Manila Standard - 2020 September 17 - Thursday

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VOL. XXXIV • NO. 195 • 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P18 • THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2020 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com

4 killed in Basilan chopper crash ZAMBOANGA CITY-Four people were killed on Wednesday when a Philippine Air Force helicopter crashed in Basilan during a rescue mission due to the bad weather in many parts of the country, an official said.

Information officer Al-Nasser Abdurakman said the incident occurred

around 1 p.m. in Upper Manggas village in Lantawan, Basilan.

He was unable to name the fatalities, except to say two of them were male pilots and two were male crewmen.

He said the helicopter departed from the Edwin Andrew Air Base at 12:33 Next page

WEATHER’S FAULT. Investigators

comb through the charred remains of a rescue helicopter of the Philippine Air Force that crashed in Lantawan, Basilan on Wednesday. Police said the chopper crashed into a rubber plantation just as heavy rains brought about by Tropical Storm ‘Leon’ (inset, in chart) fell in the area. The downpour also caused flooding in Zamboanga City, where 188 houses were inundated. Isabela City CDRRMO, Zamboanga City Councilor Mark Alavar

2 PhilHealth sectors tagged Deeper probe zeroes in on IT, Legal operations, findings out in 30 days CATHEDRAL REOPENS. Manila Cathedral reopens its doors to the public on Wednesday after six months of lockdowns due to the COVID-19 pandemic.The church limited attendance to just 80 people per Mass as it observed social distancing, and visitors are required to wear face masks and face shields (photos below).

Norman Cruz

COVID-19 PH AT A GLANCE

(AS OF 4 PM SEPTEMBER 16)

272,934 TOTAL NUMBER OF CASES

3,550 60,344 NEW

ACTIVE

4,732

69

207,858

524

DEATHS

RECOVERIES

NEW

Whistleblower claims China produced virus

Next page

T

WO composite teams of a presidential task force will zero in on the information technology (IT) and legal departments of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) to determine if more officials should be charged for the multibillion-peso fund mess at the agency.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said Wednesday the composite teams of Task Force PhilHealth must finish their reports in 30 days before the Department of Justice can determine if there is enough evidence to file additional complaints against other PhilHealth officials.

Guevarra said they would also wait for new PhilHealth president and chief executive officer Dante Gierran to assume his new post within the week before the composite teams are dispatched to conduct a deeper investigation into the corruption allegations at the state health insurer.

NEW

THE Chinese government intentionally manufactured and released the COVID-19 virus that led to mass shutdowns and deaths across the world, a top virologist and whistleblower told Fox News host Tucker Carlson on Tuesday.

In a television interview, Carlson specifically asked Dr. Li-Meng Yan whether she believed the Chinese Communist Party released the virus “on purpose.”

“Yes, of course, it’s intentionally (sic),” she responded on “Tucker Carlson Tonight.”

Yan said more evidence would be released but pointed to her own highranking position at a World Health Organization reference lab as a reason to trust her allegation.

“I work[ed] in the WHO reference lab which is the top coronavirus lab in the world, in the University of Hong Kong. And the thing is I get deeply into such investigation in secret from

By Rey E. Requejo, Willie Casas and Maricel V. Cruz

Next page

Transport distancing issue: It’s Rody’s call

By Willie Casas and Othel V. Campos

Ex-envoy: Case vs. Xi before ICC to proceed

By Rey E. Requejo

THE case filed by former Philippine government officials against Chinese President Xi Jinping and other Chinese officials before the International Criminal Court may now proceed after new evidence was submitted that could compel the ICC to reconsider their complaint, months after it was rejected.

Former ambassador and Foreign Affairs secretary Albert del Rosario said the case would proceed as he and former Ombudsman Conchita Morales had submitted their response before the ICC in The Hague last week, demonstrating that Xi and other Chinese officials committed crimes against humanity.

He said former Supreme Court Associate Justice Next page

THE government’s decision to gradually reduce physical distancing between passengers in public transportation stays unless revoked by President Rodrigo Duterte, the Palace said Wednesday.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque made this remark after the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) reviewed the policy following the opposition raised by medical groups.

However, the vice president of the Philippine College of Physicians suggested that businesses could stagger Next page

Vaccine out in a month—Trump

PHILADELPHIA—US President Donald Trump said Tuesday a coronavirus vaccine may be available within a month — an acceleration of even his own optimistic predictions — but added that the pandemic could go away by itself.

“We’re very close to having a vac-

cine,” he told a town hall question-andanswer session with voters in Pennsylvania aired on ABC News.

“We’re within weeks of getting it you know—could be three weeks, four weeks,” he said.

Next page

Despite surge in cases, Palace says worst is over MALACAÑANG on Wednesday claimed that the worst of the COVID-19 crisis is over since the country has been able to improve its health care capacity significantly.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque responded to the latest Social Weather

Stations (SWS) survey showing that more Filipinos believe that “the worst of the Covid-19 crisis is yet to come.”

“I understand the pessimism of our citizens because the situation is really difficult now. But all I can say is, the worst is over,” he said in Filipino, in an

interview over state-run PTV-4.

Roque said the country hit rock bottom when it entered into recession for the first time in almost 30 years last month with a 16.5-percent economic plunge in the second quarter due to the lockdowns.

Next page

FOGGY RIDE. Bicycle riders and

motorists in Tagaytay City wade through the thick fog that enveloped the roads of the upland Cavite getaway on Wednesday. JR Josue

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News

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2020

mst.daydesk@gmail.com

Bus trips to MM resuming soon B

US trips between the provinces and Metro Manila may resume within the month, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board said Wednesday, amid calls to expand public transportation.

LTFRB Chair Martin Delgra said transport authorities are ironing out final preparations for the resumption of bus routes between the National Capital Region and other parts of the country, even though most provinces remain reluctant to open their borders for travel to and from Metro Manila.

“We are finalizing it and hopefully we will be able to open it within the month,” Delgra said during a virtual press briefing.

Provincial buses are banned from entering Metro Manila and are required to carry only half of their passenger capac-

ity, as the entire country remains under varying quarantine levels. Metro Manila remains under general community quarantine until the end of the month, where public transportation is allowed.

Only four out of 81 provinces consulted were open to the resumption of bus operations to and from Metro Manila such as Bataan and Quirino, Delgra added.

“Many of them still don’t want to open their borders for travel to Metro Manila,” he said.

Meanwhile, the inbound travel by returning residents to the provinces in Western Visayas may now resume after

Transport...

From A1

2FromPhilHealth...

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their opening hours so that employees do not need to rush to work and catch public transport at the same time.

Dr. Maricar Limpin said this could be an alternative to reducing physical distancing in public transport vehicles.

She also said there was a need to come up with other programs to ensure that commuters have access to health and safe transportation.

Researchers from the University of the Philippines who have been tracking the coronavirus pandemic on Wednesday said overcrowding is a major source of infection, even if passengers wear face masks and face shields.

“Overcrowding is one of the major sources of infection. That’s been proven,” said Guido David of the UP OCTA research group.

“If the required distance will only be about a ruler’s length, we will have a problem with overcrowding, which will bring a high risk of transmission.

If for example, we are in a bus, it can be packed. It will be like before where people are jammed together,” he said in Filipino.

Instead of easing distancing requirements, David suggested that the government should provide more modes of transport.

David said when distancing is reduced to 0.3 meters or about the length of a ruler, a bus could have as many as 100 passengers. A lone passenger with COVID-19 could infect up to 35 percent of the people in the same vehicle, he added.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has urged the public to keep a one-meter distance from others to dodge the virus. When someone coughs, sneezes, or speaks they spray small droplets from their nose or mouth which may contain the virus, the WHO said.

David said he has yet to read research recommending less than one meter of physical distancing.

Inconsistent distancing rules in mass transport and other public areas may spawn confusion, David said.

It will also be harder to estimate a distance of 0.75 meter compared to 1 meter, which is about an arm’s length, he said.

Business and professional groups, on the other hand, said they support the reduction in physical distancing on public utility vehicles.

The groups, led by the Management Association of the Philippines, said, however, that the move should be done at the proper pace and with caution.

“We’ll ask the composite teams to finish their investigations on the IT and Legal sectors in 30 days. Then we’ll prepare the complaints if there’s enough evidentiary basis,” Guevarra said.

Seven PhilHealth officials, including resigned president and chief executive Ricardo Morales, will face criminal and administrative charges after Task Force PhilHealth submitted its initial findings to President Rodrigo Duterte, who approved the report on Monday.

However, the report left out Health Secretary Francisco Duque III and PhilHealth Senior Vice President for Legal Sector Rodolfo del Rosario Jr. According to the DOJ chief, each composite team would have representatives from five agencies. Both teams would have representatives from the DOJ, National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC), and the AntiMoney Laundering Council (AMLC).

The fifth member for the IT composite team should come from the DOJ’s Office of Cybercrime (OOC), while the Office of the Special Assistant to the President (OSAP) would become the fifth member in the Legal composite team.

Justice Undersecretary Markk Perete said these teams would need 30 days to fulfill the task given to them since they would be doing the leg work and visiting the PhilHealth offices in the regions.

Perete said the documents that the task force received from their witnesses and resource persons were just leads that need to be verified by documents to establish a paper trail.

He said the task force also used the report prepared by the Senate Committee of the Whole, which also investigated PhilHealth and recommended charges against

Despite surge...

From A1 But now that the economy has started to open up, he said Filipinos must learn to live with the virus by maintaining minimum health standards at all times. PNA

New COVID-19 cases top 3,000 for 9th straight day THE Philippines logged 3,550 new

Ex-envoy:...

From A1 Antonio Carpio would be joining them as counsel for the case they filed in March last year.

“These facts are straightforward because they are based on publicly available evidence and a number of them have been judicially vetted in the South China Sea arbitration,” Del Rosario said in a keynote speech at the Stratbase forum on Wednesday.

“We therefore believe that the ICC has a strong basis to proceed with our case.”

Carpio, one of the country’s leading

COVID-19 cases Wednesday, bringing the total number of infections since the pandemic started to 272,934.

This is the ninth straight day in which more than 3,000 new cases were reported.

The DOH also logged 69 new fatalities, bringing the death toll to 4,732.

Health officials also announced 524 recoveries, bringing the total number of patients who have recovered from the disease to 207,858.

There are currently 60,344 active

the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) lifted its suspension.

“The IATF approves the partial lifting of the temporary suspension of inbound travel by returning residents to Region 6, as approved during the Inter-Agency Task Force Resolution 69 dated Sept. 7, 2020,” the IATF Resolution No. 71 read.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque confirmed the lifting of the suspension, saying returning residents in Region 6 may now travel.

“We confirm that the temporary suspension of inbound travel of returning residents in Region 6 composed of Iloilo City and the provinces of Guimaras, Iloilo, Negros Occidental, and Antique has already been lifted,” he said in a statement.

Any requests for the imposition, ex-

tension, and lifting of moratorium by local government units (LGUs) will be decided by the regional IATF and will be enforced by the National Task Force to ensure that the proper process is followed LGUs, he added.

Earlier, the IATF imposed a temporary ban on locally stranded individuals to Guimaras, Iloilo, Negros Occidental, Antique, and Iloilo City upon the request of LGUs following a rise in coronavirus cases.

Lanao del Sur, Bacolod City, and Iligan City are currently under modified enhanced community quarantine, the second most strict community quarantine.

While most parts of the country have eased travel restrictions, Delgra said local government units have to be consulted on inter-regional travel since there are limitations due to the pandemic.

top officials of the corporation, as well as Duque, who sits as chairman of the board.

Perete said they were taking measures to prevent the destruction of evidence, and that they had investigated PhilHealth’s regional office in Ilocos, which reported water damage to computers and files.

Forensic experts on digital technology were dispatched to reconstruct important evidence, he said.

“We are still continuing our investigation if the evidence that we would be able to unearth and discover would show that they have any liability just like the others, the commensurate complaints would have to be filed against them. We will be guided by the evidence,” Perete said.

In its report, the task force said it found there was negligence on the part of the PhilHealth board, but the requirement under the Graft and Corrupt Practices Act is that there should be “gross negligence.”

During the course of their investigation, they focused on three matters, namely the approval and implementation of the Interim Reimbursement Mechanism (IRM); the approval of budgets for the purchase of information and communications technology (ICT) equipment; and the corporate policies and practices that fail to check, investigate, prosecute and penalize the wrongdoing of PhilHealth personnel as well as health care institutions and professionals.

Del Rosario on Wednesday said he hoped the information he shared with the task force would be helpful in its investigation.

In an interview on Dobol B sa a News TV, Del Rosario said he has considered seeking inclusion in the government Witness Protection Program (WPP) but said no offer has yet been made to him.

Del Rosario resigned last month the

Office of the Ombudsman ordered him suspended based on a complaint that he said stemmed from his actions against erring PhilHealth officials.

Del Rosario said the information he shared did not involve the IRM or the IT system but involved “external fraud” that has been going on for years.

Duque, meanwhile, slammed Senate President Vicente Sotto III for seeking criminal charges against him.

“I do not understand why the Senate president keeps harping on me when I have not committed any crime or violation of any law,” Duque said in a statement sent to the House reporters.

Duque also appealed to Sotto to “stop hitting him like a punching bag,” saying: “My family is hurting already.”

“Senator Sotto, you are a family man so let me point this to you in clear and uncertain terms: my family is hurting already, I am sacrificing my health because of the demands of the job. I quietly do my job to the best of my ability but if I fall short, your way is to step on me and to continually hit me like a punching bag? Is this your brand of public service?”

Duque maintained his innocence even as he also cited a Senate inquiry conducted by Senator Richard Gordon who chairs the Blue Ribbon Committee, which said there was not enough evidence against him to file criminal charges.

He also hit Sotto for trying to make him look guilty of wrongdoing when there was no evidence of this.

“The problem with some legislators is they look for something to support their conclusions and start hitting you in public. Is the Senate President now a lawyer, judge and jury that if something does not suit him, he conjures things?”

Duque said.

In a press conference in Camp Crame, Duque also said he was never negligent as chairman of the PhilHealth board.

maritime legal experts, was part of the Philippine legal team to the Permanent Court of Arbitration and also in The Hague, where Manila won an arbitral case against China that invalidated Beijing’s massive claims over the South China Sea. “Justice Carpio’s unparalleled wisdom and expertise in the South China Sea issue have raised our confidence in the case and will surely bolster our chances in the ICC,” Del Rosario said.

It was Del Rosario who spearheaded the successful arbitration case that resulted in the legal victory for the Philippines against China in July 2016.

He said they were aiming to hold Xi and other Chinese officials “criminally

liable and be penalized by imprisonment pursuant to the ICC statute.”

“They planned it; they implemented it; and they continued with it,” Del Rosario said.

He said if the case progresses, warrants of arrest may be issued against Xi and the Chinese officials identified in the case, which includes Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. The ICC initially rejected the case in December 2019, citing lack of jurisdiction as China is not a party to the Rome Statute that established the ICC, and that the crimes cited by the former Philippine officials were not committed within Philippine territory but only within its exclusive economic zone.

cases 87.7 percent of which are mild, 8.4 percent of which are asymptomatic; 1.2 percent of which are severe; and 2.7 percent of which are critical.

The Philippines has tested 3,008,239 individuals for COVID-19. Willie Casas

13 to August 17 to 30, overall, there are 53 areas consisting of provinces, highly urbanized cities, and independent component cities with percentage increases in the number of cases,” Vergeire said in an online forum.

“We are closely monitoring these and have coordinated with LGUs (local government units),” Vergeire said.

Vergeire also said that the DOH observed four new clustering of cases in Calabarzon and Bulacan province.

Willie Casas

COVID-19 cases up in 53 areas The Department of Health (DOH) has seen increasing COVID-19 cases in 53 areas, Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire said Wednesday.

“Comparing August 31 to September

Vaccine...

From A1

4Fromkilled...

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Only hours earlier, speaking to Fox News, Trump had said a vaccine could come in “four weeks, it could be eight weeks.”

But a World Health Organization official said Tuesday there would not be enough COVID-19 vaccines for life to return to normal until 2022.

Chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan said the WHO’s Covax initiative, the resource-pooling mechanism to provide equitable vaccine access to countries with differing income levels, would only be able to garner around hundreds of millions of doses by the middle of next year, meaning each of the 170 countries or economies that have joined “will have something”.

But the number of doses would be too small to change the need for social distancing and mask wearing until production was increased and reached the goal of 2 billion by the end of 2021.

p.m. and was heading for Jolo to pick up a patient, who was to be taken to the Camp Navarro General Hospital, when it crashed.

He said the cause of the crash was yet to be determined, and that an investigation was underway.

“Troops of the 4th Special Forces Battalion are at the crash site,” Abdurakaman said.

Meanwhile, the weather bureau said Tropical Storm “Leon” was moving away from the Philippines but it is enhancing the southwest monsoon, bringing rain in most parts of the country.

In its 11 a.m. weather bulletin, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration said

ISAFP chief: Dito won’t compromise national security

By Macon Ramos-Araneta THE chief of the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (ISAFP) assured on Wednesday that allowing China-backed Dito Telecommunity Corp. to construct facilities inside military camps would not compromise national security.

During a hearing of the Commission on Appointments, Maj. Gen. Jose Eriel Niembra, a former commander of the Presidential Security Group, said they considered a lot of threats such as radio frequency jamming and interception but found the risks low.

He even told lawmakers that letting Dito build in military installations would give them access to these facilities to prevent possible Chinese intrusion of Philippine networks.

Niembra told Sen. Risa Hontiveros they conducted a risk assessment on the possible threat.

“The question with Dito Communications is because we perceive that because of this its Chinese nature, there may be threats,” he said.

“We considered four threats actually.

First, the RF (radio frequency) interception, eavesdropping, radio frequency jamming and the result was that all the technical people in the Armed Forces found the risks to be low. So, there’s low risk or low possibility that these cell sites might intrude into our networks,” Niembra said.

He said the AFP is “contemplating of adding several provisions in the memorandum of agreement of the AFP and Dito to act as safeguards against possible threats.

Among these provisions, he said, include the employment of Filipino engineers to make sure their loyalty will be to the Philippines.

Whistleblower...

From A1 the early beginning of this outbreak.

I had my intelligence because I also get my own unit network in China, involved [in] the hospital ... also I work with the top corona[virus] virologist in the world,” she said.

“So, together with my experience, I can tell you, this is created in the lab ... and also, it is spread to the world to make such damage.”

Fox News previously reported on Yan when she blew the whistle on China’s alleged attempts to suppress information about its handling of the virus.

With a vast network of contacts in Chinese medical facilities, Yan attempted to gather more information about the virus as China blocked overseas experts from conducting research in the country.

Her revelations fueled ongoing complaints that the Chinese government failed to tell the world early on about the virus’ threat.

Specifically, Yan believes the Chinese government ignored research that could have saved lives.

The US State Department did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment.

In response, her former employer, the University of Hong Kong, criticized her account.

A press release noted “that the content of the said news report does not accord with the key facts as we understand them.”

“Specifically, Dr Yan never conducted any research on human-to-human transmission of the novel coronavirus at [the University of Hong Kong] during December 2019 and January 2020, her central assertion of the said interview,” the statement added.

Yan, who said she was one of the first scientists in the world to study the novel coronavirus, fled China and currently fears retaliation.

She was allegedly asked by her supervisor at the University/WHO reference lab, Dr. Leo Poon, in 2019 to look into the odd cluster of SARS-like cases coming out of mainland China at the end of December 2019.

“Leon” was last tracked 330 kilometers west-northwest of Coron, Palawan, and had slightly accelerated, moving west-northwest at 15 kilometers per hour.

The storm was packing maximum sustained winds of 65 kph near the center and gustiness of up to 80 kph.

Weathermen said moderate to heavy rain will prevail over Aurora, Palawan (including Calamian, Cuyo and Kalayaan Islands), the Mindoro provinces and Western Visayas.

Light to moderate with at times heavy rain will be experienced over eastern Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya, Quirino, Metro Manila, Calabarzon, Bicol, Mindanao and the rest of Central Luzon, Mimaropa and the Visayas.

PAGASA weather specialist Chris Perez said Leon may reach the severe tropical storm category within 24 hours.

“It has a low chance to make landfall and is expected to exit the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Thursday,” he said.

News

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2020 mst.daydesk@gmail.com

A3

Sinas deserves a promotion—PNP chief

By Joel E. Zurbano

Marawi rehab done next year, DHSUD vows

P

HILIPPINE National Police Chief Gen. Camilo Cascolan on Wednesday said controversial police officer Gen. Debold Sinas deserved to be promoted to a higher position.

By Macon Ramos-Araneta DEPARTMENT of Human Settlement and Urban Development Sec. Eduardo Del Rosario on Wednesday said assured the public that the Marawi rehabilitation will be finished by December 2021.

Facing the powerful Commission on Appointments for the deliberation of his interim appointment, Del Rosario spelled out the status of infrastructure projects in Marawi City including those least affected areas and the most affected areas.

Del Rosario said that by December 2021, the projects will be 90 percent completed. However, he said they would still need an additional three months to completely finished the projects in the war-strife city.

“We can complete and we are on the right track based on our timeline in accomplishing the Marawi rehabilitation and as alleged, it’s impossible- I can say, it is possible and we can do it,” said Del Rosario.

Sen. Panfilo Lacson questioned Del Rosario for using the Marawi rehabilitation funds that reached P5 million for trips to Mecca of 25 internationally displaced persons.

He added that until now, it has a disallowance from the .commission on Audit because what Del Rosario did was not allowed in the law and violated the Constitution particularly the use of government funds by a religion or sect.

But Del Rosaio said that they have a pending appeal before the CA head office and are just awaiting its decision.

A group led by Padoman Paporo opposed to the approval of Del Rosario’s appointment faced the hearing via online.

They argued that there’s a conflict of interest since Del Rosario also belongs to the Task Froce Bangon Marawi.

They also said Del Rosario failed in his promise regarding their going back to their own homes.

But Del Rosario dismissed any conflict of interest, saying his position in the DHSUD will be favorable to the Task Force so he can focus on Marawi.

IN BRIEF SC denies plea to compel gov’t to do mass testing THE Supreme Court has dismissed a petition seeking to compel the government to conduct proactive mass testing for coronavirus disease 2019, efficient contact tracing and isolation, and effective treatment of positive cases.

In a four-page en banc resolution, the SC ruled that the petitioners led by former Social Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo on behalf of various sectors from medical frontliners to public utility drivers,failed to show that they are entitled to the extraordinary writ of mandamus.

In ruling against the petitioners, high court stressed that it cannot compel another branch of government how to do its job.

According to the tribunal, the remedy of mandamus applies only when the law defines a duty to be performed “with such precision and certainty as to leave nothing to the exercise of discretion or judgment.” Rey E. Requejo

Church leaders face probe on Nazarene motorcade QUIAPO Church officials on Wednesday said they are ready to face the investigation of the Joint Task Force Covid Shield on the motorcade of the image of the Black Nazarene last Monday.

“We are ready to cooperate. We have consulted our councils and sought permission from our superiors. We asked the cooperation of all our Hijos Del Nazareno and devotees to observe health protocols. The six HDN have groups disciplining their ranks,” Monsignor Hernando “Ding” Coronel, Quiapo Church rector, said in an interview.

Fr. Douglas Badong, parochial vicar of the Minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene backed Coronel’s statement, saying they are ready to answer questions regarding the event.

“We are open if they want to ask us or conduct a probe. We are ready to answer them and hold responsible if there were quarantine protocol violations,” he said in a separate interview. PNA

BUDGET DISCUSSIONS. House Majority Leader and Leyte Rep Martin Romualdez

(left) talks with Secretary Rolando Bautista (right) of the Department of Social Welfare and Development during a short meeting at the Majority Office before the Budget Briefing of the 2021 Budget of DSWD at Nograles Hall in the House of Representatives. With them is Ako Bicol Party List Rep. Zaldy Co (cente). Right photo shows Romualdez with Technical Education and Skills Development Sec Isidro Lapeña (right). Romualdez has led 17 lawmakers in urging the Department of Budget and Management to release the remaining P7.59 billion scholarship funds of TESDA. Romualdez (next photo), also held talks with Commission on Higher Education Chairperson Prospero “Popoy” De Vera to discuss CHED’s 2021 budget during the hearing at the Plenary Hall of House of Representatives, along with Ako Bicol Party List Rep. Zaldy Co (center). Ver Noveno

Release P7.59-b TESDA scholarship fund, DBM urged

By Maricel V. Cruz HOUSE of Representatives’ Majority Leader and Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez led 17 lawmakers in urging the Department of Budget and Management to release the remaining P7.59 billion scholarship funds of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority.

Romualdez, chair of the powerful House committee on rules, cited the importance to ensure the continuity of scholarship program for the poor but deserving students as the Philippines’ battles coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic.

House Resolution 1201 directs the DBM to release the balances of appropriations and/or allotment for the TESDA’s scholarship programs amounting to P7, 598, 736,000.

“The P7, 598, 736,000 under Republic Act No. 11465 (General Appropriations Act of 2020), is expected to serve 266, 938 enrolled individuals,” the lawmakers said.

They said that the scholarship program should be fully implemented “in order to support a wide magnitude of affected workers and enterprises due to economic slowdown, closure of establishments, and

the expected influx of returning overseas Filipino workers.”

The legislators led by Romualdez filed the resolution in response to President Rodrigo Duterte’s marching order “to increase the effort of all government agencies to alleviate the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly to assist returning OFWs and displaced Filipino workers and enterprises.”

Other lawmakers who authored the resolution were Reps. Alfredo Garbin Jr. and Elizaldy Co of AKO Bicol; Luis Campos Jr. of Makati City; Manuel Antonio Zubiri of Bukidnon; Jocelyn Sy Limkaichong of

Cascolan made the remark as PNP mulls over plans to reshuffle police officials within the 200,000-strong law enforcement agency.

“He has done good things, “ Cascolan said, referring to Sinas, who became controversial in May after his friends and fellow PNP officials serenaded him with a mañanita or pre-dawn birthday song at Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig City that allegedly violated the 10-people limit on gatherings to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.

“We have to evaluate him properly.

The guy deserves also an evaluation and of course, a promotion, too,” Cascolan said in a television interview.

“I think he has to be up at the Directorial Staff or a certain position that is for most especially for him. He (Sinas) is an expert most especially with regard to training of personnel and training of recruits,” the police chief said.

Following the controversial birthday party celebration, Senators Panfilo Lacson and Franklin Drilon criticized the NCRPO chief, saying that his actions set a bad example and put the PNP and the NCRPO itself in a bad light.

Senator Drilon said that because of the controversy, the NCRPO and the PNP itself lost their credibility in implementing the health protocol and other restrictions being imposed by the government to prevent the spread of the virus.

President Duterte, however, said he would not fire or replace Sinas even as the Interior and Local Government Department said the conduct of Sinas birthday party was a big ‘no-no.

Sinas himself later told critics to ‘move on’ from mañanita controversy and also thanked President Duterte.

Finance medical studies, gov’t told

By Macon Ramos-Araneta SENATE President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto on Wednesday said producing doctors will cost a fraction of the government’s P9.6- billion intelligence and confidential fund, but will yield a “high ROI or return of investment” in a country that lacks public health physicians and faces an ageing population.

He said this is one of the many reasons why government should finance the studies of doctors “and not leave it to family incomes or what the pocket can afford.”

“It is certainly lower than this year’s P9.6 billion Intelligence and Confidential Fund, a fraction of the P20.1 billion Travel Fund, and a drop in the bucket of the P1.2 trillion Personal Services budget,” Recto said.

Recto said if the budgets of many “inconsequential agencies are seen as an expense vital to democracy, then why should medical scholarships be disparaged as a nonessential luxury?”

With a population of 106.9 million, the country lacks 78,400 doctors, according to a Department of Health report based on a 10 doctors per 10,000 people ratio.

“But we have to look beyond the present shortages, and also brace for the future,” Recto said. “This is about futureproofing our country, so we can serve both ends of the demographic scale.”

“On one end is that four babies are born every minute in this land; 6,120 every 24 hours. 2.23 million a year. We love babies so much that we produce them in an industrial scale,” Recto said in his vote speech on the Medical Scholarship Bill the Senate passed on Monday.

MURAL BY THE ROAD.

A man carrying a face shield passes by a mural featuring an old and young man along Aguinaldo Highway in Dasmarinas, Cavite on September 16,2020. JR Josue

Defensor: OVP 2021 budget ‘not the smallest slice’

By Maricel V. Cruz THE P679.7-million funding for the office of Vice President Leni Robredo is not the “smallest slice” of the 2021 budget as her supporters have claimed.

Thus said Anakalusugan Rep. Mike Defensor, saying that P387.6 million or 57 percent of the OVP outlay is for subsidy/financial assistance” or dole-outs.

“Let’s set the record straight in fairness to President Duterte, who proposed the P4.5-trillion national budget for next year.

The P679.7 million he recommended for

the OVP is not the tiniest allocation in the bureaucracy as was made to appear,” Defensor said.

He said other important agencies of the government are getting just a small fraction of the funds allocated to the OVP. ‘“For instance, P85.2 million is budgeted for the Anti-Money Laundering Council, P146 million for the Anti-Red Tape Authority, P344.5 million for the Dangerous Drugs Board, and P172.3 million for the Commission on Filipinos Overseas. Maybe, we should increase the budget for the AMLC so it could catch

money launderers,” he said.

Defensor, chair of the House committee on public accounts, pointed out that the President and his economic team have proposed reductions in funding for some agencies and offices due to financial difficulties caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

“This is the reason why the OVP funding for next year is P28 million less than this year’s P708 million. The President himself is proposing an P11-million reduction in the budget for his own office,” he added.

‘PH rights violations widespread’

By Willie Casas

BIKE LANE. Department of Public Works and Highways workers put up a sign for bikers on East Avenue, Quezon City on Wednesday, Sept 16, 2020. The sign provides an early warning that the road has a bicycle lane ahead, slow down, and be on the lookout for cyclists entering and exiting the road. PNA Photo

DURING the 44th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in June 2020, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet reported that there were widespread and systematic human rights violations in the Philippines Human Rights group Karapatan said that the High Commissioner found that domestic mechanisms have failed to ensure accountability, and that there is persistent impunity for human rights violations. She also cited that authorities’ harmful rhetoric inciting hatred and violence against women, human rights defenders, political opposition, civil society, indigenous peoples, drug users and peddlers, and relief workers,

which continued during the COVID-19 period, could amount to a violation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Karapatan reported.

They claimed that weeks after the release of Bachelet’s comprehensive report, the human rights situation in the Philippines took a turn for the worse when in the first week of July, as the President signed the Anti-Terror Act that is seen as a measure that will aggravate the attacks and vilification of human rights defenders and civil society.

The exercise of fundamental freedoms and rights has been compromised, with numerous challenges to press freedom and activists and protesters arrested and detained on flimsy charges, Karapatan said.

N z F C D J G o e A

LGUs

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

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LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2020

Enforcers to help cops in Taguig

By Joel E. Zurbano

T

HE Taguig City government has formed a group of enforcers to help the police implement city ordinances and other health and safety measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus disease.

"Taguig has activated a 1000-man Tapang Malasakit Disiplina team to help the Philippine National Police enforce the city's new normal ordinance that aims to help stop the spread of COVID-19," said Mayor Lino Edgardo Cayetano in a statement.

Last Saturday, authorities placed 16 individuals under police custody for violating quarantine protocols.

PNP deputy chief for administration Lt. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar said his men together with Taguig local enforcers apprehended those persons while in the middle of a street party in Barangay Lower Bicutan around 10:30 p.m.

The arrest was made a day after the PNP created an official social media account where people can report individuals violating health and safety protocols.

"The City Government of Taguig would like to congratulate COVID Shield Task Force Commander Lt. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar for the arrest by his men, together with the Taguig police led by Col. Celso Rodriguez, of these individuals who were found in violation of City Ordinance 27-89 that prohibits drinking in public places," said Mayor Cayetano.

Those arrested were also charged with violating Article 151 of the Revised Penal Code for resistance and disobedience to a person in authority.

Cayetano said the city government will continue to pursue violators of health and safety protocols.

"Taguig's citizens are mostly disciplined and cooperative but like any city, it faces challenges. The city takes pride in being among the cities with the lowest active Covid-19 cases in Metro Manila," he said.

Eecently, the Taguig City police arrested more than 400 individuals violating the enhanced community quarantine policy imposed by the government amid the coronavirus disease outbreak.

Most of those apprehended were unauthorized persons outside residence while at least 70 minors were caught violating the curfew ordinance.

Other persons were reprimanded for violating the social distancing protocol.

Cayetano said despite having early COVID-19 cases in March, Taguig was among the cities with the lowest active cases in Metro Manila because of its aggressive approach in implementing rules and regulations.

"Although the city's comprehensive approach is centered on compassion and education--partnering with individuals and institutions to fight the virus---the city continues to vow to pursue cases against individuals and establishments not cooperating," he said.

HAND-WASH POSTS. To help fight COVID-19, Sen. Cynthia Villar has set up portable handwashing stations in areas where people usually converge such as tricycle terminals, market and crowded communities. The portable handwashing station is a project of Villar and her daughter, Las Pinas Rep. Camille Villar for the people of Las Pinas as a model that can be replicated by other LGUs.

McDonald’s strengthens safety protocols in PH stores REINFORCING its commitment towards safety, McDonald’s Philippines will be adapting a more innovative means for contact tracing through the use of the StaySafe.PH app in its stores.

This is in support of the platform launched and spearheaded by the InterAgency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) and the National Task Force (NTF) Against

COVID-19.

StaySafe.PH aims to contain the spread of COVID-19 by encouraging users to actively report their health conditions and symptoms as well as that of their family members.

McDonald’s stores will be utilizing the locally-developed app as a safer, more convenient and comprehensive contract tracing tool not just for customers but for its employees, too.

“In these challenging times, McDonald’s Philippines supports government initiatives that allow us to continue serving our customers in our restaurants and in other channels like delivery and drive-thru, safely. For us, nothing is more important than the health and safety of our people and our customers” said McDonald’s Philippines President and CEO Kenneth Yang said in a statement.

CONTACT TRACING.

McDonald’s Philippines President and CEO Kenneth Yang (standing) supports the IATF-EID’s efforts on contact tracing as McDonald’s stores around the country will be employing the StaySafe app.

CONSUMER group Koalisyon Bantay Kuryente (KBK) disowned some personalities that made representation to the Energy Regulatory Commission claiming to be members of the group.

KBK president Halley Alcarde said they would inform the ERC that Jose

Allen Aquino and Ruperto Supena were not legitimate members of their group.

“We will initiate correspondence with the ERC to officially put on record that we have nothing to do with Aquino and Supena’s claims,” Alcarde said in a statement.

Alcarde called on the two individu-

als to to stop using KBK because not only were they misrepresenting our organization, they were also misleading the public that their sentiment was the sentiment of consumers of Iloilo City.

KBK, registered Securities and Exchange Commission, is a power consumer group in Iloilo City which is a coalition of different groups, including

Globe at Home gives aid to frontliners AS THE rest of the country progresses to more lenient measures under General Community Quarantine (GCQ) policies, the fight against the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic continues among medical frontliners who are leading on-ground.

Throughout the pandemic, Globe says it has continuously extended its support to these hard working men and women from the medical field by providing financial and in-kind assistance in the form of PPEs, prepaid load, WiFi connectivity, and mobile devices.

The telco giant also engages its customers to participate in its various advocacies for the benefit of the frontliners and different hospitals all over the country, it said in a statement released Wednesday.

By Willie Casas IN COORDINATION with the DSWD-NCR Crisis Intervention Unit, Manila Police District, Special Mayor’s Reaction Team (SMaRT), Manila Health Department and 2Go Travel, the Manila Department of Social Welfare was able to give assistance to more than a hundred individuals who wanted to go back to their hometowns and reintegrate with their families amid the pandemic.

This, after the Department conducted interviews and series of dialogues with street dwellers and Locally Stranded Individuals who were rescued through MDSW’s reach-out operations.

“We spearheaded this program in order to help out individuals in our rescue facilities who might want to be reintegrated with their families in places outside the City of Manila.

Oplan Balik Tahanan will also help us decongest our rescue facilities and make them safer places to stay for the rest of our homeless and street dwellers,” said MDSW Director Re Fugoso.

Applicants of the said program need to undergo quarantine as part of the requirement of the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases while their documents are carefully assessed and processed by the MDSW. The MDSW Director also expressed her gratitude towards the offices who helped their Department make Oplan Balik Tahanan possible.

In relation to this, an amount of P 403,000 was provided by the DSWDNCR Crisis Intervention Unit as transportation assistance to the beneficiaries of the program.

The MDSW Rescue Team recently conducted reach-out operations in various areas of the city.

IN BRIEF DA braces for La Niña

MAGALANG, Pampanga—Agriculture officials have mapped out strategies ahead of La Nina to mitigate devastating effects to farmers and agricultural crops especially in farming regions including Central Luzon.

"DA is preparing for La Niña to ensure that this will not have devastating effects to agricultural crops," said Sec William Dar, hoping La Nina rains would be enough to fill up most of the dams mostly needed in the second [rice] cropping.

Dar, who was here Tuesday, announced that farmers in Nueva Ecija and Tarlac were harvesting a minimum of six to 10 tons of rice per hectare using the hybrid rice and other innovative technology.

"Central Luzon has a good future in terms of rice agriculture as it lead other regions in palay production," said Dar during his visit here where he was joined by farmers and some local officials Tuesday. Jess Malabanan

Flower sales drop due to COVID-19

Consumer group disowns 2 MORE bashers before energy body

By Alena Mae S. Flores

‘Oplan Balik Tahanan’ is launched

Earlier this June, Globe At Home launched an engagement program to encourage its postpaid customers to settle their bills within June 15 to July 31, 2020 via the Globe At Home App, Globe One, or Globe.com payment sites while staying safe and connected at home.

For every bill payment made within this period through the said channels, a P25 donation was made by Globe, on behalf of its customers, to support the Western Visayas Medical Center (WVMC) in its fight against COVID-19.

Together with its loyal customers, Globe At Home said it was able to raise a P 1,782,000 which would be used by WVMC for the acquisition of medical equipment and supplies necessary to ensure the hospital’s safe and seamless operations.

members of the Church, transport group at teacher and parents’ association.

Aquino and Supena, allegedly representing KBK earlier announced plans to file a complaint with the ERC to ask for a refund due to the alleged excess systems loss charges of the Iloilo City distributor MORE Power and Electric Corp.

SALES of flowers in Dangwa—the space along Laong Laan and Maria Clara in Manila—have dropped as there are fewer people buying due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to a report on “Unang Balita” on Tuesday, aired nationwide,several flower vendors lamented their low sales amid the high price of flowers from their suppliers.

The vendors said they expected sales to go even lower as all cemeteries in Metro Manila would be closed from October 29 to November 4 to prevent the further spread of the virus during the observance of All Souls and All Saints Days.

A woman vendor said it was the first time in her 50 years in the flower business that their sales got so low.

Meanwhile, some flower vendors went online to boost sales as e-commerce trends amid the pandemic.

According to a vendor, a lot of buyers now order their bouquets online.

Some of the vendors said they understood the need to close cemeteries as this would help in curbing the spread of COVID-19. Willie Casas

SEAMLESS OPERATIONS.

Together with its loyal customers, Globe At Home has raised a P1,782,000 which will be used by Western Visayas Medical Center for the acquisition of medical equipment and supplies that are necessary to ensure the hospital’s safe and seamless operations.

These include two high flow oxygen therapy machines, 230 pcs of high flow nasal cannula, 80 tube and chamber kits with single heated circuit, and an elbow and MR290 chamber.

Opinion Moving in the wrong direction only in three situations: • If the government official who filed it and his or her official representative made a request; • If it is legally ordered by the court in relation to a pending case; or • If the request is made through the Office of the Ombudsman’s field investigation office for the purpose of a fact-finding probe.

T

This policy was clearly set down in an executive order issued by the President in the early days of his administration.

Executive Order No. 2, signed on July 23, 2016, provided guidelines to enable people to exercise their constitutional right to information and spelled out state policies for full public disclosure and transparency in the public service.

Transparency, after all, is a key component to fighting corruption in government.

But sadly, EO No. 2 covered only the executive department, and in the more than four years after its signing, Congress has not deigned to pass a freedom of information act that would cover the other two branches of government.

Now the Office of the Ombudsman, which is independent from the executive department, seems to believe public officials need not be open to public scrutiny, either.

The new guidelines issued by Ombudsman Samuel Martires limits access to a SALN to the person who filed it and officers conducting an investigation.

Under a memorandum issued Sept.

1, the Ombudsman will release SALNs

How does the Ombudsman’s memorandum help in the fight against corruption in government?

“In all other instances, no SALN will be furnished to the requester unless he/ she presents a notarized letter of authority from the declarant allowing the release of the requested SALN,” the memorandum said.

The memo also states that “all requests to inspect or to take pictures of the SALN will be denied.”

The Ombudsman offers no reason for the new guidelines, saying only that they are in line with Republic Act No. 6713, which is a code of conduct and ethical standards for public officials and employees.

The new guidelines effectively prevent the public from gaining access to SALNs, as the press is not included among those who may obtain copies without a notarized letter of authority

from the public officials that filed them.

Under these new guidelines, an investigative journalist wanting to do research on allegations of corruption by a public official must now get the permission of that official first before looking at his or her SALN. How sensible is that? How does that help in the fight against corruption in government?

RA 6713 is very clear: (1) Any and all statements filed under this Act, shall be made available for inspection at reasonable hours. (2) Such statements shall be made available for copying or reproduction after ten (10) working days from the time they are filed as required by law. (3) Any person requesting a copy of a statement shall be required to pay a reasonable fee to cover the cost of reproduction and mailing of such statement, as well as the cost of certification. (4) Any statement filed under this Act shall be available to the public for a period of ten (10) years after receipt of the statement. After such period, the statement may be destroyed unless needed in an ongoing investigation.

The law also spells out specifically that access to SALNs by news and communications media is allowable for dissemination to the general public.

The Ombudsman may choose to parse a reference to “any duly authorized person requesting a copy of a statement” in the law’s implementing rules and regulations, but we are compelled to ask, how is this being faithful to the spirit of RA 6713.

In brief, it is not faithful to the spirit of the law, and this curtailment of the public’s right to know must not be allowed to stand.

The Monday IATF conference IN THE Monday Inter Agency Task Force for Infectious Diseases meeting, two interesting topics were discussed by the President in his usual frankness and candor.

One is about the coronavirus vaccine, which the country is now banking on to deliver us to the Promised Land.

He said that we are now in all probability going to buy the vaccine from China and Russia. This is because the two countries have not demanded any advance deposits. He then said that we would buy only if the vaccines are effective and are safe. Then he proceeded to lambast western pharmaceutical firms by saying that their only priority is profit, because they are demanding advance deposits. This, according to him, is unconscionable and he will not stand for it.

Then he went on to warn pharmaceutical agents who may be in the country to better leave. If he met them at a hotel lobby, he might just shame them. I do not know why he had to say those things on live TV or why the TV station did not cut that portion. It is not something we would like our President to do.

From various reports however, it is not a question of pharmaceutical companies being greedy by demanding advance payments. It is the eagerness of some countries, like the United States, to be the first. Germany, for instance, just gave 750 million euro to ensure that a vaccine would come on time.

This is because according to some experts, pharmaceutical companies will take two to four years to manufacture all the needed vaccines for all countries, given that each person needs two shots to acquire immunity.

There is, therefore, in some way a mad scramble to ensure that a country will be one of the first to get the vac-

DUTY CALLS

FLORENCIO FIANZA cine. This obviously puts poorer countries at a disadvantage.

This is the reason why the World Health Organization is trying to find an equitable way to distribute the vaccines that will be fair to all countries, rich or poor. We simply have to scramble harder not to be the last to get it.

Is the government in such a hurry?

The Chinese and Russian vaccines will naturally help but we must also aggressively work to buy other vaccines from other sources, so long as these are effective and are safe. And in fairness to the pharmaceutical manufacturers, one company came out with a statement that it will not prioritize profit but will be selling the vaccines at a minimal cost. *** The second topic discussed by the President was his approval of the filing of criminal charges against several top former and current officials of PhilHealth led by its former President Ricardo Morales and the current PhilHealth Office-in-Charge Calixto Gabuya Jr. This was upon the recommendations of the Department of Justice Task Force created to investigate the reported anomalies.

Senate President Vicente Sotto expressed his surprise and dismay why

DOH Secretary Francisco Duque was not included among those who will be charged. This is hardly surprising. The President has already cleared Duque on multiple occasions. Besides, is there any official in the land brave enough to cross President Duterte?

My suggestion to those asking for the head of the good DOH Secretary is to let it be—at least for the time being. Remember the saying that all good things must come to an end.

The surprise actually is the fact that charges are being filed at all against former and current PhilHealth officials.

Whether this will be pursued vigorously to its conclusion is another matter altogether. These kinds of cases take many years before a verdict is rendered.

It will therefore be a long wait.

During the same meeting, Secretary Duque reported on the current status of the pandemic. What struck me about his report is that the current positivity rate is about 10.6 per cent which is still high. We have to work on getting that down to less than 5 per cent if we want to bring down the infection rate.

We cannot do this, however, if we start relaxing basic medical guidelines like social distancing. Why the DOTr was allowed to decrease the distance between jeepney passengers and do away with the plastic separators is hard to fathom. The plastics should be kept because this is not only about drivers but passengers as well. They also need protection no matter how minimal.

Is the government now so in a hurry to get the economy into full gear that it is making very risky moves? We have to remember that the daily infection rate is still not going down and the mortality rate and critical cases are going up. This should be a sobering thought to all of us.

MORE OPINION ONLINE (www.manilastandard.net) POP GOES THE WORLD JENNY ORTUOSTE

NAKED THOUGHT CHARLIE V. MANALO

PhilHealth’s reckoning

A desperate act?

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EVERYMAN Meralco’s penalty is no penalty: ERC must do more

by Jaydar Medrozo

Former Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno

Anita F. Grefal

Baldwin R. Felipe

Edgar M. Valmorida

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

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2020

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PhilHealth should get advice from the UK’s NHS

EDITORIAL

HE recent move by the Office of the Ombudsman to limit public access to the statements of assets and liabilities (SALNs) of government officials is diametrically opposed to the Duterte administration’s avowed policy of transparency.

Adelle Chua, Editor mst.daydesk@gmail.com

BUSINESS CLASS

RUDY ROMERO AT THE time he appointed Ricardo Morales as president and chief executive officer of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, President Rodrigo Duterte assured the Filipino people that Mr. Morales, a recently-retired Philippine Army general, had a good professional record and likely able to clean up the mess at the agency.

No more on-thejob training, please.

Time to bring in the experts.

The hearings conducted recently by the Senate, however—and the 171-page report that followed—showed the utter failure of the former military officer’s tenure of the presidency of the institution that is mandated to implement the Universal Health Care Act. Mr. Morales heads the list of officials recommended for prosecution by the task force created by Malacanang to investigate the PhilHealth anomalies.

At the time of his appointment, Ricardo Morales knew next to nothing about the management and operation of a PhilHealth-type institution. He admitted as much. But that was all right, President Duterte said. Mr. Morales’ reputation and record would compensate for that deficiency. Being the chief executive of PhilHealth is not an on-the-job training, but that is how things turned out to be in the case of Mr. Morales. One does not have to be a management expert to be able to pronounce the Morales presidency a complete disaster.

And now Mr. Duterte has appointed a former colleague from his Davao City mayorship days, Dante Gierran, to succeed Morales. Until his retirement a few years

ago, Mr. Gierran was the director of the National Bureau of Investigation. Being both a lawyer and a certified public accountant, the new PhilHealth president/ CEO has more than ample professional qualification, but there have been hints from Malacañang that President Duterte was looking to Mr. Gierran’s investigative experience to see him through the PhilHealth job.

Like his immediate predecessor, the new PhilHealth chief executive has admitted that he knows nearly nothing about national health insurance and the running of a PhilHealth-type institution. But he was willing to learn, the former NBI chief promised the nation. He would do his best.

Given the grave financial predicament of PhilHealth—Senate President Vicente Sotto III spoke of a “deep hole”—this country can no longer be content with protestations of good intent and I-will-do-my-best promises. The time for OJT for the PhilHealth president/ CEO is over. It’s time to bring in the experts.

Let the Duterte administration seek the assistance of what is reputedly the best national health insurance system in the world. I refer to the United Kingdom’s National Health Service. So highly regarded, in fact, is the NHS that at one point US President Donald Trump told British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, jokingly, of the US’ interest in buying the NHS. Emulated by many national health insurance systems, the NHS has racked up nearly 70 years of experience, having been established in the late-1940s heyday of British socialism.

The time for fun and games—lucrative fund and games, to be sure—is over. Really serious business must now begin. The government of the UK will almost certainly be only too happy to provide, if requested, technical assistance to the Philippine government relating to the restructuring and management of PhilHealth.

Mr. Gierran appears to be a good man and a competent professional, but the sustained good management of PhilHealth needs the advice and assistance of people who really know how to manage a national health insurance institution. No more OJT, please.

Developing the right water sources OVERSIGHT

DANILO SUAREZ WITH the hope of addressing our perennial problem of urban water shortage, the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) proposed tapping bodies of water tucked away in the mountains of Rizal and Quezon to augment the water supply in Metro Manila. Hence, the Kaliwa Dam project came to be. However, it is well-known that this project has been criticized.

Studies and assessments show that the Kaliwa River has the potential to supply 600 million liters per day (MLD). The entire Kaliwa Dam project would yield 2,400 MLD since this would involve an additional 1,800 MLD from either Laiban or Kanan rivers. By itself, the Laiban river can add around 1,800 MLD of water, but this project has been discontinued and abandoned by the government due to relocation issues.

On the other hand, the same studies on Kaliwa Dam show that Kanan River has greater water capacity and can contribute a higher amount to Metro Manila’s water supply. Kanan river is estimated to add more than 3,000 MLD, or approximately 38 cubic meters per second, of water supply to Metro Manila. The waters from Kanan may also be augmented by Sumag and Umiray Rivers up north.

MWSS pushes for the implementation of the Kaliwa Dam despite opposition and protests from different sectors, both private and public. The Kaliwa Dam project was originally a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) program in 2014. In 2017, it was transformed into an Official Development Assistance (ODA)-funded program. A Chinese firm, the China Energy Engineering Corp., will be handling the Kaliwa Dam project that costs Php12.2 billion.

Meanwhile, the Kanan River project, should it push through, would best remain under PPP. There are private firms which are equally capable to handle development of water sources at no cost to the government. In fact, pursuing the Kanan Project under the PPP program may prove to be the most logical, beneficial, and practical option. The lesser costs

would, in effect, mean lower water rates for consumers in Metro Manila, thereby benefiting not only the government but the public as well. Moreover, private firms generally are more conscious of the

I call on the government to reconsider the Kaliwa Dam project before it’s too late. ecological impact of such projects. The social corporate responsibility of local private firms enables them to consider and understand environmental issues better than foreign entities. With this, while we utilize and develop natural resources to increase our water supply, we are assured of its protection and conservation.

I have been vocal about the Kanan River since last Congress. The Kanan Dam may be built as a stand-alone project while yielding a higher additional water supply than Kaliwa River alone. With the construction of Kanan Dam, renewable energy sources such as wind and hydropower may consequently be tapped to supplement power in nearby provinces.

So, why pursue Kaliwa Dam? Why do we have to borrow money when there are private firms willing to do the project at no cost to the government? Why are we going to spend taxpayers’ money for a less sound and less secured option?

I call on the government to reconsider the Kaliwa Dam project before it’s too late.

Aside from the issues that strain its construction and implementation, we need to be practical and prudent at this time of crisis. While we can’t see and predict the end of this crisis yet, we need to make sound choices on where and how money is spent when it is limited. If we can only get the wheels turning for the Kanan Dam project under the PPP program, it will significantly help address water shortage and remain a viable solution for a relatively longer period. Clean and adequate supply of water is essential to maintain life. Likewise, a protected environment is needed to sustain life. With our lives threatened by this COVID-19 pandemic, we need to be wise enough to focus on what is essential and more beneficial.

Rolando G. Estabillo Publisher Ramonchito L. Tomeldan Managing Editor Chin Wong/Ray S. Eñano Associate Editors Joyce Pangco Pañares News Editor

Adelle Chua Opinion Editor

Honor Blanco Cabie Night Editor Jimbo Owen Gulle City Editor Lino M. Santos Chief Photographer

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‘Dangerous’ Hurricane Sally to hit south US

NEW ORLEANS—Hurricane Sally is expected to slam into the US Gulf Coast early Wednesday with drenching rains that could provoke “historic” and potentially deadly flash floods, forecasters warned.

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) said coastal areas in Alabama, Mississippi and Florida were in the sights of the storm that was packing maximum sustained winds of around 85 miles (140 kilometers) per hour by 10 pm local time (0300 GMT).

“Historic life-threatening flooding likely along portions of the northern Gulf coast,” the Miami-based center warned, adding the hurricane could dump up to 20 inches (50 centimeters) of rain in some areas.

“Sally is expected to be a dangerous hurricane when it moves onshore,” forecasters warned.

About 75,000 homes in Alabama and Florida were already without power Tuesday evening, according to the Weather Channel, and video posted to social media appeared to show some areas had begun to flood.

At 0300 GMT, Sally was about 65 miles south of Mobile, Alabama and heading north at a crawling pace of two miles per hour in the Gulf of Mexico, though the storm was expected to pick up speed through Wednesday.

Sally is one of five tropical cyclones in the Atlantic Ocean -- a phenomenon only recorded once before, in September 1971, according to meteorologists.

Alabama governor Kay Ivey warned state residents that even though the storm had weakened, “Hurricane Sally is not to be taken for granted.”

“We are looking at record flooding, perhaps breaking historic levels. And with rising water comes a greater risk for loss of property and life,” she told a press conference. AFP

LA fire nears historic observatory L

OS ANGELES—A major fire that has been raging outside Los Angeles for more than a week threatened to engulf a historic observatory and billion-dollar broadcast towers on Tuesday as firefighters struggled to contain the flames.

UNSEEN SMILES. A family walks past the entrance to Luna Park in the Melbourne suburb of St. Kilda on September 16. Melbourne continues to enforce strict lockdown measures to battle a second wave of the COVID-19 coronavirus. AFP

Parliament formally elects Suga as PM REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES TARIFF COMMISSION NOTICE OF CONCLUSION AND DECISION ON THE EXPIRY REVIEW OF THE ANTI-DUMPING DUTIES IMPOSED AGAINST IMPORTATIONS OF WHEAT FLOUR (AHTN 2017 Subheadings 1101.00.11 and 1101.00.19) FROM THE REPUBLIC OF TURKEY (Investigation No. AD-2019-ER-WheatFlourTR) Pursuant to Section 3(q) of Republic Act No. 8752 (Anti-Dumping Act of 1999), the Tariff Commission (Commission) hereby gives notice that the above-cited Expiry Review was conclucfed on 9 September 2020, the date of receipt by the Secretary of Agriculture of the Commission’s Final Report (confidential and public versions).

The full text of the public version of said Final Report may be accessed at the Commission’s website: www.tariffcommission.gov.ph.

The Commission also hereby causes the publication of its conclusions/decision on the Expiry Review, to wit: 1. The product subject to anti-dumping duty, and covered by the expiry review, is wheat flour falling under AHTN 2017 subheadings 1101.00.11 (fortified) and 1101.00.19 (other), originating or imported from the Republic of Turkey.

2. The requirement that the request for an expiry review must be made by or in behalf of the domestic industry was satisfied.

3. There is a high likelihood that termination of the anti-dumping duties will lead to the continuation or recurrence of dumping of wheat flour imported from the Republic of Turkey. Notwithstanding the imposition of anti-dumping duties, the Commission found that: a.

dumping of wheat flour imported from the Republic of Turkey occurred during the period of investigation (POI) for dumping determination;

b.

the volume of imports of Turkish flour at dumped prices was far above the de minimis threshold, accounting for a substantial 16% of total Philippine wheat flour imports;

c.

Turkey remained the top supplier of wheat flour to the Philippines; and

d.

there is Significant excess production capacity of wheat flour in Turkey which indicates more incentive for its exporters to dump their wheat flour surpluses to the Philippines, as its preferred Asian market.

4. Following a finding of the existence of an imminent and real threat to the domestic industry in the original investigation, the imposition of definitive anti-dumping duties prevented the occurrence of material injury to the domestic industry. An evaluation of the economic factors having a bearing on the state of the domestic wheat flour industry during the POI of 2016 to 2019, when taken together, shows that the domestic wheat flour industry was not materially injured.

5. The factors identified in the original investigation, which in totality led to the existence of a real and imminent threat to the domestic wheat flour industry then, continue to exist at present. Careful consideration of the totality of these factors in the current POI shows that a real and imminent threat of material injury continues to exist and that there is a high likelihood that material injury to the domestic wheat flour industry would occur once the anti-dumping duties are terminated.

The Commission found that: a. The imposition of definitive anti-dumping duties prevented the occurrence of material injury to the domestic industry. b. There is significant price undercutting and price suppression from dumped imports. c. Prevailing low prices of Turkish wheat flour in the domestic market have led to Turkey’s continued dominant position as foreign supplier of wheat flour tothe Philippines despite the imposition of anti-dumping duties. Hence, there is a high likelihood that demand for Turkish wheat flour will increase. d. Despite the imposition of anti-dumping duties, the Philippines was the 7th most important market for Turkey from 2015 to 2019. e. Turkey has low capacity utilization levels and hence Significant spare capacities for the production of wheat flour. f.

Turkey’s huge unused production capacities can easily accommodate increased exports to the Philippines and its other major export markets. g. Market share in the Philippines can be easily regained by Turkey. Imports of Turkish wheat flour are highly likely to share in the increase in domestic consumption of wheat flour-based food products in the Philippines, notwithstanding the current pandemic, given their attractive prices, timeproven acceptance in the Philippine market, and well-established supply chains. h. The relative openness of the Philippine market, an established distribution network, and excess capacities serve as compelling incentives for continued Turkish exports of wheat flour to the Philippines In view of the foregoing, the Commission, having established that (i) the termination of anti-dumping duties is highly likely to lead to the continuation or recurrence of dumping, (ii) the imposition of definitive anti-dumping duties prevented the occurrence of material injury to the domestic industry, and (iii) a real and imminent threat of material injury continues to exist and there is a high likelihood that material injury to the domestic wheat flour industry would occur once the antidumping duties are terminated, the Commission hereby orders that the imposition of anti-dumping duties on imports of wheat flour (AHTN 2017 subheadings 1101.00.11 and 1101.00.19) originating and exported from the Republic of Turkey be extended by another three (3) years.

Issued this 15th day of September 2020, Quezon City.

MARILOU P. MENDOZA Chairperson

MARISSA MARICOSA A. PADERON Commissioner (MS-SEPTEMBER 17, 2020)

ERNESTO L. ALBANO Commissioner

TOKYO—Japan’s parliament on Wednesday elected Yoshihide Suga prime minister, with the former chief cabinet secretary expected to stick closely to policies championed by Shinzo Abe during his record-breaking tenure.

Suga, 71, won an easy victory, taking 314 votes of 462 valid ballots cast in the lower house of parliament, where his ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) holds a commanding majority.

He bowed deeply as lawmakers applauded following the announcement but made no immediate comment.

“According to the results, our house has decided to name Yoshihide Suga prime minister,” lower house speaker Tadamori Oshima announced after the votes were counted.

Suga is expected to announce his cabinet later Wednesday, with local media reporting he will retain a number of ministers from Abe’s last government.

Suga, who on Monday was elected leader of

the LDP, is viewed as a continuity candidate and has said his run was inspired by a desire to pursue Abe’s policies.

Abe, who resigned earlier Wednesday along with his cabinet, is ending his record run in office with a year left in his mandate.

He was forced out by a recurrence of ulcerative colitis, a bowel disease that has long plagued him.

Suga has spent decades in politics -- most recently as chief cabinet secretary, where he was known for pushing government policies through a sometimes-intractable bureaucracy.

He has also been the face of the government, doggedly defending its policies as spokesman, including in sometimes testy exchanges with journalists.

‘This is my mission’ His upbringing, as the son of a strawberryfarmer father and schoolteacher mother, sets him apart from the many blue-blood political elites in his party and the Japanese political scene. AFP

The so-called Bobcat Fire was within 500 feet (150 meters) from the 116-yearold Mt. Wilson Observatory, the US Forest Service said in a tweet, while fire officials said crews were in place “ready to receive the fire.”

Officials at the observatory said in a tweet late Monday that all personnel had been evacuated as the fire was “knocking on our door.”

Firefighters battling the blaze had made slight headway in recent days in trying to control the flames that erupted September 6, but containment shrank from 6 percent to 3 percent Tuesday, according to the Angeles National Forest.

“They are in a firefight right now, because it is so close,” LA County Fire Captain David Dantic told the Los Angeles Times, referring to crews positioned at Mt. Wilson.

He said the fire, located about 16 miles (25 kilometers) northeast of downtown Los Angeles, had grown to more than 40,000 acres (16,200 hectares).

“It’s a bigger area now,” Dantic said.

“Before, we had 6 percent containment when it was about 30,000 acres, but now the fire has gotten bigger. It’s a bigger footprint. That’s why the containment is down.”

KNX radio said the fire was also threatening broadcast towers in the area worth more than a billion dollars.

‘Fires utterly predictable’ Many communities threatened by the flames have been ordered to stand ready to evacuate while some 80 historic cabins located within Los Angles Forest were feared destroyed, officials said.

The blaze is among 27 fires currently burning in the state that have killed more than 20 people since many of them erupted mid-August.

Other major blazes have also wreaked death and destruction in the neighboring state of Oregon and in Washington state, further to the north.

The fires have charred more than five million acres (two million hectares), an area roughly the size of the state of New Jersey.

President Donald Trump made an hours-long visit to California on Monday to survey the damage, again rejecting scientific evidence that climate change was one cause of the fires. AFP

Republic of the Philippines Department of Transportation CIVIL AERONAUTICS BOARD IN RE: PETITION FOR ISSUANCE OF CERTIFICATE OF PUBLIC CONVENIENCE AND NECESSITY TO OPERATE INTERNATIONAL NON-SCHEDULED AIR TRANSPORTATION SERVICES COASTAL AIRWAYS INCORPORATED, Petitioner. x------------------------------------------------------------x

CAB Case No. EP20-2728-HEDO92020-249-0

NOTICE OF HEARING Pursuant to the provisions of RA776, as amended, Notice is hereby given that COASTAL AIRWAYS INCORPORATED has filed with the Civil Aeronautics Board a petition for issuance of Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) to Operate International Non-Scheduled Air Transportation Services. The above-entitled case is scheduled for hearing on September 30, 2020 at 2:00 PM at the CAB Conference Room, Old MIA Road, Pasay City before the undersigned, wherein the applicant shall present relevant evidence. Pre-marking and comparison of documents to be presented during the hearing shall be on September 23, 2020 at 2:00 PM, three (3) days thereafter, Applicant shall submit the marked documents together with t he scanned copy to Hearing Examiners’ Division (HED) in accordance to CAB Resolution NO. 6 (BM 01-01-27-2016) dated January 27, 20 16, otherwise known as Less Paper Transaction of CAB. The applicant is hereby required to have this Notice of Hearing published at least once a week for three (3) consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation. The Notice of Hearing and the Application shall be served, by th is Office, to all concerned parties/airlines, either by facsimile or electronic mail, in compliance with CAB Boa rd Resolution No. 97 (2003).

Parties opposing the said applicat ion shall file its manifestation not later than the premarking and comparison of documents, on September 23, 2020 and its written opposition on or before the date of hearing, furnishing a copy of the same to the applicant or appear at the hearing with such evidence as may be proper under the premises. Failure on the part of any interested party to file their opposition on time or appear at the hearing shall be construed as a waiver of their right to be heard and the Civil Aeronautics Board shall proceed to hear and decide the application on its merits.

Let a copy of the petit ion and this Notice be posted at th e CAB Bulletin Board beginning today.

03 September 2020 Pasay City, Philippines MARIA ELBEN SL. MORO Hearing Officer

(MS-SEPT. 10, 17 & 24, 2020)

Republic of the Philippines Department of Transportation CIVIL AERONAUTICS BOARD IN RE: PETITION FOR ISSUANCE OF CERTIFICATE OF PUBLIC CONVENIENCE AND NECESSITY TO OPERATE DOMESTIC NON-SCHEDULED AIR TRANSPORTATION SERVICES COASTAL AIRWAYS INCORPORATED, Petitioner. x------------------------------------------------------------x

CAB Case No. EP20-2729-HEDO92020-250-0

NOTICE OF HEARING Pursuant to the provisions of RA 776, as amended, Notice is hereby given that COASTAL AIRWAYS INCORPORATED has filed with the Civil Aeronautics Board a petition for issuance of Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) to Operate Domestic Non-Scheduled Air Transportation Services. The above-entitled case is scheduled for hearing on September 30, 2020 at 2:30 PM at the CAB Conference Room, Old MIA Road, Pasay City before the undersigned, wherein the applicant shall present relevant evidence. Pre-marking and comparison of documents to be presented during the hearing shall be on September 23, 2020 at 2:00 PM, three(3) days thereafter, Applicant shall submit the marked documents together with the scanned copy to Hearing Examiners’ Division (HED) in accordance to CAB Resolution No. 6 (BM 01-0 1-27-2016) dated January 27,2016, otherwise known as Less Paper Transaction of CAB. The applicant is hereby required to have this Notice of Hearing published at least once a week for three (3) consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation. The Notice of Hearing and the Application shall be served, by this Office, to all concerned parties/ airlines, either by facsimile or electronic mail, in compliance with CAB Board Resolution No. 97 (2003).

Parties opposing the said application shall file its manifestation not later than the pre-marking and comparison of documents, on September 23, 2020 and its written opposition on or before the date of hearing, furnishing a copy of the same to the applicant or appear at the hearing with such evidence as may be proper under the premises. Failure on the part of any interested party to file their opposition on time or appear at the hearing shall be construed as a waiver of their right to be heard and the Civil Aeronautics Board shall proceed to hear and decide the application on its merits.

Let a copy of the petition and this Notice be posted at the CAB Bulletin Board beginning today.

03 September 2020 Pasay City, Philippines (MS-SEPT. 10, 17 & 24, 2020)

MARIA ELBEN SL. MORO Hearing Officer

VIVA MEXICO. A man wearing a sombrero walks near Santa Cecilia square in downtown Tijuana, on September 15, on the 210th anniversary of Mexico’s Independence amid the COVID-19 pandemic. AFP

Israel normalizes ties with Bahrain, UAE WASHINGTON­—Israel normalized relations with long-time foes Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates at the White House on Tuesday as President Donald Trump said similar USbrokered deals were close between the Jewish state and several other nations, including Saudi Arabia.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the foreign ministers of Bahrain and the UAE sealed the accords establishing full diplomatic ties with a ceremony on a flag-decorated White House South Lawn.

Hundreds of guests attended the event, which Trump is hoping will boost his reelection chances in November, but there were no handshakes to cement the historic agreements in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

Bahrain and the UAE are the first Arab nations to establish relations with Israel since

Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994, and Trump hailed it as a “historic day for peace.”

“After decades of division and conflict we mark the dawn of a new Middle East,” he said.

Trump said the agreements, which have been denounced as a “betrayal” by the Palestinians, “will serve as the foundation for a comprehensive peace across the entire region.”

Speaking later to reporters, he said Israel would enter into similar deals with up to nine other countries, including regional power Saudi Arabia.

Netanyahu said the day heralded “a new dawn of peace.”

“Ultimately it can end the Arab-Israeli conflict once and for all,” he added.

“To all of Israel’s friends in the Middle East... I say as-salaam alaikum, peace unto thee, shalom.” AFP

CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW BLACK

Manila

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THURSday, SEPTEMBER 17, 2020 || extrastory2000@gmail.com

PSEi September 16, 2020

Hanoi airport reopens.

TOP GAINERS

TOP LOSERS

Passengers walk with their luggage at the departure terminal at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi on September 16, 2020. Vietnam said September 16 it will resume international commercial flights to and from six Asian destinations, months after a suspension due to the COVID-19 coronavirus. AFP

Stocks end rally; URC, Meralco lead decliners

T

he stock market slumped Wednesday on profit taking to end a three-day rally that sent the benchmark index past the 6,000-point mark.

MOST ACTIVE

The Philippine Stock Exchange Index tumbled 71.59 points, or 1.2 percent, to 5,946.62 on a value turnover of P5.4 billion.

Losers beat gainers, 97 to 87, with 52 issues unchanged.

Manila Electric Co., the biggest retailer of electricity, fell 3.2 percent to P269.80, while Universal Robina Corp., the largest snack food maker, declined 3 percent to P137.

SM Investments Corp. of the Sy Group dropped 2.9 percent to P910, while unit BDO Unibank Inc., the biggest lender in terms of assets, slipped 2.3 percent to P88.

The rest of Asian stocks were mixed Wednesday as investors trod a cautious path following a broadly positive start to the week, with focus on the outcome of the Federal Reserve’s latest policy meeting.

Markets have enjoyed something of a respite from the roller-coaster ride seen earlier in the month, which saw a rout of previously surging technology firms, as vaccine hopes and upbeat economic data offset worries about fresh virus spikes and new containment measures.

Sydney rose more than one percent, while Mumbai, Singapore, Wellington and Bangkok were also up. Hong Kong and Shanghai drifted lower along with Seoul and Jakarta.

With US lawmakers unable to agree on a new stimulus package—despite the first running out last month, leaving millions of Americans struggling—the onus has fallen on the central bank to do much of the leg work in supporting the world’s top economy.

And while officials are not expected to unveil any fresh measures, having already indicated they will keep interest rates near zero for the foreseeable future, boss Jerome Powell’s post-meeting comments will be pored over for an idea about the outlook and clues to future policy.

Wall Street “has priced out rate hikes to 2025, and when coupled with the fact the Fed has already ruled out the possibility of negative interest rates, it will be difficult, if not next to impossible, for the (policy board) to over-deliver on the dovish side tonight”, said Stephen Innes at AxiCorp.

But National Australia Bank’s Tapas Strickland warned stocks could suffer a pullback if investors were disappointed by the outcome.

Manila “There is a risk the market is Standard TODAY underwhelmed by the guidance provided by the Fed,” he said in a commentary. With AFP

WASHINGTON—Armed with a new interest rate strategy, the Federal Reserve will seek to reassure the US economy rattled by the coronavirus downturn as it wraps up its policy meeting on Wednesday.

The two-day event concludes amid a renewed push by a top lawmaker in Washington to agree on an additional spending bill to prop up the economy following a historic collapse in GDP in the second quarter and data showing a worryingly high rate of new layoffs.

The United States is home to the world’s worst coronavirus outbreak with more than 194,000 deaths, and in the pandemic’s opening days the Fed slashed its benchmark lending rate to near-zero and rolled out trillions of dollars in liquidity lines to keep markets functioning.

But the continued fiscal support that Fed officials—including Chair Jerome Powell—say the world’s largest economy needs to weather the downturn has yet to be approved, and with nowhere to go on interest rates, economists predict the policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) will rather attempt show they are doing their part.

“America’s central bank is likely to emphasize a decidedly low rate outlook for years to come to help nurse the world’s biggest economy back to health after a record contraction,” said Joe Manimbo, senior market analyst at Western Union Business Solutions, referring to the second quarter when the business shutdowns caused GDP to collapse by a record 31.7 percent annualized.

As the meeting got underway on Tuesday, Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the Democrat-led House of Representative, announced a new attempt to break weeks of deadlock with the White House and Republican-controlled Senate on passing a new spending bill.

“We are committed to staying here until we have an agreement,” she said on CNBC, adding that she was “optimistic that the White House, at least, will understand that we have to do some things.” AFP

The heiress of the rich Gaisano family in Cebu province could finally see light at the end of the tunnel in the syndicated estafa complaint she filed against her stock brokerage company.

Valerie Gaisano-Sebastian, one of the daughters of business tycoon Edmund Gaisano Sr., has sought the help of National Bureau of Investigation director Eric Distor for the immediate capture of a fugitive who, along with his family and co-executives, allegedly defrauded the Gaisanos in a P3.2-billion investment scam.

Valerie, through her lawyers, informed Distor that a key suspect in the case, DW Capital Inc. executive Wong Ching Yin (also known as David Wong), was hiding in Taiwan. She is hoping the information will prompt the NBI to alert the International Criminal Police Organization, or Interpol, and lead to the immediate capture and extradition of Wong.

The suspect and his associates have been included in the Interpol’s red notice since October 2019 for charges of syndicated estafa at the Cebu Regional Trial Court. Valerie is dead set in Wong’s extradition. She is willing to put up a reward of P2 million in cash for any information from the public that will lead to Wong’s arrest.

David Wong’s capture could finally set the wheels of justice rolling in the syndicated estafa case filed by Valerie.

Her legal suit started in 2017 when DW Capital sold her aggregate investments worth an initial P2.6 billion without informing her of the transaction. She later filed a complaint with the Securities and Exchange Commission detailing the unauthorized transactions.

Valerie in October 2018 charged 10 DW Capital officers and personnel with syndicated estafa before the Cebu City regional trial court. Following the raffle of the case to Branch 7, Judge Stewart Himalaloan in March 2019 issued a warrant of arrest against the accused officers and personnel.

Judge Himalaloan issued the warrants of arrest to at least nine other accomplices who remain fugitives. They include David Wong, DWCI chief financial officer; Derick Wong, DWCI vice president and director; Dianne Wong, DWCI vice president for sales; Lucy Chua, DWCI assistant manager and corporate

STOCKHOLM, Sweden—Swedish clothing giant H&M said Tuesday it was ending its relationship with a Chinese yarn producer over accusations of “forced labor” involving ethnic and religious minorities from China’s Xinjiang province.

The fashion retailer specified that it didn’t work with any garment factories in the region and that it would no longer source cotton from Xinjiang, which is China’s largest cotton growing area.

A report by think tank the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI), published in March, pointed to H&M as one of the beneficiaries of a forced labor transfer program through their relationship with the dyed yarn producer Huafu’s factory in Anhui.

However, H&M said in a statement that it had never had a relationship with the factory in Anhui, nor Huafu’s operations in Xinjiang.

H&M did concede that it has an “indirect business relationship with one mill” in Shangyu in Zhejiang province, belonging to Huafu Fashion.

“While there are no indications for forced labor in the Shangyu mill, we have decided to, until we get more clarity around allegations of forced labor, phase out our indirect business relationship with Huafu Fashion Co., regardless of unit and province, within the next 12 months.”

The company also said it had conducted “an inquiry at all the garment manufacturing factories we work with in China aiming to ensure that they are not employing workers... through what is reported on as labor transfer programs or employment schemes where forced labor is an increased risk.” AFP

NOTICE OF POSTPONEMENT OF ANNUAL STOCKHOLDERS’ MEETING

Key Cebu investment scam suspect in Gaisano case spotted in Taiwan Fed seeks to offer reassurance amid stimulus package

H&M cuts ties with Chinese yarn producer

To All Stockholders: Please be informed that the annual meeting of stockholders of BRIGHT KINDLE RESOURCES & INVESTMENTS, INC.(the “Corporation”) for the year 2020 which is scheduled to be held on 2 October 2020 (Friday) has been postponed and reset to 23 October 2020 (Friday).

The purpose of the postponement is to give the Company more time to prepare for additional matters that will be presented to the stockholders at the meeting.

A Notice of Meeting will be issued in relation to the new meeting date on 23 October 2020.

secretary; Juvy Ting, DWCI independent director; Susan Lu, Beverly Ansay and Leonardo Marzan.

People closely monitoring the case in Cebu, however, are perplexed in seeing how a fugitive like David Wong continues to go hiding scot-free. Yet, he is able to communicate with courts, including his request to transfer the case to Makati City.

Wong has asked the Supreme Court to transfer his case from the Cebu RTC to Makati RTC. The high court granted the request and sent the order to Judge Himalaloan of Cebu RTC branch 7—the original court hearing the case.

But Judge Himalaloan, according to Valerie’s lawyers, cannot act on the SC directive simply because he has already inhibited himself from the case, which was re-raffled to Judge Ricky Jones Macabaya of RTC 7. Judge Himalaloan should have sent back the order to the SC, which could then send the ruling to Judge Macabaya. Judge Himalalon simply referred the order to Judge Macabaya.

David Wong’s request, meanwhile, has emboldened his co-accused, Derrick Wong, who is also a fugitive, to file a similar motion for a transfer of the case venue.

David Wong and his family, and the other co-accused should surrender and prove their innocence to the court as they claim to speed up the hearing of the case. They are still fugitives from justice, though. And by law, no fugitive should be given special treatment.

The long arm of the law will soon catch up with the fugitives and it’s only a matter of time before they are brought in to face justice.

In April 2019, Derwin Wong, one of the accused, was arrested in Makati. Derwin was married to Eda Frances Gaisano, Valerie’s sister. Early this year, members of the Interpol, in coordination with the NBI, arrested DW Capital treasurer Davidson Wong in Madrid, Spain for the same syndicated estafa charge.

E-mail: rayenano@yahoo.com extrastory2000@gmail.com

or

Makati City, 16 September, 2020.

MAILA G. DE CASTRO Corporate Secretary (MS-SEPT. 17 & 18, 2020)

Manila

Standard

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NOTICE OF ANNUAL STOCKHOLDERS’ MEETING DEAR STOCKHOLDERS: Please be informed that the Annual Stockholders’ Meeting of Allied Care Experts (ACE) Dumaguete Doctors Inc. will be held on October 1, 2020 (Thursday) at 8:00 o’clock in the morning, via Zoom Webinar, in light of the COVID pandemic.

For the conduct of the Webinar, please register on or before September 29, through the following link: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/ WN_5V02VvR6SyGzsNKlJViF6Q The link will provide you the process for the registration. You will receive a confirmation email once you have successfully registered in the platform, including the details and procedures in the conduct of the meeting. Voting will be done via the online tool which you can access once you have logged in to the Webinar.

The meeting shall be recorded (visual and audio) for future reference.

The Agenda: I. Call to Order II. Invocation III. Determination of Quorum IV. Welcome Message from the Chairman of the Board V. Reading and Approval of the Minutes of the Y2019 Annual Stockholders’ Meeting VI. Approval of the Y2019 Audited Financial Statement VII. President’s Report VIII. Ratification of the Acts and Proceedings of the Board of Directors, Officers, and Management of the Corporation IX. Amendment of Section 8, Article II of By-laws of the Corporation X. Election of the Board of Directors 2020-2021 XI. Appointment of External Auditor for the year 2020 XII. Other Matters XIII. Adjournment Only stockholders of record at the close of business on September 11, 2020 (Friday) shall be entitled to notice of and to vote at the meeting. If you cannot personally attend the meeting, you may opt to send your proxy to attend in your behalf. Kindly submit your duly executed proxy form with the undersigned, via email, at office staff at acedumaguetedoctors@yahoo.com. ph not later than September 30, 2020 on or before 5:00 PM but preferably by September 28, 2020, to enable your proxy to register in the Zoom Webinar.

Attached is a sample proxy form for your reference. [NOTE: Management is not soliciting proxies.]

The Information Statement and Management Report and SEC Form 17-A are available at the Corporation’s website at http://acedumaguetedoctors. org/.

You may contact the undersigned via email office staff at acedumaguetedoctors@yahoo.com.ph or at telephone number: (035) 4212119 if you have inquiries/concerns regarding the meeting.

Very Truly Yours,

Aejeleth B. Eyas Corporate Secretary (MS-SEPT. 19 & 17 2020)

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

B4

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2020

Business

PSE INDEX CLOSING

Wednesday, September 16, 2020 -71.59 PTS. 5,946.62

TOTAL VOLUME TOTAL TRADES TOTAL VALUE ADVANCES DECLINES UNCHANGED

652,403,260 69,479 5,360,104,289.02 87 97 52

FOREIGN E XCHANGE R ATE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas • WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2020

Currency

Unit

US Dollar

Peso

United States

Dollar

1.000000

48.4280

Japan

Yen

0.009489

0.4595

UK

Pound

1.289200

62.4334

Hong Kong

Dollar

0.129032

6.2488

Switzerland

Franc

1.100958

53.3172

Canada

Dollar

0.758668

36.7408

Singapore

Dollar

0.734916

35.5905

Australia

Dollar

0.729800

35.3428

Bahrain

Dinar

2.652520

128.4562

Saudi Arabia

Rial

0.266603

12.9111

Brunei

Dollar

0.732225

35.4602

Indonesia

Rupiah

0.000067

0.0032

Thailand

Baht

0.032072

1.5532

UAE

Dirham

0.272272

13.1856

Euro

Euro

1.184900

57.3823

Korea

Won

0.000848

0.0411

China

Yuan

0.147453

7.1409

India

Rupee

0.013587

0.6580

Malaysia

Ringgit

0.242248

11.7316

New Zealand

Dollar

0.670900

32.4903

Taiwan

Dollar

0.034231

1.6577 Source: BSP

AREIT signs P1.45-b deal to acquire Cebu office building AREIT Inc., a real estate trust company owned by Ayala Land Inc., said Wednesday it signed an agreement to acquire an office building in Cebu province for P1.45 billion.

AREIT said in a disclosure to the stock exchange Wednesday it signed a deed of sale with ALO Prime Realty Corp. to buy Teleperformance Cebu, which has gross leasable area of 18,092 square meters.

“The acquisition in Cebu is strategic for AREIT. Most BPOs in Metro Manila have expansion sites and operations in Cebu because of its strong talent pool. Like in Metro Manila, Ayala Land has a significant share in the Cebu office market,” said AREIT president Carol Mills.

The company said the acquisition would increase its dividend yield consistent with its growth strategy of acquiring prime real estate assets with stable occupancy.

AREIT is scheduled to pay quarterly dividends starting September 2020 and is required to pay out at least 90 percent of its income under the REIT Act of 2009.

Completed in 2013, Teleperformance Cebu is a Grade-A office building accredited by Philippine Economic Zone Authority and LEED Gold Certified Business Process Outsourcing development in Cebu I.T. Park.

The 12-story building is 100-percent occupied with 17,682sqm leased

by Teleperformance and 410 sqm by a fast-food chain.

AREIT will make an initial payment of P290 million after the signing of the deed of absolute sale while the balance of P1.16 billion would be paid upon the complete transfer of the PEZA registration to AREIT. AREIT said it would use the net proceeds from the recent initial public offering to purchase the property.

The acquisition is expected to boost the company’s portfolio to 172,000 sqm of GLA from 153,000 sqm.

The REIT firm has a portfolio of three Grade-A properties in Makati City including Ayala North Exchange, Solaris One and McKinley Exchange. Jenniffer B. Austria

CAPACITY BUILDING. With an aim to have a wider reach of business development assistance by bringing programs, activities and services closer to the countryside, the Department of Trade and Industry-Laguna Provincial Office conducts a capability building seminar for barangay officials and development council personnel for barangays Tavera and Gonzales at Turumba Spring Resort in Barangay Baño, Pakil, Laguna. The activity is under the Negosyo Serbisyo sa Barangay-Livelihood Seeding Program, which is part of the Republic Act No. 11469, or the Bayanihan Heal as One Act.

SC rules: MORE Power’s franchise is constitutional

By Rey E. Requejo

T

HE Supreme Court said Wednesday it affirmed the constitutionality of the legislative franchise granted to MORE Electric and Power Corp. as a distribution utility in Iloilo City.

The high tribunal also affirmed the pertinent provisions of the franchise authorizing MORE Power to exercise the power of eminent domain and expropriate existing distribution facilities of rival Panay Electric Company.

Voting 8-6, the SC reversed and set aside the decision rendered by the Mandaluyong City Regional Trial Court and, instead, declared as constitutional Section 10 and 17 of Republic Act No. 11212, or MORE Power’s legislative franchise.

The provisions empower MORE Power to exercise the power of eminent domain and to expropriate any asset, including existing distribution assets in Iloilo city.

SC spokesman Brian Keith Hosaka said the court reached the decision during the regular en banc session on Sept. 15.

“In granting the petition, the Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the Regional Trial Court of Mandaluyong City

Branch 209 . . . and declared Sections 10 and 17 of R.A. 11212 constitutional,” a highly-placed source said.

The Mandaluyong RTC Branch 209 in July 2019 declared certain provisions of the franchise of MORE Power as “void and unconstitutional for infringing on PECO’s rights to due process and equal protection of the law.”

MORE Power elevated the case to the Supreme Court which issued a temporary restraining order in December 2019 stopping the Mandaluyong RTC from implementing its decision.

MORE Power, led by businessman Enrique Razon, and PECO have been engaged in a legal tussle over the control of the Iloilo City power distribution system.

MORE Power started the process of taking over PECO’s electricity distribution facilities after securing a legislative franchise from Congress in 2019 following the expiration of PECO’s franchise on Jan. 19, 2019.

MORE Power filed an expropriation case against PECO’s distribution assets after securing the franchise and took over power distribution in Iloilo.

The company rehabilitated distribution transformers, replaced broken electric poles and fixed hotspot connectors as part of the upgrading program for the city’s aging electricity distribution system.

AGUAS’ FEAT.

Insular Life executive chairman Nina Aguas is named one of the top 100 people transforming business in Asia, according to online news website Business Insider Australia. The list came out recently as the world is gripped by a global pandemic.

Those who made the cut were chosen for their vision and innovative changes that resonate across their industries.

The publication cited Aguas’ role in promoting financial inclusion for Filipino women through the InLife Sheroes Program, a partnership between Insular Life and the International Finance Corp.

Gross international reserves soared to record $98.95b in August

By Julito G. Rada THE country’s gross international reserves climbed to a record $99 billion as of end-August 2020, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Governor Benjamin Diokno said Wednesday.

Preliminary data from the BSP showed that the GIR increased by $350 million to settle at $98.95 billion as of end-August 2020 from the revised $98.6 billion in July.

“The month-on-month increase in the GIR level reflected inflows mainly from the BSP’s foreign exchange operations and income from its investments abroad.

These inflows were partly offset, however, by the foreign currency withdrawals made by the National Government to pay its foreign currency debt obligations and revaluation losses from the BSP’s gold holdings resulting from the decrease in the

price of gold in the international market,” Diokno said in a statement.

Diokno said the end-August 2020 GIR level represented a more than adequate external liquidity buffer, which could cushion the domestic economy against external shocks.

This buffer is equivalent to 9 months’ worth of imports of goods and payments of services and primary income.

It is also about 7.6 times the country’s short-term external debt based on original maturity and 4.8 times based on residual maturity.

The net international reserves, which refer to the difference between the GIR and total short-term liabilities, increased $354 million to $98.95billion as of end-August from the end-July level of US$98.59 billion.

Diokno earlier said GIR could exceed $100 billion by yearend, taking into ac-

count the surging price of gold in the world market.

He said that if the price of gold went up significantly, it would gradually increase the total reserves. Gold holdings accounted for 12.8 percent of the country’s GIR. Diokno said the BSP would actively engage in gold trading to seize the opportunity presented by the increasing price of the precious metal in the global market.

He said the shift to active gold trading—from passive trading previously done before he became BSP governor— would be good to manage the country’s international reserves.

“The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas expects the gross international reserves to remain robust in the near term with exports, remittances and investments rebounding amid the gradual opening of business sectors across the globe,” Diokno said.

Jollibee opens stores in Dallas and Liverpool JOLLIBEE Foods Corp., the biggest fast-foo chain in the Philippines, opened new stores in Europe and North America as part of an aggressive overseas expansion.

Jollibee said in a statement it opened a store in Liverpool, United Kingdom on Sept. 3 and another store in Dallas, Texas in the US on Aug. 20.

“Jollibee continues to grow in both North America and Europe. In North America, the Jollibee brand is seeing double-digit growth, with our Chowking and Red Ribbon brands also performing well,” Jollibee group chief executive Ernest Tanmantiong said.

“Our customer base around the world continues to grow as we tap local consumers within each market— expanding it from Filipinos living abroad to a wider, more mainstream market,” he said.

Tanmantiong said expansion plans in Europe were ongoing with another store opening in Leicester in the UK before the end of 2020.

The company earlier targeted to have 50 restaurants in Europe over the next three to five years.

Jollibee said the Liverpool opening achieved double its initial sales forecast, while the Texas location also exceeded its target and served close to 2000 customers on its opening day.

“What is really striking at Liverpool’s opening week was that 40 percent of customers were new to the Jollibee brand, and they were interested to try the food for the first time. This increased to 50 percent by the week after, which speaks to the positive reaction of local Liverpudlians to Jollibee,” Jollibee president for Europe, Middle East, Asia and Australia Dennis Flores said.

Jollibee opened its first store in West Plano, Texas on Aug. 20 to a long line of cars snaking around the store’s driveway to the nearby highway.

Jenniffer B. Austria

Cirtek’s subsidiary bags contract with US wireless carrier

By Jenniffer B. Austria CIRTEK Holdings Philippines Inc. said US-based subsidiary Quintel bagged a telecommunications contract with one of the top five wireless carriers in North America.

Cirtek said in disclosure to the stock exchange Wednesday Quintel signed a master purchase agreement with a telecommunications operator that is scheduled to launch full commercial services on fresh spectrum for 5G services.

It did not provide the expected sales from the new contract, but said it would be positive for 2020 performance. The US telco operator is projecting annual spend of close to $1 billion this year, up by 27 percent from its capital expenditures in 2019.

Cirtek said the US wireless carriers were projected to increase spending by 11 percent to $35 billion in 2021.

Cirtek said that as part of providing pioneering and constantly evolving innovative antenna solutions to the market, Quintel would launch a new platform of small cell antenna products to complement its growing multi-port base station antenna portfolio.

The new product is designed to next generation network which is to be built around existing frequencies and overlaying newly-assigned 5G spectrum under a compact, featurerich form factor with 4G and 3G backwards compatibility.

“Quintel is pleased to take part in building and transforming the information technology and connectivity revolution ahead as networks transition to 5G,” Cirtek said.

IN BRIEF Aboitiz Power is PH biggest power supplier

ABOITIZ Power Corp. captured the largest market share in the power grid, holding 21.3 percent of the 23,409-megawatt national installed capacity, according to a report from the Department of Energy.

The data was based on the 36th Status Report on Republic Act No. 9136, or Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001, covering November 2019 to April 2020.

San Miguel Corp. followed with 20.7 percent of installed capacity, while First Gen Corp. ranked third with 15 percent. Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. had an 11-percent market share.

SMC covered the biggest share in Luzon with 4,556 MW of total installed generating capacity, representing 28 percent of the 16,044 MW in the grid. Aboitiz Power followed with 3,401.7 MW, or 21 percent of the Luzon market.

Other generation companies in the list were First Gen with a total installed generating capacity of 2,518 MW, or 16 percent, and PSALM with 1,615.8 MW, or 10 percent.

None of the market participants in Luzon exceeded the market share limitation of 30 percent. Alena Mae S. Flores

Skyway Stage 3 phase is 88.72% completed

THE Department of Public Works and Highways said Wednesday the construction of the Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3 project from Buendia in Makati City to North Luzon Expressway in Balintawak, Quezon City, reached a completion rate of 88.72 percent.

Public Works Secretary Mark Villar said the section of the project that collapsed because of a fire in February was already replaced as Citra Central Expressway Corp., a unit of San Miguel Corp., rushed civil works of the project to make up for unforeseen delay.

“As of latest report, lower and upper coping beams for pier 3, 4, 5 were reconstructed, and deck slab for spans 5 and 6 were completed as well. These were the burned sections from the fire incident,” Villar said.

He said the 88.720percent completion rate excluded Section 2A or the Tomas ClaudioPUP Sta. Mesa segment which had yet to begin civil works.

“We are intensifying our road right-ofway acquisition so we may soon begin construction at Section 2A. So far, we have acquired 231 out of the 350 lots that need to be acquired with permit to enter,” Villar said.

Darwin G. Amojelar

Smart accelerates tower construction

SMART Communications Inc. is beefing up its nationwide tower rollout, following the issuance of 34 building permits as part of the government’s efforts to help improve the quality and coverage of telecommunications services in the Philippines.

This brought to 211 the total number of building and pre-construction permits issued by the government to Smart since the Anti-Red Tape Authority issued its Joint Memorandum Circular in August.

These permits cover towers to be built in Metro Manila and in the provinces of Batangas, Rizal, Palawan, Bohol, Cebu, Iloilo, Negros Occidental, Guimaras, Leyte, Samar, Southern Leyte, Camiguin, Davao Del Norte, Davao Oriental, Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga Sibugay, Misamis Oriental, North Cotabato, Lanao del Sur and Maguindanao.

“The initiative of government to make it easier for us to build more towers quicker will be a big help in terms of improving coverage,” Alfredo Panlilio, Smart president and chief executive and PLDT chief revenue officer, said.

Panlilio said that Smart built around 1,000 to 1,500 towers annually.

Darwin G. Amojelar

Nuggets rise from 1-3 to stun Clippers; Heat surprise Celts in opener LOS ANGELES—Jamal Murray scored a game high 40 points and Nikola Jokic had a triple double as the Denver Nuggets stunned the Los Angeles Clippers 104-89 in game seven to reach their first Western Conference finals in 11 years.

The underdog Nuggets became the first team in NBA history to rally from a 3-1 series deficit twice in the same postseason.

Jokic completed his triple double by the third quarter of Tuesday night’s contest in the NBA’s quarantine bubble in Florida, finishing with 16 points, 13 assists and 22 rebounds.

His rebound count is the most by a Nuggets player in an NBA playoff game, breaking his old record of 19.

Denver’s dynamic duo combined for 56 points.

“We are just improving. We have talks, we have fights, everything. We are like a couple,” Jokic said of playing with Murray.

An odd couple for sure. A Serbian and a Canadian pair that has engineered the biggest upsets of the 2020 postseason so far.

Denver will once again be the underdogs when they face LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers in the conference finals beginning Friday.

“Nobody wants us here,” insisted Jokic.

But Murray issued a warning for people who think the Lakers’ juggernaut is going to steamroller them.

“They got to worry about us too,” Murray said.

The Nuggets found themselves down by 12 in the first half. They also trailed 61-54 with 10:50 left in the third when they stepped it up and went on a 35-13 run to compile a 15-point lead in the fourth.

“Next is Lakers, another tough opponent,” Jokic said. “But we are going to be out there having fun. It is simple for us, effort and energy.”

Kawhi Leonard managed just 14 points and Paul George finished with 10. Leonard shot six of 22 while George was four of 16 from the floor.

“Internally we’ve always felt this is not a championship or bust year for us... We just didn’t have enough time together,” said George.

Adebayo blocks Boston In the Eastern Conference finals, Bam Adebayo made a clutch block with 2.5 seconds left in overtime as the Miami Heat beat the Boston Celtics 117114 in the opening game of the series.

Adebayo leapt high to take what appeared to be an easy dunk away from Celtics star Jayson Tatum to preserve the Heat’s slim lead, 116-114.

Adebayo then capped the scoring by sinking a free throw at the other end.

“He is the heart and soul of our team on the defensive end,” Jimmy Butler said of Adebayo. “We love and appreciate him. I know I sure do.” AFP

Sports

Riera U. Mallari, Editor; Reuel Vidal, Assistant Editor THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2020

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Bam Adebayo of Miami blocks a dunk attempt by Jayson Tatum of Boston, allowing the Heat to escape with a win on Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals of the NBA Playoffs at The Field House at ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida. AFP

Lim leaves Altas; No coach yet for Lyceum

PH shooters training in backyards

By Peter Atencio

M

Frankie Lim

ULTI-TITLED coach Frankie Lim has left the basketball program of the University of Perpetual Help.

His decision to leave the school’s athletic organization came after the Las Pinas-based University decided to shut down all plans to restart sports activities this year following restrictions that were imposed to stop the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

“Hindi na ako coach. I left na,” said Lim. In the last two years that he was around, the Altas placed fourth in 2018 and seventh in 2019.

His contract has been suspended since the shutdown took place.

The university reportedly plans to reactivate the sports program next year, when the next season of the NCAA is expected to take place.

Lim said he has no immediate plans and has not shown interest in taking other coaching jobs at the moment.

Meanwhile, no new coach will take over the Lyceum Philippine University’s basketball program for the meantime.

School officials said they will be deciding on this soon following the appoint-

ment of former LPU mentor Topex Robinson as head coach of the Phoenix Super LPG Fuelmasters last Friday.

“Wala pang meeting because wala pa namang practice sessions,” said LPU Athletics Director Hercules Callanta.

School officials are waiting for the go signal for varsity squads to resume practices before making a bid to resume their meetings with the coaches.

Assistant coach Jeff Perlas would most likely take over as the next head coach and Director of Basketball Operations of the Lyceum System.

Robinson had to leave the athletic program because league rules in the Philippine Basketball Association prohibit head coaches from moonlighting as a coach of any other team out of the organization.

Perlas has been Robinson’s deputy since leading the Pirates’ program over the last five years.

Lakay’s Adiwang includes Rodtang in wish list TEAM Lakay phenom Lito “Thunder Kid” Adiwang is a huge fan of ONE Super Series. At one point down the line, the former ONE Warrior Series product says he would love to test his mettle against the world’s best striking talents.

Adiwang’s aggressive and explosive offensive style would no doubt hold up very well against the world’s top Muay Thai fighters and kickboxers. One man on Adiwang’s radar is none other than reigning ONE Flyweight Muay Thai World Champion Rodtang “The Iron Man” Jitmuangnon.

The fiery Thai warrior is known for his incredible speed and thunderous knockout power, and Adiwang would want nothing more than to turn a fantasy matchup between “Thunder Kid” and “The Iron Man” into reality.

“I love fantasy matchups. Me against Rodtang shouldn’t just be a fantasy, it should be a reality. I respect Rodtang a lot. I love the way he fights and the energy that he brings into the arena. I really respect him as a true fighter and a real champion,” said Adiwang.

Indeed, Rodtang has emerged as one of the most exciting martial arts superstars in Asia, since his debut in the world’s premier striking martial arts league. He’s unbeaten in ONE Super Series action, with eight thrilling victories on his resume.

Adiwang has studied Rodtang’s style extensively, and believes he has a good grasp on the Thai action star’s strengths and weaknesses.

“His strength is in his powerful strikes. He has powerful kicks and punches, and has that demolition style.

He will come forward and put the pressure on his opponent, looking to destroy them with powerful combinations,” said Adiwang.

“But I think he has trouble when an opponent is good in countering and keeping the distance. He sometimes has difficulty landing when an opponent is elusive.”

While “Thunder Kid” is certainly open to the idea of stepping into the ring in ONE Super Series, the Circle standout reaffirms that he is completely focused on his mixed martial arts career at the moment.

However, if the opportunity to face Rodtang would arise, Adiwang would jump all over the chance to stand across one of the men on top of his list of dream matchups.

“If me and Rodtang face each other somewhere down the line, I will do my best to shock the world. I want to prove to the world that even an ordinary boy can do extraordinary things if he just believes in himself, puts in the work, and dedicates himself to achieving his goals. I want that fantasy matchup to become a reality,” said Adiwang.

“My dream is to fight the best of the best and become a

Lito Adiwang: Aching to fight Muay Thai world champ

champion, and Rodtang is one of the fighters on my shortlist to test myself against. If we fight in Muay Thai, I know it’s going to be a good show. Of course I will do my best to get the victory. But if he ever plans to try MMA, I would love to be the one to welcome him into our world.”

THE firing ranges of the Marine Barracks Rudiardo Brown in Ft. Bonifacio have been closed to civilians during the lockdowns.

Because of this, the ongoing training and preparations of the Philippine shooting team for the coming Southeast Asian Games have been done elsewhere.

That is why members of the national squad are doing their firing sessions inside their backyards.

Philippine National Shooting Association board member Ronald Hejastro said this as he explained how national team members of different disciplines are staying in shape for the 2021 SEA Games.

“After the SEA Games, medyo natigil ang mga activities due to this pandemic,” said Hejastro.

Practices in their shooters’ respective residences have been encouraged by the PNSA. Officials said they can’t do it as a group since the Interagency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases have not yet given the go signal for physical training in gymnasiums and in designated areas.

He said there are 23 national athletes, who need to go into firing sessions in order to stay sharp and in shape.

“There are 23 athletes for shooting. Some of us have our own backyard airgun range, so kahit papano nakaka-shoot,” said Hejastro.

Others have gone online and sought virtual consultations with the national coaches. “‘Yung wala, daily dry firing techniques. Tapos most of us online training/meeting by groups kasi we have many disciplines, around 30 at iba-iba ang turo,” he went on.

He said talks on technical matters and techniques did not stop even in lockdown.

“We discuss online on how we could improve on our ammo selection, how to have better compensators, scopes and stuff. There is so much to learn,” said Hejastro.

Peter Atencio

ASAPHIL keeps softball coaches, players on their toes Jean Henri Lhuillier

IN MARCH of this year, the world of sports came to a complete standstill because of a deadly virus that quickly spread throughout the world, infecting millions of individuals, and killing hundreds of thousands. The alarm was raised immediately and lockdowns were implemented, cancelling and postponing altogether, all sporting events scheduled to happen within the year.

From the Tokyo 2020 Olympics to local sporting meets such as the NCAA and UAAP, the annual competitions were halted for the safety of everyone concerned.

Fortunately, National Sporting Associations have taken it upon themselves to cope with the pandemic the best way they can.

A group in particular, the Amateur Softball Association of the Philippines (ASAPHIL), has been more than active in doing their part since the pandemic began. Members of both the RP Blu Girls and the RP Blu Boys have traded in their bats and helmets to help in various outreach programs of ASAPHIL to help Filipinos affected direly by the quarantine. In fact, some members of the RP Blu Boys also donned military

uniforms and joined the brave front liners manning checkpoints during the ECQ period.

Once restrictions were eased and checkpoints slowly removed from lowrisk areas, ASAPHIL then focused its efforts on further enriching the knowledge of Pinoy softball coaches and players alike who has been stuck at home since the early part of the year.

Just last month, ASAPHIL also launched the Sports Science for Softball which is a 10-series webinar that tackles the fundamentals of strength and condition training specifically softball strength and conditioning training.

The webinar featured Ric Teng the current strength and conditioning coach of MPBL’s Marikina Shoemasters and Nathan Futalan, former PSC and now PBA Magnolia Hotshots Strength and Conditioning coach.

“ASAPHIL has always advocated for the advancement of our Pinoy softball coaches and players through our grassroots programs and this 10-part webinar series is a testament to that unwavering commitment that not even a virus can defeat,” said Amateur Softball Association of the Philippines President Jean Henri Lhuillier.

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Sports

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2020

Stan crashes out, falls to Italian teen R OME—Switzerland’s Stan Wawrinka crashed out of the Italian Open in the first round on Tuesday after a humiliating defeat to 18-year-old Italian Lorenzo Musetti.

The three-time Grand Slam winner, the 10th seed in Rome, lost 6-0, 7-6 (7/2) against a player ranked 249th in the world.

Wawrinka, at 35 the oldest player in the tournament, fought back after trailing 2-0 in the second set, but it was already too late to regain control.

Musetti had only played one tourlevel match before facing the former world number three in Rome, ousting Wawrinka after one hour and 24 minutes.

“I have seen him play on television and I know he is a very tough player,” said Musetti, who will next meet Kei Nishikori in the second round.

“I’m going to enjoy the victory before I start thinking about my match against Nishikori.”

Musetti, the youngest player in the table, was born in 2002, the year Wawrinka took his first steps on the professional circuit.

His coach, Simone Tartarini said before the match it was an “impossible mission” for his young protege.

“But Lorenzo likes this kind of situation, so he’s very motivated,” he said.

Like Rafael Nadal, Wawrinka has given up on the American hard court tour at Cincinnati and the US Open.

His only competition since resuming after a six-month hiatus linked to the coronavirus pandemic was a Challenger tournament on clay in Prague.

The Rome tournament is a tune-up for the French Open in Roland Garros from September 27.

Favorites Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic and top women’s seed Simona Halep will begin their campaigns on Wednesday.

Nadal, after six months without official matches, will take on compatriot Pablo Carreno, a recent semi-finalist of the US Open.

Djokovic takes on 87th-ranked Italian Salvatore Caruso and Halep playing Italian Jasmine Paolini, ranked 99th.

Elsehwere US Open quarter-finalist Andrey Rublev, eased past Argentine qualifier Facundo Bagnis 6-4, 6-4 and next meets Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz.

Rublev hit 25 winners for his 20th match win of the season, winning two ATP Tour titles this year in Qatar and Adelaide before the season was suspended.

Canadians Milos Raonic and Denis Shapovalov both advanced. Shapovalov, the 12th seed, beat Argentine Guido Pella 6-2, 6-3 with 13th-seed Raonic ousting France’s Adrian Mannarino, 7-6 (7/3), 6-2.

Italy’s Marco Cecchinato, a semifinalist in Roland Garros two years ago, battled past Britain’s Kyle Edmund 3-6, 7-6 (9/7), 6-2 and next meets Serb Filip Krajinovic.

Muguruza advances, Kerber out In the women’s tournament Spaniard Garbine Muguruza dispatched American Sloane Stephens in straight sets with Russian Svetlana Kuznestova battling through for her first win since the tennis restart.

Muguruza, the 2016 French Open champion and seeded ninth in Rome, eased through 6-3, 6-3 behind closed doors on the red clay at the Foro Italico.

It was a tricky opener for Muguruza against former US Open winner Stephens who also has a pedigree on clay, reaching the final in Roland Garros two years ago.

Muguruza hit 22 winners and broke

Stephens four times, despite an hour-long rain delay.

She next meets 16-year-old American Coco Gauff, who got her first career main draw win on clay against Ons Jabeur of Tunisia 6-4, 6-3.

“I knew I had a tough match against Sloane,” said Muguruza.

“I’m just happy with my performance since is just the third match I am able to play in a long time.”

Gauff, ranked 53, struggled with her serve with seven double faults but battled back from a 4-2 deficit in the first set against her Tunisian rival who hit 29 unforced errors.

Former French Open winner Kuznetsova had a tougher battle with American Bernarda Pera before pulling through 3-6, 7-6 (7/3), 6-3.

The two-time Grand Slam champion came from a set and a break down and a 3-0 deficit in the tiebreak to set up a meeting with Estonian 14th seed Anett Kontaveit.

The switch from hard court at the US Open to clay proved tricky for former world number one Angelique Kerber, who reached the fourth round at Flushing Meadows.

Kerber, the 15th seed, fell 6-3, 6-1 to Czech Katerina Siniakova who next plays Daria Kasatkina of Russia. AFP

MPBL vows to conclude national finals THE Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League is as eager as the rest to finally get the ball rolling six months into the deadly pandemic.

Commissioner Kenneth Duremdes on Tuesday said the MPBL is just waiting for the go-signal from the government for amateur sports to get back to where it was when COVID-19 struck last March.

“Our (MPBL) founder, Senator Manny Pacquiao, said it’s a must for us to finish the national finals of the Lakan Season,” Duremdes, speaking in Filipino, told the online version of the Philippine Sportswriters Association Forum.

The tournament is down to the last four teams with San Juan and Makati in the North division, and Basilan and Davao Occidental in the South. Both best-of-threes are tied at 1-1.

The winners will move on to the best-of-five National finals.

Duremdes said the league is closely monitoring the situation, and admitted that the MPBL is keeping an eye on how the PBA is doing things as it prepares for a return to actual competition.

Because of its status as a professional league, the PBA, along with the Philippine Football League and the Chooks-to-Go 3x3 League, has been allowed to resume practices under strict protocols.

The PBA is finalizing the details of its NBA-style bubble where all 12 teams will stay for the remainder of the Philippine Cup. Duremdes said in the session presented by San Miguel Corp. Go For Gold, MILO, Amelir Hotel Manila, Braska Restaurant, PAGCOR, and powered by Smart with Upstream Media as official webcast partner the MPBL is looking at a similar approach, adding that a handful LGUs (local government units) have expressed their willingness to host the final stage of the Lakan Season.

The MBPL is seriously considering an offer from former senator Jinggoy Estrada for the use of the family private property and resort in Tanay, Rizal for the MPBL and the four teams.

PLAYERS’ DIALOGUE. Philippine Basketball Association Commissioner Willie Marcial and PBA Deputy Commissioner Eric Castro are shown during the players’ dialogue on Tuesday at the PBA Office in Libis.

EVER since I started covering triathlon events when the sport was at its development stage and its popularity was a far cry from what it is now, I became actively involved in the sport.

The very first triathlon event I covered was in Batangas, I believe in 1987.

There were around 14 entries, one of them a son of a friend. He almost did not make it as he collapsed just before the finish line, but managed to crawl to the finish line.

But when Tom Carrasco shifted his attention from road runs to triathlons and took over from the Benitez brothers, the sport, slowly but surely, started growing

NEW YORK—World number one Dustin Johnson will aim to crown a dazzling return to form with the second major championship of his career when the rescheduled 120th US Open tees off on Thursday.

Johnson, fresh from capturing the end-of-season PGA Tour playoff crown, starts as a heavy favourite ahead of the first round at Winged Foot in Mamaroneck, New York.

“I’m definitely playing probably the best I’ve ever played,” the big-hitting 36-year-old said. “I really feel like everything is dialed in pretty well.”

Johnson will need all facets of his game to be firing at a venue regarded by the likes of Tiger Woods as one of the three most challenging anywhere in the world.

But all the signs so far point to Johnson’s game being where it needs to be if he is to add another US Open crown to the one won at Oakmont in 2016.

He was only narrowly beaten by compatriot Collin Morikawa at last month’s PGA Championship, his fifth second-place effort at a major and third in his past five major starts.

But after that near-miss, Johnson nearly swept the US PGA playoff events, winning the Northern Trust at 30-under par, losing to Jon Rahm in a playoff on a 66-yard putt at the BMW Championship and then winning the Tour Championship to collect the FedEx Cup and a $15 million top prize.

‘Very satisfying’ “It was definitely very satisfying,” Johnson said of his playoff win.

“I feel like I played pretty solid all week. It was something that I wanted to accomplish during my career.”

Johnson has never played the 7,477yard Winged Foot layout, which last hosted a major at the 2006 US Open won by Australian Geoff Ogilvy.

The US Open was postponed from June and qualifying was wiped out due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A field of 144, the smallest since 1932, was selected by exemption categories.

The tournament is also taking place without spectators, something players have had to get used since the golf circuit resumed after pandemic shutdown in June. AFP

Brazilian gov’t backs Neymar in France racism row SAO PAULO—Brazil’s government sent its support to Neymar Tuesday after he was red-carded for a fight in a Ligue 1 match in France, condemning the “racism” that triggered the brawl.

The Paris Saint-Germain star is facing punishment by the French league’s disciplinary commission after slapping defender Alvaro Gonzalez near the end of PSG’s 1-0 loss to Marseille Sunday, accusing the Spaniard of calling him a “monkey.”

Gonzalez denies the accusation. But in Neymar’s native Brazil, the ministry responsible for human rights issues said it stood behind the world’s most expensive footballer.

“In the face of yet another case of racism that has come to the surface in sport, the ministry of women, the family and human rights publicly voices its solidarity with the player Neymar Jr,” the ministry said in a statement.

“Racism is a crime.”

The statement came after Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro on Monday retweeted Neymar’s own version of events.

The Brazilian striker slapped Gonzalez on the back of the head near the end of Sunday’s match, sparking a mass brawl that ended with five players sent off, including Neymar.

He now faces a potential multi-match suspension, as does Gonzalez, if league officials find Neymar’s accusation is true. AFP

Paris Saint-Germain’s Brazilian forward Neymar gestures in front Marseille’s Spanish defender Alvaro Gonzelez (right) during the French L1 football match between Paris Saint-Germain and Marseille at the Parc de Princes stadium in Paris. AFP

Triathlon on the right path

THE BOTTOM LINE LITO CINCO

World no. 1 Johnson eyes second major at US Open

and expanded nationwide in key cities, spurred by a national age-group triathlon series that the Triathlon Association of the Philippines (TRAP) initiated in cities like Davao, Cagayan de Oro, Cebu and Dumaguete, just to mention a few. Fortunately for me, I managed to convince Tom to bring me along to cover the events.

Truth is, my relationship with Tom went beyond my covering his events, since we were both management people, while he ran his own company, even giving me training jobs with his people all the way to Tiwi in Albay.

Then, to push further, he started the Subic Bay International Triathlon even as he was still learning the organizing part. The first race in the early 90s only had 50 entries, but the event gained traction through the years that world-class

and world champion international triathletes started competing regularly.

Soon, our triathletes started dominating in the Southeast Asian region, and duathletes, too emerged in the scene.

Paratriathlon, for the differently-abled, has come to the fore in recent years. Fact is, Tom requested me to initially head the Philippine Paratriathlon Committee or PPTC, which I did for a couple of years until early this year.

Now, why am I writing about triathlon?

For one, the sport’s ruling body, the International Triathlon Union or ITU has taken the lead in holding a world championship just recently in Hamburg, Germany. It was difficult because they had to follow strictly the safety protocols amidst the corona virus pandemic.

So I called up Tom to ask what is hap-

pening with the sport presently, and he referred me to his core group, headed by the likes Mon Marchan, Sarita Zafra, who provided updates, Anton Tangan, coach Anthony Lozada, and old timer Ric Reyes.

Tom shared that he has been slowly turning over the reins of TRAP to a younger group, but will still serve as a senior adviser and supporter of the sport.

Presently, the training of national triathletes, particularly the elite ones is continuing. Kim Mangrobang is still in Portugal under Sergio Perez; Kim Kilgroe and Fer Casares are back in the United States, where they train; John Chicano trains in Subic; and Kim Remolino stays in Cebu under the guidance of his father Andoy.

TRAP is also working with the Philippine Sports Commission for the

needed logistical and funding support for these athletes, while our paratriathletes are also training on their own, guided by head coach Lozada.

Next year, TRAP has already set dates for the start of the national age-group series in February, while the SUBIT race, which for the first time was not held this year since 1998 when it was done in Caliraya, will be on May 1 and 2.

I just hope that other sports are also on the comeback path, planning and preparing their own interim programs for next year. Sports may be in a moribund stage in general now, but I believe it is just a matter of time before we got back on track.

For me, I will continue supporting triathlon and TRAP now and in the years to come.

Entertainment Cardi B is seeking custody of 2-yearold daughter Kulture and child support from Offset, whose real name is Kiari Cephus.

EXTRA INTERNATIONAL

‘WAP’ singer Cardi B files for divorce from rapper Offset AFTER three tumultuous years of marriage, superstar rapper Cardi B filed for divorce Tuesday from her husband, rapper Offset, according to court records.

The couple, who married secretly in September 2017, had already been through a well-publicized rough patch that resulted in her announcing their break-up almost two years ago.

"We got a lot of love for each other but things just haven't been working out between us for a long time," she said in a

December 2018 video on Instagram, where she has some 75.5 million followers.

Despite the turmoil in her personal life, Cardi B has rocketed to success from her humble origins in New York's Bronx.

Her 2017 hit "Bodak Yellow" brought her fame, and 2020 chart-topper "WAP" brought her controversy.

The song is an unadulterated celebration of female desire brimming with graphic sexual metaphors that left American conservatives hot and bothered. AFP

Madonna to direct own biopic MADONNA has revealed that her next project will be the movie of her life­­—and the final product should meet with her approval as she is bringing it to the screen herself.

The 62-year-old Material Girl, whose four-decade career as a singer, actress and cultural touchstone has taken in sex, religion, and other traditional taboos, will direct the biopic, according to a statement from movie studio Universal.

"I want to convey the incredible journey that life has taken me on as an artist, a musician, a dancer­ —a human being," Madonna said in a statement posted to her website.

"The focus of this film will always be music," she added. "Music has kept me going and art has kept me alive."

Madonna, responsible for hits such as "Like a Prayer," "Material Girl" and "Like a Virgin," is one of the most prolific artists of her time, having sold 335 million albums.

She made her film debut in 1985's Desperately Seeking Susan and won the Best Actress Golden Globe for 1996's Evita before directing and cowriting W.E. in 2011. AFP

Madonna is one of the most prolific artists of her time, having sold 335 million albums.

Matteo Guidicelli with wife Sarah G and composer Louie Ocampo.

Celebrity chef and online personality Erwan Heussaff

W

HEN a band’s lineup found itself intact and remained true to its roots, the result is organic and overarching.

That’s audibly evident with The Jenny Thing’s “Lightfield,” a muchanticipated single released in digital stores last July, and serving as take-off single to the band’s upcoming album Drums and Guns.

The track is laden with strong hooks from all corners: chorus, guitar-riff, drum pattern, and bass groove.

Listeners will understand why the group’s sound is linked to classic ‘80s acts like The Cure, New Order, and The Smiths. The new record reflected their strong belief in the nature of their musicality. “‘Lightfield’ carries a pivotal moment of rescue in the Drums & Guns story,” said vocalist-guitaristkeyboardist Matt Easton. “It is also about the British scientist Michael Faraday and all the light in the universe. It is a meditation on love, life, hope, and loss.”

Listen to the song and discover how fun that meditation is. Its cover art of a vintage car emphasized the melody-driven, classic touch of the arrangement.

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2020

"Everyone is going through something this year, so just be kind to each other.

Today, I'm grateful for the sunshine," he said.

Aside from that, several netizens have taken to their own social media accounts to acknowledge the people they are thankful for. You may also join the #100Blessings campaign and show some love and appreciation to the people close to you. All you have to do is share a photo of you with the person you want to thank with a short message. As you post, make sure to use the official hashtag #100Blessings.

To keep the gratitude movement going, you may tag their family and friends so they can also create their own thank-you posts.

For more information, like and follow @LandersPH on Facebook and Instagram.

Well, the respect hovering in the air in “Lightfield’s” nearly four-minute run has to do with The Jenny Thing’s deep background. The group, formed in 1991, took off as a college rock fan favorite in California. Its first record became the best-selling independent record of the year at Rasputin’s Music on Telegraph Avenue.

My good friend Mondo Castro of

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Hook-powered

‘LIGHTFIELD’

Frontman Matt Easton on the piano. He is also a visual artist-writer and of mixed Asian-Caucasian background.

The Jenny Thing in Berkeley

Top celebs lead #100Blessings gratitude movement

DESPITE the impacts of the pandemic, there is still so much to be thankful for.

This is the message from stars Matteo Guidicelli and Erwan Heussaff as they join Landers Superstore’s #100Blessings campaign.

Part of Landers’ fourth anniversary celebration, the campaign is a gratitude movement that advocates stronger bonds, encouragement, and happiness, as it gives everyone a chance to reach out to their loved ones even in lockdown.

On Instagram, Guidicelli thanked his wife, Sarah Geronimo, writing, "My love, thank you for being you. You inspire me and show me what love really means.

Let’s continue to grow and see the world together!"

For his part, Heussaff is grateful for another day to live his life.

YUGEL LOSORATA

Nickie Wang, Editor nickie.standard@gmail.com

The Pin-up Girls' indie glory labeled them "legendary Bay Area indie band" for reasons I'm now convinced of.

Matt met guitarist Shyam Rao while they were students at U.C. Berkeley and they evolved into a songwriting duo. Drummer Mike Phillips is Matt’s childhood friend while bassist Ehren Becker met them in middle school.

Change of addresses pulled the

quartet apart but they eventually found themselves back in Northern California a few years ago. Naturally, they began writing and recording new material.

Matt shared, “Critical was Shyam relocating back to California after time in other states. We hit the ground running immediately.”

Referring to the new album, he added, “The production and arranging run the gamut from very traditional to very deconstructed. For instance, a lot of the initial arranging had us on and off acoustic instruments, including a 100-year-old piano and a couple of Gibson acoustics from the late ‘50s and early ‘60s. Vocals were cut under all conditions from perfect signal chains to being sung through a dishtowel as a pop filter into a $30 mic.”

Lyric-wise, every song in Drums & Guns was written to stand alone as a pop song, or in Matt’s words, “a manifesto, a prayer, a letter, or a love song.”

“Lightfield” is their offering after a long while and it gave the group's following reasons to be upbeat.

Matt closed out, “What holds all things together is that this stuff is being recorded intuitively, creatively, and experimentally in my home studio, and then sent out to two brilliant engineers. It allows us to paint or sculpt with increased abandon—each feeds the other.”

DIGITAL MEDIA

New info-sharing app aims to foster online bayanihan amid pandemic AS FILIPINOS continue to navigate life during a pandemic, they need reliable information to help them decide on things that have an impact on their day-to-day lives. Ready to help them sort through the usual clutter of data online while also connecting with their community is the newly launched information exchange and public service app Sharea.

A combination of the words “share” and “area,” Sharea empowers users with reliable and hyperlocal information about things that matter to them from government announcements, work opportunities, and events that are customized based on their chosen location or area.

This means a person living in a certain barangay or city will only see information that’s relevant to his or her community.

This is especially helpful nowadays as people are advised to stay indoors and are unable to interact with the people in their area face to face.

The heart of Sharea is the concept of digital bayanihan, where people can help one another make sound and safe decisions and overcome daily struggles through exchanging relevant and verified information online. In the app, users can find and share ‘barangay-level information’ that do not usually make big headlines such as job postings or side hustles, water or power interruptions, list of bayad centers, clinics that provide vaccinations, flooded streets, and more.

With an objective of building stronger and closer communities in the Philippines, Sharea has three key features: a Bulletin Board where users can find information classified into health, jobs, deals, transport, ganaps (leisure), and alisto (alerts); a Community Wall where users can share tips, deals, or make inquiries; and Messaging, which allows users to interact and connect with other members in the community. Users are assured that information found on the app are verified or coming from official and legitimate sources, preventing misinformation and the spread of fake news.

For now, information posted in the Bulletin Board covers mainly Marikina, Quezon City, and select cities in Metro Manila,

but many users have started their communities already in various areas. With increasing posts from users, Sharea hopes to build this info-sharing culture among Filipinos across the country. Users have praised the app for the helpful and hyperlocal information it provides that keep them updated about the happenings in their communities.

Download the Beta version of Sharea on the Google Playstore for free at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com. abscbn.kapp. For more details, follow and like Sharea on Facebook (fb.com/Sharea.ph).

Sharea aims to foster digital bayanihan in communities while helping Filipinos navigate through the COVID-19 pandemic.

Life

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

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HOUSEHOLD

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2020

By Steph Llarena

T

HE new, or current, state of life has had us constantly adjusting just to fit in and survive. Businesses transition into what the society needs, shifting focus and providing ways to alleviate the difficulties we’re facing.

When something you rely on adjusts and helps you adjust, this oft-used and oft-dreaded “new normal” term seems to be a little more welcomed.

For instance, affordable residential developer Bria Homes boasts features and services that make it more accessible for Filipinos to own a home even during a pandemic.

The Golden Bria Holdings subsidiary has boosted its digital efforts including online reservations and payments to enable housing-related transactions push through despite movement restrictions.

Throughout the pandemic it has held digital open-house events, live selling, and virtual tours of its project areas to assist aspiring homeowners in their search for safe and secure communities.

In the heart of the digital-centric service are the developer’s well-trained staff members attending to existing homeowners and prospective clients’ concerns and inquiries through the Customer Care Department.

It also helps that the developer has flexible payment schemes—via Pag-IBIG funding and bank financing—for its more than 50 projects across progressive towns and cities in the country.

To ensure health and safety of the neighborhood, Bria said all its communities comply with health protocols such as regular disinfection of common areas, social distancing, and promoting proper hand-washing and sanitation among its residents and staff.

Security, meanwhile, is assured by guarded entrances and exits, perimeter fences, and 24/7 CCTV coverage.

Bria boasts well-designed, budget-friendly house and lot packages, complete with dining and kitchen areas, living room, a toilet and bath, spacious bedrooms, and provisions for space expansion.

Amenities for homeowners include multi-purpose halls, jogging paths, playgrounds, and open green spaces.

The ‘new normal’ way of life FUN IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD. Projects of affordable residential developer Bria boasts amenities such as playgrounds, multi-purpose halls, covered basketball courts, jogging paths, and wide-open green spaces that foster community spirit and let residents have fun without leaving their gated homes.

The community’s well-designed houses are secured by guarded entrances and exits, perimeter fences, and 24/7 CCTV coverage.

Fashionable fans for the win THE clamor for stylish electric fans is stronger than ever. We have retro, Scandinavian, and sleek designs that add a character to the living space.

Then there are fans that combine style with ecofriendly features.

Philippine Geogreen, known for its innovative lineup of green products, has recently launched its newest Haiku L series fans, a range of high quality, industrialstrength ceiling fans.

The Haiku L Series, its makers said, boasts functional design and superior energy efficiency. It comes with an

Haiku fans promise to cool down a room by 6 degrees.

SHOPPING

A.N.A. personal shopper takes care of the client’s shopping needs at Ayala Malls.

PLDT Home rolls out prepaid data packs for e-learning

The ceiling fan’s sleek design blends in with different home interiors.

award-winning permanent-magnet motor and seven airflow settings, while its sleek and ergonomic design allows it to cool rooms at the fraction of a cost of air conditioning— with a cooling effect that is 80 percent more efficient than conventional ceiling fan motors.

According to Geogreen, the new fans can make a room feel cooler by 6 degrees, while operating silently.

The Haiku L series comes in three diameter options. The smallest, at 112 centimetres in diameter, can be used in spaces with limited ceiling heights. It has durable hybridresin aerofoils with black or white finish options to go well with different home interiors.

Haiku’s mobile app and voice integration, available as a Wi-Fi option, lets users change fan settings hands-free.

“We are mindful of the Filipinos’ changing needs, and we will address this by continuing to look for the best green products from all over the world that use cutting-edge technology,” Philippine Geogreen chief executive officer Liza Morales said in a statement.

IN SUPPORT of thousands of Filipino students currently enrolled in online classes, PLDT Home launches two new Wi-Fi data packages made for distance learning.

The FamLoad Study 599 comes with 3GB data per day for 15 days that can be used to access top learning sites and apps including Microsoft 365 tools, Gabay Guro App, Canvas, and NEO. In addition to the daily allowance is 12GB open access data for other online activities such as chatting with classmates, consulting with teachers, and researching and brainstorming for projects.

Meanwhile, the FamLoad Study 999 is perfect for those who need bigger data that can be used for up to one month. It offers 90GB data or 3GB everyday for 30 days that students can use to access online learning platforms. It also has 24GB open access that can be used for other study needs such as emails, social media, online research, messaging apps, and more.

PLDT Home launches two new prepaid data packages made for e-learning.

PLDT Home Wifi Prepaid is available at PLDT Home’s official online stores on Lazada, GrabMart, and at www.pldthome. com/homewifi.

Personal shoppers, delivery riders handle customers’ needs PERSONAL shoppers and delivery services are growing in popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ayala Malls, for instance, introduces its personal shopper service dubbed Ayala Malls Neighborhood Assistant or A.N.A. “With A.N.A., our patrons can have easy access to products from our hundreds of mall merchants from the comfort of their homes.

Our well-trained personal shoppers are there to ensure they get an easy, convenient, and worry-free shopping experience,” said Ayala Malls president Jennylle Tupaz.

To connect with a personal shopper, find A.N.A. through the customer’s preferred mall’s Facebook page or Viber, order the items through the mall ordering form, speak with the A.N.A. who will process the order, and pay for the order including service fee through cashless payment channels available.

Service rates start at P50 for one store, while personal shopping at the supermarket or department store has a flat rate of P200.

Orders can be delivered straight to customer’s home or picked up at the mall’s DriveBuy. A.N.A. is currently available in 25 Ayala Malls and will roll out in other establishments in the coming weeks.

Shangri-La Plaza mall in Mandaluyong, meanwhile, teamed up with delivery apps JoyRide and MyKuya to help bring Shang brands and products straight to shoppers’ doorsteps.

When purchasing items from a single store, Shang recommends JoyRide.

First, the customer needs to contact the store directly to order items—payment options vary depending on the store. After paying, the JoyRide driver will pick up and deliver the item. The customer can

choose to book the JoyRide driver themselves or ask the store to do so on their behalf. Delivery fees will be charged to the customer.

MyKuya is ideal for shopping spree across several stores in the Shang. The app matches customers with their personal shoppers, who can be instructed on what to purchase.

To use the service, download and register on the app, pin the location on Mandaluyong City/Ortigas, and tap the Shang logo and select the duration of your shopping time.

After being matched with a Kuya or Ate, customers can discuss payment options—if it’s less than P1,000, the personal shopper can pay for the items first. If the purchase price is more than P1,000, they will drop by the customer’s place first to get the money. Service fees will be deducted from the registered Visa or Personal shoppers can be booked online for a convenient shopping experience.

MasterCard.