact 372-3065 and 411-6260 or email bestcenter.inquiry@gmail.com.

JK.COM and Adamson University both took home the championship trophies in this year’s Summer Grand Slam for both the Men’s and Women’s teams as they bested 22 and 28 teams, respectively, at the Malagasang 1B Imus City, Cavite.

The champion teams are flanked by the Philippine Army and the Adamson Alumni as 1st runners-up, while the Philippine Air Force and the PUP Women’s Team finished as 2nd runners-up.

Ferdinand Liguayan of the Philippine Air Force took home the Most Valuable Player, Best Hitter, and Best Slugger awards for the men’s team at the tournament.

Alexandra Isabel Salas of the Rizal team bagged 4 individual awards, namely the Best Hitter, Pitcher, Slugger and the Most Valuable Player award for the women’s team.

“The yearly Summer Grand Slam is both a testament to the Filipino might in softball and also an avenue to discover the next amazing Filipino softball players, who will bring glory to our country,” said long-time softball patron and Amateur Softball Association of the Philippines president Jean Henri Lhuillier.

Jean Henri Lhuillier is shown with the PH Blu Boys.

He further emphasized that our national teams are both making great strides in the global arena with the PH Blu Girls’ successful stint at the Asia Cup held in Jakarta, Indonesia last May, where they earned fourth place after world powerhouses Japan, China, and Chinese Taipei. Their placement in this tournament also earned them a spot in the WBSC Softball Asia/

Oceania 2019 Qualifying Event for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

On the other hand, the PH Blu Boys will be flying to Prague this June to compete in the Men’s Softball World Championship.

The Summer Grand Slam is a yearly invitational softball tournament organized by ASAPHIL and is supported by Cebuana Lhuillier.

MULTI-TITLED National University and La Salle Greenhills arranged a grudge title rematch by mauling their respective 15-under rivals recently in the 6th Headstart Developmental League presented by AXA Team EDS at the SGS gym on Araneta Avenue, Quezon City.

The NU Bullpups used their height and heft advantage to dump Chachago, 138-39, while the La Salle Greenies likewise romped to a 105-59 win over Philippine Cultural College.

Daniel Padilla and Mark de Leon led seven NU players in double figures with 27 and 23 points, respectively, in the event also sponsored by Freego Jeans and AXA Philippines.

In the 12-under division, it will be LSGH vs Octacon Tires as the Greenies clobbered Manila Braves, 97-58, thanks to solid all-around show of A. Peralta.

With six players producing doubledigit scores Octogon Tires whipped Maestro, 133-43.

Elijah Cabiluna paced Octagon with 27 points while TJ delos Santos and Daryl Valdeavilla chipped in 23 and 20 points, respectively.

The finals will be held today also at the SGS gym.

Federer...

From A8

He might be sick. You never know.

“You might be playing great or for some reason he’s struggling. Maybe there’s incredible wind, rain, 10 rain delays. You just don’t know. That’s why you need to put yourself in that position.”

Federer is also 23-15 behind overall against 33-year-old Nadal heading into their 39th clash, but has won their last five matches, including in the 2017 Australian Open final when he claimed his first Grand Slam title for five years.

Federer ‘believes’ The Swiss had taken a two-year break from clay altogether in an attempt to focus on Wimbledon, but returned to the red dirt last month, reaching the quarter-finals in Madrid and Rome.

He has built on that form in the French capital, losing just one set— the same as 11-time champion Nadal —en route to the last four.

He is now targeting only his second Roland Garros crown, after taking advantage of Nadal’s shock loss to Robin Soderling to win the 2009 title.

“The complete dream would be to win the tournament,” said Federer.

“Other players won’t agree. It will be difficult, but I believe it anyway.

“For me to get to Rafa is not simple. It took five matches here for me to win to get there.

“That’s why I’m very happy to play Rafa, because if you want to achieve something on the clay, inevitably, at some stage, you will go through Rafa, because he’s that strong and he will be there.

“I knew that when I signed up for the clay that hopefully that’s gonna happen.”

The beaten Wawrinka admitted he was unlikely to miss his close friend Federer’s tilt at Nadal in three days’ time.

“I’m a big fan of this sport,” said Wawrinka, a three-time major title winner himself.

“So when you get the chance to have in the semi-final of French Open Roger against Rafa, you’re gonna put the TV on and watch. I always did in the past.” AFP

Kabacan aces seek PPS Kidapawan honors REYMON Saldivar and Jairo Ramirez from Kabacan gear up for a tougher challenge as they go all out to reassert their might at the Kidapawan Tennis Club when the PPS Dir. Alberto Aton national juniors tennis tournament is held starting today (Thursday, June 6) in Cotabato.

Saldivar topped the boys’ 14-and-under play while Ramirez dominated the 10-unisex when the country’s longest, biggest talent-search made its first stop here last February for the Pres. R. Barrios Cup. But the duo will be hard-pressed to score a repeat with Saldivar bracing for a clash with the likes of Jason Flores, Charles Jumawan and sibling Armando

Saldivar and Ramirez facing Iñigo Barrios, Erick Bation and Wilfred Florida, among others, in the Group 2 tournament sponsored by Director Alfredo Aton of Department of Agriculture.

Fierce duel is also expected in the other age categories with Zykla Cervantes, Coleen Carvajal, Juliana Carvajal and Pauline Binoya tipped to dispute the girls’ 18-U plum and Brent Magno, Bruce Hurtado, JV Comendador and Eric Comendador heading the cast in the boys’ premier division of the tournament sponsored by Palawan Pawnshop headed by president/CEO Bobby Castro.

The Carvajals also banner the 16-U field along with Faith Anito and Mae Torre-

carion with Reyman Saldivar, Steve Aton, Gene Espinosa and JV Comendador seen to slug it out in the boys’ category of the event that also features the 12-U section in both sides.

Also on tap is the doubles competition in the boys’ and girls’ 14- and 18-U divisions and the 10-unisex in the event sanctioned by the Unified Tennis Philippines made up of PPS-PEPP, Cebuana Lhuillier, Wilson, Toby’s, Dunlop, Slazenger and B-Meg. Next up is the Alamada, Cotabato leg on June 13-16. Listup is ongoing. For details, call PPS-PEPP Sports Program Development director Bobby Mangunay at 0915-4046464.

TRIATHLON QUEENS. Swiss Caroline Steffen (center) displays her medal as she poses with runner-up Dimity Lee Duke of Australia (right) and third placer Laura Wood of New Zealand after re-claiming the Century Tuna IRONMAN 70.3 presented by Big Boss Cement crown in Subic last Sunday.

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

A8

THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019

Sports Ramirez tells Diaz: Let’s talk

FIRST DAY OF SPARRING. Senator Manny Pacquiao held his first sparring Tuesday at the Elorde Gym Five E-Com Building in Pasay City for his fight against American WBA welterweight super champion Keith Thurman at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on July 20. His sparmate is Australian light middleweight Tim Tszyu, son of Kostya Tszyu. Wendell Alinea/MP Promotions

Go for Gold SJ Knights get 2 former Cardinals

By Peter Atencio TWO former members of the Mapua Cardinals will reinforce the San Juan Knights-Go For Gold squad in the coming 2019 Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League Lakan Cup. Knights’ coach Randy Alcantara said his familiarity with the games of big man Jessie Saitanan and forward Andrew Estrella will be put to good use when they finally see action for the Knights starting in their June 14 game.

“Kilala ko na iyong dalawa. Lalaro at lalaban sila,” said Alcantara as the 2019 MPBL Datu Cup champions brace for an opening game against the Bacoor Strikers.

The 5’11” Estrella and the 6’5” Saitanan were acquired from the Quezon City Capitals.

And their presence will help give the Knights a strong inside game.

“Malaki ang maitutulong nila sa loob,” added Alcantara, during a team presentation held yesterday at the Cafe Ysabel in San Juan, with team owners Jeremy Go and former Senator Jinggoy Estrada, along with team governor Chris Conwi and manager Jun Usman.

Alcantara said teamwork and good chemistry will help the squad go far in the tournament.

And they will be banking on the games of Datu Cup finals MVP Michael Ayon, along with those of Larry Rodriguez, John Wilson and Mac Cardona.

They are also counting on Jhonard Clarito, Carlos Isit, Cedric Pelayo, Orlan Wamar and Jeff Tajonera.

Regulars like Joseph Ubalde, Joseph Marquez, Art Aquino, Lester Reyes, Enzo Subido and Mike Salvado will make up the rest of the Knights.

The Knights are also set to meet Season 1 champion Batangas City in an out-of-town sortie in Dubai this September.

There will be 30 teams in the Lakan Cup. The eight qualifiers in the playoff in the north and south divisions will vie for seats in the finals.

Aces give Hotshots rude PBA welcome

By Jeric Lopez

A

LASKA finally compiled a winning streak after winning its second straight game at the expense of debuting Magnolia, 103-80, in a lopsided affair to continue its rise in the 2019 Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner’s Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum last night.

Chris Daniels had one of his better games of the conference, leading the Aces with 23 points and seven rebounds, while Jvee Casio was on target with 17 points on 77-percent, shooting.

Jeron Teng continued to give Alaska consistent production with a doubledouble of 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Alaska improved to 3-2 to climb in the upper echelon, while Magnolia started its campaign with a loss at 0-1.

The Aces gave the Hotshots a rude welcome right away with their fine play.

Shooting 53 percent from the field in the first half with seven triples, Alaska was able to get on the driver’s seat and seize command of the contest early.

With both its offense and defense running in full circle in the first 24 minutes, the Aces were able to establish a sizeable 50-38 advantage at intermission.

Not slowing down at all, Alaska continued to pour it on in the third quarter to bury the Hotshots.

Keeping their hot shooting, the Aces stretched their already large lead further to an insurmountable 25-point bubble, 89-64, and finish off the game.

Alaska outscored Magnolia, 39-26, in a dominating third-quarter performance.

Coming off a two-week break following the Philippine Cup Finals, Magnolia was clearly rusty as it struggled to get any sort of rhythm.

Hotshots import John Fields had an underwhelming performance, only managing 12 points for his team.

Meanwhile, Phoenix star Calvin Abueva had been suspended indefinitely and fined P70,000 by the league for his misconducts in the team’s previous two games.

The fine was for P20,000 for engaging with a fan, Blackwater rookie Bobby Ray Parks’ girlfriend, in a verbal altercation and for making obscene gestures, and P50,000 for a flagrant foul penalty 2 against Terrence Jones of TNT KaTropa.

The scores: Alaska 103—Daniels 23, Casio 17, Teng 12, Enciso 11, Cruz 9, Banchero 8, Manuel 6, Thoss 4, Ayaay 4, Exciminiano 2, Racal 2, Galliguez 2, Babilonia 2, Andrada 1, Potts 0, Pascual 0.

Magnolia 80 - Sangalang 17, Barroca 15, Fields 12, Lee 9, Jalalon 7, Herndon 6, Ramos 5, Melton 4, Dela Rosa 3, Brondial 2, Pascual 0, Simon 0.

Quarters: 25-20, 50-38, 89-64, 103-80

Strong finish nets Dutchman 1-shot lead DANAO City, Cebu—Guido Van der Valk rode on a fiery windup to shoot a five-under 66 and drive past an equally hotfinishing Michael Bibat, Jay Bayron and Aussie Jack Sullivan for a one-stroke lead at the start of the ICTSI Club Filipino de Cebu Invitational here yesterday.

Van der Valk took advantage of the three reachable par-5s of the par-71 CFdC layout, hitting an eagle on No. 11 to break an even-par game in hot but windy conditions and spark a finish that put the 39-year-old Philippine Golf Tour veteran from Lelystad, the Netherlands in front of a stellar 80-player field in the P3 mil-

Guido Van der Valk

lion championship sponsored by ICTSI. “I played pretty good with my long game, irons and putting,” said the long-hitting Van der Valk, who birdied Nos. 13, 15 and 16 after that eagle feat off a perfect -8-iron second shot to within 10 feet. “The course is tough with narrow fairways and tricky greens with the wind adding up to the challenge.”

But he bucked them all, including Bibat, Bayron and Sullivan, who for a while had held the lead at 67 until Van der Valk came in with his 34-32 card that put him on track for a follow-up to his breakthrough win at Eagle Ridge last year.

Bibat broke a two-bogey, two-birdie backside game with a strong finishing kick, going four-under in a three-hole stretch from No. 6 spiked by an eagle on the par-5 sixth as the former Asian Games bronze medalist got into the mix early in a bid to snap a long title spell on the Philippine Golf Tour.

“I was lucky to have scored this low, given the windy conditions and the unpredictable surface,” said Bibat, who nailed his maiden win at Rancho Palos Verdes way back in 2014.

Winless on the circuit organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc. in three years, Sullivan also came out with scorching frontside windup on a course he had never played before, birdying three of the last seven to be in early contention with a 32-35 round.

“It’s quite surprising I made this round since this is the first time that I played this course,” said the 23-year-old shotmaker from Gold Coast.

But looming large is Bayron, who took charge early on with a four-birdie binge at the front then bounced back from a two-bogey mishap on Nos. 12 and 14 with birdies on the next two as the veteran Davaoeño ace, coming off a stint in the first PGT Asia event in Taiwan two weeks ago, stayed within a stroke of Van der Valk.

Federer dreams of toppling Nadal PARIS—Roger Federer insisted that “there’s always a chance” as he looks to finally beat old rival Rafael Nadal at the French Open after five previous defeats, eight years since their last Roland Garros meeting.

The 37-year-old had not even played the tournament since 2015 before this year, but powered into his eighth French Open semi-final with a 7-6 (7/4), 4-6, 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 victory over Stan Wawrinka on Tuesday.

Nadal thrashed Kei Nishikori 6-1, 6-1, 6-3 to claim his 91st win at Roland Garros, against just two defeats.

But despite losing all five of his French Open meetings

against Nadal, including in four finals, and trailing their head-to-head record on clay 13-2, Federer still holds hope that he can achieve another milestone in his illustrious career.

“Like against any player, there is always a chance. Otherwise nobody will be in the stadium to watch because everybody already knows the result in advance,” said the 20-time Grand Slam champion.

“That’s exactly what everybody believes by facing Rafa. They know it’s going to be tough. But you just never know. He might have a problem.

Turn to A7

Federer

PHILIPPINE Sports Commission Chairman Butch Ramirez said the government has been very supportive of Hidilyn Diaz, adding that the Rio Olympics Silver medalist and the sports body must talk.

The PSC chief was reacting to Diaz’s social media post seeking financial support for her 2020 Tokyo Olympic Gold bid.

“Hidilyn receives support from the PSC and the Philippine Airforce being an enlisted personnel,” clarified Ramirez highlighting the government’s support for Diaz.

Ramirez explained that Diaz receives one of the highest allowances in the national pool and whose requirements are rarely turned down by the Board, which has steadily backed her Olympic journey.

For this year alone, the PSC has given almost P4.5 million to fund her foreign trainings in Hainan and Guangxi in China. The agency is also paying her foreign coach Julius Kaiwen Gao’s monthly salary and food allowance. Her NSA’s request for funding for competitions was also approved. A new weightlifting gym has just been constructed in the RMSC after she called attention to the old gym they were using.

The Chairman also intimated that as far as they know, Diaz receives support from private companies like the MVP Foundation and Alcantara and Sons.

It would be recalled that after her Olympic windfall, she also received millions in total from the government incentives act, RA 10699, for her silver and gold finishes in the 2017 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games and the 2018 Asian Games.

“I do not think government was remiss of its support to Hidilyn.

Despite what it seems, we at the PSC choose to see her for what she is, a champion we will support on her dream to achieve more,” said Ramirez. “It would be good for Hidilyn to visit us so we could talk and clarify matters.“

Ramos charges back with a 70, forces 3-way tie YOUNG Sean Ramos fired a two-under 70 that stood out in a day of soaring scores at the Luisita Golf and Country Club yesterday, towing Aidric Chan and Carl Corpus to a share of the lead with Gab Manotoc after two rounds of the first of the two-stage SEA Games men’s team qualifier in Tarlac.

Ramos recovered strong from a disastrous 76 start by bucking two bogeys with four birdies, including one on the tough No. 18 as he moved from joint 15th to the top of the heap at 146 with the fancied Chan and Corpus with Manotoc barely hanging tough.

Manotoc and Luis Castro, who shot identical 69s to grab the first round lead Tuesday, struggled for form this time but the former hit a late birdie to save his spot at the top despite a 77 for a 146, the same outputs put in by Chan and Corpus, who carded 73 and 74, respectively.

Chan, the reigning national junior champion who anchored his team-up with Rey Pagunsan to victory in the recent National pro-am at Splendido, survived a shaky finish of two bogeys in the last four holes for a 35-38 while Corpus birdied the 18th to salvage a pair of 77s as they bolstered their bids for the three coveted slots in the national team vying in the Southeast Asian Games the country is hosting from Nov. 30-Dec. 10.

Castro limped with a 78 and slipped to fifth at 147 while Jhondie Quibol and Edward Dy assembled identical 148s after a pair of 75s, and Lanz Uy and Paolo Wong stayed in the hunt with similar 76s for 149s in the event organized and conducted by the National Golf Association of the Philippines.

Only the top 24 made it to the last 36 holes of Stage I elims sponsored by the MVP Sports Foundation, the PLDT Group, Cignal and Metro Pacific and hosted by Luisita with the top 12 plus ties and players within 10 strokes of the leading scorer advancing to Stage 2.

IN BRIEF

Business

DoF: Tobacco tax increase historic FINANCE Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said the Duterte administration made history by increasing the excise tax on tobacco twice to raise funds for the Universal Health Care program.

“I think we made history. I think it is only in this administration that tobacco taxes were raised twice. We’re quite thankful to the Senate and also to the House [of Representatives] for putting this bill over the line,” Dominguez said in a statement Wednesday.

Senate Bill 2233, which was approved unanimously by senators on third and final reading on Tuesday, provides for a unitary P45 excise tax increase per pack on tobacco products in 2020, followed by a series of P5 hikes until the rate reaches P60 in 2023, and a 5 percent annual increase thereafter.

The House concurred with the Senate version after senators reconsidered its earlier final reading approval of the bill Monday night to address the concerns raised by congressional representatives from the tobacco-producing provinces of Northern Luzon.

The Finance Department said the phased increase was acceptable and would secure the necessary funding for the UHC program. Julito G. Rada

SMFB denies plan to sell shares this year SAN Miguel Food and Beverage Inc., the food and beer business of conglomerate San Miguel Corp., said it has no plan to sell shares this year.

SMFB president Ramon Ang said in an interview following the annual stockholders’ meeting the company saw no need to conduct a follow-on offering as it is already compliant with the minimum public ownership requirement of the Philippine Stock Exchange.

The share price of SMFB rose in recent weeks on speculation it would soon go back to the equities market to conduct a follow-on offering. “We have no current plans to conduct any follow-on offering this year,” Ang said.

SMFB conducted a share sale last year to comply with the 10-percent public float requirement after implementing a share swap with San Miguel to facilitate the merger of San Miguel Foods Co., San Miguel Brewery Inc. and Ginebra San Miguel.

Ang said the outlook for SMFB remained positive despite the planned imposition of additional excise tax on liquor products. Jenniffer B. Austria

PAL, Boeing in talks over acquisition of 777X aircraft series

By Darwin G. Amojelar

PHILIPPINE Airlines said it is in talks with Boeing Commercial Airplanes for possible acquisition of the latest series of the long-range, wide-body, twinengine Boeing 777 family.

“We don’t have plans yet [to buy Boeing 777X], but we are in discussion. Also, Boeing wants to sell the airplane,” PAL president and chief operating officer Jaime Bautista said.

“They are in discussion with us, informing us the features of the airplane to get us interested to replace the old Boeing 777,” Bautista said.

PAL has 10 Boeing 777 on its fleet including two aircraft that were acquired in 2008.

“So, by 2020 these two Boeing 777 will be a 12-year-old airplane. Boeing wants us to replace these planes with Boeing 777X,” Bautista said.

The 777X features new GE9X engines, new composite wings with folding wingtips, greater cabin width and seating capacity and technologies from the Boeing 787.

PAL uses Boeing 777 in its longhaul destinations.

PAL’s parent firm, PAL Holdings Inc., incurred a comprehensive loss of $65.78 million in 2018, down from the $129-million loss in 2017.

Revenues went up to $2.92 billion last year from $2.62 billion in 2017 while expenses increased to $3.06 billion from $2.76 billion.

ANA Holdings Inc., the parent company of ANA, earlier acquired 9.5-percent shares in PAL Holdings for $95 million.

business@manilastandard.net extrastory2000@gmail.com THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019

B1

San Miguel offers to convert Pandacan depot into bus terminal

By Alena Mae S. Flores

SMC asks Meralco to hold supply bidding DIVERSIFIED San Miguel Corp. asked power retailer Manila Electric Co. to start the competitive selection process for power supply agreements as ordered by the Supreme Court.

The court required all PSA applications submitted by the distribution utilities on or after June 30, 2015 to comply with the CSP or public bidding in accordance with the 2015 circular of the Department of Energy.

“We cannot do anything and I have said that to you even before. Because the prices are higher so who will accept that.

Of course, the court will look at the present value today which is very low so they will not allow it. We have been expecting that,” San Miguel president Ramon Ang said.

Meralco signed power supply agreements with seven generators in April 2016 to secure 3,551 megawatts of capacity in its franchise area which is the subject of the Supreme Court case.

“We submit ourselves to CSP. We have already advised Meralco to start the CSP process. I think we heard everybody will abide. For me, whatever they do with the pricing, we will join and fight during the bidding. At the end of the day, the lowest price wins. We follow the rules,” Ang said.

Alena Mae S. Flores

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

PH-KOREAN TRADE DEAL. Stronger bilateral relations between the Philippines and Republic of Korea is expected as Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez (seated, left) and Minister for Trade, Industry and Energy Yoo Myung-hee (seated, right) officially launched the negotiations of the PH-ROK Free Trade Agreement on June 3. Both ministers committed to conclude the negotiation of a ‘comprehensive and future-oriented FTA’ by November 2019. The FTA will create favorable conditions for exporters, investors, industries, work force and micro, small and medium enterprises of both countries.

Drought pushed up May inflation to 3.2%

By Julito G. Rada

I

NFLATION rate picked up to 3.2 percent in May from 3 percent in April, as the El Niño dry spell resulted in higher prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages, the Philippine Statistics Authority said Wednesday.

The May figure, however, was still lower than 4.6 percent registered in the same month last year and fell within the government’s target range of 2 percent to 4 percent.

It brought the average inflation in the first five months to 3.5 percent, also within the target.

“The uptrend was primarily brought about by higher annual rates posted in the heavily-weighted food and non-alcoholic beverages index at 3.4 percent; and housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels index at 3.3 percent,” PSA said in a statement.

Meanwhile, slower annual increments were observed in the indices of alcoholic beverages and tobacco at 9.5 percent; transport, 3.5 percent; and restaurant and miscellaneous goods and services, 3.3 percent. The rest of the commodity groups retained their previous month’s annual rates.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said in a statement the inflation outturn for May 2019 “continues to be in line with the BSP’s current assessment that inflation will settle within the target range [2 percent to 4 percent] for 2019 and 2020.”

“Looking ahead, the BSP will continue to monitor evolving price trends to

ensure that the monetary policy stance remains consistent with its price stability objective,” it said.

Economic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia said the government should take proactive and long-term solutions to address the El Niño phenomenon.

“Faster price adjustments in food and non-alcoholic beverages drove the uptick in headline inflation as weak El Niño conditions persisted, and brought significant damage to the agriculture sector in the midst of the election period’s strong consumption demand,” said Pernia.

He said El Niño was a recurring problem that required an immediate and long-term response. “The country needs to have a more robust solution to mitigate the impacts of extreme weather conditions and climate change considering that the Philippines is prone to natural disasters,” he said.

Unemployment rate declined to 5.1% in April, says PSA THE unemployment rate in the country declined to 5.1 percent of the labor force in April from 5.5 percent a year ago, as more than 1 million Filipinos found jobs, the Philippine Statistics Authority said Wednesday.

Data showed that the employment rate in April improved to 94.9 percent, the highest among all April rounds of the Labor Force Survey since 2009.

The total number of employed individuals climbed to 42.24 million from 40.9 million.

The underemployment rate, or the percentage of workers wanting more hours of work, also eased to 13.5 percent in April from 17 percent a year earlier. In absolute terms, the number of underemployed individuals decreased to 5.7 million from 6.9 million.

Some 1.3 million jobs were created over the past 12 months, results of the latest Labor Force Survey showed.

“The April 2019 round of the LFS reflected an upbeat labor market, where unemployment rate was at a low 5.1 percent and underemployment rate at 13.5 percent; these, even with the slight uptick in labor force participation,” Economic Planning Secretary Ernesto Pernia said in a statement.

Pernia pointed out the need to continuously reduce the unemployment and underemployment rates to successfully meet the Philippine Development Plan targets by 2022.

“Both the quality and quantity of work need to be addressed. At the same time that employment opportunities are being increased, workers and job seek-

World Bank sees PH growing 6.4% this year THE World Bank expects the Philippine economy to grow 6.4 percent this year, or 0.1-percentage-point lower compared to its January projection of 6.5 percent, amid the expectation for a weaker global expansion.

The multilateral lender said in its June 2019 “Global Economic Prospects: Heightened Tensions, Subdued Investment” report that the Philippines would likely grow 6.5 percent in 2020 and 2021. Both forecasts were also slightly lower than its previous estimate of 6.6 percent for both years.

Data showed that despite the downward revisions, the Philippines would remain one of the stronger economies in the East Asia and Pacific region this year. It will outperform Thailand (3.5 percent), Malaysia (4.6 percent), Indonesia (5.2 percent) and China (6.2 percent).

Meanwhile, Vietnam (6.6 percent), Myanmar (6.5 percent), Mongolia (7.2

percent), Laos (6.6 percent) and Cambodia (7 percent) are seen to grow faster than the Philippines.

“Inflation is subdued or declining in most countries [Cambodia, the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam], allowing monetary authorities to keep policy rates steady, generally at accommodative levels,” the bank said.

“In the Philippines, private consumption is rebounding amid slowing inflation and improving employment conditions. In addition, election-related spending in the first half of 2019 is giving the economy an additional boost and is partly mitigating the impact of weakening exports,” the World Bank said.

Compared to the Philippine Economic Update the bank released in April 2019, the forecasts for the Philippines were retained at 6.4 percent for 2019, 6.5 percent for 2020 and 6.5 percent for 2021. Julito G. Rada

ers must be enabled to improve their knowledge and skills through training and education,” he said.

The labor force participation rate in April 2019 was estimated at 61.4 percent out of the population of 72.5 million among 15 years old and above.

This was higher than the labor force participation of 60.9 percent in April 2018.

Workers in the services sector comprised the largest proportion of the employed population, representing 58.5 percent of the total. Among them, those engaged in the wholesale and retail trade and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles accounted for the largest percentage (34.6 percent) of workers in the services sector.

Julito G. Rada

MYTOWN’S AWARDS. MyTown,

the rental brand under Philippines Urban Living Solutions, is awarded the highest honor in ‘living, learning and work environments’ and highest-rated Filipino nomination by the organization’s judges among 900 regional nominations. With a total of 16 buildings adjacent to Bonifacio Global City, MyTown has created ‘towns’ where over 3,000 young professionals can increase their quality of life by avoiding their daily commutes and live, work and play with like-minded ambitious young professionals.

Receiving two trophies on behalf of PULS in the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards in Singapore is head of marketing Revianne Sesante.

CONGLOMERATE San Miguel Corp. submitted an unsolicited proposal to the Transportation Department to transform the former Pandacan oil depot in Manila into a P10-billion bus and food terminal.

San Miguel president Ramon Ang said the proposal for the 25-hectare property of Petron Corp. in the former Pandacan oil depot was submitted to Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade. San Miguel owns Petron, the country’s biggest oil company.

“We are in discussion with him, consulting him and we have both come up with good ideas how to help the public transport to be better,” Ang said.

Ang said instead of building terminals in Bulacan or Laguna which would still force commuters to take city buses to Metro Manila, a terminal for provincial buses in Pandacan would be a more convenient solution.

“So it’s still the bus going to Manila? Why ask commuters to go down when it is not yet time for them to go down. We offered a good solution. We said if you are coming from Ilocos, the bus will go up to the Skyway Balintawak then go down to Pandacan. We call our proposal the bus and food terminal,” Ang said.

“So if you will fetch passengers from Ilocos or Bicol from there, wouldn’t it be easier to monitor? Most students come from the provinces during the weekends and if they go down there, it would be easier than letting them get off in Bulacan and ride another bus,” Ang said.

Ang said the terminal which could accommodate 5,000 buses is strategically located in Manila and would be equipped with facilities that would make it convenient to commuters.

“The UV Express are angry because they will become point to point but with this plan there won’t be a problem. The UV can wait in Pandacan…. The area is near the Skyway ramp so it’s perfect,” he said.

Ang said the terminal was also envisioned to become a food terminal as vegetables and fish and other goods could be easily transported there.

“Right now, all products are unloaded at Balintawak or Divisoria and wherever. Now, Pandacan will be the new central market,” Ang said.

He said the location to be called the Skyway Bus and Food Terminal could be expanded amid talks with other Pandacan depot landowners such as Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp. and Chevron Philippines.

“We will also place cold storage and wet market and restaurants. We are in talks with Shell and Caltex and they agree with the plan,” Ang said.

The oil companies ceased their oil depot operations in Pandacan in 2015 in compliance with the Supreme Court ruling directing the removal of the said oil facilities amid security concerns as it is located in a densely populated area.

B2

Business

THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019 extrastory2000@gmail.com

World Bank trims global growth target

By Douglas Gillison

W

ASHINGTON―The World Bank slashed its global growth forecasts for this year in a report released Tuesday that portrayed a world gripped by deepening trade conflict, tumbling confidence and increasingly skittish investment.

Although the global development lender currently expects a modest recovery 2020 and 2021, the bank said in its semi-annual report that a lot will have to go right for this to happen.

Instead the growing risks suggest the outlook could instead grow darker still.

The greatest danger on the horizon is the prospect of worsening trade clashes between major world economies―a specter that rose again last week

when US President Donald Trump announced fresh punitive duties on Mexican goods in a dispute over immigration policy.

The world economy is now expected to expand by 2.6 percent this year, three tenths of a percentage point lower than the January forecast, and well below the three percent growth seen in 2018, according to the Global Economic Prospects report.

The World Bank also sounded the alarm about rising debt levels and warned emerging economies they could soon regret the decision to borrow in search of a growth boost.

Newly-installed World Bank President David Malpass, who in his previous position with the US Treasury participated in Trump’s stalled trade negotiations with China, said global growth is “fragile” and the slowdown jeopardizes progress in battling world poverty.

“The global economic outlook, in both the near and long term, is confronting substantial

challenges,” he told reporters.

The new forecast was decidedly gloomier than the latest outlook by the International Monetary Fund, released in April, but which likewise predicted a slowdown and warned of the risks posed by trade conflicts.

“The bottom line is that the global economy is coming to a crossroads,” said World Bank economist Ayhan Kose, who oversaw the report, told AFP. “We need to find ways to stabilize growth and I think further escalation of these trade tensions is now the number one risk that could actually weigh on the outlook,” he told AFP. World trade volume also is expected to drop off sharply, growing by 2.6 percent this year, the slowest pace since the global financial crisis and a full percentage point lower than January’s forecast.

In East Asia and the Pacific, total economic output is likely to drop below six percent for the first time since the Asian financial crisis more than

20 years ago.

China’s forecast is little changed, with growth projected to slow to 6.2 to percent this year.

The forecast for the United States is unchanged, with GDP growth slowing to 2.5 percent this year before weakening to 1.7 percent in 2020, though still considerably stronger than other advanced economies.

But American exports to Europe and Asia have seen an “especially acute” slowdown, and conditions in the eurozone economic have “deteriorated rapidly” as exports to China, central Asia and elsewhere have shrunk, according to the report.

Latin America’s top two economies, Brazil and Mexico, have taken sharp turns for the worse.

The report did not take Trump’s latest tariff threat against Mexico into account–it was announced Friday and is due to take effect June 10―but the World Bank cut the forecast by 0.3 points, calling for expansion of just 1.7 percent in 2019. AFP

European farmers turn to sorghum production

By Isabel Malsang SZEGED, Hungary―Ferenc Kardos planted 300 hectares of sorghum instead of corn this year. From the fertile Hungarian plain where he lives all the way to southeastern France, the hot weather cereal is taking root in Europe.

“With corn, we suffered losses three out of five years due to drought,” said Kardos, the crop manager of a 3,000-hectare (30-square kilometer) farm without irrigation in southern Hungary, part of the Carpathian Basin which is increasingly exposed to extreme temperatures, pushing farmers to adapt crops to global warming.

“If we have to lose money, best take a chance with something we don’t know well and see what happens,” he told AFP. “We know the risks with corn now.”

Sorghum, which is in the same family as millet, is the world’s fifthmost important cereal crop, after corn, rice, wheat and barley.

Domesticated in the Sahel region of Africa, the grain consumes 30 percent less water than corn and withstands drought better.

Moreover, sorghum needs little in the way of fertilizer as its deep, extensive roots are good at fixing nitrogen present in the soil. And the plants produce grains even in high temperatures.

In this file photo taken on April 3, 2008, a sorghum is ready to be harvested in the locality of Perez Millan, 200 km from Buenos Aires. Due to global warming, Sorghum culture is implemented in Europe too. AFP

While sorghum isn’t unknown in Europe, where it has been cultivated since just after WWII, it has been grown almost exclusively as fodder for animals.

In Africa and other regions, however, it is an important human food crop, according to the UN’s Food and Agricultural Organization.

In Africa, Nigeria and Sudan are the main producers of the grain. EU countries produce only 750,000 tons per year, while 60 million tons are harvested each year worldwide.

Lack of seeds During the past several years “there has been an increasing trend for sorghum in Europe,” reversing a decline that began in the late 1980s and was reinforced by the reform of the EU’s agricultural subsidy system, which provided little support for the grain, said Charles-Antoine Courtois of Sorghum ID, a European association that promotes the crop.

Since 2017 an EU program has been encouraging sorghum production.

Farmers are also attracted to raising sorghum for crop rotation as it can help replenish soil worn out by intensive production of corn, sunflowers or colza.

“We could have increased surfaces under cultivation even more... but there is a widespread lack of seeds,” said Courtois, who also belongs to an association of French producers of sorghum and corn seeds.

After a poor corn harvest two years ago in Hungary there was a spike in interest in sorghum among farmers to avoid putting “all of your eggs in the same basket,” he said.

Cultivation of sorghum in Hungary had fallen to 10,000 hectares, from 200,000 hectares three decades ago, according to Ferenc Farkas, who heads up the French farming cooperative Euralis in the country.

Its French rival Axereal, which has malting plants in Croatia and Hungary, is opening a unit to collect sorghum using a silo along the Danube.

Sorghum is also grown in Bulgaria and Italy.

In France, sorghum is mostly grown in the southwest, but it can be found as far north as the Vosges mountains in the northeast where farmers have had difficulty growing enough animal fodder.

Even with its small production of 326,000 tons in 2018, France was one of the top EU producers along with Italy. AFP

NOAH’S TRAIN. A man walks over a platform of a train station in Munich, southern Germany, where the so-called Noah’s Train, a freight train with containers in animal design, has a stop on June 4, 2019. The train that currently travels through Europe has meanwhile a length of twelve decorated wagons. With the action, the Rail Freight Forward initiative of the European freight railways underlines its commitment to more climate protection and the conservation of endangered species. AFP

US central bank Markets up as Fed signals rate cut closely monitoring trade altercations CHICAGO―The US central bank is “closely monitoring” trade disputes and the implications for the economy, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said Tuesday.

A day after another Fed official said an interest rate cut could be needed “soon” to preserve economic growth, Powell said the central bank “will act as appropriate to sustain the expansion.”

Some analysts saw Powell’s comment as opening the door to lowering the benchmark interest rate, which the central bank had not entertained until now.

President Donald Trump’s multi-front trade wars, including the exchange of punishing tariffs with China and new threats to hit Mexico with fresh import duties, have undercut business confidence and raised prices for manufacturers.

And many forecasters―including the International Monetary Fund―have sounded warnings about the trade disputes, calling them the main risk to the outlook and predicting the US and global economies will slow.

An increasing number of economists predict the Fed will have to act to stimulate growth as early as this year.

After four increases in the benchmark lending rate last year, Powell and his Fed colleagues have this year repeatedly said they can remain patient while they gauge how the economy progresses.

But in a speech on Monday, St Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard said a rate cut “may be warranted soon” given uncertainty about trade conflicts and inflation well below the Fed’s two percent target.

Powell just last month said he was “comfortable” with interest rates and the economic outlook, but at a conference on improving Fed communications, he acknowledged that the Fed is prepared to move if necessary.

On the trade front, he said in the prepared remarks, “We do not know how or when these issues will be resolved.”

“We are closely monitoring the implications of these developments for the US economic outlook and, as always, we will act as appropriate to sustain the expansion, with a strong labor market and inflation near our symmetric 2 percent objective.”

Chris Low of FTN Financial said a rate cut will become necessary as the global slowdown comes to US shores. AFP

HONG KONG―Asian markets largely rose Wednesday, tracking rallies on Wall Street after the US Federal Reserve chief indicated greater openness to lowering interest rates and acknowledged the impact of trade tensions on growth.

Speaking in Chicago on Tuesday, Fed chair Jerome Powell admitted that ongoing trade conflicts had dimmed the growth outlook―remarks widely seen as opening the door to a potential interest rate cut.

“We are closely monitoring the implications of these developments for the US economic outlook and, as always, we will act as appropriate to sustain the expansion,” Powell said.

The comments signal a shift in the policy of the Fed, which has kept interest rates unchanged in 2019 after a series of hikes in 2018 and previous years.

“Powell changed the Fed messaging just enough to avoid signaling a shift from patient to panicked... it was music to US investors’ ears who have been starved of positive news of late,” said Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management.

The Dow closed with gains of 2.1 percent.

In Asia, Tokyo jumped 1.8 percent, while Hong Kong was up 0.3 percent.

Seoul edged up 0.1 percent and Taipei climbed 0.3 percent. Shanghai was flat.

Sydney managed an increase of 0.4 percent even as government statistics

showed near-zero growth the previous quarter, underscoring fears for the economy.

The Australian economy has avoided recession for almost 28 years, but a housing slump, rising unemployment and below-target inflation prompted the central bank on Tuesday to cut its key interest rate to a historic low of 1.25 percent.

The buying was also supported by more favorable news on the trade front, with Beijing backing negotiations to resolve its spat with Washington and congressional Republicans opposing President Donald Trump’s tariff threats against Mexico.

Worries over the US-China trade war “have eased following reports that China’s commerce ministry said the trade friction should be resolved through dialogue,” Okasan Online Securities’ chief strategist Yoshihiro Ito said in a commentary.

But a new World Bank report showing reduced global growth forecasts for the year suggested that investors could expect the trade headwinds to continue for some time yet.

The world economy is now expected to expand by 2.6 percent this year, three tenths of a percentage point lower than the January forecast, and well below the three percent growth seen in 2018, according to the Global Economic Prospects report. AFP

Trump vows ‘phenomenal’ ties with UK LONDON―US President Donald Trump promised a “phenomenal” postBrexit trade deal with Britain as he met outgoing Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday to boost their frayed alliance against a backdrop of protests and political turmoil.

As a big balloon of a nappy-wearing baby Trump floated over a rally that blocked central London traffic, the US leader heaped praise on May and scorn on opposition Labor chief Jeremy Corbyn.

He dismissed thousands of protesters rallying nearby as “fake news” and turned down a meeting with Corbyn― who delivered a fiery speech against Trump’s policies despite also requesting one-on-one talks―branding him a “somewhat negative force.”

His three-day visit began on Monday with a handshake with Queen Elizabeth II on the lawn of Buckingham Palace and a white-tie banquet featuring nearly 200 royal and Trump family guests.

But behind the pageantry Britain is in upheaval and its government all-but rudderless four months before it is due to end its four-decade membership in

the European Union.

His meeting with May comes just weeks before she is set to quit after failing to finish Brexit despite focusing on little else for the past three years.

Trump and May looked stony-faced walking up to their joint press appearance and did not shake hands before going into formal talks at the prime minister’s Downing Street office.

Nearby, noisy activists took to the streets to protest everything from Trump’s dismissive views on climate change to his embrace of anti-abortion groups.

“Everything Trump stands for―misogyny, climate denying―everything about him is wrong,” marble restorer Steve Gray told AFP at the main rally.

The US president’s visit is technically centered around Wednesday’s D-Day 75th anniversary commemorations.

But it comes at an especially chaotic time for the UK, with May formally stepping down as leader of her Conservatives on Friday.

She will stay on as prime minister until her successor is chosen out of 11 contenders from her party. AFP

B3

World

THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019 CESAR BARRIOQUINTO, Editor mst.daydesk@gmail.com

India begins ‘high-risk’ retrieval of dead climbers

ORANGE BABY. A giant balloon depicting US President Donald Trump as an orange baby floats above anti-Trump demonstrators in Parliament Square outside the Houses of Parliament in London on June 4, 2019, on the second day of Trump’s three-day State Visit to the UK. Trump turns from pomp and ceremony to politics and business on Tuesday as he meets Prime Minister Theresa May on the second day of a state visit expected to be accompanied by mass protests. AFP

Trump starts clampdown on US tourist visits to Cuba WASHINGTON―The Trump administration clamped down on US tourist visits to Cuba Tuesday, aiming to cut the flow of dollars to a country that Washington accuses of helping prop up Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

The Treasury Department banned group educational travel, cruise ship and private yacht visits by Americans, taking aim at the most common ways US tourists and Cuban-Americans visit the Caribbean island.

The move could constitute a heavy hit on Cuba, which saw more than a quarter-million US visitors in the first four months of 2019, almost double the figure from a year earlier.

“The United States holds the Cuban regime accountable for its repression of the Cuban people, its interference in Venezuela, and its direct role in the man-made crisis led

by Nicolas Maduro,” the State Department said in a news release.

“Empowered by Cuba, he has created a humanitarian disaster that destabilizes the region.”

White House National Security Advisor John Bolton said the aim was to end what the administration considers “veiled tourism” to Cuba.

“We will continue to take actions to restrict the Cuban regime’s access to US dollars,” Bolton said on Twitter.

The Cuban government condemned the move, which could cost the country’s economy tens of millions of dollars a year in lost income.

“They seek to stifle the economy and damage the standard of living of Cubans to wrest political concessions,” said Foreign Affairs Minister Bruno Rodriguez in a tweeted statement. “They’ll fail again.”

American tourism in Cuba took off after then-president Barack Obama moved to ease the half-century trade embargo against the communist government in 2014—even though continuing restrictions kept visits nominally in the realm of cultural and artistic exchanges and business dealings.

Cuba and the US restored ties in 2015 and Obama himself visited Havana in a historic presidential trip in March 2016, meeting with thenpresident Raul Castro. Weeks later, the ban was lifted on US commercial ship visits, opening the door for the Caribbean cruise ship industry to expand stops in Cuba. AFP

Leaders and veterans mark D-Day launching P ORTSMOUTH―US President Donald Trump, Queen Elizabeth II and 300 veterans are to gather on the south coast of England on Wednesday for a poignant ceremony marking the 75th anniversary of D-Day.

Other world leaders will join them in Portsmouth for Britain’s national event to commemorate the Allied invasion of the Normandy beaches―one of the turning points of World War II. Trump, Queen Elizabeth and British Prime Minister Theresa May will be joined by Canadian PM Justin Trudeau, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel for an event with the veterans, the youngest of whom are now in their 90s, marking the boats’ departure on the eve of the battle.

It will be the last act of Trump’s three-day state visit to Britain.

Portsmouth was the main departure point for the largest amphibious assault in history, when some 156,000 US, British, Canadian and other Allied troops sailed for the beaches of northern France.

The Battle of Normandy on June 6, 1944 led to the liberation of Europe and helped bring about the end of World War II. In a joint D-Day proclamation marking the anniversary, the 16 nations attending Wednesday’s ceremony affirmed their shared responsibility to ensure that the horrors of World War II are never repeated.

“Over the last 75 years, our nations have stood up for peace in Europe and globally, for democracy, tolerance and the rule of law,” it said.

“We re-commit today to those shared values because they support the stability and prosperity of our nations and our people. We will work together as allies and friends to defend these freedoms whenever they are threatened.”

The statement committed to resolving international tensions peacefully.

“In this way, we salute the surviving veterans of D-Day and we honour the memories of those who came before us.”

The ceremony is the first time that so many world leaders have gathered in Britain since the London 2012 Olympics.

The prime ministers of Australia, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, the president of Greece, New Zealand’s governor-general, Slovakia’s deputy PM and the Danish ambassador are due to attend.

The event on Southsea Common includes an hour-long production recounting the story of the invasion with testimony from veterans, theatrical performances and live music, as well as a flypast.

Some 4,000 military personnel, 26 British military aircraft and 11 British naval vessels will participate.

In the event’s official program, Queen Elizabeth, 93, said: “I am sure that these commemorations will provide an opportunity to honor those who made extraordinary sacrifices to secure freedom in Europe. They must never be forgotten.”

May will read a letter written by Captain Norman Skinner to his wife Gladys on June 3, 1944. AFP

CELEBRATION. A clown entertains people as Palestinian Muslims perform the morning Eid al-Fitr prayer near the Dome of Rock mosque at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, Islam’s third most holy site, in the Old City of Jerusalem on June 5, 2019. Muslims worldwide celebrate Eid al-Fitr marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan. AFP

IN BRIEF Greece seeks war debt talks

ATHENS―Greece’s leftist government has called on Germany to discuss the payment of war crime reparations a month before elections where it faces defeat.

The foreign ministry in Berlin on Wednesday confirmed having received the demand from Greece’s ambassador which “calls on the German side to come to negotiations to resolve the pending issue”.

A Greek parliamentary committee last year determined that Germany owes Greece at least 270 billion euros ($300 billion) for World War I damages and looting, atrocities and a forced loan during the Nazi occupation in World War II. The Greek parliament in April also voted through a resolution demanding the payment of reparations.

The move, announced in Athens on Tuesday by the foreign ministry, comes ahead of early elections on July 7.

Reclaiming war reparations has been a campaign pledge by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras since 2015.

He is currently battling to galvanise his party after losing European and local elections over the last two weeks.

Berlin has always insisted the reparations issue was settled in 1960 in a deal with several European governments.

Tsipras had put it on the back burner in recent years as he worked with German Chancellor German Merkel to keep Greece in the euro and manage migration and Balkans security. AFP

US vows action on rare earths supply

US Congress presses China: End silence on Tiananmen anniversary WASHINGTON―The US House of Representatives urged China on Tuesday to end its wall of silence over the crushed Tiananmen Square movement, with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi vowing on the 30th anniversary to keep the memory alive.

The House approved a resolution that urged China to provide a “full, transparent and independent accounting” of the Tiananmen crackdown, in which hundreds if not more than 1,000 pro-democracy protesters were killed on June 4, 1989 as the communist rulers sent in tanks and troops.

The resolution―sponsored by Democratic Representative Jim McGovern and passed unanimously with 10 members not voting―called on Beijing to

PITHORAGARH, India―An Indian helicopter carrying elite paramilitary mountaineers took off Wednesday for a “very high-risk” operation to retrieve five dead climbers and three others believed killed scaling a treacherous Himalayan peak.

Air Force choppers spotted five bodies Monday on the slopes of Nanda Devi in India’s high north while looking for the four Britons, two Americans, one Indian and one Australian believed killed by an avalanche last week.

The remains of the three others, all part of originally a 12-member team led by highly experienced British climber Martin Moran, were believed to be nearby. Four other Britons split from the bigger group and were rescued on the weekend.

Wednesday’s operation began at 5:00 am (2330 GMT) when a military helicopter with four Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) mountaineers and five Air Force personnel left the nearby hill town of Munsyari.

The ITBP climbers were to be dropped by the helicopter 18,000 to 20,000 feet up India’s second-highest mountain, police spokesman Vivek Kumar Pandey told AFP. Pandey on Tuesday described the mission as “a very high-risk and high-altitude operation” in a zone where avalanches are frequent.

“In recent times such a high-altitude retrieval has not been carried out in Indian mountains,” he added.

The team led by Moran had permission to climb the eastern peak of Nanda Devi but a Facebook post by Moran’s mountaineering firm on May 22 said that they planned to attempt “an unclimbed peak” around 21,300 feet high. AFP

allow Tiananmen dissidents who fled to the United States or elsewhere “to return to China without risk of repercussions and retribution.”

It also urged China to “cease the censoring of information and discussion about the Tiananmen Square massacre” including at Confucius Institutes, the centers for Chinese studies that Beijing has supported at universities around the world.

Pelosi, a longtime advocate for human rights in China, said she was making a promise to the Tiananmen Mothers, who have fought on behalf of victims.

“Today, and on all days, we assure these mothers that we remember, and that the heroism of their children will

continue to be written in the official history of the United States Congress,” Pelosi told the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, which monitors human rights in the country.

“We must remember, because China still tries to deny history,” Pelosi said, in a rare appearance by a House leader before a congressional hearing.

Pelosi voiced concern that China is “going in the opposite direction” on human rights.

“It’s important for the world to know, 30 years later, that we haven’t forgotten what happened then and that we know what is happening now and it will have an impact in our relationship with China,” she said.

Pelosi’s remarks came a day af-

ter Secretary of State Mike Pompeo demanded that China provide a full accounting of the Tiananmen crackdown and release political prisoners, saying that the United States had lost hope for improvements in China’s human rights record over the past 30 years.

His statement prompted an unusually angry reprimand from China, which denounced his “lunatic ravings and babbling nonsense.”

China went to great lengths to avoid commemorations of the anniversary, with authorities detaining activists and ramping up surveillance of the square itself, with livestreaming services suddenly down for “technical” reasons. AFP

WASHINGTON―The United States says it will take “unprecedented actions” to ensure the supply of strategic elements and rare earths, as China mulls over possible export controls for materials that are critical to modern technology.

China is a major supplier of the resources―which power today’s digital lives, from smart phones to military hardware―and as the trade conflict with Washington has escalated, Beijing has dangled a threat of cutting exports of rare earths as a counter-strike to US tariffs.

US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said Tuesday a new report designates 35 elements and compounds as “critical to the economic and national security” of America, including uranium, titanium, and rare earths needed for smart phones, computers, aircraft and GPS devices, among other uses.

“These critical minerals are often overlooked but modern life without them would be impossible,” Ross said.

“Through the recommendations detailed in this report, the Federal government will take unprecedented action to ensure that the United States will not be cut off from these vital materials.”

China’s top economic planner Tuesday said it had discussed “possible export controls” for rare earths at a symposium of industry experts.

“According to expert suggestions... We must strengthen export controls and establish a traceability and review mechanism for the entire process of rare earth exports,” the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said in a report. AFP

LGUs

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

B4

LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS

THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019

TELUS International Philippines team members share their artistic skills as they paint wall murals for Victorino Mapa High School as part of the TELUS Days of Giving. Other volunteers of the 2,400-strong group paint and varnish classroom chairs to be used by students in one of Manila's oldest schools.

Smart fires up LTE in Eastern Visayas areas PLDT wireless arm Smart Communications Inc. is ramping up the rollout of Long Term Evolution technology across the Eastern Visayas region to improve the mobile data experience of customers in one of the country’s biggest regions.

Smart LTE is already available across the region’s major cities of Tacloban and Ormoc in Leyte, and was recently fired up in the Eastern Samar capital city of Borongan, the tourist town of Guiuan, Northern Samar capital of Catarman City, and Western Samar cities of Calbayog and Catbalogan.

For veteran Borongan-based broadcast journalist Daisy Belizar, better connectivity would be a boon to her city, where almost all of the families have at least one member working abroad.

“With LTE in Borongan, we will now be connected to the rest of the world,” she said.

This year, Smart will continue upgrading all its Eastern Visayas sites to LTE, as well as add more LTE capacity by deploying multi-band base stations. Doing so will enable Smart to cater to more subscribers and improve speeds with the activation of LTE-Advanced and carrier aggregation.

Carrier aggregation is a feature of LTE-A which allows the combination of two or more radio frequency bands in order to deliver much faster data speeds to customers using capable phones.

In Eastern Visayas, particularly in Leyte and Eastern Samar, around half of Smart subscribers are already smartphone users, bulk of whom are also already using LTE devices.

Compared to a year ago, the number of customers in the region who use mobile data on LTE devices with LTE SIMs has also increased significantly.

Smart is also rolling out additional sites in the coming year, particularly to provide seamless network coverage from Tacloban City to Ormoc City and from Baybay to Abuyog, as well as to improve connectivity in heavy foot-traffic areas such as airports in Calbayog, Catarman, Ormoc and Tacloban; in malls and hospitals; and in dense residential and resettlement areas, among others.

“With our continuing rollout across Eastern Visayas and in the rest of the country, we are bringing the benefits of world-class Internet closer to Filipinos nationwide,” said Mario G. Tamayo, PLDT-Smart senior vice president for Network Planning and Engineering.

“Improved connectivity in the region will enable our Waray customers to access services like online banking and e-commerce while on-the-go, stay in contact with friends and family through messaging apps, and share photos and videos of their beautiful beaches and historic spots to help boost tourism in the area,” Tamayo added.

Underpinning PLDT and Smart’s fixed and mobile network rollout is the expansion of PLDT’s fiber optic transmission and distribution network.

PLDT’s fiber footprint, now the most extensive in the country at more than 259,000 kilometers, also supports Smart’s mobile network by providing high-capacity fiber connections for LTE base stations.

Galvez: Bangsamoro portal ‘valuable tool’

By Nash B. Maulana

P

(Continued from Tuesday, conclusion)

RESIDENTIAL Peace Adviser Carlito Galvez has called Access Bangsamoro “an innovative initiative” that can be a “valuable tool for the BARMM government's efforts to carry out meaningful and sustainable reforms in the region, where people can be apprised on what’s happening in the Bangsamoro, participate in discourse relating to governance, and put their insights and suggestions forward.”

A website, Facebook Page, Twitter page and YouTube channel comprise the Access Bangsamoro portal.

Guests visiting the website at accessbangsamoro.ph will be able to earn more informed appreciation into the three policy issues, from Access Bangsamoro’s senior fellows and network of experts and learn more about the Bangsamoro through data and infographics.

YouTube videos featuring local and international experts discussing issues relevant to the Bangsamoro are also embedded in the website under “Bangsamoro Talks.”

An IAG team based in Cotabato City and ASOG team based in Manila will upload the website with more contents in the coming weeks, said Ram Toledo, IAG communications manager.

“For too long the Bangsamoro has

struggled to keep its culture and tradition alive amidst a fast evolving modern and technological world, “ said lawyer Ishak Mastura, IAG Development Consulting Inc. chief operations officer of the firm behind the web portal.

“It is the hope of Access Bangsamoro that by leveraging today and tomorrow’s analytical and technological tools, we also strive to go up the learning curve and not remain content with our past traditions and culture that have enabled us to survive but in fact we may need them to be re-examined and adapted to the challenges of modernization,” said Mastura, who is also former head of the ARMM’s Regional Board of Investments.

Lawyer Michael Henry Yusingco, a senior fellow at the Ateneo School of Government and IAG, added that the suc-

cess of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao “will definitely be an impetus for the rest of the country to reform the current national decentralization framework.”

“Hence, Access Bangsamoro can also help Filipinos how to establish genuine and meaningful local autonomy in the country as designed by the 1987 Constitution, ” he added.

The chief minister in the BARMM— currently Ahod Balawag Ebrahim— is not directly elected by the people unlike the regional governor in the ARMM. This is a totally new dynamic because people will not only be voting for a member to the Bangsamoro Parliament, but they will also be indirectly voting for the potential chief minister.

Public financial management, the third policy issue, concerns the effective administration of the collection and allocation of funds by the state.

The block grant is only one element, albeit a very important one, of a broader area of concern in the BARMM that is public finance.

The institution of the block grant in the BOL represents a fundamental shift in the fiscal position of the regional government of the BARMM. The block grant shall be equivalent to 5 percent of national revenue collections and shall be automatically released to the Bangsamoro government subject to its full control.

FedEx-TNT team restores quake-hit Porac high school FEDEX Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corp. and the world’s largest express transportation company, together with TNT Philippines provided support for Sapang Uwak High School in Porac, Pampanga after it was damaged in the 6.1-magnitude earthquake that recently hit Luzon.

FedEx Express employees helped improve school facilities by renovating classrooms, repainting, and creating a colorful mural to adorn the facilities.

The 51-employee volunteer-team also shared school supplies and meals with over 80 high school

Members of FedEx Express and TNT Philippines band together for a photo after helping out at Sapang Uwak High School in Porac, Pampanga, which was damaged in the 6.1-magnitude earthquake that hit Luzon recently.

students during the event.

FedEx and TNT donated over As part of the company’s P300,000 (over US$5,000) for continuous support for the the activity. communities it operates in, FedEx is ahead of plan for

its FedEx Cares goal of investing US$200 million in more than 200 global communities by 2020.

DISKWENTO CARAVAN. To provide

Navoteño consumers with school supplies, food items and other school-related merchandise in discounted prices, the Navotas City Government, through a partnership with Department of Trade and Industry, held a Balik Eskwela Diskwento Caravan. Mayor John Rey Tiangco and DTI Consumer Protection and Advocacy Bureau Director Domingo Tolentino Jr. led the ribbon cutting and official opening of the one-day open market in Navotas City Hall Grounds.

Jun David

2.4k-plus TELUS volunteers clean, fix V. Mapa HS FOR the sixth straight year, leading customer experience and digital services company TELUS International Philippines participated in the Department of Education’s annual Brigada Eskwela, a program that mobilizes volunteers to renovate and clean public schools in time for the upcoming school year.

On May 25, TELUS International Philippines organized more than 2,400 volunteers for the TELUS Days of Giving, a company-wide giving back program that showcases the firm's caring culture.

Volunteers transformed Victorino Mapa High School, one of the oldest educational institutions in the city of Manila. Team members rehabilitated the school’s two campuses, both located in San Miguel, Manila, with 100 classrooms which will be used by more than 3,100 high school students this coming school year.

“Every year, I am impressed by our Philippines team of exceptional professionals who inspire TELUS International team members around the world with their dedication to helping those in need,” says Jeffrey Puritt, president and CEO of TELUS International.

“For 13 years, TELUS International Philippines has been hosting TELUS Days of Giving and improving the lives of Filipinos by sharing our heartfelt commitment to “give where we live,” he added.

“TELUS International Philippines owes its continued success to each individual who works tirelessly day in and day out,” Rajiv Dhand, Regional vice president and general manager of TELUS International Philippines added.

“Our caring culture fosters a cycle of giving, and a desire to extend the impact of this growth to the communities around us. Our vision is to build a more inclusive and enabling environment for our team members and the communities where we operate," he said.

Over the last six years, with the contributions of more than 14,000 team members, TELUS International Philippines has dedicated more than 62,350 hours through TELUS Days of Giving to help improve seven schools in Metro Manila, benefitting an estimated 35,000 students.

In 2018, the TELUS Days of Giving and other Corporate Social Responsibility activities wwer instrumental in driving employee engagement and participation, earning TELUS International Philippines a 90% employee engagement rating from Aon and the Best Employer recognition from Aon Best Employers Program Awards and the Asia Corporate Excellence & Sustainability Awards.

Pampanga eyes model community for displaced Aetas PORAC, Pampanga—Some 300 houses will be built on the 4,000-square meter lot in Barangay Babo Pangulo here intended for Aetas who were displaced by the April 22 magnitude 6.1 tremor that hit this province and rest of Central Luzon.

The project, according to Gov. Lilia Pineda, is a model community for Aeta complete with road networks, church, covered court, barangay hall, water system and plaza.

"A model community for Aetas will be built soon. It has a floor size of four-by-six [meters] with toilet and lavatory," said Pineda, on the sideline of emergency meeting she called for the relocation of hundreds of Aetas whose houses were damaged by the recent earthquake.

Pineda said the provincial government provided the land while some of the construction materials, including cement, steel bars, plywood and others, will be donated by different businessmen and groups, the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, and organizations from outside Pampanga.

Each housing unit, PIneda said, would be constructed using pre-fabricated concrete.

"Using pre fabs, one unit could be completed in just two weeks. When it's done, it's easier for us to extend help to our Aeta brothers," the governor said, adding that the project would commence as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, the proviincial governor is planning to seek an audience with different senators to ask for help in tracing part of ancestral domain lands that were allegedly registered to enterprising individuals.

"I will ask for help from the Senate commitee handling ancestral domains so we can investigate how these people received titles inside these lands," Pineda told reporters. Jess Malabanan

Life

Bernadette Lunas, Issue Editor manilastandardlife@gmail.com @manilastandardlife @MStandardLIFE

HOUSEHOLD

THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019

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The 30-story Brio Tower in Makati features a variety of amenities, such as swimming pools for kids and adults, that make resort living possible in the city.

How to find the right condo investment INVESTING in a real estate property is a major decision that entails a lot of planning and careful consideration. Whether it is meant as a home or an investment, the decision should always be based on analytical research and never on emotions.

Property investors Morten and Leli Wichstrøm have mastered this process when they’ve started embarking on property investing after their retirement from the airline industry.

Celebrity chef Rosebud Benitez shares her healthy, easy-to-cook recipes.

Healthy cooking with

titanium cookware kware

Practice due diligence From scrutinizing a prospective property’s location to anticipating upcoming developments in the area, Morten leaves no stone unturned to get their money’s worth.

“If we see a new project coming up, he

Find a reputable developer Satisfied with their Flair Towers investment, the entrepreneur couple have become smitten with DMCI Homes since then, leading to more condo purchases with the country’s first Quadruple A developer.

“Many of our friends both here and abroad and mostly living in Norway are asking us to give them advice about investments in the Philippines because they say we have been successful. I say it’s very good but you have to be very selective from whom you buy,” said Morten.

He added, “We say you have to buy from the right company. And of course they ask who is the right company? I say DMCI (Homes). We have very good experience with them. They are very solid.

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ELEBRITY chef and mom Rosebud Benitez knows what goes into preparing healthy meals for the family, from planning ahead to being mindful of every ingredient in every dish to sticking to a regimen that works―such as cooking in 10 minutes or less.

Chefmom Rosebud is known for her no-fuss, family-friendly home-cooked meals as seen in her now-defunct cooking show Quickfire on GMA News TV. As she values time in creating healthy dishes, she ensures she uses the right tools to help her work faster and better in the kitchen.

The celebrity chef is an avid Tefal user, hence at the recent event of the cookware brand’s Titanium Expertise range, she shared her tried and tested recipes as well as tips for getting ontrack with healthy eating.

At the event, Chef Rosebud cooked her Chicken Adobo with Lemongrass, Brown Rice Veggie Stir Fry, Asian Noodles, and Soy Fish Fillet using Tefal Titanium Expertise.

A favorite among experts, Tefal Titanium Expertise has Titanium Excellence coating, which lasts up to three times longer than Titanium Force coating. This premium multi-layer nonstick coating features a patented extra-thick hard base, reinforced with titanium particles, making it built for intensive everyday use up to 12 years.

The range lets professional chefs and home cooks prepare meals with ease thanks to the patented Thermo-Spot technology that turns full red when the pan has reached the ideal temperature to start cooking.

This non-stick, universal cookware range guarantees perfect texture, perfect color, and perfect flavor for delicious full-flavored meals every day.

The Tefal Titanium Cookware range includes a fry pan, wok pan, sauce pan, shallow pan, stew pot, and grill pan in various sizes that are easy to clean and safe to use with metal utensils.

In fact, Chef Rosebud revealed she uses metal spatula with her Tefal Titanium pots.

Moreover, each product is compatible with all hobs, including induction, and is dishwasher safe. All of them are equipped with Bakelite handles, which are ovenproof by up to 175 degrees Celsius for up to an hour.

Also available from Tefal are the Supercook Plus, which also features the Thermo-Spot technology and is available in a fourpiece set; and the Pure Chef Plus, which are easy-to-use pots and pans that give busy homecooks the precision they need to deliver special, healthy meals every time. Both offer excellent resistance and non-stick coating that ensure clean frying and easy clean-up.

(Morten) really does his homework. He uses a lot of time to study the location.

Where does the sun rise and set? Where is there least noise from traffic? What is the view?” shared Leli.

“Yes, I love to do that,” chuckled Morten, adding, “I even sometimes go up to the neighbor building to see how high we should get our unit to be overlooking the next buildings (to be constructed) because air, view, and open space mean a lot to us.”

TRUST IN TITANIUM. Tefal Titanium Expertise range, which

includes a fry pan, a sauce pan, and a stew pot, among others, features Titanium Excellence coating which makes it durable even for intensive everyday use up to 12 years.

Invest in a sustainable market After almost a decade of experience as property investors, the couple has come to know the pros and cons of the different housing markets and has found a niche in the middle income sector.

Living in a high-end condo, in fact, made them realize that one need not pay much to have a quality condo investment.

“We have also seen other high-end developments, but I don’t know, Morten is more sold on what he calls ‘sustainable living.’ We have friends who have invested in high-end projects, and they have very nice amenities. There’s nothing you can say about the amenities, but there is much to be desired in the unit itself,” shared Leli.

Morten likewise pointed out that “DMCI Homes developments have very good features, with some projects even having better amenities than their very expensive competitors.”

“They are paying very much for the name. They pay very much per square meter. They paid twice as much for only a small studio that we paid in Flair Towers for a two-bedroom unit,” the Norwegian national said, referring to DMCI Homes’ two-tower resort-inspired condo community in Mandaluyong City which was one of their first condo investments in the Philippines.

They are building roads, bridges, and hospitals for the government.”

Just recently, the Wichstrøm couple accepted one of the three units they bought in DMCI Homes’ Brio Tower project in Makati City.

“Brio Tower has been great. So far the best we have. It’s better than what we expected. And it was delivered one year ahead of schedule. Fantastic!” Morten exclaimed.

Put premium on quality property management And since they are into the condo leasing business, they have to ensure that their investments are well taken care of through quality property management.

“Most of our investments have been with DMCI (Homes) because we’ve had good experience with them. Both in the delivery and also quality. If we have issues, they are addressed right away. We’re very impressed with that,” related Leli.

Morten pointed out that “People in DMCI (Homes) are very nice. Our overall experience is that everybody working in DMCI is very professional, dedicated, and sincere in what they do―whether in administration, maintenance, security, or engineering. During the last property turn-over at Brio Towers, the move-in process went very smoothly. The people in the PMO took their time, and were meticulous in going over the necessary documents. They answered all our questions and doubts; they were very helpful.”

More importantly, the couple noted the importance of having the property for keeps with DMCI Homes’ guarantee of perpetual ownership.

“Real estate in the Philippines is very good. The prices here are attractive especially with DMCI (Homes). We have been looking at other developers but we buy from DMCI. We are happy,” enthused Morten.

Life

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THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019 manilastandardlife@gmail.com

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WASHING machine is a big investment for many households. To help in this decision, an appliance brand breaks down what needs to be considered when selecting a washing machine, whether a customer’s purchasing their first unit or upgrading to a new one.

Family size and washing habits The size of the washing machine to get should depend on the number of people in the household. For homes with one or two people, a 5 kg washing machine could work. Families with three to four members can move up to 5-7 kg, while those with five people or more would be better off with a capacity of 8 kg or more.

The numbers refer to the weight of the laundry load that a washing machine can comfortably or efficiently clean. For perspective, 1 kg of laundry is equal to five shirts and a pair of jeans or two bath towels.

Be careful not to overload your washing machine as they will consume more water and electricity to clean clothes. Instead, consider doing smaller loads more frequently and opt for a machine that has an inverter motor for better energy washing efficiency.

Front load or twin tub

Another crucial factor to consider is which type of washing machine to get.

Among the common types of washing machines are front load washing machines, which open at the front; and twin tubs, which have two tubs to wash clothes―the one typically on the left is where clothes can wash, rinse, or soak while the one on the right is used to spin moisture out of clothes for less time drying on the line.

Take a closer look at their cleaning performance and other factors like water and energy efficiency.

Cleaning performance and operation

When it comes to cleaning performance,

The size of washing machine depends on the number of people in the household as the weight of clothes to be washed is a vital factor to determine when choosing a unit.

How to choose the right

WASHING MACHINE front load washing machines give clothes a more thorough clean and are gentler on clothes than twin tubs. Front load cleans clothes using a gentle tumbling action, using gravity to pick up clothes to lightly drop them in the water. This is different from twin tub models, which use pulsators to rotate clothes, allowing water and detergent to go through fabrics to remove dirt quickly but may result in tangling and early wear and tear. Given this factor, it’s better to rely on front load for washing delicate fabrics.

Using a twin tub is also more labor intensive versus a front load washing machine―given the former’s design of having one tub for washing and another to spin dry. Many twin tubs require users to manually fill it and drain it with water, usually by connecting it to a hose,

while front load washing machines are connected to the water supply and draws water automatically.

Eco-friendly and energy-efficient

Both washing machines are water efficient. Front load washing machines use less water as they don’t need clothes to be fully submerged in water for effective washing. Meanwhile, twin tubs allow users to control water usage and recycle wash water, for re-use in another cycle or for watering the garden.

Front load washing machines are also energy-efficient as they use inverter technology in its motors, which consumes power depending on the load of the machine.

Size and space

Deciding on what machine to get also depends on the available space at home.

Twin tub washing machine usually takes up more space compared with a front load washing machine, which works as a single unit as a compact washer dryer or a stackable separate washer and dryer.

Those who have limited space thus benefit from front load washing machine better.

Cost

Homes with limited space would benefit from more compact front load washing machines.

When it comes to price, twin tub washing machines are usually less expensive.

But while front load washing machines may cost more upfront, it also gives clothes more quality clean with features that are specifically designed for different types of fabrics and are more energy and water efficient.

The Electrolux UltimateCare 300 Front load washing machine makes a case for better cleaning and caring for clothes. This washing machine comes with a Hive Drum design that provides high performance cleaning through its gentle tumbling action while reducing wear and tear of clothes.

It also boasts Time Efficient Wash Programmes―a quick 20 wash cycle for everyday fabrics and a Daily 60 cycle for larger loads, as well as an Add Clothes function which lets users add forgotten clothes up to 15 minutes after the start of

Electrolux’s UltimateCare front load washing machines promise quality clean.

a wash cycle.

To achieve effortless elegance with less ironing, there’s Electrolux UltimateCare 500 washing machine, which comes with Vapour Care Technology that softens fabric while reducing wrinkles by 22 percent.

The same technology also eradicates 99.9 percent of allergens and germs. It also comes with the Add Clothes function and inverter technology that provides maximum power with minimum energy consumption.

Teaching kids mindful snacking Termites may also chew electrical cables that can result in fires.

Pesky fire hazards UNKNOWN to many, those insidious termites do not only wreck homes by chewing them off, they can also cause fire.

Those pesky little pests feed on anything that contains cellulose, a type of nutrient found in materials such as wood, paper, and crops. They can also do damage to electrical cables and wires, resulting in accidental fires, as some electrical wires, especially old ones, contain cellulosic materials that termites feed on.

Jardine Distribution, Inc. helps households avert adverse effects of termite infestation with its Total Termite Solution.

Solignum and Soilguard have been the trusted allies of Filipino families in protecting the structural integrity of their homes from termite attacks.

Using Solignum and Soilguard prevents subterranean termites from entering the house by creating a termitelethal barrier.

JDI’s line of Termite Solutions is available in leading DIY and hardware stores nationwide.

Mondelez Philippines, known for its popular snack brands, encourages parents to practice ‘mindful snacking’ at home to help them eat better.

Mondelez Philippines category manager Anna Sapitan talks about ‘mindful snacking.’

MASTERING the art of snacking mindfully. That was the theme of a discussion led by Mondelez Philippines, Inc., during the recently concluded Expo Mom event of Mommy Mundo.

Mindful snacking is simply snacking the right way. As Mondelez Philippines spokesperson and mom of four Anna Sapitan explained, “Snacking mindfully is an approach that encourages you to eat with attention and to be present in the moment.

As moms, it’s quite hard to do anything with attention. Mindful snacking tells us it’s actually important to be in the moment, even when we snack.”

With the theme #PassItOnMom, this year’s Expo Mom was an encouragement to continue the tradition of mothers passing on information, values, and traditions to their families and friends. The event intended to create an environment of sharing and support.

“To snack mindfully, first ask yourself, ‘Why am I eating?’ Did you know, people actually snack for different reasons? Our research and experts say there are three snacking needs: Boost, Fuel, and Treat,”

explained Sapitan.

She continued, “Boost to jump-start your day. Fuel to provide energy. Or simply just as a Treat for yourself. Mindful snacking can help you understand why you are eating, and based on this, what to eat for a more satisfying snacking experience. Are you looking for something sweet or savory, creamy or crunchy, hot or cold, soft or crispy? By understanding why you are eating, you can better choose the right snack for what you need.”

Sapitan asserted that mindfulness helps individuals shift out of autopilot eating and respond instead of reacting to their hunger. When a person is mindful of their choices, she said, they don’t have to completely cut out the food they love. “Just learn to eat them in a more mindful way.”

To helps moms teach their children to snack mindfully, Sapitan advised to: portion snack and put the rest away; minimize distractions (phone, TV, computer); smell and taste each bite; chew slowly; notice the food’s texture; and finish each bite before taking the next.

“Mindful snacking is a concept that moms

can definitely benefit from and we’re happy to have had Mondelez Philippines at Expo Mom to share this concept,” shares Janice Crisostomo Villanueva of Mommy Mundo, the event’s co-founder and organizer.

Mommy Mundo aims to provide Filipino moms and moms-to-be with unique experiences, vital information, and relevant activities that can help enhance their motherhood and parenting experience.

Mondelez Philippines’ purpose is to empower people to snack right. Globally, the company has announced significant progress against its 2020 Impact Goals, including achieving its target of growing portion control snacks to 15 percent of its net revenue—two years ahead of target.

In the Philippines, the company has expanded its well-being offerings with belVita breakfast biscuit. To improve the nutrition profile of its biggest selling brands, the sugar content of Tang powdered beverage, meanwhile, has been reduced by as much as 40 percent since 2008. The company also inspires consumers to snack mindfully, with portion-controlled snacks like the Cadbury Dairy Milk 15g bar.

Entertainment

ABS-CBN earns lifetime achievement award from Gawad Tanglaw

Iza Calzado wins Best Actress in a Drama Series

THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019

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nickie.standard@gmail.com

'Ugly Duckling,’ ‘Queen of Mystery’ on GMA GET READY for fun and kilig weekday mornings as GMA Heart of Asia brings to light back-to-back Asianovelas with Ugly Duckling and Queen of Mystery.

Ugly Duckling is based on a Thai novel which consists of four captivating stories: “Perfect Match”, “Pity Girl”, “Don’t” and “Boy’s Paradise.”

Worranit Thawornwongs and Puttichai Kasetsin play the lead roles in “Perfect Match.” It follows the story of Jules (Thawornwongs) who was a victim of bad plastic surgery. To avoid prejudice from her friends, she decided to transfer to a new school where she meets Tyke (Kasetsin).

In “Pity Girl,” Neen Suwanamas is Alice, a girl who suffers from amnesia after falling from a tree. She will meet Andy (Nachat Janthapan) and Aston (Natcha Janthapan) who will help her remember her past.

Meanwhile, Mona (Wiraporn Jiravechsoontornkul) is a girl dealing with trauma and who prefers to put a cardboard box on her head

in “Don’t.” She doesn’t realize her beauty until after meeting Minton (Chatchawit Techarukpong) and Zero (Jirakit Thawornwong).

Identity crisis will be the center of “Boy’s Paradise.” It tells the story of Kimmie (Esther Supreeleela), a young lady whose mother prefers her to be with guys instead of secretly crushing on girls.

Meanwhile, a dynamic duo that consists of a hot detective and a bored housewife will make your mornings even more exciting in the highly-anticipated Korean drama series Queen of Mystery.

Warren (Kwon Sangwoo) and Sue (Choi Kanghee) will meet in an unlikely setting. The passionate detective will be assigned to a small town wherein he encounters the housewife residing there who is also interested in solving mysteries. Together, they will help unravel secrets and prove their teamwork effective.

Ugly Duckling airs at 8:50 a.m. while Queen of Mystery is at 9:50 a.m. from Monday to Friday, on GMA-7.

ABS-CBN receives a Tanglaw Broadcast Media Lifetime Achievement Award from Gawad Tanglaw

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EDIA giant ABS-CBN recently won the Tanglaw Broadcast Media Lifetime Achievement Award at the 17th Gawad Tanglaw Awards, earning the highest recognition from the award-giving body composed of film critics, scholars, historians, and professors of humanities from different universities.

The Gawad Tanglaw lauded the Kapamilya network “for serving the Filipino public through free television, digital terrestrial television, radio, cable, music, public advocacies, environmental protection and care and global television in its sixty five years of existence and for being the number one television network in the Philippines.”

The country’s leading media and entertainment company also dominated this year’s roster of winners with31 awards for four of its channels including ABS-CBN channel 2, ANC, the ABSCBN News Channel, Metro Channel, and DZMM Radyo Patrol 630.

ASAP Natin ‘To was declared Best Variety Show while Ipaglaban Mo won the Jury Award for Television Crime Anthology. Current affairs program Pareng Partners received the award for Best Communication Program Development while entrepreneurial

show My Puhunan won the Jury Award for Sustainable Development in Entrepreneurship.

Ngayon at Kailanman star Iza Calzado won Best Actress (Drama Series), while Halik stars Jericho Rosales and Daisy Cariño were named Best Actor (Drama Series) and Best Supporting Actress (TV Series), respectively. Edu Manzano won Best Supporting Actor (TV Series) for his role in FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano while Kapamilya hunk Tony Labrusca won the Gawad Elenita Navor-Hermoso para sa Natatanging Artista ng Bagong Henerasyon.

Maalaala Mo Kaya’s “Duyan” episode also earned awards for its stars, with Allen Dizon and Meryll Soriano winning Best Performance by an Actor and Actress (Single Performance), respectively.

ABS-CBN’s lifestyle cable channel Metro also added to the Kapamilya

Tony Labrusca Gawad Elenita NavorHermoso para sa Natatanging Artista ng Bagong Henerasyon.

network’s awards haul for programs that celebrate Filipino culture and style.

Local travel-cuisine shows Show Me The Market, Chasing Flavors, and Food Prints each won a Jury Award for Cultural Development and Sustainability. Women of Style, which puts the spotlight on accomplished Filipino women, won the Jury Award for Gender and Development, while home and interiors program Metro Home won the Jury Award for Sustainable Design and Innovation.

The country’s premier all-English cable news channel ANC, considered as the gold standard in Philippine news, also picked up 13 trophies including Best TV Station, Best Business Program for both The Boss and On the Money, Best Public Affairs program for Beyond Politics, and Best TV Female Anchor for Headstart anchor Karen Davila.

DZMM Radyo Patrol 630 also picked up an award for program Usapang de Campanilla which won Best Radio Public Service Program.

Kwon Sang-woo and Choi Kanghee in 'Queen of Mystery'

MSO in ‘Symphonic Sunsets Concert at Makiling’

PhilPop Bootcamp 2019 kicks off in Batangas THE country’s premier songwriting competition is back again to train the spotlight on the Philippines’ next generation of OPM stars.

To kick off this year’s events, Philippine Popular Music Festival (PhilPop), in partnership with Smart, is headed to Batangas for the first leg of the PhilPop Bootcamp 2019. The four-day workshop for upcoming songwriters was held on May 27 to 30 at Club Balai Isabel.

PhilPop Bootcamp 2019 is an intensive class led by no less than National Artist for Music Ryan Cayabyab. It aims to hone the songwriting and performance skills of aspiring music artists. It will be held nationwide, offering scholarship programs to 20 outstanding singersongwriters per cluster. Next stops will be in Davao on July 21 to 25, Bacolod on

Sept. 23 to 26 and in Dagupan on Nov. 18 to 22.

Participants will have the unique experience of learning from some of the country’s renowned songwriters including Noel Cabangon, Jim Paredes, Jonathan Manalo, Tina Dumlao, Marvin Querido, Trina Belamide, Jungee Marcelo, Paulo and Miguel Guico, and Lara Maigue, among others.

To qualify, participants must be Filipino, aged 16 years and above, and residents of the area covered by the bootcamp. Basic songwriting knowledge and experience are required, including at least one completed song. Amateur or professional songwriters are welcome except those who have already been PhilPop Songwriting Festival finalists.

Since it was launched in 2012, PhilPop

CROSSWORD PUZZLE Thursday, June 6, 2019

ACROSS 1 Nemo’s creator 6 Garden herb 10 Credit card balance 14 False name 15 Stravinsky or Sikorsky 16 Met highlight 17 The thick of things 18 Minstrel’s instrument 19 Dust bunny 20 Out-of-date 21 Delicacies 23 Circle part 25 Leaf juncture 26 In — (as found) 29 Tilt 31 Bubbles up 36 Geisha’s tie 37 Apparel 38 Photo enlargement 39 Desisting 41 Offer for consideration 42 Kung fu cousin 43 Complain 44 Understanding 45 Petty 46 Formal 47 Speak humorously 48 Linen color 50 Female deer 52 Rowdiest

56 Copper or iron 60 Wynonna or Naomi 61 Deep cut 62 Cooking scent 63 McClurg of sitcoms 64 Perplexed 65 Great blue — 66 Golf ball stands 67 Remainder 68 Love madly DOWN 1 Boot upper 2 Mr. Kazan 3 Unloads 4 Cruise port 5 Organic compound 6 Gentle 7 Big lizards 8 Whim 9 What’s in 10 MOMA artist 11 Great Lakes port 12 Big containers 13 Do lacework 22 Nonstick surface 24 Exact double 26 Argyles 27 Steel girder (hyph.)

28 Glittery wear 30 Custard ingredient

32 Alley from Moo 33 Heard the alarm 34 Ponders 35 Paid out 37 Deeds 38 Mark the herd 40 “Gal” of song 41 Bam! 43 Frothy desserts 46 Bribe 47 Yelled insults 49 Smoker’s choice, perhaps 51 Boys Town site 52 Rubens model

53 Comics pooch 54 Date in March 55 The one over there 57 Pamplona runner 58 Love, to Pablo 59 Narrow road 60 Airplane

has helped revive interest and pride in Filipino music by giving a nationwide platform for talented songwriters to showcase their original compositions.

Winners receive cash prizes, including P1 million for the grand champion. Last year’s top prize winner was Davao’s Chud Festejo. He won for his song “Nanay, Tatay,” which also bagged the Maynilad Best Music Video Award.

Qualified singer-songwriters can still get a chance to become one of the PhilPop Bootcamp 2019 scholars.

Smart has been empowering music fans through the years by providing the voting platform for PhilPop contestants. Since music is one passion Smart advocates with campaigns such as Smart Music Live, PhilPop is one of the many ways Smart champions the OPM cause.

Guest violinist Diomedes Saraza Jr. performs with the Manila Symphony Orchestra.

PEOPLE from all walks of life trooped to the Tanghalang Maria Makiling, National Arts Center in Los Baños, Laguna to watch the Manila

Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Jeffrey Solares perform in a concert recently.

The event was presented by the Cultural Center of the Philippines through its Cultural Exchange Department in cooperation with the Philippine High School for the Arts. Featured soloists include Diomedes Saraza, Jr. (violin), Dr. Barney Fojas (guitar), Roy Ressurrecion (oboe), and Andrea Versoza (piano).

Entitled Symphonic Sunsets at Makiling, the Manila Symphony Orchestra performed John Williams’ Medley (Starwars, Superman, Harry Potter, Indiana Jones, ET), Dvorak’s New World Symphony, Moricone: Gabriel’s Oboe from “The Mission”, “One Summer’s Day (from Spirited Away)”,”Minamahal Kita”, ”Ati Cu Pung Singsing,” “Sana’y Wala Nang Wakas,” Cavatina (from Deer Hunter); Queen/ Gershwin’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” in Blue, Super Mario and Pokemon Medley, Themes from Frozen, Game of Thrones, Avengers, Mission Impossible, and Angry Bird.

An open theater located on the slopes of Mt. Makiling in Los Baños, Laguna, the Tanghalang Maria Makiling is a National Arts Center structure that can accommodate up to a thousand audience complete with state of the art lights and sound system suitable for low, medium and large scale productions and performances.

Nickie Wang, Issue Editor nickie.standard@gmail.com

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Entertainment

THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019

At sixteen BEING young is something to say as surely a plus factor more often those who for every songstress. are popular in school But being versatile end up forever unknown YUGEL is a natural strength outside of it.

LOSORATA that can’t really fade Hannah assured, “I as quick as youth. am willing to pursue Last Friday, sweet singing for as long as I sixteen Hannah Magdales showcased can because I am passionate about it.” in front of entertainment media that she There is no doubt her heart is in is more than being obviously young music. Her mom saw that in her and and thin. That she could truly sing, then pushed for some self-produced and dance, play the guitar as well as the released tracks to kick off her recording keyboard, and even the drums. career. It is also a passion that led If people behind her thought that by to her competing and representing doing it all on stage in one sweep was the country in the WYCOPA (World a way to display full-on her edge from Championships of Performing Arts) most talents her age, they’re somehow singing competition held July last year right. Versatility is like having more in California. She was entered in both arsenal in a field where you need to. singing and dancing categories.

Here in this country of unbelievably By the way, acting is also a field she’s skilled singers, having multiple talents in, having already played a part in a in a package deal is worth the weight. movie wherein she portrays a character “I want to be the type of artist that named Pilar Manalo. Should we would inspire and be a good influence say it’s a winning move for someone to the youth,” she said, complementing idolizing pop star Sarah Geronimo. her multi-faceted performance at In the world of pop, embracing acting Metrowalk’s The Music Hall that saw is not a fallback but an add-on in one’s her does a cover of Adele’s “Someone showcase.

Like You” and Camila Cabello’s “I also dream of being an actress,” “Havana.” she noted, but reiterating that making Already singing by age three, Hannah music is her priority. is now a recording artist with a released Again, it won’t hurt to be able to do song distributed by Viva Records. The more apart from beautiful singing. decidedly pop track is called “Heto Na Naman,” arranged in a way eyeing mainstream radio. Yet one can easily think she should do an acoustic version in live performances to make good use of her guitar or ukulele-playing as accompaniment to her sincerely pretty voice.

Deservingly, the song made its debut by way of Spotify’s New Music Friday playlist as its cute music video gets the exposure via Myx music channel.

A campus belle who is also the president of student council, one can imagine her lofty status in school, what with her diverse talent that makes her a regular performer in university events. Her celebrity within her alma mater has officially reached public consciousness. That’s

Hannah Magdales interviewed

by GMA’s Lhar Santiago during a press launch last week at the Music Hall in Metrowalk.

Jay-Z becomes hip-hop’s first billionaire

Hollywood power couple Beyonce and Jay-Z

AMERICAN rapper and music producer Jay-Z is officially hip hop’s first billionaire, Forbes declared Monday, founding his kingdom on entertainment but also reaping earnings from liquor, art and real estate.

The hip-hop artist born Shawn Carter, who grew up in one of Brooklyn’s most notorious housing projects, “has accumulated a fortune that conservatively totals $1 billion, making him one of only a handful of entertainers to become a billionaire -and the first hip-hop artist to do so,” the magazine said in a new cover story.

The house that Jay built includes stakes in Armand de Brignac champagne and D’Usse cognac -- worth $310 million and $100 million, respectively -- as well as $220 million in cash and investments that include a stake in Uber worth an estimated $70 million.

The 49-year-old also boasts a $75

million music catalog, $75 million from the entertainment company Roc Nation and $100 million from streaming service Tidal.

In addition to his penthouse in New York’s posh Tribeca neighborhood, Jay-Z and his superstar wife Beyonce own mansions in East Hampton, New York and Los Angeles’ swank Bel Air neighborhood -- real estate holdings adding some $50 million to the rapper’s name, Forbes said.

In 2017 Forbes said music’s first couple had officially amassed a joint billion-dollar worth. It had been widely assumed that hip hop mogul Dr. Dre had already achieved billionaire status -- especially after he anointed himself as such in 2014 -- but according to Forbes’ 2018 ranking his personal wealth is closer to $770 million, despite selling his company Beats by Dre to Apple for $3 billion. AFP

Not your typical coming-of-age story 'Dead Kids' cast, (from left) Jan Silverio, Kelvin Miranda, Vance Larena, Khalil Ramos, and Markus Paterson (seated) during a character test shoot

COOL KIDS.

Cast members (from left) Vance Larena, Sue Ramirez, Jan Silverio, Kelvin Miranda, and Khalil Ramos with millennial filmmaker Mikhail Red (3rd from right) pose for a photo op during the film's last taping day.

‘D

EAD Kids’ are VERY alive in a new WANG film that is loosely NICKIE based on a real-life incident WANG that involves high school students who plot a kidnap-for-ransom scheme targeting a wealthy narco-politician’s son.

Mark Lopez Sta. Maria is a scholar enrolled at the Academy of St. Escriva, a private high school. Living alone while barely supported by a stipend, he earns extra by renting out his apartment to a schoolmate for sexual trysts, as well as by doing homework for his foulmouthed, vape-smoking sex-addict and misogynist classmate, Paolo Gabriel.

Sta. Maria is eventually absorbed into the inner circle of Paolo, where he meets Uy (a closet homosexual), Yssa (Paolo’s girlfriend), and Blanco (son of corrupt police chief).

He was then coaxed into joining a kidnapping scheme when his apartment is used as a safe houseto store an abductee.

That’s basically the premise of Dead Kids, an upcoming fulllength feature produced by Globe Studios and helmed by millennial filmmaker Mikhail Red. But there’s more to the familiar story than what we already saw in the trailer. There are interesting characters, school misfits, that everyone can easily relate to.

“Every project is an opportunity to learn so it’s a super fun experience

A scene from the film

and the Filipino audience will enjoy this because we are changing the barkada film. It’s not your typical teenage movie,” Red told Manila Standard during the film’s last taping day in an exclusive school in Quezon City.

“We wanted to do something that was not seen yet — a heist, youth kidnap thriller set in high school. And because it’s a Filipino movie, hindi maiiwasan yung subtext na political climate dito so it’s a perspective coming from the privileged kids in the age of EJK or crime in the Instagram generation. It’s a black comedy youth thriller which I conceptualized,” the young director carried on adding that his brother Nikolas wrote the screenplay.

According to Red, the film’s core message is simple: “Life is bigger than high school in a very general sense. It’s a cautionary tale.”

Meanwhile, during the set visit, members of the press had a chance to talk to the cast about their experience working with young director. Most of them agreed that it was an easy

and smooth process as they only had nothing but encouragement and praises from the already multiawarded director.

“You won’t feel tired at all because he’s easy to work with. Direk Mik doesn’t get mad. Sasabihin niya sayo nang maayos if he has suggestions so you would really understand,” said Kelvin Miranda, who plays Star.

Maria.

“Even when we were talking about the script and the characters, he really gave us freedom as actors. Sobrang collaborative and I enjoy working with him and the super talented crew. Si Direk Mik, chill lang soya,” shared Khalil Ramos.

For Sue Ramirez, she said that they feel “appreciated.”

“Although it’s our job as actors to do well during tapings, he would always thank us if we did something good.

I think it’s unnecessary but we’re thankful nonetheless.”

“The way he affirms us that we are doing something right gives us encouragement. It feels good as an artist at mas makakabuhay na magperform that’s why we’re so thankful to him,” Vance Larena said.

In turn, the 27-year-old director commended the cast for doing a great job, for making his work easier, and for turning their set into a collaborative environment.

“It was fun working with them,” Red stated, “ Doing this film is definitely a new experience for me. I enjoy the challenge of exploring different genres or giving twists to existing themes like teen movies.”

Jan, Vance, and Kelvin on the set