Manila Standard - 2020 May 25 - Monday

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RODY’S EID’L FITR CALL ON MUSLIMS: BE LIVING EXAMPLES OF FAITH PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte on Sunday declared May 25, 2020 a holiday as he called on Muslim Filipinos to be “living examples” of Islamic faith as the world celebrates Eid’l Fitr while grap-

pling with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

“As you celebrate the Breaking of the Fast, may the clarity of thought and wisdom that you have attained from this

undertaking inspire you to be the living examples of what is best in the Islamic faith,” Duterte said in a statement.

Duterte expressed hope that the month-long Ramadan fasting has

Eid’l Fitr is celebrated for three days helped the Muslim community nourish their inner strength and fortitude to stay on different dates each year, depending true to the goodness of humanity and on the sighting of the new moon in the at the same time harnessing the best of 10th month of the Islamic calendar. This their capabilities and perspectives.

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EID’L FITR. People at Islamic Center Mosque in Indonesia’s Aceh province attend prayers, marking the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan on May 24, 2020. In the Philippines, members of a Muslim family (left) pray inside their home while observing social distancing since the Philippine government has banned mass gatherings at public places including mosques and churches in efforts to contain the spread of the new coronavirus disease. AFP

‘Quarantine eased in June’

DND chief sees MM under GCQ even as mayors have yet to forge consensus

By Joel E. Zurbano, Vito Barcelo, Willie Casas and Rio N. Araja

Q VOL. XXXIV • NO. 91 • 1 SECTION 4 PAGES • P18 • MONDAY, MAY 25, 2020 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com

UARANTINE restrictions in response to COVID-19 in Metro Manila will most likely be eased again by June 1, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said Saturday evening.

“Most likely we will be under a GCQ

by June 1,” Lorenzano said, referring to a general community quarantine.

Metro Manila, Laguna, Bataan, Bulacan and other provinces, are currently under a modified enhanced community quarantine (ECQ), which allows some

COVID-19 PH AT A GLANCE

(AS OF 4 PM MAY 24)

14,035 TOTAL NUMBER OF CASES

868

258 NEW

5

DEATHS

NEW

3,249

72

RECOVERIES

NEW

PH WARSHIP. The country’s first ever missilecapable frigate, BRP Jose Rizal, has arrived after its maiden voyage from South Korea. The Navy says its newest and most advanced warship will boost the country’s defense capability to secure the seas against threats.

WORLD ROUNDUP

• NYT marks grim milestone • Cold War looms AS THE United States approached 100,000 coronavirus deaths, The New York Times on Sunday marked the grim milestone with a stark memorial on its front page—one-line obituaries for 1,000 victims.

“The 1,000 people here reflect just one percent of the toll. None were mere numbers,” the newspaper said in a short introduction on the front page, which was entirely covered in text.

The United States has been the hardest-hit country in the coronavirus pandemic by far, in deaths and number of infections.

Victims featured by the Times included “Joe Diffie, 62, Nashville, Grammy-winning country music star,” and “Lila A. Fenwick, 87, New York City, first black woman to graduate from Harvard Law School.”

Marc Lacey, the paper’s national editor, said, “I wanted something that people would look back on in 100 years to understand the toll of what we’re living through.”

New Cold War looms The United States is pushing relations with China to “the brink of a new Cold War,” the Chinese foreign minister said on Sunday, with tenNext page

sectors such as construction and food manufacturing to resume operations after two months under a lockdown.

Members of the Metro Manila Council, made up of the mayors of 16 cities and one municipality, are set to meet Next page

‘New malling normal likely in two years’

By Rio N. Araja FILIPINOS may have to get used to safety protocols such as wearing of masks and practicing social distancing that form part of the new shopping normal for the next two years, the Department of Trade and Industry said Sunday.

“Malls are encouraged to continue these strict protocols. We cannot afford to be lax. Probably in the next year two years, this should still be our practice,” Trade Undersecretary Ruth Castelo said during a virtual forum hosted by the Department of Health.

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Oil firms set price hike whopper: P2.30 per liter of diesel

By Alena Mae S. Flores

“Expect fuel prices to go up next week (May 26 to June 1). Diesel should PUMP prices could go up this week increase by more than P2.30 per liter. by as much as P2.30 per liter effective Gasoline should increase by more than Tuesday to reflect the movement of oil P1.90 per liter,” Unioil Philippines said in its weekly price forecast. prices in the world market.

The latest oil price hike does not include the impact of the additional 10 percent duty on all crude petroleum oil and refined petroleum products under Executive Order 113 to help bolster government revenues to fight COVID-19.

Data provided by the department showed that the additional 10 percent tariff will result in an increase of P0.60 per liter for gasoline, P0.84 per liter for diesel and P0.55 per liter for kerosene.

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LOCAL ROUNDUP

• Save OFWs • Curb test cost • SAP zapped

By Maricel V. Cruz, Willie Casas, Darwin G. Amojelar, Joel E. Zurbano

LAB PRIMATES. Laboratory monkeys with their babies sit in their cage in the breeding center for cynomolgus macaques (longtail

macaques) at the National Primate Research Center of Thailand’s Chulalongkorn University. Thai scientists from the center have begun testing COVID-19 vaccine candidate on monkeys, the phase before human trials. AFP

Wuhan savant blasts Trump claim on virus leak

BEIJING—The Chinese virology institute in the city where COVID-19 first emerged has three live strains of bat coronavirus on-site, but none match the new contagion wreaking chaos across the world, its director has said.

Scientists think COVID-19—which first emerged in Wuhan and has killed some 340,000 people worldwide—originated in bats and could have been transmitted to people via another mammal.

But the director of the Wuhan Insti-

tute of Virology told state broadcaster CGTN that claims made by US President Donald Trump and others the virus could have leaked from the facility were “pure fabrication.”

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A COMMITTEE in the House of Representatives has approved a bill for the implementation of P5 billion worth of projects aimed at alleviating the plight of overseas Filipino workers who were adversely affected by the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

The Committee on Overseas Workers Affairs chaired by TUCP party-list Rep. Raymond Democrito Mendoza approved the measure which covers assistance programs such as repatriation, medical expenses in the form of vouchers for six months from arrival, migration fees for overstaying Filipinos, legal assistance, and basic necessities, among others.

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News

MONDAY, MAY 25, 2020

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Postpone school year—solon

By Maricel V. Cruz and Willie Casas

A

HOUSE leader on Sunday appealed to the Department of Education (DepEd) to postpone the resumption of classes this year instead of resorting to online instruction.

Ong said online classes are disadvantageous to students in far-flung towns, many of whom do not have access to reliable e-learning gadgets like smart phones, tablets and laptops, and a stable internet connection.

“To avoid any confusion, DepEd should make an announcement this early so that parents would no longer be wasting precious resources to buy gadgets for their children. No forecast is also available if any specific area will be under low risk severity this early, and so many parents have no choice but to secure elearning technologies out of fear of their children missing out when they themselves are already suffering financially due to this pandemic,” Ong said.

Ong added that while one year is a lot of lost opportunities to learn and advance in the educational ladder, DepEd, along with many public and private schools are completely unprepared to conduct online classes, which may aggravate the country’s declining

quality of education.

Unlike First World countries where internet is fast and cheap and parents can easily afford to buy gadgets for their children, the country is really not ready yet for a full shift to e-learning systems.

Ong said that while DepEd is tweaking its system and while it is training its teachers to adapt to the challenges of the “new normal,” the government should also have its own social amelioration program for teachers both in the public and private sector.

At the same time, the ACT Teachers party-list group branded as “untrue and unrealistic” the DepEd claim that all 900,000 teachers are not required to physically report to work on June 1.

The teachers’ group reported that Isabela teachers were recently tasked to physically take DepEd’s online survey on distance learning readiness from one student’s house to another, as these households did not have access to computers or a stable internet connection.

Medical Center, bringing the total number of PCR testing centers to 34.

A total of 120 other facilities were undergoing the five-step laboratory accreditation process, 92 of which were already at Stage 3 and above.

Plant, plant, plant

for the Department of Agriculture for its food supply availability and price stabilization programs.

Rep. Ronnie Ong of Ang Probinsyano party-list group said virtual classrooms would only prejudice students who are not equipped with computers, tablets or phones and who cannot afford an internet connection.

“DepEd should just postpone the entire school year without any exception.

Our policy should apply to all to avoid any confusion. We are unprepared for this crisis,” Ong said.

Ong, vice chairman of the House committee on rural development, said that giving schools the option to hold virtual classes also unnecessarily gives parents additional financial and emotional burden just to ensure that their children will not miss out on this school

year amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to DepEd’s Learning Continuity Plan (LCP) published May 11, 2020, “no face-to-face classes will be allowed earlier than Aug. 24, 2020; and from August 24, face-to-face learning shall only be allowed when the local risk severity grading permits, and subject to compliance with minimum health standards. Adoption of various learning delivery options such as but not limited to face-to-face, blended learnings, distance learnings, and homeschooling and other modes of delivery shall be implemented depending on the local COVID Risk Severity Classification and compliance with minimum health standards.”

World...

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‘Quarantine...

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sions soaring over coronavirus, Hong Kong’s status and other issues.

“It has come to our attention that some political forces in the US are taking China-US relations hostage and pushing our two countries to the brink of a new Cold War,” foreign minister Wang Yi told reporters.

Wang did not identify what “forces” he was referring to, but US President Donald Trump has led world criticism of China’s initial response to the pandemic, which has caused more than 330,000 deaths and economic carnage worldwide.

“Aside from the devastation caused by the novel coronavirus, there is also a political virus spreading through the US,” Wang said at a press conference on the side of the annual legislative meeting.

“This political virus is the use of every opportunity to attack and smear China. Some politicians completely disregard basic facts and have fabricated too many lies targeting China, and plotted too many conspiracies.”

this week to discuss recommendations on the fate of the modified ECQ after May 31.

MMC chairman and Parañaque City Mayor Edwin Olivarez said the mayors were torn between restarting the economy and safeguarding the people’s health.

Olivarez said he is in favor dropping down to a GCQ in Metro Manila on June 1, because the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic or residents of the National Capital Region.

Citing a study conducted by a staterun think tank, Olivarez said the economy may lose between P276.3 billion and P2.5 trillion, depending on how the coronavirus pandemic develops in the next few months.

The country’s economic losses are estimated to reach P2.5 trillion under a worse case scenario, where it is assumed that the pandemic is not contained around the world and that the global economy would fall into a recession.

The MMC recommendations will be presented to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, which would have the final say.

Palace spokesman Harry Roque said despite current restrictions, Metro Manila was slowly returning to normal.

He added that the slowing down of doubling rates—the rate at which the disease doubles—was an encouraging sign that the curve of infections is flattening.

Longer doubling times produce a smaller, flatter surge, but they also mean the public must continue social distancing to maintain the range path of transmission, he said.

Under new guidelines issued by the IATF, ECQ and MECQ areas allow the full operation of public or private hospitals; health and emergency front-line services; and manufacturers of medicines, medical supplies, devices and equipment in areas.

The IATF’s Resolution 38 also allows industries in agriculture, forestry and

fishery as well as delivery and courier services for food, medicine and other essential goods to resume full operations in all quarantine categories.

For other industries, the previous ECQ rule on companies running at half capacity remains but those involved in the provision of essential goods and services, media entities, establishments offering utility relocation work and specified limited works are now allowed to resume full operations in MECQ areas.

The same will apply to medical, dental, rehabilitation and optometry clinics; pharmacies and drug stores; veterinary clinics; banks and money transfer services; capital markets, water supply, and sanitation services and facilities; energy and power firms; telecommunications companies; airline and aircraft maintenance in MECQ zones.

The IATF also allowed the full operation of manufacturing companies; state-run Philippine Postal Corp. and the Philippine Statistics Authority; business process outsourcing and export-oriented businesses; essential projects and funeral and embalming services.

The new guidelines also allowed gatherings for the provision of critical government services and authorized humanitarian activities, subject to prescribed health standards, in MECQ areas.

For areas under GCQ, the IATF also expanded the outdoor activities that people could undertake.

These include non-contact sports and other forms of exercise such as, but not limited to, walking, jogging, running, biking, golf, swimming, tennis, badminton, equestrian and skateboarding. Minimum health standards must be followed.

The Department of Health (DOH) on Sunday reported 258 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total nationwide to 14,035.

Five new fatalities brought the death toll to 868, while 72 new recoveries brought to 3,249 the number of patients who have recovered from the disease.

Meanwhile, among the latest polymerase chain reaction (PCR) laboratories to be licensed by the DOH were the Philippine National Police Crime Laboratory and the Ilocos Training and Regional

for the deadly disease.

“Amid the urgent need for mass testing to contain the spread of COVID-19, it is important for the government to make sure that the test kits and processing fees are being reasonably priced to give access to those not eligible for free testing,” Bagong Henerasyon party-list Rep. Bernadette Herrera said.

“There has to be transparency into the cost of COVID-19 testing to protect the public against price gouging and ensure its affordability so that every person who needs or wants a test gets one,” she added.

Herrera issued the statement after it became public knowledge that some hospitals and laboratories are charging as high as P8,150 for a single coronavirus test, more than double the P3,500 the Philippine Red Cross charges for its real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction test.

A congressional leader wants a “reprioritization” of the proposed 2021 national government budget, with a significant increase in the funds allotted for agricultural development—“with the long-term goal of attaining sufficiency in rice and other basic foodstuff in the post-pandemic scenario.”

“Alongside ‘Build, Build, Build,’ the Duterte administration needs to likewise put ‘Plant, Plant, Plant’ on the front burner to best prepare the country for the ‘new normal’ once the pandemic spawned by the coronavirus has been contained,” Deputy Speaker Luis Raymund Villafuerte said: He said that in support of higher farm productivity, the social amelioration subpanel of the House of Representatives’ Defeat Covid-19 Committee (DCC) has passed House Resolution No. 821 backing a supplemental budget

China ‘open’ to probe China is “open” to international cooperation to identify the source of the novel coronavirus but any investigation must be “free of political interference,” Wang said.

He blasted what he called efforts by US politicians to “fabricate rumors” about the pathogen’s origins and “stigmatize China.”

The United States and Australia have called in recent weeks for an investigation into the origins of the pandemic.

“China is open to working with the international scientific community to look into the source of the virus. At the same time, we believe that this should be professional, fair and constructive,” he said.

“Fairness means the process be free of political interference, respect the sovereignty of all countries, and oppose any presumption of guilt.” AFP

Local...

From A1 Earlier, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration head Hans Cacdac requested for additional budget after reporting that the agency’s expenses have reached almost P500 million as of May 16. Philippine Overseas Employment Administration head Bernard Olalia said concerned government officials should also consider the 40,000 seafarers expected to arrive due to crew change and will eventually undergo quarantine.

Regulate testing cost A lawmaker on Sunday asked the government to regulate the cost of COVID-19 testing at hospitals and laboratories, both public and private, to ensure that more Filipinos have access to affordable screening

Oil...

From A1 World oil prices have been going up in recent weeks as oil supply is being reduced amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Optimism on demand side due to many countries reopening also pushed global oil prices upward.

On May 19, oil companies raised the prices of petroleum products by P1.25 per liter for gasoline, P0.55 per liter for diesel and P2.35 to P2.40 per liter for kerosene.

On May 12, the oil firms also raised

the price of gasoline by P2 liter for gasoline, P1.90 per liter for diesel and P1.25 per liter for kerosene.

Total year-to-date adjustments show a net decrease of P11.27 per liter for gasoline, P14.54 per liter for diesel and P18.88 per liter for kerosene, according to the Energy Department.

The country’s petroleum demand reached 171.817 million barrels last year, an increase of 1.8 percent from 168.805 million barrels in 2018.

This translates to an average daily requirement of 470.7 thousand barrels compared to 462.5 thousand barrels per day in 2018, department data showed.

Rody’s...

From A1 year, the celebration of Eid’l Fitr is set on Sunday (May 24).

Duterte has declared May 25 as a regular holiday for the observance of Eid’l Fitr through Proclamation No. 944.

The proclamation also reminded the Muslim community to observe community quarantine and safe physical distancing measures amid the Covid-19 pandemic that has killed over 340,000 people worldwide.

Muslims traditionally gather in mosques to pray on the first day of Eid’l

In other developments: • The Alliance of Health Workers (AHW) on Sunday lambasted the national government for having no program for COVID-19 mass testing and leaving it up to the private sector to pay for the detection of the disease among their employees. “We are so disgusted with government’s privatized response in dealing with COVID-19 pandemic while abandoning its state responsibility for health workers’ safety and people’s right to public health. Massive testing was crucial to seeing the true picture of transmission in the country but it was never done promptly,” Robert Mendoza, national president of the AHW, said. Mendoza also decried the pronouncement of Health Secretary Francisco Duque III that the curve of infections has flattened despite the government’s lack of testing and contact tracing.

• Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte has partnered with the private sector in a bid to identify COVID-19 patients for rapid testing in several villages. The city government received 3,800 rapid antibodybased diagnostic test (RDTs) kits from Project Ark, a private sector initiative to be used to screen and identify residents from selected barangays. On May 18, 1,500 rapid tests were conducted in barangays Immaculate Concepcion, Kristong Hari, Kalugusan and Dona Aurora as pilot areas based on their population, active cases and attack rate of the virus in the area. These barangays are also located along Quezon City’s hospital belt, an area with hospitals accommodating COVID-19 patients.

• Manila City Vice Mayor Maria Sheilah Lacuna-Pangan on Sunday said that confirmed COVID-19 cases are expected to rise due to the city’s continuous mass testing operations. With mass testing operations, Lacuna-Pangan said the Manila City government will be able to immediately identify and isolate infected residents from their communities.

‘New malling...

From A1 “Whatever protocols are implemented now should be the same, even in December, even in the next year, even probably the years after,” she added.

Under DTI Memorandum Circular 20-21, malls, shopping centers, and establishments under general community quarantine are required to strictly monitor foot traffic and enforce safe distancing among customers.

Free Wi-Fi will not be offered and sale events, marketing events, and other promotional activities requiring physical contact will remain suspended so as not to encourage crowds.

Elevators will only be reserved for senior citizens, pregnant women and persons with disability.

New City Commercial Corporation President Lafayette Lim said they are in the process of acquiring disinfection chambers for their malls.

“We just have to continue dealing with the distancing. As long as there is no cure or vaccine, this will be the new normal in our operations,” Lim said.

“Regardless of category, there will be no close contact. For make-up products, for example, there will be digital sampling to simulate what the make-up will look like,” added SM Supermalls Vice President for Business Development Gino Borromeo.

For his part, housing czar Eduardo del Rosario has ordered all its regional directors to closely monitor the resumption of activities in the real-estate industry to ensure strict compliance of health and safety protocols as stalled construction works resume.

He issued the directive during separate meetings with top officials of the Organization of Socialized Housing Developers Association of the Philippines (OSHDAP) and Subdivision and Housing Developers Association (SHDA) via video conferences.

IATF Resolution No. 34 has allowed the resumption of “priority public and private construction and infrastructure projects,” including the housing sector, in areas under enhanced community quarantine.

“The protocols should be applied regardless of the classification of risks, whether low or high, to ensure the protection of our workers and keep construction sites COVID-free.

Non-compliance shall warrant the imposition of a cease-and-desist order against the covered entities,” Del Rosario said.

Wuhan...

From A1

A thinktank which helped marginalized families file appeals for inclusion in the government’s Social Amelioration Program said the recent Social Weather Station survey indicating rising hunger during the coronavirus crisis confirms that the cash aid is poorly implemented.

“The SWS hunger survey provides government the imperative to rethink its social protection programs as we ease lockdowns around the country. Despite almost all respondents receiving government aid, a 16.7 percent hunger index indicates that the aid did not reach beneficiaries in time to prevent involuntary hunger,” said Terry Ridon, Infrawatch PH convenor and former urban poor chief of the Duterte administration.

In the interview filmed on May 13 but broadcast Saturday night, Wang Yanyi said the center has “isolated and obtained some coronaviruses from bats.”

“Now we have three strains of live viruses... But their highest similarity to SARS-CoV-2 only reaches 79.8 percent,” she said, referring to the coronavirus strain that causes COVID-19.

One of their research teams, led by Professor Shi Zhengli, has been researching bat coronaviruses since 2004 and focused on the “source tracing of SARS,” the strain behind another virus outbreak nearly two decades ago.

“We know that the whole genome of SARS-CoV-2 is only 80 percent similar to that of SARS. It’s an obvious difference,” she said.

“So, in Professor Shi’s past research, they didn’t pay attention to such viruses which are less similar to the SARS virus.”

Conspiracy rumors that the biosafety lab was involved in the outbreak swirled online for months before Trump and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo brought the theory into the mainstream by claiming that there is evidence the pathogen came from the institute.

The lab has said it received samples of the then-unknown virus on December 30, determined the viral genome sequence on January 2 and submitted information on the pathogen to the WHO on January 11.

Wang said in the interview that before it received samples in December, their team had never “encountered, researched or kept the virus.” AFP

Fitr, but because public gatherings remain banned due to the virus pandemic, they will have to celebrate inside their homes.

Meanwhile, Majority Leader and Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez and Tingog party-list Rep. Yedda Marie K. Romualdez on Sunday were one with Filipino Muslims in the celebration of Eid’l Fitr.

The Romualdez couple greeted Muslims who have had offered sacrifices through fasting and with much closer communication to Allah during Ramadan.

“Our greetings of solidarity, hope, joy, love, and felicitation in marking the end of Ramadan. We are praying that peace will continue to embrace our

country, including other conflict-hit areas. Eid Mubarak,” said the Romualdez couple as they enjoined all Filipinos, regardless of religious and spiritual beliefs, in expressing prayers and messages of solidarity for the Muslim people.

“Let’s stand together and provide hope and courage to weather various problems, including the coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic,” according to the Romualdez couple.

Deputy Speaker and Basilan Rep. Mujiv Hataman expressed gratitude to the Romualdez couple for the good words and valuing their tradition during Ramadan.

Poor SAP implementation

News

MONDAY, MAY 25, 2020 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Drug price control to cost gov’t P28b T HE government stands to lose P28 billion in revenues as a result of price controls on medicine earlier recommended by the Department of Health (DOH).

Through a presidential fiat, Executive Order 104 will take effect in June and will slash the prices of medicines from the manufacturers’ level but not all prices will be reduced at the patient level.

The industry projects its sales to drop

by P57 billion from P200 billion once the full price control plan of the DOH is fully implemented.

Projected government revenue losses are broken down into: P4 billion in foregone customs duties; P7 billion in lost VAT; and P17 billion

in corporate taxes.

“The EO does not benefit the public in the end because of the formula used to compute the price adjustments. We appeal that the measure be withdrawn until further studies especially at this time when the government needs funds to fight Covid-19,” said the Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Association of the Philippines (PHAP).

“Price control has not been effective based on global experience. It is

a populist proposition but discourages production, creating scarcity that will likely hurt those in need of the medicines the most, and shrinks an industry. We continue to appeal for a thorough review on the impact of this policy, it added.”

I nstead, the PH A P said the gover n ment should cont i nue the pract ice of buying in bulk and price negotiation to assure both supply and price stability.

Gov’t, Facebook to track online child sex fiends

BOC destroys tons of unregistered meds

By Vito Barcelo THE Bureau of Customs condemned 2 tons of seized unregistered medicines and meat products at Trece Martires, Cavite.

Some of the shipments that were condemned are unregistered medicines with an estimated weight of 350 kilos. These medicines were seized for failure to obtain necessary clearance from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and thus unsafe for human consumption.

The condemnation of the illegally imported medicines is part of bureau’s border protection initiatives to protect the public against unsafe medicines.

Along with the medicines are expired food stuff and meat products with no health clearance, according to the BOC statement..

The said unsafe goods were condemned using the Thermal Decomposer (Pyrolysis) Facility of the Integrated Waste Management Inc. located in Trece Martires City.

The thermal decomposer will ensure the safety and no single waste item will find its way to the market.

The condemnation was coordinated with Food and Drug Administration), Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Animal Industry, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, and Commission on Audit.

The destruction in compliance with Commissioner Rey Leonardo Guerrero’s directives to continue to protect the country against entry of illegal goods and importations that are not compliant to Customs regulations.

The BOC assured the public that it will continue to provide government service 24/7 to protect the country’s border.

IN BRIEF Pasay to probe case vs city councilor PASAY City Mayor Imelda Rubiano on Sunday said that she she has called for an emergency meeting with Councilor Arnel Arceo and other city government officials to shed light on a video that went viral on social media showing health workers were harassed while conducting COVID-19 rapid testing inside City Hall.

“I find it regrettable that the incident happened. But as mayor, it is my responsibility to ensure that we should focus on our real enemy which is COVD-19,” Rubiano said.

Social media has been abuzz about Arceo venting his ire over health officers who conducted the test in the session hall.

According to Rubiano, she has already conducted a series of dialogues and inquiries with the parties involved in the video to listen to their sides of the controversy. It is very possible that there has been a misunderstanding between them. Joel E. Zurbano

P’que to distribute P5k to residents THE Parañaque City government is set to launch next month a new program giving about 40,000 residents P5,000 cash assistance, Mayor Edwin Olivarez announced on Sunday.

Olivarez said families who will benefit from the “Parana-Cash” program are those who did not receive any form of cash assistance from the national government under the Social Amelioration Program, expanded 4Ps, and COVID-19 Adjustment Measures Program of the Department of Labor and Employment.

“Households who did not receive cash from the national government are entitled to P5,000 cash assistance as part of the city’s relief efforts to mitigate the economic impact caused by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic,” the city chief executive said. Joel E. Zurbano

By Rey E. Requejo THE Department of Justice on Sunday said the government is partnering with Facebook to gather information on several pages on social media websites that are allegedly used to promote sexual exploitation of children online.

A joint advisory issued by the DOJOffice of Cybercrime, NBI-Anti-Human Trafficking Division and the PNP-Women and Children Protection Center late Saturday identified the Facebook pages as “Mahilig sa Bata,” Batang Masarap Spotted,” and “Samahan ng mga Mahihilig sa Bata” that are used to promote and facilitate exchanges of child sexual exploitation materials between and among its members.

“Initial investigation reveals that the administrators and members of said Facebook pages deliberately strategize to evade law enforcement authorities by regularly changing its names and keeping said pages private to the public,” the advisory said.

“We wish to assure the public that the matter has already been coordinated with the management of Facebook for purposes of obtaining computer data in relation to the said accounts, in furtherance of the former authorities’ investigation and for other law enforcement actions,” it added.

The advisory also urged the public to immediately report to the authorities similar pages that foster the distribution and publication of child sexual exploitation materials online.

Authorities also warned that possession, access and distribution of child pornography are prohibited and punishable under the Anti-Child Pornography Act of 2009 and the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.

Individuals found guilty may be imprisoned for a minimum of four years up to 14 years and be meted a fine ranging from P200, 000 to P1 million.

Earlier, Senator Risa Hontiveros expressed concerns on the proliferation of such Faceboom pages that promote and distribute child sexual content online.

Law enforcement authorities have been asked to investigate the issue and run after those behind the said pages instead of going after critics of the Duterte administration.

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Laguna creates patient info, contact tracing system

CYBER GRADUATION. A diploma is attached to a robot, with the graduating student picture shown on a tablet, as the first “cyber graduation” ceremony from a science and technology college held due to the ban on mass gatherings during the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak in Manila on May 22, 2020. AFP

JBC to interview SC post aspirants via online THE Judicial and Bar Council will hold on May 28 an online interview of four of 13 applicants to the Supreme Court associate justice post that was left vacant following the retirement of Associate Justice Andres B. Reyes Jr. last May 11.

Slated for virtual interview by the JBC members on Friday include Court of Appeals Associate Justices Ramon M. Bato, Priscilla J. Baltazar Padilla, Edwin D. Sorongon, and Nina G. Antonio lenzuela.

The nine other applicants whose previous interviews remain valid are Court Administrator Jose Midas P. Marquez; Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Amparo M. Cabotaje Tang, and CA Associate Justices Manuel M. Barrios, Eduardo B. Peralta, Ramon A. Cruz, Pablito A. Perez, Japar B. Dimaampao, Jhosep Y. Lopez, and Ricardo R. Rosario.

In an announcement, the JBC said that any sworn complaint, report or opposition against any of the applicants may be emailed to jbc@ sc.judiciary.gov.ph and jbc87supremecourt@gmail.com.

JBC is a constitutional body mandated to accept, screen, and nominate appointments to the judiciary. Whoever is appointed by President Duterte from among the nominees to be submitted by the JBC will complete the 15-member bench.

Meanwhile, the JBC through exofficio secretary Edgar O. Aricheta announced the opening for applications and nominations to the post of SC associate justice that would be vacated on September 18 with the mandatory retirement of Associate Justice Jose C. Reyes Jr., and to the post of CA presiding justice that was vacated when CA Presiding Justice Romeo F. Barza retired on Aug. 2, 2019.

“Interested applicants must visit the official JBC website (www.jbc.judiciary.gov.ph) and access the Online Application Scheduler. After filling in the required information in the Online Application Scheduler, they will receive a computer-generated letter of intent in their e-mail addresses,” the advisory said.

The JBC also required aspirants

to submit the complete and accurate digitized versions of (a) the Letter of Intent and (b) documentary requirements through electronic mail to jbc. orsn.1987@gmail.com on their selected date and time of appointment in the Online Application Scheduler.

“The documentary requirements should be in Portable Document Format (PDF) and e-mailed in a single file only, following the order of documents as enumerated in the Announcement posted on the JBC website. The date of actual receipt of the complete documentary requirements (sent through e-mail) shall be deemed as the date of filing,” the JBC said.

“In addition, the applicants shall ensure receipt by the JBC of two (2) complete sets of the documentary requirements through courier service not later than 4:30 p.m. of 7 July 2020 (Tuesday).

Applicants who fail to comply with the requirements of online and physical submission via courier service of the documentary requirements shall not be considered for nomination,” the council added. Rey E. Requejo

AMID the COVID-19 global outbreak, Gov. Ramil L. Hernandez convened officials of the provincial government for the development of an efficient and accurate data collection regarding COVID-19 cases in Laguna.

In order to monitor the severity and the rate of contraction of SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19, Governor Hernandez instructed the Management Information Systems Office to create a COVID-19 Patient Information and Contact Tracing System.

The system will serve as a surveillance system that collects essential information of COVID-19 cases in the province of Laguna, featuring a database that will organize pertinent information and put them in order according to Suspect, Probable, Positive, Recovered and Deceased cases.

Benjamin Chavez

Angeles City gives milk to young kids ANGELES CITY—Some 13,782 kids ages 2 to 6 years old from 23 barangays here have received milk from the Angeles city government under the leadership of Mayor Carmelo Lazatin Jr. The city mayor said the remaining 18,218 kids from Barangays Balibago, Cutcut, Cutud, Ninoy Aquino, Pandan, Pulung Cacutud, Pulung Maragul, and Sapalibutad will receive their milk assistance in the coming days.

The house-to-house milk distribution is being supervised by city nutrition office.

Lazatin earlier announced that a total of 32,000 kids in the city will be given milk.

The city mayor ordered the procurement of P7 million worth of milk and other children’s needs. However, he stressed that he personally promotes breast milk as best for infants. Butch Gunio

Grab to go digital for taxi fares

By Darwin G. Amojelar

FLAT TIRE. A man pedals his bicycle while guiding an unmanned bicycle in Cavite, a familiar sight since the start of the enhanced community quarantine in the entire Luzon region which prohibited public transportation. The man’s lady companion’s suffered a flat tire on her bike so he had to go to a nearby vulcanizing shop. Jr Josue

GRAB Philippines said it is working closely with taxi operators across the country to train and help adopt cashless transactions during rides.

“As we move towards the new reality, we would need to make significant adjustments in many aspects of our lives so that we can protect both the lives and livelihoods of our kababayans. Over a short period of time, we were able to help our taxi drivers—who are previously cash-based and meter-based, embrace digitalization, and adapt to cashless,” Brian Cu, president of Grab Philippines said.

“We believe that by adopting cashless payment for public transportation, we will reduce the risk of spreading the infection through cash, but likewise improve our contact tracing capability,” he added.

For many years, taxis have been largely meter-based and cash-based, and with the advancements in technology, going cashless has been a tall order for many taxi operators and drivers. Within days, Grab was able to conduct training programs for thousands of taxi drivers and operators, highlighting the ease of using GrabPay for accepting cashless payments, as well as several safety and hygiene best practices that taxi drivers can learn from.

Aside from preventing the spread of infection brought about by the exchange

of cash, adapting cashless payments coupled with the Grab platform’s robust contact tracing system with the DOH, will also allow for improved contact tracing capabilities especially in public transportation such as taxis.

Starting May 22, around 400 taxi drivers from Baguio and Naga Cities will resume plying the roads, implementing cashless transactions during rides.

Awaiting the resumption of public transportation in other cities, Grab has trained and prepared almost 7,000 taxi drivers to likewise conduct cashless rides.

The Department of Transportation earlier partnered with GCash to enable taxi drivers to accept digital payments through the revolutionary Scan to Pay (STP) app via the QR technology of GCash.

Using this app, GCash users only need to scan the unique QR code of the taxi unit they are riding in paying for their metered fares.

“Cashless and contactless payment scheme will now be part of the ‘new normal’ in the public transportation system. This should not be treated by taxi operators as another transaction cost,” DOTr Secretary Arthur Tugade said.

“Rather, this move intends to limit direct physical contact between drivers and their passengers and help stop the spread of COVID-19. I am very grateful to GCash for making this new arrangement happen,” he added.

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

A4

MONDAY, MAY 25, 2020

Business

PSE INDEX CLOSING Friday, May 22, 2020

65.30 points 5,539.19

TOTAL VOLUME TOTAL TRADES

501,944,558 81,834

TOTAL VALUE ADVANCES

4,029,420,503.96 49

DECLINES UNCHANGED

125 44

‘Tailor-fit’ perks eyed to lure investments T

By Julito G. Rada

HE Finance Department wants a “tailor-fit” tax and nontax incentives to attract the right kind of investors under the new normal.

Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez “What we should be doing is identifyIII said in a briefing he was pushing for ing these industries and then going to each a more proactive, targeted investment of the companies—each of the leading promotion strategy of directly approach- companies in those industries around the ing the kind of foreign investors that the world—and asking them: what do you government wants to relocate here and need for you to come to the Philippines? offering them a set of tax and non-tax in- Instead of waiting for them to apply, we centives tailor-fit to their needs, as part should be going to them and offering them of the efforts to reenergize the economy a package,” Dominguez said during the and create more recently concluded jobs. online “Sulong PiliDominguez said pinas: Youth Partners the government for Progress” workshould discard its shop. old “one-size-fitsDominguez noted, all” incentives profor instance, that gram, and shift to companies manua demand-driven facturing microchips approach where it had a different set of identifies the types needs from businessof industries that es that grow flowers the economy needs for export, hence the to flourish, so that need to tailor-fit inincentives can be centives for specific granted based on industries. the specific requireHe said President ments of the indusDuterte’s economic try players that it team and the ConDominguez wants to set up shop gress were now in in the country. the process of drawing up a compreThese industries include those that are hensive stimulus program to revive the labor-intensive and, thus, create stable, economy impacted by the coronavirus decent-paying jobs; provide excellent disease 29019 (COVID-19) pandemic. technology transfers that improve the Dominguez said the obsolete “one-sizeskills of the country’s workforce; and fits-all” formula of attracting prospective have stable markets, Dominguez said. investors failed to make the Philippines an 040608 (Bank Code)

METRO SOUTH COOPERATIVE BANK

IDC Centre, Zapote Street cor. Kalayaan Avenue, Brgy. Sta. Cruz, Makati City

BALANCE SHEET As of MARCH 31, 2020 ASSETS Cash and Cash Items Due from Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Due from Other Banks Financial Assets at Fair Value through Profit or Loss Available-for-Sale Financial Assets-Net Held-to-Maturity (HTM) Financial Assets-Net Unquoted Debt Securities Classified as Loans-Net Investments in Non-Marketable Equity Security-Net Loans and Receivables - Net Loans to Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Interbank Loans Receivable Loans and Receivables - Others Loans and Receivables Arising from RA/CA/PR/SLB General Loan Loss Provision Other Financial Assets Equity Investment in Subsidiaries, Associates and Joint Ventures-Net Bank Premises, Furniture, Fixture and Equipment-Net Real and Other Properties Acquired-Net Non-Current Assets Held for Sale Other Assets-Net Net Due from Head Office/Branches/Agencies, if any (Philippine branch of a foreign bank) TOTAL ASSETS LIABILITIES Financial Liabilities at Fair Value through Profit or Loss Deposit Liabilities Due to Other Banks Bills Payable a) BSP (Rediscounting and Other Advances) b) Interbank Loans Payable c) Other Deposit Substitute d) Others Bonds Payable-Net Unsecured Soubordlnated Debt-Net Redeemable Preferred Shares Special Time Deposit Due to Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Other Financial Liabilities Other Liabilities Net Due to Head Office/Branches/Agencies/(Philippine branch of a foreign bank) TOTAL LIABILITIES STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY Capital Stock Other Capital Accounts Retained Earnings Assigned Caprtal TOTAL STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY CONTINGENT ACCOUNTS Guarantees Issued Financial Standby Letters of Credit Performance Standby Letters of Credit Commercial Letters of Credit Trade Related Guarantees Committments Spot Foreign Exchange Contracts Securities Held Under Custodianship by Bank Proper Trust Department Accounts a) Trust and Other Fiduciary Accounts b) Agency Accounts c) Advisory/Consultancy Derivatives Others TOTAL CONTINGENT ACCOUNTS ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Gross total loan portfolio (TLP) Specific allowance for credit losses on the TLP Non-Performing Loans (NPLs) a. Gross NPLs b. Ratio of gross NPLs to gross TLP (%) c. Net NPLs d. Ratio of Net NPLs to gross TLP (%) e. Ratio of total allowance for credit losses to gross NPLs (%) f. Ratio of specific allowance for credit losses on the gross TLP to gross NPLs (%) Classified Loans & Other Risk Assets, gross of allowance for credit losses DOSRI Loans and receivables, gross allowance of credit losses Ratio of DOSRI loans and receivables, gross of allowance for credit losses, to gross TLP (%) Gross non-performing DOSRI loans and receivables Ratio of gross non-performing DOSRI loans and receivables to TLP (%) Percent Compliance with Magna Carta (%) a. 8% for Micro and Small Enterprises b. 2% for Medium Enterprises Return on Equity (ROE) (%) Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) on Solo Basis, as prescribed under existing regulations a. Total CAR (%) b. Tier 1 Ratio (%) c. Common Tier 1 Ratio (%) 1/ Deferred Charges not yet Written Down Unbooked Allowance for Credit Losses on Financial Instruments Received

Amount Current Quarter Previous Quarter 1,529,716.29 11,710,908.46 65,099,076.08 65,113,776.08 721,101,278.30 996,845,822.33 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 15,000 000.00 15,000 000.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 2,675,866,485.33 2,774,874,289.29

2,715,326,006 43

BOARD OF DIRECTORS FR. ANTONIO CECILIO T. PASCUAL Chairman ATTY. MICKEL M. BORIGAS Vice-Chairman DIRECTORS PATRIA T. CHIONG ROMEO A. DE JESUS DORIS R.DORIGO NORMA G. GUHITING SEGUNDO R. LANUZA. JR. EDITA S. LAURON GARIBALDI O. LEONARDO ROBERTO C. MASCARINA FR. SERAFIN F PERALTA DIVINA C. QUEMI PEDRO E. RIEZA, JR. JUANITO P. ROSINI NICOLAS H. VERONILLA

39,459,521.10 113,440,446.96 0.00 24,535,258.09 126,456,125.03 84,054,559.87 6,277,356.62 0.00 3,833,360,302.57

2,814,333,810.39 0.00 39,459,521.10 116,922,258.55 0.00 24,825,849.82 125,044,036.07 84,054,559.87 4,578,167.98 0.00 4,218,969,668.45

0.00 1,810,555,276.18 0.00 1,139,000,000.00

0.00 ATTY. Simeon T. Asia 2,089,080,623.76 Board Secretary 0.00 1,253,000,000.00

1,139,000,000.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 14,551,596.75 38,021 ,966.83 0.00 3,002,128,839.76

1,253,000,000.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 10,358,898.80 39,303,168.66 0.00 3,391,742,691.22

683,837,898.06 6,010,025.13 141 ,383,539.62 0.00 831,231,462.81 3,833,360,302.57

683,650,578.81 1,444,150.83 142,132,247.59 0.00 827,226,977.23 4,218,969,668.45

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 12,900,217.56 12,900,217.56

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 12,900.258 56 12,900.258 56

2,879,147,423.89 163,821,417.46

2,977,735,227.85 163,401,417.46

395,845,677.86 13.75% 232,024,260.40 8.06% 51.35% 41.39% 45.00 482,706,804.30 16.77% 0.00 0.00%

386,266,623.15 12.97% 222,865,205.69 7.48% 52.52% 42.30% 45.00 510,849,437.35 17.16% 0.00 0.00%

8.94% 42.58% 2.00%

8.27% 59.24% 5.00%

18.51 17.56 0.00 0.00 0.00

16.33 15.38 0.00 0.00 0.00

EXECUTIVE OFFICER Renelia V. Estioko Chief Executive Officer/ President

1/ Common Equity Tier 1 is only applicable to all Universal and Commercial Banks and their subsidiary banks.

Republic of the Philippines ) Makati City) s.s.

I/We, RODA L. CRUZ and RENELIA V. ESTIOKO of the above-mentioned bank do solemnly swear that all matters set forth in the above balance sheet are true and correct to the best of my/our knowledge and belief.

RODA L. CRUZ Finance Head

RENELIA V. ESTIOKO President

SUBSCRIBED AND SWORN to before me this 21 day of May 2020 at Makati City, affiant exhibiting his/her/their Passport No.P1057056A, issued at DFA NCR EAST on December 01, 2016 and Passport No. P1747134A, issued at Manila City on January 25, 2017. st

Doc. No. 75 Book No. 88 Page No. 16 Series of 2020

investment magnet, with the country persistently lagging behind its Southeast Asian counterparts in terms of the volume and amount of foreign direct investment inflows despite being among the first economies in the region to offer fiscal incentives.

On top of the massive infrastructure gap, which the Duterte administration is now fixing through

its “Build, Build, Build” program, and the constitutional restrictions on foreign ownership, Dominguez said the outmoded investment promotion strategy was among the reasons why the country lagged behind in the region in terms of FDI inflows despite the Philippines’ status as one of Asia’s fastest-growing economies.

JOYRIDE SERVICE. JoyRide signs a memorandum of agreement with Antipolo City that will give 15,000 tricycle drivers an opportunity for an alternative means of livelihood as independent delivery service riders, through the mobile app platform of JoyRide and Happy Move. Signing the agreement on the JoyRide, Happy Move partnership with Antipolo City are (from left) Mayor Andrea Bautista Ynares; JoyRide president Sherwin Yu and JoyRide vice president for corporate affairs Noli Eala.

Ayala Group bares program to help small business firms

By Jenniffer B. Austria

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

THE Ayala Group has launched Ayala Enterprise Circle, a support program aimed at helping small and medium enterprises continue their operations and recover from the new coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The Ayala Group said in a statement the synergistic initiative is focused on helping its 250,000 SME partners whose operations were affected by the pandemic.

“Today’s times are certainly unprecedented and very challenging for enterprises of all sizes, much especially for our SMEs who have always been critical players in our country’s economy… We realized that now, more than ever, we need to accelerate our efforts to proactively reach out to you,” said Ayala chairman and chief executive Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala during his welcome address at AEC’s first ever webinar attended by over 900 Ayala SME clients, suppliers and partners.

“We envision the Ayala Enterprise Circle as a network where you, our valued SME partners, can have access to exclusive Ayala Group solutions and offerings, expert mentorship from industry leaders, online dialogues and masterclasses, and business-matching and comarketing opportunities. We are very excited for what this program has to offer, and we hope that you would continue to join us in this journey as members of this exclusive network,” he added.

As of May 19, 2020, the Ayala Group has helped ease the strain on its SME partners through P766 million worth of free services and business operations fees, including rental condonations.

Ayala Malls has waived P280 million covering over 2,400 of Ayala Malls’ SMEs in the last two months.

The conglomerate’s banking unit Bank of the Philippine Islands has encouraged SME clients to take advantage of its Loan Reprieve Program (a loan payment deferment program) for up to 90 days to help them manage their cash flows affected by the Enhanced Community Quarantine.

BPI also waived interbank transfer fees to lighten client costs when transferring funds to other local banks for the duration of the ECQ.

More Power upgrades Iloilo network

By Alena Mae S. Flores MORE Electric and Power Corp. of tycoon Enrique Razon Jr. has rehabilitated 51 distribution transformers, replaced 51 broken electric poles and fixed 97 hotspot connectors over two months as part of an upgrading program for Iloilo City’s aging and dilapidated electricity distribution system.

MORE Power president and chief operating officer Ruel Castro said Iloilo’s new power distributor was spending P1.8 billion to rehabilitate and upgrade Iloilo City’s power distribution system in the next three years.

The move aims to improve electricity supply, lower the monthly bill paid by Ilonggos and improve system capacity to handle bigger demand from consumers and industries in the coming years.

MORE Power also took steps to reduce the monthly bills of customers by cutting down systems losses, which reached 9.03 percent in 2019, as regular customers paid 6.5 percent of such losses.

Castro said technical experts advised MORE Power that a high systems loss of 9.03 percent could mean around 20,000 untraced illegal connections in Iloilo City.

MORE Power inherited all the distribution facilities of Panay Electric Co. after it took over the distribution system as the new congressional franchise owner.

Castro said a technical study of the distribution system by MIESCOR showed PECO’s facilities needed immediate preventive maintenance work or upgrade almost all of the city’s distribution equipment.

He said findings showed 9,000 hotspot connectors must be upgraded or replaced so they would not cause system-wide damage.

“If we will not do anything to fix these substations … one day one of these substations will fail and may cause a bigger problem (than the power supply outage applied during maintenance works),” Castro said in an radio interview.

“I am sorry to use the term … but the system that we took over is dilapidated,” he said.

IN BRIEF

Stock market to track sideways movement SHARE prices are expected to continue trading sideways during this shortened trading week on increased global risk due to the US-China trade conflict and renewed Hong Kong protests over Beijing’s plan to directly impose national security laws on the city.

Analysts said the concerns were adding to investors’ list of worries that included a slumping global economy due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

“The week’s close at 5,539.19 highlights consolidation in the near-term. Risk-on theme remains fragile. Bias in the near-term remains to the downside and may see more price action towards the retest of the 5,000 levels,” said BDO Unibank Inc. chief investment strategist Jonathan Ravelas.

The immediate support and resistance is seen at 5,500 and 5,900 levels, respectively.

Jenniffer B. Austria

OFW remittances may decline by 6.9%—IMG REMITTANCES will likely decline 6.9 percent this year, the first contraction in the past 19 years, due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic to the employment of Filipino workers abroad, ING Bank said in a report over the weekend.

The bank said job prospects for OFWS remained bleak even after lockdowns were lifted as the majority of them were employed in sectors would struggle in a world of social distancing.

Based on a survey conducted for registered OFWs, 37.6 percent were employed in the socalled “elementary occupations” that include domestic helpers and hotel/restaurant cleaning staff, while 18 percent worked in services and sales sectors.

“This suggests that OFWs may continue to struggle to find employment as sectors such as hotels and restaurants may struggle to recover quickly due to social distancing, leading to less remittance flows from OFWs based in these professions” it said. Julito G. Rada

SEC reopens Tuesday to process documents THE Securities and Exchange Commission will reopen Tuesday its office to process company registrations and to monitor applications that have been assessed and approved via online.

The SEC’s Company Registration and Monitoring Department will resume work at the commission’s headquarters within the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) Complex in Pasay City starting May 26, following the easing of community quarantine protocols across the country.

The CRMD will implement a four-day workweek, from Monday to Thursday, and shortened operating hours, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., during the modified enhanced community quarantine period.

CRMD’s operations, however, will be limited to receiving proof of payment, signed and notarized copies of approved applications.

Jenniffer B. Austria

GSIS grants P10.12b in loans to members

THE Government Service Insurance System has granted P10.12 billion in loans to over 200,000 active members and pensioners nationwide as of May 13 this year, GSIS president and general manager Rolando Ledesma Macasaet said over the weekend.

Some P4.78 billion or 47 percent were released in the form of emergency loans while P5.34 billion or 53 percent were disbursed through consolidated (conso-loan), policy and pension loans.

Conso-loan, policy and pension loans are regular loans offered by GSIS that may be availed of anytime by qualified borrowers. The emergency loan is for those affected by disasters in regions or provinces declared as calamity areas by the government.

The COVID-19 Emergency Loan, launched in April 13, was the first emergency loan window opened by GSIS on a national scale after President Duterte declared a state of public health emergency in the entire country.