Manila Standard - 2019 October 14 - Monday

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Pinoy gymnast wins first ever PH gold in Germany’s world tilt

By Peter Atencio A CASH windfall, a warm welcome from President Rodrigo Duterte in Malacañang and a bigger challenge await newly crowned world gymnastic champion Carlos Yulo when he returns home on Tuesday.

The 19-year-old Yulo won a historic gold medal in the men’s floor exercises of the 49th Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany, late Saturday, giving the Philippines its first-ever world champion in the sport.

“We are all thrilled with the golden performance of Caloy [Yulo’s nickname] in the world championships.

The President is happy, said Philippine Sports Commission Chairman William Ramirez.

Malacañang on Sunday praised Yulo’s win, saying the country could expect “great things” from him in the coming Tokyo Olympics.

“It is truly a historic event and we celebrate Yulo’s win with all our fellow Filipinos,” Communications Secretary Martin Andanar said in a statement.

“We expect great things from this

talented young man at the upcoming 2020 Tokyo Olympics.”

A cash incentive of at least P500,000 or as much as P1 million is guaranteed by the government for Yulo based on Republic Act 10699, also known as an “Act Expanding the Coverage of Incentives Granted to the National Athletes and Coaches.”

During the world meet, Yulo scored

a personal-best 84.048 points over the six apparatuses as he stood his own against the top Russian gymnasts in the all-around event.

“First time ko pong maka-iskor ng 84-plus kaya talagang mataas po iyon.

Talagang masaya ‘ko dahil doon, Yulo said.

Ramirez was arranging for Yulo to pay a courtesy call on President Du-

terte in Malacañang on Wednesday.

“We are, of course, super proud of him. He will be arriving Manila on October 15, staying only until 17 as he needs to get back to school, said Gymnastics Association of the Philippines secretary general Bettina Pou. Next page

Carlos Yulo

VOL. XXXIII • NO. 242 • 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P18 MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2019 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com

ASF-hit raisers get extra aid Meat processors brace for huge losses in Luzon

Hong Kong investors shift cash into SE Asian property market HONG KONG―From luxury Singapore apartments to Malaysian seafront condos, Hong Kong investors are shifting cash into Southeast Asian property, demoralized by the increasingly violent protests as well as the ChinaUS trade war.

Millions have taken to the streets during four months of pro-democracy demonstrations in the southern Chinese city, hammering tourism while also forcing businesses to lay off staff―and the property sector is feeling the pain.

Property stocks in one of the world’s most expensive housing markets have plummeted since June, with developers being forced to offer discounts on new projects and cutting office rents.

Hong Kong businessman Peter Ng bought a condominium on the Malaysian island of Penang―which has a substantial ethnic Chinese population and is popular among Hong Kongers―after the protests erupted.

“The instability was a catalyst for me,” the 48-year-old stock market and property investor told AFP, adding he was worried about the long-term damage to the Hong Kong economy if the unrest persisted.

“Investors will always look at things like that, political stability.”

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DOJ panel told to monitor BuCor

By Rey E. Requejo and Macon Ramos-Araneta JUSTICE Secretary Menardo Guevarra has instructed the Department of Justice oversight committee to closely monitor the reforms being carried out by the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) under its newly appointed chief Gerald Bantag to ensure that the rights and well-being of inmates are taken into consideration.

Guevarra also said by law, the department only has administrative supervision over BuCor and may not interfere in the agency’s day-to-day operations.

Supervision includes “ calling attention to actions which are improper, unlawful, or way out of bounds.” It also includes instituting disciplinary action Next page whenever warranted.

GREEN DAY’S FIRST CONCERT MANILA ENTERTAINMENT C4

By Othel V. Campos

P

RESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has approved an increase in financial assistance given to backyard raisers affected by the African swine fever (ASF), from P3,000 to P5,000 per head culled, as the meat processing industry warned that they may lose up to P18 billion in sales during the coming holiday season.

Panelo said in a statement.

Since he took office in 2016, the President has been blaming the law’s requirement of awarding government projects to the lowest bidder for substandard infrastructure and corrupt practices in procurement.

Under the present procurement law,

Agriculture Secretary William Dar said the President and Cabinet members also approved other measures to contain and prevent the spread of ASF during their Oct. 11 meeting.

These include imposition of “lock down” procedures in the provinces of Bulacan and Pampanga, cordoning validated areas as “ASF-infected zones,” for easier movement control of pigs and pork products; and apprehension and filing of cases against hog raisers and traders caught selling or buying and transporting live hogs, slaughtering ASF-infected pigs and selling ASFtainted pork products.

Dar earlier appealed to traders not to buy ASF-affected hogs, and to backyard raisers not to sell ASF afflicted pigs. He warned them that these malpractices are punishable by law.

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SUBDUED. Hong Kong police detain a man for an unknown reason outside a shopping centre in the Tai Koo area of Hong Kong on October 13, 2019. Hong Kong riot police clashed with small groups of masked pro-democracy protesters who held flashmob gatherings in multiple locations -- although crowds were smaller and less violent than recent weekend. AFP

Duterte seeks changes to gov’t procurement law

By MJ Blancaflor PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte said he wants the procurement law amended to give government projects to the “most responsive and advantageous” bidders instead of merely to contractors with the lowest bid.

With his proposed amendment, gov-

ernment entities would not be bound to pick the cheapest bid.

During the Cabinet meeting Friday night, Duterte said he wanted to amend the phrase in Republic Act 9184 or the Government Procurement Reform Act from “lowest calculated responsive bid” to “most responsive and advantageous bid,” Presidential Spokesman Salvador

PH, Russia teamup on oil hunt smart move—Forbes

By MJ Blancaflor PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte‘s invitation to Russia’s top energy player to drill for oil in the Philippine waters also claimed by China is a “smart move,” a Forbes columnist said, but some analysts warned that Russia’s presence in the disputed territories might further complicate tensions in the region.

Teaming up with oil giant Rosneft signals another shift in Manila’s stance in South China Sea dispute, columnist Panos Mourdoukoutas said, adding that Russia’s presence in the disputed waters will pit Moscow against its ally—Beijing— which claims virtually the entire South China Sea. “Duterte is trying something different. He’s teaming up with a Russian company, whose primary shareholder is the Russian government, [it] is a smart move for Duterte,” MourNext page doukoutas said.

HAGIBIS AFTERMATH. This aerial view shows the flooded depot with shinkansen bullet trains in Nagano, Nagano prefecture on Oct. 13, 2019, one day after Typhoon Hagibis swept through central and eastern Japan. - At least 20 people are dead and nine others missing, officials said on October 13, a day after powerful Typhoon Hagibis slammed into Japan, unleashing “unprecedented” rain and catastrophic flooding. AFP

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News

MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2019 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

‘Action needed to solve traffic’ He said action was necessary whether or not a crisis existed.

While some people were preoccupied with semantics, students and employees were struggling daily to get to work or school.

“We must focus on finding solutions immediately. No one who commutes finds any amusement in the memes or satires about statements being made by this or that person, he said.

“What they [commuters] want is to know that something is being done and they are not being ignored.

Angara said the traffic along EDSA and the other major thoroughfares of Metro Manila was not going to ease anytime soon.

To make things worse, he said, the mass transit systems were breaking down, leaving commuters with few options on how to get from point A to point B. While commuters were waiting for the big-ticket infrastructure projects and the rehabilitation of the Philippine National Railways, he said, there was one alternative that was easier and faster to implement: the Pasig River ferry system.

“I have mentioned this before after seeing the potential of the Pasig River ferry as a way to ease traffic in the metropolis, Angara said.

He said a feasibility study had already been conducted for this project, and

that a fully operational ferry transport system could be ready in just one year.

He said unlike road infrastructure, which entailed massive disruptions to traffic and other issues such as road right of way, the Pasig River ferry project simply involved constructing or refurbishing the stations and purchasing the vessels.

There are now 14 ferry stations along the Pasig River, out of which only 11 are operational. The current line can transport passengers to Pasig, Mandaluyong, Makati and Manila.

The current fleet consists of nine passenger boats but only two are running daily.

Angara said improving ridership was definitely a challenge, but one that could easily be addressed by ensuring that the ferry system would be able to operate reliably and consistently.

Passengers needed to know that the ferry would arrive on time and they would get to their destinations on schedule.

DOJ...

(NBP) over allegations of massive corruption that enabled incarcerated drug lords to continue running their businesses from behind bars.

Eleazar said there is a need to extend full support to the BuCor, noting most of the shabu supply in Metro Manila came from the syndicates being managed by convicted drug lords inside the NBP. Bantag earlier sought the assistance of Eleazar when he relieved hundreds of prison guards. Eleazar eventually deployed 551 policemen to assume the duties of the prison guards.

Eleazar and Bantag are working with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, National Bureau of Investigation and the military at the NBP through the establishment of a liaison office to bust the drug operations inside the NBP. “We have a good start with the BuCor. We intend to finish what we started there in terms of denying all the convicted

drug lords inside and even leaders of other criminal syndicates to continue with their operation,” Eleazar said.

Eleazar initiated the alliance of four law enforcement agencies in Metro Manila amid criticisms of a lack of coordination that allowed illegal drug operations in the NBP to continue.

Meanwhile, Senator Ronald dela Rosa said he wants to transfer the control and supervision of provincial and subprovincial jails to the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP).

In filing Senate Bill No. 1100, Dela Rosa said he wants to improve the existing penal system and ensure the adequate and efficient protection of prisoners and detainees.

“Our proposed measure aims to implement a uniform, undeviating standard in the implementation of existing policies and guidelines with regard to the administration of our detention facilities,” he said in a

statement on Sunday.

At present, he said only the city, municipal and district jails are under the supervision of the BJMP while the provincial and sub-provincial jails are under the concerned provincial government.

Dor Dela Rosa, this setup blocks the improvement of a national standard that is “geared towards a more effective rehabilitation of inmates.”

He said his proposed measure intends to amend certain provisions of Republic Act 6975 or the Department of Interior and Local Government Act of 1990, Dela Rosa said.

In past weeks, government agencies tasked to handle jail facilities –the BuCor included –were criticized during a series of hearings on the questionable implementation of the Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA) law, which uncovered other irregularities in the management of the country’s jails.

Yulo paid tribute to Kugimiya by taking off the gold medal and draping it around the Japanese mentor’s neck after the awarding ceremonies.

Since he has already qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Yulo will use his stint in the coming 30th Southeast Asian Games to be hosted by the Philippines as part of his preparations for the bigger challenge of the Olympiad and other international meets as well.

“We still need to find out from coach Mune [Kugiyama] if he [Yulo] will be competing in any world championships next

year before the Olympic Games, said Pou. Yulo and pole vaulter EJ Obiena are the Philippines’ only two qualifiers for the Tokyo Olympics so far.

Ramirez wqie the PSC will back Obiena and Yulo in their Tokyo 2020 campaigns.

Like Obiena, there are plans to provide Yulo his own team composed of a physiotherapist, sports nutritionist and sports psychologist, along with his housing and nutrition requirements.

During the finals on Saturday, Yulo tallied a score of 15.300 points in his favorite event―the floor exercise finals.

Yulo’s gold was an improvement of his bronze-medal win in the same competition last year in Doha, Qatar.

Artem Dolgopyat of Israel placed second with a score of 15.200, while Xiao Ruteng of China took third with a score of 14.933.

“The performance of Caloy is really outstanding considering that those in the Top 10 are Russians, Chinese, Japanese and Americans, who are the best in the world in gymnastics,” said GAP president Cynthia Carrion.

With MJ Blancaflor

price will be referred to as the “lowest calculated bid,” as stated in the law.

For consulting services, the bids will be evaluated and ranked in accordance with the evaluation criteria stated in the bidding documents, which shall include factors such as experience, performance, quality of personnel, price and methodology.

The bids will be ranked from highest to lowest in terms of their corresponding calculated ratings. The bid with the highest calculated rating will be the “highest rated bid.”

“The lowest calculated bid/highest rated bid shall undergo post-qualification

in order to determine whether the bidder concerned complies with and is responsive to all the requirements and conditions as specified in the bidding documents,” the law reads.

In 2017, Duterte issued an executive order allowing government agencies to proceed with alternative methods of procurement instead of public bidding without getting permission from the Government Procurement Policy Board provided that certain conditions are met.

He did so to simplify the government’s procurement procedures for projects, goods and services “to attain an optimal and expedient system.”

Hong Kong...

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

S

ENATOR Juan Edgardo Angara said Sunday the fact that thousands of commuters were having an extremely difficult time getting to their destinations should prompt immediate action from the government.

From A1

With the help from the Philippine National Police (PNP), BuCor recently conducted its clearing operations and destroyed the “kubol” (huts) that forced some of the inmates to sleep along the streets inside the compound since they could no longer be accommodated by the overcrowded detention cells.

The chief of the directorial staff at the PNP, Maj. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar, said the police would continue supporting the ongoing reforms at BuCor. “There is now a good coordination and cooperation between the police and the BuCor. And also with other law enforcement agencies, this… must continue,” Eleazar said Sunday.

The BuCor, under Bantag, is conducting a rigid vetting process of all prison guards and personnel of the New Bilibid Prison

Pinoy...

From A1

After his brief three-day Philippine visit, Yulo will extend his training with his coach Munehiro Kugiyama in Japan and continue his studies as a scholar at Teikyo University.

“I am happy for Caloy because all his hard work and sacrifice paid off. Actually, he has done better in practice, so I was confident about his performance,” said Kugiyama

Duterte...

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the winning bid must be “responsive” and “qualified” apart from being the cheapest to ensure quality in the project’s implementation.

For the procurement of goods and infrastructure projects, the Bids and Awards Committee will evaluate the financial component of the bids and rank those from lowest to highest in terms of their corresponding calculated prices.

The bid with the lowest calculated

PH,...

From A1

Duterte recently visited Russia where he met with Igor Sechin, chief executive officer of Rosneft, and invited him to participate in oil and gas exploration in Philippine waters.

During their meeting, Duterte underscored that any agreement with Rosneft will undergo domestic processes and comply with applicable laws to avoid allegations of corruption or irregularity.

Their meeting comes at a time when the country’s gas resources at the Malampaya fields are set to run out by 2024 and it is believed that there are 11 billion barrels worth of oil under the South China Sea along with 190 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

Before this, Duterte also met Chinese President Xi Jinping to discuss joint oil exploration in the South China Sea under a 60-40 scheme.

Rosneft is the same company Vietnam had partnered with to search for oil and gas in its own waters disputed

by China a few months ago.

Beijing, in response, sent coast guard ships to try and block an oil rig’s construction near Vanguard Bank, a reef which it also claims.

It also demanded that Vietnam abandon its oil exploration projects with foreign companies.

Undeterred by warnings, Rosneft has continued to explore for oil, but the joint venture lost some $295 million due to Chinese interference.

Rosneft’s insistence fueled speculations that

Vietnam’s strategy of bringing outside powers such as Russia in the maritime dispute would be a blow to China’s dominance.

Artyom Lukin, an associate professor in Russia’s Far Eastern Federal University, said that Moscow may want to keep its traditional bonds with Vietnam, but it is unlikely to expand its presence in the South China Sea since it “tacitly recognized” the waters as China’s geopolitical sphere of influence.

But he doubted if Moscow will risk its relationship with Beijing.

“Albeit a friction point between Beijing and Moscow, the activities by Russian firms in the South China Sea are unlikely to destabilize the all-important Sino-Russian ‘strategic partnership’, and Moscow and Beijing need each other on much bigger issues,” he told the South China Morning Post.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has developed strong political and economic ties with Xi. Putin also publicly sided with China and questioned the validity of the 2016 arbitral ruling by the Haguebased Permanent Court of Arbitration which backed the Philippines’ sovereign right to explore oil and gas reserves in its territories.

Global economist Cailin Birch said in a television interview that “there’s a growing consensus that a partnership between Russia and China is quite a powerful force, led by China rather than Russia, but that between the two of them they could represent quite a powerful bloc.”

Observers say that the Russia-China alliance is the perfect way to counterbalance United States and Nato influence on the global stage.

JUAN EDGARDO ANGARA

“We need to get this done right away if we want to ease traffic congestion in Metro Manila, Angara said.

He said the major infrastructure projects would not be completed until after the Duterte administration.

“Let’s come up with ways to provide relief to our commuters at an earlier time,” he said.

From A1

And Derek Lee, a Hong Kong businessman who owns a Penang apartment, said he knew others in the semi-autonomous city who were considering investing in Southeast Asian property because of the unrest.

“People are thinking about how to quicken their ideas, how to make a more stable life,” the 55-year-old told AFP. Adding to the allure of Malaysia is its relative affordability and prices much lower than Hong Kong’s.

The Malaysia site of Southeast Asian real estate platform Property Guru has seen a 35-percent increase in visits from Hong Kong, according to its CEO Hari Krishnan.

While Hong Kong’s protests are primarily pushing for greater democratic freedoms and police accountability, the summer of rage has been fueled by years of simmering anger towards Beijing and the local government over falling living standards and the high costs of living.

Hong Kong’s property market is one of least affordable in the world with sky-high prices fueled, in part, by wealthy mainlanders snapping up investments in a city that has failed for years to build enough flats to meet demand.

But now mainland Chinese, who traditionally viewed property in Hong Kong as a safe investment, are opting for rival financial hub Singapore as a result of the protests and the US-China trade war, according to observers.

There has been a jump this year in sales of luxury apartments in the city-state―which like Hong Kong is known for pricey property― driven partially by mainland Chinese buyers, according to the consultancy OrangeTee & Tie. “The protests in Hong Kong have

ASF-hit...

From A1

“We must step up our surveillance and monitoring of transport of live pigs as well as pork products,” Dar said.

ASF poses no threat to human health, although it is very infectious among pigs, and can easily spread from one farm to another if not properly managed.

The disease has no known vaccine yet.

Aside from the newly-approved measures, the Department strictly enforced biosecurity measures and the 1-7-10 protocol in ASF-affected areas, in tandem with local government units, the military, police, swine industry groups and other government agencies as part of their combined efforts to effectively manage, control and contain ASF. These include frequent cleaning and disinfection of farms, transport vehicles, and improved husbandry practices and production systems such as prohibition on swill feeding.

Consumers are also advised to buy pork stamped with National Meat Inspection Service seal and from reputable meat shops.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Association of Meat Processors Inc. said the P18 billion in lost sales expected over the holidays is on top of the projected P40 billion in losses from operations in the Visayas and Mindanao, where some local government units have banned the entry of pork products from Luzon.

Visayas and Mindanao represent a combined 40 percent of the nationwide processed meat sales of P300 billion yearly.

The group said 20 provinces such as Cebu and Bohol imposed a total ban on pork and pork-based products from Luzon while another 26 LGUs implemented a conditional ban. About 46 provincial governments imposed restrictions on the movement of pork and pork-based products.

“We beg that these rules and restrictions be based on science and on the expert advice of internationally recognized animal health organizations,” PAMPI said.

It said that while the Agriculture, Health and Trade Departments drafted rules and regulations to govern the dynamics of the business, “we are seeing the difficulty in getting their rules and directives followed because final implementation lies in the LGUs.” PAMPI said there might not be enough supply of Christmas hams and other pork-based products in the Visayas and Mindanao over the holidays because of the restrictions.

It said that while Cebu and Cagayan de Oro have their own ham production capabilities, their total production would not be able to supply the needs of the region unless the ban on Luzonproduced pork-based processed meats was rationalized. With PNA made some of the [mainland Chinese] based there... [more concerned] about investing in Hong Kong real estate, so they carry that investment to Singapore,” said Alan Cheong, executive director of the research and consultancy team at Savills.

As well as hitting China’s economy, trade tensions may have discouraged some Chinese from investing in the West and pushed them towards Singapore, with its mostly ethnic Chinese population.

“I think they don’t want to go to the West,” said Cheong.

Singapore is “the closest country culturally to China other than Hong Kong, and I think they feel more comfortable with that”.

There are further signs the stable, tightly ruled city is benefiting from the Hong Kong turmoil―Goldman Sachs last week estimated as much as $4 billion flowed out of Hong Kong to Singapore this summer.

And analysts warned there was little hope of Hong Kong’s property market recovering soon.

“Hong Kong property share prices have corrected by about 15 to 25 percent since July,” said Raymond Cheng, head of Hong Kong and China property at CGS-CIMB Securities International.

Residential sales were still holding up but only when developers offered discounts, office rents were expected to fall by as much as five percent and shop rents were also badly affected, he said.

But despite the unrest, businessman Ng―who will rent his Penang property and has no plans to move there permanently for now―was still hopeful about Hong Kong’s long-term prospects.

“The problem may not be solved in the short term but it is not so serious as pessimists think,” he said.

“Everything is still in the government’s control.” AFP

News Gov’t must ensure UHC is fully-funded —group

By Macon Ramos-Araneta HEALTH advocates from the Sin Tax Coalition said on Monday that the government must ensure that the law is fully funded in order for Filipinos to truly reap its benefits.

Last week, Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III signed the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of the Universal Health Care Law (UHC) or RA 11223, which will pave way for its implementation after President Rodrigo Duterte signed the law last February 20.

Under the UHC law, all Filipino citizens are automatically enrolled into the National Health Insurance Program as direct contributors, or those who have the capacity to pay premiums, and indirect contributors sponsored by the government such as indigents and senior citizens.

Duque said the UHC will ensure holistic health care for every “Juan and Juana” by reorienting health care towards health promotion and preventive care, from a curative care focused system.

“The health system must actively improve the health literacy, the built environment, and the social determinants of health of every Filipino,” said Duque.

“When we say, “Sa UHC, lahat kasama,” we do not just mean that UHC caters to every Juan and Juana, we are also calling on every Juan and Juana to contribute to this immense reform to shape their health future, a health future that is for them and as much as it is by them,” said Duque.

MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2019

Cavite hosts counterterrorism center

By Rey E. Requejo

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state-of-the-art Regional Counterterrorism Training Center in the Philippines will be constructed in Cavite to serve as counterterrorism training for law enforcement units and personnel from the Philippines and the United States partner nations in the region.

This came after US Ambassador to Manila Sung Kim and Philippine National Police Chief General Oscar Albayalde led the groundbreaking for the construction of a modern counterterrorism training center on the grounds of the PNP Academy in Silang, Cavite last Friday (October 11).

As part of deepening bilateral counterterrorism partnership between the

Washington and Manila, the US Department of State has secured P520 million ($10 million) in counterterrorism partnership funds to establish and jointly operate the center with the PNP. “Once constructed, the center will provide counterterrorism training for law enforcement units and personnel from the Philippines and regional partner nations,” the Kim said in a state-

ment released by the US Embassy.

The initiative was in response to a request from the PNP for a state-ofthe-art facility to provide enhanced regional counterterrorism training.

“The establishment of this center reflects the U.S.’ enduring commitment to support Philippine counterterrorism efforts and work together to address threats to peace and security in the region,” the US envoy said.

Meanwhile, twenty-one Sandiganbayan justices participated in a roundtable discussions with American experts over the weekend on how to handle cases involving money laundering and financial crimes.

The event, which was organized by the US Embassy in the Philippines, US Department of Justice Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assis-

By Rio N. Araja

THE Department of Environment and Natural Resources on Sunday said that there is no room for illegal mining in the country.

Amid continued calls for greater responsibility from mining companies nationwide, the Mines and Geosciences Bureau assured the public that the agency is fully committed to fighting

environmental abuse caused by illegal mining operators in the Philippines.

“There is no room for illegal mining in the Philippines,” MGB director Wilfredo Moncano said.

The long-standing initiative of the MGB is designed to enhance environmental protection and rehabilitation in the mining industry in partnership with local law enforcement agencies, and the creation of new policies further enhanc-

ing the protection of the environment and local communities, he said.

Under the current administration, the MGB launched a new task force called the National Task Force Mining Challenge on Jan. 16, 2018 to squash illegal mining operators, beginning with a Baguio City mine near the Philippine Military Academy grounds which was closed down in February 2018.

HEAVY TRAFFIC. Heavy southbound traffic is seen along Edsa as Metropolitan Manila Authority Development (MMDA) implemented a policy of banning passenger buses from passing by flyovers.

Gatchalian wants deeper look on PH energy program

By Macon Ramos-Araneta and Alena Mae A. Flores FOLLOWING a Memorandum of Intent signed in Russia by President Rodrigo Duterte and Russian officials, Senator Win Gatchalian pushed for the scrutiny of the Philippines nuclear energy program.

The MOA provides to jointly explore the prospects of cooperation in the construction of nuclear power plants in the Philippines.

Gatchalian, chair of the Senate energy committee, said a proposal to build

tance, and Training (DOJ/OPDAT), the Supreme Court of the Philippines, and the Philippine Judicial Academy, aimed to enhance participants’ capabilities, competencies and skills in examining and adjudicating money laundering and financial crimes, deepen understanding on how to freeze assets, recover laundered property, and ensure proper preservation and management of assets.

Judge Bernice Donald of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit shared her expertise on traditional and emerging methods of money laundering, discussing the role that bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies and the dark web can play in money laundering, as well as other money laundering methods, including using money cards and gift cards, and through online networks.

GALLERY OF THE SEA. Miss Earth 2019

DOLE warns public on fake No room for illegal mining in PH—DENR online jobs THE labor department warned jobseekers planning to work overseas on the proliferation of fake social media pages and accounts offering local and overseas job vacancies.

The alert was issued following a report received by the DOLE Information and Publication Service (IPS) from a jobseeker named ‘Mary’ who claimed to have discussed a local job opportunity with a certain Arthur Villena allegedly working at the labor department.

Mary said she got the details from a supposed ‘DOLE Job AssistanceLocal and Abroad’ Facebook page bearing various posts for interested applicants for deployment in Canada, Australia, Singapore, London, and local jobs for Calabarzon and Mimaropa as nurses, caregiver, managers, restaurant staff, and others.

The page also uses the official logo of DOLE, posting pictures of trainings, and a photo of former Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz.

Eager to grab a job and secure a slot, Mary called the certain number ‘0935743-0054’ posted on the page and was instructed to send a P1,000 for the reservation fee through a mobile money transfer ‘Smart padala.’

After sending the payment, “Arthur” said he will meet with Mary at the DOLE Central Office in Intramuros, Manila to assist her for the job application. However, upon arriving at the DOLE, no one showed up and the scammer no longer answers the phone.

This prompted Mary to seek assistance and report the incident to the labor department.

Upon verification, no ‘Arthur Villena’ appeared on the official roster of employees of DOLE and the said Facebook page was found to be a fake account.

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a floating nuclear power plant in the country was also forwarded by Russia.

After urging the Department of Energy (DOE) to be more transparent in its nuclear program agenda, Gatchalian wants the Senate to look into the agency’s plan on nuclear power.

He filed Senate Resolution No. (PSRN) 162 in the Senate Committee on Energy to conduct an inquiry on the status of the agency’s Nuclear Energy Program Implementing Organization (NEPIO), including its recommendation for the country to embark on a nuclear power program.

“A comprehensive, transparent, and public discussion must be made on the merits of a national nuclear program taking into consideration the social, economic,environmental, and technical effects and requirements of such a program,” said Gatchalian.

Gatchalian said that under PSRN 162, the development of a nuclear power program in any country requires three phases marked by a specific milestone.

He also noted the completion of 19 infrastructure requirements, which necessitate specific actions during each

of these three phases as indicated in the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) Milestones in the Development of a National Infrastructure for Nuclear Power.

“The Philippines is currently completing Phase One, which commenced when the DOE issued Department Order No. D.O. 2016-10-0013last 2016, creating a body called the Nuclear Energy Program Implementing Organization (NEPIO) tasked with exploring the development and inclusion of nuclear energy in the country’s electric power supply,” he said.

candidates pose before the Gallery of the Sea where artworks showcase global environmental causes at the Premises of the Manila Yacht Club as they are joined by UNESCO Artist for Peace Cecile Guidote-Alvarez, her husband, former senator Heherson Alvarez and His Excellency Jose Miguel Capdevila, Ambassador of Chile to the Philippines. The ambassador's presence is essential in support of the Paris Accord and the United Nations Climate Change Conference to be held in Chile this December 2019."

Norman Cruz

Solon files weather-based insurance bill LAS PIÑAS City Rep. Camille Villar wants crop insurance indexed to weather to shield small farmers from extreme weather emergencies.

She said that indexing the crop insurance to weather conditions would make the insurance coverage process and payment to farmer beneficiaries faster and with lesser-bred type compared to conventional crop insurance.

“Weather index-based crop insurance (WIBCI) is a unique insurance product based on the occurrence of breach of a weather-based parameter, which serves as legal proof of the occurrence of extremely adverse weather conditions and proxy for the expected crop damage,” said Villar in her House Bill 3310.

She said that the WIBCI is an innovation that requires less administrative costs in terms of selling the product, administering the policy coverage and monitoring over wide areas.

“It maximizes the use of relevant technologies and networks in order to reach out more and more farmers; and provides faster payout turnaround in the event of breach of the agreed parameters without need for bureaucratic processing by an adjuster. The hassle-free disbursement of claims is made possible through the use of technology and a widely distributed network of payment centers,” she said.

Weather index-based insurance is an attractive approach to managing weather and climate risks because it uses a weather index, such as rainfall, to determine payouts and these can be made more quickly and with less argument than is typical for conventional crop insurance.

Villar said the WIBCI-type crop insurance would essentially improve and expand the current coverage and mandate of the Philippine Crop Insurance Corp., which “so far, it has too few participants and very miniscule outreach compared with the total number of farmers that is supposed to be served.”

From 2013 up to 2017, Congress has been appropriating an average of P1.55 billion per year to subsidize the PCIC insurance premiums on up to 600,000 hectares of rice farms in a number of provinces. Rio N. Araja

A4

Opinion

MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2019

Duterte’s wars won’t end I FELT nostalgic about my friends who have gone ahead of me. A few weeks ago, I wrote about one of my best friends, Ambassador Antonio L. Cabangon Chua.

I remembered it was his birthday last August 30.

The drug problem will continue so long as there is demand. Corruption will persist so long as there is human discretion and intervention.

It was a pleasant coincidence that the following day, August 31, was the birthday of the late Jaime Cardinal Sin. He was Tony’s good friend.

I remember Cardinal Sin amid our country’s pressing problems. We will never have one like him again.

A legacy of their strong friendship is the Catholic Mass media Awards, one of the country’s prestigious award-giving bodies. Both Tony and the Cardinal believed in the power of mass media to bring about social and spiritual renewal.

Establishing the CMMA in 1978, Cardinal Sin described the Rock trophy and recognized that values-filled work is “a tribute to those who are serving God through media.”

The CMMA, over 41 years, has lived up to the Cardinal’s vision, encouraging mass media workers to uphold and promote basic human and Christian values in the most outstanding way. In this, he had the full support of Tony, who was named CMMA president and chairman in 2000.

Tony held that post until his death

in March 2016. His efforts to inspire mass media workers to promote love of God, love for truth, respect for the environment and positive Filipino ideals continue under the leadership of his son, D. Edgard A Cabangon, current CMMA chairman and also chairman of the ALC Group of Companies.

I wish the CMMA further success. *** I have often been asked: Do I think President Duterte will ever be able to end his war against illegal drugs? He only has three years remaining in his term. And what about corruption?

Let’s start with drugs. Recall that when he assumed office in 2016, he vowed to end the menace in three months. This gave him unprecedented popularity, But then he asked for six more months to end the drug problem. When this did not materialize, he asked for further extensions so he could deliver on his promise, He’s now halfway into his term and the problem remains serious.

Why? Mr. Duterte is treating the drug menace as a law and order issue, not as the health issue it really is.

Santa Banana, estimates place the number of drug users in the country as between even and eight million.

The problem worsens when the drug users resort to selling drugs to support their habit!

It’s a multi-headed monster, spawning problems and issues of extra judicial killings and corruption by the police.

While it’s true that rogue cops have been punished and dismissed, drug dealing among the members of the Philippine National Police continues.

The killings remain as well. Police records say the number is at 6,000, but there are some estimates that say some 27,000 have already died.

The drug war has also spawned collateral problems like the country being called out by the international community for supposed excesses in the implementation of the anti-drug campaign.

Adelle Chua, Editor

EDITORIAL

M

Dead in the water

ANILA Water, one of two private concessionaires serving Metro Manila, this week served up a doomsday scenario of dramatically higher water rates if the Supreme Court insists on imposing a P921 million fine for failing to comply with the Clean Water Act.

The statement, contained in the company's motion for reconsideration, had a ring of blackmail to it—a fact that was not lost on lawmakers who were quick to criticize Manila Water for its insensitivity at best and arrogance at worst.

Faced with scathing criticism, the Ayala-owned company sought to perform some damage control by saying they “never stated that it will be an impending increase” nor that they would pass the costs on to consumers.

“In light of the recent reports on the increase in water rates by 780 percent, we would like to clarify that the 780 percent increase included in the pleading in our motion for reconsideration to the Supreme Court is what it would have cost to build wastewater facilities to comply with the Supreme Court decision...,” it said.

But all this sounded like splitting hairs—and it was clear the company's lawyers had shot themselves in the foot with this passage from

their motion for reconsideration: "On the assumption that costs related to the full implementation of the sewerage network are to be recovered by the concessionaires, including petitioner Manila Water, by the end of the concession agreement, the fees that ought to be collected from the end consumers (on top of their water consumption) would amount to PHP26.70 per cubic meter— or a 780.18-percent increase in water rates.”

How, after all, do the concessionaires expect to recover their costs related to the full implementation of the sewerage network, if not from their customers?

The company says so itself in the next sentence, when it says “the fees that ought to be collected from the end consumers (on top of their water consumption) would amount to P26.70 per cubic meter—or a 780.18 percent increase in water rates.”

The company may quibble about the word “impending” but the intent seems apparent.

Buhay party-list Rep. Lito Atienza, who used to be Environment secretary, neither quibbled or minced words, calling Manila Water's statement “the height of arrogance.”

“Instead of complying with the Supreme Court order, they are now threatening consumers with an oppressive hike in water rates unless the high tribunal reverses its ruling. This is tantamount to blackmail,” Atienza said.

“For the past 22 years, they have been charging consumers a so-called environmental fee purportedly to put up sewer lines connecting all households to the waste-water treatment facilities. Instead of flowing directly into water bodies such as the Laguna de Bay and Manila Bay, water from households and commercial establishments should be directed to these treatment facilities, converting it to a level that can even be of drinking quality. But until now they have not rendered this service as stipulated in their concession agreement with the government,” Atienza said.

Meanwhile, the utility's regulator, the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System made it clear that the concessionaires may not pass on these costs to consumers.

Manila Water's threat, intended or not, just doesn't hold water.

Turn to A5

Atienza’s war on water firms

LIKE a man consumed by his own mission to wage war against corporate greed, Buhay Party List Rep. Lito Atienza is relentless in his campaign to make the water company concessionaires comply with the Clean Water Act. This, after one major newspaper banner headlined his case against concessionaire Manila Water while the other dailies also ran the story on their front pages.

Atienza is aghast that instead of complying with the Supreme Court order to implement the clean sewage component in their contract as concessionaires, Manila Water is now threatening consumers with higher rates.

“This is the height of arrogance if not downright insensitivity,” fumed Atienza, suggesting that the high court cite Manila Water in contempt and double its P1.8-billion fine for attempting to pass on their fine to consumers.

“To increase its rates by 780 percent is corporate greed exemplified,” said Atienza. Neglect to separate toxic and chemical waste from water sewage is harming the environment as he pointed out the fishkill in Las Pinas and Paranaque.

Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources officials who inspected the dead fish washed ashore said the cause was not dynamite fishing but plain and pure pollution..

“Manila Bay is now one big cesspool,” said Atienza, adding that no amount of cleanup will turn the tide around and restore it to its former pristine condition.

Atienza said Manila Water has the funds to connect pipes to a water treatment facility. It did not do this. And yet the Ayalas who operate Manila Water have the funds for their other business ventures like condominiums and shopping malls. If operating a concessionaire and distributing water to thousands of households is not profitable, then they should get out of it, Atienza

said, urging the government to cancel the water concessionaires’ contracts and take over their operation. He said that water a natural resource should never be privatized and given to big business whose sole priority is profit.

The former Environment and Natural Resources Secretary under then President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo vowed to pursue his case against Manila Water when Congress resumes its session in November. He found an ally in Senator Sherwin Gatchalian who is now espousing the cause for a water treatment facility.

Corporate greed exemplified, he says.

Atienza also said Manila Water has been collecting money from consumers and business establishments for wastewater treatment for the past 22 years aside from the regular fees for water consumption. Manila Water had enough time to construct a waste water treatment facility as stipulated in its concessionaire contract—but did not.

Why? So, where did that water treatment money go? Probably to other Ayala projects with a faster return on investment. We hope not, because that would be to the detriment of its actual purpose for a wastewater treatment facility, which is for the good of communities nationwide. What is happening now is that both Manila Bay and Laguna de Bay have become big receptacles for toxic waste and other garbage that result in fishkill and other diseases that take their toll on the people. Is it any wonder that polio is back after an absence of three decades, with dengue and the African Swine Fever adding to the people’s problems?

Indeed, one business company’s neglect is the whole country’s misery.

Thankfully, we have legislators like Lito Atienza looking after our welfare. May his and Senator Sherwin Gatchalian’s tribe increase.

Fire in the hole THERE’S a fire in the hole and it’s burning right through the statement of Fire Chief Leonard Bañago.

In the recent budget deliberation at the House of Representatives for the proposed 2020 budget of the Bureau of Fire Protection, lawmakers discovered the failure of the BFP to acquire additional firetrucks despite the availability of budget.

To date, BFP has 2,350 serviceable firetrucks including 469 units procured in 2014 through public bidding.

However, in its audit report, the Commission on Audit said the BFP should have at least 3,608 serviceable firetrucks ready for operation, meaning it needs at least 1,258 additional units.

In 2016, budget was allocated for the additional units with P1.9 billion outsourced to the Philippine International Trading Corporation and an additional P494.7 million coursed through the Department of Budget and Management—Procurement Service.

Up to now, however, no additional units have been acquired by the BFP. During the budget deliberation, Bañago blamed their failure to acquire

new units on the procurement process, particularly on the PITC. For his part, BFP Logistics Director Jerry Candido blamed both PITC and DBM-PS for the delay of the procurement of additional firetrucks, saying the BFP cannot interfere with the two agencies’ procurement process.

Is this incompetence or corruption?

However, sources say PITC consulted the BFP on the awarding of contract for the supply for new firetrucks. The latter, however, did notapprove. According to the source, the BFP allegedly refused to give its go-signal to award

the procurement of the firetrucks to a different bidder “who is not their favored bidder.”

According to the source, there were two contending parties for the supply of additional firetrucks in the bidding for additional units in 2018. Bidder A, a joint venture, reportedly submitted the second lowest bid. The BFP awarded an P840-million contract to Bidder A for the supply of 56 firetrucks.

Early this year, the BFP awarded another P840-million contract for 56 more firetrucks to this same bidder, despite its failure to deliver the first batch of firetrucks.

Why? According to the source, the winning bidder lacked capitalization, as its shell company only has an authorized capital stock of P100,000.

The other contractor, on the other hand, the source said, has the capital and in fact, has delivered 500 units to the BFP earlier. But it sill lost in the bidding as the source claims the BFP, under the Department of Interior and Local Government, kept changing the Terms of Reference for the bidding to Turn to A5

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Opinion Rethinking China THE FIFTH GOSPEL JUDE ACIDRE AFTER years of negotiation and dialogue, last year, a world power reversed its decades-old stance on China and signed a provisional deal with its leaders, allowing for more open relations between the two powers.

But as any rapprochement with China undertaken in recent years, this move by its top leader has come under intense scrutiny—and criticism.

It seems like this world power has caved in to the Communist government, perceived as an act of giving up its long-held positions on preserving its freedoms.

But the world power insists it has consigned nothing to the Chinese government. To date, the full text of the provisional agreement has not been released.

No, we are not talking of the Philippines. Nor of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte. That world power is the Holy See, the diplomatic personality of the Catholic Church. The world leader is Pope Francis.

In 2018, the Holy See and the People’s Republic of China signed a historic provisional agreement on the appointment of Chinese bishops, with Pope Francis recognizing seven bishops ordained

by Beijing without the approval of the Holy See. It was signed after a meeting between Msgr. Antoine Camilleri, the Vatican’s undersecretary for relations with states, and Wang Chao, China’s vice-minister for foreign affairs.

While the deal has split Catholics in China and around the world, the Vatican insists that the move aims to ease age-old tensions between China and the Catholic Church. The two countries severed diplomatic ties in 1951, two years after the founding of the communist People’s Republic.

Yet the Church insists the move is pastoral, not political.

According to a Vatican statement, the provisional agreement “foresees the possibility of periodic reviews of its application.”

In a time of political realignment, especially with regard to relations with the Chinese government, it is difficult not to notice the parallelisms.

It seems like the Philippines is not alone in rethinking and opening up its relationship with China.

There is no doubt that China, with its more than billion population and recent economic gains, has firmly established its claims to be this generation’s para-

mount global power.

If the Vatican has realized the need to reassess its relationship with China, what more justification is required about the necessity for the Philippines to pivot its relations with its Chinese neighbor.

It has become not only a matter of a political—but an economic necessity.

This is could be a good reference point in understanding President Duterte’s moves to bring our country closer to China. Or why he has made more than five visits to China, the latest made just recently.

With the issues surrounding the West Philippine Sea and China’s growing economic influence over our country— not to mention the perceived debt traps to which these economic deals will lead us to—critics of the President believe our overtures to China is endangering our country’s sovereignty.

It seems like the Philippines is not alone in rethinking and opening up its relationship with our giant neighbor.

A more balanced understanding will only prove the obvious. We cannot align our diplomatic interests with a foreign power on the other side of the globe, and not seek to strengthen our relations with our next-door-neighbor.

A military solution over our territorial disputes will do more harm than good, especially when our armed capability is dwarfed by China’s military might.

Being oblivious to China’s newfound economic wealth will be too much of an opportunity loss for our developing economy.

But our people, especially critics of the President, choose to overlook these obvious facts, choosing instead to criticize him for kowtowing to Beijing.

In the meanwhile, we raise criticism after criticism, put on blame after blame on the President for allegedly selling out our country to the Chinese.

But even for a country, respect is earned, not demanded. That respect is earned not by how much we play global political realignments, but with how those in power has worked to make the lives of the people better and ensure their welfare.

Even China knows that. Its importance on the global stage has come not after the ideological shifts after the Chinese Revolution, but only after the economic gains made by instituting so-

cialism with Chinese characteristics.

With more and more Chinese enterprises expanding into the international market, and more Chinese citizens enjoying a better quality of life, China has earned the respect of the entire world.

However, it appears that Filipinos have been stuck in the outdated geopolitics of the almost forgotten Cold War, disliking China simply because of a closer affinity to the United States.

It’s a good thing President Duterte has shacked our foreign policy from this way of thinking.

Don’t get me wrong. There are red flags in our relations with China that for me we should take notice. The alarming influx of Chinese citizens into our country for example. The lack of transparency in the way agreements with China are negotiated and carried out.

The bullish display of Chinese military power within our exclusive economic zone in the West Philippine Sea. Obviously, we have yet a long way to go for us to earn China’s respect as an equal sovereign power.

But the problem, in my opinion, is not China. It is us. Our lack of national unity. The dearth of national pride.

Our unreasonable expectations of those who lead us. Our tendency to condone corruption when it benefits us. Our propensity to complain but reluctance to participate. Our indifference to our duties as citizens, but our endless list of demands surrounding our rights.

Yet we complain that China does not respect us. If we want respect, we need to earn it.

We cannot allow political sentimentalism define our foreign relations, but the clarity of our present purpose.

In rethinking its relationship with the China, the Catholic Church know too well that for it to fully carry out its spiritual mission, it need to let go of some established institutional arrangements.

Its pastoral purpose was simply far more important than its political motives.

It must not have been an easy decision to make—considering the more than fifty years of persecution that faithful Chinese Catholics had to endure under the Communist regime.

Last month, the first ordinations to take place in the framework of the provisional agreement on the appointment of bishops were held. On August 26, Bishop Anthony Yao Shun of Jining in China’s Inner Mongolia autonomous region was the first bishop to have openly received recognition from the Chinese government and the papal mandate from the Vatican at the same ceremony.

Until today, the details of that provisional agreement has not been made public. But the desired effects have now come to fruition.

2022

DURING a brief visit to the country principally to greet the Taiwanese community in the Philippines on the occasion of the 108th Double Ten anniversary, I was swamped with conversations about who will run for president come 2022.

We are such a politics-crazy people, indeed.

Will Ping Lacson run? What do you think of Isko Moreno? With Cynthia Villar’s strong showing in the last senatorial elections, what are her chances of bagging the presidency come 2022?

Does Vice-President Leni Robredo have a chance as the Liberal Party’s candidate for president?

Will Speaker Alan, basking in the first-ever high performance rating for a leader of the House of trapos, be the first speaker after Manuel Roxas Sr. to become president? Will Grace Poe try again, and also, when will Coco Martin “die” in Ang Probinsyano? Would Bongbong make another stab for higher office, however the SC decides on his protest? Will Tito Sen throw his hat into the ring as well? And the omni-present Dick Gordon of the hyper-active Blue Ribbon?

And then the ultimate equation-changing question: Will Sara Duterte run for president in 2022? You think the President will endorse her as his successor?

These conversations happened at a time when presidential spokesman Sal Panelo came up with his comments about a non-crisis in transportation that ended up with his commuting from Marikina to Malacanang, only to confirm the calvary that ordinary folks experience each day.

Anyway, I am not a transport expert for anybody to ask me about solutions to Metro Manila’s traffic problem which seems to get worse by the day, although having lived in the metropolis from the halcyon days when there were fewer people being moved by fewer vehicles to the present nerve-wracking situation of gridlock wherever you go, I do have some Gordian Knot “solutions” to the mess.

One of those in a recent conversation recalled having read an article by

former ambassador to Greece Rigoberto Tiglao right after President Duterte made it in 2016, where I was described as someone who “seems to have a knack for correctly betting on who the next president would be before they get into power.”

“Hindi ako Nostradamus,” I said. It’s just that at the right time, after a close observation of political personalities, and after a feel of the public pulse, honed through years of being a political technician, I am able to make the right choices.

The political marriage between Cory and Doy, which ended up in a tragic split after power was gained, had me in front-seat audience. Then came the ascent of Vice President Joseph Estrada to the presidency after FVR, and the absurd denouement that followed when Estrada fell from power less than halfway through his elected term.

Whatever will be, will be.

There was the beleaguered campaign of Ninoy and Cory’s son, Noynoy, in early 2010, with Sen. Serge Osmena whose sage reading of opinion polls left me dumbfounded. A seeming victory of Manny Villar, whose infomercials were gems in political communication, was successfully thwarted.

And then, with everybody and his mother in the Manila political circuit calling us “crazy” for rooting for a mayor from the deep South a year and a half before the 2016 elections, against establishment politicians such as an incumbent vice-president who miraculously won over Noynoy’s running-mate in 2010, or the same presidential running-mate with a pedigree from way back the first presidency of the Third Republic, and the adopted daughter of the king of Tagalog movies, we surprised the country with a stunning victory in the end.

Of course there were disappointments as well. I bet on then-Chief Justice Marcelo B. Fernan to succeed Cory, and eventually had to support a Mitra-Fernan tandem which lost to a split FVR-Erap win, where I learned a lesson that to this day I hold dear—machinery matters terribly less behind imagery

when it comes to presidential elections.

Then again, despite overwhelming odds, I supported Ping Lacson in 2004 against an incumbent president who was exceedingly good at wielding power, and a clueless but exceedingly popular candidate from, again, the movie kingdom.

Hits and misses, but as usual in this country, the most recent hits are what many remember.

So back to the intriguing question: Who’s who, come 2022?

It’s too early to tell. Wait until the first quarter of 2021, but keep your ears on the ground for what the would-be presidentiables would do next year. Pay attention as well to negative flashbacks on earlier careers, whether real or fabricated.

Plus, watch President Duterte.

I am willing to bet that the President’s support will still be a very big asset to whoever wants to succeed him. Unlike other presidents before him, Duterte’s trust ratings will still be quite high, de despite occasional dips and corrections, come 2022.

Will he field his Inday Sara to succeed him?

That’s the big question. Corollary to which, would Inday Sara want to inherit the presidency from her father?

How would the people of Luzon, Metro Manila and the other half of the Visayas take to a presidential dynasty so soon after the incumbent? And how would the President himself read this as risk instead of challenge?

And then again, who knows who else would rise in the political firmament next year or even by 2021? Who could be a dark horse, like Duterte was in the previous presidential contest?

Senator Bong Go, perhaps? Mayor Benjie Magalong?

Que sera, sera. Whatever will be, will be.

Better yet, whoever is destined to be, will be.

Still and all, those who cast moist eyes on Malacanang need to work on it, starting next year.

“Show me the numbers,” Senator Ping once said, before he jumped into the fray.

Well, the numbers are what you make them to be. It’s never going to be manna from heaven. That thing happened only once in recent history with the death of Cory.

But then again, who knows how Providence will manifest destiny?

MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2019

A5

Cancer assistance fund needs more GAA funding partnership with the Cancer Coalition of the Philippines as the main proponents of the NICCA. Now that the legislative challenge has been hurdled, the immediate concern is to secure initial funding in the 2020 national budget.

Quite disturbing, the proposed DOH ONE OF the most important pieces of legislation signed into law by budget does not have a specific line President Duterte this year is the Na- item for the Cancer Assistance Fund or tional Integrated Cancer Control Act. anything on Cancer Control. With some This is a landmark legislative initia- prodding from cancer stakeholders and tive by a nationwide alliance of can- Congressional co-authors of the NICcer stakeholders to institutionalize a CA, DOH Secretary Duque has formalcomprehensive and holistic approach ly endorsed changes in the 2020 DOH to addressing the long-neglected gaps budget, which includes the creation of in cancer control. These gaps cause the Cancer Assistance Fund line item unnecessary deaths at a rate of thou- with total of P463 million for the implementation of the NICCA. sands of Filipinos each year.

The proposed programs under this The passage of the law shows the virtually unanimous support of the Sen- line item is distributed as follows: 1) ate and House of Representatives to a Early Lung Cancer Detection and Treatlong-neglected health issue that data ment Access Program at P20.8 million; has shown to be the third-leading cause 2) Early Colorectal Cancer Detection of adult deaths, and fourth in child mor- Access Program at P16.5 million; 3) Early Cervical tality. According to Cancer Detection the Philippine CanAccess Program cer Facts and Esusing HPV DNA timates of the DeLet’s continue the test at P28 milpartment of Health lion; 4) Thyroid (DOH), there are fight against this Cancer Treatment 11 new cases and disease. and Surveillance seven deaths every Access Program hour for adult canat P4.7 million; 5) cer and eight deaths per day for childhood cancer in the Breast Cancer Diagnostics Access ProPhilippines. It is estimated that 110,000 gram at P60.9 million; 6) Medicines Acnew cancer cases and over 66,000 can- cess Program for Blood Cancer at P25.8 cer deaths per year. These are alarming million; 7) Augmentation for Breast Cancer Medicines Access Program at numbers.

The law aims to make quality can- P93.6 million; 8) Childhood cancer cer care and treatment more accessible Medicines Access Program at P12.7 and affordable especially for the lower million; 9) Breast Cancer Medicines income cancer patients. The programs Access Program at P171.4 million. Tounder NICCA aim to decrease the over- tal proposed budget for the Cancer Asall mortality and catastrophic impact of sistance Fund is P463,676,854, mostly childhood cancer, adult cancer and de- offering early detection and diagnostics crease preventable cancer in adults and and some treatment of selected cancers children. The programs will also target for about 67,000 patients.

From a lay person, looking at the esthe prevention of metastasis, cancer retimated 110,000 new cancer cases per currence, and secondary cancer.

The law also mandates the creation of year plus thousands more already fightthe National Integrated Cancer Control ing cancer, many still undocumented Council under the DOH. This will act cases and all the programs mandated as the planning, policy making, and co- in the NICCA, the proposed budget is ordinating body for the implementation far from adequate. To be fair, the law took effect after the 2020 DOH budget of the NICCA. Likewise, it mandates the creation was prepared and the boosting of the of the Philippine Cancer Center to pro- DOH’s capacity to implement NICCA vide training to medical professionals, still must be done. Amending the DOH support cancer research and establish budget with a specific line item for the Cancer Assistance Fund is a good start. regional cancer centers.

We must remind all our lawmakers Recognizing the need for adequate funding to implement all these pro- that millions of Filipinos affected by the grams, a Cancer Assistance Fund catastrophic financial effects of cancer managed by the DOH to receive out- are counting on them to ensure that iniside donations that would complement tial funding for the Cancer Assistance government funding, solicit and receive Fund is secured in the 2020 General Appropriations Act. donations.

Let us all continue the fight against The NICCA is already getting international attention as benchmark legisla- cancer. The urgency for cancer contion for cancer control but now that we trol is undebatable and the decades of have the law and the recently signed Im- neglect must stop now. Reach by your plementing Rules and Regulations, the letters, email, tweets, Facebook posts, government must now allocate funds to and if you or a friend personally knows a congressman, a senator and most esstart implementing the law.

As one of the active proponents of the pecially the President. Kindly appeal law and a Convenor of CitizenWatch to them to ensure more funding for the Philippines, we have been working in Cancer Assistance Fund.

Fire in...

From A4

disqualify other bidders to enable only Bidder A to win.

In fact, Bañago seemed rattled during the budget deliberation that he testified before the lawmakers they were just awaiting for the delivery of 132 firetrucks from the supply contract they had awarded to the winning bidder.

But how can the supplier deliver 132 units when the two supply contracts

Duterte’s...

From A4

Adding to all these is that at the New Bilibid Prisons, convicted drug lords continue to ply their trade even from behind bars.

The problem of illegal drugs is intertwined with the problem of corruption. Because of utter incompetence and negligence of Customs people, billions of pesos worth of illegal drugs find their way to our streets. And yet, the President keeps recycling Customs officials, because of his mistaken belief that former military officials are honest.

Honest, my foot!

Obviously, Duterte is ignorant of the fact that corruption also exists at the Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

But back to drugs, I believe that so

only account for 112 units? Maybe Bañago should better fine-tune his statement first before blurting them out.

This is tragic. Is this incompetence or corruption? Maybe this is one area which the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission must look into. Those responsible should be held liable.

As of press time, this columnist has tried reaching out to fire chief Bañago, albeit unsuccessfully. If he feels the need to make clarifications, this space is open, as well.

long as there is demand, syndicates and cartels will always be there to provide the supply. What should be done is to stop that demand. Even if the cops kill the last pusher, the problem will not be solved if demand remains. *** Meanwhile, corruption cannot be eradicated. It can only be minimized.

Men and women have feet of clay.

The temptation to make money will always be there.

The system breeds corruption. So long as human discretion and intervention are present, there will always be corruption.

Recycling government officials certainly does not help.

Illegal drugs and government corruption have a symbiotic relationship.

So, can Duterte win these warms by the end of his term? I say impossible!

A6

News

MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2019 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Solon trains guns on child traffickers P3.9m worth T of fake cigarets

By Rio N. Araja

INGOG partylist Rep. Yedda Romualdez on Sunday urged law enforcement authorities to step up their campaign against online sexual exploitation of Filipino children following a police bust on an international syndicate preying on minors in Central Visayas.

Romualdez, chairperson of the House committee on the welfare of children, said international cooperation among law enforcement agencies was the key that led to the neutralization of the transnational child sexual exploitation ring led by an Australian.

“I commend the vigilance of our law enforcers in protecting our children against criminals. Their diligence in surveillance led not only to the arrest of sexual predators, but also to the rescue of minors victimized by online exploitation,” she said.

“Let me also commend the foreign counterparts of our law enforcers.

The success of their operation showed that only through international cooperation can we successfully combat transnational child sexual exploitation,” she added.

A series of police operations in Biliran province led to the arrest of five traffickers who were caught offering minor girls for sexual exploitation in exchange for money from an online predator based in Australia.

Five victims aged 14 to 17 years old were also rescued during the operations by members of the police’s Women and Children Protection Center-Visayas Field Unit, Philippine National Police units in Biliran, and other international agencies.

Apart from the five rescued victims, four other children were removed as “at-risk” for assessment to determine if they were victimized.

“I trust that our law enforcement units will continue working with international agencies in a steppedup campaign against sexual predators preying on our children. The House of Representatives is ready to extend its support to such endeavor in whatever way possible,” Romualdez said.

“Our children deserve to live in peace at home, free from criminals lurking in their neighborhoods and online communities. We, the parents, have the obligation to keep our children secure at all times,” she added.

LGU cracks whip on illegal e-game, KTV operators ANGELES CITY—An offshore gaming being operated by a Chinese businessman and several KTV bars were padlocked in a fresh crackdown by the city government against all forms of illegal gambling and entertainment joints operating without the necessary permits.

Mayor Carmelo Lazatin padlocked the office of offshore gaming operator Golden Build Limited, Inc. that occupies three floors of JunHyun building at Barangay Anunas over the weekend.

Lazatin said the e-gambling operator has no business permit.

Lucky Lucy KTV and Mirage were also closed down after its workers failed to show their health cards during the surprise inspection.

The government is losing P22 billion revenue a year due to illegal operations of e-games without permits across the country. Jess Malabanan

seized in Bulacan raid

By Jess Malabanan

Representatives of Japan Tobacco International and the Bureau of Internal Revenue Strike Force witness the inventory of counterfeit cigarettes seized by government agents in four stalls inside a public market in Baliuag, Bulacan. Jess Malabanan

Villar: Raise minimum pay of state nurses

By Macon Ramos-Araneta

TO ENTICE nursing students, Senator Cynthia Villar on Sunday underscored the need to give state nurses higher pay as she lauded a Supreme Court decision which puts their minimum base pay at more than P31,000 a month.

In its recent ruling, the High Court favored Section 32 of the Philippine Nursing Act of 2002 which states that the minimum base pay for nurses working in the government hospitals and health institutions should start at Salary Grade 15 or P31,545 per month.

In a radio interview, Villar acknowledged that it is only through higher compensation that students will be encouraged to pursue the nursing

profession.

She said the salary augmentation for nurses can be allocated from unprogrammed funds.

“You have to limit yourself to the allocation for the (Department of) Health.

But we have big allocation for health.

Sometimes, they get from unprogrammed accounts. Perhaps we can also get from there,” she said.

Currently, the entry-level of state nurses was pegged at only P8,000 to 13,500 a month, which Villar said is not enough to compensate for their long hours of duty.

Due to the low pay, she said Filipinos nurses are forced to leave the country to seek “greener pastures” abroad.

“Government hospitals are also

lamenting that they are short of nurses because only few apply. We can only reverse this if they are assured that they will have sufficient earnings in the profession,” Villar said.

“We can encourage them if they will be well-compensated in their job,” she added.

Earlier, Villar filed Senate Bill No 1266 or “A Nurse in Every Barangay Act” which seeks to give employment to nurses, assigning one registered nurse to every barangay in the country.

The bill aims to urgently address the problem of the unemployment and underutilization of Filipino nurses.

“We have 42,000 barangays nationwide, and not all of those have a registered nurse,” she said.

EU Higher Education Fair opens on Oct. 26

By Rey E. Requejo EUROPEAN Union member-states will be holding a higher education fair next week to give Filipino students a glimpse to the world-class higher education being offered in various universities and colleges in Europe.

With this goal, the European Union Delegation to the Philippines and the embassies of EU member-states invited Filipino students to a what it described as a “Journey to Excellence” by going to its European Higher Education Fair (EHEF) 2019 on Oct. 26 at Shangri-la Plaza in Mandaluyong City.

“For Filipinos, a chance to study abroad and obtain a world-class higher education remains a dream. But with the European

The Comm&Sense team, composed of Christian Sales, Clarissa Osorio, Iah Ballesteros, Meg Guerrero, Pol Villanueva, Keisha Peña, Alex Abordo, Charlotte FabianReyes, Jaeger Tanco, Marco Lacsamana, Mitch Valcos, and Toteng Tanglao, takes pride in their rich harvest of Quill Awards.

Union Delegation to the Philippines and the EU Member States’ Embassies, this goal can now become a reality,” the EU said in a statement.

EHEF will feature more than 30 universities and higher education institutions from Austria, Belgium, The Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, The Netherlands, Sweden and Spain.

This year’s theme, “Study in Europe: EUr Journey to Excellence,” establishes EU’s position as an outstanding center of quality and excellence in higher education.

Pursuing postgraduate studies in the EU offers many advantages and possibilities.

The EU is an excellent destination for academic and scientific research

programs, as well as being an ideal atmosphere for scholarly activities. Most EU universities offer specialized and advanced study courses in Engineering, Architecture, Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities, and Information Technology.

“The other tangible benefits of an educational experience in the EU include learning new languages, immersing in diverse cultures, and joining an international network of students and peers,” the bloc said.

The EU also provides scholarship schemes to foster student mobility and academic excellence such as the Erasmus+ program, which encourages students from partner countries to take higher education courses in the EU.

CAMP OLIVAS, Pampanga—Some P3.9 million worth of counterfeit cigarettes of different brands were seized by government agents following a raid in three separate stalls inside the public market of Baliuag, Bulacan.

Police Lt. Colonel Jay Dimaandal, chief of the Special Concerns Unit of the Regional Intelligence Division, said four suspects were arrested, namely Lloyd Francis Dimaranan, 26; Victor Lopez, 58; Dorothy Dimaano-Sayo, 46; and Marilou del Rosario Torres, 46.

Dimaandal said the raid was conducted on the strength of a search warrant issued by a local court in Bulacan following a complaint filed

by Japan Tobacco International against unscrupulous traders engaged in the sale of fake cigarettes.

The raiding team was composed of representatives from JTI, Tobacco Strike Force of the Bureau of Internal Revenue, and intelligence operatives from SCU-RID and Regional Mobile Force Battalion 3.

JTI and BIR personnel made an inventory of the recovered items in the presence of the stall owners, said Dimaandal.

Seized from the suspects were 58 boxes of RGD cigarettes; 26 reams of D&G cigarettes; three boxes and 12 reams of Mighty cigarettes; seven boxes of Two Moon cigarettes; three boxes and one ream of Fortune blue cigarettes; one box and 13 reams of Marvel cigarettes; five reams of Marlboro; 11 reams of Jackpot cigarettes; and 13 reams of Champion cigarettes.

Dimaandal said the suspects admitted they bought the counterfeit items from a businessman based in Binondo, Manila.

Comm&Sense bags six Quill Awards The successful medal haul of content agency Comm&Sense Inc. in the recently held 17th Philippine Quill Awards is a testament to how emerging institutions in the healthcare industry can go head-tohead and win alongside the best local and international brands in the country.

Comm&Sense hit a milestone after it received its first Agency of the Year nomination in the prestigious Quill Awards, barely two years after the company joined the marketing communications competition.

The agency was shortlisted as among the best agencies this year after it won a total of six Quill Awards for the various campaigns it developed and implemented.

Five of the six Quills Comm&Sense won involved healthcare clients projects, namely ManilaMed’s #FeelBetter Campaign and Urban Health Media Campaign, Westlake Medical Center “Sabi ni Doc” Video Series, PhilCare’s Prepaid Healthcard, and PhilCare’s ActivNation Campaign.

ManilaMed’s #FeelBetter and Westlake’s “Sabi ni Doc” both won the coveted Quill Award of Excellence, which means these initiatives have attained the Global Standard for Communication Excellence set by the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC).

Apart from Westlake and ManilaMed, Comm&Sense also won another Award of Excellence for its “Plane and Simple” campaign for WCC Aviation School.

Comm&Sense President Jaeger Tanco said that what the agency is most proud of with this year’s citation is the fact that its campaigns for healthcare clients were recognized for its creativity and effectiveness, worthy of being tagged for excellence alongside international and local brands.

“Comm&Sense banked heavily on the smart use of content. Content was the spark that captured the attention of our target audience and the fuel that helped our partner brands build their community of followers and advocates,” he said.

ManilaMed #FeelBetter campaign had Comm&Sense beef up the hospital’s communications program by reintroducing traditional PR to its marketing mix.

The campaign also added new content components to the hospital’s digital promotions such as Facebook Live, blogger engagement, and even eCommerce.

Sports

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MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2019 sports_mstandard@yahoo.com

Beckham holds star-studded football clinic for Filipino kids

By Paul David Gelario AIA Global Ambassador and retired six-time Premier League Champion David Beckham conducted a starstudded football clinic with the kids to promote healthier, longer, and better lives at Mckinley Stadium, in Taguig last Sunday.

"It's great to be back in the Philippines and to play football with these kids and coaches from the AIA Philam Life 7's Football League. I'm proud to be working with AIA and AIA Philam Life to help people live longer, healthier, and better lives," Beckham said.

The star-studded AIA Philam Life Football Clinic was composed of Philippine Azkals' superstars James and Phil Younghusband, Ally Borromeo, Armand del Rosario, Simon Greatwich, Misagh Bahadoran, Jason Dejong and Roland Muller.

Kids ranging from eight to 12-yearolds participated in the clinics dribbling, shooting and passing. The last part was proven the most exciting as the kids were given the chance to play

with Beckham.

Philam Life's founder believes that Beckham's visit will leave a lasting memory to the kids and the league overall.

"With David's presence bringing football front and center in everyone's minds, we see this visit leaving a mark in the league for years to come," AIA Philam Life 7's Football League Founder, Anton del Rosario said.

Also present in the clinic were celebrities and influencers, such as AIA Philam Life Brand Ambassador Nico Bolzico, Daniel Matsunaga, Amanda Fernandez, Natasha Alquiros, Cesca Litton, Chris Johnson, Roberto Orlandez, Roberto Corsame and Richard Juan.

In Beckham's 20-year career, he was the first English player to win league titles in four different countries.

He also played with some of the most successful football clubs in the world such ad Manchester United where he won his six championships, Real Madrid, A C Milan, La Galaxy, Paris Saint-Germain and the England National Team.

David Beckham signs an autograph for one of the kids during the AIA Philam Life Football Clinic. Paul Gelario

PH produces 2nd world champ in a day

N

ESTHY Petecio closed out her 2019 World Championships campaign with a dominant performance against hometown girl Liudmila Vorontsove, a native of the host city of UlanUde, Russia.

Despite the din of the highly partisan crowd, Petecio kept her composure and delivered the clearer and more solid blows in the 3-round affair.

The score, however, was a spit decision with 3 judges, Australia (3027), Korea (30-27) and Ireland (29-

Nesthy Petecio

28) giving the nod to Petecio, while Japan (30-27) and Argentina (29-28) had it for the Russian.

ABAP President Ricky Vargas was enthusiastically elated with the result, saying: “Nesthy deserved the win. Not only because she fought

brilliantly but also because she sacrificed so much for this. I am shedding tears of joy for her. Mabuhay ka, Nesthy!"

He also gave credit to coaches Boy Velasco and Reynaldo Galido for their mentorship.

“Actually, the entire ABAP coaching staff headed by Head Coach Pat Gaspi deserves the credit, including our foreign consultant Don Abnett.

They did a great job", Vargas added.

The win was less than a day after gymnast Carlos Yulo gave the country its first-ever gymnastics’ gold at the 49th FIG World Artistic Gymnastics in Germany.

To reach the finals, Petecio beat English fighter, Karriss Artingstall, 4-1.

Vorontsova arranged a title fight with Petecio when she upended Lin

Yu-ting of Taiwan, 3-2.

Petecio, one of the Philippines’ gold-medal hopefuls in the coming Southeast Asian Games which the country hosts, came through with a flurry of punches to beat Vorontsova in the three-round affair.

In the quarterfinals, Petecio exacted vengeance on Japanese Sena Irie Thursday, scoring a 4-1 decision to advance to the semifinals.

Sirie had gotten the better of Petecio in the Asian Boxing Championships April this year in Bangkok, but it was payback time for the Filipina bet.

“I felt I wasn’t in top form in Thailand. Kaya ngayon talagang pinaghandaan ko ng mabuti ang tournament na ito,” said featherweight (57kg) Petecio.

Peter Atencio

World-class Aces turn back Elasto Painters, score 1st win course up for Black Arrow tilt

By Jeric Lopez

TRIATHLETES priming up for bigger endurance races or those who simply want to do short distance but challenging races now have one world-class course to test their skills when Subic Bay stages the second Black Arrow Express 5150 on Oct. 27.

Long regarded as the country’s triathlon hub, Subic has hosted some of the biggest national and international races, including the IRONMAN 70.3 and the first-ever full IRONMAN in the country in 2018. In fact, the pristine waters of Subic Bay and the wellpaved roads inside and around the Subic Bay Freeport Zone will host the region’s top and rising endurance racers in the coming SEA Games.

Aussie Mitch Robins and Manami Iijima of Guam are back, both geared up for back-to-back title romp in the event put up by one of the country’s top cargo movers in what promises to be another grueling test of endurance over the Olympic distance of 1.5k swim-40K bike-10K run race.

The chase kicks off at the Acea Subic Bay beach following a counterclockwise flow. The swim course is divided into 650 meters, 200 meters, and 650 meters. After completing the swim, participants will exit the beach following the path to Transition 1 at San Bernardino Road.

From Transition 1, they move to the bike mount area in San Bernardino Road corner Argonaut Highway for the three-loop 40-km course around the scenic flat coastal roads of Subic Bay with the field to head towards the Malawaan Park for the first turnaround at KM 6.67 then to KM13.3 for the second turnaround and to the Malawaan Park for the next turnaround at KM 20 then back to Acea Subic Bay for turnaround 4 at KM 26.67. Participants will then make their final turnaround at KM 33.33 at the Malawaan Park.

The battle then heats up in the closing run stage, a 10km single loop, hilly and challenging course from San Bernardino Road through the Argonaut Highway, the hilly Zambales Highway crossing Tarlac Road to Aparri Road before they head to the single turnaround at KM 5 then back to San Bernardino Road and to the finish line at the Acea Subic Bay Parking lot.

ALASKA finally got the breakthrough it was aching to get.

The erstwhile winless Aces finally got Jeff Cariaso his first win as their coach after walloping Rain or Shine, 78-71, in a battle of the bottom two teams in the 2019 Philippine Basketball Association Governors' Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum Sunday night.

Franco House had a monstrous 20-20 performance with 22 points and 23 rebounds, while Jeron Teng came off the bench with 18 markers and nine boards as the duo led Alaska's march to its first tournament win.

More importantly for the Aces, they improved to 1-5, still at the bottom though, to break their five-game slide and keep their sagging chances of making the top eight alive.

The Elasto Painters, with the loss, now share a similar slate with the Aces.

Both ailing and in dire need of a win, Alaska and Rain or Shine went at it hard but it was the Aces who swung harder.

Alaska was able to hit the ground running, opening up an 18-11 headway after the first 12 minutes of action.

Staying in striking distance, the Elasto Painters turned in a better second quar-

Rain or Shine's Jewel Ponferada splits the defense of Alaska's Sonny Thoss and Jeron Teng. ter to inch closer, 35-40, at the half.

Still, Alaska kept its grip on the lead and tightened it in the third, restoring a double-digit lead, 62-52, leading up to the fourth frame.

An 8-2 run to start the fourth got

Rain or Shine back as Alaska's lead was sliced to four, 64-60, with over seven minutes remaining.

However, the Aces stood their ground, keeping the Painters at bay until they finally secured a win.

Eagles sweep Archers, make UAAP semis ATENEO booked the first ticket to the UAAP Season 82 Men's Basketball Tournament Final Four following a 77-69 victory over La Salle Sunday at SM Mall of Asia Arena.

Adrian Wong caught fire with 18 points on a 4-of-7 clip from downtown as the Blue Eagles rose to 10-0 for the season.

His explosion couldn't get any more timely as Ateneo swept its rival, while also extending its winning run to 20 straight games dating back to last season.

"If Adrian doesn’t come out hot, we would have been in trouble," said coach Tab Baldwin.

Thirdy Ravena chimed in 13 points and seven boards, Ange Kouame registered a double-double of 10 points, 14 boards, and three blocks, and Will Navarro got nine points and three rebounds for the Blue Eagles.

The Green Archers got to within six, 61-55, after a Justine Baltazar bucket with 7:13 left, but Ravena and Gian Mamuyac conspired in pulling away, scoring seven unanswered points to restore the 13-point advantage, 68-55, with 3:50 remaining.

Jamie Malonzo attempted to spark one last rally for La Salle, but Wong was just too cool from the stripe, burying three of his four charities in the final 23.5 seconds to ice the game for good.

Baltazar was limited to just 12 points and nine rebounds in the defeat after posting a 25-25 statline the last time out against NU. Encho Serrano scattered 15 points, eight rebounds, and two steals to lead La Salle as it fell to a 4-5 record, on a tie with FEU for fourth place.

Meanwhile, in baseball, defending champion Ateneo and Nazareth School of National University took down their respective foes in the UAAP Season 82 Juniors Baseball Tournament to stay unbeaten heading into their finals rematch, Saturday at the Rizal Memorial Baseball Stadium.

The batters of Ateneo heated up in the sixth inning to romp De La SalleZobel, 7-1.

Sta. Elena nails WGAP crown at home

GOLF CHAMPION. Tony Lascuña (center) holds his glass trophy as he poses with

Julien Domingo (left), general manager of DIPSSCOR, a subsidiary of the sponsoring ICTSI, and South Pacific Golf & Leisure Estates GM Elson Alvaran after winning the ICTSI South Pacific Classic last weekend, his third straight after ruling the Philippine Golf Tour Asia leg in Taiwan and PGT Apo Golf Classic.

STA.ELENA saved its best at home, posting podium finishes in all three divisions, including a victory in Class A, as it turned what had appeared to be a tight finish into a runaway title romp in the 2019 Champion WGAP Circuit at Sta. Elena Golf Club in Laguna recently.

With Candice Yulo firing 41 Stableford points and Divina Nemec backing her up with 36 points and Carina Ricamonte and Therese Dabao churning out a pair of 33 points, the Sta. Elena ladies pooled a 143 and edged Forest Hills (141) by two in Class A worth three points. Fernando Air Base placed third with 139.

The hosts also finished second in Class C with a 129 total worth two points, yielding the honors to Eagle Ridge, which scored a 132 while Camp Aguinaldo scored a 126 to

place third. Sta. Elena also assembled a 137 and salvaged third place worth one point in Class B ruled by Camp Aguinaldo (143), which beat Villamor (139) by four.

Scorers for Sta. Elena’s Class C team were Belinda Baluyot (35), Jennifer Um-Choi (33), Helen Lisuy (31) and Kasinee Duncan (30) while its Class B members were Lily Chan (40), Nancy Ortiga (34), Mary Jane Ishihara (32) and Marilen Bantug (31).

That decisive six-point haul netted Sta. Elena a total of 22 points after the eight-leg, course-hopping circuit organized by Women’s Golf Association of the Philippines and co-sponsored by Champion and Hana with San Miguel Corp., EVA Air, Alveo and Vermogen as the closing leg’s other backers.

IN BRIEF

CebuPac to launch Clark-Guangzhou route CEBU Pacific is set to launch next month direct flights between Clark International Airport and Guangzhou, China, becoming the first Philippine carrier to link the two cities.

The new route, which will start on Nov. 11, will cater to increasing demand for leisure and business travel.

It will further enhance the potential for investments in the special economic zones in Central Luzon, including the 9,450-hectare New Clark City.

Clark International Airport is within proximity to vital infrastructure expected to be operational by 2022, such as the Manila-Clark passenger railway that will connect Manila to Clark and a cargo railway connecting Subic to Clark.

Guangzhou is one of China’s nine national central cities, and as such, is at the forefront of political, cultural and economic development.

Darwin G. Amojelar

Napocor seeks higher charges STATE-RUN National Power Corp. is seeking approval from the Energy Regulatory Commission for a provisional approval of its basic universal charge for missionary electrification for 2020 amounting to P18.46 billion, or equivalent to P0.1920 per kilowatthour.

Napocor said in a petition to the ERC the proposed UCME basic rate of P0.1920 per kWh would result in an increase of P0.0740 per kWh from the provisionally approved rate of P0.1163 per kWh for Napocor-Small Power Utilities Group and new power players and qualified third parties and P0.0017 per kWh for renewable energy developers cash incentives.

The company said the proposed rate was necessary to cover the required subsidy requirements in offgrid areas and maintain stable funding source for its operating costs including payments to NPPs, QTPs and renewable energy developers.

Alena Mae S. Flores

Business

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

Lufthansa Technik threatens to leave PH

BSP requires biggest banks to increase capitalization

By Othel V. Campos

G

LOBAL aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul services provider Lufthansa Technik Philippines threatened to leave the Philippines once the government passed the proposed Corporate Income Tax Incentives Reform Act bill in its current form.

Lufthansa Technik Philippines president and chief executive Elmar Lutter said the company would close down all four of its facilities in the country and transfer to a bigger Asian hub outside the Philippines.

The company employs 3,000 workers in its main office in Pasay City and its satellite offices in Cebu, Clark and Davao.

Lutter said while they were originally considering the Philippines to be a candidate for its Asian hub, they were now looking at other countries.

“The Philippines is included since it has something to offer us, although it’s not at the top of our list first,” he said.

He said the CITIRA bill would be a big factor in their decision. “We noted that there was no special provision for the

MRO industry in the bill. We are normally treated as an export manufacturer thus we are exempted from duties for the importation of raw materials. It’s the same thing for spare parts. We have no representation in CITIRA,” Lutter said.

“These are very special provisions which have to be inserted for the MRO industries. Otherwise, the whole industry cannot survive. Surely, the company cannot just contract from outside the country.

It will lose work from Philippines allies— domestic carriers which fly internationally,” he said.

“We’re sorting out plans to establish an Asian regional hub that will host bigger capacity and facilities. We will maintain existing offices in the region and in the

Philippines as well if the investment situation here improves,” Lutter said.

He said the company was even eyeing to expand its operations in the Philippines but shelved the plan until there were definitive results on the CITIRA bill.

“We will see if we’ll have higher taxes.

We will wait for the bill to pass, before [we consider] expansion,” Lutter said.

He said Lufthansa Technik also planned to add more workers under the expansion plan. “We’re just waiting for the right signals,” he said.

Among the highlights of the CITIRA bill are the gradual increase in gross income earned or GIE ratio of exporting companies to as high as 8 percent to 10 percent from the current 5 percent and the gradual reduction in the corporate income tax rate from 30 percent to 20 percent by 2029.

The second package of the Comprehensive Tax Reform Program was refiled as CITIRA bill in the 18th Congress after the Tax Reform for Attracting Better and High Opportunities or TRABAHO bill failed to advance during the 17th Congress.

Petron supports fuel marking system PETRON Corp. expressed strong support to the implementation of the fuel marking system to curb oil smuggling.

Petron president Ramon Ang said imported fuel should be taxed from the source. “Fuel marking should happen so that there is level playing field. Once fuel arrives in Subic or each port, it should be taxed immediately, not after it is sold,” Ang said.

Petron owns the country’s biggest oil refinery with a capacity of 180,000 barrels per day in Bataan.

Petron and other oil companies complained that uncurbed oil smuggling had affected their operations.

The Philippine Institute of Petroleum expressed full support to the fuel marking program of the Department of Finance as a mechanism to fight smuggling and deter revenue leakages.

Petron is a member of the PIP which also includes Chevron Philippines Inc., Isla LPG Corp., Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp., PTT Philippines Corp. and Total Philippines Corp. Alena Mae S. Flores

HSBC relaunches wealth management product for families HONGKONG and Shanghai Banking Corp., one of the largest foreign banks in the country, relaunched one of its financial services that was introduced in March 2000 to attract more Filipino clients and seize the growth opportunity in the robust economy.

Peter Faulhaber, HSBC Philippines head of retail banking and wealth management division, said in a news briefing in Makati City that the HSBC Premier ensures that customers can continue to provide their children the same level of care for their health, wealth and investments.

“Majority of our customers are Filipinos... well-educated Filipinos,” Faulhaber said.

“The Philippine economy is expected to post robust growth... More people here have more money or those who aspire to be affluent,” he said.

He said HSBC enables individuals to prosper and manage their wealth through a range of local and international services. He said HSBC Premier looks after the needs of families, for now and the future, in terms of safety and protection, wealth and international connectivity.

“Based on insights from customers, we found that they want to build and preserve wealth so they can secure the future of their family. At HSBC, we want to be the financial partners to provide them access to wealth management services that will create a lasting legacy for their family,” he said.

Seeing the increasing needs of parents to support their children’s global needs, HSBC introduces three new services around the area of international connectivity. Julito G. Rada

FOTO 1 NU’S NEW CAMPUS. National University opens a new campus at SM City Fairview, the third NU campus to open as a part of the university’s 10-year expansion program. Attending the ribbon-cutting ceremony are (from left) NU president Dr. RJ Ermita, NU vice chairman of the board Teddy Ocampo, NU director Ramon Dimacali, the officiating priest Fr. Nonet Legaspi, Quezon City 5th District Rep. Alfred Vargas, SM Supermalls COO Steven Tan and Quezon City 5th District councilor PM Vargas.

CAB set to issue regulations on chronic flight delays

By Darwin G. Amojelar THE Civil Aeronautics Board said it will issue rules and regulations penalizing airlines for chronic flight delays next month.

“The guidelines will be issued next month. We are refining it,” CAB executive director Carmelo Arcilla said.

“We are going to penalize the habitual or chronic delays, We are looking at the overall performance for a significant period of time,” he said.

The on-time performance or OTP is a standard aviation measurement to track the day-to-day performance of an airline

and reflects the level of success in adhering to the published schedule.

Arcilla said that the agency would impose monetary penalties for chronic flight delays or removal of a particular flight.

“We might require that [for] a particular flight because it’s causing inconvenience,” Arcilla said.

The CAB reported that on Oct. 11, Cebgo posted an average OTP of 90 percent; Cebu Pacific, 89 precent; PAL Express, 82 percent; and Philippine Airlines, 82 percent.

The lowest OPT on Oct. 11 was by Skyjet Airlines at 13 percent; Philippine

AirAsia, 61 percent; and AirSwift, 75 percent.

Local airlines submit their average daily flights per airport of origin every 15th day of the following month.

Local airlines and the government on June 26 signed a pledge of commitment to decongest the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

The airlines committed to help decongest NAIA through improved on-time flight performance. They also supported the development of other gateways including Sangley Point Airport in Cavite province.

business@manilastandard.net extrastory2000@gmail.com MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2019

B1

By Julito G. Rada THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas said the country’s biggest banks or the socalled domestic systemically important banks should have a higher capitalization to make them more resilient during an economic crisis.

It said that under the new requirement, the minimum common equity tier 1 capital of S-SIBs should increase by 1.5 percent to 2.5 percent of total riskweighted assets, depending on their degree of systemic importance.

The BSP said in a statement over the weekend the policy-setting Monetary Board included the requirement in the newly-approved enhanced framework on D-SIBs, in line with the international standards that aim to safeguard the stability of the financial system.

It said the D-SIBs framework was in line with the initiatives pursued under the Basel 3 reform agenda. D-SIBs are characterized as banks whose distress or disorderly failure would cause significant disruptions to the wider financial system and economy.

“The said enhancements capture a bank’s systemic importance in the Philippines following the latest developments in the banking sector and methodologies in the identification of D-SIBs,” the BSP said.

It said the enhanced framework included the revision in the differential weights of categories/indicators and the composition of indicators, including the adoption of threshold level; and, calibration of the level of additional capital requirement.

“These enhancements shall be applied on a consolidated basis to all universal and commercial banks as well as their subsidiary banks and quasi-banks, and branches of foreign banks,” the BSP said.

Under the revised framework, a bank’s systemic importance is assessed based on pre-defined indicators for “size”, “interconnectedness”, “substitutability”, and “complexity”.

Among the four categories, “size” and “interconnectedness” bear greater weight as these factors are more critical measures in determining a bank’s systemic importance in the Philippines, taking into consideration the simple structure of the Philippine financial system.

D-SIBs are then identified based on overall scores as against certain threshold. To complement this quantitative assessment, supervisory judgment is also exercised, as necessary, to consider factors that are not captured in the quantitative indicator-based measurement approach.

This qualitative assessment–which may result in adding and/or removing banks to/ from the list of D-SIBs–should be exercised in accordance with approved principles pursuant to BSP regulations.

“Depending on the degree of systemic importance, identified D-SIBs will be categorized into different higher loss absorbency [HLA] buckets and will be required to increase their minimum common equity tier 1 [CET1] capital by 1.5 percent to 2.5 percent of total riskweighted assets,” the board said.

“The requirement to have HLA or additional capital in the form of CET1 capital aims to bolster the resilience of D-SIBs. This is on top of the existing CET1 minimum, capital conservation buffer, and countercyclical capital buffer required from all universal and commercial banks, as well as their subsidiary banks and quasi-banks,” it said.

PH to join ASEAN single window platform THE Philippines and seven other members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations are expected to exchange customs and other trade-related documents over a single integrated online platform by yearend to boost cross-border trade and reduce the cost and time of doing business across the region.

Finance Undersecretary Gil Beltran said that aside from the Philippines, the other ASEAN member-states that would go “live” on the ASEAN single window platform are Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Brunei and Cambodia.

Myanmar and Laos are expected to join the ASW by November and December 2019, respectively.

Beltran said that ASEAN memberstates that are already “live” on the ASW―Indonesia, Malaysia, Singa-

pore, Thailand, Vietnam and Brunei― exchange more than 460,000 customs and other trade-related documents a year at only 10 percent of the usual cost to traders.

Starting next year, additional documents that are expected to be exchanged through the ASW include sanitary and phytosanitary certificates, animal health certificates, self-certification of product origin, and shipping documents, Beltran said in a report to Secretary Carlos Dominguez III during a recent Department of Finance executive committee meeting.

Beltran said the United States, Australia and New Zealand would provide technical assistance to ASEAN to ensure that its members could take full advantage of the ASW by 2020.

Julito G. Rada

ASF IMPACT. Jerome Ong (right), vice president of the Philippine Association of Meat Processors Inc., discusses the impact of the African Swine Fever scare on the P300-billion meat processing industry at DZMM’s Konsyumer Atbp. program. At left is co-host Trade Undersecretary Ruth Castello.

B2

Business

MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2019 extrastory2000@gmail.com

Market likely to extend gains S

By Jenniffer B. Austria

TOCKS are expected to move sideways with an upward momentum this week, as the US and China took steps to finalize a trade agreement that has long been derailed.

Analysts said a partial trade deal which would enable China to purchase up to $40 billion to $50 billion worth of agricultural products from the US and prompt the US in return to suspend the tariff hike on Chinese goods would ease the tension between the world’s two largest economies.

“Moves next week would likely be swayed by any developments in Trump and the Chinese vice premier’s meeting soon. Resistance is only a few points away at the 7,900 to 8,000 mark,” Papa Securities trader Jose Perez said.

After four weeks of decline, the Philippine Stock Exchange index, the

30-company benchmark, climbed 1.89 percent last week to close at 7,849.94 on Oct. 11 on renewed optimism over the US-China talks. The broader allshare index ended at 4,741.49, up 1.41 percent week-on-week.

Bargain hunting and the initial public offerings of Axelum Resources Corp. and AllHome Corp. last helped push the market higher.

All major sub-indices ended in the green led by mining and oil which climbed 3.79 percent, followed by property which advanced 2.96 percent and holding firms which rose 1.91 percent. The industrial sector also went up by 1.57 percent while services and financial sectors in-

creased by 1.04 percent and 0.86 percent, respectively.

Foreign investors were net buyers last week by P3.1 billion as average daily turnover was steady at P7.3 billion.

Top gainers last week were Phinma Petroleum and Geothermal Inc. which jumped 24.7 percent to P10.50, DMCI Holdings Inc. which climbed 6.6 percent to P9 and Jollibee Foods Corp. which advanced 5 percent to P231.20.

Heavy losers included Phinma Corp. which declined by 4.6 percent to P9.44, Alliance Global Group Inc. which dropped 4.4 percent to P10.78 and Del Monte Pacific Ltd. which lost 4.2 percent to P5.65.

Manila Standard BuSineSS Weekly StockS revieW STOCKS

OCTOBER 7-11, 2019 Close Volume

Value

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

MEDCO Holdings Metrobank Natl. Reinsurance Corp.

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

57.4 147.00 92.95 2.09 1.28 24.95 18.58 12.04 4.87 7.71 1.21 770.00 0.400 68 0.91 12.8 20.50 42.85 57.95 135 175.5 26.5 198 1820.00 59.00 1.15

10,530 5,136,300 8,652,420 53,000 737,000 804,100 21,500 1,621,300 768,000 5,200 3,000 100 1,510,000 10,930,090 456,000 177,900 13,700 786,900 3,540 2,030 3,660 1,865,800 1,954,640 75 66,670 2,000

FINANCIAL 601,235.00 736,495,666.00 801,509,274.00 103,860.00 875,900.00 20,051,630.00 397,326.00 19,080,794.00 3,583,680.00 40,092.00 3,690.00 77,150.00 603,050.00 735,804,295.00 407,920.00 2,277,120.00 287,355.00 33,991,380.00 204,088.00 255,375.00 647,086.00 48,788,835.00 380,120,155.00 137,070.00 3,934,624.00 2,300.00

Aboitiz Power Corp.

Agrinurture Inc. Alliance Tuna Intl Inc. Alsons Cons.

Axelum Basic Energy Corp.

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

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

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

Pepsi-Cola Products Phil.

Petroenergy Res. Corp.

Petron Corporation Phinma Corporation Phinma Energy Phoenix Petroleum Phils.

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

Swift Foods, Inc. TKC Steel Corp.

Universal Robina Victorias Milling Vitarich Corp.

Vivant Corp.

Vulcan Ind’l.

38.35 15.88 0.69 1.32 4.5 0.250 107.7 18.58 2.41 15.08 112 8.92 71.45 77.9 32 2.03 6 5.65 8.580 15.6 10.46 7.00 1.59 25.25 79.3 47.00 2.4000 14.90 8.42 1.520 231.20 5.28 3.52 7.82 20.25 13.08 18.1 0.201 365.20 5.04 1.7 4.30 5.10 9.44 2.30 11.00 34.2 5.48 5.10 2 2.33 1.03 11.2 89.95 7.35 0.122 1.04 158.5 2.56 1.19 16.86 1.11

6,048,100 587,600 1,058,000 132,000 300,742,500 3,310,000 730 18,900 6,850,000 2,917,700 400 2,348,000 2,250 3,560 456,600 244,000 125,300 129,300 14,456,800 1,586,600 2,249,000 15,172,500 70,000 6,086,400 152,460 627,900 35,568,000 2,511,200 705,300 676,000 4,451,440 266,200 28,000 10,100 4,535,700 596,100 6,510,700 700,000 416,610 3,900 11,010,000 154,000 5,450,400 140,900 31,882,000 174,100 3,191,500 814,300 43,000 14,751,000 17,000 80,000 1,515,900 879,090 232,500 920,000 970,000 4,647,200 15,000 18,740,000 500 12,500,000

INDUSTRIAL 224,583,320.00 9,335,046.00 713,330.00 170,510.00 1,405,929,995.00 819,080.00 69,406.00 343,340.00 16,628,770.00 43,635,344.00 44,820.00 20,186,479.00 150,735.00 262,749.00 14,574,120.00 498,860.00 757,058.00 721,228.00 123,047,060.00 24,546,956.00 22,753,102.00 106,217,272.00 112,460.00 150,503,545.00 12,110,841.50 29,245,575.00 84,693,500.00 36,413,752.00 5,732,373.00 1,010,880.00 1,003,937,960.00 1,391,323.00 94,320.00 80,030.00 91,000,429.00 7,788,898.00 118,578,836.00 130,230.00 150,984,422.00 20,820.00 18,589,870.00 637,250.00 27,414,599.00 1,347,497.00 72,799,030.00 1,904,344.00 108,400,825.00 4,361,357.00 218,765.00 28,592,650.00 39,570.00 81,030.00 17,094,904.00 78,930,987.00 1,709,887.00 112,340.00 995,060.00 734,712,947.00 36,920.00 22,274,040.00 8,430.00 13,577,330.00

Abacus Cons. `A’ Aboitiz Equity Alliance Global Inc. Anglo Holdings A Anscor `A’ Asiabest Group ATN Holdings A ATN Holdings B Ayala Corp `A’ Ayala Land Log Cosco Capital DMCI Holdings F&J Prince ‘A’ Filinvest Dev. Corp.

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

Lopez Holdings Corp.

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

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

0.860 53.20 10.78 0.71 6.60 12.66 1.140 1.150 870 3.490 6.8 9.00 4 13.38 0.216 844 5.63 72.00 5.5 5.56 0.51 4.38 13.28 0.600 4.95 0.0380 1.470 2.82 164.00 2.44 1010.00 1.27 0.84 220.600 404.00 0.2230 0.230

56,638,000 3,144,510 66,464,100 2,717,000 30,200 123,400 6,960,000 972,000 1,355,560 29,935,000 4,923,600 40,069,400 120,000 158,300 60,000 261,270 207,800 3,745,110 10,000 6,800 429,000 2,005,000 5,707,400 1,582,000 55,363,000 21,300,000 2,600,000 4,000 712,810 308,000 1,752,735 84,000 476,000 6,050 200 1,820,000 4,170,000

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

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

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

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

15.040 0.82 10.00 1.880 0.870 47.950 2.04 4.72 6.29 0.550 0.73 0.870 0.215 0.395 9.820 20.5 0.440 0.121 1.55 1.20 4.61 4.62 0.305 1.3600 0.4400 0.380 50.00

611,700 12,072,000 800 767,000 14,102,000 22,050,500 1,969,000 2,400,000 11,900 35,369,000 30,000 517,000 530,000 1,440,000 547,300 906,200 1,610,000 10,000 108,200,000 798,000 20,000 108,076,000 33,170,000 3,905,000 510,000 660,000 840

SEPTEMBER 30-OCTOBER 4, 2019 Close Volume Value 57.9 143.50 93.00 2.00 1.11 24.9 18.6 11.82 4.65 7.71 1.22 780.00 0.405 68 0.92 12.8 20.90 43.50 57.95 140 178.9 26.5 197.9 1880.00 59.05 1.15

6,630 7,123,810 8,334,690 65,000 104,000 3,146,100 21,300 1,697,400 3,161,400 1,200 16,000 290 2,640,390 13,403,900 2,477,000 367,700 100 670,200 22,480 3,420 8,170 39,800 2,564,670 890 343,180 365,000

368,936.00 1,000,431,190.00 765,200,773.50 127,250.00 115,570.00 78,387,220.00 390,594.00 20,220,628.00 15,534,930.00 9,263.00 19,820.00 219,550.00 1,252,850.00 902,945,469.00 2,234,410.00 4,777,320.00 2,090.00 29,245,385.00 1,318,357.00 478,580.00 1,449,075.00 1,057,070.00 493,106,901.00 1,645,350.00 20,252,594.50 401,670.00

36.65 15.8 0.68 1.3

6,740,100 985,800 1,315,000 1,144,000

254,619,570.00 15,616,574.00 881,270.00 1,486,440.00

0.246 109 18.66 2.4 14.64 120 8.59 69 72.1 31.75 2.06 6 5.9 8.640 15.28 10.30 7.04 1.64 24.4 78.5 47.95 2.4300 14.40 7.79 1.490 220.20 5.47 3.53 8.25 19.8 13.02 18.36 0.189 367.00 5.45 1.68 4.45 5.02 9.90 2.16 11.00 32.7 5.3 5.10 1.83 2.28 1 11.4 90 7.33 0.122 1.04 157.7 2.42 1.21 16.00 1.03

6,700,000 730 96,800 15,130,000 1,523,300 130 4,597,200 13,230 10,120 12,500 211,000 380,700 360,400 31,750,600 283,600 2,036,000 23,022,400 8,000 7,049,900 3,477,350 376,700 27,366,000 2,013,700 2,088,400 385,000 3,251,450 898,400 25,000 8,500 9,708,800 1,784,700 3,216,100 610,000 877,220 6,400 45,951,000 60,000 6,946,500 202,100 83,667,000 254,900 1,342,200 1,058,200 1,165,300 13,084,000 70,000 701,000 1,731,500 919,830 308,800 1,630,000 2,559,000 8,280,230 86,000 22,898,000 1,000 55,405,000

1,645,100.00 78,686.00 1,791,914.00 36,267,010.00 21,860,046.00 15,600.00 40,021,542.00 930,541.00 758,697.50 388,875.00 428,080.00 2,322,291.00 2,132,557.00 281,480,609.00 4,315,120.00 21,656,338.00 163,728,469.00 13,180.00 171,221,890.00 278,110,297.00 17,593,240.00 66,788,820.00 29,039,912.00 16,582,837.00 585,440.00 714,268,574.00 4,896,707.00 86,250.00 70,175.00 193,976,030.00 23,247,714.00 59,094,664.00 120,040.00 320,647,494.00 33,503.00 77,867,100.00 256,940.00 34,872,935.00 2,019,650.00 184,317,120.00 2,810,532.00 43,609,385.00 5,610,152.00 5,939,940.00 25,637,860.00 161,180.00 708,720.00 19,721,964.00 82,922,943.50 2,274,665.00 200,720.00 2,700,260.00 1,259,788,130.00 208,120.00 27,213,990.00 16,000.00 58,589,740.00

HOLDING FIRMS 48,727,900.00 168,270,422.00 717,256,582.00 1,887,400.00 200,877.00 1,562,460.00 7,810,730.00 1,121,880.00 1,169,832,730.00 102,049,960.00 32,582,234.00 350,934,120.00 480,000.00 2,092,928.00 12,960.00 220,329,945.00 1,170,694.00 262,897,228.00 55,000.00 34,752.00 211,215.00 8,707,030.00 76,311,912.00 929,920.00 271,367,990.00 814,000.00 3,771,720.00 11,280.00 116,312,731.00 751,520.00 1,744,111,527.50 105,930.00 401,320.00 1,359,120.00 80,800.00 419,090.00 931,100.00

0.840 54.50 11.28 0.72 6.94 13.22 1.150 1.150 840 3.430 6.5 8.44 4.01 13.40 0.229 840 5.66 70.00 5.79 5.78 0.51 4.35 13.7 0.600 4.91 0.0380 1.290 2.85 164.00 2.44 990.00 1.27 0.86 223.000 440.00 0.2220 0.231

65,520,000 3,784,990 66,516,600 3,285,000 43,200 48,900 6,808,000 424,000 2,038,170 6,719,000 2,396,600 41,857,400 2,000 856,400 930,000 257,800 820,400 8,191,640 5,100 4,900 1,617,000 2,562,000 12,730,500 2,447,000 82,381,000 40,700,000 531,000 14,000 1,458,980 6,000 2,524,280 213,000 639,000 14,320 110 1,440,000 1,740,000

56,883,620.00 200,763,371.50 723,843,218.00 719,370.00 288,200.00 654,034.00 7,807,400.00 499,990.00 1,757,770,620.00 23,095,870.00 15,704,010.00 349,537,071.00 8,020.00 11,259,584.00 203,770.00 215,802,270.00 4,654,145.00 580,872,644.00 28,836.00 27,011.00 805,600.00 11,205,060.00 177,366,276.00 1,399,510.00 401,737,150.00 1,557,600.00 687,350.00 39,900.00 245,050,959.00 14,690.00 2,474,339,885.00 270,410.00 552,330.00 3,212,710.00 45,200.00 321,060.00 407,580.00

PROPERTY 9,201,020.00 9,796,900.00 8,000.00 1,393,580.00 11,924,190.00 1,028,387,225.00 4,009,980.00 11,201,040.00 74,034.00 19,439,830.00 21,700.00 449,270.00 109,460.00 545,350.00 5,317,865.00 18,605,080.00 702,650.00 1,210.00 163,740,540.00 943,380.00 92,200.00 493,983,870.00 9,898,350.00 5,240,150.00 220,700.00 248,400.00 42,593.00

15.040 0.82 10.02 1.850 0.840 46.200 2.06 4.7 6.3 0.540 0.73 0.870 0.216 0.400 9.900 20.5 0.445 0.121 1.50 1.18 4.71 4.5 0.300 1.3500 0.4100 0.375

643,800 16,176,000 500 136,000 6,992,000 48,905,900 2,201,000 1,316,000 339,600 46,110,000 88,000 122,000 2,090,000 930,000 2,390,800 1,023,400 2,240,000 50,000 119,469,000 2,321,000 2,000 240,141,000 26,910,000 8,724,000 170,000 1,700,000

9,674,588.00 13,555,200.00 5,010.00 258,530.00 6,063,160.00 2,314,679,385.00 4,550,230.00 6,156,730.00 2,118,382.00 24,902,980.00 64,240.00 100,980.00 443,870.00 360,650.00 23,410,464.00 20,658,677.00 988,650.00 6,050.00 182,019,360.00 2,721,940.00 94,200.00 1,064,841,950.00 8,087,450.00 11,762,700.00 70,900.00 629,450.00

STOCKS

OCTOBER 7-11, 2019 Close Volume

SEPTEMBER 30-OCTOBER 4, 2019 Close Volume Value

Value

Primex Corp.

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

2.03 25.35 2.32 3.25 38.80 2.75 0.930 7.600 5.750

390,000 18,189,900 294,000 325,000 44,989,200 16,600,000 1,599,000 32,894,900 238,700

786,300.00 451,990,865.00 679,810.00 1,055,640.00 1,715,185,545.00 45,320,090.00 1,423,140.00 251,531,177.00 1,360,642.00

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

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

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

Pacific Online Sys. Corp.

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

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

SSI Group STI Holdings Transpacific Broadcast Waterfront Phils.

Wilcon Depot

10.3 18.28 1.66 11.54 0.590 0.043 17.24 2.38 11.00 0.0500 92.2 6.91 6.92 5.71 2 9.24 898 1818 5.20 440.00 10.96 1.61 120 1.76 8.15 3.50 0.108 4.9800 2.84 15.5 3.03 0.93 18.82 14.22 0.440 3.4 2.44 1.15 2.980 2.88 8.29 4.99 8.69 138.00 3.16 1108.00 0.530 0.700 40.60 79.90 9.20 2.51 0.680 0.32 0.690 16.780

37,600 101,500 132,000 276,533,900 63,191,000 22,800,000 16,700 489,000 51,096,000 139,530,000 327,230 3,000 2,284,000 202,200 5,000 337,500 50 126,980 448,400 1,880 3,000 1,977,000 10,713,510 20,000 26,500 14,000 2,170,000 7,704,900 5,000 8,500 1,609,000 881,000 1,196,700 700 260,000 18,000 63,553,000 21,000 15,411,000 238,000 30,600 40,000 500 885,740 2,244,000 333,190 35,983,000 2,412,000 5,758,200 5,010,430 34,100 15,370,000 3,110,000 26,240,000 3,320,000 3,506,600

SERVICES 380,927.00 1,838,260.00 216,300.00 3,186,834,520.00 37,501,500.00 987,800.00 293,262.00 1,124,530.00 560,656,480.00 7,006,470.00 30,083,666.00 20,940.00 15,474,038.00 1,172,562.00 10,000.00 3,047,774.00 44,900.00 229,586,470.00 2,329,183.00 817,238.00 31,086.00 3,139,180.00 1,274,739,905.00 35,250.00 211,693.00 49,870.00 233,790.00 38,156,704.00 14,200.00 121,648.00 4,812,210.00 804,850.00 22,468,302.00 9,344.00 110,900.00 60,610.00 150,915,450.00 23,820.00 44,385,820.00 673,280.00 248,422.00 194,960.00 4,345.00 122,036,859.00 6,920,060.00 368,474,765.00 18,648,485.00 1,677,860.00 229,388,140.00 385,946,714.50 316,437.00 38,160,420.00 2,093,180.00 8,304,400.00 2,279,210.00 58,880,814.00

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

United Paragon

0.0017 1.14 2.51 12.60 1.1200 1.1300 2.6 0.280 7.89 1.740 0.215 0.106 0.110 0.0097 0.0110 1.14 4.14 1.05 0.4800 0.8500 0.0120 0.0120 3.70 12.30 0.0110 10.5000 22.90 0.0062

559,000,000 5,769,000 145,000 134,200 28,000 2,000 2,029,000 110,000 400 50,107,000 8,380,000 4,360,000 530,000 107,000,000 43,700,000 510,000 32,645,000 1,067,000 1,245,000 649,000 30,300,000 300,000 2,186,000 5,088,300 74,200,000 8,286,200 4,982,500 18,000,000

ABS-CBN Holdings Corp.

Alco Preferred C Ayala Corp. Pref `B1’ Ayala Corp. Pref ‘B2’ DD PREF First Gen G GLOBE PREF P GMA Holdings Inc. GTCAP PREF A GTCAP PREF B House Preferred Leisure and Resort MWIDE PREF PCOR-Preferred 2B PCOR-Preferred 3A PCOR-Preferred 3B PF Pref 2 PNX PREF 3A SMC Preferred 1 SMC Preferred B SMC Preferred C SMC Preferred D SMC Preferred E SMC Preferred F SMC Preferred G SMC Preferred H

17.64 106 502 500 100.3 109 509.5 5.17 970 995 98.25 0.99 101.4 1001 1050 1079 102 108 995 77.65 75.5 75.6 76.5 75.9 75.7 75.65

98,200 370 4,110 2,210 27,290 342,640 1,020 127,500 5,280 20 23,740 3,408,000 10,490 90 7,595 10 1,610 2,490 3,520 218,740 89,040 1,250 70,700 96,590 130,100 437,600

LR Warrant

1.640

35,000

2.03 24.40 2.25 3.28 37.75 2.58 0.880 7.690 5.800

1,242,000 8,361,100 829,000 101,000 33,518,200 7,792,000 3,675,000 17,850,600 196,100

2,497,900.00 202,568,645.00 1,903,820.00 325,900.00 1,231,514,810.00 20,093,890.00 3,294,060.00 137,032,937.00 1,126,908.00

10.1 18 1.64

26,700 754,600 782,000

269,101.00 13,682,216.00 1,310,150.00

0.570 0.046 18.5 2.35 10.92 0.0540 91.1 7.2 7.2 6.05 2 9.19 890 1783 5.16 435.00 11.78 1.55 121 1.76 8.12 3.89 0.109 5.0000 2.85 13.54 3.01 0.90 18.84 14.26 0.430 3.4 2.38 1.13 2.790 2.9 8.25 4.79

82,418,000 41,100,000 1,597,200 272,000 25,358,000 135,880,000 435,140 7,300 3,126,800 300 28,000 167,300 300 164,885 523,500 37,040 6,000 2,461,000 11,425,010 65,000 153,700 4,000 4,690,000 7,981,900 7,000 31,700 765,000 857,000 800,300 2,500 490,000 89,000 1,501,000 99,000 29,119,000 276,000 34,700 42,500

48,911,230.00 1,888,100.00 29,134,254.00 624,350.00 274,017,532.00 7,297,450.00 39,295,351.00 51,750.00 21,294,137.00 1,832.00 56,150.00 1,587,146.00 267,065.00 296,929,545.00 2,711,758.00 16,230,320.00 66,336.00 3,819,320.00 1,367,146,447.00 114,070.00 1,148,750.00 14,330.00 515,190.00 39,847,469.00 19,950.00 440,688.00 2,298,920.00 785,930.00 14,875,742.00 32,070.00 214,800.00 306,910.00 3,524,920.00 112,180.00 82,058,660.00 793,670.00 276,233.00 208,245.00

140.00 2.95 1098.00 0.510 0.700 38.40 76.00 9.29 2.62 0.680 0.325 0.670 16.940

51,430 2,322,000 352,850 56,012,000 10,555,000 12,292,500 2,747,920 12,333,300 8,304,000 7,974,000 29,710,000 5,776,000 13,837,700

7,199,662.00 6,976,330.00 392,750,465.00 30,371,630.00 7,402,960.00 470,261,890.00 210,715,335.00 108,353,683.00 22,684,650.00 5,409,900.00 9,672,900.00 3,835,110.00 229,878,618.00

MINING & OIL 949,000.00 6,573,690.00 363,600.00 1,644,380.00 31,370.00 2,260.00 5,317,260.00 30,600.00 3,087.00 85,698,190.00 1,769,150.00 462,030.00 56,470.00 971,500.00 433,490.00 582,360.00 135,710,380.00 1,114,730.00 608,040.00 563,100.00 361,800.00 3,600.00 7,913,730.00 62,247,534.00 814,200.00 80,627,081.00 114,141,285.00 110,900.00

0.0017 1.14 2.50 11.90 1.1500 1.1500 2.62 0.275 7.90 1.660 0.226 0.107 0.110 0.0091 0.0097 1.15 4.07 1.13 0.5200 0.9000 0.0120 0.0110 3.51 11.52 0.0110 8.4200 21.85 0.0061

99,000,000 3,194,000 87,000 50,200 8,000 18,000 9,695,000 110,000 60,300 23,685,000 5,030,000 4,950,000 1,310,000 104,000,000 205,800,000 1,056,000 49,238,000 737,000 260,000 294,000 30,000,000 24,800,000 5,020,000 2,816,900 71,700,000 3,273,900 4,178,400 15,000,000

164,500.00 3,659,800.00 218,300.00 582,036.00 9,250.00 20,700.00 25,454,660.00 30,750.00 461,045.00 46,775,310.00 1,134,080.00 527,640.00 143,050.00 1,028,400.00 2,042,300.00 1,173,680.00 192,647,310.00 806,080.00 133,290.00 257,180.00 341,600.00 276,200.00 18,111,940.00 32,365,906.00 738,900.00 27,261,354.00 92,683,425.00 94,800.00

PREFERRED 1,749,770.00 39,220.00 2,059,685.00 1,104,996.00 2,754,368.00 37,348,774.00 519,200.00 657,441.00 5,121,600.00 19,900.00 2,293,894.00 3,373,540.00 1,063,690.00 93,980.00 7,870,150.00 10,795.00 163,450.00 268,410.00 3,504,465.00 16,991,860.50 6,671,222.00 94,500.00 5,383,015.00 7,321,140.00 9,809,615.00 33,152,559.00

17.88 101.1 511 503.5 101 110 505 5.13 970 995 98.5 1 100.3 1028 1013 1062 101 108 995 77.8 75.3 75 76.6 75.35 75.5 76.5

118,500 1,000 660 13,180 5,910 8,018,790 70,980 51,400 5,020 10 107,510 279,000 10,820 1,005 20,980 2,650 310 4,970 10,770 264,530 124,840 88,350 175,270 56,910 28,900 442,160

2,079,534.00 101,100.00 330,840.00 6,651,970.00 597,055.00 868,043,925.00 35,529,925.00 263,876.00 4,967,280.00 9,950.00 10,426,977.00 277,230.00 26,354.00 1,033,500.00 21,926,710.00 2,843,280.00 31,610.00 536,770.00 10,716,650.00 20,594,746.50 9,371,182.50 6,550,445.00 13,318,580.00 4,288,678.00 2,186,440.00 33,561,761.00

1.530

81,000

123,220.00

6.41 9.55 0.9

2,591,200 1,369,700 8,276,000

16,681,869.00 13,401,973.00 7,531,720.00

WARRANTS & BONDS 54,660.00 SME 6,301,141.00 64,255,190.00 6,928,000.00

Italpinas Kepwealth Xurpas

6.44 11.4 0.9

975,000 6,200,000 7,770,000

First Metro ETF

117.5

EXCHANGE TRADED FUNDS 32,690 3,790,691.00

115.7

71,120

8,197,672.00

10.36 10.1 0.95

DOLLAR DENONIMATED SEC. 15,080 155,524.80 3,890 39,257.00 25,000 23,963.00

10.36

22,200

113,282.00

0.98

1,030,480

998,943.20

USD DMPL A1 USD DMPL A2 USD TECH B2

WEEKLY MOST TRADED STOCKS Abra Mining Axelum AllHome Boulevard Holdings Filinvest Land,Inc. Megaworld Manila Mining `A’ Philodrill Corp. `A’ Alliance Global Inc. Metro Retail

VOLUME 559,000,000 300,742,500 276,533,900 139,530,000 108,200,000 108,076,000 107,000,000 74,200,000 66,464,100 63,553,000

STOCKS AllHome SM Investments Inc. SM Prime Holdings Axelum I.C.T.S.I. Ayala Corp `A’ Ayala Land `B’ Jollibee Foods Corp.

Bank of PI Banco de Oro Unibank Inc.

VALUE 3,186,834,520.00 1,744,111,527.50 1,715,185,545.00 1,405,929,995.00 1,274,739,905.00 1,169,832,730.00 1,028,387,225.00 1,003,937,960.00 801,509,274.00 736,495,666.00

PSE scraps plan to hold preferred share offering THE Philippine Stock Exchange said it scrapped plans to conduct preferred shares offering and will instead conduct another round of share buyback to reduce brokers’ ownership in the exchange to 20 percent before the end of the year.

PSE president and chief executive Ramon Monzon said in an interview that excluding the 3.4-percent stake held by First Metro Investments Corp., the local bourse would only to buy back less than 1 million worth of shares equivalent to 0.34 percent from existing brokers to achieve the 20-percent ownership limit.

The terms for the second round of buyback will be the same as in first round when the PSE was able to repurchase P445 million worth of common shares from existing brokers at P183.93 apiece.

Monzon said the PSE needed to find a way to address the 3.4 percent worth of shares acquired by FMIC when it “unwillingly absorbed” the PSE shares as an underwriter during the exchange’s stock rights offering.

“We are tying to find a way to address the FMIC bloc. Other than [that], we can already comply. We also cannot tell them to sell the shares at a loss,” Monzon said.

Monzon said forcing FMIC to sell their shares would mean roughly P200 million in losses for the investment bank as it absorbed the PSE shares at P252 per share.

“But we are looking for ways to address it. It is hard to attract buyers right now because the market is not doing well,” Monzon said.

Monzon said the PSE was initially planning to issue non-voting preferred shares to brokers in exchange for the common shares. He said that after consulting the Securities and Exchange Commission, it was agreed that the holders of the preferred shares would still have some voting powers on some corporate matters.

“So we are back-tracking on that.

Instead of issuing preferred shares, we will just have a second round of buyback,” Monzon said.

Monzon said that once PSE was able to reduce brokers’ ownership in the exchange, the local bourse would move on and focus on implementing its projects and programs to boost the liquidity in the stock market. Jenniffer B. Austria

Meralco prohibits single-use plastic in all its premises MANILA Electric Company said it banned single-use plastic, polystyrene foam and similar products in all its premises, activities and corporate events effective Oct. 1, 2019 to help save the environment.

“The protection of the environment is a collective obligation that we not only owe to the communities we serve, but more importantly, the future generation. It is, therefore, incumbent upon us to ensure that we integrate sustainability in all areas of our operations and in our workplace to create a positive impact to the environment,” Meralco president and chief executive Ray Espinosa said in a statement.

The ban also applies to the Meralco Industrial Engineering Services Corp. Group, CIS Bayad Center Inc. Group, Meralco Energy Inc., Radius Telecoms Inc., MSpectrum Inc., MRAIL Inc., Meralco Powergen Corp. Group and eSakay Inc. as well as affiliated companies, Comstech Integration Alliance Inc., Clark Electric Distribution Corp. and Shin Clark Power Group effective Nov. 1, 2019.

Meralco’s supply chain partners have also been told to ensure full compliance with the ban effective January 1, 2020.

Aside from reducing its contribution of plastic to landfills and marine pollution, Meralco aims to educate employees and business partners on the responsible use of plastic for proper disposal for a sustainable economy and help pave the way for a lifestyle change.

According to a report published by the United Nations Environment Program, the world’s ability to cope with plastic waste is already overwhelmed. Only 9 percent of the nine trillion kilos of plastic the world has ever produced has been recycled.

Most end up in landfills, dumps or in the environment. If current consumption patterns and waste management practices continue, then by 2050 there will be around 12 trillion kilos of plastic litter in landfills and the environment.

CESAR BARRIOQUINTO, Editor mst.daydesk@gmail.com

IN BRIEF March against Syria offensive PARIS―Thousands of people, some shouting “Erdogan terrorist”, took to the streets of Paris and other European cities on Saturday in protest at the Turkish assault on Kurds in Syria.

Protesters marching under the Kurdish green, red and yellow flag waved placards reading “Trump = serial killer” or calling Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan “the true leader of Daesh,” the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State jihadist group.

Organizers said “more than 20,000 people” took part in the demonstration in Paris after Ankara stepped up its assault on Kurdish-held border towns in northeastern Syria on Saturday, defying mounting threats of international sanctions.

“Turkey is invading Rojava [the self-proclaimed Kurdish zone in northeast Syria] and Europe is watching,” they shouted as they marched towards Chatelet in central Paris. Police in the capital estimated 4,000 people had taken part.

In France, a spokesman for one Kurdish group called for US and European Union sanctions against Turkey.

There were similar protests in other French cities including Marseille, Strasbourg—the seat of the European parliament—Bordeaux, Lille and Grenoble.

The Turkish offensive began on Wednesday after US President Donald Trump ordered American troops to pull back from the border. AFP

Firemen curb California blazes LOS ANGELES―The wildfires raging across southern California abated on Saturday with evacuation orders lifted after 100,000 people were forced to flee their homes.

A fire that had burned rapidly through the San Fernando Valley in greater Los Angeles was the strongest of several across southern California.

By Saturday, it had consumed 3,200 hectares about 32 kilometers north of downtown Los Angeles, fire officials said, adding that the blaze was about 33 percent contained.

All residents were allowed to return to their homes on Saturday as cooler temperatures and lighter winds improved the outlook.

“We are prepared for any flare-ups as they occur,” Los Angeles fire captain Branden Silverman told local media.

One man in his 50s died of a heart attack as he struggled to save his home, fire officials said.

Part of Los Angeles County was blanketed with smoke from the fire, prompting an advisory from air quality officials about unhealthy conditions.

The fire broke out Thursday night and quickly grew out of control in the city of Sylmar, driven by low humidity and gusts known as the Santa Ana winds.

About 1,000 firefighters, backed by water-dropping helicopters and planes releasing fire retardants, fought the blaze that forced the shutdown of several major highways. AFP

Business/World

Manila

Standard

MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2019

TODAY

NOTICE OF DISSOLUTION

14 dead, nine missing as storm slams Japan K AWAGOE, Japan― At least 14 people were killed and nine others missing after Typhoon Hagibis slammed into Japan, officials said Sunday, as rescuers scrambled to reach people trapped by catastrophic flooding.

day as one of the most violent typhoons in recent years, with wind gusts of up to 216 kilometers per hour.

The storm claimed its first victim even before making landfall, when high winds flipped a vehicle, killing its driver.

Landslides and flooding claimed more lives overnight, and the toll climbed higher after sunrise on Sunday, as the scale of the devastation wrought by Hagibis became clear.

Bodies were retrieved from homes and vehicles submerged by floodwaters, from raging overflowing rivers, and from buildings buried in landslides.

The dead included a municipal worker whose car was overcome by floodwaters and a Chinese crew member aboard a boat that sank overnight in Tokyo Bay. Four of the crew on board were rescued, but authorities were still searching for another seven.

The government said at least nine people were missing and more than 140 injured in the storm.

“We continue to see a great impact on people’s life,” Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said.

“The government will do its utmost,” he added, pledging to deploy more troops and emergency officials if needed.

More than 160,000 homes were still without power by Sunday afternoon, with around 1,000 in Chiba, east of Tokyo, also experiencing water outages, national broadcaster NHK said.

At the storm’s peak, more than seven million people were placed under non-compulsory evacuation orders, with tens of thousands heeding the call and moving into government shelters.

The Japan Meteorological Agency issued its highest-level rain disaster warning, saying “unprecedented” downpours were expected.

The storm’s “unprecedented” heavy rain triggered deadly landslides and caused rivers to burst their banks. The destruction forced Rugby World Cup organizers to cancel a third match though the key Japan-Scotland clash will go ahead.

By Sunday morning, the significantly weakened storm had moved back off land, but serious flooding was reported in several areas, including central Japan’s Nagano, where a burst levee sent water from the Chikuma river gushing into residential neighborhoods, flooding homes up to the second floor.

Japan’s military deployed 27,000 troops to aid rescue operations, including some in helicopters who winched people from the roofs and balconies of flooded homes in Nagano.

In Kawagoe, northwest of Tokyo, rescue workers in boats were evacuating elderly people from a retirement home that was heavily flooded in the storm.

One woman wearing an orange life vest clutched at rescue workers in hardhats as the boat moved through the muddy floodwaters.

Hagibis smashed into the main Japanese island of Honshu around 7:00 pm (1000 GMT) Satur- AFP

B3

The public is hereby notified that EA GROUP INTERNATIONAL, INC., a corporation organized and existing under Philippine laws, with registered address at RM 602, 6th Flr. RCI Bldg.

Rada Street, Legaspi Village, Makati City, Philippines, will be DISSOLVED through shortening of corporate term in accordance with Section 136 of the Revised Corporation Code. The corporation’s dissolution will take effect upon approval by the Securities and Exchange Commission of the amendment made on the corporation’s Articles of Incorporation to shorten its corporate term.

(MS-OCT 7/14/21, 2019)

Manila

Standard

TODAY

MARKETS AND SECURITIES REGULATION DEPARTMENT

IN THE MATTER OF

: : CENTURY PROPERTIES GROUP, INC. : (Registrant) : : x-----------------------------------------------------x

REGISTRATION OF SECURITIES (Preferred A shares)

NOTICE Notice is hereby given that on October 4, 2019, a sworn statement was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) for and on behalf of CENTURY PROPERTIES GROUP, INC. for the registration of 20,000,0001 Preferred A Shares with a Par value of P0.53 per shares at an Offer Price of P100.00 per Preferred Share, details of which are as follows: Primary Offer

20,000,000

Preferred A Shares

Oversubscription Option

10,000,000

Preferred A Shares

Total

30,000,000

Preferred A Shares

According to the papers presented on October 4, 2019, the following persons are the directors and officers of the corporation: Name Amb. Jose E.B. Antonio John Victor R. Antonio Jose Marco R. Antonio Jose Roberto R. Antonio Jose Carlo R. Antonio Hilda R. Antonio Ricardo Cuerva Rafael G. Yaptinchay Amb. Jose L. Cuisia, Jr. Stephen T. CuUnjienq Carlos E. Ejercito Atty. Danny E. Bunyi

Position Executive Chairman Vice Chairman President and CEO Director Director Director Director Director Independent Director Independent Director Independent Director Corporate Secretary Chief Financial Officer / Corporate Treasurer / Ponciano S. Carreon Investor Relations Head Domie S. Eduvane Head for Leqal and Corporate Affairs Corporate Secretary / Corporate Carlos Benedict K. Rivilla, IV Assistant Affairs Maria Theresa Fucanan-Yu Head for Coroorate Communications Chief Information Officer and Chief Compliance Atty. Isabelita Ching Sales Officer Ritchelle T. Cordero Head for Human Resources and Administration Said registration statement and other papers/documents attached thereto (collectively referred to as (“RS”) and the subsequent updates are open to inspection by interested parties during business hours, and copies thereof, photostatic or otherwise, shall be furnished to every party upon request at such reasonable fees as the Commission may prescribe. Said RS may also be downloaded from the company’s website: http://www.century-properties.com.

VICENTE GRACIANO P. FELIZMENIO, JR. Director 1 The application of the corporatIon to amend Articles Fifth and Sixth of its Amended Articles of incorporation which pertains to the increased in the number of directors from Ten (10) to Eleven (11) and the reclassification of its 3,000,000,000 Common Shares to 3,000,000,000 Preferred Shares with a par value of P0.53 per shares was approved by the Commission on September 30, 2019 The new director is Ms. Hilda R. Antonio.

(MS-OCT. 11,14 & 21, 2019)

Republic of the Philippines Metropolitan Manila MUNICIPALITY OF PATEROS OFFICE OF THE MAYOR PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP SELECTION COMMITTEE NOTICE OF INVITATION FOR COMPARATIVE PROPOSAL (SWISS CHALLENGE) Public notice is hereby given that the MUNICIPALITY OF PATEROS through its Public-Private Partnership Selection Committee, received and accepted the Unsolicited Proposal of ONE DOCUMENT CORPORATION, the original proponent for a Fully integrated Local Government solution in enhancing the revenue generation and collection capability for the MUNICIPALITY OF PATEROS. After completing detailed negotiations, the MUNICIPALITY OF PATEROS is now ready to accept comparative proposals.

WELLNESS FESTIVAL. SHAPE magazine Fitness Director Jen Widerstrom speaks during Founded

By Women on the Inspire Stage presented by Johnson & Johnson during the second day of Wellness Your Way Festival at the Duke Energy Convention Center on October 12, 2019 in Cincinnati, Ohio. AFP

This project is being undertaken by the Municipal of Pateros under Build Operate Transfer (BOT), under Municipal Ordinance No. 2018-05 and Municipal Ordinance No. 2018-21, otherwise known as Municipality of Pateros PPPP Code.

Interested bidders must submit their expression of interest for a comparative proposals on or before October 14, 2019 at thePPPP-SC Office, Mezzanine Municipal Hall Building, G. De Borja Street, Barangay Aguho, Pateros Metro Manila.

RAYMUND B. HABARADAS

Green LiGht SENATOR Cynthia Villar’s critical remark on the Department of Agriculture’s decision to allocate a substantial portion of its budget for research of the National Corn Program stirred up a hornet’s nest in academic circles. “Baliw na baliw kayo sa research,” she said, adding, “aanhin ninyo ba ‘yung research?” This triggered strong reactions from netizens, with some even resorting to ad hominem attacks against the good senator. One even made a reference to the aggressive real estate development activities of the Villar family in agricultural areas, saying that in the future, there will be no object for research anymore for the agricultural sector ‘dahil nakamkam nyo nang lahat ang lupa!’

Clearly, the provocative statements of the senator, even if driven by good intentions, take on a certain color because of her family’s business interests. This is an issue that can be discussed in another article.

For today, I want to dwell on an important point that surfaced from this issue―the perception not only among our legislators but also among the general citizenry that research has no practical value. In an attempt to defend herself a few days after her now oft-quoted statement, she said: “Aanhin ba natin ang research kung hindi naman mapapakinabangan? Kung may research nga tapos wala namang application, it won’t benefit our farmers.” This statement is illustrative of a long-running conversation / debate in academia about what type of research must be undertaken in universities, especially in a developing country like the Philippines.

Should we undertake fundamental research meant for publication in scholarly journals that are read only largely by a small group of people interested in the advancement of knowledge in a particular discipline, or should we undertake applied research that will have immediate use by practitioners?

As a teacher of management action research at De La Salle University (DLSU), I have to

Baliw na baliw sa (action) research miscondeal with our graduate students’ initial miscon ceptions about what research is for, something not quite different from Senator Villar’s own notion. There is the prevailing view that research is “too theoretical” and does not have much relevance. We can’t blame them since much of the research that are currently undertaken in academia are of such type, those that favor ‘rigor’ over ‘relevance’.

In DLSU’s MBA Program, we have made some inroads in convincing our students that research and practice do not have to be mutually exclusive. Over the past five or six years, we have exposed our students to Management Action Research, which seeks to address problems or issues that our students face in their workplace. Action research requires them to reflect upon their decisions and actions (firstperson inquiry), to collaborate with their bosses, colleagues, and / or subordinates―who serve as their co-researchers―in trying to understand the problem situation they are trying to address (second-person inquiry), and to make use of the concepts and frameworks they have learned from various MBA subjects they have taken (third-person inquiry). Since this is a research subject, they are supposed to document how they attempted to solve workplace issues, to report the results of the change initiatives they undertook, and to generate useful insights that others exposed to similar conditions and circumstances can learn from.

Over the past few years, we have produced hundreds of graduates that have made concrete contributions to the organizations they work for through their action research projects.

These projects range from improving the efficiency of work processes in a bank, to reducing workplace stress and turnover of employees in a BPO company; from empowering employees that led to better customer experience in a clothing retailer, to improving the processes of a family business resort that also strengthened

the relationship between father and son; and from increasing the sales of a trucking business by reducing the paper work that their sales people have to handle, to saving millions of pesos by reducing rework through the enforcement of quality control standards.

Some of the action research projects did not end up with spectacular results, but revealed weaknesses in the structures, processes, and work cultures of the organizations that our students work for. A better understanding of what led to failures opened up opportunities for these organizations to solve problems using alternative approaches.

These are also documented in the action research projects of our students, which will allow others who have read their papers to know what they need to avoid or watch out for when they introduce change initiatives in their own companies.

We are confident that our MBA graduates now appreciate the relevance of research and reflective practice in their own organizations, and will be among a new generation of business leaders who will advocate this among their colleagues. We are hopeful that, in the not-too-distant future, “baliw na baliw sa (action) research” will be viewed in a more positive light.

Raymund B. Habaradas is a Full Professor at the Management and Organization Department of the Ramon V. del Rosario College of Business of De La Salle University (DLSU), where he teaches Methods of Research, Qualitative Research, and Management Action Research. He is also the holder of the Ramon V. del Rosario Professorial Chair in Entrepreneurship, and the Director of the DLSU Center for Business Research and Development (CBRD). He welcomes comments at rbhabaradas@yahoo.com. The views expressed above are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official position of DLSU, its faculty, and its administrators.

The notarized expression of interest with complete supporting documents as determined by the PPPP-SC must contain the following: 1. The CHALLENGER is a Filipino citizen, or a corporation, duly registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and owned up to least seventy five percent (75%) by Filipinos, or a joint venture or consortium, presently existing, in which Filipinos have the least seventy five percent (75%) interest. Appropriate documents must be presented to provide proof thereof.

2. The CHALLENGER must possess the equipment and the operational capabilities, to provide an integrated computerize revenue generation, billing and collection, and reporting solution, where the Local Government of Pateros to benefit a marked improvement in realized potential revenue brought about by integrating the build-up of all existing data records, reconciliation of transactional history, identification of delinquent accounts, conformity to applicable national laws and local tax ordinances on payments of real property, business permits, local fees, and, real-time reporting, and appropriate documents must be presented to provide proof thereof.

3. The CHALLENGER must have technical staff with established expertise and technical competence to implement and supervise the foregoing purpose, it shall submit the curriculum vitae of its key personnel. Proof of employment of these personnel with the CHALLENGER and their respective relevant experience to the required provision of services must be submitted.

4. The CHALLENGER must be able to comply with the terms and conditions stated in the Terms of Reference (TOR), as evidenced by a statement to the effect.

5. The CHALLENGER must agree to not prevent or impede the Award of the Project and the carrying out the project in any manner, as evidenced by a notarized statement to this effect.

Those who filed their Expression Of Interest (EOI) on or before October 14, 2019 may obtain from the Office of the Municipal Administrator the Terms of Reference upon payment of a non-refundable fee of ₱ 25,000.00. Only those who filed their EOI on time and purchased copies of the Terms of Reference shall be allowed to participate in this competitive selection procedure.

The following schedule of activities shall be strictly observed: 1.

Publication of Notice of invitation for Comparative Proposals in newspapers of general circulation: October 7 and October 14, 2019.

2.

On the first date of publication of the invitation for comparative proposal, the Private Sector Proponent (PSP) or Original Proponent (OP) shall post the proposal security or bid security equivalent to 2% of the Proposed Amount– in cash, manager’s check, bank draft or surety bond.

3.

Posting of Notice of Invitation at the Municipality of Pateros’s in conspicuous places within the Municipal: October 7, 2019.

4.

Submission of Expression of Interest along with supporting documents for the purpose of being short-listed for eligibility at the Municipality of Pateros Administrator’s Office: on or before October 28, 2019.

5.

Eligibility Check to short list qualified Private Sector Proponent (PSP): October 28 and 29, 2019.

6.

Sending notice of eligibility or non-eligibility to PSP: November 4, 2019.

7.

Release of Terms of Reference – November 8, 2019 upon payment of the amount of ₱ 25,000.00 in cash or manager’s check.

8.

Pre-Selection Conference conducted by the PPPP-SC at 3rd Floor, Conference Room, of Pateros:November 13, 2019.

9.

Deadline for submission of Complete Comparative Proposals (CP), including full qualification documents for final qualification purposes, technical proposal and financial proposal, at the Municipality of Pateros Administrator’s Office: on or before November 26, 2019 at 9:00 A.M. Municipal Hall Building, G. De Borja Street, Barangay Aguho, Pateros Metro Manila.

10. Opening of Comparative Proposals (CP): November 26, 2019 at 2:00 P.M., 3rd Floor Conference Room, Mayor’s Office, Municipality of Pateros.

11. Evaluation of Comparative Proposals: November 24 to December 6, 2019.

12. Within fifteen (15) days from Receipt of Notice from the PPPP-SC, the Original Proponent (OP) can exercise the RIGHT to MATCH the superior or more advantageous comparative proposal.

13. Issuance of NOTICE OF AWARD. If no expression of interest or defective or incomplete expression of interest or comparative proposal is submitted, the Project shall be awarded to the Original Proponent (OP).

Further, pursuant to the above-mentioned Ordinance, the Original Proponent (OP) shall be given the right to match the superior offer or more advantageous offer to the Municipality of Pateros, as determined by the PPPP-SC. Finally, the PPPP-SC reserves the right to (1) reject any and all applications for qualification and eligibility found not in conformity with aforesaid Ordinance or with the requirements above-mentioned without incurring any liability to the affected Private-Sector Proponent; (2) waive any minor defect therein; and (3) accept the offer it deems most advantageous to the Municipality of Pateros.

CONTACT INFORMATION: PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP FOR THE PEOPLE-SELECTION COMMITTEE (PPPP-SC)– Atty. BONIFACIO F. ARANJUEZ, JR./ Mr. ERVIN C. SAN JOSE Municipal Legal Officer / PPPP-SC Secretary (SGD.) EDGAR NOEL O. CASTILLO PPPP-SC Chairman

(MS-OCT. 14, 2019)

LGUs

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

B4

LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS

MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2019

Duterte taps Leonardia to LEDAC advisory body Pamulco teams with Landbank to aid farmers NOT many can boast of finding credible sources of loans with low monthly interest rates, especially for small farmers who are struggling to keep up with the constant and growing challenges in the agri industry.

Yet, this is the welcome boon being offered by the Pangi Multi-Purpose Cooperative (PAMULCO) for its members engaged in various production projects in the town of Maitum in Sarangani Province and surrounding communities.

Through the years, PAMULCO and LANDBANK have been helping farmers gain continuous access to ready credit to meet their daily needs, allowing them to cope and recover from the challenges in farming.

PAMULCO began with only four employees in 1991 with P25,000 on hand.

Today, operating mainly in Brgy. Pangi in Maitum, Sarangani Province, it has 37 on the regular payroll, with 809 total members.

It has financed a collective estimate of around 500 hectares for palay, and 280 hectares for corn. This is on top of its regular agri-trading and consumer store operations that cater to its farmer-members and general public.

All these endeavors came to fruition with the financing it started to avail from LANDBANK that same year. Through LANDBANK’s rediscounting line, PAMULCO was able to bring interest rates for members’ loans down to 12% per annum.

The Bank’s low interest rates for this type of credit facility is contingent upon financial conduits, such as rural banks and cooperatives like PAMULCO, to pass on the same beneficial low interest rates to its eligible borrower members with convenient repayment schedules.

At only 1% per month, farmers can easily see the glaring contrast to seeking loans from loan sharks and some local traders who charge 20% interest for the same period. Additionally, the Co-op’s

PAMULCO General Manager Ronald Briones (right) inspects the rice quality from the cooperative’s warehouse. As the upgraded machinery boosted production output and lowered operational costs, this also allowed for more competitive pricing for its members and other farmers.

income is given back to farmer members in the form of annual dividends and patronage refunds.

The Cooperative was also able to purchase hauling trucks and upgrade its rice mill that can now process 60 bags an hour, a step up from the 20-25 bags its old machinery used to churn out.

In 2018, PAMULCO was able to purchase palay worth P52.42 million, most of which came from Lambayong, Sultan Kudarat. The Co-op also took care of the processing and other post-harvest requirements to market the farmers’ rice.

The trucks kept raw inventory low and

quick-moving, thus avoiding wastage of hard-earned palay.

Having experienced the struggle firsthand and the Bank’s timely and unwavering assistance, PAMULCO General Manager Ronald C. Briones, Sr. attests that LANDBANK fulfills its mandate. ”Patunay ng di matatawarang dedikasyon na tulungang mapaunlad ang pamumuhay ng mga magsasaka at kanayunan,” he adds.

LANDBANK has always been supportive of the cooperative industry’s efforts in uplifting the socio-economic condition of small farmers.

National U campus opens at SM Fairview 7k in Navotas

get jobs in 100 days under Toby

By Jun David

NU Fairview Campus at the SM City Fairview Complex will be offering extension programs such as BS Business Administration, BS Hospitality Management and BS Information Technology.

NOW, one can shop, dine, have fun, and learn at the SM Malls, as National University opens a new campus at SM City Fairview. National University Fairview is the third NU Campus to open as a part of NU’s 10-year expansion plan.

Located at one of the towers at the SM City Fairview Complex, NU Fairview will be offering extension programs from National University Main and National University Asia Pacific College, namely BS Business Administration, BS Hospitality Management, and BS Information Technology.

Gracing the ceremony were Quezon

City 5th District Rep. Alfred Vargas with Councilor PM Vargas, together with the National University Officials headed by NU President and CEO DR. RJ Ermita, NU Vice Chairman of the Board Teddy Ocampo, NU Director Ramon Dimacali, and SM Supermalls COO Mr. Steven Tan Online application for 2nd term Academic Year 2019-2020 is still on-going, and classes began on October 7. For admission inquiries, interested students may visit NU Fairview on Facebook or call (02) 401-6760 or e-mail at admissions-nufairview@nu.edu.ph.

GSIS allots P1B for Zamboanga workers ZAMBOANGA CITY—State pension fund Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) earmarked over Php1.03 billion to implement the GSIS Financial Assistance Loan (GFAL) and Top-Up Loan for the 2,063 personnel of the City Government Office (CGO) Zamboanga City.

GSIS Chairman and concurrent acting President and General Manager Rolando Ledesma Macasaet also addressed a crowd of nearly 100 GSIS members in a stakeholders’ dialogue held October 10.

“President Rodrigo Duterte’s marching order is to help government employees pay their debts. Our GFAL agreement

with Mayor Maria Isabelle Climaco is thus a step towards helping CGO Zamboanga City employees ease their financial woes due to unsettled loans,” Macasaet said.

Eligible GFAL applicants may borrow up to half a million pesos, which will be paid in equal monthly instalments for six years, at an interest rate of six percent per annum. Those with outstanding loans from lending institutions that are below Php500,000 may choose to borrow the remaining amount through the Top-Up Loan, the proceeds of which GSIS will directly pay to the member.

THE Navotas City Government, under the helm of Mayor Toby Tiangco, provided more than 7,000 Navoteños with jobs and various forms of livelihood assistance in his first 100 days in office.

From July to September 2019, 4,379 residents secured employment from the city government, Tiangco said in his first State of the City Address.

These included 3,000 beneficiaries of cash for work; 1,237 recipients of Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD), 40 government interns and 102 hired job fair applicants.

The city also conducted a number of seminars to equip Navoteños with know-how on starting a business.

Among these were five NegoSerye, four Hanapbuhay Caravan, three barangay skills trainings, four Department of Trade and Industry-Negosyo Center seminars, and the annual Youth Entrepreneurship Summit. A total of 1,759 residents participated in the trainings.

Navotas also gained more skilled workers following the graduation of 305 students of the Navotas Vocational Training and Assessment (NAVOTAAS) Institute.

Navotas also provided various forms of livelihood assistance. The city awarded 50 fiberglass boats with 18 hp engine and complete set of gill nets and fishing accessories to 100 beneficiaries of NavoBangka-buhayan program.

In addition, 414 registered fisherfolks received various kinds of fishing nets.

The city also released a total of P595,000 for 18 new and 44 renewal applicants of its Tulong Puhunan program, among them tricycle drivers and sari-sari store owners.

Furthermore, with other government agencies, Navotas also gave livelihood aid to qualified beneficiaries.

P

RESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has appointed Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia as a member of the Legislative - Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC) of the 18th Congress.

As a member, Leonardia will represent all the local government units (LGUs) to the board, thus he is the lone local official to be appointed to the LEDAC. Among the members of the LEDAC are the Vice President, Senate President, Speaker of the House and seven Cabinet Secretaries selected by the President.

Widely represented, the LEDAC is the highest consultative and advisory body to the President on economic and development matters to integrate the legislative agenda with the national development plan.

Created through Republic Act No. 7640 in 1992, the LEDAC also serves as a venue to facilitate high-level policy discussions on vital issues and concerns affecting national development.

Leonardia, who was also recently elected as national president of the League of Cities of the Philippines (LCP), said, “This is a singular honor President Duterte has bestowed upon me. I am very grateful. It is beyond my expectations and I hope to do the best I can to live up to the expectations of the President and serve the interest of the local government units all over the country.”

The presidential appointment was dated September 23, 2019.

The LEDAC is composed of 20 members with the President as chair.

The other members are three members of the Senate designated by the Senate President, three members of the House of Representatives designated by the Speaker of the House, a representative of the Local Government Units, a representative from the Youth Sector, and a representative from the Private Sector.

RA 7640 mandates LEDAC with the following functions, among others: (1) Determines and recommends socio-economic development goals; (2) Provides policy advice to the President; and (3) Integrates regional development plans into the national development plan.

Copy Negros, Leyte RE example, LGUs urged

By Alena Mae S. Flores LOCAL governments are urged to look at and follow the move of Negros and Leyte islands who are making the case for communities powered by renewable energy to help the Philippines attain energy security amid worsening climate change.

“Studies have repeatedly pointed out that the Philippines is the 3rd most vulnerable country to climate-related hazards and we need to take bold action to reverse that. One decisive step we can take is to transform our energy sector and the islands of Negros and Leyte show that it is possible and now even a reality,” said Marvin Kenneth Bailon, head of Energy Development Corp.’s Business Development–Market Planning and Contracts.

Negros and Leyte have an abundance of renewable energy sources in both islands give them the edge over other parts of the country. The two islands host the geothermal capacity of EDC. “Since geothermal energy can provide continuous power 24 hours a day, it serves as the best source of baseload power,” said Bailon.

To date, EDC has a geothermal capacity of 1,181 megawatts (MW) or 60 percent of the country’s total geothermal output.

For almost 40 years, EDC has been powering the islands with what is considered the “holy grail” of renewable energy sources.

Bailon also said electricity generated from geothermal sources are helping consumers enjoy more competitively priced power rates.

The Philippines is currently the world’s third largest producer of geothermal energy after the US and Indonesia, and EDC accounts for 61 percent of the country’s current installed capacity.

EDC’s 711.4-MW Leyte Geothermal Project (LGP) is home to its largest geothermal facility and has the biggest wet steam field in the world. The facility supplies power to Leyte-II Electric Cooperative and Leyte-III Electric Cooperative.

On the other hand, EDC’s Southern Negros Geothermal Project (SNGP) supplies 2MW to Negros Oriental I Electric Cooperative, 25MW to Negros Oriental II Electric Cooperative, 20MW to Central Negros Electric Cooperative and 3MW to Northern Negros Electric Cooperative.

These comprise around 16 percent of the island’s power supply out of its peak demand of 312MW. “With the examples set by the provinces of Negros and Leyte, we are optimistic that a greener energy future lies in store for the entire country,” Bailon said.

SUBIC AWARD. Dr. Siegfred L. Manaois (center), Deputy Collector for Operation, Port of Subic, receives a Certificate of Appreciation from Strategic Trade Management Office Director Atty. Luis Catibayan for his valuable contribution and support to the Philippine Commodity Identification Training against Weapons of Mass Destruction. Also pictured is Atty. Janice Dimayacyac of the STMO-DTI.

Life

Bernadette Lunas, Issue Editor manilastandardlife@gmail.com @manilastandardlife @MStandardLIFE

FOOD

MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2019

All hail the humble adobo A

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Pianggang Adobo with Palapa

DOBO can be quite a polarizing dish.

Across the country’s 7,107 islands, there are as many “best adobo” hotspots just as there are different versions of the dish.

There is adobo sa dilaw cooked with turmeric from Cavite. Coconut water and coconut meat are pleasant additions to Southern Tagalog’s version, while gata and sili feature prominently in adobo hailing from Bicol. Adobong puti from the Visayas region uses no soy sauce, which was an import by Chinese traders.

And let us not forget: Each family’s own adobo recipe is the best.

But according to Chef Nancy ReyesLumen, the country’s undisputed adobo queen, it is precisely because of the adobo’s ubiquitous presence that it becomes unifying as well.

“The Philippines is an adobo nation,” she said. “There is a version of adobo in almost all our provinces, and the root word is the same.”

Together with chefs Jen Seranilla and Jaja Andal, who make up Team Adobo, Reyes-Lumen teamed up with Holiday Inn & Suites Makati in a bid to elevate the dish for the whole month of October—with at least 30 variations to be featured at the hotel’s Flavors restaurant.

“We don’t really have a uniting call sign, but as to food, that will have to be adobo. It is the closest thing to a national dish for us,” Reyes-Lumen added.

For starters, the team came up with chicken liver pate, pork adobo rillete, and adobo pan de sal—served freshly baked, hot and soft and tempting you to eat just one more after downing two in quick succession.

There were tamales topped with chicken adobo flakes and wrapped in banana leaves; paella de adobo with sea-

Pizzadobo

Paella de Adobo

Tamales topped with chicken adobo flakes

food; Rodrigo’s Roast, a whole slab of adobo-cooked pork belly with a savory-sweet-umami crust; and pianggang adobo with palapa, a nod to the traditional Zamboanga dish that features tuba-marinated chicken with burnt coconut adobo sauce.

Seranilla’s adobo-inspired cheesecake—with bayleaf-infused butter and peppercorn for a bit of spice—was a creative way to sweetly cap the meal.

“We didn’t want the dishes to taste just like soy sauce and vinegar. It was a fun challenge thinking of new ways in

which to portray adobo that would still be welcomed by Filipinos and get them excited at the same time,” she said.

The word adobo may have been borrowed from Spanish colonizers—adobar, which means marinade—but everything else about the dish is purely Filipino. One can even argue that since the ingredients for the dish were already present in the Philippines even before the Spaniards came, our ancestors may have already been cooking adobo prior to Ferdinand Magellan’s arrival, and that the Spanish name merely stuck be-

Rodrigo’s Roast

cause we were colonized for more than 300 years.

“Adobo reflects the Filipino personality—our ability to create different styles based on a centerpiece dish— ‘strike anywhere’ as they say. The name adobo may be borrowed, but the flavors, ingredients, and colors of adobo

cover the foodscape of this country and is so much a part of our culture that we truly own it,” said Reyes-Lumen.

“Every Pinoy has an adobo story, and that is why it is a big part of our lives,” she added.

I’m at joyce.panares@gmail.com.

Ginataang Tortang Dariway by Chef Striessand Casallo

Sizzling Bangus Sisig by Chef Gerry Austria

THE satisfying combination of Mindanaoan grain adlai and Kapampangan signature dish buro earned the top spot in a nationwide culinary contest.

Chef Victor Barangan bested the competition in this year’s Certified Funlasang Pinoy—a nationwide search that celebrates Filipino cuisine—with his Burong Salmon Adlai. He received P100,000 cash prize.

For his winning dish, Chef Victor used adlai instead of rice and introduced salmon cured in Knorr Rostip Chicken Seasoning Powder in a bowl of buro with richer, umami flavor. He paired it with pork belly marinated in Knorr Sinigang Sa Sampalok Mix, and slices of fresh lettuce and tomatoes.

“I had to process and cure salmon to elevate the humble buro. The result was amazing,” said Chef Victor.

Certified Funlasang Pinoy panelists—Aracama Filipino Cuisine managing partner and executive chef Fernando Aracama, Locavore chef and owner Kel Zaguirre, Eatsplorations’ Mark Tan, Philippine Daily Inquirer’s Vangie Baga-Reyes, and UFS Philippines senior sous chef Carlos Aluning—were all in agreement.

Chef Aracama explained, “It takes belief in one’s self and true knowledge of your ingredients to be able to turn and elevate classic dishes into

something innovative and modern without disregarding our own traditions and culture.”

Aside from Chef Victor, four other chefs each won 20,000 pesos in cash for their superb take on Filipino cuisine.

Chef Belinda Moldez-Evangelista with her Stuffed Kimchi Fried Rice in Roasted Chicken Inasal; Chef Gerry Austria with his Sizzling Bangus Sisig; Chef Striessand Casallo with his Ginataang Tortang Dariway; and Chef Wilson Adriano with his Beef Serkele completed this year’s top five.

The top five dishes were selected from hundreds of recipes submitted by chefs and cooks at the beginning of the search. From there, diners selected a festive spread of 22 dishes that captured the Filipino taste and interest. All 22 winning chefs received plaques and certificates from Unilever Food Solutions.

“We at UFS Philippines recognize that the secret ingredients to our favorite sisig, sinigang, or kare-kare are the passionate chefs and cooks behind these straight-from-the-heart Filipino dishes.

That is why it is a pleasure for us to continue creating more platforms for chefs and cooks to take pride in their creations,” enthused UFS Philippines managing director James Benedict Carreon.

Burong adlai wins cooking challenge

Certified Funlasang Pinoy grand winner Chef Victor Barangan with his winning dish Burong Salmon Adlai.

Life

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MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2019 manilastandardlife@gmail.com

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The best flavors of Southeast Asia ASEAN Ambassadors and their spouses, led

by Brunei Ambassador Hajah Johariah binti Wahab and Louie BarcelonLocsin, take part in the traditional ASEAN handshake at the opening of the ASEAN Food Festival.

HAILAND’S pad thai, Cambodia’s nun krokor, and Malaysia’s teh tarik. These were just some of the dishes presented during the recent ASEAN Food Festival at SMX Aura Convention Center.

The food festival brought together under one roof traditional dishes and exotic flavors of the 10 ASEAN member states, namely Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

The event was a joint project of the ASEAN Ladies Foundation and the Department of Foreign Affairs, in partnership with the 10 embassies of the ASEAN member states and SM. Guests enjoyed Brunei’s Nasi Katok Ayam (rice and fried chicken served with sambal or chili sauce wrapped in brown paper) and Pulut Panggangor (rice with sambal filling).

Cambodia, on the other hand, brought popular street food delights—Num Krokor coconut rice cake and Num Banh Chokor fish curry noodle; while Indonesia’s signature Nasi Goreng (stir fried rice) and Sate Ayam (grilled chicken served with peanut sauce) were showcased at the fair.

Lao PDR’s Seensavanh (beef jerky) and Khaiphaenor (dried green algae); Malaysia’s Laksa Asam Penang (spicy and sour fish noodles) and Teh Tarik (hot milk tea); and Myanmar’s Mohinga (rice noodle with fish soup) and Kaung Nyin Paung (steamed glutinous rice seasoned with sesame salt) also delighted guests.

Singapore’s famous Laksa (spicy noodle soup) and Hainanese Chicken Rice were among the crowd favorites, as well Thailand’s Pad Thai (stir-fried rice noodle dish) and Thai Milk Tea, and Vietnam’s Nemrán (fried spring roll).

Myanmar’s national dish, Mohinga is a rice noodle in fish soup (left) while Kaung Nyin Paung is steamed sticky rice with salted sesame and scraped coconut.

EAT OUT Unlimited sushi and maki

Kitsho’s sushi creations are made of the freshest seafood.

The maki selections feature Pinoy favorites like the California Maki, as well as traditional choices Futo Maki and Negitoro Maki.

Peruvian weekday lunch set Peruvian chef Carlo Huerta Echegaray brings the flavors of his home to Samba’s weekday lunch offering.

The menu highlights an array of Latin flavors from appetizer to dessert.

Starter is a playful twist on the favorite Peruvian appetizer, Ceviche De Norteno that is made of choice seafood of the day marinated in Leche de Tigre with red onions, corn, and glazed sweet potatoes. It is followed by a filling main of Mero a La Chiclayana highlighting chargrilled red grouper fillet topped with cilantro, aji amarillo, chichi de jora, aji panca with paprika sauce, and Camote fries.

A luscious finale inspired by the region’s natural landscape is the Rain Forest made of decadent Peruvian chocolate mousse, berries sorbet, chocolate logs, and flower dust.

The set menu is available from Monday to Friday, from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at Samba on the 8th floor of Shangri-La at the Fort Manila.

Filipino Oktoberfest celebration

Japanese restaurant Kitsho, known for its wide selection of dishes, treats diners to unlimited servings of sushi and maki as part of its third anniversary celebration this October.

The sushi selections include mouthwatering servings of fresh king salmon, maguro nigiri (tuna), and white fish.

The maki options, on the other hand, feature the all-time Pinoy favorite, California maki, with its tasty mixture of ripe mangoes, kani (crab sticks), lettuce, and cucumber all wrapped in sushi rice and garnished with flying fish roe.

Also included in the maki choices are the equally delectable Futo Maki, which is the traditional Japanese big roll; and the tangy Negitoro Maki, with its delectable combination of ground tuna and spring onions.

The unlimited sushi and maki anniversary special is priced at P1,400 (VAT included) for two persons and comes with a complimentary glass of iced tea. Should diners opt for bottomless iced tea, they simply add P149 (VAT included) to their tab.

Kitsho Japanese Restaurant and Sake Bar is located on the ground floor of Hotel Jen Manila along Roxas Boulevard. Call (02) 9943623 for more information.

Rain Forest

Ceviche De Norteno

Coming from the Philippines was an updated version of the iconic sisig served at a sari-sari store.

The one-day event also highlighted rich Southeast Asian culture with fun games and performances. Indonesian performers entertained guests with their traditional Pendet Dance, the Myanmar Embassy performed their Shwe Man Taung Yeik Kho dance, and the Thailand Embassy had a performance using a Thai stringed musical instrument.

ALF chairperson Louie Barcelon Locsin, who’s also the wife of DFA Secretary Teodoro Locsin, together with Her Excellency Hajah Johariah binti Haji Wahab, Ambassador of the Embassy of Brunei in Manila and president of the ALF, led the opening ceremony. They were joined by ASEAN Ambassadors and spouses who took part in the traditional ASEAN handshake.

RWM’s October Fiesta features local craft beer brewers.

GERMANY’S gift to the beer-drinking world, Oktoberfest, was given a Filipino twist at Resorts World Manila.

RWM’s October Fiesta, held on Oct. 4-5, featured over 30 craft beer brewers from the Philippine Craft Beer Community, which guests paired with signature RWM pulutans, including Franks’ Pinoy Hotdogs in Adobo, Inasal, and Bistek Tagalog flavors; Franks’ Sisig Wrap; RWM Fiesta Ham; and Bolahan’s selection of tusok-tusok favorites.

“October Fiesta is a unique celebration wherein mouthwatering food, good music, and distinct craft beers take the main spotlight the way Filipinos usually celebrate parties,” said RWM director for corporate communications Joee Guilas.

He added, “This year, we’re fortunate to have the PCBC as our partners for October Fiesta to give our guests a taste of genuinely home-brewed and homemade craft beer creations that each has their own distinct flavors.”

The event also gave the integrated resort the opportunity to raise awareness of the vibrant craft beer industry in the country by inviting entrepreneurs to showcase their creativity and resourcefulness in producing original craft beers, from sweet stouts to IPA. In 2018, the local craft beer industry reached a whopping annual retail market value of $12.9 million, while there are 80 active brewers today from only two back in 2010, according to SEA Brew during its Annual Brewers’ Conference in Southeast Asia last year.

“RWM’s October Fiesta brings to the public a different beer-drinking experience. Craft beer drinking allows enthusiasts to savor taste, appreciate aroma, and understand the special unique processes and ingredients,” shared Cherry Saculo-Genato, events organizer for PCBC.

NOW OPEN

Pop-up store offers milk tea for vegans A VEGAN-friendly milk tea shop is now open at Greenbelt in Makati.

Joybean, originally Jollibean, is a Singaporean soy milk brand that offers premium yet affordable soy-based milk tea options.

“We’re aware that Filipinos are huge fans of milk tea, so we’re delighted to bring a soy-based milk tea line to cater to this craving, but with a healthier, lactose-free version that has less sugar and calories,” said Shannen Francisco, assistant brand marketing manager of Joybean Philippines.

The menu includes Brown Sugar Soy Milk, Chocolate Joy Freeze, and Wintermelon Milk Tea, which are made of plant-based soybean milk from Grade A, non-GMO, and single variety IP Canadian soy beans. Soy beans are a good source of protein.

Apart from promoting hearty options, each drink comes with a sustainable straw made from bamboo, sugar cane, and coffee. The food packaging is also eco-friendly and biodegradable.

Joybean also offers snacks to match the beverages. Customers may order pancakes

Jollibean Foods Pte Ltd. and Joybean Food Masters Corporation officials open the first Joybean pop-up store at Greenbelt 3. The store serves soy-based milk tea.

Joybean’s booth is at Greenbelt available in three variants: crispy, Mee Chiang Kueh (traditional turnover pancake), 3 (across Seattle’s Best Coffee). The and mini pancake rolls. The pop-up store second pop-up store will soon open at also serves pudding and bean curd.

SM Fairview.

Entertainment

MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2019

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nickie.standard@gmail.com

Señorita from Madrid crowned Miss Asia Pacific International 2019 Celebs compete in special ‘Tawag Ng Tanghalan’ edition IT’S Showtime presents a special edition of “Tawag ng Tanghalan” as it brings together 24 celebrities to compete in a vocal showdown as part of the noontime program’s tenth anniversary celebration.

Giving joy and sharing their singing talent with the madlang people in the “Tawag ng Tanghalan: Celebrity Champions” are Ara Mina, Ethel Booba, Marlo Mortel, Pepe Herrera, Patricia Javier, Guji Lorenzana, Mike Luis, Jimmy Marquez, Alex Castro, Ana Ramsey, Songyupsal, and Anton Diva.

Every day, four celebrity contenders will battle it out and the daily winner will qualify for the finals. Daily winners now include singer-actress Roxanne Barcelo, vocal coach and The Voice of the Philippines alumnus Thor Dulay, and The Voice Kids grand finalist

and Your Face Sounds Familiar Kids performer Justin Alva.

Like in the normal competition, the celebrity contenders should pay attention to their singing to avoid being “gonged.”

The “Celebrity Champions” edition started on Oct. 7 with BoybandPH member Niel Murillo, It’s Showtime dancer Stephen Robles, former That’s Entertainment star Shirley Fuentes, “Mr. Pastillas” Chard Ocampo, Pinoy Dream Academy runner-up Jay-R Siaboc, actor-composer Lance Raymundo, actor and viral sensation CJ Navato, singer Geoff Taylor, and actress-cosplayer Myrtle Sarrosa already eliminated.

Watch out for more surprises from It’s Showtime, which airs from Monday to Saturday on ABS-CBN and ABS-CBN HD (Sky Cable ch 167).

Newly-crowned Miss Asia Pacific International 2019 Chaiyenne Huisman (center) and her court

S

PANISH delegate ChaiPAGEANT yenne Huisman was named CONCEPT Miss Asia Pacific InternationETON al 2019 besting 54 other delegates CONCEPCION from around the world in the glittering coronation finals held Wednesday, at the Newport Performing Arts Theater, Resorts World Manila, Pasay City.

Wearing an elegant yellow Greekgoddess-inspired gown, Huisman was crowned by last year’s titlist Sharifa Areef Mohammad Omar Akeel of the Philippines.

Huisman, a 20-year-old women empowerment advocate, became the first Spanish to win the title and the first from Spain to win in the country after the late Amparo Muños who was crowned Miss Universe in 1974 in Manila.

Huisman, who speaks six different languages, is also Spain’s fifth international winner after Miss World 2015 Mireia Lalaguna and Miss International winners Pilar Medina (1977), Silvia de Esteban (1990), and Alejandra Andreu (2008). The statuesque native of Madrid, loves scuba diving, rollerskating, and training her horses.

“I would like to say that perfection is not everything. We are unique in our own way and that’s what’s important, the statuesque Huisman answered during the final question-and-answer portion when asked “Should you win Miss Asia Pacific International, what legacy would you establish and leave behind?”

Huisman’s court of honor includes: first runner-up Eoanna Constanza of Dominican Republic; second runner-up Jessica Cianchino of Canada who has Filipino blood; third runner-upCarolina Schuler of Brazil; and fourth runner-up Fiorella Cortez Arbenz of Costa Rica.

Klyza Castro of the Philippines failed to make the Top 10 cut but made it to the Top 25. Castro was named Continental Queen of Asia 2019 at the preliminary competition held earlier.

Rounding out the Top 10 were Portugal, Romania, Belgium and Peru. Others in the Top 25 were Mexico, Malaysia, Honduras, Italy, Namibia, Colombia, Netherlands, Latvia, Nigeria, Australia and Thailand – who was awarded People’s Choice. Miss Germany, who is Filipino was Best in National Costume while Miss Romania won Best in Swimsuit and Miss Dominican Republic winning Best in Evening Gown.

Other continental winners were Miss Cameroon, Continental Queen of Africa; Miss Canada, Continental Queen of Americas;

Miss Belgium, Continental Queen of Europe; and Miss New Zealand, Continental Queen of Oceania.

Among the panel of judges were actor Richard Yap, world-renowned Filipino furniture designer Kenneth Cobonpue, diplomat and beauty queen Fortune Ledesma and 2017 Miss Asia Pacific International Francielly Ouriques.

The coronation, hosted by model Joey Mead King, Sam YG and Celebrity Car Wars host Bobby Tonelli, was beamed live worldwide via Channel FoxLife. *** Cory Quirino goes for CWC Interiors CWC Interiors a leading Filipino-owned, multi-product company and retail furniture store, recently launched its BGC Showroom in conjunction with the grand opening of Chef Jessie Restaurant graced by wellness advocate and TV/radio host Cory Quirino.

“If you’re looking for the best, high quality and the latest innovation in products at most reasonable prices, go to CWC Interiors. It’s really a one-stop place to see “a permanent collection designed to meet fully

the requirements for modern living,” Quirino vouched.

CWC provides a personalized interior design for home office and comfortable office design. CWC Interiors specializes in home furniture and accessories, decorative lightning, decorative sound systems, and kitchen systems of leading brands.

Its Arnaiz Avenue and BGC showrooms focus more on residential clients, not just in Metro Manila area, but also cater clients up to the southern parts of the country, extending its services to everyone in any point of the Philippines.

CWC Interiors prides itself on more than 20 years of business, relationships developed, and projects completed, achieved by a great team of people working together. It’s the main destination for all things Herman Miller, a pioneering American office furniture, equipment and home furnishings which was credited with the invention of the office cubicle. Herman Miller’s original Director of Design, George Nelson, from 1908 to 1986, was the American industrial designer of American Modernism.

Everyone at CWC Interiors is willing to do whatever is necessary to ensure a happy and content customer and beautiful project. You can also secure a top, experienced interior designer at CWC Interiors which provides excellent and durable office wooden furniture.

CWC Interiors BGC Showroom is located at GF Unit 1-3 Milestone at Fifth Avenue, 5th Avenue, Bonifacio Global City, and the Arnaiz Showroom at 830 Arnaiz Avenue, Brgy.

San Lorenzo Village, Makati City.

Celebrity contenders in It's Showtime's special edition of 'Tawag Ng Tanghalan'

Anthony Rosaldo launches revival single ‘Maghintay Ka Lamang’ FOLLOWING the success of his musical variety show Studio 7. first hit single under GMA Music Anthony’s latest single is now availentitled “Larawan Mo,” The able in all digital streaming platforms Clash alumnus and one of GMA Artist worldwide.

Center’s talented singers Anthony Rosaldo belts out another power ballad via his sophomore single “Maghintay Ka Lamang.”

The song is composed by Vehnee Saturno and produced by Kedy Sanchez.

The single landed in the 4th spot of iTunes Philippines’ All Genres list and 3rd spot of its Pop Chart.

Anthony shared that his rendition of this OPM classic will warm the hearts of the listeners, “I am giving my own spin on this lovely song. Thank you so much GMA Music for allowing me to do a revival for my 2nd single!

I can’t wait for this song to soar high and be heard on the radio.”

Last June, Anthony had a successful concert with actress Mikee Quintos entitled Revelation held at the Music Museum. At present, Anthony regularly appears on GMA’s

GMA Music artist Anthony Rosaldo

Presidential Grand Daughter and Pres.

Mutya Pilipinas, Cory Quirino, and Chef Jessie Sincioco during the launching of CWC International at GF Unit 1-3 Milestone at Fifth Avenue, 5th Ave, Taguig.

Very Wang...

From C4

Since debuting in show business in 2010, Jasmine has starred in numerous independent films such as Dementia, Bonifacio: Ang Unang Pangulo, Baka Bukas, and Maledicto, to mentiona few.

Today, Jasmine is a contract star of GMA-7 and has appeared on the network’s successful series Pamilya Roces and is set to be part of the ensemble mammoth cast of the highly anticipated Descendants Of The Sun. Although it took Jasmine almost seven years to hit mainstream films as lead actress, Cara X Jagger according to her is worth the wait.

“It’’s a very different kind of love story,” says Jasmine. “Cara X Jagger is character-centric and though the conflict between Cara and Jagger is quite unusual, their story still represents what love is all about which is loving someone unconditionally and moving on no matter how painful a relationship has become.”Jasmine further gushes about how she will never forget her experience in filmingCara X Jagger and how excited she is to share the movie with everyone.

“We have worked so hard to make Cara X Jagger an unforgettable movie. I am humbled and inspired by our team and I am all fired up to promote this movie. I hope everybody will support the love story of Cara and Jagger.”

Cara X Jagger is showing in cinemas nationwide starting Nov. 6.

Entertainment

Nickie Wang, Issue Editor nickie.standard@gmail.com

C4

MONDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2019

Some daily dose of JakBie HOW will you know if what you are feeling is really love?

Fans of JakBie need not wait no more to see their beloved reel and real life couple on the small screen again as award-winning actress Barbie Forteza and Kapuso hunk Jak Robertobanner the second episode of Wagas entitled “Wait Lang…Is this Love?”

The award-winning drama anthology’s second offering, which started airing last Sept. 30, features the story of Yummy Bubuyog (Barbie), who is already 21 years old but she has never experienced what it’s like to be in a relationship.

She is the “no-boyfriend-since-birth” type of girl, though she claims that she is a “no-boyfriend-since-birth by choice” because of her two strict and

overprotective man-hater aunts: Tita Gloria (Yayo Aguila) and Tita Sonya (Tina Paner) who took care of Yummy since her mother, Leticia, passed away.

They don’t want Yummy out of their sight, and more than that, they don’t want their niece to fall in love just yet because of a past that involves them and Yummy’s late mother. The two aunts own the family business “Walang Kapares” in Valenciana where Yummy works as the talented chef.

Good thing Yummy has the company of her friends—the sassy and ‘woke’ Bane (Ayra Mariano) who works with her in “Walang Kapares” as a cashier— and the handsome and mischievous Eugene (Jak Roberto), Yummy’s childhood friend and ‘puppy love’.

Her unrequited feelings faded as they grew up but little did Yummy know that

Eugene is already developing feelings for her now that they are older.

The lives of Yummy’s family and friends are about to be turned upside down the moment rich realtor Rex (Ray PJ Abellana) and his nephew Cedrick (Kristoffer Martin) arrive in Valenciana. Joining the ruckus is Sandy (Ashley Ortega), Cedrick’s real girlfriend.

Yummy now finds herself the object of Cedrick’s attention, making her heart flutter in a way that is new to her. Finally, she asks herself: “Is this love?”

Don’t miss the funny, and heartwarming story of the Bubuyog family in Wagas’ second offering “Wait Lang…

Is This Love?” directed by Rember Galera, airing from Monday to Friday, Barbie Forteza and Jak Roberto banner the second episode of 'Wagas' entitled 'Wait before Eat Bulaga on GMA-7.

Lang…Is This Love?'

Green Day

confirms first-ever concert in Manila FIVE-TIME Grammy Awardwinning Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees Green Day announces their first-ever visit to the Philippines which will happen on March 14 next year at the Mall of Asia Arena as confirmed by concert promoters MMI Live and Live Nation.

Green Day has also recently announced a new album called Father of All… along with the title track as its first single. The album is slated to arrive in February 2020 as their first album since 2016’s Revolution Radio.

Formed in 1986 in Berkeley, CA, Green Day is one of the world’s best-selling bands of all time, with more than 70 million records sold worldwide and 10 billion cumulative audio/visual streams. Their 1994 breakout album Dookie, which sold over 10 million and achieved diamond status, is widely credited with popularizing and reviving mainstream interest in punk rock, catapulting a career-long run of #1 hit singles.

Entertainment Weekly calls

Green Day, “The most influential band of their generation,” while Rolling Stone attests, “Green Day have inspired more young bands to start than any act this side of KISS, and that doesn’t seem to be changing.”

In 2004, Green Day released the rock opera American Idiot that captured the nation’s attention, selling more than 7 million copies in the U.S. alone and taking home the Grammy Award for Best Rock Album. Mojo declared “It’s exhilarating stuff, the kind of record that sets new parameters as to what is possible from a punk rock’n’roll band in the 21st century.” In 2010, a stage adaptation of American Idiot debuted on Broadway to critical and commercial acclaim.

Tickets to Green Day Live In Manila 2020 concert started to become available yesterday Oct. 13 at all SM Tickets outlets and smtickets. com. For more information, please follow MMI Live (on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter), or visit mmilive.com for more details.

Grammy Awards' Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee will perform in the country on March 14, 2020, at the Mall of Asia Arena

SNAPSHOT

Keira Knightley in London for new film premiere ENGLISH actress Keira Knightley arrives for the European premiere of the film Official Secrets in London.

Official Secrets is a American-British docudrama film based on the life of whistleblower Katharine Gun (played by Knightly) who leaked a memo detailing that the United States had eavesdropped on diplomats from countries tasked with passing a second United Nations resolution on the invasion of Iraq. AFP

Coming on the heels of Star Cinema's massively successful film, 'Hello, Love, Goodbye,' is Black Sheep's 'Isa Pa with Feelings' starring Kapuso Maine Mendoza and Kapamilya Carlo Aquino.

S

One more, this time with feelings

TARS agree that GMA Network and ABS-CBN VERY team-ups in movies allow WANG them to explore numerous options NICKIE in their acting career. It also WANG enables them to work with people whom they can gain knowledge from not to mention it trumps the ongoing network war that rabid fans of both networks are crazy about.

Coming on the heels of the massive success of Hello, Love, Goodbye, the movie that now holds the record of being the highest-grossing local film of all time and top-billed by Kapuso star Alden Richards and Kapamilya darling Kathryn Bernardo, Maine Mendoza and Carlo Aquino are the ones next in line.

It’s GMA-ABS-CBN tandem one more time, but this time around, the movie offers a different approach when it comes to expressing someone’s feelings.

Titled Isa Pa With Feelings, Maine plays Mara, who learns sign language from Gali, played by Carlo, a deaf instructor.

According to the two stars, they don’t feel the pressure of their film performing well at the tills. In fact, they believe that they have created a good material, which core lies in the emotions of the characters and the dilemma that confronts them.

“Hello, Love, Goodbye was a good movie. We’re also making a good movie, we’re also working hard on this,” said Carlo.

“We are not pressured at all. Wala naman kaming gustong patunayan. We just wanted to do a film that people will like. We don’t have any target. We’ll be happy whether the film will achieve,” Maine related.

The stars of the Black Sheep bigscreen project explained that their only goal is for the movie fans to appreciate their film.

Apart from the collaborative environment, which Isa Pa With Feelings had, the stars admitted that they have leveled up their friendship while doing their movie together.

“That’s the good thing about working with stars from the other network. It

allows you to gain more friends. And with Maine, we have become more comfortable with each other,” Carlo shared.

In response, Maine said that Carlo is very friendly and accommodating.

Isa Pa With Feelings unspools in theaters nationwide on Oct.16. ***

Jasmine Curtis hits mainstream theater

Screen actress Jasmine CurtisSmith gears up for her very first leading role in a mainstream movie with young actor Ruru Madrid in APT Entertainment and Cignal

Jasmine CurtisSmith teams up with Ruru Madrid in a mainstream romantic film, 'Cara X Jagger.'

Entertainment’s upcoming romantic drama, Cara X Jagger.

Directed by acclaimed cinematographer lce ldanan and with an original story by Acy Ramos with a screenplay which she co-wrote with Glaiza Ramirez, Cara X Jagger is an unforgettable love story centered on a pair of young lovers who is faced with the most unlikely dilemma that could potentially make or break their relationship.

Former couple Cara (Curtis) and Jagger (Madrid) are facing a major conflict that tests the endurance of their relationship. Cara is doing everything in her power to forget a painful event that ruined her relationship with Jagger while the latter is fighting to remember his life after he lost his memory after a terrible accident.

An award-winning actress and one of today’s top celebrity influencers with millions of followers on social media, Jasmine is internationallyrecognized for her critically acclaimed performance in 2013’s indie smash hit, Transit. Continued on C3